Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 7.9.8

Anantarām Śāstrījī: Oṁ namo bhagavate vāsudevāya. [devotees repeat] [chants verse, with devotees repeating] [break]

prahrāda uvāca brahmādayaḥ sura-gaṅā munayo 'tha siddhāḥ sattvaikatāna-gatayo vacasāṁ pravāhaiḥ nārādhituṁ puru-guṅair adhunāpi pipruḥ kiṁ toṣṭum arhati sa me harir ugra-jāteḥ [SB 7.9.8]

Dayānanda: [leads chanting of synonyms responsively]

[03:24]

Translation: "Prahlāda Mahārāja continued to offer his prayer as follows: How is it possible to offer suitable prayers unto the Supreme Personality of Godhead by me, who is born into the family of asuras, because all the demigods and saintly persons could not satisfy Him till now, although such persons are exalted, very qualified, in the mode of goodness. Then what to speak of me? I am not at all qualified."

Prabhupāda:

Ugra-jā. Ugra-jā, just like in Europe and America we see, they are very much fond of ugra-karma, just like big, big factories, big, big bridges, wonderful. Long, long ago when the Britishers came here, they constructed big, big bridges, railway line. People thought, "It is wonderful." There is a song composed in Bihar. So when the Calcutta, the floating bridge made of wood, wooden bridge, floating bridge was constructed, connected Calcutta proper and Howrah, so there was big, wonderful song: ki apana banaylay sahat campani. There is song, ki apana banaylay sahat campani upara me ami cale, and..., just like that, nīche me pāni[?].

So this ugra-karma, formerly this ugra-karma was entrusted to the demons. Those who were in the sattva-guṅa, they do not like this ugra-karma. Sattva-guṅa, rajo-guṅa, tamo-guṅa. Rajas-tamo-bhāvāḥ [SB 1.2.19].

[As soon as irrevocable loving service is established in the heart, the effects of nature's modes of passion and ignorance, such as lust, desire and hankering, disappear from the heart. Then the devotee is established in goodness, and he becomes completely happy.]

The... Those who are under the control of rajo-guṅa and tamo-guṅa, they are engaged in ugra-karma. Ugra-karma, industrial enterprise: big, big roads, big, big skyscraper. This is called ugra-karma. So ugra-karma is very pleasing to the ugra-jātis, just like Hiraṅyakaśipu. What was the trouble between the father and the son? The father was for ugra-karma, and the son, Prahlāda, was for sattvika life. So when Prahlāda Mahārāja engaged himself in sattvika life... Not only sattvika, śuddha-sattvika. In the material world there are three guṅas: sattvika, rājasika, tāmasika. The sattvika is the best. So... And devotional activity is śuddha-sattvika, where there is no contamination. In the material world, sattvika, a person who is a brāhmaṅa, he may be contaminated by tamo-guṅa and rajo-guṅa. Just like Ajāmila: he was the son of a brāhmaṅa, and he was executing the brahmacarya regulation very nicely, but he became infected with rajo-guṅa and tamo-guṅa, became attached to a prostitute and left everything, all brahminical qualification, and he became a rogue, thief, cheater, drunkard, woman-hunter, so on. There are many instances. And Jagāi-Mādhāi, they were born of very good brāhmaṅa family, rich family, but with bad association they became drunkard, woman-hunter, meat-eater.

