Bhaktivedanta VedaBase: Śrīmad Bhāgavatam 8.7.19

tad ugra-vegaḿ diśi diśy upary adho

visarpad utsarpad asahyam aprati

bhītāḥ prajā dudruvur ańga seśvarā

arakṣyamāṇāḥ śaraṇaḿ sadāśivam

SYNONYMS

tat — that; ugra-vegam — very fierce and potent poison; diśi diśi — in all directions; upari — upward; adhaḥ — downward; visarpat — curling; utsarpat — going upward; asahyam — unbearable; aprati — uncontrollable; bhītāḥ — being very much afraid; prajāḥ — the residents of all the worlds; dudruvuḥ — moved here and there; ańga — O Mahārāja Parīkṣit; sa-īśvarāḥ — with the Supreme Lord; arakṣyamāṇāḥ — not being protected; śaraṇam — shelter; sadāśivam — unto the lotus feet of Lord Śiva.

TRANSLATION

O King, when that uncontrollable poison was forcefully spreading up and down in all directions, all the demigods, along with the Lord Himself, approached Lord Śiva [Sadāśiva]. Feeling unsheltered and very much afraid, they sought shelter of him.

PURPORT

One may question that since the Supreme Personality of Godhead was personally present, why did He accompany all the demigods and people in general to take shelter of Lord Sadāśiva, instead of intervening Himself. In this connection Śrīla Madhvācārya warns:

rudrasya yaśaso 'rthāya

svayaḿ viṣṇur viṣaḿ vibhuḥ

na sañjahre samartho 'pi

vāyuḿ coce praśāntaye

Lord Viṣṇu was competent to rectify the situation, but in order to give credit to Lord Śiva, who later drank all the poison and kept it in his neck, Lord Viṣṇu did not take action.

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