6 Gopi Gita | Texts 12-13 | Desire management

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Hare Krishna. So today, so today we will be having our last session of the Gopi Gita. Unfortunately we won't be able to complete the Gopi Gita this time, so Krishna willing, in future sometime we'll continue this series and complete it.

But till now we have discussed overall from one perspective how each verse of the Gopi Gita is a call to Krishna, please return. And this call is coming from different Gopis, who each one of them is expressing her heart individually. It is the individual heart that is calling, but it is also a collective call.

So in one sense, the Gopi Gita is an example of Sankirtan. Sankirtan. Kirtan is happening.

So at one time, one devotee, one Gopi is singing, but they are all together, they are in a group, and they are glorifying the Lord, they are calling out to the Lord. So now, in this particular verse, the Gopis are remembering how they remember Krishna. That at different times they remember Krishna in different ways.

So the previous verse we talked about, how Krishna, when you are in the forest, that your lotus feet are being pierced by the thorns and the pebbles. This even thought is unbearable for us. So now it's talking about, Gopis are talking about, that while you are all day away, we are burning in separation from you.

We are longing for you to return. And then finally, when we get to see you, dina pareekshaya, so dina is day, pareekshaya, when it comes to an end. At that time, neela kundalair, so we behold you.

And it's important that love or any kind of emotion, it is based on specifics. That emotions, generally in the path, there are principles that are universal. So for example, in any field, the law of karma is a universal principle.

The existence of God is a universal principle. Principles are universal. But however, when we come to personal details, so what is specific is personal details.

That now, and I use the word details, that itself means it's specific. But the idea is, that it is, universals may attract the intelligence. And it's important.

But it is specifics that trigger emotion. It's specific that attract the heart. That, oh, the sky is so vast.

Okay, that doesn't really attract the heart, the vastness. Okay, we describe the sky. It is a vast canvas of white, interspersed with many bluish black clouds, moving at different speeds, creating a magnificent canopy.

Oh, that's more attractive. There have to be specifics. So similarly, when it comes to Krishna, there is an understanding of God as a principle.

But at the same time, Krishna is a person. And it's important that bodily does not necessarily mean physical. That, because bodies can also be spiritual.

So there are bodily details of Krishna described. But because Krishna has a spiritual form, so there are details which seem to be like physical details. But they are spiritual details.

The body itself is spiritual. So it's described. So his, he has bluish black locks of hair.

So the ruha is a word which has come before also. It came. So ruha is lotus.

So what is the difference between vanaruha and jalaruha? Yes, jalaruha is lotus that grows in the water. Vanaruha is that which grows in the forest. So vanaruhananam.

Ananam is face. Ananam. So jalaruhananam is your face is like a water lotus.

Your face is like a forest lotus. So vanaruhananam. So what happens is they say, bibhritavritam.

Aavrit. Aavrit means covered. So Krishna has locks of hair which fall around his face.

So they're saying that at the end of the day when we see you, we see your beautiful face encircled by locks of hair. And not only that, gana rajasvalam. So gana, gana is thick.

Rajasvalam. So the word rajas in Sanskrit, like in any language, words are multivalent. So rajas can refer to rajoguna.

But mahatpada rajobhishekam. So what does rajam mean over there? Dust. So rajasvalam, that on your face there's a thick layer of dust.

How has that dust come about? Yes, from the hooves of the cows. I had mentioned earlier how cowherds, they follow their animals. Kshatriyas, they lead their followers, they lead the soldiers.

So when Krishna is coming behind the cows, he has been leading them from behind. He has been guiding them. So the dust from their feet, from their hooves has risen and has formed a powder.

So in one sense it's formed a layer. Normally if somebody is dusty, that's not considered very attractive. If our clothes are dusty, say, oh, you know, I don't want to be seen like that.

I want to go and wear fresh clothes. I want to take a bath. But in Vrindavan, everything is arranged to enhance the sweetness of the reciprocations between Krishna and the Vrajavasis.

So even the dust of Vrindavan, which apparently, accidentally, by the movement of the hooves, has risen and settled around Krishna's face, that becomes an ornament, that becomes like a cosmetic powder. And that enhances the attractiveness of Krishna. So, Ghanaraja Svalam, describing that, Krishna, we are seeing you at the end of the day.

And, Darshan Muhur, you show yourself to us. So Muhur is again and again. Again and again means, they're referring to, this is the daily occurrence.

Every day, all of Vrindavan is waiting. When will Krishna come back? And when they see a dust cloud rising toward the evening, they know that Krishna is going to come. But the dust cloud settles, and then they start seeing the cows coming forward.

And they're waiting, waiting, and see all the Gopas. And behind the Gopas, finally, they see Krishna and Balram together. So, Manasi na smaram.

So, Manasi, when we see you at that time, in our minds, smaram. Smaram means desire, longing. We long for your company more and more.

