Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 10.83.8
Blended reading (Sanskrit + English inline)
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mṛgendraḥ
—
lion (lord of beasts)
Mṛga (beast) + indra (lord). Rukmiṇī's chosen simile for her own marriage: not abduction by a thief, but rescue by a lion from a pen of cowards. The image will be echoed by Mitravindā (verse 12: dvipa-ariḥ) and by Śukadeva narrating Lakṣmaṇā's wedding (verse 33: mṛga-rāṭ).
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caraṇaḥ
—
the feet
Singular caraṇa-stem. Rukmiṇī ends the verse not by celebrating her rescue but by asking that those feet remain her arcana-object. Gauḍīya bhakti reads the closing line as the actual content of the marriage: not the act of being taken, but the perpetual seva-relationship that began with it.
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śrī - niketa
—
the abode of the goddess of fortune
Śrī (Lakṣmī, fortune) + niketa (dwelling). Kṛṣṇa is the abode in whom Śrī dwells — a Vaiṣṇava formula. Rukmiṇī, herself an expansion of Śrī, is acknowledging that her own ultimate ground is in Kṛṣṇa's feet, where Śrī rests.
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arcanāya
—
for worship
Arcana — formal ritual worship. The dative case (arcanāya) shows purpose: 'so that I may worship'. Rukmiṇī asks for the eternal posture of arcana-bhakti at His feet, not merely for the status of queen.
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ajeya - bhaṭa - śekharita - aṅghri - reṇuḥ
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(He) on whose feet the dust of invincible warriors' heads has come to rest
Contiguous compound. Where invincible warriors have placed their heads, Kṛṣṇa's feet have rested — the dust on His soles is itself the dust of conquered helmets. The poetic image inverts the usual conqueror-conquered relationship and frames every battle as a śaraṇāgati toward Him.
Lord Kṛṣṇa’s pastime of kidnapping Rukmiṇī is narrated in detail in Chapters Fifty-two through Fifty-four of the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam’s Tenth Canto.
Though the kings such as Jarasandha were standing with bows ready to shoot, in order to offer me to Sisupala, Krsna, whose foot dust is held by heads of the invincible warriors, took me away, as a lion takes away his share from a herd of goats or sheep. May his feet which are the abode of Laksmi, be the goal of my worship.
I offer respects to the consorts of Kṛṣṇa, whose bhāvas are sometimes understood and sometimes hard to understand. I can only proceed to explain the meaning of their words by his mercy. Kṛṣṇa put the dust of his feet upon the heads of the invincible kings. Or, Kṛṣṇa put his foot dust on their heads to show his invincibility. He accepted me as his own very easily since he was unconquerable. An example is given to show his great prowess. He was like lion taking his share from the goats and sheep. Giving the details, to show his great compassion, she says that she was taken in that way, though she was unqualified. “You are Lakṣmī full of all wealth. Should you not be taken by the Lord?” His feet are the abode of Lakṣmī. By his mercy I should be the same. Let his feet be there as the object of my worship. She prays in this way, indicating that she is not qualified to be his servant. How do I then deserve to be his wife? She prays only to be his servant, serving his lotus feet. Or he whose feet are the abode of Lakṣmī accepted me as his share. She speaks out of great devotion. The grammatical structure is similar to SB 11.5.34
I offer respects to the consorts of Kṛṣṇa, whose bhāvas are sometimes understood and sometimes hard to understand. I can only proceed to explain the meaning of their words by his mercy. He who puts the dust of his feet on the heads of invincible warriors of the kings took me to Dvārakā or took me away. This was done without effort. These warriors were unconquerable. This shows Kṛṣṇa’s great courage. An example is given. The lion takes his share from a group of goats or sheep. He took me away. This indicates the marriage but it is not mentioned, out of her shyness or modesty. Though it was not proper for him to take her in this way, she could not contain her joy, and thus related the uncommon incident. Taking her away was his great mercy. “You are his eternal consort Lakṣmī, goddess of all wealth, situated on his chest eternally. Why are you not there?” One of his feet is the shelter of Lakṣmī, because of its wealth of softness or variety of beauty. Or one foot contains all wealth. By its mercy, I am a queen. May his foot be for my worship. May I worship the foot. It is not my possession. She prays in this way, indicating that she is not qualified to be his servant. How do I then deserve to be his wife? She prays only to be his servant, serving his lotus feet. She speaks out of great devotion. Or he whose feet are the abode of Lakṣmī accepted me as his share and took me away. The grammatical structure is similar to SB 11.5.34
- How does my own 'how I met the Lord' story end — and is the ending still going?
- What ongoing prayer extends from a past meeting?
A lion does not knock at the door of the pen; he steps among the goats and sheep, takes his share, and walks out unhurried. So Kṛṣṇa entered the courtyard of kings who had their bows trained on Him, picked Rukmiṇī up before Śiśupāla's eyes, and left. The verse calls it rākṣasa-vivāha by form — but the lion's calm is mādhurya, not violence.
In SB 10.52, the young Rukmiṇī, refused her chosen Lord by her brother Rukmī, wrote Kṛṣṇa a brāhmaṇa-borne letter offering her life as His. She named the day, the temple of Ambikā outside the city, the moment when she would emerge after worship.
Kṛṣṇa came on the appointed dawn, lifted her into His chariot before all the assembled kings (Jarāsandha, Śālva, Śiśupāla), defeated their armies, shaved Rukmī's head and beard, and brought her to Dvārakā. The verse here is Rukmiṇī's own retelling — and she chooses the image of the mṛgendraḥ, the lion-among-deer, not the abductor. Her bhakti reads the violence as protection.
My note
Source: vedabase.io