Srimad-Bhagavatam: Canto 1: “Creation”
by His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada

Chapter Seven

SB1.7.11

TEXT 11

harer gunaksipta-matir

bhagavan badarayanih

adhyagan mahad akhyanam

nityam visnu-jana-priyah

SYNONYMS

hareh—of Hari, the Personality of Godhead; guna—transcendental attribute; aksipta—being absorbed in; matih—mind; bhagavan—powerful; badarayanih—the son of Vyasadeva; adhyagat—underwent studies; mahat—great; akhyanam—narration; nityam—regularly; visnu-jana—devotees of the Lord; priyah—beloved.

TRANSLATION

Srila Sukadeva Gosvami, son of Srila Vyasadeva, was not only transcendentally powerful. He was also very dear to the devotees of the Lord. Thus he underwent the study of this great narration [Srimad-Bhagavatam].

PURPORT

According to Brahma-vaivarta Purana, Srila Sukadeva Gosvami was a liberated soul even within the womb of his mother. Srila Vyasadeva knew that the child, after his birth, would not stay at home. Therefore he (Vyasadeva) impressed upon him the synopsis of the Bhagavatam so that the child could be made attached to the transcendental activities of the Lord. After his birth, the child was still more educated in the subject of the Bhagavatam by recitation of the actual poems.

The idea is that generally the liberated souls are attached to the feature of impersonal Brahman with a monistic view of becoming one with the supreme whole. But by the association of pure devotees like Vyasadeva, even the liberated soul becomes attracted to the transcendental qualities of the Lord. By the mercy of Sri Narada, Srila Vyasadeva was able to narrate the great epic of Srimad-Bhagavatam, and by the mercy of Vyasadeva, Srila Sukadeva Gosvami was able to grasp the import. The transcendental qualities of the Lord are so attractive that Srila Sukadeva Gosvami became detached from being completely absorbed in impersonal Brahman and positively took up the personal activity of the Lord.

Practically he was thrown from the impersonal conception of the Absolute, thinking within himself that he had simply wasted so much time in devoting himself to the impersonal feature of the Supreme, or in other words, he realized more transcendental bliss with the personal feature than the impersonal. And from that time, not only did he himself become very dear to the visnu-janas, or the devotees of the Lord, but also the visnu-janas became very dear to him. The devotees of the Lord, who do not wish to kill the individuality of the living entities and who desire to become personal servitors of the Lord, do not very much like the impersonalists, and similarly the impersonalists, who desire to become one with the Supreme, are unable to evaluate the devotees of the Lord. Thus from time immemorial these two transcendental pilgrims have sometimes been competitors. In other words, each of them likes to keep separate from the other because of the ultimate personal and impersonal realizations. Therefore it appears that Srila Sukadeva Gosvami also had no liking for the devotees. But since he himself became a saturated devotee, he desired always the transcendental association of the visnu-janas, and the visnu-janas also liked his association, since he became a personal Bhagavata. Thus both the son and the father were completely cognizant of transcendental knowledge in Brahman, and afterwards both of them became absorbed in the personal features of the Supreme Lord. The question as to how Sukadeva Gosvami was attracted by the narration of the Bhagavatam is thus completely answered by this sloka.

SB1.7.12

TEXT 12

pariksito ’tha rajarser

janma-karma-vilapanam

samstham ca pandu-putranam

vaksye krsna-kathodayam

SYNONYMS

pariksitah—of King Pariksit; atha—thus; rajarseh—of the King who was the rsi among the kings; janma—birth; karma—activities; vilapanam—deliverance; samstham—renunciation of the world; ca—and; pandu-putranam—of the sons of Pandu; vaksye—I shall speak; krsna-katha-udayam—that which gives rise to the transcendental narration of Krsna, the Supreme Personality of Godhead.

TRANSLATION

Suta Gosvami thus addressed the rsis headed by Saunaka: Now I shall begin the transcendental narration of the Lord Sri Krsna and topics of the birth, activities and deliverance of King Pariksit, the sage amongst kings, as well as topics of the renunciation of the worldly order by the sons of Pandu.

