What you need to know to be self-realized.

Who Needs to Read the Bhāgavata?

Suta Goswāmī paused.

“And so it was that the great sage Vyāsadeva, after compiling the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam and revising it, taught it to his own son, Śrī Śukadeva Gosvāmī, who was highly evolved in in self-realization.”

Suta paused.Śaunaka asked him: “Śukadeva, the son of Vyāsa, was already self-realized. He had already attained spiritual perfection. Then, why did he study the Bhāgavat with his father, if he was already self-realized and had no need of books?”

Some of the yogis seated there opened their eyes. “What, indeed, is the need of any book, if one has already achieved samādhi” they thought.

Suta smiled. A butterfly fluttered through the air. A light breeze moved the broad leaves of the banyan. A pair of colored Śuka birds played in the branches.

He looked out at the assembled yogis. He knew that many of them had realized the Paramātma. While a great many of the gathered saints were eager to hear the message of the Bhagavat, there were some skeptics in the crowd. They felt there was no need of any book. Śuka was like them. He had already realized the infinite within. “Why would Śuka study the Bhagavat,” they thought.

Suta cleared his throat, gazed at the assembled saints and replied: “All kinds of self-realized souls are inspired to go deeper when hearing the Bhagavat, from Yogis with no need of books to saints with no need of rules. We call these great souls, men like yourselves, ātmārāmas. 

"An ātmārāma is one who finds pleasure in the ātmā. A certain pleasure is derived from the general sense of ātmā-tattva, from knowledge of the self. The general sense of ātma is the individual soul. But in the higher sense, of course, the soul depends on the Paramātma, the Supreme Soul. Knowledge is fine. But those who are especially those established on the path of self-realization, seek something higher than knowledge. This is divine love. A touch of divine love may be there in the realization of Paramātma. 

One who achieves samādhi through Paramātma realization is a highly developed soul indeed. All of those who are seated here in this assembly are highly elevated souls. Śukadeva, the son of Vyāsa, was such a higly elevated soul. And yet, even such highly developed souls even though they may be freed from all kinds of material bondage, desire to render unalloyed devotional service unto the Personality of Godhead. This means that the Lord possesses transcendental qualities and therefore can attract everyone, including liberated souls. Since those transcendental qualities are celebrated in the Bhāgavata, this book is worthy of study even by self-realized souls.”

“Śukadeva was highly elevated. He was self-realized. He had entered into a deep communication with Paramātma and cared nothing for this material world. He was completely indifferent to all material pleasures. But even such a great soul was attracted by hearing what Vyāsa had written.

Suta said, “There is nothing mundane in the Bhagavata. It is especially interesting to the Munis, that is, those who are thoughtful, those who are grave and silent ascetics, the persistent, mendicants, sages, and saints.

Śukadeva was not only liberated from nescience, he had no connection with any scriptural injunctions. He was freed from the obligation of the rules and regulations mentioned in the revealed scriptures like ethics, Vedas, philosophy, psychology and metaphysics. And yet, he was charmed by every line of that great treatise, so much so that he memorized it, internalized it, and could recite or explain any of it. This is why he was later chosen to speak the Bhagavata, being in his own way even more qualified than its author. Śukadeva explains to us what is the nature of devotional service, bhakti, and how to achieve it, with numerous examples.

Such realization is pleasing even to the self-realized, or atma-rama. The so-called spiritual pleasure from atma-jñāna is like the water-puddle of a cow's hoof-print by comparison to the ocean of transcendental bliss derived from the Lord’s service.”

Suta continued, “The son of Vyāsa was not only a great mystic, but he was dear to the devotees. By their influence he took to the study of this great treatise known as the Bhāgavata.

“Śukadeva was transcendentally situated even within the womb of his mother. Vyāsa knew that he had a tendency towards self-abnegation and that as a young man, Śuka would leave for the forest to absorb himself in meditation. And so it was that the compiler of the vedas taught him the Bhāgavatam. He knew that Śukadeva would be a better representative of the teachings of that great book.”

Suta explained, “A real teacher is pleased when surpassed by his student. A bona fide guru is not envious of his disciple. Vyāsa concentrated on teaching the young Śukadeva the poetry of the Bhagavat, and in this way saw to his education.

“Vyāsa was blessed by the mercy of Śrī Nārada. By the mercy of Nārada, Vyāsa saw everything. By his mercy, Vyāsa was able to compose the Bhāgavata. And through the mercy of Vyāsadeva, his son Śukadeva could enter into its meaning. And while he may have began with a certain inclination towards Brahman realization, the transcendental qualities of the Lord are so attractive that Śrīla Śukadeva Gosvāmī became uninclined towards impersonalism and dedicated to glorifying the personal activity of the Lord.

“In this way, even as a child he became dear to the devotees of the Lord and they became dear became very dear to him.

“Vyāsa was a great prophet, seer of the truth, writer and poet. His son, Śuka, was the perfect vehicle for the Bhagavata, because, although he was already perfectly realized, he was enchanted by teh Bhagavata and became the living embodiment of its poetry and teachings.”

Suta explained, “Both Vyāsa and Śukadeva had been absorbed in transcendental knowledge, and both of them were blessed by the mercy of devotees. In this way, through the mercy of the devotees and by the revelation of the Bhagavata, they themselves became lost in the search for Śrī Kṛṣṇa and attracted to the transcendental pastimes of of the Lord.

Śaunaka asked Suta, “Can you explain the purpose of the Bhāgavatam? Why should we listen to its recital? What does it reveal? How does it benefit one?

Suta replied, “Srimad-Bhagavatam is the spotless Purana. It is most dear to the Vaisnavas because it describes the pure and supreme knowledge of the paramahamsas. This Bhagavatam reveals the means for becoming free from all material work, together with the processes of transcendental knowledge, renunciation and devotion. Anyone who seriously tries to understand Srimad-Bhagavatam, who properly hears and chants it with devotion, realizes something which makes liberation pale in comparison.”

Suta said, “Srimad-Bhagavatam is the spotless Purana. It is most dear to the Vaisnavas because it describes the pure and supreme knowledge of the paramahamsas. This Bhagavatam reveals the means for becoming free from all material work, together with the processes of transcendental knowledge, renunciation and devotion. Anyone who seriously tries to understand Srimad-Bhagavatam, who properly hears and chants it with devotion, becomes completely liberated. “

The assembled yogis closed their eyes for a moment, taking in these words. Śaunaka nodded his head.

Śaunaka said, “Tell us, O Suta, of Śukadeva. Who was he? How was he empowered to speak the Bhāgavata? Under what conditions did he recite that great work? And who were those who were blessed to listen?”