SB 10.38.15 — FolioCorpus

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 10.38.15

अथावरूढ: सपदीशयो रथात् प्रधानपुंसोश्चरणं स्वलब्धये । धिया धृतं योगिभिरप्यहं ध्रुवं नमस्य आभ्यां च सखीन् वनौकस: ॥ १५ ॥

athāvarūḍhaḥ sapadīśayo rathāt

[athaavaroodhah sapadeeshayo rathaat]

pradhāna-puṁsoś caraṇaṁ sva-labdhaye

[pradhaana-pumsosh charanam sva-labdhaye]

dhiyā dhṛtaṁ yogibhir apy ahaṁ dhruvaṁ

[dhiyaa dhritam yogibhir apy aham dhruvam]

namasya ābhyāṁ ca sakhīn vanaukasaḥ

[namasya aabhyaam cha sakheen vanaukasah]

Word-for-word

atha — then avarūḍhaḥ — getting down sapadi — at once īśayoḥ — of the two Lords rathāt — from my chariot pradhāna - puṁsoḥ — of the Supreme Personalities caraṇam — to the feet sva - labdhaye — for the sake of self-realization dhiyā — with their intelligence dhṛtam — held on to yogibhiḥ — by mystic yogīs api — even aham — I dhruvam — surely namasye — will bow down ābhyām — with Them ca — also sakhīn — to the friends vana - okasaḥ — to the residents of the forest .

Blended reading (Sanskrit + English inline)

athāvarūḍhaḥ sapadīśayo rathāt

atha

then

avarūḍhaḥ

getting down

sapadi

at once

īśayoḥ

of the two Lords

rathāt

from my chariot

pradhāna-puṁsoś caraṇaṁ sva-labdhaye

pradhāna - puṁsoḥ

of the Supreme Personalities

caraṇam

to the feet

sva - labdhaye

for the sake of self-realization

dhiyā

with their intelligence

dhiyā dhṛtaṁ yogibhir apy ahaṁ dhruvaṁ

dhṛtam

held on to

yogibhiḥ

by mystic yogīs

api

even

aham

dhruvam

surely

namasya ābhyāṁ ca sakhīn vanaukasaḥ

namasye

will bow down

ābhyām

with Them

also

sakhīn

to the friends

vana - okasaḥ

to the residents of the forest .

Important Words

avarūḍhaḥ — getting down
From ava (down) + √ruh (to climb). The verb that organizes the climax of this chapter — Akrūra will literally avarūḍha from the chariot when he sees the footprints (v.26) and when he sees the Lords (v.34). The mind's rehearsal becomes the body's act.
sapadi — at once
Without delay. Bhakti's tempo is immediate — Hanumān leaping the ocean, Bharata running to Rāma. Akrūra plans no choreography of greeting; the sight of Kṛṣṇa permits no interval between seeing and bowing.
pradhāna - puṁsoḥ — of the Supreme Personalities
Compound dual: pradhāna (chief) + puṁs (Person). Kṛṣṇa and Balarāma as the two pradhāna-puruṣas. Gauḍīyas read this as a glimpse of viṣṇu-tattva's internal personal duality — Balarāma as Kṛṣṇa's first expansion and shelter.
sva - labdhaye — for the sake of self-realization
Compound: sva (self) + labdhi (attainment). Even yogīs seeking ātma-prāpti hold these feet within their intelligence. Gauḍīyas note that bhakti gives in immediate proximity what yoga reaches at the long path's end.
sakhīn — to the friends
Accusative plural of sakhā — Kṛṣṇa's cowherd boy-friends. Akrūra plans to bow not only to Kṛṣṇa-Balarāma but to the sakhā-bhaktas. Gauḍīyas read this as devotee-respect: where Kṛṣṇa is, His friends are; one cannot honor Him while ignoring them.
vana - okasaḥ — to the residents of the forest
Compound: vana (forest) + okas (dweller). The vrajavāsīs — the cowherds, gopīs, even the deer and trees. Gauḍīya theology holds that birth in Vraja, even as a tree, is higher than dharma elsewhere; Akrūra's anticipation honors this rank.

