Our method is directly to connect you. That is the special gift of Lord Caitanya. Immediately to contact him with Kṛṣṇa. Because ultimately you have to come to that point, Kṛṣṇa consciousness. So here this method is that directly, immediately. And it is practical also. Those who have no qualification, they simply by coming in contact with the society they have become highly advanced in Kṛṣṇa consciousness. This is practical. So in this age we have to give chance to the people, direct contact. No slow process method will help them because the life is very short, they are not very much fortunate and the association is very bad. Therefore, direct contact—harer nāma (CC Adi 17.21). Simply Kṛṣṇa is presented in the form of His transcendental name and you contact Him immediately by hearing. You have got natural instrument, hearing. You simply hear "Kṛṣṇa" and you become uncontaminated immediately.
Special gift
Srimad-Bhagavatam
SB Canto 1
The Lord was much pleased with Nārada Muni, and therefore the necessary strength was invested in him so that he could hear the Lord. It is not, however, possible for others to perceive directly the touch of the Lord during the probationary stage of regulative devotional service. It was a special gift for Nārada. When he heard the pleasing words of the Lord, the feelings of separation were to some extent mitigated. A devotee in love with God feels always the pangs of separation and is therefore always enwrapped in transcendental ecstasy.
The human form is a special gift of material nature in the course of her enforcing stringent laws of miseries upon the living being. It is a chance to achieve the highest boon of life, namely to get out of the entanglement of repeated birth and death. The intelligent take care of this important gift by strenuously endeavoring to get out of the entanglement. But the less intelligent are lazy and unable to evaluate the gift of the human body to achieve liberation from the material bondage; they become more interested in so-called economic development and work very hard throughout life simply for the sense enjoyment of the temporary body.
SB Canto 7
If a devotee advances in spiritual consciousness and thus becomes materially opulent also, his position is a special gift from the Lord. Such opulence is never to be considered material. At the present, especially on this planet earth, the influence of Lord Brahmā has decreased considerably, and the representatives of Hiraṇyakaśipu—the Rākṣasas and demons—have taken charge. Therefore there is no protection of brahminical culture and cows, which are the basic prerequisites for all kinds of good fortune. This age is very dangerous because society is being managed by demons and Rākṣasas.
Lectures
Bhagavad-gita As It Is Lectures
If somebody instead of crossing the steps, he is given chance of the elevator, within a second he comes to the top. So if somebody says, "Why shall I take advantage of this elevator? I shall go step by step," he can go. But there is chance. If you take this bhakti-yoga, immediately you take the help of the elevator and within a second you are on the hundredth floor. This is the process. Direct process. You can go step by step, following all other yoga systems. But you can take directly. Lord Caitanya has recommended in this age people are very short-living, they are disturbed, they are full of anxiety. Therefore by His grace, by His causeless mercy, He is giving you the lift immediately come to the bhakti-yoga by chanting Hare Kṛṣṇa. Immediately. You haven't got to wait. Immediately take. That is the special gift of Lord Caitanya. Therefore Rūpa Gosvāmī prays, offers respect to Lord Caitanya: namo mahā-vadānyāya kṛṣṇa-prema-pradāya te (CC Madhya 19.53). "Oh You are the most munificent incarnation because you are giving directly love of Kṛṣṇa. To attain love of Kṛṣṇa one has to pass through so many steps and stages of yoga system, and You are giving directly. Therefore You are the most munificent." So actually that is the position.
Man is rational. Man is animal, but rational animal. The special gift to man is that he can decide what is good, what is bad. He has got an extra knowledge than the animals. So at the present moment the education system is so bad that it is practically animal education. Animal education means when at the present moment the education system is so bad that it is practically animal education. Animal education means when we are too much interested with eating, sleeping, mating and defending, that is animal education. Eating, sleeping, mating and defending, oh, you'll find in animals. There is no distinction. They have got their own defending measures, they have got their own sleeping measures, they have got their own mating measures. You are mating with your wife in a secluded place, in a nice room, in a decorated room, but a dog is mating on the street, but the result is the same. So to improve the method of mating is not advancement of civilization. That is animal civilization polished, that's all. The animal also, the dog can also defend from other dogs. And if you think that you have discovered atomic energy to defend yourself, that is not advancement of human civilization. The defending measure, that's all.
The śāstra says that knowledge... Because our receptive power of knowledge is very limited... We are not perfect. Our senses are not perfect. Therefore whatever we acquire by these blunt senses, they cannot be perfect. The direction is, therefore, tarkaḥ apratiṣṭhaḥ (CC Madhya 17.186): "If you want to reach to the ultimate conclusion simply by arguments and speculation, that is not possible." Because argumentative power is a special gift. Suppose you can argue very nicely. That's all. I cannot. But somebody may come—he's more powerful in arguments. He can defeat you. So don't depend on your speculative function or arguments. Don't depend on that. They're all imperfect. Tarkaḥ apratiṣṭhaḥ. These are the directions of higher authorities.
Lord Caitanya Mahāprabhu has given us a special gift, but, that in spite of our not understanding everything very analytically, as they are described in the Vedic scriptures, one can understand himself by the simple process by chanting the holy name of the Lord. That is special gift of Lord Caitanya. He says that if you chant this Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra, then automatically everything will be revealed unto you. Because in this age it is very difficult to follow the process of knowledge.
