Verdict of the Srimad-Bhagavatam

Expressions researched:
"verdict of Bhagavata" |"verdict of Gita and Bhagavatam" |"verdict of Srimad-Bhagavatam" |"verdict of Sukadeva Gosvami in Srimad-Bhagavatam" |"verdict of the Srimad-Bhagavatam" |"verdict, this is the version in the Srimad-Bhagavatam"

Notes from the compiler: VedaBase query: "verdict Bhagavata*"/10

SB Canto 1

SB 1.2.9, Purport:

We have already discussed that pure devotional service to the Lord is automatically followed by perfect knowledge and detachment from material existence. But there are others who consider that all kinds of different occupational engagements, including those of religion, are meant for material gain. The general tendency of any ordinary man in any part of the world is to gain some material profit in exchange for religious or any other occupational service. Even in the Vedic literatures, for all sorts of religious performances an allurement of material gain is offered, and most people are attracted by such allurements or blessings of religiosity. Why are such so-called men of religion allured by material gain? Because material gain can enable one to fulfill desires, which in turn satisfy sense gratification. This cycle of occupational engagements includes so-called religiosity followed by material gain and material gain followed by fulfillment of desires. Sense gratification is the general way for all sorts of fully occupied men. But in the statement of Sūta Gosvāmī, as per the verdict of the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, this is nullified by the present śloka.

SB 1.13.37, Purport:

That great souls cheat others may be astonishing to know, but it is a fact that great souls cheat others for a great cause. It is said that Lord Kṛṣṇa also advised Yudhiṣṭhira to tell a lie before Droṇācārya, and it was also for a great cause. The Lord wanted it, and therefore it was a great cause. Satisfaction of the Lord is the criterion of one who is bona fide, and the highest perfection of life is to satisfy the Lord by one's occupational duty. That is the verdict of Gītā and Bhāgavatam.* Dhṛtarāṣṭra and Vidura, followed by Gāndhārī, did not disclose their determination to Sañjaya, although he was constantly with Dhṛtarāṣṭra as his personal assistant. Sañjaya never thought that Dhṛtarāṣṭra could perform any act without consulting him. But Dhṛtarāṣṭra's going away from home was so confidential that it could not be disclosed even to Sañjaya. Sanātana Gosvāmī also cheated the keeper of the prison house while going away to see Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu, and similarly Raghunātha dāsa Gosvāmī also cheated his priest and left home for good to satisfy the Lord. To satisfy the Lord, anything is good, for it is in relation with the Absolute Truth. We also had the same opportunity to cheat the family members and leave home to engage in the service of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam. Such cheating was necessary for a great cause, and there is no loss for any party in such transcendental fraud.

SB Canto 7

SB 7.11.7, Purport:

Therefore, from all the evidence the conclusion is that without bhakti, devotional service, there is no question of religious principles. God is the central figure in the performance of religious principles. Almost everything going on in this world as religion is devoid of any idea of devotional service and is therefore condemned by the verdict of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam. Without devotional service, so-called religious principles are only cheating.

CC Adi-lila

CC Adi 5.41, Purport:

"Saṅkarṣaṇa, Pradyumna and Aniruddha have all the potent features of the absolute Personality of Godhead, according to the revealed scriptures, which contain undeniable facts that no one can refute. Therefore these members of the quadruple manifestation are never to be considered ordinary living beings. Each of Them is a plenary expansion of the Absolute Godhead, and thus each is identical with the Supreme Lord in knowledge, opulence, energy, influence, prowess and potencies. The evidence of the Pañcarātras cannot be neglected. Only untrained persons who have not genuinely studied the Pañcarātras think that the Pañcarātras contradict the śrutis regarding the birth or beginning of the living entity. In this connection, we must accept the verdict of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, which says, "The absolute Personality of Godhead, who is known as Vāsudeva and who is very affectionate toward His surrendered devotees, expands Himself in quadruple forms who are subordinate to Him and at the same time identical with Him in all respects." The Pauṣkara-saṁhitā states, "The scriptures that recommend that brāhmaṇas worship the quadruple forms of the Supreme Personality of Godhead are called āgamas (authorized Vedic literatures)." In all Vaiṣṇava literature it is said that worshiping these quadruple forms is as good as worshiping the Supreme Personality of Godhead Vāsudeva, who in His different expansions, complete in six opulences, can accept offerings from His devotees of the results of their prescribed duties."

