20200828 Zoom Bhādra Pūrṇimā Campaign with Vaiśeṣika Prabhu

The following is a Zoom Bhadra Purnima Campaign with Vaiśeṣika Prabhu along with His Holiness Jayapatākā Swami Mahārāja on August 28th, 2020 in Śrī Dhāma Māyāpur, India.

mūkaṁ karoti vācālaṁ paṅguṁ laṅghayate girim
yat-kṛpā tam ahaṁ vande śrī-guruṁ dīna-tāraṇam
paramānandaṁ mādhavaṁ śrī caitanya iśvaram

Hariḥ oṁ tat sat!

So, we are about to come to the Bhādra Pūrṇimā, which is glorified in the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam. It is a day to respect the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, putting the Bhāgavatam on a golden throne, and also to distribute the Bhāgavatam. So, I was inspired in my 50th anniversary of sannyāsa, since many people were giving Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam sets. That in each Gauḍīya Maṭha in Māyāpur that has a library, they can keep the Bhāgavatam respectfully. We will give them a set. They can then finally appreciate what Śrīla Prabhupāda had given to the world.

Anyway, Lord Caitanya, He gave basic instructions. bolo-kṛṣṇa, bhaja-kṛṣṇa, kara-kṛṣṇa-śikṣā. Chant Hare Kṛṣṇa, worship and serve Lord Kṛṣṇa and study the teachings of Lord Kṛṣṇa. Śrīla Prabhupāda explained that there are two teachings. The Bhagavad-gītā is spoken by Kṛṣṇa and the Śrīmad Bhāgavatam is spoken about Kṛṣṇa. We know that the Bhāgavatam is the ripened fruit of all the Vedic literatures. It says that the other Purāṇas and śāstras are glorious, until the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam comes. And when the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam comes, then it is understood that all the other scriptures are minorized. And the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam is exalted. So this is a great opportunity we have to give the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam. Of course, Śrīla Prabhupāda wanted us, we should also study the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam.

Recently, Atula Kṛṣṇa dāsa, he shared some quotes of Śrīla Prabhupāda. That to receive second initiation, one should have Bhakti-śāstri. To take sannyāsa, one should have Bhakti-vaibhava and to be a guru, one should have Bhakti-vedānta. Bhakti-vaibhava is the first six cantos of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam. Bhakti-vedānta is the whole Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam. And Śrīla Prabhupāda wanted to make a university for studying the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam. So we are doing the TOVP Exhibits Planetarium based on the 5th canto of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam. Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam is the ripened fruit of the Vedic tree. And we should read the Bhāgavatam and we should distribute it, everywhere. And this Bhadra Pūrṇimā gives us a great opportunity to distribute the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam and that people give the Bhāgavatam over, and thus be blessed. They can achieve the highest destination. Parama-gati, the spiritual world. That is why I think, Vaiśeṣika Prabhu, he has made this campaign as ‘Go to Goloka’. Because this is a rare opportunity that we have. I was noticing how some people are donating Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam sets in the name of the deceased forefathers. Father, mother, grandfather, grandmother. The name of the son – Vedic name is putra and the daughter is putrī. ‘Pu’ means hell and ‘tra’ means deliver. So delivery of forefathers from their hellish existence is the duty of the putra or putrī. So this is one way you can help your forefathers.

Lord Caitanya was encouraging that everyone should read and give the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam. I was reading the māhātmya of the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam. Since the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam is the sound or literary incarnation of Kṛṣṇa. Whoever keeps the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam in their home, the devas come and offer their obeisances. Because this Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam is the incarnation of Kṛṣṇa. We know that there is no difference between Kṛṣṇa and His name. No difference between Kṛṣṇa and His pastimes. No difference between Kṛṣṇa and the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam. Which is filled with the teachings and pastimes of Kṛṣṇa. Of His different avatāras and different devotees. In fact, just to touch the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam is a great blessings. If someone even reads a verse, they are associating with the Absolute Truth. So, we should give this mercy out, as much as we can.

So I heard how Indradyumna Swami was thanking all the book distributors. Actually, distributing the books, especially the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, Bhagavad-gītā, is something very rare, very transcendental. Because the Lord is present in His teachings, in His pastimes. So, in this world where people are absorbed in temporary things, in the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam it states that we should not lead our life simply for sense gratification. But in the material world, we see that everybody is making sense gratification the only goal! The politicians promise great sense gratification for the voters. But ultimately, no one is satisfied. They keep electing another party. The thing is that we are spiritual entities. Like the fish in the water, it is the natural habitat. So we are like fish out of water. We need the spiritual environment, and that is what we are hankering for, that is what we miss! And we get that through the pages of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam. So as the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam says, this caused a revolution in the sinful lives of the conditioned souls. So this is a great opportunity to help people to get back to Godhead. By distributing and inspiring them to read and to give out Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam.

Actually, in this pandemic, it is very important that all the people realize that this material world is not a suitable place for a gentleman or gentle woman. So we should go back to the spiritual world, and that is where we belong. Where there is no birth, no death, no old age, no disease.

I was going to the place of Advaita Gosāñi in Śāntipura. And there the sevaite of Advaita’s temple, he showed me how Lord Caitanya took prasāda, at that place on the Govinda Dvādaśī and He said that whoever takes prāsada at this place on this tithi, he will get Govinda-bhakti. So that sevaite was saying where has the Lord ever said that simply by eating, you get bhakti? But here we see in Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, simply by respecting the Bhāgavatam, and giving that Bhāgavatam, we go to the parama-gati, the highest destination. What a deal?

So this is a very great opportunity, not something we should pass by. And somehow the focal point has come on the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, to the Bhādra Pūrṇimā. Now we thank all the devotees for giving their concentration, to give out the mercy of Vyāsadeva, the mercy of Śrīla Prabhupāda, to give out the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, to distribute. So, we should make our goal to serve Kṛṣṇa and love Kṛṣṇa. While we have material senses, and sometimes our senses will be happy, sometimes they will be distressed. In this material world they are mainly distressed. Kṛṣṇa calls this the duḥkhālayam aśāśvatam. So, we try in so many ways how to get out of this material world. But here as it says go back to Goloka, this is an easy and quick way. Respect the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam and give out a copy.

So it is said in the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam in ancient times, was written on a palm leaves. Śrīnivāsa Ācārya went to learn the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam from Gadādhara Prabhu. Gadādhara Prabhu showed that the whole Bhāgavatam had been washed out by His tears! It was illegible. So, at that time he had to go back to Navadvīpa and have a scribe hand copy a Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam. At that time to give out a Bhāgavatam was a very difficult thing. They had to have someone hand copy eighteen thousand verses, tie them up as a manuscript So now, thanks to the BBT we have the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam set, in a very convenient form and very inexpensive. You don’t have to hire someone to hand copy it. And as Indradyumna Mahārāja and others had spoken, the purports by Śrīla Prabhupāda contain jewels of Lord Caitanya’s mercy. So, with the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, we have the great advantage to give out at this time.

So we thank the BBT, thank all the book distributors, for this opportunity to get the confidential knowledge of the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam. To give it out to different people. So, I take this opportunity that we are reading the teachings and pastimes of Lord Caitanya. Again and again, He is instructing everyone to read the teachings of Kṛṣṇa. So, the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam is the teachings about Kṛṣṇa’s avātaras. And Lord Kṛṣṇa Himself. In the first canto, it mentions a list of some avātaras, about 26 where it says that Kṛṣṇa is the svayam-bhagavān. Therefore, we take this opportunity to worship Kṛṣṇa, to understand the absolute knowledge about the Absolute Truth. Hare Kṛṣṇa! Thank you very much!

Haribol!