Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 4.17.13
इति व्यवसितो बुद्ध्या प्रगृहीतशरासन:
सन्दधे विशिखं भूमे: क्रुद्धस्त्रिपुरहा यथा ॥ १३ ॥
iti vyavasito buddhyā
[iti vyavasito buddhyaa]
pragṛhīta-śarāsanaḥ
[pragriheeta-sharaasanah]
sandadhe viśikhaṁ bhūmeḥ
[sandadhe vishikham bhoomeh]
kruddhas tripura-hā yathā
[kruddhas tripura-haa yathaa]
Word-for-word
iti
—
thus
vyavasitaḥ
—
having arrived at the conclusion
buddhyā
—
by intelligence
pragṛhīta
—
having taken up
śarāsanaḥ
—
the bow
sandadhe
—
fixed
viśikham
—
an arrow
bhūmeḥ
—
at the earth
kruddhaḥ
—
angry
tri-pura-hā
—
Lord Śiva
yathā
—
like.
Blended reading (Sanskrit + English inline)
iti vyavasito buddhyā
iti
thus
vyavasitaḥ
having arrived at the conclusion
buddhyā
by intelligence
pragṛhīta-śarāsanaḥ
pragṛhīta
having taken up
śarāsanaḥ
the bow
sandadhe viśikhaṁ bhūmeḥ
sandadhe
fixed
viśikham
an arrow
bhūmeḥ
at the earth
kruddhas tripura-hā yathā
kruddhaḥ
angry
tri-pura-hā
Lord Śiva
yathā
like.
Having arrived at a conclusion, the King took up his bow and arrow and aimed them at the earth, exactly like Lord Śiva, who destroys the whole world out of anger.
Purport
King Pṛthu found out the cause for the scarcity of food grains. He could understand that it was not the people’s fault, for they were not lazy in executing their duties. Rather, the earth was not producing sufficient food grains. This indicates that the earth can produce sufficiently if everything is properly arranged, but sometimes the earth can refuse to produce food grains for various reasons. The theory that there is a scarcity of food grains due to an increase of population is not a very sound theory. There are other causes that enable the earth to produce profusely or to stop producing. King Pṛthu found out the proper causes and took the necessary steps immediately.
— A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupāda
Gauḍīya Ācāryas
Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura
Gauḍīya
Translation
Having discerned the cause with his intelligence, he became as angry as Śiva, and, taking up his bow, he aimed an arrow at the earth.
He discerned, “Though I was made King, I will use the fourth method (punishment) against the earth, who is hiding the seeds.” Bhūmeḥ means “at the earth.”
Related lectures
Personal Guidance
Conclusion reached, Pṛthu took up his bow against the earth, like Śiva at dissolution. When the root cause is identified, the response can be terrifying in its precision; soft leaders avoid this.
Reflection Questions
- Where am I avoiding a precisely-aimed hard action because the imagery would scare me?
- What 'earth' (system, structure, contract) in my life needs to be threatened with arrow rather than negotiation?
My note
Source: vedabase.io