Mysteries of the Vedas

With this, we come to the end of the conversation between Vidura and Maitreya, which corresponds to most of the 3rd and 4th cantos of the Srimad Bhagavatam. By examining all of the important instructions we received in these two cantos, we can see how valuable they are and easily understand why Śukadeva Goswami chose to narrate them. Vidura heard from Maitreya many descriptions of kings who attain...

The Lord appeared on the shoulder of Garuḍa, in a form with eight arms, complete with all opulences. The Lord was satisfied with the Pracetas for their perfect recitation of the prayers of Lord Śiva, their dedication in the practice of devotional service, and many other factors, but the point he specifically mentioned when He met them was their sincere dealings with each other: "My dear sons of th...

Just as Rāhu, which is normally invisible, sometimes becomes visible in the presence of the full moon, all the material desires stocked in the mind, which are normally invisible until manifested, become visible at once when the devotee attains the constant association of the Lord. One can thus see his entire stock of desires at once and, simultaneously, see the Lord present before him. In the pres...

For us, the allegory of Purañjana is quite understandable because of all the details included in the purports of Srila Prabhupada. However, for one with access to just the Sanskrit verses, the meaning of the allegory is not clear at all. That's a situation similar to the second chapter of the Bhagavad-Gītā, where Arjuna becomes confused by the meaning of the verses, while for us, the meaning is qu...

At the beginning of our movement, disciples of Prabhupada had no doubts about our eternal relationship with Krsna and how the soul ends up in the material world, because the only source of information for them was the books of Srila Prabhupada, where the question is explained clearly. However, in the late 1970s, devotees coming in contact with other ideas transformed this point into a battleground...

Some have the idea that Krsna doesn't care about the jīvas, sending some here and some to the spiritual world in a more or less random fashion. However, this idea is clearly dismissed in the Srimad Bhagavatam. Krsna is the friend of everyone, and the proof is that He follows each soul in its adventures in the material world, accompanying each soul as one goes from one material body to the other. N...

Just as in the first part of the allegory, Srila Prabhupada adds a completely new layer of understanding to the passage of Purañjana taking his next birth as a woman. From verse 4.28.29 to 4.28.34, Prabhupada shows how the allegory describes the spread of the cult of bhakti, and how Vaidarbhī became involved in it as a result of her short devotional practice in her previous life as Purañjana. This...

After being attacked by the forces of Caṇḍavega for many years, the defenses of the city of Purañjana are already worn out. This illustrates the period preceding old age, where one sees a great diminution of energy, and the body starts to give trouble. This is the age the scriptures recommend one retire from active family life and focus on one's self-realization. Purañjana, however, preferred to i...

Every conditioned soul lives in a fort that is being constantly attacked by a powerful enemy, the irresistible force of time, which no one can stop. It is just a matter of time until the city falls, but still, Purañjana, the conditioned soul, continued to simply enjoy life together with the senses and desires, without caring for the future. Just like Purañjana, materialists prefer to ignore death...

Purañjana left his queen and went to hunt in the forest. This part of the allegory illustrates the situation of a man who abandons his good sense and goes to perform sinful activities guided just by his senses and the desires of the mind. In the allegory, the queen represents one's intelligence, which may be imperfect and propense to materialistic activities, but that at least offers a degree of p...

Affected by lust, a man sees a beautiful girl as the source of satisfaction for all his desires, and similarly, a woman sees a handsome man as the source of wealth, adventure, and satisfaction. Just as it is difficult for a man to resist the beauty of a young, attractive lady, it is very difficult for a woman to resist the advances of a handsome man who tries to seduce her. This is the very basis...

Materialistic life is compared to a dark well, since once failing there, there is little possibility of escaping. If one somehow comes in contact with devotees who can pull him out, one should grab this opportunity with all his will, just as Prācīnabarhi did. As Prabhupada mentions in his purport to 4.25.6: "The King was very fortunate to be able to associate with Nārada, who enlightened him in sp...

