Paṇḍita, one who is learned, he is sama-darśinaḥ, equal vision. Not that... Just Kṛṣṇa has equal vision... That picture, Kṛṣṇa, He's embracing the calf. He is not only embracing the gopīs, but He is embracing the calf also, cows also. Sama-darśinaḥ. For Kṛṣṇa the gopīs, the calf and the cows or anyone in Vṛndāvana who has come to serve Him, they are all equal to Him. Somebody wants to serve Kṛṣṇa as calf, somebody wants to serve Kṛṣṇa as cow, somebody wants to serve Kṛṣṇa as gopī, somebody wants to serve Kṛṣṇa as cowherd boy, somebody wants to serve Kṛṣṇa as His father, somebody wants to serve Kṛṣṇa as His mother. These are the different mellows, different tastes. Every living entity has got his own taste, how to love Kṛṣṇa. But the central point is to love Kṛṣṇa. Kṛṣṇa also reciprocates. He has no discrimination that "Here is gopī, beautiful girl. Therefore I shall love her more than the calf." No. Kṛṣṇa is not so partial. Similarly, Kṛṣṇa's devotees also, because he has... Kṛṣṇa consciousness means he has got now in minute quantity Kṛṣṇa's quality. Therefore he is also equal to everyone. He thinks everyone svajana, the member of the same family. It does not matter if one has become ant or one has become elephant. The living spark, the soul, is the same dimension, either within the ant or in the elephant. This dimension of the soul we have several times discussed, 1/10,000th part of the top of the hair.
Embrace (Lectures)
Lectures
Bhagavad-gita As It Is Lectures
So as soon as I take this book, this picture comes before me and I simply think, 'Oh, how Kṛṣṇa is nice that He has become a charioteer of His devotee. He is so great. Still, He has accepted a menial service of His devotee.' This gives me so much pleasure that I cry." Caitanya Mahāprabhu embraced him, "Your Bhagavad-gītā reading is perfect. You have taken the essence." So this is the thing. If you simply remember Kṛṣṇa is teaching Arjuna and Arjuna is hearing, if you simply remember the picture, that is sufficient. Even if you think that you cannot read. Because after all we have to become Kṛṣṇa conscious. We haven't got to become a learned man to argue with another learned man. If it is possible we can do that, but that does not make any difference if I cannot argue with others or if I cannot teach very nicely Bhagavad-gītā to others. Simply if I remember this picture, that is perfection. Because we have to become Kṛṣṇa conscious. We have to simply think of Kṛṣṇa. You think in any way. That is your perfection. Smartavyaḥ satataṁ viṣṇuḥ. This is the injunction. You have to think of Viṣṇu always. This is samādhi; this is meditation; this is yoga siddhi, perfection of yoga.
Then he doesn't require to undergo any austerities or penance. His everything is finished. And nārādhito yadi haris tapasā tataḥ kim. And if he does not come to this stage, his so-called scholarship, learned argument, this or that—all nonsense, finished. Useless. One has to come to this stage. Therefore Lord Caitanya embraced the brāhmaṇa, "Yes, your study of Bhagavad-gītā is perfect." Because one has to come to this stage, thinking of Kṛṣṇa always. So if one does not come to this stage, simply by academic education, he says "It should be like this. The interpretation should be like this," he's simply wasting time. Frog philosopher. One has to come to this stage. Ārādhito yadi haris tapasā tataḥ kim, nārādhito yadi haris tapasā tataḥ kim (Nārada Pañcarātra). So that is the perfection. Kṛṣṇa and gopīs. They were cowherds girl. Their father, mother, they were only ordinary village men, keeping cows. That's all. What was their education? They were not Vedantists. But they learned to love Kṛṣṇa. That was their qualification. And Caitanya Mahāprabhu certifies, ramyad upāsanā vraja-vadhu-vargeṇa va kalpita.
They are working, karmis, they are working so hard. What is their pleasure of life? The pleasure of life is sex. Yan maitunādi-gṛhamedhi-sukhaṁ hi tuccham. Very abominable activities, but that is their pleasure. This is material life. So Kṛṣṇa is not like that. But the rascals, they paint picture, and that pictures are very much appreciated, that Kṛṣṇa is embracing gopīs. Somebody was telling me that... Last... Who came? That Kṛṣṇa's picture. So when Kṛṣṇa is killing Putanā, that picture they will not paint, or killing Kaṁsa, or... Kṛṣṇa has got so many pictures. These pictures they will not, artists. They will simply paint the picture, His confidential dealings with the gopīs. One who cannot understand Kṛṣṇa, what is Kṛṣṇa, which Vyāsadeva has described what is Kṛṣṇa in nine cantos, to understand Kṛṣṇa, and then in the Tenth Canto he begins the birth advent of Kṛṣṇa... But these rascals, they jump over immediately to the rāsa-līlā. First of all understand Kṛṣṇa. Just like if you become a friend of some very big man, so first of all try to understand him. Then you'll try to understand his family affairs or confidential things. But these people jump over to the rāsa-līlā. And misunderstand. And therefore they sometimes say, "Kṛṣṇa is immoral." How Kṛṣṇa can be immoral? By accepting, by chanting Kṛṣṇa's name, the immoral persons are becoming moral, and Kṛṣṇa is immoral. Just see the foolishness. Simply by chanting Kṛṣṇa's name, all immoral persons are becoming moral. And Kṛṣṇa is immoral. And it is spoken by a rascal professor.
We can understand with little thinking that in this body I am..., even in this life. At night I get another body. I dream. I dream there is tiger. I go to the forest, and there is a tiger, and it is coming to kill me. Then I am crying, and actually I am crying. Or, in other way, I have gone to some beloved, man and woman. We are embracing, but the bodily action is going on. Otherwise why I am crying? And why there is discharge of semina? So people do not know that I am leaving this gross body, but I am entering into subtle body. Subtle body is there, not question of inside. We are packed up. Just like this body is packed up with shirt and coat, so the coat is the gross body, and the shirt is the subtle body. So when this gross body is resting, the subtle body is working. The subtle body is there. The foolish men, they cannot understand that "I am compact in some body, either subtle body or gross body." One who is too sinful, very much sinful, he does not get the gross body. He remains in the subtle body, and that is called ghost. You have heard. Some of you might have seen. There is ghost. Ghost means he doesn't get. He is so sinful that he is condemned to remain in the subtle body. He does not get the gross body. Therefore, according to Vedic system, there is śrāddha ceremony. If the father or relative has not gotten the gross body, by that ceremony he is allowed to accept a gross body. That is the Vedic system.
So he was very faithful to his wife, father, mother, and executing the duties of a brāhmaṇa. But one day he went to collect some flowers for worshiping Deity, his father was old, he was helping. So, in the meantime, he saw a śūdra woman and man. They were embracing and kissing one another. So he became sexually agitated. There is that possibility. Therefore there is restriction of intermingling of woman and man. Because as soon as one falls a prey to the sex desire, then his whole career may be spoiled. May be spoiled. But if he is strongly in Kṛṣṇa consciousness, there is no such chance. But this brāhmaṇa Ajāmila, he saw. Naturally, he was young man, and the woman also played some trick.
Just like Viśvāmitra Muni. There were many instances. He was a great king and he wanted to be yogi. And he went to forest, gave up his kingdom, went to forest. And he was meditating very seriously, and Indra, king of heaven, he sent some society girls of heavenly planet, Menakā. And she came. She began to dance before the closed-eyes yogi, and as soon as he heard, "Oh, there is very nice female voice and dancing," and as soon as he opened, he became captivated, embraced her. So everything gone. You see? So sense gratification, you cannot stop artificially. Nirbandhaḥ kṛṣṇa-sambandhe.
And the prostitute sat down before him, and the Ṭhākura said, "Why you have come?" She disclosed her intention, that "You are such a nice young man, so I have come to embrace you." "Oh, very good. Very good. You sit down. You sit down and let me finish. Let me finish my chanting, Hare Kṛṣṇa, because I have got a vow for chanting so many. So it is now almost finished. But as soon as finished, we shall enjoy. Very good. You sit down." So by chanting, chanting, chanting, it became morning. Now, that prostitute became restless. "I am very sorry. Because I could not finish my chanting, therefore we could not enjoy life. All right. You come this evening, this night. We shall enjoy." So next also night she came in the same way and the same business, chanting. And he said, "Let me finish. Then I shall do."
ut there is another instance, Ṭhākura Haridāsa. He was to be... He was also enticed by a prostitute at night, but he turned the prostitute to be a devotee. You see. At night, she came. She was induced by some of Haridāsa's opponent's party and she came, very beautifully dressed, at night, and Haridāsa Ṭhākura said, "How you have come here?" "Oh, you are so nice, so beautiful, so young. So I have come to embrace you." Like that, whatever. "All right. Please sit down. I shall fulfill your desire. Let me finish my chanting. Then we shall enjoy life." (laughter) So he was chanting, the morning came. So the prostitute became disturbed. "It is now..." "All right. I could not finish my chanting.
There is no eating, there is no sleeping. There is no fixture of this program. These are required. Annād bhavanti bhūtāni (BG 3.14). Simply by dry lecture, how they will feel happy? There must be sufficient food grains so that people may live happily, the animal may live happily. Especially in India you will see. No animal is fatty, either cat, dog or cow. They have no eating. So annād bhavanti bhūtāni. They must be given sufficient food, annād. Kṛṣṇa does not say that "You fast and chant Hare Kṛṣṇa." He does not say. Kṛṣṇa is not so impractical. He says, "Eat very nicely, keep very nicely, and chant Hare Kṛṣṇa. Make your life successful." That is Hare Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement. Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement is not one-sided. It is all-embracing. Sarve sukhino bhavantu. Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement wants to see everyone happy. Without being happy, how you can remain peaceful? That is not possible.
Guest (1): Yes, Swami. You mentioned new bodies. Does this embrace reincarnation? That is, when we leave the physical body we have now on death, do you mean that consciousness goes on.
Prabhupāda: Yes. This incarnation is going on every minute because you are changing your body. Imperceptibly you are changing your body. That is a medical, scientific point, that we are changing our body every second, every minute. This change, you call change, or you can transfer your identity from one body to another. It means the same thing. You see?
So similarly, the ultimate change of this body is called death. When this body is no more workable, then we transmigrate to another body. That body is offered to us according to our consciousness. That is explained in the Bhagavad-gītā. Yaṁ yaṁ vāpi smaran loke tyajaty ante kalevaram (BG 8.6). At the time of death, the situation of your consciousness makes you ready for accepting a similar body. And if you quit this body in Kṛṣṇa consciousness, then you get a body by which you can associate with Kṛṣṇa. That is to be understood, how it is possible. Therefore the training should be Kṛṣṇa conscious.
Ānandamayo 'bhyāsāt (Vedānta-sūtra 1.1.12). God is ānandamaya, always full of pleasure. You will see Kṛṣṇa's picture. Just see so many pictures—ānandamaya. He is sitting down on a small rock and enjoying the association of the small animals. Just see. They are also coming to Kṛṣṇa. Simply by touching Him, they are feeling blissfulness. And Kṛṣṇa also embracing, "Yes, come on." So this is ānandamaya. Both of them are enjoying. Kṛṣṇa as a child in the lap of Mother Yaśodā—enjoying. Then Kṛṣṇa as a friend of Rādhārāṇī, He's enjoying. So you'll find always Kṛṣṇa enjoying. This is Vṛndāvana.
So any religious principle which teaches and helps you to develop your love of Godhead. Without any cause. "I love God because He supplies me very nice things for my sense gratification." That is not love. Ahaituki. Without any... God is great. God is my father. It is my duty to love Him. That's all. No exchange. "Oh, God gives me daily bread, therefore I love God." No. Daily bread God gives even to the animals, cats, and dogs. God is father of everyone. He supplies food to everyone. So that is not love. Love is without reason. Even God does not supply me daily bread, I'll love God. That is love. That is love.
Caitanya Mahāprabhu says like that: āśliṣya vā pāda-ratāṁ pinaṣṭu mām (CC Antya 20.47). "Either You embrace me or you trample me down on Your feet. Or You never come before me, I become brokenhearted without seeing you. Still I love You." That is pure love of God. When we come to that stage of loving God, then we'll find, oh, all, full of pleasure. As God is full of pleasure, you are also full of pleasure. That is the perfection.
No, this is a fact. (laughter) It is not an association or vision, this is a fact. When you see a cat, when you see a dog, you see Kṛṣṇa in him. Why? You know that here is cat, living being. He, by his deeds, past deed he has got this body cat, forgetfulness. So let me help this cat, give it some Kṛṣṇa prasāda so that in some day he will come to Kṛṣṇa consciousness. This is to see in him Kṛṣṇa. Not that, "Oh, here is Kṛṣṇa, let me embrace this cat." This is nonsense. Here is a tiger, "Oh, here is Kṛṣṇa, come on Please eat me." This is rascaldom. You should take sympathy with every living being, that he is part and parcel of Kṛṣṇa. Vāñchā-kalpatarubhyaś ca kṛpā-sindhubhya eva ca. Not that we shall embrace him, "Come on Kṛṣṇa." So "the true yogi observes Me in all beings." This is the seeing. Why we are welcoming these children? Because he is part and parcel of Kṛṣṇa. You are giving them chance to, as much as possible, to take part in the kīrtana, to taste the prasāda.
He's praying, "My Lord Kṛṣṇa, either You trample me down by Your feet, either You embrace me as lover, or You make me brokenhearted without Your presence. Whatever You like You can do. But still I am Your eternal servitor." So this attitude was Rādhārāṇī's. So Lord Caitanya is the feature of Kṛṣṇa understanding Rādhārāṇī. That Kṛṣṇa is great undoubtedly, but He thinks that Rādhārāṇī is greater than Him, because He cannot repay the loving transaction of Rādhā, of Kṛṣṇa. So he wanted to study what is there in Rādhārāṇī. "So I cannot study Rādhārāṇī in the feature of Kṛṣṇa. If I take the feature of Rādhārāṇī, then I can understand what are..." This is highest, I mean to say, transcendental sentiments. But Lord Caitanya is Rādhārāṇī's feature. Tad-dvayaṁ caikyam aptam. Caitanyākhyaṁ prakaṭam adhunā tad-dvayaṁ caityam āptam. Kṛṣṇa, when He wants to enjoy, He expands His pleasure potency, which is Rādhārāṇī. Now one Kṛṣṇa becomes two, Kṛṣṇa and His pleasure potency.