PURPORT

Lord Krsna is so kind to the fallen souls that He personally incarnates Himself amongst the different kinds of living entities and takes part with them in daily activities. Any historical fact old or new which has a connection with the activities of the Lord is to be understood as a transcendental narration of the Lord. Without Krsna, all the supplementary literatures like the Puranas and Mahabharata are simply stories or historical facts. But with Krsna they become transcendental, and when we hear of them we at once become transcendentally related with the Lord. Srimad-Bhagavatam is also a Purana, but the special significance of this Purana is that the activities of the Lord are central and not just supplementary historical facts. Srimad-Bhagavatam is thus recommended by Lord Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu as the spotless Purana. There is a class of less intelligent devotees of the Bhagavata Purana who desire to relish at once the activities of the Lord narrated in the Tenth Canto without first understanding the primary cantos. They are under the false impression that the other cantos are not concerned with Krsna, and thus more foolishly than intelligently they take to the reading of the Tenth Canto. These readers are specifically told herein that the other cantos of the Bhagavatam are as important as the Tenth Canto. No one should try to go into the matters of the Tenth Canto without having thoroughly understood the purport of the other nine cantos. Krsna and His pure devotees like the Pandavas are on the same plane. Krsna is not without His devotees of all the rasas, and the pure devotees like the Pandavas are not without Krsna. The devotees and the Lord are interlinked, and they cannot be separated. Therefore talks about them are all krsna-katha, or topics of the Lord.

SB1.7.13-14

TEXTS 13–14

yada mrdhe kaurava-srnjayanam

viresv atho vira-gatim gatesu

vrkodaraviddha-gadabhimarsa-

bhagnoru-dande dhrtarastra-putre

bhartuh priyam draunir iti sma pasyan

krsna-sutanam svapatam siramsi

upaharad vipriyam eva tasya

jugupsitam karma vigarhayanti

SYNONYMS

yada—when; mrdhe—in the battlefield; kaurava—the party of Dhrtarastra; srnjayanam—of the party of the Pandavas; viresu—of the warriors; atho—thus; vira-gatim—the destination deserved by the warriors; gatesu—being obtained; vrkodara—Bhima (the second Pandava); aviddha—beaten; gada—by the club; abhimarsa—lamenting; bhagna—broken; uru-dande—spinal cord; dhrtarastra-putre—the son of King Dhrtarastra; bhartuh—of the master; priyam—pleasing; draunih—the son of Dronacarya; iti—thus; sma—shall be; pasyan—seeing; krsna—Draupadi; sutanam—of the sons; svapatam—while sleeping; siramsi—heads; upaharat—delivered as a prize; vipriyam—pleasing; eva—like; tasya—his; jugupsitam—most heinous; karma—act; vigarhayanti—disapproving.

TRANSLATION

When the respective warriors of both camps, namely the Kauravas and the Pandavas, were killed on the Battlefield of Kuruksetra and the dead warriors obtained their deserved destinations, and when the son of Dhrtarastra fell down lamenting, his spine broken, being beaten by the club of Bhimasena, the son of Dronacarya [Asvatthama] beheaded the five sleeping sons of Draupadi and delivered them as a prize to his master, foolishly thinking that he would be pleased. Duryodhana, however, disapproved of the heinous act, and he was not pleased in the least.

PURPORT

Transcendental topics of the activities of Lord Sri Krsna in the Srimad-Bhagavatam begin from the end of the battle at Kuruksetra, where the Lord Himself spoke about Himself in the Bhagavad-gita. Therefore, both the Bhagavad-gita and Srimad-Bhagavatam are transcendental topics of Lord Krsna. The Gita is krsna-katha, or topics of Krsna, because it is spoken by the Lord, and the Bhagavatam is also krsna-katha because it is spoken about the Lord. Lord Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu wanted everyone to be informed of both krsna-kathas by His order. Lord Krsna Caitanya is Krsna Himself in the garb of a devotee of Krsna, and therefore the versions of both Lord Krsna and Sri Krsna Caitanya Mahaprabhu are identical. Lord Caitanya desired that all who are born in India seriously understand such krsna-kathas and then after full realization preach the transcendental message to everyone in all parts of the world. That will bring about the desired peace and prosperity of the stricken world.

