॥ ॐ नमो भगवते वासुदेवाय ॥
Saturday, 22 October 2022 III.30 - Bhagavan describes the hellish life of a worldly man.
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We have seen enough so far to understand that Srimad Bhagavatam emphasises that the only way to escape worldly misery is the path of devotion. But how bad is this worldly misery? Trust Bhagavan Kapila to paint a realistic picture of our unending troubles in this world, as long as we are bound to the body and its aspirations.
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Whenever we meet a realised master or a saint, we often take along our earthly troubles and seek their solutions. The holy men are full of compassion and help us to reduce our suffering. But when they say that the only way out is the process of detachment and devotion to the Lord, do we take them seriously? To give us a rude wake-up call, Bhagavan Kapila now describes the hellish life we all lead.
“Man is heedless of the inexorable force of Time as clouds are unmindful of the gale force blowing them away. He witlessly pursues what he considers his material good, when nothing truly happy is lasting as everything is robbed by Time.”
“Man indiscriminately considers that bodily possessions like his wealth, his house, and his people, are his permanent assets. Why does he not see that this body itself is most impermanent!?”
“The Jiva is born time and again in various Yonis (species), and revels in the pettiest enjoyments, unmindful of all the suffering heaped on him. He is so confused that even in hell, he doesn’t understand the scope of his misery!”
‘Finding himself in a healthy body, man begins to build his life around his near and dear ones and his material possessions. Soon, he descends into unrighteous acts too. He is enticed by foul women who exploit his weakness. He is carried away by the prattle of children. But Time is waiting in the wings, and soon, he loses youth, energy, health, and even the respect of people around him. As an old man nobody cares for, he leads a dog’s life but still does not see what hell he is going through. Sick and decrepit, he dies, and Yama’s men drag him to hell most distressingly. In hell, his यातन देह (the astral body which suffers pain) is subjected to the most violent acts of burning, his flesh is clawed away, and so on. This fate is the same for men and women. This torture goes on till all his sins are paid for, only for him to return again into another womb, either an animal or a human, to undergo the same process repeatedly!”
अत्रैव नरक: स्वर्ग इति मात: प्रचक्षते । या यातना वै नारक्यस्ता इहाप्युपलक्षिता: ॥
एवं कुटुम्बं बिभ्राण उदरम्भर एव वा । विसृज्येहोभयं प्रेत्य भुङ्क्ते तत्फलमीदृशम् ॥
अधस्तान्नरलोकस्य यावतीर्यातनादय: । क्रमश: समनुक्रम्य पुनरत्राव्रजेच्छुचि: ॥
T: “Mother, it is said that whatever hell we describe is indeed present in this very life on earth if only we care to see it. All kinds of suffering can be perceived around us.”
"Therefore, a man engaged solely in filling his stomach and taking care of his family and possessions will suffer here. On dying, he will suffer in hell too for his misdeeds. After that life in hell, he is cleansed and ready to be born again in the womb his Karma takes him to, either that of a lowly animal or as a human. This cycle goes on, under the watchful eye of Kala or Time.”
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॥ ॐ नमो भगवते वासुदेवाय ॥