CC Madhya-lila

CC Madhya 23.105, Purport:

There is a difference between the smārta process and the gosvāmī process. According to the smārta process, one cannot be accepted as a brāhmaṇa unless he is born in a brāhmaṇa family. According to the gosvāmī process, the Hari-bhakti-vilāsa and the Nārada Pañcarātra, anyone can be a brāhmaṇa if he is properly initiated by a bona fide spiritual master. This is also the verdict of Śukadeva Gosvāmī in Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam (2.4.18):

kirāta-hūṇāndhra-pulinda-pulkaśā

ābhīra-śumbhā yavanāḥ khasādayaḥ

ye ‘nye ca pāpā yad-apāśrayāśrayāḥ

śudhyanti tasmai prabhaviṣṇave namaḥ

"Kirātas, Hūṇas, Āndhras, Pulindas, Pulkaśas, Ābhīras, Śumbhas, Yavanas and members of the Khasa races, and even others who are addicted to sinful acts, can be purified by taking shelter of the devotees of the Lord, due to His being the supreme power. I beg to offer my respectful obeisances unto Him."

Nectar of Instruction

Nectar of Instruction 10, Purport:

The purpose of human life is to get out of the threefold miserable conditions, which are concomitant with material existence. Unfortunately, fruitive workers are mad to earn money and acquire temporary material comforts by all means; therefore they risk being degraded to lower species of life. Materialists foolishly make many plans to become happy in this material world. They do not stop to consider that they will live only for a certain number of years, out of which they must spend the major portion acquiring money for sense gratification. Ultimately such activities end in death. Materialists do not consider that after giving up the body they may become embodied as lower animals, plants or trees. Thus all their activities simply defeat the purpose of life. Not only are they born ignorant, but they act on the platform of ignorance, thinking that they are getting material benefits in the shape of skyscraper buildings, big cars, honorable positions and so on. The materialists do not know that in the next life they will be degraded and that all their activities simply serve as parābhava, their defeat. This is the verdict of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam (5.5.5): parābhavas tāvad abodha jātaḥ.

Bhagavad-gita As It Is Lectures

Lecture on BG 2.26-27 -- London, August 29, 1973:

So the decision of the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam is harāv abhaktasya kuto mahad-guṇāḥ. Mahad-guṇāḥ. We can find it easily, just like we say that no illicit sex, no meat-eating, we consider this is sinful. But there are others, big, big leaders, politicians, philosophers, even religious priests, they do not think that this is immoral or this is sinful. Meat-eating is sinful. Why? What is the sin there? Illicit sex, what is the wrong there? Intoxication, what is wrong there? They do not find any immorality. So this standard of morality, there cannot be fixed up if one is not God conscious. There cannot be. Standard of morality, standard of goodness, cannot be. That is the decision of the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam. Harāv abhaktasya kuto mahad-guṇāḥ. Lack of Kṛṣṇa consciousness. They think that animal has no soul. They do not accept this morality that animal cannot be killed, it is sinful, it is immoral. They have created their own theory. So without being standardized by Kṛṣṇa consciousness, or God consciousness, you cannot find the standard platform of morality, honesty. These things you cannot find. This is not possible. Therefore, the verdict of the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam is harāv abhaktasya kuto mahad-guṇāḥ. Just like if you do not follow a standard law, how you can fix up "This is morality" or "This is honesty or dishonesty." There must be standard law. And who can give you the law unless he is the greatest authority?

Lecture on BG 7.3 -- Vrndavana, October 31, 1973:

