Text 37] Narada Muni Cursed by Prajapati Daksa 307
PURPORT

As soon as a brahmana takes birth, he assumes three kinds of debts—
debts to great saints, debts to the demigods and debts to his father. The
son of a brahmana must undergo celibacy (brahmacarya) to clear his
debts to the saintly persons, he must perform ritualistic ceremonies to
clear his debts to the demigods, and he must beget children to become
free from his debts to his father. Prajapati Daksa argued that although
the renounced order is recommended for liberation, one cannot attain
liberation unless one fulfills his obligations to the demigods, the saints
and his father. Since Daksa’s sons had not liberated themselves from
these three debts, how could Narada Muni have led them to the
renounced order of life? Apparently, Prajapati Daksa did not know the
final decision of the Sdstras. As stated in Srimad-Bhdgavatam (11.5.41):

devarsi-bhiitapta-nrnam pitrnam
na kinkaro naéyam rni ca rdjan
sarvatmana yah Saranam Saranyam
gato mukundam parihrtya kartam

Everyone is indebted to the demigods, to living entities in general, to his
family, to the pitas and so on, but if one fully surrenders to Krsna,
Mukunda, who can give one liberation, even if one performs no yajfas,
one is freed from all debts. Even if one does not repay his debts, he is
freed from all debts if he renounces the material world for the sake of
the Supreme Personality of Godhead, whose lotus feet are the shelter of
everyone. This is the verdict of the sastra. Therefore Narada Muni was
completely right in instructing the sons of Prajapati Daksa to renounce
this material world immediately and take shelter of the Supreme
Personality of Godhead. Unfortunately, Prajapati Daksa, the father of
the Haryasvas and Savalasvas, did not understand the great service
rendered by Narada Muni. Daksa therefore addressed him as papa (the
personality of sinful activities) and asddhu (a nonsaintly person). Since
Narada Muni was a great saint and Vaisnava, he tolerated all such
accusations from Prajapati Daksa. He merely performed his duty as a
Vaisnava by delivering all the sons of Prajapati Daksa, enabling them to
return home, back to Godhead.
