The Bhagavata Purana 2

by Bibek Debroy

  Within a specific Purana text, there are earlier sections, as well as later ones. That makes it difficult to date a Purana, except as a range. Across Purana texts, there are older Puranas, as well as later ones. Extremely speculatively, the dating will be something like the following. (1) Agni (800–1100 CE); (2) Bhagavata (500–1000 CE); (3) Brahma (700–1500 CE); (4) Brahmanda (400–600 CE); (5) Brahmavaivarta (700–1500 CE); (6) Garuda (800–1100 CE); (7) Kurma (600–900 CE); (8) Linga (500–1000 CE); (9) Markandeya (250–700 CE); (10) Matsya (200–500 CE); (11) Narada (900–1600 CE); (12) Padma (400–1600 CE); (13) Shiva (1000–1400 CE); (14) Skanda (600–1200 CE); (15) Vamana (450–900 CE); (16) Varaha (1000–1200 CE); (17) Vayu (350–550 CE); (18) Vishnu (300 BCE to 450 CE); and (19) Bhavishya (500–1900 CE). Reiterating once again that there is no great precision in these ranges, by this reckoning, the Vishnu Purana is the oldest and some parts of the Bhavishya Purana are as recent as the nineteenth century.

  As mentioned earlier, there is no Critical Edition for the Puranas. Therefore, one has to choose a Sanskrit text one is going to translate from. If one is going to translate all the Puranas, it is preferable, though not essential, that one opts for a common source for all the Purana texts. The common source for the Bhagavata Purana, and the subsequent Purana translations, is the one brought out by Nag Publishers, with funding from the ministry of human resource development. 8 A transliterated Sanskrit text is available through the University of Gottingen. 9 In Devanagari, the text is available at https://sanskritdocuments.org/doc_purana/bhagpur.html?lang=sa, with the transliterated Sanskrit text at http://www.sanskritweb.net/sansdocs/bhagpur.pdf. The Oxford Centre for Hindu Studies at the University of Oxford has a lot of useful resources under the umbrella of the Bhagavata Purana Research Project. 10 Among other things, this research project has published a book that is a bit like an abridged translation of the Bhagavata Purana. 11 The Bhagavata Purana is divided into twelve skandhas. The word skandha means trunk, or largish branch. In this context, it means section or segment. Out of these twelve skandhas, the tenth is the longest and is also the most read. Therefore, there are translations of the Bhagavata Purana that are limited to only the Tenth Skandha. Edwin Bryant’s rendering of the Tenth Skandha is almost like such a translation. 12 For the entire Bhagavata Purana, there are unabridged translations in Indian languages. However, to the best of my knowledge, there are only five unabridged translations in English: (1) Manmatha Nath Dutt; 13 (2) Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada; 14 (3) Ganesh Vasudeo Tagare; 15 (4) Swami Tapasyananda; 16 and (5) C.L. Goswami and M.A. Shastri. 17 In 1901, Purnendu Narayana Sinha published a version that was close to a translation, but fell just short because it followed the path of retelling. 18 The Sanskrit texts used in these five translations vary a bit and the one used in this translation also varies a bit from the ones used in these five. The Bhagavata Purana is believed to have 18,000 shlokas. The table below shows what this particular Sanskrit version has: just over 14,000 spread across 335 chapters. One should not jump to the conclusion that a large number of shlokas are missing. A few are indeed missing. But sometimes, it is also a question of how one counts a shloka. With the content remaining identical, the text may be counted as one shloka in one place and as two shlokas elsewhere. Our numbering is exactly the same as in the Sanskrit text we have followed. Hence, even though there may be no difference in content between our version of the text and, say, that used by Swami Prabhupada, the numbering will vary a bit. (Sometimes, there are minor differences in the Sanskrit text though.) However, there are some shlokas that are indeed missing and Ganesh Vasudeo Tagare is a good source for translations of these missing shlokas, because those missing shlokas have been separately translated there. When we have enumerated all the chapters, there are two identifying numbers that have been provided. The first number refers to the skandha, the second to the number of the chapter within the skandha. Thus, Chapter 4(30) will be the thirtieth chapter in the fourth Skandha.