Veera yachchasi. Oh hero, the word Veera has come earlier, made as Veera Yoshitam. You are the hero of women.

So, they are saying, Krishna, Veera yachchasi. It's like, almost as if, your very appearance is designed to trigger desire in our hearts. Yachchasi.

Yachchasi means, you are placing that Manasi na smaram. You are placing that desire in our hearts. So, sometimes, when people dress or they, or anoint themselves, sometimes their idea is, I want to attract so-and-so person.

And then they will dress themselves very attractively. So, sometimes they say, you know, this person is dressed to kill. What that means is, that they are dressed in such a way, that they just want to captivate a person, overwhelm a person.

So, the idea is, that sometimes this is done intentionally. And sometimes, people just have a natural attractiveness to them. They don't have to try to act attractive.

They just have, by their past karma, they have a grace, they have a beauty, they have a way of behaving that just captivates attention. So, here the Gopis are saying, Krishna, your whole appearance is such that, it just evokes, triggers, kindles desire in our hearts. So, manasi na smaram.

And the implication here is, Krishna, this kind of desire being triggered, muhur, it happens every day, day after day after day. And any unfulfilled desire is troubling. But if a desire is not fulfilled again and again and again, then the desire goes, initially it may be troubling, when it's unfulfilled.

But if it is unfulfilled for a long time, there are two ways. One just avoids the stimulus, and one may forget the desire. But if the stimulus that is triggering the desire is constantly present, and the desire is being triggered, and there is no fulfillment for that desire, then it becomes tormenting.

It is not just troubling, it's tormenting. It feels as if from inside, something is piercing me, piercing me, again and again and again. And there is no relief over there.

So, the Gopis are saying that, because we see you every day, and it seems as if you are intentionally triggering desire in our hearts. And that desire is not fulfilled, and we are tormented by it. And we thought, now at last, our desire to be with you will be fulfilled.

You called us, and now you abandoned us, O Krishna. Please don't do that. Please don't be so cruel like this, that after triggering desire, then not letting the desire be fulfilled.

You know, suppose we like a particular food, say we like gulab jamun, and somebody is a gulab jamun cooked, and then the person is cooked the gulab jamun, they bring it right in front of us, and then we are looking at it, looking at our desire's trigger, and then they just take it ahead. It's only for guests, not for you. So, it's cruel to trigger desire, and then to not fulfill the desire.

So, the Gopis are saying, Krishna, please return. You have triggered the desire within us. You have created the hope of fulfilling the desire.

So, don't be cruel, Krishna. Please return. So, it's one thing to be troubled by desire, another thing to be tormented by desire, but then after that, when it appears as if the desire is going to be fulfilled, and then, see, raising hope, and then frustrating, that is the most unbearable.

They're saying, this is just cruel, Krishna. You are a hero, veer. So, heroes are meant to protect from cruelty, not be cruel themselves.

Kshatrayate iti kshatriya. So, Krishna, please don't do this. Please return.

Now, while the Gopis are speaking this, it's important to understand the role of desires. Desires are natural in our lives. To be conscious is to be desirous.

When we are conscious, naturally, we will observe things, and when we observe things, some things will be attractive for us, and when they are attractive, desire will come for them. So, the impersonalist solution to the problem of desire, because they acknowledge that consciousness will mean desire, isn't it? Whenever we are conscious, we observe certain things. Hey, this is, this is mediocre.

That particular picture is very attractive. So, naturally, there will be perception. In perception, there will be attraction, and then attraction will trigger longing for it, desire for it.

So, often we say the Advaitavada says that, oh, we merge into God. Well, Advaitavadis say that's wrong. We don't agree.

We don't say we merge into God. So, that is actually true, but that is new Advaitavada. That is what modern Mayavadis talk about.

So, the original Mayavadis, that is, so there is deviation in Mayavad also. So, that is original Mayavad, that is quoted by Shankaracharya, and then there is modern Mayavad, which came up in the time of the Indian independence struggle and other things. So, the modern Mayavad says, we are God, or we'll become God, or things like that.

I was in America, I saw a t-shirt, as a student. I was an atheist, till I discovered I was God. So, that is modern Mayavad.

But, original Mayavad is not atheistic. Sorry, it is not theistic, not atheistic, they call themselves transtheistic. Transtheistic means that our philosophy is beyond God.

Now, what is the idea of beyond God? That means, their idea is, Brahman is the ultimate reality. Now, when Brahman comes in touch with Sattva, it leads to Ishwar. When Brahman comes in touch with Rajas, it leads to Jeeva.

And Brahman comes in touch with Tamas, that leads to Prakriti matter. So, their idea is that, right now, the Jeeva is bound to Prakriti, and this bondage is the cause of suffering. So, they say, temporarily, let the Jeeva become bound to Ishwar, and by that bondage, the Jeeva will become liberated from Prakriti.

