Empowered by the strength of our Srila Prabhupada and the previous Acharyas, we are gathered together in Sri Navadwip Dham. Kaliyuga is a time that is especially predominated by the tendency of quarrel and hypocrisy. Quarrel, is so often rooted in a very diseased feverish state of the false ego, ‘Ahankara’. People have such deep-seated conditioning, we want to be the person who knows. We want to take credit, receive credit for whatever we have done. We want to claim that our abilities, our intelligence, our influence belongs to ourselves. Humility really is just a matter of being honest. Krishna is providing the sunshine, the air, the water, the food grains, all the elements that compose our body, our brain. All the resources of creation are Krishna’s property. To simply recognise that nothing is mine, everything belongs to God, whatever I may have is entrusted to me, to utilise in harmony with the will of Krishna. To live in that state of consciousness, we call it ‘Seva’, unconditional service. If we want fame, if we want money, if we want all these material benefits from what we do, it’s not really ‘Seva’.
Today, we had a very beautiful ceremony in the rain and the wind under the dark clouds for Kulangana Mataji who recently passed from this world. She was a devotee who… she actually joined our movement…she was quite older than almost anyone else except Srila Prabhupada. She was from eastern Europe. When she was a child, she endured the tragedies of the Nazi occupation of her country before World War II and during World War II. But she, as soon as she met devotees, I think in London, she just fell in love with the devotees, and fell in love with Krishna, and fell in love with Srila Prabhupada. Eager to distribute his books, eager to cook for him, eager to do everything. She was grateful, deeply grateful for the opportunity to serve. She was very realistic, she had a clear experience in her life to some extent of the miseries of material existence brought about by ego and greed. She saw it. And she saw in Srila Prabhupada, in the teachings of Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, this principle of Seva, that we are the eternal soul and the only thing that can satisfy the soul is to feel Krishna or God’s love and to reciprocate with our love and that reciprocation is expressed in service.
She was pained to hear any devotee criticised. She just loved to hear the glories of Krishna. Srila Rupa Goswami tells us when we actually gain a taste for hearing about Krishna, then we become detached, we lose all taste whatsoever for the gossip of this world. I was just told by our very esteemed worship able Mandakini Devi, she is with us, she is also one of those types of people. She is always blissful, whatever happens in this world because she is always in the spirit of ‘Sharanagati’ surrender. She told me when Kulangana was in her last days before she passed from this world, she appeared to be in an unconscious state, this is just a day or so before she left and a Doctor was trying to understand what her condition was because she wasn’t responding to anyone and Mandakini Devi told me, the Doctor slapped her in her face. Just a doctor kind of slap to try to revitalise something and she chastised him, motherly, motherly chastisement, motherly chastisement is with no ill will. Just said, “why are you disturbing me? I am preparing to go back to Godhead.” Did I say it correctly?
So, while we were at this ceremony, Pankajanghri Prabhu, Jananivas Prabhu, Kavichandra Maharaj, Mandakini Devi, Nartaki Devi, so many wonderful devotees were there. We concluded it by taking Ganga water in our hands and saying a beautiful prayer and then offering it back to Mother Ganga. Srila Prabhupada, he quotes from the previous Acharyas, the analogy, that when we take water from Mother Ganga, how many handfuls of water is in Mother Ganga? Especially in a rainy day like today, it was storming, just after the monsoons. There’s ‘Asankhya’, countless handfuls of water in Mother Ganga and it keeps coming from the glaciers from the Spiritual world. So, when we offer that with a prayer, she doesn’t need that water but if it is offered with love and devotion, Mother Ganga becomes conquered by that little handful of water, even if it’s from a little tiny hand of a child. Patram puspam phalam toyam yo Me bhaktya prayacchati, because Ganga Devi is an expansion of Srimati Radharani, Krishna Shakti, she is the love of God that appears in liquid form to bless those who seek that blessing from her.
If we are thinking, ‘Ganga, if I don’t offer you this palmful of water you are miserably going to dry up’, we are in illusion and similarly whatever we speak, whatever we do, whatever influence we have over other people if we are thinking that I am the doer, we are just as foolish because whatever we have is coming from Krishna’s grace, everything. Our very existence, Mamaivamso jiva-loke jiva-bhutah sanatanah, the soul is eternally part and parcel of Krishna. Jivera Swarup hoye Krishnera nitya das, we are eternally servants of Krishna. Nityo nityanam cetanas cetananam eko bahunam yo vidadhati kaman, there is one Supreme eternal who is Bhagawan, Vibhu and then there are limitless little eternals, the vibhinamsa, the Jiva and all of those jivas are forever subordinate to and dependent on the one Supreme eternal, Janmādy asya yataḥ. Krishna tells in Gita, sarva kaarana karanam, I am the cause of all causes.
‘Seva’, is whatever I have, Krishna I am Yours, my body belongs to You, my mind belongs to You, my soul belongs to You, my intelligence belongs to You, my family belongs to You, my friends, the whole world around me, all my wealth, all my abilities, everything is Yours and the beauty of life is I can use it to serve You with love, to be an instrument of Your compassion. In Kaliyuga, people are so disconnected from that. I want wealth, it is mine, I am physically stronger than you, our militaries are stronger than yours. Srila Bhatisiddhanta Saraswati Thakura has taught us that everything is potentially spiritual if we simply recognise that its Krishna’s energy, and just live in harmony. Janasya moho ‘yam ahaṁ mameti, But, when we think in terms of I and mine and you and yours, so much tendency for quarrel and hypocrisy, envy. We are envious of someone who has something more; depression where we just can’t deal with our inadequacies and we have limitless inadequacies on a material and mental level but there is limitless hope and limitless reason to be happy if we simply recognise that Krishna is forever the merciful friend, Suhrdam sarva bhutanam, He is the dear most friend who is within my heart and within the heart of everyone and nothing could ever change that. The best thing in life can never be changed. Suhrdam sarva bhutanam, that Krishna is our best friend and He is always with us within our heart and within the heart of every one too, in between every atom and in every atom.
If we find ‘Sharanagati’, if we find shelter in that truth, then all the changes of material existence, we deal with them responsibly but they do not distract us. Bhoktāraḿ yajña-tapasāḿ sarva-loka-maheśvaram suhṛdaḿ sarva-bhūtānāḿ jñātvā māḿ śāntim ṛcchati. Srila Prabhupada called this the peace formula. It’s the only way to individually experience true peace and the only way to actually appreciate peace in our families, in our society, in the world. To simply recognise Krishna is sarva loka maheshwaram– the proprietor of everything and whatever little we have or whatever much we have is not really important but we should be grateful for what we have. If we are actually grateful, gratitude is not dependent on the quantity of what we receive. Gratitude is simply a state of mind. Any little thing we receive from God, we could be grateful. Any little thing that we receive from another person, that can help us come closer to Krishna, we are grateful. Krishna is the enjoyer and Krishna is our ever-well-wishing friend and benefactor. One who understands these principles can be peaceful in every situation because that is the peace that is transcendental to the ever-changing world.
In Kali-yuga people are so disconnected from these simple spiritual principles. There is so much competition on such an envious and unsatisfied level of consciousness. There is so much lack of gratitude. Everyone wants more and more and more and more no matter how much you get you are never happy. So therefore, so much quarrel and hypocrisy. Srimad Bhagavatam tells that the age of Kali is an ocean of faults- kali ra dosha ninerajam, but there is one blessing-simply by chanting Krishna’s name in this age of Kali one can attain the perfection of liberation. Our Vaishnav scripture tells that in the age of Kali, the Holy places have a tendency to lose their strength and influence except Navadwip, it gains more strength and influence. Why is that? Because not only the Yuga Avatar- Radha Bhava duti subalitam naumi Krishna swarupam, the crest jewel of all incarnations, Parama Karuna Pahu dui jana Nitai Gaur Chandra, tava avatara sara shiromani kevala ananda kanda. Lord Chaitanya is the essence of all incarnations. Nitai Gaur Chandra They are supremely merciful, compassionate and Their abode where They are eternally performing Their pastimes on the spiritual platform has maximum powers in this age of Kali.
Srila Prabhupada built a beautiful Temple in his eternal home of Vrindavan, he built a wonderful Temple in his office of Mumbai and he established Temples all over the world but Sri Mayapur Dham he declared to be his International world headquarters and at very interesting places like New York and Los Angeles and London he had nice facilities. In Mayapur it was just a paddy field with just a straw hut. And in those days Mayapur was quite secluded. He was living in a little straw hut. Its still there. It’s actually renovated a lot since he’s been there in those days and that was his World Headquarters, a straw hut because he had this vision of the power of the mercy of Lord Chaitanya and Lord Nityananda.
Yesterday we were discussing how in the year 1486 Lord Chaitanya appeared, in the month of Phalgun at the time of the lunar eclipse. He was born under a neem tree and given the name Nimai. Although He is the all-powerful Supreme God, the source of all incarnations, ‘Brahamano hi pratishthaham’ the source and the basis of the all-pervading Brahman; brahmajyoti. He is the origin of the Paramatma who is seated within the heart of every living being. By His mere will the entire cosmic manifestation, the whole creation with its innumerable universes are created. We see within human society so many things are accomplished by someone’s will. It’s like we see this beautiful Temple of the Vedic Planetarium how it is coming up in such a glorious way. It was Srila Prabhupada’s will. Srila Prabhupada wanted such a Temple that would attract people from all over the world to come to experience the mercy of Lord Chaitanya and Lord Nityananda. He had so much faith in the power of the grace of this Dham, this Holy place and the power of Mayapur Dham is realised in expanding through those devotees who are influenced by Lord Chaitanya’s mercy and His teachings. It is expanded through sincere surrendered devotees who are connected to the grace of the Dham and who come together with no envy in their hearts to sincerely chant the Holy Names Hare Krishna Hare Krishna Krishna Krishna Hare Hare Hare Ram Hare Ram Ram Ram Hare Hare.
Srila Prabhupada had faith in the mercy of Lord Chaitanya and Lord Nityananda. the Pancha Tattva, faith in the mercy of Rupa and Sananatan and Raghunath Das Goswami, the six Goswamis, who were entrusted with the mission of Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, complete faith in the mercy of the Guru Parampara and his own Guru Maharaj Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Saraswati Thakura Prabhupada. He also entrusted his faith in each and every one of us that we would take responsibility to receive and expand the grace of Lord Chaitanya and Lord Nityananda, by our chanting. The Temple of Vedic Planetarium, Srila Prabhupada, it was his will and he manifested by sharing his idea. Then he stressed it and in those days Mayapur Dham had kind of just come out of the hut stage, the straw hut stage, there was just a little building being built and Srila Prabhupada is talking about this Temple of Vedic Planetarium, a massive incredible that will attract tens and thousands of people to chant and dance and hear about Krishna and learn about the message of Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, the spirit of that message as well. It was inconceivable. But because some devotees, even if they didn’t understand they believed that if Srila Prabhupada wanted us to do this, let us do it, it’s beyond ourselves.
That’s who Srila Prabhupada was. When Srila Prabhupada was living alone, practically penniless in the ghettos of New York City bowery, if you look at his diary, he spent eight cents to get potatoes because it was Krishna’s money, he kept track of everything even the slightest pennies. And when he came to 26, 2nd Avenue by selling his books for over a year he had just the amount of money for one month rent. He spoke this in a lecture. He said after struggling for whole year he collected enough money that could pay one month’s rent but one month is only 30 days. It took him over a year to get that much. How was he going to pay the next month’s rent? He was not afraid, he just believed, ‘Krishna I am surrendering unto you’. He used incredible practical intelligence but it was built on the foundation of faith and surrender and compassion. And from that, from that little risk he took in 1966, what is the International Society for Krishna Consciousness today. It has actually sprouted from the seed of that. When he was on Jaladuta he didn’t have anything but he had the will.
So even if, whether we understand or don’t understand the Temple of Vedic Planetarium, let us all really try to make it what Prabhupada wants it to be because he gave us the responsibility. He gave us the responsibility through our behaviour, through our being faithful to our Sadhana that we can become purified. Purification is often a gradual process, but we have faith. If we are hearing Srimad Bhagavatam, Bhagavad Gita through the classes, through reading, through speaking, it will give us faith to continue with enthusiasm and determination and patience even if it appears that we are not getting the results that we thought we would get. Actually, you may be getting it but Krishna reveals it at the right time. All of you may be much more advanced than you could imagine but if Krishna revealed then you would be so puffed up. You would think that I am more advanced than everybody else. But He lets those material desires linger on and your agitations and aggravations and anxieties. Actually, you are beyond that, many of you, most of you. But Krishna is letting all that stuff because He wants you to become humbler than a blade of grass. Lord Chaitanya Mahaprabhu was praying here in Navadwip that I have no love for Krishna. He is Krishna with the Supreme love of Sri Radharani and He is saying I have no love for Krishna. Krishna descends into this world because He wants to understand the glory of Radha’s love and that’s who Lord Chaitanya is and He is saying I have no love for Krishna. If I had any love for Krishna, I could not live in separation, the fact that I am still alive means I have no love for Krishna.
So please don’t get depressed if you don’t think you have love for Krishna because if you do think you have love for Krishna you would be really proud arrogant and then you have to pretend to be humble but humility is not pretending, humility is just being honest. Bhaktivinoda Thakura, Narottama Das Thakura, Krishnadas Kaviraja Goswami, Vrindavan Das Thakura, Srila Prabhupada, all these great Vaishnavas, Rupa and Sanatan Goswami, they are all praying that they are lowest of the low. Patita pavana hetu Tava Avatara, mo sama patita Prabhu na paibe aara. Narottama Das Thakura says, “Lord Chaitanya You have come to deliver the most fallen-patita pavana so please be kind to me because if You see and consider the whole world, the whole creation You will not find anyone more fallen than me. So You descended for me. I am so fallen.” Krishnadas Kaviraj Goswami, he takes the dust of every devotee who is reading Sri Chaitanya Charitamrita, even the brand-new devotees who are just coming to the path. He is a ‘Paramhansa’. He is an Acharya, he has descended Kausturi Manjari from the spiritual world of Goloka but he is thinking like this- “I am more sinful than Jagai and Madhai”, how many of us could honestly say that? “I am lower than a worm in stool.” If you told a Psychiatrist or a Psychologist that, they would give you so many medications. “If anyone hears my name, they lose their piety and if they speak my name, they become sinful.” This is the way every pure devotee thinks. And Srila Prabhupada was very strong to tell us they are not just saying this as some sort of poetic song, they feel it, they mean it. How could anybody be happy in that state of mind? This is a really important question. Without Krishna, if you have that state of mind, you are really miserable. But with Krishna, that state of mind brings Krishna completely fully manifest in your heart because ‘Krishna, You are so beautiful’, aishwaryasya samagrasya viryasya yashashashriya. Krishna has all the six opulences in full forever. We want to be important by being beautiful or learned, famous, wealthy, strong, powerful, renounced. People, their whole life they are struggling to get these opulences. But to the degree we are really humble, we can appreciate Krishna’s beauty, Krishna’s knowledge, Krishna’s fame, His strength, His renunciation, His wealth.
On our death bed, what do we have? Whatever little we have we are about to lose and most of it is already gone anyways because we can’t access it but when we remember Krishna, yam yam vapi smaran bhavam tyajaty ante kalevaram, when we remember Krishna, we have all knowledge, all beauty, all strength, all wealth, we have Krishna. Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu is Krishna but just like Krishna when He appeared in Vrindavan and He is eternally performing his pastimes there for those who have their eyes awakened through the vision of pure love. To Nanda and Yashoda He was simply their child, to the Gopas He was the best friend, to the Gopis He was the most inconceivable lovable object, lovable personality whose love, His love for them and their love for Him was infinitely greater than anything.
So, when Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu was just a little child Nimai, Jagannath Mishra Sachi Devi, they loved Him as their own child, Nimai as a little child. It’s His will to experience the ecstatic love of being a child, completely selflessly loved by His mother and father. It’s His will to be loved like that. Because we are all part and parcel of Krishna, we are all made in the image of Krishna. How many of you would just like to be the master of everyone and have no other relationship? If that’s the way you are, please don’t raise your hand. We want parents who are gonna chastise us sometimes. Lord Chaitanya was a Sanyasi, after He took Sanyasa, He came to Shantipur and His mother was sitting down and He offered His prostrated obeisances to His mother and cried and said, “from My very birth you took care of Me, My whole life you showered Me with your love, whatever devotion for Krishna I have, I got it from you. I must have been a mad man to take Sanyasa. I had no right to hurt you like this. Now if You wish I will just be with you.” And Sachi Mata took this crest jewel of all Sanyasis on her lap and embraced Him and cried and everybody was crying. Lord Chaitanya wanted… we want to be loved like that, we want friends that are not just obeying everything we say. We want friends who are equals otherwise there is something seriously dis-functional in us which is actually quite common in Kali Yuga.
So Lord Chaitanya wants His parents to chastise Him, to worry about Him because there is a sweet mellow of that Vatsalya love that is so special. So, He was just like a little boy and perhaps when He was just two three years old, one day a Brahmin who was on pilgrimage came to the doorstep of Jagannath Mishra’s house. Jagannath Mishra saw him, Jaganntha Mishra was a pure devotee of the highest level to be God’s father. The Absolute Truth, the Parabrahman is crawling in his courtyard like a little baby. So, when he saw this pilgrim Brahmin, he recognised what a pure heart he had. And Jagannath Mishra never thought he was great, he was just grateful. That’s a devotee. He said to the Brahmin, “I could see that you have so much realisation, please tell me where are you from?” and the Brahmin said, “I don’t have a home.” He said, “due to my uncontrolled flickering mind, I am always wandering from one place to another.” Jagannath Mishra said, “you are wandering like this by the grace of Krishna to fallen householders like me. When you come to our houses you enlighten us with knowledge, you give us blessings by your words, by your example, by your prayers.” This Brahmin was very special. He just travelled around the country. Around his neck he had hanging a small Deity of Bal Gopal and also a Shaligram Shila. He was a great devotee of Bal Gopal, Krishna as a little child. Constantly He was singing Krishna’s names, constantly He was reciting his six syllable Gopal Mantra and he never ate anything that he didn’t personally prepare and offer to Bal Gopal and Shaligrama.
In this exchange, which is just a few verses, we can understand the spirit of Vaishnavism. Jagannath Mishra, how exalted he is, he is declaring himself to be a very fallen soul who so deeply needs the blessings of a Sadhu to come to his home. And the Sadhu is in such a humble state of mind. So, they spoke for some time. Jagannath Mishra brought him in the house, gave him a nice seat, Jagannath Mishra washed his feet. This person is penniless, he is just wandering around, he has no possessions except two little Krishna’s hanging from his neck. He is not presenting himself with any importance whatsoever, just coming as a beggar. But the father of God is washing his feet and asking for blessings. Jagannath Mishra said, “please, my home is yours, let us prepare a wonderful meal for you to offer to Bal Gopal, we will clean the kitchen, we will give the best possible bhoga we have and you can prepare it and offer it to Gopal. The Brahmin was very grateful. He went into the kitchen. As he was cooking, it was with so much devotion because he is cooking for Krishna. He is not seeing….although little Gopal is hanging from his neck, just going around with him wherever he goes in the world, he was recognising that this is the Lord of Vrindavan, with his heart, with his soul, with his body mind, his words, he put so much love into what he prepared and after he prepared this wonderful meal including rice, he sat down, he placed the offering before Bal Gopal and Shaligrama, closed his eyes and went into meditation, chanting the six syllable Gopal Mantra.
As he was making the offering, little Nimai, quietly came up to the plate of the offering, when the Brahmin opened his eyes, Nimai was smiling, such a beautiful golden complexion. Large blossoming lotus eyes. He didn’t have any clothes on but He had dust on because He was playing. He was taking one handful of the rice after another and eating it. The Brahmin saw, little Nimai had already, while he was closing his eyes doing his meditation, Nimai was eating the offering. He opened his eyes and Nimai was chewing the food, putting another handful in His mouth, smiling and this had never happened to the Brahmin before. He was totally shocked, he cried out, “Hai!Hai!”, which is translated as Alas! Alas! “this child has spoilt my offering. He is eating the food that’s meant for Krishna.” When that happened, Jagannath Mishra who was so deeply intent to please this Brahmin, his heart was shattered. What has happened, in my house this Brahmin has been offended like this. He picked up a stick and chased after Nimai and the Brahmin jumped up and took hold off Jagannath Mishra’s arm and said, “You cannot hurt your son for this. He is just a tiny boy hardly two or three years old, he doesn’t know right from wrong, he is a child, you can’t punish a child who doesn’t know any better, it’s not right.” And all the people in the family came and said, “Jagannath Mishra control control please.” Jagannath Mishra, he sat down with his head in his hands in so much distress. This was his mood of service. Jagannath Mishra said, “we will clean the kitchen, bring new bhoga, food, cook again.”
