TEXT 31
tasminn api kalam pratiksamanah sangac ca bhrsam udvigna atma-sahacarah suska-parna-trna-virudha vartamano mrgatva-nimittavasanam eva ganayan mrga-sariram tirthodaka-klinnam ut-sasarja.
SYNONYMS
tasmin api—in that asrama (Pulaha-asrama); kalam—the end of the duration of life in the deer body; pratiksamanah—always waiting for; sangat—from association; ca—and; bhrsam—constantly; udvignah—full of anxiety; atma-sahacarah—having the Supersoul as the only constant companion (no one should think of being alone); suska-parna-trna-virudha—by eating only the dry leaves and herbs; vartamanah—existing; mrgatva-nimitta—of the cause of a deer’s body; avasanam—the end; eva—only; ganayan—considering; mrga-sariram—the body of a deer; tirtha-udaka-klinnam—bathing in the water of that holy place; utsasarja—gave up.
TRANSLATION
Remaining in that asrama, the great King Bharata Maharaja was now very careful not to fall victim to bad association. Without disclosing his past to anyone, he remained in that asrama and ate dry leaves only. He was not exactly alone, for he had the association of the Supersoul. In this way he waited for death in the body of a deer. Bathing in that holy place, he finally gave up that body.
PURPORT
Holy places like Vrndavana, Hardwar, Prayaga and Jagannatha Puri are especially meant for the execution of devotional service. Vrndavana specifically is the most exalted and preferred holy place for Vaisnava devotees of Lord Krsna who are aspiring to return back to Godhead, the Vaikuntha planets. There are many devotees in Vrndavana who regularly bathe in the Yamuna, and this cleanses all the contamination of the material world. By constantly chanting and hearing the holy names and pastimes of the Supreme Lord, one certainly becomes purified and becomes a fit candidate for liberation. However, if one purposefully falls victim to sense gratification, he has to be punished, at least for one lifetime, like Bharata Maharaja.
Thus end the Bhaktivedanta purports of the Fifth Canto, Eighth Chapter, of the Srimad-Bhagavatam, entitled “A Description of the Character of Bharata Maharaja.”
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