Bhagavatam study 106 1.19.13-18 Our personal deliberation and our mentor consultation can be complementary, not contradictory

Shambhagavatam, 1, 19, 13. So Rajavachan, the king said, Aho vayam dhanyatama nrupanam. Dhanyatama.
You are most fortunate, you are most blessed and I am blessed to have your association. Nrupanam. Mahatma of great anugrahani shila.
That actually, he says that I am fortunate that you have come here to bless me. And actually we, we have been trained to, we understand that we are meant to receive the mercy of the sages. That Aho vayam dhanyatama nrupanam.
Nrupa is a king. Dhanyatama. We are most fortunate among kings.
Aho vayam. So he’s understanding that his blessing has come to him, not just because of him. It has come because he is in a great dynasty.
He has, as his ancestors, great devotees. And thus, he’s getting this great blessing. So this V is not, sometimes in English there is the Royal V it is said.
The Royal V is often used to refer to someone who is very pompous. And refers to themselves, not as I but V. Not as me but hum. So, so it is not in that sense he’s, it’s not a pompous or not a person very full of themselves and wanting praise and appreciation all the time.
It is more in terms of a person who recognizes that there are certain things, certain ways in which certain things have to be done. And certain ways in which certain things can’t be done. So at this stage he’s recognizing that he has got this fortune because of a particular reason.
And thus that Aho vayam, that vayam refers to his recognizing his fortune. He says that we are all, we kings are actually meant to get your mercy. Anugrahani shila.
It is, we have been trained, that is our culture that we seek and we receive the mercy from all of you great souls. Normally, sages live in the forest and occasionally the sages may come to the kings either to bless the kings with spiritual knowledge or if the kings, the sages are troubled by some demons, then they may want some help. Otherwise, the sages generally don’t want to associate with the kings.
So he says that if at all we get your association, we consider it a great fortune and we’ve been trained like this. But now all of you have come to give association. So because we are so materialistic, see normally you keep us at a long distance.
We are kept at a distance by you. So, Brahmanapada, we are actually meant to be, you who are very pure, you who are brahmanas, you keep us, the royal dynasty far away from you. Because not only from you, but Brahmanapada shavucha, this is even from the place where you wash feet.
You keep us away from that also. Normally our feet become dirty and we wash our feet. So usually outside a house, nowadays we may have some mat on which we rub our feet so that our feet are cleaned.
Or we may have some, we may wear some footwear which we keep outside. But in the past, especially the renowned sages, if they don’t wear footwear, then they will wash their feet before they enter into any place. In any traditional temples also have some kind of flowing water where you wash your feet.
So similarly over here he is saying that actually we all are here to wash, we are all here, that you don’t want us to even be near the place where you wash your feet. So that’s how we are actually unworthy. But you are so kind that so many of you have come here now.
So he is indirectly by philosophically contextualizing their position and his position in terms of the hierarchy from the transcendental perspective. He is actually in a very learned way expressing his appreciation from the materialistic perspective. A king, even a moment’s attention of a king is what everyone wants.
But from the transcendental perspective, the sages are greater than the kings. So now he is especially fortunate because he recognizes that the Brahma Kula has not become angry with him. So he will talk about that now.
He will talk about his wrongdoing in the next verse. So text 14. तस्याइवमे अघस्य परावरेशो व्यासक्त चित्तस्य ग्रुहेश अभिक्षनम् निर्वेदमूलो दुजशापरूपो यत्रप्रसक्तो भयमाशुधत्ते तस्याइवमे अघस्य परावरेशो So he says, अघस्य, because of my sin of परावरेशो, actually I disrespected one who was situated on the path of transcendence, one who was transcendental.
परावरेशो ईश, that lord who is परावरेशो, who is the lord of the transcendental world as well as the material world. I have actually disrespected that lord by disrespecting his representative, the Brahmana. वे सत्त चित्तस्य ग्रुहेश अभिक्षनम् And I who had committed this offense and I who was very attached to my family life.
He is taking a humble position. Parikshit Maharaj was actually never attached to his family life. He was very, very spiritually minded and he was very advanced and he was transcendental.
