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Library » Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam (Bhāgavata Purāṇa) » Canto 4: The Creation of the Fourth Order » CHAPTER FOURTEEN

ŚB 4.14.4

Devanagari

स आरूढनृपस्थान उन्नद्धोऽष्टविभूतिभि: ।
अवमेने महाभागान् स्तब्ध: सम्भावित: स्वत: ॥ ४ ॥

Text

sa ārūḍha-nṛpa-sthāna
unnaddho ’ṣṭa-vibhūtibhiḥ
avamene mahā-bhāgān
stabdhaḥ sambhāvitaḥ svataḥ

Synonyms

saḥ — King Vena; ārūḍha — ascended to; nṛpa-sthānaḥ — the seat of the king; unnaddhaḥ — very proud; aṣṭa — eight; vibhūtibhiḥ — by opulences; avamene — began to insult; mahā-bhāgān — great personalities; stabdhaḥ — inconsiderate; sambhāvitaḥ — considered great; svataḥ — by himself.

Translation

When the King ascended to the throne, he became all-powerful with eight kinds of opulences. Consequently he became too proud. By virtue of his false prestige, he considered himself to be greater than anyone. Thus he began to insult great personalities.

Purport

In this verse the word aṣṭa-vibhūtibhiḥ, meaning “by eight opulences,” is very important. The king is supposed to possess eight kinds of opulences. By dint of mystic yoga practice, kings generally acquired these eight opulences. These kings were called rājarṣis, kings who were also great sages. By practicing mystic yoga, a rājarṣi could become smaller than the smallest, greater than the greatest, and could get whatever he desired. A rājarṣi could also create a kingdom, bring everyone under his control and rule everyone. These were some of the opulences of a king. King Vena, however, was not practiced in yoga, but he became very proud of his royal position nonetheless. Because he was not very considerate, he began to misuse his power and insult great personalities.