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kinca—moreover; ayam—this; raja-rsih—pious King (Nabhi); apatya-kamah—desiring offspring; prajam—a son; bhavadrsim—exactly like You; asasanah—hoping for; isvaram—the supreme controller; asisam—of benedictions; svarga-apavargayoh—of the heavenly planets and liberation; api—although; bhavantam—You; upadhavati—worships; prajayam—children; artha-pratyayah—regarding as the ultimate goal of life; dhana-dam—unto a person who can give immense wealth as charity; iva—like; adhanah—a poor man; phalikaranam—a little husk.

Dear Lord, here is the great King Nabhi, whose ultimate goal in life is to have a son like You. Your Lordship, his position is like that of a person approaching a very rich man and begging for a little grain. Maharaja Nabhi is so desirous of having a son that he is worshiping You for a son, although You can offer him any exalted position, including elevation to the heavenly planets or liberation back to Godhead.

The priests were a little ashamed that King Nabhi was performing a great sacrifice just to ask the Lord’s benediction for a son. The Lord could offer him promotion to the heavenly planets or the Vaikuntha planets. Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu has taught us how to approach the Supreme Lord and ask Him for the ultimate benediction. He said: na dhanam na janam na sundarim kavitam va jagad-isa kamaye. He did not want to ask the Supreme Lord for anything material. Material opulence means riches, a nice family, a good wife and many followers, but an intelligent devotee doesn’t ask the Supreme Lord for anything material. His only prayer is: mama janmani janmanisvare bhavatad bhaktir ahaituki tvayi. He wants to be engaged perpetually in the loving service of the Lord. He does not want promotion to the heavenly planets or mukti, liberation from material bondage. If this were the case, Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu would not have said, mama janmani janmani. It doesn’t matter to a devotee whether or not he takes birth life after life, as long as he remains a devotee. Actually eternal liberty means returning home, back to Godhead. A devotee is never concerned about anything material. Although Nabhi Maharaja wanted a son like Visnu, wanting a son like God is also a form of sense gratification. A pure devotee wants only to engage in the Lord’s loving service.

SB5.3.14

TEXT 14

ko va iha te ’parajito ’parajitaya mayayanavasita-padavyanavrta-matir visaya-visa-rayanavrta-prakrtir anupasita-mahac-caranah.

kah va—who is that person; iha—within this material world; te—of Your Lordship; aparajitah—not conquered; aparajitaya—by the unconquerable; mayaya—illusory energy; anavasita-padavya—whose path cannot be ascertained; anavrta-matih—whose intelligence is not bewildered; visaya-visa—of material enjoyment, which is like poison; raya—by the course; anavrta—not covered; prakrtih—whose nature; anupasita—without worshiping; mahat-caranah—the lotus feet of great devotees.

Dear Lord, unless one worships the lotus feet of great devotees, one will be conquered by the illusory energy, and his intelligence will be bewildered. Indeed, who has not been carried away by the waves of material enjoyment, which are like poison? Your illusory energy is unconquerable. No one can see the path of this material energy or tell how it is working.

Maharaja Nabhi was inclined to performing great sacrifices for begetting a son. The son might be as good as the Supreme Personality of Godhead, but such a material desire—be it great or insignificant—is brought about by the influence of maya. A devotee does not at all desire anything for sense gratification. Devotion is therefore explained as devoid of material desires (anyabhilasita-sunya). Everyone is subjected to the influence of maya and entangled in all kinds of material desire, and Maharaja Nabhi was no exception. Freedom from maya’s influence is possible when one engages in the service of the great devotees (mahac-carana-seva). Without worshiping the lotus feet of a great devotee, one cannot be freed from maya’s influence. Srila Narottama dasa Thakura therefore says, chadiya vaisnava-seva nistara payeche keba: “Who has been freed from maya’s clutches without serving the lotus feet of a Vaisnava?” Maya is aparajita, and her influence is also aparajita. As confirmed in Bhagavad-gita (7.14):

daivi hy esa guna-mayi
mama maya duratyaya

“This divine energy of Mine, consisting of the three modes of material nature, is difficult to overcome.”

