FolioCorpusŚrīmad-Bhāgavatam

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 4.16.8

देवेऽवर्षत्यसौ देवो नरदेववपुर्हरि: । कृच्छ्रप्राणा: प्रजा ह्येष रक्षिष्यत्यञ्जसेन्द्रवत् ॥ ८ ॥
deve ’varṣaty asau devo
[deve ’varshaty asau devo]
naradeva-vapur hariḥ
[naradeva-vapur harih]
kṛcchra-prāṇāḥ prajā hy eṣa
[krichchra-praanaah prajaa hy esha]
rakṣiṣyaty añjasendravat
[rakshishyaty anjasendravat]
deve — when the demigod (Indra) avarṣati — does not supply rains asau — that devaḥ — Mahārāja Pṛthu nara-deva — of the king vapuḥ — having the body hariḥ — the Supreme Personality of Godhead kṛcchra-prāṇāḥ — suffering living entities prajāḥ — the citizens hi — certainly eṣaḥ — this rakṣiṣyati — will protect añjasā — very easily indra-vat — like King Indra.
Blended reading (Sanskrit + English inline)
deve ’varṣaty asau devo
deve
when the demigod (Indra)
naradeva-vapur hariḥ
avarṣati
does not supply rains
kṛcchra-prāṇāḥ prajā hy eṣa
rakṣiṣyaty añjasendravat
asau
that
devaḥ
Mahārāja Pṛthu
nara-deva
of the king
vapuḥ
having the body
hariḥ
the Supreme Personality of Godhead
kṛcchra-prāṇāḥ
suffering living entities
prajāḥ
the citizens
hi
certainly
eṣaḥ
this
rakṣiṣyati
will protect
añjasā
very easily
indra-vat
like King Indra.
When there is no rainfall and the citizens are in great danger due to the scarcity of water, this royal Personality of Godhead will be able to supply rains exactly like the heavenly King Indra. Thus he will very easily be able to protect the citizens from drought.

King Pṛthu is very appropriately compared to the sun and the demigod Indra. King Indra of the heavenly planets is in charge of distributing water over the earth and other planetary systems. It is indicated that King Pṛthu would arrange for the distribution of rainfall personally if Indra failed to discharge his duty properly. Sometimes the King of heaven, Indra, would become angry at the inhabitants of the earth if they did not offer sacrifices to appease him. King Pṛthu, however, being an incarnation of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, did not depend on the mercy of the heavenly King. It is foretold herein that if there would be a scarcity of rain, King Pṛthu would manage to counteract the deficiency by virtue of his godly powers. Such powers were also exhibited by Lord Kṛṣṇa when He was present in Vṛndāvana. Indeed, when Indra poured incessant water on Vṛndāvana for seven days, the inhabitants were protected by Kṛṣṇa, who raised Govardhana Hill over their heads as a great umbrella. Thus Lord Kṛṣṇa is also known as Govardhana-dhārī.

— A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupāda
Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura Gauḍīya
Translation
When the devatās do not give rain, the Lord in a king’s body, like Indra, will protect the suffering citizens easily by supplying rain. He will protect the citizens by supplying the rain himself, like Indra.
When rains fail, the king himself will supply water like Indra. The leader's job in scarcity is to become the missing element rather than to manage the shortage.
Reflection Questions
  • Which 'rain' is missing in my domain that I'm being called to become?
  • Where am I managing scarcity when I could be supplying the missing element?
📝 My note

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