46 verses
Śukadeva Gosvāmī said: O King! I have described to you the pure story of the deliverance of Gajendra, which destroys sin. Now please listen as I describe Raivata Manu.
The brother of Tāmasa Manu was the fifth Manu, named Raivata. His sons were headed by Arjuna, Bali and Vindhya.
O King, in the millennium of Raivata Manu, the king of heaven was known as Vibhu, the devatās were the Bhūtarayas, and the seven sages were the brāhmaṇas headed by Hiraṇyaromā, Vedaśirā and Ūrdhvabāhu.
From the combination of Śubhra and his wife, Vikuṇṭhā, there appeared the Supreme Lord, Vaikuṇṭha, along with devatās called the Vaikuṇṭhas, who were his expansions.
Vikuṇṭhā was the wife of Śubhra. The Lord appeared along with the Vaikuṇṭhas as his expansions.
Just to please the goddess of fortune, Vaikuṇṭha, at her request, created another Vaikuṇṭha planet, which is worshiped by everyone.
Just as the Lords appearance is called a birth, so the appearance of the Lords abode is called creating a planet. It is not a material creation, since the Lord and his abode are both eternal. They are described similarly, with the intention of saying that they are eternal. Krama-sandarbha says This Vaikuṇṭha planet of the son of Vikuṇṭha is the same as the original Vaikuṇṭha beyond the eight coverings of the universe seen by Brahmā before he created the living entities, as described in the Second Canto.
The activities and most glorious qualities of the Vaikuṇṭha abode have already been described. A mortal who succeeds in describing the qualities of Viṣṇu can count the particles of dust on earth.
Vaikuṇṭha was described in the Third Canto. Its qualities are such things as fondness for the Vedas and brāhmaṇas.
The son of Cakṣu known as Cākṣuṣa was the sixth Manu. He had many sons, headed by Pūru, Pūruṣa and Sudyumna.
During the reign of Cākṣuṣa Manu, the king of heaven was known as Mantradruma. The devatās were the Āpyas, and the sages were Haviṣmān, Vīraka and others.
In this sixth Manvantara, Lord Viṣṇu, the master of the universe, appeared in his expansion as Ajita, begotten by Vairāja in the womb of his wife, Devasambhūti.
By churning the ocean of milk, Ajita produced nectar for the devatās. In the form of a tortoise, he moved here and there in the water, carrying on his back the great mountain known as Mandara.
yathāmṛtaṁ suraiḥ prāptaṁ kiṁ cānyad abhavat tataḥ etad bhagavataḥ karma vadasva paramādbhutam
King Parīkṣit inquired: O great brāhmaṇa! Why did Lord Viṣṇu churn the ocean of milk? For what reason did he hold up Mandara Mountain by his form as a turtle? How did the devatās obtain the nectar, and what other things were produced from the churning of the ocean? Kindly describe all these wonderful activities of the Lord.
Ambu-cara means turtle. Why did he hold up the mountain by assuming the form of a turtle?
My heart, long disturbed by the three miserable conditions of material life, is not yet satiated with hearing you describe the glorious activities of the Lord, who is the master of the devotees.
Sūta Gosvāmī said: O learned brāhmaṇas! When Śukadeva Gosvāmī, the son of Dvaipāyana, was thus questioned by the King, with great joy he began to describe further the glories of the Supreme Lord.
yadā durvāsaḥ śāpena sendrā lokās trayo nṛpa niḥśrīkāś cābhavaṁs tatra neśur ijyādayaḥ kriyāḥ
Śukadeva Gosvāmī said: O King! When the devatās, attacked by demons with their serpent weapons in battle, fell down almost dead and could not get up, after the devatās had been cursed by Durvāsā Muni and the three worlds had lost their prosperity, ritualistic ceremonies such as sacrifices could not be performed.
The devatās could not be brought back to life. They had been defeated. The cause is given. They were cursed by Durvāsā. Durvāsā once saw Indra going on the road and gave him the garland from his neck. Out of pride, Indra did not respect the garland and threw in on Airāvatas head. Being an animal, Airāvata angrily threw the garland on the ground and squashed it with his feet. Seeing that, Durvāsā became angry and cursed, You, along with the three worlds, will lose your prosperity!
tato brahma-sabhāṁ jagmur meror mūrdhani sarvaśaḥ sarvaṁ vijñāpayāṁ cakruḥ praṇatāḥ parameṣṭhine
Lord Indra, Varuṇa and the other devatās, seeing their lives in such a state, consulted among themselves but could not find any solution. Then they went the assembly of Lord Brahmā on the peak of Sumeru Mountain. Offering respects, they informed Brahmā of everything.
samāhitena manasā saṁsmaran puruṣaṁ param uvācotphulla-vadano devān sa bhagavān paraḥ
Upon seeing that the devatās were bereft of all influence and strength, that the three worlds were devoid of auspiciousness, and that the demons were flourishing, powerful Brahmā, who is superior to the devatās, concentrated his mind on the Supreme Lord and then spoke with a joyful countenance.
