The Pracetas meet the Lord (Srimad Bhagavatam #77)

The Lord was satisfied with the Pracetas for their dedication to the practice of devotional service, but the point he specifically mentioned was their sincere dealings with each other.

Sep 20, 2025

The Lord appeared on the shoulder of Garuḍa, in a form with eight arms, complete with all opulences. The Lord was satisfied with the Pracetas for their perfect recitation of the prayers of Lord Śiva, their dedication in the practice of devotional service, and many other factors, but the point he specifically mentioned when He met them was their sincere dealings with each other:

"My dear sons of the King, I am very much pleased by the friendly relationships among you. All of you are engaged in one occupation — devotional service. I am so pleased with your mutual friendship that I wish you all good fortune. Now you may ask a benediction of Me." (SB 4.30.8)

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The Pracetas meet the Lord and are blessed

After the conclusion of the narration of talks between Nārada Muni and Prācīnabarhi, Vidura wants to hear the conclusion of the saga of the Pracetas. Previously, Maitreya had narrated their meeting with Lord Śiva and their entering into the waters of the ocean for practicing austerities for 10,000 years, but not what happened afterwards. Vidura knew that other important events happened after that, and he was eager to hear these pastimes.

"Vidura inquired from Maitreya: O brāhmaṇa, you formerly spoke about the sons of Prācīnabarhi and informed me that they satisfied the Supreme Personality of Godhead by chanting a song composed by Lord Śiva. What did they achieve in this way?
My dear Bārhaspatya, what did the sons of King Barhiṣat, known as the Pracetās, obtain after meeting Lord Śiva, who is very dear to the Supreme Personality of Godhead, the bestower of liberation? Certainly they were transferred to the spiritual world, but apart from that, what did they obtain within this material world, either in this life or in other lives?" (SB 4.30.1-2)

The Pracetas, of course, having been blessed by Lord Śiva, spent their time inside the waters of the ocean, reciting the prayers they learned from him to satisfy Lord Viṣnu.

In his purport to text three, Prabhupada explains that although anyone can offer prayers to the Lord, we can please the Lord very easily by attentively repeating the prayers offered by great devotees, such as the prayers of the Brahma-saṁhitā or, as in the case of the Pracetas, the prayers of Lord Śiva. Not only does the Lord become satisfied by remembering His pure devotees, but we can gradually come to understand their devotional sentiments.

As he explains: "The pure devotee never attempts to reach the Supreme Lord directly. The most important way to worship the Lord is to go through the disciplic succession of devotees. The prayers offered by Lord Śiva to the Supreme Personality of Godhead were thus repeated by the Pracetās, who were thus very successful in pleasing the Supreme Lord."

The Pracetas could perform such long austerities because they were living in Satya-yuga, but still, their meditation inside the water was unprecedented, just as the austerities performed by their ancestor, Dhruva Maharaja, at the beginning of the Manvantara. We can't perform such great austerities nowadays, but we can attain the same benefit by just chanting the holy names sincerely and following the regulative principles.

What was the final result? The Lord personally appeared before them, satisfied with their dedication and ready to shower his blessings upon them:

"At the end of ten thousand years of severe austerities performed by the Pracetās, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, to reward their austerities, appeared before them in His very pleasing form. This appealed to the Pracetās and satisfied the labor of their austerities." (SB 4.30.4)

"My dear sons of the King, I am very much pleased by the friendly relationships among you. All of you are engaged in one occupation — devotional service. I am so pleased with your mutual friendship that I wish you all good fortune. Now you may ask a benediction of Me." (SB 4.30.8)

This is surely a lesson for us. Often, we strive to worship the Lord or the spiritual master while stepping over the heads of everyone around us, but this attitude is not very pleasing to the Lord. Disrespecting or sidelining others to try to gain evidence is still a manifestation of our ego. Just as a materialistic person fights others to improve one's position in the material world, we may jump over others to try to improve our position in the hierarchy of a spiritual institution, but the mentality is similar. The Lord doesn't care about fame or position; He cares about the way we interact and cooperate with other devotees, serving and supporting them in their service and spiritual development. The pastime of Daksa offending Lord Śiva already showed us the danger of offending others while posing as a great personality.

