Shloka 33
Pṛthu Mahārāja’s Homecoming, Sacrificial Assembly, and Instruction on Devotional Kingship
तमेव यूयं भजतात्मवृत्तिभि- र्मनोवच:कायगुणै: स्वकर्मभि: । अमायिन: कामदुघाङ्घ्रिपङ्कजं यथाधिकारावसितार्थसिद्धय: ॥ ३३ ॥
tam eva yūyaṁ bhajatātma-vṛttibhir mano-vacaḥ-kāya-guṇaiḥ sva-karmabhiḥ amāyinaḥ kāma-dughāṅghri-paṅkajaṁ yathādhikārāvasitārtha-siddhayaḥ
All of you, with mind, speech, body, your qualities, and the fruits of your prescribed duties, free from duplicity, worship Śrī Hari alone. According to your capacity and station, serve the Lord’s lotus feet—the wish-fulfilling refuge—with full faith and without reservation; then the supreme goal of life will surely be attained.
As stated in the Eighteenth Chapter of Bhagavad-gītā, sva-karmaṇā tam abhyarcya: one has to worship the Supreme Personality of Godhead by one’s occupational duties. This necessitates accepting the principle of four varṇas and four āśramas. Pṛthu Mahārāja therefore says, guṇaiḥ sva-karmabhiḥ. This phrase is explained in Bhagavad-gītā. Cātur-varṇyaṁ mayā sṛṣṭaṁ guṇa-karma-vibhāgaśaḥ: “The four castes (the brāhmaṇas, kṣatriyas, vaiśyas and śūdras ) are created by the Supreme Personality of Godhead according to the material modes of nature and the particular duties discharged in those modes.” A person who is situated in the mode of goodness is certainly more intelligent than others. Therefore he can practice the brahminical activities — namely speaking the truth, controlling the senses, controlling the mind, remaining always clean, practicing tolerance, having full knowledge about one’s self-identity, and understanding devotional service. In this way, if he engages himself in the loving service of the Lord as an actual brāhmaṇa, his aim to achieve the final interest of life is attained. Similarly, the kṣatriya’s duties are to give protection to the citizens, to give all his possessions in charity, to be strictly Vedic in the management of state affairs and to be unafraid to fight whenever there is an attack by enemies. In this way, a kṣatriya can satisfy the Supreme Personality of Godhead by his occupational duties. Similarly, a vaiśya can satisfy the Supreme Godhead by properly executing his occupational duties — engaging himself in producing foodstuffs, giving protection to cows, and trading if necessary when there is an excess of agricultural production. Similarly, because śūdras do not have ample intelligence, they should simply engage as workers to serve the higher statuses of social life. Everyone’s aim should be to satisfy the Supreme Personality of Godhead by engaging his mind in thinking always of Kṛṣṇa, his words in always offering prayers to the Lord or preaching about the glories of the Lord, and his body in executing the service required to satisfy the Lord. As there are four divisions within our body — the head, the arms, the belly and the legs — similarly, human society, taken as a whole, is divided into four classes of men according to their material qualities and occupational duties. Thus the brahminical or intelligent men have to execute the duty of the head, the kṣatriyas must fulfill the duty of the arms, the vaiśya class must fulfill the duty of the belly, and the śūdras must fulfill the duty of the legs. In executing the prescribed duties of life, no one is higher or lower; there are such divisions as “higher” and “lower,” but since there is actually a common interest — to satisfy the Supreme Personality of Godhead — there are no distinctions between them.
FAQs
This verse teaches serving the Lord with one’s whole being—mind, words, body, personal qualities, and daily duties—making devotion complete and integrated.
In his instructions to the citizens, Pṛthu emphasizes single-pointed devotion to the Supreme Lord as the sure path to real welfare and the fulfillment of life’s ultimate goal.
Practice devotion at your current capacity—chanting, prayer, ethical living, and offering your work—gradually increasing sincerity and steadiness rather than imitating advanced stages.