But he is taking that humble position over here. निर्वेदमूलो दुज़शापरूपो, निर्वेदमूलो दुज़शापरूपो That actually, the निर्वेद, this is the cause of detachment, this is the cause of renunciation. दुज़शापरूपो That the cause of detachment, निर्वेदमूलो, that has come to me in the form of the curse of this Brahmana.
दुज़शापरूपो एफ्त्रप्रसक्तभयमाशुधत्ते Actually, now he has said that परावरेश, that lord who is, it is indeed, परावरेश, that lord who is, it is indeed, actually what he is saying here is very deep, to me who committed this offence to the Brahmana, to me who was very attached to family life, this curse has come as a source of detachment. And more than that he is saying that actually the lord has come as this curse to bring about detachment within me. And thus, that lord has given me अभयमाशुधत्ते One who is attached to the lord, one who can sense the presence of the lord, that lord always gives fearlessness.
So, it’s remarkable that one can see God coming in various ways. You know, God can speak to us through the joy that we experience in our heart when we are absorbed in Krishna. And God can speak to us even through the pain that we experience when we go through life’s adversities.
So, God can speak in many languages and he can give us the ability to understand the language in which he is speaking, provided we seek to understand that language with a submissive devoted heart. Sometimes some people are polyglots, they know many many languages and while talking with them, they may seamlessly shift from one language to another. And if we don’t understand, if we don’t recognize which language this person is speaking in, then nothing that they say will make sense to us.
Similarly, if we are not sharp enough to observe this, to understand that God can come in many different ways and Parikshit Maharaj’s consciousness is so profound over here that he is recognizing that he is actually absorbed in the lord. And so, he can see even the lord coming to him in the form of this snake. This is a verse which is really worth memorization and contemplation when we face adversities in life.
That lord to whom I committed an offense, that lord to whom I had gone away from because of my constant attachment to family life, that lord certainly has come to me in the form of this curse to bring about my detachment and that lord can give fearlessness by his presence. So, if we can see that the distress that has come is a way in which the lord has come to us, then we can avoid getting overwhelmed, we can avoid getting afflicted by negativity, but we can move towards purity, we can move towards spiritual growth. Text 15, this is a famous verse again.
TAMMO PAYATAM PRATIYANTHU VIPRAH GANGACHA DEVIDHUTA CHITTAMISHE DVIJO PASURUSHTAH KUHUKAS TAKSHA KOVA TASHATVALAM GAYATA VISHNU GATHAH So, TAMMO PAYATAM PRATIYANTHU VIPRAH. So, now because I have got this curse, so I am going to now, and I understand it is a means by which the lord wants me to come closer to him. TAMMO PAYATAM, therefore UPAYATAM, as a measure of relief, I have taken shelter of, I want to take shelter of the lord.
TAMMO PAYATAM PRATIYANTHU VIPRAH. So, please accept me as a surrendered soul, please give me a shelter. GANGACHA DEVIDHUTA CHITTAMISHE.
And he is looking at all the blessings that he has in this situation. All these great sages are here and that Ganga is also there, who is actually a representative of the lord. Ganga, Devi, she is a goddess, she is a representative of the lord.
And he has taken shelter of Isha, the supreme lord in his own consciousness. DVIJO PASURUSHTAH KUHUKAS TAKSHA KOVA DVIJO PASURUSHTAH, so by the power of the curse of the Brahmana, he has created something, he has conjured up something. KUHUKAS TAKSHA KOVA So now, this magical, mystical bird, Taksha, which is going to come and kill me.
KUHUKA Now, let it come and bite me. TASHATVALAM GAYAT VISHNU GATHAHA Let it come and bite me while all of you, GAYAT VISHNU GATHAHA All of you please sing the glories of lord Vishnu. So here, it’s interesting that Parikshit Maharaj first expresses his desire or expresses his understanding, his decision and then he submits, he consults them.
So, now normally, when we go to some senior devotee or some counselor, when we face some indecision, there are two ways which we could do it. We could just lay the case and then let them give a decision or we could explain the situation and also explain our understanding of what we should do. And then we wait and watch to see what they say.