SB1.7.15

TEXT 15

mata sisunam nidhanam sutanam

nisamya ghoram paritapyamana

tadarudad vaspa-kalakulaksi

tam santvayann aha kiritamali

SYNONYMS

mata—the mother; sisunam—of the children; nidhanam—massacre; sutanam—of the sons; nisamya—after hearing; ghoram—ghastly; paritapyamana—lamenting; tada—at that time; arudat—began to cry; vaspa-kala-akula-aksi—with tears in the eyes; tam—her; santvayan—pacifying; aha—said; kiritamali—Arjuna.

TRANSLATION

Draupadi, the mother of the five children of the Pandavas, after hearing of the massacre of her sons, began to cry in distress with eyes full of tears. Trying to pacify her in her great loss, Arjuna spoke to her thus:

SB1.7.16

TEXT 16

tada sucas te pramrjami bhadre

yad brahma-bandhoh sira atatayinah

gandiva-muktair visikhair upahare

tvakramya yat snasyasi dagdha-putra

SYNONYMS

tada—at that time only; sucah—tears in grief; te—your; pramrjami—shall wipe away; bhadre—O gentle lady; yat—when; brahma-bandhoh—of a degraded brahmana; sirah—head; atatayinah—of the aggressor; gandiva-muktaih—shot by the bow named Gandiva; visikhaih—by the arrows; upahare—shall present to you; tva—yourself; akramya—riding on it; yat—which; snasyasi—take your bath; dagdha-putra—after burning the sons.

TRANSLATION

O gentle lady, when I present you with the head of that brahmana, after beheading him with arrows from my Gandiva bow, I shall then wipe the tears from your eyes and pacify you. Then, after burning your sons’ bodies, you can take your bath standing on his head.

PURPORT

An enemy who sets fire to the house, administers poison, attacks all of a sudden with deadly weapons, plunders wealth or usurps agricultural fields, or entices one’s wife is called an aggressor. Such an aggressor, though he be a brahmana or a so-called son of a brahmana, has to be punished in all circumstances. When Arjuna promised to behead the aggressor named Asvatthama, he knew well that Asvatthama was the son of a brahmana, but because the so-called brahmana acted like a butcher, he was taken as such, and there was no question of sin in killing such a brahmana’s son who proved to be a villain.

SB1.7.17

TEXT 17

iti priyam valgu-vicitra-jalpaih

sa santvayitvacyuta-mitra-sutah

anvadravad damsita ugra-dhanva

kapi-dhvajo guru-putram rathena

SYNONYMS

iti—thus; priyam—unto the dear; valgu—sweet; vicitra—variegated; jalpaih—by statements; sah—he; santvayitva—satisfying; acyuta-mitra-sutah—Arjuna, who is guided by the infallible Lord as a friend and driver; anvadravat—followed; damsitah—being protected by kavaca; ugra-dhanva—equipped with furious weapons; kapi-dhvajah—Arjuna; guru-putram—the son of the martial teacher; rathena—getting on the chariot.

TRANSLATION

Arjuna, who is guided by the infallible Lord as friend and driver, thus satisfied the dear lady by such statements. Then he dressed in armor and armed himself with furious weapons, and getting into his chariot, he set out to follow Asvatthama, the son of his martial teacher.

SB1.7.18

TEXT 18

tam apatantam sa vilaksya durat

kumara-hodvigna-mana rathena

paradravat prana-paripsur urvyam

yavad-gamam rudra-bhayad yatha kah

SYNONYMS

tam—him; apatantam—coming over furiously; sah—he; vilaksya—seeing; durat—from a distance; kumara-ha—the murderer of the princes; udvigna-manah—disturbed in mind; rathena—on the chariot; paradravat—fled; prana—life; paripsuh—for protecting; urvyam—with great speed; yavat-gamam—as he fled; rudra-bhayat—by fear of Siva; yatha—as; kah—Brahma (or arkah—Surya).

