Chapter X
Nirodha Skandha
78) The tenth Skandha is the longest in the Bhagavatam with as many as 90 chapters. The next longest Skandha is the third Skandha having only 33 chapters. Tenth Skandha mainly recounts the sporting Leelas of Lord Krishna. Even if we disregard the esoteric significance of the incidents in Krishna's life; and even if we consider all these incidents to be purely mythical, still when one reads the story as it progressively unfolds itself, thinks of the childish pranks of the Lord and His glories, remembering that, howsoever much of a myth it might be, it still is a story of the Lord who incarnated himself in human form. Even by listening to it, the mind of any aspirant who has been able to get rid of his Vasanas, easily achieves concentration which can very easily take him to the super-conscious state of Samadhi as it is said that "Yatra Yatra Mano Yati Tatra Tatra Samadhyah", wherever the mind gets firmly fixed, there is Samadhi experienced. This is the reason why this Chapter is called the Nirodha Skandha (controlled thoughts). This is a technique to reach the goal; and all techniques that are available for use have necessarily to be within the realm of unreality or Maya. But so long as this technique leads us to God-realization, why should its reality or otherwise matter?
Even at the beginning of this Skandha, after having listened to nine Skandhas, King Parikshit has already reached the stage of single-pointed interest and concentration, as will be evident from his above quoted words that are translated thus: "Sir, now that I am drinking the nectar of the Lord's glories flowing from your mouth, it is so fulfilling that neither hunger nor thirst is affecting me (even though, for the last four days, I have taken neither food nor water)."
79) When Krishna was accused of having eaten mud, as witnessed by his elder brother Balarama and also by a group of cowherd boys, Krishna blandly denies it to his mother, saying, in plain words, that he did not eat the mud. Many feel outraged that the Lord himself should utter a lie when his incarnation as Krishna is purported to be for upholding and establishing virtue. Herein lies a great spiritual secret. Krishna never uttered a lie. Being the Lord, he had no sense of "doership". While the body and the senses were attending to various activities as per Prarabdha or Karma or destiny, a spiritually evolved soul will remain as pure witness - consciousness, and there will be no ego that will attribute the "doership" to it. This is the state of inaction in action, which every Sadhaka should aspire to reach.
80) In the Damodara Leela of the Lord, Yashoda tries to tie up child Krishna to an old wooden mortar as a punishment,
but finds that the rope she is using is falling short by 2 inches. She ties other pieces of rope to that cord, but she 'still finds the length to be the same 2 inches short. Although she repeated this process several times, exhausting all the ropes in the house, she finds the combined length still short. This is to show that no Sadhaka should think that he could attain God-realization solely through his efforts. It is the Lord's Grace that clinches the issue finally, and one has to pray for it.81)
When child Krishna releases the twin sons of Kubera from the curse of being two Arjuna trees by uprooting them and restoring the young men to their original form, the twins ask for a boon from the Lord ---
"O Lord, please grant us that our tongues may always be engaged in singing Your praises and glories, our ears in hearing them, our hands in doing Your service, our minds in the contemplation of Your holy feet, our heads in prostrating to the entire world which is Your dwelling and our eyes in the vision of the holy persons who are Your embodiments."
82) There is a strange yoga mentioned in Bhagavatam, called 'Steya Yoga' (the path of stealing for union with the Lord
- X-8-29 and 31). All the Yogic texts and scriptures prescribe the cultivation of non-stealing (Asteya) as one of the requisites for an aspirant, while Lord Krishna's stealing of milk, curd, butter etc. has been mentioned here as a Yoga (path to the Lord). In the Mahavakya 'TAT TVAM ASI', meditation on which is believed to lead one to realization, Asteya is prescribed from the aspirant's point of view (i.e. 'Twam'-based Sadhana). The Steya yoga is 'Tat' (the Lord/God) based simply on the listening to these exploits of stealing by the Lord, the mind gets a single-pointed concentration, which leads one to Samadhi.83)
In another episode Brahma the creator gets deluded and wishes to test whether such an ordinary-looking boy like Krishna playing with the dust-laden cowherd boys of Brindavan could in fact be the Lord himself. When the Lord teaches him an unforgettable lesson, Brahma expresses regret and sings some hymns in His praise. One of them contains the three valuable Sadhanas that could take one to God-realization by themselves. Brahma sings (as in the above verse) --- "Lord, one who spends his life praying and looking forward to Your Grace, quietly experiencing the joys and sorrows that are visited on him as a result of past actions (Prarabdha), and prostrating to you with heart,
speech and body, becomes ultimately entitled to liberation (Mukti)". So this actually is a three-in-one Sadhana viz: (a) incessant prayer for the Lord’s Grace; (b) quietly experiencing Prarabdha-caused joys and sorrows; and (c) prostrating to the Lord with heart, speech and body. One should always weep and pray for the Lord’s Grace. Why not take the help of the Lord Himself for attaining Him? One should not rebel against the sorrows and miseries of life, which are only a result of one’s own earlier actions. These are meant to purify our minds. Full acceptance of the Lord’s will and bearing all calamities cheerfully is in itself a Sadhana. Remembering the Lord continuously; surrendering the mind, speech and body to Him; performing only selfless acts beneficial to mankind; contemplating on the Lord continuously and either resorting to silence or surrendering one's speech to the Lord or if need be, using speech only to chant the names and glories of the Lord, are sure means for realizing the spiritual goal.
