Srimad Bhagavatam – 1.15.20 | HH Bhanu Swami Maharaj | ISKCON Chennai | June 21, 2025 |
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 Bhagavatam Canto 1 Chapter 15 Verse 20.
ŚB 1.15.20
सोऽहं नृपेन्द्र रहित: पुरुषोत्तमेन
सख्या प्रियेण सुहृदा हृदयेन शून्य: ।
अध्वन्युरुक्रमपरिग्रहमङ्ग रक्षन्
गोपैरसद्भिरबलेव विनिर्जितोऽस्मि ॥ २० ॥
so ’haṁ nṛpendra rahitaḥ puruṣottamena
sakhyā priyeṇa suhṛdā hṛdayena śūnyaḥ
adhvany urukrama-parigraham aṅga rakṣan
gopair asadbhir abaleva vinirjito ’smi
Synonyms
saḥ — that; aham — myself; nṛpa-indra — O Emperor; rahitaḥ — bereft of; puruṣa-uttamena — by the Supreme Lord; sakhyā — by my friend; priyeṇa — by my dearmost; suhṛdā — by the well-wisher; hṛdayena — by the heart and soul; śūnyaḥ — vacant; adhvani — recently; urukrama-parigraham — the wives of the all-powerful; aṅga — bodies; rakṣan — while protecting; gopaiḥ — by the cowherds; asadbhiḥ — by the infidels; abalā iva — like a weak woman; vinirjitaḥ asmi — I have been defeated.
Translation
O Emperor, now I am separated from my friend and dearmost well-wisher, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, and therefore my heart appears to be void of everything. In His absence I have been defeated by a number of infidel cowherd men while I was guarding the bodies of all the wives of Kṛṣṇa.
Purport
The important point in this verse is how it was possible that Arjuna could be defeated by a gang of ignoble cowherd men and how such mundane cowherd men could touch the bodies of the wives of Lord Kṛṣṇa, who were under the protection of Arjuna. Śrīla Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura has justified the contradiction by research in the Viṣṇu Purāṇa and Brahma Purāṇa. In these Purāṇas it is said that once the fair denizens of heaven pleased Aṣṭāvakra Muni by their service and were blessed by the muni to have the Supreme Lord as their husband. Aṣṭāvakra Muni was curved in eight joints of his body, and thus he used to move in a peculiar curved manner. The daughters of the demigods could not check their laughter upon seeing the movements of the muni, and the muni, being angry at them, cursed them that they would be kidnapped by rogues, even if they would get the Lord as their husband. Later on, the girls again satisfied the muni by their prayers, and the muni blessed them that they would regain their husband even after being robbed by the rogues. So, in order to keep the words of the great muni, the Lord Himself kidnapped His wives from the protection of Arjuna, otherwise they would have at once vanished from the scene as soon as they were touched by the rogues. Besides that, some of the gopīs who prayed to become wives of the Lord returned to their respective positions after their desire was fulfilled. After the departure of Lord Kṛṣṇa, He wanted all His entourage back to Godhead, and they were called back under different conditions only.
HH Bhanu Swami Maharaj:
So we see that, the Lord appears in the material world, and he makes arrangements for that. As Krishna, he was born from Vasudeva and Devaki in a prison house. In other forms, as Narshimadev, he appears from a pillar. And as Varaha, he appears from the nostril of Brahma. So the Lord has many ways of appearing, some of them very remarkable. But the Lord is never born. Birth, we associate with material bodies and karma. So the Lord appears in the material world, but he does not appear by karma, nor does he have a material body.
So once the Lord appears, at a certain time, he has to disappear. And he will make different arrangements at different times. So we see that, Ramachandra disappears in one way, Krishna disappears in another way. Of course, we would expect the Lord to disappear in a glorious way, and that is what happens with Ramachandra. Krishna’s disappearance, however, is very remarkable. He gets shot in the foot by a hunter [Laughs]. And the whole dynasty, they begin to fight each other in intoxication. So Bhagavatam makes it very clear that this is just an arrangement by which the Lord can disappear.
So along with the Lord, his associates also have to disappear. But, of course, we see, that the Lord had many associates. And we see that, the Yadus fought among themselves, and that’s how they disappeared. Later on, many of the Yadus who remained in Dwaraka at that time, and the queens etc, they burned themselves in a pile of fire. And the remaining people then were taken by Arjuna, and they were supposed to go back to be protected by the Pandavas. But we see here that, again, they disappeared in a very strange manner. They were kidnapped by some dacoits.
So, of course, all of these incidents are explained by our Acharyas. So in the case of the fighting of the Yadus, that was an arrangement, because the Yadus could not be defeated by anyone else. At the same time, it’s explained, this was a way in which those expansions of Devatas who were incarnated along with the Lord to his system, they were able to return to Svarga loka. At the same time, the eternal associates who were Yadus, they remained in invisible form and they continued pastimes with Krishna in Dwaraka. And Krishna, after he was shot in the foot by the hunter, in one form, he ascended to Vaikuntha. In another form, he remained in Dwaraka. So, similarly here, Vishwanatha Chakravarti, gives an explanation based on the descriptions found in the Vishnu and Brahma Puranas. So, these women disappeared in this particular way because this was a fulfillment of the curse of Ashtavakra Muni. At the same time, they were not real dacoits, they were just another form of Krishna. So, actually nothing disastrous happened to them.
So, some events superficially may look contrary to the nature of the devotees and the Supreme Lord. But these are explained in various places. Later on, in the Bhagavatam in the 10th Canto, describing some of the pastimes there, the text of the Bhagavatam itself says that, there are opinions that many people do not know the conclusion. So, these people who have no devotion, they will describe these pastimes in a certain way to make it look like Krishna and the devotees are material. So, those who are devotees will understand the truth of these descriptions. So, that is why, when we read the Srimad Bhagavatam, we read the Bhagavatam along with the commentaries of our Acharyas. And by doing so, we get the true understanding and we avoid committing any offense.
Of course, the case of Krishna is special. He appears more like a human being. Of course, Ramachandra has a human-like form, but his activities are of those of an ideal king. Krishna sometimes acts as an ideal king, but sometimes he does not. For that reason, some people will doubt whether Krishna is a real avatar. Why does Krishna cheat? Why does he lie? Why does he run away from the battlefield? Why does he get shot by a hunter? So, the pastimes of Krishna give rise to a lot of doubts among those who have material minds.
It is also explained that Krishna does this on purpose. He likes to hide his spiritual nature from the materialists. As Krishna explains in the Bhagavad Gita, the materialists will look at Krishna and they will think, oh, he is material. So this appears as there to fool the materialists. Of course, the whole Bhagavatam also has this sort of strategy. So Bhagavatam is compared to Mohini Avatar. So Mohini Avatar fooled the demons and took the nectar and gave it to the devatas. Similarly, Bhagavatam fools the materialists and gives the nectar of Bhagavatam to the devotees. So Bhagavatam describes many things and the materialistic person can therefore conclude, oh, Krishna is material. In that way, they are cheated of the sweetness of Krishna. Those who are devotees can understand the real meaning of the pastimes of Krishna and they can relish that sweetness. So in this way, the Bhagavatam hides the real nature of Krishna from those who are unqualified. Of course, we can say the same about all other scriptures.
The scriptures often hide the meaning of the statements so that unqualified people do not get the truth. Of course, people may protest, well, scripture, why does it want to hide everything? The answer is, this is a way of protecting knowledge, which may be misused by unqualified people. So in this way, people, if they take that knowledge, they can use it in a very destructive way. And thus, there is a little bit of knowledge, which is hidden from normal people.
So then, how are we to get that knowledge, if it’s hidden? And that is why, we have Guru. So Guru is a person who can reveal the real meaning of scripture. For that reason, the scriptures often say that one has to approach Guru to get knowledge. Of course, the Guru speaks on scripture. But the Guru is able to get the actual meaning of scripture, so that the meaning is intact. So that is the main function of Guru. He is the one who gives the knowledge. Where do he get the knowledge from? Obviously, from scripture. But how did he get the real meaning of scripture? He got it from his Guru. So that is why, we have not only Guru, we also have a Parampara. In this manner, the real meaning of scripture gets passed on down to the present day.
The unfortunate position of the human being is, he has some intelligence. Of course, it is a misfortune, it is also a good fortune. But we have to use the intelligence properly. If we use the intelligence improperly, then we’ll end up with all sorts of things in this world which are anartha. So we do have to get the proper use of the human intelligence. When intelligence is used properly, then we get good results. So in this way, intelligence is there, it has to be used properly. Properly means, it is used so that we can reach the real goal of human life.
Though we do have scripture, and we try to read it with our intelligence, if our intelligence is impure, we’ll come up with different goals and different conclusions. And thus, very intelligent people can read the same scripture and come up with opposite conclusions. It is not only happen normally in the present days, but also in ancient times as well. And thus, we have Vedic literature, we have Sankhya philosophers, who come to an atheistic conclusion. Others, who are not purely athesitc, they come to impersonal conclusions. So, these people were very intelligent. They were so intelligent that, they got followers. But if we examine the scripture closely, it’s not the correct conclusion.
So, scripture is there, but we have to use our intelligence properly to get the proper conclusion. So, within the Sampradaya, in the Parampara, we try to cultivate that proper intelligence. In this way, we get the correct meaning of scriptures.
Hare Krsna !
Q & A:
1.) Thank you Maharaj. For instance, today we touched upon the topic of how Krishna makes his disappearance. Maharaj, it cannot be imagined, that without the explanations of acharays, the devotees are not going to understand in the right way. Therefore, it is so important to be faithful to the purport of the previous achrayas. At the same time, if one is not fortunate to get such details, there are possibilities of committing offences as well Maharaj.
So, on our own, very likely, we will come up with all sorts of false conclusions. But, even if we take shelter of previous authorities, we may choose the wrong authority. And thus, we will still come up with the wrong conclusion. So, we do have to actually choose the proper line of authority. Of course, first we should choose Vedic literature as the Pramana. But, to understand the conclusion of all that, then we will have to choose a authority.
How do we choose? We will often choose the authority, because we already have a certain inclination. Those inclined for atheism will choose Sankhya philosophy [Laughs]. Those who are versed at Jnana, may choose Shankaracharya’s philosophy. Those who have faith in Bhagavan will choose Vaishnava Sampradaya. So, the authorities are there, but according to our own particular faith, we may choose different things. So, we have faith and we choose in a certain way. Still, once we choose, we should very intelligently see, what conclusions in that particular line are correct or not. So, we have to use our intelligence even there.
So, in defining the Uttama adhikari, according to faith, Rupa Goswami gives a nice definition. So, he says that, the devotee has a very deep knowledge of scripture. But this knowledge of the scripture is not blind faith. It is combined with logical ability. So, he is able to understand why the conclusion is proper and that of Sankhya or Karma Mimamsa, or Shankaracharya is faulty.
2.) Maharaj, now we have modern world, we have print media, we are reading books, printed and all that. In ancient times, how this Vedic knowledge is shared to the devotees?
So, previously, mouth to ear – oral tradition [Laughs]. So, it was quite limited, because the guru would choose who to speak to and who not to speak to. So, of course, there were palm leaf manuscripts, etc., but they were rare and usually kept in some library. So, not accessible to everybody. So, still it was all oral tradition.
So, when the printing was introduced to India, then, of course, the Vedas and all the scriptures became accessible to everyone. And, of course, we said, well, that’s good because everybody gets the knowledge. But, according to the Vedas, no, it’s not good, it’s wrong [Laughs]. Not everybody should get the knowledge [Laughs]. So, the sudras should not study the Vedas [Laughs]. Why? They will misunderstand it [Laughs]. So, of course, printing is good, because it preserves that knowledge, etc., but then the other thing is, it’s open to all sorts of false interpretation and criticism.
3.) Maharaj, often the example of Mohini Moorthy is quoted which means, in one approach, unqualified people do not get the truth. On the other hand, we have Mahaprabhu’s movement, which is even the most unqualified should get the truth. How to properly appreciate that Maharaj?
