Srimad Bhagavatam Skanda 1 - The Virtues of Cleanliness and Charity
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| Hare Srinivasa |
My salutations to you.
किं नु बालेषु शूरेण कलिना धीरभीरुणा ।
अप्रमत्तः प्रमत्तेषु यो वृको नृषु वर्तते ॥
या याः कथा भगवतः कथनीयोरुकर्मणः ।
गुणकर्माश्रयाः पुम्भिः संसेव्यास्ता बुभूषुभिः ॥
“The Kali is like a cunning wolf. He survives
in the ignorance of being smart. Though the wolf attacks the children and the
weak, they are scared of the strong and powerful. Similarly, the Kali Purusha
is careful in only taking control of those who blunder being stupid and
careless.
Hence, those who wish to
become strong with valor, fight for moral worth and dignity, seek
auspiciousness, and prosperity should fight Kali. For them Srimad Bhagavata
gives refuge. The story of Parikshid raja administering the evil Kali in Srimad
Bhagavata that I am going to narrate is worthy to sing and is surprisingly
beneficial to them. This is soaked to saturation by the auspicious attributes
of Lord Sri Krishna, his greatness, and his sports charm.” Had said Sri
Sutacharya
In this story of
Parikshid raja administering the evil Kali, we hear the conversation between
Goddess Bhoo Devi and God Dharma Raja in the form of Cow and bullock
respectively. From the conversations, we noted that Kali attacks dharma and the
holy place that supports dharma. God Dharma stands on four legs, Viz. Tapas or
asceticism, Saucha or cleanliness, Daya or compassion, and Satya or
truthfulness. Of this, Asceticism, Cleanliness, and Compassion had been broken
badly by Kali. The only truthfulness was surviving. The three injured legs had
made the fourth leg also drag conveying that though the truthfulness survived
but was very fragile.
We have also noted that
the same God Dharma Raja, in his form of King Yudhishthira, had asked his
grandfather Bheeshmacharya,
किमेकं दैवतं लोके किं वाप्येकं परायणम् ।
स्तुवन्तः कं कमर्चन्तः प्राप्नुयुर्मानवाः शुभम् ॥ ८॥
को धर्मः सर्वधर्माणां भवतः परमो मतः ।
किं जपन्मुच्यते जन्तुर्जन्मसंसारबन्धनात् ॥ ९॥
Who is that utmost God to
whom all Shastras or Indoctrination are praising? Who is that last resort, in
whom one can take refuge? Who is that in whom propitiating by praising and
singing glory would cause auspiciousness leading to peace & prosperity?
In your opinion, which is
that dharma that is most superior? And doing which Japa, a person can be
relieved from the confinement of birth and death?
Repliying to his grandson
Sri Bheeshmacharya had said,
जगत्प्रभुं देवदेवमनन्तं पुरुषोत्तमम् ।
स्तुवन् नामसहस्रेण पुरुषः सततोत्थितः ॥ १०॥
तमेव चार्चयन्नित्यं भक्त्या पुरुषमव्ययम् ।
ध्यायन् स्तुवन् नमस्यंश्च यजमानस्तमेव च ॥ ११॥
अनादिनिधनं विष्णुं सर्वलोकमहेश्वरम् ।
लोकाध्यक्षं स्तुवन्नित्यं सर्वदुःखातिगो भवेत् ॥ १२॥
ब्रह्मण्यं सर्वधर्मज्ञं लोकानां कीर्तिवर्धनम् ।
लोकनाथं महद्भूतं सर्वभूतभवोद्भवम् ॥ १३॥
“The महेश्वर having the entire universe as his wealth is the Supreme Lord, Vishnu.
He is the निधनं, the prime cause of all this existence since अनादि or immeasurable time in past, and till अनन्तं or immeasurable time in future. He is देवदेवम्, God of Gods. For सर्वलोक, he is जगत्प्रभुं, He only has the Lordship of the entire Universe.
He is eternal without destruction and presents everywhere. Only he is पुरुषोत्तमम्, the best and the utmost without being surpassed by anyone.
A practicing devotee,
being cautious without an iota of doubt should propitiate this very Lord by
repeatedly singing his thousand names that describe his attributes, worship him
with these names wondering his glories, and have thoughts only of him. He is
the last and the only refuge that one can take.
Doing so is the supreme
dharma of all dharma. All the sins causing sorrow will disappear leading to
auspiciousness bringing peace & prosperity.
Also, Sri Bheeshmachary
had said to his grandson King Yudhishthira,
यानि नामानि गौणानि विख्यातानि महात्मनः ।
ऋषिभिर्परिगीतानि तानि वक्ष्यामि भूतये॥
The ancient seers have
been meditating and worshipping Lord by singing the hymns having the names of
the Lord that describes the attributes. I will reveal the far-famed names of
the great Lord for the benefit of everyone. Saying so, Sri Bheeshmachary sang
the Vishnu Sahasaranam.
This way the divine plan
was revealed to the righteous. Taking a human birth for virtuous is to please
the Lord by singing his fame, and his names describing his attributes. By doing
so, Lord blesses us with such attributes to our capacity in our journey of Yoga
to accomplish him. Following this divine path, Goddess Bhoo Devi too sang the
names of Lord describing his attributes as,
सत्यं शौचं दया त्याग: सन्तोष आर्जवम् ।
शमो दमस्तपः साम्यं तितिक्षोपरतिः श्रुतम् ॥ २६॥
In our last blog, we
discussed how the Lord is Satyam or Authentic. We realized his authenticity from
him being of divine bliss engrossed in stainless happiness, and complete with
all attributes. The other attribute of Lord that Bhoo Devi mentions is Saucha
or Cleanliness. The reason for uncleanliness is Prakriti. Even the best
of the beings become influenced by Prakriti to be unclean.
However, Lord controls by
superseding Prakriti and controls without being influenced by Prakriti. He is
sat-chit-Ananda. His form consists of
complete Jnana and Ananda. His Forms are Nitya from Anadi and Anantha. Hence,
he is the cleanest.
Our outer body can be
cleaned by the soap, or shampoo and water. However, the mind cannot be cleaned.
The uncleanliness and stains on our mind can be cleaned by forgoing the
attachment with the subject or the object causing the same. This happens by
worshipping the Lord, doing Yoga or synchronization with him as being:
· Pure and Clean consciousness,
· His form is of Pure Knowledge and
Happiness,
· Prakriti having Satvo, Rajo, and Thamo
Guns cannot influence him.
When pleased, the Lord
would break the concealments of Prakriti on our Soul. He would break the bind
of Prakriti with our soul that keeps us attached with worldly pleasures
otherwise. Our desire for glamour or movie, or tour & travel to exotic
places, dress, attraction, and desire for other’s attention would reduce. The
influence of ego boosters like wine, wealth, and women would reduce and one day
even disappears. By worshipping the Lord as Saucha or clean, the mind would
become crystal clear and be unsullied.
Such Lord Krishna
complete with the attribute of Saucha or Cleanliness used to walk on me, said
Goddess Bhoo Devi. Every step of his would bring goosebumps to me and make me
pure, clean, and worthy. His disappearance has saddened me now, regretted
Goddess Bhoo Devi.
Lord is full of Daya
or Compassion. He melts down to other's distress caused by physical, or
mental, or emotional difficulties. The
form of our Lord is complete with an immeasurable attribute of Compassion
filled with grace, elegance, and is balanced. The kind-hearted Lord is helpful
at all times and never has a disassociation with this attribute of compassion.
By worshipping such compassionate Lord, doing Yoga or synchronization with him
for this attribute of compassion, Lord would bless us with a kind heart towards
the people affected with physical, mental, or emotional difficulties.
