एका भार्या प्रकृतिमुखरा चञ्चला च द्वितीया
पुत्रोऽप्येको भुवनविजयी मन्मथो दुर्निवारः ।
शेषः शय्या वसतिजलधौ वाहनं पन्नगारिः
स्मारं स्मारं स्वगृहचरितं दारुभूतो मुरारिः ॥
ekā bhāryā prakṛti-mukharā cañcalā ca dvitīyā
putro’py eko bhuvana-vijayī manmatho durnivāraḥ |
śeṣaḥ śayyā vasati-jaladhau vāhanaṁ pannagāriḥ
smāraṁ smāraṁ svagṛha-caritaṁ dārubhūto murāriḥ ||
(Unknown source)
“His first wife is garrulous.
And the second is fickle.
His only son, Pradyumna [lit., “the mind-churner,” Kāmadeva],
is uncontrollable, and has conquered the world.
His bed is Śeṣa [i.e., a serpent].
His residence is on the ocean.
And his carrier is Pannagāri [i.e., Garuḍa; lit., “the foe of serpents”].
Mulling over the affairs in his household,
Murāri [i.e., Bhagavān Viṣṇu] became wooden [i.e., Jagannātha]!”
Commentary
A kavi light-heartedly for the sake of humor construes Bhagavān Viṣṇu’s entourage as being troublesome to him: his first wife (ekā bhāryā), Sarasvatī, the goddess of speech, is naturally expressive and boisterous (prakṛti-mukharā). His second wife (dvitīyā), Lakṣmī, the goddess of fortune, is naturally fickle (cañcalā). His son (putro’py eko), Pradyumna (manmatho), in whom is present an avatāra of Kāmadeva, is difficult to control, attacks everyone throughout the universe (durnivāraḥ bhuvana-vijayī), and thus creates countless difficulties that his father has to sort out. Ananta Śeṣa (śeṣaḥ), a thousand-headed serpent, serves as his bed (śayyā). His residence is in the middle of the ocean (vasati-jaladau), a naturally turbulent place. His carrier (vāhanaṁ), Garuḍa, whom he rides when he goes out, is an eagle that is naturally inimical to snakes (pannagārhiḥ). Agitated by the headache (smāraṁ smāraṁ) of the natural conflicts and inconveniences (caritaṁ) in his household (svagṛha), Bhagavān Viṣṇu (Murāriḥ) became petrified in the wooden form of Jagannāth (dārubhūto)!