Srimad Bhagavatam 2.4.3-4 | HH Bhanu Swami Maharaj | ISKCON Chennai | 20 June 2026
jaya rādhā-mādhava kuñja-vihārī
gopījana-vallabha giri-vara-dhārī
yaśodā-nandana vraja-jana-rañjana
yamunā-tīra-vana-cārī
Hare Kṛṣṇa Hare Kṛṣṇa Kṛṣṇa Kṛṣṇa Hare Hare
Hare Rāma Hare Rāma Rāma Rāma Hare Hare
Jaya Prabhupāda Jaya Prabhupāda
Prabhupāda Jaya Prabhupāda
Oṁ namo bhagavate vāsudevāya
Oṁ namo bhagavate vāsudevāya
Oṁ namo bhagavate vāsudevāya
nama oṁ viṣṇu-pādāya kṛṣṇa-preṣṭhāya bhū-tale
śrīmate bhaktivedānta-svāmin iti nāmine
namas te sārasvate deve gaura-vāṇī-pracāriṇe
nirviśeṣa-śūnyavādi-pāścātya-deśa-tāriṇe
jaya śrī-kṛṣṇa-caitanya prabhu-nityānanda
śrī-advaita gadādhara śrīvāsādi-gaura-bhakta-vṛnda
Hare Kṛṣṇa Hare Kṛṣṇa Kṛṣṇa Kṛṣṇa Hare Hare
Hare Rāma Hare Rāma Rāma Rāma Hare Hare
Reading from Srimad Bhagavatam Canto 2 Chapter 4 Verse 3-4.
ŚB 2.4.3-4
पप्रच्छ चेममेवार्थं यन्मां पृच्छथ सत्तमा:
कृष्णानुभावश्रवणे श्रद्दधानो महामना:
संस्थां विज्ञाय संन्यस्य कर्म त्रैवर्गिकं च यत्
वासुदेवे भगवति आत्मभावं दृढं गत:
papraccha cemam evārthaṁ
yan māṁ pṛcchatha sattamāḥ
kṛṣṇānubhāva-śravaṇe
śraddadhāno mahā-manāḥ
saṁsthāṁ vijñāya sannyasya
karma trai-vargikaṁ ca yat
vāsudeve bhagavati
ātma-bhāvaṁ dṛḍhaṁ gataḥ
Synonyms
papraccha — asked; ca — also; imam — this; eva — exactly like; artham — purpose; yat — that; mām — unto me; pṛcchatha — you are asking; sattamāḥ — O great sages; kṛṣṇa–anubhāva — rapt in thought of Kṛṣṇa; śravaṇe — in hearing; śraddadhānaḥ — full of faith; mahā–manāḥ — the great soul; saṁsthām — death; vijñāya — being informed; sannyasya — renouncing; karma — fruitive activities; trai–vargikam — the three principles religion, economic development and sense gratification; ca — also; yat — what it may be; vāsudeve — unto Lord Kṛṣṇa; bhagavati — the Personality of Godhead; ātma–bhāvam — attraction of love; dṛḍham — firmly fixed; gataḥ — achieved.
Translation
O great sages, the great soul Mahārāja Parīkṣit, constantly rapt in thought of Lord Kṛṣṇa, knowing well of his imminent death, renounced all sorts of fruitive activities, namely acts of religion, economic development and sense gratification, and thus fixed himself firmly in his natural love for Kṛṣṇa and asked all these questions, exactly as you are asking me.
Purport
The three activities of religion, economic development and sense gratification are generally attractive for conditioned souls struggling for existence in the material world. Such regulated activities prescribed in the Vedas are called the karma-kāṇḍīya conception of life, and householders are generally recommended to follow the rules just to enjoy material prosperity both in this life and in the next. Most people are attracted by such activities. Even in the activities of their modern godless civilization, people are more concerned with economic development and sense gratification without any religious sentiments. As a great emperor of the world, Mahārāja Parīkṣit had to observe such regulations of the Vedic karma-kāṇḍīya section, but by his slight association with Śukadeva Gosvāmī he could perfectly understand that Lord Kṛṣṇa, the Absolute Personality of Godhead (Vāsudeva), for whom he had a natural love since his birth, is everything, and thus he fixed his mind firmly upon Him, renouncing all modes of Vedic karma-kāṇḍīya activities. This perfectional stage is attained by a jñānī after many, many births. The jñānīs, or the empiric philosophers endeavoring for liberation, are thousands of times better than the fruitive workers, and out of hundreds of thousands of such jñānīs one is liberated factually. And out of hundreds of thousands of such liberated persons, even one person is rarely found who can firmly fix his mind unto the lotus feet of Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa, as declared by the Lord Himself in the Bhagavad-gītā (7.19). Mahārāja Parīkṣit is specially qualified with the word mahā-manāḥ, which puts him on an equal level with the mahātmās described in the Bhagavad-gītā. In the later age also there have been many mahātmās of this type, and they also gave up all karma-kāṇḍīya conceptions of life, solely and wholly depending on the Supreme Personality of Godhead Kṛṣṇa. Lord Caitanya, who is Lord Kṛṣṇa Himself, taught us in His Śikṣāṣṭaka (8):
āśliṣya vā pāda-ratāṁ pinaṣṭu mām
adarśanān marma-hatāṁ karotu vā
yathā tathā vā vidadhātu lampaṭo
mat-prāṇa-nāthas tu sa eva nāparaḥ
“Lord Kṛṣṇa, who is the lover of many devotees (women), may embrace this fully surrendered maidservant or may trample me with His feet, or He may render me brokenhearted by not being present before me for a long duration of time, but still He is nothing less than the Absolute Lord of my heart.”
Śrīla Rūpa Gosvāmī spoke thus:
viracaya mayi daṇḍaṁ dīna-bandho dayāmī vā
gatir iha na bhavattaḥ kācid anyā mamāsti
nipatatu śata-koṭi-nirbharaṁ vā navāmbhaḥ
tad api kila-payodaḥ stūyate cātakena
“O Lord of the poor, do what you like with me, give me either mercy or punishment, but in this world I have none to look to except Your Lordship. The cātaka bird always prays for the cloud, regardless of whether it showers rains or throws a thunderbolt.”
Śrīla Mādhavendra Purī, the grand-spiritual master of Lord Caitanya, took leave of all karma-kāṇḍīya obligations in the following words:
sandhyā-vandana bhadram astu bhavato bhoḥ snāna tubhyaṁ namo
bho devāḥ pitaraś ca tarpaṇa-vidhau nāhaṁ kṣamaḥ kṣamyatām
yatra kvāpi niṣadya yādava-kulottamasya kaṁsa-dviṣaḥ
smāraṁ smāram aghaṁ harāmi tad alaṁ manye kim anyena me
“O my evening prayer, all good unto you. O my morning bath, I bid you goodbye. O demigods and forefathers, please excuse me. I am unable to perform any more offerings for your pleasure. Now I have decided to free myself from all reactions to sins simply by remembering anywhere and everywhere the great descendant of Yadu and the great enemy of Kaṁsa [Lord Kṛṣṇa]. I think that this is sufficient for me. So what is the use of further endeavors?”
Śrīla Mādhavendra Purī said further:
mugdhaṁ māṁ nigadantu nīti-nipuṇā bhrāntaṁ muhur vaidikāḥ
mandaṁ bāndhava-sañcayā jaḍa-dhiyaṁ muktādarāḥ sodarāḥ
unmattaṁ dhanino viveka-caturāḥ kāmam mahā-dāmbhikam
moktuṁ na kṣāmate manāg api mano govinda-pāda-spṛhām
“Let the sharp moralist accuse me of being illusioned; I do not mind. Experts in Vedic activities may slander me as being misled, friends and relatives may call me frustrated, my brothers may call me a fool, the wealthy mammonites may point me out as mad, and the learned philosophers may assert that I am much too proud; still my mind does not budge an inch from the determination to serve the lotus feet of Govinda, though I be unable to do it.”
And also Prahlāda Mahārāja said:
dharmārtha-kāma iti yo ’bhihitas trivarga
īkṣā trayī naya-damau vividhā ca vārtā
manye tad etad akhilaṁ nigamasya satyaṁ
svātmārpaṇaṁ sva-suhṛdaḥ paramasya puṁsaḥ
“Religion, economic development and sense gratification are celebrated as three means of attaining the path of salvation. Of these, īkṣā trayī especially, i.e., knowledge of the self, knowledge of fruitive acts and logic and also politics and economics, are different means of livelihood. All these are different subjects of Vedic education, and therefore I consider them temporary engagements. On the other hand, surrendering unto the Supreme Lord Viṣṇu is a factual gain in life, and I consider it the ultimate truth.” (Bhāg. 7.6.26)
The whole matter is concluded in the Bhagavad-gītā (2.41) as vyavasāyātmikā buddhiḥ, or the absolute path of perfection. Śrī Baladeva Vidyābhūṣaṇa, a great Vaiṣṇava scholar, defines this as bhagavad-arcanā-rūpaika-niṣkāma-karmabhir viśuddha-cittaḥ — accepting transcendental loving service to the Lord as the prime duty, free from fruitive reaction.
So Mahārāja Parīkṣit was perfectly right when he firmly accepted the lotus feet of Lord Kṛṣṇa, renouncing all karma-kāṇḍīya conceptions of life.
HH Bhanu Swami Maharaj:
Here we have a very long purport to illustrate the renunciation of artha, dharma, kama and moksha. As Caitanya Mahaprabhu explains in Caitanya-caritamrita, the fifth goal is prema. And when you become fixed in trying to attain that goal, these other ones become insignificant. So, the more one is dedicated to bhakti, the less one is attracted to other processes. If one has less attraction for bhakti, then of course one will still be interested in these other processes. So, the extent of advancement we can judge, therefore, by the dedication to the process of bhakti or the dedication to other processes. And thus, Pariksit, being a great devotee, only interested in concentrating on the Lord, gave up everything else.
Of course, it is also mentioned, up to a certain point in time, that he engaged in these other activities, but with no attachment, and willingly he could give them up at any time. So, the question is always asked, why do we have to criticize these other processes? because they are also mentioned in the Vedic literature, they are also mentioned in Bhagavad Gita, they are also mentioned in Bhagavatam. And it is simply a matter of how much dedicated you are to bhakti over other processes. And to a certain degree, it is also a measure of whether you are doing pure bhakti or mixed bhakti. So even if we don’t seem to be having material desires, etc., but we think that if we don’t follow Karma Yoga or Varnashrama, then our bhakti is in trouble, then this itself is a contamination. If we think that the purity of bhakti depends on doing other things, then this is contamination of bhakti. And this prevents us from attaining Prema.
So, here we have the example, this is Madhavendra Puri, what he says. So He says Sandhya Vandanam “Goodbye”, taking bath “Goodbye”. Offering tarpanas to Devatas, worshipping Devatas, all finished. I can’t do them anymore. While he mentions these things, he says that these are essential parts of Varnashrama. Varnashrama is a set of rules for the different varnas. And some of those rules are what we call Nitya Karma. Which of course means eternal activity, but here it means daily. You should do them every day.
So, for of course all castes there are Nitya Karmas, but particularly for the Vaishya, Kshatriya and Brahmana, then we do have Sandhya Vandana, Tarpanas, all necessary. This is part of your Varna activity. If you don’t do them, you are not in that Varna. And they are all performed according to certain rules. Some of the rules are quite complicated. But if you don’t do these things every day, it’s sinful.
