Text 19] Dhrtarastra Quits Home 685

pratikriya na yasyeha
kutascit karhicit prabho

sa esa bhagavan kalah *
sarvesam nah samagatah

pratikriya—remedial measure; na—there is none; yasya—of which; tha—
in this material world; kutascit—by any means; karhicit—or by anyone;
prabho—O my lord; sa—that; esah— positively; bhagavan—the Personality
of Godhead; kalah—eternal time; sarvesam—of all; nah—of us; samagatah—
arrived.

TRANSLATION

This rightful situation cannot be remedied by any person in this
material world. My lord, it is the Supreme Personality of Godhead as
eternal time [kala] that has approached us all.

PURPORT

There is no superior power which can check the cruel hands of death.
No one wants to die, however acute the source of bodily sufferings may
be. Even in the days of so-called scientific advancement of knowledge,
there is no remedial measure either for old age or for death. Old age is the
notice of the arrival of death served by cruel time, and no one can refuse
to accept either summon calls or the supreme judgment of eternal time.
This is explained before Dhrtarastra because he might ask Vidura to find
out some remedial measure for the imminent fearful situation, as he
had ordered many times before. Before ordering, however, Vidura informed
Dhrtarastra that there was no remedial measure by anyone or from any
source in this material world. And because there is no such thing in the
material world, death is identical with the Supreme Personality of God-
head, as it is said by the Lord Himself in the Bhagavad-gita (Bg.1 2.32).

Death cannot be checked by anyone or from any source within this
material world. Hiranyakasipu wanted to be immortal and underwent a
severe type of penance by which the whole universe trembled, and Brahma
himself approached him to disuade Hiranyakasipu from such a severe type
of penance. Hiranyakasipu asked Brahma to award him the blessings of
immortality, but Brahma said that he himself was subject to death, even
in the topmost planet, so how could he award him the benediction of
immortality? So there is death even in the topmost planet of this universe,
and what to speak of other planets, which are far, far inferior in quality to
