Category:Srimad-Bhagavatam, Canto 08 Chapter 22 Purports - Bali Maharaja Surrenders His Life
Pages in category "Srimad-Bhagavatam, Canto 08 Chapter 22 Purports - Bali Maharaja Surrenders His Life"
The following 138 pages are in this category, out of 138 total.
A
- A civilization that has become godless because of material advancement in opulence is extremely dangerous
- A devotee knows that so-called punishment by the Supreme Personality of Godhead is only His favor to correct His devotee and bring him to the right path
- A devotee knows very well that everything, even his body, belongs to the Supreme Lord. If one lives perfectly in such Krsna consciousness, it is to be understood that he is especially favored by the Supreme Personality of Godhead
- A further advantage of this place designed for Bali Maharaja was that he would not be disturbed by any outward calamity
- A pure devotee like Prahlada Maharaja, although harassed circumstantially in many ways, never gives up the shelter of the Supreme Personality of Godhead to take shelter of anyone else
- A pure devotee never complains against the mercy of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. A vivid example is Prahlada Maharaja
- Actually the body does not belong to anyone but the Supreme Personality of Godhead, by whom the body is given
- Actually, everyone should fear the so-called society, friendship and love for which he works so hard all day and night
- After rotating through many, many forms of life in the cycle of birth and death, the living being gets a chance for a human form
- Although Bali Maharaja was offering his body to the Lord for the Lord's third step, he was still in the darkness of ignorance. Actually the body did not belong to him, but because of his long-standing demoniac mentality he could not understand this
- Although Lord Brahma was speaking, he had to stop for a while because Bali Maharaja's wife, Vindhyavali, who was very agitated and afraid, wanted to say something
- Although the demigods, who are officials appointed by the Lord for management, are attached to materialistic enjoyment, they never claim to be proprietors of the universe
- As described by Bali Maharaja, Lord Visnu was actually not the enemy of the family but the best friend of the family. The principle of this friendship has already been stated. Yasyaham anugrhnami harisye tad-dhanam sanaih: SB 10.88.8
- As described in this verse (of SB 8.22.29-30), hardly anyone could survive such a test, but for the future glorification of Bali Maharaja, one of the mahajanas, the Lord not only tested him but also gave him the strength to tolerate such adversity
- As indicated by Bali Maharaja by the words janad bhitah, every devotee in Krsna consciousness should always be afraid of the common man engaged in pursuing material prosperity. Such a person is described as pramatta, a madman chasing the will-o'-the-wisp
- As stated in Bhagavad-gita (BG 18.61): The Lord is situated in the core of everyone's heart, and, according to the material desires of the living entity, the Lord offers a particular type of machine - the body - through the agency of the material energy
B
- Bali Maharaja appreciated how the Lord had saved him from such a bewildered life of ignorance. He therefore said that his intelligence had been stunned. Stabdha-matir na budhyate
- Bali Maharaja appreciated the actions of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, although all the members of the demoniac families except Prahlada Maharaja and Bali Maharaja considered Visnu their eternal traditional enemy
- Bali Maharaja appreciated the Lord's mercy not only upon him but upon many other demons. Because this mercy is liberally distributed, the Supreme Lord is called all-merciful
- Bali Maharaja certainly became an exalted devotee, but he was somewhat anxious because his association was not purely devotional. The Supreme Personality of Godhead therefore assured him that his demoniac mentality would be annihilated
- Bali Maharaja considered the Supreme Personality of Godhead a better friend to the demons than to the demigods. In the material world, the more one gets material possessions, the more he becomes blind to spiritual life
- Bali Maharaja could not understand how the Supreme Personality of Godhead favors His devotees by forcibly stopping their materialistic activities
- Bali Maharaja could understand the pretense of Lord Vamanadeva, who had taken the side of the demigods and come before him as a beggar
- Bali Maharaja endured all these severe tests and austerities is the mercy of the Supreme Lord. The Lord certainly appreciates the devotee's forbearance, and it is recorded for the future glorification of the devotee. This was not an ordinary test
- Bali Maharaja explains that the body, which is the center of all material activities, is also a foreign element. Even though we want to keep the body fit and helpful to our activities, the body cannot continue eternally
- Bali Maharaja fully surrendered to the Supreme Personality of Godhead, he could not tolerate being defamed for cheating a brahmana-brahmacari. Being quite alert in regard to his reputation, he thought deeply about how to prevent being defamed
- Bali Maharaja passed all such examinations (by God), as explained in the following verses - of SB 8.22.29-30
- Bali Maharaja passed the severe test put before him by the Supreme Personality of Godhead. This is further proof of the Lord's mercy toward His devotee
- Bali Maharaja said to God: Because You were working on behalf of Your devotees, You do not regard this as cheating. Never mind. I cannot be considered a devotee
- Bali Maharaja said to God: daivena nitah prasabham tyajita-srih: "It is to bring me to the right platform of eternal life that You have put me into these circumstances"
- Bali Maharaja said to God: Nonetheless, because although You are the husband of the goddess of fortune You have come to me to beg, I must satisfy You to the best of my ability
- Bali Maharaja said to God: On behalf of the demigods, You disguised Yourself to cheat me, saying that You wanted only three paces of land, but later You expanded Your body to such an extent that with two footsteps You covered the entire universe
- Bali Maharaja said to God: So please do not think that I wanted to cheat You; I must fulfill my promise. I still have my body. When I place my body for Your satisfaction, please put Your third step on my head
- Bali Maharaja seriously felt that he was an offender to the Supreme Personality of Godhead Certainly Prahlada Maharaja would not like this. Therefore Bali Maharaja was ashamed and hung his head
- Bali Maharaja was indeed a fully surrendered devotee, but even some demons who were not at all devotees but merely enemies of the Lord attained the same exalted position achieved by many mystic yogis
- Bali Maharaja was nothing but a shameless demon, specifically described as tyakta-hriyas tvad-avaropita-kartr-vadah, a foolish person claiming proprietorship over the property of the Supreme Person
- Bali Maharaja was transferred from the heavenly planet to the planet Sutala, which is hundreds of times better than heaven, as indicated by the words svargibhih prarthyam
- Bali Maharaja's wife accused Bali Maharaja by saying that although the Supreme Personality of Godhead had arrested him, showing him extraordinary mercy
- Bali Maharaja's wife, who was most intelligent, supported the arrest of her husband and accused him of having no intelligence because he had claimed proprietorship of the property of the Lord. Such a claim is a sign of demoniac life
- Bali Maharaja, following in the footsteps of his grandfather Prahlada Maharaja, remained fixed in his devotion to the Lord, despite the Lord's having punished him
- Because of great opulence, a materialist becomes so proud that he has no regard for anyone and even refuses to accept the authority of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. The result of such a mentality is certainly very dangerous
- Because of so-called scientific improvements in material opulence, people have entirely given up the path of self-realization
- Because the body will change (tatha dehantara-praptir), we should be extremely careful. To see to the proper use of life is the purpose of Krsna consciousness
- Brahma drew the Lord's attention to this subject (of BG 9.26) and requested that He release Bali Maharaja, who was suffering, being bound by the ropes of Varuna, and who had already given everything, including the three worlds and whatever he possessed
- By false prestige one is misguided, so the Supreme Lord takes away their position of false prestige as a special favor
- By the association of devotees, the demoniac mentality is vanquished
E
- Even if the Lord takes away a devotee's material opulences, the Lord immediately offers him a position of which the demigods cannot even dream. There are many examples of this in the history of devotional service
- Every human being, especially one belonging to a civilized nation or culture, must be extremely responsible in his activities. He should not risk degradation in the next life
- Everyone is affectionate toward his wife and is attached to her, but what is this wife? The wife is called stri, which means, "one who expands the material condition"
- Examining the life of Prahlada Maharaja, we can see how severely he was harassed by his own father, Hiranyakasipu, yet he did not divert his attention from the Lord even to the smallest extent
H
- He (Bali Maharaja) thought that since he had been defamed for his inability to fulfill his promise of charity, and since the body belonged to him, he would free himself from defamation by offering his body
