TEXT 7
यानि वेदविदां श्रेष्ठो भगवान् बादरायणः ।
अन्ये च मुनयः परावरवििदो विदुः ॥७॥
TRANSLATION
Being the eldest learned Vedantist, O Suta Gosvami, you are acquainted with the knowledge of Vyasadeva, who is the incarnation of Godhead, and you also know other sages who are fully versed in all kinds of physical and metaphysical knowledge.
PURPORT
Srimad-Bhagavatam is a natural commentation on the Brahma-sutra or the Badarayana Vedata-sutras. It is called natural because Vyasadeva is author of both Vedanta-sutra as well as Srimad-Bhagavatam or the essence of all Vedic literatures.
Besides Vyasadeva, there are other sages who are the authors of six different philosophical systems, namely Gautama, Kanada, Kapila, Patanjali, Jaimini and Ashtavakra.
Theism is explained completely in the Vedanta-sutra, whereas in other systems of philosophical speculations, practically no mention is given to the ultimate cause of all causes.
One can sit on the Vyasasana only after being conversant in all systems of philosophy so that one can present fully the theistic views of the Bhagavatam in defiance of all other systems.
Srila Suta Gosvami was the proper teacher, and therefore the sages at Naimisaranya elevated him to the Vyasasana. Srila Vyasadeva is designated herein as the Personality of Godhead because he is the authorized incarnation.
TEXT 8
वेत्थ त्वं सौम्य तत्सव॔ तत्वतस्तदनुग्रहात् ।
ब्रूयुः स्त्रिग्धस्य शिष्यस्य गुरवो गुह्रमप्युत ॥८॥
TRANSLATION
And because you are submissive, your spiritual masters have endowed you with all their favors. Therefore, you can tell us all you have learned from them.
PURPORT
The secret of success in spiritual life is in satisfying the spiritual master and thereby getting His sincere blessings. Srila Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakur has sung in his famous eight stanzas on the spiritual master as follows:
"I offer my respectful obeisances unto the lotus feet of my spiritual master. Only by his satisfaction can one please the Personality of Godhead, and when he is dissatisfied there is only havoc on the path of spiritual realization."
It is essential, therefore, that a disciple be very much obedient and submissive to the bonafide spiritual master.
Srila Suta Gosvami fulfilled all these qualifications as a disciple, and therefore he was endowed with all favours by his learned and self-realized spiritual masters such as Srila Vyasadeva and others. The sages of Naimisaranya were confident that Srila Suta Gosvami was bonafide. Therefore, they were anxious to hear from him.
TEXT 9
तत्र तत्राञ्जसाऽऽयुषमन् भवता यद्विनिश्र्चतम् ।
पुंसामेकान्ततः श्रेयस्तन्नः शंसितुमह॔सि ॥९॥
TRANSLATION
Please, therefore, being blessed with many years, explain to us what you ascertain to be the absolute and ultimate good for the people in general.
PURPORT
In Bhagavad-gita, worship of the acharya is recommended. The acharyas and the gosvami's are always well-wishers for the general public. They are especially spiritual well-wishers. Spiritual well-being is automatically followed by material well-being.
The acharyas therefore give directions in spiritual well-being for the people in general. Foreseeing the incompetencies of the people in this age of Kali, or the iron age of quarrel, the sages requested that Suta Gosvami give a summary of all revealed scriptures because the people of this age are condemned in every respect.
The sages, therefore, inquired of the absolute good, which is the ultimate good for the people. The condemned state of affairs of the people of this age is described as follows.
TEXT 10
प्रायेणाल्पायुषः सम्य कलावस्मिन् युगे जनाः ।
मन्दाः सुमन्दमतयो मन्दभाग्या ह्रुपद्रुताः ॥१०॥
TRANSLATION
O learned one, in this iron age of Kali men have but short lives. They are quarrelsome, lazy, misguided, unlucky and above all, always disturbed.