TRANSLATION

Asvatthama, the murderer of the princes, seeing from a great distance Arjuna coming at him with great speed, fled in his chariot, panic stricken, just to save his life, as Brahma fled in fear from Siva.

PURPORT

According to the reading matter, either kah or arkah, there are two references in the Puranas. Kah means Brahma, who once became allured by his daughter and began to follow her, which infuriated Siva, who attacked Brahma with his trident. Brahmaji fled in fear of his life. As far as arkah is concerned, there is a reference in the Vamana Purana. There was a demon by the name Vidyunmali who was gifted with a glowing golden airplane which traveled to the back of the sun, and night disappeared because of the glowing effulgence of this plane. Thus the sun-god became angry, and with his virulent rays he melted the plane. This enraged Lord Siva. Lord Siva then attacked the sun-god, who fled away and at last fell down at Kasi (Varanasi), and the place became famous as Lolarka.

SB1.7.19

TEXT 19

yadasaranam atmanam

aiksata sranta-vajinam

astram brahma-siro mene

atma-tranam dvijatmajah

SYNONYMS

yada—when; asaranam—without being alternatively protected; atmanam—his own self; aiksata—saw; sranta-vajinam—the horses being tired; astram—weapon; brahma-sirah—the topmost or ultimate (nuclear); mene—applied; atma-tranam—just to save himself; dvija-atma-jah—the son of a brahmana.

TRANSLATION

When the son of the brahmana [Asvatthama] saw that his horses were tired, he considered that there was no alternative for protection outside of his using the ultimate weapon, the brahmastra [nuclear weapon].

PURPORT

In the ultimate issue only, when there is no alternative, the nuclear weapon called the brahmastra is applied. The word dvijatmajah is significant here because Asvatthama, although the son of Dronacarya, was not exactly a qualified brahmana. The most intelligent man is called a brahmana, and it is not a hereditary title. Asvatthama was also formerly called the brahma-bandhu, or the friend of a brahmana. Being a friend of a brahmana does not mean that one is a brahmana by qualification. A friend or son of a brahmana, when fully qualified, can be called a brahmana and not otherwise. Since Asvatthama’s decision is immature, he is purposely called herein the son of a brahmana.

SB1.7.20

TEXT 20

athopasprsya salilam

sandadhe tat samahitah

ajanann api samharam

prana-krcchra upasthite

SYNONYMS

atha—thus; upasprsya—touching in sanctity; salilam—water; sandadhe—chanted the hymns; tat—that; samahitah—being in concentration; ajanan—without knowing; api—although; samharam—withdrawal; prana-krcchre—life being put in danger; upasthite—being placed in such a position.

TRANSLATION

Since his life was in danger, he touched water in sanctity and concentrated upon the chanting of the hymns for throwing nuclear weapons, although he did not know how to withdraw such weapons.

PURPORT

The subtle forms of material activities are finer than grosser methods of material manipulation. Such subtle forms of material activities are effected through purification of sound. The same method is adopted here by chanting hymns to act as nuclear weapons.

SB1.7.21

TEXT 21

tatah praduskrtam tejah

pracandam sarvato disam

pranapadam abhipreksya

visnum jisnur uvaca ha

SYNONYMS

tatah—thereafter; praduskrtam—disseminated; tejah—glare; pracandam—fierce; sarvatah—all around; disam—directions; prana-apadam—affecting life; abhipreksya—having observed it; visnum—unto the Lord; jisnuh—Arjuna; uvaca—said; ha—in the past.

TRANSLATION

Thereupon a glaring light spread in all directions. It was so fierce that Arjuna thought his own life in danger, and so he began to address Lord Sri Krsna.

