Anger Destroys One’s Wealth And Prosperity

In the human body, which by itself has no value, is located securely the sacred and priceless jewel of atma. This word of Sai is a statement of truth.

The human body is made up of five material elements and it has to fall sometime or other. The atma that resides in the body, unlike the body, is permanent and sacred. This sacred aspect of atma has neither birth, nor death, nor attachment. If we think deeply and well, we will realise that God in the form of atma, is residing in every human body.

Prema-svarupas:

Any person who has an attachment to this human body cannot easily understand the unmanifested God. The human form of one’s own body will always be wanting to perceive God in a manifested form, preferably resembling his own. We generally get the opportunity to recognise the unmanifested aspect of God only through a manifested form. The Bhagawatam gives you the sacred opportunity, by which you can understand the unmanifested God. The purpose of the Bhagawatam is to teach us the sanctity of the inner atma. In order that we may have some vision of the inner atma, the Bhagawatam has been teaching us upasanas in the form of three steps. These are Vishnu upasana, Vasudeva upasana, and Narayana upasana. The first one, Vishnu upasana, recognises God in all people, who have a form and a name. This aspect has been described to us as the ‘svarupa of Viraat’ in the Bhagavad-gita. It has been referred to as the Vishwarupa darshanam, or the manifestation of God in the form of creation. The meaning of this was also taught by Bhishma to Dharmaraja when the former was lying on the bed of arrows. The Bhagawatam demonstrates that the entire creation is in fact an aspect of Vishnu. Bhagawatam tells us that Vishnu is present in all forms of creation, at all times, and in all places. We may say that this path is an easy path to follow for ordinary human beings. Since God is present in all living forms, it enables us to regard every human being as some form of God.

The second step is the upasana of Vasudeva. In this, we have to experience God not only in all human beings, but in all our actions and work. Here, we should make an attempt to recognise the aspect of God in all our actions connected with all things, which have a name and a form. This is not such an easy path, because human beings are filled with qualities like lust, anger, jealousy, and hatred and they also have attachments. These qualities are such that they will not enable one to think of God. When we see an individual doing bad things, not only will we regard that individual as a bad individual, but there is also a chance of bad ideas coming into ourselves. Under those circumstances, it becomes difficult to accept such an individual and the act that he performs as sacred or divine. In order that we may not give room to such unholy situations, we will have to develop the aspect of divinity in us. Just as a human being coiled up by a python struggles to get his hands and legs free, so also a human being caught up in qualities like anger, lust, greed, and hatred, has to struggle to think of God and recognise divinity in all that he sees. Thus, the Vasudeva upasana is a difficult matter to follow.

The third step is the Narayana upasana. This step not only enables you to experience divinity in the action as well as the form of individuals but will also enable you to see the oneness of all creation. This will lead you to get the experience of atma. It will enable you to establish the unity that is present in all creation, through the recognition of the aspect of atma. This will enable you to accept that there is no difference between different forms of divinity.

There are three great individuals in the Bhagawatam, who symbolise these three types of upasanas. King Parikshit, a rajarshi, symbolises the first kind of upasana. Sringi, a great tapasvi, belongs to the second category of upasana. Sami, the famous Brahmarshi, represents the third type of upasana. The totality of the experience of Sami, Sringi, and Parikshit is the essence of Bhagawatam. These three types are truly the forms of the three gunas – satva, rajas, and tamas. The Bhagawatam is a text, which has harmonised these three aspects and demonstrated the oneness of divinity.

Having received the protection of Krishna even while he was in his mother’s womb, Parikshit was a very learned person and was governing his kingdom very wisely. It is natural that we get a doubt as to how such a good and noble king could lose control over himself in a fit of anger and place a dead snake over the shoulders of Sami. However great a man may be, however, great a devotee may be, he will lose control over himself, when he gets angry. Anger is the greatest enemy of man. In a fit of anger, Parikshit put a dead snake around the shoulders of Sami, but this cannot be treated as a wanton act of arrogance or carelessness. It was a genuine mistake, committed in a weak moment. When Parikshit found that the rishi Sami and the other rishis did not care to receive him and attend to him, he was very agitated and while returning from there, he picked up a dead snake and put it round the shoulder of Sami. This enraged Sringi, son of Sami, who saw this a little later and when he saw king Parikshit leaving the ashram, he cursed him, saying, “Within seven days, Parikshit will be killed by a snake bite.”

