SB 8.2.4 · Srimad-Bhagavatam

Devanagari

स चावनिज्यमानाङ्‍‍घ्रि: समन्तात् पयऊर्मिभि: । करोति श्यामलां भूमिं हरिन्मरकताश्मभि: ॥ ४ ॥

Verse text

sa cāvanijyamānāṅghriḥ samantāt paya-ūrmibhiḥ karoti śyāmalāṁ bhūmiṁ harin-marakatāśmabhiḥ

Synonyms

saḥ — that mountain ; ca — also ; avanijyamāna — aṅghriḥ — whose foot is always washed ; samantāt — all around ; payaḥ — ūrmibhiḥ — by waves of milk ; karoti — makes ; śyāmalām — dark green ; bhūmim — ground ; harit — green ; marakata — with emerald ; aśmabhiḥ — stones .

Translation

The ground at the foot of the mountain is always washed by waves of milk that produce emeralds all around in the eight directions [north, south, east, west and the directions midway between them].

Translation (Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura)

The mountain whose base was washed by waves of milk became green because of the emeralds scattered in all directions. The mountain whose base was washed all around by the milk ocean became green land by the emerald gems scattered in the eight directions (harit).

Purport

From Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam we understand that there are various oceans. Somewhere there is an ocean filled with milk, somewhere an ocean of liquor, an ocean of ghee, an ocean of oil, and an ocean of sweet water. Thus there are different varieties of oceans within this universe. The modern scientists, who have only limited experience, cannot defy these statements; they cannot give us full information about any planet, even the planet on which we live. From this verse, however, we can understand that if the valleys of some mountains are washed with milk, this produces emeralds. No one has the ability to imitate the activities of material nature as conducted by the Supreme Personality of Godhead.