॥ ॐ नमो भगवते वासुदेवाय ॥
Wednesday, 12 October 2022 - III.20 - Brahma’s innovation lab and his various creations.
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We get a peek into Brahma’s innovation lab in this chapter. Narrated a few thousand years ago, Srimad Bhagavatam shows how all his creations were not equally happy outcomes.
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Shaunaka and other sages urge the Suta, Ugrasharavas, to continue his narration of Vidura’s conversation with Sage Maitreya and the detailed process of creation. They have great words to describe Vidura:
क्षत्ता महाभागवत: कृष्णस्यैकान्तिक: सुहृत् । यस्तत्याजाग्रजं कृष्णे सापत्यमघवानिति ॥
T: “The Kshatriya Vidura was a great devotee of Sri Krishna and even his dear friend. No wonder he abandoned his half-brother Dhritarashtra and his sons for their disrespect shown to Sri Krishna. Tell us, oh, Suta, more about Vidura’s conversations with Sage Maitreya whom he met in Haridwar after his extensive pilgrimages, on the banks of the holy Ganga. Your account is as sanctifying as the divine river emanating from Sri Hari’s feet!”
In response, Ugrasharavas continued.
“I have already told you how from the Lord’s will came out the Mahattattva, Ahankara and so on. They were enlivened by Him into a golden egg which became Lord Narayana. From His navel arose the divine lotus out of which He created Brahma. Brahma undertook the work of creation. Let me tell you what happened then.”
“Out of his own shadow, Brahma created the five-fold ignorance (Tamas). He was not happy with Tamas and its ill-effects ( we have read this before). He, therefore, abandoned that body (mood of innovation). Yakshas and Rakshasas pounced on that body, out of which came Night, hunger and thirst (रात्रिं क्षुत्तृट्समुद्भवाम्).” The implication is that this is the first departure from total divinity.
“The Yakshas and Rakshasas wanted to devour Brahma himself! He cried out, “how can you do this when I am your father!?” Later Brahma created out of his new lustrous body (Sattva) the gods and this body of his was Day.”
“From Brahma’s hips came the Asuras. They were sex maniacs. They wanted to mate with Brahma himself! Brahma first laughed but they were so aggressive he had to run away. He went to Sri Hari and pleaded, “Oh, Lord, see how my creations are after me! You are the great Protector. Save me.”
Maha Vishnu gave him the solution. “Give up this body, made of mind-matter, which is obsessive.”
“That body, when released, became a most tantalizingly beautiful woman, described in some detail in terms of her figure and quality of fatal enticement. With her tinkling anklets and lustrous ornaments, she moved such that the asuras were totally infatuated. She was named the Sayam Sandhya (dusk). Her temptations were too much for the asuras who grovelled before her with lust. Eventually the asuras carried that appearance of dusk, Sayam Sandhya away.”
“Brahma smiled meaningfully. Now he created the Gandharvas and Apsaras. They were beautiful and totally self-obsessed. They took up this body of Brahma which was cool like moonlight.”
“Then Brahma created Bhutas and Pishachas, so awful in appearance that he closed his eyes. This body of his was nightmares.”
“Then Brahma created the Sadhyas and Pitris, to whom men offer oblations.”
“Then Brahma created the Siddhas and Vidyadharas, endowing them out of his body the faculty of invisibility.”
‘Then Kimpurushas and Kinnaras came. They sang his praises for this. It was the Ushas Sandhya.”
“Brahma remained so dissatisfied with his innovations thus far that he lay down and gave up that body too. Out of his dishevelled locks crept out all the snakes and swift serpents with raised hoods.”
“At last, Brahma made peace with himself and lay contented. In that positive mood, he created Manus. The Manus are the progenitors of humans and were easily Brahma’s greatest creation until then. Indeed, all the earlier life forms that Brahma had created till then came and applauded to see the Manus. These earlier creatures were pleased that the humans were qualified to perform Yajnas and rituals most competently and those creations would wait to partake of Yajna offerings dwelling in various parts of the human body.”
तपसा वiद्यया युक्तो योगेन सुसमाधिना। ऋषीनृषिर्हृषीकेशः ससर्जाभिमताः प्रजाः॥
तेभ्यश्चक्रैकैकशः स्वस्य देहस्यांशमदादजः। यत्तत्समाधियोगर्द्धितपोविद्याविरक्तिमत्॥
T: “Finally, Brahma in a state of Yoga and Samadhi born of Self-knowledge, then created the Rishis, as he was himself a Rishi now with total mastery over his senses. To these sons of his, he gave one by one each part of his body- Samadhi, Yoga, Supernatural powers, Tapas, Self-knowledge and Detachment.”
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॥ ॐ नमो भगवते वासुदेवाय ॥
