Ajamila

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Bhagavata Purana

Ajamila is the main character of a story in canto 6 of the Bhagavata Purana. In Hinduism, the story of Ajamila is used to illustrate that by uttering God's divine name, there is hope for even the sinful to be redeemed from their propensity to commit sins.

Ajamila was born in a noble Brahmin family and was a resident of Kanyakubja city (modern-day Kannauj district of Uttar Pradesh). He was a pious, virtuous, intelligent and a devotee of Vishnu. This obedient son of his parents studied the Vedas and scriptures till his teenage years. As soon as he entered puberty, one day such an incident happened to him that his whole life changed. On the orders of his father, Ajamila was returning one day with the best fruits and flowers from the forest for worship. On the way, he saw a beautiful girl with a tribal man in a garden. Attracted with the beauty of that prostitute lady he could not control his mind. Ajamila's conscience was corrupted. He went to the prostitute. Impressed by the misdeeds of that unchaste woman, he even forgot his wife and after abandoning her, he started living with that prostitute. Ajamila was completely under the influence of bad company. Now Ajamila's work was either by justice-injustice, earning money in any way and nurturing the prostitute. He had no hesitation in bringing wealth by robbing other creatures. Gradually, he became old while earning his sins. He had ten children from a prostitute. (It is said in some other tales that Ajamila, who had become a complete vicious person, was fascinated by his young daughter and they both had three sons).

One day some saints came to Ajamila's house. Due to Ajamila’s past good nature, he gave hospitality to the saints. Ajamila prepared food with reverence and fed the saints. Saints started bhajan at night, Ajamila also participated in the chanting. Ajamila's tears kept flowing with remorse at the time of bhajan. While leaving, the saints asked to name their younger son as Narayan. On their request, Ajamila named his younger son as 'Narayan'.

Ajamila was very much attached to Narayan. Most of the time was now spent in the pampering of that child. After all, death does not leave anyone! The time of Ajamila's death also came. The Yamadutas (order-carriers of Yamaraja, the god of death), with a noose in their hands, came to pick him up. Greatly frightened, he called out to his son, Narayana. Hearing the name of their lord invoked, Vishnudutas, the order-carriers of Lord Vishnu immediately reached Ajamila to rescue him from the clutches of hell. The Vishnudutas and the Yamadutas engaged in a dialogue regarding the nature of righteousness and punishment. The Vishnudutas explained that the Shastras state that the mere utterance or the recitation of the name of Vishnu, Na-Ra-Ya-Na, even if taken to denote another person, or in a friendly joke, or as an insertion during the recitation of a song annihilates all the sins of the one who utters it. Yamadutas! Just as fire is consumed by the fuel knowingly or unknowingly, similarly, knowingly or unknowingly chanting the names of the Lord, all the sins of a man are burnt to ashes. The sinner Ajamila, by the utterance of God’s name, received the grace of God and Ajamila became worthy for the heavenly abode.

Spiritual Significance

Baba always says in the Murali that one should never become like an Ajamila. Kind-hearted Shiv Baba incarnated onto this earth to give fruition even to the sinful souls like Ajamila, tough mentality and dull headed people. This has been symbolised in the Bhakti cult in the form of doing Puja to Lord Shiva with all kinds of flowers, which means that Baba accepts everybody as his sons however they may be. Ajamila's story tells us about the power that resides in the chanting of God's name. Ajamila could claim the heavenly status by chanting the God's name in his final stage. Ajamila could get heavenly status but could not get higher status because he remembered only at his last moment. Unlimited power is there in the remembrance of God. How great and miracle can happen if one remembers God in each breath.

Source : Murli Shabdavali