Devanagari
तस्मिन् कूटेऽहिते नष्टे कृत्तमूले वनस्पतौ ।
विटपा इव शुष्यन्ति विष्णुप्राणा दिवौकस: ॥ ९ ॥
Verse text
tasmin kūṭe ’hite naṣṭe
kṛtta-mūle vanas-patau
viṭapā iva śuṣyanti
viṣṇu-prāṇā divaukasaḥ
Synonyms
tasmin
—
when He
;
kūṭe
—
the most deceitful
;
ahite
—
enemy
;
naṣṭe
—
is finished
;
kṛtta
—
mūle — having its roots cut off
;
vanas
—
patau — a tree
;
viṭapāḥ
—
the branches and leaves
;
iva
—
like
;
śuṣyanti
—
dry up
;
viṣṇu
—
prāṇāḥ — whose life is Lord Viṣṇu
;
diva
—
okasaḥ — the demigods .
Translation
When the root of a tree is cut and the tree falls down, its branches and twigs automatically dry up. Similarly, when I have killed this diplomatic Viṣṇu, the demigods, for whom Lord Viṣṇu is the life and soul, will lose the source of their life and wither away.
Translation (Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura)
The devatās, whose life is Viṣṇu, will wither away when cheating Viṣṇu is dead, just as branches wither away when the root is cut.
Kūṭe ahite means “Viṣṇu having deceptive actions.” But it also means “Viṣṇu who fights against cheaters like me.” Thus this is my good fortune. There is also good fortune for the devatās. They live only for Viṣṇu. Nāsṭe can also mean that Viṣṇu becomes invisible, since he cannot be destroyed. When he disappears from their sight, just as a tree dries up when the root is cut, so the devatās, whose life is Viṣṇu, will dry up, out of separation. The devatās are fortunate, having Viṣṇu as their very life.
Purport
The difference between the demigods and the demons is here explained. The demigods always follow the instructions of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, whereas the demons simply plan to disturb or kill Him. Nevertheless, sometimes the demons very much appreciate the full dependence of the demigods upon the mercy of the Lord. This is indirect glorification of the demigods by the demons.