The Birth of Rishabhadeva to King Nabhi and Queen Merudevi

Verse 1 (bhagavata.5.3.1)

श्रीशुक उवाच नाभिरपत्यकामोऽप्रजया मेरुदेव्या भगवन्तं यज्ञपुरुषमवहितात्मायजत ॥ १ ॥

śrī-śuka uvāca nābhir apatya-kāmo ’prajayā merudevyā bhagavantaṁ yajña-puruṣam avahitātmāyajata.

Shri Shukadeva said: Desiring a child, King Nabhi, together with his childless wife Merudevi, worshiped Bhagavan, the very embodiment of sacrifice, with a fully concentrated mind.

Verse 2 (bhagavata.5.3.2)

तस्य ह वाव श्रद्धया विशुद्धभावेन यजतः प्रवर्ग्येषु प्रचरत्सु द्रव्यदेशकालमन्त्रर्त्विग्दक्षिणाविधानयोगोपपत्त्या दुरधिगमोऽपि भगवान् भागवतवात्सल्यतया सुप्रतीक आत्मानमपराजितं निजजनाभिप्रेतार्थविधित्सया गृहीतहृदयो हृदयङ्गमं मनोनयनानन्दनावयवाभिराममाविश्चकार ॥ २ ॥

tasya ha vāva śraddhayā viśuddha-bhāvena yajataḥ pravargyeṣu pracaratsu dravya-deśa-kāla-mantrartvig-dakṣiṇā-vidhāna-yogopapattyā duradhigamo ’pi bhagavān bhāgavata-vātsalyatayā supratīka ātmānam aparājitaṁ nija-janābhipretārtha-vidhitsayā gṛhīta-hṛdayo hṛdayaṅgamaṁ mano-nayanānandanāvayavābhirāmam āviścakāra.

As he sacrificed with faith and a purified heart, and the pravargya rites went forward, then, although the Lord is difficult to attain even through the right conjunction of substance, place, time, mantra, officiating priest and gift — still, out of His tenderness for His devotees, that unconquerable and gracious Lord, His heart moved by the wish to fulfill His devotee's desire, manifested Himself in a form that captivates the heart and delights the mind and eyes, its every limb entrancing.

Verse 3 (bhagavata.5.3.3)

अथ ह तमाविष्कृतभुजयुगलद्वयं हिरण्मयं पुरुषविशेषं कपिशकौशेयाम्बरधरमुरसि विलसच्छ्रीवत्सललामं दरवरवनरुहवनमालाच्छूर्यमृतमणिगदादिभिरुपलक्षितं स्फुटकिरणप्रवरमुकुटकुण्डलकटककटिसूत्रहारकेयूरनूपुराद्यङ्गभूषणविभूषितमृत्विक् सदस्यगृहपतयोऽधना इवोत्तमधनमुपलभ्य सबहुमानमर्हणेनावनतशीर्षाण उपतस्थुः ॥ ३ ॥

atha ha tam āviṣkṛta-bhuja-yugala-dvayaṁ hiraṇmayaṁ puruṣa-viśeṣaṁ kapiśa-kauśeyāmbara-dharam urasi vilasac-chrīvatsa-lalāmaṁ daravara-vanaruha-vana-mālācchūry-amṛta-maṇi-gadādibhir upalakṣitaṁ sphuṭa-kiraṇa-pravara-mukuṭa-kuṇḍala-kaṭaka-kaṭi-sūtra-hāra-keyūra-nūpurādy-aṅga-bhūṣaṇa-vibhūṣitam ṛtvik-sadasya-gṛha-patayo ’dhanā ivottama-dhanam upalabhya sabahu-mānam arhaṇenāvanata-śīrṣāṇa upatasthuḥ.

Then He revealed a form of golden radiance, His two pairs of arms displayed, wearing garments of tawny silk, His chest graced by the shining mark of Shrivatsa, adorned with a conch, lotus, discus, mace, a garland of forest flowers, and the Kaustubha gem, and decked in a crown, earrings, bracelets, girdle, necklace, armlets, anklets, and other radiant, jeweled ornaments. Seeing Him thus before them, the officiating priests, the assembly, and the master of the house — King Nabhi himself — felt like paupers who had suddenly come upon a great treasure, and, bowing their heads in deep reverence, they worshiped Him with offerings.

Verse 4 (bhagavata.5.3.4)

ऋत्विज ऊचुः अर्हसि मुहुरर्हत्तमार्हणमस्माकमनुपथानां नमो नम इत्येतावत्सदुपशिक्षितं कोऽर्हति पुमान् प्रकृतिगुणव्यतिकरमतिरनीश ईश्वरस्य परस्य प्रकृतिपुरुषयोरर्वाक्तनाभिर्नामरूपाकृतिभी रूपनिरूपणम् ॥ ४ ॥

ṛtvija ūcuḥ arhasi muhur arhattamārhaṇam asmākam anupathānāṁ namo nama ity etāvat sad-upaśikṣitaṁ ko ’rhati pumān prakṛti-guṇa-vyatikara-matir anīśa īśvarasya parasya prakṛti-puruṣayor arvāktanābhir nāma-rūpākṛtibhī rūpa-nirūpaṇam

The priests said: O most worshipable one, You deserve our worship again and again; we are merely Your followers, taught only this much — to offer our obeisance to You, again and again. What embodied person, his intellect entangled in the mutual interplay of nature's qualities, himself without any real lordship, could presume to determine the form of the Supreme Lord — who stands beyond both prakriti and purusha — by names, forms and shapes drawn from things lower than Him?

Verse 5 (bhagavata.5.3.5)

सकलजननिकायवृजिननिरसनशिवतमप्रवरगुणगणैकदेशकथनादृते ॥ ५ ॥

sakala-jana-nikāya-vṛjina-nirasana-śivatama-pravara-guṇa-gaṇaika-deśa-kathanād ṛte.

All we can do is recount some small part of that most auspicious host of excellent qualities of Yours, which alone can dispel the sins of every living being.

Verse 6 (bhagavata.5.3.6)

परिजनानुरागविरचितशबलसंशब्दसलिलसितकिसलयतुलसिकादूर्वाङ्कुरैरपि सम्भृतया सपर्यया किल परम परितुष्यसि ॥ ६ ॥

parijanānurāga-viracita-śabala-saṁśabda-salila-sita-kisalaya-tulasikā-dūrvāṅkurair api sambhṛtayā saparyayā kila parama parituṣyasi.

O Supreme Lord, You are, in truth, most pleased even by a simple worship offered with faltering, love-choked words — water, tender white shoots, tulasi leaves, and blades of new durva grass, brought by devotees overflowing with affection.

Verse 7 (bhagavata.5.3.7)

अथानयापि न भवत इज्ययोरुभारभरया समुचितमर्थमिहोपलभामहे ॥ ७ ॥

athānayāpi na bhavata ijyayoru-bhāra-bharayā samucitam artham ihopalabhāmahe.

And yet, even with this elaborate and burdensome sacrifice, we cannot see that we have offered You anything truly commensurate with Your worth.

Verse 8 (bhagavata.5.3.8)

आत्मन एवानुसवनमञ्जसाव्यतिरेकेण बोभूयमानाशेषपुरुषार्थस्वरूपस्य किन्तु नाथाशिष आशासानानामेतदभिसंराधनमात्रं भवितुमर्हति ॥ ८ ॥

ātmana evānusavanam añjasāvyatirekeṇa bobhūyamānāśeṣa-puruṣārtha-svarūpasya kintu nāthāśiṣa āśāsānānām etad abhisaṁrādhana-mātraṁ bhavitum arhati.

For You Yourself are the very embodiment of every human goal, ever and directly increasing at every moment without any need of another; but for us, O Master, who still cherish our own desires, this offering can serve only as a means of seeking Your favor.

Verse 9 (bhagavata.5.3.9)

तद्यथा बालिशानां स्वयमात्मनः श्रेयः परमविदुषां परमपरमपुरुष प्रकर्षकरुणया स्वमहिमानं चापवर्गाख्यमुपकल्पयिष्यन् स्वयं नापचित एवेतरवदिहोपलक्षितः ॥ ९ ॥

tad yathā bāliśānāṁ svayam ātmanaḥ śreyaḥ param aviduṣāṁ parama-parama-puruṣa prakarṣa-karuṇayā sva-mahimānaṁ cāpavargākhyam upakalpayiṣyan svayaṁ nāpacita evetaravad ihopalakṣitaḥ.

O most supreme of all supreme persons, we are like foolish children, unaware even of our own highest good. It is You Yourself who, out of Your boundless compassion, have appeared here to bestow on us that glory of Yours called liberation — though our worship, offered in ignorance, must surely have fallen short, You have accepted it as though it were flawless, just as an ordinary offering would be received.

