Skandapurana 2.9.16
English (machine translation) 2.9.16
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Skanda said:
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Having ascended the peak of Meru, Nārada, seeing with divine vision
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Śvetadvīpa and the thousands of liberated souls dwelling there,
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fixed his gaze that very moment upon the blessed Vāsudeva,
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and the great yogin flew up and immediately reached that abode. // 2
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Having reached the great white island, Nārada, delighted in his mind,
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saw those very devotees, white, shining like the moon, and auspicious. // 3
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He honored them with his head, and was honored by them in mind.
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Desiring to see the supreme Brahman, he remained engaged in rigorous austerity. // 4
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Recognizing him as an unswerving devotee of Viṣṇu, those devotees of the Lord,
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their minds pleased, spoke to him as he chanted the twelve-syllable mantra. // 5
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The liberated souls of Śveta said:
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O best of sages, you are a devotee of Kṛṣṇa, since you have seen us here
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who are hard to see even for the gods. Desiring what do you now perform austerities? // 6
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Nārada said:
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I am eager to see the Lord, the supreme Brahman, Kṛṣṇa in person, the master.
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O best among devotees, his beloved ones, show him to me! // 7
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Skanda said:
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Then, one liberated soul from the White Island, prompted in his heart by Kṛṣṇa,
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saying, 'Come, I will show you Kṛṣṇa,' went before him.
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Delighted, Nārada went with him by the path of the sky;
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observing the abodes of the gods, the sage then ascended higher.
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Having seen the Seven Seers and Dhruva, attached to nothing anywhere,
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he passed beyond the Maharloka, Janaloka, and Tapoloka worlds, O best of brahmins.
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Then, having seen Brahmaloka, the sage, following the liberated soul from the White Island,
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by the will of Kṛṣṇa traversed the path through the eight coverings as well.
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Earth, water, fire, wind, ether, ego, the great intellect, and primordial nature in order—
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having crossed these, each tenfold greater than the last, he reached the wondrous Goloka,
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that abode full of splendour, attainable only by exclusive devotees of Hari.
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As he went, he saw the wide, unfathomable Virajā river,
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fragrant with sandal paste washed off in the bathing of groups of gopīs and gopas,
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delightful with white lotuses, red water-lilies, and blue lotuses.
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Its enchanting bank, made of immense crystal stones,
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shining with excellent gems—white, green, red, and yellow—he reached;
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frequented by rows of wish-fulfilling trees, adorned with shoots of coral,
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embellished with mines of jewels such as the Syamantaka and sapphires,
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splendid with flights of stairs inlaid with various precious gems,
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frequented by sweetly chirping swans, kāraṇḍava ducks, and other birds,
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and by herds of wish-yielding cows, lordly elephants, and horses
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drinking the clear water. Resplendent, he crossed over it.
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Having crossed the divine river, then instantly, by the will of the Lord,
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which served as a moat around that abode, he reached Mount Śataśṛṅga,
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made of gold, worthy of sight, one crore yojanas high,
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and ten crores of yojanas in width, captivating the mind,
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shining with thousands of wish-fulfilling trees, pārijāta and other trees,
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with mallikā and yūthikā jasmines, and with clove and cardamom creepers,
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with golden plantains and various other trees,
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with divine herds of deer, elephants, and sweet-singing birds.
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On the delightful ridges of that [mountain] which served as a fortress for that abode,
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he beheld vast and charming pavilions for the Lord's rāsa dance,
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surrounded by rows of gardens fragrant with blooming flowers,
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beautified with four gates having doors studded with jewels,
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provided with wonderful archways and thousands of jewelled pillars,
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furnished with banana trunks and canopies with hanging pearls,
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provided with dūrvā grass, parched grains, unbroken rice, fruits, and auspicious articles,
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their courtyards sprinkled with sandal, agallochum, musk, and saffron,
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charming with the diverse, melodious sounds of musical instruments.
