The Description of Renunciation and Devotion
Sri Narayana said:
O great sage! Now I will let you know the definition of renunciation. Total disinterest in the momentary and transitional objects is the main characteristic of renunciation. (1)
Beginning from the illusory person, everything that is under the control of the Supreme Lord, perishes due to the divine power of ‘Time’ of the Lord. (2)
Those who are wise should realize the temporary nature of all things of this world as well as the eternality of the soul alone by the different means of knowledge like perception, inference and verbal testimony. (3)
The ‘Time’ that is responsible for dissolution of the world has three forms viz. the eternal form, the natural form and the continuous form. (4)
These bodies of the souls, where the different stages like childhood, youth and old age are seen, are always in a state of transition and ultimately decay due to the passage of time. However, the transition is not noticed, since it is very subtle, just as the passage of the flame of the oil-wick lamp or the growth of a tree that bears fruit due to the passage of time. (5-6)
A lot of misery is experienced in each of these stages (like childhood, youth etc.). Similarly misery is also experienced again and again during the different states of consciousness like the waking state, the state of deep sleep and so on. (7)
All the persons experience three types of misery, viz. the Adhyatmika (misery arising due to the past deeds of the soul), Adhidaivika (misery arising out of the wrath of the demigods and other celestial beings) and Adhibhoutika (misery arising out of the warth of the elements like floods, earthquake and so on). (8)
“Alas, my son died!” “Alas, My wife has expired”! O God! A tiger has eaten my father! Alas, my wife has been bitten by a serpent! My big house has been burnt by fire together with all the valuables in it! How do I support my family since Indra the god of the cloud has not blessed me with sufficient rains. (9-10)
Alas! All the plants that were about to be harvested have been destroyed by the snowfall! All my riches have been destroyed! My cows have been stolen by thieves! (11)
The King has punished me for a crime that I have not committed! My enemies have afflicted me incorrectly! How or whom can I tell that my mother is a debaucherous person? (12)
I will consume poison since my wife has been abducted by my enemy! Alas, my daughter has been abducted by the pariahs! I have been fatally wounded by the enemies! I am dieing by severe fever! The commandants of Yama the Lord of death are at my doorstep!” — Thus severely weeping people are seen everywhere. (13-14)
People always experience misery at all times according to their past deeds, and undergo the different stages of life like birth and death. (15)
After experiencing these miseries, they ultimately experience the unsurpassed misery of death. Even after death, they experience severe misery. (16)
Then the soul is born in the different forms of animals, reptiles, birds and so on and then again he dies and thus rotates in the cycle of births and deaths again and again. (17)
Thus, I have explained with a subtle vision, the nature of dissolution, known as ‘Pralaya’. Now, I will tell you about the ‘Naimittika Pralaya’, the dissolution that occurs due to a particular cause. (18)
The dissolution that occurs due to the nightfall of the creator is known as the ‘Naimittika Pralaya’, the dissolution that occurs due to a particular cause. (19)
O great sage! The cluster of the one thousand four ‘Yuga-s’ is equal of one day of the creator of the Universe. Similar is the extant of the night of the creator. These two put together, is known as one ‘Kalpa’. (20)
In each of the days and nights of the creator, there will be fourteen ‘Manu-s’ (leaders of men) who protect the ‘Dharma’. (21)
Among them the first Manu is known as ‘Swayambhuva Manu’. The second one is known as ‘Swarochisha Manu’. The succeeding Manus are known as ‘Uttama, Tamasa Raivata and Chakshusa’. (22)
Then come ‘Shraddhadeva, Savarni, Bhautya, Rauchya, Brahmasavarni and Rudrasavarni’. (23)
Then come ‘Merusavarni’ and last one among the fourteen is ‘Dakshasavarni’. These are the fourteen Manus who come in a single day of the creator of the Universe. (24)
The time of existence of each of the Manus is seventy one Yuga-s, which include twelve thousand divine years. (25)
When the time of the fourteenth Manu is about to end, the evening twilight of the creator approaches. (26)
When the day is about to end, Lord Rudra destroys the power of existence of the Universe. Then Lord Rudra will attempt for the dissolution of the Universe. (27)
First, there will a severe drought for one hundred years. Then all the beings that are weak will perish on this earth. (28)
The rays of the Sun known as ‘Samvartaka’ which will be most severe will evaporate the juice of the earth right from the nether worlds. (29)
The Sun will evaporate all the water in the oceans as well as the rivers and other water bodies and thus will make all the beings of the world perish. (30)
Then the earth will become like the shell of the tortoise, where there will be no water, and devoid of all beings both movable and immovable. (31)
The form of Lord Rudra known as ‘Kalagni Rudra’ (the dissolutory fire) will emanate from the mouth of the primordial serpent Adishesha, hat will burn all the seven worlds that are below the earth as well as the earth itself and the two worlds that are above the earth. (32)
Then having burnt all the ten worlds the fire will approach the eleventh world known as the ‘Mahar-loka’, the destructive fire burns forth. (33)
The demigods who live in the worlds of Bhuvar-loka and the Mahar-loka, will lose their positions and unable to withstand the heat of the flames, proceed to the ‘Jano-loka’. (34)
Those sages, who have practiced the path of renunciation too will proceed from the earth and reach the world that has been created exclusively for them. (35)
Then dreadful destructive clouds that resemble big elephants will arise; they will be accompanied by lightning that create blistering sounds. (36)
