Srimad Bhagavatam – day 401
Prahlāda is explaining to his friends that this world is purely illusory; it has no real existence; those who drown in it can never hope to attain dispassion; they can never develop devotion towards the Supreme Lord and hence can never understand His real essence. He now continues,
“In all times and in all situations, the mind of the ignorant person who is totally immersed in material luxuries suffers due to the 3 types of afflictions known as ādhyātmika, ādhibhoutika and ādhi-daivika tapatrayas.
A person who is totally involved in household attachments fails to realise that he is totally wasting his lifespan in sustaining his family members and that he is failing in achieving liberation which is the actual purpose of life”.
Swamiji explains: ‘I should aim to reach my real home. Towards this I should engage in meritorious deeds and should walk on the right path that leads towards my home’- immersed in mundane worldly matters, the person forgets this important fact. In fact he is eternally focussed upon enjoying more luxuries, he always eyes the wealth of others and thinks of ways and means by which wealth can effortlessly be acquired by him. He has no inclination to know how he was created and the real purpose of life. He does not bother about Paramātma. How can such person ever develop dispassion?
When we come across rich persons in whom even the slightest trace of detachment is not visible we are astonished. The truth however is that they have trained themselves to be overly attached to their possessions. Despite immense wealth and despite limitless fame or power, if a person does not fix his mind even slightly upon the Lord, detachment will never arise in him. Perhaps such person will be reborn as a beggar or as a pig that wanders in a drain, who knows?
“The person who is totally inclined towards household comforts and sensual pleasures, will have no control over his senses. Due to this, his desires will never be extinguished. At all times, such person will be solely focussed on acquiring wealth of others. Although he is aware that he will suffer both in this world and in the next for having usurped others’ wealth, he continues to grab their wealth.
O children belonging to the Danu clan! The ignorant person who intensely strives to maintain his family and who is filled with differences such as ‘this belongs to me’ and ‘that belongs to you/others’ is not eligible to obtain Self-knowledge, even if he is a scholar. He will continue to remain trapped within this repeated cycle of re-births which is filled with worldly bondages (samsāra).
Being held completely under the sway of the sense organs, he will be in a helpless pitiable condition wherein he becomes a toy in the hands of woman upon whom he casts sensual, lusty gazes. Under no circumstances can such a person free himself from these worldly shackles”.
Such a person can be distinguished by his looks. The way a man looks at woman indicates whether he is filled with lusty needs or not. A lusty person can never free himself from these desires unless and until he puts in stringent efforts in that direction. He should practice to fix his gaze/ attention only upon the Supreme Lord. He should not focus on sexual desires.
Little Prahlāda continued, “The children whom he begets from this woman also become shackles that bind him completely. He begins to sink deeper and deeper into the mire.
Therefore, O children belonging to Diti lineage! Please do not associate with the other demon children who are inclined towards sensual pleasures. Please seek shelter under Lord Nārāyana who is the cause of this universe and who is Self-luminous. With this you will obtain the liberation that Mahatmas, who have developed dispassion towards this material world, always seek.
The Supreme Lord Srihari within the living entity in the form of the Self and externally He pervades the entire creation. In this way He exists both within and outside the living entity. No special effort is required to please Him. This non-dual Lord exists within every living entity beginning from the tiniest micro-organisms, ants, insects, trees, plants and right up to Lord Brahma. He also exists in every object that is created from the 5 basic elements (panca bhootas). He exists in the 5 basic elements and in the 5 subtle elements (tanmātras). He is also visible in the 3 attributes of Nature which are known as sattva, rajas and tamas and is visible in Mahat tattva (cosmic intelligence) and in their manifested state known as Nature (Prakriti)”.
What profound declaration is being made!
“This omnipresent, indestructible, non-dual Supreme Lord remains aloof and beyond this material universe. In Him there are no divisions. Only non-dual principle (oneness) exists.
This non-dual Lord manifests as the inner Self (atma) within the living entity, as the Seer and as the outside perceived world. Although He is beyond description, He is described as this created visible universe which in reality is pervaded by His existence. He is also described as the perceiver (dṛṣṭa) to whom existence (uniki) is the original form. The Supreme Lord is a personification of infinite bliss. When this universe filled with names and forms disappears, then the Lord makes himself visible as the inner Self!
Therefore, my friends please give up thinking about material sensual pleasures. When this inclination towards sensual material pleasures is driven away from the mind, then automatically goodness rushes towards you. With hearts filled with compassion serve other living entities. By this, the Supreme Lord Srihari, who is beyond all direct visible proofs, will be pleased. When the Supreme Lord Srihari, who is beyond time and who is the cause for this entire creation, is pleased, there is nothing that one cannot obtain. Let us therefore serve the lotus feet of Lord Srihari and glorify His transcendental fame.
We therefore have no necessity of the rules of righteousness (dharma), material earnings (artha) and fulfilment of sensory desires (kama) which are automatically obtained in this world or of ultimate liberation (moksha) which is sought after by people.”