From Sri Mayapur Chandrodaya Mandir
Date: February 25, 2017
Speaker: HH Lokanath Swami
Subject: Srimad Bhagavatam 7.10.15-17
Transcriber: Madhumati Priyasaki dd
Verse:
śrī-prahrāda uvāca
varaṁ varaya etat te
varadeśān maheśvara
yad anindat pitā me
tvām avidvāṁs teja aiśvaram
viddhāmarṣāśayaḥ sākṣāt
sarva-loka-guruṁ prabhum
bhrātṛ-heti mṛṣā-dṛṣṭis
tvad-bhakte mayi cāghavān
tasmāt pitā me pūyeta
durantād dustarād aghāt
pūtas te ‘pāṅga-saṁdṛṣṭas
tadā kṛpaṇa-vatsala
TRANSLATION
Prahlāda Mahārāja said: O Supreme Lord, because You are so merciful to the fallen souls, I ask You for only one benediction. I know that my father, at the time of his death, had already been purified by Your glance upon him, but because of his ignorance of Your beautiful power and supremacy, he was unnecessarily angry at You, falsely thinking that You were the killer of his brother. Thus he directly blasphemed Your Lordship, the spiritual master of all living beings, and committed heavily sinful activities directed against me, Your devotee. I wish that he be excused for these sinful activities.
PURPORT
Although Hiraṇyakaśipu was purified as soon as he came in contact with the Lord’s lap and the Lord saw him, Prahlāda Mahārāja still wanted to hear from the Lord’s own mouth that his father had been purified by the Lord’s causeless mercy. Prahlāda Mahārāja offered this prayer to the Lord for the sake of his father. As a Vaiṣṇava son, despite all the inconveniences imposed upon him by his father, he could not forget his father’s affection.
LECTURE:
“Varam varaya”, this is the prayer. I pray, “aham varam varaya”, I beg for benediction. Te- to you undto you, who are you, vareshat, you are vareshat, vara eshat you are the master of the benediction, Maheshwara and Ishwar, the top most Ishwar unto you I beg for benediction. “Aham varam varaya”, I beg for benediction. So, the Lord of course always hears the prayers of powerful,(curtain opens) Nrsimhadev bhagavan ki—Jay!, He immediately gives dharshan.
Then the Lord finally appeared in this age of Kali as Caitanya Mahaprabhu, Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu ki Jai, continued to give benediction. So, Sri Krishna Caitanya Mahaprabhu he got benediction from his spiritual master as he went to Gaya and he was given this “Hare Krishna Hare Krishna Krishna Krishna Hare Hare Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare”. Namo maha vandanyaya…maho vandanyaya, not only vadanya- magnanimous, or benedictor not an ordinary kind but not only that mahavandanyaya very kind,
namo maha-vadanyaya
krishna-prema-pradaya te
krishnaya krishna-chaitanya-
namne gaura-tvishe namah,
He is going to give prema-prada, giver of prema. Krishnaya Krishna Caitanya namne, now His name has become Krishna Caitanya, Krishna has become Krishna Caitanya and gaura-tvishe namah and his complexion is no more Shyam, ganashyam but Gaura sundar. Antah Krishna inside Krishna, outward he is bahir gaura, inside sham complexion but outwards he is bhair guara, radharani outside and Krishna outside, “Radha bhava duti sa Lalitam naume Krishna swarupam”, that’s k Caitanya Mahaprabhu, this is his lila He is setttng an example, i.e. “tasmat gurm prapadhyata”. You must have spiritual master so the Lord is accepting spiritual master, when he descended he had brought the gift of the holy name “goloka eva premadhana harinam sankirtan” or even before he appeared on Gaura Purnima day, he appeared in the evening. But during the day, his chanting was already on. He started the benediction, benedicting the whole. He was little baby and he also started getting the ladies to chant Hare Krishna, Hare Krishna he was crying one day and then Saci mata started “Hare Krishna Hare Krishna “ and the child stopped crying and enjoying the hearing and chanting and throwing the hands and legs, ecstatic, news spread around and ladies were very curious. Really this happens? when he cried and then the chanting and he stops crying? When he was not crying try pinching and get him to cry and then they start chanting and then it worked, when they chanted, ah it worked! It’s working. He stopped crying!
What would the child would eventually do when he eventually grows big that could be seen or observed when he in cradle some symptom you could predict. This is what he would want to do when he grew older chant and dance and benedict the world. So, he received mantra and as Mahaprabhu returned from Gaya to Navadvip he was already chanting and dancing and by the time he reached Navadvip he was no more Nimai Pandit. He was a Pandit, scholarly very grave you know pandits are. He was a different person altogether. Everyone was wondering, what’s wrong with this Padit and he is not Nimai Pandit any more chanting and dancing gone mad.
Mahaprabhu in fact goes back to the spiritual master he has another meeting with him. He enquires from him, “kibā mantra dilā, gosāñi, kibā tāra bala japite japite mantra karila pāgala”,(cc-Adi:7.81) what kind of mantra have you given, Oh, guru maharaj. Japite japite karila pagal. Pagal?, Pagala baba in one temple in Vrindavan, mad baba. What kind of mantra it has so much power. This mantra has taken charge of me, and making me chant and dance and this happens and that happens to me I cannot even stand I fall and crawl and roll. Do your chanting and this is the result of pure chanting. Mahaprabhu chanting was pure chanting offense less chanting.
Then the chanting started in the courtyard of Srivas Thakur. Kirtan started in Srivas Angan where it started? Don’t say angam, it is angan, there is some pronunciation difference and angan means courtyard. Not Angam, means part of the body, lot of devotees end up saying Srivas angam not angan. Srivas Angan, Angan. (Maharaj makes devotees repeat) Good, you passed the test.
So those nocturnal kirtans, only pure devotees were allowed. There is screening at the entrance and as soon as they enter some tinge of karma jnana and siddhi all those things immediately those things it will be beep, beep and beeping out. So Mahaprabhu in association of the purest of the pure devotee the core group, chanting and dancing. So, it was limited to srivas angan and it was limited to the pure devotees only. But Advaita Acharya was not very happy with that program , kirtan was nice but it was indoor and not accessible for one and all. So Advaita Acharya approached Mahaprabhu and made a humble appeal Lord please come out with this kirtan. I am the one, I prayed and you responded to my prayer and you are here I was seeing the fallen condition of this world. I saw “dharmasya glanir bhavati” decline in religious principles. Then I wanted you to come and do “dharma samasta apartaya”, to establish the principle of religion once again, but you are not doing that. You are just, I didn’t ask you to come and dance in the midst of pure devotees. Impure, contaminated and fallen souls also should be benefitted. Then Mahaprabhu heard that prayer and then kirtans were happening all over Navadvip mandal. “… jage kelo nagara braje”. Mahaprabhu early in the morning sun raising in the east he will gather so many, many devotees and non-devotee sand he will begin his chanting and dancing.
Tatayi tatayi Hatayi hatayi …gana gana…(insturments are being prayed) preme…, Mahaprabhu with his raised arms and he has the bells tied around his ankles. Preme dola dola sonar anga- now it’s is anga form, golden form, swaying. Could go wild also, going round, going high, up and down all things would happen as he performed kirtan. Bhakti Vinod Thakur is saying note “carane nupura bhaje” yes ankle bells. All the instruments are played so wonderfully, tactfully expertly, and these instruments allow the tinkling of the bell also could be heard. Those instruments are not drowning even the sound of the tinkling of the bells around the ankles of Gauranga. Must be really good drummers and mrdanga players otherwise we should hear, only hear mrdanga not Hare Krishna Hare Krishna, what to speak of other instruments.
So, Mahaprabhu take sanyas. Because he wants to “dharma-samsthapanarthaya
sambhavami yuge yuge”, to establish the dharma at the age of kali. So the lord is going to take sanyas and travel all over. He goes to Katwa and take sanyas, free no more bonds no strings attached and he is free to fly and move. He wanted to go to Vrindavan but then he was tricked and brought to Shantipur, there were more kirtans there. I just wanted to remember Mahaprabhu’s kirtan pastimes in different locations places, what different places did he chant and dance. Going over the pastime it’s also our kirtan meala time here it would be to inspire us to do kirtan, keep doing kirtan. And what is making us chant and dance Sri Krishna Caitanya Mahaprabhu is cause of all that we are doing now.
Because Mahaprabhu chanted, we are chanting or he is making us chant, that’s his kindness. And because he danced, one of the dance of Mahaprabhu, even one of the kind of kirtan is called uddanda, uddanda kirtan, kind of normal kirtan everyday affai,r but sometimes uddanda kirtan, uddanda he would really mad, and his ecstasy go so very intense and he would really fly high in the sky. That was also happening at Shantipur and once he is up in the sky, he would drop crashing coming down and hitting the ground. Saci mata was watching those kirtans, that kind of uddanda kirtan, landing on the ground. She was praying to mother Earth, dear Earth please, please make sure my nimai although he was Sri Krishna Caitanya may be for the world he was Sri Krishna Caitanya, but for the mother, Saci he was her Nimai. Make sure my Nimai doesn’t get hurt. Mother Saci is praying to mother Earth, Please, could you kindly oblige.
Then Mahaprabhu as her mother’s desire, wish he heads to Jagannath Puri, temporarily forgets Vrindavan, that was his destination but mother wants. So, Mahaprabhu arrives there and Mahaprabhu is always, whatever description that we get to read about He moving from place to place there is no talk of His walking to any place. He never walked he only danced. Every step is a dance and every word is a song? So, he is signing a song Hare Krishna song. As soon as he sings the song, in kirtan others also singing, those three brother, Govinda gosh and they were singing Swarup Damodar is singing and Mahaprabhu listens. As soon as he listens, Krishna makes appearance as difficult to say because He
is Krishna but Krishna makes appearance he becomes Krishna Conscious and all these symptoms are visible and in his personality.
“nache kande gai”, Krishna das Kaviraj Goswami says Caitanya Mahaprabhu is also nache- dancing, kande-crying and gai singing. These kind of three things he was predominantly doing. Nache kande gai. As soon as the kirtan begins, he begins dancing, he is excited. In Jagannath Puri, kirtans continue there Sarva Bhauma Bhattacharya has been liberated. Mahaprabhu wants to begin his extensive travels. “Radha rabhave Gaura avatar..Hare Krishna nama Gaura karila prachar” he is in Radha Bhav, he has appeared in Radha Bhav to experience the Radha’s emotions, he assumed Radha’s emotions and with that mood and mission Mahaprabhu leaves Jagannath Puri and his Madhya lila pastimes, next 6 years from now he will be coming back 2 times and going out.
So, south India tour begins and then he comes back and then east India, Bengal and Bangladesh tour and then he goes back, and then again he goes to North India tour to Vrindavan through Jarkand forest. South India tour he is chanting and continue. We always see Mahaprabhu, as soon as we say Mahaprabhu Sri Krishna Caitanya Mahaprabhu is one image always comes into our mind and what’s that image? Krishna’s image as soon as we see Krishnas flute playing, Ram immediately bow and arrow and so many pastimes so many other forms and darshans but then bow and arrow sriram. As soon as we say and remember Sri Krishna Caitanya Mahaprabhu ki Jai, we immediately which form? (audience answer inaudible) Hari bol hari bol!!!
Means, he is ready with the kirtan, “braje rasa lila navadvipe sankirtan”. Kritan mela…braje rasa lila means flute playing, the flute appears as mridangam. I heard or read this the flute from Krishna ‘s pastimes appear as mrdanga in Gauranga’s Sankirtan pastimes. So Mahaprabhu goes South Inidan and his chanting and dancing continuously, he also chants Krishna Krishna Krishna Krishna Krishna hey. Hey means addressing, Hey Krishna. Krishna Keshava Krishna keshava Rama Ragahava Rama ragava rama ragahava rakshamam this also Mahaprabhu is chanting, “Hariharaye nama Krishna yadavaya namah gopal govinda ram srimadhu sudan” different chants are there these are some of the famous ones
Hare Krishna mahamantra and Krishna Krishna Krishna hey, harihara ya are some of the mostly chanted mantras or names by Mahaprabhu and his associates. So even as Mahaprabhu going between village to village in between villages of course he is also doing by padayatra. We could say or do little promotion of padayatra here Mahaprabhu is doing padayatra as a walking festival.
Taking all the trouble to connect with the souls to deliver his mercy benedicting the whole world. He is going on foot and knocking at the doors practically, I’m here I’m here! “jīv jāgo, jīv jāgo, gauracānda bole” is here wake up wake up. “kota nidrā jāo māyā-piśācīra kole”, so as he is going from, he is not only chanting. stana Asthana nahi vicar, “patrapatra-vicara nahi, nahi sthanasthana”, chanting the holyname anywhere and everywhere. So this is the right place sthan or asthana this not the good place he is not even considering that. Sthana Asthana nahi vicar. This is not the consideration. Patra, this party deserves to hear, these are not deserving candidates, there is no such discrimination. Anywhere everywhere and to anybody, everybody “jare dako jare dhako tare kaho”, so as he is going people the travelers passersby, they were immediately, instantly, instantly they are attracted to Mahaprabhu.
Even before they hear his chanting, his beauty is the killer, all that daemon, demoniac nature just by seeing him you are finished you are gone. “Ajanu lambita bhujo”, he was out of this world, not from this world, he was in this world, not from this world, and of course he is not that he is the another person. The Supreme Personality of Godhead and all his beauty with all his 6 opulence he appeared, those who looked at him, His one glance was enough, arousing all the ecstatic feelings they have become suddha bhakta suddha bhakta, a pure devotee. Just look at him, finished they have become pure devotee. Just one darshan, one glace at him and of course this must be the causeless mercy of Gauranga Mahaprabhu.
This is his arrangement. We are taking darshan, but he gives darshan, then you take darshan right. But I am going for darshan I’m going for darshan, fine you are going go and take, if he gives then you take right? So, everyone gets different degree of amount of darshan. Everyone doesn’t get the same darshan. Partial darshan “ye yatha mam prapadyante”, Lord is also doing calculation, normally he does this, “tams tathaiva bhajamy aham”. But here Gauranga Mahaprabhu look at him, and he gives himself fully, take me, have me, I’m yours and he appears in their hearts.
“Hryadaya kantare suratuva saci nandana”, when would that day be mine when would that day be mine, when would that day be mine? But Mahaprabhu, as he was travelling He was giving His darshan, and immediately they would want to go with Him, forget where, where is their town or what was their earlier destination, by seeing Mahaprabhu, and then hearing chanting with him just momentarily they have just become his as Mahaprabhu would perceive him like a big magnet and all these iron particles being dragged behind. But no, no, no he would embrace them off, please proceed your way, I go this way. And then he will come to his Mahaprabhu’s that days final destination, it is 9 o clock what happened? Gauranga!
We are not even half way through of what I have. We need Brahmas night here. For evening programs Mahaprabhu, so many people would come, no promotion, no advertisement, no billboards, no hand bills, Mahaprabhu will go to some village and that evening people would come from so many surrounding villages to that program. He is there surrounded by hundreds and thousands of people, because he is very tall like our Pancatattva gauranga height that’s the life size actually size, any he could be bigger or smaller also.
So all around him, he would stand out, everyone is only upvto his vest or shoulders but he would stand out and everyone could see him and then he would raise his arms, ‘ajanu lambita bhunjau” …and then he would jump so everyone would see Mahaprabhu and inspiring them to chant and dance and raise arms and inspiring, you please chant also, Haribol, Haribol! Haribol!.
So he was like the puppeteer and all others were puppets he is picking them and dropping them and all others were jumping dancing and by the end of one program they all have become pure devotees. (audience clap). They have become enriched, as their hearts become filled with “premadan” which is “Hare Krishna Hare Krishna Krishna Krishna Hare Hare Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare”. So Mahaprabhu returns to Jagannath Puri and kind of kirtans he would perform in Jagannath puri especially during ratha yatra time, Jagannath is in chariot He is Krishna and Caitanya Mahaprabhu is Radharani. His time has come, to the private personal reason why he appeared, radha bhav and there is a dealing going on between Krishna and Radha and a kind of words he utters only radha and Krishna knows, except one more person found out also and he is Rupa Goswami and he wrote that ‘Sri Krishna manobistam”, able to access to the mind of Gauranga.
Those kirtans were extraordinary kirtans during the ratha yatra so very special mood ratha yatra mood. Ok and then Caitanya Mahaprabhu winded up going to Vrindavan now, Jarkand forest that kirtan was with all animals, tigers and deer and everyone around chanting and dancing and the whole forest was transformed and it was no more Jarkand forest. Mahaprabhu saw dear and the tiger next to each other walking, rubbing shoulders and then he saw the next scene was embracing each other, and the next scene was kissing each other. Mahaprabhu say, hey this is Vrindavan, this is Vrindavan, Vrindavan dham ki, Jai. I was on the way to Vrindavan, but this is Vrindavan. The consciousness, no enmity, no envy, it’s like that and see the power of holy name. The Lord could do only such a thing, He is also He is the personality of Godhead. He could even transform lower creature into pure devotees.
Then Mahaprabhu ended up to Vrindavan and in Vrindavan Krishna Das Kaviraj Goswami says, on the way to Vrindavan his ecstasy grew hundred times, normal ecstasy became hundred fold or greater on the way when he reached Mathura, it was one thousand times greater, and as he enters the forest of Vrindavan, it was one hundred thousand times greater, height and depth and vastness of that ecstasy. So that ecstatic Lord was he toured Vrindavan. On the way, he was greeted in Vrindavan they all though our shyam sundar is here, Gaura sundar was there, but they all thought it is our shyam sundar, the cows were coming surrounding and liking his body expressing their vatsalya. The birds, they were there also pacamgay the 5th note high pitched, they were singing, peacocks were dancing, Mahaprabhu was embracing the trees, the next tree will say me too and he had to run to that tree and embrace and he was passing through tree after tree. Those trees were showering their flowers upon Gaura sundar. They didn’t have to buy pushpa abhishek. But pushpa were not coming from Singapore or Hawai. they were right there shaking and trembling in ecstasy and their fruits were being offered.
Mahaprabhu sees peacock, sees the neck of the peacock, complexion resembles the complexion of Krishna, he’s gone he collapse and rolling on the ground and those two prabhus had hard time catching up with him and finally they managed. Mahaprabhu is circumambulating Govardhan hill, and with his tears he was doing the Abhishek for Giriraj. Those who go on parikrama, Govardhan parikaram lot of time they carry a pot with a hole but they sit in the car with that so that it would last longer (laughter) one km per liter.
Mahaprabhu was shedding his tears all around and bathing Govardhan hill and he was chanting also. One time sitting on the banks of Yamuna and chanting, “Hare Krishna Hare Krishna Krishna Krishna Hare Hare Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare” and his complexion changed he was no more Gaura Sundar, he was Shyam sundar. He became so much Krishna Conscious, that his real color manifested.
Then Mahaprabhu on the way back, at Prayag he did kirtans also, and waters were low but it was described Mahaprabhu flooded ganga with all his kirtans. Varanasi also special kirtans and all Varanasi vasis became mad and big crowd running after him and finally returned. That’s where he remained, spent 18 years in ecstasy as he chanted and heightened. Swarup Damodar was singing as he sings louder Mahaprabhu will jump higher, Uddanda kirtan. So, may that Gauranga, benedict all of us the whole world that is our prayer. Prahlad Maharaj is praying to Nrsimha, please, I know my father offended you but please excuse him, and give him benediction. So, likewise we could pray to Gauranga Mahaprabhu, even if you don’t pray, that’s his mission, causeless mercy, He is known for His causeless mercy we could still pray. Pray for ourselves and pray for our family members forefathers and people of the world so that Mahaprabhu’s benediction in the form of the holy name, “Hare Krishna Hare Krishna Krishna Krishna Hare Hare Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare” reaches far and wide.
Sri Krishna Caitanya Mahaprabhu ki, Jai. Gauranga! Gauranga