But, eventually, what happens is, one has to understand that all three, Prakriti, Jeeva and Ishwar, all three are Maya. The only thing that exists is Brahman. So, that's why their idea is, we are transtheistic, that we exist beyond theism.

Theism is the idea of God, but our idea is, we are beyond God. So, that's a complex philosophy. It's a complex and incoherent philosophy.

But, my point here is, that they solve the problem of consciousness will lead to desire. That is just natural. So, what their solution is, is that, say, this is the subject of consciousness.

Subject means, say, like, I am observing you right now. Say, if I am observing you, so then I am the subject and you are the object. And, in between us is a stream of consciousness.

So, what their argument is, is that, whenever there is duality, duality means that there is subject and there is object. So, duality will lead to desire. So, we use the word duality to refer to happiness and distress.

They use the word duality, they also accept happiness and distress, but they say there's only a preliminary level of duality. Their idea of duality means, I and you. Any subject and object idea, that is, that is, that is maya.

So, they say, the subject is maya, the object is maya. So, all that exists is just the stream of consciousness. And, when consciousness has nothing to perceive, then there'll be no desire.

So, their solution to the problem of desire, they say desire is the cause of suffering, desire is the cause of bondage, we need to get rid of desire. How do we get rid of it? By getting rid of the duality of subject and object. They say, Aisa dhyan karo, aisa dhyan karo, ki kaun dhyan kar raha hai, kiska dhyan kar raha hai, iska bhi dhyan nahi rahe hain.

It's fine, we can also say that, we should also chant in such a way, that we get completely absorbed. But, there is a difference between absorption, that is not the same as dissolution. Dissolution means, the being itself gets dissolved.

See, it's in terms of consciousness, yes, we can get so absorbed, that we are no longer aware of what is going on. But, that does not mean the being itself is dissolved. So, the Mayavadi solution to the problem of desire is, that we give up the duality of object and subject, and then there will be no longer any desire.

But, the Bhakti solution is, that currently, the objects to which we are attracted are material. When we get attracted to the spiritual object, ultimately, the highest spiritual object is Krishna. Then, the consciousness flows towards him, and then, even when there is desire, that desire itself is purifying.

Now, the desire may cause some dissatisfaction, the desire is not fulfilled. But, even if there is dissatisfaction, still, within that desire, there is remembrance, and that remembrance is purifying. It's described for Narada, when he was a boy in his previous life, the Lord says, Matsnapana, that, I have given you my sight, and by this sight, your desire for me will be awakened.

And, this desire will cleanse all other desires. So, while the gopis may feel tormented, just like we earlier discussed, that love is in the relationship. Relationship means, it's not just happiness, there is anticipation, there is anxiety, there is tension, there is various range of emotions within love.

Similarly, it is not that in the spiritual domain, always all the desires will be fulfilled. But, with respect to spiritual desires, whether they are fulfilled or they are unfulfilled, both of them, they enhance remembrance of Krishna. And, because both of them enhance remembrance of Krishna, both of them are auspicious.

So, we may have a desire, I want to build a big temple for Krishna. Or, I want to do this kind of program and attract so many people to Krishna. We may or may not succeed.

But, just having that desire, and not just in a casual sense, like sometimes people, I made 1000 new year resolutions. Well, that's not a resolution, that's a wish list. Nobody can make, maybe 1, 2, 3, 5 resolutions are more than enough.

We can't do too many. So, like that, desire means, if it's a serious desire, it's a small number of desires. So, if we have some specific serious desires to serve Krishna, even if they are not fulfilled, they will actually purify us, they will enhance our remembrance of Krishna, they will draw us closer to Him.

In the Bhagavad Gita, in 12.9, Krishna says, when you do sadhana bhakti, अथ चित्तम् समाधातुम् नशक्नोसिमैस्तिरम् अभ्यास्योगेनततो माम् इच्छाप्तुम् धनन्जय So, He says, the result of sadhana is Iccha. That's a fascinating correlation. The Prabhupada would say, what is the fruit of chanting? More chanting.

The result of sadhana is Iccha. Now, that Iccha can be to do more chanting, it can be to do more hearing, it can be to do more book distribution, more preaching. But our desire should increase.

So, while the Gopis are saying, we are feeling tormented by this desire, actually, they are in a state of great ecstasy. And that it's the fact that they are having that desire triggered within them, that itself shows how much they are attracted to Krishna. Let's sing this once.

दिनापारेक्षये नीलाकुंतलै दिनापारेक्षये नीलाकुंतलै वानरुहाणनं वेभ्रदाऽव्रेतं घानाराजास्वलं दर्शयन्मोः मानासे नाहं स्मारं धीरायाच्छसे One point I forgot to mention. I started by talking about specifics over here. That I said specifics is what attracts emotions.

