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Discourses on Shrimad Bhagavata (A Thousand Pages of Pure Nectar)

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Item Code: NAN225
Author: Swami Tejomayananda
Publisher: CENTRAL CHINMAYA MISSION TRUST
Language: Sanskrit Text With Transliteration and English Translation
Edition: 2019
ISBN: 9788175977099
Pages: 1039
Cover: Hardcover
Other Details 9.0 inch X 6.0 inch
Weight 1 kg
Fully insured
Fully insured
Shipped to 153 countries
Shipped to 153 countries
More than 1M+ customers worldwide
More than 1M+ customers worldwide
100% Made in India
100% Made in India
23 years in business
23 years in business
Book Description
About the Book

Shrimad Bhagavata is renowned as one or the greatest compositions in Sanskrit literature. This eighteenth Purana composed by Maharishi Veda -vyasa is extolled as the Mahapurana and is an integral part or the fabric or Indian culture. It stands unparalleled in its distinct and resplendent exaltation or devotion to God, revealing throughout the quintessence or Vedantic teachings.

Masterfully profound and delightfully enchanting, Shrimad Bhagavata abounds in word -paintings or the supreme Lord's wondrous and endearing avatars, divine sports, and devotees-paintings that kindle, intensify, and establish devotion in one's heart. This spring or devotion leads one to satsang, to the Guru, and to teachings that unveil one's essential nature or Brahman.

Swami Tejomayananda's acclaimed discourses on Shrimad Bhagavata are a rare treasure trough or spiritual wisdom, illuminating and transformative, inspiring even those immersed in material pursuits to walk the spiritual path. The reader will not only be greatly benefitted and enlightened by this treatise, but will also find insightful explanations on weighty and debated topics.

His Holiness Swami Chinmayananda, one or the most illustrious spiritual masters and Vedantins or the twentieth century, said, "Swami Tejomayananda has brought forth and unfolded the deeper import or this renowned and glorious scripture with immense clarity and flowing spontaneity."

About the Author

Swami Tejomayananda is the foremost disciple of his holiness Swami Chinmayananda, the founding father of Chinmaya Mission, a worldwide religious non-profit organization. Since his appointment in 1993 as the head of Chinmaya Mission, Swami Tejomayananda has guided, nurtured, and exponentially expanded its activities around the globe.

He travels year-round to conduct spiritual discourses on the Upanishads, Bhagavad Gita, Ramayana, Bhagavata, and other vedantic texts, and administers, across 23 countries, more than 300 Mission centres, more than 80 educational institutes, and numerous social service projects in diverse fields. He has also authored more than 100 publications in over four languages, including original compositions of music and lyrics.

He has been lauded by saints, seekers, and scholars, alike as a profound Vedantin, an exalted devotee, and a consummate teacher. After 45 years of indelible service in Chinmaya Mission’s monastic order, Swami Tejomayananda remains an inspiring beacon for countless spiritual aspirants worldwide.

Foreword

The following inaugural address was given by His Holiness Swami Chinmayananda on October 31, 1992 in Mumbai, India, at the Bhagavata saptah conducted in Hindi by his disciple, Swami Tejomayananda. This book is the English translation of those Hindi talks.

Friends, one of the greatest miracles in history is the endless history of Hinduism. Hinduism is the mother of all religions and philosophy, from the Vedic period until today. Though we may carp at it at this moment because of our total ignorance, even today we are Hindus.

How did Hinduism survive? Even without the organization that churches and mosques had, it survived. In and through the ups and downs of historical periods, Hinduism remained. It is not that it did not have enemies. There were enemies outside, as well as inside, trying to destroy this great culture, as is the case even today. However, it still endured. And if you say, "I don't believe in Hinduism," then, "Namaste!"

It is because of its elasticity that Hinduism has survived. A tree grows from its cambium. It grows from inside, from a plant to a big, healthy tree. The cambium grows from within, just as the body of a garbhini, or pregnant woman, extends as the child grows in it. However much she may try to cover it, it is there. In the same way, when the tree grows, the outer bark yields, but it never leaves. The bark holds the tree together. The cambium grows from within and the bark holds it together.

