FolioCorpusBhagavad-gītā

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 10.74.3

స భవానరవిన్దాక్షో దీనానామీశమానినామ్ । ధత్తేఽనుశాసనం భూమంస్తదత్యన్తవిడమ్బనమ్ ॥ ౩ ॥
sa bhavān aravindākṣo
[sa bhavaan aravindaaksho]
dīnānām īśa-māninām
[deenaanaam eesha-maaninaam]
dhatte ’nuśāsanaṁ bhūmaṁs
[dhatte ’nushaasanam bhoomams]
tad atyanta-viḍambanam
[tad atyanta-vidambanam]
saḥ — He bhavān — Yourself aravinda - akṣaḥ — the lotus-eyed Lord dīnānām — of those who are wretched īśa — rulers māninām — who presume themselves dhatte — takes upon Himself anuśāsanam — the order bhūman — O all-pervading one tat — that atyanta — extreme viḍambanam — pretense .
Blended reading (Sanskrit + English inline)
sa bhavān aravindākṣo
saḥ
He
bhavān
Yourself
aravinda - akṣaḥ
the lotus-eyed Lord
dīnānām īśa-māninām
dīnānām
of those who are wretched
īśa
rulers
māninām
who presume themselves
dhatte ’nuśāsanaṁ bhūmaṁs
dhatte
takes upon Himself
anuśāsanam
the order
bhūman
O all-pervading one
tad atyanta-viḍambanam
tat
that
atyanta
extreme
viḍambanam
pretense .
  • aravinda - akṣaḥ — the lotus-eyed Lord
    Compound: aravinda (lotus) + akṣa (eye). A name reserved for Viṣṇu-Kṛṣṇa whose glance is cooling, opening, fragrant. Even when describing Kṛṣṇa's strategic submission, Yudhiṣṭhira names Him by His soft, mādhurya-suggesting epithet.
  • dīnānām — of those who are wretched
    Genitive plural of dīna (humble, fallen). Yudhiṣṭhira places himself among the dīnas. Gauḍīyas teach that dainya — felt insufficiency — is the very door to bhakti; here even the emperor of the earth claims it.
  • viḍambanam — pretense, imitation
    From vi + √ḍamb (to mock, to mimic). Not deception — the loving feigning by which Bhagavān adopts a role beneath His station. The Bhāgavatam uses viḍambana for Kṛṣṇa's Vraja-childhood; Yudhiṣṭhira is hearing the Rājasūya as the same kind of līlā-act.
  • bhūman — O all-pervading one
    Vocative of bhūman — the unbounded, the plenum. Yudhiṣṭhira addresses Kṛṣṇa as the limitless even while pointing to His self-limitation. The juxtaposition is the verse's whole devotional charge.
That You, the lotus-eyed Supreme Lord, accept the orders of wretched fools who presume themselves rulers is a great pretense on Your part, O all-pervading one.

Śrīla Prabhupāda writes: “[Yudhiṣṭhira said,] ‘O Kṛṣṇa, You are unlimited, and although we sometimes think of ourselves as royal kings and rulers of the world and become puffed up over our paltry positions, we are very poor in heart. Actually, we are fit to be punished by You, but the wonder is that instead of punishing us, You so kindly and mercifully accept our orders and carry them out properly. Others are very surprised that Your Lordship can play the part of an ordinary human, but we can understand that You are performing these activities just like a dramatic artist.’”

— A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupāda
Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura Gauḍīya
Translation
That You, the lotus-eyed Supreme Lord, accept the orders of wretched fools who presume themselves rulers is a great pretense on Your part, O all-pervading one.
Commentary

That you (sa) accept the orders of us low persons is certainly a disgrace for us (atyanta vidambanam). People will mock us for making the supreme lord our order carrier.

Jīva Gosvāmī Gauḍīya
Commentary

You protect or accept with reverence the orders of us who are worthless or suffer greatly and consider ourselves controllers. O lotus-eyed Lord! He calls out with prema on realizing Kṛṣṇa’s compassion, beauty and sweetness. O Lord with continual powers (bhumān)! He calls out to nourish his praise of Kṛṣṇa. We consider accepting our orders to be an imitation, the laughing stock of the people since you should not do this. Or, it is not proper to do completely.

Related values
Nyaya (Justice / Righteous Judgment)Daya (Compassion / Mercy)Arjava (Simplicity / Straightforwardness)Vairagya (Detachment / Dispassion)Kritajnata (Gratitude)Svadhyaya (Self-study & Scripture Study)Discriminative WisdomShanti (Peace / Tranquility)
Related verses
Concepts
Jiva

A father who could lift the house lets his small son tug him by the hand and lead him through every room. The strength is intact; the consent is the love. Yudhiṣṭhira sees Kṛṣṇa's submission to his Rājasūya planning and calls it viḍambanam — the loving pretense by which the Lord plays small.

Kṛṣṇa as Pāṇḍava-charioteer

The Lord of the three worlds tied the reins of Arjuna's chariot and turned them at Arjuna's word. Vyāsa records that Kṛṣṇa even washed the horses' wounds at night. The Bhagavad-gītā's setting is itself the viḍambanam of this verse — sarveśvara playing sārathi.

Gauḍīyas treasure this image because it shows that Kṛṣṇa's lordship does not exclude His becoming subordinate to those He loves; it is the same lordship freely choosing that subordination.

📝 My note

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