Shloka 24
Pauṇḍraka’s False Vāsudeva Claim, His Death, and the Burning of Vārāṇasī by Sudarśana
स नित्यं भगवद्ध्यानप्रध्वस्ताखिलबन्धन: । बिभ्राणश्च हरे राजन् स्वरूपं तन्मयोऽभवत् ॥ २४ ॥
sa nityaṁ bhagavad-dhyāna- pradhvastākhila-bandhanaḥ bibhrāṇaś ca hare rājan svarūpaṁ tan-mayo ’bhavat
Dia sentiasa bermeditasi kepada Bhagavān lalu memusnahkan segala ikatan duniawi. Wahai Raja, dengan meniru rupa Hari, akhirnya dia menjadi tanmaya, sedar akan Kṛṣṇa.
Śrīla Prabhupāda writes as follows in Kṛṣṇa: “As far as Pauṇḍraka was concerned, somehow or other he always thought of Vāsudeva by falsely dressing himself in imitation of the Lord. Therefore Pauṇḍraka achieved sārūpya, one of the five kinds of liberation, and was thus promoted to the Vaikuṇṭha planets, where the devotees have the same bodily features as Viṣṇu, with four hands holding the four symbols. Factually, his meditation was concentrated on the Viṣṇu form, but because he thought himself Lord Viṣṇu, he was offensive. After being killed by Kṛṣṇa, however, that offense was also mitigated. Thus he was given sārūpya liberation, and he attained the same form as the Lord.”
FAQs
This verse states that constant bhagavad-dhyāna destroys all bondage, and sustained absorption in Hari’s form makes one fully God-centered in consciousness (tan-maya).
Śukadeva is addressing Parīkṣit Mahārāja directly, emphasizing the practical, urgent instruction that remembrance of Hari is the sure path beyond bondage.
Keep the mind anchored in the Lord through regular japa, hearing/reading Bhāgavatam, and mentally recalling Hari’s form and qualities during routine work—turning daily life into continuous smaraṇa (remembrance).