Srimad Bhagavatam — Chaturtha Skandha, Shloka 18
Purañjana Goes Hunting — The Chariot of the Body, Violence of Passion, and Return to Conjugal Bondage
नारद उवाच पुरञ्जन: स्वमहिषीं निरीक्ष्यावधुतां भुवि । तत्सङ्गोन्मथितज्ञानो वैक्लव्यं परमं ययौ ॥ १८ ॥
nārada uvāca purañjanaḥ sva-mahiṣīṁ nirīkṣyāvadhutāṁ bhuvi tat-saṅgonmathita-jñāno vaiklavyaṁ paramaṁ yayau
नारद उवाच—राजन् प्राचीनबर्हे, पुरञ्जनः स्वमहिषीं भुवि अवधूतवद् अवस्थितां निरीक्ष्य, तत्सङ्गेनोन्मथितज्ञानः परमं वैक्लव्यं जगाम॥
In this verse the word avadhutām is especially significant, for it refers to a mendicant who does not take care of his body. Since the Queen was lying on the ground without bedding and proper dress, King Purañjana became very much aggrieved. In other words, he repented that he had neglected his intelligence and had engaged himself in the forest in killing animals. In other words, when one’s good intelligence is separated or neglected, he fully engages in sinful activities. Due to neglecting one’s good intelligence, or Kṛṣṇa consciousness, one becomes bewildered and engages in sinful activities. Upon realizing this, a man becomes repentant. Such repentance is described by Narottama dāsa Ṭhākura:
FAQs
This verse shows that when one’s knowledge is disturbed by intense attachment, even a single loss can plunge the person into extreme helplessness and grief.
Nārada narrates Purañjana’s lamentation to illustrate, through allegory, how the conditioned soul becomes bound by bodily relationships and then suffers deeply at separation and death.
Cultivate devotional remembrance and inner identity beyond the body so relationships remain loving yet not possessive—reducing anxiety and collapse when change or loss comes.