Sri Bhagavata Rahasya (Secret Truths of the Bhagavatam) -2

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Hari-Kath€ Pleases KŠa and the Soul
®r… S™ta Gosv€m… heard the question of all the is:
tatra tatr€ñjas€ yuman
bhavat€ yad vinicitam
puˆs€m ek€ntataƒ reyas
tan naƒ aˆsitum arhasi
(SB 1.1.9)
“Please explain to us, in an easily understandable way, what you
have ascertained to be the absolute and ultimate good for the people
in general.”
ataƒ s€dho ‘tra yat s€raˆ
samuddhtya man…ay€
br™hi bhadr€ya bh™t€n€m
yen€tm€ supras…dati
(SB 1.1.11)
“Therefore, O sage, please select the essence of all these scriptures and
explain it for the good of all living beings, that by such instruction their
hearts may be fully satisfied.”
The is requested, “Tell us the essence of all the scriptures, Vedas,
Upaniads, and also ®r…mad-Bh€gavatam, by following which, our €tm€,
soul, will be satisfied and happy. There is a deeper meaning to yen€tm€
supras…dati. štm€ here refers to the €tm€ of all €tm€s, KŠa Himself. If
KŠa is satisfied and pleased, then the whole world is pleased. We
should try to please KŠa; then our soul will automatically be happy.
If you do everything to please your self, your own soul, then KŠa
cannot be pleased and you also cannot be pleased. The best process
is to please KŠa by all your activities. Then you will see that your
€tm€ is happy and others’ €tm€s are also happy.
Now S™ta Gosv€m… is telling:
sa vai puˆs€ˆ paro dharmo
yato bhaktir adhokaje
ahaituky apratihat€
yay€tm€ supras…dati
(SB 1.2.6)
“The supreme occupation (dharma) for all humanity is that by which
men can attain to loving devotional service unto the transcendental
Secret Truths of the Bh€gavatam
28
Lord. Such devotional service must be unmotivated and uninterrupted
to completely satisfy the self.”
Certainly, the most elevated paro-dharma, transcendental religion, is to
serve Adhokaja. Who is Adhokaja? He who is beyond the material
senses. He is KŠa Himself, Vrajendra-nandana ®y€masundara.
Perform causeless, uninterrupted bhakti to Him. Don’t be like this:
“Oh, in the morning I did some bhakti, and after that I went to my job
and I forgot all these things. When I returned in the evening I again
remembered something: oˆ ... bh™r ... bhuvaƒ. Kl…ˆ ... KŠaya ... sv€h€.”
Then again you take pras€d€, and then begin to yawn. Bhakti should be
an uninterrupted flow, like a stream, always flowing like the Ganges
river. This is high-class bhakti.
dharmaƒ svanu˜hitaƒ puˆs€ˆ
vivaksena-kath€su yaƒ
notp€dayed yadi ratiˆ
rama eva hi kevalam
(SB 1.2.8)
“The occupational activities a man performs according to his own position
are only so much useless labor if they do not provoke attraction
for the message of the Personality of Godhead.”
If you are chanting, remembering, sometimes worshipping, sometimes
doing your three sandhyas, g€yatr…-mantras, but you have no taste for
hearing the pastimes of KŠa from mah€-bh€gavatas, then your chanting
may stop very quickly. If you are worshipping, your worship may
stop. If you are serving your gurudeva and devotees, then that also
may stop very easily if you are not hearing hari-kath€. You will become
weak very soon, and you will think, “I should return to my home and
marry. We will make money, and then we will have a golden Deity.
Then we will serve all devotees, always read Bh€gavatam, and give
classes.” Instead, however, you’ll become weak, and then you may
leave KŠa consciousness forever.
The words dharm€h svanu˜hitaƒ puˆs€ˆ vivaksena-kath€su yaƒ:
indicates the duties executed by men which do not provoke attraction
for the message of the Personality of Godhead. Those who have very
strong faith in hearing ®r…mad-Bh€gavatam can taste something. Try to
create taste. How will it come? It comes by hearing, hearing, hearing.
If you have no taste in chanting the holy name, continue chanting
and hearing KŠa’s glories; then it will come. But you will have to
be in high-class association. If that association is lacking, you cannot
develop your KŠa consciousness. Then you will be weak and think,
®r…mad Bh€gavatam Does Not Cheat
29
“We have very big problems. ®r…la Prabhup€da was here in this world,
and at that time we were very happy and enthusiastic, doing this and
that. But when he left very big problems came, so many sanny€s…s fell
down, and brahmac€r…s also left.”
I think that most of you were brahmac€r…s at the time of ®r…la Sw€m…j….
But when he left you became weak and married and had children; and
you made a saˆsara (household) of G…t€. You may also be thinking,
“®r…la Mah€r€ja is now here and we are very inspired and performing
devotional service. But after he departs what will happen? At that time
the same thing will happen to us.” Don’t think like this. We were also
serving our Gurudeva, and he departed from this world. But we are
still here doing devotional service. So try to be like us, always chanting
and remembering with strong belief. I’m not a high-class VaiŠava,
but I have so much strong faith due to hearing hari-kath€ from our
guru-varga. Never worry about the future, as animals never worry.
Have faith, not in problems, but in what gurudeva has given in your
heart. He has given everything, but now you will have to protect it,
sprout it and nourish it. Then you will see that everything is alright
and there is no problem at all.
Benefits of High-Class Association
®r… ®ukadeva Gosv€m… told the story of N€rada. Without the help of a
transcendental, elevated guru, no one can develop in bhakti. A guru who
has not internally served his gurudeva, who is not inspired and strong
enough, and who has no faith, cannot help his disciples. Therefore ®r…
®ukadeva Gosv€m… first related the life history of N€rada.
N€rada was the son of Brahma, born from his throat. In the throat
there are words, especially transcendental words, and therefore N€rada
is the manifestation of word. What word? ®abdha-brahma. ®abda-brahma
is KŠa Himself. N€rada has therefore been called bhakti-avatara, the
incarnation of devotion. In a previous life N€rada was born in a very
low-class family, and his mother used to clean here and there. When he
was only five years old the four Kum€ras Sananda, SaŠaka, San€tana
and Sanat, along with many is, came to the village where he lived
with his mother. He used to serve them with great honor. They would
order, “O Bring my lota, bring my kaupina and my kamaŠalu. You can
come with me when I go to bathe in the river.”
Secret Truths of the Bh€gavatam
30
By good fortune, one day N€rada took some remnants of food
from those is, the pras€d which was on their leaf plates. What was
the result? VaiŠava-pad€-dh™li, bhakt€-pad€-jala.
bhakta-pada-dh™li ara bhakta-pada-jala
bhakta-bhukta-avaea,—tina mah€-bala
(Cc. Antya 16.60)
“The dust of the feet of a devotee, the water that has washed the feet
of a devotee, and the remnants of food left by a devotee are three very
powerful substances.”
You should have strong faith in this. Even if you are doing a great deal
of chanting and reading of Bh€gavatam this will not help you very much.
If, however, you receive the remnants of any high-class VaiŠava, you
will be greatly benefited. Remnants are of two kinds—
the nectars of
hari-kath€ and of pras€d. The other powerful substances are the dust
of the lotus feet of the VaiŠava and the water that washed his feet.
One must serve these with honor. Do not jokingly quarrel and wrestle
with that VaiŠava, trying to throw him flat on the ground to forcibly
take his foot-dust.
Try to follow N€rada. He became very near and dear to the saints.
When his mother, who was an attachment for him, quickly died after
being bitten by a snake, he left home and very easily saw the Supreme
Personality of Godhead in trance. The Lord advised him, “You should
continue hearing, chanting, remembering and telling My hari-kath€ to
all. A day will come when death arrives, but you will not die. You will
keep your feet on the head of death.” This came about, and N€rada
attained his own siddha-deha, which is always present within the gross
and subtle body. He realized his transcendental form, and in that
form he travelled everywhere—sometimes in this world, sometimes
in Goloka Vnd€vana, sometimes with N€r€yaŠa, and here and there.
Without guru we cannot go up. But that guru should not be like a
Kali-yuga guru. We are the property of KŠa, so guru should bring
us to the lotus feet of KŠa. That is guru. ®r…mad-Bh€gavatam states
that bhakti should not be like that of Dhruva. There was some defect in
him. You know that the exalted devotee N€rada initiated Dhruva. He
initiated Prahl€da Mah€r€ja, and he also initiated Citraketu Mah€r€ja.
But these three disciples were in different categories. Even if the guru
wants to give the same thing—Goloka Vnd€vana, service to KŠa—if
the disciple has no past impressions, that guru cannot give it. He wants
to give it, but the disciple cannot take it. Dhruva Mah€r€ja had no past
®r…mad Bh€gavatam Does Not Cheat
31
impressions. Although he performed severe austerities for six months,
and although he was ultimately able to live without air and water, he
did not have previous impressions from high-class devotees. Therefore
N€rada could not give him the purest bhakti.
