Devanagari
नन्दो महामनास्तेभ्यो वासोऽलङ्कारगोधनम् ।
सूतमागधवन्दिभ्यो येऽन्ये विद्योपजीविन: ॥ १५ ॥
तैस्तै: कामैरदीनात्मा यथोचितमपूजयत् ।
विष्णोराराधनार्थाय स्वपुत्रस्योदयाय च ॥ १६ ॥
Verse text
nando mahā-manās tebhyo
vāso ’laṅkāra-go-dhanam
sūta-māgadha-vandibhyo
ye ’nye vidyopajīvinaḥ
tais taiḥ kāmair adīnātmā
yathocitam apūjayat
viṣṇor ārādhanārthāya
sva-putrasyodayāya ca
Synonyms
nandaḥ
—
Mahārāja Nanda
;
mahā
—
manāḥ — who among the cowherd men was the greatest of all upright persons
;
tebhyaḥ
—
unto the cowherd men
;
vāsaḥ
—
clothing
;
alaṅkāra
—
ornaments
;
go
—
dhanam — and cows
;
sūta
—
māgadha — vandibhyaḥ — unto the sūtas (the professional reciters of the old histories), the māgadhas (the professional reciters of the histories of royal dynasties) and the vandīs (general singers of prayers)
;
ye anye
—
as well as others
;
vidyā
—
upajīvinaḥ — who were continuing their livelihood on the basis of educational qualifications
;
taiḥ taiḥ
—
with whatever
;
kāmaiḥ
—
improvements of desire
;
adīna
—
ātmā — Mahārāja Nanda, who was so magnanimous
;
yathā
—
ucitam — as was suitable
;
apūjayat
—
worshiped them or satisfied them
;
viṣṇoḥ ārādhana
—
arthāya — for the purpose of satisfying Lord Viṣṇu
;
sva
—
putrasya — of his own child
;
udayāya
—
for the improvement in all respects
;
ca
—
and .
Translation
The great-minded Mahārāja Nanda gave clothing, ornaments and cows in charity to the cowherd men in order to please Lord Viṣṇu, and thus he improved the condition of his own son in all respects. He distributed charity to the sūtas, the māgadhas, the vandīs, and men of all other professions, according to their educational qualifications, and satisfied everyone’s desires.
Translation (Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura)
The great-minded Mahārāja Nanda gave clothing, ornaments and cows in charity to the cowherd men in order to please Lord Viṣṇu, and thus he improved the condition of his own son in all respects. He distributed charity to the sūtas, the māgadhas, the vandīs, and men of all other professions, according to their educational qualifications, and satisfied everyone's desires.
KB 10.5.15-16
Nanda Mahārāja was also very happy to see the pastimes of the cowherd men and women, and he became very liberal in giving charity to the different singers who were assembled there. Some singers were reciting great verses from the Upaniṣads and Purāṇas, some were glorifying the family ancestors, and some were singing very sweet songs. There were also many learned brāhmaṇas present, and Nanda Mahārāja, being very satisfied on this occasion, gave them different kinds of garments, ornaments and cows in charity.
It is very important to note in this connection how wealthy the inhabitants of Vṛndāvana were simply by raising cows. All the cowherd men belonged to the vaiśya community, and their business was to protect the cows and cultivate crops. By their dress and ornaments, and by their behavior, it appears that although they were in a small village, they still were rich in material possessions. They possessed such an abundance of various kinds of milk products that they were throwing butter lavishly on each other’s bodies without restriction. Their wealth was in milk, yogurt, clarified butter and many other milk products, and by trading their agricultural products, they were rich in various kinds of jewelry, ornaments and costly garments. Not only did they possess all these things, but they could give them away in charity lavishly, as did Nanda Mahārāja.
Thus Nanda Mahārāja, the foster father of Lord Kṛṣṇa, began to satisfy the desires of all the men assembled there. He respectfully received them and gave them in charity whatever they desired. The learned brāhmaṇas, who had no other source of income, were completely dependent on the vaiśya community for their maintenance, and they received gifts on such festive occasions as birthdays and marriages. While Nanda Mahārāja was worshiping Lord Viṣṇu on this occasion and was trying to satisfy all the people there, his only desire was that the newborn child Kṛṣṇa would be happy. Nanda Mahārāja had no knowledge that this child was the origin of Viṣṇu; he was praying to Lord Viṣṇu to protect Him.
Purport
Although it has become fashionable to speak of
daridra-nārāyaṇa,
the words
viṣṇor ārādhanārthāya
do not mean that all the people satisfied by Nanda Mahārāja in this great ceremony were Viṣṇus. They were not
daridra,
nor were they Nārāyaṇa. Rather, they were devotees of Nārāyaṇa, and by their educational qualifications they would satisfy Nārāyaṇa. Therefore, satisfying them was an indirect way of satisfying Lord Viṣṇu.
Mad-bhakta-pūjābhyadhikā
(
Bhāg.
11.19.21). The Lord says, “Worshiping My devotees is better than worshiping Me directly.” The
varṇāśrama
system is entirely meant for
viṣṇu-ārādhana,
worship of Lord Viṣṇu.
