Text 41] Maharaja Pariksit Cursed by a Brahmana Boy 973
we Tail AEF Ht
aedtafa gle sem Wa: yeh
nisamya Saptam atadarham narendram
sa brahmano natmajam abhyanandat
aho batamho mahad adya te krtam
alpiyasi droha urur damo dhrtah
nigamya—after hearing; saptam—cursed; atadarham—never to be con-
demned; nara-indram—unto the King, best of humankind; sah—that;
brahmanah—brahmana rsi; na—not; atma-jam—his own son; abhyanandat—
congratulated; aho-—alas; bata—distressing; amhah—sins; mahat—great;
adya—today; te—yourself; krtam—performed; alpiyasi—insignificant;
drohe—offense; uruh—very great; damah—punishment; dhrtah—awarded.
TRANSLATION
The father heard from his son that the King had been cursed, although
he should never have been condemned for he was the best amongst all
human beings. The rsi did not congratulate his son but, on the contrary,
began to repent, saying: Alas! What a great sinful act was performed by
my son. He has awarded heavy punishment for an insignificant offense.
PURPORT
The king is the best of all human beings. He is the representative of
God, and he is never to be condemned for any of his actions. In other
words, the king can do no wrong. The king may order hanging of a culprit
son of a brahmana, but he does not become sinful for killing a brahmana.
Even if there is something wrong with the king, he is never to be con-
demned. A medical practitioner may kill a patient by mistaken treatment,
but such a killer is never condemned to death. So what to speak of a good
and pious king like Maharaja Panksit? In the Vedic way of life, the king is
trained to become a rajarsi, or a great saint, although he is ruling as king.
It is the king only by whose good government the citizens can live peace-
fully and without any fear. The rajarsis would manage their kingdom so
nicely and piously that their subjects would respect them as if they were
the Lord. That is the instruction of the Vedas. The king is called narendra,
or the best amongst the human beings. How then could a king like Maha-
