Click for Reference : 17th Adhyaya of the First skanda. See Also : Devi Bhagavatham for the story so far.
Recap : We have seen how the pure minded Suka, the son of Vyasa, was born from the Vedic fire started by his father using Arani sticks. We have seen how he completed his Vedic studies under the Deva Guru, Brihaspati himself. We have heard his arguments with his father, where he refused to live the Vedic way and considered his father deluded and his guru idiotic. He insisted on going directly to the sannyasa asrama and refused all wordly knowledge. Then his father taught him the Devi Bhagavatham together with Romaharshana (Suta). Even after this Suka was not satisfied and his father advised him to visit Rajarshi Janaka at Mithila.
This episode : Suka was very excited about meeting a Raja RSi which he was sure was a contradiction in terms like saying “my barren mother”. So he set off like an arrow that has shot out of its bow, after promising his father that he would be back directly, to study the Vedas after meeting the king and clearing his doubts.
All along the way he saw normal people in various countries in various occupations. He saw yogis, vanaprasthis, devotees of various deities, yajniks, people practicing ascetism, agriculture an so on.
He took 2 years to cross the Mount Meru and 1 year to cross the Himalayas to reach Mithila.
If you need to cross the Himalayas to come to Mithila, then you must come from the North. So the Devi Bhagavatham implies that Mount Meru is to the North of the Himalayas. (For some other ideas see Sumeru).
There Suka saw the prosperous city of Mithila but the gatekeeper wished to know his identity and purpose before letting him into the city. Suka found this laughable and stood silently at distance. The gatekeeper respectfully let him know that he was bound by the king’s orders and was no allowed to let all manner of people into the city without knowing their identity and purpose.
This is exactly how I feel at the U.S. Immigration. They are respectful but need to see all my paperwork my finger print, eye scan and what have you for identity proof and they need me to state my purpose of visit.
Suka said, ” O’ I am a fool for coming here, crossing 2 mountains and so many countries. I have been deluded by my father and egged on by my karma to come on this difficult journey. Others undertake hardship for money, but I am the only idiot who did all this for no good end.” He continued..
One must have to suffer for his Prârabdha karma, be it auspicious or inauspicious. One must make one’s effort, being always under the control of this Law of Karma. Though there be no apparent desire or cause, yet this Prârabdha Karma always puts a man into different actions. This place is not a Tîrth (holy place) nor there are the Vedas personified here, that I have taken so much pains and trouble to come here — only there is one thing here and that is the king Janaka; but there is no chance to see him even; for I have not been able to enter even within his kingdom.
The gatekeeper understood that Suka must be a wise brahman and asked him to freely enter the country. He apologised for delaying so great a person. Suka forgave him at once and said that the gatekeeper was not at fault for following the king’s policy. So also, the king was not at fault for creating a policy that was designed for the safety of his people. Then the gatekeeper asked Suka to advise him on friends, foes, benefactors, happiness and pain. It is not everyday that you have the opportunity to interact with someone of the level of Suka Maharshi!
Here are some points which Suka shared with the gatekeeper., so that we are also benefitted. One of the reasons why people consider it holy to listen to the puranas, is because we get exposed to such ideas and they prepare us for studying the Vedas when our aatma is ready. In the meantime they help us understand people and life.
Suka said,
- Everywhere men are divided, as far as their internal natures are concerned, into two classes; they are called attached or unattached.
- Those who are attached to this world are said to be “attached” persons. These attached persons feel frequently various pleasures and pains. When they get wives, sons, wealth, honour, rise, etc., they get pleasures; and if they do not get any of these they feel at every moment intense pain. Now the attached person seeks to take such means as will secure them the pleasures of this world; so whoever acts against those means are treated as enemies and who ever helps are considered friends.
- And the minds of these two classes are again of two kinds. The “attached” man can be stupid and or cunning. Of these the attached and cunning man does not get bewildered whereas stupid attached man gets always bewildered everywhere. (I think this means that the attached cunning guy “succeeds”.)
- There are two kinds of cunning men – cunningness is according to the dictates of S’âstras or that arising from his own intellect (buddhi).
- Again intellect is sub-divided into two whether it is Yukta (focussed) or Ayukta (scattered).
- There are two kinds of cunning men – cunningness is according to the dictates of S’âstras or that arising from his own intellect (buddhi).
- The unattached man is dispassionate and engaged in determining the “self” dwells in a solitary place, meditates on “self”, finds pleasure in studying the Vedânta S’âstras and feels pain in all the topics on worldly affairs. The wise man that wants his real welfare and is averse to the worldly enjoyments finds that he has many enemies; lust, anger, palaces, etc., are his so many enemies. Contentment is his only friend in the three lokas and no one is his real self.
- The “unattached” is sub-divided into three classes knowing, unknowing and middling.
Then the gatekeeper realised that friends and enemies are different for the attached (rAga yukta) people and the unattached people (vairAgIs). With this he lead Suka into the city.
Satya Says : Personal Views : I think that as I grew up I acquired different attachments at each age and lost them as time passed. Some attachments I lost because I got what I wanted and some I lost because I realised that I could never get what I wanted. My point is that attachments come and go and the same person maybe very detached and wise about one thing and very stupid/cunning and attached about another thing at the same period of his life.
It is the Indian way to state the thoughts of all the thinkers before us and then to append your own thoughts at the end saying Chanakya says or Varahamihira says. Many older than me will rush to correct me with their e-mails and comments. Some of those much younger than me might think that I have a point. People of other/non-thinking faiths might leave offensive/idiotic comments. I variously delete/approve/trash such comments/e-mails.
What interests me is that all these variety of people do read what I write and some of them quite regularly… Since I am attached to my work at present, those who appreciate it are my “friends” as Suka defines them 
Sri Krishnaarpanam.
Authorship and Copyright Notice : All Rights Reserved : Satya Sarada Kandula
