by Bibek Debroy
‘Narada continued, ‘Thus, though he is nirguna, the devotee devotedly described his gunas. He was pleased with Prahlada, who was bowing down before him. Controlling his rage, he replied.
‘“The illustrious one said, ‘O fortunate one! O Prahlada! O supreme among asuras! I am pleased with you. May you be fortunate. Ask for the boon that you desire. I am the one who satisfies the desires of all men. O one with a long life! Without pleasing me, it is extremely difficult to see me. Having himself seen me, a living being does not deserve to be tormented again. Because of this, persevering and virtuous ones, those who desire their benefit, try to please me in every possible way. O immensely fortunate one! I am the lord of all kinds of benedictions.’”
‘Narada continued, “The supreme among asuras was thus tempted with the best allurements in the worlds. But he was single-mindedly devoted to the illustrious one and did not wish for anything.”’
Chapter 7(10)
‘Narada said, “The child thought that all these were impediments towards bhakti yoga. He smiled and replied to Hrishikesha. Prahlada said, ‘Do not tempt me. Because of my birth, I am addicted to desire and those boons. But I am terrified of such attachment. Detached, I seek liberation and have sought refuge with you. O lord! You wish to test the symptoms of servitude in an excellent devotee and have goaded such desire. These are the seeds of samsara and the bonds of the heart. O universal preceptor! You are full of compassion. Otherwise, such a thing would not have occurred. If a person hopes for benedictions, he is a merchant and not a servant. From a master, if a person hopes for benedictions, he is not really a servant. Nor is a master who desires to confer such benedictions on a servant a true master. I am your devotee and without any desires. You are also my master and my refuge. Unlike that between a king and his servant, there is no other motive between the two of us. O supreme among those who grant boons! If you wish to grant me my desired boon, please grant me the boon that no desire should ever sprout in my heart. Otherwise, right from birth, the senses, the mind, the breath of life, the atman, dharma, fortitude, intelligence, modesty, prosperity, energy, memory and truth are destroyed. O Pundarikaksha! If a man is freed from the desire that exists in the mind, it is only then that he is fit to attain the illustrious one. Oum! O illustrious one! I bow down before you. O great-souled being! O Hari! O one with this wonderful lion as your form! O brahman! O paramatman!’ The illustrious one replied, ‘Those who are single-mindedly devoted to me do not hope for any benedictions from me, in this world or in the next. They are like you. Nevertheless, throughout this manvantara, as the lord of the daityas, you will enjoy objects of pleasure. My accounts will continue to be loved by you. Your atman will be single-mindedly immersed in me. I am in all creatures and am the lord who enjoys all sacrifices. Perform sacrifices and practise yoga, abandoning acts for fruits. You will enjoy pleasure and experience sin. But because you are accomplished, you will perform good deeds. Because of the force of time, you will give up your body. Your deeds will be pure and will be chanted about in the world of the gods and will spread everywhere. Freed from bonds, you will obtain me. If a man chants the song you sang for me 749 and remembers you and me, in the course of time, he will be freed from the bondage of action.’ Prahlada said, ‘O great lord! O lord of all those who grant boons! I desire a boon from you. My father did not know that you were the lord full of energy and abused you. He did not know that you are directly the lord and preceptor of all the worlds. Regarding you as his brother’s slayer, he was full of intolerance. Because of his false outlook, he also harmed me, your devotee. His sins are extremely great and impossible to ignore. Even then, let him be purified. O one who is affectionate towards the distressed! He was purified as soon as he glanced towards you.’ The illustrious one replied, ‘O unblemished one! O purifier of your lineage! O virtuous one! Since you have been born in this lineage, your father, and twenty-one generations of your ancestors have been purified. 750 Wherever my devotees, tranquil, impartial, virtuous and noble in conduct exist, even miserable regions are purified. O Indra among daityas! Those who are devoted to me give up all desire. In every possible way, they do not cause violence to the large number of creatures, the superior or the inferior. In this world, there are people who follow you and become my devotees. But you are indeed the best among all those devotees, one cited as the ideal. O dear one! By touching my limbs, your father has been purified in every possible way. Perform his funeral rites. With an excellent son like you, he will obtain the worlds. As instructed by those who speak about the brahman, occupy your ancestral position. O son! Immerse your mind in me and offer all your acts unto me.’ Prahlada did as the illustrious one had asked and performed his father’s funeral rites. O king! He was consecrated by the brahmanas.
‘“On seeing Hari Narahari, Brahma’s face shone. Surrounded by the gods and the others, he praised him in auspicious words and said, ‘O god of the gods! O controller of the universe! O cause behind creatures! O one who existed before me! It is good fortune that you have killed the asura who tormented the worlds. Having obtained boons from me, he could no longer be slain by anything I created. Insolent because of his austerities, yoga and strength, he destroyed all the ordinances. It is good fortune that his son, this virtuous child, is a great devotee of the illustrious one. It is good fortune that you have saved him from death and that he has now attained you. O illustrious one! If a person meditates on this form of yours with supreme concentration, he is protected from terror on all sides, even if Death wishes to kill him.’ The illustrious one responded, ‘O lord! O one generated from a lotus! Do not bestow such boons on asuras. A boon bestowed on a cruel species is like amrita fed to a snake.’ O king! Having said this, the illustrious Hari vanished from the spot. He is invisible to all creatures and was worshipped by Parameshthi. 751 Prahlada bowed his head down and worshipped and honoured Parameshthi, Bhava, the Prajapatis and the gods, all portions of the illustrious one. With Kavya 752 and the other sages, the one who is seated on a lotus 753 made Prahlada the lord of the daityas and the danavas. The gods honoured him and bestowed supreme benedictions on him. O king! When Brahma and the others had been honoured back, they left for their own abodes.
‘“In this way, Vishnu’s two attendants became Diti’s sons. Though Hari was in their hearts, they were slain because they possessed hate towards him. Because of the curse of brahmanas, they again became two rakshasas. These two, Kumbhakarna and Dashagriva, were slain through Rama’s valour. They lay down in the field of battle, their hearts mangled by Rama’s arrows. As in their earlier lives, they gave up their bodies when he 754 was in their minds. Thus, they were again born in this world as Shishupala and Karusha. 755 They were bound in enmity towards Hari and obtained him in your presence. 756 Because of what they did in their earlier lives, there were other kings who harboured enmity towards Krishna, but they gave this up at the time of their deaths. Like an insect captured by a wasp, they also obtained him. Just as supremely devoted people obtain the illustrious one, in the same way, because they constantly thought about him, Chedi and the other kings also returned and merged with him. I have told you everything that you asked me, about the enmity of Damaghosha’s son and others towards Hari and their merging with him. This is the sacred account of the great-souled Krishna’s, who is devoted to brahmanas and gods, descent as an avatara and the original death of the two daityas. 757 It is about the conduct of Prahlada, the great devotee of the illustrious one, about his devotion, knowledge and detachment and Hari’s true nature. It is a description of the qualities and deeds of the one who is the lord of creation, preservation and destruction, about the positions of the superior and the inferior and the passage of a long period of time. The bhagavata dharma is a means to go to the illustrious one. In this account, there is a complete description of how one can obtain adhyatma. This sacred account describes Vishnu’s valour. If one faithfully listens to his deeds, one is freed from the bondage of action. This is about the original being’s pastime as a lion and about the s
laying of the Indra among daityas, the leader of herds. It is about the daitya’s virtuous son, supreme among auspicious ones. If one attentively listens to these accounts, how can there be any fear in the worlds? In the world of men, you are extremely fortunate. Sages who can purify come to this world. They directly reside with you in your households. The supreme brahman is mysterious, but appears with the signs of a man. Great people search for this brahman, desiring kaivalya, nirvana and the experience of bliss. However, he was your friend and well-wisher and your maternal uncle’s son. Destiny made the atman who should be worshipped your preceptor. Despite using their intelligence, Bhava, the one from the lotus and others have not been able to describe his form. He is the one who is worshipped through silence, devotion and renunciation. That is the way the lord of the Satvatas is pleased. O king! In ancient times, Maya, infinite in the use of maya, destroyed Rudra’s glory and the illustrious one enhanced it again.”