*SKANDHA VII. CHAP. 7-1.*
Raja Parikshit said: -- "To Bhagavan, all beings are equal, and He is
the dear friend of all. Why did he kill the Daityas for the sake of
Indra, as if He was not above partiality. Supreme Bliss Himself, He had
nothing to gain from the Devas. Being above the control of the Gunas, He
had no fear from the Asuras, and he did not bear any unfriendly feeling
for them. We are in doubt as to the virtues of Narayana. Please clear up
the doubt."
Suka replied: -- Void of Gunas, without beginning, without
manifestation, beyond Prakriti, Bhagavan pervades and permeates the
Gunas of His Maya. Hence His seeming relations. Satva, Rajas and Tamas
are not His Gunas, but they are the Gunas of Prakriti. These attributes
or tendencies of Prakriti do not all prevail at one and the same period;
but they have got their periods of increase and decrease. (That is,
since the beginning of the universe, the general tendency which guides
all beings is different at different times. Thus at the very outset
there was inertia, Tamas. This inertia was got over by Rajas, which
predominated in the Prajapatis, and the life-forms appeared on the
globes. There was Tamas again in the mineral kingdom, which had to be
conquered by Rajasic activity. And Rajas was in full swing till humanity
reached a certain stage. Then Satva manifested itself for the evolution
of men. The spiritual regeneration will be brought about by the ever
increasing prevalence of Satva).
When Satva prevails, Bhagavan favours the Devas and Rishis. When Rajas
prevails, He favours the Asuras. When Tamas prevails, He favors the
Yakshas and Rakshasas. He follows in fact the periodic tendency.
It is Kala (Periodicity) that now brings up Satva. So the Lord seems to
favour the hosts of Devas, in whom Satva prevails. He also seems to put
down the hosts of Asuras, who are opposed to the Devas being full of
Rajas and Tamas.
It is also to favour the Asuras that He kills them. For we have seen
above, how the gate-keepers of Vishnu became Hiranyaksha and
Hiranyakasipu by the curse of the Kumara brothers. They had to become
Asuras for three successive births. In the second birth, they became
Ravana and Kumbhakarna, when they were killed by Rama. In their last
birth, they became Shishupala and Danta-vakra, when they were killed by
Sri Krishna. Then they became finally liberated and restored to their
place in Vaikuntha.
(The Spiritual ascent commenced finally on the appearance of Sri
Krishna. It was to prevail for the remaining life period of the
universe. The Asuras had done their work by this time, and therefore
they finally returned to Vaikuntha).