So we should not imitate Rādhārāṇī. Caitanya Mahāprabhu... Just like Caitanya Mahāprabhu, He's the symbol of Rādhārāṇī's mahā-bhāva. He says that "I do not love Kṛṣṇa. I do not know how to love Kṛṣṇa." Then if you, somebody, if somebody says, "Then why You are crying?" "Well, that is a show. I am making a show. I am crying." Then what is the symptom? "The symptom is that if I would have loved Kṛṣṇa, then without Him I have died long, long ago. I should have died. I am living still without Kṛṣṇa; that means I do not love Kṛṣṇa." This is mahā-bhāgavata-bhāva, separation.
- āśliṣya vā pāda-ratāṁ pinaṣṭu mām
- adarśanān marma-hatāṁ karotu vā
- yathā tathā vā vidadhātu lampaṭo
- mat-prāṇa-nāthas tu sa eva nāparaḥ
- (CC Antya 20.47)
(Lord Kṛṣṇa, who is the lover of many devotees (women), may embrace this fully surrendered maidservant or may trample me with His feet, or He may render me brokenhearted by not being present before me for a long duration of time, but still He is nothing less than the Absolute Lord of my heart).
This madness, this hallucination, this illusion of this material world, is very difficult to overcome. It is very difficult. But Lord Kṛṣṇa says, mām eva ye prapadyante māyām etāṁ taranti te (BG 7.14). If anyone voluntarily, or understanding his miserable life, if he surrenders unto Kṛṣṇa, "My dear Kṛṣṇa, I forgot You for so many lives. Now I understand that You are my father, You are my protector. I surrender unto You." Just like a lost child goes to the father, "My dear father, it was my misunderstanding that I went away from your protection, but I have suffered. Now I come to you." The father embraces, "My dear boy, you come on. I was so much anxious for you all the days. Oh, it is happy that you have come back." The father is so kind. So we are in the same position. As soon as we surrender ourself to the Supreme Lord... That is not very difficult. A son's surrender to the father, is it very difficult job? Do you think is it very difficult job? A son is surrendering to his father. It is quite natural. There is no insult. Father is always superior. So if I touch the feet of my father, if I bow down before my father, it is glory. It is glorious for me. There is no insult. There is no difficulty. Why should we not surrender unto Kṛṣṇa?
No. That history of Ajāmila is different. In his childhood he was a son of a brāhmaṇa. He was faithfully discharging the duties of a brāhmaṇa. But accidentally, when he was young... He was married also. Accidentally, when he was young he was passing on the road and some śūdra girl and boy were embracing and kissing, and he became attracted. And he became attracted by the prostitute. And he left home, wife, and everything, and then he became a great dacoit and smuggler, and everything he did. But... And he had so many children. Youngest was Nārāyaṇa. So at the time of death..., because generally, people become attached to the youngest son, so he was calling "Nārāyaṇa." But he remembered, "Oh, that Nārāyaṇa." Reference to the context. As soon as he called Nārāyaṇa... In his boyhood he served Nārāyaṇa under the direction of his father, so he remembered Nārāyaṇa. Therefore it is not always possible, but therefore in the Bhagavad-gītā it is said, svalpam apy asya dharmasya trāyate mahato bhayāt. If somebody has executed devotional service even a little bit, oh, it may be, it can save him from the greatest danger.
Real love is described by Lord Caitanya. His love of God is being expressed in one verse, that āśliṣya vā pāda-ratāṁ pinaṣṭu māṁ marma-hatāṁ karotu vā adarśanāt: (CC Antya 20.47) "My Lord Kṛṣṇa, You embrace Me or trample Me down at Your feet. Whatever You like, You can do. And You make me brokenhearted by not being present before Me." Because lover wants to see his lovable object. But if the lovable object does not come he becomes brokenhearted. So Lord Caitanya says, "I am trying to see You, but You do not come. That's all right. I am brokenhearted, but still, I shall continue to love You. I cannot detract Myself from this love." This is pure love. This is pure love. So Kṛṣṇa says, ye tu bhajanti māṁ bhaktyā. One who is, I mean to say, entrapped in such love affairs with God, don't think that God is forgotten. God is also thinking in that way. Although you do not see, but you see. Those who are advanced in spiritual consciousness, Kṛṣṇa consciousness, they always see Kṛṣṇa, always see Kṛṣṇa. Similarly, as the devotee sees always Kṛṣṇa, similarly Kṛṣṇa also always sees that devotee. This is reciprocation. Although He is neutral... He says, "I am neutral, but still, I cannot deviate Myself from My devotee. Who is always thinking of Me." This is His admission.
So human civilization is coming to that. Already it has come. In Western countries, at least, in our country, it has not come still. And Western, it is common affair. Young man, young woman is embracing, kissing, and everything. And sometimes sexually also engaged on the sea beach. In the garden. We have seen it. So practically you are coming to the hogs and dogs life. This is our advancement of civilization. Why? On account of this bodily concept of life. "I am this body. I am this body." Therefore this should be first of all understood. As Kṛṣṇa says: idaṁ śarīraṁ kaunteya kṣetram ity... (BG 13.2). It has been awarded to you for utilizing it for different purposes as you like. You can utilize it like cats and dogs and hogs and you can utilize it as devatā, as demigod. That is up to you. We have got little independence. We can utilize or misuse this independence. But the śāstra says that this body is not to be utilized as cats and dogs and hogs. Śāstra says.
Srimad-Bhagavatam Lectures
Yes. And the second point is that because He's the supreme proprietor, He's the supreme enjoyer. And generally, one who is enjoyer, people do not like. Now, just like these capitalists and the Communists. Capitalists they have made their program for becoming enjoyer. And the capitalists, uh, Communists, they do not like it. Because they known,"These people are enjoyers. They cannot fulfill our desires." But Kṛṣṇa is not like that. Although He's the supreme enjoyer, although He's the supreme proprietor, He is the best friend of everyone—suhṛdaṁ sarva-bhūtānām (BG 5.29), suhṛdaṁ sarva-bhūtānām—He's not friend of the rich class of men or the... Just like we be, these political leaders, they become friend of the country. But they are their own party men. "I am Congress Party. I am this party. So I, I love my this party." And even if he loves all human beings, he sends the animals to the slaughterhouse. So he cannot be friend of everyone. But Kṛṣṇa is friend of everyone. You have seen Kṛṣṇa's picture. He's embracing the calf also, and He's embracing Rādhārāṇī. Not that He's simply attached to Rādhārāṇī and the gopīs. He's attached to everyone, every living entity. Sarva-yoniṣu kaunteya sambhavanti mūr... (BG 14.4). Therefore Kṛṣṇa is the best friend of everyone.
e explains many other verses also. The last verse He says that āśliṣya vā pāda-ratāṁ pinaṣṭu mām adarśanān marma-hatāṁ karotu vā (CC Antya 20.47). Now lover and beloved, one is anxious to see the other. If the lover sees the beloved, he becomes happy. But Caitanya Mahāprabhu says that "If You make Me unhappy for many thousands of years by Your disappearance, but by not being present before Me, I don't mind." Just see. "I don't mind." Āśliṣya: "You either embrace Me, or You trample Me down with Your feet, You are at liberty, whatever You like." Lampaṭa. Lampaṭa, just like a debauched husband sometimes entreats the good wife and the good wife tolerates. There are many instances, such thing, India still, but that is diminishing. Of course, if we say so many stories, it will take... But there are many examples.
So in order to hide the secrecy... And later on I saw—this is our practical experience—that debauched husband become a faithful servant of my sister, simply by her toleration. This is practical experience I have seen. So the same thing, sometimes it is happen that a man, man has got a, I mean to say, spirit of controlling. So his wife tolerates, then the..., then there will be no misunderstanding; gradually the family life will be nice. But if in a moment's misunderstanding we prepare ourselves to be separated, that is not..., there is no love. There is no love. So here Lord Caitanya gives the same example that "Either You embrace Me, or kiss Me, or You trample down under Your feet, because You are a debauch, I know, still You are My beloved." This is pure love.
That is the teachings of Lord Caitanya. Āśliṣya vā pāda-ratāṁ pinaṣṭu mām adarśanān marma-hatāṁ karotu vā (CC Antya 20.47). "Either You embrace or You trample me down or" marma-hatāṁ karotu vā, "make me broken-hearted," adarśanāt... Every devotee aspires to see the Lord. That is natural. But Caitanya Mahāprabhu says that "It doesn't matter. Whether I see Kṛṣṇa or not, it doesn't matter. He may not be present before me for millions of years and make me broken-hearted." If I aspire to see Kṛṣṇa, and Kṛṣṇa does not come, naturally I become sorry, broken-hearted. But even one is broken-hearted, still, he should not stop devotional service. Not that "I have served Kṛṣṇa for so many days, or so many years, and Kṛṣṇa did not come. Oh, what is the use of it?" No, not like that.
Actually, we have to reach to the point of Personality of Godhead, person. Before that, Brahman realization and Paramātmā realization, that is partial realization of the Absolute Truth, because Kṛṣṇa says in the Bhagavad-gītā, brahmaṇaḥ ahaṁ pratiṣṭhā. The impersonal Brahman is resting on Kṛṣṇa. Just like the sunshine. Sunshine is very all-embracing, wide, widely spread all over the universe, the sunshine. But the sunshine is resting on the sun globe. We see the sun globe, localized. It is floating in one corner of this universal sky. But the sunshine is covering the whole universe. That does not mean the sunshine is more important than the sun globe. And if you can penetrate within the sun globe, then you'll find there is sun-god.
So these gopīs remained simply crying for all the life, rest of their life. That is pure devotion. Marma-hatām, broken-hearted. Kṛṣṇa made them broken-hearted. "Never mind. We shall remain broken-hearted, crying all the life. You do Your business." That is love of Kṛṣṇa. That is love of Kṛṣṇa.
- āśliṣya vā pāda-ratāṁ pinaṣṭu mām
- adarśanān marma-hatāṁ karotu vā
- yathā tathā vā vidadhātu lampaṭo
- mat-prāṇa-nāthas tu sa eva nāparaḥ
- (CC Antya 20.47)
(I know no one but Kṛṣṇa as my Lord, and He shall remain so even if He handles me roughly by His embrace or makes me broken-hearted by not being present before me. He is completely free to do anything and everything, for He is always my worshipful Lord, unconditionally.)
Then Caitanya Mahāprabhu saw that these things are going on in the Raṅganātha temple. But He saw that "This brāhmaṇa is very gentle and grave, and he's handling the book. That's all." So He inquired, "My dear brāhmaṇa, what you are reading?" He said... He could understand that "He's not criticizing. He's a, mean, a great man." So he said, "Sir, what can I say? My spiritual master asked me to read every day Bhagavad-gītā, so many chapters, but I am illiterate. I cannot read. Therefore I have taken the book, simply seeing. That's all. What can I do?" "But I see you are sometimes crying. You must be reading. Otherwise, how you are feeling and you are crying?" "Yes, I am feeling. That's a fact." "How, what is that?" "Now, as soon as I take this book, Bhagavad-gītā, the picture of Kṛṣṇa and Arjuna comes before me. I see that both Kṛṣṇa and Arjuna are sitting on the chariot, and Kṛṣṇa is instructing Bhagavad-gītā. So I am appreciating how Lord is kind, that He has accepted the charioteer, to become a charioteer of His devotee. He's so kind. So when I feel this, that 'Kṛṣṇa is so kind that He become the servant of His servant,' that feeling gives me some ecstasy, and I cry." Caitanya Mahāprabhu immediately embraced him. "Your Bhagavad-gītā reading is perfect."
So in our back side the māyā is there, although you are in front of Kṛṣṇa. So as soon as you become little slack in Kṛṣṇa consciousness, immediately māyā is ready to capture you. Māyā is always going side by side. As Kṛṣṇa is all-pervading, the māyā is also all-pervading. As soon as there is lack of Kṛṣṇa consciousness, there is immediately māyā.
- kṛṣṇa-bahirmukha hañā bhoga vāñchā kare
- nikaṭa-stha māyā tāre jāpaṭiyā dhare
- (Prema-vivarta)
Jāpaṭiyā dhare means embrace. What is that? What is called, to capture like this?
Devotees: Hug, hug, embrace?
Prabhupāda: Embrace? Yes. So as soon as one, kṛṣṇa-bhuliyā, forgets Kṛṣṇa... Forgetting Kṛṣṇa means sense enjoyment. Two things are there. One, the materialistic persons, they are engaged in the activities of sense enjoyment, forgetting Kṛṣṇa; and the transcendentalists, the devotees, they are, even though they are not forgotten, but they are not interested in sense enjoyment. They are interested in Kṛṣṇa. That is the difference. This is māyā and Kṛṣṇa.
So Kṛṣṇa is very kind. Tat te 'nukampāṁ su-samīkṣa..., bhuñjāna evātma-kṛtaṁ vipākam. If we act impiously, we have to suffer. But for a devotee, karmāṇi nirdahati kintu ca bhakti-bhājām (Bs. 5.54). Karmāṇi nirdahati. Others, for sinful activities, they will have to continue, but if a devotee is in sinful activities, in one life it is finished. But don't take this concession. We should be very much careful not to commit. So we shall have to increase our madness for harer guṇākṣipta-matir bhagavān bādarāyaṇiḥ. And bādarāyaṇi, Śukadeva Gosvāmī, is also addressed as Bhagavān. If one is mad after Bhagavān, he's as good as Bhagavān. Harer ākṣipta. One who is mad after Bhagavān, he's as good as Bhagavān. Therefore bādarāyaṇi is addressed here as Bhagavān. In the spiritual world, Bhagavān and His paraphernalia, there is no difference. Don't think that the calf or the cows in Vṛndāvana is less than Kṛṣṇa. No. They're as good as Kṛṣṇa. Ānanda-cinmaya-rasa-pratibhāvitābhiḥ (Bs. 5.37). They are expansion of Kṛṣṇa's ānanda-cinmaya-rasa. Kṛṣṇa wants to play with the cows and calves. So He's ānanda-cinmaya. His spiritual potency appears as cows and calves. Therefore we see Kṛṣṇa is embracing the calves and cows. He's not embracing a material cow. He has nothing to do with material. Ānanda-cinmaya-rasa-pratibhāvitābhiḥ.