As Prabhupada explains in his purport: "Since the sons of King Prācīnabarhiṣat were all united in Kṛṣṇa consciousness, the Lord was very pleased with them. Each and every one of the sons of King Prācīnabarhiṣat was an individual soul, but they were united in offering transcendental service to the Lord. The unity of the individual souls attempting to satisfy the Supreme Lord or rendering service to the Lord is real unity. In the material world such unity is not possible."

Unity is one of the symptoms of an elevated standard of devotional service. It is not possible between people influenced by the material modes. The only way to remain united is when our goal is one: to serve Kṛṣṇa to our best ability. Even in the transcendental platform, there are sometimes disagreements due to different desires or opinions in serving the Lord, but these divergences are in the spiritual platform and have a very different effect. As Prabhupada explains, "Those who are actually engaged in the service of the Supreme Personality of Godhead cannot be disunited in any circumstance. This makes the Supreme Personality of Godhead very happy and willing to award all kinds of benediction to His devotees, as indicated in this verse."

The reason the Pracetas started their austerities was because of the order of their father to enter into married life and assume responsibility over the kingdom. The Lord also praised that and blessed them with a qualified wife and son who would, in the future, fill up the universe with his descendants.

He revealed to them the story of Marisa, the daughter of the apsarā Pramlocā and the sage Kaṇḍu, who was left under the care of the predominating deity of the trees, and fed with nectar by Soma. All universal forces in the material universe are governed by a predominating deity. When personal dealings are imposed into a material creation that is unconscious, such as the Earth, trees, or water, we should understand that it refers to the predominating deity, such as when King Pṛthu chased the Earth, or Marīṣā being cared for by the trees. Prabhupada explains this point in his purport to text 47:

“The ‘trees’ means the controlling deity of those trees.” In Vedic literatures we find that there is a controlling deity of the water; similarly, there is a controlling deity of the trees. The Pracetās were engaged in burning all the trees to ashes, and they considered the trees their enemies. To pacify the Pracetās, the predominating deity of the trees, under the advice of Lord Brahmā, delivered the daughter Māriṣā."

How could Marīṣā marry all ten brothers? The Pracetas were entering into married life not out of lustful desires, but out of duty, planning to enter into renounced life as soon as they had a grown-up son to take care of the kingdom. The Lord thus arranged for them to marry a single wife, and thus minimize their entanglement in material affairs. Marisa was also a great devotee, sharing the same mentality as the ten brothers, and would be very dedicated to them. The Lord thus requested them to marry her and continue to work together, united on a common principle. This union also served the purpose of creating the circumstances for the rebirth of Daksa, who still had an important mission to fulfill and was waiting to be born in an exalted family. The Lord had already arranged everything, understanding that Daksa would retire to practice austerities and Priyavrata (the elder brother of Uttānapāda) would return from his austerities to take charge of the kingdom, continuing the lineage of Svāyambhuva Manu.

As we already studied, the pastime of the Pracetas happened during the period of the first Manvantara. Daksa had to practice austerities until the end of the 5th Manvantara to be reinstalled in his position as a prajāpati at the beginning of the 6th Manvantara.

This is confirmed by Prabhupada in text 49:

"The controversy of the Dakṣa-yajña took place in the Svāyambhuva manvantara period. As a result, Dakṣa was punished by Lord Śiva, but by virtue of his prayers to Lord Śiva he became eligible to regain his former opulence. According to Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura, Dakṣa underwent severe penances up to the fifth manvantara. Thus at the beginning of the sixth manvantara, known as the Cākṣuṣa manvantara, Dakṣa regained his former opulence by the blessings of Lord Śiva."

The Lord thus blessed the ten brothers:

"The Lord then blessed all the Pracetās, saying: My dear princes, by My mercy you can enjoy all the facilities of this world as well as the heavenly world. Indeed, you can enjoy all of them without hindrance and with full strength for one million celestial years.
Thereafter you will develop unadulterated devotional service unto Me and be freed from all material contamination. At that time, being completely unattached to material enjoyment in the so-called heavenly planets as well as in hellish planets, you will return home, back to Godhead." (SB 4.30.17-18)

After receiving the darśana of the Lord and being thus blessed, the Pracetas offered their heartfelt prayers to the Lord. Just as in other similar passages, these prayers are full of meaning, conveying the devotional ecstasy of the brothers. It is described that they offered these prayers in a faltering voice, due to ecstasy. Here are the main points:

The transcendental Lord (4.30.22-23):

After receiving the instructions of Lord Śiva and personally seeing the Lord, the Pracetas had no doubts about His personality. The Lord is full of transcendental qualities, and fully auspicious, and He is non-different from His holy name. Although a person, the Lord is unlimited and inconceivable by the material senses or mind. However, when the same senses and mind are engaged in devotional service, the Lord reveals Himself to the devotee. Bhakti is thus the true process for spiritual realization. One can't reach the Lord using his limited intelligence, but the Lord can very easily reach us when He is satisfied by our service.

Although the Lord appears to be involved in the material creation, appearing as Lord Viṣnu and also indirectly as Lord Śiva and Brahma to take charge of the three material modes, the Lord is never affected by them. Similarly, devotees who fix their minds on the Lord remain unaffected by the modes. Even if they appear to execute material activities as part of their devotional service, they remain fully transcendental, free from material desires and a sense of proprietorship. A materialist sees the world as a place of enjoyment and thus becomes entangled, but a devotee sees everything as energy of the Lord, and thus uses everything in His service.

The Supreme Person (4.30.24):

Although Viṣnu, Śiva, and Brahma are manifestations of the Lord, they are not the same. Brahma is a living entity who, due to his past piety, assumes an exalted form, where he is empowered by the Lord to perform the material creation, while Śiva is not an ordinary living entity, but also doesn't display all the potency of the Lord, sitting in the middle, just like yogurt compared to milk. Both Brahma and Śiva accept material bodies, but Lord Viṣnu is the Lord Himself, fully transcendental.

There are, however, many forms of Viṣnu. Which one is supreme? In addressing the Supreme Lord, the Pracetas use the world vāsudevāya kṛṣṇāya, indicating that Krsna is the original personality of Godhead, and all Viṣṇu expansions are His plenary portions or portions of His plenary portions. The Lord is all attractive and the source of all qualities. This means He also has a transcendental intellect. In which is it engaged? Hari-medhase: the Lord is always planning ways to deliver the conditioned soul from the clutches of māyā. For this purpose, He comes in different incarnations and entrusts His devotees with unlimited powers, so they can assist Him in His mission.

The source of everything (4.30.25-26):

The Pracetas already defined Krsna as the Supreme and the source of all incarnations. All His opulences, such as His yellow silken dhoti, are fully spiritual. Similarly, He possesses many qualities, but they are all fully transcendental. Now, they explain how the material world also sprouts from Him. Krsna expands into Mahā-Viṣnu, Whom expands into Garbhodakaśāyī Viṣnu, from Whom the universal lotus flower from which Brahma appears. Viṣnu is non-different from Krsna; therefore, one may say the lotus sprouts from Krsna's abdomen. The Lord is also present in everyone's heart; therefore, He is also Kṣīrodakaśāyī Viṣnu, the Supersoul. He guides all living entities, making them forget or remember Him, as they desire. Janmādy asya yataḥ: The Absolute Truth is He from whom everything emanates. This Absolute Truth is Krsna.

The Supreme Teacher and the final destination (4.30.27-30):

Krsna appears in numerous incarnations to annihilate the demons and re-establish the principles of dharma. In this way, the Lord benefits both the pious and the impious. He is merciful to all. If He is so merciful even to the demons, liberating them from material conditioning and placing them in His transcendental effulgence, what to say about His devotees? In fact, the confidential meaning of the Lord's appearance is to be directly associated with His devotees. Even to neophytes, who can't see His transcendental form, the Lord appears in the form of the arcā-vigraha, the deity. A pure devotee can see how the Lord is personally present in the form of the deity. A neophyte may not have the same vision, but this doesn't make the deity any less powerful. One may not understand the value of being engaged in the service of the deity, but the Lord accepts His service and takes him home.

