Bhaga

“ One of the names for divinity in general is Bagha, literally meaning 'dispenser.' We have seen that its history goes far back to the Indo-European period. In the Rig Veda, Bhaga is one of the Adityas, and one hymn is dedicated to him. Unlike the term Yazata, which retains its place as a divine appellation throughout the history of Zoroastrianism, Bagha soon loses its significance in the Avestan texts. The inscriptions of the Achaemenian kings do not speak of the heavenly beings as Yazatas, but they speak of them under the designation Bagha, as noted below. ”

“ The Âdityas who guided the early elementals had to be crushed, so that separateness might grow. Pushan and Bhaga were therefore overpowered by the attendants of Śiva at the sacrifice of Daksha.
The Âdityas who guide humanity in their return to spirituality are themselves high spiritual energies, the highest Devas of our Trilokî.
Our evolution is thus two-fold — individual and non-individual. When we work as individuals, we are under the influence of Daityas. When we want to cast off separateness, we are under the influence of the Âdityas. ”

“ Let the begging-bowl be placed outside the shrine, in the hollow made by those two twisted roots, and daily should the Bhagat be fed; for the village felt honoured that such a man--he looked timidly into the Bhagat’s face--should tarry among them.
That day saw the end of Purun Bhagat’s wanderings. He had come to the place appointed for him--the silence and the space. After this, time stopped, and he, sitting at the mouth of the shrine, could not tell whether he were alive or dead; a man with control of his limbs, or a part of the hills, and the clouds, and the shifting rain and sunlight. ”

“ In every small village in the rural parts, is a small Bhagavati temple, to the deity of which the Paraiyas are devotedly attached, and look to it for protection in times of cholera, small-pox, or other calamities. Kodungallūr Bhagavati is their guardian deity, and they take part in the festivals (yēla) at the shrine. A few days before the festival, a piece of cloth is given to the Velichapād (oracle) , who dresses himself in it, wears a piece of red cloth round his neck, a peculiar dress around his loins, and ties a few small bells (chelamba) round his legs. ”

“ Bhagavati was the deity invoked, and the business involved offering flowers, and waving a lighted wick round the kalasam. The Velichchapād’s movements became quicker, and, suddenly seizing his sword, he ran round the courtyard (against the sun, as sailors say) , shouting wildly. He is under the influence of the deity who has been introduced into him, and gives oracular utterances to the deity’s commands. ”

“ The mode of this worship is contained in the Agama, [244] and the whole sect conform themselves to it. With them, the power of Mahadeva’s wife, who is Bhávání, surpasses that of the husband. The zealous of this sect worship the Síva-linga, although other Hindus also venerate it. Linga [245] is called the virile organ, and they say on behalf of this worship that, as men and all living beings derive their existence from it, adoration is duly bestowed on it. As the linga of Mahadeva, so do they venerate the bhaga, [246] that is, the female organ. ”

“ The Kahârs, hearing the cock crow simultaneously with Bhagavân's urging them to hasten, concluded that all was lost, as the garden had not been, they thought, sufficiently watered before the crowing of the cock, the signal for morning, so, afraid of their lives for their presumption in venturing to seek Bhagavân’s daughter as the bride of their chief, they all fled and lay exhausted on the banks of the Ganges at Mokáma, where the railway station now is. ”

“ Then Purun Bhagat smiled, for he remembered that his mother was of Rajput Brahmin birth, from Kulu way--a Hill-woman, always homesick for the snows--and that the least touch of Hill blood draws a man in the end back to where he belongs. ”

“ The deity is called Bhagavân or more frequently Hari. His majesty and omnipotence are personified as Nârâyaṇa, his beauty and ecstasy as Kṛishṇa. The material world is defined as bhedâbhedaprakâśa, a manifestation of the deity as separate and yet not separate from him, and the soul is vibhinnâṁśa or a detached portion of him. Some souls are in bondage to Prakṛiti or Mâyâ, others through faith and love attain deliverance. Reason is useless in religious matters, but ruci or spiritual feeling has a quick intuition of the divine. ”

