FolioCorpusŚrīmad-Bhāgavatam

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 10.6.15-17

ईषामात्रोग्रदंष्ट्रास्यं गिरिकन्दरनासिकम् । गण्डशैलस्तनं रौद्रं प्रकीर्णारुणमूर्धजम् ॥ १५ ॥ अन्धकूपगभीराक्षं पुलिनारोहभीषणम् । बद्धसेतुभुजोर्वङ्‍‍घ्रि शून्यतोयह्रदोदरम् ॥ १६ ॥ सन्तत्रसु: स्म तद्वीक्ष्य गोपा गोप्य: कलेवरम् । पूर्वं तु तन्नि:स्वनितभिन्नहृत्कर्णमस्तका: ॥ १७ ॥
īṣā-mātrogra-daṁṣṭrāsyaṁ
[eeshaa-maatrogra-damshtraasyam]
giri-kandara-nāsikam
[giri-kandara-naasikam]
gaṇḍa-śaila-stanaṁ raudraṁ
[ganda-shaila-stanam raudram]
prakīrṇāruṇa-mūrdhajam
[prakeernaaruna-moordhajam]
andha-kūpa-gabhīrākṣaṁ
[andha-koopa-gabheeraaksham]
pulināroha-bhīṣaṇam
[pulinaaroha-bheeshanam]
baddha-setu-bhujorv-aṅghri
[baddha-setu-bhujorv-anghri]
śūnya-toya-hradodaram
[shoonya-toya-hradodaram]
santatrasuḥ sma tad vīkṣya
[santatrasuh sma tad veekshya]
gopā gopyaḥ kalevaram
[gopaa gopyah kalevaram]
pūrvaṁ tu tan-niḥsvanita-
[poorvam tu tan-nihsvanita-]
bhinna-hṛt-karṇa-mastakāḥ
[bhinna-hrit-karna-mastakaah]
Word-for-word
īṣā - mātra — like the front of a plow ugra — fierce daṁṣṭra — the teeth āsyam — having a mouth in which giri - kandara — like mountain caves nāsikam — the nostrils of whom gaṇḍa - śaila — like big slabs of stone stanam — the breasts of whom raudram — very fierce prakīrṇa — scattered aruṇa - mūrdha - jam — whose hair was the color of copper andha - kūpa — like blind wells gabhīra — deep akṣam — eye sockets pulina - āroha - bhīṣaṇam — whose thighs were fearful like the banks of a river baddha - setu - bhuja - uru - aṅghri — whose arms, thighs and feet were strongly built bridges śūnya - toya - hrada - udaram — whose abdomen was like a lake without water santatrasuḥ sma — became frightened tat — that vīkṣya — seeing gopāḥ — the cowherd men gopyaḥ — and the cowherd women kalevaram — such a gigantic body pūrvam tu — before that tat - niḥsvanita — because of her loud vibration bhinna — were shocked hṛt — whose hearts karṇa — ears mastakāḥ — and heads .
Blended reading (Sanskrit + English inline)
īṣā-mātrogra-daṁṣṭrāsyaṁ
īṣā - mātra
like the front of a plow
ugra
fierce
daṁṣṭra
the teeth
āsyam
having a mouth in which
giri-kandara-nāsikam
giri - kandara
like mountain caves
nāsikam
the nostrils of whom
gaṇḍa-śaila-stanaṁ raudraṁ
gaṇḍa - śaila
like big slabs of stone
stanam
the breasts of whom
raudram
very fierce
prakīrṇāruṇa-mūrdhajam
prakīrṇa
scattered
aruṇa - mūrdha - jam
whose hair was the color of copper
andha-kūpa-gabhīrākṣaṁ
andha - kūpa
like blind wells
gabhīra
deep
akṣam
eye sockets
pulināroha-bhīṣaṇam
pulina - āroha - bhīṣaṇam
whose thighs were fearful like the banks of a river
baddha-setu-bhujorv-aṅghri
baddha - setu - bhuja - uru - aṅghri
whose arms, thighs and feet were strongly built bridges
śūnya-toya-hradodaram
śūnya - toya - hrada - udaram
whose abdomen was like a lake without water
santatrasuḥ sma tad vīkṣya
santatrasuḥ sma
became frightened
tat
that
vīkṣya
seeing
gopā gopyaḥ kalevaram
gopāḥ
the cowherd men
gopyaḥ
and the cowherd women
kalevaram
such a gigantic body
pūrvaṁ tu tan-niḥsvanita-
pūrvam tu
before that
tat - niḥsvanita
because of her loud vibration
bhinna-hṛt-karṇa-mastakāḥ
bhinna
were shocked
hṛt
whose hearts
karṇa
ears
mastakāḥ
and heads .
Important Words
  • īṣā - mātra — (teeth) like the front of a plow
    Compound — īṣā (plow-shaft) + mātra (measure). Vedic agricultural imagery. The very tools that till Vraja's fields are weaponized in this comparison — domestic life, when distorted by māyā, can grow teeth.
  • andha - kūpa — (eye-sockets) like blind wells
    Compound — andha (blind) + kūpa (well). Blind wells, in Vedic practice, are wells one no longer draws from, often covered. The image suggests the cessation of vision in the demoniac form — and stands quietly against the alert, all-seeing Hṛṣīkeśa of verse 24.
  • śūnya - toya - hrada - udaram — abdomen like a dried-up lake
    Compound — śūnya (empty) + toya (water) + hrada (pool) + udara (belly). The Bhāgavata's deliberate gloss on the asuric belly: an exhausted reservoir, drained of life. The contrast is the Vrajavāsīs' own jīvanam, kept full by Kṛṣṇa.
  • raudram — very fierce
    Adjective from rudra (terrifying). Names the rasa of the moment — raudra-rasa, terror at the asura unmasked. In Gauḍīya rasa-vicāra raudra is a vibhāva-class normally reserved for descriptions of demons or of Kṛṣṇa's krodha against them; both senses converge here.
  • santatrasuḥ sma — (the gopas and gopīs) became frightened
    Perfect plural of saṁ-tras (to be very afraid) + sma. The Vrajavāsīs' bhaya is not a defect — it sharpens their dependence on Kṛṣṇa and prepares the protective mantras of 22–29. Bhaya rightly placed becomes śaraṇāgati.
The Rākṣasī’s mouth was full of teeth, each resembling the front of a plow, her nostrils were deep like mountain caves, and her breasts resembled big slabs of stone fallen from a hill. Her scattered hair was the color of copper. The sockets of her eyes appeared like deep blind wells, her fearful thighs resembled the banks of a river, her arms, legs and feet seemed like big bridges, and her abdomen appeared like a dried-up lake. The hearts, ears and heads of the cowherd men and women were already shocked by the Rākṣasī’s screaming, and when they saw the fierce wonder of her body, they were even more frightened.
Gauḍīya Ācāryas
Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura Gauḍīya
Translation
The Rākṣasī's mouth was full of teeth, each resembling the front of a plow, her nostrils were deep like mountain caves, and her breasts resembled big slabs of stone fallen from a hill. Her scattered hair was the color of copper. The sockets of her eyes appeared like deep blind wells, her fearful thighs resembled the banks of a river, her arms, legs and feet seemed like big bridges, and her abdomen appeared like a dried-up lake. The hearts, ears and heads of the cowherd men and women were already shocked by the Rākṣasī's screaming, and when they saw the fierce wonder of her body, they were even more frightened.
Commentary