So, both approaches have their strength. One is that in the approach where we just tell our situation and let them take a decision, that might be seen sometimes as being a more surrendered position. That we are ready to do whatever our seniors are telling us.
While that is true, it can also be seen in a different way that we are placing too much burden on our seniors. Because they also have their life, they also have their concerns and life is not easy in this world for anyone. And people are also, even senior devotees are burdened with a huge amount of responsibilities.
And we don’t want to become more of a burden than is necessary. So, we also are meant to become independently thoughtful. We are meant to learn and grow in a way by which we can actually move towards being mature enough to make our own decisions when necessary.
We are able to move towards growth, move towards holistic responsible growth by our all-round purification. So, if we give our decision, we see this mood in the Bhagavatam earlier also. When Vyasadev was feeling depressed, he by his own introspection came to the same conclusion which Narad Muni told in his instruction.
So, introspection and self-analysis is also a vital tool in our spiritual growth as is taking guidance from others. So, the two, making our own decisions and consulting others are not contradictory, they can be complementary. Our own personal deliberation and our consultation of others can go on parallel tracks, can be complementary, they need not be contradictory.
That’s what we see in the case of Vyasadev and Narada and that’s what we will see here also. Now, the advantage of this mode of working is also that suppose someone is not able to do something, suppose what level a person is at, that can be understood also by seeing how they are acting, seeing what they are capable of doing and what they are not capable of doing. So, when the sages speak, so when we speak our heart and we speak what solution we feel is the best in that situation, then by that what is happening is we are actually conveying to them that we know that this is our level, that they will understand both the way we think and they will understand also what we feel most inspired to do or what we feel inclined to do.
And while that may not be necessarily the best solution or the only solution, but ultimately that solution has to be implemented by us and for them to understand our way of thinking and our consideration of what we can do is also important. We see this kind of negotiation in the level of instruction in the interaction between Dhruva and Narada. When first Narada tells, just take it easy, don’t take this insult so seriously, just go back to home.
He says, no, I cannot. I cannot see this with equanimity. Please give me an instruction which I can implement.
And then Narada Muni gives him a lower level instruction. But it’s interesting that just because Dhruva seeks an instruction level according to his level, that does not mean that he doesn’t attain the ultimate perfection. That is both Narada Muni’s expertise and that is the Lord’s accommodating nature that if we honestly approach him according to the level we are at, we can attain perfection.
So Pariksit Maharaj is expressing his desire over here and विव्गायत्ति विश्णुवाथ, please sing the glories of Lord Vishnu. Text 16 He says, again I offer obeisances to all of you. What do I seek at this moment of death? I only seek I seek attachment, attraction to Lord Hari.
And I seek the association of those who are sheltered in Him. Those who can share His shelter. Those greats are Mahotsu.
याम् याम् उपयामि सुष्टिम् याम् याम् उपयामि, wherever I may go, wherever I may be born in future. उपयामि सुष्टिम् That I may be born at various places. So it’s interesting, he is not claiming that now that I have taken such a bold, heroic, spiritually heroic step of renouncing the world to take shelter of the Lord.
Therefore, I am meant to attain the spiritual world. He is saying, no, I may go wherever I may go. याम् याम् उपयामि सुष्टिम् That wherever I may go, please bless me, so that I can actually move towards perfection.
याम् याम् उपयामि सुष्टिम् What is the perfection he is seeking? He is not necessarily seeking here that, he doesn’t claim that I am qualified enough to be liberated. He is saying, wherever I may be born, that place, let me have, in that birth, let me have attachment to the Lord. Let me have association of those, of the devotees who are sheltered in Him.
मैत्रियस्तु सर्वत्र नमो विजेभ्या मैत्रियस्तु सर्वत्र And let me have a friendly disposition towards all living beings. And this is what I seek from you, O Brahmanas, and I offer obeisances to you. नमो विजेभ्या We can know a lot about people by knowing about their dreams, knowing about their desires, knowing about their, we can understand people by understanding their dreams, their desires.
So, what are the aspirations? Not just, I want to eat this, I want to watch this. Those are certain level of desires. But much deeper, what are the kind of desires that animate our lives? So, we can understand a lot about that by associating with people properly.
