Srimad-Bhagavatam: Canto 4: “The Creation of the Fourth Order”
by His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada

Chapter Seven

SB4.7.44

TEXT 44

vidyadhara ucuh

tvan-mayayartham abhipadya kalevare ’smin

krtva mamaham iti durmatir utpathaih svaih

ksipto ’py asad-visaya-lalasa atma-moham

yusmat-kathamrta-nisevaka udvyudasyet

SYNONYMS

vidyadharah—the Vidyadharas; ucuh—said; tvat-mayaya—by Your external potency; artham—the human body; abhipadya—after obtaining; kalevare—in the body; asmin—in this; krtva—having misidentified; mama—mine; aham—I; iti—thus; durmatih—the ignorant person; utpathaih—by wrong roads; svaih—by one’s own belongings; ksiptah—distracted; api—even; asat—temporary; visaya-lalasah—having his happiness in sense objects; atma-moham—the illusion of the body as the self; yusmat—Your; katha—topics; amrta—nectar; nisevakah—relishing; ut—from a long distance; vyudasyet—can be delivered.

TRANSLATION

The Vidyadharas said: Dear Lord, this human form of body is meant for attaining the highest perfectional objective, but, impelled by Your external energy, the living entity misidentifies himself with his body and with the material energy, and therefore, influenced by maya, he wants to become happy by material enjoyment. He is misled and always attracted by temporary, illusory happiness. But Your transcendental activities are so powerful that if one engages in the hearing and chanting of such topics, he can be delivered from illusion.

PURPORT

The human form of life is called arthada because the body can very nicely help the embodied soul to achieve the highest perfection. Prahlada Maharaja said that even though temporary, the body can give us the highest perfectional achievement. In the process of evolution from the lower to the higher grade of living, the human form of life is a great boon. But maya is so strong that in spite of achieving this great boon of the human form of life, we are influenced by temporary material happiness, and we forget our goal of life. We are attracted by things which will cease to exist. The beginning of such attraction is the temporary body. In this horrible condition of life there is only one way of liberation—to engage in the activities of transcendental chanting and hearing of the holy name of the Supreme Lord: Hare Krsna, Hare Krsna, Krsna Krsna, Hare Hare/ Hare Rama, Hare Rama, Rama Rama, Hare Hare. The words yusmat-kathamrta-nisevakah mean “those who engage in relishing the nectar of the topics of Your Lordship.” There are two narrative books which especially concern the words and activities of Krsna. Bhagavad-gita is the instruction given by Krsna, and Srimad-Bhagavatam is the book containing topics exclusively about Krsna and His devotees. These two books are the special nectar of the words of Krsna. For those who engage in the preaching of these two Vedic literatures it is very easy to get out of the illusory conditional life imposed upon us by maya. The illusion is that the conditioned soul does not try to understand his spiritual identity. He is more interested in his external body, which is only a flash and which will be finished as soon as the time is designated. The whole atmosphere will change when the living entity has to transmigrate from one body to another. Under the spell of maya, he will again be satisfied in a different atmosphere. This spell of maya is called avaranatmika sakti because it is so strong that the living entity is satisfied in any abominable condition. Even if he is born as a worm living within the intestine or abdomen in the midst of urine and stool, still he is satisfied. This is the covering influence of maya. But the human form of life is a chance to understand, and if one misses this opportunity, he is most unfortunate. The way to get out of illusory maya is to engage in the topics of Krsna. Lord Caitanya advocated a process whereby everyone may remain in his present position without change but simply hear from the proper authoritative sources about Krsna. Lord Caitanya advised everyone to spread the word of Krsna. He advised, “All of you become spiritual masters. Your duty is simply to talk to whomever you meet of Krsna or of the instructions given by Krsna.” The International Society for Krishna Consciousness is operating for this purpose. We do not ask anyone to first change his position and then come to us. Instead, we invite everyone to come with us and simply chant Hare Krsna, Hare Krsna, Krsna Krsna, Hare Hare/ Hare Rama, Hare Rama, Rama Rama, Hare Hare, because we know that if one simply chants and hears the topics of Krsna, one’s life will change; he will see a new light, and his life will be successful.

