Narasimha Chaturdashi 2012

“Thereafter Lord Brahma requested Prahlada Maharaja, who was standing very near him: My dear son, Lord Narasimhadeva is extremely angry at your demoniac father. Please go forward and appease the Lord.” (Shrimad Bhagavatam, 7.9.3)

As peacefulness and anger are concepts only borne of duality, they are at an equivalent level when associated with true transcendence. The living being is at peace when they think they are in a comfortable situation of life and they are in anger when their pride is hurt or when there is frustration in meeting a desired end. As these are only temporary conditions, to be washed away as quickly as the sand by the next oncoming wave from the ocean, they are not to be overly emphasized within the grander scheme. With the Supreme Lord, whether He is in wonderful peace or extreme anger, the benefit to the affected parties is there all the same. A long time back He was seen by many exalted persons in a terrifying form which had an accompanying angry mood. He looked so fierce that so many powerful personalities, innocent in their own right, dared not approach Him. Yet a young child, who was directly responsible for that form appearing, was brave enough to come forward, not fearing who He knew to be the Supreme Personality of Godhead. That incident which took place eons ago is still celebrated to this day on the occasion of Narasimha Chaturdashi.

Why would God ever get angry? Doesn’t that represent a defect to His nature? Anger is not something we strive after. It arises when we lose control of our emotions, so it’s usually not a welcomed feeling. Anger is due to frustration, so if the Supreme Lord exhibits this trait does this mean that He is somehow not able to get His way? Actually, the intense emotions shown by the lord of all creatures is for His own pleasure, and once He is pleased naturally those connected to Him in a bond of affection feel supreme delight as well. This fact reinforces the ultimate truth of achintya-bhedabheda-tattva, which says that the living entities are simultaneously one with and different from God.

God is spirit and so are the living entities. The quality of that spirit is the same, as the subordinate group is an expansion of the superior entity. At the same time, the quantitative aspects are vastly different; hence the distinction between the dominant and the dominated. Since the qualitative aspects are equivalent, there is an inherent link between the two groups. Lord Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, who kindly revealed achintya-bhedabheda-tattva, says that the link can be revived through loving devotion, which is best awakened and maintained through the regular chanting of the holy names, “Hare Krishna Hare Krishna, Krishna Krishna, Hare Hare, Hare Rama Hare Rama, Rama Rama, Hare Hare”.

When that link is reestablished, every notable action of the Supreme Lord, whether it is occurring in the present or took place many thousands of years ago, gives so much pleasure to the devotee that they feel like they can’t get enough. Think of a reservoir of water that constantly gets filled with incoming tributaries but at the same time never overflows. This is how Maharishi Valmiki describes the mood of the devotee with respect to hearing of the qualities and pastimes of their beloved Supreme Lord.

The mood of anger shown a long time ago related to the actions of a demoniac king. Named Hiranyakashipu, the ruler actually appeared in a family of demons, thereby following in the ancestral line with his behavior. Birth in a Daitya family was not considered auspicious because of the lack of potential for developing the devotional consciousness within that race. In the Vedic philosophy there are gradations assigned to birth. These are only from the perspective of potential for achieving the ultimate aim of devotion to the lotus feet of Shri Hari, for the living sparks are the same in quality regardless of the form they adopt. The trees that produce no fruits are considered sinful, while those that do are considered pious. Similarly, within the human species if you take birth in a family of transcendentalists, it is considered a boon because of the spiritual environment that you can grow up in, which in turn increases the chances of a fruitful life.

Birth in a family of demons is very unfortunate because not only is spiritual culture lacking, but the tendency is to take to sinful life – stealing, cheating, killing and the like. By following these behaviors the spirit soul actually goes backward in the chain of reincarnation, sort of like travelling in the wrong direction in a race. Hiranyakashipu lived up to his family’s reputation and then some. He developed tremendous powers as a result of asking for boons from those who can grant them. Any ability can be exercised in one of two ways: correctly or incorrectly. The ability itself is not to blame, but rather the person who invokes it incorrectly.

Hiranyakashipu took his boons received from Lord Brahma as an opportunity to take over the world. He defeated so many powerful rulers that no one dared fight him in battle. The world lived in fear of him, and he thought that he was the supreme being. In his mind, there was no God, and if the person who everyone thought was God really were, He would descend to earth and put up a challenge to the king’s authority. The king’s eventual demise was set in motion with the birth of his son Prahlada. Though born in a Daitya family, the young child heard about devotional service while within the womb of his mother. The great servant of Narayana, Narada Muni, instructed the pregnant woman on devotion, and the unborn Prahlada heard and remembered those instructions. Thus he was born a devotee.

Hiranyakashipu hated this trait in his son so much that after a while the boy’s stubbornness became too much to bear. Despite his best efforts, Hiranyakashipu couldn’t convince Prahlada to give up his devotion to Vishnu, which is the name for God that addresses His all-pervasiveness. Vishnu was the king’s enemy, so seeing this devotion in his son was like getting a dagger through the heart. Unable to accept it any longer, Hiranyakashipu ordered his assistants to kill the five-year old boy.

One slight problem though. Prahlada was unbreakable. He was thrown off a cliff, put into a pit of snakes, taken into a raging fire, and dropped to the bottom of an ocean. The successive attempts were only necessary because the previous ones didn’t work. Prahlada couldn’t be harmed because during every attack he thought of his Vishnu in a mood of love. The child had no other protection. He didn’t have fighting ability or strength. No one intervened from the outside due to fear of Hiranyakashipu. Thus it was only Vishnu who saved the boy each time.

The anger from the Supreme Lord came when He had enough of Hiranyakashipu’s attempts. Vishnu took on the form of a half-man/half-lion to respect the boons of safety previously offered to Hiranyakashipu by Lord Brahma. This ferocious and unique form appeared on the scene and quickly killed all of Hiranyakashipu’s guards. Then the demon-king himself would be snatched by Narasimhadeva and placed on His lap, just as Garuda, the king of birds, grabs a snake to eat. Hiranyakashipu would be bifurcated by Narasimhadeva’s nails, thus dying in a most gruesome way.

After the demon king was killed, Narasimhadeva was still seething with rage. Many demigods tried to pacify Him with prayers, but nothing seemed to work. Finally, Lord Brahma asked Prahlada to approach Narasimhadeva. Prahlada was a young boy after all, and Vishnu was there specifically to save him. Thus He couldn’t keep that angry mood when talking to the young, innocent child.

Prahlada did as he was asked, and he wasn’t afraid at all. Rather, he was so delighted to see the Supreme Lord come to his rescue. He knew that the angry mood was for Vishnu’s own pleasure, which in turn pleased those who are devoted to Him. Prahlada then offered a wonderful set of prayers, which pleased Narasimhadeva so much that He offered Prahlada many material benedictions in return. Prahlada only wanted devotion, being afraid of material entanglement. Hearing this pleased Narasimhadeva even more, so He guaranteed Prahlada that he would get conditions auspicious for devotional service despite remaining in material association.

That wonderful event from ancient times is celebrated annually on the occasion of Narasimha Chaturdashi. Though there was tremendous violence involved, since it related to Bhagavan and His protection of the saintly Prahlada, it is as pleasurable to hear about as a more peaceful event. Prahlada knew there was nothing to fear with that ferocious form, as its anger was directed only at the miscreant Hiranyakashipu and his supporters. In this life the real cause of fear is the continuation of a life not devoted to God, one where temporary pleasures are mistakenly taken to be permanent. Know from Prahlada that devotional service is the life’s mission and that it can be adopted by any person, from any place. Whether in an outwardly angry or peaceful mood, the Supreme Lord will accept sincere devotional offerings and be pleased to the heart by them.

In Closing:

In a rage after killing Prahlada’s father,

Thus no one dared Narasimhadeva to bother.

 

“Dear Prahlada, so that the Lord’s anger can be eased,

Please approach Him, with your prayers He’ll be pleased.”

 

Brahma these instructions to young boy gave,

Because knew Narasimha came for Prahlada to save.

 

From prayers supreme favor of God did earn,

Received material benedictions in return.

 

But to Prahlada material life a great fear,

Away from lotus feet of God it would steer.

 

Narasimha explained and dispelled any doubts,

Prahlada, never divine love to live without.

Rama Navami 2012

“The most fortunate Kausalya looks charming as she sits on the beautiful bedstead holding the child Rama in her lap. Gazing upon His moon-like face again and again, she makes her eyes like a Chakora bird to His form.” (Gitavali, 7.1)

subhaga seja sobhita kausilyā rucira rāma-sisu goda liye |
bāra-bāra bidhubadana bilokati locana cāru cakora kiye ||

Rama Navami celebrates the appearance day of Lord Ramachandra, the delight of the Raghu dynasty, who has a moon-like countenance to please the Chakora-like devotees, who never tire of gazing upon His beautiful face, which wears an enchanting smile and gives off a soothing radiance that douses the fire of material suffering. In fact, it is the association with the divine that is the only remedy for all ills, for the root of pain and misery is forgetfulness of that supremely fortunate person, who holds every opulence at the same time and to the fullest degree; hence one of His many names is Bhagavan.

In general social etiquette, it is not polite to stare at others. The reason for this should be quite obvious. Would you like it if someone else was looking at you all the time? Perhaps you wouldn’t mind the attention if the sentiment was positive, but after a while, the instinctual reaction would be, “Hey man, quit looking at me! Can I help you with something?” Indeed, the gawking husband has been the painful burden of the devoted wife for ages, as the man can’t help but try to assess the attractiveness of another female when he first sees her. Of course this is very rude behavior towards the wife, for the desire to look at another woman indicates that the man might not be pleased with whom he has for a life partner.

One sneaky way to get around the impoliteness of staring is to find situations where the person being looked at either doesn’t know what you are doing or is powerless to stop you. Thankfully for us, the creator made one situation which is favorable for staring and which also doesn’t violate any common standards of decency. The young child, especially the dependent, can be looked at nonstop, especially if they are really new to this world. Their vision can be so enchanting, making you really believe in a higher power, for how else to explain such innocence placed into a tiny bundle of joy? For a mother a long time ago, she couldn’t help but stare at her newborn. To make the situation that much more auspicious, the delight she held in her lap was the honoree of the soon-to-be instituted tradition of Rama Navami.

During a period of time in the Treta Yuga, King Dasharatha was at the helm of Raghu’s clan, the dynasty of kings originating with King Ikshvaku and which subsequently had the good fortune of including King Raghu as one of its members. The descendants in that line were thus often referred to as Raghava. A key for rulers in this family was to keep it going. If you have a famous family that is known for its ability to protect the citizens, to give them proper guidance in all matters of life and to keep out the influence of sin and vice, including that which comes from foreign attack, it’s important to keep that line of succession going. This way the citizens won’t have to worry when the king gets old. They can rest assured knowing that he will pass on his good reputation and character to his heir.

This was the problem for Dasharatha. He had no sons to whom to pass down the kingdom. After consulting with his royal priests, it was decided that a sacrifice would be held. The queens would eat the remnants of that sacrifice, and from that sanctified food they would become pregnant with child. Sure enough, everything went according to plan, except no one could predict the beauty and grace of the four children. The four sons born to Dasharatha were expansions of Lord Vishnu, the Supreme Personality of Godhead in His opulently adorned, four-handed form.

The eldest Rama was Vishnu Himself, and the three younger brothers were partial expansions. Queen Kausalya gave birth to Rama, Kaikeyi to Bharata, and Sumitra to Lakshmana and Shatrughna. The children were a delight for their mothers, and Rama was especially enchanting to everyone, including Dasharatha. There is much attention paid when a new child is born, and since these boys were to be successors in the ancestral line, there was even more celebration when they took birth.

Brahmanas were fed, cows were milked, and gifts were distributed quite liberally by the king. The townspeople felt as if the four boys were their own children, so they showed up to the royal palace with so many gifts. They also decorated their homes very nicely, creating auspiciousness all around. Whenever the Supreme Lord personally appears, there is automatically an auspicious condition, but these residents had pure love, so they didn’t take anything for granted. They prayed for the welfare of the four sons, that they would grow up to be brave, strong, pious, and just as dedicated to the welfare of all as Dasharatha.