Srimad-Bhagavatam Lectures
Everyone, you know that people are not so much merciful at the present moment. If a man is attacked by some rogue, nobody is going to help him. If a man's apartment is, there is a burglar, thief, nobody is going to help him. Or if a man is very poor, nobody is going to help him. It is dwindling. It is decreasing. Similarly, duration of life. Your grandfather, your forefathers, they were living up to hundred years or more than that. And nowadays hardly they are living sixty or seventy years. Similarly, memory. The memory is also reducing. Knowledge is also reducing. This is the symptom of this age. Things will be reduced. Therefore Lord Caitanya is the most magnanimous. He knows that "People will not be very much alert in accepting spiritual knowledge after undergoing so much austerities and penances. Let them chant Hare Kṛṣṇa and take everything.(?)" That is the special gift of Lord Caitanya.
That is said in the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, that in this age there is a special gift. What is that special gift? Kīrtanād eva kṛṣṇasya. Kalau... In this age this world is full of faults, but there is one facility: kīrtanād eva kṛṣṇasya mukta-saṅgaḥ paraṁ vrajet (SB 12.3.51). One can become liberated and go back to home, back to Godhead. Therefore the Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement is there to take kṛṣṇa-kīrtana very easily. We have got report from Europe, in Yugoslavia people are chanting Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra even there, in Yugoslavia. That is a Communist country, is it not? What is that place, Yugoslavia? They are taking very nice part in chanting Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra. So as Caitanya Mahāprabhu said, that there is no question of language difficulty. Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra is so nice that any part of the world or any part of the universe you can go and chant, and it will be appreciated. There is no need of language difficulty. So take this Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra, chant yourself, preach all over the world. Everyone will be happy and there will be no more fearfulness from death. Dhīras tatra na muhyati (BG 2.13). No more death.
At the present moment, as you say, in the Kali-yuga, it is accepted that everyone, almost everyone is a śūdra. But in the pāñcarātrika system, not Vedic system, Nārada-pañcarātra, they are... Otherwise, do you mean to say because everyone has become śūdra, the science of Kṛṣṇa, or Kṛṣṇa consciousness, should be stopped? No. Even they are śūdras, they should be given that opportunity. And that opportunity is given by Lord Caitanya very liberally: "Whatever you may be, come on, sit down, chant Hare Kṛṣṇa, and you become more than a brāhmaṇa." This is the highest gift of Lord Caitanya Mahāprabhu. But if you take otherwise from the social conventional life, oh, there is no brāhmaṇa, there is no gṛhastha, there is no brahmacārī. There is all gone, all finished. So those rules and regulation are not now applicable because amongst the śūdras there is no such rules and regulation. It is meant for the brāhmaṇas, kṣatriyas, and those are gone. They are finished. Now, even though the people are in the status of śūdra, they should be given opportunity for spiritual advancement, and that is Caitanya Mahāprabhu's special gift, and very easy, that "Whatever you may be, you may be a brāhmaṇa, you may be a kṣatriya, vaiśya, that doesn't matter. Chant Hare Kṛṣṇa and gradually realize."
Sri Caitanya-caritamrta Lectures
There are many incarnations, but Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu, He is the most magnanimous incarnation, because in other incarnation... Just like Lord Rāmacandra. The culprit, the criminal or the sinful demon, Rāvaṇa, he was killed. Kṛṣṇa also, when He appeared, He killed so many demons. But Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu, demons like Jagāi and Mādhāi, did not kill them but delivered them to become the best type of Vaiṣṇava. This is Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu's incarnation magnanimity. What He will kill? These demons are petty demons. They can be killed only by slap. So it is not very difficult to kill them, to call for sudarśana-cakra or any deadly weapon. They are already killed. There is no food. How they will work? How they will fight? So it is not possible. So it is to kill the dead man. Now, Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu incarnation, if they want to kill them, they are already dead. To give them life again is Kṛṣṇa's or Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu's special gift. Therefore it is said, śrī caitanya, prema-bhakti-vadānyatā, His magnanimity. He delivered by His personal example Jagāi Mādhāi. And Jagāi Mādhāi, they were born in nice brāhmaṇa family, rich family, but they were drunkard and meat-eaters and woman-hunters. That is their fault. And for this purpose they can do anything and everything. They were doing that. So the whole world is now all drunkard and woman hunter meat-eater.
To approach Kṛṣṇa is not very easy job, because Kṛṣṇa says in the Bhagavad-gītā, manuṣyāṇāṁ sahasreṣu kaścid yatati siddhaye yatatām api siddhānām (BG 7.3). Koṭiṣv api mahā-mune. That is also stated in the Padma Purāṇa, that muktānām api siddhānām. Those who are muktas... To become mukta, that is also difficult job. Out of many millions of jñānīs, one becomes mukta, really liberated. And out of many millions of muktas, or liberated, kaścid vetti māṁ tattvataḥ, kaścid, not all, somebody may understand what is Kṛṣṇa. So it is so difficult job. But Kṛṣṇa is so kind that He has appeared as a devotee of Kṛṣṇa, Lord Caitanya, and He is giving you the mercy, causeless mercy so that you can understand Kṛṣṇa very easily. That is the special gift of Caitanya Mahāprabhu.
| Page Title: | Special gift |
| Compiler: | Rati, Srivas, Labangalatika |
| Created: | 24 of Nov, 2008 |
| Totals by Section: | BG=0, SB=3, CC=0, OB=0, Lec=10, Con=0, Let=0 |
| No. of Quotes: | 13 |