Kunti’s Prayers 6 (SB 01.08.39-43) – The selflessness of pure devotion

Transcript

This is an AI-generated transcript and may contain some errors.
We will continue and hopefully complete the overview of Kunti Mahārāja’s prayers. So, as we discussed in our earlier sessions, Kunti Mahārāja’s prayers are the first prayers in the bhāgavatam, and they set the mood for what is going to come subsequently in the bhāgavatam.
And these prayers, she has, till now, talked about, first, the transcendental nature of the Lord. Then she has talked about the inconceivable nature of His protection. Then, which is actually the heart of the prayer.
And that is the thing which she will return back to now. Then she talks about the mysterious pastimes of the Lord, how He appears in various forms and performs pastimes. Then, the fourth session talks about the various reasons why the Lord appears.
And, then the last section is a prayer to the Lord. My dear Lord, please protect me by staying in my heart, by giving me Your remembrance. So, initially, when the prayer starts, it is like a request to Krishna, or at least that’s what the context suggests.
It’s a request to Krishna. Krishna is about to depart. And Kunti Maharani is requesting Krishna, please stay on.
But as the thoughts in the prayer progress, her heart’s deep-rooted affection comes out. And she says, my dear Lord, whatever is Your will, I accept it. But please, whether you stay with us or you go, please stay forever in my heart.
So, let’s continue with our discussion. I hope you have the sheets. So, we begin with the 39th verse.
This is on your sheet. The last verse on the 10th column in the reverse page. So, let’s recite this.
This is the 39th verse. nirmichobhishyate tatra So, it’s the second, reverse side of the page. Bottom left column.
nirmichobhishyate tatra yathedanindadhadra tattvadayi kitabhadi svaramshuddhiramshuddhiram So, in the previous bracket, Kunti has said that we just as a body has no value without the soul’s presence, similarly, our existence has no value without Him. In this verse, she is continuing that theme and now she is saying not only our life does not have value, even whatever we possess, our possessions, this kingdom we are in. So, the Lord may say, now you have become the rulers of the world, so you have the world with you.
Even if I am not there, what difference would it make? nirmichobhishyate tatra This will not be beautiful. It will not appeal to the Lord. yathedanindadhadra You who are the Gadadhara, you are the significance of the names of the Lord.
The Lord has innumerable names and the devotees use different names at different times. So here, Gadadhara, the Lord uses the mace to protect His devotees. He says, you are our protector.
tattvadayi kitabhadi So, by the signs of your lotus feet, when Krishna places His feet, then the foot marks are created wherever He walks. swalakshan vilakshitay That is your own lakshan, your own sign. vilakshitay A very special sign is there.
This land will no longer be augmented by your lotus feet. So, the Gopis also pray with their lotus feet. Now, in one sense, if we see the Bhagavatam, there are not many prayers by feelings.
There are, in the first canto, there is Kunti’s prayer. Of course, Gadadhara offers one brief prayer. Then, there are prayers, no doubt.
There is when Aditi is praying to Vamana, she offers prayers in the 8th canto. In the 10th canto, there are Nanapati’s prayers. Then there are Brahmapati’s prayers.
There are Gopi’s prayers. Now, Draupadi also offers prayers to Krishna, especially when she is near the Sarovar. But those prayers are not explicitly mentioned in the Bhagavatam.
They are referred to. That is just called out to Krishna. Now, out of all these prayers, whether they are by males or females, the highest are considered to be by the Gopis.
Now, in one sense, the context of the Gopi’s prayers and Kunti’s prayers is similar. Kunti is fearing separation and the Gopis are experiencing separation. The feeling is imminent separation from the Lord.
And whenever there is separation, we know the Gopis offer prayers. When Krishna called them for the Rastrila, that is the 29th chapter, then Krishna had some talks with them. That is described in the 30th chapter of the 10th canto.
And then, after Krishna disappears, the 31st chapter is the prayers of the Gopis. So, I am going to describe the Gopis search everywhere for Krishna. They go deep into Vraja forest.
In fact, they go so deep that the forests are so thick at that place that even the moonlight cannot penetrate. And they feel we can’t even see the ground in front of us. If we can’t see that, how will we be able to search for Krishna? So, in utter dejection, they return back to the coast of the Yamuna.
They think that we cannot see Krishna, but Krishna can see us. And, they come to the coast of Yamuna because near Yamuna they have a boat where they pass times of Krishna. And at least they can remember that.
And there, they assemble and there they call out to Krishna. That heart’s longing. So, Jiva Goswami from Gopalchandpur has, based on the characteristics of each Gopi he describes Now, there are ninety prayers in the Gopi Gita.
So, each prayer he says is offered by one specific Gopi. And he analyses based on the personalities of the Gopis and the mood of the prayer, which prayer among these prayers are offered by which Gopi. And, further he describes that there, the prayers are offered now we have achieved Madhavan Vaj Madhavan is his name or Arjun Vaj.
Now, there it is Sri Gopya Poochu. Gopya is plural. So, now, is it that sometimes in school children they have to do some musical performance so all of them memorise some song and all of them recite in a chorus.
So, when the Gopi Gita is offered is it that all the Gopis have memorised these verses earlier and they recite in a synchronous performance Sri Gopya Poochu. No, they are not. So, Jigot Swami is offering one mantra and he explains that each prayer is offered by one Gopi.
So, the Gopi Gita demonstrates individuality within unity. All the Gopis are united in their love for Krishna. They are all agonised by separation from Krishna.
So, when each Gopi is speaking a verse offering a prayer she is offering that prayer as a representative of the group. But, while representing the group she is representing the group by expressing her individual emotions. So, we are all united in our desire to serve Krishna and the desire to serve Krishna is far more important than the desire to serve Krishna.
What do I mean? The desire to serve Krishna is the broadness. My life is made for your service. Krishna wants to serve you.
The desire to serve Krishna refers to the different specific plans. Okay, I want to do this. Somebody else wants to do something else.
Or the same thing, one person may want to do one way, another person may want to do a different way. These are the desires to serve Krishna. So, sometimes, because different devotees have different desires to serve Krishna, that may create conflict.
But, over and beyond that conflict, you should see the commonality. The desire to serve Krishna itself is so rare and special and precious. So, that if somebody has, that is far more important.
So, the gopis are individuals. They have their own heart. And, with their heart, they are offering the prayer to Krishna.
So, when they are offering this prayer, so the gopis, we are discussing this Gopi Deekha because they are also the theme of the lotus feet cards. So, the gopis actually talk about Krishna lotus feet three times. So, one prayer is offered directly remembering the lotus feet, the glory of the lotus feet.
So, the gopis say that Dharmi Mandana Dhenya Mapadi Charna Pankajam Santam Amuchatre Ram Nath Naneshwar Arpa Yathi Man So, the gopis pray that Dharmi Mandana Dharmi Dharmi is birth. Mandana Your lotus feet are the ornament of the earth. So, Pranad Kama Dham Parma Jal Chitam That is the first line they say.
That first, anyone who goes down to the lotus feet, that person’s desires are fulfilled. And, these lotus feet are worshipped by Brahmaji himself. Parma Jal Chitam And, they are the monument Dharmi Mandana of the earth.
So, all the gopis are very careful that when Krishna walks by the lotus feet, the inference has created none of the gopis because they want the earth to be decorated by those lotus feet for as long as possible. And, he says, Dhey Yamapati Apati means danger, distress. So, whenever there is danger and distress, your lotus feet are the object of meditation.
When you meditate your lotus feet, then those gives to nectar that Ashoka Bhaya Amrit Purnasarva Khan says that your lotus feet are a preserver of nectar. And, when you meditate on them, they free us from the anxiety. So, here are the gopila page.
Those lotus feet please bestow the blessing of those lotus feet on us. So, this is one reference. The two other references come when the gopis are saying at their lotus feet, how fortunate was Kaliya that you offered the lotus feet to him.
Phani Phanaar Pitam Kain Par Dam Gur Jam Ram So, Phani Phanaar Pitam Phani is the serpent which has a hood, that is Kaliya. Phanaar Pitam So, the gopis are devotionally re-envisioning the past time rather than singing that Krishna banged on Kaliya’s hoods and subdued him. They are singing that Krishna actually offered his lotus feet to them.
Phani Phanaar Pitam and they are thinking that those lotus feet which were offered to Kaliya, he is so fortunate, why are we not getting those lotus feet? Now, the gopis, their mood of love is that love actually subordinates everything in the spiritual world. Reality is that which is uncool to love. And everything else is subordinate.
Now, for example, when Chaitanya Mahaprabhu sees any river, especially when chapter 16, 17, 18 of the Madhya Lila describe how Chaitanya Mahaprabhu plans to go to Vrindavan, Chaitanya Mahaprabhu sets off to Vrindavan, finally Chaitanya Mahaprabhu arrives in Vrindavan. So now there is a script and Chaitanya Mahaprabhu was on his way. Whenever he would see any river, so what did he see? What would he think of that river to be? Jamuna.
Similarly, any hill? Govardhan. Any forest? Vrindavan. Now, if say Chaitanya Mahaprabhu is starting from Jananath Puri and he is going through the Jharikhan forest, now if he sees the Jharikhan forest to be Vrindavan, is that Vrindavan or is it not Vrindavan? It is Vrindavan.
If it is Vrindavan, then why does Chaitanya Mahaprabhu have to go further from there to Vrindavan? He doesn’t stop over there. If it is Vrindavan, I will be satisfied. So, now if he says that it is not Vrindavan, if he says it is Vrindavan, then why does he go further? Leave that.
If he says it is not Vrindavan, then is Chaitanya Mahaprabhu making a mistake? How can God make a mistake? God is perfect. The point is in the spiritual world, what is important is not factual reality as you understand it. What is important is that which is enhancing rasa, that which is favourable to relishing sweetness.
So, from the devotional perspective, from the analytical perspective, when we say that yes, this is not Vrindavan and in one sense it is true, Jharikhand is not Vrindavan, but from the devotional perspective, the greatness is based on one’s absorption of Krishna, one’s capacity to connect everything with Krishna and so what is emphasised is that a devotee is able to remember Krishna everywhere. Now, Krishna is God, so for Yashodamayi to think that if I don’t feel Krishna, Krishna will die, Krishna will start, Krishna will become awake, now that is completely absurd. Nothing is going to happen to God, he is completely complete, he doesn’t need anything else, but Yashodamayi is thinking that without my taking care, Krishna will not live, that is not considered a dosha, it is a fusha, it is not a distortion, it is a decoration, it is not an incorrect understanding, so always we have to understand when we come to the bhakti platform, we cannot approach it with the analytical perspective, we have to approach it with the aesthetic perspective, for example if somebody has a beautiful rose flower, now if somebody decides to see the rose flower from a botanical perspective, you can say okay there is this andrushyam, there is this ghanushyam, there is this and now that is also a correct perspective, but with the botanical perspective, one cannot relish the beauty of the lotus, whereas when one wants to relish it from an aesthetic perspective, at that time the fact is that okay it has all this part andrushyam, but I do not know how beautiful it is, how fragrant it is, how attractively shaped it is, so when analysis is to be done often emotions are the roadblock, whereas when aesthetics are to be appreciated emotions are the road, emotions are the road, if I want to appreciate the beauty of a lotus without emotions I am not going to appreciate it, similarly when we approach Krishna, if we approach only from an analytical perspective, then in the analytical perspective one has to de-emotionalise oneself, put aside the emotions, be objective, be critical, that is good for analysing philosophy, so emotions come in the way when we talk about the path of Jnana, and that’s why in Jnana Marga cut down the emotions, put away the emotions, but in Bhakti emotions are the way, so when we say that Chaitanya Mahaprabhu is talking about, everyone, every forest is Vrindavan, he is saying from the emotional perspective, and that from the rasa perspective is the highest reality, so same way here, the Gopis are knowing and they are telling also that Krishna, he put his feet on the bones of the poisonous carving, and in the same sequence of prayers, the Gopis say, Krishna, you are walking in the forest and your feet are being touched by, they have been pierced.
They are saying that there are pebbles, there are twigs, there are thorns, and they are piercing your feet, and when they are piercing your feet, actually that thought is piercing our hearts, not only piercing our hearts, it is ripping apart our hearts, we cannot tolerate it. The Gopis pray, Krishna, that you are separated from us, that causes agony for us, but the thought that your lotus feet are being pierced by thorns, that causes even greater agony. So even if you don’t want to come into the agony of separation, at least come because we cannot tolerate the thought that your tender lotus feet are being pierced by the thorns.
So now, if we compare Kaliya’s enormous fangs, where are his fangs and where are some thorns? Thorns are insignificant compared to the deadly fangs of Kaliya. And Krishna has off pounded with his feet that very Kaliya who had such terrible fangs. And the Gopis know that.
So if Krishna can overcome Kaliya with his terrible fangs, what are thorns for Krishna? What are thorns for Krishna? What are thorns for Krishna? thorns for What are thorns for Krishna? What are thorns for Krishna? What are thorns for What are thorns for Krishna? What are thorns for Krishna? What are thorns for Krishna? What are thorns for Krishna? What are Krishna? What are thorns for Krishna? What are thorns for Krishna? What are thorns for What are thorns for Krishna? What are thorns for What are thorns for Krishna? What are thorns for Krishna? What are thorns for Krishna? What are thorns for Krishna? What are thorns for What are thorns for What are thorns for thorns for What are flourishing with prosperity. And why is all this? Because of your mercy. Now, one of the defining characteristics of the modern age is the divorce of nature from the lord of nature.
In modern society, if you see, historically, whether it was India or whether it was the West, it is understood that nature is far more subtler and complex than what we can understand. And that is why people knew that we have to live in harmony with nature. We have to live in harmony with nature.
Nature has formidable powers and forces and we cannot antagonise them. So, when Dutta Karmaprabhu and Upananda Mahadeva wrote a book called Divine Nature, where they talk about the spiritual roots of the environmental crisis. So, basically, if we see, this idea of living in harmony with nature was there for millennia.
But from the 16th century onwards, when science started understanding the workings of nature and the confidence of scientists increased, and they started thinking that now we can control nature. Actually, it is more that not just the confidence of scientists increased, the percentage of the atheists increased and atheists started taking over science. Sometimes people think there is a conflict between science and religion.
Now, I have to choose. If I believe in God, then I am not being scientific. But the conflict is not between science and religion.
The conflict is between materialism and spirituality. And unfortunately, in today’s society, science has been hijacked by materialists, especially by atheistic materialists. I will explain what this means as I return to the historical narrative.