Queen Kausalya had a special benefit, for she got to spend time with Rama alone. In those quiet moments, she got to stare at her young child, and there was nothing He could do about it. As one gets a little older, the smothering attention from the mother can become a bother. The child doesn’t know any better, as they can’t understand at such a young age what type of attachment the mother has formed with them. In the infant years, though, the child can only pleasantly smile in return when the mother constantly stares at them.

In the above referenced verse from the Gitavali of Goswami Tulsidas, we see that Dasharatha’s chief queen looked especially charming when seated on her wonderful bedstead. She held the Supreme Lord in her lap, for she earned His company from pious acts performed in previous lives. Can we imagine the happiness she felt? The most beautiful person in the world lay in her lap in a form that required motherly affection. He was in front of her in a special form that best brought out spontaneous, parental affection, loving feelings that were not inhibited in any way.

Of course to try to understand Kausalya’s feelings at the time is a little difficult, so the kind poet gives us some help. He says that she made her eyes like those of the Chakora bird, which constantly stares at the moon. The Chakora has a pure love for the moon, for it looks constantly at the bright luminous body in the dark sky and doesn’t ask for anything in return. No other light gives it as much happiness, and when that moon is gone, there is no source of happiness that can replace it.

In a similar manner, Queen Kausalya’s only source of pleasure was Rama, and because of this she was considered most fortunate, or subhaga. How can she be described in any other way? Where we get our primary pleasure is what will determine how fortunate or unfortunate we are. The drunkard worships the bottle of whiskey and thus finds only distress amidst illusory and temporary elation. The gambler worships the game and the next roll of the dice, and the sensually stirred person hangs on the next move of their significant other, not realizing that the same type of pleasure is already available to the less intelligent animals. The voracious meat eater takes their pleasure from the flesh of animals that were needlessly killed.

Because these sources are not pure, those taking their primary pleasure from them will be in unfortunate circumstances. On the other hand, one who finds pleasure from the person who is the most fortunate, Bhagavan, can in many ways be considered more fortunate than God Himself. Lord Rama has the company of His devotees and His pleasure potency expansions like Sita Devi, but the Chakora-like devotees have the association of both Shri Rama and His associates. As they depend only upon Rama and His every move for their happiness, they are never bereft of the pleasure that is every person’s birthright.

On Rama Navami, we celebrate that very fortunate queen, who would love her son for the rest of her life. He would have to leave her company several times when He got older, but never did He leave her heart. She constantly gazed upon His moon-like face, and not at any time was the behavior impolite. On the contrary, the Chakora-like devotees know that devotion is the only auspicious path, and that through following it Rama will never abandon them, either in this life or the next.

In Closing:

In common circumstances impolite to stare,

To look at someone for too long we don’t dare.

 

In one situation that behavior is actually fine,

To stare at newborn, they are too young to mind.

 

Shri Rama created this for His loving mother,

She stared at Him in her quiet room, for God no bother.

 

So adorable was the Supreme Lord in the small size,

That mother like a Chakora bird made her eyes.

 

On Rama Navami the mother and son we celebrate,

To Lord and devotee’s pleasure this life we dedicate.

Holi 2012

“Hiranyakashipu could not kill his son by throwing him beneath the feet of big elephants, throwing him among huge, fearful snakes, employing destructive spells, hurling him from the top of a hill, conjuring up illusory tricks, administering poison, starving him, exposing him to severe cold, winds, fire and water, or throwing heavy stones to crush him. When Hiranyakashipu found that he could not in any way harm Prahlada, who was completely sinless, he was in great anxiety about what to do next.” (Shrimad Bhagavatam, 7.5.43-44)

When a person does extraordinary things, a mythology starts to build around them. The legend of so and so grows as each new person hears about their past exploits. Because of this tendency relating to the activities of ordinary human beings, the term “mythology” is sometimes invoked to downplay the behavior of past divine personalities. This is the resort of the less informed, whose judgment is clouded by the limits of personal perception. The event of Holi celebrates the ability of one particular person to defy the odds, and though what he did was extraordinary and seemingly miraculous, because of his internal qualities it was actually not surprising at all. In fact, similar feats have been repeated since time immemorial by those who are under the protection of the greatest protector.

The scene: a five year old boy awaiting a ride into a pit of fire. Think of going to an amusement park and getting strapped into a seat which is about to go places that you don’t normally think to be safe. The thrill of the ride is based on the danger, the spinning around in circles of your body at violent speeds, all the while knowing that you probably won’t get hurt. You are controlled in these situations; you are not in control. With this young child a long time ago, he was in the hands of an elder female, who was to take him into a pit of fire.

Oh, but this was no amusement park ride. As fire is not something you want to play around with, the elder woman had a trick up her sleeve. She thought she was immune to the effects of fire, and since the young boy was not, the desired result was her continuing to live and the boy dying. The order came from the boy’s father of all people. Can we imagine such a thing? What could a young child do that would cause us to even contemplate doing something so horrible to them? Where must our mind be if we’re willing to go through with such a dastardly act?

Actually, this father had previously made other vile attempts and would continue on afterwards. That’s correct; the boy would survive the attack. Unfortunately for her and her boss, the elder woman would not. The effects reversed when the young boy was in her presence. You see the child, Prahlada Maharaja, was completely sinless. This doesn’t mean that someone who is free of sin is automatically immune to the effects of fire, but in this particular circumstance the immunity relating to the fire transferred to the right person.

In the father’s eyes, the child was a vile creature for having dedicated his life to worship of Lord Vishnu at such a young age. Vishnu is the qualified form of the Supreme Lord. He is the Personality of Godhead, opulently adorned and responsible for the creation and destruction of every universe. Vishnu is God, but with the features more defined than in the abstract vision. Vishnu is but an expansion of the original personality known as Krishna, who is all-attractive. Regardless of whether these statements are accepted or not, the key point is that devotion to the Supreme Lord, however you choose to see Him, is an innocent practice when followed under authorized guidelines.

If you deny God’s existence, you will worship His external energy of material nature. There is harm with this route in the sense that matter is temporary, so whatever you choose to do will have only temporary effects. At the same time, others are performing the same worship, and since the external energy gives no protection, the competition leads to collisions and thus fosters the worst kinds of sentiments and emotions within people.

If you worship God as an impersonal energy or an abstract person from whom you ask things, your mode of worship is harmless in the sense that it’s not directly hurting anyone else. You may be more prone to surrendering to the same material energy worshiped by the atheists, but there is still nothing wrong with at least thinking about God, knowing that He exists.

In bhakti-yoga, or devotional service, dedicated worship towards the real form of the Supreme Lord takes place. This style of worship is also known as Krishna consciousness, because the aim is to change the way that you think, to alter your thoughts to the point that you’re always thinking about God. What could be the harm in this, especially if you’re a youth? Why would Prahlada’s father object so much?

The atheist takes shelter of material nature, and because of their denial of God’s existence they essentially apply the “God” status to themselves. For all you know, nature does not have any intelligence. And you know that you are intelligent, so this means that you can control nature, as opposed to nature controlling you. Never mind the fact that you can’t tell the sun when to rise and set and when the seasons to come and go, because you can get up at a certain time and speak when you want, you somehow think that you are God.

With Hiranyakashipu, the “I am God” mentality was strengthened by the fact that he had defeated all the powerful kings of the world. Even the celestials in the heavens were afraid of him. He had previously undergone great austerities to receive powers as benedictions, but once he received those strengths he forgot that he wasn’t responsible for generating them.

The father wanted the son to follow in his footsteps, to rule the world with a strong hand. “What could be gained by worshiping Vishnu?”, the father thought. To the atheist, God as a concept stands in the way of material enjoyment. He makes His worshipers suffer and needlessly renounce happiness in a temporary world. Of course, the devotee of Vishnu is knowledgeable, irrespective of the external conditions. Prahlada knew all about reincarnation, the temporary nature of material happiness, and the urgent need for following God consciousness in the precious human form of body. He was so intelligent that he kindly distributed this information to his classmates in school during recess.

Hiranyakashipu eventually became so sick of even hearing about Vishnu from Prahlada. The father decided that his son needed to die. One slight problem though. The boy was unbreakable. Nothing could kill him. The plot with Holika, Hiranyakashipu’s sister, was one of the many schemes tried by the evil king. Though Holika had the boon to remain immune to fire, Prahlada survived the trip into the fire because Vishnu protects His devotees. He makes sure to give them conditions that are conducive to their cherished worship.

In fact, Vishnu gives the same protection to the atheists through the workings of maya, or illusion. The atheist is guaranteed to stay miserable in their surroundings, to have ample opportunities for eating, sleeping, mating and defending, which alone don’t provide any satisfaction to the soul. There is no explicit protection from the Personality of Godhead in interactions with material nature, as the Lord is by default neutral, but at the same time the energy is non-different from the person who created it. Therefore the energy’s dissipation of elements to be used in material enjoyment represents a sort of favor from the master.

The sinless Prahlada survived the trip into the fire, but Holika did not. The ashes from her body were of many different colors, and since that time the tradition has been to throw different colored powders in fun to celebrate the original event. Though a seemingly ghoulish way to celebrate an occasion, the colors of Holi represent the victory of Vishnu’s devotee over the forces of evil. Prahlada thwarted all the attacks of Hiranyakashipu and did so without asking anything from the demigods. The celestials are powerful and act at the behest of Vishnu to grant benedictions, but at the same time Vishnu is the one who can give rewards to even them. This automatically makes Vishnu superior.

The devotee who loves Vishnu or one of His personal expansions like Lord Krishna or Lord Rama can receive the greatest favor. There needn’t be any other master. And the attitude of service can continue in a mood of love, where the master eventually can’t do anything to stop the devotee from offering service. Prahlada was sinless because he had no other desire than to chant the Lord’s names and think of Him. No person, even a powerful king like Hiranyakashipu, can break the devotee’s determination. Prahlada emerged victorious by remembering Vishnu’s names, and so the wise souls of the Kali Yuga can escape the perils of material existence by regularly chanting, “Hare Krishna Hare Krishna, Krishna Krishna, Hare Hare, Hare Rama Hare Rama, Rama Rama, Hare Hare”.

In Closing:

Prahlada Maharaja, devotion to Vishnu in him,

An innocent five year old, completely free of sin.

 

Boy’s insistence on bhakti path father did not like,

Eventually wanted son out of his sight.

 

King’s sister Holika immune to fire’s pit,

In it brought Prahlada with him to sit.

 

Ah, but Vishnu’s devotee from harm escaped,

To burn to ashes was instead Holika’s fate.

 

Sinless son saved by saying Vishnu’s names,

Tradition of Holi celebrates his fame.

Gaura Purnima 2012

“Shri Svarupa Damodara used to read the poems of Vidyapati and Candidasa and Jayadeva Gosvami’s Shri Gita-govinda. He used to make Shri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu very happy by singing these songs.” (Chaitanya Charitamrita, Madhya 10.115)

Lord Chaitanya is the preacher incarnation of Godhead who first made His mark on this earth some five hundred years ago in India, and His influence continues to spread across the world today. As the kindest saint, He had love and compassion for all creatures of the earth, and He sacrificed everything to spread the gospel of love and devotion to God to everyone, regardless of whether they gave a kind reception in return or not. If I know what others really need, what will bring them true happiness, wouldn’t it be selfish of me to keep that knowledge confidential? Even if others scoff at my suggestions and curse me for my openness in speaking, shouldn’t the nature of that knowledge trump whatever reactions I personally receive? In this way Shri Gaurahari is known as the most munificent incarnation of the Lord, for He gave love of God freely to everyone; something never before done.

“O most munificent incarnation! You are Krishna Himself appearing as Shri Krishna Chaitanya Mahaprabhu. You have assumed the golden color of Shrimati Radharani, and You are widely distributing pure love of Krishna. We offer our respectful obeisances unto You.”  (Shrila Rupa Gosvami, Chaitanya Charitamrita, Madhya 19.53)

Shrila Rupa Gosvami, soon to become one of the most famous saints of the bhakti tradition, once offered a very nice prayer to Lord Chaitanya, which addressed the fact that the son of mother Shachi and Jagannatha Mishra freely distributed prema for Lord Krishna, making Him more magnanimous than any previous incarnation. There are many avataras of the Supreme Personality of Godhead listed in the Vedic texts, and there are many unauthorized pseudo incarnations claiming divinity as well. Lord Chaitanya’s divine nature is hinted at in the Mahabharata and Shrimad Bhagavatam, but His mission had nothing to do with making followers recognize His supremacy.

“Whenever and wherever there is a decline in religious practice, O descendant of Bharata, and a predominant rise of irreligion-at that time I descend Myself.”  (Lord Krishna, Bhagavad-gita, 4.7)

In the Bhagavad-gita, the original form of Godhead, Lord Krishna, explains that whenever there is a widespread discrepancy in the practice of religion, or dharma, and the rise of irreligion, He personally descends to earth. In the past this has meant Krishna appearing in some sort of fighting role, where a strong personality is defeated by divine weapons. Hiranyaksha was defeated by Lord Varaha, Hiranyakashipu by Narasimhadeva, Ravana by Lord Rama, and Kamsa by Krishna Himself. These enemies were originally devotees in the spiritual sky, but due to the will of Providence and the uncontrollable hand of fate, they made transgressions that caused their descent to the material world.

Only in a land full of duality can a previously devoted soul take on the opposite role of miscreant. These villains played their parts perfectly, and they were so vile that they caused the saintly class to petition for Krishna’s direct intervention. So many tasks are carried out through Bhagavan’s personal presence. With His various avataras, Krishna showed His splendid beauty, His immense strength, and His dedication to protecting the innocent. Since the events relating to these avataras are documented in the Puranas, Mahabharata, Ramayana and several other sacred texts, they can still be enjoyed to this day by people looking for the same protection that those persecuted in the past by the worst miscreants desired.

As Shri Gaurahari, Krishna appeared as a combined incarnation; both He and His pleasure potency together. The result was the Supreme Lord and His number one devotee taking on different moods at different times. The enemy this time was the seed of impurity implanted by the time period: Kali Yuga. Instead of using His tusks, fists, arrows, or nails, as Lord Chaitanya Krishna used the power of the holy name and its ability to melt the hardest hearts to defeat the enemy of impiety.

During Lord Chaitanya’s time, medieval India, the mediums for mass distribution of information were not available. He could not broadcast the holy names in the maha-mantra, “Hare Krishna Hare Krishna, Krishna Krishna, Hare Hare, Hare Rama Hare Rama, Rama Rama, Hare Hare”, through a radio signal. He could not record this sacred mantra, the greatest weapon against ignorance and deceit, onto a CD and then sell it through stores throughout the world. There was no internet and no television. With these conditions, obviously one would think the task of bringing large numbers of people to the cult of devotional service, the eternal and constitutional engagement of the spirit soul, would be impossible.

Yet just as the formidable Hiranyaksha was defeated by the strange form of a large boar, the veil of ignorance created by Kali Yuga was no match for Shri Gaurahari, a mendicant without any material wealth. Hiranyakashipu tried to safeguard his life by receiving so many boons from Lord Brahma. He was not allowed to be killed in so many ways, but Krishna as Narasimhadeva foiled the demon’s plans by killing him in just the perfect method. Ravana was similarly immune from all kinds of attack, so Bhagavan took the form of a human being to do away with him. Kamsa thought he was safe after killing so many innocent children of his sister Devaki, but Krishna can never be killed, and when He decides that someone else’s time is up, nothing can be done to save them.

In the same way, the impediments of the time period were no match for Shri Gaurahari, who as a renounced mendicant went across India and infused the spirit of devotion into so many people. He did not go around the country giving people material gifts. He was not interested in distributing temporary wealth, though as the Supreme Lord He was capable of granting any benediction. He distributed something much more valuable: the holy name.

Why is this more valuable than tangible wealth? The holy name doesn’t put food on the table. It doesn’t pay the bills every month. It doesn’t even give me any knowledge on how to earn a living. Ah, but these aspects of life essentially take care of themselves. If you had to, you could eat the fruits that fall off the trees. You could use simple rags for clothes and live in isolated caves. The animals can find the necessities of life without any problem, without any outside intervention. There are no welfare programs for the animals and no redistribution of wealth schemes to look after their welfare.

Krishna, through His impersonal energy of material nature, takes care of the needs of every living entity. Thus the real wealth one can find has nothing to do with matter. The holy name is the direct incarnation of Bhagavan, who is every single person’s best friend. The ability to recite this name, to hold on to it for dear life, to take comfort in it, and to happily repeat it over and over again, is the real boon of the human form of life. Well aware of this, Lord Chaitanya tried to distribute that holy name to as many people as possible.

What would happen after someone met Lord Chaitanya? The devotional spirit would take over that kind-hearted soul. That spirit would then guide the rest of their activities. If I have a powerful torchlight, no matter how dark the environment may be, I can bring that light with me wherever I go and thus see whatever I need to see. With one light I can do so many other things. In a similar manner, with just one mantra, which contains the most potent names of Krishna and Rama, one can find a peaceful, enlivening, and enlightening activity under any circumstance.

Ideally, we would seek out a spiritual master, or guru, to get the confidential information of the Vedas. That knowledge is valuable because of its ability to positively effect change. At the same time, the guru doesn’t want to openly distribute it to others, because not everyone will understand the information properly. Take one or two shlokas out of context and suddenly you have a worldwide movement trying to ban your system of religion. The mood of the worshiper must be proper; they must be humble and submissive in their learning. Only then will the power of the devotional path be revealed to them.

Lord Chaitanya was so merciful that He did not wait for others to approach Him. Through basic singing and dancing, the congregational style of chanting known as sankirtana, He brought the ancient art of divine love to anyone who was within audible range. He had a wife and family at home too, but for the good of humanity, He sacrificed personal pleasure. In favor of delivering the fallen souls looking for a real and legitimate religion to follow, Lord Chaitanya took sannyasa at a very young age and thus blazed the trail for future generations of preachers to follow.

Gaura Purnima celebrates Lord Chaitanya and His sublime mission. He was not on this earth for very long, but His influence is still felt to this day because of the sincere followers He inspired. His line of disciplic succession boasts some of the most intelligent, kind, and dedicated saints in history. Lord Chaitanya was not a sentimentalist. Though He preached primarily through chanting and dancing, that was just the best way to reawaken the devotional attitude in others. The foundation of that dedication in preaching was a keen understanding of Vedanta, the difference between matter and spirit, and the real meaning to religion.

With all that Lord Chaitanya sacrificed, what actually pleases Him? Aside from seeing others chant the names of Krishna and Rama in divine ecstasy, Lord Chaitanya’s primary source of pleasure was hearing about Krishna. When He was in the bhava of Shrimati Radharani, Krishna’s eternal consort, Shri Gaurahari felt the pains of separation from the darling of Vrajabhumi. Only when His closest associates would read poems from the likes of Jayadeva and Vidyapati would Lord Chaitanya feel some relief. His favorite Vedic text was the Shrimad Bhagavatam, for its sacred tenth canto has wonderful descriptions of Krishna’s pastimes along with the prayers and heartwarming thoughts of the gopis of Vrindavana. Lord Chaitanya also preferred the Brahma-samhita and Krishna Karnamrita, two other works glorifying Krishna and devotion to Him.

Just as Gaurahari derived pleasure from hearing Krishna praised, so the sincere souls affected by Lord Chaitanya’s preaching efforts take tremendous delight in hearing about His hearing about Krishna. Anyone who has ever chanted “Hare Krishna” or “Hare Rama” has enjoyed the mercy of Lord Chaitanya, who proclaimed those phrases to be the most powerful weapons against illusion in the Kali Yuga. His influence continues to this day through the hard work of His dedicated followers, those who appear in the line of disciplic succession that He made prominent. On Gaura Purnima, we remember that most merciful incarnation of Godhead and hope to always put a smile on His face with our chanting.

In Closing:

Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, of mother Shachi’s delight,

Appeared on earth on day of full moon bright.

 

Would spread to the world wisdom’s light,

At a time when irreligion at its height.

 

Message of divine love through sound was spread,

No difficult methods, chant holy names instead.

 

So many were pleased upon seeing Mahaprabhu,

His pleasure came from hearing about Krishna and gopis too.

 

For His honor names of Krishna and Rama we say,

Follow His path of bhakti day after day.

Thanksgiving 2011

“Yogis cannot reach Krishna, but for pure devotees like mother Yashoda, Krishna is already caught.” (Shrila Prabhupada, Shrimad Bhagavatam, 10.9.9 Purport)

With the hustle and bustle that comes with the feverish pursuit to procure enough wealth and provisions to support oneself and a family, even a holiday turns into a time of turmoil, adding pressure to a day that is meant to relieve it. The increase in obligations is especially true with the Thanksgiving holiday.  Though carrying issues relating to travel and the comingling with family members you may not have seen in a long time, Thanksgiving is meant to be a day of prayer and remembrance, a time to give thanks to the Almighty for the bountiful gifts he heaps upon us. Thanksgiving brings the inevitable question of what we are thankful for. For the spiritualist trying to reach a better end in both this life and the next, there is one aspect to their practices that provides endless gifts, which can be appreciated every day, including on Thanksgiving.

The first Thanksgiving celebrated a bountiful harvest that resulted from a major shift in the way food was produced inside of a small community. Settlers to what would be known as the New World had a difficult time in the beginning. There were very few colonists who had fled England for the “greener” pastures of America, but when they arrived after a long boat ride conditions were so unexpectedly harsh that many of them died during the first winter. To further add to their troubles, the colonists found that their food production was quite sparse, for everything was placed into a common store, to be shared by all the members of the community.

The governor of this group decided to shift gears, assigning a plot of land to each family, with the fruits of labor remaining in their possession. As a result, the next harvest was so large that not only was the starvation problem solved, but free trade with the neighboring native Americans could take place as well. Deciding that the harvest was too grand to let pass without commemoration, the Pilgrims held a grand feast, where there was an overwhelming feeling of gratitude. They thanked the Lord for their ability to eat and survive. The tradition then continued annually even into the founding of the United States of America, with George Washington, the first president, declaring the holiday be dedicated to serving the Supreme Lord, a time to give thanks for all that He has given.

“Whereas it is the duty of all Nations to acknowledge the providence of almighty God, to obey his will, to be grateful for his benefits, and humbly to implore his protection and favor…Now therefore I do recommend and assign Thursday the 26th day of November next to be devoted by the People of these States to the service of that great and glorious Being, who is the beneficent Author of all the good that was, that is, or that will be…” (President George Washington, Thanksgiving Day 1789, A Proclamation)

In the Vedic tradition, the oldest system of spirituality known in the world, there are different ways to reach the Supreme Absolute Truth, the source of everything. In any endeavor, there are multiple avenues one can travel down to reach their desired destination. Usually the one that is the simplest to implement is considered the best, but sometimes the simplest doesn’t equate to the easiest to accept. For instance, in weight loss, the easiest option to implement is a reduction in eating. Just don’t eat as much as you are now and you will lose weight. While reducing food intake is easy, accepting the option is difficult, for the individual is accustomed to act otherwise, especially when there are culinary delights available at every corner. Instead of curbing eating directly, roundabout options, such as exercise, diets involving specific foods, and tight controls on the combination of foods consumed, are accepted.

For realizing God, there is one simple and surefire method. This option is the easiest to implement but the most difficult to accept. Because this option is available to the most number of people, God is represented fully within it. The other avenues only have God represented partially and thus only bring the Lord’s partial association. A famous incident documented in the Shrimad Bhagavatam, or Bhagavata Purana, serves as an example to illustrate the difference. A Purana is a collection of ancient stories, historical incidents discussed between spiritual masters and their disciples. The events are not always presented in chronological order nor do they take place only on this planet, but they nevertheless reveal so much about spirituality, the position of the essence of identity, and what it takes to fulfill the primary mission in life.

