Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam: Canto 1: “Creation”
by His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupāda
Chapter Eight
SB1.8.38
TEXT 38
ke vayaṁ nāma-rūpābhyāṁ
yadubhiḥ saha pāṇḍavāḥ
bhavato ’darśanaṁ yarhi
hṛṣīkāṇām iveśituḥ
SYNONYMS
ke—who are; vayam—we; nāma-rūpābhyām—without fame and ability; yadubhiḥ—with the Yadus; saha—along with; pāṇḍavāḥ—and the Pāṇḍavas; bhavataḥ—Your; adarśanam—absence; yarhi—as if; hṛṣīkāṇām—of the senses; iva—like; īśituḥ—of the living being.
TRANSLATION
As the name and fame of a particular body is finished with the disappearance of the living spirit, similarly if You do not look upon us, all our fame and activities, along with the Pāṇḍavas and Yadus, will end at once.
PURPORT
Kuntīdevī is quite aware that the existence of the Pāṇḍavas is due to Śrī Kṛṣṇa only. The Pāṇḍavas are undoubtedly well established in name and fame and are guided by the great King Yudhiṣṭhira, who is morality personified, and the Yadus are undoubtedly great allies, but without the guidance of Lord Kṛṣṇa all of them are nonentities, as much as the senses of the body are useless without the guidance of consciousness. No one should be proud of his prestige, power and fame without being guided by the favor of the Supreme Lord. The living beings are always dependent, and the ultimate dependable object is the Lord Himself. We may, therefore, invent by our advancement of material knowledge all sorts of counteracting material resources, but without being guided by the Lord all such inventions end in fiasco, however strong and stout the reactionary elements may be.
SB1.8.39 TEXT 39 neyaṁ śobhiṣyate tatra yathedānīṁ gadādhara tvat-padair aṅkitā bhāti sva-lakṣaṇa-vilakṣitaiḥ SYNONYMS na—not; iyam—this land of our kingdom; śobhiṣyate—will appear beautiful; tatra—then; yathā—as it is now; idānīm—how; gadādhara—O Kṛṣṇa; tvat—Your; padaiḥ—by the feet; aṅkitā—marked; bhāti—is dazzling; sva-lakṣaṇa—Your own marks; vilakṣitaiḥ—by the impressions.
TRANSLATION O Gadādhara [Kṛṣṇa], our kingdom is now being marked by the impressions of Your feet, and therefore it appears beautiful. But when You leave, it will no longer be so. PURPORT There are certain particular marks on the feet of the Lord which distinguish the Lord from others. The marks of a flag, thunderbolt, and instrument to drive an elephant, umbrella, lotus, disc, etc., are on the bottom of the Lord’s feet. These marks are impressed upon the soft dust of the land where the Lord traverses. The land of Hastināpura was thus marked while Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa was there with the Pāṇḍavas, and the kingdom of the Pāṇḍavas thus flourished by such auspicious signs. Kuntīdevī pointed out these distinguished features and was afraid of ill luck in the absence of the Lord.
SB1.8.40 TEXT 40 ime jana-padāḥ svṛddhāḥ supakvauṣadhi-vīrudhaḥ vanādri-nady-udanvanto hy edhante tava vīkṣitaiḥ SYNONYMS ime—all these; jana-padāḥ—cities and towns; svṛddhāḥ—flourished; supakva—nature; auṣadhi—herbs; vīrudhaḥ—vegetables; vana—forests; adri—hills; nadī—rivers; udanvantaḥ—seas; hi—certainly; edhante—increasing; tava—by You; vīkṣitaiḥ—seen.
TRANSLATION All these cities and villages are flourishing in all respects because the herbs and grains are in abundance, the trees are full of fruits, the rivers are flowing, the hills are full of minerals and the oceans full of wealth. And this is all due to Your glancing over them. PURPORT Human prosperity flourishes by natural gifts and not by gigantic industrial enterprises. The gigantic industrial enterprises are products of a godless civilization, and they cause the destruction of the noble aims of human life. The more we go on increasing such troublesome industries to squeeze out the vital energy of the human being, the more there will be unrest and dissatisfaction of the people in general, although a few only can live lavishly by exploitation. The natural gifts such as grains and vegetables, fruits, rivers, the hills of jewels and minerals, and the seas full of pearls are supplied by the order of the Supreme, and as He desires, material nature produces them in abundance or restricts them at times. The natural law is that the human being may take advantage of these godly gifts by nature and satisfactorily flourish on them without being captivated by the exploitative motive of lording it over material nature. The more we attempt to exploit material nature according to our whims of enjoyment, the more we shall become entrapped by the reaction of such exploitative attempts. If we have sufficient grains, fruits, vegetables and herbs, then what is the necessity of running a slaughterhouse and killing poor animals? A man need not kill an animal if he has sufficient grains and vegetables to eat. The flow of river waters fertilizes the fields, and there is more than what we need. Minerals are produced in the hills, and the jewels in the ocean. If the human civilization has sufficient grains, minerals, jewels, water, milk, etc., then why should it hanker after terrible industrial enterprises at the cost of the labor of some unfortunate men? But all these natural gifts are dependent on the mercy of the Lord. What we need, therefore, is to be obedient to the laws of the Lord and achieve the perfection of human life by devotional service. The indications by Kuntīdevī are just to the point. She desires that God’s mercy be bestowed upon them so that natural prosperity be maintained by His grace.
SB1.8.41 TEXT 41 atha viśveśa viśvātman viśva-mūrte svakeṣu me sneha-pāśam imaṁ chindhi dṛḍhaṁ pāṇḍuṣu vṛṣṇiṣu SYNONYMS atha—therefore; viśva-īśa—O Lord of the universe; viśva-ātman—O soul of the universe; viśva-mūrte—O personality of the universal form; svakeṣu—unto my own kinsmen; me—my; sneha-pāśam—tie of affection; imam—this; chindhi—cut off; dṛḍham—deep; pāṇḍuṣu—for the Pāṇḍavas; vṛṣṇiṣu—for the Vṛṣṇis also.
TRANSLATION O Lord of the universe, soul of the universe, O personality of the form of the universe, please, therefore, sever my tie of affection for my kinsmen, the Pāṇḍavas and the Vṛṣṇis. PURPORT A pure devotee of the Lord is ashamed to ask anything in self-interest from the Lord. But the householders are sometimes obliged to ask favors from the Lord, being bound by the tie of family affection. Śrīmatī Kuntīdevī was conscious of this fact, and therefore she prayed to the Lord to cut off the affectionate tie from her own kinsmen, the Pāṇḍavas and the Vṛṣṇis. The Pāṇḍavas are her own sons, and the Vṛṣṇis are the members of her paternal family. Kṛṣṇa was equally related to both the families. Both the families required the Lord’s help because both were dependent devotees of the Lord. Śrīmatī Kuntīdevī wished Śrī Kṛṣṇa to remain with her sons the Pāṇḍavas, but by His doing so her paternal house would be bereft of the benefit. All these partialities troubled the mind of Kuntī, and therefore she desired to cut off the affectionate tie.
A pure devotee cuts off the limited ties of affection for his family and widens his activities of devotional service for all forgotten souls. The typical example is the band of six Gosvāmīs, who followed the path of Lord Caitanya. All of them belonged to the most enlightened and cultured rich families of the higher castes, but for the benefit of the mass of population they left their comfortable homes and became mendicants. To cut off all family affection means to broaden the field of activities. Without doing this, no one can be qualified as a brāhmaṇa, a king, a public leader or a devotee of the Lord. The Personality of Godhead, as an ideal king, showed this by example. Śrī Rāmacandra cut off the tie of affection for His beloved wife to manifest the qualities of an ideal king.
Such personalities as a brāhmaṇa, a devotee, a king or a public leader must be very broadminded in discharging their respective duties. Śrīmatī Kuntīdevī was conscious of this fact, and being weak she prayed to be free from such bondage of family affection. The Lord is addressed as the Lord of the universe, or the Lord of the universal mind, indicating His all-powerful ability to cut the hard knot of family affection. Therefore, it is sometimes experienced that the Lord, out of His special affinity towards a weak devotee, breaks the family affection by force of circumstances arranged by His all-powerful energy. By doing so He causes the devotee to become completely dependent on Him and thus clears the path for his going back to Godhead.
SB1.8.42 TEXT 42 tvayi me ’nanya-viṣayā matir madhu-pate ’sakṛt ratim udvahatād addhā gaṅgevaugham udanvati SYNONYMS tvayi—unto You; me—my; ananya-viṣayā—unalloyed; matiḥ—attention; madhu-pate—O Lord of Madhu; asakṛt—continuously; ratim—attraction; udvahatāt—may overflow; addhā—directly; gaṅgā—the Ganges; iva—like; ogham—flows; udanvati—down to the sea.
TRANSLATION O Lord of Madhu, as the Ganges forever flows to the sea without hindrance, let my attraction be constantly drawn unto You without being diverted to anyone else. PURPORT Perfection of pure devotional service is attained when all attention is diverted towards the transcendental loving service of the Lord. To cut off the tie of all other affections does not mean complete negation of the finer elements, like affection for someone else. This is not possible. A living being, whoever he may be, must have this feeling of affection for others because this is a symptom of life. The symptoms of life, such as desire, anger, hankerings, feelings of attraction, etc., cannot be annihilated. Only the objective has to be changed. Desire cannot be negated, but in devotional service the desire is changed only for the service of the Lord in place of desire for sense gratification. The so-called affection for family, society, country, etc., consists of different phases of sense gratification. When this desire is changed for the satisfaction of the Lord, it is called devotional service.
In the Bhagavad-gītā we can see that Arjuna desired not to fight with his brothers and relations just to satisfy his own personal desires. But when he heard the message of the Lord, Śrīmad Bhagavad-gītā, he changed his decision and served the Lord. And for his doing so, he became a famous devotee of the Lord, for it is declared in all the scriptures that Arjuna attained spiritual perfection by devotional service to the Lord in friendship. The fighting was there, the friendship was there, Arjuna was there, and Kṛṣṇa was there, but Arjuna became a different person by devotional service. Therefore, the prayers of Kuntī also indicate the same categorical changes in activities. Śrīmatī Kuntī wanted to serve the Lord without diversion, and that was her prayer. This unalloyed devotion is the ultimate goal of life. Our attention is usually diverted to the service of something which is nongodly or not in the program of the Lord. When the program is changed into the service of the Lord, that is to say when the senses are purified in relation with the service of the Lord, it is called pure unalloyed devotional service. Śrīmatī Kuntīdevī wanted that perfection and prayed for it from the Lord.
Her affection for the Pāṇḍavas and the Vṛṣṇis is not out of the range of devotional service because the service of the Lord and the service of the devotees are identical. Sometimes service to the devotee is more valuable than service to the Lord. But here the affection of Kuntīdevī for the Pāṇḍavas and the Vṛṣṇis was due to family relation. This tie of affection in terms of material relation is the relation of māyā because the relations of the body or the mind are due to the influence of the external energy. Relations of the soul, established in relation with the Supreme Soul, are factual relations. When Kuntīdevī wanted to cut off the family relation, she meant to cut off the relation of the skin. The skin relation is the cause of material bondage, but the relation of the soul is the cause of freedom. This relation of the soul to the soul can be established by the via medium of the relation with the Supersoul. Seeing in the darkness is not seeing. But seeing by the light of the sun means to see the sun and everything else which was unseen in the darkness. That is the way of devotional service.
SB1.8.43 TEXT 43 śrī-kṛṣṇa kṛṣṇa-sakha vṛṣṇy-ṛṣabhāvani-dhrug- rājanya-vaṁśa-dahanānapavarga-vīrya govinda go-dvija-surārti-harāvatāra yogeśvarākhila-guro bhagavan namas te SYNONYMS śrī-kṛṣṇa—O Śrī Kṛṣṇa; kṛṣṇa-sakha—O friend of Arjuna; vṛṣṇi—of descendants of Vṛṣṇi; ṛṣabha—O chief; avani—the earth; dhruk—rebellious; rājanya-vaṁśa—dynasties of the kings; dahana—O annihilator; anapavarga—without deterioration of; vīrya—prowess; govinda—O proprietor of Golokadhāma; go—of the cows; dvija—the brāhmaṇas; sura—the demigods; arti-hara—to relieve distress; avatāra—O Lord who descends; yoga-īśvara—O master of all mystic powers; akhila—universal; guro—O preceptor; bhagavan—O possessor of all opulences; namaḥ te—respectful obeisances unto You.
TRANSLATION O Kṛṣṇa, O friend of Arjuna, O chief amongst the descendants of Vṛṣṇi, You are the destroyer of those political parties which are disturbing elements on this earth. Your prowess never deteriorates. You are the proprietor of the transcendental abode, and You descend to relieve the distresses of the cows, the brāhmaṇas and the devotees. You possess all mystic powers, and You are the preceptor of the entire universe. You are the almighty God, and I offer You my respectful obeisances. PURPORT A summary of the Supreme Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa is made herein by Śrīmatī Kuntīdevī. The almighty Lord has His eternal transcendental abode where He is engaged in keeping surabhi cows. He is served by hundreds and thousands of goddesses of fortune. He descends on the material world to reclaim His devotees and to annihilate the disturbing elements in groups of political parties and kings who are supposed to be in charge of administration work. He creates, maintains and annihilates by His unlimited energies, and still He is always full with prowess and does not deteriorate in potency. The cows, the brāhmaṇas and the devotees of the Lord are all objects of His special attention because they are very important factors for the general welfare of living beings.
SB1.8.44 TEXT 44 sūta uvāca pṛthayetthaṁ kala-padaiḥ pariṇūtākhilodayaḥ mandaṁ jahāsa vaikuṇṭho mohayann iva māyayā SYNONYMS sūtaḥ uvāca—Sūta said; pṛthayā—by Pṛthā (Kuntī); ittham—this; kala-padaiḥ—by chosen words; pariṇūta—being worshiped; akhila—universal; udayaḥ—glories; mandam—mildly; jahāsa—smiled; vaikuṇṭhaḥ—the Lord; mohayan—captivating; iva—like; māyayā—His mystic power.
TRANSLATION Sūta Gosvāmī said: The Lord, thus hearing the prayers of Kuntīdevī, composed in choice words for His glorification, mildly smiled. That smile was as enchanting as His mystic power. PURPORT Anything that is enchanting in the world is said to be a representation of the Lord. The conditioned souls, who are engaged in trying to lord it over the material world, are also enchanted by His mystic powers, but His devotees are enchanted in a different way by the glories of the Lord, and His merciful blessings are upon them. His energy is displayed in different ways, as electrical energy works in manifold capacities. Śrīmatī Kuntīdevī has prayed to the Lord just to enunciate a fragment of His glories. All His devotees worship Him in that way, by chosen words, and therefore the Lord is known as Uttamaśloka. No amount of chosen words is sufficient to enumerate the Lord’s glory, and yet He is satisfied by such prayers as the father is satisfied even by the broken linguistic attempts of the growing child. The word māyā is used both in the sense of delusion and mercy. Herein the word māyā is used in the sense of the Lord’s mercy upon Kuntīdevī.
SB1.8.45 TEXT 45 tāṁ bāḍham ity upāmantrya praviśya gajasāhvayam striyaś ca sva-puraṁ yāsyan premṇā rājñā nivāritaḥ SYNONYMS tām—all those; bāḍham—accepted; iti—thus; upāmantrya—subsequently informed; praviśya—entering; gajasāhvayam—the palace of Hastināpura; striyaḥ ca—other ladies; sva-puram—own residence; yāsyan—while starting for; premṇā—with love; rājñā—by the King; nivāritaḥ—stopped.
TRANSLATION Thus accepting the prayers of Śrīmatī Kuntīdevī, the Lord subsequently informed other ladies of His departure by entering the palace of Hastināpura. But upon preparing to leave, He was stopped by King Yudhiṣṭhira, who implored Him lovingly. PURPORT No one could make Lord Kṛṣṇa stay at Hastināpura when He decided to start for Dvārakā, but the simple request of King Yudhiṣṭhira that the Lord remain there for a few days more was immediately effective. This signifies that the power of King Yudhiṣṭhira was loving affection, which the Lord could not deny. The almighty God is thus conquered only by loving service and nothing else. He is fully independent in all His dealings, but He voluntarily accepts obligations by the loving affection of His pure devotees.
SB1.8.46 TEXT 46 vyāsādyair īśvarehājñaiḥ kṛṣṇenādbhuta-karmaṇā prabodhito ’pītihāsair nābudhyata śucārpitaḥ SYNONYMS vyāsa-ādyaiḥ—by great sages headed by Vyāsa; īśvara—the almighty God; īhā—by the will of; jñaiḥ—by the learned; kṛṣṇena—by Kṛṣṇa Himself; adbhuta-karmaṇā—by one who performs all superhuman work; prabodhitaḥ—being solaced; api—although; itihāsaiḥ—by evidences from the histories; na—not; abudhyata—satisfied; śucā arpitaḥ—distressed.
