TEXT 19
“nänyaà guëebhyaù kartäraà
yadä drañöänupaçyati
guëebhyaç ca paraà vetti
mad-bhävaà so ‘dhigacchati”
Bhagavad-Gita 14.19
SYNONYMS
na—no; anyam—other; guëebhyaù—than the qualities; kartäram—performer; yadä—when; drañöä—a seer; anupaçyati—sees properly; guëebhyaù—to the modes of nature; ca—and; param—transcendental; vetti—knows; mat-bhävam—to My spiritual nature; saù—he; adhigacchati—is promoted.
TRANSLATION
When one properly sees that in all activities no other performer is at work than these modes of nature and he knows the Supreme Lord, who is transcendental to all these modes, he attains My spiritual nature.
PURPORT
One can transcend all the activities of the modes of material nature simply by understanding them properly by learning from the proper souls. The real spiritual master is Kåñëa, and He is imparting this spiritual knowledge to Arjuna. Similarly, it is from those who are fully in Kåñëa consciousness that one has to learn this science of activities in terms of the modes of nature. Otherwise, one’s life will be misdirected. By the instruction of a bona fide spiritual master, a living entity can know of his spiritual position, his material body, his senses, how he is entrapped, and how he is under the spell of the material modes of nature. He is helpless, being in the grip of these modes, but when he can see his real position, then he can attain to the transcendental platform, having the scope for spiritual life. Actually, the living entity is not the performer of different activities. He is forced to act because he is situated in a particular type of body, conducted by some particular mode of material nature. Unless one has the help of spiritual authority, he cannot understand in what position he is actually situated. With the association of a bona fide spiritual master, he can see his real position, and by such an understanding he can become fixed in full Kåñëa consciousness. A man in Kåñëa consciousness is not controlled by the spell of the material modes of nature. It has already been stated in the Seventh Chapter that one who has surrendered to Kåñëa is relieved from the activities of material nature. For one who is able to see things as they are, the influence of material nature gradually ceases.
Three Modes of Material Nature
In the Bhagavad-Gita Lord Sri Krishna has said,
“jïänaà te ‘haà sa-vijïänam
idaà vakñyämy açeñataù
yaj jïätvä neha bhüyo ‘nyaj
jïätavyam avaçiñyate”
Bhagavad-Gita 7.2
That this knowledge is complete because we have thus learned the science you will know both nominal and phenomenal. The nature of the temporary as well as the nature of the eternal. You see the Bhagavad-Gita is teaching us, how to live in this world but not of this world. But in order to do such we must not only understand what is the nature of the soul and what is the nature of God,but we must also understand, what is the nature of this world? This temporary world which is conducted by the three modes of material nature.
It is described by Sri Krishna that this body is the field of activities, the Kshetra and soul is the Kshetrajna. He is the knower of the field of activities. He explains that one must simultaneously understand the nature of the field of the activities as well as nature of the soul. The nature of the performer of the activities. In Isoponishada further elaborate on this point by explaining that one must simultaneously cultivate knowledge and ignorance. What does that mean to cultivate Ignorance? It means to understand what ignorance is? It does not mean to become ignorant. Many people have done like this. Isoponishada says you should cultivate ignorance, so that means I should act very much, having good time in the mode of ignorance then so I have to cultivate ignorance. We should understand the nature of ignorance. What is ignorance and how it is keeping you bound to the concept of misery, the bodily concept of life.
This material world is one of the divine energies of the Lord. It is described in the sashtra that Sri Krishna expands Himself as Srimati Radharani, who is the divine energy of the Lord. Now in the spiritual world Krishna also has a sister who is an expansion of Sri Radharani. Her name is Subhadra. You have seen that at Ratha Yatra there is one cart of Jagannath, who is Krishna and His brother and sister also have their own chariots, which is Subhadra and Balaramji. So Subhadra, who is the personification of Yoga Maya, she incarnates herself into this world as Durga. Durga is the keeper of the prisoner of material existence. In fact the Sanskrit word Durga means prison. Now Druga is not material. She is the spiritual energy of the Lord but she is acting in such a way that she is revealing herself to those who are in ignorance.