So Kṛṣṇa is the original person. He has admitted, and śāstra admits, and here is another authority, Kuntī. Kuntī, the mother of the Pāṇḍavas. Kuntī's not ordinary woman. Kṛṣṇa has gone to offer His respect, to take the dust of her feet. Because materially she happens to be aunt of Kṛṣṇa, elderly lady, superior. So Kṛṣṇa has gone to pay His respect before departing. That is the system, Vedic system, to offer respect to the superior first of all. Before going... "No..." Kṛṣṇa is going. "(S)he knows that 'I am Personality of Godhead.' " No. Kṛṣṇa was touching the feet of Mahārāja Yudhiṣṭhira because he was elder brother. When Kṛṣṇa used to come at the Pāṇḍavas' house, every Pāṇḍavas knew that Kṛṣṇa is the Supreme Personality of Godhead. It was not unknown to them. But Kṛṣṇa was coming down and touching the feet of Mahārāja Yudhiṣṭhira. And Mahārāja Yudhiṣṭhira was not returning. He was embracing Him because He was younger brother. So this is the etiquette.
So anyway, we should take care of our health also. Sanātana Gosvāmī, he was suffering from itches, very much, and Caitanya Mahāprabhu was embracing him. So the, the itches were wet itches. There are two kinds of itches, wet and dry. Sometimes itching spot is dry, and sometimes it is wet. After itching, it becomes wet. So Sanātana Gosvāmī's body was all covered with wet itches, and Caitanya Mahāprabhu was embracing him. So the wetness, the moisture, was sticking to the body of Caitanya Mahāprabhu. So he felt it very much ashamed, that "I am suffering from itches, and Caitanya Mahāprabhu's embracing, and the wet thing is smearing over the body. How much unfortunate." So he decided that "Tomorrow I shall commit suicide instead of allowing me to be embraced by Caitanya Mahāprabhu." So next day Caitanya Mahāprabhu inquired that "You have decided to commit suicide.
So here Kuntīdevī is very much anxious that Kṛṣṇa will be absent. But the effect will be, when Kṛṣṇa will be absent physically, He will be more, I mean to say, accurately present within the mind of the devotee. So Caitanya Mahāprabhu's teaching is that vipralambha-sevā. By His practical life. He's finding out Kṛṣṇa. Govinda-viraheṇa me. Śūnyāyitaṁ jagat sarvaṁ govinda-viraheṇa me. What is that verse? Cakṣuṣā prāvṛṣāyitam, cakṣuṣā prāvṛṣāyitam, śūnyāyitaṁ jagat sarvaṁ govinda-viraheṇa me. He's crying like torrents of rain coming out of the eyes, and He's feeling everything vacant for want of Kṛṣṇa, separation. Vipralambha. So sambhoga and vipralambha. There are two stages of meeting Kṛṣṇa. Sambhoga means when He's personally present. That is called sambhoga. Personally talking, personally meeting, personally embracing, that is called sambhoga. And there is another, vipralambha. The two ways a devotee can be benefited.
So a devotee should know what is Kṛṣṇa. They picture simply Kṛṣṇa as if simply embracing Rādhārāṇī. That's all. That is also very, in a obnoxious way. These rascals, they take it, the dealings of Rādhā and Kṛṣṇa as ordinary boys and girls dealing. They don't understand. Such pictures should be avoided. Kṛṣṇa is the controller. Let there be one picture how Kṛṣṇa is controlling the whole universe. That picture wanted, not these cheap pictures, imitating our rubbish behavior with boys and girls. These pictures we do not want. We want picture how Kṛṣṇa is controller, how He is controlling the universal affairs. Viśveśa. Viśveśa viśvātman. Ātman, the living force. The living force must be there. Unless there is living force within this body, as this body cannot move, cannot work nicely, similarly, within this universe, cosmic manifestation, there is the living force, Viṣṇu, Kṣīrodakaśāyī Viṣṇu, or Paramātmā. Īśvaraḥ sarva-bhūtānāṁ hṛd-deśe arjuna tiṣṭhati (BG 18.61).
et of Kṛṣṇa, always thinking of the lotus. Smartavyaḥ satataṁ viṣṇuḥ. Always. Then everything is all right. Then when you have to talk, vaikuṇṭha-guṇānuvarṇane, simply talk of Kṛṣṇa, this Vaikuṇṭha. You can talk of Kṛṣṇa, about His pastimes with the gopīs. You can talk of Kṛṣṇa about His pastimes when He's killing the Pūtanā, Aghāsura, Bakāsura. Both are the same. Some of the rascals, they decide that to talk of Kṛṣṇa about His embracing the gopīs is very good, and the talk of Kṛṣṇa killing Pūtanā or other demons, that is not good. That is rascaldom. Anything about Kṛṣṇa, you talk, vaikuṇṭha-guṇānuvarṇane. Just like in the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam there are so many descriptions, so many other things, but because it is in relationship with Kṛṣṇa, so each word of Bhāgavatam is valued. Each word of Bhagavad-gītā is valued. Because there is relation. Similarly, if you dovetail everything in Kṛṣṇa's service, everything is good. Everything Vaikuṇṭha. That is Vaikuṇṭha. Vaikuṇṭha-guṇānuvarṇane.
Pradyumna: By intense ecstasy in loving service, the damsels of Vrajabhūmi attained qualitative oneness with the Lord by dancing with Him on an equal level, embracing Him in nuptial love, smiling at Him in joke, and looking at Him with a loving attitude. The relation of the Lord with Arjuna is undoubtedly praiseworthy for devotees like Bhīṣmadeva, but the relation of the gopīs with the Lord is still more praiseworthy because of their still more purified loving service. By the grace of the Lord, Arjuna was fortunate enough to have the fraternal service of the Lord as chariot driver, but the Lord did not award Arjuna with equal strength. The gopīs, however, practically became one with the Lord by attainment of equal footing with the Lord. Bhīṣma's aspiration to remember the gopīs is a prayer to have their mercy also at the last stage of his life. The Lord is satisfied more when His pure devotees are glorified, and therefore Bhīṣmadeva has not only glorified the acts of Arjuna, his immediate object of attraction, but has also remembered the gopīs, who were endowed with unrivalled opportunities by rendering loving service to the Lord. The gopīs' equality with the Lord should never be misunderstood to be like the sāyujya liberation of the impersonalist. The equality is one of perfect ecstasy where the differential conception is completely eradicated, for the interests of the lover and the beloved become identical.
Prabhupāda: So Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu said ramyā kācid upāsanā vrajavadhū-vargeṇa yā kalpitā, and there is no better method of worship than the system invented by the gopīs. So gopīs invention of worshiping Kṛṣṇa was to remain always Kṛṣṇa conscious without any material profit. That is the super excellence of (the) gopīs. They never expected any return from Kṛṣṇa. That was not their business. "Kṛṣṇa, we have done so much for You, You cannot give me this benediction?" No, they never asked like that. That is the first-class worship. "Kṛṣṇa, You take whatever you like from us, but we do not ask anything, neither we have any need." This is gopīs' worship. We have got everything to give You and we have no need to ask You. This is gopīs' worship.
So fighting whimsically by the politicians, that is not sanctioned. There must be dharma-yuddha. Dharma-yuddha means religious fight, fight on religious principles. So what was the religious principle? (aside:) Hm, where is that mat? (Bengali) Saccidānanda. Here it is said, hatvā ātatāyinaḥ. Ātatāyī means aggressor. If somebody comes to your home to kidnap your wife, to take by force your property or to set fire in your house, he is called ātatāyī. He should immediately be killed. It is not that nonviolence nonsense. If somebody is coming to attack you unnecessarily, you must kill him first. It is not Vaiṣṇavism... "Oh, this man is coming to kill me. Right. All right, let me embrace him." No. That is not the rule. When there is ātatāyī, aggressor, you must fight, you must kill. That is religious.
Yes. The technical name is weeping. Dry and weeping. So it was weeping itches. And whenever he would go to Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu, immediately Caitanya Mahāprabhu embrace him, and the weeping secretion will touch the body of Caitanya Mahāprabhu. So he thought that "I am suffering from this disease. Caitanya Mahāprabhu (is) embracing me. I shall kill myself. I shall commit suicide." So he consulted, not for suicide, but leaving the place. So when he was advised, "Yes, you can leave the place," so Caitanya Mahāprabhu, when He heard this news that Jagadānanda has advised Sanātana Gosvāmī to leave the place, He became very angry, that "You have the audacity to advise Sanātana Gosvāmī? Nonsense." He was so respectful to Sanātana Gosvāmī. The same Sanātana Gosvāmī approached Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu, asking Him the question: "What I am? Why I am put into these threefold miserable condition of life?"
What he is reading?" But Caitanya Mahāprabhu did not criticize. Caitanya Mahāprabhu inquired, "Oh, what you are reading, My dear brāhmaṇa?" So he explained, that "This gentleman has not come to criticize me." So Caitanya Mahāprabhu knew that "He is a perfect knower of Bhagavad-gītā." Still, He inquired, "Well, if you are not reading, then how you are crying? I see there are tears in your eyes. What is the meaning?" Then he admitted, "Yes, sir. Yes. That is." "Why you are crying?" "No, as soon as I take this Bhagavad-gītā in my hand a picture comes before me that Arjuna is sitting on the chariot ordering Kṛṣṇa, and Kṛṣṇa, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, is carrying out his order and driving the chariot. So that makes me amazed. Therefore I am crying, that 'How Kṛṣṇa is merciful, that He accepted a menial service for His devotee. He is so kind.' " Caitanya Mahāprabhu immediately embraced him: "Yes, brāhmaṇa, your reading of Bhagavad-gītā is perfect." So it doesn't matter whether one is illiterate or literate. Everyone has got these ears. So we should hear from the realized person, guru Vaiṣṇava, not professional, no. That will not help us.
When there is birth, there must be father and mother. So when Kṛṣṇa takes His birth, appears, as a son, so there must be father and mother. But who can be His father and mother? His devotee. Because His business is with the devotees; with no other else. When He wants father and mother, the devotee must be father... Even when He wants some enemy, the devotee will become His enemy, what to speak of father and mother. Therefore He is all-attractive. He is as much attractive to His father and mother, similarly, He is attractive to the small calf. You have seen the picture. Kṛṣṇa is embracing. Kṛṣṇa is not simply embracing Rādhārāṇī or the gopīs. He is embracing the insignificant animal, calf. Therefore He is all-attractive. And when the calf goes to Kṛṣṇa... This is described in the Kṛṣṇa book, how all the cows and calves were so much, I mean to say, attached to Kṛṣṇa. That is Vṛndāvana. Everyone is attached to Kṛṣṇa. It doesn't matter whether he is human being or plant or trees or water or animal or the land or the flowers or the fruits. Whatever there is, they are all attracted to Kṛṣṇa.
So similarly, if we become attracted to Kṛṣṇa... We are attracted to... Actually we love Kṛṣṇa. That is the fact. But we have forgotten it. We are under illusion. Just you analyze yourself. Why we love this body? It is very easy to understand. Because the soul is there. Does anybody love a dead body? Is there any instance, a dead body is loved and embraced and taken into the room and kept it? Nobody cares. Throw it. Or burn it. So the body is not a lovable object. But because the soul is there within the body, therefore we love this body. This house, if it is vacant, nobody will come. But because there is Kṛṣṇa or because there are devotees of Kṛṣṇa, so many people come. Not that this house is lovable. Similarly, you analyze. You love this body. You work so hard day and night to keep this body fit. Why? Because the proprietor of the body, soul, is there. Then the love transfers from body to the soul. Then why do you love the soul? Because it is part and parcel of Kṛṣṇa. Therefore we love the soul. So ultimately, the love goes to Kṛṣṇa. This is natural feeling of love between Kṛṣṇa, or God, and between living entities, but the māyā is interrupting the relation. It is called illusion. The process of interruption is called illusion. Otherwise, we, every one of us, we love Kṛṣṇa. Everyone of us. You analyze. You see that ultimately goes to Kṛṣṇa.
So the animals, the cows and calves, who are Kṛṣṇa conscious... You have seen the picture of Kṛṣṇa? Yes. So better that we shall become animal of Kṛṣṇa. So there is nothing wrong. Even if we become an animal of Kṛṣṇa, that is also very worthy. That is not ordinary thing. Kṛṣṇa is embracing. Kṛṣṇa... You see the picture. Kṛṣṇa is embracing. Surabhīr abhipālayantam. Cintāmaṇi-prakara-sadmasu kalpa-vṛkṣa-lakṣāvṛteṣu surabhīr abhipālayantam (Bs. 5.29). Kṛṣṇa always tends the cows. His name is cowherd boy. To become animal of Kṛṣṇa is a great, great fortune. It is not ordinary thing. Any associate of Kṛṣṇa, either His cowherd boyfriends or calf or cows, or the Vṛndāvana trees, plants, flowers or water, they are all devotees of Kṛṣṇa. They like to serve Kṛṣṇa in different capacities. Somebody is serving Kṛṣṇa as animal. Somebody is serving Kṛṣṇa as fruits and flowers, as tree, as Yamunā water, or the beautiful cowherds men and damsels or Kṛṣṇa's father and mother, so many with Kṛṣṇa.
Just like Pṛthu Mahārāja, the king. We were discussing. So the Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement comprehends all sides of life. It is not that a stereotype "churchianity," weekly going to the church and come back and do all. No. It is embracing all sides of our life. But the only aim is how to go back to home, back to Godhead. So we have to educate these classes of men, śva-viḍ-varāha-uṣṭra-khara, these class of men: dogs, hogs, camels, and the asses. The world is full of these classes of men, and you have to educate them. Your responsibility is very great. You have to make an ass a devotee, a camel a devotee, a dog a devotee, a hog a devotee. This is your mission.
