# SB 9.15.10 ## Text > tad viditvā muniḥ prāha > patnīṁ kaṣṭam akāraṣīḥ > ghoro daṇḍa-dharaḥ putro > bhrātā te brahma-vittamaḥ ## Synonyms *tat*—this fact; *viditvā*—having learned; *muniḥ*—the great sage; *prāha*—said; *patnīm*—unto his wife; *kaṣṭam*—very regrettable; *akāraṣīḥ*—you have done; *ghoraḥ*—fierce; *daṇḍa*-*dharaḥ*—a great personality who can punish others; *putraḥ*—such a son; *bhrātā*—brother; *te*—your; *brahma*-*vittamaḥ*—a learned scholar in spiritual science. ## Translation **When the great sage Ṛcīka returned home after bathing and understood what had happened in his absence, he said to his wife, Satyavatī, "You have done a great wrong. Your son will be a fierce kṣatriya, able to punish everyone, and your brother will be a learned scholar in spiritual science."** ## Purport A *brāhmaṇa* is highly qualified when he can control his senses and mind, when he is a learned scholar in spiritual science and when he is tolerant and forgiving. A *kṣatriya,* however, is highly qualified when he is fierce in giving punishment to wrongdoers. These qualities are stated in *Bhagavad-gītā* (18.42-43). Because Satyavatī, instead of eating her own oblation, had eaten that which was meant for her mother, she would give birth to a son imbued with the *kṣatriya* spirit. This was undesirable. The son of a *brāhmaṇa* is generally expected to become a *brāhmaṇa,* but if such a son becomes fierce like a *kṣatriya,* he is designated according to the description of the four *varṇas* in *Bhagavad-gītā* (*cātur-varṇyaṁ mayā sṛṣṭaṁ guṇa-karma-vibhāgaśaḥ* [[bg/4/13|[Bg. 4.13] ]]). If the son of a *brāhmaṇa* does not become like a *brāhmaṇa,* he may be called a *kṣatriya, vaiśya* or *śūdra,* according to his qualifications. The basic principle for dividing society is not a person's birth but his qualities and actions.