Specifics is what triggers the heart. So for all of us in our bhakti, to have inspiration, to have energy, within our bhakti, each one of us needs to cultivate some specific desires. So now we can have a long term desire.

The long term desire is ultimately to go back to Godhead, to develop love for Krishna. Now while we understand that, that is the ultimate purpose of life, but it can seem very abstract. And it is not really very actionable in terms of being measurable.

How closer am I to Godhead now? How much love of Krishna have I? It is not so easy to understand that. And now we may have short term desires. Every day when I wake up, I want to complete my sadhana by this much time, or I want to read this much for this many, I have to do this much reading, I have to fill my sadhana card.

So those are short term desires. But we all need some medium term desires. So medium term desires could be that, in 5 years I want to become a good speaker in the Bhagavad Gita.

So I should be able to give classes. In 3 years I want to become a good kirtaneer. Now of course we can consult our seniors, and our desires should not have to be independent of them.

But still a devotee wants to think that, I want to become as competent and as versatile an instrument as possible in the service of Guru and Krishna. So we want to be competent. Competent means what we do we are good at doing it.

And versatile. Versatile means we can do multiple things. So competent and versatile instruments.

So for that purpose we can look at what abilities we have, what interests we have, what opportunities we have, what are the needs, and we need to have some desires. Even if those desires are not fulfilled, that's fine. But having that desire will fill our consciousness, and that will prevent material desires from filling our consciousness.

If we don't have a vision of how we will grow spiritually, then the vision of how we can grow materially will fill our mind. And we are naturally creatures who want to grow. So it could be various, even if we are doing cooking service.

Okay, I know about 15 items now, maybe I want to learn 15 more items in the next one year, or next two years. I want to become good at these items. You know, I make garlands.

Okay, I want to find out some other ways I can make garlands. So whatever service we do, if I am counselling, okay, I want to learn more about how I can counsel more effectively. So whatever it is, we need specific desires.

So what happens is short-term desires, they are generally not very inspiring. Okay, it's more like a struggle. Oh, I have to every day wake up this morning.

If we don't wake up, we feel bad. If we wake up, there's nothing great. That's what you're… So, even if that particular short-term goal is achieved, it's not that it's very inspiring.

Actually, it should be. If we can continue to practice sadhana standards consistently for six months, one year, that is something which is praiseworthy. But because that's just normal and expected, that doesn't really inspire us so much.

And the long-term desires, they seem so abstract. Again, to have that strong desire is difficult. Mostly when somebody says, I want to go back to Godhead, it is not so much because they're so attracted to the spiritual world, it's because they're so frustrated with the material world.

And okay, we can say, yeh da kena prakaar hai da. Somehow or other we want to develop desire for Krishna. But that is not a positive attraction.

That's not a sustainable attraction. So, for us, when we see other devotees doing some service and doing it well, it could trigger envy within us. But instead of envy, oh, if this devotee can do this kind of service, maybe I can also learn.

Maybe I can also do this service. So, we need desires in our consciousness. So, spiritual desires, the specifics will trigger those desires.

And then they will fill our consciousness. So, let's move to the next verse. We'll just take one more verse.

Now, the gopis are praying that that when they see Krishna coming back, on one side, they see His face and they're describing His face. They also, as all the cows come forward, then they see Krishna's lotus feet. So, they're remembering His lotus feet once again.

Here, it's a slightly different context. Earlier, pranata dehinam was there. Now, it is pranata kamadam.

So, they're saying, Krishna, that you are triggering manasinasmaram. You are triggering desire in our hearts. So, now, what is it? That you, please, fulfill this desire.

And you, Krishna, can fulfill this desire. Your lotus feet are capable of fulfilling desire. Pranata kamadam.

So, if we bow down to you, you can fulfill the desires. Padmajaarchitam. And we are not the first person to worship your lotus feet.

Even beings as great as Brahma, they have also worshipped your lotus feet. Dharanimandanam. And this lotus feet, the footprints that they make, are ornaments on the earth.

All of Vrindavan is very careful not to step on the lotus feet of Krishna, on the footprints of Krishna. Even if hundreds and thousands and millions of cows are there, somehow they all walk in such a way that Krishna's footprints still remain there. They are like monuments.

Dharanimandanam. And Deyamapadi. So, Abhaya Charana Aravindare.

Aravinda, in the charana, the lotus feet, when we remember, Abhaya. So, they're saying, Gopi, they're saying something. Similarly, Deyamapadi.

That whenever there is fear, there is apati, there is apati, Deyam. These are the worthy objects of meditation by which we can become free from the feeling of being devastated. Deyamapadi.

Charanapankajam. Whatever we're talking about, they are lotus feet. Shantamamchate.

They not only remove anxiety, they not only remove distress, but shantamamchate. That they grant satisfaction. Ramana Staneshwar.