Then immediately, Caitanya Mahāprabhu embraced him, that "You are... Your reading of Bhagavad-gītā is perfect. Because you have understood the essence of the Bhagavad-gītā." The scholars, they will say... When Kṛṣṇa says, man-manā bhava mad-bhakto mad-yājī māṁ namaskuru (BG 18.65), the scholars will say "It is not to Kṛṣṇa the person, it is to the impersonal Brahman which is within Kṛṣṇa." They cannot conceive that the Supreme Absolute Truth can become a person. They cannot conceive. Such a huge cosmic manifestation is created by a person like us, resembling like us, two hands, two legs—their poor brain cannot accommodate. Paraṁ bhāvam ajānantaḥ. Avajānanti māṁ mūḍhā mānuṣīṁ tanum āśritam (BG 9.11). That is stated in Bhagavad-gītā. Mūḍhāḥ. "Fools and rascals," avajānanti, "deride at Me, thinking Me as ordinary man." Paraṁ bhāvam ajānantaḥ, "He does not know what is the transcendental potency behind Me."
I know, in Bombay there is a big speaker of Bhāgavatam. He preaches that "You remain in your family life very peacefully. This is the instruction of Bhāgavata." He never teaches that you have to give up this nonsense family life and you have to go back to home, back to Godhead. He never preaches that. There are so many examples. He comes to the conclusion that "You live peacefully," as if to live peacefully in this material world is the highest achievement of life. They will never disclose the actual fact that nobody can live in this world peacefully. It is not possible at all. But they want money. So they'll flatter or they'll go to Kṛṣṇa's rāsa-līlā, presenting Kṛṣṇa as ordinary human being and the gopīs are ordinary girls. So this is very palatable for us, kissing, embracing young girls. So Kṛṣṇa is doing, but they take it that their embracing and kissing is supported by Kṛṣṇa. This is going on. That is a different subject matter; they do not know that.
Department store. But they are ivābhāti; they are not fact. Ivābhāti. It appears like ladies and gentlemen and so many things, but they are not fact. Therefore ivābhāti. Iva means "It appears like that." It is not fact. But actually there are ladies and gentlemen. It is simply an imitation. So spiritual world, actually. And it is ivābhāti; it appears like that. But those who are fools, they are attached to this ivābhāti. If somebody goes, "Oh, here is nice beautiful woman. Let me embrace," that is foolishness. That is ivābhāti. That is difference. So therefore this very word is used, ivābhāti. Actually it is all matter. But they have been changed into different forms. The Māyāvadi philosophers, they say "It is ivābhāti. There is no form. Therefore make it formless." But our is that ivābhāti means there is form, but this is simply imitation. That is the difference between Māyāvada and They say "Because it is false therefore reality must be zero. It is formless. It must be zero." Śūnyavādi. Nirviśeṣa śūnyavādi. There are no varieties. They will say "No varieties," and somebody will say, "No. It is zero." We say, "No. There is variety." This is ivābhāti. It appears like the reality. It is not real thing. The real is different. A comparison is given: just like water, the desert. There is no water, but it appears like water. But that does not mean there is no water. As soon as you say, ivābhāti, that there is reality, but this is not. It appears like reality. That is the actual meaning of ivābhāti. Iva, like. Ābhāti, appears. The snake... (end)
So a devotee, whoever he may be, everyone, for everyone, the path of devotion is open. Māṁ hi pārtha vyapāśritya ye 'pi syuḥ pāpa-yonayaḥ (BG 9.32). Kṛṣṇa says personally. It doesn't matter, pāpa-yoni, low-grade family, pāpa-yonayaḥ, if he takes shelter of Kṛṣṇa. Striyo vaiśyās tathā śūdrās te 'pi yānti parāṁ gatim. And Śukadeva Gosvāmī says, kirāta-hūṇāndhra-pulinda-pulkaśā ābhīra-śumbhā yavanāḥ khasādayaḥ ye 'nye ca pāpā, ye anye ca pāpā yad-apāśrayāśrayāḥ śudhyanti (SB 2.4.18). Kṛṣṇa consciousness is so nice. It is all-embracing. There are many... Tyaktvā sva-dharmaṁ caraṇāmbujaṁ hareḥ (SB 1.5.17), patet tato yadi, bhajann apakvo 'tha. Tyaktvā sva-dharmam. Sva-dharmam means everyone has got his occupational duty, sva-dharmam. Generally, we consider brāhmaṇa, kṣatriya, vaiśya, śūdra. They have got their sva-dharma. Brāhmaṇa has got his duties, kṣatriya has got his duty. Cātur-varṇyaṁ mayā-sṛṣṭaṁ guṇa-karma-vibhāgaśaḥ (BG 4.13). So sva-dharma means... Suppose one gives up his occupational duty and takes to Kṛṣṇa consciousness, tyaktvā sva-dharmaṁ caraṇāmbujaṁ hareḥ, and takes to the shelter of Kṛṣṇa, but bhajann apakvaḥ, could not mature his devotional service, bhajann apakvo 'tha patet tato yadi, and he falls down... This is Nārada's statement. So he says, "What is the loss even if he falls down? By sentiment he comes to Kṛṣṇa consciousness, and even if he falls down, still, where is the loss? And contrary to this, a man who is performing very perfectly his sva-dharma, but has no Kṛṣṇa consciousness, then what is the gain?" There is no gain.
So my Guru Mahārāja said that 'You must read eighteen chapters daily.' So I have no knowledge. I cannot read. Still, Guru Mahārāja said, so I am just trying to carry out his order and opening the pages, and that's all. I do not know how to read it." Caitanya Mahāprabhu said that "You are crying sometimes, I see." Then, "Yes, I am crying." "How you are crying if you cannot read?" "No, because when I take this Bhagavad-gītā book, I see one picture, that Kṛṣṇa is so kind that He has taken the chariot driver, sārathi, of Arjuna. He is His devotee. So Śrī Kṛṣṇa is so kind that He can accept the position of a servant because Arjuna was ordering, 'Keep my chariot here,' and Kṛṣṇa was serving him. So Kṛṣṇa is so kind. So when I see this picture within my mind, I am crying." So Caitanya Mahāprabhu immediately embraced him, that "You are reading Bhagavad-gītā. Without any education, you are reading Bhagavad-gītā." He embraced him.
Prabhupāda: General idea is very good, but the one who is going to bestow divine service, he must know what is divine service and how to become divine. Lord Caitanya says, āpani ācari prabhu jīvera śikhāya. One has to first of all exhibit himself that he is divine, then he can, I mean to say, serve others divinely. "Physician heal thyself." If a physician is diseased, a patient does not like to go to him. "Well, he is himself diseased." So divine love is very good, but one should understand what is divine love. One should not misunderstand what is divine love. Just like in the material world, lust is accepted as love. A boy is loving a girl, a girl is loving... But it is lust. That is not love. But is going on in the name of love. The boy wants to enjoy the girl, the girl wants to enjoy the boy, and that is going on in love. Love is not like that. Love means, "I enjoy or not enjoy, I love you." That is love. Just like Cowper said, "England, with all thy faults, I love you." That is love. There is no return. Just like Rādhārāṇī's love to Kṛṣṇa. She does not require any return. You see? Kṛṣṇa left Vṛndāvana, Rādhārāṇī, and their whole life remained simply crying for Kṛṣṇa. Kṛṣṇa never returned. But still, they loved Kṛṣṇa. That is love. That love is being shown by Caitanya Mahāprabhu: "Where is Kṛṣṇa? Where is Kṛṣṇa?" That's Rādhārāṇī's separation, love in separation. So love means without any return, without any sense gratification, without any consideration. That is love. Āśliṣya. That is Caitanya Mahāprabhu's... Āśliṣya vā pāda-ratāṁ pinaṣṭu mām adarśanān marma-hatāṁ karotu vā (CC Antya 20.47). The lover is saying to the beloved, "Either You embrace me with love or you kick me, trample me down under Your feet. And if You make me brokenhearted without meeting me, so whatever You like, You can do. Still I love You." That is love. That is only possible to love Kṛṣṇa. That is not materially possible. Here the so-called love means he or she wants some return for sense gratification. So there the so-called love is lust. It is going in the market in the name of love. There is no love.
Guest (4): Is this Kṛṣṇa in this painting here? Right here. No, no, the next one.
Prabhupāda: He is Kṛṣṇa. Yes. He's loving the calf.
Guest (4): It is a calf?
Prabhupāda: Yes. The calf has come to Kṛṣṇa like this, and He is embracing: "Yes, come on." You... Just see. The calf has no education, no knowledge... (end)
So on account of his order, although I do not know anything what is written there, I am trying to read." "Oh, that's very nice. You are carrying the order of your Guru Mahārāja. But it appears that you are crying also. How you are crying if you cannot read?" "Yes, Sir, that's... Because as soon as I take this Bhagavad-gītā in my hand I see the picture that Arjuna is asking Kṛṣṇa to place his chariot in the warfield, and Kṛṣṇa is driving the chariot by his order. So this is creating some feeling in me: 'Oh, Kṛṣṇa is so kind, so nice, that although He is the Supreme Personality of Godhead, He is carrying the order of His devotee as servant.' When I feel this, I cry: 'Oh, how Kṛṣṇa is kind. How Kṛṣṇa is merciful.' " So immediately Caitanya Mahāprabhu embraced him: "You are reading Bhagavad-gītā. It is not the literacy or education or knowing grammar and putting jugglery of words. That is not reading. If one feels what is the purport of Bhagavad-gītā, that is reading Bhagavad-gītā."
Always distrust. In any moment it, the mind, can drag you. The example is given here, caskanda tapa aiśvaram. Yad-viśrambhāc cirāc cīrṇaṁ caskanda tapa aiśvaram. Even Lord Śiva—he is called Mahadeva; not only deva, but Mahādeva—he became captivated by seeing the young woman's incarnation, Mohinī-mūrti, became so much captivated. The description is there in the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam. But as soon as the Mohinī-mūrti demonstrated the features of the breast, immediately Lord Śiva became so mad that he forcibly went there and embraced, and there was discharge. Lord Śiva. And what to speak of us? What we are? (laughter) Therefore it is... Lord Śiva is all right, but by their example they are teaching us that "A personality like me become victimized by this māyā's influence. What you are?" Why you should trust and make friendship with your mind, that "I am now complete," artificially? Don't do that. Therefore it is warned, na kuryāt. Na kuryāt karhicit. Never trust your mind, always try to control. And the easiest method recomended in the śāstra and confirmed by Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu—harer nāma harer nāma harer nāma iva kevalam, kalau nāsty eva nāsty... (CC Adi 17.21).
So this universe is fully described in the Fifth Canto of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam. You will see it, where, which planet, where it is situated, what is the dimension, what kind of people live there. Everything is there. Similarly, there are description of the hellish planet, downwards. So that description of those planets when Parīkṣit Mahārāja heard it, that "These sinful men, they are suffering there; some of them being fried in boiling oil," this description is there. Some of them put into the river which is full of germs and mosquitoes, and some of them are forced to embrace a iron, hot iron man, a hot iron woman. In this way there are many description. And Śukadeva Gosvāmī concluded, "Mahārāja, I have described a few of them. There are many thousands and thousand kinds of suffering." So Parīkṣit Mahārāja is a Vaiṣṇava. Vaiṣṇava means devotee. So he did not appreciate the suffering of the human being in such a way. That is a Vaiṣṇava's nature. Vaiṣṇava himself is very happy because he is in direct connection with Kṛṣṇa. He personally has no complaint, because a Vaiṣṇava is satisfied simply by serving Kṛṣṇa. That's all. He doesn't want anything.
The tiger is there coming to attack you, and you are crying, "Here is tiger! Tiger! Tiger!" And the man who is not dreaming, he says, "Where is tiger? Why you are crying?" But he's actually... The result is there. Don't think that the result is not there. In dream you are thinking your lover is there, you are embracing, and you get discharge, not that that you are not working and it is not, there is no result. There is result. I cannot see what is the result, what you are dreaming. I am fool. I do not know. But the man who is dreaming, he is experiencing. Similarly, change of body means we are carried by the subtle body to another gross body. This is the process, nature's way. You cannot say that "I will not change body." No, you will be forced. Just like a young man can say, "I will not become old man." No, nature will force you to become an old man, or change your body. This is the law of nature. You cannot surpass the laws of nature. Similarly, change of body, that is forced by the nature. Prakṛteḥ kriyamāṇāni guṇaiḥ karmāṇi sarvaśaḥ (BG 3.27). Prakṛteḥ, by the nature's law, we have to do. We are completely under nature's law. And we are declaring independence. This is our foolishness. This is our foolishness.
So this Ajāmila was very nicely trained up, born of a brāhmaṇa father, and his father trained up. But unfortunately, when he was young man, he was passing through the road, he saw one śūdra is embracing another śūdrāṇī, or prostitute. Now it is very common affair all over the world: a man is embracing, kissing. But this was not allowed in gentlemen's society. The śūdras, the fourth-class man, they used to do that. Sometimes, not always. So he was young man. Naturally, when he saw that a young śūdra is embracing another young girl, śūdrāṇī, and she is not properly dressed, he became attracted. He became attracted. And they were drunk. So in this way he fell a victim of that prostitute. He liked that prostitute, and later on, he remained with her, and he had very good wife, very respectable family, brāhmaṇa, but he forgot everything. Therefore it is said, naṣṭa-sadācāraḥ: "He lost all brahminical qualification."
So this Ajāmila was very much attached to the youngest child. Sa baddha-hṛdayas tasminn arbhake kala-bhāṣiṇi. The youngest child, naturally... This is the attraction of family life. When a small baby smiles, immediately the father, mother and relatives become attracted. When the child begins to talk broken language, they enjoy. Unless this attraction is there, it is not possible to raise the child with affection. That is natural. That affection is even in the animals. You'll find a dog, even a tiger, everyone. That affection is there in the every... Monkey. I have seen it practically. In Kanpur I was staying in a room, and one monkey came with a child, and the child somehow or other entered into the window through the bars and the mother became mad. She thought, "My child is gone." She became mad. So somehow or other, again I pushed that monkey out of the bars, and immediately she embraced the child and took away. Just see. The affection is there.
That will be explained. He was brāhmaṇa. He was well trained as a brāhmaṇa, but one day while he was coming home with the ingredients of worshiping the Deity, he saw one śūdra embracing another śūdra girl, embracing, kissing, because they have no shame. No brāhmaṇa, kṣatriya, vaiśya will do that. It is not etiquette. But because a śūdra, now it is everywhere we can see, embracing, kissing, open to everyone. So young man, seeing this, how he can restrain, check his lusty desire? It is not possible. Kali-yuga is so fallen. If a young man sees another young man he's enjoying with another young girl, then naturally his lusty desires increases. So these things are forbidden therefore. Still in some places it is forbidden that you cannot... India this is strictly forbidden. There is no such thing in the public street a young man can embrace or kiss. No. That is not possible. Then it will be criminal. Neither a young boy can dare to speak with another young girl on the street. Still it is criminal. She'll begin immediately protest that is incivility.
We have begun that history, kānyakubje dvijaḥ. He was born in a brāhmaṇa family of Kānyakubja city, historical fact. Kānyakubja is still there in India; it is now called Kanauj. (break) ...family. Everything was there. But accidentally, one day he was bringing flowers and other paraphernalia for worshiping Deity for his father. On the way, he saw one śūdra, fourth-class man, was embracing one śūdrāṇī. This kind of embracing, kissing, on the public street, they're never indulged in India. Especially among the high class, brāhmaṇa, kṣatriya, vaiśya. No. The śūdras, they also do it very carefully. But śūdras can do. Prostitution, these things are the low-class. The high-class, no, not allowed. The high-class society, a woman cannot mix with any man. Especially unmarried. The fathers, parents, will not allow. So this person, this Ajāmila, happened to see that a young śūdra, he's embracing another young śūdrāṇī, and naturally, he became excited. And then he made contact with that prostitute, and whatever money he had he was spending for her. In this way he fell down, sadācāro. That is stated here, that naṣṭa-sadācāro, on account of mixing with a prostitute, he became completely fall down.
Even you collect from a nice garden nobody will object. So while he was coming back home with all these things, what happened? Dadarśa kāminaṁ kañcic chūdraṁ saha bhujiṣyayā. Kāma, a lusty ś\ udra. There are four classes—brāhmaṇa, kṣatriya, vaiśya, and śūdra. So he saw one lusty śūdra, fourth class. Dadarśa kāminaṁ kañcic chūdraṁ saha bhujiṣyayā. What he saw? That this śūdra was embracing another śūdrāṇī, woman śūdra. So nowadays it has become a fashion—young man is kissing another young woman on the street. So this embracing of young man and young woman on the public street was strictly prohibited, especially for the higher castes. But the śūdras, the lower class, fourth-class men, they used to do such things sometimes, not always. And what was their position? Pitvā ca madhu maireyaṁ madāghūrṇita-netrayā. They were not only embracing but they were drunken. And their eyes were rolling in a different way. Mattayā, and being mad, almost mad, mattayā, or intoxicated, viślathan nīvyā vyapetaṁ nirapatrapam, the dress of both of them were loose and they did not care for it. So in this posture—krīḍantam, doing their own business; anugāyantam, singing; hasantam, laughing, cheering, hasantam; anayāntike, in a place in the forest—so he saw, this young man.
That, this, we may describe later on and how degradation begins even to exalted person, as described, Ajāmila. So the degradation began—dadarśa, he saw on the way... Kāminaṁ kañcic chūdram. Chūdram, these male-female behavior... Nowadays, not so much in India, but in the Western countries it is very usual thing—a young man is embracing another young woman or kissing. So there is no fault. But according to Vedic civilization, this is fault because it will give chance to others. Nowadays in picture they are also shown to enthuse others to become lusty, and that is the beginning of his falldown. But there is no restriction. The young men, they are seeing daily in the cinema, on the road, in their school, college. But this Ajāmila, although he was so exalted a brāhmaṇa, simply by seeing one śūdra... Śūdra means who has no training, fools, rascals. So he was embracing another woman, and that became attractive to this Ajāmila, and then he wanted to do the same thing and he became degraded. This will be described later on.
For offering daily worship fruits, flowers, and samit, the kuśa, grass, everything is required for... His father ordered him, "Just bring all these things." He went in the forest to collect all these things, and while coming back he saw one śūdra was in embrace with a prostitute, and he happened to pass that way and he stood there and saw, attracted. Young man becomes attracted. Therefore these things should be very secretly done. Everyone knows that a husband, wife, have sex intercourse. But not like cats and dogs. That is human civilization. Not that on the road the boy or the girl is embracing, kissing, and having sex life. This is animal life. This is animal life. Simple they are educated to prostitution. Now, at the present moment, father, mother, sends the daughter for prostitution: "Find out a suitable man. Attract a suitable man. Don't marry abruptly. Just test this man, this man, this man, this man, this man. Then marry." So father-mother, they are teaching daughters prostitution. This is the condition of the society.
Those who are too much attached to women, you associate with them. These things are there in the śāstras. And practically it is said, dadarśa kāminaṁ kañcic chūdraṁ saha bhujiṣyayā, pītvā ca madhu maireyam. Not only he was engaged in embracing a prostitute, but the prostitute was drunk. Her eyes were moving by madhu. Wine is made from madhu, sugar, and still, all spirit is made from molasses. This is old system. This is very intoxicating. Rectified spirits, you know, doctor may know, this is made from molasses. Because we were in the chemical line we know. So here it is also said that spirit made, liquor made, whiskey made from madhu... Pītvā ca madhu-maireyam. Maireyam. Another process of manufacturing wine is, from a flower, is called mahuyā, mahuyā flower. Perhaps you know. The jungle people, the kirātas, they take this mahuyā flower from the jungle, and they soak it in water, and when it is fermented, it becomes wine. So such kind of... Everything is there. If anyone wants to manufacture wine, that is also there in Bhāgavata. You see? (laughter) Because it is perfect knowledge, all knowledge you can get.
To make more attractive for sex indulgence, of course, this has become a fashion, but it is not very good. Then mattayā viślathan-nīvyā vyapetaṁ nirapatrapam. And because they were so rascal, they had no, I mean to say, bashfulness. They were freely... Nirapatrapam. Nirapatrapa means one who does not care for any public criticism. Nirapatrapam, krīḍantam anugāyantaṁ hasantam anayāntike. And was laughing and smiling and singing and enjoying. And this boy, Ajāmila, when he was passing on that road he saw everything. Dṛṣṭvā tāṁ kāma-liptena bāhunā parirambhitām. The boy, when he saw that they are engaged in such lusty affairs, bāhunā, with arms, parirambhitām... Parirambhitām means embracing one another.
- dṛṣṭvā tāṁ kāma-liptena
- bāhunā parirambhitām
- jagāma hṛc-chaya-vaśaṁ
- sahasaiva vimohitaḥ
- (SB 6.1.61)
Although he was so much trained up, still, vimohita, forcibly he was attracted to this thing, forcibly. Because young man.
So these things are being shown regularly in the cinema. What character will be formed of the young men? By seeing once, this Ajāmila, he fell down so much, and our boys and girls are seeing these things every day in the cinema. So what kind of character you can expect from them? These are the instruction to be taken from Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam. But generally people go to hear Bhāgavatam to the professional reciters when the rāsa-līlā of Kṛṣṇa is described, because they think, "Oh, Kṛṣṇa is doing this, embracing a nice girl. So this is very nice." Not this part of Bhāgavata is interesting. That part of Bhāgavata is very interesting, and people gather in ten thousands to hear rāsa-līlā. And the reciter will make very monetary profit. This is going on, Bhāgavatam. Nobody is interested to hear the incidences of Ajāmila. They at once go to Kṛṣṇa.
So dṛṣṭvā tāṁ kāma-liptena bāhunā parirambhitām. Kāma-liptena, engaged in such lusty affairs, embracing one another by the arms, jagāma hṛc-chaya-vaśaṁ sahasaiva vimohitaḥ, all his education and training become bewildered, and he become attracted and stunned by the scene. Stambhayann ātmanātmānaṁ yāvat sattvaṁ yathā-śrutam.
- stambhayann ātmanātmānaṁ
- yāvat sattvaṁ yathā-śrutam
- na śaśāka samādhātuṁ
- mano madana-vepitam
- (SB 6.1.62)
Madana-vepitam. Madana, this Cupid. When Cupid attacks somebody or one who... When one becomes, I mean to say, too much attracted by lust, all his education, all his culture, all his knowledge, becomes stunned. That is the... Therefore one has to avoid this society.
So even the jñānī and jijñāsu, they are not on the pure devotional service because pure devotional service is beyond jñāna also. Jñāna-karmādy-anāvṛtam (CC Madhya 19.167). Just like gopīs, they did not try to understand Kṛṣṇa by jñāna, whether Kṛṣṇa is Bhagavān. No. They simply automatically developed—not automatically; by their previous good activities—acute love for Kṛṣṇa. They never tried to understand Kṛṣṇa, whether He is God. When Uddhava tried to preach before them about jñāna they did not hear it very attentively. They simply absorbed in thought of Kṛṣṇa. That is the perfection of Kṛṣṇa consciousness. Never mind Kṛṣṇa worship, but one loves Kṛṣṇa. And that is wanted. That is spontaneous. Real love means that. A lover does not consider what he is, the opposite party, what he is, whether he is rich man, whether he is educated man or educated... There is no such consideration. Love is spontaneous. That is an example also. Similarly, love for Kṛṣṇa, that should be simply spontaneous, without any consideration. Āśliṣya vā pāda-ratāṁ pinaṣṭu mām: (CC Antya 20.47) "Either You trample down under Your feet or embrace me, still, I love You." That is love, that kind of love. Hare Kṛṣṇa, Hare Kṛṣṇa...
So we are talking about Ajāmila. He was a nice brāhmaṇa boy executing the duties of a brāhmaṇa, but one day, when he was passing, he saw one śūdra and one śūdrāṇī embracing, kissing, talking, laughing—all lusty affairs. So it is mentioned here, śūdra.
- ekadāsau vanaṁ yātaḥ
- pitṛ-sandeśa-kṛd dvijaḥ
- ādāya tata āvṛttaḥ
- phala-puṣpa-samit-kuśān
- (SB 6.1.58)
Dadarśa kāminaṁ kañcic chudram. Śūdram. This business on the public way, kissing, embracing, this is meant for the śūdras. Therefore it is said, kalau śūdrā-sambhavāḥ: "In the Kali-yuga the population is all śūdra." There is no brahminical culture. Brāhminical culture means śama, dama, controlling the mind, controlling the senses. A real brāhmaṇa will never agree to embrace the opposite sex in public way. No. That is not brāhmaṇa's business. He has been trained up how to become controller of the mind, controller of the senses.
This kind of business on the public street... Just like cats and dogs, they have sex pleasure without any shame on the street. Similarly, the śūdras, they embrace the opposite sex in the public street, and sometimes they have got sex also. I have seen in the Western countries—without any shame... So he saw, this brāhmaṇa boy. The brāhmaṇa boy saw. He is young man. Although he is qualified with the brāhmaṇa... Not exactly qualified; otherwise he would not have fallen. He was on the neophyte stage. Therefore we restrict, "No illicit sex." Completely forbidden. Otherwise it will be very difficult to keep oneself in the brahminical standard and make spiritual progress. Without being in the platform of brāhmaṇa, you cannot make any spiritual progress. That is not... A śūdra, a vaiśya... But they can be trained up.
So this boy, Ajāmila, he was passing, he saw that the śūdra was embracing another śūdrāṇī. Dṛṣṭvā tāṁ kāma-liptena. When he saw that this man and woman is embraced with one another with lusty desire... Embracing woman or man, this is kāma, lust. There is no question of any other thing. Kāma-liptena. Dṛṣṭvā tāṁ kāma-liptena bāhunā. The man was embracing the woman, and the woman was embracing, pari-liptena, very closely attached, and everything was going on. Then... We have got lusty desires. Everyone's heart... Hṛd-roga-kāma. The material world means there is a heart disease which is called kāma, hṛd-roga-kāma. So hṛc-chaya-avaśam. If we... This is called impetus. If I see one engaged in lusty or sex affairs, naturally my sex desire also becomes awakened. Even though I am trying to control in the neophyte stage, still, if I see in my front something, lusty affairs, naturally I will be inclined to such. Therefore it is called avaśam. He was student, brahmacārī, practicing śama, dama, satyam, śaucam. He was not very old man; he was young man. But he could not control. Therefore it is said hṛc-chaya-avaśam. Avaśam sahasaiva: "all of a sudden," vimohitam, "he became very much attracted."
So therefore it is very confidential. There are ten cantos in Bhāgavatam. Nine cantos are devoted to understand Kṛṣṇa, nine cantos. Then tenth canto begins. Then Kṛṣṇa's birth and pastimes are mentioned there. So we should not jump over the tenth canto all of a sudden. People are very much anxious to jump over the tenth canto. No. Tenth canto is the mukhāravinda. It is the face of Kṛṣṇa, smiling. But Kṛṣṇa worship begins from the lotus feet of Kṛṣṇa. Nobody offers flowers and tulasī on the face of Kṛṣṇa. They offer on the feet. That is the beginning, the first and second canto of Śrīmad Bhāgavatam, two lotus feet. So we have to go by and by. And when we are actually experienced devotional servant, then you try to understand the tenth canto. This is the way. Otherwise there may be fall down, as this Ajāmila fell down. He was neophyte, and as soon as he saw the śūdra and śūdrāṇī embracing, he became victmized.
So his mind became very much agitated, young man, and he is seeing in his front that another young man and woman embracing and kissing. It is very difficult to restrain. Unless one is very advanced, it is not possible. That I was reciting, the verse by Yamunācārya, yadāvadhi mama cettaḥ padāravinde, kṛṣṇa-padāravinde nava-nava-dhāman rantum āsīt, tadāvadhi bata nārī-aṅgame bhavati suṣṭu niṣṭhi... Unless one is very strong in Kṛṣṇa consciousness, it is very difficult to restrain the mind and the senses. It is very difficult. Here it is said, mana madana-vepitum. Madana means Cupid, or the lusty desires. So he was agitated. His mind was agitated by lusty desires. Therefore we have to be very careful for the association. Saṅgāt sañjāyate kāmaḥ. We develop different consciousness by particular association.
It is said by some Vaiṣṇava poet, piśāci pāile yena mati-cchana haya māyār graṣṭa jīvera sei dāsa upajaya. Piśāci, ghostly haunted or inspired by the witches, when one becomes so, mati-cchana, he becomes bewildered and his intelligence becomes scattered. Mati-cchana. That is the condition of all living entities within this material world in different degrees. Everyone is ghostly haunted. And what is that ghostly haunted? That ghostly haunted, tan-nimitta-smara-vyāja. This Ajāmila had seen one śūdra and one śūdrāṇī were embracing, kissing, laughing, enjoying in lusty affairs. So he became tan-nimitta. By seeing these activities of the śūdra and the śūdrāṇī, naturally the lusty desire is there, which I explained yesterday. It is called hṛd-roga-kāma. This kāma, lusty desire, is a heart disease. So he was infected by the heart disease by seeing the scene, that one woman and man is embracing kissing, immediately.