So, basically, say, Newton observed that, okay, these planets are moving and the earth, all the objects, how do they move? They move by the laws of nature. And we can give a mathematical expression for that. And then we can replicate that.
The whole science and mechanics was based on that, that we can observe and simulate what happens in nature through our mechanical contractions. And then the idea was we will be able to control more and more of nature. So, the vision earlier was of cooperation with nature, but then we thought if we can control nature.
Why? Because now we have science and technology. And through technology, we will be able to control nature and we will be able to conquer nature actually. So, initially, whereas the vision of nature was that of a mother.
Now, there are western thinkers like Francis Bacon and subsequently they said, actually nature is not a mother. Nature is a stepmother. Why a stepmother? Because there are stories and folklore all over the world about how the stepmother is cruel to some tender child.
So, then nature causes storms, nature causes calamities, earthquakes. And all this is indicating that nature is cruel. Somebody is so cruel, a mother cannot be so cruel.
So, nature must be a stepmother. So, this famous British poet, nature is red in tooth and claw. So, red in tooth and claw is just like an animal comes and kills.
Blood is there in tooth and claw. That is how this famous European poet said. Nature is red in tooth and claw.
Actually, nature is very cruel. And then subsequently another philosopher of science, another scientist also had philosophical pretensions. He said, actually, nature is no mother at all.
She is just a fickle lady, fickle woman. She is a whore. And the only way we can control is by power.
So, by increasing the power of science, we must control and conquer nature. And that is the only way humanity will be able to be happy. So, the whole attitude towards nature changed from cooperation to conquest.
And to some extent, humanity seemed to be succeeding. We seem to be doing many things which our ancestors were not able to. And this, for example, say, we had developed machines by which we cut down forests.
And we could say reclaim the land from the ocean, from the sea. And many things we were able to do which in the past we were not able to do, which gave the idea that we are controlling nature. But the fact is that nature is not meant to be controlled by us.
And now the scale of environmental problems that are coming up is far greater than ever before in history. And the problems are not small problems like one storm coming here or one earthquake happening there. The problems which are now going to come up are systemic.
That means they are endemic within nature itself. The kind of environmental destabilisation that is there. Now, one out of every six rivers in the world does not reach the ocean.
One out of every six rivers. So much destabilisation of natural resources in the land. Huge areas of the world have been defertilized.
They have become arid because of excessive exploitation. So, huge tracts of land which were earlier flourishing, they have become completely arid. And we cannot envision the cataclysms that can happen when nature exhibits its prowess.
Now, for a long time, many historians thought that the whole Saraswati river is a mythology. Because we have Ganga, we have Jamuna, but there is no evidence of any river called Saraswati. So, they thought it is a mythology.
But then subsequently, it has been found, American space satellites using their sensors, they can observe the surface below the earth also. They found in Rajasthan, where there is a Thar desert now, there are below the Thar desert, there are the remnants of an extremely broad river. In fact, that river was so broad, basically, when the river flows, the river bed that is formed below the water, the soil composition of the river bed is different from the soil that is there on the normal surface that is exposed to the sun.
So, by observing the soil composition, it can be made, geologists can make out whether there was a river here or it was always dry land. So, they have found such a broad river. So, Rig Veda describes how Saraswati has a majestic scope.
And more or less the pathway that has been described is also similar. Now, significantly, not only have some excavations have been done, but not much. Because unfortunately, that whole tract of land is on the Indo-Pak border.
And although some huge dam was also found over there, one of the biggest dams in world history. But it is right near the border. And so, the Indian government does not allow much research to be done over there.
A significant part of it is in Pakistan also. And Pakistan does not want to support any research which will point to the glory of the Vedic culture of India. So, the whole because of politics that research into the glory of Indian history is being stymied right now.
But what has been found itself is profuse evidence that the Saraswati River was actually historical. And this river was so broad that eventually as the river started drying up, there are evidences of houses on the river bed also. That means, if the river was this big, the houses were on the coast, the river started thinning, then the houses came on what was the river bed earlier.
And then around the time, 324 is the time that roughly Alexander came to India, 324 BC. So, Alexander had brought a historian with him. And this historian in his accounts has written that when they came along, they found villages and towns to be completely deserted.
And why? They found that just the river Saraswati, it had just changed course. And when it changed course, all the areas which were irrigated previously by it got completely dried up. And the river as it changed course, it went in a different direction, then it dried up in that direction also.
So, the Saraswati River disappeared in itself. So, what was a flourishing civilisation from the cosmic timescale perspective in just a second, it happened over several 100 years. But as compared to millennia, over a few 100 years, what was a flourishing civilisation became a desert wasteland.
So, what is a Thar desert now in Rajasthan in that area? That was the area where Saraswati was flowing. So, Englein’s example illustrates that no matter how powerful humans become, we cannot control nature. Nature can unleash such forces or such changes that humans will be left powerless in the world.
Whole civilisations can be destroyed, wiped out in a very short time. So, we depend ultimately on the mercy of God. Now, from an atheistic perspective, it may seem that oh nature is just acting in arbitrary ways.
Now, sometimes some storm comes over here, sometimes some earthquake happens over there. But we understand ultimately it is under the supervision of the law. It is by the law of karma that these things happen.
So, generally to describe that whenever the Yugas change, we just said there is a pralaya when Brahmaji sleeps at night. So, there are smaller cataclysms that happen at every transition phase. So, at every transition phase, so one transition phase is the change of Yugas.
So, when Kali Yuga starts, what happens is that all the visible planets along with the sun and moon, they align in a single line. Now, from a historical perspective, the sun, the moon, then starting from Saturn, Jupiter, Mars, Venus, Mercury, all of them to align in a single line, it is extremely rare event. And now using computer technology, using knowledge of the sky, scientists can find out when will this happen, did this event happen.
So, the Puranas describe that at the time of Kali Yuga, all these planets will align in one line. And the most recent time that this has happened is around 3038 BC, it is around 5000 years ago. So, what the scriptures say about 5000 years ago Kali Yuga, that is true.
But the point is that at the transition of one Yuga to another Yuga, so huge cataclysms also happen. And that is how the glory of Vedic civilisation which was there, that is not so much available, perceivable through the historical record, which we have. Of course, even the history that we have right now tells that India was a very prosperous country, but not as prosperous as the Vedic literature described.
That is because of the cataclysm that happened at the transition from one Yuga to another Yuga. Now moving forward, what Kunti is saying over here is that all this flourishing is there because you are casting your glance. Now the focus is shifting.
Your merciful glance, she is saying that is the cause of our prosperity. So, now our mood will change and she will say, my dear lord, even if you who are not here, even your lotus feet will not be here, let your glance be on us, let your mercy be on us. And as her prayers request shifts, then she remembers, she is remembering that Krishna, you are present everywhere and you are related to us as well as to the Yathrus.
So, let us recite the next verse. Athavishwesh Vishwatman Vishwamurteshwa Keshuve Sunihapashivam Chidri Vridhampant Vishw Vishwishu Athavishwesh Vishwatman So, here there is alliteration, the same word Vishwa is used three times. Alliteration is a figure of speech, is Alankara that is used to decorate poetry.
So, Vishwesh Vishwatman Vishwamurte, Vishwa word is used three times and Vishvesh, you are the lord of the Vishwa. Vishwatman, you are the soul of the Vishwa and Vishwamurte, you are the form of the Vishwa also. Om Vishwam Vishnur Vishakaro Bhuvta Bhavya Bhuvatra Bhuvta Krith Bhuvta Brith Bhavo Bhuvta Bhuvta Bhavana.
So, right at the start of the Vishnu Sahasranama, the first set of names of Vishnu are also connected to this Vishwa. So, Om Vishwam Vishnur Vishakaro, you are the Vishwa, you are the universe itself. Now, here I think Maharaj is talking something similar over here.
So, first he said Ata Vishvesha, you are the controller of the Vishwa, which is, you know God is the controller of everything, you are the controller of the Vishwa. Ata Vishvesha, Vishwatman, Vishwatman, Vishwatman means you are the soul, the Atma of the Vishwa. Now, what does this mean? Actually, this Vishwatman concept is the defining metaphor of the Sri Sampradaya.
Now, every Sampradaya has its philosophy, even the Vaishnava Sampradaya has slightly different philosophies. And their philosophy is enshrined, encapsulated, summarised in a defining metaphor. So, the defining metaphor of the Sri Sampradaya is the body and the soul.
That Vishnu is like the soul and the whole of existence with the Chetan and the Achetan is like the body. So, the defining metaphor of the Gaudi Sampradaya is the sun and its energies. The energetic source and the energy.
So, the energy is at one place, the energy, energetic source at one place, the energy is dissipated. Same way here, Vishwatman, that Krishna, you are the soul of this universe. Now, from a point of view of ontology, ontology is the nature of existence.
From the point of view of existence, we know that when the universe is created, at that time, the Godaksha Vishnu enters into the universe. And Shiva Daksha Vishnu enters into each atom. So, it is said that Maha Vishnu is the soul of the whole Mahatma, of the whole material existence.
Maha Vishnu is the soul of the whole material existence. Garbhodaksha Vishnu is the soul of each universe. And then Shiva Daksha Vishnu is the soul of each atom, in each, per individual also.
So, in this way, the name is manifest in the Vishnu, Ardha Atma, Vishwatman and Vishwamurte. Vishwamurte, you are the form of the universe. Now, the form of the universe is talked about twice.
There is the Vishwaroop, which is talked about in the Bhagavad Gita, 11th chapter is Vishwaroop Darshan. And then there is the Virata Rupa, which is talked about in the second canto of the Srimad Bhagavatam. And that is referred to repeatedly in the Bhagavatam, in the prayers.
