Category: SrimadBhagavatam

Third Canto Chapter Twenty eight

In this chapter Kapila Maharishi teaches Ashtānga yoga (eight fold path of Yoga) to mother Devahuti.

Kapila Maharishi said, “O daughter of Manu! O Mother! I am now going to teach you the path of Yoga. The mind experiences happiness due to accomplishment in this Yoga. It will be focused purely upon God.

Sva-dharmācaraṇaṁ śaktyā vidharmāc ca nivartanam

Daivāl labdhena santoṣa ātmavic-caraṇārcanam

O Mother! By listening to this attentively, people can obtain liberation while living (jeevanmukti). They will understand the essence of spirituality. Hence be attentive.

To the best of one’s ability righteousness (dharma) should be followed. It is imperative to distance from unrighteous activities, while abiding by righteousness. Continuing those meritorious activities which grant good human birth, he should be content with whatever he earns.

This is very difficult to practice, but yet one should strive for it. It implies that whatever the person earns through his hard efforts, he should be happy and content with it.

He should revere and worship the feet of Self-realized beings. Simultaneously he should distance from those activities which increase inclination towards material comforts. He should have true dedication and desire towards śravana (listening) and other spiritual activities. At all times he should eat only pure food that too in limited quantities. He should practice to spend time alone in solitude”.

Here lies the catch. Often we eat impure food. It is imperative to eat pure satvik food in limited quantities. Only pure satvik diet can give rise to a pure mind!

Eating stale, heavy, tamasic food only increases traits of inertia and ignorance (tamo guna). Such food propels lust and other desires. It instigates anger. The person loses control over himself. Driven by extreme desires he now eyes wealth that legally belongs to others. He devices ways in which he can acquire ownership over them. He will suffer with extreme jealousy and greed. All these are the outcomes of eating tamasic food.

The more you eat satvik pure diet, the more you become pure and clean. Here the emphasis is on both purity and limited quantity of food intake. These are the words of Maharishi Kapila, who is none other than Lord Mahavishnu.

Ahiṁsā satyam asteyaṁ yāvad-artha-parigrahaḥ

Brahmacaryaṁ tapaḥ śaucaṁ svādhyāyaḥ puruṣārcanam

He should not inflict injury on any living being i.e. he should practice Ahimsa. He should practice truthfulness. He should not steal others’ wealth”.

People in general cannot resist from eyeing property belonging to others. They find this discipline very difficult.

“He should possess only as many comforts and materials as are needed for basic living”.

Coming across people who abide by this discipline is very very rare. I have just seen two or three such people in so many years. There is one gentleman in Andhra, who lives in a big house but that house is sparsely furnished. I was very happy to see this. In his house were two tiny shelves, one to keep his belongings and another for those of his wife. In his kitchen were about 20 small containers to store required grains, two vessels for cooking, 4 tumblers and 2 dinner plates. They cooked on small charcoal stove. There was one small suitcase in which other household items were stored. This was the furniture in his home! He maintained two bank accounts each of which had about Rs. 15000/-. One was for their expenses and another for their children.

When I questioned him about his lifestyle he began to explain his life’s principles. I felt he was explaining Bhāgawatam. He said that it is essential to possess only as much materials as are needed for survival. He also said that one should eat only as much as needed. He emphasized on the need for contentment and solitude. I was deeply impressed with the disciplines that this person was abiding by. After all, he was a householder, but yet he had such appreciable values. Later on he even trained his children in these principles of detachment and eventually they gave away even that home in charity.

Similarly once in Kashmir I came across a person who abided by these similar disciplines. He was a high official but his lifestyle was simple. In his house there was not even a chair. Guests were offered mats to sit on the floor. It’s amazing that even in Kali Yuga, there are such people!

Govindāya Namah.

Keshavāya namah

Maharishi Kapila continues,

“In water, reflection of the Sun is seen. Reflection of this Sun in the water falls upon the wall of the house. At that time there are two reflections. The Sun seen on the wall is the reflection of the Sun in the waters which in turn is the reflection of the Sun located in the sky.

In the similar manner, Pure Consciousness (śuddha chaitanya) first gets reflected upon the ego (ahamkāra) made up of the trigunas. Then it reflects upon the 5 gross elements, the senses and inner mind (antahkarana).

