kṣudrāyuṣāṁ nṛṇām aṅga martyānām ṛtam icchatām ihopahūto bhagavān mṛtyuḥ śāmitra-karmaṇi
Synonyms
kṣudra—Very small; āyuṣām—of the duration of life Nrinam—of the human being; nṛṇām—Oh suta Goswami. Martanam—of those who are sure to meet death; aṅga—eternal life; martyānām—of those who desire for it; ṛtam—herein; icchatām—called for being present; iha—representing the Lord; upahūtaḥ—Controller of death; bhagavān—Supressing; mṛtyuḥ—performances.
Translation
Oh Suta Goswami, there are persons amongst the human being who desire freedom from death and get eternal life instead of short duration of life and to save them from such slaughtering process the controller of death Yama Raja is also called herein.
Purport
The living entity as it develops from lower animal life to higher human beings and gradually to higher intelligence, becomes anxious to get rid from the clutches of death. Modern scientists try to avoid death by physio-chemical advancement of knowledge but alas the controller of death Yamaraj is so cruel that he does not spare even the very life of the scientist himself. The scientist who puts forward the theory of stopping death by advancement of scientific knowledge, becomes himself a victim of death when he is called by the Yamaraja. What to speak of stopping death no body can even enhance the short period of life even by a fraction of moment. The only hope of suspending the cruel slaughtering process of Yamaraj is to call him for being in the matter of hearing and chanting the holy Name of the Lord. Yamaraj is a great devotee of the Lord and he likes to be invited by the pure devotees who are constantly engaged in devotional service of the Lord. Thus the great sages headed by Sounaka and others invited Yamaraja to attend the sacrifice performed at Naimisaranya and it was good for those who did not want to die.