In the last part of his prayers, Lord Śiva reinforces that the Lord is the ultimate object of worship. What is the necessity of discussing this topic after the greatness and the personal qualities of the Lord have already been discussed? The point is that as conditioned souls, we always have a strong tendency to impersonalism. We can say that impersonalism is the default modus operandi for all con...

In the second part of his prayers, Lord Śiva speaks about the transcendental form of the Lord. Hearing about the power and opulences of the Lord helps us to develop respect and appreciation for Him, but it is usually not enough to inspire an attitude of service. This comes when we hear about the form and personal qualities and attributes of the Lord. This meditation brings Him closer, and from thi...

Lord Śiva or Rudra is the controller of egotism, but he does so as a representative of the Lord; therefore, the Lord is the supreme controller of egotism. Under the influence of this false ego, we forget our eternal spiritual identity and accept temporary identities in this material world. It was already established that although the Supreme controller of everything, the Lord reciprocates our desi...

The last lesson of any great spiritual teacher is how to face the ultimate test: death. After fulfilling all his other duties in his earthly pastimes, Pṛthu Maharaja had a last mission to accomplish, abandoning his material body in perfect consciousness and returning home, back to Godhead, leaving his example for all who would follow. The time of death is the most difficult, and therefore is the t...

With the māyāvādī misconceptions cleared away, Sanat-kumāra returns to the main point of elevating a person to the platform of devotional service. Because the soul is blissful by nature, it is very hard for jñānīs and yogīs to give up their material desires. However, when one comes to the platform of devotional service and experiences a higher taste in the transcendental service to the Lord, mater...

The whole purpose of the material creation is to give a chance to the conditioned souls to revive their eternal nature. The Puranas explain that there are 8,400,000 forms of life in this universe, distributed amongst aquatics, plants, insects, lower animals, humans, and also higher beings, all the way up to Brahma. Before attaining the human form, the soul has to pass through an extremely long evo...

Sanat-kumāra makes the analogy of a lake drying up because of kuśa grass growing on its banks. If the grass is allowed to grow freely, it sucks the water until the lake completely dries up. In the same way, if material desires are allowed to grow, they progressively cover the original Krsna consciousness of the soul, up to the point where one can become a dog or a pig. Therefore, these columns of...

Inquired by the King, the great Sanat-kumāra starts by glorifying the questions of Maharaja Pṛthu, who, even though already situated in the highest platform of devotion, is eager to hear about the process of devotional service, and always thinking about the welfare of others. The discussion happened in the view of all citizens; therefore, by asking these questions, the King guaranteed that they wo...

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By stopping the performance of the last sacrifice and being content with the performance of 99 horse sacrifices, Pṛthu Maharaja attained the ultimate purpose of all sacrifices, that is to please the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Lord Vishnu personally appeared at the arena of sacrifice, even though the sacrifice had been stopped and there were no oblations being offered. This emphasizes that the...

The knowledge of the Muṇḍaka Upanisad was spoken by Angirasa to Śaunaka Rsi long ago, but this knowledge remains up-to-date and relevant, just as other vedic texts. It teaches supreme knowledge, brahma-vidya, which can lead us to perfection. This knowledge should be taught only to qualified students who have abandoned the path of fruitive activities and are now aiming for spiritual realization in...

Material intelligence can help us to make plans and act in this world, but it can't help us to realize the Lord. The Lord is completely free and independent and can be understood only by one who He chooses. Therefore, the process of mental speculation is not useful for understanding the Lord; He can be understood only by devotional service. We should thus abandon material attempts and try to becom...

By the end of the reign of Vena, all sacrifices and religious performances had been stopped, the population had become irreligious, and all sorts of rogues multiplied. The regional kings who were supposed to maintain law and order in their respective places were also not performing their duties properly. As a result of all this impiety, Bhūmi withheld the production of grains, creating a famine. T...