The clouds will be of different hues like brown, black as well as colour of the liquid red-wax. They will shower over all the worlds with huge rain drops for one hundred years day and night and will douse the great fire that preceded them.(37- 38) In the waters that resemble one single ocean, the ‘VairajaPurusha’ (the primordial person) known as ‘Aniruddha’ will be lying down in the bed of the primordial serpent. (39)
Then all the demigods, the sages under the influence of the guna-s of Rajas, Sattva and Tamas, together with the creator will enter the stomach of the Lord Aniruddha and sleep there for a long long time. (40)
Those who have realized the divine form of the Lord and have overcome the effects of the three Guna-s will continue to worship the Lord Vasudeva, treading the path of renunciation. (41)
They will stay in the four upper worlds known as ‘Mahas’ etc, continuing to worship the Lord Vasudeva, with exalted happiness. (42)
The Supreme Lord Narayana, contemplating on His own divine form known as ‘Vasudeva’ too sleeps in a divine state at that time. (43)
At the end of the night, all the beings resting in the stomach of the Lord, will once again reappear, according to their own past deeds in the respective forms. (44)
So far, I have explained the dissolution known as ‘NaimittikaPralaya’ where all the three worlds will be destroyed. Now, I will explain the nature of ‘Prakrita Pralaya’. (45)
I have already explained the definition of one ‘Kalpa’. Three hundred and six such Kalpa-s constitute one year of Brahma, the creator. (46)
Fifty such Kapla-s constitute one ‘Parardha’. Two such ‘Parardha-s’ known as ‘Paraa’, constitute the life of Brahma. After this period of ‘Paraa’ is completed, there will be a great destruction. (47)
Then the Lord will Himself take the form Samhara-Rudra that Then, there will be a severe drought for one hundred years as before. Then the destructive fire known as ‘Samkarshana’ will burn the Cosmic egg. (49)
Then the destructive clouds will arise, that shower fiery rains, the rain drops resembling sharp pestles, for one hundred years. All the entities like ‘Mahat’ etc. will perish due to the wishes of the Lord Vasudeva. (50- 51)
The waters will inhume the quality of the earth viz. the odour. Then the earth that is devoid of odour will prepare for dissolution. Then the entity of ‘tejas’ will inhume the quality of the water viz. the juice. Then the water that is devoid of juice will prepare for dissolution. Then the entity of ‘Vayu’ will inhume the quality of the ‘Tejas’ viz. the form. Then the ‘Tejas’ that is devoid of form will prepare for dissolution. Then the entity of ‘Akasha’ will inhume the quality of the ‘Vayu’viz. the sense of touch . Then the ‘Vayu’ that is devoid of the sense of touch will prepare for dissolution. Then the Vayu dissolves and the Akasha will stand without any boundaries. (52-54)
Then the quality of ‘sound’ disappears and then the ‘Akasha’ dissolves. Then the sense organs in the Taijasa-Ahankara’. Then the sense organ ‘manas’ dissolves into the SatvikaAhankara’. All those entities dissolve into those entities from which they have emerged respectively. (55-56)
The three types of ‘Ahankara’ dissolves in the entity of ‘Mahat’. That ‘Mahat’ dissolves into the ‘Pradhana’ and that Pradhana dissolves into the ‘Purusha’ and the ‘Purusha’ dissolves into the ‘Mula-Prakruthi’. (57)
This process is known as the ‘Prakurthika-Pralaya’. In this process, all the lords of the living beings, disappear into MulaPrakruthi’ by the will of the Supreme Lord Sri Hari. (58)
O sage Narada! When the Maya, Purusha and Time dissolve into the Ultimate Tejas, and nothing except the Supreme Lord exist, such a thing is known as ‘Atyantika Pralaya’. (59)
Thus, by the power of time of the Lord, there are four times of Pralaya. Detachment towards all worldly objects and knowledge of the evanescence of these objects is known as ‘Vairagya’. (60)
One should understand that all other deities other than Vasudeva are all under the influence of Time and Maya. He should not have devotion unto those deities. He should be totally devoted only to Lord Vasudeva and serve Him only. That is known as true ‘Bhakti’. (61)
Listening to His pastimes, chanting His names, remembering Him, serving His divine feet, worshipping Him, prostrating before Him, surrendering to Him, being friendly towards Him, offering himself to Him – These are the nine ways in which one should worship the Lord with great dedication. One who does so with an unflinching mind in known as the model devotee. (62-63)
This path of devotion is inclusive of three aspects. This is also known as “Ekantika Dharma as well as ‘Bhagavata Dharma’. (64)
One will be able to tread this path only by the association of the Lord Himself or by the association of His exclusive devotees. There is no other way to follow this path of ‘Ekantika Dharma’. (65)
There is no other path that is similar to this for those who want to attain emancipation. This path is capable of destroying all evils. (66)
One should engage in the ‘Kriya-Yoga’ to attain proficiency in the ‘Ekantha-Dharma’. Following this path, he will attain ‘Naishkarmya’, wherein he will go beyond the effects of his past deeds. (67)
O Great sage! I have described to you, the secret entity of the path of renunciation, that is secretly told in the Vedas and Puranas. Listening to this rids us of the ocean of sin. You have to store this great knowledge in your mind, with great concentration and a pure mind. (68)
There is no one who is as pious as Vasudeva! There is no entity that is as auspicious as Lord Vasudeva! There is no deity that is beyond Lord Vasudeva! There is no entity that is as desirable as Lord Vasudeva! (69)
A person who chants the name of this Supreme Lord even one, even unintentionally, will go beyond this Samsara (cycle of births and deaths), and will be emancipated. Worship this great exalted Lord! (70)
End of the Twenty-fifth Chapter titled “The Description of Renunciation and Devotion” of the Vasudeva Mahatmya”.