| Canto 10: The Summum Bonum | Chapter 52: Rukmini's Message to Lord Krishna |
Bhaktivedanta VedaBase: Srimad Bhagavatam 10.52.16-17
SYNONYMS
bhagavan -- the Supreme Lord; api -- indeed; govindah -- Krishna; upayeme -- married; kuru-udvaha -- O hero among the Kurus (Parikshit); vaidarbhim -- Rukmini; bhishmaka-sutam -- the daughter of King Bhishmaka; sriyah -- of the goddess of fortune; matram -- the plenary portion; svayam-vare -- by her own choice; pramathya -- subduing; tarasa -- by force; rajnah -- kings; salva-adin -- Salva and others; caidya -- of Sisupala; paksha-gan -- the supporters; pasyatam -- as they looked on; sarva -- all; lokanam -- the people; tarkshya-putrah -- the son of Tarkshya (Garuda); sudham -- the nectar of heaven; iva -- as.
TRANSLATION
O hero among the Kurus, the Supreme Lord Himself, Govinda, married Bhishmaka's daughter, Vaidarbhi, who was a direct expansion of the goddess of fortune. The Lord did this by her desire, and in the process He beat down Salva and other kings who took Sisupala's side. Indeed, as everyone watched, Sri Krishna took Rukmini just as Garuda boldly stole nectar from the demigods.
PURPORT
Srila Jiva Gosvami gives the following profound comments on these two verses: The words sriyo matram indicate that beautiful Rukmini is a direct expansion of the eternal goddess of fortune. Therefore she is worthy to be the bride of the Personality of Godhead. As stated in the Brahma-samhita (5.56), sriyah kanta kantah parama-purushah: "In the spiritual world, all the female lovers are goddesses of fortune and the male lover is the Supreme Personality." Thus, Srila Jiva Gosvami explains, Srimati Rukmini-devi is a plenary portion of Srimati Radharani. The Karttika-mahatmya section of the Padma Purana states, kaisore gopa-kanyas ta yauvane raja-kanyakah: "In childhood, Sri Krishna enjoyed with the daughters of cowherd men, and in His adolescence He enjoyed with the daughters of kings." Similarly, in the Skanda Purana we find this statement: rukmini dvaravatyam tu radha vrindavane vane. "Rukmini is in Dvaraka what Radha is in the forest of Vrindavana."
The term svayam-vare here means "by one's own choice." Although the word often refers to a formal Vedic ceremony in which an aristocratic girl may select her own husband, here it indicates the informal and indeed unprecedented events surrounding Krishna's marriage to Rukmini. In fact, Sri Krishna and Srimati Rukmini chose each other because of their eternal, transcendental love.
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His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, Founder Acarya of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness
His Holiness Hrdayananda dasa Goswami
Gopiparanadhana dasa Adhikari
Dravida dasa Brahmacari