Verse: Srimad Bhagvatam 11.19.27
Transcription: HG Radhikeshwari Mataji
Editing: HG Shyamsundar Krishna Das and Bh. Sampada Soni
dharmo mad-bhakti-kṛt prokto
jñānaṁ caikātmya-darśanam
guṇesv asaṅgo vairāgyam
aiśvaryaṁ cāṇimādayaḥ
Synonyms:
dharmaḥ — religion; mat — My; bhakti — devotional service; kṛt — producing; proktaḥ — it is declared; jñānam — knowledge; ca — also; aikātmya — the presence of the Supreme Soul; darśanam — seeing; guṇeṣu — in the objects of sense gratification; asaṅgaḥ — having no interest; vairāgyam — detachment; aiśvaryam — opulence; ca — also; aṇimā — the mystic perfection called aṇimā; ādayaḥ — and so forth.
Translation:
Actual religious principles are stated to be those that lead one to My devotional service. Real knowledge is the awareness that reveals My all-pervading presence. Detachment is complete disinterest in the objects of material sense gratification, and opulence is the eight mystic perfections, such as aṇimā-siddhi.
Purport:
The Supreme Lord is perfect knowledge; thus one who has been delivered from ignorance automatically engages in the devotional service of the Lord and is called religious. One who becomes detached from the three modes of material nature and the gratificatory objects they produce is considered to be situated in detachment. The eight mystic yoga perfections, described previously by the Lord to Uddhava, constitute material power, or opulence, in the highest degree.
Lecture:
Devotees Faith in Krishna’s Pastimes
In the 11th canto, Krsna advised Uddhava to go to Badarikasrama. Uddhava understood that Krsna is going to withdraw His pastimes, Krsna told him that within seven days, the Yadus are going to kill themselves in a fight among themselves and then Krsna Himself will leave the planet. Actually, this fight between the Yadus is Krsna’s divine arrangement because in order to participate in His pastimes, He brought them from the spiritual sky - spiritual Dvaraka. Now that He is going to withdraw his pastimes, He is sending them back. The fact that they are fighting and killing each other, is just an arrangement of Yogamaya. Apparently, it seems that “O look! Krsna’s devotees, Krsna’s most intimate associates are fighting amongst themselves and killing each other.” However, the point is, Krsna does that, Krsna acts in this way, so that devotees’ faith in Him would increase and non-devotees’ disbelief in Him will increase. Therefore, when the devotees hear this, their reactions is, “Yadus are Krsna’s intimate association, how can they fight like this and kill each other?” They consider this as Krsna’s pastime. Then they marvel at Krsna’s pastimes, “Look, how wonderfully Krsna arranges pastimes” but non-believers and non-devotees will say, “Look, I told you, Krsna is just an ordinary person and Look, no civilized people will fight amongst themselves and kill.” Devotees will also consider what they fought with? They fought with weeds not even bamboos; you would have seen the weeds that grow in water, they are hollow inside, when you press it with two fingers, they break; they fought with such weeds and killed each other. This is how devotees wonder how amazing Krsna’s pastimes are; how amazing is the arrangement of Yogamaya; however non-devotees, especially atheists, will look at it in another way.
Krishna Comes to Give Association to His Pure Devotees
Anyway, Uddhava also wanted to go back with Krsna, and this desire is quite understandable because Uddhava used to be Krsna’s constant companion in Dvaraka and so much so that, Uddhava used to leave Krsna’s palace after Krsna had fallen asleep and Uddhava used to come back to attend Krsna before Krsna woke up. This is how intimate Uddhava was to Krsna and he was His most intimate associate. He was His minister, His dear most friend and he was also His cousin. Therefore, obviously, Uddhava wanted to go with Krsna but Krsna dissuaded him, He said, “No you stay here and go to Badarikasrama.” In this respect, Srila Visvanath Chakravarti Thakur made a point that when Krsna came, He came to give His association to devotees, paritranaya sadhunam although it says paritranaya means to protect the sadhus and vinasaya ca duskrtam, but this paritranay does not mean ‘give protection’; this means ‘association’. Krsna comes to give His association to His pure devotees who are trying to spread His glories. Then Krsna considered that He couldn’t go to Badarikasrama, He travelled around India but He did not go to Badarikasrama and there were some great saintly personalities like Nara Narayana, and others in Badarikasarma. Krsna felt that I haven’t given them my association; Thus, Krishna waned Uddhava to go there and give his association which is non-different from mine, because associating with Krsna and associating with Krsna’s very intimate devotee like Uddhava is non-different from Krsna’s association. Therefore, He decided that He would send Uddhava to Badarikasrama and then Krsna started to instruct him which is known as Uddhava gita.
