GLIMPSES FROM BHAGAVATHAM (13)
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amritha varshini
Oct 2, 2014, 10:36:11 PM10/2/14
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GLIMPSES FROM BHAGAVATHAM (13)
Let us answer the questions raised yesterday: (1) WHY DID THE WISE KING PARIKSHIT BEHAVE SO BADLY? That is, why did the noble king place the dead snake round the neck of the sanyasi in samadhi? Even ordinary humans with discretion will not do this heinous act – why then the dharmic king who respects Brahmins, scriptures and a devotee of Lord Krishna do that? Vyasacharya does not give any clear answer except to say that he was hungry, thirsty, tired and therefore angry. But deep analysis shows following possibilities: A) The powerful king’s hidden ego was triggered when he found that he has not received even common courtesy of a visitor (athidhi) from a Brahmin sage and to see this happening in his own kingdom made him furious. The strict administrator inherent in him (Kshatriya-vasana) emerged to overshadow the Brahmin qualities (bhakthi etc.) which he had deliberately cultivated and superimposed from the stay in his mother’s womb. B) Vyasa has brought out the distrust between Kshatriya sand Brahmins cultivated during the post-Mahabharata war which had become so deep-rooted that even the great King Parikshit was not immune. The strong language used by the Brahmin boy supports this conclusion. C) There is an ancient saying “Vinasha kale viparitha budhihi” – [when destruction is near, man is given to irrational decisions which seal his fate]. Probably this applies to Parikshit as well. Why does one lose his mind when he is nearing his destruction? Take Ravana for example. He had married the most beautiful girl on Earth – Mandothari who was the envy of even the Gods. Ravana was most powerful and the greatest Shivabhakta and no damsel in heaven could have said “no” to him. Yet he transgressed Sita and was destroyed. Modern illustrations: Hitler, Indira Gandhi and many more. Every human being will be destroyed when he takes success for granted (forgetting God’s mercy). D) But the real explanation is probably something else. Don’t you see Kali smiling away in the background? Kali who is always sadistically waiting to capture strong minds in their weaker moments, did succeed momentarily to overtake the intellect of the powerful king when he allowed himself to think negatively about the sage? This shows how important it is for a devotees to be alert at all times. Eternal vigilance is the price of bhakthi’. E) Let us not miss the “blessing of the Lord in disguise” here. This behavior of the King resulted in the curse which culminated in Bhagavatham being made available to us through Sage Shuka. So who else but Lord Krishna ensured that His Maya overtakes the King temporarily and that he be sacrificed to benefit the humanity? Was not great archers Karna and Ekalaiva and even the innocent Abhimanyu heartlessly sacrificed by the Lord to make Arjuna the hero of Mahabharata War? We cannot fathom His ways!
GLIMPSES FROM BHAGAVATHAM (14):
Now the answer for the second question: WHAT HAPPENED TO KING PARIKSHIT? “On his ride back, the king sincerely regretted his action. He thought: “What came over me that I behaved like a ruffian and ill-treated a pious man? It was thoroughly unbecoming of a great king. I have, in fact, defamed the Lord present in that saint. They say the devil hidden in the human mind is ever-ready to pounce on a weak mind – so one has always to be vigilant. Is not this the central idea of the Bhagavad Gita which the Lord Himself so beautifully illustrated to his best friend, Arjuna, my grand-father? There the Lord had stated that our mind is like the 100 Kauravas (selfish, cruel and brutal) - they will always try to outnumber and overshadow our intellect which contains the 5 Pandava qualities. This perennial conflict is happening inside each honest individual. One has to be ever alert and ‘observe’ and keep the mind under strict control. I failed for a moment and see what has happened to me. So I must be punished – some serious calamity should soon visit me. If that were to happen, I will definitely welcome it as a gift (prasadam) from the merciful Lord to atone for my grave mistake. Let the fire inside the Brahmana consume my entire kingdom, army and treasury so that I will not, in future, harbor such ill-feeling against any soul”. Thinking thus, the king soon reached his capital. As soon as he entered his palace, the news of the curse of Sringi was conveyed to him. Everyone in the palace was agitated that a reckless Brahmin boy should have cursed a great king. The ministers (known for their anti-Brahmin bias) were in emergency session to find out a quick solution to this problem. Some suggested immediate capture and beheading of the boy. The pious King Parikshit, seeing Lord’s mercy of granting more than what he desired, quietly smiled and disapproved his ministers’ advice. Immediately he renounced his kingdom, ornaments, royal robes, his wives and the treasury. He cut off his long dark curly hair with his sword. Entrusting royal responsibilities to his eldest son Janamejaya, the great Vishnu-bhakta surrendered to the Lord. (Sarva dharmaan parityajya Krishnam-ekam sharanam gataa). Parikshit walked the whole night bare-feet to the banks of the River Ganga (a distance of 60 miles) determined to spend the next seven days there as a hermit awaiting Snake Takshaka’s arrival. Taking bath in the cool and fresh waters of the Ganger, and squatting on the ground, over a seat of kusa grass, he concentrated his mind on Lord Krishna.” Then an unbelievable and wonderful incident happened!
