nÄnÄ-bhÄvair lÄ«layaivopapannair
devÄn sÄdhÅ«n loka-setÅ«n bibhará¹£i
haá¹sy unmÄrgÄn hiá¹sayÄ vartamÄnÄn
janmaitat te bhÄra-hÄrÄya bhÅ«meḥ
nÄnÄ - various; bhÄvaiḥ - with intentions; lÄ«layÄ - as pastimes; eva - indeed; upapannaiḥ - assumed; devÄn - the demigods; sÄdhÅ«n - the saintly sages; loka - of the world; setÅ«n - the codes of religion; bibhará¹£i - You maintain; haá¹si - You kill; ut-mÄrgÄn - those who stray beyond the path; hiá¹sayÄ - by violence; vartamÄnÄn - living; janma - birth; etat - this; te - Your; bhÄra - the burden; hÄrÄya - to relieve; bhÅ«meḥ - of the earth.
With various intentions, You perform pastimes to maintain the demigods, the saintly persons and the codes of religion for this world. By these pastimes You also kill those who stray from the right path and live by violence. Indeed, your present incarnation is meant to relieve the earth’s burden.
As Lord Kṛṣṇa states in the Bhagavad-gÄ«tÄ (9.29):
samo ’haṠsarva-bhūteṣu
na me dveṣyo ’sti na priyaḥ
ye bhajanti tu mÄá¹ bhaktyÄ
mayi te teá¹£u cÄpy aham
“I envy no one, nor am I partial to anyone. I am equal to all. But whoever renders service unto Me in devotion is a friend — is in Me — and I am also a friend to him.â€
The demigods and sages (devÄn sÄdhÅ«n) are dedicated to executing the will of the Supreme Lord. The demigods act as cosmic administrators, and the sages, by their teachings and their good example, illumine the path of self-realization and holiness. But those who transgress the natural law, the law of God, and live by committing violence against others are vanquished by the Supreme Lord in His various pastime incarnations. As the Lord states in the Bhagavad-gÄ«tÄ (4.11), ye yathÄ mÄá¹ prapadyante tÄá¹s tathaiva bhajÄmy aham. He is impartial, but He responds appropriately to the actions of the living beings.
