Bhagavatam study 104 1.19.1-6 If sinful reaction rectifies sinful mentality, then the reaction is auspicious, not inauspicious

Bhagavatam, Canto 1, Chapter 19, entitled, The Appearance of Shukadeva Goswami. So, this is the last chapter of the first canto and the whole first canto has been about setting up the scene for the conversation between Parikshit Maharaj and Shukadeva Goswami and the whole stress has been on the last few chapters on describing how Parikshit Maharaj became ready to, how he came to the position where he heard from Shukadeva Goswami. So, he is being cursed and he, how he reacts so maturely and how he decides to dedicate his life for gaining spiritual knowledge.
That is the theme that is being described over here. So, 1.19.1, सूत वाच महीपतिस्त्व अथत कर्मगर्यम् विचिन्तयन आत्मकृतम् सुदुर्मनः अहो मयानीच मनार्यवत्कृतम् निरागसि ब्रह्मनि गूढ तेजसी महीपतिस्त्व अथत कर्मगर्यम् So, महीपतिस्त्व विचिन्तयन In this way, the king started contemplating विचिन्तयन So, certainly अथत कर्मगर्यम् That work which I did, गर्यम् was reprehensible, it was आत्मकृतम् सुदुर्मनः आत्मकृतम् What I had done was सुदुर्मनः It was the action of somebody whose mind was misdirected सुदुर्मनः मनः is the mind or the mental disposition Our mental disposition is reflected in our culture or our civilised behaviour So, सुदुर्मनः means Greatly uncivilised behaviour that I created अहो मया नीचम् अनार्यवत्कृतम् Unfortunately, I have acted like a low class person अनार्यवत् आर्य As Sri Prabhupada explains in the second chapter of the Bhagavad Gita There also the word comes अनार्य जुष्टम् अस्वर्ग्यम् अकीर्ति कर्मरिजुन Krishna uses the word अनार्य to refer to those, to refer to Arjuna’s unwillingness to fight And here He is being said अनार्यवत्कृतम् The work that you have done Parashur Maharaj is saying to himself it is It is a total befitting descendant of a great dynasty निरागसी ब्रह्मनी गूड़ तेजसी निरागसी निरागसी is one who has who has no attachment, who has no faults The ब्राह्मण was pure He is now recognising that He was actually in trance गूड़ तेजसी One whose तेजसी is effulgence whose power is very deep, whose consciousness is very exalted People of superficial consciousness often can’t even understand what those in deep consciousness are doing So similarly he thinks that I fail to understand what this what the ब्राह्मण was doing and thus the action I did was reprehensible गर्यम् Now there are times in our life when we go through phases and during those phases we don’t realise what we are doing We just get overwhelmed thinking that we have acted terribly and we just beat our… and we just get carried away by that But as soon as we realise at that time at least we should regret and correct ourselves So if we consider this material world to be like an ocean we all need to become like expert boatmen so that we can steer towards our destination But sometimes the force of the waves may come such that we if we are not sharp then we may be swept in an opposite direction entirely So like that our like that our waves may the waves of desires, the waves of mood the waves of impulses they all may push us in certain directions to act and if we are not careful then we may be overwhelmed we may find ourselves incapable of acting properly and in the spur of the moment we may do something wrong but at least later we should realise what wrong we have done and we should try to correct it So introspection and retrospection are indispensable tools for course correction We could say it is best if we don’t go on need course correction but sometimes the nature of the world and the nature of the mind are such that we will go off the track and at that time it is introspection alone which will get us back on the track Now in this way he thinks and what does he decide thereafter kṛtāya me yathā na kūryāṁ punareva maddhā dhruvaṁ tato me kṛtadeva helanāth certainly now kṛtadeva helanāth because I have not just disrespected this person but I have actually disobeyed the lord deva helanāth, he understands that the principles that are given for the guidance of conducting proper behaviour they are not just coming from scripture ultimately they are coming from god so deva can refer to the supreme lord and deva can refer to also this godly personality the brāhmaṇas are considered as bhū devas so deva can also refer to this godly personality dhruvaṁ tato me kṛtadeva helanāth so I have disrespected certainly it is true that I have actually disrespected this godly person and thus I have disrespected god and his orders so now because of this a consequence that will come upon me and such a consequence because this is a serious offence so there will be a serious reaction