FolioCorpusŚrīmad-Bhāgavatam

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 10.84.8

उवाच सुखमासीनान् भगवान् धर्मगुप्तनु: । सदसस्तस्य महतो यतवाचोऽनुश‍ृण्वत: ॥ ८ ॥
uvāca sukham āsīnān
[uvaacha sukham aaseenaan]
bhagavān dharma-gup-tanuḥ
[bhagavaan dharma-gup-tanuh]
sadasas tasya mahato
[sadasas tasya mahato]
yata-vāco ’nuśṛṇvataḥ
[yata-vaacho ’nushrinvatah]
uvāca — said sukham — comfortably āsīnān — to them who were seated bhagavān — the Supreme Lord dharma — of religion gup — the means of protection tanuḥ — whose body sadasaḥ — in the assembly tasya — that mahataḥ — to the great souls yata — subdued vācaḥ — whose speech anuśṛṇvataḥ — as they listened carefully .
Blended reading (Sanskrit + English inline)
uvāca sukham āsīnān
uvāca
said
sukham
comfortably
āsīnān
to them who were seated
bhagavān dharma-gup-tanuḥ
bhagavān
the Supreme Lord
dharma
of religion
gup
the means of protection
tanuḥ
whose body
sadasas tasya mahato
sadasaḥ
in the assembly
tasya
that
mahataḥ
to the great souls
yata-vāco ’nuśṛṇvataḥ
yata
subdued
vācaḥ
whose speech
anuśṛṇvataḥ
as they listened carefully .
  • dharma-gup-tanuḥ — whose body protects dharma
    Compound: dharma + gup (root √gup, to protect) + tanu (body). Gauḍīyas read tanu here as Kṛṣṇa's nara-līlā body — voluntarily assumed for protection of varṇāśrama and the bhakti-mārga that crowns it.
  • bhagavān — the Supreme Lord
    Six opulences in full (Viṣṇu Purāṇa 6.5.47, cited by Jīva Gosvāmī). The choice of bhagavān rather than kṛṣṇa here signals that the One about to speak speaks with all six aiśvaryas — wealth, strength, fame, beauty, knowledge, renunciation.
  • yata-vācaḥ — whose speech was subdued
    yata (controlled, restrained) + vāc (speech). The audience has gone silent before Bhagavān speaks. Gauḍīyas treat this kind of attention as the prerequisite for hari-kathā-śravaṇa — the first limb of nava-vidha-bhakti.
  • anuśṛṇvataḥ — listening carefully
    anu + √śru (to hear). The same root as śravaṇa, the foundational limb of bhakti. Gauḍīyas hold that the quality of one's hearing decides what one becomes — anuśravaṇa is the disciplic ear.
After the sages were comfortably seated, the Supreme Lord Kṛṣṇa, whose transcendental body protects religious principles, addressed them in the midst of that great assembly. Everyone listened silently with rapt attention.
Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura Gauḍīya
Translation
After the sages were comfortably seated, the Supreme Lord Kṛṣṇa, whose transcendental body protects religious principles, addressed them in the midst of that great assembly. Everyone listened silently with rapt attention.
Commentary

Krsna, sitting in the assembly (sadasah for sadasi), spoke to the sages.

Jīva Gosvāmī Gauḍīya
Commentary

He spoke since he had appeared in the world to protect dharma. Persons even of great stature were silent, since they wanted to hear his words.

Śrīdhara Svāmī Gauḍīya
Commentary

He spoke since he was manifesting unlimited qualities such as honoring brāhmaṇas, since he was the protector of dharma (dharma-gup-tanuḥ). Though great, everyone in the assembly was silent, because they were listening. Confused by bhakti when the sages came he did not follow the proper order of worship with lamps. Lamps and incense are offered if there is an offering of food. Since food was not offered, these items are not mentioned. Offeing incense also depends on the fragrance in the room. Thus everything was done properly.

Related values
Sthitaprajna (Steady Wisdom)Vairagya (Detachment / Dispassion)Discriminative Wisdom
Related verses
Concepts
JivaDharma
Once the sages are seated, Kṛṣṇa speaks — order in worship matters. The Lord whose body protects all dharmas Himself follows the dharmas of hospitality.
Reflection Questions
  • Where am I impatient to speak before the necessary courtesies are done?
  • What in my devotional life suffers from skipping the small forms?

Bhagavān speaking in the assembly is the sun moving through a hall of mirrors — every silenced face becomes a small bright surface. The dharma-protecting body He wears is the same field of warmth that Yaśodā tied up in Vraja: tanu, the deliberately limited form by which the unlimited becomes audible.

Kṛṣṇa as dharma-setu in the Mahābhārata

Throughout the Mahābhārata, Kṛṣṇa is repeatedly called dharma-saṁsthāpanārthāya — the one who came to re-establish dharma (echoing BG 4.7–8). The phrase dharma-gup-tanuḥ here is the same teaching in different syntax: His body is itself the guarding mechanism for religious principles.

📝 My note

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