20240307 Śrī Caitanya Śikṣāmṛta | First Stream — the beginning

mūkaṁ karoti vācālaṁ paṅguṁ laṅghayate girim
yat-kṛpā tam ahaṁ vande śrī-guruṁ dīna-tāraṇam
paramānanda-mādhavam śrī caitanya īśvaram
Harihi oṁ tat sat

Śrī Caitanya-Śikṣāmṛta

The Nectar of the teachings of Śrī Caitanya:

Today’s chapter is: First Shower — General description of determining the religion of highest goal.

First Stream — the beginning.

Respectful obeisances unto Śrī Śrī Rādhā-Kṛṣṇa.

Identity of primary and secondary rules —

The result of primary rule is worshiping God.

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 3.23.56

neha yat karma dharmāya
na virāgāya kalpate
na tīrtha-pada-sevāyai
jīvann api mṛto hi saḥ

Anyone whose work is not meant to elevate him to religious life, anyone whose religious ritualistic performances do not raise him to renunciation, and anyone situated in renunciation that does not lead him to devotional service to the Supreme Personality of Godhead, must be considered dead, although he is breathing.

There are no intervening results between the rules and worship. Hari-kīrtana or listening to Hari-kathā is called the primary rule. Because the direct result of these rules is the worship of God. Although, continuously remembering that Hari-bhakti is the primary rule, without embracing the secondary rules, the body cannot be cared for, and if the body is not maintained, there is no life. If there is no life, how will the primary rule in the form of Hari-bhajana be performed?

The natural symptom of secondary rule is that it embraces all worldly knowledge, arts and crafts, civilization, expertise and perseverance, physical, mental and social principles as ornaments of man’s life, and sincerely commits the humanity to taste the nectar of the lotus feet of the Lord. In fact, being a follower of the primary rule, by the grace of the Lord, they make human life ecstatic during the time of sādhana and perfection.

Various stages in human life —

Even though various types of human life are observed such as wild life, civilized life, material scientific life, atheistic moral life, theistic moral life, vaidhi-bhakti (devotional service following the regulative principles) life and prema-bhakti (loving devotional service) life, but the beginning of real human life can be recognized from the theistic moral life. Human life (no matter how much civilized, no matter how much endowed with material science, no matter how much moral) can never be superior to animal life unless it is theistic.

Jayapatākā Swami: … the Supreme Personality of Godhead is beyond their ability. I saw one girl in Hosur who already has her Bhaktivedanta degree and now she is studying under Bhurijana prabhu (?) He was telling me how reading the Caitanya-caritāmṛta Lord Caitanya would reveal what He was thinking in the Caitanya-caritāmṛta. In the Madhya līlā it mentions His pastimes at the Ratha Yātrā. The teacher who is teaching Caitanya-caritāmṛta, he lives now in Perth, Bhurijana Prabhu was telling me how wonderful the Caitanya-caritāmṛta is. Because Lord Caitanya was revealing His thought process. What He was thinking, when He was in the Ratha-yātrā, and he said it is so beautiful. I told him some Lord Caitanya’s pastimes I knew, and he was also saying that they were very beautiful. So today, we were having a period, discussing what Lord Caitanya did. Lord Caitanya, of course is Kṛṣṇa but as a devotee of Kṛṣṇa, He is doing everything to please Kṛṣṇa. So these activities of Lord Caitanya, this book is describing what He did, it is also describing what He is thinking. So He is saying what He is experiencing. But the people in general don’t know what the Supreme Personality of Godhead thinks. And they don’t have this idea. If we actually understand, what is going on in Kṛṣṇa’s mind, then we can be on a very elevated consciousness. Actually, we have to do the activities which are meant to please Lord Kṛṣṇa Caitanya, that is the secret nectar.

* * *

Life without devotion is animalistic nature —

The actual human-life operates under the precepts of accepting the rules and prohibitions of theistic moral life. Therefore, in this book, the discussion has begun from theistic moral life. Civilization, the wealth of materialistic science and ethics, are considered among the main ornaments of the theistic moral life. By reasoning, it will be noticed in this entire book, how the theistic moral life, with all these ornaments, attains perfection by culminating in the life of the devotees.

The life of the living entity is the religion of the soul (jaiva-dharma). Jaiva-dharma in human condition is called human dharma. That dharma is of two types, viz. sec-ondary and primary or attained by relation (sambandha) and by nature (svarūpa). The secondary (which is attained by relation) dharma exists by taking shelter of matter, material qualities and relations. The primary (which is attained by nature) dharma takes shelter of pure living entity.

Primary and secondary religions —

Mukhya dharma (Primary religion) is the actual religion of the soul (jaiva-dharma). Secondary religion is nothing but the mere state of the pollution of the primary religion by the material modes of nature; when the material modes are removed, then only the pure religion of the soul occurs and becomes primary dharma. Secondary dharma is also called sopadhika-dharma (materially designative or conditioned dharma). If the designations are removed, then it becomes the primary religion. Secondary rules (vidhi) and secondary prohibitions (niṣedha), i.e. piety and sin, be-long to secondary religion. Secondary religion will not abandon the living entity, but in the state of being freed from material qualities will become transformed into the primary dharma. Secondary dharma is born out of the unnatural transformation of the primary dharma in the material conditioned state. The primary religion is reborn as a natural transformation of the secondary religion. Therefore, after considering the secondary rules and prohibitions, then the primary rules and prohibitions, finally the loving devotional service which is the perfectional state of the living entities will be discussed.

Jayapatākā Swami: Primary and secondary. The primary can also be called jaiva dharma. The actual primary religion. So Śrīla Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura has another book called ‘Jaiva Dharma’. And it seems that devotional service . . .

Another realization I had during the bathing abhiṣeka was that Lord Caitanya was married twice in the first 24 years. Then He took sannyāsa. But Lord Nityānanda, He was married once. But first He was an avadhūta and He married in an older age, had two wives, Vasudhā and Jāhnavā. I found the place, it is 25 km from here. So Advaita, He was married His whole life. So Lord Caitanya was teaching that people could practice Kṛṣṇa consciousness even as gṛhasthas. But there is no guarantee that every child would be a pure devotee. Advaita’s children were not all pure devotees, some were. And Śrīla Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura had one ācārya, not all. Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura was an ācārya. Lalitā Prasāda Ṭhākura, he was very advanced but not much exalted as Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura. So, Lord Caitanya, most people, they think, “Oh, married life is māyā!” But actually, if husband and wife are Kṛṣṇa conscious, they can live a very positive life in the service of Kṛṣṇa. So these were mentioned in the books, but it really depends on the consciousness of the spouse.

* * *

So it was a nice program in the morning hoisting the flag of Garuḍa. We want to offer this whole utsava, as an offering to Lord Caitanya and Lord Kṛṣṇa. Chanting the Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra, chanting the pastimes of Kṛṣṇa, it is a wonderful festival! This festival is something that is offered to Lord Kṛṣṇa. Thank you all for offering this utsava to Lord Caitanya. Hare Kṛṣṇa!

Kṛṣṇe matir astu!