Brahmā (saḥ) saw that the demons were opposite of what they should be (ayathā): they had more power.
Lord Brahmā said: We will take shelter of the Lord, from whom I, Lord Śiva, all of you devatās, the demons, the humans, animals, plants and the living entities born of perspiration, have been created through his puruṣa avatāra, expansions (Brahmā and Śiva) and secondary expansions (Marīci and others).
Gharma-jātayaḥ means entities born from perspiration. The puruṣa (avatāra) creates me (Brahmā) and Śiva (aṁśa). We carry out various creations. I create Marīci and others (kalā). Marīci and others create others as their sons and grandsons, including the demons.
He does not kill, protect, ignore or favor anyone. However, he accepts rajas, sattva and tamas at the proper time in order to create, maintain and destroy.
The Lord is equal in all cases. Well if no one is supposed to be killed, then why do we see killing? He accepts rajas for creation and tamas for destruction. This means that he accepts them, in the sense that he is non-different from his energies. By tamas, sattva and rajas, he destroys, protects and disregards the living entities. The sense is metaphorical, not actual for the Supreme Lord.
It is now the time for the Lord who accepts sattva to protect proper conduct for the welfare of the living entities. Therefore we should take shelter of the guru of the universe. Being affectionate to the devatās, he will give prosperity to us, his devotees.
But now is not the time for destruction and tamas. Now is the time for protection of proper conduct (sthiti). Accepting sattva (juṣānasya), he should be affectionate to the devatās.
Śukadeva Gosvāmī said: O subduer of all enemies! After Lord Brahmā finished speaking to the devatās, he went with to the abode of Ajita, which is beyond prakṛti.
This abode is Śvetadvīpa situated in the Milk Ocean (within the universe).
There, Lord Brahmā, with a fixed mind, offered prayers to the Supreme Lord who could not be seen, but was previous described, using words of the Vedas.
Though the Lord was present, he could not be seen except by his will. Abrūta means he did. Daivībhiḥ means by verse like Puruṣa-sūkta from the Vedas.
Lord Brahmā said: We offer respects to the unlimited, unchanging Lord who is real, the first cause, and who is invisible like a person hiding in a cave, who is without parts, inconceivable, beyond mind and speech, who is the best of the devas, and the most worthy of praise.
O Lord! We are unable to meditate on you or praise you. We simply offer you respects. Mano-'grayānam means that he goes in front of the mind.
Śruti says:
anejad ekaṁ manaso javīyo
nainad devā āpnuvan pūrvam arṣat
tad dhāvato nyān atyeti tiṣṭhat
tasminn apo mātariśvā dadhāti
The Lord is without fear, supreme, faster than the mind. The senses cannot reach him. He has gone far in front. Standing in one place he surpasses all others who move quickly. Vāyu offers the actions of the living entities to him. Īśopaniṣad 4
He cannot be defined by words. Śruti says yad vācā nābhyuditaṁ yena vāg abhyudyate: the Lord is not expressed by words, and by him words take their meaning. (Kena Upaniṣad 1.5) Because our minds and words are material and you are beyond matter, we cannot approach you with our minds and words. That form beyond matter is described. It is devoid of transformation, whereas the guṇas nature is transformation. But though you are beyond mind and words, you are not unreal. You are real (satyam). Then I am like a pot or cloth? No, you are unlimited, devoid of limit in time and space, since you are the cause of the whole universe (ādyam). Therefore, because no one can understand you, you are like a person hiding in a cave. You are unlimited, since you are without coverings or upādhis (niṣkalam). Or because you cannot be measured, you are without divisions. Medinī says kala can mean amount. This is because you are inconceivable.
We surrender to the knower of the living entities, prāṇa, mind, intelligence and ahaḍkāra, to the Lord who is not available to the senses and sense objects, who is constantly witnessing, but not affected, who has no vidyā and avidyā like the jīva, who is indestructible, and who is the form of happiness endowed with six great qualities.
