Srimad Bhagavatam Skanda 1 - Bhakti, Blazed The Fire of Yoga
Srimad Bhagavatam cleanses kalimala or the pollutant of Kali, destroys
sins, shows the indweller, the Lord, in oneself by bringing Vairagya towards
the materialistic world, and gives pure devotion, crystal clear, and clean
knowledge.
|| Hari Om ||
 |
| Hare Srinivasa |
कल्यण अद्भुत गात्राय कामितार्थ प्रदयिने ।
श्रीमद् वेन्कटनाथाय श्रीनिवासय ते नम: ॥
Your benevolence for granting wishes
is incredibly vast and unsurpassed.
Divine Lord Venkateshwara! Destroyer
of Sins! An abode of Mahalakshmi! Srinivasa!
My salutations to you.
भवाय नस्त्वं भव विश्वभावन त्वमेव माताथ सुहृत्पतिः पिता ।
त्वं सद्गुरुर्नः परमं च दैवतं यस्यानुवृत्त्या कृतिनो बभूविम ॥ ७॥
Vishwabhavana! From you, the whole
universe has arisen. Suhrtpati! You are the mother, the father, you are the
friend, as well as our teacher. Sadguru! It is you, who makes us walk on the
right path. You are our lord, as well as being worshipped. We are safe and
successful by taking refuge in your lotus feet which are auspicious.
Lord! You
are the only cause of our success.
व्यासाय भव नाशाय श्रीशाय गुण राशऐ ।
हृद्याय शुद्ध विद्याय मध्वायछ नमो नमः ॥
Charming & the beloved Vyasa,
the destroyer of emotional & behavioral disorders, the Lord of Goddess of
abundance having heaps of attributes, bestower of clean knowledge, my repeated
salutations to you and Acharya Madhwa.
यः स्वानुभावमखिलश्रुतिसारमेकमध्यात्मदीपमतितितीर्षतां तमोऽन्धम् ।
संसारिणां करुणयाह पुराणगुह्यं तं व्याससूनुमुपयामि गुरुं मुनीनाम् ॥
This Srimad Bhagavatam gives the
experience of the Lord and has the essence of all Vedas and Vedanta. It sheds spiritual light on the transcendental philosophy required to surpass the intense cycle of death and birth which is wrapped in ignorance. However, it is
very secretive in nature. Hence, I pray to you Sri Shukacharya for your
continued blessings.
दयादाक्षिण्यवैराग्यवाक्पाटवमुखाङिकतः ।
शापानुृग्रहशक्तोऽन्यो राघवेन्द्रन्नविध्यते ॥
The face symbolizing Compassion;
Modesty; Dispassion towards sensual pleasure; Eloquence; Power to remove curses
is none else than you, Guru Raghavendra.
My salutations to you.
My salutations to you.
यथा क्रीडोपस्कराणां संयोगविगमाविह ।
इच्छया क्रीडितुः स्यातां तथैवेशेच्छया नृणाम् ॥ ४२॥
When a child wishes to
play, It pulls out some toys and brings them together for play. After some
time, the child plays with another set of toys. We are like the toys in the
hand of the Lord. Our coming together or going apart is not our choice.
यन्मन्यसे ध्रुवं लोकमध्रुवं वा न चोभयम् ।
सर्वथा न हि शोच्यास्ते स्नेहादन्यत्र मोहजात् ॥ ४३॥
Hence, our stay here, on
this earth is not permanent. It is not permanent with this body, nor with other
forms. Nor as a Soul, our stay on this earth is permanent. Even the physical
universe gets destroyed during the pralaya or end of the universe.
Hence, don’t feel
attached to anything or any individual. Nor feel sorrow for any departure or
disassociations, said Narada Rishi to King Yudhishthira.
Continuing the response
to King Yudhishthira, Narada Rishi says,
तस्माज्जह्यङ्ग वैक्लव्यमज्ञानकृतमात्मनः ।
कथं त्वनाथाः कृपणा वर्तेरंस्ते च मां विना ॥ ४४॥
Also, Dharmaraja! Do not
be under the impression that how can my blind uncle and aunt stay without me?
Or how can my mom stay without me? These thoughts are coming only out of your
ignorance.
कालकर्मगुणाधीनो देहोऽयं पाञ्चभौतिकः ।
कथमन्यांस्तु गोपायेत्सर्पग्रस्तो यथा परम् ॥ ४५॥
Everybody, including
yourself, are under the control of Lord Time, including your karma or actions
of duty, and guna or the characteristics of the substance that has been wrapped
around the soul. When every being itself is like a frog in the mouth of the
snake or a human in the mouth of a Python named Time and ready to be
engulfed at any moment, how can one say that I can protect the other? Asks
Narada Rishi.
