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Srimad Bhagvata Mahapurana: Book 4: Chapter 21: Verses 31-43
King Prthu's teaching to his subjects
Like the (sacred) stream (the Ganga) that has flowed from His great toe, the pious and ever-increasing relish one finds in adoring His feet immediately wipes out the impurity of mind of those afflicted by the trials and tribulations of mundane existence, accumulated in the course of all previous births. Even the man who has taken shelter in the soles of His feet is completely rid of all the impurities of mind and, acquiring the special power of dispassion and Self-Realization, never returns to worldly life, which brings misery in its train. Confident of achieving the goal according to your (individual) merits and free from hypocrisy, (therefore) worship Him alone-whose lotus-feet are capable of yielding whatever you desire-with the functions of your mind, speech and body and by your own duties which serve as a means of procuring a living to you.
A compact mass of pure consciousness and attributeless in essence, He (the Supreme Person) manifests Himself, in the path of the ritual, in the form of a sacrifice, possessed of many attributes, which is accomplished with the help of diverse substances (such as barley, rice, sesame seeds and clarified butter), qualities (of things), actions (such as the pounding of paddy and fanning the chaff from the grain) as well as through the purposes to which the various rites are directed, the intention with which a sacrifice is undertaken, the distinctive virtue of things and the appellation (such as Jyotistoma and Vajapeya) by which a sacrifice is known. Even as fire manifested through (various) pieces of wood appears endowed with their peculiarities (size, shape etc.), so does the all-pervading Lord (who is supreme Bliss)_manifesting Himself through the medium of the intellect (which has identified itself with external objects) in the body (of an individual), which is a product of Prakrti (primordial Matter), the Time-spirit, latent desires and destiny-appear as the fruit of various religious rites as well. Oh I those of my subjects on the surface of this globe who with a firm resolve incessantly worship, through the performance of their (allotted) duty, Sri Hari, the Preceptor of the universe and the Supreme Lord of all those who receive a share in the sacrificial offerings (really) do me a favour. May the lustre emanating from the ruling (Ksatriya) race through their great affluence and power never overpower the Brahmana race, and the votaries of the invincible Lord Visnu, shining brightly through sheer forbearance, austerity and adoration. It is by ever adoring the feet of the Brahmanas that Sri Hari, the most ancient Person-who is a (great) devotee of the Brahmana community, and who takes the lead among the most exalted-won Laksmi (the goddess of fortune), who never leaves Him, and a glory which sanctifies the universe. Following as you do the righteous conduct of the Lord, pray, adore in all humility and with your entire being the Brahmana race, by serving whom that independent Lord-who dwells in the heart of all and is (extremely) fond of the Brahmanas-is supremely pleased. Who is better qualified in this world to serve as a mouth of (vehicle to convey offerings to) the gods (who feed on sacrificial food) than the Brahmana race, by constantly adoring whom a man automatically attains final beatitude (in the shape of everlasting peace) before long consequent on his mind getting purified as a matter of course? The immortal Lord, who is the sole theme of the Upanisads (the utterances referring to those who are devoted to Self-Realization) surely does not enjoy the oblations poured into the sacred fire-which is bereft of consciousness-so well as those offered with reverence into the mouth of a Brahmana by the knowers of Truth in the name of gods fit to be adored in a sacrifice. Equipped with reverence, austerity, commendable conduct, chariness of speech, self-control and concentration of mind, the Brahmanas ever retain in their memory, with a view to discovering the Truth, the pure and eternal Veda, in which (the whole of) this universe can be (clearly) seen as in a mirror. O venerable ones ! let me carry the dust of their lotus-feet on my crown all my life; for the sins of the man who constantly wears it (on his head) speedily disappear and all sorts of virtues seek their abode in him.
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