In this part:

Parīkṣit delays the start of Kali-yuga
Pariksit mets Kali
An introduction to Vedic cosmology
Pariksit mets Bumi and Dharma.
Punishment and Reward of Kali
Dharma in our age
Kali spared

Parīkṣit delays the start of Kali-yuga (chapter 16)

Chronologically, the age of Kali began just after the battle of Kuruksetra, but its effects were been checked due to the presence of Krsna. As soon as Krsna left, the effects of the age of Kali manifested, which was noticed by Maharaja Yudhisthira. However, when Pariksit ascended to the throne he decided to fight with Kali, checking his influence.

In his purport, Srila Prabhupada connects the root cause of Kali-yuga with low-class men in the modes of passion and ignorance coming to power. These ignorant leaders hurt both the cows and the Brahminical culture, which are the basis of any progressive society. When the basis is destroyed, people can easily fall under the degrading influence of Kali. Pariksit Maharaja was well aware of it, therefore he wanted to cut it from the root.

The first three verses of the 16th chapter describe the beginning of his reign:

“Sūta Gosvāmī said: O learned brāhmaṇas, Mahārāja Parīkṣit then began to rule over the world as a great devotee of the Lord under the instructions of the best of the twice-born brāhmaṇas. He ruled by those great qualities which were foretold by expert astrologers at the time of his birth.
King Parīkṣit married the daughter of King Uttara and begot four sons, headed by Mahārāja Janamejaya.
Mahārāja Parīkṣit, after having selected Kṛpācārya for guidance as his spiritual master, performed three horse sacrifices on the banks of the Ganges. These were executed with sufficient rewards for the attendants. And at these sacrifices, even the common man could see demigods.”

Mahārāja Janamejaya, the son of Pariksit was very much affected by the untimely death of his father and decided to make a sacrifice to kill all the snakes of the world. As the snakes started pouring into the fire, the sage Astika convinced him to stop the killing. Janamejaya had two sons, called Jñātānīka and Śaṅkukarṇa. According to Srila Prabhupada, he gave them West and East Europe to rule, including Greece and Rome. This shows how up to the times of Janamejaya these parts of the world were still under the central rule in Hastinapura, and how the peoples of these areas were originally following Vedic culture.

In Russia, there are still groups that follow their indigenous Vedic culture. They don’t have the Vedas compiled by Vyasadeva, following some older version of Vedic culture that was transmitted in oral form over the centuries, worshiping “Krishun”, the God who plays the flute, and “Radha”, His girlfriend, as well as different demigods. There is a great volume of literature on the “Russian Vedas”, and huge cultural inheritance. Even today, the Russian language carries a strong influence from Sanskrit, including huge chunks of the grammar and many words, such as Svoi, Ty, Govorit, Krov, Nebo, Bog, and Agon (just to mention a few), that come, respectively, from the Sanskrit Sva (One’s own), Tvam (Thou), Gavati (To speak), Kravya (Blood), Nabhas (Sky), Bhaga (God) and Agni (Fire).

So strong is the Vedic presence in ancient Russia that proponents of the “Arian Invasion” theory even suggest that the Vedas may have originally come from Russia to India. We know this is not correct, but still, this gives an idea of how strong Vedic culture once was not only in Russia but in the whole of Europe. Up to the times of Maharaja Pariksit, all these countries were still under the central rule.

Prabhupada explains in his purports that the trip of Maharaja Pariksit to “conquer the world” was not to invade other states. The whole world was already under his rule. The purpose was to check how things were going and curb the influence of Kali-yuga, taking out of power rulers who were not following the proper religious principles.

As Prabhupada mentions in his purport:

“The Age of Kali means mismanagement and quarrel. And the root cause of all mismanagement and quarrel is that worthless men with the modes of lower-class men, who have no higher ambition in life, come to the helm of the state management. Such men at the post of a king are sure to first hurt the cow and the brahminical culture, thereby pushing all society towards hell. Mahārāja Parīkṣit, trained as he was, got the scent of this root cause of all quarrel in the world. Thus he wanted to stop it in the very beginning.” (SB 1.16.4)

Pariksit mets Kali

After briefly describing the glories of Maharaja Pariksit, Suta Goswami starts by describing the encounter of Pariksit Maharaja with the personification of Kali-yuga, who was at the time beating a cow and a bull.

We tend to think of Kali as an age, or perhaps as an energy that causes the degradation of the people, and thus it may sound strange the idea that Pariksit Maharaja could physically meet him, but the fact is that all the different energies that compose the universe have their respective personifications. Just like the power of the sun is personified in the form of the demigod Surya, and the wind is personified as Vayu, all the different energies that compose the universe have their respective personifications, including things like envy, lust, death, and so on. Even our planet is personified in the form of Bhumi.

Just like in the case of the demigods, souls who have the right set of qualifications become the enjoyers and controllers of these energies, and this of course includes Kali. Thus, there is Kali-yuga, the age, and also Kali the personification of it, an embodied being who controls its influence.

Suta Goswami describes:

“Once, when Mahārāja Parīkṣit was on his way to conquer the world, he saw the master of Kali-yuga, who was lower than a śūdra, disguised as a king and hurting the legs of a cow and bull. The King at once caught hold of him to deal sufficient punishment.”

The idea that someone could attack a cow and a bull sounded inconceivable to the sages, and they were further puzzled by the fact that Maharaja Pariksit just punished the culprit, instead of immediately putting him to death, as would be expected in such a serious crime. This is yet another example of the difference in values. Nowadays the situation is so hellish that most people see cow killing as normal, while just a few thousand years ago this sounded absolutely inconceivable.

The sages however were not interested in just hearing these topics out of curiosity. They were interested in hearing because these topics are connected with Krsna and his pure devotees. No one wants to die, and spending one’s time hearing and speaking about Krsna is the best remedy for avoiding death, bringing one to eternal life.

“The devotees of the Lord are accustomed to licking up the honey available from the lotus feet of the Lord. What is the use of topics which simply waste one’s valuable life?” (SB 1.16.6)

Chapters 16 and 17 describe how Pariksit Maharaja fought against the influence of Kali-Yuga. Chapters 18 and 19 describe how he was ultimately forced to leave due to the curse of the Brahmana boy and met with Sukadeva Goswami.

Everything starts with Pariksit Maharaja seated in his capital, Hastinapura when the first news of activities such as meat-eating, illicit sex, intoxication, and gambling began to come.

“Sūta Gosvāmī said: While Mahārāja Parīkṣit was residing in the capital of the Kuru empire, the symptoms of the Age of Kali began to infiltrate within the jurisdiction of his state. When he learned about this, he did not think the matter very palatable. This did, however, give him a chance to fight. He took up his bow and arrows and prepared himself for military activities.”(SB 1.16.10)

Although the appearance of Kali-yuga is part of the cosmic order, Pariksit Maharaja was determined to check its influence as far as possible. All the vices of Kali-yuga have their foundation in these four activities, and thus by being very vigilant in stopping these activities in his kingdom, Pariksit Maharaja was able to minimize the effects of Kali-yuga, practically stopping its progression. The military activities described in this verse mean he was prepared to take out of power leaders who were not properly protecting their subjects from the degradation of Kali-yuga, by force if necessary.

An introduction to Vedic cosmology

It’s described that Pariksit Maharaja conquered not only all the lands of Earth (Bhārata varsa), but also other lands of Jambidwipa, including Bhadrāśva, Ketumāla, the northern Kuru, Kimpuruṣa, etc. The verse reads:

“Mahārāja Parīkṣit then conquered all parts of the earthly planet — Bhadrāśva, Ketumāla, Bhārata, the northern Kuru, Kimpuruṣa, etc. — and exacted tributes from their respective rulers.” (SB 1.16.12)

Vedic cosmology is a complicated subject because the universe described in the Srimad Bhagavatam is multidimensional, and thus its structure appears different according to the level of consciousness of the observer.

All these different tracts of land are part of Jambidwipa, which is part of a larger structure, Bhu-Mandala, the intermediary planetary system. In the gross reality we live in, these different tracts of land are separated into different planets and we don’t have access to them.

Pariksit however had a much higher level of consciousness and was thus capable of accessing the other tracts of land that compose Jambidwipa. The word used in the verse is “varsani” (tract of land), which Prabhupada translates as “parts of the earth planet”. For us, the planet includes only what the Vedas describe as Bhārata varsa (the southern part of Jambidwipa), while for others with high consciousness, “the Earth” includes the whole Jambidwipa or even the whole Bhu-mandala since they are able to access all these other tracts of land, just like we can travel around the world.

It’s described that the Pandavas were also able to travel (and conquer) the other parts of Jambidwipa. It seems that Pariksit was the last king capable of doing so.

As he toured through the different tracts of land of Jambidwipa, he had the opportunity of hearing about the glories of the Pandavas and was certainly very pleased with these narrations. He was pleased even about hearing about himself, like how he was saved in the womb because these descriptions were also connected with Krsna. In the 5th canto, it’s described that the inhabitants of these different tracts of land are all devotees, who worship the Lord in different forms.

“Wherever the King visited, he continuously heard the glories of his great forefathers, who were all devotees of the Lord, and also of the glorious acts of Lord Kṛṣṇa. He also heard how he himself had been protected by the Lord from the powerful heat of the weapon of Aśvatthāmā. People also mentioned the great affection between the descendants of Vṛṣṇi and Pṛthā due to the latter’s great devotion to Lord Keśava. The King, being very pleased with the singers of such glories, opened his eyes in great satisfaction. Out of magnanimity he was pleased to award them very valuable necklaces and clothing.
Mahārāja Parīkṣit heard that out of His causeless mercy Lord Kṛṣṇa [Viṣṇu], who is universally obeyed, rendered all kinds of service to the malleable sons of Pāṇḍu by accepting posts ranging from chariot driver to president to messenger, friend, night watchman, etc., according to the will of the Pāṇḍavas, obeying them like a servant and offering obeisances like one younger in years. When he heard this, Mahārāja Parīkṣit became overwhelmed with devotion to the lotus feet of the Lord.” (SB 1.16.13-16)

Pariksit mets Bumi and Dharma

However, even as the king toured, Kali was exerting his influence. Starting from verse 18 there is a description of a dialogue between Earth, who assumed the form of a cow, and Darma who assumed the form of a bull:

“The personality of religious principles, Dharma, was wandering about in the form of a bull. And he met the personality of Earth in the form of a cow who appeared to grieve like a mother who had lost her child. She had tears in her eyes, and the beauty of her body was lost. Thus Dharma questioned the earth as follows.”

Srila Visvanatha Chakravarti Thakura comments that these were subtle forms that were not visible to common people. However, Pariksit could observe these events in his yogic meditation. In this way, the events described in these verses are not allegorical, this is a real conversation, but it happened in a higher level of reality that only Pariksit Maharaja and other great sages and devotees could access. Thanks to Suta Goswami, we have access to it through the pages of the Srimad Bhagavatam.

In general, this is how Vedic knowledge is transmitted. Because our senses are so limited, we can’t get a very good grasp of reality by simply using them. We depend thus on the descriptions of great sages who have a higher vision and can describe to us things as they are.

It’s described as the personality of Earth in the form of a cow who appeared to grieve like a mother who had lost her child. She had tears in her eyes, and the beauty of her body was lost. Dharma started to question her.

Dharma himself was in not good shape. The bull had lost three of his legs and was somehow standing in the last leg. This is indicative of how people become irreligious in Kali-yuga. It’s said that religious principles are reduced in the proportion of one quarter with the progression from Satyayuga to Treta-yuga, then in one quarter more with the start of Dwapara-yuga and then in one quarter more with the start of Kali-yuga. With the procession of the age of Kali, this last quarter is also gradually diminished, creating a hellish situation for everyone.

Verses 20 to 24 describe the questions asked by Dharma to the Earth when he was trying to understand the causes of her unhappiness. These questions describe many symptoms of Kali-yuga, including:

• Meat eaters kill cows to eat their meat.
• Demigods are not worshipped according to Vedic injunctions.
• General people suffer due to famine, drought, and other natural disasters.
• Divorce, as well as other factors, make it very difficult for families to remain together, and thus women and children are left unprotected. Often they are outrightly exploited by unscrupulous men.
• Brahmanas become degraded and misuse Vedic knowledge, implementing the caste system and other practices against the spirit of the scriptures.
• Rulers reject Vedic culture, or even general moral values, and declare a secular state, supported by the so-called Brahmanas, who at this point become just like ordinary workers.
• Due to the irreligious rulers, the affairs if the state enter into disorder, as we can observe in most democratic countries.
• People are not regulated in terms of eating, sleeping, drinking, mating, etc., and they are inclined to perform these activities anywhere.

Dharma mentions that Krsna had in the past incarnated to remove the burden of the Earth, but now with His disappearance, the Earth must have been again overburned with all these irreligious signs, and thus aggrieved both by the disappearance of the Lord and the increase of irreligion.

“O mother earth, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Hari, incarnated Himself as Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa just to unload your heavy burden. All His activities here are transcendental, and they cement the path of liberation. You are now bereft of His presence. You are probably now thinking of those activities and feeling sorry in their absence. Mother, you are the reservoir of all riches. Please inform me of the root cause of your tribulations by which you have been reduced to such a weak state. I think that the powerful influence of time, which conquers the most powerful, might have forcibly taken away all your fortune, which was adored even by the demigods.” (SB 1.16.23-24)

The Earth starts her answer by remembering the qualities of Krsna, such as truthfulness, cleanliness, intolerance of another’s unhappiness, the power to control anger, self-satisfaction, and so on. Krsna had ended His pastimes on this planet and as a result, Kali was now free to spread his influence everywhere.

It’s important to note that the age of Kali is directly noticed only on our planet. Both in the higher and lower planets there is not a progression of the four ages like here. On the higher planets, people are always devoted to the Lord, and on the lower planets, they are always atheistic. Only on Earth do we have these two sides manifesting at different times with the progression of Satya-yuga, Treta-yuga, Dwapara-yuga, and Kali-yuga. However, the fact people become irreligious in Kali-Yuga affects people in other places indirectly. Because in Kali-yuga people don’t execute Yajnas, the demigods don’t receive sacrificial oblations and thus their power is reduced. Because families become degraded, their ancestors living in Pitrloka stop receiving oblations and thus fall from there, and so on.

She then remembers how the Lord had destroyed the huge demoniac armies that were overburdening the planet, and empowered the Earth to become very beautiful, surpassing the beauty of even the celestial planets. Krsna walked barefoot when He was in Vrindavana, and thus He marked the ground with His footprints, which are decorated by auspicious marks, such as a flag, thunderbolt, elephant-driving rod, and lotus flower. With His disappearance, the Earth is feeling greatly aggrieved.

As she describes:

“O personality of religion, I was greatly overburdened by the undue military phalanxes arranged by atheistic kings, and I was relieved by the grace of the Personality of Godhead. Similarly you were also in a distressed condition, weakened in your standing strength, and thus He also incarnated by His internal energy in the family of the Yadus to relieve you.
Who, therefore, can tolerate the pangs of separation from that Supreme Personality of Godhead? He could conquer the gravity and passionate wrath of His sweethearts like Satyabhāmā by His sweet smile of love, pleasing glance and hearty appeals. When He traversed my [earth’s] surface, I would be immersed in the dust of His lotus feet and thus would be sumptuously covered with grass which appeared like hairs standing on me out of pleasure.” (SB 1.16.34-35)

Punishment and Reward of Kali

The scene with Dharma and the Earth in the form of the bull and the cow is shown from a broader perspective with the arrival of Pariksit Maharaja there. By the verses in the 16th chapter, we may have the idea that both are just talking alone, but in the 17th chapter is revealed that Kali is also present, beating both with a club!

It’s described that Kali, although the most degraded, is dressed like a king, which indicates the situation of Kali-yuga when the most degraded people become the rulers and advance an agenda of exploitation and degradation of society.

It’s described that bull was as white as a white lotus flower. He was terrified of the śūdra who was beating him, and he was so afraid that he was standing on one leg, trembling and urinating. The cow was separated from her calves and her legs were being beaten by a śūdra. There were tears in her eyes, and she was distressed and weak. She was hungry and desiring to get some grass from the field.

Seeing this scene, Pariksit immediately got down from his chariot and addressed Kali:

“Oh, who are you? You appear to be strong and yet you dare kill, within my protection, those who are helpless! By your dress you pose yourself to be a godly man [king], but by your deeds you are opposing the principles of the twice-born kṣatriyas.
You rogue, do you dare beat an innocent cow because Lord Kṛṣṇa and Arjuna, the carrier of the Gāṇḍīva bow, are out of sight? Since you are beating the innocent in a secluded place, you are considered a culprit and therefore deserve to be killed.” (SB 1.17.5-6)

At this point, Maharaja Pariksit took his sword and prepared to kill Kali. He was such a powerful king that Kali immediately became hopeless, without the possibility of eighter fighting or escaping. However, before killing Kali, Pariksit decided to gather evidence of the crime, and thus started inquiring from the bull:

“Oh, who are you? Are you a bull as white as a white lotus, or are you a demigod? You have lost three of your legs and are moving on only one. Are you some demigod causing us grief in the form of a bull?
Now for the first time in a kingdom well protected by the arms of the kings of the Kuru dynasty, I see you grieving with tears in your eyes. Up till now no one on earth has ever shed tears because of royal negligence.
O son of Surabhi, you need lament no longer now. There is no need to fear this low-class śūdra. And, O mother cow, as long as I am living as the ruler and subduer of all envious men, there is no cause for you to cry. Everything will be good for you.” (SB 1.17.5-9)

Although Kali was the one doing the beating, Pariksit immediately took responsibility for the injustice, assuming that it had happened due to his own negligence as a king. This illustrates another point, which is the fact that kings and other classes of rulers have the responsibility of not only managing the state but also protecting their subjects from committing sins. In other words, a king, president or dictator has the responsibility of spreading Krsna Consciousness, making all their subjects devotees, or at least teaching them moral principles according to the indications of the Vedas. According to the scriptures, a ruler takes 1/6 of all the karma of their subjects, both good and bad. Therefore, a ruler who can make his subjects pious can accumulate immense quantities of pious merits, but a ruler who fails to do so can accumulate an unlimited quantity of sinful reactions and become entitled to an extremely long stay in hell. In Kali-yuga, foolish politicians who have no idea about how to make people Krsna Conscious fight over power, without understanding what they are getting into. A person who is not determined to fight irreligion like Maharaja Pariksit was doing does better in not trying to come into power.

Although the situation is quite obvious, Pariksit addresses the bull trying to get a testimony proving the guilt of Kali, just like in modern justice systems. However, the bull refuses to directly accuse Kali directly, speaking instead in a cryptic way:

“O greatest among human beings, it is very difficult to ascertain the particular miscreant who has caused our sufferings, because we are bewildered by all the different opinions of theoretical philosophers.
Some of the philosophers, who deny all sorts of duality, declare that one’s own self is responsible for his personal happiness and distress. Others say that superhuman powers are responsible, while yet others say that activity is responsible, and the gross materialists maintain that nature is the ultimate cause.
There are also some thinkers who believe that no one can ascertain the cause of distress by argumentation, nor know it by imagination, nor express it by words. O sage amongst kings, judge for yourself by thinking over all this with your own intelligence.” (SB 1.17.18-20)

Understanding the deep meaning of the bull’s words, Pariksit replied:

“O you, who are in the form of a bull! You know the truth of religion, and you are speaking according to the principle that the destination intended for the perpetrator of irreligious acts is also intended for one who identifies the perpetrator. You are no other than the personality of religion. Thus it is concluded that the Lord’s energies are inconceivable. No one can estimate them by mental speculation or by word jugglery.” (SB 1.17.22-23)

At first, this passage doesn’t seem to make much sense. It appears that it implies that if someone is a victim of some crime or violence and he reports the perpetrator, asking for justice, he is entitled to receive the same punishment reserved for the criminal, like, for example, if a man stabbed with a knife would be forced to spend ten years in prison alongside the criminal that stabbed him. How could this be called justice?

However, when we study it attentively, this cryptic passage from the Srimad Bhagavatam reveals some very profound truths about the law of Karma and its implications.

Karma can be a quite difficult thing to understand. On the one hand, karma is deterministic, things just happen the way they are supposed to happen as we receive the results of our past actions. On the other hand, there is also a component of free will.

This is a very deep philosophical point. When a person kills another, who is the culprit? Would it be the assassin, because he was the one pulling the trigger? Would it be the victim himself, since he was receiving the results of his past actions? Would it be the revolver, since without a weapon no murder would take place? Would it be the three modes of material nature that moved both in this direction? Would it be the material nature, since it is in control of the three modes? Maybe it’s just chance, and therefore there is no culprit at all?

At the time of Vyasadeva, there were six philosophical systems prominent in the world, including the Vaisesika, Karma-mimansa, the atheistic Sāṅkhya, and so on. Philosophers of these different systems had different ideas about who is the doer of actions. In the Karma-mimansa philosophy, for example, material activities are the only cause, while the followers of the atheistic Sāṅkhya system believe that material nature is the cause, and so on. The bull makes reference to these different systems, speaking in a way that illustrates the position of common people confused by these different opinions.

Although in one sense everything that happens to us is our own fault, since it’s the result of our own past actions, the criminal who pulls the trigger is also to blame. He had the choice of pulling the trigger or not, and still, he did it. If he was not a culprit, he would not be subjected to future punishment. So, in one sense the killer is an instrument for the realization of the past karma of the person who is killed, but at the same time, he is guilty. How does it work?

Karma works in a very mysterious way. It puts face to face a person who is about to commit a crime and someone who did a similar thing in the past. At the same time, the killer is the instrument of the realization of someone’s past karma, but on the other hand, he is also an individual who has a choice. If he is able to control his mind and throw away his weapon, nobody will die at that time. Because there is free will, when he takes the wrong path and kills, he becomes implicated in the reactions to such a heinous act.

The weapon is certainly not at fault, because it’s just a material object without free will. Although the three modes are responsible for moving everyone in this world they are also not at fault, because they just act according to the desires of the souls involved in the material creation. As we associate with matter, we develop different material desires, and the material modes impel us to act according to such desires. At every step, we have a choice, but as we make wrong choices it becomes progressively harder to go back. The more sinful we become, the harder it becomes to go on the opposite way. One may thus come to a situation where he is forced by his mind and senses to do things he would otherwise prefer not to do, as discussed in the Bhagavad-Gita.

One who is envious and propense to harm others may eventually end up in a situation where he or she has the possibility of killing someone, and the one who did a similar thing in the past is put into the opposite role.

The central point is that the law of karma works in a circular way. We may perform a certain action, like violently attacking someone. The person then desires revenge, and at a certain point, in some future life, the roles are reversed. We become the victim and the victim becomes the aggressor. We then desire revenge, and in some future life, the roles are switched again. We can see that it becomes a loop. In fact, we have been caught in this circle since time immemorial, sometimes being in the position of the aggressor, sometimes in the position of the victim. Someone who is a victim of some violence has the right to desire justice, the problem is that to receive justice he has to stay in this material world to receive it! More than that, one will have to take birth close to the person who harmed him, in order to cause him suffering. One may even become the wife, husband, or child of the person who harmed him, a position where one can surely cause a lot of suffering and get his revenge. The question however is if that’s what we want. The desire for revenge put us on this path, of taking another birth in this material world in order to get our revenge.

