Tuesday, March 07, 2006
Story 15 – Vow of Parikshit
Srimad Bhagavatham – A Spiritual Insight - Story 15 – Vow of Parikshit
Suta continues (1st Skandha 19th Chapter):
After leaving from the forest, Parikshit regretted for whatever he had done (for putting the dead corpse of a snake in the shoulder or over the neck of the sage). He thought that whatever he had done was not something to be done by a king and that too towards a Brahmana who was immersed in Samadhi. But Parikshit did not stop with mere regret, but instead he made himself ready for whatever he had to do for expiating the sin. After this, Parikshit came to know about the curse that Takshaka will bite him and he will die on the seventh day. Hearing this, Parikshit was happy that atleast his bad karma could be destroyed by the curse.
Atho Vihaayeemam amum cha lokam vimarshithau heyathayaa purasthaat
Krishnaangri sevamadhimanyamaana upaavishatpraayam marthyanadhyaam
After knowing thus, Parikshit renounced all desire for the world here & hear-after – he decided to contemplate on the lotus feet of the Lord and thereby went to the shore of ganges, built a hut there & started living like a hermit or sage.
When he was living there, many sages came and visited him. At that time, he asked two important questions to the sages and requested to answer the same: 1. What should a person do at normal circumstances and surroundings? 2. What should a person do when he is about to die?
When Parikshit was asking the questions, Shuka came to the place. He was glowing with light and luminosity. But he was looking externally as a crazy mad man. He was wearing nothing; his hair was falling throughout his face. Women and children were following him and throwing stones at him. But he was unaffected by anything. Seeing shuka, all the sages stood up and prostrated him (as they already knew about his external appearance also). At that time, Parikshit also prostrated shuka and put forth the above two questions to Shuka.
Shuka, out of compassion, answered the question as follows (which is the rest of the Srimad Bhagavatham text).
Explanation
A real seeker will regret after knowing his mistakes. Even in normal life, he is a fool who doesn’t accept his mistakes and tries to rectify them. Similarly a seeker will always accept whatever mistakes he has done. But he will not just stop there with regretting about the mistake but instead will try to avoid making the same mistake and will try to contemplate on the Lord with more energy and devotion. This is what Parikshit also did – he regretted for the mistake he had done. And therefore he could openly accept the curse as a blessing. Therefore, since he knew what was to happen to him after seven days, he took up the job of contemplating on the ultimate reality Lord and thereby getting rid of the ocean of samsaara or birth and deaths.
Since Parikshit accepted the curse and started to contemplate on the ultimate reality of Lord, he got the divine blessing of listening to the beautiful work of Srimad Bhagavatham from the mouth of Brahmarishi Shuka – thereby passing on the work to the people in the world (we have received the work through Parikshit alone).
Thus, a seeker should always accept everything as a blessing of the Lord. If something good happens, then it is HIS blessing. If something bad happens, then it is HIS wish. And this is the ultimate reality also that everything is the Lord alone. If everything is the Lord alone, what is good and what is bad? Good and bad, blessing and curse are all dependent on differences. But since there is only the Lord here, there is no good and no bad – whatever is present is only the Lord of the nature of Bliss absolute.
If this ultimate reality is known or remembered, the individual will always accept everything as a blessing of the Lord and thereby will be ever cheerful and happy.
Parikshit was not sad with the curse but took it as a blessing by which he could overcome the attachment he had to the world. The curse destroyed the attachment and thereby he was able to contemplate on the Lord by renouncing everything and staying near the Ganges.
Thus, we all should always try to accept everything as the blessing of the Lord – this is possible only when a person constantly remembers the Lord.
Next we see Shuka’s entry into the place where Parikshit was staying. In Shuka, Srimad Bhagavatham puts forth the nature of a realized being. He will not at all be affected the various activities in the world. He will be ever blissful. He will be ever detached from the world (even though externally he might seem to be attached to people). Even though children were throwing stones at Shuka, he was not at all affected by it because he was ever immersed in the ultimate reality of Lord or Consciousness and knew the reality that there is nothing here but the Lord alone, one without a second.
It is not enough to accept a person as a realized being. But what is required from a seeker is to approach them and put them questions in order to get from them the path towards the ultimate reality and path towards realization. Thus, we see each of us just accepting Ramana, Sankara, Sri Ramakrishna, Sadguru Mata Amritanandamayi Devi, Sri Sri Ravishankar, Sri Sathya Sai Baba etc. as realized beings but not surrendering to them or putting their words into practice.
A person might read the gospel of Sri Ramakrishna and quote from it at any time, but this is not what is to be achieved through the gospel. What is required is practice of the ideals put forth in the gospel. If that is not done, the reading itself is a mere waste.
Therefore, a real seeker should try to identify in Guru and should surrender to the person completely. Then he should follow whatever words the Mahatma tells so that one may remove the veils of ignorance & thereby realize one’s own real nature of Existence, Consciousness and Bliss absolute.
The above words are not from the limited intellect of this mortal being called Hariram, but the very words of Sankara in Vivekachoodamani.
Durlabham trayamevavaitam daivaanugrahahetukam
Manushyatvam mumukshutvam mahaapurusha samsrayah
Three things are tough indeed to achieve and are got only through the grace of the Lord. They are manhood (here manhood is the physical body which is meant but the mental qualities of calmness, balance, strength etc.), burning desire for liberation and SURRENDER TO A MAN OF WISDOM.
Thus, it is not enough to just accept Mahatmas as mahatmas but it is necessary to follow what those Mahatmas are saying through their words. It is not just enough to have read Sankara bhashya’s of Brahma Sutra and Upanishads and it is not sufficient to just quote Anandagiri’s sub commentary on Sankara bhashya or to quote from very rare works of Chitsukhi or Parimala. All these are only means to put them into practice. All learning of commentaries is meant to clear doubts which in turn will make one easy to put whatever scriptures proclaim into practice. Unless the thoughts are implemented, they are of no use. If implementation is not there, it is like mentally thinking of building a 10 storied building and not building it.
Thus, a seeker should be brave enough to accept Mahatmas as Mahatmas and to surrender completely unto them. The Mahatmas are the very embodiment of the ultimate reality of Lord.
Parikshit here surrendered completely to the Lord in the form of Shuka and thereby was given teaching of the Upanishads which made him liberated even while living in the world.
Another important point that comes out in this episode is the two questions which are raised by Parikshit. These are questions which come into the minds of any seeker initially. These questions can be answered only by pointing out the ultimate reality and telling the individual to remember the reality at all moments. And that is exactly what Shuka did by repeating the teaching of ultimate reality in 11 skandas. These two questions are what Shuka answers in the rest 11 skandas (Srimad Bhagavatham consists of 12 Skandas of which the first one is what we are learning currently). The first skanda thus ends with this posting and the question of Parikshit. From the next skanda, the teaching or answer of Shuka to Parikshit begins.
As we all know, whenever a presentation about a topic is presented – first itself the topic is summarized and then it is explained in detail. Thus, we find that the 2nd skanda contains the entire teaching of Bhagavatham – this skanda has the ultimate reality in crystal clear form. Even though the 2nd skanda is the shortest skanda in Bhagavatham, but it has all the essence of the Upanishads and it is here that we find Lord Vishnu teaching Lord Brahma the ultimate reality through Chatushloki Bhagavatham.
Thus, the 2nd skanda is an important skanda. We will try to analyze the 2 question of Parikshit next and then enter into the 2nd skanda (the real starting of Bhagavatham narration by Shuka to Parikshit).
Suta continues (1st Skandha 19th Chapter):
After leaving from the forest, Parikshit regretted for whatever he had done (for putting the dead corpse of a snake in the shoulder or over the neck of the sage). He thought that whatever he had done was not something to be done by a king and that too towards a Brahmana who was immersed in Samadhi. But Parikshit did not stop with mere regret, but instead he made himself ready for whatever he had to do for expiating the sin. After this, Parikshit came to know about the curse that Takshaka will bite him and he will die on the seventh day. Hearing this, Parikshit was happy that atleast his bad karma could be destroyed by the curse.
Atho Vihaayeemam amum cha lokam vimarshithau heyathayaa purasthaat
Krishnaangri sevamadhimanyamaana upaavishatpraayam marthyanadhyaam
After knowing thus, Parikshit renounced all desire for the world here & hear-after – he decided to contemplate on the lotus feet of the Lord and thereby went to the shore of ganges, built a hut there & started living like a hermit or sage.
When he was living there, many sages came and visited him. At that time, he asked two important questions to the sages and requested to answer the same: 1. What should a person do at normal circumstances and surroundings? 2. What should a person do when he is about to die?
When Parikshit was asking the questions, Shuka came to the place. He was glowing with light and luminosity. But he was looking externally as a crazy mad man. He was wearing nothing; his hair was falling throughout his face. Women and children were following him and throwing stones at him. But he was unaffected by anything. Seeing shuka, all the sages stood up and prostrated him (as they already knew about his external appearance also). At that time, Parikshit also prostrated shuka and put forth the above two questions to Shuka.
Shuka, out of compassion, answered the question as follows (which is the rest of the Srimad Bhagavatham text).
Explanation
A real seeker will regret after knowing his mistakes. Even in normal life, he is a fool who doesn’t accept his mistakes and tries to rectify them. Similarly a seeker will always accept whatever mistakes he has done. But he will not just stop there with regretting about the mistake but instead will try to avoid making the same mistake and will try to contemplate on the Lord with more energy and devotion. This is what Parikshit also did – he regretted for the mistake he had done. And therefore he could openly accept the curse as a blessing. Therefore, since he knew what was to happen to him after seven days, he took up the job of contemplating on the ultimate reality Lord and thereby getting rid of the ocean of samsaara or birth and deaths.
Since Parikshit accepted the curse and started to contemplate on the ultimate reality of Lord, he got the divine blessing of listening to the beautiful work of Srimad Bhagavatham from the mouth of Brahmarishi Shuka – thereby passing on the work to the people in the world (we have received the work through Parikshit alone).
Thus, a seeker should always accept everything as a blessing of the Lord. If something good happens, then it is HIS blessing. If something bad happens, then it is HIS wish. And this is the ultimate reality also that everything is the Lord alone. If everything is the Lord alone, what is good and what is bad? Good and bad, blessing and curse are all dependent on differences. But since there is only the Lord here, there is no good and no bad – whatever is present is only the Lord of the nature of Bliss absolute.
If this ultimate reality is known or remembered, the individual will always accept everything as a blessing of the Lord and thereby will be ever cheerful and happy.
Parikshit was not sad with the curse but took it as a blessing by which he could overcome the attachment he had to the world. The curse destroyed the attachment and thereby he was able to contemplate on the Lord by renouncing everything and staying near the Ganges.
Thus, we all should always try to accept everything as the blessing of the Lord – this is possible only when a person constantly remembers the Lord.
Next we see Shuka’s entry into the place where Parikshit was staying. In Shuka, Srimad Bhagavatham puts forth the nature of a realized being. He will not at all be affected the various activities in the world. He will be ever blissful. He will be ever detached from the world (even though externally he might seem to be attached to people). Even though children were throwing stones at Shuka, he was not at all affected by it because he was ever immersed in the ultimate reality of Lord or Consciousness and knew the reality that there is nothing here but the Lord alone, one without a second.
It is not enough to accept a person as a realized being. But what is required from a seeker is to approach them and put them questions in order to get from them the path towards the ultimate reality and path towards realization. Thus, we see each of us just accepting Ramana, Sankara, Sri Ramakrishna, Sadguru Mata Amritanandamayi Devi, Sri Sri Ravishankar, Sri Sathya Sai Baba etc. as realized beings but not surrendering to them or putting their words into practice.
A person might read the gospel of Sri Ramakrishna and quote from it at any time, but this is not what is to be achieved through the gospel. What is required is practice of the ideals put forth in the gospel. If that is not done, the reading itself is a mere waste.
Therefore, a real seeker should try to identify in Guru and should surrender to the person completely. Then he should follow whatever words the Mahatma tells so that one may remove the veils of ignorance & thereby realize one’s own real nature of Existence, Consciousness and Bliss absolute.
The above words are not from the limited intellect of this mortal being called Hariram, but the very words of Sankara in Vivekachoodamani.
Durlabham trayamevavaitam daivaanugrahahetukam
Manushyatvam mumukshutvam mahaapurusha samsrayah
Three things are tough indeed to achieve and are got only through the grace of the Lord. They are manhood (here manhood is the physical body which is meant but the mental qualities of calmness, balance, strength etc.), burning desire for liberation and SURRENDER TO A MAN OF WISDOM.
Thus, it is not enough to just accept Mahatmas as mahatmas but it is necessary to follow what those Mahatmas are saying through their words. It is not just enough to have read Sankara bhashya’s of Brahma Sutra and Upanishads and it is not sufficient to just quote Anandagiri’s sub commentary on Sankara bhashya or to quote from very rare works of Chitsukhi or Parimala. All these are only means to put them into practice. All learning of commentaries is meant to clear doubts which in turn will make one easy to put whatever scriptures proclaim into practice. Unless the thoughts are implemented, they are of no use. If implementation is not there, it is like mentally thinking of building a 10 storied building and not building it.
Thus, a seeker should be brave enough to accept Mahatmas as Mahatmas and to surrender completely unto them. The Mahatmas are the very embodiment of the ultimate reality of Lord.
Parikshit here surrendered completely to the Lord in the form of Shuka and thereby was given teaching of the Upanishads which made him liberated even while living in the world.
Another important point that comes out in this episode is the two questions which are raised by Parikshit. These are questions which come into the minds of any seeker initially. These questions can be answered only by pointing out the ultimate reality and telling the individual to remember the reality at all moments. And that is exactly what Shuka did by repeating the teaching of ultimate reality in 11 skandas. These two questions are what Shuka answers in the rest 11 skandas (Srimad Bhagavatham consists of 12 Skandas of which the first one is what we are learning currently). The first skanda thus ends with this posting and the question of Parikshit. From the next skanda, the teaching or answer of Shuka to Parikshit begins.
As we all know, whenever a presentation about a topic is presented – first itself the topic is summarized and then it is explained in detail. Thus, we find that the 2nd skanda contains the entire teaching of Bhagavatham – this skanda has the ultimate reality in crystal clear form. Even though the 2nd skanda is the shortest skanda in Bhagavatham, but it has all the essence of the Upanishads and it is here that we find Lord Vishnu teaching Lord Brahma the ultimate reality through Chatushloki Bhagavatham.
Thus, the 2nd skanda is an important skanda. We will try to analyze the 2 question of Parikshit next and then enter into the 2nd skanda (the real starting of Bhagavatham narration by Shuka to Parikshit).
# posted by vedanta : 9:37 AM
