Srimad Bhagvata Mahapurana Book 10 Chapter 51:53-64

Book 10: Fifty-one Chapter (Latter Half)

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Srimad Bhagvata Mahapurana: Book 10: Chapter 51: Verses 53-64

Devoted heart and soul to austerities with all enjoyments ceased, and making gifts in the hope of (securing) such enjoyments (hereafter), he performs (virtuous) actions (in his present life) in order that he may be reborn as Indra (or as a universal monarch even in the life to come). He (however) whose thirst (for enjoyment) is (thus) fully developed is never able to enjoy (any) happiness (whatsoever). When the end of (the cycle of) birth and death in the case of a soul undergoing transmigration is in sight, then (alone) his meeting with some saint takes place, 0 immortal Lord ! (And) when there is fellowship with a saint, then alone is engendered (a feeling of) devotion to You, the Refuge of saints and the Ruler of the high and the low. I conclude that a (unique) favour has been done to me by You, 0 Lord, in that the shackles of sovereignty have fallen off my feet without (any) effort (on my part)-a consummation which is devoutly sought for by wise kings ruling over the entire globe and intending to retire into the woods with a vow to live (all) alone. I do not covet any boon other than service to Your (sacred) feet-which is the highest blessing worth coveting in the eyes of those who have nothing to call their own, 0 almighty Lord ! For, having propitiated You, the Bestower of Liberation, 0 Hari, what wise man would ask (of You) a boon which is (only) calculated to bind the soul (further) ?
Therefore, rejecting, 0 Lord, all blessings associated with the qualities of Sattva, Rajas and Tamas (such as religious merit, worldly prosperity and the extermination of foes), I run (for protection) to You, the Supreme Person, who are pure consciousness free from (the taint of) Maya, (nay,) above the (three) Gunas (modes of Prakrti) and one without a second. Long afflicted in this world with the fruits of actions and being tormented with the impressions left on the mind by those actions, nay, with my six (internal) foes (in the shape of the five senses of perception and the mind) not (yet) free from thirst and having (therefore) not (so far) been able to secure peace (of mind), I have somehow duly reached, 0 Bestower of Knowledge concerning Yourself, Your lotus Feet, which are divorced from fear and grief and which are all truth, 0 Supreme Spirit. (Pray,) protect me, 0 Lord, distressed as I am.
The glorious Lord replied : 0 great king, 0 ruler of the entire globe, your mind is free from (all) impurities (in the shape of attachment, greed etc.) and powerful (capable of perceiving the highest truth) in that it could not be lured by (offers of) enjoyments, even though you were tempted with boons of your choice. Know that it was to show (to the world) your vigilance (in the matter of choosing the right thing and rejecting the false) that you were tempted with boons. The judgment of those who are exclusively devoted to Me can never be perverted by (offers of) sensuous enjoyments) (which are coveted by the world). The mind of those other than devotees, even though they try to curb it through breath-control etc., is seen (to get) riotous again, its craving for enjoyment having not (yet) ceased (which is possible only through Devotion), 0 king ! With your mind set on Me, wander the earth at pleasure. May your devotion to Me continue uninterrupted for ever as a matter of course. Devoted to the duties of a Ksatriya (viz., the protection of your subjects), you killed game (of various kinds) through hunting etc.; (therefore) looking upon Me as your asylum and collected (in mind), get rid of the sinful tendency (acquired through such practices) by recourse to asceticism. Being reborn as a Brahmana (the formost of the twice-born), most friendly to all created beings, in your (very) next incarnation, 0 Mucukunda, you will surely attain to Me, the Absolute.

Thus ends the fifty-first discourse, entitled "Mucukunda's Eulogy (of the Lord)," in the latter half of Book Ten of the great and glorious Bhagavata-Purana otherwise known as the Paramahamsa-Samhita.
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