Praise of King Prithu by the Professional Reciters

Verse 1 (bhagavata.4.16.1)

मैत्रेय उवाच इति ब्रुवाणं नृपतिं गायका मुनिचोदिताः । तुष्टुवुस्तुष्टमनसस्तद्वागमृतसेवया ॥ 16.1 ॥

maitreya uvāca iti bruvāṇaṁ nṛpatiṁ gāyakā muni-coditāḥ tuṣṭuvus tuṣṭa-manasas tad-vāg-amṛta-sevayā

Maitreya continued: While the king thus spoke, the reciters, instructed by the sages, their hearts delighted by that nectar-like humility of his speech, praised him yet again.

Verse 2 (bhagavata.4.16.2)

नालं वयं ते महिमानुवर्णने यो देववर्योऽवततार मायया । वेनाङ्गजातस्य च पौरुषाणि ते वाचस्पतीनामपि बभ्रमुर्धियः ॥ 16.2 ॥

nālaṁ vayaṁ te mahimānuvarṇane yo deva-varyo ’vatatāra māyayā venāṅga-jātasya ca pauruṣāṇi te vācas-patīnām api babhramur dhiyaḥ

The reciters said: We are not capable of truly describing your greatness, O foremost of gods, who have descended by your own divine potency; even the minds of the masters of speech grow bewildered before the mighty deeds you, though born through Vena's body, perform.

Verse 3 (bhagavata.4.16.3)

अथाप्युदारश्रवसः पृथोर्हरेः कलावतारस्य कथामृतादृताः । यथोपदेशं मुनिभिः प्रचोदिताः श्लाघ्यानि कर्माणि वयं वितन्महि ॥ 16.3 ॥

athāpy udāra-śravasaḥ pṛthor hareḥ kalāvatārasya kathāmṛtādṛtāḥ yathopadeśaṁ munibhiḥ pracoditāḥ ślāghyāni karmāṇi vayaṁ vitanmahi

Yet, out of reverence for the nectar-like accounts of Prithu, that partial incarnation of Hari of far-spreading renown, and as instructed by the sages, we shall now recount his praiseworthy deeds.

Verse 4 (bhagavata.4.16.4)

एष धर्मभृतां श्रेष्ठो लोकं धर्मेऽनुवर्तयन् । गोप्ता च धर्मसेतूनां शास्ता तत्परिपन्थिनाम् ॥ 16.4 ॥

eṣa dharma-bhṛtāṁ śreṣṭho lokaṁ dharme ’nuvartayan goptā ca dharma-setūnāṁ śāstā tat-paripanthinām

This one is foremost among the upholders of dharma, who will keep the world established in righteousness; guardian of the bounds of dharma, he will be the chastiser of all who transgress them.

Verse 5 (bhagavata.4.16.5)

एष वै लोकपालानां बिभर्त्येकस्तनौ तनूः । काले काले यथाभागं लोकयोरुभयोर्हितम् ॥ 16.5 ॥

eṣa vai loka-pālānāṁ bibharty ekas tanau tanūḥ kāle kāle yathā-bhāgaṁ lokayor ubhayor hitam

This one alone, in a single body, will sustain all the guardians of the worlds, according to their due share, from time to time, for the welfare of both realms — the heavens and the earth.

Verse 6 (bhagavata.4.16.6)

वसु काल उपादत्ते काले चायं विमुञ्चति । समः सर्वेषु भूतेषु प्रतपन् सूर्यवद्विभुः ॥ 16.6 ॥

vasu kāla upādatte kāle cāyaṁ vimuñcati samaḥ sarveṣu bhūteṣu pratapan sūryavad vibhuḥ

As time draws in wealth and, in its season, releases it again, so shall this mighty one, shining equally upon all beings like the sun.

Verse 7 (bhagavata.4.16.7)

तितिक्षत्यक्रमं वैन्य उपर्याक्रमतामपि । भूतानां करुणः शश्वदार्तानां क्षितिवृत्तिमान् ॥ 16.7 ॥

titikṣaty akramaṁ vainya upary ākramatām api bhūtānāṁ karuṇaḥ śaśvad ārtānāṁ kṣiti-vṛttimān

The son of Vena will bear even the transgressions of those who overstep against him, ever compassionate to suffering creatures, forbearing as the earth itself.

Verse 8 (bhagavata.4.16.8)

देवेऽवर्षत्यसौ देवो नरदेववपुर्हरिः । कृच्छ्रप्राणाः प्रजा ह्येष रक्षिष्यत्यञ्जसेन्द्रवत् ॥ 16.8 ॥

deve ’varṣaty asau devo naradeva-vapur hariḥ kṛcchra-prāṇāḥ prajā hy eṣa rakṣiṣyaty añjasendravat

When the sky withholds rain, this god in human form, Hari himself, will protect the citizens, whose very breath hangs in peril, exactly as Indra would.

Verse 9 (bhagavata.4.16.9)

आप्याययत्यसौ लोकं वदनामृतमूर्तिना । सानुरागावलोकेन विशदस्मितचारुणा ॥ 16.9 ॥

āpyāyayaty asau lokaṁ vadanāmṛta-mūrtinā sānurāgāvalokena viśada-smita-cāruṇā

By his nectar-like face, ever bright with a gentle, affectionate smile and a loving glance, this one will bring fresh life to all the world.

Verse 10 (bhagavata.4.16.10)

अव्यक्तवर्त्मैष निगूढकार्योगम्भीरवेधा उपगुप्तवित्तः । अनन्तमाहात्म्यगुणैकधामापृथुः प्रचेता इव संवृतात्मा ॥ 16.10 ॥

avyakta-vartmaiṣa nigūḍha-kāryo gambhīra-vedhā upagupta-vittaḥ ananta-māhātmya-guṇaika-dhāmā pṛthuḥ pracetā iva saṁvṛtātmā

His path unseen, his counsels concealed, his judgment profound, his treasury unknown to any — a single abode of boundless glory and virtue, this Prithu, self-contained, shall be like Varuna, deep and hidden within himself.

Verse 11 (bhagavata.4.16.11)

दुरासदो दुर्विषह आसन्नोऽपि विदूरवत् । नैवाभिभवितुं शक्यो वेनारण्युत्थितोऽनलः ॥ 16.11 ॥

durāsado durviṣaha āsanno ’pi vidūravat naivābhibhavituṁ śakyo venāraṇy-utthito ’nalaḥ

Unapproachable, unbearable to his foes, though near yet as if far away, he can never be overcome — fire itself, risen from the very wood of Vena.

Verse 12 (bhagavata.4.16.12)

अन्तर्बहिश्च भूतानां पश्यन् कर्माणि चारणैः । उदासीन इवाध्यक्षो वायुरात्मेव देहिनाम् ॥ 16.12 ॥

antar bahiś ca bhūtānāṁ paśyan karmāṇi cāraṇaiḥ udāsīna ivādhyakṣo vāyur ātmeva dehinām

Watching, through his agents, the deeds of beings both within and without, yet remaining as neutral as an overseer, like the very life-breath within the embodied.

Verse 13 (bhagavata.4.16.13)

नादण्ड्यं दण्डयत्येष सुतमात्मद्विषामपि । दण्डयत्यात्मजमपि दण्ड्यं धर्मपथे स्थितः ॥ 16.13 ॥

nādaṇḍyaṁ daṇḍayaty eṣa sutam ātma-dviṣām api daṇḍayaty ātmajam api daṇḍyaṁ dharma-pathe sthitaḥ

This one will not punish the son of even his own enemy if that son deserves no punishment; yet, standing firm on the path of dharma, he will punish even his own son if punishment be due.

Verse 14 (bhagavata.4.16.14)

अस्याप्रतिहतं चक्रं पृथोरामानसाचलात् । वर्तते भगवानर्को यावत्तपति गोगणैः ॥ 16.14 ॥

asyāpratihataṁ cakraṁ pṛthor āmānasācalāt vartate bhagavān arko yāvat tapati go-gaṇaiḥ

His unimpeded influence, O Manasa mountain, shall extend as far as the radiant sun himself spreads his warmth with his rays.