SB4.7.45

TEXT 45

brahmana ucuh

tvam kratus tvam havis tvam hutasah svayam

tvam hi mantrah samid-darbha-patrani ca

tvam sadasyartvijo dampati devata

agnihotram svadha soma ajyam pasuh

SYNONYMS

brahmanah—the brahmanas; ucuh—said; tvam—You; kratuh—sacrifice; tvam—You; havih—offering of clarified butter; tvam—You; huta-asah—fire; svayam—personified; tvam—You; hi—for; mantrah—the Vedic hymns; samit-darbha-patrani—the fuel, the kusa grass and the sacrificial pots; ca—and; tvam—You; sadasya—the members of the assembly; rtvijah—the priests; dampati—the chief person of the sacrifice and his wife; devata—demigods; agni-hotram—the sacred fire ceremony; svadha—the offering to the forefathers; somah—the soma plant; ajyam—the clarified butter; pasuh—the sacrificial animal.

TRANSLATION

The brahmanas said: Dear Lord, You are sacrifice personified. You are the offering of clarified butter, You are the fire, You are the chanting of Vedic hymns by which the sacrifice is conducted, You are the fuel, You are the flame, You are the kusa grass, and You are the sacrificial pots. You are the priests who perform the yajna, You are the demigods headed by Indra, and You are the sacrificial animal. Everything that is sacrificed is You or Your energy.

PURPORT

In this statement Lord Visnu’s all-pervasiveness is partially explained. It is said in the Visnu Purana that as a fire situated in one place emanates its heat and illumination everywhere, so whatever we see within the material or spiritual worlds is nothing but a manifestation of different energies emanating from the Supreme Personality of Godhead. The brahmanas’ statement is that Lord Visnu is everything—the fire, the offering, the clarified butter, the utensils, the place of sacrifice and the kusa. He is everything. It is confirmed herein that the performance of sankirtana-yajna in this age is as good as all other yajnas in all other ages. If one performs sankirtana-yajna by chanting Hare Krsna, Hare Krsna, Krsna Krsna, Hare Hare/ Hare Rama, Hare Rama, Rama Rama, Hare Hare, there is no need to arrange elaborate paraphernalia for the prescribed sacrificial ceremonies recommended in the Vedas. In the chant of the holy names, Hare and Krsna, Hare means the energy of Krsna, and Krsna is the visnu-tattva. Combined together they are everything. In this age, persons are harassed by the influence of Kali-yuga and cannot arrange for all the requisite paraphernalia for performing sacrifice as recommended in the Vedas. But if one simply chants Hare Krsna, it is to be understood that he is performing all kinds of yajna because there is nothing within our vision except Hare (the energy of Krsna) and Krsna. There is no difference between Krsna and His energies. Thus since everything is a manifestation of His energy, it is to be understood that everything is Krsna. One simply has to accept everything in Krsna consciousness, and he is a liberated person. One should not misunderstand that because everything is Krsna, Krsna has no personal identity. Krsna is so full that in spite of keeping Himself separate from everything by His energy, He is everything. This is confirmed in Bhagavad-gita, Ninth Chapter. He is spread throughout the creation as everything, but still He is not everything. The philosophy recommended by Lord Caitanya is that He is simultaneously one and different.