In other words, the illumination of Pure Consciousness that exists within this gross body, the senses and mind can be experienced. Nevertheless it should be understood that this illumination is nothing but the reflection of the ego’s illumination.

In deep sleep, subtle elements, senses, mind, intellect, etc. dissolve completely into that subtle Nature wherein limitations of name and form do not exist. Even at such time the Self’s consciousness (atma chaitanya) does not dissolve. It remains as an eternal witness, devoid of ego (sense of I-ness).

During waking state, this Self illumines as the dṛṣṭa (the Seer). It should be understood the Seer (drśta) himself is the Self! During deep sleep the individual believes that he has been destroyed and thus grieves. He becomes anxious like a person who has lost his wealth.

Body, senses, mind, intellect and ego (sense of I-ness) seek refuge purely in the Self’s consciousness and illumine only within it. The intelligent person, with his discriminatory knowledge thoroughly scrutinizes them and understands the real essence of the Self (atma tattva)”.

Hearing this Devahuti enquired, “O Lord! Nature and Self (Prakriti- Puruśa), take refuge in one another due to which their relationship is eternal. Under no circumstances does Prakriti detach itself from Puruśa. It is impossible to separate smell from earth, isn’t it? They are one and the same. Likewise, water and taste do not have a separate existence.

Similarly Nature (Prakriti) and Self (Puruśa) can never be separated. Inherently the Self does not get involved in action. But due to attaining oneness with the traits of Nature, the Self gets entangled in these karmic bondages.

Now these 3 attributes of Nature have an eternal existence. This being the case, how can the Self ever get liberated from these karmic bondages? Due to Self-realization, perchance even if the fear of samsara is dispelled in the yogi, the 3 attributes of Nature which are its roots cannot be destroyed, isn’t it? Since their existence is eternal, there is a scope for worldly bondages to re-emerge, isn’t it?”

Kapila Bhagawān replied, “O Mother! The yoga practitioner should, with a pure mind and with a selfless attitude, adhere to his own dharma (swadharma). He should at all times listen to My divine glories and have intense devotion towards Me”.

We notice that this theme repeats. Irrespective of all the knowledge and the science behind the creation which is being passed to us through this Bhāgawatam, the emphasis is on devotion towards Srihari! If a person is truly desirous of cutting through this veil of illusion, he has to mandatorily listen to the stories pertaining to the Lord. The mind should be permanently fixed upon Him.

“He should strive to increase his devotion. He should try to know the real form of Nature and Self. He should not consider them to be separate. He should possess unflinching detachment and should relentlessly practice disciplines, contemplation and Self-study. Ultimate concentration of mind is a must!

Just as the spark contained with the log of wood reduces to ashes the entire log, the practitioner who diligently abides by these disciplines will in this birth itself dissolve his spiritual ignorance (avidya) gradually.

The intelligent person should realize that Nature is the sole cause for all sorrows. Only when this fact is deeply digested, he will stop himself from attaining oneness with Nature. He will distance himself.

Nature does not have the capacity to create bondages in a person who is totally immersed in his inner bliss. During dream, the person encounters various problems and suffers immensely. However upon waking up, the dream ceases to have any impact upon him. He forgets the dream.

Evaṁ vidita-tattvasya prakṛtir mayi mānasam

Yuñjato nāpakuruta ātmārāmasya karhicit

 Nature will never cause infatuation in the yoga practitioner who, through the understanding of the principle of Nature-Self, has fixed the mind solely upon Me and who enjoys his own inner bliss! It will never harm him.

In this way when a sage spends many, many lifetimes established in the Self, he will obtain total detachment towards every form of comfort. He will then attain the abode of Brahma (brahma loka). Only with My supreme blessings the intelligent person obtains Supreme Knowledge. Through knowledge of his Self, he will dispel all his doubts.

He will obtain in this birth My abode i.e. the form of the Self. It is well known as ‘liberation’ or as unlimited supreme bliss! In other words, he will obtain liberation while living (jeevanmukti). After the destruction of this subtle body, that Jnani will no longer have re-births.

