Nārāyaṇa’s Impartiality, Absorption in Kṛṣṇa, and the Jaya–Vijaya Descent
Prelude to Prahlāda’s History
श्रीयुधिष्ठिर उवाच कीदृश: कस्य वा शापो हरिदासाभिमर्शन: । अश्रद्धेय इवाभाति हरेरेकान्तिनां भव: ॥ ३४ ॥
śrī-yudhiṣṭhira uvāca kīdṛśaḥ kasya vā śāpo hari-dāsābhimarśanaḥ aśraddheya ivābhāti harer ekāntināṁ bhavaḥ
Vua Yudhiṣṭhira thưa hỏi: Lời nguyền lớn nào, của ai, có thể chạm đến cả những người tôi tớ của Hari? Với những kẻ một lòng quy y Hari, việc rơi trở lại cõi vật chất là điều không thể; ta không sao tin nổi.
In Bhagavad-gītā (8.16) the Lord clearly states, mām upetya tu kaunteya punar janma na vidyate: one who is purified of material contamination and returns home, back to Godhead, does not return to this material world. Elsewhere in Bhagavad-gītā (4.9) Kṛṣṇa says:
This verse shows Yudhiṣṭhira’s amazement that any calamity could touch the Lord’s exclusive devotees, implying that such events require a deeper divine explanation within the narrative.
Hearing that a curse could disturb devotees, Yudhiṣṭhira questions how it could be possible, setting up the forthcoming explanation of the specific curse and the Lord’s hidden purpose behind it.
The verse encourages faithful inquiry: rather than losing heart, a devotee can seek the spiritual meaning behind difficulties and remain fixed in one-pointed devotion to Hari.