Unperturbed Purity of Prahlad Maharaj

His Divine Grace Om Vishnupad
Srila Bhakti Nirmal Acharya Maharaj
Sri Nabadwip Dham Parikrama, Day Two
Evening class, 24 March 2021, part 7
Translated from Bengali

Hiranyakasipu sent Prahlad Maharaj to study at school, but what would they teach him there? He had already learnt everything about the Lord from the womb of his mother. Anyhow, a year passed in this way, and one day Hiranyakasipu told Sanda and Amarka to bring Prahlad Maharaj to him.

When Prahlad Maharaj came home, his mother gave him new clothes, etc. and took him to his father. Hiranyakasipu asked, "Boy, what good things have you learnt from your teacher? Tell me something." And just see what a five year old boy answered!

It is written here that Narad Goswami said, "Those who have good intelligence worship the Lord (practise Krishna consciousness), and those who have little intelligence are busy with demigod worship. Such demigod worshippers must think, 'When the demigods I worship get into trouble and are kicked out from heaven, when they are tortured, they run to take shelter of the Lord to get some relief.' So, even the demigods get into trouble when they turn away from the Lord. Then, what do you hope to get from the demigods? Foolish people worship demigods desiring to attain liberation, however those who are liberated from any desire for material enjoyment or who want to become liberated from such desires strive to become free from the bondage of the material world; gradually, they begin to worship the Lord—leaving the desire for material prosperity, knowledge, mystic powers, wisdom, and even if they still have some material desires, when they surrender and pray to the Lord, it is not necessary for them to surrender to any demigods to fulfil their aspirations. It is not necessary for anyone to go to a demigod to fulfil their desires." This is the gist of Srimad Bhagavatam. It says there that Prahlad Maharaj was always absorbed in the thoughts about Krishna, and he was always very happy because of that—he could not even take into his head what he was being taught (all the politics, economics, etc.). He never thought about his food, clothes, etc. When small children are sitting on their mother's lap, they do not worry how they will be fed, how they will rest, how they must pass stool or urine—they are simply satisfied to be on the lap of their mother. Just like a baby, Prahlad Maharaj was protected by Govinda—just as parents always look after their baby, Govinda always protected and took care of Prahlad Maharaj. He was full of God consciousness.

So, when Hiranyakasipu asked Prahlad Maharaj what he had learnt at school, Prahlad Maharaj said (SB, 7.5.5)

tat sadhu manye 'sura-varya dehinam
sada samudvigna-dhiyam asad-grahat
hitvatma-patam grham andha-kupam
vanam gato yad dharim achrayeta

"Prahlada Maharaj replied: O best of the asuras, King of the demons, as far as I have learned from my spiritual master, any person who has accepted a temporary body and temporary household life is certainly embarrassed by anxiety because of having fallen in a dark well where there is no water but only suffering. One should give up this position and go to the forest [vana]. More clearly, one should go to Vrindavan, where only Krishna consciousness is prevalent, and should thus take shelter of the Supreme Personality of Godhead."

Prahlad Maharaj did not call Hiranyakasipu "father"—he said "O best of the asuras, King of the demons!" He gave him respect in this way. Then he spoke this verse and advised his father about the science of God consciousness. Yet when Prahlad Maharaj spoke about devotion to the Lord, hearing him speak Hiranyakasipu began to laugh, "You are a small boy, what do you know with your small intelligence? It seems that some enemy must have got into the school and put all this into your brain." He thought some enemy had come and taught him all those 'bad' things. Hiranyakasipu himself was the Lord's enemy because he knew that he could worship the Lord, but then it would take him seven births to go back to Vaikuntha; alternatively, he could become the Lord's enemy for three births and then get rescued and come back to the Lord quickly. So, Hiranyakasipu knew very well who the Lord was. So, what was he to do with his son now?

[His Divine Grace is distracted by someone.] Can you not stay quiet for one hour? Your mind, your heart is unsettled. There are many people who cannot sit still in one place for one hour, but when they show a TV serial, people sit quiet and watch it, and if they cannot watch it tomorrow for some reason, they became crazy. When they watch a serial, they learn it by heart and can retell everything the next day in detail, but when I tell you something time and time again, you cannot remember it. You do what should not be done, and you do not do what should be done—"we always avoid good activities and always go to do bad activities" (sukarye virata akarya udyogi ami). People sit and watch TV, but instead they could chant the Holy Name, they could read Bhagavatam and holy scriptures. When you watch TV, you sit quiet, and if somebody starts speaking or a child comes and says, "Mom, I'm hungry," they get scolded, "Hey, keep quiet! Let me watch!" Is it not so?

...So, hearing Prahlad Maharaj's words, Hiranyakasipu called Sanda and Amarka and chastised them heavily, "I am paying you money, and what are you teaching him?! How are you bringing him up?!" Sanda and Amarka mumbled, "Sir, we have not done anything, we do not know where he has learnt it from—none of us has taught this to him!" Hiranyakasipu was very angry, "You do not know?! You two must have fallen asleep and some Vaishnav came and brain-washed him! Which Vaishnav, which sadhu has taught this to him?!"

Prahlad Maharaj said, "Everyone is equal in front of the Lord, but when humans draw distinction, they start to differentiate and call one person a 'friend' and another person an 'enemy'—when somebody says such things, then it can be understood that they are situated within illusory bondage." On the other hand, mayavadis say that everything is the Lord, that jiva souls and the Lord are all one. This is also a wrong conception. Mayavadis say that we must serve 'poor' Narayan (there is a popular belief in India according to which poor people are seen as manifestation of the Lord, so helping the poor is the same as serving the Lord). This is wrong—Narayan never can be poor, neither can a poor man be Narayan!

Then, Hiranyakasipu sent Prahlad Maharaj back to school and ordered Sanda and Amarka to teach him well. We have been to that school, it is located in a cave in South India. After a while, Hiranyakasipu again called Prahlad Maharaj and asked him what he had learnt at school; this time Prahlad Maharaj said,

sravanam kirtanam visnoh smaranam pada-sevanam
archchanam vandanam dasyam sakhyam atma-nivedanam

Hearing, practising (chanting), remembering the Lord, serving the lotus feet of the Lord, serving the Deity, offering obeisances, considering oneself a servant, thinking of the Lord as of a friend, and full surrender.

(Srimad Bhagavatam, 7.5.23)

Hiranyakasipu again got angry, "He is my enemy!" and threw his son off his lap. After that, he ordered his people to kill him. He ordered them to kill his own son!

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