TEXTS 56
yasyanke sira adhaya
lokah svapiti nirvrtah
svayam dharmam adharmam va
na hi veda yatha pasuh
sa katham nyarpitatmanam
krta-maitram acetanam
visrambhaniyo bhutanam
saghrno dogdhum arhati
SYNONYMS
yasyaof whom; ankeon the lap; sirahthe head; adhayaplacing; lokahthe general mass of people; svapitisleep; nirvrtahin peace; svayampersonally; dharmamreligious principles or the goal of life; adharmamirreligious principles; vaor; nanot; hiindeed; vedaknow; yathaexactly like; pasuhan animal; sahsuch a person; kathamhow; nyarpita-atmanamunto the living entity who has fully surrendered; krta-maitramendowed with good faith and friendship; acetanamwith undeveloped consciousness, foolish; visrambhaniyahdeserving to be the object of faith; bhutanamof the living entities; sa-ghrnahwho has a soft heart for the good of all people; dogdhumto give pain; arhatiis able.
TRANSLATION
People in general are not very advanced in knowledge by which to discriminate between religion and irreligion. The innocent, unenlightened citizen is like an ignorant animal sleeping in peace with its head on the lap of its master, faithfully believing in the masters protection. If a leader is actually kindhearted and deserves to be the object of a living entitys faith, how can he punish or kill a foolish person who has fully surrendered in good faith and friendship?
PURPORT
The Sanskrit word visvasta-ghata refers to one who breaks faith or causes a breach of trust. The mass of people should always feel security because of the governments protection. Therefore, how regrettable it is for the government itself to cause a breach of trust and put the citizens in difficulty for political reasons. We actually saw during the partition days in India that although Hindus and Muslims were living together peacefully, manipulation by politicians suddenly aroused feelings of hatred between them, and thus the Hindus and Muslims killed one another over politics. This is a sign of Kali-yuga. In this age, animals are kept nicely sheltered, completely confident that their masters will protect them, but unfortunately as soon as the animals are fat, they are immediately sent for slaughter. Such cruelty is condemned by Vaisnavas like the Visnudutas. Indeed, the hellish conditions already described await the sinful men responsible for such suffering. One who betrays the confidence of a living entity who takes shelter of him in good faith, whether that living entity be a human being or an animal, is extremely sinful. Because such betrayals now go unpunished by the government, all of human society is terribly contaminated. The people of this age are therefore described as mandah sumanda-matayo manda-bhagya hy upadrutah [SB 1.1.10]. As a consequence of such sinfulness, men are condemned (mandah), their intelligence is unclear (sumanda-matayah), they are unfortunate (manda-bhagyah), and therefore they are always disturbed by many problems (upadrutah). This is their situation in this life, and after death they are punished in hellish conditions.

Link to this page: https://prabhupadabooks.com/sb/6/2/5-6

Previous: SB 6.2.4     Next: SB 6.2.7

If you Love Me Distribute My Books -- Srila Prabhupada