20200506 Evening Narasiṁha Caturdaśi Lecture

20200506 JAYAPATAKA SWAMI GURU MAHARAJ, LORD NRSIMHADEVA APPEARANCE DAY, SRI MAYAPUR DHAM, INDIA

Mukam karoti vacalam pangum langayate girim

Yat kripa tam aham vande sri gurum dina tarinam

Paramananda Madhavam Sri Caitanya Isvaram

Ugram viram maha…

Sri Nrsimha Jaya Nrsimha Jaya Jaya

So today is the auspicious day of Nrsimha Caturdasi. Today some yugas ago, the Lord appeared on this thithi and He saved the life of His devotee Prahlada. In this recent pastime which is described in the Srimad Bhagavatam, the Lord came out of the column fulfilling Prahlada’s statement that the Lord is everywhere.  And then He fought the demon Hiranyakasipu, until twilight. Because he had the boon from Brahma that he will not be killed by day or night. Once the sun sets, it was no longer day. But it was not yet really night, because there was still light. So at that time Lord Nrsimhadeva liberated the demon Hiranyakasipu. In one of the puranas there is description that Lord Nrsimhadeva came in another kalpa, another day of Brahma.   And then the demon Hiranyakasipu threatened his son that if your God doesn’t show up by sunset, I will kill you. So at that time, he didn’t have the boon that he cannot be killed in or out. But in our kalpa he had that boon. Lord Nrsimhadeva killed him in the doorway. It was not in or out. It was in the doorway. Neither in nor out. But he didn’t have such a boon in the previous yuga. So the Lord came to the city of Hiranyakasipu. The people got frightened by seeing this half-man half lion. Then He entered into the stadium of Hiranyakasipu. He had a big stadium, I mean like, hundred kilometers long and fifty kilometers wide or something. And it was air conditioned. On the sides there was food that they could enjoy. And they were worshiping Hiranyakasipu. Maharaj Hiranyakasipu ki jai! So he was being worshiped by huge hordes of people. So then Nrsimhadeva came flying in His stadium. He said, no beasts allowed! But Nrsimhadeva, He didn’t stop. Then he sent out his air force! Planes going zooooommm to attack Nrsimhadeva. But Nrsimhadeva, since He had the head of a lion, His catlike whiskers went out, His mane went out and the airplanes when they hit one His hairs, exploded! Boom!   Boom! Boom! So Hiranyakasipu lost his air force. And then he started sending out missiles. But Nrsimhadeva caught the missiles and threw them down! Boom! Boom! Then Hiranyakasipu, he used all his missiles up. Then he took a sword in his hand and he decided that he would personally fight with this half man half lion. He took his sword and he went up and started to fight with Nrsimhadeva. So Nrsimhadeva and him were fighting and just at the twilight, He sat on Hiranyakasipu’s throne and bifurcated Hiranyakasipu with His nails. So this way He was seated on the throne of Hiranyakasipu. All the demons came to attack Him but they were defeated. So then all the devas they were afraid of Nrsimhadeva because He seemed so angry.  Even Laksmi was afraid to approach Him although She is His wife. But She never had seen Him so angry. Then Brahma pushed Prahlada forward, it is your fault! Because of you the Lord has come! You should go and pacify Him! Then Prahlada went and offered his obeisances and prayers to Nrsimhadeva.

 Also, two days ago we were discussing how Lord Caitanya took the mood of Nrsimhadeva. Since Lord  Caitanya is  Kṛṣṇa, He is the source of all the avatars. He is the source of all the incarnations of Godhead. So when He heard the Visnu Sahasranama, when it came up  to the name of Nrsimhadeva, He got in the mood of Nrsimhadeva, and He ran out on the street, with a form like Nrsimhadeva, with a big club in His hand. WHERE ARE THE DEMONS? WHERE ARE THE DEMONS? People started running, they were so afraid of Lord Caitanya! With a big club in His hand and very angry mood. When He saw the people running, He returned to His normal, merciful consciousness. And He went back to the house of Srivasa Thakur.  What have I done? Have I committed a great offence! All the people are running. It is not right to give fear to the people. But Srivasa Thakura said that by seeing You in the mood of Nrsimhadeva, they were liberated! You can liberate people from unlimited sins and countless offences. By seeing You they all were liberated. You cannot commit any offence. Then he worshiped Lord Gauranga.

