SB 8.22.23 · Srimad Bhagavatam

Devanagari

यत्पादयोरशठधी: सलिलं प्रदाय दूर्वाङ्कुरैरपि विधाय सतीं सपर्याम् । अप्युत्तमां गतिमसौ भजते त्रिलोकीं दाश्वानविक्लवमना: कथमार्तिमृच्छेत् ॥ २३ ॥

Verse text

yat-pādayor aśaṭha-dhīḥ salilaṁ pradāya dūrvāṅkurair api vidhāya satīṁ saparyām apy uttamāṁ gatim asau bhajate tri-lokīṁ dāśvān aviklava-manāḥ katham ārtim ṛcchet

Synonyms

yat — pādayoḥ — at the lotus feet of Your Lordship ; aśaṭha — dhīḥ — a great-minded person who is without duplicity ; salilam — water ; pradāya — offering ; dūrvā — with fully grown grass ; aṅkuraiḥ — and with buds of flowers ; api — although ; vidhāya — offering ; satīm — most exalted ; saparyām — with worship ; api — although ; uttamām — the most highly elevated ; gatim — destination ; asau — such a worshiper ; bhajate — deserves ; tri — lokīm — the three worlds ; dāśvān — giving to You ; aviklava — manāḥ — without mental duplicity ; katham — how ; ārtim — the distressed condition of being arrested ; ṛcchet — he deserves .

Translation

By offering even water, newly grown grass, or flower buds at Your lotus feet, those who maintain no mental duplicity can achieve the most exalted position within the spiritual world. This Bali Mahārāja, without duplicity, has now offered everything in the three worlds. How then can he deserve to suffer from arrest?

Translation (Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura)

By offering even water, newly grown grass, or flower buds at your lotus feet, by performing excellent worship, a sincere person attains Vaikuṇṭha. This Bali Mahārāja, without duplicity, has offered everything in the three worlds to you. How then can he deserve to suffer from arrest? His not deserving punishment is expressed by stating the opposite. He deserves much more. All men attain Vaikuṇṭha by offering water. Why then should Bali, by offering the three worlds, end up in distress?

Purport

In Bhagavad-gītā (9.26) it is stated: patraṁ puṣpaṁ phalaṁ toyaṁ yo me bhaktyā prayacchati tad ahaṁ bhakty-upahṛtam aśnāmi prayatātmanaḥ The Supreme Personality of Godhead is so kind that if an unsophisticated person, with devotion and without duplicity, offers at the lotus feet of the Lord a little water, a flower, a fruit or a leaf, the Lord accepts it. Then the devotee is promoted to Vaikuṇṭha, the spiritual world. Brahmā drew the Lord’s attention to this subject and requested that He release Bali Mahārāja, who was suffering, being bound by the ropes of Varuṇa, and who had already given everything, including the three worlds and whatever he possessed.