Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 10.66.7
श्रीशुक उवाच
कत्थनं तदुपाकर्ण्य पौण्ड्रकस्याल्पमेधस: ।
उग्रसेनादय: सभ्या उच्चकैर्जहसुस्तदा ॥ ७ ॥
śrī-śuka uvāca
[shree-shuka uvaacha]
katthanaṁ tad upākarṇya
[katthanam tad upaakarnya]
pauṇḍrakasyālpa-medhasaḥ
[paundrakasyaalpa-medhasah]
ugrasenādayaḥ sabhyā
[ugrasenaadayah sabhyaa]
uccakair jahasus tadā
[uchchakair jahasus tadaa]
Word-for-word
śrī - śukaḥ uvāca
—
Śukadeva Gosvāmī said
katthanam
—
boasting
tat
—
that
upākarṇya
—
hearing
pauṇḍrakasya
—
of Pauṇḍraka
alpa
—
small
medhasaḥ
—
whose intelligence
ugrasena - ādayaḥ
—
headed by King Ugrasena
sabhyāḥ
—
the members of the assembly
uccakaiḥ
—
loudly
jahasuḥ
—
laughed
tadā
—
then .
Blended reading (Sanskrit + English inline)
śrī-śuka uvāca
śrī - śukaḥ uvāca
Śukadeva Gosvāmī said
katthanam
boasting
katthanaṁ tad upākarṇya
tat
that
upākarṇya
hearing
pauṇḍrakasyālpa-medhasaḥ
pauṇḍrakasya
of Pauṇḍraka
alpa
small
medhasaḥ
whose intelligence
ugrasenādayaḥ sabhyā
ugrasena - ādayaḥ
headed by King Ugrasena
sabhyāḥ
the members of the assembly
uccakair jahasus tadā
uccakaiḥ
loudly
jahasuḥ
laughed
tadā
then .
Important Words
-
katthanam
—
boasting
From √kath (to tell), intensive form: empty self-aggrandizing speech. The Gītā lists ātma-saṁstavam (self-praise) among the demoniac qualities (16.17). Pauṇḍraka's words are not a position to be debated — they are a symptom to be laughed at.
-
alpa-medhasaḥ
—
of small intelligence
Compound: alpa (small) + medhas (intellect). The Gītā uses the same compound for those who worship demigods for trivial gains (7.23, alpa-medhasām). Pauṇḍraka, having worshiped his own image, falls into the same diagnostic category.
-
ugrasena-ādayaḥ
—
headed by King Ugrasena
Compound: Ugrasena + ādi (the first, etc.). The Yadu elders set the scene's tone. When the senior-most kṣatriyas of the dynasty laugh, the verdict is sealed in the social register before the sword settles it in the martial one.
-
sabhyāḥ
—
the members of the assembly
Those qualified to sit in the sabhā. Gauḍīyas note: the response of a qualified assembly is itself a pramāṇa — when the assembled mahājanas laugh, the matter is decided. Hari-bhakti-vilāsa cites assembly-judgment as one means of testing claims to spiritual status.
-
jahasuḥ
—
they laughed
Perfect plural of √has (to laugh). The Bhāgavata's laughter is rarely cruel; here it is structural — the only sane response to a logically self-refuting claim. Mahāprabhu Himself laughed at Sārvabhauma's Māyāvāda commentary on the Vedānta-sūtra for similar reasons.
Śukadeva Gosvāmī said: King Ugrasena and the other members of the assembly laughed loudly when they heard this vain boasting of unintelligent Pauṇḍraka.
Gauḍīya Ācāryas
Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura
Gauḍīya
Translation
Śukadeva Gosvāmī said: King Ugrasena and the other members of the assembly laughed loudly when they heard this vain boasting of unintelligent Pauṇḍraka.
Jīva Gosvāmī
Gauḍīya
Commentary
Hearing the boastful words of Pauṇḍraka, who had little intelligence, Ugrasena and others laughed loudly in the presence (upa) of the Lord.
Śrīdhara Svāmī
Gauḍīya
Commentary
Hearing near the Lord (upakarṇya) the astonishing, boasting words of the fool Pauṇḍraka, immediately (tadā) the members loudly laughed together in the assembly (sabhyāḥ).
Related values & verses
Related values
Prema (Divine Love)Kshama (Forgiveness / Patience)Nyaya (Justice / Righteous Judgment)Seva (Service / Selfless Action)Kritajnata (Gratitude)Karuna (Kindness / Compassion)Satya (Truthfulness)Daya (Compassion / Mercy)Ahimsa (Non-violence / Compassion)Saurya (Heroism / Bravery)Vairagya (Detachment / Dispassion)
Related verses
Concepts
Jiva
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Personal Guidance
Ugrasena and the royal court burst into laughter at Pauṇḍraka's pretensions. There is something inherently absurd about a tiny ego claiming to be the Absolute — and devotees can laugh at it kindly, including in themselves.
Reflection Questions
- Can I laugh gently at my own grand self-image when it surfaces?
- Where does humor help dissolve pretense in my spiritual community?
Analogy
A man in a paper crown stands before a parliament of warriors who have seen Kālayavana fall and Jarāsandha flee; he reads his decree, and the room bursts into laughter. The laughter of devotees is itself a verdict — the truth-test that flattery had failed to administer.
My note
Source: vedabase.io