SB4.7.46

TEXT 46

tvam pura gam rasaya maha-sukaro

damstraya padminim varanendro yatha

stuyamano nadal lilaya yogibhir

vyujjahartha trayi-gatra yajna-kratuh

SYNONYMS

tvam—You; pura—in the past; gam—the earth; rasayah—from within the water; maha-sukarah—the great boar incarnation; damstraya—with Your tusk; padminim—a lotus; varana-indrah—an elephant; yatha—as; stuyamanah—being offered prayers; nadan—vibrating; lilaya—very easily; yogibhih—by great sages like Sanaka, etc.; vyujjahartha—picked up; trayi-gatra—O personified Vedic knowledge; yajna-kratuh—having the form of sacrifice.

TRANSLATION

Dear Lord, O personified Vedic knowledge, in the past millennium, long, long ago, when You appeared as the great boar incarnation, You picked up the world from the water, as an elephant picks up a lotus flower from a lake. When You vibrated transcendental sound in that gigantic form of a boar, the sound was accepted as a sacrificial hymn, and great sages like Sanaka meditated upon it and offered prayers for Your glorification.

PURPORT

A significant word used in this verse is trayi-gatra, which means that the transcendental form of the Lord is the Vedas. Anyone who engages in the worship of the Deity, or the form of the Lord in the temple, is understood to be studying all the Vedas twenty-four hours a day. Simply by decorating the Deities of the Lord, Radha and Krsna, in the temple, one very minutely studies the injunctions of the Vedas. Even a neophyte devotee who simply engages in the worship of the Deity is understood to be in direct touch with the purport of Vedic knowledge. As confirmed in Bhagavad-gita (15.15), vedais ca sarvair aham eva vedyah: the purport of the Vedas is to understand Him, Krsna. One who worships and serves Krsna directly has understood the truths of the Vedas.

SB4.7.47

TEXT 47

sa prasida tvam asmakam akanksatam

darsanam te paribhrasta-sat-karmanam

kirtyamane nrbhir namni yajnesa te

yajna-vighnah ksayam yanti tasmai namah

SYNONYMS

sah—that same person; prasida—be pleased; tvam—You; asmakam—upon us; akanksatam—awaiting; darsanam—audience; te—Your; paribhrasta—fallen down; sat-karmanam—of whom the performance of sacrifice; kirtyamane—being chanted; nrbhih—by persons; namni—Your holy name; yajna-isa—O Lord of sacrifice; te—Your; yajna-vighnah—obstacles; ksayam—destruction; yanti—attain; tasmai—unto You; namah—respectful obeisances.

TRANSLATION

Dear Lord, we were awaiting Your audience because we have been unable to perform the yajnas according to the Vedic rituals. We pray unto You, therefore, to be pleased with us. Simply by chanting Your holy name, one can surpass all obstacles. We offer our respectful obeisances unto You in Your presence.

PURPORT

The brahmana priests were very hopeful that their sacrifice would be carried out without obstacles now that Lord Visnu was present. It is significant in this verse that the brahmanas say, “Simply by chanting Your holy name we can surpass the obstacles, but now You are personally present.” The performance of yajna by Daksa was obstructed by the disciples and followers of Lord Siva. The brahmanas indirectly criticized the followers of Lord Siva, but because the brahmanas were always protected by Lord Visnu, Siva’s followers could not do any harm to their prosecution of the sacrificial process. There is a saying that when Krsna protects someone, no one can do him harm, and when Krsna wants to kill someone, no one can protect him. The vivid example was Ravana. Ravana was a great devotee of Lord Siva, but when Lord Ramacandra wanted to kill him, Lord Siva could not protect him. If some demigod, even Lord Siva or Lord Brahma, wants to do harm to a devotee, Krsna protects the devotee. But when Krsna wants to kill someone, such as Ravana or Hiranyakasipu, no demigod can protect him.

SB4.7.48

TEXT 48

maitreya uvaca

iti daksah kavir yajnam

bhadra rudrabhimarsitam

kirtyamane hrsikese

sanninye yajna-bhavane

SYNONYMS

maitreyah—Maitreya; uvaca—said; iti—thus; daksah—Daksa; kavih—being purified in consciousness; yajnam—the sacrifice; bhadra—O Vidura; rudra-abhimarsitam—devastated by Virabhadra; kirtya-mane—being glorified; hrsikese—Hrsikesa (Lord Visnu); sanninye—arranged for restarting; yajna-bhavane—the protector of sacrifice.

