Srimad Bhagavatam — Panchama Skandha, Shloka 5
Jaḍa Bharata’s Birth, Feigned Madness, and Protection by Goddess Kālī
स चापि तदु ह पितृसन्निधावेवासध्रीचीनमिव स्म करोति छन्दांस्यध्यापयिष्यन्सह व्याहृतिभि: सप्रणवशिरस्त्रिपदीं सावित्रीं ग्रैष्मवासन्तिकान्मासानधीयानमप्यसमवेतरूपं ग्राहयामास ॥ ५ ॥
sa cāpi tad u ha pitṛ-sannidhāv evāsadhrīcīnam iva sma karoti chandāṁsy adhyāpayiṣyan saha vyāhṛtibhiḥ sapraṇava-śiras tripadīṁ sāvitrīṁ graiṣma-vāsantikān māsān adhīyānam apy asamaveta-rūpaṁ grāhayām āsa.
Jaḍa Bharata benahm sich vor seinem Vater wie ein Narr, obwohl der Vater ihn ausreichend im vedischen Wissen unterweisen wollte. Er handelte absichtlich entgegengesetzt, damit der Vater einsähe, dass er für Unterricht ungeeignet sei und die Bemühung aufgebe. So wusch er etwa die Hände vorher, wenn man ihm sagte, er solle sie nach dem Stuhlgang waschen. Dennoch wollte der Vater ihn im Frühling und Sommer unterrichten und versuchte, ihm die dreizeilige Sāvitrī (Gāyatrī) samt oṁkāra und vyāhṛti beizubringen; doch selbst nach vier Monaten gelang es ihm nicht.
FAQs
This verse describes Bharata appearing inattentive even while being taught Vedic meters and the Gāyatrī (Sāvitrī) mantra, indicating his inward detachment and absorption beyond ordinary academic training.
Because formal Vedic training for a qualified prince includes learning the Sāvitrī (Gāyatrī) preceded by Oṁ and accompanied by the vyāhṛtis; the text notes that Ṛṣabhadeva arranged this instruction even though Bharata did not manifest conventional attentiveness.
It highlights that external performance may not reveal inner realization; steady devotion and sincerity matter more than display, and spiritual focus can coexist with ordinary duties while remaining detached within.