19820903 Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 10.8.42

The following is a class given by His Holiness Jayapatākā Swami Mahārāja on September 03, 1982 in Murāri Sevaka Farm in Mulberry Tennessee. The class begins with Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam Canto 10 Chapter 8 Text 42.

ahaṁ mamāsau patir eṣa me suto
vrajeśvarasyākhila-vittapā satī
gopyaś ca gopāḥ saha-godhanāś ca me
yan-māyayetthaṁ kumatiḥ sa me gatiḥ

Translation by Śrīla Prabhupāda: It is by the influence of the Supreme Lord’s māyā that I am wrongly thinking that Nanda Mahārāja is my husband, that Kṛṣṇa is my son, and that because I am the queen of Nanda Mahārāja, all the wealth of cows and calves are my possessions and all the cowherd men and their wives are my subjects. Actually, I also am eternally subordinate to the Supreme Lord. He is my ultimate shelter.

*Translation with repetition*

Purport by Śrīla Prabhupāda: Following in the footsteps of mother Yaśodā, everyone should follow this mentality of renunciation. Whatever wealth, opulence or whatever else we may possess belongs not to us but to the Supreme Personality of Godhead, who is the ultimate shelter of everyone and the ultimate owner of everything. As stated by the Lord Himself in Bhagavad-gītā (5.29):

bhoktāraṁ yajña-tapasāṁ 
sarva-loka-maheśvaram 
suhṛdaṁ sarva-bhūtānāṁ 
jñātvā māṁ śāntim ṛcchati

“The sages, knowing Me as the ultimate purpose of all sacrifices and austerities, the Supreme Lord of all planets and demigods and the benefactor and well-wisher of all living entities, attain peace from the pangs of material miseries.”

We should not be proud of our possessions. As expressed by mother Yaśodā herein, “I am not the owner of possessions, the opulent wife of Nanda Mahārāja. The estate, the possessions, the cows and calves and the subjects like the gopīs and cowherd men are all given to me.” One should give up thinking of “my possessions, my son and my husband” (janasya moho ‘yam ahaṁ mameti). Nothing belongs to anyone but the Supreme Lord. Only because of illusion do we wrongly think, “I am existing” or “Everything belongs to me.” Thus mother Yaśodā completely surrendered unto the Supreme Lord. For the moment, she was rather disappointed, thinking, “My endeavors to protect my son by charity and other auspicious activities are useless. The Supreme Lord has given me many things, but unless He takes charge of everything, there is no assurance of protection. I must therefore ultimately seek shelter of the Supreme Personality of Godhead.” As stated by Prahlāda Mahārāja (Bhāg. 7.9.19), bālasya neha śaraṇaṁ pitarau nṛsiṁha: a father and mother cannot ultimately take care of their children. Ato gṛha-kṣetra-sutāpta-vittair janasya moho ‘yam ahaṁ mameti (Bhāg. 5.5.8). One’s land, home, wealth, and all of one’s possessions belong to the Supreme Personality of Godhead, although we wrongly think, “I am this” and “These things are mine.”

Thus end the purport, the Bhaktivedanta purport to text 42, chapter 8 of the Canto 10 of the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam on “The Lord Kṛṣṇa shows the universal form”.

Jayapatākā Swami: Śrīla Prabhupāda kī!

Devotees: Jaya!

Jayapatākā Swami: Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam kī!

Devotees: Jaya!

Jayapatākā Swami: Nitāi Gauracandra kī!

Devotees: Jaya!

Jayapatākā Swami: So today, mother Yaśodā is understanding the truth about existence. But because she is such an exalted devotee, Yogamāyā or the internal potency of Kṛṣṇa again puts her into that relationship with Kṛṣṇa and she forgets. Her forgetfulness and our forgetfulness are different.

We forget out of māyā, external energy, material energy, we start to think this is mine, this is my wife, this is my mother, this is my son, this is my daughter, this is my… and then we start to serve our possessions – so called possessions. Then we forget that ultimately, we are loaned everything by Kṛṣṇa. At any moment He can take us or those things away. Where is the question of possessing? So actually, one should realize that the Lord Himself is the sole possessor. We are simply caretakers at best.

So, Śrīla Prabhupāda, he sometime gave the example that a parent may think that “I will protect my son or daughter.” But we may take them to the hospital when they are sick, but there is no assurance that we will be able to actually help them. Even the doctor, he cannot assure that he is going to help.

There was like a John Wayne type famous hero of the screen in Bengal. I think I might have told this before. He suddenly got some disease, and he called his doctor. The doctor came and said, “Actually your condition is extremely critical. In fact, I don’t see any hope for you”. So, he grabbed his doctor’s hand and he said, “Doctor, doctor!” He was a friend, so he used to call him by his first name, “Sudhir, you are like my brother. Save me, save me, I want to live”. Then as he is saying grabbing his doctor’s hand, he breathed his last.

