Bhaktivedanta VedaBase: Śrīmad Bhāgavatam 5.14.24

muktas tato yadi bandhād devadatta upācchinatti tasmād api vishnumitra ity anavasthitih

SYNONYMS

muktah — liberated; tatah — from that; yadi — if; bandhāt — from the government imprisonment or being beaten by the protector of the woman; deva-dattah — person named Devadatta; upācchinatti — takes the money from him; tasmāt — from the person named Devadatta; api — again; vishnu-mitrah — a person named Vishnumitra; iti — thus; anavasthitih — the riches do not stay in one place but pass from one hand to another.

TRANSLATION

Stealing or cheating another person out of his money, the conditioned soul somehow or other keeps it in his possession and escapes punishment. Then another man, named Devadatta, cheats him and takes the money away. Similarly, another man, named Vishnumitra, steals the money from Devadatta and takes it away. In any case, the money does not stay in one place. It passes from one hand to another. Ultimately no one can enjoy the money, and it remains the property of the Supreme Personality of Godhead.

PURPORT

Riches come from Lakshmī, the goddess of fortune, and the goddess of fortune is the property of Nārāyana, the Supreme Personality of Godhead. The goddess of fortune cannot stay anywhere but by the side of Nārāyana; therefore another of her names is Cañcalā, restless. She cannot be peaceful unless she is in the company of her husband, Nārāyana. For example, Lakshmī was carried away by the materialistic Rāvana. Rāvana kidnapped Sītā, the goddess of fortune belonging to Lord Rāma. As a result, Rāvana's entire family, opulence and kingdom were smashed, and Sītā, the goddess of fortune, was recovered from his clutches and reunited with Lord Rāma. Thus all property, riches and wealth belong to Krishna. As stated in Bhagavad-gītā (5.29):

bhoktāram yajña-tapasām

sarva-loka-maheśvaram

"The Supreme Personality of Godhead is the true beneficiary of all sacrifices and austerities, and He is the supreme proprietor of all the planetary systems."

Foolish materialistic people collect money and steal from other thieves. but they cannot keep it. In any case, it must be spent. One person cheats another, and another person cheats someone else; therefore the best way to possess Lakshmī is to keep her by the side of Nārāyana. This is the point of the Krishna consciousness movement. We worship Lakshmī (Rādhārānī) along with Nārāyana (Krishna). We collect money from various sources, but that money does not belong to anyone but Rādhā and Krishna (Lakshmī-Nārāyana). If money is utilized in the service of Lakshmī-Nārāyana, the devotee automatically lives in an opulent way. However, if one wants to enjoy Lakshmī the way Rāvana did, he will be vanquished by the laws of nature, and whatever few possessions he has will be taken away. Finally death will take everything away, and death is the representative of Krishna.

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