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At the age of only nineteen, Radhanath Swami left his home in America seeking adventure and spiritual knowledge. After trekking across Europe for months, Radhanath Swami reached his long hoped for destination: India. After living there for many years as a sadhu or wandering monk, Radhanath Swami returned to America in order to share the sacred knowledge and wisdom he had learned from the many holy men and women he had met there. It was an extraordinary choice, given what Radhanath Swami had survived to get there: a journey filled with bizarre characters, mystical experiences, and dangerous adventures. The story is recounted in his recently published memoir The Journey Home - Autobiography of an American Swami. Reviewers have called Radhanath Swami's saga "at once an engaging yarn, a love story, and the evocation of a transcendent paradise in all its savagery, solitude, and splendor.
Radhanath Swami emerged from his years of travel wanting to explain for others the beauty and rewards of a life devoted to God, and therein lay a dilemma. Radhanath Swami's many followers and friends describe him as completely selfless and consequently unwilling to take credit for his work and restless when a spotlight is focused on him. By choosing A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami (1896-1977), a Bengali Vaishnava Saint, as his guru (after declining offers of initiation from several tyagis or renunciants in the Himalayas), Radhanath Swami cast his fate to the wind, cut his matted locks, and entered back into the society.
RadhanathMaharaj.net gives us a complete collection of the teaching of Radhanath Swami. Teachings consists of Transcriptions of lectures delivered by Radhanath Swami at various places. This website is to inspire the followers of Radhanath Swami to practice the philosophy of Vaishanavism.
That Lord Shiva can by their wrathful glances overcome lust and vanquish him yet they cannot be free from the overwhelming effects of their own wrath. Such wrath can never enter into the heart of Him, the Lord, he was above all this. So how can lust take shelter in his mind?
Purport by his divine grace AC Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupad. When Lord Shiva was engaged in severely austere meditation; cupid the demigod of lust through his arrows sex desires. Lord Shiva thus being angry of him glanced at cupid in wrath and at once the body of cupid was ______0:01:38. Although Lord Shiva was so powerful, he was unable to get free from the effects of such wrath but in the behavior of Lord Vishnu there is no incident of such wrath at any time, on the contrary Brugumuni tested the tolerance of the Lord by purposely kicking his chest but instead of being angry with Brugumuni, the Lord begged his pardon saying that Brugumuni’s leg might have been badly hurt because his chest is too hard, the Lord has the sign of the foot of Brugupad as the mark of tolerance. The Lord therefore has affected by any wrath, so how can that be place for lust which is less strong than wrath. When lusty desire is not fulfilled there is the appearance of wrath, but in the absence of wrath how can there be any place for lust. The Lord is known as Atmakama that one who can fulfill his desires by himself, it is not required anyone’s help to satisfy his desires. The Lord is unlimited and therefore his entire desires are also unlimited. All living entities but the Lord are limited in every respect, how then in the limited satisfy the desires of the unlimited. The conclusion is that the Absolute Personality of Godhead has neither lust nor anger and even if there is sometimes a show of lust and anger by the Absolute, it should be considered an Absolute benediction.
The Original personality and Spiritual master of the universe is in this chapter glorifying the various incarnations of the Supreme Personality of Godhead Lord Sri Krsna, in the previous verse he explains how the Brahma himself gave birth to Dharma from his own breast. Dharma was married to the thirteen daughters of Daksha, one of the them was named as Moorathi and from the womb of Moorathi came about the advent of the Supreme Personality of Godhead as Naranarayan Rishis. And there they performed great austerities in the Holy land of Badrikashram in the high peaks of Himalayas and the austerities they were performing was so severe, in fact the Lord was displaying is own opulence of renunciation which cannot possibly be imitated by any mortar or infinite tesmo Jiva of this world. Indra, became very fearful, materialistic people naturally they are always thinking that everyone thinks like themselves, the world is a mere at owns mind wherever we look we see our own consciousness. So he was thinking, “I am so attached to this beautiful heavenly abode of Swargaloka and I have performed such tapasya to attain it, so therefore anyone performing tapasya their aim must be to take my post”. So he sent Kamadev, who in western terminology is known as Cupid. A Cupid’s sharp arrows can infatuate anyone, except the Lord himself or those who are specifically under the protection of the Lord. So Kamadev created a whole atmosphere was so inducive to material enjoyment, all of his strength, all of his powers were being aimed toward Naranarayan, but they were indifferent. So cupid became very much afraid. “That now, if he is wrathful upon me, I am finished”. But the Lord so kindly, benevolently smiled at Kamadev and all of those associates and told them: “Do not fear, you