Now these things have become common thing. Avaidha-strī-saṅga, illicit connection with woman, and meat-eating and drinking, it has become a daily fashion. But formerly, at least five hundred years ago, these things were accepted as most abominable. So just like here, our Jagāi-Mādhāi. Jagāi-Mādhāi, they were zamindars and born of brāhmaṅa family, but because by bad association they became drunkard, gamblers and woman-hunters, they were condemned. They were taken as pāpī, sinful. So Caitanya Mahāprabhu's movement is to rescue them. That is the song by Narottama dāsa Ṭhākura: vrajendra-nandana yei, śacī-suta hoilo sei, balarāma hoilo nitāi, pāpī tāpī yata chilo, hari-nāme uddhārilo, tare sākṣī jagāi and mādhāi. Everyone wants evidence that how Caitanya Mahāprabhu delivered pāpī tāpī. Now, here is the instance: tāre sākṣī jagāi and mādhāi. So Kṛṣṅa consciousness movement is so nice that it can deliver the Jagāi and Mādhāi, ugra-karma. That is the mission of Caitanya Mahāprabhu. He began this. Pāpī tāpī yata chilo, hari-nāme uddhārilo. Now this same flow is going on in this Kṛṣṅa consciousness movement. So ugra-karma.

So Prahlāda Mahārāja is considering himself born of a father, Hiraṅyakaśipu, as ugra-karma. So he's saying, harir ugra-jāteḥ, that the... Brahmādayaḥ sura-gaṅa, "Lord Brahmā and other demigods, they are coming from the higher planetary system, and they are in the sattvika guṅa, sattva-guṅa. They are not ordinary person." Just like coming from some pious pilgrimage, he's supposed to be very nice man, similarly, brahmādayaḥ, they are coming from svarga-loka. Why svarga-loka is better than this loka? The thing is, in the svarga-loka, although they are attached to material enjoyment, still, they are great devotees. Therefore svarga-loka is praised. They are not like us. Here, those who are attached to material prosperity, they forget Kṛṣṅa, or God.

bhogaiśvarya-prasaktānāṁ tayāpahṛta-cetasām vyavasāyātmikā-buddhiḥ samādhau nādhigacchati [Bg 2.44]

[In the minds of those who are too attached to sense enjoyment and material opulence, and who are bewildered by such things, the resolute determination of devotional service to the Supreme Lord does not take place.]

Those who are too much attached for material enjoyment, they do not become attracted to Kṛṣṅa consciousness. That is natural. So anyway, Prahlāda Mahārāja was doubting, because he was requested by Lord Brahmā, "My dear boy, my dear child, we could not pacify His Lordship Nṛsiṁhadeva, but He has appeared for you." Paritrāṅāya sādhūnāṁ vināśāya ca duṣkṛtām [Bg 4.8].

[In order to deliver the pious and to annihilate the miscreants, as well as to reestablish the principles of religion, I advent Myself millennium after millennium.]

"Nṛsiṁhadeva, this wonderful form, is there only for you." Paritrāṅāya. "You are sādhu. For your deliverance Nṛsiṁhadeva has appeared, and to kill your sinful father. So business is with your father and yourself. So kindly you take care of the business. He is very, very angry."

So before that, we have already described, even Lakṣmījī, he could not go forward. Although she had daily affairs with Nārāyaṅa, she could not dare to go forward. Brahmā, Lord Brahmā, offered their prayers; other, Lord Śiva, offered their prayers; but nobody could pacify Him. Therefore he is in doubt, that "I am born in the family of demons," ugra-karma, ugra-jāti. "If Brahmā failed, Lakṣmījī failed, Lord Śiva failed to pacify Him, how it is possible by me to pacify the Lord?" That he's doubting. Brahmādayaḥ sura-gaṅā-munayo 'tha siddhāḥ: "All they are exalted persons and siddha." There is a Siddhaloka. In the higher planetary system there is a planet known as Siddhaloka. If there is opportunity, as we are contemplating, we shall show here in Caitanya-candra..., er, Māyāpur-candrodaya temple. That is our plan, to make a very big temple and to show all the planetary system within that from Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam. It will not be an ordinary temple, so that people from the whole world, they will come. This is our contemplation. There is a Siddhaloka. We shall show how this planet works, Siddhaloka. From the Siddhaloka the persons who came there, they are called siddhyā, siddhyā. And in the, on the heavenly planet they are called demigods, devatā. Similarly, Siddhaloka... The description of the Siddhaloka is there in the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam. Those who have read, they know. The Siddhaloka person, they can go from one planet to another without any machine, aeroplane, Siddhaloka. They can go from one planet to another. This is described. They don't require any machines. Still, like the yogīs, those who are perfect yogīs, they can go from one place to another without any vehicle. There are many yogīs still existing, they take bathing in four dhāmas: in Hardwar, in Jagannātha Purī, in Rāmeśvaram and similarly... Yogīs can do like that. Yogīs, they attain asta-siddhi, eight kinds of perfection: animā, laghimā, mahimā, prāpti, like that, īśitā, vaśitā, like that.

So the Siddhaloka means they are born siddhas. They haven't got to practice this mystic yoga system. Just like a small sparrow: it can fly automatically. Why a small sparrow? Even a small insect. But if you want to fly, you have to create so many big machineries. So in that case, in the matter of flying, the small insect or the small sparrow is siddha. You are trying to fly in the sky with so many jets and 747, what is called, Jumbo. But a small fly, it can fly immediately, I mean, two miles within some seconds. So they are siddhas. What you cannot do, if other can do, that is called siddhi. So there is no question of disbelieving. We can see so many small insects, birds, they can fly from one tree to another. You cannot do that. If you have to go from one tree to another, you have to take so many trouble. So it is not to be rejected, "Ah, there cannot be any... This is unbelievable." But we have got this information from the śāstras. We are staunch believer: "Yes, there are siddhas." We are believers. That is called theism: one who believes in the statements of śāstra.

So there are siddhas. So they also came. Sura-gaṅā, brahmādayaā sura-gaṅā munayaḥ. Muna, muni, great personalities, philosophers, they are called muni, ṛṣi. Devarṣi-bhūtāpta-nṛṅāṁ pitṛṅām [SB 11.5.41].

[O King, one who has given up all material duties and has taken full shelter of the lotus feet of Mukunda, who offers shelter to all, is not indebted to the demigods, great sages, ordinary living beings, relatives, friends, mankind or even one's forefathers who have passed away. Since all such classes of living entities are part and parcel of the Supreme Lord, one who has surrendered to the Lord's service has no need to serve such persons separately.]

Very highly intelligent persons, thoughtful persons, philosophers, scientists, mathematicians, so they are called also muni. So they came also to satisfy. And not these ordinary munis, but very exalted munis and siddhas from Siddhaloka. There are many lokas: Cāraṅaloka, other. They are all described. So if there is chance, we shall present these lokas, how they are situated, where they are situated, how they are moving, how the sun is moving around them. The sun is not fixed up; sun is moving. So all these things, we have got such dream to show. If there is opportunity, we shall do—the Siddhas and the sura-gaṅās and the munayas.

But because they are on the planetary system, higher planetary system... There are three planetary systems. One is called higher, ūrdhvaloka, and middle, madhyaloka... Bhūr, bhuvaḥ, sva, up to Svargaloka. We are chanting Gāyatrī, om bhūr bhuvaḥ sva tat savitur vareṅyaṁ bhargo devasya dhīmahi. These are praising the lokas, different planetary system, of which the sunlight is the chief. Savitur sakala-grahāṅām. He is the chief of all planets.

yac-cakṣur eṣa savitā sakala-grahāṅām rājā samasta-sura-mūrtir aśeṣa-tejāḥ yasyājñayā bhramati sambhṛta-kāla-cakro govindam ādi-puruṣaṁ tam ahaṁ bhajāmi [Bs 5.52]

[The sun who is the king of all the planets, full of infinite effulgence, the image of the good soul, is as the eye of this world. I adore the primeval Lord Govinda in pursuance of whose order the sun performs his journey mounting the wheel of time.]

The sun is not fixed up; sun is moving. The modern scientists or astronomers, they say, "Sun is fixed up. The earth is moving." So we don't say that. It is sa... Yasyājñayā bhramati sambhṛta-kāla-cakraḥ. It has got its orbit. So there are so many things to be known still from Vedic literature. It is not yet unfolded, but we are trying.

Siddhya... So sattvaika. They are sattvaika. They are all. All the inhabitants of the upper planetary system, they are in sattvika-guṅa, brahminical qualification. They are not mlecchas and yavanas. Brāhmaṅas. Sattvaikatāna-gatayo. They are not ordinary. Just like here the sattvika means pure brāhmaṅa. Śamo damaḥ satyaṁ śaucaṁ titikṣa ārjavam, jñānaṁ vijñānam āstikyaṁ brahma-karma svabhāva-jam [Bg 18.42].

[Peacefulness, self-control, austerity, purity, tolerance, honesty, wisdom, knowledge, and religiousness—these are the qualities by which the brāhmaṅas work.]

So most of them are brāhmaṅas or even kṣatriyas. Mostly they are brāhmaṅas. So ūrdhvaṁ gacchanti sattva-sthāḥ [Bg 14.18].

[Those situated in the mode of goodness gradually go upward to the higher planets; those in the mode of passion live on the earthly planets; and those in the mode of ignorance go down to the hellish worlds.]

You have seen in the Bhagavad-gītā: "Those who are situated in sattva-guṅa, they are promoted to the higher planetary system after death." Madhye tiṣṭhanti rājasaḥ: "And those who are in the rajo-guṅa, they remain in the middle planetary system." Jaghanya-guṅa-vṛtti-sthā adho gacchanti tāmasāḥ: "And those who are in tāmasika, in the darkness, ignorance modes of material nature, they go down to the..., down planetary system or animal life."

So this is an opportunity, this human form of life, to decide where you want to go. Are you going to hell or heaven or back to home, or back to Godhead? That you have to decide. This is human intelligence, not like working like cats and dogs and dying like cats and dogs. That is not human life. Human life is meant for to decide where you want to go next. By the evolutionary process you have come to this human form of life. Jalajā nava-lakṣāni sthāvarā lakṣa-viṁśati [Padma Purāṅa]. By going through so many, 8,400,000 species of life, you have got this human form of life. Now you decide where you'll go. So where I have to go, how to go, there is that information in the śāstra. Śāstra-cakṣuṣaḥ: see through the śāstra where you can go. And the master of the śāstra, Kṛṣṅa, is giving you personally instruction,

ūrdhvaṁ gacchanti sattva-sthā madhye tiṣṭhanti rājasāḥ jaghanya-guṅa-vṛtti-sthā adho gacchanti tāmasāḥ [Bg 14.18]

yānti deva-vratā devān pitṛn yānti pitṛ-vratāḥ bhūtāni yānti bhūtejyā mad-yājino 'pi yānti mām [Bg 9.25]

[Those who worship the demigods will take birth among the demigods; those who worship ghosts and spirits will take birth among such beings; those who worship ancestors go to the ancestors; and those who worship Me will live with Me.]

These informations are there. Why you are missing this opportunity? Huh? If you like, you can go to the higher planetary system. If you like, you can go back to home, back to Godhead. Mad-yājino 'pi yānti mām. These informations are there.

So without sattva-guṅa, if you keep people in the rajo-guṅa, tamo-guṅa, then your..., their future is lost. Rajo-guṅa, tamo-guṅa means people will become more greedy and lusty, that's all. And greedy and lusty means cats and dogs, animal life. Animal life. They're trying to eat—no discrimination of eating. So that is hog's life. The hog has no discrimination of eating. It can eat even stool. So the... If you eat, become like hog—no discrimination of eating, whatever you..., just like so many svāmīs, they say, "Oh, why there is restriction of eating? You can eat anything you like." So nature will give you: "All right, you want to eat anything you like? All right, you become a hog. You eat even stool." Karmaṅā daiva-netreṅa jantor dehopapatti [SB 3.31.1].

[The Personality of Godhead said: Under the supervision of the Supreme Lord and according to the result of his work, the living entity, the soul, is made to enter into the womb of a woman through the particle of male semen to assume a particular type of body.]

