952 Srimad-Bhagavatam [Canto 4, Ch. 22

grains; bhuijate—eats; ksatriya-adayah—other divisions of the society,
headed by the ksatriyas.

TRANSLATION

The ksatriyas, vaisyas and sudras eat their food by virtue of the
brahmanas’ mercy. It is the brahmanas who enjoy their own property,
clothe themselves with their own property and give charity with their own

property.
PURPORT

The Supreme Personality of Godhead is worshiped with the words
namo brahmanya-devaya, which indicate that the Supreme Lord accepts
the brahmanas as worshipable gods. The Supreme Lord is worshiped by
everyone, yet to teach others He worships the brahmanas. Everyone should
follow the instructions of the brahmanas, for their only business is to
spread sabda-brahma or Vedic knowledge all over the world. Whenever
there is a scarcity of brahmanas to spread Vedic knowledge, chaos through-
out human society results. Since brahmanas and Vaisnavas are direct ser-
vants of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, they do not depend on others.
In actuality, everything in the world belongs to the brahmanas, and out of
their humility the brahmanas accept charity from the ksatriyas, or kings,
and the vaisyas, or merchants. Although everything belongs to the
brahmanas, the ksatriyas and vaisyas keep everything in custody, and
whenever the brahmanas need money, they supply it. It is like a savings
account with money which the depositor can draw out at his will. The
brahmanas, being engaged in the service of the Lord, have very little time
to handle the finances of the world, and therefore the riches are kept by
the ksatriyas or the kings, who are to produce money upon the brahmanas’
demand. Actually the brahmanas or Vaisnavas do not live at others’ cost;
they live by spending their own money, although it appears that they are
collecting this money from others. Ksatriyas and vaisyas have no right to
give charity because whatever they possess belongs to the brahmanas.
Therefore charity should be given by the ksatriyas and vaisyas under the
instructions of the brahmanas. Unfortunately at the present moment there
is a scarcity of brahmanas, and since there is no one to advise the ksatriyas
and vaisyas, the world is in a chaotic condition.

The second line of this verse indicates that the ksatriyas, vaisyas and
Sudras eat only by virtue of the brahmana’s mercy; in other words, they
should not eat anything which is forbidden by the brahmanas. The
brahmanas and Vaisnavas know what to eat, and by their personal example
they do not eat anything which is not offered first to the Supreme Person-