The soul is infinitesimal, and there are an unlimited number of us. Still, even though the soul is so small, the Lord is personally present with all of us and knows all our desires. The Lord thus loves everyone and thinks about everyone. No one is left behind. Even when we become covered by deep ignorance, the Lord continues to make plans to deliver us. If even a materialist has his desires satisfied, what to say about devotees? Being present in the hearts of His devotees, the Lord understands our sincerity and makes all arrangements so that we can attain success. The Lord is thus apavarga-gurur gatiḥ, He is both the teacher and the final destination, freeing us from material existence, quickly reciprocating to any small service we may perform.

The true benediction (4.30.31-32):

The true benediction is for the Lord to be satisfied with us. The Lord had already stated that He was satisfied with the Pracetas, and on their part, they also revealed that they were fully satisfied in having the Lord as the ultimate goal of life. When a devotee is fully engaged in the service of the Lord, he feels so satisfied that there is no need for any separate benediction, just as when one takes shelter of a transcendental pārijāta tree (a kalpa-vṛkṣa), he can get anything he desires to his full satisfaction, and therefore there is no need to approach any other tree.

The Pracetas thus revealed that they considered the presence of the Lord the most desirable benediction and that they didn't desire anything more. However, since the Lord desired to give them yet another benediction, it would not be proper to reject it. The Pracetas were thus puzzled about what to ask. They considered, however, that the Lord is unlimited, and therefore it would be improper to ask for anything less than an unlimited benediction, something of infinite value. In this way, the Pracetas teach us how to pray to the Lord and how to ask for benedictions. Often, we go to the Lord to pray for some insignificant material blessing, such as a better financial position, material education, a husband or wife, etc., but this is just like going to a king to ask for a pinch of ashes. It is not only unintelligent but even offensive. Instead, we should go to the unlimited Person to ask for something of unlimited value.

The Pracetas ask for a benediction

From text 4.30.33 to 4.30.42, the Pracetas ask for their benedictions, as the Lord desired.

What is the invaluable benediction asked by the Pracetas? It is to be always able to associate with pure devotees, fully engaged in discussing the Lord's pastimes, for as long as they have to remain in this material world. Even a moment of this association is more valuable than anything in this material world, or even impersonal liberation; therefore, how could one calculate the value of continuously being in such an association? The Pracetas were thus not falsely modest in asking for it. They understood the value of what they were asking, and we should pray similarly.

In his purport to text 33, Prabhupada explains that, "This is the best benediction that a devotee can ask of the Supreme Lord. This is also confirmed by Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu: sthāne sthitāḥ śruti-gatāṁ tanu-vāṅ-manobhiḥ (Bhāg. 10.14.3). One may be in one position or another according to destiny, but in any case one must continue to hear about the activities and pastimes of the Supreme Lord, regardless of circumstances. A pure devotee does not pray for liberation or for cessation of the cycle of birth and death because he does not consider that important. The most important thing for a devotee is getting a chance to hear about the pastimes and glories of the Lord. The devotees who engage in the service of the Lord in this world will have the same opportunity in the spiritual world also. Thus for a devotee, everything is in the spiritual world, for as long as he can hear about the pastimes of the Lord, or wherever he can chant, the Lord is personally present (yatra gāyanti mad-bhaktāḥ tatra tiṣṭhāmi nārada). When the pure devotees assemble to chant, hear and talk about the Supreme Personality of Godhead, the place where they assemble becomes Vaikuṇṭha. For the devotee there is no need to pray to the Lord for transferal to the Vaikuṇṭha world. A pure devotee can create Vaikuṇṭha or Vṛndāvana anywhere simply by chanting the glories of the Lord without offense."

The reason pure devotees do not desire even elevation to the spiritual planets is not just modesty, but the fact that they are already in direct association with Krsna. A person in such a platform already lives in the spiritual world; therefore, there is no need to ask for something one already has. As Prabhupada explains, although a pure devotee considers himself contaminated and unfit for being transferred to the spiritual world, there is no question of being contaminated, because devotional service itself is the transcendental position. As he concludes: "The conclusion is that a pure devotee is not anxious to stop the repetition of birth and death, but is always eager to associate with other devotees who are engaged in chanting and hearing about the glories of the Lord."

The characteristic of pure devotees is that they are always eager to glorify the Lord, and thus, when they come together, the most powerful spiritual discussions take place. Such discussions create a transcendental atmosphere so powerful that even conditioned souls become spiritually aware, and therefore forget all their material hankerings, at least for the time being. This implies that one may again forget if he returns to his materialistic activities after hearing for some time, but if one stays in the company of such pure devotees and continues hearing, one will remain fixed on the spiritual platform. If such discussions are so powerful that they can instantly elevate even conditioned souls to the Vaikuṇṭha platform, what to say about the benefit pure devotees derive from them? Therefore, being in the company of such pure devotees is the ultimate goal. Liberation is just a secondary result. As the Lord Himself explains: “My dear Nārada, actually I do not reside in My abode, Vaikuṇṭha, nor do I reside within the hearts of the yogīs, but I reside in that place where My pure devotees chant My holy name and discuss My form, pastimes and qualities.”

This same point is made by the Pracetas in text 36. The Lord, who is the ultimate goal of life, is present among devotees who are engaged in hearing and chanting the holy name. Therefore, by this simple process, they have already attained perfection. Prabhupada expands this idea in his purport, bringing us to the conclusion that the saṅkīrtana movement is the only process capable of bringing peace to the world by elevating the population to the transcendental platform.

One can also derive benefit from visiting holy places, but the reason the holy places have such a power is because they are visited by pure devotees of the Lord, who are so saintly that they are capable of purifying even the places of pilgrimage. One who thus visits holy places just to take a back is compared to a donkey or a cow (sa eva go-kharaḥ). The real point is thus to associate with such pure devotees who mercifully travel around the world, preaching and bringing relief to all sincere souls who come in contact with them. The Pracetas themselves know well their power, since by the association of Lord Śiva, they were able to attain the Supreme Lord.

The Pracetas thus conclude their prayers to the Lord, stating that all their study of the Vedas, acceptance of a spiritual master, offerings to the Brāhmanas, austerities, cooperation in friendship, etc., were performed only to please Him, just as the prayers they incessantly offered for thousands of years inside the water. Thus, they present their case for receiving the benediction they asked for, offering their respectful obeisances to the Lord.

We can't imitate the Pracetas in their austerities, or in their meeting with Lord Śiva, but we can follow their footsteps in practicing regulated devotional service in cooperation with other devotees, just as they did, accepting a spiritual master and learning the proper conclusions of the scriptures from him, performing prescribed austerities such as fasting on ekādasī, being respectful to others and so on, and offering all of this to the Lord. By doing so, we may obtain the opportunity of associating with pure devotees and, through their mercy, attain the Supreme Lord.

Prayers are also very important. Srila Prabhupada explains in his purport to text 41 that offering prayers to the Lord is the living entity's constitutional right, and one may offer prayers in all circumstances of life. Even though we are not perfect in glorifying the Lord, we can offer our sincere prayers according to our capacity and appreciate the Lord's glories. As Krsna explains in the Gītā (9.32), by taking shelter of Him, we can approach the supreme destination.

What was the reaction of the Lord? He was, of course, very pleased with the prayers of the Pracetas and satisfied by the benediction they had chosen. In the 7th canto, it is described that the Lord was not satisfied when, after being defeated by the demons, the demigods went to the Lord to pray for assistance in defeating the asuras, instead of pure devotional service. The Pracetas, however, being pure devotees, were able to fully satisfy the Lord, who said: “May whatever you have prayed for be fulfilled.”

If the Lord was so satisfied with the Pracetas, why did he leave afterwards? Prabhupada explains: "According to Śrīla Jīva Gosvāmī, this is an exhibition of His kindness to innumerable other devotees. Although He was being attracted by the Pracetās, He left. This is an example of His renunciation. This renunciation was also exhibited by Lord Caitanya Mahāprabhu when He stayed with Advaita Prabhu after taking sannyāsa. All the devotees there wanted Him to stay a few days longer, but Lord Caitanya left without hesitation. The conclusion is that although the Supreme Lord has unlimited kindness for His devotees, He is not attached to anyone. He is equally kind to His innumerable devotees all over the creation."