Only a devotee can surpass maya’s great influence. It was no fault on Maharaja Nabhi’s part that he wanted a son. He wanted a son like the Supreme Personality of Godhead, who is the best of all sons. By the association of the Lord’s devotee, one no longer desires material opulence. This is confirmed in Caitanya-caritamrta (Madhya 22.54):

“sadhu-sanga”, “sadhu-sanga” sarva-sastre kaya
lava-matra sadhu-sange sarva-siddhi haya

and [Cc. Madhya 22.51]:

mahat-krpa vina kona karme ‘bhakti’ naya
krsna-bhakti dure rahu, samsara nahe ksaya

If one is serious about escaping maya’s influence and returning home, back to Godhead, one must associate with a sadhu (devotee). That is the verdict of all scriptures. By the slight association of a devotee, one can be freed from the clutches of maya. Without the mercy of the pure devotee, one cannot get freedom by any means. Certainly a pure devotee’s association is necessary in order to obtain the loving service of the Lord. One cannot be freed from maya’s clutches without sadhu-sanga, the benediction of a great devotee. In Srimad-Bhagavatam (7.5.32) Prahlada Maharaja says:

naisam matis tavad urukramanghrim
sprsaty anarthapagamo yad arthah
mahiyasam pada-rajo-’bhisekam
niskincananam na vrnita yavat

One cannot become the Lord’s pure devotee without taking the dust of a great devotee on his head (pada-rajo-’bhisekam). A pure devotee is niskincana; he has no material desire to enjoy the material world. One has to take shelter of such a pure devotee in order to attain his qualities. The pure devotee is always free from the clutches of maya and her influence.

SB5.3.15

TEXT 15

yad u ha vava tava punar adabhra-kartar iha samahutas tatrartha-dhiyam mandanam nas tad yad deva-helanam deva-devarhasi samyena sarvan prativodhum avidusam.

yat—because; u ha vava—indeed; tava—Your; punah—again; adabhra-kartah—O Lord, who performs many activities; iha—here, in this arena of sacrifice; samahutah—invited; tatra—therefore; artha-dhiyam—who aspire to fulfill material desires; mandanam—not very intelligent; nah—of us; tat—that; yat—which; deva-helanam—disrespect of the Supreme Personality of Godhead; deva-deva—Lord of lords; arhasi—please; samyena—because of Your equipoised position; sarvan—everything; prativodhum—tolerate; avidusam—of us, who are all ignorant.

O Lord, You perform many wonderful activities. Our only aim was to acquire a son by performing this great sacrifice; therefore our intelligence is not very sharp. We are not experienced in ascertaining life’s goal. By inviting You to this negligible sacrifice for some material motive, we have certainly committed a great offense at Your lotus feet. Therefore, O Lord of lords, please excuse our offense because of Your causeless mercy and equal mind.

The priests were certainly unhappy to have called the Supreme Lord from Vaikuntha for such an insignificant reason. A pure devotee never wants to see the Lord unnecessarily. The Lord is engaged in various activities, and the pure devotee does not want to see Him whimsically, for his own sense gratification. The pure devotee simply depends on the Lord’s mercy, and when the Lord is pleased, he can see Him face to face. The Lord is unseen even by demigods like Lord Brahma and Lord Siva. By calling on the Supreme Lord, the priests of Nabhi Maharaja proved themselves unintelligent; nonetheless, the Lord came out of His causeless mercy. All of them therefore wanted to be excused by the Lord.

Worship of the Supreme Lord for material gain is not approved by authorities. As stated in Bhagavad-gita (7.16):

catur-vidha bhajante mam
janah sukrtino ’rjuna
arto jijnasur artharthi
jnani ca bharatarsabha

“O best among the Bharatas [Arjuna], four kinds of pious men render devotional service unto Me—the distressed, the desirer of wealth, the inquisitive, and he who is searching for knowledge of the Absolute.”

