Bharata Mahārāja performed various ritualistic ceremonies (Vedic yajñas) and satisfied the Supreme Lord by his different modes of worship. In due course of time, he left home and resided in Hardwar and passed his days in devotional activities. Being ordered by his father, Lord Ṛṣabhadeva, Bharata Mahārāja married Pañcajanī, the daughter of Viśvarūpa. After this, he ruled the whole world peacefully. Formerly this planet was known as Ajanābha, and after the reign of Bharata Mahārāja it became known as Bhārata-varṣa. Bharata Mahārāja begot five sons in the womb of Pañcajanī, and he named the sons Sumati, Rāṣṭrabhṛta, Sudarśana, Āvaraṇa and Dhūmraketu. Bharata Mahārāja was very rigid in executing religious principles and following in the footsteps of his father. He therefore ruled the citizens very successfully. Because he performed various yajñas to satisfy the Supreme Lord, he was personally very satisfied.
Satisfied (SB canto 5 and 6)
Srimad-Bhagavatam
SB Canto 5
The words bhāgavata ātmārāmaḥ are very significant in this verse. If one is self-satisfied as is the Supreme Personality of Godhead, he is called bhāgavata ātmārāmaḥ. There are different types of satisfaction. Karmīs are satisfied in their fruitive activities, jñānīs are satisfied to merge into the effulgence of Brahman, and devotees are satisfied to engage in the Lord's service. The Lord is self-satisfied because He is fully opulent, and one who is satisfied by serving Him is called bhāgavata ātmārāmaḥ. Manuṣyāṇāṁ sahasreṣu: (BG 7.3) out of many thousands of persons, one may endeavor for liberation, and of many thousands of persons attempting to become liberated, one may achieve liberation from the anxieties of material existence and become self-satisfied. Even that satisfaction, however, is not the ultimate satisfaction. The jñānīs and the karmīs have desires, as do the yogīs, but devotees have no desires. Satisfaction in the service of the Lord is called akāma, freedom from desire, and this is the ultimate satisfaction. Therefore Mahārāja Parīkṣit inquired, "How could one who was fully satisfied on the highest platform be satisfied with family life?"
The word parābhavaḥ in this verse is also significant. When one is satisfied in family life, he is doomed because he must already have forgotten his relationship with the Lord.
"The Supreme Personality of Godhead, Lord Viṣṇu, is worshiped by the proper execution of prescribed duties in the system of varṇa and āśrama. There is no other way to satisfy the Supreme Personality of Godhead. One must be situated in the institution of the four varṇas and āśramas."
The previous verse has given the analogy of bulls moving under the direction of the driver of a bullock cart. The bulls, being completely surrendered to the driver, remain wherever he wants to place them and eat whatever he wants them to eat. Similarly, being completely surrendered to the Supreme Personality of Godhead, we should not aspire for happiness, or regret distress; we must be satisfied with the position allotted to us by the Lord.
"In this age of Kali, there is no other way, no other way, no other way for spiritual perfection than the holy name, the holy name, the holy name of the Lord." Everyone should be given the chance to hear the holy names of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, for thus one will gradually come to understand his real position in life and be elevated to the transcendental position above the mode of goodness. Thus all impediments to his progress will be cut to pieces. In conclusion, therefore, we must be satisfied in whatever position we have been put into by the Supreme Personality of Godhead, and we should try to engage ourselves in His devotional service. Then our lives will be successful.
Even if he goes from forest to forest, one who is not self-controlled must always fear material bondage because he is living with six co-wives—the mind and knowledge-acquiring senses. Even householder life, however, cannot harm a self-satisfied, learned man who has conquered his senses.
Lord Brahmā was then worshiped by Manu, who respectfully satisfied him as well as he could. Priyavrata and Nārada also looked upon Brahmā with no tinges of resentment. Having engaged Priyavrata in accepting his father's request, Lord Brahmā returned to his abode, Satyaloka, which is indescribable by the endeavor of mundane mind or words.
Manu was certainly very satisfied that Lord Brahmā had persuaded his son Priyavrata to take the responsibility for ruling the world. Priyavrata and Nārada were also very satisfied.
Modern so-called scientists and other materialists are very satisfied because they can construct great bridges, roads and machines, but such activities are nothing comparable to those of Mahārāja Priyavrata.
As stated in Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam (1.1.1), tene brahma hṛdā ya ādi-kavaye: Lord Viṣṇu informs Lord Brahmā of everything from within his heart. Because Mahārāja Āgnīdhra specifically worshiped Lord Brahmā, Lord Brahmā was pleased, and he sent Pūrvacitti, the Apsarā, to satisfy him.
After Pūrvacitti's departure, King Āgnīdhra, his lusty desires not at all satisfied, always thought of her. Therefore, in accordance with the Vedic injunctions, the King, after his death, was promoted to the same planet as his celestial wife. That planet, which is called Pitṛloka, is where the pitās, the forefathers, live in great delight.
O Supreme Lord, You are full in every respect. You are certainly very satisfied when Your devotees offer You prayers with faltering voices and in ecstasy bring You tulasī leaves, water, twigs bearing new leaves, and newly grown grass. This surely makes You satisfied.
One does not need great wealth, education or opulence to satisfy the Supreme Personality of Godhead. If one is fully absorbed in love and ecstasy, he need offer only a flower and a little water. As stated in Bhagavad-gītā, patraṁ puṣpaṁ phalaṁ toyaṁ yo me bhaktyā prayacchati: "If one offers Me with love and devotion a leaf, a flower. fruit or water, I will accept it." (BG 9.26)
The Supreme Lord can be pleased only by devotional service: therefore it is said here that the Lord is surely satisfied by devotion and nothing else.
Śrīla Rūpa Gosvāmī says that if one is offered varied foods but has no appetite, the offering has no value. In a big sacrificial ceremony there may be many things accumulated to satisfy the Supreme Personality of Godhead, but if there is no devotion, attachment or love for the Lord, the arrangement is useless. The Lord is complete in Himself, and He does not need anything from us. However, if we offer Him a little water, a flower and a tulasi leaf, He will accept them. Bhakti, devotional service, is the main way to satisfy the Supreme Personality of Godhead. It is not a question of arranging huge sacrifices. The priests were regretful, thinking that they were not on the path of devotional service and that their sacrifice was not pleasing to the Lord.
Being self-sufficient, the Supreme Lord does not need huge sacrifices. Fruitive activity for a more opulent life is for those who desire such material opulence for their interest. Yajñārthāt karmaṇo 'nyatra loko 'yaṁ karma-bandhanaḥ: (BG 3.9)) if we do not act to satisfy the Supreme Lord. we engage in māyā's activities.
The Supreme Personality of Godhead is equal to everyone. In that sense, He has no enemies and no friends. Everyone is enjoying the fruitive reactions of his own work, and the Lord, within everyone's heart, is observing and giving everyone the desired result. However, just as the devotees are always anxious to see the Supreme Lord satisfied in every way, similarly the Supreme Lord is very anxious to present Himself before His devotees.
Dear Lord, all the great sages who are thoughtful and saintly persons incessantly recount Your spiritual qualities. These sages have already burned up all the unlimited dirty things and, by the fire of knowledge, strengthened their detachment from the material world. Thus they have attained Your qualities and are self-satisfied. Yet even for those who feel spiritual bliss in chanting Your attributes, Your personal presence is very rare.
The priests in Mahārāja Nābhi's sacrificial arena appreciated the personal presence of the Supreme Lord Viṣṇu, and they considered themselves very much obliged. The Lord's appearance is rare even for great saintly persons who have become completely detached from this material world and whose hearts are clean due to constantly chanting the glories of the Lord. Such people are satisfied by chanting the transcendental qualities of the Lord.
O Viṣṇudatta, Parīkṣit Mahārāja, the Supreme Personality of Godhead was pleased by the great sages at that sacrifice. Consequently the Lord decided to personally exhibit the method of executing religious principles (as observed by brahmacārīs, sannyāsīs, vānaprasthas and gṛhasthas engaged in rituals) and also satisfy Mahārāja Nābhi's desire. Consequently He appeared as the son of Merudevī in His original spiritual form, which is above the modes of material nature.
In the present age of Kali there will eventually be a great scarcity of water (anāvṛṣṭi), for the general populace, due to ignorance and the scarcity of yajñic ingredients, will neglect to perform yajñas. Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam therefore advises: yajñaiḥ saṅkīrtana-prāyaiḥ yajanti hi sumedhasaḥ. After all, yajña is meant to satisfy the Supreme Personality of Godhead.
If work is not carried out in devotional service, it is contaminated by the modes of material nature. That is explained in Bhagavad-gītā: yajñārthāt karmaṇo 'nyatra loko 'yaṁ karma-bandhanaḥ (BG 3.9)). Activities performed only for the satisfaction of the Supreme Lord are pure and are not contaminated by the modes of material nature. All other activities are contaminated by the modes of ignorance and passion, as well as goodness. All material activities meant for satisfying the senses are contaminated, and Mahārāja Nābhi did not perform anything contaminated. He simply executed his transcendental activities even when performing yajña. Consequently he obtained the Supreme Lord as his son.
In addition to these sons were Kavi, Havi, Antarikṣa, Prabuddha, Pippalāyana, Avirhotra, Drumila, Camasa and Karabhājana. These were all very exalted, advanced devotees and authorized preachers of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam. These devotees were glorified due to their strong devotion to Vāsudeva, the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Therefore they were very exalted. To satisfy the mind perfectly, I (Śukadeva Gosvāmī) shall hereafter describe the characteristics of these nine devotees when I discuss the conversation between Nārada and Vasudeva.
Lord Ṛṣabhadeva performed all kinds of sacrifices one hundred times according to the instructions of the Vedic literatures. Thus He satisfied Lord Viṣṇu in every respect. All the rituals were enriched by first-class ingredients. They were executed in holy places according to the proper time by priests who were all young and faithful. In this way Lord Viṣṇu was worshiped, and the prasāda was offered to all the demigods. Thus the functions and festivals were all successful.
No one likes to possess anything that is like a will-o'-the-wisp or a flower in the sky, for everyone knows very well that such things do not exist. When Lord Ṛṣabhadeva ruled this planet of Bhāratavarṣa, even common men did not want to ask for anything, at any time or by any means. No one ever asks for a will-o'-the-wisp. In other words, everyone was completely satisfied, and therefore there was no chance of anyone's asking for anything. The people were absorbed in great affection for the King. Since this affection was always expanding, they were not inclined to ask for anything.
In Bengal the word ghoḍā-ḍimba is used, which means "the egg of a horse." Since a horse never lays an egg, the word ghoḍā-ḍimba actually has no meaning. In Sanskrit there is a word kha-puṣpa, which means "the flower in the sky." No flower grows in the sky; therefore no one is interested in asking for kha-puṣpa or ghoḍā-ḍimba. During the reign of Mahārāja Ṛṣabhadeva, people were so well equipped that they did not want to ask for anything. They were immensely supplied with all necessities for life due to King Ṛṣabhadeva's good government. Consequently everyone felt full satisfaction and did not want anything. This is the perfection of government. If the citizens are unhappy due to bad government, the heads of government are condemned. During these democratic days, monarchy is disliked by the people, but here is an example of how an emperor of the whole world kept all the citizens fully satisfied by supplying the necessities of life and following the Vedic principles. Thus everyone was happy during the reign of Mahārāja Ṛṣabhadeva, the Supreme Personality of Godhead.
Even if one is a gṛhastha and has to earn his livelihood, he should be satisfied by collecting only enough money to maintain body and soul together. One should not have more than that nor less than that.
The influence of māyā is so strong that even a person advanced in knowledge actually forgets that he is Kṛṣṇa's eternal servant. Therefore he remains satisfied in his householder life, which is centered around sexual intercourse. Conceding to a life of sex, he agrees to suffer all kinds of material miseries. Due to ignorance, one is thus bound by the chain of material laws.
"O son of Kuntī, all that you do, all that you eat, all that you offer and give away, as well as all austerities that you may perform, should be done as an offering unto Me." This is bhakti. Unless one is devoted, he cannot give everything to the Supreme Lord. Unless one can do so, he cannot become a spiritual master, husband, father or mother. Similarly, the wives of the brāhmaṇas who were performing sacrifices gave up their relatives just to satisfy Kṛṣṇa.
Demoniac civilization is attached to ugra-karma, horrible activities, and big industries are created to satisfy unfathomable lusty desires. Consequently the people are greatly harassed by governmental taxation.
The word avadhūta refers to one who does not care for social conventions, particularly the varṇāśrama-dharma. However, such a person may be situated fully within himself and be satisfied with the Supreme Personality of Godhead, on whom he meditates. In other words, one who has surpassed the rules and regulations of varṇāśrama-dharma is called avadhūta. Such a person has already surpassed the clutches of māyā, and he lives completely separate and independent.
Kṛṣṇa is yogeśvara, the possessor of all mystic powers (siddhis), and He is ātmārāma, fully self-satisfied. The yoga-siddhis are described in this verse. One can fly in outer space without the aid of a machine, and he can travel at the speed of mind. This means that as soon as a yogī desires to go somewhere within this universe or even beyond this universe, he can do so immediately. One cannot estimate the speed of mind, for within a second the mind can go many millions of miles. Sometimes yogīs enter into the bodies of other people and act as they desire when their bodies are not working properly. When the body becomes old, a perfect yogī can find a young, able body. Giving up his old body, the yogī can enter into the young body and act as he pleases. Being a plenary expansion of Lord Vāsudeva, Lord Ṛṣabhadeva possessed all these mystic yoga powers, but He was satisfied with His devotional love of Kṛṣṇa, which was evinced by the ecstatic symptoms, such as crying, laughing and shivering.
A devotee is never distressed or satisfied by material opulence. His concern is how to please the Supreme Personality of Godhead. If, by the grace of the Supreme Lord, a devotee achieves extraordinary opulence, he utilizes the opportunity for the Lord's service. He is not disturbed by the opulence.