So, because he was such a famous person, the newspaper men came. We are all there. They asked the doctor, “So doctor, while your patient was grabbing you by the arm and he died, now what do you feel about that? And what do you have to say? Isn’t this embarrassing for you?” (Devotees laugh) These newspaper men are something else! So, the doctor said, “Well, actually, this isn’t the first time. Many times, he had close calls and he grabbed me, requested me to help him and every time I helped him. But only this one time I failed.” [laughter]

So of course, this reminds me that there is a type of competition between the worshippers of śakti, of nature. There is a special nature-worship sect in India, where they worship the deity of the material energy, the material nature. And although the devotees of the Supreme Lord also respect the material nature as being a very confidential servitor of the Supreme Lord, but they always are trying to establish that she is actually independent, and she is at equal or greater status than Kṛṣṇa.

Generally speaking, those persons who are demonically motivated, they prefer this idea because Kṛṣṇa, He doesn’t give any boon. He only gives a boon which is ultimately good for His devotee. But because the material nature, mother Durgā, is habituated to giving anything that her devotee asks for, if she is satisfied, if she wants to. So, if they ask even for some incredible power just like Lord Śiva, one devotee asked one time for the power that anybody’s head he touches, that the head would disappear. So obviously that’s not going to do much good for anybody unless they wanted to have their head disappear – most people don’t. So, but still he gave that boon while Kṛṣṇa generally would not give such a boon, unless it was ultimately going to be good for a person or for His purpose. So, these are devotees of mother Durgā.

We were having argument, and they were saying that “Actually Rāma is not the real hero of the Rāmāyaṇa.” Their proposal is, “Actually Rāvaṇa is the hero. He worshipped Durgā.”

“How is Rāvaṇa the hero? He was killed by Rāma. He was a demon.”

He said, “Yes, but look at - first of all he had conquered all the kings, then he even stole Rāma’s wife, he held back Rāma in so many battles, it was only one time that he was defeated.” [laughter]

Of course, that one time was the fatal blow. Just like in boxing or something, you can technically win in every round but in the tenth round if he (poghh) knocks you out that means you lost the match. So actually Kṛṣṇa, He sometimes plays when He comes down and He allows the demons to survive over a few tests, but ultimately, He is always victorious in subduing the demoniac, atheistic influences.

So, like this the demons they always are liking to think that they are actually in charge, they are on top, they are controlling. This controlling aspect is very powerful in the material world. Therefore, even the other processes of spiritual realization where to some extent one can still maintain that type of controlling, superiority complex, are considered to be less advanced, because they are still filled with contamination of material influence. Therefore, the practitioners are somewhat more or less depending on their particular situation, they are also filled with anxieties.

One is practicing fruitive activities, he is fully in the enjoying spirit that, “I will work, and I will get the fruit of my labor. I will enjoy that.” Then in the secondary stage one feels that “Well I will, going to figure out what is this, the difference between matter and spirit, who I am? I am going to figure it out with my brain, I am going to think and meditate and find it out. And then when I realize my spiritual nature by this thought process, by this mental speculation, by my study of the Vedas, then I will be God. Then I will be realized.”

So, they are also – everything is, “I am going to do this, and I am going to do…” The yogīs, by controlling their breathing, by doing yogāsanas, the mystic yogīs, they also have this idea: “I” I am now going to control now my senses, I am going to control my breathing, I am going to control the mind, I am going to stop the process of thinking, go into samādhi. Like this, they have their, everything is based upon their own personal endeavor. Therefore, Lord Caitanya said, bhukti-mukti-siddhi-kāmī—sakali ‘aśānta’

But the devotees, the bhakti-yogīs, the yogīs of devotion, they actually surrender to the Lord, they understand that ultimately all thinking, willing, feeling prowess can ultimately be successful only if He grants His permission. Therefore, this idea of personal potency being the driving and deciding factors is given up by the devotees. They realize that, that desire to achieve is only one aspect. Ultimately the Lord’s favor, His blessing has to also be there. So, that is actually the deciding issue.

So therefore, the devotee becomes peaceful when realizing that simply if I perform my service to Kṛṣṇa, dependent on His mercy, by His mercy I will be successful, and He will never allow me to go astray if I simply rely upon Him. So actually, this controlling spirit is a type of masculine spirit.

That is why in the spiritual realm it is described that, although many devotees have, some have male forms, and some have apparently female forms, but in the sense, everyone is prakṛti or enjoyed except for Kṛṣṇa, He is the only enjoyer. So, in that sense of enjoyed and enjoyer, Kṛṣṇa is the only male and everyone else is female, in the sense that the definition of the female being enjoyed. Although some are having male bodies, and some are having female - not bodies but forms, male and female forms depending on their service. Some may be the father or Kṛṣṇa may be his friend. But they are all, His friend, His father - having these different relationships for His enjoyment. Therefore, in that sense He is the only enjoyer and everyone else is enjoyed.