GLIMPSES FROM BHAGAVATHAM (15)
“Foreseeing with their divine vision that a great event is about to unfold soon on the banks of the Ganges, all the great sages - Atri, Vasishta, Cyavana, Saradvan, Aristanemi, Bhrgu, Angira, Parasara, Vishwamitra, Parasurama, Uttathya, Indrapramada, Idhmavaha, Madhatithi, Devala, Arstisena, Bharadwaja, Gautama, Pippalada, Maitreya, Aurva, Kavasa, Agastya, Vedavyasa and Narada - appeared with their students. [It is interesting to see that the rishis are bringing along their students – because the selfless teachers want their students to be exposed to every opportunity of external inputs to ensure all-round character development]. The king received them all with due respect and when all were seated, the king addressed them: Parikshit said: ‘I am blessed to be in the esteemed presence of all you great rishis. I will briefly tell you why I am here.” After recounting briefly the incidents in his life which made him arrive at the Ganger-river bank, he concluded: “Alas Kshatriya kings are arrogant and generally do not respect Brahmins and that is why they indulge in reproachful acts. So deeply attached I was to my home, my position and power that the Lord himself has come to me in the form of this Brahmin’s curse to make me give them all up. So, O great Brahmanas know of my firm resolve to seek your shelter and that of River Ganges having fixed my total concentration on Lord Krishna. Let the snake Takshaka come in any form and do his duty. Please bless me so that I can have unflinching devotion to the Lord”. All present including Gods in Heaven appreciated this great resolve of the noble king. Atri, the senior-most sage responded on behalf of the assembly: “O Raja-rishi, this is in keeping with your high pedigree of belonging to the Pandava Clan devoted as they are to Lord Krishna. We appreciate your anxiety to reach proximity to that Lord whom you have been seeking from your mother’s womb. We will all remain here awaiting that pious occasion when you, a great devotee of the Lord, will give up the mortal body.” Parikshit responded with a soft voice: “Shining like Vedas, all of you great men have assembled here purely to bless me – this makes me indebted to you all. O learned sages, please explain for my enlightenment and for the benefit of the young students present here as to what should be the desirable behavior of a human being in general and more particularly a person who is about to die”. Then there was a sudden and bright light which blinded all. What was the source of that light?
GLIMPSES FROM BHAGAVATHAM (16)
At that moment, there appeared a young naked person, hardly sixteen, with well-shaped body, high neck, prominent chest, deep navel, flat belly with 3x2 packs, well-proportioned arms and legs, pronounced cheek-bones, sharp nose, bow-like eye-brows, without any differentiating marks (of caste or calling) on his body, and his long flowing hair in disarray. All the sages instantly recognized him as SAGE SHUKA and stood up with reverence. Parikshit also prostrated. He washed the guest’s feet, sprinkled the holy water on his own head, offered him a cool glass of ganges water to drink and worshipped his feet with flowers. He was offered the the high seat meant for the head of the assembly. [Shuka means parrot which has a unique capacity to pick the ripe fruit in a tree and after eating a small portion, it will put the fruit down for other animals to enjoy. Similarly Shuka Maharshi extracts the essence of Vedas and Upanishads and makes them available to us in a ready-to-eat form].
King Parikshit addressed the great sage: “O Pious Shuka! We are blessed by your presence. All sins of men get wiped out by your mere sight just like the demons in front of Vishnu. How fortunate that I could wash your feet and offer you a drink. O the personification of yoga, I humbly seek from you the nature and the means of the secret knowledge of the self. Please enlighten us as to what the spiritual seekers should fix their mind on? What should they listen to? What actions should they perform to achieve the 4 purusharthas (purpose of human life) of Dharma, Artha, Kama and Moksha? More specifically please tell me what one should do when he is on the verge of death”. Shuka smiled revealing his uniform pearly shining teeth and answered. “O wise king. The answers to all your questions are contained in the Bhagavatham which was revealed by the Lord Himself to Brahma (the first born) who passed it on to his son Narada. Narada Maharshi repeated the same to my father Vyasacharya who was kind enough to pass it on to me along with few other selected students. Now I will tell you the same which is capable of not only answering all your doubts but will also ensure permanent peace for you. When Shuka was about to start an unusual and wonderful incident happened!
[05:24, 16/09/2014] LONGLIFE: GLIMPSES FROM BHAGAVATHAM (17) A few Gods from Heaven suddenly appeared on Earth with one of them carrying a well-decorated golden pot . All of them respectfully removed their crowns and bowed to the assembled rishis. The leader of the group prostrated in front of Shuka Maharshi and generally bowed in the direction of all the others present and addressed the assembly thus: “O great Shuka, we have been sent here by our king Devandra to make an attractive offer which no one on Earth can refuse. If you permit me I will reveal the same”. There was a murmur among the audience. Particularly the young students were very much interested in finding out what the Gods had to offer. The young Brahmacharis imagined several possibilities. One 18 year-old told his close friend nearby: “I hope the most beautiful damsels Ramba, Menaka, Urvashi or Tilottama will be dispatched to Earth to entertain all of us present here!” Shuka looked at the senior-most rishi Atri who permitted the Gods to present their proposal. The leader said “The is pot is full of Amritam and we are willing to exchange this with the knowledge contained in Bhagavatham. Using this you can not only ensure that King Parikshit will be a chiranjeevi but also 100 others selected by you to receive this permanent benefit.” Shuka smiled and summarily disposed them off saying “Can there be a meaningful barter between the most precious stone (manikkam) and a cheap piece of glass? Please go away with your nectar and return it with my compliment to your king.” The rishis applauded the decision of the sage. They saw that this was a silly attempt by the Gods in Heaven to ensure that the ‘pure knowledge of the self’ hidden in Bhagavatham is permanently denied to Earth people so that there will be no potential danger to them from humans becoming self-realised and superseding them. For the next 7 days, the young sage recounted the Bhagavatha Mahapuranam. Did Parikshit get his doubts clarified? Did he benefit? More importantly what is the secret contained in that great puranam that even Gods coveted it?
