SB 07.05.22 prahradanucyatam tata... cited

Expressions researched:
"kalenaitavatayusman" |"prahradanucyatam tata" |"svadhitam kincid uttamam" |"yad asiksad guror bhavan"

SB Canto 7

SB 7.5.22, Translation and Purport:

Hiraṇyakaśipu said: My dear Prahlāda, my dear son, O long—lived one, for so much time you have heard many things from your teachers. Now please repeat to me whatever you think is the best of that knowledge.

In this verse, Hiraṇyakaśipu inquires from his son what he has learned from his guru. Prahlāda Mahārāja's gurus were of two kinds—Ṣaṇḍa and Amarka, the sons of Śukrācārya in the seminal disciplic succession, were the gurus appointed by his father, but his other guru was the exalted Nārada Muni, who had instructed Prahlāda when Prahlāda was within the womb of his mother. Prahlāda Mahārāja responded to the inquiry of his father with the instructions he had received from his spiritual master, Nārada. Thus there was again a difference of opinion because Prahlāda Mahārāja wanted to relate the best thing he had learned from his spiritual master, whereas Hiraṇyakaśipu expected to hear about the politics and diplomacy Prahlāda had learned from Ṣaṇḍa and Amarka. Now the dissension between the father and son became increasingly intense as Prahlāda Mahārāja began to say what he had learned from his guru Nārada Muni.

Srimad-Bhagavatam Lectures

Lecture on SB 7.5.22-30 -- London, September 8, 1971:

Prahrādānūcyatāṁ tāta svadhītaṁ kiñcid uttamam: "My dear son Prahlāda, will you kindly explain what you have learned very good thing from your teacher?" Svadhītaṁ kiñcid uttamam: "Very selected best things what you have learned," ucyatam, "please explain." Kālena etāvatā āyuṣman yad aśikṣad guror bhavān: "You have taken lessons from your teachers." Hiraṇyakaśipu appointed some special teachers for teaching Prahlāda Mahārāja. "So tell me what you have learned." And Prahlāda Mahārāja says,

śravaṇaṁ kīrtanaṁ viṣṇoḥ

smaraṇaṁ pāda-sevanam

arcanaṁ vandanaṁ dāsyaṁ

sakhyam ātma-nivedanam

(SB 7.5.23)

iti puṁsārpitā viṣṇau

bhaktiṣ cen nava-lakṣaṇā

kriyeta bhagavaty addhā

tan manye 'dhītam uttamam

He wanted to know from the son what best knowledge he has received. He said, "This is the best knowledge." Tan manye adhītam uttamam: "I think he has learned very nice thing. His education is first class." Who? Now, "Who is always engaged in śravaṇaṁ kīrtanaṁ viṣṇu, who is always engaged in chanting and hearing about the glories of Lord Viṣṇu."

This chanting and hearing which we perform—not chanting of any demigod. Viṣṇu, only of Viṣṇu. The chanting and hearing is not recommended for... Suppose if you chant and hear of the queen. That is not recommended. What to speak of queen, even of Lord Brahmā, Lord Śiva.

yas tu nārāyaṇaṁ devaṁ

brahma-rudrādi-daivataiḥ

samatvena vīkṣeta

sa pāsaṇḍī bhaved dhruvam

(CC Madhya 18.116)

"Anyone who thinks that the Supreme Personality of Godhead Nārāyaṇa is as good as the demigods, he's a rascal, he's a fool." Sa pāsaṇḍī bhaved dhruvam. And the Bhagavad-gītā also it is said, kāmais tais tair hṛta-jñānāḥ yajante anya-devatāḥ: (BG 7.20) "Those who are worshiping other demigods, they are hṛta-jñānāḥ. Their knowledge is lost." That requires a very big explanation. So one thing is that you should never place or put the demigods on equal footing with the Supreme Personality of Godhead. That is a great offense.

Festival Lectures

Nrsimha-caturdasi Lord Nrsimhadeva's Appearance Day -- Srimad-Bhagavatam 7.5.22-34 -- Los Angeles, May 27, 1972:

So today, appearance day of Lord Nṛsiṁha-deva. Lord Nṛsiṁha-deva appeared on this Nṛsiṁha Cāturdaśī on account of His devotee, Prahlāda. As it is stated in the Bhagavad-gītā, yadā yadā hi dharmasya glānir bhavati bhārata, abhyutthānam adharmasya (BG 4.7). Paritrāṇāya sādhūnāṁ vināśāya ca duṣkṛtāṁ, sambhavāmi yuge yuge (BG 4.8). The Lord appears with two purposes. Paritrāṇāya sādhūnām: just to give protection and rescue the devotees, and to kill the demons, vināśāya ca duṣkṛtām. So Prahlāda Mahārāja, five-years-old boy, his only fault was that he was Kṛṣṇa conscious. He was devotee of Kṛṣṇa. That was his only fault. And the father was so unkind to a child, even five years old. He could not excuse, "Oh, let this boy do whatever, chanting Hare Kṛṣṇa." No. The demons are so much against God consciousness that even at his home he would not allow his own child to become God conscious. This is demoniac civili... So you'll find many critics, many enemies, because you are making progress in Kṛṣṇa consciousness. So the demons are always against this Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement. That is the whole history. Just like Lord Jesus Christ, he was crucified. What was his fault? He was preaching God consciousness, that's all. This society is so cruel. So Prahlāda Mahārāja was tortured in so many ways. The torturing methods, I think you will find as you will see in today's picture, how Prahlāda Mahārāja was tortured.

So one day, Hiraṇyakaśipu... After all, he was his son. Affection was there. So one day, Hiraṇyakaśipu asked the boy,

prahrādānūcyatāṁ tāta

svadhītaṁ kiñcid uttamaṁ

kālenaitāvatāyuṣman

yad aśikṣād guror bhavān

(SB 7.5.22)

So he asked his son, "My dear son, what you have learned? The best thing, what you have learned from your teachers, so you kindly let me know." So Prahlāda Mahārāja informed that "I have learned like this." What is that?

śravaṇaṁ kīrtanaṁ viṣṇoḥ

smaraṇaṁ pāda-sevanam

arcanaṁ vandanaṁ dāsyaṁ

sakhyam ātma-nivedanam

iti puṁsārpitā viṣṇau

bhaktiś cen nava-lakṣaṇā

kriyeta bhagavaty addhā

tan manye 'dhītam uttamam

(SB 7.5.23-24)

Tan manye 'dhītam uttamam: one who is engaged in the matter of hearing about Viṣṇu, śravaṇaṁ kīrtanam viṣṇoḥ. We are engaged in hearing and talking and chanting about so many things non-Viṣṇu. Just like you'll find thousands of, millions of different types of magazines sold in your country, in all countries. Some of the magazines are sex literature, some cinema literature, some this literature, that... So many different types. There is one paper I have seen, "Diabetes Literature." There are many patients of diabetes, so they have formed a society, "Diabetic Society." I have seen it. (laughter) And there are many diabetic patients, they are being hoaxed, that "You pay two dollars per year, and you get all information how to protect yourself from diabetes disease." So in America two dollars is nothing, but it is collecting millions and millions of dollars, Diabetic Society. Diabetic magazine. So that sort of hearing and chanting is not needed. We are not interested in all these magazines, because we are followers of Prahlāda Mahārāja. He's our ācārya. He's guru. Prahlāda Mahārāja's guru is Nārada, and Nārada is also our guru. Nārada is guru of Vyāsadeva. So we are a branch, but the original guru is Nārada, Brahma-sampradāya. So Prahlāda Mahārāja is also a disciple of Nārada Muni.