Shloka 14
Purañjana Goes Hunting — The Chariot of the Body, Violence of Passion, and Return to Conjugal Bondage
अन्त:पुरस्त्रियोऽपृच्छद्विमना इव वेदिषत् । अपि व: कुशलं रामा: सेश्वरीणां यथा पुरा ॥ १४ ॥
antaḥpura-striyo ’pṛcchad vimanā iva vediṣat api vaḥ kuśalaṁ rāmāḥ seśvarīṇāṁ yathā purā
At that time King Purañjana, feeling somewhat anxious, inquired of the women of the inner palace: “O lovely ladies, are you and your mistress (the queen) well and happy, as before?”
In this verse the word vediṣat indicates King Prācīnabarhi. When a man becomes refreshed by association with devotees and awakes to Kṛṣṇa consciousness, he consults the activities of his mind — namely thinking, feeling and willing — and decides whether he should return to his material activities or stay steady in spiritual consciousness. The word kuśalam refers to that which is auspicious. One can make his home perfectly auspicious when he engages in devotional service to Lord Viṣṇu. When one is engaged in activities other than viṣṇu-bhakti, or in other words when one is engaged in material activities, he is always filled with anxieties. A sane man should consult his mind — its thinking, feeling and willing processes — and decide how these processes should be utilized. If one always thinks of Kṛṣṇa, feels how to serve Him and wills to execute the order of Kṛṣṇa, it should be known that he has taken good instruction from his intelligence, which is called the mother. Although the King was refreshed, he nonetheless inquired about his wife. Thus he was consulting, thinking and willing how he could return to his steady good consciousness. The mind may suggest that by viṣaya-bhoga, or sense enjoyment, one can become happy, but when one becomes advanced in Kṛṣṇa consciousness, he does not derive happiness from material activities. This is explained in Bhagavad-gītā (2.59) :
FAQs
It shows the king’s dejection and continued identification with household relationships; in the allegory, it reflects the conditioned soul anxiously checking on the mind’s inner attachments rather than turning to the Supreme Lord.
In the narrative, he is troubled and seeks reassurance from those closest to him; allegorically, it portrays how a materially absorbed person looks to intimate attachments for comfort when distress arises.
When anxiety arises, notice the impulse to seek security only in relationships and comforts; redirect the heart toward sādhana—prayer, chanting, and remembrance of Krishna—as the deeper source of well-being.