Srimad Bhagvata Mahapurana Book 2 Chapter 7:43-53

Book 2: Chapter 7

Srimad Bhagvata Mahapurana: Book 2: Chapter 7: Verses 43-53 The stories of the Lord's sportful descents Dear Narada, it is I who know the wonderful creative energy of that Supreme Being, and so do you and your elder brothers (Sanaka and others), Lord Bhava (Siva), Prahlada (the foremost of the Daityas), the celebrated Swayambhuva Manu and his wife (Satarupa), as well as their sons and daughters, kings Pracinabarhi, Rbhu, Anga and Dhruva; even so kings Ikswaku (the eldest son of Vaivaswata Manu), Pururava (the son of Ha), Mucukunda, Videha (Janaka), Gadhi (father of the celebrated sage Viswamitra), Raghu, Ambarisa, Sagara, ,Gaya, Yayati (the son of Nahusa) and others; and similarly kings Mandhata, Alarka, Satadhanu, Anu and Rantideva; Devavrata (Bhisma), the demon king Bali as well as kings Amurtaraya and Dilipa; the sages Saubhari, Uttanka, Devala, Pippalada, Saraswata and Parasara as well as kings Sibi and Bhurisena and devotees like Uddhava, Vibhisana, Hanuman, Upendradatta (Suka). Arjuna (Prtha's son), Arstisena, Vidura and Srutadeva know His Maya. Women and Sudras (members of the labouring and artisan classes) as well as the Hunas and Sabaras and those leading a sinful life, nay, even lower animals such as birds and beasts who have been taught to imbibe the virtues of the Lord's devotees, much more those who follow the teachings of the Vedas, are able to realize the true nature of the Lord's Maya and cross the same. The substance of the Supreme Spirit is ever most serene and free from fear and of the nature of absolute consciousness. It is untainted by Maya, and destitute of all diversities and is beyond the real as well as the unreal. It is beyond the reach of words (both sacred and profane) and transcends the fruit of actions which is attained as a result of diverse course of discipline. Nay, even Maya, who is ashamed to stand before It, flees away from Its presence. That is the essential character of the Lord, the Supreme Person, which the wise realize as Brahma (the Absolute), which is free from sorrow and of the nature of eternal bliss. Having fixed their mind on Him, ascetics neglect even the means of discarding the notion of difference (viz., Self-Knowledge), just as Indra, being himself the god of rain, has no use fora spade which is employed in digging wells. It is the Lord, again, who bestows on man the fruit of his actions; for it is He who inspires all noble acts that are performed in accordance with the natural disposition of the doer. Even when the body gets dissolved as a result of its constituents in the form of the elements being disintegrated, the unborn Spirit dwelling in it does not, any more than the ether interpenetrating it. Thus have I talked to you in brief, dear child, about the Lord who creates the universe by His very thought. Whatever there exists as cause or effect is no other than Sri Hari, although the latter stands even apart from it. This is the 'Bhagavata' which the Lord was pleased to teach me. It describes in brief the glories of the Lord : do you now expand it. Proceed with this work of amplification with a will that men may develop devotion to Lord Sri Hari, the Universal Spirit and the Sustainer of all. The mind of the man, who proceeds to describe the Lord's Maya, or approves of another describing it or reverently hears it described everyday, is never deluded by Maya. Thus ends the seventh discourse in Book Two, comprising among other things the dialogue between Brahma and the sage Narada, of the great and glorious Bhagavata-Purana, otherwise known as the Paramahamsa-Samhita.