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Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 10.71.7

ब्रह्मवेषधरो गत्वा तं भिक्षेत वृकोदर: । हनिष्यति न सन्देहो द्वैरथे तव सन्निधौ ॥ ७ ॥
brahma-veṣa-dharo gatvā
[brahma-vesha-dharo gatvaa]
taṁ bhikṣeta vṛkodaraḥ
[tam bhiksheta vrikodarah]
haniṣyati na sandeho
[hanishyati na sandeho]
dvai-rathe tava sannidhau
[dvai-rathe tava sannidhau]
Word-for-word
brahma — of a brāhmaṇa veṣa — the dress dharaḥ — wearing gatvā — going tam — to him, Jarāsandha bhikṣeta — should beg vṛka - udaraḥ — Bhīma haniṣyati — he will kill him na — no sandehaḥ — doubt dvai - rathe — in one-on-one chariot combat tava — Your sannidhau — in the presence .
Blended reading (Sanskrit + English inline)
brahma-veṣa-dharo gatvā
brahma
of a brāhmaṇa
veṣa
the dress
dharaḥ
wearing
gatvā
going
taṁ bhikṣeta vṛkodaraḥ
tam
to him, Jarāsandha
bhikṣeta
should beg
vṛka - udaraḥ
Bhīma
haniṣyati na sandeho
haniṣyati
he will kill him
na
no
sandehaḥ
doubt
dvai-rathe tava sannidhau
dvai - rathe
in one-on-one chariot combat
tava
Your
sannidhau
in the presence .
Important Words
  • vṛka - udaraḥ — wolf-bellied — Bhīma
    Bhīma's epithet — vṛkodara, with a wolf's appetite. The name is invoked precisely where his wolf-strength is the instrument; Kṛṣṇa picks the name and the man fit for the throat of Jarāsandha.
  • sannidhau — in Your presence
    Sannidhi — the doctrine that wherever the Lord stands, His potency acts. Bhīma kills, but the locative tava sannidhau makes the killing Kṛṣṇa's. The same principle frames Arjuna's victories in the Gītā.
  • brahma - veṣa - dharaḥ — wearing brāhmaṇa-dress
    Strategic disguise within dharma — not deception, but use of one vidhi (brahmaṇya) to dismantle another's pseudo-dharma. Gauḍīya ācāryas read this as Kṛṣṇa's art of bending appearance to truth, not truth to appearance.
Bhīma should go to him disguised as a brāhmaṇa and beg charity. Thus he will obtain single combat with Jarāsandha, and in Your presence Bhīma will no doubt kill him.
Purport

The idea is that Bhīma should beg as charity a one-to-one fight with Jarāsandha.

— A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupāda
Gauḍīya Ācāryas
Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura Gauḍīya
Translation
Bhīma should go to him disguised as a brāhmaṇa and beg charity. Thus he will obtain single combat with Jarāsandha, and in Your presence Bhīma will no doubt kill him.
Commentary

"You should beg him for single combat." "But what should I do if he wins?" "It should be in your presence. And except for your presence, even in single combat with Bhima he cannot be killed."

Jīva Gosvāmī Gauḍīya
Commentary

Therefore Bhīma, with a thin waist, should dress up as brāhmaṇa. He is strong, being similar to the strong lion with a thin waist. Not only will he defeat him, but he will kill him.

Śrīdhara Svāmī Gauḍīya
Commentary

Bhīma, having a thin waist, is very strong, just as a lion with a thin waist is strong. Also he will fight in the presence of the Lord, which will give him the Lord’s strength.

Therefore Bhīma, with a thin waist, should dress up as brāhmaṇa. He is strong, being similar to the strong lion with a thin waist. Not only will he defeat him, but he will kill him.

Related values & verses
Related values
Vairagya (Detachment / Dispassion)Discriminative WisdomAbhaya (Fearlessness)Seva (Service / Selfless Action)Aparigraha (Non-possessiveness)Anahankarah (Freedom from False Ego)Daksya (Resourcefulness / Skill)Karuna (Kindness / Compassion)
Related verses
BG 17.20 BG 5.7 BG 12.5 BG 5.4 BG 3.27 BG 10.4 BG 3.11 BG 18.1 BG 7.8 BG 13.1 BG 12.6
Personal Guidance
The plan: Bhīma in brāhmaṇa disguise begs single combat as charity. Sometimes truth must dress itself plainly to reach where pomp cannot enter. Strategy in service of dharma is not deceit.
Reflection Questions
  • Where do I need to set aside the trappings of my role to accomplish something important?
  • What 'plain dress' would let truth reach further today?
Analogy

Bhīma walking up to Jarāsandha in brāhmaṇa-dress is like a sword wrapped in silk delivered as a gift — accepted under the rules of hospitality, drawn under the rules of war.

Stories
The three brāhmaṇa visitors

In Sabhā-parva of the Mahābhārata, Kṛṣṇa, Arjuna and Bhīma arrive at Girivraja in brāhmaṇa attire on the auspicious chāturmāsya day. Jarāsandha receives them; Kṛṣṇa reveals their identity; Bhīma is chosen for the duel.

The duel lasts twenty-seven days; on Kṛṣṇa's silent cue, Bhīma splits a blade of grass lengthwise — the demon's body, born of two halves and joined by Jarā, separates along the same line and cannot rejoin. The verse here is the seed of that whole episode.

📝 My note

Source: vedabase.io

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