Text 42]
The Glories of Devotional Service
1057
varṣatīndro dahaty agnir mṛtyuś carati mad-bhayāt
mat-bhayāt —out of fear of Me;  vāti —blows;  vātaḥ —wind;  ayam —this;  sūryaḥ —the sun;  tapati —shines;  mat-bhayāt —out of fear of Me;  varṣati —showers rain;  indraḥ —Indra;  dahati —burns;  agniḥ —fire;  mṛtyuḥ —death;  carati —goes;  mat-bhayāt —out of fear of Me.
TRANSLATION
It is because of My supremacy that the wind blows, out of fear of Me; the sun shines out of fear of Me, and the lord of the clouds, Indra, sends forth showers out of fear of Me. Fire burns out of fear of Me, and death goes about taking its toll out of fear of Me.
PURPORT
The Supreme Personality of Godhead, Kṛṣṇa, says in  Bhagavad-gītā  that the natural laws being enacted are correct in all activities because of His superintendence. No one should think that nature is working automatically, without superintendence. The Vedic literature says that the clouds are controlled by the demigod Indra, heat is distributed by the sun-god, the soothing moonlight is distributed by Candra, and the air is blowing under the arrangement of the demigod Vāyu. But above all these demigods, the Supreme Personality of Godhead is the chief living entity.  Nityo nityānām cetanaś cetanānām . The demigods are also ordinary living entities, but due to their faithfulness—their devotional service attitude—they have been promoted to such posts. These different demigods, or directors, such as Candra, Varuṇa and Vāyu, are called  adhikāri-devatā . The demigods are departmental heads. The government of the Supreme Lord consists not only of one planet or two or three; there are millions of planets and millions of universes. The Supreme Personality of Godhead has a huge government, and He requires assistants. The demigods are considered His bodily limbs. These are the descriptions of Vedic literature. Under these circumstances, the sun-god, the moon-god, the fire-god and the air-god are working under the direction of the Supreme Lord. It is confirmed in the  Bhagavad-gītā ,  mayādhyakṣeṇa prakṛtiḥ sūyate sa-carācaram . The natural laws are being conducted under His superintendence. Because He is in the background, everything is being performed so punctually and regularly.