Sanatana Dharma, or Hinduism, has this capacity to grow and expand in order to embrace society when society grows out of proportion. It is not that we are in a Vedic society today. There have been all kinds of historical changes in the world. Yet, in and through them, whether in war or peace, famine or prosperity, Hinduism has held Hindus together.

This capacity is rarely found in other religions, which become fanatical, do not grow, and instead crush society and refuse to allow it to grow. It is then that a revolt comes from within and that religion perishes. How many religions have come and gone! The Greek, the Roman, the Macedonian-these cultures and religions served society and produced brilliant ages of art and literature. However, after a certain time, they collapsed. Why? They were unable to hold the public, which bore new aspirations, new imaginations, new demands, and new experiments with life. It is not that Hindus as a community never grew in such inspirations or expectations, but this dharma of Hinduism was able to expand and embrace them.

One of the most salient features, of which there are plenty, of the Vedic period is that it did not have bhakti as a movement or technique-because at that time, people were highly intellectual and had minimal desires. Therefore, extroversion was minimal, for they were all born contemplative by nature. It was simple to live in a time when greedy people had not destroyed all the trees and nature was abundant. In the midst of all that plenty, living with minimal desires, they became highly contemplative.

In all Vedic literature, there is an emphasis on contemplation. By the time of the Mahabharata War, however, man had become more egocentric and desire-ridden, wanting to fulfil his desires regardless of other community members' needs. He had become restless in mind. To tell such an individual to sit and contemplate is an impossible path.

Vyasa, the great master, felt the need for societal change, so he evolved a new technique. It was not the intellectual technique of contemplation, but the technique of devotion of the heart. Thus, to contemplate on a form representing the higher Reality, whether Krishna or Rama, the Puranic tradition began. Because we cannot steady our mind on one form unless it is clear and vivid in our imagination, the Puranas give exquisite explanations, descriptions, and stories of the Lord. The stories of Krishna or Rama, of how the Lord met the worldly problems that you and I face, are vividly depicted. Through these, even the average man with mental agitations, as you all, can come, sit, listen, and turn his mind to the Higher.

The upasana (worship) methods of the Vedic period are too difficult for today's average man to turn his attention toward or even conceive. However, the Beauty of all beauties, who grew up by the banks of the Yamuna singing His song on His flute, who made the gopis so ecstatic with His music that they went to dance around Him-these are pictures we can easily conceive; these are at our level.

The students in elementary schools and colleges will understand elementary physics, but if you speak to them about advanced physics, they will not understand. Yet once they have understood at the lower level, they can grow UD to one day comprehend a post-graduate physics class. Applying the same technique, the mind becomes quiet through bhakti and its wanderings lessen. The steady mind then becomes an instrument for higher and consistent contemplation on the spring of Life within our heart.

Listening to Bhagavata is the only path at this moment available to you and me. We may read an Upanishad and intellectually understand it, but mere understanding is not the fulfilment of the Upanishads. We have to become one with that knowledge. We have to translate it into our own life.

When we start trying to apply the teachings of Bhagavata in our life, we are unable to because the mind is always wandering outward; it is always extrovert. It is fascinated by the immediate pleasures of sense gratification. It is so in all hearts; there is no question of keeping it a secret. Every one of us is lusty, greedy, selfish, and egocentric. In such a condition, how are we to turn and contemplate on the higher Reality?

In order to drag the mind away from its wanderings and persuade it to understand that there is a greater joy, a higher happiness in contemplating on the Lord; in order to slowly turn the mind- for which even the psychiatrist does not know all the possible psychological tricks-Vyasa enchants us with Bhagavata.