®r…la Swam… Mah€r€ja4, ®r…la Prabhup€da Bhaktisiddh€nta Sarasvat…
μh€kura, and ®r…la Bhaktivinoda μh€kura wanted to give all these
things, and that is why ®r…la Bhaktivinoda μh€kura began n€gara-sa‰k…
rtana and n€ma-ha˜˜a. ®r…la Swam…j…* also began in this way, but he could
not give his disciples the pure devotion to R€dh€ and KŠa that ®r…
Caitanya Mah€prabhu wanted to give. Even Caitanya Mah€prabhu
would not give this to K€la KŠad€sa. He was with K€la KŠad€sa, in
South India, but He could not give him this high-class of devotion. The
recipient requires sufficient impressions from this birth and also from
previous births. If you neglect to associate with high-class VaiŠavas,
and neglect to realize all these truths, then He will not give it. Even
though gurudeva wants to give this bhakti, and even though he can do
anything, he will not deviate from the process. That is why N€rada
could not give it to Dhruva. That is why Dhruva is still in Dhruva-loka
and not in Goloka Vnd€vana.
Everywhere in the scriptures we see the necessity of elevated
association. In the history of Devah™ti and Kapiladeva, Kapiladeva
told His mother:
sat€m prasa‰g€n mama v…rya-saˆvido
bhavanti ht-karŠa-ras€yan€ƒ kath€ƒ
taj-joaŠ€d €v apavarga-vartmani
raddh€ ratir bhaktir anukramiyati
(SB 3.25.25)
“In the association of pure devotees, discussion of the pastimes and
activities of the Supreme Personality of Godhead is very pleasing and
satisfying to the ear and the heart. By cultivating such knowledge one
gradually becomes advanced on the path of liberation, and thereafter
he is freed, and his attraction becomes fixed. Then real devotion and
devotional service begin.”
4 It is tradition in the Gau…ya Ma˜ha that all €c€ryas and sanny€s…s refer to one
another by their given sanny€sa names. Because ®r…la Prabhup€da’s sanny€sa name is
“Sw€m…,” ®r…la N€r€yaŠa Mah€r€ja refers to him as such, adding the suffix “j….” “J…”
denotes great regard, as well as intimacy and affection. Besides being the ik€ disciple
of ®r…la Prabhup€da, since their fist meeting in 1946, they always related with one
another as intimate friends. Also, as they both took sanny€sa from ®r…la Bhaktiprajñ€na
Keava Gosv€m… Mah€r€ja, they have a Godbrother relationship as well. Sometimes ®r…
la N€r€yaŠa Mah€r€ja refers to ®r…la Prabhup€da as Sw€m…j…, and sometimes as Sw€m…
Mah€r€ja, sometimes as Prabhup€da, and sometimes as ®r…la Prabhup€da.
Secret Truths of the Bh€gavatam
32
It is also stated in ®r… Caitanya-Carit€mta:
‘s€dhu-sa‰ga’, ‘s€dhu-sa‰ga’—
sarva-€stre kaya
lava-m€tra s€dhu-sa‰ge sarva-siddhi haya
(Cc. Madhya 22.54)
“The verdict of all revealed scriptures is that by even a moment’s
association with a pure devotee one can attain all success.”
If one is in s€dhu-sanga for even a moment, it will not go in vain. But
this should be with honor and very strong belief. Otherwise there will
be no effect. No effect.
Bharata Mah€r€ja was a very advanced VaiŠava and was just about
to attain rati. He had crossed ni˜h€-bhakti and had taste in the holy
name and hari-kath€. He became very renounced and approached the
stage of as€kti. He left his home, wife, children—everything, and was
now renounced. He came to a very dense forest and there he lived
alone, chanting and remembering. But what happened? He became
attached to a deer who was drowning in the river. Before this he had
left his children, his wife and everything else. He had no attachments
and had even reached the stage of rati. He took pity on that baby deer
and this is called mercy in the mode of goodness. Devotees should
be merciful, but not attached. Bharata Mah€r€ja was correct in being
merciful, but he became attached, and his attachment for KŠa went
down. Soon he died, and remembering only that deer he became a
deer. He was very careful in his second birth, and also in his third.
You should therefore also be very careful about this. Even from
this stage, rati, there is a chance to fall down. And, if you have no taste
although you are chanting and remembering, then, because you are still
full of anarthas, there is so much chance of falling. We should therefore
always be in elevated association. If Bharata Mah€r€ja had been with
N€rada, he would not have continued in this world for three lives. But
no one was there. Try, therefore, even at the stage of ni˜h€ or ruci, to
always be in the association of advanced devotees.
What is the essence of this story, told by ®r…la ®ukadeva Gosv€m…
to Parik…t Mah€r€ja when he was going to die? ®ukadeva said, “You
came here, having given up your son and all kinds of attachment, and
therefore I am telling hari-kath€ to you. You should not be like Bharata.
You should not give a moment to other attachments.” At the time of
death Bharata remembered a deer and also became a deer. Similarly, if
one has many dogs and is very attached to them, it is certain that he will
be a dog in his next life. No one can avoid this. If one has any worldly
®r…mad Bh€gavatam Does Not Cheat
33
attachment he may become a serpent, tiger, deer, horse, and so on. He
may even become a very beautiful lady, although he was previously in
a male form, and he will be very lusty. If a lady remembers any male
person, she may become like that male, and she will be very lusty. It
may be like that. One may also become a donkey, because donkeys
are very lusty. He may become a donkey, monkey, dog and so on. So
don’t be attached.
From the beginning try to always chant and remember KŠa,
but not KŠa alone. If you remember only KŠa, you may merge
in Him like the m€y€v€d…s. We should remember KŠa with His
devotees. If gurudeva has given some idea to you, try to follow that.
He wants to give so many things, and he does give them; but if there
is no association, the disciple may not be able to fully understand
and follow. Gurudeva gives him everything in gopala-mantra and
kama-g€yatr…, but the disciple is not qualified to know what he is being
given. If, however, he is always in the association of high-class, exalted
VaiŠavas, he will realize all these things. Such VaiŠavas can make
you realize what is in gopala-mantra. It was given to Brahma by KŠa
Himself. Kama-g€yatr… was also given to him. By these mantras one can
enter Goloka Vnd€vana. More than remembering KŠa, we should
remember Yaod€, or gop…s, like R™pa-mañj€r… and others; then we
can serve KŠa in that same way.
There are so many things to say on this subject. It is our duty to
follow ®r…la R™pa Gosv€m…, and that is why we are called ‘r™p€nugas’.
We say in Jaya-dhvani: r™p€nuga-guru-varga k… jaya, but we don’t know
what is r™p€nuga. We should try to know by questioning, “What is
r™p€nuga? What is r€g€nuga? What is r€ga? What is raddh€? What is
ni˜h€? What is taste? What is as€kti, rati, prema, sneha, m€na, praŠaya,
r€ga and anur€ga?” Then we will know all these stages of bhakti. We
may read ®r…mad-Bh€gavatam, but if we don’t have proper association
we cannot attain anything. Therefore, sat€m prasa‰gam mama v…ryasa
ˆvido.
We can learn so many things from Bharata-car…ta (the life history
and character of Bharata Mah€r€ja). Bharata was very renounced in his
third birth. He became a br€hmana, but at the same time he was totally
like a madman. Actually he was not mad. He always remembered
KŠa and never associated with worldly persons. It is doubtful,
however, whether he received that kind of bhakti which ®r… Caitanya
Mah€prabhu came to give: anarpita-car…ˆ cir€t karuŠay€vat…
rŠaƒ
kalau
(Cc. Adi 1.4). Mah€prabhu never gave this to Bharata.
Secret Truths of the Bh€gavatam
34
You are so lucky, more than Bharata Mah€r€ja and others. You are
so fortunate that you have come at this time, just after ®r… Caitanya
Mah€prabhu. But we are so unfortunate that we don’t want to follow
the process. We want to take gold, or worldly reputation and other
things from VaiŠavas, but not their high-class love and affection for
KŠa.
Bharata Mah€r€ja never attained this love. He received so much
advanced knowledge, but has he received a drop of love of R€dh€ and
KŠa conjugal? He never even heard about it. He never had the chance.
Citraketu Mah€r€ja was also an elevated VaiŠava, as was Prahlada
Mah€r€ja. Prahlada used to see KŠa here, there and everywhere,
but did he have any anugatya (guidance) of the gop…s? Did he have any
taste or greed for attaining the mood of the gop…s love? Because he had
no association of ®r… Caitanya Mah€prabhu and His followers, he will
never have that greed.
Do not neglect or misuse this time, otherwise you will be like
butchers—self-killers. Always be detached and try to utilize your time
properly. In the absence of good association, if you are sincere and pray
to KŠa, He is so merciful that He will at once arrange everything. You
can pray to Nity€nanda Prabhu, who is more merciful than anyone.