Initiation into bhakti begins when one is in a distressed condition or in want of money, or when one is inquisitive to understand the Absolute Truth. Nonetheless, people who approach the Supreme Lord in this way are not actually devotees. They are accepted as pious (sukrtinah) due to their inquiring about the Absolute Truth, the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Not knowing the various activities and engagements of the Lord, such people unnecessarily disturb the Lord for material gain. However, the Lord is so kind that even though disturbed, He fulfills the desires of such beggars. The pure devotee is anyabhilasita-sunya; he has no motive behind his worship. He is not conducted by the influence of maya in the form of karma or jnana. The pure devotee is always prepared to execute the order of the Lord without personal consideration. The rtvijah, the priests at the sacrifice, knew very well the distinction between karma and bhakti, and because they considered themselves under the influence of karma, fruitive activity, they begged the Lord’s pardon. They knew that the Lord had been invited to come for some paltry reason.

SB5.3.16

TEXT 16

sri-suka uvaca

iti nigadenabhistuyamano bhagavan animisarsabho varsa-dharabhivaditabhivandita-caranah sadayam idam aha.

sri-sukah uvaca—Sri Sukadeva Gosvami said; iti—thus; nigadena—by prayers in prose; abhistuyamanah—being worshiped; bhagavan—the Supreme Personality of Godhead; animisa-rsabhah—the chief of all the demigods; varsa-dhara—by King Nabhi, the Emperor of Bharata-varsa; abhivadita—worshiped; abhivandita—were bowed down to; caranah—whose feet; sadayam—kindly; idam—this; aha—said.

Sri Sukadeva Gosvami said: The priests, who were even worshiped by King Nabhi, the Emperor of Bharata-varsa, offered prayers in prose [generally they were in poetry] and bowed down at the Lord’s lotus feet. The Lord of lords, the ruler of the demigods, was very pleased with them, and He began to speak as follows.

SB5.3.17

TEXT 17

sri-bhagavan uvaca

aho bataham rsayo bhavadbhir avitatha-girbhir varam asulabham abhiyacito yad amusyatmajo maya sadrso bhuyad iti mamaham evabhirupah kaivalyad athapi brahma-vado na mrsa bhavitum arhati mamaiva hi mukham yad dvija-deva-kulam.

SYNONYMS

sri-bhagavan uvaca—the Supreme Personality of Godhead said; aho—alas; bata—certainly I am pleased; aham—I; rsayah—O great sages; bhavadbhih—by you; avitatha-girbhih—whose words are all true; varam—for a benediction; asulabham—very difficult to achieve; abhiyacitah—have been requested; yat—that; amusya—of King Nabhi; atma-jah—a son; maya sadrsah—like Me; bhuyat—there may be; iti—thus; mama—My; aham—I; eva—only; abhirupah—equal; kaivalyat—because of being without a second; athapi—nevertheless; brahma-vadah—the words spoken by exalted brahmanas; na—not; mrsa—false; bhavitum—to become; arhati—ought; mama—My; eva—certainly; hi—because; mukham—mouth; yat—that; dvija-deva-kulam—the class of pure brahmanas.

TRANSLATION

The Supreme Personality of Godhead replied: O great sages, I am certainly very pleased with your prayers. You are all truthful. You have prayed for the benediction of a son like Me for King Nabhi, but this is very difficult to obtain. Since I am the Supreme Person without a second and since no one is equal to Me, another personality like Me is not possible to find. In any case, because you are all qualified brahmanas, your vibrations should not prove untrue. I consider the brahmanas who are well qualified with brahminical qualities to be as good as My own mouth.

PURPORT

The word avitatha-girbhih means “they whose spoken vibrations cannot be nullified.” The brahmanas (dvija, the twice-born), are given a chance by the sastric regulations to become almost as powerful as the Supreme Lord. Whatever a brahmana speaks cannot be nullified or changed in any circumstance. According to the Vedic injunctions, a brahmana is the mouth of the Supreme Personality of Godhead; therefore in all rituals a brahmana is offered food (brahmana-bhojana) because when a brahmana eats, it is considered that the Supreme Lord Himself eats. Similarly, whatever a brahmana speaks cannot be changed. It must act. The learned sages who were priests at Maharaja Nabhi’s sacrifice were not only brahmanas but were so qualified that they were like devas, demigods, or God Himself. If this were not the case, how could they invite Lord Visnu to come to the sacrificial arena? God is one, and God does not belong to this or that religion. In Kali-yuga, different religious sects consider their God to be different from the God of others, but that is not possible. God is one, and He is appreciated according to different angles of vision. In this verse the word kaivalyat means that God has no competitor. There is only one God. In the Svetasvatara Upanisad (6.8) it is said, na tat-samas cabhyadhikas ca drsyate: “No one is found to be equal to Him or greater than Him.” That is the definition of God.