So in Mayapur, our Nrsimhadeva He is in that mood, He is Sthanu Nrsimhadeva, He just came out of the column and He is looking for the demons. Lord Caitanya was in that mood. Where are the demons? Where are the demons?  So this Nrsimhadeva we have is in the same mood as that which Lord Caitanya when He took the form of Lord Nrsimhadeva. So we have a great benediction to be able to serve Lord Nrsimhadeva. And we hope that by His mercy, people who are suffering in this pandemic, may take to bhakti yoga and be free of their suffering. If they chant the holy name of the Lord, it would bring about a dynamic change. In the Hari Bhakti Vilasa, it quotes one of the puranas that by chanting the name of Lord Nrsimhadeva 21 times one can get freed form the karma of even killing a brahmana. So, we chant the name of Nrsimhadeva, and pray for His mercy. Actually  Kṛṣṇa He took this form just to protect His devotee. A South Indian pandit, he was lecturing why does Lord Narayana always carry His weapons, even during yoga nidra, He carries His weapons.  Normally people would put down their weapons when they rest. But He keeps His weapons always, why is that?  He said because at any time He promises to protect His devotees. Name bhakta pranasyati. So He doesn’t have to look for his weapons. He has his weapons and immediately protects His devotees. HARIBOL! HARIBOL! HARI HARI HARI HARIBOL!

 So today is the auspicious day when Nrsimhadeva appeared in the world. Also, Lord Nrsimhadeva was flying over the earth. He saw from a distance, the holy dham of Nava. In the age of Kali I come here as the golden avatar. So then He landed in Navadvipa dham,  and that place is known as Nrsimhapally. There the devas they also came down from the heavenly planets with their wives and they began to serve the Lord. The wives were cooking for the Lord. They were offering puja to Lord Nrsimhadeva. Normally Lord Nrsimhadeva, He was not so approachable. But in Navadvip dham because this is Audarya dham, the dham of mercy, He became very approachable. So the devas, demigods or the angels form the heavenly planets, they descended and they worshiped and served Him. So this the glory of Navadvip dham. We still have a Nrsimhadeva deity at Nrsimhapally, and there is a lake and the Lord washed His hands in that lake. Actually, today Nrsimha Caturdasi, I usually get some prasadam from the temple. But because of lockdown, they probably couldn’t send it.

So since we have the Nrsimha deity, this is a very special day. And by His mercy, we are all protected in so many ways. So we hope that all the devotees will also be very careful to protect their devotional creeper. In the material world, one can easily forget to do devotional service. And think that the mundane happiness is the goal of life. But actually serving the Lord gives one intense spiritual ecstasy. And that should be the happiness that we are hankering for. Nrsimhadeva is a special avatar of Lord  Kṛṣṇa. He protects His devotees. It is a very common that  people worship Lord Narsimhadev.   Lord Caitanya was lost in the Ocean of  Bay of Bengal near to  Jagannath Puri. At that time a fisherman caught Lord Caitanya in his net. At that time Lord Caitanya, His bones were dislocated and He was like 9 or 10 feet long. And the fisherman touched Him, he felt ecstasy but he was chanting the name of Nrsimhadeva to get protected. But that made him more ecstatic. He came back to the shore and he was chanting Hari bol! Haribol And so Swarup Damodar asked him, have you seen Lord Caitanya. No! No! Haribol! No, no, I have been possessed by a ghost, Haribol! HARIBOL! And   Swarup Damodar said I know how to release you from the ghost. Stand still. Pow! Pow! he slapped him. Now the ghost is gone. So where is the ghost? He said that it is there in my net. Then they saw Lord Caitanya in his net. They put a cloth on the ground and put Lord Caitanya on the cloth, washed Him and then they chanted Hare  Kṛṣṇa in His ear, and then His bones came back together and then He came back to the external consciousness. So that fisherman was chanting the name of Nrsimhadeva, but then the more he chanted the more ecstatic he became. Ha! Other devotees asked Swarup Damodar, how did you know that he had Lord Caitanya? He said he was possessed by a ghost, but then he was chanting the name of Hari. You cannot chant the name of Hari while you are possessed by a ghost. So I knew it was not a ghost. So I just slapped him to make him peaceful. So Nrsimhadeva, He is worshipped by many people. Nrsimhadeva, is very merciful to His devotees. But He is fearsome for the demons. So we pray at His lotus feet, pray at the feet of Prahlada maharaj, that we can always expand the number of devotees and worship His lotus feet. Hare  Kṛṣṇa!

