Verse 2.10.48

Bengali text, Devanagari and Unicode transliteration of verse 2.10.48:

জ্বলন্ত অনল প্রভু ভক্ত লাগি’ খায ভক্তের কিঙ্কর হয আপন ইচ্ছায ॥ ৪৮ ॥

ज्वलन्त अनल प्रभु भक्त लागि’ खाय भक्तेर किङ्कर हय आपन इच्छाय ॥ ४८ ॥

jvalanta anala prabhu bhakta lāgi’ khāya bhaktera kiṅkara haya āpana icchāya || 48 ||

jvalanta anala prabhu bhakta lagi’ khaya bhaktera kinkara haya apana icchaya (48)

English translation:

(48) For the sake of His devotees the Lord eats blazing fire, and out of His sweet will He becomes their servant.

Commentary: Gauḍīya-bhāṣya by Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura:

Lord Kṛṣṇa once swallowed fire when, after leaving their cows for grazing in the Muñja forest, the cowherd boys engaged in playing and a blazing forest fire surrounded them on all sides. At that time the cowherd boys took shelter of Śrī Kṛṣṇa, who out of affection for His devotees, swallowed the entire blazing fire in a moment. (See Śrīmad Bhāgavatam, Tenth Canto, Chapter Nineteen.)

Examples of the Lord becoming the servant of His devotees such as when He became the messenger of the Pāṇḍavas and the charioteer of Arjuna are found in the scriptures.