A Study of the Bhagavata Purana or Esoteric Hinduism Part 37

The Churning recommenced. Out came Surabhi (the fabulous cow of plenty).

The Vedic Rishis took that Cow for the necessaries of Yajna. Then came the horse Uchchaih-Sravas. Bali desired to have it. But Indra as directed by Vishnu made no desire. Then came the elephant Airavata, then the 8 s.p.a.ce elephants and their 8 female partners.

Next arose Kaustubha, the celebrated lotus-colored gem. Vishnu wished to have it as an ornament for His breast. Next came Parijata, then the Apsaras.

Illumining all sides with her l.u.s.tre arose Lakshmi. All paid homage to her. She looked on all sides, but found none, whom she could accept. If there was an ascetic he could not control his anger. If there was a Jnani (sophist) he could not get over attachments. There might be a Mahatma, but he had not conquered his pa.s.sion of love. How could he be called isvara, who depended on others, (and no one but isvara could claim Lakshmi). If there was Dharma any where, there was not friendliness for all beings. If there was sacrifice, it was not for liberation. There was power but it could not resist the flow of time. If there was one void of likes and dislikes, he did not take a companion.

If there was any one long lived, he had neither good nature (_Sila_) nor auspiciousness (_Mangala._) If one had good nature and auspiciousness, he was not long lived. If one had all the Virtues he was out of his element with her. If he was all that she wanted he did not want her.

Considering everything, Lakshmi at last accepted Vishnu for her husband.

He placed her on His breast. She favored the Devas, so they became possessed of all the virtues. She showed indifference to the Asuras, so they lost their might, energy and modesty and became greedy.

Then arose a lotus eyed girl called Varuni (Spirituous liquor.) The Asuras accepted her.

Then arose Dhanvantari, part of a part of Vishnu, with a pot of Amrita in hand. Seeing the pot of Amrita, the greedy Asuras took that by force.

They quarrelled with each other, some saying "First myself," "First myself," others saying "Not you" "Not you," whilst the weaker amongst them finding that they were going to be deprived, cried out in jealousy "The Devas are also ent.i.tled to an equal share. They have also toiled with us."

At this time Vishnu became a most beautiful young woman. She filled the hearts of the Asura Chiefs with pa.s.sion. They asked the tempting girl to settle their differences and to make a proper distribution of Amrita amongst them. "But how can you trust a woman," said the girl. But the Asuras had fallen in love with her, so they made over the Amrita pot to her without further thought. She consented to distribute Amrita on the condition that the Asuras should put up with whatever she did, right or wrong. The Asuras consented. She then made the Devas and Asuras sit in two separate rows. She distributed the whole of the Amrita amongst the Devas. Only one Asura, named Rahu, sat with the Devas. The Sun and the Moon pointed him out to the girl Vishnu. Vishnu then and there severed the head from the body of the Asura, but as the head had touched Amrita, it became immortal. Brahma made it a planet. Rahu still pursues the Sun and Moon at eclipses out of enmity.

When the Amrita was wholly spent, Vishnu a.s.sumed His own form and in the presence of all left the place on the back of Garuda.

The Asuras found they had been deceived and they became very angry. They could not bear the success of their enemies but they instantly engaged in fight with them. The fight was personal between the chiefs of both sides. (It is interesting to note the antagonistic names, as they give the correspondences between the Deva and Asura chiefs.) Indra fought with Bali, Kartikeya with Taraka, Varuna with Heti, Mitra with Praheti, Yama with Kalanabha, Visvakarma with Maya, Tvastri with Sambara, Savitri with Virochana, Aparajita with Namuchi. The Asvini k.u.maras with Vrishaparvan, Surya (Sun) with the hundred sons of Bali, Vana and others, Chandra (Moon) with Rahu, Vayu with Puloman, Bhadra Kali with Sumbha and Nishumbha, Vrishakapi with Jambha, Vibhavasu with Mahisha, the sons of Brahma with Ilvala and Vatapi, Brihaspati with Sukra, Sani with Naraka, the Maruts with the Nivatakavachas, the Vasus with the Kaleyas, the Visvadevas with the Poulamas and the Rudras with the Krodhavasas. (Those who want to make a deep study will do well to note these correspondences as they will serve to explain points which I have not touched upon as beyond the scope of the present work).

The Asuras used all the weapons of tempting Maya and conquered the Devas, Vishnu then came to their rescue and they became victorious (The details of the fight might be interesting from an occult point of view, for which the reader must refer to the original.)

Siva heard that Vishnu had a.s.sumed an enchanting female form. To satisfy his curiosity he went to Him with Bhavani. Vishnu a.s.sumed that form again to satisfy Siva. The Astral Lord became pa.s.sionate and ran after that female form and embraced her. The female Vishnu got out of the embrace and re-a.s.sumed His own form. Siva was then restored to himself.

THOUGHTS ON THE ABOVE.

We have already seen that the ascent of spirit commenced in the Vaivasvata Manvantara. If the fourteenth Manvantara or the second half of the Seventh Round he left out of consideration, as the Manvantara of Dissolution or Pralaya, the middle of the remaining 13 Manvantaras will be in the Vaivasvata Manvantara. But the ascent could not commence without preparation. That preparation was made in the Chakshusha Manvantara or during the latter half of the Third Round.

Sri or Lakshmi is the Satvic energy of preservation. This energy was so much overpowered by Materiality, that she was not to be found in Triloki. The spiritual forces, the Devas, lost life and energy. The Asuras were at the height of their power. But as the ascending arc was near at hand, the Devas were promised Amrita _i.e._ immortality for the remaining part of the Kalpa. But that Amrita was to be obtained, the arc of spiritual evolution was to be raised by the churning of the ocean of Milk.

The ocean of Milk does not appertain to Jambu Dwipa, but it is the ocean of Saka Dwipa. The seven oceans are transformations of Prakriti, differing in the admixture of Satva, Rajas and Tamas and determining the character of the globe they surround. Vishnu, as the Third Purusha, is the divine source of evolution in every Jiva. The seat of that Vishnu is the ocean of Milk, the ocean where Satva prevails.

It is Vishnu who from His seat in the Ocean of Milk sends down Pranic Energy and the mineral becomes a vegetable. He sends down the power of perception and then the power of conception and the vegetable becomes an animal and at last a man. Throughout this course of evolution, there is a development of the self element in us. There is no idea of self in the mineral or in the vegetable. It faintly a.s.serts itself or rather makes an effort to a.s.sert itself in the animal kingdom. The early history of humanity is the development of the selfish element in him. The Jiva has two sides in himself and non-self. The self side is caused by limitation due to his own senses They put him in contact with the outside world, and make him a centre of sense perceptions. He becomes lost entirely in the sense products, which form a world by themselves. The non-self side of a Jiva, is his spiritual nature. He begins with this spiritual nature. But the development of selfishness eclipses this nature, the true, the real nature of Jiva, and he identifies himself entirely with the acquired and false nature.

Then comes a crisis in the evolution of Jivas. Were men to be lost for ever to their spiritual, their real nature? Were they to be tempted away by the senses, which had done their work of training, past all chance of return?

Vishnu, the G.o.d of human evolution, willed otherwise. He caused a re-adjustment of the Daivic and asuric forces, and the Devas by His help got the better of the Asuras. This is the churning of the Ocean of Milk.

It averted a crisis and is therefore a great event in the history of the Universe.

The Asura element could not be altogether wiped away. For the Deva or spiritual nature evolves out of Asura or selfish and material nature.

Unselfishness grows out of selfishness, spirituality rises out of materiality.

In the act of churning, the Devas could not do without the Asuras.

Churning itself, implies the action and reaction of two contending forces. "Make peace with them, as long as you are not strong yourselves." The compromise of the Devas with the Asuras is the development of spiritual faculties out of the personal element in man.

It is the grafting of higher Manas on lower Manas. The element of mind is in the Asuras as well as in the Devas. But the Asuric or lower mind thinks of self as separate from other selves. The Daivic or higher mind breaks through the trammels of personality and finds oneness all round.

To use a better expression, we shall say higher self and lower self, rather than self and non-self.

Jivas are carried on in their course of life evolution by the force of past tendencies, and nature unaided produces the personal man. But when the past tendencies are exhausted, there is nothing to keep on the Jivas in their course of evolution.

Kurma comes to the help of humanity at this stage. He gives a new power to men, the power of discrimination. With this power men become free agents, and they become responsible for their actions. They then generate new Karma for themselves, which takes them through infinite births and becomes a most potent factor in their future evolution.

The three Purushas have three Oceans as their correspondences. The first ocean (Karana) gives the materials of the Jiva body. The Second ocean (Garbhoda), gives the germs of all Jivas. The third (Kshira) is the ocean of Jiva evolution. This ocean is churned for the spiritual evolution of Jivas, and it yields all that is necessary for that evolution. Vishnu himself appears as Kurma and becomes the sustaining force of that evolution.

It is a Kalpic revolution. Vasuki sustains the earth and its inhabitants for one Kalpic period. The thousand hoods represent the thousand Maha yugas of every Kalpa. The Asuras held the mouth end of the serpent king and the Devas held the tail end. And the Devas acted wisely. For as the Kalpa waned, they got the supremacy.

The tortoise thrusts out its limbs and draws them in. Man is drawn outside by his senses during material descent and he is drawn in by his spiritual ascent. It is by the power of discrimination when fully developed that a man returns to his higher nature.

Sri or Lakshmi is the divine energy of Vishnu. She is the Energy of preservation, of evolution and progress She works out all that is good, all that is beautiful, and all that is powerful in this Universe. The possibilities of purely material development or of Nature's own evolution, are limited, and they are worked out in time. Then there is a void. There was this void in our universe and Triloki become deprived of Sri. This was the curse of Durvasas, an Avatara of Siva.

The Churning took place as a remedy for this evil. Fresh forces had to be brought into requisition, fresh elements that could secure the spiritual evolution of the universe. Lakshmi herself reappeared in a most enchanting form, as the energy of a new evolution, the very best that man was capable of. The necessaries of this evolution also appeared and became powers in the hands of those that had to take part in the spiritual evolution of the universe.

All evolution is preceded by dissolution. Unless we give up the evil element in us, we can not acquire the good. The evil has to be destroyed and the Lord of destruction, in his infinite compa.s.sion, accepted this poison for himself, to do away with the evils of the Universe.

The Poison only opens the door for Amrita, the spiritual nectar. The famous Purusha Sukta says: - "He placed Amrita or eternal bliss in the higher three Lokas." The Bhagavata renders this famous saying into the eighteenth sloka of the 6th. chapter of the Second Skandha. Commenting on this sloka, Sridhara says, bliss in our Triloki is only transitory and the dwellers of Mahar Loka have also to leave their abode for the higher Jana Loka, when they are oppressed by the fire of Kalpic dissolution. Amrita was secured to the higher Lokas, as there is no selfishness in them. (III. 10-9.) Could the Asuras, the G.o.ds of selfishness, aspire to have life immortal and unlimited bliss. Vishnu decided otherwise.

The way was thus prepared for the Vaivasvata Manvantara, when men learned to discern between right and wrong.

THE SEVENTH MANVANTARA.

*SKANDHA VIII. CHAP. 13.*

Sraddha Deva son of Vivasvat or Surya is the seventh Manu. He is reigning at present. Ikshvaku, Nabhaga, Dhrishta, Saryati, Narishyanta, Nabhaga, Dishta, Tarusha, Prishadhra, and Vasumat are his ten sons.

The adityas, the Vasus, the Rudras, the Visvadevas, the Maruts, the Asvini-k.u.maras and the Ribhus are the Devas. Purandara is their Indra.

Kasyapa, Atri, Vasistha, Visvamitra, Goutama, Jamadagni and Bharadvaja are the seven Rishis.

The Avatara of this Manvantara is Vamana, the youngest son of Aditi by Kasyapa.

(The Purana will revert to this Manvantara after giving a general account of the succeeding Manvantaras).

THE EIGHTH MANVANTARA.

*SKANDHA VIII. CHAP. 13.*

Savarni is the son of Vivasvat by his wife Chaya. He shall be the eighth Manu - Nirmoka, Virajaska (without Rajas) and others shall be his sons.

Sutapas, Viraja (without Rajas) and Amrita Prabha shall be the Devas.

Bali, son of Virochana, shall be the Indra.