GLIMPSES FROM BHAGAVATHAM (19):
Bhagavatham adopts a very unique style to illustrate the subtle Vedic/Vedantic truth which is very difficult for the common man to understand and therefore had always remained a great secret known only to few intelligent souls. Vyasa has packaged the formless (Nirgunam) consciousness inside Lord Vishnu with a beautiful body & Godly attributes (Sagunam) who plays different roles. He will continuously describe the dark and beautiful body of the Lord clad in shining yellow silk with all expensive ornaments from head to foot. This ensures that His captivating face with merciful eyes and mischievous smile will be impressed in the minds of the suffering humans. Bhagavatham also categorically states at every available opportunity that Lord Vishnu is in fact the manifestation of the Chaitanyam Swaroopam (Universal Consciousness). Several interesting stories are built around Lord Vishnu and His many manifestations (Avatharams). Through these stories Bhagavatham explains how Lord Vishnu as Consciousness functions as the Generator, Operator and the Destroyer (GOD) of all that is created. Vishnu is the Carpenter (intelligent cause) and the wood (material cause) of the furniture of this vast universe - He also maintains and then dissolves these into himself. Thus, everything (matter, thoughts and actions) is Vishnu. He pervades everything. Each story is a sugar-coated-pill which intelligently hides some Vedic /Vedantic truth about the ever-present and everywhere-present Chaitanyam. Vyasa also adopted an interesting marketing strategy to spread the Bhagavatham message. These stories are told daily in the evenings to those who have assembled in the Temples and other public places after a hard day’s work. This can be compared to today’s popular prime time TV serials. He also trained his students (Vaisampayana, Jaimini, etc.) to conduct simultaneous sessions in different localities. Thus Brand ‘Vishnu’ became very popular. His master-stroke was to use Lord Krishna (the complete manifestation of the Lord) as the Brand Ambassador so that the “message of the Lord” will be spread far and wide. These marketing efforts were required in Kaliyuga to persuade the human beings to become religious!
Now the question is, did Shuka Maharshi succeed in imparting this “knowledge of the self” (consciousness) to Parikshit through Bhagavatham? Did the curse of the Brahmin boy take effect or King Parikshit was saved miraculously?
[07:00, 17/09/2014] LONGLIFE: GLIMPSES FROM BHAGAVATHAM (18): King Parikshit listened to Bhagavatham with total faith. He remained without food and did not even drink water. Soon he got all the answers he sought. More particularly he got the spiritual capacity to distinguish between what is real and unreal (sat and asat). The essence of what the sage Shuka conveyed was: “Human beings commit the mistake of habitually thinking that they are the body-mind. They are not aware of the permanent chaitanyam (consciousness) inside them. While the body-mind continuously changes (birth, growth, disease and death), the chaitanyam (spirit) inside remains same. This gives life to our body and makes our mind conscious. Whenever one says “I am” we are referring to that non-changing TRUTH. For example, our body has moved from a child, to a young person and then an old person – our mind also has changed. But “I am” has not changed at all. It was there, it is there and it will be there without any change. This Chaitanya Swaroopam is always peaceful and happy. IT is the fundamental substance of all the created beings just like Gold is the substance inside all ornaments. If we work hard and ‘know’ gold then we will know about all the ornaments which are mere names and forms without any substance. Humans spend their lifetime pacifying the perishable body and fulfilling the whims and fancies of the fickle mind. But they are “ignorant” about the spirit within. This Consciousness is not limited by the body or mind - it pervades the entire universe and is present even beyond. Even after the body-mind is destroyed, the chaitanyam survives and remains as it is. Vedantam categorically states: YOU ARE THAT CHAITANYAM [Tad-Twam-Asi]. Each human being who understands this will be able to claim that chaitanyam to be his true nature. [Aham-Brahma-Asmi]. One who realizes this fact will look at his body-mind and its logical extension this world (prapancham) as non-permanent and will not be affected by what happens to them. When he is convinced that he is the formless and changeless spirit within he is always happy and peaceful”. Now, how does Bhagavatham illustrate this subtle truth?
GLIMPSES FROM BHAGAVATHAM (20):
For the next whole week, Shuka Maharshi explained 18000 verses of Bhagavatham which illustrated 23 Avatharas of Lord Vishnu and many other stories where Lord’s mercy had benefited devoted human beings. Every story had a built-in subtle message pointing out the essence of the Lord which ensured that the perpetrators of illegal/ immoral/ungodly activities suffered and how the genuinely good were helped. There were stories of sinners like Ajamila and even the most wicked Kamsa who could reach the Lord demonstrating the limitless mercy of the Lord. Learned Shuka patiently explained the hidden tatwams which provided the knowledge of the self to all present including those who were listening from Heaven. The lessons from these stories are valid even today. We will be summarizing most of these fantastic and captivating stories which will keep us glued to the screen!
At the end of the 7th day, precisely at Sun-set when Shuka Maharshi concluded the 12th Skandam of the great Bhagavatha Mahapuranam, there was total silence from overawed audience. Then Takshaka suddenly appeared in the guise of a Brahmin hermit and administered a lethal dose of poison into the King as prophesied. The most powerful poison on Earth immediately reduced the King’s body to ashes. But the chaitanya swaroopam (spirit of the king) which is indestructible rose up in the form of a flash of lightning and reached Vaikuntam. This was applauded by all those present on Earth. Mother Ganges slowly came up, first washed the feet of Shuka Maharshi and then dissolved the ashes of the King so that the same can be delivered safely in the vast Ocean to be recycled into something worthwhile. [Nothing is ever created nor destroyed. Matter is never lost. Everything in Nature is recycled.] Gods in Heaven also applauded by blowing conches, sounding kettle drums and showering flowers. Shuka concluded: “Anyone who listens with Shraddha to this Puranam continuously for 7 days in a Bhagavatha Saptaha Yajnam is sure to receive Lord’s mercy and become permanently peaceful”. This proved how effective the contents of Bhagavatham are. The Rishis in Brahmalokam who were also witnessing this wonder happening on the banks of Ganges witnessed a very interesting but unbelievable incident which took place there involving the most powerful God Brahma. What was that?
GLIMPSES FROM BHAGAVATHAM (21):
Case Study No.3: Brahma becomes jealous of Bhagavatham! Sitting on his soft lotus seat, Brahma was seeing with his telescopic vision all that happened on the banks of the River Ganges. He could not believe how by mere listening to Bhagavatham, Parikshit could go directly to Vaikuntam (by-passing Brahmalokam). He knew that he had given the essence of Bhagavatham, which he had received from Vishnu, to Narada in the form of Chatu-sloki Bhagavatham. He had instructed Narada to pass it on to a worthy person who can make it interesting to ordinary human beings in such a way that it will create intense bhakthi inside them for the Lord Vishnu. This was to fulfill Brahma’s objective to ensure the general welfare of the creations which was entrusted to him as the Chief Operating Officer of the Universe by the Managing Director Vishnu. He was also aware that this responsibility of compiling and transmitting Bhagavatham was outsourced by busy Narada to the hard-working Vedavyasa who was free after completing Mahabharatham. Now he was curious to know what the final product contained that it opens the door of Vaikuntam. He ordered a huge weighing scale to be erected in Heaven. In one pan he placed Bhagavatham and on the other all other ‘means of liberation’ (Vedas, Upanishads and other scriptures). The pan with Bhagavatham did not move up at all! This caused dismay amongst the rishis who were witnessing this experiment. While the rishis unnhesitatingly accepted the holy book as the sure road to immortality, Brahma was not satisfied. He wanted to dig deep and find out the reasons. He thought for sometime and not finding any worthwhile justification, summoned Sage Narada his mind-born son and the closest confidant of Lord Vishnu and asked him. Brahma said “My dear child. You are aware of the experiment I conducted here. I am eager to know the real reason as to why Bhagavatham gives such good results? You are the conscience-keeper of Lord Vishnu and so must be knowing the reason. Please explain the same to me.” Narada’s answer was most revealing!
[06:14, 19/09/2014] LONGLIFE: GLIMPSES FROM BHAGAVATHAM (22): Case study No.4 - STORY OF BHAKTHI, JNANAM AND VAIRAGYAM: Narada clarified to his father Brahma Deva: “O Lord! I know the reason why Bhagavatham is so powerful. But it is a bit long story - but very interesting and illuminating which I will tell you now. A few years back, I visited Bharatavarsha hearing that it was the most civilized place on this Earth and particularly suited for spiritual pursuit. I visited all the holy places from Haridwar, Kurukshetra, Prayag, Kashi, Pushkar, Nasik, Srirangam and even the southern-most Sethu-bandanam (Rameshwaram). But I found real joy no-where. There was no honesty or compassion - all places were uniformly dirty – so was the minds of people. Everyone was extremely selfish. I found people interested only in filling their bellies! Even renouncees (sanyasis) were running after power and possessions! Those posing as saints were full of lust. Women dominate their husbands, couples always quarrel and brothers-in-law are the sole advisers (ref: Shakuni in Mahabharata). Greedy parents sell their children (dowry & prostitution); people sell food-grains and householders sell food to guests (Brahmins have set up hotels). Ashrams/hermitages were filled with foreigners and mlechas (Muslims) have destroyed temples. I could not find a single real yogi, jnani or man of perfection! It is a pity that in this Kaliyuga, women resort to wide-spread prostitution and Brahmins (priests) have commercialized their Vedic skills! They bargain for dakshina even while performing funeral rites!! My Lord, I was crestfallen. Then I walked along the banks of Yamuna and reached Brindavan where Lord Krishna played as a child. There, I witnessed an unusual phenomenon. A shapely young woman was sitting on the ground and wailing. Two old men were lying unconscious by her side breathing heavily. I was shocked to see that those who passed by were indifferent to this pitiable scene! Seeing me interested, the lady shouted: “Oh, great soul. Please wait a minute - kindly help me”. Who was that young lady? Who were the two old men beside her? What was their problem?
Let us answer the questions raised yesterday: (1) WHY DID THE WISE KING PARIKSHIT BEHAVE SO BADLY? That is, why did the noble king place the dead snake round the neck of the sanyasi in samadhi? Even ordinary humans with discretion will not do this heinous act – why then the dharmic king who respects Brahmins, scriptures and a devotee of Lord Krishna do that? Vyasacharya does not give any clear answer except to say that he was hungry, thirsty, tired and therefore angry. But deep analysis shows following possibilities: A) The powerful king’s hidden ego was triggered when he found that he has not received even common courtesy of a visitor (athidhi) from a Brahmin sage and to see this happening in his own kingdom made him furious. The strict administrator inherent in him (Kshatriya-vasana) emerged to overshadow the Brahmin qualities (bhakthi etc.) which he had deliberately cultivated and superimposed from the stay in his mother’s womb. B) Vyasa has brought out the distrust between Kshatriya sand Brahmins cultivated during the post-Mahabharata war which had become so deep-rooted that even the great King Parikshit was not immune. The strong language used by the Brahmin boy supports this conclusion. C) There is an ancient saying “Vinasha kale viparitha budhihi” – [when destruction is near, man is given to irrational decisions which seal his fate]. Probably this applies to Parikshit as well. Why does one lose his mind when he is nearing his destruction? Take Ravana for example. He had married the most beautiful girl on Earth – Mandothari who was the envy of even the Gods. Ravana was most powerful and the greatest Shivabhakta and no damsel in heaven could have said “no” to him. Yet he transgressed Sita and was destroyed. Modern illustrations: Hitler, Indira Gandhi and many more. Every human being will be destroyed when he takes success for granted (forgetting God’s mercy). D) But the real explanation is probably something else. Don’t you see Kali smiling away in the background? Kali who is always sadistically waiting to capture strong minds in their weaker moments, did succeed momentarily to overtake the intellect of the powerful king when he allowed himself to think negatively about the sage? This shows how important it is for a devotees to be alert at all times. Eternal vigilance is the price of bhakthi’. E) Let us not miss the “blessing of the Lord in disguise” here. This behavior of the King resulted in the curse which culminated in Bhagavatham being made available to us through Sage Shuka. So who else but Lord Krishna ensured that His Maya overtakes the King temporarily and that he be sacrificed to benefit the humanity? Was not great archers Karna and Ekalaiva and even the innocent Abhimanyu heartlessly sacrificed by the Lord to make Arjuna the hero of Mahabharata War? We cannot fathom His ways!
GLIMPSES FROM BHAGAVATHAM (14):
Now the answer for the second question: WHAT HAPPENED TO KING PARIKSHIT? “On his ride back, the king sincerely regretted his action. He thought: “What came over me that I behaved like a ruffian and ill-treated a pious man? It was thoroughly unbecoming of a great king. I have, in fact, defamed the Lord present in that saint. They say the devil hidden in the human mind is ever-ready to pounce on a weak mind – so one has always to be vigilant. Is not this the central idea of the Bhagavad Gita which the Lord Himself so beautifully illustrated to his best friend, Arjuna, my grand-father? There the Lord had stated that our mind is like the 100 Kauravas (selfish, cruel and brutal) - they will always try to outnumber and overshadow our intellect which contains the 5 Pandava qualities. This perennial conflict is happening inside each honest individual. One has to be ever alert and ‘observe’ and keep the mind under strict control. I failed for a moment and see what has happened to me. So I must be punished – some serious calamity should soon visit me. If that were to happen, I will definitely welcome it as a gift (prasadam) from the merciful Lord to atone for my grave mistake. Let the fire inside the Brahmana consume my entire kingdom, army and treasury so that I will not, in future, harbor such ill-feeling against any soul”. Thinking thus, the king soon reached his capital. As soon as he entered his palace, the news of the curse of Sringi was conveyed to him. Everyone in the palace was agitated that a reckless Brahmin boy should have cursed a great king. The ministers (known for their anti-Brahmin bias) were in emergency session to find out a quick solution to this problem. Some suggested immediate capture and beheading of the boy. The pious King Parikshit, seeing Lord’s mercy of granting more than what he desired, quietly smiled and disapproved his ministers’ advice. Immediately he renounced his kingdom, ornaments, royal robes, his wives and the treasury. He cut off his long dark curly hair with his sword. Entrusting royal responsibilities to his eldest son Janamejaya, the great Vishnu-bhakta surrendered to the Lord. (Sarva dharmaan parityajya Krishnam-ekam sharanam gataa). Parikshit walked the whole night bare-feet to the banks of the River Ganga (a distance of 60 miles) determined to spend the next seven days there as a hermit awaiting Snake Takshaka’s arrival. Taking bath in the cool and fresh waters of the Ganger, and squatting on the ground, over a seat of kusa grass, he concentrated his mind on Lord Krishna.” Then an unbelievable and wonderful incident happened!
