CONTENTS:
1. WHO CAN BECOME A PURE DEVOTEE OF KRISHNA?;
2. SRILA PRABHUPADA APPRECIATION;
3. GURU MAHARAJA’S INSTRUCTIONS
1. WHO CAN BECOME A PURE DEVOTEE OF KRISHNA?;
sri bhagavan uvaca
mayy asakta manah partha yogam yunjan mad asrayah
asamsayam samagram mam yatha jnasyasi tac chrnu
Translation
"The Supreme Personality of Godhead said: Now hear o son of Prtha, how by practicing yoga in full consciousness of Me, with mind attached to Me, you can know Me in full, free from doubt." (BG 7.1)
What is the simple meaning of this verse? Your mind fully attached to me. What does it mean? When does the mind become fully attached to somebody? When, we have love for that person. It is due to our love that our mind becomes attracted to him and naturally completely attached to him, obsessed with him. What is the best way of knowing Krishna? By developing love for Krishna. When we develop love for Krishna then our heart will be completely absorbed in his thoughts. When we fall in love with Krishna, then, whatever we do, we simply would want to do it more. That is, what love means and then only will we get to know Krishna. What does it mean, “we’ll get to know Krishna?” Krishna will reveal Himself to us. What is the best way to know someone? When the person comes and stands in front of us, then you get to know him. Getting to know Krishna means Krishna will come and reveal himself to us. And, that will happen only, when we develop our love for Him. Krishna is assuring Arjuna now.
jnanam to ham sa vijnanam idam vaksyamy asesatah
yaj jnatva neha bhuyo nyaj jnatavyam avasisyate (BG 7.2)
Krishna is imparting the knowledge
Vaksyamy, the word vaksyamy means I will tell you. The word asesatah means in full, in complete. Asesatah endless, in complete and this is vijnanam. Vijnanam means knowledge and realized knowledge. Intellectual perception of, intellectually knowing something is jnanam and realizing something means is vijanam. So, Krishna is not talking about jnanama. He is talking about savijnanam. I will tell you about the realization about myself and when you get to know that, nothing will be left to know. So that is the meaning of Krishna consciousness. Krishna is assuring Arjuna, reassuring, but then Krishna is pointing out, manusyanam sahasresu, not everybody wants to aspire for spiritual perfection and those who aspire for spiritual perfection are rarely one who achieve perfection and out of those perfected, one, is very rare to find one who knows Me. On one hand, Krishna is telling, I will give you that knowledge, but, in the next verse, Krishna is telling, how rare that knowledge is. Then Krishna is imparting the knowledge and this one verse is actually very very important to understand. The transcendental reality. Transcend means what? Going across. So, at some point, we have to go across this material world. Staying on the material nature means, material nature will never be able to understand the spiritual reality. We have to transcend this platform to go into that platform. Krishna is making the transition here.
bhumir apo 'nalo vayuh kham mano buddhir eva ca
ahankara itiyam me bhinna prakrtir astadha (BG 7.4)
This material nature is comprised of earth, water, fire, air, ether, mind, intelligence and false ego. How many did you get? Eight? This material nature is composed of these eight elements. But then Krishna is pointing out apareyam itas tv anyam. This material nature composed of these eight elements is apara, is inferior but beyond this inferior material nature, there is a superior nature of mine. And jiva-bhutam maha-baho yayedam dharyate jagat. And the living entities, the jiva-bhutam who are sustaining this material nature, who are exploiting this material nature, they come from there. You see this point. Yesterday I mentioned in relation to Sankhya. In Sankhya, what is happening? In Sankhya philosophy, you analyze the whole material nature but then what is the purpose of this analysis? The purpose of analyzing the entire material nature is to transcend the material nature, and come to the spiritual reality. So here Krishna is actually making us transcend the material nature. This material nature consisting of these eight elements is not everything. Beyond this, there is a superior spiritual reality and we all have come from there. We are not a product of this material nature. Unfortunately, modern science cannot accept that. They have concluded that living entities are a product of chemical combination. Therefore, they will always remain in this endless darkness, eternal darkness. They will never be able to come to the right conclusion. They will never be able to have the proper understanding, right understanding.