The contempt towards
those virtuous who are not as wealthy as me or not as intelligent as myself, or
not as qualified as myself, or not in a similar position as myself, or not as
spiritual as myself will reduce and disappear one day. Contempt or looking down
others arises from ego bringing sin.
Also, the Danam or The charity that Lord does is immeasurable and unsurpassed. This is the act
of giving to a devotee of Vishnu. At the beginning of the 17th
chapter in Bhagavad Gita, Arjuna asks Lord Sri Krishna, “What do you call those
devotees worshipping you with great faith having no understanding of the
Shastras or the Indoctrinations? Who cannot differentiate Satvika, Rajasika, or
Thamasika Charity?”
Answering this question, Lord Sri Krishna says
दातव्यमिति यद्दानं दीयतेऽनुपकारिणे ।
देशे काले च पात्रे च तद्दानं सात्त्विकं स्मृतम् ॥BG-17-20॥
Doing charity as a duty
in the right place, at the right time, to the most eligible without any
expectations in return are Satvika Dana or True & Pure charity.
यत्तु प्रत्युपकारार्थं फलमुद्दिश्य वा पुनः ।
दीयते च परिक्लिष्टं तद्दानं राजसं स्मृतम् ॥BG-17-21॥
Doing charity with pain
and expectations in return is Rajasaka Dana or Unclean & Emotional charity.
अदेशकाले यद्दानमपात्रेभ्यश्च दीयते ।
असत्कृतमवज्ञातं तत्तामसमुदाहृतम् ॥BG-17-22॥
Doing charity without
reasons at an inappropriate place, time, to those not eligible with ignorance
is Tamasika Dana or Foul & Wicked charity.
अश्रद्धया हुतं दत्तं तपस्तप्तं कृतं च यत् ।
असदित्युच्यते पार्थ न च तत्प्रेत्य नो इह ॥BG-17-28॥
Doing Fire Sacrifice, or Charity, or Austerity, or any committed Actions without trust and faith is called असत् or wrong! It is neither beneficial here during living or after death. says Lord Sri Krishna
Lord has created this a vast universe with all comforts for existence to each being. For those who are
good and worship him, he bestows merits letting them into the higher regions of
heaven. For those who are mediocre, worshiping him sometimes for needs and
ignoring him the rest of the time, he blesses them with both merit and sins.
Lord shunts the mediocre between earth, higher regions of heaven, and lower
regions of hell. But for the evils who hate him, he blesses only sins to shun
them to the lower world of hell.
In other words, the
charitable Lord blesses each one based on their desire emanating from the
character of their soul. The evil Kamsa challenged death by not accepting Sri
Krishna’s Lordship. Though Lord could have ignored him and killed him without
presenting himself with a fight. However, the charitable Lord Sri Krishna came
down to earth, engaged him in a wrestling fight, and killed him. He sent him to
Hell to face immeasurable suffering. He is charitable. He does give.
However, for the mediocre
in Yadhu clan, he created hatred among themselves with which they had killed
each other. He moved them among three worlds of Heaven, Earth, and Hell to face
the cycle of death and birth having happiness and sorrow. But for devout Gopikas, Sudhama, Pandavas,
and others who worshipped him accepted his Lordship, Lord poured his mercy of
moksha or release from the cycle of death and birth. He sent them to Heaven
having immeasurable happiness. He is charitable. He does give. So too should
each living individual. The charity can reform an individual, bring about
progress, lead to betterment, and consequently closer to Lord.