to that calamity, rasanam so let it come upon me sometimes when we face some, we have done some mistake there are various phases we go through before we actually become ready to accept the mistake one might be that we may not want to actually even we may deny the mistake, we may deny it to ourselves then somehow others discover it, we may deny it to others even if we both are forced to acknowledge it still we may go ahead and say that no no no actually I didn’t do anything wrong actually it is or it is not that wrong whatever has happened it can be corrected there is no need to make such a big issue out of it we may come up with various kinds of reasonings to try to firstly minimise the wrong and then later we may try to minimise the consequences of the wrong by pointing to extenuating circumstances by trying to use our contacts in this way we often try to delay the consequences of our wrongdoing from hitting us but here he says naati derghat vratyam rasanam naati derghat is that let these come upon me and let there not be much delay in that let them come immediately upon me so sometimes the negative is a way of asserting the positive so sometimes somebody may say the result of this is not going to be pretty now when they say the result is not going to be pretty that actually means it is going to be ugly you are going to face problems because of this so naati derghat means not after a long time means let this come soon and not just soon but immediately it means so what should come? The consequences of this wrongdoing tadastu kamam ya aganish krutaya me so my desire is tadastu kamam that ya aganish krutaya me, this agha, this wrongdoing which I have committed let it the consequences fully come upon me and by this what will happen yatha nakuryam purame punareva madha yatha nakuryam therefore I will not do this again so actually for all of us it is vital that we learn the lesson to do the right thing and more often than not we learn that lesson by being by getting the consequences it is said that the best learning is learning by hearing, the second best is by experiencing but sometimes experience is what we need to learn yatha nakuryam punareva madha so if the consequences come that’s where the experience comes if a person over speeds and causes an accident and somebody gets a casualty for that somebody gets injured because of that and then the legal action comes up then if they actually go through that legal action they will be extremely careful and they will never try again to to they will try their very best to not be reckless in their driving again so let it come full force upon me so I do not want to minimise it I do not want to excuse myself for it I want to just accept it and thereby I want to reform so here we see first there is repentance so we recognise, we repent and then we reform and reform often involves doing some atonement so text 3 adhyayivarāgyam balamrddha-kausham kalpātika-bhramma-kulānalome dhātva-abhadrasya punar na madhya-bhūm pākīyasi dhīra-dvijadeva-govyah adhyayivarāgyam balamrddha-kausham so immediately Let my kingdom, let my friends, let my treasury, prudhya, kosham, prakopita, brahmakula, nalomi, prakopita, let it all, let it be burnt by the anger of the brahmanas, by the fire of the anger of the brahmanas. So prakopita, the angry brahmakula, so you are not thinking that I have just offended this one person, actually I have offended the brahmana community and it’s a serious serious mistake that I have committed and let the reaction come for that.
dahatva abhadrasya punarnamebhu, therefore let me not again commit an action like this. papiyasi dhir dhijudev govya dhir, so therefore dhir dhir dhir, let my intelligence not be misled by such, by introducing such sinful activities towards the brahmanas, the cows and the deva, they can refer to the supreme lord or it can refer to the godly beings. So here the point is that deva can refer to the devatas also.
Basically there are certain respectable beings whom we are all meant to respect and if we neglect them, if we disrespect them, if we offend them, then there are consequences for that. Those consequences are undeniable and if we are not to face those consequences, then it is vital for us to take things forward in a mature and determined way by which I can correct myself. Now it’s interesting, he is saying let it burn my kingdom, my strength and wealth today.
Does he mean that he wants his kingdom to be reduced to ashes? Does he want the whole kingdom to share his reaction? No, no, that’s not his point. He is saying that let the opulence that I am enjoying be lost. It is not that he is saying that let them suffer for my behalf.
