Srimad Bhagavatam, Volume 3

Srimad Bhagawatam, First Canto, Volume Three
to Dhritarastra that every one has to protect himself by his action and the
Grace of the Lord. One has to execute his duty faithfully depending for the
result on the Supreme Authority. No friend, no children, no father, no brother,
no state and no body else can protect a person who is not protected by the
Supreme Lord. One should, therefore, seek the protection of the Supreme
Lord and the human form of life is meant for seeking that protection. He was
pointed out about his precarious conditions more and more by the following
words.
Andhah pura eva badhiro mandaprajnas cha sampratam
Vishirna danto mandagnih saragah kapham udbahan.
Andha—blind, Pura—From the beginning, Eva—certainly, Badhiro—hard of
hearing, Mandaprajnas—memory shortened, Cha—and, Sampratam—
recently, Vishirna—loosened, Danto—teeth, Manda gnih—Liver action
decreased, Saragah—with sound, Kapham—coughing mucus, Udbahan—
coming out.
(Personally) you are blind from the very beginning of your birth and
there is no doubt about it and recently you have become hard of hearing,
your memory shortened and intelligence disturbed your teeth loosened
and the liveraction being decreased, you are coughing with sound and
mucus coming out.
The symptoms of oldage which had already developed in the person of
Dhritarastra were all one after another pointed out to Dhritarastra to give him
warning that death was nearing very quickly and still he was foolishly
carefree about his futnre. The signs pointed by Vidura in the body of
Dhritarastra were signs of Apakshaya or dwindling of the material body
before the last stroke of death. The body is born, it develops, stays, creates
other bodies, dwindles and then vanishes. But foolish man wants to make a
permanent settlement of the perishable body and thinks that his estate,
children, society, country etc will give him protection. With such foolish ideas
he becomes overtaken by such temporary engage ments and forgets altogether
that he has to give up this temporary body and take a new one again to arrange
for another term of soceity, friendship and love again to be perished
ultimately. He. forgets his permanent identity and becomes foolishly active
for the non-permanent occupations forgetting altogether his prime duty. Saints
and sages like Vidura approach such foolish utopians to awake them to the
real situation but the foolish utopians take such Sadhus and saints as parasites
of the society and almost all of them refuse to give aural reception to the
words of such Sadhus and saints although they welcome such show bottle
Sadhus (? ) and so-called saints who can satisfy the foolishman's sense
gratification. Vidura is not a Sadhu to satisfy the lll-gotten sentiments of
Dhritarastra and he was correctly pointing out the real situation of life and
how to save oneself from such catastrophies.
Aho mahiayashi jantor jivitasha yatha bhavan
Bhima apavarjitam pindam adatte grihapalavat.
Alas ! how much powerful is the hope of a living being to continue a life
as much as you are living just like a household dog eating the remnant
bits of foodstuff given by Bheema !
A sadhu is never meant for flattering a king or a reach man for living
comfortably at their cost. A sadhu is to speak the bare truth to the compact
householders about the naked truth of life so that one may come to his senses
about the precarious life in material existence. Dhritarastra is a typical
example of attached old man in husehold-life. He had become a popper in the
true sense and still he wanted to live comfortably in the house of the Pandavas
of whom Bheema specially is mentioned because personally he killed two
prominent sons of Dhritarastra nameley Duryodhone and Duhsasan. These
two sons of Dhritarastra were very much dear to him for their being notorious
in nefarious activities and Bheem is particularly pointed out because it is he
who killed these pet sons of Dhritarastra. And why he was living there at the
house of the Pandavas ? Because Dhritarastra wanted to continue his life
comfortably even at the risk of all humiliation from the point of his own
poistion. Vidura therefore, became astonished how much powerful is the
sense of continuing life of the living being. This sense of continuing one's life
indicates that a living being is eternally living entity and he does not want to
change his habitation of the body. The foolishman does not know that a
particular term of bodily existence is awarded to him to undergo a term of
imprisonment and the human body is awarded, after many many births and
deaths, as a chance for self-realisation and thus go back to home go back to
Godhead. But persons like Dhritarastra try to make plans to live here in a
comfortable position with profit and interest and he does not see things as
they are. The things are different from his utopian conception of life but he is
blind like Dhritarastra and continue to hope for living comfortably in the
midst of all kinds of reverses of life. A Sadhu like Vidura is meant for
awakening such blind persons like Dhritarastra and thus help him going back
to Godhead where life is eternal once going there no body wants to come back
to this material world of miseries. We can just imagine how much important
and responsible task is entrusted to a Sadhu like Mahatma Vidura.
