Srimad Bhagavatam Canto 8 Chapter 12 Verse 15

SYNONYMS

sri-bhagavan uvaca -- the Supreme Personality of Godhead said; kautuhalaya -- for the bewildering; daityanam -- of the demons; yoshit-veshah -- the form of a beautiful woman; maya -- by Me; dhritah -- assumed; pasyata -- seeing that it is necessary for Me; sura-karyani -- for executing the interests of the demigods; gate -- having been taken away; piyusha-bhajane -- the jug of nectar.

TRANSLATION

The Supreme Personality of Godhead said: When the demons took away the jug of nectar, I assumed the form of a beautiful woman to bewilder them by directly cheating them and thus to act in the interest of the demigods.

PURPORT

When the Supreme Personality of Godhead assumed the form of the beautiful woman Mohini-murti, the demons were certainly captivated, but the demigods present were not. In other words, those who maintain a demoniac mentality are bewildered by the beauty of a woman, but those who are advanced in Krishna consciousness, or even those on the platform of goodness, are not bewildered. The Supreme Personality of Godhead knew that because Lord Siva is not an ordinary person, he cannot be bewildered even by the most beautiful woman. Cupid himself tried to invoke Lord Siva's lusty desires in the presence of Parvati, but Lord Siva was never agitated. Rather, the blazing fire from Lord Siva's eyes turned Cupid to ashes. Therefore, Lord Vishnu had to think twice about what kind of beautiful form would bewilder even Lord Siva. Consequently He was smiling gravely, as stated in the previous verse (prahasya bhava-gambhiram). A beautiful woman generally cannot induce Lord Siva to be lusty, but Lord Vishnu was considering whether there was any form of woman who could enchant him.

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His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, Founder Acarya of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness