Text 22]
Lord Rṣabhadeva's Teachings
195
peror of this planet. Serving a devotee means serving the Supreme Lord, for a devotee always represents the Lord. When a devotee is in charge, the government is always congenial and beneficial for everyone.
TEXTS 21-22
भूतेषु वीरुद्भ्य उदुत्तमा ये
सरीसृपास्तेषु सत्रोधनिष्ठाः ।
ततो मनुष्याः प्रमथास्ततोऽपि
गन्धर्वसिद्धा विबुधानुगा ये ॥२१॥
देवासुरेभ्यो मघवत्प्रधाना
दक्षादयो ब्रह्मसुतास्तु तेषाम् ।
भवः परः सोऽथ विरिञ्चवीर्यः
स मत्परोऽहं द्विजदेवदेवः ॥२२॥
bhūteṣu vīrudbhya uduttamā ye sarīsrpās teṣu sabodha-niṣṭhāḥ tato manuṣyāḥ pramathās tato 'pi gandharva-siddhā vibudhānugā ye
devāsurebhyo maghavat-pradhānā dakṣādayo brahma-sutās tu teṣām bhavaḥ paraḥ so 'tha viriñca-vīryaḥ sa mat-paro 'ham dvija-deva-devaḥ
bhūteṣu—among things generated (with and without symptoms of life); vīrudbhyaḥ—than the plants; uduttamāḥ—far superior; ye—those who; sarīsrpāḥ—moving entities like worms and snakes; teṣu—of them; sa-bodha-niṣṭhāḥ—those who have developed intelligence; tataḥ—than them; manuṣyāḥ—the human beings; pramathāḥ—the ghostly spirits; tataḥ api—better than them; gandharva—the inhabitants of Gandharvaloka (appointed singers in the planets of the demigods); siddhāḥ—the inhabitants of Siddhaloka, who have all mystic powers; vibudha-anugāḥ—the Kinnaras; ye—those who; deva—the