Devanagari
मा शोचतं महाभागावात्मजान् स्वकृतंभुज: ।
जान्तवो न सदैकत्र दैवाधीनास्तदासते ॥ १८ ॥
Verse text
mā śocataṁ mahā-bhāgāv
ātmajān sva-kṛtaṁ bhujaḥ
jāntavo na sadaikatra
daivādhīnās tadāsate
Synonyms
mā śocatam
—
kindly do not be aggrieved (for what happened in the past)
;
mahā
—
bhāgau — O you who are learned and fortunate in spiritual knowledge
;
ātmajān
—
for your sons
;
sva
—
kṛtam — only because of their own acts
;
bhujaḥ
—
who are suffering
;
jāntavaḥ
—
all living entities
;
na
—
not
;
sadā
—
always
;
ekatra
—
in one place
;
daiva
—
adhīnāḥ — who are under the control of providence
;
tadā
—
hence
;
āsate
—
live .
Translation
O great souls, your children have suffered their own misfortune. Therefore, please do not lament for them. All living entities are under the control of the Supreme, and they cannot always live together.
Translation (Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura)
O great souls, your children have suffered their own misfortune. Therefore, please do not lament for them. All living entities are under the control of the Supreme, and they cannot always live together.
KB 10.4.18
“My dear Vasudeva and Devakī, you are both very great souls. I have no instructions to give you, but still I request that you not be sorry for the death of your children. Every one of us is under the control of superior power, and that superior power does not allow us to remain together. We are bound to be separated from our friends and relatives in due course of time.
Purport
Kaṁsa addressed his sister and brother-in-law as
mahā-bhāgau
because although he killed their ordinary children, the goddess Durgā took birth from them. Because Devakī bore Durgādevī in her womb, Kaṁsa praised both Devakī and her husband.
Asuras
are very devoted to the goddess Durgā, Kālī and so forth. Kaṁsa, therefore, truly astonished, appreciated the exalted position of his sister and brother-in-law. Durgā is certainly not under the laws of nature, because she herself is the controller of the laws of nature. Ordinary living beings, however, are controlled by these laws (
prakṛteḥ kriyamāṇāni guṇaiḥ karmāṇi sarvaśaḥ
). Consequently, none of us are allowed to live together for any long period. By speaking in this way, Kaṁsa tried to pacify his sister and brother-in-law.
Purport (Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura)
"You are very fortunate (maha bhagau) because Durgadevi has come as your daughter. You should not lament for your sons who have reaped the results of their actions. Even considering that they live, living entities cannot stay together for very long."
Purport (Jiva Goswami)
You two are most fortunate to understand the truth! No jīvas stay in one place at all times. Because of hatred and other faults they come together and separate, going to different planets according to their karmas.