In this material world everyone is sick. They are mentally diseased, spiritually diseased. Because in this world everyone, whether in a male body or in a female body, they want to be the enjoyer. They want to enjoy everything. Therefore, even though the female may sometimes accept some subordinate role but ultimately all the calculations are whether in the ultimate issue that person will get the things that they want to enjoy. If they get the objects of their enjoyment, then they are satisfied. If they don’t get the objects of their enjoyment they are dissatisfied. So, the actual serving mood is at best superficial.

Nowadays the feminist movement has revealed the real nature that is underlying the little bit of serving mood that was showing there they had discarded with that and then just kept out the raw enjoying mood that we can enjoy just like the men, you see, showing the raw materialistic mentality of simply enjoying. That was the one advantage that the women had in spiritual life was that they had a serving mood.

So even though underlying was an enjoying motive possibly, but because of their subordinate, humble attitude, which was shyness, which is ingrown in women naturally by nature, they are able to bow down before God to... That is why you see in most of the churches, women are going more, most of the temples, women are going more. Even in India, you will find that. Generally, women are coming more, they are more humble, they can come before God. Sometimes men are too proud, they don’t want to bow down to everyone, anyone, even God. So, of course, even now that is being, whatever advantage the women had, in that regard, there is also a movement to destroy that. Everyone should be equal enjoyers. But this is the complete opposite of spiritual life.

In fact, like Mahārāja Pratāparudra, Gajapati, the King of Orissa, when he became a devotee of Lord Caitanya – which is, of course Lord Caitanya’s movement is the pure devotional movement. Everyone takes on the enjoyed that my whole purpose is to be enjoyed by God. Whatever I do should be for His pleasure. Nothing should be for my personal sense gratification, for my personal motive. Everything I do should be for His pleasure. If He is pleased spiritually, because I am part of Him, I should accept that internal pleasure as my real pleasure. The external happiness coming from senses I should not take that as my objective. So Mahārāja Pratāparudra, he took that attitude.

So then sometimes some of the campaigns to defeat other kingdoms, he did not undertake, he did not think well, it is not particularly pleasing to Kṛṣṇa, it is an unnecessary risk or something. For some reason because he became a devotee of Lord Caitanya, they criticized, “Well, now you have become less masculine, now you have become less warring, violent. Therefore, you are not a suitable king”. And so other kings tried to attack him. They thought, “Well, now he is a devotee of Lord Caitanya, that means that he will become more nonviolent, less aggressive”. But no one was able to defeat Mahārāja Pratāparudra. He kept his kingdom intact.

In fact, to the whole Moghul attack of India, Orissa was the only place which (Aside: Am I correct?), Orissa was never taken over by the Mughals. Never. Everywhere else the Mohammedan attackers from Arabia and Persia, the barbarians, they came in and for some period or other they were able to rule, except for Orissa and may be a few other isolated places, they were not able to gain power there. So actually, there is a whole change of mentality, that is why we say in Kṛṣṇa consciousness, external change is not so important, what is important is the internal change.

Everyone in the material world is here, because we are trying to usurp God’s position. In the spiritual world, where everyone is in harmony with God, everyone is happy, because they just accept, “You are the in charge. You are everything, we are only subordinate to You.” Therefore, He is the one controller and everyone else is happy to be controlled. And this is a perfect relationship, and everyone is happy. Therefore, that place is called Vaikuṇṭha – no anxiety, no problem.

But this world are, for the renegades. Everyone has to be in that position willingly. If you want to not subordinate yourself to God, then you are placed in this world where you can act as a criminal and you can try to be yourself like a mini-God. Now you can increase your controlling propensity up to the maximum. You can actually become the controller of the whole universe. You can become the king of the whole heavenly kingdom like Indra or you can become a controller like Brahmā. But the higher you want to go, ultimately then again you have to also at least give some superficial subordination to God that, “I want to control but with under Your ultimate supervision and under Your direction, along with Your plan.” They offer some homage to God just to get up to that position.

Ultimately the purely demoniac people simply want to lord it over and don’t want to follow God’s law at all, Kṛṣṇa’s law at all. They can’t achieve that supreme position, at best they can only achieve for a very short time, before they are removed, because a demon who doesn’t respect Kṛṣṇa at all, he doesn’t respect Kṛṣṇa’s parts and parcels, all the living entities. And so, what happens is they are able to commit so much violence on others. They can slaughter animals, they can slaughter humans, they can kill without any sense, whatever they need to gain their objective of power of control. Sometimes they will amass together as a country and whatever is good for their country’s interest, those demons they can crush anyone else without a second thought, for the interest of they and their subjects of their country. So, these are all types of demoniac influence.

We have seen that same in the history of Vedas, some demons, they would take power of kingdoms, they would take power of planets, they would take power of the solar systems. In the Vedas, they have the whole history of solar systems where they, certain demons would take power of an entire solar system or practically a major part of the universe and there would be intergalactic battles. All these things are there in the Vedas.