  SkandhaNumber of chaptersNumber of shlokas

  1 19 811

  2 10 391

  3 33 1412

  4 31 1450

  5 26 738

  6 19 855

  7 15 752

  8 24 929

  9 24 962

  10 90 3948

  11 31 1360

  12 13 564

  Total 335 14172

  In the translations of the Bhagavad Gita, the Mahabharata, the Harivamsha and the Valmiki Ramayana, we followed the principle of not using diacritical marks. The use of diacritical marks (effectively the international alphabet of Sanskrit transliteration) makes the pronunciation and rendering more accurate, but also tends to put off readers who are less academically inclined. Since diacritical marks are not being used, there is a challenge of rendering Sanskrit names in English. Sanskrit is a phonetic language and we have used that principle as a basis. Applied consistently, this means that words are rendered in ways that may seem unfamiliar. Hence, the name of the jewel, often written as Kaustubha, will appear as Koustubha here. This is true of proper names, and, in a few rare cases, of geographical names. The absence of diacritical marks causes some minor problems. How does one distinguish Vasudeva Krishna from Krishna’s father, Vasudeva? Often, the context will make the difference clear. If not, we have written the son as Vaasudeva and the father as Vasudeva. In translating, the attempt has been to provide a word-for-word translation, so that if one were to hold up the Sanskrit text, there would be a perfect match.

  The intention is also to offer a translation, not an interpretation. That sounds like a simple principle to adopt, and for the most part, is easy to follow. However, there is a thin dividing line between translation and interpretation. In some instances, it is impossible to translate without bringing in a little bit of interpretation. Inevitably, interpretation is subjective. We have tried to minimize the problem by (a) reducing interpretation; (b) relegating interpretation to footnotes and (c) when there are alternative interpretations, pointing this out to the reader through those footnotes. If a Purana text is just about the five attributes mentioned, the task isn’t that difficult. Take the Bhagavata Purana as an example. In Chapter 2(10), we are told about the ten characteristics of the Bhagavata Purana and these are sarga, visarga, sthana, poshana, uti, manvantara, isha-anukatha, nirodha, mukti and ashraya. These are (1) gross creation; (2) subtle creation; (3) preservation; (4) sustenance; (5) the addiction to the senses; (6) manvantaras; (7) accounts of the lord; (8) withdrawal; (9) liberation and (10) the ultimate refuge. Therefore, the text has much more than the five attributes cited. The word ‘bhagavat’ means the divine one, the illustrious one, the fortunate one, the prosperous one, the blessed one, the sacred one, the holy one. We are often more familiar with the nominative form, bhagavaan. Bhagavat/Bhagavaan occur frequently in our text and I have translated the word as ‘the illustrious one’. Since this is a Purana devoted to Vishnu, Bhagavat/Bhagavaan typically means Vishnu. But the text is not called Bhagavata Purana; it is in fact called Bhaagavata Purana. What does the word Bhaagavata mean? Taken as an adjective, the word means sacred and Bhaagavata Purana is simply the sacred Purana, a perfectly acceptable meaning. However, taken as a noun, Bhaagavata means a devotee or worshipper of Vishnu—and bhaagavata dharma is the dharma of devotion towards Vishnu. Therefore, Bhaagavata Purana is the text that describes this bhaagavata dharma that Vishnu devotees follow.

  Hence, it isn’t only about stories. As mentioned earlier, the longest Skandha, the tenth, is also the most popular and is read most often. This particular skandha describes Krishna’s exploits and pastimes. This includes rasa lila and this skandha has some exquisite poetry. The song of the gopis is an example of this. As is thus obvious, this skandha has its fair share of stories. But in the other skandhas, the emphasis is more on dharma and moksha and a mix of bhakti (devotion), advaita (monism), dvaita (dualism), samkhya and yoga, 19 with notions of avataras (Vishnu’s incarnations) brought in. There is the influence of pancharatra doctrines and texts. Literally, t
he term pancharatra means five nights, and is a reference to five nights over which sacrifices were performed. However, there were pancharatra doctrines too and these developed a metaphysical philosophy. If we so wish, we can call it a theology. Vaishnava dharma integrated this pancharatra tradition with the other strands that have just been mentioned. Since this is a synthesis of many different strands, there are bound to be nuances and different schools. What does the Bhagavata Purana teach? What is its philosophy? Beyond the obvious tenet of devotion to Vishnu and emphasis on bhakti yoga, this is extremely difficult to answer. As a text that builds a theology, the Bhagavata Purana is much more complicated than the Bhagavad Gita. Indeed, one could say it builds extensively on that Bhagavad Gita foundation. Down the years, there have been several commentaries on and interpretations of the Bhagavata Purana. Depending on the language and the timeline for beginning and ending the cut-off, there must be at least two hundred such commentaries and interpretations. Which of these schools or interpretations should one follow? Should one take cognizance of other possible interpretations? In principle, this dilemma can exist in the course of translating any Purana. But in no other Purana is it as serious, because no other Purana devotes such a large percentage of shlokas to philosophy.