SB1.7.22

TEXT 22

arjuna uvaca

krsna krsna maha-baho

bhaktanam abhayankara

tvam eko dahyamananam

apavargo ’si samsrteh

SYNONYMS

arjunah uvaca—Arjuna said; krsna—O Lord Krsna; krsna—O Lord Krsna; maha-baho—He who is the Almighty; bhaktanam—of the devotees; abhayankara—eradicating the fears of; tvam—You; ekah—alone; dahyamananam—those who are suffering from; apavargah—the path of liberation; asi—are; samsrteh—in the midst of material miseries.

TRANSLATION

Arjuna said: O my Lord Sri Krsna, You are the almighty Personality of Godhead. There is no limit to Your different energies. Therefore only You are competent to instill fearlessness in the hearts of Your devotees. Everyone in the flames of material miseries can find the path of liberation in You only.

PURPORT

Arjuna was aware of the transcendental qualities of Lord Sri Krsna, as he had already experienced them during the Kuruksetra War, in which both of them were present. Therefore, Arjuna’s version of Lord Krsna is authoritative. Krsna is almighty and is especially the cause of fearlessness for the devotees. A devotee of the Lord is always fearless because of the protection given by the Lord. Material existence is something like a blazing fire in the forest, which can be extinguished by the mercy of the Lord Sri Krsna. The spiritual master is the mercy representative of the Lord. Therefore, a person burning in the flames of material existence may receive the rains of mercy of the Lord through the transparent medium of the self-realized spiritual master. The spiritual master, by his words, can penetrate into the heart of the suffering person and inject knowledge transcendental, which alone can extinguish the fire of material existence.

SB1.7.23

TEXT 23

tvam adyah purusah saksad

isvarah prakrteh parah

mayam vyudasya cic-chaktya

kaivalye sthita atmani

SYNONYMS

tvam adyah—You are the original; purusah—the enjoying personality; saksat—directly; isvarah—the controller; prakrteh—of material nature; parah—transcendental; mayam—the material energy; vyudasya—one who has thrown aside; cit-saktya—by dint of internal potency; kaivalye—in pure eternal knowledge and bliss; sthitah—placed; atmani—own self.

TRANSLATION

You are the original Personality of Godhead who expands Himself all over the creations and is transcendental to material energy. You have cast away the effects of the material energy by dint of Your spiritual potency. You are always situated in eternal bliss and transcendental knowledge.

PURPORT

The Lord states in the Bhagavad-gita that one who surrenders unto the lotus feet of the Lord can get release from the clutches of nescience. Krsna is just like the sun, and maya or material existence is just like darkness. Wherever there is the light of the sun, darkness or ignorance at once vanishes. The best means to get out of the world of ignorance is suggested here. The Lord is addressed herein as the original Personality of Godhead. From Him all other Personalities of Godhead expand. The all-pervasive Lord Visnu is Lord Krsna’s plenary portion or expansion. The Lord expands Himself in innumerable forms of Godhead and living beings, along with His different energies. But Sri Krsna is the original primeval Lord from whom everything emanates. The all-pervasive feature of the Lord experienced within the manifested world is also a partial representation of the Lord. Paramatma, therefore, is included within Him. He is the Absolute Personality of Godhead. He has nothing to do with the actions and reactions of the material manifestation because He is far above the material creation. Darkness is a perverse representation of the sun, and therefore the existence of darkness depends on the existence of the sun, but in the sun proper there is no trace of darkness. As the sun is full of light only, similarly the Absolute Personality of Godhead, beyond the material existence, is full of bliss. He is not only full of bliss, but also full of transcendental variegatedness. Transcendence is not at all static, but full of dynamic variegatedness. He is distinct from the material nature, which is complicated by the three modes of material nature. He is parama, or the chief. Therefore He is absolute. He has manifold energies, and through His diverse energies He creates, manifests, maintains and destroys the material world. In His own abode, however, everything is eternal and absolute. The world is not conducted by the energies or powerful agents by themselves, but by the potent all-powerful with all energies.

SB1.7.24

TEXT 24

sa eva jiva-lokasya

maya-mohita-cetasah

vidhatse svena viryena

sreyo dharmadi-laksanam

SYNONYMS

sah—that Transcendence; eva—certainly; jiva-lokasya—of the conditioned living beings; maya-mohita—captivated by the illusory energy; cetasah—by the heart; vidhatse—execute; svena—by Your own; viryena—influence; sreyah—ultimate good; dharma-adi—four principles of liberation; laksanam—characterized by.

TRANSLATION

And yet, though You are beyond the purview of the material energy, You execute the four principles of liberation characterized by religion and so on for the ultimate good of the conditioned souls.

PURPORT

The Personality of Godhead Sri Krsna, out of His causeless mercy, descends on the manifested world without being influenced by the material modes of nature. He is eternally beyond the material manifestations. He descends out of His causeless mercy only to reclaim the fallen souls who are captivated by the illusory energy. They are attacked by the material energy, and they want to enjoy her under false pretexts, although in essence the living entity is unable to enjoy. One is eternally the servitor of the Lord, and when he forgets this position he thinks of enjoying the material world, but factually he is in illusion. The Lord descends to eradicate this false sense of enjoyment and thus reclaim conditioned souls back to Godhead. That is the all-merciful nature of the Lord for the fallen souls.

SB1.7.25

TEXT 25

tathayam cavataras te

bhuvo bhara-jihirsaya

svanam cananya-bhavanam

anudhyanaya casakrt

SYNONYMS

tatha—thus; ayam—this; ca—and; avatarah—incarnation; te—Your; bhuvah—of the material world; bhara—burden; jihirsaya—for removing; svanam—of the friends; ca ananya-bhavanam—and of the exclusive devotees; anudhyanaya—for remembering repeatedly; ca—and; asakrt—fully satisfied.

TRANSLATION

Thus You descend as an incarnation to remove the burden of the world and to benefit Your friends, especially those who are Your exclusive devotees and are rapt in meditation upon You.

PURPORT

It appears that the Lord is partial to His devotees. Everyone is related with the Lord. He is equal to everyone, and yet He is more inclined to His own men and devotees. The Lord is everyone’s father. No one can be His father, and yet no one can be His son. His devotees are His kinsmen, and His devotees are His relations. This is His transcendental pastime. It has nothing to do with mundane ideas of relations, fatherhood or anything like that. As mentioned above, the Lord is above the modes of material nature, and thus there is nothing mundane about His kinsmen and relations in devotional service.

SB1.7.26

TEXT 26

kim idam svit kuto veti

deva-deva na vedmy aham

sarvato mukham ayati

tejah parama-darunam

SYNONYMS

kim—what is; idam—this; svit—does it come; kutah—wherefrom; va iti—be either; deva-deva—O Lord of lords; na—not; vedmi—do I know; aham—I; sarvatah—all around; mukham—directions; ayati—coming from; tejah—effulgence; parama—very much; darunam—dangerous.

TRANSLATION

O Lord of lords, how is it that this dangerous effulgence is spreading all around? Where does it come from? I do not understand it.

PURPORT

Anything that is presented before the Personality of Godhead should be so done after due presentation of respectful prayers. That is the standard procedure, and Sri Arjuna, although an intimate friend of the Lord, is observing this method for general information.

SB1.7.27

TEXT 27

sri-bhagavan uvaca

vetthedam drona-putrasya

brahmam astram pradarsitam

naivasau veda samharam

prana-badha upasthite

SYNONYMS

sri-bhagavan—the Supreme Personality of Godhead; uvaca—said; vettha—just know from Me; idam—this; drona-putrasya—of the son of Drona; brahmam astram—hymns of the brahma (nuclear) weapon; pradarsitam—exhibited; na—not; eva—even; asau—he; veda—know it; samharam—retraction; prana-badhe—extinction of life; upasthite—being imminent.

TRANSLATION

The Supreme Personality of Godhead said: Know from Me that this is the act of the son of Drona. He has thrown the hymns of nuclear energy [brahmastra], and he does not know how to retract the glare. He has helplessly done this, being afraid of imminent death.

