Devanagari
इन्द्र उवाच
अम्ब तेऽहं व्यवसितमुपधार्यागतोऽन्तिकम् ।
लब्धान्तरोऽच्छिदं गर्भमर्थबुद्धिर्न धर्मदृक् ॥ ७१ ॥
Verse text
indra uvāca
amba te ’haṁ vyavasitam
upadhāryāgato ’ntikam
labdhāntaro ’cchidaṁ garbham
artha-buddhir na dharma-dṛk
Synonyms
indraḥ uvāca
—
Indra said
;
amba
—
O mother
;
te
—
your
;
aham
—
I
;
vyavasitam
—
vow
;
upadhārya
—
understanding
;
āgataḥ
—
came
;
antikam
—
nearby
;
labdha
—
having found
;
antaraḥ
—
a fault
;
acchidam
—
I cut
;
garbham
—
the embryo
;
artha
—
buddhiḥ — being self-interested
;
na
—
not
;
dharma
—
dṛk — possessing vision of religion .
Translation
Indra replied: My dear mother, because I was grossly blinded by selfish interests, I lost sight of religion. When I understood that you were observing a great vow in spiritual life, I wanted to find some fault in you. When I found such a fault, I entered your womb and cut the embryo to pieces.
Translation (Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura)
Indra said: O mother! Understanding your vow, in my own interests, I was situated nearby, and, finding a fault, I cut the embryo up, not thinking of what was proper conduct.
When Diti spoke truthfully, Indra also spoke truthfully. Labdhāntaraḥ means “finding a fault.”
Purport
When Diti, Indra’s aunt, explained to Indra without reservations what she had wanted to do, Indra explained his intentions to her. Thus both of them, instead of being enemies, freely spoke the truth. This is the qualification that results from contact with Viṣṇu. As stated in
Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam
(5.18.12)
:
yasyāsti bhaktir bhagavaty akiṣcanā
sarvair guṇais tatra samāsate surāḥ
If one develops a devotional attitude and becomes purified by worshiping the Supreme Lord, all the good qualities are certainly manifested in his body. Because of being touched by worship of Viṣṇu, both Diti and Indra were purified.