Māyā has got two things: āvaraṇātmika and prakṣepātmika. Āvaraṇātmika means just like a dog or a hog, he is in a . . . encaged in a body, eating stool, living in a very filthy place, but still, the hog is feeling himself that he is happy, he's happy. This is called āvaraṇātmika-śakti. Any abominable condition we may live, but māyā will cover our intelligence, and we'll think that we are living very nice. This is called āvaraṇātmika-śakti. Otherwise, he cannot live.
If an animal or a dog or hog thinks that he's in most abominable condition of life, then he cannot live. But he enjoys. A dog is chained up by the master, but he thinks that he's very happy. He does not think that, "I am completely dependent and I am chained up. I have no independence. I cannot freely move." Even his chain is taken away, he wants to be chained. This is māyā. In any condition of life, everyone thinks that he's happy. But actually he does not know what is happiness. This is called māyā.
But here it is said that a person, for a short period, if he becomes Kṛṣṇa conscious, sakṛt, manaḥ, if his mind is some way or other placed on the lotus feet of Kṛṣṇa, then, even in dream he'll never see what is the punishment in the planet of Yamarāja. That means a Kṛṣṇa conscious person is guaranteed not to be touched by the Yamarāja or his attendants or his police force or constables. They . . . a living entity is taken away. After his death, if he's sinful man, then his soul is taken away by force. He doesn't want to . . . through a desert. These things are described. You may believe or not believe, but we believe, because we believe in Vedic literature.
So these descriptions are there, and practically we experience also in our this life: sometimes in dream we are put into great troublesome position and we suffer. Although when we wake up we do not see anything like that, but still, the consequence of the dream we suffer. So here, Śukadeva Gosvāmī gives guarantee that a Kṛṣṇa conscious person is never to be troubled by the Yamarāja or his agents.
- atra codāharanti imam
- itihāsaṁ puratānam
- dūtānāṁ viṣṇu-yamayoḥ
- saṁvādaṁ taṁ nibodha me
- (SB 6.1.20)
Now, Śukadeva Gosvāmī is giving one historical examples. Example is better than precept. Generally, common men, if they see one example, they understand better. So how, one's mind being fixed up in the lotus feet of Kṛṣṇa, even for a moment, he can get relief from the greatest danger, Śukadeva Gosvāmī is narrating one story.
This fact is corroborated in the Bhagavad-gītā. Those who have read, you know. Lord Kṛṣṇa said, svalpam apy hi dharmasya trāyate mahato bhayāt (BG 2.40). This Kṛṣṇa conscious, you call it a culture or religion, whatever you call, if one executes this process of Kṛṣṇa consciousness even very little, then there is chance of his being saved from the greatest danger. Svalpam apy asya dharmasya. Asya, this devotional service, or Kṛṣṇa consciousness, is so nice that even very little done, it can save one from the greatest danger.
Now, that example is being narrated by a practical historical reference. Here it is said that itihāsam, codāharanti: it is exemplified from the historical reference. So all the narrations are stories that are mentioned in the Purāṇas and Vedic literature, they are historical references. They are not manufactured. Actual fact. Just like history, you know the historical facts are facts—they are not manufactured. So here this very word is used, itihāsam. Itihāsam means history. Itihāsaṁ purātanam: but it is very old. All these Purāṇas . . . this Purāṇa means . . . purāṇa means "very old". Very old history. Purāṇa, this word, very word, means "old".
So there are eighteen Purāṇas in Vedic literature. Because there are three kinds of living entities—some of them are in goodness, some of them are in passion and some of them are in ignorance—for all people, there are different kinds of Purāṇas. Those who are in the modes of passion and ignorance, they cannot generally understand the historical references made in the sattvika Purāṇa. Just like this Bhāgavata . . . Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, is also one of the Purāṇas, essence of history. Whole history. Similarly, Brahmāṇḍa Purāṇa, Viṣṇu Purāṇa, these are Purāṇas in the modes of goodness.
There are different types of people. The example is given just like there are different types of birds. A pigeon class . . . "Birds of the same feather flocks together." You see? That is natural. The pigeons will flock together and the crows will flock together. The swans will flock together. The swans will never go to the crow or the crow will never go to the swan. In human society also, the same natural tendency is there. Of course, now we are becoming more liberal. Otherwise, formerly, the white people will not mix with black people. So this is not new; it is by nature. Everyone has got a particular type of society, environment.
So literatures also, there are different kinds of literature. For the crowlike men there are different kinds of literature, and for the swanlike men there are different kinds of literature. So swanlike men . . . swan means haṁsa. From nature's study you can see, the swans, they have got a special qualification. What is that? If you give a swan milk mixed with water, the swan will take out only the milk portion, and the water portion will remain. That means those who are swanlike men, they take the essence, not the adulteration. Similarly, there are elevated persons who are also called paramahaṁsa. Paramahaṁsa, the same example of the haṁsa, swan. Paramahaṁsa means they are interested with the essence of this world, not with the adulteration.
What is the adulteration? The adulteration is matter and the essence is spirit. Just like this body. What is this body? This body is that I am a spirit soul, living entity. I am encaged in this material body. Everything. Even in the atom there is some active principle. A drug, there is some active principle. So similarly in this body, my body, your body or any body, what is the active principle? The active principle is that living soul. As soon as the active principle is gone, then it is useless. "Dust thou art, dust thou be-est." Then this body is made of this earth, and it again becomes earth—either as stool or as earth or as ashes. These are our experience.
Just like Hindus, they burn this body. So this body become ashes. And there are communities, they throw out the body for being eaten up by birds and beasts. So it becomes stool. Because after eating they will pass stool. So the after-effects of this beautiful body will be stool or ashes. We are now soaping so nicely, dressing so nicely this body, but the (laughs) after-effects will be stool or ashes. Or earth. In your country you bury the body. So after few days it will be moth-eaten, and it will be turned into earth.