Verse Text
yathā śrī-gīta-govinde (1.16) –
vedān uddharate jaganti vahate bhūgolam udbibhrate
daityaṁ dārayate baliṁ chalayate kṣatra-kṣayaṁ kurvate |
paulastyaṁ jayate halaṁ kalayate kāruṇyam ātanvate
mlecchān mūrcchayate daśākṛti-kṛte kṛṣṇāya tubhyaṁ namaḥ ||203||
Translation
An example, from Gīta-govinda: I offer my respects to Kṛṣṇa, who takes ten forms--who rescues the Vedas as Matsya, supports the worlds as Kūrma, lifts the earth from the lower regions as Varāha, pierces Hiraṇyakaśipu as Narasiṁha, tricks Bali as Vāmana, destroys the warriors as Parāśurāma, conquers Rāvaṇa as Rāma, pulls His plough as Balarāma, distributes mercy as Buddha, and kills the rascals as Kalkī.
Purport (Jiva Goswami)
The author quotes Gīta-govinda in order to show how a great personality has summarized the statements of the Bhāgavatam, the highest scripture and the highest proof.
Purport (Nectar of Devotion)
Jayadeva Gosvāmī, in his Gīta-govinda, has sung as follows: “The Lord has saved the Vedas in His form as a fish, and He has borne the whole universe on His back in the form of a tortoise. He has picked up this earthly planet from the water in the form of a boar. He has killed Hiraṇyakaśipu in the form of Nṛsiṁha. He has cheated Mahārāja Bali in the form of Vāmana. He has annihilated all the dynasties of the kṣatriyas in the form of Paraśurāma. He has killed all the demons in the form of Lord Rāma. He has accepted the great plow in the form of Balarāma. He has annihilated all the atheistic persons in the form of Kalki. And He has saved all the poor animals in the form of Lord Buddha.” [Note: All of these incarnations of Godhead are described in the author’s Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, First Canto, Chapter Three.] These are some of the descriptions of the incarnations emanating from Kṛṣṇa, and from Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam it is understood that innumerable incarnations are always coming out from the body of Kṛṣṇa, just like waves in the ocean. No one can even count how many waves there are, and similarly no one can count how many incarnations are coming from the Lord’s body.