Bhagavatapurana 11.26

English (machine translation) 11.26

Language: English

11.26.1

The Lord said:
Having obtained this body endowed with my characteristics and established in my dharma,
one attains me, the Supreme Self, bliss residing within the self.

Liberated by steadfastness in knowledge from the womb of the soul made of the guṇas,
even while dwelling among the guṇas that are perceived as mere māyā and unreal in truth,
the person is not bound by the unreal guṇas.

11.26.3

One should never keep company with the unrighteous who satisfy only their genitals and bellies;
following such a person, one falls into blinding darkness, like a blind man led by a blind man.

11.26.4

Emperor Aila of great fame sang this song
when, bewildered by separation from Urvaśī and disgusted [with worldly life], he checked his grief:

11.26.5

As she left, abandoning him, the distraught king followed her naked like a madman,
lamenting, 'O wife, terrible one, stay!'

11.26.6

Insatiable, enjoying trivial pleasures for years of nights,
with his consciousness captivated by Urvaśī, he did not know them passing or arriving.

11.26.7

Aila said:
'Alas, the extent of my delusion, my mind defiled by lust!
With my neck embraced by the goddess, these fragments of life were not noticed by me.

11.26.8

Deceived by her, I did not know whether the sun set or rose;
alas, indeed, the days of many years have passed!

11.26.9

Alas, my self-delusion, by which I made myself the plaything of women,
though an emperor, the crest-jewel of rulers among men!

11.26.10

Abandoning myself and my royal power like a blade of grass,
I pursued a departing woman, naked, weeping like a madman.

11.26.11

Whence could there be majesty, splendor, or even sovereignty for him
who pursued a departing woman, kicked with her foot like a donkey?

11.26.12

What is the use of learning, what of austerity, what of renunciation or scriptural study,
what of solitude and silence, for one whose mind is stolen by women?

11.26.13

Fie on me, ignorant of my own true good, a fool imagining myself wise,
who, having attained sovereignty, was conquered by women like an ox or a donkey!

11.26.14

Though I enjoyed the nectar of Urvaśī's lower lip for many years,
innate lust is not satisfied, just as fire is not satisfied by oblations.

11.26.15

Who else indeed has the power to free the mind stolen by a wanton woman,
except the Lord, Adhokṣaja, master of those who delight in the self?

11.26.16

Though instructed by the goddess with well-spoken words,
the great delusion dwelling in the mind of foolish, uncontrolled me does not depart.

11.26.17

What harm was done to us by her, or by a rope to one whose mind imagines a snake,
when I, the perceiver ignorant of my own nature, did not conquer my senses?

11.26.18

Where is this filthy body, of the nature of foul odor and other impurities,
and where are virtues such as fragrance and beauty? This superimposition is made through ignorance!

11.26.19

Is it the property of the parents, of the wife, of the master, of fire, of dogs and vultures,
of the self, or of friends? Thus one cannot definitively determine.

11.26.20

To that impure body, which culminates in worthlessness, one becomes attached:
'Oh, how lovely, how well-nosed, how smiling is the face of this woman!'

11.26.21

In this assemblage of skin, flesh, blood, sinew, fat, marrow, and bone,
what difference is there between those who take pleasure in feces, urine, and pus, and worms?

11.26.22

Therefore, one who knows the truth should not attach himself to women or to those attached to women;
only from the contact of sense-objects and senses does the mind become agitated, not otherwise.

11.26.23

From an object unseen and unheard, no passion arises;
for one who does not employ his senses, the quiet mind becomes still.

11.26.24

Therefore, attachment should not be formed with the senses toward women and those attached to women;
even for the wise, the group of six [senses] is untrustworthy, how much more so for people like me?'

11.26.25

The Lord said:
Singing thus, that god among kings then abandoned the realm of Urvaśī;
realizing the self within the self, his delusion shaken off by knowledge, he indeed found peace in me.

11.26.26

Therefore, giving up bad company, the intelligent person should associate with virtuous devotees;
only the virtuous devotees sever the mind's deep attachment by their words.

11.26.27

Virtuous devotees are free from expectation, their minds fixed on me, peaceful, seeing with equal vision,
free from possessiveness, free from egotism, free from dualities, and without possessions.

11.26.28

Among them, O highly fortunate one, discourses about me constantly occur;
for they purify the sin of men who relish them.

11.26.29

Those who hear them, sing them, and rejoice in them with reverence,
devoted to me and endowed with faith, attain devotion to me.

11.26.30

For the virtuous person who has attained devotion to me, the Brahman possessing endless attributes,
whose nature is the experience of bliss, what else remains to be attained?

11.26.31

Just as cold, fear, and darkness depart for one who resorts to the lord fire,
so it is for one who serves the virtuous devotees.

11.26.32

For those sinking and rising in the terrifying ocean of worldly existence, the peaceful virtuous devotees
who know Brahman are the supreme refuge, like a sturdy boat for those drowning in water.

11.26.33

Food is indeed the life of living beings, and I am the refuge of the afflicted;
dharma is the wealth of mortals in the hereafter, and virtuous devotees are the shelter for one fearing here below.

11.26.34

Virtuous devotees grant inner eyes, while the risen sun shines outwardly;
virtuous devotees are the deities, friends, the self, and I myself.

11.26.35

Thereupon Vaitasena, free from desire for the realm of Urvaśī,
wandered this earth freed from attachment, delighting in the self.

Translations (1)

The Srimad Bhagavatam — S. Subba Rau 1928, English

Commentaries (1)

Padaratnāvalī — Vijayadhvaja Tīrtha, Sanskrit

Linked texts (1)

Bhāgavatapurāṇa — Vyāsa, Sanskrit