20200919 Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 1.2.22

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

ato vai kavayo nityaṁ
bhaktiṁ paramayā mudā
vāsudeve bhagavati
kurvanty ātma-prasādanīm

Translation

Certainly, therefore, since time immemorial, all transcendentalists have been rendering devotional service to Lord Kṛṣṇa, the Personality of Godhead, with great delight, because such devotional service is enlivening to the self.

Purport by Śrīla Prabhupāda: The speciality of devotional service unto the Personality of Godhead Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa is specifically mentioned herein. Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa is the svayaṁ-rūpa Personality of Godhead, and all other forms of Godhead, beginning from Śrī Baladeva, Saṅkarṣaṇa, Vāsudeva, Aniruddha, Pradyumna and Nārāyaṇa and extending to the puruṣa-avatāras, guṇa-avatāras, līlā-avatāras, yugāvatāras and many other thousands of manifestations of the Personality of Godhead, are Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa’s plenary portions and integrated parts. The living entities are separated parts and parcels of the Personality of Godhead. Therefore Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa is the original form of Godhead, and He is the last word in the Transcendence. Thus He is more attractive to the higher transcendentalists who participate in the eternal pastimes of the Lord. In forms of the Personality of Godhead other than Śrī Kṛṣṇa and Baladeva, there is no facility for intimate personal contact as in the transcendental pastimes of the Lord at Vrajabhūmi. The transcendental pastimes of Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa are not newly accepted, as argued by some less intelligent persons; His pastimes are eternal and are manifested in due course once in a day of Brahmājī, as the sun rises on the eastern horizon at the end of every twenty-four hours.

Jayapatākā Swami: So, although there are unlimited manifestations of Godhead, different avatāras, and the Bhāgavatam says - like waves in the ocean. Nobody can count how many waves are there in the ocean. So like that, there are so many incarnations of Godhead. But only Kṛṣṇa and Balarāma, can one have close relation with, in Vṛndāvana. You see, like the different avatāras, Varāhadeva, who lifted the earth from the bottom of the Garbhodakaśāyī ocean. People could not have really very close relationship with Him. He shook His back and water sprayed on the ṛṣis and devas, and they took it as a blessing. Like that, the different avatāras they have some relationship. Like Narasiṁhadeva, He had a personal relationship with Prahlāda Mahārāja, to some extent. But others could not even approach Him. So we can see the uniqueness of the pastimes in Vṛndāvana That there, Kṛṣṇa did not appear as Godhead. He was one of their village boys. And although He didn’t hide His superpowers, by lifting the Govardhana hill, He gave shelter to all the Vraja-vāsīs. So like that way, the cowherd men approached Nanda Mahārāja, who is your son? He just lifted up a mountain!! He is not an ordinary person! Nanda Mahārāja said, “Well, Garga Muni the astrologer said, that He will have the power of Nārāyaṇa, and that He is good for us. He would help the cowherd men!” Like that, why does He have the power of Nārāyaṇa? He is the source of Nārāyaṇa!! But they would love Kṛṣṇa for Kṛṣṇa’s sake, not because He was super powerful, not because of His position.

Like that Rādhārāṇī attracted Kṛṣṇa to Navadvīpa. And Kṛṣṇa accepted Navadvīpa as His dhāma. In Navadvīpa He takes the mood of Rādhārāṇī, and appears as Caitanya Mahāprabhu, Gaurāṅga! Nitāi Gaurāṅga! We see here how the people could associate with Lord Caitanya very intimately. They would participate with Him in the kīrtanas, dancing in ecstasy. He would argue with Kolaveca Śrīdhara over the price of bananas. He would debate with different scholars as Nimāi Paṇḍita. So people actually learnt to love Him.

When He let to take sannyāsa, we are reading that part now. Devotees are feeling so much separation, they are in so much lamentation. Ācāryaratna, I mean, Candraśekhara Ācārya, he was sent by Lord Caitanya, back to Navadvīpa, to tell the people that He has taken sannyāsa. But then Lord Nityānanda told him that somehow I will bring Lord Caitanya to Advaita Gosāñi’s house in Śāntipura. You can tell the Navadvīpa-vāsīs to go there, tell Śacī devī to go there. But Candraśekhara Ācārya was lamenting so much, that why he left the side of Caitanya Mahāprabhu! At first, he didn’t tell all this message. He was lamenting, calling himself a wretched, wretched person! “I left Lord Caitanya! He put His māyā over me, His illusory potency!” And finally, Advaita some questions and then he revealed. So, then he told that Nityānanda’s message. Anyway, with that they were feeling some hope that they would see the Lord again. But how Kṛṣṇa came and took the mood of Rādhārāṇī, how He was crying and laughing and fainting. Sometimes falling on the ground, sometimes jumping up, roaring, all the ecstatic symptoms, showing what a devotee should manifest, if they have pure bhakti for Kṛṣṇa. This verse says, since time immemorial, great souls have been worshipping Kṛṣṇa, because it is enlivening to their self. They are having great delight. That is what Lord Caitanya showed, He manifested these ecstatic symptoms in such a way, it is completely beyond this world!

