Shloka 14
Avatāra-kathā — The Puruṣa, the Many Incarnations, and Kṛṣṇa as Svayam Bhagavān
ऋषिभिर्याचितो भेजे नवमं पार्थिवं वपु: । दुग्धेमामोषधीर्विप्रास्तेनायं स उशत्तम: ॥ १४ ॥
ṛṣibhir yācito bheje navamaṁ pārthivaṁ vapuḥ dugdhemām oṣadhīr viprās tenāyaṁ sa uśattamaḥ
โอ้พราหมณ์ทั้งหลาย ด้วยคำวิงวอนของฤๅษี พระผู้เป็นเจ้าทรงอวตารครั้งที่เก้าเป็นกษัตริย์ปฤถุ ทรงรีดเอาผลผลิตและสมุนไพรนานาชนิดจากแผ่นดิน จึงทำให้โลกงดงามน่าชมยิ่งนัก
Before the advent of King Pṛthu, there was great havoc of maladministration due to the vicious life of the previous king, the father of Mahārāja Pṛthu. The intelligent class of men (namely the sages and the brāhmaṇas ) not only prayed for the Lord to come down, but also dethroned the previous king. It is the duty of the king to be pious and thus look after the all-around welfare of the citizens. Whenever there is some negligence on the part of the king in discharging his duty, the intelligent class of men must dethrone him. The intelligent class of men, however, do not occupy the royal throne, because they have much more important duties for the welfare of the public. Instead of occupying the royal throne, they prayed for the incarnation of the Lord, and the Lord came as Mahārāja Pṛthu. Real intelligent men, or qualified brāhmaṇas, never aspire for political posts. Mahārāja Pṛthu excavated many produces from the earth, and thus not only did the citizens become happy to have such a good king, but the complete sight of the earth also became beautiful and attractive.
FAQs
It states that, when requested by the sages, the Lord accepted a ninth incarnation in an earthly, royal form, through which the brāhmaṇas obtained nourishing herbs from the earth—showing Him as a supreme benefactor.
Because the incarnation is described as being taken at the sages’ request, and the brāhmaṇas are shown drawing sustenance (herbs/medicines) from the earth—highlighting the Lord’s support of dharma and the saintly.
It encourages seeing divine providence behind true nourishment and well-being, and valuing saintly guidance and dharmic leadership that protects and sustains society.