There is only one energy, but that energy manifests differently according to the receptacle. Just like from the powerhouse, electricity is coming. It is the same current of electricity. It is not like two types of electricity. But in one receptacle store the electricity manifests extreme heat for cooking. And another receptacle is the refrigerator, that same electricity is manifesting itself is freezing cold. Now is there any difference in electricity. This is difference between what is receiving the electricity. It is not that the electricity is hot or cold. Similarly in the state there is a police department and there are also so many welfare departments. Now everyone like the social welfare department, correct because they do well for everyone, whoever you are. They are supposed to do well fro everyone. But in the police department, if you are a criminal, you will hate the police department. But if you are good citizen, you like the police department. Of course in Kali Yuga it is the opposite. The good citizens are afraid of the police and if your are a criminal you like the police because usually they are working for you, in Kali Yuga. But in natural conditions the police they are both agencies of the government. Therefore the Government sees both good & bad.But the criminal sees one is bad. Similarly there is a prison house. Prison house is also run by the government. Now for a criminal, prison house is very bad thing. But for the good citizen prison house is the very good thing. So similarly this material energy is essentially spiritual. It is God’s energy and nothing about God is temporary. Nothing about God is material. Everything emanating from God is pure and spiritual.
“oà pürëam adaù pürëam idaà
pürëät pürëam udacyate
pürëasya pürëam ädäya
pürëam evävaçiñyate”
Çré Éçopaniñad
That the absolute truth is perfect, complete and everything emanating from Him is perfect and complete including this temporary material energy. It is perfect and complete because it is coming from Krishna. Can anything imperfect come from the perfect? Not possible. It is illogical. But if our desire is not in harmony with the desire of God, then the beautiful form of Srimati Radharani, often times she is offering flowers to Gopinath and in the other time she is holding her hand out to bless her devotee. Laxmidevi is always holding her hand out to bless her devotee. But Druga devi she does not have her hand out like this. She has trident. She usually has ten hands with swords, clubs, and all source of very violent looking weapons. And there is the famous pictures of Durga where there is the demon and the lion and he has a very form grip on the demon and she striking the trident within his chest, right in his heart. The trident indicates the three full miseries of material existence, adiatmika, adibhautika, and adidaivika. Miseries caused by one’s own body and mind. Miseries caused by other living beings and miseries caused by natural disturbances.
Now in this world we utilize our good human intelligence to try to somehow or the other counter act the full miseries of material existence. Just like miseries caused by one’s own body, diseased. People are getting disease like anything and therefore we have so many doctors and so many hospitals trying to somehow or the other relieve the distress of disease. Sometimes doctors complicated the disease. Sometimes it is so simple and is become so complicated, when we go to the doctor.
In the Vedic system, in the old age the doctors were brahmanas and they would never ask money. They would simply offer their services freely for the benefit of others. But today it’s a very very good profession and people are not so concerned with the people, they are more concerned with money. This is unfortunate. This the disease, greed. The disease of greed is worse than the disease of diseases. Why? Because the greed of disease, it’s the disease of greed that you commit sinful activities, in reaction is a disease. -.
So of course we have many many hospitals and we have such a great scientific endeavor to cure the various diseases of the world but we find, that no matter how great medical technology becomes but there is still disease. Just like one time in Europe there was the bubanak fever, what is called black plague. Practically half of the population of Europe was killed. This is only a few hundred years ago. People think it can never happen to us. And then they found some cure. Then there is Tuberculosis. So many people were killed and then they found a cure. Then cancer comes. Then they are studying some to find cures. Then AIDS comes, now they do not know what to do? Someday they may find the cure. But some other disease will come. Throughout history there are always diseases that cannot be cured. Has ever been a time in modern history that there was not a disease that at that time was not curable. What to say a doctor? Always like that. Why? Because of your Karma is to die of a disease that’s incurable. Yes you can cure it. But Krishna just sends another one.
So disease caused by the body and even if you are very healthy, still you must grow old and you must die. It is a miserable condition. So one point of Durga’s trident is the miseries caused by your own body and mind. Mental disease is even worse than physical disease. Generally no matter how much physical distress a person’s in. He somehow or the other tolerates it. When mental distress scares too much they jump of from a building. How many people commit suicide due to physical distress? Very few. But very many due to mental distress. When the ghost of anxiety just start you surfing your mind, its very frustrating. Horrible its worse than physical disease. You can take some pain reliever and you can some how or other co-operate with physical disease. But due to mental disease people are taking drugs and taking intoxication & alcohol, simply because they mentally so frustrated and bored with life. They find some relief, someway to dull their minds.
The greatest problem now in America is not AIDS but the greatest problem in America is drugs, narcotics destroying the whole country. The streets are practically battle fields. People being killed everyday like anything in the wars over, whose through gets those sell the drugs. Young people are being given drugs that the first time you use it practically you are addicted. And this is considered socially very very distinguished to take drugs. If you do not take it you are out cast in many places. Even when I was a child, I remember drugs come in, you do not take this drug, what you are from some other plants? This was not happening; this is the in thing and the young people they want to be in. They do not want to be out. People look at them, like we do not want to be one of associates with you, you are out. Okay, I’ll take it. Amen, amen. Alright. You are in. Yes. This is what is happening. This is happening more and more in India. To the degree India becomes westernized, to the degree there will be drug addicts.
And there will be AIDS and so many other nice adatmika diseases, sufferings, miseries cause by one’s body and one’s mind. There is also miseries caused by other living beings. Just like sometimes we become bitten by mosquitoes, its very frustrating. Sometimes we get bitten by snakes that’s even more frustrating. Sometimes we get eaten by lions and tigers that’s even more frustrating. Sometimes we are insulted by human animals which is very very frustrating. Sometimes even our loved ones they turned against us and cause us a great pain and anxiety. Sometimes there is terrorism and wars, this is pain suffering cause by other living beings.
There is also adibhautika, miseries cause by natural disturbances too much heat and too much cold. Just like I remember a few years ago we took about 50 devotees to Himalayas for a pilgrimage. We went in the month of May and we were in Delhi. It was very hot, so hot, and it was so miserably hot. Anyone who thought that they were this material body were suffering like anything. It was very very hot that year. Your remember. People were just let me sleep until the sun goes down, just to forget the pain. So everyone was thinking yes, we are going to the Himalayas, there will be nice and cool. You remember this trip. So we went the Himalayas. Then we started becoming nice cool and refreshing. Everyone was thinking yes, there is relief. We were thinking we were going to a pilgrimage but actually it’s a nice vacation from the heat.
Then we got to Badrinatha and Badirkashram. When we were there we were all enjoying the nice cool refreshing atmosphere and we said, let us chant and dance through the roads of Badrinatha. So we started chanting and the demigods most of them were very pleased because all of sudden big big white flowers starting showering from the sky. But the flowers were very cold. In America we call it snow. There was so much snow. That it was very deep and it was very cold and there was no sun to be seen anywhere. The sky became gray, almost black and it was freezing and no one took any warm clothes because we all were thinking it will be nice & refreshing. And it was so cold. We were thinking lets go, enough of this pilgrimage, lets go. But the roads were blocked. Because there was too much snow. The military were standing with their guns saying you cannot go. You must stay. We all are trembling, freezing. There were No blankets.
We were thinking, how nice it was in Delhi. Delhi was so nice and warm. The grass is always greener on the other side. Whatever miseries we are in now,we will again think how nice that was. So be like this. So there was no escape. We were traped. I won’t mentioned names. But we had people who were very very big controllers of companies, millionaires, they just tell their servants, do this, do this. They were just yes yes sir. But now even such people all the money they knew the whole world, they could not get one blanket.Everyone was equal. There was no question of whether you are educated or uneducated, whether you are a Phd or whether you are an illiterate, whether you are a mataji or whether you are a sannyäsé, in cold.
When the modes of material nature strike they do not discriminate what your position is. Similarly at the time of death we should know that we are all strict necked with nothing and we are just standing before God. And all we have is our faith in our devotion. None of our material acquisitions in this world will be of any use to us.