- He (Bali Maharaja) would not be disturbed by mental or bodily miseries. These are all extraordinary features of the planet Sutala, where Bali Maharaja would live
- Here (in SB 8.22.31) the word mad-asrayah is very significant. Because the Lord wanted to give Bali Maharaja the exalted position of Indra, the demigods might naturally have been envious of him and might have fought to disturb his position
- Human life is meant for self-realization, not for increasing unwanted things. Actually, a wife increases unwanted things
I
- I am the soul, which is eternal, after using the body for some time I have to accept another body (tatha dehantara-praptih (BG 2.13)), according to the laws of nature, unless I render some service with the body for advancement in devotional service
- If a person lives without a wife, his material conditions are less extensive. As soon as one marries and is connected with a wife, his material necessities increase
- If a sincere devotee somehow does fall down, the Lord corrects him and saves him from gliding down to the darkest region of hellish life
- If a special devotee is meant for preaching but does not give up his family life or material opulences to take to the service of the Lord, the Lord surely takes away his material opulences and establishes him in devotional service
- If one continues in his opulent position but does not become unnecessarily proud, falsely thinking that he is the proprietor of everything, this is the Lord's special mercy
- If the present status quo is allowed to continue, people will certainly suffer more and more under the leadership of these demoniac agnostics
- If this kind of civilization continues, the time will soon come when the Supreme Personality of Godhead will take away all the material opulences. Then people will come to their senses
- In adversity, everyone laments and becomes aggrieved, but by the grace of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, a devotee, even in the worst condition, can understand that he is going through a severe examination by the Personality of Godhead
- In the present age, Kali-yuga, the number of such shameless men, who are agnostics disbelieving in the existence of God, has increased
- In the Vedic literatures we find descriptions of many different planets where there are many, many palaces, hundreds and thousands of times better than those of which we have experience on this planet earth
- In this verse (of SB 8.22.28), the words sidann api na muhyati are very important. A devotee is sometimes put into adversity while executing devotional service
- It is by the mercy of the Lord that one gets all material opulence, but if such material opulence causes one to become puffed up and forget the process of self-realization, the Lord certainly takes all the opulence away
- It is said that God is good, and this is a fact. Whether He cheats or rewards, He is always good. Bali Maharaja therefore addressed Him as Uttamasloka
O
- Of course, they (modern scientists) may go on their frivolous excursions, but the students of the Vedic literature will never believe them or give them any credit for exploring other planets
- On the basis of the misconception, which ties together the hearts of the male and female, one becomes attracted to his body, home, property, children, relatives and wealth. In this way one increases life's illusions and thinks in terms of 'I and mine'
- Once Kuvera wanted to give Dhruva Maharaja a benediction, but although Dhruva Maharaja could have asked him for any amount of material opulence, he instead begged Kuvera that he might continue his devotional service to the Supreme Personality of Godhead
- One of the example is the opulence of Sudama Vipra. Sudama Vipra suffered severe material scarcity, but he was not disturbed and did not deviate from devotional service. Thus he was ultimately given an exalted position by the mercy of Lord Krsna
- One should not use the body for any other purpose (than advancing in devotional service). One must know that if he uses the body for any other purpose he is simply wasting time, for as soon as the time is ripe, the soul will automatically leave the body
- One's lifetime, one's home and everything one has, if not properly used in the service of the Lord, are all sources of material conditions of perpetual suffering under the threefold miseries - adhyatmika, adhibhautika and adhidaivika
P
- People are kept in darkness about the goal of life, and thus there is a continuous struggle for existence. We speak of "survival of the fittest," but no one survives, for no one is free under material conditions
- People may be surprised that devotees like Prahlada Maharaja and Bali Maharaja could seek shelter of the side of the enemy, giving up the natural affinity for family, hearth and home
- Practically no one is interested in God, one's relationship with God or how one should act. Modern men have altogether forgotten such questions because they are mad for material possessions
- Prahlada Maharaja took shelter of Visnu against the will of his father. Similarly, Bali Maharaja took shelter of Vamanadeva against the will of his spiritual master, Sukracarya, and all the leading demons
- Punishment meted out by the Supreme Personality of Godhead is accepted by the devotee as the greatest mercy
S
- SB 10.14.8: One who engages always in Your (God's) devotional service with his mind, words and body, and who always offers obeisances to You is certainly a bona fide candidate for liberation
- SB 10.14.8: One who seeks Your (God's) compassion and thus tolerates all kinds of adverse conditions due to the karma of his past deeds
- SB 5.5.8: The attraction between male and female is the basic principle of material existence
- Since Bali Maharaja had been arrested by Lord Vamanadeva, he was certainly to be considered an offender
- Since he (Visvakarma) was engaged to construct the residential quarters of Bali Maharaja, the buildings and palaces on the planet Sutala must at least equal those on the heavenly planets
- Since the Lord had covered the entire universe with two steps, one might ask how Bali Maharaja's head could be sufficient for His third step? Bali Maharaja, however, thought that the possessor of wealth must be greater than the possession
- Such men (who is engaged in pursuing material prosperity) do not know that after a hard struggle for life one must change his body, with no certainty of what kind of body he will receive next
T
- The body actually does not belong to the living entity; it belongs to the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Under the circumstances, how could Bali Maharaja claim that the body belonged to him
- The common man does not appreciate such a statement by the Supreme Personality of Godhead because he thinks that during his lifetime his family, society, country, body and relatives are everything
- The conclusion is that one's being deprived of his wealth is not to be considered the special mercy of the Lord
- The demigods are devotees of the Lord for the sake of material possessions, but although the demons apparently do not have the SPG on their side, He always acts as their well-wisher by depriving them of their positions of false prestige
- The demons, instead of accepting the exclusive proprietorship of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, claim the property of the universe for themselves through demarcations of nationalism
- The devotee is promoted to Vaikuntha, the spiritual world
- The foolish living entity declares freedom from all control, but factually he is not free; he is fully under the control of material nature. He must therefore be most careful and responsible in the activities of his life
- "The living entity in material nature follows the ways of life, enjoying the three modes of nature. This is due to his association with that material nature. Thus he meets with good and evil amongst various species" - BG 13.22
- The Lord assured Bali Maharaja of all protection, and finally the Lord assured him of protection from the effects of bad association with the demons
- The Lord bestows mercy upon His devotee by helping him find out his constitutional position. For that purpose, the Lord is always ready to help the devotee in every way
- The Lord bestows special favor upon His devotee by taking away all his material opulences. Bali Maharaja appreciated this behavior by the Lord
- The Lord can act any way He likes. He may take away one's opulence, or He may not. There are varieties of forms of life, and the Lord treats them according to the circumstances, as He chooses
- The Lord gave him (Bali Maharaja) the good counsel to prevent defamation by offering his head. A Vaisnava does not fear any punishment. Narayana-parah sarve na kutascana bibhyati - SB 6.17.28
- The Lord had taken all his possessions, the head of Bali Maharaja, the possessor, would provide adequate place for the Lord's third step
- The Lord is so kind to His devotee that when severely testing him the Lord gives him the necessary strength to be tolerant and continue to remain a glorious devotee
- The Lord never takes away material opulences achieved because of devotional service, although He sometimes takes away opulences achieved by pious activities. He does this to make a devotee prideless or put him in a better position in devotional service
- The Lord's purpose was to cheat him, Bali Maharaja took pleasure in understanding how the Lord will cheat His devotee to glorify the devotee's position
