SB 1.17.42 (1965)
A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada
TEXT No 42
- Vrisasya nastans trin padan tapah soucham dayam iti
- Pratisandadha aswasya mahim cha samavardhyat.
ENGLISH SYNONYMS
Vrisasya—of the bull (the personality of religiosity), Nastans—lost, Trin—three, Padan—legs, Tapah—austerity, Soucham—Cleanliness, Dayam—mercy, Iti—etc, Pratisandadha—re-established, Aswasya—by encouraging acts, Mahim—the earth, Samavardhyat—perfectly improved.
TRANSLATION
Thereafter the King re-established the lost legs of the personality of religiosity (the bull) and by encouraging activities, he sufficiently improved the condition of the earth.
PURPORT
By designating particular places for the personality of Kali, Maharaj Parikshit practically cheated the Kali. By the presence of Kali, Dharma (in the shape of a bull) and the Earth (in the shape of a cow), he could actually estimate the general condition of his kingdom and therefore he at once took proper steps for restablishing the legs of the bull namely austerity, cleanliness and mercy. And for the general benefit of the condition of the people of the world he saw it that the gold stock may be employed in the service of the stabilisation propaganda. Gold is certainly generating a power-house for falsity, intoxication, prostitution, enmity and violence; but under the guidance of a proper king or public leader or the Brahmin or a Sannyasi, the same gold could be properly utilised in the matter of re-establishing the lost legs of the personality of religion the bull.
Maharaj Parikshit therefore like his grand father Arjuna collected all illicit gold kept for the propensities of Kali and employed them in the Samkirtan Yajna as per instruction of the Srimad Bhagwatam. As we have suggested before that one's accumulated wealth may be divided in three parts for distribution namely 50% for the service of the Lord, 25% for the family members and 25% for personal necessities. Spending 50% for the service of the Lord or for propagation of spiritual knowledge in the society in the matter of Samkirtan Yajna is the maximum proportion of displaying human mercy. People of the world are generally in the darkness of spiritual knowledge, specially in the matter of devotional service of the Lord, and therefore to propagate a systematic knowledge transcendental of devotional service, is the greatest amount of mercy that one can show in this world. When everyone is taught to sacrifice 50% of his accumulated gold in the matter of the Lord's service, certainly austerity, cleanliness and mercy automatically ensue and thus the lost three legs of the personality of religiosity the bull are automatically established. When there is sufficient propaganda of religiosities namely austerity, cleanliness, mercy and truthfulness naturally mother earth is completely satisfied and there is very little chance left for the Kali to infiltrate within the sound structure of human society.