Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam: Canto 1: “Creation”
by His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupāda
Chapter Four
SB1.4.16
TEXT 16
parāvara-jñaḥ sa ṛṣiḥ
kālenāvyakta-raṁhasā
yuga-dharma-vyatikaraṁ
prāptaṁ bhuvi yuge yuge
SYNONYMS
para-avara—past and future; jñaḥ—one who knows; saḥ—he; ṛṣiḥ—Vyāsadeva; kālena—in the course of time; avyakta—unmanifested; raṁhasā—by great force; yuga-dharma—acts in terms of the millennium; vyatikaram—anomalies; prāptam—having accrued; bhuvi—on the earth; yuge yuge—different ages.
TRANSLATION
The great sage Vyāsadeva saw anomalies in the duties of the millennium. This happens on the earth in different ages, due to unseen forces in the course of time.
PURPORT
The great sages like Vyāsadeva are liberated souls, and therefore they can see clearly past and future. Thus he could see the future anomalies in the Kali age, and accordingly he made arrangement for the people in general so that they can execute a progressive life in this age, which is full of darkness. The people in general in this age of Kali are too much interested in matter, which is temporary. Because of ignorance they are unable to evaluate the assets of life and be enlightened in spiritual knowledge.
SB1.4.17-18 TEXTS 17–18 bhautikānāṁ ca bhāvānāṁ śakti-hrāsaṁ ca tat-kṛtam aśraddadhānān niḥsattvān durmedhān hrasitāyuṣaḥ durbhagāṁś ca janān vīkṣya munir divyena cakṣuṣā sarva-varṇāśramāṇāṁ yad dadhyau hitam amogha-dṛk SYNONYMS bhautikānām ca—also of everything that is made of matter; bhāvānām—actions; śakti-hrāsam ca—and deterioration of natural power; tat-kṛtam—rendered by that; aśraddadhānān—of the faithless; niḥsattvān—impatient due to want of the mode of goodness; durmedhān—dull-witted; hrasita—reduced; āyuṣaḥ—of duration of life; durbhagān ca—also the unlucky; janān—people in general; vīkṣya—by seeing; muniḥ—the muni; divyena—by transcendental; cakṣuṣā—vision; sarva—all; varṇa-āśramāṇām—of all the statuses and orders of life; yat—what; dadhyau—contemplated; hitam—welfare; amogha-dṛk—one who is fully equipped in knowledge.
TRANSLATION The great sage, who was fully equipped in knowledge, could see, through his transcendental vision, the deterioration of everything material, due to the influence of the age. He could also see that the faithless people in general would be reduced in duration of life and would be impatient due to lack of goodness. Thus he contemplated for the welfare of men in all statuses and orders of life. PURPORT The unmanifested forces of time are so powerful that they reduce all matter to oblivion in due course. In Kali-yuga, the last millennium of a round of four millenniums, the power of all material objects deteriorates by the influence of time. In this age the duration of the material body of the people in general is much reduced, and so is the memory. The action of matter has also not so much incentive. The land does not produce food grains in the same proportions as it did in other ages. The cow does not give as much milk as it used to give formerly. The production of vegetables and fruits is less than before. As such, all living beings, both men and animals, do not have sumptuous, nourishing food. Due to want of so many necessities of life, naturally the duration of life is reduced, the memory is short, intelligence is meager, mutual dealings are full of hypocrisy and so on.
The great sage Vyāsadeva could see this by his transcendental vision. As an astrologer can see the future fate of a man, or an astronomer can foretell the solar and lunar eclipses, those liberated souls who can see through the scriptures can foretell the future of all mankind. They can see this due to their sharp vision of spiritual attainment.
And all such transcendentalists, who are naturally devotees of the Lord, are always eager to render welfare service to the people in general. They are the real friends of the people in general, not the so-called public leaders who are unable to see what is going to happen five minutes ahead. In this age the people in general as well as their so-called leaders are all unlucky fellows, faithless in spiritual knowledge and influenced by the age of Kali. They are always disturbed by various diseases. For example, in the present age there are so many TB patients and TB hospitals, but formerly this was not so because the time was not so unfavorable. The unfortunate men of this age are always reluctant to give a reception to the transcendentalists who are representatives of Śrīla Vyāsadeva and selfless workers always busy in planning something which may help everyone in all statuses and orders of life. The greatest philanthropists are those transcendentalists who represent the mission of Vyāsa, Nārada, Madhva, Caitanya, Rūpa, Sarasvatī, etc. They are all one and the same. The personalities may be different, but the aim of the mission is one and the same, namely, to deliver the fallen souls back home, back to Godhead.
SB1.4.19 TEXT 19 cātur-hotraṁ karma śuddhaṁ prajānāṁ vīkṣya vaidikam vyadadhād yajña-santatyai vedam ekaṁ catur-vidham SYNONYMS cātuḥ—four; hotram—sacrificial fires; karma śuddham—purification of work; prajānām—of the people in general; vīkṣya—after seeing; vaidikam—according to Vedic rites; vyadadhāt—made into; yajña—sacrifice; santatyai—to expand; vedam ekam—only one Veda; catuḥ-vidham—in four divisions.
TRANSLATION He saw that the sacrifices mentioned in the Vedas were means by which the people’s occupations could be purified. And to simplify the process he divided the one Veda into four, in order to expand them among men. PURPORT Formerly there was only the Veda of the name Yajur, and the four divisions of sacrifices were there specifically mentioned. But to make them more easily performable, the Veda was divided into four divisions of sacrifice, just to purify the occupational service of the four orders. Above the four Vedas, namely Ṛg, Yajur, Sāma, and Atharva, there are the Purāṇas, the Mahābhārata, Saṁhitās, etc., which are known as the fifth Veda. Śrī Vyāsadeva and his many disciples were all historical personalities, and they were very kind and sympathetic toward the fallen souls of this age of Kali. As such, the Purāṇas and Mahābhārata were made from related historical facts which explained the teaching of the four Vedas. There is no point in doubting the authority of the Purāṇas and Mahābhārata as parts and parcels of the Vedas. In the Chāndogya Upaniṣad (7.1.4), the Purāṇas and Mahābhārata, generally known as histories, are mentioned as the fifth Veda. According to Śrīla Jīva Gosvāmī, that is the way of ascertaining the respective values of the revealed scriptures.
SB1.4.20 TEXT 20 ṛg-yajuḥ-sāmātharvākhyā vedāś catvāra uddhṛtāḥ itihāsa-purāṇaṁ ca pañcamo veda ucyate SYNONYMS ṛg-yajuḥ-sāma-atharva-ākhyāḥ—the names of the four Vedas; vedāḥ—the Vedas; catvāraḥ—four; uddhṛtāḥ—made into separate parts; itihāsa—historical records (Mahābhārata); purāṇam ca—and the Purāṇas; pañcamaḥ—the fifth; vedaḥ—the original source of knowledge; ucyate—is said to be.
TRANSLATION The four divisions of the original sources of knowledge [the Vedas] were made separately. But the historical facts and authentic stories mentioned in the Purāṇas are called the fifth Veda. SB1.4.21 TEXT 21 tatrarg-veda-dharaḥ pailaḥ sāmago jaiminiḥ kaviḥ vaiśampāyana evaiko niṣṇāto yajuṣām uta SYNONYMS tatra—thereupon; ṛg-veda-dharaḥ—the professor of the Ṛg Veda; pailaḥ—the ṛṣi named Paila; sāma-gaḥ—that of the Sāma Veda; jaiminiḥ—the ṛṣi named Jaimini; kaviḥ—highly qualified; vaiśampāyanaḥ—the ṛṣi named Vaiśampāyana; eva—only; ekaḥ—alone; niṣṇātaḥ—well versed; yajuṣām—of the Yajur Veda; uta—glorified.
TRANSLATION After the Vedas were divided into four divisions, Paila Ṛṣi became the professor of the Ṛg Veda, Jaimini the professor of the Sāma Veda, and Vaiśampāyana alone became glorified by the Yajur Veda. PURPORT The different Vedas were entrusted to different learned scholars for development in various ways.