Varṇāśramācāravatā puruṣeṇa paraḥ pumān/ viṣṇur ārādhyate
(
Viṣṇu Purāṇa
3.8.9). The ultimate goal of life is to please Lord Viṣṇu, the Supreme Lord. The uncivilized man or materialistic person, however, does not know this aim of life.
Na te viduḥ svārtha-gatiṁ hi viṣṇum
(
Bhāg.
7.5.31
). One’s real self-interest lies in satisfying Lord Viṣṇu. Not satisfying Lord Viṣṇu but instead attempting to become happy through material adjustments (
bahir-artha-māninaḥ
) is the wrong way for happiness. Because Viṣṇu is the root of everything, if Viṣṇu is pleased, everyone is pleased; in particular, one’s children and family members become happy in all respects. Nanda Mahārāja wanted to see his newborn child happy. That was his purpose. Therefore he wanted to satisfy Lord Viṣṇu, and to satisfy Lord Viṣṇu it was necessary to satisfy His devotees, such as the learned
brāhmaṇas, māgadhas
and
sūtas.
Thus, in a roundabout way, ultimately it was Lord Viṣṇu who was to be satisfied.
Purport (Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura)
Mahamanah means very generous. Nanda Maharaja, who was very generous gave to all who came. Vidyopajivah refers to those who made a living by dancing, singing and play instruments, weapons and scripture etc. Tais tais kamaih means whatever was desired or asked. He gave suitably according to the level of their reputation and knowledge. The purpose of the charity was to worship Visnu in order to please Visnu, and for the auspiciousness of his son. "May Visnu be pleased by this charity, and by his pleasure, my son will be blessed."
Purport (Jiva Goswami)
He gave (verb understood) cloth and other items such as gold to the cowherd men and women, to the bards, and to singers and musicians as appropriate. He worshipped them appropriately. He was naturally generous but now became most devoted (mahāmanāḥ). As previously mentioned, because of his devotion to Kṛṣṇa, his qualities of generosity and wisdom increased immeasurably. He was not satisfied with giving, but whatever they desired he gave. He worshipped them according to caste, age and knowledge. He respected them with garlands, sandalwood, betel nut, and invitations. The purpose of giving is mentioned. It was for satisfying Viṣṇu not for going to Svarga, since he was the highest Vaiṣṇava and had reached the end of desiring any object. He gave for the welfare of his son. May Viṣṇu be pleased with this charity! May my son be prosperous by his mercy! By worshipping Viṣṇu, by that prosperity, there would be manifestation of Kṛṣṇa’s form, qualities and pastimes in his house. Mahāmanāḥ can also mean that his meditation became great because of developing attraction to Kṛṣṇa. Śukadeva has established the conclusion by the meaning of this verse, for the word ca means api to indicate Nanda’s rare position of getting Kṛṣṇa as his son. This established in later verses:
nandaḥ kim akarod brahman śreya evaṁ mahodayam
yaśodā ca mahā-bhāgā papau yasyāḥ stanaṁ hariḥ
O learned brāhmaṇa, mother Yaśodā’s breast milk was sucked by the Supreme Lord. What past auspicious activities did she and Nanda Mahārāja perform to achieve such perfection in ecstatic love? SB 10.8.46
nemaṁ viriñco na bhavo na śrīr apy aṅga-saṁśrayā
prasādaṁ lebhire gopī yat tat prāpa vimuktidāt
Neither Lord Brahmā, nor Lord Śiva, nor even the goddess of fortune, who is always the better half of the Supreme Lord, can obtain from the Supreme Lord, the deliverer from this material world, such mercy as received by mother Yaśodā. SB 10.9.20
yuvāṁ ślāghyatamau nūnaṁ dehinām iha māna-da
nārāyaṇe ’khila-gurau yat kṛtā matir īdṛśī
O respectful Nanda, certainly you and mother Yaśodā are the most praiseworthy persons in the entire world, since you have developed such a loving attitude toward Nārāyaṇa, the spiritual master of all living beings. SB 10.46.30
Purport (Sanatana Goswami)
He gave (verb understood) cloth and other items such as gold to the cowherd men and women, to the bards, and to singers and musicians who made their living by their skills, as appropriate. He worshipped them appropriately. He was naturally generous but now became most devoted (mahāmanāḥ), knowing what they desired most or what was known as most excellent (tais taiḥ kāmaiḥ). Or he gave not only to those who made a living by their skills but also to the most unfortunate (anye).
He gave not only gifts but respected everyone (ca). He worshipped all the brāhmaṇas and others. According to their birth and knowledge he satisfied their desires because he was generous.
Or he worshipped them with desires which bring the Lord under control. That cannot be understood even by ātmārāmas, in order to satisfy the Lord. The plural “desires” is used to indicate respect or many desires. He worshipped for auspiciousness in this life and the next at the birth of his son, out of great affection, in order to satisfy Viṣṇu, since he was the best of devotees. Or he worshipped at the birth of his son for the highest goal (artha)--worshipping Viṣṇu. Actually the result of worshipping Viṣṇu was the birth of his son.