FolioCorpusŚrīmad-Bhāgavatam

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 4.25.21

पञ्चशीर्षाहिना गुप्तां प्रतीहारेण सर्वत: । अन्वेषमाणामृषभमप्रौढां कामरूपिणीम् ॥ २१ ॥
pañca-śīrṣāhinā guptāṁ
[pancha-sheershaahinaa guptaam]
pratīhāreṇa sarvataḥ
[prateehaarena sarvatah]
anveṣamāṇām ṛṣabham
[anveshamaanaam rishabham]
aprauḍhāṁ kāma-rūpiṇīm
[apraudhaam kaama-roopineem]
pañca — five śīrṣa — heads ahinā — by a snake guptām — protected pratīhāreṇa — by a bodyguard sarvataḥ — all around anveṣamāṇām — one who is searching after ṛṣabham — a husband aprauḍhām — not very old kāma-rūpiṇīm — very attractive to fulfill lusty desires.
Blended reading (Sanskrit + English inline)
pañca-śīrṣāhinā guptāṁ
pañca
five
śīrṣa
heads
ahinā
by a snake
guptām
protected
pratīhāreṇa sarvataḥ
pratīhāreṇa
by a bodyguard
sarvataḥ
all around
anveṣamāṇām ṛṣabham
anveṣamāṇām
one who is searching after
ṛṣabham
a husband
aprauḍhāṁ kāma-rūpiṇīm
aprauḍhām
not very old
kāma-rūpiṇīm
very attractive to fulfill lusty desires.
The woman was protected on all sides by a five-hooded snake. She was very beautiful and young, and she appeared very anxious to find a suitable husband.

The vital force of a living entity includes the five kinds of air working within the body, which are known as prāṇa, apāna, vyāna, samāna and udāna. The vital force is compared to a serpent because a serpent can live by simply drinking air. The vital force carried by the air is described as the pratīhāra, or the bodyguard. Without the vital force one cannot live for a moment. Indeed, all the senses are working under the protection of the vital force.

The woman, who represents intelligence, was searching after a husband. This indicates that intelligence cannot act without consciousness. A beautiful woman is useless unless protected by the proper husband. Intelligence must always be very fresh; therefore the word aprauḍhām, “very young,” is used here. Material enjoyment means utilizing the intelligence for the sake of rūpa, rasa, gandha, śabda and sparśa, or form, taste, smell, sound and touch.

— A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupāda
Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura Gauḍīya
Translation
She was protected by a gatekeeper in the form of a snake with five heads, and she was looking for a master. She was gentle and decorated attractively. The intelligence was protected by a door keeper (pratīhareṇa) with five heads, the five functions of prāṇa. The master is the jīva, the enjoyer of the intelligence. She was gentle, unmarried (apraudhām). Just as she attracted a husband, the intelligence with ignorance attracts the jīva. She was always wearing various ornaments (kāma-rūpiṇīm). This means that she was filled with various impressions.
She was protected by a five-hooded snake and seemed anxious for a husband. The vital airs (five-hooded snake) protect intelligence; intelligence seeks a master (the soul).
Reflection Questions
  • Where is my intelligence currently 'looking for a husband' — what or whom is it about to attach to?
  • Which snake protects my intelligence, and have I respected it?
📝 My note

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