The Brahmin, he was very philosophical. He said, “it is not the will of Krishna for me to eat nice food today. I travel in the forest, I rarely get nice food like this. Usually I just eat some roots and fruits so if you have any roots and fruits in your house, just give me the roots and fruits. It’s not my destiny today to eat this nice Prasad.” Jagannath Mishra and the whole family they were touching the feet of the Brahmin and begging him please please cook again, please cook again. He said, “alright I will cook again.” So, he went back in the kitchen. Sachi Mata, knowing how restless little Nimai was, she took her little child in her arms and went to a neighbour’s house and so many ladies there were guarding Nimai. They were passing Him around from one lap to another, not letting Him go and talking. One said, “Nimai, you don’t even know who this Brahmin is, nobody knows who he is, how could You just be eating from somebody You don’t even know? You could lose the status of Your highly esteemed Brahminical class, Your family.” And Nimai, He smiled and He simply spoke the truth but nobody could understand what He was talking about. He said, “why do you put fault on Me? I am just a cowherd boy and cowherd boys like to eat food cooked by Brahmins.” And He laughed and everybody laughed and everyone was thinking ‘Oh Nimai is so tricky and intelligent’ and they were passing Him around and they were joking with Him and singing songs for Him and meanwhile the Brahmin, a few houses away, he had just finished his cooking.
He arranged the plate of Bhoga, placed it before Bal Gopal, sat down, offered his mantra and meditated. Just at that time little Nimai, surrounded by so many ladies who were guarding Him, just by His smiling, His glancing, His dancing, His talking, He totally bewildered everyone and everyone thought He was with one of the others and He slipped away. The Brahmin opened his eyes and there was Nimai putting one handful of rice in His mouth after another and smiling. “Hai Hai, this child has spoilt my offering again.” Jagannath Mishra picked up a stick, chased after Nimai, this time Nimai jumped up and ran away. He ran into a room and all the family caught Jagannath Mishra, same thing, “He’s just a child.” The Brahmin, he said, “can’t you see it’s not my destiny to eat rice today, just bring me some fruits and roots.” The family was begging, Jagannath Mishra was sitting there in such a distressed condition with his head in his hands, he felt so ashamed that this special saintly guest has come to my house and look what’s happening.
The Brahmin said, “it’s already late, if Krishna doesn’t give the permission for one to eat, no matter what arrangements one makes, even if one is very wealthy, even if one has so much food in the house, if Krishna gives you a fever, you can’t eat. So, everything is dependent on Krishna’s mercy. Krishna doesn’t want me to eat this nice food today.” He was adamant. At that moment, Nimai’s elder brother Vishwaroop entered the room. He was several years older than Nimai. He was an expansion of Nityananda Prabhu, Balaram, so beautiful but unlike Nimai He was totally well behaved, respectful, good manners, predictable and He was a great scholar even at His childhood of the Vedic literatures. But He understood every word of every verse of every scripture in its essence in the spirit of pure devotional service, Bhakti, Prema Bhakti. He couldn’t, He couldn’t appreciate anything except Prema Bhakti, pure love. When Vishwaroop came into the room, He was effulgent. The Pilgrim Brahmin looked at Him. Vishwaroop offered His obeisances at the feet of the Brahmin. The Brahmin said, “whose son is this?” The family said, “He is the son of Jagannath Mishra and Sachi Devi.” The Brahmin said, “how fortunate and blessed are the parents of this boy.”
Viswaroop stood up with folded hands, with such gracious manners and so sincerely from His heart, this is Balaram, this is the source of Narayan in Vaikuntha, this is the source of the Purusha avatars, Maha Vishnu, Garabodakashayi Vishnu and the Paramatma in the heart. He is speaking, “this world is so fortunate that great saints like you travel all around to give blessings to all of us. We are so fortunate that you have come to Our house, it is so auspicious for our whole family but it is so inauspicious that you didn’t eat nice food. Please cook again.” He said, “I already cooked twice, can’t You see, don’t You understand, Krishna doesn’t want me to eat nice food, bring some roots or fruits.” Vishwaroop said, “great saints like you are very compassionate, ‘para dukha dukhi’, other people’s sufferings are their sufferings, other people’s happiness are their happiness. So please cook again and remove the distress of my family and make them happy because that’s what you want.” Then the whole family begged him. He said, “but it’s so late, it’s the middle of the night” and Vishwaroop said, “it’s not late.” He said, “alright I will cook again.”
So they cleaned the kitchen, brought in new bhoga. Nimai was in a room and the ladies came out of the room and said, “Nimai is fast asleep but still we will close the door and lock it.” Jagannath Mishra said, “yes”. Jagannath Mishra personally closed the door and latched it so no one could get in or out. Then, Jagannath Mishra sat right in front of the door with his stick, he was serious. And several family members sat there with him. The Brahmin cooked, made the plate, presented it to Bal Gopal. At that moment, little Nimai who appeared to be fast asleep, He called for Nidra Devi, Nidra Devi is the Goddess of sleep. She came to the house of Jagannath Mishra and put everyone except the Brahmin asleep, fast asleep. It was so quiet, so late. He chanted the mantra and meditated on offering this food to Bal Gopal, meditating on the beautiful pastimes of Bal Gopal in Vrindavan, “please accept this Bhoga.”
When he opened his eyes, there was Nimai, eating his offering, “Hai Hai!” Nobody heard him, everyone was sleeping, He said it again “Hai Hai!”. Nimai was just gazing upon Him so mercifully and then Nimai finally spoke to him. He said, “My dear Brahmin, you have called Me and I have come. You have invited Me and I am here, what is My fault?” At that moment, Nimai revealed an incredible Darshan to this Brahmin. He had eight arms, His complexion was, you have all witnessed the colour of a monsoon rain cloud today, see that gives you a wonderful experience of this pastime tonight. His complexion was beautifully dark like a monsoon rain could, bluish in hue. His eight arms, four of them held the conch shell, the Sudarshan Chakra, lotus flower and club, the symbols of Vishnu. In one hand was a pot of butter, and the other hand was taking butter from the pot and eating it. And in the other two hands, Krishna was playing His flute. Now most of us, we can’t play a flute and eat butter at the same time but Krishna can do anything and everything, that’s why He is Krishna, ‘Achintya Shakti’, in such a sweet way. Achintya Shakti means inconceivable potencies. How can Krishna create this entire manifestation, how can Krishna put a gigantic banyan tree, a redwood tree in a little seed this big? How could Krishna have put you as a little seed, not even that big, you need a microscope to see the seed and it’s kind of slimy little seed and yet you are inside that seed and now here you are, with eyes and ears and legs and tongue and everything else and thinking and building empires. Krishna is inconceivable. How can Krishna be simultaneously in the heart of every living being and He is the same one person and He hears and sees everything.
That same Krishna can play sweet beautiful melodies on His flute, while at the same time be eating butter. The Kaustubha Mani, beautiful celestial jewel was illuminating all directions on his chest, there was a wonderful necklace, He had bangles and ankle bells, His eyes were so beautiful, gazing upon him like fully blossomed lotus petals. His nose, like a sesame flower, His lips which were smiling, literally illuminated the whole room, they were red colour like the bimba fruit. He had earrings that were swinging to and fro, the earrings were the shape of sharks. His lovely hair, that circled His moon like face, it was decorated with a garland of fresh Kunja berries and peacock feather. His cloth was golden like lightening. The Brahmin saw exactly what he meditated on, the forest of Vrindavan, there was Kadamba trees, the river Yamuna flowing, sweet birds singing and numerous Gopis and Gopas surrounding Krishna. This was not a vision, little Nimai actually manifested Vrindavan in this most incredible way to the eyes of the pilgrim.
Seeing this, it was an ecstasy that was beyond his capacity, he fell to the ground unconscious. Nimai touched him with His hand and the current of ecstatic love and grace that entered his body being touched by God, by Bhagavan Sri Krishna, it just thrilled him and he woke up again. Tears poured from his eyes like the river Ganges. His limbs were trembling, palpitating, his hairs were standing on end as he was gazing upon this beautiful, incredibly merciful darshan of the Lord. Nimai spoke to him. He said, “you are My eternal servant, you have forgotten but I remember. Birth after birth you are a penniless Brahmin and I show you the same form. You don’t remember but in a previous birth, you were begging and you came to the house of Nanda Maharaj in Gokul, Mahavan, in Vrindavan and there you cooked and chanted your Gopal Mantra and I revealed the same form to you at that time.” He said, “when you call Me with so much love, it’s impossible for Me not to come. I am conquered by the love of My devotee. Do not tell anyone what you have seen, if you do, you will not live, now I am going to disclose to you a secret. I have incarnated into this world to inaugurate the Sankirtan movement. I shall inspire the chanting of the Holy names throughout the entire world. The ecstatic love that I am giving through this Harinam Sankirtan movement, even Lord Brahma and the Demigods are yearning to achieve, but I will bring it house to house, door to door and give it freely. Now Brahmin, do not tell anyone what you see but for some time you can stay in Navadwip and you could watch My pastimes.”
