SB 4.21.13 · Srimad-Bhagavatam

Devanagari

एकदासीन्महासत्रदीक्षा तत्र दिवौकसाम् । समाजो ब्रह्मर्षीणां च राजर्षीणां च सत्तम ॥ १३ ॥

Verse text

ekadāsīn mahā-satra- dīkṣā tatra divaukasām samājo brahmarṣīṇāṁ ca rājarṣīṇāṁ ca sattama

Synonyms

ekadā — once upon a time ; āsīt — took a vow ; mahā — satra — great sacrifice ; dīkṣā — initiation ; tatra — in that function ; diva — okasām — of the demigods ; samājaḥ — assembly ; brahma — ṛṣīṇām — of great saintly brāhmaṇas ; ca — also ; rāja — ṛṣīṇām — of great saintly kings ; ca — also ; sat — tama — the greatest of devotees .

Translation

Once upon a time King Pṛthu initiated the performance of a very great sacrifice in which great saintly sages, brāhmaṇas, demigods from higher planetary systems and great saintly kings known as rājarṣis all assembled together.

Translation (Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura)

One time there was a great sacrificial performance. At that place the devatās and an assembly of saintly brāhmaṇas and saintly kings were present. At one time there was a great sacrifice and in the sacrifice, many devatās were present. (The verb should be repeated.)

Purport

In this verse the most significant point is that although King Pṛthu’s residential quarters were in India, between the rivers Ganges and Yamunā, the demigods also participated in the great sacrifice he performed. This indicates that formerly the demigods used to come to this planet. Similarly, great personalities like Arjuna, Yudhiṣṭhira and many others used to visit higher planetary systems. Thus there was interplanetary communication via suitable airplanes and space vehicles.