TRANSLATION

Sri Maitreya said: After Lord Visnu was glorified by all present, Daksa, his consciousness purified, arranged to begin again the yajna which had been devastated by the followers of Lord Siva.

SB4.7.49

TEXT 49

bhagavan svena bhagena

sarvatma sarva-bhaga-bhuk

daksam babhasa abhasya

priyamana ivanagha

SYNONYMS

bhagavan—Lord Visnu; svena—with His own; bhagena—with the share; sarva-atma—the Supersoul of all living entities; sarva-bhaga-bhuk—the enjoyer of the results of all sacrifices; daksam—Daksa; babhase—said; abhasya—addressing; priyamanah—being satisfied; iva—as; anagha—O sinless Vidura.

TRANSLATION

Maitreya continued: My dear sinless Vidura, Lord Visnu is actually the enjoyer of the results of all sacrifices. Yet because of His being the Supersoul of all living entities, He was satisfied simply with His share of the sacrificial offerings. He therefore addressed Daksa in a pleasing attitude.

PURPORT

In Bhagavad-gita (5.29) it is said, bhoktaram yajna-tapasam: Lord Visnu, or Krsna, is the supreme enjoyer of all the results of sacrifices, austerities and penances; in whatever one may engage, the ultimate goal is Visnu. If a person does not know that, he is misled. As the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Visnu has nothing to demand from anyone. He is self-satisfied, self-sufficient, but He accepts the offerings of yajna because of His friendly attitude toward all living entities. When His share of the sacrificial results was offered to Him, He appeared very pleased. It is said in Bhagavad-gita (9.26), patram puspam phalam toyam yo me bhaktya prayacchati: if any devotee offers Him even a small leaf, or a flower or water, if it is offered with love and affection, the Lord accepts it and is pleased. Although He is self-sufficient and does not need anything from anyone, He accepts such offerings because, as Supersoul, He has such a friendly attitude toward all living entities. Another point here is that He does not encroach upon another’s share. ln the yajna there is a share for the demigods, Lord Siva, and Lord Brahma, and a share for Lord Visnu. He is satisfied with His own share and does not encroach upon others’. Indirectly, He indicated that He was not satisfied with Daksa’s trying to deny Lord Siva his share. Maitreya addressed Vidura as sinless because Vidura was a pure Vaisnava and never committed any offense to any demigod. Although Vaisnavas accept Lord Visnu as the Supreme, they are not prone to offend demigods. They give the demigods proper respect. Vaisnavas accept Lord Siva as the best Vaisnava. For a Vaisnava there is no possibility of offending any demigods, and the demigods are also pleased with the Vaisnava because they are faultless devotees of Lord Visnu.

SB4.7.50

TEXT 50

sri-bhagavan uvaca

aham brahma ca sarvas ca

jagatah karanam param

atmesvara upadrasta

svayan-drg avisesanah

SYNONYMS

sri-bhagavan—Lord Visnu; uvaca—said; aham—I; brahma—Brahma; ca—and; sarvah—Lord Siva; ca—and; jagatah—of the material manifestation; karanam—cause; param—supreme; atma-isvarah—the Supersoul; upadrasta—the witness; svayam-drk—self-sufficient; avisesanah—there is no difference.

TRANSLATION

Lord Visnu replied: Brahma, Lord Siva and I are the supreme cause of the material manifestation. I am the Supersoul, the self sufficient witness. But impersonally there is no difference between Brahma, Lord Siva and Me.

PURPORT

Lord Brahma was born out of the transcendental body of Lord Visnu, and Lord Siva was born out of the body of Brahma. Lord Visnu, therefore, is the supreme cause. In the Vedas also it is stated that in the beginning there was only Visnu, Narayana; there was no Brahma or Siva. Similarly, Sankaracarya confirmed this: narayanah parah. Narayana, or Lord Visnu, is the origin, and Brahma and Siva are manifested after creation. Lord Visnu is also atmesvara, the Supersoul in everyone. Under His direction, everything is prompted from within. For example, in the beginning of the Srimad-Bhagavatam it is stated, tene brahma hrda: He first educated Lord Brahma from within.

In Bhagavad-gita (10.2) Lord Krsna states, aham adir hi devanam: Lord Visnu, or Krsna, is the origin of all demigods, including Lord Brahma and Lord Siva. In another place in Bhagavad-gita (10.8) Krsna states, aham sarvasya prabhavah: “Everything is generated from Me.” This includes all the demigods. Similarly, in the Vedanta-sutra: janmady asya yatah [Bhag. 1.1.1]. And in the Upanisads is the statement yato va imani bhutani jayante. Everything is generated from Lord Visnu, everything is maintained by Him, and everything is annihilated by His energy. Therefore, by their actions and reactions, the energies which come from Him create the cosmic manifestations and also dissolve the whole creation. Thus the Lord is the cause and also the effect. Whatever effect we see is the interaction of His energy, and because the energy is generated from Him, He is both cause and effect. Simultaneously, everything is different and the same. It is said that everything is Brahman: sarvam khalv idam brahma. In the highest vision, nothing is beyond Brahman, and therefore Lord Brahma and Lord Siva are certainly nondifferent from Him.

SB4.7.51

TEXT 51

atma-mayam samavisya

so ’ham gunamayim dvija

srjan raksan haran visvam

dadhre samjnam kriyocitam

SYNONYMS

atma-mayam—My energy; samavisya—having entered; sah—Myself; aham—I; guna-mayim—composed of the modes of material nature; dvi-ja—O twice-born Daksa; srjan—creating; raksan—maintaining; haran—annihilating; visvam—the cosmic manifestation; dadhre—I cause to be born; samjnam—a name; kriya-ucitam—according to the activity.

TRANSLATION

The Lord continued: My dear Daksa Dvija, I am the original Personality of Godhead, but in order to create, maintain and annihilate this cosmic manifestation, I act through My material energy, and according to the different grades of activity, My representations are differently named.

PURPORT

As explained in Bhagavad-gita (7.5), jiva-bhutam maha-baho: the whole world is energy released from the supreme source, the Personality of Godhead, who, it is further stated in Bhagavad-gita, acts in superior energies and inferior energies. The superior energy is the living entity, who is part and parcel of the Supreme Lord. As parts and parcels, the living entities are not different from the Supreme Lord; the energy emanated from Him is not different from Him. But in the actual activity of this material world, the living entity is under the different qualities of material energy and in different forms. There are 8,400,000 life forms. The same living entity acts under the influence of the different qualities of material nature. The entities have different bodies, but originally, in the beginning of creation, Lord Visnu is alone. For the purpose of creation, Brahma is manifested, and for annihilation there is Lord Siva. As far as the spiritual entrance into the material world is concerned, all beings are part and parcel of the Supreme Lord, but under the covering of different material qualities they have different names. Lord Brahma and Lord Siva are qualitative incarnations of Visnu, as guna-avataras, and Visnu with them accepts control of the quality of goodness; therefore He is also a qualitative incarnation like Lord Siva and Lord Brahma. Actually the different names exist for different directions, otherwise the origin is one only.

SB4.7.52

TEXT 52

tasmin brahmany advitiye

kevale paramatmani

brahma-rudrau ca bhutani

bhedenajno ’nupasyati

SYNONYMS

tasmin—Him; brahmani—the Supreme Brahman; advitiye—without a second; kevale—being one; parama-atmani—the Supersoul; brahma-rudrau—both Brahma and Siva; ca—and; bhutani—the living entities; bhedena—with separation; ajnah—one who is not properly conversant; anupasyati—thinks.

