SB 4.16.23
A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada
TEXT 23
- visphūrjayann āja-gavaṁ dhanuḥ svayaṁ
- yadācarat kṣmām aviṣahyam ājau
- tadā nililyur diśi diśy asanto
- lāṅgūlam udyamya yathā mṛgendraḥ
SYNONYMS
visphūrjayan — vibrating; āja-gavam — made of the horns of goats and bulls; dhanuḥ — his bow; svayam — personally; yadā — when; acarat — will travel; kṣmām — on the earth; aviṣahyam — irresistible; ājau — in battle; tadā — at that time; nililyuḥ — will hide themselves; diśi diśi — in all directions; asantaḥ — demoniac men; lāṅgūlam — tail; udyamya — keeping high; yathā — as; mṛgendraḥ — the lion.
TRANSLATION
When the lion travels in the forest with its tail turned upward, all menial animals hide themselves. Similarly, when King Pṛthu will travel over his kingdom and vibrate the string of his bow, which is made of the horns of goats and bulls and is irresistible in battle, all demoniac rogues and thieves will hide themselves in all directions.
PURPORT
It is very appropriate to compare a powerful king like Pṛthu to a lion. In India, kṣatriya kings are still called siṅgh, which means "lion." Unless rogues, thieves and other demoniac people in a state are afraid of the executive head, who rules the kingdom with a strong hand, there cannot be peace or prosperity in the state. Thus it is most regrettable when a woman becomes the executive head instead of a lionlike king. In such a situation the people are considered very unfortunate.