Ramana, oh lord, oh lover. Ramana is more specifically, oh lover. Staneshwar arpayadhyan.

On our bosom, on our chest, please, please those lotus feet. And arpayadhyan. Arpan is offer.

Arpayadhyan. Adhi is distress. Like arti, adhi.

Arpayadhyan. So by offering your lotus feet to our chest, please remove the desires that are burning in our hearts. So, this is, they are themselves, we are being tormented.

And you can say, okay, you're tormented by desire. Even if I come, what do you want me to do? Just you, by your offering your lotus feet to us, can remove the desire, the torment of desire that is in our heart. You can sing it once.

Charanapankajam Shantamam Chate Charanapankajam Shantamam Chate Ramananahastane Swarpayadhyan So, the gopis are here stating that, Krishna, even if you consider that our desires are mundane, that we're just attracted to your physical beauty, and therefore, these desires are triggered within us, and these desires are inappropriate. But still, the way you can fulfill those desires, you have the potency, whether you fulfill the desire or you purify the desire. So generally, when we talk about desires, there are multiple ways to deal with desires.

One is fulfill. Now, if the desires are fulfilled within a dharmic context, gradually the desire weakens. So, that's why Dharma, Artha, Kama, and gradually Moksha will come.

So, if a person's overall life is dharmic, then certain desires, when they're fulfilled, as people grow older, they get more realization, they get more detachment, it naturally happens. So, I mentioned this earlier also, it's not that each time you scratch an itch, you become a perpetual itch scratcher. Isn't it? It is if already there is a disease.

So, if they're fulfilled within a dharmic context, then gradually, a certain level of decrease in desires happens. A man and a woman, when they get married, they're strongly attracted to each other. But then they have children, they have responsibilities, and they take the responsibility seriously.

Then that mutual attraction, gradually it starts going down with time. So, fulfilling is one way of dealing with desires. Another is tolerated.

That when desires are tolerated, they come, they stay for some time, they go away. They come, they stay, they go away. So, temptation is like a salesman.

A salesman keeps knocking on the door, knocking on the door, knocking on the door. And keep knocking as long as the salesman has hope that one day the door will be opened. But once the salesman sees that this door is never going to be opened, the salesman will go away.

So, like that, if desires are tolerated, they go away. So, this is what Krishna talks about in, say, 5.23, for example. शक्नोतिहईवयसोड़ुम् प्राक्षरीर् विमोक्षनप्षोड़ुम् Tolerate.

He says you may have to tolerate lifelong. Now, apart from that, desires, they can also be purified. Purified means what? Basically, purification.

When we say water is purified, water is the same, but the contaminations in the water, they go away. They are removed. So, like that, the propensity to desire will always be there.

But it is almost like when the desire is purified, you can say that the motive for the desire changes. So, when the desire is purified, somebody may still want wealth, but they want wealth not so that I can have a big house. I want wealth so that I can build a big temple for Krishna.

So, when desires are purified, basically, what it means is the object of the desire changes. The object or specifically the objective changes. Objective gets elevated.

So, you may still desire the same thing, but you may desire it for Krishna's sake. So, whatever it may be. So, somebody may have speaking ability.

Maybe since childhood they had the ambition, I want to become a powerful, popular public speaker. And that desire may be there. It is not necessary that the desire has to go away when they become a devotee.

But now, I want to become a public speaker, not so that I will be famous, but so that I can make Krishna famous. I can spread Krishna's glories more and more. So, the motive for the desire changes.

So, sometimes we have a very simplistic idea of purification. Purification means the desire itself goes away. And yes, that can happen in some cases.

But that is generally for superficial desires. A superficial desire is, okay, I had a desire to travel to this place. I had a desire to see that thing.

I had a desire to buy that thing. There are so many desires that are injected into our consciousness by the propaganda of the world. And those desires may disappear.

So, that is possible. So, purified can mean, at one level, just eliminated. That is possible.

But a more realistic thing is they are elevated. Elevated means those same desires are directed for a higher purpose. So, this is how a devotee actually deals with desires.

Now, of course, we can say bhakti has an entirely new category of desires. So, before coming to bhakti, we had no desire to chant the holy names. One of my friends, he saw a book, it was about how to increase your taste for the holy name.

And he said, you know, first, what is the holy name? What is the taste for the holy name? What is the need to increase the taste? It is when he spoke, I realized, ya nisha sarva bhuta anam. They can't even comprehend it. It is, what is the whole point of all this? So, we could say that direct desires for Krishna is a new category of desire that is introduced for us.

That people may not be able to comprehend. But just because we have, with respect to our desires, there is a new category, that is, desire directly for Krishna. This is not a desire, I like to read books, now I would like to read so many spiritual books.

This is not, oh, I like music, now I like to do music for Krishna. There is a desire directly for Krishna. That new category of desires will definitely be developed.