How people would travel from different planets, how even sometimes residents of this planet would be conscripted, would be requested to fight on behalf of the good forces of the higher demigods against the demons of other planets. And then while this fight is going on, finally when the demons are defeated, those kings from this earth would come back here and find that because they were in the higher planetary systems, their longevity had increased. That a whole different time period was going on, that here their wife and children, in fact their whole kingdoms had already gone under thousands and hundreds, and thousands of years had gone by in a short-few years of the upper planetary systems,the time they spent there. They came back. Everything was different. People had become smaller, ages had changed. You see. Mucukunda, it happened to him. So, these types of things are there in the Vedas, they may be very astonishing for the modern readers to read, almost sound like a type of science fiction.

You see, truth is stranger than fact. What the actual truth is, is very easy to understand if one wants to go into it. What is the relationship between different planets and the science fiction writers? They are agitating the peoples’ minds with so many ideas. But they always take what we know today, and they just add a little bit of color to it and try to make it a little more fantastic.

As one goes into the higher planetary, higher realms of existence, one doesn’t have to use all these gross machines. People are driving along with their petroleum, kerosene, and hydrogen projected rockets. Why do you think they do not have more subtle machines and more subtle situations in higher existence? They are able to control mind and control matter by subtle vibrations known as mantras. They fight wars with mantras and with these vibrations. These vibrations and various austerities by the warriors are able to create victory or defeat for their opponent. And use and doing this, some are taking shelter of the Supreme Lord, and some are taking shelter of various demigods, some are taking shelter of their austerities, like this, things are going on. And there is different struggle between good and bad forces in the universe. But the devotees of Kṛṣṇa, they are beyond this good and bad.

Prabhupāda, one day, we were riding out to Māyāpur or maybe it was from Māyāpur and there was Kṛṣṇa Balarāma. He said, “In this world, in this universe sometimes the good is there, sometimes the bad. Sometimes the good is defeating the bad and sometimes the evil is defeating the good. This struggle is always going on. Kṛṣṇa Balarāma, They are neutral. They are neither for the good nor for the bad, as both the good and the bad have taken independent position for Them. So according to their karma, according to their situation, Kṛṣṇa Balarāma sometimes allow the evil to overcome. (Evil simply means that they want to enjoy without any consideration of others, without any consideration of Kṛṣṇa. And the good means, all right, they want to also enjoy, but in some consideration of what ultimately Kṛṣṇa wants.) So therefore, the other living entities are protected. But actually, Kṛṣṇa Balarāma, He is giving them the results because the evil are exploiting, they are getting more bad karma, therefore they are quickly defeated. Because the good are more subordinate to Kṛṣṇa, they are protected by that subordination to Kṛṣṇa.”

But then Prabhupāda explained that “The devotees, just like Kṛṣṇa Balarāma, they are neither for the good nor for the evil. They are also aloof. They are also transcendental.” So, in advancing in spiritual life, ultimately one has to get rid of this enjoying mood. bhoktāraṁ yajña-tapasāṁ sarva-loka-maheśvaram - The only enjoyer of all austerities, all sacrifices, all activities, is the Lord of the whole universe is Kṛṣṇa. jñātvā māṁ śāntim ṛcchati. He is the well-wisher of everyone. suhṛdaṁ sarva-bhūtānāṁ - He said, “I am the well-wisher of all living entities.” sarva-bhūtānāṁ - that means evil as well as good.

Prabhupāda said, “You don’t know how difficult Kṛṣṇa’s position is. The thief is praying that, ‘God today allow me to go out and break in the house and steal the gold and get out without being caught by the police.’ And the householder is praying, ‘God please help me that I won’t be robbed by any thief.’ Then who does He listen to?”

The deer is praying that, “God please protect me, I don’t get eaten by a tiger”. The tiger is praying, “I am hungry God, give me some food, I want to eat a deer.” Right?! So, His position is very critical. So naturally He has to take the side to some extent of, of the people who are protective, asking for protection. At the same time, the tiger has to eat, for instance. So, what He does is, the tiger because his is a more violent, violent existence, they have to go hungry for a long time. Sometimes they don’t eat for one week, ten days, two weeks. And along with the tiger, I mean, He has to give a chance to the tiger to eat also.

So, what He does is there is a small animal, some type of rodent, that always follows, like a raccoon or something, very fast. It follows along with the tiger. And wherever the tiger goes, just when it is about to jump on the deer or other animal waiting at the water hole or something, that little like guinea pig calls out, “gyea gyea gyea gyea gyea gyea” [laughter] makes a squeaking noise. Nyeu nyeu… It’s a very high sound. And then at that time the deer; if the deer that… That is the only warning Kṛṣṇa is giving. That animal is so small that the tiger can’t get it. He would like to just cream it [laughter]. But it goes into holes and the tiger can’t get that animal.

