Devanagari
सुरासुराणामुदधिं मथ्नतां मन्दराचलम् ।
दध्रे कमठरूपेण पृष्ठ एकादशे विभु: ॥ १६ ॥
Verse text
surāsurāṇām udadhiṁ
mathnatāṁ mandarācalam
dadhre kamaṭha-rūpeṇa
pṛṣṭha ekādaśe vibhuḥ
Synonyms
sura
—
the theists
;
asurāṇām
—
of the atheists
;
udadhim
—
in the ocean
;
mathnatām
—
churning
;
mandarācalam
—
the Mandarācala Hill
;
dadhre
—
sustained
;
kamaṭha
—
tortoise
;
rūpeṇa
—
in the form of
;
pṛṣṭhe
—
shell
;
ekādaśe
—
the eleventh in the line
;
vibhuḥ
—
the great .
Translation
The eleventh incarnation of the Lord took the form of a tortoise whose shell served as a pivot for the Mandarācala Hill, which was being used as a churning rod by the theists and atheists of the universe.
Translation (Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura)
In the eleventh appearance, the Lord, in the form of a tortoise, held up on his back Mandara Mountain for the devatās and demons churning the ocean.
Purport
Once both the atheists and the theists were engaged in producing nectar from the sea so that all of them could become deathless by drinking it. At that time the Mandarācala Hill was used as the churning rod, and the shell of Lord Tortoise, the incarnation of Godhead, became the resting place (pivot) of the hill in the seawater.
Commentary (Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura)
The devatās and demons churned the ocean to receive nectar. Kamaṭha means turtle.