Hiranyakasipu vs. Prahlada
Srimad-Bhagavatam 6.1.25
Honolulu, May 25, 1976
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Take a testHonolulu, May 25, 1976
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Prabhupada: Srimad-Bhagavatam, Canto
Six, Chapter One, verse number twenty-five. (recites the Sanskrit verse
responsively with devotees.)
sa baddha-hrdayas tasminn
arbhake kala-bhasini
niriksamanas tal-lilam
mumude jaratho bhrsam
[SB 6.1.25]
So the youngest child was very dear. Everyone sneha. Sneha is, another meaning of sneha is oil, liquid. So sneha means affection. So this sneha word is used that there is a liquid, how you say, goes to down. Liquid does not go up. Slow. Similarly, we have got some affection, the affection goes to the lowest. Therefore father and mother's affection generally goes to the youngest. So here also Ajamila, although he's a cheat, he's a rogue, he's a thief, he has learned all the bad quality, but still the sneha, the affection, that is not lost. So this is natural. Similarly, we have got a natural feeling for Krsna. If you study thoroughly, that is called meditation, that "Whom I love." Say for the first time, I love my body. If there is some danger I try to protect myself from the danger. That means I love my body. So the next question will be: "Then why don't you love a dead body?" Suppose your wife or husband, you love, because the husband and wife is in the body, dehino 'smin yatha dehe [Bg. 2.13]. So I love the body because the spirit soul is there. This is right conclusion. Otherwise who is going to love a dead body? Nobody. Now if wife's husband has died, son has died, he's crying. You can say that "Why you are crying?" "Oh, my son is gone, my husband is gone." "Nobody gone. It is lying here." "No, no, no. He's not." So after death we understand that this dead body is neither my husband nor my son. Late experience. But in the beginning there is no such experience. That is called illusion. He's understanding that this dead body is not neither my father, nor my husband, nor my son. He's different from. That is practical example. Otherwise why not take the dead body of your husband or son and keep it? No. That is not possible.
So it is clear that the soul is different from the body. But because we are fools and rascals, we learn it after death. That is foolishness. Not in the beginning. In the beginning the Bhagavad-gita says, Krsna says, that asmin dehe, "Within this body, the soul is there." "No, no. I don't believe." Dull brain cannot understand. But after death, he sees, "Yes. The body's not my son. The body's not my husband." So that is foolishness. The foolish person understands late, and the intelligent person understands very quickly. That is the difference. So I love my body. I love my husband's body, my wife's body. Why? The real husband, wife or son is within the body. Therefore we love. Then the conclusion is that the soul is important more than the body. Then the question will be that "Why you love the soul?" Then the answer will be "Because the soul is part and parcel of Krsna." Krsna says, mamaivamso jiva-bhuta [Bg. 15.7]. So ultimately the conclusion is that I love Krsna and, because the soul is part and parcel of Krsna, therefore I love the soul. And because the soul loves within this body, therefore I love... There is no difficulty to understand. But so long one is under illusion, he's under the bodily concept of life. Therefore sastra says that one who is in the bodily concept of life, he's animal. He's animal.
yasyatma-buddhih kunape tri-dhatuke
sva-dhih kalatradisu bhauma-ijya-dhih
yat-tirtha-buddhih salile na karhicij
janesv abhijnesu sa eva go-kharah
[SB 10.84.13]
Go-kharah. Go means cow and kharah means ass. I repeatedly say this. So unless we understand that I and you, we are not this body, there is no question of spiritual understanding or spiritual education.
So here the Ajamila, because, although he was a brahmana, but due to association of a prostitute, he lost everything. This is the version. We have already studied, that,
kanyakubje dvijah kascid
dasi-patir ajamilah
namna nasta-sad-acaro
dasyah samsarga-dusitah
Sad-acara. Sad-acara, just like we are teaching sad-acara, rise early in the morning, taking a bath, change your cloth, wash your mouth, and then go to the Deity room and have mangala arotika, then study, so many, so many..., simply sad-acara. Sad-acara means, sat means "that will exist," and acara means "behavior." Sad-acara So here it is said that Ajamila, he became the husband of a prostitute. It is not the sastric injunction. You can become husband, but not the husband of a prostitute. Then your life is finished. Nasta sad-acara. You will be lost all... Therefore so much stress is given that wife should be chaste and husband should be very well behaved, then life will be successful. Arjuna argued with Krsna that "You're asking me to kill my brothers and relatives on the other side, so don't You think that if I kill them, their wives will be widowed and they'll be polluted? And as soon as they'll be polluted, there will be varna-sankara." Varna-sankara, the practical example of varna-sankara is the hippies in your country: no caste, no creed, neither useful for the material world, neither useful for the spiritual. That is called varna-sankara. Then he said, "My...," Arjuna... Strisu dustasu varna-sankara (indistinct). "My dear Krsna, You are asking me to kill my... There will be widow, and they'll be polluted, and there'll be varna-sankara, and (indistinct), and when there'll be varna-sankara, then the whole world will be hell. It will be no more suitable for habitation of gentlemen. Finished."
Therefore in the Vedic civilization two things are very much stressed: to teach the man from childhood how to become expert in sad-acara, and woman trained up how to become chaste. So this chaste woman and this sad-acara, brahmana, ideal is brahmana, he'll become married. Then there will be peace, there will be progress, there will be peace in the society, peace in the family. There is a poetry in English, "Society, friendship and love, divine (indistinct)." But that society is not this society. If we become husband of the prostitute, no, that is not possible. Then sad-acara will be finished. Namna sad-acara. Dasyah samsarga-dusitah: as soon as you become associated with prostitute, then everything will be lost. Sad-acara means your progress in spiritual life is lost. Therefore we are stressing so much on the four avoidances: no illicit sex, no meat-eating, no intoxication, no gambling. This is the way. If you are serious... But if you take it as a fashion, that is another thing. But if you take it seriously to progress, then these things will done. This is the basic principle of spiritual progress. Otherwise we shall learn, bandy-aksaih kaitavais cauryair garhitam vrttim asthitah, bibhrat kutumbam asucir... Asuci, asuci. Asuci means unclean. Spiritual life means purification. So if you purify and again become unclean, that we have discussed hasti-snana, the elephant. Elephant takes bath very nicely, and as soon as come on the shore, take some dust and throw on... Kunjara saucavat. Pariksit Maharaja said that "What is this cleaning?"
But without cleaning, your life is spoiled. If you don't clean your life, then you'll have to accept another body according to karma. We have to accept that the whole human mission is to stop this repetition of birth... They do not know. There is no science, there is no philosophy, there is no education throughout the whole world. But the aim of life is to stop these four things: birth, death, old age and disease. They cannot think of. How it can be stopped? They cannot think of. They're trying the different way -- contraceptive method of killing the child. That is not how to stop this. No. Nature's law is so strong that if you kill the child in the womb then you'll be also killed. You'll be also killed. Tit for tat. There is no escape. "Life for life," just like in the law. You cannot do that. So this is very important things to understand. You are thinking very free but no, there is: prakrteh kriyamanani gunaih karmani sarvasah [Bg. 3.27]. Exactly. Karanam guna sango 'sya [Bg. 13.22]. Just like if you contaminate some disease, you must suffer from it. That is natural law. You cannot avoid. There is no escape. So similarly, this spiritual life, this human life is a chance that you learn how to purify yourself. That is human life. And if you don't purify yourself, you remain impure without any endeavor, then what is the difference between you and cats and dogs? There's no difference.