“O, please manage this. Give me the association of rasika devotees so
that I can hear Caitanya-carit€mta and ®r…mad-Bh€gavatam. Be merciful.
I depend on You. I’m giving my whole heart to You.” If you have very
strong belief in Nity€nanda, He will surely manage everything.
35
Chapter Three
The Process of Hearing The Process of Hearing
Yesterday I explained that we should try to hear ®r…mad-Bh€gavatam
from superior, self-realized, rasika VaiŠavas. This is written
everywhere in ®r…mad-Bh€gavatam and ®r… Caitanya-carit€mta. Caitanya
carit€mta states: y€ha bh€gavata paa vaiŠavera sth€ne. “If you want
to understand ®r…mad-Bh€gavatam you must approach a self-realized
VaiŠava and hear from him.” (Antya 5.131) What is the meaning?
Paa means read. If you want to read ®r…mad-Bh€gavatam, you should
first go to any superior, rasika VaiŠava, and there hear and learn from
him how it is read. It is imperative to know the process. You can read
and realize any €stra—after hearing.
It has also been written that those who have no high-class
association cannot understand the meaning of ®r…mad-Bh€gavatam.
In India all the m€y€v€d…-sanny€s…s, highly learned in Sanskrit, always
speak and give lectures in the Sanskrit language. They know many
meanings of each word, its verbal roots and so on. But why have they
become m€y€v€d…s? Because they cannot truly understand Bh€gavatam
at all. They also give explanations on the books of J…va Gosv€m… and
others, but they do not understand them. This is why it has been told:
ahaˆ vedmi uko vetti
vy€so vetti na vetti v€
bhakty€ bh€gavatam gr€hyaˆ
na buddhy€ na ca ˜…kay€
(Cc. Madhya 24.313)
“Lord ®iva said: I may know; ®ukadeva Gosv€m…, the son of Vy€sadeva
may know, and Vy€sadeva may, or may not know the ®r…mad-
Bh€gavatam. On the whole, ®r…mad-Bh€gavatam, the spotless Pur€Ša, can
be learned only through devotional service, not by material intelligence,
speculative methods or imaginary commentaries.”
This verse has been spoken by ®a‰kara. Who is ®a‰kara? M€h€deva.
VaiŠavanam yath€ ambhuƒ. He is the supreme VaiŠava, the €di
(original) VaiŠava. He says: ahaˆ vedmi—”
I know the meaning of ®r…
mad-Bh€gavatam.” ®uko vetti: “And ®uka knows.” Vy€so vetti na vetti va:
“There is some doubt as to whether Vy€sa knows or not.”
Secret Truths of the Bh€gavatam
36
Vy€sadeva has written ®r…mad-Bh€gavatam and he has seen it in
trance, but ®a‰kara says, it is not certain whether he knows it or not.
Actually he knows half. How? He is in the category of KŠa, aktimantattva,
meaning that he is the object of prema. ®a‰kara, on the other
hand, is the araya, abode of prema. He is in the line of ®r…mat… R€dhik€
(the embodiment of araya-tattva). In KŠa l…l€, ®r… ®ukadeva Gosv€m…
is the parrot of ®r…mat… R€dhik€, and therefore he is also in Her line
or category. Anyone who is in the line of R€dhik€ can know ®r…mad-
Bh€gavatam. But KŠa Himself cannot know it. That is why He comes
here to this world to learn in the form of ®r… Caitanya Mah€prabhu.
When He was initiated by Vi€kh€ (in the form of R€m€nanda R€ya),
He came to know. After that, in Gambhira, in the mood of R€dhik€,
He was tasting ®r…mad-Bh€gavatam.
®r…mad-Bh€gavatam is nothing but the internal, intrinsic mood of
R€dhik€. It is the glorification of R€dhik€, not the glorification of KŠa.
vande nanda-vraja-str…n€ˆ
p€da-reŠum abh…kŠaaƒ
(SB 10.47.63)
“I repeatedly offer my respects to the dust from the feet of the women
of Nanda Mah€r€ja’s cowherd village.”
®a‰kara is correct, therefore, when he says: vy€so vetti na vetti v€—there
is some doubt as to whether Vy€sa knows or not. ®r…mad-Bh€gavatam
also states: ‘sruto dhyayato anumodataƒ. One should hear ®r…mad-
Bh€gavatam. If he is not accustomed to such hearing, he can remember
something about it. If he cannot even do that, he can give his approval:
“O, to hear Bh€gavatam is very good.” He certifies it. Even by this
certification, a strong impression comes and acts as sukti (pious
activities which leads to bhakti).
It has therefore been told:
r…mad-bh€gavatam pur€Šam amalam yad vaiŠavanam priyaˆ
yasmin p€ramahaˆsyam ekam amalaˆ jñ€nam paraˆ g…yate
tatra jñ€na-vir€ga-bhakti-sahitaˆ naikarmyam €viktaˆ
tac chŠvan su-pa˜han vic€raŠa-paro bhakty€ vimucyen naraƒ
(SB 12.13.18)
“®r…mad-Bh€gavatam is the spotless Pur€Ša. It is most dear to the
VaiŠavas because it describes the pure and supreme knowledge of
the paramahaˆsas. This Bh€gavatam reveals the means for becoming free
from all material work, together with the processes of transcendental
The Process of Hearing
37
knowledge, renunciation and devotion. Anyone who seriously tries to
understand ®r…mad-Bh€gavatam, who properly hears and chants it with
devotion, becomes completely liberated.”
If anyone hears the Bh€gavatam with raddh€, from superiors who are
explaining its deep meanings, whose bhakti is very elevated, and who
have surrendered themselves to ®r…mad-Bh€gavatam, then the words,
which are KŠa Himself, will come in his heart and be realized. This
is the process of hearing.
vikr…itaˆ vraja-vadh™bhir idaˆ ca viŠoƒ
raddh€nvito ‘nuŠuy€d atha varŠayed yaƒ
bhaktiˆ par€m bhagavati pratilabhya k€maˆ
hd-rogam €v apahinoty acireŠa dh…raƒ
(SB 10.33.39)
“Anyone who faithfully hears or describes the Lord’s playful affairs
with the young gop…s of Vnd€vana will attain His pure devotional
service. Thus he will quickly become sober and conquer lust, the
disease of the heart.”
If one hears ®r…mad-Bh€gavatam in this process, and then reads it with
raddh€, all the words will come to him, reveal themselves, and he
will be self-realized. If one does not have very much association with
exalted VaiŠavas, he should still read—there is no alternative. But
he should surrender to ®r…mad-Bh€gavatam. This is called supa˜han
vic€rana-paro. Then he should think, “How deep the meaning is. O
words of ®r…mad-Bh€gavatam, you are transcendental. Please reveal
yourself. Manifest your mercy in my heart so that I may realize all
these truths.” This is the process.
I know so many highly learned and scholarly devotees of ®r…la
Swam…j… who took the renounced order. They could remember many
®r…mad-Bh€gavatam lokas, from beginning to end, along with their many
meanings. However, when Swam…j… departed from this world, they
left sanny€sa, their reading of Bh€gavatam, and everything else. This is
not the process. If you want to enter deeply into ®r…mad-Bh€gavatam,
you must read; but it will help you only if you are reading in the
process. If, luckily, we have good association, and in that association
any superior VaiŠavas are explaining ®r…mad-Bh€gavatam, we should
not lose that time. We must try to utilize it. If there is no high-class
VaiŠava association available, we should read very carefully under
the guidance of such VaiŠavas or gurus. We should be free from the
Secret Truths of the Bh€gavatam
38
false ego of thinking, “We will understand ®r…mad-Bh€gavatam by our
own endeavor.” You can read yourself, but in this process—being very
humble and offering yourself in saraŠ€gat… to the Bhag€vatam.
Preparing to Hear the Tenth Canto
We have explained why the nine cantos were told, and then the Tenth
Canto. A platform is required for hearing ®r…mad-Bh€gavatam, Tenth
Canto. We must know what this world is, by hearing the dialogue of
Kapiladeva and Devah™ti. It is necessary to realize what this world
is, and what this body is. This body is only a combination of stool,
urine, and many other bad things. We cannot purify ourselves simply
by taking bath, because the body is always full with all these things.
It can only be purified by chanting the holy names. Even after taking
bath we utter:
yaƒ smaret puŠar…k€kaˆ
sa bahy€bhyantaraƒ uciƒ
(Garua Pur€Ša).
“By remembering the lotus-eyed Lord, PuŠar…k€kya, one becomes
pure, internally and externally.”
Therefore, even after taking bath one should do acaman and recite
the names of KŠa. On the other hand, whether we do something
to attain perfection or not, we are always pure. We are pure by heart
and by soul, because we are part and parcel of KŠa. We have the
potential to serve Him.