We should not create unnecessary demands due to the bodily conception. When one is self-realized, he is sufficiently satisfied due to being situated in his original spiritual position. As confirmed in Bhagavad-gītā (18.54): Brahma-bhūtaḥ prasannātmā na śocati na kāṅkṣati. This is the goal of all living entities. Even though one may be situated within this material world, he can become fully satisfied and devoid of hankering and lamentation simply by following the instructions of the Lord as set forth in Bhagavad-gītā or Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam. Satisfaction through self-realization is called svarūpānanda.
People are generally addicted to offering obeisances to various demigods, but Bharata Mahārāja simply wanted to please Lord Vāsudeva. As stated in Bhagavad-gītā: bhoktāraṁ yajña-tapasāṁ sarva-loka-maheśvaram (BG 5.29). A yajña may be carried out to satisfy a particular demigod, but when the yajña is offered to the yajña-puruṣa, Nārāyaṇa, the demigods are satisfied. The purpose of performing different yajñas is to satisfy the Supreme Lord. One may perform them in the name of different demigods or directly. If we directly offer oblations to the Supreme Personality of Godhead, the demigods are automatically satisfied. If we water the root of a tree, the branches, twigs, fruits and flowers are automatically satisfied. When one offers sacrifices to different demigods, one should remember that the demigods are simply parts of the body of the Supreme. If we worship the hand of a person, we intend to satisfy the person himself.
We should worship the demigods in that spirit. Because the goddess Durgā satisfies Kṛṣṇa, we should therefore offer respects to goddess Durgā. Because Lord Śiva is nothing but Kṛṣṇa's functional body, we should therefore offer respects to Lord Śiva. Similarly, we should offer respects to Brahmā, Agni and Sūrya. There are many offerings to different demigods, and one should always remember that these offerings are usually meant to satisfy the Supreme Personality of Godhead.
At Pulaha-āśrama, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Hari, out of His transcendental affection for His devotee, becomes visible to His devotee, satisfying His devotee's desires.
In the gardens of Pulaha-āśrama, Mahārāja Bharata lived alone and collected a variety of flowers, twigs and tulasī leaves. He also collected the water of the Gaṇḍakī River, as well as various roots, fruits and bulbs. With these he offered food to the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Vāsudeva, and, worshiping Him, he remained satisfied. In this way his heart was completely uncontaminated, and he did not have the least desire for material enjoyment. All material desires vanished. In this steady position, he felt full satisfaction and was situated in devotional service.
Everyone is searching after peace of mind. This is obtainable only when one is completely freed from the desire for material sense gratification and is engaged in the devotional service of the Lord. As stated in Bhagavad-gītā: patraṁ puṣpaṁ phalaṁ toyaṁ yo me bhaktyā prayacchati (BG 9.26). Worship of the Lord is not at all expensive. One can offer the Lord a leaf, a flower, a little fruit and some water. The Supreme Lord accepts these offerings when they are offered with love and devotion. In this way, one can become freed from material desires. As long as one maintains material desires, he cannot be happy. As soon as one engages in the devotional service of the Lord, his mind is purified of all material desires. Then one becomes fully satisfied.
"The supreme occupation (dharma) for all humanity is that by which men can attain to loving devotional service unto the transcendent Lord. Such devotional service must be unmotivated and uninterrupted in order to completely satisfy the self. By rendering devotional service unto the Personality of Godhead, Śrī Kṛṣṇa, one immediately acquires causeless knowledge and detachment from the world." (SB 1.2.6-7)
By nature the doe was always afraid of being killed by others, and it was always looking about suspiciously. When it heard the lion's tumultuous roar, it became very agitated. Looking here and there with disturbed eyes, the doe, although it had not fully satisfied itself by drinking water, suddenly leaped across the river.
When Mahārāja Bharata was actually worshiping the Lord or was engaged in some ritualistic ceremony, although his activities were unfinished, he would still, at intervals, get up and see where the deer was. In this way he would look for it, and when he could see that the deer was comfortably situated, his mind and heart would be very satisfied, and he would bestow his blessings upon the deer, saying, "My dear calf, may you be happy in all respects."
Śrīla Śukadeva Gosvāmī continued: My dear King, after giving up the body of a deer, Bharata Mahārāja took birth in a very pure brāhmaṇa family. There was a brāhmaṇa who belonged to the dynasty of Aṅgirā. He was fully qualified with brahminical qualifications. He could control his mind and senses, and he had studied the Vedic literatures and other subsidiary literatures. He was expert in giving charity, and he was always satisfied, tolerant, very gentle, learned and nonenvious. He was self-realized and engaged in the devotional service of the Lord. He remained always in a trance. He had nine equally qualified sons by his first wife, and by his second wife he begot twins—a brother and a sister, of which the male child was said to be the topmost devotee and foremost of saintly kings—Bharata Mahārāja. This, then, is the story of the birth he took after giving up the body of a deer.
One has to satisfy Hari, the Supreme Personality of Godhead. That is the perfection of the regulative principles of fruitive activity.
Śrīla Narottama dāsa Ṭhākura has sung: deha-smṛti nāhi yāra, saṁsāra-bandhana kāhāṅ tāra. One who has no desire to maintain the body or who is not anxious to keep the body in order and who is satisfied in any condition must be either mad or liberated. Actually Bharata Mahārāja in his birth as Jaḍa Bharata was completely liberated from material dualities. He was a paramahaṁsa and therefore did not care for bodily comfort.
It is evident from this verse that the devotees of goddess Kālī are not at all favored by her. It is goddess Kālī's work to kill and punish the demons. Goddess Kālī (Durgā) engages in decapitating many demons, dacoits and other unwanted elements in society. Neglecting Kṛṣṇa consciousness, foolish people try to satisfy the goddess by offering her many abominable things, but ultimately when there is a little discrepancy in this worship, the goddess punishes the worshiper by taking his life.
An exalted devotee of the Lord never thinks that he is a paramahaṁsa or a liberated person. He always remains a humble servant of the Lord. In all reverse conditions, he agrees to suffer the results of his past life. He never accuses the Lord of putting him into a distressed condition. These are the signs of an exalted devotee. Tat te 'nukampāṁ susamīkṣyamāṇaḥ. When suffering reversed conditions, the devotee always considers that the reverse conditions are the Lord's concessions. He is never angry with his master; he is always satisfied with the position his master offers.
Sometimes, being defeated or plundered by a superior, powerful agent, a living entity loses all his possessions. He then becomes very morose, and lamenting their loss, he sometimes becomes unconscious. Sometimes he imagines a great palatial city in which he desires to live happily with his family members and riches. He thinks himself fully satisfied if this is possible, but such so-called happiness continues only for a moment.
Śrīla Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura compares one's family to high mountains. Becoming happy in their association is like a hungry man's endeavoring to climb a mountain full of thorns. Almost 99.9 percent of the population is unhappy in family life, despite all the attempts being made to satisfy the family members.
When one's mind is disturbed in so many ways, he satisfies himself by becoming angry with his poor wife and children. The wife and children are naturally dependent on the father, but the father, being unable to maintain the family properly, becomes mentally distressed and therefore chastises the family members unnecessarily.