84) There is an interesting episode of Venu Gita (The Song of the Flute) in the 21st chapter of this Skandha. The Gopis (cowherd women) are all so intensely devoted to Lord Krishna that, wherever they turn, they imagine all nature as worshipping and lying ensnared by the bewitching charm of the Lord. They feel envious of the flocks of does (female deer) accompanied by their black bucks, which have come to hear the sweet melodies of Krishna’s flute, as if enchanted. They could also see the cows and calves gathered around the Lord, the calves forgetting to drink
the milk oozing from their mothers’ udders, all with their ears attuned to listen to the strains of Krishna's flute. They imagine the rivers and the streams hastening with their hand-like waves carrying gifts of lotus flowers to be offered at the Lord's lotus feet in a fervent embrace. The birds sitting quietly on the boughs of trees, with their eyes closed, are sages who have assumed that form in order to enjoy the divine music emanating from the Lord’s flute. When the mellifluous notes of the Lord’s flute blaze forth in the beautiful night, the Gopis whose hearts are full of love for the Lord run to him immediately, abandoning whatever worldly activities had engaged them at that moment. Gopis who were feeding their husbands and children, those who were milking cows, those who were in the process of dressing themselves --- all of them dropped those activities midway and ran to the Lord, their hair disheveled, their robes in disarray, totally unaware of their bodies. How many of us will be prepared to drop our activities and turn to the Lord? His call is always sounding in our hearts, but few of us heed it at all!85)
Another beautiful aspect of this episode is that, on the one hand, only those Gopis who could run to Krishna on the Yamuna bank that night were able to enjoy His company;
on the other hand there were a few Gopis who were restrained from going by their husbands or other relatives and were locked up in dark windowless rooms. They also got instant liberation. Such liberation can only come when their stock of Punya (merit) and Papa (sin) gets completely exhausted so that the soul does not have to get embodied any more as there is no stock of either Punya or Papa to be experienced. In the case of the latter category of Gopis who were locked up in dark rooms with no exit, they were utterly miserable and their entire bodies were burning in the 'fire' of separation from their beloved Lord. Experiencing such untold and extreme misery exhausted their stock of sin (Papa). Likewise while meditating on the Lord, they found themselves, in their imagination, embracing the Lord and experiencing the utmost Bliss. This extreme joy exhausted their stock of Punya (merit). Having thus exhausted all their Prarabdha of merit and sin, they were immediately relieved from the bondage of 'Samsara' (cycle of births and deaths), left their bodies and attained liberation. This is the height of Sadhana, intense longing for the Lord alone is the key to salvation. Ramakrishna Paramahamsa was prepared to cut off his own head when he felt frustrated on finding that he could not get the 'Darshan' of Kali, and this led to instant realization The Gopis’ love for the Lord and their devotion to Him were so all-consuming that all their ego was dissolved. They were prepared to transgress all norms of morality and even face ostracism by society. In fact, they had no body sense at all, and they lived only in Krishna, going beyond the accepted norms of virtue and sin, morality and immorality (a-morality). In his Bhakti Sutras, Narada cites these Gopis as ideal devotees of the highest order.86) The Gopis were fully aware that Krishna was not a mere handsome neighbor of theirs, but He was the Lord Himself, incarnated for the good of the entire world at the specific request of Lord Brahma. They clearly avow this knowledge while lamenting Krishna’s disappearance from their midst. (Gopika Gitam, X-31-4: " O Krishna, we know it for certain that You are no Gopi’s son. On the other hand, You are the witness residing in the hearts of all embodied souls. We also know that You have taken birth in this world, among these cowherd clans of ours in response to Brahma’s prayer in order to save the whole world".)
87) The noblest type of Bhakti is where a devotee revels in the happiness and well-being of his or her beloved and is extremely miserable in the latter's misery. The Gopikas, in their lamentation, describe the state of their minds when Krishna used to leave daily for the forests in Brindavan for grazing the cows --- "O Lord! How miserable we were when we thought of You running bare-footed with Your tender feet bleeding from the pricks of sharp stones and thorns while taking out the cows for grazing!" (X-31-11)
The Gopikas sing, weeping, "Lord, hearing Your stories and glories is a divine nectar which would rejuvenate and gladden the hearts of those dying with miseries. It can annihilate all our Vasanas and sins as reiterated by the wise ones. It is only those devotees who are rich with the knowledge of the Lord's glories that do great acts of charity by disseminating this knowledge among others".
88) When Sukadeva starts narrating Krishna's disportations with the Gopis (Rasa Kreeda), King Parikshit abruptly interrupts him with a relevant question which troubles the mind of many a modern man and woman --- "How can anyone extol the glories of a God who professed to incarnate Himself for re-establishing the highest standards of virtue and morality in the world, but at the same time lends himself to criticism for carrying on intimately with the wives of others, which is condemned in the scriptures in no uncertain terms as a heinous sin?" (X-33-27 to 29)
89) Let us marshal the known facts:
(i) Krishna is the Lord Himself manifesting in His fullest glory as Pure Consciousness. Krishanastu Bhagavan Swayam "Krishna is verily the Lord Himself and none else". He is thus the only Reality who has taken the form of the entire universe and all its inhabitants. The created universe has no existence or Reality of its own except as His sport and in relation to Him. Gauda Pada, in his "Karika" on
Mandukya Upanishad says the reason for the Lord's sport is His nature Devaseshasavbhavoayam.(ii) Lord Krishna is the Supreme Being who is installed in the hearts of all creatures in the universe, including the Gopis, their husbands, children and others. He is not an outsider but the very Self of all beings including even the Gopis --- everyone is His and He is everyone's. Everything is His own sport and the play of His internal Power or Sakti, which is non different from Him.
(iii) The Lord's body is not made of the five elements like the gross bodies of men, women and other creatures are made of. His body is all Pure Consciousness in and through.
While dealing with the Leela (Rasa Kreeda) of the Lord, it is stated --- "The Lord sported with the Gopis just like a small child playing with his own reflection in a mirror or in water". So who were these Gopis, or for that matter, all other creatures". They were none but the Lord Himself, or if you wish, His reflection. So with whom or With what was He disporting? With His own Self or reflection!
