Srimad Bhagavatam Canto 5 Chapter 24 Verse 18

Canto 5: The Creative Impetus | Chapter 24: The Subterranean Heavenly Planets

Bhaktivedanta VedaBase: Śrīmad Bhāgavatam 5.24.18

tato 'dhastāt sutale udāra-śravāḥ puṇya-śloko virocanātmajo balir bhagavatā mahendrasya priyaḿ cikīrṣamāṇenāditer labdha-kāyo bhūtvā vaṭu-vāmana-rūpeṇa parākṣipta-loka-trayo bhagavad-anukampayaiva punaḥ praveśita indrādiṣv avidyamānayā susamṛddhayā śriyābhijuṣṭaḥ sva-dharmeṇārādhayaḿs tam eva bhagavantam ārādhanīyam apagata-sādhvasa āste 'dhunāpi

SYNONYMS

tataḥ adhastāt — beneath the planet known as Vitala; sutale — on the planet known as Sutala; udāra-śravāḥ — very greatly celebrated; puṇya-ślokaḥ — very pious and advanced in spiritual consciousness; virocana-ātmajaḥ — the son of Virocana; baliḥ — Bali Mahārāja; bhagavatā — by the Supreme Personality of Godhead; mahā-indrasya — of the King of heaven, Indra; priyam — the welfare; cikīrṣamāṇena — desiring to perform; āditeḥ — from Aditi; labdha-kāyaḥ — having obtained His body; bhūtvā — appearing; vaṭu — brahmacāri; vāmana-rūpeṇa — in the form of a dwarf; parākṣipta — wrested away; loka-trayaḥ — the three worlds; bhagavat-anukampayā — by the causeless mercy of the Supreme Personality of Godhead; eva — certainly; punaḥ — again; praveśitaḥ — caused to enter; indra-ādiṣu — even among the demigods like the King of heaven; avidyamānayā — not existing; susamṛddhayā — much enriched by such exalted opulence; śriyā — by good fortune; abhijuṣṭaḥ — being blessed; sva-dharmeṇa — by discharging devotional service; ārādhayan — worshiping; tam — Him; eva — certainly; bhagavantam — the Supreme Personality of Godhead; ārādhanīyam — who is most worshipable; apagata-sādhvasaḥ — without fear; āste — remains; adhunā api — even today.

TRANSLATION

Below the planet Vitala is another planet, known as Sutala, where the great son of Mahārāja Virocana, Bali Mahārāja, who is celebrated as the most pious king, resides even now. For the welfare of Indra, the King of heaven, Lord Viṣṇu appeared in the form of a dwarf brahmacārī as the son of Aditi and tricked Bali Mahārāja by begging for only three paces of land but taking all the three worlds. Being very pleased with Bali Mahārāja for giving all his possessions, the Lord returned his kingdom and made him richer than the opulent King Indra. Even now, Bali Mahārāja engages in devotional service by worshiping the Supreme Personality of Godhead in the planet of Sutala.

PURPORT

The Supreme Personality of Godhead is described as Uttamaśloka, "He who is worshiped by the best of selected Sanskrit verses," and His devotees such as Bali Mahārāja are also worshiped by puṇya-śloka, verses that increase one's piety. Bali Mahārāja offered everything to the Lord — his wealth, his kingdom and even his own body (sarvātma-nivedane baliḥ). The Lord appeared before Bali Mahārāja as a brāhmaṇa beggar, and Bali Mahārāja gave Him everything he had. However, Bali Mahārāja did not become poor; by donating all his possessions to the Supreme Personality of Godhead, he became a successful devotee and got everything back again with the blessings of the Lord. Similarly, those who give contributions to expand the activities of the Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement and to accomplish its objectives will never be losers; they will get their wealth back with the blessings of Lord Kṛṣṇa. On the other side, those who collect contributions on behalf of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness should be very careful not to use even a farthing of the collection for any purpose other than the transcendental loving service of the Lord.

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