Srimad Bhagavatam — Panchama Skandha, Shloka 31
Ṛṣabhadeva Instructs His Sons: Tapasya, Mahātmā-Sevā, and Cutting the Heart-Knot
अतिसुकुमारकरचरणोर:स्थलविपुलबाह्वंसगलवदनाद्यवयवविन्यास: प्रकृतिसुन्दरस्वभावहाससुमुखो नवनलिनदलायमानशिशिरतारारुणायतनयनरुचिर: सदृशसुभगकपोलकर्णकण्ठनासो विगूढस्मितवदनमहोत्सवेन पुरवनितानां मनसि कुसुमशरासनमुपदधान: परागवलम्बमानकुटिलजटिलकपिशकेशभूरिभारोऽवधूतमलिननिजशरीरेण ग्रहगृहीत इवादृश्यत ॥ ३१ ॥
ati-sukumāra-kara-caraṇoraḥ-sthala-vipula-bāhv-aṁsa-gala-vadanādy-avayava-vinyāsaḥ prakṛti-sundara-svabhāva-hāsa-sumukho nava-nalina-dalāyamāna-śiśira-tārāruṇāyata-nayana-ruciraḥ sadṛśa-subhaga-kapola-karṇa-kaṇṭha-nāso vigūḍha-smita-vadana-mahotsavena pura-vanitānāṁ manasi kusuma-śarāsanam upadadhānaḥ parāg-avalambamāna-kuṭila-jaṭila-kapiśa-keśa-bhūri-bhāro ’vadhūta-malina-nija-śarīreṇa graha-gṛhīta ivādṛśyata.
主瑞沙婆提婆的双手、双足与胸膛修长；肩、面与诸肢体极其柔美，比例匀称。天然的微笑装点其容颜；他那微带红晕、如清晨露润新生莲瓣般舒展的广阔双眼，殊胜悦目，令人一见便消诸苦恼。其额、耳、颈、鼻等一切相好皆极端庄；温柔的笑意甚至摄受城中已婚妇女之心，宛如被爱神迦摩之箭所中。其首上披垂卷曲纠结的褐色发束；因不加修饰而散乱污秽，使他看似如被鬼魅所缠。
Although Lord Ṛṣabhadeva’s body was very much neglected, His transcendental features were so attractive that even married women were attracted to Him. His beauty and dirtiness combined to make His beautiful body appear as though it were haunted by a ghost.
FAQs
This verse says Ṛṣabhadeva was naturally and divinely beautiful, yet He kept His body neglected and unclean like a renunciant, so people perceived Him as if “seized by a ghost,” highlighting His deliberate transcendence of social norms.
Śukadeva presents the contrast to show that Ṛṣabhadeva is beyond bodily identity: His spiritual splendor is inherent, while His avadhūta-like neglect of the body teaches detachment and indifference to worldly judgment.
Cultivate inner purity and devotion rather than obsessing over external validation—use beauty, talent, or charisma responsibly, but practice humility and detachment from image, status, and public opinion.