King Prthu’s Appearance and Coronation
4.15.1
maitreya uvaca
atha tasya punar viprair
aputrasya mahipateh
bahubhyam mathyamanabhyam
mithunam samapadyata
SYNONYMS
maitreyah uvaca—Maitreya continued to speak; atha—thus; tasya—his; punah—again; vipraih—by the brahmanas; aputrasya—without a son; mahipateh—of the King; bahubhyam—from the arms; mathyamanabhyam—being churned; mithunam—a couple; samapadyata—took birth.
TRANSLATION
The great sage Maitreya continued: My dear Vidura, thus the brahmanas and the great sages again churned the two arms of King Vena’s dead body.
As a result a male and female couple came out of his arms.
4.15.2
tad drstva mithunam jatam
rsayo brahma-vadinah
ucuh parama-santusta
viditva bhagavat-kalam
SYNONYMS
tat—that; drstva—seeing; mithunam—couple; jatam—born; rsayah—the great sages; brahma-vadinah—very learned in Vedic knowledge; ucuh—said; parama—very much; santustah—being pleased; viditva—knowing; bhagavat—of the Supreme Personality of Godhead; kalam—expansion.
TRANSLATION
The great sages were highly learned in Vedic knowledge.
When they saw the male and female born of the arms of Vena’s body, they were very pleased, for they could understand that the couple was an expansion of a plenary portion of Visnu, the Supreme Personality of Godhead.
PURPORT
The method adopted by the great sages and scholars, who were learned in Vedic knowledge, was perfect.
They removed all the reactions of King Vena’s sinful activities by seeing that King Vena first gave birth to Bahuka, described in the previous chapter.
After King Vena’s body was thus purified, a male and female came out of it, and the great sages could understand that this was an expansion of Lord Visnu.
This expansion, of course, was not visnu-tattva but a specifically empowered expansion of Lord Visnu known as avesa.
4.15.3
rsaya ucuh
esa visnor bhagavatah
kala bhuvana-palini
iyam ca laksmyah sambhutih
purusasyanapayini
SYNONYMS
rsayah ucuh—the sages said; esah—this male; visnoh—of Lord Visnu; bhagavatah—of the Supreme Personality of Godhead; kala—expansion; bhuvana-palini—who maintains the world; iyam—this female; ca—also; laksmyah—of the goddess of fortune; sambhutih—expansion; purusasya—of the Lord; anapayini—inseparable.
TRANSLATION
The great sages said: The male is a plenary expansion of the power of Lord Visnu, who maintains the entire universe, and the female is a plenary expansion of the goddess of fortune, who is never separated from the Lord.
PURPORT
The significance of the goddess of fortune’s never being separated from the Lord is clearly mentioned herein.
People in the material world are very fond of the goddess of fortune, and they want her favor in the form of riches.
They should know, however, that the goddess of fortune is inseparable from Lord Visnu.
Materialists should understand that the goddess of fortune should be worshiped along with Lord Visnu and should not be regarded separately.
Materialists seeking the favor of the goddess of fortune must worship Lord Visnu and Laksmi together to maintain material opulence.
If a materialist follows the policy of Ravana, who wanted to separate Sita from Lord Ramacandra, the process of separation will vanquish him.
Those who are very rich and have taken favor of the goddess of fortune in this world must engage their money in the service of the Lord.
In this way they can continue in their opulent position without disturbance.
4.15.4
ayam tu prathamo rajnam
puman prathayita yasah
prthur nama maharajo
bhavisyati prthu-sravah
SYNONYMS
ayam—this; tu—then; prathamah—the first; rajnam—of kings; puman—the male; prathayita—will expand; yasah—reputation; prthuh—Maharaja Prthu; nama—by name; maha-rajah—the great king; bhavisyati—will become; prthu-sravah—of wide renown.
TRANSLATION
Of the two, the male will be able to expand his reputation throughout the world.
His name will be Prthu.
Indeed, he will be the first among kings.
PURPORT
There are different types of incarnations of the Supreme Personality of Godhead.
In the sastras it is said that Garuda (the carrier of Lord Visnu) and Lord Siva and Ananta are all very powerful incarnations of the Brahman feature of the Lord.
Similarly, Sacipati, or Indra, the King of heaven, is an incarnation of the lusty feature of the Lord.
