“Prahlada Maharaja said: One who is sufficiently intelligent should use the human form of body from the very beginning of life—in other words, from the tender age of childhood—to practice the activities of devotional service, giving up all other engagements. The human body is most rarely achieved, and although temporary like other bodies, it is meaningful because in human life one can perform devotional service. Even a slight amount of sincere devotional service can give one complete perfection.” (Shrimad Bhagavatam, 7.6.1)

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श्रीप्रह्राद उवाच
कौमार आचरेत्प्राज्ञो धर्मान्भागवतानिह
दुर्लभं मानुषं जन्म तदप्यध्रुवमर्थदम्

śrī-prahrāda uvāca
kaumāra ācaret prājño
dharmān bhāgavatān iha
durlabhaṁ mānuṣaṁ janma
tad apy adhruvam arthadam

“It is a key item. It is almost like an anchor. Within the presentation of the science of self-realization, it is like the opening appeal. The one truth that will make the audience sit up, pay attention, and look for resolution. It is highlighting a reality, which is simultaneously a problem. It is like when an athlete exhibits exceptional skill, supported through metrics in performance, but is then lacking something more significant, like say a championship. It is not enough that they play in the highest league, in front of millions of paying customers, with outstanding performances. They have to make the most out of that opportunity by producing a winning team. Otherwise, they may as well have been ordinary, like the rest of the field.

“The reality of which I speak is the importance of the human birth. The teacher of the science of self-realization references the fact that the human birth is precious, auspicious, and rarely achieved. The Sanskrit equivalent is durlabham. Prahlada Maharaja references this reality when speaking to his classmates within the kingdom of the Daityas. Basically, it is a wakeup call, an announcement to take our life seriously. We are not here to merely pass the time in sensual enjoyments, waiting until time taps us on the shoulder and shows its ugly and terrifying visual known as kāla, which is death.

“That is fine and well, but where is the evidence to support the claim of the rareness of the human birth? How do you convey the importance to someone who doubts the truth about the changing body? They refer to the belief as reincarnation, and they think only the crazy ones extend the consciousness out that far. There is no memory of past births. There is no confirmation of the afterlife, in how the individual will move on to a different existence in the future.

“Yes, Bhagavad-gita describes the scientific mechanism behind the travel. It is like the air carrying scents from outside. The pollen during the spring season manages to cause havoc within the home, triggering allergic reactions. The blueberry muffins baking in the oven in the kitchen extend their aroma throughout the house. In the same way, the individual carries their conceptions into the future, leaving the gross body behind.

“Outside references from shastra, where is the evidence? How do you convince someone that the human birth is special? How do you get them to take this life seriously, in the matter of realization of the self? They will argue that it is all due to chance, that randomness determined their current state and that the same randomness will settle everything in the future.”

शरीरं यद् अवाप्नोति
यच् चाप्य् उत्क्रामतीश्वरः
गृहीत्वैतानि संयाति
वायुर् गन्धान् इवाशयात्

śarīraṁ yad avāpnoti
yac cāpy utkrāmatīśvaraḥ
gṛhītvaitāni saṁyāti
vāyur gandhān ivāśayāt

“The living entity in the material world carries his different conceptions of life from one body to another as the air carries aromas.” (Lord Krishna, Bhagavad-gita, 15.8)

The emphasis on the preciousness of human life is not exclusive to teachers of sanatana-dharma or bhakti-yoga. Talk to a couple that is having trouble conceiving. While others take the birthing process for granted, there is no guarantee that the combination of man and woman will bring forth a new life into this world. To the ones facing difficulty, birth is a miracle. They consider other parents to be fortunate and blessed in having children in their home.

Consider good fortune in the varieties of the human experience. One person has to struggle from birth. They appear within a home of drug and alcohol addiction. This leads to poverty. This leads to abuse. This takes its toll on mental health. Another person has a loving family that values responsibility and control over indulgences. The person in the poor condition tells others to appreciate their good fortune, that their lives should never be taken for granted.

With respect to the human birth, basic math provides the evidence. Consider the different kinds of living beings. Whether we believe there is spirit soul at the core or not, there is no doubt about the presence of life. In the tree. In the insect. In the reptile. In the microorganisms. There is life all around. Those other forms of life cannot contemplate, deliberate, gather evidence, develop arguments, or intentionally choose different paths. They can only go off of instinct. For this reason, karma does not apply to them. Karma is action with a consequence, tied to the future development of a material body. Karma involves choice. That choice is the result of the application of intelligence.

Someone like Prahlada Maharaja asks that we not take our intelligence for granted. It is not available in the other species; at least not to the same height. In comparison of numbers, there are so many of them and very little of us. There are so many other species and not as many living, viable human beings. Should the more intelligent follow the ways of the less intelligent? Should those achieving a higher standard intentionally fall down to a lower standard, without sufficient justification?

क्रीडन्ती राजहंसेन पद्मषण्डेषु नित्यदा
हंसी सा तृणषण्डस्थं कथं पश्येत मद्गुकम्

krīḍantī rājahaṃsena padmaṣaṇḍeṣu nityadā
haṃsī sā tṛṇaṣaṇḍasthaṃ kathaṃ paśyeta madgukam

“How can that female swan who is accustomed to sporting with the king of swans amidst lotus flowers ever cast her eyes on a water-crow that stays amidst bunches of grass?” (Sita Devi speaking to Ravana, Valmiki Ramayana, Aranya Kand, 56.20)

Prahlada Maharaja recommends devotional service. Even a little, innocently attempted, can go a long way. The attempt can begin as early as childhood. There is no reason to wait. If we are at the higher standard now, we should strive for a higher way of living. As Sita Devi once remarked, when someone is accustomed to living with the king of swans, amidst beautiful lotus flowers, they would never dream of going the way of the crow, which rummages through garbage.

बहूनां जन्मनाम् अन्ते
ज्ञानवान् मां प्रपद्यते
वासुदेवः सर्वम् इति
स महात्मा सु-दुर्लभः

bahūnāṁ janmanām ante
jñānavān māṁ prapadyate
vāsudevaḥ sarvam iti
sa mahātmā su-durlabhaḥ

“After many births and deaths, he who is actually in knowledge surrenders unto Me, knowing Me to be the cause of all causes and all that is. Such a great soul is very rare.” (Lord Krishna, Bhagavad-gita, 7.19)

It is after many births that a person finally understands the full picture, with Vasudeva at the top position. He is the source of transcendence. Let us make this the final birth, wherein we complete our journey. Let us not return to a substandard way of living, which has only one end-result: misery. Let us take advantage of the kindness of Prahlada Maharaja and others, who are only wishing us well.

In Closing:

Only wishing us well,
In this secret to tell.

That human birth precious and rare,
But demanding attention and care.

In that wisdom to receive,
For liberation to achieve.

In highest state and lasting true,
Under shelter of Supreme who.

Categories: questions

Tags: dailyprompt, life, poem, poems, poetry, reincarnation