Why is the SB called the spotless Purana?

[theist]

From Prabhupada's introduction to Srimad Bhagavatam:

 

 

Vasudeva, or Lord Sri Krishna, is the cause of all causes. Everything that exists emanates from the Lord. How this is so is explained in later chapters of this work. This work is described by Mahaprabhu Sri Caitanya as the spotless Purana because it contains the transcendental narration of the Personality of Godhead Sri Krishna.

 

Their are other works that speak on sankya and give the vedic view on the unfolding of the elements of universal creation. There are also other books that contain folktales of the time similar or the same as some of those found in the Bhagavatam.

 

So why then is the Srimad Bhagavatam considered the literary incarnation of Krsna by Mahaprabhu? As Prabhupada wrote above:

 

This work is described by Mahaprabhu Sri Caitanya as the spotless Purana because it contains the transcendental narration of the Personality of Godhead Sri Krishna.

 

The term spotless purana does not refer to every little factoid in the book.

 

Take out the transcendental narration of the Personality of Godhead Sri Krsna and it is no longer the spotless Purana.

 

"Take the essence without bothering...." about the lesser things of no eternal importance.

[muralidhar_das]

Theist my old friend, there is nothing "wrong" in the Bhagavatam, it is only our "readings" of it that are wrong.

 

Take a look at modern literary theory and you will see that the Bhagavatam can be seen as something wonderful - we just need to realize the beauty within it without being limited by "superstition" or "fundamentalists".

 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Literary_theory

 

My wife teaches literary theory. I also taught it, several years ago. Texts such as the Bhagavatam are the great treasures of the past. If we look at a jewel and say "oh, with modern stone-cutting technology we could have cut the raw stone in a better way", then we are missing the beauty of the thing in front of us.

 

Be nice.

 

.

[theist]

 

Theist my old friend, there is nothing "wrong" in the Bhagavatam, it is only our "readings" of it that are wrong.

 

Take a look at modern literary theory and you will see that the Bhagavatam can be seen as something wonderful - we just need to realize the beauty within it without being limited by "superstition" or "fundamentalists".

 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Literary_theory

 

My wife teaches literary theory. I also taught it, several years ago. Texts such as the Bhagavatam are the great treasures of the past. If we look at a jewel and say "oh, with modern stone-cutting technology we could have cut the raw stone in a better way", then we are missing the beauty of the thing in front of us.

 

Be nice.

 

.

Sorry Muralidhara but apparently you are not familar with my postings on this subject as I ave previously expressed. I am not advocating missing the beauty of the Bhagavatam but rather not mistaking the stem and thorns for the rose petals and essential scented oil.

 

The stem and thorns have their purpose but they are not to be confused with the petals themselves. Do you offer stems and thorns to the Lord? No we offer the portion that holds the petals. That is really what we call the flower.

 

If I offer just the stems and thorns is that to be considered offering a flower? No.

 

If I offer just the flowered portion without the stem and thorns it will still be appreciated, perhaps even more so.

 

The transendental narrations of the Personality of Godhead are the flower petals and the essential oils.

 

To mistake the stem and thorns to be the flower and scent or to consider them equal reveals a real lack of appreciation for what constitutes a flower IMO.

 

And to insist others share that lack of vision or else they are heretics reveals the mind of a religious fundementalist fanatic. Exactly on par with the Muslim or Christian fanatics we are eager to denounce.

 

I hope this gives you a better idea of where I am coming from.

 

Hare Krsna

[gHari]

http://vedabase.net/sb/12/13/18/en

 

http://vedabase.net/sb/7/7/15/en

 

http://vedabase.net/sb/1/5/8/en

 

http://vedabase.net/sb/1/5/13/en

 

http://vedabase.net/sb/3/20/5/en

 

http://vedabase.net/sb/9/5/21/en

 

http://vedabase.net/sb/9/11/21/en

 

http://vedabase.net/sb/10/63/34/en

 

http://vedabase.net/sb/10/80/24/en

 

http://vedabase.net/sb/10/64/26/en

 

http://vedabase.net/sb/10/86/46/en

 

http://vedabase.net/sb/10/87/46/en

 

 

Let's keep this a spotless thread - sparing ourselves all the trivial drivial mundane drivel that blemishes the Fellowship incessantly depressingly of late. Let that pile of rotting bile serve only to highlight the spotlessness of the glorious spotless thread and the spotless Purana.

[muralidhar_das]

Theist I'm sorry that I spoke while misunderstanding your point of view

 

I also, like you, feel we need to look for the essence of things when we read Bhagavatam

[theist]

Those verses are very nice and on point gHari.