So this man, although he was being trained up as a brāhmaṇa, his attention was diverted all of a sudden by seeing one śūdra and śūdrāṇī embracing, kissing, talking. So that became his meditation. Instead of meditating on Viṣṇu, he began to meditate on that śūdrani. Svayam eva toṣayām āsa. In the first verse, tan-nimitta-smara vyāja-graha-grasto vicetasaḥ. He became mad, vicetasa, bewildered, as if haunted by ghost. Tām eva manasā dhyāyan. Always meditating, "How shall I get that woman? How shall I please that woman so that she may satisfy my lusty desires?" Therefore tām eva toṣayām āsa: "His only business was how to please her." Now they require money. So he was not earning money, but pitṛyeṇa, whatever money he inherited from the father's earning... The son generally inherits father's property. He was the only son.
He is also embracing the young girl. I shall now try to find out young girl." This is going on. They are going to hell by hearing Bhāgavatam from these rascal professionals. Bhāgavata is meant, from the very beginning First of all try to understand what is God. Janmādy asya yataḥ anvayād itaraḥ (SB 1.1.1). Nine cantos to explain what is God. Then Tenth Canto, God, Vāsudeva, Kṛṣṇa, is there, not Tenth Canto immediately. So everything is misused only for "Money, money, money. Bring money." This is Kali-yuga. Everything will be judged by money. And as soon as there is money there will be hiṁsa. Therefore this bhāgavata-dharma is not for this class of men. Dharma-projjhita-kaitavo 'tra paramo nirmatsarāṇām (SB 1.1.2). Those who are above enviousness, those who are above after hankering after money, for them, this bhāgavata-dharma is not for them. Paramo nirmatsarāṇāṁ. Paramhaṁsāya.
So therefore he is avaiṣṇava. Just like Rāmānanda Rāya. He was accompanied by very, very learned men, learned brāhmaṇas. And Caitanya Mahāprabhu, when he met Caitanya Mahāprabhu and both of them embraced and were crying in ecstasy, the brāhmaṇas, the smārta-brāhmaṇas, they could not understand that "Why this great personality, governor...? He is so great and simply by embracing a sannyāsī he is crying. And why this sannyāsī... It is understood that He is coming from a brāhmaṇa family. And He has taken such a great personality. Why He is crying by embracing Rāmānanda?" They could not understand. And as soon as Lord Caitanya saw that the smārtas are puzzled, He stopped. He stopped. Perhaps you know this incidence. So the smārtas, they cannot understand the... Smārta, jāta-gosāi. The smārtas, to pull on their business, so they have become gosvāmīs. But actually they are not devotees. So these gosvāmīs will go to a devotee, and one who is willing to accept a spiritual master. Then they will offer different kinds of mantras: "You want to worship Kṛṣṇa? All right. I will give you Kṛṣṇa mantra. You want to worship Kālī? I will give you kālī-mantra." This way the business is going on.
Every devotee likes to see, but Caitanya Mahāprabhu teaches that "Even if You make me broken-hearted, not being seen for life or perpetually, it doesn't matter. Still, You are my worshipable Lord." That is pure devotee. Just like there is a song, "My dear Lord, please appear before me, dancing with Your flute." This is not devotion. This is not devotion. People may think, "Oh, how great devotee he is, asking Kṛṣṇa to come before him dancing." That means ordering Kṛṣṇa. A devotee does not order anything or ask anything from Kṛṣṇa, but he loves only. That is the pure love. That is the teaching of Lord Caitanya. Āśliṣya vā pāda-ratāṁ pinaṣṭu mām: (CC Antya 20.47) "Either You embrace me or You trample down, You give me all kinds of miserable life and You break my heart, not being seen by me..." This is Caitanya Mahāprabhu's prayer in His ecstasy of Rādhārāṇī.
So old man is always neglected in the society, and therefore I have come out of my home. I have taken your shelter. You see? (laughter) It is actually a fact. You see? So in this way we are wasting our time. Śaṅkarācārya, he was walking on the street and he was lamenting because he has got the eyes to see. What he said? He said, "Oh," bālas tāvad kridāsaktaḥ, "oh, all the boys I see in the street, they are very nicely playing. They do not know anything except play." Bālas tāvad kridāsaktas taruṇas tāvad taruṇī raktaḥ: "And the young, youngsters, they are after young girls, embracing, kissing. That's all." So taruṇas tāvad taruṇī raktaḥ. And vṛddhas tāvad cintā-magnaḥ: "And the old men, they are thinking, 'How to pull on? What to do? How to adjust family affairs?' " Parame brāhmaṇe ko 'pi lagnaḥ: "Oh, it is very lamentable. Nobody is interested in Kṛṣṇa consciousness." He is lamenting because he has got to... He was seeing practically. A sannyāsī is supposed to wander from one country, one village to another. So he is lamenting, bālas tāvad kridāsaktaḥ: "Oh, boys are playing. They are not being trained in Kṛṣṇa consciousness. The youths, they are very much enjoying. So the old men, they are thinking, deep, thoughtful, the same thing. But nobody is interested."
So there is a great necessity to preach this bhāgavata-dharma. What Prahlāda Mahārāja is preaching about the daityas? Daityas, they cannot understand. This life is meant for cultivating Kṛṣṇa consciousness, to understand the value of life. Therefore he is... This kind of happiness, dehi yogena-dehinam, the particular body and the happiness with reference to the body... And another meaning, dehi yogena-dehinām means sex. One, dehī, another dehī, they're embracing, they're kissing, they have, that is also. That is the ultimate happiness in the material world. So Prahlāda Mahārāja says that this kind of happiness, deha yogena-dehinām, sarvatra labhyate. You'll get everywhere. Everywhere means either you are in human form of life or in a dog's form of life or hog's form of life. Everywhere you'll get. Don't think that the sex happiness is less in dog's life than the sex happiness in the life of human being. No. The pleasure of sex life, either in the hog's body or in the dog's body or in the man's body, it is the same. We have several times informed that if you put something eatable in a golden pot or in an iron pot, the taste will not change. The taste is the same. But it is our concoction only that if I put into the golden pot the taste will change. That is misconception. That's not the fact. So we are trying to be advanced civilized for changing the pot. That's all. But that will not change the quality. The quality will go on.
So bhaktyā tutoṣa bhagavān gaja-yūtha pāya. Yathā kevala-bhaktyaiva gajendrāya tuṣṭuyavaḥ (?). The example is Gajendra, the elephant. It was not even a human being. Now, how he satisfied? You have seen that picture of, that... Here I don't find that picture in my apartment, that a calf is by the side of Kṛṣṇa, and it is trying to lick up the body of Kṛṣṇa like this, and Kṛṣṇa is embracing immediately. What this animal has got? No education, no strength, no beauty—nothing of the sort. Simply he has got the feeling: "My Lord, I love You." That's all. Bhaktyā tutoṣa bhagavān gaja-yūtha-pāya. So this is the universal form of spiritualism, the chanting of Hare Kṛṣṇa. Anyone... It is practical. All my students here in the Western world, America and Canada and other parts, none of them are either Hindus or Indians. I think I have... I have got only one or two Indian disciples in these parts. And all of them, they are foreigners. They belong to foreign religion. They belong to foreign country. How they are understanding? Do you mean to say these educated boys are dancing and chanting without understanding? Are they fools? No. They are realizing bhaktyā, because they have adopted the means of bhakti. Bhaktyā tutoṣa bhagavān gaja-yūtha-pāya.
Yes. That is the only desire you should have. Ārādhito yadi haris tapasā tataḥ kim (Nārada Pañcarātra). If your desire is only concentrated on Kṛṣṇa... Just like the calf. He came to Kṛṣṇa: "Kṛṣṇa, I want You. That's all." And Kṛṣṇa embraces. That's all. If you simply want Kṛṣṇa, that is all perfection. Ārādhito yadi haris tapasā tataḥ kim. If you have simply accepted Kṛṣṇa, there is no need of any more austerities or penances and knowledge. You have taken the real thing. And nārādhito yadi haris tapasā tataḥ kim. And if you have not come to that stage, to accept Kṛṣṇa, then all your energy wasted in so-called penance and religion and—all spoiled. So if you actually began to love Kṛṣṇa, it is very nice.
Just like Ajāmila. The story of Ajāmila is that he was a son of a brāhmaṇa, and he was very nice boy. He was married, and he was acting just like a brāhmaṇa boy. One day he went to collect some flowers and some wood from the forest for his father's worship. His father was worshiping Deity, and he was helping. On the path he saw that one śūdra and his wife, without any shame, they were embracing and kissing. This young boy became attracted. Therefore this system, that loving exchange or affairs should not be exhibited on the street. This is not very civilized form. In India it is not at all allowed. It is calculated indecent. There is punishment by law. But here the practice is different. But why it is so strict according to Vedic scripture? Here is the example. A young man was passing, and another young man and girl was embracing. Naturally he became excited. And of course this kind of embracing and kissing on the public street is done not by any high class. So he was a śūdra. So this Ajāmila was standing there, and the śūdrāṇī or the śūdra woman also called, and he became more excited, and he embraced and kissed her, and gradually became attracted to her. And he left his wife and home and father and mother, then became drunkard and everything for that prostitute.
Nectar of Devotion Lectures
In the material world field, we love somebody for getting something in return. That is not love, pure love. Pure love is different. Pure love, as it is described by Lord Caitanya, in the, in His mood of Rādhārāṇī unto Kṛṣṇa āśliṣya vā pāda-ratāṁ pinaṣṭu māṁ marma-hatāṁ karotu vā. This is love, Rādhārāṇī's, that "You either embrace Me or trample Me down under your feet, neglect Me, or make Me broken-hearted, not being present at any time throughout My life, life after life, it does not matter. Still I love you unconditionally." Mat-prāṇa-nāthas tu sa eva nāparaḥ. That is real love. And that love is existing in everyone's heart. Nitya-siddha kṛṣṇa-bhakti. That is not awakened. So by this devotional process, ādau śraddhā tataḥ sādhu-saṅgaḥ, that love... Sādhakānām ayaṁ premṇaḥ prādurbhāve bhavet kramaḥ (Cc. Madhya 23.14-15).
So we can enjoy Kṛṣṇa's loving service in so many ways. Not only by the embrace of the gopīs, but in the fight of Bhīṣma with Kṛṣṇa and piercing His body with arrows. Therefore Kṛṣṇa is akhila-rasāmṛta. Any one rasa... There are twelve rasas, either primary rasa or secondary rasa. Any rasa, Kṛṣṇa is ready to respond to any rasa you want to deal with Kṛṣṇa. That is Kṛṣṇa's position. Kāmāt krodhād bhayāt dveṣāt. So what to speak of those who are loving. Just like Pūtanā. Pūtanā wanted to kill Kṛṣṇa. That was his, that was her purpose. But when Pūtanā was killed by sucking her breast and life both, then Pūtanā was given the position of Kṛṣṇa's mother. Because Kṛṣṇa took it the bright side. Kṛṣṇa thought that "Whatever her intention may be, she came to Me just like a mother, and I sucked her breast. Therefore she is My mother." She came as enemy, but Kṛṣṇa did not take the inimical side. The motherly side. Tejīyasāṁ na doṣāya (SB 10.33.29). Similarly, the gopīs, they came to Kṛṣṇa out of lust, but out of lust, they became purified. Just like the sun. The sun soaks the water from urinal, but sun is not polluted, but the urinal becomes sterilized. This is the process. So you try to approach Kṛṣṇa, some way or other. Then your life is successful. It doesn't matter. Kāmāt krodhād bhayād dveṣāt.
So bīja means seed. Bhakti-latā seed. Bhakti's compared just like a creeper. The creeper does not stand alone. It embraces another tree and then it grows. Similarly, bhakti-latā, bhakti always embraces the lotus feet of Kṛṣṇa, and then grows. Therefore it is called bhakti-latā. So bhakti-latā-bīja. If one is fortunate, by accumulating this imperceptible good activities, by association with devotees, then he gets this bhakti-latā-bīja, the seed of bhakti-latā. So Caitanya Mahāprabhu recommends, mālī hañā bīja kare āropana. Just like you get some nice seed of rose flower. So if you sow it on the ground, just becoming a nice gardener, and pour water, then it gradually grows. So we have to take the bhakti-latā-bīja from the bona fide spiritual master, and sow it within the heart. Taj-joṣaṇād āśv apavarga-vartmani śraddhā bhaktir anukramiṣyati. And pour water. Just like simply sowing the seed is not your business is finished. You have to sow, you have to pour water.
Sri Caitanya-caritamrta Lectures
So here, you simply take prasādam, chant Hare Kṛṣṇa twenty-four hours, then your life is successful. It is not at all difficult. But we are so stubborn that we do not take to Kṛṣṇa consciousness. That is our misfortune. But still, as we struggle against misfortune, to become fortunate in the material world, similarly, we have to struggle against misfortune. Māyā is very strong. But the way is also there, how to get out of the clutches of māyā. Pāsate māyā tāre jāpaṭīyā dhare. Māyā has captured by embracing, just like if you capture somebody very tightly, it is very difficult to go out. Hands and legs are all caught up. Similarly, we are under the clutches of māyā in that way. But māyā's business is just to punish, but as soon as we surrender to Kṛṣṇa, immediately māyā lets loose. Yes. Māyām etāṁ taranti te (BG 7.14). Very easy thing.
So Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu has come with the same mission. His mission is not different from Kṛṣṇa because He is Kṛṣṇa Himself. So His mission is to offer prema, bhakti. Prema-bhakti-vadānyatā. That is His magnanimity. Śrī Kṛṣṇa did not offer prema. That is also prema, the preliminary condition. He said surrender. Surrender means beginning of prema. Unless I have got love for you, why shall I surrender to you? So that is the beginning of love, surrender. So He demanded so much. But Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu is so kind and magnanimous that in course of His chanting and dancing, He embraced everyone and gave him Kṛṣṇa-prema. That is Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu's magnanimity. Therefore Śrīla Rūpa Gosvāmī has offered his prayer to Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu, namo mahā-vadānyāya kṛṣṇa-prema-pradāya te: (CC Madhya 19.53) "People cannot understand Kṛṣṇa, and You are giving love of Kṛṣṇa." If you don't know anybody, how you can develop love for him? So just imagine how much magnanimous is Lord Caitanya Mahāprabhu. He is giving such a nice process, that chant Hare Kṛṣṇa, be purified—immediately you become free from this material bondage and begin your loving service to Kṛṣṇa. This is Caitanya Mahāprabhu's gift.
"All these symptoms means that he is floating in the transcendental ocean of joy, of loving Kṛṣṇa." That is the actual experience of love. Just like you love somebody, when he comes, meets you, embrace you, oh, you have got some, a particular emotion, similarly, these emotions means that you are in the perfectional stage of chanting Hare Kṛṣṇa.
bhāla haila, pāile tumi parama-puruṣārtha
- tomāra premete āmi hailāṅ kṛtārtha
- (CC Adi 7.91)
So His spiritual master said, "So it is very nice, my dear Caitanya. You have developed all these symptoms. So I am also obliged to You because I initiated You. Now You are so perfectional stage, in a perfectional stage, so I am thinking myself, also, proud, that I have got a disciple like You. Or You have been benefited by me." So His spiritual master said like that.
Who is the right person? That right person who is receiving the knowledge by the paramparā system. Not the right person like Dr. Radhakrishnan, because he's very much educated and world-famous, oh, a philosopher, therefore he's the right person. No. He's not the right person. The right person is... He may be a illiterate person, but if he follows the guru-paramparā, the disciplic succession, he's the right person. He's the right person. He may be illiterate. He may not know. Just like Lord Caitanya confirmed that brāhmaṇa, he was illiterate, but he was studying Bhagavad-gītā, and Caitanya Mahāprabhu said, "Yes." He embraced him. "My dear brāhmaṇa, you are really understanding Bhagavad-gītā." Because he knows the central point of Bhagavad-gītā. The central point. I have several times recited this narration, that Caitanya Mahāprabhu, when He was traveling in South India, He saw that one brāhmaṇa was reading Bhagavad-gītā, and his neighbors, they knew it that "This brāhmaṇa is illiterate and he does not know even what is ABCD, and still he's reading Bhagavad-gītā." So they were joking, sometimes criticizing him. The brāhmaṇa, of course, he was reading as far as possible.
"Yes, Sir, I am crying." "Why?" "Now, soon as I take this book, the picture of Kṛṣṇa and Arjuna comes before me. I see that Kṛṣṇa is driving the chariot and Arjuna is hearing, and I simply appreciate, 'Oh, Kṛṣṇa is so kind that He has become his chariot driver of His devotee.' Therefore I am crying. Oh, He's so kind." Caitanya Mahāprabhu said, "You are reading Bhagavad-gītā." At once He embraced him. This is reading Bhagavad-gītā. Kṛṣṇa—minus Bhagavad-gītā commentation, all rascaldom. Be careful of these, all these fools and rascals. That is not Bhagavad-gītā. Maybe Dr. Radhakrishnan, Swami Nikhilananda... All rascals because they have made minus Kṛṣṇa. They want to interpret. Similarly, they interpret Vedānta and all this minus God, minus God. So Kṛṣṇa, Caitanya Mahāprabhu warns you that "Don't go to such rascals." There is no mistake. Try to understand Bhagavad-gītā or Vedānta-sūtra or any scripture as it is. Don't try to change it.
A woman agrees that "I shall serve you," because the man requires woman's service in so many ways by her ser..., cooking, by her embracing, by her becoming beautiful, so many ways. That is the encouragement so that he can work, he can live peacefully, he can discharge spiritual duties nicely. So there is cooperation. Stri-puruṣa. Puruṣa is supposed to be enjoyer, but both their lives become sublime when there is cooperation. So patiḥ patīnām. So everyone is given the chance of becoming a pati. Pati means husband, or proprietor. Even the ant, it has got also a companion, female ant. Even the dog, it has got also companion. Even the small bird, even the insect, even the fly—everyone is given. This is called viṣaya. Viṣaya means material enjoyment.
So when there is such doubt, one can interpret. But when there is no doubt—everyone can understand clearly the meaning—there is no question of interpreting. That is Caitanya Mahāprabhu's stressing, that gauṇa-vṛttye yebā bhāṣya karila ācārya. Therefore each and every aphorism and verse of Vedānta-sūtra has been indirectly interpreted by the Śārīraka-bhāṣya. Such interpretation, if somebody hears, then his future is doomed. Just like our Gandhi, he wanted to prove, from Bhagavad-gītā, nonviolence. The Bhagavad-gītā is being preached in the battlefield, and it is completely violence. How he can prove? Therefore he is dragging the meaning out of his own con... It is very troublesome, and anyone who will read such interpretation, he is doomed. He is doomed because the Bhagavad-gītā is meant for awakening your Kṛṣṇa consciousness. If that is not awakened, then it is useless waste of time. Just like Caitanya Mahāprabhu embraced the brāhmaṇa who was illiterate, but he took the essence of Bhagavad-gītā, the relationship between the Lord and the devotee. Therefore, unless we take the real, I mean to say, essence of any literature, it is simply waste of time.
So if we pray, go to Kṛṣṇa with that purpose, that He should be our order-supplier, then there is no question of Kṛṣṇa-bhakti. We must fully surrender, fully surrender: "Let Him do." Āśliṣya vā. That is taught by Śrī Caitanya: Āśliṣya vā pāda-ratāṁ pinaṣṭu mām marma-hatāṁ karotu vā adarśanāt (CC Antya 20.47). Āśliṣya vā pāda-ratā: "Either You embrace me or You trample me down on Your feet, neglect me, and You make me broken-hearted, and not being present before me all the life..." Āśliṣya vā pāda-ratāṁ pinaṣṭu mām marma-hatāṁ karotu vā. Marma-hatām means "If You make me broken-hearted... I love You so much. I want You, but You never care for me. That's all right. Still You are my worshipable, unconditionally. I don't want any return from You. Still You are my worshipable Deity(?)." This is pure devotion. Kṛṣṇa takes all care. Don't think... Because He says personally, ahaṁ tvāṁ sarva-pāpebhyo mokṣayiṣyāmi (BG 18.66). Why should you be so anxious? But one who is in love with Kṛṣṇa, he wants to see Him, he wants to love Him. But even He does not present Himself before the lover, the lover says, "Oh, still, You are my lovable object, worshipable... Whatever You can do... You are... You are free to treat me as, as You like, but You are my worshipable..." This is pure. So as soon as we come to this stage, that is perfection. That is perfection. Don't expect anything, return.
So these two families, they were very intimately related. But they knew that Kṛṣṇa is the Supreme Personality of Godhead. You'll read in Kuntī's stotra. She was praying to Kṛṣṇa as the Supreme Personality of Godhead, although Kṛṣṇa was offering His obeisances to the aunt, Kuntī. Similarly, Nārada Muni also, when he entered the royal assembly of Kṛṣṇa in Dvārakā, Kṛṣṇa received him by standing from His throne and taking the dust of his feet, although Nārada knows that He is the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Similarly, Kṛṣṇa, whenever he used to meet Mahārāja Yudhiṣṭhira, He was giving His respect by touching his feet, and Mahārāja Yudhiṣṭhira embracing Him as younger brother. But they knew, all, that He is the Supreme Personality of Godhead.
So we can also have Kṛṣṇa like that. That is Kṛṣṇa's pastime, that... You are thinking of God as nirākāra, without any form: "He cannot be touched. He cannot be embraced. He cannot be talked." No. Kṛṣṇa, personally being present, He was talking with His devotees, dealing just like ordinary human being. But the devotees knew Him, that He is the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Only the nondevotees... Avajānanti māṁ mūḍhā mānuṣīṁ tanum āśritam (BG 9.11). Those who are nondevotees, still now... Just like we are worshiping here Kṛṣṇa in this temple. The others, nondevotees, rascals, they will think that "These fools are worshiping a stone statue." They will think like that. They are very learned scholar, so they think that "These are fools. They have accepted a stone statue. Everyone knows that here Kṛṣṇa is made of stone, so why these fools are spending so much money, lakhs and crores, for having a temple for this stone statue? This is their foolishness." Therefore Kṛṣṇa says, avajānanti māṁ mūḍhā mānuṣīṁ tanum āśritam (BG 9.11).
Then he was (going to) Vṛndāvana. He saw another beautiful woman because he was practiced to that habit. So he was going behind. Although he determined, "Now I am going to Vṛndāvana," on the way he was again attracted by another woman. So he followed that woman. That woman belonged to a respectable family. So he came, and the woman said to her husband, "Oh, this man is following me. Please ask, 'What is the idea?' " So the husband asked, "My dear sir, you appear to be very nice gentleman, and you belong to very aristocratic family. From your appearances I understand. What do you want? Why you are following my wife?" He said, "Yes, I am following wife because I want to embrace her." "Oh, you want to embrace? Come on. Embrace. Come on. You are welcome. Come on." So the wife also... She (he) ordered, "Oh, here is a guest. He wants to embrace you and kiss you. So please decorate yourself nicely so that he may enjoy." So the wife also followed the instruction of the husband because wife's duty is to follow the instruction. And when Bilvamaṅgala came inside before the woman, he said, "My dear mother, will you kindly give your hairpins?" "Yes. Why?" "I have got some business." Then he took the hairpin and at once pierced his eyes: "Oh, this eye is my enemy." And he became blind. He became blind. Then all of them... "That's all right. Now no more I shall be disturbed."
So for us, so long we are conditioned by this material nature, we have to live under regulation, under restriction, and as soon as we are free from this material entanglement, when we come to Kṛṣṇa consciousness fully, even in perfection of Kṛṣṇa consciousness here you'll have that transcendental nature. Just like several times I have cited one śloka from Yamunācārya. Yamunācārya was a great king. Later on, he became a great devotee. He has written his life's experience in one verse. Yad-avadhi mama cetaḥ kṛṣṇa-padāravindayor: "So long my mind and attention is absorbed in Kṛṣṇa consciousness," tadavadhi, "since then," tad-avadhi bata nārī-saṅgame, "sex life, as soon as I remember about that, it becomes very nasty thing for me." This is the experience. And in the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam also... Sex life is there in Kṛṣṇa, not exactly like this, but there is a, I mean to say, unification of embracing, kissing, everything is there, but there is no pregnancy, there is no abortion. That is the perfection. So that we cannot do here. Therefore we have to avoid. Yes. We have to avoid. The perfection... Kṛṣṇa mixed with so many girls, but there was not a single case. And Bhīṣmadeva certified that "If I had been among such beautiful young girls..." Because Bhīṣma was famous as brahmacārī. "So I think I could not protect myself, but Kṛṣṇa is so nice that He, He was always..." Kṛṣṇa is all-perfect. It is because the girls wanted Kṛṣṇa as their husband; therefore Kṛṣṇa accepted them. Kṛṣṇa did not, I mean to say, need the assistance of any other person or girl or boy or anything for His... He's fully satisfied. He's God. He's full perfect.
Sri Isopanisad Lectures
This very word is used, adhokṣaja: where your material senses cannot approach. And what kind of that love? Ahaitukī, without any cause. "O Lord, I love You, God, because You supply me so many nice things. You are order-supplier." No. Not that sort of love. Without any exchange. That is taught by Caitanya Mahāprabhu, that "Whatever You do..." Āśliṣya vā pada-ratāṁ pinaṣṭu mām (CC Antya 20.47). "Either You trample me under Your feet or You embrace me... What You like. You make me brokenhearted by not seeing You—that doesn't matter. Still You are my worshipable Lord." That is love. "From God's side, He may do whatever He likes. I don't want anything in exchange." That is love. That sort of love Kṛṣṇa wants. Therefore He was so much fond of the gopīs. In the gopīs' love there was no question of business propaganda—"Give me this, then I love You." (chuckles) No. That is pure love. That is unalloyed love. Ahaituky apratihatā. Apratihatā means without being checked. No impediment. If you want to love God, there is nothing throughout the whole world which can check you. Simply you have to develop your eagerness: "Kṛṣṇa, I want You." That's all.
Arrival Addresses and Talks
That is God. Some of you are saying there is no God, some of you are saying God is dead, and some of you are saying God is impersonal or void. These are all nonsense. I want to teach all these nonsense that there is God. That is my mission. Any nonsense can come to me, I shall prove that there is God. That is my Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement. It is a challenge to the atheistic people. There is God. As we are sitting here face to face, you can see God face to face. If you are sincere and if you are serious, that is possible. Unfortunately, we are trying to forget God; therefore we are embracing so many miseries of life. So I am simply preaching that you have Kṛṣṇa consciousness and be happy. Don't be swayed away by these nonsense waves of māyā, or illusion. That is my request.
Initiation Lectures
So this Bhāgavata-dharma is very nice, it is universal, it can be accepted by everyone. Unfortunately, so long there was no preaching of this Bhāgavata-dharma. Now, by the grace of Kṛṣṇa, Lord Caitanya, the Bhāgavata-dharma is now being expanded in the Western countries. I am very glad that boys and girls from this part of the world, they are also embracing and they are nicely chanting and following the rules and regulations. So I think Kṛṣṇa will be very... So initiation means this is the beginning. Now you have to follow the rules and regulations. What are the rules and regulations? Only four principles. Don't have any illicit sex life. Don't have any food besides prasādam or foodstuff offered to Kṛṣṇa. And Kṛṣṇa does not eat anything beyond the vegetarian group. Because in the Bhagavad-gītā it is said patraṁ puṣpaṁ phalaṁ toyaṁ yo me bhaktyā prayacchati (BG 9.26). So you cannot offer Kṛṣṇa anything beyond this scope. So there is no question of nonvegetarian diet, including fish, eggs, even onions, and lentils, what is called? Lentils? That dahl, pulses? So you have got from your Godbrother, you will know. And you are eating here Kṛṣṇa prasādam. And no gambling and no intoxication, including smoking, tea taking, coffee taking. No gambling, no intoxication. These four principles. No illicit sex life, no nonvegetarian diet, no gambling, and no intoxication. These four principles have to be followed and in the beginning the offenses. Where is...? You read the offenses.
