Shloka 1
The Slaying of Hiraṇyākṣa and the Triumph of Varāha
मैत्रेय उवाच अवधार्य विरिञ्चस्य निर्व्यलीकामृतं वच: । प्रहस्य प्रेमगर्भेण तदपाङ्गेन सोऽग्रहीत् ॥ १ ॥
maitreya uvāca avadhārya viriñcasya nirvyalīkāmṛtaṁ vacaḥ prahasya prema-garbheṇa tad apāṅgena so ’grahīt
Śrī Maitreya said: Hearing Brahmā’s words—free from guile and sinful intent, sweet as nectar—the Lord laughed with love and accepted his prayer with a glance filled with affection.
The word nirvyalīka is very significant. The prayers of the demigods or devotees of the Lord are free from all sinful purposes, but the prayers of demons are always filled with sinful purposes. The demon Hiraṇyākṣa became powerful by deriving a boon from Brahmā, and after attaining that boon he created a disturbance because of his sinful intentions. The prayers of Brahmā and other demigods are not to be compared to the prayers of the demons. Their purpose is to please the Supreme Lord; therefore the Lord smiled and accepted the prayer to kill the demon. Demons, who are never interested in praising the Supreme Personality of Godhead because they have no information of Him, go to the demigods, and in Bhagavad-gītā this is condemned. Persons who go to the demigods and pray for advancement in sinful activities are considered to be bereft of all intelligence. Demons have lost all intelligence because they do not know what is actually their self-interest. Even if they have information of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, they decline to approach Him; it is not possible for them to get their desired boons from the Supreme Lord because their purposes are always sinful. It is said that the dacoits in Bengal used to worship the goddess Kālī for fulfillment of their sinful desires to plunder others’ property, but they never went to a Viṣṇu temple because they might have been unsuccessful in praying to Viṣṇu. Therefore the prayers of the demigods or the devotees of the Supreme Personality of Godhead are always untinged by sinful purposes.
FAQs
This verse shows that Brahmā’s sincere, guileless words are received by the Lord with a loving smile and an affectionate glance—indicating divine approval of truthful devotion.
To emphasize the Lord’s tenderness: His acceptance is not merely formal—His loving glance signals mercy and readiness to act in response to Brahmā’s sincere appeal within the narrative.
Cultivate sincerity and transparency—especially in prayer and service—because devotion expressed without manipulation or hidden motives is described as pleasing to the Lord.