Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam

<< Canto 10, The Summum Bonum >>
<< 4 - The Atrocities of King Kaṁsa >>

<< VERSE 43 >>

śrī-śuka uvāca
evaṁ durmantribhiḥ kaṁsaḥ
saha sammantrya durmatiḥ
brahma-hiṁsāṁ hitaṁ mene
kāla-pāśāvṛto ’suraḥ

WORD BY WORD



TRANSLATION

Śukadeva Gosvāmī continued: Thus, having considered the instructions of his bad ministers, Kaṁsa, who was bound by the laws of Yamarāja and devoid of good intelligence because he was a demon, decided to persecute the saintly persons, the brāhmaṇas, as the only way to achieve his own good fortune.

PURPORT

Śrīla Locana dāsa Ṭhākura has sung, āpana karama, bhuñjāye śamana, kahaye locana dāsa. Instead of taking good instructions from the sages and the śāstras, godless nondevotees act whimsically, according to their own plans. Actually, however, no one has his own plans because everyone is bound by the laws of nature and must act according to his tendency in material, conditional life. Therefore one must change one’s own decision and follow the decision of Kṛṣṇa and Kṛṣṇa’s devotees. Then one is rescued from punishment by Yamarāja. Kaṁsa was not uneducated. It appears from his talks with Vasudeva and Devakī that he knew all about the laws of nature. But because of his association with bad ministers, he could not make a clear decision about his welfare. Therefore the Caitanya-caritāmṛta (Madhya 22.54) says:

‘sādhu-saṅga,’ ‘sādhu-saṅga’ — sarva-śāstre kaya
lava-mātra sādhu-saṅge sarva-siddhi haya


If one desires his real welfare, he must associate with devotees and saintly persons and in this way rectify the material condition of his life.

Donate to Bhaktivedanta Library