Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 3.20.36
नैकत्र ते जयति शालिनि पादपद्मं
घ्नन्त्या मुहु: करतलेन पतत्पतङ्गम् ।
मध्यं विषीदति बृहत्स्तनभारभीतं
शान्तेव दृष्टिरमला सुशिखासमूह: ॥ ३६ ॥
naikatra te jayati śālini pāda-padmaṁ
[naikatra te jayati shaalini paada-padmam]
ghnantyā muhuḥ kara-talena patat-pataṅgam
[ghnantyaa muhuh kara-talena patat-patangam]
madhyaṁ viṣīdati bṛhat-stana-bhāra-bhītaṁ
[madhyam visheedati brihat-stana-bhaara-bheetam]
śānteva dṛṣṭir amalā suśikhā-samūhaḥ
[shaanteva drishtir amalaa sushikhaa-samoohah]
Word-for-word
na
—
not
ekatra
—
in one place
te
—
your
jayati
—
stay
śālini
—
O beautiful woman
pāda-padmam
—
lotus feet
ghnantyāḥ
—
striking
muhuḥ
—
again and again
kara-talena
—
by the palm of the hand
patat
—
bouncing
pataṅgam
—
the ball
madhyam
—
waist
viṣīdati
—
gets fatigued
bṛhat
—
full grown
stana
—
of your breasts
bhāra
—
by the weight
bhītam
—
oppressed
śāntā iva
—
as if fatigued
dṛṣṭiḥ
—
vision
amalā
—
clear
su
—
beautiful
śikhā
—
your hair
samūhaḥ
—
bunch.
Blended reading (Sanskrit + English inline)
naikatra te jayati śālini pāda-padmaṁ
na
not
ekatra
in one place
te
your
jayati
stay
śālini
O beautiful woman
pāda-padmam
lotus feet
ghnantyā muhuḥ kara-talena patat-pataṅgam
ghnantyāḥ
striking
muhuḥ
again and again
kara-talena
by the palm of the hand
patat
bouncing
pataṅgam
the ball
madhyaṁ viṣīdati bṛhat-stana-bhāra-bhītaṁ
madhyam
waist
viṣīdati
gets fatigued
bṛhat
full grown
stana
of your breasts
bhāra
by the weight
bhītam
oppressed
śānteva dṛṣṭir amalā suśikhā-samūhaḥ
śāntā iva
as if fatigued
dṛṣṭiḥ
vision
amalā
clear
su
beautiful
śikhā
your hair
samūhaḥ
bunch.
O beautiful woman, when you strike the bouncing ball against the ground with your hand again and again, your lotus feet do not stay in one place. Oppressed by the weight of your full-grown breasts, your waist becomes fatigued, and your clear vision grows dull, as it were. Pray braid your comely hair.
Purport
The demons observed beautiful gestures in the woman’s every step. Here they praise her full-grown breasts, her scattered hair and her movements in stepping forward and backward while playing with the ball. In every step they enjoy her womanly beauty, and while they enjoy her beauty their minds become agitated by sex desire. As moths at night surround a fire and are killed, so the demons become victims of the movements of the ball-like breasts of a beautiful woman. The scattered hair of a beautiful woman also afflicts the heart of a lusty demon.
— A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupāda
Gauḍīya Ācāryas
Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura
Gauḍīya
Translation
O praiseworthy woman! You play by striking the bouncing ball with your hand again and again and, in doing so, your feet do not stay in one place. It seems you are tired with your thin waist fatigued, bent because of the weight of your breasts. Your glance is pure and languid, and your hair is beautiful.
This verse describes her playing with a ball. O praiseworthy woman! Your feet do not remain still. Patatpataṅgam means a bouncing ball and the setting sun. Because your waist is thin, it appears to be getting weak with the weight of your breasts. Your glance is without desire (amala) though internally you have desire. It appears languid (śrāntā) because of playing ball. Your hair appears splendid, being bound up. Su can stand as an indeclinable meaning “beautifully.”
Related lectures
Personal Guidance
Taking shelter of the Lord's lotus feet is not a poetic flourish — it names a real reorientation. The verse invites us to test which shelters we currently lean on and to notice when they fail to hold weight.
Reflection Questions
- Which security in your life have you confused with the Lord's protection?
- What small act of dependence on the Lord could you practice this week instead of self-reliance?
My note
Source: vedabase.io