O Mother! All the Yogic powers are made powerful by the energy of such accomplished beings. The various supernatural accomplishments, which are illusory, arise purely through Yoga. There is no way other than this. However when the accomplished yogi shows dispassion even towards such supernatural powers, he will then attain the ultimate liberation and will merge totally into Me. He will then be free from death as it will be permanently destroyed”.

With this the twenty seventh chapter comes to an end.

Narayanāya namah

Keshavāya namah.

Maharishi Kapila continued,

“Wind & touch: Wind is born from the subtle element of touch (sparsha tanmatra). Wind is the cause for the movement of leaves and other objects. It gathers objects to one place. It is all pervading. It carries fragrances to the nose. It helps sound reach the ear. It strengthens the senses. These are the activities and characteristics of wind.

Fire & form: Due to the influence of time, this subtle element of touch (sparsha tanmatra) transforms and from it the subtle element of form (roopa tanmātra) was born. From this subtle element of form, Fire as well as the organ of sight i.e. eye manifested.

Form gives shape to every object. It highlights the qualities and dimensions of the object. It is the form of fire. These are the characteristics of roopa tanmātra. Fire is known by its effulgence. Cooking, causing thirst, causing hunger, driving away cold and causing dryness are the activities of fire.

Water & taste: Due to the Lord’s influence, this fire which has form (roopa) as its subtle element, transforms and gives birth to the subtle element of taste (rasa tanmātra). From this subtle element of taste, water and tongue i.e. the sense organ connected to taste, manifest.

Although there is only one taste, due to mixing with other substances, it is divided into six viz., sweet, sour, bitter, astringent, salty and pungent. Softening, causing satisfaction, causing dryness, sustaining life, quenching thirst, dispelling heat, being available in abundance and emerging from earth are the characteristics of water.

Earth & smell: Due to the Lord’s influence, Water which as taste as its subtle element, transforms and from it the subtle element of smell (gandha tanmātra) is born. From this gandha tanmātra, earth as well as nose i.e. sense organ connected to smell, emerge.

Although there is only one smell, due to combinations between matter, smell could be mixed, offensive, mild, fragrant, sour, sweet, etc.

Earth is born from this subtle element of smell (gandha tanmātra). In its varied forms, this earth is the support for the intentions of the Lord. While remaining stable, it becomes the support for water and other elements. Earth divides the all-pervading space into different small spaces for example, space in the pot, space in the vessel etc.  It brings to fore the tendencies of male or female, which exist within every living being. These are the characteristics that define earth.

Sound is the characteristic of space and Ear is the organ that grasps it.

Touch is the characteristic of wind and Skin is the organ that grasps touch.

Form is the characteristic of fire and Eye is the organ that has the sense of sight.

Taste is the characteristic of water and Tongue is the organ that has the sense of taste.

Smell is the characteristic of earth and Nose is the sense organ connected to smell.

The characteristic of the effect is also visible in the cause. Due to combination with space and other elements, in addition to its own quality of smell, earth also has the qualities of other four elements.

Emergence of Cosmic egg:

Prior to creation, the principles of Mahat (cosmic intelligence), Ahamkara (sense of I-ness) and the 5 elements (totaling 7) were incapable of combining with one another. At that point, the Supreme Lord, who is the cause for this entire creation entered into them together with time, action and 3 attributes of Nature.

With the Lord’s entry, turbulence was caused within these 7 principles and they now combined with one another. This led to the birth of a lifeless egg (prana rahita) from which the universal form (virat puruśa) emerged.

This egg was enveloped by water that was 10 times its size. Water was surrounded by a layer of radiance which was 10 times bigger than the water layer. The layer of air which surrounded this radiance was 10 times thicker than the water layer. The space that enveloped the air was 10 times thicker than it. All these layers were covered by the veil of Nature.

Within this, the all the universes are contained. This vast expansive creation is nothing but the manifested form of Lord Srihari! It is known as Viśeṣa.

The universal Lord (Virat Puruśa), emerged from this effulgent cosmic egg. He once again entered into it and created many holes in the egg.

Emergence of organs and their corresponding presiding deities in the Universal Lord (Virāt Puruśa):

Then at first, the mouth appeared. From it the sense of speech and God of Fire, its presiding deity, manifested.

Thereafter nostrils emerged and from them life-force (prana) and the organ of smell manifested. Wind, which is the presiding deity for the nose, emerged.