- The materialistic way of life is nothing but the repeated chewing of that which has already been chewed. Although there is no profit in such a life, people are enamored of it because of uncontrolled senses. Nūnaṁ pramattaḥ kurute vikarma - SB 5.5.4
- The punishment awarded by the Supreme Personality of Godhead cannot be compared to even the greatest benefit awarded by one's material father, mother, brother or friend
- The pure devotee becomes fully engaged in propagating Krsna consciousness
- The Supreme Personality of Godhead assured Bali Maharaja that he would always remain under the Lord's protection - mad-asrayah
- The Supreme Personality of Godhead did not ask Bali Maharaja to separate from his family; instead, the Lord allowed him to stay with his family members - jnatibhih parivaritah
- The Supreme Personality of Godhead is fully independent. Thus it is not always a fact that a living being's loss of all opulence is a sign of the Supreme Lord's mercy upon him
- The Supreme Personality of Godhead is so kind that if an unsophisticated person, with devotion and without duplicity, offers at the lotus feet of the Lord a little water, a flower, a fruit or a leaf, the Lord accepts it
- The Supreme Personality of Godhead sometimes puts a devotee to severe tests that are almost unbearable. One could hardly even live under the conditions forced upon Bali Maharaja
- The Supreme Personality of Godhead, Krsna, advises, sarva-dharman parityajya mam ekam saranam vraja: "Give up all other varieties of religion and just surrender unto Me"
- The words ko vicaste gatim atmano yatha indicate that when one is puffed up by the false prestige of possessing material opulence, he certainly neglects the goal of self-realization. This is the position of the modern world
- There is a great need for the Krsna consciousness movement for the benefit of innocent people who are being carried away by propaganda of such demons
- They (demigods) know that the actual proprietor of everything is the Supreme Personality of Godhead. This is the qualification of the demigods
- They (so-called scientists, philosophers and politicians) cannot do anything good for the world, and unfortunately, because of Kali-yuga, they have plunged the affairs of the world into mismanagement
- "This part is mine, and that part is yours," they say. "This part I can give in charity, and this part I can keep for my enjoyment." These are all demoniac conceptions. This is described in BG 16.13: idam adya maya labdham imam prapsye manoratham
- Those who are completely established in Krsna conscious philosophy and who therefore understand the aim of life will never take to the activities of the materialistic dog race
- "Thus far I have acquired so much money and land. Now I have to add more and more. In this way I shall be the greatest proprietor of everything. Who can compete with me?" These are all demoniac conceptions
- To protect the devotee from such a misunderstanding (that he is the owner and master of everything he surveys), the Lord, showing special mercy, sometimes takes away his material possessions. Yasyaham anugrhnami harisye tad-dhanam sanaih
- To show special favor, the Lord sometimes makes an example of someone like Bali Maharaja, who was now bereft of all his possessions
- Trying to defy the authority of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, so-called scientists, philosophers and politicians manufacture plans and schemes for the destruction of the world
V
W
- We are very interested in society, friendship and love, but what are they? Those in the garb of friends and relatives merely plunder the hard-earned money of the bewildered soul
- When a demon associates with devotees engaged in glorifying the Supreme Personality of Godhead, he gradually becomes a pure devotee
- When a devotee is fixed in his devotional service, there is no need for the Lord to deprive him of his material opulences
- When in spite of possessing all these opulences a person is not proud, this means that he is fully aware that all his opulences are due to the mercy of the Supreme Lord. He therefore engages all his possessions in the service of the Lord
- When Lord Brahma saw that Prahlada Maharaja and Vindhyavali had already approached the Lord to ask mercy for Bali Maharaja, he joined them and recommended Bali Maharaja's release on the grounds of worldly calculations
- When the Supreme Personality of Godhead deprives His devotee of material opulences, this does not mean that the Lord puts him into poverty; rather, the Lord promotes him to a higher position
- When we speak of palaces, this naturally includes the idea of great cities and towns. Unfortunately, when modern scientists try to explore other planets they see nothing but rocks and sand
- Why should one give up any one of them (his family, society, country, body and relatives) and take shelter of the Supreme Personality of Godhead