DIVINE INFORMATION PART 109 367 SriMadhBhagavatham. ... part43 BHARATHA
Bharata,the eldest son of Rishabhadeva, entered on ruler ship and married Panchajani, the daughterof Viswarupa and begot five sons, Sumati, Rashtrabhrit, Sudarsan, Avarna andDhumraketu. Itwas from the time of Bharatas rule that the land till then known asAjanabhavarsha came to be known as Bharatavarsha. Bharata,like his father and grandfather (Priyavrata, Agnidhra, Nabhi and Rishabha), waspious and righteous. He worshipped theLord of Yajna and Kratu by doing various sacrifices, more elaborate and lesserones such as Agnihotra, Darsapurnamasa, Chaturmasya, Pasusoma at due time aslaid down in scriptures, dedicating all the actions and their fruits at thefeet of the Lord. With the mind thus made pure and in perfecttune with the Infinite, theSupreme Vasudeva manifested Himself in Bharatas heart, distinguishedby Srivatsa, Kaustubha, Vanamala, Chakra, Sankha, Gada and other attributes,like in the hearts of Narada and other sages. Bharatas devotion intensified. Having ruled for long years and hisKarma exhausted-worked out, Bharata divided his kingdom amongst his sons andhimself retired to Pulahasramam (Haridwar),resorting to renunciation. This is theholy spot where even now the Lord reveals Himself in the desired forms to Hisdevotees, where the sacred Gandagi knownas Chakranadi contains small pebble-likestones having navel-like dimples on both sides and marks of chakra (Salagramam). In that holy Pulahasrama (Upavana) forest,Bharata remaining alone, worshipped the Lord with flowers, shoots, Tulasi,water, roots and fruits, totally bereft of attachments and distractions andattained unsullied peace and bliss. Byintensive devotion and constant worship, Bharatas heart melted with love of theLord, leading to concentrated contemplation of the lotus-like and crimson feetof the Lord and blessedness. Thesplendorous Bharata clad in deerskin and with matted hair, brown and moist onaccount of his daily ablutions - morning, mid-day and evening - worshipped theLord with the following prayer, contemplating Him in the orb of Sun-god atdawn: Weseek refuge in the splendorous might -Tejas ? manifest in Surya-Narayana, devoid of Rajas (Blemish) and dispenser ofKarma, Whichby mere Sankalpam (will) created this universe; and Having entered the universe as its indwellerprotects the suppliant Jivas. May we meditate on the Supreme Light. Fromit the whole universe has issued. It exists in the hearts of all and unto itwill all go back; It is the intelligence of all beings; It is the guide of allintelligence; In it we take refuge. Oneday, Bharata, after completing his forenoon rituals, sat on the bank of theGandagi River for about three muhurtas, meditating on Pranava (OM), when asolitary doe came to quench its thirst. As it was drinking water, a fierce roar of a lion was heard and thepanicked deer leapt across the river, without fully quenching its thirst. In the process the calf in its womb felldown and was being swept by the current. Bharata,overcome with compassion, rescued the calf, its mother having diedinstantly, brought it to his hermitage and began tending it with utmost mercyand love. 368 BHARATA BORN AS A DEER Bharatatook so compassionately and lovingly to the calf-deer, that the worthy andrighteous sage overlooked his sacred divine duties in preference to thecharitable work of caressing and bringing up the orphaned calf. His heart was ever bound by his ward, inwhatever activity he might be engaged in, such as bathing, eating or lying. He took the deer with him whenever he went out in search offruits, roots, water or the like and if it would stop, he would carry it on hisshoulder. He would becomegrief-stricken if it strayed away from his sight; he would be remorseful fornegligence and would not rest till it was traced and fondled over. TheRajarshi Bharata, who renounced his kingdom, kith and kin for uninterruptedyogic practices and Lords worship, to the calf, to the total exclusion of spiritual pursuitslost himself. PrarabhdhaKarma! (Sanchita: accumulated;Prarabhdha: quota allotted for the particular birth-life; and Agami: balanceleft over for future births). Evenin his last moments, he was looking at the deer as if it were mourning andRajarshi Bharata left both his body and deer behind, with his mind firmly fixedon the deer, resultingin his taking re-birth as a deer. (Thelast thought theory.) Theintense impact of Bharata’s spirituality in his pre-deer birth made him lament:The one who had abandoned all attachments, resorted to the uninhabited butforest region, the steadfast-minded me, ever occupied in listening to Hissports, meditation, singing His praise, worshipping Him and dwelling in Hisattributes, thus preoccupied ever, that same mind of mine slipped due to a deerand I strayed away from the path of the virtuous. Thusfirming himself, the Bharata deer separated itself from its mother and clan andbetook to the holy hermitages of Pulastiya and Pulaha in Salagrama, fromKalanjara mountain. Arriving atSalagrama, awaiting the end of the deer-body, hateful of attachment, ever inseclusion, sustaining himself on dried leaf, grass and creeper, he bided his time and when itcame he finally abandoned the deer body in the holy waters of the river atSalagrama. 369 SriMadh Bhagavatham. part44 BHARATA REBORN Bharata was reborn in the Angiras race asthe son of a pious Brahman, endowed with tranquility, control of senses and mind, Tapas, Vedic study, generosity, contentment, modesty andrestraint, with a twin sister. The brahmana had by his first wife ninesons. Bharatain this rebirth was initiated in the brahminical path, like Upanayanam, Vedic rituals and ordainments. He ever remembered his previous births and was indifferent tohis father’s teachings. indue time the elder brahmana expired andhis second wife mother of the rebornBharata - entrusting her twins to the care of the first wife, ascended the funeral pyre of her husband. Bharata,indifferent to worldly life, looked mad, stupid, blind and deaf, as he was apprehensive of repeating pastexperiences. Bharata was ever dwelling in his mind the glories ofthe Lords Feet as a penance to annihilate bondage. Afterthe death of their father, the brothers, who had imbibed only the ritualisticas distinct from spiritualistic knowledge, did not comprehend Bharatas fervour and abandonedall efforts towards his advancement. Bharatawas oblivious to the ridicule heaped on him, as he had superior wisdom and was immune to pleasure or pain. Heexposed himself to rain andsunshine and subsisted onwhatever came his way, utterly unmindful of taste,even as wage for forced labor, as indeed was the case with his own step-brothers, who employed Bharata on farm work. Bharatas body-consciousness was totally absent. 370 BHARATAAS HUMAN SACRIFICE Thefollowers of a brigand chieftain fell upon Bharata at midnight when he was guarding the crop from depredations ofwild boars, deer’s and otheranimals, as a substitute who had escaped, for the human sacrifice for begettinga son at the Bhadrakali temple. Tiedby a rope and brought to the temple, Bharata was duly prepared for being sacrificed, viz. given a bath, drapedin fresh/new clothes, decoratedwith ornaments, pigments and flowers and fed well. Amidst beating of drums and playing ofinstruments, Bharata was made to sit before the Bhadrakali deity, surrounded bythe ingredients for the sacrifice, suchas lamp, incense, garlands, flowers, tender leaves, fried grains, buds, fruits etc. The sacrificial sword was lifted, but the intended sacrifice of a God-realized Brahmin,a scion of a great and holy family, whowas beyond all enmity and was compassionate to all, roused consternation inBhadrakali. Enveloped in the blaze, Bhadrakali Devi emerged from the altar. TheDevis rage and indignation became fierce as if to cause a deluge. She sang withthundering roar and taking up the samesword, sundered the heads of the propitiators and danced with their heads, drinking the bloodalong with her retinue. The wrong done to pious personages recoilson the perpetrators. The abandonment of all thoughts about thebody by Bharata , even at the point ofbeing beheaded, conforms to the liberated souls, who identify themselves with the indwelling soul and are indifferent to the happenings to the body. Theindwelling Supreme Lord is ever vigilant to the well being of the devotees who are kind to all and are filledwith love. He ever wields a chakra discus the wheel of time, for the succor ofsuppliants. SriMadh Bhagavatham.... part 43 and 44 Posted by: "DILIP KUMARRAVINDRAN" [email protected] prdiliSat Nov 13, 2010 5:41 am (PST) and Sat Nov 13, 2010 5:54 am (PST) Posted by R. 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