6
Agnir nisristo dattas cha garo daras cha dushitah
Hritam kshetram dhanam yesam tad dattair asubhih kiyat.
Agnir—fire, Nisristo—set in, Dattas—given, Cha—and, Garo—poison,
Daras—married wife, Dushitah—insulted, Hritam—usurped, Kshetram—
kingdom, Dhanam—wealth, Yesam—of those, Tad—their, Dattam—given
by, Asubhih—subsisting, Kiyat—is unnecessary.
There is no necessity of living a degraded life subsisted by the charity of
those whom you tried to kill by setting on fire in their house by
administering poison, by insulting their married wife, by usurping their
kingdom and wealth.
The system of Varnashram religion sets aside a part of one's life completely
for the purpose of self-realisation and attainment of salvation in the human
form of life. That is a routine division of life but persons like Dhritarastra
even at their weary ripen age want to keep up at home even in a degraded
condition as to accept charity from enemies. Vidura wanted to point out this
anomaly in his brother's life and impressed upon him that it was better for him
to die like his sons than accepting such humiliating charity. Five thousands of
years before there was one Dhritarastra but at the present moment there are
full of Dhritarastras in every home. Specially the politicians do not wish to
retire from political activities unless they are dragged by the cruel hand of
death or killed by some opposing element. To stick to family life up to the end
of one's human life is the grossest type of degradation and there is absolute
need of educating such Dhritarastras by the Viduras even at the present
moment.
Tasya api taba deha ayam kripanasya jijivishoh
Paraiti anichhato jeerno jaraya vasasi iva.
Tasya--of this, Api--inspite of, Taba--your, Deha--body, Ayam--this,
Kripanasya--of one who is miserly, Jijivishoh--of you who desire life, Paraiti-
-will dwindle, Anichhato--even unwilling, Jeerno--deteriorated, Vasasigarments,
Iva--like.
Inspite of your such wishful desire for living even at the cost of honour
and prestige your miserly body will certainly dwindle like the
deteriorated old garment although you are unwilling to die.
The words Kripanasya jijivisho, are significant. There are two classes of men.
One is called the 'Kripana' and the other is called the 'Brahamana' The
'Kripana' or the miserly man has no estimation of his material body but the
'Brahmana' has a true estimation of of himself and the material body. The
kripana having wrong estimation of his material body, wants to make sensegratification
to the utmost strength and even in old age also he wants to
become a youngman by medical treatment or otherwise. Dhritarastra is
addressed herein as the Kripana because without any estimation of his
material body he wants to live at any cost and Vidura is trying to open his
eyes that he cannot live more than his term of living and he must be prepared
for death. Death being inevitable why shonld he accept such humiliating
positon for living better take the right path even at the risk of death. Human
life is meant for finishing all kinds of miseries of material existence and life
should be so trained up as one can achieve the desired goal. Dhritarastra due
to his wrong conception of life, had already spoiled 80% of his achived
energy and it was good for him to utilise the remaining days of his miserly
life; it might be utilised for the ultimate good. Such life like that of
Dhritarastra is called miserly because they cannot properly utilise the assets of
the human form of life. Such miserly man by good luck only meets selfrealised
soul like Vidura and by his instruction get rid of the nescience of
material existence.
Gataswartham imam deham virakto mukta bandhanah
Avijnatargatir jahyat sa vai dheera udahrita.
Gataswartham--without being properly utilised, Imam--this, Deham--material
body, Virakto--indifferently, Mukta--being freed, Bandhanah--from all kinds
of obligations, Avijnatargatir--unknown, Jahyat--one should give this body,
Sa--such person, Bai--certainly, Dheera--undisturbed, Udahrita--is said to be
so.
The person who quits his material body which is not properly utilised, in
an unknown destination indifferently and freed from all obligations, is
called undisturbed.
Narottamdas Thakura great devotee and Acharya of the Goudiya Vaisnava
sect has sung like this. "My Lord I have simply wasted my life. Having
obtained the humanly body I have neglected to worship your Lordship and
therefore willngly I accepted poison". In other words the humanly body is
specially meant for cultivating knowledge of devotional service of the Lord
without which the life becomes full of anxieties and miserable conditions
Therefore, those who have spoiled their life without such cultural activities,
such persons are advised to leave home without any knowledge of friends and
relatives and being freed from all obligations of family, society, country etc
and thus give the body up at some unknown destination so that others may not
konw where and how such person has had met his death. "Dheera" means one
who is not disturbed even there is sufficient provocation or causes of