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Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 1.17.17
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A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada
TEXT 17
- dharma uvāca
- etad vaḥ pāṇḍaveyānāṁ
- yuktam ārtābhayaṁ vacaḥ
- yeṣāṁ guṇa-gaṇaiḥ kṛṣṇo
- dautyādau bhagavān kṛtaḥ
dharmaḥthe personality of religion said uvācathe personality of religion said — the personality of religion said; etatall these — all these; vaḥby you — by you; pāṇḍaveyānāmof those who are in the Pāṇḍava dynasty — of those who are in the Pāṇḍava dynasty; yuktamjust befitting — just befitting; ārtathe sufferer — the sufferer; abhayamfreedom from all fears — freedom from all fears; vacaḥspeeches — speeches; yeṣāmthose — those; guṇaby the qualifications-gaṇaiḥby the qualifications — by the qualifications; kṛṣṇaḥeven Lord Kṛṣṇa — even Lord Kṛṣṇa; dautyathe duty of a messenger, etc-ādauthe duty of a messenger, etc — the duty of a messenger, etc.; bhagavānthe Personality of Godhead — the Personality of Godhead; kṛtaḥperformed — performed.
The personality of religion said: These words just spoken by you befit a person of the Pāṇḍava dynasty. Captivated by the devotional qualities of the Pāṇḍavas, even Lord Kṛṣṇa, the Personality of Godhead, performed duties as a messenger.
The assurances and challenges made by Mahārāja Parīkṣit are never exaggerations of his real power. The Mahārāja said that even the denizens of heaven could not escape his stringent government if they were violators of religious principles. He was not falsely proud, for a devotee of the Lord is equally as powerful as the Lord or sometimes more powerful by His grace, and any promise made by a devotee, though it may be ordinarily very difficult to fulfill, is properly executed by the grace of the Lord. The Pāṇḍavas, by their unalloyed devotional service and full surrender unto the Lord, made it possible for the Lord to become a chariot driver or sometimes their letter messenger. Such duties executed by the Lord for His devotee are always very pleasing to the Lord because the Lord wants to render service to His unalloyed devotee, whose life has no other engagement than to serve the Lord with full love and devotion. Mahārāja Parīkṣit, grandson of Arjuna, the celebrated friendly servitor of the Lord, was a pure devotee of the Lord like his grandfather, and therefore the Lord was always with him, even from the time when he was helplessly lying in the womb of his mother and was attacked by the blazing brahmāstra weapon of Aśvatthāmā. A devotee is always under the protection of the Lord, and therefore the assurance of protection by Mahārāja Parīkṣit could never be without meaning. The personality of religion accepted this fact and thus thanked the King for his being true to his exalted position.