FolioCorpusŚrīmad-Bhāgavatam

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 4.18.29

चूर्णयन् स्वधनुष्कोट्या गिरिकूटानि राजराट् । भूमण्डलमिदं वैन्य: प्रायश्चक्रे समं विभु: ॥ २९ ॥
cūrṇayan sva-dhanuṣ-koṭyā
[choornayan sva-dhanush-kotyaa]
giri-kūṭāni rāja-rāṭ
[giri-kootaani raaja-raat]
bhū-maṇḍalam idaṁ vainyaḥ
[bhoo-mandalam idam vainyah]
prāyaś cakre samaṁ vibhuḥ
[praayash chakre samam vibhuh]
cūrṇayan — making into pieces sva — his own dhanuḥ-koṭyā — by the power of his bow giri — of the hills kūṭāni — the tops rāja-rāṭ — the emperor bhū-maṇḍalam — the whole earth idam — this vainyaḥ — the son of Vena prāyaḥ — almost cakre — made samam — level vibhuḥ — the powerful.
Blended reading (Sanskrit + English inline)
cūrṇayan sva-dhanuṣ-koṭyā
cūrṇayan
making into pieces
sva
his own
dhanuḥ-koṭyā
by the power of his bow
giri-kūṭāni rāja-rāṭ
giri
of the hills
kūṭāni
the tops
rāja-rāṭ
the emperor
bhū-maṇḍalam idaṁ vainyaḥ
bhū-maṇḍalam
the whole earth
idam
this
vainyaḥ
the son of Vena
prāyaś cakre samaṁ vibhuḥ
prāyaḥ
almost
cakre
made
samam
level
vibhuḥ
the powerful.
After this, the king of all kings, Mahārāja Pṛthu, leveled all rough places on the surface of the globe by breaking up the hills with the strength of his bow. By his grace the surface of the globe almost became flat.

Generally the mountainous and hilly portions of the earth are made flat by the striking of thunderbolts. Generally this is the business of King Indra of the heavenly planets, but King Pṛthu, an incarnation of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, did not wait for King Indra to break up the hills and mountains but did so himself by using his strong bow.

— A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupāda
Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura Gauḍīya
Translation
The King crumbled the mountains to dust with the tip of his bow. Powerful Pṛthu made the earth planet almost flat.
Pṛthu broke the hills with his bow and made the surface nearly flat. The infrastructure work of leveling is large but necessary; without it the seasonal rain doesn't stay.
Reflection Questions
  • Which 'hill' in my domain do I have the power to break that I've been treating as fixed?
  • Where am I waiting for cosmic Indra to do the leveling I could do myself?
📝 My note

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