अहस्तानि सहस्तानामपदानि चतुष्पदाम् ।
फल्गूनि तत्र महतां जीवो जीवस्य जीवनम् ॥ ४६॥
On this earth, we see how
a being without hands becomes food to a being with hands. Similarly, the one
with four legs eats the ones without legs and the bigger ones eat the smaller
ones. Even the seed, grains, gram, pulses, and nuts grow when sown. Hence,
one's life is a life for another life on this earth. One cannot live without eating another.
तदिदं भगवान् राजन्नेक आत्माऽऽत्मनां स्वदृक् ।
अन्तरोऽनन्तरो भाति पश्य तं माययोरुधा ॥ ४७॥
Dharmaraja! Inside all
beings and also outside, the one and only one, who is self glowing, independent,
and happy in himself is the Lord Bhagavan. He is the supreme soul reflecting on
all the souls. With his power of Maya causing illusion, he appears differently
in different people. You should look only at him, says Narada Rishi.
सोऽयमद्य महाराज भगवान् भूतभावनः ।
कालरूपोऽवतीर्णोऽस्यामभावाय सुरद्विषाम् ॥ ४८॥
Maharaja! The Great King!
This very Lord, who is also the form of Time and eating away the lifespan of
each being is the creator of this vast universe. He has given birth to all the
beings whom we see and is the protector of all the beings too.
Presently he is appearing
as Lord Sri Krishna on this earth and is destroying all those who have deceived
those who are good and the Gods, says Narada Rishi.
निष्पादितं देवकृत्यमवशेषं प्रतीक्षते ।
तावद्यूयमवेक्षध्वं भवेद्यावदिहेश्वरः ॥ ४९॥
He has completed most of
his objectives on this earth for helping the good and the Gods. He shall appear
for some more time. For such time, you too stay here spending time and looking
forward to his disappearance.
धृतराष्ट्रः सह भ्रात्रा गान्धार्या च स्वभार्यया ।
दक्षिणेन हिमवत ऋषीणामाश्रमं गतः ॥ ५०॥
स्रोतोभिः सप्तभिर्या वै स्वर्धुनी सप्तधा व्यधात् ।
सप्तानां प्रीतये नाना सप्तस्रोतः प्रचक्षते ॥ ५१॥
After Drithrastra, his brother Vidura, Gandhari
and Kunti left Hastinapura, they reached the river Ganga. To show respect and
please Sapta Rishis, she splits herself into seven streams and the place is
called Saptasroth. They had reached that very auspicious place and lived in a
hermitage.
स्नात्वानुसवनं तस्मिन् हुत्वा चाग्नीन् यथाविधि ।
अब्भक्ष उपशान्तात्मा स आस्ते विगतैषणः ॥ ५२॥
Drithrastra lived there. Taking bath three times a
day, daily he did fire sacrifices as prescribed in the dharma Shastras. He had
given up eating food and lived by only drinking water. Later he gave up even
drinking water and lived just breathing air. He had no materialistic desires,
his mind had become calm and was feeling tranquil.
जितासनो जितश्वासः प्रत्याहृतषडिन्द्रियः ।
हरिभावनया ध्वस्तरजःसत्त्वतमोमलः ॥ ५३॥
Also, Drithrastra had accomplished perfection in
yoga asana. Sitting hours together in yogic postures, he had perfected the
inhalation or Puraka; retention of air in the lungs or Kumbhaka or; and
exhalation or Rechaka. Doing so, he even perfected the kevala Kumbhaka &
Shunyak and would stop breathing with full air in the lungs or without for
hours together as he wished. Thus he had accomplished the full blessings of
Prana Vayu or the vital force or the life force.
Doing kevala Kumbhaka & Shunyak, he would pull
back all his five sensory organs, including his mind and make them look towards
the Indweller. By seeing the Indweller in his Lotus of Heart, he wore the form
of the Indweller or Lord Parmatma on the mind and did dharna yoga. This made
the pollutants of Rajo Guna and Thamoguna evaporate and disappeared.
विज्ञानात्मनि संयोज्य क्षेत्रज्ञे प्रविलाप्य तम् ।
ब्रह्मण्यात्मानमाधारे घटाम्बरमिवाम्बरे ॥ ५४॥
ध्वस्तमायागुणोदर्को निरुद्धकरणाशयः ।
निवर्तिताखिलाहार आस्ते स्थाणुरिवाचलः ।
तस्यान्तरायो मैवाभूः संन्न्यस्ताखिलकर्मणः ॥ ५५॥
Like during the pralaya,
wherein the Gods on the lower scale get laya or destroyed or dissolved into
those on higher and the king of gods, Indra destroys all the gods on the lower
scale. Doing Rudra Tandava or roaring and dancing fiercely, God Shiva destroys
even Indra. Subsequently, God Prana destroys even Garuda, Sesha, and Rudra.