Verse 15 (bhagavata.4.16.15)

रञ्जयिष्यति यल्लोकमयमात्मविचेष्टितैः । अथामुमाहू राजानं मनोरञ्जनकैः प्रजाः ॥ 16.15 ॥

rañjayiṣyati yal lokam ayam ātma-viceṣṭitaiḥ athāmum āhū rājānaṁ mano-rañjanakaiḥ prajāḥ

This one will delight the people by his own conduct, and for this the citizens shall come to call this king "the one who gladdens every heart."

Verse 16 (bhagavata.4.16.16)

दृढव्रतः सत्यसन्धो ब्रह्मण्यो वृद्धसेवकः । शरण्यः सर्वभूतानां मानदो दीनवत्सलः ॥ 16.16 ॥

dṛḍha-vrataḥ satya-sandho brahmaṇyo vṛddha-sevakaḥ śaraṇyaḥ sarva-bhūtānāṁ mānado dīna-vatsalaḥ

Firm in vow, true to his word, devoted to brahmanas, a servant of the aged, a refuge for all beings, one who honors all, and tender toward the humble.

Verse 17 (bhagavata.4.16.17)

मातृभक्तिः परस्त्रीषु पत्न्यामर्ध इवात्मनः । प्रजासु पितृवत्स्निग्धः किङ्करो ब्रह्मवादिनाम् ॥ 16.17 ॥

mātṛ-bhaktiḥ para-strīṣu patnyām ardha ivātmanaḥ prajāsu pitṛvat snigdhaḥ kiṅkaro brahma-vādinām

Devoted to other women as to his own mother, and to his own wife as to half of his own self; affectionate to his subjects as a father, and a humble servant to those versed in the Veda.

Verse 18 (bhagavata.4.16.18)

देहिनामात्मवत्प्रेष्ठः सुहृदां नन्दिवर्धनः । मुक्तसङ्गप्रसङ्गोऽयं दण्डपाणिरसाधुषु ॥ 16.18 ॥

dehinām ātmavat-preṣṭhaḥ suhṛdāṁ nandi-vardhanaḥ mukta-saṅga-prasaṅgo ’yaṁ daṇḍa-pāṇir asādhuṣu

Dear to embodied beings as their very self, ever increasing the joy of his friends, freely mingling with the liberated, yet a rod of chastisement to the wicked.

Verse 19 (bhagavata.4.16.19)

अयं तु साक्षाद्भगवांस्त्र्यधीशःकूटस्थ आत्मा कलयावतीर्णः । यस्मिन्नविद्यारचितं निरर्थकंपश्यन्ति नानात्वमपि प्रतीतम् ॥ 16.19 ॥

ayaṁ tu sākṣād bhagavāṁs try-adhīśaḥ kūṭa-stha ātmā kalayāvatīrṇaḥ yasminn avidyā-racitaṁ nirarthakaṁ paśyanti nānātvam api pratītam

This one is directly Bhagavan, Lord of the three worlds, the unchanging Self, descended through His own potency; before whom even the many-formed world, fashioned by ignorance and utterly without real substance, is seen for what it is.

Verse 20 (bhagavata.4.16.20)

अयं भुवो मण्डलमोदयाद्रे-र्गोप्तैकवीरो नरदेवनाथः । आस्थाय जैत्रं रथमात्तचापःपर्यस्यते दक्षिणतो यथार्कः ॥ 16.20 ॥

ayaṁ bhuvo maṇḍalam odayādrer goptaika-vīro naradeva-nāthaḥ āsthāya jaitraṁ ratham ātta-cāpaḥ paryasyate dakṣiṇato yathārkaḥ

This sole hero, the protector of the whole circle of the earth up to the mountain of sunrise, lord of all kings, mounting his victorious chariot with bow in hand, shall course round it as the sun courses from the south.

Verse 21 (bhagavata.4.16.21)

अस्मै नृपालाः किल तत्र तत्रबलिं हरिष्यन्ति सलोकपालाः । मंस्यन्त एषां स्त्रिय आदिराजंचक्रायुधं तद्यश उद्धरन्त्यः ॥ 16.21 ॥

asmai nṛ-pālāḥ kila tatra tatra baliṁ hariṣyanti saloka-pālāḥ maṁsyanta eṣāṁ striya ādi-rājaṁ cakrāyudhaṁ tad-yaśa uddharantyaḥ

To this one, wherever he goes, kings together with the guardians of the worlds shall bring their tribute, and their queens shall regard him as the primal king, bearer of the disc, and sing of that glory of his.