In a great forest, honeycombs are very important. People often go there to collect honey from the combs, and sometimes the bees attack and punish them. In human society, those who are not Kṛṣṇa conscious remain in the forest of material life simply for the honey of sex life. Such debauchees are not at all satisfied with one wife. They want many women. Day after day, with great difficulty, they try to secure such women, and sometimes, while trying to taste this kind of honey, one is attacked by a woman's kinsmen and chastised very heavily. By bribing others, one may secure another woman for enjoyment, yet another debauchee may kidnap her or offer her something better. This woman hunting is going on in the forest of the material world, sometimes legally, and sometimes illegally. Consequently in this Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement the devotees are forbidden to have illicit sex. Thus they avoid so many difficulties. One should remain satisfied with one woman, being duly married. One can satisfy one's lusty desires with his wife without creating disturbances in society and being punished for doing so.
The principles of beg, borrow or steal are very appropriate in this material world. When one is in want, he begs, borrows or steals. If begging is unsuccessful, he borrows. If he cannot pay, he steals, and when he is caught, he is insulted. This is the law of material existence. No one can live here very honestly; therefore by trickery, cheating, begging, borrowing or stealing, one tries to satisfy his senses. Thus no one in this material world is living peacefully.
In the forest of the material world there are many animals and birds, trees and creepers. Sometimes the living entity wants to take shelter of the creepers; in other words, he wants to be happy by being embraced by the creeperlike arms of his wife. Within the creepers there are many chirping birds; this indicates that he wants to satisfy himself by hearing the sweet voice of his wife.
Those who are so-called spiritualists are compared to monkeys. Outwardly, monkeys sometimes resemble sādhus because they live naked in the forest and pick fruits, but their only desire is to keep many female monkeys and enjoy sex life. Sometimes so-called spiritualists seeking a spiritual life come to associate with Kṛṣṇa conscious devotees, but they cannot execute the regulative principles or follow the path of spiritual life. Consequently they leave the association of devotees and go to associate with sense gratifiers, who are compared to monkeys. Again they revive their sex and intoxication, and looking at one another's faces, they are thus satisfied. In this way they pass their lives up to the point of death.
First of all, the conditioned soul is cheated by so-called svāmīs, yogīs and incarnations when he approaches them to be relieved of material miseries. When the conditioned soul is not satisfied with them, he comes to devotees and pure brāhmaṇas who try to elevate him for final liberation from material bondage.
It really doesn't matter what activity a man engages in. If he can simply satisfy the Supreme Lord, his life is successful.
The path of devotional service is undoubtedly very difficult to follow, but it becomes very easy if the candidate actually wants to follow the path of the mahājana. In this age there is the path of Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu, who appeared to deliver all fallen souls. This path is so simple and easy that everyone can take to it by chanting the holy name of the Lord.
- harer nāma harer nāma
- harer nāmaiva kevalam
- kalau nāsty eva nāsty eva
- nāsty eva gatir anyathā
- (CC Adi 17.21)
We are very satisfied that this path is being opened by this Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement because so many European and American boys and girls are taking this philosophy seriously and gradually attaining perfection.
A devotee doesn't care whether he is going to be reborn or not. He is simply satisfied with the Lord's service in any condition.
Everything belongs to Kṛṣṇa, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, but due to our perverted mind and senses, we plunder the property of the Lord and engage in satisfying our senses.
King Gaya gave full protection and security to the citizens so that their personal property would not be disturbed by undesirable elements. He also saw that there was sufficient food to feed all the citizens. (This is called poṣaṇa.) He would sometimes distribute gifts to the citizens to satisfy them. (This is called prīṇana.) He would sometimes call meetings and satisfy the citizens with sweet words. (This is called upalālana.) He would also give them good instructions on how to become first-class citizens. (This is called anuśāsana.) Such were the characteristics of King Gaya's royal order. Besides all this, King Gaya was a householder who strictly observed the rules and regulations of household life. He performed sacrifices and was an unalloyed pure devotee of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. He was called Mahāpuruṣa because as a king he gave the citizens all facilities, and as a householder he executed all his duties so that at the end he became a strict devotee of the Supreme Lord. As a devotee, he was always ready to give respect to other devotees and to engage in the devotional service of the Lord. This is the bhakti-yoga process. Due to all these transcendental activities, King Gaya was always free from the bodily conception. He was full in Brahman realization, and consequently he was always jubilant. He did not experience material lamentation. Although he was perfect in all respects, he was not proud, nor was he anxious to rule the kingdom.
All the chaste and honest daughters of Mahārāja Dakṣa, such as Śraddhā, Maitrī and Dayā, whose blessings were always effective, bathed Mahārāja Gaya with sanctified water. Indeed, they were very satisfied with Mahārāja Gaya. The planet earth personified came as a cow, and, as though she saw her calf, she delivered milk profusely when she saw all the good qualities of Mahārāja Gaya. In other words, Mahārāja Gaya was able to derive all benefits from the earth and thus satisfy the desires of his citizens. However, he personally had no desire.
Although King Gaya had no personal desire for sense gratification, all his desires were fulfilled by virtue of his performance of Vedic rituals. All the kings with whom Mahārāja Gaya had to fight were forced to fight on religious principles. They were very satisfied with his fighting, and they would present all kinds of gifts to him. Similarly, all the brāhmaṇas in his kingdom were very satisfied with King Gaya's munificent charities. Consequently the brāhmaṇas contributed a sixth of their pious activities for King Gaya's benefit in the next life.
As a kṣatriya or emperor, Mahārāja Gaya sometimes had to fight with subordinate kings to maintain his government, but the subordinate kings were not dissatisfied with him because they knew that he fought for religious principles. Consequently they accepted their subordination and offered all kinds of gifts to him. Similarly, the brāhmaṇas who performed Vedic rituals were so satisfied with the King that they very readily agreed to part with a sixth of their pious activities for his benefit in the next life. Thus the brāhmaṇas and kṣatriyas were all satisfied with Mahārāja Gaya because of his proper administration. In other words, Mahārāja Gaya satisfied the kṣatriya kings by his fighting and satisfied the brāhmaṇas by his charities. The vaiśyas were also encouraged by kind words and affectionate dealings, and due to Mahārāja Gaya's constant sacrifices, the śūdras were satisfied by sumptuous food and charity. In this way Mahārāja Gaya kept all the citizens very satisfied. When brāhmaṇas and saintly persons are honored, they part with their pious activities, giving them to those who honor them and render them service. Therefore, as stated in Bhagavad-gītā (4.34), tad viddhi praṇipātena paripraśnena sevayā: one should try to approach a spiritual master submissively and render service unto him.
Mahārāja Gaya was so perfect that he satisfied all the demigods, who were headed by the heavenly King Indra. Lord Viṣṇu Himself also personally came to the sacrificial arena to accept the offerings. Although Mahārāja Gaya did not want them, he received all the blessings of the demigods and the Supreme Lord Himself.
When the Supreme Lord is pleased by a person's actions, automatically all the demigods, human beings, animals, birds, bees, creepers, trees, grass and all other living entities, beginning with Lord Brahmā, are pleased. The Supreme Personality of Godhead is the Supersoul of everyone, and He is by nature fully pleased. Nonetheless, He came to the arena of Mahārāja Gaya and said, "I am fully pleased."
