CONTENTS:
- SRIMAD BHAGAVATAM 3.5.12 (PART - 2)
- SRILA PRABHUPADA'S APPRECIATION
- GURU MAHARAJA’S INSTRUCTIONS
1. SRIMAD BHAGAVATAM 3.5.12 (PART - 2)
SB 3.5.12
munir vivakṣur bhagavad-guṇānāṁ
sakhāpi te bhāratam āha kṛṣṇaḥ
yasmin nṛṇāṁ grāmya-sukhānuvādair
matir gṛhītā nu hareḥ kathāyām
TRANSLATION
Your friend the great sage Krishna-dvaipayana Vyasa has already described the transcendental qualities of the Lord in his great work the Mahabharata. But the whole idea is to draw the attention of the mass of people to Krishna-katha [Bhagavad-Gita] through their strong affinity for hearing mundane topics. Now for the same personality for whom he had to make a vow she is telling Bhisma to get married or produce some children. Bhisma said NO. One after another we see there is so much struggle. Sons were born and such a great personality such as Vyasadev of Amba and Ambalika, the queens of Vichitravera, two sons were born. Dhritarastra was blind from birth and Pandu, one can say he had some kind of disease like albino, his body did not have a regular complexion, it was pale, and he didn’t have the lustre but a great warrior and loyal personality.
Pandu was also cursed at a young age that if he ever unit with his wife he will die. He didn’t have any children and soon after getting married he got the curse to extremely beautiful princesses as his wives Kunti and Madri. He can’t have children. Another son was born out of Vyasadeva but he was born out of a maidservant therefore he was considered to be a sudra and who is that person? Vidura and who is Vidura? Yamaraja himself is Vidura, personification of dharma. In one hand we are seeing the most exalted royal family, the family that came from Moon God. There are two lines from sun and moon. This is the history from the Moon and that line comes to Santanu and Bhisma, Vicitraveerya, Dhritarastra and Pandu.
Dhritarastra was blind but a very powerful personality, he had the strength of 10,000 elephants such a powerful person but he was blind and due to his blindness, he couldn’t become the king. He had a desire to hold onto the kingdom. The Vedic names are significant to the characters. Dhritarastra, dhrita means holding onto and rastra means kingdom. He doesn’t have any right over the kingdom neither does he have rights nor qualities to rule the kingdom. He is holding onto the kingdom; he couldn’t become the king but he harboured and cherished that his son would become the king. When that was also foiled then he was trying to make all kinds of arrangements to make his son the king. He didn’t hesitate to mistreat his brother’s children and the widow of his brother. He didn’t hesitate to plot to kill them. This is the material nature society, friendship and love everyone is running after that but what is the reality? In order to facilitate one’s own agenda, one does not hesitate to kill one’s own brother’s children or brother’s widow.
He was planning to burn them alive in a house made of wax. This is the reality. You think the material nature is such a wonderful place. People here are so selfish that although they have good qualities but when it comes to fulfilling their own agenda they don’t hesitate to stoop down to the lowest degree. That’s what the material nature is like. When you go beyond the drama of Mahabharata then you begin to understand all these points. Generally, when people read, personally I can admit, I was reading and hearing about Mahabharata and I was fascinated by Mahabharata but these understandings did not come. I just saw Mahabharata just as one reads a book very exciting. Actual understanding began to dawn that Mahabharata is not just a story but a history. The narrations and descriptions of Mahabharata are not just some imaginary presentations this is a recorded history of what happened in the past in this very land. This all happened due to Srila Prabhupada’s mercy. This is how Prabhupada actually opened our darkened eyes. We began to see the reality as it is. In this way we began to see the underlying facets of Mahabharata.