are my honored and welcomed guests, you have come to ____0:07:03 upon by my ashram, so please accept these gifts from me, of my hospitality”. When they saw that he had no pride and when there is no pride they could be no anger, they were astounded and they bowed down seeking the compassion of the Lord and began to praise him that: “we demigods we put so many great obstacles, oceans of obstacles, in front of people’s paths especially the Lord’s devotees but those who are protected by you Oh! Lord will easily cross over the ocean all obstacles we present before them. But those who do not surrender to you, will easily be consumed and drowned by this ocean and somehow or other if by the power of their mystic austerity they can cross this whole ocean of material attraction they become proud by doing so and when they become proud, they easily become angry. And the little puddle which is size of the hoof print of a calf which represents anger, these persons who are mystics but not devoted to you, after crossing the whole ocean of material temptation they drown in the hoof print of this little calf, in the form of wrath and anger and they loose all of the results of all of their austerities. But you are Lord are completely Absolute transcendental personality and those who take shelter of you achieve your divine mercy not infallible”. So the Naranarayan just to show who is Godhead, from his body emanated beautiful heavenly females that made all of Cupid’s females look pale and ugly in comparison and the demigods when seeing the beauty, not only seeing but all of their senses were completely infatuated, bewildered and conquered by the sight of this beautiful ladies. But Naranarayan rishi had no attraction for any of them.
Srila Prabhupad explains in the purport that a confectioner who is making sweet meats, everyone else is attracted to his sweet meats but he is not attracted because he is with them all day. So the Lord can manifest any form of wonderful phenomena but he is perfectly satisfied in himself. And he told the demigods, you pick one of these beautiful ladies that is most suitable to you and you take them back to the heaven as a donation from me. So they chose Urvashi and she was brought back to Indraloka and Kamadev and the other Devatas explained Indra and all the other demigods what had happened and then he was frightened and ashamed of what he had done but very happy to have received Urvashi and she became the crown jewel of all of his pleasurable pastimes in the heavenly abodes that without her his whole heavenly abode appeared without any excitement, without any interest, without pleasure. So this is the glory of Naranarayan Rishi and here Sukhadev Goswami just to explain how unprecedented is the Supreme power of Godhead in the form of renunciation that he is comparing him to the greatest ____0:11:20 and in this Universe there is no greatest _______in regard to tapasya than Lord Shiva. In making a comparison that Lord Shiva, Sati had already burned herself to ashes in the yagna of Daksha Prajapati and she took birth again as a daughter of Himavan, the presiding Murthi of the Himalayas and her name was Parvathi or Himavati and from her earliest youth, she was naturally attracted to Lord Shiva and then she was performing tapasya to get Lord Shiva as her husband. Meanwhile Lord Shiva was sitting in his Vedic Samadhi, meditating on the Supreme Lord Krsna’s pastimes within his own heart and he was so completely immersed in such meditation but at that time a great demon of the name Tharaka was conquering all the worlds and the demigods had no power to withstand his anger. So they understood after consulting with higher authorities that the only person who will be confident to kill this demon is the son of Lord Shiva. But at that time, there was no son that they found. So they were thinking this is very important. So Indra again to protect his abode from the onslaughts of people who wanted to conquer and take it away from him, he sent Kamadev to Shiva, because no one else could get him out of his Samadhi, he was just completely immersed in an other world. So Kamadev created all around the most attractive and impulsive atmosphere for temptation and enjoyment, there was wonderful breezes, perfect temperature, sweet fragrances, sounds of sweet birds singing and he created the most beautiful heavenly dances. And they singing and dancing and their anklets and bracelets, bangles were jingling together and they were playing beautiful instruments, he could possibly maintain their sober consciousness in such an atmosphere but Lord Shiva was totally unmoved, indifferent Atmaram. So here, Cupid Kamadev, he has a bow and arrow, his bow is made out of sugarcane and the points of his arrows are made out of flowers and when he shoots those arrows it is big trouble, because that those arrows creates such an infatuation and attraction to the beauty and sweetness and softness of this world. So Cupid was actually angry that Shiva was not responding, so he took his most powerful flower ornamented arrow and placed it to his bow and shut it right into the heart of Lord Shiva. Hare Krsna. And Lord Shiva was disturbed from his meditation, “Who has disturbed me?” He looked in one direction, in another direction, “who has done this?” And there hiding in his secret place with his little bow, this Kamadev and Shiva out of Wrath for being disturbed his third eye opened and from that eye came a blazing mystical fire that burned Cupid to ashes. Shankar Bhagavan ki Jai!!!!!!!!
Meanwhile, Kamadev’s consort whose name was Rati, she was very much sad that her husband had just reduced to nothing more than a pile of ashes. So she prayed for Lord Shiva, “Please give my husband back”. Then Shiva was actually Ashutosh, he is very easily pleased, and he is always compassionate to all living beings. __________0:17:00 so he told Rati: “that he will become the son of Lord Krsna and there you will be reunited with him”. So meanwhile there was a demon, everyone is ultimately devotee but some forget they are devotee and they become demons. His name was Shambara and he had very powerful mystic powers and had great wealth and he was told that the son of Krsna and Rukmini will kill him. So meanwhile Lord Krsna he had just recently left Vrundavan with Akrura, advanced to Mathura to satisfy Vasudev, Devaki and also to satisfy his promise that he would destroy all demons in the world. ___________________0:18:00. So because of so many demons attacked him in Mathura, Jarasanda, Kaliyavan, he decided to transport his abode to Dwaraka. So wonderful everyone went to sleep at night, he had Vishwakarma build a beautiful city in Dwaraka and then everyone woke up in the morning for Mathura and they woke up in Dwaraka, this is Krsna’s way of traveling with his ______0:18:40 no need for Indian Railways, you just go to sleep, you wake up and you are there, Krsna’s mercy to his devotees and he married the beautiful queen Rukmini who wrote the letter to the Brahman. Lord Chaitanya Mahaprabhu very much worshipped the prayers of Rukmini how she had no interest in living unless she could be completely surrendered to for the enjoyment of Krsna. So Krsna fought against so many Asuras and kidnapped Rukmini and there was a wonderful wedding in Dwaraka and then their first child was born. This child was named Pradyumna and by the benediction of Lord Shiva and the mercy of Lord Krsna this was actually Kamadev, a cupid who reincarnated, as the first son of the Lord. But Shambara understood that this enemy Pradyumna he will kill me, so before he was even ten days old, Shambara disguised himself as a beautiful women and went into the maternity ward of Rukmini and kidnapped the baby Pradyumna and took the baby and went deep into the ocean and threw the baby into the ocean. Meanwhile, Rukmini and everyone in the palace, their hearts were broken that her first boy child who was such a reservoir of beauty and charm even as an infant had been taken away. And days and days went by and they were searching everywhere, obviously they thought he must be killed. However, ____________0:20:46. If Krsna wants to protect you nothing can harm you and if Krsna wants to harm you, no one will protect you. But the little child while living in the ocean was swallowed by a big fish and not a blade of grass move without the sanction of the Lord. He is orchestrating every moment in such a way that is a favorable opportunity for all of us to make spiritual advancement and we must recognize that. In good or bad times, honor or dishonor, pleasure or pain, help or defeat, we should know that Krsna is putting us in just the situation to help us surrender to him. So in this case, how many fishes are in the ocean, who can count? Billions and trillions of fishes are living in the ocean, but this particular fish that caught and ate Pradyumna and he was little infant baby that was very comfortably living within the belly of this fish. No problem at all, by the mercy of Krsna and then a fisher man with his net caught the fish and the fisherman went to the palace of Shambara, selling fish because he knew that Shambara was a Rakshasa and therefore he ate fish. Prabhupad said, even in India, the land of Dharma, people eat meat and fish, he said this is a quality of a Rakshasa eating meat and fish, so those of you who eat meat and fish you should reconsider your position. So Shambara was very happy to receive nice fish and was delivered to his cook and the cook was about to prepare it for him and he cut open the fish and there he found this little baby, beautiful little baby. Now Rati, who was Kamadev’s consort, she took the post of being the assistant cook in the kitchen of Shambara but she only cooked rice and dal and when this baby was born the cooks did not know what to do, so he called for Mayavati and she was thinking, “Oh! What is this child? and just at that moment Naradamuni appeared and he explained to Mayavathi, “Remember how in your previous life, your husband Kamadev was burnt to ashes by the wrath of Shiva, now he has come as the son of Krsna. This is the child” and he told the whole story, how he was swallowed by the fish and everything else. So Rati was very much attracted to this little baby, then she began to bathe him and care for him, just waiting for the moment he would grow up and he would be again her consort. And very quickly the child just started growing and growing. Mystically he just grew up and each of his limbs extended, his arms were just extending below his knees, his eyes were like beautiful lotus petals and his swarthy complexion could infatuate the hearts of anyone who saw him. He was reservoir of beauty; he was Krsna’s own son, like father like son it is said. And Mayavati was taking nice motherly care of this child but as he grew up within the matter of days, she started glancing upon him in the mood of conjugal love and was indicating that they should enjoy and this little child Pradyumna, he was very much bewildered by all this, said: “you are my mother, how can you be looking at me like this? How can you be speaking to me like this?” So she said, “actually I am not your mother, I am your consort” and she explained everything to him, how in the previous birth, how in this birth, how we have been brought together and this is all by Naradamuni’s information that we know this. So she said that, “you should kill this Shambara and you should go back to be with your mother Rukmini and your father Krsna. Because Rukmini, since the day you have been gone, she has been weeping and crying in grief by the loss of her beloved son and for that matter her only son at the time. So, Mayavati was very powerful and she had instructed Pradyumna in military science that how to fight against Shambara. So the wife became the guru, which is very common in these days especially. And so Pradyumna went before Shambara and he started insulting him but how he insulted him, he choised words which was so piercing to the heart, he just created such anger in Shambara’s mind and then Pradyumna said: “I challenge you to fight” they began to fight and Shambara understood that was actually the son of Krsna and he began to fight and he went up into the sky because Shambara he was trained by Maya and great powers, he had Mahamaya powers but Mayavati trained up Pradyumna in Mahavidya powers which is more powerful. Because it is power coming from God and Mahamaya powers are coming from illusion, the illusory energy. So as they were fighting, Shambara was throwing every type of weapon and using all sorts of transis and all sorts of mystic displays, but everything he did was easily destroyed by Pradyumna and when he had nothing else to do, Pradyumna took a sword and cut off Shambara’s head. Pradyumna ki jai!!!!!
And then Mayavati said: “You come with me and I will transfer you by the airways to Dwaraka and they immediately both flew to Dwaraka and Mayavati landed her mystical airship right in the palace of Krsna and Rukmini and there were so many ladies around, when they saw this beautiful form and they thought he was Krsna and they were embarrassed, “Ah!! Krsna, all of a sudden, why Krsna has come, he never comes this time of the day and this place” but then they saw certain features he did not have so he was not Krsna. And Rukmini happened to be there and as soon as she saw this child, her breast began to fill with milk due to maternal affection and she was thinking, “who is this child and why he has come and why do I love this child like my own son? He must be my son, he has come back” and then Mayavati explained everything to everyone and Krsna, Balaram, Devaki and Vasudev appeared and there was wonderful festival of celebration for the return of Pradyumna. And in this way what appeared to be something very sad was transformed into the happiest occasion. In this way, he was given his position as the son of Krsna and all the inhabitants of Dwaraka, the whole of Dwaraka had a beautiful festival to welcome Pradyumna back home. So through this wonderful story we understand that Lord Shiva although conquering lust was still subjected to wrath but Naranarayan rishi not only did he conquer lust, but when cupid came to do the same thing to him Naranarayan rishi was completely composed and respectful and actually adored and gave gifts to cupid, this is the nature of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. And we have heard of how Lord Shiva himself was very happy and proud to be bewildered by Mohini moorthi just to show how “Krsna is better than me, I am his servant”.
Wrath is one of the great enemies that must be somehow or other controlled ________0:31:20 It is explained in Gita, that “Lust is the great sinful enemy and when it is unfulfilled it creates wrath and when there is a wrath there is offence and when there is offence we fall down into material existence, lower and lower and lower.” To control anger it is very difficult and we are all interconnected ____________0:31:55 sloka. Gita says, there are three gates that lead to hell – lust, anger and greed. And any sane man must give them up because they live to the degradation of the soul. And Krsna explains: 0:32:24_________ sloka. The whole cycle of how one falls into the material life, first is attraction between the objects of the senses and senses and from that attraction comes attachment and lust – Kama, the longing and craving to enjoy something, then we become attached to it, whatever we enjoy we naturally become attached to it. It is the nature of soul to become attached to what it enjoys, because nature of the soul is to find unlimited enjoyment in being enjoyed by Krsna and therefore one becomes unlimitedly attached to Krsna and that is the perfection of life. Lord Kapila Dev has said the path of perfection is to transfer your attachments to material enjoyment to becoming attached to Sadhus, to advanced devotees of the Lord, because they will always bring your consciousness to the Lotus feet of Krsna, they will not take your consciousness for their own exploitative purposes that is the real Sadhu. In this world anyone will become attached to they will try to enjoy your attachment for their own purpose, but the Sadhus whatever attachment you offer to them, they immediately offer at the Lotus feet of Krsna. So Kapila Dev says this is the path of perfection – become attached to saintly person and through that process you become attached to Krsna and as you become attached to Krsna, you become detatched from everything of this world and then there is no more birth, oldage, disease or death, there is simply a blissful life in loving service. But in materialistic existence we become attached and then that attachment is frustrated, we become angry. And everyone knows what anger is like, when we become angry we become overwhelmed by that sensation. Srila Prabhupad explains – when there is anger the chest becomes hot and breathing becomes deeper and quicker and the eyes become red and your intelligence, your memory is bewildered. Krsna explains, when there is anger, your memory is bewildered, you could no longer think like a same person, you are not thinking systematically – “if I do this, then this will happen, if I do that, then that will happen. So I should say this, because I have to see in the terms of the future”, when you are in normal consciousness, you should be thinking like this Preyas and Shreyas - Preyas means like the animal, it is do the needful now to enjoy or to survive and Shreyas means human existence, that means whatever you do, you think, what will be the result, If I say something now what will that bring in my future and we should always be calculating like that. But when there is anger you become like an animal – Preyas, you become like insane, your whole memory, everything you are trying to accomplish in life, of everything that is at risk, it is all just forgotten and become ceased by the moment and you just react like fire. And after you react and speak harshly or perform some terrible act, if you go to the criminal courts, in any land in the world, practically everybody who is being penalized for whatever they were being penaltized for criminal activities is usually due to anger. When people become intoxicated, they become very easily angered. We read about Ravana, the Jagai and Madai, they were always intoxicated therefore they did not have control over of the mind and senses, they were always angry, they were lusty, frustration and anger. When your memory is bewildered, your intelligence is lost, and when your intelligence is lost, you speak and you act in the ways that degrade your soul. Anger is great enemy, lust and anger they are like consorts of one another and they are our worst enemies, you must always be careful. Therefore Krsna explains in Bhagavadgita, that from the very beginning curb the simple symbol of sin called lust. Because if you do not curb that attraction when it first starts coming then it will inevitably combinate in anger and then you will fall down, you cannot help it, you become attached, you will be frustrated, it is the laws of the world that your enjoyments are always in a very, very impermanent situation.
You find in the story of Vishwamitra muni, what kind of tapasya did he perform, who could do what he has done? Going into the deserts, in the middle of the summer with 8 fires around you and sitting in tapasya without eating, sleeping or drinking. For years at a time, going to the peaks of Himalayas upto his neck in the waters of Gangothri with ice all around him for years at a time. We have hard enough if a time of mosquito lands on us, our mind becomes disturbed may be I will get malaria or something like that. Vishwamitra muni, what kind of tapasya? Undisturbed, he did not even move a limb of his body, but Indra was also afraid of that he must be wanting my abode. So through, Kamadev he sent Menaka. And Menaka just when her bangles collide with one other and made such a sweet sound what craziness, after giving up all the pleasures, he was king, Vishwamitra was a great powerful king, and he gave up everything and some little pieces of metal clinging together, Ah!!!! Maya how ridiculously puts us to shame, what a really she offers at. What is sex? Prabhupad said: You cut open the container what is inside? Mucous, blood, stool, urine and pus, that is how it is the body, you go to the polyclinic in Euro road and you see what is inside the people’s body, it is disgusting. Since the body opens, all there is terrible substances, smell horrible, feel horrible, look horrible. Little thin tiny layer of coating and we are mad for it, infatuated by it and it is in the process of being wrinkled and crinkled by time. Who knows whatever looks pretty now, it is just going to be baggy in few years and we know it. But yet Maya, such an embarrassing situation, for the pure eternal soul, which is part of God, which is full of bliss, become infatuated and attached to the lump of flesh, ridiculous. But some spell, and some metal clinging each other, bangles, what so great about that. Vishwamitra Muni, went Ah!!!!! He could not meditate anymore, because of those metal pieces of her bangles bumping against each other was terrible, he could not tolerate. It is all such mental game that Maya plays on everyone. Maya means that which is not. It is not enjoyable but it appears it is enjoyable, it is not beautiful but it appears beautiful. So he ended up getting married to Menaka and after living with her for sometime, he realized that “I have fallen down, I made a big mistake” and he regretted everything, so he went back and began to perform more tapasya, greater than ever before. So Indra sent another heavenly dancer, Ramba and she was also very beautiful and she also had nice bangles that any way, when she was also singing beautiful songs and everything and when Vishwamitra saw her, he understood that “she has come to induce my lust but I will not allow it to happen” and he remembered what happened last time and he become intolerantly angry and by his glance he cursed her to become a block of Salter stone. And again he lost his the merits of tapasya, because he fell down to anger. So in this world there are two principles- that are always bewildering our mind that is attraction and aversion. ________0:44:00 there is hankering and lamenting, attraction and aversion. And attraction and aversion are the two side of same coin; the coin of material bondage and illusion, and either one will cripple your spiritual progress. If you are attracted to this material energy, you cannot properly fix your mind in Krsna. And if there is too much aversion to this material energy you cannot fix your mind on Krsna. Sometimes we have seen devotees become fanatics, they become averse. I remember, when I was new to this movement, Brahmacharis would sometimes say: “Women are Maya, do not look at them and they were just we hate women, we spit on the thought of women” and every one of those people all have wives and children now. Every one of them. Person who is averse it just means they are attached, they are attracted and they sound somehow trying to counteract that in immature way by being averse. But actual elevation is to become indifferent, not attracted not averse. An advanced personality is indifferent, a certain type of respectful aversion for Maya must be there, but it should be done with respect. But too much aversion is simply the other side of attachment.
Therefore in Krsna Consciousness we want to fix our consciousness on Krsna, we want to become free from either averseness or attraction to material energy. Rupa Goswami explains in Krsna Consciousness this type of detachment we can use everything in Krsna’s service that is the highest platform of self realization. In India, it is tradition Sanyasis cannot leave India, if a Sanyasi leaves India he is doomed to be drowned to the ocean of Western material enjoyment and all the propaganda around it. Experiencing the higher taste of Krsna Consciousness, he was truly detached and on the order of his Gurumaharaj, he left alone with no company, he had no servants, he had no Brahmacharis, he had no God brothers, New York City, the very heart of Maya’s porters of illusion, he was self driven, alone. He was not attracted, he was not aversed. He was aversed to the principle of sense gratification and he was attracted to the principle of surrender and devotion. That we must have. By his compassion and mercy – those people that were considered most untouchable became transformed into great Vaishnava, by the power of Krsna coming through his devotional service.
We read in Chaitanya Charitamrita about Ramananda Rai, he was not attracted, he was not averse. Pradyumna mishra, came to Lord Chaitanya and said: “Please tell me Krsna Katha”. And Lord Chaitanya said: “I do not know Krsna Katha but I know someone who knows Ramananda Rai, he is the best, whatever I know, I learnt from him, you go to him”. Pradyumna went and when he went to Ramananda Rai, the servant said: “Please wait, he is busy now, he will come” and Pradyumna mishra looked into what he was doing and he was bathing and massaging young girls and teaching them how to play a beautiful drama that he had composed for the pleasure of Lord Jagannath. And Ramananda Rai was so much immersed in that activity, he came quite late and very humbly he apologized to Pradyumna Mishra: “I am sorry, my servant did not tell me you are here, I kept you waiting now it is very late, but if you like please come back tomorrow”. So Pradyumna Mishra was very bewildered, very confused “what kind of person is this that Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, the greatest of all renunciates and Sanyasis have sent me to him, so he went back to Lord Gauranga and Lord Chaitanya Mahaprabhu said: “Oh! Did you hear Krsna Katha from him?” Then Pradyumna Mishra said, everything he saw and everything he heard. Then Lord Chaitanya said: “Ah! Just see how wonderful this Ramananda Rai is”, he said: “he is so, his heart is so much immersed in the spiritual world” and that was revealed, he was actually Visaka Devi, one of the principle associates, _____0:50:09 of Srimati Radharani and Visaka’s position in the spiritual world is to decorate other Gopis so they look nice for Krsna, so he was actually in that spiritual ras as he was decorating and Lord Chaitanya said: “He touches but it is for him it is no different in touching wood or stone, he completely above the bodily concept of life of attraction and aversion”. He said: “any the rest of us” Lord Chaitanya said: “If we see even a wooden form, of the opposite sex”, he said: “the mind becomes disturbed”. But Ramananda Rai, no one can imitate him he is on a transcendental position. So then Pradyuman Mishra went back with this understanding and heard the wonderful Harikatha from Ramananda Rai and it was confirmed what kind of transcendental personality he was. We cannot imitate, but we must guard ourselves by following strictly the regulative principles, very strictly following the regulative principles. Not to associate with anyone or anything for our sense gratification but with great respect we should honor all and remain very pure this is what vedic culture about. Restrictions - which maintain the stability of one’s mind from being subject to the influence of lust and wrath. And this is only possible if we keep our mind always fixed to Krsna. _____________0:52:00. Krsna says the path of Krsna Consciousness as two parts – to restrain one’s senses and fix one’s consciousness on Krsna, that is the path of perfection. We must restrain our senses from material enjoyment or from subjecting them to be induced by the influences of material enjoyments and we must fix our mind on Krsna through the chanting of his Holy name:
Hare Krsna, Hare Krsna, Krsna Krsna, Hare Hare, Hare Rama, Hare Rama, Rama Rama, Hare Hare.