Importance of Uddhav Gita
We must understand the importance of Uddhava Gita – In tenth canto, Krishna’s pastimes have been described. Krishna’s pastimes mean creation, sub-creation, maintenance of material nature, planetary systems, manvantar, reigns of Manus, liberation, freedom from material bondage and finally the ultimate shelter. Bhagavatam describes these ten aspects however Purana, Bhagavata Purana, Mahapurana has ten symptoms. In the tenth canto, Krsna, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, who is the supreme shelter, the shelter of even the incarnations, His activities have been described. After describing entire Srimad-Bhagavatam till tenth canto, now, Sukadeva Gosvami is giving the conclusion of Srimad-Bhagavatam in the eleventh canto. This is essential teachings of Srimad-Bhagavatam. Whatever has been described in these ten cantos, from one to ten, now comes the summary; what is the purpose - that has been described in the Uddhava Gita in the eleventh canto.
Purpose of Religious Principles: Devotional service to Krishna
In this verse, Krsna is telling Uddhava, “Actual religious principles are stated to be those, that lead one to My devotional service.” This has been mentioned in other parts of Srimad-Bhagavatam dharmaḥ svanuṣṭhitaḥ puṁsāṁ viṣvaksena-kathāsu yaḥ notpādayed yadi ratiṁ śrama eva hi kevalam. If dharmic or spiritual activities are performed that doesn’t increase or that doesn’t enable one to develop his attachment to Krsna, notpādayed yadi ratiṁ then śrama eva hi kevalam it is simply waste of time. The purpose of religion or religious principles is to render devotional service to Krsna. Real knowledge is the awareness that reveals his all-pervading presence. Therefore, religion means devotion to Krsna. Knowledge means the awareness that Krsna is all-pervading and one understands that vasudevam sarvam iti the all-pervading Supreme Personality of Godhead. “Real knowledge is the awareness that reveal my all-pervasive presence.” “I am present everywhere.” Krsna is saying this is the real knowledge.
Real Opulence: Eight Mystic Perfections?
Detachment is complete disinterest in the objects of material sense gratification. Detachment means no attraction to sense gratification and real opulence is the eight mystic perfections called asta-siddhis. These siddhis are very elevated opulence, it is one thing that one has a lot of wealth but if somebody has the ability to generate as much money as he wants, then whose position is superior – the person who has a lot of wealth or of that who can generate whole lot of money. Who is superior? [somebody says something] Right. “And real opulence is eight mystic perfection.” So, what these eight mystic perfections do? They enable a living entity to do something, to execute something that no amount of wealth in this world will be able to do. One siddhi is anima-siddhi: becoming very, very small. Prabhupada said this anima-siddhi enables one to become so small that he can enter the room through the keyhole; mahima: one becomes greater than the greatest, huge, one can become very big. When there was a description of Aghasura assuming such a big body, we understood that they have yoga-siddhis. laghima: he can become lighter than the feather, so light that he can fly, just, one can become so light that one can go up just like a gas balloon, prapti - one can get whatever he wants. Prakamya and isita, vasita and kama-vasayita: these are the eight opulence. No amount of material wealth are comparable to these opulence. Therefore, it has been said that “opulence is the eight mystic perfection that cannot be compared to material wealth.” So, as I mentioned the eight kinds of yogic siddhis are-anima, laghima, mahima, prakamya, prapti, ishita, vashita and kamavasayita.
[Guru Maharaj reads the purport again]
Purport. “The Supreme Lord is perfect knowledge; thus one who has been delivered from ignorance automatically engages in the devotional service of the Supreme Lord is called religious. When one becomes engaged in service of Krsna then only he can be considered as religious not otherwise. One who becomes detached from the three modes of material nature and the gratificatory objects they produce, is considered to be situated in detachment.”
Attachment to the Sole Proprietor: Krishna
To be situated in detachment means one has become completely free from the desire for sense gratification. Complete detachment. So, in this way we are seeing that Krsna is pointing out that dharma means religious activity, developing attachment to Krsna. What is real knowledge? Real knowledge is to see that the Lord is everywhere. And detachment is complete disinterest in the objects of material sense gratification. Krsna is asking us to develop these qualities. He wants us to become pious, become religious. He wants us to become situated in knowledge, become engaged in serving the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Detachment is complete disinterest in sense gratification. Real detachment is to be free from the objects of sense gratification. And real opulence is the eightfold mystic perfection- yoga-siddhi. It is easy for a devotee to become situated on that platform because the devotees naturally have acquired these qualities by developing their loving relationship with Krsna. You develop your loving relationship with Krsna, everything will be achieved. It has been described - yasmin vijnate sarvam evam vijnatam bhavati yasmin prapte sarvam idam praptam bhavati - knowing Him, everything becomes known, getting Him everything becomes achieved. Knowing Him everything becomes known; question may arise as to how is it possible? Just know Krsna and you get to know everything. The answer to that is because Krsna is the origin of everything, if you know Krsna then you know everything. In fact, Krsna is the sole proprietor of everything. Therefore, if you get Him then you get everything, there is nothing else to be hankering for. The important thing to remember is that Krsna should be the centre of all our activities. Krsna is not only be the proprietor but also the enjoyer, therefore, we should offer everything to Krsna; if He is the enjoyer then everything should be offered for His enjoyment. Thank you very much. Any question?
Question and Answer Session
Question: Guru Maharaj, devotees don’t care for asta-siddhis or eight perfections; they just want to serve Krsna. You mentioned in the class that once you know Krsna – dharmam tu saksad bhagavat pranitam and then knowing Krsna and then asta-siddhi so even though we know this knowledge why still we have some material attachment? Why it is still there?
HHBCS: Material attachment is there because firstly, it is very difficult to overcome material attachments. Especially, when we are materially conditioned in the material world, we are seeing material things, we are so involved in it, that it is difficult to overcome. The only way we can overcome this is by getting the higher taste and that is why we have to practice devotional service, cultivate devotional service to get the higher taste and when we get the higher taste then material attachment will automatically disappear. We won’t remain bound by material nature anymore. So that is why the importance is to get the higher taste and higher taste will come by practicing devotional service. We don’t have to go very far. Let us just practice devotional service and we will see that how even by staying at home one can practice devotional service, the result is, he will become free from material attachments. That is the goal of life.
We have to make arrangements so that we can become free by getting higher taste. It is difficult because we cannot see Krsna, but we see an object of sense gratification, therefore the tendency is to go towards the object of sense gratification because this is more real. Krsna makes a point here in the eleventh canto, that when one is dreaming, the dream is real to him, right? He doesn’t have any knowledge of this world at that time. Like for example he is dreaming that a tiger is attacking him. At that time, he doesn’t have any awareness that he is lying down on a comfortable bed in a palace, right? His actual situation is that he is on a comfortable bed in a palace but he is dreaming that he has been attacked by a tiger and he has been reacting to the dream, right? But when he wakes up, the dream disappears. Similarly, our situation is like that. We are dreaming what we are actually going through. We are dreaming that the tax people are coming, right? IRS people are coming, we are dreaming and we are trying to make all kinds of arrangements to save the situation, but actually it’s a dream. But when you wake up there is no IRS man, there is no tax implications, then I am in the spiritual sky. So, this is the difficulty. This is the reality that we are in and we are experiencing it. We can’t see the spiritual reality; we can’t touch it. The only way we can understand spiritual reality is when we hear about it. Just by hearing - that’s why sravanam. That’s why hearing is so important and therefore, the Vedic wisdom is known as sruti. That wisdom can be received only by hearing, not by any other means, sruti and the pantha is srota-pantha by hearing. Okay. Haribol. Yes.
Question: Second question on the same lecture you gave. Guru Maharaj it was a nice lecture. So you said vasudevam sarvam iti sa mahatma sudurlabah. So what are the practical examples you can give us that how we can perceive that Krsna is everywhere, Krsna’s presence everywhere?
HHBCS: Sruti, hearing and believing, you are seeing it and then you will be able to feel it, right?. Krsna is in the heart of everybody. Just as Krsna is in my heart, Krsna is in everyone’s heart and we see that being situated in our hearts, Krsna is fulfilling our desires. I am desiring something and I see wow its happening and its happening or we pray to Krsna and we get the result so that is our faith increasing. Yes, Krsna is there. So this is how by practicing devotional service we will get the tangible result and that result will increase our faith.
HHBCS: Any other question? Rupanuga do you have any question?
Question: Guru Maharaja in this verse there are four things mentioned- the first three are really attractive like devotional service to Krsna, real knowledge and detachment and the fourth one is opulence. Dwarkadish Prabhu was saying that devotees don’t really care about opulence. So, my question would have been that why is that mentioned in here? I also heard in one of the classes that devotees can use opulence to promote Krsna consciousness. You gave the example of Rasikananda Prabhu who flew .....