So who causes the heat and the cold? Sometimes there is draught. Some times there is too much rain and floods. Just too much rain everything is destroyed, flood. If there is not enough water everything is destroyed, draught. It is described that the demigods, the Devatas, the higher powers, who are petitioned by Lord Sri Krishna to manage the affairs of the universe. They are the owners of these higher powers who are creating the miseries in the pleasures of material life on the platform of Adibhautika, miseries cause by natural disturbances.
So you see for one who is in ignorance that person is always being stabbed by the trident of Durga. But for one who has knowledge that person sees that actually the so called pleasure and pain, honor and dishonor and happiness and distress. They are all the temporary manifestations of Maya. But maya is Krishna’s divine spiritual energy. The source of Maya is Yogamaya, Laxmidevi, Sri Radharani. She always is standing before us offering her benediction. So therefore when we know
“mayädhyakñeëa prakåtiù
süyate sa-caräcaram”
Bhagavad-Gita 9.10
That Krishna as he says in Bhagavad-Gita, he is directing this material nature. He is the master and lord of this material nature. When we understand how He is transcendental and how we are a part of Him and therefore we are also thoroughly transcendental. He creates this prison house of material nature which causes simply an opportunity for the various living entities to realize the suffering condition of being apart of Krishna. Then we no longer suffer the affects of the material existence.
We see the divine hand of God behind every situation of life. Krishna explains in Bhagavad-Gita how the modes of material nature are working. How they are affecting the body and how they are affecting the mind. Unless we understand exactly how these things are happening, we will be bewildered.
“prakåteù kriyamäëäni
guëaiù karmäëi sarvaçaù
ahaìkära-vimüòhätmä
kartäham iti manyate”
Bhagavad-Gita 3.27
The bewildered spirit soul thinks he is the doer of activities but actually they are all being carried by the three modes of nature. The mode of goodness (satva guna), the mode of passion (rajo guna), and mode of ignorance (tamo guna). When we understand how these three modes are working then we can learn how to be Krishna Conscious, we can learn how to take shelter of Krishna, we can learn how to remember Krishna, we can learn how to be transcendental even in the face of three modes of material nature.
We will be constantly be tested by Maya. Now for a materialistic person who is in ignorance. Those tests are simply nothing but punishment and pain. But for a devotee when Maya test he sees that this is the most blessed opportunity for me to purify my consciousness. And the fact is Maya for, to help you in your Krishna Consciousness. That’s why queen Kunti she prayed in such a way, very few people dare to pray as same way as queen Kunti.
“vipadaù santu täù çaçvat
tatra tatra jagad-guro
bhavato darçanaà yat syäd
apunar bhava-darçanam”
Srimad Bhagavatam 1.8.25
She says that Krishna let the miseries, the sufferings, calamities, come to me again and again and again because of in the face of these conditions of life, I remember you and by remembering you, I never have to see birth and death.
It is said that the death personified and fear personified are afraid of Krishna. When we remember Krishna there is no more death. There are no more miseries. In the presence of the Sun they can not be darkness. Some of us think that I chant, I remember Krishna but still I am suffering too much. Why? Because we have to learn how to remember Krishna in the same feeling as queen Kunti. We have to surrender our minds. Surrender our consciousness to the feet of Krishna, then we really remember Him. We have to learn to take shelter of Him. And generally when everything is very nice our religion our spiritual life is just a formality, our hobby, it’s a part of something that we do is a nice part of our life. It give peace to our mind. It’s alright to have peace in the mind, is alright. But a little peace of mind can’t help you in tragedies of your life. When the real tragedies of life come there is salvation and that is totally taking utter shelter at the feet of God. People are very fond of being religious. I’ll perform my pious activities. Just like yesterday someone was telling me that he knows one man, he is a very religious man. He goes to the holy places but he takes a little alcohol, whenever it is required. So this man is very religious. He is very pious and he is a good man. But still he takes alcohol. So you see what’s wrong with that? I was explaining that he may be a little religious but Krishna in Bhagavad-Gita, He says
“sarva-dharmän parityajya
mäm ekaà çaraëaà vraja
ahaà tväà sarva-päpebhyo
mokñayiñyämi mä çucaù”
Bhagavad-Gita 18.66
Abandoned all varieties of religion and just surrender to me. If you are religious that is very good. You will gradually make advancement. But ultimately you have to come to the point of surrender. If you want to become free from repetition of birth and death. Being religious will not bring a point of that no more death or no more suffering. Only surrender, surrender to the supreme will of God. Now the question is does God want you to drink alcohol? If he does not then you may be religious but there is a defect, there is a fault in our religion. But if you actually want to become freed from the sufferings of material existence, you have to surrender and surrender means to do the will of God.
This person says, but this man loves God. I said, what kind of love. If your beloved tells you, he does not like something, then you will die before that because you know, will this please him or hurt him. Krishna feels pain when we engage in sinful activities. Because He loves us. Just like a father when he sees the child behaving in such a way that the child is going to suffer. It pains the father, out of love. So if you love Krishna you will not want to give Him any pain. If you love your Guru, you will not want to give him any pain and every time we deviate because pain. Whether you are a devotee or non devotee, you are still Krishna’s son and you are still causing him pain.
So religion culminates in surrender. Queen Kunti is talking about this sweet feeling of surrender. That when everything is nice Krishna now everything is too nice. Now I am the queen of Hastinapur. Now we conquered the whole world. Now we are in a pleasure condition.We are safe.When we were living in the jungles with nothing because we had no other shelter except You. Now we have so many shelters. Now it is easy to forget You.
There is a story in the Sashtra. It is described how Durvasa Muni, was a very great yogi. He was a partial expansion of Lord Shiva. Lord Shiva is Ashutosa, which means he is very easily pleased and he is very easily angry. He gives very quick benedictions but he also gives very quick curses with his anger. Just like it is described that, Durvasa Muni is the expansion of Lord Shiva, when he came to Vrindavana, he looks like very severe tapasvi with matted hair and he was very much like a yogi from the Himalayas. So the gopis became afraid of him, so they ran away. But Srimati Radharani she was thinking, he is a guest we must treat him nicely. So with very sweet words she greeted him and she gave him nice Prasad and she was nice to him. Durvasa muni was so pleased,he gave her a benediction. He said, whatever you cook will be sweeter than nectar and anyone who eats your cooking will never fall sick. So when mother Yasoda found out about this benediction given to Sri Radharani, she asked to her to cook for Krishna everyday so he would never become sick. So Durvasa Muni sometimes gives nice benediction.
But you know about the story of Ambarish maharaja, when Druvasa Muni was angry he created a fire demon to kill him but Ambarish was saved by the will of God. So one day Durvasa Muni came to the house of Duryodhana and Duryodhana pleased Durvasa Muni very nicely. Duryodhana was very clever, he knew if I really go out of my way to please Durvasa Muni he will be give me all benediction and just see what I do with the benediction. So he satisfied Durvasa Muni and Durvasa Muni said “ ah, Duryodhana you have made me very happy”. You have gone out of your way with your hospitality. Now what benediction can I give you ? Duryodhana said, my cousins the Pandavas, I think you should go to their house for Prasad. That’s the benediction I want. Go to their house for Prasad and take all your followers with you.
Durvasa muni had 10,000 disciples and he would always travel with many many of his disciples. Now Duryodhana told Durvasa the you should go there exactly at this time of the day, latterly afternoon. So he went with his thousands of disciples and they arrived. Draupadi was there with the Pandavas. At that time they were living in exile. They were in the forest in a little cottage. Duryodhana was not satisfied that they were vanished from the kingdom and living in the jungle. He wanted to see them get crushed. He knew that if they could not feed Durvasa and all his disciple nicely, Durvasa would crushed them because he would be very angry.