CONTENTS

  Publisher's Note i
  Sanskrit Pronunciation Guide ii
  Style Notes iii
  Foreword v
  Bhagavata Mahatmya  
1 Invocation 3
2 The Glory of Shrimad Bhagavata 7
3 Maharishi Narada Meets Bhakti 17
4 Narada Meets the Sanatkumaras 20
5 The Glory of Listening to Bhagavata 29
6 Atmadeva and Dhundhuli 29
7 The Fall and Redemption of Dhundhukari 34
8 Gokarna's Bhagavata Katha 38
9 The Sanatkumaras Conduct a Bhagavata Saptah 41
  Canto One  
1 The Questions of Shaunaka Rishi and Others 56
2 Suta's Answers 61
3 The Nature and Purpose of Duty 64
4 The Nature of Truth 73
5 The Purpose of the Lord's Manifestations 79
6 The Discontentment of Maharishi Veda-vyasa 85
7 Sage Narada's Previous Birth 92
8 Parikshita Is Protected in the Womb 96
9 The Attributes of the Qualified Listener 97
10 Vidura's Teachings, the Departure of Dhrtarashtra and Gandhari 99
11 The Dialogue between Lord Dharma and Mother Earth 101
12 Parikshita Subdues Kali 104
13 The Five Abodes of Kali 105
14 Raja Parikshita Is Cursed 107
15 Raja Parikshita's Repentance 110
16 Parikshita's Dispassion, Arrival of Shri Shukadeva 112
  Canto Two  
1 The Answers to Parikshita's Questions 124
2 Meditation on the Lord's Cosmic Form 128
3 Meditation on the Lord's Subtle Form 135
4 Meditation on the Lord's Attributes 136
5 Parikshita's Questions about Creation 141
6 The Puranic Style of Answering Questions 142
7 Sage Narada Asks Lord Brahma 144
8 Lord Narayana and Lord Brahma 145
9 Parikshita's Extensive List of Questions 153
10 Catuhsloki Bhagavata 157
11 The Ten Topics of Bhagavata 164
  Canto Three  
1 Vidura Meets Maitreya Rishi 177
2 Varaha Avatar 185
3 Diti's Request 188
4 Jaya and Vijaya Are Cursed 192
5 The Birth of Hiranyakasha and Hiranyakashipu 199
6 The Battle between Lord Varaha and Hiranyaksha 200
7 The Avatar of Lord Kapila 204
8 Lord Kapila Teaches Devahuti 210
  Canto Four  
1 Daksha Prajapati's Disdain for Lord Shiva 238
2 Sat! Immolates Herself at Daksha's Yajna 243
3 The Fury of Lord Shiva 246
4 The Completion of Daksha's Sacrifice 247
5 Dhruva Is Dishonoured 251
6 Dhruva Goes to the Forest 253
7 Sage Narada's Teachings to Dhruva 257
8 Dhruva Returns Home 270
9 Dhruva's War on the Yaksas, Raja Manu's Teachings 271
10 Ascension to Dhruva-loka 273
11 Dhruva's Dynasty, Raja Anga, Raja Vena 275
12 The Advent of Raja Prthu 278
13 The Lord Blesses Raja Prthu 283
14 Raja Prthu's Teachings to His Subjects 287
15 Raja Prthu Receives Teachings from the Sanatkumaras 289
16 Lord Shiva's Teachings to the Prachetas 295
17 The Story of Puranjana 297
18 The Symbolism of the Story of Puranjana 299
  Canto Five  
1 Raja Priyavrata 306
2 Priyavrata's Dynasty 308
3 Rshabha Avatar 309
4 Lord Rshabha's Teachings to His Sons 310
5 Dharma of the Paramahamsa 315
6 Bharata's Attachment 319
7 Jada-bharata Meets King Rahugana 325
8 Jada-bharata's Teachings 329
9 The Allegory of Bhavatavi 334
10 Description of the Universe 336
11 The Myriad Hells and Their Punishments 337
  Canto Six  
1 The Story of Ajamila 347
2 The Glory of the Lord's Name 353
3 Indra Insults His Guru 362
4 The Devas Choose Vishvarupa 363
5 The Bones of Dadhichi Rishi 363