Rather the position that I have, let it be lost. Let it be taken away from me because I have acted in a way that is not appropriate for my position. So the point is not so much that they should share my reaction.
The point is that actually we all get reactions in proportion to the situation that we are in. So if a police person commits a crime, that’s far more serious than an ordinary citizen committing a crime. So if a king commits a crime, then he is saying over here, because I have abused my position and power, so if a punishment is due to me, let that punishment come to me and in that way let me be free from whatever suffering I may have had to undergo.
And let me become free means by getting the reaction, not escaping the reaction. So the point here is not that let my citizens suffer for this, but the point is that if I have to lose my kingdom, if I have to lose my wealth, that means if I have to suffer a consequence even of that magnitude, I am ready to suffer that. So it’s not that others suffer for me, but rather it is that let me suffer by losing whatever I have, losing whatever position, whatever power I have, whatever position I have.
So text 4. Now till now it was his contemplation going on. Let this happen, he was thinking like this. And in that contemplation there was an interruption because some information came to him.
So 1.19.4 now. 1.19.4 So 1.19.4 As he was thinking like this, Sachintayan, at that time he heard, from whom did he hear? The sage had sent, sage refers to the, he got the information, the sage sent this information. He wanted the king to be, to prepare for this catastrophe that had befallen him.
He told him the story, the narrative involving Takshak. That means that he has been, that his death was ordained by the snake bird Takshak. So that was something which was quite shocking to hear.
But in a sense, what he had internally contemplated may it happen, that is happening to him now. He thought that this is good, this is appropriate, this is what I deserve. So he had said, let the reaction come upon me soon and now the reaction had come upon him.
And he felt that this refers to fire. So that fire of the Brahmana’s curse, in the form of the fire that would emerge when the bird, snake bird Takshaka bit him, for him who was attached, he thought that this will be what will bring about detachment within me. A lot about life is determined by our attitude.
What happens to us is not in our control. But how we react to it is in our control. And how can we react to it? Maturely, that is what books of wisdom tell us.
And how can we react devotionally, that is what books of devotional wisdom tell us. So here Parichit Maharaj is exhibiting his expertise in the art of devotional reinterpretation of reality. That means whatever happens, how can one interpret it devotionally by which one can take steps to grow forward in one’s life.
So that is what he shows over here by saying, नलं परसक्तस्य विरक्ति कारणं that, let this Nala, with the fire coming from this bird, become the cause of my detachment. साधु मेने. So he thought this is good, this is appropriate, this is what I deserve.
So he was not at all resentful. He did not say, oh for such a small thing, why are you giving me such a big reaction? No, he accepted that what was happening was what he deserved based on the kind of action he had done. And he took it as an opportunity to become detached.
So accepting adversity with dignity is a sign of maturity and a gift of spirituality. The gift of spirituality, the sign of maturity is accepting adversity with dignity, with accepting difficulties gratefully. So that is what he is doing over here.
And this same mood will be demonstrated in the Bhagavatam canto by canto again and again. In this, तक्ते इनु कम्पाम् सुसुनिक्षिमानु is a well-known verse which Brahmaji prays. But his focus is, okay, it is by the Lord’s grace that the reaction is minimised.
And therefore, let me just take, my desire is that I take shelter of the Lord. Now here, in a sense, we may not see the reaction minimised. In fact, we may say that the curse was excessive and the Lord did not do anything to minimise the, not even minimise, to even make the reaction to his action proportional.
He actually got a severe reaction for a minor infraction. But Parikshit Maharaj does not demand mercy here in terms of setting the record straight or making the punishment proportional to the crime. He simply desires that let us move on in our life, move on in my life, taking shelter of the Lord.
So, we will always get Krishna’s mercy, but how we get that mercy will vary from situation to situation. So, sometimes we may get that mercy by our taking shelter of him, sometimes it may come by our getting access to take shelter of him more, sometimes it may be by our having to minimise, our, the reaction itself getting minimised. So, we don’t know how it will come, but what we should focus on is just moving onwards towards Krishna in all situations.
Verse 5 So, Upavishad, he departed and he sat down. So, Prayavrata is a vow taken by one who is about to die or one who has decided to die we could say. Prayavrata is the vrata of fasting till death.
