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The Ninth Book. Chapter 41

The Ninth Book

Chapter Xli

On The Churning Of The Ocean And On The Appearing Of Laksm

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1-2.
Nryana said :-- O Twice-born! Indra then remembered Hari and took Brihaspati, the Guru of the Devas, to the assembly of Brahm, accompanied by the other Devas. They soon reached the region of Brahm and no sooner they saw Him, than Indra and the other Devas and Bihaspati all bowed down to Him.

3-25.
Brihaspati, the chrya of the Devas, then communicated all to Brahm. Hearing this, He smiled and spoke, addressing Indra :-- O Indra! You have been born in My race; nay, you are My grandson; the rya Brihaspati is your Guru; you yourself are the ruler of the Devas and you are very wise and sagacious; the mother of your father is the powerful Daksa, a great Visnu Bhakta. How is it, then that when the three sides of the family are pure, one would turn out so haughty and arrogant! Whose mother is so much devoted to her husband, whose father, mothers father and mothers brother are self-controlled and of pure Sattva Guna, he is not expected to be so very haughty! Every man may be guilty to Hari for the three faults :-- For some fault due to that of his father, or of his mothers father, or of Guru, the Spiritual Teacher. Bhagavn Nryana, resides in this great holy temple of our this physical body controlling the hearts of all. At whatever moment, Sr Nryana quits this temple-body, at that moment this body becomes dead. I myself am the mind; Sankara is the Knowledge, Visnu is the vital

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breaths, Bhagavat Durg is the intelligence (Buddhi), sleep, etc., the powers of Prakriti; when these are being reflected on by the tman, Jva is formed with a body for enjoyment called Bhoga Sarrabhrit. When a king departs, his attendants also follow him; so when this tman departs from this temple of body, his attendants mind, buddhi, etc., instantly depart from this body and follow the tman. O Indra! We all, are verily, the parts of Sr Krisna. I myself, Siva, Ananta Deva, Visnu, Dharma, Mah Virt, you all are His parts and entirely devoted to Him. And you have shown contempt for His flower. Bhagavn Sankara, the Lord of the Bhtas, worshipped the lotus-feet of Sr Krisna with that flower. The Risi Durvs gave you that flower. But you showed disrespect to it. The flower, Prijta, after being offered at the lotus-feet of Krisna, should be placed on the head of an Immortal; His worship is to be done first; and it is the foremost amongst the Devas. So you are now being afflicted by the inevitable course of Fate; Fate is the most powerful of all. Who can save that unlucky man against whom Fate has turned? Seeing that you have rejected the flower offered to Sr Krisna, Sr Laksm Dev has left you out of anger. Now come with Me and with your family priest Brihaspati to Vaikuntha and worship the Lord of Laksm; then by His grace you may get back your Heavens. Thus saying, Brahm with Indra and all the other Devas, went to the Eternal Purusa, Bhagavn Nryana and saw that He was full of Fire and Energy like one hundred koti summer midday Suns, yet perfectly cool and calm. He has no beginning, and no end, nor any middle. He is Infinite. The four-armed Prisadas, Sarasvat, the four Vedas, and the Ganges, all were surrounding Him. Seeing Him, Brahm and the other Devas bowed down with devotion and began to chant hymns to Him with tears in their eyes. Brahm, then, informed Him of everything when all the Devas, dispossessed of their places, began to weep before Him. Nryana saw that the Devas were very afraid and much distressed. They had no jewel ornaments as before, no vehicles (Vhanas), nor the Daivic splendour as before, not that brillance; always fearful. Then Nryana, the Destroyer of fear, seeing the Devas in that state, addressed Brahm and the other Devas :-- O Brhman! O Devas! Discard all fears. What fear can overcome you? I am here. I will give you again the immoveable prosperous Rjya Laksm (the Laksm of the kings).

26-47.
But for the present, I give you some advice proper for this moment. Listen. There are endless universes where exist innumerable persons. All of them are under Me. So know verily, that

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I
am under them also. My devotees regard Me as the Highest. They know no other than Me; they are fearless; so I do not remain in that house where My devotees are dissatisfied. I instantly quit that house with Laksm. Durvs Risi is born in part of Sankara. He is highly devoted to Me. He is a pakk Vaisnava. He cursed you and, as a matter of fact, I and Laksm instantly left your house.

Laksm does not reside in that house where conch shells are not blown, where there are no Tulas trees, where there is no worship of Siva and Siv, where the Brhmanas are not fed. O Brhman! O Devas! Where I and My Bhaktas are blamed, Mah Laksm becomes greatly displeased. She instantly goes away out of that house. Laksm does not stay even for a moment in that house where the stupid person, without any devotion for me, takes his food on the Harivsara Ekdas day (the eleventh day of the moons wane or increase) or on My anniversary birthday. If anybody sells My name or his own daughter, where the guests are not served, Laksm quits that house instantly and goes away.

