ViBha Class Notes: Sept 19, 2021
Whatever we identify with, we are limited by that. As seekers when we hear this, we logically think that if we don’t have any identifications, then we would have no limits. However this is not practical, nor easy to practice. So we are guided to identify with all — with family, community, society, humanity and Divinity, and by doing so, our limits become zero. Since I am all, I have no limits. Logically, this does not make sense, but is practical and easy to practice. In our lives, can we count how many people we think of or care for? We can’t, as it just keeps growing and growing. This shows we are letting go of logic and holding on to practice.
We are Bhagya to have access to the Bhagavata Purana. The word Purana means Pura eva nava. Pura means ancient, nava means fresh, so Purana is that which is ancient, yet applicable. It does not lose efficacy.
In the first two Skandas or sections, the focus is on Adhikari and Sadhana. This Purana is for us. We are eligible and are students. Then what should we do? Sadhana. We have to keep on evolving and be disciplined. We will know this is happening in Skandas 3,4 and 5 as they focus on nurturing Belief. So if we feel we are a disciple and are engaged in discipline, we will believe more in ourselves and what we do, but that is not enough.
Skandas 6,7 and 8 nurture Faith. That is deeper, more authentic and more independent. To believe, there are many variables that are needed. To have faith, there are less variables. If we have faith, we don’t need scientific evidence. The eighth skanda focuses on Sat Dharma. Those who follow dharma are good people. Those who follow Sat Dharma want great happiness and that requires being a great person. When we are established in faith, then we become great people.
Now in Skandas 9, 10, 11, what is being nurtured by this Purana is Trust, to trust that we are more than what we feel we are. In the ninth Skanda, some of the greatest were introduced to us, like Raja Ambarisha, where he didn’t eat or drink for a year since he was identified with his Original parent. The 9th Skanda is about nasha or disidentification. When we disidentify with this body, by identifying with our Original parent, then the vasanas do not have an effect on us — the transition in trust from us to our Original parent.
In the tenth Skanda, Sri Krshna through Rishi Shuka is trying to teach us that our potential is to be the greatest. In the ninth Skanda, the greatest were introduced, but in the tenth Skanda that is ‘us’. This is our potential. We may not be externally with Bhagavan at a temple, but Bhagavan is always with us. We have to trust that. This is practically being facilitated by leela or divine play or playful play. The etymology of leela is leelum le — that which dissolves limits so that the limitless can express. For those who have attended this entire Skanda, are we identifying with Bhagavan Krshna more? Aren’t we letting go of our identification with our own body, mind, intellect and ego more? So we see how this leela is working.
The last thought before we continue, is about Vraja. We think Vraja is just a physical place in Northern India, but in actuality it is a place ever ready for Bhagavan. So Vrajabhoomi is us. Let Vrajabhoomi be our personalities. We completed our sixth semester with Bhagavati Rukmini and Bhagavan Krshna’s marriage or Vivaha. One of Bhagavan Krshna’s names is Vivaha. Now, we have commenced our seventh semester with the birth of their child.
Born to Bhagavati Rukmini and Bhagavan Krshna was Pradyumna. And he was as great as Bhagavan Krshna, and in no way was he lesser.
This and the forthcoming classes are about the buildup of Bhagavan Krshna’s family. Listen carefully so we forget about our families. That is what disidentification is.
Skanda 10:56:32 — We have 90 chapters in this Skanda. After Sri Krshna spoke to Jambavan, Jambavan responded saying, “Please do not just take this jewel, but also take this offering by marrying my daughter Jambavati”.
What happened before this? — When Pradyumna was born, there was an asura called Shambara and he was told that Sri Krshna’s son was going to be his destruction. So Shambara kidnapped Pradyumna from Bhagavati Rukmini just after he was born, and threw him into a river. Pradyumna, as an infant, was then swallowed by a large fish. This large fish was then caught and brought to the same Asura Shambara. And when this fish was cut open, they found Pradyumna. Now the one who was overlooking the kitchen area in this Palace or kingdom was Mayavati. She was actually the wife of Kamadeva and is commonly known as Rati. Her husband who was burnt up by Bhagavan Shiva had come back as Pradyumna.
Pradyumna had defeated Shambara. Then, from the sky, he descended with his wife like a blue cloud with a streak of lightning clinging to it, into the magnificent inner apartments of the palace occupied by a very large number of ladies.
Bhagavati Rukmini and Bhagavan Krshna were very sad when their first child was kidnapped. It was speculated that he had died. But then Pradyumna and Bhagavati Rati came back to Bhagavan Krshna and Bhagavati Rukmini. Then Devi Rukmini tells him that he was kidnapped from the labor room. There was such confusion in the palace, as to who he was and why he was with Mayavati. Then Rishi Narada arrived and mediated that Mayavati was really Rati.
Now Sri Krshna has one wife, and now we are building up to His second wife. There was a personality called Satrajit and he was a great devotee and worshiper of Surya, the Sura or Semigod. Surya was very pleased with Satrajit and gave him a special jewel called the Syamantaka. This jewel was amazing and released gold eight times a day and the total amount was about 10 kg or 22 lbs. There are 8 muhurtas in a day and it released gold at each muhurta. So Sri Krshna told Satrajit that he should give this to the treasury as this was a lot of gold to keep for himself. Satrajit however, looked the other way.
Satrajit had a brother, Prasena who was a showoff and took this jewel and wore it to go hunting. One day he went hunting, and a lion happened to kill him. So now this lion had this Syamantaka and was not doing anything with it. Then a bear, Jambavan came and killed this lion as he wanted this jewel for his daughter Jambavati.
Jambavan took the Jewel and went into a cave and let his daughter play with this jewel. Satrajit started a gossip thread sharing that Sri Krshna stole the Syamantaka mani, even though it was his own family member who had stolen it. Now Sri Krshna wanted to clear his name, so he brought a group of people with him to find Prasena. They found his body and the body of the dead lion. So Sri Krshna kept looking for the Syamantaka and they came to a cave. He told them all to stay outside the cave, and He went into the cave. Then Sri Krshna and Jambavan started fighting.
Here are some of the details of their fight — For 28 days and nights without a break they fought continuously hitting each other with their adamantine fists. With his joints dislocated by the blows of Krshna’s fists, and feebled, exhausted and perspiring, Jambavan said to his adversary in great astonishment, “This is your Syamantaka and this is my daughter Jambavati”.
Vedanta: A Syamantaka is an icon of karma yajna or karma yoga. Our responsibility is to focus on the karma and the phala belongs to Bhagavan or the people. So this whole scenario is teaching us this in a very poetic way. Be happy with what we are doing. If we are happy with what we are doing, we will not get lost in what we will get. What we will get, we will openly share with others and Bhagavan.
Bhagavan Krshna now has had two marriages, and there will be 16,008 marriages.
Skanda 10:56:44: Bhagavan Krshna’s third wife is Satyabhama. When Satrajit was corrected and found that Sri Krshna did not steal the Syamantaka mani, but that it was his own brother, he became very reflective and realised that what he did was wrong. So he gave Shri Krshna the Syamantaka, but Sri Krshna told him to keep it, but give the phala to the city. Satrajit then asked Sri Krshna to bless him by marrying his daughter Satyabhama. And Satyabhama is one who is sheela, guna. She was great in many many ways.
After their wedding according to Vedic tradition, Bhagavan Krshna heard that Devi Kunti and all the Pandavas had died, that they were burnt up in their palace. So He quickly went with Sri Balarama to Kurushetra to console everyone there. While they were not in Dwarka, Akrura somehow lost his satsanga. He instigated another personality Shatadhanva, to go and steal the Syamantaka. The jewel made everyone lose their sense of orientation as Akrura was the one who went to bring Bhagavan Krshna to Mathura.
Instigated by them in this way and prompted by greed for wealth, the evil spirited and sinful Shatadhanva, whose own days were numbered, murdered Satrajit in cold blood while he was lying asleep. As a butcher kills animals, he killed Satrajit amidst the outcries and wailings of helpless women and took away the jewel. When Satrajit’s daughter Satyabhama found out about her father’s murder, she was deeply saddened and went to Kurukshetra to inform Bhagavan Krshna about what had happened.
So Bhagavan Krshna started to return back to Dwaraka. When Shatadhanva found out, he went back to Akrura and said that this was all because of him and told him to take the Syamantaka. Akrura told him that he did it, and not him. So Shatadhanva threw the jewel at Akrura and ran away. And finally Baghavan Krshna caught up to him and destroyed him. They were near Mithila at this time.
Bhagavan Krshna said he had to restore the Syamantaka mani to the kingdom and left for Dwaraka, whereas Sri Balarama stayed back in Mithila with his good friend, Raja Janaka. Then Duryodhana showed up in Mithila to be trained by Shri Balarama.
Bhagavan Krshna came back to Dwarka, but Akrura escaped from Dwarka. When we do something that is wrong, we try to escape. So Bhagavan Krshna sent word to Akrura to come back, and He explained to Akrura that this Syamantaka mani belonged to Satrajit and since he was killed, it now belonged to his child, Satyabhama. Akrura agreed to it, but Bhagavan Krshna still asked him to keep the jewel. When Bhagavan is really pleased with us, He does not give wealth but gives us pure devotion. What did he give to Akrura? Wealth!
The three wives of Bhagavan Krshna are Bhagavati Rukmini — Sri Krshna Chandra Bhagavan Ki Jai, Devi Jambavati — Sri Krshna Chandra Bhagavan Ki Jai, and Devi Satybhama — Sri Krshna Chandra Bhagavan Ki Jai! He will have many marriages, so we might as well do Japa of His name.
Vedanta: For those who are focused on wealth and not devotion, what is going through their minds right now? Why didn’t He just marry Devi Rukmini? Now He has married a bear’s daughter and a thief’s daughter, and more are coming. So the way to reflect upon this is to imagine that each of the Devis is a wave, then Sri Krshna would be the ocean. So how many waves would be married to the ocean? All of them or Infinite. When we think of this in terms of devotion, we too should feel that we are married to Him. That is the idea.
Who took this to heart and lived like this? — Devi Meera. When her mother said all of these husbands were useless, and that her real husband was Bhagavan Krshna, she personalised and identified with that and nothing could touch her — not poison, not fire. We have so much stress and anxiety in our lives. What if we start identifying with who we are destined to marry. There is only one soul and soulmate who is beyond gender identity, beyond sexual identity. That is Bhagavan!
We will have more Vivahas in this coming month.
Discussion: Why do we project? Just like Satrajit projected that Sri Krshna wanted the jewel for Himself, but then what happened?. And relatedly, how to take matters less personally? Just like Sri Krshna never lost His cheer despite being called a thief.
Vivekji’s thoughts: We project because we are busy. Those who are not busy, naturally are more intentional, which means they inquire. They are investing in their own personalities and don’t have the bandwidth to project onto another’s personality.
How to take matters less personally? Those who are trying to make a matter personal, it is because of their insecurity. It is coming from a tainted place, so why would we keep that? If there is food that is expired or bad, we would throw it out as that food might hurt us. So if we know that someone is having a bad day, we should recognize that and not take it personally.
Q&A: Is it okay to project that all of this is a leela and that everyone is Shri Krshna?
Yes, but then this is not a projection, as that is Vision, that is Realisation. That is what we should do, to shift from projection to vision, as we are in reality de-hypnotising.