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Therefore Balarama is also called an incarnation of Rudra or Siva according to Vaishnava texts. He is Rudra Himself. The fire from the mouth of Sankarshana burns the Triloki at Pralaya. Sankarshana literally means "he who draws 392 A Study of the Bhagavata Purana in completely." The process of Pralaya has already set in. The whole process of spiritual ascent is a process of material Pralaya. Accord- ing to some therefore, Vishnu and Siva united to form Harihara, at the time of the Great Churning, when this process first set in. When individuals throw off their material garb, or when, by Pralayic force, their material cover is forcibly removed, they become fit to be gath- ered together and to become merged at Pralaya in the One. PRADYUMNA is the wish of Bhagavat, as imprinted on the course of universal evolution. He is the wish of God. When the one wished to be many, He represented that wish and gave the entire turn to the course of evolution, that it might adopt itself to that wish. Individuals multiplied. Desires became many and all actions became Sakama. Pradyumna was then called Kamadeva, the God of Love, or desire. When the course of descent was arrested, Kamadeva was de- stroyed by fire from the forehead of Siva. He appeared again, but this time he appeared as the son of Krishna. The wish of his father now was to be one again, for He had already become many, as many as the Karma of the previous Kalpa would allow. And Pradyumna had to impress this wish upon individuals generally, so that the ascent of matter to spirit might be universal. According to Kapila, Pradyumna is reflected on Buddhi. Buddhi is defined by him as that faculty by which objects are perceived. Doubt, false understanding, true understanding, memory and sleep, these are the indications of that faculty. (III. 26. XXVIII, XXIX). ANIRUDDHA is the son of Pradyumna. According to Kapila, he is reflected on Manas, the faculty of Sankalpa and Vikalpa. Sankalpa in Sankhya terminology is the first or general idea of a thing. Vikalpa is the idea of the peculiarity of a thing. Thus when I cast a passing glance at a man, I know nothing of him except that he is a man. But when I look at him carefully, I know his peculiarities and can differentiate him from others. The first idea is the idea of a thing in its primity or dawn. The second idea is the idea of its peculiarities. It is the second idea which gives rise to likes and dislikes. In the course of ascent, we must carry general ideas. We must rise from particulars to generals. The mind will thus be freed from Purnendu Narayana Sinha, M. A., B. L. 393 the burden of personal and material thoughts. Aniruddha became wedded to Usha or Dawn. He is Bhagavat as perceived by Manas. END OF THE TENTH SKANDHA. THE ELEVENTH SKANDHA THE MUSHALA. XI. I. Sri Krishna, with the help of Rama, the Yadavas and the Pandavas, killed the Daityas, born as Kings. He made the Pandavas his instru- ments in the great war. When the Kings on both sides and their armies were killed, Sri Krishna thought within himself:—"The pres- sure is not yet all removed from the earth. For these powerful Ya- davas, backed by me, have become mad with power. I shall bring on disunion among them, which will be the cause of their death. Then I can have rest and may go to my own abode." Visva-mitra, Asita, Kanva, Durvasas, Bhrigu, Angiras, Kasyapa, Vamadeva, Atri, Vasistha, Narada and other Rishis went to a sacred place called Pindaraka near Dvaraka. The Yadava boys were playing among themselves. They dressed Samba, son of Jambavati, as a girl and took him to the Rishis, saying she was pregnant and inquiring whether she would have a son or a daughter. The Rishis could not bear this impertinence and they said:—"O you fools, she will bring forth a Mushala (a pestle) that will be the ruin of your line." The boys were terrified. Samba did produce an iron pestle. They took the pes- tle and went home. The boys related the story to all the Yadavas. Ahuka, the chief of the clan, ordered the pestle to be ground down to powder and the powder to be thrown into the Sea. This was done, but a portion remained. That portion was also thrown into the Sea. A fish swallowed the iron piece. The fish was caught by a fisherman. He made two spears of the iron found in the fish. The powdered iron grains were carried by the waves to the coast and there they grew into reeds. 