Shloka 13
Parīkṣit’s Questions and the Prelude to Kṛṣṇa’s Advent
Earth’s Burden, Viṣṇu’s Order, and Kaṁsa’s Fear
नैषातिदु:सहा क्षुन्मां त्यक्तोदमपि बाधते । पिबन्तं त्वन्मुखाम्भोजच्युतं हरिकथामृतम् ॥ १३ ॥
naiṣātiduḥsahā kṣun māṁ tyaktodam api bādhate pibantaṁ tvan-mukhāmbhoja- cyutaṁ hari-kathāmṛtam
By my vow at the brink of death I have renounced even water; yet as I drink the nectar of Hari-kathā flowing from the lotus mouth of your grace, hunger and thirst—so hard to bear—cannot hinder me.
To prepare to meet death in seven days, Mahārāja Parīkṣit gave up all food and drink. As a human being, he was certainly both hungry and thirsty, and therefore Śukadeva Gosvāmī might have wanted to stop narrating the transcendental topics of Kṛṣṇa; but despite his fast, Mahārāja Parīkṣit was not at all fatigued. “The hunger and thirst from my fast do not disturb me,” he said. “Once when I felt very thirsty, I went to the āśrama of Śamīka Muni to drink water, but the muni did not supply it. I therefore wrapped a dead snake over his shoulder, and that is why I was cursed by the brāhmaṇa boy. Now, however, I am quite fit. I am not at all disturbed by my hunger and thirst.” This indicates that although on the material platform there are disturbances from hunger and thirst, on the spiritual platform there is no such thing as fatigue.
FAQs
In 10.1.13, Parīkṣit says hunger no longer troubles him because he is “drinking” the nectar of Hari’s narrations flowing from Śukadeva’s lotus mouth—showing that spiritual relish can eclipse bodily distress.
Parīkṣit was fasting unto death on the bank of the Gaṅgā, fully absorbed in hearing Śrīmad Bhāgavatam. He reassures Śukadeva that physical hunger is insignificant compared to the bliss of hearing Kṛṣṇa-kathā.
Make daily time for attentive hearing/reading of Hari-kathā (Bhāgavatam, kīrtana, discourses). Regular spiritual “taste” reduces the pull of cravings and helps endure stress with steadier devotion.