Category: SrimadBhagavatam

Maharishi Kapila continued,

“Yo māṁ sarveṣu bhūteṣu santam ātmānam īśvaram

Hitvārcāṁ bhajate mauḍhyād bhasman-yeva juhoti saḥ

In the form of the Self I reside within every living being and I regulate his body and 10 senses. Rejecting this idea and instead worshipping Me only as an idol is equal to conducting homa with ash.

The person who, believing in separateness (dualism), loathes others or is envious of them, in reality loathes Me as I am the Self (atma) who resides within every living being! Such a person can never experience peace of mind.

Even if a person worships Me as an idol with the best available ingredients and to the best of his capacities while disregarding or abusing other living beings, then his worship does not give me any happiness irrespective of its greatness.

Arcādāv arcayet tāvad īśvaraṁ māṁ sva-karma-kṛt

Yāvan na veda sva-hṛdi sarva-bhūteṣv avasthitam

‘I am the Lord who resides with every living being’- until the person realizes this truth, he should adhere to his prescribed duties while continuing to worship My idols!

The person who believes in dualism perceives himself to be different from other living beings. He also considers himself to be different from Paramatma. Even if there is a slight feeling of dualism in the person, then I, in the form of death, create extreme fear in him.

Atha māṁ sarva-bhūteṣu bhūtātmānaṁ kṛtālayam

Arhayed dāna-mānābhyāṁ maitryābhinnena cakṣuṣā

I reside as the Self within every living being! Hence, it is imperative for the devotee to have feelings of equality towards every form of life. He should revere those who are superior to him. He should be friendly with equals. To those lower than him, he should give charity. Behaving in this manner amounts to worshipping Me.

O Mother! O form of auspiciousness! Living entities are superior to non-living entities such as stones. Among living entities, animals which breathe are superior to trees. Superior to such animals are living entities which possess a mind. Still better than them are beings that have sense perceptions.

Among living entities which have sense perceptions, trees have only touch perception. Fish that have taste perception are superior to trees. Bees and other insects that have smell perception are superior to fish. Snakes that have sound perception are superior to these bees. Crows and other beings that have sight perception are superior to even these snakes.

Monkeys and animals which have upper and lower sets of teeth are superior to crows. Insects that have many legs are superior to those beings which do not have legs. Still superior to them are the four legged animals.

Human being who has 2 legs is superior to these four legged animals! There are 4 classifications within human beings. Amongst them Brahmin is superior. Amongst Brahmins, he who knows Vedas is more superior. Even among them, one who understands the meaning of Vedas is still superior. The Brahmin, who in addition to understanding the meaning of the Vedas is also able to resolve the doubts therein, is still superior.

Even better than him is the Brahmin who strictly abides by the dictates of the Vedas without any deviation. More superior than this Brahmin is the person who strictly abides by his own dharma (swadharma) while developing dispassion towards these worldly bondages!

However he who with absolute non-dual attitude towards Me, totally surrenders his body including all his actions and the results of those actions to Me, is the best! This is the ultimate knowledge. Such person believes in principle of non-dualism. He is a supremely knowledgeable (jnani). He offers his intelligence and actions totally unto Me. He sees Me everywhere in the form of the Self (atma). I am unable to find any entity superior to him in this entire creation!

Manasaitāni bhūtāni praṇamed bahu-mānayan

Īśvaro jīva-kalayā praviṣṭo bhagavān iti 

The Supreme Lord himself has entered all living entities as the individual being.  Hence the devotee should respect every form of life and mentally offer obeisance to them.

Bhakti-yogaś ca yogaś ca mayā mānavy udīritaḥ

Yayor ekatareṇaiva puruṣaḥ puruṣaṁ vrajet

O daughter of Manu! I have taught to you both ashtānga yoga as well as bhakti yoga. The spiritual aspirant who puts either one of them into practice will reach the ultimate goal of life.

Etad bhagavato rūpaṁ brahmaṇaḥ paramātmanaḥ

Paraṁ pradhānaṁ puruṣaṁ daivaṁ karma-viceṣṭitam

Nature (Prakriti), the Self (Puruśa) who is beyond this Nature, the repository for fruitive actions of the individual and God are nothing but forms of the Supreme Lord known as Parabrahma (Paramatma).

The Lord’s illusory power has manifested into this vast universe composed of innumerable forms. That ultimate power of the Lord which is responsible for this is known as time (kāla)”.

Vāmadevāya namah

Trivikramaya namah

Maharishi Kapila continued,

“Due to spiritual ignorance (avidya) at one point the spiritual aspirant used to believe that he was experiencing joys and sorrows. He now realizes that even this belief was due to his false ego (ahamkara, sense of I-ness) and that even such feelings of I-ness are, in reality, illusory. This will be the last birth for that Jnani (supremely knowledgeable person) who has attained Self-realization and who has fulfilled the purpose of life!

An intoxicated person is unaware whether any clothing covers his waist or not. Likewise a Jnani, who is totally established in the Self, is not aware of the gross body, irrespective of whether it is moving, sitting or standing.

He retains this gross body made up of the 10 senses and the movement of the five Pranās, as long as the prarabdha karma (the portion of karma responsible for the present body) remains to be completed. The Yogi, who has realized his true Self and who is established in this knowledge, does not have re-birth even if he appears to be connected to this material world and to the relatives herein.

The truth is that even this gross body is as illusory as a dream! It is non-existing. It is unreal. A human being always has feelings of me and mine towards his wealth and family although in reality, he shines differently from them all. Likewise the Self, who is the inner resident within the body, considers himself to be the body and senses, although in reality he is different from the body and senses!

Smoke, flames and sparks emerge from fire. As such they are considered to be aspects of fire. However in reality fire is different from the smoke, flames and sparks. Likewise the Self’s illumination, due to which the mind, body and senses get illuminated, is different from them all! The Lord who is known as Brahma is different from Prakriti (Nature).

Sarva-bhūteṣu cātmānaṁ sarva-bhūtāni cātmani

Īkṣeta ananya-bhāvena bhūteṣv iva tad-ātmatām

When the material objects, which emerge from the five basic elements, are scrutinized it is evident that they are nothing but the five elements themselves! Likewise the Jnani realizes that all objects exist within him only and that in the form of the Self (atma) it is he who pervades through all objects!

There is only one Fire! But yet, due to the differences in the different types of wood, fire appears differently. In reality, Self and Brahma are one and the same. It manifests through the different bodily activities. Due to the differences within the proportions of the trigunas (attributes of Nature) within different bodies, the Self (atma) appears to be different each of them.

Nature (Prakriti) is nothing but the illusory power (maya shakti) of the Lord! It transforms as both the cause and the effect (karya-karana) and deludes living beings. Therefore the devotee should discard it and establish himself in the Self!

With this the twenty eighth chapter of the third canto comes to an end.

Third Canto Chapter Twenty nine

In this chapter, the secrets of bhakti and the supremacy of time are explained.

Devahuti enquired, “O Lord! Until now you explained about Nature and Self and about Mahat and other principles, based on Sānkhya philosophy (Shastra). Based on these characteristics their inner essence can be understood. Our elders state that this knowledge is the tool for proceeding on the path of bhakti. Therefore now please preach to me in great detail the path of bhakti.

O Lord! Please explain to me that knowledge by which the person becomes totally disinclined towards everything. Please explain to me the different levels that are attained by living beings in this samsara.

Kālasya iśvara-rūpasya pareṣāṁ ca parasya te

Svarūpaṁ bata kurvanti yad-dhetoḥ kuśalaṁ janāḥ

Time, which regulates even Lords such as Brahma and others, is not different from You. It is with the help of time that living beings perform meritorious deeds. Please explain to me the form of time.

Human beings mistakenly consider the body, which in reality is illusory, as the eternal Self. Lacking Spiritual Knowledge, for a long time they sleep in this darkness known as worldly bondages (samsara). They are eternally engaged in actions due to which they get fatigued. At such hour You, the Sun called knowledge, have incarnated to rescue them.”

Kapila Muni was deeply pleased to hear these melodious words spoken by his mother. His heart was filled with compassion. Acknowledging her He said, “O Mother! In bhakti yoga there are many paths. Mahatmas acknowledge all the varied paths. In addition, the opinions of human beings vary based on their nature and the traits.

Abhisandhāya yo hiṁsāṁ dambhaṁ mātsaryam eva vā

Saṁrambhī bhinna-dṛg bhāvaṁ mayi kuryāt sa tāpasaḥ

Trivikramaya namah

Maharishi Kapila continued, “Goddess Lakshmi, who has lotus-like eyes, is the mother of creator Brahma. She is revered by all the Devatas. Such Goddess Lakshmi keeps the Lord’s shanks on her thighs and gently massages them with her lustrous hands.

Next the yoga practitioner should meditate upon the knees of the birthless Lord Srihari who dispels the fear of re-births.