The Bhagavatam states that the Supreme Absolute Truth, the Personality of Godhead Himself, descended to earth around five thousand years ago in Vrindavana, a small farm community. The fact that God can come to earth and behave like a child is very difficult to accept even for advanced spiritualists. The first instruction taught to aspiring transcendentalists in the Vedic tradition is that the individual living being is not their body. The outer covering is just a shell that comes together, shifts in appearance, and then ultimately gets destroyed. The soul is what counts, as it is not slain when the body is slain.

If we are not our body, then surely someone who is the fountainhead of all spirit and matter cannot be the same as His body when He comes to earth. The body has a strong influence, however, which operates through the illusory energy known as maya. Since we living entities are affected by maya, how can the Supreme Lord have the same defect? Either He is subject to maya also – which thus makes Him equal to us – or the listed incarnations aren’t really God but just some exalted personalities who had extraordinary abilities.

“Unintelligent men, who know Me not, think that I have assumed this form and personality. Due to their small knowledge, they do not know My higher nature, which is changeless and supreme.” (Lord Krishna, Bhagavad-gita, 7.24)

Lord Krishna, the original Personality of Godhead who came to Vrindavana, addresses this issue in the Bhagavad-gita, a talk on spirituality held much later on during Krishna’s time on earth. For God there is no difference between spirit and matter. Matter is only under maya’s influence for those who have no control over maya. God is the creator of both the spiritual and material energies, so He is never subject to either’s influence. He retains this standing even when appearing on earth in the form of a small child.

If God stays above matter and doesn’t require self-realization when coming to earth, why even make an appearance? Ah, here is where the opportunity for giving thanks comes in. In the roundabout methods of spirituality, different aspects of the Supreme Lord are uncovered. Even an atheist is a kind of spiritualist, though they don’t know who God is or that He exists. Rather, the atheist recognizes Krishna’s external energy expansion of maya, or material nature. Even in the theory of evolution, which is seen as the antithesis of the spiritual doctrine, a higher power is acknowledged. That stronger force is nature, which assumes the responsibility for the purported changing in the species. Even though such theories are based in ignorance, there is still an acknowledgement of one of Krishna’s energies. Since the Lord has no personal presence in the material energy, His personal association is denied such followers.

The jnanis and yogis connect with aspects that have more of Krishna’s influence. Instead of seeing material nature as the cause, jnanis consider the impersonal spiritual energy known as Brahman as the highest force. Think of how each individual has a spark of life inside of them that guides their activities. Then carry that same discernment across every autonomous being, from the tiny ant all the way up to the large elephant. In this way we see that there is a total collection of the spiritual energy, almost a singular energy in a sense. This force is known as Brahman, and it is beyond the dualities created by maya. The jnanis, through study of Vedanta philosophy, worship this energy. Though Brahman is pure spirit, it again lacks Krishna’s personal presence.

The yogis try to catch Krishna through His feature of Paramatma, which is the plenary expansion residing within the heart next to the individual soul. With Brahman the sum collection of energy is recognized, and with the Paramatma the localized aspect is honored, but in either case Krishna’s transcendental features are not noticed. Brahman and Paramatma can be described as nirguna, or without attributes, for the spiritualist connecting with these features doesn’t notice the qualities of sweetness belonging to the Personality of Godhead. God is nirguna in the sense that He never possesses material attributes, but at the same time He has spiritual features that can appear contradictory. Krishna is both formless and with form. He has eyes and doesn’t. He has legs and at the same time doesn’t.

How can the human brain make light of these contradictions? The Supreme Personality of Godhead, Bhagavan, in His forms known as saguna, or with attributes, descends to earth every now and then to show the devoted souls what it means to have spiritual attributes. As Krishna, the Lord came to Vrindavana in His original form, one which was full of sweetness. The benefit of Bhagavan’s association is that anyone can connect with Him. Practicing meditational yoga and studying Vedanta are very difficult, thus the two disciplines are exclusive. Their necessary requirements automatically prohibit entry. The jnani must be very intelligent, capable of understanding high logic. The yogi must be renounced, capable of sitting in meditation for hours on end and blocking out the distractions of material life.

To connect with Bhagavan one must follow bhakti-yoga, which is available to every person, even if they are seemingly materially entangled. The residents of Vrindavana five thousand years ago weren’t jnanis or yogis, and they had never practiced self-realization. Nevertheless, they got to catch Krishna, to hold Him in their arms and bask in His sweet vision. How was this possible? They practiced bhakti, though they weren’t cognizant of the fact. Through many austerities from previous lives and a pious attitude guiding their activities, these residents were fully deserving of Krishna’s company. As they weren’t jealous of Him, why wouldn’t the Lord choose their land as the place to come and enact His pastimes?

The residents of Vrindavana were certainly thankful for Krishna’s association, and the people who hear from the Shrimad Bhagavatam can share the same sentiments. One time, the child Krishna broke a pot of butter belonging to His mother Yashoda. When she came upon the broken pot, she knew that it was Krishna’s work, for He was angry that she had gotten up while feeding Him to tend to a pot of boiling milk on the stove. When she returned, Yashoda saw the broken pot and then found the culprit Krishna feeding butter and yogurt to monkeys. Delighting in the scene, Mother Yashoda was ready to catch her son and punish Him for His transgression.

Seeing Mother Yashoda with her whipping stick in hand, Krishna started to run away, pretending to be afraid. Though yogis and jnanis can’t catch Krishna, Mother Yashoda, a cowherd woman without much speed herself, was able to catch the Supreme Lord and bind Him in her motherly affection. The Lord allowed His dear mother to catch Him and execute her motherly duties, which gave her so much pleasure. From that association both sides felt tremendous delight, for the natural positions of the Supreme Lord and His devotees were on display.

On Thanksgiving we can give thanks to the Supreme Lord for having descended to earth to engage in these pastimes. Karma, yoga and jnana are available to try, but only through bhakti will we get Krishna’s association. The Shrimad Bhagavatam is a bhakti-shastra, a scriptural work focused on devotional service. Because of its contents, the Bhagavatam is as good as Krishna. It is honored as such in the homes of Krishna devotees. The vision of Krishna being chased by Mother Yashoda and her whipping stick cannot be remembered enough. For having this most heartwarming vision, we are forever thankful. The incident is so sweet that one only hopes to be able to give thanks for it every single day, for with remembrance comes Krishna’s association, which continues into the afterlife for anyone who is so desirous.

In Closing:

Seeing mother’s presence Krishna started to run,

Knew He did something bad, with mother enjoyed the fun.

A whipping stick in her hand to punish she took,

Trouble catching son, for not was she fleet afoot.

Materialist the presence of God can never see,

Brahman and Paramatma for jnani and yogi.

But Yashoda caught Krishna by bhakti following,

With ropes of affection her young son binding.

Thankful we are for that scene so pleasurable,

Krishna caught by mother’s love, a pastime so delightful.

Govardhana Puja 2011

“My dear father, don’t delay. The sacrifice you propose for Govardhana and the local brahmanas will take much time. Better take the arrangement and paraphernalia you have already made for sacrificing Indra-yajna and immediately engage it to satisfy Govardhana Hill and the local brahmanas.” (Lord Krishna, Krishna, The Supreme Personality of Godhead, Vol 1, Ch 24)

There are vengeful gods. There are heavenly personalities who get angry at those who neglect their worship, especially when the neglecting worshipers think deep down that they are making a mistake. There are divine figures who give rewards to their worshipers but then later punish the same people if they should happen to surpass them in areas of opulence, which include beauty, strength and knowledge. The Lord of Lords, the Supreme Personality, however, is complete in Himself. Therefore when He asks us to surrender unto Him, the recommendation is there to provide pleasure for both sides. The neglect of that worship is itself a punishment, for the worshiper misses out on the association of the most blissful entity. Just to show that no harm can come from fully surrendering to Him, the Supreme Person explicitly protects those who abandon other worshipable figures, the ones that get angry at them for neglecting their worship. The occasion of the first Govardhana Puja very nicely proved this fact.

What would a young boy know about religion? If anything, he will probably look for ways to get out of attending religious functions. “Do I have to go? Why does God make us do these things all the time? Can’t you and Dad just do it and I’ll go do something else?” Forcing the children to participate in spiritual functions is a good way to get them exposed to the sublime life of connecting with God on a regular basis. There must be coercion with children, for that comes with the territory if you want to be a guardian. If children are forced into studying, eating, and sleeping on time, why then should they not be coaxed into attending religious ceremonies?

The common lack of affinity for religious life within young children makes the request that came from Nanda Maharaja’s son seem all the more puzzling. Nanda was the king of a small farm community known as Vrindavana. The residents lived off of the grains produced on the land and the milk products produced by the cows. The cows were equal residents of the community; therefore the land belonged to them as well. From their grazing not only were the calves fed milk, but so were the residents of the community. As the cows were well protected and loved by the children, including Nanda’s own son Lord Krishna, they produced heaps of milk products, so much so that there was enough of a surplus to sell in the neighboring town of Mathura.

As a pious soul following the recommendations of the priestly class of men, the brahmanas, Nanda made sure to observe the annual rituals aimed at pleasing the devas, or gods. We can think of a deva to be like a department head in a government administration. Similar to paying the tax collector, giving homage to the devas in charge of the various elements of material nature ensures that there is enough rainfall and that pains in life are limited. In one particular year, Nanda Maharaja was preparing for the annual Indra-yajna, or sacrifice offered to Lord Indra, the king of the heavenly planets. Providing rain is one of Indra’s duties, which he does after receiving his share of the sacrifices made in his honor. A yajna is a sort of formal religious ritual where offerings are made in a ceremony that has a fire pit at the center. The remnants of the yajna are known as shishta and are considered free of sin.

Aside from the benefit explicitly tied to the specific yajna performed, there is the gradual shift in consciousness that results in the worshipers. The animal community lives off of the same grains that grow from the rain provided by Indra, yet they do not perform any specific worship. This means that the material nature is ready to supply everyone whatever they want and that the human form of life is meant more for advancing in consciousness. As the second grade classroom is important in molding the thinking abilities of the young student to eventually be able to think rationally as an adult, the many yajnas prescribed for the honor of the devas are meant to keep the human being tied to spiritual life, to help him break free of the possessive mentality inherited at the time of birth. We come into this world with nothing and we leave with nothing, so what do we really own?

As the Indra-yajna seemed rather benign, Nanda was a little surprised that his young son Krishna started asking questions about it. Typically, you’d expect your children to ask about a yajna so that they could find ways to get out of attending it, but with Krishna the interest was a little different. After hearing about why the sacrifice was taking place, Krishna suggested that the same preparations be used to worship the neighboring Govardhana Hill, which was supplying so much to the community with its grass. The cows were pleased with the hill, and once the cows were pleased the rest of the community thrived as a result. Therefore why shouldn’t there be a celebration for the hill instead?

Charmed by his son’s words, Nanda eventually relented. “Why not please Govardhana Hill? Sounds like a good idea.” Nanda then suggested that since the preparations were already made for Indra-yajna, they should do two sacrifices, one for each. Amazingly, Krishna rejected this idea. What could be wrong with offering Indra his share and then worshiping Govardhana Hill? Through His yoga-maya potency, Krishna had hidden His real divinity, His standing as the Supreme Lord. Yajna is actually another word for Vishnu, who is known as the chief deva, or deva vara. Vishnu is the same Krishna, which means that following the Lord’s insistence in this case would actually favor Nanda Maharaja and the residents of Vrindavana more so than any other kind of worship.

Though Vishnu is Yajna, if the specific sacrifice isn’t directly meant to please Him, the full benefit to the worshiper is not there. What does this mean exactly? Material rewards are as temporary as the body types accepted by the spirit soul. Asking for temporary things like rain and good fortune really have no standing with Vishnu, who is replete with transcendental qualities. The true benefit of worshiping God is gaining His association, being able to bask in His sweet vision. A yajna for a demigod is a sort of indirect worship, where Vishnu is essentially pleased but doesn’t reveal His full association to the devotee who is not even asking to receive it.

