Bhagavata Dharma

तोकानां पितरौ बन्धू दृश: पक्ष्म स्त्रिया: पति: पति: प्रजानां भिक्षूणाम गृह्यज्ञानाम बुध: सुहृत

Friday, September 21, 2012

Swadharma Nishta

Sri jayadeva emphasizes the evolution indirectly प्रलय पयोदि जले..केशवा धृत मीन शरीर, where post-pralaya evolution starts from living beings in water followed by reptiles and other so on reaching till human. By any evolutionary theories, the natual question is what is after human? Lord Shiva answers this elegantly as 'स्वधर्म निष्ट शथ जन्मभिः पुमान विरिन्चतां एति तत: परंहि मां', ie swadharma-nishta is the next highest form after being a human. A barbaric human tribe changes to a civilized community over a period of time, similarly the civilization gets matured and efficient as time passes. Swadharma nishtai is performing individual duty and dharma righteously, which is the highest form of efficiency for a civilization. For vedic civilization this has been the varnas and ashramas as refined over 1000s of years by our sashtras. Hence a civilization that is more individualistic without social structure is actually going backwards in evolution. Nevertheless, Lord Shiva says continuing swadharma nishtai for 100 births leads the evolution to Brahma lokha and then shivapraapti. The most touching and important part of this is when he says what happens after 'पदं यथाहं विभुदः कलायते'. What I found interesting here is, Lord Shiva says everyone including Brahma and I attain Vaikunta moksha by getting freedom from the materialistic guna of our realms. Realizing that the next question will be what will happen to the jeevaatmas who are not interested in materialistic guna, he immediately says 'अव्याकृथं भागवतोथ वैष्णवं', ie who devotes himself to bhagavan with druda chitha will automatically attain paramapadam along with brahma and I, skipping brahma and shivapadam.