Srimad-Bhagavatam: Canto 1: “Creation”
by His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada
Chapter Nineteen
The Appearance of Sukadeva Gosvami
SB1.19.1
TEXT 1
suta uvaca
mahi-patis tv atha tat-karma garhyam
vicintayann atma-krtam sudurmanah
aho maya nicam anarya-vat krtam
niragasi brahmani gudha-tejasi
SYNONYMS
sutah uvaca—Suta Gosvami said; mahi-patih—the King; tu—but; atha—thus (while coming back home); tat—that; karma—act; garhyam—abominable; vicintayan—thus thinking; atma-krtam—done by himself; su-durmanah—very much depressed; aho—alas; maya—by me; nicam—heinous; anarya—uncivilized; vat—like; krtam—done; niragasi—unto one who is faultless; brahmani—unto a brahmana; gudha—grave; tejasi—unto the powerful.
TRANSLATION
Sri Suta Gosvami said: While returning home, the King [Maharaja Pariksit] felt that the act he had committed against the faultless and powerful brahmana was heinous and uncivilized. Consequently he was distressed.
PURPORT
The pious King regretted his accidental improper treatment of the powerful brahmana, who was faultless. Such repentance is natural for a good man like the King, and such repentance delivers a devotee from all kinds of sins accidentally committed. The devotees are naturally faultless. Accidental sins committed by a devotee are sincerely regretted, and by the grace of the Lord all sins unwillingly committed by a devotee are burnt in the fire of repentance. SB1.19.2 TEXT 2 dhruvam tato me krta-deva-helanad duratyayam vyasanam nati-dirghat tad astu kamam hy agha-niskrtaya me yatha na kuryam punar evam addha SYNONYMS dhruvam—sure and certain; tatah—therefore; me—my; krta-deva-helanat—because of disobeying the orders of the Lord; duratyayam—very difficult; vyasanam—calamity; na—not; ati—greatly; dirghat—far off; tat—that; astu—let it be; kamam—desire without reservations; hi—certainly; agha—sins; niskrtaya—for getting free; me—my; yatha—so that; na—never; kuryam—shall I do it; punah—again; evam—as I have done; addha—directly. TRANSLATION [King Pariksit thought:] Due to my neglecting the injunctions of the Supreme Lord I must certainly expect some difficulty to overcome me in the near future. I now desire without reservation that the calamity come now, for in this way I may be freed of the sinful action and not commit such an offense again. PURPORT The Supreme Lord enjoins that brahmanas and cows must be given all protection. The Lord is Himself very much inclined to do good to brahmanas and cows (go-brahmana-hitaya ca). Maharaja Pariksit knew all this, and thus he concluded that his insulting a powerful brahmana was certainly to be punished by the laws of the Lord, and he was expecting something very difficult in the very near future. He therefore desired the imminent calamity to fall on him and not on his family members. A man’s personal misconduct affects all his family members. Therefore Maharaja Pariksit desired the calamity to fall on him alone. By suffering personally he would be restrained from future sins, and at the same time the sin which he had committed would be counteracted so that his descendants would not suffer. That is the way a responsible devotee thinks. The family members of a devotee also share the effects of a devotee’s service unto the Lord. Maharaja Prahlada saved his demon father by his personal devotional service. A devotee son in the family is the greatest boon or blessing of the Lord. SB1.19.3 TEXT 3 adyaiva rajyam balam rddha-kosam prakopita-brahma-kulanalo me dahatv abhadrasya punar na me ’bhut papiyasi dhir dvija-deva-gobhyah SYNONYMS adya—this day; eva—on the very; rajyam—kingdom; balam rddha—strength and riches; kosam—treasury; prakopita—ignited by; brahma-kula—by the brahmana community; analah—fire; me dahatu—let it burn me; abhadrasya—inauspiciousness; punah—again; na—not; me—unto me; abhut—may occur; papiyasi—sinful; dhih—intelligence; dvija—brahmanas; deva—the Supreme Lord; gobhyah—and the cows. TRANSLATION I am uncivilized and sinful due to my neglect of brahminical culture, God consciousness and cow protection. Therefore I wish that my kingdom, strength and riches burn up immediately by the fire of the brahmana’s wrath so that in the future I may not be guided by such inauspicious attitudes. PURPORT Progressive human civilization is based on brahminical culture, God consciousness and protection of cows. All economic development of the state by trade, commerce, agriculture and industries must be fully utilized in relation to the above principles, otherwise all so-called economic development becomes a source of degradation. Cow protection means feeding the brahminical culture, which leads towards God consciousness, and thus perfection of human civilization is achieved. The age of Kali aims at killing the higher principles of life, and although Maharaja Pariksit strongly resisted the domination of the personality of Kali within the world, the influence of the age of Kali came at an opportune moment, and even a strong king like Maharaja Pariksit was induced to disregard the brahminical culture due to a slight provocation of hunger and thirst. Maharaja Pariksit lamented the accidental incident, and he desired that all his kingdom, strength and accumulation of wealth would be burned up for not being engaged in brahminical culture, etc. Where wealth and strength are not engaged in the advancement of brahminical culture, God consciousness and cow protection, the state and home are surely doomed by Providence. If we want peace and prosperity in the world, we should take lessons from this verse; every state and every home must endeavor to advance the cause of brahminical culture for self-purification, God consciousness for self-realization and cow protection for getting sufficient milk and the best food to continue a perfect civilization. SB1.19.4 TEXT 4 sa cintayann ittham athasrnod yatha muneh sutokto nirrtis taksakakhyah sa sadhu mene na cirena taksaka- nalam prasaktasya virakti-karanam SYNONYMS sah—he, the King; cintayan—thinking; ittham—like this; atha—now; asrnot—heard; yatha—as; muneh—of the sage; suta-uktah—uttered by the son; nirrtih—death; taksaka-akhyah—in relation with the snake-bird; sah—he (the King); sadhu—well and good; mene—accepted; na—not; cirena—very long time; taksaka—snake-bird; analam—fire; prasaktasya—for one who is too attached; virakti—indifference; karanam—cause. TRANSLATION While the King was thus repenting, he received news of his imminent death, which would be due to the bite of a snake-bird, occasioned by the curse spoken by the sage’s son. The King accepted this as good news, for it would be the cause of his indifference toward worldly things. PURPORT Real happiness is achieved by spiritual existence or by cessation of the repetition of birth and death. One can stop the repetition of birth and death only by going back to Godhead. In the material world, even by attaining the topmost planet (Brahmaloka), one cannot get rid of the conditions of repeated birth and death, but still we do not accept the path of attaining perfection. The path of perfection frees one from all material attachments, and thus one becomes fit to enter into the spiritual kingdom. Therefore, those who are materially poverty-stricken are better candidates than those who are materially prosperous. Maharaja Pariksit was a great devotee of the Lord and a bona fide candidate for entering into the kingdom of God, but even though he was so, his material assets as the Emperor of the world were setbacks to perfect attainment of his rightful status as one of the associates of the Lord in the spiritual sky. As a devotee of the Lord, he could understand that the cursing of the brahmana boy, although unwise, was a blessing upon him, being the cause of detachment from worldly affairs, both political and social. Samika Muni also, after regretting the incident, conveyed the news to the King as a matter of duty so that the King would be able to prepare himself to go back to Godhead. Samika Muni sent news to the King that foolish Srngi, his son, although a powerful brahmana boy, unfortunately had misused his spiritual power by cursing the King unwarrantedly. The incident of the King’s garlanding the muni was not sufficient cause for being cursed to death, but since there was no way to retract the curse, the King was informed to prepare for death within a week. Both Samika Muni and the King were self-realized souls. Samika Muni was a mystic, and Maharaja Pariksit was a devotee. Therefore there was no difference between them in self-realization. Neither of them was afraid of meeting death. Maharaja Pariksit could have gone to the muni to beg his pardon, but the news of imminent death was conveyed to the King with so much regret by the muni that the King did not want to shame the muni further by his presence there. He decided to prepare himself for his imminent death and find out the way to go back to Godhead. The life of a human being is a chance to prepare oneself to go back to Godhead, or to get rid of the material existence, the repetition of birth and death. Thus in the system of varnasrama-dharma every man and woman is trained for this purpose. In other words, the system of varnasrama-dharma is known also as sanatana-dharma, or the eternal occupation. The system of varnasrama-dharma prepares a man for going back to Godhead, and thus a householder is ordered to go to the forest as vanaprastha to acquire complete knowledge and then to take sannyasa prior to his inevitable death. Pariksit Maharaja was fortunate to get a seven-day notice to meet his inevitable death. But for the common man there is no definite notice, although death is inevitable for all. Foolish men forget this sure fact of death and neglect the duty of preparing themselves for going back to Godhead. They spoil their lives in animal propensities to eat, drink, be merry and enjoy. Such an irresponsible life is adopted by the people in the age of Kali because of a sinful desire to condemn brahminical culture, God consciousness and cow protection, for which the state is responsible. The state must employ revenue to advance these three items and thus educate the populace to prepare for death. The state which does so is the real welfare state. The state of India should better follow the examples of Maharaja Pariksit, the ideal executive head, than to imitate other materialistic states which have no idea of the kingdom of Godhead, the ultimate goal of human life. Deterioration of the ideals of Indian civilization has brought about the deterioration of civic life, not only in India but also abroad. SB1.19.5 TEXT 5 atho vihayemam amum ca lokam vimarsitau heyataya purastat krsnanghri-sevam adhimanyamana upavisat prayam amartya-nadyam SYNONYMS atho—thus; vihaya—giving up; imam—this; amum—and the next; ca—also; lokam—planets; vimarsitau—all of them being judged; heyataya—because of inferiority; purastat—hereinbefore; krsna-anghri—the lotus feet of the Lord, Sri Krsna; sevam—transcendental loving service; adhimanyamanah—one who thinks of the greatest of all achievements; upavisat—sat down firmly; prayam—for fasting; amartya-nadyam—on the bank of the transcendental river (the Ganges or the Yamuna). TRANSLATION Maharaja Pariksit sat down firmly on the banks of the Ganges to concentrate his mind in Krsna consciousness, rejecting all other practices of self-realization, because transcendental loving service to Krsna is the greatest achievement, superseding all other methods. PURPORT For a devotee like Maharaja Pariksit, none of the material planets, even the topmost Brahmaloka, is as desirable as Goloka Vrndavana, the abode of Lord Sri Krsna, the primeval Lord and original Personality of Godhead. This earth is one of the innumerable material planets within the universe, and there are innumerable universes also within the compass of the mahat-tattva. The devotees are told by the Lord and His representatives, the spiritual masters or acaryas, that not one of the planets within all the innumerable universes is suitable for the residential purposes of a devotee. The devotee always desires to go back home, back to Godhead, just to become one of the associates of the Lord in the capacity of servitor, friend, parent or conjugal lover of the Lord, either in one of the innumerable Vaikuntha planets or in Goloka Vrndavana, the planet of Lord Sri Krsna. All these planets are eternally situated in the spiritual sky, the paravyoma, which is on the other side of the Causal Ocean within the mahat-tattva. Maharaja Pariksit was already aware of all this information due to his accumulated piety and birth in a high family of devotees, Vaisnavas, and thus he was not at all interested in the material planets. Modern scientists are very eager to reach the moon by material arrangements, but they cannot conceive of the highest planet of this universe. But a devotee like Maharaja Pariksit does not care a fig for the moon or, for that matter, any of the material planets. So when he was assured of his death on a fixed date, he became more determined in the transcendental loving service of Lord Krsna by complete fasting on the bank of the transcendental River Yamuna, which flows down by the capital of Hastinapura (in the Delhi state). Both the Ganges and the Yamuna are amartya (transcendental) rivers, and Yamuna is still more sanctified for the following reasons. SB1.19.6 TEXT 6 ya vai lasac-chri-tulasi-vimisra- krsnanghri-renv-abhyadhikambu-netri punati lokan ubhayatra sesan kas tam na seveta marisyamanah SYNONYMS ya—the river which; vai—always; lasat—floating with; sri-tulasi—tulasi leaves; vimisra—mixed; krsna-anghri—the lotus feet of the Lord, Sri Krsna; renu—dust; abhyadhika—auspicious; ambu—water; netri—that which is carrying; punati—sanctifies; lokan—planets; ubhayatra—both the upper and lower or inside and outside; sa-isan—along with Lord Siva; kah—who else; tam—that river; na—does not; seveta—worship; marisyamanah—one who is to die at any moment. TRANSLATION The river [Ganges, by which the King sat to fast] carries the most auspicious water, which is mixed with the dust of the lotus feet of the Lord and tulasi leaves. Therefore that water sanctifies the three worlds inside and outside and even sanctifies Lord Siva and other demigods. Consequently everyone who is destined to die must take shelter of this river. PURPORT Maharaja Pariksit, just after receiving the news of his death within seven days, at once retired from family life and shifted himself to the sacred bank of the Yamuna River. Generally it is said that the King took shelter on the bank of the Ganges, but according to Srila Jiva Gosvami, the King took shelter on the bank of the Yamuna. Srila Jiva Gosvami’s statement appears to be more accurate because of the geographical situation. Maharaja Pariksit resided in his capital Hastinapura, situated near present Delhi, and the River Yamuna flows down past the city. Naturally the King would take shelter of the River Yamuna because she was flowing past his palace door. And as far as sanctity is concerned, the River Yamuna is more directly connected with Lord Krsna than the Ganges. The Lord sanctified the River Yamuna from the beginning of His transcendental pastimes in the world. While His father Vasudeva was crossing the Yamuna with the baby Lord Krsna for a safe place at Gokula on the other bank of the river from Mathura, the Lord fell down in the river, and by the dust of His lotus feet the river at once became sanctified. It is especially mentioned herein that Maharaja Pariksit took shelter of that particular river which is beautifully flowing, carrying the dust of the lotus feet of Lord Krsna, mixed with tulasi leaves. Lord Krsna’s lotus feet are always besmeared with the tulasi leaves, and thus as soon as His lotus feet contact the water of the Ganges and the Yamuna, the rivers become at once sanctified. The Lord, however, contacted the River Yamuna more than the Ganges. According to the Varaha Purana, as quoted by Srila Jiva Gosvami, there is no difference between the water of the Ganges and the Yamuna, but when the water of the Ganges is sanctified one hundred times, it is called the Yamuna. Similarly, it is said in the scriptures that one thousand names of Visnu are equal to one name of Rama, and three names of Lord Rama are equal to one name of Krsna. SB1.19.7 TEXT 7 iti vyavacchidya sa pandaveyah prayopavesam prati visnu-padyam dadhau mukundanghrim ananya-bhavo muni-vrato mukta-samasta-sangah SYNONYMS iti—thus; vyavacchidya—having decided; sah—the King; pandaveyah—worthy descendant of the Pandavas; praya-upavesam—for fasting until death; prati—toward; visnu-padyam—on the bank of the Ganges (emanating from the lotus feet of Lord Visnu); dadhau—gave himself up; mukunda-anghrim—unto the lotus feet of Lord Krsna; ananya—without deviation; bhavah—spirit; muni-vratah—with the vows of a sage; mukta—liberated from; samasta—all kinds of; sangah—association. TRANSLATION Thus the King, the worthy descendant of the Pandavas, decided once and for all and sat on the Ganges’ bank to fast until death and give himself up to the lotus feet of Lord Krsna, who alone is able to award liberation. So, freeing himself from all kinds of associations and attachments, he accepted the vows of a sage. PURPORT The water of the Ganges sanctifies all the three worlds, including the gods and the demigods, because it emanates from the lotus feet of the Personality of Godhead Visnu. Lord Krsna is the fountainhead of the principle of visnu-tattva, and therefore shelter of His lotus feet can deliver one from all sins, including an offense committed by a king unto a brahmana. Maharaja Pariksit, therefore, decided to meditate upon the lotus feet of Lord Sri Krsna, who is Mukunda, or the giver of liberations of all description. The banks of the Ganges or the Yamuna give one a chance to remember the Lord continuously. Maharaja Pariksit freed himself from all sorts of material association and meditated upon the lotus feet of Lord Krsna, and that is the way of liberation. To be free from all material association means to cease completely from committing any further sins. To meditate upon the lotus feet of the Lord means to become free from the effects of all previous sins. The conditions of the material world are so made that one has to commit sins willingly or unwillingly, and the best example is Maharaja Pariksit himself, who was a recognized sinless, pious king. But he also became a victim of an offense, even though he was ever unwilling to commit such a mistake. He was cursed also, but because he was a great devotee of the Lord, even such reverses of life became favorable. The principle is that one should not willingly commit any sin in his life and should constantly remember the lotus feet of the Lord without deviation. Only in such a mood will the Lord help the devotee make regular progress toward the path of liberation and thus attain the lotus feet of the Lord. Even if there are accidental sins committed by the devotee, the Lord saves the surrendered soul from all sins, as confirmed in all scriptures. sva-pada-mulam bhajatah priyasya (Bhag. 11.5.42) SB1.19.8 TEXT 8 tatropajagmur bhuvanam punana mahanubhava munayah sa-sisyah prayena tirthabhigamapadesaih svayam hi tirthani punanti santah SYNONYMS tatra—there; upajagmuh—arrived; bhuvanam—the universe; punanah—those who can sanctify; maha-anubhavah—great minds; munayah—thinkers; sa-sisyah—along with their disciples; prayena—almost; tirtha—place of pilgrimage; abhigama—journey; apadesaih—on the plea of; svayam—personally; hi—certainly; tirthani—all the places of pilgrimage; punanti—sanctify; santah—sages. TRANSLATION At that time all the great minds and thinkers, accompanied by their disciples, and sages who could verily sanctify a place of pilgrimage just by their presence, arrived there on the plea of making a pilgrim’s journey. PURPORT When Maharaja Pariksit sat down on the bank of the Ganges, the news spread in all directions of the universe, and the great-minded sages, who could follow the importance of the occasion, all arrived there on the plea of pilgrimage. Actually they came to meet Maharaja Pariksit and not to take a bath of pilgrimage because all of them were competent enough to sanctify the places of pilgrimage. Common men go to pilgrimage sites to get themselves purified of all sins. Thus the places of pilgrimage become overburdened with the sins of others. But when such sages visit overburdened places of pilgrimage, they sanctify the places by their presence. Therefore the sages who came to meet Maharaja Pariksit were not very much interested in getting themselves purified like common men, but on the plea of taking a bath in that place they came to meet Maharaja Pariksit because they could foresee that Srimad-Bhagavatam would be spoken by Sukadeva Gosvami. All of them wanted to take advantage of the great occasion. SB1.19.9-10 TEXTS 9–10 atrir vasisthas cyavanah saradvan aristanemir bhrgur angiras ca parasaro gadhi-suto ’tha rama utathya indrapramadedhmavahau medhatithir devala arstiseno bharadvajo gautamah pippaladah maitreya aurvah kavasah kumbhayonir dvaipayano bhagavan naradas ca SYNONYMS atri to narada—all names of the different saintly personalities who arrived there from different parts of the universe. TRANSLATION From different parts of the universe there arrived great sages like Atri, Cyavana, Saradvan, Aristanemi, Bhrgu, Vasistha, Parasara, Visvamitra, Angira, Parasurama, Utathya, Indrapramada, Idhmavahu, Medhatithi, Devala, Arstisena, Bharadvaja, Gautama, Pippalada, Maitreya, Aurva, Kavasa, Kumbhayoni, Dvaipayana and the great personality Narada. PURPORT Cyavana: A great sage and one of the sons of Bhrgu Muni. He was born prematurely when his pregnant mother was kidnapped. Cyavana is one of the six sons of his father. Bhrgu: When Brahmaji was performing a great sacrifice on behalf of Varuna, Maharsi Bhrgu was born from the sacrificial fire. He was a great sage, and his very dear wife was Puloma. He could travel in space like Durvasa, Narada and others, and he used to visit all the planets of the universe. Before the Battle of Kuruksetra, he tried to stop the battle. Sometimes he instructed Bharadvaja Muni about astronomical evolution, and he is the author of the great Bhrgu-samhita, the great astrological calculation. He explained how air, fire, water and earth are generated from ether. He explained how the air in the stomach works and regulates the intestines. As a great philosopher, he logically established the eternity of the living entity (Mahabharata). He was also a great anthropologist, and the theory of evolution was long ago explained by him. He was a scientific propounder of the four divisions and orders of human society known as the varnasrama institution. He converted the ksatriya king Vitahavya into a brahmana. Vasistha: See Srimad-Bhagavatam 1.9.6. Parasara: He is the grandson of Vasistha Muni and father of Vyasadeva. He is the son of Maharsi Sakti, and his mother’s name was Adrsyati. He was in the womb of his mother when she was only twelve years old. And from within the womb of his mother he learned the Vedas. His father was killed by a demon, Kalmasapada, and to avenge this he wanted to annihilate the whole world. He was restrained, however, by his grandfather Vasistha. He then performed a Raksasa-killing yajna, but Maharsi Pulastya restrained him. He begot Vyasadeva, being attracted by Satyavati, who was to become the wife of Maharaja Santanu. By the blessings of Parasara, Satyavati became fragrant for miles. He was present also during the time of Bhisma’s death. He was spiritual master of Maharaja Janaka and a great devotee of Lord Siva. He is the author of many Vedic scriptures and sociological directions. Gadhi-suta, or Visvamitra: A great sage of austerity and mystic power. He is famous as Gadhi-suta because his father was Gadhi, a powerful king of the province of Kanyakubja (part of Uttara Pradesh). Although he was a ksatriya by birth, he became a brahmana in the very same body by the power of his spiritual achievements. He picked a quarrel with Vasistha Muni when he was a ksatriya king and performed a great sacrifice in cooperation with Maganga Muni and thus was able to vanquish the sons of Vasistha. He became a great yogi, and yet he failed to check his senses and thus was obliged to become the father of Sakuntala, the beauty queen of world history. Once, when he was a ksatriya king, he visited the hermitage of Vasistha Muni, and he was given a royal reception. Visvamitra wanted from Vasistha a cow named Nandini, and the Muni refused to deliver it. Visvamitra stole the cow, and thus there was a quarrel between the sage and the King. Visvamitra was defeated by the spiritual strength of Vasistha, and thus the King decided to become a brahmana. Before becoming a brahmana he underwent severe austerity on the bank of the Kausika. He was also one who tried to stop the Kuruksetra war. Angira: He is one of the six mental sons of Brahma and the father of Brhaspati, the great learned priest of the demigods in the heavenly planets. He was born of the semen of Brahmaji given to a cinder of fire. Utathya and Samvarta are his sons. It is said that he is still performing austerity and chanting the holy name of the Lord at a place known as Alokananda on the banks of the Ganges. Parasurama: See Srimad-Bhagavatam 1.9.6. Utathya: One of the three sons of Maharsi Angira. He was the spiritual master of Maharaja Mandhata. He married Bhadra, the daughter of Soma (moon). Varuna kidnapped his wife Bhadra, and to retaliate the offense of the god of water, he drank all the water of the world. Medhatithi: An old sage of yore. An assembly member of the heavenly King Indradeva. His son was Kanva Muni, who brought up Sakuntala in the forest. He was promoted to the heavenly planet by strictly following the principles of retired life (vanaprastha). Devala: A great authority like Narada Muni and Vyasadeva. His good name is on the list of authorities mentioned in the Bhagavad-gita when Arjuna acknowledged Lord Krsna as the Supreme Personality of Godhead. He met Maharaja Yudhisthira after the Battle of Kuruksetra, and he was the elder brother of Dhaumya, the priest of the Pandava family. Like the ksatriyas, he also allowed his daughter to select her own husband in a svayamvara meeting, and at that ceremony all the bachelor sons of the rsis were invited. According to some, he is not Asita Devala. Bharadvaja: See Srimad-Bhagavatam 1.9.6. Gautama: One of the seven great sages of the universe. Saradvan Gautama was one of his sons. Persons in the Gautama-gotra (dynasty) today are either his family descendants or in his disciplic succession. The brahmanas who profess Gautama-gotra are generally family descendants, and the ksatriyas and vaisyas who profess Gautama-gotra are all in the line of his disciplic succession. He was the husband of the famous Ahalya who turned into stone when Indradeva, the King of the heaven, molested her. Ahalya was delivered by Lord Ramacandra. Gautama was the grandfather of Krpacarya, one of the heroes of the Battle of Kuruksetra. Maitreya: A great rsi of yore. He was spiritual master of Vidura and a great religious authority. He advised Dhrtarastra to keep good relations with the Pandavas. Duryodhana disagreed and thus was cursed by him. He met Vyasadeva and had religious discourses with him.
tyaktany abhavasya harih paresah
vikarma yac cotpatitam kathancid
dhunoti sarvam hrdi sannivistah