290 Srimad-Bhagavatam [Canto 5, Ch. 20

devanam purusarnganam
yajfnena purusam yayeti

parasya—of the Supreme; brahmanah—Brahman; saksat—directly;
Jata-vedah—O fire-god; asi—you are; havyavat—the carrier of Vedic
offerings of grains and ghee; devanaém—of all the demigods; purusa-
anganam—who are limbs of the Supreme Person; yajriena—by per-
forming the ritualistic sacrifices; purusam—to the Supreme Person;
yaja—please carry oblations; iti—thus.

TRANSLATION

[This is the mantra by which the inhabitants of KuSadvipa wor-
ship the fire-god.] O fire-god, you are a part of the Supreme Per-
sonality of Godhead, Hari, and you carry to Him all the offerings
of sacrifices. Therefore we request you to offer to the Supreme
Personality of Godhead the yajnic ingredients we are offering the
demigods, for the Lord is the real enjoyer.

PURPORT

The demigods are servants who assist the Supreme Personality of
Godhead. If one worships the demigods, the demigods, as servants of the
Supreme, carry the sacrificial offerings to the Lord, like tax collectors
collecting revenue from the citizens and bringing it to the government’s
treasury. The demigods cannot accept the sacrificial offerings; they
simply carry the offerings to the Supreme Personality of Godhead. As
stated by Srila Viévanatha Cakravarti Thakura, yasya prasadad
bhagavat-prasddah: since the guru is a representative of the Supreme
Personality of Godhead, he carries to the Lord whatever is offered to
him. Similarly, all the demigods, as faithful servants of the Supreme
Lord, hand over to the Supreme Lord whatever is offered to them in
sacrificial performances. There is no fault in worshiping the demigods
with this understanding, but to think that the demigods are independent
of the Supreme Personality of Godhead and equal to Him is called hArta-
Jnana, a loss of intelligence (kadmais tais tair hrta-jndnah). One who
thinks that the demigods themselves are the actual benefactors is
mistaken.