But that does not mean the old category will disappear. That this we want to develop it, no doubt. But along with that, the old category of desires, they need to be addressed.

It's not that we can just say they will be eliminated. So, the way we address it is by either fulfilling them, tolerating them, or purifying them. So, now here, the gopis are saying that Krishna, if you think that our desire is impure, when we see you, we are attracted, then it is Krishna, you who have the potency, that you can purify us of these desires.

You can help us handle these desires. It is you, if you come and you bless us with your lotus feet, then those lotus feet will cleanse us of those desires. Therefore, so the two things they are saying, Deyam Aapadhi, that Aapadhi for us, what is the Aapadhi? This, we came to you and you have abandoned us.

We just don't know what to do now. So, they are saying, please, please guide us. What should we do at such a time? Please tell us.

In popular literature, in historical literature, there is a saying that there is no rage, like the rage of a woman scorned. When a woman scorned means what? If a woman, generally men are, in any relationship, men take initiative. So, men propose to a woman.

But if a woman comes forward and offers herself to a man, and if that man rejects her, there is nothing as humiliating and infuriating for her. Like, I am offering myself, how dare you refuse me? So, from a psychological perspective, see, men desire women, women desire the desire of men. Women desire the desire of men.

That gives them a sense of power. So many people are attracted to me. And that's why when Urvashi offered herself to Arjuna, and Arjuna said no, he didn't really reject her, it was a very respectful no.

It was a respectful, rational no. But Urvashi couldn't tolerate it. She was so proud of her beauty, and she was actually beautiful, that I am a celestial damsel.

The whole world wants to be with me. Even Indra wants to be with me. And I am offering myself to you, and you are saying no? Who do you think you are? So, she cursed him, that you, you are not a man at all.

You lose your manhood. So, by Krishna's arrangement, that curse worked in Arjuna's favor, when he was in the Jnatvas. But the point is, when a woman is scorned, scorned means a man says no, I am not interested in you.

Then that is very infuriating for a woman. So here, the Gopis, while Krishna has abandoned them, they have come to offer themselves to Krishna. And Krishna just left them.

They could have got angry. But, it is the testament, they do express some displeasure, some anger, but, it is a testimony to the greatness of their devotion, that they are not blaming Krishna. It is not that their ego is hurt, and they are thinking that, Krishna, we will show you now.

Not like that. It is, although the Gopis, you could say they are scorned, scorned means they are neglected, rejected by Krishna. There is no anger over there.

They don't go down this path. There is more of introspection. Why did Krishna do this to me? Why has Krishna left us like this? So, they are thinking, and they are coming up with various explanations.

Krishna, even if you think this desire is impure, you please come and purify it. In this way, it is you who can free us from the torment of this desire. We can sing this once more, and then I will summarize.

pranatakamadam padmaja chitam pranatakamadam padmaja chitam dharanimandanam dheyamapade pranatakamadam padmaja chitam dharanimandanam dheyamapade pranatakamadam padmaja chitam dharanimandanam dheyamapade So we discussed two main verses today, and we discussed two broad themes. Broadly, the topic was desire management, we could say. So, with respect to the Gopis, they are saying that Krishna, Krishna's specifics, his beautiful face, which is covered by locks of hair, and it is powdered by the dust of Vrindavan, that is triggering desire within them.

So they're saying, it's almost as if you are, you are intentionally placing this desire in our heart. So, please Krishna, don't leave us tormented like this. Please come back.

So we discussed desire, dealing with them, the impersonalist way, the Mayavadi's way is what? To say there is no subject and no object. So their philosophy is, they say, the original Mayavadi is transtheistic, not even God is there. Although temporarily you can have desire for God to replace other desire, but the Bhakti way, the Vaishna way is what? We redirect the desire.

So instead of worldly objects, we redirect to Krishna. And with Krishna, whether the desire is fulfilled or it is unfulfilled, both are auspicious because both enhance the remembrance of Krishna. And so we all need to trigger spiritual desire.

We need to activate spiritual desires in our heart. So, we will have short term, but especially medium term desires, some kind of vision of how we can serve Krishna when we have that desire, then that's what will help us to fill our consciousness and thereby drive out material desires. The Gopis are now saying, the second part they are saying is, even if our desires are impure, then you can purify them.

So by coming and offering your lotus feet to us, you can purify us of those desires. So we discussed about desires, there are broadly three ways of dealing with them. Either we fulfill them, we tolerate them, or we purify them.

So purify is, in one sense, sometimes you can call it redirect, but it is not exactly. Taking this desire directly towards Krishna, it is same desire, it is not eliminated, but it is elevated. We may do the same thing, but we do it for a higher purpose.

So like the Varanashram is, everybody acts according to their natural desires, but they do it for a dharmic purpose. And then we also discussed how the Gopis are scorned, but they don't get angry. Rather, it doesn't lead to anger, as in normal human psychology, it leads to introspection.

