FolioCorpusBhagavad-gītā

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 10.49.29

యో దుర్విమర్శపథయా నిజమాయయేదం సృష్ట్వా గుణాన్ విభజతే తదనుప్రవిష్ట: । తస్మై నమో దురవబోధవిహారతన్త్ర- సంసారచక్రగతయే పరమేశ్వరాయ ॥ ౨౯ ॥
yo durvimarśa-pathayā nija-māyayedaṁ
[yo durvimarsha-pathayaa nija-maayayedam]
sṛṣṭvā guṇān vibhajate tad-anupraviṣṭaḥ
[srishtvaa gunaan vibhajate tad-anupravishtah]
tasmai namo duravabodha-vihāra-tantra-
[tasmai namo duravabodha-vihaara-tantra-]
saṁsāra-cakra-gataye parameśvarāya
[samsaara-chakra-gataye parameshvaraaya]
yaḥ — who durvimarśa — inconceivable pathayā — whose path nija — by His own māyayā — creative energy idam — this universe sṛṣṭvā — creating guṇān — its modes vibhajate — He distributes tat — within it anupraviṣṭaḥ — entering tasmai — to Him namaḥ — obeisances duravabodha — unfathomable vihāra — of whose pastimes tantra — the purport saṁsāra — of birth and death cakra — the cycle gataye — and liberation (coming from whom) parama - īśvarāya — to the supreme controller .
Blended reading (Sanskrit + English inline)
yo durvimarśa-pathayā nija-māyayedaṁ
yaḥ
who
sṛṣṭvā guṇān vibhajate tad-anupraviṣṭaḥ
tasmai namo duravabodha-vihāra-tantra-
durvimarśa
inconceivable
saṁsāra-cakra-gataye parameśvarāya
pathayā
whose path
nija
by His own
māyayā
creative energy
idam
this universe
sṛṣṭvā
creating
guṇān
its modes
vibhajate
He distributes
tat
within it
anupraviṣṭaḥ
entering
tasmai
to Him
namaḥ
obeisances
duravabodha
unfathomable
vihāra
of whose pastimes
tantra
the purport
saṁsāra
of birth and death
cakra
the cycle
gataye
and liberation (coming from whom)
parama - īśvarāya
to the supreme controller .
  • durvimarśa-pathayā — whose path is inconceivable
    Compound: dur (hard) + vimarśa (reflection) + pathā (path). Kṛṣṇa's līlā cannot be traced by speculative reason; the Bhāgavata insists (1.1.1, janmādy asya yataḥ) that He is approachable only by paramparā and bhakti.
  • nija-māyayā — by His own creative energy
    Nija (His own) + māyā. Crucially nija — the māyā belongs to Bhagavān, not the other way around. Gauḍīya doctrine guards this firmly: Kṛṣṇa is never under māyā even when He uses her.
  • tat-anupraviṣṭaḥ — entering within it
    Anu (after) + pra (forth) + √viś. After projecting the universe, He enters as Paramātmā. Echoes Taittirīya 2.6 (tat sṛṣṭvā tad evānuprāviśat) — Dhṛtarāṣṭra is quoting the Upaniṣad almost verbatim.
  • duravabodha-vihāra-tantra — whose pastimes' purport is unfathomable
    Triple compound: duravabodha (hard to grasp) + vihāra (play, sport) + tantra (the inner thread/plan). Vihāra is the technical Bhāgavata word for divine play — Dhṛtarāṣṭra concedes that Kurukṣetra itself will be part of that vihāra.
  • parama-īśvarāya — to the supreme controller
    The final superlative — Kṛṣṇa as the Lord above all īśvaras. Dhṛtarāṣṭra's last word in this chapter is namaḥ — a praṇāma that does not become śaraṇāgati. The Bhāgavata records the gap.
I offer my obeisances to Him, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, who creates this universe by the inconceivable activity of His material energy and then distributes the various modes of nature by entering within the creation. From Him, the meaning of whose pastimes is unfathomable, come both the entangling cycle of birth and death and the process of deliverance from it.

When all is said and done, Dhṛtarāṣṭra was not an ordinary person but an associate of the Supreme Lord, Kṛṣṇa. Certainly an ordinary person could not offer such a learned hymn to the Lord.

— A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupāda
Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura Gauḍīya
Translation
I offer my obeisances to Him, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, who creates this universe by the inconceivable activity of His material energy and then distributes the various modes of nature by entering within the creation. From Him, the meaning of whose pastimes is unfathomable, come both the entangling cycle of birth and death and the process of deliverance from it.
Commentary

Then, he offered his respects to the Lord. "Creating this universe by his inconceivable process, and after entering it, he divides the gunas into goodness, passion and ignorance. I offer my respects to the Supreme Lord, who is the deliverer from the wheel of samsara, the purpose of which pastimes is difficult to understand. Krsna inspires you to enlighten me by his order,"Enlighten Dhrtarastra." And he inspires me to not understand with the order "Do not be enlightened." Who will be able to understand the purpose of his incomprehensible pastimes? You should not say to me "You have fallen into the wheel of samsara", because he will also deliver me in the future (samsakra cakra gati )."

Jīva Gosvāmī Gauḍīya
Commentary

He is completely independent, far from us. Therefore he offers respects at a distance. He speaks this with a desire to refute the inequality shown in his own actions. Because the Lord’s māyā acts incomprehensibly (durvimarśa-pathayā), it is impossible to give it up. The higher and lower statuses found in creation, the happiness and distress, are not inequality in the Lord. Actions, based on following positive and negative rules according to scripture, according to past karma, produce happiness and distress as results. The Lord’s powers are not dependent on karma. The karmas of the jīvas, unlimited because they have no beginning, arise according to his will. He controls everything.

Śrīdhara Svāmī Gauḍīya
Commentary

“In the absence of independence (free will) the statements of order and forbiddance are useless. If acts are neither pious nor sinful, then there should be no enjoyment of results.” That is true. Everything is accomplished by his indescribable pastimes as the supreme Lord. Describing the supreme Lord, he offers respects in this verse. The Lord creates by his māyā which is inconceivable in nature. To show his nature as supreme Lord his astonishing śakti is described. He enters the universe (idam) as antaryāmī, giving happiness to the devotees and suffering to the non-devotees. “Sometimes it is seen that the devotees suffer.” The devotees who are always happy sometimes seem to suffer. That is his inconceivable pastime. He moves the wheel of saṁsāra mainly for the inconceivable pastimes with his devotees. “But then the Lord shows partiality.” He is the supreme Lord. Or the cause of creation is his desire, which is difficult to understand being very remote. Though the statements are true, it amounts to deceptive speech of a non-devotee, who wishes to remove his own faults, since he lacks the correct devotional mood completely.

Related values
Anahankarah (Freedom from False Ego)Asteya (Non-stealing / Honesty)Aparigraha (Non-possessiveness)
Related verses
Concepts
Samsara

Dhṛtarāṣṭra closes the conversation the only honest way left to him — with a praṇāma. He cannot bend his policy, but he can bend his head: the Lord whose pastimes he cannot fathom is at least the Lord whose feet he can name.

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