यथाग्निना कोटरस्थेन वृक्षाः ।
त्वामद्य याताः शरणं शरण्यं
यः साधितो वृत्तिकरः पतिर्नः ॥१०॥
तन्नो भवानीहतु रातवेऽन्नं
क्षुधार्दितानां नरदेवदेव ।
यावन्न नङ्क्ष्यामह उज्झितोर्जा
वार्तापतिस्त्वं किल लोकपालः ॥११॥
vayaá¹ rÄjañ jÄá¹hareṇÄbhitaptÄ
yathÄgninÄ koá¹ara-sthena vá¹›ká¹£Äḥ
tvÄm adya yÄtÄḥ Å›araṇaá¹ Å›araṇyaá¹
yaḥ sÄdhito vá¹›tti-karaḥ patir naḥ
tan no bhavÄn Ä«hatu rÄtave 'nnaá¹
ká¹£udhÄrditÄnÄá¹ naradeva-deva
yÄvan na naá¹…ká¹£yÄmaha ujjhitorjÄ
vÄrtÄ-patis tvaá¹ kila loka-pÄlaḥ
vayam - we; rÄjan - O King; jÄá¹hareṇa - by the fire of hunger; abhitaptÄḥ - very much aggrieved; yathÄ - just as; agninÄ - by the fire; koá¹ara-sthena - in the hollow of a tree; vá¹›ká¹£Äḥ - trees; tvÄm - unto you; adya - today; yÄtÄḥ - we have come; Å›araṇam - shelter; Å›araṇyam - worth taking shelter of; yaḥ - who; sÄdhitaḥ - appointed; vá¹›tti-karaḥ - one who gives employment; patiḥ - master; naḥ - our; tat - therefore; naḥ - to us; bhavÄn - Your Majesty; Ä«hatu - please try; rÄtave - to give; annam - food grains; ká¹£udhÄ - with hunger; arditÄnÄm - suffering; nara-deva-deva - O supreme master of all kings; yÄvat na - lest; naá¹…ká¹£yÄmahe - we will perish; ujjhita - being bereft of; Å«rjÄḥ - food grains; vÄrtÄ - of occupational engagements; patiḥ - bestower; tvam - you; kila - indeed; loka-pÄlaḥ - the protector of the citizens.
Dear King, just as a tree with a fire burning in the hollow of the trunk gradually dries up, we are drying up due to the fire of hunger in our stomachs. You are the protector of surrendered souls, and you have been appointed to give employment to us. Therefore we have all come to you for protection. You are not only a king, but the incarnation of God as well. Indeed, you are the king of all kings. You can give us all kinds of occupational engagements, for you are the master of our livelihood. Therefore, O king of all kings, please arrange to satisfy our hunger by the proper distribution of food grains. Please take care of us, lest we soon die for want of food.
It is the duty of the king to see that everyone in the social orders — brÄhmaṇa, ká¹£atriya, vaiÅ›ya and śūdra — is fully employed in the state. Just as it is the duty of the brÄhmaṇas to elect a proper king, it is the duty of the king to see that all the varṇas — brÄhmaṇa, ká¹£atriya, vaiÅ›ya and śūdra — are fully engaged in their respective occupational duties. It is here indicated that although the people were allowed to perform their duties, they were still unemployed. Although they were not lazy, they still could not produce sufficient food to satisfy their hunger. When the people are perplexed in this way, they should approach the head of government, and the president or king should take immediate action to mitigate the distress of the people.