Thereafter eyes emerged and from it came the sense of sight. Lord Sun, who is the presiding deity for sight, also appeared.

Then two ears appeared and from them the organ of hearing and Dik-devatas, the presiding deity of hearing, manifested.

Then skin appeared and from it hair, mustache and beard manifested along with herbs, which are the presiding deities for skin.

Thereafter the organ of reproduction was born. From it semen and its presiding deity i.e. Lord of waters, was born.

Next the organ of excretion emerged and from it the wind called Apāna was born. From Apāna the Lord of death manifested. This Lord of death creates fear throughout all universes.

Then hands which have the ability to hold objects and Indra, the presiding deity of this energy of holding, emerged.

Feet emerged and from them the ability of movement emerged along with Vishnu, its presiding deity.

Next veins were created. They were filled with blood. The Lord of the rivers then manifested.

Abdomen was now born. Hunger and thirst manifested along with oceans, their presiding deity.

Heart manifested and from it mind was born along with Moon, its presiding deity.

Intelligence emerged along with its presiding deity Brahma. Ahamkara (sense of I-ness) manifested along with its presiding deity Rudra. Then chitta (memory) and its presiding deity manifested.

These deities who thus emerged from the Universal Lord (Virāt Puruśa) tried to wake Him up but to no avail. Hence they once again reentered his body in order to wake Him up.

Fire mixed with the organ of speech and entered into the face of the Universal Lord but the Lord did not wake up. Wind along with the sense of smell entered into his nostrils, but yet He did not wake up.

Sun entered the eyes together with the organ of sight followed by Dik-devatas who entered the ears together with the organ of hearing. Lord of herbs together with hair entered into the skin of the Universal Lord but even then the Lord did not wake up.

The Lord of water through the semen entered into the genitals and the Lord of death entered the anus along with the Apāna respectively. Even then the Lord did not wake up. The Lord was in Yogic sleep”.

This subject is very difficult to comprehend and requires repeated listening and recapitulation before being understood. Minimum 5 times it should be heard before it is understood.

Narayanaya namah

Keshavaya namah

Maharishi Kapila continued,

“Pañcabhiḥ pañcabhir brahma caturbhir daśabhis tathā

Etac catur-viṁśatikaṁ gaṇaṁ prādhānikaṁ viduḥ

24 principles (5+5+10+4= 24) are the primary cause for the existence of this universe. The Supreme Lord presides over them and manifests in the form of the universe.

Earth, water, fire, air and space are the 5 gross elements. The 5 subtle elements (tanmātras, sensory perceptions) are the cause for the existence of gross elements. They are smell, taste, form, touch and sound.

Ear, skin, eye, tongue and nose are the 5 organs of perception (jnanendriya). Speech, hands, feet, organs of reproduction and organs of excretion are the 5 organs of action (karmendriya). In this way there are 10 senses (indriyas).

Based on the modifications that take place within it, mind (anatahkarana) exists in 4 stages. They are Manas, the processing mind which is the form of thoughts and imaginations; Buddhi, the discriminatory mind; Ahamkara, the feeling of I-ness; and Chitta, the storehouse of past impressions.

In this manner, the Lord who manifests as the universe has 24 principles. Learned elders empathically declare this truth. Time is the 25^th principle. Some consider time as the divine manifestation of the Puruśa (Self).

Due to spiritual ignorance, the individual being attains oneness with Nature (Prakriti) and its activities. He mistakenly considers himself to be the doer of actions, although in reality they are the actions of the trigunas. Due to this he fears time.

Before creation, the attributes of goodness, passion and ignorance (sattva, rajas, tamo gunas) were in equilibrium. They were in harmony. At that point of time, earth and other changes were not visible in Nature (Prakriti). During this state of equilibrium, God creates a movement causing an imbalance. The Lord who causes this movement is being addressed as Time.

Antaḥ puruṣa-rūpeṇa kāla-rūpeṇa yo bahiḥ

Samanvety eṣa sattvānāṁ bhagavān ātma-māyayā

Through the medium of His illusory power, the Supreme Lord exists both within and outside of all living beings. When He exists within the person, He is addressed as the Puruśa (Self). When He pervades outside, He is addressed as Time (kāla).

Eternal time (kāla) disturbs the equilibrium within the trigunas and causes turbulence in them. Puruśa (Self) impregnates this Prakriti (Nature), which has now attained unevenness, with his semen i.e. His pure consciousness (chaitanya shakti). Nature, which was thus impregnated, manifested as Mahat tattva i.e. total cosmic intelligence.

Mahat tattva is changeless. It is the root for the entire creation. This Mahat tattva makes visible the creation which is invisibly contained within it and destroys the utter darkness which had covered its brightness at the time of dissolution.

Yat tat sattva-guṇaṁ svacchaṁ śāntaṁ bhagavataḥ padam

Yad āhur vāsudevākhyaṁ cittaṁ tan mahad-ātmakam

Maharishis state that Pure Consciousness which is extolled by the scriptures; which is replete with traits of goodness (sattva), purity (svaccha) calmness (śanta) and which is the place where the Supreme Lord can be understood is Mahat tattva! This itself is Vāsudeva. It is deity of worship.

The inherent characteristic of Consciousness (cit) is that it is pure, changeless and calm. It can be compared to pure water in its natural stage prior touching earth.

Mahat tattva emerged from Pure Consciousness. It transformed and emerged as action-oriented ahamkara (sense of I-ness) which is of three types: goodness, passion or ignorance.

From ahamkara (sense of I-ness) mind, 10 senses and the 5 gross elements were born. Maharishis state that this ahamkara which is in the form of mind, senses and 5 gross elements, is none other than Lord Ananta. This Ananta, who has innumerable heads, is also known as Sankarshana.

Ahamkara has the following characteristics. In the form of Devatas (controlling deities), it assumes doership (kartrtva) of the action. In the form of the senses it assumes the role of an instrument (karanatva). In the form of the 5 gross elements, it assumes the role of the effect (kārya).

Ahamkara (sense of I-ness) influenced by traits of goodness (sattva) is tranquil and happy. When influenced by traits of passion (rajas) it is characterized by unsteadiness and violence. When influenced by traits of ignorance (tamas) it is characterized by infatuation and foolishness.

Satvik ahamkara (egoism born out of traits of goodness) transforms and from it mind is born.  From its intentions and imaginations, desires are born. This mind, which is the Lord of all the 10 senses, is known as Aniruddha. Aniruddha is bluish-black complexion like the winter lotus. Yogis gradually control their mind and then contemplate upon Him.

Thereafter rajasic ahamkara (egoism born out of traits of passion) transforms and from it intelligence is born. ‘Intelligence’ helps in learning about earth and about other objects that are under its purview. It helps the senses acquire knowledge about objects.

Doubts, confusion, decisiveness, recollection and deep sleep are the characteristics of intelligence (buddhi-tattva). Samśaya (doubts) implies having varied different types of understanding about a single object. Mistaking one object for another object means Viparya (confusion). It is mistaken identity. Firm decisive knowledge is Niscaya.

The organs of perception (jnanendriya) as well as the organs of action (karmendriya) emerge out of the traits of passion (rajasa ahamkara). Amongst them, action (karma) is dependent on energy of the life-force (praṇa) while perception is dependent on intelligence (buddhi).

The tamasa ahamkara (traits of ignorance) is instigated by the Lord’s Pure Consciousness and thereby transforms. From this subtle sound (sabda tanmatra) emerged. From this subtle sound, space was born.

Sound: The organ of hearing (ear) grasps the sound. Sound ensures that the meaning of the word is understood. To the person uttering the word, it helps him recollect. Sound is the subtle form of space.  All these are the characteristics of sound.

Space provides the opportunity for existence of objects within it. Moreover it pervades everything within and outside the object. That space which exists in the form of nadi-randhra becomes the shelter for the life-force (prana), mind and senses. These actions are the characteristics of space.

Wind &Touch: From the subtle sound, space was born. Due to the influence of time, this space transforms. From this transformation subtle touch (sparsha tanmatra) was born. Skin is the organ of touch perception. Heat, cold, softness and hardness are the characteristics of the touch.

From this subtle touch, wind was born. Wind is the cause for the movement of leaves and other objects. It gathers objects to one place. It is all pervading. It carries fragrances to the nose. It helps the sound reach the ear”.

Keshavaya namah