TRANSLATION

The Lord continued: One who is not in proper knowledge thinks that demigods like Brahma and Siva are independent, or he even thinks that the living entities are independent.

PURPORT

The living entities, including Brahma, are not independently separated, but are counted within the marginal potency of the Supreme Lord. The Supreme Lord, being the Supersoul in every living entity, including Lord Brahma and Lord Siva, is directing everyone in the activities of the material modes of nature. No one can act independently of the sanction of the Lord, and therefore, indirectly, no one is different from the Supreme Person—certainly not Brahma and Rudra, who are incarnations of the material nature’s modes of passion and ignorance.

SB4.7.53

TEXT 53

yatha puman na svangesu

sirah-pany-adisu kvacit

parakya-buddhim kurute

evam bhutesu mat-parah

SYNONYMS

yatha—as; puman—a person; na—not; sva-angesu—in his own body; sirah-pani-adisu—between the head and the hands and other parts of the body; kvacit—sometimes; parakya-buddhim—differentiation; kurute—make; evam—thus; bhutesu—among living entities; mat-parah—My devotee.

TRANSLATION

A person with average intelligence does not think the head and other parts of the body to be separate. Similarly, My devotee does not differentiate Visnu, the all-pervading Personality of Godhead, from any thing or any living entity.

PURPORT

Whenever there is disease in any part of the body, the whole body takes care of the ailing part. Similarly, a devotee’s oneness is manifested in His compassion for all conditioned souls. Bhagavad-gita (5.18) says, panditah sama-darsinah: those who are learned see everyone’s conditional life equally. Devotees are compassionate to every conditioned soul, and therefore they are known as aparakya-buddhi. Because devotees are learned and know that every living entity is part and parcel of the Supreme Lord, they preach Krsna consciousness to everyone so that everyone may be happy. If a particular part of the body is diseased, the whole attention of the body goes to that part. Similarly, devotees care for any person who is forgetful of Krsna and therefore in material consciousness. The equal vision of the devotee is that he works to get all living entities back home, back to Godhead.

SB4.7.54

TEXT 54

trayanam eka-bhavanam

yo na pasyati vai bhidam

sarva-bhutatmanam brahman

sa santim adhigacchati

SYNONYMS

trayanam—of the three; eka-bhavanam—having one nature; yah—who; na pasyati—does not see; vai—certainly; bhidam—separateness; sarva-bhuta-atmanam—of the Supersoul of all living entities; brahman—O Daksa; sah—he; santim—peace; adhigacchati—realizes.

TRANSLATION

The Lord continued: One who does not consider Brahma, Visnu, Siva or the living entities in general to be separate from the Supreme, and who knows Brahman, actually realizes peace; others do not.

PURPORT

Two words are very significant in this verse. Trayanam indicates “three,” namely Lord Brahma, Lord Siva and Lord Visnu. Bhidam means “different.” They are three, and therefore they are separate, but at the same time they are one. This is the philosophy of simultaneous oneness and difference, which is called acintya-bhedabheda-tattva. The example given in the Brahma-samhita is that milk and yogurt are simultaneously one and different; both are milk, but the yogurt has become changed. In order to achieve real peace, one should see everything and every living entity, including Lord Brahma and Lord Siva, as nondifferent from the Supreme Personality of Godhead. No one is independent. Every one of us is an expansion of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. This accounts for unity in diversity. There are diverse manifestations, but, at the same time, they are one in Visnu. Everything is an expansion of Visnu’s energy.