(iv) Also let us remember that the Gopis also included among themselves divine nymphs, certain great sages like Ugratapa, Satyatapa, Haridhama and others, who as a result
of their intense Sadhana were born as Gopis to enjoy the bliss of treading the same earth as trodden by the Lord Himself. The various hymns of the Vedas, which expressed a desire to play with the Lord in human form, also took birth as the Gopis. Chaitanya Mahaprabhu has termed the Gopis as "Prema Sannayasins " (Nuns of Pure Love). It is the highest and purest form of love (which has nothing physical or carnal about it), where without any volition of their own all normal moral standards and virtues presented in the scriptures renounce such devotees. There is an aphorism of Narada's in his Bhakti Sutras:
(v) The scriptures refer to Krishna as a person of unbroken celibacy. Even from the common-sense point of view, Krishna was hardly ten years of age while doing the Rasa Kreeda and it would be absurd to invest his association with the Gopis with carnal or sexual motives.
(vi)
Uddhava who carries Krishna's message to the Gopis from Mathura and who thinks that the Gopis might be some uncultured village belles just infatuated with Krishna, is shocked to find their deep love and unparalleled devotion. He prays to God thus--- "Wish that I became a bush, creeper or plant in Brindavan so that the dust of the feet of the
holy Gopis would sometime fall on me too during their walks and I may be blessed!"90) The entire Rasa Kreeda episode with the Gopis, if chanted or listened to, is believed to remove all the "diseases" of the heart, including sexual desires in particular. According to a famous commentator, Jiva Goswami, this episode is designed to attract, even worldly persons more interested in erotic sentiments and romance, to the Lord.
91) The next important episode, namely Krishna's marriage with Rukmini, occurs in the Lord's adult life. Rukmini was the daughter of Bhishmaka, the Vidarbha king. Having heard unstinting praises of Krishna, then ruling over Dwaraka, from several visiting sages and others, Rukmini had decided that she would marry Krishna only. As her elder brother was not favorably disposed towards Krishna, she was betrothed to Sishupala, the Chedi king and the date of the marriage was also close at hand. Rukmini got perturbed and sent a message to Krishna through a dependable Brahmana, requesting Him to come and take her away by force. In the message, she wrote --- "O Lord of unparallel beauty in all the three worlds! from the time I first heard of Your excellences, I had fallen for You and Your glories, entering through my ears, and have been cooling down my body, which was yearning for You. The only benefit in having eyes is to be able to see Your form. I am yours and please do not allow Sishupala or others to
claim me. May all the vows observed and the worship done to the Lord, the Guru and others, result in granting this desire of mine. Before I am married to Sishupala tomorrow, please come incognito along with Your army chiefs and carry me away by force. You are the One, the dust of whose holy feet is desired by even Lord Siva for destroying His Tamoguna. Now that I have known about You, if I do not get Your Grace in this birth, I shall die pining for You with my body starved by rigorous discipline, birth after birth till You relent and accept me".92) To many it may sounds strange that while barely two days remaining of Parikshit's life, within which time he had, if at all, to attain the much-desired Moksha, here was Sukadeva narrating to the King, the episode of Rukmini's romantic love for Krishna. Actually the "message of love" from Rukmini to Krishna is a "love letter" from a Jiva (Jivatman, an individual soul) to the Lord, the Supreme Self.
"Rukmini" means 'golden-hued' and the Jivaatma is described in the scriptures as of golden color (Hiranmayah Purushah). A Jiva (a normal person) is wedded in every birth to a life of ‘Sishupala’, i.e. bearing and protection of children (Sishu = child; Pala = protection or protector); marrying, earning, begetting and rearing children --- these are the only activities of most persons who live ordinary lives. A rare Jiva comes to hear of the Lord's glories in Satsanga. Hearing (Sravan) is always the first step in spirituality. Having once heard of the Lord and having once lost his
heart to Him, the Jiva wants the Lord Himself in preference to leading the life of Sishupala. The Jiva is helpless in achieving this and it is for the Lord to relent and take him away, as if, by force from the worldly environment. If the Lord's Grace is not forthcoming in this birth, the Jiva is determined to do Tapas (penance) birth after birth till he attains Him. It is the firm resolve and complete surrender of the Jiva that is capable of bestowing success in his spiritual quest. This is the significance of Rukmini's message of love. It is not a mere 'earthly' romantic tale.93) Then come the episodes of Krishna marrying seven more princesses like Satyabhama etc. and the 16,000 princesses languishing in the prisons of Bhowmasura. Narada who was never tired of singing the glories and Leelas of the Lord, visits the homes of Krishna's wives numbering 16008 and finds one Krishna in each house, engaged in various duties as an ideal house-holder. Somewhere He is seen fondling his children, somewhere consuming the remnants of food from the leaves, of which Brahmanas had eaten; somewhere immersed in meditation; somewhere conferring on the affairs of the State with his counselors; somewhere listening to the Puranas and the Lord's glories; somewhere doing personal service to his parents; and so on.
Though the Lord was playing the role of an ideal house-holder, all the 16,000 and odd beautiful damsels using all their wiles with their winking glances, charming play of eyebrows and eyelashes, bewitching smiles and other artifices, were unable to create even a single ripple in the absolutely detached mind of the Lord. (What then to speak of a Rasa Kreeda at the age of ten!)
The eight principal wives represent the 8 miraculous powers (Ashta Siddhis) and the other 16000 wives represent the 16 major categories of objects of temptation. All the temptations come to us through any one or more of the 11 Indriyas (5 senses of perception, 5 senses of action and the mind). The 5 sense objects are made up of five great elements earth for smell, air for touch, water for taste, fire for form and space for sound. All the temptations of the world come to us in the form of these 5 objects i.e. smell, touch, taste, form and sound through the 11 senses mentioned above. This seems to be the significance of the 16,008 wives of Lord Krishna.
94) In the Rajasuya sacrifice performed by Yudhishtira when Lord Krishna was forced to behead Sishupala, an effulgent light from the latter's body was seen entering the Lord.
For three continuous births, Sisupala's mind had been full of enmity for the Lord; and as he was constantly thinking only of the Lord with fierce intensity born of enmity, he ultimately became identified with the Lord. It is the mind that is responsible for birth. By constant meditation on the Lord, though in hatred, Sisupala's soul got merged with the Lord.
95) The story of Sudama, the erstwhile classmate of Krishna proves that the Lord does not need anything more valuable than pure love from his Devotees. Krishna says, "A leaf, a fruit or little water offered with real love and devotion is enough to please Me!" (X-81-4).
One can get all riches and worldly prosperity too, if needed, by worshipping the Lord with Love.
Mukti Skandha
96) Many scholars and devotees consider the eleventh Skandha to be the most instructive and the most precious one as it covers the entire scope of spiritual Sadhana in a single Skandha, and that too, as narrated or revealed by Lord Krishna to Uddhava. Some call this portion -- the Uddhava Gita. In view of this, it is in a sense, a repetition of the salient points brought out in the earlier Skandhas.
97) This Skandha starts with the conversations of nine Yogis who dispel various doubts raised by King Nimi (Videha). The first of these Yogis, Kavi, narrates some of the disciplines, which lead to the realization of the Lord:
(i) It is our identification with our bodies that leads us to fears and miseries of all types. The body does not have a real existence as such, as it is Asat (unreal, that which does not really exist). It is only by worship of the Lord who is the soul of the entire universe that we can rid ourselves of our fears and miseries (XI-2-33).
(ii) Whatever activities we perform, through our mind, body, speech or senses, due to our natural qualities, etc., should all be surrendered to the Lord. The doer should never expect the results of his action to accrue to him. This type of activity, consecrated to the Lord, will not bind us.
(iii) The vacillating mind should be controlled and made free from all thoughts.
(iv) One should live bereft of all attachments, listening to the glories of the Lord and chanting the Lord's names loudly without any shyness.
(v) In order to cultivate 'ego-less-ness', one should prostrate before rivers, oceans and all beings as manifestations of the Supreme Being.
(vi) Continuous contemplation of the Lord will bestow devotion, dispassion and intimate knowledge of the Lord and finally leads to liberation. (X1-2-36, 38, 39, 41, 43)
98) Then Hari, the second Yogi, defines the best devotee. The one who looks at all beings with love and reverence as the Self and as the Lord who is the Self of all beings, is the best among devotees. The one in whose mind no seed of desire ever sprouts and whose sole refuge is the Lord is the best among devotees. The one whose mind never swerves from the remembrance of the Lord even for a fraction of a second and is never tempted even by the splendor and prosperity of the three worlds, is the best among devotees (XI-2-45,50,53).
99) Prabuddha, another Yogi, outlines the following Sadhana for getting out of the Lord’s Maya, which involves us in an illusory world:
100) The next most famous episode is about the twenty-four preceptors (Gurus) from nature, from each of whom Dattatreya Avadhoota learnt an important lesson. These 24 preceptors are: earth; air; space; water; fire; moon; sun; pigeon; python; ocean; moth; honey-bee; elephant; honey- gatherer; deer; fish; the prostitute Pingala; Kurara bird (osprey); child; unmarried maiden; arrow-smith; serpent; Spider; and wasp. Let us see very briefly the main lesson Dattatreya learnt from each of these Gurus in a positive (i.e. to be followed as a model) or in a negative (i.e. to be avoided) way.
Earth - Despite being trampled under the feet of so many beings, Mother Earth remains unmoved. Likewise, a man of self-control should not swerve from his chosen path and should remain impervious to all attacks from external sources.
Further more, from the mountains and trees of the Earth, one should learn to live for others and strive to serve all other beings.
Air - A spiritual aspirant should remain unattached just like the Air which never gets tainted despite it’s coming into contact with various types of objects.
Space (ether) - A sage should remain ever identifying himself with the Supreme-Being as immanent in all objects of the universe (movable and immovable) and dissociating himself with the body just like the all-pervasive space which remains immanent in all objects and at the same time not imbibing any of the characteristics of those objects.
Water - Being by nature pure, friendly and sweet tempered, a sage purifies people by sight (seeing), by touch and by being praised, just like the Ganga water that purifies men.
Fire - Shining with the power of austerities, a sage remains totally unaffected and unpolluted though eating anything and everything just like the Fire. Sometimes he keeps his glory hidden and at other times he reveals himself to his earnest devotees. By consuming the food offered by donors, he burns up the latter's past and future sins just like the fire.
Moon - The waxing and waning stages are only for the digits of the moon, its core remaining unchanged. The lesson is that growth and decay are only for the body and not for the Self.
Sun - Even though the yogi absorbs the various objects with his senses of perception he does not revel in them just as the Sun absorbs the water through his rays and releases it in proper time as rain (without retaining it). Further more, the one Sun appears as many reflections in various pots of water. Similarly it is the same Self, which appears and is seen as many in the various beings.
Pigeon - Once, a male Pigeon and a female pigeon saw their young chicks (fledglings) having been entangled in a hunter's net. Being sorely distressed at this plight and moved emotionally due to their undue attachment to those children, both the parent pigeons threw themselves too into the net, to the delight of the hunter. Thus a householder who fails to keep his senses under control and is attached to his family is subject to sufferings and hardships along with his family.
Python - One should put up with hunger and be satisfied with whatever comes to him by way of food just like the python, without making any effort to obtain it.
Though fully healthy and active, an aspirant should not engage his senses, mind etc. in action but lie quiet like the python with his mind ever alert and vigilant in respect of the ultimate objective in life.
Ocean - A sage should be like the ocean, still and calm but deep and profound, unfathomable, boundless and unperturbed.
Moth - With its fatal attraction for fire, it perishes in it. Similarly, the person who lacks in self-control falls a victim to the charms of the opposite sex and perishes.
Honey Bee - Collects the essence of flowers in small quantities from a large number of flowers. Man should learn to extract the essence of the Scriptures (Sastras) as the bee does. A mendicant should collect alms from house-to-house, just enough for the upkeep of his body and should never hoard food even for the morrow. If he accumulates, he will perish like the bee along with that accumulated property.
Elephant - An ascetic should avoid all contacts with the opposite sex as otherwise he will get bound just as a bull elephant gets entrapped through contact with a cow elephant.
Honey-gatherer : If the hard earned money collected by the miser is neither given in charity nor used for self-enjoyment, it will be knocked away by somebody just as the honey- collector takes the honey gathered by bees away.
Deer - An ascetic should not listen to vulgar music. He should learn a lesson from the example of the deer, which gets captured while rapturously listening to music.
Fish - It is caught and drawn to death by swallowing the baited hook. Similarly, a man who falls a victim to the attractions of the palate will perish ultimately.
Pingala, the Prostitute - One day, a prostitute called Pingala, who was earning her living by satisfying the sensual desires of men, was expectantly waiting till midnight in vain for some rich customers to come by. Suddenly, the realization dawned on her as to how stupid she had been in running after petty men who only gave her sorrow, fear, worry and delusion while she had ignored the most loving eternal and bounteous lover viz. the Lord who was seated closest to her (within her heart). The lesson is that one should give up one's hankerings after sensual pleasures, which lead one to sorrows and sufferings and take refuge in the Lord.
Kurara bird - A kurara bird having a piece of meat in its beak was pursued and attacked by other bigger birds. Only when it dropped that piece of meat, could it get peace. Similarly, the more a sense object is sought after by men, the more it is a source of suffering. Possession leads to strife and lack of peace.
Child - A child bothers not about either honor or insult. It is free from worries and immersed in joy of self and plays alone by itself. A sage should imitate this behavior.
Unmarried maiden - An unmarried maiden, de-husking paddy on the sly, found that the bangles on her hand were making a jingling sound and betrayed her activity. When she removed all the bangles except one on each hand, no more sound was made or heard. If too many people live together it will result in quarrel or mutual gossip. So a sage should travel alone, like the single bangle on the girl's wrist, conversing with none.
Arrow smith – A smith making an arrow had his mind so fully concentrated on his job of forging the arrowhead that he remained unaware of a king along with his retinue passing by. Similarly, an aspirant's mind should be fully absorbed in the Atman without any awareness of objects inside or outside.
Snake - A snake has no house of its own but is happy in living in the holes made by other creatures. A sage should be a wanderer, homeless. Building his own home will result in sorrow and suffering.
Spider - Just as a spider brings out its web from within its body, sports in it for sometime and then withdraws it into itself, so does the Supreme Being creates, spreads and withdraws the universe, all by Himself.
Wasp - It brings a worm and keeps it in its hole. Listening to the constant tapping on the wall of the hole, the worm in mortal fear, constantly thinking of the wasp, eventually assumes the form of the wasp itself. So should aspirants concentrate on the Lord and attain His form.
These 24 preceptors may be classified as follows:
14 preceptors, who provide us with positive lessons, are: Earth, Air, Space (sky), Water, Fire, Moon, Sun, Python, Ocean, Child, Arrow-Smith, Spider, Serpent, and Wasp.
7 preceptors, who teach us bad (negative) lessons to be avoided, are: Pigeon, Moth, Elephant, Deer, Fish, Kurara bird (osprey) and Unmarried Maiden.
3 preceptors, who teach us both positive and negative lessons, are: Honeybee, Honey-gatherer and Pingala the prostitute.
Having expounded how we can learn from these 24 external preceptors in Nature, Dattatreya Avadhoota finally sums up by saying that one's own body is the best instructor.
One can learn invaluable lessons from one's own very body. Through repeated births with incessant misery as its fruit, the lesson of dispassion is learnt. It is with the help of the body that one is able to reflect on the Truth and then practice discrimination. But one should remain unattached on the understanding that this body would belong to dogs and jackals after death. This human body, which is attainable only after countless births, is a rare and precious blessing. A wise man should, therefore, strive to use this body for the attainment of liberation, which is our ultimate goal. To do otherwise and to misuse it for sense enjoyment is suicidal.
Thus Dattatreya Avadhoota illustrates very clearly how, if only we are observant, we can learn many lessons from Mother Nature herself.
101) Next comes Hamsavatara (manifestation of the Lord in the form of a swan). The first four sages, Brahma's sons - Sanaka, Sanandana, Sanatana, and Sanatkumara - once requested the Creator to clarify a doubt for them. All the things of the world enter into the mind and become deeply embedded in the conscious or the subconscious mind. The mind, in its turn, enters into all the things of the world as likes and dislikes. When we sit down for meditation, the entire world comes before us as we are fully steeped in it. Thus, as the mind and the things of the world have both become inextricably mixed with each other like the ingredients of a ‘Halva', how are we to separate the mind from the things of the world and keep it on the Lord?
102) As Brahma was unable to answer the question, the Lord Himself came before them as a Swan (Hamsa) and told them "Do not try to separate the one from the other.
The entire world has come out of your mind. The things of the world are only thoughts. The world is firmly seated in your mind and you always think of worldly things. Throw away both the mind and the world together and remain in the form of the Supreme Being. This is the ultimate teaching in Sadhana".
103) The tragedy of mankind is that man refuses to understand what his real state is and does not want to be in that real state, but only in an artificial state. The practice of "STILLNESS", set out in the preceding paragraph, which is advocated in the Yoga Vasistha as also in recent times by Ramana Maharshi, is a direct method for God-realization. Without getting discouraged, if only we can practice for some time every day to remove the thoughts as and when they come into our mind, very soon we will be able to still the mind and keep it free from all thoughts. The ideas of "I" and the "world" are all only thoughts. During sleep, we have no thoughts. In the thought-free state what remains is the Real Self which is the form of the Lord. Remain as the Brahman (as described in the scriptures --- unattached, uninvolved, free from all activities, impervious to external impressions of joy and sorrow; praise and blame, etc.) and keep the mind still. Our mistake is that we always approach this with a firm pre-conviction that it is not possible to remain without thoughts, and such an approach is the main impediment. If one persevered in this practice, one will find it to be the easiest path. Our real form is the one in which no thoughts exist --- and what difficulty can there be in our remaining as what we are in reality?