SB1.4.22 TEXT 22 atharvāṅgirasām āsīt sumantur dāruṇo muniḥ itihāsa-purāṇānāṁ pitā me romaharṣaṇaḥ SYNONYMS atharva—the Atharva Veda; aṅgirasām—unto the ṛṣi Aṅgirā; āsīt—was entrusted; sumantuḥ—also known as Sumantu Muni; dāruṇaḥ—seriously devoted to the Atharva Veda; muniḥ—the sage; itihāsa-purāṇānām—of the historical records and the Purāṇas; pitā—father; me—mine; romaharṣaṇaḥ—the ṛṣi Romaharṣaṇa.
TRANSLATION The Sumantu Muni Aṅgirā, who was very devotedly engaged, was entrusted with the Atharva Veda. And my father, Romaharṣaṇa, was entrusted with the Purāṇas and historical record PURPORT In the śruti-mantras also it is stated that Aṅgirā Muni, who strictly followed the rigid principles of the Atharva Vedas, was the leader of the followers of the Atharva Vedas.
SB1.4.23 TEXT 23 ta eta ṛṣayo vedaṁ svaṁ svaṁ vyasyann anekadhā śiṣyaiḥ praśiṣyais tac-chiṣyair vedās te śākhino ’bhavan SYNONYMS te—they; ete—all these; ṛṣayaḥ—learned scholars; vedam—the respective Vedas; svam svam—in their own entrusted matters; vyasyan—rendered; anekadhā—many; śiṣyaiḥ—disciples; praśiṣyaiḥ—grand-disciples; tat-śiṣyaiḥ—great grand-disciples; vedāḥ te—followers of the respective Vedas; śākhinaḥ—different branches; abhavan—thus became.
TRANSLATION All these learned scholars, in their turn, rendered their entrusted Vedas unto their many disciples, grand-disciples and great grand-disciples, and thus the respective branches of the followers of the Vedas came into being. PURPORT The original source of knowledge is the Vedas. There are no branches of knowledge, either mundane or transcendental, which do not belong to the original text of the Vedas. They have simply been developed into different branches, They were originally rendered by great, respectable and learned professors. In other words, the Vedic knowledge, broken into different branches by different disciplic successions, has been distributed all over the world. No one, therefore, can claim independent knowledge beyond the Vedas.
SB1.4.24 TEXT 24 ta eva vedā durmedhair dhāryante puruṣair yathā evaṁ cakāra bhagavān vyāsaḥ kṛpaṇa-vatsalaḥ SYNONYMS te—that; eva—certainly; vedāḥ—the book of knowledge; durmedhaiḥ—by the less intellectual; dhāryante—can assimilate; puruṣaiḥ—by the man; yathā—as much as; evam—thus; cakāra—edited; bhagavān—the powerful; vyāsaḥ—the great sage of Vyāsa; kṛpaṇa-vatsalaḥ—very kind to the ignorant mass.
TRANSLATION Thus the great sage Vyāsadeva, who is very kind to the ignorant masses, edited the Vedas so they might be assimilated by less intellectual men. PURPORT The Veda is one, and the reasons for its divisions in many parts are explained herewith. The seed of all knowledge, or the Veda, is not a subject matter which can easily be understood by any ordinary man. There is a stricture that no one should try to learn the Vedas who is not a qualified brāhmaṇa. This stricture has been wrongly interpreted in so many ways. A class of men, who claim brahminical qualification simply by their birthright in the family of a brāhmaṇa, claim that the study of the Vedas is a monopoly of the brāhmaṇa caste only. Another section of the people take this as an injustice to members of other castes, who do not happen to take birth in a brāhmaṇa family. But both of them are misguided. The Vedas are subjects which had to be explained even to Brahmājī by the Supreme Lord. Therefore the subject matter is understood by persons with exceptional qualities of goodness. Persons who are in the modes of passion and ignorance are unable to understand the subject matter of the Vedas. The ultimate goal of Vedic knowledge is Śrī Kṛṣṇa, the Personality of Godhead. This Personality is very rarely understood by those who are in the modes of passion and ignorance. In the Satya-yuga everyone was situated in the mode of goodness. Gradually the mode of goodness declined during the Tretā and Dvāpara-yugas, and the general mass of people became corrupt. In the present age the mode of goodness is almost nil, and so for the general mass of people, the kindhearted, powerful sage Śrīla Vyāsadeva divided the Vedas in various ways so that they may be practically followed by less intelligent persons in the modes of passion and ignorance. It is explained in the next śloka as follows.
