Bhaktivedanta VedaBase: Śrīmad Bhāgavatam 10.18.22

vahanto vāhyamānāś ca

cārayantaś ca go-dhanam

bhāṇḍīrakaḿ nāma vaṭaḿ

jagmuḥ kṛṣṇa-purogamāḥ

SYNONYMS

vahantaḥ — carrying; vāhyamānāḥ — being carried; ca — and; cārayantaḥ — tending; ca — also; go-dhanam — the cows; bhāṇḍīrakam nāma — named Bhāṇḍīraka; vaṭam — to the banyan tree; jagmuḥ — they went; kṛṣṇa-puraḥ-gamāḥ — led by Lord Kṛṣṇa.

TRANSLATION

Thus carrying and being carried by one another, and at the same time tending the cows, the boys followed Kṛṣṇa to a banyan tree known as Bhāṇḍīraka.

PURPORT

Śrīla Sanātana Gosvāmī quotes the following verses from Śrī Harivaḿśa (Viṣṇu-parva 11.18-22), which describe the banyan tree:

dadarśa vipulodagra-

śākhinaḿ śākhināḿ varam

sthitaḿ dharaṇyāḿ meghābhaḿ

nibiḍaḿ dala-sañcayaiḥ

gaganārdhocchritākāraḿ

parvatābhoga-dhāriṇam

nīla-citrāńga-varṇaiś ca

sevitaḿ bahubhiḥ khagaiḥ

phalaiḥ pravālaiś ca ghanaiḥ

sendracāpa-ghanopamam

bhavanākāra-viṭapaḿ

latā-puṣpa-sumaṇḍitam

viśāla-mūlāvanataḿ

pāvanāmbhoda-dhāriṇam

ādhipatyam ivānyeṣāḿ

tasya deśasya śākhinām

kurvāṇaḿ śubha-karmāṇaḿ

nirāvarṣam anātapam

nyagrodhaḿ parvatāgrābhaḿ

bhāṇḍīraḿ nāma nāmataḥ

"They saw that best of all trees, which had many long branches. With its dense covering of leaves, it resembled a cloud sitting on the earth. Indeed, its form was so large that it appeared like a mountain covering half the sky. Many birds with charming blue wings frequented that great tree, whose dense fruits and leaves made it seem like a cloud accompanied by a rainbow or like a house decorated with creepers and flowers. It spread its broad roots downward and carried upon itself the sanctified clouds. That banyan tree was like the lordly master of all other trees in that vicinity, as it performed the all-auspicious functions of warding off the rain and the heat of the sun. Such was the appearance of that nyagrodha tree known as Bhāṇḍīra, which seemed just like the peak of a great mountain."

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