What is it that Krishna, that is, what is it that is wrong with us? You please purify us of that. Thank you very much. Hare Krishna.

Is there any one question? Yes, please. Thank you, Ruchi, for the wonderful class. Sometimes devotees may want to eliminate the desire, because, like for example, let us say they decide to go, let's say, to America.

Previously I might want to go to America for sense enjoyment. Now I want to go to, let's say, preach Krishna consciousness. But now a person may eliminate the desire to wanting to go, because he knows he is vulnerable to Maya.

So, in that situation, is elimination good or not? How do we? Well, there are multiple ways to deal with desires, and we can't say which will work. So, I have known many devotees who, for example, say they had some interest, and after they came to Bhakti, they just give up that interest completely. But then after 10, 15, 20 years, that interest starts triggering again.

So, I'll give an example, which might be a little controversial, but it's addressing a principle. See, there is one devotee who was very much into chess. He was a state-level chess player, could have gone on to become a champion.

He just gave up playing chess after that, he came to Bhakti. Then after 15, 17 years, suddenly the desire for chess started coming back within him. And he said, I said, what is happening? Am I going backward in my Bhakti? This desire that had gone back, how is it coming back? So, he was trying for it, and it was just constantly there.

Not like overwhelming desire, not that I want to go and become a chess professional and give up Bhakti, no, but just, I want to play chess. Sometimes, when I use the word material desire, it's a very broad term, sattvic, rajasic, tamasic, there are many desires. So, he said, I try to study one hour Bhagavatam every day.

One day, I was just feeling so sleepy, and so bored, and so uninterested. So, he said, I just succumbed to temptation, I downloaded the chess app, and I played a chess game for 10 minutes. You know, a timed chess match you can play on it.

And he said, I played that for 10 minutes, and I just felt so fresh after that. And then, after that, when I studied the Bhagavatam for 50 minutes, he said, that was the best study I had done of Bhagavatam in years. Now, I trust that devotee's sincerity, he's a close friend of mine.

So, my point is, that sometimes, every, our mind, our mind also needs to relax, just like the body needs to relax. And, for some people, their mind can relax directly within devotional activities. Some people may read Bhagavatam, and that may be relaxing.

Some people may participate in Kirtan, and that may be relaxing. But, some people's minds may be such that, they may not find relaxation in these activities. Like, some people may say, okay, when I want to relax, I just want to go for a walk.

I want to go for a walk, maybe go to a peaceful garden. Now, you say, you know, I just want to relax. Do you chant at that time? No.

I don't want to do anything, I just want to relax. So, you're wasting your time. But, you know, everybody has to assess how their mind functions.

And, they may go for a walk, they may just look at the trees, and they may feel peaceful. And, then they come back, and once the mind is relaxed and rested a little bit, they can function better. They can do their services better.

So, if somebody can find relaxation for their mind within bhakti, that's wonderful. If somebody can't, then, you know, finding that relaxation for the mind, Krishna says, yukta aahar vihaar asya. So, even vihaar, if you see, aahar is a need of the body, vihaar is a need of the mind.

So, vihaar is recreation, entertainment. Now, entertainment should not become an obsession. Like, entertainment throughout human history has been a break from life.

Because life can be exhausting, life can be boring, it can be draining. Nowadays, for many people, life is a break from entertainment. The most important thing is watching this TV show, playing this video game.

And, in between, I have to do my job, I have to take care of this family things. That's all. For them, their entertainment is more real than reality.

That is obsessive. But, we all need some vihaar. And, Krishna says, yukta, regulated.

So, now, yes, some devotees may find relaxation in dancing and kirtans. But, if somebody was a specialist dancer, they are trained in dancing, maybe the dance moves of kirtan may be very simple for them. That may not really fulfill them so much.

So, each individual is different. And, we have to find out what relaxes us. What relaxes our mind.

And, doing what relaxes our mind, I wouldn't really call it as pandering to material desires. It is just fulfilling a need of the mind. So, if we can find the fulfillment within the ambit of bhakti, wonderful.

If broad activities of bhakti. If we can't, it is not… Generally, we don't want to do tamasic activities in the name of relaxing our mind. They will relax initially, but they will agitate much more afterwards.

If somebody says, if I take alcohol, I feel relaxed. Well, now you feel relaxed, after that you will feel taxed. So, even Rajasic is not very good.

You say, if… Because, what happens is Rajasic, somebody may watch this movie, that movie, and then, okay, you get some enjoyment, some relaxation. But, then so many desires get triggered in that. But, not all movies are of the same category also.

Sometimes there are educational movies, sometimes there are documentaries. So, some people just have curiosity. And, okay, I want to know about certain things.

And then, if… Generally, if you can find a sattvic way to get the mind to relax, then that is perfectly fine. So, the point is that we may want… I am coming back to your specific question now. That each one of us will have to deal with our desires in our way.

