Lord Brahma continued to advise Devatas,

“na vipra-govinda-gav-īśvarāṇāṁ bhavanty abhadrāṇi nareśvarāṇām

Inauspiciousness can never approach emperors who worship Vedic Brahmins, Govinda and cows considering them to be God.

Hence without any delay approach Vishwaroopa, the son of Tvasṭha, and accept him as your Guru. Serve him. He is a supreme ascetic and has absolute control over his senses. In addition to abiding by his commands you also need to tolerate his affection and inclination towards the demons. Walk on the right path suggested by him. If you are successful in accomplishing this, then your problems will get resolved. He is capable of fulfilling your desires.”

Upon hearing this, the Devatas were freed from all tensions. Immediately they approached Maharishi Vishwaroopa. Embracing him they said, “O dear Vishwaroopa, we have arrived as guests to your ashram. May you be blessed with auspiciousness. We are like your father. Please fulfill our desire”.

**Putrāṇāṁ hi paro dharmaḥ pitṛ-śuśrūṣaṇaṁ satām Api putravatāṁ Brahman kim uta brahmacāriṇām ** It is the obligatory duty of a human being to serve his parents even if he is a house-holder with wife and sons of his own. It is also the most supreme dharma. This being the case, is there any specific need to mention that a celibate (Brahmachari) should necessarily serve his parents?

Ācāryo brahmaṇo mūrtiḥ pitā mūrtiḥ prajāpateḥ Bhrātā marutpater mūrtir mātā sākṣāt kṣites tanuḥ

Moreover, the teacher who teaches Vedas is himself the Guru; father is none other than Lord Brahma; elder brother himself is Indra; mother is the planet Earth that has taken on a human form; sister is an embodiment of compassion; guest is none other than the manifested form of dharma; the dearest, friendly guest is the personification of Agni and all living entities are the form of the Self.

Dear son, defeated in the battle by our enemies we are suffering. Using your power of penance please eliminate our sufferings. You alone are capable of fulfilling our commands. You are an embodiment of all knowledge. You are also a supreme Vedic scholar. You are a venerable Guru. Under your guidance and with your illumination we shall easily defeat our enemies.

O Maharishi, we accept you as our revered teacher and priest. Elders often say that for a good cause one can bow at the feet of their youngsters. Although you are younger to us in age, we offer our reverential obeisances to you so that our noble cause is rendered auspicious. Seniority should not be based on age but upon the mastery in Vedic knowledge. It is supreme knowledge and penance that determines seniority”.

Vishwaroopa was pleased that the Devatas wanted him as their priest. With a pleasant smile he said, “My dear fathers, virtuous people condemn the profession of priesthood as it depletes the Brahmanical power and luster in the person. Today you, the Guardian-deities of the world, are requesting me to be your priest. How can I refuse your command when I am your mere disciple? Fulfilling your desire will become the ultimate goal of my life.

My dear Devatas, the poor fill their stomachs by picking the grains that have fallen in paddy fields or in granaries. They choose to remain poor considering it better than following the profession of priesthood. Following this principle, I too live in this world by simply adhering to the pious deeds performed by noble souls. Priesthood is a condemnable profession. Only those with wicked mind accept this profession. How can I accept such a lowly profession? Even then, in order to fulfill your desire, I shall accept it. Even if I have to dedicate my life or I have to dip into my powers of penance I shall fulfill your desire.

The Vedic scholar should not refuse the request of a person who has fallen at his feet and begged for help. It is the dharma. For this reason, I shall fulfill your desire and later on perform the necessary atonement for this”. Vishwaroopa thus agreed to be the priest for the Devatas.

Swamiji explains: When professional priests are unavailable, it is imperative for the Vedic scholar to complete the required priestly activities of the person who has sought his help, although it is not his profession. Thereafter he should perform the necessary atonements. This is his dharma. It is required for the sustenance of dharma.

He should not refuse help when people come and beg his help due to paucity of priests. If he too refuses to conduct the activity, then how will dharma sustain? Protecting dharma is of utmost importance. Else he should help find a Vedic Brahmin who has taken up priesthood as a profession and get him to conduct the ritual. There are instances when Dattatreya himself went as a priest. What more proof does one need?

If help is refused at such hour, then all Yagnas and Yagas performed by the Vedic scholar will go down the drain. This is because he has refused to help those who were in need of rituals. He has refused those who have sought shelter in him. He has not strived for the sustenance of dharma.

There are plenty of atonements available for such extreme situations. You can conduct the ritual in your position as ācharya and not as a priest. Or believe in your heart that you are abiding by the emergency dharma in this extreme situation as priests as unavailable. When this is strictly followed then the Supreme Lord, who is a personification of dharma, will forgive you and will bless you with the appropriate type of liberation.

Maharishi Śuka continued, “Vishwaroopa pledged to be their priest. With dedication, he began to complete all obligatory priestly duties.

Shukracharya, who came to know of this, used his mystical powers to hide the opulence of the demons, who are the enemies of the Devatas. He was extremely cautious. However, using the ever-powerful hymn Narayana Kavaca, Vishwaroopa extracted wealth from the demons and handed it to Indra. Moreover, due to his broadmindedness he also preached this Kavaca to Indra. With this knowledge, the thousand-eyed Indra conquered all the demons”.

With this the seventh chapter of the Sixth Canto comes to an end.