720
Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam
[Canto 3, Ch. 18]
mā- don't;  enam- him;  māyā- avinam—skilled in conjuring tricks;  dṛptam- arrogant;  niraṅkuśam- self-sufficient;  asat-tamam- most wicked;  ākrīḍa- play with;  bālavat- like a child;  deva- O Lord;  yathā- as:  āśīviṣam- a serpent;  utthitam- aroused.
TRANSLATION
Lord Brahmā continued:  My dear Lord, there is no need to play with this serpentine demon, who is always very skilled in conjuring tricks and is arrogant, self-sufficient and most wicked.
PURPORT
No one is unhappy when a serpent is killed. It is a practice amongst village boys to catch a serpent by the tail and play with it for some time and then kill it. Similarly, the Lord could have killed the demon at once, but He played with him in the same way as a child plays with a snake before killing it. Brahmā requested, however, that since the demon was more wicked and undesirable than a serpent, there was no need to play with him. It was his wish that he be killed at once, without delay.
TEXT 25
न यावदेष वर्धेत स्वां वेलां प्राप्य दारुणः। स्वां देव मायामास्याय तावज्जह्यधमच्युत ॥२५॥
na yāvad eṣa vardheta svām velām prāpya dāruṇaḥ svām deva māyām āsthāya tāvaj jahy agham acyuta
na yāvat—before; esaḥ—this demon; vardheta—may increase; svām—his own; velām—demoniac hour; prāpya—having reached; dāruṇaḥ—formidable; svām—your own; deva—O Lord; māyām—internal potency; āsthāya—using; tāvat—at once; jahi—kill; agham—the sinful one; acyuta—O infallible one.
TRANSLATION
Brahmā continued:  My dear Lord, You are infallible. Please kill this sinful demon before the demoniac hour arrives and he presents another formidable approach favorable to him. You can kill him by Your internal potency without doubt.