Srimad Bhagavatam Canto 3 Chapter 15 Verse 21

Canto 3: The Status Quo | Chapter 15: Description of the Kingdom of God

Bhaktivedanta VedaBase: Śrīmad Bhāgavatam 3.15.21

śrī rūpiṇī kvaṇayatī caraṇāravindaḿ

līlāmbujena hari-sadmani mukta-doṣā

saḿlakṣyate sphaṭika-kuḍya upeta-hemni

sammārjatīva yad-anugrahaṇe 'nya-yatnaḥ

SYNONYMS

śrī — Lakṣmī, the goddess of fortune; rūpiṇī — assuming a beautiful form; kvaṇayatī — tinkling; caraṇa-aravindam — lotus feet; līlā-ambujena — playing with a lotus flower; hari-sadmani — the house of the Supreme Personality; mukta-doṣā — freed from all faults; saḿlakṣyate — becomes visible; sphaṭika — crystal; kuḍye — walls; upeta — mixed; hemni — gold; sammārjatī iva — appearing like a sweeper; yat-anugrahaṇe — to receive her favor; anya — others'; yatnaḥ — very much careful.

TRANSLATION

The ladies in the Vaikuṇṭha planets are as beautiful as the goddess of fortune herself. Such transcendentally beautiful ladies, their hands playing with lotuses and their leg bangles tinkling, are sometimes seen sweeping the marble walls, which are bedecked at intervals with golden borders, in order to receive the grace of the Supreme Personality of Godhead.

PURPORT

In the Brahma-saḿhitā it is stated that the Supreme Lord, Govinda, is always served in His abode by many, many millions of goddesses of fortune. Lakṣmī-sahasra-śata-sambhrama-sevyamānam [Bs. 5.29]. These millions and trillions of goddesses of fortune who reside in the Vaikuṇṭha planets are not exactly consorts of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, but are the wives of the devotees of the Lord and also engage in the service of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. It is stated here that in the Vaikuṇṭha planets the houses are made of marble. Similarly, in the Brahma-saḿhitā it is stated that the ground on the Vaikuṇṭha planets is made of touchstone. Thus there is no need to sweep the stone in Vaikuṇṭha, for there is hardly any dust on it, but still, in order to satisfy the Lord, the ladies there always engage in dusting the marble walls. Why? The reason is that they are eager to achieve the grace of the Lord by doing so.

It is also stated here that in the Vaikuṇṭha planets the goddesses of fortune are faultless. Generally the goddess of fortune does not remain steadily in one place. Her name is Cañcalā, which means "one who is not steady." We find, therefore, that a man who is very rich may become the poorest of the poor. Another example is Rāvaṇa. Rāvaṇa took away Lakṣmī, Sītājī, to his kingdom, and instead of being happy by the grace of Lakṣmī, his family and his kingdom were vanquished. Thus Lakṣmī in the house of Rāvaṇa is Cañcalā, or unsteady. Men of Rāvaṇa's class want Lakṣmī only, without her husband, Nārāyaṇa; therefore they become unsteady due to Lakṣmījī. Materialistic persons find fault on the part of Lakṣmī, but in Vaikuṇṭha Lakṣmījī is fixed in the service of the Lord. In spite of her being the goddess of fortune, she cannot be happy without the grace of the Lord. Even the goddess of fortune needs the Lord's grace in order to be happy, yet in the material world even Brahmā, the highest created being, seeks the favor of Lakṣmī for happiness.

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His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupāda, Founder Ācārya of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness