Copyright © r The Bhaktivedanta Book Trust International, Inc.His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupāda, Founder Ācārya of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness
| Canto 6: Prescribed Duties for Mankind | Chapter 1: The History of the Life of Ajāmila |
Bhaktivedanta VedaBase: Śrīmad Bhāgavatam 6.1.27
bāle nārāyanāhvaye
SYNONYMS
sah — that Ajāmila; evam — thus; vartamānah — living; ajñah — foolish; mrityu-kāle — when the time of death; upasthite — arrived; matim cakāra — concentrated his mind; tanaye — on his son; bāle — the child; nārāyana-āhvaye — whose name was Nārāyana.
TRANSLATION
When the time of death arrived for the foolish Ajāmila, he began thinking exclusively of his son Nārāyana.
PURPORT
In the Second Canto of the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam (2.1.6) Śukadeva Gosvāmī says:
svadharma-parinishthayā
"The highest perfection of human life, achieved either by complete knowledge of matter and spirit, by acquirement of mystic powers, or by perfect discharge of one's occupational duty, is to remember the Personality of Godhead at the end of life." Somehow or other, Ajāmila consciously or unconsciously chanted the name of Nārāyana at the time of death (ante nārāyana-smritih), and therefore he became all-perfect simply by concentrating his mind on the name of Nārāyana.
It may also be concluded that Ajāmila, who was the son of a brāhmana, was accustomed to worshiping Nārāyana in his youth because in every brāhmana's house there is worship of the nārāyana-śilā. This system is still present in India; in a rigid brāhmana's house, there is nārāyana-sevā, worship of Nārāyana. Therefore, although the contaminated Ajāmila was calling for his son, by concentrating his mind on the holy name of Nārāyana he remembered the Nārāyana he had very faithfully worshiped in his youth.
In this regard Śrīla Śrīdhara Svāmī expressed his verdict as follows: etac ca tad-upalālanādi-śrī-nārāyana-namoccārana-māhātmyena tad-bhaktir evābhūd iti siddhāntopayogitvenāpi drashtavyam. "According to the bhakti-siddhānta, it is to be analyzed that because Ajāmila constantly chanted his son's name, Nārāyana, he was elevated to the platform of bhakti, although he did not know it." Similarly, Śrīla Vīrarāghava Ācārya gives this opinion: evam vartamānah sa dvijah mrityu-kāle upasthite satyajño nārāyanākhye putra eva matim cakāra matim āsaktām akarod ity arthah. "Although at the time of death he was chanting the name of his son, he nevertheless concentrated his mind upon the holy name of Nārāyana." Śrīla Vijayadhvaja Tīrtha gives a similar opinion:
mrityu-kāle deha-viyoga-lakshana-kāle mrityoh sarva-dosha-pāpa-harasya harer anugrahāt kāle datta-jñāna-lakshane upasthite hridi prakāśite tanaye pūrna-jñāne bāle pañca-varsha-kalpe prādeśa-mātre nārāyanāhvaye mūrti-viśeshe matim smarana-samartham cittam cakāra bhaktyāsmarad ity arthah.
Directly or indirectly, Ajāmila factually remembered Nārāyana at the time of death (ante nārāyana-smritih).
Copyright © r The Bhaktivedanta Book Trust International, Inc.
His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupāda, Founder Ācārya of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness