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varam—benediction; ca—also; mat—from Me; kancana—whatever you like; manava-indra—O chief of human beings; vrnisva—please request; te—your; aham—I; guna-sila—by elevated qualities and excellent behavior; yantritah—being captivated; na—not; aham—I; makhaih—by sacrifices; vai—certainly; su-labhah—easily obtained; tapobhih—by austerities; yogena—by practice of mystic yoga; va—or; yat—because of which; sama-citta—in one who is equipoised; varti—being situated.

My dear King, I am very captivated by your elevated qualities and excellent behavior, and thus I am very favorably inclined toward you. You may therefore ask from Me any benediction you like. One who does not possess elevated qualities and behavior cannot possibly achieve My favor simply by performance of sacrifices, severe austerities or mystic yoga. But I always remain equipoised in the heart of one who is also equipoised in all circumstances.

Lord Visnu was very pleased with Maharaja Prthu’s good character and behavior and offered him a benediction. The Lord openly says that performing great sacrifices or undergoing the austerities of mystic yoga practice cannot satisfy Him. He is pleased only by elevated character and behavior. But these cannot develop unless one becomes a pure devotee of the Lord. Anyone who has developed unalloyed, unflinching devotional service unto the Lord develops his original good qualities as spirit soul. The spirit soul, as part and parcel of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, has all the good qualities of the Lord. When the spirit soul is contaminated by the material modes of nature, one is considered good or bad with reference to the material qualities. But when one is transcendental to all material qualities, all the good qualities come out. These qualities of a devotee, twenty-six in number, are listed as follows: (1) kind to everyone, (2) does not quarrel with anyone, (3) fixed in the Absolute Truth, (4) equal to everyone, (5) faultless, (6) charitable, (7) mild, (8) clean, (9) simple, (10) benevolent, (11) peaceful, (12) completely attached to Krsna, (13) has no material hankering, (14) meek, (15) steady, (16) self-controlled, (17) does not eat more than required, (18) sane, (19) respectful, (20) humble, (21) grave, (22) compassionate, (23) friendly, (24) poetic, (25) expert, (26) silent. The Lord is satisfied by development of the transcendental qualities of the living entity and not by artificial performance of sacrifices and mystic yoga. In other words, unless one is fully qualified to become a pure devotee of the Lord, one cannot expect to be liberated from material entanglement.

SB4.20.17

TEXT 17

maitreya uvaca

sa ittham loka-guruna

visvaksenena visva-jit

anusasita adesam

sirasa jagrhe hareh

maitreyah uvaca—Maitreya said; sah—he; ittham—thus; loka-guruna—by the supreme master of all people; visvaksenena—by the Personality of Godhead; visva-jit—the conqueror of the world (Maharaja Prthu); anusasitah—being ordered; adesam—instructions; sirasa—on the head; jagrhe—accepted; hareh—of the personality of Godhead.

The great saint Maitreya continued: My dear Vidura, in this way Maharaja Prthu, the conqueror of the entire world, accepted the instructions of the Supreme Personality of Godhead on his head.

One should accept the instructions of the Supreme Personality of Godhead by bowing down at the lotus feet of the Lord. This means that anything spoken by the personality of Godhead should be taken as it is, with great care and attention and with great respect. It is not our business to amend the words of the Supreme Personality of Godhead or make additions or alterations, as it has become a custom for many so-called scholars and svamis who comment on the words of Bhagavad-gita. Here the practical example of how to accept the instruction of the Supreme Personality of Godhead is shown by Prthu Maharaja. This is the way to receive knowledge through the parampara system.

SB4.20.18

TEXT 18

sprsantam padayoh premna

vriditam svena karmana

sata-kratum parisvajya

vidvesam visasarja ha

sprsantam—touching; padayoh—the feet; premna—in ecstasy; vriditam—ashamed; svena—his own; karmana—by activities; sata-kratum—King Indra; parisvajya—embracing; vidvesam—envy; visasarja—gave up; ha—of course.

As King Indra was standing by, he became ashamed of his own activities and fell down before King Prthu to touch his lotus feet. But Prthu Maharaja immediately embraced him in great ecstasy and gave up all envy against him for his having stolen the horse meant for the sacrifice.

