Conversation between Maitreya and Vidura 4

 The most elementary particle that is at the base of creation is the atom,

almost invisible even after the dissolution of the bodies. The calculation of

time is therefore based as a fundamental measure by reference to atomic

time - the time in which an atom covers a particular space. An aggregate of

six atoms is large enough to be seen in the sunlight that penetrates through

a screen.

The time required for the integration of three of these aggregates of six

atoms (called trasarenus) is called truti, and is the shortest unit of time. One

vedha is composed by 100 trutis, while one lava consists of three vedhas, one

nimesa corresponds to three lavas, one kshana to three nimesas, one kastha to

five kshanas, one laghu to fifteen kasthas, one nadika or danda to fifteen laghus,

one muhurta to two dandas, and six or seven dandas form a quarter of the day

or night, according to the season. The instrument to measure one danda is

prepared with a copper container of six palas in weight: we make a hole with

a gold lancet weighing four masas and four angulas long. When the container

is put over water, it sinks in exactly one danda.

In each day and night of the human beings there are four praharas; fifteen

days and nights form one paksha, and a month is composed by two pakshas

- a white one and a black one. One human month equals to one day and

night on the Pitri planets. Two months of Earth's time constitute a season,

while six months are a complete movement of the sun from south to north

and vice versa. Two of these complete movements, that constitute one

complete cycle of the sun, correspond to one day and night of the heavenly

beings, but an entire year of the earth calendar. The human beings have a

duration of life of 100 of these years.

There are five different definitions for the orbits of the sun, the moon, the

stars and other celestial bodies, and all have specific cycles. A cycle of four

earth ages - Satya, Treta, Dvapara and Kali - constitutes 12,000 years of the

heavenly beings. Satya yuga lasts 4,800 heavenly years, Treta 3,600, Dvapara

2,400 years, and Kali 1,200. In the age of Satya the human beings follow the

principles of religion perfectly, but in each of the three subsequent ages,

one fourth of these principles become lost.

One thousand cycles of four ages constitute one day and one night for

Brahma; when his day is over there is a partial destruction of the universe,

in which the sun and the moon loose their radiance and the inhabitants of

the highest planets move to Janaloka because the rest of universe is

devastated by fire. When Brahma gets up in the morning, a new cycle of

creation begins. Within one day of Brahma there is a series of fourteen

Manus, each living a little more than 71 cycles of four ages. At each new

Manu there is a renovation of the seven Rishis, Indra and other celestial

beings and the residents of the higher planets. Brahma lives for 100 of his

years, 50 of which have already passed; the first cycle of ages in the second

half of Brahma's life was characterized by the appearance of the Lord in the

form of Varaha, the boar avatara.

At the beginning of creation Brahma generated the four great sages called

Sanaka, Sananda, Sanatana and Sanat Kumara. Brahma expected them to

generate descendants in turn, but the Kumaras were not interested in

procreation and chose to remain small boys forever, to avoid being

involved in the complications due to the fact of being older than others.

Brahma was not happy about this disobedience, and from his anger,

concentrated between his brows, Rudra appeared manifesting in eleven

forms that have the purpose to destroy the universe at the time of

dissolution.

Later Brahma generated, from various parts of his body, the Rishis named

Marici, Atri, Angira, Pulastya, Pulaha, Kratu, Bhrigu, Vasistha, Kardama,

Daksa and Narada. In the same way he generated the four Vedas (Rig, Yajur,

Sama and Atharva), the secondary Vedas (Ayur, Dhanur, Gandharva, and so

on) and the fifth Veda (Puranas and Itihasas), together with the other forms

of knowledge and ritual ceremonies. Finally, he generated the first couple of

human beings - Svayambhuva Manu and Satarupa - who started to produce

a descendence through sexual union. Manu had two sons (Priyavrata and

Uttanapada) and three daughters (Akuti, Devahuti and Prasuti). He gave

Akuti in marriage to Ruci Rishi, Devahuti to Kardama Rishi, and Prasuti to

Daksha Prajapati.

Conversation between Maitreya and Vidura 3

 Maitreya replied: "The Supreme Lord is never overcome by illusion, but the

individual beings are small enough to fall under her power, as in a

temporary dream. The misconception of identification with matter can be

gradually dissipated by meditating on the Lord, the transcendental Reality,

just like when we awaken from sleep we can return to the awareness of the

waking state by focusing on what really exists."

Vidura asked again: "Please tell me more about the secondary creation of

Brahma, of the Manus and their descendants, of the planets, the various

species, the divisions of society, the different methods of spiritual

realization, the prescribed rituals and the activities of the Lord when he

manifests in this world."

Maitreya congratulated Vidura for his excellent question and said that the

same subjects had been explained by Ananta Sankarshana to Sanat Kumara

and his three brothers, sons of Brahma. In turn, the Kumara handed down

the same teachings to Sankhyayana Muni, who gave them to Brihaspati and

Parasara, Maitreya's guru.

The Lord, the Supreme Soul of the universe, appears to be sleeping in the

water of the Ocean and generates the living beings through the power of

the external energy, the Kala shakti ("the black Power" or "the Power of

Time"), therefore his transcendental body has a dark blue complexion. The

aggregate of the selfish activities of the living beings manifests in the form

of a lotus bud growing from Vishnu's navel. Again the Lord enters that

lotus flower as Kshirodakasayi Vishnu, the Supreme Soul of all beings, and

generates the personification of the Vedic knowledge, Brahma.

After meditating for a long time, Brahma became able to see the Lord and

offered him beautiful prayers. With the Lord's blessing, Brahma established

himself firmly in spiritual consciousness, that enabled him to perceive the

presence of the Godhead in each being, and he started to shape the

fourteen inhabited planetary systems and the bodies of the various living

beings according to the different species.

There are nine subsequent stages in creation: the first is the mahat-tattva (the

total aggregate of matter), the second generates the sense of identification

with matter, the third manifests sense perception, the fourth manifests the

sense of cognition and action, the fifth manifests the archetypes of the

universal reality known as Devas, and the sixth manifests the sense of

ignorance. The secondary creation by Brahma starts from the seventh

phase, in which he manifests the immovable beings, such as the plants. The

eighth phase manifests the lower animals, including mammals and birds,

who are listed in 28 wide categories. The ninth and last phase of creation

manifests the human beings, the heavenly beings, the Rakshasas and

Yakshas, Gandharvas and Apsaras, Siddhas and Charanas and Vidyadharas,

and the various types of goblins and ghosts.

Conversation between Maitreya and Vidura 2

 Remembering the Lord, Uddhava was overwhelmed by an intense

sentiment of love, and wiping the tears from his eyes, he informed him

about the disappearance of Krishna and the destruction of his dynasty. The

two great devotees found comfort in discussing between themselves about

Lord Krishna and his activities during his mission.

Uddhava recalled the various stages of Krishna's life, up to the moment

when he had left his family and had gone to the bank of the river Sarasvati.

Sitting under a young banyan tree, Krishna appeared completely peaceful,

although he had abandoned all the comforts of his palaces. Uddhava had

followed him because he could not stay away from him, and this was how

Maitreya found them during his pilgrimage, and he remained in their

company to discuss about transcendental knowledge. So Uddhava advised

Vidura to search for Maitreya, who was a friend of Vyasa and thus older

than Vidura, to learn from him that same knowledge that had been

explained by Lord Krishna."

After spending some days in the company of Uddhava, talking about the

disappearance of Lord Krishna and his dynasty, Vidura traveled towards the

Ganges in search of Maitreya, who resided in Haradvara. When he arrived

in the presence of the great sage, Vidura asked him to explain how the Lord

incarnates in this world, and how we can serve the Lord with devotion.

Maitreya welcomed him affectionately, accepting him as the worthy son of

Vyasa and especially as the incarnation of Yamaraja, the Lord of Death, the

eternal companion of God.

He immediately started to explain how at the beginning of creation, Lord

Vishnu awakens material energy, manifesting the universal form. He first

created Brahma and the Devas - Agni, Varuna, the Asvini kumaras, Surya,

Vayu and the directions of space - as manifestations of his own divine

being, and gave them the knowledge and power to manifest and rule the

universe. After one thousand celestial years, material energy generated the

living beings according to their tendencies and identifications.

Vidura asked: "In what way the unchangeable Lord, who is transcendental

and always satisfied in himself, comes into contact with the material nature

and her activities without being touched by the influence of the gunas? How

does the individual soul, who is pure awareness, slide into ignorance and

remains trapped there? And since the Lord resides in the heart of all living

beings, why do living beings engage in activities that lead to sufferings and

disaster?"

Conversation between Maitreya and Vidura 1

 Parikshit Maharaja then asked Sukadeva to tell him about the circumstances

in which Vidura, the brother of Pandu and Dhritarastra, had met the sage

Maitreya and had discussed important spiritual topics with him. Sukadeva

continued to narrate: "The blind regent, Dhritarastra, had been degraded by

his desire to please his evil sons, and allowed them to commit many

offenses against the Pandavas. Duryodhana and his brothers tried many

times to murder their cousins, mistreated Draupadi in public, and stripped

Yudhisthira of all his possessions with a fixed dice game.

Vidura had admonished his brother and nephews many times, warning

them that such crimes would bring terrible consequences, also because the

Pandavas were powerful kshatriyas and were personally supported by Lord

Krishna. Instead of heeding his uncle's wise advice, Duryodhana insulted

him too, calling him the son of a maidservant, and ordering the guards to

throw him out of the palace.

Pained by those unwarranted offenses, Vidura did not wait to be mistreated

further, and he immediately left the court to visit many pilgrimage places,

such as Ayodhya, Dvaraka and Mathura. He traveled alone as a humble

beggar, without depending on anyone, crossing through pure and sacred

regions. When he reached Prabhasa he learned about the death of all his

relatives in the battle and he turned west, towards the Sarasvati river, and

went to the eleven tirthas on her banks - Trita, Usana, Mahu, Prithu, Agni,

Asita, Vayu, Sudasa, Go, Guha and Sraddhadeva - visiting many temples

dedicated to the Lord.

Then he traveled through the wealthy western provinces of Surat, Sauvira,

Matsya and Kurujangala, and he finally came to the bank of the Yamuna

river, where he met Uddhava, the great devotee of the Lord, and asked him

for news about Krishna and the Yadu dynasty.

The teachings of Sukadeva on yoga 3

Parikshit had other questions. "Narada Muni had the great fortune of

hearing the glories of the Lord directly from his father Brahma. In what

occasions did he transmit these teachings? I sincerely wish to hear more

about this deep knowledge. I have understood that the transcendental spirit

soul is different from the material body. How does it acquire a body, and

for what purpose?

You have said that the Supreme Lord manifests in the universal form, that

is made of matter; so what is the difference between the body of the Lord

and the body of the ordinary living being? I am also eager to hear more

about the Supreme Soul, who resides in every heart without being touched

by the external energy.

I have heard your explanation on how the planets of the universe and their

rulers are situated in the various part of the gigantic body of the Virat

Purusha. However, I do not understand their functional position: can you

explain better? I also want to understand the duration of time between the

creation and the destruction of the universe and the subsequent creations,

the nature of time constituted by past present and future, the duration and

measure of life on the various planets of the universe, and why they are

different.

I would also like to know about the process of accumulation of the karmic

reactions that cause the movements of the beings among the many species

of life, from the celestial beings to the most insignificant creatures. What is

the process of creation of the planets, of earth, of the mountains, rivers and

seas, and their inhabitants? How is the interplanetary space divided? What

are the characteristics of the various social categories? And what rules

should one observe in case of emergency?

I am also interested in hearing about the elementary principles of creation,

of the mystic powers of yoga, of the subjects of Vedic literature, and the

way in which the beings are born and develop. And above all, I want to

hear about the benefits of devotional service to the Lord, in relation to the

Vedic ritual, the procedures that enable one to attain success in dharma,

artha, kama and moksha - or ethical integrity, acquisition of valuable things,

satisfaction of the senses and liberation from material conditionings.

How do the living beings appear? And how the Asuras - the demonic

beings - come to existence? And how do liberated beings live?"

Sukadeva was very pleased by the sincerity of Parikshit, who was thirsty

with knowledge and asked so many questions. "It is only because of the

influence of the illusory energy," he said, "that one comes to believe he is

the material body. The idea of 'I' and 'mine' is simply a misconception, that

dissipates as soon we attain transcendental realization.

At the beginning of creation, Brahma was trying to understand how to

proceed in his work. While meditating, he heard the two syllable 'ta' and 'pa',

that form the Sanskrit word tapa ('austerity'), and although he could not

understand where the sound had come from, he decided to follow that

instruction and engaged in a very long meditation to control the self. The

Lord was very pleased by Brahma's sincere service and granted him the

vision of his wonderful spiritual abode, Vaikuntha, where Vishnu lives

surrounded by his devotees. Besides, he revealed that he had given him the

instruction to practice austerity, because the intensity in the engagement in

one's duty is non-different from the Lord himself.

On that occasion, Brahma asked the Lord questions that are similar to the

ones you asked me, and in reply he obtained the four verses that are

considered the heart of the Bhagavata. Vishnu told Brahma that his existence

is eternal - it exists before the manifestation of the universe, in the present

moment, and even after the destruction of the cosmos. Nothing exists

without the Lord, who is in every thing as well as beyond all created things,

just like the elements of the universe enter into the cosmos and at the same

time they remain distinct from it. Those who seek the Absolute Truth must

understand this secret knowledge in all circumstances, both directly and

indirectly."

Later, Brahma gave this knowledge to his son Narada, who taught it to his

disciple Vyasa in the form of the Bhagavata, that deals with ten subjects: the

creation of the universe, the secondary creation, the structure of the

planetary systems, the manner in which the Lord protects the universe, the

creative impulse, the series of the Manus, the science of God, how to go

back to God, and what is the most valuable treasure.

The fundamental or primary creation, called sarga, consists of the sixteen

elements of matter - the five gross elements called earth, water, fire, air and

space; the subtle elements called sound, form, taste, smell and touch; and

the senses that are eyes, ears, nose, tongue, skin and mind. The secondary

creation follows, from the interaction of these sixteen primary elements,

and it is called visarga.

The Lord's protection is obtained by obeying his laws, and the succession

of the Manus has the purpose to express such laws to give the proper

direction to the life of human beings. The creative impulse consists in the

desire of obtaining the result of the action. The science of God describes

the avataras of the Lord and the various activities performed by these

incarnations together with his devotees.

The dissolution of the cosmic manifestation occurs when the Lord

withdraws all the universes into himself and the living beings merge again

into his body together with their conditioned tendencies, while liberation is

the permanent nature of the being when he leaves the subtle body besides

the gross body.

The Supreme is the source and the reservoir of the cosmic manifestation,

that gives shelter to the physical manifestation called adhibhautika, to the

archetypal manifestation called adhidaivika, and to the manifestation of the

individuals called adhyatmika. In other words, these are the material bodies,

the beings who control them and the beings that are controlled.

All beings are created by the Supreme Lord and receive a body according to

their past actions - including Brahma and his sons such as Daksha and the

other Prajapatis, the Manus, Indra, Chandra and Varuna, the Rishis, the

inhabitants of the higher planets such as Pitriloka, Siddhaloka, Charanaloka,

Gandharvaloka, Vidyadharaloka, Kinnaraloka, as well as the Apsaras,

Yakshas and Rakshasas, Kimpurushas, human beings, ghosts, animals,

plants and so on.

The teachings of Sukadeva on yoga 2

 The external sphere of the universe constitutes his eye socket, his eye is the

Sun and the faculty of sight. His eyelids are the day and the night, and the

Devas such as Brahma reside in the movements of his eyebrows. His palate

is Varuna, and the essence of everything is his tongue. The Vedic hymns are

his brain and his jaws are Yama. Affection is his teeth, and the mesmerizing

illusory energy is his smile. Modesty is his upper lip, desire is his chin,

religion is the chest and irreligion the back. Brahma, who generates all

beings, is his penis and the Mitra-Varuna are his testicles. The ocean is the

waist, and the hills and mountains are his bones. The rivers are the veins,

the trees the hair on his body, and air is his breath.

The ages are his movements and his activities are the reactions of the three

gunas. The raincloud are the hair on his head, the passage between the day

and night is his clothing, and the supreme cause of material creation is his

intelligence. His mind is the moon, and Rudra his ego. His face is

represented in human society by the brahmanas, his arms by the kshatriyas,

his legs by the vaisyas and his feet protect the sudras. All the worshipable

Devas are parts of his body. One who sincerely wants to obtain liberation

must meditate on this universal form of the Lord."

"Instead of dreaming about the heavenly pleasures of the celestial planets,

we should minimize our needs and meditate on the Supreme Lord. While

some people meditate on the universal form of the Lord, others

contemplate him in his form of Paramatma or Supreme Soul, the fourarmed

form of Vishnu who resides in the heart of each living being -

starting from the Lord's feet and going up towards his smiling face, where

one can find the true happiness of the soul. This meditation is in fact a

scientific procedure, by which we can control the life air and the mind, and

leave our body in full awareness.

God manifests in many forms through the functions of the personalities of

the Devas, each one personifying a particular quality or blessing. However,

the worship of the supreme form of Vishnu bestows the blessing of

transcendental awareness."

Parikshit was very eager to hear more about Lord Vishnu, and he prayed

Sukadeva to talk to him about the activities of Vishnu in this world.

Sukadeva immersed himself in meditation on the Lord and offered him his

respects before answering to the questions. "God is the Supreme Soul of all

souls, the personification of the Vedas, worshiped by all those who are free

from false identification.

This is the teaching that Brahma, the first living being and creator of the

universe, offered his son Narada, who had asked him how the material

world is created and preserved, and who controls it.

Brahma replied that his work of creation is subordinate and subsequent to

the primary creation, that directly emanates from Vishnu in the form of his

radiance. This original Purusha is called Mahavishnu or Karanarnavasayi

Vishnu because he remains reclining on the Causal Ocean, that mahat tattva

or non-differentiation great Reality that contains the germ of all existence.

Then time comes into existence, and the three gunas or qualities of matter -

sattva or goodness, rajas or passion, and tamas or ignorance.

The movement of these qualitie creates material identification and the

necessity to act on the manifested level, which in turn produce the subtle

and gross material elements - space, the gaseous elements, the liquid

elements and the solid elements. Then the archetypes or personifications of

the various universal manifestations appear, in the form of the various

Devas."

From the inconceivable and transcendental body of Mahavishnu the

universes emanate like innumerable bubbles, and within each evolving

universe the Lord manifests as Garbhodakasayi Vishnu, also called

Hiranyagarbha, the radiant fetus inside the universal uterus, sleeping within

the amniotic waters of creation. From this transcendental form of the Virat

Purusha originates the particular Brahma who is in charge of the physical

construction of the universe under his control. But apart from the

manifestation of the Purusha avataras, the Lord also appears in the material

world in other specific forms, according to the precise functions that

constitute his divine mission. For example Varaha, Suyajna the son of

Akuti, Kapila the son of Devahuti, Datta the son of Atri, the four Kumaras,

Nara and Narayana the sons of Murti, king Prithu, Rishabha, Hayagriva,

Matsya, Kurma, Nrisimha, Vamana, Hamsa, Dhanvantari, Parasurama,

Ramachandra and Krishna. The Lord also descends as Vyasa, Buddha and

Kalki."

The teachings of Sukadeva on yoga 1

 Sukadeva serenely took the seat he had been offered, and Parikshit went to

offer him his homage with folded hands. "O brahmana," Parikshit said, "you

know Brahman and you live and act as Brahman. Your presence sanctifies

this place and our lives, and we consider your arrival as a special blessing

from Lord Krishna, who is very dear to the sons of Pandu. I pray you,

teach me the path of perfection for the human being, and especially for one

who is about to die. Tell me about what is to be listened to, recited,

remembered and worshiped, and also what should not be done."

The young saint, only sixteen years old, had already overcome all

attachments and identifications with the material body, and his awareness

was firmly established on the spiritual level. All the people present were

extremely interested in listening to hi explanations.

"My dear king," said Sukadeva, "your question is glorious, because it is

beneficial for everyone, whatever is their level of evolution. Nobody knows

when the time of death will come for them, and too often people waste the

valuable time of human life in activities that do not give any real benefit, in

mere survival at the animal level, such as sleeping, mating, finding food and

shelter, and maintaining one's family.

The really important thing is to achieve the perfection of human life, that

consists in spiritual realization, the knowledge of God. Even one single

moment of divine consciousness is worth more than one entire life wasted

in ordinary occupations that do not give any lasting benefit - a benefit we

will be able to take with us even after death.

We should not fear death. In fact, we should prepare with the utmost care

for the last moment of life, leaving one's home and living in a pure and

solitary place, controlling the mind and focusing it on meditation on Lord

Vishnu."

Thrilled by the perfect answers of the great sage, Parikshit was very eager to

apply the instructions he had just received. "I beg you," he said, "please

explain to me in details what I should do, how I must focus my mind in

order to purify it."

Then Sukadeva explained him the practice of astanga yoga: "One should

control the posture of one's body and breathing. This will help to control

the mind, senses and intelligence, in order to apply them to the

contemplation of the universal form of the Lord, the cosmic manifestation

called Virat rupa, in the following way.

The lowest planets, Patala, are the soles of the feet of the universal form,

while the heels and toes are the Rasatala planets, the ankles are the Mahatala

planets and the shins are the Talatala planets. His knees are the Sutala

planets, the thighs are the Vitala and Atala planets, the hips are Mahitala

and the outer space is the navel. The chest of the Universal Form consists

of the luminaries, the neck is the Mahar planets, the mouth is the Janas

planets, the forehead the Tapas planets. The highest planetary system,

known as Satyaloka, is the head. His arms are the celestial beings led by

Indra, the ten directions (the 8 cardinal points, plus above and below) are

the ears, and the sound is hearing. His nostrils are the Asvini kumaras, and

scent is his sense of smell. His mouth is blazing fire.