And if the deer is a little smart, “What’s that?!” And chookh! It would take off! Then the tiger won’t get him. But if he is a little spaced out, [laughter] little negligent, careless, and think, “Oh, I am thirsty. Let me drink this water”, that will be the last drink. At that time the tiger knows this is the last chance… Jhok! And he jumps. Just a split second, chance is given.

Prabhupāda also gave, just like the mosquito, mosquito’s only business is suck your blood. And everyone is praying that God please don’t let me be bit by these terrible mosquitoes. So, what to do? Both creatures are there. So, the first thing is always the mosquito, just so you know, “Yown yown yown” [laughter] by the ear, it comes. That is giving you the warning, here I am! [laughter] This is Kṛṣṇa’s favor to you. You know that all right, they are there. You have to take the precaution now. Put on your off or whatever, mosquito net.

So, in the material world because ultimately everyone is working more or less for their own enjoyment, therefore Kṛṣṇa has to take the neutral position. But the pure devotee, he is given up all personal considerations. And “Sir that”, “Lord Kṛṣṇa, I am simply surrendered unto You. Now I don’t want to do anything that simply for my own selfish interest because I know that simply... any selfish act I do, any, particularly materially motivated act, is not actually my self-interest. I will simply be bound by the reaction to that. Cause and effect – whatever act I do, I will simply get the reaction. So, I want to not do anything that is not pleasing to you. I know whatever will be pleasing to you will also be for my best self-interest.”

So [I have] Kṛṣṇa does not want that people should, they should be unhappy in anyway; rather He wants their complete happiness. We don’t know how to be happy in this material world because we don’t know all the stringent laws. We try in one way to be happy, we transgress certain subtle laws, again we are crushed. ye yathā māṁ prapadyante tāṁs tathaiva bhajāmy aham - According to how we act, we have to reap. As you sow, so shall you reap.

Same is there in the Bible as in the Vedas. Law of Karma is described, what’s it – eye for an eye, tooth for a tooth. It is simply that the Christians don’t even believe what the Bible says, you know – a lot of them, that is the unfortunate thing. If you really went into the Bible, you would find that 90% of it is already covered in the Vedas, 10% of it might be some misinterpretation that was put in, in all the translations of the Bible. And of course, the Vedas have an unlimited greater source of knowledge, being voluminous works that are the origin of all religions of the world, and they are the oldest.

So, just as we say, as you sow, so shall you reap. Law of karma is there exactly whatever you do, you have to accept the reaction for that, in this life or in the future life. How you lead your life, that will dictate how you desire, that will dictate how, what future birth you will get. If you are fully dedicated to go back to God, you go back to Him; you don’t have to take birth again, you go back to His spiritual kingdom. There one has to, therefore in this life, train! One has to train oneself to be Kṛṣṇa conscious, to be God conscious, to be in harmony with Kṛṣṇa. Then one is happy.

In one’s family life, one should raise children to be Kṛṣṇa conscious. If you raise the children to be something else, then you can’t expect that you will be relieved of the responsibility for the material activities. If one eats food offered to Kṛṣṇa, there is no reaction. If you eat food for your own sense gratification, then you are responsible.

So here, mother Yaśodā is feeling, of course she never did anything in her whole existence which wasn’t exactly directly for Kṛṣṇa. Because she is so fortunate, she had Kṛṣṇa as her son and she did everything for her son. That is the perfection. Is that, as a result of serving Kṛṣṇa in this world, we can get Kṛṣṇa as our friend, or as our son and at that time by a higher type of māyā, called Yogamāyā, we think that Kṛṣṇa is my best friend, therefore we do everything for our best friend. We think, “Kṛṣṇa is my son or my master,” and we do everything for His interest, even having a direct relationship that we can relate with, so it makes it so much more perfect and intimate. We are having a personal relationship, saying Kṛṣṇa is my lover, is my son, is my friend or is my master, who is the object of my worship. So, in this way everything becomes very spontaneous and perfect.

Even in this material world, we approach Kṛṣṇa, “He is my master.” We act in that way; that this whole world is Kṛṣṇa’s, nothing is ours. Even if a devotee tries to make progress, there are so many subtle attachments which again can come back and delude us. One may think that let me enjoy, get some quick money by doing some illegal deal, you see. That making money by any illegal means is another type of subtle illusion. Even a person’s intention I want to serve Kṛṣṇa, give me money for Kṛṣṇa, I will do something illegal, make some quick money, then one again is getting subtly, these are all types of unwanted anarthas one gets entangled again. One should just straightforwardly deal. Sometimes devotees, they try to become devotees, they go out and do something illegal and they get in difficulty, because Kṛṣṇa doesn’t want. One can ultimately get more material success than what one’s karma is, if Kṛṣṇa wants. But if one tries by illegal method, this and that, there is no shortcuts.

