“O Daityas, just as Vishnu is in those weapons and also situated in me, so by that truth your weapons will not be able to overcome me.”  (Prahlada Maharaja, Vishnu Purana, 1.17.33)

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विष्णुः शस्त्रेषु युष्मासु मयि चासौ यथा स्थितः
दैतेयास् तेन सत्येन मा क्रामन्त्व् आयुधानि वः

viṣṇuḥ śastreṣu yuṣmāsu mayi cāsau yathā sthitaḥ
daiteyās tena satyena mā krāmantv āyudhāni vaḥ

“You know what really amuses me? Seeing people acting tough, after the fact. The spark is some discrepancy in the public space. There is a scandal. There is a wrong which occurred on a mass scale. People rush to the scene, virtually, of course, and start criticizing everyone who might even be remotely involved. Though the parties are at least three and four levels removed from the crime, they are guilty by association. They should have said something, you see. They should have done something. Their silence was tacit approval of the scheme, which was illegal from the very beginning.

“The reason I chuckle at such comments is that the people offering the criticism would be even more corrupt if placed in a similar situation. They would never utter a word. That is the way the world works. It is called self-preservation. There is the joke that if you go against a powerful entity like the mafia, they might rhetorically ask if you like having kneecaps. The idea is that if you get too smart, they will take you out. They will impose on you, through threats, through intimidation, and through violence.

“I don’t blame people for looking out for themselves. It is not ideal to keep quiet while the leaders are doing horrible things, but what can one person speaking out really do? They will be vilified. They will lose institutional affiliation. Just look at what they do to those doctors who simply ask a few questions about the safety of medical interventions injected into healthy infants. Their lives are ruined. Their medical licenses are revoked. Only years later do people realize the truth, after the damage is already done.

“Along these lines, why didn’t Prahlada Maharaja stop and consider what kind of trouble he was inviting by speaking so openly about his affiliation with Vishnu? This was in the kingdom of the Daityas. Writing the name of Krishna on a slate was like showing a bad word to the other students. Prahlada was guilty by accusation, of the crime of going against the leader of the Daityas, who happened to be his own father.

“After the first or second attack, shouldn’t Prahlada have chosen a different course? If my speaking so openly about the science of self-realization is going to jeopardize my way of life, I might turn silent. I am not proud to admit that, but many people would do the same. You can’t take up everyone else’s cause, after all. People criticize me for my silence, but do they jump to the rescue to proliferate my cause, my ideas, and my objections? No, they don’t. Does that mean their silence is violence? I can play the same game, you see.”

An interesting thought exercise is to consider returning to the childhood years but with the knowledge gained from adulthood. Would it be fun? Would we run around with the same enthusiasm? Would we be as carefree in how we speak to the adults? How could we retain innocence when the full life experience itself has been steadily chipping away at that innocence? We are jaded now. We know that friends are not always there for us. We know that family can turn against us. We did not consider these vulnerabilities during childhood.

We can assess the situation with Prahlada using the same lens. This was a five-year old boy. This was the essence of innocence. There was no malice. There was no desire to condemn others, in the manner of a fiery preacher warning others that they will suffer eternal life in hell if they do not submit to the chosen savior. Prahlada was speaking rationally. He was speaking calmly. He was sharing his interests, in the manner of children getting up in front of the classroom for their turn at “Show and Tell.”

We can also review Prahlada’s situation in light of the dichotomy between the two kinds of bhakti-yoga implementations. The first is vaidhi. This is where we follow the rules and regulations. We make sure to chant the maha-mantra on a set of beads for a set duration each day: Hare Krishna Hare Krishna, Krishna Krishna, Hare Hare, Hare Rama Hare Rama, Rama Rama, Hare Hare. We stay away from anarthas, or those things which are not profitable towards our advancement in the discipline. At the foundation, we still have to be convinced that bhakti-yoga is the right way.

राग-हीन जन भजे शास्त्रेर आज्ञाय
‘वैधी भक्ति’ बलि’ तारे सर्व-शास्त्रे गाय

rāga-hīna jana bhaje śāstrera ājñāya
‘vaidhī bhakti’ bali’ tāre sarva-śāstre gāya

“Those who have not attained the platform of spontaneous attachment in devotional service render devotional service under the guidance of a bona fide spiritual master according to the regulative principles mentioned in the revealed scriptures. According to the revealed scriptures, this kind of devotional service is called vaidhi bhakti.” (Chaitanya Charitamrita, Madhya, 22.109)

The second kind of implementation is raganuga. This is where we follow spontaneously. Devotion to God the person essentially becomes who we are. We cannot give it up. Not even if threatened. Not even when compelled. Not even when there is punishment on the horizon. In vaidhi-bhakti, we have an understanding in the background that the yoga practices are good for us. It is akin to maintaining healthy habits, like controlling eating and sleeping. In raganuga-bhakti, we follow devotion even if it is the worst thing for us.

It did not have to be that way for Prahlada. He stated that the weapons of the palace guards had Vishnu as their strength. Since the same Vishnu was at the foundation of the strength in devotion in Prahlada, those weapons would not harm the boy. This was a special case, indeed, but just see the potential in elevation. For one who has tasted something higher, preserving a life that is devoid of the association of the all-merciful one, who is always wishing well to the living entities, is not worth it.

विषया विनिवर्तन्ते
निराहारस्य देहिनः
रस-वर्जं रसो ऽप्य् अस्य
परं दृष्ट्वा निवर्तते

viṣayā vinivartante
nirāhārasya dehinaḥ
rasa-varjaṁ raso ‘py asya
paraṁ dṛṣṭvā nivartate

“The embodied soul may be restricted from sense enjoyment, though the taste for sense objects remains. But, ceasing such engagements by experiencing a higher taste, he is fixed in consciousness.” (Lord Krishna, Bhagavad-gita, 2.59)

In Closing:

Worth it to keep?
When steadily to reap.

Chaos, torment, and torture cost,
Feeling empty and lost.

In raganuga without shame,
The object of worship to name.

Opinion of others whether or not aware,
Like Prahlada enthusiastically to share.

Categories: questions

Tags: dailyprompt, hare krishna, poem, poems, poetry, prahlada