“ They worship the Lord by means of Tapas, by control of the senses and of the mind.
"Bhagavat is then known by the following names: — Hansa, Suparna, Vaikuntha, Dharma, Yogesvara, Amala, Ísvara, Purusha, Avyakta, and Paramâtmân.
"In Tretâ, Bhagavat becomes Red. He has four hands and golden hair. His form is that of Yajna. Men are pious at the time. They worship Bhagavat by Vedic Yajna. ”

“ In the daily creation of Brahmâ, Animals, Men, Pitris and Devas are born according to their own Karma.
During the Manvantara, Bhagavân preserves this universe by His own Satva, directly as Manvantara Avatâras and indirectly as Manus and others. When Pralaya approaches, Bhagavân withdraws His Śaktis (or powers) . Trilokî is then burnt up by fires from the mouth of Sankarshana. Bhrigu and other dwellers of Mahar Loka proceed to Jana Loka. The waters of Pralaya sweep away everything before them. In that watery expanse, Hari remains seated upon the coils of Ananta, with His eyes closed. ”

“ He was seated on His bed, which was spread on the floor, and was surrounded by His Sannyasin and householder disciples. Conversation arose concerning Sannyas (Renunciation) and a householder's life, and Girish asked: Bhagavan, which is right — to renounce the world with a view to avoid worldly cares and suffering or to worship God living with one's family? Bhagavan referred to the teaching of the Bhagavad Gita and said: He who lives with his To live in the world or to renounce it. ”

“ Lord Vishnu said, "I Myself have manifested in the Form of Ṥrīmad Bhagavad-gītā. Please understand that the first five chapters are My five heads, the next ten chapters are My ten Arms, and the Sixteenth Chapter is My stomach. The last two chapters are My lotus feet. In this way you should understand the transcendental Deity of Ṥrīmad Bhagavad-gītā. This Bhagavad-gītā is the destroyer of all sins. And that intelligent man who daily recites one chapter or even one shloka, one half shloka, or at least one quarter shloka, will attain the same position as Susharma had attained." ”

“ While Bhagavant was dwelling in the region of Tushita, there lived in the city of Nyagrodhika a highly respectable Brahman named Nyagrodha, whose means were so great that he rivalled Vaiśravaṇa in wealth. He possessed sixteen slave villages, thirty agricultural villages, sixty vegetable-garden villages, nine hundred and ninety-nine pair of plough oxen, six hundred millions of gold pieces, and eighty golden earrings capable of vying with those of King Mahāpadma. He had married a wife of birth like unto his own, but their union remained childless. ”

“ Ought I to touch the feet of them twain!”
“No, great king, that is what men of inferior degree do, who touch the hand of their superiors. But you should stretch out your right hand, and say to the two Nāgarājas: ‘Forgive me!’ ”
So when the king met the two Nāgarājas in the presence of Bhagavant, he followed his instructions, and received the pardon he asked for. ”

“ Vritra then took the trident in hand and attacked Indra — Indra then had recourse to Vajra and he easily cut off both the trident and one hand of Vritra. Vritra took a club in the other hand and struck both Indra and the elephant. The Vajra slipped out of the hands of Indra and he felt ashamed to pick it up in the presence of his enemy. "Pick it up, O King of Devas, and kill your enemy. This is no time for shame or sorrow. It is not you or I that are the real actors. Bhagavân is guiding us all. He guides the whole Universe. ”

“ Care you not whether they curse me and I die? Go back immediately, and await my return."
"No, no," said the woman. "I cannot go back to starve and see your old father and mother die. There is not a grain of rice left in the house." [105]
"O Bhagawant!" exclaimed the Brahman. "Here, take this," he continued, scribbling a few lines on some paper, and then handing it to her, "and give it to the king. You will see that he will give you a lac of rupees for it." Thus saying he dismissed her, and the woman left. ”

“ From Veṇuvana Bhagavant betook himself at that time to Bahuputrachaitya. There Kāśyapa saw Bhagavant under a tree, and was received by him. Kāśyapa gave him the costly cotton robe, and received the Buddha’s robe in return. ”

“ Venerable sir, when Bhagavant dwelling as the Bodisat in the Tushita region had arranged the five considerations respecting caste, race, country, time and wife, and had let the six Kāmāvachara gods three times perform the rites of purification, and in the form of an elephant had consciously entered the mother’s womb, at that time the great earth quaked violently, and those regions of the world which enjoy the light neither of the sun nor of the moon, and therefore are filled with utter darkness, were illumined with the greatest brilliance ”