That’s why it’s said that “the destination intended for the perpetrator of irreligious acts is also intended for one who identifies the perpetrator”, both have to remain here, one to receive the results of his action and the other to get justice.

That’s why a sage is advised to just tolerate the results of his past karma without becoming disturbed. By forgiving, he breaks the circle. He suffers the reaction to something he did in the past, but without the desire for revenge or justice, he doesn’t become entitled to be in the reverse position in the future. Thus, he becomes free. Christ explained this higher principle when he spoke about turning the other cheek in his Sermon on the Mount.

This may sound like some kind of impractical pacifism at first, but it actually describes the rationale of a saintly person. If I’m actually receiving justice for some wrongdoing I did in the past, what’s the point of blaming the person that was used as the instrument? It would be like hitting myself with a hammer and then blaming the hammer for what happened. Apart from everything else, a devotee understands that nothing happens without the sanction of Krsna, and thus he understands that Krsna is actually protecting him from the reactions of his past karma, allowing him to receive just a fraction of what he would be otherwise entitled. In this way, instead of becoming angry at someone, a devotee remembers the Lord even when difficult situations appear. These difficulties become then a catalyst for his devotion, helping him to surrender to the Lord, just as we studied in the prayers of Queen Kunti.

As Srila Prabhupada explains in his purport to 1.17.22:

“A devotee’s conclusion is that no one is directly responsible for being a benefactor or mischief-monger without the sanction of the Lord; therefore he does not consider anyone to be directly responsible for such action. But in both the cases he takes it for granted that either benefit or loss is God-sent, and thus it is His grace. In case of benefit, no one will deny that it is God-sent, but in case of loss or reverses one becomes doubtful about how the Lord could be so unkind to His devotee as to put him in great difficulty. Jesus Christ was seemingly put into such great difficulty, being crucified by the ignorant, but he was never angry at the mischief-mongers. That is the way of accepting a thing, either favorable or unfavorable. Thus for a devotee the identifier is equally a sinner, like the mischief-monger. By God’s grace, the devotee tolerates all reverses. Mahārāja Parīkṣit observed this, and therefore he could understand that the bull was no other than the personality of religion himself. In other words, a devotee has no suffering at all because so-called suffering is also God’s grace for a devotee who sees God in everything.”

But, how could we apply this in a practical way? Let’s say someone in our community is attacked. Should we just cross our arms and accept that he just received the results of his karma and that the perpetrator is actually innocent being just an instrument? Of course not. While the victim may act like a saint and just tolerate the offense, without becoming revengeful, the proper authorities have the duty of finding and punishing the perpetrator, otherwise, they incur the fault of neglecting their duty. As Srila Prabhupada explains, this is also good for the criminal, since if he is punished now, he will not have to suffer the consequences of his acts in the future.

We can see this illustrated in the pastime: while Dharma refrained from being angry and accusing Kali, Pariksit was ready to punish the offender with his sword. That was his duty as a king. Thus, this mysterious passage of Srimad Bhagavatam actually teaches us a higher principle. As long as we are holding a grudge for whatever wrongdoings people did to us, we will be forced to remain in this material world, taking birth in situations that may allow us to get our revenge.

We have then another point that is protecting one’s dependents from the effects of their past Karma like Pariksit Maharaja is trying to do by protecting the cow and the bull from Kali.

Of course, we understand that the real solution for people’s suffering is Krsna Consciousness, however, to become Krsna Conscious, most people need to be in a favorable situation. A devotee may thus work in making arrangements for people living in a peaceful and spiritually conducive environment where they can peacefully practice Krsna Consciousness like Srila Prabhupada making plans for establishing temples and rural communities as a means of teaching people how to live peacefully.

Although karma is in one sense a tool that material energy uses to teach us lessons, karma is also a mechanical system of justice. The results of Karma as thus not always favorable to our spiritual development. Quite the opposite: the miseries caused by our past activities often distract us from our spiritual practice. Usually, only people who have sufficient sukrit from past lives turn to Krsna in moments of difficulties. Most people just become resentful and inimical to God. We can practically see that often people become a little interested in Krsna Consciousness, but different calamities in their lives put so many obstacles in their paths.

Fathers, kings, and other authorities have thus the responsibility of protecting their dependents, so they can be trained in spiritual consciousness. The physical protection they provide is just temporary, since ultimately no one can escape the results of his past karma, but the spiritual training is capable of solving the fundamental problem. When a person, due to spiritual practice finally becomes free from the influence of karma, his path to spiritual perfection becomes wide open. That’s the reason the spiritual master takes away the results of the disciple’s sins during initiation, giving him or her the chance for a clean start.

The human form of life is very precious because it awards us the rare opportunity to develop our Krsna Consciousness. However, our past karma often gets in the way. It is a great tragedy when someone loses his life untimely or goes through difficulties that prevent him from properly practicing spiritual life. Compassionate Vaishnavas try to prevent that and bring the souls back to their normal, healthy condition.

Dharma in our age

Back to the conversation between Pariksit and the bull, the King proceeds to describe the situation of Dharma in our age:

“In the age of Satya [truthfulness] your four legs were established by the four principles of austerity, cleanliness, mercy and truthfulness. But it appears that three of your legs are broken due to rampant irreligion in the form of pride, lust for women, and intoxication. You are now standing on one leg only, which is your truthfulness, and you are somehow or other hobbling along. But quarrel personified [Kali], flourishing by deceit, is also trying to destroy that leg.” (1.17.24-25)

Austerity, cleanliness, mercy, and truthfulness are the four pillars of religious life. During the age of Satya-yuga, people possessed these four principles in very high order, and as a result, they were so pure that they could live for 100,000 years. It’s described that in Satya-yuga every human being was a qualified brāhmaṇa of the highest order, and in the social orders of life they were all paramahaṁsas.

However, with the progression of the ages, the four pillars of religion were gradually replaced by the four pillars of irreligion, which are pride, attachment to women, intoxication, and falsity. Good qualities were reduced to 75% in Treta-Yuga, 50% in Dwapara-yuga, and just 25% at the beginning of Kali-yuga, being instead replaced by the four pillars of irreligion. By pride, austerity is destroyed; by excessive attachment to the opposite sex, cleanliness is destroyed; by different forms of intoxication, mercy is destroyed; and by falsity, truthfulness is destroyed. Only by the spread of Krsna Consciousness, can we save humanity from this process.

“The burden of the earth was certainly diminished by the Personality of Godhead and by others as well. When He was present as an incarnation, all good was performed because of His auspicious footprints.
Now she, the chaste one, being unfortunately forsaken by the Personality of Godhead, laments her future with tears in her eyes, for now she is being ruled and enjoyed by lower-class men who pose as rulers.” (SB 1.17.26-27)

Kali spared

Now, turning back to Kali, Maharaja Pariksit again takes his sword and prepares to kill him. Kali understands the situation and immediately abandons his false position and surrenders to the King, begging him to spare his life:

“When the personality of Kali understood that the King was willing to kill him, he at once abandoned the dress of a king and, under pressure of fear, completely surrendered to him, bowing his head.
Mahārāja Parīkṣit, who was qualified to accept surrender and worthy of being sung in history, did not kill the poor surrendered and fallen Kali, but smiled compassionately, for he was kind to the poor.
The King thus said: We have inherited the fame of Arjuna; therefore since you have surrendered yourself with folded hands you need not fear for your life. But you cannot remain in my kingdom, for you are the friend of irreligion.” (1.17.29-31)

Being not only an honored Ksatriya, but a pure devotee of the Lord, Pariksit is prepared to accept the surrender of a poor person, and thus pardons Kali. He however has to move, since there is no place for his nefarious activities in the kingdom of a saintly king.

Kali is not an ordinary human being, but a subtle entity, similar to a danava or a demigod. However, Maharaja Pariksit was so powerful that he could threaten even such a powerful entity.

In his purport, Prabhupada mentions that Kali abandoning his royal dress also hints at another feature of Kali-yuga: the unqualified rulers who come to power without the necessary qualification will reveal their true coward faces when challenged by a true Ksatriya, like Maharaja Pariksit.

“Śrī Sūta Gosvāmī said: The personality of Kali, thus being ordered by Mahārāja Parīkṣit, began to tremble in fear. Seeing the King before him like Yamarāja, ready to kill him, Kali spoke to the King as follows.
O Your Majesty, though I may live anywhere and everywhere under your order, I shall but see you with bow and arrows wherever I look.
Therefore, O chief amongst the protectors of religion, please fix some place for me where I can live permanently under the protection of your government.
Sūta Gosvāmī said: Mahārāja Parīkṣit, thus being petitioned by the personality of Kali, gave him permission to reside in places where gambling, drinking, prostitution and animal slaughter were performed.
The personality of Kali asked for something more, and because of his begging, the King gave him permission to live where there is gold because wherever there is gold there is also falsity, intoxication, lust, envy and enmity.
Thus the personality of Kali, by the directions of Mahārāja Parīkṣit, the son of Uttarā, was allowed to live in those five places.” (SB 1.17.35-40)

Prabhupada mentions that a surrendered soul should be given all protection, even though he may be an enemy. That is the principle of religion. Therefore, since Kali surrendered, there was now the need to give him a place where he could live peacefully. At the time of Maharaja Pariksit, activities such as drinking and prostitution were practically nonexistent, therefore Kali was severely limited. However, now these activities are rampant, and Kali runs free.

