BY: SUN STAFF
Dec 26, CANADA (SUN) —
Tattva Sandarbha
by Srila Jiva Goswami
SECTION TWENTY-NINE
Suta Gosvami defines the import of Srimad Bhagavatam in brief, by revealing the ideal fixed in the heart of Sri Suka, his guru, while paying obeisances to him " (SB. 12.12.69):
I offer my obeisances unto the son of Vyasa, the destroyer of all sins, whose mind was filled with the bliss of impersonal realization, and thus was free from all worldly thoughts. Yet his heart was enchanted by the beautiful pastimes of Lord Ajita. Out of compassion, he narrated this Purana related to the Lord, which illuminates reality.
Sridhara Swami explains in his commentary:
He (Suta Gosvami) pays obeisances to his spiritual master (Sri Suka), whose mind was filled only with bliss of the self, thus he had kicked away all other thoughts; but even at that elevated stage, his mind was drawn to the enchanting pastimes of Lord Krishna, causing him to give up all attachment to the bliss of impersonal realization. I offer my obeisances unto him, who narrated the Srimad Bhagavatam, which delineates the ultimate goal of life.
Similarly, the three verses (2.1.7,8,9), beginning with prayena munayo rajan, Sri Suka spoke in the Second Canto, should be examined. Here the phrase akhila-vrijinam, "all sins", should be understood to mean averse and indifferent to devotion.
Therefore, Sriman Ajita, distinguished by His enchanting pastimes, is the Sambandhi-tattva, or subject, and He is superior even to the bliss of Brahman. It will be made clear later on in the trance of Srila Vyasa that Ajita in His fullest manifestation is chiefly known as Sri Krishna. The prayojana tattva, or the ultimate goal of life is the bliss of love towards Him, which leads to attachment to Him, as happened to Sri Suka. The abhidheya, or means, is service to Him, characterized by hearing His divine pastimes and so on, which manifest love towards Him, as in the case of Sri Suka. This is the natural conclusion.
As described in the Brahma Vaivarta Purana, the words Vyasa sunum, "son of Sri Vyasa", indicates that Sukadeva was untouched by Maya since his very birth, because of the blessings of Sri Krishna.
Sri Jiva Toshani Commentary
In the preceeding anucchedas, by process of analysis and elimination Srila Jiva Goswami has taken an objective look at the Vedas, Vedanta, Itihasas, and Puranas and shown that Srimad Bhagavatam is the topmost pramana for all time. Now, in beginning his analysis of the Bhagavatam itself, he again performs mangalacarana, to further invoke auspiciousness for his sacred undertaking of writing the Shat Sandarbhas. Once again he uses a Bhagavatam verse as his invocation. By quoting from Suta Gosvami's prayers to Sukadeva, Srila Jiva gosvami shows reverence to Sukadeva Goswami to invoke his blessings, so that the import of the Srimad Bhagavatam may be understood without any deviation. Simultaneously, Srila Jiva Gosvami indicates the tattva of sambandha, abhidheya, and prayojana from the quoted verse.
His approach is to first analyze the mind of the writer and speakers of Srimad Bhagavatam. Unlike those commentators whose approach is to twist the Bhagavatam statements to support their ideas, Srila Jiva Gosvami has no interest to present his private opinion. He wants to explain Srimad Bhagavatam as it is. For this he uses an invulnerable technique, one that leaves no room for doubts as to the correct conclusion. His method is to first analyze the heart of the original writer, Srila Vyasadeva, and the speakers, Sukadeva Gosvami and Suta Gosvami. Thereafter he can analyze the whole text of Bhagavatam in light of that analysis with no room for doubt about the conclusion of the topmost pramana. Therefore he writes, "I will respect the statements of the previous Vaishnava acaryas as long as they conform to the same conclusion."
In the verse quoted from Srimad Bhagavatam (12.12.68), describing Suka's enchantment by the pastimes of Ajita, Suta Gosvami reveals something about the life of Sukadeva Goswami. The purpose is to show his audience Sukadeva's conviction at the time he narrated Srimad Bhagavatam to Parikshita Maharaja. Sukadeva Goswami was self-realized even while in the womb. He was so absorbed in the bliss of Brahman he had no desire to leave his mother's womb lest he be attacked by Maya. He took birth, however, upon assurance from Lord Krishna that Maya would not capture him. Srila Jiva Gosvami states that this story is narrated in the Brahma-vaivarta Purana.[i] After his birth he left his father's hermitage for the forest. Later on, when he heard a few of Vyasadeva's disciples reciting Bhagavatam verses his mind was enthralled. So much so, he abandoned absorption in Brahman and studied the Bhagavatam under his great father. This is evident from the First Canto, Chapter Seven of the Bhagavatam and the verses quoted below. Some scholars insist, however, that because Srila Sukadeva Gosvami was attached to impersonal Brahman realization even prior to his birth, he remained fixed in this ideal and they conclude that the Srimad Bhagavatam promotes impersonalism. The prayers of Suta Gosvami refutes this speculation.
In addition, by quoting this verse Srila Jiva Gosvami reveals the import of the Srimad Bhagavatam, which is that happiness in Krishna consciousnes surpasses all other grades of happiness, including that achieved by merging into God's impersonal effulgence. This is confirmed by Sukadeva himself in the Second Canto (2.1.7-9):
"O King Parikshit, generally even the Brahman realized souls, who are above the regulative principles and restrictions, take pleasure in describing the glories of the Lord. At the end of the Dvapara-yuga, I studied this great essence of the Vedas, the Srimad Bhagavata Purana, from my father, Srila Dvaipayana Vyasadeva. O saintly King, I was certainly situated in Brahman realization, beyond the three modes of material nature, yet I was still attracted by the telling of the pastimes of the Lord, who is described by enlightened verses. This is the reason why I studied this Purana."
This is significant. In spite of all his impersonal qualifications Sukadeva Goswami was still attracted to the narration of the pastimes of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. This incident hints at the wonderful potency of Srimad Bhagavatam--that it was able to capture the heart of a Brahman realized person.
In the next section, Srila Jiva Goswami begins analyzing the heart of Srila Vyasadeva.
[i] This story is not in the current editions of the Brahma-vaivarta Purana
[Please note: Section twenty-seven is unfortunately not available.]
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