Verse 10 (bhagavata.5.3.10)

अथायमेव वरो ह्यर्हत्तम यर्हि बर्हिषि राजर्षेर्वरदर्षभो भवान्निजपुरुषेक्षणविषय आसीत् ॥ १० ॥

athāyam eva varo hy arhattama yarhi barhiṣi rājarṣer varadarṣabho bhavān nija-puruṣekṣaṇa-viṣaya āsīt.

O most worshipable one, greatest of all bestowers of boons, that You Yourself have become visible to our own eyes here at this royal sage's sacrificial ground — this alone is the greatest boon we could ask.

Verse 11 (bhagavata.5.3.11)

असङ्गनिशितज्ञानानलविधूताशेषमलानां भवत्स्वभावानामात्मारामाणां मुनीनामनवरतपरिगुणितगुणगण परममङ्गलायनगुणगणकथनोऽसि ॥ ११ ॥

asaṅga-niśita-jñānānala-vidhūtāśeṣa-malānāṁ bhavat-svabhāvānām ātmārāmāṇāṁ munīnām anavarata-pariguṇita-guṇa-gaṇa parama-maṅgalāyana-guṇa-gaṇa-kathano ’si.

O You of boundless qualities, even those sages who have burned away every trace of impurity with the sharp fire of detached knowledge, who have taken on Your own nature and delight in the self alone, ceaselessly recount Your virtues — for You alone are that host of qualities in whom all supreme auspiciousness resides.

Verse 12 (bhagavata.5.3.12)

अथ कथञ्चित्स्खलनक्षुत्पतनजृम्भणदुरवस्थानादिषु विवशानां नः स्मरणाय ज्वरमरणदशायामपि सकलकश्मलनिरसनानि तव गुणकृतनामधेयानि वचनगोचराणि भवन्तु ॥ १२ ॥

atha kathañcit skhalana-kṣut-patana-jṛmbhaṇa-duravasthānādiṣu vivaśānāṁ naḥ smaraṇāya jvara-maraṇa-daśāyām api sakala-kaśmala-nirasanāni tava guṇa-kṛta-nāmadheyāni vacana-gocarāṇi bhavantu.

Whether we stumble, hunger, fall, yawn, or find ourselves helpless in some difficulty — even in the fevered hour of death — may we still remember You; may Your names, fashioned from Your own qualities and able to dispel every taint, remain ever on our tongues.

Verse 13 (bhagavata.5.3.13)

किञ्चायं राजर्षिरपत्यकामः प्रजां भवादृशीमाशासान ईश्वरमाशिषां स्वर्गापवर्गयोरपि भवन्तमुपधावति प्रजायामर्थप्रत्ययो धनदमिवाधनः फलीकरणम् ॥ १३ ॥

kiñcāyaṁ rājarṣir apatya-kāmaḥ prajāṁ bhavādṛśīm āśāsāna īśvaram āśiṣāṁ svargāpavargayor api bhavantam upadhāvati prajāyām artha-pratyayo dhanadam ivādhanaḥ phalīkaraṇam.

And this royal sage Nabhi, desiring a son and hoping for a child like Yourself, has come to You, the very Lord of both heaven and liberation — as though a poor man should approach the wealthiest of givers and beg from him nothing more than a single fruit.

Verse 14 (bhagavata.5.3.14)

को वा इह तेऽपराजितोऽपराजितया माययानवसितपदव्यानावृतमतिर्विषयविषरयानावृतप्रकृतिरनुपासितमहच्चरणः ॥ १४ ॥

ko vā iha te ’parājito ’parājitayā māyayānavasita-padavyānāvṛta-matir viṣaya-viṣa-rayānāvṛta-prakṛtir anupāsita-mahac-caraṇaḥ.

Indeed, who in this world, without having worshiped the feet of the great souls, has ever remained unconquered by Your unconquerable illusory power, whose course no one can trace — whose intelligence has not been clouded, whose very nature has not been submerged beneath the poisonous flood of sense-objects?

Verse 15 (bhagavata.5.3.15)

यदु ह वाव तव पुनरदभ्रकर्तरिह समाहूतस्तत्रार्थधियां मन्दानां नस्तद्यद्देवहेलनं देवदेवार्हसि साम्येन सर्वान् प्रतिवोढुमविदुषाम् ॥ १५ ॥

yad u ha vāva tava punar adabhra-kartar iha samāhūtas tatrārtha-dhiyāṁ mandānāṁ nas tad yad deva-helanaṁ deva-devārhasi sāmyena sarvān prativoḍhum aviduṣām.

