Radha Krishna - Chapter 22: Bali Mahârâja Surrenders His Life

(1) S'rî S'uka said: 'Thus having run into trouble with the Supreme Lord oh King, Bali the Asura king, was despite of his awkward position an unperturbed soul who replied positively with

the following words. (2) S'rî Bali said: 'If, oh Lord Praised in the Verses, Your Goodness thinks that what I have promised proved to be false oh Greatest of the Gods, then let me, in order to be just in this matter and not to have turned to cheating, offer You my head to put the third step of Your lotus feet. (3) I am not as afraid of residing in hell or of being bound in fetters, of facing hard to endure distress or of a lack of funds, as I am of the punishment of the dishonor I now have to endure by You [compare B.G. 2: 34 and 6.17: 28]. (4) I consider it the most exalted thing to be punished by the worshipable Lord, for that is something one's mother, father, brother or friends cannot offer [see 10.14: 8]. (5) You are of us Asuras the unseen supreme guru who gave us the vision many of us were deprived of in our blind arrogance. (6-7) Many of the ones who apart from the wisdom fixed their intelligence upon You in a constant enmity, achieved the state of perfection, a position which, as is known, equals that of the yogis. Despite of being punished by Your Lordship who are so full of wonders, I am therefore not ashamed - nor do I suffer that much - from thus being bound with Varuna's ropes. (8) My grandfather [Prahlâda] who is appreciated by Your devotees, is famed all around for being a saint, as someone having You, the Supreme One, [as his shelter] when he had to suffer all the nasty matters that were plotted by his father who was set against You [see 7.5]. (9) Of what use is this body that leaves you in the end? What is the service of all those profiteers who passing as relatives snatch away the inheritance? What is the need of a wife who only drags one more into the material world? And what is for a person certain of death the use of wasting his life with domestic attachments [see also 5.5: 8 and B.G. 18: 66]? (10) My grandfather the great devotee who so deep in his wisdom was afraid of worldly association, was free from fear in his surrender to the immovable refuge of Your lotus feet oh my Lord, oh Best of the Best Ones, even though You have put an end to his own kind. (11) I, who by providence was arrested and with force was bereft of all my wealth, [to my luck] have now also been brought under the shelter of You, the enemy of our family. The fact that wealth is a temporary thing and that life may end any moment is something a narrow-minded person does not think about [see 7.5: 30].'

(12) S'rî S'uka said: 'When Bali thus discussed his position, Prahlâda, the favorite of the Lord [see 7.9], manifested himself right there oh best of the Kurus, like being the moon that rises in the sky. (13) Indrasena [Bali], saw his grandfather, the best of the auspicious ones, present there in all his glory: with eyes as wide as lotus petals, beautifully built, dressed in saffron and with a body as dark as collyrium and with long arms. (14) Bound with the ropes of Varuna he could not as before offer the respect he owed him and thus he offered his obeisances timidly bending his face downwards with eyes full of tears. (15) The moment the great devotee saw the Supreme Master, the Lord sitting there being worshiped by followers like Sunanda, he approached Him with his head bent low and then moved to tears in his jubilation paid his respects by falling flat to the ground. (16) S'rî Prahlâda said: 'Your Lordship who granted Bali this so very great position of Indra, today has taken it all back and that is something I consider most beautiful. By denying him his opulence You have done him a great favor, because that was what stood in the way of his self-realization. (17) Who can properly recognize the purpose of his soul when even an educated, self-controlled person is bewildered by his opulence? I offer You Nârâyana, the Lord of the Universe, the omnipresent silent witness, my respectful obeisances.'

(18) S'rî S'uka said: 'Oh King, then the mighty Hiranyagarbha [Brahmâ] proceeded to speak to Madhusûdana [the Lord] in such a way that Prahlâda who stood there with folded hands could hear it. (19) But [that very moment] Bali's chaste wife who saw that her husband was arrested oh King, offered heavily distraught because of her fear with folded hands her obeisances to Upendra [Lord Vâmana] and addressed Him with her face turned downwards. (20) S'rî Vindhyâvali said: 'You have created this threefold universe for the sake of Your pastimes. You are its proprietor, but now foolish people and others oh Controller, ignorantly imposing themselves, question the doer. What do these shameless people have to offer You, the Supreme Creator, Master and Annihilator [compare B.G. 16: 13-15 and 18: 61]?'

(21) Lord Brahmâ said: 'Oh Goodness of all Living Beings, oh Controller of Each, oh God of Gods, oh All-pervading One, please release this man now who has lost everything. Someone like him does not deserve it to be punished. (22) He gave to You all the lands and all the worlds. With a firm resolve everything he has achieved in his piety has been offered to You with an intelligence free from hesitation; all that he possessed, even his body. (23) At Your feet he honestly offered water, grasses and flower buds. How can such a worshiper despite of his most exalted offerings, despite of his worship, after generously offering You the three worlds, deserve the pain given to him? He not being duplicitous deserves the highest destination [B.G. 9: 26]!'

(24) The Supreme Lord said: 'Oh Brahmâ, it is My mercy to take away the riches from him who is lead by it, for someone under the influence of material opulence takes pride in it and looks down on the entire world! (25) When the living entity, dependent because of its karma, from birth to birth moves through different species of life, it longs to attain the human life form [see also B.G. 13: 22]. (26) It is [also] to be regarded My grace when a person because of his [human] birth, activities, age, physique, education, achievement, wealth and other opulences then not has hardened in this pride. (27) Matters as a high birth and such that are the cause of arrogance and bewilderment, [for a normal person] together constitute impediments for [attaining] full beatitude, but no, My devotee is not disturbed by them [see also 4.8-12]. (28) Bali, this best and most famous devotee among the Dânavas and Daityas, already surpassed the insurmountable deluding material energy. Despite of losing his wealth he was not taken aback. (29-30) Having lost all his riches, having fallen from his superior position, being reviled and arrested by his enemies, being deserted by his family and relatives, having suffered all kinds of uncommon hardship, being rebuked and cursed by his guru, he, fixed in his vow, did not forsake his truthfulness, the dharma that I so deceitfully for the sake of the gift spoke about. True to his word this man never gave it up. (31) Through Me he has achieved a position that even for the immortal ones is most difficult to obtain; during the time of Sâvarni Manu [see 8.13: 10-11] he will become the Indra enjoying My full protection. (32) Till then he may go and live in Sutala [see 5.24: 18], the place created by [the heavenly architect] Vis'vakarmâ, where it because of My supervision has been made impossible for the inhabitants to suffer psychically or physically any weariness, exhaustion or defeat. (33) Oh Indrasena, oh Mahârâja, please go now oh ruler. May there in Sutala, the place so desirable for even the denizens of heaven, for you surrounded by your people, be all auspiciousness. (34) None of the controllers of the worlds will be able to overrule your command there, not to speak of the common man, for I with my cakra will personally take care of all the Daityas who defy your rule. (35) I will protect you, your associates and your property. In every respect I will always stand by your side oh great hero. You will be able to see Me there! (36) In that place the foolishness from being associated with the Asura mentality of the Daityas and Dânavas, will disappear immediately by observing My excellence.'