Pearl 27

Mahârâja Nimi Meets the Nine Yogendras

In this pearl let us concentrate on the Bhagwat Dharma, so beautifully elucidated in this section of the XIth canto, ‘Shrimad Bhagavatam.”

* Puriji has himself typed the following verses verbatim, demonstrating his absolute devotion. Conscientiously go through them as each one of them is a precious pearl. A daily recitation of these verses by Kripaluji Maharaj is available. One can also hear them on SanskarTV from 7.30 to 8 pm.

Chapter 2, verse 33: Shri Kavi said: I believe that, for the man whose mind is always agitated by mistaking this worthless body for one's own self, worship of the Lord's lotus-feet is the safest course to follow because through such worship all fear completely disappears.

Verse 34: All those courses of conduct which were actually taught by the Lord Himself for His own Realization is known as bhagavata-dharma. Even ignorant living beings without much exertion surely know them as conducive to His pleasure.

Verse 35: O king, resorting to those courses a man would never go astray; even if he follows them running (in a desultory way) or with closed eyes (ignorantly), he would not stumble or take a false step,

Verse 36: Whatever he does with his body, tongue, mind or senses, reason or intellect or by the force of his inherited nature, he should consecrate all as an offering for the pleasure of the supreme Lord Narayana.

Verse37: He who has turned away from the Lord loses the memory (of his real self), thanks to His Maya, and falls a prey to the erroneous belief that the body is one's own self. He is then seized with fear engendered by identification with the body (which is other than the self). Therefore, a discerning person should worship Him with exclusive devotion, looking upon his preceptor as the Deity as well as his own self.

Verse38: Though duality has no ultimate existence, it does appear like a dream or mental image to the mind of one who dwells upon it. Therefore, a wise man should control that mind from which proceeds ideations and doubts. Fearlessness will follow from it.

Verse39: (Therefore) hearing of the most auspicious descents and deeds of Sri Hari (the Wielder of the discus) and singing His names denoting His descents and actions, well-known in the world, without any fear of being mocked at, one should move about free from attachment.

Verse 40: The man who, having adopted such a course of conduct, develops love for Him by singing the names of his beloved Lord, his heart melting in devotion, loudly laughs and weeps, screams, sings or dances like one possessed, transgressing conventions.

Verse41: With exclusive devotion he bows to the sky, air, fire, water, earth, heavenly bodies, living beings, cardinal points, trees and the like, rivers and seas and all created beings, considering them as the body of the Lord.

Verse 42: As one who eats (food) feels satisfied, gets nourishment and relief from hunger with every morsel, (similarly) in him who has resigned himself to the Lord, devotion, realization of the supreme Lord and aversion to other objects – all the three appear at once.

Verse 43: In the votary of God O king, who worships uninterruptedly as aforesaid the feet of Sri Hari (the immortal Lord) Devotion, a distaste for the enjoyments of the world and direct knowledge of God appear (simultaneously); and through them he directly attains (the state of) supreme peace.

Verse 44: The king (Nimi) submitted: Now (kindly) describe the characteristics of the Lord's devotee among men, his disposition and course of conduct, how he behaves and what he speaks, and the distinctive traits which make him the favourite of the Lord.

Verse 45: Hari said: He is the foremost of the Lord's devotees, who sees himself established in all creatures as the Lord (himself), and sees (all) creatures established in his own self as in the Divine Soul.

Verse 46: The votary who cherishes love for the Lord, is friendly to other devotees of the Lord, compassionate to the ignorant, and indifferent to his enemies, is a second-rate votary (because he discriminates among these classes, whereas the one described in the previous verse makes no discrimination.)

Verse 47: He who does worship to the Lord with faith in an image only and does not serve His devotees and other beings is an ordinary devotee.

Verse 48: He who sees the universe as (a creation of) Visnu's Maya and, even though contacting the objects with his senses, neither experiences delight nor repulsion is indeed a devotee of the highest order.

Verse 49: He is the foremost devotee of the Lord, who by virtue of his (constant) remembrance of Sri Hari is never overwhelmed by mundane properties, (viz.,) birth and death, hunger (and thirst), fatigue, fear and ardent longing, which (really) belong to the body, vital air, senses, mind and intellect (and never to the Self).

Verse 50: He is undoubtedly the foremost devotee of the Lord, in whose mind the craving for enjoyment, the impulse for action and the seeds of future incarnation (in the shape of virtue and sin) never sprout, and to whom Lord Vishnu is the only resort.

Verse 51: He is indeed beloved of the Lord, who never identifies himself with this body by virtue of his birth and pursuits, grade in society, race or stage of life.

Verse 52: He is the best among the devotees of the Lord, who makes no distinction between his own and that belonging to others in the matter of his possessions and body. He looks upon all created beings with an equal eye and is (always) calm.

Verse 53: He is the foremost of the votaries of Lord Vishnu, whose memory of the Lord is ever fresh, and who even for the sovereignty of all the three worlds (heaven, earth and the intermediate region) and even for half the time taken by the twinkling of an eye does not turn away from (the adoration of) the Lord's lotus-feet, which are sought after by the gods and others whose mind is fixed on the invincible Lord.

Verse 54: Just as with the rising of the moon the heat of the sun disappears, so the fever of the devotee's heart, (once) banished by the cool lustre shed by the gem-like nails of the Lord's feet taking long strides (while dancing with the devotee as during the Rasa dance) can never appear again.

Verse 55: The name of the Lord is such that, even when uttered under constraint or unconsciously, it destroys multitudinous sins. That man is called the best of devotees, whose heart the Lord Himself does not leave as His lotus-feet are fastened by the cord of Love.

I can merely sum up by confirming that all Net-devotees are ecstatic to assimilate this valuable addition in their spiritual life and thank Puriji heartily for this.