“One time, that wicked king of the Daityas saw his son of lotus-like face and beautiful eyes, surrounded by women, having returned from the home of the guru. In his hand, that boy was holding a slate which had the mark of a chakra at the top and the name of Krishna written with great adoration.” (Narasimha Purana, 41.35-36)

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तं पद्मवक्त्रं दैत्येन्द्रः कदाचित् स्त्रीवृतः खलः
बालं गुरुगृहायातं ददर्श स्वायतेक्षणम्
गृहीत्वा तु करे पुत्रं पट्टिका या सुशोभना
मूर्ध्नि चक्राङ्किता पट्टी कृष्णनामाङ्कितादरात्

taṃ padmavaktraṃ daityendraḥ kadācit strīvṛtaḥ khalaḥ
bālaṃ gurugṛhāyātaṃ dadarśa svāyatekṣaṇam
gṛhītvā tu kare putraṃ paṭṭikā yā suśobhanā
mūrdhni cakrāṅkitā paṭṭī kṛṣṇanāmāṅkitādarāt

“You have to admit, there is a lot of emphasis on maya. This Sanskrit word refers to ‘that which is not.’ Maya is illusion. Maya is what stands between us and our return to identification with Brahman. Maya tricks us into identifying with the body. We are not the body. Since we identify with something we are not, we are in maya. The goal of the human form of life is to get out of maya.

“Here is a question to ponder, though. Don’t we actually need maya? Isn’t maya necessary for any work to take place? And there is work going on, in every corner of the world, from rich and poor alike. From the skilled to the apprentice. From the artistic to the simple. From every race. From every gender and from every age. Every person is working.

“Is not maya the impetus for their work? One of the subtle elements covering the body is ego. The Sanskrit word is ahankara. Since this is part of the body, it is also maya. It is because of this ego that a person strives for excellence. Ahankara is what makes them proud, and the drive for pride is the catalyst for pushing the boundaries of excellence and achievement. In other words, nothing would take place without ahankara.

“Then explain to me why are you in such a push to identify maya and remove its influence? Would not society itself fall apart? Would not the entire structure crumble, hitting the ground so hard that no one knows what to do in the aftermath? Don’t we need a little maya in order to enjoy variety in life, to be rewarded for the work that we do?”

There is a flaw in the premise. This flaw somehow establishes the impetus for work only in the case of identification with the body. Only when there is ahankara will a person continue forward, carrying out their occupational duties, dharma. Bhagavad-gita has a different opinion. The teacher, Shri Krishna, says that a person can work to set a good example, even though they are detached. Even though they do not identify with the body, from an external sense they appear no different than the person who is in maya.

सक्ताः कर्मण्यविद्वांसो यथा कुर्वन्ति भारत
कुर्याद्विद्वांस्तथासक्तश्चिकीर्षुर्लोकसङ्‍‍ग्रहम्

saktāḥ karmaṇy avidvāṁso
yathā kurvanti bhārata
kuryād vidvāṁs tathāsaktaś
cikīrṣur loka-saṅgraham

“As the ignorant perform their duties with attachment to results, similarly the learned may also act, but without attachment, for the sake of leading people on the right path.” (Lord Krishna, Bhagavad-gita, 3.25)

This is not to mention that the maya condition is ignorance. There is no benefit to being in ignorance when the human being otherwise applies intelligence everywhere else. They hope to know things as they are in order to act properly. It would be like staying in ignorance about the utilization of the fork. Is it a wise decision to ignorantly use a fork to eat a bowl of soup? If the ignorance goes away, if a person realizes that they need a spoon, instead, does that mean the soup will just sit there? Actually, the same person will still eat, but in the proper way.

We have the historical example of the Daitya prince named Prahlada. He was born in the proper condition. He was above maya from having heard the science of self-realization. This was a special circumstance, wherein Prahlada accepted the wisdom while still within the womb. He took birth already realized in the self.

We see that Prahlada still went to school. His interests diverged from the family tradition, though. Prahlada held a slate in his hand. He did not cast aside objects of the material world outright. He did not go around labelling this object and that as maya. He did not spit at the thought of sitting in the classroom, of pursuing an education in hopes of carrying out a particular occupation, varna, in adulthood.

Prahlada took the slate and used it. He drew a chakra at the top. He beautifully decorated one section with the name of Krishna. This was in a reverential mood, adarat. Prahlada was writing like everyone else, but his mind was in a different place. He was not attached to the modes of nature. He was connected to transcendence, in understanding that those symbols associated with Vishnu are ever-auspicious. Vishnu holds the chakra in one of His hands, and He is known as Krishna in His avatara appearing as the son of Nanda and Yashoda.

Both Prahlada and his father were in the kingdom. Both Prahlada and his father had intelligence. The difference was that the father was still in maya, taking identity from the body and the temporary circumstances of ruling over a kingdom. Prahlada understood that Vishnu is the source of strength in everyone. One who knows the transcendental position of the Supreme Personality of Godhead does not take birth again. They may act or they may remain stationary. They may appear to be just like everyone else, but they are detached from the temporary, above illusion, and attached to Krishna and His holy name.

जन्म कर्म च मे दिव्यम्
एवं यो वेत्ति तत्त्वतः
त्यक्त्वा देहं पुनर् जन्म
नैति माम् एति सो ऽर्जुन

janma karma ca me divyam
evaṁ yo vetti tattvataḥ
tyaktvā dehaṁ punar janma
naiti mām eti so ‘rjuna

“One who knows the transcendental nature of My appearance and activities does not, upon leaving the body, take his birth again in this material world, but attains My eternal abode, O Arjuna.” (Lord Krishna, Bhagavad-gita, 4.9)

In Closing:

As into work to proceed,
For maya is there a need?

Otherwise the ego suppressed,
Societal advancement depressed.

But Prahlada example just see,
Son of powerful king was he.

Never into illusion from knowledge to get,
But work fixed in devotion set.

Categories: prahlada and his slate, questions

Tags: dailyprompt, karma, life, poem, poems, poetry, vedanta