HHBCS: Yeah, but in order to use opulence we have to become mature, right? Say, a millionaire’s son has already inherited a million but do you give him the million when he is fourteen years old? What will he do with that million? He will have fantastic time with his teenage friends and that will be the end of his career, right? So that’s why the father won’t give him the money until he is mature, until he reaches his right maturity. That’s actually the point that devotees already have asta-siddhis, but Krsna is not giving it to us because we may not be able to use it properly, we may misuse it and misusing it may be harmful. Like you gave a real gun to a child and he holds it [Guru Maharaja pointing towards the head with his hand] and pulls the trigger, so that’s why the father has to be cautious. So Krsna does not give to us. In most cases, if we get the opulence then probably our spiritual life will be finished, so that’s why Krsna doesn’t give it to us until we really become able to use it in His service.
Question: So sometimes we see that some people are not qualified, they are not devotees but Krsna is giving them a lot of opulence all the time, even if they misuse it, they still get more.
HHBCS: Yeah, But Krsna is not giving them; Maya is giving them. Yes, they have a little bit of power and they become very famous; they are not speaking about Krsna; we see that nowadays. So many people have little bit of Vedic knowledge, you can say, little bit of Vedic knowledge and they are so popular. You don’t have to go very far. There is one guy in San Diego what’s his name? Deepak Chopra. He is so popular. I heard when he gives a lecture, people pay something like five thousand dollars to attend his lecture, but what is he giving. He is getting a lot of money but you may say, “Well! Why Iskcon devotees are not getting then?” Many people say that they went to Deepak Chopra’s lectures and there was nothing; He has nothing to say. What these people actually have? These people have mystic power and it is due to mystic power that people are becoming attracted. Same thing with Sai baba. Sai baba didn’t even have mystic powers; he used to manipulate ghosts, yeah, that is tantric power. Some people have mystic powers and innocent people become attracted to them, but the question is why devotees don’t have the power? Why Krsna is not giving devotees the power to attract people?
Two reasons: If the devotees get such powers, probably they, like the child will shoot themselves. They may shoot themselves in the foot if not on the head and the other thing is what is the point in attracting people those who want material benefit. These people who are running around him are after material benefit. We are not interested in people who are interested in material benefit. We want people to become qualified to receive Krsna Consciousness that means that they should be serious about spiritual benefit and after all what is money? What is the use of money or other opulence? What is the point in being smaller than the smallest, but for the sake of Krsna’s service, yes we are prepared to do that, like Hanuman, Hanuman had asta-siddhis and he used them in serving Lord Ramachandra. After coming across the ocean, coming to Lanka, Hanuman felt that if he assumed his original form, he will be very well detected because Lanka is very well guarded. So, he turns himself small, small as a cat and he climbed onto the wall and that’s how he entered into Lanka. He could make himself very big; he could make himself very small, but he did not do this for his sense gratification or get some cheap adoration. He did it to serve Krsna, serve Lord Ramachandra. So that is how the devotees use these powers; only for the sake of serving of Krsna. If it is not for serving Krsna even if they have it, they don’t want to use it.
Question: So we can easily say Srila Prabhupada was basically empowered and he had all those opulence, eight siddhis and he used those for Krsna’s service.
HHBCS: Yeah, yeah naturally. Prabhupada used to say that. I mean people are naturally interested in mystic power. What’s the expression? Miracle. People want to see miracle, right, and Prabhupada used to say: let them show a miracle like this, turning non devotees into devotees all over the world. What’s the point in producing a little ash or seiko-watch and things? Like turn them into devotees, that is the real display of mystic power. Young American boys and girls who were completely into sense gratification, they gave their sense gratification, shaved head, wearing kanthi-mala and tilak, following four regulative principles, spreading Krsna Consciousness all over the world. Like who has ever displayed that kind of miracle? Yes, Mahesh Yogi had lots of followers, but how many of his followers committed themselves completely so much so that they gave up everything and became his loyal servants.
[Somebody reading Question from Mayapur.tv from Ankit Vora]
Question: Hare Krsna Guru Maharaj. Please accept my humble obeisances. Guru Maharaj, what is origin of thoughts in our mind?
HHBCS: What kind of thought, Ankit? Okay, origin of Krsna Conscious thought is the association with a devotee of Krsna. We start to think about Krsna when we come across a devotee, then only we get to know about Krsna and start thinking of Krsna.
[Somebody saying: he says all kinds of thoughts.]
HHBCS: Yeah, there are two kinds of thoughts. All kind of thoughts, Ankit, can be classified into two kinds of thoughts- Krsna conscious thoughts and Mayic [pertaining to Maya] thoughts. So Krsna conscious thoughts begin or originate from our association with the devotees of Krsna and Mayic thoughts begin as soon as we turn away from Krsna; as soon as we turn our face away from Krsna, we start to think about maya. Maya means how to enjoy this world.
Any other question?
Hare Krsna. All glories to Srila Prabhupada!