In “The First Principlesof Bhakti Yoga by Narada Rishi” we heard Narada Rishi saying,
नैष्कर्म्यमप्यच्युतभाववर्जितंन शोभते ज्ञानमलं निरञ्जनम् ।
कुतः पुनः शश्वदभद्रमीश्वरे न चार्पितं कर्म यदप्यकारणम् ॥ १२॥
Though from ज्ञानं or Knowledge is अमलं or stainless निरञ्जनं purity i.e. One could remove all defects and also avoid it with
Knowledge. One could be an expert in all indoctrinations of Philosophy
including Amarakosha or Thesaurus, Grammer, all Vedas, Vedantas, Mahabarata,
Ramayana, and so on. But if he has no devotion or Bhakti towards Lord Achyutha
or अच्युतभाववर्जितं, then न शोभते or he is not fit or of any use is what Narada Rishi is saying.
कुतः पुनः or If that is the status of Knowledge, which is
on higher-order, then what could be told about actions. All actions should be
done to propitiate the Lord and please him with नैष्कर्म्य or abstinence of bragging about the act including seeking merit for the
act. That is possible only when done with Bhakti. Hence, whatever action one
might have undertaken including the best of charity like establishing Educational
Institution or Hospitals or old age Homes or construction of Lakes or Ponds for
water, or any best act but न चार्पितं कर्म or if not submitted to the Indweller, the Lord
then it is अभद्र or inauspicious.
Also, it is important to do charity only to
those who are eligible. We see many individuals and organizations having wealth
being egoistic and self-centered. Under the pretext of Corporate Social
Responsibility (CSR) activities, corporates promote their business, or grab
land, or destroy the environment. So too individual politicians or others
take-up charity for self-promotion and satisfy their ego. However, such charity
done with ulterior motive or to satisfy one's own ego or done to those having
no Vishnu Bhakti, or to undeserving would not give any merits. It is a mere
waste!
Therefore, by worshipping
the Lord as charitable, doing Yoga, or synchronization with him for this
attribute of charity. By worshipping him as charitable doing charity to three types of
people in three different ways as we saw above. He gives moksha having complete
knowledge and happiness to the good. He gives a cycle of happiness & sorrow
to the mediocre. And he gives only sorrow to the evil. The Lord would bless us
with a kind heart to do charity to only those eligible. He would also bless us with awareness to submit back to him as Sri Krishnarpanamastu and
forget the deed without bragging. After having done the charity, he will bless
the merit of Jnana, Bhakti, and Vairagya.
Sri Purandara Dasaru
(1484-1564), is believed to be the अंश or part of
Narada Rishi. A staunch devotee sensitizing the common man to take-up the
divine path of bhakti. Sri Purandara dasaru has composed the below song for a
devotee who takes refuge in the Lotus feet of Lord. And teach him how to worship
the Lord and seek his Compassion. Let's take look at it with English
translation in an Italic font:
innu daya bArade dAsana mele
pannaga shayana Sri parama
purusha,
When are you showing your
compassion on your bonded slave?
Oh, Sri Supreme Lord! Lying on Pannaga, the
thousand hooded snake.
nAna deshagallali nAna
kAlagallai nAna yOnigallali nelidu hutti
nAnu nannadu yemba naraka
dolage biddu nEne gathi yendu nambida dAsana mEle
Taking birth after births in
different countries, at different times, and in different species, I am just
hanging on.
Having fallen in the hell of
self-obsession, I have taken refuge in you as your bonded slave.
So, when are you showing
your compassion on your bonded slave?
manova kAyadinda mAdida
karmagallela dAnavantaka ninage dAna vitte
yEnu mAdidarenu prAna
ninnadu swami SrinAtha Puranadara Vittala naa dAsa na mEle
The destroyer of evil! I
have given away all my actions done mentally or physically to you as Charity.
Whatever I may do, oh my
Lord! My life is itself yours.
For Srinatha Purandara
Vittala’s bonded slave, when are you showing your compassion?
For sound bites, may wish to follow: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RPM3oQV-I94
Let’s pray to
Sri Hari, Vayu, and Gurus for their continued blessings for our understanding
of the other attributes of the Lord sung by Goddess Bhoo Devi.
|| Hari Om ||
|| Sri
Krishnarpanamastu ||
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