[theist]

 

Theist I'm sorry that I spoke while misunderstanding your point of view

 

I also, like you, feel we need to look for the essence of things when we read Bhagavatam

 

No problem ji.

[muralidhar_das]

My issue that I have with some people is that they would like to put the Bhagavatam in the science section in libraries, and I feel it should be in the humanities section.

[theist]

From gHari's list.

 

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam is the spotless Purāṇa. It is most dear to the Vaiṣṇavas because it describes the pure and supreme knowledge of the paramahaḿsas. This Bhāgavatam reveals the means for becoming free from all material work, together with the processes of transcendental knowledge, renunciation and devotion. Anyone who seriously tries to understand Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, who properly hears and chants it with devotion, becomes completely liberated. SB 12.13.18

[stonehearted]

Yes; Mahaprabhu considers it spotless because it has only one topic--devotional service to Krishna. The other things discussed in the Bhagavatam are meant to help those who hear it understand the glories of Krishna bhakti.

 

Just as Bhagavad-gita has been analyzed as focusing on knowledge related to karma in the first six chapters, jnana in the last six chapters, and bhakti in the middle six, we can see that Cantos 1-9 present sambandha jnana, Cantos 11-12 present abhideya jnana (primarily developing vairagya, detachment from matter), and Canto 10 presents prayojana, the ultimate goal, which is devotional service in love of Krishna.

[theist]

 

My issue that I have with some people is that they would like to put the Bhagavatam in the science section in libraries, and I feel it should be in the humanities section.

 

I understand that. It is science but spiritual science.

[Guruvani]

 

Śrīmad Bhāgavatam 12.13.18

 

śrīmad-bhāgavataḿ purāṇam amalaḿ yad vaiṣṇavānāḿ priyaḿ

yasmin pāramahaḿsyam ekam amalaḿ jñānaḿ paraḿ gīyate

tatra jñāna-virāga-bhakti-sahitaḿ naiṣkarmyam āviskṛtaḿ

tac chṛṇvan su-paṭhan vicāraṇa-paro bhaktyā vimucyen naraḥ

 

SYNONYMS

śrīmat-bhāgavatam — Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam; purāṇam — the Purāṇa; amalam — perfectly pure; yat — which; vaiṣṇavānām — to the Vaiṣṇavas; priyam — most dear; yasmin — in which; pāramahaḿsyam — attainable by the topmost devotees; ekam — exclusive; amalam — perfectly pure; jñānam — knowledge; param — supreme; gīyate — is sung; tatra — there; jñāna-virāga-bhakti-sahitam — together with knowledge, renunciation and devotion; naiṣkarmyam — freedom from all material work; āviṣkṛtam — is revealed; tat — that; śṛṇvan — hearing; su-paṭhan — properly chanting; vicāraṇa-paraḥ — who is serious about understanding; bhaktyā — with devotion; vimucyet — becomes totally liberated; naraḥ — a person.

 

 

TRANSLATION

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam is the spotless Purāṇa. It is most dear to the Vaiṣṇavas because it describes the pure and supreme knowledge of the paramahaḿsas. This Bhāgavatam reveals the means for becoming free from all material work, together with the processes of transcendental knowledge, renunciation and devotion. Anyone who seriously tries to understand Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, who properly hears and chants it with devotion, becomes completely liberated.

 

 

PURPORT

Because Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam is completely free of contamination by the modes of nature, it is endowed with extraordinary spiritual beauty and is therefore dear to the pure devotees of the Lord. The word pāramahaḿsyamŚrīmad-Bhāgavatam. Those who are trying to be liberated should faithfully serve this literature by hearing and reciting it with faith and devotion. indicates that even completely liberated souls are eager to hear and narrate

 

[theist]

 

Yes; Mahaprabhu considers it spotless because it has only one topic--devotional service to Krishna. The other things discussed in the Bhagavatam are meant to help those who hear it understand the glories of Krishna bhakti.

 

Just as Bhagavad-gita has been analyzed as focusing on knowledge related to karma in the first six chapters, jnana in the last six chapters, and bhakti in the middle six, we can see that Cantos 1-9 present sambandha jnana, Cantos 11-12 present abhideya jnana (primarily developing vairagya, detachment from matter), and Canto 10 presents prayojana, the ultimate goal, which is devotional service in love of Krishna.

 

That's a gem Babhru.

 

pranams

[theist]

Srimad Bhagavatam - the beautiful story of the Supreme personality of Godhead Bhagavan.

 

So if I read Babrus post correctly we first need to establish sambandha-jnana first by assimilating the essence of the first nine cantos.

