Text 4] Prahlāda, the Saintly Son of Hiraṇyakaśipu
219
PURPORT
Politics involves accepting one group of men as enemies and another group as friends. Everything in politics is based on this philosophy, and the entire world, especially at the present, is engrossed in it. The public is concerned with friendly countries and friendly groups or enemy countries and enemy groups, but as stated in  Bhagavad-gītā , a learned person does not make distinctions between enemies and friends. Devotees, especially, do not create friends and enemies. A devotee sees that every living being is part and parcel of Kṛṣṇa ( mamaivāṁśo jīva-bhūtaḥ ). Therefore a devotee treats friends and enemies equally by trying to educate them both in Kṛṣṇa consciousness. Of course, atheistic men do not follow the instructions of pure devotees, but instead consider a devotee their enemy. A devotee, however, never creates a situation of friendship and enmity. Although Prahlāda Mahārāja was obliged to hear the instructions of Śaṇḍa and Amarka, he did not like the philosophy of friends and enemies, which forms the basis of politics. He was not interested in this philosophy.
TEXT 4
एकदासुरराट् पुत्रमङ्कमारोप्य पाण्डव । पप्रच्छ कथ्यतां वत्स मन्यते साधु यद्भवान् ॥ ४ ॥
ekadāsura-rāṭ putram aṅkam āropya pāṇḍava papraccha kathyatāṁ vatsa manyate sādhu yad bhavān
ekadā —once upon a time;  asura-rāṭ —the Emperor of the  asuras ;  putram —his son;  aṅkam —on the lap;  āropya —placing;  pāṇḍava —O Mahārāja Yudhiṣṭhira;  papraccha —inquired;  kathyatāṁ —let it be told;  vatsa —my dear son;  manyate —considers;  sādhu —the best;  yat —that which;  bhavān —your good self.
TRANSLATION
My dear King Yudhiṣṭhira, once upon a time the King of the demons, Hiraṇyakaśipu, took his son Prahlāda on his lap and very