Bhagavatapurana 11

English (machine translation) 11

Language: English

11.1 — 24 parts
11.2 — 55 parts
11.3 — 55 parts
11.4 — 23 parts
11.5 — 52 parts
11.6 — 50 parts
11.7 — 74 parts
11.8 — 44 parts
11.9 — 33 parts
11.10 — 37 parts
11.11 — 48 parts
11.12 — 24 parts
11.13 — 42 parts
11.14 — 46 parts
11.15 — 36 parts
11.16 — 44 parts
11.17 — 58 parts
11.18 — 48 parts
11.19 — 45 parts
11.20 — 37 parts
11.21 — 43 parts
11.22 — 61 parts
11.23 — 61 parts
11.24 — 29 parts
11.25 — 36 parts
11.26 — 35 parts
11.27 — 55 parts
11.28 — 44 parts
11.29 — 49 parts
11.30 — 50 parts
11.31 — 28 parts

11.1.1

Śrī Śuka said: / Having slain the demons, Kṛṣṇa, accompanied by Rāma and surrounded by the Yadus, / relieved the burden of the earth, instigating a swift conflict.

11.1.1.p1

Using those sons of Pāṇḍu who had been greatly enraged by their rivals / through the rigged dice match, insult, dragging by the hair, and other wrongs,

11.1.2

as his instrument, and having slain the kings assembled against one another, / the Lord removed the earth's burden.

11.1.2.p2

Having repelled the armies of kings that burdened the earth through the Yadus / who were protected by his own arms, the immeasurable Lord reflected:

11.1.2.p3

Having repelled the armies of kings that burdened the earth through the Yadus / who were protected by his own arms, the immeasurable Lord reflected:

11.1.3

“I consider that although the burden of the earth is gone, it is not truly gone, / for the Yādava family, alas, remains unbearable.

11.1.3.p2

There can never be defeat for it from any other source, / since it is constantly sheltered by me and inflated with power.

11.1.3.p3

There can never be defeat for it from any other source, / since it is constantly sheltered by me and inflated with power.

11.1.4

Engendering internal strife in the Yadu clan, like fire in a bamboo thicket, / I shall attain peace and return to my abode.”

11.1.5

Thus resolved, O king, the all-powerful Lord of true resolve / withdrew his own lineage through the pretext of a curse by brāhmaṇas.

11.1.6

Attracting the eyes of men with his own form that held the essence of the world's beauty, / the minds of those who remembered it with his words, and the actions of those who beheld his footsteps,

11.1.7

and spreading his glorious fame, by which men on earth would easily cross beyond darkness, / the Lord departed to his own abode.

11.1.8

The King said: / How did a curse from brāhmaṇas fall upon the Vṛṣṇis, / who were devoted to brāhmaṇas, generous, ever serving elders, and whose minds were absorbed in Kṛṣṇa?

11.1.9

What was the cause of that curse, and what was it like, O best of the twice-born? / How did division arise among those of one mind? Tell me all this.

Śrī Bādarāyaṇi said: / Bearing a form containing all beauty, performing most auspicious deeds on earth, / his desires fulfilled, resting in his glorious state and taking pleasure there, he of noble renown, / having only this final task remaining, desired to destroy his family.

11.1.11

Having performed righteous, supremely auspicious deeds / that take away the impurities of the Kali age for the singing world, / while dwelling as time itself in the house of the Yadus, he sent the sages, who then went to Piṇḍāraka:

11.1.12

Viśvāmitra, Asita, Kaṇva, / Durvāsas, Bhṛgu, Aṅgiras, / Kaśyapa, Vāmadeva, Atri, / Vasiṣṭha, Nārada, and others.

11.1.13

Playing there, the young princes of the Yadus approached them; / greeting them respectfully, insolent though they were, they asked as if humble.

11.1.14

Having dressed Sāmba, the son of Jāmbavatī, in a woman's attire, / [they said:] “This dark-eyed pregnant woman asks you, O brāhmaṇas:

11.1.15

She is ashamed to ask in person; tell her, O sages of unfailing vision: / about to give birth, desiring a son, what indeed will she bear?”

11.1.16

Tricked in this manner, the enraged sages said to them, O king: / “She will bear for you, fools, an iron club that will destroy your clan!”

11.1.17

Hearing that, utterly terrified, they quickly uncovered the belly / of Sāmba and indeed saw an iron club there.

11.1.18

“What have we unfortunate fools done? What will people say to us?” / Thus distraught, they took the iron club and went home.

11.1.19

Bringing it to the royal assembly, their faces pale, / they reported it to the king in the presence of all the Yādavas.

11.1.20

Hearing of the unfailing curse of the brāhmaṇas and seeing the iron club, O king, / the inhabitants of Dvārakā were astonished and seized with fear.

11.1.21

Having ground that iron club to powder, Āhuka, the king of the Yadus, / cast it into the waters of the ocean, along with the piece of iron that remained.

11.1.22

A certain fish swallowed that piece of iron, and the powdered particles, / carried to the shore by the waves, grew into erakā reeds.

11.1.23

The fish was caught in the ocean by fishermen along with other fish; / a hunter made the piece of iron found inside its belly into an arrowhead.

11.1.24

Even though he knew everything, the Lord did not wish / to undo the curse of the brāhmaṇas; appearing as Time, he consented to it.

11.2.1

Śrī Śuka said: / In Dvāravatī, protected by the arms of Govinda, O best of the Kurus, / Nārada resided constantly, eager to worship Kṛṣṇa.

11.2.2

Who indeed with senses, O king, facing death from all sides, / would not worship the lotus feet of Mukunda, which are adored even by the foremost immortals?

11.2.3

Once, when the divine sage had arrived at his house, / Vasudeva, having worshipped him as he sat comfortably, bowed and spoke thus:

11.2.4

Śrī Vasudeva said: / Lord, your wanderings are for the welfare of all embodied beings, / just as parents are for the wretched, O you who walk the path of He of highest renown.

11.2.5

The deeds of the gods bring both misery and happiness to creatures; / but the deeds of saints like you, whose souls are devoted to Acyuta, bring happiness alone.

11.2.6

In whatever way men worship the gods, the gods reward them in that very way, / like a shadow accompanying actions; but the virtuous are affectionate to the distressed.

11.2.7

Even so, O brāhmaṇa, we ask you about the dharmas taught to the Bhāgavatas, / by hearing which with faith a mortal is liberated from all fear.

11.2.8

Long ago on earth, desiring offspring, I worshipped the infinite Lord / who gives liberation, but not for the sake of liberation, deluded by the Lord's creative power.

11.2.9

Instruct us, O you of noble vows, so that we may easily and truly / be freed by you from this cycle of rebirth with its manifold afflictions and fears from every quarter.

11.2.10

Śrī Śuka said: / Questioned thus by the wise Vasudeva, O king, / the divine sage, pleased, spoke to him, reminded of the virtues of Hari.

11.2.11

The glorious Nārada said:
Proper indeed is this resolve of yours, O bull of the Sātvatas,
in that you ask about the dharmas of the Bhāgavatas, which purify the entire world.

11.2.12

Heard, recited, meditated upon, revered, or approved,
the dharma of the virtuous instantly purifies even those who hate the gods and the universe.

11.2.13

By you has the most auspicious Lord, God Nārāyaṇa,
whose listening and glorification are purifying, been brought to my remembrance today.

11.2.14

Regarding this, they also cite this ancient narrative,
the dialogue between the sons of Ṛṣabha and the great-souled king of Videha.

11.2.15

The son of Svāyambhuva Manu named Priyavrata
had a son Āgnīdhra; from him came Nābhi, and his son is known as Ṛṣabha.

11.2.16

They declare him to be an incarnation of a portion of Vāsudeva, descended with the desire to expound the dharma of liberation.
He had one hundred sons, all masters of the Veda and Brahman.

11.2.17

Among them, Bharata was the eldest, devoted wholly to Nārāyaṇa,
after whose name this wonderful continent is famously called Bhārata.

11.2.18

Having enjoyed earthly pleasures and then renounced them, he went forth and, worshiping Hari
with austerities, attained His abode after three births.

11.2.19

Nine of them became the rulers of the nine divisions all around this land;
eighty-one were twice-born creators of ritual manuals.

11.2.20

Nine were greatly fortunate ascetics who taught the highest truth,
renouncers clad only in the wind, experts in the science of the self:

11.2.21

Kavi, Havir, Antarīkṣa, Prabuddha, Pippalāyana,
Āvirhotra, then Drumila, Camasa, and Karabhājana.

11.2.22

Seeing this universe, composed of being and non-being, as the form of the Lord
and not separate from the self, they wandered over the earth.

11.2.22.p1

With their desired movement unimpeded, through the worlds of gods, Siddhas, Sādhyas,
Gandharvas, Yakṣas, humans, Kinnaras, and Nāgas,

11.2.23

liberated, they wandered at will through the realms of sages, Cāraṇas, the lord of spirits,
Vidyādharas, twice-born sages, and sacred cows.

11.2.23.p1

[…]

11.2.24

Once, by chance, they arrived at the sacrificial session of the great-souled Nimi,
which was being performed by sages in Ajanābha.

11.2.25

Seeing those exalted Bhāgavatas resplendent like the sun, O king,
the sacrificer, the sacred fires, and the priests all rose in reverence.

11.2.26

Recognizing them as devoted wholly to Nārāyaṇa, the king of Videha,
filled with joy, honored them suitably once they were seated.

11.2.27

Shining with their own radiance and resembling the sons of Brahmā,
the king, bowed with humility and exceedingly delighted, questioned the nine:

11.2.28

The glorious king of Videha said:
I consider you to be direct attendants of the Lord who is the foe of Madhu;
for the servants of Viṣṇu wander about to purify all the worlds.

11.2.29

Rare is a human body for embodied beings, and it perishes in a moment;
even rarer than that, I consider, is the sight of those dear to Vaikuṇṭha.

11.2.30

Therefore, O sinless ones, we ask you about the ultimate good;
in this cycle of rebirth, even half a moment's company with virtuous devotees is a great treasure for mortals.

11.2.31

Please speak of the Bhāgavata dharmas, if we are fit to hear them,
pleased by which the Unborn gives even Himself to one who has surrendered.

11.2.32

The glorious Nārada said:
Thus questioned by Nimi, O Vasudeva, those most exalted sages
honored the king, together with his priests and assembly members, and spoke with affection.

11.2.33

The glorious Kavi said:
I consider constant worship of Acyuta's lotus feet to be the place free from all fear in this world,
wherein, for one whose mind is agitated through identifying the self with what is unreal, fear ceases completely through the Self of all.

11.2.34

The means declared by the Lord Himself for attaining the Self
easily by ignorant persons—know those to be the Bhāgavata dharmas.

11.2.35

Relying on these, O king, a person will never go astray;
even running with eyes closed, he would neither stumble nor fall here.

11.2.36

Whatever one does with the body, speech, mind, senses,
intellect, or self, through the impulse of one's nature—all that one should dedicate to the Supreme, thinking: 'This is for Nārāyaṇa.'

11.2.37

Fear arises from absorption in a second [entity]; for one turned away from the Lord there is inversion and loss of memory
due to His creative power. Therefore, recognizing the guru as his deity and self, the wise person should worship the Lord with unswerving devotion.

11.2.38

Even though absent, duality appears to the mind of the meditator like a dream or a daydream;
therefore, the wise person should restrain the mind that imagines and projects karma; thence fearlessness will arise.

11.2.39

Hearing of the most auspicious births and deeds of the Wielder of the Discus in this world,
and singing the sacred names that celebrate them, free from shame and unattached, one should wander.

11.2.40

Keeping such a vow, with affection awakened by chanting the names of his beloved, his heart melted,
he laughs aloud, weeps, shouts, sings, and dances like a madman, transcending worldly ways.

11.2.41

Space, wind, fire, water, earth,
the heavenly bodies, living beings, the directions, trees and the rest,
the rivers and oceans, and whatever entity exists—he should bow to them all as the body of Hari, with undivided devotion.

11.2.42

Devotion, direct experience of the Supreme Lord, and detachment from all else—this triad occurs simultaneously
for one who surrenders, just as satisfaction, nourishment, and relief from hunger occur with every morsel eaten.

11.2.43

Thus, to the Bhāgavata who continually serves Acyuta's feet,
devotion, detachment, and knowledge of the Lord arise, O king;
and from that he attains supreme peace directly.

11.2.44

The glorious king said:
Now tell of the Bhāgavata among humans: what his dharma is, what he is like,
how he behaves, what he says, and by what marks one is dear to the Lord.

11.2.45

The glorious Havir said:
He who sees the Lord's presence in all beings,
and sees all beings within the Lord and within himself—he is the highest Bhāgavata.

11.2.46

He who maintains love toward the Lord, friendship toward His dependents,
compassion toward the ignorant, and indifference toward those who hate—he is an intermediate devotee.

11.2.47

He who desires to offer worship with faith only to Hari in an image,
and not to His devotees or others—he is considered a novice devotee.

11.2.48

Even when perceiving sense objects with the senses, he who neither hates nor rejoices,
seeing this as the creative power of Viṣṇu—he indeed is the highest Bhāgavata.

11.2.49

He who, by remembering Hari, is not bewildered by the attributes of the cycle of rebirth—
birth and decay, hunger, fear, thirst, and distress—pertaining to body, senses, vital breath, mind, and intellect,
is foremost among Bhāgavatas.

11.2.50

In whose mind the seeds of desire and karma do not arise,
and whose only refuge is Vāsudeva—he indeed is the highest Bhāgavata.

11.2.51

He whose notion of 'I' does not attach to this body
through birth or deeds, nor through class, life-stage, or caste—he indeed is dear to Hari.

11.2.52

He who sees no distinction of 'mine' and 'another's' in possessions or in oneself,
equal toward all beings and tranquil—he indeed is the highest Bhāgavata.

11.2.52.p1

Whose remembrance is unswerving, even for the sake of the sovereignty of the three worlds,
from the lotus feet of the Lord, sought after by gods and others who have not conquered themselves,

11.2.53

and who does not stray [from them] for even half the blink of an eye—he is the foremost of Vaiṣṇavas.

11.2.53.p1

[…]

11.2.54

In a heart whose burning anguish has been dispelled by the moonlight of the gem-like nails on the toes of the Lord of wide strides,
how could that distress ever rise again, just as the sun's burning heat cannot when the moon has risen?

11.2.55

Whose heart Hari never leaves—Hari who destroys the flood of sins even when uttered involuntarily—
his lotus feet held fast by the cord of love: he is declared the foremost Bhāgavata.

11.3.1

The king said:
We wish to know the creative power of the supreme Viṣṇu, the Ruler, which deludes even the masters of illusion;
may you, my lords, explain it to us.

11.3.2

Drinking your speech, the nectar of discourses on Hari,
I can never have enough—I, a mortal scorched by the burning torment of the cycle of rebirth, [finding] the medicine for that torment.

11.3.3

Śrī Antarīkṣa said:
By means of these gross elements, the Primeval One, the Self of all beings, O mighty-armed king,
created beings high and low, so that their senses might experience their objects and realise the self.

11.3.4

Having entered the beings thus created along with the five elements,
dividing himself into one [mind] and ten [faculties], he experiences the sense-objects.

11.3.5

Enjoying the sense-objects through the senses illumined by himself, the master,
imagining this created [body] to be the self, becomes attached here.

11.3.6

Performing motivated actions through the organs of action, the embodied soul,
reaping the diverse fruits of those actions, wanders here experiencing happiness and its opposite.

11.3.7

Proceeding thus along paths of action that bring many misfortunes,
a person helplessly undergoes creation and dissolution until the universal dissolution of elements.

11.3.8

When the dissolution of the elements draws near, time, having no beginning and no end,
withdraws the manifest world composed of substances and qualities back into the unmanifest.

11.3.9

A terrible drought lasting a hundred years will occur on earth;
the sun, with heat intensified at that time, will scorch the three worlds.

11.3.10

Beginning from the base of Pātāla, the fire from the mouth of Saṅkarṣaṇa,
burning with flames directed upward, grows on all sides, fanned by the wind.

11.3.11

The Saṃvartaka clouds pour rain for a hundred years
with torrents like elephants' trunks, and the cosmic body dissolves in the water.

11.3.12

Then, having abandoned the cosmic body, the cosmic person, O king,
enters the subtle unmanifest, like a fire without fuel.

11.3.13

Earth, its fragrance stripped away by wind, turns into water;
water, its taste stripped away, is transformed into light.

11.3.14

Light, its form stripped away by darkness, dissolves into air;
air, its touch stripped away by space, dissolves into space;
space, its quality stripped away by time as the Supreme Self, dissolves into the cosmic ego.

11.3.15

The senses, mind, and intellect, along with the deities of the senses, O king,
enter the ego, and the ego, along with its qualities, enters the cosmic intellect.

11.3.16

This is the creative power of the Lord, bringing about creation, maintenance, and destruction;
endowed with the three guṇas, it has been described by us. What more do you wish to hear?

11.3.17

The king said:
O great sage, please explain how those of dull intellect
may easily cross over this divine creative power, insurmountable for those who have not subdued themselves.

11.3.18

Śrī Prabuddha said:
One should observe the reversal of results among human beings living in couples,
who undertake actions to destroy suffering and attain happiness.

11.3.19

With wealth that constantly causes misery, is hard to obtain, and brings death to oneself,
and with home, children, kin, and cattle—fleeting things acquired with it—what true joy can there be?

11.3.20

Likewise one should understand the other world, fashioned by action, to be perishable,
marred by rivalry with equals, jealousy of superiors, and eventual destruction, like the realms of tributary kings.

11.3.21

Therefore, desiring to know the highest good, one should take refuge in a guru
who is versed in the scriptures and the supreme Brahman, and established in tranquility.

11.3.22

Under him, regarding the guru as one's self and deity, one should learn the dharmas of the Bhāgavatas
with sincere service, by which Hari, the Self who gives himself, is pleased.

11.3.23

First detachment of the mind from everything, and association with virtuous devotees;
compassion, friendliness, and proper humility toward beings, truly as is appropriate;

11.3.24

cleanliness, austerity, forbearance, silence, self-study of scripture, uprightness,
celibacy, non-violence, and equanimity toward the pairs of opposites;

11.3.25

seeing the Lord as the Self everywhere, solitude, homelessness,
wearing rags found in secluded places, and contentment with whatever comes;

11.3.26

faith in the Bhāgavata scripture and never speaking ill of other [scriptures],
control of mind, speech, and action, truthfulness, and control of the internal and external senses;

11.3.27

listening to, glorifying, and meditating upon the births, deeds, and qualities
of Hari of wondrous deeds, and dedicating all endeavors to him;

11.3.28

offering to the Supreme whatever is sacrificed, given in charity, performed as austerity, chanted, or practiced,
whatever is dear to oneself, one's wife, children, home, and vital breath;

11.3.29

friendship toward those who take Kṛṣṇa as their self and lord, and toward all human beings,
and service rendered to both—to exalted devotees and virtuous people;

11.3.30

mutual discourse on the purifying renown of the Lord,
mutual loving attachment, mutual satisfaction, and mutual pacification of the mind;

11.3.31

remembering and reminding one another of Hari, who takes away the flood of sins,
they bear bodies with hairs standing on end through devotion born of devotion.

11.3.31.p1

Sometimes they weep in contemplation of Acyuta, sometimes they laugh, rejoice, and speak in ways beyond this world;

11.3.32

they dance, sing, contemplate the Unborn,
and, having attained the Supreme, they become quiet and filled with bliss.

11.3.32.p1

[…]

11.3.33

Learning thus the dharmas of the Bhāgavatas through the devotion arising therefrom,
devoted to Nārāyaṇa, one easily crosses over the insurmountable creative power.

11.3.34

The king said:
You are indeed the foremost knowers of Brahman; you ought to tell us
of the ultimate nature of the Supreme Self, Brahman, known by the name of Nārāyaṇa.

11.3.35

Śrī Pippalāyana said:
That which is the uncaused cause of the origination, maintenance, and dissolution of this [universe],
which is present in dreaming, waking, and deep sleep, as well as beyond them,
and by which the body, senses, vital breaths, and heart function when enlivened—know that, O king, to be the Supreme.

11.3.36

Mind does not enter this, nor speech, sight, the intellect, / the life-breaths, or the senses, just as sparks cannot enter fire. / Even Vedic word, by negating everything it can express, points to its own source / by implication, for without that source no negation can be established.

11.3.37

Purity, passion, and darkness—this threefold one in the beginning, / which they call the thread, the great principle, the ego, and the individual soul; / by appearing as knowledge, action, objects, and results, through its vast powers, / it is Brahman alone that shines as both cause and effect, and that which is beyond both.

11.3.38

The self was never born, will never die, does not grow, / and does not decay, for it is the witness of the changes of all changing things; / everywhere, constant, never departing, it is pure consciousness, / conceived as manifold through the power of the senses, just as the life-breath appears divided.

11.3.39

Into eggs, wombs, trees, and those born of moisture, the life-breath follows the living being wherever it goes. / When the host of senses has dissolved and the ego is asleep, / the unchanging self remains free from the subtle body; that is our recollection.

Translations (1)

The Srimad Bhagavatam — S. Subba Rau 1928, English

Commentaries (1)

Padaratnāvalī — Vijayadhvaja Tīrtha, Sanskrit

Linked texts (1)

Bhāgavatapurāṇa — Vyāsa, Sanskrit

Bhagavatapurana 11

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