It is explicitly stated herein that simply by satisfying the Supreme Personality of Godhead, one satisfies the demigods and all other living entities without differentiation. If one pours water on the root of a tree, all the branches, twigs, flowers and leaves are nourished. Although the Supreme Lord is self-satisfied, He was so pleased with the behavior of Mahārāja Gaya that He personally came to the sacrificial arena and said, "I am fully satisfied." Who can compare to Mahārāja Gaya?
The limits of the expansions of Govinda, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, cannot be estimated by anyone, even a person as perfect as Brahmā, not to speak of tiny scientists whose senses and instruments are all imperfect and who cannot give us information of even this one universe. We should therefore be satisfied with the information obtainable from Vedic sources as spoken by authorities like Śukadeva Gosvāmī.
We should simply be satisfied with the statements of authorities like Śukadeva Gosvāmī and appreciate how the entire cosmic manifestation has been made possible by the external energy of the Supreme Personality of Godhead.
O my Lord, You are the only worshipable person, for You are the Supreme Personality of Godhead, the reservoir of all opulences. Your secure lotus feet are the only source of protection for all Your devotees, whom You satisfy by manifesting Yourself in various forms. O my Lord, You deliver Your devotees from the clutches of material existence. Nondevotees, however, remain entangled in material existence by Your will. Kindly accept me as Your eternal servant.
Śukadeva Gosvāmī refers to Nṛsiṁhadeva because of Prahlāda Mahārāja. Prahlāda Mahārāja was put into great distress by his powerful father, the demon Hiraṇyakaśipu. Apparently helpless before him, Prahlāda Mahārāja called on the Lord, who immediately assumed the gigantic form of Nṛsiṁhadeva, half-lion and half-man, to kill the gigantic demon. Although Kṛṣṇa is the original person, one without a second, He assumes different forms just to satisfy His devotees or to execute a specific purpose. Therefore Jayadeva Gosvāmī always repeats the name of Keśava, the original Personality of Godhead, in his prayers describing the Lord's different incarnations for different purposes.
My dear Lord, we pray that we may never feel attraction for the prison of family life, consisting of home, wife, children, friends, bank balance, relatives and so on. If we do have some attachment, let it be for devotees, whose only dear friend is Kṛṣṇa. A person who is actually self-realized and who has controlled his mind is perfectly satisfied with the bare necessities of life. He does not try to gratify his senses. Such a person quickly advances in Kṛṣṇa consciousness, whereas others, who are too attached to material things, find advancement very difficult.
My dear Lord, You are certainly the fully independent master of all the senses. Therefore all women who worship You by strictly observing vows because they wish to acquire a husband to satisfy their senses are surely under illusion. They do not know that such a husband cannot actually give protection to them or their children. Nor can he protect their wealth or duration of life, for he himself is dependent on time, fruitive results and the modes of nature, which are all subordinate to You.
The word kriyārthaiḥ means "by performing ritualistic ceremonies to satisfy the demigods."
When the Lord appears in this universe in the form of a human being, He has two purposes, as stated in Bhagavad-gītā (BG 4.8)—paritrāṇāya sādhūnāṁ vināśāya ca duṣkṛtām: to destroy the demons and protect the devotees. To protect the devotees, the Lord not only satisfies them by His personal presence but also teaches them so that they will not fall down from devotional service.
Therefore, whether one is a demigod or a demon, a man or a creature other than man, such as a beast or bird, everyone should worship Lord Rāmacandra, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, who appears on this earth just like a human being. There is no need of great austerities or penances to worship the Lord, for Me accepts even a small service offered by His devotee. Thus He is satisfied, and as soon as He is satisfied, the devotee is successful. Indeed, Lord Śrī Rāmacandra brought all the devotees of Ayodhyā back home, back to Godhead (Vaikuṇṭha).
Lord Śrī Rāmacandra is so kind and merciful to His devotees that He is very easily satisfied by a little service rendered by anyone, human or not.
"The Supreme Personality of Godhead, Lord Viṣṇu, is worshiped by the proper execution of prescribed duties in the system of varṇa and āśrama. There is no other way to satisfy the Lord."
An intelligent person does not take interest in a place, even in the topmost planetary system, if the pure Ganges of topics concerning the Supreme Lord's activities does not flow there, if there are not devotees engaged in service on the banks of such a river of piety, or if there are no festivals of saṅkīrtana-yajña to satisfy the Lord (especially since saṅkīrtana-yajña is recommended in this age).
The Supreme Personality of Godhead fulfills the material desires of a devotee who approaches Him with such motives, but He does not bestow benedictions upon the devotee that will cause him to demand more benedictions again. However, the Lord willingly gives the devotee shelter at His own lotus feet, even though such a person does not aspire for it, and that shelter satisfies all his desires. That is the Supreme Personality's special mercy.
A pure devotee, an akāma-bhakta, who has no material motives, is satisfied simply to serve the lotus feet of the Lord. This is confirmed in Bhagavad-gītā (6.22). Yaṁ labdhvā cāparaṁ lābhaṁ manyate nādhikaṁ tataḥ: if one engages in the service of the lotus feet of the Lord, he does not want anything more. This is the highest stage of devotional service. The Lord is so kind even to a sakāma-bhakta, a motivated devotee, that He satisfies his desires in such a way that one day he becomes an akāma-bhakta. Dhruva Mahārāja, for example, became a bhakta with the motive of getting a better kingdom than that of his father, but finally he became an akāma-bhakta and said to the Lord, svāmin kṛtārtho'smi varaṁ na yāce: (CC Madhya 22.42) "My dear Lord, I am very satisfied simply to serve Your lotus feet. I do not want any material benefits."
Śrīla Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura has given accurate astronomical information about the location of Lokāloka Mountain, the movements of the sun globe and the distance between the sun and the circumference of the universe. However, the technical terms used in the astronomical calculations given by the Jyotir Veda are difficult to translate into English. Therefore to satisfy the reader, we may include the exact Sanskrit statement given by Śrīla Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura, which records exact calculations regarding universal affairs.
Because the moon is full of all potentialities, it represents the influence of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. The moon is the predominating deity of everyone's mind, and therefore the moon-god is called Manomaya. He is also called Annamaya because he gives potency to all herbs and plants, and he is called Amṛtamaya because he is the source of life for all living entities. The moon pleases the demigods, pitās, human beings, animals, birds, reptiles, trees, plants and all other living entities. Everyone is satisfied by the presence of the moon. Therefore the moon is also called Sarvamaya (all-pervading).
The parks and gardens in the artificial heavens surpass in beauty those of the upper heavenly planets. The trees in those gardens, embraced by creepers, bend with a heavy burden of twigs with fruits and flowers, and therefore they appear extraordinarily beautiful. That beauty could attract anyone and make his mind fully blossom in the pleasure of sense gratification. There are many lakes and reservoirs with clear, transparent water, agitated by jumping fish and decorated with many flowers such as lilies, kuvalayas, kahlāras and blue and red lotuses. Pairs of cakravākas and many other water birds nest in the lakes and always enjoy in a happy mood, making sweet, pleasing vibrations that are very satisfying and conducive to enjoyment of the senses.
When the Supreme Personality of Godhead could see no other means of taking everything away from Bali Mahārāja, He adopted the trick of begging from him and took away all the three worlds. Thus only his body was left, but the Lord was still not satisfied. He arrested Bali Mahārāja, bound him with the ropes of Varuṇa and threw him in a cave in a mountain. Nevertheless, although all his property was taken and he was thrown into a cave, Bali Mahārāja was such a great devotee that he spoke as follows.
