Humble acceptance of one's unworthiness opens the door to Lord's infinite mercy regardless of birth or qualification.Listen — Srila Prabhupada Uvaca
Anantarām Śāstrījī: Oṁ namo bhagavate vāsudevāya. [devotees repeat] [chants verse, with devotees repeating] [break] prahrāda uvāca brahmādayaḥ sura-gaṇā munayo 'tha siddhāḥ sattvaikatāna-gatayo vacasāṁ pravāhaiḥ nārādhituṁ puru-guṇair adhunāpi pipruḥ kiṁ toṣṭum arhati sa me harir ugra-jāteḥ [SB 7.9.8] Dayānanda: [leads chanting of synonyms responsively] [03:24] Translation: "Prahlāda Mahārāja continued to offer his prayer as follows: How is it possible to offer suitable prayers unto the Supreme Personality of Godhead by me, who is born into the family of asuras, because all the demigods and saintly persons could not satisfy Him till now, although such persons are exalted, very qualified, in the mode of goodness. Then what to speak of me? I am not at all qualified." Prabhupāda: prahrāda uvāca brahmādayaḥ sura-gaṇā munayo 'tha siddhāḥ sattvaikatāna-gatayo vacasāṁ pravāhaiḥ nārādhituṁ puru-guṇair adhunāpi pipruḥ kiṁ toṣṭum arhati sa me harir ugra-jāteḥ [SB 7.9.8] Ugra-jāta.
Ugra-jāta, just like in Europe and America we see, they are very much fond of ugra-karma, just like big, big factories, big, big bridges, wonderful. Long, long ago when the Britishers came here, they constructed big, big bridges, railway line. People thought, "It is wonderful." There is a song composed in Bihar. So when the Calcutta, the floating bridge made of wood, wooden bridge, floating bridge was constructed, connected Calcutta proper and Howrah, so there was big, wonderful song: kyā pul bānāyā sāheb company.
There is song, kyā pul bānāyā sāheb company, upara me ādmi cale, and..., just like that, nīche me pāni. [What a bridge the Englishmen have built! On the upper portion people walk and below, the Ganges water flows.] So this ugra-karma, formerly this ugra-karma was entrusted to the demons. [Bg 16.9] Those who were in the sattva-guṇa, they do not like this ugra-karma.
Sattva-guṇa, rajo-guṇa, tamo-guṇa. Rajas-tamo-bhāvāḥ [SB 1.2.19]. The... Those who are under the control of rajo-guṇa and tamo-guṇa, they are engaged in ugra-karma.
Ugra-karma, industrial enterprise: big, big roads, big, big skyscraper. This is called ugra-karma. So ugra-karma is very pleasing to the ugra-jātis, just like Hiraṇyakaśipu. What was the trouble between the father and the son?
The father was for ugra-karma, and the son, Prahlāda, was for sāttvika life. So when Prahlāda Mahārāja engaged himself in sāttvika life... Not only sāttvika, śuddha-sāttvika. In the material world there are three guṇas: sāttvika, rājasika, tāmasika.
The sāttvika is the best. So... And devotional activity is śuddha-sāttvika, where there is no contamination. In the material world, sāttvika, a person who is a brāhmaṇa, he may be contaminated by tamo-guṇa and rajo-guṇa.