FolioCorpusBhagavad-gītā

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 10.62.27

అనపాయిభిరస్మాభిర్గుప్తాయాశ్చ గృహే ప్రభో । కన్యాయా దూషణం పుమ్భిర్దుష్ప్రేక్ష్యాయా న విద్మహే ॥ ౨౭ ॥
anapāyibhir asmābhir
[anapaayibhir asmaabhir]
guptāyāś ca gṛhe prabho
[guptaayaash cha grihe prabho]
kanyāyā dūṣaṇaṁ pumbhir
[kanyaayaa dooshanam pumbhir]
duṣprekṣyāyā na vidmahe
[dushprekshyaayaa na vidmahe]
anapāyibhiḥ — who have never gone away asmābhiḥ — by us guptāyāḥ — of her who has been well guarded ca — and gṛhe — within the palace prabho — O master kanyāyāḥ — of the maiden dūṣaṇam — the polluting pumbhiḥ — by men duṣprekṣyāyāḥ — impossible to be seen na vidmahe — we do not understand .
Blended reading (Sanskrit + English inline)
anapāyibhir asmābhir
anapāyibhiḥ
who have never gone away
asmābhiḥ
by us
guptāyāś ca gṛhe prabho
guptāyāḥ
of her who has been well guarded
ca
and
gṛhe
within the palace
prabho
O master
kanyāyā dūṣaṇaṁ pumbhir
kanyāyāḥ
of the maiden
dūṣaṇam
the polluting
pumbhiḥ
by men
duṣprekṣyāyā na vidmahe
duṣprekṣyāyāḥ
impossible to be seen
na vidmahe
we do not understand .
  • anapāyibhiḥ — who have never gone away
    Instrumental plural: an (not) + apāyin (gone away). The guards stress their faultlessness. The Bhāgavatam's lesson: human vigilance is real, but the Lord's reach is not bounded by it. Bāṇa's fortress contains everything except what matters.
  • guptāyāḥ — of her who has been well guarded
    Genitive of guptā (past participle of √gup). The same root as gopī (the protected ones, also: the secret-keepers). The verse uses the protection-vocabulary that elsewhere names the Vraja-girls — the poet keeps building the asura-side rhyme.
  • duṣprekṣyāyāḥ — impossible to be seen
    Genitive of duṣprekṣyā. The same word at verse 22 used of her chamber — now used of her person. The Bhāgavatam's poetic economy: words travel from setting to character, tightening the image.
  • na vidmahe — we do not understand
    Verb: na (not) + vidmahe (we know, 1st pl middle). Honest admission of failure. Gauḍīyas note: the moment human guarding admits its limit is the moment the Lord's hand is named — every līlā has this admission-point.
“We have been carefully watching over her, never leaving our posts, O master, so we cannot understand how this maiden, whom no man can even see, has been corrupted within the palace.”

The ācāryas explain that the word anapāyibhiḥ can mean either “never going away” or “never deluded.” Also, if we take the alternate reading duṣpreṣyāyāḥ instead of duṣprekṣyāyāḥ, the guards refer to Ūṣā as “she whose wicked girlfriend has been sent on a mission.”

— A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupāda
Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura Gauḍīya
Translation
"We have been carefully watching over her, never leaving our posts, O master, so we cannot understand how this maiden, whom no man can even see, has been corrupted within the palace."
Jīva Gosvāmī Gauḍīya
Commentary

They absolve themselves of blame and speak to clear doubts about themselves. Instead of duṣprekṣyāyā sometimes duṣprekṣāyā is seen. We cannot perceive directly or even infer how she can be contaminated as a harlot. The plural is used (pumbhiḥ—by men) to denote the singular according to the rule jāty ākhyāyām ekasmin bahuvacanam anyatarasyām. (Pāṇini 1.2.58)

Śrīdhara Svāmī Gauḍīya
Commentary

We cannot understand how it happened. O master! By your power, no one can enter the inner chambers. She cannot even be seen by any man or even we cannot see her. She is kept inside the room. In this way they say they are not at fault.

Related values
Anahankarah (Freedom from False Ego)Prema (Divine Love)Kshama (Forgiveness / Patience)Nyaya (Justice / Righteous Judgment)Mardava (Gentleness)Shraddha (Faith / Reverence)Tejas (Inner Radiance / Vigour)Hrih (Modesty / Sense of Shame)Satya (Truthfulness)Daya (Compassion / Mercy)Titiksha (Forbearance / Endurance)
Related verses
Concepts
Jiva

Like watchmen who, despite never sleeping at their posts, still cannot explain how the king's apple has been eaten, the guards confess the impossible. The Lord's līlā enters where vigilance cannot reach — He arranges meetings inside locked rooms.

📝 My note

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