etad-yonini bhutani sarvanity upadharaya
aham krtsnasya jagatah prabhavah pralayas tatha (BG 7.6)
Krishna is the origin
“All created being have their source in these two natures.” Everything has their source and origin in these two natures, material and spiritual. “Of all that is material and all that is spiritual in this world, know for certain that I am both the origin and the dissolution.” Prabhavah pralayas tatha, I am the prabhavah, I am the origin and I am pralayas cause of destruction. Of course, that concept of destruction does not apply in the spiritual reality because that reality is eternal, so there is no consideration of destruction of that nature. See how systematically Krishna is now giving us this knowledge step by step. First, we are in the material nature. What this material nature, consisting of the eight elements. But beyond this material nature, there is the spiritual reality, and we all came from the spiritual reality, we all are spiritual beings and we are sustaining this material nature. We are exploiting this material nature; we are experiencing this material nature. We are experiencing. material nature relative to our personality. If there is no one to perceive this, if there is no one here, will the material nature exist or not? It will exist but it will exist in its unmanifested form, unmanifest, not manifest. So what is causing this material nature to manifest? The appearance of the living entities in this nature. And then Krishna is pointing out that of both these material and spiritual nature, He is the origin and He is the cause of destruction. That means everything is maintained and everything is sustained by Him. Then He is saying:
mattah parataram nanyat kincid asti dhananjaya
mayi sarvam idam protam sutre mani-gana iva (BG 7.7)
There is no one superior to Krishna
There is no one superior to Me. Krishna is broadcasting. Should you believe in Krishna? Yes. Is there anyone superior to Krishna? No. So that is the identity of Krishna. Akam eva aditya, one without a second. One without a second, supreme param. The expression param indicates that no one is equal to Him and no one is superior to Him. He is making that point here, mattah parataram nanyat kincid asti dhananjaya. Sometimes people may say “oh you are Hare Krishna, that's why you say Krishna is the greatest.” Is not our words, it's Krishna words. And all the great saintly personalities, all the exalted souls in India, greatest spiritual personalities have accepted Bhagavad Gita as the authority. In the Bhagavad Gita, Krishna is saying no one is superior to Him. So should we accept it? YES. Mattah parataram nanyat kincid asti dhananjaya mayi sarvam idam protam sutre mani-gana iva. Everything is sustained by Me, just as the tread is holding all the jewels, that in the necklace.
We have to see Krishna in everything
Raso ham then Krishna is pointing out that how we have to see Him in everything. Krishna, everything is being sustained by Krishna. How everything is being sustained by Krishna, how Krishna is present in everything.
raso ham apsu kaunteya prabhasmi sasi-suryayoh
pranavah sarva-vedesu khe paurusam nrsu (BG 7.8)
Translation
Krishna is telling that “O son of Kunti, I am the taste of water, the light of the sun and the moon, the syllable Om in the Vedic mantras, I am the sound in ether and ability in men.”
punyo gandhah prthivyam ca tejas casmi vibhavasau
jivanam sarva-bhutesu tapas casmi tapasvisu
Translation
I am the original fragrance of the earth, I am the heat in fire, I am the life of all that lives and I am the penances of all ascetics. (BG 7.9)
bijam mam sarva-bhutanam viddhi partha sanatanam
buddhir buddhimatam asmi tejas tejasvinam aham
Translation
O son of Prtha, know that I am the original seed of all existence, the intelligence of the intelligence and the prowess of all-powerful men. (BG7.10)
balam balavatam caham kama-raga-vivarjitam
dharmaviruddho bhutesu kamo 'smi bharatarsabha
Translation
I am the strength of the strong, devoid of passion and desire. I am sex life which is not contrary to religious principle, O Lord of the bharata Arjuna. (BG7.11)
ye caiva sattvika bhava rajasas tamasas ca ye
matta eveti tan viddhi na tv aham tesu te mayi
Translation
Know that all state of being be they of goodness, passion or ignorance are manifested by my energy. I am in one sense everything but I am independent. I am not under the modes of material nature for they on the contrary are within me. (BG 7.12)
tribhir guna-mayair bhavair ebhih sarvam idam jagat
mohitam nabhijanati mam ebhyah param avyayam
Translation
Deluded by the three modes of nature, the whole world does not know me who am above the modes and inexhaustible. (BG 7.13)
daivi hy esa guna-mayi mama maya duratyaya
mam eva ye prapadyante mayam etam taranti te
Translation
The divine energy of mine consisting of the three modes of material nature is difficult to overcome but those who have surrender unto me can easily cross beyond it. (BG7.14)
na mam duskrtino mudhah prapadyante naradhamah
mayayapahrta-jnana asuram bhavam asritah (BG 7.15)
Four kinds of people will never surrender to Krishna. Although Krishna is the Supreme, Krishna is the most merciful shelter of everyone, but still there are some people who will never surrender unto Him. Who are those? Duskritinah, those who are the miscreants. They fall in? There are four categories of them: mudha, a fool. Mudha, na mam duskritinah mudhah. And naradhamah, nara adhamah they look like human beings but they are not human beings, naradhamah. And mayayapahrta-jnana whose knowledge have been stolen by maya and asuram bhavam asritah those who are demoniac by nature.
