Shloka 24
Aditi’s Lament and Kaśyapa’s Instruction of the Payo-vrata (Milk Vow) to Please Keśava
श्रीकश्यप उवाच एतन्मे भगवान्पृष्ट: प्रजाकामस्य पद्मज: । यदाह ते प्रवक्ष्यामि व्रतं केशवतोषणम् ॥ २४ ॥
śrī-kaśyapa uvāca etan me bhagavān pṛṣṭaḥ prajā-kāmasya padmajaḥ yad āha te pravakṣyāmi vrataṁ keśava-toṣaṇam
Śrī Kaśyapa Muni said: Desiring offspring, I questioned Lord Brahmā, the lotus-born. Now I shall tell you that same vow, as he instructed me, by which Keśava is fully pleased.
Here the process of devotional service is further explained. Kaśyapa Muni wanted to instruct Aditi in the same process recommended to him by Brahmā for satisfying the Supreme Personality of Godhead. This is valuable. The guru does not manufacture a new process to instruct the disciple. The disciple receives from the guru an authorized process received by the guru from his guru. This is called the system of disciplic succession ( evaṁ paramparā-prāptaṁ imaṁ rājarṣayo viduḥ ). This is the bona fide Vedic system of receiving the process of devotional service, by which the Supreme Personality of Godhead is pleased. Therefore, to approach a bona fide guru, or spiritual master, is essential. The bona fide spiritual master is he who has received the mercy of his guru, who in turn is bona fide because he has received the mercy of his guru. This is called the paramparā system. Unless one follows this paramparā system, the mantra one receives will be chanted for no purpose. Nowadays there are so many rascal gurus who manufacture their mantras as a process for material advancement, not spiritual advancement. Still, the mantra cannot be successful if it is manufactured. Mantras and the process of devotional service have special power, provided they are received from the authorized person.
FAQs
This verse introduces a specific observance described as “keśava-toṣaṇam”—a vow performed with the aim of pleasing Lord Keśava, indicating that vrata becomes spiritually potent when centered on Viṣṇu’s satisfaction.
Kaśyapa establishes the authority and tradition of the teaching: even Brahmā, the lotus-born, inquired about this vow on behalf of someone seeking progeny, so Kaśyapa now transmits the same instruction.
Align spiritual practices—fasting, simple diet, prayer, charity, and self-discipline—with the intention of devotion to Viṣṇu, making the practice less about mere ritual and more about cultivating God-centered purpose.