"O son of Pṛthā, those who take shelter in Me, though they be of lower birth—women, vaiśyas (merchants), as well as śūdras (workers)—can approach the supreme destination." Human life is specifically meant for going back home, back to Godhead. That facility should be given to everyone, whether one be a śūdra, a vaiśya, a woman or a kṣatriya. This is the purpose of the Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement. However, if one is satisfied to remain a śūdra, he must suffer as described in this verse: tad evātibībhatsitam aśnanti.
SB Canto 6
Both pious and impious activities are actually due to ignorance because a living entity, as an eternal servant of Kṛṣṇa, has no need to act for his personal sense gratification. Therefore as soon as one is reclaimed to the platform of devotional service, he relinquishes his attachment for pious and impious activities and is interested only in what will satisfy Kṛṣṇa. This process of bhakti, devotional service to Kṛṣṇa (vāsudeva-parāyaṇa), relieves one from the reactions of all activities.
Since Mahārāja Parīkṣit was a great devotee. the answers of his guru, Śukadeva Gosvāmī, concerning karma-kāṇḍa and jñāna-kāṇḍa could not satisfy him.
Everyone engages in work with his hands, legs and other senses just to achieve a certain goal according to his concocted ideas. One tries to enjoy the five sense objects, namely form, sound, taste, aroma and touch, not knowing the actual goal of life, which is to satisfy the Supreme Lord. Because of disobeying the Supreme Lord, one is put into material conditions, and he then tries to improve his situation in a concocted way, not desiring to follow the instructions of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Nevertheless, the Supreme Lord is so kind that He comes Himself to instruct the bewildered living entity how to act obediently and then gradually return home, back to Godhead, where he can attain an eternal, peaceful life of bliss and knowledge. The living entity has a body, which is a very complicated combination of the material elements, and with this body he struggles alone, as indicated in this verse by the words ekas tu. For example, if one is struggling in the ocean, he must swim through it alone. Although many other men and aquatics are swimming in the ocean, he must take care of himself because no one else will help him. Therefore this verse indicates that the seventeenth item, the soul, must work alone. Although he tries to create society, friendship and love, no one will be able to help him but Kṛṣṇa, the Supreme Lord. Therefore his only concern should be how to satisfy Kṛṣṇa.
Thus Ajāmila began spending whatever money he had inherited from his father to satisfy the prostitute with various material presentations so that she would remain pleased with him. He gave up all his brahminical activities to satisfy the prostitute.
There are many instances throughout the world in which even a purified person, being attracted by a prostitute, spends all the money he has inherited. Prostitute hunting is so abominable that the desire for sex with a prostitute can ruin one's character, destroy one's exalted position and plunder all one's money. Therefore illicit sex is strictly prohibited. One should be satisfied with his married wife, for even a slight deviation will create havoc. A Kṛṣṇa conscious gṛhastha should always remember this. He should always be satisfied with one wife and be peaceful simply by chanting the Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra. Otherwise at any moment he may fall down from his good position, as exemplified in the case of Ajāmila.
When one is situated on the platform of devotional service, one is freed from impediments and completely satisfied (ahaituky apratihatā yayātmā suprasīdati). Having been elevated to that platform, Ajāmila began to lament for his past materialistic activities and glorify the name, fame, form and pastimes of the Supreme Personality of Godhead.
As related in this chapter, the Yamadūtas approached Yamarāja, who very exhaustively explained bhāgavata-dharma, the religious principle of devotional service. Yamarāja thus satisfied the Yamadūtas, who had been very disappointed.
Śrīla Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura remarks that the Yamadūtas wanted to bring the Viṣṇudūtas before Yamarāja. If Yamarāja could then have punished the Viṣṇudūtas, the Yamadūtas would have been satisfied.
When the ten Pracetās came out of the sea and saw the entire world full of trees, they were very angry with the trees and decided to destroy them all to rectify the situation. Thus the Pracetās created wind and fire to burn the trees to ashes. Soma, however, the king of the moon and the king of all vegetation, forbade the Pracetās to destroy the trees, since the trees are the source of fruit and flowers for all living beings. Just to satisfy the Pracetās, Soma gave them a beautiful girl born of Pramlocā Apsarā. By the semen of all the Pracetās, Dakṣa was born of that girl.
Being very satisfied by the prayers of Dakṣa, Lord Viṣṇu appeared before Dakṣa with eight arms. The Lord was dressed in yellow garments and had a blackish complexion. Understanding that Dakṣa was very eager to follow the path of enjoyment, the Lord awarded him the potency to enjoy the illusory energy. The Lord offered him the daughter of Pañcajana named Asiknī, who was suitable for Mahārāja Dakṣa to enjoy in sex. Indeed, Dakṣa received his name because he was very expert in sex life. After awarding this benediction, Lord Viṣṇu disappeared.
Those who desire to eat meat may satisfy the demands of their tongues by eating lower animals, but they should never kill cows, who are actually accepted as the mothers of human society because they supply milk.
The Supreme Personality of Godhead is situated as the Supersoul within the cores of the hearts of all living entities, whether moving or nonmoving, including men, birds, animals, trees and, indeed, all living entities. Therefore you should consider every body a residence or temple of the Lord. By such vision you will satisfy the Lord. You should not angrily kill these living entities in the forms of trees.
As stated in Bhagavad-gītā and confirmed by all the Vedic scriptures, īśvaraḥ sarva-bhūtānāṁ hṛd-deśe 'rjuna tiṣṭhati: (BG 18.61) the Supersoul is situated within everyone's heart. Therefore, since everyone's body is the residence of the Supreme Lord, one should not destroy the body because of unnecessary envy. That will dissatisfy the Supersoul. Soma told the Pracetās that because they had tried to satisfy the Supersoul, now they should not displease Him.
Near that mountain was a very holy place named Aghamarṣaṇa. There Prajāpati Dakṣa executed ritualistic ceremonies and satisfied the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Hari, by engaging in great austerities to please Him.
When one actually realizes or sees the Supreme Personality of Godhead, he is filled with complete happiness. For example, when Dhruva Mahārāja saw the Lord in his presence, he said, svāmin kṛtārtho'smi varaṁ na yāce: (CC Madhya 22.42) "My dear Lord, I have nothing to ask from You. Now I am completely satisfied." Similarly, when Prajāpati Dakṣa saw the Supreme Lord in his presence, he simply fell flat, unable to speak or ask Him for anything.
Śrīla Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura remarks in this connection that Dakṣa was given the facility for unlimited sexual intercourse. In Dakṣa's previous life he was also known as Dakṣa, but in the course of performing sacrifices he offended Lord Śiva, and thus his head was replaced with that of a goat. Then Dakṣa gave up his life because of his degraded condition, but because he maintained the same unlimited sexual desires, he underwent austerities by which he satisfied the Supreme Lord, who then gave him unlimited potency for sexual intercourse.
In regard to the instructions of the father and mother, it may be said that every living entity, including even the insignificant cats, dogs and serpents, takes birth of a father and mother. Therefore, getting a material father and mother is not a problem. In every form of life, birth after birth, the living entity gets a father and mother. In human society, however, if one is satisfied with his material father and mother and their instructions and does not make further progress by accepting a spiritual master and being educated in the śāstras, he certainly remains in darkness.
The Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement is teaching this higher knowledge of retiring from materialistic life to return to Godhead, but unfortunately many parents are not very satisfied with this movement. Aside from the parents of our students, many businessmen are also dissatisfied because we teach our students to abandon intoxication, meat-eating, illicit sex and gambling.
Lord Śiva embraces Nārada Muni and begins talking in an ecstatic voice, and seeing Lord Śiva dancing with Nārada, Lord Brahmā also joins, saying, "All of you kindly chant 'Hari bol! Hari bol!' " The King of heaven, Indra, also gradually joins with great satisfaction and begins dancing and chanting "Hari bol! Hari bol!" In this way, by the influence of the transcendental vibration of the holy name of God, the whole universe becomes ecstatic. Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura says, "When the universe becomes ecstatic, my desire is satisfied. I therefore pray unto the lotus feet of Rūpa Gosvāmī that this chanting of harer nāma (CC Adi 17.21) may go on nicely like this."
"For one who explains the supreme secret to the devotees, devotional service is guaranteed, and at the end he will come back to Me. There is no servant in this world more dear to Me than he, nor will there ever be one more dear." Let us continue preaching the message of Lord Kṛṣṇa and not be afraid of enemies. Our only duty is to satisfy the Lord by this preaching, which will be accepted as service by Lord Caitanya and Lord Kṛṣṇa. We must sincerely serve the Lord and not be deterred by so-called enemies.
Prajāpati Dakṣa wanted to prove that he had been most tolerant in not having said anything when Nārada Muni, for no reason, induced his ten thousand innocent sons to adopt the path of renunciation. Sometimes householders are accused of being gṛhamedhīs, for gṛhamedhīs are satisfied with family life without spiritual advancement. Gṛhasthas, however, are different because although gṛhasthas live in householder life with their wives and children, they are eager for spiritual advancement. Wanting to prove that he had been magnanimous to Nārada Muni, Prajāpati Dakṣa stressed that when Nārada had misled his first sons, Dakṣa had taken no action; he had been kind and tolerant. He was aggrieved, however, because Nārada Muni had misled his sons for a second time. Therefore he wanted to prove that Nārada Muni, although dressed like a sādhu, was not actually a sādhu; he himself, although a householder, was a greater sādhu than Nārada Muni.
Now, it may be asked why Nārada Muni stayed in the presence of Prajāpati Dakṣa and tolerated all his accusations and curses. Was that for Dakṣa's deliverance? The answer is yes. Śrīla Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura says that after being insulted by Prajāpati Dakṣa, Nārada Muni should have left immediately, but he purposely stayed to hear all Dakṣa's strong words so that Dakṣa might be relieved of his anger. Prajāpati Dakṣa was not an ordinary man; he had accumulated the results of many pious activities. Therefore Nārada Muni expected that after delivering his curse, Dakṣa, satisfied and freed from anger, would repent his misbehavior and thus get a chance to become a Vaiṣṇava and be delivered. When Jagāi and Mādhāi offended Lord Nityānanda, Lord Nityānanda stood tolerantly, and therefore both brothers fell at His lotus feet and repented. Consequently they later became perfect Vaiṣṇavas.
King Indra said: Therefore with great frankness and without duplicity I shall now bow my head at the lotus feet of Bṛhaspati, the spiritual master of the demigods. Because he is in the mode of goodness, he is fully aware of all knowledge and is the best of the brāhmaṇas. Now I shall touch his lotus feet and offer my obeisances unto him to try to satisfy him.
From the instructions of Lord Brahmā it is understood that everyone should very faithfully worship the brāhmaṇas, the Supreme Personality of Godhead and the cows. The Supreme Personality of Godhead is go-brāhmaṇa-hitāya ca: He is always very kind to cows and brāhmaṇas. Therefore one who worships Govinda must satisfy Him by worshiping the brāhmaṇas and cows.
The word samādhinā is very important. Samādhi means complete absorption with an undiverted mind. Viśvarūpa, who was a most learned brāhmaṇa, not only accepted the request of the demigods, but took their request seriously and performed the activities of priesthood with an undiverted mind. In other words, he accepted the priesthood not for material gain, but to profit the demigods. Such is the duty of a priest. The word puraḥ means "family," and hita means "benefit." Thus the word purohita indicates that the priest is the well-wisher of the family. Another meaning of the word puraḥ is "first." A priest's first duty is to see that his disciples benefit spiritually and materially by all means. Then he is satisfied. A priest should never be interested in performing Vedic rituals for his personal benefit.
"Just try to learn the truth by approaching a spiritual master. Inquire from him submissively and render service unto him. The self-realized soul can impart knowledge unto you because he has seen the truth." All mantras should be received through the authorized guru, and the disciple must satisfy the guru in all respects, after surrendering at his lotus feet.
Women as a class are very lusty, and apparently their continuous lusty desires are never satisfied. In return for Lord Indra's benediction that there would be no cessation to their lusty desires, women accepted one fourth of the sinful reactions for killing a brāhmaṇa.
Free from all material conceptions of existence and never wonder-struck by anything, the Lord is always jubilant and fully satisfied by His own spiritual perfection. He has no material designations, and therefore He is steady and unattached. That Supreme Personality of Godhead is the only shelter of everyone. Anyone desiring to be protected by others is certainly a great fool who desires to cross the sea by holding the tail of a dog.
"Since I am very intelligent, why should I give this fool material prosperity? Instead I shall induce him to take the nectar of the shelter of My lotus feet and make him forget illusory material enjoyment." If one sincerely prays to God for material possessions in exchange for devotional service, the Lord, who is not foolish like such an unintelligent devotee, shows him special favor by taking away whatever material possessions he has and gradually giving him the intelligence to be satisfied only by rendering service to His lotus feet.
O lotus-eyed Lord, as baby birds that have not yet developed their wings always look for their mother to return and feed them, as small calves tied with ropes await anxiously the time of milking, when they will be allowed to drink the milk of their mothers, or as a morose wife whose husband is away from home always longs for him to return and satisfy her in all respects, I always yearn for the opportunity to render direct service unto You.
A pure devotee always yearns to associate personally with the Lord and render service unto Him. The examples given in this regard are most appropriate. A small baby bird is practically never satisfied except when the mother bird comes to feed it, a small calf is not satisfied unless allowed to suck the milk from the mother's udder, and a chaste, devoted wife whose husband is away from home is never satisfied until she has the association of her beloved husband.
Following this instruction from the demigods, King Indra fought Vṛtrāsura, but when Vṛtrāsura was killed, everyone was satisfied but King Indra, who knew Vṛtrāsura's position.
My dear lord, Śukadeva Gosvāmī, although Vṛtrāsura was a sinful demon, he showed the prowess of a most exalted kṣatriya and satisfied Lord Indra in battle. How could such a demon be a great devotee of Lord Kṛṣṇa? These contradictions have caused me great doubt, and they have made me eager to hear of this from you.