 

So the question is what does that mean exactly and is accepting all the details of the cosmology a necessary ingredient in establishing sambandha-jnana? What does it matter how many miles across the universe is? The Bhagavatam says four billion miles but if I reject that number and accept that the universe is actually must much larger does it make any difference as long as I accept that the universe is only an energy of the Lord and that he is in control?

 

Many devotees get excited and say it is blasphemy against the Bhagavatam to reject the four billion figure but isn't the real message recognizing the creative energy and control of the Lord?

[muralidhar_das]

Yes

[krsna]

Vedavyasa felt discontent even after compiling the Vedas, Puranas, Mahabharata and Vedanta-sutra -

 

 

tathapi bata me daihyo hy atma caivatmana vibhuh

asampanna ivabhati brahma-varcasya sattamah

 

 

"I am feeling incomplete, although I am fully equipped with everything required by the

Vedas

." (

Bhagavata

1.4.30)

 

The reason for his discontentment was then explained by Narada Muni –

 

 

 

jijnasitam susampannam api te mahad-adbhutam

krtavan bharatam yas tvam sarvartha-paribrmhitam

 

 

 

"You have completed your inquiries and your studies in the proper fashion, and you have written a great and wonderful work, the

Mahabharata

, which elaborately explains the different goals of life." (

Bhagavata

1.5.3)

 

 

 

 

bhavatanudita-prayam yaso bhagavato ’malam

yenaivasau na tusyeta manye tad darsanam khilam

 

 

 

"You have not actually broadcast the sublime and

spotless

glories of the Personality of Godhead. That philosophy which does not satisfy the transcendental senses of the Lord is considered worthless."

 

 

 

yatha dharmadayas cartha muni-varyanukirtitah

na tatha vasudevasya mahima hy anuvarnitah

 

 

"O best of sages, since you have broadly described the four goals of human life beginning with religious performances, you have not described the glories of the Supreme Personality, Vasudeva." (

Bhagavata

1.5.8-9)

 

On the advice of Narada, Vyasa meditated and the Bhagavata was manifest to him. This is the natural commentary of Vyasa’s own sutras (artho’yam brahma-sutranam) and thus includes the purport of the entire Vedic literature (vedartha-paribrmhitah) It is free from the problems that we find with the Vedas and the other Puranas – it is available in it’s entirety, it has commentated upon by various Vaisnava acaryas, it is divinely composed and Puranic in nature. In it’s opening sloka it gives the essence of the Vedas since it begins with the holy gayatri mantra· (gayatri-bhasya-rupo ’sah) which is itself the essence of the vedas. This is also confirmed in the Matsya Purana (53.20-22) and Agni Purana (272.6.7) -

 

 

yatradhikrtya gayatrim vamyate dharma-vistarah

vrtasura-vadhopetam tad bhagavatam istyate

likhitva tac ca yo dadyad dhema-simha-samanvitam

prausthapadyam paurnamasyam sa yati paramam gatim

asta-dasa-sahasrani puranam tat prakirtitam

 

 

"That

purana

is known as the

Bhagavata

which gives the highest religious principles, refers to the sacred

gayatri mantra

, and tells the story of the slaying of Vrtasura. This

purana

has 18,000 verses and whoever writes down the entire text and places it on a golden throne and gives it in charity to a qualified person on the day of the full-moon of the month of Bhadra will attain the Supreme abode."

 

Most importantly, the Bhagavata is the crowning glory of the divine author’s literary efforts, soothing his heart when he felt that his work remained incomplete.

 

There are many verses that praise the Bhagavata above all the other Puranas. In the Skanda Purana (Visnu-khanda 6.4.3) it says –

 

 

srimad bhagavatasyatha srimad bhagavatah sada

svarupam ekam evasti sac-cid-ananda-laksana

 

 

"The

Bhagavata

and the Supreme Lord are always of the same nature – possessed of eternal existence, knowledge and bliss."

 

In the Visnu Khanda of the Skanda Purana (5.16.40-42, 44,33) –

 

 

sataso 'tha sahasrais ca kim anyaih sastra-samgrahaih

na yasya tisthate gehe sastram bhagavatam kalau

katham sa vaisnavo jneyah sastram bhagavatam kalau

grhe na tisthate yasya sa viprah svapacadhamah

yatra yatra bhaved vipra sastram bhagavatam kalau

tatra tatra harir yati tridasaih saha narada

yah pathet prayato nityam slokam bhagavatam mune

asta-dasa-purananam phalam prapnoti manavah

 

 

"If the

Bhagavata

is not kept in one's house in the Kali Yuga, of what avail are collections of other scriptures by the hundreds and thousands? How can he be condidered a Vaisnava who, in the Kali Yuga, does not keep the

Bhagavata

in his house? Even if he is a

brahmana,

he is lower than an outcaste. O Narada, O Sage, wherever the

Bhagavata

is found in the Kali-yuga, there Hari goes together with all the demigods. O Muni, that pius soul who daily recites a verse from the

Bhagavata

reaps the fruits of the eighteen

Puranas

."

