SB 7.1.20 · Srimad-Bhagavatam

Devanagari

कथं तस्मिन् भगवति दुरवग्राह्यधामनि । पश्यतां सर्वलोकानां लयमीयतुरञ्जसा ॥ २० ॥

Verse text

kathaṁ tasmin bhagavati duravagrāhya-dhāmani paśyatāṁ sarva-lokānāṁ layam īyatur aṣjasā

Synonyms

katham — how ; tasmin — that ; bhagavati — in the Supreme Personality of Godhead ; duravagrāhya — difficult to attain ; dhāmani — whose nature ; paśyatām — looked on ; sarva — lokānām — while all the people ; layam īyatuḥ — became absorbed ; aṣjasā — easily .

Translation

How was it possible for Śiśupāla and Dantavakra, in the presence of many exalted persons, to enter very easily into the body of Kṛṣṇa, whose nature is difficult to attain?

Translation (Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura)

How was it possible for Śiśupāla and Dantavakra, in the presence of all persons, to enter easily into the body of Kṛṣṇa, whose body is difficult to attain? Temporarily they merged into the Lord in the vision of those watching. Sāyujya (verse 14) means that they joined the Lord. For some time they remained with him, and then they attained sārūpypa. Yudhiṣṭhira would hear of Dantavakra’s liberation from Nārada later, but it is expressed in the past tense because he understood Dantavakra would die. “While others watched” indicates that the impossible was proven by the witnesses.

Purport

Śiśupāla and Dantavakra were formerly Jaya and Vijaya, the doorkeepers of Vaikuṇṭha. Merging into the body of Kṛṣṇa was not their final destination. For some time they remained merged, and later they received the liberations of sārūpya and sālokya, living on the same planet as the Lord in the same bodily form. The śāstras give evidence that if one blasphemes the Supreme Lord, his punishment is to remain in hellish life for many millions of years more than one suffers by killing many brāhmaṇas. Śiśupāla, however, instead of entering hellish life, immediately and very easily received sāyujya-mukti. That such a privilege had been offered to Śiśupāla was not merely a story. Everyone saw it happen; there was no scarcity of evidence. How did it happen? Mahārāja Yudhiṣṭhira was very much surprised.