“ The villagers saw the outline of the barasingh stalking like a shadow through the dark forest behind the shrine; saw the minaul, the Himalayan pheasant, blazing in her best colors before Kali's statue; and the langurs on their haunches, inside, playing with the walnut shells. Some of the children, too, had heard Sona singing to himself, bear-fashion, behind the fallen rocks, and the Bhagat's reputation as miracle-worker stood firm.
Yet nothing was further from his mind than miracles. He believed that all things were one big Miracle, and when a man knows that much he knows something to go upon. ”

“ And the villagers, one by one, crept through the wood to pray before their Bhagat. They saw the barasingh standing over him, who fled when they came near, and they heard the langurs wailing in the branches, and Sona moaning up the hill; but their Bhagat was dead, sitting cross-legged, his back against a tree, his crutch under his armpit, and his face turned to the northeast.
The priest said: "Behold a miracle after a miracle, for in this very attitude must all Sunnyasis be buried! Therefore where he now is we will build the temple to our holy man." ”

“ At the time of the festival of the meeting of the Nāgarājas Girika and Sundara, many Nirgranthas came to Rājagṛiha. When Kāśyapa perceived Kapila’s daughter Bhadrā, as he remarked that her appearance was altered, he asked her whether she had preserved her chastity. [204] After she had informed him of what had taken place, he invited her to turn her mind towards the teaching of Bhagavant. As she hesitated, he assured her that this teaching contained in it nothing sinful, for its followers experience no desire for the love of gods, not to speak of that of men. ”

“ He looks upon the universe as the Mâyâ of Vishnu.
"By constant meditation on Hari, he is not affected by the changes of life. Desires have no place in his mind, so devoted is he to Vâsudeva.
He is the favourite of Hari, who does not take pride in his birth, Karma, caste or Âsrama.
"The highest Bhâgavata does not know "Mine" and "Thine," either in wealth or in body. He looks upon all beings with equal eyes, His mind is always at peace.
"Even for the sake of all the three Lokas, the Vaishnava will not for a moment forget the lotus feet of Bhagavat. ”

“ Uddhava informed the Gopis that he was the secret messenger of Krishna. He then delivered the following message from Bhagavân: — "You have no separation from me, for I am all-pervading. As the five elements earth, water, air, fire and ether enter into the composition of all beings, so I underlie Manas, Prana, the Bhûtas and the Indriyas, as also the Gunas themselves. I create, preserve and destroy self in self by self. By my Mâyâ, I become the Bhûtas, the Indriyas and the Gunas. But Âtmâ is pure, it is all consciousness (Jnâna) , separate, unconnected with the Gunas. ”

“ Thereupon they formed the intention of betaking themselves to the ocean. So they went to Bhagavant, paid him honour, and spoke to him thus: “O worthy of reverence, inasmuch as Bhagavant has led us to the search after refuge and the principles of the doctrine, we have become [237] so elevated that we would fain, if Bhagavant allows us, betake ourselves to the ocean.” Bhagavant replied, “O Nāgarājas, as ye dwell in the land of Bimbisāra, king of Magadha, ye must ask him.” They considered that there must be some reason why Bhagavant did not allow them to betake themselves to the ocean. ”

“ However transitory the things of Trilokî may be, there are attractions enough for the frail sons of Manu, abounding in passions and desires. What can then bind a man to the higher planes and the highest Purûsha of those planes or Bhagavân? It is only a description of the grandeur and the glory of those planes and of Bhagavân. Such description begets Bhakti or holy attachment, and it is this Bhakti which sets up a real communion with Bhagavân. Frail as man is, the mere performance of duties makes him attached to them, unless he is bound to the higher planes by the tie of holy attachment. ”

“ For the next few days there is nothing particular to be done beyond the procession morning, noon, and night; the image of Bhagavati being carried on an elephant to an orchestra of drums, and cannonade of the little mortars. All those who are present are supposed to be fed from the temple. There is a large crowd. On the morning of the fifth day, a man of the washerman (Vannān) caste will announce to the neighbours by beat of tom-tom that there will be a procession of Bhagavati issuing from the gates of the temple, and passing round about. ”