SB 12.10.34 — FolioCorpus

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 12.10.34

वरमेकं वृणेऽथापि पूर्णात् कामाभिवर्षणात् । भगवत्यच्युतां भक्तिं तत्परेषु तथा त्वयि ॥ ३४ ॥

varam ekaṁ vṛṇe ’thāpi

[varam ekam vrine ’thaapi]

pūrṇāt kāmābhivarṣaṇāt

[poornaat kaamaabhivarshanaat]

bhagavaty acyutāṁ bhaktiṁ

[bhagavaty achyutaam bhaktim]

tat-pareṣu tathā tvayi

[tat-pareshu tathaa tvayi]

Word-for-word

varam — benediction ekam — one vṛṇe — I request atha api — nevertheless pūrṇāt — from him who is completely full kāma-abhivarṣaṇāt — who showers down the fulfillment of desires bhagavati — for the Supreme Personality of Godhead acyutām — infallible bhaktim — devotional service tat-pareṣu — for those who are dedicated to Him tathā — and also tvayi — for yourself.

Blended reading (Sanskrit + English inline)

varam ekaṁ vṛṇe ’thāpi

varam

benediction

ekam

one

vṛṇe

I request

pūrṇāt kāmābhivarṣaṇāt

atha api

nevertheless

pūrṇāt

from him who is completely full

kāma-abhivarṣaṇāt

who showers down the fulfillment of desires

bhagavati

for the Supreme Personality of Godhead

bhagavaty acyutāṁ bhaktiṁ

acyutām

infallible

bhaktim

devotional service

tat-pareṣu tathā tvayi

tat-pareṣu

for those who are dedicated to Him

tathā

and also

tvayi

for yourself.

But I do request one benediction from you, who are full of all perfection and able to shower down the fulfillment of all desires. I ask to have unfailing devotion for the Supreme Personality of Godhead and for His dedicated devotees, especially you.

Purport

The words tat-pareṣu tathā tvayi clearly indicate that Lord Śiva is a devotee of the Supreme Lord, not the Supreme Lord Himself. Because the representative of God is offered the same protocol as God Himself, Mārkaṇḍeya Ṛṣi addressed Lord Śiva as “lord” in previous verses. But now it is clearly revealed that, as stated throughout Vedic literature, Lord Śiva is an eternal servant of God and not God Himself.

Desire manifests itself within the mind and heart according to the subtle laws governing consciousness. Pure desire to engage in the loving service of the Lord brings one to the most exalted platform of consciousness, and such a perfect understanding of life is available only by the special mercy of the Lord’s devotees.

— A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupāda

Gauḍīya Ācāryas

Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura Gauḍīya

Translation

But I do request one benediction from you, who are full of all perfection and able to shower down the fulfillment of all desires. I ask to have unfailing devotion for the Supreme Lord and for his devotees, especially you. I request devotion to the Lord’s devotees, and similarly to the best devotee, you, the instructor of bhakti, the guru. This means “May I have devotion to you, as a devotee, not as the Supreme Lord.”

Personal Guidance

Markandeya does ask one thing: unfailing devotion to the Lord and to those devoted to Him, life after life. The right ask, finally, is for sustained love — not for circumstance.

Reflection Questions

If I could ask for one thing across lives, what would it be?
Does my daily prayer cultivate that direction or scatter it?

📝 My note

Source: vedabase.io