  The choice in this translation is conscious and is driven by the objective and the target audience. The target audience is the ordinary reader who desires a faithful rendering of the Sanskrit text. The target reader isn’t the academic who desires something like a survey of literature. Nor is the target reader a devotee of one particular Vaishnava school. To state it a bit more explicitly, Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, Swami Tapasyananda and C.L. Goswami and M.A. Shastri follow one particular line of commentary or interpretation or school. From an academic’s perspective, Ganesh Vasudeo Tagare is the best. His translation also includes an excellent introduction and a detailed note on several different commentators of the Bhagavata Purana, certainly covering the major ones. However, apart from the language of the Tagare rendition not being very smooth, that edition is also layered with complexities which can deter the ordinary reader. On the other hand, I have consciously done what is akin to a contemporary Manmatha Nath Dutt translation. Without distorting, I have chosen the simplest possible interpretation or translation that fits. In a few minor instances, this meant choosing an interpretation that was marginally different from those chosen by these preceding translators. It is possible to criticize the avoidance of complexities, but it is a conscious choice and the dissatisfied reader can always go on to read more copious commentaries and annotations. There is plenty in the Bhagavata Purana to immerse oneself in and this translation is not meant to be the final item on that reading list. It can at best be the first.

  Fifth Skandha

  Chapter 5(1): 40 shlokas

  Chapter 5(2): 23 shlokas

  Chapter 5(3): 21 shlokas

  Chapter 5(4): 18 shlokas

  Chapter 5(5): 36 shlokas

  Chapter 5(6): 19 shlokas

  Chapter 5(7): 14 shlokas

  Chapter 5(8): 32 shlokas

  Chapter 5(9): 22 shlokas

  Chapter 5(10): 26 shlokas

  Chapter 5(11): 18 shlokas

  Chapter 5(12): 16 shlokas

  Chapter 5(13): 26 shlokas

  Chapter 5(14): 46 shlokas

  Chapter 5(15): 16 shlokas

  Chapter 5(16): 29 shlokas

  Chapter 5(17): 25 shlokas

  Chapter 5(18): 39 shlokas

  Chapter 5(19): 31 shlokas

  Chapter 5(20): 69 shlokas

  Chapter 5(21): 22 shlokas

  Chapter 5(22): 19 shlokas

  Chapter 5(23): 9 shlokas

  Chapter 5(24): 51 shlokas

  Chapter 5(25): 17 shlokas

  Chapter 5(26): 54 shlokas

  Chapter 5(1)

  The king asked, ‘O sage! Priyavrata was devoted to the illustrious one and found delight in his own atman. Why did he find delight in the householder stage, which is the root cause behind the bondage of action and the reason for defeat? O bull among brahmanas! Those like him are certainly free from attachment. Why should a man like that be engaged in the householder stage? O brahmana rishi! Uttamashloka’s 1 feet are indeed great. If a person’s intelligence is satisified with that stage, his mind cannot have any desire for a family. O brahmana! There is a great doubt that I have about this attachment to a wife, a home, sons and other things, when the mind is fixed and has found success in Krishna.’