Are there any questions? What time is it?

Question: Hare  Kṛṣṇa guru maharaj. PAMRO. Prahlada maharaj was always thinking of  Kṛṣṇa but  Kṛṣṇa appeared before Him as Nrsimhadeva. So in which loka Prahlada maharaj stays after his disappearance? Someone says that Nrsimhadeva has His own loka in the spiritual world? Guru das.

Guru maharaj: Nrsimhadeva has His own loka in the spiritual world. But since Bali maharaj is the grandson of Prahlada Maharaj, and since Bali maharaj gave the whole world in charity to Vamanadeva, in the form of three steps, He took the whole universe in two steps. Then He asked where can I put the third step. So Bali maharaj said, on my head. So then he arrested Bali maharaj, because he couldn’t fulfill his promise. And later, He agreed that Bali maharaj stayed in a -3 level below the earth, called the Sutala. There the Lord said that He would be the gatekeeper of Bali maharaj. And then no one could attack Bali maharaj. So, I think Prahlada is on the same planet at the present time. Maybe later he goes to the spiritual world. Haribol!

Question: Dear Guru maharaj, PAMRO, AGTSP. How do we understand by what science that a devotee went to the spiritual world after leaving his or her body? Your servant daughter, Nateswari Radha devi dasi, Moscow.

Guru maharaj: If one chants  Kṛṣṇa at the time of leaving then you are sure. But depending on their service, one can understand whether they are qualified to enter the spiritual world. Srila Prabhupada, he could tell. He said Jayananda went back to Godhead. So that is the actual thing. And we can see that some devotees, by their taking shelter of the holy name, they go back to Godhead.

Question: Bengali: Dear guru maharaj PAMHO. In this pathetic situation of COVID-19 pandemic personally we are distributing grain prasadam of khicri etc. On Ekadasi day or Nrsimha caturdasi, is it right to distribute grain prasadam? If we do, will we committing sin? Please kindly clarify our doubt. Your servant, Bhavamoyi Malini Bhakti devi dasi, Hyderabad, Telangana.

Guru maharaj: We had distributed khichri on the Gaura Purnima day. Srila Prabhupada said it was alright. You see, the devotees are fasting any way till sunset. Or moonrise. So if the people are not devotees, then it is better they take prasad, that will give them some spiritual benefit. Otherwise they will eat non veg or something at a road stall. So for the devotees, they would observe fast today. But normal villagers they do not observe fast. So we can give out khichri. If someone is willing to follow, they can keep the khichri until the evening and take it later for dinner. But mostly the people don’t follow, I requested the devotees to go out and they said that since it was a fast day, they wouldn’t have enough strength. So I told them to take some fruit or anukalpa in the afternoon and then go out and distribute the prasadam. Hare  Kṛṣṇa! Any other question?

Question: Bengali. Even with so many obstacles, how do I preach with determination?

Guru maharaj: Even if one has many obstacles, how can one still preach? You see, obstacles, we expect in the material world. And if there are no obstacles, then we will have less service. So even if there are obstacles, we still try to give  Kṛṣṇa. And there may be obstacles that, when the going gets tough, the tough get going! So if one is shaky, then naturally if there is some obstacle, they lose their determination. But if one is TOUGH, obstacles, so what! Lord Nityananda was beaten by Madhai, blood was pouring from His forehead. Because you caused Me to bleed, does that mean I won’t give you love of Godhead? So if there are obstacles or no obstacles, we still are determined to give out  Kṛṣṇa. And if there were no obstacles, then  Kṛṣṇa wouldn’t say that those who preach are the dearest to Him in this world! Because the devotees face obstacles therefore  Kṛṣṇa is very appreciative of the devotees, for spreading  Kṛṣṇa consciousness. And when it is more difficult,  Kṛṣṇa gives more mercy.

Question: Another part of the above question in Bengali.

Guru maharaj: If someone misunderstands am I guilty of offence? Doesn’t seem like it. But you should try to explain to the person, so that they get the correct understanding. You may not have explained the tattva so clearly so the person misunderstood. So then you should try to dispel the person’s misunderstanding, and in this way the person will be very grateful. So, I went to an office once in the early 1970s. I was in Calcutta preaching life membership. And the person started yelling at me. YOU ARE CHEATERS! I DON’T BELIEVE THIS! and he went on for five minutes blasting me! And then I said no sir you are not right. Here we distributing prasadam, and I showed the pictures. And then I started patiently explaining to him our activities, and then he was surprised. He said, please forgive me. I was just testing you. How much do you want? Ha! And he became a life member. So we meet such people. But as Lord Caitanya said, we should be humble like a blade of grass, more tolerant than a tree, we should offer all respect to others, don’t expect any respect for yourself. So that happens a lot. People they don’t treat you nice. You should treat them nice. You should be humble and tolerant And then you will be surprised what happens!

Question: PAMRO, Guru maharaj. When Hiranyakasipu glorified Brahma he says that Brahma is the Supersoul of all beings. We read from the Bhagavad-gita that  Kṛṣṇa is the Supersoul. We see the same glorification of Lord Siva also when He drank the poison. Please helps us understand this guru maharaj. Thank you for the nectarean classes and opportunity to ask questions. Your insignificant servant, Lalitangi Radha devi dasi.

Guru maharaj: Hiranyakasipu glorified Brahma as the Supreme Person. Hiranyakasipu is considered a demon. Now having a demon recognize you as the supreme person, what is the use of that? Prahlada maharaj, he said that Nrsimhadeva or  Kṛṣṇa is the Supreme Person. His father said, accept Siva or accept Brahma, but both of them are vaisnavas or devotees. And so,  naturally  a demon like Hiranyakasipu accepts anyone but Visnu as God. We know that Visnu is actually the Supreme Personality of Godhead. And Siva Himself was asked by Parvati, what is the best form of worship? And He said aradhana nam sarvesam, Visnu aradhanam param. Tasmat parataram daivi tadiyanam samarthanam. Of all the types worship, worship  of Lord Visnu is Supreme. But one exception. Worshipping those who are connected to Visnu is better yet. So if you worship someone as a vaisnava, like Prahlada, that pleases Lord Visnu, Nrsimhadeva more. But Lord Siva Himself says that the Supreme form of worship is Visnu, or those connected to Visnu. So why should we have doubt? Don’t listen to Hiranyakasipu. He says he is God! He told Prahlada, worship me. And in some other pastime, he may say, worship Lord Siva. But Siva Himself says worship Visnu. So who do you follow? Hiranyakasipu or Siva?

Thank you very much and happy Nrsimhadeva Caturdasi! Haribol! There are two more days of Baisak month, today and tomorrow. And any donation made in Baisak month is 100 times the credit. And if send a donation to the TOVP today, I heard that Ambarish prabhu will match your donation, if you give 1000 dollars, he will give 1000 dollars and make it 2000 dollars. So you get spiritual credit a 100 times and material credit twice! Haribol!

Announcement: Donations for the Nrsimhadeva ceremonies were made.

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