Srimad Bhagavatam Canto 1 Chapter 4 Text 28-33 Dissatisfaction of Vyasadeva and Its Cause

Text 28-29 dhṛta-vratena hi mayā chandāṁsi guravo ’gnayaḥ mānitā nirvyalīkena gṛhītaṁ cānuśāsanam bhārata-vyapadeśena hy āmnāyārthaś ca pradarśitaḥ dṛśyate yatra dharmādi strī-śūdrādibhir apy uta I have, under strict disciplinary vows, unpretentiously worshiped the Vedas, the spiritual masters and the altar of sacrifice. I have also abided by the rulings and have shown the import of disciplic succession through the explanation of the Mahābhārata, by which even women, śūdras and others [friends of the twice-born] can see the path of religion.

HOW TO UNDERSTAND VEDAS? No one can understand the importance of the Vedas without having undergone a strict disciplinary vow and disciplic succession. The Vedas, spiritual masters and sacrificial fire must be worshiped by the desiring candidate. All these intricacies of Vedic knowledge are systematically presented in the Mahābhārata for the understanding of the woman class, the laborer class and the unqualified members of brāhmaṇa, kṣatriya or vaiśya families. In this age, the Mahābhārata is more essential than the original Vedas.

Text 30 tathāpi bata me daihyo hy ātmā caivātmanā vibhuḥ asampanna ivābhāti brahma-varcasya sattamaḥ I am feeling incomplete, though I myself am fully equipped with everything required by the Vedas.

One should aim for ultimate achievement Undoubtedly Śrīla Vyāsadeva was complete in all the details of Vedic achievements. Purification of the living being submerged in matter is made possible by the prescribed activities in the Vedas, but the ultimate achievement is different. Unless it is attained, the living being, even though fully equipped, cannot be situated in the transcendentally normal stage. Śrīla Vyāsadeva appeared to have lost the clue and therefore felt dissatisfaction.

Text 31 kiṁ vā bhāgavatā dharmā na prāyeṇa nirūpitāḥ priyāḥ paramahaṁsānāṁ ta eva hy acyuta-priyāḥ This may be because I did not specifically point out the devotional service of the Lord, which is dear both to perfect beings and to the infallible Lord.

One should aim for ultimate satisfaction The dissatisfaction which was being felt by Śrīla Vyāsadeva is expressed herein in his own words. This was felt for the normal condition of the living being in the devotional service of the Lord. Unless one is fixed in the normal condition of service, neither the Lord nor the living being can become fully satisfied. This defect was felt by him when Nārada Muni, his spiritual master, reached him. It is described as follows.

Text 32 tasyaivaṁ khilam ātmānaṁ  manyamānasya khidyataḥ kṛṣṇasya nārado ’bhyāgād  āśramaṁ prāg udāhṛtam As mentioned before, Nārada reached the cottage of Kṛṣṇa-dvaipāyana Vyāsa on the banks of the Sarasvatī just as Vyāsadeva was regretting his defects.

The vacuum felt by Vyāsadeva was not due to his lack of knowledge The vacuum felt by Vyāsadeva was not due to his lack of knowledge. Bhāgavata-dharma is purely devotional service of the Lord to which the monist has no access. The monist is not counted amongst the paramahaṁsas (the most perfect of the renounced order of life). Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam is full of narrations of the transcendental activities of the Personality of Godhead. Although Vyāsadeva was an empowered divinity, he still felt dissatisfaction because in none of his works were the transcendental activities of the Lord properly explained. The inspiration was infused by Śrī Kṛṣṇa directly in the heart of Vyāsadeva, and thus he felt the vacuum as explained above. It is definitely expressed herewith that without the transcendental loving service of the Lord, everything is void; but in the transcendental service of the Lord, everything is tangible without any separate attempt at fruitive work or empiric philosophical speculation.

pratyutthāyāgataṁ muniḥ Text 33 tam abhijñāya sahasā pratyutthāyāgataṁ muniḥ pūjayām āsa vidhivan nāradaṁ sura-pūjitam At the auspicious arrival of Śrī Nārada, Śrī Vyāsadeva got up respectfully and worshiped him, giving him veneration equal to that given to Brahmājī, the creator.

Setting the stage for Srimad Bhagavatam Vidhi means Brahmā, the first created living being. He is the original student as well as professor of the Vedas. He learned it from Śrī Kṛṣṇa and taught Nārada first. So Nārada is the second ācārya in the line of spiritual disciplic succession. He is the representative of Brahmā, and therefore he is respected exactly like Brahmā, the father of all vidhis (regulations) Similarly all other successive disciples in the chain are also equally respected as representatives of the original spiritual master.