The decision was made, at the insistence of Krishna, that Govardhana Hill would be worshiped that year instead of Indra. On the one side you had Indra, the king of heaven, and on the other you had a hill, which was a collection of earthly elements. Was not the choosing of the latter a little strange? Govardhana Hill was Krishna’s proxy on earth, a way to directly accept the offerings of the devoted residents of Vrindavana. The residents would be worshiping Krishna’s hill at the Lord’s insistence. After creating a wide variety of sumptuous preparations and offering them to the hill, Krishna Himself assumed the role of the hill and spoke to the residents, telling them that He was pleased with their offering. Worship of Govardhana Hill was thus totally in the mood of bhakti-yoga, or devotional service, which is not tainted with material motives.

As if to give us a further reminder of why the worship of Govardhana Hill was the right move, Lord Indra became outraged that his sacrifice was neglected on this particular year. Lord Vishnu does not succumb to the temptations of jealousy. If He did, He would be perpetually angry, as practically every spirit soul roaming the material universe has chosen a worshipable figure that is not He. The atheists worship material nature and the senses, the monists the impersonal effulgence known as Brahman, the yogis the process of meditation and the plenary expansion of the Lord residing within the heart, and the spiritually inclined materialist the many devas, or demigods, capable of offering benedictions. If Vishnu were to give way to jealousy, He would have a lot to be jealous about.

Part of being God means that You don’t require anyone’s respect. Rather, the master-servant relationship is already part of the constitutions of both parties. This means that serving God is our ideal position, and should we neglect that worship the punishment will automatically come. If we use a fork to try to eat soup, we will have great difficulty. The spoon, not the fork, is made to be used with soup. Similarly, the soul is made to be tied to Krishna in a mood of loving devotion kept alive with constant service. If the soul’s eternality, bliss and knowledge are used to further other purposes, the results are not pleasant.

Indra released an onslaught of rain upon the residents as revenge for their transgression. It should be noted that Lord Indra is in great favor with Lord Vishnu, as are all the devas in the heavenly planets. If our children should make a mistake, we don’t hold it against them for too long, for our love for them washes away the anger that arises from disappointment. In a similar manner, Krishna’s love for Indra is unbroken, but in this particular incident He decided to teach both Indra and many future generations of listeners a valuable lesson.

That the devas would strike back against people that worshiped them previously was also not out of the ordinary. In his Kavitavali, Goswami Tulsidas remarks that there is no master like Lord Rama, who is the same Vishnu but in a different personal form. Tulsidas notes that other devas grant benedictions for as long as you worship them, but as soon as you rise a little in stature, they get jealous and come after you, trying to take you down from your prestigious position. Shri Rama is not like this, for He appreciates even the most insignificant act of devotion made with sincerity, so much so that he’ll often give His devotees a more exalted position.

Indra’s jealousy was rooted in the fact that his worship was neglected and that the residents of Vrindavana were following this young boy’s advice. The subsequent onslaught of rain instigated by Indra’s samvartaka cloud caused an immediate flooding. It would have been understandable for the residents of the town to get angry at Krishna and Nanda Maharaja. “Not only did we neglect to worship Indra, but he is punishing us as a result. This is what we get for listening to Krishna.”

But this was not their attitude. Rather, the residents had seen Krishna’s ability to save them from danger before. Therefore they instinctively looked to Him to save them again. And rescue them He would. Taking the same Govardhana Hill that was just worshiped, Krishna lifted it up and held it above His head with His tiny finger. Acting as a massive umbrella, the hill provided shelter to the residents, who were thus saved from the massive flooding in Vrindavana. That a young child could lift a massive hill like this and hold it up over His head sounds amazing, but for Krishna it is all part of a day’s work. The story of the lifting of Govardhana Hill hints at mythology, but then so do the changing of seasons and the rising and setting of the sun to the young child. If a massive solar body can continually effuse heat and light for billions of years without requiring an external energy source, why should not Krishna, the creator of the sun, be able to lift up a hill and hold it over His head?

A defeated Indra relented with the rain and then approached Krishna to offer His prayers of contrition. The worship of Govardhana Hill subsequently became an annual tradition, for not only does it please Krishna, it also reminds us of His lifting of the massive hill, which earned Him the name Girivaradhari. There are jealous men and vengeful gods, but Krishna is always in ananda, or bliss. Those who connect with Him by regularly chanting His names, “Hare Krishna Hare Krishna, Krishna Krishna, Hare Hare, Hare Rama Hare Rama, Rama Rama, Hare Hare”, and observing His festivals will be granted the same protection that was afforded Nanda and his community.

In Closing:

In Indra-puja, to king of heaven items to offer,

In return rain upon the land does he confer.

Krishna had another idea in mind,

Indra a lesson from episode would find.

The young boy told His father to worship the hill,

The stomachs of the lovely cows with grass did it fill.

Nanda liked the idea but had already prepared,

For Indra-yajna, a most extravagant affair.

Asked Krishna to be able to do both,

Puja for Indra and hill they would hold.

Upon only Govardhana worship did the Lord insist,

Nanda gave in, for on love of son did he subsist.

Though the ceremony was completely religious,

At ignoring his worship did Indra become jealous.

From his anger harboring bad blood,

Vrindavana with rain did he flood.

Fear not for Krishna saved the day by lifting massive hill,

Worshiped as Girivaradhari to this day is He still.

Indra felt sorry for what he did, that he lost his cool,

Forgot Krishna’s position, acted like a fool.

Lord was pleased with Indra and his words,

Not angered by the commotion he stirred.

Rely only on Krishna, who accepts loving devotion,

Depend on no other, for He provides all protection.

Diwali 2011

“O Sita, see the golden lord of mountains [Mainaka], which is golden-peaked and which rose up, piercing the ocean, to provide rest to Hanuman.” (Lord Rama speaking to Sita Devi, Valmiki Ramayana, Yuddha Kand, 123.18)

hiraṇyanābhan śailendran kāñcanaṃ paśya maithili ||
viśramārthan hanumato bhittvā sāgaramutthitam |

Lord Rama, the victorious son of King Dasharatha, having just slain His enemy who had unrightfully taken His religiously wedded wife away from Him, was riding home in the aerial car known as the Pushpaka. An arduous many months had just culminated with the rescue of His wife Sita Devi, and now came the time to go back home, to return to His land where He had not been for fourteen years. The last memories Rama had of that place were from the day He was almost crowned as the new king, with His father King Dasharatha ready to hand the throne over to Him, as He was the eldest son. Fourteen years having passed and Dasharatha having quit His body, Rama would return home nonetheless. He would be received with a tremendous welcome consisting of so many lights that the occasion became celebrated thereafter as Diwali or Deepavali, which means a row of lamps. On the way home, Shri Rama, happy to be reunited with His wife, pointed out to her a collection of important places which were soon to become sacred pilgrimage sites. Always mindful of the services offered to Him, Rama even noted the important areas relating to His dearmost servants, which included the best of them all, Shri Hanuman.

If you haven’t seen one of your closest friends for a while, when you do actually meet up with them, you’ll want to know what they have been up to. “What have you been doing? What did you do for such and such occasion? How are your friends and family doing?” With Sita, her meeting with Rama piqued an even stronger interest, for she had been held captive in a tucked away grove of Ashoka trees for many months. The wicked ruler of the island kingdom of Lanka had taken her away from the side of her husband and then threatened to kill her if she didn’t give in to becoming his wife. Lord Rama is the Supreme Personality of Godhead in the guise of a human being, someone who is spiritual in every way. The fact that Rama is still celebrated to this day and His glorious qualities and activities still studied and taken delight from shows that He is no ordinary human being. The shastras already reveal to us Rama’s divinity, but as if we needed further convincing, annual occasions like Diwali remind us that Rama is God not only based on His own displays of strength and valor, but also from the merits of His associates, who substantiate the Lord’s supreme position with their every act.

Try to imagine the most beautiful woman in the world and you’ll get a slight idea of Sita Devi’s appearance. One way that the Vedas, the ancient scriptures of India, describe God is to say that He is the source of all energies. He is also the most fortunate living entity; hence He is known as Bhagavan. One of these fortunes involves having the most beautiful consort by your side. It would make sense then that Rama’s wife would be lacking nothing in terms of beauty. Since having her company is one of the greatest rewards in life, she is known as the goddess of fortune. Since God is married to the goddess of fortune, He is known by such names as Shripati, Shrinatha, Madhava, Lakshmipati and Sitapati.

Based on the definitions of Rama’s names, Sita cannot be with any other man. It is simply not possible. During her marriage ceremony on earth, many kings came to Janakpur to try to raise the bow handed down by Lord Shiva, which would earn them Sita’s hand in marriage. Yet only Shri Rama could lift the bow, as He is the only person worthy of being Sita’s husband. The external events always seem to be manageable, that if we can just manipulate things a certain way we’ll achieve our end. The Lord’s constitutional position, however, is absolute. As spirit souls, we too are knowledgeable, blissful and eternal, but our brilliant qualities can be covered up from time to time based on the type of body we assume. Hence we go through temporary ups and downs, gains and losses. With Rama there is never a loss. Even when it seems otherwise, Rama will rise to the challenge and maintain His constitutional position as the supreme enjoyer and husband of the goddess of fortune.

As if having learned nothing from the contest in Janaka’s kingdom, Ravana thought he could have Sita even after she was married to Rama. He took her away through a backhanded plot, for he couldn’t survive in a fair fight against Rama. Ravana was proud of his strengths achieved through pleasing divine figures, but he liked his opulence and good standing too much to try to jeopardize them by fighting with someone who he was told could defeat him. Thinking that by taking Sita away Rama would then wallow in despair and not continue to fight, Ravana figured he was safe in Lanka.

“Just as a tree starts to blossom during the proper season, so the doer of sinful deeds inevitably reaps the horrible fruit of their actions at the appropriate time.” (Lord Rama speaking to Khara, Valmiki Ramayana, Aranya Kand, 29.8)

Little did Ravana know that Rama doesn’t work alone. Just as the rewards of karma come to the worker at the right time -similar to how the trees blossom in season – Ravana’s punishment and Rama’s reunion with Sita were in the works as soon as the beautiful princess was taken away. Though the odds seemed stacked against Rama – as He was roaming the forest with only His younger brother Lakshmana by His side while Ravana had a massive army in Lanka – the Lord is never bereft of accompanying divine associates. He can even take monkeys and turn them into devoted fighters. Ironically enough, that’s exactly what He would do.

How did this transformation happen? As a touchstone turns iron into gold, communion with the divine consciousness turns an individual from any species into a surcharged soul capable of carrying out their devotion to the Supreme Lord. The Vanaras in the kingdom of Kishkindha were guaranteed of success in their mission simply based on their desire to serve Rama. The most capable Vanara was Hanuman, and he would play an integral role in Sita’s rescue. The first step in Ravana’s demise was learning where he was living, which meant finding where Sita was. It wasn’t even known for sure if Ravana had taken her or if Sita was still alive. Therefore a search party had to be sent out to scour the earth, to leave no stone unturned.

Sugriva, the leader of the monkeys in Kishkindha, dispatched his massive monkey army to perform this task, while in the back of his mind he knew that only Hanuman would be able to succeed. Sure enough, the burden would fall upon Hanuman to leap to the island of Lanka once it was learned that Sita was there. Not having an aerial car with him, Hanuman’s only option was to jump from a mountaintop and fly across the ocean. Since he was carrying out Rama’s work, the celestials in the sky and other powerful figures around the scene watched with rapt attention. The ocean personified was one such onlooker, and he wanted to help Hanuman.  The ocean had a link to the Ikshvaku dynasty, the family in which Rama appeared.  Hanuman was helping Rama, thus the ocean felt that it should help out someone who was doing work on behalf of the Ikshvakus.  Whoever would help Hanuman would also play a part in the sacred sequence of events that would be celebrated for millions of years in the future.