And properly associating with people means, letting them open their hearts. So here, Parishad Maharaj is opening his heart and we understand the level of his consciousness from the level of his desires. So, he is not asking, Oh! I have lived in royal comfort in this life and how will I live without such a royal comfort in the future life.
Please guarantee me that I will have royal comfort in the future life. No, no, no. Nothing like that.
He is simply saying that, let me just get attachment to the Lord, the association of devotees, and a favorable disposition towards all living beings. Now, if we have this, then whichever body we may be in, wherever we may be born, we will be on a spiritually progressive path. If not, at the end of this life, even if we don’t attain the Lord, we will attain Him eventually.
So, at this point, from text 13 to 16, the king’s words conclude and now his actions are described. Text 17 इतिस्मा राजाद धिवसाय युक्तः प्राचीन मूले शुकुषे शुधी रहा उदन्मुखो दक्षिन कुल आस्ते समुद्रपत्न्या ससुतन्यस्तभारः इतिस्मा राजाद धिवसाय युक्तः इतिस्मा Thus, the king sat down with great determination. He sat down.
प्राचीन मूले शुकुषे शुधी रहा He sat on a cusha seat, becoming very sober. उदन्मुखो दक्षिन कुल आस्ते समुद्रपत्न्या ससुतन्या ससुतन्या So, he faced the northern direction. So, actually what happens over here is, there are particular… Generally, the north is the direction in which those who want to renounce the world go to.
In the north in India are the Himalayas. That is where people go when they renounce the world. So, now here he similarly indicates his desire for transcending the world by looking in the direction of the north, which is the direction towards higher reality, towards departure from the world.
समुद्रपत्न्या ससुतन्या सभारतः So, he had given up his kingdom to his स्वसुतन्यस्तभारः, the administration of the king he had given up. Now, it was not that arbitrarily he just renounced and he didn’t care for the kingdom. He had entrusted that responsibility properly to his son.
And now he had nothing to focus on. So, he sat on the Kusha grass, whose tips were facing the east and he sat on the right bank of the river. So, in this way, समुद्रपत्न्या, that refers to the Ganga, which is, समुद्र is the larger body of water, पत्न्या you can refer to a smaller body of water.
And समुद्रपत्न्या refers to the Ganga in this context. So, he basically became absorbed in transcendence. I have expressed his resolve to get absorbed in transcendence and expressed his resolve through his actions.
एवं जनस्तस्मिन्नरदेवदेवे प्रायोपविष्टे दिविदेव संगहः प्रशस्यभूमाव्यकिरण्तसुनैर् मूदामुहर् दुन्दुभयस्चनेदुहु मूदामुहर् So, in this way, that lord, नरदेवदेवे प्रायोपविष्टे In this way, when that king, नरदेव, God among the humans, भूदेव refers to the Brahmanas, नरदेव refers to the Kshatriyas, especially the king specifically. दिविदेव संगहः So, when this God among the humans sat down to make this vrata, the Gods at the higher worlds, they also, in the sky, दिविदेव संगहः, they had also assembled. प्रशस्यभूमाव्यकिरण्तसुनैर् His action was praised by the Devatas.
यकिरण्तसुनैर् And they scattered, प्रसुनैर्, flowers, मूदा मूह दुन्दु भयश्चनेदो So, they were pleased and they bet celestial drums. So, the idea is that the Bhagavatam, the Mahabharata, the Ramayana, they depict an earth, they depict a very strong connection between the earth and the heavens. And especially if somebody on the earth does something which requires extraordinary determination, then they appreciate it profoundly.
Just like when Devavrata, the son of Shantanu took a vow to remain celibate, thereby ensuring that his wife, his king would get a new queen. So, that, at that time, they say, भीश्म, this is a fierce vow. भीश्म, भीश्म.
So, actually, similarly, this determination of Parikshit Maharaj was greatly appreciated by the Devatas. So, it indicates that Parikshit Maharaj was collecting blessings. He collected the blessings from the sages by his humble disposition.
He collected blessings of the auspicious place of Ganga, betting shelter of that place. And by his firm resolution, especially by his taking his prayavata, he also got blessings from the celestials who are now expressing their appreciation by the shower of flowers and by the beating of the drums.