Devanagari
अहो विचित्रं भगवद्विचेष्टितंघ्नन्तं जनोऽयं हि मिषन्न पश्यति
ध्यायन्नसद्यर्हि विकर्म सेवितुंनिर्हृत्य पुत्रं पितरं जिजीविषति ॥ ३ ॥
Verse text
aho vicitraṁ bhagavad-viceṣṭitaṁ
ghnantaṁ jano ’yaṁ hi miṣan na paśyati
dhyāyann asad yarhi vikarma sevituṁ
nirhṛtya putraṁ pitaraṁ jijīviṣati
Synonyms
aho
—
alas
;
vicitram
—
wonderful
;
bhagavat
—
viceṣṭitam — the pastimes of the Lord
;
ghnantam
—
death
;
janaḥ
—
a person
;
ayam
—
this
;
hi
—
certainly
;
miṣan
—
although seeing
;
na paśyati
—
does not see
;
dhyāyan
—
thinking about
;
asat
—
material happiness
;
yarhi
—
because
;
vikarma
—
forbidden activities
;
sevitum
—
to enjoy
;
nirhṛtya
—
burning
;
putram
—
sons
;
pitaram
—
the father
;
jijīviṣati
—
desires a long life .
Translation
Alas! How wonderful it is that the foolish materialist does not heed the great danger of impending death! He knows that death will surely come, yet he is nevertheless callous and neglectful. If his father dies, he wants to enjoy his father’s property, and if his son dies, he wants to enjoy his son’s possessions as well. In either case, he heedlessly tries to enjoy material happiness with the acquired money.
Translation (Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura)
How astonishing it is that a person, though seeing death, does not see really death, the action of the Lord, since, meditating on sinful acts, he desires to live to enjoy material life even though burning his father and his sons after their deaths.
Though he sees death, he does not see it. Burning his dead father who produced him and son whom he produced, who have died, he, positioned between them, even though produced by one and producing the other, desires to live off of their wealth. He does not bother to ask, “Can death take me away?” Someone may say, “But to live fifty years for the service of the Lord is not to be criticized.” But this person meditates on how to get himself married, to get some material happiness (vikarma sevitum). Not only is he not aware of death, but he enjoys after burning his son. This is most astonishing. Another version has jijīviṣan. Since that version keeps the meter, it is acceptable. “In Bhadrāśva and other heavenly planets on earth, a person would not see the death of his father and son at the same time.” That is true. In their descriptions, they are speaking of the inhabitants of Bhārata. “We are unfortunate. We are enjoying the results of our good karmas. In Bhadrāśva we live like animals. Those who are most fortunate have taken birth in Bhārata for attaining practices to get out of this world. There, even the low-born easily attain Vaikuṇṭha. How can they become bewildered?” This is how they thinking.
Purport
Material happiness means to have good facilities for eating, sleeping, sexual intercourse and defense. Within this world, the materialistic person lives only for these four principles of sense gratification, not caring for the impending danger of death. After his father’s death, a son tries to inherit his money and use it for sense gratification. Similarly, one whose son dies tries to enjoy the possessions of his son. Sometimes the father of a dead son even enjoys his son’s widow. Materialistic persons behave in this way. Thus Śukadeva Gosvāmī says, “How wonderful are these pastimes of material happiness transacted by the will of the Supreme Personality of Godhead!” In other words, materialistic persons want to commit all kinds of sinful activities, but without the sanction of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, no one can do anything. Why does the Supreme Personality of Godhead permit sinful activities? The Supreme Lord does not want any living being to act sinfully, and He begs him through his good conscience to refrain from sin. But when someone insists upon acting sinfully, the Supreme Lord gives him the sanction to act at his own risk (
mattaḥ smṛtir jṣānam apohanaṁ ca
). No one can do anything without the sanction of the Lord, but He is so kind that when the conditioned soul persists in doing something, the Lord permits the individual soul to act at his own risk.
According to Śrīla Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura, sons always outlive their fathers in other planetary systems and other lands in this universe, especially on Svargaloka. However, on this planet earth a son often dies before his father, and the materialistic father is pleased to enjoy the possessions of his son. Neither the father nor the son can see the reality — that both of them are awaiting death. When death comes, however, all their plans for material enjoyment are finished.