196
Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam
[Canto 8, Ch. 23]
in their airplane. Having seen the wonderful activities of Lord Viṣṇu in the sacrificial arena of Bali Mahārāja, all the demigods, saintly persons, Pitās, Bhūtas and Siddhas glorified the Lord again and again. The chapter concludes by saying that the most auspicious function of the conditioned soul is to chant and hear about the glorious activities of Lord Viṣṇu.
TEXT 1
श्रीशुक उवाच
इत्युक्तवन्तं पुरुषं पुरातनं
महानुभावोऽखिलसाधुसंमतः ।
बद्धाञ्जलिबोष्पकलाकुलेक्षणो
भक्तयुत्कलो गद्गदया गिराब्रवीत् ॥ १ ॥
śrī-śuka uvāca
ity uktavantam puruṣam purātanam
mahānubhāvo 'khila-sādhu-sammataḥ
baddhānjalir bāṣpa-kalākulekṣaṇo
bhakty-utkalo gadgadayā girābravīt
śrī-śukaḥ uvāca—Śrī Śukadeva Gosvāmī said;  iti —thus;  uktavantam —upon the order of the Supreme Personality of Godhead;  puruṣam —unto the Supreme Personality of Godhead;  purātanam —the oldest of everyone;  mahā-anubhāvaḥ —Bali Mahārāja, who was a great and exalted soul;  akhila-sādhu-sammataḥ —as approved by all saintly persons;  baddha-anjaliḥ —with folded hands;  bāṣpa-kala-ākula-īkṣaṇaḥ —whose eyes were filled with tears;  bhakti-utkalaḥ —full of ecstatic devotion;  gadgadayā —which were faltering in devotional ecstasy;  girā —by such words;  abravīt —said.
TRANSLATION
Śukadeva Gosvāmī said: When the supreme, ancient, eternal Personality of Godhead had thus spoken to Bali Mahārāja, who is universally accepted as a pure devotee of the Lord and therefore a