Canto 4: Creation of the Fourth OrderChapter 24: Chanting the Song Sung by Lord Śiva

Bhaktivedanta VedaBase: Śrīmad Bhāgavatam 4.24.19

maitreya uvāca

pracetasaḥ pitur vākyaḿ

śirasādāya sādhavaḥ

diśaḿ pratīcīḿ prayayus

tapasy ādṛta-cetasaḥ

SYNONYMS

maitreyaḥ uvāca — the great sage Maitreya continued to speak; pracetasaḥ — all the sons of King Prācīnabarhi; pituḥ — of the father; vākyam — words; śirasā — on the head; ādāya — accepting; sādhavaḥ — all pious; diśam — direction; pratīcīm — western; prayayuḥ — went away; tapasi — in austerities; ādṛta — accepting seriously; cetasaḥ — in the heart.

TRANSLATION

The great sage Maitreya continued: My dear Vidura, because of their pious nature, all the sons of Prācīnabarhi very seriously accepted the words of their father with heart and soul, and with these words on their heads, they went toward the west to execute their father's order.

PURPORT

In this verse sādhavaḥ (meaning "pious" or "well behaved") is very important, especially at the present moment. It is derived from the word sādhu. A perfect sādhu is one who is always engaged in the devotional service of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Prācīnabarhi's sons are described as sādhavaḥ because of their complete obedience to their father. The father, king and spiritual master are supposed to be representatives of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, and as such they have to be respected as the Supreme Lord. It is the duty of the father, the spiritual master and the king to regulate their subordinates in such a way that they ultimately become fully unalloyed devotees of the Supreme Lord. That is the duty of the superiors, and it is the duty of the subordinates to obey their orders perfectly and in a disciplined way. The word śirasā ("on their heads") is also significant, for the Pracetās accepted the orders of their father and carried them on their heads, which means they accepted them in complete surrender.

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His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupāda, Founder Ācārya of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness