pášthu-kÄŤrteḼ pášthor bhĹŤyÄt
tarhy ekona-Ĺata-kratuḼ
alaáš te kratubhiḼ sviᚣášair
yad bhavÄn mokᚣa-dharma-vit
pášthu-kÄŤrteḼ - of wide renown; pášthoḼ - of King Pášthu; bhĹŤyÄt - let it be; tarhi - therefore; eka-ĹŤna-Ĺata-kratuḼ - he who performed ninety-nine yajĂąas; alam - there is nothing to be gained; te - of you; kratubhiḼ - by performing sacrifices; su-iᚣášaiḼ - well performed; yat - because; bhavÄn - yourself; mokᚣa-dharma-vit - the knower of the path of liberation.
Lord BrahmÄ came down to pacify King Pášthu regarding his continual performance of one hundred sacrifices. King Pášthu was determined to perform one hundred sacrifices, and King Indra took this very seriously because Indra himself was known as the performer of one hundred sacrifices. Just as it is the nature of all living entities within this material world to become envious of their competitors, King Indra, although King of heaven, was also envious of King Pášthu and therefore wanted to stop him from performing one hundred sacrifices. Actually there was great competition, and King Indra, to satisfy his senses, began to invent so many irreligious systems to obstruct King Pášthu. To stop these irreligious inventions, Lord BrahmÄ personally appeared in the sacrificial arena. As far as MahÄrÄja Pášthu was concerned, he was a great devotee of the Supreme Personality of Godhead; therefore it was not necessary for him to perform the prescribed Vedic ritualistic ceremonies. Such ceremonies are known as karma, and there is no need for a devotee in the transcendental position to execute them. As the ideal king, however, it was King Pášthuâs duty to perform sacrifices. A compromise was therefore to be worked out. By the blessings of Lord BrahmÄ, King Pášthu would become more famous than King Indra. Thus Pášthuâs determination to perform one hundred sacrifices was indirectly fulfilled by the blessings of Lord BrahmÄ.