In the previous episode, we had witnessed some key lessons that we can learn from the “Prahlaada Charitra”, and a few words of advice for youngsters of today. We’ve witnessed how Bhagawan honors the ardent devotion of a true devotee, no matter who he / she is, no matter how old he / she is, and no matter where he / she is. We’ve witnessed the classic cases of Prahlaada and Dhruva and how these two children were able to obtain Bhagawan Vishnu’s divine “Darshan” at such a tender age, with their blind and one-pointed devotion. Both Dhruva and Prahlaada were great “Mahatmas” in their own ways, and their levels of Bhakti are some things that we’ve to learn as we move on with our spiritual progress.
Moving on further thus, we enter into the last “Adhyaaya” called “Asthra Bhooshana Adhyaaya”. In this “Adhyaaya” we’re going to see what are the important items in this world that Bhagawan Vishnu is maintaining. Here, we’re going to see something very similar to the one that we witnessed during the Shrimad Bhaagawatha Puraana text earlier. We’re all constituted of “Atman” and the “Deham”, and all of us constitute the “Jeevatmas” in this world. Bhagawan is the only one “Paramatma” who resides inside all the Jeevatmas, and this is why we say that Bhagawan Vishnu is omni-present. This is exactly what Little Prahlaada too tried to make his father, Hiranya Kashibu understand many times. However, due to Hiranya Kashibu’s ignorance, he could never understand this, and finally he had to meet a ghastly end to his life. Thus, we should understand here that Bhagawan is omni-present and resides inside all of us, Jeevatmas, in this world.
Now this is one level. If we’ve to move one level up, we’ve to understand that all of us, Jeevatmas also reside in Bhagawan’s heart! This is where our true devotion and Bhakti comes into play. Only if we have the Bhakti towards Bhagawan, would we be able to realize this second level – That we’re ingrained in Bhagawan’s heart. In fact, when we visit a temple, Bhagawan Vishnu would have a blue coloured stone in His chest portion. This stone is a very expensive one, and is called “Kausthuba”. This is why, we often see this phrase in Sanskrit – “Vakshasthale Kausthubam!” This phrase means that Bhagawan Vishnu has this “Kausthuba” stone embedded in His chest. Now, the question comes – Why is Bhagawan embedding this stone and not anything else? We’ve to understand that by embedding this most expensive “Kausthuba” stone on His chest, Bhagawan conveys the message that, all of us, Jeevatmas are equivalent of that “Kausthuba” stone! By wearing that on His chest, Bhagawan signifies that all His divine children – The Jeevatmas are embedded within that stone forever.
This is the level of respect Bhagawan is giving to all of us. If Bhagawan is giving us such an amount of respect, isn’t it our bound duty to pay our respects back to Him? For instance, in our normal daily lives, if someone gives us some expensive gifts for our birthday or some wedding anniversary, etc. how do we react? We immediately become overwhelmed and give something nice to them again, isn’t it? In short, we reciprocate our gratitude to that person who has gifted this expensive item, isn’t it? Now, Bhagawan has gifted us with such an elite gift, and what is that we’re doing for Bhagawan, so as to express our gratitude towards Him? The best way to reciprocate to Bhagawan is through our ardent Bhakti, and nothing else! Bhagawan isn’t going to ask for money, jewellery, property, etc. as He Himself has plenty of all those! In fact, He’s the one who is giving us all the money and property that we possess today! In fact, it is all His, and not ours at all! So, what are we going to give Bhagawan back, as a token of gratitude? It’s only our ardent Bhakti – Our innocent faith that we bestow upon Him, which is going to make His heart melt!
Next, Bhagawan is holding the “Gadha” weapon in His hand, isn’t it? This “Gadha” is obviously employed to destroy all the evil from time to time, but there’s a deeper meaning to this. Sage Paraashara explains this beautifully here – He says that this “Gadha” signifies our “Buddhi” or the “Intellect”. It is with the Gadha that Bhagawan Vishnu controls the evil from lifting its face everytime, isn’t it? Similarly, it is with our “Buddhi” or “Intellect” that we’ve to control our mind from straying away from the path of Bhakti.
So for today, let us understand these two important points, and let us wait for the next episode to continue this important discussion forward! Stay tuned! 🙂
The Indian Dharma 