So, the mercy of Lord Caitanya is that the name is freely distributed. But, there is still a restriction on knowledge, therefore we have the offense, don’t preach to the faithless people. At the end of Bhagavad Gita, Krishna says, you teach this knowledge of Bhagavad Gita to a faithful person [Laughs]. So, we can let everyone hear the name of Krishna, but if we want to preach Bhagavad Gita or Bhagavatam, then we have to be very selective.
4.) Maharaj, in today’s lecture, often you said being intelligent or knowledgable. So, that is spiritual or material?
Of course, buddhi and manas are material elements. They cause us to do activities, they cause us to have karma. However, mind, intelligence, body and senses can also be used in such a way that we get spiritual results. So, the definition of sadhana bhakti is, that we utilize senses and mind to serve Krishna. Instead of producing more karma, we destroy karma. So, we can utilize our intelligence and our mind and our senses, so that we get spiritual results and we destroy ignorance.
5.) Thank you Maharaj. This question is from yesterday’s class, when answering for a question about Brahma Samhita, you mentioned that, Brahma spoke when he was creating the universe. My question is, when Brahma was meditating on Lord Vishnu, he could only hear the voice of Lord Vishnu. Then how could Brahma compile the verses about Krishna?
It is described in Brahma Samhita that when Brahma was meditating, he heard Krishna’s flute. And through that, he got his realization.
6.) In Bhagavad Gita 11.15, His Divine Grace Srila Prabhupada has written that, celestial serpants upon which Garbodhakasayi Vishnu lies in the lower regions of the universe, this snake bed is called Vasuki, but Garbodhakasayi Vishnu lies on Ananta Sesha, so what is the snake bed on which Garbodhakasayi is called ?
Yes, so the bed of any Vishnu forms, even Kshirodhakasayi Vishnu as well [Laughs], they are on snake bed, it is Ananta Sesha.
7.) Thank you Maharaj. Sri Radha Krishna pastimes are written by Acharyas in books like Prema Samputa, written by Vishwanatha Chakrawarthi Thakur. How do Acharyas receive knowledge about Radha Krishna pastimes?
How do they get the knowledge? Oh! Well, of course, the Acharyas are very familiar with all different scriptures. And in some of those scriptures, they have various pastimes of the Lord. In addition, we will have local stories such as in Vrindavan, traditional stories that people there tell. As well, we have the personal realization of the Acharyas. So we know that the name of the Lord is non different from His form, qualities and Leela. So within the name of Krishna, are all Krishna’s pastimes. And these become visible to the advanced devotee.
8.) Thank you Maharaj. Are our intelligence and decisions that we make influenced by our karma and our planetary systems?
Oh! In the material world, definitely. We have our vasanas, etc; that will influence our intelligence. By our association, we also may gain scriptural knowledge. And that scriptural knowledge will allow us to make with our intelligence, proper decisions. If we begin the process of bhakti, then as Bhagavad Gita says, Krishna says, I give you the intelligence [Laughs].
9.) Thank you Maharaj. How is the knowledge passed down to the disciple? Is it done personally by the Guru? If it is not done personally by the Guru, then if the disciple sincerely tries to practice and get knowledge, how does a disciple get knowledge?
Well, we see in Bhagavad Gita, there is a parampara traced. And that is a parampara of passing on teachings. So, of course, the original teachings come from Supreme Lord. He gives to Brahma and Brahma gives to Narada, Narada gives to Vyasa, Vyasa gives to Madhvacharya, etc. If the recipient of the knowledge is qualified, then he keeps the knowledge intact. And then he becomes Guru and he passes that knowledge on. If the person who receives the knowledge is not qualified, then of course, we are going to end up with different teachings. So, then we may not get a continuous line of teachings. We get an offshoot or something else [Laughs]. So, the continuation of the teachings will depend upon the Guru choosing qualified persons to speak to.
Hare Krsna !
Devotees: Grantharaj Srimad Bhagavatham ki jai!!! HH Bhanu Swami Maharaj ki jai!!!