PURPORT
The devotees of the Lord are always anxious for the spiritual improvement of the general public. When the sages of Naimisaranya analyzed the state of affairs of the people in this age of Kali, they foresaw that men would live short lives.
In Kali-yuga, the duration of life is shortened not so much because of insufficient food but because of irregular habits.
By keeping regular habits and eating simple food, any man can maintain his health. Overeating, over sense gratification, over dependence on another's mercy, and artificial standards of living sap the very vitality of human energy. Therefore the duration of life is shortened.
The people of this age are also very lazy, not only materially but in the matter of self-realization. The human life is especially meant for self-realization. That is to say, man should come to know what he is, what the world is, and what the supreme truth is.
Human life is a means by which the living entity can end all miseries of materail existence which arise in the hard struggle for existence and by which he can return to Godhead, his eternal home.
But, due to a bad system of education, men have no desire for self-realization. Even if they come to know about it, they unfortunately become victims of misguided teachers.
In this age, men are not only victims of different political creeds and parties, but also of many different types of sense-gratificatory diversions, namely cinemas, sports, gambling, clubs, mundane libraries, bad associations, smoking, drinking, cheating, pilfering, bickerings, and so on.
Their minds are always disturbed and full of anxieties due to so many different engagements. In this age, many unscrupulous men manufacture their own religious faiths which are not based on any revealed scriptures, and very often people who are addicted to sense gratification are attracted by such institutions.
Consequently, in the name of religion so many sinful acts are being carried on, and the people in general have neither peace of mind not health of body. The student(brahmacari) communities are no longer being maintained, and householders do not observe the rules and regulations of the grhastha-asrama.
Consequently, the so called vanaprastha and sannyasi who come out of such grhastha-asramas are easily deviated from rigid path. In the Kali-yuga, the whole atmosphere is surchanged with faithlessness. Men are no longer interested in spiritual values. Material sense gratification is now the standard of civilization.
For the maintenance of such material civilizations, man had formed complex nations and communities, and there is a constant strain of hot and cold wars between these different groups. It has become very difficult, therefore, to raise the spiritual standard due to the present distorted values of human society.
The sages of Naimisaranya are anxious to disentangle all fallen souls, and here they are seeking the remedy from Srila Suta Gosvami.
TEXT 11
भूरीणि भूरिकमा॔णि श्रोतन्यानि विभागशः ।
अतः साधोऽत्र यत्सारं समुद्घृत्य मनीषया ।
ब्रूहि भद्रायभूता नां येनात्मा सुप्रसीदति ॥११॥
TRANSLATION
There are many barieties of scriptures, and in all of them there are many prescribed duties which can be learned only after many years of study. Therefore, O sage, please select the essential teachings of all these scriptures and explain them for the good of all living beings, that by such instruction their hearts may be satisfied.
PURPORT
Atma or self is detinguished from matter and material elements. It is spiritual in constitution, and thus it is never satisfied by any amount of material planning. All scriptures and spiritual instructions are meant for the satisfaction of this self or atma.
There are many varieties of approaches which are recommended for different types of living beings in different times and at different places.
Consequently, the numbers of revealed scriptures are innumerable. There are different methods and prescribed duties recommended in these various scriptures.
Taking into consideration the fallen condition of the people in general in this age of Kali, the sages of Naimisaraya suggested that Sri Suta Gosvami relate the essence of all such scriptures because in this age it is not possible for the fallen souls to understand and undergo all the lessons of all these various scriptures in a varna and asrama system.
The varna and asrama society was considered to be the best institution for lifting the human being to the spiritual platform, but due to Kali-yuga it is not possible to execute the rules and regulations of these institutions.
Nor is it possible for the people in general to completely sever relations with their families as the varnasrama institution prescribes. The whole atmosphere is surchanged with opposition.
And considering this, one can see that spiritual emancipation for the common man in this age is very difficult. The reason for the sages inquiry into this matter is explained in the following verse.