Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 1.16.16

Prabhupāda: Govindam ādi-puruṣaṁ tam ahaṁ bhajāmi.

Devotees: Jaya. Haribol.

Prabhupāda: [leads singing of Jaya Rādhā-Mādhava] [prema-dhvani] Thank you very much.

[06:12]

Pradyumna: Oṁ namo bhagavate vāsudevāya. Oṁ namo bhagavate vāsudevāya. Oṁ namo bhagavate vāsudevāya. [devotees repeat] [leads chanting of verse, etc.]

sārathya-pāraṣada-sevana-sakhya-dautya- vīrāsanānugamana-stavana-praṅāmān snigdheṣu pāṅḍuṣu jagat-praṅatiṁ ca viṣṅor bhaktiṁ karoti nṛ-patiś caraṅāravinde [SB 1.16.16]

[12:13]

Translation: "Mahārāja Parīkṣit heard that out of His causeless mercy Lord Kṛṣṅa, or Viṣṅu, who is universally obeyed, rendered all kinds of service to the malleable sons of Pāṅḍu by accepting posts ranging from chariot driver to president to messenger, friend, nightwatchman, etc., according to the will of the Pāṅḍavas, obeying them like a servant and offering obeisances like one younger in years. When he heard this, Mahārāja Parīkṣit became overwhelmed with devotion to the lotus feet of the Lord."

Prabhupāda: So this is the exchange of love between the Lord and the devotee. It is not Kṛṣṅa, the Supreme Personality of Godhead... He's master, the Supreme, but we may not calculate the master and the Supreme by our material experience. Just like in our material experience we see the master is always master and the servant is always servant. But in the spiritual world, sometimes the master is the servant also. This is called Absolute, Absolute world. Here there is distinction between master and the servant, but in the spiritual world there is no such distinction. Sometimes the servant is rendering service to the Lord, and sometimes the Lord is serving to the master. Just like Kṛṣṅa, when He was playing with His friends, so there was sporting, and in the sporting there is defeat and victory. So if some of the friends would become victorious, then the challenge was that one who will be defeated, the victorious person will ride on his shoulder. That was the challenge. So when Kṛṣṅa became defeated, the other boys, they rose up and got up on the shoulder of Kṛṣṅa, and Kṛṣṅa had to carry them.

So although Kṛṣṅa is master, but He became a servant. Just like Kṛṣṅa, when He was playing as a child of Mother Yaśodā, so He was taken with stick: "Kṛṣṅa, if you become again very naughty, then see the stick." So Kṛṣṅa used to cry. There are very nice verses in the Kuntī's prayer, that "The whole universe is afraid of Kṛṣṅa, and Kṛṣṅa is afraid by the stick of Mother Yaśodā." [laughter] Just see. This is Kṛṣṅa. This is spiritual world. When Kṛṣṅa was a little boy playing, Nanda Mahārāja, father of Kṛṣṅa... Yaśodā and Nanda Mahārāja, they are foster father and mother. Real mother, father is Vasudeva and Devakī. So Nanda Mahārāja came within the house and saw little Kṛṣṅa, "Yes." He was playing. So Nanda Mahārāja challenged Yaśodāmāyi, "Your Kṛṣṅa can do something work?" "Oh, yes, why not? He can do anything." Immediately, Nanda..., Yaśodā-mātā, Mother Yaśodā, ordered Kṛṣṅa, "Just carry the wooden slipper of Your father and go there." So Kṛṣṅa immediately took the slipper on His head and brought it to Mahārāja Nanda. Then Nanda Mahārāja said, "Oh, your Kṛṣṅa is very good. Come on, come on, come on." These were, that the childhood pastimes of Kṛṣṅa was enjoyed by the foster father and mother.

Therefore all the sages were surprised that "What pious activities this Mother Yaśodā did that Kṛṣṅa is completely under her control? Completely." The supreme controller, īśvaraḥ paramaḥ kṛṣṅaḥ [Bs 5.1].

[Kṛṣṅa who is known as Govinda is the Supreme Godhead. He has an eternal blissful spiritual body. He is the origin of all. He has no other origin and He is the prime cause of all causes.]

Kṛṣṅa is the supreme controller. There is no controller of Kṛṣṅa. Kṛṣṅa, the Supreme Lord, govindam ādi-puruṣam, He is the original person. So who can be His father and mother? He is the father of everyone, the supreme father. Sarva-yoniṣu kaunteya sambhavanti mūrtayo yāḥ [Bg 14.4].

[It should be understood that all species of life, O son of Kuntī, are made possible by birth in this material nature, and that I am the seed-giving father.]

Kṛṣṅa says, "In all species of life, as many forms are there, I am the seed-giving father of all of them." So nobody can be Kṛṣṅa's father. Nobody can be controller of Kṛṣṅa. Nobody can be master of Kṛṣṅa. Kṛṣṅa is the Supreme. Mattaḥ parataraṁ nānyat [Bg 7.7]:

[O conqueror of wealth [Arjuna], there is no Truth superior to Me. Everything rests upon Me, as pearls are strung on a thread.]

"Nobody is superior than Me." But He accepts inferior position out of love. If you love Kṛṣṅa... The Māyāvādī philosophers, they are very much eager to become one with Kṛṣṅa, merge into the existence of Kṛṣṅa. That is their perfection. And Vaiṣṅava philosophy is: "What is there becoming one with Kṛṣṅa? We want to become father of Kṛṣṅa." This is Kṛṣṅa philosophy. "Why I shall be one with my son? We want to become master of Kṛṣṅa." Just like gopīs. Gopīs were addressing Kṛṣṅa with very slanting language, but Kṛṣṅa enjoyed that. That is service to Kṛṣṅa. Kṛṣṅa... Everyone worships Kṛṣṅa as the Supreme. So sometime Kṛṣṅa becomes disgusted, that "Everyone is coming, simply offering Me respectful obeisances. Nobody comes to chastise Me." So who can chastise Kṛṣṅa? His devotee. Therefore a devotee who comes to the position of chastising Kṛṣṅa, he is more liked by Kṛṣṅa. That is Kṛṣṅa's position.

So here, about the Pāṅḍavas it is described that Kṛṣṅa accepted sārathyam. Kṛṣṅa's another name is Pārtha-sārathi. Pārtha. Arjuna's name is Pārtha. Pārtha means "the son of Pṛthā." Kuntī's another name is Pṛthā. Kuntī's father's name was Pṛthu, so Kuntī's name was Pṛthā. Therefore Arjuna's name was Pārtha. And because Kṛṣṅa served as the chariot driver of Kṛṣṅa, His another name is Pārtha-sārathi. So it is a fact that God has no name. Sometimes some philosopher says that "God has no name." That is fact. But why God has so many names? These names are calculated according to His pastime. Just like Kṛṣṅa is known as Devakī-nandana. Because He appeared as the son of Devakī, therefore His name is Devakī-nandana—by the action. Kṛṣṅa is known as Yaśodā-nandana. Because Kṛṣṅa acted as the son of Mother Yaśodā, His name is Yaśodā-nandana. Kṛṣṅa's name is Rādhā-ramaṅa. Because Kṛṣṅa enjoyed with Rādhārāṅī, therefore His name is Rādhā-ramaṅa. Kṛṣṅa's name is Govinda. Because He gave pleasure even to the cows, therefore His name is Govinda. Or Kṛṣṅa gives pleasure to every sense; therefore His name is Govinda. There are so many thousands and millions of names of Kṛṣṅa. Actually, His name is calculated in relationship with devotee. That is Kṛṣṅa's name. And there are devotees in all fields of life—amongst human being, among demigods, among plants, amongst trees, among animals, among insects. Everywhere, Kṛṣṅa has got His relationship. So therefore the supreme name of the Lord is Kṛṣṅa. Kṛṣṅa means all-attractive. That is the meaning. [aside:] Please sit down properly. Kṛṣṅa's name is... This is the supreme name, Kṛṣṅa, "all-attractive." He can attract everyone.

So this statement, that "God has no name," that is fact; but He has got His name in relationship with His activities with devotees. So Kṛṣṅa worked as sārathi, as it is stated here, sārathyam. He acted as the chariot driver of Arjuna. Therefore Kṛṣṅa's name is Pārtha-sārathi. So Kṛṣṅa did all these things. He acted as a chariot driver. He acted as the president of the assembly. Not that He is eternally chariot driver. Eternally servant is the human being or the living entities. Eternally master, that is there. In Vaikuṅṭha, in the spiritual world, there is equality with God and the living entities. They enjoy on equal level. But everyone knows that "Here is the Supreme." That is spiritual world. When Kṛṣṅa drives the chariot, Arjuna does not forget, that "He is my chariot driver." He knows that "Kṛṣṅa is the Supreme. But He is so kind, He has accepted the post of my chariot driver." This is spiritual sense. And sometimes, by the influence of yoga-māyā, Kṛṣṅa also forgets that He is the Supreme Personality of Godhead, and the devotee also forgets that he is eternal servant of Kṛṣṅa. That is the action of yoga-māyā.

So this Kṛṣṅa consciousness movement, there are so many things to learn. And when practically one learns everything—not everything; as far as possible, perfection—then his position is janma karma me divyaṁ yo jānāti tattvataḥ [Bg 4.9].

[One who knows the transcendental nature of My appearance and activities does not, upon leaving the body, take his birth again in this material world, but attains My eternal abode, O Arjuna.]

Anyone who learns about Kṛṣṅa, His janma... He has no father, but He is accepting a father. Therefore janma. Janma means birth. When there is birth, there must be father and mother. So when Kṛṣṅa takes His birth, appears as a son, so there must be father and mother. But who can be His father and mother? His devotee. Because His business is with the devotees, with no other else. When He wants father and mother, the devotee must be father... Even when He wants some enemy, the devotee will become His enemy, what to speak of father and mother. Therefore He is all-attractive. He is as much attractive to His father and mother, similarly, He is attractive to the small calf. You have seen the picture, Kṛṣṅa is embracing. Kṛṣṅa is not simply embracing Rādhārāṅī or the gopīs; He is embracing the insignificant animal, calf. Therefore He is all-attractive. And when the calf goes to Kṛṣṅa... This is described in the Kṛṣṅa book, how all the cows and calves were so much, I mean to say, attached to Kṛṣṅa. That is Vṛndāvana. Everyone is attached to Kṛṣṅa. It doesn't matter whether he is human being or plant or trees or water or animal or the land or the flowers or the fruits. Whatever there is, they are all attracted to Kṛṣṅa.

So similarly, if we become attracted to Kṛṣṅa... We are attracted to... Actually we love Kṛṣṅa. That is the fact. But we have forgotten it. We are under illusion. Just you analyze yourself. Why we love this body? It is very easy to understand. Because the soul is there. Does anybody loves a dead body? Is there any instance, a dead body is loved and embraced and taken into the room and kept it? Nobody cares. Throw it, or burn it. So the body is not a lovable object. But because the soul is there within the body, therefore we love this body. This house, if it is vacant, nobody will come. But because there is Kṛṣṅa or because there are devotees of Kṛṣṅa, so many people come. Not that this house is lovable. Similarly, you analyze: You love this body. You work so hard day and night to keep this body fit. Why? Because the proprietor of the body, soul, is there. Then the love transfers from body to the soul. Then why do you love the soul? Because it is part and parcel of Kṛṣṅa. Therefore we love the soul. So ultimately, the love goes to Kṛṣṅa. This is natural feeling of love between Kṛṣṅa, or God, and between living entities, but the māyā is interrupting the relation. It is called illusion. The process of interruption is called illusion. Otherwise we, every one of us, we love Kṛṣṅa. Every one of us. You analyze, you see that ultimately goes to Kṛṣṅa.

Therefore in the Caitanya-caritāmṛta it is said that nitya-siddha kṛṣṅa-bhakti: "The loving attitude of the living entity towards Kṛṣṅa is nitya-siddha." That is eternally fact. Not that we are preaching Kṛṣṅa consciousness movement, artificially we are creating some situation that a person may love Kṛṣṅa. No. That is not. That is not fact. We are cleansing the process which has covered our kṛṣṅa-bhakti. Śravaṅādi-śuddha-citte karaye udaya [Cc Madhya 22.107].

[Pure love for Kṛṣṅa is eternally established in the hearts of the living entities. It is not something to be gained from another source. When the heart is purified by hearing and chanting, this love naturally awakens.]

The love for Kṛṣṅa is there automatically. Everyone loves. But it is now covered by māyā. So śravaṅādi-śuddha-citte. Just like when you become diseased... Actually your position is, normal position is, that you can eat nicely, you can sleep nicely, you can talk nicely. That is healthy life. But when you cannot eat nicely, when you cannot sleep nicely, you cannot have sex life nicely, you take the help of a physician. The physician helps you, not that artificially he is creating some machine in you so that you can eat. The eating process is already there. You competent to eat. But it has been disrupted by another influence. That is called māyā. Similarly kṛṣṅa-bhakti, or our love for Kṛṣṅa, is eternally fact. Some way or other it has been interrupted by the influence of māyā, and we have to cleanse this. Or, as the physician cures the disease, so this māyā... Māyā means an illusion, means it is not a fact. Just like you cannot eat—this is not a fact. You can eat, but something has come between you and your healthy life. That is disease. So not to become Kṛṣṅa conscious is disease. To become Kṛṣṅa conscious is healthy. That is real health. Not to become Kṛṣṅa conscious, to become a demon, that is disease.

So our process is to cure the disease, not that we are enforcing something by some artificial means. That is not possible. That is not possible. Otherwise, in the foreign countries... Now, for Kṛṣṅa there is no foreign country, because He is the proprietor everywhere. But people think that "Kṛṣṅa is a foreign name, and He is Indian, Indian God," like that. But actually that is not for... Just like you cannot say the sun, "This is American sun and this is Indian sun" or "This is African sun." Sun is one. Similarly, God is one. There cannot be two Gods—American God or Indian God or African God. God is one. But when God consciousness comes into, I mean, awakening, then we can understand what is God. Therefore in the Bhāgavata it is said, ataḥ śrī-kṛṣṅa-nāmādi na bhaved grāhyam indriyaiḥ [Cc Madhya 17.136].

[Therefore material senses cannot appreciate Kṛṣṅa’s holy name, form, qualities and pastimes. When a conditioned soul is awakened to Kṛṣṅa consciousness and renders service by using his tongue to chant the Lord’s holy name and taste the remnants of the Lord’s food, the tongue is purified, and one gradually comes to understand who Kṛṣṅa really is.]

By our these diseased senses, blunt senses... Diseased means blunt condition. So ataḥ śrī-kṛṣṅa-nāmādi. Simply I speak, "Kṛṣṅa is God," and you hear, it will not be appreciated. It will not be appreciated. "Eh, why Kṛṣṅa God?" You will make so many protests. So... But actually, Kṛṣṅa is God.

So Kṛṣṅa... Ataḥ śrī-kṛṣṅa-nāmādi. Not only Kṛṣṅa—to accept Kṛṣṅa as God, to hear about His name also. Just like we are chanting Hare Kṛṣṅa, Kṛṣṅa's name. So this name, Kṛṣṅa's form, Kṛṣṅa's quality, Kṛṣṅa's pastimes, Kṛṣṅa's entourage, ataḥ śrī-kṛṣṅa-nāmādi. Nāmādi means "beginning from name." Nāma ādi. Ādi means beginning. So we can understand Kṛṣṅa from the name. When name is perfectly chanted, then the form, the pastimes, the quality and all other things in relation to Kṛṣṅa becomes revealed. Ataḥ śrī-kṛṣṅa-nāmādi na bhaved grāhyam indriyaiḥ [Cc Madhya 17.136]. But these blunt senses cannot appreciate what is Kṛṣṅa. Then how it will be appreciated? Sevonmukhe hi jihvādau svayam eva sphuraty adaḥ. When we engage our tongue... Kṛṣṅa consciousness begins from the tongue, not from the eyes. Some rascals want to see Kṛṣṅa. They will see that Guru Maharaj[-ji]. You see? Such rascals will see that so-called Kṛṣṅa. But to see real Kṛṣṅa, one has to purify the eyes, purify the senses. Not that anyone comes, "I am Kṛṣṅa," and I can see and become perfect. No. Sevonmukhe. And how the senses will be purified? By sevonmukha, by rendering service. For many, many thousands of years, if one is engaged in the service of Kṛṣṅa, then one day there is chance of understanding what is Kṛṣṅa. Kṛṣṅa is not so easy thing. Ataḥ śrī-kṛṣṅa-nāmādi na bhaved grāhyam indriyaiḥ, sevonmukhe hi jihvādau. Kṛṣṅa also says in the Bhagavad-gītā, manuṣyāṅāṁ sahasreṣu kaścid yatati siddhaye [Bg 7.3].

[Out of many thousands among men, one may endeavor for perfection, and of those who have achieved perfection, hardly one knows Me in truth.]

Kṛṣṅa seeing is not so easy. Manuṣyāṅāṁ sahasreṣu: out of many millions of people. Manuṣyāṅāṁ sahasreṣu kaścid yatati siddhaye. To siddha, to become siddha, is not that "I go on doing all nonsense work, I become perfect man." No, no. Tapasā brahmacaryeṅa śamena damena va, tyāgena satya-śaucābhyām [SB 6.1.13].

[To concentrate the mind, one must observe a life of celibacy and not fall down. One must undergo the austerity of voluntarily giving up sense enjoyment. One must then control the mind and senses, give charity, be truthful, clean and nonviolent, follow the regulative principles and regularly chant the holy name of the Lord. Thus a sober and faithful person who knows the religious principles is temporarily purified of all sins performed with his body, words and mind. These sins are like the dried leaves of creepers beneath a bamboo tree, which may be burned by fire although their roots remain to grow again at the first opportunity.]

This is a process, how to become perfect. The rascals cannot become perfect. These are the process. One has to undergo austerity, penance, brahmacaryeṅa, completely cessation from sex life, brahmacaryeṅa. Not that any rascal doing everything and he has realized Kṛṣṅa, he has seen Kṛṣṅa. These are all rascaldom. Kṛṣṅa is paraṁ pavitram. Paraṁ brahma paraṁ dhāma pavitraṁ paramaṁ bhavān [Bg 10.12].

[Arjuna said: You are the Supreme Brahman, the ultimate, the supreme abode and purifier, the Absolute Truth and the eternal divine person. You are the primal God, transcendental and original, and You are the unborn and all-pervading beauty. All the great sages such as Nārada, Asita, Devala, and Vyāsa proclaim this of You, and now You Yourself are declaring it to me.]

So to go to Kṛṣṅa, one requires to be perfectly purified. Just like without becoming fire, you cannot enter into fire. If your body is not fire, as soon as you enter fire, you will be burned. But you take another fire and push into the fire, there is no reaction. There is no reaction. Just like to live within the water, you must have a particular type of body so that living within the water, you will not be infected. Just like a human being, if he artificially enters into the water, for few hours he can remain, that is also with great difficulty. He will feel bodily pain. But the fishes within the water, they are living very peacefully, happily, for hundreds of years. So this is real fact. You cannot enter into an atmosphere without being fit for living in that atmosphere. Is it very difficult to understand? Because they are going to the moon planet, why they are coming back? Because they have no arrangement to make the body fit to live there.

So God's creation is like that. You cannot by force enter into any atmosphere unless you become fit to live there. That is God's creation. By force you cannot live within water. By force the fish cannot live on the land. Then you'll die. Similarly, by force you cannot enter into the moon planet. Therefore they are frustrated. It is not possible. Similarly, without being Kṛṣṅized, you cannot understand what is Kṛṣṅa, you cannot associate with Him. That is the process of Kṛṣṅa consciousness, to become perfectly Kṛṣṅa-ite, as good as Kṛṣṅa. That is purification process. Sarvopādhi-vinirmuktaṁ tat-paratvena nirmalam [Cc Madhya 19.170].

[Bhakti, or devotional service, means engaging all our senses in the service of the Lord, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, the master of all the senses. When the spirit soul renders service unto the Supreme, there are two side effects. One is freed from all material designations, and one’s senses are purified simply by being employed in the service of the Lord.]

Nirmalam. Nirmalam means purification. Now we are sa-malam. We have got so many dirty things with us. So one has to become nirmalam, sarvopādhi-vinirmuktam. First business is to become free from the designation. If you think yourself that "I am American," "I am Christian," "I am Hindu," "I am Indian," "I am black," "I am white," these are all designation. So sarvopādhi-vinirmuktam, when you become transcendental to all designations, when you come to the platform to understand that "I am not this body; I am spirit soul," brahma-bhūtaḥ prasannātmā [Bg 18.54],

[And of all yogīs, he who always abides in Me with great faith, worshiping Me in transcendental loving service, is most intimately united with Me in yoga and is the highest of all.]

then you become happy.

So long we are with designations, we are not happy. To become designationless means feeling complete happiness. That is the test. If you simply artificially say that "I am not identifying with this body," that is fact. But real identification with..., no identification with the body will be realized when you don't feel pains and pleasure. Sarvopādhi-vinirmuktaṁ tat-paratvena nirmalam, hṛṣīkeṅa. When your senses will be purified in that way, without any designation, then you can begin devotional service.

sarvopādhi-vinirmuktaṁ tat-paratvena nirmalam hṛṣīkeṅa hṛṣīkeśa- sevanaṁ bhaktir ucyate [Cc Madhya 19.170]

Hṛṣīka. Hṛṣīka means the senses. Hṛṣīkeśa. Hṛṣīkeṅa hṛṣīkeśa. Hṛṣīka means the senses, and hṛṣīkeśa, hṛṣīka īśa. One who knows Sanskrit, the sandhi, hṛṣīkeśa. Because Kṛṣṅa is the master of the senses, so when our senses will be... Kṛṣṅa is purified, the most purified, paraṁ brahma paraṁ dhāma pavitraṁ paramam [Bg 10.12], transcendental, completely purified.

So unless you are also completely purified, how you can touch Kṛṣṅa? This is commonsense reasoning. Therefore Kṛṣṅa realization is not so easy. [aside:] You just train them how. This is not the process. Then you shall sit down backside. And before the Deity it should not be done. From the childhood it should be trained up.

So this is called purification, to learn how to sit down before the Deity, how to talk before the Deity. So everything should be learned. There are sevā-aparādha, sixty-four kinds of offenses in the service. So we have to become offenseless. Then Kṛṣṅa will accept your service. Not by making a show. Kṛṣṅa will accept your service when you are sevonmukhe hi jihvādau svayam eva sphuraty adaḥ [Bhakti-rasāmṛta-sindhu 1.2.234].

[No one can understand the transcendental nature of the name, form, quality and pastimes of Śrī Kṛṣṅa through his materially contaminated senses. Only when one becomes spiritually saturated by transcendental service to the Lord are the transcendental name, form, quality and pastimes of the Lord revealed to him.]

Automatically there will be. As soon as you're purified, automatically Kṛṣṅa will appear, immediately. Kṛṣṅa will ap... Kṛṣṅa is there. Therefore premāñjana-cchurita-bhakti-vilocanena santaḥ sadaiva hṛdayeṣu vilokayanti [Bs 5.38]:

[I worship Govinda, the primeval Lord, who is Śyāmasundara, Kṛṣṅa Himself with inconceivable innumerable attributes, whom the pure devotees see in their heart of hearts with the eye of devotion tinged with the salve of love.]

"Those who are purified, santaḥ, saintly person, they can see Kṛṣṅa in every second, every moment," because they have been purified. After purification there will be prema, love. The symptoms of purification is that when you do not love anything except Kṛṣṅa, that is purification. We have got our love. So instead of loving Kṛṣṅa, we are loving dog, cats and this and that—my country, community, family, the..., so many ways distributed.

So when you love Kṛṣṅa, automatically you love other thing. But at the present moment, we do not love Kṛṣṅa, only the other things. But love is there. Just like to keep the tree quite fitness, you have to pour water in the root. But if you simply you give up the watering to the root, if you simply water the leaves, twigs and the branches, then what you will get? Naturally there will be declination of the tree, automatically. If you do not give food to the stomach and if you supply food to the eyes, to the ears, to the..., then what will be your health? Similarly, so long we do not love Kṛṣṅa, then whatever those so-called love we are showing to the society, friendship and love and country and community, they are all futile. Therefore, in spite of so much advancement of so-called civilization, there is no love between one another. You try to love Kṛṣṅa, then everything will be perfect.

Thank you very much.

Devotees: Jaya Śrīla Prabhupāda. [offer obeisances] [break]

Prabhupāda: Chant. [kīrtana] [break] [end]