Bhaktivedanta VedaBase: Srimad Bhagavatam 9.16.23

tatas cavabhritha-snana-

vidhutasesha-kilbishah

sarasvatyam maha-nadyam

reje vyabbhra ivamsuman

SYNONYMS

tatah -- thereafter; ca -- also; avabhritha-snana -- by bathing after finishing the sacrifice; vidhuta -- cleansed; asesha -- unlimited; kilbishah -- whose reactions of sinful activities; sarasvatyam -- on the bank of the great river Sarasvati; maha-nadyam -- one of the biggest rivers in India; reje -- Lord Parasurama appeared; vyabbhrah -- cloudless; iva amsuman -- like the sun.

TRANSLATION

Thereafter, having completed the ritualistic sacrificial ceremonies, Lord Parasurama took the bath known as the avabhritha-snana. Standing on the bank of the great river Sarasvati, cleared of all sins, Lord Parasurama appeared like the sun in a clear, cloudless sky.

PURPORT

As stated in Bhagavad-gita (3.9), yajnarthat karmano 'nyatra loko 'yam karma-bandhanah: "Work done as a sacrifice for Vishnu has to be performed, otherwise work binds one to this material world." Karma-bandhanah refers to the repeated acceptance of one material body after another. The whole problem of life is this repetition of birth and death. Therefore one is advised to work to perform yajna meant for satisfying Lord Vishnu. Although Lord Parasurama was an incarnation of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, he had to account for sinful activities. Anyone in this material world, however careful he may be, must commit some sinful activities, even though he does not want to. For example, one may trample many small ants and other insects while walking on the street and kill many living beings unknowingly. Therefore the Vedic principle of panca-yajna, five kinds of recommended sacrifice, is compulsory. In this age of Kali, however, there is a great concession given to people in general. Yajnaih sankirtana-prayair yajanti hi sumedhasah: [SB 11.5.32] we may worship Lord Caitanya, the hidden incarnation of Krishna. Krishna-varnam tvishakrishnam: although He is Krishna Himself, He always chants Hare Krishna and preaches Krishna consciousness. One is recommended to worship this incarnation by chanting, the sankirtana-yajna. The performance of sankirtana-yajna is a special concession for human society to save people from being affected by known or unknown sinful activities. We are surrounded by unlimited sins, and therefore it is compulsory that one take to Krishna consciousness and chant the Hare Krishna maha-mantra.

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