  Shri-Shuka replied, ‘What you have said is correct. A person tastes the nectar from the illustrious Uttamashloka’s beautiful lotus feet. Such a devotee of the illustrious one is a paramahamsa 2 and his mind is immersed in his beloved account. However, sometimes, there are obstructions that prevent him from obtaining that most auspicious state, and generally, he has to abandon it. O king! Prince Priyavrata was indeed a supreme devotee of the illustrious one. Serving at Narada’s feet, he easily got to know about the supreme objective and truth. He wished to consecrate himself for worshipping the brahman. 3 But his own father 4 asked him to protect the earth, since he was the only one who possessed the aggregate of the excellent qualities mentioned in the sacred texts. Through meditation and yoga, he had already dedicated all his senses and all the rites completely to the illustrious Vasudeva. Therefore, he did not welcome the command, but it wasn’t one that could be refused. He did foresee that this act of ruling would lead to his defeat, since it would engage him with the transient. The illustrious original god, born from his own self, 5 knows the purpose behind the entire universe and its welfare, through the creation of the gunas. 6 He thinks about it. Surrounded by all the sacred texts and his own followers, he descended from his own residence. As he travelled through the firmament, along the path, he was praised by the leaders of the immortals, on their collection of vimanas. 7 Along the path, there were groups of Siddhas, 8 gandharvas, 9 Sadhyas, 10 charanas 11 and large numbers of sages who worshipped him. He approached, illuminating the valley of Gandhamadana. Because of the vehicle drawn by the swan, the divine rishi recognized his father, the illustrious Hiranyagarbha. 12 He quickly arose and offered him objects of worship. The father and son also joined their hands in salutation and worshipped him. 13 O descendant of the Bharata lineage! The illustrious one was an aggregate of qualities and was always victorious. Because of this and because of his descent, the original being was worshipped with those objects and highly praised through hymns and words. He smiled benevolently and spoke to Priyavrata.

  ‘The illustrious one said, “O son! Listen to the true words I am speaking. The god 14 is incomprehensible and you should not find fault with him. We, Bhava, this maharshi—all of us are incapable and only carry out his commands. No embodied being can use austerities, learning, yoga, valour, intelligence, dharma, or the power of himself or someone else, to counter what has been decreed by him. O dear one! Accept that the birth, death, deeds, the act of doing, grief, confusion, constant fear, happiness, unhappiness and association with the body of all living beings are the result of the commands of the one who is not manifest. His words are like a rope and the gunas and action are like strings that all of us are tied firmly to. O child! They cannot be severed. All of us are like offerings to the illustrious one. We are like quadrupeds, tethered to the nose for the sake of bipeds. O dear one! We are indeed bound to whatever is given to us by the lord, happiness, unhappiness and the attachment to gunas and action. We are tied to whatever existence the protector engages us in. We are like blind people, being led by a person who has eyes. Even a liberated person has to bear his body, until the store of his deeds has been exhausted, but without identifying himself with the body. This is like a person who wakes up and remembers what he experienced in dreams. However, in the next body, he should not enjoy material objects. Even if he goes to the forest, he may have six enemies 15 who will cause fear and distraction. But a learned person will have conquered his senses and will be satisfied within himself. No one can harm such a person, even if he happens
to be in the householder stage. He must seek to conquer the six enemies and first enter the householder stage. This is like conquering the enemies in an extremely well-fortified place. When the desires have been exhausted, as a learned person, he can go elsewhere. 16 But you have already fortified yourself well and have conquered the six enemies, since you have sought refuge at the lotus feet of the one who has a lotus in his navel. Since the supreme being has commanded you, enjoy the objects of pleasure. Free of attachment, serve your own nature.”’

