Srimad-Bhagavatam: Canto 6 - Chapter 1 - Verse 7

Sanskrit:

भूमिस्तुरीयं जग्राह खातपूरवरेणवै ।ईरिणंब्रह्महत्याया रूपं भूमौ प्रद‍ृश्यते ॥ ७ ॥

ITRANS:

bhūmis turīyaṁ jagrāhakhāta-pūra-vareṇa vaiīriṇaṁ brahma-hatyāyārūpaṁ bhūmau pradṛśyate

Translation:

In return for King Indra’s benediction that ditches in the earth would be filled automatically, the land accepted one fourth of the sinful reactions for killing a brāhmaṇa. Because of those sinful reactions, we find many deserts on the surface of the earth.

Purport:

Because deserts are manifestations of the earth’s diseased condition, no auspicious ritualistic ceremony can be performed in a desert. Persons destined to live in deserts are understood to be sharing the reactions for the sin of brahma-hatyā, the killing of a brāhmaṇa.