Srimadbhagavatham-skandha3-chapters10and11

September 6, 2008

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sarojram18

desikasampradaya

Saturday, September 06, 2008 5:01 AM

Srimadbhagavatham-skandha3-chapters10and11

Chapter 10- The process of creationThe lotus on which Brahma was seated was violently agitated by winds after he did thapas as ordained by the Lord, and Brahma with his power of penance drank the wind and the water. Then he found that the lotus expanded and enveloped the whole region and he realized that the whole creation could be effected from the lotus itself. Brahma divided the lotus into three sections where the jives transmigrate in order to experience the results of their actions , while the higher regions like sathyaloka is for the evolved souls which were created later.Then Maitreya described to Vidhura that there are nine different forms of creation, visarga. The first six are from prakrti, or primordial nature which consists of three gunas, and formed by the interaction of the three gunas. The prakrthi gave rise to mahath thathva, which is also known as buddhi from which came the ahankara, which is of three kinds according to the three gunas. From ahankara evolved the indriyas , thanmathras and mind. The sixth is the tamas or avidhya. All this are explained in detail later in the skandha in the episode of Kapilavathara, and mind. The last three are called vaikrtha srshti, it consists of immovable entities, movable lower species and humans. The immovable entities are the plant life. They are predominantly of thamas and have no manifest feeling. The second category, namely birds and beasts are further divided into 28 species.. They have no wisdom and are ignorant They have knowledge through scent only.The last type of creation is that of humans.. The creation of devas are both praakrtha and vaikrtha. The devas who are the forces behind the idhriyas are praakrtha and others are vaikrtha, which includes, sura. Asuram, pithrs, gandharvas etc.Chapter11. The Time-Its dimensions and divisionsTime is the all powerful force of the Lord. It is unperceivable but becomes perceivable by its effects. The basic unit of time is called paramaaNu, The period it takes for the sun to pass one paramaNu is called a particle of time or paramaaNukala, while mahaakaala is the period of time required by the Sun to engulf the whole existence, the unit of which is a year, hundred years being the lifespan of man.The cycle of chathuryugas lasts for 4380000 human years, or 12000 deva years, of which the krthayuga prevails for 4800 deva years, Threthaayuga for 3600,Dhvaapara 2600 and Kali for 1200 deva years and one deva year is equal to 365 human years.One day of Brahma is 1000chathuryugas and his night lasts for another 1000 chathuryugas. The day of Brahma is the period of 14 Manus which means that each Manu has the life span of 71 and a half chathuryugas approximately.During each manvanthara , Manu, their vamSa, rshis , devas. Indra , gandharvas etc are created newly.In the beginning of the first half of the life of Brahma known as brahma kalpa,, that is, the first paraarDha, Brahma manifested and Vedas originated simultaneously. At the end of the first paraarDha , the padmakalpa,. the lotus appeared from the navel of the Lord from which the world originated , In the beginning of the second paraarDhaa was Varahakalpa in which Lord Hari took the form of the Boar, Varaha. These two paraarDhas of Brahma together is like one nimisha or blinking of the eye for the Lord Hari. However this is only figurative as the concept of time has no significance as far as the Lord is concerned.The night of Brahma after 1000 chathuryugas is the pralaya when Brahma sleeps, while the cosmic night is when the Lord goes into yoganidra when all the universe including Brahma dissolves.

November 3, 2008

Chapter13-Varahavathara

Once Svayambhuva Manu perceived that the earth was drowned in the sea and sought Braham for protection. Brahma meditated and from his nostril a baby boar of the size of thumb came out and while he was looking it grew to a size of an elephant and still grew till it touched the sky. Brahma and his sons were wondering what it was when the Boar gave a roar which made the rshis living in the lokas Jana and Thapa delighted and they responded with vedic chants, knowing that it was the yajnavarahamurthy. Then the Lord Varaha entered the waters.

The Varahamurthy was described as follows:

He entered the ocean smelling the whereabouts of the earth, the Lord who was yajnamurthy in the form of a boar, with fierce fangs but soft eyes looked at the Brahmins chanting the Vedas. When he fell into the ocean with the force of the vajra of Indra, he agitated the ocean and the high waves which resulted seemed to be long arms of the ocean crying `Oh Lord protect me.'

The Lord took the earth easily on His tusks and emerged out of water and killed the asura Hiranyaksha who tried to fight with Him, as easily as a lion killing an elephant.

The size of Varaha was indicated by `khuraiH kshurapraiH dharyan thadhaa aapa,' He waded in the waters with His hoofs and saw the earth. Hence the ocean was only up to His hoofs.

The rshis praised the Lord thus:

Oh Lord you are victorious and invincible. You are the personification of the Vedas and your hair holes contain the seas, You have assumed the form of a boar for uplifting the earth and to kill the demon. You are the manthras and the deities to whom the manthras are addressed, You are the yajna and the rites of the yajna. You could be understood only by those who have devotion and detachment. Oh Sustainer of the world, the earth sitting on your tusk with the mountains on it intact, looks like a lotus with leaves stuck to the tusk of an elephant coming out of a forest.

Then the Lord put down the earth on the waters as before and returned to His abode.

Chapter14- The birth of Hiranyaksha and Hiranya kasipu.

Vidura asked Maithreya the reason for the fight between the Lord and Hiranyaksha. Maithreya explained the birthos the asuras, Hiranayksha and Hiranyakasipu.

Dhithi , one of the wives of kasyapa prajapathi, wanted to have union with her husband on one evening . He told her that the time was not suitable because it was pradosha and belonged to Lord Rudra. But she insisted and the sage knowing that it was her destiny fulfilled her wish and afterwards took bath and die prnayama and gayathri to purify himself. Later dhithi was ashamed and prayed that Rudra should not harm the foetus. Kasyapa told her that she will get two sons who would terrorize the whole world and would be killed by the Lord Hari but one of her grandsons would be a great bhagavatha.

Then comes the narration of the dvarapaalakas of the Lord who were cursed by the Sanakaadhi and were told by the Lord to be born as his foes for three births and return to vaikunta and the episode of Hiranyaksha is retold. But the story of Hirnyakasipu and Narsimhavathara comes much later in the epic.