Then the Lords omniscience is described. He is the knower (vipaścitam) of the living entities, of their prāṇa, mind, intelligence and ahaḍkara (ātmā). Ātma can also mean the body or the jīva. He cannot be grasped (abhāsam) by the senses or sense objects (artha). He is without sleep, seeing everything. But he is unaffected (avraṇam), not suffering on seeing the jīvas suffering. The reason for all of this is that in him avidyā and vidyā (chāyā ātapau) do not exist, as in the jīva (gṛdhra-pakṣau). Therefore he is indestructible and he has his own eternal form of happiness (kham). According to the dictionary kham means the senses, happiness and Svarga. This happiness is enumerated. It is three times two, or six. The Lord has six outstanding qualities. We surrender to that Lord.
We surrender to the real Lord whom they say is the axel of the fast-moving wheel of saṁsāra belonging to the jīva, with sixteen spokes predominated by the mind, three naves made of the guṇas, and eight rims made of the elements.
One should worship this Lord, since he is the shelter of the jīvas avidyā. The jīvas (ajasya) wheel of saṁsāra moves by māyā (ajayā). It has sixteen spokes made of the ten sense, five prāṇas and the mind, predominated by the mind (manomayam). It moves quickly. It has naves made of the three guṇas. It is flickering like lightening. It has eight rims or coverings, made of the material elements. The axel or the basis is the Supreme Lord. We surrender to that real form.
We offer respects to the Lord who is beyond darkness, who is unseen by all people, invisible, beyond description of words, and seated on Garuòa, whom the yogī who never gives up worship, seated on his chariot of yoga, worships using the syllable oṁ,
This verse explains the method of surrender. The Lord is the one syllable oṁ. He is seated on the back of Garuòa or is superior to Garuòa. He is beyond prakṛti. He is not seen by everyone (alokam), and is thus invisible (avyaktam). This is because he cannot be determined by words since he is the sum total of the Vedas (ananta-pāram). He who is oṁ and seated on Garuòa is worshipped by the person situated on the chariot of yoga. He is worshiped by the yogī in the mood of fighting in vīra-rasa with the sthāyi-bhāva of utsāha with a desire to attain the bliss of liberation. The dhīra, one who does not give up the fight, worships this Lord. We offer respects to that Lord. The verb is in the next verse.
We offer respects to the Supreme Lord who is equal to all living entities, who controls the jīva, māyā and the guṇas, whose māyā cannot be overcome by anyone unless they surrender to him, whose māyā bewilders men so they do not understand the Lord.
His power is explained. No one can overcome the Lords māyā without surrendering. He controls the jīva, māyā and the guṇas (ātmātma-guṇam).
We offer respects to the Lord by whose dear form of sattva-guṇa we have been created but still do not know his subtle nature, though it is manifested externally as time and internally as anytaryāmī, and who the demons with rajas and tamas cannot understand at all.
The previous said that people do not know the Lord. This verse explains further. We, even if we are wise (ṛsayaḥ) do not know the nature (gatim) of the Lord who is manifested externally as time and internally as antaryāmī. How can demons and others, who are prominently in the modes of rajas and tamas (itara-pradhānāḥ), know him? We offer respects to that Lord. The main verb is in the previous verse.
May the Lord with Brahman as his great vibhūti, who manifests as the universal form, full of vibhūtis like the earth which is dependent on time, and whose feet represent the earth he created, within which there are four types of living entities, be pleased with us!
We know your form as this gross universe, which is visible. In this way Brahmā prays in twelve verses, starting with the feet made of earth. Mahā-vibhūtiḥ means the Lord who possesses vibhūtis such as the earth. May the Lord be pleased with us! The Lord is also the form of Brahman.
pṛthivī vāyur ākāśa āpo jyotir ahaṁ mahān
vikāraḥ puruṣo 'vyaktaṁ rajaḥ sattvaṁ tamaḥ param
aham etat prasaḍkhyānaṁ jñānaṁ tattva-viniścayaḥ
I am form, taste, aroma, touch and sound; ahaḍkāra; the mahat-tattva; earth, water, fire, air and sky; the eleven senses; the living entity; prakṛti; the modes of goodness, passion and ignorance; and Brahman. I am all of these items, along with knowledge of them, and the determination of truth resulting from that knowledge. SB 11.16.37
In this verse enumerating the elements, param means Brahman. Yamunācaryas stotra also says parātparaṁ brahma ca te vibhūtayah: the supreme Brahman is also your vibhūti. Jīva Gosvāmī says the Lord has Brahman as his great vibhūti. Thus the vibhūtis in the material world, such as earth, are very insignificant. That is pointed out. The earth element is his feet. Because the feet of the spiritual body of the Lord are his vibhūtis, the earth, created the Lord, is here designated as his feet. In that earth there are four types of beings: those arising from wombs, from eggs, from seeds and from perspiration. This form is the material, universal form (mahā-puruṣaḥ). It is dependent on time (ātmā-tantraḥ).