6 Vrtrasura's Devotion 365
7 Vrtrasura's Previous Birth 366
  Canto Seven  
1 Yudhishthira's Dialogue with Sage Narada 373
2 Hiranyakashipu, the Sermonizer 376
3 Hiranyakashipu's Austerities and Boons 379
4 Prahlada 381
5 Hiranyakashipu's Atrocities against Prahlada 387
6 Prahlada and the Asura Children 389
7 Nrsimha Avatar 396
8 Dharmas of Asramas and Varnas 411
9 Universal Dharma 414
10 Dharma of a Woman 416
11 Brahmacarya Asrama 418
12 Vanaprastha Asrama 420
13 Sannyasa Asrama 421
14 The Way to Liberation for Householders 423
  Canto Eight  
1 Gajendra's Moksha 434
2 Lord Brahma's Prayer to Lord Ajita 442
3 The Devas Offer a Proposal 445
4 The Churning of the Milky Ocean 446
5 Lord Shiva Drinks Poison 448
6 Mohini Avatar 456
7 Symbolism of the Churning of the Milky Ocean 460
8 Battle of the Devas and Asuras 461
9 The Enchantment of Lord Shiva 463
10 Raja Bali Conquers Amaravati 468
11 Vamana Avatar 469
12 Raja Bali Holds on to Truth 481
13 The Crushing of Raja Bali's Ego 485
14 The Lord's Love for His Devotees 492
15 Matsya Avatar 496
  Canto Nine  
1 The Tale of Ambarisha 503
2 The Ikshvaku Dynasty 508
3 Shri Rama and Shri Krishna 509
4 Shri Rama: The Epitome of Virtues 512
5 Parashurama Avatar 528
6 The Story of Yayati 531
7 Rantideva's Compassion and Magnanimity 533
  Canto Ten  
1 The Prelude to an Avatar 538
2 The Lord's Assurance to Mother Earth 548
3 The Wedding of Vasudeva and Devaki 551
4 Vasudeva Makes a Promise 552
5 The Killing of Devaki's Six Sons 555
6 Lord Brahma Sings Praises of the Supreme 559
7 The Lord Manifests as Shri Krishna 561
8 Shri Krishna Is Taken to Gokul 571
9 Yogamaya Foretells the Future 574
10 Celebrations in Nanda's Home 577
11 The Liberation of Putana 582
12 The Redemption of Shakatasura 589
13 The Salvation of Trnavarta 591
14 The Naming Ceremony of Nanda's Sons 594
15 The Childhood Plays and Divine Sports of Shri Krishna 596
16 Why Shri Krishna Ate Mud 600
17 Shri Krishna Is Tied 605
18 The Release of Kubera's Sons 610
19 The Liberation of Vatsasura 615
20 The Salvation of Bakasura 615
21 The Redemption of Aghasura 618
22 Lord Brahma's Delusion 620
23 The Salvation of Dhenukasura 629
24 The Subjugation of Kaliya 630
25 Shri Krishna Swallows Fire 638
26 Balarama Redeems Pralambasura 640
27 Shri Krishna Drinks the Forest Fire 641
28 The Glory of the Lord's Flute 646
29 The Song of the Flute 648
30 The Significance of Shri Krishna Stealing Clothes 649
31 The Gopa-balas Ask the Brahmins for Food 657
32 The Crushing of Indra's Ego 663
33 Mount Govardhan Is Lifted 664
34 Nanda Baba Is Rescued from Varuna-loka 670
35 Introduction to Rasa-lila 672
36 Rasa-lila 679
37 Gopi-gita 697
38 The Liberation of Sudarshana and Shankhachuda 718
39 Yugala-gita 719
40 The Redemption of Arishtasura, Keshi, and Vyomasura 721
41 Akrura's Arrival in Vraja 724
42 Shri Krishna and Balarama Leave for Mathura 728
43 Shri Krishna Enters Mathura 730
44 The Lord's Grace on Kubja 731
45 The Bow Is Broken 732
46 The Moksha of Kuvalayapida 733
47 The Redemption of Chanura, Mushtika, and Others 735
48 Kamsa Is Liberated 737
49 Student Life at Sandipani Ashram 741
50 Uddhava's Pilgrimage to Vraja 742
