Sadā samudvignā-dhiyām asad-grahāt. "My dear father . . ." He directly addressed his father, "My dear father, the best of the demons." He addressed his father, "the best of the demons." If I address you "best of the dogs," is that very nice thing? But if you think, "Oh, Swāmījī addresses 'best.' " But best of what? "Best of the dogs." (laughs)
So similarly, he addressed his father, "My dear best of the demons." Asurya-vārya, this very word means . . . asura . . . asura means demon, and vārya, vārya means the best. He did not like to address his father as "father." He knew that "What nonsense this father is? He is a demon."
So a preacher . . . Prahlāda Mahārāja is not, I mean to say, against his father. Otherwise, he would not have prayed to Lord Nṛsiṁha, "My dear Lord, kindly forgive my father." Just see. Because he addressed his father as "best of the demons," that does not mean he had no love for his father. Simply by flattering, if I do some . . . ultimately do some harm unto you, then what is the meaning of that flattery?
Here the father and son in the material world, they are addressing very nicely, but the father is sending the son to the hell, and the son is also sending the father to the hell by materialistic activities. A father is teaching, "Eat, drink, be merry and enjoy. Eat meat and drink and associate with as many girls and . . . that is . . . this is enjoyment." That means, indirectly, he is sending his son to the hell. You see? There is no love. Actually, this is no love. If I help you in the matter of . . . for your ruination, that is not love.
So Prahlāda Mahārāja did not flatter his father. This should be the attitude of devotee. They should straightly speak everything truth. Prahlāda Mahārāja was asked by his father, "Oh, how you are so bold? You are a child. You are bold. You are talking before me so boldly. Where do you get such strength before me?"
Immediately, "My dear father, from the same source wherefrom you have got your strength, and you are so proud of your kingdom and material acquisition, I also got this from the same source. But you are revolted, I am not revolted. But the source is the same. You cannot be so powerful without Kṛṣṇa."
Even the demons . . . the only difference is the demons wanted like that, so Kṛṣṇa has, "All right. You take this demonic power." That's all. But it is out of causeless mercy of Kṛṣṇa even the demons are so proud, but they have taken their mercy from Kṛṣṇa to go to hell. And the devotees take the mercy of Kṛṣṇa to render Him loving service. That is the difference between the demons and the devotees.
Everyone achieves . . . whatever facilities he has got in his life, it is all from Kṛṣṇa. Without Kṛṣṇa, nobody can have anything, either demonic or devotional. The difference is that the demons, they do not know what to ask from Kṛṣṇa. The devotees know what to ask from Kṛṣṇa. That is difference.