This picture is the symbolic... Ānanda-cinmaya-rasa. There is a rasa, mellow—every ānanda. Just like if you take a nice fruit, mango, the taste is pleasing. That is called rasa, that taste. Anyway, anything enjoy, there is a rasa. Rasa. You love somebody, you kiss somebody, embrace somebody, there is a rasa. So this picture is ānanda-cinmaya-rasa. Here we have got that taste of rasa in a perverted manner. But cinmaya-rasa means it continues. This Rādhā-Kṛṣṇa with the gopīs, they are enjoying, dancing, chanting. That is eternally; that is never stopped. It is not that they become old and there is no more enjoyment or they are separated or somebody, Kṛṣṇa goes somewhere and the Rādhārāṇī goes to somewhere. No. Everything is eternal. They are enjoying. That is the difference between this rasa and that rasa. This rasa is temporary. Your youthful enjoyment will not exist; it will be finished. Your American life will be finished. Your this life, that life, everything will be finished—and finished forever. Not that you are going to have it again. Therefore this is flashing. It is coming and going. But that life is eternal.
So that is another stage, of course, when this chanting will be so melodious that we shall try to have more ears and more tongues to utilize it. Ataḥ śrī-kṛṣṇa-nāmādi na bhaved grāhyam indriyaiḥ (CC Madhya 17.136). By our present senses, we cannot understand what is Kṛṣṇa, or what is God, what is His name, what is His form, what is His quality. Therefore immediately, if we try to understand Kṛṣṇa by His picture, "Oh, Kṛṣṇa is embracing Rādhārāṇī or the gopīs," we shall mistake. Because unless our senses are purified, we shall accept Kṛṣṇa and Rādhārāṇī as ordinary young boy or girl and their dealings. But actually it is not. It is pure. Caitanya-caritāmṛta kar has distinguished that the loving affairs of the gopīs with Kṛṣṇa and the ordinary, these lustful dealings of human beings, there is a gulf of difference. He compares that the gopīs' love with Kṛṣṇa is gold, and our so-called love here is iron. As there is difference between gold and iron, similarly there is difference between the loving affairs of gopīs with Kṛṣṇa and these mundane, so-called lusty affairs between men and women or boys and girls. It is never equal.
General Lectures
Then he becomes eligible to be a devotee of the Lord. To become devotee of the Lord is not so easy. These are the conditions. The beginning is joyfulness. The second stage: no want, no lamentation. "My father is Kṛṣṇa, so I'll be fully sup..." Just like a child. He knows, "My father is there. I have no want." Everything is there. Prasannātmā. "Why shall I hanker him? My father..." (break) ...is now diseased. He's now lunatic. Similarly, tiger is my brother, but not that because originally he's my brother, I shall go and embrace. No. I shall be careful. But not that I shall kill. Why shall I kill? He's not coming to encroach upon my property. He's living in the jungle. Why shall I go and kill a tiger? This is all nonsense, lack of Kṛṣṇa consciousness. He has not done any harm to you. He is living in his own jurisdiction. He is uncivilized. He is ferocious. God has given him direction: "Oh, you live here. You don't go there." That's all right. And why should you go to kill a tiger? He's not coming to encroach him. This is Kṛṣṇa consciousness. Why should I kill unnecessarily an animal? We have got so many nice foodstuff. Kṛṣṇa has given me grains, fruits, milk. The cows, they are supplying tons of milk, but they are not claiming, "It is my milk. I shall drink." No. It is giving to you, as mother gives. And we are killing cows, killing mothers. This is lack of Kṛṣṇa consciousness.
So I feel that how Kṛṣṇa is kind that He has accepted a menial service of His devotee. He is driving the chariot and Arjuna is ordering Him, senayor ubhayor madhye rathaṁ sthāpaya me 'cyuta: (BG 1.21) 'My dear Kṛṣṇa, Acyuta, please put up my chariot between the two soldiers.' And He is carrying out the order. So when I see that Kṛṣṇa is so kind that He can become an order carrier of His devotee, that is giving me feeling, and I am therefore crying." Caitanya Mahāprabhu immediately embraced him and said, "My dear brāhmaṇa, you are actually reading Bhagavad-gītā." That is the fact. If after reading Bhagavad-gītā we do not realize what is Kṛṣṇa, what is our relationship with Kṛṣṇa, what is our duty towards Kṛṣṇa, and what is the ultimate goal of life, then it is useless study. It has no meaning. Therefore Lord Kṛṣṇa prescribed it, how to read Bhagavad-gītā. Don't try to read Bhagavad-gītā made by some commentator who has no knowledge of Kṛṣṇa. One who is not a devotee of Kṛṣṇa, he has no business to comment on the Bhagavad-gītā.
So I have simply taken this book. I am seeing it." Caitanya Mahāprabhu said, "Oh, you are not seeing it, simply. You are crying also." "Yes, Sir, I am crying also." "Then if you are not reading, how you are crying?" "Sir, I am not reading, but I'm feeling." "What is that?" "As soon as I take this Bhagavad-gītā in my hand, immediately I feel Kṛṣṇa and Arjuna sitting on the same chariot, and Arjuna is ordering Kṛṣṇa that 'You drive my chariot between the two soldiers,' and Kṛṣṇa is driving. So I am simply feeling how Kṛṣṇa is nice, that He can work as a servant of His devotee. When I feel like that, I cry, how Kṛṣṇa is so kind." Caitanya Mahāprabhu immediately embraced him, that "You are really studying Bhagavad-gītā." So unless we develop our love for Kṛṣṇa, there is no meaning of reading. And if we can develop our love for Kṛṣṇa just like this brāhmaṇa, even without reading any book, that is wanted. That is wanted. Mayy āsakta-manāḥ. Therefore Kṛṣṇa also confirms, mayy āsakta-manāḥ, "Simply by increasing attachment for Me." Mayy āsakta-manāḥ pārtha yogaṁ yuñjan mad-āśrayaḥ. Mad-āśrayaḥ. Mad-āśrayaḥ means "under the direction of Me or My representative."
Prabhupāda: No. If actually one loves God, he must love everyone. That is the sign. That is the sign. Just like my heart is now thirsty. I am quenching with drinking water and putting here. So as soon as put this water here, immediately the energy distributed all over the body. So a God conscious person cannot be neglectful or envious to anyone. That is the test. This is test. Sarvair guṇais tatra samāsate surāḥ. All good qualities. So this is a good quality, love your neighbor, to give them service. So if actually one person is God conscious, he must be sympathetic with the troubles of his neighbor, or anyone, not only human being. Animals also. They are also living entities. A God conscious person has no discrimination between human being and animal or trees or plants because they are also living entities.
So this Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement is all-embracing. It can solve all the problems of the world—political, social, economical, religious, everything. It is all-embracing. So my request is that I am working now with my American disciples and European disciples. Why not Indians? I think in this meeting there are many young men, educated, learned scholars. Join this movement and, according to the order of Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu,
- bhārata-bhūmite manuṣya janma haila yāra
- janma sārthaka kari' karo paropakāra
- (CC Adi 9.41)
This is the time to do welfare activities for the whole world. They are merged into confusion, everywhere. You know that in the Western countries, the hippy movements. What are the hippies? They're also educated, coming from very rich family also, but they do not like the way of envelopment as their fathers and grandfathers liked. They have rejected. So this is the golden opportunity to preach the Kṛṣṇa cult all over the world. You are lamenting because a few yards of land has been taken away from your country as Pakistan, but if you spread this Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement, the whole world will become Hindustan. There is such potency; I give you my direct perception. People are hankering after it. So long I am in India, practically I am wasting my time. Outside India, this reception is taken so seriously that every part of my moment is properly utilized.
The ordinary artists, they are very much fond of painting pictures that Kṛṣṇa is embracing Rādhārāṇī. They won't paint picture in the Kṛṣṇa consciousness that Kṛṣṇa is killing Kaṁsa. Kṛṣṇa has two business: paritrāṇāya sādhūnāṁ vināśāya ca duṣkṛtām (BG 4.8). So we should not try to understand Kṛṣṇa's love with the gopīs all of a sudden. It is very confidential. It is meant for the paramahaṁsas to understand. Let us understand Kṛṣṇa first of all. Of course, that is the aim, the higher understanding of Kṛṣṇa. Gopī-bhāva-rasāmṛtābdhi-laharī-kallola-magnau. But not all of a sudden. Try to understand Kṛṣṇa first. Therefore Vyāsadeva has compiled Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, nine cantos to understand Kṛṣṇa, beginning from the First Canto, First Chapter, janmādy asya yataḥ (SB 1.1.1), Vedānta philosophy. Then he begins to write about Kṛṣṇa and Kṛṣṇa's activities on the Tenth Canto.
Philosophy Discussions
Hayagrīva: These are notations on David Hume. Abstract objects, relations, space, matter and time are all considered by Hume to be mind-dependent perceptions. In other words, perceptions are all there is. He rejects revealed religion, that is, the religion of the śāstras, and embraces natural religion, that is, a religion wherein the existence of God can be proved or even shown to be probable by argument and reason. According to Hume we really know nothing of God, for at the most we can only know are peoples' ideas of God, and these are but perceptions. It would thus seem that it is impossible to know God according to Hume's natural religion because the senses are admittedly imperfect, and these are the only instruments of certainty Hume admits in his natural religion.
Prabhupāda: What is that natural religion?
Hayagrīva: Well, he says the self is nothing but a bundle or collection of different perceptions which succeed each other with inconceivable rapidity and are in perpetual flux and movement. So he says there's nothing but perception. He rejects revealed scriptures as such, but he says, "The heavens and the earth join in the same testimony. The whole course of nature raises one hymn to the praises of its creator. I have found a Deity and here I stop my inquiry. Let those go further who are wiser or more enterprising."
Prabhupāda: First point is that our senses are imperfect. That is admitted. And God is perception. But whether he believes actually in the existence of God?
Hayagrīva: He believes in the existence of God.
Prabhupāda: And what is his perception of God? If he believes in God, then he must give some idea what is God.
Hayagrīva: "Each disputant triumphs in his turn while he carries on an offensive war and exposes the absurdities, barbarities and pernicious tenets of his antagonists. But all of them," that is, all of the religions, "on the whole, prepare a complete triumph for the skeptic who tells them that no system ought ever to be embraced. A total suspense of judgment is here our only reasonable recourse."
Prabhupāda: No. Our principle is to know God from God, and religion means the principles given by God. Just like the law means the principle given by the state, similarly the principles given by God, that is religion. Otherwise it is pseudoreligion. If there is no conception of God, there is no direction of God, that is not religion. Religion is not a kind of blind faith. Religion is factual. That factual religion can be given by God Himself, and if we know God and what is His instruction, then we are religious.
Hayagrīva: He speaks of the Indian religion, which demands the greatest sacrifices and which has yet remained so long in practice in a nation that embraces so many millions of persons cannot be arbitrarily invented superstition but must have its foundation in the nature of man. And he says that the religion has endured for more than four thousand years, despite the fact that the Hindu nation has been broken up into so many parts. But he sees the religion basically as a religion of the denial of will. But does the religion have its foundation in the nature of man?
Prabhupāda: Yes, the denial, both the... There are two kinds of sects: this Māyāvādī and the Vaiṣṇava. So both of them know that this material world is flickering, and sometimes they say it is false, unreal. So there is another life; that is spiritual world. So the Māyāvādī philosopher, their spiritual life means to merge into the Brahman effulgence, and the Vaiṣṇava philosopher to go back to Goloka Vṛndāvana, Vaikuṇṭha, where God is situated, and become His associate person. So both the ideas, spiritual ideas, that is attained after death. What does he say that is good about Hindus? He says that denial...
Hayagrīva: He sees it basically as a denial of the will.
Prabhupāda: Yes, but denial of the will for material happiness. So we will not deny willing, that willing for spiritual happiness. That is required. As you deny something, you must accept something; otherwise... You cannot remain in the neutral position. That is not possible. Paraṁ dṛṣṭvā nirvatanta. When you get a better position, then you give up this willing for lower position.
Śyāmasundara: He sees that the mind is composed of a balance of conscious and unconscious, just like light and dark, there's an equal amount, but that the function of the personality is to integrate the conscious and unconscious functions. For instance, if one had a strong sex desire, if somehow he were able to cultivate or channel that into a creative art or a creative value. Just like this brahmācārya, that sex impulse is channelled into higher thinking about Kṛṣṇa.
Prabhupāda: That is our process. Just like sex impulse is natural for everyone in the material (world), but if we think of Kṛṣṇa embracing Rādhārāṇī or dancing with the gopīs, then our sex impulse becomes subordinate, no more stronger. Hṛd-rogaṁ kāmam āśv apahinoti. Hṛd-rogaṁ kāmam, this is a heart disease, to be lusty. But if anyone hears about the pastimes of Kṛṣṇa and the gopīs, through right source, then this hṛd-rogam, this lusty desire in the heart, is suppressed and he will develop devotional service.
Purports to Songs
Of course, anyone who is killed by incarnation he also gets salvation. But not to the spiritual planets, but they merge into the Brahman effulgence as the impersonalists desire. In other words, the impersonalist's goal of salvation is as good as the goal of salvation of the enemies of God. That is not a very difficult job. So Lord Caitanya is very merciful because He is embracing everyone by bestowing love of Kṛṣṇa. Rūpa Gosvāmī has described Lord Caitanya as the most munificent of all the incarnations because He is giving Kṛṣṇa to everyone, without any qualification. So Locana dāsa Ṭhākura says that parama koruṇa, pahū dui jana, nitāi gauracandra, that They are essence of all incarnation. Kevala ānanda-kanda. And Their preaching process is very pleasing. Caitanya Mahāprabhu recommends "You chant Hare Kṛṣṇa, dance nicely, and when you feel tired, just take rest and eat Kṛṣṇa prasādam." So His formula is very pleasing. Kevala ānanda-kanda. While He was present in Jagannātha Purī, every day in the evening, dancing was, chanting and dancing continued. And after dancing is finished, He used to distribute sumptuously prasādam of Jagannātha. So many thousands of people used to assemble every night. So simply transcendentally pleasing, this movement. Kevala ānanda-kanda.
| Page Title: | Embrace (Lectures) |
| Compiler: | Visnu Murti, Mayapur |
| Created: | 07 of Mar, 2012 |
| Totals by Section: | BG=0, SB=0, CC=0, OB=0, Lec=112, Con=0, Let=0 |
| No. of Quotes: | 112 |