SB4.7.55

TEXT 55

maitreya uvaca

evam bhagavatadistah

prajapati-patir harim

arcitva kratuna svena

devan ubhayato ’yajat

SYNONYMS

maitreyah—Maitreya; uvaca—said; evam—thus; bhagavata—by the Supreme Personality of Godhead; adistah—having been instructed; prajapati-patih—the head of all the Prajapatis; harim—Hari; arcitva—after worshiping; kratuna—with the sacrificial ceremonies; svena—his own; devan—the demigods; ubhayatah—separately; ayajat—worshiped.

TRANSLATION

The sage Maitreya said: Thus Daksa, the head of all Prajapatis, having been nicely instructed by the Supreme Personality of Godhead, worshiped Lord Visnu. After worshiping Him by performing the prescribed sacrificial ceremonies, Daksa separately worshiped Lord Brahma and Lord Siva.

PURPORT

Lord Visnu should be offered everything, and His prasada should be distributed to all the demigods. This practice is still followed in the temple of Jagannatha at Puri. There are many temples of demigods around the main temple of Jagannatha, and the prasada which is offered first to Jagannatha is distributed to all the demigods. The deity of Bhagalin is worshiped with the prasada of Visnu, and also, in the famous Lord Siva temple of Bhuvanesvara, the prasada of Lord Visnu or Lord Jagannatha is offered to the deity of Lord Siva. This is the Vaisnava principle. The Vaisnava does not deride even ordinary living entities, including the small ant; everyone is offered proper respect according to his position. The offering, however, is in relation to the center, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Krsna, or Visnu. The devotee who is highly elevated sees the relationship to Krsna in everything; he does not see anything as being independent of Krsna. That is his vision of oneness.

SB4.7.56

TEXT 56

rudram ca svena bhagena

hy upadhavat samahitah

karmanodavasanena

somapan itaran api

udavasya sahartvigbhih

sasnav avabhrtham tatah

SYNONYMS

rudram—Lord Siva; ca—and; svena—with his own; bhagena—share; hi—since; upadhavat—he worshiped; samahitah—with concentrated mind; karmana—by the performance; udavasanena—by the act of finishing; soma-pan—demigods; itaran—other; api—even; udavasya—after finishing; saha—along with; rtvigbhih—with the priests; sasnau—bathed; avabhrtham—the avabhrtha bath; tatah—then.

TRANSLATION

With all respect, Daksa worshiped Lord Siva with his share of the remnants of the yajna. After finishing the ritualistic sacrificial activities, he satisfied all the other demigods and the other people assembled there. Then, after finishing all these duties with the priests, he took a bath and was fully satisfied.

PURPORT

Lord Rudra, Siva, was properly worshiped with his share of the remnants of the yajna. Yajna is Visnu, and whatever prasada is offered to Visnu is offered to everyone, even to Lord Siva. Sridhara Svami also comments in this connection, svena bhagena: the remnants of the yajna are offered to all the demigods and others.

SB4.7.57

TEXT 57

tasma apy anubhavena

svenaivavapta-radhase

dharma eva matim dattva

tridasas te divam yayuh

SYNONYMS

tasmai—unto him (Daksa); api—even; anubhavena—by worshiping the Supreme Lord; svena—by his own; eva—certainly; avapta-radhase—having attained perfection; dharme—in religion; eva—certainly; matim—intelligence; dattva—having given; tridasah—demigods; te—those; divam—to the heavenly planets; yayuh—went.

TRANSLATION

Thus worshiping the Supreme Lord Visnu by the ritualistic performance of sacrifice, Daksa was completely situated on the religious path. Moreover, all the demigods who had assembled at the sacrifice blessed him that he might increase his piety, and then they left.

PURPORT

Although Daksa was considerably advanced in religious principles, he awaited the blessings of the demigods. Thus the great sacrifice conducted by Daksa ended in harmony and peace.

SB4.7.58

TEXT 58

evam daksayani hitva

sati purva-kalevaram

jajne himavatah ksetre

menayam iti susruma

SYNONYMS

evam—thus; daksayani—the daughter of Daksa; hitva—after giving up; sati—Sati; purva-kalevaram—her former body; jajne—was born; himavatah—of the Himalayas; ksetre—in the wife; menayam—in Mena; iti—thus; susruma—I have heard.