There are many cases in which a person becomes an offender to the lotus feet of a Vaisnava and later becomes repentant. Here also we find that although the King of heaven, Indra, was so powerful that he accompanied Lord Visnu, he felt himself a great offender for stealing Prthu Maharaja’s horse that was meant for sacrifice. An offender at the lotus feet of a Vaisnava is never excused by the Supreme Personality of Godhead. There are many instances illustrating this fact. Ambarisa Maharaja was offended by Durvasa Muni, a great sage and mystic yogi, and Durvasa also had to fall down at the lotus feet of Ambarisa Maharaja. Indra decided to fall down at the lotus feet of King Prthu, but the King was so magnanimous a Vaisnava that he did not want Maharaja Indra to fall down at his feet. Instead, King Prthu immediately picked him up and embraced him, and both of them forgot all the past incidents. Both King Indra and Maharaja Prthu were envious and angry with each other, but since both of them were Vaisnavas, or servants of Lord Visnu, it was their duty to adjust the cause of their envy. This is also a first-class example of cooperative behavior between Vaisnavas. In the present days, however, because people are not Vaisnavas, they fight perpetually among one another and are vanquished without finishing the mission of human life. There is a great need to propagate the Krsna consciousness movement in the world so that even though people sometimes become angry and malicious toward one another, because of their being Krsna conscious such rivalry, competition and envy can be adjusted without difficulty.

SB4.20.19

TEXT 19

bhagavan atha visvatma

prthunopahrtarhanah

samujjihanaya bhaktya

grhita-caranambujah

bhagavan—the Supreme Personality of Godhead; atha—thereupon; visva-atma—the Supersoul; prthuna—by King Prthu; upahrta—being offered; arhanah—all the paraphernalia for worship; samujjihanaya—gradually increased; bhaktya—whose devotional service; grhita—taken; carana-ambujah—His lotus feet.

King Prthu abundantly worshiped the lotus feet of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, who was so merciful to him. While worshiping the lotus feet of the Lord, Prthu Maharaja gradually increased his ecstasy in devotional service.

When various ecstasies appear in the body of a devotee, it is to be understood that his devotional service has become perfect. There are many types of transcendental ecstasies in the forms of crying, laughing, perspiring, falling down, and crying like a madman. All these symptoms are sometimes visible on the body of a devotee. They are called asta-sattvika-vikara, which means “eight kinds of transcendental transformations.” They are never to be imitated, but when a devotee actually becomes perfect, these symptoms are visible on his body. The Lord is bhakta-vatsala, which means that He is inclined toward His pure devotee (bhakta). Therefore the transcendental ecstatic transaction between the Supreme Lord and His devotee is never like the activities of this material world.

SB4.20.20

TEXT 20

prasthanabhimukho ’py enam

anugraha-vilambitah

pasyan padma-palasakso

na pratasthe suhrt satam

prasthana—to leave; abhimukhah—ready; api—although; enam—him (Prthu); anugraha—by kindness; vilambitah—detained; pasyan—seeing; padma-palasa-aksah—the Lord, whose eyes are like the petals of a lotus flower; na—not; pratasthe—departed; suhrt—the well-wisher; satam—of the devotees.

The Lord was just about to leave, but because He was so greatly inclined toward the behavior of King Prthu, He did not depart. Seeing the behavior of Maharaja Prthu with His lotus eyes, He was detained because He is always the well-wisher of His devotees.

Here the words suhrt satam are very significant. The Supreme Personality of Godhead is always very inclined toward His devotee and is always thinking of the devotee’s well-being. This is not partiality. As stated in Bhagavad-gita, the Lord is equal to everyone (samo ’ham sarva-bhutesu), but to one who particularly engages in His service, He is very much inclined. In another place, the Lord says that a devotee always exists in His heart, and He also exists always in the heart of the devotee.

The special inclination of the Supreme Personality of Godhead for His pure devotee is not unnatural, nor is it partiality. For example, sometimes a father has several children, but he has special affection for one child who is very much inclined toward him. This is explained in Bhagavad-gita (10.10):

tesam satata-yuktanam
bhajatam priti-purvakam
dadami buddhi-yogam tam
yena mam upayanti te

Those who constantly engage in the devotional service of the Lord in love and affection are directly in contact with the Supreme Personality of Godhead sitting as the Supersoul in everyone’s heart. The Lord is not far away from the devotee. He is always in everyone’s heart, but only the devotee can realize the Lord’s presence, and thus he is directly connected, and he takes instruction from the Lord at every moment. Therefore, there is no chance of a devotee’s being in error, nor is there any partiality on the part of the Lord for His pure devotees.

SB4.20.21

TEXT 21

sa adi-rajo racitanjalir harim

vilokitum nasakad asru-locanah

na kincanovaca sa baspa-viklavo

hrdopaguhyamum adhad avasthitah

sah—he; adi-rajah—the original king; racita-anjalih—with folded hands; harim—the Supreme Personality of Godhead; vilokitum—to look upon; na—not; asakat—was able; asru-locanah—his eyes full of tears; na—not; kincana—anything; uvaca—spoke; sah—he; baspa-viklavah—his voice being choked up; hrda—with his heart; upaguhya—embracing; amum—the Lord; adhat—he remained; avasthitah—standing.

The original king, Maharaja Prthu, his eyes full of tears and his voice faltering and choked up, could neither see the Lord very distinctly nor speak to address the Lord in any way. He simply embraced the Lord within his heart and remained standing in that way with folded hands.

Just as Krsna is addressed in the Brahma-samhita as adi-purusa, the original personality, so King Prthu, being an empowered incarnation of the Lord, is referred to in this verse as adi-rajah, the original or ideal king. He was a great devotee and at the same time a great hero who conquered over all undesirable elements in his kingdom. He was so powerful that he was equal in fighting to Indra, the King of heaven. He gave protection to his citizens, keeping them engaged in pious activities and devotion to the Lord. He did not collect a single cent of taxes from the citizens without being able to give them protection from all calamities. The greatest calamity in life is to become godless and therefore sinful. If the state head or king allows the citizens to become sinful by indulging in illicit sex life, intoxication, meat-eating and gambling, then the king is responsible, and he has to suffer the resultant sequence of reactions for the sinful lives of the citizens because he levies taxes on them unnecessarily. These are the principles for a ruling power, and because Maharaja Prthu observed all the principles for a ruling chief, he is referred to here as adi-rajah.

Even a responsible king like Maharaja Prthu can become a pure devotee of the first order. We can distinctly see from King Prthu’s behavior how he became ecstatic, both externally and internally, in pure devotional service.

Just today we have seen in the newspapers of Bombay that the government is going to repeal its prohibition laws. Ever since Gandhi’s noncooperation movement, Bombay has been kept dry and has not allowed its citizens to drink. But unfortunately the citizens are so clever that they have increased illicit distillation of liquor, and although not being sold publicly in shops, liquor is being sold in public lavatories and similar abnormal places. Unable to check such illicit smuggling, the government has decided to manufacture the liquor at cheaper prices so that people can have their supply of intoxication directly from the government instead of purchasing it in public lavatories. The government failed to change the hearts of the citizens from indulging in sinful life, so instead of losing the taxes they collect to inflate the treasury, they have decided to manufacture liquor to supply to the citizens who hanker after it.

This kind of government cannot check the resultant actions of sinful life, namely war, pestilence, famine, earthquakes and similar other disturbances. Nature’s law is that as soon as there are discrepancies in regard to the law of God (which are described in Bhagavad-gita as dharmasya glanih, or disobedience to the laws of nature or God), at once there will be heavy punishment in the form of sudden outbreaks of war. We have recently experienced a war between India and Pakistan. Within fourteen days there have been immense losses of men and money, and there have been disturbances to the entire world. These are the reactions of sinful life. The Krsna consciousness movement is meant to make people pure and perfect. If we become even partially pure, as described in the Bhagavatam (nasta-prayesv abhadresu [SB 1.2.18]), by development of Krsna consciousness, then lust and greed, the material diseases of the citizens, will be reduced. This can be made possible simply by broadcasting the pure message of Srimad-Bhagavatam, or Krsna consciousness. Big commercial and industrial firms have contributed many thousands of rupees to a defense fund that burns the money in the form of gunpowder, but unfortunately, if they are asked to contribute liberally to advance the Krsna consciousness movement, they are reluctant. Under the circumstances, the world will periodically suffer from such upsurges and outbreaks of war, which are the consequences of not being Krsna conscious.

SB4.20.22

TEXT 22

athavamrjyasru-kala vilokayann

atrpta-drg-gocaram aha purusam

pada sprsantam ksitim amsa unnate

vinyasta-hastagram uranga-vidvisah

atha—thereupon; avamrjya—wiping; asru-kalah—the tears in his eyes; vilokayan—observing; atrpta—not satisfied; drk-gocaram—visible to his naked eyes; aha—he said; purusam—unto the Supreme Personality of Godhead; pada—with His lotus feet; sprsantam—just touching; ksitim—the ground; amse—on the shoulder; unnate—raised; vinyasta—rested; hasta—of His hand; agram—the front part; uranga-vidvisah—of Garuda, the enemy of the snakes.

The Supreme Personality of Godhead stood with His lotus feet almost touching the ground while He rested the front of His hand on the raised shoulder of Garuda, the enemy of the snakes. Maharaja Prthu, wiping the tears from his eyes, tried to look upon the Lord, but it appeared that the King was not fully satisfied by looking at Him. Thus the King offered the following prayers.

The significant point in this verse is that the Lord was standing above the ground, almost touching it. The residents of the upper planetary systems, beginning from Brahmaloka (the planet where Lord Brahma lives) down to Svargaloka (the heavenly planet of Indra), are so advanced in spiritual life that when they come to visit this or similar other lower planetary systems, they keep their weightlessness. This means that they can stand without touching the ground. Lord Visnu is the Supreme Personality of Godhead, but because He lives in one of the planetary systems within this universe, He sometimes plays as if one of the demigods of this universe. When He first appeared before Prthu Maharaja, He was not touching the ground of this earth, but when He was fully satisfied with the behavior and character of Maharaja Prthu, He immediately acted as the Supreme Personality of Godhead Narayana from Vaikuntha. Out of affection for Prthu Maharaja, He touched the earth, but He rested the front of His hand on the raised shoulder of Garuda, His carrier, as if to prevent Himself from falling down, since the Lord is not accustomed to stand on earthly ground. These are all symptoms of His great affection for Prthu Maharaja. perceiving his fortunate position, Prthu Maharaja could not fully look upon the Lord due to ecstasy, but still, in a faltering voice, he began to offer prayers.

SB4.20.23

TEXT 23

prthur uvaca

varan vibho tvad varadesvarad budhah

katham vrnite guna-vikriyatmanam

ye narakanam api santi dehinam

tan isa kaivalya-pate vrne na ca

prthuh uvaca—Prthu Maharaja said; varan—benedictions; vibho—my dear Supreme Lord; tvat—from You; vara-da-isvarat—from the Supreme Personality of Godhead, the highest of the bestowers of benedictions; budhah—a learned person; katham—how; vrnite—could ask for; guna-vikriya—bewildered by the modes of material nature; atmanam—of the living entities; ye—which; narakanam—of the living entities living in hell; api—also; santi—exist; dehinam—of the embodied; tan—all those; isa—O Supreme Lord; kaivalya-pate—O bestower of merging in the existence of the Lord; vrne—I ask for; na—not; ca—also.

My dear Lord, You are the best of the demigods who can offer benedictions. Why, therefore, should any learned person ask You for benedictions meant for living entities bewildered by the modes of nature? Such benedictions are available automatically, even in the lives of living entities suffering in hellish conditions. My dear Lord, You can certainly bestow merging into Your existence, but I do not wish to have such a benediction.

There are different kinds of benedictions according to a person’s demands. For karmis the best benediction is promotion to the higher planetary systems, where the duration of life is very long and the standard of living and happiness is very high. There are others, namely jnanis and yogis, who want the benediction of merging into the existence of the Lord. This is called kaivalya. The Lord is therefore addressed as kaivalya-pati, the master or Lord of the benediction known as kaivalya. But devotees receive a different type of benediction from the Lord. Devotees are anxious neither for the heavenly planets nor for merging into the existence of the Lord. According to devotees, kaivalya, or merging into the existence of the Lord, is considered as good as hell. The word naraka means “hell.” Similarly, everyone who exists in this material world is called naraka because this material existence itself is known as a hellish condition of life. Prthu Maharaja, however, expressed that he was interested neither in the benediction desired by the karmis nor that desired by the jnanis and yogis. Srila Prabodhananda Sarasvati Prabhu, a great devotee of Lord Caitanya, described that kaivalya is no better than a hellish condition of life, and as for the delights of the heavenly planets, they are factually will-o’-the-wisps, or phantasmagoria. They are not wanted by devotees. Devotees do not even care for the positions held by Lord Brahma or Lord Siva, nor does a devotee desire to become equal with Lord Visnu. As a pure devotee of the Lord, Prthu Maharaja made his position very clear.

