God is the Most Magnanimous

"O Lakshmana, do you together with me rule this earth. You are my second self; and this good fortune has taken possession of you as well. Do you, O Sumitra’s son, enjoy every desirable thing and the privileges pertaining to royalty. My life and this kingdom I covet for your sake alone." (Lord Rama, Valmiki Ramayana, Ayodhya Kanda, Sec 4)

Every now and then God personally comes to earth to deliver His devotees, giving them protection from the asuras. According to Vedic teachings, since the beginning of creation, there has been an ongoing war between the daivas and asuras. The daivas are those who believe in God and the asuras are God’s enemies, the atheists. The atheists are very attached to sense gratification, taking this gross material body to be the be-all end-all. They view the daivas as a threat to their sinful way of life, thus they are always harassing them. The attacks of the asuras take various forms, sometimes they declare that God is dead, other times they say that He is impersonal and that we are all God, so we have no need to worship a Supreme Being. When they really feel threatened, the asuras revert to using force against the devotees.

This was the case many thousands of years ago, when a demon named Ravana had risen to power. A Rakshasa by birth, Ravana performed the severest of penances to gain the favor of the demigods. The devatas, or demigods, are God’s deputies in charge of running the material world. One of their prime duties is to grant material benedictions to those who please them. These boons are granted to anyone who properly worships them. Lord Shiva known as Mahadeva, or the great demigod, has a reputation for being easily pleased. Regardless of the person’s character, Lord Shiva will grant boons to those who pray to him and perform austerities. Ravana pleased not only Lord Shiva, but many other demigods. He received various boons, such as having ten heads, and being invincible in battle against any demigod. In his haste for acquisition of power, Ravana neglected to ask for immunity from human beings, thinking there was none who existed that could defeat him. Taking advantage of this oversight, the demigods went to Lord Vishnu, the Supreme Lord Himself, and asked Him to relieve their distress by ridding the world of Ravana.

The Lord kindly obliged and took birth as a human being by the name of Rama, the eldest son of the king of Ayodhya, Maharaja Dashratha. Ravana was not only very powerful, but he used his strength to harass the great sages living in the forests. During that time, the saintly people, the rishis, mostly lived in the forest, for that environment was better suited for their spiritual activities. Ravana and his band of Rakshasa demons went after these saints, killing them and then feasting upon their flesh. The atheists are always merciless, having no compassion even on the kindest of people. Lord Rama was born in a very famous family, known as the Ikshvakus. Not only were they all great kings, but they were terrific fighters, the highest of the kshatriya race. God specifically chose to take birth in this dynasty due its reputation and high standing.

When He reached an appropriate age, Lord Rama was set to be installed on the throne as the new king of Ayodhya by His father. Rama was eldest son and the most beloved of all the people, so the king desired very much to pass down the kingdom to Him. The news was spread throughout the city and everyone become very excited. When Rama was told of the news, He went to His younger brother Lakshmana and spoke the above mentioned verse. When God comes to earth, His closest associates come with Him. In Shvetadvipa, a planet in the spiritual world, Lord Narayana takes rest on Ananta Shesha, the serpent who holds all the planets of the universe on his unlimited hoods. Narayana is served by Goddess Lakshmi, His eternal consort. When the Lord took birth as Rama, Shesha and Lakshmi also took birth in the forms of Lakshmana and Sita respectively. From their childhood, Lakshmana was inseparable from Rama, for he would always follow his elder brother like a shadow.

When we devote ourselves completely to God, He recognizes our love and reciprocates. Being installed as the new king was the highest of honors bestowed on Lord Rama, but He made sure to include His younger brother. He never wanted Lakshamana to feel slighted in any way. Obviously Lakshmana was also very happy on this occasion and needed no consolation, but the Lord, out of His generous nature, told Lakshmana that the two would rule the earth together. Sometimes when one ascends the ladder of fame and fortune, the “little” people are sometimes forgotten. The new fame and celebrity can cause relationships with friends and family to change. But God always loves His devotees, no matter what. Lord Rama wanted to assure His younger brother that he would also enjoy all the luxuries associated with being king.

Even though God separates Himself from His devotees from time to time, they are never without Him. Lord Krishna had to leave the gopis of Vrindavana and later on He had to leave His friends Arjuna and Uddhava. Lord Rama was forced to abandon His wife Sita, who had done no wrong. Sometimes His duties require Him to follow a certain path, but He never forgets His devotees. They are always thinking of Him and He is always with them in spirit.

“The yogi who knows that I and the Supersoul within all creatures are one, worships Me and remains always in Me in all circumstances.” (Lord Krishna, Bhagavad-gita, 6.31)

God is always looking to glorify His devotees first, thus this behavior on the part of Rama towards Lakshmana wasn’t very surprising. Lord Krishna delivered the message of the Bhagavad-gita to Arjuna, so as to give him everlasting fame as a great devotee. Hanuman was deputed to find the whereabouts of Sita and to destroy Lanka at the behest of Lord Rama. For this reason, he is loved and adored to this very day. Bhishmadeva’s devotion to Krishna was rewarded at the time of his death, when Krishna granted him the opportunity to give spiritual instruction to Yudhishthira, the eldest of the Pandava brothers.

“Krishna wanted the Pandavas to hear from Bhishma, who alone was able to give such great instructions even at the time of his death. So, Krishna likes to glorify His devotee.” (Shrila Prabhupada)

Though we may suffer through hard times or witness the calamities of others, we should never forget that God is nice. Any service rendered to Him never goes to waste.