SB1.4.25 TEXT 25 strī-śūdra-dvijabandhūnāṁ trayī na śruti-gocarā karma-śreyasi mūḍhānāṁ śreya evaṁ bhaved iha iti bhāratam ākhyānaṁ kṛpayā muninā kṛtam SYNONYMS strī—the woman class; śūdra—the laboring class; dvija-bandhūnām—of the friends of the twice-born; trayī—three; na—not; śruti-gocarā—for understanding; karma—in activities; śreyasi—in welfare; mūḍhānām—of the fools; śreyaḥ—supreme benefit; evam—thus; bhavet—achieved; iha—by this; iti—thus thinking; bhāratam—the great Mahābhārata; ākhyānam—historical facts; kṛpayā—out of great mercy; muninā—by the muni; kṛtam—is completed.
TRANSLATION Out of compassion, the great sage thought it wise that this would enable men to achieve the ultimate goal of life. Thus he compiled the great historical narration called the Mahābhārata for women, laborers and friends of the twice-born. PURPORT The friends of the twice-born families are those who are born in the families of brāhmaṇas, kṣatriyas and vaiśyas, or the spiritually cultured families, but who themselves are not equal to their forefathers. Such descendants are not recognized as such, for want of purificatory achievements. The purificatory activities begin even before the birth of a child, and the seed-giving reformatory process is called Garbhādhāna-saṁskāra. One who has not undergone such Garbhādhāna-saṁskāra, or spiritual family planning, is not accepted as being of an actual twice-born family. The Garbhādhāna-saṁskāra is followed by other purificatory processes, out of which the sacred thread ceremony is one. This is performed at the time of spiritual initiation. After this particular saṁskāra, one is rightly called twice-born. One birth is calculated during the seed-giving saṁskāra, and the second birth is calculated at the time of spiritual initiation. One who has been able to undergo such important saṁskāras can be called a bona fide twice-born.
If the father and the mother do not undertake the process of spiritual family planning and simply beget children out of passion only, their children are called dvija-bandhus. These dvija-bandhus are certainly not as intelligent as the children of the regular twice-born families. The dvija-bandhus are classified with the śūdras and the woman class, who are by nature less intelligent. The śūdras and the woman class do not have to undergo any saṁskāra save and except the ceremony of marriage.
The less intelligent classes of men, namely women, śūdras and unqualified sons of the higher castes, are devoid of necessary qualifications to understand the purpose of the transcendental Vedas. For them the Mahābhārata was prepared. The purpose of the Mahābhārata is to administer the purpose of the Vedas, and therefore within this Mahābhārata the summary Veda of Bhagavad-gītā is placed. The less intelligent are more interested in stories than in philosophy, and therefore the philosophy of the Vedas in the form of the Bhagavad-gītā is spoken by the Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa. Vyāsadeva and Lord Kṛṣṇa are both on the transcendental plane, and therefore they collaborated in doing good to the fallen souls of this age. The Bhagavad-gītā is the essence of all Vedic knowledge. It is the first book of spiritual values, as the Upaniṣads are. The Vedānta philosophy is the subject matter for study by the spiritual graduates. Only the post-graduate spiritual student can enter into the spiritual or devotional service of the Lord. It is a great science, and the great professor is the Lord Himself in the form of Lord Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu. And persons who are empowered by Him can initiate others in the transcendental loving service of the Lord.
SB1.4.26 TEXT 26 evaṁ pravṛttasya sadā bhūtānāṁ śreyasi dvijāḥ sarvātmakenāpi yadā nātuṣyad dhṛdayaṁ tataḥ SYNONYMS evam—thus; pravṛttasya—one who is engaged in; sadā—always; bhūtānām—of the living beings; śreyasi—in the ultimate good; dvijāḥ—O twice-born; sarvātmakena api—by all means; yadā—when; na—not; atuṣyat—become satisfied; hṛdayam—mind; tataḥ—at that.
TRANSLATION O twice-born brāhmaṇas, still his mind was not satisfied, although he engaged himself in working for the total welfare of all people. PURPORT Śrī Vyāsadeva was not satisfied with himself, although he had prepared literatures of Vedic value for the all-around welfare of the general mass of people. It was expected that he would be satisfied by all such activities, but ultimately he was not satisfied.
SB1.4.27 TEXT 27 nātiprasīdad dhṛdayaḥ sarasvatyās taṭe śucau vitarkayan vivikta-stha idaṁ covāca dharma-vit SYNONYMS na—not; atiprasīdat—very much satisfied; hṛdayaḥ—at heart; sarasvatyāḥ—of the River Sarasvatī; taṭe—on the bank of; śucau—being purified; vitarkayan—having considered; vivikta-sthaḥ—situated in a lonely place; idam ca—also this; uvāca—said; dharma-vit—one who knows what religion is.
TRANSLATION Thus the sage, being dissatisfied at heart, at once began to reflect, because he knew the essence of religion, and he said within himself: PURPORT The sage began to search out the cause of not being satisfied at heart. Perfection is never attained until one is satisfied at heart. This satisfaction of heart has to be searched out beyond matter.
SB1.4.28-29 TEXTS 28–29 dhṛta-vratena hi mayā chandāṁsi guravo ’gnayaḥ mānitā nirvyalīkena gṛhītaṁ cānuśāsanam bhārata-vyapadeśena hy āmnāyārthaś ca pradarśitaḥ dṛśyate yatra dharmādi strī-śūdrādibhir apy uta SYNONYMS dhṛta-vratena—under a strict disciplinary vow; hi—certainly; mayā—by me; chandāṁsi—the Vedic hymns; guravaḥ—the spiritual masters; agnayaḥ—the sacrificial fire; mānitāḥ—properly worshiped; nirvyalīkena—without pretense; gṛhītam ca—also accepted; anuśāsanam—traditional discipline; bhārata—the Mahābhārata; vyapadeśena—by compilation of; hi—certainly; āmnāya-arthaḥ—import of disciplic succession; ca—and; pradarśitaḥ—properly explained; dṛśyate—by what is necessary; yatra—where; dharma-ādiḥ—the path of religion; strī-śūdra-ādibhiḥ api—even by women, śūdras, etc.; uta—spoken.
TRANSLATION I have, under strict disciplinary vows, unpretentiously worshiped the Vedas, the spiritual master and the altar of sacrifice. I have also abided by the rulings and have shown the import of disciplic succession through the explanation of the Mahābhārata, by which even women, śūdras and others [friends of the twice-born] can see the path of religion. PURPORT No one can understand the import of the Vedas without having undergone a strict disciplinary vow and disciplic succession. The Vedas, spiritual masters and sacrificial fire must be worshiped by the desiring candidate. All these intricacies of Vedic knowledge are systematically presented in the Mahābhārata for the understanding of the woman class, the laborer class and the unqualified members of brāhmaṇa, kṣatriya or vaiśya families. In this age, the Mahābhārata is more essential than the original Vedas.
SB1.4.30 TEXT 30 tathāpi bata me daihyo hy ātmā caivātmanā vibhuḥ asampanna ivābhāti brahma-varcasya sattamaḥ SYNONYMS tathāpi—although; bata—defect; me—mine; daihyaḥ—situated in the body; hi—certainly; ātmā—living being; ca—and; eva—even; ātmanā—myself; vibhuḥ—sufficient; asampannaḥ—wanting in; iva ābhāti—it appears to be; brahma-varcasya—of the Vedāntists; sattamaḥ—the supreme.
TRANSLATION I am feeling incomplete, though I myself am fully equipped with everything required by the Vedas. PURPORT Undoubtedly Śrīla Vyāsadeva was complete in all the details of Vedic achievements. Purification of the living being submerged in matter is made possible by the prescribed activities in the Vedas, but the ultimate achievement is different. Unless it is attained, the living being, even though fully equipped, cannot be situated in the transcendentally normal stage. Śrīla Vyāsadeva appeared to have lost the clue and therefore felt dissatisfaction.
SB1.4.31 TEXT 31 kiṁ vā bhāgavatā dharmā na prāyeṇa nirūpitāḥ priyāḥ paramahaṁsānāṁ ta eva hy acyuta-priyāḥ SYNONYMS kim vā—or; bhāgavatāḥ dharmāḥ—devotional activities of the living beings; na—not; prāyeṇa—almost; nirūpitāḥ—directed; priyāḥ—dear; paramahaṁsānām—of the perfect beings; te eva—that also; hi—certainly; acyuta—the infallible; priyāḥ—attractive.
TRANSLATION This may be because I did not specifically point out the devotional service of the Lord, which is dear both to perfect beings and to the infallible Lord. PURPORT The dissatisfaction which was being felt by Śrīla Vyāsadeva is expressed herein in his own words. This was felt for the normal condition of the living being in the devotional service of the Lord. Unless one is fixed in the normal condition of service, neither the Lord nor the living being can become fully satisfied. This defect was felt by him when Nārada Muni, his spiritual master, reached him. It is described as follows.
SB1.4.32 TEXT 32 tasyaivaṁ khilam ātmānaṁ manyamānasya khidyataḥ kṛṣṇasya nārado ’bhyāgād āśramaṁ prāg udāhṛtam SYNONYMS tasya—his; evam—thus; khilam—inferior; ātmānam—soul; manyamānasya—thinking within the mind; khidyataḥ—regretting; kṛṣṇasya—of Kṛṣṇa-dvaipāyana Vyāsa; nāradaḥ abhyāgāt—Nārada came there; āśramam—the cottage; prāk—before; udāhṛtam—said.
TRANSLATION As mentioned before, Nārada reached the cottage of Kṛṣṇa-dvaipāyana Vyāsa on the banks of the Sarasvatī just as Vyāsadeva was regretting his defects. PURPORT The vacuum felt by Vyāsadeva was not due to his lack of knowledge. Bhāgavata-dharma is purely devotional service of the Lord to which the monist has no access. The monist is not counted amongst the paramahaṁsas (the most perfect of the renounced order of life). Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam is full of narrations of the transcendental activities of the Personality of Godhead. Although Vyāsadeva was an empowered divinity, he still felt dissatisfaction because in none of his works were the transcendental activities of the Lord properly explained. The inspiration was infused by Śrī Kṛṣṇa directly in the heart of Vyāsadeva, and thus he felt the vacuum as explained above. It is definitely expressed herewith that without the transcendental loving service of the Lord, everything is void; but in the transcendental service of the Lord, everything is tangible without any separate attempt at fruitive work or empiric philosophical speculation.
SB1.4.33 TEXT 33 tam abhijñāya sahasā pratyutthāyāgataṁ muniḥ pūjayām āsa vidhivan nāradaṁ sura-pūjitam SYNONYMS tam abhijñāya—seeing the good fortune of his (Nārada’s) arrival; sahasā—all of a sudden; pratyutthāya—getting up; āgatam—arrived at; muniḥ—Vyāsadeva; pūjayām āsa—worship; vidhi-vat—with the same respect as offered to Vidhi (Brahmā); nāradam—to Nārada; sura-pūjitam—worshiped by the demigods.
TRANSLATION At the auspicious arrival of Śrī Nārada, Śrī Vyāsadeva got up respectfully and worshiped him, giving him veneration equal to that given to Brahmājī, the creator. PURPORT Vidhi means Brahmā, the first created living being. He is the original student as well as professor of the Vedas. He learned it from Śrī Kṛṣṇa and taught Nārada first. So Nārada is the second ācārya in the line of spiritual disciplic succession. He is the representative of Brahmā, and therefore he is respected exactly like Brahmā, the father of all vidhis (regulations); similarly all other successive disciples in the chain are also equally respected as representatives of the original spiritual master.
Thus end the Bhaktivedanta purports of the First Canto, Fourth Chapter, of the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, entitled “The Appearance of Śrī Nārada.” THIS WEB PAGE URL: http://causelessmercy.com/SB1.4.1.htm