As Asvattāma understood that Arjun has counteracted his ultimate weapon, he threw his weapons & started running away from battlefield. At that time, he happened to meet Vyāsdev. With a voice choked in grief, he enquired: O foremost of sages, O Supreme knower of past, present & future, my infallible weapon was supposed to be capable of destroying all at whom it was directed. How then could it have been neutralized, after having killed only one akshauhini army, leaving Krsna & Arjun unharmed?
Vyāsdev said: Dear Asvattāma, long ago, the Supreme
Lord of all creatures, Nārayana, appeared upon earth as Nārayana Rsi, the son
of Dharma. Thereafter, on the slopes of Himalayas, He performed very severe
austerities for 66000 years while subsisting only upon air & keeping His
arms upraised. After that, Nārayana Rsi performed more austerities for 132000
years, causing entire space between heaven & earth to become filled with
His energy. Even Lord Siva came to Nārayana Rsi, just to receive His blessings
Dear son of Drona, you should know that same Nārayana
Rsi has now appeared as Sri Krsna & that Arjun is His eternal associate,
Nara. Being manifested from Nārayana Rsi ascetic merit, Nara is practically
equal to Him in all respects. These 2 Supreme personalities appear every Yuga,
to act for welfare of the universe
Dear Asvattāma, you are an expanded portion of Lord Siva.
You attained this exalted position because of your past austerities, but despite
your having worshipped Lord Siva birth after birth, Sri Krsna is even dearer to
Mahadev than you are
Asvattāma was not only a devotee of Lord Siva, but his
empowered incarnation as well & thus Vyāsdev had spoken to him in such a
way as not to disturb his faith. Still, after hearing the sage’s words, Asvattāma
began considering Sri Krsna as worthy of his worship, just as much as Lord Siva.
He offered his obeisances to Vyāsdev & then returned to the battlefield and
since the sun was setting, he had Kaurava army withdraw for the night. Pāndava
army also retired to their camp
That evening Vyāsdev visited Pāndava camp. Arjun took
this opportunity to ask: Dear Grandfather, while engaged in fighting I see a
very effulgent personality holding an uplifted lance in front of my chariot.
Because of him, whoever I approach is immediately routed. Although everyone
assumes that it is I who has vanquished my enemies, I alone can see that it is
really this wonderful person who holds a lance. His feet do not touch the ground,
nor does he ever hurl the lance. I’m very curious to know who he is & so
kindly enlighten me, if you think I am worthy
Vyāsdev said: The person you see is Lord Siva. Because
he stays in front of your chariot, no one can face you in battle. Lord Siva is
to be considered almost as good as personal expansion of Lord Vishnu. Don’t be afraid,
because Sri Krsna who is the original Lord Vishnu, has become your protector
& advisor, there is no doubt that your victory is assured. Sometimes Sri
Krsna may display some apparent limitation, like an ordinary human being, but you
should understand that this is simply His pastime. Factually He is unlimited, omnipotent
& omniscient supreme controller of all potencies & thus He is situated
far beyond the influence of material nature
The
path of spiritual realization is undoubtedly difficult. One has to approach a
bona fide spiritual master to receive the knowledge. Such a spiritual master
should be accepted in full surrender, and one should serve the spiritual master
like a menial servant, without false prestige. One must be able to pass the
test of the spiritual master, and when he sees the genuine desire of the
disciple, he automatically blesses the disciple with genuine spiritual
understanding
Krsna says:
tad viddhi pranipatena pariprasnena sevaya
upadeksyanti te jnanam jnaninas tattva-darsinah
Just try to learn the truth by approaching a spiritual
master. Inquire from him submissively and render service unto him. The
self-realized soul can impart knowledge unto you because he has seen the truth
Thoughts? #gameoflife
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