So, kutumbam asucir yayatam asa. So in that asuci bhrta asa, the sneha is there. This Ajamila, although became the rogue number one, but the affection, natural, that is there. Affection is there. Sa baddha-hrdayas tasminn arbhake kala-bhasini. Attract. The child is talking in broken language -- that is very pleasing, pleasing to everyone, especially the parents. So niriksamanas tal-lilam. And he's walking, or he's crawling, he's coming to the father, coming to the mother... These things are very attractive, and we become more and more attracted, and we forget our real business. The real business we should always remember. These things are natural. It is very good, be affectionate to your children. But don't forget your real business. Otherwise this kind of affection is there in cats and dogs also. Cats and dogs you'll find they carry the cat, the kitties. What is called, kitties?
Devotee: Kittens.
Prabhupada: ...on the mouth. They have no hands. And they give protection to the... [break] ...so one thing is for these kitties and one thing is for the... Similarly, Nrsimhadeva -- one thing for the Hiranyakasipu and one thing for Prahlada. So that is not God's discrimination, but that is natural. That is natural. He states. Krsna says in the Bhagavad-gita, samo 'ham sarva-bhutesu: [Bg. 9.29] "I'm equal to everyone." Otherwise if He's not equal to everyone, how He can be God? If He's partial to somebody and He's affectionate to some... No. That is not God's foolishness. God is equal to everyone. Samo 'ham sarva-bhutesu na me dvesyo 'sti na priyah: "Nobody is My enemy and nobody is My friend, but still," ye tu bhajanti mam bhaktya tesu te mayi, "but anyone who is devotee, I take special care for Him." The same thing that the cat carries in the mouth, the cat as well as the mouse. The mouse, for mouse it is death, and for the cat it is pleasure. Similarly, Hiranyakasipu, when he's captured by Nrsimhadeva, He's death. Tava nakha. Kara-kamale nakham adbhuta-srngam dalita hiran... Immediately. Finished. The same hand on the head of Prahlada Maharaja, "My dear child, be blessed," the same hand. This is the position.
So we shall try to purify ourselves from sinful activity so that Prahlada Maha..., Nrsimhadeva may keep His hand on our..., bless head. That is wanted. Then our life is successful. Otherwise nature will not excuse. Mrtyuh sarva-haras caham [Bg. 10.34]. Hiranyakasipu will be killed. A demon should be... That is true business of Krsna. Paritranaya sadhunam vinasaya ca duskrtam [Bg. 4.8], to kill the demons. Of course, any demon killed by Krsna, he also gets salvation. But if the demon gets salvation being killed, but just imagine what is the position of devotees to whom Krsna is so affectionate. Just imagine what is his position. And His name is Bhakta-vatsala. Krsna's name is "very much affectionate to the devotee." So you have taken Krsna consciousness movement. Take it seriously. Follow the rules and regulations. Then Krsna will give you all protection. Kaunteya pratijanihi na me bhaktah pranasyati [Bg. 9.31]. If you are sincere devotee... It is very easy thing to become devotee. Simply four things: man-mana bhava mad-bhakto mad-yaji mam namaskuru [Bg. 18.65]. Four... A child can, they are learning. They're also offering a flower, mad-yaji. This is worship. If a child can do it, you cannot do it? What is the difficulty? If you offer a flower to the Deity, if you offer your obeisances... The child, it's learning. Don't think it is knowing for nothing. Everything is calculated, "Ah, here is this child. He is offering obeisances." Credit. "He's offering flower." Credit. (laughter) Yes. From his childhood, if one becomes, simply deposits credit, then someday it will be a big balance, a good bank balance. So therefore this institution means to give everyone the chance to do these four things: man-mana bhava mad-bhakto mad-yaji mam namaskuru [Bg. 18.65]. And Krsna says mam evaisyasi asamsayah: [Bg. 18.65] "Without any doubt, simply by doing these four things, you'll come back to Me." So what is the difficulty? Live properly and be happy.
Thank you very much.
Devotees: Jaya! (end)
© 2001 The Bhaktivedanta Book Trust International.
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