Verse Text
17. anya-devānajṣā, yathā tatraiva—
harir eva sadārādhyaḥ sarva-deveśvareśvaraḥ
itare brahma-rudrādyā nāvajṣeyāḥ kadācana ||116||
Translation
Not disrespecting the devatās (verse 81), illustrated in Padma Purāṇa: One should always worship Hari, the Lord of the masters of all the devatās. On the other hand, one should never disrespect Brahmā, Śiva and others.
Purport (Nectar of Devotion)
The Demigods
One should not neglect to offer due respect to the demigods. One may not be a devotee of demigods, but that does not mean that he should be disrespectful to them. For example, a Vaiṣṇava is not a devotee of Lord Śiva or Lord Brahmā, but he is duty-bound to offer all respects to such highly positioned demigods. According to Vaiṣṇava philosophy, one should offer respect even to an ant, so then what is there to speak of such exalted persons as Lord Śiva and Lord Brahmā?
In the Padma Purāṇa it is said, “Kṛṣṇa, or Hari, is the master of all demigods, and therefore He is always worshipable. But this does not mean that one should not offer respect to the demigods.”