Verse 2.13.54

Bengali text, Devanagari and Unicode transliteration of verse 2.13.54:

“পাতকী তারিতে প্রভু কৈলা অবতার এ-মত পাতকী কোথা পাইবেন আর? ॥ ৫৪ ॥

“पातकी तारिते प्रभु कैला अवतार ए-मत पातकी कोथा पाइबेन आर? ॥ ५४ ॥

“pātakī tārite prabhu kailā avatāra e-mata pātakī kothā pāibena āra? || 54 ||

“pataki tarite prabhu kaila avatara e-mata pataki kotha paibena ara? (54)

English translation:

(54) “The Lord has incarnated to deliver the sinful. Where will He find such sinners as these?”

Commentary: Gauḍīya-bhāṣya by Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura:

The word pātaka refers to pātayati adhogamayati duṣkriyākāriṇam iti—“sinful activities, activities that result in degradation, and improper activities.” The householders have three main enemies—lust, anger, and greed. Being attacked by these enemies, human beings engage in sinful activities. Sinful activities are called atipātaka, mahāpātaka, anupātaka, upapātaka, jātibhraṃśakara, saṅkarīkaraṇa, apātrīkaraṇa, malāvaha, and prakīrṇaka.

Having sex with one’s mother, having sex with one’s daughter, and having sex with the wife of one’s son—these three sins are called atipātaka.

Killing a brāhmaṇa, drinking wine, stealing a brāhmaṇa’s gold, and having sex with the wife of one’s guru—to commit these four sins or to intimately associate with such sinners is called mahāpātaka.

There are thirty-five forms of anupātaka: (1) for a low caste person to identify himself as belonging to a high caste; (2) to falsely accuse someone of committing an offense, for which the punishment is death;

(3) to spread false accusations against respectable persons—these three are equal to the killing of a brāhmaṇa. (1) To either reject the Vedas or forget the Vedas after reading them; (2) to blaspheme the Vedas; (3) to give false testimony by speaking deceptive words (this is of two kinds—to hide something that one knows about and to hide the truth by speaking lies); (4) to spoil the life of a friend; (5) to eat food that grows in stool or filthy places; (6) to eat uneatable foods--these six anupātakas are equal to drinking wine. (1) To take another’s accumulated wealth through cheating; (2) to kidnap someone; (3) to steal a horse; (4) to steal silver;

(5) to steal land; (6) to steal diamonds; (7) to steal jewels—these seven

forms of anupātaka are equal to stealing gold. (1) Having sex with a sister born from the same mother; (2) having sex with an unmarried girl;

(3) having sex with a low-caste woman; (4) having sex with the wife of one’s friend; (5) having sex with the wife of a stepson; (6) having sex with one’s son’s wife who belongs to a different caste than the son; (7) having sex with one’s maternal aunt; (8) having sex with one’s paternal aunt; (9) having sex with one’s mother-in-law; (10) having sex with the wife of one’s maternal uncle; (11) having sex with the wife of a priest;

(12) having sex with one’s sister; (13) having sex with the ācārya’s wife;

(14) having sex with a woman who is under one’s shelter; (15) having sex with the queen; (16) having sex with a woman who has given up household life; (17) having sex with the wife of a learned brāhmaṇa; (18) having sex with a chaste woman; and (19) having sex with a woman of a higher caste—these nineteen forms of anupātaka are equal to having sex with the wife of the spiritual master.

Killing cows; becoming the priest of unqualified people; having sex with another’s wife; selling oneself; giving up one’s father, mother, or guru; giving up the study of scriptures; giving up cooking due to laziness; giving up one’s son, or to neglect the performance of the son’s purificatory rites; arranging the marriage of a younger son before that of the elder; arranging the marriage of a younger daughter before that of the elder; acting as the priest in such a marriage; spoiling a girl who has not reached puberty; earning one’s livelihood by loaning money on interest; falling from the vow of brahmacarya by engaging in illicit activities such as having sex with a woman; selling one’s pond, garden, wife, or children; neglecting to undergo the sacred thread ceremony even up to the age of sixteen; rejecting relatives such as one’s uncle; teaching the Vedas on payment; learning the Vedas from a professional teacher; selling objects that are not meant to be sold; working in a gold mine or another kind of mine on the order of the king; working on a bridge or other huge enterprise; destroying medicine; earning one’s livelihood by engaging one’s wife in prostitution; harming an innocent person through mantra or

the employment of creatures such as eagles; cutting green trees for fuel; cooking or performing sacrifice for oneself rather than the Lord or one’s father; eating prohibited foods like garlic; neglecting to preserve a perpetual sacred fire; stealing valuables other than gold; neglecting the repayment of debts to the demigods, sages, and forefathers; discussing unauthorized scriptures; becoming attached to songs and music; stealing paddy, metals like copper and iron, or animals; having sex with a drunk woman; killing a woman, kṣatriya, vaiśya, or śūdra; and becoming an atheist—these are all known as upapatakas.

Using a stick or other instrument to injure a brāhmaṇa; smelling objects like garlic, stool, or wine; becoming crooked; having sex with an animal; and engaging in homosexual relations—all these sins are jātibhraṃśakara. The sin of killing domestic or wild animals is called saṅkarīkaraṇa.

Accepting wealth from a condemned person, earning one’s livelihood through trade or lending money on interest, speaking lies, and serving a śūdra—all these sins are called apātrīkaraṇa.

Killing a bird, killing animals that move in water, killing fish or other animals that are born in water, killing worms or insects, eating foods that have been touched by wine—all these sins are called malāvaha.

Those sinful activities that have not been described above are called prakīrṇaka (see Viṣṇu-saṃhitā, Prāyaścitta-viveka, and Manu-saṃhitā). In Dāna-dharma of Mahābhārata, ten kinds of sinful activities have been mentioned—the three sins of killing, stealing, and having sex with another’s wife are called kāyika, or those caused by the body; the four sins of useless talk, arrogance, cruelty, and telling lies are called vācika, or those caused by the speech; and the three sins of coveting other’s wealth, being devoid of compassion for all living entities, and thinking “let my activities bear fruit” are called mānasika, or those caused by the mind.