PURPORT

The brahmastra is similar to the modern nuclear weapon manipulated by atomic energy. The atomic energy works wholly on total combustibility, and so the brahmastra also acts. It creates an intolerable heat similar to atomic radiation, but the difference is that the atomic bomb is a gross type of nuclear weapon, whereas the brahmastra is a subtle type of weapon produced by chanting hymns. It is a different science, and in the days gone by such science was cultivated in the land of Bharata-varsa. The subtle science of chanting hymns is also material, but it has yet to be known by the modern material scientists. Subtle material science is not spiritual, but it has a direct relationship with the spiritual method, which is still subtler. A chanter of hymns knew how to apply the weapon as well as how to retract it. That was perfect knowledge. But the son of Dronacarya, who made use of this subtle science, did not know how to retract. He applied it, being afraid of his imminent death, and thus the practice was not only improper but also irreligious. As the son of a brahmana, he should not have made so many mistakes, and for such gross negligence of duty he was to be punished by the Lord Himself.

SB1.7.28

TEXT 28

na hy asyanyatamam kincid

astram pratyavakarsanam

jahy astra-teja unnaddham

astra-jno hy astra-tejasa

SYNONYMS

na—not; hi—certainly; asya—of it; anyatamam—other; kincit—anything; astram—weapon; prati—counter; avakarsanam—reactionary; jahi—subdue it; astra-tejah—the glare of this weapon; unnaddham—very powerful; astra-jnah—expert in military science; hi—as a matter of fact; astra-tejasa—by the influence of your weapon.

TRANSLATION

O Arjuna, only another brahmastra can counteract this weapon. Since you are expert in the military science, subdue this weapon’s glare with the power of your own weapon.

PURPORT

For the atomic bombs there is no counterweapon to neutralize the effects. But by subtle science the action of a brahmastra can be counteracted, and those who were expert in the military science in those days could counteract the brahmastra. The son of Dronacarya did not know the art of counteracting the weapon, and therefore Arjuna was asked to counteract it by the power of his own weapon.

SB1.7.29

TEXT 29

suta uvaca

srutva bhagavata proktam

phalgunah para-vira-ha

sprstvapas tam parikramya

brahmam brahmastram sandadhe

SYNONYMS

sutah—Suta Gosvami; uvaca—said; srutva—after hearing; bhagavata—by the Personality of Godhead; proktam—what was said; phalgunah—another name of Sri Arjuna; para-vira-ha—the killer of the opposing warrior; sprstva—after touching; apah—water; tam—Him; parikramya—circumambulating; brahmam—the Supreme Lord; brahma-astram—the supreme weapon; sandadhe—acted on.

TRANSLATION

Sri Suta Gosvami said: Hearing this from the Personality of Godhead, Arjuna touched water for purification, and after circumambulating Lord Sri Krsna, he cast his brahmastra weapon to counteract the other one.

SB1.7.30

TEXT 30

samhatyanyonyam ubhayos

tejasi sara-samvrte

avrtya rodasi kham ca

vavrdhate ’rka-vahnivat

SYNONYMS

samhatya—by combination of; anyonyam—one another; ubhayoh—of both; tejasi—the glares; sara—weapons; samvrte—covering; avrtya—covering; rodasi—the complete firmament; kham ca—outer space also; vavrdhate—increasing; arka—the sun globe; vahni-vat—like fire.

TRANSLATION

When the rays of the two brahmastras combined, a great circle of fire, like the disc of the sun, covered all outer space and the whole firmament of planets.

PURPORT

The heat created by the flash of a brahmastra resembles the fire exhibited in the sun globe at the time of cosmic annihilation. The radiation of atomic energy is very insignificant in comparison to the heat produced by a brahmastra. The atomic bomb explosion can at utmost blow up one globe, but the heat produced by the brahmastra can destroy the whole cosmic situation. The comparison is therefore made to the heat at the time of annihilation.

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