SB 5.4.9 · Srimad Bhagavatam

Devanagari

येषां खलु महायोगी भरतो ज्येष्ठ: श्रेष्ठगुण आसीद्येनेदं वर्षं भारतमिति व्यपदिशन्ति ॥ ९ ॥

Verse text

yeṣāṁ khalu mahā-yogī bharato jyeṣṭhaḥ śreṣṭha-guṇa āsīd yenedaṁ varṣaṁ bhāratam iti vyapadiśanti.

Synonyms

yeṣām — of whom ; khalu — indeed ; mahā — yogī — a very highly exalted devotee of the Lord ; bharataḥ — Bharata ; jyeṣṭhaḥ — the eldest ; śreṣṭha — guṇaḥ — qualified with the best attributes ; āsīt — was ; yena — by whom ; idam — this ; varṣam — planet ; bhāratam — Bhārata ; iti — thus ; vyapadiśanti — people call .

Translation

Of Ṛṣabhadeva’s one hundred sons, the eldest, named Bharata, was a great, exalted devotee qualified with the best attributes. In his honor, this planet has become known as Bhārata-varṣa.

Translation (Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura)

Among his sons Bharata, the eldest, was a great yogī, having excellent qualities. Because of him this planet is called Bhārata.

Purport

This planet known as Bhārata-varṣa is also called puṇya-bhūmi, the pious land. At the present moment Bhārata-bhūmi, or Bhārata-varṣa, is a small piece of land extending from the Himālaya Mountains to Cape Comorin. Sometimes this peninsula is called puṇya-bhūmi. Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu has given special importance to the people of this land. bhārata-bhūmite haila manuṣya-janma yāra janma sārthaka kari’ kara para-upakāra “One who has taken his birth as a human being in the land of India (Bhārata-varṣa) should make his life successful and work for the benefit of all other people.” ( Cc. Ādi 9.41) The inhabitants of this piece of land are very fortunate. They can purify their existence by accepting this Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement and go outside Bhārata-bhūmi (India) and preach this cult to benefit the whole world.