A small child as soon as it is born likes to play with its toys. First it plays with a wooden toy as the child is also like that and once the child starts to learn how to walk and run it desires a key driven toy. When it grows a little more it desires to play even more with children of its own age group. When it starts playing with these children it slowly develops desire for worldly things. Develops desire for seeing, listening, sleeping and playing as well as the desire to go to different places. If you ask the small child to go to temple, perform bhajan he/she will not come. The child will like to play cricket match, go to cinema, play games and if we need to bring the child to a temple, we need to bring without the desire only.
If you ask the child to hear a nice story, or read a nice book or perform a bhajan, he/she will not listen. The reason being its nature. How the nature is? - if for example we pour water, it will only go down and not up - athO mukham, the reason is that the nature of water is to flow down. If we light a lamp the jwAla goes up and not down because its nature is oordwa mukham. Water goes down whereas fire goes up, why because of their natures. Similarly the mind is like a spring, when we compress a spring and leave it, it will bounce back just like that - the 5 indriyas through the eyes, ears, nose, mouth etc it all comes up suddenly like released from the spring.
If you ask the child to hear a nice story, or read a nice book or perform a bhajan, he/she will not listen. The reason being its nature. How the nature is? - if for example we pour water, it will only go down and not up - athO mukham, the reason is that the nature of water is to flow down. If we light a lamp the jwAla goes up and not down because its nature is oordwa mukham. Water goes down whereas fire goes up, why because of their natures. Similarly the mind is like a spring, when we compress a spring and leave it, it will bounce back just like that - the 5 indriyas through the eyes, ears, nose, mouth etc it all comes up suddenly like released from the spring.
Therefore for the human, the sristi itself is outward going - bahir mukham. In the world the desire to see this that and that, one will never get tired of it and one will never be satisfied. From a small child to an old man, the desire to enjoy is inherent. I had been to a home to see an old man aged about 98 years completely bed ridden. I asked him what he needs as he is in such a bad condition and expected that he will ask for going soon to be at the feet of the thiruvadi of the bhagavan, usually that is what old people would ask for, isnt it. But instead he asked that he wanted to become well and go out again for marketing and shopping, a real happening, but I did not mistake him. The desire of the jeevan is like that. There is no end to ones desires, it is in the vasanam. It is the vasanas that torture one like this. How much ever the eyes keep on seeing, they have neither satisfaction nor gratitude at all. The eyes would have seen so many pictures but it will never tell that it has seen so much and quite satisfied now. It keeps on telling it has not seen this or that, have not gone to this and that place, if someone keeps on telling so much about this and that etc., the eye thinks can it go to foreign once and see that. The ear wants to keep listening to something always, can we listen to this or that or simply switch on the radio. Can I keep listening to something with headphones like that, the ear keeps on wanting to listen. The mouth wants to eat, speak likewise the legs do not like to say at one place and wants to keep on moving about. The mischiefs of these indriyas are what bring about and confuses this mind like that. For the mind the vasanas are the means. So in order to keep the mind under control and not float about we need to present the bhagavan to it but the mind won't take it. Don't worry that you are not getting bhakthi because it won't come so easily! The great bhakthi will not come so easily just like that. Because even the nature is running towards the world. If by chance we come to the temple or satsangham even there we have conversations about the world only. Say you went to a temple where there is no one and only you and the perumal but still you will not like it. You will only like a temple where there is lot of crowd. So much the worldly things are deeply rooted in.
So we have to leave everything and be in peace. Suka brahmam tells parikshith there are so many things to ask in this world, so much to read, think so many things. All the indriyas are pulling us hither and thither and it does not listen. If there is a leg pain we worry as we cannot go anywhere. When the days the legs were ok we would not have gone to the temple. We use the leg pain as an excuse to not go to the temple. "My eyes are not like before and therefore I am unable to do bhagavatha parayanam" but when the eyes were good what did you do? All excuses! This is how the mind cheats us. There is so much to think and ask but if you read all that what will happen, you will loose your peace. If you need abhayam - shanthi then that is in the thiruvadi of the bhagavan and if you seek shanthi or mukthi listen to the stories of the bhagavan narayana. Do dhyana and bhajan. In that only you will get shanthi. If you do things expecting shanthi then you will only be far from shanthi and in no way be able to get it. If you want the darshan of the bhagavan then if you think you need to control the prAna, Asana, jidAsana, jidIndriyam, jidAswAsam etc that's not necessary. If you do "shravanam keerthanam visnOsmaranam pAdasevanam archanam vandanam dAsyam sakhyam AtmanivEdanam" these 9 are sufficient. The other one is the route to ashtAngayOga whereas this is the stepping stones of bhakthi.