Aniruddha is an incarnation of the Lord’s mind.
Similarly, King Prthu is an incarnation of the ruling force of the Lord.
Thus the saintly persons and great sages predicted the future activities of King Prthu, who was already explained as a partial incarnation of a plenary expansion of the Lord.
4.15.5
iyam ca sudati devi
guna-bhusana-bhusana
arcir nama vararoha
prthum evavarundhati
SYNONYMS
iyam—this female child; ca—and; su-dati—who has very nice teeth; devi—the goddess of fortune; guna—by good qualities; bhusana—ornaments; bhusana—who beautifies; arcih—Arci; nama—by name; vara-aroha—very beautiful; prthum—unto King Prthu; eva—certainly; avarundhati—being very much attached.
TRANSLATION
The female has such beautiful teeth and beautiful qualities that she will actually beautify the ornaments she wears.
Her name will be Arci.
In the future she will accept King Prthu as her husband.
4.15.6
esa saksad dharer amso
jato loka-riraksaya
iyam ca tat-para hi srir
anujajne ’napayini
SYNONYMS
esah—this male; saksat—directly; hareh—of the Supreme Personality of Godhead; amsah—partial representative; jatah—born; loka—the entire world; riraksaya—with a desire to protect; iyam—this female; ca—also; tat-para—very much attached to him; hi—certainly; srih—the goddess of fortune; anujajne—took birth; anapayini—inseparable.
TRANSLATION
In the form of King Prthu, the Supreme Personality of Godhead has appeared through a part of His potency to protect the people of the world.
The goddess of fortune is the constant companion of the Lord, and therefore she has incarnated partially as Arci to become King Prthu’s queen.
PURPORT
In Bhagavad-gita the Lord says that whenever one sees an extraordinary power, he should conclude that a specific partial representation of the Supreme Personality of Godhead is present.
There are innumerable such personalities, but not all of them are direct visnu-tattva plenary expansions of the Lord.
Many living entities are classified among the sakti-tattvas.
Such incarnations, empowered for specific purposes, are known as saktyavesa-avataras.
King Prthu was such a saktyavesa-avatara of the Lord.
Similarly, Arci, King Prthu’s wife, was a saktyavesa-avatara of the goddess of fortune.
4.15.7
maitreya uvaca
prasamsanti sma tam vipra
gandharva-pravara jaguh
mumucuh sumano-dharah
siddha nrtyanti svah-striyah
SYNONYMS
maitreyah uvaca—the great saint Maitreya said; prasamsanti sma—praised, glorified; tam—him (Prthu); viprah—all the brahmanas; gandharva-pravarah—the best of the Gandharvas; jaguh—chanted; mumucuh—released; sumanah-dharah—showers of flowers; siddhah—the personalities from Siddhaloka; nrtyanti—were dancing; svah—of the heavenly planes; striyah—women (the Apsaras).
TRANSLATION
The great sage Maitreya continued: My dear Viduraji, at that time all the brahmanas highly praised and glorified King Prthu, and the best singers of Gandharvaloka chanted his glories.
The inhabitants of Siddhaloka showered flowers, and the beautiful women in the heavenly planes danced in ecstasy.
4.15.8
sankha-turya-mrdangadya
nedur dundubhayo divi
tatra sarva upajagmur
devarsi-pitrnam ganah
SYNONYMS
sankha—conches; turya—bugles; mrdanga—drums; adyah—and so on; neduh—vibrated; dundubhayah—kettledrums; divi—in outer space; tatra—there; sarve—all; upajagmuh—came; deva-rsi—demigods and sages; pitrnam—of forefathers; ganah—groups.
TRANSLATION
Conchshells, bugles, drums and kettledrums vibrated in outer space.
Great sages, forefathers and personalities from the heavenly planes all came to earth from various planeary systems.
4.15.9-10
brahma jagad-gurur devaih
sahasrtya suresvaraih
vainyasya daksine haste
drstva cihnam gadabhrtah
padayor aravindam ca
tam vai mene hareh kalam
yasyapratihatam cakram
amsah sa paramesthinah
SYNONYMS
brahma—Lord Brahma; jagat-guruh—the master of the universe; devaih—by the demigods; saha—accompanied; asrtya—arriving; sura-isvaraih—with the chiefs of all the heavenly planes; vainyasya—of Maharaja Prthu, the son of Vena; daksine—right; haste—on the hand; drstva—seeing; cihnam—mark; gada-bhrtah—of Lord Visnu, who carries a club; padayoh—on the two feet; aravindam—lotus flower; ca—also; tam—him; vai—certainly; mene—he understood; hareh—of the Supreme Personality of Godhead; kalam—part of a plenary expansion; yasya—whose; apratihatam—invincible; cakram—disc; amsah—partial representation; sah—he; paramesthinah—of the Supreme Personality of Godhead.
TRANSLATION
Lord Brahma, the master of the entire universe, arrived there accompanied by all the demigods and their chiefs.
Seeing the lines of Lord Visnu’s palm on King Prthu’s right hand and impressions of lotus flowers on the soles of his feet, Lord Brahma could understand that King Prthu was a partial representation of the Supreme Personality of Godhead.
One whose palm bears the sign of a disc, as well as other such lines, should be considered a partial representation or incarnation of the Supreme Lord.
PURPORT
There is a system by which one can detect an incarnation of the Supreme Personality of Godhead.
Nowadays it has become a cheap fashion to accept any rascal as an incarnation of God, but from this incident we can see that Lord Brahma personally examined the hands and feet of King Prthu for specific signs.
In their prophecies the learned sages and brahmanas accepted Prthu Maharaja as a plenary partial expansion of the Lord.
During the presence of Lord Krsna, however, a king declared himself Vasudeva, and Lord Krsna killed him.
Before accepting someone as an incarnation of God, one should verify his identity according to the symptoms mentioned in the sastras.
Without these symptoms the pretender is subject to be killed by the authorities for pretending to be an incarnation of God.
4.15.11
tasyabhiseka arabdho
brahmanair brahma-vadibhih
abhisecanikany asmai
ajahruh sarvato janah
SYNONYMS
tasya—his; abhisekah—coronation; arabdhah—was arranged; brahmanaih—by the learned brahmanas; brahma-vadibhih—attached to the Vedic rituals; abhisecanikani—various paraphernalia for performing the ceremony; asmai—unto him; ajahruh—collected; sarvatah—from all directions; janah—people.
TRANSLATION
The learned brahmanas, who were very attached to the Vedic ritualistic ceremonies, then arranged for the King’s coronation.
People from all directions collected all the different paraphernalia for the ceremony.
Thus everything was complete.
4.15.12
sarit-samudra girayo
naga gavah khaga mrgah
dyauh ksitih sarva-bhutani
samajahrur upayanam
SYNONYMS
sarit—the rivers; samudrah—the seas; girayah—the mountains; nagah—the serpents; gavah—the cows; khagah—the birds; mrgah—the animals; dyauh—the sky; ksitih—the earth; sarva-bhutani—all living entities; samajahruh—collected; upayanam—different kinds of presentations.
TRANSLATION
All the rivers, seas, hills, mountains, serpents, cows, birds, animals, heavenly planes, the earthly planet and all other living entities collected various presentations, according to their ability, to offer the King.
4.15.13
so ’bhisikto maharajah
suvasah sadhv-alankrtah
patnyarcisalankrtaya
vireje ’gnir ivaparah
SYNONYMS
sah—the King; abhisiktah—being coronated; maharajah—Maharaja Prthu; su-vasah—exquisitely dressed; sadhu-alankrtah—highly decorated with ornaments; patnya—along with his wife; arcisa—named Arci; alankrtaya—nicely ornamented; vireje—appeared; agnih—fire; iva—like; aparah—another.
TRANSLATION
Thus the great King Prthu, exquisitely dressed with garments and ornaments, was coronated and placed on the throne.
The King and his wife, Arci, who was also exquisitely ornamented, appeared exactly like fire.
4.15.14
tasmai jahara dhanado
haimam vira varasanam
varunah salila-sravam
atapatram sasi-prabham
SYNONYMS
tasmai—unto him; jahara—presented; dhana-dah—the treasurer of the demigods (Kuvera); haimam—made of gold; vira—O Vidura; vara-asanam—royal throne; varunah—the demigod Varuna; salila-sravam—dropping particles of water; atapatram—umbrella; sasi-prabham—as brilliant as the moon.
TRANSLATION
The great sage continued: My dear Vidura, Kuvera presented the great King Prthu with a golden throne.
The demigod Varuna presented him with an umbrella that constantly sprayed fine particles of water and was as brilliant as the moon.
4.15.15
vayus ca vala-vyajane
dharmah kirtimayim srajam
indrah kiritam utkrstam
dandam samyamanam yamah
SYNONYMS
vayuh—the demigod of air; ca—also; vala-vyajane—two camaras made of hair; dharmah—the King of religion; kirti-mayim—expanding one’s name and fame; srajam—garland; indrah—the King of heaven; kiritam—helmet; utkrstam—very valuable; dandam—scepter; samyamanam—for ruling the world; yamah—the superintendent of death.
TRANSLATION
The demigod of air, Vayu, presented King Prthu with two whisks (camaras) of hair; the King of religion, Dharma, presented him with a flower garland which would expand his fame; the King of heaven, Indra, presented him with a valuable helmet; and the superintendent of death, Yamaraja, presented him with a scepter with which to rule the world.
4.15.16
brahma brahmamayam varma
bharati haram uttamam
harih sudarsanam cakram
tat-patny avyahatam sriyam
SYNONYMS
brahma—Lord Brahma; brahma-mayam—made of spiritual knowledge; varma—armor; bharati—the goddess of learning; haram—necklace; uttamam—transcendental; harih—the Supreme Personality of Godhead; sudarsanam cakram—Sudarsana disc; tat-patni—His wife (Laksmi); avyahatam—imperishable; sriyam—beauty and opulence.
TRANSLATION
Lord Brahma presented King Prthu with a protective garment made of spiritual knowledge.
Bharati (Sarasvati), the wife of Brahma, gave him a transcendental necklace.
Lord Visnu presented him with a Sudarsana disc, and Lord Visnu’s wife, the goddess of fortune, gave him imperishable opulences.
PURPORT
All the demigods presented various gifts to King Prthu.
Hari, an incarnation of the Supreme Personality of Godhead known as Upendra in the heavenly plane, presented the King with a Sudarsana disc.
It should be understood that this Sudarsana disc is not exactly the same type of Sudarsana disc used by the Personality of Godhead, Krsna, or Visnu.
Since Maharaja Prthu was a partial representation of the Supreme Personality of Godhead’s power, the Sudarsana disc given to him represented the partial power of the original Sudarsana disc.
4.15.17
dasa-candram asim rudrah
sata-candram tathambika
somo ’mrtamayan asvams
tvasta rupasrayam ratham
SYNONYMS
dasa-candram—decorated with ten moons; asim—sword; rudrah—Lord Siva; sata-candram—decorated with one hundred moons; tatha—in that manner; ambika—the goddess Durga; somah—the moon-demigod; amrta-mayan—made of nectar; asvan—horses; tvasta—the demigod Visvakarma; rupa-asrayam—very beautiful; ratham—a chariot.
TRANSLATION
Lord Siva presented him with a sword within a sheath marked with ten moons, and his wife, the goddess Durga, presented him with a shield marked with one hundred moons.
The moon-demigod presented him with horses made of nectar, and the demigod Visvakarma presented him with a very beautiful chariot.
4.15.18
agnir aja-gavam capam
suryo rasmimayan isun
bhuh paduke yogamayyau
dyauh puspavalim anvaham
SYNONYMS
agnih—the demigod of fire; aja-gavam—made of the horns of goats and cows; capam—a bow; suryah—the sun-god; rasmi-mayan—brilliant as sunshine; isun—arrows; bhuh—Bhumi, the predominating goddess of the earth; paduke—two slippers; yoga-mayyau—full of mystic power; dyauh—the demigods in outer space; puspa—of flowers; avalim—presentation; anu-aham—day after day.
TRANSLATION
The demigod of fire, Agni, presented him with a bow made of the horns of goats and cows.
The sun-god presented him with arrows as brilliant as sunshine.
The predominating deity of Bhurloka presented him with slippers full of mystic power.
The demigods from outer space brought him presentations of flowers again and again.
PURPORT
This verse describes that the King’s slippers were invested with mystic powers (paduke yogamayyau).
Thus as soon as the King placed his feet in the slippers they would immediately carry him wherever he desired.
Mystic yogis can transfer themselves from one place to another whenever they desire.
A similar power was invested in the slippers of King Prthu.
4.15.19
natyam sugitam vaditram
antardhanam ca khecarah
rsayas casisah satyah
samudrah sankham atmajam
SYNONYMS
natyam—the art of drama; su-gitam—the art of singing sweet songs; vaditram—the art of playing musical instruments; antardhanam—the art of disappearing; ca—also; khe-carah—demigods traveling in outer space; rsayah—the great sages; ca—also; asisah—blessings; satyah—infallible; samudrah—the demigod of the ocean; sankham—conchshell; atma-jam—produced from himself.
TRANSLATION
The demigods who always travel in outer space gave King Prthu the arts to perform dramas, sing songs, play musical instruments and disappear at his will.
The great sages also offered him infallible blessings.
The ocean offered him a conchshell produced from the ocean.
4.15.20
sindhavah parvata nadyo
ratha-vithir mahatmanah
suto ’tha magadho vandi
tam stotum upatasthire
SYNONYMS
sindhavah—the seas; parvatah—the mountains; nadyah—the rivers; ratha-vithih—the paths for the chariot to pass; maha-atmanah—of the great soul; sutah—a professional who offers praises; atha—then; magadhah—a professional bard; vandi—a professional who offers prayers; tam—him; stotum—to praise; upatasthire—presented themselves.
TRANSLATION
The seas, mountains and rivers gave him room to drive his chariot without impediments, and a suta, a magadha and a vandi offered prayers and praises.
They all presented themselves before him to perform their respective duties.
4.15.21
stavakams tan abhipretya
prthur vainyah pratapavan
megha-nirhradaya vaca
prahasann idam abravit
SYNONYMS
stavakan—engaged in offering prayers; tan—those persons; abhipretya—seeing, understanding; prthuh—King Prthu; vainyah—son of Vena; pratapa-van—greatly powerful; megha-nirhradaya—as grave as the thundering of clouds; vaca—with a voice; prahasan—smiling; idam—this; abravit—he spoke.
TRANSLATION
Thus when the greatly powerful King Prthu, the son of Vena, saw the professionals before him, to congratulate them he smiled, and with the gravity of the vibrating sounds of clouds he spoke as follows.
4.15.22
prthur uvaca
bhoh suta he magadha saumya vandil
loke ’dhunaspasta-gunasya me syat
kim asrayo me stava esa yojyatam
ma mayy abhuvan vitatha giro vah
SYNONYMS
prthuh uvaca—King Prthu said; bhoh suta—O suta; he magadha—O magadha; saumya—gentle; vandin—O devotee offering prayers; loke—in this world; adhuna—just now; aspasta—not distinct; gunasya—whose qualities; me—of me; syat—there may be; kim—why; asrayah—shelter; me—of me; stavah—praise; esah—this; yojyatam—may be applied; ma—never; mayi—unto me; abhuvan—were; vitathah—in vain; girah—words; vah—your.
TRANSLATION
King Prthu said: O gentle suta, magadha and other devotee offering prayers, the qualities of which you have spoken are not distinct in me.
Why then should you praise me for all these qualities when I do not shelter these features? I do not wish for these words meant for me to go in vain, but it is better that they be offered to someone else.
PURPORT
The prayers and praises by the suta, magadha and vandi all explained the godly qualities of Maharaja Prthu, for he was a saktyavesa incarnation of the Supreme Personality of Godhead.
Because the qualities were not yet manifest, however, King Prthu very humbly asked why the devotees should praise him with such exalted words.
He did not want anyone to offer him prayers or glorify him unless he possessed the real qualities of which they spoke.
The offering of prayers was certainly appropriate, for he was an incarnation of Godhead, but he warned that one should not be accepted as an incarnation of the Personality of Godhead without having the godly qualities.
At the present moment there are many so-called incarnations of the Personality of Godhead, but these are merely fools and rascals whom people accept as incarnations of God although they have no godly qualities.
King Prthu desired that his real characteristics in the future might justify such words of praise.
Although there was no fault in the prayers offered, Prthu Maharaja indicated that such prayers should not be offered to an unfit person who pretends to be an incarnation of the Supreme Personality of Godhead.
4.15.23
tasmat parokse ’smad-upasrutany alam
karisyatha stotram apicya-vacah
saty uttamasloka-gunanuvade
jugupsitam na stavayanti sabhyah
SYNONYMS
tasmat—therefore; parokse—in some future time; asmat—my; upasrutani—about the qualities spoken of; alam—sufficiently; karisyatha—you will be able to offer; stotram—prayers; apicya-vacah—O gentle reciters; sati—being the proper engagement; uttama-sloka—of the Supreme Personality of Godhead; guna—of the qualities; anuvade—discussion; jugupsitam—to an abominable person; na—never; stavayanti—offer prayers; sabhyah—persons who are gentle.
TRANSLATION
O gentle reciters, offer such prayers in due course of time, when the qualities of which you have spoken actually manifest themselves in me.
The gentle who offer prayers to the Supreme Personality of Godhead do not attribute such qualities to a human being, who does not actually have them.
PURPORT
Gentle devotees of the Supreme Personality of Godhead know perfectly well who is God and who is not.
Nondevotee impersonalists, however, who have no idea what God is and who never offer prayers to the Supreme Personality of Godhead, are always interested in accepting a human being as God and offering such prayers to him.
This is the difference between a devotee and a demon.
Demons manufacture their own gods, or a demon himself claims to be God, following in the footsteps of Ravana and Hiranyakasipu.
Although Prthu Maharaja was factually an incarnation of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, he rejected those praises because the qualities of the Supreme Person were not yet manifest in him.
He wanted to stress that one who does not actually possess these qualities should not try to engage his followers and devotees in offering him glory for them, even though these qualities might be manifest in the future.
If a man who does not factually possess the attributes of a great personality engages his followers in praising him with the expectation that such attributes will develop in the future, that sort of praise is actually an insult.
4.15.24
mahad-gunan atmani kartum isah
kah stavakaih stavayate ’sato ’pi
te ’syabhavisyann iti vipralabdho
janavahasam kumatir na veda
SYNONYMS
mahat—exalted; gunan—the qualities; atmani—in himself; kartum—to manifest; isah—competent; kah—who; stavakaih—by followers; stavayate—causes to be praised; asatah—not existing; api—although; te—they; asya—of him; abhavisyan—might have been; iti—thus; vipralabdhah—cheated; jana—of people; avahasam—insult; kumatih—a fool; na—does not; veda—know.
TRANSLATION
How could an intelligent man competent enough to possess such exalted qualities allow his followers to praise him if he did not actually have them? Praising a man by saying that if he were educated he might have become a great scholar or great personality is nothing but a process of cheating.
A foolish person who agrees to accept such praise does not know that such words simply insult him.
PURPORT
Prthu Maharaja was an incarnation of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, as Lord Brahma and other demigods had already testified when they had presented the King with many heavenly gifts.
Because he had just been coronated, however, he could not manifest his godly qualities in action.
Therefore he was not willing to accept the praise of the devotees.
So-called incarnations of Godhead should therefore take lessons from the behavior of King Prthu.
Demons without godly qualities should not accept false praise from their followers.
4.15.25
prabhavo hy atmanah stotram
jugupsanty api visrutah
hrimantah paramodarah
paurusam va vigarhitam
SYNONYMS
prabhavah—very powerful persons; hi—certainly; atmanah—of themselves; stotram—praise; jugupsanti—do not like; api—although; visrutah—very famous; hri-mantah—modest; parama-udarah—very magnanimous persons; paurusam—powerful actions; va—also; vigarhitam—abominable.
TRANSLATION
As a person with a sense of honor and magnanimity does not like to hear about his abominable actions, a person who is very famous and powerful does not like to hear himself praised.
4.15.26
vayam tv avidita loke
sutadyapi varimabhih
karmabhih katham atmanam
gapayisyama balavat
SYNONYMS
vayam—we; tu—then; aviditah—not famous; loke—in the world; suta-adya—O persons headed by the suta; api—just now; varimabhih—great, praiseworthy; karmabhih—by actions; katham—how; atmanam—unto myself; gapayisyama—I shall engage you in offering; balavat—like children.
TRANSLATION
King Prthu continued: My dear devotees, headed by the suta, just now I am not very famous for my personal activities because I have not done anything praiseworthy you could glorify.
Therefore how could I engage you in praising my activities exactly like children?