Here, we should recognise that what happened was a passing state of Parikshit’s anger and there is no cruelty or evil intention in his action. However, when Sringi saw this, he became very angry and in his anger, he cursed the king. The king was not aware of this curse. Here, we must carefully examine the reason for Sringi’s curse and understand how dharma really works in such situations. If a righteous and benevolent king commits a mistake unintentionally, the consequences will affect only the king and not the people. In the king, who was a rajarshi, there was a little of rajas left and hence, in a weak moment, he became angry.

Sringi brought about a lot of confusion because, as a result of his curse, the people will also suffer and remain unprotected. Thus, the consequences of the king’s fault were also affecting the people. In fact, Sringi had no right to curse. Here, we notice that a person like Sringi, who has no right to curse, gave a curse. Indeed, this is the subtle aspect of dharma. The fact that a good and noble king lost his temper and insulted a Brahmarshi and the fact that a rishi gave a curse, though he did not have the right to do so, are symbolic of the decline of the accepted norms of dharma. Indeed, at this time was the advent of the Kali-yuga. Here, we see that as a result of Kali, certain blemishes are coming into Vasudeva upasana and Vishnu upasana.

When Sami came out of his deep meditation, he quickly realised all that had happened and he took steps to reprimand his son. He said, “The king is a very noble and kind man and he takes good care of all of us. Just because in a weak moment, he did something rash, you should not have cursed. By this act of yours, you have lost all the good that you have accumulated because of your tapas. Have you undertaken to do all your tapas only to misuse it in this manner? In this context, it appears natural for the king to occasionally lose his temper in this manner, but a tapasvi like you should not have lost balance and given the curse. Our kingdom will now be without a leader. It will be like a night without a moon.”

After reprimanding his son in this manner, he thought it best to send word to King Parikshit and let him know the nature of the curse. He also undertook to tell King Parikshit about the evil consequences of anger, “One’s wealth and prosperity will be destroyed by anger. It will destroy whatever honour and reputation that one has. It will separate him from his own people. By pride and anger, everything will be destroyed and one who has anger, will not be able to achieve anything. He will be humiliated. He will always be committing sin and everyone will admonish him. Anger will promote sin.” Having told Parikshit about the evil consequences of anger as conveyed by Sami, the messenger further told the king as from Sami, “It is quite natural that you lost your control at a weak moment, but it was necessary for you to attempt to overcome your anger and behave in a responsible manner. Instead of overlooking your mistake and controlling himself, a sacred tapasvi like my son cursed you that you will die by a snake bite within seven days. During these seven days, think of the Lord always and promote the goodness in you.”

As soon as Parikshit heard these words from Sami, his mind was completely transformed and he conveyed his respectful pranams (bow with respect) to Sami the Brahmarshi and said, “This is not a curse to me. It is a great gift. I cannot escape the consequences of my karma and what I had done. I am grateful to you for making me realise this.”

From that day, Parikshit was thinking of God. He gave up the responsibility of his government to his ministers. As soon as this news of the curse was known, several rishis and others came to see Parikshit. They were praying to God that King Parikshit, who had a noble and sacred heart, could be spared from the curse and that he should live long. But, the curse of the tapasvi could not be atoned and Parikshit was making preparations for the end. The great Brahmarshi Sami, who had considerable equanimity, was also praying for the well-being of Parikshit. Although Sami, for external purposes, had connections with the world, yet in his mind, there was no attachment at all. He merged completely with the atma. There is no difference between such a Brahmarshi and divinity.

On one occasion, after the battle, Dharmaraja went to Krishna’s mansion to tell Him about his despondency and despair. At that time, Krishna told Dharmaraja all the details about the future of Parikshit. He told him how Parikshit would acquire a great name and fame and how he would achieve far greater glory than all his predecessors. He also told him now because of a curse from a saint, Parikshit would lose his life by a snake bite. While talking thus to Dharmaraja, Krishna suddenly lapsed into a brief silence and Dharmaraja was totally confused. After a few minutes, Dharmaraja asked why Krishna thus became silent in the middle of the narration.

Krishna said that He had to go and respond to the call of Bhishma, who was lying on his bed of arrows. Those who have a sacred heart, will be able to get the Lord’s grace by praying sincerely. There is no difference between a sacred mind and God. A prayer from a sacred person will go straight to the Lord. Such people are embodiments of wisdom and they are forms of advaita. They had enjoyed the oneness with divinity. They firmly believed that there is only one truth in the world and that there is no parallel truth. Such people are always in a state of great ecstasy and are really like children. That is why it is said that a state of a child, of a person who is in great ecstasy, and of a madman are alike. Because of the consequences of excitement of one’s senses, man sometimes forgets his true nature. Truly, man seeks only ananda. He is also intrinsically a selfless person, but by the pressure of his sensory organs, he gets attached to material desires and he forgets God. For the benefit of such people and with great love and affection, the aspect of Krishna is being taught by the Bhagavad-gita.

Prema-svarupas:

We should make an attempt to realise that all the names and forms that we see in this world are only reflections of God. We should also recognise that all creation is a part of God. We should not be led away by the differences in names and forms and forget the essential unity amongst all these. On one occasion, Narada began to doubt the sincerity of the gopikas and he asked Krishna, “The gopikas are not well-educated, they do not know the shastras or Vedas, and they even appear uncivilised. How do they appreciate the aspect of God? Only people who have risen above the stature of gunas, can understand divinity. How can others, who are immersed in mundane qualities and thoughts, understand God?”

Then, Krishna said, “The nature of the gopikas is very sacred. Even if their mothers-in-law are scolding them and their husbands are sharpening their knives to punish them, they will not open their mouths and they will not be afraid.” In the minds of the gopikas, Krishna’s image is printed like a print on paper. As it is not possible to separate Krishna from the heart of the gopikas, what is the use of all the education? Can anyone escape the consequences of fate? If bad ideas enter one’s mind, there is no hope for him.

You cannot please the Lord by your education or by reciting the Vedas. He can be attracted only by sacred prema. The scholarship that you acquire is only for the head and if you do not put it into practice, of what use is your scholarship? There is plenty of learning in the books, but all the hearts are full of dust. There is nothing that we can get from the books. You have to read these books only after eking out a livelihood and filling your belly. Only pure prema will enable you to understand the Lord. That is why our scriptures have taught us that you cannot get immortality by your wealth or by your education and that you can get it only by your good qualities and sacrifice. By sacrifice, you can attain immortality, but if you are immersed in bhoga (sensual enjoyment), you will only get roga (illness).

Students, you should understand the true meaning of sacrifice. This is why Tyagaraja said that we should knowingly utter the name of the Lord. If we do not let out the air that we breathe in, our lungs will get disappointed. If we do not let out the food that we take in, our body will be diseased. Even if our blood does not constantly flow from place to place, there will be a boil on the hand. You should understand the good that will come out of sacrifice. We should use our education only for good activities.

Every moment is passing into a new moment, whether we use it well or not. If time does not move on, days will not change. Lifespan will not reduce and there will be no change. Because time is moving on, our life is changing. If we are swimming, we must make an attempt to push back the water that is in front of us. If we do not push back the water, we cannot move forward at all. We must sacrifice in all spheres of life – moral, spiritual, ethical, and political.

Divyatma-svarupas:

Our pains and pleasures are like passing clouds and they are momentary. We should not fill our lives with such transient pleasures. When Parikshit realised that his life was going to end in seven days, he was always thinking of the Lord. Because he had such a sacred heart, Shuka the great rishi came to see him. If our minds are pure, sacred Paramatma will likewise Himself come to see us. It is very necessary to make your heart pure and sacred to achieve anything good.