Because, the mind is like a child. You know, a parent can learn from other parents how to raise a child. But, ultimately, they have to raise their child.

Their child is different from everyone else's child. So, each one of us has to find out how best we can manage our mind. There are universals that apply for everyone.

Like, Abhyasa and Vairagya. We want to develop bonds and we want to create boundaries. Both are absolutely required.

That's a universal principle. But, exactly, which bond to develop? Some devotees on Ekadashi may say, I want to chant 64 rounds. Some devotees may say, I want to read Bhagavatam for 6 hours.

Some devotees may say, okay, I want to do some other service. I want to intensify my bhakti. But, how I intensify my bhakti, that may vary from person to person.

Somebody may say, I memorize bhajans and sing bhajans for 6 hours. Whatever it is, decide that. Which bonds we develop is something which we have to decide.

Which boundaries we want to enforce more rigidly and in a more relaxed way, that also we have to decide. So, for example, with respect to going to America, it depends. For some people, it might just have been like a casual desire.

Okay, you know, everybody goes, I also want to go. It would be nice. For some people, it might be a much more deep-rooted desire.

So, just because it is a deep-rooted desire, doesn't mean that it has to be a damaging desire. If now it is directed toward Krishna, that's fine. So, I'm saying it's fine means not that we have to necessarily water the desire.

My point is that we don't have to feel guilty about having that desire. So, yes, if the desire is something about Adharma, especially Rajasik, and especially Tamasik, then definitely we have to war against that desire and get rid of it. But otherwise, each one of us needs to find out the vihaara.

How does the vihaara happen? My vihaara is always I love words. One of my hobbies since my childhood was that I would just pick up a dictionary and memorize words. So, I would just enjoy that.

Even now, memorizing verses doesn't give me as much absorption as memorizing words. So, I love to read different quotes and try to understand how they have articulated a sentence, how we can articulate it. So, for me, just playing with words is the most relaxing activity.

So, now, I try to use that in Krishna's service, but after some time, I realized that actually this interest in words is also coming from Krishna ultimately. Everything comes from Krishna. Ability in people is a gift of Krishna.

So, yes, a fruit of that will come automatically. But I don't have to force myself into it. Every single wordplay that I have to do, I have to some way find it to connect with Krishna.

Otherwise, I am guilty. Not necessary. See, in Drona's academy, when all the students were asked, what do you see? And we know Arjuna won the heart of Drona.

What did Arjuna say? I see only the eye of the bird. I don't see anything else. It's interesting.

Arjuna didn't say, I see Krishna over there. He's a devotee. A devotee should be seeing Krishna everywhere.

Where is it? Why is he not saying, I see Krishna? See, Arjuna is an archer. And when he is doing the service of archery, he is going to be focused on archery. The purpose of archery is Krishna.

So, that's why I talk about the elevating desires. It doesn't necessarily mean just that the desire is replaced by some other desire. He had a natural interest in archery and he would be absorbed in archery.

So, when you shoot a target, see only the target. Now, why am I shooting the target? Why am I excelling in archery? That is ultimately for Krishna's purpose. So, desire management is subtle and sophisticated.

And if you look at our own tradition, there are lots of insights given. Sometimes, as I said, sometimes the desires can be eliminated, sometimes it can be elevated. So, we don't have to, I'll conclude with this, we don't have to evaluate the success of our devotion by the elimination of a particular desire.

That is sometimes very unhealthy. Some people, some desires may go away relatively easily. Some people, desires may take some time.

So, that was a mistake that I think, who was it? Mukunda, he did with Bhundrik Vidyanidhi. He thought the success of devotion is a devotee should be living in simplicity. And Bhundrik Vidyanidhi was such a luxury.

Sir, Gadadhar Pandit. And with him was Govinda. Mukunda Dutta was there with him.

So, Gadadhar Pandit. So, he saw that Bhundrik Vidyanidhi is living in such luxury. How can this be a devotee? His idea of devotee should be simple.

No. That was okay. He had wealth by past karma or whatever.

He used that wealth. But he was absorbed in Krishna, even in that wealthy situation. For most people, having that amount of wealth would just be so distracting, so infatuating.

But for him, it was not. So, the key point is that our mind is our mind. And it's like our child.

We have to find how best to parent it. What boundaries to keep it within? What bonds for it to develop? So, whatever it's required for relaxing the mind, if we need to do it, that's fine. Best is to try to find the relaxation for the mind within the boundaries of bhakti.

If not, if it's within the boundaries of sattva also, it's perfectly fine. Thank you. Can we talk separately? Thank you so much.

Shri Gopi Geet ki Jai. Shri Krishna Bhagwan ki Jai. Shri La Prabhupada ki Jai.

Jai Gaur Premanand. Jai.