GLIMPSES FROM BHAGAVATHAM (15)
“Foreseeing with their divine vision that a great event is about to unfold soon on the banks of the Ganges, all the great sages - Atri, Vasishta, Cyavana, Saradvan, Aristanemi, Bhrgu, Angira, Parasara, Vishwamitra, Parasurama, Uttathya, Indrapramada, Idhmavaha, Madhatithi, Devala, Arstisena, Bharadwaja, Gautama, Pippalada, Maitreya, Aurva, Kavasa, Agastya, Vedavyasa and Narada - appeared with their students. [It is interesting to see that the rishis are bringing along their students – because the selfless teachers want their students to be exposed to every opportunity of external inputs to ensure all-round character development]. The king received them all with due respect and when all were seated, the king addressed them: Parikshit said: ‘I am blessed to be in the esteemed presence of all you great rishis. I will briefly tell you why I am here.” After recounting briefly the incidents in his life which made him arrive at the Ganger-river bank, he concluded: “Alas Kshatriya kings are arrogant and generally do not respect Brahmins and that is why they indulge in reproachful acts. So deeply attached I was to my home, my position and power that the Lord himself has come to me in the form of this Brahmin’s curse to make me give them all up. So, O great Brahmanas know of my firm resolve to seek your shelter and that of River Ganges having fixed my total concentration on Lord Krishna. Let the snake Takshaka come in any form and do his duty. Please bless me so that I can have unflinching devotion to the Lord”. All present including Gods in Heaven appreciated this great resolve of the noble king. Atri, the senior-most sage responded on behalf of the assembly: “O Raja-rishi, this is in keeping with your high pedigree of belonging to the Pandava Clan devoted as they are to Lord Krishna. We appreciate your anxiety to reach proximity to that Lord whom you have been seeking from your mother’s womb. We will all remain here awaiting that pious occasion when you, a great devotee of the Lord, will give up the mortal body.” Parikshit responded with a soft voice: “Shining like Vedas, all of you great men have assembled here purely to bless me – this makes me indebted to you all. O learned sages, please explain for my enlightenment and for the benefit of the young students present here as to what should be the desirable behavior of a human being in general and more particularly a person who is about to die”. Then there was a sudden and bright light which blinded all. What was the source of that light?
GLIMPSES FROM BHAGAVATHAM (16)
At that moment, there appeared a young naked person, hardly sixteen, with well-shaped body, high neck, prominent chest, deep navel, flat belly with 3x2 packs, well-proportioned arms and legs, pronounced cheek-bones, sharp nose, bow-like eye-brows, without any differentiating marks (of caste or calling) on his body, and his long flowing hair in disarray. All the sages instantly recognized him as SAGE SHUKA and stood up with reverence. Parikshit also prostrated. He washed the guest’s feet, sprinkled the holy water on his own head, offered him a cool glass of ganges water to drink and worshipped his feet with flowers. He was offered the the high seat meant for the head of the assembly. [Shuka means parrot which has a unique capacity to pick the ripe fruit in a tree and after eating a small portion, it will put the fruit down for other animals to enjoy. Similarly Shuka Maharshi extracts the essence of Vedas and Upanishads and makes them available to us in a ready-to-eat form].
King Parikshit addressed the great sage: “O Pious Shuka! We are blessed by your presence. All sins of men get wiped out by your mere sight just like the demons in front of Vishnu. How fortunate that I could wash your feet and offer you a drink. O the personification of yoga, I humbly seek from you the nature and the means of the secret knowledge of the self. Please enlighten us as to what the spiritual seekers should fix their mind on? What should they listen to? What actions should they perform to achieve the 4 purusharthas (purpose of human life) of Dharma, Artha, Kama and Moksha? More specifically please tell me what one should do when he is on the verge of death”. Shuka smiled revealing his uniform pearly shining teeth and answered. “O wise king. The answers to all your questions are contained in the Bhagavatham which was revealed by the Lord Himself to Brahma (the first born) who passed it on to his son Narada. Narada Maharshi repeated the same to my father Vyasacharya who was kind enough to pass it on to me along with few other selected students. Now I will tell you the same which is capable of not only answering all your doubts but will also ensure permanent peace for you. When Shuka was about to start an unusual and wonderful incident happened!
[05:24, 16/09/2014] LONGLIFE: GLIMPSES FROM BHAGAVATHAM (17) A few Gods from Heaven suddenly appeared on Earth with one of them carrying a well-decorated golden pot . All of them respectfully removed their crowns and bowed to the assembled rishis. The leader of the group prostrated in front of Shuka Maharshi and generally bowed in the direction of all the others present and addressed the assembly thus: “O great Shuka, we have been sent here by our king Devandra to make an attractive offer which no one on Earth can refuse. If you permit me I will reveal the same”. There was a murmur among the audience. Particularly the young students were very much interested in finding out what the Gods had to offer. The young Brahmacharis imagined several possibilities. One 18 year-old told his close friend nearby: “I hope the most beautiful damsels Ramba, Menaka, Urvashi or Tilottama will be dispatched to Earth to entertain all of us present here!” Shuka looked at the senior-most rishi Atri who permitted the Gods to present their proposal. The leader said “The is pot is full of Amritam and we are willing to exchange this with the knowledge contained in Bhagavatham. Using this you can not only ensure that King Parikshit will be a chiranjeevi but also 100 others selected by you to receive this permanent benefit.” Shuka smiled and summarily disposed them off saying “Can there be a meaningful barter between the most precious stone (manikkam) and a cheap piece of glass? Please go away with your nectar and return it with my compliment to your king.” The rishis applauded the decision of the sage. They saw that this was a silly attempt by the Gods in Heaven to ensure that the ‘pure knowledge of the self’ hidden in Bhagavatham is permanently denied to Earth people so that there will be no potential danger to them from humans becoming self-realised and superseding them. For the next 7 days, the young sage recounted the Bhagavatha Mahapuranam. Did Parikshit get his doubts clarified? Did he benefit? More importantly what is the secret contained in that great puranam that even Gods coveted it?