You have to change your body. Tathā dehāntara-prāptir dhīras tatra na muḥ... [Bg 2.13].

[As the embodied soul continually passes, in this body, from boyhood to youth to old age, the soul similarly passes into another body at death. The self-realized soul is not bewildered by such a change.]

You may say that there is no life after, but that is foolishness. You are under the control of material nature.

prakṛteḥ kriyamāṅāni guṅaiḥ karmāṅi sarvaśaḥ ahaṅkāra-vimūḍhātmā kartāham iti manyate [Bg 3.27]

[The bewildered spirit soul, under the influence of the three modes of material nature, thinks himself to be the doer of activities, which are in actuality carried out by nature.]

You may falsely be proud. You say, "No, no, I shall not become old man. I shall remain young." But nature will not allow you. Nature will force you to take the old man's body.

But these foolish people, they are thinking "independent." You are not independent. Prakṛteḥ kriyamāṅāni guṅaiḥ karmāṅi [Bg 3.27]. Kāraṅaṁ guṅa-saṅgo 'sya sad-asad-janma-yoniṣu [Bg 13.22]. Sad-asad, good birth or low-class birth, sad-asad, that is... How it is done? Kāraṅaṁ guṅa-saṅgo 'sya: as you make association with the guṅas—sattva-guṅa, rajo-guṅa, tamo-guṅa. If you associate with sattva-guṅa, then you get sad-janma next life. And if you associate with tamo-guṅa, then you get tamo-guṅa life. After death your so much prestigious position, so much proud—everything will be finished. Then you are completely under the laws of nature and you have to accept a body and..., according to your quality. This is the way. But they do not know.

Therefore Prahlāda Mahārāja said that "I am born in ugra-yoni, so how can I offer my prayers to the Supreme Personality of Godhead?" But he was born in the ugra family, but he was devotee. He's qualified because a devotee is neither belonging to any of these material qualities.

māṁ cāvyabhicāreṅa bhakti-yogena yaḥ sevate sa guṅān samatītyaitān brahma-bhūyāya kalpate [Bg 14.26]

[One who engages in full devotional service, who does not fall down in any circumstance, at once transcends the modes of material nature and thus comes to the level of Brahman.]

Anyone who is engaged in devotional service, he does not belong to any of these material qualities. Sa guṅān samatītyaitān. All these qualities, he is transcendental. Brahma-bhūyāya kalpate. Prahlāda Mahārāja, although born of a demonic father, he was completely pure. He was completely on the transcendental stage. Therefore he could offer prayers to the Lord; others cannot. So a Vaiṣṅava is very humble. He... Although everyone has admitted that he is on the stage of prema, but he is a Vaiṣṅava. He's thinking that "I am the son of Hiraṅyakaśipu. How I can offer?" This is Vaiṣṅava humbleness. That is the teaching of Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu:

tṛṅād api sunīcena taror api sahiṣṅunā amāninā mānadena kīrtanīyaḥ sadā hariḥ [Cc Ādi 17.31]

[One who thinks himself lower than the grass, who is more tolerant than a tree, and who does not expect personal honor yet is always prepared to give all respect to others can very easily always chant the holy name of the Lord.]

One has to become humbler than the grass and tolerant than the tree. Then he can become perfect Vaiṣṅava. Because as soon as you become a Vaiṣṅava, your father will be your enemy. Just like Prahlāda Mahārāja. What was his fault, five-years-old boy? Simply he became a Vaiṣṅava, Kṛṣṅa conscious, and his father became enemy. This is the position.

So Vaiṣṅava has to tolerate in order to make progress in spiritual life so many enemies. Even at home, father will be enemy. So don't be hesitant and don't be agitated by such circumstances. Prahlāda Mahārāja had to suffer so many things. Still, he remained Kṛṣṅa conscious, and ultimately he saw Lord Nṛsiṁhadeva and had the privilege of offering prayers. We shall discuss later on.

Thank you very much. [end]