Therefore when we are doing namakeerthanam we should not think nor worry that we have not got the asana method, silence observance, fasting observance etc. That is a different route, but in bhakthi what? Keep listening to stories - shravanam. Keep doing bhajans - keerthanam. smaranam, padasevanam, archanam, vandanam, dasyam, sakhyam, atmanivedanam is the route shown by prahlada. Therefore there are 1000s - "janma labhaparau pumsan antE narayana smrithi". A child studies for her studies day and night along with friends but when getting marks she fails. She tells her father "do you know how much I read and with so much difficulty". But the father asks where is the marks? If she secured the marks we never ask what she has read at all. We only see the result isn't it. "janma labhapara pumsan" - I have taken human form and there should be a profit (labam) for me. What is the profit I need to get from this life - I should not be born again. For being born, I need to be filled with shanti, peace and be able to go to the bhagavan then there is profit otherwise it is only a loss. Then "para pumsan ante narayana smrithihi" - when I will get profit is that - during the time when my prana leaves my body on my tongue there should be only be narayana smrithi. Parikshit, so do not worry. You asked what you need to ask, do bhajan etc it is the narayana whom you should praise. You should listen to the stories of narayana. Perform keerthana of Narayana. It is not a question of whether you need the narayana smrithi during time of last breath, but why suka brahmam is saying this, we should think here. For example the dreams we get is due to whatever is deeply rooted in our conciousness. If we want to perform a test to know whether our bhakthi is right or wrong then based on the dreams we get we will know. Even in dream we are performing namakeerthanam, seeing gurunathar, going to temple or reading bhagavatham then it means that this is what is deeply rooted in our conciousness. Whichever we think of has more fear, which things have more worry for us, which desires have not borne fruit, against whom we have dwesham or droham and only that will be reflected in your dreams. That's why again and again the same thoughts surface again and again as well. If for one who's education got discontinued for example, he will always get the dream of this because this has become deeply rooted in his mind. Similarly even in death what has been deeply rooted in the mind that is what will come. When death strikes, thoughts of leaving such a big house, leaving loved ones etc are the basis upon which the next birth happens. Like jadabharathar in the bhagavatham which we see described in detail. So looking at parikshith this is said so by suka brahmam, reason being that one who has got the narayana smrithi when he is about to breathe his last - is getting the profit (labham). This janma becomes a waste for them otherwise. Will the narayana smrithi come suddenly? no, that's why always keep listening to the stories of the bhagavan, perform keerthanam and do the dhyanam. Whatever you are listening to again and again "muhuraho rasikaha bhuvibhavukaha" said in the bhagavatham. "Muhur". Therefore either in the ramayana, bhagavatham or the puranas, knowing what is there is not the main thing but to perform dhyanam by reading or listening to it again and again - "muhur ahorasikaha bhuvibavukaha". Again and again listen to the bhagavatham. Again and again keep repeating his nama. Again and again keep on thinking of HIM. What will happen is that about whomsoever you are listening, whatsoever you have been listening is bhagavan, then the bhagavath satsathkaram directly happens and you will be able to see. So looking at parikshit, sukabrahmam says "janma labha para pumsan antE narayana smrithi etat nirvidhyamAnAnAm icchatAm akuthObayam yoginAmrupa nirnItamharE nAmAnukeerthanam." - what have the maharishis done is "In this world nothing is permanent, nothing has eternal anandam, this world is filled with both happiness and sorrow, this is only for cittrinbam but one cannot obtain shanti or pErinbam "etat nirvidhyamAnAnAm icchatAm akuthObayam". Knowing about the impermanence in this world, if one desires the permanent shanti, anandam, bhagavath anubhavam they will have "akuthObayam" - no fear! Anytime, anywhere and due to anyone there is no fear - yogInam. For such a yogi what has been done, "nirnItamharE nAmAnukeerthanam" - all the sastras have decided this with certainty. All the maharishis have made this for certain. What? the harinamakeerthanam, this harinamakeerthanam will give them moksham, mukthi, srivaikuntam and will give permanent shanthi. This will give "narayana" himself therefore "nirnItamharE nAmAnukeerthanam". Thats why suka brahmam tells bhagavatham to parikshith! That 7 days day and night, suka brahmar beautifully told the bhagavatham starting from the swayambumanu satarupa creation of the world, upadesha of sankyayoga by Kapilavasudeva to kapila and devahuthi, story of daksha, story of priyavrata with the stories of rishabayogeshwarar, jadabharathar, then starting with the uttanapada and the story of dhruva, continuing within the same dynasty, the story of prithu, then continuing with the story of krishna and in the ekadasa (11th) skanda telling about the upadeshas made to uddhava including the story of how kali will be in this world.
ok, what is the need for saying for 7 days day and night? Can parikshith do the abhyAsa of sankyayoga or the jNanayoga of jadabharata, is there any time? Why was it told, its because "janma labhapara pumsan" - when you lose your life you need to get the narayana smrithi. For that Sukar says, "I have to day and night for these 7 days keep on saying that bhagavan saved Gajendra, Ambarisha, bhagavan liberated Ajamila like that how bhagavan saved his bhakthas, lifting the govardhana mountain, performing rAsotsavam, eating mud etc". The person telling is a jNani, wisdom coming from his tongue, those words have such mahima. For the rain how much ever it falls on the sea has no use, but for one who is filled with thirst and gets a drop of water which gives him ananda, the words coming from the mahatmas give shanthi. Therefore the reason why bhagavatham was told to parikshith is that for 7 consecutive days hearing about the bhagavan always, he will definitely get the ultimate smrithi of Narayana.
Subham!
Radhe Radhe
Read more translations of the other episodes at: http://aranganinarumai.blogspot.com/
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