Ultimately one would get even by doing a legal thing, if one is supposed to get, in terms of Kṛṣṇa consciousness. And if you do something illegal, then it becomes a whole gamble. Instead of thinking of Kṛṣṇa one is always thinking whether I will get caught, whether I will succeed, this and that. And it becomes a whole type of gambling, whole type of fruitive activity, even though it is supposed to ultimately be for Kṛṣṇa. Kṛṣṇa doesn’t want that. There is enough anxiety even in directly doing Kṛṣṇa’s service for the neophyte. That if it is directly required by Kṛṣṇa’s purifying, one starts to do without any authorization of the guru, then it becomes more and more precarious.

So how to train oneself to become subordinate to Kṛṣṇa? There are many ways given. The first thing is one should train oneself to be subordinate to Kṛṣṇa by being submissive to the spiritual master. That one realizes my own mind, my own intelligence is not sufficient to reach me to Kṛṣṇa. I need the guidance of someone who is already in touch with Kṛṣṇa through the disciplic succession.

tad viddhi praṇipātena 
paripraśnena sevayā 
upadekṣyanti te jñānaṁ 
jñāninas tattva-darśinaḥ
(Bg 4.34)

That I should approach him, ask questions, serve, then ask questions, surrender. In this way, I can understand the truth. Unless one is going to accept everything that the spiritual master says as the advice of Kṛṣṇa, and follow it submissively, there is no need of having a spiritual master. When one contemplates taking initiation, then one should already be at the stage that they have complete faith that whatever the spiritual master advises me will be to my ultimate welfare. And that is as good as Kṛṣṇa giving me advice, because the spiritual master is directly in touch with Kṛṣṇa through the disciplic succession. He knows what is the truth, therefore whatever he advises I should simply do it. This is a very… Of course, someone will say, “Well, that seems to be too much. Who can accept such a…” So then, don’t take initiation.

Prabhupāda never said that to stay in our movement, one has to take initiation. No, you can stay, chant Hare Kṛṣṇa in the movement or in your house without taking initiation. But when one takes initiation that means that all right, now, I am taking a spiritual master so I can go back to Godhead. Never mind being a pure devotee. A pure devotee is so exalted, we cannot think of being a pure devotee. Simply following with absolute faith, the order of guru. Pure devotee means we don’t even think not to follow Kṛṣṇa. Our mind does not even think of enjoying material life. If the mind comes up with an idea, we reject it immediately. The mind is so trained, or it’s completely purified, doesn’t even think at all anything that is not in devotional service. Even if our mind is rebelling, even if our mind is pulling at the, at the bridle, to go here and there and follow the senses, even if we are not pure, but we take spiritual master that he guides us, what is good for us. What if you take poison? Then because we desire, we say “No, I will take poison any way.” Then what is the use of taking a guru, taking a spiritual master?

A spiritual master means that he is responsible. Before Kṛṣṇa, he has taken responsibility, “I will guide this disciple to go back to Godhead, to go back to You.” And the disciple also promised to Kṛṣṇa that, “Now I am accepting this spiritual master to guide me to go back to You. Whatever he says I am accepting as good as You saying. Whatever service I am doing to him, You should kindly accept it as service unto You.” Then if one has a spiritual master and not willing to follow the instructions, not willing to serve, not willing to accept, then where is the protection? Then there is no protection.

Spiritual master means completely safe, completely safe, free of any anxiety. Without spiritual master, one is always in anxiety – what to do? What to do next? Will this be for my good? Will this bring the thing I want? When one has spiritual master, there is no anxiety. He knows what is good, what is not good. So certainly, a tremendous amount of confidence has to be built up before one accepts a spiritual master. It shouldn’t at all be done whimsically.

Generally, someone may meet many people who help one along the way, who guide one. The first person one meets is known as the, and who directs one to Kṛṣṇa consciousness is also known as the spiritual master who shows the way. Then there are spiritual masters who guide one, who give one absolute instructions; they are known as instructing spiritual masters. And then one who is consistently giving good instruction, generally that person is accepted as one’s initiating spiritual master because he is already shown, that spiritual master has already shown, through practical instruction and association that not only does he have this sincere desire of the disciple in heart – that a mother and father may also have a sincere desire, but they may not know the truth – but he also knows the truth, he knows how to lead the disciple out of the material illusion. The disciple by following those instructions can practically see.

So, we have to give up the enjoying mood. It means a type of … That doesn’t mean that the people become effeminate. But rather, there is a different type of attitude, rather than becoming simply selfishly, sensuously motivated, one becomes spiritually motivated. Whether one’s personality may be of any frame, personality may be of any particular nature, but the ultimate objective becomes put in such a focus that one simply takes on surrendered attitude to Kṛṣṇa. And as soon as one takes the shelter of Kṛṣṇa, He protects one from the reactions of karma. One can immediately feel relief.

