Lord Krishna answers Uddhava's questions.

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Lord Krishna answers Uddhava’s 35 questions.

 

(Bhagavata XI-19, 28-32)

 

 

 

1. Yama and Niyama consist in the observance of the following disciplines,

internal and external: non-injury, truth, non-covetousness, non-attachment,

conscientiousness, non-hoarding, faith in the scriptures, continence, moderation

in speech, constancy, forgiveness, and fearlessness. These are the twelve

internal disciplines known as Yama. Cleanliness, purity of mind, Japa,

austerity, Homa, Shraddha, hospitality, worship of the Divine, visiting holy

places, service of others, contentment, service of the teacher, these are the

twelve external disciplines known as Niyama. Men who follow these disciplines

attain to what they want, material and spiritual.

 

2. Sama means firm settlement of the mind in the Lord and not mere calmness

of the mind.

 

3. Dama is controlling the senses and not the suppression of enemies.

 

4. Titiksha is the capacity to bear all sufferings and difficulties that one

faces in the discharge of one’s duties; and not mere endurance that helps to

bear the weight of burdens.

 

5. Dhriti’ is the capacity to withstand the onslaught of the senses of taste

and of sexuality and not mere immobility of temperament.

 

6. Charity: The highest charity (Param Daanam) is the abandonment of the

tendency to harm other living beings and not mere doling out the alms.

 

7. Tapas: The highest form of Tapas is the abstinence from sexuality and not

the performance of body-torturing rites like Kricchra and Chaandraayana.

 

8. Heroism (Saurya) lies in the conquest of one’s animal nature and not

combativeness.

 

9. Truth is seeing God in everything and not mere factual speech.

 

10. Rita: Great men have said that Rita consists in speech

that is factual and beneficial.

 

11. Purity (Soucha) is non-attachment in work.

 

12. Tyaga (abandonment) is Sannyasa or renunciation of

worldliness and worldly life.

 

13. Wealth: The greatest wealth of man is Dharma and not mere

material possessions.

 

14. Yajna: The real Yajna is I, the Supreme Lord and not a

mere ritual.

 

15. Dakshina is the humble service to the teacher leading to

the imparting of knowledge and not mere gifts of money.

 

16. Strength: The real strength consists in Pranayama which

helps one to control the mind and not in mere muscular strength.

 

17. Bhaga or Bhaagya (good fortune) consists in becoming a

participant of my Bhagas or six divine majesties, viz. lordliness, power, fame,

Sri (beauty cum prosperity), wisdom, and non attachment.

 

18. Laabha (real gain) is the attainment of devotion to Me

and not the gain of wealth, children, and other worldly objects.

 

19. Vidya is the eradication of the sense of duality in the

Atman and not mere knowledge.

 

20. Hri or bashfulness is the reluctance to do what is evil,

and not mere sense of shame.

 

21. Beauty: True beauty comes from Desirelessness and

austerity, and not by mere decorations and jewelry.

 

22. Happiness: True happiness consists in seeking neither

happiness nor misery but remaining detached and unconcerned in all situations.

 

23. Misery: True misery lies in seeking sexual satisfactions

and not in fire accidents and similar calamities.

 

24. Learned man: A really learned man is one who has a clear

apprehension of the states of bondage and liberation, and not and not a mere

book-learned person.

 

25. Murkha or the ignorant man is the one who thinks of

himself as the body only and not the one who is merely un-learned.

 

26. The true path is the path of renunciation that leads one

to Me and not the ways that lead to the worldly ends.

 

27. The perverted way is the life of unrestricted

extroversion and not merely the way of the thieves.

 

28. Swarga is the dawn of Sattva Guna and not a place in

Indra’s heaven.

 

29. Naraka is the dominance of the quality of Tamas and not a

region called hell.

 

30. The true relative is the Guru and not brothers and sons,

and that Guru is Myself.

 

31. The house is the human body and not what is made of brick

and mortar.

 

32. The wealthy man is one rich in virtues and not the monied

individual.

 

33. The pauper is the greedy man who is never satisfied with

anything he gets and not the one who has not much wealth.

 

34. The pitiable man is the one who is not able to control

his senses.

 

35. The true master is the one free from the bondage of the

Gunas or the senses and their objects; and his opposite the slave is the one who

is attached to them.

 

 

 

O Uddhava! All your questions have been properly considered and answered. This

in brief is the description of the good and bad. What is the use of too long a

description? To transcend the feeling of distinction between the two is real

virtue.

 

 

 

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"Bhakti is immortalizing nectar; it transmutes a man into divinity. It makes him

perfect. It bestows on him everlasting peace and bliss."

--- Swami Sivananda.

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