Devanagari
दृष्ट्वा तं तादृशं सर्वे मत्वा वृन्दावनश्रियम् ।
व्यात्ताजगरतुण्डेन ह्युत्प्रेक्षन्ते स्म लीलया ॥ १८ ॥
Verse text
dṛṣṭvā taṁ tādṛśaṁ sarve
matvā vṛndāvana-śriyam
vyāttājagara-tuṇḍena
hy utprekṣante sma līlayā
Synonyms
dṛṣṭvā
—
seeing
;
tam
—
that Aghāsura
;
tādṛśam
—
in that posture
;
sarve
—
Kṛṣṇa and all the cowherd boys
;
matvā
—
thought it
;
vṛndāvana
—
śriyam — a beautiful statue of Vṛndāvana
;
vyātta
—
spread
;
ajagara
—
tuṇḍena — with the form of a python’s mouth
;
hi
—
indeed
;
utprekṣante
—
as if observing
;
sma
—
in the past
;
līlayā
—
as a matter of pastimes .
Translation
Upon seeing this demon’s wonderful form, which resembled a great python, the boys thought that it must be a beautiful scenic spot of Vṛndāvana. Thereafter, they imagined it to be similar to the mouth of a great python. In other words, the boys, unafraid, thought that it was a statue made in the shape of a great python for the enjoyment of their pastimes.
Translation (Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura)
Upon seeing this demon's wonderful form, which resembled a great python, the boys thought that it must be a beautiful scenic spot of Vṛndāvana. Thereafter, they imagined it to be similar to the mouth of a great python. In other words, the boys, unafraid, thought that it was a statue made in the shape of a great python for the enjoyment of their pastimes.
KB 10.12.18
At first the boys thought that the demon was a statue, but after examining it they saw that it was a big serpent lying down on the road and widening his mouth.
Purport
Some of the boys, upon seeing this wonderful phenomenon, thought that it was in fact a python, and they were fleeing from the spot. But others said, “Why are you fleeing? It is not possible that a python like this is staying here. This is a spot of beauty for sporting.” This is what they imagined.
Purport (Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura)
Some of the boys on seeing Aghasura started to run away, thinking it was a big snake. Other boys however considered that Aghasura was one of the wonders of Vrndavana. They comforted their fearful friends by saying, "Oh fools, a snake can never be this big. It is something created by the Lord out of clay so that we can appreciate the splendor of Vrndavana even more. He has made it in the form of a huge snake with a big gaping snout." In this way they thought of the Lord’s creation as something like the gaping mouth of the serpent (upreksyanta), without fear (lilaya).
Purport (Jiva Goswami)
The word hi indicates certainty. They compared it to snake as a jest.
Purport (Sanatana Goswami)
The word hi indicates certainty. They compared it to snake as a jest.