Then Nimai, that wonderful incredible form of Lord Krishna, became little Nimai again and He smiled and He ran back into the room and jumped into bed and went back to sleep. The Brahmin was in so much ecstasy. What was this Mahaprasad? He took the Mahaprasad and he started eating it, and he was so intoxicated with love for Krishna, he was smearing that rice on every limb of his body and he was eating it, he was crying, he was jumping, he was dancing throughout the house, crying out very loudly, “Jai Gopal! Jai Gopal! Jai Gopal!” He woke everyone up. Nobody knew that they had just been sleeping. That’s the way Nidra Devi puts people to sleep. They don’t even know they were sleeping. All of a sudden, they hear Jai Gopal Jai Gopal thundering throughout the house and they hear somebody is dancing all over the place and they all came running and when he saw them come, he sat down and he started cleaning his body from all the rice that he put on it and he was eating, because he wasn’t allowed to tell anyone. And when they saw him eating the offering, everyone was so peaceful and so happy. He was saying, “yes yes I am eating nicely.” So much his heart was yearning to tell them, you will be liberated if only you know that Lord Krishna the Supreme Personality of Godhead, the Absolute truth the source of all incarnations, the ultimate lover and the ultimate beloved, the son of Nanda and Yashoda, the beloved of Sri Radha is living in your house and you do not even know. You are just thinking Him a little boy. You are showing Him stick to make Him afraid. Jagannath Mishra never hit Him but they would just show the stick. But I can’t tell them because it’s not the will of the Lord. That Brahmin did not leave Navadwip. He would go to different places throughout Navadwip, he understood it’s the spiritual world and everyday he would come to the house of Nimai and very quietly observe the pastimes of his most supreme beloved Bal Gopal who is now Gaur Hari.
Vrindavan Das Thakura gives us a benediction, whoever hears this story with a very sincere and faithful heart, will for sure, meet Krishna. He doesn’t say when. We have to cultivate this sincerity, it’s very important. Nimai was so restless. Little child, two three years old in the lap of His mother. He would see a bird flying in the sky, He would tell His mother, “please give Me that bird.” What is Sachi Mata going to do. She said, “Nimai I can’t give You that bird, he is flying way way high in the sky.” Nimai said, “I want that bird now.” Sachi Mata, she was helpless and Nimai would cry and cry and cry and He would get on the ground and beat His hands against the ground and cry and the only thing that could appease Him is when all the ladies would gather around Him to chant Krishna’s names Hare Krishna Hare Krishna Krishna Krishna Hare Hare Hare Ram Hare Ram Ram Ram Hare Hare. One night, Nimai looked out His window as Sachi Mata was singing Him to sleep and He said, “I want the moon. Please give Me the moon, bring it in My room.” She said, “I can’t give You the moon.” And then He saw the stars and He said, “I want, I want some of those stars” and then when she couldn’t give it, He would cry and everyone would come to His house to chant the Holy Names.
Why was Nimai doing this? Just to increase, improve, stimulate the love of His mother and also to establish such beautiful sweet pastimes that we could hear it. Its October 22nd, is that it, 2017. Krishna knows everything past, present and future, that for all time to come people could hear these sweet pastimes and it nourishes our love for Krishna. So beautiful, so simple, so sweet. God is the creator of the sun and the moon and the stars and the birds and everything but He is a little baby saying, “I want it, I want it” and crying. One time, Nimai was crying so everybody knew the solution. They gathered around Him to chant the Holy Names. He cried louder, they chanted louder. He cried louder, they chanted with even more feeling, very very loudly Hare Krishna Hare Krishna Krishna Krishna Hare Hare Hare Ram Hare Ram Ram Ram Hare Hare. Nimai kept crying, this never happened before. They asked Nimai, “we are chanting, we are dancing, why do You keep crying? What do You want? We will get You anything in the world, what do You want?” Nimai said, “the only thing that will cure Me from My unhappiness is some miles away in, I believe its Godruma Dweep, lives two Brahmins Hiranya and Jagadeesh, today is Ekadashi and they are fasting throughout the day but they prepare wonderful feast for Lord Vishnu. Bring that feast for Me to eat.” Sachi Mata said, “this is impossible, how could we do that? That’s food that’s offered to Vishnu on Ekadashi, how can You eat?” Nimai said, “bring it, nothing else will satisfy Me.” So all the other relatives, they said, “we will bring it.”
Jagadeesh and Hiranya were very best friends of Jagannath Mishra. They went all the way to the house and told Jagadeesh and Hiranya what had happened. When these two devotees heard this, they were thrilled. They said, “this Boy is so intelligent, how could He have possibly known, on this particular Ekadashi, we don’t do this, we just did it today. We made an incredibly wonderful offering to Lord Vishnu today, how did this little child know? Yes, we will bring it immediately” and they packed it and brought it to the house of Jagannath Mishra and Sachi Devi at the Yogapeeth. Hiranya and Jagadeesh understood that our Gopal is performing His pastimes in Nimai and through Nimai. This child is Narayan Himself. They brought the offerings and said, “Nimai please enjoy” and Nimai was very happy. He was taking little bit of each preparation and as He was taking little bits of each preparation, everyone around was so happy, their arms were raised, they were dancing and chanting, Hare Krishna Hare Krishna Krishna Krishna Hare Hare Hare Ram Hare Ram Ram Ram Hare Hare.
As they were chanting and as they were dancing, Nimai was dancing while He was eating the Prasad. How beautiful that was, seeing Nimai dancing and eating and dancing and eating and smiling and glancing upon everybody. That glance is the ultimate benediction. Ishvarah paramah Krishna Sachiddananda Vigraha anadir aadir Govinda sarva karana Karanam. Ishvara parama- the Supreme controller of all controllers, the cause of all causes, the source of everything that exists whose body, whose personality is Sac-cid-ananda eternal, full of knowledge and full of bliss. The three Gunas, satva guna, rajo guna, tamo guna are the basis of material existence, Krishna is Nirguna which means He is not in any way connected to or affected by the Gunas, the modes of material nature. Nirguna means He is totally transcendental but he has transcendental qualities. Ishvarah paramah Krishna Saccidananda vigraha, His form is eternal, full of knowledge and full of bliss and it is the sac-cid-ananda vigraha, this principle which is the basis of Bhakti because in the spiritual world beyond the Brahmajyoti, beyond liberation, is where Nitya leela, Nitya dham, the Lord’s eternal pastimes in His eternal abode are forever taking place.
When little Nimai glances, when the Supreme Lord glances upon us, His love, His grace, Karunasindhu, Hey Krishna Karunasindhu, we say Hey when we are calling out, when we are in great need we cry out Hey Krishna! When Draupadi was being disrobed by the demoniac Dushshasana under the order of the demoniac Duryodhana in an assembly of respectable people nobody could help her, she couldn’t help herself, she cried, “Hey Krishna! Hey Govind!” and when we are filled with gratitude, to thank God, to celebrate the mercy of the Lord, we may cry out “Hey Krishna! Hey Govind!” “Hey Krishna Karunasindhu!” Krishna is an ocean of Karuna, compassion. But it’s not like these puddle oceans we have in this world. The Atlantic Ocean, the Pacific Ocean, in Mumbai the Arabian Sea, in Bengal the Bay of Bengal and the Indian Ocean. They have so many shores, they have bottoms, they are very cold, very salty, so many different kinds of fish that can eat you. Karunasindhu, no shores, no bottom, a limitless ocean of compassion, of kindness, of love. When Krishna glances upon His devotee, that ocean of compassion is flowing from His heart, through His eyes, to completely purify, nourish and liberate our souls with love. As Nimai was dancing and eating the food of Jagadeesh and Hiranya, He was glancing and smiling upon everyone and all the devotees, their happiness was not that they were receiving the blessings of Nimai, the mercy of Nimai, the glance of Nimai. Their happiness, because they have received that mercy, their happiness was simply to see Nimai happy, ‘Samsiddhir Hari toshanam.’
One day, and now Nimai is just two three years old, going on four perhaps, one day He was playing with His friends and they came upon, according to Locana Das Thakura, two or four little new born puppies and they were so sweet looking. They started playing with the puppies and Nimai decided to bring one home and one of Nimai’s friends said, “Nimai that’s not fair, you took the best puppy, he is the most beautiful.” Nimai said, “No, no its not mine, we will all play with him, come to My house” and they went to Nimai’s house and they were all playing and singing and dancing and playing with the puppy and everything was so nice and of the little friends of Nimai was saying, “Oh this is so nice.” But then another friend started criticising, said, “Nimai, why did You take the best puppy?” Nimai said, “why whenever we play you are always criticising and making a scene like this?” He said, “because You took the best puppy” and he left. See this happens even in Navadwip and it all has a purpose. So that boy was really angry. He stormed out of the house, as he was leaving, Sachi Mata, Nimai’s mother was just coming, approaching the house. He said, “Sachi Mata, you should see what Nimai is doing now” because you see in the house of a Brahmin like Sachi Mata they have their Temple, they have their Shaligrama Shila and usually you don’t bring dogs into the Temple room. They just had a small house, it was all a Temple room.
He said, “Nimai has a dog in the house and He is playing him and He is putting him on his face and on His head and everything like that, it’s really disgusting, just go and see for yourself.” Lucky that boy didn’t have internet. Social media and all that stuff. So Sachi Mata got really afraid, she went to the house and there she saw, there was Nimai, the puppy was on His lap and He was embracing the puppy and He was putting the puppy on His head and Sachi Mata said, “Nimai what are You doing? This is the Temple of Vishnu, You are coming from a Brahmin family, don’t You care for the status and the reputation of Your family? You are breaking my heart.” Nimai, just smiled and said, “but I like this puppy.” Very good argument. So Sachi Mata said, “You look very hungry, You haven’t eaten yet today, go to the Ganges take Your bath, I’ll take care of Your puppy and when You’ll come back I’ll have nice Prasad for You. So Nimai said, “Ok”.
So, when He went off with His friends to the Ganges, Sachi Devi let go of the puppy, sent him on his way. One of the friends saw this. He ran to the Ganges, said, “Nimai Nimai, Your mother sent the puppy away” and Nimai ran to the house, He said, “where is My puppy?” and Sachi Mata, “oh where is Your puppy?” She is a mother so she said, “Your puppy must have gone to look for his mother.” Nimai said, “you let My puppy go, you sent him away, I love that puppy, he was a very nice puppy, why did you?” Sachi Mata said, “we’ll look for the puppy but now please eat this nice sandesh and rasgullas and Prasad.” So Nimai took His prasad. Why are we telling this story? You are about to find out. That puppy went into the town of Navadwip, it was transformed, the puppy was dancing on his hind legs with his front paws up in the air, chanting Krishna’s Holy Names in ecstasy. The puppy was chanting and dancing, tears were pouring from the little eyes of the puppy and every hair on his body was standing erect in ecstasy, ‘Ananda’. The little puppy’s limbs were trembling, that puppy became a ‘Paramahansa’, a fully liberated swan like ecstatic lover of Krishna. Not only that but whoever saw that puppy became so completely overwhelmed.
People from all around Navadwip were hearing about this puppy and they all gathered around and there the puppy was chanting loudly crying out the names of Krishna, Hare Krishna Hare Krishna Krishna Krishna Hare Hare Hare Ram Hare Ram Ram Ram Hare Hare. Hundreds of people were so moved, the puppy, Haribol Haribol was inducing everybody. There was a Kirtan of hundreds of people in ecstatic love chanting and dancing as the puppy was leading the Kirtan. That is the power of Nimai. He didn’t just play with the puppy, that was an excuse to give that puppy the highest liberation of Prema Bhakti. In front of everybody’s eyes that puppy went into such a state of transcendental ecstasy that he fell down. He just laid there and right in front of everyone’s eyes, so that everybody, the Lord arranged it in this way just to show everyone the truth of Nimai’s mercy. An airship from Goloka Vrindavan descended, it was magnificent. It had wonderful domes and beautiful celestial jewels and garlands all around it and on it were residents of the spiritual world. They picked up the puppy and as soon as they put him on this divine celestial, spiritual airship, the puppy assumed his original spiritual form. He was effulgent like thousands of suns. Residents of the spiritual world were fanning him with Chamaras to celebrate the mercy he had just received and as they descended into the sky everyone was crying out Krishna’s Holy Names. Brahma, Shiva, Sanaka and so many great Rishis, sages and demigods with folded hands were bowing down before this puppy offering prayers, weeping and crying. This is the mercy of Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu.
‘Dina-hina yata chilo, Hari-name uddharilo, tara sakshi jagai, Jagai and Madhai, two very demoniac cruel people attained the perfection of life, great Brahmins, Haridas Thakura, the lions, the tigers, the elephants, the snakes of Jharikanda, millions and millions of common people, some educated and some uneducated and here even a simple little puppy dog who really didn’t know anything about anything but when he received the mercy of Nimai, Lord Gauranga, he received ‘premadhan’, the greatest wealth, the greatest treasure of ecstatic love for God and elevation to the spiritual world to enter into Krishna’s eternal pastimes.
One day little Nimai was just four years old, He was walking with His friends and there was an older boy, he was kind of probably in his late teens. His name was Murari Gupta, very learned. He was a Vaidya from a family of Ayurvedic Doctors and he was walking with some of his classmates but he was like the senior among them. He was like a teacher. He was speaking from different Yoga scriptures and as he was speaking whatever mannerisms that he exhibited, Nimai right behind him imitated him and that was really kind of insulting Murari Gupta even though the boy is only about four, still He was a disturbance. If Murari Gupta said something, Nimai would say it just like him but in a very sarcastic way. But if Murari Gupta said ‘Go away’, Nimai would say ‘Go away’, ‘why are you doing like this’, ‘why are you doing like this’. He just kept following him around. And then Nimai said, “when you are eating your lunch today, I will teach you a good lesson.” How many of you know this story? Please raise your hands. How many do not know this story? Are you sure you want to hear it?
So Murari Gupa forgot about it and he came to his house and he was given his lunch, nice rice and sabjis and he had a plate, he was just about to eat it and little Nimai He dressed Himself up really decorative, put on really nice clothes and really nice sachets and little cloth belts and some jewellery and He really dressed Himself up very special. As Murari Gupta was eating lunch right in the middle Nimai entered the room. Murari Gupta looked at Him, this is Nimai. He said, “what are You doing here? Why have You come?” Nimai didn’t say anything. Murari Gupta kept eating. He looked at Nimai, “why have You come?” Nimai didn’t say anything so he kept eating. Nimai very slowly, carefully, silently, came closer, closer, closer, closer then, He passed urine right into the plate and on the food of Murari Gupta, a lot. Murari Gupta’s rice was now floating in Nimai’s urine. Murari Gupta was shocked, he said, “what have You done? Why?” And Nimai said, “I told you I will teach you a good lesson at your lunch time.” He said, “because this is what you are doing. You are taking the pure message of the Vedas, the pure message bahunam janmanam ante jnanavan mam prapadyate Vasudevah sarvam iti sa mahatma su-durlabhah. He did not quote the scripture but this is the essence of the Vedas. After many many births of cultivating knowledge when one finally comes to the fruit of knowledge one surrenders to Vasudev knowing Him to be the cause of all causes and all there is. ‘Nigama-kalpa-taror galitaṁ phalaṁ’ the ripened fruit of all Vedas is ecstatic love for Krishna, ecstatic love for Bhagawan the Supreme Personality of Godhead. He said, “you are mixing up so many things, you are teaching Bhakti and you are speaking so many other materialistic, impersonalistic conceptions. It’s just like taking wonderful rice Prasadam and passing urine in it.
This is the basic principle of Rupa Goswami’s message. Anya abhilashita shunyam gyan karmadi anavritam. Anukulyen Krishna Anushilanam Bhaktir uttama pure Bhakti is unmixed with any desire for liberation, for supernatural mystical powers, unmixed with any desire for material benefits or even elevation to the heavenly planets. Pure devotional service is simply for the satisfaction of Krishna. Sarva dharman parityajya mamekam sharanam vraja aham tvam sarva papebhyo mokshayishyami ma shucha, Krishna tells- “abandon all varieties of Dharma and just surrender”, this is not a sectarian concept Naam naam akarin bahuda nij sarva shaktis, that one Supreme Truth has many names, has come into this world in many forms, many avatars, many great saintly teachers but to surrender to that one Supreme truth, to God through loving service without mixture of liberation, super natural powers simply as an eternal loving servant of the Lord. Murari Gupta understood what the little child was saying because he was a great scholar himself. He understood what was the essence and then little Nimai ran away. Murari Gupta was so transformed by this, he could understand at that point because Murari Gupta is an incarnation of Hanuman. He could understand that, that little Nimai was his beloved Lord Sri Ram. He went to Nimai’s house and there he saw little Nimai just dressed like regular Nimai again and He was on the lap of Sachi Mata and she was embracing Him and she was kissing Him and then He would jump over to the lap of Jagannath Mishra, His father and he embraced Him and kissed Him and He would jump back and they were embracing Him and kissing Him and here comes this great scholar Murari Gupta. He comes into the house, he is weeping, weeping in transcendental love. He is offering obeisances to the little child and Jagannath Mishra, Sachi Devi, they got up and they said, “O we are so honoured you have come to our house, why have you come and why are you bowing down so many times?”
Murari, Gupta- the Supreme Lord the ultimate object of love is just playing like an ordinary child in the house of Sachi. He couldn’t explain. Now, if any of us, passes urine in somebody’s food, it doesn’t have that result. This is Nimai, in the most inconceivably wonderful sweet attractive ways, just like a little mischievous boy. He teaches the world such profound lessons of truth and the effect they have on the recipients’ hearts.
One day, Lochana Das Thakura writes- Sachi Mata was going to perform Puja, worship of the Goddess Shashti. In Bengal Shashti is a manifestation of the Shakti, Durga Devi and she is especially worshipped in Bengal, it’s kind of superstitious, that’s the way our Acharyas explain, she is a Demigoddess and she is the Demigoddess that ladies approach to protect their children. Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Saraswati Thakura tells that sometimes Goddess Shashti is riding on a cat and she has a little baby in her arms, that’s Goddess Shashti. So she was doing a special Puja for Shashti under a banyan tree. She was fasting, doing different ceremonies and then she went home to cook wonderful sweets to offer to Shashti. So, as she was bringing the offering, Nimai stepped right in front of His mother and said, “what is in that plate?” Because the plate was covered with cloth because no one was supposed to see it before it was offered to the Goddess. She said, “this is an offering to Shashti, the Goddess.” Nimai said, “well, what is it?” She said, “It’s an offering.” Nimai said, “I want it.” She said, “no You can’t have it, now let me offer it to Goddess Shashti and after it is offered, I will give You everything, but first I must offer it.” Nimai said, “but My stomach, is hungry.” Sachi Devi said, “do You have no respect for the Demigoddesses? Don’t You know it’s an offence to take it before its offered? This was specially prepared for the Goddess Shashti. You are burning my heart thinking that You want to eat it now. You cannot do this.” Nimai said, “well you are burning My stomach because I am hungry.” And then forcibly little Nimai grabbed all the food and ate it.
Sachi Devi said, “don’t You even have any respect or honour for the Demigods or the Demigoddesses, the Devas and Devatas, Devis? How will You ever grow up, don’t You know that this is offensive?” And Nimai smiled. He quoted Srimad Bhagavatam. A simple verse that we have all heard but, in this context, it has such a beautiful meaning. He said, “I am the source of all the Demigods and I am the source of all the Goddesses. When you offer water to the root of the tree that water will naturally nourish all the branches, the twigs, the fruits and the flowers of the tree and similarly when you put food in the stomach that food will nourish all the senses and the limbs of the whole body. I am the Supreme Personality of Godhead. By satisfying Me all the Demigods and all the Demigoddesses are satisfied. When you worship Mukunda, we fulfil the perfection of all of our services to all the Demigods, all the Demigoddesses, all the sages, all the Rishis, all our parents, all our forefathers and mothers, all the spirits, like pouring water in the root of the tree.” Nimai spoke these words with absolute certainty in His little childlike voice.
Sachi Mata went back and cooked some more and then completed her worship under the Banyan tree to Goddess Shashti and Sachi Mata, she couldn’t understand, she had too much motherly love to be able to comprehend that her son was God. She prayed with all of her heart, with tears in her eyes to Goddess Shashti, “please forgive my son Nimai, He is so mischievous. He ate all the food that was offered to you but you are the Goddess of children, so you gave me the child. He is your child. He is actually your child so please forgive Him for His offences and give Him a long happy life. And then Sachi Mata fell at the feet of all the elderly ladies that were there. Then she prayed to all those ladies, please bless my little child Nimai that He will have a long happy healthy life and please forgive Him for his mischievousness.”