catur-vidha bhajante mam janah skrtino 'rjuna
arto jijnasur artharthi jnani ca bharatarsabha (BG 7.16)
Four kinds of people surrender to Krishna
And four kind of people who surrender, who are they? They are artha, they're some people in distress they surrender unto Him. Those who are in need of money, they may surrender unto Krishna, then those who are inquisitive about the spiritual reality, they surrender unto Him, and those who are situated in proper knowledge, they surrender unto Him. There are four kinds they are sukritinah. The word sukritinah has been translated by Srila Prabhupada as those who are pious.
tesam jnani nitya-yukta eka-bhaktir visisyate
priyo hi jnanino 'tyartham aham sa ca mama priyah (BG 7.17)
He is very very dear to Krishna
Of those the one who is in full knowledge and one who is always engaged in pure devotional service is the best. Of all those people those who surrender unto Krishna, one who is in full knowledge and who is always engaged in pure devotional service. Now what is the meaning of full knowledge? Full knowledge is very simple knowledge, Krishna is the Supreme Personality of Godhead and we are His eternal servants. Now this is the full knowledge. Full knowledge doesn't mean we have to have vast intellectual ability. Full knowledge is very simple. When the sun comes up is it very difficult to see everything? No, with the light of the sun we see everything. Similarly with this understanding, everything becomes perfectly understood. Krishna is the Supreme Personality of Godhead and we are His servants. And then what happens? Then eka-bhaktir visisyate, then one becomes engaged in pure devotional service. Who can become a pure devotee of Krishna? Who can recognize his identity as His eternal servant? And he is very very dear to Krishna. Sometimes people make a mistake thinking “oh we have to become very learned in order to become dear to Krishna”, because Krishna is saying of those one who is in full knowledge, so we have to become jnani, NO! we don't have to become jnani, rather we simply have to understand a very simple point that we are eternal servants of Krishna and we become engaged in His devotional service then we will become perfectly situated and then we will become very dear to Krishna.
udarah sarva evaite jnani tv atmaiva me matam
asthitah sa hi yuktatma mam evanuttamam gatim (BG 7.18)
Krishna is now making this point, all these devotees, of all those devotees undoubtedly magnanimous souls, but he who is situated in knowledge of Me, I consider to be just like Me, just like My own self, atmaiva, being engaged in My transcendental service is sure to attain Me, the highest and most perfect goal.
2. SRILA PRABHUPADA APPRECIATION
The more we recognize and appreciate the glory of Srila Prabhupada the more we will be able to appreciate of the activities of Supreme Personality of Godhead, because Srila Prabhupada came to give the Supreme Personality of Godhead. The mercy of the Lord flows through Srila Prabhupada, the most bona fide representative of the Lord. (Excerpt from Prabhupada Realizations).
3. GURU MAHARAJA’S INSTRUCTIONS
- One thing we must remember, we can’t cheat Krishna or we can’t fool Krishna. He’s sitting right in the heart. And he knows us better than we do;
- When we develop love for Krishna then our heart will be completely absorbed in his thoughts. When we fall in love with Krishna, then, whatever we do, we simply would want to do it more;
- The purpose of analyzing the entire material nature is to transcend the material nature, and come to the spiritual reality;
- There is no one superior to Krishna and;
- We have to see everything in Krishna.
The content of this E-magazine was based on a lecture given by His Holiness Bhakti Charu Swami on 1 December 2010 at Vail, Colorado, US)
(Compilation and editing by Hemavati Radhika dasi)