Archive - Apr 2008

Even though voluntary austerity, honesty, kindness, and cleanliness are automatically embraced by devotees and sometimes referred to as sub-religious principles, these “values” are still respected by a large sector of society. Not infrequently they’re mentioned as counterparts of the four principles of 1) no illicit sex; 2) no gambling; 3) no eating of meat, fish and eggs; 4) no intoxicants.

The name of a popular George Harrison (former Beatle) song, “Here Comes the Sun” is an indirect way of saying Krsna is always present, especially when you call out for Him.

Krsna dasa Kaviraja writes in the Caitanya Caritamrita that Krsna consciousness is already present in everyone. One’s dormant Krsna consciousness simply needs to be awakened. He writes:  nitya-siddha krsna-prema ‘sadhya’ kabhu naya, sravanadi-suddha-citte karaye udaya. “Pure love for Krsna 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.” (From Madhya-lila 22.107)

God's definition is given by Parasara Muni. What is that?

aisvaryasya samagrasya
viryasya yasasah sriyah
jnana-vairagyayos caiva
sad iti bhagamgana
and

sannam iti bhagan gana (this latter Sanskrit usage appears more often in the data base than ‘sad iti abhgamgana’ and therefore it may be more correct)

(Visnu Purana 6.5.47)

The living entity in material nature thus follows the ways of life, enjoying the three modes of nature. This is due to his association with that material nature. Thus he meets with good and evil among various species. BGAII 13.22

Here’s an excerpt from a lecture on BG6.1 in LA 13Feb69: “?So practically this is a system of
recreation only [laughter]. Yes. If you seriously think, you’ll find, this system, there is no labor at all. Simply recreation. Su-sukham [Bg. 9.2]. That is stated in the Bhagavad-gita in the Ninth Chapter you’ll find, su-sukham . Everything is pleasing and happy.”

In a world dominated (numbers-wise) by Christianity and Islam, it’s useful to know what Srila Prabhupada said about Jesus and Muhammed. Here’s one passage: “So avatara, incarnation, comes to glorify the eternal existence of the Supreme Lord. So any avatara, any incarnation, he comes to glorify that ‘there is spiritual kingdom, there is God, and I have come to reclaim you to back to Godhead, back to home.’ This is the symptom. So therefore, by that symptom, we accept Lord Jesus Christ as saktyavesa avatara, or Hazrat Muhammad.

The principle of using everything for Krsna was a secret that enabled Srila Prabhupada to reach Westerners. The key references in this regard can be aid to be:

anasaktasya visayan
yatharham upayunjatah
nirbandhah krsna-sambandhe
yuktam vairagyam ucyate

prapancikataya buddhya
hari-sambandhi-vastunah
mumuksubhih parityago
vairagyam phalgu kathyate
(SB7.13.32  purport)

and
SB4.29.55”

Seven types of oceans are mentioned in the Srimad Bhagavatam; they are oceans surrounded by salt, liquor, sugar, ghee, yoghourt, milk and fresh water (5.20.2-9). Srila Prabhupada also mentions different types of oceans in Krsna book.

What determines seniority? There is an interesting Bhagavatam verse (5.16.30) in this connection. It reads: “A lowborn and abominable person who in this life becomes falsely proud, thinking ‘I am great,’ and who thus fails to show proper respect to one more elevated than he by birth, austerity, education, behavior, caste or spiritual order, is like a dead man even in this lifetime, and after death he is thrown headfirst into the hell known as Ksarakardama. There he must great suffer great tribulation at the hands of the agents of Yamaraja.”