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kathah—messages or instructions; madiyah—given by Me; jusamanah—always hearing or contemplating; priyah—extremely pleasing; tvam—yourself; avesya—being fully absorbed in; mam—Me; atmani—within the core of your heart; santam—existing; ekam—one (the same Supreme Soul); sarvesu—in all; bhutesu—living entities; adhiyajnam—the enjoyer of all ritualistic ceremonies; isam—the Supreme Lord; yajasva—worship; yogena—by bhakti-yoga, devotional service; ca—also; karma—fruitive activities; hinvan—giving up.

It does not matter that you are in the material world. You should always, continuously, hear the instructions and messages given by Me and always be absorbed in thought of Me, for I am the Supersoul existing in the core of everyone’s heart. Therefore, give up fruitive activities and worship Me.

When a devotee becomes materially very opulent, one should not think that he is enjoying the results of his fruitive activities. A devotee in this material world uses all material opulences for the service of the Lord because he is planning how to serve the Lord with these opulences, as advised by the Lord Himself. Whatever material opulence is within his possession he engages to expand the glories and service of the Lord. A devotee never performs any fruitive or ritualistic ceremony to enjoy the results of such karma. Rather, a devotee knows that karma-kanda is meant for the less intelligent man. Narottama dasa Thakura says in his prema-bhakti-candrika, karma-kanda, jnana-kanda, kevala visera bhanda: both karma-kanda and jnana-kanda—fruitive activities and speculation about the Supreme Lord—are like pots of poison. One who is attracted to karma-kanda and jnana-kanda spoils his existence as a human being. Therefore a devotee is never interested in karma-kanda or jnana-kanda, but is simply interested in favorable service to the Lord (anukulyena krsnanusilanam), or cultivation of spiritual activities in devotional service.

SB7.10.13

TEXT 13

bhogena punyam kusalena papam

kalevaram kala-javena hitva

kirtim visuddham sura-loka-gitam

vitaya mam esyasi mukta-bandhah

bhogena—by feelings of material happiness; punyam—pious activities or their results; kusalena—by acting piously (devotional service is the best of all pious activities); papam—all kinds of reactions to impious activities; kalevaram—the material body; kala-javena—by the most powerful time factor; hitva—giving up; kirtim—reputation; visuddham—transcendental or fully purified; sura-loka-gitam—praised even in the heavenly planets; vitaya—spreading all through the universe; mam—unto Me; esyasi—you will come back; mukta-bandhah—being liberated from all bondage.

My dear Prahlada, while you are in this material world you will exhaust all the reactions of pious activity by feeling happiness, and by acting piously you will neutralize impious activity. Because of the powerful time factor, you will give up your body, but the glories of your activities will be sung in the upper planetary systems, and being fully freed from all bondage, you will return home, back to Godhead.

Srila Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura says: evam prahladasyamsena sadhana-siddhatvam nitya-siddhatvam ca naradadivaj jneyam. There are two classes of devotees—the sadhana-siddha and the nitya-siddha. Prahlada Maharaja is a mixed siddha; that is, he is perfect partly because of executing devotional service and partly because of eternal perfection. Thus he is compared to such devotees as Narada. Formerly, Narada Muni was the son of a maidservant, and therefore in his next birth he attained perfection (sadhana-siddhi) because of having executed devotional service. Yet he is also a nitya-siddha because he never forgets the Supreme Personality of Godhead.

The word kusalena is very important. One should live in the material world very expertly. The material world is known as the world of duality because one sometimes has to act impiously and sometimes has to act piously. Although one does not want to act impiously, the world is so fashioned that there is always danger (padam padam yad vipadam). Thus even when performing devotional service a devotee has to create many enemies. Prahlada Maharaja himself had experience of this, for even his father became his enemy. A devotee should expertly manage to think always of the Supreme Lord so that the reactions of suffering cannot touch him. This is the expert management of papa-punya—pious and impious activities. An exalted devotee like Prahlada Maharaja is jivan-mukta; he is liberated even in this very life in the material body.

