[Advaita-l] Avatar's body is transcended

[Venkatesh Murthy]

Namaste
You have given me good homework exercise.

This is from Anushasana Parva.
13144038a yAvad etat praliptaM te gAtreSu madhusUdana
13144038c ato mRtyubhayaM nAsti yAvadicchA tavAcyuta
13144039a na tu pAdatale lipte kasmAt te putrakAdya vai
13144039c naitan me priyam ity eva sa mAM prIto 'bravIt tadA

Atri's son is Durvasa Muni. He was guest of Krishna once and he acted like
a madman and asked for Payasam. He ate some hot Payasam and then
asked Krishna to smear His body with hot Payasa from head to foot. Krishna
did as Durvasa said. But Krishna left out the soles of His feet. Then
Durvasa applied the Payasa to Rukmini also and like a madman he yoked Her
to chariot like a horse and made Her to pull the chariot and whipping Her
when She fell down. But Krishna and Rukmini did not complain and were
happily doing all he asked.

After Krishna and Rukmini did all the crazy things for Durvasa he gave
Krishna many boons. It is explained in the Anushasana Parva Chapter 144. He
gave boon Krishna will never be killed from any part he had smeared with
Payasam. He left out only the soles of feet. Durvasa was not happy with
that. But Krishna knew He also had to die and did not want to make his
whole body protected. Therefore the hunter had to shoot the arrow at the
sole of the foot. From Anushasana Parva -

Of highly praiseworthy vows, he met me shortly after this and
addressing me, said, 'O Krishna, I wish to eat frumenty without delay!'
Having understood his mind previously, I had set my servants to prepare
every kind of food and drink. Indeed, many excellent viands had been kept
ready. As soon as I was asked, I caused hot frumenty to be brought and
offered to the ascetic. Having eaten some, he quickly said unto me, 'Do
thou, O Krishna, take some of this frumenty and smear all thy limbs with
it!' Without any scruple I did as directed. Indeed, with the remnant of
that frumenty I smeared my body and head. The ascetic at that time saw
thy mother of sweet face standing near. Laughing the while, he smeared
her body also with that frumenty. The ascetic then caused thy mother,
whose body was smeared over with frumenty, to be yoked unto a car without
any delay. Ascending that car he set out of my house. Endued with great
intelligence, that Brahmana blazed with effulgence like fire, and struck,
in my presence, my Rukmini endued with youth, as if she were an animal
destined to drag the cars of human beings. Beholding this, I did not feel
the slightest grief born of malice or the desire to injure the Rishi.
Indeed, having yoked Rukmini to the car, he went out, desirous of
proceeding along the high road of the city. Seeing that extraordinary
sight, some Dasarhas, filled with wrath, addressed one another and began
to converse in this way, 'Who else is there on earth that would draw
breath after having yoked Rukmini to a car! Verily, let the world be
filled with Brahmanas only! Let no other orders take birth here. The
poison of a virulent snake is exceedingly keen. Keener than poison is a
Brahmana. There is no physician for a person that has been bitten or
burnt by the virulent snake of a Brahmana, 'As the irresistible Durvasa
proceeded on the car, Rukmini tottered on the road and frequently fell
down. At this the regenerate Rishi became angry and began to urge Rukmini
on by striking her with the whip. At last, filled with a towering
passion, the Brahmana leapt down from the car, and fled towards the
south, running on foot, over a pathless ground. Beholding that foremost
of Brahmanas flying along the pathless ground, we followed him, although
we were smeared with frumenty, exclaiming behind him, 'Be gratified with
us, O holy one! Endued with great energy, the Brahmana, seeing me, said,
'O mighty-armed Krishna, thou hast subdued wrath by the strength of thy
nature? O thou of excellent vows, I have not found the slightest fault in
thee! O Govinda, I have been highly gratified with thee. Do thou solicit
the fruition of such wishes as thou pleasest! Behold duly, O son, what
the puissance is of myself when I become gratified with any one. As long
as deities and human beings will continue to entertain a liking for food,
so long will every one among them cherish the same liking for thee that
they cherish for their food! As long, again, as there will be
Righteousness in the several world, so long will the fame of thy
achievements last! Indeed, thy distinction will last so long in the three
worlds! O Janardana, agreeable thou shalt be to all persons! Whatever
articles of thine have been broken or burnt or otherwise destroyed (by
me), thou shalt see restored, O Janardana, to their former state or they
will reappear even in a better form! As long, again, O thou of unfading
glory, as thou wilt wish to live, so long wilt thou have no fear of death
assailing thee through such parts of thy body as have been smeared with
the frumenty I gave thee! O son, why didst thou not smear that frumenty
on the soles of thy feet as well? By not doing it, thou have acted in a
way that is not approved by me! Even these were the words that he said,
well-pleased with me on that occasion. After he had ceased speaking, I
saw that my body became endued with great beauty and splendour. Unto
Rukmini also, the Rishi, well-pleased with her, said, 'O beautiful lady,
thou shalt be the foremost one of thy sex in fame, and great glory and
achievements will be thine. Decrepitude or disease or loss of complexion
will never be thine! Every one will see thee engaged in waiting upon
Krishna, possessed as thou already art with a fragrant odour which is
always present in thee. Thou shalt become the foremost of all spouses,
numbering sixteen thousand, O Kesava. At last, when the time comes for
thy departure from the world, thou shalt attain to the inseparable
companionship of Krishna hereafter!' Having said these words unto thy
mother, the Rishi once more addressed me and uttering following words,
left the spot. Indeed, the Rishi Durvasa, blazing like a fire, said, 'O
Kesava, let thy understanding be always disposed even thus towards the
Brahmana!' Verily after uttering these words, that Brahmana disappeared
there and then before my eyes.


On Tue, Aug 29, 2017 at 5:50 PM, V Subrahmanian <v.subrahmanian at gmail.com>
wrote:

> Thanks for posting that portion where the widows of Krishna took to
> various means.  Do you have information about this, from the original post:
>
> //Vasudeva, though he was the Supreme Deity, wished to die, for
> dispelling all doubts and establishing a certainty of results (in the
> matter of human existence), simply for upholding the three worlds and for
> making the words of Atri’s son true. Having restrained all his senses,
> speech, and mind, Krishna laid himself down in high Yoga.//
>
>
> What had Atri's son prophesied?
>
> regards
> vs
>
>
>
> On Tue, Aug 29, 2017 at 5:28 PM, Venkatesh Murthy <vmurthy36 at gmail.com>
> wrote:
>
>> Namaste
>>
>> This is from Mahabharata. Arjuna tried to protect the Vrishni ladies but
>> many were kidnapped by robbers. He lost all his strength and became
>> incapable of fighting.
>>
>> "After all the people had set out, the ocean, that home of sharks and
>> alligators, flooded Dvaraka, which still teemed with wealth of every
>> kind, with its waters. Whatever portion of the ground was passed over,
>> ocean immediately flooded over with his waters. Beholding this wonderful
>> sight, the inhabitants of Dvaraka walked faster and faster, saying,
>> Wonderful is the course of fate! Dhananjaya, after abandoning Dvaraka,
>> proceeded by slow marches, causing the Vrishni women to rest in pleasant
>> forests and mountains and by the sides of delightful streams. Arrived at
>> the country of the five waters, the puissant Dhananjaya planted a rich
>> encampment in the midst of a land that abounded with corn and kine and
>> other animals. Beholding those lordless widows escorted by Prithas son
>> alone O Bharata, the robbers felt a great temptation (for plunder). Then
>> those sinful wretches, with hearts overwhelmed by cupidity, those Abhiras
>> of ill omen, assembled together and held a consultation. They said, Here
>> there is only one bowman, Arjuna. The cavalcade consists of children and
>> the old. He escorts them, transgressing us. The warriors (of the
>> Vrishnis) are without energy. Then those robbers, numbering by thousands,
>> and armed with clubs, rushed towards the procession of the Vrishnis,
>> desirous of plunder. Urged by the perverse course of time they fell upon
>> that vast concourse, frightening it with loud leonine shouts and desirous
>> of slaughter. The son of Kunti, suddenly ceasing to advance along the
>> path, turned, with his followers, towards the place where the robbers had
>> attacked the procession. Smiling the while, that mighty-armed warrior
>> addressed the assailants, saying, You sinful wretches, forbear, if ye
>> love your lives. Ye will rue this when I pierce your bodies with my
>> shafts and take your lives. Though thus addressed by that hero, they
>> disregarded his words, and though repeatedly dissuaded, they fell upon
>> Arjuna. Then Arjuna endeavoured to string his large, indestructible,
>> celestial bow with some effort. He succeeded with great difficulty in
>> stringing it, when the battle had become furious. He then began to think
>> of his celestial weapons but they would not come to his mind. Beholding
>> that furious battle, the loss of the might of his arm, and the
>> non-appearance of his celestial weapons, Arjuna became greatly ashamed.
>> The Vrishni warriors including the foot-soldiers, the elephant-warriors,
>> and the car-men, failed to rescue those Vrishni women that were being
>> snatched away by the robbers. The concourse was very large. The robbers