When we rigidly follow the four principles, avoiding meat eating, intoxication, illicit sex, and gambling, we become free from the influence of the age of Kali, otherwise, it’s impossible to resist his influence. Therefore, following these four principles is a prerequisite for anyone interested in seriously practicing spiritual life. If we can personally follow these principles, Kali will not have influence in our lives and we will be free to practice Krsna consciousness and advance spiritually. If our whole family follows it, then our house will be free from the influence of Kali and we will be able to live peacefully in family life. If our whole community follows, we will be able to live peacefully with our neighborhoods, and if the whole world follows, there will finally be peace amongst nations.

As is mentioned in verse 41:

“Therefore, whoever desires progressive well-being, especially kings, religionists, public leaders, brāhmaṇas and sannyāsīs, should never come in contact with the four above-mentioned irreligious principles.”

One could question why Pariksit didn’t kill Kali, since it was clear that Kali would be able to spread his influence sooner or later. The point is that Kali-yuga is part of the cosmic order. There must be a degraded age in the universal cycle so the souls who don’t have the qualification to take birth in the other ages can take their human births and thus have the opportunity to practice Krsna Consciousness. Because we are not able to practice meditation for long periods like people in Satya-yuga, perform perfect yajnas like people in Treta-yuga, or even perform regulated deity worship, like people in Dwapara-yuga, the Lord comes as Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu to give us a process we can follow. Simply by chanting the holy names, people in Kali-yuga can attain the ultimate success. The doors are wide open.

On SB 12.3.51, Sukadeva Goswami mentions: “My dear King, although Kali-yuga is an ocean of faults, there is still one good quality about this age: Simply by chanting the Hare Kṛṣṇa mahā-mantra, one can become free from material bondage and be promoted to the transcendental kingdom.”

On SB 1.18.7 it’s mentioned that in this Age of Kali, auspicious things produce good effects immediately, whereas inauspicious acts must be actually performed to render effects.

In previous ages, the standards were so high that people would become contaminated just by the thought of performing some sinful activity, while pious or spiritual activities had to be effectively performed to award results. In Kali-yuga it’s the opposite: we can advance by just desiring to serve Krsna, while we become contaminated by sinful activities only if we physically perform them. Therefore, if we can control ourselves enough to at least not perform gross sinful activities, we can maintain ourselves pure, and we can advance in spiritual life just by the mere thought of serving Krsna and His devotees, what to say about really chanting and doing practical service!

It’s said that in Kali-yuga a wife automatically shares the pious merits of her husband by just loving and serving him, without sharing any of his sins. Similarly, a servant shares the pious results of his master, without having to share the results of his sinful activities. Above all, we can easily attain perfection just by chanting the holy names, even if imperfect. People of other ages don’t have faith that the chanting of the holy names is a perfect process by itself, and therefore they waste their long lives in complicated processes of self-realization that are very slow to act. Only in Kali-yuga, the glories of chanting the holy names are fully revealed by the mercy of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu, and we can take advantage of the process.

Because of the chanting of the holy names, even people who are not devotees can hear and chant, or even take prasadam and associate with devotees. In this way, they become purified and become devotees in their next lives. In this way, devotional service gradually spreads, almost like a virus.

If we can practice devotional service and at the same time remain free from the effects of the age of Kali by following the four principles and being serious about our spiritual practice, we can get the best of the two words, enjoying all the benefits of the age of Kali, without being affected by its negative effects. Our goal is thus not to stop Kali-yuga (which would be actually very unfortunate) but to stop its effects by spreading the chanting of the holy names. That’s also what Maharaja Pariksit was trying to do.

“Thereafter the King reestablished the lost legs of the personality of religion [the bull], and by encouraging activities he sufficiently improved the condition of the earth.
The most fortunate emperor Mahārāja Parīkṣit, who was entrusted with the kingdom of Hastināpura by Mahārāja Yudhiṣṭhira when he desired to retire to the forest, is now ruling the world with great success due to his being glorified by the deeds of the kings of the Kuru dynasty.
Mahārāja Parīkṣit, the son of Abhimanyu, is so experienced that by dint of his expert administration and patronage, it has been possible for you to perform a sacrifice such as this.” (SB 1.17.42-45)

The last verses of the 17th chapter describe the activities of King Pariksit as a ruler. Not only did he restore the lost legs of Dharma by engaging people in devotional service and curbing sinful activities, but he also improved the condition of the planet, making people happy in all respects. A similar situation can be created now if Krsna-conscious leaders have a chance of coming to power. For this to happen, we need to first create such perfect leaders, and second make general people pious enough to accept them. Both are achieved by practicing and spreading Krsna consciousness.