The mountain Mainaka acted on behalf of the ocean. He was told to rise out of the ocean and act as a resting place for Hanuman during his journey. When Hanuman approached, Mainaka revealed what he had been told and how he would be supremely honored to offer at least some service to Hanuman, who was carrying out Rama’s business. Hanuman did not want any help though, for he was determined to fly ahead. Nevertheless, since he was asked so nicely, he honored Mainaka and the ocean by touching his hand on the top of the mountain and then proceeding on with his journey.

Shri Rama is antaryami, or the supreme witness, which means that He resides within the heart of every living entity. Therefore He knew what Hanuman was up to, but He still took great delight in hearing about his journey later on. On the trip home to Ayodhya, while riding in the aerial car Rama pointed out the mountain Mainaka to Sita and told her that this was where Hanuman was granted rest in his flight to Lanka. During this trip home, Rama had pointed out to Sita various places where Rakshasas had been killed and other things had taken place relating to her rescue. Sita was in captivity while the final battle was going on, so she really had no information of what transpired. Moreover, she had no idea where the notable events took place.

Rama knew that the victory was a team effort, and He was supremely pleased by the faithful dedication shown by the Vanaras, including Hanuman. For these reasons He thought that the specific locations relating to Hanuman were as important as those relating to His own achievements. From her own observations and the descriptions given to her by Rama, Sita could understand what the Vanaras had sacrificed, and how they were forever devoted to both she and her husband. When Rama later pointed out Kishkindha, Sita asked for the car to stop to pick up the wives of the monkeys, for Sita understood what it was like to be waiting somewhere while your husband was off fighting to the death with a powerful enemy. She wanted the chief Vanaras and their wives to accompany them on the journey home, where they would be ceremoniously greeted.

“Seeing the city of Kishkindha, which was formerly protected by Vali, Sita, who was feeling shy out of love, then spoke the following humble words to Rama: ‘O King, I wish to enter Your capital city of Ayodhya with You, accompanied by the beloved wives of Sugriva, headed by Tara, as well as the wives of the other Vanara leaders.’” (Valmiki Ramayana, Yuddha Kand, 123.23-25)

Diwali reminds us of Rama’s triumphant return home and the wonderful service that the Vanaras provided. With Rama come Lakshmana and Sita, and also Hanuman and his many monkey friends. With a transcendental family like that, how can anyone who thinks of them ever feel alone? On the day where they lined up a row of welcoming lights, the faithful residents of Ayodhya would get to see their beloved Rama again, and they would get to hear of the events relating to His fourteen year exile and how Sita was eventually rescued. What they didn’t know was that their celebration would itself spark an ageless tradition, one that continues to this very day.

From the journey home and the celebration now known as Diwali, we see that any service rendered to Shri Rama or one of His servants never goes in vain. Every kind act is noticed by Rama Himself, and He takes so much delight from them that He shares His sentiments with Sita, taking great pleasure in being so honored. Therefore it was not surprising that the residents of Ayodhya would lay out a massive collection of lamps to welcome back their beloved Rama. That same Supreme Lord can eternally reside within our minds by regularly worshiping Him and His associates and chanting the holy names, “Hare Krishna Hare Krishna, Krishna Krishna, Hare Hare, Hare Rama Hare Rama, Rama Rama, Hare Hare”.

In Closing:

Shri Rama shows to Sita the mountain with golden peak,

Which gave rest to Hanuman while Lanka trying to reach.

The couple returning to Ayodhya, on the way home,

Flying in aerial car with closest friends, never alone.

Sita, captive in Lanka for months that were many,

So seeing places related to rescue made her happy.

Shri Rama Vanaras with Hanuman did help,

Their devotion to the Lord Sita could tell.

Therefore she was happy to see places of significance,

Relating to Hanuman, immeasurable in importance.

With the output of devotion Rama does not bother,

Looks for sincerity only, like Him no other.

Residents of Ayodhya had not seen Him for fourteen years,

Aligned rows of lamps when of His arrival they did hear.

Festival so grand that annual tradition it did spark,

To remember Rama’s arrival home, to please the heart.

Dussehra 2011

“That Rama, the delight of the king of the Raghu dynasty, who had just slayed his enemy and was thus steady in His vow, possessing tremendous might, shone brightly while standing on the battlefield encircled by His army and friends, like Lord Indra surrounded by the demigods.” (Valmiki Ramayana, Yuddha Kand, 108.34)

sa tu nihataripuh sthirapratijñaḥ |
svajanabalābhivṛto raṇe rarāja |
raghukulanṛpanandano mahujā |
stridaśagaṇairabhisaṃvṛto yathendraḥ ||

Goswami Tulsidas knows it. Shri Hanuman is firmly aware of it as well, as he remains alive in the manifested realm just so that he can regularly remember it, finding the most wonderful pleasure simply by bringing it to the forefront of his consciousness. Agastya Rishi, the jar-born Vedic seer, whose piety is so strong that the vilest rogues and thieves cannot even approach his hermitage, knows it as well. Sita Devi, the daughter of King Janaka, is the most intimately familiar with it, and the three youngest sons of King Dasharatha of Ayodhya are so in knowledge of it that their very lives revolve around it. Shrila Narada Muni sings about it wherever He goes, and the Vedas have celebrated it in their countless hymns and prayers since time immemorial. On the day that gave Dussehra its real meaning, close friends, allies, and even direct enemies got to witness it personally. As He did that day, the lord of creatures, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, protects His devotees, no matter what size or shape they come in and no matter what their plight may be. Whoever should be harassing them and whatever condition the Lord personally finds Himself in, His promise to protect the saints from danger, to deliver them from the calamities caused by the influence of miscreant characters like Ravana, never breaks. On Dussehra, we remember the time when Lord Rama, the Supreme Lord in His form as a warrior prince, was honored and worshiped for His dedication, when His friends rejoiced in His victory, the one that didn’t seem possible.

Was the victorious outcome ever in jeopardy? Shouldn’t God be capable of handling any situation? How can God’s strengths ever be doubted? Does not the sun rise and set every day? Is not the earth humbled by earthquakes, the moon by eclipses, and the living entities by the threefold miseries of life? Knowing that these occurrences are regular, how can anyone think that another person could be inferior or supremely feared? Forgetfulness is one of the defects borne of the propensity to commit mistakes that is found within every human being. Couple this tendency with the influence of time, material nature’s most powerful agent for change, and it’s not surprising that man would forget about his own fallibility. Moreover, man even forgets that the defects and pains he encounters in his own life apply to everyone else as well. For these reasons, a powerful Rakshasa during the Treta Yuga was feared to be the most powerful ruler in the world, someone who could never be stopped.

Lost in the immediate aftermath of this fiend’s reign of terror was the fact that none of his abilities were acquired through his own effort. Ravana was the product of the union between a Rakshasa mother and a brahmana father. A brahmana by quality and work is a person with saintly qualities, someone who is nonviolent, cool-headed, kind and extremely knowledgeable. The brahmana is considered intelligent because he uses whatever information is fed into the computer that is the mind to further the highest aim of life, that of becoming God conscious. A smart person isn’t necessarily someone with a high IQ or someone who knows a lot of facts. True intelligence is marked by the ability to utilize whatever information is gathered to further a specific desire. As everyone is born ignorant, all knowledge comes through acquisition. In this sense it’s difficult to make comparative assessments of knowledge gathering abilities, for we don’t say that one person is better at eating than another person. Whether it takes us a long time to acquire information or a short time, the fact that we have to accept information from external sources shows that every one of us is flawed.

Intelligence is determined by how the information absorbed is used. Brahmanas possess the most valuable knowledge, because they know that the living beings are Brahman, or pure spirit. Therefore not only is every human being equal in their constitution, but so is every living entity, from the tiny ant all the way up to the denizens of heaven, the celestial figures that are in charge of the various departments of the material creation. The correct Sanskrit term is dehinam, or embodied, to describe the condition of the sparks of Brahman that roam the material land in different body types.

“That knowledge by which one undivided spiritual nature is seen in all existences, undivided in the divided, is knowledge in the mode of goodness.” (Lord Krishna, Bhagavad-gita, 18.20)

A brahmana surveys everything with an equal vision acquired through austerity, penance and sacrifice. These activities are taken up with a purpose; to remain tied to the Supreme Lord, the origin of Brahman. A Rakshasa, on the other hand, is not very intelligent. They delight in eating animal flesh, including human carcasses, and drinking wine incessantly. Both the spiritualist and the drug addict are looking to escape the influence of the senses that is concomitant with an embodied existence, but the addict finds an illusory escape, one which only sharpens the fangs of the dangerous material senses. The spiritualist, on the other hand, follows authorized methods passed down in the Vedas, the ancient scriptures of India, to remove the teeth from the serpent-like senses. Thus both persons can appear to be exactly the same on the outside, with one feeling perpetual misery from being constantly bitten, while the other lives peacefully in full knowledge of their constitutional position and the spirit soul’s superiority over the material energy.

How did a Rakshasa and a brahmana produce a son then? The sage Vishrava was engaged in meditation when he was interrupted by a Rakshasa woman who wanted to bear a child with him. She was sent to Vishrava by her father for this very purpose, as the Rakshasa clan had just been routed out of the beautiful island of Lanka. Vishrava was angered over having his meditation broken, so he cursed the woman to get her wish. She would get a son through him, but that child would be the vilest creature around. When the time of birth came, this son emerged with a ghastly visage having ten heads. He was thus known by names such as Dashanana and Dashagriva.

His influential powers came later on when he propitiated the first created living entity, Lord Brahma. Dashagriva’s mother saw that Kuvera, her husband’s son begotten through a different woman, was living very opulently due to benedictions he received from the demigods. Therefore she wanted her sons to have the same abilities. She instructed her sons Dashanana, Kumbhakarna and Vibhishana to perform austerities to please Lord Brahma. Kumbhakarna had a slip of the tongue and mistakenly asked for the benediction to be able to sleep for months at a time, while Vibhishana asked to be devoted to piety. Dashanana received amazing strength, invincibility in battle against seemingly every type of creature. He made the mistake of not asking for immunity from human beings. This would cost him later on.

Using his powers for evil, Dashanana went on a reign of terror. After pleasing Lord Shiva, the Rakshasa received the name Ravana, which means one who has a terrorizing roar. Things got so bad because of Ravana’s work that the saintly class started worrying that maybe the world had been turned over to evil for good. The rishis residing in the forests not bothering anyone would have their sacrifices interrupted by Ravana and his Rakshasas congregated in Lanka. They would do more than just disrupt the religious practices of the saints. They would kill the saints and then eat their flesh. In this way Ravana proved to be the vilest of creatures, the worst of the worst. The demigods finally petitioned Lord Vishnu, the Supreme Lord in His personal form, to come to earth and deal with the situation. He would descend as a human being so that Ravana would be killed while the boons granted to him by Brahma would stay protected.

God would appear on earth as Lord Rama, the noble, handsome, pious, kind, and dedicated eldest son of the King of Ayodhya, Maharaja Dasharatha. True to his nature, Ravana would find a way to bother even Rama, though the Lord never bothered anyone. Lakshmana, Rama’s younger brother, once remarked that even the people punished by Rama could not find fault in Him. This was because they knew that Rama did not play favorites when administering justice, that He never unjustly punished any person. This fact made Ravana’s act of taking away Rama’s wife Sita all the more vile.

Rama couldn’t be defeated by Ravana’s 14,000 attacking Rakshasa warriors sent to the forest of Dandaka, and neither would the Lord remain on the sidelines when His wife went missing. Ravana took Sita away through a backhanded plot, which ironically sealed his doom at the same time. Sita’s kidnap gave Rama the excuse needed to take on Ravana and thus satisfy the desire of the saintly class. Even with Rama’s amazing mastery of archery, His ability to shoot arrows that were like nuclear weapons in strength, there was still some doubt as to the final outcome; such is the nature of embodied living. We know that life will go on after a particular sporting event takes place, but we still get nervous during the critical moments when watching. The air of uncertainty is always there in a land where birth and death take place in repeating cycles.

