Sri Caitanya Caritamrta Madhya-lila Chapter 24 Verse 257

Madhya-līlā | Chapter 24: The Sixty-One Explanations of the Ātmārāma Verse

Bhaktivedanta VedaBase: Śrī Caitanya Caritāmṛta Madhya 24.257

vyādha kahe, — 'dhanuka bhāńgile vartiba kemane?'

nārada kahe, — 'āmi anna diba prati-dine'

SYNONYMS

vyādha kahe — the hunter replied; dhanuka bhāńgile — if I break my bow; vartiba kemane — what will be the source of my maintenance; nārada kahe — Nārada Muni replied; āmi — I; anna — food; diba — shall supply; prati-dine — every day.

TRANSLATION

"The hunter replied, 'If I break my bow, how shall I maintain myself?'

"Nārada Muni replied, 'Do not worry. I shall supply all your food every day.'

PURPORT

The source of our income is not actually the source of our maintenance. Every living being — from the great Brahmā down to an insignificant ant — is being maintained by the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Eko bahūnāḿ yo vidadhāti kāmān. The one Supreme Being, Kṛṣṇa, maintains everyone. Our so-called source of income is our own choice only. If I wish to be a hunter, it will appear that hunting is the source of my maintenance. If I become a brāhmaṇa and completely depend on Kṛṣṇa, I do not conduct a business, but nonetheless my maintenance is supplied by Kṛṣṇa. The hunter was disturbed about breaking his bow because he was worried about his income. Nārada Muni assured the hunter because he knew that the hunter was not being maintained by the bow but by Kṛṣṇa. Being the agent of Kṛṣṇa, Nārada Muni knew very well that the hunter would not suffer by breaking the bow. There was no doubt that Kṛṣṇa would supply him food.

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His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupāda, Founder Ācārya of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness