Srimad Bhagavatam — Navama Skandha, Shloka 69
Nābhāga’s Inheritance, Śiva’s Verdict, and the Rise of Ambarīṣa—Prelude to Durvāsā’s Offense
उपायं कथयिष्यामि तव विप्र शृणुष्व तत् । अयं ह्यात्माभिचारस्ते यतस्तं याहि मा चिरम् । साधुषु प्रहितं तेज: प्रहर्तु: कुरुतेऽशिवम् ॥ ६९ ॥
upāyaṁ kathayiṣyāmi tava vipra śṛṇuṣva tat ayaṁ hy ātmābhicāras te yatas taṁ yāhi mā ciram sādhuṣu prahitaṁ tejaḥ prahartuḥ kurute ’śivam
婆罗门啊，我为你的自护指示一法，请听我言。你冒犯安巴里沙王，实乃自害其心；故当立刻前往，不可迟延。将威力用来攻击圣徒与奉主之人，必反成施用者之不祥；受伤者是行者，而非所向之人。
A Vaiṣṇava is always an object of envy for nondevotees, even when the nondevotee happens to be his father. To give a practical example, Hiraṇyakaśipu was envious of Prahlāda Mahārāja, but this envy of the devotee was harmful to Hiraṇyakaśipu, not to Prahlāda. Every action taken by Hiraṇyakaśipu against his son Prahlāda Mahārāja was taken very seriously by the Supreme Personality of Godhead, and thus when Hiraṇyakaśipu was on the verge of killing Prahlāda, the Lord personally appeared and killed Hiraṇyakaśipu. Service to a Vaiṣṇava gradually accumulates and becomes an asset for the devotee. Similarly, harmful activities directed against the devotee gradually become the ultimate cause of the performer’s falldown. Even such a great brāhmaṇa and mystic yogī as Durvāsā was in a most dangerous situation because of his offense at the lotus feet of Mahārāja Ambarīṣa, a pure devotee.
FAQs
This verse warns that power or hostility aimed at sādhus rebounds as inauspiciousness upon the aggressor, making such offenses spiritually and materially dangerous.
Because the suffering is arising from his own harmful act toward a saintly person; prompt repentance and seeking reconciliation is presented as the practical remedy.
Avoid contempt or aggression toward sincere spiritual practitioners, and when you wrong someone saintly or virtuous, correct it quickly through apology, humility, and restorative action.