There was so much struggle. We see the different characters. Duryodhana in one hand he has so many nobles qualities but these noble qualities were destroyed by his envy for the Pandavas and his extreme ambition to hold onto the kingdom. This is what the material nature is like. Even though exalted personalities Duryodhana, of course when we read Mahabharata, we hate Duryodhana but then again underlying observation reveals that he had so many friends and followers. He had some very wonderful qualities, he was a very genuine friend and a well-wisher of his friends, generous. All these qualities were there but ultimately what he did? He is doing everything with a purpose. He joined hands with Karna why? Because he saw he was a competent rival for Arjuna because he himself could not defeat Arjuna. He immediately gave him a kingdom and made him a king and all along they have been great friends.
Karna another noble character, son of Suryadev. Due to bad association, we see that Karna lost all his good qualities. In one hand he is so broad minded, generous and noble and when Indra came in the guise of a Brahamana, he asked Karna to give up his kavacha and kundala. Armour that he was born with it was a part of his body and he cut that and gave it. The benediction was as long as he had this armour no one will be able to defeat him, Indra knew and in order to favour Arjuna did that came and took it away. Karna was known as the greatest of the donors, no one could compare with his generous nature of donating whatever anyone wanted, and he didn’t hesitate and sacrificed his own son. Then again, we see the vile character of Karna, he is plotting with Duryodhana to kill the Pandavas.
He sided with Duryodhana when Draupadi was being disrobed. He told her your husbands have lost everything so why you being loyal to your husbands, accept your new master. Karna was speaking like that. Abhimanyu was fighting alone and the Maharatis couldn’t do anything, Karna from behind cut Abhimanyu’s bow and that is another unfair deal. In the battlefield one should not throw arrows from behind and he cut his bow from behind. This is showing the reality of material nature, the way we are and we talk of society, friendship and love forget it. Everyone is only for himself the only one we can ever depend on is Krishna. We can see the Mahabharata is filled with miseries and sufferings.
The Ksatriyas it may seem there is so much glamour, there is so much luxury and enjoyments but the underlying thing is that at any moment you can die. Today a queen tomorrow she can become a widow. Today a king tomorrow he can lose everything. Inconceivable luxury when they established Indraprasta. Dritarastra a treacherous character, firstly they tried to kill the Pandavas and when they found they still alive they said give them a part of the kingdom. They inherited the whole kingdom; the understanding is that the eldest of the family would become the king. So Yudhistir was the king by his right, he was born as the eldest in the family so actually he inherited the whole kingdom.
Ok fine you keep half and give half to them but what half was given? A barren piece of land where there was nothing. Another sign of a virtuous and qualified person is that wherever he goes prosperity follows him. They went to a piece of land which was completely barren that place became Indraprastha and it was so opulent that Duryodhana just by seeing that he was burning with envy. He couldn’t sleep at night due to his envy. This is the nature of envy, an envious person always burns internally seeing the prosperity of others, he can’t tolerate others are flourishing or prospering. A noble man rejoices seeing other’s prosperity. That is the difference between and envious person and a virtuous person.
2. SRILA PRABHUPADA'S APPRECIATION
The narrations and descriptions of Mahabharata are not just some imaginary presentations this is a recorded history of what happened in the past in this very land. This all happened due to Srila Prabhupada’s mercy. This is how Prabhupada actually opened our darkened eyes. We began to see the reality as it is. In this way we began to see the underlying facets of Mahabharata.
3. GURU MAHARAJA’S INSTRUCTIONS
- This is showing the reality of material nature, the way we are and we talk of society, friendship and love forget it. Everyone is only for himself the only one we can ever depend on is Krishna; and
- This is the nature of envy, an envious person always burns internally seeing the prosperity of others, he can’t tolerate others are flourishing or prospering. A noble man rejoices seeing other’s prosperity. That is the difference between and envious person and a virtuous person.
(The content of this E-magazine is based on a lecture given by His Holiness Bhakti Charu Swami on 26 August 2008 in ISKCON Ujjain)
(Compiled and Edited by Hemavati Radhika Devi Dasi)