Ugrasena (Lect., Conv., & Letters)

Expressions researched:
"Ahuka" |"Ugrasena" |"Ugrasena's"

Srimad-Bhagavatam Lectures

Lecture on SB 1.16.2 -- Los Angeles, December 30, 1973:

Pradyumna: "Janamejaya: One of the rājarṣi kings and the famous son of Mahārāja Parīkṣit. His mother's name is Irāvatī, or according to some, Mādravatī. Mahārāja Janamejaya begot two sons of the names Jñātānīka and Śaṅkukarṇa. He celebrated several sacrifices in the Kurukṣetra pilgrimage. And he had three younger brothers, named Śrutasena, Ugrasena, and Bhīmasena II. He invaded Takṣalā, or Ajanta, and he decided to avenge the unlawful curse upon his great father, Mahārāja Parīkṣit."

Prabhupāda: Yes. Mahārāja Parīkṣit was cursed by a brāhmaṇa boy, not even twelve years old. When he heard that his father was insulted... One muni, he was in meditation, and Mahārāja Parīkṣit was in the forest, hunting. So he was very much thirsty. So in those days in the forest there were many hermitage. Saintly persons, sages used to live. So he entered one of them and asked for water. But the muni was great meditation. He could not hear him, receive the king. So he felt insulted, that "I asked water. This man is silent." So there was a dead snake; so out of anger he took the dead snakes and round, round wrapped him and went away.

1975 Conversations and Morning Walks

Room Conversation -- June 26, 1975, Los Angeles:

Devotee (2): All right. But we have some, also, questions that don't require that. These are philosophical questions. For instance, in Kṛṣṇa Book there is a statement that King Ugrasena had four billion personal servants. Now you have asked that we go and spread Kṛṣṇa consciousness to the scientific community.

Prabhupāda: So everyone is servant. What is the question of four billion? Kṛṣṇa's servant...

Devotee (2): No, Ugrasena, King Ugrasena, that when he was on the planet, he had four billion personal servants.

Prabhupāda: That's all right. He is always the master. He... The Kṛṣṇa is the only master.

Devotee (2): Not Kṛṣṇa. No. King Ugrasena, Prabhupāda. Not Kṛṣṇa. King Ugrasena. The statement is that King Ugrasena had four billion personal servants. Now, we have gone and tried to spread to the scientific community. And if we say to them, "There was a king whose name was Ugrasena. He had four billion personal servants," they laugh and say, "What did they do for toilets? What did they do for food? Where did they live?"

Prabhupāda: So you want to preach this particular portion and no other portion?

Devotee (1): No. We want to... We want to know if the story has an allegorical meaning rather than a literal translation, or that King Ugrasena who was a man who lived five thousand years ago and had four billion bodyguards, or whether the stories within the Bhāgavatam, apart from some of them being actual, are allegorical stories. Such as the story of Kṛṣṇa and Balarāma chopping off the the eighty-eight...

Prabhupāda: All right. You can give up that portion. You can take other portion.

Room Conversation -- June 26, 1975, Los Angeles:

Prabhupāda: That's all right. Let them ask. But you can tell away that(?) but you don't repeat this thing. You can give up that portion. You read other portion.

Devotee (1): But then because so many things they have to accept on faith without knowing, it then weakens their faith as to what they should accept and why should they accept Kṛṣṇa, who they can't see any more than King Ugrasena's four billion bodyguards.

Prabhupāda: Don't accept. Don't accept.

Devotee (2): But we want them to accept. The point is, if we say to a scientific man, "There was four billion," and if our statement is wrong...

Prabhupāda: But our position is that if some portion we cannot understand, it is our incapability.

1976 Conversations and Morning Walks

Morning Walk -- June 10, 1976, Los Angeles:

Prabhupāda: In Los Angeles we find so many houses: "Now Renting." (break)

Rādhāvallabha: They told us in school that in India there are so many people, practically you cannot even move. But when we go to India we see there is miles and miles of empty land, simply a few cities where it's crowded.

Prabhupāda: Cities are crowded. Village? Very nice. (break)

Nalinīkaṇṭha: ...there were so many people just in India that Mahārāja Ugrasena had ten quadrillion bodyguards alone.

Prabhupāda: At that time the India was whole planet. (break)

Rādhāvallabha: ...the body moves because of the presence of the soul. The scientists say that the body moves due to electronic impulses from the brain that cause the muscles to contract.

Prabhupāda: Rascal, why don't you produce it? Why you talk nonsense?

Rādhāvallabha: I can't produce. It has happened by evolution over many millions of years. I don't have that long.

Prabhupāda: So why you are dreaming? Do it practically.

1970 Correspondence

Letter to Jayadvaita -- Los Angeles 30 January, 1970:

Regarding the third point: all kinds of mellow includes servitude. Therefore a mixture of servitude and parenthood is not incompatible. So Ugrasena's mellow is correctly written as mixed with servitude and parental affection and the statement in part IV should be corrected to state that a mixture of parenthood and servitude is a compatible one.