  Shri-Shuka said, ‘The great devotee of the illustrious one was thus instructed by the illustrious preceptor of the three worlds. Since he was himself inferior, he bowed his head down and accepted the command given to him. With a great deal of respect, he agreed and carried out those instructions. Manu worshipped the illustrious one with whatever objects of worship he could muster up, while Priyavrata and Narada looked on calmly. He 17 then returned to where he had come from, his own supreme world, beyond the capacity of thoughts and words to grasp. Because of the supreme one, Manu accomplished his desire. With the permission of the divine rishi, he instated his son as the protector of the entire world. He was thus himself relieved from association with material objects. This store of senses is like a waterbody where the water is mixed with poison. In this way, through the wishes of the lord, he became the lord of the world and was engaged in all the acts he had the right to perform. The illustrious one, the original being, is supreme in his powers and can destroy the bondage of the entire universe. By meditating on his feet, he destroyed all the impurities in his heart. He ruled over the earth and enhanced the reverence towards the great one. He married the daughter of Prajapati Vishvakarma, named Barhismati. Through her, he obtained ten sons who were his equals in good conduct, qualities, deeds, beauty, valour and generosity. As the youngest, he also had a daughter, and her name was Urjasvati. All of them were named after Agni—Agnidhra, Idhmajihva, Yajnabahu, Mahavira, Hiranyareta, Ghritaprishtha, Savana, Medhatithi, Vitihotra and Kavi. Out of these, three held up their seed—Kavi, Mahavira and Savana. From their infancy, they pursued realization of the atman. They were familiar with, and achieved, the status of becoming a paramahamsa. They were supreme rishis who renounced. They sought refuge at the beautiful lotus feet of the illustrious one, Vasudeva, who resides in all embodied forms and who is the recourse for those who are scared. They remembered the supreme one and without any contamination, followed bhakti yoga. 18 Thus purifying their hearts, they perceived the illustrious one, who is in the atmans of all beings. Free from all differences, they realized the paramatman 19 in their own jivatmans. 20 Through another wife, he 21 had three sons—Uttama, Tapasa and Raivata. Each became the lord of a manvantara. 22 While his sons were engaged in self-control, 23 the lord of the earth uninterruptedly ruled over the earth for eleven arbudas. 24 The entire earth was subdued by the loud twang of his bowstring, when it was drawn by those two powerful and well-endowed arms. The proponents of adharma were defeated. Every day, he found increasing pleasure with Barhismati. Her gentle femine behaviour, bashfulness, delicate smiles and beautiful sidelong glances conquered his sense of discrimination. The great-minded person enjoyed himself like one who was ignorant. When the illustrious sun god circles around the mountain of the gods, 25 he illuminates half of the earth, while the other half is enveloped in darkness. He 26 did not like this. Because he had worshipped and satisfied the illustrious one, he had obtained superhuman powers. Using a radiant chariot that was like the sun’s chariot in speed, he decided to turn night into day and like a second sun, followed the sun’s orbit seven times. The trails of his chariot left impressions that became the seven oceans and these divided the earth into seven dvipas known as Jambu, Plaksha, Shalmali, Kusha, Krouncha, Shaka and Pushkara. 27 Each is twice as large as the one that precedes it. On the outside, each is surrounded by a body of liquid. The seven liquid bodies are made out of salt water, sugar cane juice, liquor, clarified butter, milk, curds and fresh water. 28 They form boundaries around the seven dvipas. Progressively, each is equal in size to the dvipa it surrounds. Barhismati’s husband made each of his dutiful sons, Agnidhra, Idhmajihva, Yajnabahu, Hiranyareta, Ghritaprishtha, Medhatithi and Vitihotra, 29 the lord of one of these dvipas. He bestowed his daughter, named Urjasvati, on Ushanas. 30 Through her, Kavya had a daughter named Devayani. This kind of wonderful manliness is only possible for a man who seeks the dust of Urukrama’s 31 feet and conquers the six attributes. 32 Even if an inferior person performs the good deed of uttering the illustrious one’s name, he shakes off bondage. Thus, he was unlimited in his strength and valour. Despite having been instructed at the feet of the divine rishi, he succumbed to the attachment with the gunas. Once, he became dissatisfied and wanted to withdraw. Since he knew about the atman, he said, “Alas! I have been engaged in an act of wickedness. I have been immersed in the senses and in ignorance. By being submerged in this pit of material objects, I have caused hardships for myself. Enough of these trifles. I am like a domesticated animal in the hands of a woman. Shame on me. I am condemned because of this.” Through the favours of the supreme being, he obtained self-realization. He divided the earth equally among his obedient sons. He gave up his great prosperity. He had pleasured with his queen, but abandoned her, like a dead body. With renunciation in his heart, he again followed the path indicated by Narada, of devotedly following the pastimes of the illustrious Hari. There is a shloka about him. “But for the lord, who could have performed Priyavrata’s deeds? He destroyed the darkness and with his axle, created the seven oceans. To stop conflict among beings, he divided the earth into separate dvipas and created boundaries with oceans, mountains and forests. He loved those who were devoted to the supreme being. He regarded the greatness a man obtains through his deeds, on earth and in heaven, as equal to being in hell.”’