If you do not know what is siddhi, what is the use? Śrama eva hi kevalam (SB 1.2.8). You do not know what is the ultimate goal of life, what is siddhi, and you're working so hard. So Bhāgavata says, śrama eva hi kevalam: "He is working uselessly, laboriously." That's all. They do not know siddhi. Manuṣyāṇāṁ sahasreṣu kaścid yatati siddhaye, yatatām api siddhānām (BG 7.3). Yatatām api siddha, siddhānāṁ kaścit. These siddhas, those who are self-realized, athāto brahma jijñāsā... Even if he thinks that "I am the supreme," that is partially in the... That is also light. Just like if you come to the sunlight, sunshine, that is also light, but that is not perfection. If you can go within the sun globe and see the origin of shining, brightening principle, the sun-god, that is siddhi. Similarly, to merge into the Brahman is not siddhi. That is the verdict of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam. Actually, it is a fact. Bhāgavata, whatever it says, that is real fact. Ye 'nye 'ravindākṣa vimukta-māninaḥ. If one thinks that "Now I am merged in the brahma-jyotir, so I am now vimukta. I am now mukta. I am now liberated," so that Bhāgavata says, "He is thinking like that, he's liberated. He is not liberated." Vimukta-mānina. Just like if I think am millionaire, does it mean I have become millionaire. I am not millionaire. Vimukta-mānina. Why? Tvayy asta-bhāvād aviśuddha-buddhayaḥ (SB 10.2.32). Because these persons who are thinking that he has become liberated, their buddhi is not yet cleansed. Aviśuddha. Śuddhāśuddha. Aviśuddha-buddhayaḥ. Ye 'nye 'ravindākṣa vimukta-māninaḥ, vimukta-māninas tvayy asta-bhāvāt. Asta-bhāvāt. No information of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. He is thinking that the Absolute is imperson. Therefore, asta-bhāvāt, he has no information of the Supreme Person.

Lecture on BG 9.11 -- Calcutta, June 30, 1973:

So this jñāna and vairāgya can be achieved simply by becoming a devotee of Vāsudeva. That is the verdict of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam. Vāsudeve bhagavati bhakti-yogaḥ prayojitaḥ, janayaty āśu vairāgyam (SB 1.2.7). Āśu vairāgya, very soon. Just like these boys, these American, these European boys, they are young men. Now they have taken sannyāsa and dedicated their life for service of Kṛṣṇa. They are vairāgya. They are coming from opulent nation, very rich men, rich nation. Their parents are very rich. There is no scarcity of food. There is no scarcity of money. There is no scarcity of women in the western countries. But they have left everything. Simply boys. They are all within thirty. How much a young man may have propensities for enjoying this material way of life! And when there is facilities. But how they have taken to it? This is the proof.

Srimad-Bhagavatam Lectures

Lecture on SB 1.1.2 -- London, August 17, 1971:

Another point is that it doesn't matter. I don't say that your religion is cheating or my religion is bona fide. I don't say that. We have no right to say that. I want to see... "I" means, we are Bhāgavata. We are representative of bhāgavata-dharma. Or Bhāgavata wants to see. Any religion you may profess—it doesn't matter—I want to see whether you have got the result of religion. The result of religion is you will love God. That is result of religion. If you have become actually lover of God, then your religion—it doesn't matter whatever religion you profess—that is perfect. But if instead of developing your love for God, you have developed love for so many nonsense things, then you have simply wasted your time. That is the verdict of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam.

dharmaḥ svanuṣṭhitaḥ puṁsāṁ

viṣvaksena-kathāsu yaḥ

notpādayed yadi ratiṁ

śrama eva hi kevalam

(SB 1.2.8)

Dharmaḥ svanuṣṭhitaḥ. Not that anyone who is not following strictly the religious principles. Even if he is following strictly the religious principle... Svanuṣṭhitaḥ puṁsām, dharmaḥ svanuṣṭhitaḥ puṁsām. But the result should be that he should be a lover of God. Viṣvaksena-kathāsu yaḥ. Unless one becomes lover of God, he is not interested to hear about God. Here you are sitting, a few boys and girls. There are millions of people. Because you have little love for Kṛṣṇa, therefore you are sitting. Therefore you are sitting. So without development of love for God, nobody is interested to hear about God.

Lecture on SB 1.8.42 -- Mayapura, October 22, 1974:

Bahir-artha-māninaḥ means they are thinking, "By utilizing this external energy, material world, we shall be happy." Na te viduḥ svārtha-gatiṁ hi viṣṇum (SB 7.5.31). They do not know that, especially for the human being, the destination is to know Kṛṣṇa. Vedaiś ca sarvair aham eva vedyaḥ (BG 15.15). All these Vedic literatures, all these philosophy, science and everything... That is the verdict of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, yad uttama-śloka-guṇānuvarṇanam (SB 1.5.22). You may be talented in so many ways. You may be very big man, politician or philosopher or chemist or physicist. So many we are; we are occupied. So why you should become big man? What is the purpose? The purpose is to understand Kṛṣṇa. Intelligent. So whatever talent you have got, it doesn't matter. Whatever you may be. You may be engineer. But if you are intelligent actually, through engineering, you'll describe Kṛṣṇa, how Kṛṣṇa is the greatest engineer so that He's keeping all the planets floating in the air. That is engineer. You cannot do it. He is keeping... Gām āviśya (BG 15.13). He has said. Aham ojasā dhārayāmi, Kṛṣṇa says. So we have to understand Kṛṣṇa like that. Kṛṣṇa says like that, "I am keeping all these planets floating." Now, if you are a physicist, then you try to understand how Kṛṣṇa is keeping them floating. That is your perfection. That is your perfection. If you remain a physicist or chemist and don't understand Kṛṣṇa, it is a waste of time. It is waste of time.

Lecture on SB 2.1.2 -- Vrndavana, March 17, 1974:

Formerly, the society was not so much degraded. They, as soon s you give evidence from the Vedic literature, they would accept. So these Gosvāmīs therefore were making research from the Vedic literature, from the Purāṇas, from the Vedas, from the Vedānta-sūtra, and Upaniṣads, like that, Mahābhārata, Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, and Sāma Veda, Ṛg Veda. You'll find in the Bhakti-rasāmṛta-sindhu evidences... Nānā-śāstra-vicāraṇaika-nipuṇau sad-dharma-saṁsthāpakau. What is the, what was the purpose? The purpose was to establish real religious principles. If actually Gosvāmī principles were followed strictly and real gosvāmīs would preach, then there would not have continued the so-called religious systems, or increase the so-called... Because any religious system which... That is the verdict of Bhāgavata. Sa vai puṁsāṁ paro dharmo yato bhaktir adhokṣaje, ahaituky apratihatā (SB 1.2.6). Religion means by following the system one will become a great lover of God, or Kṛṣṇa. That is religion. Then why this system of religion is going on, maintaining slaughterhouse? That means the..., there was no attempt to preach sad-dharma, real dharma. Therefore, in the name of religion, they are maintaining thousands of slaughterhouse. You see? It is asad-dharma. Asad-dharma. But the..., they studied. Bhakti-rasāmṛta-sindhu... They wrote so many books just to establish what is real religion. Nānā-śāstra-vicāraṇaika-nipuṇau sad-dharma-saṁsthāpakau. Why? Lokānāṁ hita-kāriṇau. They were simply doing welfare activities for the people in general, lokānām. For everything.

Lecture on SB 6.1.56-62 -- Surat, January 3, 1971, at Adubhai Patel's House:

So actual fact is Viṣṇu worship. That is the ultimate goal of Vedic civilization, but they do not know. Na te viduḥ svārtha-gatiṁ hi viṣṇum (SB 7.5.31). Their attention is diverted in so many demigods. The greatest disservice to the society, that "Here is another god, here..." Not only manufacturing a man-god, but they are advising that "Any god you can worship." No: Viṣṇu. Tad viṣṇoḥ paramaṁ padaṁ sadā paśyanti sūrayaḥ. This is Vedic mantra. Those who are sūrayaḥ, means advanced... Sūrayaḥ means... Sūrayaḥ and asūrayaḥ. Asūrayaḥ means demons. Viṣṇu-bhakto bhaved suraḥ: "Those who are devotees of Lord Viṣṇu, they are sura." Asuras tad-viparyayaḥ: "And those who are not Viṣṇu bhaktas, they are asuras." Just like Rāvaṇa was very great devotee of Lord Śiva; still, he was a asura. Hiraṇyakaśipu, he was a great devotee of Lord Brahmā, but he was considered asura. So anyone who is not devotee of Lord Viṣṇu, he is asura. That is the verdict. Asuras tad-viparyayaḥ. And this piṇḍa-dāna is offered oblations to the Viṣṇu. So if any man becomes a Vaiṣṇava, he is offering oblations to Viṣṇu every moment, so his forefathers are delivered without any trouble. Without any trouble. If one's son becomes a Vaiṣṇava in the family, he can deliver fourteen generations, up and down. That is the verdict. Not only verdict, this is the version in the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam.