Why Try To Help Them At All

“Prahlada Maharaja said: O Supreme Lord, because You are so merciful to the fallen souls, I ask You for only one benediction. I know that my father, at the time of his death, had already been purified by Your glance upon him, but because of his ignorance of Your beautiful power and supremacy, he was unnecessarily angry at You, falsely thinking that You were the killer of his brother. Thus he directly blasphemed Your Lordship, the spiritual master of all living beings, and committed heavily sinful activities directed against me, Your devotee. I wish that he be excused for these sinful activities.” (Shrimad Bhagavatam, 7.10.15-17)

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श्रीप्रह्राद उवाच
वरं वरय एतत्ते वरदेशान्महेश्वर
यदनिन्दत्पिता मे त्वामविद्वांस्तेज ऐश्वरम्
विद्धामर्षाशय: साक्षात्सर्वलोकगुरुं प्रभुम्
भ्रातृहेति मृषाद‍ृष्टिस्त्वद्भ‍क्ते मयि चाघवान्
तस्मात्पिता मे पूयेत दुरन्ताद् दुस्तरादघात्
पूतस्तेऽपाङ्गसंद‍ृष्टस्तदा कृपणवत्सल

śrī-prahrāda uvāca
varaṁ varaya etat te
varadeśān maheśvara
yad anindat pitā me
tvām avidvāṁs teja aiśvaram

viddhāmarṣāśayaḥ sākṣāt
sarva-loka-guruṁ prabhum
bhrātṛ-heti mṛṣā-dṛṣṭis
tvad-bhakte mayi cāghavān

tasmāt pitā me pūyeta
durantād dustarād aghāt
pūtas te ’pāṅga-saṁdṛṣṭas
tadā kṛpaṇa-vatsala

“Have you ever helped someone? A person who was down on their luck, who looked like they could use a break. Someone who was bullied, who was taken advantage of, who was mocked, ridiculed, and told they had no chance of making it. Did you ever step into the situation, knowing that you could offer assistance? Did you ever want to lift them up, to see the arrival of hope in their eyes, to witness them rising to their true potential?

“The story doesn’t have to involve someone rich and famous. We sure do hear such stories, particularly with respect to the entertainment fields. Someone who was already established decided to promote a newcomer. They took the novice under their wing, so to speak. They gave an opportunity to someone who was otherwise fending for themselves, continuing along in relative obscurity.

“What I want to focus on is the aftermath, in the potential of a negative outcome. No, I am not speaking about the case where the newcomer fails to make it. Just the opposite, in fact. They make it big! They might surpass the person who helped them. They reach the heights of prominence. They are at the top of the charts.

“This person then forgets about the assistance they received. They pretend as if they are self-made. They do not even acknowledge the person who helped them. I have seen this play out in families, as well. Parents allowing extended family to live with them, when moving to a new country. Offering free everything, from a home to food. Even transportation was covered. Then that same person eventually goes out on their own, does well for themselves, and won’t give the time of day to those parents.

“It is the absolute worst thing, if you ask me. Not that I would expect constant praise and appreciation, but don’t sit there and pretend you did everything yourself. You expose yourself to be the biggest miser. My question is why would someone even take the chance, given the risk. Take the acharya, for example. They lift up people who were otherwise living on the streets. The drunkards and drug addicts became saints, at least in the eyes of the public.

“The acharya is the primary cause of the transformation. How do those students then repay the favor? Well, by changing the books of the acharya, by trying every which way to remove the influence of the acharya, and by blaming every subsequent failure in the institution on the acharya. These people will tell blatant falsehoods, shamelessly and repeatedly. I have witnessed it myself. I wish they never would have been helped. That is my initial reaction. Go back to the streets, you bums! You fit in well amidst the garbage.”

Consider the case of Prahlada Maharaja. He was a dependent in the kingdom of the Daityas. He was only five years old. If he harbored any malice, what means did he have to act upon it? If he was selfish or acted like a troublemaker, that would be expected. He was only a child, after all. They have to learn. They are dependents for a reason. The parents are supposed to stay rational and clear-headed. They should not be easily agitated.

Instead of asking for things, Prahlada only gave. He shared the most valuable thing a person can find in this life experience: wisdom. That wisdom is eternally relevant. The wisdom Prahlada shared with his father is as valid today as it was thousands of years ago. We know this because due to the kindness and mercy of Vyasadeva and those following in his line, we are able to access the very words Prahlada used when speaking to his father, who was the king of the Daityas.

What was the reward? How did the father pay the son back? With violence, of course. Repeatedly, with seemingly increasing intensity. Prahlada was in a special circumstance. He was there for a reason. By remembering Vishnu, who was the object of worship, Prahlada could survive the attacks. It is not expected that the same capability will be there for every devotee. Nevertheless, the father could not take a hint. He did not realize what was happening. He did not see that his scientific experiments were failing and that the reason was some force above science.

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

“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)

Hiranyakashipu tried every which way to kill Prahlada. The more powerful caretaker tried to eliminate the nonviolent dependent through the worst kind of violence. This was the reward for trying to help. Prahlada had to fight for his life. Finally, the object of worship had enough. Prahlada was simply revealing the source of strength and the ultimate purpose of the human existence. Man should worship God, who is both all-pervading and a single individual. God is sarvatra. He is everywhere. God also has names, such as Vishnu, Hari, Krishna, and Rama. Hiranyakashipu should point his attention in that direction.

Vishnu then appeared as Narahari, which is like a combination of a man and a lion. Narahari dispatched the violent perpetrator to the next world. Hiranyakashipu was finished, and in a gruesome way. Prahlada was now safe to speak, to continue in his devotion. What did the child do next? Well, he asked for forgiveness. He asked for his father to be pardoned. This means that Prahlada did not care about the reception. If trying to help someone out of the illusion of maya led to the worst reception, with not the slightest hint of appreciation, Prahlada still did not regret the endeavor. This is because just speaking about Vishnu is worthwhile, whether others appreciate or not.

In Closing:

Whether they appreciate or not,
Never in this path to stop.

Because Hari greatest of all,
As source of strength to call.

Wisdom relevant through all of time,
Meaning today from words to find.

Despite punishment repeatedly to get,
Prahlada in forgiveness set.