>> assailed it at different points. Arjuna tried his best to protect it, but
>> could not succeed. In the very sightof all the warriors, many foremost of
>> ladies were dragged away, while others went away with the robbers of
>> their own accord. The puissant Arjuna, supported by the servants of the
>> Vrishnis, struck the robbers with shafts sped from Gandiva. Soon,
>> however. O king, his shafts were exhausted. In former days his shafts had
>> been inexhaustible. Now, however, they proved otherwise. Finding his
>> shafts exhausted, he became deeply afflicted with grief. The son of Indra
>> then began to strike the robbers with the horns of his bow. Those
>> Mlecchas, however, O Janamejaya, in the very sight of Partha, retreated,
>> taking away with them many foremost ladies of the Vrishnis and Andhakas.
>> The puissant Dhananjaya regarded it all as the work of destiny. Filled
>> with sorrow he breathed heavy sighs at the thought of the non-appearance
>> of his (celestial) weapons, the loss of the might of his arms, the
>> refusal of his bow to obey him, and the exhaustion of his shafts.
>> Regarding it all as the work of destiny, he became exceedingly cheerless.
>> He then ceased, O king, to make further efforts, saying, he had not the
>> power which he had before. The high-souled one, taking with him the
>> remnant of the Vrishni women, and the wealth that was still with them,
>> reached Kurukshetra. Thus bringing with him the remnant of the Vrishnis.
>> he established them at different places. He established the son of
>> Kritavarma at the city called Marttikavat, with the remnant of the women
>> of the Bhoja king. Escorting the remainder, with children and old men and
>> women, the son of Pandu established them, who were reft of heroes, in the
>> city of Indraprastha. The dear son of Yuyudhana, with a company of old
>> men and children and women, the righteous-souled Arjuna established on
>> the banks of the Sarasvati. The rule of Indraprastha was given to Vajra.
>> The widows of Akrura then desired to retire into the woods. Vajra asked
>> them repeatedly to desist, but they did not listen to him. Rukmini, the
>> princess of Gandhara, Saivya, Haimavati, and queen Jamvabati ascended the
>> funeral pyre. Satyabhama and other dear wives of Krishna entered the
>> woods, O king, resolved to set themselves to the practice of penances.
>> They began to live on fruits and roots and pass their time in the
>> contemplation of Hari. Going beyond the Himavat, they took up their abode
>> in a place called Kalpa. Those men who had followed Arjuna from
>> Dwaravati, were distributed into groups, and bestowed upon Vajra. Having
>> done all these acts suited to the occasion, Arjuna, with eyes bathed in
>> tears, then entered the retreat of Vyasa. There he beheld the Island-born
>> Rishi seated at his ease."
>>
>> On Tue, Aug 29, 2017 at 12:50 PM, V Subrahmanian via Advaita-l <
>> advaita-l at lists.advaita-vedanta.org> wrote:
>>
>>> On Tue, Aug 29, 2017 at 8:06 AM, S Jayanarayanan via Advaita-l <
>>> advaita-l at lists.advaita-vedanta.org> wrote:
>>>
>>> >  Here's the Mahabharata reference for Krishna letting go of the body
>>> and
>>> > "becoming" Narayana:
>>> >
>>> > http://www.sacred-texts.com/hin/m16/m16004.htm
>>> >
>>> > "The high-souled one, thinking of the destruction of the Vrishnis and
>>> the
>>> > Andhakas, as also of the previous slaughter of the Kurus, concluded
>>> that
>>> > the hour (for his own departure from the world) had come. He then
>>> > restrained his senses (in Yoga). Conversant with the truth of every
>>> topic,
