Śrī Jīva Goswami emphatically establishes in the Prīti Sandarbha that the associates of Bhagavān can never ‘fall’ (discussed here and here). That is, they can never become deviated from their service to Him. Now, Jaya and Vijaya are associates of Bhagavān. It is well-known that they took birth in the material world as enemies of Bhagavān, namely Śiśupāla and Dantavakra, Hiraṇyakaśipu and Hiraṇyākṣa, and Rāvaṇa and Kumbhakarṇa. How can one account for this? Clearly, they were deviated from bhakti, as they were His sworn enemies, and enmity does not meet the definition of bhakti.
To address this vexing question, Śrī Jīva Goswami performs a fascinating analysis in Anuccheda 7.7 of the Prīti Sandarbha, and provides startling levels of insight into Jaya and Vijaya’s descent into the material world. I examine this Anuccheda in this article.
Jaya and Vijaya descended not because of the Kumarās’ curse but by the will of Bhagavān
The common understanding of the Jaya and Vijaya story is that they were cursed by the Kumarās and therefore forced to descend as Bhagavān’s enemies. This, though, is only superficially true. Being associates of Bhagavān, no curse can act on them. Why then did they descend? The answer is simple- it was Bhagavān’s wish that they take on material bodies, and being devotees, they willingly took on that role. Śrī Jīva Goswami cites SB 3.16.29 to make the point that the whole affair was the will of Bhagavān —
tatra tayor vaira-bhāva-prāptau khalu muni-kṛtatvaṁ na syāt | mataṁ tu me [bhā.pu. 3.16.29] ity atra bhagavad-icchāyās tat-kāraṇatvena sthāpitatvāt |
In this regard, the feeling of animosity (vaira-bhāva) toward Bhagavān acquired by Jaya and Vijaya was certainly not brought about by the [curse of the] sages [the Kumāras] because the will of Bhagavān has been determined as the cause in this matter by His own statement: “Although competent to counteract the brāhmaṇas’ curse, I do not wish to do so. Rather, it meets with My approval”.
He cites a verse to support his reasoning that devotees can never deviate from bhakti —
tathā na te mādhava tāvakāḥ kvacid bhraśyanti mārgāt tvayi baddha-sauhṛdāḥ
tvayābhiguptā vicaranti nirbhayā vināyakānīkapa-mūrdhasu prabho[And the fact that the curse of the Kumāras could not have been the cause of the fall of Jaya and Vijaya] is evidenced in the devas’ prayers to Kṛṣṇa [in Devakī’s womb]: “On the other hand, O Mādhava, Your devotees, who are bound to You by affection, never fall away from the path of auspiciousness. Protected on all sides by You, O Lord, they proceed fearlessly, placing their feet on the heads of the superintendents [devas] of all obstacles” (sb 10.2.33).
The mutual animosity between Jaya and Vijaya and Bhagavān is not real
Now, given that Jaya and Vijaya did descend into material forms and harbored extreme animosity toward Bhagavān, did they not cease to be devotees? Animosity does not fit the definition of bhakti. Furthermore, Bhagavān Himself is seen to become angered at them. Clearly, He does not appear pleased. Does this not go against the principle that a devotee can never be deviated from bhakti? Śrī Jīva Goswami’s keen analysis clarifies this question with usual precision. He writes,
nāpi sā tadīya-vaira-bhāvāya sampadyate, svecchāmayasya [bhā.pu. 10.14.2] ity-ādibhyaḥ |
Nor did Jaya and Vijaya’s feeling of animosity toward Bhagavān provoke a counter feeling of animosity in Him toward them, because He is independent in His will (svecchā-maya), as affirmed by Brahmā:
asyāpi deva vapuṣo mad-anugrahasya svecchā-mayasya na tu bhūta-mayasya ko ’pi
neśe mahi tv avasituṁ manasāntareṇa sākṣāt tavaiva kim utātma-sukhānubhūteḥ
O Lord, even I, Brahmā, with a completely stilled mind, am altogether unable to comprehend the glory of this divine form of Yours, which is present here out of Your grace upon me, self-revealed by Your own will (svecchā-mayasya), and certainly not a product of the material elements. How, then, could I possibly understand the glory of You directly (sākṣāt), whose experience of bliss stems exclusively from Your very own Self? (sb 10.14.2)
The point is that no material person holds the power to make Bhagavān angry. He is always in control of Himself. The hatred directed toward Bhagavān is never truly directed toward Him, because those who hate Him do not actually perceive Him as He is. They only get an abhāsa, or semblance of perception, as discussed here. It is therefore impossible to anger Bhagavān. This is, of course, not to say that He did not become angry and break the pot of yogurt in the famous dāma-bandhana līlā, but that anger also is to nourish bliss in Bhagavān and His devotees.
What then, about the fact that Bhagavān, as Varāha-deva, was seen to become angry at Hiraṇyākṣa and vice versa? Śrī Jīva Goswami writes that this was an ābhāsa of anger, and nothing more —
tathā hi hiraṇyākṣa-yuddhe—parānuṣaktaṁ [bhā.pu. 3.18.9] ity-ādi-padye ṭīkā ca—
pracaṇḍa-manyutvam adhikṣepādikaṁ cānukaraṇa-mātraṁ daitya-vākya-bhītānāṁ devānāṁ bhaya-nivṛttaye | vastutas tena tathānuktatvena kopādi-hetv-abhāvād ity eṣā |
karālā [bhā.pu. 3.19.8] iti padye ca iveti vastutaḥ krodhābhāvaḥ ity eṣā |
Accordingly, in Śrīdhara Svāmī’s commentary on sb 3.18.9, which concerns the battle between Hiraṇyākṣa and Varāhadeva, he writes as follows:
“The furious indignation and insulting language exhibited by Bhagavān were merely an imitative display to alleviate the fear of the devas, who were terrified by the abusive words of the daitya [Hiraṇyākṣa]. This is substantiated by the fact that, in reality, there was no valid cause that could instigate spiteful anger (kopa) [in Bhagavān] because Hiraṇyākṣa’s words were not uttered out of genuine enmity.”
And correspondingly, in commenting on sb 3.19.8, he adds: “The word iva, ‘as if ’ [in the clause, “the demon glared at Bhagavān ‘as if ’ to incinerate Him”], signifies that Hiraṇyākṣa’s wrath was not in fact real.”
By extension, the anger in all other contexts of Bhagavān’s associates toward Him is not real but merely a trace of a semblance of anger (krodha-ābhāsa-leśa), including the anger of Śrī Baladeva, Arjuna, and Nārada. He discusses this in Anuccheda 7.8.
Jaya and Vijaya’s entry into material forms is of a special type
Now, it is well known that Jaya and Vijaya took on material bodies. That must mean they identified with those bodies and performed evil deeds. How could they perform such acts which are opposed in their very constitution to bhakti? Here, Śrī Jīva Goswami offers a startling piece of insight. He writes —
tata evam arthāpatti-labdhaṁ sarva-bhakta-sukhada-śrī-bhagavad-abhimata-yuddha-kautukādi-sampādanārthaṁ vaira-bhāvātmaka-māyikopādhiṁ svābhāvikāṇimādi-siddhikena śuddha-sattvātmaka-sva-vigraheṇa praviśya
Thus in the manner discussed above, by the logic that no other explanation is tenable (arthāpatti-pramāṇa) [to account for the appearance of vaira-bhāva in Bhagavān’s eternal associates], the following is to be concluded. In order to make possible the sportive combat (yuddha-kautuka) desired by Śrī Bhagavān, which delights all devotees, Jaya and Vijaya entered material bodies constituted of māyika adjuncts (upādhis) and infused with inimical feelings (vaira-bhāva) via their own spiritual bodies of unalloyed being (śuddha-sattva), which were intrinsically endowed with metanormal powers such as atomicity (aṇimā).
Jaya and Vijaya entered the material bodies by virtue of their aṇimā-siddhi, which allowed their spiritual body to become minute. They entered the material bodies while being in their spiritual bodies! Thus, they were never devoid of prema for Bhagavān. The material bodies were programmed with a sense of extreme enmity for Bhagavān, and therefore the bodies functioned to hate Bhagavān. But, Jaya and Vijaya did not identify with those bodies. How then did the material bodies function? Śrī Jīva Goswami replies —
sānnidhyena cetanīkṛtya ca vilīya sthitāyā api bhakti-vāsanāyāḥ prabhāvena tatrānāviṣṭāv eva tiṣṭhataḥ |
Then, animating the māyika bodies by mere proximity, they remained self-situated without becoming involved with them (tatra anāviṣṭāv eva). This was due to the influence of their prior innate dispositions (vāsanās) in regard to bhakti, even though the latter remained concealed at that time.
The bodies were animated due to their mere proximity and not because they identified with them. Their bhakti remained untouched. In this way, everything is reconciled!
He concludes —
ato vaira-bhāva-ja-smaraṇena vaira-bhāvo’pagata ity ubhayam api bāhyam | etad abhipretyaiva śrī-vaikuṇṭhenāpy uktam—yātaṁ mā bhaiṣṭam astu śam [bhā.pu. 3.16.29] iti |
Additionally, Jaya and Vijaya’s feeling of animosity (vairabhāva) was removed by the recollection of Bhagavān that was born of the same animosity [rooted in their māyika bodies]. Consequently, both their animosity and its removal were external [i.e., related only to their māyika bodies and not to their spiritual bodies]. It was with this in mind that Bhagavān Viṣṇu Himself pacified them with these words: “You must now leave this place. Fear not, and may peace attend you” (sb 3.16.29).
We see the true meaning, then, of Bhagavān’s words: “yātaṁ mā bhaiṣṭam astu śam, fear not, and may peace attend you”. They remained in their spiritual identities, established in bliss, while only the material bodies functioned to hate Bhagavān.
Summary
Jaya and Vijaya descended not because of the Kumarās’ curse but by the will of Bhagavān.
The mutual animosity between Jaya and Vijaya and Bhagavān is not real but an ābhāsa of enmity
Jaya and Vijaya entered the material bodies without identifying with them
They entered those bodies while being in their spiritual bodies by virtue of the aṇimā siddhi
Leave a Reply