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SB 07.09.15 naham bibhemy ajita te 'tibhayanakasya... cited

Expressions researched:
"antra-srajah-ksataja-kesara-sanku-karnan" |"jihvarka-netra-bhrukuti-rabhasogra-damstrat" |"naham bibhemy ajita te 'tibhayanakasya" |"nirhrada-bhita-digibhad ari-bhin-nakhagrat"

Srimad-Bhagavatam

SB Canto 7

SB 7.9.15, Translation and Purport:

My Lord, who are never conquered by anyone, I am certainly not afraid of Your ferocious mouth and tongue, Your eyes bright like the sun or Your frowning eyebrows. I do not fear Your sharp, pinching teeth, Your garland of intestines, Your mane soaked with blood, or Your high, wedgelike ears. Nor do I fear Your tumultuous roaring, which makes elephants flee to distant places, or Your nails, which are meant to kill Your enemies.

Lord Nṛsiṁha-deva's fierce appearance was certainly most dangerous for the nondevotees, but for Prahlāda Mahārāja such a fearful appearance was not at all disturbing. The lion is very fearsome for other animals, but its cubs are not at all afraid of the lion. The water of the sea is certainly dreadful for all living entities on the land, but within the sea even the small fish is unafraid. Why? Because the small fish has taken shelter of the big ocean. It is said that although great elephants are taken away by the flooding waters of the river, the small fish swim opposite the current. Therefore although the Lord sometimes assumes a fierce appearance to kill the duṣkṛtīs, the devotees worship Him. Keśava dhṛta-nara-hari-rūpa jaya jagadīśa hare. The devotee always takes pleasure in worshiping the Lord and glorifying the Lord in any form, either pleasing or fierce.

Lectures

Srimad-Bhagavatam Lectures

Lecture on SB 7.9.15 -- Mayapur, February 22, 1976:
nāhaṁ bibhemy ajita te 'tibhayānakāsya-
jihvārka-netra-bhrukuṭī-rabhasogra-daṁṣṭrāt
āntra-srajaḥ-kṣataja-keśara-śaṅku-karṇān
nihrāda-bhīta-digibhād ari-bhin-nakhāgrāt

(SB 7.9.15)

So, nārāyaṇa-paraḥ sarve na kutaścana bibhyati (SB 6.17.28). This is the sign or pure devotee. Others, they are afraid of the fierceful appearance of Narasiṁhadeva, but Prahlāda Mahārāja says that "I am not afraid." He was a child of five years old. So, others were very, very afraid, even could not approach the Lord to pacify Him, and Prahlāda Mahārāja was not afraid.

So there is a description of different features of the body of Nṛsiṁha-deva, description of the face, the ear, the mane and the nails, everything, very, very fearful. But the nails, the significant word is here—ari-bhit nakhāgrāt. Ari-bhit. Ari means enemy, and these nails are meant for piercing the chest of the enemy, not of the devotee. Ari-bhit nakhāgrāt. Everything is fierceful to the enemy, to the demons, but to the devotees they're all beautiful. They are pleasing. That is the difference between the Personality of Godhead and material personality. Everything... God is all-good. Even God appears in such fierceful attitude, it is beautiful to the devotees. God's stealing... This is abominable, stealing, in this material world. But in the spiritual world, that stealing by Kṛṣṇa is worshipable. Makhana-chora, butter thief. The devotees like that "Kṛṣṇa should come to my house and steal my things, butter." That is the pastime of Vṛndāvana-līlā. Kṛṣṇa would go to every house and steal butter, and they would be very much pleased that "Kṛṣṇa has come to steal here." They would come, a formally complaint lodged before Yaśodāmayī, and Kṛṣṇa would be afraid. But these things are very, very enjoyable. Kṛṣṇa is being chastised by Yaśodāmayī, and still, he's thinking, she's thinking, "Whether Kṛṣṇa has become very much afraid?" This is called Vṛndāvana-līlā. The love for Kṛṣṇa is so strong that whatever Kṛṣṇa does, that is beautiful. And the spiritual world, what is condemnable in this material world, that is very worshipable in the spiritual world. Spiritual world, the love is parakīya-rasa. Parakīya-rasa. Here in this material world, if you create some relationship with other's wife, that is very condemnable. But in the spiritual world the loving affairs between the gopīs and Kṛṣṇa is the same, is like that. Kṛṣṇa is making loving affairs with other's wife. So therefore sometimes, without understanding Kṛṣṇa, if one tries to understand the loving affairs of Kṛṣṇa with gopīs, they misunderstand. They think that "Kṛṣṇa is woman-hunter, and Kṛṣṇa is making love with other's wife and daughter." They do not know.

So here the fierceful attitude, very, very fierceful, that is very pleasing to Prahlāda Mahārāja. He said, nāhaṁ bibhemy ajita te 'tibhayānakāsya: "Your face is very fearful to the enemies, but it is very beautiful to me." Everything. Nāhaṁ bibhemy ajita te 'tibhayānakāsya jihvā. Everything fierceful... In the next verse Prahlāda Mahārāja will say that "This fierceful attitude of Your Lordship is not at all fearful to me, as it is fearful to me, this material existence." That he will explain, next verse. Trasto 'smy ahaṁ kṛpaṇa-vatsala duḥsahogra-saṁsāra-cakra-kadanād grasatāṁ praṇītaḥ. This material world is very, very fierceful to the devotees. They are very, very much afraid of. This is the difference. Materialistic persons, they are thinking, "This world is very pleasing. We are enjoying. Eat, drink, be merry and enjoy." But the devotees, they think, "It is very, very fierceful. How soon we shall get out of it?" My Guru Mahārāja used to say that "This material world is not fit for living for any gentleman." He used to say. "No gentleman can live here." So these things are not understood by the nondevotees, how much pinching this material world is. Duḥkhāla... Kṛṣṇa says it is duḥkhālayam aśāśvatam (BG 8.15). That is the difference between the devotee and nondevotee. The duḥkhālayam, they are trying to adjust how to make it sukhālayam. That is not possible.

Conversations and Morning Walks

1976 Conversations and Morning Walks

Room Conversation -- June 10, 1976, Los Angeles:

Hṛdayānanda:

nāhaṁ bibhemy ajita te 'tibhayānakāsya-
jihvārka-netra-bhrukuṭī-rabhasogra-daṁṣṭrāt
āntra-srajaḥ-kṣataja-keśara-śaṅku-karṇān
nirhrāda-bhīta-digibhād ari-bhin-nakhāgrāt

"My Lord, who are never conquered by anyone, I am certainly not afraid of Your ferocious mouth and tongue, Your eyes bright like the sun, or Your frowning eyebrows. I do not fear Your sharp, pinching teeth, Your garland of intestines, Your mane soaked with blood, or Your high, wedgelike ears. Nor do I fear Your tumultuous roaring, which makes elephants flee to distant places, or Your nails, which are meant to kill Your enemies."

Prabhupāda: Now he'll come to the point in which he's afraid of. Next verse.

Hṛdayānanda:

trasto 'smy ahaṁ kṛpaṇa-vatsala duḥsahogra-
saṁsāra-cakra-kadanād grasatāṁ praṇītaḥ
baddhaḥ sva-karmabhir uśattama te 'ṅghri-mūlaṁ
prīto 'pavarga-śaraṇaṁ hvayase kadā nu

"O most powerful, insurmountable Lord, who are kind to the fallen souls, I have been put into the association of demons as a result of my activities, and therefore I am very much afraid of my condition of life within this material world. When will that moment come when You will call me to the shelter of Your lotus feet, which are the ultimate goal for liberation from conditional life?"

Prabhupāda: Prahlāda Mahārāja afraid of this material life, not of Nṛsiṁha-deva. Such a fierceful appearance, he knows "He's my Lord." No fear, but he's afraid of this material existence. Trasto 'smi, read it, the same verse, trasto 'smi.

Hṛdayānanda: Trasto 'smy ahaṁ kṛpaṇa-vatsala duḥsahogra.

Prabhupāda: Duḥsahogra: this material life, the tribulation, it is unbearable. Trasto 'smi, duḥsaha ugra. Hm. Then?

Hṛdayānanda: Saṁsāra-cakra.

Prabhupāda: Ah, saṁsāra-cakra. Then?

Hṛdayānanda: Kadanād grasatāṁ praṇītaḥ, baddhaḥ sva-karmabhir uśattama...

Prabhupāda: "And when I am put into this condition... Not that I am accusing You. It is due to my own fault, sva-karmabhiḥ, by my own resultant action of karma." Then?

Hṛdayānanda: Uśattama te 'ṅghri-mūlam.

Prabhupāda: "Therefore kindly engage me in Your service." What is the translation?

Hṛdayānanda: Of the whole verse?

Prabhupāda: Of this verse, yes.

Hṛdayānanda: "O most powerful, insurmountable Lord, who are kind to the fallen souls, I have been put into the association of demons as a result of my activities, and therefore I am very much afraid of my condition of life within this material world. When will that moment come when You will call me to the shelter of Your lotus feet, which are the ultimate goal for liberation from conditional life?"

Prabhupāda: Hm. Is there a purport?

Hṛdayānanda: Yes. "Being in the material world is certainly miserable, but certainly when one is put into the association of asuras, or atheistic men, it is intolerably so. One may ask why the living entity is put into the material world. Indeed, sometimes foolish people deride the Lord for having put them here. Actually, everyone is put into conditional life according to his karma. Therefore Prahlāda Mahārāja, representing all the other conditioned souls, admits that he was put into life among the asuras because of the results of his karma. The Lord is known as kṛpaṇa-vatsala because He is extremely kind to the conditioned souls. As stated in Bhagavad-gītā, therefore, the Lord appears when there are discrepancies in the execution of religious principles (yadā yadā hi dharmasya glānir bhavati bhārata... tadātmānaṁ sṛjāmy aham (BG 4.7)). The Lord is extremely anxious to deliver the conditioned souls, and therefore He instructs all of us to return home, back to Godhead (sarva-dharmān parityajya mām ekaṁ śaraṇaṁ vraja (BG 18.66)). Thus Prahlāda Mahārāja expected that the Lord, by His kindness, would call him again to the shelter of His lotus feet. In other words, everyone should be eager to return home, back to Godhead, taking shelter of the lotus feet of the Lord and thus being fully trained in Kṛṣṇa consciousness."

Prabhupāda: Next verse.

Hṛdayānanda: Yasmāt priyāpriya-viyoga-saṁyoga-janma.

Prabhupāda: This is description of this material life. Yasmāt priyāpriya?

Hṛdayānanda: Viyoga-saṁyoga-janma.

Prabhupāda: Hm.

Hṛdayānanda:

śokāgninā sakala-yoniṣu dahyamānaḥ
duḥkhauṣadhaṁ tad api duḥkham atad-dhiyāhaṁ
bhūman bhramāmi vada me tava dāsya-yogam

"O great one, O Supreme Lord, because of combination with pleasing and displeasing circumstances and because of separation from them, one is placed in a most regrettable position, within heavenly or hellish planets, as if burning in a fire of lamentation. Although there are many remedies by which to get out of miserable life, any such remedies in the material world are more miserable than the miseries themselves."

Prabhupāda: Just see (laughs). You want to mitigate some misery, and the process is still more miserable. Is it not?

Page Title:SB 07.09.15 naham bibhemy ajita te 'tibhayanakasya... cited
Compiler:Krsnadas
Created:17 of Sep, 2011
Totals by Section:BG=0, SB=1, CC=0, OB=0, Lec=1, Con=1, Let=0
No. of Quotes:3