Yamaraja Instructs His Dutas
In the subsequent birth, he was born in a Brahmin family. Right from his birth, he was a jnani. Most of the time, he was silent. He wouldn’t respond or react. So everyone thought he was a dumb fool and called him Jada Bharata. Jada means dumb fool. His brothers harassed and taunted him. He left home and wandered here and there.
Once, King Rahugana was being carried in a palanquin. In between, one of the carriers deserted and ran away. The other three went around looking for one more person to carry the palanquin. They found Jada Bharata and brought him along. So Jada Bharata started carrying the palanquin as the fourth carrier. He was not able to keep pace with the others. His steps and rhythm faltered. The king was having quite a rough ride. They started ridiculing Jada Bharata, calling him a weakling. The king shouted at him and threatened to punish him. Jada Bharata did not seem to be bothered.
Rahugana was really confused. Is he really a fool or something else? He started probing – why is he not affected by the insults and even fear of punishment? Jada Bharata said, what is there to be concerned about? You called only this body a weakling. I am not this body. It doesn’t belong to me. It came and it will go. What harm can you cause to me by punishing the body when that itself is not mine?
Then the king realized that this is no ordinary man. He wanted to learn Vedanta from Jada Bharata.
This was part of what Jada Bharata told Rahugana:
सितनीलादिभेदेन यथैकं दृश्यते नभः
भ्रान्तदृष्टिभिरात्मापि तथैकः सन् पृथक् पृथक्
एकः समस्तं यदिहास्ति किंचित् तदच्युतो नास्ति परं ततोऽन्यत्
सोऽहं स च त्वं स च सर्वमेतदात्मस्वरूपं त्यज भेदमोहम्
इतीरतस्तेन स राजवर्यस्तत्त्याज्य भेदं परमार्थदृष्टिः
The sky appears blue to some and white to some. But it is the same sky. It is all one and only one. That is Achyuta. There is nothing other than him. Discard differentiating into Him and Me, this and that.
Yama, the king of death, tells his dutas:
सकलमिदमहं च वासुदेवः परमपुमान् परमेश्वरः स एकः
इति मतिरचला भवत्यनन्ते हृदयगते व्रज तान् विहाय दूरात्
If someone realizes that all this – including myself – is nothing but Vasudeva, leave him alone. Don’t go near him. Don’t bring him to mrityuloka. He is due for moksha. He doesn’t deserve to be brought to Yamaloka. Yamaloka is for ordinary mortals who would die, enjoy in heaven for some time or suffer in hell for some time, and then take rebirth.
यदाह वसुधा सर्वं सत्यमेव दिवौकसः
अहं भवो भवन्तश्च सर्वं नारायणात्मकम्
विभूतयस्तु यास्तस्य तासामेवं परस्परम्
आधिक्यं न्यूनता बाध्यबाधकत्वेन वर्तते
— says Vishnu Purana.
Whatever Bhudevi has told is correct. You Devas, me, Maheswara (Lord Shiva) – everything is Narayana only. They are all manifestations of Narayana alone. Only the appearances – like big and small, more and less, affecting and affected – look different.
भवानहं च विश्वात्मन् एक एव हि कारणात्
जगतोऽस्य जगत्यर्थे भेदेनावां व्यवस्थितौ
Krishna is telling Balarama – You and me are the sole cause of this universe. Only we both are these manifestations. Nothing else.
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