Finally, Lord in his form of Narasimha destroys God Prana and Braham in whom
they dissolve culminating the pralaya. By then, all the material substances
would have been destroyed as and when their respective Gods responsible to
influence those materials have been destroyed. The whole substance thus
destroyed becomes dissolved and achieves its subtle form. At this time, Goddess
Durga Devi swallows all the light & luminous objects to appear as darkness;
Goddess Sri Devi takes the form of Pralayodhaka or the subtle water of the
dissolved substances; the Goddess Bhudevi takes the form of pupil leaf floating
on the Pralayodhaka or the water. On that pupil leaf, lies Lord Vatapatrashai
being Purna or complete or self-content having no desire as Swaramana or
engrossed in extreme bliss of happiness and full of knowledge.
Narada Rishi says to King
Yudhishthira that same way as during the Pralaya, Drithrastra having the knowledge that the formation of Pindanda or the Microcosm is the same as that of
Brahmanda or Cosmos or The Universe, through the meditation, contemplated the same order of laya or destruction or dissolution of Gods into those on their
higher hierarchy. He summarizes that all those with ego including Gods
influencing the five Karmendriya i.e Mouth, Feet, Hands, Anus, and Genitals
responsible for reproduction; the five Jnanedriyas or sensory organs including
the Eyes, Ears, Nose, Tongue and the Skin up to their Lord, God Indra is
dissolved by God Rudra, the highest having ego and responsible to influence the
mind. The mind then gets dissolved into Intellect. This way through Yoga,
Drithrastra had pulled back all the faculties including the intellect towards
his Indweller or Lord present in Prana Vayu and became like the trunk of a
tree.
स वा अद्यतनाद्राजन् परतः पञ्चमेऽहनि ।
कलेवरं हास्यति स्वं तच्च भस्मीभविष्यति ॥ ५६॥
 |
| Yoga Agni |
दह्यमानेऽग्निभिर्देहे पत्युः पत्नी सहोटजे ।
बहिः स्थिता पतिं साध्वी तमग्निमनुवेक्ष्यति ॥ ५७॥
Drithrastra through "Bhakti, blazed The Fire of Yoga" which spread. The whole thatched hermitage caught fire and
subsequently the forest. In that very fire, Gandhari too immolated her body
followed by Kunti Devi, says Narada Rishi.
विदुरस्तु तदाश्चर्यं निशाम्य कुरुनन्दन ।
हर्षशोकयुतस्तस्माद्गन्ता तीर्थनिषेवकः ॥ ५८॥
Vidura, who knew that his
lifespan was coming to an end, had taken up pilgrimage at the start of the war
of Kurukshetra itself. He later merged with his other form of Yama Dharma Raja,
King Yudhishthira.
इत्युक्त्वाथारुहत्स्वर्गं नारदः सहतुम्बुरुः ।
युधिष्ठिरो वचस्तस्य हृदि कृत्वाजहाच्छुचः ॥ ५९॥
So, death is inevitable!
Said Narada Rishi to King Yudhishthira. However, for whom you are feeling sad
are themselves happy in their respective higher world. Saying so, always
traveling and singing the praises of Lord, Narada Rishi left the palace playing
his string instrument.
Hearing this, King
Yudhishthira forgoes his sorrows and carries out the last rites of the departed
souls.
इति श्रीमद्भागवते महापुराणे पारमहंस्यां संहितायां प्रथमस्कन्धे
नैमिषीयोपाख्याने त्रयोदशोऽध्यायः ॥ १३॥
With this, we complete the Thirteenth Adhyaya, of Srimad Bhagavatam Skanda 1.
Summarizing this, we saw the cause for the refraining to worldly
pleasure and development of dispassion is in three ways. One is the
difficulties that we encounter over the number of births which keeps us away
from messing up life; second, being the external source; the third being the spiritual path of Bhakti Yoga.
The dispassion leads to equanimity during the ups
& downs of life. Repeating the below verses of Bhagavad Gita:
समः शत्रौ च मित्रे च तथा मानापमानयोः ।
शीतोष्णसुखदुःखेषु समः सङ्गविवर्जितः ॥१२- १८॥
तुल्यनिन्दास्तुतिर्मौनी सन्तुष्टो येन केनचित् ।
अनिकेतः स्थिरमतिर्भक्तिमान्मे प्रियो नरः ॥१२- १९॥
The devotee who is equanimous
towards his friend or a foe; or while receiving compliments or being insulted;
also who is equanimous during hot & cold, comfort & dis-comfort; the
one who has sheared the bind of fruit for every action; is equanimous when
being flattered or abused; Intelectual; is satisfied & happy for all what
he has; is not stuck to one place; such perfectly equanimous devotee is
extremely dear to me says, Lord Sri Krishna.
Let’s offer these words as beautiful flowers to the lotus feet of Lord
Sri Krishna
We could do so only with the grace of Gurus including Sri Raghavendra
and his philosophical associates including Sri Saunaka & his fellow Rishis,
Sri Sutacahrya, Sri Sukachary, God Vayu, and Sri Hari as their Jnana Prasada.
Let's pray for their continued blessings.
|| Hari Om ||
|| Sri Krishnarpanamastu ||
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