Talks about Krsna (Books)

Expressions researched:
"talk Krsna" |"talk about Krsna" |"talk of Krsna" |"talk only about Krsna" |"talk only of Krsna" |"talked about Krsna" |"talked of Krsna" |"talked only of Krsna" |"talking about Krsna" |"talking of Krsna" |"talking only of Krsna" |"talks about Krsna" |"talks of Krsna"

BG Chapters 7 - 12

This kind of talk about Kṛṣṇa will help one become a devotee. Understanding Kṛṣṇa otherwise, from the wrong source, will prove fruitless.

BG 9.34, Purport:

There are some who are demonic; they also think of Kṛṣṇa, but enviously, just like King Kaṁsa, Kṛṣṇa's uncle. He was also thinking of Kṛṣṇa always, but he thought of Kṛṣṇa as his enemy. He was always in anxiety, wondering when Kṛṣṇa would come to kill him. That kind of thinking will not help us. One should be thinking of Kṛṣṇa in devotional love. That is bhakti. One should cultivate the knowledge of Kṛṣṇa continuously. What is that favorable cultivation? It is to learn from a bona fide teacher. Kṛṣṇa is the Supreme Personality of Godhead, and we have several times explained that His body is not material, but is eternal, blissful knowledge. This kind of talk about Kṛṣṇa will help one become a devotee. Understanding Kṛṣṇa otherwise, from the wrong source, will prove fruitless.

SB Canto 1

Anyone who thinks of Kṛṣṇa, talks of Kṛṣṇa or worships Kṛṣṇa becomes attached to Him.

SB 1.10.14, Purport:

There were hundreds of ladies in the palace of Hastināpura. All of them were affectionate to Kṛṣṇa. All of them were relatives also. When they saw that Kṛṣṇa was going away from the palace for His native place, they were very anxious for Him, and as usual tears began to roll down their cheeks. They thought, at the same time, that tears at that moment might be a cause of misfortune for Kṛṣṇa; therefore they wanted to check them. This was very difficult for them because the tears could not be checked. Therefore, they smeared their tears in their eyes, and their hearts throbbed. Therefore ladies who were the wives and daughters-in-law of those who died in the battlefield never came in direct contact with Kṛṣṇa. But all of them heard of Him and His great activities, and thus they thought of Him, talked of Him, His name, fame, etc., and became affectionate also, like those who were in direct contact. Therefore directly or indirectly anyone who thinks of Kṛṣṇa, talks of Kṛṣṇa or worships Kṛṣṇa becomes attached to Him. Because Kṛṣṇa is absolute, there is no difference between His name, form, quality, etc. Our intimate relation with Kṛṣṇa can be confidentially revived by our talking of, hearing of, or remembering Him. It is so done due to spiritual potency.

SB Canto 3

Vidura requested Maitreya to talk of the essence only, the talks of Kṛṣṇa, and nothing else.

SB 3.5.15, Purport:

There are many topics for different persons in different modes of material nature, but the essential topics are those in relationship with the Supreme Lord. Unfortunately, materially affected conditioned souls are all more or less averse to topics of the Supreme Lord because some of them do not believe in the existence of God and some of them believe only in the impersonal feature of the Lord. In both cases there is nothing for them to say of God. Both the nonbelievers and the impersonalists deny the essence of all topics; therefore, they engage in topics of relativity in various ways, either in sense gratification or in mental speculation. For the pure devotees like Vidura, the topics of both the mundaners and the mental speculators are useless in all respects. Thus Vidura requested Maitreya to talk of the essence only, the talks of Kṛṣṇa, and nothing else.

SB Canto 6

Milk touched by the lips of a serpent has poisonous effects; similarly, talks about Kṛṣṇa given by a non-Vaiṣṇava are also poisonous.

SB 6.17.40, Purport:

Quoting from Padma Purāṇa, Śrī Sanātana Gosvāmī has strictly forbidden us to hear about the activities of the Lord and His devotees from the mouths of nondevotees:

avaiṣṇava-mukhodgīrṇaṁ

pūtaṁ hari-kathāmṛtam

śravaṇaṁ naiva kartavyaṁ

sarpocchiṣṭaṁ yathā payaḥ

"One should not hear anything about Kṛṣṇa from a non-Vaiṣṇava. Milk touched by the lips of a serpent has poisonous effects; similarly, talks about Kṛṣṇa given by a non-Vaiṣṇava are also poisonous." One must be a bona fide devotee, and then he can preach and impress devotional service upon his listeners.

CC Preface and Introduction

"Previously we only talked of nonsense," the Vaiṣṇava says. "Now let us begin our real talks, talks of Kṛṣṇa."