Now, are the two the same, the Vishwaroop of the Bhagavad Gita and the Virata Rupa of the Bhagavatam? At one level, they are similar, in the sense that both are talking about seeing God in nature, in the universe, seeing the universe as a form of God. But there is a fundamental difference. The Bhagavad Gita’s Vishwaroop is a revelation, whereas the Bhagavatam’s Virata Rupa is a conceptualisation.
What is the difference, revelation and conceptualisation? Revelation means that Arjuna requests, if it is possible, my dear Lord, please show it to me. And then Krishna says, I give you the divine eyes, see. So, Krishna is revealing that form.
So, that is a mercy of Krishna by which the revelation takes place. So, revelation is top down. So, Krishna gives that revelation.
And Krishna does not give that revelation to everyone. So, although that Vishwaroop is shown to Arjuna, nobody else on the battlefield saw the Vishwaroop. They did not see that.
And obviously, Duryodhana did not see that. He was entering into the mouth of Duryodhana on the Vishwaroop and he is getting destroyed. So, revelation is selective, it is given to people whom the Lord graces.
Now, on the other hand, in the Bhagavatam, the Virata Rupa that is talked about is a conceptualisation. Conceptualisation means, the Bhagavatam itself is, Kalpita means imagined. So, there is no form of the Lord where the eyes are the sun and the moon, the upper planetary systems are the head, the lower planetary systems are legs.
You know, we have the 14 planetary systems. It is not apart from that, there is some form which is existing, hanging in space or something like that. No, it is a conceptualisation.
It is an exercise, which is to be done to connect the material world, matter with God. So, for those whose idea of greatness is locked with physical greatness, if they want God is great, how great is he? He must be great in terms of physical dimensions. So, for those people, this particular Vishwaroop is described, that this Lord, you want to know how great he is? The mountains are his bones, the trees are the hair on his body.
So, like that, the conceptualisation is there. So, it is a sadhana and it is described, Sridhar Swami, in his Bhavad Gita commentary, he describes that, just like the yogis meditate on the, the yogis meditate on different things. Initially, the Bhagavad Gita describes two kinds of meditation or two focusses for meditation.
In 5.28, it says, that focus on the portion in the middle of the eyebrows. And in the 6th chapter, the 13th verse, Krishna says, focus on the tip of the nose. So, now, basically, one place it says focus on the place between the eyebrows, another it says focus on the tip of the nose.
Why the difference? The point is, these are not important. These are the starting point. Initially, when we start meditation, then we start with some external point of focus.
And then by that, we draw the consciousness inwards. The consciousness running here and there, take some point, focus on it. And using that starting focus, then turn the consciousness inwards.
And then, then Krishna says that, afterwards, you fix your mind on me. So, in 6.30, he says, fix on the nose. But then he says, fix the mind on me.
So, just as Sridhar Swami explains, that just as in the normal process of Ashtanga Yoga, the yogis have some external focus. And beginning from that external focus, they move on and then focus on the Lord in the heart. Similarly, in the Vishwaroopa Upasana, in the Upasana, in the form of worship, which is done through the Vishwaroopa, initially, the focus is on the Vishwaroopa.
But after that, as the yogi matures, and the focus shifts from the Vishwaroopa inwards to Vishnu. So, then there is no need for this meditation Vishwaroopa. So, the Vishwaroopa is a tool for meditation.
And it is a transitional tool. It is not permanently required. So, Vishwamurti, you are in the form of the universe.
The yogis who meditate on the Vishwaroopa, they meditate actually on you. So, why is the word Vishwa used so many times over here? Because, you know, Krishna, you are everywhere. It’s okay, Vishwa.
So, there are two manifestations of God. One is transcendent and the other is immanent. We use Krishna as transcendental.
Transcendental means to be beyond this world. Yes, Krishna has born in the spiritual world. In 8.20, the Gita Krishna says that that spiritual world is far beyond this world.
So, that is true. Krishna is beyond this world. But Krishna is not only beyond this world.
Krishna is in this world also. I am the taste of water. I am the light of sun.
So, what does it say? Krishna is present here also in this world. So, in this way, Krishna is present everywhere. So, she is saying you are present in this world also.
This aspect of Krishna who is present in the world is called immanent aspect. So, now, Sneha Pashyam Imam Chindhi. The Sneha Pash, the bond of attachment that is there, Chindhi, cut it off.
And to whom? Sneha Pashyam Chindhi Dronam Pandushu Vishnushu. To the Pandus. Pandus are her own sons.
And Vrishnishu, she is related to Vrishnis also. So, please cut off the bond of attachment. She is thinking that if I ask that Krishna stay here, then the Yadus will be deprived of Krishna’s association.
I can’t have that. And at the same time, I can’t let the Pandus and myself lose the association. So, what should I do? Please, Krishna, let my decision not be based on my personal attachments.
Let my decision be based on simply the desire to please you. So, please cut off my attachments. So, now, Krishnashika Thakur, he envisions that Krishna is asking question here.