So Durvasa Muni arrived and Yudhisthira Maharaja greeted him. Durvasa Muni said, we are very hungry. We have come here for lunch. Yudhisthira maharaja was thinking,“Oh, my God. We have nothing, we are living in the jungles. Nor do we have the servants nor any grocery stores. What do we have?” He said,“why don’t you go to take your bath in the river? We will prepare food. Durvasa Muni said, alright but I’ll be back and we are very hungry”. So he went to the river to take bath. At that time Maharaja Yudhisthira went to Draupadi and said we have to prepare something for thousands of people, otherwise we will be crushed for sure. Now Draupadi had a special plate, and this plate was given to her by Surya Deva the Sun God and it is said, that plate would give as much food was required. If a million people came for Prasad to her house that plate would produce instantly enough for million people. But there was one limitation that it only had this power until she ate, after she completed her Prasad that it became an ordinary plate till the next day. And she had just completed her Prasad. Because Duryodhana knew what exact time she would eat and sent them just at that time. So she was in great distress. Now my plate is ordinary, we do not have any food nothing in our house, not even a grain. What to do? We are going to get crushed. We are going to displease the yogi. So Draupadi began to cry and of course in this condition she would cry out to Krishna. Krishna save me. We have no one to turn to now. We are powerless. Save us Krishna. Please save us!!
Krishna is in everyone’s heart. He hears your prayers, He hears your every word, whether you like it or not. You can be assured 100% that whenever you pray to Krishna, He hears that prayer. And He will be respond according toward what is best for you. But you can also be assured. When you talk all nonsense, he hears that as well. So Krishna heard the heartfelt prayer of Draupadi and He just happened to walk by. He was in the middle of the forest. It was on the jungles and the wilderness. But Krishna just happened to walk by that day. And He came to the house of Draupadi and He said, Draupadi, I am very hungry. She just put her head down and she started to crying because after all she was a very soft hearted lady. She started to cry. Krishna what to do, I do not want to get crushed by Durvasa Muni. And I do not have anything for you, the supreme lord of our life.You have come to our house & this is the worse thing that’s ever happened. Getting crushed we are afraid of but displeasing you, that is worse than death. She was just crying and crying. Krishna please forgive me. Please help me. And Krishna seeing how she was sincerely taking shelter of Him. He said just give me something, anything. She said there is nothing. He said go down and bring the pot that you cooked today. So she brought the pot and there was just the tinny little shred of a vegetable stuck to the bottom of the pot. And Krishna took it and ate it. And He said, thank you very much. I am very satisfied.
Now, when we water the root of the tree, every part of the tree is satisfied. Krishna is the root, He is the source of everything. When Krishna is satisfied your life is perfect. If you satisfy everyone else but Krishna is not satisfied then your life is useless waste. So Durvasa Muni and all of his disciples sitting in the river taking their bath, all of sudden they became very filled up. Just as if they had eaten a huge feast. They were like, you know when you are very full, they were like that. Then Draupadi knowing what Krishna had done she told Bhima, you go call them all to have Prasad. So Bhima went to the River and there was a loud courageous voice. He said, Durvasa Muni maharaja and all your disciples please come we have prepared a nice feast for you. They were looked at each other thinking my God you know what Maharaja Yudhisthira, he prepares a feast that such an opulent and luxurious feast and if we do not eat it, will be such an offence that we cannot even take one spoon. So they all just waited for Bhima to turn his back and then they all ran away, very secretly just ran into the jungles and disappeared. In this way Krishna saves them.
So this is the process of Krishna Consciousness that whether you like it or do not like it, the nature of this material world due to its temporary conditioning, is there is going to be reversals and sufferings and tests in our life. And those test which are brought about by the power of Krishna through Maya, we should know that these tests are the greatest opportunity for me to take shelter of the Supreme Lord. To remember the words of mother Kunti. But if we do not understand the principles of how this material nature is working and why it is working the way it is? If we do not understand this we will simply become bewildered, endlessly bewildered by the endlessly transmitable changes of this world. Why is this happening to me? How many of you ask this question? Raise your hand. If you never ask this question? Raise your hand if you sometimes ask this question? Why is this happening to me? What I have done? I am such a nice person. I may have made some mistakes but I do not deserve this. We all ask this question. It is the universal question. Either a black, white, Indian, Asian, American, African, Hindu, Christian, Muslim, Jews, young, or old. Everyone asks this question. Why is this happening to me? A devotee does not ask this question. A devotee says Krishna you are very kind.