 

In the Padma Purana (Uttara-khanda 193.3)

 

 

puranesu tu sarvesu srimad bhagavatam param

yatra prati-padam krsno giyate bahudharsibhih

 

 

"Of all the

puranas

, the

Bhagavata

is the greatest. In every line the sages glorify Sri Krsna in various ways."

 

Also in the Padma Purana -

 

 

padau yadiyau prathama-dvitiyau trtiya-turyau kathitau yad-uru

nabhis tatha pancama eva sasto bhujantaram dor-yugalam tathanyau

kanthas tu rajan navamo yadiyo mukharavindam dasamam praphullam

ekadaso yas ca lalata-pattam siro’pi yad dvadasa eva bhati

namami devam karuna-nidhanam tamala-varnam suhitavataram

apara-samsara-samudra-setum bhajamahe bhagavata-svarupam

 

 

"The first and second cantos of the

Bhagavata

are Sri Krsna’s feet. The third and fourth cantos are His thighs. The fifth canto is His navel. The sixth canto is His chest. The seventh and eighth cantos are His arms. The ninth canto is His throat. The tenth canto is His beautiful lotus-face. The eleventh canto is His forehead. The twelth canto is His head.

 

I bow down to that Lord , the ocean of mercy whose color is like that of a

tamala

tree and who appears in this world for the welfare of all. I worship Him as the bridge for crossing the unfathomable ocean of material existence.

The Bhagavata has appeared as His very Self."

 

In the Garuda Purana -

 

 

artho ’yam brahma-sutranam bharatartha-vinirnayah

gayatri-bhasya-rupo ’sah vedartha-paribrmhitah

grantho ’stadasa-sahasrah srimad-bhagavatabhidhah

 

 

"The

Bhagavata

is the authorized explanation of

Brahma-sutras

, and it is a further explanation of

Mahabharata

. It is the expansion of the

gayatri-mantra

and the essence of all Vedic knowledge. This

Bhagavata

, containing eighteen thousand verses, is known as the explanation of all Vedic literature."<SUP>

11

</SUP>

 

 

[stonehearted]

 

Srimad Bhagavatam - the beautiful story of the Supreme personality of Godhead Bhagavan.

 

So if I read Babrus post correctly we first need to establish sambandha-jnana first by assimilating the essence of the first nine cantos.

 

So the question is what does that mean exactly and is accepting all the details of the cosmology a necessary ingredient in establishing sambandha-jnana? What does it matter how many miles across the universe is? The Bhagavatam says four billion miles but if I reject that number and accept that the universe is actually must much larger does it make any difference as long as I accept that the universe is only an energy of the Lord and that he is in control?

 

Many devotees get excited and say it is blasphemy against the Bhagavatam to reject the four billion figure but isn't the real message recognizing the creative energy and control of the Lord?

Well done. As a friend of ours used to sign his posts, "Take the essence."

 

When I was a teenager taking confirmation classes for the Episcopal Church, I asked our minister about the creation. How was I supposed to accept that the world was created in seven days? Rev. Mr. Willke replied quite simply, "The message is that in the beginning God created the heavens and the Earth."

[krsna]

 

Well done. As a friend of ours used to sign his posts, "Take the essence."

 

When I was a teenager taking confirmation classes for the Episcopal Church, I asked our minister about the creation. How was I supposed to accept that the world was created in seven days? Rev. Mr. Willke replied quite simply, "The message is that in the beginning God created the heavens and the Earth."

 

"Take the essence."

[gHari]

SB 7.7.15p:

 

Here it is said, dharmasya tattvaḿ jñānaḿ ca. .. nirmalam. The word nirmalam refers to spotless dharma, spotless religion — or, in other words, bhāgavata-dharma.