We have read in this beautiful verses, how Naranarayan Rishi who is the expansion of Lord Sri Krsna has such power over the illusory energy of lust and anger, how free from any pride completely satisfied in himself and he conquered influences that no one else could conquer and it is that Krsna with all of his power and glories who has appeared within his name and promises us all protection. 0:53:33___________sloka. “Abandon all varieties of religion and just surrender to me, I shall protect you, there is nothing to fear”. Maya cannot touch a devotee who surrenders to Krsna. And how to surrender to Krsna 0:54:01______sloka “Always think of Me, worship Me, offer your homage Unto Me, in this way you will come to me without fail, no impediment, no obstacle can come in your way rather the obstacles and impediments that come Maya, by Cupid, by all the Devathas they only serve to increase our devotion and bring us fast back to our destination back to Godhead, if we remain sincerely fixed in Krsna’s service, in the association of his devotees. Srila Prabhupad warned us: “Maya is very strong”, he warned us again and again and again. Maya is very strong. Always remain in the association of devotees and always remain very strict in following these principles and chanting sixteen rounds and reading his books and hearing Srimad Bhagavatam, always remain in the mood of humble service. If you do that Maya cannot touch you, but if you are not all these things very sincerely, associating with devotees, humbly serving in that association, hearing Srimad Bhagavatam, following the directions of the spiritual master and regularly chanting sixteen rounds of the Hare Krsna maha mantra:
Hare Krsna, Hare Krsna, Krsna Krsna, Hare Hare, Hare Rama, Hare Rama, Rama Rama, Hare Hare.
We follow these simple instructions we are always protected from falling down to attraction and aversion and if somehow or other even in this situation, we may slip because we are in the atmosphere and Krsna sees we are sincerely trying, he will pick us right back after. And we must beg, home back to godhead.
Thank you very much, Hare Krsna.
So any questions, yes
Devotee: Here it seems like what she was being criticized but actually seems to me that from the story you told that quality of a pure devotee is that he is more merciful than his -------- himself, it seems to me like he conquered Naranarayan rishi and that regard because he gave him the blessing to become Lord Krsna’s son.
Maharaj: There are many lessons to be learnt at many levels. From the point view of demi god, Sukhadev Goswami is explaining that Shiva is fallible, but Krsna is infallible. From the point view of demigod understanding Shiva is a demigod, we can understand very clearly here that Krsna is the Supreme and only protector. That is a fact, and that is what is being spoken here. From another level of seeing Lord Shiva as Vaishnava_______0:58:29 we can understand that he is not under Mahamaya, whatever he does is being directed by Krsna. So Krsna is actually utilizing Lord Shiva, in such a way to give Kamadev the benediction of being his own son – Pradyumna, he was actually a agent of Krsna, surrendered agent of Krsna. So there are many stories, in which from a point of view of what to learn, the lesson is given by the frailties or mistakes of these great souls but in higher level we should understand that as pure devotees they are surrendering to Krsna’s will to perform these mistakes only for his pleasure. Hare Krsna.
Devotee: Maharaj, there is sometimes situation where you get angry and in that particular situation you try to control it, but you are not able to control, let us take a situation where you scream out loud and then you get over that particular phase of being angry, then is such a situation also improper, letting out anger like this is it also improper or should we control such type of anger also?
Maharaj: It depends what you yell? Scream out curse words then you will be implicated by sinful reactions, better to scream out the Mahamantra.
Hare Krsna, Hare Krsna, Krsna Krsna, Hare Hare, Hare Rama, Hare Rama, Rama Rama, Hare Hare. Then you can beg forgiveness from whoever is there and hence you screamed too loud.
Devotees: Maharaj, it is said in Bhagavadgita, as you said: __________sloka, that it is lust only which is born out of contacting ------ and later transformed into wrath and Lord Shiva has no lust, how could he be angry?
Maharaj: That is a great mystery, because what is being said here, is the source of lust and anger is pride. And in a subtle form, if there is a wrath that means, there must also be pride and lust. Externally, he may have controlled his lust to such an extent but ultimately it came out in the form of wrath on an other level, it cannot be wrath without lust on material platform, he controlled it to such a point but at a certain point it had to come out in the form of wrath. There are different expressions of the same attachment within our hearts. But of course, we should understand that Lord Shiva was acting like an ordinary living being for our sake, but Lord Shiva is Lord Shiva, his wrath is something very different, he is because although he is actually Vishnu himself, he takes the form of Shiva like milk being transformed into yogurt because he takes the position of being in charge of the Tamo guna and where is Tamo guna there is lust and wrath, especially wrath. Lust – Kama is Rajo guna and anger is Tamo guna, being Lord of Tamo Guna, it is his post, his position, his service, he sometimes manifests the lord in the service of the Lord, that as Prabhuji said: when Lord Shiva becomes angry, because it is transcendental, it is not like when we become angry, we just cause a mess of everything and reaction is terrible on everyone, when Shiva becomes angry, Kamadev gets the post of Krsna’s son, I think we would all be very happy to be angry with everyone if they would all become Krsna’s sons, we do not have that powers then we should not become angry. But we can use anger in Krsna’s service. Hanumanji was angry, Lord Chaitanya was angry when we see the dignity of our Gurumaharaj’s Mission, when we see Krsna being blasphemed, devotee is being misused then it is our duty to become angry to protect them. That anger is actually a sign of Bhakti, it is not a sign of Tamoguna. Srila Prabhupad we have heard so many stories of how he would become very angry with his disciples, but that anger was not due to unfulfilled frustrated lust that anger was simply used a instrument which was very effective to show compassion and teach important lessons to his devotees. So anger is very important and wonderful tool for the Vaishnavas, it is used free from pride and free from lust.
One time when a devotee was preaching a disciple was preaching to Prabhupad that actually, I am god, we are all god, every thing is god. Prabhupad was listening and as he was listening, his eyes were becoming redder. And he explained his devotee that what Krsna really means in Bhagavadgita that ultimately his form, his body is an illusion and we all merge into the oneness of formless existence at the time of liberation, that is the purpose of Bhakti, preaching to Prabhupad and Prabhupad was listening and his eyes were getting redder and his hands were trembling and he was starting to raise little by little from his seat and he asked his devotee, the devotee stopped. “Have you completed what you want to say or do you have more to say? Then he started speaking more, the same Mayawad philosophy and everyone in the room who saw this, they could not even look at Srila Prabhupad, they could not look at him, everyone were looking at the floor, at the ceiling, at their hands, at their feet, they were closing their eyes and when he stopped and Srila Prabhupad said: “Are you finished?” Then the devotee said: ‘Yes’. Then Prabhupad roared like Lord Narasinga Dev, he pounded his head against his table and he jumped up and he started roaring: “Why are you killing Krsna, you cannot become Krsna”, he was screaming and the devotees understand that Narasinga Bhagavan has come again. And he went on and on and one and that was the first time in the history of ISKCON that any of the devotees actually understood what is the difference between impersonalism and personalism after that display of Prabhupad’s anger. Prabhupad would speak it that the Mayawadis say this but it is not like this, but the Vaishnavas say like this, that material energy is not an illusion, it is not illusory. That you cannot become god, god is always god, God’s form is transcendental, he was speaking, he always speaks the pure doctrine of Vaishnavism. And the devotees would listen, some understanding but they never really grasped the difference, they still had their own impersonalistic attachments and conceptions and they were just decorating their own impersonalistic conceptions with Prabhupad’s words. But that day they understood the difference, there was no question, where who remained impersonalists, Prabhupad’s anger will destroy it, he destroyed. Prabhupad’s anger was like the Narasinga Dev just tearing to pieces the Hiranyakashipu’s concepts in the devotees’ hearts and that was the end of all impersonal Mayawad misconceptions in our movement. So in this sense, we see wrath, without pride, without lust, but being utilized in the mood of compassion to defend Krsna to defend his devotees and to teach his devotees the truth, so that anger is very good. But we cannot think that we are so advanced that we can just out burst our lusty propensities and become angry at people and think: “I am purifying you”. Prabhupad said: “Do as I am doing, so I am doing”. We should not be so foolish. Yes, when Krsna, his devotees are being misused naturally a devotee feels angry and that is the sign of devotion, he want to defend.
Srila Prabhupad ki Jai!!!!!!!
Thank you, Very much.
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Tags: Unedited lectures
Tags: Unedited lectures