He says, So, do you, if you don’t want, I am always with my devotees. So, if you say that you don’t want to be attached to my devotees, then do you want to go to Brahman? Because I am never separate from my devotees. I am always with my devotees.
You are saying that you don’t want to be attached to the Vrishnis, you don’t want to be attached to the Pandus. Then, if you want me without my devotees, then you will get Brahman. You will not get Bhagwan.
So, Kuldeep, I have to say, No, my dear God, I am offering the prayers to you. And you are Bhagwan, you are a person. I want to be attached only to you.
But the attachment to the Pandus and Vrishnis as my relatives, which takes my consciousness away from you, please cut that off. So, please cut off the attachment, which takes my consciousness away from you. So, that means, when we have our relatives who are also devotees, then that attachment can also be devotion that can help us move forward in our relationship with Krishna.
So, now, she says, let nothing distract me from you. And that she talks about in the next verse. Kange Bhaugham, just as the Ganga flows towards the ocean, O Krishna, let my consciousness flow towards you.
So, if I remember the Pandus and Vrishnis, and that reminds me of you, then that is not Anu-Nivishaya, that is you only. But if anything distracts me from my relatives of you, then my consciousness is not going towards them. Anu-Nivishaya, Madhu-Pate, Consciousness, Madhu-Pate, O Lord of Madhu, Asagraha.
Now, Madhu is also an ancestor in the Yadu dynasty. So, Madhava is also one of his names. The word Madhava has around 11 meanings.
So, one of the descendants of Madhu dynasty is Madhava. Madhava means to control. One who has never controlled by anyone.
One who is the controller of everyone. So, like that Madhava has many meanings. Here Madhu-Pate, O Lord of our dynasty, Asagraha, without any interruption, let my consciousness go towards you.
Now, this metaphor of a river flowing towards the ocean, this is a favourite Mayavadi metaphor. They say that just as when the river flows into the ocean, then it merges in the ocean. So, like that when we reach into the Absolute, impersonal Absolute Truth, then we will merge in it.
And the Katha Upanishad also says like that. It uses, there is a verse in that. River flows to the ocean and let the soul realise the Absolute Truth.
So, now significantly all these same metaphors are used. The impersonalists and the personalists have a different focus. Kunti Maharani is using the same metaphor of a river flowing towards the ocean.
But for the impersonalists, the focus is on merging. Whereas for the devotees, the focus is on flowing. So, just as the river flows towards the ocean, but neither the river ends nor the ocean ends.
The river keeps forever flowing towards the ocean. So, like that we are eternal, Krishna is eternal and our consciousness will eternally keep flowing towards the ocean. So, the Mayavadis do not have a monopoly on this metaphor.
It is just that when they give a particular twist to that metaphor and they emphasise only the merging part, then it is wrong. Now the Vaishnava has no urge to merge. Vaishnava has no urge to merge.
Just have a desire to serve eternally. And that is what Kunti Maharani is saying. And the same metaphor is used by Kapil Dev in his teachings also.
So, here Kunti is speaking from the point of a devotee. So, Kapila speaks from the point of the Lord. He says, my dear devotees, their consciousness always flows towards me just as Devata flows towards everyone.
Now Kapil Dev is not saying that by the way he is merging. He says that consciousness always flows towards me. Now Vishwa Chakravarthy gives a very beautiful import of this verse.
He says, why is Kunti using this metaphor of a river flowing towards the ocean? He says that actually, so I have put that, the point which he says I have put that is a chiasmus. Chiasmus is a figure of speech. He says that a river, nothing holds a river back and a river holds nothing back.
Nothing holds a river back means if a river is flowing and if a rock is there, the river will go above, will go below, will go from the left side, will go from the right side or the river will erode the rock and go. So, nothing holds the river back. And similarly, the river holds nothing back.
That means when the river is flowing towards the ocean, the river does not think, oh, maybe I should keep 10% of my water with me only. I will only send 90% of my water. No, the river sends all its water to the ocean.
Similarly, Kunti uses this metaphor, Krishna Shankar says that, my dear Lord, let nothing hold my consciousness back. Let nothing, whatever external impediments come, somehow let my consciousness keep going towards Krishna. And so, nothing holds a devotee back and devotee holds nothing back.
The devotee offers to Krishna. Devotee offers everything to Krishna. So, he starts with this endless thing.
So, the mind, the body, the home and then he says, okay, I have so many things in this world. What all list I have to do? He says, whatever is mine, all that I offer to you. So, devotee holds nothing back.
So, Kunti Maharaj is saying, let my consciousness flow completely towards you, completely without any interruption. And this is the ultimate aspiration of every devotee. And with this prayer, Kunti Maharaj, she has expressed her pure devotion very poignantly, saying Krishna, she is not saying that Krishna, you stay here, you go there, whatever you want, you do, my dear Lord, and I just let my consciousness flow towards you.
