How to glorify Krishna in all walks of our life – Hindi

[Bhagavatam class at ISKCON, Nigdi, India]

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Transcript

This is an AI-generated transcript and may contain some errors.
Hare Krishna Today we are discussing about the ideal family life which Narad Muni is teaching to Yudhishthira Maharaj. I will discuss about how we can give God’s qualities in our life. I will discuss about three points.
We will stop after one point. If you have any questions, we can take one. The first point is that there are different ways to give God’s qualities.
The second point is that how we can give God’s qualities in our life, in our home, in our profession, in our job. The third point is that how we can give God’s qualities in our life, in our profession, in our job. And the most important point is that how we can give God’s qualities in our heart.
How we can make God as Agra Purush in our heart so that we can do Agra Puja there. So first of all, there are different ways to give God’s qualities. Now, some people say that if you start doing Bhakti, then you leave the world, you don’t do any work, you only care about the other world, you don’t do anything in this world.
Once Prabhupada was asked in a discourse, Prabhupada said that if you think like this, then you don’t know what Bhakti is. The two most important devotees, Lord Ram’s Hanumanji and Lord Krishna’s Arjuna, both of them fought in this world. And they fought so that they can bring change in this world, so that they can establish Dharma in this world.
So Bhakti has two parts. One is to transcend the world. And the other is to transform the world.
One is that we have to go beyond the world. And the other is to transform the world. And both the purposes are important.
If we see Bhagavad Gita’s fourth chapter, where God tells that why do they take Avatar in this world. Why do they take Avatar? So in many Hindu institutions and Hindu celebrations, this verse is sung that why do they take Avatar. I take Avatar in Yuga.
Why do I take it? This is the eighth verse of the fourth chapter. paritranaya sadhunam vinashaya ca duskrtam paritranaya sadhunam vinashaya ca duskrtam dharma samsthapanarthaya sambhavami yuge yuge So here God is telling, dharma samsthapanarthaya So where should Dharma be established? It should be established in this world. Here God’s purpose is to transform this world.
Where there is Adharma, Dharma should be established. And in the same place, God’s plan, God’s purpose, devotees become part of it. That is why they were fighting in Arjuna.
They were not fighting in Arjuna because they had to take revenge from Kauravas. And the Pandavas had to take revenge from the Kauravas. So Krishna, who was going in the form of a peace messenger, he could not tolerate it.
He said, don’t go, we have to take revenge. He wanted peace. He wanted peace.
But when Duryodhana did not accept it at all, how is it? One is to say no to someone. If we call someone to a programme, we call them to our temple, we call them to a satsang programme in our house, they say, no, I have some work, so I don’t want to come. So they are saying no, but they are not saying no to the request.
They are not saying no to the person. But when Duryodhana said, I don’t want peace. I don’t accept any proposal.
So how did he reject the proposal? Do you remember what he said? I will not give you as much land as there is on a needle. What does this mean? Whatever you say, I don’t want peace. How is it? We call someone to a temple, we call someone to a satsang programme, and they say, I will not come for this reason.
I will not come for this reason. They say, even if I die, my dead body will not come to your satsang programme. So this is not only no, he is not saying no to the person’s request, he is saying no to that person only.
So if there is such a feeling, then it is against religion. God asked Arjuna to fight a war, it was not because of the feeling of revenge. What was that feeling? God says, nirvairah sarvabhuteshu, don’t have enmity with anyone.
Fight a war, but don’t have enmity with anyone. So tell Arjuna, don’t consider Duryodhana or Kauravas as enemies. Fight a war for religion.
So we also do bhakti, sometimes we have to fight a war. But we are not fighting a war against anyone. For whom are we fighting a war? We are fighting a war for God.
So if someone comes against God, then we have to fight them. But we are not fighting them. We have nothing against them.
So the purpose of saying this is, this is one feeling, that when God comes, when we do bhakti, there is one purpose, to change this world, to transform the world. And this is told in the eighth shloka of the fourth chapter. And after that, the next shloka tells us that we have to go beyond this world, to transcend the world.
Can you say it with me? janma karma chame divyam evam yo vetti tattvataha tyaktva deham punar janma naiti ma me tiso arjuna Here God tells us that you will go beyond this world. You will do my bhakti, you will understand my love along with my knowledge, then you will come to my abode. So there are two purposes of bhakti.
One is to transform this world, and the other is to go beyond this world. So those who think that you do bhakti, you do japa, you come to the temple, you are not doing anything for this world. What are they seeing? They are seeing only the feeling of going beyond this world.
And that is complete to us because we have to go beyond this world. But as long as we are in this world, we have to transform this world too. According to our capacity.
If Prabhupada ji only had to go beyond this world, he could have worshipped God. But Prabhupada ji had to transform this world too. So that is why we have to sing praises of God in such a way that those praises reach people, that they understand people, and people get attracted to God.
If if someone, Prabhupada ji used to sit in Vrindavan and give discourses, he is singing praises of God, but there are no people there. So wherever there are people, we sing praises of God there. So we have to sing praises of God in such a way that those praises reach people, people understand people, and people get attracted to God.
So sometimes we sing praises of God in such a way that those praises do not reach people. So if we do discourses in the temple, it is complete to us. But how will people come to the temple? When they come, they can listen.
So that is why we do discourses in different places, there are satsangs in houses, there are extension centres, we do it in different places, so that it reaches people first. Then we have to sing praises of God in such a way that people understand people. If we talk in the language of devotion, and people do not understand what is going on, if a new person has come, and we start telling him about God’s Rasla, then what is going on? So we have to talk in such a way that people understand people, and not only understand, but also attract people.
And Prabhupada ji was very good in this. To attract people, we have to talk in such a way, in such a language, so that they understand. When Prabhupada ji was in America, he received a tip, and Prabhupada ji told him how much happiness is there in the spiritual world.
So he asked a few questions, that how much happiness is there in the spiritual world, can you tell me? When he was in America, he used to do drugs, and there was a very popular drug there, it was called LSD. Now LSD is a chemical, but at that time people had this belief that by taking that drug, we will get spiritual vision. That is why they used to say that whoever takes this drug, he joins LSD.
What is LSD? League of Spiritual Discovery. Whoever takes this drug, he is joining that organisation which will lead to spiritual discovery. So this was a type of attraction.
But still people used to feel good So Prabhupada ji used to say, Chintamani prakarasadma shukal pavruksha Brahmins used to say, can you describe the beauty, glory and sweetness But people who are in addiction, they don’t know what Chintamani is. They don’t know what Chintamani is. So most of the people don’t know what Chintamani is.
They are worried about money. So what did Prabhupada ji say? He said, the joy of spiritual world is like an ocean of LSD. An ocean of LSD? I want to go there.
So what is it? In Shastras, it is said that the joy of spiritual world is like an ocean of LSD. But it is not said. But what is said in Shastras is to tell people that people understand.
So if people feel joy by taking LSD, then according to that feeling tell them how much joy there is in this. So in English it is said, it is not that we have to tell the right thing. We have to tell the right thing.
But we have to tell the right thing in such a way that people understand. If for example, someone comes in Satsang, some great Sanskrit Pandit comes and gives the whole discourse in Sanskrit and everything is said right but nothing is understood. So what is the benefit of that for people? The point is not just to get it right, the point is to get it across that people understand.
So now there are many different ways So one way is that we do publicity, we call people to temples, there are good services, good environment, good Satsang, we talk to good devotees, people get attracted to that. This is one way to praise God. This is important.
But along with that wherever we are, in whichever school we are, the way we behave there, the way we work there, through that also we can praise God. So when Maharaj Yudhishthir did Agra Puja, so one way, the purpose of Agra Puja is that he is declaring himself as the emperor of the whole world. All the kings, all the kings have to accept my supremacy and they come and give me tributes, they give me gifts so that they accept that I am their emperor.
So one can say that this is a matter of ego. He is increasing his position so much. Yes, he is increasing his position.
But why is he increasing his position? There is an internal reason for this. So Mahabharata and Bhagavatam, both these texts are describing the divine play but they are describing it from different perspectives. Mahabharata is describing it on the basis of Karmakand.
What does Karmakand mean? That if you do good deeds, you will get good results. If you do good deeds, you will go to heaven and what does Karmakand tell you? That you should do Bhakti so that you will get to know this world. So both these texts describe the divine play.
Mahabharata’s aim is to make a person do good deeds. Bhagavatam’s aim is to make a person do Bhakti. What is the difference between good deeds and Bhakti? In good deeds, a person does good deeds in the material world and gets good results.
In Bhakti, a person does Bhakti So both have different aims and different feelings. Both are good. Good deeds are better than sin but Bhakti is better than good deeds.
So why did Maharaj Yudhishthir do Rajasayee Yagya? It is described differently in Mahabharata and in Bhagavatam. When Narad Muni came to the Swarga Sabha, he said, I went to the Swarga Sabha and it is such a beautiful place. I went to different places like the Pitra Lok and there are beautiful places but your Sabha is not beautiful.
And then he said, when I went to the Pitra Lok, I saw your father there. Who is his father? Pandu. So Yudhishthir started thinking, my father went to the Pitra Lok but not to the Swarga Lok.
Now what is the Pitra Lok? It is such a place that if someone lives an ordinary religious life and does good deeds, in ancient Vedic culture, most of the people lived a virtuous life. There were some sinners and some devotees but most of the people were not devotees. सुदुर्लव प्रशान्तात्मा कोटीश्वापिमहामुन्य। तभी वे बक्त बहुत कम थे। तो क्या है? जो पुन्य करते हैं, वो उपर जाएगे, जो पाप करते हैं, निचे जाएगे.
जो कोई साधारन मात्रा में अगर पुन्य करता है, If someone does a lot of good deeds, then he goes to heaven. If someone passes by his house, he writes that he is from heaven. But I don’t know if he is from heaven or not.
I don’t know where he lives. At that time, Yudhishthir Maharaj started worrying. He started asking, why did my father go to heaven? He was a very virtuous king.
Why didn’t he go to heaven? He replied, because his death was in such a state that he was in a state of physical consciousness. Pandu Maharaj was cursed that if he would associate with his wife, then he would die of the curse. At that time, because he was in a state of physical consciousness, but he was not in a state of physical consciousness.
He had done good deeds all his life. And at the same time, he was not doing any unrighteous deeds. He was associating with his wife.
But he was not in a state of physical consciousness. That’s why he didn’t go to heaven or Mukti. Where did he go? He went to the Pitra Lok.
Then Yudhishthir Maharaj said, Okay, then how can I make him reach heaven? He said, you do this Rajya Surya Yagya. And with the completion of this Yagya, his good deeds will go to heaven. So this is the purpose of Mahabharata.
Because what is Mahabharata telling us? That we should do good deeds. We should take care of our ancestors. We should do their welfare.
Bhagavatam tells us that we should do Bhakti. His inner purpose… His inner purpose was to do the good deeds of Bhagavan. How to do the good deeds of Bhagavan? He wanted that if I become the emperor, and after becoming the emperor, when the Agra Puja will take place, then only I will say that Krishna’s Agra Puja should take place.
Then what will happen? Then everyone will be very attracted to it. They will say, Oh, is it so? This is a very good thing. This means that Krishna is a great person.
And when Krishna Bhagavan was there, then it was not like that, that at that time, everyone considered him as Bhagavan. Some people thought that he is the king of the Yadu dynasty, he is a very great warrior, he is a very great diplomat, he does very good politics. So everyone did not consider him as Bhagavan.
So this was the purpose of Yudhishthira Maharaj. That I will go to this position, so that when I do the good deeds of Bhagavan, then only I will do the good deeds of Bhagavan. So this is also our life, our profession, our job, our position, if we progress in that, then through that also we can do the good deeds of Bhagavan.
Because if a person becomes a great student, if a student achieves very good marks, then after that, how do you study so well? I do Bhakti, with that my mind remains calm, with that I can study with concentration. So what is it? I said that we should do the good deeds of Bhagavan in such a way that we reach them, understand them, and attract them. So if someone says that after doing Bhakti, I have left everything, I have left my studies, I have started doing Bhakti, then I don’t want to do like that.
So people will not be attracted to that. There was a student once, he was in Bangalore, he was in college, I asked him, how can I attract my friends to do Bhakti? He said, by studying well. Because if you study well, then there is no guarantee that your friends will become Bhakti.
But if you don’t study well, then there is a guarantee that no one will become Bhakti. Because what is it? People see that from their point of view, in Bhakti, what changes are happening in us through Bhakti? So from their point of view, if a positive change is happening, then what happens? People get attracted to that. So I am going from the first point to the second point.
The first point was that we can do the good deeds of Bhagavan in different ways. So the second point is how can we do the good deeds of Bhagavan through our job, our profession, the different aspects of our life? How can we do the good deeds of Bhagavan through them? Does anyone have a question? How can we do the good deeds of Bhagavan? How can we do the good deeds of Bhagavan through our job, our profession, Someone says that why is it necessary to wake up in the morning and do the good deeds of Bhagavan? Why is it necessary to do the good deeds of Bhagavan in the morning and do the good deeds of Bhagavan in the evening? Why is it necessary to do the good deeds of Bhagavan in the morning and do the good deeds of Bhagavan in the evening? Now, every person has his own mind, has his own body, has his own situation and sometimes there can be some mistake. Usually, in the morning, our mind is fresh.
In the morning, there is no traffic of physical things in our mind. What happens? We have to do this, we have to do that. In the day, people call us, we have to do this, we have to do that.
So usually, when we do the good deeds of Bhagavan in the morning, our own situation, our own state of mind, and the atmosphere is in Satva. That’s why we can do the good deeds of Bhagavan in the morning. That’s why we can do the good deeds of Bhagavan in the morning.
But there can be some mistakes. There are some people who have work in the night shift. If they do the good deeds of Bhagavan in the morning, they are tired.
They will not be able to do the good deeds of Bhagavan in the morning. There can be some people who have weak lungs. They say, I can’t speak continuously for two hours.
I do Charmala, then I rest for a while, then I will do Charmala again. So, there can be some mistakes. And, if every person wants to progress, then he should be honest with himself.
Is it really good if I am doing the good deeds of Bhagavan in the evening? Because I am just lazy, I don’t want to get up in the morning, that’s why I am not doing the good deeds of Bhagavan in the morning. So, if there is a standard practise, a practise that is being practised for a long period of time, and if someone has some problem, then what happens is, if there is really a need, if there is really something good happening in that person’s life, then that person can do it. But there is no need to campaign for that person, that you all should also chant in the evening.
If there is a need to fulfil that need, then that person can do it discreetly. What does discreet mean? Without showing off too much, without talking too much about it, a one or two year old devotee can understand us, can talk to us. And if there is honesty, then devotion is such that there are rules in it, but there is also a purpose for the rules.
And sometimes there can be such a situation that there can be some violation in it. So, there can be some devotees who can say that when I break and chant, then I pay more attention. Now, whether it is really happening or not, that has to be seen.
If it is happening for someone, then it is a good thing. They can do it. So, if there is a violation, then there should be a violation.
There is no need to fight about the standard and the violation. Let the violation be the violation and the standard be the standard. So, if we do like this, then what will happen? That person should not get offended.
Everyone is forcing to do like this. But it is not like that others should feel that I will also chant in the evening comfortably. What happens? Most of the people are like this.
This is what scientists say. Now, in America, there is a bestseller book in the New York Times. The best books are said by the New York Times.
Which is the best book in America? So, in this, there is a book, The Power of Waking Up Early. Now, this is a multi-millionaire business executive from America. He has a lot of wealth, crores of wealth.
And he works in an American company. And he is telling what is the power of waking up early in the morning. For example, I do planning in the morning.
He does meditation in his way. All his thoughts are very clear. So, these materialistic people are understanding that there is a lot of benefit in waking up early in the morning.
So, what is the reason? The one who is upward can remain upward. But the standard remains the same for most people. So, now, I was telling in the second point that God’s virtues can be sung in different ways.
