CONTENTS:
- The Holy Name, Part 4;
- Srila Prabhupada's Appreciation;
- Guru Maharaja’s Instructions;
1. THE HOLY NAME PART 4
So Gopa-kumara because he received this mantra and instruction from his guru that this is the most precious thing so following his instruction he started to chant the mantra and meditate upon the mantra. Then Gopakumara lost interest for everything. He developed such attachment to chanting of this mantra that he lost interest in playing with his friends, tending the cows. He lost interest in everything, all he wanted was to just chant the mantra. He felt that everything else is an impediment to his chanting: his friends, his surrounding, his family so he decided to leave that place. So, he left and he started to wonder around and travel. While travelling he came to a kingdom and there he found a beautiful temple of the Lord. He found that the king actually built the temple and the king takes care of the worship of the Lord in such a wonderful way as if that is the most important business the king actually had. Gopa-kumara was very happy to be there, now he is in a place where he can see the Lord, he can see how the Lord is being served. How wonderfully the Lord is being worshipped so Gopa-kumara decided to stay there. And he just stayed there, throughout the day he would watch the Lord and how He was being worshipped, then in the evening he would just sleep in some corner of the temple. And that is how he was spending his time very happily, chanting the mantra, meditating upon the mantra, watching how the Lord is being worshipped, he was very happily spending his time.
In the meantime, the king died and the king did not have any successor to the throne. So, the minister started to look for an appropriate person to become the king. Whilst searching for an appropriate successor to the throne they found that all the divine and auspicious symptoms are in the personality of this Gopa-kumara so they made him the king. Although he became the king he was not interested in the pleasure and luxuries of the kingdom. He was simply concerned about serving the Lord and arranging for the Lord’s worship and to spread the glory of the Lord to all his citizens. He would see that people who would come to the temple, the pilgrims and his citizens were not so respectful to the Lord sometimes and they were not so respectful to the Prasad, they would think, “Oh this Prasad is stale” so they would throw away the Prasad. Seeing that Gopa-kumara used to feel very heart-broken. Then he got to know that there is a place called Purusottama-ksetra, where the Lord’s Prasad is never considered to be stale or rotten or unacceptable. Under all circumstances people take that Prasad of Lord Jaganatha in whichever condition it maybe. Hearing that he became eager to see Lord Jaganatha so he left his kingdom and he went to Purusottama-ksetra. There also he started to spend his time just in the temple and he saw how Lord Jaganatha is so merciful and His Prasad is being so respectfully honoured by the pilgrims and this is how he was spending his time in Jaganatha Puri.
In an ecstatic way he was spending his time there in the presence of Lord Jaganatha. There also the king died and the king’s eldest son did not want to become the king so his ministers also found that Gopa-kumara was the right candidate to become the king. So, we can see how honest people used to be in those days. Ministers are looking for an appropriate person to become the king. Now what would happen? First of all, there is no king and if the king died the minister would become king, he would be the first one to take over the kingdom. Anyway, Gopa-kumara again became the king there in Jaganatha Puri. So Gopa-kumara again was ruling the kingdom was not at all interested in the pleasure and luxury of becoming the king. Gopa-kumara’s main concern was to serve the Lord. Then Gopakumara got to know about the Svargaloka, the Kingdom of heaven and how the Lord is present personally and accepts the worship of Indra personally, like if Indra offer Him something, He takes it with His own hand. Indra is there and the Lord is the younger brother of Indra, Upendra, upa means sub or junior, so He is Indra’s younger brother. So Gopa-kumara became interested to see how Indra is worshipping the Lord and how the Lord is accepting the offerings of Indra.
As Gopa-kumara desired to go to Svargaloka. So, this is the potency of the mantra, you chant the mantra and as a result of the mantra your desire becomes fulfilled. So, because of the potency of chanting the mantra he was elevated to Svargaloka, heavenly planets. He was spending his time there not interested in the pleasure and other facilities that are available there, he was simply interested in seeing how Indra is worshipping the Lord and how the Lord is accepting this worship. Now there one day Indra became afraid of some Brahamana’s curse and he ran away from Svargaloka so the throne of heaven became vacant. So, the demi-gods headed by Brhaspati (their Guru) they appointed Gopakumara as Indra so Gopa-kumara became Indra. He started to spend his time as Indra ruling over the demi-gods and controlling the affairs of this material nature but Gopa-kumara was not interested in any kind of luxury and comfort. Sometimes some people became Indra but they got into trouble because of their tendency to enjoy there. But we find that Gopa-kumara was not at all interested, he didn’t even stay in the palace of Indra. There is garden in heaven called nandankana, he used to spend his night there and sleep in that garden. During the day he was spending his time for various affairs and worship of the Lord. One day Gopa-kumara saw some very brilliant personalities who came there, they were brilliant as the sun so effulgent. He wondered who are these people and Brhaspati told him that these are the exalted sages from the higher planetary systems Bhrgu, Atri, Marici, Angira, Pulaha, and Pulastya. So Gopa-kumara wanted to know there are some other planets higher than this? Brhaspati gave him the description of the next planetary system, Maharloka. Gopa-kumara hearing about Maharloka, he desired to go there and due to the potency of the mantra he was elevated to Maharloka.
Then he saw there that were exalted sages performing sacrifice to the Lord and from the sacrificial fire the Lord would appear and He would grant the wishes of everyone. Naturally they did not desire anything except service to His lotus feet. Then all of a sudden that place became very hot so he wondered what happened? Then he got to know the time of annihilation has come and the fire coming from Shankarshan’s mouth is burning everything and that heat even reached up to Maharloka.
2. SRILA PRABHUPADA'S APPRECIATION
Srila Prabhupada’s stay in Calcutta was extremely busy. He knew a lot of people there, and many of them came to see him. One afternoon a few reporters came to interview him, appreciative of his achievements in the West. “Srila Prabhupada,” said one, “what you have done is unprecedented. Never in history has such a thing happened. Within such a short time a spiritual movement has spread all over the world. Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu spread this movement only throughout India, but you have spread it all over the world.” “No,” Prabhupada replied. “What I have done is simply due to the mercy of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu and my Guru Maharaja. They have actually done everything. They simply let me have the credit.”
(Excerpt from Ocean of Mercy page 90, a book written by HH Bhakti Charu Swami)
3. GURU MAHARAJA’S INSTRUCTIONS
The way to pray to the Lord in this age is to chant the holy name that is why we chant all the time and ask others to chant the holy name.
(The content of this E-magazine is based on a lecture given by His Holiness Bhakti Charu Swami on 19th June 2017)
(Compiled and Edited by Hemavati Radhika Dasi)