|
07-18-2008, 03:14 AM
After receiving the sage’s attention, the King sat down and was silent. Recalling the instructions of the Lord, Kardama then spoke to the King as follows, delighting him with his sweet accents.<?xml:namespace prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:" /><o:p></o:p>
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------<o:p></o:p>
The tour you have undertaken, O lord, is surely intended to protect the virtuous and kill the demons, since you embody the protecting energy of Çré Hari.<o:p></o:p>
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------<o:p></o:p>
You assume, when necessary, the part of the sun-god; the moon-god; Agni, the god of fire; Indra, the lord of paradise; Väyu, the wind-god; Yama, the god of punishment; Dharma, the god of piety; and Varuëa, the god presiding over the waters. All obeisances to you, who are none other than Lord Viñëu!<o:p></o:p>
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------<o:p></o:p>
If you did not mount your victorious jeweled chariot, whose mere presence threatens culprits, if you did not produce fierce sounds by the twanging of your bow, and if you did not roam about the world like the brilliant sun, leading a huge army whose trampling feet cause the globe of the earth to tremble, then all the moral laws governing the varëas and äçramas created by the Lord Himself would be broken by the rogues and rascals.<o:p></o:p>
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------<o:p></o:p>
If you gave up all thought of the world’s situation, unrighteousness would flourish, for men who hanker only after money would be unopposed. Such miscreants would attack, and the world would perish.<o:p></o:p>
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------<o:p></o:p>
In spite of all this, I ask you, O valiant King, the purpose for which you have come here. Whatever it may be, we shall carry it out without reservation.<o:p></o:p>
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------<o:p></o:p>
Çré Maitreya said: After describing the greatness of the Emperor’s manifold qualities and activities, the sage became silent, and the Emperor, feeling modesty, addressed him as follows.<o:p></o:p>
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------<o:p></o:p>
Manu replied: To expand himself in Vedic knowledge, Lord Brahmä, the personified Veda, from his face created you, the brähmaëas, who are full of austerity, knowledge and mystic power and are averse to sense gratification.<o:p></o:p>
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------<o:p></o:p>
For the protection of the brähmaëas, the thousand-legged Supreme Being created us, the kñatriyas, from His thousand arms. Hence the brähmaëas are said to be His heart and the kñatriyas His arms.<o:p></o:p>
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------<o:p></o:p>
That is why the brähmaëas and kñatriyas protect each other, as well as themselves; and the Lord Himself, who is both the cause and effect and is yet immutable, protects them through each other.<o:p></o:p>
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------<o:p></o:p>
Now I have resolved all my doubts simply by meeting you, for Your Lordship has very kindly and clearly explained the duty of a king who desires to protect his subjects.<o:p></o:p>
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------<o:p></o:p>
It is my good fortune that I have been able to see you, for you cannot easily be seen by persons who have not subdued the mind or controlled the senses. I am all the more fortunate to have touched with my head the blessed dust of your feet.<o:p></o:p>
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------<o:p></o:p>
I have fortunately been instructed by you, and thus great favor has been bestowed upon me. I thank God that I have listened with open ears to your pure words.<o:p></o:p>
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------<o:p></o:p>
O great sage, graciously be pleased to listen to the prayer of my humble self, for my mind is troubled by affection for my daughter.<o:p></o:p>
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------<o:p></o:p>
My daughter is the sister of Priyavrata and Uttänapäda. She is seeking a suitable husband in terms of age, character and good qualities.<o:p></o:p>
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------<o:p></o:p>
The moment she heard from the sage Närada of your noble character, learning, beautiful appearance, youth and other virtues, she fixed her mind upon you.<o:p></o:p>
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------<o:p></o:p>
Therefore please accept her, O chief of the brähmaëas, for I offer her with faith and she is in every respect fit to be your wife and take charge of your household duties.<o:p></o:p>
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------<o:p></o:p>
To deny an offering that has come of itself is not commendable even for one absolutely free from all attachment, much less one addicted to sensual pleasure.<o:p></o:p>
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------<o:p></o:p>
One who rejects an offering that comes of its own accord but later begs a boon from a miser thus loses his widespread reputation, and his pride is humbled by the neglectful behavior of others.<o:p></o:p>
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------<o:p></o:p>
Sväyambhuva Manu continued: O wise man, I heard that you were prepared to marry. Please accept her hand, which is being offered to you by me, since you have not taken a vow of perpetual celibacy.<o:p></o:p>
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------<o:p></o:p>
The great sage replied: Certainly I have a desire to marry, and your daughter has not yet married or given her word to anyone. Therefore our marriage according to the Vedic system can take place.<o:p></o:p>
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------<o:p></o:p>
Let your daughter’s desire for marriage, which is recognized in the Vedic scriptures, be fulfilled. Who would not accept her hand? She is so beautiful that by her bodily luster alone she excels the beauty of her ornaments.<o:p></o:p>
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------<o:p></o:p>
I have heard that Viçvävasu, the great Gandharva, his mind stupefied with infatuation, fell from his airplane after seeing your daughter playing with a ball on the roof of the palace, for she was indeed beautiful with her tinkling ankle bells and her eyes moving to and fro.<o:p></o:p>
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------<o:p></o:p>
What wise man would not welcome her, the very ornament of womanhood, the beloved daughter of Sväyambhuva Manu and sister of Uttänapäda? Those who have not worshiped the gracious feet of the goddess of fortune cannot even perceive her, yet she has come of her own accord to seek my hand.<o:p></o:p>
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------<o:p></o:p>
Therefore I shall accept this chaste girl as my wife, on the condition that after she bears semen from my body, I shall accept the life of devotional service accepted by the most perfect human beings. That process was described by Lord Viñëu. It is free from envy.<o:p></o:p>
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------<o:p></o:p>
The highest authority for me is the unlimited Supreme Personality of Godhead, from whom this wonderful creation emanates and in whom its sustenance and dissolution rest. He is the origin of all Prajäpatis, the personalities meant to produce living entities in this world.<o:p></o:p>
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------<o:p></o:p>
Çré Maitreya said: O great warrior Vidura, the sage Kardama said this much only and then became silent, thinking of his worshipable Lord Viñëu, who has a lotus on His navel. As he silently smiled, his face captured the mind of Devahüti, who began to meditate upon the great sage.<o:p></o:p>
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------<o:p></o:p>
After having unmistakably known the decision of the Queen, as well as that of Devahüti, the Emperor most gladly gave his daughter to the sage, whose host of virtues was equaled by hers.<o:p></o:p>
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------<o:p></o:p>
Empress Çatarüpä lovingly gave most valuable presents, suitable for the occasion, such as jewelry, clothes and household articles, in dowry to the bride and bridegroom.<o:p></o:p>
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------<o:p></o:p>
Thus relieved of his responsibility by handing over his daughter to a suitable man, Sväyambhuva Manu, his mind agitated by feelings of separation, embraced his affectionate daughter with both his arms.<o:p></o:p>
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------<o:p></o:p>
The Emperor was unable to bear the separation of his daughter. Therefore tears poured from his eyes again and again, drenching his daughter’s head as he cried, “My dear mother! My dear daughter!”<o:p></o:p>
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------<o:p></o:p>
After asking and obtaining the great sage’s permission to leave, the monarch mounted his chariot with his wife and started for his capital, followed by his retinue. Along the way he saw the prosperity of the tranquil seers’ beautiful hermitages on both the charming banks of the Sarasvaté, the river so agreeable to saintly persons.<o:p></o:p>
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------<o:p></o:p>
Overjoyed to know of his arrival, his subjects came forth from Brahmävarta to greet their returning lord with songs, prayers and musical instruments.<o:p></o:p>
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------<o:p></o:p>
The city of ffice:smarttags" />Barhiñmaté, rich in all kinds of wealth, was so called because Lord Viñëu’s hair dropped there from His body when He manifested Himself as Lord Boar. As He shook His body, this very hair fell and turned into blades of evergreen kuça grass and käça [another kind of grass used for mats], by means of which the sages worshiped Lord Viñëu after defeating the demons who had interfered with the performance of their sacrifices.<o:p></o:p>
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------<o:p></o:p>
Manu spread a seat of kuças and käças and worshiped the Lord, the Personality of Godhead, by whose grace he had obtained the rule of the terrestrial globe.<o:p></o:p>
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------<o:p></o:p>
Having entered the city of <?xml:namespace prefix = st1 ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com <st1:place w:st=" /><st1:place w:st="on"><st1:City w:st="on">Barhiñmaté</st1:City></st1:place>, in which he had previously lived, Manu entered his palace, which was filled with an atmosphere that eradicated the three miseries of material existence.<o:p></o:p>
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------<o:p></o:p>
Emperor Sväyambhuva Manu enjoyed life with his wife and subjects and fulfilled his desires without being disturbed by unwanted principles contrary to the process of religion. Celestial musicians and their wives sang in chorus about the pure reputation of the Emperor, and early in the morning, every day, he used to listen to the pastimes of the Supreme Personality of Godhead with a loving heart.<o:p></o:p>
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------<o:p></o:p>
Thus Sväyambhuva Manu was a saintly king. Although absorbed in material happiness, he was not dragged to the lowest grade of life, for he always enjoyed his material happiness in a Kåñëa conscious atmosphere.<o:p></o:p>
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------<o:p></o:p>
Consequently, although his duration of life gradually came to an end, his long life, consisting of a Manvantara era, was not spent in vain, since he ever engaged in hearing, contemplating, writing down and chanting the pastimes of the Lord.<o:p></o:p>
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------<o:p></o:p>
He passed his time, which lasted seventy-one cycles of the four ages [71 x 4,320,000 years], always thinking of Väsudeva and always engaged in matters regarding Väsudeva. Thus he transcended the three destinations.<o:p></o:p>
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------<o:p></o:p>
Therefore, O Vidura, how can persons completely under the shelter of Lord Kåñëa in devotional service be put into miseries pertaining to the body, the mind, nature, and other men and living creatures?<o:p></o:p>
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------<o:p></o:p>
In reply to questions asked by certain sages, he [Sväyambhuva Manu], out of compassion for all living entities, taught the diverse sacred duties of men in general and the different varëas and äçramas.<o:p></o:p>
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------<o:p></o:p>
I have spoken to you of the wonderful character of Sväyambhuva Manu, the original king, whose reputation is worthy of description. Please hear as I speak of the flourishing of his daughter Devahüti.<o:p></o:p>
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------<o:p></o:p>
Maitreya continued: After the departure of her parents, the chaste woman Devahüti, who could understand the desires of her husband, served him constantly with great love, as Bhaväné, the wife of Lord Çiva, serves her husband.<o:p></o:p>
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------<o:p></o:p>
O Vidura, Devahüti served her husband with intimacy and great respect, with control of the senses, with love and with sweet words.<o:p></o:p>
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------<o:p></o:p>
Working sanely and diligently, she pleased her very powerful husband, giving up all lust, pride, envy, greed, sinful activities and vanity.<o:p></o:p>
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------<o:p></o:p>
The daughter of Manu, who was fully devoted to her husband, looked upon him as greater even than providence. Thus she expected great blessings from him. Having served him for a long time, she grew weak and emaciated due to her religious observances. Seeing her condition, Kardama, the foremost of celestial sages, was overcome with compassion and spoke to her in a voice choked with great love.<o:p></o:p>
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------<o:p></o:p>
Kardama Muni said: O respectful daughter of Sväyambhuva Manu, today I am very much pleased with you for your great devotion and most excellent loving service. Since the body is so dear to embodied beings, I am astonished that you have neglected your own body to use it on my behalf.<o:p></o:p>
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------<o:p></o:p>
Kardama Muni continued: I have achieved the blessings of the Lord in discharging my own religious life of austerity, meditation and Kåñëa consciousness. Although you have not yet experienced these achievements, which are free from fear and lamentation, I shall offer them all to you because you are engaged in my service. Now just look at them. I am giving you the transcendental vision to see how nice they are.<o:p></o:p>
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------<o:p></o:p>
Kardama Muni continued: What is the use of enjoyments other than the Lord’s grace? All material achievements are subject to be annihilated simply by a movement of the eyebrows of Lord Viñëu, the Supreme Personality of Godhead. By your principles of devotion to your husband, you have achieved and can enjoy transcendental gifts very rarely obtained by persons proud of aristocracy and material possessions.<o:p></o:p>
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------<o:p></o:p>
Upon hearing the speaking of her husband, who excelled in knowledge of all kinds of transcendental science, innocent Devahüti was very satisfied. Her smiling face shining with a slightly bashful glance, she spoke in a choked voice because of great humility and love.<o:p></o:p>
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------<o:p></o:p>
Çré Devahüti said: My dear husband, O best of brähmaëas, I know that you have achieved perfection and are the master of all the infallible mystic powers because you are under the protection of yogamäyä, the transcendental nature. But you once made a promise that our bodily union should now fulfill, since children are a great quality for a chaste woman who has a glorious husband.<o:p></o:p>
|