Devanagari
एवमुक्त: स वै देवानभिवन्द्य महायशा: ।
अशयिष्ट गुहाविष्टो निद्रया देवदत्तया ॥ २१ ॥
Verse text
evam uktaḥ sa vai devān
abhivandya mahā-yaśāḥ
aśayiṣṭa guhā-viṣṭo
nidrayā deva-dattayā
Synonyms
evam
—
thus
;
uktaḥ
—
addressed
;
saḥ
—
he
;
vai
—
indeed
;
devān
—
the demigods
;
abhivandya
—
saluting
;
mahā
—
great
;
yaśāḥ
—
whose fame
;
aśayiṣṭa
—
he lay down
;
guhā
—
viṣṭaḥ — entering a cave
;
nidrayā
—
in sleep
;
deva
—
by the demigods
;
dattayā
—
given .
Translation
Addressed thus, King Mucukunda took his respectful leave of the demigods and went to a cave, where he lay down to enjoy the sleep they had granted him.
Translation (Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura)
Addressed thus, King Mucukunda took his respectful leave of the demigods and went to a cave, where he lay down to enjoy the sleep they had granted him.
KB 10.51.21
King Mucukunda had not slept for many, many years. He was engaged in the duty of fighting, and therefore he was very tired. So when the demigod offered a benediction, Mucukunda simply thought of sleeping. He replied as follows: “My dear Kārttikeya, best of the demigods, I want to sleep now, and I want from you the following benediction. Grant me the power to burn to ashes, by my mere glance, anyone who disturbs my sleeping and awakens me untimely. Please give me this benediction.” The demigod agreed and also gave him the benediction that he would be able to take complete rest. Then King Mucukunda entered the cave of the mountain.
Purport
Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura gives the following lines from an alternate reading of this chapter. These lines are to be inserted between the two halves of this verse:
nidrām eva tato vavre
sa rājā śrama-karṣitaḥ
yaḥ kaścin mama nidrāyā
bhaṅgaṁ kuryād surottamāḥ
sa hi bhasmī-bhaved āśu
tathoktaś ca surais tadā
svāpaṁ yātaṁ yo madhye tu
bodhayet tvām acetanaḥ
sa tvayā dṛṣṭa-mātras tu
bhasmī-bhavatu tat-kṣaṇāt
“The King, exhausted by his labor, then chose sleep as his benediction. He further stated, ‘O best of the demigods, may whoever disturbs my sleep be immediately burned to ashes.’ The demigods replied, ‘So be it,’ and told him, ‘That insensitive person who wakes you in the middle of your sleep will immediately turn to ashes simply by your seeing him.’”
Purport (Jiva Goswami)
He is called famous because of the following. What use are the devatās if only Viṣṇu can bestow the spiritual world? I do not want to see others. I should sleep alone near Mathurā, dear to the Lord until I can see the Lord. Therefore I will ask of the benediction of sleep. For this reason his famous was spread everywhere. With permission granted by the devatās he lay in the cave. This cave is well known. It is situated in a mountain of Davalapura, south of Mathurā district. In Varāha Purāṇa, in describing parikrama of Mathurā, it is said to be situated within Mathurā. There is a temple made to resemble the cave there, similar to the cave of Yaśodā.