Ideal example for me to understand the ultimate truth & aim of life
While reading the highest spiritual scripture Shrimad Bhagavatam, today I found myself exactly in the same situation as Bharata Maharaja. Bharata Maharaja was a very elevated soul, who ruled the world for many thousands of years, and later took a renounced lifestyle by living wife, children, and the kingdom. And living in the forest in a very simple manner.
Bharata Maharaja while living a renounced life, raised his spiritual consciousness to the highest level. Once he found a deer baby without a mother lying on the river side and scrambling for help. He felt compassion for the deer and took it to his ashram (hut).
Slowly the deer started to grow in his observation. Looking at the innocent face & cheerful activities of the deer baby, somehow he developed a strong attachment towards the deer. And this was the reason for his fall down from the spiritual path. He started to neglect his sadhana (penances & austerities) and always was thinking of the deer in his heart.
DEER represents — PARENTS, WIFE, CHILDREN, FRIEND, FAME, WEALTH & HEALTH
One day, Bharata Maharaja found that the deer was not in the house & not even nearby place. As he was living in the forest, many animals like lions were present around him. He was afraid, and distressed and started lamenting, thinking what might have happened to the loving deer. And he started to search the deer in the moonlight.
Although he was an elevated soul and knew the reality of life, still he fell down from the path. In scriptures explained him as a ‘madman’ who started to lament for the loss of deer.
A person who has left his wife, children & empire, is now attached to deer. Although his attachment was not for his own purpose, he was feeling sorry about himself that he couldn’t protect the deer from the animals.
“The deer’s son was so submissive and dear to me that due to its separation, I am feeling separation from my own son. Due to the burning fever of this separation, I am suffering as if inflamed by a forest fire. My heart, which is like the lily of the land, is now burning.”
Attachment, love, and affection towards our wife, husband, children, parents & friends might be very noble & obvious things. Right?
We feel very sorry when we’re unable to give proper food, shelter, clothes & education to our children. We think we failed to protect our loved ones, unable to keep our promises. And we start to lament. We keep thinking always about our family and try to give the best of facility to them.
This is what Bharata Maharaja is doing, he doesn’t want anything for himself, but to serve the deer. Now here, some of you might think what’s wrong with it? Serving your loved once properly is our duty, how could you run from it? Should we not love our dear ones?
However, to some extent, it's absolutely true. It’s our duty to serve our loved ones to the best of our ability. But while doing so, we fall into the trap of attachment as Bharat Maharaja had failed. And after attachment, when things don’t go well then, we start to lament, and we start to do foolish things in life. Either we do illegal things, or we go into depression. And we start to think of somehow to get that thing which is missing in our life (house, money, good health, fame, etc.), which we think will bring back happiness and peace in our life.
Getting into a miserable situation is entirely by our karma (act), but coming out of that situation is not entirely in our hands.
The Supreme Personality of Godhead’s permission is needed to come out of any situation. Hence for that, we need to fully surrender to him.
Now listen to the end of the story, which is very interesting! And last when Bharata Maharaja was in his last stage of life, lying down with few breaths left. He saw the deer next to him. And he was very happy to see the deer. But he took his next breath with the body of a deer.
God says in Bhagavad Gita [8.6]
“Whatever state of being one remembers when he quits his body, O son of Kuntī, that state he will attain without fail.”
So in our case, we keep serving our family and our desires. And we always worry about our loved ones or about our desires. These desires never end, no matter if you do some philanthropic activities. And while at the end of our life, our mind is attached to material things (wife, husband, children, wealth & health, etc.). This material attachment seed is being sowed by us & later given water every day, hence later this tree is grown big with more desires.
Our goal in life should be to attend the lotus feet of the supreme lord. In that direction we should keep moving, hence at the end of our life, we’ll remember the supreme. And as as lord said, we’ll attain his adobe without fail.
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