Overwhelmed By The Illusory Energy

“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

“I must say, it is pretty easy to criticize others. It does not require much effort. Just look around. Society as a whole is so degraded. If you need to constantly look for new forms of intoxication, it means that you are miserable. You are unable to cope with life, as we know it. There is something seriously wrong.

“At the same time, what is a person supposed to do? They feel as if there is no meaning to anything. You work to eat. That is obvious. That is a given. On the other side, you eat to work. It is this vicious cycle. Why do we have to do either? What is the point to it all? Why are we even here? How are we any different from the hamster spinning on the wheel?

“One person dreads the idea of spending decades sitting in front of an electronic box. They hate being confined to a cubicle in an office, sitting on an uncomfortable chair, wearing clothes that only restrict the natural flow of blood and air throughout the body. They would rather be anywhere else. Okay, but where? How is life outside any better? What is the point to the time we spend in this world?”

His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada identifies the problem as a lack of knowledge of the destination. The Sanskrit word is gati. Since we are overwhelmed by the illusory energy known as maya, we do not know where to go. We think that something is good for us. We walk confidently in that direction. After some time, we regret our decision. We try to retrace our steps. We may try to erase everything we have experienced. We want to go in a different direction. This constant swinging between acceptance and rejection is the way material life flows. As explained in Bhagavad-gita, we are overcome by the dualities of attraction and aversion.

इच्छाद्वेषसमुत्थेन द्वन्द्वमोहेन भारत
सर्वभूतानि संमोहं सर्गे यान्ति परन्तप

icchādveṣasamutthena dvandvamohena bhārata
sarvabhūtāni saṃmohaṃ sarge yānti parantapa

“O scion of Bharata [Arjuna], O conquerer of the foe, all living entities are born into delusion, overcome by the dualities of desire and hate.” (Lord Krishna, Bhagavad-gita, 7.27)

Prahlada Maharaja has a different idea. He identifies the proper destination. He says that the gati which ties to the self-interest of the individual, svartha, is Vishnu. This Vishnu is both an individual and a destination.

न ते विदु: स्वार्थगतिं हि विष्णुं
दुराशया ये बहिरर्थमानिन:
अन्धा यथान्धैरुपनीयमाना-
स्तेऽपीशतन्‍त्र्यामुरुदाम्नि बद्धा:

na te viduḥ svārtha-gatiṁ hi viṣṇuṁ
durāśayā ye bahir-artha-māninaḥ
andhā yathāndhair upanīyamānās
te ’pīśa-tantryām uru-dāmni baddhāḥ

“Persons who are strongly entrapped by the consciousness of enjoying material life, and who have therefore accepted as their leader or guru a similar blind man attached to external sense objects, cannot understand that the goal of life is to return home, back to Godhead, and engage in the service of Lord Vishnu. As blind men guided by another blind man miss the right path and fall into a ditch, materially attached men led by another materially attached man are bound by the ropes of fruitive labor, which are made of very strong cords, and they continue again and again in materialistic life, suffering the threefold miseries.” (Shrimad Bhagavatam, 7.5.31)

In Bhagavad-gita, Arjuna refers to Vishnu as the param-dhama, or the best resting place. We might find various dhamas in this world, as physical locations such as Jagannath Puri, Chitrakuta, Vrindavan, and others. These places are also param-dhama because of their association with the same Vishnu.

अर्जुन उवाच
परं ब्रह्म परं धाम पवित्रं परमं भवान्
पुरुषं शाश्वतं दिव्यमादिदेवमजं विभुम्

arjuna uvāca
paraṃ brahma paraṃ dhāma pavitraṃ paramaṃ bhavān
puruṣaṃ śāśvataṃ divyamādidevamajaṃ vibhum

“Arjuna said: You are the Supreme Brahman, the ultimate, the supreme abode and purifier, the Absolute Truth and the eternal divine person. You are the primal God, transcendental and original, and You are the unborn and all-pervading beauty.” (Bhagavad-gita, 10.12)

How do we reach the param-dhama? How do we find the destination that is Vishnu? How do we finally clear our confusion by having assertiveness in moving in the direction of permanent purification? How do we finally relieve ourselves of the burden of uncertainty, in desperately trying to safeguard progress which is otherwise slated for destruction through the onslaught of time?

As Prahlada describes the way through his timeless wisdom, in words of instruction, he also shows the way through his behavior. It can be something as simple as writing a name on a slate. Drawing the symbol of the chakra in order to remember Vishnu. Since the Supreme Lord is absolute, the symbol associated with Him is just as good as being with Him. The name of Krishna written on a chalkboard is just as good as being with Krishna.

Is it a difficult task to write a name? Is it that much of a chore to remember? Is it so tough to sacrifice some time in the day to repeating names appearing in a sequence? Is the mantra not there to help us? Prahlada faced difficulties due to the inimical father. There was interference as punishment for having identified the proper destination, the proper path in life, and the proper relationship between the individual living being and the highest being of all. Prahlada paved the way so as to make it easier for us, and we continue to take strength from his shining example of sacrifice, courage, bravery, and determination.

In Closing:

Interference to face,
After slate in hand to place.

The father the images saw,
How chakra and name to draw.

Just by the Krishna image there,
Link to transcendence aware.

Prahlada fixed in devotional state,
Best example for others to make.