The uncertainty in the minds of the nervous onlookers was strengthened by the fact that during the final battle between Rama and Ravana, the demon king seemed to be unbeatable. Rama kept lopping off his many arms and heads, and yet Ravana just kept growing new ones. Such amazing creatures aren’t seen today, so the historical accounts found in the Ramayana may seem like mythology, but as the saints so nicely point out, the wonderful displays of strength and ability from beings in this world are nothing compared to what God can do. Even the Supreme Lord’s personal exhibition of strength represents but a tiny fragment of what He is truly capable of. Therefore it was not that surprising to see Ravana continually regenerate new heads and arms.

Rama’s army consisted of monkeys fighting with rocks and uprooted trees, while Ravana’s army was full of Rakshasas expert in black magic. It didn’t seem like a fair fight, but Rama’s side was winning nonetheless. In the final battle, when it seemed like there was no way that Ravana would be killed, that even Rama couldn’t defeat him, the Lord took out His most powerful arrow, one passed down from Lord Brahma, a weapon that previously belonged to Agastya Rishi. Chanting the proper mantras as He drew the arrow to His bow, Rama released the powerful weapon, which marked the culmination of the intense struggle with Ravana, an arrow that allayed the fears of the fighting monkeys, the saintly class of men and the celestials watching from above. Penetrating Ravana’s body, that arrow ended the demon’s life and any chances the Rakshasas had of victory.

After Ravana was slain, Rama’s friends and well-wishers fighting for His side congregated around Him and praised His achievement. The scene was reminiscent of Lord Indra, the king of heaven, being surrounded by the celestial fighters after a victory over the asuras, or demons. Up until this point in time Rama had endured so much for others. He went to the forest for fourteen years to maintain the good name of His father, who had promised two boons to his youngest wife Kaikeyi. Rama took Sita and Lakshmana with Him because they insisted on coming along. The Lord fought 14,000 Rakshasas all by Himself to protect the saints in the forests. The Lord killed the monkey-king Vali so that His friend Sugriva would no longer live in fear. He accepted an estranged Vibhishana into His camp and installed him on the throne of Lanka even before Ravana’s death. He worshiped the sun-god at the behest of Agastya just prior to the final battle with Ravana, and He even took out His most potent arrow only after His charioteer suggested it.

Dussehra is Rama’s day. On that battlefield many thousands of years ago the Lord did away with the most nefarious creature ever to have roamed the sacred earth, and He proved once again that the songs of the Vedas and the words of the saints are not empty, that God does protect those who surrender unto Him in earnest. On Dussehra we remember, honor and cherish Shri Rama in His beautiful form, smiling and holding His bow and arrow. Rama never asks anything from anyone, but if someone is devoted to Him, He promises to stand by them. Because He removes the fears of the devotees, He is known as Hari. Because His name is as powerful as the arrows that fly from His bow, the devotees craving His association regularly chant the holy names, “Hare Krishna Hare Krishna, Krishna Krishna, Hare Hare, Hare Rama Hare Rama, Rama Rama, Hare Hare”.

In Closing:

See Rama’s face that is always smiling,

In His hands bow and arrow He is holding.

The saints and the innocent He is protecting,

Their honor and fame always worth defending.

Ravana, he of scream that is terrorizing,

Sacrifices of saints he given to destroying.

Received boons from Brahma, lord of creating,

So that none in battle him would be defeating.

Immunity from all creatures he got from asking,

Would pay the price for human beings forgetting.

In the form of Shri Rama, of beauty logic defying,

Would come Ravana’s doom, end of life approaching.

Through a fierce fight, after many arrows went flying,

Rama released Brahma’s weapon, Ravana’s chest penetrating.

Dussehra is day for Rama’s glories to be celebrating,

Remember the Lord and His entourage through His names chanting.

Radhashtami 2011

“Shrimati Radharani is most dear to Lord Krishna, and Her lake known as Radha-kunda is also very dear to Him. Of all the gopis, Shrimati Radharani is certainly the most beloved.” (Padma Purana)

Radhashtami is the anniversary of the appearance day of Shrimati Radharani, the eternal consort of Lord Krishna, the Supreme Personality of Godhead. The thrill felt by lovers courting one another, playing jokes and enjoying each other’s company, is found in its purified form in the intimate dealings between Radha and Krishna. To understand the transcendental nature of their interactions and derive the full benefit from hearing about them, one must be very fortunate. Without a properly situated consciousness, the conditioned mind will take Radha and Krishna’s interactions to be similar to the boyfriend and girlfriend dealings we are accustomed to seeing. Yet, just like the expensive antiques in the living room of the house, the pastimes between Radha and Krishna are meant to be enjoyed by those who understand its value. Put the priceless vase in the hands of children and they are liable to break it, not understanding its importance. With the benediction of wonderful holidays like Radhashtami on the Vaishnava calendar, any person can become familiar with Shrimati Radharani and her important position as Krishna’s most beloved.

If you are God and you have someone who makes you extremely happy, it would make sense that your devotees would love her very much as well. We can just imagine the divine character of that pleasure-giving person, how many wonderful qualities they have. The Shri Chaitanya Charitamrita of Krishnadasa Kaviraja Gosvami lists some of Radharani’s most important qualities. She appeared on this earth as the daughter of King Vrishabhanu and Mother Kirtida. The exact sequence of events relating to her appearance can vary by creation. The variations found in Vedic literature do not give evidence to the theory that the information is just mythology or hyped up stories. On the contrary, as the creation and destruction of the earth and other material planets go through repeating cycles, the exact sequence of events pertaining to the pastimes of Lord Krishna and His associates isn’t always the same.

This also reveals why there are sometimes variations in the telling of the Ramayana, which describes the life and pastimes of Lord Rama, one of Krishna’s most famous incarnations. Indeed, even Goswami Tulsidas, who is sometimes criticized for having differences in his Ramacharitamanasa, provides a few different details in his other shorter poem on the same subject matter called the Gitavali. Was he not aware that he contradicted himself? Was he not aware that his versions of the events of Rama’s life differed slightly from what was found in the original Ramayana composed by Maharishi Valmiki? Obviously not, as the Lord doesn’t follow exactly the same behavior every single day. Just as our day is measured by the movement of the sun, the length of the creation is equated to one day of Lord Brahma, who is the creator. In each day of Brahma, there are cycles of the different yugas, with the sun that is Krishna appearing at similar times in each cycle. Though the spiritual sun that is Krishna doesn’t always follow the same path through the sky, the majority of the events relating to His pastimes occurs at similar times and follows similar patterns.

“By human calculation, a thousand ages taken together is the duration of Brahma’s one day. And such also is the duration of his night.” (Lord Krishna, Bhagavad-gita, 8.17)

With Shrimati Radharani’s appearance, the earth was graced with the lotus feet of Krishna’s beloved. Around five thousand years ago the two roamed the sacred land of Vrajabhumi, performing wonderful pastimes together, many of which are documented in the Shrimad Bhagavatam, the crown jewel of Vedic literature. That the heartwarming tale of Radha and Krishna is included in this sacred work is enough to give it superior status. Though Vedic literature is quite vast and comprehensive, one needn’t study every single scriptural work to find full enlightenment. Rather, just lending an ear to the Bhagavatam and having an open mind when learning about Krishna, His beauty, His pastimes and the glories of His associates are enough to attain all the knowledge necessary in life.

Even if one isn’t given to hearing about Krishna, by visiting a place of pilgrimage, a tirtha, and taking bath in its sacred waters so many sins accumulated over many past lifetimes in the material world can be washed away. The soul is eternal, but the bodies it occupies are not. Just as our clothes get worn out and dirty over time, the dwellings occupied by the soul undergo development and decay. The sins accumulated are rooted in desire, with the consciousness not wanting to return to its constitutional position of pure loving devotion to the Supreme Lord. The inkling towards love is always there; but in the absence of bhakti, or pure devotion, it manifests in so many other forms. Only in bhakti-yoga, or devotional service, does the loving propensity find a tangible outlet, a recipient who can never be smothered, a person who will never scorn the lover, a person who will instead find ways to increase the devotee’s attachment.

One of the most famous tirthas for devotees of Krishna is Radha-kunda. Adjacent to this is Shyama-kunda. These are the famous ponds dear to Radha and Krishna, and the story of how they came about is quite heartwarming. When Krishna appeared in Mathura in the prison cell of King Kamsa, He was immediately transferred to the neighboring farm community of Vrindavana, where He would be safe from the king’s wicked plots. A prophecy had warned Kamsa that his sister Devaki’s eighth son would kill him. Not taking any chances, the king locked up his sister and her husband Vasudeva in prison. With each son they produced, Kamsa came and threw the infant against a stone wall. He was anxiously awaiting Devaki’s eighth son to appear so that he could keep the tradition going.

Lord Krishna had arranged everything perfectly, so the prophecy was real and could not be reversed. Krishna decided to grow up in Vrindavana, though, to grace the residents there with His presence, for His childhood form and activities are the most attractive. Just imagine how much joy we get from watching our young sons, daughters, nieces, nephews and grandchildren play around the house and try to learn to walk and talk. Add the Supreme Personality of Godhead and His immediate expansion Lord Balarama to the mix, and what you get is the unmatched pleasure felt by the residents of Vrajabhumi.

To increase the transcendental satisfaction felt, there were many episodes involving danger, with Krishna able to save the day every time. Kamsa found out that Devaki’s child had made it to Vrindavana, so he sent demon after demon there to try to kill Him. One took the form of a bull and was named Arishtasura. He was killed easily by Krishna, but the Lord’s gopi friends were a little concerned with the manner of the slaying. The cowherd girls of the town were especially devoted to Krishna. Among the gopis, Shrimati Radharani was the chief, as she enjoyed Krishna’s company the most and had captured His heart.

A unique aspect of the mood of devotion practiced by the gopis is that they fly pass the stage of having reverence for God. For celebrity athletes and movie stars, it’s nice having adoring fans, but having peers and equals is more enjoyable because they allow for the exchanges of emotion to be more real. In devotional service, the transcendental mellows followed by the gopis are the topmost because they are more intimate than the reverential spirit usually reserved for God, who is the supreme powerful. It is not that one should just casually address Krishna and treat Him as an equal without cause. Rather, when the love is so strong, the attachment will be there no matter what, so there is no need to fear Krishna’s punishments, for He is like the dearest family member.

After Krishna killed the bull demon, the gopis were concerned that His sin of killing a bull would spread to the rest of the residents. Therefore they started thinking of a way to become absolved of this sin. While they were walking about, they ran into Shri Krishna, who was very happy about having saved the town from Arishtasura. When they saw Him, the gopis immediately chided Him. Shrimati Radharani told Him to stay away because He was contaminated by sin. Can we imagine saying such a thing? Krishna is the embodiment of purity. Sin only gets introduced when one is not tied to Krishna. The root cause of the material creation is forgetfulness of God, which thus forms the original sin. Since Krishna is the object of worship, He is incapable of behaving impiously.

The sentiments from Radharani were rooted in the most heartfelt emotions though. These sorts of insults gave great pleasure to Krishna, as it allowed Him to fire back with His own witty retorts. He told Radha that what He had killed was not actually a bull, but a demon in the guise of a bull. Therefore there could not be any sin attached to the demon’s slaying. Radharani, ever the wise Vedic scholar, quickly responded by referencing King Indra’s slaying of Vritrasura. Vritrasura was also a demon, but by birth he was a brahmana. Therefore Indra, the king of heaven, had to suffer the sin of having killed a brahmana, which is actually one of the most grievous transgressions one can make.

Radharani thus won this short, playful debate. When Krishna wanted to know how He could become absolved of the “sin”, Radha informed Him that He had to take a bath in all the sacred rivers. At this point Krishna gave up His fake humility and scoffed at her suggestion. Why would He need to visit any holy places? He is the Supreme Lord after all, so He can bring the sacred waters of the world to wherever He goes. Kicking the ground, the Lord was able to make a small ditch that soon filled up with Ganga water. Then the most sacred tirtha waters from around the world poured into the hole as well. Krishna then took His bath in front of the gopis, as if to show them He was now pure. After Radha downplayed this by saying that it was simply a display of Krishna’s illusion, to remove any doubt, the Lord then summoned the sacred rivers to reveal themselves.