So, sometimes when people who feel that now their, whatever they wanted to achieve in their life that has been achieved or basically for whatever reason they want to end their life, then they Upavishad praya. So, they sit down in the resolve to take the Prayavrata. Sometimes the Prayavrata might be out of frustration like happened with Duryodhana after he was defeated by the Gandharvas in Mahabharata or it might as Angada and some of the other Vanaras decided when they couldn’t find Sita.
But in this case, this is not out of his, Parikshit Maharaj’s Prayavrata is not out of frustration. It is out of renunciation. It is to see that vrata as a heir to absorption.
Amartyanadhyam and Amartyanadhyam, the transcendental river. Amar is immortal. Amartyanadhyam could mean that world, that river that does not belong to this world.
It can refer to the Ganges which descends from the higher world to this world. It can refer to the Yamuna which descends, which manifests here from the spiritual world where it originally belongs. So, he went there and he fasted.
But what did he do there? Why did he do that? Krishnangirisevam Adhimanyamana. So, Krishnangirisevam, he understood that the greatest treasure of life is the service of Lord Krishna. Adhimanyamana.
So, now it is a truth that Krishna’s service is life’s greatest treasure. But we may not always realise it. So, it is when we realise that this is life’s greatest treasure, that is when we become truly fortunate.
So, it was that fortune which he got over here. He had that because he was a great devotee. Mahatmaikanta Parayanasya.
He was that great soul. He was totally devoted to the greatest being. So, he who recognised that taking shelter of Krishna, serving Krishna is life’s greatest achievement.
So, he did this. So, to be a king, to be an emperor is something which many people will think of as great. But Parikshit considered something else to be great.
That was Athobhihayame. So, he gave up everything in this world as well as the next world. That means he gave up his worldly opulence in this world and he gave up and he thought of worldly opulence in the future world.
Vimarshitau Heyataya So, Vimarshitau, he contemplated and he decided that all of them were inferior to what? To the shelter of the Lord’s lotus feet. So, therefore he sat on the banks of the Ganga, banks of the immortal river to get shelter of the Lord’s lotus feet. This is his great devotional determination which can be a matter of inspiration for all of us.
So, text 6, यावैलसच्रीतुलसीविमिष्रः कृष्णाँग्रिरेण्वः अभ्यदिकाम् भुनेत्री पुनातिलोकम् उभयत्रशेषान् कस्ताम्नसेवेत्मरिष्यमानः So, now he is going to talk about, Suta Goswami describes the glory of the place that Parikshit or glory of the river by which side Parikshit took shelter. So, कस्ताम्नसेवेत्मरिष्यमानः Why would any human being who is destined to die, मरिष्यमानः, not take shelter of that river, not serve that lover. यावई लसच्री तुलसीविमिष्रः That river is mixed with the Tulsi, which comes from where, कृष्णाँग्रिरेण्वः.
It comes from the lotus, from the dust of the lotus feet of Lord Hari. अभ्यादिकाम् भुनेत्री And अभ्यदिकाम् भु, that auspicious water, नेत्री. नेत्री means one who carries.
So, this river is the carrier of the Tulsi, the dust of the Lord and the pure water that has touched the feet of the Lord. पुनाति लोकम् उभयत्रशेषान So, पुनाति लोकम्, which all places? उभयत्र There as well as here, all places. The higher, middle and lower, the upper and lower planets.
Or we could say the inside and the outside. We can bring out all kind of purification. शेषान, सईशान So, ईश refers to Lord Shiva.
सेश is the संधी of सईश. So, it means it purifies the upper and the lower worlds and it purifies even Lord Shiva whose very name connotes auspiciousness. So, such a river which is so potently pure, who would not take shelter of such a river? So, certainly Parishad Maharaj was very wise, who was profoundly devoted, who was attached to, who knew that life’s ultimate perfection was absorption in the Lord.
He would definitely take shelter of that river. And that is what he did. He did not take shelter of anything else.
He took shelter of this glorious river.