॥ ॐ नमो भगवते वासुदेवाय ॥
Tuesday, 13 September 2022 - The first chapter of the Second Skandha.
Sage Suka begins to instruct King Parikshit on Bhagavata Dharma.
While we begin the study of the core part of Srimad Bhagavatam after completing the first Skanda which sets out its context, it gives me an opportunity to share my own experience of these daily readings.
Beginning 26 days ago, I have thoroughly enjoyed reading the scripture. Every page and almost every shloka emphasises the role of Bhakti in my spiritual progress. The entire day is thus an opportunity for meditating on the nuggets of holy wisdom.
I have taken help from many sources:
1. Swami Tapasyananda's translation.
2. Br. Devaki Chaitanya's recitation.
3. Sri. T. S. Shyama Rao's "Vachana Bhagavata" in Kannada.
4. Complete text with Kannada translation by Radhakrishna devotees (source: Internet)
5. Srila Prabhupada's translation.
***
The very first chapter of the second Skandha is a complete scripture covering all aspects of life!
The first chapter of the second Skandha- Sage Shuka begins by describing the bond and miseries of this world and what is devotional worship.
***
वरीयान् ते प्रश्नः T: “Oh, King! Your question on what is the path to liberation is indeed excellent. This can arise only in one who is a true seeker. The problem is that even as there are innumerable opportunities to learn about the spiritual path, man is easily bound down by domestic attachments and preoccupations!”
निद्रया ह्रियते नक्तं व्यवायेन च वा वयः। दिवा चार्थेहया राजन्कुटुम्बभरणेन वा॥
T: “Oh, King, look at life. Years steal away our lives, nights engulf us in sleep. One is so busy earning, acquiring, and fulfilling the wants of one's family that life is pretty mindless.”
“The most cherished things in life are one’s own body, one’s spouse, one’s child and so on. But these are all Untrue when one realizes that death takes them all away. And yet people are mad after these things alone!”
तस्माद्भारत सर्वात्मा भगवान्नीश्वरो हरिः। श्रोतव्यः कीर्तव्यश्च स्मर्तव्यश्चेच्छताभयम्॥
T: “Oh, Bharata Parikshit! Therefore the only remedy for removing one’s attachments to the impermanent world around is to listen to the glories of Bhagavan Ishwara Sri Hari, sing them and constantly ruminate over them. This will do the trick of destroying the fear of death and instilling detachment.”
एतावान् साङ्ख्ययोगाभ्यां स्वधर्मपरनिष्ठया। जन्मलाभः परः पुंसामन्ते नारायणे स्मृतिः॥
T: “Either by pursuing intellectual discrimination of the real vs. the unreal, or by Yogic practises of breath control etc., or by doing one’s duty as worship, one can achieve the real purpose of this human life, and manage to remember with devotion Bhagavan Narayana at the moment of death!”
These few shlokas summarise the essence of Srimad Bhagavadgita!
“Do you know, Oh, King, what liberated sages do in the remaining years of their existence on earth? They constantly cherish narrating and listening to the glories of Sri Hari!”
A true example of this is Sage Shuka himself!
***
इदं भागवतं नाम पुराणं ब्रह्मसम्मितम्। अधीतवान्द्वापरादौ पितुर्द्वैपायनादहम्॥
परिनिष्ठितोऽपि नैर्गुण्य उत्तमश्लोकलीलया। गृहीतचेता राजर्षे आख्यानं यदधीतवान्॥
T: “Oh Rajarshi! This scripture I am reciting to you is the Srimad Bhagavatam, vouchsafed by Lord Brahma himself to my father, Sage Krishnadwaipayana Vyasa and taught to me at the cusp of Dwapara and Kali. Interestingly, by then, I had become immersed in the Impersonal, Attributeless Brahman! But I was so irresistibly pulled by the joy and beauty of the verses of this holy book that I could not stop enjoying its blissful study.”
तदहं तेऽभिधास्यामि पहापौरुषिको भवान्। यस्य श्रद्दधातामाशु स्यान्मुकुन्दे मतिः सती॥
किं प्रमत्तस्य बहुभिः परोक्षैर्हायनैरिह। वरं मुहूर्तं विदितं घटेत श्रेयसे यतः॥
T: “King Parikshit, I see you are a most steadfast seeker of the Lord. Therefore I shall teach you this Bhagavatam. And, very quickly, you shall establish your mind unflinchingly in Lord Mukunda Hari. This is in fact attested by the greatest of sages and masters.”
“Indeed, it is not about one's longevity i.e., the years in one’s life, as most spend all their lives in ignorance and worldly pursuits! In fact, one needs not more than a moment to realize life’s truth and immerse oneself totally in the Lord.”
“Let me tell you the story of Khatvanga, a king in your own lineage, who was a great monarch and so valorous that he once helped the gods win a mighty war. In return, the pleased gods offered to answer any question from him to know the truth. He asked how long he would go on living on earth. To his utter shock, they revealed that he had only a very short time, just a few moments more! Khatvanga was so great in his devotion that he totally immersed himself in the Lord that very instant and was liberated. You are no less, and you have a whole seven days for living in the Srimad Bhagavatam! So nothing to worry at all.”
***
“Oh, Parikshit, the way is quite simple. Settle domestic issues, hand over all responsibilities, renounce all material attachments, and seek the side of a holy river. You have done all this. Sit in a steady posture, erect, breath and senses under perfect control, and begin contemplation. This is something you have already started.”
“Let me answer your query on what form of Hari you should meditate on.”
***
“The Lord has created this universe. It is suffused with Him and nothing else. Its beginning, middle and end is in Him.”
“The Virat Purusha dwells within the body called Anda (egg), which is enclosed in seven layers of material existence. This Virat Purusha is infinite in body. The seven lower worlds (different types of netherworld or Patala) constitute his feet, shins, knees and thighs. The planetary system is his torso. His neck, mouth and forehead are the higher non-earthly planets. The deities like Indra, the deities of the directions, and the Ashwani twins form his facial features. Brahma and such deities reside in his eyebrows! The Vedic hymns are his neurons, his teeth are the God of Death, Yama. What we call Maya is his smile! Prajapati, Mitra and Varuni are his masculine reproductive organ. Lord Rudra is his ego….”
The description continues, and I get a feeling that Sage Shuka is building a structured vision of the Lord in Parikshit through these wonderful descriptions. He now turns to emotions, creative inspirations, musical sense and mentions something that Parikshit can relate to as being such and such faculty or organ.
Sage Shuka is leading King Parikshit into a deep channel of thought from the gross to the subtle, and eventually the seeker will be firmly established in his innermost mind filled with the Lord in the subtlest and purest of forms.
***
॥ ॐ नमो भगवते वासुदेवाय ॥
