SB Canto 1 Chapter 13 Dhritarastra Quits Home

1. SB Canto 1 Chapter 13 Dhritarastra Quits Home by Veda Narayana dasa

2. Based on the Teachings of His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada

3. SB 1.2.4narayanam namaskrtyanaram caiva narottamamdevim sarasvatim vyasamtato jayam udirayet Before reciting this Srimad-Bhagavatam, which is the very means of conquest, one should offer respectful obeisances unto the Personality of Godhead, Narayana, unto Nara-Narayana Rsi, the supermost human being, unto mother Sarasvati, the goddess of learning, and unto Srila Vyasadeva, the author.

4. SB 1.2.18nasta-prayesvabhadresunityambhagavata-sevayabhagavatyuttama-slokebhaktirbhavatinaisthiki By regular attendance in classes on the Bhagavatam and by rendering of service to the pure devotee, all that is troublesome to the heart is almost completely destroyed, and loving service unto the Personality of Godhead, who is praised with transcendental songs, is established as an irrevocable fact.

5. Chapter 13: Dritarashtra quits home 1.13.49-60 Position of Krishna Where is Dritarashtra & Gandhari? Dritarashtra Performing Ashtanga Yoga 49 50 51 52 53 54 55 56 Liberation of Dritarashtra & Gandhari Vidura goes to Pilgrimage Sage Narada Leaves 60 57 58 59

6. Sri Krishna in the guise of Time - 1.13.49 • so 'yam adya mahārāja • bhagavān bhūta-bhāvanaḥ • kāla-rūpo 'vatīrṇo 'syām • abhāvāya sura-dviṣām • That Supreme Personality of Godhead, Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa, in the guise of all-devouring time [kāla-rūpa] has now descended on earth to eliminate the envious from the world. • Purport • Two kinds of Living Entities • Suras: Obedient & Not contaminated by materialistic conception of life • Asuras : Envious of • 1. Lord (Deny the existence of Lord), 2. Envious of all other L.E • Krishna is seen as • – All blissful personality by Suras • – Kala Rupa – Causal Form as death for Asuras • Not at all pleasing to the asuras - therefore they think of the Lord as formless in order to feel secure that they will not be vanquished by the Lord.

7. Time is Krishna • BG 10.30 - kālaḥ kalayatām aham: among subduers I am time • BG 11.32: Time I am, the great destroyer of the worlds, and I have come here to destroy all people. With the exception of you [the Pāṇḍavas] • SB 4.24.65: • sa eṣa lokān aticaṇḍa-vego • vikarṣasi tvaḿ khalu kāla-yānaḥ • bhūtāni bhūtair anumeya-tattvo • ghanāvalīr vāyur ivāviṣahyaḥ • My dear Lord, Your absolute authority cannot be directly experienced, but one can guess by seeing the activities of the world that everything is being destroyed in due course of time. The force of time is very strong, and everything is being destroyed by something else — just as one animal is being eaten by another animal. Time scatters everything, exactly as the wind scatters clouds in the sky. • SB 4.22.36: īśa-vidhvaḿsitāśiṣām

8. Krsna personally meets the devotees Krsna meets the non-devotees as Death…..

9. Time is Krishna yatra nirviṣṭam araṇaḿ kṛtānto nābhimanyate viśvaḿ vidhvaḿsayan vīrya- śaurya-visphūrjita-bhruvā [SB 4.24.56] • Simply by expansion of His eyebrows, invincible time personified can immediately vanquish the entire universe. However, formidable time does not approach the devotee who has taken complete shelter at Your lotus feet. • but he has nothing to do with the devotee. • Application: Devotional service which is rendered by the devotee in this lifetime can never be destroyed by time. Such spiritual assets remain unchanged, being beyond the influence of time.

10. Lord Sri Krishna’s Mission - 1.13.50 • niṣpāditaḿ deva-kṛtyam • avaśeṣaḿ pratīkṣate • tāvad yūyam avekṣadhvaḿ • bhaved yāvad iheśvaraḥ • The Lord has already performed His duties to help the demigods, and He is awaiting the rest. You Pāṇḍavas may wait as long as the Lord is here on earth. • Purport • Imitation Gods – Too many Asuras – becomes Hell – Lord Descends • Nārada, like Vidura, indirectly gave a hint to the King and his brothers to wait till the incident happened and the Lord departed.

11. Location of Dritarashtra 1.13.51 dhṛtarāṣṭraḥ saha bhrātrā gāndhāryā ca sva-bhāryayā dakṣiṇena himavata ṛṣīṇām āśramaḿ gataḥ O King, your uncle Dhṛtarāṣṭra, his brother Vidura and his wife Gāndhārī have gone to the southern side of the Himalaya Mountains, wherethere are shelters of the great sages.

12. Location of Dritarashtra 1.13.52 srotobhiḥ saptabhir yā vai svardhunī saptadhā vyadhāt saptānāḿ prītaye nānā sapta-srotaḥ pracakṣate The place is called Saptasrota ["divided by seven"] because there the waters of the sacred Ganges were divided into seven branches. Thiswas done for the satisfaction of the seven great ṛṣis.

13. Dritarashtra Performs Astanga Yoga- 1.13.53 snātvānusavanaḿ tasmin hutvā cāgnīn yathā-vidhi ab-bhakṣa upaśāntātmā sa āste vigataiṣaṇaḥ On the banks at Saptasrota, Dhṛtarāṣṭra is now engaged in beginning aṣṭāńga-yoga by bathing three times daily, in the morning, noon and evening, by performing the Agni-hotra sacrifice with fire and by drinking only water. This helps one control the mind and the senses and frees one completely from thoughts of familial affection. Purport 1.Material association and education: we learn simply to concentrate on flimsy things, 2.Yoga : is the process of forgetting them altogether. 3.Modern so-called yogīs and yoga systems manifest some magical feats: Actual goal is to forget all we learned in the whole struggle from time immemorial. 4.Yogi & Bhogi

14. Dritarashtra Performs Astanga Yoga- 1.13.54 jitāsano jita-śvāsaḥ pratyāhṛta-ṣaḍ-indriyaḥ hari-bhāvanayā dhvasta- rajaḥ-sattva-tamo-malaḥ One who has controlled the sitting postures [the yogic āsanas] and the breathing process can turn the senses toward the Absolute Personality of Godhead and thus become immune to the contaminations of the modes of material nature, namely mundane goodness, passion and ignorance. Purport Goodness: Still hard to control the senses - what to speak of passion/ignorance How to transcend: By bhakti-yoga process, Pratyāhāra: This process of turning the senses from M.A to loving transcendental service Samādhi: Absorption in pleasing the Supreme Lord Hari by all means. Application: Try to increase your Devotional Service to get closer to samadhi.

15. Dritarashtra Performs Astanga Yoga- 1.13.55 vijñānātmani saḿyojya kṣetrajñe pravilāpya tam brahmaṇy ātmānam ādhāre ghaṭāmbaram ivāmbare Dhṛtarāṣṭra will have to amalgamate his pure identity with intelligence and then merge into the Supreme Being with knowledge of his qualitative oneness, as a living entity, with the Supreme Brahman. Being freed from the blocked sky, he will have to rise to the spiritual sky. Purport 1. Process of Liberation (L.E - Mahat Tattva - Spiritual world) 2. Conditioned Soul & Pure Devotee (Liberated Soul)

16. Dritarashtra Performs Astanga Yoga- 1.13.56 dhvasta-māyā-guṇodarko niruddha-karaṇāśayaḥ nivartitākhilāhāra āste sthāṇur ivācalaḥ tasyāntarāyo maivābhūḥ sannyastākhila-karmaṇaḥ He will have to suspend all the actions of the senses, even from the outside, and will have to be impervious to interactions of the senses, which are influenced by the modes of material nature. After renouncing all material duties, he must become immovably established, beyond all sources of hindrances on the path. Purport Guna & Nirguna: spiritual quality is distinguished from its material counterpart by the word nirguṇa. Bhakti : Action dictated by the spiritual modes is called devotional service Bhakti is therefore nirguṇa attained by direct contact with the Absolute.

17. Dritarashtra quits his Body- 1.13.57 sa vā adyatanād rājan parataḥ pañcame 'hani kalevaraḿ hāsyati svaḿ tac ca bhasmī-bhaviṣyati O King, he will quit his body, most probably on the fifth day from today. And his body will turn to ashes. Purport No need for funeral - self made fire

18. Gandhari Entering the Fire - 1.13.58 dahyamāne 'gnibhir dehe patyuḥ patnī sahoṭaje bahiḥ sthitā patiḿ sādhvī tam agnim anu vekṣyati While outside observing her husband, who will burn in the fire of mystic power along with his thatched cottage, his chaste wife will enter the fire with rapt attention. Purport Sati - volunatary not by force

19. Vidura’s mixed emotions - 1.13.59 • viduras tu tad āścaryaḿ • niśāmya kuru-nandana • harṣa-śoka-yutas tasmād • gantā tīrtha-niṣevakaḥ • Vidura, being affected with delight and grief, will then leave that place of sacred pilgrimage. • Purport Vidura Was both Happy & Sorry: • Happy: Brother got liberated • Sorry: Brother did not become a pure devotee (due to offence against the Pandavas (devotees) • Application • Never commit Vaishnava Aparadha • Beg Forgiveness - Serve devotees

20. Vidura’s mixed emotions - 1.13.60 • ity uktvāthāruhat svargaḿ • nāradaḥ saha-tumburuḥ • yudhiṣṭhiro vacas tasya • hṛdi kṛtvājahāc chucaḥ • Having spoken thus, the great sage Nārada, along with his vīṇā, ascended into outer space. Yudhiṣṭhira kept his instruction in his heart and so was able to get rid of all lamentations. • Purport Want to see Narada Muni? • Be Pious & Follow in the footsteps of Narada muni. • ApplicationDevotee Association

21. Chapter 13: Dritarashtra quits home 1.13.49-60 Summary Position of Krishna Where is Dritarashtra & Gandhari? Dritarashtra Performing Ashtanga Yoga 49 50 51 52 53 54 55 56 Liberation of Dritarashtra & Gandhari Vidura goes to Pilgrimage Sage Narada Leaves 60 57 58 59

22. Take home • Time is Krishna • Increase your time for Krishna • Decrease your material attachments/desires (Isa Vidhvamsitasisam) • Devotional Service rendered is never checked by Time • Importance of Association • Prthu Maharaja/Druva Maharaja/Lord Shiva’s prayers (SB 4.24.58) • Imbibe the mood of Vidura • Be sincere servant of Lord Caitanhya • Give Association to others who need it SrilaPrabhupadaUvaca I met Hari Sauri the other day here and he told me that Prabhupada once took his hand and asked him: "Do you know the secret?" Then he said: "The secret is that preaching is much more important than bhajan.“ : From Prithu Prabhu in Vrindavana • Example: Madhava Chandra Prabhu & all of you… • SB 4.24.45-46

23. References • HH Romapada Maharaja’s lecture – 1.13.45-60 • Unveling the Lotus Feet – By Bhurijana Prabhu

24. Srila Prabhupada kijaya!!!