(Note :-- That Guru is the Real Guru, who, being capable, imparts the name of God to worthy persons without taking any fee at all.)

If the son of an unchaste woman be a Brhmana, he and the husband of an unchaste woman are great sinners. If anybody goes to such a persons house or eats the food of a Sdra during a Srddha ceremony, Laksm becomes very angry and vacates that house. Being a Brhmin, if one burns a Sdras corpse, one becomes very wretched and the vilest of the Brhmins. Laksm never stays for a moment more in that house. Being a Brhmin, if he be a Sdras cook and drives oxen, Laksm fears to drink water there and quits his house. Being a Brhmin, if his heart be unholy, if he be cruel, envies others and blames persons, if he officiates as a priest for the Sdra, Laksm Dev never stays in his house. The World-Mother never stays even for a moment in his house who eats at the house of one who marries an unmarried girl twelve years old in whom menstruation has commenced. He who cuts grass by his nails, or writes on the ground with his nails, or from whose house a Brhmana guest goes back disappointed, Laksm never stays in his house. If any Brhmana eats food at the early sunrise, sleeps during the day or engages in a sexual intercourse during the day, Laksm never stays in his house. Laksm slips away from that Brhmana who is devoid of chra (rules of conduct), who accepts gifts from Sdras, from him who remains uninitiated in his Mantram. The ignorant man who sleeps naked and with his feet wet, who laughs always, and always

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talks at random on disconnected subjects like a mad man, is forsaken at once by Laksm. Laksm becomes angry and goes away from the house of that man who applies oil all over his body first and then touches the bodies of others and always makes some sounding noise on several parts of his body. If any Brhmana forsakes observing vows, fastings, the Sandhy ceremony, purity and devotion to Visnu, Kamal (Laksm) does not remain in his house any longer. If anybody blames always the Brhmanas and shews his hatred always towards the Brhmanas, if he does injury to the animals, and if he does not indulge in his heart anything of pity, kindness, Laksm, the Mother of the Worlds, quits him. O Lotus-born! But where Hari is worshipped and Haris Name is chanted, Laksm, the Mother of all auspiciousness, remains there. Laksm remains where the glories of Sr Krisna and His Bhaktas are sung.

48-59.
Laksm always remains there with the greatest gladness where conch-shells are blown, where there are conchsells, the Slagrma stone, the Tulas leaves and the service and meditation of Laksm are daily done.

Where the phallic emblem of Siva is worshipped, and His glories sung, where Sr Durg is worshipped and Her glories are sung, Laksm, the Dweller in the Lotus, remains there. Where the Brhmanas are honoured and they are gladly feasted, where all the Devas are worshiped; the chaste Laksm, the Lotus-faced, remains there. Thus saying to the Devas, the Lord of Laksm said :-- O Dev! Go without any any delay to the Ksiroda Ocean and incarnate there in part. He then addressed Brahm and said :-- "O Lotus-born! You also better go there and churn the Ksiroda Ocean; when Laksm will arise, give her to the Devas." O Devarsi! Thus saying, the Lord Kamal went to His inner compartment. On the other hand the Devas, after a long time, reached the shores of the Ksiroda Ocean. The Devas and the Daityas then made the Golden Mountain (the Sumeru) the churning rod, the Deva Kurma (the tortoise), the churning pot and Ananta Deva (the thousand headed serpent) the churning cord and began to churn the ocean. While churning was going on, by and by arose Dhanvantar, Amrita (the nectar), the horse Uchchaihsrav, various other invaluable jewels that were desired, the elephant Airvata and the beautiful eyed Laksm. Visnupriy, Sr Laksm Dev, no sooner She got up from the ocean, she, the chaste woman, presented on the neck of Nryana, of beautiful appearance, the Lord of all, Who slept on the Ksiroda ocean the garland (indicative of accepting Him for her bridegroom). Then Brahm and Mahesvara and the other Devas gladly worshipped Her and chanted hymns. At this time Laksm Dev being pleased, cast a favourable glance towards the homes of the Devas,

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in order to free them from their curse. Then, by the grace of Mah Laksm and by the granting of the boon by Brahm, the Devas got back their own possessions from the hands of the Daityas. O Nrada! Thus I have described to you the story of Laksm Dev, the Essence of all Essences, and very pleasant to hear. Now what more do you want to hear? Say.

Here ends the Forty-first Chapter of the Ninth Book on the churning of the ocean and on the appearing of Laksm in the Mah Purnam Sr Mad Dev Bhgavatam of 18,000 verses by Maharsi Veda Vysa.
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