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GREATNESS OF SRI MARKANDEYA MAHARISHI

Jai Shri krishna,

In Srimad Bhagavatam it is clearly given about the greatness of the
Markandeya rishi, who is well known for his pure devotion, austerity
and meditation. The stories in Srimad Bhagavatam explains how the
great sage saw Nara Narayana and after that how Lord Shiva along with
Mother Parvathi came in front of Markendaya Rishi and given boon.

When the Pandavas was hiding in the forest and they were nearing to
complete Twelfth Year. Lord Krishna came to see them along with
satyabhama.

While Lord Krishna and Maharaja Yudhisthira were talking, the great
sage, Markandeya, arrived. Lord Krishna, the Pandavas, and all the
brahmanas quickly got up from their seats to receive the illustrious
rishi, who, even though thousands of years old, appeared to be just
like a young man, devoid of any signs of old age. When Markandeya
Rishi was comfortably seated, after having been worshiped by the
Pandavas, Lord Krishna requested him to narrate some ancient histories
that instill in the listener a sense of the moral values of life.

Then, as everyone surrounded Markandeya Rishi, anxiously awaiting his
discourses, Narada Muni came there. Everyone got up to worship him,
but because Narada understood that Markandeya was about to speak, he
encouraged the rishi to go ahead without delay. Thus, everyone sat
down once again, being very eager to hear.

Maharaja Yudhisthira started things off by asking, "My dear sage, I am
always perplexed when I think about how the wicked sons of
Dhritarashtra are prospering, whereas we are suffering, even though we
act righteously. Please explain what part God plays in man's happiness
and distress, for it seems to me that such results are simply the
fruits of one's endeavors. I would also like to understand the concept
of karma. Are the reactions to out work enjoyed by us in this life or
in the life hereafter? If the reactions are meted out in a future
life, then how could there ever be a cessation to the cycle of action
and reaction and its resultant birth and death?"

Markandeya Rishi replied, "My dear King, your questions are most
praiseworthy, and I shall try to answer them to the best of my
ability. In the beginning of creation, Lord Brahma made the bodies of
human beings pure and sinless, and thus they were on a par with those
of the demigods. These human beings had all of their desires
automatically fulfilled, they were able to fly in the sky, and they
were completely freed from the demoniac qualities of lust and envy.
They lived for many thousands of years, and they all had the power to
die at their own will. Because there was so little suffering, fear was
practically unknown and thus everyone lived very peacefully and
happily. "

"Gradually, however, in the course of time, human beings became
overcome by lust and greed, and so they began to depend upon cheating
methods for earning their livelihood. Men lost the ability to traverse
the airways and thus they had to walk on the surface of the Earth.
Because of their sinful acts, men were forced to go to hell and
suffer, and in this way, they came to reap the results of their
actions. "

"My dear King, at the time of death, only the gross body of the living
entity is destroyed. The actions that one performs are all recorded in
the subtle mind. Then, after death, when the subtle body carries one
to the next gross body, his fruitive acts follow him just like a
shadow and then fructify in the next life. However, by the practice of
yoga and devotion to the Supreme Lord, the results of one's fruitive
actions can be destroyed. In this way, one can become peaceful in mind
and freed from all diseases, fear and other material miseries. Indeed,
those who have become spiritually advanced, by dint of mature practice
of bhakti-yoga, can always envision the relationship between the
individual soul and the Supreme Soul, the Supreme Personality of
Godhead, in any condition of life, even while encased in the mother's
womb!"

"O King, human beings can be divided into four classes. Those who work
hard to acquire wealth by any means, simply for the purpose of
enjoying sense gratification, can feel happiness in this life, but not
in the next. Those who engage in austerity and meditation, who subdue
their passions, and even sacrifice their bodily strength and health by
executing rigid vows, attain happiness in the next life, but not in
this one. Those who live piously, accumulating wealth by virtuous
means, who live a life of regulated sense enjoyment in marriage, while
performing sacrifices and giving in charity, experience happiness in
this life and in the next as well. "

"Then, there are those who are distinct from the above-mentioned three
classes of persons because they are simply lazy and foolish. Such men
cannot enjoy any happiness in this life nor in the next. My dear
Yudhisthira, because you are very pious, and are engaged in performing
austerities, you will come to enjoy the supreme happiness in due
course of time. Of this there is no doubt. "

In response to Maharaja Yudhisthira's inquiries, Markandeya Rishi
spoke at great length, citing numerous historical accounts. Some of
this vast narration is given as follows. Markandeya Rishi said, "Let
me first of all offer my most respectful obeisances to the Supreme
Personality of Godhead, who is known as Janardana, because He is the
soul of all souls. He is the primeval Lord, the cause of all causes,
and the master of all the demigods. He alone is the cause of creation,
maintenance and annihilation, and thus it is He who is the ultimate
shelter of all beings. "

"My dear King, as you very will know, there are four yugas (ages). The
duration of the Krita-yuga is 4000 celestial years (one celestial year
equals 360 solar years), and at the beginning and the end, the
transitional periods each extend for 400 celestial years. Treta-yuga
has a duration of 3000 celestial years, and the transitional periods
each last 300 celestial years.. The duration of the Dvapara-yuga is
2000 celestial years, and its transitional periods are 200 years each.
Kali-yuga lasts for 1000 celestial years, and it has transitional
periods of 100 years. Thus, the cycle of four yugas has a duration of
12,000 celestial years, and 1000 such yuga cycles constitutes the
daytime of Lord Brahma. "

"O King, please listen as I describe the symptoms of the upcoming Kali-
yuga. As time goes on, the brahmanas will take up the work of shudras,
and shudras will endeavor to acquire wealth like vaishyas. The
brahmanas will give up meditation and the recitation of Vedic hymns
while the shudras take up these practices. "

