देवे ऽवर्षत्यसौ देवो नरदेववपुर्हरिः कृच्छ्रप्राणाः प्रजा ह्येष रक्षिष्यत्यंजसेन्द्रवत्
deve 'varṣaty asau devo naradeva-vapur hariḥ kṛcchra-prāṇāḥ prajā hy eṣa rakṣiṣyaty añjasendravat
Synonyms
deve—when the demigod (Indra); avarṣati—does not supply rains; asau—that; devaḥ—Mahārāja Pṛthu; nara-deva—of the king; vapuḥ—having the body; hariḥ—the Supreme Personality of Godhead; kṛcchra-prāṇāḥ—suffering living entities; prajāḥ—the citizens; hi—certainly; eṣaḥ—this; rakṣiṣyati—will protect; añjasā—very easily; indra-vat—like King Indra..
Translation
When there is no rainfall and the citizens are in great danger due to the scarcity of water, this royal Personality of Godhead will be able to supply rains exactly like the heavenly King Indra. Thus he will very easily be able to protect the citizens from drought.
Purport
King Pṛthu is very appropriately compared to the sun and the demigod Indra. King Indra of the heavenly planets is in charge of distributing water over the earth and other planetary systems. It is indicated that King Pṛthu would arrange for the distribution of rainfall personally if Indra failed to discharge his duty properly. It is, however, indicated that sometimes the King of heaven, Indra, would become angry at the inhabitants of the earth if they did not offer sacrifices to appease him. However, being an incarnation of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, King Pṛthu did not depend on the mercy of the heavenly King. It is foretold herein that if there would be a scarcity of rain, King Pṛthu would manage to counteract the deficiency by virtue of his godly powers. Such powers were also exhibited by Lord Kṛṣṇa when He was present in Vṛndāvana. Indeed, when Indra poured incessant water on Vṛndāvana for seven days, the inhabitants were protected by Kṛṣṇa, who raised Govardhana Hill over their heads as a great umbrella. Thus Lord Kṛṣṇa is also known as govardhana-dhārī.