Introduction

“This Bhagavata Purana is as brilliant as the sun, and it has arisen
just after the departure of Lord Krsna to His own abode, accompanied by
religion, knowledge, etc. Persons who have lost their vision due to the
dense darkness of ignorance in the age of Kali shall get light from this
Purana.” (Srimad-Bhagavatam 1.3.43)

The timeless wisdom of India is expressed in the Vedas, ancient
Sanskrit texts that touch upon all fields of human knowledge. Originally
preserved through oral tradition, the Vedas were first put into writing
five thousand years ago by Srila Vyasadeva, the “literary incarnation of
God.” After compiling the Vedas, Vyasadeva set forth their essence in
the aphorisms known as Vedanta-siitras. Srimad-Bhagavatam is Vyasa-
deva’s commentary on his own Veddnta-siitras. It was written in the
maturity of his spiritual life under the direction of Narada Muni, his
spiritual master. Referred to as “the ripened fruit of the tree of Vedic
literature,” Srimad-Bhagavatam is the most complete and authoritative
exposition of Vedic knowledge.

After compiling the Bhagavatam, Vyasa impressed the synopsis of it
upon his sun, the sage Sukadeva Gosvami. Sukadeva Gosvami subse-
quently recited the entire Bhagavatam to Maharaja Pariksit in an assem-
bly of learned saints on the bank of the Ganges at Hastinapura (now
Delhi). Maharaja Pariksit was the emperor of the world and was a great
rajarsi (saintly king). Having received a warning that he would die
within a week, he renounced his entire kingdom and retired to the bank
of the Ganges to fast until death and receive spiritual enlightenment.
The Bhaégavatam begins with Emperor Pariksit’s sober inquiry to
Sukadeva Gosvami: ‘‘You are the spiritual master of great saints and
devotees. | am therefore begging you to show the way of perfection for
all persons, and especially for one who is about to die. Please let me know
what a man should hear, chant, remember and worship, and also what he
should not do. Please explain all this to me.’

Sukadeva Gosvami’s answer to this question, and numerous other
questions posed by Maharaja Pariksit, concerning everything from the
nature of the self to the origin of the universe, held the assembled sages

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