SB 6.13.10 · Srimad-Bhagavatam

Devanagari

श्रीशुक उवाच एवं सञ्चोदितो विप्रैर्मरुत्वानहनद्रिपुम् । ब्रह्महत्या हते तस्मिन्नाससाद वृषाकपिम् ॥ १० ॥

Verse text

śrī-śuka uvāca evaṁ saṣcodito viprair marutvān ahanad ripum brahma-hatyā hate tasminn āsasāda vṛṣākapim

Synonyms

śrī — śukaḥ uvāca — Śrī Śukadeva Gosvāmī said ; evam — thus ; saṣcoditaḥ — being encouraged ; vipraiḥ — by the brāhmaṇas ; marutvān — Indra ; ahanat — killed ; ripum — his enemy, Vṛtrāsura ; brahma — hatyā — the sinful reaction for killing a brāhmaṇa ; hate — was killed ; tasmin — when he (Vṛtrāsura) ; āsasāda — approached ; vṛṣākapim — Indra, who is also named Vṛṣākapi .

Translation

Śrī Śukadeva Gosvāmī said: Encouraged by the words of the sages, Indra killed Vṛtrāsura, and when he was killed the sinful reaction for killing a brāhmaṇa [brahma-hatyā] certainly took shelter of Indra.

Translation (Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura)

Śukadeva Gosvāmī said: Encouraged by the words of the sages, Indra killed Vṛtrāsura, and when he was killed, the sin of killing a brāhmaṇa took shelter of Indra. When Vṛtra was killed (tasmin hate) the sin fell upon Indra (vṛṣākapim). Because of committing sin on the strength of an atonement, the reaction was very strong. Without experiencing suffering, the atonement would not give relief by itself. Therefore they did not perform the horse sacrifice for Indra immediately. The sages, because of advising him to commit the sin on the strength of the atonement also suffered misfortune, the result of the offense, for a long time. This suffering came from Nahuṣa, who took over Indra’s post.

Purport

After killing Vṛtrāsura, Indra could not surpass the brahma-hatyā, the sinful reactions for killing a brāhmaṇa. Formerly he had killed one brāhmaṇa, Viśvarūpa, out of circumstantial anger, but this time, following the advice of the sages, he killed another brāhmaṇa purposely. Therefore the sinful reaction was greater than before. Indra could not be relieved from the reaction simply by performing sacrifices for atonement. He had to undergo a severe series of sinful reactions, and when he was freed by such suffering, the brāhmaṇas allowed him to perform the horse sacrifice. The planned execution of sinful deeds on the strength of chanting the holy name of the Lord or undergoing prāyaścitta, atonement, cannot give relief to anyone, even to Indra or Nahuṣa. Nahuṣa was officiating for Indra while Indra, absent from heaven, was going here and there to gain release from his sinful reactions.