PLATE FOUR
Since a human being is a rational animal, he is born to make inquiries. But the most relevant inquiries—those made by the truly intelligent men—deal with what happens at the time of death. This scene from the great Vedic history  Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam  shows King Parīkṣit placing such inquiries before his spiritual master, Śukadeva Goswami. A young  brāhmaṇa  boy had cursed King Parīkṣit, who ruled the entire world five thousand years ago, to meet death from a serpent's bite within seven days. Upon learning of the curse, the king at once left his palatial home and went to the bank of the Ganges to fast until death. All the great sages assembled there, and at last Śukadeva Goswami, one of the most exalted spiritualists of the time, arrived. King Parīkṣit offered Śukadeva Goswami the principal seat of esteem and then spoke to him as follows: "My dear sir, you are the greatest of the great transcendentalists, and therefore I submissively beg to ask you about my duties at this critical hour. I am just on the verge of death. Please tell me, my lord—what should I hear, what should I worship, and whom should I remember now?" ( pp. 39-46 )