51 Uddhava's Dialogue with the Gopis 744
52 Shri Krishna Visits Kubja 747
53 Shri Krishna Visits Akrura 747
54 Jarasandha's Seventeen Attacks on Mathura 748
55 The Creation of Dvaraka 750
56 Kalayavana Chases Shri Krishna 751
57 The Waking of Raja Muchukunda 752
58 The Weddings of Balarama and Shri Krishna 754
59 Rukmini's Message to Shri Krishna 756
60 Rukmini Is Taken Away 761
61 Shri Krishna and Rukmini Wed in Vedic Tradition 763
62 Pradyumna Slays Shambarasura 764
63 The Syamantaka Jewel 765
64 Shri Krishna Marries Jambavati 765
65 Shri Krishna Weds Satyabhama 766
66 Shri Krishna's Other Weddings 767
67 The Redemption of Bhaumasura 769
68 Shri Krishna's Sixteen Thousand Wives 770
69 Shri Krishna and Rukmini's Dialogue 771
70 Shri Krishna's Descendants 772
71 The Redemption of King Nrga 774
72 The Story of King Paundraka 775
73 Narada Witnesses Shri Krishna's Life as a Householder 778
74 A Plea from the Kings Imprisoned by Jarasandha 780
75 Journey to Indraprastha 781
76 The Redemption of Jarasandha 781
77 Lord Krishna Is Honoured and Shishupala Is Redeemed 783
78 Duryodhana Feels Humiliated 786
79 Balarama's Pilgrimage 788
80 The Story of Sudama 89
81 Devaki's Six Sons Are Brought Back 800
82 Subhadra and Arjuna 801
83 Shri Krishna Appears in Two Places at Once 802
84 The Destruction of Bhasmasura 804
85 Bhrgu Rishi Tests Brahma-Vishnu-Shiva 807
  Canto Eleven  
1 The Circumstances Leading to the Destruction of the Yadava Clan 823
2 The Brahmins' Curse on the Yadu Dynasty 826
3 Sage Narada's Advice to Vasudeva 830
4 The Dialogue between Raja Nimi and the Nine yogis 832
5 The First Question: The Meaning of Bhagavata-dharma 836
6 The Second Question: The Attributes of a Devotee 847
7 The Third Question: The Nature of May a 859
8 The Fourth Question: The Means to Conquer Maya 863
9 The Fifth Question: The Nature of Lord Narayana 871
10 The Sixth Question: The Nature of Karma-yoga 876
11 The Seventh Question: The Stories of the Lord's Avatars 881
12 The Eighth Question: The Fate of Non-devotees 884
13 The Ninth Question: The Means to Attain the Lord in the Four Yugas 887
14 The Devas Pray for the Lord's Return to Vaikuntha 892
15 Uddhava's Prayer to Shri Krishna 894
16 Uddhava-gita 898
17 Avadhuta-gitd: The 24 Gurus 905
18 The Characteristics of Bondage, Liberation, and the Devotee 935
19 The Glory of Sat sang 945
20 The Legend of the Hamsa 948
21 The Best Path to Reach God 954
22 Exposition on Siddhis 957
23 The Vibhutis of the Lord 960
24 Dharma in the Various Stages of Life 962
25 The Description of Pure Knowledge and Pure Devotion 964
26 Jnana-yoga, Karma-yoga, Bhakti-yoga 969
27 Deliberation on Virtue and Vice 973
28 Deliberation on Sankhya 974
29 Bhiksu-gita 977
30 Sankhya-yoga 983
31 The Effects of the Three Gunas 984
32 Aila-gita 985
33 Kriya-yoga 986
34 Shri Krishna Speaks on Knowledge of the Self 986
  Canto Twelve  
1 The Characteristics of Kali-yuga 1001
2 The Four Types of Dissolution 1002
3 The Liberation of Parikshita 1004
4 Markandeya Rishi's Vision of Maya 1009
  Epilogue 1009

 


















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