CC Introduction:

The Māyāvādīs, who hold the view that the Absolute is impersonal and formless, contend that a realized soul has no need to talk. But the Vaiṣṇavas, devotees of Kṛṣṇa, contend that when one reaches the stage of realization, he really begins to talk. "Previously we only talked of nonsense," the Vaiṣṇava says. "Now let us begin our real talks, talks of Kṛṣṇa."

CC Adi-lila

The secret in a devotee's writing is that when he writes about the pastimes of the Lord, the Lord helps him; he does not write alone.

CC Adi 8.39, Purport:

"One should not hear anything about Kṛṣṇa from a non-Vaiṣṇava. Milk touched by the lips of a serpent has poisonous effects; similarly, talks about Kṛṣṇa given by a non-Vaiṣṇava are also poisonous."

Transcendental literature that strictly follows the Vedic principles and the conclusion of the Purāṇas and pāñcarātrika-vidhi can be written only by a pure devotee. It is not possible for a common man to write books on bhakti, for his writings will not be effective. He may be a very great scholar and may be expert in presenting literature in flowery language, but this is not at all helpful in understanding transcendental literature. Even if transcendental literature is written in faulty language, it is acceptable if it is written by a devotee, whereas so-called transcendental literature written by a mundane scholar, even if it is a very highly polished literary presentation, cannot be accepted. The secret in a devotee's writing is that when he writes about the pastimes of the Lord, the Lord helps him; he does not write alone. As stated in the Bhagavad-gītā (10.10), dadāmi buddhi-yogaṁ taṁ yena mām upayānti te. Since a devotee writes in service to the Lord, the Lord from within gives him so much intelligence that he sits down near the Lord and goes on writing books.

CC Madhya-lila

Talks about Kṛṣṇa and His pastimes—especially His pastimes in Vṛndāvana and His dealings with the gopīs—are all very confidential.

CC Madhya 8.56, Translation and Purport:

Rāmānanda Rāya approached Lord Śrī Caitanya and offered his respectful obeisances, and the Lord embraced him. Then they began to discuss Kṛṣṇa in a secluded place.

The word rahaḥ-sthāne, "in a secluded place," is very significant. Talks about Kṛṣṇa and His pastimes—especially His pastimes in Vṛndāvana and His dealings with the gopīs—are all very confidential. They are not subject matter for public discussion because those who have no understanding of the transcendental nature of Kṛṣṇa's pastimes always commit great offenses, thinking Kṛṣṇa to be an ordinary human being and the gopīs ordinary girls. Following the principle of Lord Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu, who never discussed the dealings between Kṛṣṇa and the gopīs publicly, devotees in the Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement are enjoined not to discuss the pastimes of Lord Kṛṣṇa in Vṛndāvana in public.

Milk touched by the lips of a serpent has poisonous effects; similarly, talks about Kṛṣṇa given by an avaiṣṇava are also poisonous.

CC Madhya 8.200, Purport:

Thus quoting from Padma Purāṇa, Śrīla Sanātana Gosvāmī warns that one should not hear anything about Kṛṣṇa from an avaiṣṇava, however great a mundane scholar he may be. Milk touched by the lips of a serpent has poisonous effects; similarly, talks about Kṛṣṇa given by an avaiṣṇava are also poisonous. However, because a Vaiṣṇava is surrendered to the Supreme Personality of Godhead, his talks are spiritually potent.

When one goes to enlist a life member, he talks about Kṛṣṇa and thereby remembers Him.

CC Madhya 22.113, Purport:

One may sell books or enlist life members or render some other service, but these duties are not ordinary duties. These duties serve as an impetus for remembering Kṛṣṇa. When one goes with a saṅkīrtana party or sells books, he naturally remembers that he is going to sell Kṛṣṇa's books. In this way, he is remembering Kṛṣṇa. When one goes to enlist a life member, he talks about Kṛṣṇa and thereby remembers Him. Smartavyaḥ satataṁ viṣṇur vismartavyo na jātucit. The conclusion is that one must act in such a way that he will always remember Kṛṣṇa, and one must refrain from doing things that make him forget Kṛṣṇa. These two principles form the basic background of Kṛṣṇa consciousness.

CC Antya-lila

Unless one is a fully unalloyed devotee of the Lord, one should not try to describe the pastimes of Kṛṣṇa in poetry, for it will be only mundane.

CC Antya 1.211, Purport:

"One should not hear anything about Kṛṣṇa from a non-Vaiṣṇava. Milk touched by the lips of a serpent has poisonous effects; similarly, talks about Kṛṣṇa given by a non-Vaiṣṇava are also poisonous."

Unless one is a fully unalloyed devotee of the Lord, one should not try to describe the pastimes of Kṛṣṇa in poetry, for it will be only mundane. There are many descriptions of Kṛṣṇa's Bhagavad-gītā written by persons whose consciousness is mundane and who are not qualified by pure devotion. Although they attempted to write transcendental literature, they could not fully engage even a single devotee in Kṛṣṇa's service. Such literature is mundane, and therefore, as warned by Śrī Sanātana Gosvāmī, one should not touch it.