O worker of boundless deeds, and yet we, dull of understanding, have summoned You here to this sacrifice merely to serve our own petty ends — this too is surely a slight against You. Therefore, O God of gods, You alone are fit, with an even and forgiving eye, to bear with all of us who act in ignorance.

Verse 16 (bhagavata.5.3.16)

श्रीशुक उवाच इति निगदेनाभिष्टूयमानो भगवाननिमिषर्षभो वर्षधराभिवादिताभिवन्दितचरणः सदयमिदमाह ॥ १६ ॥

śrī-śuka uvāca iti nigadenābhiṣṭūyamāno bhagavān animiṣarṣabho varṣa-dharābhivāditābhivandita-caraṇaḥ sadayam idam āha.

Shri Shukadeva said: Thus praised in prose by the priests, and with his feet honored by the ruler of that land, Bhagavan, foremost among the immortals, spoke tenderly as follows.

Verse 17 (bhagavata.5.3.17)

श्रीभगवानुवाच अहो बताहमृषयो भवद्भिरवितथगीर्भिर्वरमसुलभमभियाचितो यदमुष्यात्मजो मया सदृशो भूयादिति ममाहमेवाभिरूपः कैवल्यादथापि ब्रह्मवादो न मृषा भवितुमर्हति ममैव हि मुखं यद् द्विजदेवकुलम् ॥ १७ ॥

śrī-bhagavān uvāca aho batāham ṛṣayo bhavadbhir avitatha-gīrbhir varam asulabham abhiyācito yad amuṣyātmajo mayā sadṛśo bhūyād iti mamāham evābhirūpaḥ kaivalyād athāpi brahma-vādo na mṛṣā bhavitum arhati mamaiva hi mukhaṁ yad dvija-deva-kulam.

Shri Bhagavan said: O sages, with your truthful words you have asked of Me a boon that is exceedingly hard to grant — that this man's son might be like Me; but being without a second, I alone am like Myself. Even so, the word of a brahmana can never prove false, for this line of twice-born, godlike men is nothing other than My own mouth.

Verse 18 (bhagavata.5.3.18)

तत आग्नीध्रीयेंऽशकलयावतरिष्याम्यात्मतुल्यमनुपलभमानः ॥ १८ ॥

tata āgnīdhrīye ’ṁśa-kalayāvatariṣyāmy ātma-tulyam anupalabhamānaḥ.

Therefore, finding no one equal to Myself, I shall descend Myself, in a portion of My own being, into the house of the son of Agnidhra.

Verse 19 (bhagavata.5.3.19)

श्रीशुक उवाच इति निशामयन्त्या मेरुदेव्याः पतिमभिधायान्तर्दधे भगवान् ॥ १९ ॥

śrī-śuka uvāca iti niśāmayantyā merudevyāḥ patim abhidhāyāntardadhe bhagavān.

Shri Shukadeva said: Having spoken thus to Merudevi's husband, while Merudevi herself listened to it all, Bhagavan then vanished from sight.

Verse 20 (bhagavata.5.3.20)

बर्हिषि तस्मिन्नेव विष्णुदत्त भगवान् परमर्षिभिः प्रसादितो नाभेः प्रियचिकीर्षया तदवरोधायने मेरुदेव्यां धर्मान्दर्शयितुकामो वातरशनानां श्रमणानामृषीणामूर्ध्वमन्थिनां शुक्लया तनुवावततार ॥ २० ॥

barhiṣi tasminn eva viṣṇudatta bhagavān paramarṣibhiḥ prasādito nābheḥ priya-cikīrṣayā tad-avarodhāyane merudevyāṁ dharmān darśayitu-kāmo vāta-raśanānāṁ śramaṇānām ṛṣīṇām ūrdhva-manthināṁ śuklayā tanuvāvatatāra.

O Vishnudatta, at that very sacrificial ground, Bhagavan, pleased by the great sages, desiring to gratify King Nabhi and wishing to reveal in person the dharma followed by wandering ascetics, sages, and celibate seers of upward-flowing seed, took birth in the womb of Merudevi, his wife, in that pure form of His that lies beyond the modes of material nature.