Shloka 9
Bali Mahārāja’s Surrender, Prahlāda’s Praise, and the Lord’s Mercy
Sutala and Future Indrahood
किमात्मनानेन जहाति योऽन्तत: किं रिक्थहारै: स्वजनाख्यदस्युभि: । किं जायया संसृतिहेतुभूतया मर्त्यस्य गेहै: किमिहायुषो व्यय: ॥ ९ ॥
kim ātmanānena jahāti yo ’ntataḥ kiṁ riktha-hāraiḥ svajanākhya-dasyubhiḥ kiṁ jāyayā saṁsṛti-hetu-bhūtayā martyasya gehaiḥ kim ihāyuṣo vyayaḥ
What use is this material body, which at life’s end inevitably abandons its owner? What use are so-called relatives, who are like thieves that carry off wealth meant for the Lord’s service? What use is a wife who becomes a cause of deeper saṁsāra? Attachment to home and family merely wastes the mortal’s precious life-energy.
The Supreme Personality of Godhead, Kṛṣṇa, advises, sarva-dharmān parityajya mām ekaṁ śaraṇaṁ vraja: “Give up all other varieties of religion and just surrender unto Me.” The common man does not appreciate such a statement by the Supreme Personality of Godhead because he thinks that during his lifetime his family, society, country, body and relatives are everything. Why should one give up any one of them and take shelter of the Supreme Personality of Godhead? But from the behavior of great personalities like Prahlāda Mahārāja and Bali Mahārāja we understand that surrendering to the Lord is the right action for an intelligent person. Prahlāda Mahārāja took shelter of Viṣṇu against the will of his father. Similarly, Bali Mahārāja took shelter of Vāmanadeva against the will of his spiritual master, Śukrācārya, and all the leading demons. People may be surprised that devotees like Prahlāda Mahārāja and Bali Mahārāja could seek shelter of the side of the enemy, giving up the natural affinity for family, hearth and home. In this connection, Bali Mahārāja explains that the body, which is the center of all material activities, is also a foreign element. Even though we want to keep the body fit and helpful to our activities, the body cannot continue eternally. Although I am the soul, which is eternal, after using the body for some time I have to accept another body ( tathā dehāntara-prāptiḥ ), according to the laws of nature, unless I render some service with the body for advancement in devotional service. One should not use the body for any other purpose. One must know that if he uses the body for any other purpose he is simply wasting time, for as soon as the time is ripe, the soul will automatically leave the body.
FAQs
This verse warns that the body will be abandoned at death, and that wealth and attachments often bind the soul; therefore one should cultivate detachment and redirect life toward spiritual realization.
In the Bali–Vamana narrative, Shukadeva highlights the urgency of surrender to the Lord by exposing how material supports—body, wealth, and social ties—cannot save one at the final moment and may instead deepen bondage.
Use family and work responsibly, but don’t make them the ultimate goal—prioritize bhakti, simplify unnecessary desires, and invest time daily in hearing, chanting, and service so life is not merely “spent” but spiritually fulfilled.