Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 10.81.17
निवासित: प्रियाजुष्टे पर्यङ्के भ्रातरो यथा ।
महिष्या वीजित: श्रान्तो बालव्यजनहस्तया ॥ १७ ॥
nivāsitaḥ priyā-juṣṭe
[nivaasitah priyaa-jushte]
paryaṅke bhrātaro yathā
[paryanke bhraataro yathaa]
mahiṣyā vījitaḥ śrānto
[mahishyaa veejitah shraanto]
bāla-vyajana-hastayā
[baala-vyajana-hastayaa]
Word-for-word
nivāsitaḥ
—
seated
priyā
—
by His beloved
juṣṭe
—
used
paryaṅke
—
on the bed
bhrātaraḥ
—
brothers
yathā
—
just as
mahiṣyā
—
by His queen
vījitaḥ
—
fanned
śrāntaḥ
—
tired
bāla
—
of (yak-tail) hair
vyajana
—
a fan
hastayā
—
in whose hand .
Blended reading (Sanskrit + English inline)
nivāsitaḥ priyā-juṣṭe
nivāsitaḥ
seated
priyā
by His beloved
juṣṭe
used
paryaṅke bhrātaro yathā
paryaṅke
on the bed
bhrātaraḥ
brothers
yathā
just as
mahiṣyā vījitaḥ śrānto
mahiṣyā
by His queen
vījitaḥ
fanned
śrāntaḥ
tired
bāla-vyajana-hastayā
bāla
of (yak-tail) hair
vyajana
a fan
hastayā
in whose hand .
Important Words
-
priyā-juṣṭe paryaṅke
—
on the bed used by His beloved
priyā (beloved) + juṣṭe (used, frequented) + paryaṅka (bed). The most intimate piece of furniture in Bhagavān's palace, and Sudāmā was seated there. The poet records the violation of every protocol of distance.
-
bhrātaraḥ yathā
—
just as (one of His) brothers
bhrātṛ (brother) + yathā (as). Sudāmā was treated as a brother. In Vraja he had been treated as a sakhā at the ashram; in Dvārakā, the same Bhagavān upgrades nothing — Kṛṣṇa keeps the rasa.
-
mahiṣyā vījitaḥ
—
fanned by His queen
mahiṣī (queen) + vījita (fanned). The queen of the world's wealthiest king personally fanned the brāhmaṇa in rags. The whole chapter's claim about brahmaṇyatā is condensed in this one detail.
-
śrāntaḥ
—
tired
Past participle of √śram (to be tired). Sudāmā walked to Dvārakā on foot through forests; his body was actually tired. The Bhāgavatam never aestheticizes him into a yogi — he is a tired pedestrian whom Kṛṣṇa's queen attends to.
-
bāla-vyajana-hastayā
—
in whose hand was a yak-tail fan
Compound: bāla (hair, here yak-tail) + vyajana (fan) + hasta (hand). The cāmara is one of the standard items in temple deity worship — and here it is in Rukmiṇī's hand, used on Sudāmā. The poet inverts the directionality of ritual.
He treated me just like one of His brothers, making me sit on the bed of His beloved consort. And because I was fatigued, His queen personally fanned me with a yak-tail cāmara.
Gauḍīya Ācāryas
Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura
Gauḍīya
Translation
He treated me just like one of His brothers, making me sit on the bed of His beloved consort. And because I was fatigued, His queen personally fanned me with a yak-tail cāmara.
Jīva Gosvāmī
Gauḍīya
Commentary
Not only did he embrace me but he sat me on Rukmiṇī’s couch, on which she always sat with the Lord. Instead of śriyā sometimes priyā is seen. Moreover, he did this with great respect and affection, as if I were his younger brother like Gada. Moreover Rukmiṇī fanned me with a cāmara since I was tired from travelling so far. This shows their mercy to him.
Related values & verses
Related values
Vairagya (Detachment / Dispassion)Discriminative WisdomAbhaya (Fearlessness)Seva (Service / Selfless Action)Saurya (Heroism / Bravery)Samata (Equanimity / Even-mindedness)Ahimsa (Non-violence / Compassion)
Related verses
Personal Guidance
Kṛṣṇa treated him like a brother, seated him on the consort's bed, had His queen fan him with the cāmara. The Lord's hospitality is not measured; He pulls out every honor.
Reflection Questions
- What does 'maximum hospitality' look like in my context, and could I extend it to someone today?
- Whose visit to me deserves the cāmara treatment?
Analogy
A king's only brother arrives travel-worn, and the queen herself takes up the cāmara to fan him. Sudāmā's wonder is not at the throne-room but at this: Rukmiṇī fanned me. The queen's own hand became service to the brāhmaṇa's tiredness — because the king saw him as His own.
My note
Source: vedabase.io