SB5.3.18

TEXT 18

tata agnidhriye ’msa-kalayavatarisyamy atma-tulyam anupalabhamanah.

tatah—therefore; agnidhriye—in the wife of Nabhi, the son of Agnidhra; amsa-kalaya—by an expansion of My personal form; avatarisyami—I shall advent Myself; atma-tulyam—My equal; anupalabhamanah—not finding.

Since I cannot find anyone equal to Me, I shall personally expand Myself into a plenary portion and thus advent Myself in the womb of Merudevi, the wife of Maharaja Nabhi, the son of Agnidhra.

This is an example of the omnipotence of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Although He is one without a second, He expands Himself by svamsa, His personal expansion, and sometimes by vibhinnamsa, or His separated expansion. Lord Visnu herein agrees to send His personal expansion as the son of Merudevi, the wife of Maharaja Nabhi, who is the son of Agnidhra. The rtvijah, the priests, knew that God is one, yet they prayed for the Supreme Lord to become the son of Maharaja Nabhi to let the world know that the Absolute Truth, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, is one without a second. When He incarnates, He expands Himself in different potencies.

SB5.3.19

TEXT 19

sri-suka uvaca

iti nisamayantya merudevyah patim abhidhayantardadhe bhagavan.

sri-sukah uvaca—Sri Sukadeva Gosvami said; iti—thus; nisamayantyah—who was listening; merudevyah—in the presence of Merudevi; patim—unto her husband; abhidhaya—having spoken; antardadhe—disappeared; bhagavan—the Supreme Personality of Godhead.

Sukadeva Gosvami continued: After saying this, the Lord disappeared. The wife of King Nabhi, Queen Merudevi, was sitting by the side of her husband, and consequently she could hear everything the Supreme Lord had spoken.

According to the Vedic injunctions, one should perform sacrifices in the company of one’s own wife. Sapatniko dharmam acaret: religious rituals should be performed with one’s wife; therefore Maharaja Nabhi conducted his great sacrifice with his wife by his side.

SB5.3.20

TEXT 20

barhisi tasminn eva visnudatta bhagavan paramarsibhih prasadito nabheh priya-cikirsaya tad-avarodhayane merudevyam dharman darsayitu-kamo vata-rasananam sramananam rsinam urdhva-manthinam suklaya tanuvavatatara.

barhisi—in the arena of sacrifice; tasmin—that; eva—in this way; visnu-datta—O Maharaja Pariksit; bhagavan—the Supreme Personality of Godhead; parama-rsibhih—by the great rsis; prasaditah—being pleased; nabheh priya-cikirsaya—to please King Nabhi; tat-avarodhayane—in his wife; merudevyam—Merudevi; dharman—the principles of religion; darsayitu-kamah—desiring to exhibit how to perform; vata-rasananam—of the sannyasis (who have almost no cloth); sramananam—of the vanaprasthas; rsinam—of the great sages; urdhva-manthinam—of the brahmacaris; suklaya tanuva—in His original spiritual form, which is above the modes of material nature; avatatara—appeared as an incarnation.

O Visnudatta, Pariksit Maharaja, the Supreme Personality of Godhead was pleased by the great sages at that sacrifice. Consequently the Lord decided to personally exhibit the method of executing religious principles [as observed by brahmacaris, sannyasis, vanaprasthas and grhasthas engaged in rituals] and also satisfy Maharaja Nabhi’s desire. Consequently He appeared as the son of Merudevi in His original spiritual form, which is above the modes of material nature.