CC Antya 5.33, Translation:

The next day, when Pradyumna Miśra arrived in the presence of Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu, the Lord inquired, "Have you heard talks about Kṛṣṇa from Śrī Rāmānanda Rāya?"

CC Antya 5.70, Translation:

Pradyumna Miśra said, "My dear Lord, You have made me extremely obliged to You because You have drowned me in a nectarean ocean of talks about Kṛṣṇa."

CC Antya 5.72, Translation:

"There is one other thing Rāmānanda Rāya said to me: ‘Do not consider me the speaker in these talks about Kṛṣṇa."

CC Antya 6.6, Translation:

When the Lord acutely felt pangs of separation from Kṛṣṇa, only Śrī Rāmānanda Rāya's talks about Kṛṣṇa and the sweet songs of Svarūpa Dāmodara kept Him alive.

Teachings of Lord Caitanya

"Previously we only talked of nonsense," the Vaiṣṇava says. "Now let us begin our real talks, talks of Kṛṣṇa."

Teachings of Lord Caitanya, Chapter Intoduction:

The Māyāvādīs, who hold to the view that the Absolute is impersonal and formless, contend that a realized soul has no need to talk. However, the Vaiṣṇavas, who are devotees of Kṛṣṇa, contend that when one reaches the stage of realization, he really begins to talk. "Previously we only talked of nonsense," the Vaiṣṇava says. "Now let us begin our real talks, talks of Kṛṣṇa."

Krsna, The Supreme Personality of Godhead

While talking about Kṛṣṇa with Uddhava, gopīs of Vṛndāvana forgot all about their household business.

Krsna Book 47:

Uddhava understood that the gopīs of Vṛndāvana were all simply absorbed in the thought of Kṛṣṇa and His childhood activities. While talking about Kṛṣṇa with Uddhava, they forgot all about their household business. They even forgot about themselves as their interest in Kṛṣṇa increased more and more.

"I request you not to talk of Kṛṣṇa anymore", said Śrīmatī Rādhārāṇī.

Krsna Book 47:

Śrīmatī Rādhārāṇī continued to speak to the black messenger of Kṛṣṇa: "Please do not talk anymore about Kṛṣṇa. It is better to talk about something else. We are already doomed, like the black-spotted she-deer in the forest who are enchanted by the sweet musical vibration of the hunter. In the same way, we have been enchanted by the sweet words of Kṛṣṇa, and by thinking of the rays of His toenails again and again, we are becoming more and more lusty for His association. Therefore, I request you not to talk of Kṛṣṇa anymore."

Another gopī, after hearing this, said, “My dear friends, what is the use of talking about Kṛṣṇa?"

Krsna Book 65:

Another gopī, after hearing this, said, “My dear friends, what is the use of talking about Kṛṣṇa? If you are at all interested in passing time by talking, let us talk on some subject other than Him. If cruel Kṛṣṇa can pass His time without us, why can’t we pass our time without Kṛṣṇa? Of course, Kṛṣṇa is passing His days without us very happily, but we cannot pass our days happily without Him.”

The minds of great personalities are always engaged in Kṛṣṇa. With their minds engaged in Kṛṣṇa, naturally the captivated devotees simply talk of Kṛṣṇa.

Krsna Book 87:

Kṛṣṇa advises everyone just to surrender unto Him alone, and that is the way of Vedic instruction. Since Kṛṣṇa is the cause of all causes, He is worshiped by all kinds of sages and saints through observance of the regulative principles. As far as meditation is concerned, great personalities meditate on the transcendental form of Kṛṣṇa within the heart. In this way the minds of great personalities are always engaged in Kṛṣṇa. With their minds engaged in Kṛṣṇa, naturally the captivated devotees simply talk of Kṛṣṇa.

Talking of Kṛṣṇa or singing of Kṛṣṇa is called kīrtana.

Krsna Book 87:

Talking of Kṛṣṇa or singing of Kṛṣṇa is called kīrtana. Lord Caitanya recommends, kīrtanīyaḥ sadā hariḥ (CC Adi 17.31), which means always thinking and talking of Kṛṣṇa and nothing else. That is called Kṛṣṇa consciousness. Kṛṣṇa consciousness is so sublime that anyone who takes to this process is elevated to the highest perfection of life—far, far beyond the concept of liberation. In the Bhagavad-gītā, therefore, Kṛṣṇa advises everyone always to think of Him, render devotional service to Him, worship Him and offer obeisances to Him. In this way a devotee becomes fully Kṛṣṇa-ized and, being always situated in Kṛṣṇa consciousness, ultimately goes back to Kṛṣṇa.