Text 13
dakṣa uvāca
bhūyān anugraha aho bhavatā kṛto me
daṇḍas tvayā mayi bhṛto yad api pralabdhaḥ
na brahma-bandhuṣu ca vāṁ bhagavann avajñā
tubhyaṁ hareś ca kuta eva dhṛta-vrateṣu
dakṣaḥ—el rey Dakṣa; uvāca—dijo; bhūyān—muy grande; anugrahaḥ—favor; aho—¡ay!; bhavatā—por ti; kṛtaḥ—hecho; me—a mí; daṇḍaḥ—castigo; tvayā—por ti; mayi—a mí; bhṛtaḥ—hecho; yat api—aunque; pralabdhaḥ—derrotado; na—ni; brahma-bandhuṣu—a un brāhmaṇa incompetente; ca—también; vām—ustedes dos; bhagavan—mi señor; avajñā—abandono; tubhyam—de ustedes; hareḥ ca—del Señor Viṣṇu; kutaḥ—donde; eva—ciertamente; dhṛta-vrateṣu—el que celebra un sacrificio.
El rey Dakṣa dijo: Mi querido Señor Śiva, he cometido una gran ofensa contra ti, pero tú eres tan bondadoso que, en lugar de privarme de tu misericordia, me has hecho un gran favor, castigándome. Tú y el Señor Viṣṇu nunca dejan de lado a los brāhmaṇas, ni siquiera si somos inútiles e incompetentes. Nunca me habrías abandonado, pues estoy dedicado a la celebración de sacrificios.
Although Dakṣa felt defeated, he knew that his punishment was simply the great mercy of Lord Śiva. He remembered that Lord Śiva and Lord Viṣṇu are never neglectful of the brāhmaṇas, even though the brāhmaṇas are sometimes unqualified. According to Vedic civilization, a descendant of a brāhmaṇa family should never be heavily punished. This was exemplified in Arjuna’s treatment of Aśvatthāmā. Aśvatthāmā was the son of a great brāhmaṇa, Droṇācārya, and in spite of his having committed the great offense of killing all the sleeping sons of the Pāṇḍavas, for which he was condemned even by Lord Kṛṣṇa, Arjuna excused him by not killing him because he happened to be the son of a brāhmaṇa. The word brahma-bandhuṣu used here is significant. Brahma-bandhu means a person who is born of a brāhmaṇa father but whose activities are not up to the standard of the brāhmaṇas. Such a person is not a brāhmaṇa but a brahma-bandhu. Dakṣa proved himself to be a brahma-bandhu. He was born of a great brāhmaṇa father, Lord Brahmā, but his treatment of Lord Śiva was not exactly brahminical; therefore he admitted that he was not a perfect brāhmaṇa. Lord Śiva and Lord Viṣṇu, however, are affectionate even to an imperfect brāhmaṇa. Lord Śiva punished Dakṣa not as one does his enemy; rather, he punished Dakṣa just to bring him to his senses, so that he would know that he had done wrong. Dakṣa could understand this, and he acknowledged the great mercy of Lord Kṛṣṇa and Lord Śiva towards the fallen brāhmaṇas, including even himself. Although he was fallen, his vow was to execute the sacrifice, as is the duty of brāhmaṇas, and thus he began his prayers to Lord Śiva.