FolioCorpusŚrīmad-Bhāgavatam

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 10.67.23

ततोऽमुञ्चच्छिलावर्षं बलस्योपर्यमर्षित: । तत्सर्वं चूर्णयामास लीलया मुषलायुध: ॥ २३ ॥
tato ’muñcac chilā-varṣaṁ
[tato ’munchach chilaa-varsham]
balasyopary amarṣitaḥ
[balasyopary amarshitah]
tat sarvaṁ cūrṇayāṁ āsa
[tat sarvam choornayaam aasa]
līlayā muṣalāyudhaḥ
[leelayaa mushalaayudhah]
tataḥ — then amuñcat — he released śilā — of stones varṣam — a rain balasya upari — on top of Lord Balarāma amarṣitaḥ — frustrated tat — that sarvam — all cūrṇayām āsa — pulverized līlayā — easily muṣala - āyudhaḥ — the wielder of the club .
Blended reading (Sanskrit + English inline)
tato ’muñcac chilā-varṣaṁ
tataḥ
then
amuñcat
he released
balasyopary amarṣitaḥ
śilā
of stones
tat sarvaṁ cūrṇayāṁ āsa
varṣam
a rain
balasya upari
on top of Lord Balarāma
amarṣitaḥ
frustrated
tat
that
sarvam
all
cūrṇayām āsa
pulverized
līlayā muṣalāyudhaḥ
līlayā
easily
muṣala - āyudhaḥ
the wielder of the club .
  • śilā-varṣam — rain of stones
    Compound: śilā (stone) + varṣa (rain, shower). Echoes Indra's stone-and-water deluge in the Govardhana līlā (SB 10.25); there Kṛṣṇa lifted the hill, here Balarāma pulverizes the stones. Brothers, parallel līlās.
  • amarṣitaḥ — frustrated, unable to bear
    From a-marṣa (intolerance). Asura-prakṛti cannot bear being unsuccessful; the inability to endure setback is itself a diagnostic. Compare the bhakta's titikṣā (forbearance), which is the same situation seen with bhakti.
  • cūrṇayām āsa — He pulverized
    Periphrastic perfect of caus. √cūrṇ (to grind to powder). The same verb the demon used in v.4 against kingdoms (samacūrṇayat) — the Lord returns the asura's own verb to him. Karmic poetry.
  • līlayā — easily, as play
    Instrumental of līlā. The technical term. What is mahā-prayatna for the asura is līlā for Bhagavān. Gauḍīyas insist all His acts — even battle — are līlā, not effort.
  • muṣala-āyudhaḥ — the wielder of the club
    Compound: muṣala (club) + āyudha (weapon). His standing epithet; weapon and wielder are one. The asura's weapons are improvised (trees, stones); Bhagavān's are eternal aṅgas of His vigraha.
The angry ape then released a rain of stones upon Lord Balarāma, but the wielder of the club easily pulverized them all.

Śrīla Prabhupāda writes: “When no more trees were available, Dvivida took help from the hills and threw large pieces of stone, like rainfall, upon the body of Balarāma. Lord Balarāma, in a great sporting mood, began to smash those big pieces of stone into mere pebbles.” Even today there are many sports wherein people enjoy striking a ball or similar object with a stick or bat. This sporting propensity exists originally in the Supreme Personality of Godhead, who playfully ( līlayā ) pulverized the deadly boulders hurled at Him by the powerful Dvivida.

— A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupāda
Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura Gauḍīya
Translation
The angry ape then released a rain of stones upon Lord Balarāma, but the wielder of the club easily pulverized them all.
Jīva Gosvāmī Gauḍīya
Commentary

When he ran out of trees, Dvivida threw stones.

Śrīdhara Svāmī Gauḍīya
Commentary

When he ran out of trees (tataḥ), Dvivida threw stones in an incessant shower. Easily (līlayā) Balarāma crushed them with his club.

Related values
Anahankarah (Freedom from False Ego)
Related verses
Concepts
Jiva
Dvivida throws stones; Balarāma deflects them effortlessly. The attacks of the proud against the divine do not even register as a strain — God's poise is unshakeable.
Reflection Questions
  • What 'stones' have I been throwing at God's plan that He has been patiently deflecting?
  • Where could I stop throwing and start listening?

When trees run out, the demon turns to stones — pralaya in miniature, hail upon the Lord. And the Lord pulverizes the storm līlayā, "easily, in play." What asuric effort costs the world dearly, Bhagavān undoes as sport.

📝 My note

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