TRANSLATION

Maitreya said: I have heard that after giving up the body she had received from Daksa, Daksayani (his daughter) took her birth in the kingdom of the Himalayas. She was born as the daughter of Mena. I heard this from authoritative sources.

PURPORT

Mena is also known as Menaka and is the wife of the king of the Himalayas.

SB4.7.59

TEXT 59

tam eva dayitam bhuya

avrnkte patim ambika

ananya-bhavaika-gatim

saktih supteva purusam

SYNONYMS

tam—him (Lord Siva); eva—certainly; dayitam—beloved; bhuyah—again; avrnkte—accepted; patim—as her husband; ambika—Ambika, or Sati; ananya-bhava—without attachment for others; eka-gatim—the one goal; saktih—the feminine (marginal and external) energies; supta—lying dormant; iva—as; purusam—the masculine (Lord Siva, as representative of the Supreme Lord).

TRANSLATION

Ambika [goddess Durga], who was known as Daksayini [Sati], again accepted Lord Siva as her husband, just as different energies of the Supreme Personality of Godhead act during the course of a new creation.

PURPORT

According to a verse of the Vedic mantras, parasya saktir vividhaiva sruyate: the Supreme Personality of Godhead has different varieties of energies. Sakti is feminine, and the Lord is purusa, masculine. It is the duty of the female to serve under the supreme purusa. As stated in Bhagavad-gita, all living entities are marginal energies of the Supreme Lord. Therefore it is the duty of all living entities to serve this Supreme Person. Durga is the representation in the material world of both the marginal and external energies, and Lord Siva is the representation of the Supreme Person. The connection of Lord Siva and Ambika, or Durga, is eternal. Sati could not accept any husband but Lord Siva. How Lord Siva remarried Durga as Himavati, the daughter of the Himalayas, and how Karttikeya was born, is a great story in itself.

SB4.7.60

TEXT 60

etad bhagavatah sambhoh

karma daksadhvara-druhah

srutam bhagavatac chisyad

uddhavan me brhaspateh

SYNONYMS

etat—this; bhagavatah—of the possessor of all opulences; sambhoh—of Sambhu (Lord Siva); karma—story; daksa-adhvara-druhah—who devastated the sacrifice of Daksa; srutam—was heard; bhagavatat—from a great devotee; sisyat—from the disciple; uddhavat—from Uddhava; me—by me; brhaspateh—of Brhaspati.

TRANSLATION

Maitreya said: My dear Vidura, I heard this story of the Daksa yajna, which was devastated by Lord Siva, from Uddhava, a great devotee and a disciple of Brhaspati.

SB4.7.61

TEXT 61

idam pavitram param isa-cestitam

yasasyam ayusyam aghaugha-marsanam

yo nityadakarnya naro ’nukirtayed

dhunoty agham kaurava bhakti-bhavatah

SYNONYMS

idam—this; pavitram—pure; param—supreme; isa-cestitam—pastime of the Supreme Lord; yasasyam—fame; ayusyam—long duration of life; agha-ogha-marsanam—destroying sins; yah—who; nityada—always; akarnya—after hearing; narah—a person; anukirtayet—should narrate; dhunoti—clears off; agham—material contamination; kaurava—O descendant of Kuru; bhakti-bhavatah—with faith and devotion.

TRANSLATION

The great sage Maitreya concluded: If one hears and again narrates, with faith and devotion, this story of the Daksa yajna as it was conducted by the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Visnu, then certainly one is cleared of all contamination of material existence, O son of Kuru.

Thus end the Bhaktivedanta purports of the Fourth Canto, Seventh Chapter, of the Srimad-Bhagavatam, entitled “The Sacrifice performed by Daksa.”

Next chapter (SB 4.8)