So, sometimes it happens that there are some virtues, whether they are doing virtues or not, it cannot be understood. Means, Now, when Prabhupada ji, George Harrison, George Harrison was at that time, he was such a famous musician, that when Jupiter is a planet, Jupiter, then next to it, there is a satellite, satellite means Jupiter. When Jupiter was reformed, then that Jupiter was named after George Harrison.
So, he was so popular. So, when he became a devotee, then, then Prabhupada ji, Prabhupada ji never gave any advice, you do this, don’t do that. He said, whatever you are doing, do that, and while doing that, what do you do? You sing about God.
So, what happened first? First, he, everything, everyday, he started singing about God. And what happened? Now, if there is someone in every profession, then people expect something from him. So, now, Madison Avenue, the biggest entertainment place in America, he had a concert there.
And in that concert, what did he do? He started singing Hare Krishna. And people started singing Hare Krishna. So, what happens is, celebrities, popular musicians, film stars, sports stars, in their lives, the more they are famous, the more they are defamed.
Today, people will throw a garland at you, and the next day, they will burn your idol. So, then, what happened there? He made one or two songs in the name of God. And they were good.
But later, after a few years, people started hating him. They started jeering him. Jeering means abusing him.
Jeering means abusing him. Because all the reviews he got, they were very bad reviews. And, he was defamed so much, that people started saying, since Hare Krishna was made, his music should end.
And then, he came to meet Prabhupada ji. When he came to meet Prabhupada ji, he said, Prabhupada ji, you told me this. And, I am doing this.
In my music, I am putting songs in the name of God. I feel that, I am bringing one person to you, but, I am bringing him to God. So, 10 or 100 people are going away from him.
He is being defamed so much. Why is he being defamed? To understand this, we can take a human comparison. And, suppose, India’s most popular, most important cricketer, earlier it was Sachin Tendulkar, now it is Virat Kohli, whoever it is, if, he becomes a devotee, he starts chanting, and, if he says, that, doing bhakti is very good, then, how many people will be affected? Many people will be attracted.
But, imagine, the World Cup is coming soon, India and Pakistan’s World Cup, is going to be final. And, India loses the World Cup. And, later, there is an interview.
Why did India lose? Because, we always lose and win. We should chant. If, he says like that, there, then, there will be such a big anti-preaching.
People will say, that, because of Hare Krishna’s chanting, he lost in cricket, and, we defeated India. So, we can’t even imagine, an anti-preaching bigger than that. So, what happened? the profession in which the person is, in that profession, he should be good, and, then, he can talk about bhakti.
So, what happened? George Harrison, in his music, what happened? His music was not so good. He was more into bhakti. When he was doing music, people didn’t like it.
So, he told them, that, you keep a balance. You keep a balance. So, after that, he used to make music, like people need music.
He used to make 2-3 songs like that. Then, one song, he used to put some bhakti in it. And, what happened with that? People, his followers, his reviewers, they used to say, this was his phase of going to Hare Krishna, that phase is over now.
Now, he has come to the line. But, what happened with that? With that, later, he made music, his popular music, My Sweet Lord. So, with that, in thousands, thousands of people, who came to the temple, they got to know about bhakti.
They started doing kirtan of Hare Krishna. So, we, our, our physical position, our physical position, if we have to praise God in that, then, we have to do it intelligently. Now, not every person, can be excellent in their profession.
Can’t be the best. Only one person can be the best. Some people will be good.
But, if we, our job, we do it with responsibility. It’s not like, responsibility doesn’t mean, if you work for 8 hours, then do it for 12 hours, 14 hours. No, the work you have to do in 8 hours, you have to do it with full responsibility.
If we do it like that, then people see, oh, this person, works well. This person, looks decent. And then, people get attracted to him.
What do you do? We get attracted to him, that we, we do his bhakti. So, what is it now? We have to behave like this, so that people, get attracted to us. And, they get attracted to us, and then they get attracted to God.
So, Arjun, Sahib, who was the best, in Dhanur Vidya, in Dhanur Vidya, he was the best. And, it’s not like, in Dhanur Vidya, he became perfect, only by doing japa. He used to do bhakti, but, along with that, when it was time, to study Dhanur Vidya, then, he used to study Dhanur Vidya, So, whatever work, we have to do, we have to do it, with concentration.
And, how is it? In different ways, in different places, we can get some fame, we can get some fame, but, we have to see, that, this is also a chance, with which, I can praise God. How? If I do this, in a good way, then, people will get attracted to me, and then, I can attract them, towards God. I can bring them, towards God.
So, that is why, it is important, that, we all understand, that, praising God, is not done, only by coming to a temple, and doing kirtan. It is necessary, it is necessary. Along with that, praising God, yes, we can do it, in every part.
We can do it, in our job also. What will happen, We, in a different way, the ordinary people, who don’t come to God, they will also start coming. So, this was the second point, that we can praise God, in different ways.
Is there any question, regarding this, till now? Yes. You can say, I will come again. I have a question, regarding this topic.
As you told me, that, in this, I have a question, that, it is said, that, in our religion, it is discussed, So, should we discuss, about bhakti, after this? And, if not, then, what can be done? I would like to know, about this. I would like to know, about this. So, if we, come to our village, should we talk about bhakti, or, if we don’t do bhakti, then, what will be the result? How should we tell? How it happens, that, we have to connect, with someone, first of all, we have to connect, on a human level.
Then, on a spiritual level, we can connect. On a human level, what does it mean? That, a person should feel, that he is a good person. If he is our relative, then, now, how is his condition? About him, the normal conversation, should be done.
He should feel, that we care about him. Sometimes, what happens? We feel, that, this person, in ignorance, his soul, will be destroyed. We care about his soul, but, we don’t care, about his body and mind.
Then, what happens? Now, that person is in physical consciousness, in mental consciousness, and, we talk about his soul, then, he feels, that, what has happened to him? So, as I told you, once, Prabhupada ji, came to a temple. It was not a temple, it was a centre. It was a condo.
A condo means, a small apartment. So, there were devotees on one side, and, on the other side, there was a Buddhist woman, And, those devotees, used to chant loudly. Prabhupada ji, most of the disciples, were very young.
And, the youth, the youth, used to chant loudly. very loudly. So, that woman, used to complain to them, to the local municipality, about them.
So, the devotees, were facing problems in chanting. And, sometimes, a devotee feels, that, if a person, is involved in chanting, then, he is a demon. He is a demon.
So, Prabhupada ji, that devotee came, Prabhupada ji said, our neighbour, that woman is a demon. She is a demon. So, Prabhupada ji, went for a morning walk, in the morning.
he came back in the morning. So, he went to the centre, where he used to play. So, that woman, went to his house.
And then, the door knocked. And then, he started talking to Prabhupada ji. And, when he started talking, just like, old people talk.
How is your health? Where are your children? Where is your family? How is everything going on? So, for 10-15 minutes, Prabhupada ji, did not talk about anything, about spirituality. Did not talk about anything, about devotion. But, he talked nicely, and then, Prabhupada ji, left.
And, when he was leaving, sometimes, you see questions, written on the faces, of the devotees. So, I thought, Prabhupada ji, you did not tell me anything, about the devotees. So, Prabhupada ji said, sometimes, when people get old, they start feeling lonely.
And, because of loneliness, they become irritable. So, Prabhupada ji, did not say anything. So, what did Prabhupada ji see? He, he was complaining against us.
Prabhupada ji, did not see all this. On a mental level, on a spiritual level, he saw, that he is lonely. So, after that, Prabhupada ji left.
And then, when the devotees went to meet him, they said, your Swamiji is such a nice person. Such a nice person. And then, the complaint he had, he withdrew it.
So, Prabhupada ji, did not say a single word, did not say a single word, and made it more suitable for Krishna. So, we have to see in every situation, that how we can attract people. So, now, surely, we want to bring others into Bhakti, but, we should see, according to every Desh, Kaal, Patrak, that, in this situation, what should I say? So, what should I say? How should I say? If we can use our intellect, if we can talk to the elderly devotees, after that, we can make them understand.
So, first of all, on a human level, if they see, that we, he connects with us, then, after connecting on a human level, then, on a spiritual level, we can connect. When Prabhupada ji used to go to America, in the morning, people used to meet him. So, Prabhupada ji, people used to call him, not Hare Krishna, they used to call him, Good Morning.
Because, how would Hare Krishna understand him? So, Good Morning. So, they thought, he is such a person, he has good manners, he has good culture, he is a good person. So, the way, that person, should be able to adapt to Lord Krishna, that way, they should interact.
And, sometimes, it can happen, that, by telling them, the essence of devotion, they will understand. Sometimes, it can happen, that by telling them, the result of not doing devotion, it can happen. That, they have to see, what is the level, in their life.
According to that, we can tell them. Right? So, the last point, which he was going to tell us, that, he took two points for me. First point, that, how we can do God’s praises, in different ways.
Second is, that, how we can do through our profession. But, third is, the last point, that, the most important is, that, in our heart, we should do devotion. a devotee was asking me, that, I was in America, I gave him a lecture, he said, that, I want, that, I, make such a big company, that, it will become, the fastest growing company, And then, I will become its CEO.
And then, I will tell people about devotion, then people will get attracted to it. And, but, to make such a company, for the next five years, I will have to leave devotion. There is no time for devotion.
So, what should I do? So, I told him, what to do, what not to do, it is your decision. But, what to do, what will be the result, I can tell you. So, what is it now? One is, that, we may have a wish, that, I want to serve in this way.
But, to do all kinds of work, we have to make such a company. And, if we go in such a company, then, in that company, such desires are created. So, if you leave the company of devotees, you will become a very important member And, if you go in such a company of people, then, what will happen? After five years, even if you become a great Yashasvi, there is no guarantee that you will become one.
If you do not become one, then you will not get any physical, you will not get any spiritual. But, you will get the physical Yashas. If you do not remain in the company of devotees, then, what will happen till then? The desire to serve you will not remain as a desire.
That desire will go away and the physical desire will increase. That is why, according to our capacity, we have to do our work as well as we can. But, only at the physical level, to do so well, we do not have to get so much into it that we go away from God.
So, our time, our family time, our home time, our family time, our time for work, our time for devotion, all these three have to be kept in harmony. They have to be kept in harmony. Maharaj Yudhishthir, for example, says that when you are in the householder’s life, then you have Dharma, Artha, and Kama.
Now, Dharma means that we can say coming to the temple. Artha means our job, etc. Now, Kama means not only enjoyment, Kama means all the family and its responsibilities.
So, he says that now, what is there in devotion? All these three we are doing for devotion. What is the meaning of Dharma? We come to the temple and do satsang, do Katha, do Japa, etc. All these are Dharma.
Our Artha is also there. The money we are earning, what is the purpose of that? That we want to build a temple in our house also. In our house also, we want to do good to God.
Our house is not ours, it is God’s house. So, in that way, for that, we are earning money. And, the talents that God has given us, the interests that God has given us, we use them well to do some contribution.
So, what is the meaning of Bhakt? And, the work that all our family members do, it is not only my family members, it is part of God. God has kept them in my care. So, will take care of them well.
To bring them in devotion, I will provide facilities. So, what happens for Bhakt? Dharma, Artha, Kama, all these three are included in devotion. But, what does Yudhishthira Maharaj say here, Narad Muni? That, when you are in your household, in your life, then, you keep all these three in mind.
Do not put so much in dharma, that you forget Artha and Kama. Do not put so much in Artha, that you forget Dharma and Kama. And, in Kama, that you forget Dharma and Artha.
You keep all these three in mind. So, what is in this? If we follow Artha a lot, then, what happens? We get so stuck in it, like, like, it is like an illness, like, alcoholism, people get drunk. So, there is another thing, workaholism.
Workaholism means, people get so crazy about their work, that, sometimes, they work for 12 hours, 15 hours, 16 hours, 18 hours. And, then, they do work, they make money, they get high. But, what happens? Then, they do not have time for their family, You don’t have time for your family, you don’t have time for your health, then you feel lonely.
Yoga is increasing in America, people are coming for meditation. When I talk to such people, they are very rich. They have a big house, but to get that big house, they spend so much money, that after getting that big house, they get only one facility in that big house.
What do they get? That there is a lot of space to feel lonely. A big house only gives them the privilege of a lot of space in which to feel lonely. So, leave aside the spiritual pleasure, there is nothing much in it.
So, we don’t have to run after money so much that we forget religion and everything else. All the time we give in our work, we can give it with full enthusiasm. And if we behave well there, then through that also we can get the blessings of God.
Through that also, we can attract God towards us. Like Yudhishthir Maharaj is doing here. Prabhupadaji used to say, once Prabhupadaji was asked a question that how can we know your disciples? Prabhupadaji said that they are perfect gentlemen and ladies.
He didn’t say that my disciples follow the four rules, they do 16 japa, all this is correct. But they are newspaper reporters, how does it matter to them how much they do japa, what rules they follow? What will they see from their point of view? What will they appreciate from their point of view? Now, people in the world don’t see how much you do japa, how much you come to the temple, how is your behaviour? How do you talk? How do you behave? How do you give alms to people? So, if there is proper behaviour in that, then people get attracted to that also. And through that, when we give sufficient time for bhakti, when we do bhakti with concentration, then what will happen? God will rule in our heart.
We can worship God in our heart. And then, if we have God’s will, then we can get a lot of wealth, we can get happiness in our family life. And through that, we won’t get attracted.
We will use all that for the service of God. But, if we don’t do bhakti with concentration, the most important virtue of God is in our heart. In that, we have to understand that God is the most attractive.
God is the ultimate goal of life. If we keep that in the centre, then whether we get anything or not, we won’t get distracted by that. If we don’t do this, then if we don’t get anything, we will get distracted.
If we get something, then we will get attracted. But, from both sides, we will go away from God. So, that is why, our dharma, our sadhana, that is our main virtue of God.
But, while doing that, we don’t neglect the other aspects. In that also, through service, we can get God’s grace. So, in conclusion, today, I discussed, how we can do God’s grace in our life in different ways.
First of all, I saw that, in this incident, Yudhishtir Maharaj has done the entire Rajshri Yagya, because there, by giving respect to Agra Pooja, he wants to tell the glory of God to the whole world. So, one virtue of God, which we ourselves chant, that is because we want to go beyond the world. But, the second purpose of God is to transform the world.
And, when Arjuna fought, he did not do it for revenge, he did it for the establishment of dharma. Hanuman is like that, for the establishment of dharma. So, God did not want war.
Ryodhan was completely attached to war. He was stubborn. He wanted to help the devotees in the establishment of dharma.
Prabhupada used to preach, so that we can bring transformation in this world. So, what does it mean to bring transformation in this world? Not only we have to make a temple, we have to do bhakti in the temple, but we have to attract people also. We have to do God’s grace in such a way, that it reaches people, understands people and attracts people.
That is why, how we have to do God’s grace, with whom we have to understand that. We are physically responsible, we are capable, we are physically capable, we are physically capable, so, through that, people will be attracted to us. And then, we can attract them towards God.
Like Yudhishthira Maharaj did, as an emperor, or Arjuna did, as the best archer. And, we do God’s grace in different ways. In that, what is there in that? If we do bhakti, leaving aside the expectations that we have in that position, then it will not be God’s grace, it will be an illusion.
Like, as I said, George Harrison, when he started doing good music, when he started doing only God’s music, people started praising him. Like, the Indian cricket captain, when he started talking about bhakti after losing, people started alienating him, they started going away from him. So, if we also do not study well, if we are completely irresponsible in our household, in our job, and then people will say, come to the temple, people will say, we should not become like you, we should not come.
So, what is there? The situation in which we are, in that situation, how to attract them, in that way, we have to behave. In that way, we should not do dharma so much that we forget the meaning and work, we should not do dharma so much that we forget the meaning and work, and someone will say, I want to be very successful in the material world, and then I will attract people with that. This is a good feeling, but to be successful, if someone goes away from bhakti, if he goes away from bhaktas, then maybe he will get success.
If he does not get success, then he will lose everything. If he gets success, then he will lose everything. That is why we should not become workaholic, we should not run after the meaning so much that we forget dharma.
First of all, we have to sing the praises of God in our heart. We are making God present in our heart through the sadhana we do. After that, if we have the desire of God, then God can give us success at the material level also.
Will we get success or not? Still, we will be attached to God. And if we are not doing the sadhana of God properly, then whether we get success or not, we will be attached to God. And from both the sides, we will go towards God.
So, the most important agra pooja that Yudhishthir Maharaj was doing in his heart, of God, and then also in the outside world. Similarly, we can also do it in our heart and attract people with our behaviour. Thank you very much.
Hare Krishna. Is there any question? Yes. Thank you very much.
Like you said earlier, Parikshit Maharaj, Parikshit Maharaj, means in Mahabharata, Vadi Geeta is written in different languages. The same Geeta is written in different languages in Bhagwat. In Mahabharata, Parikshit Maharaj has been cursed.
He has been cursed by Daulat, Ekashkar, and all the Vaidyas. And in Mahabharata, we see that Parikshit Maharaj has been cursed. So, there it is said that Parikshit Maharaj should become the leader of the Vaidyas.
But in Mahabharata, where Parikshit Maharaj is scared, how can he become the leader of the Vaidyas? In Mahabharata, when Parikshit Maharaj is cursed, he does a lot of schemes so that he can protect himself. So, why is he being told like this? It is not that Parikshit Maharaj is scared there. It is that it is also a duty to protect one’s own body.
And first of all, the incidents in Mahabharata and Bhagwat can be in different kalpas. One kalpa is like this, and another kalpa is like that. And secondly, we have to understand that if a person is suffering physically, if the body is in danger, then it is also a duty to protect the body.
Why are we protecting the body? We have to see that later. So, in Mahabharata, Parikshit Maharaj was a religious king. And to establish religion, if the king has to protect himself, then it is also a religious duty.
It is not that it is wrong. We can take an example for this. Now, suppose, there was an incident, a relative was telling me that about 15-20 years ago in Bombay, there were some big bombings, riots.
So, he had gone to do some propaganda and he was coming. And suddenly, the terrorists saw him running towards him in his saffron. So, he immediately ran away from there.
And while running, he got caught somewhere and got saved. Later, he went and asked Radhanath Maharaj, I had just gone to the satsang and I had preached there and as soon as this danger came, I got to run away from there. So, what happened? Am I a liar? Am I not doing the right thing? He said, no, there is no such thing.
What is it? That a devotee may feel that this body of mine, I am serving God with this body. And now, I have to be very pure. So, I need this body for purification.
So, protecting the body can also be a service. This can also be a service. Another devotee may have consciousness that if God wants, He will protect me, if God wants me to die, then I will accept that too.
So, protecting oneself or not, both can be a form of refuge. So, protection can also be done in the form of refuge and not protecting oneself can also be in the form of God’s refuge. So, that is why, a devotee can have different consciousness in different situations.
Now, if we want to see an example of refuge, then who comes to mind about refuge? An example? Raise your hand. Draupadi. So, when she was being insulted, she raised her hand and went to God’s refuge.
This is one type of refuge. Now, God says to Arjuna, sarva-dharmān parityajya māṁ ekam śaraṇaṁ vraja You come to refuge. Now, after this, does Arjuna come to refuge by raising his hand? What does Arjuna do? yatra pārtha dhanur dhara Arjuna picks up his bow.
So, what was Arjuna’s refuge in that situation? To fight a war was his refuge. So, I call this in English as two forms dependence on Krishna and diligence for Krishna. bhagwān pe nirbharta ar bhagwān ke liye zimbidāya bhagwān pe nirbharta ar bhagwān ke liye takparta So, both can be in the sense of refuge.
And in which situation how to come to refuge? That is different. Now, Draupadi in that situation was very powerful so, in that situation she came to refuge in that way. Now, Arjuna is a warrior he is one of the main warriors of his army and that was his refuge to pick up his bow and fight a war.
So, sometimes we have to nirbharta and sometimes with takparta. To understand that is a big task of intellect. So, I gave some points on how to come to refuge.
So, there were 10 points. So, the 10th point was depend on Krishna bhagwān pe nirbharta but only after you have prepared for your class. After preparing for your class you depend on God.
If someone does not prepare for the class then he comes to give refuge. Then he says, I depend on God. It is not nirbharta, it is irresponsibility.
Now, at that time we have to prepare. So, that is also refuge. We have to serve God.
So, what is refuge here? I leave whatever I want to do and I serve God. That is refuge. And I serve God with takparta.
And sometimes it can happen that a person is in such a situation that he cannot do anything. So, he says, I also leave whatever I want to do. So, in different situations there can be different feelings.
So, in Mahabharata the problem that is coming is to face it with takparta. That is the ancient Mahadarsha. And when the problem comes then depending on God that is the Bhagavata Mahadarsha.
Both can be the characteristics of the Mahadarsha. My question is material life and spiritual life how to balance them? How can we understand the difference? If we meet a person who is a devotee then it means our spiritual awareness is not necessary. When we meet someone if the first thought comes in our mind that what can I do for him? Then our spiritual awareness is needed.
If we meet someone and the first question comes in our mind that what can he do for me? Then that is spiritual awareness. Even if we go to someone and we are taking subscription back to Godhead as soon as we meet someone we say that he can give me a subscription. If we have that feeling then we will ignore the person who can’t give us a subscription.
This is our feeling. This person may accept the knowledge and benefit from it. And in return he will give us a subscription.
So, what happens spiritual awareness means service to God. This is possible. So now we can have this service in every situation.
Wherever we are if we are working with that feeling then it is spiritual. If we are doing the responsibilities in our family with the feeling of service that he is my child so I will take care of him. He is God’s child so I will take care of him.
He is God’s child so I will take care of him. This is spiritual awareness. So, first of all we have to understand that serving God is spiritual awareness and it is very important for spiritual progress.
And we can bring it in everything. After understanding this we have to see that there is a difference between physical and spiritual and the work in which the spirit of God is not clearly there. For example, when we come to the temple we see God everywhere.
In our mind we think that we have come here for the service of God. So, what happens is the spirit of God is more clearly there. And when we are doing the responsibilities of our family, job, then the thought of God will be there and the responsibility of God will be there indirectly.
So, now for the direct devotion it is very important to spend some time. And we do that much. The indirect devotion that we have to do can change according to the time.
It means that the balance that we want can never be a formula. Because life keeps on changing. For example, you are riding a cycle.
What is the balanced state It is standing like this. It is completely standing. The vertical is straight up.
That is the balanced state. But now you want to take a right turn. Then what will happen? What is the balanced state of the cycle? It will be leaning a little to the right.
But after the right turn if the cycle is leaning to the right it will start rotating. So, then later you have to make it straight again. Then if you want to go to the left then you have to lean a little to the left.
So, for the cycle what is the balanced state? It is not dependent on whether the cycle is straight up or not. It is dependent on the direction of the cycle. So, the balance in life is never static.
It is dynamic. The balance that we have how to balance it can change according to the situation. So, instead of a schedule we have to see it as a goal.
I have to go in this direction. And to go in that direction what do I have to do? Sometimes I have to turn here, sometimes I have to turn there. I have to go in that direction.
So, if we get stuck with the schedule I will do this in the morning, I will do this in the afternoon, I will do this in the evening. So, sometimes it happens that we are not able to keep the schedule in our life. But we have to keep the direction right.
In our life, in our physical life there are more responsibilities. If we are working in a company then there is a deadline for a project. If someone is sick at home, a newborn is born at home.
So, at that time what happens is there is a responsibility of the house or the servant. And then we have to bend in this direction and sometimes in that direction. Sometimes there is a Janmashtami festival in the temple.
There is a big satsang or a great devotee has come there. There is a great devotion. So, when we go to the temple more sometimes we can bend in this direction and sometimes in that direction.
So, what happens is we have to keep going in that direction. If we pay attention to the direction then sometimes we will go straight and sometimes we will go in this direction and sometimes we will go in that direction. And another example can be if we are going in traffic.
So, if there is not much traffic then we will go fast. If there is a lot of traffic then we have to go slowly. But sometimes in our material life traffic increases a lot.
So, at that time we have to go slowly. But we are going in that direction. So, life can change our pace but it shouldn’t change our purpose.
The speed at which we are going may change. But the direction we are going and the purpose for which we are going should not change. So, what happens now is if there is a lot of traffic and there is a lot of traffic but if someone says everyday there is an emergency in my life everyday there is an emergency in my life that I won’t be able to do bhakti then that person is not prioritising properly he is not organising properly.
He should organise a little. The emergencies come in life. But if it is coming everyday then that problem is not in life it is not prioritised in life.
For example, if we are calling someone for a programme and they say there is traffic I am getting late and they are coming slowly but the traffic clears but they are still coming slowly. What does that mean? Maybe they don’t want to come to the programme. So, when in our material life the traffic decreases even then if we don’t speed up then what does that mean? The answer is we are not so pramanik to do bhakti.
Balance means we have to look at it as a formula as a goal. I can decide how I will go according to Desh, Kaal, Patra. Okay? Any questions? How many of you want to ask? One more? Okay.
If I am coming from a temple in America then there is a system in America where there are two mics one for God and one for Goddess. Yes. Yes, please.
Question in Hindi Okay. So, now when I told you about Dharma Arthakam then why didn’t I tell you about Moksha? When Yudhishtir Maharaj is sent to Narad Muni then he doesn’t mention Moksha. What is it? It means when a person is in a household then there is a gradual progress.
So, in a household a person is not working for the purpose of Moksha. That is why he works for Dharma Arthakam. Then later when he becomes a monk that is when he thinks about Moksha.
Now, in bhakti we don’t want Moksha. We want bhakti, we want love in bhakti. So, we don’t need to wish for Moksha separately.
If we keep doing bhakti then through bhakti we will get Bhagavad Prem and we will attain Bhagavad Dham. So, that is why in different situations people ask different questions. When Vishwamitra Muni comes to meet Dashrath Maharaj Dashrath Maharaj asks him a question that that how are you against your rebirth? That you are fighting the war against your rebirth.
Now, what is he? He is a defender. So, the only purpose of his life is to get out of this birth and death world. That is everyone’s purpose.
But the purpose that we are going towards comes from different ashrams and from different paths. So, in a householder’s ashram they are asked how are you attaining your rebirth? That is their purpose but at that time that is not their priority. But in a Vairagya’s ashram how are you attaining your rebirth? So, in a householder’s ashram they are asked how are you keeping Dharma and Kama in mind? So, all this is if someone does Dharma and Kama in a good way then from that only Vairagya will come and then the path to Moksha will progress.
Thank you very much. Vantraj Himad Bhagwatam ki Srila Prabhupada ki Gaur Bhakta Vrinda ki Tai Gaur Prema Vrinda ki Srila Prabhupada ki