Happiness in this world is nothing compared to the happiness of the impersonal Brahman. And happiness of the impersonal Brahman is described as not even the quantity of water in a calf’s hoof print, compared to the ocean. So Lord Caitanya, He was displaying that ecstasy. And He was here with us 500 years ago!! And we wouldn’t have known anything about it if Śrīla Prabhupāda had not brought it the West! Not brought it all over India, Bangladesh. The secret was there but no one was giving it out! Śrīla Prabhupāda mentioned once, take all these bābājīs in Vṛndāvana together, they have not moved the mission of Caitanya Mahāprabhu by not even one inch! We are seeing that Śrīla Prabhupāda inspired us to preach, to give out the message of Lord Caitanya. Actually, the associates of Lord Caitanya, they had such a rare opportunity to associate with the Lord. That when He left to take sannyāsa they were – it is indescribable, their suffering. But actually, it is not suffering in the real sense. This is like in Vṛndāvana it says that separation the gopīs and residents of Vṛndāvana felt, that is actually the highest transcendental bliss, because it is concentrated pure love! So Lord Caitanya was in that mood, almost constantly. For three days after taking sannyāsa, He was just crying and chanting Hare Kṛṣṇa, and displaying these transcendental emotions. He was not conscious of His body at all. After three days, He realized that he had eaten or drank! Then He ate something. Now the devotees, like when Śacī devī heard that Candraśekhara Ācārya had come, she went running! Her hair was disheveled, she didn’t care about her appearance. She wanted to hear the news about her beloved son. Advaita Ācārya said, “Just like Kauśalyā had to endure when Rāma went for 14 years to the forest, just as Yaśodā had to endure when Kṛṣṇa when to Mathurā, we see that you have to endure when Lord Caitanya takes sannyāsa. Actually, Lord Caitanya, He was in this mood of love for Kṛṣṇa. And Navadvīpa-vāsīs had this great opportunity of associating with the Lord. To participate in His massive saṅkīrtana. His various pastimes, just like the vraja-vāsīs could associate with Kṛṣṇa in Vṛndāvana. When Kṛṣṇa left Vṛndāvana, it was a madness! When Uddhava when to Vṛndāvana, and he saw the love the gopīs had for Kṛṣṇa, he said, let me born as a grass in Vṛndāvana, so that they can walk over my head. So he was so much affected by the transcendental love of the gopīs for Kṛṣṇa.

Somehow, we are here in Navadvīpa dhāma and this is a great opportunity, because Kṛṣṇa appeared here, and He manifested Himself as a devotee, and He was associating with all the people, and when He came back after ten years, everyone was, “Gaurāṅga is back! GAURĀṄGA IS BACK! GAURĀṄGA!” They ran to the riverside. They heard He was on the other side. The boatman said please, please, don’t overcrowd. The boat. Observe security. Nobody listened. They ran to the boat. The boat sank! And then the devotees jumped into the river and started swimming! Normally the color of the Ganges is saffron but that day, the Ganges was black, because of the heads. So this is spontaneous devotion of the devotees of Navadvīpa-vāsīs, for Lord Gaurāṅga.

So in this material world, by the mercy of His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami, we got this Bhāgavatam, we got this culture, we got this holy dhāma. We should take advantage. It says that since time immemorial, great souls have been worshiping Śrī Kṛṣṇa. Actually, we would have had no access but because Kṛṣṇa came as Caitanya Mahāprabhu, and manifested this mercy, this love of Kṛṣṇa, therefore we have this opportunity to get the highest spiritual delight, the highest spiritual ecstasy. Unfortunately, we are not very interested. I wrote to Śrīla Prabhupāda, many years ago in the 70s, “What should we do to observe the Dāmodara month?” He replied, you see these special months like Dāmodara, they are like when any store has a special sale, to attract the new customers. Likes says in India they have Big Bazar or Amazon, there are some sale days to attract new people. But Śrīla Prabhupāda said you are a regular customer, 12 months a year you are a customer. But this is specially for new people, to attract them to perform a little devotional service.