>>> > Vasudeva, though he was the Supreme Deity, wished to die, for
>>> dispelling
>>> > all doubts and establishing a certainty of results (in the matter of
>>> human
>>> > existence), simply for upholding the three worlds and for making the
>>> words
>>> > of Atri’s son true. Having restrained all his senses, speech, and mind,
>>> > Krishna laid himself down in high Yoga.
>>> > A fierce hunter of the name of Jara then came there, desirous of deer.
>>> The
>>> > hunter, mistaking Keshava, who was stretched on the earth in high
>>> Yoga, for
>>> > a deer, pierced him at the heel with a shaft and quickly came to that
>>> spot
>>> > for capturing his prey. Coming up, Jara beheld a man dressed in yellow
>>> > robes, rapt in Yoga and endued with many arms. Regarding himself an
>>> > offender, and filled with fear, he touched the feet of Keshava. The
>>> > high-souled one comforted him and then ascended upwards, filling the
>>> entire
>>> > welkin with splendour. When he reached Heaven, Vasava and the twin
>>> Ashvinis
>>> > and Rudra and the Adityas and the Vasus and the Viswedevas,
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> Here the translation should have been:  ...Rudra-s and Aditya-s....[
>>> rudrAdityA
>>> vasavashchAtha vishve ] [Rudrāścha ādityāścha rudrādityāḥ]
>>>
>>> Is there any reference to this in the Mahabharata:
>>>
>>> http://www.mythfolklore.net/india/encyclopedia/krishna.htm
>>>
>>> //Arjuna <http://www.mythfolklore.net/india/encyclopedia/arjuna.htm>
>>> proceeded
>>> to Dwaraka <http://www.mythfolklore.net/india/encyclopedia/dwaraka.htm>
>>> and
>>> performed the obsequies of Krishna . A few days afterwards the city was
>>> swallowed up by the sea. Five of Krishna 's widows were subsequently
>>> burnt
>>> upon a funeral pile in the plain of Kuru
>>> <http://www.mythfolklore.net/india/encyclopedia/kuru.htm>-kshetra.//
>>>
>>>
>>> regards
>>> subrahmanian.v
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> > and Munis and Siddhas and many foremost ones among the Gandharvas, with
>>> > the Apsaras, advanced to receive him. Then, O king, the illustrious
>>> > Narayana of fierce energy, the Creator and Destroyer of all, that
>>> preceptor
>>> > of Yoga, filling Heaven with his splendour, reached his own
>>> inconceivable
>>> > region."
>>> >
>>> > https://sanskritdocuments.org/mirrors/mahabharata/txt/mbh16.itx
>>> >
>>> > sa chintayAno.andhakavRRiShNinAshaM; kurukShayaM chaiva mahAnubhAvaH |
>>> > mene tataH sa~NkramaNasya kAlaM; tatashchakArendriyasaMnirodham || 18||
>>> >
>>> > sa saMniruddhendriyavA~NmanAstu; shishye mahAyogamupetya kRRiShNaH |
>>> > jarAtha taM deshamupAjagAma; lubdhastadAnIM mRRigalipsurugraH || 19||
>>> >
>>> > sa keshavaM yogayuktaM shayAnaM; mRRigAsha~NkI lubdhakaH sAyakena |
>>> > jarAvidhyatpAdatale tvarAvAM;staM chAbhitastajjighRRikShurjagAma ||
>>> 20||
>>> >
>>> > athApashyatpuruShaM yogayuktaM; pItAmbaraM lubdhako.anekabAhum || 20||
>>> >
>>> > matvAtmAnamaparAddhaM sa tasya; jagrAha pAdau shirasA chArtarUpaH |
>>> > AshvAsayattaM mahAtmA tadAnIM; gachChannUrdhvaM rodasI vyApya lakShmyA
>>> ||
>>> > 21||
>>> >
>>> > divaM prAptaM vAsavo.athAshvinau cha; rudrAdityA vasavashchAtha vishve
>>> |
>>> > pratyudyayurmunayashchApi siddhA; gandharvamukhyAshcha sahApsarobhiH ||
>>> > 22||
>>> >
>>> > tato rAjanbhagavAnugratejA; nArAyaNaH prabhavashchAvyayashcha |
>>> > yogAchAryo rodasI vyApya lakShmyA; sthAnaM prApa svaM mahAtmAprameyam
>>> ||
>>> > 23||
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>>
>>
>>
>> --
>> Regards
>>
>> -Venkatesh
>>
>
>


-- 
Regards

-Venkatesh