"In the age of Kali, men become very short-lived and weak in terms of
physical strength and energy. They have diminutive bodies and they
give up even the last remaining religious principle by making their
speech devoid of all truth. The world become ruled by Mleccha kings
who act no better than plunderers. Then, toward the end of the age,
the human population begins to dwindle while animals become oversized
and increase in number until they crowd the earth. "

"In this degraded age, children are born stunted and thy are devoid of
all good behavior. As a result of sinful life, there is great scarcity
and famine, and prostitutes are seen lining the roads. Indeed, women
in general become very hostile toward their husbands and devoid of all
sense of modesty. Cows yield very little milk, and trees, instead of
producing profuse fruit and flowers, become the sitting places for
swarms of crows. "

"O King, in the age of Kali, many persons become imitation sadhus
simply to facilitate economic improvement, and the ashrams become
filled with wretched persons who advocate a life of dependence upon
others, like parasites. Rain no longer falls in season, and indeed,
the entire Earth begins to take on a sinful aspect. In this degraded
age, only sinful persons flourish, and those few that are virtuous
remain impoverished. Sinful behavior will become so rampant that it
will be a common sight even in public places. Even those with meager
wealth will become very proud in this fallen age, due to being
intoxicated by their accumulated money. "

"As the Kali-yuga advances, girls will give birth to children at the
age of seven or eight, and boys will become fathers by the age of ten
or eleven. By the age of sixteen, people will begin to experience the
symptoms of old age, and soon thereafter, they will meet with their
deaths. "

Markandeya then explained, "During the night of Lord Brahma, the whole
universe remains one great expanse of water, and all the living
entities, including the demigods, are no longer manifest. O King, I am
the only person remaining at that time, and upon seeing the universe
devoid of living beings, I become exceedingly depressed. All I can do
is wander through the great expanse of water, and because I can find
no resting place, I become very tired. "

"Finally, I see a great banyan tree within the water, and upon one of
the branches I see a most wonderfully beautiful boy. Having a moon-
like face, eyes like lotus petals, the mark of Shrivatsa on His chest,
and radiating a dazzling effulgence, the boy is seated upon a heavenly
couch. I am highly astonished to think of how this boy could survive
the devastation, and in spite of my infallible knowledge that
encompasses past, present and future, I cannot understand His
identity. "

"The boy then smilingly says, 'O rishi, I can understand that you are
exceedingly fatigued. Therefore, you may rest here for as long as you
like by entering into My body. I am very pleased with you and so I
have designated this as your resting place. ' As the boy continues
speaking, I can feel myself swimming in an ocean of bliss, and thus
losing my normal sense of identity. "

"The boy then suddenly opens His mouth and I helplessly enter into His
body by His supreme will. Finally, upon coming to the boy's stomach, I
see the entire Earth situated there, with all of its kingdoms,
mountains and rivers, and all of the inhabitants are engaged in
performing their duties according to the four social orders. "

"Thereafter, as I wander in the boy's stomach, I see the great oceans
and the sky bedecked with sun and moon. I see all the great mountains
and I see all kinds of animals, Nagas, Yakshas, Daityas and demigods,
and indeed, every kind of moving and nonmoving being. "

"Living only on fruit, I wander about the universe for many hundreds
of years, and yet I never find the limit of the boy's body. Finally,
when I become very anxious, I begin to surrender to that Supreme
Person, admitting that He is the predomi-nator and that I am His
eternal subordinate. Just then, a powerful wind projects me out of the
boy's body, and thus once again I see Him seated as before on the
branch of a banyan tree, dressed in yellow cloth. "

"The boy then smilingly says, 'O rishi, you have dwelt within My body
for a long time and thus you have certainly become very tired. Now, to
mitigate your material pangs, I will enlighten you with transcendental
knowledge. ' As the boy continues to speak, I can feel myself becoming
liberated from the illusion of material existence, while at the same
time my spiritual vision awakens. In that self-realized condition, I
can understand that this boy is the Absolute Truth, the Supreme
Personality of Godhead, the source of all emanations, and the master
of all worlds, material and spiritual. I thus worship His reddish
lotus feet by placing them on my head with great reverence. "

"Then, with folded hands, I say, 'My dear Lord, O origin of all,
including myself, please explain about Yourself and Your illusory
energy. Why do you remain here as a small boy? How is it that the
entire universe was seen by me to be situated within Your
transcendental body?"

"The boy replies, 'O rishi, I am the eternal Lord, Narayana, who lies
down upon the water of the Garbhodaka Ocean. It is I who am the
creator, maintainer and destroyer of everything, and thus the entire
cosmic manifestation constitutes My universal form. I become the
ingredients of sacrifice, it is I who award the results of sacrifice,
and I am the Vedas personified. I am the cause of all causes, and the
One who maintains the innumerable living beings while sustaining the
cosmic creation. At various times, I incarnate within the universe, to
establish religious principles, as well as to protect the demigods and
annihilate the great demons who cannot be killed by anyone else. "

"During Brahma's night, I submerge the universe into the water of
dissolution for 1000 yuga-cycles. While Brahma thus sleeps, I keep
myself in this form as a small boy. Because you had become depressed,
after seeing the universe completely inundated with water, I took you
within My body, to show you how the three worlds remain conserved
there. Now, until the time when Brahma once again awakens, you can
stay here and reside peacefully. ' After saying this, the boy suddenly
vanishes from that place, and thereafter, in due course of time, I
witness the creations of Brahma. "

"My dear Yudhisthira, this same Supreme Personality of Godhead has now
appeared as your cousin, Lord Krishna. Therefore, your best course is
to always take shelter of Him and depend on Him alone." "KRISHNA"