FolioCorpusŚrīmad-Bhāgavatam

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 10.73.8

राजान ऊचु: नमस्ते देवदेवेश प्रपन्नार्तिहराव्यय । प्रपन्नान् पाहि न: कृष्ण निर्विण्णान्घोरसंसृते: ॥ ८ ॥
rājāna ūcuḥ
[raajaana oochuh]
namas te deva-deveśa
[namas te deva-devesha]
prapannārti-harāvyaya
[prapannaarti-haraavyaya]
prapannān pāhi naḥ kṛṣṇa
[prapannaan paahi nah krishna]
nirviṇṇān ghora-saṁsṛteḥ
[nirvinnaan ghora-samsriteh]
rājānaḥ ūcuḥ — the kings said namaḥ — obeisances te — to You deva — of the demigods deva — of the lords īśa — O Supreme Lord prapanna — of those who are surrendered ārti — of the distress hara — O remover avyaya — O inexhaustible one prapannān — surrendered pāhi — please save naḥ — us kṛṣṇa — O Kṛṣṇa nirviṇṇān — despondent ghora — terrible saṁsṛteḥ — from material existence .
Blended reading (Sanskrit + English inline)
rājāna ūcuḥ
rājānaḥ ūcuḥ
the kings said
namas te deva-deveśa
namaḥ
obeisances
te
to You
deva
of the demigods
deva
of the lords
īśa
O Supreme Lord
prapannārti-harāvyaya
prapanna
of those who are surrendered
ārti
of the distress
hara
O remover
avyaya
O inexhaustible one
prapannān pāhi naḥ kṛṣṇa
prapannān
surrendered
pāhi
please save
naḥ
us
kṛṣṇa
O Kṛṣṇa
nirviṇṇān ghora-saṁsṛteḥ
nirviṇṇān
despondent
ghora
terrible
saṁsṛteḥ
from material existence .
  • deva-deva-īśa — O Lord of the lords of the demigods
    Triple-graded address: above demigods, above their controllers, above all. The kings begin not by listing their woes but by correctly locating Kṛṣṇa.
  • prapanna-ārti-hara — remover of distress of the surrendered
    A standing Vaiṣṇava epithet. The condition is prapanna — already surrendered. The kings claim that status in the same breath as the title, enacting śaraṇāgati.
  • avyaya — O inexhaustible one
    A + vyaya, 'not-spent'. Unlike the kingdoms that drained away, Bhagavān's mercy does not deplete with use — the doctrinal ground for repeated calling.
  • nirviṇṇān — despondent / disgusted with material life
    Nirveda — disgust with saṁsāra — is in Gauḍīya analysis the necessary preliminary mood (vyabhicāri-bhāva) that ripens into śaraṇāgati. The kings name their own qualification.
  • ghora-saṁsṛteḥ — from terrible material existence
    Saṁsṛti is the flowing — saṁ + √sṛ — through births. The adjective ghora insists that material life is itself the dungeon; Giridroṇī was only its emblem.
The kings said: Obeisances to You, O Lord of the ruling demigods, O destroyer of Your surrendered devotees’ distress. Since we have surrendered to You, O inexhaustible Kṛṣṇa, please save us from this terrible material life, which has made us so despondent.
Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura Gauḍīya
Translation
The kings said: Obeisances to You, O Lord of the ruling demigods, O destroyer of Your surrendered devotees' distress. Since we have surrendered to You, O inexhaustible Kṛṣṇa, please save us from this terrible material life, which has made us so despondent.
Commentary

Devadeva indicates Krsna’s supreme position as the Lord. Prapanna arti hara (remover of the pains of the surrendered) indicates his affection for his devotees. Avaya (inexhaustible) indicates his unchanging nature.

Jīva Gosvāmī Gauḍīya
Commentary

Protect us from samsāra, fearful because it makes us inimical to you. Why? We are surrendered to you. “Offering the happiness of material enjoyment to me is somewhat a cause of bhakti.” We are disgusted with material life (nirviṇṇān). We have become detached from enjoyment because of experiencing suffering. “For that purpose you should pray to some devatā.” You are the master of the lords of the devatās (devadevīśa). As the Supreme Lord this is suitable for you to do, not others. “If I am supreme, then why should I be attentive to persons like you?” You destroy the distress of the surrendered. “But if I am like that, there will then be unlimited surrendered souls.” You powers are inexhaustible (avyaya). And you are Kṛṣṇa. You are famous for delivering Pūtanā. What harm is there if there are unlimited surrendered souls. It will add to your fame if you deliver them all.

Related values
Sthitaprajna (Steady Wisdom)Vairagya (Detachment / Dispassion)Discriminative WisdomShanti (Peace / Tranquility)Abhaya (Fearlessness)Seva (Service / Selfless Action)Saurya (Heroism / Bravery)Samata (Equanimity / Even-mindedness)Ishvara Pranidhana (Surrender to God)Aparigraha (Non-possessiveness)
Related verses
'Obeisances to You, destroyer of Your surrendered devotees' distress. Save us from this terrible material life that has made us despondent.' Simple, honest prayer of the wearied is the most direct kind.
Reflection Questions
  • What unvarnished prayer have I been dressing up?
  • Where could I just ask the Lord to take away what is too heavy?

A drowning man does not negotiate terms with the rope; he grips it. The kings, surfacing from saṁsāra's deep water, do not bargain — they cry 'pāhi naḥ' and name Kṛṣṇa Avyaya, the inexhaustible, because only what cannot run out can save what is endlessly sinking.

Draupadī's call from the assembly

In Mahābhārata Sabhā-parva, when every protector failed, Draupadī raised both hands and cried out to Govinda alone. The cloth that covered her became inexhaustible because the Avyaya she invoked is Himself inexhaustible.

The kings here use the same epithet — avyaya — for the same reason. What is finite cannot ferry the finite across; only the unspent Lord answers prapanna-ārti-hara.

📝 My note

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