Srimad Bhagavatam – day 745
The ever-pure transcendental Lord can never be touched by sin
Krishna Narayana
Emperor Parikshit enquired, “O revered sage! In order to eliminate unrighteousness and to establish righteousness, the Supreme Lord Srikrishna incarnated on Earth along with Balarama. He is the Lord who establishes the rules of righteousness (dharma) and ethical standards, popularizes them and protects them. How then could this Lord touch another’s wife, which is an unethical deed?”
Why did the Lord allow another’s wife to touch His chest? Why did He wipe away the sweat from their face with His hands? How could He sport with them in the waters? Parikshit was listening to the narration called Bhagavatam directly from Maharishi Śuka. In fact, the saint was showing to him the entire story of the Lord like a cinema reel. Despite this, he was plagued with doubts. If an Emperor as great as Parikshit could be filled with doubts after listening to rāsa dance, isn’t it but natural for today’s people to be suspicious of the Lord? The word ‘rāsa kreeda’ is enough for them to look distastefully at the Lord. Aha! Such is our devotion! After all, we humans are the epitome of foolishness, aren’t we?
Emperor Parikshit continued, “What was the intent of the Lord behind these activities? What was the reason behind these despicable activities of the supreme competent Lord, the leader for all the Yadavas, who had already fulfilled all his desires?”
Parikshit used the word ‘despicable’ to define these activities of the Lord. We presume that perhaps he had not realized the transcendence of the Lord even after reaching the tenth canto. The truth however is that Parikshit did not ask the question to dispel his own suspicion. His faith in the Lord was unflinching. However he put forth this question for the benefit of the others who were listening to this incident. He wanted them to understand the truth behind the activities of the Lord. Will the cowherds not accuse him of having wandered with their wives? Why did the Lord engage in this sport?
“Please dispel this doubt, O revered sage’- said Parikshit.
Maharishi Śuka replied,
“dharma-vyatikramo dṛṣṭa īśvarāṇāḿ ca sāhasam
tejīyasāḿ na doṣāya vahneḥ sarva-bhujo yathā
It just appears as if ever-competent persons override the dictates of righteousness (dharma) and tread the path forbidden by the Scriptures”.
All along I have been repeatedly mentioning that there was only one Gopika and one Krishna. I do not know if you have grasped that or not. I have thereby explained the meaning of this verse to you in the beginning itself. Intelligently listening to these episodes explaining rāsa kreeda alone gives you the right perspective and right understanding. If not, you will be plagued exactly with the same doubts that were put forth by Emperor Parikshit.
“However, just as the fire which swallows everything remains untainted by sin, those who possess infinite radiance cannot be touched by sin”.
When we engage in such amorous acts we are tainted with sin. However the Lord is fire (agni). He is the creator of this universe. We are but puppets in His hands. He is the Lord who established the rules of righteousness (dharma). He is the one who established the rules of righteousness for householders and is the one protecting it. It now appears as if He overrode his own dictates. The entire stage for the rāsa kreeda dance was set by Him. This entire creation belongs to Him alone.
To those who are as radiant as the fire, these activities do not turn sinful. How can He, who is as pure and radiant as fire, have in Him any impurity or faults?
“However, an incompetent person who lacks Yogic powers, should never ever attempt to engage in these immoral amorous deeds. He should not even dream or think of attempting such activities. The dim-witted person, who due to foolishness, engages in such deeds, will perish. If any person other than Rudra swallows the poison which emerges from the ocean he is sure to meet with death”.
Apart from Rudra (Shiva) none can withstand the poison that emerged during the churning of the ocean. can a person who wears the garb of Shiva drink poison and survive?
“The teachings of the wise people who illumine divinely is only authoritative”.
Whatever such wise, self-realized persons utter is always true. There can be no falsehood in their sayings.
“However, at times their conduct may be true or may be pretentious”.
This is because, similar to fire, they have in them the ability to swallow/ consume everything. Once when Shankara Bhagavadpāda was travelling across India, many followers accompanied Him. At times, these followers would wonder what could be so unique and special about Shankara Bhagavadpāda and why He was to be revered. They too would occasionally show off their greatness as they too had mastered all the Upanishads, the Puranas and other sacred texts from which Shankara Bhagavapāda would quote. Since they were equally learned, they could not decipher why He was revered by the world. Hence they too imitated all his actions trying to prove their greatness.
One day, Shankara Bhagavadpāda was exceedingly hungry and food was unavailable. As He was walking searching for food, He came across a fisherman who offered to Him a piece of fish. To abate the hunger pangs, Shankara Bhagavadpāda ate the fish. Seeing this, all these followers who considered themselves equal to Him also took pieces of fish and swallowed them.
They continued to walk. Shankara Bhagavadpāda was now thirsty and began to search for water. A long time passed yet they could not find any river, pond or water source. They came across a blacksmith. Shankara Bhagavadpāda asked him for water. There was no water with the blacksmith. As such, Shankara Bhagavadpāda took the hot molten iron and gulped it down. The followers were now shamefaced.
Earlier they had gulped the pieces of fish trying to compete with Him. Could these people, who were masters in the theoretical knowledge of the Upanishads and other Scriptures, now drink molten iron? They failed.
Shankara Bhagavapāda, who was none other than the Lord, could handle both the situations with equal dexterity. Is it right to imitate just a few of His actions and then ridicule Him? Should we not step back upon realizing that all actions of His are beyond human level? Is it right to blame God? Is it right to find faults in the Lord?
“Hence the wise, intelligent person should imitate only those actions of the Lord which are in accordance to His preachings”.
He should imitate only those actions which aligned to the preaching of the Lord.
Krishna Narayana