104) Uddhava then asks a beautiful question of Lord Krishna "Different objectives like fame, virtue, truth, control of senses, riches, etc. are proclaimed by different great souls as the only goal worth striving for. Are they all equally good alternatives or are some more important than the others?"
In reply, Lord Krishna declares that the realization of the Self or the Lord is the only one, which constitutes a person's ultimate goal. Those who declare otherwise, or who consider the means themselves to be the goal are all misguided persons befuddled by Maya.
105) In the early stages of Sadhana, a Sadhaka distinguishes a particular environment as favorable and another as unpleasant or even disturbing for performing one’s Sadhana. When once his mind gets cultivated, reaches a state of equanimity, having renounced all possessions and riches, and is happy in his own Self (or the Lord), all environments and all circumstances become favorable and full of joy.
106) As and when a person loses himself in the contemplation of the Lord and in chanting His names and listening to His glories, his mind gets purified and he begins to see clearly the subtlest principle, namely, the Lord. So long as a person goes on thinking of worldly things, he will get immersed in the world, similarly if he goes on contemplating on the Lord, he gets immersed in the Lord, who is the Ultimate Reality. For effective contemplation of the Lord, one should completely avoid the company of the opposite sex as also that of persons who seek the company of the opposite sex. One should meditate in solitude. Attachment to any other thing in the world is as harmful as attachment to the opposite sex, which will only lead to bondage and misery (XI-14-26, 27, 29, 30).
107)
"All Sadhanas are possible only when we are endowed with a human body. This body of ours is the most efficient boat. Make the Guru the oarsman, who will guide the boat and take it across the ocean. The Lord's Grace is the favorable wind in which the boat can sail swiftly and you can easily cross the ocean of Samsara (phenomenal world). Not to make use of the body in this manner is equivalent to committing suicide."
108) Uddhava's mind gets bogged down with Krishna's exhortation on the various types of Yogas such as Sankhya, Jnana, Bhakti, etc. He finally asks the Lord in despair --- "I find that all the yogic methods enunciated by you are difficult to practice unless a person has cultivated self-control. Kindly tell me some easy means to reach the Lord".
And Krishna explains thus:
Ashraya Skandha
109) Twelfth Skandha begins with a description of the all round degeneration in KALI YUGA where all virtues like Truth, kindness, forbearance etc. will decay gradually.
In this age, wealth shall be the sole criteria for declaring one to be of high birth. Power shall be the order of the day and shall become the determining factor in meting out justice. Business shall tantamount to the practice of fraud. A Brahmana will possess no excellence except for wearing a sacred thread. A man rich in the vocabulary of abuses shall be deemed a scholar. Men will live to eat. Dharma or virtues will be practiced only for gaining fame and reputation. The rulers shall be greedy and cruel and shall degenerate into mere robbers. Monasteries will become places for enjoyment like homes and there will be little difference between an Ashram and a house. Thus, when the Kali age advances and men become like animals, Lord will incarnate as Kalki and will destroy the evil doers. From that time, KRITA YUGA will begin.
110) Sukha concludes Bhagavata on the seventh day with this injunction to king Parikshit that he should abandon the feeling that he was going to die - a feeling befitting only animals. The real I the Atman is ever unborn and the physical death in the waking state is just like one experiencing the decapitation of one's own head in a dream. The Atman is not one with the body but it is only its witness. Therefore It is not affected by the death of the body. It is just like the electricity where the bulb is different from it and therefore it remains unaffected when the bulb is burnt out or is shattered to pieces. This is because of the Maya, an inexplicable power of the Lord, that one identifies his Self with the body-mind complex and thus gets entangled in the cycle of births and deaths. King Parikshit bows down to Sukha Deva and openly declares that by his blessings and having heard the excellences of the Supreme Lord for seven days from the latter's mouth, he has since attained the highest state of the supreme bliss of Brahman (The Supreme Being) and thus got freedom from all fear. After the departure of Sukha Deva, the king remained fully absorbed in the unity of the Self with Brahman, having dissociated himself from the body consciousness while Takshaka, the serpent king, came and inflicted the fatal bite on him, true to the curse imposed on him. This was a unique case where the king could evolve into and achieve the highest state of eternal bliss just by hearing for seven days the glories and disportations (Leelas) of the Lord.
111)
Each Yuga has its own standard - high or low - of Dharma, and in accordance with the moral fibre of the people of that Yuga, its own prescription for attaining the Lord. After recounting the various defects of
Kali Yuga resulting in the people failing from the virtuous path, Vyasa extols Kali Yuga as being exceptionally fortunate in that the easiest means for attaining the Lord have been prescribed for this Yuga. Though, admittedly, Kali is the repository of all evil - and most of us today are witnessing the moral quagmire into which present day mankind has pushed itself - yet it has a supreme virtue: a person may free himself of all attachments and attain God Realization simply by singing the glories of the Lord and chanting and hearing His names. In other words, whatever a person could attain in the Krita Yuga by meditation on Vishnu; in the Treta Yuga by performing sacrifices; in the Dvapara Yuga by devoted service and worship - all that he may attain in the Kali Yuga by extolling the Lord. This is the great advantage of the Kali Yuga and makes us exceptionally fortunate, despite the all-pervading evil around us!
112) Vyasa started the Bhagavatam with an invocatory hymn addressed to the Ultimate Reality with neither name nor form, and that verse contains the essence of the Vedanta philosophy as expounded in the Upanishads and the Brahma Sutras. In the valedictory verse of the Bhagavatam, Vyasa declares that chanting of the names of the Supreme Being alone is capable of destroying all the sins which stand in the way of God-realization. In these days when people want God-realization and liberation while holding on to the world at the same time, and are reluctant
to put forth mental or physical effort to acquire Jnanam or study scriptures, the easiest way to achieve the goal is by resorting to chanting the name of the Lord, which can be done anywhere and at all times, for example while engaged in eating, cooking in the kitchen, walking, traveling, or any other activity for that matter. The logical reasoning behind this process is as follows: Every letter of the Sanskrit alphabet is an aspect of the universal force or the power (Sakti), in which the Lord manifests Himself in the world. The first letter ¥ (A) which stands for the power ‘Amrita-Varshini’, when chanted over a long period of time, can bestow a long life. Similarly the letter §ü (EE) stands for the power ‘Eesaani’, which can bestow the ability of controlling others and, being the Maya Bija, also has the influence of removing Maya. The names of the Lord are all combinations of different sound forces whose vibrations will permeate our mind and the body, and shall purify them as well as the ambient atmosphere, and finally lead us to the Super-conscious state of Samadhi, resulting in God-realization.
113) The message contained in the above paragraph, which outlines the simplest ever recipe of Sadhana for the aspirants who had been scared away by the notions of rigorous, time-consuming austerities normally associated with spiritual disciplines, should derive immense cheer. One does not have to take time off one's other pressing day-to-day activities for the mental chanting of the Lord's name. An additional suggestion that may be beneficial however is that whenever possible, try to chant His names loudly at least for a few minutes to start with so that the vibrations of the letter-sounds reverberate forcefully through the mind and the body and infuse new vigor in the aspirant. Over a period, you will find that you become an addict to this, and slowly the frustrations and tensions in your mind and the fatigue in your body give way to an indescribable peace of
mind and that a vast change takes place in your life. Later, if you ever feel like it, you can increase the duration of your Chantings; try to understand the significance of the names that you chant; participate in religious discourses; seek the company of holy persons; or simply sit down and meditate on the glories of the Lord. Various disciplines and Sadhanas have been indicated in the various Skandhas. If you are unable to adopt any of them, the least you can do is to follow the "Kali Yuga recipe", which is also an "instant recipe" for the 20th/21st centuries. Experience it and be rewarded. The Lord's Grace is waiting for you to open the door.
114) Now that we have come to the end of our spiritual quest, it will be rewarding to turn back and recapitulate the essential aspects of Sadhana covered in Skandhas IX to XII.
i) A real devotee does not retaliate even when others openly try to destroy him; even without being sought, the Lord invariably and without fail protects such a devotee because he harbors no ill will, rancor or malice against any offender.
ii) A Sadhaka should always avoid the company of worldly persons and should never allow his senses to run after worldly objects. He should either remain in absolute solitude, constantly
remembering the Lord or if company is unavoidable, resort to the company of holy persons.
iii) Carnal desires are like fire that is nourished by the pouring of ghee into it. One should not remain in the company of a woman alone, even if she is one's own mother, sister, or daughter, since the overpowering senses may tempt even a strong person into the wrong path.
iv) King Rantideva cites an outstanding example of a monarch who was prepared to sacrifice every thing including his own life, in the interest of the humanity. Even when death was staring at him in the face, all he prayed for was to acquire the misery and unhappiness of others to make them happy.
v) However much one may consider the story of Lord Krishna to be a myth, yet there is no getting away from the fact that it is still a story of the Lord Who incarnated Himself in human form. Even by listening to it, the mind of a Sadhaka, who has been able to get rid of his Vasanas, easily achieves concentration, which can readily take him to the super-conscious state of Samadhi.
vi) While the body and the senses are attending to various activities as per Prarabdha (karma, destiny), a spiritually evolved soul will and should remain as pure witness-consciousness so that there is no ego which will attribute "doer-ship" to it.
vii) A Sadhaka should never think that he can attain God-realization through his own efforts - nothing is achieved without the Lord's Grace, and one has to pray - and keep on praying for it.
viii) Simply by listening to the exploits of stealing by the Lord, the mind attains single-pointed concentration, which leads one to liberation (Steya Yoga).
ix) Incessant prayer for the Lord's Grace; quietly experiencing one’s Prarabdha; and prostrating to the Lord with body, mind, and speech, constitute a three-in-one Sadhana as advocated by Brahma in one of his hymns of praise to the Lord.
x) There is the noblest type of Bhakti, where a devotee revels in the happiness and well being of his or her beloved (Lord) and is utterly miserable in the latter's misery. The Gopikas are the outstanding examples of this type of Bhakti.
xi) The entire "Rasa Kreeda" episode, if Chanted or listened to, is believed to remove all the "diseases" of the heart, especially erotic sentiments and desires, and attracts even completely worldly people to the Lord.
xii) When the Jivatman comes to hear of the glories of the Lord, it yearns and pines for union with the Paramatman persistently birth after birth until eventually it attains the goal. This is
symbolized by Rukmini's message to the Lord and her marriage to Him.
xiii) One should continuously and constantly think of the Lord, not necessarily with love and devotion. Even intense hatred and enmity for the Lord, incessantly practiced, can take one to liberation.
xiv) The Lord does not ask for anything more than pure love from His devotees. A leaf, a fruit, a little water, offered with real love and devotion is enough to please the Lord.
xv) In the process of dispelling the doubts of king Nimi, nine Yogeshvaras explain some of the disciplines, which lead to the realization of the Lord.
(a) It is our identification with the bodies, which do not really exist, that cause fears and miseries. We can rid ourselves of these fears and miseries only by worshiping the Lord who is the soul of the entire universe.
(b) All our actions, performed through the body, mind, speech, senses etc., should be surrendered to the Lord without expectation of any results from them for ourselves. This kind of action, consecrated to the Lord, will never bind us.
(c) The vacillating mind should be controlled and freed from all thoughts.
(d) One should be bereft of all attachments, listen to the Lord's glories and chant his names loudly without shyness.
(e) In order to cultivate egolessness, one should prostrate before rivers, oceans and all beings considering them as manifestations of the Supreme Being.
(f) Continuous contemplation of the Lord will bestow devotion, dispassion, and intimate knowledge of the Lord that will finally lead to liberation.
(g) Best among the devotees is one:
- Who looks at all beings with love and reverence as the Lord, who is the Self of all beings.
- In whose mind no seed of desire ever sprouts and whose sole refuge is the Lord.
- Whose mind never swerves from the remembrance of the Lord even for a second and is never tempted even by the splendor and prosperity of the three worlds.
(h) Maya can be transcended by Satsanga; by detaching the mind from all worldly things by cultivating compassion and friendship towards all beings; by cleanliness, forbearance, humility, silence, straight-forwardness, study of scriptures, celibacy, non-violence and by developing equal vision towards all through listening to, chanting and meditating on, the glories of the Lord, and by surrendering one's all the possessions including wife and children at the feet of the Lord.
xvi) Mother Nature provides us with many preceptors, from each one of them we can learn, either a positive lesson which will take us forward or a negative aspect that should be avoided if we are to go forward on our spiritual journey. Dattatreya Avadhoota cites 24 such preceptors from each of whom he learnt a lesson such as forbearance from the earth etc.
Out of the 24, fourteen preceptors, viz., Earth, Air, Space, Water, Fire, Moon, Sun, Python, Ocean, Child, Arrow-smith, Spider, Serpent, and Wasp, taught him positive lessons.
There are seven preceptors that taught him negative lessons, which should be avoided e.g. the lessons taught by a Pigeon, Moth, Elephant, Deer, Fish, Kurara Bird and a Maiden.
The remaining three preceptors viz., Honey Bee, Honey Gatherer & Pingala taught him both positive and negative lessons.
Dattatreya Avadhoota also says that one's own body is a very good preceptor too. It teaches, dispassion, the need for practicing discrimination and non-attachment, as the body is perishable; and finally the need to give up sensual enjoyment and attain the supreme goal of liberation.
xvii) The Sadhaka may be tormented by the question as to how
to take away the mind from the worldly objects with which it is inextricably united and direct it towards the Lord. The answer furnished by the Lord Himself to Brahma and his sons Sanaka etc. and other sages was: Throw away both the mind and the world together, by assuming the form of the Supreme Being Who is keeping Himself detached without ego and by simulating all the attributes of the Lord or Self. This is the ultimate teaching in Sadhana.
xviii) Man's real state is the one in which no thought exists in the mind, i.e. a state of thoughtlessness, but our tragedy is that we neither believe in such a state nor want to be in that state. If only we practice for some time every day, it is possible to achieve complete stillness of the mind and remain in a thought-free state which is the form of Brahman viz. unattached, uninvolved, free from all activities, impervious to external impressions.
xix) Lord Krishna declares that God or Self realization is the only objective, which constitutes an individual’s ultimate goal, as distinct from fame, virtue, truth, etc.
xx) When a Sadhaka's mind gets cultivated, it reaches a state of equanimity, at that point it revels in the Self, and all environments and all circumstances become favorable for Sadhana and full of Joy.
xxi) Thinking of the worldly things alone, a person gets immersed in it but thinking of the Lord, the ultimate Reality,
the mind gets totally immersed in the Lord. For effective
contemplation of the Lord, one should avoid the company of the opposite sex and also of persons who seek the company of the opposite sex.
xxii) The human body with which we are most fortunately endowed after many births is the most efficient boat for crossing the ocean of Samsara. Make the Guru the oarsman and he will guide the boat and make it cross that ocean. The Lord's grace is the favorable wind in which the boat can sail swiftly. Not to make use of this splendid opportunity of human birth in this manner is equivalent to committing a suicide.
xxiii) When Uddhava, whose mind was confused by the various paths of yoga, asked the Lord to explain some easy means of reaching the Lord without the rigorous of Yoga, Krishna said:
a) Perform all your activities ever remembering the Lord and as a humble offering to Him. Visit holy places where devotees and holy persons abound. Celebrate all festivals such as Deepavali, singing the Lord's praises, chanting His names etc.
b) One who abandons all activities and surrenders oneself completely to the Lord's Will and Mercy will attain immortality and verily will attain the Lord's Self also.
xxiv) God realization can effortlessly be attained by anyone, in this dreaded Kali Yuga by extolling the Lord and chanting and listening to His names. What a simple but efficacious recipe it is and how exceptionally fortunate we are to have, available to us, such an effortless path to attain Him even while performing all activities in our routine lives.
115) CONCLUSION: Srimad Bhagavatam is not a mere book. It is the very Lord manifested as the sound (word) force. The Lord is infinite and His words have myriad interpretations - and each one of them is correct too - since they are meant for Sadhakas with varying levels of spiritual aptitude, capacity, etc. in the light of their Vasanas (latent tendencies). In 1957, under my Guru's command, I started doing Bhagavata Saptaha, annually, in Vasishtha Guha in the U.P., Himalayas. By my Guru's overwhelming compassion, newer and newer understandings dawned on me and fresh meanings flashed in my mind as the years rolled by in the process of reading the Bhagavatam and expounding on it year after year. As many of my friends had been persuading me to commit to writing my thoughts on the Bhagavatam, I have made an attempt to do the same and this present publication is the result of it. Wherever I have added some comments of my own, they are based on my little scriptural knowledge and mostly on what I have gleaned from the mouths of various Sadhus and devotees while I was in their holy company.
In keeping with the very last verse of the Srimad Bhagavatam, let us "Prostrate to that transcendental Lord Hari, thinking of whose names destroy all sins, and surrendering to whom dispels all miseries and sufferings."
*****************
HARI OM TAT SAT
*****************
THE AUTHOR