And when one is still maintaining that independent mood, separatist mood, that means the devotional service either in the mood of goodness, passion or ignorance, one won’t feel that relief. There will always be some anxiety. They wonder, “Why I am not being satisfied by my devotional service?” Because they haven’t surrendered. Although they are performing some devotional service, which they get credit for, it is mixed with mode of goodness, passion or ignorance.

Sometimes people come to Kṛṣṇa to get money. Sometimes they come when they are in distress. They want to get relief from their problems. Sometimes they approach Kṛṣṇa, they are inquisitive. Even sometimes people come as… Policemen come; they are inquisitive to find out what is going on here. Is there any illegal activity going on? Some of those policemen who come and lived in the temple, they became so happy by being with the devotees, later on they also became devotees. Of course, that is often… they don’t actually listen, so sometimes… but if they actually listen and take the association, their heart can also be changed. But if they put on a show and don’t actually listen, this is quite a dangerous arrangement here. You see. Then it is difficult for them if they don’t actually hear, give their real, mind to listen, to hear.

The whole basis of Kṛṣṇa consciousness is one will feel satisfied, feel happy, then one can know that the process is working. Just like if one’s sick, you take the medicine, you will feel relief. We are all sick in the material world because we are all trying to imitate the Supreme Lord by lording it over the material nature. When we change our mental attitude and we take a serving attitude, how to serve others through serving Kṛṣṇa, how to serve the material nature by engaging the material nature in the service of… ultimately everything is directed to the service and pleasure of Kṛṣṇa. Then one feels satisfied, because it is our natural position, we are part of God. We are supposed to serve the whole. Just like this hand is part of the body; it serves the whole body. It’s very natural. Doesn’t require personality change. Requires mental… doesn’t even require much adjustment. Simply slight adjustment is needed in our attitude, our outlook.

Instead of seeing the world as, “Here’s the domain for me now to enjoy and lord it over, we see that here is the field of my activities, this is the field that I can now use all these energies that are also Kṛṣṇa’s energies in His service and they are via media for me to go back to God, go back to the spiritual world. If I try to enjoy them, I will become entangled. If I try to utilize them in the service of Kṛṣṇa, I will become liberated.

jaya śrī-kṛṣṇa-caitanya prabhu-nityānanda 
śrī-advaita gadādhara śrīvāsādi-gaura-bhakta-vṛnda

Hare Kṛṣṇa Hare Kṛṣṇa
Kṛṣṇa Kṛṣṇa Hare Hare 
Hare Rāma Hare Rāma
Rāma Rāma Hare Hare

Are there any questions? Yes.

Question: When a living entity falls from the spiritual world, is his first body human?

Jayapatākā Swami: Sometimes they come as first body as Brahmā. Human is the first birth that you get a chance to go back. Brahma at the end of the universe, can go right back. Unless he becomes materialistic, then from Brahmā they can work their way down to a bug or one can be as human. That will depend. It’s not a… No one can say, it is not any, you will find some different evidences in the Vedas.

Coming as a Brahmā or coming as a human, that is not... that may vary from case to case. We found that Jaya, Vijaya, they came as demons. Each person, why they are here, why, no one can say exactly. Everyone is an individual eternally. And the only way we will know the exact reason how we got into this material world is when we ultimately again we get our liberation. This is like a dreaming state. Right now, we are locked into the dream and the whole endeavor is to get out of the dream, to wake up. So, once we… It’s just like someone is in a kind of coma. And in the coma, he is dreaming so many things. And then in that dream, he is going from one dream and then he jumps out and goes to another dream, until finally he can remember someone comes up and says, “Harry! Harry!” [laughter] And then he comes out of the dream, “Where am I? Right? Where was I?”

It’s like once you come out of this material world and you come back to your original Kṛṣṇa consciousness, it will be like, I did all those things! I was an animal, and a man, I forgot, I forgot completely about Kṛṣṇa and about my eternal spiritual nature. And just like a dream. You never want to go to sleep again, you don’t ever want to come in the material world again. The thing is one has to want to wake up. So that’s why the spiritual master is so kind. Even a person is sleeping, doesn’t want to wake up, they are calling, jīva jāgo, “Wake up, Wake up! You are not this body. You are eternal spirit soul.”

And the soul has heard so many things in its life. You are an American, you are a Bohemian, you are a hippie, you are a conservative, you are republican, you are a democrat, this that. And never even, doesn’t even come near to waking up the soul. It is just different! It’s just trying to change the structure of your dream. But when that pure devotee says, “No, you are an eternal servant of Kṛṣṇa, you are not this body”, then immediately the soul starts, it is the first time anything that was said is actually directed at the soul. It starts to move, it starts to wake up.

Then the soul starts to direct the intelligence, what is that? What is he saying? It’s shocking that the first time one hears that he is a devotee, it may even come as an intense shock. The first time the devotee is saying, is going right to the soul. They don’t even speak to the body and the mind; it is going right to the soul. Because the soul can exert its influence and can control over the mind and the body. But it has to be awakened, it is has to actually come from the soul, to act in its original, constitutional position.

