The Bhagavata Purana 1

by Bibek Debroy

  Chapter 4(23)

  ‘Maitreya said, “On one occasion, Vena’s son, who knew about his own self, saw that he had become old. The lord of subjects ensured unlimited prosperity for everything that he had himself created, 1468 the mobile and immobile objects in the world. He ensured a means of subsistence for those who followed dharma. He had been born for the purpose of accomplishing the commands of the lord and he implemented these. He gave the earth, who was like his own daughter and seemed to be weeping because of the separation, to his sons. The subjects were distressed. Alone, with his wife, he went to a grove. He followed rituals approved of by the vaikhanasas there. With the intensity he had earlier shown in his own conquests, he started austerities. He ate bulbs, roots and fruits. Sometimes, he only ate dry leaves. For some fortnights, he only drank water and ate nothing. For others, he survived only on air. In the summer, the brave one tormented himself with five fires. 1469 During the monsoon, the sage exposed himself to the rain. In the winter, he immersed himself in water up to the neck. He slept on the bare ground. He tolerated these and controlled his senses. He held up his seed and controlled his breath of life. He performed these excellent austerities and worshipped Krishna. Through these, he progressively purified himself. He destroyed the impurities of his store of karma. Through pranayama, he controlled the six categories. 1470 He severed all bondage. He followed the supreme path of adhyatma that the illustrious Sanatkumara had spoken about. Through this yoga, the bull among men worshipped Purusha. Faithfully, the virtuous one followed the dharma of worshipping the illustrious one. His devotion became fixed on the illustrious brahman and on nothing else. Through these perfect activities, his mind was purified and filled with sattva. He only remembered the illustrious one. His sense of knowledge and non-attachment was sharpened. He severed the sheath of the jivatman and all doubts were dispelled. All identification with the body was destroyed and he realized the nature of the atman. He had no desires. Through this knowledge, he severed and gave up the path of yoga too. 1471 If, without any deviation, a person is interested in the exploits of Gaja’s elder brother, he is not attached to anything else. In this way, the foremost among brave ones engaged the atman with the atman. 1472 Firmly immersed in the brahman, he gave up his own body. He blocked the anus with his heels and pushed up the vital air. He held it at the navel, the heart, the throat and the head, progressively and gradually pushing it up. 1473 He gradually pushed it up to the crown of the head and became free from all desire. He merged the breath of his life with Vayu, his body with the earth and his energy with Agni. In this way, the gaps in his body were merged with space and the liquid parts with water, each division going back to its origin—earth into water, water into fire, fire into air and air into space. The mind was merged into the senses and the senses into the tanmatras, from which, they had evolved. Having merged the objects of the senses and the elements, he merged everything into Mahat tattva. Then he merged this, the source of all gunas, into the being who is full of maya. Through his knowledge, non-attachment and valour, the lord obtained the self-realization of the atman and transcended everything men are subject to. He realized his true nature.

  ‘“His wife, the great queen known by the name of Archi, followed him to the forest. She was delicate and her feet did not deserve to touch the earth. She followed the dharma of being extremely devoted to her husband. She served him and followed him in whatever he subjected his body to. She was not afflicted, nor did she suffer from any torment. She was content with the pleasant touch of her beloved’s hand. She noticed that her husband’s body had decayed, without any signs of consciousness. She had loved the lord of the earth as much as she had loved her own self. After lamenting for a while, she placed the body on a funeral pyre on the summit of a mountain. Bathing in the water of a lake, she performed the prescribed rites. She offered water to her husband, the performer of generous deeds. She worshipped the gods who were in heaven. Thinking of her husband’s feet, she circumambulated the fire thrice and entered it. There were thousands of gods, the bestowers of boons, and the wives of those gods. On seeing that the virtuous lady had followed Prithu, her husband and supreme among brave ones, they praised her. They showered down flowers on the summit of Mandara. While the celestial trumpets were sounded, they conversed with each other. The goddesses said, ‘This wife, who served her husband, the lord of all the kings, with all her soul, is blessed. She is like Shri, the wife of the lord of sacrifices. This virtuous one is certainly headed upwards, following her husband, Vena’s son. Behold. Through her inconceivable deeds, Archi is surpassing all of us. Mortals have an uncertain lifespan on earth. However, if they seek the path of liberation at the feet of the illustrious one, there is nothing that cannot be achieved by them. The life of a human on earth is a great opportunity to follow the path of liberation. However, if a man is attached to the hardships that come from pursuing material objects, he deceives himself and is like an enemy to his own atman.’ Praised by the immortal women, the wife went to her husband’s superior world, obtained by Vena’s son, who realized the atman and sought refuge with Achyuta.

  ‘“Such was the extremely great Prithu, an excellent devotee of the illustrious one. He possessed greatness of conduct and I have described his conduct to you. If a person attentively and faithfully reads this extremely pious account, hears it or expounds it, he obtains the status obtained by Prithu. A brahmana obtains the radiance of the brahman, a king becomes the lord of the earth, a vaishya who reads it becomes a master of animals and a shudra obtains a prominent position. After hearing this account thrice, a man or a woman who does not have offspring, obtains excellent offspring and a person without riches obtains the best of wealth. A person whose deeds are not known of obtains great fame. A stupid person becomes learned. This account confers benedictions and counters anything inauspicious faced by men. It brings riches, fame, a long lifespan and heaven, and removes the impurities of kali yuga. Those who desire complete success in pursuing dharma, artha, kama and moksha should listen to it faithfully. This is supreme in accomplishment of the four objectives. A king who is seeking victory should listen to it. The kings will bring tribute in front of him, just as they did to Prithu. As one faithfully hears or reads the auspicious account of Vena’s son, one obtains freedom from attachment, unadulterated devotion to the illustrious one and undertakes acts faithfully. O Vichitravirya’s son! I have described this great account, which brings greatness. If a mortal person makes up his mind in this way, he obtains Prithu’s destination. If a person lovingly listens to Prithu’s account or narrates it day after day, he is freed from attachment. He develops devotion towards the illustrious one, whose feet are like a boat to cross the ocean of life. Such a man develops complete attachment towards him.”’

  Chapter 4(24)

  ‘Maitreya said, “Vijitashva, the son of Emperor Prithu, was extensive in his fame. He was affectionate towards his brothers and put his younger brothers in charge of the directions. Haryaksha was given the eastern direction and Dhumrakesha the southern. The lord gave the western direction to Vrika and the northern to Dravina. From Shakra he obtained the power of making himself invisible and was thus known as Antardhana. 1474 Through his wife Shikhandini, he obtained three sons who were extremely well regarded. Earlier, these had been the fire gods, Pavaka, Pavamana and Shuchi. They were born in this way because of Vasishtha’s curse and using the path of yoga, got back their original status. Through his wife Nabhasvati, Antardhana also had a son named Havirdhana. Though he had known that Indra had stolen the horse, he had not killed him. 1475 He thought that the king’s duties, extracting tribute and taxes and using the rod of chastisement, were extremely terrible. Therefore, he abandoned them and undertook a long sacrifice. In the course of this sacrifice, he realized his atman and worshipped the perfect Purusha, the paramatman. Through his meditations, he easily obtained his world. O Vidura! Through his wife Havirdhani, Havirdhana had six sons—Barhishad, Gaya, Shukla, Krishna, Satya and Jitavrata. O extender of the Kuru lineage
! The extremely fortunate Barhishad, Havirdhana’s son, became a lord of subjects. He immersed himself in rites and in yoga. He continuously sacrificed, and worshipped the gods. The earth was always covered with kusha grass, with the tips of the blades pointing to the east. 1476 On the advice of the god of the gods, 1477 he married Shatadruti, the daughter of the ocean. She was beautiful to behold, charming in all her limbs, but was still young. At the time of the marriage, adorned in beautiful ornaments, she circumambulated Agni, who fell in love with her, as he had done with Shuki. 1478 The gods, the asuras, the gandharvas, the sages, the Siddhas and the serpents were captivated by the bride, when the directions tinkled with the bells on her anklets. Through Shatadruti, Prachinabarhi had ten sons. All of them had the same name. All of them observed identical vows. All of them were immersed in dharma. They were the Prachetas. When their father commanded them to have children, they entered the ocean and performed austerities there. They worshipped the lord of austerities 1479 for ten thousand years. Along the path, they had met Girisha and had pleased him. Controlling themselves, they meditated, chanted and worshipped according to what he had said.”

  ‘Vidura asked, “Along the way, how did the Prachetas meet Girisha? O brahmana! Pleased, what did Hara tell them? Tell me the import. O brahmana rishi! For embodied beings, a meeting with Shiva is indeed extremely difficult. The sages meditate, desiring such a meeting. The illustrious Bhava is satisfied within himself. However, for the maintenance of the worlds, he travels around, with the terrible Shakti.”

  ‘Maitreya continued, “The virtuous Prachetas accepted the words of their father. Firm in their minds about performing austerities, they left for the western direction. They saw an extremely large and extensive lake that was almost like an ocean. It was full of sparkling water and as clear as the mind of a great person. There were blue and red water lilies born from the water, lotuses that bloom in the night and blue lotuses. There were the sounds of swans, cranes, chakravakas and karandavas. There were creepers and trees and their body hair seemed to stand up in joy at the humming of the crazy bees. As if at the time of a festival, the wind flung up pollen from the lotuses in all directions. The princes were astounded to hear the divine singing of gandharvas, pleasant to the mind. Drums and kettledrums were being played. They saw the three-eyed Shitikantha emerge from the lake, with his attendants. The best among immortals was being praised by the followers of the gods. 1480 They saw his excellent face, ready to grant favours. Filled with curiosity, they bowed down before him. The illustrious Hara removes the afflictions of those who are afflicted and those who are devoted to dharma. Because of their knowledge of dharma and their good conduct, he was pleased. Delighted, he spoke to them.

  ‘“The illustrious Rudra said, ‘You are the sons of Vedishad. 1481 I know what you wish for. O fortunate ones! It is to show you favours that I have revealed myself to you. The illustrious and supreme Vasudeva is beyond the three gunas that living entities are characterized by. 1482 Anyone who seeks refuge directly with him is loved by me. If a man is devoted to his own dharma, after one hundred births, he reaches Virinchi. If he goes beyond that, he obtains me. If he does not deviate and is devoted to the illustrious one, he obtains the Vaishnava world, which gods like us obtain after the universal destruction. You are devoted to the illustrious one. I love you as much as I do the illustrious one. Those who are devoted to the illustrious one do not love anyone as much as they love me. This is a special chant, sacred and extremely auspicious. It brings great benefit. I will recite it for you. Listen.’”

  ‘Maitreya continued, “With kindness in his heart, the illustrious Shiva, who was devoted to Narayana, said this, while the princes joined their hands in salutation.

  ‘“The illustrious Rudra said, ‘Victory to you. 1483 You are most noble among those who know about the atman. You are auspicious. May I be blessed. You are the perfect one who should be worshipped. You are in all atmans. I bow down before you. I bow down before the one who has a lotus in his navel. You control the subtle elements and the sense organs. You are the tranquil Vasudeva. You do not change. You illuminate yourself. I bow down to Samkarshana, the subtle and invincible destroyer. I bow down to Pradyumna, who awakens the universe and is inside every atman. I bow down. I bow down to Aniruddha, the one who controls the mind and the sense organs. I bow down to paramahamsa, the complete one who is not affected. I bow down to the one who is the gate to heaven and liberation, the one who is always present among those who are pure. I bow down to the one with the golden seed, the one who gives power to the four kinds of officiating priests. I bow down to the one who provides energy to the ancestors, the lord of the three 1484 and the seed of the sacrifice. You are the one who provides satisfaction to all living beings. I bow down to the one who is in all atmans. You are the one who is the body of all beings and all the diverse material objects. I bow down to the one who is the protector of the three worlds and the lord of prowess and strength. Your signs reveal every kind of meaning. You are the sky. I bow down to the one who is inside and outside. I bow down to the immensely radiant one who provides all the auspicious worlds after death. You are pravritti and nivritti. You are the rites towards the gods and the ancestors. I bow down to the one who is Death, the one who provides misery as a consequence of adharma. I bow down to the one who is the lord of all benedictions. You are Manu. You are the cause of everything. I bow down to Dharma, the great one. You are Krishna, the infinitely intelligent one. You are the ancient Purusha. You are the lord of samkhya and yoga. You are the store of the three kinds of capacity. 1485 You are Mrida, 1486 the lord of ahamkara. You take the forms of knowledge and eagerness to act. I bow down to the one who manifests himself in different kinds of speech. Show yourself to us. We wish to see you in the form in which devotees worship you. Your agreeable form has all the senses and the gunas and is most loved by those who are devoted to you. Your form is gentle and dark, like clouds during the monsoon. You are an accumulation of everything that is beautiful. Your four-armed form is graceful. It is excellently shaped, with a handsome face. Your eyes are like the inner petals of a lotus. Your eyebrows are beautiful and your nose is excellent. Your teeth are beautiful and your forehead is handsome. You are adorned with symmetric ears. Your sidelong glances are affectionate and you seem to smile. Your flowing locks enhance your beauty. Your shining yellow and silk garments are like the filaments of a lotus. You are adorned with dazzling earrings. Your diadem, bracelets, necklace, anklets and girdle sparkle. You look even more beautiful because of the conch shell, chakra, mace, lotus and a garland of excellent jewels. Your shoulders are like those of a maned lion. You wear the extremely fortunate Koustubha around your neck. Shri is never distanced from you and surpasses the radiance of the stone used to test for gold. 1487 His acts of puraka and rechaka lead to a ripple in the three lines on the stomach, which is as beautiful as the leaf of a banyan tree. The deep and whirling eddy in his navel seems to withdraw the universe into it. Your hips are dark blue and are covered with a yellow and silken garment, with a golden girdle atop it. Because of symmetric and beautiful feet, shanks, thighs and insteps, you are extremely handsome. The nails on your feet are as beautiful as the petals of an autumn lotus. Their radiance dispels all the impurities that are inside us. So as to destroy all hardships, reveal your own form. O preceptor! You are the refuge. As a preceptor, reveal the path to those suffering from darkness. Those who desire purification for themselves must meditate on this form. While they perform their own dharma, bhakti yoga brings freedom from fear. All embodied beings find it extremely difficult to reach you, but those who are devoted can obtain you. Even the king of heaven seeks you. You can be obtained by those who single-mindedly seek self-realization. You are extremely difficult to worship and even the virtuous find it hard to reach you. But for single-minded devotion at your lotus feet, what external object can be desired? Death destroys the universe with a movement of his eyebrows, displaying his valour and prowess. But even he does not dare to destroy someone who has compl
etely surrendered to you. A momentary association with those who are devoted to the illustrious one is superior to heaven, or being freed from rebirth on earth. What other benediction can a mortal person desire? Your lotus feet are praised as a tirtha. Bathing there, internal and external impurities are cleansed. 1488 Let there be benedictions for those who are extremely good in conduct. Grant us the favour of an association with them. If a person’s intelligence is not bewildered by external objectives and if he is not stuck in the cave of tamas, he enters the state of purification. Through bhakti yoga, he obtains the favours and is delighted. Such a sage sees that there is no objective other than you. This universe is your manifestation. You pervade the entire universe. You are the supreme brahman. Like the sky, your resplendence extends everywhere. Using your maya, you created many kinds of forms. You are also the one who maintains and without acting, you are the one who destroys. You are eternal and not affected, but you create this sense of differentiation. O illustrious one! We know that you are the one who controls your own self. With devotion, learned yogis, who pursue action and processes, 1489 worship you for success. The Vedas and the tantras state that you are the one who controls the elements, the senses and the mind. You are the original being, with your capacity dormant. You divide it into sattva, rajas and tamas. From this is evolved Mahat, ahamkara, space, fire, wind, water and earth, the gods, the rishis and the large number of creatures. As your own portions, you used your own powers to create and enter the four types of beings. 1490 This is known as the Purusha who exists within, who enjoys the senses, like honey collected by bees. All these worlds are extremely terrible in their force. In the course of time, you are the one who destroys them, like a dense mass of clouds dispelled by the irresistible wind. This is your true nature in beings, but beings can only infer it. 1491 Those who are mad think loudly about what should be done. In a desire for material objects, their avarice increases. Without being distracted, as death, you seize them suddenly, like the flickering tongue of a hungry snake that grabs a rat. Which learned man will neglect and discard your lotus feet in favour of a decaying body? Our father 1492 worshipped you without any hesitation and so unhesitatingly, did the fourteen Manus. For those who are learned, you are our brahman and our paramatman. The universe is scared of Rudra. But you are the destination who grants freedom from fear. O fortunate ones! O sons of a king! Perform your own dharma and purifying yourselves, chant this. Worship the illustrious one as a refuge. You are the atman who is inside all beings. You are established in all beings. Chant and worship him. Incessantly meditate on Hari. I have instructed you about the chant known as yogadesha. O ones who observe the vows of sages! Remember it. Control your intelligence. All of you should study this respectfully. In ancient times, the illustrious lord and creator of the universe taught us, Bhrigu and the other sons, this. They were entrusted with the task of creation and desired to create. When all of us, the lord of subjects, were instructed to create subjects, this destroyed the darkness and we were able to create different kinds of beings. Therefore, a man must always attentively chant this, being devoted to Vasudeva. He will then swiftly ensure well-being. Knowledge that leads to supreme benefit is best among all kinds of learning. This knowledge is like a boat that crosses the ocean of hardship, which is so very difficult to cross, and achieves happiness. I have chanted this song, a prayer to the illustrious one. If a person studies this faithfully, he will worship Hari, who is so very difficult to worship. From him, a man will quickly obtain everything that he desires. When he chants my song, the single lord will be extremely delighted and will bestow everything beneficial. If a mortal person wakes up at the right time and joining his hands faithfully, hears it or makes it heard, he is freed from the bondage of action. O those who bring delight to the king! My song is a prayer to the supreme being, the paramatman. Chanting this with single-minded attention is a great austerity. If you practise this, at the end, you will obtain everything that you wish for.’”’