Nārada’s Stotra for Bali

This is the stotra that Nārada Maharshi sang for the moksha of Bali Cakravartī. He sang it when Bali was sent down to Pātāla after the three steps of Bhagavān Trivikrama. It is found in the Bhavishya Parva of the Harivaṃśa Purāṇa, chapters 72 and 73. It praises Bali’s dāna (gift) as the highest act of giving up, and Bhagavān Vishṇu’s taking of that gift as the fulfilment of his grace.

The setting

Bhagavān Vāmana had grown into Trivikrama. He covered all three worlds in two steps and set his third step on the head of Bali, the king of the three worlds. This pressed Bali down into Pātāla.

Bali had given everything to Bhagavān Vishṇu knowing who he was. He had done so even after Śukrācārya warned him. He chose to keep his word and to enjoy the giving rather than to save himself.

Nārada Maharshi, the devarshi who sees the inner truth of every event, saw what had really happened. It was not Bali’s shame but his moksha. He sang a Sanskrit stotra that praised Bali’s act and Bhagavān Vishṇu’s grace together. He sang it at the moment of Bali’s seeming defeat and real moksha.

The themes of the stotra

Bali, the highest giver. The stotra praises Bali as the greatest example of dāna in all sacred history. He had received the three worlds fully as their king. He gave them all away to a brāhmaṇa boy, knowing that the boy was Bhagavān Vishṇu himself, and he chose to keep his word above everything. The stotra says that no king in the past gave as much, and that no king in the future is likely to give so freely.

Dāna as the way to moksha. The stotra teaches that the highest dāna is to give everything to Bhagavān Vishṇu, and that this is itself the way to moksha. Bali did not only perform a yajña or give away property. He gave all he had, including his pride in his rule. This total giving is the highest form of śaraṇāgati (taking refuge). What looks like defeat is Bhagavān Vishṇu’s embrace.

The feet of Bhagavān Vishṇu as the last resting place. In the narrative, Bhagavān Vāmana’s foot rested on Bali’s head. Ordinarily that would be the deepest shame. Nārada’s stotra turns this round. To have the lotus foot of Bhagavān Vishṇu on one’s head is the highest blessing, sought through many lifetimes by tapas and bhakti. Bali received this grace naturally, as the fruit of his highest dāna.

The promise of Indra’s seat. The stotra speaks of the vara that Bhagavān Vishṇu gave Bali. In the Sāvarṇi Manvantara, the eighth manvantara, Bali will be made Indra, the ruler of Svarga.

Sources

• Harivaṃśa Purāṇa, Bhavishya Parva, chapters 72–73