Srimad Bhagavatam — Dvadasha Skandha, Shloka 33

Mārkaṇḍeya Ṛṣi Tested by Indra and Blessed by Nara-Nārāyaṇa

Devanagari script

तौ शुक्लकृष्णौ नवकञ्जलोचनौ चतुर्भुजौ रौरववल्कलाम्बरौ । पवित्रपाणी उपवीतकं त्रिवृत् कमण्डलुं दण्डमृजुं च वैणवम् ॥ ३३ ॥ पद्माक्षमालामुत जन्तुमार्जनं वेदं च साक्षात्तप एव रूपिणौ । तपत्तडिद्वर्णपिशङ्गरोचिषा प्रांशू दधानौ विबुधर्षभार्चितौ ॥ ३४ ॥

Transliteration

tau śukla-kṛṣṇau nava-kañja-locanau catur-bhujau raurava-valkalāmbarau pavitra-pāṇī upavītakaṁ tri-vṛt kamaṇḍaluṁ daṇḍam ṛjuṁ ca vaiṇavam

Translation

二圣一白一黝，目如新莲之瓣，皆具四臂；身披鹿皮与树皮衣，佩三股圣线；其净化之手执行者水壶（kamaṇḍalu）、直杖与竹制器（vaiṇava）。

Synonyms

• tau: those two
• tau: Kartā (कर्ता; subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Nominative (1st/प्रथमा), Dual; pronoun

• śukla-kṛṣṇau: white and dark (complexioned)
• śukla-kṛṣṇau: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण; qualifier of ‘tau’)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: śukla + kṛṣṇa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Nominative (1st/प्रथमा), Dual; itaretara-dvandva used adjectivally: ‘white and dark’

• nava-kañja-locanau: with eyes like new lotuses
• nava-kañja-locanau: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: nava + kañja + locana (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Nominative (1st/प्रथमा), Dual; bahuvrīhi: ‘having eyes like fresh lotuses’

• catur-bhujau: four-armed
• catur-bhujau: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: catur + bhuja (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Nominative (1st/प्रथमा), Dual; bahuvrīhi: ‘having four arms’

• raurava-valkala-ambarau: clad in raurava-skin and bark garments
• raurava-valkala-ambarau: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: raurava + valkala + ambara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Nominative (1st/प्रथमा), Dual; bahuvrīhi: ‘whose garment is raurava-skin and bark-cloth’ (wearing raurava-hide/bark as clothing)

• pavitra-pāṇī: with purifying rings/grass on their hands
• pavitra-pāṇī: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: pavitra + pāṇi (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Nominative (1st/प्रथमा), Dual; bahuvrīhi: ‘having hands with pavitra (purifying ring/grass)’

• upavītakam: sacred thread
• upavītakam: Karma (कर्म; item borne/held)
• Type: Noun
• Root: upavītaka (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Neuter, Accusative (2nd/द्वितीया), Singular

• tri-vṛt: threefold (three-stranded)
• tri-vṛt: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण; qualifier of ‘upavītakam’)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: tri + vṛt (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: (As adjective to upavītakam) Neuter, Accusative (2nd/द्वितीया), Singular; dvigu: ‘threefold/twisted in three strands’

• kamaṇḍalum: water-pot
• kamaṇḍalum: Karma (कर्म; item borne/held)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kamaṇḍalu (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Accusative (2nd/द्वितीया), Singular

• daṇḍam: staff
• daṇḍam: Karma (कर्म; item borne/held)
• Type: Noun
• Root: daṇḍa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Accusative (2nd/द्वितीया), Singular

• ṛjum: straight
• ṛjum: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: ṛju (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Accusative (2nd/द्वितीया), Singular; adjective qualifying ‘daṇḍam’

• ca: and
• ca: Samuccaya (समुच्चय; coordinator)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: Indeclinable conjunction (समुच्चयबोधक अव्यय)

• vaiṇavam: a bamboo implement (bamboo staff)
• vaiṇavam: Karma (कर्म; item borne/held)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vaiṇava (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Neuter, Accusative (2nd/द्वितीया), Singular; ‘made of bamboo’ (often: bamboo staff/flute-like implement)

Characters & Entities

• Nara
• Nārāyaṇa
• Mārkaṇḍeya Ṛṣi

FAQs

Who are Nara and Nārāyaṇa in Srimad Bhagavatam 12.8?

They are the Supreme Lord manifesting as twin sages at Badarikāśrama, exemplifying perfect tapasya and divine protection, as seen in Mārkaṇḍeya Ṛṣi’s vision.

Why are Nara-Nārāyaṇa described with both ascetic items and four arms?

The verse shows the Lord’s synthesis of renunciation and sovereignty: externally the equipment of a sage (bark, kamaṇḍalu, staff), and inherently divine majesty (four-armed form).

How can a modern devotee apply the lesson of this verse?

Cultivate purity and discipline (tapasya) while remembering that the goal of renunciation is loving devotion to the Supreme, who is both near as a guide and supreme as the Lord.