srimadbhgavatham-skandha3-chapters 5 to 9

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Chapter5- Vidura's questions to Maithreya

 

Vidura requested Maithreya to tell him the story of Krishna which is like the honey gathered by the bees for the welfare of mankind. Maithreya praised Vidura saying that the Lord Himself told him to impart the supreme knowledge to Vidura and hence he is fortunate..

 

Vidura put seven questions to Maithreya.

1.Which is the noble path through which the devotees get enlightened.?

2.How did the lord create this universe beingHimself without a desire?

3.How did He enter into the world to become many?

4.How does He enter the space inside, Hrdhayaakaasa, and rests there action-less?

5.How he manifests as different incarnations for the protection of all beings.

6.How did he create the worlds and their rulers?

7. How does he distinguish the karma of each being?

 

Vidura concluded saying that there is no satisfaction in listening to the stories of Hari, krshnakaThaaSravaNe na thrpthiH sambhavathi.' And it frees the faithful and detached from all sorrows. Maithreya starts speaking, taking up the topic of creation or srshti first.

 

 

Maithreya told Vidura about his past life that he was Yama cursed by Mandavya. He was the beloved of Lord Krishna which was why he asked Maithreya to instruct him with the brahmajnana. Then maithreya started his discourse on srshti, creation.

 

He said that in the beginning Bhagavan was one and only as the upanishat says, `sadheva soumya idham agra aaseeth ekameva adhvutheeyam.' (Chan.up.6-2-1) Then He willed to become many. `thadhaikdshatha bahusyaam prajaayeya.'(chan.up.6.2.3)

 

Chapter 6 and7- Creation is the Lord's maya

 

 

Maya is the power of the Lord by which the One manifested as the whole universe. Out of Maya or Prakrhi came the mahath thathva , also known as buddhi. Then the other categories, ahankara and the elements , manas and indriyas followed. All the thathvas remained separate and lacked the capacity to combine to produce the world.

 

Then the Lord entered into all these simultaneously and created the Virat pursha, the cosmic being who was endowed with three kinds of potencies, namely, devashakthi, karmashakthi and bhogtrshakthi. Deva shakthi is the one divine spirit functioning through all beings. Karmashakthi consisits of the five vital airs and their functions. Bhogtr shakthi is of threekinds, adhyaathma,(indriyas) adhidhaivika , (deities) and adhi bouthika.(body).

The questions 2 and 3 of Maithreya were thus answered by saying that it was all the maya of the Lord just as in a dream.

 

Chapter8- The creation described

 

The Lord Mahavishnu was in yoganidra and the Universe ceased to exist in pralaya. The universe was held by the lord in His stomach in subtle form. The energies necessary for creation burst through His navel and took the shape of a lotus bud, which illuminated the cosmic waters like the Sun. In to that the Supreme Being entered, anupravesa , and Brahma appeared. Brahma wanted to know who he was and looked in all the four directions to see where he came from, as a result of which he acquired four faces but he could see nothing except the cosmic waters. He went into the lotus stalk to find out his origin still he could not find anything. Abandoning the searc he went into samsdhi for 100years at the end of which truth dawned in his mind about the indwelling spirit and he had the darsan of the Lord.

 

Te darsan of the Lord asseen by Brahma is beautifully described in Bhagavatham..

He saw the Lord on the bed of Sesha, looking like a mountain surrounded by the cosmic waters.he saw all beings in that mountain, Adisesha with his numerous heads shone as the peaks and the srivathsa appeared as the quarry of precious stones. The vyjayanthi garland on the chest of the Lord was His glory and the humming of the honey bees hovering around it were the vedic chants.Also Brahma saw a lotus coming out of the navel of the Lord with himself seated on it.

 

Chapter9-Brahma blessed by the Lord to do creation

 

Brahma praised the Lord thus:

 

Those who surrender to Your feet escape the ills of samsara and those who do not are afflict3d by the ills of samsara. You are the indweller of all. All the austerities like performing sacrifices, doing penance and giving charity etc are meaningful only when done as an offering to You. Enveloping Yourself in yogic sleep You give rest to the people from samsara for a while .when the whole world is absorbed into Your body.

 

Then Brahma entreated the Lord to give him the knowledge in order to create the world as before. The Lord tblessed Brahma and told him to do thapas when he will be able to see all the worlds and all beings resting in the Lord.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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