As the pastimes of Radha and Krishna completely delight the mind, it’s not surprising what happened next. Rather than accept that Krishna had now been purified and agree to His invitation to enter His newly created pond, Radha and the gopis claimed that the water had become contaminated by Krishna’s sins. Therefore if they were to step into His kunda, or pond, they would be infected with His sin. Radha then saw a hole in the ground nearby which had been created by the hoof print of Arishtasura. Taking her bangles, she started digging her own hole to be used as a bathing place. The many gopis that were there followed suit by using their bangles for digging as well. After the hole was made, they needed to fill it with water. The gopis were ready to travel far and wide to bring water from all the sacred places. Seeing their steady resolve, Krishna Himself summoned the same sacred rivers to come and fill Radha’s ditch.

With her kunda now built, Shri Krishna used His flute to break the dam separating the two ponds. The Lord then took a swim in the new Radha-kunda and declared its water to be sacred. These two bathing places still exist in Vrindavana, and devotees take tremendous delight in bathing in them, as there are tremendous spiritual merits accumulated from contact with these waters. Just as Radha is dear to Krishna, so is her bathing place of Radha-kunda. And Shyama-kunda is right next to it, so just by mentally taking a dip in both waters one can keep the image of Shri Shri Radha and Krishna in their minds for a long time. The aim of human life is to always remember the Lord and His dearmost associates. Among the devotees, none are dearer to Krishna than the gopis. And among the gopis, Shrimati Radharani is the best, for she gives so much pleasure to Krishna that He is fully surrendered to her. On Radhashtami we remember Krishna’s beloved, and we pray that she may have mercy on us and give us the boon of Krishna-bhakti, so that we may never forget the divine pastimes of Kishora-kishori and their sacred land of Vrajabhumi.

In Closing:

Shrimati Radharani to Krishna is most dear,

Her pastimes with the Lord pleasing to the ear.

On her appearance day her divine nature we remember,

Krishna’s spiritual senses enthralled just by seeing her.

One time after killing bull demon did Krishna walk,

On the way He saw the gopis, with whom did He talk.

Radha chastised Him, saying He was now contaminated,

For killing a bull, injunction of shastras He had violated.

“In holy waters Your body You must dip,

To become free of the sin, to tirthas take a trip.”

Instead, Shri Krishna made a hole in the ground with His heel,

Filling it with sacred waters, thrill of victory did He feel.

But Radha was not impressed, hoof print of Arishtasura she found,

Using their bangles to dig, by gopis large hole was made in the ground.

Krishna then summoned sacred rivers to fill Radha’s kunda,

New pond was loved by Him, found next to His Shyama-kunda.

On Radhashtami we remember Radharani and her beloved pond,

Of hearing of her love for Shri Krishna we are forever fond.

Vyasa Puja 2011

“I offer my respectful obeisances unto all the Vaishnava devotees of the Lord. They can fulfill the desires of everyone, just like desire trees, and they are full of compassion for the fallen souls.” (Vaishnava-pranama)

It is the settled conclusion of the Vedic seers that the greatest benediction in life is to have the association of saints. More specifically, if the dust coming from the lotus feet of the guru, or spiritual master, can be accepted just one time, there is no counting the number of spiritual merits, or sukriti, that follows. Just humbly submitting before any person is difficult enough, so the need for surrendering before a human being recognized for his wisdom and knowledge of spiritual matters takes many lifetimes to accept. But to those who do find the bona fide guru and bask in his association, the benefits reaped are too many to count, and the credit for the subsequent success goes directly to the spiritual master and his teachers. Since the guru can never be fully appreciated for his impact, occasions like Vyasa Puja allow for some time to reflect on the mercy of the spiritual master and what he is capable of.

A puja is a formalized worship, wherein obeisances are offered to the beneficiary of the ceremony. Vyasa refers to Vyasadeva, the literary incarnation of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Lord Krishna. The Vedas are the oldest scriptures in existence, and since they emanate directly from Krishna and describe devotion to Him, they are considered non-different from Him. As the Vedas were originally just one work consisting of prayers and hymns, they could only be understood by the purest men. As time passes from the beginning of creation, man’s ability to think critically and retain relevant pieces of information dwindles. Therefore Vyasadeva comes to divide the Vedas and write supplementary literature known as the Puranas. Vyasadeva compiled so much literature that some people refuse to believe that he even existed. Proof of his influence and divine nature is seen, however, in the behavior and glories of his disciples and their descendants. The bona fide spiritual master is one whose line of instruction is either linked to Vyasa or at least reaches the same conclusion that he put forth, that life’s aim is to worship the Supreme Lord Hari, the original Personality of Godhead.

Interestingly enough, having the audience of a pure devotee is considered a greater blessing than actually meeting the Lord in person. Shri Narada Muni, the spiritual master of Vyasadeva, was blessed through good association, as was Valmiki, who was originally a dacoit. Meeting the Supreme Lord in person is certainly a terrific reward, but, at the same time, it doesn’t automatically lead to one’s knowing how to act and what their true nature is. The devotee, on the other hand, lives bhakti-yoga, or devotional service, therefore they are deputed by the Supreme Lord to teach others about what they have learned and how to make the most out of the human form of life.

The spirit soul is the essence of identity within any life form, but only with a human birth can the soul take the necessary steps to reacquaint itself with its true dharma, or foremost characteristic. One who takes instruction from a brahmana, or a priest devoted to real religion, earns the title of dvija, or one who is twice-born. The first birth is from the parents, but this doesn’t automatically awaken the dormant God consciousness resting within the heart. The instruction provided by the spiritual master gives the second and more important birth. The rekindling of the torchlight of knowledge that is part and parcel of the soul is the more important giver of life. Since this birth comes from the guru, how can his glories ever be fully appreciated?

Since man is forgetful of his constitutional position, those who accept the instructions of the spiritual master and take them to heart will acquire tremendous skills. The guru’s primary teaching is that one devote themselves to bhakti-yoga. The quintessential act of bhakti is the chanting of the holy names, “Hare Krishna Hare Krishna, Krishna Krishna, Hare Hare, Hare Rama Hare Rama, Rama Rama, Hare Hare”. There are other spiritual teachers who provide different instructions, such as how to do meditational yoga, how to study Vedanta, and how to work without attachment to the results. These instructions can be beneficial, but they fail to extract the full potential for love found within the soul.

It is for this reason that the dust of the lotus feet of the devotee is considered life’s greatest blessing. In the Vedic tradition there are many sacred places of pilgrimage known as tirthas. Just by visiting these places, so many benedictions are guaranteed. These spots are related to Lord Vishnu in some way or another. Vishnu is another name for Krishna which means the “all-pervading”. In His Vishnu form, the Lord is opulently adorned and has four hands instead of two. The sacred pilgrimage sites are full of saints, who use the auspicious surroundings to increase the efficacy of their service. This shows how pure the Supreme Lord is. Any ordinary river is not that important, but one attached to Vishnu becomes visited by millions of people each year. Similarly, there are tons of teachers and devotees of objects not related to God, but they are not given the attention that the saints are, those who are intimately associated with Bhagavan, the Supreme Lord fully endowed with every beneficial attribute.  The potential to meet saints is the real benefit of visiting a tirtha, as the relationship with Vishnu fully matures through their association.

The guru can be considered the travelling tirtha, as he brings with him the auspiciousness found in the sacred pilgrimage sites. This auspiciousness is present in every aspect of the spiritual master, including the dust that comes from his feet. The lotus feet of the guru are the cherished objects for the devotee because they symbolize the proper way to approach God. Through humility, kind submission, and service to one who is deserving of it, true enlightenment can be revealed.

What is the result of following the chanting prescriptions and the restrictions on meat eating, gambling, intoxication and illicit sex? As Krishna consciousness awakens from within, many new abilities arise. All of a sudden the person who was previously dumb, lazy, and harboring a hateful attitude can produce volumes upon volumes of literature praising their beloved Lord and His devotees. They may not even have had any formal training in writing, grammar, or composition. They may even have done poorly during their school years in these subjects. Yet simply from hearing Krishna-katha, talks about Shri Krishna, and the beauty of devotional service from the guru, the humble soul can become an expert reciter, never running out of material to share with the general public.

When someone becomes skilled in a particular field, it’s not surprising that they would garner a lot of attention. The Vaishnava poets, singers and writers are the most glorified, for their fame stretches the full boundaries of time and space. Their glories know no end, and they continue to be honored and worshiped long after they physically leave the earth. The real credit for superexcellent ability in spiritual endeavors actually goes to the guru, for without his planting of the seed of the creeper of devotional service, bhakti-lata-bija, the full blown tree of transcendental ecstasy and its resultant fruits would never have manifest.

If the guru is due credit for the wonderful writings of his disciples, how can he ever be properly honored? With each new work produced the guru’s fame and glory further increase. In this respect, His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada is worthy of endless adoration. Not only did he personally accept thousands of disciples during his time on earth, through his published works and recorded lectures he continues to rescue those swimming in the sea of nescience. So many past lives have been spoiled pursuing sense gratification, but Shrila Prabhupada doesn’t hold this against anyone. His message comes directly from Krishna, so it is very powerful and can turn even the biggest fool into a genius.

An issue of contention may be raised regarding the negative traits exhibited by disciples and devotees who took instruction from a guru. If a saint deserves the credit for the wonderful qualities of his disciples, including the brilliance of their writings, shouldn’t he then be blamed for their shortcomings? Though this seems logical enough, the rules don’t apply equally. To explain this the example most often cited is that of fire and its production of smoke. Fire is a purifying agent, as it can disintegrate pretty much anything. Though the fire can produce smoke, which is impure, the fire itself never loses its properties. Similarly, the guru may have some errant disciples who can be compared to smoke, but this doesn’t diminish his standing whatsoever.

Isn’t this a cop out though? The guru gets the credit for all the good, but then gets none of the blame for the bad? How does this make any sense? Let’s think of it this way: The bad qualities are always there in a person. By “bad”, we refer to anything that is divorced of its relationship to God. A sinful reaction is really just the negative consequence to doing something incorrectly. Since we know that the spirit soul’s original home is in the spiritual sky alongside God in His personal form, any soul who takes birth in a realm governed by reincarnation must be considered sinful. Moreover, from our present birth we know that in the past we failed to become fully God conscious by the time of death.

“Whatever state of being one remembers when he quits his body, that state he will attain without fail.” (Lord Krishna, Bhagavad-gita, 8.6)

The Bhagavad-gita, Krishna’s direct instructions offered on the battlefield of Kurukshetra some five thousand years ago, reveals that whatever state of mind we have at the time of death, that state we will attain without fail. Since our present birth is in a human form, where we are born ignorant of the Supreme Lord’s divine nature and the need for worshiping Him, by rule our consciousness at the time of our previous death was not focused on God. Thus every material birth is sinful, with man having an innate tendency towards following bad habits.

The bona fide guru is thus not responsible for the sinful behavior in man. This penchant is already given to us at the time of birth, or, more accurately, it is provided to us through our wishes. The guru teaches devotional service and how to throw away attachment to sinful activity. If, after taking instruction from him, the sinful behavior continues, it should be understood that the root elements of desire for material association remained, sort of like the last flames of a raging fire that has almost been put out. If the guru doesn’t teach attachment to sinful behavior, how can he be blamed for the mistakes made by his disciples?

The glories of the guru are too many to count. His presence in our lives is directly due to Krishna’s intervention. Those who sincerely desire to have the Lord’s association and be able to think of Him without fail will never be denied. That precious dust from the lotus feet of the spiritual master will come soon enough. No greater gift can be found in this world than the association of saints. On this Vyasa Puja day we honor and remember one of the more notable saints in modern times, Shrila Prabhupada, who lives on forever through his recorded instructions.