And one of the ways in which consciousness flows towards Krishna is Vandanam. Sometimes when we offer prayers, we think, you know, if I pray to Krishna and Krishna doesn’t fulfil my prayers, then maybe my faith in Krishna will become weak. You know, if I pray Krishna, I want to get good marks in exam or I want this or that.
Sometimes some things are necessary, are important, even for the practise of devotional life. So, we may think, if I pray to Krishna for this, okay, let me get this kind of job, let me get this kind of spouse, let me get a house close to the devotees or whatever. There are so many things in this world which we need.
And if we get them, we feel that we are doing good work. So, we can pray for this to Krishna. If we pray, sometimes we feel if Krishna doesn’t give, then maybe our faith will go, faith will decrease in Krishna.
And because of that, we may hesitate to pray. But the Bhagavatam redefines prayer, not so much with a focus on the result, but on the process. That means, when we see, if you see Brahma Samhita, it’s a long series of prayers.
And even if you should have full prayers, there is practically no request at the end. So, when we see the nine items of bhakti that are described. So, now when we say, when we hear about Krishna, when we speak about Krishna, what is the result that we get by that? What is the result of hearing or speaking? The result simply is that our relationship with Krishna develops.
We come to know more about Krishna, our connection with Krishna develops more. So, same way, the Bhagavatam says Vandana is also like Shranam, Kirtan and Svanam. The purpose of Vandana is to develop our relationship with Krishna.
So, I guess the Mayavadis, they focus on the river is flowing, they focus on the end, the river is merging. So, like that, when materialists pray, they focus on the end. Okay, I prayed this to Krishna, will Krishna give it or not? The devotee’s focus is not on the result.
The devotee’s focus is simply on the process. The process is, prayer is a means by which my heart connects with Krishna’s heart. Prayer is a process, means by which my heart connects with Krishna’s heart.
And that is the essence of Bhakti. And that we see here, Kunti, in the last prayer that she offers, what is she asking for? Nothing. She concludes by simply offering obeisances.
Shri Krishna Krishna Sakha Vrishna Vrishabhavani Dhruva. So, Bhagavan Namaste. Namaste.
My dear Lord, I offer obeisances to you. Nothing is asked from the Lord, just obeisances are offered. And she offers a list of elaborate glories.
See Krishna Krishna Sakha. You are yourself all-attractive Krishna. You are the Sakha of Krishna.
Krishna is also the name of Draupadi and of Arjuna, because there was a dark complexion. Vrishni Vrishabhavani. You are the king of Vrishni.
Vrishabhavani Dhruva. And of the earth there are many kings. You defeat all the impious kings of the earth.
And then, Apavar Gavir. You never get, your energy never goes down. Yogeshwar Apavar Gavir.
Rajan Yogeshwar. So, you are, you are Govinda. You are protector of the cows, the Brahmans and the Devatas.
And then she says, you are Yogeshwar. Yogis are ultimately for you. Okay, you are my spiritual master of the whole world.
You are my spiritual master. So, you know what is best for me. Therefore, I simply offer obeisances to you.
Bhagavan Namaste. The next verse will describe what is Krishna’s response. Normally, if you pray to somebody, we expect yes, no.
Now, Kunti does not ask for anything. So, there is no question of yes or no. But what is the response? Krishna Samanaya.
And that is the perfection of devotion. Now, devotee, whatever we do is for the pleasure of Krishna. Krishna Samanaya then accepts our heartfelt prayers.
And that is the perfection of devotion. So, these are the prayers which Krishna Prabhupada spoke on beautifully. And Krishna Prabhupada does not spoke on many prayers.
He spoke on these prayers. And he showed us the importance of these prayers. So, we can also pray, especially the last three prayers are very beautiful.
Sneha, Pashmini, Janani, Toyi, Menon, Dineshaya, Bhagavan Namaste. These are prayers of pure emotion. And even if those emotions may be far away from us, just by repeating those prayers, those emotions will gradually start having an inkling in our heart.
And when we offer these prayers, what happens is, if we offer our own prayer, that is also good. We are offering our heart, so emotions to Krishna. But repeating the prayers of the great Acharya, that also, or the great devotee, that has an advantage.
That advantage is that we don’t have much devotion. At least, I don’t have any devotion. So, when I offer prayers, they won’t please Krishna much.
But when we offer the prayers of the great devotees, what happens is, we remind Krishna of His devotees. And because Krishna loves His devotees, that remembrance of His devotees pleases Krishna. And because we have been the source of reminding Krishna of His devotees and their devotion, Krishna becomes pleased with our devotion.
So, even if Krishna is not pleased by our offering of prayers, still Krishna is pleased by our reminding Him of His devotees. At that point, we get a second-hand benefit. So, somehow or another, we can be benefited, we can please Krishna and can be blessed by Him.
Shri Kunti Maharani Ki! Jai! Shriya Prabhupada Ki! Jai! Granth Raj Srimad Bhagavatam Ki! Jai! Jai Gaur Prema! Jai!