Everlasting Fame

“Oh Hanuman! Your magnificent glory is acclaimed far and wide all through the four ages and your fame is radiantly noted all over the cosmos.” (Hanuman Chalisa of Tulsidas)

Social networking websites have greatly increased in popularity. It seems that everyone has a MySpace, Twitter, or Facebook page. These sites make it very easy to connect with other people quickly and to share information and thoughts.

Of all these sites, Facebook has stood out as the premier social networking engine. Facebook allows you to upload pictures of yourself, describe your hobbies and interests, and make friends with a large network of people. Instead of having to contact all of your friends individually, you can just update your Facebook profile and broadcast updates about yourself to all of your friends. Your friends in turn can post responses to you or to your “wall”, creating a message board like atmosphere.

The popularity of Facebook lies in its ability to make anyone famous. We all want to be noticed and to matter. When something good happens to us, we immediately can’t wait to tell our friends. When we are sad, we take comfort in the soothing words and advice from our well-wishers. Similar to how the news media follows every move of celebrities, Facebook allows others to follow our every move. In this way, we can achieve fame and notoriety without ever having to leave our homes.

This fame and notoriety is no doubt very pleasing to us, but it has a very short duration. We are all destined to give up our current bodies at the time of death, and when we do, we give up our fame as well. From studying Vedic literature, we can see that the best way to have everlasting fame is to become a devotee of Krishna, or God. When we sincerely love God and devote ourselves to Him only, then He will automatically give us all the fame that we crave. There are many examples of this principle holding true, with four in particular that stand out.

When God advented as Lord Rama many thousands of years ago in Ayodhya, as part of His pastimes, He suffered through many trials and tribulations. One ordeal He endured was the kidnapping of His wife Sita by the demon Ravana. Though a prince and son of a great king, Lord Rama was serving His exile period in the forest at the time, so He had no army with which to attack Ravana and reclaim Sita. Instead, He enlisted the help of Vanaras, or human-like monkeys, which were dwelling in the forest. The foremost of the Vanaras was Lord Hanuman. Hanuman was a great devotee of Lord Rama and he played an integral part in helping the Lord defeat Ravana and rescue Sita. In reward for his devotion, Lord Rama blessed Hanuman and granted him the boon of remaining on earth for as long as the Lord’s story was still told and His glories still chanted. Hanuman had no desire for this fame, but the Lord granted it to him anyway. Hanuman is still worshiped to this day and his name is synonymous with love and devotion for Lord Rama.

When Lord Krishna personally came to earth some five thousand years ago, there was a great war that took place on the battlefield of Kurukshetra between the Pandava and Kaurava families. Lord Krishna was very fond of His cousin Arjuna, the leading warrior for the Pandavas, so He acted as Arjuna’s charioteer and guide. The great grandfather of both families,  Bhishma, was one of the leading fighters on the Kaurava side. Bhishma was eventually defeated by Arjuna in battle. While he was lying on the ground, his body pierced throughout with arrows, Lord Krishna instructed Yudhishthira, the eldest of the five Pandava brothers, to go to Bhishma and receive spiritual instruction from him. Bhishma was a great devotee of the Lord, and had his mind concentrated on Krishna while he was lying on the battlefield about to die. The Lord knew this and thus wanted Yudhishthira to question such a great devotee. The Lord could have taught Yudhishthira Himself, but He preferred to have Bhishma do it. God is always glad to give fame to His devotees. As much as His devotees like to please Him, the Lord prefers to give His devotees all the fame and glory.

Maharishi Valmiki, the great sage and author of the Ramayana, incarnated some four hundred years ago in India as Goswami Tulsidas. Tulsidas was a great devotee of Lord Rama from birth, and he dedicated his whole life to worshiping and writing about the Lord. His book, the Ramacharitamanasa, is revered to this very day. Tulsidas had no desire for fame or fortune. He wrote only for himself so that he could put his love for Lord Rama into words. The Ramacharitamanasa is the story of Lord Rama written as beautiful poetry in the mood of pure devotion. From reading his books, one will find that Tulsidas was one of the most humble and kind people to ever have lived. Because of his pure devotion, the Lord guaranteed him everlasting fame. His Ramacharitamanasa is today a staple in the homes of all Hindus in India. It is publicly recited during the auspicious times of the year relating to Lord Rama. Tulsidas’s poem praising Lord Hanuman, known as the Hanuman Chalisa, is equally as popular and is memorized and recited daily by millions of Hindus as well. All glories to Tulsidas.

His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, the founder of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness, made the name Krishna known throughout the world. Instructed by his spiritual master to preach the teachings of the Vedas in English to the western world, Shrila Prabhupada came to America on a steamship from India in 1965. In the twelve years that followed, he authored almost one hundred books and started a worldwide movement dedicated to serving Lord Krishna that continues to this very day. Though the swami left this material world more than thirty years ago, he continues to teach through his books and recorded lectures. He is worshiped as the spiritual master in hundreds of temples throughout the world and in the homes of devotees. He also had no desire for fame and fortune. His only desire was to make the world love Krishna even more than he himself did. Krishna recognized this devotion and thus made him one of the most famous saints to ever have lived.

These are just some of the examples of famous devotees. In the Bhagavad-gita, Lord Krishna tells Arjuna to “declare it to the world that My devotee shall never perish.” So let all devotees of the world unite and spread the glories of Lord Krishna on Facebook and every other social networking site. This will be most beneficial to us, for it will give us everlasting fame. If we love Krishna and are truly devoted to Him, then He will surely make all our wishes come true.