Srimad Bhagavatam — Panchama Skandha, Shloka 1
Jaḍa Bharata’s Birth, Feigned Madness, and Protection by Goddess Kālī
श्रीशुक उवाच अथ कस्यचिद् द्विजवरस्याङ्गिर:प्रवरस्य शमदमतप:स्वाध्यायाध्ययनत्यागसन्तोषतितिक्षाप्रश्रयविद्यानसूयात्मज्ञानानन्दयुक्तस्यात्मसदृशश्रुतशीलाचाररूपौदार्यगुणा नव सोदर्या अङ्गजा बभूवुर्मिथुनं च यवीयस्यां भार्यायाम् ॥ १ ॥ यस्तु तत्र पुमांस्तं परमभागवतं राजर्षिप्रवरं भरतमुत्सृष्टमृगशरीरं चरमशरीरेण विप्रत्वं गतमाहु: ॥ २ ॥
śrī-śuka uvāca atha kasyacid dvija-varasyāṅgiraḥ-pravarasya śama-dama-tapaḥ-svādhyāyādhyayana-tyāga-santoṣa-titikṣā-praśraya-vidyānasūyātma-jñānānanda-yuktasyātma-sadṛśa-śruta-śīlācāra-rūpaudārya-guṇā nava sodaryā aṅgajā babhūvur mithunaṁ ca yavīyasyāṁ bhāryāyām yas tu tatra pumāṁs taṁ parama-bhāgavataṁ rājarṣi-pravaraṁ bharatam utsṛṣṭa-mṛga-śarīraṁ carama-śarīreṇa vipratvaṁ gatam āhuḥ.
Śrīla Śukadeva Gosvāmī poursuivit : Après avoir quitté le corps de cerf, Bharata Mahārāja, paramabhāgavata, naquit dans une famille brāhmaṇa très pure. Il y avait un brāhmaṇa de la lignée d’Aṅgirā, doté des qualités brahmaniques : maîtrise du mental et des sens, austérité, svādhyāya et étude védique, charité, contentement, patience, douceur, savoir, absence d’envie, réalisation du Soi et félicité intérieure ; il demeurait toujours absorbé dans le service dévotionnel au Seigneur. De sa première épouse il eut neuf fils d’égale valeur, et de la seconde il engendra des jumeaux—un garçon et une fille. On dit que ce garçon était le paramabhāgavata et le plus éminent des rājarsis : Bharata, qui, après avoir abandonné le corps de cerf, obtint sa dernière existence en tant que brāhmaṇa.
Bharata Mahārāja was a great devotee, but he did not attain success in one life. In Bhagavad-gītā it is said that a devotee who does not fulfill his devotional duties in one life is given the chance to be born in a fully qualified brāhmaṇa family or a rich kṣatriya or vaiśya family. Śucīnāṁ śrīmatāṁ gehe ( Bg. 6.41 ). Bharata Mahārāja was the firstborn son of Mahārāja Ṛṣabha in a rich kṣatriya family, but due to his willful negligence of his spiritual duties and his excessive attachment to an insignificant deer, he was obliged to take birth as the son of a deer. However, due to his strong position as a devotee, he was gifted with the remembrance of his past life. Being repentant, he remained in a solitary forest and always thought of Kṛṣṇa. Then he was given the chance to take birth in a very good brāhmaṇa family.
FAQs
This verse highlights śama (peace), dama (sense-control), tapaḥ (austerity), svādhyāya (scriptural study), tyāga (renunciation), santoṣa (contentment), titikṣā (tolerance), humility, learning, non-enviousness, and the joy of self-knowledge.
He establishes the spiritually refined family setting that produced extraordinary sons—setting the stage for the appearance of the great devotee Bharata/Jaḍa Bharata and the lesson of devotion beyond social appearance.
By cultivating daily discipline (study and restraint), adopting contentment and tolerance in relationships, practicing humility, and aiming for inner realization rather than external status.