Text 17]
Appearance of Śukadeva Gosvāmī
1005
TRANSLATION
Again, offering obeisances unto all you brāhmaṇas, I pray that if I should again take my birth in the material world I will have complete attachment to the unlimited Lord Kṛṣṇa, association with His devotees and friendly relations with all living beings.
PURPORT
That a devotee of the Lord is the only perfect living being is explained herein by Mahārāja Parīkṣit. A devotee of the Lord is no one's enemy, although there may be many enemies of a devotee. A devotee of the Lord does not like to associate with non-devotees, although he has no enmity with them. He desires association with the devotees of the Lord. This is perfectly natural because birds of the same feather mix together. And the most important function of a devotee is to have complete attachment for Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa, the father of all living beings. As a good son of the father behaves friendly with all his other brothers, so also the devotee of the Lord, being a good son of the supreme father, Lord Kṛṣṇa, sees all other living beings in relation with the supreme father. He tries to bring back the upstart sons of the father to a saner stage and to get them to accept the supreme fatherhood of God. Mahārāja Parīkṣit was certainly going back to Godhead, but even if he were not to go back, he prayed for a pattern of life which is the most perfect way in the material world. A pure devotee does not desire the company of a personality as great as Brahmā, but he prefers the association of a petty living being, provided he is a devotee of the Lord.
TEXT 17
इति स राजाश्रयसाययुक्तः 
  प्राचीनपूलेषु कुशेषु धीरः । 
  उदङ्मुखो दक्षिणकूल आस्ते 
  समुद्रपत्न्याः स्वसुतन्यस्तमारः ॥१७॥
iti sma rājādhyavasāya-yuktaḥ 
  prācīna-mūleṣu kuśeṣu dhīraḥ 
  udaṅmukho dakṣiṇa-kūla āste 
  samudra-patnyāḥ sva-suta-nyasta-bhāraḥ