And in the Padma Purāṇa it tells the glories about Vaiśākha month, that a person he had no children, no money but he was a brāhmaṇa had a very good wife. So on her advice he asked a great sage, Vasiṣṭha Muni. He found out from Vasiṣṭha Muni that in his previous life, he was a śūdra but he was very rich, but he was a miser he did not spend anything on his wife and his kids. He buried his money and died suddenly, and the family did not know where the money was hidden. So they died in poverty, although he had lot of money. Therefore, he had no kids now.

“But how was I born a brāhmaṇa? How do I have a good wife?”

Then Vasiṣṭha Muni said that, “For three days in the month of Vaiśākha, you fed a Vaiṣṇava!”

“So what should I do now? So it is 7 days of Vaiśākha left.”

All the months, Vaiśākha, Māgha, Dāmodara, all the 12 months, add them up they don’t equal 1/16^th of the benefit of the following of Puruṣottama month. So I told this because Śrīla Prabhupāda was encouraging us to tell the new people to take up the practice. One of my secretaries told me this morning. That he called up one of his village friends, I mean his older brother in the village relationship. But he was a meat eater, never chanted Hare Kṛṣṇa. He told him please during this Vaiśākha month chant Hare Kṛṣṇa, offer a ghee lamp and be a vegetarian. He said, I am embarrassed to be vegetarian. What will other people say? But I will offer lamp and chant one round of Hare Kṛṣṇa, and I will try to be a vegetarian. So my secretary was so happy, that this person never chanted, never did anything and now he is saying all this. He is saying he will try to be a vegetarian. Even if people are vegetarian for three days, that will be some progress. And if they offer a lamp to Kṛṣṇa, they chant Hare Kṛṣṇa, that is most important. So, that is why I am very happy that many devotees are practicing this Puruṣottama month. But you should tell your friends, your work colleague, everybody you can, that this is a special bonus month, this is a special time, offer a lamp, read Gītā, chant Hare Kṛṣṇa, be a vegetarian as much as possible. Do something and you get eternal benefit. So this is so important.

People they watch the news or something, that is zero Kṛṣṇa consciousness. Somehow or another if we can get the people to take up this chanting, take up some of the practices. This is World Holy Name festival week. We say make the people fortunate by just chanting one mantra. That would be something that would start their spiritual life. They should say Hare Kṛṣṇa, Hare Kṛṣṇa, Kṛṣṇa Kṛṣṇa, Hare Hare/ Hare Rāma, Hare Rāma, Rāma Rāma, Hare Hare!

So this teaching shows how special are the Personalities of Kṛṣṇa and Balarāma. In the world there are many God fearing people, but have to have a personal relationship with the Supreme Personality of Godhead is something that was especially possible with Kṛṣṇa. So this is something that people had no idea about. Even many people think that God is some kind of impersonal. And like many followers of Islam Allah is impersonal, but actually Lord Caitanya taught that Allah is both impersonal and personal. So I asked my Muslim friend, what does the Koran say. He said, that well in the Koran there is one verse that says that Allah is like a light. But so many verses, it says Allah is so merciful, kind. Here you have lights. Do you say kind light? Merciful light? Ha! Just light? Ha! Light is a light! it is impersonal. So actually the Koran what it says indicates that Allah is a person. So there are many different avatāras of Kṛṣṇa, they are all personal. But the Personality of Kṛṣṇa is someone who is very accessible. And Lord Caitanya is the Personality of Godhead, Kṛṣṇa, very accessible, very merciful. And by hearing about His pastimes - He will be crying for Kṛṣṇa, tears would be pouring down His eyes, wetting His chest! Even when the angels, the devas came from the celestial planets, they saw Lord Caitanya chanting, dancing, crying! They fainted! They lost their consciousness. When they came back to consciousness, they woke up, they took human form and joined the kīrtana! Where do you get the chance to dance and chant with the Supreme Personality of Godhead? Gaurāṅga! Nityānanda!