So how we fell in this material world exactly? What we were before? When we wake up, when we realize our original position, then we can remember all these things. So, it is not always a stereotype. We may come first time as a Brahmā and work our way down and may come in so many ways. What we were before we came, what was our relationship with Kṛṣṇa, what was our position, how we fell down, what desire we had? - these are different in every case.

Yes.

Question: (Inaudible)

Jayapatākā Swami: When we say, “Take prasāda, you get human birth”, some people got prasāda and got liberated. So, in describing the glories of prasāda… The kṛṣṇa-prasāda, you cannot put a limit on it.

Some people by just chanting Hare Kṛṣṇa once, they got liberation like Ajāmila. Simply by chanting Hare Kṛṣṇa, more sins, sinful reactions of karma are eradicated than one can commit. At the same time someone may chant Hare Kṛṣṇa for a thousand… and then not actually go back to Kṛṣṇa. How is that possible? So, the thing is that one is not supposed to doubt that by chanting Hare Kṛṣṇa, this effect has come. That means potentially it may come for anyone. But then each person’s situation being different, that a person if he is very offensive, even they chant Hare Kṛṣṇa, take prasāda, and they offend devotees, because of those offenses, Kṛṣṇa, He may just withhold His mercy.

An offense being directly con.. An offense and sinful reaction are different – a person may be the most sinful, maybe a murderer, maybe a rapist, may be... but that is all on the material platform. That is in relation to other people’s material bodies. It is not in relation to God. So, the reaction they have to get is also material. They have to suffer materially for whatever suffering they are committing on their body and to other’s bodies. But when an offence, means directly in relation to… with God or those who are directly in relation to Him, His pure devotees; so therefore, what the... the most overpowering thing about everything is Kṛṣṇa’s mercy. That mercy can destroy all the material reactions, and just give one a clean slate, bring one back to Godhead.

But if one is directly opposing God, even that He can forgive, but sometimes if you directly offend His devotees, then Kṛṣṇa… that’s so disapproved by Him that then He may withhold His mercy to that person till he gets out of the habit of offending His devotees or whatever offense he is committing. So, in that way, if a person is offense-less, then by taking prasāda, one may even be liberated, one may even achieve Kṛṣṇa consciousness. Depending on the offenses, lack of offenses and so many conditions, one is delivered.

One may be sincerely trying to find the truth or just ordinary material acts, an innocent person, not very inimical to God, but just trying to enjoy his senses, trying to enjoy the senses and be happy was misled, wandering here and there trying to enjoy in different ways and not succeeding, gets association with devotees, they give prasāda, they give spiritual advice, he starts to, the person starts to chant and then automatically they feel immediately advancement.

Another person may have, you see... they are very inimical to the devotees. As a result, the effect may be reduced. This offense is the most dangerous thing. Next dangerous is of course bad habits and all that, after we have chanted. Once one takes up seriously the chanting, one should try to avoid as far as possible unauthorized activities because they would delay one’s progress.

So, by taking prasāda, that ultimately what that person can be guaranteed a human birth. But there may be an exception if he is exceptionally offensive to devotees.

In general, one would be guaranteed at least a human birth. And one may even get a greater benefit by taking prasāda. If he takes prasāda, the person is purified of all reactions. Says an offense where he takes prasāda, he is purified and then again, the next minute again he takes more, he does more karmas, more work that he has to take the reaction for. So, because of those reactions they have to take birth at least they get a human birth. But if after taking prasāda they did not perform any more materialistic activities, then they could go back to Godhead.

Yes!

Question: (inaudible) So animals that we feed prasāda to them, they are … so, well, they... again is it that committing offenses, because they are just...?

Jayapatākā Swami: So, they are animals, so then they can either they can become human beings at least, you see. One animal, that dog… Śivānanda Sena gave prasāda to one dog and it went back to Godhead. Because all its karma was finished, didn’t have to be a man or human or a dog; it just went back to its original spiritual position.

Yes?

Question: Do you know what is the reason, why one care Tulasī-devī? Why we should decorate and mañjarīs and ārati? I’ve read from Prabhupāda lecture that several places …[inaudible]

Jayapatākā Swami: I am writing a book now which is including a new arcana-paddhati. So, anything you want to know like, any other questions, just write it down, write to me in a letter. While I am in the States, you can write it to Atlanta or just give it to me. Otherwise write it to me in Calcutta. Any questions like that I am going to be putting a basic story about the history of tulasī and some of these things, because these are regular questions. Anything else?

Jaya Nitāi Gauracandra kī jaya!

Devotees: Śrīla Ācāryapāda kī jaya!

Jayapatākā Swami: What’s your name?

Devotee: Scott

Jayapatākā Swami: Do you have any questions, Scott?