SB 4.7.2 · Srimad-Bhagavatam

Devanagari

महादेव उवाच नाघं प्रजेश बालानां वर्णये नानुचिन्तये । देवमायाभिभूतानां दण्डस्तत्र धृतो मया ॥ २ ॥

Verse text

mahādeva uvāca nāghaṁ prajeśa bālānāṁ varṇaye nānucintaye deva-māyābhibhūtānāṁ daṇḍas tatra dhṛto mayā

Synonyms

mahādevaḥ — Lord Śiva ; uvāca — said ; na — not ; agham — offense ; prajā — īśa — O lord of created beings ; bālānām — of the children ; varṇaye — I regard ; na — not ; anucintaye — I consider ; deva — māyā — the external energy of the Lord ; abhibhūtānām — of those deluded by ; daṇḍaḥ — rod ; tatra — there ; dhṛtaḥ — used ; mayā — by me .

Translation

Lord Śiva said: My dear father, Brahmā, I do not mind the offenses created by the demigods. Because these demigods are childish and less intelligent, I do not take a serious view of their offenses, and I have punished them only in order to right them.

Translation (Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura)

Śiva said: O Brahmā! I do not speak about or think about the offenses committed by children, those controlled by the Lord’s māyā. I punished them to teach them. O Brahmā (prajeśa)! Sometimes pareśa is seen instead. I have punished the children in order to teach them.

Purport

There are two types of punishment: one is that which a conqueror imposes on an enemy, and the other is like that a father imposes on his son. There is a gulf of difference between these two kinds of punishment. Lord Śiva is by nature a Vaiṣṇava, a great devotee, and his name in this connection is Āśutoṣa. He is always satisfied, and therefore he did not become angry as if he were an enemy. He is not inimical to any living entity; rather, he always wishes the welfare of all. Whenever he chastises a person, it is just like a father’s punishment of his son. Lord Śiva is like a father because he never takes seriously any offense by any living entities, especially the demigods.