srimadbhagavatham -skandha 7

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Chapter5. Prahlada persecuted by Hiranya kasipu

 

Prahlada

one of the four sons of Hiranyakasipu, the other three being, Hladha, Anuhladha

and Samhladha, was a devotee of the Lord Narayana from his birth. He spent all

his time in thinking of the Lord, singing His glory, worshipping Him etc.

Hiranyakasipu employed the sons of Sukracharya , the kulaguru of the asuras,

Chanda and Amarka to teach the princes and other youngsters about asuraneethi

and they, residing near the palace taught the children all about the law and

practices of asuras and the glory of Hiranyakasipu who was considered as the

God for them.

 

Prahladha

did not care for the learning which he thought to be useless and false.

Hiranyakasipu once put Prahladha on his lap and asked him to say what was the

best thing he learnt. Prahladha said that to those who mistake unreal for the

real the only means of salvation is to leave the house riddled with

difficulties and sorrow resembling a dried up well and to go to forest seeking

Lord Hari. Hiranyakasipu laughed ,

amused by his reply and thought that he was misled by some who supported his

enemy Vishnu. He ordered that Prahladha should be guarded from contacting

brahmins who worshipped Vishnu.

Then

the sons of Sukra took him to the gurukula and asked him how did he get this

sort of thinking and who taught him or is it his own imagination. To this

Prahladha replied that this devotion to Vishnu

had come to him of its own accord.

They tried to inflict corporeal punishment on him saying that Prahladha was like

a tree of thorns in the woods of sandalwood trees and is like the handle of the axe called Vishnu who wished

to destroy the woods. They tried all means of sama, dhana bhedha and dhanda to

change the mind of Prahladha and later took him to Hiranyakasipu again.

 

Hiranyakasipu asked Prahladha the same question again, to

which he replied,

SravaNam keerthanam vishNoH smaraNam

paadha sevanam

archanam vandhanam dhaasyam sakhyam

aathmanivedhanam

 

"Hearing

about Lord Hari, singing His glory, thinking about Him, resorting to His feet,

worshipping Him, bowing down to Him, serving Him, befriending Him and offering

oneself to Him. This alone I consider as the best knowledge."

 

Hiranyakasipu

became furious and scolded the guruputhra who tremblingly told him that Prahladha

got this kind of knowledge not from them but from somewhere else and they

themselves were as perplexed as he was. Then Hiranyakasipu asked his son from

where did he get this kind of thought abhadhra

asathee mathiH, inauspicious and untrue. Prahladha said that those who are

wallowing in the dense darkness of ignorance or those who consider themselves

all-knowing, both of them will not get this real knowledge which comes only to

those who offer themselves to the feet of the Lord and get covered by the dust

of His feet.

 

Hiranyakasipu

getting angry, saying that even though he was his own son he is like a disease to the body to be got rid of,

ordered his men to give him all sorts of punishment like hitting him with

spears, making elephant trod on him, throwing him from the top of the hill, sinking

him in the sea, giving him poison etc. but nothing affected Prahladha who was

protected by the Lord. Then the guruputhras told Hiranyakasipu that they would

bind him with varunapasa and keep him till the guru Sukracharya arrived and

then he might instill some sense in Prahladha. They did so and while they were

away Prahladha started gathering the other boys and instructed them about the

devotion of the Lord.