Bhaktivedanta VedaBase: Śrīmad Bhāgavatam 7.8.42

śrī-indra uvāca

pratyānītāḥ parama bhavatā trāyatā naḥ sva-bhāgā

daityākrāntaḿ hṛdaya-kamalaḿ tad-gṛhaḿ pratyabodhi

kāla-grastaḿ kiyad idam aho nātha śuśrūṣatāḿ te

muktis teṣāḿ na hi bahumatā nārasiḿhāparaiḥ kim

SYNONYMS

śrī-indraḥ uvāca — Indra, the King of heaven, said; pratyānītāḥ — recovered; parama — O Supreme; bhavatā — by Your Lordship; trāyatā — who are protecting; naḥ — us; sva-bhāgāḥ — shares in the sacrifices; daitya-ākrāntam — afflicted by the demon; hṛdaya-kamalam — the lotuslike cores of our hearts; tat-gṛham — which is actually Your residence; pratyabodhi — it has been illuminated; kāla-grastam — devoured by time; kiyat — insignificant; idam — this (world); aho — alas; nātha — O Lord; śuśrūṣatām — for those who are always engaged in the service; te — of You; muktiḥ — liberation from material bondage; teṣām — of them (the pure devotees); na — not; hi — indeed; bahumatā — thought very important; nāra-siḿha — O Lord Nṛsiḿhadeva, half lion and half human being; aparaiḥ kim — then what is the use of other possessions.

TRANSLATION

King Indra said: O Supreme Lord, You are our deliverer and protector. Our shares of sacrifices, which are actually Yours, have been recovered from the demon by You. Because the demoniac king Hiraṇyakaśipu was most fearsome, our hearts, which are Your permanent abode, were all overtaken by him. Now, by Your presence, the gloom and darkness in our hearts have been dissipated. O Lord, for those who always engage in Your service, which is more exalted than liberation, all material opulence is insignificant. They do not even care for liberation, not to speak of the benefits of kāma, artha and dharma.

PURPORT

In this material world there are two kinds of people — the devatās (demigods) and the asuras (demons). Although the demigods are attached to material enjoyment, they are devotees of the Lord who act according to the rules and regulations of the Vedic injunctions. During the reign of Hiraṇyakaśipu, everyone was disturbed in the routine duties of Vedic civilization. When Hiraṇyakaśipu was killed, all the demigods, who had always been disturbed by Hiraṇyakaśipu, felt relief in their general way of life.

Because the government in Kali-yuga is full of demons, the living conditions of devotees are always disturbed. Devotees cannot perform yajña, and thus they cannot partake of the remnants of food offered in yajña for the worship of Lord Viṣṇu. The hearts of the demigods are always filled with fear of the demons, and therefore they cannot think of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. The engagement of the demigods is to think of the Lord always within the cores of their hearts. The Lord says in Bhagavad-gītā (6.47):

yoginām api sarveṣāḿ

mad gatenāntarātmanā

śraddhāvān bhajate yo māḿ

sa me yuktatamo mataḥ

"And of all yogīs, he who always abides in Me with great faith, worshiping Me in transcendental loving service, is most intimately united with Me in yoga and is the highest of all." The demigods fully absorb themselves in meditation upon the Supreme Personality of Godhead to become perfect yogīs, but because of the presence of demons, their hearts are filled with the activities of the demons. Thus their hearts, which are meant to be the abode of the Supreme Lord, are practically occupied by the demons. All the demigods felt relieved when Hiraṇyakaśipu was dead, for they could easily think of the Lord. They could then receive the results of sacrifices and become happy even though in the material world.

<<< >>>

Copyright © The Bhaktivedanta Book Trust International, Inc.
His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupāda, Founder Ācārya of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness