Srimad Bhagavatam – 1.13.47 | HH Bhanu Swami Maharaj | ISKCON Chennai | April 9, 2025 |
ŚB 1.13.47
अहस्तानि सहस्तानामपदानि चतुष्पदाम् ।
Om Namo Bhagavate Vāsudevāya
Om Namo Bhagavate Vāsudevāya
Om Namo Bhagavate Vāsudevāya
nama om vishnu-padaya krishna-preshthaya bhu-tale
srimate bhaktivedanta-svamin iti namine
namas te sarasvate deve gaura-vani-pracharine
nirvishesha-shunyavadi-pashchatya-desha-tarine
jaya sri-krishna-chaitanya
prabhu nityananda
sri-adwaita gadadhara
shrivasadi-gaura-bhakta-vrinda
Hare Krishna Hare Krishna Krishna Krishna Hare Hare
Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare
Reading from Srimad Bhagavatham Canto 1 Chapter 13 Verse 47.
ŚB 1.13.47
फल्गूनि तत्र महतां जीवो जीवस्य जीवनम् ॥ ४७ ॥
ahastāni sahastānām
apadāni catuṣ-padām
phalgūni tatra mahatāṁ
jīvo jīvasya jīvanam
Synonyms
ahastāni — those who are devoid of hands; sa-hastānām — of those who are endowed with hands; apadāni — those who are devoid of legs; catuḥ-padām — of those who have four legs; phalgūni — those who are weak; tatra — there; mahatām — of the powerful; jīvaḥ — the living being; jīvasya — of the living being; jīvanam — subsistence.
Translation
Those who are devoid of hands are prey for those who have hands; those devoid of legs are prey for the four-legged. The weak are the subsistence of the strong, and the general rule holds that one living being is food for another.
Purport
A systematic law of subsistence in the struggle for existence is there by the supreme will, and there is no escape for anyone by any amount of planning. The living beings who have come to the material world against the will of the Supreme Being are under the control of a supreme power called māyā-śakti, the deputed agent of the Lord, and this daivī māyā is meant to pinch the conditioned souls by threefold miseries, one of which is explained here in this verse: the weak are the subsistence of the strong. No one is strong enough to protect himself from the onslaught of a stronger, and by the will of the Lord there are systematic categories of the weak, the stronger and the strongest. There is nothing to be lamented if a tiger eats a weaker animal, including a man, because that is the law of the Supreme Lord. But although the law states that a human being must subsist on another living being, there is the law of good sense also, for the human being is meant to obey the laws of the scriptures. This is impossible for other animals. The human being is meant for self-realization, and for that purpose he is not to eat anything which is not first offered to the Lord. The Lord accepts from His devotee all kinds of food preparations made of vegetables, fruits, leaves and grains. Fruits, leaves and milk in different varieties can be offered to the Lord, and after the Lord accepts the foodstuff, the devotee can partake of the prasāda, by which all suffering in the struggle for existence will be gradually mitigated. This is confirmed in the Bhagavad-gītā (9.26). Even those who are accustomed to eat animals can offer foodstuff, not to the Lord directly, but to an agent of the Lord, under certain conditions of religious rites. Injunctions of the scriptures are meant not to encourage the eaters of animals, but to restrict them by regulative principles.
The living being is the source of subsistence for other, stronger living beings. No one should be very anxious for his subsistence in any circumstances because there are living beings everywhere, and no living being starves for want of food at any place. Mahārāja Yudhiṣṭhira is advised by Nārada not to worry about his uncles’ suffering for want of food, for they could live on vegetables available in the jungles as prasāda of the Supreme Lord and thus realize the path of salvation.
Exploitation of the weaker living being by the stronger is the natural law of existence; there is always an attempt to devour the weak in different kingdoms of living beings. There is no possibility of checking this tendency by any artificial means under material conditions; it can be checked only by awakening the spiritual sense of the human being by practice of spiritual regulations. The spiritual regulative principles, however, do not allow a man to slaughter weaker animals on one side and teach others peaceful coexistence. If man does not allow the animals peaceful coexistence, how can he expect peaceful existence in human society? The blind leaders must therefore understand the Supreme Being and then try to implement the kingdom of God. The kingdom of God, or Rāma-rājya, is impossible without the awakening of God consciousness in the mass mind of the people of the world.
HH Bhanu Swami Maharaj:
So, this continues the discussion of how, in the material world, the human body is subject to all sorts of problems. So, the previous verse mentioned how the serpent of time eventually devours the living entity. We also know there are adhibhautika, adhidaivika, adhyatmika afflictions of the living entity. So, we get affliction from calamities. We get mental afflictions. And we get afflictions from other living entities. So, that is what is discussed in this verse.
So, the principle is the stronger attacks the weaker. So, the four-handed attacks the two-handed or the whatever. Animals eat plants. Then, among four-legged animals, some animals only eat meat like tigers and lions, so they will attack the other animals like deer and whatever. So, the human being is special. He only has two legs, not four legs. So, he cannot run as fast as the horse. Fortunately, the horse does not eat flesh. But tigers and lions, they will eat a human being. Of course, the human being will also eat plants or animals.
So, though the human being has not got all the senses strong and maybe he has not got four legs, he has only got two legs, he has one advantage, intelligence. And since ancient times, the human being has used his intelligence to farm and to trap animals. So, the principle is not just how many legs you have, but also stronger versus weaker. The human being is not as strong as an elephant, but he has more intelligence. This makes the human being superior to other animals. So, this gives the human being the possibility of killing all plants and killing all animals. And of course, we can use that as a rule. See, Bhagavatam is the same. Human being is the most powerful, he can take the life of everybody else, no problem. So, yes, that is true.
However, there are other rules for the human being besides this rule. So, we have a whole set of rules called Dharma. And of course, technically, if the strong can live at the expense of the weak, then the stronger people can just take advantage of all the weaker people and kill them off. But in Dharma, you don’t do that. So, therefore, the husband protects the wife and children, he doesn’t eat them. The king protects the citizens through the force of the Kshatriyas. Definitely, the citizens are weaker, the king is stronger, but he protects them, he doesn’t kill them. So, within human society, then we have some different principles. So, not only do we have rules concerning human beings, we also have rules concerning human beings in relation to other animals and to plants. And the general rule is, minimize the violence. So, where necessary, yes, you kill the weaker, but still, we try to minimize the violence. And another rule, of course is that killing plants is less violent than killing animals. So, therefore, we can survive on plants, not animals. So, these are the principles for the human being.
However, the rules become more complex. Prabhupada mentions, not only do we take the food from the plants, but we also offer it to the Supreme Lord. So this is very distinct from any animal. Some animals are completely vegetarian, like cows or deer. But they don’t offer their grass to the Supreme Lord while they eat it. So, why should the human being do this? Because scripture says that. So, the human being is more intelligent, but human being also has intelligence enforced by scriptures. This makes him more intelligent. So, the human beings, who follow the Vedic scriptures are considered superior and stronger than those who do not follow the scriptures. So, the whole purpose of not killing animals, taking plant life instead, but then offering it is, that the purpose of human life is, not just for survival.
And Darwin has his theory of survival of the fittest. Which means, the stronger against the weaker. But human being is different. The human being is not only meant for survival. Human being is meant to get out of the material world completely, stop the struggle for survival. In the previous verses, Narada would describe the misery of the struggle for survival. And Dhrtarashtra will also undergo this in the forest. But the human being should not worry too much about this and concentrate on the real goal of human life. And for that purpose, we take food, but we offer it to the Supreme Lord. By doing this, we acknowledge that nothing belongs to us, everything belongs to the Supreme Lord. And whatever is given by the Lord, we accept with gratitude. But we offer to the Lord and then we eat. What is the purpose of eating? Not just survival. We maintain our bodies in order to serve the Lord. So, this is far beyond struggle for material existence. If anyone takes to this higher level of conduct, he is superior to everyone else. And of course, even people who accept the Vedas to come to this level is also rare.
And thus, most of the people following the Vedas are following Karma Yoga. The goal is not to attain the Lord or get out of the cycle of birth and death. It is again, struggle for existence on a higher level. But, the scripture explains that though this is mentioned in the Vedas, this is not the highest truth. By following the rules of the Vedas of Karma Yoga, eventually the person will understand that there is a higher goal also. But, at least by following the rules of Karma Yoga, he gets some advancement. So, the example is given in Bhagavatam. It is like a sick child. So, then the father wants to give the child, some medicine. But, the medicine is very bitter. So, the father says, I will give you some sweets, if you take the medicine. So, in this way, the Vedas give you some material enticements. In order to get to Svargaloka, you have to follow some rules. You have to take the medicine. But, it is not just taking medicine, the goal is to cure the child of the disease.
So the goal of the Vedas is, not just to follow Karma Yoga, but to get beyond that and take the Jiva out of the material world. But, the first step is, to give a little material reward. So, ultimately then, the whole goal of human life is, to go beyond this struggle for existence and concentrate on developing one’s relationship with the Supreme Lord. And if that happens, we don’t worry so much, what happens to this material body. So, in that way, Yudhishthira should not worry too much about Dhrtarashtra in the forest. He went to the forest on the advice of Vidura, so he could give up his material attachments completely. So, he had attained a higher stage of life. And, therefore, we should not lament.
Hare Krsna!
Q&A
1) Maharaj there is a gradual elevation is there. Gradual elevation.. The way it is mentioned, lower species to higher species, or lower intelligence to higher intelligence, but you know hardly people come to higher intelligence. Means, hardly understand the Vedas and other things, right now because of, you know, people are unfortunate and also, you know, there is not intelligence and also, you know, because of the effect of Kali Yuga and that’s why we see the percentage of the following Dharma is almost like a 0.1%. Not many, because people are not intelligent. So, what I am saying that, you know, it is difficult for the people to accept when we give them something in a higher things because they are in a lower stage. So, how can we handle this in the society? Society, because we are living in the society and maximum people are in a lower stage. And, when we go to the outside, we face a lot of problem.
HH Bhanu Swami Maharaj: So, the question is, how to get a higher taste?
Devotee: See, when you go to outside, outside, you know, because people are almost like ignorance and less intelligent. They cannot understand what we are trying to speak. Because here Bhakti is above everything. They cannot accept this. Sometimes, they don’t believe that something exists like this. So, handling them is quite a challenge for the preacher.
HH Bhanu Swami Maharaj: Well, of course, most people, majority of people in the material world are in ignorance. Their consciousness is to survive in the material world and get some enjoyment. And they can use Dharma or religion to help that. But, the system of Dharma, if practiced properly, will eventually start to cure them of the disease. And, by following the rules, they come to Sattva. If they come to Sattva, they can distinguish atma from body. Then, they can go for higher goal. Unfortunately, that system doesn’t exist in Kali Yuga.
So, one solution is, ok, let us re-establish Varanashramam. But that is very difficult. Because, we don’t have the qualified leader anymore. So, the same problem remains, how to give the people a taste. So, the solution is, directly take to the process of Bhakti. But that is even rarer than Swarga Loka. But that is even rarer than Swarga Loka.
The only one way, this can be done is by invoking special powers. So, the solution of Bhagavatham is to present Krishna as the object of worship and the goal. Krishna is the most attractive object. He has Artha, Dharma, Kama, Moksha and Prema in Him. So, we accept Krishna as an object of worship and, we approach Him through the process of Bhakti. So, fortunately Bhakti doesn’t depend on coming to sattva guna. If a person has faith, that may arise in Sattva, Rajas or Tamas. So, faith and practice of Bhakti doesn’t depend upon Dharma and Varnashrama. So, the only problem that is to give people faith in Kali Yuga.
