SB 9.20.33

SB 9.20.33

Devanagari

स संराड्‍लोकपालाख्यमैश्वर्यमधिराट् श्रियम् । चक्रं चास्खलितं प्राणान् मृषेत्युपरराम ह ॥ ३३ ॥

Verse text

sa saṁrāḍ loka-pālākhyam aiśvaryam adhirāṭ śriyam cakraṁ cāskhalitaṁ prāṇān mṛṣety upararāma ha

Synonyms

saḥ he (Mahārāja Bharata) ; saṁrāṭ the emperor ; loka pāla — ākhyam — known as the ruler of all the lokas, or planets ; aiśvaryam such opulences ; adhirāṭ thoroughly in power ; śriyam kingdom ; cakram soldiers or orders ; ca and ; askhalitam without failure ; prāṇān life or sons and family ; mṛṣā all false ; iti thus ; upararāma ceased to enjoy ; ha in the past .

Translation

As the ruler of the entire universe, Emperor Bharata had the opulences of a great kingdom and unconquerable soldiers. His sons and family had seemed to him to be his entire life. But finally he thought of all this as an impediment to spiritual advancement, and therefore he ceased from enjoying it.

Translation (Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura)

Bharata, the emperor, the supreme king, finally considered his orders and army, which were unfailing because of their power and bravery, as well as his wealth and his dominion which was greater than that of the devatās to be false. He gave them all up. His dominion was more famous than that of the devatās. He considered his orders and army, unfailing because of their power and bravery (prāṇāt), his wealth, and dominion greater than that of the devatās to be false. Giving it up, he went to the forest and attained the Lord by bhakti.

Purport

Mahārāja Bharata had incomparable opulence in sovereignty, soldiers, sons, daughters and everything for material enjoyment, but when he realized that all such material opulences were useless for spiritual advancement, he retired from material enjoyment. The Vedic civilization enjoins that after a certain age, following in the footsteps of Mahārāja Bharata, one should cease to enjoy material opulences and should take the order of vānaprastha.