May the Lord of great vibhūtis, from whose semen, in the form of water which possesses great power, living entities and the protectors of the planets are born, live and increase, be pleased with us!
Uòara-viṛyam means possessing great śakti. From water, living entities are born (sidhyanti).
May the Lord, possessing great vibhūtis, whom the wise say is the moon which is the food, strength and life of the devatās, the controller of trees, and the means of reproducing for the offspring, be pleases with us!
The moon is the food of the devatās, and also their strength and life. The moon is the lord of the trees (nagānām). It also causes generation (prajanaḥ) for the living entities.
May the Lord possessing great vibhūtis, whose mouth is fire which produces wealth, which appeared in order to perform sacrifices, and which digests the food in the stomach and the ocean, be pleased with us!
Jāta-vedāḥ means the producer of wealth. Antaḥ samudre means in the stomach. Fire digests things like food that can be digested (sva-dhātūn), and as well heats up water in the ocean as the Vādava fire.1
May the Lord, who possesses great vibhūtis, whose eye is the sun, the deity presiding over the path of liberation, which is the embodiment of the three Vedas, which is the place of worship, the door to liberation, immortality and death, be pleased with us!
The sun (taraṇiḥ) represents the path of liberation (deva-yānam). The sun is a guiding deity on the path of liberation. The sun is the three Vedas (trayīmayaḥ). Śruti says saiṣā trayi eva vidyā tapati: the sun shines as the three Vedas. (Śatapatha Brāhmaṇa 10.5.2.2.) The sun is the place for worship (brahmaṇaḥ dhiṣṇyam). Śruti says ya eṣo ntar ādityo hiraṇmayaḥ puruṣaḥ: the golden form of the Lord resides within the sun. The sun is the door to liberation since it is on the deva-yāna, the path of liberation. It is immortality, or heavenly since it is a pure planet based on piety. It is death because it personifies time.
May the Lord, possessing great vibhūtis, from whose life airs arose air, which is the life air, and the mental, physical and sense strength of all moving and non-moving beings, and which we devatās follow just as servants follow their king, be pleased with us!
From the Lords life airs arose air, which is the essence of saha, bala and ojas of all living beings. We devatās of the intelligence and other functions, follow this life air just as servants follow the king.
May the Lord who possesses great vibhūtis, from whose ears arose the directions, from the space in whose heart arose the holes in the body, from whose navel arose ether, which is the shelter of the life airs, senses, mind, secondary life airs and the body, be pleased with us!
From the space in the Lords heart arose the holes of the body. From his navel arose ether, which is the shelter (ketaḥ) for the five life airs, the senses, the mind (ātmā) and the five secondary life airs (asu) and the body.
May the Lord, who possesses great vibhūtis, from whose strength arose Indra, from whose joy arose the devatās, from whose anger arose Śiva, from whose intelligence arose Brahmā, from whose bodily holes arose the Vedas and sages, and from whose genitals arose Dakṣa Prajāpati, be pleased with us!
From his intelligence (dhiṣaṇat) arose Brahmā. From his bodily holes (khebhyoḥ) arose the Vedas.
May the Lord, who possesses great vibhūtis, from whose chest arose Lakṣmī, from his shadow arose the Pitṛs, from whose breast arose dharma, from whose back arose adharma, from whose head arose heaven, from whose playing arose the Apsarās, be pleased with us!
Itaraḥ means adharma.
May the Lord, who possesses great vibhūtis, from whose mouth arose the brāhmaṇas and Vedas, from whose arms arose the kṣatriyas and strength, from whose thighs arose vaiśyas and their skill, and from whose feet arose śūdras and their occupation of service, be pleased with us!
From the mouth arose the brāhmaṇas and the Vedas (guhyam). Viṭ means vaiśya. Ojaḥ means the vaiśyas skill and occupation. From the feet arose the śūdras and their occupation of service which excludes the Vedas (aveda). Another version has viśo ḍgher abhavat śūdra: from the feet appeared the śūdras.
May the Lord, who possesses great vibhūtis, from whose lower lip arose greed, from whose upper life arose affection, from whose nose arose beauty, from whose touch arose desire for benefiting animals, from his brows arose Yama and from whose eye lids arose time, be pleased with us!
Upari means the upper lip. From the Lords nose arose beauty. From the Lords touch arose desire for benefiting animals (paśavyaḥ kāmaḥ).
May the Lord who possesses great vibhūtis, whose yoga-māyā, they say, creates this inconceivable universe made of twenty-three elements, time, karma and the three guṇas, whose reality is negated by the very intelligent, be pleased with us!
The wise say that the twenty-three material elements (dravyam), time (vayaḥ), karma, and the three guṇas are created by the Lords yoga-māyā, and that the particular creation from these elements is inconceivable. This creation is rejected as real by the very intelligent. Another version has prabudhāvabodham. Though the material world is difficult to understand, it is understood by the very intelligent. We understand that this material universe, is the vibhūti of the twenty-three elements, time, and karma, which are vibhūtis of māyā-śakti with its guṇas, which is a vibhūti of the Lords svarūpa-śakti, yoga-māyā. This is the meaning implied.
We offer respects to you, possessor of spiritual śaktis, whose mind is satisfied in itself because of existing through your svarūpa-śakti, who remain unattached to the actions of the senses directed to the guṇas made of māyā, and who are detached like the air in relation to the creation.
All we can do is offer respects to you, whose form is beyond māyā and difficult to understand. We offer respects to you who possess spiritual śaktis (upaśānta-śaktaye) like the saṁvit-śakti, to the Lord whose mind is fully satisfied because of the possessing existence through his svarūpa-śakti. Then why is he attached to creating this universe? He is not attached to the actions directed to the world made of the material guṇas. He has pastimes of creation (ūti) like air (which remains unattached to everything in the air).
We are surrendered unto you and wish to see you. Please make your form with lotus face and smile visible to our senses.
O Brahṁā! Please accept your desired boon. Brahmā answers. Show your svarūpa to us, who have surrendered to you. Is this form without qualities or with qualities? Show that form which we can perceive with our senses. It is a form with qualities. That form has a lotus face with a smile.
O Supreme Lord! You perform activities impossible for us to perform in all cycles of time, through your various incarnations which appear by your desire.
Brahmā remembers the Lords great affection for his devotees. The Lord personally performs actions which we cannot perform (durviṣaham) through forms like Nṛsiṁha which appear by his will, nourished by the devotees desire.
Activities performed for you are not like the activities of persons desiring material enjoyment, which require great effort, and which yield little or no result.
The pious acts of us, your devotees, should not be fruitless like the actions of the material enjoyers. The activities offered to you by your devotees are not like the actions of the materialists, which are filled with suffering, and have little result or no result.
Even a small shadow of actions for the Lord does not go in vain. The Lord, the soul of the person, is affectionate to the person and acts as his benefactor.
Even a little action offered to you gives huge results. And lots of actions not offered to you give no result. Even a small (avamaḥ) trace of action (karma-kalpaḥ) is not without result, since (hi) the Lord, the soul of the person, is affectionate and acts of ones benefit. Respect for the Lord brings results, and disrespect for the Lord brings failure.
Just as pouring water on the root benefits the trunk and branches, so worship of Viṣṇu, the soul of all beings, benefits all beings.
However, even if one does not perform actions (prescribed duties), if one worships the Lord, one receives all the results of all actions. Without worship of the Lord, all actions are without result. An example is given to illustrate this.
We offer respects to you, unlimited, whose actions are inconceivable, who may or may not offer us material benedictions, but who now maintains sattva-guṇa in the universe.
Whether you will fulfill our desire or not, we do not know. You are unlimited. Though we are omniscient, we do not have your omniscience. We cannot surmise what you will do now. Your actions are inconceivable. But because I am merciful, you can infer that I will fulfill the desires of Indra and other devotees. By your mercy you do not give material benefits arising from the guṇas (nirguṇāya), which are obstacles to bhakti. But by your mercy, you give wealth arising from the guṇas. Therefore both results can be inferred. Why do you praise me, if you have such doubts? Since now is the time for sattva-guṇa, and you are in charge of sattva-guṇa, you should increase the power of the devatās who are in sattva-guṇa. They also believe that the Lord should not stop their material enjoyment, since they are not pure devotees.
Thus ends the commentary on the Fifth Chapter of the Eighth Canto of the Bhāgavatam for the pleasure of the devotees, in accordance with the previous ācāryas.
The Fifth Chapter describes the prayers of the devatās after they lost power through the curse of Durvāsā, in relation to the sixth Manvantara avatāra Ajita.