Study a Verse

• Bali Mahārāja could understand the pretense of Lord Vāmanadeva, who had taken the side of the demigods and come before him as a beggar.
• Since the Lord had covered the entire universe with two steps, one might ask how Bali Mahārāja’s head could be sufficient for His third step?
• Therefore although the Lord had taken all his possessions, the head of Bali Mahārāja, the possessor, would provide adequate place for the Lord’s third step.

Śrīla Prabhupāda's own sentences, chosen from the purport as its central points. Read the full purport on Vedabase to see them in place.

Public loss and humiliation → Total surrender. An apparent external defeat conceals a devotional triumph.

This verse is a turning point of the arc: Bali offers his head.

Chapters 19–23 of Canto 8: Vāmana tests Bali; Bali offers everything. An editorial reading of the story's mood, not the text itself. See the emotional arc

Chapter 22: Bali Mahārāja Surrenders His Life

From the chapter summary, the lines nearest this verse:

Considering all these points, he decided to give his head in charity as the place for Viṣṇu’s third step. Bali Mahārāja also considered how great personalities give up their family relationships and material possessions to satisfy the Supreme Personality of Godhead.