SB 6.16.14 · Srimad-Bhagavatam

Devanagari

बालघ्‍न्यो व्रीडितास्तत्र बालहत्याहतप्रभा: । बालहत्याव्रतं चेरुर्ब्राह्मणैर्यन्निरूपितम् । यमुनायां महाराज स्मरन्त्यो द्विजभाषितम् ॥ १४ ॥

Verse text

bāla-ghnyo vrīḍitās tatra bāla-hatyā-hata-prabhāḥ bāla-hatyā-vrataṁ cerur brāhmaṇair yan nirūpitam yamunāyāṁ mahārāja smarantyo dvija-bhāṣitam

Synonyms

bāla — ghnyaḥ — the killers of the child ; vrīḍitāḥ — being very much ashamed ; tatra — there ; bāla — hatyā — because of killing the child ; hata — having lost ; prabhāḥ — all bodily luster ; bāla — hatyā — vratam — the atonement for killing the child ; ceruḥ — executed ; brāhmaṇaiḥ — by the priests ; yat — which ; nirūpitam — described ; yamunāyām — at the river Yamunā ; mahā — rāja — O King Parīkṣit ; smarantyaḥ — remembering ; dvija — bhāṣitam — the statement given by the brāhmaṇa. .

Translation

Queen Kṛtyadyuti’s co-wives, who had poisoned the child, were very much ashamed, and they lost all their bodily luster. While lamenting, O King, they remembered the instructions of Aṅgirā and gave up their ambition to bear children. Following the directions of the brāhmaṇas, they went to the bank of the Yamunā, where they bathed and atoned for their sinful activities.

Translation (Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura)

O King! Queen Kṛtyadyuti's co-wives, ashamed of killing the child, lost their bodily luster, and, remembering the words of Aṅgirā, atoned for the killing of the child on the Yamunā River as directed by brāhmaṇas. When everyone understood that the other wives had killed the child, by seeing that they had become pale, the wives became ashamed and frankly admitted that they had killed the child. They then performed atonement as directed by brāhmaṇas like Aṅgirā.

Purport

In this verse the word bāla-hatyā-hata-prabhāḥ is to be particularly noted. The practice of killing children has existed in human society for a long time — since time immemorial — but in the days of yore it was very rarely performed. At the present moment, however, in this Age of Kali, abortion — killing of the child within the womb — has become very common, and sometimes a child is even killed after birth. If a woman performs such an abominable act, she gradually loses all her bodily luster ( bāla-hatyā-hata-prabhāḥ ). It is also to be noted that the ladies who had committed the sinful act of administering poison to the child were very much ashamed, and according to the directions of the brāhmaṇas, they had to undergo atonement for killing the child. Any woman who has ever performed such an infamously sinful act must atone for it, but no one now is doing that. Under the circumstances, the women responsible must suffer in this life and the next. Those who are sincere souls, after hearing this incident, should refrain from such child-killing and should atone for their sinful activities by taking to Kṛṣṇa consciousness very seriously. If one chants the Hare Kṛṣṇa mahā-mantra without offenses, all of one’s sinful actions are surely atoned for immediately, but one should not commit such deeds again, for that is an offense.