etad veditum icchāmaḥ
sandeho 'tra mahān hi naḥ
viruddha-śīlayoḥ prabhvor
viruddhā bhajatāḿ gatiḥ
etat -- this; veditum -- to understand; icchamah -- we wish; sandehah -- doubt; atra -- in this matter; mahan -- great; hi -- indeed; nah -- on our part; viruddha -- opposite; silayoh -- whose characters; prabhvoh -- of the two lords; viruddha -- opposite; bhajatam -- of their worshipers; gatih -- the destinations.
We wish to properly understand this matter, which greatly puzzles us. Indeed, the results attained by the worshipers of these two lords of opposite characters are contrary to what one would expect.
The preceding chapter ended with the recommendation that one should always meditate on Lord Hari, the bestower of liberation. In this regard Maharaja Parikshit here expresses a common fear among ordinary people that by becoming a devotee of Lord Vishnu one will lose his wealth and social status. For the benefit of such persons of little faith, King Parikshit requests Srila Sukadeva Gosvami to explain an apparent paradox: Lord Siva, who lives like a beggar, without even a house to call his own, makes his devotees rich and powerful, while Lord Vishnu, the omnipotent possessor of all that exists, often reduces His servants to abject poverty. Sukadeva Gosvami will respond with reasoned explanations and an ancient account concerning the demon Vrika.