Verse 22 (bhagavata.4.16.22)

अयं महीं गां दुदुहेऽधिराजःप्रजापतिर्वृत्तिकरः प्रजानाम् । यो लीलयाद्रीन् स्वशरासकोट्याभिन्दन् समां गामकरोद्यथेन्द्रः ॥ 16.22 ॥

ayaṁ mahīṁ gāṁ duduhe ’dhirājaḥ prajāpatir vṛtti-karaḥ prajānām yo līlayādrīn sva-śarāsa-koṭyā bhindan samāṁ gām akarod yathendraḥ

This supreme king, the sustainer of his people, shall milk the earth, herself as a cow, and, playfully cleaving the mountains with the tip of his own bow, shall make the earth even and level, as Indra once did.

Verse 23 (bhagavata.4.16.23)

विस्फूर्जयन्नाजगवं धनुः स्वयंयदाचरत्क्ष्मामविषह्यमाजौ । तदा निलिल्युर्दिशि दिश्यसन्तोलाङ्गूलमुद्यम्य यथा मृगेन्द्रः ॥ 16.23 ॥

visphūrjayann āja-gavaṁ dhanuḥ svayaṁ yadācarat kṣmām aviṣahyam ājau tadā nililyur diśi diśy asanto lāṅgūlam udyamya yathā mṛgendraḥ

When, twanging his bow of goat-and-bull horn, unbearable in battle, he moves across the earth of his own will, then, as beasts flee in every direction when the maned lion raises his tail, wicked men shall vanish into hiding.

Verse 24 (bhagavata.4.16.24)

एषोऽश्वमेधाञ् शतमाजहारसरस्वती प्रादुरभावि यत्र । अहार्षीद्यस्य हयं पुरन्दरःशतक्रतुश्चरमे वर्तमाने ॥ 16.24 ॥

eṣo ’śvamedhāñ śatam ājahāra sarasvatī prādurabhāvi yatra ahārṣīd yasya hayaṁ purandaraḥ śata-kratuś carame vartamāne

This king shall perform a hundred Ashvamedha sacrifices at the place where the Sarasvati manifests herself; and in the course of the last of these, Indra, the wielder of a hundred sacrifices, shall steal his sacrificial horse.

Verse 25 (bhagavata.4.16.25)

एष स्वसद्मोपवने समेत्यसनत्कुमारं भगवन्तमेकम् । आराध्य भक्त्यालभतामलं तज्ज्ञानं यतो ब्रह्म परं विदन्ति ॥ 16.25 ॥

eṣa sva-sadmopavane sametya sanat-kumāraṁ bhagavantam ekam ārādhya bhaktyālabhatāmalaṁ taj jñānaṁ yato brahma paraṁ vidanti

In the garden of his own dwelling this one shall meet with Bhagavan Sanatkumara alone, and, worshiping him with devotion, shall attain that supreme knowledge by which one comes to know the highest Brahman.

Verse 26 (bhagavata.4.16.26)

तत्र तत्र गिरस्तास्ता इति विश्रुतविक्रमः । श्रोष्यत्यात्माश्रिता गाथाः पृथुः पृथुपराक्रमः ॥ 16.26 ॥

tatra tatra giras tās tā iti viśruta-vikramaḥ śroṣyaty ātmāśritā gāthāḥ pṛthuḥ pṛthu-parākramaḥ

Thus Prithu, of far-spread might and renowned valor, shall himself hear, here and there, the very songs sung in praise of his own deeds.

Verse 27 (bhagavata.4.16.27)

दिशो विजित्याप्रतिरुद्धचक्रःस्वतेजसोत्पाटितलोकशल्यः । सुरासुरेन्द्रैरुपगीयमानमहानुभावो भविता पतिर्भुवः ॥ 16.27 ॥

diśo vijityāpratiruddha-cakraḥ sva-tejasotpāṭita-loka-śalyaḥ surāsurendrair upagīyamāna- mahānubhāvo bhavitā patir bhuvaḥ

Having conquered every quarter, his rule unopposed, uprooting by his own splendor the thorns afflicting the world, this great soul, praised even by the lords of gods and demons alike, shall become the sovereign lord of the earth.