Canto 5: The Creative Imptus

The Material World as the Great Forest of Enjoyment

5.14.43

yo dustyajan dara-sutan

suhrd rajyam hrdi-sprsah

jahau yuvaiva malavad

uttamasloka-lalasah

SYNONYMS

yah—the same Jada Bharata who was formerly Maharaja Bharata, the son of Maharaja Rsabhadeva; dustyajan—very difficult to give up; dara-sutan—the wife and children or the most opulent family life; suhrt—friends and well-wishers; rajyam—a kingdom that extended all over the world; hrdi-sprsah—that which is situated within the core of one’s heart; jahau—he gave up; yuva eva—even as a young man; mala-vat—like stool; uttama-sloka-lalasah—who was so fond of serving the Supreme Personality of Godhead, known as Uttamasloka.

TRANSLATION

While in the prime of life, the great Maharaja Bharata gave up everything because he was fond of serving the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Uttamasloka.

He gave up his beautiful wife, nice children, great friends and an enormous empire.

Although these things were very difficult to give up, Maharaja Bharata was so exalted that he gave them up just as one gives up stool after evacuating.

Such was the greatness of His Majesty.

PURPORT

The name of God is Krsna, because He is so attractive that the pure devotee can give up everything within this material world on His behalf.

Maharaja Bharata was an ideal king, instructor and emperor of the world.

He possessed all the opulences of the material world, but Krsna is so attractive that He attracted Maharaja Bharata from all his material possessions.

Yet somehow or other, the King became affectionate to a little deer and, falling from his position, had to accept the body of a deer in his next life.

Due to Krsna’s great mercy upon him, he could not forget his position, and he could understand how he had fallen.

Therefore in the next life, as Jada Bharata, Maharaja Bharata was careful not to spoil his energy, and therefore he presented himself as a deaf and dumb person.

In this way he could concentrate on his devotional service.

We have to learn from the great King Bharata how to become cautious in cultivating Krsna consciousness.

A little inattention will retard our devotional service for the time being.

Yet any service rendered to the Supreme Personality of Godhead is never lost: svalpam apy asya dharmasya trayate mahato bhayat (Bg.2.40).

A little devotional service rendered sincerely is a permanent asset.

Srimad-Bhagavatam (1.5.17):

tyaktva sva-dharmam caranambujam harer

bhajann apakvo ’tha patet tato yadi

yatra kva vabhadram abhud amusya kim

ko vartha apto ’bhajatam sva-dharmatah

Somehow or other, if one is attracted to Krsna, whatever he does in devotional service is a permanent asset.

Even if one falls down due to immaturity or bad association, his devotional assets are never lost.

There are many examples of this—Ajamila, Maharaja Bharata, and many others.

This Krsna consciousness movement is giving everyone a chance to engage in devotional service for at least some time.

A little service will give one an impetus to advance and thus make one’s life successful.

In this verse the Lord is described as Uttamasloka.

Uttama means the best and sloka means reputation.

Lord Krsna is full in six opulences, one of which is reputation.

Aisvaryasya samagrasya viryasya yasasah sriyah.

Krsna’s reputation is still expanding.

We are spreading the glories of Krsna by pushing forward this Krsna consciousness movement.

Krsna’s reputation, five thousand years after the Battle of Kuruksetra, is still expanding throughout the world.

Every important individual within this world must have heard of Krsna, especially at the present moment, due to the Krsna consciousness movement.

Even people who do not like us and want to suppress the movement are also somehow or other chanting Hare Krsna.

They say, "The Hare Krsna people should be chastised."

Such foolish people do not realize the true value of this movement, but the mere fact that they want to criticize it gives them a chance to chant Hare Krsna, and this is its success.