SB4.20.24

TEXT 24

na kamaye natha tad apy aham kvacin

na yatra yusmac-caranambujasavah

mahattamantar-hrdayan mukha-cyuto

vidhatsva karnayutam esa me varah

na—not; kamaye—do I desire; natha—O master; tat—that; api—even; aham—I; kvacit—at any time; na—not; yatra—where; yusmat—Your; carana-ambuja—of the lotus feet; asavah—the nectarean beverage; mahat-tama—of the great devotees; antah-hrdayat—from the core of the heart; mukha—from the mouths; cyutah—being delivered; vidhatsva—give; karna—ears; ayutam—one million; esah—this; me—my; varah—benediction.

My dear Lord, I therefore do not wish to have the benediction of merging into Your existence, a benediction in which there is no existence of the nectarean beverage of Your lotus feet. I want the benediction of at least one million ears, for thus I may be able to hear about the glories of Your lotus feet from the mouths of Your pure devotees.

sa uttamasloka mahan-mukha-cyuto

In the previous verse Maharaja Prthu addressed the Lord as kaivalya-pati, the master of the liberation of merging into His existence. This does not mean that he was anxious for kaivalya liberation. That is made clear in this verse: “My dear Lord, I do not want such a benediction.” Maharaja Prthu wanted to have a million ears to hear the glories of the lotus feet of the Lord. He specifically mentioned that the glories of the Lord should emanate from the mouths of pure devotees, who speak from the cores of their hearts. It is stated in the beginning of Srimad-Bhagavatam (1.1.3), suka-mukhad amrta-drava-samyutam: the nectar of Srimad-Bhagavatam became more relishable because it emanated from the mouth of Srila Sukadeva Gosvami. One might think that these glories of the Lord can be heard from anywhere, from the mouths of either devotees or nondevotees, but here it is specifically mentioned that the glories of the Lord must emanate from the mouths of pure devotees. Sri Sanatana Gosvami has strictly prohibited hearing from the mouth of a nondevotee. There are many professional reciters of Srimad-Bhagavatam who speak the narrations very ornamentally, but a pure devotee does not like to hear from them because such glorification of the Lord is simply a vibration of material sound. But when heard from the mouth of a pure devotee, glorification of the Lord is immediately effective.

The words satam prasangan mama virya-samvidah (Bhag. 3.25.25) mean that glorification of the Lord is potent when uttered from the mouth of a pure devotee. The Lord has innumerable devotees all over the universe, and they have been glorifying the Lord since time immemorial and for an unlimited time. But still they cannot completely finish enumerating the glories of the Lord. Prthu Maharaja therefore wanted innumerable ears, as Rupa Gosvami also desired to have millions of ears and millions of tongues to chant and hear the glorification of the Lord. In other words, if our ears are always engaged in hearing the glorification of the Lord, there will be no scope for hearing the Mayavada philosophy, which is doom to spiritual progress. Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu said that if anyone hears from a Mayavadi philosopher preaching about the activities of the Lord, even if it is a description from the Vedic literature, he is ultimately doomed. By hearing such Mayavada philosophy one cannot come to the destination of spiritual perfection of life.

SB4.20.25

TEXT 25

bhavat-padambhoja-sudha kananilah

smrtim punar vismrta-tattva-vartmanam

kuyoginam no vitaraty alam varaih

sah—that; uttama-sloka—O Lord, who are praised by selected verses; mahat—of great devotees; mukha-cyutah—delivered from the mouths; bhavat—Your; pada-ambhoja—from the lotus feet; sudha—of nectar; kana—particles; anilah—soothing breeze; smrtim—remembrance; punah—again; vismrta—forgotten; tattva—to the truth; vartmanam—of persons whose path; ku-yoginam—of persons not in the line of devotional service; nah—of us; vitarati—restores; alam—unnecessary; varaih—other benedictions.

My dear Lord, You are glorified by the selected verses uttered by great personalities. Such glorification of Your lotus feet is just like saffron particles. When the transcendental vibration from the mouths of great devotees carries the aroma of the saffron dust of Your lotus feet, the forgetful living entity gradually remembers his eternal relationship with You. Devotees thus gradually come to the right conclusion about the value of life. My dear Lord, I therefore do not need any other benediction but the opportunity to hear from the mouth of Your pure devotee.