Seeing her body, the cowherd men and women became frightened. Her teeth were as large as ploughshares. Her nostrils were as deep as mountain caves. Her waist was like the bank of a river. All of this was terrible to see. Her hands, feet and thighs were like bridges and her belly was like a dried up lake. Already having their hearts, ears and heads shattered by her sound, on seeing her form they became more frightened.

Jīva Gosvāmī Gauḍīya
Commentary

Her ferocious nature is described with eight characteristics. Her thighs were frightening. Previously her loud wailing was frightening and now everyone understood that she was the killer of children. Seeing her, the cowherds could understand she was a demon. They were frightened out of affection for Kṛṣṇa. Sma indicates that they became completely frightened. This was directly visible.

Related values & verses
Related values
Discriminative WisdomAbhaya (Fearlessness)Vinaya (Humility / Modesty)Prema (Divine Love)
Related verses
SB 10.6.12 SB 10.6.13 SB 10.6.14 SB 10.6.18 BG 5.4 BG 10.4 BG 12.6 BG 1.21 BG 2.31 BG 15.9
Related lectures
Personal Guidance
Pūtanā's monstrous form unmasks māyā: what dazzles or terrifies the senses is hollow — only Kṛṣṇa's shelter steadies the heart.
Practical Applications
  • Notice one image today (news, scroll, gossip) that hijacks your heart through fear or fascination, and consciously withdraw the senses (vairāgya) back to Kṛṣṇa's name.
  • When dread rises in the body, refuse to let it dictate action — chant the holy name aloud and let abhaya, not adrenaline, decide your next step.
  • Speak to someone who is shaken by a frightening appearance in their life and gently point past the form to the shelter of Kṛṣṇa, not to mere reassurance.
Analogy

Pūtanā's body in its original form — teeth like plowshares, breasts like fallen boulders, an abdomen like a dried lake — is the inventory of māyā after Kṛṣṇa lifts the veil. The same components that, dressed and perfumed, drew the men of Vraja, now drive them to terror. Without Kṛṣṇa-conscious sight, we have been admiring the same boulders all along.

Stories
Bhīṣma's vision on the bed of arrows

Lying pierced on śara-talpa during the last days of the Mahābhārata, Bhīṣma instructed Yudhiṣṭhira in the Śānti-parva and Anuśāsana-parva on what the body, the kingdom, and the world really are — temporary, decaying, and worthy only insofar as they are offered to Hari.

Verses 15–17 of SB 10.6 give Vraja its own śara-talpa moment in compressed form: the Vrajavāsīs see, in one corpse, the truth about all bodies. After such a vision, only Kṛṣṇa is shelter, not form, not strength, not magnitude.

📝 My note

Source: vedabase.io

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