TRANSLATION King Yudhiṣṭhira, who was much aggrieved, could not be convinced, despite instructions by great sages headed by Vyāsa and the Lord Kṛṣṇa Himself, the performer of superhuman feats, and despite all historical evidence. PURPORT The pious King Yudhiṣṭhira was mortified because of the mass massacre of human beings in the Battle of Kurukṣetra, especially on his account. Duryodhana was there on the throne, and he was doing well in his administration, and in one sense there was no need of fighting. But on the principle of justice Yudhiṣṭhira was to replace him. The whole clique of politics centered around this point, and all the kings and residents of the whole world became involved in this fight between the rival brothers. Lord Kṛṣṇa was also there on the side of King Yudhiṣṭhira. It is said in the Mahābhārata, Ādi-parva (20) that 640,000,000 men were killed in the eighteen days of the Battle of Kurukṣetra, and some hundreds of thousands were missing. Practically this was the greatest battle in the world within five thousand years.
This mass killing simply to enthrone Mahārāja Yudhiṣṭhira was too mortifying, so he tried to be convinced with evidences from histories by great sages like Vyāsa and the Lord Himself that the fight was just because the cause was just. But Mahārāja Yudhiṣṭhira would not be satisfied, even though he was instructed by the greatest personalities of the time. Kṛṣṇa is designated herein as the performer of superhuman actions, but in this particular instance neither He nor Vyāsa could convince King Yudhiṣṭhira. Does it mean that He failed to be a superhuman actor? No, certainly not. The interpretation is that the Lord as īśvara, or the Supersoul in the hearts of both King Yudhiṣṭhira and Vyāsa, performed still more superhuman action because the Lord desired it. As Supersoul of King Yudhiṣṭhira, He did not allow the King to be convinced by the words of Vyāsa and others, including Himself, because He desired that the King hear instructions from the dying Bhīṣmadeva, who was another great devotee of the Lord. The Lord wanted that at the last stage of his material existence the great warrior Bhīṣmadeva see Him personally and see his beloved grandchildren, King Yudhiṣṭhira, etc., now situated on the throne, and thus pass away very peacefully. Bhīṣmadeva was not at all satisfied to fight against the Pāṇḍavas, who were his beloved fatherless grandchildren. But the kṣatriyas are also very stern people, and therefore he was obliged to take the side of Duryodhana because he was maintained at the expense of Duryodhana. Besides this, the Lord also desired that King Yudhiṣṭhira be pacified by the words of Bhīṣmadeva so that the world could see that Bhīṣmadeva excelled all in knowledge, including the Lord Himself.
SB1.8.47 TEXT 47 āha rājā dharma-sutaś cintayan suhṛdāṁ vadham prākṛtenātmanā viprāḥ sneha-moha-vaśaṁ gataḥ SYNONYMS āha—said; rājā—King Yudhiṣṭhira; dharma-sutaḥ—the son of Dharma (Yamarāja); cintayan—thinking of; suhṛdām—of the friends; vadham—killing; prākṛtena—by material conception only; ātmanā—by the self; viprāḥ—O brāhmaṇa; sneha—affection; moha—delusion; vaśam—being carried away by; gataḥ—having gone.
TRANSLATION King Yudhiṣṭhira, son of Dharma, overwhelmed by the death of his friends, was aggrieved just like a common, materialistic man. O sages, thus deluded by affection, he began to speak. PURPORT King Yudhiṣṭhira, though he was not expected to become aggrieved like a common man, became deluded by worldly affection by the will of the Lord (just as Arjuna was apparently deluded). A man who sees knows well that the living entity is neither the body nor the mind, but is transcendental to the material conception of life. The common man thinks of violence and nonviolence in terms of the body, but that is a kind of delusion. Everyone is duty-bound according to one’s occupational duties. A kṣatriya is bound to fight for the right cause, regardless of the opposite party. In such discharge of duty, one should not be disturbed by annihilation of the material body, which is only an external dress of the living soul. All this was perfectly known to Mahārāja Yudhiṣṭhira, but by the will of the Lord he became just like a common man because there was another great idea behind this delusion: the King would be instructed by Bhīṣma as Arjuna was instructed by the Lord Himself.
SB1.8.48 TEXT 48 aho me paśyatājñānaṁ hṛdi rūḍhaṁ durātmanaḥ pārakyasyaiva dehasya bahvyo me ’kṣauhiṇīr hatāḥ SYNONYMS aho—O; me—my; paśyata—just see; ajñānam—ignorance; hṛdi—in the heart; rūḍham—situated in; durātmanaḥ—of the sinful; pārakyasya—meant for others; eva—certainly; dehasya—of the body; bahvyaḥ—many, many; me—by me; akṣauhiṇīḥ—combination of military phalanxes; hatāḥ—killed.
TRANSLATION King Yudhiṣṭhira said: O my lot! I am the most sinful man! Just see my heart, which is full of ignorance! This body, which is ultimately meant for others, has killed many, many phalanxes of men. PURPORT A solid phalanx of 21,870 chariots, 21,870 elephants, 109,650 infantry and 65,600 cavalry is called an akṣauhiṇī. And many akṣauhiṇīs were killed on the Battlefield of Kurukṣetra. Mahārāja Yudhiṣṭhira, as the most pious king of the world, takes for himself the responsibility for killing such a huge number of living beings because the battle was fought to reinstate him on the throne. This body is, after all, meant for others. While there is life in the body, it is meant for the service of others, and when it is dead it is meant to be eaten by dogs and jackals or maggots. He is sorry because for such a temporary body such a huge massacre was committed.
SB1.8.49 TEXT 49 bāla-dvija-suhṛn-mitra- pitṛ-bhrātṛ-guru-druhaḥ na me syān nirayān mokṣo hy api varṣāyutāyutaiḥ SYNONYMS bāla—boys; dvi-ja—the twice-born; suhṛt—well-wishers; mitra—friends; pitṛ—parents; bhrātṛ—brothers; guru—preceptors; druhaḥ—one who has killed; na—never; me—my; syāt—there shall be; nirayāt—from hell; mokṣaḥ—liberation; hi—certainly; api—although; varṣa—years; ayuta—millions; āyutaiḥ—being added.
TRANSLATION I have killed many boys, brāhmaṇas, well-wishers, friends, parents, preceptors and brothers. Though I live millions of years, I will not be relieved from the hell that awaits me for all these sins. PURPORT Whenever there is a war, there is certainly a massacre of many innocent living beings, such as boys, brāhmaṇas and women, whose killing is considered to be the greatest of sins. They are all innocent creatures, and in all circumstances killing of them is forbidden in the scriptures. Mahārāja Yudhiṣṭhira was aware of these mass killings. Similarly, there were friends, parents and preceptors also on both sides, and all of them were killed. It was simply horrible for him to think of such killing, and therefore he was thinking of residing in hell for millions and billions of years.
SB1.8.50 TEXT 50 naino rājñaḥ prajā-bhartur dharma-yuddhe vadho dviṣām iti me na tu bodhāya kalpate śāsanaṁ vacaḥ SYNONYMS na—never; enaḥ—sins; rājñaḥ—of the king; prajā-bhartuḥ—of one who is engaged in the maintenance of the citizens; dharma—for the right cause; yuddhe—in the fight; vadhaḥ—killing; dviṣām—of the enemies; iti—all these; me—for me; na—never; tu—but; bodhāya—for satisfaction; kalpate—they are meant for administration; śāsanam—injunction; vacaḥ—words of.
TRANSLATION There is no sin for a king who kills for the right cause, who is engaged in maintaining his citizens. But this injunction is not applicable to me. PURPORT Mahārāja Yudhiṣṭhira thought that although he was not actually involved in the administration of the kingdom, which was being carried on well by Duryodhana without harm to the citizens, he caused the killing of so many living beings only for his personal gain of the kingdom from the hands of Duryodhana. The killing was committed not in the course of administration but for the sake of self-aggrandizement, and as such he thought himself responsible for all the sins.
SB1.8.51 TEXT 51 strīṇāṁ mad-dhata-bandhūnāṁ droho yo ’sāv ihotthitaḥ karmabhir gṛhamedhīyair nāhaṁ kalpo vyapohitum SYNONYMS strīṇām—of the women; mat—by me; hata-bandhūnām—of the friends who are killed; drohaḥ—enmity; yaḥ—that; asau—all those; iha—herewith; utthitaḥ—has accrued; karmabhiḥ—by dint of work; gṛhamedhīyaiḥ—by persons engaged in material welfare; na—never; aham—I; kalpaḥ—can expect; vyapohitum—undoing the same.
TRANSLATION I have killed many friends of women, and I have thus caused enmity to such an extent that it is not possible to undo it by material welfare work. PURPORT The gṛhamedhīs are those whose only business is to perform welfare work for the sake of material prosperity. Such material prosperity is sometimes hampered by sinful activities, for the materialist is sure to commit sins, even unintentionally, in the course of discharging material duties. To get relief from such sinful reactions, the Vedas prescribe several kinds of sacrifices. It is said in the Vedas that by performing the Aśvamedha-yajña (horse sacrifice) one can get relief from even brahma-hatyā (killing of a brāhmaṇa).
Yudhiṣṭhira Mahārāja performed this Aśvamedha-yajña, but he thinks that even by performing such yajñas it is not possible to get relief from the great sins committed. In war either the husband or the brother or even the father or sons go to fight. And when they are killed, a fresh enmity is created, and thus a chain of actions and reactions increases which is not possible to be counteracted even by thousands of Aśvamedha-yajñas.
The way of work (karma) is like that. It creates one action and another reaction simultaneously and thus increases the chain of material activities, binding the performer in material bondage. In the Bhagavad-gītā (Bg. 9.27–28) the remedy is suggested that such actions and reactions of the path of work can be checked only when work is done on behalf of the Supreme Lord. The Battle of Kurukṣetra was actually fought by the will of the Supreme Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa, as it is evident from His version, and only by His will was Yudhiṣṭhira placed on the throne of Hastināpura. Therefore, factually no sin whatsoever touched the Pāṇḍavas, who were only the order carriers of the Lord. For others, who declare war out of personal interest, the whole responsibility lies on them.
SB1.8.52 TEXT 52 yathā paṅkena paṅkāmbhaḥ surayā vā surākṛtam bhūta-hatyāṁ tathaivaikāṁ na yajñair mārṣṭum arhati SYNONYMS yathā—as much as; paṅkena—by the mud; paṅka-ambhaḥ—water mixed with mud; surayā—by wine; vā—either; surākṛtam—impurity caused by the slight touch of wine; bhūta-hatyām—killing of animals; tathā—like that; eva—certainly; ekām—one; na—never; yajñaiḥ—by the prescribed sacrifices; mārṣṭum—to counteract; arhati—is worthwhile.
TRANSLATION As it is not possible to filter muddy water through mud, or purify a wine-stained pot with wine, it is not possible to counteract the killing of men by sacrificing animals. PURPORT Aśvamedha-yajñas or Gomedha-yajñas, sacrifices in which a horse or a bull is sacrificed, were not, of course, for the purpose of killing the animals. Lord Caitanya said that such animals sacrificed on the altar of yajña were rejuvenated and a new life was given to them. It was just to prove the efficacy of the hymns of the Vedas. By recitation of the hymns of the Vedas in the proper way, certainly the performer gets relief from the reactions of sins, but in case of such sacrifices improperly done under inexpert management, surely one has to become responsible for animal sacrifice. In this age of quarrel and hypocrisy there is no possibility of performing the yajñas perfectly for want of expert brāhmaṇas who are able to conduct such yajñas. Mahārāja Yudhiṣṭhira therefore gives a hint to performing sacrifices in the age of Kali. In the Kali-yuga the only sacrifice recommended is the performance of hari-nāma-yajña inaugurated by Lord Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu. But one should not indulge in animal killing and counteract it by performing the hari-nāma yajña. Those who are devotees of the Lord never kill an animal for self-interest, and (as the Lord ordered Arjuna) they do not refrain from performing the duty of a kṣatriya. The whole purpose, therefore, is served when everything is done for the will of the Lord. This is possible only for the devotees.
Thus end the Bhaktivedanta purports of the First Canto, Eighth Chapter, of the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, entitled “Prayers by Queen Kuntī and Parīkṣit Saved.” THIS WEB PAGE URL: http://causelessmercy.com/SB1.8.3.htm