We can try to serve KŠa like Dhruva Mah€r€ja, no harm, but he
could not achieve pure bhakti, due to his worldly desires. Prahl€da
Mah€r€ja had no desire; he was a mah€-bh€gavata. By hearing, we can
try to make a platform to become like him. Although so many problems
came to him, he was never touched by them. He remained outside all
the problems and was never disturbed. If you become like him, you
can remember and chant ®r…mad-Bh€gavatam always. Otherwise you
will be disturbed.
To know all these truths you can also read the chapters concerning
Bh€rata Mah€r€ja and Citraketu Mah€r€ja. Don’t be very attached
to your children and wife or husband, as Citraketu Mah€r€ja was
in his first life. What became of Citraketu? He finally left everything
and was given transcendental knowledge by N€rada and A‰gira ¬i.
The Process of Hearing
39
Follow all these teachings. Material relationships can never make you
happy. Never. So don’t be anxious. Remain in whatever position you
are, somehow or other maintain your life, and always remember and
chant, ‘KŠa.’
Now I am quickly coming to the Tenth Canto. ®r… Parikit Mah€r€ja
said to ®r…la ®ukadeva Gosv€m…, “You have told me everything up
to the Ninth Canto; but I’m not yet satisfied. I’m so hungry for this
hari-kath€.”
nivtta-tarair upag…yam€n€d
bhavauadh€c chrotra-mano-’bhir€m€t
ka uttamaloka-guŠ€nuv€d€t
pum€n virajyeta vin€ paughn€t
(SB 10.1.4)
“Glorification of the Supreme Personality of Godhead is performed
in the parampar€ system; that is, it is conveyed from spiritual master
to disciple. Such glorification is relished by those no longer interested
in the false, temporary glorification of this cosmic manifestation.
Descriptions of the Lord are the right medicine for the conditioned
soul undergoing repeated birth and death. Therefore, who will cease
hearing such glorification of the Lord except a butcher or one who is
killing his own self?”
Only very wretched animals, and those who are like slaughterers of
animals, can avoid hari-kath€ from superior speakers like ®r… ®ukadeva
Gosv€m…. In kŠa-l…l€ ®ukadeva Gosv€m… was a very dear parrot of
®r…mat… R€dhik€. He had no contact with m€y€, even in the womb of
his mother. Soon after his birth he was again admitted in the school of
Vy€sadeva, and there he studied ®r…mad-Bh€gavatam from beginning to
end. After this he explained Bh€gavatam in the assembly of ®r…la Parikit
Mah€r€ja. Here he says: nivtta-tarair upag…yam€n€d. If a speaker of ®r…
mad-Bh€gavatam has no worldly desires, no worldly problems and no
attachment, like ®ukadeva Gosv€m… or anyone in his line, one should
not lose the opportunity to hear from him.
®r…mad-Bh€gavatam is for three kinds of persons. It is for those who
want to fulfill worldly desires, those who want mukti (liberation),
or who are already liberated, and for those who are bhaktas, or
ultimately, those who are rasika-bhaktas. For all kinds of devotees the
explanation of ®r…mad-Bh€gavatam should be heard from that class of
speaker. Nivtta-tarair upag…yam€nd. What is the meaning of upag…
yam€n€d? It is the opposite of g€yam€n€t. One has heard from his
guru, a rasika VaiŠava, and then he is speaking. The example is S™ta
Secret Truths of the Bh€gavatam
40
Gosv€m… Ugrarava. He attended the council of ®ukadeva Gosv€m…
and heard ®r…mad-Bh€gavatam from him when Parikit Mah€r€ja heard
it. He heard everything; then he did g…yam€n€t. First one engages in
ravanam (hearing), and then, when he perfects that, he begins k…rtanam
(speaking). At that time his speaking becomes avyarth€m€ha auadhi, the
infallible medicine. It will not go in vain. Those who were in the council
of Par…kit Mah€r€ja and ®ukadeva Gosv€m… were all liberated. In other
words, those who were both junior and senior, the kani˜ha-adhik€r…s and
the madhyˆa-adhik€r…s, all improved in their stages of bhakti. Those who
were about to be liberated were liberated, and those who had no love
and affection received that. In this way everyone developed. Nivttatar
air upag…yam€n€d bhavauadh€c chrotra-mano-bhir€m€t. “Descriptions
of the Lord are the right medicine for the conditioned soul undergoing
the roga, disease, of repeated birth and death.”
What is the ‘disease’ of this world? What is the main disease from
which all diseases come? The root of all disease is to forget KŠa. This
is called avidy€, ignorance of kŠa-tattva, and of love and devotion to
KŠa. This avidy€ disappears very quickly. Those who do not listen
with great honor and strong belief are like butchers, killing themselves
and killing others. In this world, therefore, many are butchers.
I explained several reasons, ten or more, for KŠa’s descent to this
world. He appeared in the jail of Kaˆsa, from the womb of Devak…,
by Vasudeva Mah€r€ja. At the same time, in Vnd€vana, He appeared
like a baby, connected by an umbilical cord with his mother, Yaod€.
Both appearances are true. KŠa appeared to Devak… in His c€turbhuja
(four-armed) form, with long wavy hair and golden and jeweled
ornaments—a very beautiful teenage boy of about sixteen. At the same
time, twelve midnight, He took birth from the womb of Yaod€—just
as a baby comes. And He was weeping, “kyaaah-kyaaah- kyaaah.”
®ukadeva Gosv€m… has told that KŠa was the son of Vasudeva
and Devak…. But to whom did he tell this? To all the Mathur€vas…s.
If ®ukadeva was in Vnd€vana, however, what would he say? None
of the Vnd€vana residents would even believe him, if he said that
KŠa is the son of Vasudeva and Devak…. They had already seen that
KŠa came from the womb of Yaod€. There was a link, an umbilical
cord, and that link was cut in their presence. How would they believe
®ukadeva Gosv€m…, or Akr™ra, or Uddhava, or anyone else? They
would never believe them.
If you are a Mathur€vas…, then you may maintain the belief that
KŠa is the son of Devak… and Vasudeva; no harm for you. But if you
The Process of Hearing
41
want to become any of the Vrajav€s…s—even a creeper, a bird, or an
animal of Vnd€vana—then you will have to believe that KŠa is the
son of Yaod€; never the son of Devak… and Vasudeva. Both are true in
their own position. ®ukadeva Gosv€m… has explained so many times
that the Mathur€vas…s are devotees of high caliber, and the devotees
of Vnd€vana are as well. But who is superior? The Mathur€vas…s like
Uddhava and Akr™ra, or the Vrajav€s…s like ®r…mat… R€dhik€, Lalit€,
Vi€kh€, Yaod€ and Nanda B€b€? Who are superior among them? The
Vrajav€s…s. Therefore we must obey what they are telling. We should
believe more in their words.
Sometimes Mathur€vas…s tell lies. In fact, KŠa Himself has said
that Mathur€vas…s are liars. In Bhagavad-g…t€ He told Arjuna, “You
should promise that I cannot neglect any of My devotees. If I promise
it, it may be that I will change—because I’m a Mathur€vas…. But if
you promise, I will have to keep your promise.” Who was fighting
in Mah€bh€rata? He was not Vrajendra-nandana; He was Vasudeva-
KŠa. In this way He admits that Mathur€vas…s tell lies. Therefore,
those who say that KŠa is the son of Vasudeva and Devak… are liars;
their words are not so true. On the other hand, if Yaod€maiy€ tells
KŠa, “You are my son,” there is no doubt of it. First you should
believe this.
It was only for beginners that Sw€m…j… wrote somewhere in his ®r…
mad-Bh€gavatam that KŠa was the son of Vasudeva, and He was given
to Nanda and Yaod€ only to support and nourish Him as their foster
child or adopted child. This is not true. You should have a firm belief
in this. Try to be a Vrajav€s…. If you are hearing this class, then try to
be a Vrajav€s…. The first thing is to have this faith, then you can realize
®r…mad-Bh€gavatam. This is the basis. KŠa has so many opulences and
all kinds of powers; He especially has six kinds of opulences. When
He is in Nanda B€b€’s house as Vrajendra-nandana, all opulences and
all powers are there, more than in Dv€rak€ and Mathur€; but they are
covered with very sweet m€dhurya. Only high-class devotees can realize
all these truths; so try to have the heart of the Vrajav€s…s.
Those who are sleeping will not obtain all these understandings.
Please try to sit properly; otherwise you will sleep and miss my class.
Then you will be Mathur€vas…s; not even Mathur€vas…s, you will be
Dv€rak€vas…s, or you will be Vaikun˜ƒavas…s. If you do not hear with
attention, it may be that the evils of all others will enter your heart
and very easily sleep there. Don’t be inattentive.
Secret Truths of the Bh€gavatam
42
This is the first thing—KŠa is Vrajendra-nandana. The second is
that Vrajendra-nandana is very merciful.
aho bak… yaˆ stana-k€la-k™˜aˆ
jigh€ˆsay€p€yayad apy as€dhv…
lebhe gatiˆ dh€try-ucit€m tato ‘nyaˆ
kaˆ v€ day€luˆ araŠaˆ vrajema
(SB 3.2.23)
“Alas, how shall I take shelter of one more merciful than He who
granted the position of mother to a she-demon (P™tan€) although she
was unfaithful and she prepared deadly poison to be sucked from her
breast?”
When KŠa was about two and a half or three years old in Gokula, He
performed many beautiful pastimes. Once Kaˆsa sent a demon named
®akat€sura to kill Him. The demon thought, “I’m so intelligent. I’ll not
go there in any particular form. I will go there as air.” He entered a
bullock cart and wanted to press down on KŠa and smash Him. But
KŠa is not an ordinary boy. Playing, He touched ®akat€sura with
His toe-nails, and the demon was killed at once.
What is the meaning behind this pastime? If anyone is very learned,
if he has read ®r…mad-Bh€gavatam, all the Vedas, Upaniadas and all other
scriptures, still he may be like a demon if he does not serve KŠa
with love and affection. Actually all m€y€v€d…s are like ®akat€sura, as
are all in their line. They are very qualified in quoting the scriptures,
they can explain so many meanings of ®r…mad-Bh€gavatam, and when
they speak all are charmed. But ultimately they will say, “We are that
same brahm€.” They are all like ®akat€sura, and therefore KŠa kills
them by any trick, and purifies their hearts. We must be careful not
to be like them.
Do you know the demon TŠ€varta? What is the meaning or essence
of the pastime of KŠa’s killing TŠ€varta? What are the dhula (dust)
and tŠa (straw), thrown about by TŠ€varta? They are the logic that
is against bhakti, against love and affection, they are the arguments of
m€y€v€da, sm€rta-v€da, impersonalism and so on. KŠa can destroy
all these arguments. We should not hear the logic of all these demons.
During KŠa’s time there were only a few demons in this world. But
nowadays there are lakhs and lakhs of demons everywhere. By logic
they will speak against bhakti, so we should be careful about this.
The Process of Hearing
43
How to Control KŠa
After this, we should understand how we can control KŠa and bind
Him in our heart. For this purpose KŠa manifests damodara-l…l€. Yaod€
wanted to bind Him. She thought, “Oh, KŠa has done something
bad. His nature is that of a thief, here and there stealing butter and
everything else.” She asked, “Have You taken?” KŠa replied, “O, I
have not taken.” So Yaod€may… said, “What is in Your mouth? I want
to see.” What did she see? Everything was in KŠa’s mouth, including
all the worlds. She saw KŠa’s universal form, and lakhs and lakhs of
ViŠus and Brahm€s were there. What did she think? “O, perhaps I’m
dreaming. Or a ghost has come and he is in KŠa’s mouth.” She could
not decide. She took water and washed her face, wondering, “Am I
in dream or reality?” Then she saw nothing—and she never thought
that KŠa is the Supreme Personality of Godhead.
When KŠa showed His universal form to Arjuna he folded his
hands and prayed: “O KŠa, I’ve committed so many offenses. I have
called You ‘friend,’ but You are not really ‘friend’. You are the Supreme
Creator, the creator of creators of creators. You are …varaƒ paramaƒ
kŠaƒ sac-cid-€nanda-vigrahaƒ an€dir €dir govindaƒ sarva-k€raŠa-k€raŠam.
In the future I will not call You ‘friend’. I married Your sister, and by
that I became such an apar€dhi. I’m not qualified for this. I have given
You so many instructions like, ‘Bring my chariot and place it in the
middle of both armies.’ I will never do this in the future. Please excuse
me.” After that, when KŠa made that universal form disappear, He
called Yogam€y€. Under her influence Arjuna said, “O friend, come
on, come on. We should try to fight with these armies.”
Devak… and Vasudeva sometimes thought, ‘“KŠa is my son.”
But then they saw how easily He leaped up on the high throne, very
easily grabbed Kaˆsa, threw him down, jumped on him and killed
him. Actually Kaˆsa had killed himself. KŠa only jumped on him.
KŠa did nothing to kill Kaˆsa because he was already dead.1
At that time Vasudeva and Devak… were also present. Everyone
was present. Kaˆsa had brought them in order to say to them, “You
should see how I’m killing your son”. Nanda B€b€ was there with all
the gopas; Kaˆsa’s father Ugrasena was also brought there, and Akr™ra
was there with so many others. Kaˆsa wanted to kill KŠa in the
presence of all, to show that, “I’m so superior.” But quickly, without
any effort, KŠa jumped on him and Kaˆsa died. KŠa said, “What
1 This is a statement by Nanda B€b€. He meant that Kaˆsa was now tasting
the results of his own sinful activities.
Secret Truths of the Bh€gavatam
44
can I do? I simply jumped on him and he died. What can be done?”
At this time Devak… and Vasudeva prayed to KŠa. KŠa was
bowing down at the feet of Devak…, and Baladeva at the feet of
Vasudeva Mah€r€ja. But they prayed, “Oh, I know who You are. You are
N€r€yaŠa-tattva Himself.” KŠa began to weep there, and Baladeva
wept at the feet of Vasudeva Mah€r€ja. They even sat on Their parents’
laps; but still Devak… and Vasudeva continued in their devotion with
the mood of opulence.
Yaod€ had also seen exhibitions of KŠa’s opulences, but she
never thought that KŠa is the Supreme Personality of Godhead.
Never. This is the difference between Mathur€ and Vnd€vana, and
therefore Yaod€ is so much superior to the Mathur€vas…s.
D€modara-L…l€
In Gokula, KŠa was bound around the waist by mother Yaod€. KŠa
loves the devotees, and the devotees also love Him. If the devotees’
love for KŠa is superior to His, then He may be bound or controlled;
otherwise not. How can you control Him? By being under the guidance
of mother Yaod€, or Subala, ®r…dama and MadhumaŠgala, or by being
under the guidance of the beloved gop…s, especially those gop…s who can
bind KŠa and easily control Him. ®r… Caitanya Mah€prabhu came
to sprinkle this kind of love.
Why was Yaod€ not able to bind KŠa in the beginning? The rope
was always short by two fingers. All the ropes were joined together by
knots, and together they became about one or two miles long. KŠa’s
waist was only twelve fingers wide, and around it was a golden chain
given to Him by mother Yaod€. Although His waist did not expand,
still the rope was not sufficient to fully go around it even one time. It
was always two fingers too short.
Two things are represented by the two fingers. The first is the
endeavor of the bhaktas to do bhakti. If we want to bind KŠa by our
own intelligence, our own efforts, we cannot. We can neither have His
darana, nor His mercy, nor can He be controlled. The second principle,
therefore, is KŠa’s mercy. We cannot bind KŠa merely by endeavor.
We must first become araŠ€gata, surrendered, totally surrendered.
At our present stage we are not actually surrendering. We will say,
“Gurudeva, today I’ve surrendered to you. But my lock and key remain
with me.” In this way we have surrendered in word only. This will not
The Process of Hearing
45
do. We’ll have to totally surrender. How do we surrender? You can go
to Arjuna, or you can go to the Vrajav€s…s who are totally surrendered.
And if you want to be more qualified in surrendering, then you will
go to the gop…s. They will tell you the process of surrender.
While Yaod€ was trying to bind KŠa, He was thinking, “If mother
binds Me, how can I play with the boys? ®r…dama and Subala are
waiting for Me. All the cows are waiting.” For what? They have pain
in their udders, but they cannot give milk to their children, the calves.
Only if KŠa comes will they give milk. In this way KŠa is thinking,
“If m€iy€ binds Me, I cannot go. It will be better that She does not bind
Me.” Therefore, Yogam€y€ at once came and this miracle took place.
Although KŠa’s waist was small and the ropes became longer and
longer, they would not go around His waist even one time.
Yaod€m€iy€ was trying to bind Him, but she felt that, “From the
beginning of the morning I’ve been trying, and now it is twelve, but still
I cannot bind Him.” She took shelter of her μh€kuraj… and prayed, “O
N€r€yaŠa, O μh€kuraj…, if I do not bind my son, then all the Vrajav€s…s
will laugh at me.” The color of her face was changing and tears were
about to drop from her eyes.
Sweating, she now considered that she could not bind Him.
Although she had full belief in this, still she promised, “I will bind You.
I will try for one day, two days, three days, my whole life; but I will not
give up. I must bind You.” She was taking shelter of N€r€yaŠa, and
weeping. Tears were coming. KŠa saw this and immediately became
merciful. Yogam€y€ at once left and KŠa was tied very easily by the
rope with which mother Yaod€ had bound her hair.
If we follow the gop…s, or Nanda B€b€, Yaod€, ®r…dama, and Subala
of Vraja, we can tie KŠa. This love and affection belongs to the arayatattva,
the abode of love. The Vrajav€s…s are all abodes of that love.
