Srimad Bhagavatam — Shashtha Skandha, Shloka 43

Ajāmila Delivered: Viṣṇudūtas Establish the Supremacy of the Holy Name

Devanagari script

हित्वा कलेवरं तीर्थे गङ्गायां दर्शनादनु । सद्य: स्वरूपं जगृहे भगवत्पार्श्ववर्तिनाम् ॥ ४३ ॥

Transliteration

hitvā kalevaraṁ tīrthe gaṅgāyāṁ darśanād anu sadyaḥ svarūpaṁ jagṛhe bhagavat-pārśva-vartinām

Translation

ಗಂಗಾತಟದ ಹರಿದ್ವಾರದಲ್ಲಿ ವಿಷ್ಣುದೂತರ ದರ್ಶನವಾಗುತ್ತಿದ್ದಂತೆಯೇ ಅಜಾಮಿಲನು ದೇಹತ್ಯಾಗ ಮಾಡಿದನು. ತಕ್ಷಣವೇ ಭಗವಂತನ ಪಾರ್ಷದರಿಗೆ ಯೋಗ್ಯವಾದ ತನ್ನ ದಿವ್ಯ ಸ್ವರೂಪವನ್ನು ಪಡೆದನು.

Synonyms

• hitvā: having abandoned
• hitvā: Kriyāviśeṣaṇa (क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Verb
• Root: hā (धातु)
• Form: क्त्वान्त अव्ययकृदन्त (absolutive/gerund), from √हा; ‘having abandoned’

• kalevaram: body
• kalevaram: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kalevara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन (Neuter, Accusative, Singular)

• tīrthe: at a sacred ford/place
• tīrthe: Adhikaraṇa (अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tīrtha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी-विभक्ति, एकवचन (Neuter, Locative, Singular)

• gaṅgāyām: in the Ganges
• gaṅgāyām: Adhikaraṇa (अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: gaṅgā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, सप्तमी-विभक्ति, एकवचन (Feminine, Locative, Singular)

• darśanāt: from (the act of) seeing
• darśanāt: Hetu/Apādāna (हेतु/अपादान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: darśana (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, पञ्चमी-विभक्ति, एकवचन (Neuter, Ablative, Singular)

• anu: after
• anu: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: anu (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; उपसर्ग/निपात (indeclinable particle) = ‘after, following’

• sadyaḥ: immediately
• sadyaḥ: Kriyāviśeṣaṇa (क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: sadyaḥ (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; कालवाचक क्रियाविशेषण (temporal adverb)

• svarūpam: his own form
• svarūpam: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: sva-rūpa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: तत्पुरुष-समास (षष्ठी/कर्मधारय-भाव: ‘own form’); नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन (Neuter, Accusative, Singular)

• jagṛhe: he assumed/took
• jagṛhe: Kriyā (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: grah (धातु)
• Form: लिट्-लकार (Perfect), परस्मैपद; प्रथम-पुरुष, एकवचन (3rd person singular)

• bhagavat-pārśva-vartinām: of those who attend the Lord
• bhagavat-pārśva-vartinām: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: bhagavat (प्रातिपदिक) + pārśva (प्रातिपदिक) + vartin (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: तत्पुरुष-समास (‘those abiding at the Lord’s side’); पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी-विभक्ति, बहुवचन (Masculine, Genitive, Plural)

Purport

The Lord says in Bhagavad-gītā (4.9) :

Characters & Entities

• Gaṅgā
• Bhagavān (the Supreme Lord)
• Bhagavat-pārśva-vartinaḥ (the Lord’s attendants)

FAQs

What does the Srimad Bhagavatam say about attaining a spiritual body after death?

This verse states that after giving up the material body at a holy tīrtha like the Gaṅgā and receiving divine darśana, one can immediately attain a spiritual form like the Lord’s attendants.

Who is speaking this verse in Bhagavatam 6.2.43 and in what context?

Śukadeva Gosvāmī narrates it to Mahārāja Parīkṣit while concluding Ajāmila’s deliverance—describing how Ajāmila left his body at the Gaṅgā and attained a form suitable for association with the Lord’s servants.

How can a modern devotee apply the teaching of Bhagavatam 6.2.43?

Seek purification through sincere devotion, holy association, and remembrance of the Lord; honor sacred places like the Gaṅgā with faith, understanding that divine remembrance and bhakti transform one’s destiny beyond the body.