So, this is a very special month. We should worship Kṛṣṇa. We should remember that in Vṛndāvana Rādhā Kṛṣṇa, are the highest form of loving exchange. That things in the material world are perverted reflections. But actual pure love is visible in Vṛndāvana. So Kṛṣṇa was in anxiety, how the people of Kali-yuga would understand, how they would get this mercy. And He came as Lord Caitanya, gave out the mercy to everyone, But Kali was against that. For 200 years Lord Caitanya’s movement in India was very expansive, but then different demons, Śukrācārya and others, they started different apasampradāyas, to try to bewilder people and they were able to divert their attention away from the actual process of Lord Caitanya. After 200 or 150 years, people lost faith in the process of Lord Caitanya, because of the proponents of the apasampradāyas. Then Śrīla Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura came, from the spiritual world, and he reestablished. Then he had Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura, who Śrīla Prabhupāda described as a transcendental personality. Actually, he was also from the spiritual world. So they practically controlled the apasampradāyas. And they empowered Śrīla Prabhupāda - he went all over the world and spread this movement of Lord Caitanya. Certainly Kali is very upset that if this movement is allowed to spread, then Kali is finished. So they will try every possible way to obstruct. Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Prabhupāda Ṭhākura, he told his followers to co-operate and spread the saṅkīrtana movement. Make GBC, like this. But they didn’t follow. They fought with each other. Still the case is going on in the High court. All the original persons are dead, just the case is alive! So Śrīla Prabhupāda, he wanted to follow the orders of Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura. And to reestablish Lord Caitanya in center stage in the world. So together we have to be really united, dedicated. Many people ask, why is it so difficult, why are there so many challenges? It will be very difficult! You think Kali was Kṛṣṇa conscious?!! You have to be determined. There will be definitely various obstacles that will come up. But if you remain fixed on follow Caitanya Mahāprabhu, following Śrīla Prabhupāda, then we can overcome Kali. Hare Kṛṣṇa!

Any questions or comments from this verse?

This verse tells us how worshiping Kṛṣṇa is done by the great souls, by the transcendentalists, since time immemorial as devotional service to the Supreme Personality of Godhead gives one great delight and is enlivening to the self. Haribol! Haribol! Haribol!

We can chant the mantra?

govardhana dharam vande, gopālam gopa rūpīnam
gokulotsavam īśānām, govindam gopīkā priyam

Question: Dearest Guru Mahārāja, Please accept my respectful obeisances. All glories to Śrīla Prabhupāda. Can you please explain on how are we supposed to use the free will given by Kṛṣṇa? In our day-to-day life decisions, how do we know if we are not using our free will against Kṛṣṇa’s will? How do we know what is Kṛṣṇa’s will?

Your sheltered spiritual daughter,
Pūjā.

Jayapatākā Swami: We should choose the things that are authorized by Kṛṣṇa, by guru. I mean, you go into a grocery store, there is a section, meat, and fish. You don’t go there. You look at the ingredients and buy vegetarian food. Like that everything you do, somethings are this or that, some are neutral. Some things obviously, one is Kṛṣṇa conscious, and one is māyā. Buy a bottle of wine, that is māyā and orange juice is alright!

Question: If everything happens by the sanction of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, how can we term accidental deaths as untimely deaths? Anādi Jagannātha dāsa.

Jayapatākā Swami: The point is that one should normally live longer than one’s father. If one has died earlier, we call that accidental death. However, we know that if one dies earlier, it is probably due to some karma. But in Kali-yuga, this thing is very frequent because of the influence of the age.

Question: Regarding Puruṣottama-vratā, what was Śrīla Prabhupāda’s instruction regarding haviṣyanna?

Jayapatākā Swami: I don’t know particularly about Puruṣottama-vratā. In regard to the Dāmodara-vratā or Cāturmāsya, he used to criticize that the Gauḍīya Maṭha people grew beards, but they did not do any dietary restrictions. He said if they do the vratā, eating haviṣyanna or un-spiced kichurī then you can grow a beard. One year we did haviṣyanna for Śrīla Prabhupāda. It says in the śāstra what is haviṣyanna. It says fruits, roots, wheat rice, barley, mung dāl, certain types of spinaches, raw papaya. It is interesting, it says you should not take fruits with many seeds. Any way you can see in the Hari Bhakti Vilāsa, what constitutes haviṣyanna. Not just the kichurī, it is a whole range of things.

Question: What vratā should be performed in the month of Puruṣottama which is equal in strength to śrāddha ceremony performed in Gayā. I have no opportunity to visit India. Dayala Nimāi dāsa, Russia.

Jayapatākā Swami: You can offer something to your forefathers. You do the vratā, the Ekādaśī or something and offer the result to your forefather.

Alright! I will be back.

We have a website for the Puruṣottama month - www.purusottamamonth.com. He will tell you.

Today’s tally:

Number of Extra Rounds chanted 1725

Devotees Participating 586

Book reading 348

Lecture Hearing 284

Number of lamps offered 2429

Kṛṣṇa-kathā 181