The Lord’s knees are the refuge for all energy and strength! They are luminous like the linseed flower. These knees rest on the shoulders of Garuda and glow divinely. His golden-yellow Pitambara clothing stretches up to His ankles. His waistband, made up of exquisite pearls, encircles the entire universe.

From the deep navel of Srihari, who is the support for all the worlds, arose a beautiful deep lotus which contains in it all the worlds. From this lotus arose Lord Brahma. Such navel should be meditated upon.

His breasts resemble a pair of shining lovely emeralds. They glow with a white radiance due to the luster of the pearl chains which adorn His chest. They should be meditated upon.

Srihari is that Supreme Lord who is worshipped by all the worlds. His chest is the residence for Goddess Lakshmi, the Goddess of fortune. It fills the mind and eyes of the practitioner who meditates upon it with total joy. The luster of His neck adds beauty to the exquisitely glittering Kausthuba gem situated on His chest! The practitioner should visualize this neck and meditate upon it.

The rotating Mandara Mountain polished the armlets and other ornaments that adorn His shoulders, causing them to shine even more resplendently. His arms and the guardian deities of the worlds who take refuge in these arms are engaged in completing their duties. It is impossible to withstand the brilliance of Sudarshana chakra (discus) that emits innumerable sparkling rays. In His lotus-like hands the conch glitters like a royal swan. The yoga practitioner should meditate upon each of them.

His mace is known as Koumodaki. This mace, which is smeared with the blood of powerful demons that were crushed by it, is very dear to Lord Srihari. A long Vanamāla garland adorns His neck. A swarm of bees hover around it buzzing melodiously. The glittering pure Kausthuba gem that adorns His neck represents the pure jeeva-tattva. The yoga practitioner should meditate upon each of them.

Purely to bless His devotees Srihari took up a form. With its long and raised nose, His lotus face glows brilliantly.  The beauty of His pure shining cheeks is further enhanced with the reflection of the crocodile-shaped earrings that dazzle on His ears. Such face should be meditated upon.

The Lord’s lotus face is the repository of all beauty! It is adorned by curly hair.  It glows with attractive eyes and strikingly beautiful eyebrows. His beautiful eyes deride even that lovely lotus which is surrounded by bees and which is a shelter for two fish. The Yoga practitioner should diligently store the imprint of this beautiful face in his mind and meditate upon it.

The Lord’s eyes are filled with compassion which flows uninterruptedly towards his devotees. To the devotee, it gives relief from the 3 types of afflictions that torment him. This gaze is filled with love and is accompanied by a charming smile. Such gaze bestows innumerable blessings upon the devotee. In the cave known as the intellect, the yoga practitioner should meditate upon this gaze of the Supreme Lord!

Hāsaṁ harer avanatākhila-loka-tīvra- śokāśru-sāgara-viśoṣaṇam atyudāram

Sammohanāya racitaṁ nija-māyayāsya bhrū-maṇḍalaṁ muni-kṛte makara-dhvajasya

His charming smile dries up the ocean of tears formed due to extreme grief in the devotee. Hence this smile should be meditated upon! The Yoga practitioner should then meditate upon the eyebrows of the Lord, which He created using His illusionary power, so as to protect the saints from the arrows of Manmatha (the Lord of desire).

When Srihari laughs loudly the glow on His lower lip emanates brightly. Due to its reflection, His two rows of teeth that are like jasmine buds gleam in red colour. The yoga practitioner should focus upon Lord Srihari in his heart-space and should meditate upon His charming smile.

The spiritual aspirant should surrender his mind that is overflowing with love to Lord Srihari. He should never desire to see anything other than Srihari! When this is done, the heart of the practitioner which is overflowing with love towards Srihari will thrive in devotion! This bliss will cause his body to horripilate. Again and again tears of joy will flow from his eyes, drenching his body.

Just as a fishing hook catches the fish, until now the mind of the practitioner caught the Lord and drew Him closer. Now the Yogi detaches this mind from the object of meditation. When this is continued relentlessly for some period of time, the mind will be absolved totally of feelings of I-ness.

The mind of the Yogi which is now totally established in dispassion, will, like the flame of the lamp merge completely into the Self. He will be totally absolved of all bondages that were caused due to oneness with the body.

He experientially realizes that the limitless Self, which is devoid of differences such as seer and seen, is the root behind everything. Spiritual ignorance (avidya) will be totally washed away in the Self-realized jnani. He will be established in his original form which is over and beyond dualities such as joys-sorrows. His mind merges into his original Self.