So you see the scientists are trying to figure out how this world is working, correct. There is no matter, how many experiments that they perform and no matter how many series they present to the world, they still cannot figure out how this world is working. They may not figure out, how one little aspect is working. But a devotee, not only that he understands how this world is working? But understand this question, which is millions of time more important. Why this world is working the way it is? Do the material scientist ever ask that question? They ask how but they never ask why? But Bhagavad-Gita teaches us not only how, but also why? And when we understand this verse,
“mayädhyakñeëa prakåtiù
süyate sa-caräcaram
hetunänena kaunteya
jagad viparivartate”
Bhagavad-Gita 9.10
That Krishna is directing everything that exists within this material world. It is all happening by his will. Not a blade of grass can move without his sanction.
Today’s verse when you say that there is nothing beyond these modes of nature in all activities and that the supreme lord is transcendental to all those modes then you can know My spiritual nature. So let us become like Draupadi and her mother in law Kunti in this way. In the face of great reversals they will come into your life. No matter who you are? In the face of great testing we should simply take the opportunity to understand that the nature of this material existence, it is like an ocean, I cannot cross it. But if I simply take shelter of Krishna then the ocean becomes reduced to the size of – <47:48> the water there in. this is the verse from Srimad Bhagavatam.
In every good opportunity in our life,we must take shelter of Krishna, we should be thankful and we should be greatful. We should not complain, we should not try to put the blame on others. How many you are like this? When things go completely against our will, we like to blame others. Its all his fault. Its only heated like this then I would be. How many do like this, raise your hand? How many never blame anybody else? We always like to blame others. We always like to think how this is unfair? We always like to criticize. We always like to find faults. What we doing is, we are escaping the opportunity to surrender to Krishna. We are escaping the opportunity to take shelter of the Lord. Therefore we should have this faith. That Krishna is none different than his name. And if we simply learn to take shelter of Krishna’s name in all circumstances of life. Good or bad pleasurable or painful. We never have to see the trident of Durga. We will always see the blessed form of God. We will always see the sweet and beautiful face of Krishna in the back ground behind everything is happening in our life. If we simply learn how to take shelter of his name, we will never be bewildered, we will never be confused, we will never be in this nonsense mentality, why it is happening to me? Rather we will always be thankful to Krishna for his kindness.“Hare Krishna Hare Krishna, Krishna Krishna, Hare Hare/Hare Rama Hare Rama, Rama Rama, Hare Hare”.
Our spiritual master used to tell us that if you simply have complete faith that Krishna is not different than His name then you are liberated from all the miseries of this material life. So therefore it is very important to come to the temple, to come before the beautiful form of the Lord, to associates with the Lord’s devotees, to hear the philosophy of life being presented according to the authorized disciplic lines coming from Krishna. By hearing the glories of the holy name, by understanding how this nature is working and why? This whole material world in Kali Yuga is created just to get you to take shelter of Krishna’s name. If you see it is that then you welcome everything and you are happy and peaceful. Even in the face of most unbearable conditions of life. But if you forget that then you are simply a victim of Kali Yuga. You will be bewildered perplexed, disheartened. So let us learn how to take shelter of Krishna’s names and let us see His loving hand in our life. “Hare Krishna Hare Krishna, Krishna Krishna, Hare Hare/Hare Rama Hare Rama, Rama Rama, Hare Hare”. There is a famous song in America this was back in the 60s. A devotee can take gold even from a filthy place. The name of the song was, You cannot always get what you want. But if you try sometimes you just might find, you will get what you need. Now of course you are talking about something completely different. But a devotee can take gold even in the filthy place. But this the philosophy. You cannot always get what you want. But you should know that you are always getting what you need. So I should be dissatisfied. Krishna is all knowing and all loving and He is our friend. “suhådaà sarva-bhütänäà”He is the best friend of everyone. Just have faith that Krishna is our friend and He is the master and controller and He is not different than His holy name to turn to in all circumstances of life. Then we can learn what does it really mean “To chant Hare Krishna and be Happy”.
QD: Maharaja you said that ……?
AM: You must associate to the people on that level and then he will giving proper intelligence. It is very simple. That is why the association of devotees is very important in our life. They will remind us, they will guide us. But we have to open our heart to hear.
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