Fruitseller L…l€
There was a fruitseller who lived in Mathur€. She had heard from
some persons who were coming to Mathur€ from Gokula that a very
beautiful and charming child of about two years old, the son of Nanda
and Yaod€, lived there in Gokula. She wanted to take His darana.
Therefore she used to take some fruits in her basket and go to the area
of Nanda-bhavan, the home of Nanda Mah€r€ja, and call, “O, phala
lo, phala lo, take fruits, take fruits.” Just as in Mathur€ and Vnd€vana
Secret Truths of the Bh€gavatam
46
there are so many fruitsellers everywhere, so she would sell fruits in
that way. However, sometimes KŠa was sleeping, sometimes He was
playing here and there, and sometimes He was in the lap of Yaod€,
taking breast milk. Therefore, she never had a chance to see Him. One
day she said, “Today I will go, and I will not return until I have His
darana.” She made a vow of ‘do or die.’ Her object of life was fixed,
and we should also try to make a vow like this. Having made this
promise, she called out, “Phala lo, phala lo.” Gradually she forgot this
and instead began to call, “Govinda lo, Govinda lo, take Govinda, take
Govinda. D€modara lo, take D€modara, M€dhava lo, take D€modara,
take M€dhava. Govinda D€modara M€dhaveti.”
The easiest way to see KŠa is n€ma-saŠk…rtana. She adopted that
process, as did the gop…s. When KŠa disappeared from the r€sa dance
they sang like that, so that He would come back. As other fruitsellers
are practiced, this lady was practiced not to touch her basket with her
hands. She could even easily dance without it falling from her head.
In this way, from morning until twelve she was looking for KŠa. At
last she became tired and sat down at the door of Nanda-bhavan. She
was thinking, “How will I see KŠa?” At this time KŠa took some
corn, wheat and other grains from the storehouse. He was quite naked,
wearing only a gold chain with tinkling bells around His waist, the
sweet sound of which sometimes charmed even Himself. Somehow He
took some grains and went towards the fruit seller, but in the meantime
the grains fell through His fingers and only two or three remained. He
came to her with very greedy eyes, looking towards the very sweet
golden, yellow and reddish bananas, mangos, grapes, kadamba, and
so many other fruits. He said, “Oh, give Me fruits. Give Me fruits.”
The fruitseller looked towards Him and became totally charmed. She
said, “I may give You—if You call me ‘mother’ and sit on my lap.”
This was a very big problem for KŠa, who thought, “If anyone
sees that I’m sitting on her lap and addressing her as mother, everyone
will laugh. What should I do?” He quickly looked here and there to
see if anyone was watching or not. When He saw that there were no
witnesses, then very quickly, for a moment, He sat on the lap of that
fruitseller. He said, “O mother, give Me fruits,” and then quickly
jumped off. The fruitseller very happily began to give Him fruits. She
asked, “What do You want?” He replied, “This and that.” At first He
held out His hands, and then He came to the position of holding out
both arms close to His chest, taking more and more fruits. She gave
two, three, four, five—and His arms were filled up.
The Process of Hearing
47
Looking and dancing, He then went to His mother and put all the
fruits in her veil. She asked Him, “Oh, from where have You brought
the fruits?” And quickly she began to distribute them. Although
hundreds of gop…s came there and took those very sweet fruits, the
supply was not finishing. It was unlimited.
And what became of that fruitseller? She was sitting there and
thinking. Her heart had been stolen by KŠa, and without her heart
she could only be absorbed in remembering Him. After some time,
someone came and asked, “Why are you here? What you are doing?”
Somehow she remembered her duties. She took her basket and started
for her home in Mathur€. Midway, near to where the Yamun€ was
flowing, she began to wonder, “Why is this basket so heavy?” When
she removed it from her head, she saw that it was full of diamonds
and many other jewels. She became astonished. Again she put it on
her head, and then threw it into the Yamun€. She had no need at all
for the jewels.
What became of her—no one knows. She became totally mad in
the eyes of the world. Do you know what became of her? She became
greater than Devah™ti. She was not concerned whether her veil was
on or off, whether she was naked, or in what condition she was. She
was always in trance, and she entered a state even greater than trance.
It may be that KŠa immediately took her body, her outer shell, and
quickly gave her a greater position than P™tan€, sending her at once
to Goloka Vnd€vana to serve Him there. KŠa is so kind. She had
no special relationship with KŠa; her bhakti was like €nta-r€sa. Still,
thinking her something like a mother, KŠa had called her ‘mother’.
He therefore gave her a position far superior to P™tan€, Kubja and
others. He is so merciful. Try to quickly realize all these truths. If your
bhakti is very high, then in one birth you can achieve a destination like
this. P™tan€ went to Goloka, but the fruitseller lady went to Vnd€vana
which is superior.
More Childhood L…l€s
Then KŠa came to Vnd€vana, and He performed so many pastimes
there. First, along with Baladeva Prabhu He killed Dhenuk€sura.
Actually, Baladeva Prabhu killed him. What is the essence of this story?
Symbolically, ‘donkey’ has so many meanings. First of all, donkeys are
quite ignorant. Secondly, they are so lusty that although the donkey
is always kicked by the hind legs of the she-donkey, he is so ignorant
Secret Truths of the Bh€gavatam
48
that he never gives up trying to enjoy her. Who can save you from
this? Only Gurudeva, Baladeva Prabhu. You should always know that
all gurus who are qualified and bonafide are prak€a, manifestations
of Nity€nanda Prabhu or Baladeva Prabhu. Those who do not realize
this are not qualified gurus, and they cannot save you from these
donkeys. Nity€nanda Prabhu and Baladeva Prabhu, They are the same
tattva, but Nity€nanda Prabhu is the most merciful. As Mah€prabhu is
more merciful than KŠa, Nity€nanda Prabhu is more merciful than
Baladeva Prabhu. Although They are the same, although there is no
difference between Them at all, there is some difference in the degree
of Their mercy.
Therefore, if we take shelter of a guru in the line of Nity€nanda
Prabhu or Baladeva Prabhu, he can save us from this lust and
ignorance. It is very, very, very hard to become free from lust. KŠa
has created in all species some males and some females; and it is
very rare and very hard to become free from this hda-roga, disease
of the heart. You can give up your children, wealth, reputation and
everything else, but it is very difficult to give up the idea or mood
of self-praise. It is even more difficult to renounce lust, because it is
in the heart. Only Baladeva Prabhu can release us, and therefore He
quickly killed that demon.
Many brahmac€r…s, engaged by ®r…la Swam…j…, had been worshipping
for twelve years or twenty years, but when he departed from this
world, most of them became lusty and again married. This lust came
even to the sanny€s…s who were serving and worshipping the Deities,
reading Bh€gavatam and doing so much preaching, it controlled them,
and they were driven from this devotional line. So you should try to
be very careful. This is not the first time you have taken the shape
of a human and married. I think it is hundreds and thousands upon
hundreds of thousands of times, or more than that, that you have been
with these things. When you realize this fact, at once you will become
like ®r…la ®ukadeva Gosv€m…, ®r…man Mah€prabhu, ®r…la Raghun€tha
d€sa Gosv€m… and all others like them. You will have to come in this
process if you want to go where they are. Today, or after some days,
you will have to be like them. Even if you are in married life, you will
have to be like the P€Šavas, like ®r…v€sacarya, and others—like the
gopas and gop…s. They were all attached to KŠa, not to anything else.
This is the essence of all instructions.
After the pastime of killing Dhenuk€sura, KŠa performed the
pastime of Brahma-vimohana-l…l€. Brahma saw that Agh€sura was
The Process of Hearing
49
liberated and merged in the effulgence coming from the toes of KŠa.
He was actually liberated. Although it seemed that he merged in KŠa,
he could not actually merge. Jaya and Vijaya, in the shape of ®iup€la
and Dantavakra, were also liberated, and also seemed to merge in
KŠa’s body but in reality again became Jaya and Vijaya. Then, when
KŠa’s pastimes were completed, they went to VaikuŠ˜ha along with
N€r€yaŠa (who, along with all other incarnations, were within KŠa’s
body and had come with Him to this world).
Similarly, it only seemed that Agh€sura merged in KŠa. Brahma
somehow saw this, became very happy and thought, “Oh, KŠa is
so merciful. He has appeared like a boy and He is performing all
these sweet pastimes. I want to see some more pastimes; so I should
do something by which I can see them.” If Brahma had prayed to
KŠa, he would have been engaged in the correct process; but he
never prayed. He was discovering a way in which, by his own efforts,
he would induce KŠa to perform more pastimes. He thought, “I
should do something so that KŠa will play. I should steal away all
the cowherd boys and all the calves.” From where did these thoughts
come? They came by the influence of Yogam€y€-dev…. It was KŠa’s
wish at that time.
KŠa had been thinking, “Lakhs and lakhs of gop…s want Me to be
their son. They want to keep Me in their laps and give Me their breast
milk. They all want this. I will have to fulfill their desires because I
have made a promise to this effect: ye yath€ m€ˆ prapadyante t€ˆs
tathaiva bhaj€my aham (Bg 4.11). So I must become their son.” Also, lakhs
and lakhs of cows—the nine lakhs of Nanda B€b€’s cows, the eleven
lakhs cows of Vabhanu Mah€r€ja and uncounted numbers of others,
wanted that KŠa become their calves. KŠa is a desire tree, and so
He also wanted that, “I should become the calves of all the cows.”
In Vnd€vana, Gokula, Nandag€on and everywhere, all the young
girls thought that, “KŠa should be our husband—like our beloved.”
They all wanted this. So He had to fulfill their desire as well. For these
reasons He decided, “It’s a good time,” and at once He sent for His
Yogam€y€. Actually, there was no need to send for her because she is
always in Him. She knew His wish and at once managed everything.
Brahma stole the cowherd boys and calves and he kept them in a cave.
He went to his abode—for only a moment—and quickly returned. For
this world, though, it was one year.
What happened before Brahma returned? Baladeva Prabhu had
been thinking, “Oh, a very strange thing! I used to see that all the gop…s
Secret Truths of the Bh€gavatam
50
had so much more love and affection for KŠa than for their sons. But
now I see that they have equal love for KŠa and their sons. I see also
that the cows now have so much more affection for their older sons
than for their new calves. Why? What is the cause?” Baladeva then
understood everything “KŠa is very wonderful.” He began to smile
and told KŠa, “O KŠa, what is this? I see that You have become all
the boys and calves. Your stomach was not filled up by taking only the
milk of ®r…mat… Yaod€, Your mother; so You became lakhs and lakhs of
cowherd boys. Still Your stomach was not filled, and so You became
all the calves here. All the cowherd boys are You Yourself—not the
original ones. Why have You done this? To marry all the gop…s. You
have married them all.”
Garg€c€rya had previously told the Vrajav€s…s, “This year is a very
good year, an auspicious year. You should give all your daughters in
marriage—even those who are still in the wombs of their mothers. You
should even arrange their marriage. Make a vow in friendship that, if
a son will be born from your womb, and my child is a daughter, then
they will marry.’ You should make a promise like this.”
In this way, all the gop…s were married. By trick, all the gop…s who
married that year were actually married to KŠa. Only R€dhik€
was not married, and this was also a trick of Yogam€y€. Vabhanu
Mah€r€ja had been told during that year that it was a very bad year
for marriage arrangements. R€dhik€ was later married to Abhimanyu;
and actually She was not married to him, but Her manifestation was
married. Who is Abhimanyu? He is also a manifestation of KŠa. So
Her shadow was married to His shadow. Because R€dh€ is none other
than the power of KŠa, She cannot be separated from Him. She is
one with Him. For pastimes They become two, but otherwise They are
only one. Both appear as one in the form of ®r…man Mah€prabhu, and
when They are two, They are R€dh€ and KŠa. They are one soul in
two bodies. By pure devotion you can realize all these things. This is
the essence of the brahm€-vimohana-l…l€. KŠa can accomplish many
tasks by one activity.
Later Vnd€vana Pastimes
Those who, in their previous lives were the golden statues of S…t€, and
those who were previously theVedic mantras, the is of DaŠakaraŠya,
and all the girls of Ayodhya-puri and Janaka-puri—all became gop…s
by yauthak… and ayauthak…. That is, they either came singly, alone,
The Process of Hearing
51
or they came in groups. They all came to Vnd€vana and observed
k€ty€yan…-vrata for one month. But who came to them at last? Why could
K€ty€yan… not come? If they were worshipping K€ty€yan…, K€ty€yan…
should have come. But she never came. KŠa Himself came, and He
gave His benediction to them.
KŠa desires that those who want to be like the gop…s should give
up all worldly considerations. For the happiness of KŠa we can give
them up. This body is like a garment. As you may know, Devah™ti
and others like ®ukadeva Gosv€m… had no need to cover themselves
with another garment. We are ignorant, and that is why we are doing
so. We will have to transcend this. There should be nothing we keep
for ourselves; we should give everything to KŠa. Then we can come
to that realm.
Now we will very quickly come to the topic of r€sa-l…l€, and after
that I will come to my object of telling hari-kath€ here. Why did KŠa
leave Vnd€vana? Everyone wants to be in a place where there is
very much love and affection. We know that in Vnd€vana love and
affection for KŠa is so superior to anywhere else. There is also love
in Mathur€, but not like that of Vnd€vana. Then why did KŠa
leave? And, even if He left, He should have returned from time to
time to meet with the Vrajav€s…s; but He never came back. Why? He
wanted to console the gop…s, so why could He not have come Himself
to directly console them? Instead He sent His messenger, Uddhava.
Why did He send him?
KŠa has so much opulence, and He is so powerful. Why could He
not have invited all the gop…s, along with Nanda B€b€ and Yaod€, to
Mathur€ or to Dv€rak€? If He could take all the Y€davas from Mathur€
to Dv€rak€ in one night—at once—why could He not bring all the gop…s,
Nanda B€b€, Yaod€, the cows and everyone and everything else there,
and live with them? Was there a scarcity of place in Dv€rak€ because it
is surrounded by an ocean? Is this the fact? There was so much room
in Dv€rak€. But why could the gop…s and Nanda B€b€ not reside there?
These are the questions we will try to solve in class tomorrow.

53
Chapter Four
KŠa and the Gop…s KŠa and the Gop…s
I have explained the essence of some of the pastimes of KŠa. Now
I’m going to tell some very secret pastimes. First of all you should
know who KŠa is; He is not a worldly boyfriend, ®r…mat… R€dhik€ is
not a worldly girlfriend and Their most elevated love is not material
lust. Their love is beyond the touch of all kinds of bodily senses and
even the mind.
vyat…tya bh€van€-vartma
ya camatk€ra-bh€ra-bh™ƒ
hdi sattvojjvale b€haˆ
svadate sa raso mataƒ
(SB 10.43.17)
“That which is beyond imagination, heavy with wonder and relished
in the heart shining with goodness—such is known as rasa.”
No mental speculation can touch Them. That is why KŠa is called
adhokaja-tattva or apr€kta-tattva. Although this is true, if we have
even a seed of transcendental raddh€, honor to hear, we can gradually
understand all these truths. All kinds of lust will go away, gradually
uddha-sattva1 will come, and then we can realize these truths. We are
not qualified to speak or to hear. Still, those who are senior must hear;
for senior devotees I am telling something. They should hear with
very strong faith and honor. They should know, and then follow the
process from its beginning. But they should hear.
First, KŠa is Bhagav€n:
…varah paramaƒ kŠaƒ
sac-cid-€nanda-vigrahaƒ
€n€dir adir govindaƒ
sarva-k€raŠa-k€raŠaˆ
(Brahma-saˆhit€ 5.1)
1 The transcendental platform of pure goodness on which bhava-bhakti is
manifest.
Secret Truths of the Bh€gavatam
54
“There are many personalities possessing the qualities of Bhagav€n, but
KŠa is the Supreme because none can excel Him. He is the Supreme
Person, and His body is eternal, full of knowledge and bliss. He is the
primeval Lord Govinda and the cause of all causes.”
Not only this. KŠa is Svayaˆ Bhagav€n:
ete c€ˆa-kal€ƒ puˆsaƒ
kŠas tu bhagav€n svayaˆ
indr€r…-vy€kulaˆ lokaˆ
mayanti yuge yuge
(SB 1.3.28)
“All of the above-mentioned incarnations are either plenary portions
or portions of the plenary portions of the Lord, but Lord ®r… KŠa is
the original Personality of Godhead. All of Them appear on planets
whenever there is a disturbance created by the atheists. The Lord
incarnates to protect the theists.”
KŠa is Bhagav€n Himself, Vrajendra-nandana, the ocean of rasa.
He is sarva aktim€n. All kinds of powers, contradictory to each other,
are in Him. He is akti akt…matorabhedaƒ (Ved€nta-s™tra). There is no
difference between KŠa and His powers. He is sarva-k€raŠa-k€raŠaˆ
(the cause of all causes), sarva aktim€n (the embodiment of infinite
powers), and akhila-ras€mta-sindhu (the complete ocean of the nectar
of loving relationships). We can hear, but we have no realization. We
can only hear. If by practicing for many thousands of births we realize
what we have heard, then we are very, very fortunate.
Who are the gop…s? They are the vil€sa-m™rti (pastime expansions) of
KŠa Himself. KŠa is one without a second. He is advaya-jñ€na-paratattva
(the complete truth). All viva-brahmanda—material worlds, all
cit-jagat—transcendental worlds, and all j…va-jagat—all the j…vas, have
come from His power. There is no difference between them. Still, bhedaabheda:
there is difference and non-difference. We cannot calculate this
by our mind. We can only understand it through our guru-parampar€.
šmn€ya-pr€ha.2 You should know what €mn€ya means. šmn€ya is the
authentic evidence of the Vedas, Upaniads and all other scriptures,
which has been accepted by our guru-parampar€. If something is called
Veda, but it is not accepted by our parampar€, then we will reject it.
Our guru-parampar€ has accepted that ®r…mad-Bh€gavatam is amalapramana
(immaculate evidence). ®r…mad-Bh€gavatam and all €stras
are telling that all the gop…s are non-different from KŠa. The Brahma-
2 From ®r…la Bhaktivinoda μh€kura’s Daa-m™la …ka.
KŠa and the Gop…s
55
saˆhit€ states: €nanda-cinm€y€-rasa-pratibh€vit€bhis t€bhir ya eva nijar
™patay€ kal€bhiƒ (Brahma-samhita 5.37). They are the r™pa of KŠa.
They are KŠa Himself. ®r…mat… R€dhik€ is Herself KŠa; there is
no difference at all. Only for vil€sa, pastimes, for tasting each other,
has KŠa divided Himself in two. KŠa was in Vnd€vana, alone
at Vami-vata, and from His left side, His very beautiful para-akti,3
hl€din…-akti in the form of ®r…mat… R€dhik€, came out and ran towards
Him with r€ga. R€—She ran after KŠa to meet Him. R€—anur€ga,
dha—dhavati with anur€ga, high-class ecstatic love and emotion. She
ran towards KŠa calling, “KŠa! KŠa!” Thus She became R€dh€.
She was worshipped by KŠa Himself, and so Her name is also R€–
dhi–k€; but She is Herself KŠa. You cannot imagine this, but it is
stated in €stra, so you should accept it.
What is Their love? Bh€va.4 Bh€va is not anything of this world. It
is uddha-s€ttva, the essence of hl€din… and samvit, on the platform of
sandhin…. Without sandhin… there is no hl€din… and no samvit. They will
meet on the platform of sandhin…. R€dh€r€Š… is Herself KŠa’s hl€din…
potency. Why hl€din…? She always gives hl€da, pleasure, to KŠa. Her
body is made of the most elevated mah€-bh€va.5 All Her organs, moods,
senses, hair, eyes, and everything about Her is made of mah€-bh€va.
Therefore She is hl€din….
Stages of Prema
Regarding the other gop…s, they are like kayavy™ha, bodily
manifestations, of ®r…mat… R€dhik€, and therefore they are also one
with KŠa. You cannot imagine how they are one and how they are
different. Their love is mah€-bh€va. To have some idea of this, let us
begin from bh€va, rati. What is rati? When, by the practice of bhakti-yoga,
we cross s€dhana-bhakti,6 we come to the border of bh€va-bhakti. We
perform s€dhana-bhakti only to achieve bh€va. Then it is real s€dhana. If
one is chanting, remembering and practicing all the processes of bhakti,
but the objective is not bh€va, not thinking, “I want to attain bh€va,”
3 Topmost energy, superior potency of the Lord (®r…mat… R€dhik€).
4 Transcendental emotion.
5 Highest stage of prema or divine love.
6 When transcendental devotional service by which love for KŠa is attained
is executed by the senses, it is called s€dhana-bhakti, or the regulative discharge of
devotional service. Such devotion eternally exists within the heart of every living
entity. The awakening of this eternal devotion is the potentiality of devotional service
in practice. ( Cc Madhya-l…l€ 22-105 .)
Secret Truths of the Bh€gavatam
56
then it is not s€dhana. What kind of bh€va do we want? Not that of ®r…
d€ma or Subala, Nanda B€b€, or Yaod€m€iy€. We want mah€-bh€va
like that of the gop…s; and among the gop…s, only like the mood of R™pamañjar…,
Rati-mañjar… and Laba‰ga-mañjar….
When that mood comes like an electric current in the heart and
the mood of the j…va becomes t€d€tma, one with that of the gop…s, it is
called bh€va-bhakti. There is also something in the soul’s heart, and by
a combination of both, bh€va-bhakti manifests. When bh€va comes, then
svar™pa-siddhi7 comes and after svar™pa-siddhi, vastu-siddhi (the spiritual
body) manifests. At that time you will totally give up this body, take
birth from the womb of a gop…, and you will have to continue your
practice there. In that body prema8 will come, but not in this present
body. This body cannot withstand prema. At once you will die; or rather,
this body will die. If prema enters this body, it will burn at once. You
can never have prema in this body. For that prema, the ™ddha-s€ttva
body is essential.
There may be many causes for that love, that prema, to go away.
sarv€tha dhvama-rahitaˆ
saty ap… dhvaˆsa-k€rane
yad bh€va-bandh€nam y™noƒ
sa prema parikirt…t€ƒ
(Ujjvala-n…l€maŠi)
True love is that love which does not break, even when there is
sufficient cause to break it. Even when there is sufficient cause, and,
instead of breaking, it becomes unlimitedly more new and fresh. This
is called prema. It is not like the lust of worldly persons, where in one
day, or two days, or some days, a man and woman marry and next day
get divorced. We claim to have a friendship, a very bosom friendship,
but if there is any cause, that friend quickly goes away and becomes our
enemy. I know so many who were first bosom friends and afterwards
became enemies; and those who were enemies became friends. This
is not prema; it is not actually love.
When that love touches our heart and becomes very dense, very
thick, then our heart melts, tears come, and many symptoms of atas€
ttvika9 manifest. Then it is called sneha. When sneha becomes very
7 Stage of bhakti where the internal spiritual form and identity becomes manifest.
8 “When that bh€va softens the heart completely, becomes endowed with a great
feeling of possessiveness in relation to the Lord and becomes very much condensed and
intensified, it is called prema (love of Godhead) by learned scholars. (Cc. Madhya 23.4)
9 Eight symtoms of spirtual ecstacy—stunned, perspiration, hairs standing on
end, trembling, change of colour, tears, fainting, faltering of voice.
KŠa and the Gop…s
57
thick, and then thicker and thicker, it reaches its last stage and becomes
praŠaya. Do you know what praŠaya is? It is when the lover and beloved
become as ‘one’, when there is no shyness at all, no difference in their
thinking. When a person goes to the bathroom, becomes naked and
sees himself in a mirror, he has no shyness. Similarly, in praŠaya, the
lover and beloved are like the same person, with no shame. They do
not think, “This is my form, and this is my reflection in the mirror,”
but rather, “I myself am the reflection of my beloved.” Both lover and
beloved are like this. You cannot imagine it, but still you can hear
about it.
After this, m€na comes. The beloved thinks, “If I do m€na, if I enter
a sulky (angry) mood, my lover must certainly come and pacify me”.
In this stage praŠaya becomes m€na. KŠa has to come to pacify His
beloved; otherwise He will never be able to meet Her.
After this, r€ga develops and then anur€ga, which is nitya-navina—
ever fresh. At that time the beloved sees KŠa, or KŠa sees His
beloved, as new. The beloved thinks, “O, I have never seen KŠa
before. Who is that black person?”
When this emotion reaches its highest stage, it is called mah€-bh€va.
In Bhakti-ras€mta-sindhu this has been described. Only if we come to
this stage can we realize something of the love of R€dh€ and KŠa,
and understand who R€dh€ is and who KŠa is. Still, I am giving
some glimpse, like a shadow. I am not a realized person, but I am
always thinking and thinking of this, so I’m giving some idea of that.
What is mah€-bh€va? When R€dh€ and KŠa meet together They
forget Themselves. They don’t know, “Who am I? Who are You?” There
is only ecstatic love, and that love controls Them both. KŠa does not
know, “I am KŠa.” ®r…mat… R€dhik€ does not know, “I am R€dhik€.”
This mood is especially in R€dhik€, not KŠa, because KŠa is the
object of love, and R€dhik€ is the reservoir, or the abode of love. In this
mood She forgets, “Who am I?” She forgets, “Who is KŠa?” Rather,
She thinks, “We are one.” She alone can think like this.
pahilehi r€ga nayana-bha‰ge bhela
anudina b€hala, avadhi n€ gela
n€ so ramaŠa, n€ h€ma ramaŠ…
du‰hu-mana manobhava peala j€ni’
e sakhi, se-saba prema-k€hin…
k€nu-˜h€me kahabi vichurala j€ni’
n€ kho‰jaly‰ d™t…, n€ kho‰jalu‰ €n
du‰hukeri milane madhya ta p€‰ca-b€Ša
Secret Truths of the Bh€gavatam







Om Tat Sat

(Continued...)

(My humble salutations to  the lotus feet of  Swami jis great Devotees , Philosophic Scholars, Purebhakti dot com       for the collection)

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