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In them he saw millions of groups of gopīs,
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adorned with priceless garments and ornaments, fine jewel-encrusted bracelets,
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girdles, anklets, armlets, and rings,
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incomparable indeed in youth, beauty, grace, and voices,
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sharing the complexion of Rādhā and Lakṣmī, skilled in amorous arts.
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In the pavilions filled with various articles of enjoyment,
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they sport and sing charming songs of Kṛṣṇa.
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Then in the foothills of that mountain, the sage Nārada,
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O Sāvarṇi, saw that great forest named Vṛndāvana,
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the beloved sporting ground of Kṛṣṇa and Rādhikā,
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delightful with rows of wish-fulfilling trees and ponds filled with lotuses,
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shining with various trees bending under the weight of fruits and flowers— / mangoes, hog-plums, nīpas, jujubes, pomegranates,
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date palms, areca palms, oranges, coconuts, sandalwoods,
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rose apples, citrons, jackfruits, walnuts, celestial pines,
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plantains, campakas, grapes, and golden ketakas—
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bending under the weight of fruits and flowers, shining with diverse trees,
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with mallikā, mādhavī, kunda, clove, and yūthikā [creepers],
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served by a gentle, cool, and fragrant breeze,
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moist all around with waterfalls flowing from Śataśṛṅga,
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rich with the beauty of perpetual spring, adorned with rows of jewel-lamps,
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abounding in countless bowers supplied with erotic articles.
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resounding everywhere, O sage, with the repeated chanting of Kṛṣṇa's praises by cowherds and gopīs,
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with the lowing of cows and calves and the chirping of birds, with the sounds of various ornaments,
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and with the churning of curds.
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Endowed with thirty-two other forests, enchanting to behold,
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adorned with various trees bending under blossoming flowers and fruits,
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having seen that, overjoyed, he reached the radiant city of Goloka,
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circular, with ramparts of jewels, and adorned with royal highways,
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resplendent with crores of aerial chariots of Kṛṣṇa's devotees,
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and with chariots studded with supreme jewels and adorned with nets of small tinkling bells,
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charming with crores of wondrous mansions standing in rows,
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adorned with heaps of great gems and rows of jeweled pillars,
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fashioned from the essence of jewels, with delightful pleasure pavilions,
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radiant with rows of lamps of supreme gems and with jeweled altars,
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smeared with liquids of saffron, agallochum, musk, and red powder,
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its courtyards adorned with curds, dūrvā grass, parched grain, betel nuts, and plantain trees,
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made auspicious with golden jars filled with water and arched gateways,
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its paved gem royal avenues bustling with numerous elephants and horses.
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The sage rejoiced upon beholding that great highway densely crowded
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with lords of numerous universes—headed by Brahmā and Śaṃkara—who had arrived for the darśana of Śrī Kṛṣṇa, holding offerings in hand,
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and with throngs of cowherds and gopīs going to see Kṛṣṇa.
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Beholding that great highway so crowded, the sage rejoiced.
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Then he reached Kṛṣṇa's temple, wonderful in every way and enchanting,
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surrounded by rows of palaces of cowherds such as Nanda and Vṛṣabhānu,
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having sixteen gates, moated fortresses,
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guarded by individual doorkeepers, each surrounded by a crore of cowherds.
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At the gates standing before him, with doors and pillars of jewels,
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he saw the doorkeepers seated in order:
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Vīrabhānu, Candrabhānu, Sūryabhānu the third,
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Vasubhānu, Devabhānu, and next Śakrabhānu,
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Ratnabhānu, Supārśva, and then Viśāla and Ṛṣabha,
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Aṃśu, Bala, Subala, Devaprastha, Varūthapa,
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and Śrīdāman; having bowed to them, he entered inside by their permission,
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and in an extensive grand courtyard he saw a supreme heap of light.
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Thus ends the sixteenth chapter, entitled “Description of Goloka,” in the Śrīvāsudevamāhātmya of the second section, the Vaiṣṇavakhaṇḍa, in the glorious Skandapurāṇa of eighty-one thousand verses.
Linked texts (1)
- Skandapurāṇa — Vyāsa, Sanskrit