Then I will at once alight from my chariot and bow down to the lotus feet of Kṛṣṇa and Balarāma, the Supreme Personalities of Godhead. Theirs are the same feet that great mystic yogīs striving for self-realization bear within their minds. I will also offer my obeisances to the Lords’ cowherd boyfriends and to all the other residents of Vṛndāvana.

Gauḍīya Ācāryas

Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura Gauḍīya

Translation

Then I will at once alight from my chariot and bow down to the lotus feet of Kṛṣṇa and Balarāma, the Supreme Personalities of Godhead. Theirs are the same feet that great mystic yogīs striving for self-realization bear within their minds. I will also offer my obeisances to the Lords' cowherd boyfriends and to all the other residents of Vṛndāvana.

Commentary

After seeing Krsna and Balaram, I will get down from the chariot, and immediately bow down to their lotus feet. Those feet which yogis hold by their intelligence in order to see directly the self (sva labdaye) I will directly hold. I will also bow down to the companions of Krsna and Balarama accompanying them. I will also bow down to the inhabitants of the forest.

Jīva Gosvāmī Gauḍīya

Commentary

He develops another desire, being dissatisfied on only seeing the Lord, which is natural for a devotee. I will offer respects (namasye). Present expresses the near future. Those feet are the object of fixed contemplation (dhṛtam) by repeated, intense reflection (dhiyā) by yogīs and ātmārāmas, what to speak of devotees, for attaining the Lord (sva-labdhaye). I will offer respects to his friends who are present with the two (ābhyām), or the friends of the two (ābhyām can stand for the possessive anayoḥ). “Your relatives and the Yādavas will also be their friends. Why do you also not respect the Yādavas then?” The friends of Vraja are intimate friends playing with him in the forest. Or, I offer respects not only to the friends but all living beings in Vṛndāvana. This is a particularization of the previous offering of respects. “To that extent I will go.” That is the meaning expressed by Śrīdhara Svāmī with the word iti in his commentary.

Śrīdhara Svāmī Gauḍīya

Commentary

He develops another desire, being dissatisfied on only seeing the Lord, which is natural for a devotee. “Foot” is in the singular but means two feet. He will offer respects to the feet of both Kṛṣṇa and Balarāma individually. Or he will grab a foot of each brother and offer respects to both simultaneously. I will offer respects (namasye). Present tense expresses the near future. “Lotus feet” indicates that great desire has arisen in him. He now desires to offer respects to his feet only, without considering the Lord’s qualities etc. Yogīs hold those feet in their minds (dhiyā). Instrumental case indicates the locative case. Or the yogīs hold those feet by meditation (dhiyā), or with great attention, not thinking of anything else. Holding in their minds (dhṛtam) means contemplating with concentration. The yogīs is a person in samādhi, or a devotee practicing smaraṇa. I will offer respects to the friends of the two (ābhyām) to attain those friends (sva-labdhaye). Or what to speak of offering respects to the friends of the two (ābhyām) I will offer respects to all the living beings of Vraja. This verse gives more details than the previous verses.

Related values & verses

Related values

Anahankarah (Freedom from False Ego)Aparigraha (Non-possessiveness)Tyaga (Renunciation / Letting Go)Bhakti (Devotion)

Personal Guidance

Akrūra plans to alight from his chariot, bow to Kṛṣṇa and Balarāma, and to the cowherd boyfriends and all Vṛndāvana's residents. The devotee bows to the Lord and to the Lord's family — devotional respect spreads beyond the central figure.

Reflection Questions

Whom in Kṛṣṇa's wider 'family' do you bypass while bowing to Him?
Where could you respectfully greet the people and creatures around your worship?

Analogy

A long-separated son arriving at the family courtyard does not pause for ceremony — he is on the ground before the chariot wheels have stopped turning. Akrūra rehearses the only protocol his bhakti recognizes: drop the body the instant the feet come into view.

📝 My note

Source: vedabase.io