SB 10.43.20 — FolioCorpus

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 10.43.20

निरीक्ष्य तावुत्तमपूरुषौ जनामञ्चस्थिता नागरराष्ट्रका नृप । प्रहर्षवेगोत्कलितेक्षणानना:पपुर्न तृप्ता नयनैस्तदाननम् ॥ २० ॥

nirīkṣya tāv uttama-pūruṣau janā

[nireekshya taav uttama-poorushau janaa]

mañca-sthitā nāgara-rāṣṭrakā nṛpa

[mancha-sthitaa naagara-raashtrakaa nripa]

praharṣa-vegotkalitekṣaṇānanāḥ

[praharsha-vegotkalitekshanaananaah]

papur na tṛptā nayanais tad-ānanam

[papur na triptaa nayanais tad-aananam]

Word-for-word

nirīkṣya — seeing tau — both of Them uttama - pūruṣau — the Supreme Personalities janāḥ — the people mañca — in the viewing galleries sthitāḥ — sitting nāgara — the city-dwellers rāṣṭrakāḥ — and the people from outlying districts nṛpa — O King praharṣa — of their joy vega — by the force utkalita — made to expand widely īkṣaṇa — their eyes ānanāḥ — and faces papuḥ — they drank na — not tṛptāḥ — satiated nayanaiḥ — with their eyes tat — of Them ānanam — the faces .

Blended reading (Sanskrit + English inline)

nirīkṣya tāv uttama-pūruṣau janā

nirīkṣya

seeing

tau

both of Them

uttama - pūruṣau

the Supreme Personalities

janāḥ

the people

mañca-sthitā nāgara-rāṣṭrakā nṛpa

mañca

in the viewing galleries

sthitāḥ

sitting

nāgara

the city-dwellers

rāṣṭrakāḥ

and the people from outlying districts

nṛpa

O King

praharṣa-vegotkalitekṣaṇānanāḥ

praharṣa

of their joy

vega

by the force

utkalita

made to expand widely

īkṣaṇa

their eyes

ānanāḥ

and faces

papur na tṛptā nayanais tad-ānanam

papuḥ

they drank

not

tṛptāḥ

satiated

nayanaiḥ

with their eyes

tat

of Them

ānanam

the faces .

Important Words

papuḥ — they drank
The verb is from pā — to drink. Bhāgavata aesthetics: darśana is anna for the eye; Kṛṣṇa-rūpa is the soul's nectar. Compare SB 10.13 (the calves and boys whose eyes drank Kṛṣṇa for a year).
na-tṛptāḥ — not satiated
The Gauḍīya cornerstone phrase — Caitanya-caritāmṛta Madhya 21 quotes this exact pattern to define mahābhāva. With ordinary objects, increase decreases desire; with Kṛṣṇa, increase increases desire. This is Bhāgavata-rasa's signature asymmetry. A contiguous-token join of synonyms 'na' and 'tṛptāḥ'.
uttama-pūruṣau — the Supreme Personalities
Dual — both Bhagavān and Balarāma are 'uttama-puruṣa'. The Gītā's 15th chapter defines uttama-puruṣa as Bhagavān above kṣara and akṣara; the Bhāgavatam extends the title naturally to Balarāma-tattva. A contiguous-token join of synonyms 'uttama' and 'pūruṣau'.
praharṣa — of their joy
Praharṣa is the burst of sāttvika happiness — one of the eight sthāyibhāvas' anubhāvas in Rūpa Gosvāmī's analysis. The verse documents it: eyes widen, faces flower, the whole body becomes a register of darśana-ānanda.

O King, as the citizens of the city and the people from outlying districts gazed upon those two Supreme Personalities from their seats in the galleries, the force of the people’s happiness caused their eyes to open wide and their faces to blossom. They drank in the vision of the Lords’ faces without becoming satiated.

Gauḍīya Ācāryas

Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura Gauḍīya

Translation

O King, as the citizens of the city and the people from outlying districts gazed upon those two Supreme Personalities from their seats in the galleries, the force of the people's happiness caused their eyes to open wide and their faces to blossom. They drank in the vision of the Lords' faces without becoming satiated.

Commentary

The eyes of the people in the galleries opened like lotuses which blossom immediately when the sun rises, and they drank the sweetness of the faces of Krsna and Balarama.

Jīva Gosvāmī Gauḍīya

Commentary

The ordinary people, other than those who were hostile, developed the highest prema, what to speak of those persons with devotion. That is explained in this verse. The two were endowed with the greatest beauty and grace (uttama-puruṣau). Seated in the galleries, the residents of Mathurā and citizens of the province (rāṣṭakāḥ) all saw him clearly. With their eyes opened wide with joy, they drank the nectar of Kṛṣṇa’s face, the abode of sweetness and beauty, using their eyes as cups. Only the face is mentioned, since it was the main element of beauty, comparing the face to nectar.

Related values & verses

Related values

Anahankarah (Freedom from False Ego)Kshama (Forgiveness / Patience)Asteya (Non-stealing / Honesty)Aparigraha (Non-possessiveness)

Personal Guidance

From their galleries, citizens gazed with eyes wide and faces blossoming, drinking in the vision. Communal darśana produces visible bodily transformation; awe is contagious in a crowd.

Reflection Questions

When did communal viewing last open your face this way?
Where could you seek communal darśana rather than always private worship?

Analogy

The people of Mathurā drink Bhagavān with their eyes and cannot be filled. This is darśana-tṛṣṇā — the thirst that grows the more it drinks. A mundane sight tires the eye; Kṛṣṇa's form expands it, opens it wider, refuses to satiate. Bhāgavatam's working definition of mādhurya: na tṛptāḥ — never enough.

📝 My note

Source: vedabase.io