Devanagari
यथा हि यूयं नृपदेव दुस्त्यजा-
दापद्गणादुत्तरतात्मन: प्रभो: ।
यत्पादपङ्केरुहसेवया भवा-
नहारषीन्निर्जितदिग्गज: क्रतून् ॥ ६८ ॥
Verse text
yathā hi yūyaṁ nṛpa-deva dustyajād
āpad-gaṇād uttaratātmanaḥ prabhoḥ
yat-pāda-paṅkeruha-sevayā bhavān
ahāraṣīn nirjita-dig-gajaḥ kratūn
Synonyms
yathā
—
as
;
hi
—
indeed
;
yūyam
—
all of you (Pāṇḍavas)
;
nṛpa
—
deva — O lord of the kings, human beings and demigods
;
dustyajāt
—
insurmountable
;
āpat
—
dangerous conditions
;
gaṇāt
—
from all
;
uttarata
—
escaped
;
ātmanaḥ
—
own
;
prabhoḥ
—
of the Lord
;
yat
—
pāda — paṅkeruha — whose lotus feet
;
sevayā
—
by serving
;
bhavān
—
yourself
;
ahāraṣīt
—
performed
;
nirjita
—
defeating
;
dik
—
gajaḥ — the most powerful enemies, who were like elephants
;
kratūn
—
ritualistic ceremonies .
Translation
O King Yudhiṣṭhira, because of your service to the Supreme Lord, all of you Pāṇḍavas defeated the greatest dangers posed by numerous kings and demigods. By serving the lotus feet of Kṛṣṇa, you conquered great enemies, who were like elephants, and thus you collected ingredients for sacrifice. By His grace, may you be delivered from material involvement.
Translation (Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura)
Just as you overcame the greatest dangers by service to your Lord, and just as you were able to gather the articles for sacrifice after conquering the directions by serving the Lord’s lotus feet, other devotees also serve the Lord.
Bhagavān alone, the common goal of the āśramas as explained in the last five chapters, is the goal of the pure devotees, both sādhaka and siddha. However, the Lord, appearing directly to the siddhas, throws the siddhas into the whirlpool of both bliss and danger in order to make them dance in the waves of his prema. In all cases however just as he makes arrangement for them, they act according to proper conduct, and worship him at all times. The Pāṇḍavas are the proof of this.
You, the Pāṇḍavas, overcame insurmountable dangers involving kings and devatās by serving the lotus feet of the Lord, through meditation and other processes. Uttarata should be uttaratha. Just as (yat) you gathered articles for sacrifices by service the Lord, so Ugrasena and others also served the Lord. The last phrase should be supplied to the sentence. Previously Yudhiṣṭhira had said he was just a householder ignorant of spiritual life (mādṛśo gṛha-mūḍha-dhīḥ SB 7.14.1). But one should not think that the Pāṇḍavas are amongst the regular householders. That is indicated by this verse.
Purport
Placing himself as an ordinary householder, Mahārāja Yudhiṣṭhira inquired from Nārada Muni how a
gṛha-mūḍha-dhī,
a person who is entangled in household life and who thus continues to remain a fool, can be delivered. Nārada Muni encouraged Mahārāja Yudhiṣṭhira by saying, “You are already on the safe side because you, along with your entire family, have become a pure devotee of Kṛṣṇa.” By Kṛṣṇa’s grace, the Pāṇḍavas conquered in the Battle of Kurukṣetra and were saved from many dangers posed not only by kings but sometimes even by the demigods. Thus they are a practical example of how to live in security and safety by the grace of Kṛṣṇa. Everyone should follow the example of the Pāṇḍavas, who showed how to be saved by the grace of Kṛṣṇa. Our Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement is intended to teach how everyone can live peacefully in this material world and at the end of life return home, back to Godhead. In the material world there are always dangers at every step (
padaṁ padaṁ yad vipadāṁ na teṣām
). Nonetheless, if one takes shelter of Kṛṣṇa without hesitation and keeps under the shelter of Kṛṣṇa, he can easily cross the ocean of nescience.
Samāśritā ye pada-pallava-plavaṁ mahat-padaṁ puṇya-yaśo murāreḥ.
To the devotee, this great ocean of nescience becomes like a puddle of water in the hoofprint of a cow. A pure devotee, without embarrassing himself by trying for elevation in so many ways, stays in the safest position as a servant of Kṛṣṇa, and thus his life is eternally safe without a doubt.