In2-MeC

A Segment of the Vana Parva of Mahabharata

The Pandavas continued to dwell happily at the Vishakhayupa forest, and then, after the end of the monsoon season, they returned to Kamyakavana. The Pandavas were very happily received by all the sages living there, and one of the brahmanas informed them, "Lord Krishna and Markandeya Rishi will come here very soon to visit you. . . "

Remarkably, just as the brahmana was saying this. Lord Krishna arrived on His chariot, accompanied by His wife, Satyabhama. After dismounting, Krishna first of all offered His obeisances to Maharaja Yudhisthira, Bhima and Dhaumya. Then, He embraced Arjuna with great affection while Nakula and Sahadeva came and offered their obeisances at the Lord's lotus feet. Lord Krishna was meeting the curly-haired Arjuna after a long period of separation, and thus He embraced him again and again. Indeed, the Lord's transcendental beauty was seen by all to increase in the association of His dearmost friend. Then, as Satyabhama embraced Draupadi, Arjuna inquired about the welfare of Subhadra and Abhimanyu, who were residing in the Lord's care at Dvaraka.

Finally, Krishna sat down, surrounded by the Pandavas, and He praised Maharaja Yudhisthira by saying, "My dear King, you have always acted righteously. In spite of the most trying circumstances, you undeviatingly adhere to religious principles. Your actions are always performed out of a sense of duty, and not from personal motives for enjoyment. Indeed, no other person could have tolerated the insults that Draupadi received in the assembly of Kurus!"

Turning to Draupadi, Krishna said, "Princess, you can rest assured that your sons are well and fine. Subhadra is looking after them very nicely, and My son Pradyumna is training them in the military science. "

Lord Krishna then suggested to Yudhisthira, "O King, if you so desire, the Yadavas can go right now and vanquish the wicked Duryodhana. Thus, when your period of exile is over, you can enter Hastinapura peacefully, without a struggle. "

Maharaja Yudhisthira replied, "My dear Lord, I am extremely grateful that You are ready to help us in all circumstances. Indeed, You are our only refuge. The twelfth year of our exile is now coming to an end, and so we will soon have to begin our year of living incognito. After that, I am sure that by Your mercy I shall be able to regain my kingdom without having deviated from my vows. "

While Lord Krishna and Maharaja Yudhisthira were thus conversing, the great sage, Markandeya, arrived. Lord Krishna, the Pandavas, and all the brahmanas quickly got up from their seats to receive the illustrious rishi, who, even though thousands of years old, appeared to be just like a young man, devoid of any signs of old age. When Markandeya Rishi was comfortably seated, after having been worshiped by the Pandavas, Lord Krishna requested him to narrate some ancient histories that instill in the listener a sense of the moral values of life.

Then, as everyone surrounded Markandeya Rishi, anxiously awaiting his discourses, Narada Muni came there. Everyone got up to worship him, but because Narada understood that Markandeya was about to speak, he encouraged the rishi to go ahead without delay. Thus, everyone sat down once again, being very eager to hear.

Maharaja Yudhisthira started things off by asking, "My dear sage, I am always perplexed when I think about how the wicked sons of Dhritarashtra are prospering, whereas we are suffering, even though we act righteously. Please explain what part God plays in man's happiness and distress, for it seems to me that such results are simply the fruits of one's endeavors. I would also like to understand the concept of karma. Are the reactions to out work enjoyed by us in this life or in the life hereafter? If the reactions are meted out in a future life, then how could there ever be a cessation to the cycle of action and reaction and its resultant birth and death?"

Markandeya Rishi replied, "My dear King, your questions are most praiseworthy, and I shall try to answer them to the best of my ability. In the beginning of creation, Lord Brahma made the bodies of human beings pure and sinless, and thus they were on a par with those of the demigods. These human beings had all of their desires automatically fulfilled, they were able to fly in the sky, and they were completely freed from the demoniac qualities of lust and envy. They lived for many thousands of years, and they all had the power to die at their own will. Because there was so little suffering, fear was practically unknown and thus everyone lived very peacefully and happily. "

"Gradually, however, in the course of time, human beings became overcome by lust and greed, and so they began to depend upon cheating methods for earning their livelihood. Men lost the ability to traverse the airways and thus they had to walk on the surface of the Earth. Because of their sinful acts, men were forced to go to hell and suffer, and in this way, they came to reap the results of their actions. "

"My dear King, at the time of death, only the gross body of the living entity is destroyed. The actions that one performs are all recorded in the subtle mind. Then, after death, when the subtle body carries one to the next gross body, his fruitive acts follow him just like a shadow and then fructify in the next life. However, by the practice of yoga and devotion to the Supreme Lord, the results of one's fruitive actions can be destroyed. In this way, one can become peaceful in mind and freed from all diseases, fear and other material miseries. Indeed, those who have become spiritually advanced, by dint of mature practice of bhakti-yoga, can always envision the relationship between the individual soul and the Supreme Soul, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, in any condition of life, even while encased in the mother's womb!"

"O King, human beings can be divided into four classes. Those who work hard to acquire wealth by any means, simply for the purpose of enjoying sense gratification, can feel happiness in this life, but not in the next. Those who engage in austerity and meditation, who subdue their passions, and even sacrifice their bodily strength and health by executing rigid vows, attain happiness in the next life, but not in this one. Those who live piously, accumulating wealth by virtuous means, who live a life of regulated sense enjoyment in marriage, while performing sacrifices and giving in charity, experience happiness in this life and in the next as well. "

"Then, there are those who are distinct from the above-mentioned three classes of persons because they are simply lazy and foolish. Such men cannot enjoy any happiness in this life nor in the next. My dear Yudhisthira, because you are very pious, and are engaged in performing austerities, you will come to enjoy the supreme happiness in due course of time. Of this there is no doubt. "

In response to Maharaja Yudhisthira's inquiries, Markandeya Rishi spoke at great length, citing numerous historical accounts. Some of this vast narration is given as follows. Markandeya Rishi said, "Let me first of all offer my most respectful obeisances to the Supreme Personality of Godhead, who is known as Janardana, because He is the soul of all souls. He is the primeval Lord, the cause of all causes, and the master of all the demigods. He alone is the cause of creation, maintenance and annihilation, and thus it is He who is the ultimate shelter of all beings. "

"My dear King, as you very will know, there are four yugas (ages). The duration of the Krita-yuga is 4000 celestial years (one celestial year equals 360 solar years), and at the beginning and the end, the transitional periods each extend for 400 celestial years. Treta-yuga has a duration of 3000 celestial years, and the transitional periods each last 300 celestial years. The duration of the Dvapara-yuga is 2000 celestial years, and its transitional periods are 200 years each. Kali-yuga lasts for 1000 celestial years, and it has transitional periods of 100 years. Thus, the cycle of four yugas has a duration of 12,000 celestial years, and 1000 such yuga cycles constitutes the daytime of Lord Brahma. "

"O King, please listen as I describe the symptoms of the upcoming Kali-yuga. As time goes on, the brahmanas will take up the work of shudras, and shudras will endeavor to acquire wealth like vaishyas. The brahmanas will give up meditation and the recitation of Vedic hymns while the shudras take up these practices. "

"In the age of Kali, men become very short-lived and weak in terms of physical strength and energy. They have diminutive bodies and they give up even the last remaining religious principle by making their speech devoid of all truth. The world become ruled by Mleccha kings who act no better than plunderers. Then, toward the end of the age, the human population begins to dwindle while animals become oversized and increase in number until they crowd the earth. "

"In this degraded age, children are born stunted and thy are devoid of all good behavior. As a result of sinful life, there is great scarcity and famine, and prostitutes are seen lining the roads. Indeed, women in general become very hostile toward their husbands and devoid of all sense of modesty. Cows yield very little milk, and trees, instead of producing profuse fruit and flowers, become the sitting places for swarms of crows. "

"O King, in the age of Kali, many persons become imitation sadhus simply to facilitate economic improvement, and the ashrams become filled with wretched persons who advocate a life of dependence upon others, like parasites. Rain no longer falls in season, and indeed, the entire Earth begins to take on a sinful aspect. In this degraded age, only sinful persons flourish, and those few that are virtuous remain impoverished. Sinful behavior will become so rampant that it will be a common sight even in public places. Even those with meager wealth will become very proud in this fallen age, due to being intoxicated by their accumulated money. "

"As the Kali-yuga advances, girls will give birth to children at the age of seven or eight, and boys will become fathers by the age of ten or eleven. By the age of sixteen, people will begin to experience the symptoms of old age, and soon thereafter, they will meet with their deaths. "

Markandeya then explained, "During the night of Lord Brahma, the whole universe remains one great expanse of water, and all the living entities, including the demigods, are no longer manifest. O King, I am the only person remaining at that time, and upon seeing the universe devoid of living beings, I become exceedingly depressed. All I can do is wander through the great expanse of water, and because I can find no resting place, I become very tired. "

"Finally, I see a great banyan tree within the water, and upon one of the branches I see a most wonderfully beautiful boy. Having a moon-like face, eyes like lotus petals, the mark of Shrivatsa on His chest, and radiating a dazzling effulgence, the boy is seated upon a heavenly couch. I am highly astonished to think of how this boy could survive the devastation, and in spite of my infallible knowledge that encompasses past, present and future, I cannot understand His identity. "

"The boy then smilingly says, 'O rishi, I can understand that you are exceedingly fatigued. Therefore, you may rest here for as long as you like by entering into My body. I am very pleased with you and so I have designated this as your resting place. ' As the boy continues speaking, I can feel myself swimming in an ocean of bliss, and thus losing my normal sense of identity. "

"The boy then suddenly opens His mouth and I helplessly enter into His body by His supreme will. Finally, upon coming to the boy's stomach, I see the entire Earth situated there, with all of its kingdoms, mountains and rivers, and all of the inhabitants are engaged in performing their duties according to the four social orders. "

"Thereafter, as I wander in the boy's stomach, I see the great oceans and the sky bedecked with sun and moon. I see all the great mountains and I see all kinds of animals, Nagas, Yakshas, Daityas and demigods, and indeed, every kind of moving and nonmoving being. "

"Living only on fruit, I wander about the universe for many hundreds of years, and yet I never find the limit of the boy's body. Finally, when I become very anxious, I begin to surrender to that Supreme Person, admitting that He is the predomi-nator and that I am His eternal subordinate. Just then, a powerful wind projects me out of the boy's body, and thus once again I see Him seated as before on the branch of a banyan tree, dressed in yellow cloth. "

"The boy then smilingly says, 'O rishi, you have dwelt within My body for a long time and thus you have certainly become very tired. Now, to mitigate your material pangs, I will enlighten you with transcendental knowledge. ' As the boy continues to speak, I can feel myself becoming liberated from the illusion of material existence, while at the same time my spiritual vision awakens. In that self-realized condition, I can understand that this boy is the Absolute Truth, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, the source of all emanations, and the master of all worlds, material and spiritual. I thus worship His reddish lotus feet by placing them on my head with great reverence. "

"Then, with folded hands, I say, 'My dear Lord, O origin of all, including myself, please explain about Yourself and Your illusory energy. Why do you remain here as a small boy? How is it that the entire universe was seen by me to be situated within Your transcendental body?"

"The boy replies, 'O rishi, I am the eternal Lord, Narayana, who lies down upon the water of the Garbhodaka Ocean. It is I who am the creator, maintainer and destroyer of everything, and thus the entire cosmic manifestation constitutes My universal form. I become the ingredients of sacrifice, it is I who award the results of sacrifice, and I am the Vedas personified. I am the cause of all causes, and the One who maintains the innumerable living beings while sustaining the cosmic creation. At various times, I incarnate within the universe, to establish religious principles, as well as to protect the demigods and annihilate the great demons who cannot be killed by anyone else. "

"During Brahma's night, I submerge the universe into the water of dissolution for 1000 yuga-cycles. While Brahma thus sleeps, I keep myself in this form as a small boy. Because you had become depressed, after seeing the universe completely inundated with water, I took you within My body, to show you how the three worlds remain conserved there. Now, until the time when Brahma once again awakens, you can stay here and reside peacefully. ' After saying this, the boy suddenly vanishes from that place, and thereafter, in due course of time, I witness the creations of Brahma. "

"My dear Yudhisthira, this same Supreme Personality of Godhead has now appeared as your cousin, Lord Krishna. Therefore, your best course is to always take shelter of Him and depend on Him alone. "

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