So these are the typical duties of a person in the Varnashram system, and Madhavendra Puri says, I am not going to do this anymore. They are all useless. I can destroy all my sins simply by remembering Krishna. So, what is the use of all of this? So, in other words, continuation of these different rituals and rules etc. is simply a show. If you have a stronger medicine, why do you have to take the weaker medicine? So, that is the conviction of a person who understands that the process of Bhakti and the goal of Prema is more important than anything else.
And, of course, other people will criticize. And that’s represented in the second verse, people will call me a fool, they’ll think I’m in illusion etc. So normal society, Vedic society, the Varnashram society, has its own normal standards and anyone who don’t follow these standards get criticized. However, Madhavendra Puri says, I don’t mind if they criticize because I’m following a higher principle. So, the same principle we see repeated throughout the Bhagavatam. All other processes get rejected in favor of devotional service. And Prabhupada also mentions later on the words Vyavasayatmika Bhuddhi. Which means, our intelligence is not many branched, it’s fixed on one goal. So, immediately, if we have other processes, other goals involved, then it is no longer one-pointed intelligence. So, this is a very central point of the Srimad Bhagavatam. And, though devotees may have difficulty practicing Bhakti, the main process of overcoming those difficulties is the process of Bhakti itself.
At the same time, when we do follow the Bhagavatam, it doesn’t mean automatically reject everything. And we see that Arjuna followed Krishna and surrendered to Krishna but, he still went on following his duties as a Kshatriya. So, we can continue to follow our varnashrama rules as long as they don’t interfere with the main process of surrender to Krishna. So, in this way, Bhakti has to be the main principle behind everything. And, if we are to follow varnashrama, then it becomes a matter of which rules do we follow and which do we don’t follow.
And, obviously, those which don’t contradict Bhakti, those can be accepted. Those that contradict Bhakti, we reject. But then we find that some of these things mentioned here by Madhavendra Puri may be contrary. So, we have to reject them. Tarpanas to the Pitras and worship of Devatas and Sandhya Vandana and bath according to Vedic ritual. No devotee does this.
So, if we don’t do these things, then what do we do of the varnashrama? So, that becomes a matter of controversy. But ultimately, as I said, the controversy is resolved by understanding that the main principle is Bhakti and everything else has to follow that. Everything else is adaptable. So, we have throughout the Bhagavatam extreme examples. Give up everything [Laughs]. So, we are someone like Jada Bharath. In this particular case, because of the curse, then Pariksit gives up everything. But, in other cases, they didn’t give up everything. But, if they didn’t give up everything, still they were not attached to anything else. So, therefore, that is the example we should follow in our lives as well.
Hare Krishna.
Q & A :
1.) Maharaj, Prabhupada said that cleanliness is next to godliness. But here we have seen that Madhavendra Puri doesn’t care for that. How do you understand this?
Well, we can take the extreme case of Jada Bharath or whatever like that. They didn’t care what was wrong. Anything clean or unclean didn’t matter. So, that is an extreme case. So, most devotees are not at an elevated stage like that. So, therefore, they do bathe and keep clean, etc. So, that is one principle but, if you are following Varnashrama, then cleanliness also has so many rules attached to it. So, your choice of water. Some water is pure, some is impure. Well water and river water is pure. There is no such thing as tap water [Laughs]. So, everything is quite restricted in terms of purity even of the water you bathe in. And even the bathing follows certain rituals and certain mantras and whatever rules. So, it is not just bath, but it is bath according to ritual, that is what he is talking about here.
Of course, it is also recognized that cleanliness means not just external cleanliness but internal cleanliness. And of the two, ultimately, internal cleanliness is more important. And thus, when you do take the bath, you have to chant the mantras and the mantras create the internal cleanliness. But then we also say that ultimately, what is the final bath or cleanliness? Remember Vishnu [Laughs].
2.) You know that in tenth canto mentioned that Krishna and Dwarakavasis all went to Kurukshetra to see the eclipse. Although this eclipse is not a part of bhakti, but they have celebrated.
So, they went there to take their bath. So, in the Puranas, the taking bath at Kurukshetra during an eclipse is considered very pious or whatever. So, because they were leaders, kshatriyas, etc., they are expected to follow normal procedures, customs, etc. Just as even Nanda Maharaj, they went to the Shiva temple to worship Shiva, Shivaratri [Laughs]. So, therefore, it is not that Krishna had to get purified by taking a bath there or whatever thing, but they are just following normal customs. And we also see that Yudhishthira performed horse sacrifices after the battle of Kurukshetra to get purity. So, not necessary because there was no sin on his part at all, but he does this for external appearance.
3.) Hare Krishna Maharaj. Maharaj, we see these kinds of statements in scriptures and also in Bhagavatam. When Prithu Maharaj is advising his citizens, he is saying that you follow your varnashrama and that will satisfy Vishnu. So, how do you understand these statements from the Bhagavatam?
So, because the varnashrama system is sponsored by the Supreme Lord and mentioned in scripture in general, people should follow. So it is a means by which everybody can avoid sin as much as possible. At the same simply to follow that system is not ultimate. And if we follow that system and we don’t practice bhakti, that also is wrong. So, if it comes to a choice, ultimately, we should choose bhakti over everything else. Persons who have no faith in bhakti or absolute faith in the practice of pure bhakti, and still want to get their artha, dharma and kama let them practice varnashrama.
4.) Maharaj in elevation to Krishna consciousness book Srila Prabhupada writes this statement, varnashrama dharma is accepted as the eternal religion of the living entity. How to understand this statement?
So, as I said it is sponsored by the Lord also in Bhagavad Gita Krishna says I created the four varnas etc all these but again we talk about dharma, Prabhupada analyses the word dharma ultimately, what does it mean? Your natural position which is to be a servant of Krishna. So, if you are doing varnashrama and you are not having that as a goal, then it also becomes secondary.
5.) Hare Krishna Maharaj. Maharaj, we understand in the level of Madhavendra Puri, renouncing sandhya vandanam, tarpanam, it’s okay. But if someone asks me, I say why you are leaving sandhya vandanam means, it is told in the scriptures that it is bhakti. If you do bhakti, other process can be rejected. But in the level of Madhavendra Puri, it is okay but what is about in the level of sadhaka?
So, they can follow all these things, it is not wrong to follow, as long as they don’t think that if I don’t do them, I become sinful. Because that will represent the fact that they think that other things are independent of bhakti.
6.) Maharaj, if I have so much anarthas, sometimes gross, sometimes subtle, with this anartha, how can I understand I am pleasing Krishna? Because it is said even Chandala can please Krishna. Like, with this so many anarthas, how can I understand I am pleasing Krishna?
Well, we see that the Lord is pleased with any type of bhakti. So, in Bhagavad Gita, Krishna says, four types of people surrender I accept them all as devotees. Then they have anarthas. Gajendra was not doing pure bhakti, but the Lord responded to him.
So of course those who are following Lord Caitanya and practicing pure bhakti, they still have anarthas but they are actually in higher position than a person who is practicing mixed bhakti so, if the Lord is willing to respond to Gajendra, then how much more he is willing to respond to a person practicing pure bhakti?
7.) What should be the attitude one has to maintain, so he does not end up eating and sleeping and doing little bhajan in between? The thinking process, what should he strive for?
Well, as long as we have a body, we have to eat and we have to sleep. But instead of maximizing those things, we try to minimize them. And as much of the rest of the time that we have, we try to engage that in serving Krishna.
8.) Hare Krishna Maharaj. In this bhakti, the main thing is intention even for society, outwardly if we are acting, but intention is pure bhakti like that, thinking of Krishna and service, like that can we take?
Yeah, so externally we can do so many things as long as we are not overly attached to those things.
Devotees: Grantharaj Srimad Bhagavatam ki jai!!! HH Bhanu Swami Maharaj ki jai!!! Srila Prabhupada ki jai!!! Nitai Gaura Premanande Hari Haribol!!!