FolioCorpusŚrīmad-Bhāgavatam

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 8.23.15

श्रीशुक्र उवाच कुतस्तत्कर्मवैषम्यं यस्य कर्मेश्वरो भवान् । यज्ञेशो यज्ञपुरुष: सर्वभावेन पूजित: ॥ १५ ॥
śrī-śukra uvāca
[shree-shukra uvaacha]
kutas tat-karma-vaiṣamyaṁ
[kutas tat-karma-vaishamyam]
yasya karmeśvaro bhavān
[yasya karmeshvaro bhavaan]
yajñeśo yajña-puruṣaḥ
[yajnesho yajna-purushah]
sarva-bhāvena pūjitaḥ
[sarva-bhaavena poojitah]
Word-for-word
śrī-śukraḥ uvāca — Śrī Śukrācārya said kutaḥ — where is that tat — of him (Bali Mahārāja) karma-vaiṣamyam — discrepancy in discharging fruitive activities yasya — of whom (Bali Mahārāja) karma-īśvaraḥ — the master of all fruitive activities bhavān — Your Lordship yajña-īśaḥ — You are the enjoyer of all sacrifices yajña-puruṣaḥ — You are the person for whose pleasure all sacrifices are offered sarva-bhāvena — in all respects pūjitaḥ — having worshiped.
Blended reading (Sanskrit + English inline)
śrī-śukra uvāca
śrī-śukraḥ uvāca
Śrī Śukrācārya said
kutas tat-karma-vaiṣamyaṁ
kutaḥ
where is that
tat
of him (Bali Mahārāja)
karma-vaiṣamyam
discrepancy in discharging fruitive activities
yasya
of whom (Bali Mahārāja)
yasya karmeśvaro bhavān
karma-īśvaraḥ
the master of all fruitive activities
bhavān
Your Lordship
yajñeśo yajña-puruṣaḥ
yajña-īśaḥ
You are the enjoyer of all sacrifices
yajña-puruṣaḥ
You are the person for whose pleasure all sacrifices are offered
sarva-bhāvena
in all respects
sarva-bhāvena pūjitaḥ
pūjitaḥ
having worshiped.
Śukrācārya said: My Lord, You are the enjoyer and lawgiver in all performances of sacrifice, and You are the yajña-puruṣa, the person to whom all sacrifices are offered. If one has fully satisfied You, where is the chance of discrepancies or faults in his performances of sacrifice?
Purport

In Bhagavad-gītā (5.29) the Lord says, bhoktāraṁ yajña-tapasāṁ sarva-loka-maheśvaram: the Lord, the supreme proprietor, is the actual person to be satisfied by the performance of yajñas. The Viṣṇu Purāṇa (3.8.9) says:

varṇāśramācāravatā puruṣeṇa paraḥ pumān viṣṇur ārādhyate panthā nanyat tat-toṣa-kāraṇam

All the Vedic ritualistic sacrifices are performed for the purpose of satisfying Lord Viṣṇu, the yajña-puruṣa. The divisions of society — brāhmaṇa, kṣatriya, vaiśya, śūdra, brahmacarya, gṛhastha, vānaprastha and sannyāsa — are all meant to satisfy the Supreme Lord, Viṣṇu. To act according to this principle of the varṇāśrama institution is called varṇāśramācaraṇa. In Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam (1.2.13) , Sūta Gosvāmī says:

ataḥ pumbhir dvija-śreṣṭhā varṇāśrama-vibhāgaśaḥ svanuṣṭhitasya dharmasya saṁsiddhir hari-toṣaṇam

“O best among the twice-born, it is therefore concluded that the highest perfection one can achieve by discharging his prescribed duties according to caste divisions and orders of life is to please the Personality of Godhead.” Everything is meant to satisfy the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Therefore, since Bali Mahārāja had satisfied the Lord, he had no faults, and Śukrācārya admitted that cursing him was not good.

— A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupāda
Gauḍīya Ācāryas
Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura Gauḍīya
Translation
Śukrācārya said: Where is the chance of discrepancies in performance of sacrifice of a person like Bali who, with full dedication, worships you, the master of rituals, the master of sacrifices and sacrifice personified?
Related lectures
Personal Guidance
You are the enjoyer and yajña-puruṣa; if You are satisfied, where can discrepancies arise? Śukra's answer reframes the entire question. The Lord's satisfaction is the only relevant assessment.
Reflection Questions
  • Where do I worry about technical correctness when the deeper question is the Lord's satisfaction?
  • Have I asked whether He is satisfied — or only asked whether the form was right?
📝 My note

Source: vedabase.io

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