394 A Study of the Bhagavata Purana THE BHAGAVATA PATH. SKANDHA XI. CHAP. 2-5. Vasudeva asked Narada about the Path of Bhagavat which leads to Moksha. Narada said:— Of the sons of Rishabha, nine became well-versed in Atma Vidya. They were Kavi, Hari, Antariksha, Prabuddha, Pippalayana Avirho- tra, Drumila, Chamasa, and Kara-bhajana. The Rishis of Bharata Varsha were performing Yajna at the place of Nimi and these nine Rishis went there. I. Nimi asked the Rishis about the path of Bhagavat. Kavi said:— The path of Bhagavat consists of such expedients as the Lord men- tioned Himself (for those that are not wise) for the speedy acquisition of self knowledge. In following this Path, man is not overcome by ob- stacles (as in the path of Yoga). He may run along this path even with closed eyes without fear of losing his steps (with closed eyes i.e. even without knowing where he goes and what he does). (What is the path then?) Whatever a man does, whether it be the body or speech or mind or the senses or intellect or the sense of I-ness that acts, let him offer that all up to the Supreme Narayana. He who is removed from Isvara, (first) forgets ([svara), (Asmriti), then there is wrong perception such as "I am the body" (Viparyaya). This is caused by the Maya of Bhagavat. Fear arises from devotion to the Second. Therefore wise men worship the Lord only, with unfail- ing Bhakti, knowing his Guru to be one with Isvara and Atma. (The Bhagavata School classifies Jivas under two heads—Antar Mukha and Bahir Mukha. Antar Mukha is literally one with his face turned inwards i.e, one who withdraws himself from the outside world and looks to self within, which is only an aspect of Ishvara. Bahir Mukha Jiva is one with his face turned outwards i.e. one who withdraws himself from the self-within and therefore from Ish- vara. He first loses sight of Ishvara, forgets that he (the Jiva) is an aspect of Ishvara and that he is not the same as the body. He then considers the body as one with himself and concerns himself only Purnendu Narayana Sinha, M. A., B. L. 395 with its relations to the outside world. This is called forgetting and wrong perception. "Fear arises from devotion to the Second." The Second is that which is not self. In meditation, the Guru stands be- tween Isvara and self, and is Isvara for all practical purposes to the devotee). The Dvaita (Mayic manifestation), though not existing, appears to exist, through the mind of man, like dreams and desires. Therefore wise men should control the mind, which gives rise to desires and doubts about actions. Then there shall be no fear. The existence of the outside world and of the body is like the existence of dreams and desires. The dream exists for the time being and then disappears altogether, The dream has its existence because the mind brings it into existence. It is a creation of the mind, not permanently attached to the Jiva. So desires are also creations of the mind, not permanently attached to the Jiva, But they have got a temporary existence. That existence, however, is an existence in the mind of the man entertaining the dreams and desires and not outside the mind. Therefore the existence is not a real one. So the body of the Jiva and its surroundings are temporarily at- tached to the Jiva. As the dream vanishes in the wakeful state, so the body and its surroundings disappear with the transformation called Death. Body after body, surroundings after surroundings, are dreams, as it were, in the mind that bears all through the bubbles arising in the ocean of Jivic existence. The realisation of this temporary connection of the body and its surroundings is a training for the Antarmukha Jiva, for it enables him to turn towards Ishvara and the permanent aspect of Jiva. The non-existence of Dvaita has always to be understood with reference to Jiva or Ishvara, and not independently, for the flow of Prakriti is eternal. The disregard of this primary idea has given rise to many misconceptions. (Then as to Antarmukha practices.) Hear about the Incarnations of Vishnu and His blessed deeds, hear about his names full of import as to those deeds and Incarnations, hear and sing the songs about Him, without any sense of uneasiness as to what others will say. Then roam over the earth free from all worldly at- tachments. By such practices, and by the recital of His dear names, love for 396 A Study of the Bhagavata Purana Bhagavat grows up. The heart then melts away. The devotee laughs loudly, he weeps, he cries aloud, he sings and he dances like a mad man. He loses all control over himself. He salutes Akasa, Vayu, Agni, Water, Earth, the planets, the trees, the Seas and all beings as forming the body of his Hari. For he knows nothing else. He, who worships Bhagavat in this way, has Devotion (Bhakti), perception of Ishvara (Anubhava) and dispassion (Virakti)—all three growing at one and the same time, as, by eating, one gets pleasure, nutrition and satisfaction of hunger all at one and the same time. The Bhagavata then attains supreme peace. II. Nimi then asked: "What are the Characteristics of a Bhagavata and what are the Signs by which a Bhagavata is known?" Hari replied:— "He who sees in all beings the existence of Bhagavat as in his own self, and sees all beings in the Bhagavat within himself is the highest Bhagavata.