Today is Govardhan Puja. This story is a nice bridge into the Govardhan Lila. Nimai was speaking about Himself being the ultimate source of all the Demigods, of all creation. Similar way, when Krishna was just seven years old in Sri Vrindavan Dham. May I tell this story? It is auspicious to hear it on this day and Navadwip is non-different than Vrindavan. It is identical to Vrindavan. Simply more magnanimous, more open to give the sweetness of the love of Vrindavan to the people who come here. One day, Krishna He saw elaborate arrangements were being made for a big celebration, with many ceremonies. He asked Nanda Maharaj. Krishna knows everything but as a little child, He is asking. He said, “My dear father, please tell Me what’s happening here? So many people are doing so many activities for so many ceremonies and a big festival, what is this festival, what is this ceremony? I see actually you do this every year at this time, please tell Me about it. What is its purpose, who is it for, what is the procedures and how it is done? Please tell me everything and if you think that I am a little boy and I won’t understand, tell Me anyway and if you think it’s a secret, you should know that you should not keep secrets from family members so please tell Me.”
Krishna is so sweet. Nanda Maharaj, to make Krishna happy, he said, “For generations and generations our family has performed this Indra Puja because we are Vaishyas, we are in the farming community. Our livelihood is by protecting the cows and by growing grains and vegetables, farmers. In order for the cows to give milk, there needs to be nice grass. In order for there to be nice grass and nice crops growing, we require rain. In order to have rain, there must be good clouds. Indra is the Demigod that is the Superintendent who oversees, the clouds and the rain. So, we are dependent on the good will of Indra for our survival. For all the Gopas, all the Gopis, all the cows, all the calves and everyone in Vrindavan. So, every year we do this Puja to offer our gratitude, to offer our worship for Indra to send the rains.”
Krishna listened. Seven year old little Krishna. He said, “it has nothing to do with Indra. It’s about our Karma. You see, the Demigods and the Demigoddesses, all they could do is deliver to us according to our Karma. If we have bad Karma, the higher powers orchestrate things in such a way to punish us. If we have good karma, they reward us. So, we are not depending on Indra, we are all good people. We all have good karma, if we just do good deeds, then the rains will come. Anyways, look at the ocean, the ocean is not doing any Yagyas and it is raining on the ocean and they don’t even need water. Actually, our cows are getting the grasses from Govardhan Hill. And we are getting the benedictions and the blessings from the Brahmins. So, we are dependent on the cows, the Brahmins and Govardhan hill. So, what I say we should do is forget this Indra, he is out of the picture. He doesn’t mean anything. We should take all of this wonderful paraphernalia that you are arranging for Indra Puja and have a wonderful celebration of offering worship to the cows, the Brahmins and Govardhan hill.”
Nanda Maharaj just wanted to please Krishna. So, he and the other cowherd men, Upananda, Abhinanda, Nanda, they all agreed and Krishna explained how to worship Govardhan Hill. He said, “make big mountain of Bhoga, of wonderful food and He explained what foods to make. In Krishna book, in Srimad Bhagavatam Srila Prabhupada explains so many nice preparations to be made for the Govardhan Puja that Krishna explained. And He said, “we offer all this food, everything we have, we make mountains and mountains of foods and lakes and ponds of liquid foods. And after offering it to the cows, the Brahmins, the Govardhan hill, we’ll offer it to the Govardhan Hill, then we will feed sumptuously everyone- the Brahmins, the cowherd boys, the Gopas, the goats, the buffaloes, the cows, the dogs, the cats, everyone, everyone will be completely fed.” Aham bija pratapida, Krishna is the father and mother of every living entity and is the well-wisher of everyone. In order to be truly a devotee somehow, we have to come to that state where we are truly aspiring to be the well-wisher of everyone, because that’s who Krishna is. Suhrdam sarva bhutanam.
He said, “after feeding everyone we should have a beautiful Puja to the cows, the Brahmins and Govardhan Hill, everyone should dress up in their best clothes and we should have marching bands and wonderful berries and flutes and cymbals and kettledrums and then we should Parikrama, circumambulate Govardhan Hill.” So, Nanda Maharaj, Yashoda Mai, the whole Brajwasi community were very very excited and Krishna was like the orchestrator, the director and producer of this incredible ceremony and it was the most blissful ceremony ever. They made huge mountains of food, huge lakes of food, Bhoga. They offered it, putting Tulasi on it. And then Krishna, He wanted to show how He and Govardhan were one and the same. While little seven-year-old Krishna was standing with the Brijwasis making the offering, that what’s the name of the village? Anayor, the Annakuta took place at Anayor, as they were making the offering, little Krishna expanded Himself to assume a gigantic form on top of Govardhan Hill. This form was as large as Govardhan Hill itself. But it was a personal form, personified, with beautiful gigantic eyes and hands and mouth and He was walking on Govardhan Hill. The Brijwasis were astonished. They are seeing this incredible form of Govardhan, so beautiful, yet so enormous and little Krishna who was standing among them, He had to explain to them who this was. He said, “this is Govardhan, because Govardhan is so pleased by our offerings, by all of our devotion He is assuming a personal, a human like form just to receive our offerings. Let’s all bow down to Him” and then little Krishna bowed down to big Krishna and all the Bijwasis, everyone, the cows, everyone bowed down to Sri Giriraj.
And as the offering was made, Sri Giriraj right in front of all the Brijwasis’ eyes, in His personified form on top of the hill, His hands expanded and because there were so many different offerings in so many parts of Govardhan, His hands expanded in all the directions, so many hands were coming and arms and He was taking the food and putting it in His mouth. He ate everything, just a matter of minutes. There were mountains of rice, mountains of samosas, mountains of everything, He just took it with His hands, put it in His mouth and ate it. Incredible darshan, everyone was watching in astonishment. And then with a thunderous voice He called out, “Anayor” which means ‘give Me more’ so they made more and more and more but no matter how much they made He ate and cried out “Anayor”. They looked at Krishna, we don’t have, He could eat limitlessly, there is nothing else. By Krishna’s will one devotee offered Him a Tulasi leaf and Sri Giriraj said, “I am satisfied.”
Then right before everyone’s eyes another incredible miracle, all the mountains, all the Kunds, all the Prasad that was offered it all manifested again exactly where it was but now it was Giriraj Mahaprasad. They offered Arati to Sri Giriraj, they offered Aragya and Patya and Achaman and all of the different procedures of worship and then they fed everyone to their full satisfaction. Dogs were so blissful. The goats and the sheep and all the people, all the cows were fed to their full satisfaction and after everyone was completely happy, then they began their Parikrama of Sri Giriraj. Some of the elder Gopis were on the palanquins or ox carts, the cowherd boys were with Krishna. They were herding the cows around the hill and the calves around the hill and they were, Krishna was joking with them all around. The Gopis were singing, the younger Gopis. In the way the whole Brajwasi community circumambulated and this was the first Giriraj Parikrama in history. It was the most enjoyable, fulfilling festival ever. Everyone returned to their homes, filled with happiness but there was one person who was not happy at all, Indra. Krishna performed this pastime for several reasons, one of the reasons is because of his love and compassion for Indra, because Indra is a devotee. Not only as a devotee, a very important devotee who has been given a very very significant responsibility. Being the King of the Swargaloka, heavenly planet area, the Superintendent of the Department of rain.
But in his role, he had so much power, so much wealth, so much control over others, so much fame, so many Karmakandi sections of the Vedas have whole yagya for Indra, chanting Indra’s names, chanting Indra’s Mantras for elevation to higher material prosperity. So, when you are worshipped, when you have so much, the tendency is to become proud, the tendency is to forget I am just a caretaker, I am just a humble servant caretaker of Bhagawan’s property. Indra, was distracted and there are so many stories about Indra where he gets distracted and that distraction was all coming from the seed of false pride. He is a devotee doing so much service to Krishna but he is distracted. Krishna, had to save him. That’s Krishna’s compassion. “I must crush to pieces his ego” and when Krishna wants to crush your ego, there is nothing you could do. He knows exactly what hurts the best. Krishna was going to insult Indra not only in front of all the Brijwasis but in front of all the Demigods that he is supposed to be in charge of and Indra saw. He was so affected by insult. When you expect something then you are very vulnerable to anxiety. If you don’t expect anything and then you don’t get it, life goes on. But if you expect something and you really expect it and then you don’t get it, it can put you in a psychotic state of mind and that’s the root cause of so many problems. We are expecting respect, ‘Amanina Manadena’, when you don’t get it, it hurts so bad. Or we become so angry, vengeful.
Indra, was seething with anger, “these Brijwasis, every year for hundreds of years, generations, they have offered this Puja for me, this is a big thing for the Brijwasis and it is a big thing for me because I get it every year and because of this reckless, mischievous, little, ignorant, foolish talkative boy called Krishna, they took what was meant for me and they offered it to a mountain. This audacious insult, they must be destroyed.” He went out of control. That’s what anger does. Dhayayato vishayan pumsam, Krishna tells in Bhagavad Gita. The objects of the senses and the senses, when attachment comes, Kama lust develops, when its unfulfilled, when we don’t get what we are expecting to get, Krodha, anger. Krodhat bhavati sammohah, from anger bewilderment of memory, from bewilderment of memory intelligence is lost and when intelligence is lost, we fall down again into the material condition. In other words, we do foolish things.
Now, when Indra does foolish things, as they say in the west its big time. He called the Samvartaka clouds. These are the clouds that pour rain at the time of universal destruction. They have the capacity to cause a deluge, a massive flood that covers the world, like the, all the oceans swell up so the whole planet becomes a huge ocean. That’s the power of these clouds. He called the Samvartaka clouds and told them, “these Brijwasis in Vrindavan, they have lost their intelligence, they are following this ignorant little Krishna. I am giving you an easy job. Usually at the time of the Pralaya you are in charge of covering the whole earth, the whole lower part of the Universe, flooding it all. I am giving you the specialised assignment of doing that to that little tract of land called Vrindavan.” “It will be done.” The clouds began to form over Vrindavan, massive clouds. The clouds expanded larger, larger, larger, deeper, higher, lower, grumbling of thunder, lightning. The Brijwasis were watching what was happening and then the Samvartaka clouds began to pour rain, not like today. When the Samvartaka clouds start pouring rain, the winds are cyclones, hurricanes and the rain falls like pillars not drops. Umbrella, within seconds your umbrella would break to pieces.