GLIMPSES FROM BHAGAVATHAM (19):
Bhagavatham adopts a very unique style to illustrate the subtle Vedic/Vedantic truth which is very difficult for the common man to understand and therefore had always remained a great secret known only to few intelligent souls. Vyasa has packaged the formless (Nirgunam) consciousness inside Lord Vishnu with a beautiful body & Godly attributes (Sagunam) who plays different roles. He will continuously describe the dark and beautiful body of the Lord clad in shining yellow silk with all expensive ornaments from head to foot. This ensures that His captivating face with merciful eyes and mischievous smile will be impressed in the minds of the suffering humans. Bhagavatham also categorically states at every available opportunity that Lord Vishnu is in fact the manifestation of the Chaitanyam Swaroopam (Universal Consciousness). Several interesting stories are built around Lord Vishnu and His many manifestations (Avatharams). Through these stories Bhagavatham explains how Lord Vishnu as Consciousness functions as the Generator, Operator and the Destroyer (GOD) of all that is created. Vishnu is the Carpenter (intelligent cause) and the wood (material cause) of the furniture of this vast universe - He also maintains and then dissolves these into himself. Thus, everything (matter, thoughts and actions) is Vishnu. He pervades everything. Each story is a sugar-coated-pill which intelligently hides some Vedic /Vedantic truth about the ever-present and everywhere-present Chaitanyam. Vyasa also adopted an interesting marketing strategy to spread the Bhagavatham message. These stories are told daily in the evenings to those who have assembled in the Temples and other public places after a hard day’s work. This can be compared to today’s popular prime time TV serials. He also trained his students (Vaisampayana, Jaimini, etc.) to conduct simultaneous sessions in different localities. Thus Brand ‘Vishnu’ became very popular. His master-stroke was to use Lord Krishna (the complete manifestation of the Lord) as the Brand Ambassador so that the “message of the Lord” will be spread far and wide. These marketing efforts were required in Kaliyuga to persuade the human beings to become religious!
Now the question is, did Shuka Maharshi succeed in imparting this “knowledge of the self” (consciousness) to Parikshit through Bhagavatham? Did the curse of the Brahmin boy take effect or King Parikshit was saved miraculously?
[07:00, 17/09/2014] LONGLIFE: GLIMPSES FROM BHAGAVATHAM (18): King Parikshit listened to Bhagavatham with total faith. He remained without food and did not even drink water. Soon he got all the answers he sought. More particularly he got the spiritual capacity to distinguish between what is real and unreal (sat and asat). The essence of what the sage Shuka conveyed was: “Human beings commit the mistake of habitually thinking that they are the body-mind. They are not aware of the permanent chaitanyam (consciousness) inside them. While the body-mind continuously changes (birth, growth, disease and death), the chaitanyam (spirit) inside remains same. This gives life to our body and makes our mind conscious. Whenever one says “I am” we are referring to that non-changing TRUTH. For example, our body has moved from a child, to a young person and then an old person – our mind also has changed. But “I am” has not changed at all. It was there, it is there and it will be there without any change. This Chaitanya Swaroopam is always peaceful and happy. IT is the fundamental substance of all the created beings just like Gold is the substance inside all ornaments. If we work hard and ‘know’ gold then we will know about all the ornaments which are mere names and forms without any substance. Humans spend their lifetime pacifying the perishable body and fulfilling the whims and fancies of the fickle mind. But they are “ignorant” about the spirit within. This Consciousness is not limited by the body or mind - it pervades the entire universe and is present even beyond. Even after the body-mind is destroyed, the chaitanyam survives and remains as it is. Vedantam categorically states: YOU ARE THAT CHAITANYAM [Tad-Twam-Asi]. Each human being who understands this will be able to claim that chaitanyam to be his true nature. [Aham-Brahma-Asmi]. One who realizes this fact will look at his body-mind and its logical extension this world (prapancham) as non-permanent and will not be affected by what happens to them. When he is convinced that he is the formless and changeless spirit within he is always happy and peaceful”. Now, how does Bhagavatham illustrate this subtle truth?
GLIMPSES FROM BHAGAVATHAM (20):
For the next whole week, Shuka Maharshi explained 18000 verses of Bhagavatham which illustrated 23 Avatharas of Lord Vishnu and many other stories where Lord’s mercy had benefited devoted human beings. Every story had a built-in subtle message pointing out the essence of the Lord which ensured that the perpetrators of illegal/ immoral/ungodly activities suffered and how the genuinely good were helped. There were stories of sinners like Ajamila and even the most wicked Kamsa who could reach the Lord demonstrating the limitless mercy of the Lord. Learned Shuka patiently explained the hidden tatwams which provided the knowledge of the self to all present including those who were listening from Heaven. The lessons from these stories are valid even today. We will be summarizing most of these fantastic and captivating stories which will keep us glued to the screen!