The word harṣa means "jubilation," and śoka means "lamentation." The King was overwhelmed with joy when he understood that he would have a son. Because of his great jubilation, he could not actually understand the statement of the sage Aṅgirā. He accepted it to mean that there would certainly be jubilation because of the birth of his future son, but that he would be the King's only son and, being very proud of his great wealth and empire, would not be very obedient to his father. Thus the King was satisfied, thinking, "Let there be a son.
The book for consultation is Bhagavad-gītā, in which the Supreme Lord gives directions. Therefore those who are engaged in creation, maintenance and annihilation should consult the Supreme Person, who has appointed them, and should act accordingly. Then everyone will be satisfied, and there will be no disturbances.
For the Supreme Lord there are no friends, enemies or relatives, for He is completely free from all the disqualifications of ignorance that characterize the conditioned souls. On the other hand, He is extremely kind and favorable to His devotees, and He is not at all satisfied with persons who are envious of His devotees.
Whenever we see Kṛṣṇa, He is always full of ānanda in all circumstances. No one can make Him morose. Ātmārāmāya: He does not need to search for external enjoyment, because He is self-sufficient. Śāntāya: He has no anxiety. One who has to seek pleasure from other sources is always full of anxiety. Karmīs, jñānīs and yogīs are full of anxiety because they want something, but a devotee does not want anything; he is simply satisfied in the service of the Lord, who is fully blissful.
When the demigods are vanquished, the benedictions given by the demigods to unintelligent men will also be vanquished. Therefore a devotee should not hanker to obtain material opulence by worshiping the demigods, but should engage in the service of the Lord, who will satisfy all his desires.
O unconquerable one, when You spoke about bhāgavata-dharma, which is the uncontaminated religious system for achieving the shelter of Your lotus feet, that was Your victory. Persons who have no material desires, like the Kumāras, who are self-satisfied sages, worship You to be liberated from material contamination. In other words, they accept the process of bhāgavata-dharma to achieve shelter at Your lotus feet.
"The supreme occupation (dharma) for all humanity is that by which men can attain to loving devotional service unto the transcendent Lord. Such devotional service must be unmotivated and uninterrupted in order to completely satisfy the self." (SB 1.2.6) Therefore Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam is the pure transcendental process of religion.
"Self-complacent and always impudent, deluded by wealth and false prestige, they sometimes perform sacrifices in name only without following any rules or regulations." Sometimes animal sacrifices are performed very gorgeously with grand arrangements for worshiping the goddess Kālī, but such festivals, although performed in the name of yajña, are not actually yajña, for yajña means to satisfy the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Therefore it is recommended that in this age specifically, yajñaiḥ saṅkīrtana-prāyair yajanti hi sumedhasaḥ: (SB 11.5.32) those who have good intelligence satisfy the yajña-puruṣa, Viṣṇu, by chanting the Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra.
The brāhmaṇas should follow the instructions of the Supreme Personality of Godhead as stated in Bhagavad-gītā and other Vedic literatures. The criterion must be guṇa and karma. In other words, one should acquire the qualities of a brāhmaṇa, kṣatriya, vaiśya or śūdra and act accordingly. This is the civilization accepted by the Āryans. Why do they accept it? They accept it because they are very much eager to satisfy Kṛṣṇa. This is perfect civilization.
Being fully aware of how the results of one's karma accrue by the laws of nature, Citraketu did not want to be released from Pārvatī's curse. Nonetheless, he wanted to satisfy her because although his verdict was natural, she was displeased with him. As a matter of course, Mahārāja Citraketu begged pardon from Pārvatī.
Śrī Śukadeva Gosvāmī continued: O King Parīkṣit, subduer of the enemy, after Citraketu satisfied Lord Śiva and his wife, Pārvatī, he boarded his airplane and left as they looked on. When Lord Śiva and Pārvatī saw that Citraketu, although informed of the curse, was unafraid, they smiled, being fully astonished by his behavior.
Thinking in this way (with a desire for a son to kill Indra), Diti began constantly acting to satisfy Kaśyapa by her pleasing behavior. O King, Diti always carried out Kaśyapa's orders very faithfully, as he desired. With service, love, humility and control, with words spoken very sweetly to satisfy her husband, and with smiles and glances at him, Diti attracted his mind and brought it under her control.
The natural instinct of a woman is to enjoy the material world. She induces her husband to enjoy this world by satisfying his tongue, belly and genitals, which are called jihvā, udara and upastha. A woman is expert in cooking palatable dishes so that she can easily satisfy her husband in eating. When one eats nicely, his belly is satisfied, and as soon as the belly is satisfied the genitals become strong.
To satisfy their own interests, women deal with men as if the men were most dear to them, but no one is actually dear to them. Women are supposed to be very saintly, but for their own interests they can kill even their husbands, sons or brothers, or cause them to be killed by others.
A woman's nature has been particularly well studied by Kaśyapa Muni. Women are self-interested by nature, and therefore they should be protected by all means so that their natural inclination to be too self-interested will not be manifested. Women need to be protected by men. A woman should be cared for by her father in her childhood, by her husband in her youth and by her grown sons in her old age. This is the injunction of Manu, who says that a woman should not be given independence at any stage. Women must be cared for so that they will not be free to manifest their natural tendency for gross selfishness. There have been many cases, even in the present day, in which women have killed their husbands to take advantage of their insurance policies. This is not a criticism of women but a practical study of their nature. Such natural instincts of a woman or a man are manifested only in the bodily conception of life. When either a man or a woman is advanced in spiritual consciousness, the bodily conception of life practically vanishes. We should see all women as spiritual units (ahaṁ brahmāsmi), whose only duty is to satisfy Kṛṣṇa. Then the influences of the different modes of material nature, which result from one's possessing a material body, will not act.
One who has this spirit of enjoyment is described as puruṣa. Whether one is a man or a woman, he is not interested in serving others; everyone is interested in satisfying his or her own senses.
When Dhruva Mahārāja saw Lord Viṣṇu, he declined to take any benedictions from Him, for he was fully satisfied by seeing the Lord. Nonetheless, the Lord is so kind that because Dhruva Mahārāja, in the beginning, had desired a kingdom greater than his father's, he was promoted to Dhruvaloka, the best planet in the universe.
Śrī Śukadeva Gosvāmī continued: Diti was extremely satisfied by Indra's good behavior. Then Indra offered his respects to his aunt with profuse obeisances, and with her permission he went away to the heavenly planets with his brothers the Maruts.
The Supreme Personality of Godhead is endowed with all six opulences in full, and moreover He is extremely kind to His devotee. Although He is full in Himself, He nonetheless wants all the living entities to surrender unto Him so that they may engage in His service. Thus He becomes satisfied.
Thereafter, he should satisfy the brāhmaṇas. When the satisfied brāhmaṇas bestow their blessings, he should devotedly offer them respectful obeisances with his head, and with their permission he should take prasāda.
| Page Title: | Satisfied (SB canto 5 and 6) |
| Compiler: | MadhuGopaldas |
| Created: | 13 of Aug, 2010 |
| Totals by Section: | BG=0, SB=124, CC=0, OB=0, Lec=0, Con=0, Let=0 |
| No. of Quotes: | 124 |