Texts 27-29
śrāntān apy atha tān dūrāj
janakaḥ sva-gṛhāgatān
ānīteṣv āsanāgryeṣu
sukhāsīnān mahā-manāḥ
pravṛddha-bhaktyā uddharṣa-
hṛdayāsrāvilekṣaṇaḥ
natvā tad-aṅghrīn prakṣālya
tad-apo loka-pāvanīḥ
sa-kuṭumbo vahan mūrdhnā
pūjayāṁ cakra īśvarān
gandha-mālyāmbarākalpa-
dhūpa-dīpārghya-go-vṛṣaiḥ
śrāntān — fatigued; api — indeed; atha — then; tān — them; dūrāt — from a distance; janakaḥ — King Bahulāśva, a descendant of Janaka; sva — to his; gṛha — home; āgatān — come; ānīteṣu — which were brought out; āsana — on seats; agryeṣu — excellent; sukha — comfortably; āsīnān — seated; mahā-manāḥ — very intelligent; pravṛddha — intense; bhaktyā — with devotion; ut-dharṣa — overjoyed; hṛdaya — whose heart; asra — with tears; āvila — clouded; īkṣaṇaḥ — whose eyes; natvā — bowing down; tat — their; aṅghrīn — feet; prakṣālya — washing; tat — from that; apaḥ — the water; loka — the whole world; pāvanīḥ — able to purify; sa — together with; kuṭumbaḥ — his family; vahan — carrying; mūrdhnā — on his head; pūjayām cakre — he worshiped; īśvarān — the lords; gandha — with fragrant (sandalwood) paste; mālya — flower garlands; ambara — clothing; ākalpa — jewelry; dhūpa — incense; dīpa — lamps; arghya — arghya water; go — cows; vṛṣaiḥ — and bulls.
When King Bahulāśva, a descendant of Janaka, saw Lord Kṛṣṇa approaching his house from a distance with the sages, who were somewhat fatigued from the journey, he immediately arranged to have seats of honor brought out for them. After they were all comfortably seated, the wise King, his heart overflowing with joy and his eyes clouded by tears, bowed down to them and washed their feet with intense devotion. Taking the wash water, which could purify the entire world, he sprinkled it on his head and the heads of his family members. Then he worshiped all those great lords by offering them fragrant sandalwood paste, flower garlands, fine clothing and ornaments, incense, lamps, arghya and cows and bulls.
Śrīla Prabhupāda comments: “Bahulāśva, the King of Videha, was very intelligent and was a perfect gentleman. He was astonished that so many great sages, along with the Supreme Personality of Godhead, were personally present in his home. He knew perfectly well that conditioned souls engaged in worldly affairs cannot be one-hundred-percent pure whereas the Supreme Personality of Godhead and His pure devotees are always transcendental to worldly contamination. Therefore, when he found that the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Krsna, and all the great sages were at his home, he was astonished, and he began to thank Lord Krsna for His causeless mercy.”
The word īśvara in this verse refers not only to the Supreme Lord but also to the exalted sages in His company; this is confirmed by Ācāryas Śrīdhara Svāmī and Viśvanātha Cakravartī.