Devanagari
जानुद्वयं जलजलोचनया जनन्या
लक्ष्म्याखिलस्य सुरवन्दितया विधातु: ।
ऊर्वोर्निधाय करपल्लवरोचिषा यत्
संलालितं हृदि विभोरभवस्य कुर्यात् ॥ २३ ॥
Verse text
jānu-dvayaṁ jalaja-locanayā jananyā
lakṣmyākhilasya sura-vanditayā vidhātuḥ
ūrvor nidhāya kara-pallava-rociṣā yat
saṁlālitaṁ hṛdi vibhor abhavasya kuryāt
Synonyms
jānu
—
dvayam — up to the knees
;
jalaja
—
locanayā — lotus-eyed
;
jananyā
—
mother
;
lakṣmyā
—
by Lakṣmī
;
akhilasya
—
of the entire universe
;
sura
—
vanditayā — worshiped by the demigods
;
vidhātuḥ
—
of Brahmā
;
ūrvoḥ
—
at the thighs
;
nidhāya
—
having placed
;
kara
—
pallava — rociṣā — with her lustrous fingers
;
yat
—
which
;
saṁlālitam
—
massaged
;
hṛdi
—
in the heart
;
vibhoḥ
—
of the Lord
;
abhavasya
—
transcendental to material existence
;
kuryāt
—
one should meditate .
Translation
The yogī should fix in his heart the activities of Lakṣmī, the goddess of fortune, who is worshiped by all demigods and is the mother of the supreme person, Brahmā. She can always be found massaging the legs and thighs of the transcendental Lord, very carefully serving Him in this way.
Translation (Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura)
One should fix in the heart the two legs of the Lord who destroys material existence, from his foot to his knee, decorated with the lustrous, bud-like hands of lotus-eyed Lakṣmī, who is worshipped by all the devatās and who is mother of Brahmā. She places those lotus feet upon her thighs.
It has already been said that one should meditate on the Lord lying down in verse 19. One should fix in the mind the Lord’s legs from foot to knee as he lies on his bed of Ananta. His leg is made beautiful (saṁlālitam) by the yellow and pink color of the lotus hands, skilful at massage, of lotus-eyed Lakṣmī, who is the mother of Brahmā, and who is worshipped by the devatās. Her eyes are mentioned because without disturbance she can relish the beauty of the Lord. The yogī should relish the sweetness and the power of his feet and knees. The yogī should relish the rest of the limbs in the same way. The Lord extinguishes material life (abhavasya).
Purport
Brahmā is the appointed lord of the universe. Because his father is Garbhodakaśāyī Viṣṇu, Lakṣmī, the goddess of fortune, is automatically his mother. Lakṣmījī is worshiped by all demigods and by the inhabitants of other planets as well. Human beings are also eager to receive favor from the goddess of fortune. Lakṣmī is always engaged in massaging the legs and thighs of the Supreme Personality of Godhead Nārāyaṇa, who is lying on the ocean of Garbha within the universe. Brahmā is described here as the son of the goddess of fortune, but actually he was not born of her womb. Brahmā takes his birth from the abdomen of the Lord Himself. A lotus flower grows from the abdomen of Garbhodakaśāyī Viṣṇu, and Brahmā is born there. Therefore Lakṣmījī’s massaging of the thighs of the Lord should not be taken as the behavior of an ordinary wife. The Lord is transcendental to the behavior of the ordinary male and female. The word
abhavasya
is very significant, for it indicates that He could produce Brahmā without the assistance of the goddess of fortune.
Since transcendental behavior is different from mundane behavior, it should not be taken that the Lord receives service from His wife just as a demigod or human being might receive service from his wife. It is advised here that the
yogī
always keep this picture in his heart. The devotee always thinks of this relationship between Lakṣmī and Nārāyaṇa; therefore he does not meditate on the mental plane as impersonalists and voidists do.
Bhava
means “one who accepts a material body,” and
abhava
means “one who does not accept a material body but descends in the original, spiritual body.” Lord Nārāyaṇa is not born of anything material. Matter is generated from matter, but He is not born of matter. Brahmā is born after the creation, but since the Lord existed before the creation, the Lord has no material body.