So, these clouds were forming and darkening. Vrindavan became almost black in darkness, the clouds were so dark and the rain started coming. The Brijwasis, they all approached Krishna. ‘Krishna Krishna Mahabhaga!’ They were helpless. On a regular day Krishna’s lotus foot are so soft. It pains our heart more than anything imaginable when Krishna steps on a pebble. When Krishna is hungry, He cries, everyone just wants to bring Him food. But when there was a danger beyond their control, they all approached Krishna, ‘please save us’ and the Brijwasis knew Gopal, He loves the cows. They said, “Please look at the cows how much distress they are in, look over there, the little calves they are freezing in the winds and the rain is pouring on them and their mothers, the cows is covering the heads of the calves with the loose part of their necks, that flesh using it like a little umbrella and the cows are crying to see their little calves suffering like this and the bulls, look at the bulls, this rain, the rain is falling on their horns and then bouncing off their horns and then falling on their humps and then going into pearl like drops. The bull is so angry. He is looking up at the clouds and roaring…Grrrrrr. Your cows and Your calves and Your bulls are suffering and so are we. You told us not to worship Indra, Indra is really angry, he is destroying our whole Vrindavan, please help us.”
Krishna smiled. He wanted to teach Indra such a good lesson that Indra would never forget. At the same time, He wanted to enjoy the sweetest, most enjoyable pastimes with every single one of the devotees of Vrindavan, simultaneously. Little Krishna lifted the Govardhan Hill as effortless as a child lifts a mushroom. He held the Govardhan Hill with the little finger of His left hand above His head, the most beautiful sight. Then He sweetly called out to everyone, “Nanda Maharaj, Upananda, Abhinanda, all your brothers all the family, all the Brijwasis, everyone bring your most precious possessions, bring all your cows and buffaloes and everyone else, bring your families and let us have a festival under Govardhan Hill. Just see, because Govardhan was so pleased by your Puja, he has become an umbrella just to give us happiness.” When Krishna lifted the Govardhan Hill, it made an incredibly loud sound, uprooting it. It’s not just a hill it’s a mountain and in those days, it was very very high, five thousand years ago. As He lifted it, by Krishna’s own arrangement, stones and earth fell from the sides of Govardhan Hill on the ground to make a circle around so that the water could not come under Govardhan Hill.
Everyone happily came under Govardhan Hill. The valley, by Krishna’s arrangement was filled with lush green grass for the cows and flowers and fragrances, it was beautiful. It was the most elegant paradise and there was Krishna standing in the form of Giridhari. Nobody even noticed it was raining outside. Everyone was filled with happiness. The whole Brijwasi community was a big circle around Giridhari Krishna. He was gazing with His loving compassionate glance upon everyone simultaneously. Every single Brijwasi, every animal, every bird, Gopa, Gopi, Brahmin, whoever they were they all were fully satisfied, knowing that Krishna was only looking at them. And it’s not that Krishna made Virata Rupa where He had many hands and many eyes and many heads and He was just looking all over the place. He is just Krishna, seven-year-old little Krishna, little boy. Whether you were in front of Him, or on the side of Him or behind Him everyone felt Krishna was looking personally directly only at them. And everyone was gazing upon this beautiful beautiful form of Giridhari, lifter of Govardhan Hill.
As the clouds, the Samvartaka, were smashing pillars, it was falling not in drops but pillars. It was like an ocean just being dumped. If you put an ocean in a bucket and just empty it, that’s what it was like coming on Vrindavan. It was immense, it was incredible but yet because Krishna was touching the bottom of Govardhan Hill with His little finger and His effulgence was touching Sri Giriraj because Krishna was so pleased with Sri Giriraj. that Govardhan Hill was so, so intoxicated with love being touched by Krishna’s little finger by pleasing Krishna that all the thunderbolts, they were falling upon him, all the thunder, massive thunderbolts, the thunderbolts were like the branches of the banyan trees, just going frfrfr…and Govardhan was not feeling the slightest inconvenience. And because Krishna was surcharging Giriraj, so incredibly Giriraj was so happy that even the animals and the birds and the trees and the grass on Govardhan Hill, they were not in any way disturbed. These massive rains and lightning and thunder and hurricanes were coming, you cannot even imagine what it was and the birds are singing and just going and looking at each other and smiling even on top of the hill. And one lion, this is described by Kavi Karnapur, one particular lion he was, he had Krishna on his side and he knew it so he roared at the clouds and then with his giant claws he attacked one of the clouds and the cloud flew away in fear. These are Samvartaka clouds.
Meanwhile under the hill, everyone was engaged in loving service to Krishna according to their nature. Krishna told the Brijwasis, “please don’t feel that I am in anyway being destressed by holding up Giriraj.” Yashoda Mai is His mother, she is seeing her little son lifting this incredible mountain with one finger. Today this mountain is 21 kilometres to go around it. In those days it was many times bigger. Its logical to think this is God, or this is some supernatural personality but Yashoda Mai is seeing that but she is just thinking He is my son and she started praying to Govardhan Hill. She said, “O Giriraj, if ever I have done any pious deeds in my life, if I have ever pleased you, if I have ever pleased my beloved Lord if I have been a good mother and a good wife and a good Brajeshwari for the residents of Vrindavan, I only ask one thing in return, I will exchange everything good I have ever done if you just give me one benediction, please don’t hurt my son’s finger. Please cause Him no pain lifting you” and Krishna, He said to Yashoda Mai. He said, “Actually Mother Yashoda I am not holding up Govardhan Hill, because Giriraj was so happy by our Puja, he is just so satisfied, He is protecting us, He is floating in the sky by his own wish, I am just going like this.” Yashoda Mai said, “if that’s true Krishna, then I wanna see Giriraj disconnect from Your finger and start flying in different directions in the sky. I can see that You are very tired, I see drops of perspiration and I see Your stomach is becoming hollow because You are hungry and I can see that You are straining so much.”
Madhumangala told Yashoda Mai, “don’t you see it’s not Krishna. I am a Brahmin, it’s my Brahmin ‘tejas’, thats holding up the mountain.” Yashoda Mai said, “Krishna You are so impudent, why did You insult Indra like this, don’t You know?” Just like Sachi Mata and Shashti, she said, “don’t You know Indra is a Demigod, He is a powerful supernatural superintendent of universal affairs, and You insulted him so much. Why are You so mischievous?” And Madhumangala said, “if Krishna didn’t insult Indra, we should be thanking Indra for being so mad because if he did not get angry like this, we would not be having this beautiful darshan of Sri Giridhari.” Yashoda Mai said, “you are calling this beautiful? When my son is in great distress? He is straining and He is struggling to hold up a giant mountain and you are saying this is beautiful?” And Nanda Maharaj said to Yashoda Mai that, “please Yashoda he is Krishna’s friend, he is trying to encourage Him, just let him encourage Him.”
Sri Radharani, She was standing and She glanced upon Krishna and Krishna glanced upon Her and when He felt the power of the love of Her glance He went into an uncontrolled state of ecstasy. Lord Chaitanya is Krishna who wants to understand the glory of Radha’s love. When Sri Radharani glanced upon Krishna and Krishna glanced upon Her, Krishna became so surcharged with ecstatic love that His whole body began to tremble and tears started flowing from His eyes and at that time, the cowherd men, the elder cowherd men they were thinking that Krishna is getting tired so they all picked up sticks and stuck the sticks under the mountain and were straining and straining and struggling and they were thinking that they were holding up the mountain. Madhumangala told them, “why are you wasting your time? Krishna is the younger brother of Balaram, He doesn’t need your help. You are just uselessly scratching the bottom of the mountain.” And Krishna just tipped the mountain a little and all their sticks started breaking and they all fell down and they lifted up again and smiled. He was lifting the mountain with His left hand and just to give happiness to all the Brijwasis His right hand, His thumb was inside…there was a red cloth that was wrapped around His waist and a beautiful golden Dhoti, He was standing in that form. After some time with His right hand He lifted His flute, played sweet songs on His flute. Each and every person could feel Krishna, the love of His heart, pouring through the holes of the flute with the sweetest song in all Spiritual, material worlds, just for them. They were hypnotised, mesmerised in ‘Ananda’, in love as Krishna was smiling and playing His flute for them.
Some of the cowherd boys, they got worried, they said, “Krishna don’t play Your flute because we have seen what happens when You play Your flute. Govardhan Hill might become mesmerised just as we are and he may fall of Your finger” and then another cowherd boy said, “well we have seen other things that happen when Krishna plays His flute, solid things melt in ecstasy and become liquid and liquid things become stunned in ecstasy and become solid. If Govardhan melts in ecstasy then he’ll devastate us even worse than Indra is trying to do” and then that same cowherd boy said, “but no, that won’t happen because Giriraj is very sober, even if he goes into such an ecstasy, he will restrain himself.” As Krishna played His beautiful flute, on the top of the hill there was a great storm with massive dark clouds pouring rain and lightning, rainbows and under the hill there was a wonderful storm also. Krishna was like a beautiful monsoon cloud. The beautiful Gopis were like lightening. Krishna’s peacock feather was like a rainbow and His love for each and every Brijwasi and the beauty of His body, how He expressed His love for them through the sweetness of His beauty, His fragrance was like the downpour of rain.
After few days, Indra came personally to see what was happening, He was expecting Vrindavan to have been completely destroyed. When he got there, Samvartaka, the clouds, the storm, were raging but everyone under Govardhan Hill was blissfully singing and happy and Krishna was playing His flute. With all the hurricane winds they couldn’t move Giriraj from Krishna’s finger. Indra, His anger multiplied due to frustration. He told the Samvartaka clouds, “harder, harder, more, with all your forces” and they redoubled their energy. VRooom!!! Vrommm!! And Indra was, you know about Indra’s thunderbolt the Vajra, its famous throughout the Vedic literatures, one after another he was personally throwing his most powerful thunderbolts at Govardhan Hill, He was sending such winds. Meanwhile under the hill, Yashoda Mai is telling Subala, that, “tell Krishna to stop playing His flute and eat something. He hasn’t eaten anything in so long, I have fresh butter and I have Tambula and so many nice things. Please put it in Krishna’s mouth.” Madhumangala said, “this is very good idea, give to us, give to us too.” So Subala, dusted the dust off Krishna’s face and started putting nice preparations of Yashoda Mai in Krishna’s mouth. Krishna was chewing it and smiling and then Yashoda Mai was very happy.
Under Govardhan Hill, the Brahmins were offering benedictions and blessings and chanting Mantras for Krishna’s protection so they were happy and Krishna was happy reciprocating by smiling and glancing upon them. For the Gopas, the cowherd boys, they were surrounding Krishna, joking with Him, telling stories with Him, listening to Him, smiling with Him. Krishna was reciprocating perfectly, fully with each and every one. The Gopis, as they glanced upon Krishna, the beautiful form of Giridhari, Krishna reciprocated and with His glance upon them He entered deep, deep to the very core of their hearts, through their eyes He entered the core of their hearts and there they embraced each other. To the elder Gopas and Gopis just like parents they were worrying about Him and Krishna was assuring them in so many ways. Raktak, Patrak the servants they were constantly doing little things for Krishna and Krishna was fully reciprocating with each and every one of them. Each cow was gazing upon Krishna and Krishna was reciprocating them. Twenty-four hours a day for seven full days every single Brijwasi was continuously enjoying the highest Rasas of nectar personally with Krishna.
Outside, the clouds were totally exhausted, defeated, about to die. The Samvartaka, the predominating deities of those clouds, they all came to Indra, they bowed down and they said, “we’re finished, there is nothing else we could do.” But that made Indra even more angry. Airavata, his elephant was really a personification of his own anger and with all of his powers, everything he had, all of his supernatural energies, rain, storm, massive winds. After seven days, Indra was completely exhausted. In all those seven days he could not move a single grain of dust on top of Govardhan Hill. Out of all the countless trees, he could not separate a single leaf from any tree. When Krishna wants to crush your ego, He is supreme. Indra was totally defeated. He simply had absolutely no effect except to make the Brijwasis more happy. He was trying to destroy them. In war, even if you lose the war at least you know you have caused massive damage to the enemy. But in this case, he couldn’t move a grain of dust. He couldn’t uproot a single blade of grass from Govardhan Hill. With seven days of all of his energies, he was defeated. He left in total defeat and shame.
The sky opened up, the clouds went away, the sky was blue, the sun again began to shine. Krishna smiled and told the Brijwasis, “now the rain has ended, you could all go back to your homes.” Nobody wanted to go back to their homes. But it was Krishna’s will. To please Krishna was the object of everyone’s heart. Krishna told the cowherd boys, bring the cows back to the Goshala and to the pastures and everyone go back to see all your homes are completely fine. Indra could not do anything to disturb it. In fact, when all the rains were falling at Giriraj, it was like an Abhishek. He just became more and more bright and cleansed and sparkling as did all the homes of the Brijwasis. As they went out from Govardhan Hill all singing the glories of Sri Giridhari, cowherd boys took the cows out but the cows saw that Krishna was still standing in this beautiful threefold bending form of Giridhari and they all came running back because they didn’t wanna leave Him. Krishna by His glance, He herded them out from Govardhan Hill, the valley underneath and when everyone had gone back to their homes
Krishna effortlessly, He just dropped Govardhan Hill back on the ground.
Indra, his ego was so crushed and now, not only crushed but he was feeling profound guilt. He understands who he was calling an ignorant foolish talkative little boy and he tried to destroy Krishna and His whole family and His whole village. Now he understands He is Bhagawan. He is the Absolute truth, He is my Master. Indra is a very intelligent scholar of Vedas. He is Yagyapurusha. What have I done? He didn’t know what to do. He went to his Guru Brihaspati and said, “look what I have done. I tried to destroy Krishna and His family, His cows, His village, everything. What should I do?” Brihaspati looked at Indra. This is Guru to disciple. He said, “Indra you are a fool. There is nothing I can do to help you. You should go to Brahma.” Indra went to Brahma, “what should I do?” Brahma looked at Indra and said, “Indra you are a fool. There is nothing I could do. Krishna is my master too. You offended our master.” “But what should I do?” Brahma told him the secrets of all secrets. “If you want to get Krishna’s favour, you need to go to someone who sincerely loves Krishna. Go to Surabhi, the mother of the cows because Krishna loves the cows. If she approaches Krishna to forgive you then Krishna will forgive you. There is nothing you could do.”
Here is Indra the king of heaven with all of his royal, heavenly opulences and fame and he is approaching a cow, simple mother cow. She is not wearing any thrones or any crowns. She doesn’t have a castle. She is just eating grass. Simplicity. Her love for Krishna was filled with simplicity. Indra was complicated by all sorts of luxury and power and complications. Indra surrendered to this cow and begged her to approach Krishna on his behalf. Surabhi is a mother. She has motherly affection innate for everyone. She said, “come.” Today in Vrindavan there is a place called Surabhi Kund. There, Surabhi approached Krishna because Krishna would not even look at Indra. She said, “Indra, he is a very bad boy, he has done very bad mistakes. But he is repentant, he is humbled. Please forgive him and bestow your mercy upon him.” From the appeal of Surabhi, Krishna gazed upon Indra. Indra then approached and put his crowned head on little Gopal’s lotus feet and with tears of repentance and humility he offered prayers, beautiful prayers to Krishna, “Krishna is the source of everything, the highest truth, the proprietor of all that exists and the Supreme Master but He has appeared in this world in His original form as a little cowherd boy to exchange the sweetest love with His devotees, the Gopas and Gopis.” Indra begged forgiveness and thanked Krishna, “because I was so much under the illusion of my false pride, me devotion was being spoiled but You protected me by defeating me in such a wonderful way, I surrender my heart, I surrender my life to You, I am Yours.”
And Krishna accepted Indra. This is a very important lesson because in this material world since time immemorial we have disconnected from Krishna, tried to exploit His property, tried to exploit His children in various ways but if we approach those who love Krishna, if they approach Krishna on our behalf, then Krishna will accept our hearts, our lives and our devotion. In Godruma Dweep area there is Surabhi Kund which is where Lord Nityananda Prabhu established His Nama-hatta. Dina hina yatha chilo, Hari Nama udharilo. Jagai and Madhai in their own way they were like Indra. Of course, Indra is a devotee, they were total demons. And Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu stood before them with Sudarshan Chakra about to destroy them but somehow or other Nityananda Prabhu, who is the original Guru, He appealed to them, He appealed to Lord Chaitanya because Jagai and Madhai changed. They were begging for mercy when they saw Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu’s form of destruction. Nityananda appealed like Surabhi, “please less them give them Your mercy. In this age of Kali almost everyone is like Jagai and Madhai either one degree or another. We have come not to kill the demons but to remove the demoniac mentality and allow the true nature of the soul to shine. We have come to give ecstatic liberation in love of God to the demons and to everyone.”
By Nityananda Prabhu’s humble appeal Lord Chaitanya accepted Jagai and Madhai as His own intimate personal associates and awarded them Prema Bhakti. Srila Prabhupada honestly told us when he was asked, “what qualification did we have to receive such knowledge and such grace of Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu’s Krishna consciousness?” Srila Prabhupada said, “you had no qualifications.” With all humility he said, “I made your qualifications.” By his prayers to Krishna to forgive us, to accept us, Krishna gave us everything and we should never forget that. Punar mushtika bhava, if we forget it spiritually, we become lost. We should always be grateful for those great souls who have come into our lives. Mad-bhakta-pūjābhyadhikā, Krishna tells, worshipping My devotee is more pleasing to Me than worshipping Me. Yasya prasadad Bhagavad prasado, when we get the mercy of the Guru, we get the mercy of Krishna. By Surabhi’s mercy, Indra was liberated. Indra wanted to celebrate this incredible mercy that Krishna showed to him and he called the Demigods, Brahma, Shiva, Agni, Varuna, Yamaraj, Ananta Deva, the great Rishis, Vashishta, Arundhati, Atri, Anasuya.
All the great sages and their wives, they all came to perform a grand festival to coronate Krishna as the Supreme Indra. At Govinda Kund at the Govardhan Parikrama, that is where they performed a wonderful Abhishekam. Aairavat brought the water of the Akash Ganga. Krishna was bathed with limitless amounts of celestial milk,’ panchagavya panchamrita’ and they filled up that beautiful lake. Krishna was put on the throne by Indra and Indra proclaimed the name Govinda. It’s His name anyway eternally in the spiritual world but it was revealed in Krishna’s lila when Indra offered Krishna the name Govinda in this pastime. “You are my Indra, You are the lord of all.” After this wonderful ceremony, the Demigods departed and the cowherd boys, they put Krishna and Balaram on the throne and they took the paraphernalia of the Demigods and they were offering it to Krishna. Meanwhile Nanda and Yashoda and the other cowherd men and women they heard conchshells and so many things going on and they came and they saw their little children offering wonderful Pujas to Krishna and Balaram. They asked what has happened and the cowherd boys said, “Oh so many things were happening, you really missed it. There was a talking cow, then there was this man with eyes all over his body and he was offering prayers to Krishna and there was a man with four heads and there was a man with five heads. They were all doing Pujas to Krishna and they were all bathing Krishna. There were snakes with many heads singing Krishna’s glories.
The elder Gopas and Gopis didn’t know what the children were talking about. But then the Brijwasis themselves took the same paraphernalia left behind by the Demigods and Yashoda Mai and Nanda started offering Aratis to Krishna using the Chamaras and when the Demigods looked down and saw the children and the Brijwasis, doing the same things they were doing, they realised, we have no devotion at all compared to the residents of Vrindavan. The story of Govardhan Puja, has many many lessons. The initial lesson that when we worship Mukunda Krishna, all the Demigods, all the Goddesses, all obligations and responsibilities are completely fulfilled. We have obligation to the Demigods for rain, for sun, for wind, for air, for grains. We have a responsibility. If you don’t pay your taxes to the Government, they turn off your electricity. If you don’t pay your water bill, your plumbing bills, they turn it off. Universally we have debt. But as Lord Chaitanya told Sachi, when you water the root of the tree automatically all your debts are paid. Lord Chaitanya taught us, we should sincerely offer all honour and respect to all the Demigods, to all the Goddesses, because they are Krishna’s personal energies. They are Jivas with enormous responsibilities. A devotee will always give all honour and respect to the Devas but we worship Krishna because there is nothing that gives more pleasure to all the Devas.
Then when we serve Krishna with love, Gopī-bhartur pada-kamalayor dāsa-dāsa-dāsānudāsaḥ, to be the servant of the servant of the servant of the Lord of the Gopis. That is our highest aspiration. Because it is in this spirit that Krishna will reciprocate and shower His mercy like a monsoon rain of grace as we chant His holy names. Hare Krishna Hare Krishna Krishna Krishna Hare Hare Hare Ram Hare Ram Ram Ram Hare Hare. Thank you very much!