[krsna]

<CENTER> </CENTER>

 

• "This Bhagavata Purana is as brilliant as the sun, and it has arisen just after the departure of Lord Krsna to His own abode, accompanied by religion, knowledge, etc.. Persons who have lost their vision due to the dense darkness of ignorance in this age of quarrel and hypocrisy shall get light from this Purana."
  • -- Srimad-Bhagavatam 1.3.43
  • Read the

Srimad-Bhagavatam, or the "spotless Purana". Pick up knowledge that will enlighten and help you - presented through a wonderful dialogue and narrative. Enjoy a meaningful and transparent view of the world around you. Moreover, use it to help you make more informed choices in your life. Make it your guide to the art of living.
<CENTER>The Definition of Religion</CENTER>

• "The Supreme occupation for all humanity is that by which men can attain to loving devotional service unto the transcendent Lord. Such devotional service must be unmotivated and uninterrupted to completely satisfy the self."
  • -- Srimad-Bhagavatam 1.2.6

<CENTER>Harmony with Nature</CENTER>

 

• "O Maharaja Pariksit,...during the reign of Lord Ramacandra the forests, the rivers, the hills and mountains, the states, the seven islands and the seven seas were all favorable in supplying the necessities of life for all living beings.... all bodily and mental suffering, disease, old-age, bereavement, lamentation, distress, fear and fatigue were completely absent. There was even no death for those who did not want it."
  • -- Srimad-Bhagavatam 9.10.52
  • <CENTER>

The Facts of Life</CENTER>

• "Under the supervision of the Supreme Lord and according to the result of his work, the living entity, the soul, is made to enter the womb of a woman through the particle of male semen to assume a particular type of body.... Pushed downward all of a sudden by the wind, the child comes out with great trouble, head downward, breathless and deprived of memory due to severe agony..."
  • -- Srimad-Bhagavatam 3.31.1

<CENTER>A Queen's Realizations</CENTER>

 

• "Srimati Kunti said: O Krsna, I offer my obeisances unto You because You are the original personality and are unaffected by the qualities of the material world. You are existing both within and without everything, yet You are invisible to all."
  • -- Srimad-Bhagavatam 1.8.18
  • <CENTER>

The Rainy Season and Autumn in Vrndavana</CENTER>

• "With the advent of the rainy season, the insignificant streams, which had become dry, began to swell and then strayed from their proper courses, like the body, property and money of a man controlled by the urges of his senses. The newly grown grass made the earth emerald green, the indragopa insects added a reddish hue, and white mushrooms added further color and circles of shade. Thus the earth appeared like a person who has suddenly become rich.... When the Vrndavana forest had thus become resplendent, filled with ripe dates and the jambu fruits, Lord Krsna, surrounded by His cows and cowherd boyfriends, and accompanied by Sri Balarama, entered the forest to enjoy."
  • -- Srimad-Bhagavatam 10.20.10

<CENTER>Prahlada Maharaja - the Saintly Son of the Demon Hiranyakasipu</CENTER>

 

• "From the very beginning of his life, Prahlada Maharaja was uninterested in childish playthings. Indeed, he gave them up altogether...he could not understand how the world goes on being fully absorbed in the activities of sense gratification... My dear King Yudhisthira, the demon Hiranyakasipu tormented this exalted, fortunate devotee although Prahlada was his own son."
  • -- Srimad-Bhagavatam 7.4.37
  • <CENTER>

The Battle Between Lord Varaha and the Demon Hiranyaksa</CENTER>

• "The demon being challenged by the Personality of Godhead, became angry and agitated, and he trembled in anger like a challenged cobra. Hissing indignantly, all his senses shaken by wrath, the demon quickly sprang upon the Lord and dealt Him a blow with his powerful mace. The Lord, however, by moving slightly aside, dodged the violent mace-blow aimed at His breast by the enemy, just as an accomplished yogi would elude death."
  • -- Srimad-Bhagavatam 3.18.13

<CENTER>How Ajamila was Saved from the Jaws of Death</CENTER>

 

• "In the city known as Kanyakubja, there lived a brahmana named Ajamila who married a prostitute maidservant and lost all his brahminical qualities.... Ajamila gave trouble to others by arresting them, by cheating them in gambling or by directly plundering them. This was the way he earned his livelihood and maintained his wife and children..."
  • -- Srimad-Bhagavatam 6.1.21

<CENTER>The Art of Living at Your Fingertips</CENTER>

• "This Bhagavata Purana propounds the highest truth. The highest truth is reality distinguished from illusion for the welfare of all."
  • -- Srimad-Bhagavatam 1.1.2

Whether it is family, health, career, recreation or general well-being that occupies your time or thoughts, the Bhagavatam benefit is the one missing dimension that will bring a clear perspective and positive change in the quality of your life. Discover the realm of your consciousness, of life and all the world around you...a library of philosophy, history, religion and culture. A lifetime's experience for you and your family.

 

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