640
Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam
[Canto 4, Ch. 16]
on the royal seat and was not at that time exhibiting his godly powers, nonetheless the reciters like the  sūta , the  māgadha  and the  vandī  understood that King Pṛthu was an incarnation of God. They could understand this by the instructions given by the great sages and learned  brāhmaṇas . We have to understand the incarnations of God by the instructions of authorized persons. We cannot manufacture a God by our own concoctions. As stated by Narottama dāsa Thākura,  sādhu-śāstra-guru : one has to test all spiritual matters according to the instructions of saintly persons, scriptures and the spiritual master. The spiritual master is one who follows the instructions of his predecessors, namely the  sādhus , or saintly persons. A bona fide spiritual master does not mention anything not mentioned in the authorized scriptures. Ordinary people have to follow the instructions of  sādhu ,  śāstra  and  guru . Those statements made in the  śāstras  and those made by the bona fide  sādhu  or  guru  cannot differ from one another.
Reciters like the  sūta  and the  māgadha  were confidentially aware that King Pṛthu was an incarnation of the Personality of Godhead. Although the King denied such praise because he was not at that time exhibiting his godly qualities, the reciters nonetheless did not stop praising him. Rather, they were very pleased with the King, who, although actually an incarnation of God, was so humble and delightful in his dealings with devotees. In this connection we may note that previously (4.15.21) it was mentioned that King Pṛthu was smiling and was in a pleasant mood while speaking to the reciters. Thus we have to learn from the Lord or His incarnation how to become gentle and humble. The King's behavior was very pleasing to the reciters, and consequently the reciters continued their praise and even foretold the King's future activities, as they had been instructed by the  sādhus  and sages.
TEXT 2
नालं वयं ते महिमानुवर्णने
यो देववर्योऽवतार मायया ।
वेनाङ्गजातस्य च पौरुषाणि ते
वाचस्पतीनामपि बभ्रमुर्धियः ॥ २ ॥
nālam vayam te mahimānuvarṇane
yo deva-varyo 'vatatāra māyayā
venāṅga-jātasya ca pauruṣāṇi te
vācas-patīnām api babhramur dhiyaḥ