So, of course, faith is produced by Agjnatha-sukrti. Engagement in Bhakti, when you don’t have faith, which means accidental Bhakti. So the people are exposed to Bhakti in some way, or the other hearing about or seeing something or whatever then that will eventually produce faith. Furthermore, we have a little advantage. Caitanya Mahaprabhu has introduced Nama Sankirtan. So as Krishna is most attractive of all forms of the Lord, Nama Sankirtan is most and powerful form of Bhakti. And therefore, the way of invoking faith in people is to spread Nama Sankirtan everywhere.
2) Hare Krishna Maharaj, I have a question that you told it’s faith it’s important. But how do we develop that unwavering faith in Bhakti and how do we gradually progress?
So, we start Bhakti with little faith and as we progress in Bhakti, the faith increases. So, we begin with a little seed, and we water the seed and a plant comes up. When the plant comes up, if you don’t take care of it, it will die because it’s very sensitive.
But, if you care for it nicely, it begins to grow and it becomes stronger. Then, it is not subject to such dangers as it gets stronger and grows more. So, by following the activities of Bhakti, cultivating Bhakti by hearing and chanting, etc., the Bhakti becomes stronger.
Thank you, Maharaj.
3) When we say survival of the fittest, can we understand that all living entities are trying to gain control over others?
All living entities are attempting to survive. In the process, eventually, as this verse says, you have to take another life. So, the stronger defeats the weaker. So, as far as maintaining the material body, this is a principle. But the more advanced the human being becomes, the less he needs to survive. If we develop a spiritual body, we don’t need anything in the material world.
Thank you, Maharaj.
4) What is the actual reason behind ‘Jeevo Jeevasya Jeevanam’ principle? How to understand this principle, that ‘Jeevo Jeevasya Jeevanam’ principle is not a violent, but a perfect principle in all aspects? Because Lord being a perfect entity, for sure he could have created a system which is non-violent. So, how do we understand that Jeevo Jeevasya Jeevanam is a non-violent principle?
It’s a law of the material world. But it is not perfect. It causes suffering. And this is there to remind us that as long as we have a material body, we are subject to suffering. As long as we have the body and we are attached to the body, we have to struggle to maintain the body. It is not perfect. It causes fatigue. It causes suffering. But this is the nature of the material world. Which means, as long as we have a material world and a material body, nothing is perfect.
5) The food offered to Vishnu Tattvas, other than Vishnu Tattvas, like Lord Shiva or Lord Ganesha or Devi, that is considered as a prasadam and what is the benefit of that prasadam?
So, the devotee should not offer food directly to Devatas. He should offer everything to the Supreme Lord. He can take the prasadam from the Lord and offer that to the Devatas. If he offers directly to Devatas, then he is admitting that there is someone who is independent of the Lord. If he offers directly to Devatas, then he is admitting that there is someone who is independent of the Lord. This is an aparad.
6) When we talk of Nama Sankirtan as the most powerful form of Bhakti, can we understand that if devotees keep on increasing Nama Sankirtan everywhere possible, this will become the foundation for instilling faith in common people and introduce the philosophy and so on?
Well, that is the instruction of Chaitanya Mahaprabhu. He says, ‘Harer nama harer nama harer namaiva kevalam’ [Laughs].
6) Jivo Jivasya Jivanam, that every jiva is depending on devotee of the Lord or devotee, then it will be very nice or how can I understand, Maharaj, that Jivo Jivasya Jivanam, that every Jiva is depending on other Jiva, it is common to general rule for all, but if all other Jivas depending on devotee of the Lord or devotee, we can understand in that way?
Well, this verse is only in terms of material bodies. And it is showing the miserable condition of the material world.
Devotees: Grantharaj Srimad Bhagavatham ki jai!!! HH Bhanu Swami maharaj ki Jai!!! HDG AC Bhakti Vedanta Swami Srila Prabhupad ki Jai !!