SB7.10.14

TEXT 14

ya etat kirtayen mahyam

tvaya gitam idam narah

tvam ca mam ca smaran kale

karma-bandhat pramucyate

yah—anyone who; etat—this activity; kirtayet—chants; mahyam—unto Me; tvaya—by you; gitam—prayers offered; idam—this; narah—human being; tvam—you; ca—as well as; mam ca—Me also; smaran—remembering; kale—in due course of time; karma-bandhat—from the bondage of material activities; pramucyate—becomes free.

One who always remembers your activities and My activities also, and who chants the prayers you have offered, becomes free, in due course of time, from the reactions of material activities.

Here it is stated that anyone who chants and hears about the activities of Prahlada Maharaja and, in relationship with Prahlada’s activities, the activities of Nrsimhadeva, gradually becomes free from all the bondage of fruitive activities. As stated in Bhagavad-gita (2.15, 2.56):

yam hi na vyathayanty ete
purusam purusarsabha
sama-duhkha-sukham dhiram
so ’mrtatvaya kalpate

“O best among men [Arjuna], the person who is not disturbed by happiness and distress and is steady in both is certainly eligible for liberation.”

duhkhesv anudvigna-manah
sukhesu vigata-sprhah
vita-raga-bhaya-krodhah
sthita-dhir munir ucyate

[Bg. 2.56]

“One who is not disturbed in spite of the threefold miseries, who is not elated when there is happiness, and who is free from attachment, fear and anger, is called a sage of steady mind.” A devotee should not be aggrieved in an awkward position, nor should he feel extraordinarily happy in material opulence. This is the way of expert management of material life. Because a devotee knows how to manage expertly, he is called jivan-mukta. As Rupa Gosvami explains in Bhakti-rasamrta-sindhu:

iha yasya harer dasye
karmana manasa gira
nikhilasv apy avasthasu
jivan-muktah sa ucyate

“A person acting in Krsna consciousness (or, in other words, in the service of Krsna) with his body, mind, intelligence and words is a liberated person even within this material world, although he may be engaged in many so-called material activities.” Because of constantly engaging in devotional service, in any condition of life, a devotee is free from all material bondage.

bhaktih punati man-nistha
sva-pakan api sambhavat

“Even one born in a family of meat-eaters is purified if he engages in devotional service.” (Bhag. 11.14.21) Srila Jiva Gosvami cites this verse in logically supporting that anyone who chants about the pure life and activities of Prahlada Maharaja is freed from the reactions of material activities.

tvam avidvams teja aisvaram

viddhamarsasayah saksat

sarva-loka-gurum prabhum

bhratr-heti mrsa-drstis

tvad-bhakte mayi caghavan

tasmat pita me puyeta

durantad dustarad aghat

putas te ’panga-samdrstas

tada krpana-vatsala

sri-prahradah uvaca—Prahlada Maharaja said; varam—benediction; varaye—I pray; etat—this; te—from You; varada-isat—the Supreme Personality of Godhead, who offers benedictions even to such exalted demigods as Brahma and Siva; maha-isvara—O my Supreme Lord; yat—that; anindat—vilified; pita—father; me—my; tvam—You; avidvan—without knowledge of; tejah—strength; aisvaram—supremacy; viddha—being polluted; amarsa—with anger; asayah—within the heart; saksat—directly; sarva-loka-gurum—unto the supreme spiritual master of all living beings; prabhum—unto the supreme master; bhratr-ha—the killer of his brother; iti—thus; mrsa-drstih—falsely envious because of a false conception; tvat-bhakte—unto Your devotee; mayi—unto me; ca—and; agha-van—who committed heavily sinful activities; tasmat—from that; pita—father; me—my; puyeta—may be purified; durantat—very great; dustarat—difficult to pass over; aghat—from all sinful activities; putah—(although he was) purified; te—of You; apanga—by the glance over him; samdrstah—being looked at; tada—at that time; krpana-vatsala—O You who are merciful to the materialistic.

Prahlada Maharaja said: O Supreme Lord, because You are so merciful to the fallen souls, I ask You for only one benediction. I know that my father, at the time of his death, had already been purified by Your glance upon him, but because of his ignorance of Your beautiful power and supremacy, he was unnecessarily angry at You, falsely thinking that You were the killer of his brother. Thus he directly blasphemed Your Lordship, the spiritual master of all living beings, and committed heavily sinful activities directed against me, Your devotee. I wish that he be excused for these sinful activities.

Although Hiranyakasipu was purified as soon as he came in contact with the Lord’s lap and the Lord saw him, Prahlada Maharaja still wanted to hear from the Lord’s own mouth that his father had been purified by the Lord’s causeless mercy. Prahlada Maharaja offered this prayer to the Lord for the sake of his father. As a Vaisnava son, despite all the inconveniences imposed upon him by his father, he could not forget his father’s affection.

SB7.10.18

TEXT 18

sri-bhagavan uvaca

trih-saptabhih pita putah

pitrbhih saha te ’nagha

yat sadho ’sya kule jato

bhavan vai kula-pavanah

sri-bhagavan uvaca—the Supreme Personality of Godhead said; trih-saptabhih—seven multiplied by three (that is to say, twenty-one); pita—father; putah—purified; pitrbhih—with your forefathers; saha—all together; te—your; anagha—O most sinless personality (Prahlada Maharaja); yat—because; sadho—O great saintly person; asya—of this person; kule—in the dynasty; jatah—took birth; bhavan—you; vai—indeed; kula-pavanah—the purifier of the whole dynasty.

The Supreme Personality of Godhead said: My dear Prahlada, O most pure, O great saintly person, your father has been purified, along with twenty-one forefathers in your family. Because you were born in this family, the entire dynasty has been purified.

The word trih-saptabhih means seven multiplied by three. In one’s family one can count back four or five generations—to one’s great-grandfather or even one’s great-grandfather’s father—but since the Lord mentions twenty-one forefathers, this indicates that the benediction expands to other families also. Before the present family in which one has taken birth, one must have been born in other families. Thus when a Vaisnava takes birth in a family, by the grace of the Lord he purifies not only that family but also the families of his previous births.

SB7.10.19

TEXT 19

yatra yatra ca mad-bhaktah

prasantah sama-darsinah

sadhavah samudacaras

te puyante ’pi kikatah

yatra yatra—wherever and whenever; ca—also; mat-bhaktah—My devotees; prasantah—extremely peaceful; sama-darsinah—equipoised; sadhavah—decorated with all good qualities; samudacarah—equally magnanimous; te—all of them; puyante—are purified; api—even; kikatah—a degraded country or the inhabitants of such a place.

Whenever and wherever there are peaceful, equipoised devotees who are well behaved and decorated with all good qualities, that place and the dynasties there, even if condemned, are purified.

Wherever exalted devotees stay, not only they and their dynasties but the entire country is purified.

SB7.10.20

TEXT 20

sarvatmana na himsanti

bhuta-gramesu kincana

uccavacesu daityendra

mad-bhava-vigata-sprhah

sarva-atmana—in all respects, even in the modes of anger and jealousy; na—never; himsanti—they are envious; bhuta-gramesu—among all species of life; kincana—toward any one of them; ucca-avacesu—the lower and higher living entities; daitya-indra—O my dear Prahlada, King of the Daityas; mat-bhava—because of devotional service unto Me; vigata—given up; sprhah—all material modes of anger and greed.

My dear Prahlada, King of the Daityas, because of being attached to devotional service to Me, My devotee does not distinguish between lower and higher living entities. In all respects, he is never jealous of anyone.

SB7.10.21

TEXT 21

bhavanti purusa loke

mad-bhaktas tvam anuvratah

bhavan me khalu bhaktanam

sarvesam pratirupa-dhrk

SYNONYMS

bhavanti—become; purusah—persons; loke—in this world; mat-bhaktah—My pure devotees; tvam—you; anuvratah—following in your footsteps; bhavan—you; me—My; khalu—indeed; bhaktanam—of all devotees; sarvesam—in different mellows; pratirupa-dhrk—tangible example.

TRANSLATION

Those who follow your example will naturally become My pure devotees. You are the best example of My devotee, and others should follow in your footsteps.

PURPORT

In this connection, Srila Madhvacarya quotes a verse from the Skanda Purana:

rte tu tattvikan devan
naradadims tathaiva ca
prahradad uttamah ko nu
visnu-bhaktau jagat-traye

There are many, many devotees of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, and they have been enumerated in Srimad-Bhagavatam (6.3.20) as follows:

svayambhur naradah sambhuh
kumarah kapilo manuh
prahlado janako bhismo
balir vaiyasakir vayam

Of the twelve authorized devotees—Lord Brahma, Narada, Lord Siva, Kapila, Manu and so on—Prahlada Maharaja is understood to be the best example.

SB7.10.22

TEXT 22

kuru tvam preta-krtyani

pituh putasya sarvasah

mad-anga-sparsanenanga

lokan yasyati suprajah

kuru—perform; tvam—you; preta-krtyani—the ritualistic ceremony performed after death; pituh—of your father; putasya—already purified; sarvasah—in all respects; mat-anga—My body; sparsanena—by touching; anga—My dear child; lokan—to planets; yasyati—he will be elevated; su-prajah—to become a devotee-citizen.

My dear child, your father has already been purified just by the touch of My body at the time of his death. Nonetheless, the duty of a son is to perform the sraddha ritualistic ceremony after his father’s death so that his father may be promoted to a planetary system where he may become a good citizen and devotee.

In this regard, Srila Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura says that although Hiranyakasipu was already purified, he had to take birth on a higher planetary system to become a devotee again. Prahlada Maharaja was advised to perform the ritualistic ceremony as a matter of etiquette, for the Supreme Personality of Godhead under no circumstances wants to stop the regulative principles. Madhva Muni also instructs:

madhu-kaitabhau bhakty-abhava
durau bhagavato mrtau
tama eva kramad aptau
bhaktya ced yo harim yayau

When the demons Madhu and Kaitabha were killed by the Supreme Personality of Godhead, their kinsmen also observed the ritualistic ceremonies so that these demons could return home, back to Godhead.

SB7.10.23

TEXT 23

pitryam ca sthanam atistha

yathoktam brahmavadibhih

mayy avesya manas tata

kuru karmani mat-parah

pitryam—paternal; ca—also; sthanam—place, throne; atistha—sit upon; yatha-uktam—as described; brahmavadibhih—by the followers of Vedic civilization; mayi—unto Me; avesya—being fully absorbed; manah—the mind; tata—My dear boy; kuru—just execute; karmani—the regulative duties; mat-parah—just for the sake of My work.

After performing the ritualistic ceremonies, take charge of your father’s kingdom. Sit upon the throne and do not be disturbed by materialistic activities. Please keep your mind fixed upon Me. Without transgressing the injunctions of the Vedas, as a matter of formality you may perform your particular duties.

When one becomes a devotee, he no longer has any duty to the Vedic regulative principles. One has many duties to perform, but if one becomes fully devoted to the Lord, he no longer has any such obligations. As stated in Srimad-Bhagavatam (11.5.41):

devarsi-bhutapta-nrnam pitrnam
na kinkaro nayam rni ca rajan
sarvatmana yah saranam saranyam
gato mukundam parihrtya kartam

One who has fully surrendered to the lotus feet of the Lord is no longer a debtor to his forefathers, the great sages, human society, the common man or any living entity.

The Supreme Personality of Godhead nonetheless advised Prahlada Maharaja to follow the regulative principles, for since he was going to be the king, others would follow his example. Thus Lord Nrsimhadeva advised Prahlada Maharaja to engage in his political duties so that people would become the Lord’s devotees.

yad yad acarati sresthas
tad tad evetaro janah
sa yat pramanam kurute
lokas tad anuvartate

“Whatever action a great man performs, common men follow. And whatever standards he sets by exemplary acts, all the world pursues.” (Bg. 3.21) One should not be attached to any materialistic activities, but a devotee may perform such activities as an example to show the common man that one should not deviate from the Vedic injunctions.

SB7.10.24

TEXT 24

sri-narada uvaca

prahrado ’pi tatha cakre

pitur yat samparayikam

yathaha bhagavan rajann

abhisikto dvijatibhih

sri-naradah uvaca—Narada Muni said; prahradah—Prahlada Maharaja; api—also; tatha—in that way; cakre—executed; pituh—of his father; yat—whatever; samparayikam—ritualistic ceremonies performed after death; yatha—even as; aha—order; bhagavan—the Supreme Personality of Godhead; rajan—O King Yudhisthira; abhisiktah—he was enthroned in the kingdom; dvi-jatibhih—by the brahmanas present.

Sri Narada Muni continued: Thus, as the Supreme Personality of Godhead ordered, Prahlada Maharaja performed the ritualistic ceremonies for his father. O King Yudhisthira, he was then enthroned in the kingdom of Hiranyakasipu, as directed by the brahmanas.

It is essential that society be divided into four groups of men—brahmanas, ksatriyas, vaisyas and sudras. Here we see that although Prahlada was perfect in every respect, he nonetheless followed the instructions of the brahmanas who performed the Vedic rituals. Therefore in society there must be a very intelligent class of leaders who are well versed in the Vedic knowledge so that they can guide the entire populace to follow the Vedic principles and thus gradually become most perfect and eligible to return home, back to Godhead.

SB7.10.25

TEXT 25

prasada-sumukham drstva

brahma naraharim harim

stutva vagbhih pavitrabhih

praha devadibhir vrtah

prasada-sumukham—whose face was bright because the Supreme Lord was pleased; drstva—seeing this situation; brahma—Lord Brahma; nara-harim—unto Lord Nrsimhadeva; harim—the Supreme Personality of Godhead; stutva—offering prayers; vagbhih—by transcendental words; pavitrabhih—without any material contamination; praha—addressed (the Lord); deva-adibhih—by other demigods; vrtah—surrounded.

Lord Brahma, surrounded by the other demigods, was bright-faced because the Lord was pleased. Thus he offered prayers to the Lord with transcendental words.

SB7.10.26

TEXT 26

sri-brahmovaca

deva-devakhiladhyaksa

bhuta-bhavana purvaja

distya te nihatah papo

loka-santapano ’surah

SYNONYMS

sri-brahma uvaca—Lord Brahma said; deva-deva—O my Lord, Lord of all the demigods; akhila-adhyaksa—owner of the whole universe; bhuta-bhavana—O cause of all living entities; purva-ja—O original Personality of Godhead; distya—by Your example or because of our good fortune; te—by You; nihatah—killed; papah—most sinful; loka-santapanah—giving trouble to the entire universe; asurah—the demon Hiranyakasipu.

TRANSLATION

Lord Brahma said: O Supreme Lord of all lords, proprietor of the entire universe, O benedictor of all living entities, O original person [adi-purusa], because of our good fortune You have now killed this sinful demon, who was giving trouble to the entire universe.

PURPORT

The word purvaja is described in Bhagavad-gita (10.8): aham sarvasya prabhavo mattah sarvam pravartate. All the demigods, including Lord Brahma, are manifested from the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Therefore the original person, the cause of all causes, is Govinda, the adi-purusam.

SB7.10.27

TEXT 27

yo ’sau labdha-varo matto

na vadhyo mama srstibhih

tapo-yoga-balonnaddhah

samasta-nigaman ahan

yah—the person who; asau—he (Hiranyakasipu); labdha-varah—being given the extraordinary benediction; mattah—from me; na vadhyah—not to be killed; mama srstibhih—by any living being created by me; tapah-yoga-bala—by austerity, mystic power and strength; unnaddhah—thus being very proud; samasta—all; nigaman—Vedic injunctions; ahan—disregarded, transgressed.