At the end of the 7th day, precisely at Sun-set when Shuka Maharshi concluded the 12th Skandam of the great Bhagavatha Mahapuranam, there was total silence from overawed audience. Then Takshaka suddenly appeared in the guise of a Brahmin hermit and administered a lethal dose of poison into the King as prophesied. The most powerful poison on Earth immediately reduced the King’s body to ashes. But the chaitanya swaroopam (spirit of the king) which is indestructible rose up in the form of a flash of lightning and reached Vaikuntam. This was applauded by all those present on Earth. Mother Ganges slowly came up, first washed the feet of Shuka Maharshi and then dissolved the ashes of the King so that the same can be delivered safely in the vast Ocean to be recycled into something worthwhile. [Nothing is ever created nor destroyed. Matter is never lost. Everything in Nature is recycled.] Gods in Heaven also applauded by blowing conches, sounding kettle drums and showering flowers. Shuka concluded: “Anyone who listens with Shraddha to this Puranam continuously for 7 days in a Bhagavatha Saptaha Yajnam is sure to receive Lord’s mercy and become permanently peaceful”. This proved how effective the contents of Bhagavatham are. The Rishis in Brahmalokam who were also witnessing this wonder happening on the banks of Ganges witnessed a very interesting but unbelievable incident which took place there involving the most powerful God Brahma. What was that?
GLIMPSES FROM BHAGAVATHAM (21):
Case Study No.3: Brahma becomes jealous of Bhagavatham! Sitting on his soft lotus seat, Brahma was seeing with his telescopic vision all that happened on the banks of the River Ganges. He could not believe how by mere listening to Bhagavatham, Parikshit could go directly to Vaikuntam (by-passing Brahmalokam). He knew that he had given the essence of Bhagavatham, which he had received from Vishnu, to Narada in the form of Chatu-sloki Bhagavatham. He had instructed Narada to pass it on to a worthy person who can make it interesting to ordinary human beings in such a way that it will create intense bhakthi inside them for the Lord Vishnu. This was to fulfill Brahma’s objective to ensure the general welfare of the creations which was entrusted to him as the Chief Operating Officer of the Universe by the Managing Director Vishnu. He was also aware that this responsibility of compiling and transmitting Bhagavatham was outsourced by busy Narada to the hard-working Vedavyasa who was free after completing Mahabharatham. Now he was curious to know what the final product contained that it opens the door of Vaikuntam. He ordered a huge weighing scale to be erected in Heaven. In one pan he placed Bhagavatham and on the other all other ‘means of liberation’ (Vedas, Upanishads and other scriptures). The pan with Bhagavatham did not move up at all! This caused dismay amongst the rishis who were witnessing this experiment. While the rishis unnhesitatingly accepted the holy book as the sure road to immortality, Brahma was not satisfied. He wanted to dig deep and find out the reasons. He thought for sometime and not finding any worthwhile justification, summoned Sage Narada his mind-born son and the closest confidant of Lord Vishnu and asked him. Brahma said “My dear child. You are aware of the experiment I conducted here. I am eager to know the real reason as to why Bhagavatham gives such good results? You are the conscience-keeper of Lord Vishnu and so must be knowing the reason. Please explain the same to me.” Narada’s answer was most revealing!
[06:14, 19/09/2014] LONGLIFE: GLIMPSES FROM BHAGAVATHAM (22): Case study No.4 - STORY OF BHAKTHI, JNANAM AND VAIRAGYAM: Narada clarified to his father Brahma Deva: “O Lord! I know the reason why Bhagavatham is so powerful. But it is a bit long story - but very interesting and illuminating which I will tell you now. A few years back, I visited Bharatavarsha hearing that it was the most civilized place on this Earth and particularly suited for spiritual pursuit. I visited all the holy places from Haridwar, Kurukshetra, Prayag, Kashi, Pushkar, Nasik, Srirangam and even the southern-most Sethu-bandanam (Rameshwaram). But I found real joy no-where. There was no honesty or compassion - all places were uniformly dirty – so was the minds of people. Everyone was extremely selfish. I found people interested only in filling their bellies! Even renouncees (sanyasis) were running after power and possessions! Those posing as saints were full of lust. Women dominate their husbands, couples always quarrel and brothers-in-law are the sole advisers (ref: Shakuni in Mahabharata). Greedy parents sell their children (dowry & prostitution); people sell food-grains and householders sell food to guests (Brahmins have set up hotels). Ashrams/hermitages were filled with foreigners and mlechas (Muslims) have destroyed temples. I could not find a single real yogi, jnani or man of perfection! It is a pity that in this Kaliyuga, women resort to wide-spread prostitution and Brahmins (priests) have commercialized their Vedic skills! They bargain for dakshina even while performing funeral rites!! My Lord, I was crestfallen. Then I walked along the banks of Yamuna and reached Brindavan where Lord Krishna played as a child. There, I witnessed an unusual phenomenon. A shapely young woman was sitting on the ground and wailing. Two old men were lying unconscious by her side breathing heavily. I was shocked to see that those who passed by were indifferent to this pitiable scene! Seeing me interested, the lady shouted: “Oh, great soul. Please wait a minute - kindly help me”. Who was that young lady? Who were the two old men beside her? What was their problem?
Uma Balasubramanian
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