The difference between material and spiritual emotions

Transcript

This is an AI-generated transcript and may contain some errors.
Thank you very much. Sadhavah Samadarshanah Vashekurvantimaham Bhaktiah Vashekurvantimaham Bhaktiah Shastriya Sattvatimyatha Mai Nirvadhar Dayah Sadhavah Samadarshanah Vashekurvantimaham Bhaktiah Shastriya Sattvatimyatha Lohi Antumi Nirvadhar Dayah Firmly attached in the core of the heart Sadhavah The pure devotees Samadarshanah Who are equal to everyone Vashe Under control Kurvanti They make Maam Antumi Bhaktiah By devotional service Sattriya Chaste women Sattvatim Unto the gentle husband Nidha As As chaste women bring their gentle husbands under control by service The pure devotees who are equal to everyone and completely attached to me in the core of the heart bring me under their full control In this verse the word Samdarshanah is significant.
The pure devotee is actually equal to everyone. As confirmed in Bhagavad Gita 1854 The universal brotherhood is possible when one is a pure devotee. The pure devotee is actually learned because he knows his constitutional position.
He knows the position of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. He knows the relationship between the living entity and the Supreme Lord. Thus he has full spiritual knowledge and is automatically liberated.
He can therefore see everyone in the spiritual platform. He can comprehend the happiness and distress of all living entities. He understands that what is happiness to him is also happiness to others and that what is distress to him is distressing for others.
Therefore he is sympathetic to everyone. As Prahlad Maharaj said Obe modham Bhagavatam 7.9.13 People suffer from material distress because they are not attached to the Supreme Personality of Godhead. The pure devotee’s chief concern therefore is to raise the ignorant mass of people to the hence of Krishna Consciousness.
I’ll give you the verses. We started two verses before. It is expressing the heart of the Supreme Lord and we see that the heart of the Lord is filled with love for his devotees.
Literally also the Lord will say a couple of verses later I am in my devotee’s heart and the devotees are in my heart. I know nobody except them and they know nobody except me. So, background is that Sarvasamuni having tried to attack and assassinate Ambarish Maharaj has had to flee for his own life instead.
Because Sarvasamuni not only destroyed the demon that he had created but also started chasing him. After going to Brahma Shiva finally has come to Lord Vishnu’s lotus feet and is begging him, please save me. Lord Vishnu will tell later that I cannot save you.
The only person who can save you is the devotee whom you have offended. I am powerless. So, Vishnubhagavatam actually is, Jagannath Mahaprabhu called it Amala Purana.
And the 10th canto of Vishnubhagavatam is like the heart of Vishnubhagavatam. And not only the heart, it is also the large part of Vishnubhagavatam. There are 335 chapters in Vishnubhagavatam.
Out of those 90 chapters are in the 10th canto. And 10th canto is almost like one third, 33% of the Vishnubhagavatam. So, by the time Parishad Maharaj Shri Jagannath Swami comes to the 10th canto, although 9 cantos are over, it’s only 2 and a half, 3 days over.
3 and a half, 4 days over. And 11th canto and the 3rd canto are the other 2 big cantos. In 35 chapters are there in each of them.
So, before taking us to the 10th canto, Shri Jagannath Swami is actually systematically, not chronologically, systematically. Chronologically means, we’ll be going as per time. This happened this time, this happened this time.
Actually, the mundane history is just a list of names of dead successful people. People who were successful at one time, then they died and went away. Shri Jagannath Swami is not concerned with that sort of history.
He is concerned with history of those personalities who transcended death. And so, therefore, he is describing events from different epochs, different millennia, different universes, to teach the principles that will enable us to transcend the cycle of birth and death. So, till he comes to the 10th canto, he does 2 things.
First is, establish the position of Krishna. And the second is, establish the position of Bhakti. So, the position of first 9 cantos talk about Vishnu.
In between, they talk about Krishna also, repeatedly. Remember, in Maharaja’s pastime also, we have, and the focus is entirely on Krishna in the 10th canto. But also, along with establishing Vishnu and Krishna’s position, Bhagavata is also establishing the position of Bhakti.
To some extent, Krishna does this in the Gita also. Krishna, in the Bhagavad Gita, talks about different paths. Karma, Jnana, Yoga.
But, after talking about all these paths, he establishes how all these paths ultimately culminate in Bhakti. He talks about Yoga in the 6th chapter, Dhyana Yoga, and he says, Yogi naam ki sarvesha madgati naam prarabhya. In fact, it’s not just in 6.47. 12, 6.15, 6.30, Yomam kashyati sarvatra Sarvam chali kashyati.
Krishna says how he is the ultimate goal of Yoga and Bhakti to him is the culmination of Yoga. Similarly, Krishna talks about how Jnana culminates in Bahunam janmanamante Jnanaman mam prapadyate. 7.98. And, even about how Karma culminates in Bhakti, he talks about that in the 3rd chapter.
Yajnaadhaad karmanam pralokoyam karmagandhanam. So, here in 3.9, somebody says, this is a little ambiguous who Yajna refers to. And, at the end of the chapter of Karmayoga, 3.30, again he says, Mayi sarvaani karmaani tanyasya dhyatmachitata.
Virashidhir mohukvayudhyasamikatacharanam. So, again he says, Yajna is not clear, it’s Mayi, unto me you have to surrender. So, Yajna, Karma and Jnana.
Jnana, Yoga and Karma. These 3 are the different paths which are there. And, Krishna shows in the Bhagavad Gita how all of them culminate in Bhakti.
And, Bhagavatam demonstrates that. So, this particular passage demonstrates how a bhakta is far far superior to a yogi. Durvasa Mani is a very powerful yogi.
A bhakta is far more superior to a yogi. The path of Karma, Karma means Karmakanda, that culminates in going to Heavens for sense enjoyment. And, what happens by Karmakanda is demonstrated in the 4th Canto, Prachinipati.
He is doing so many Yajnas, but he is also very entangled. So, that somebody may say, that is because he didn’t do the Karmakanda Yajnas properly. But, even if somebody does the Karmakanda Yajnas properly, and he succeeds in becoming Indra, what happens to Indra is demonstrated throughout the Bhagavatam.
6th Canto, 8th Canto, he is always getting into trouble. Similarly, what about Jnana? Jnana, the Bhagavatam starts itself with Shukadeva Goswami, who had attained the perfection of Jnana, ātmārāmāś ca munayo nirgantā apyurukrame, korvantya hetukim bhakti, itthāṁ bhūta-guṇo hari. So, even the ātmārāmās, who are not attracted to anything material, are attracted to Krishna.
So, the path of Jnana culminates in Krishna. And then also in the Bhagavatam, again, an important other example of the Kumaras, Kinjal, Kameshwara, Makaranda, Shobha, Maksha, Vijasana, Upajitta, and more. They don’t get agitated by anything material, those who are fixed in the path of Jnana.
But, they were agitated when they got the fragrance of the Tulsi leaves that were adorning the lotus feet of the Lord. So, in this way, Karma, Jnana, and Yoga, all of them culminate in Bhakti. In fact, Bhakti is so powerful that Bhakti inverts the normal hierarchy.
The normal hierarchy is that the Devatas are superior and the Asuras are inferior. In the 6th Canto and in the 8th Canto, we see that there is a Devata Indra and there is an Asura Vitras. Or there is a Devata Indra and there is an Asura Bali.
But, both of them are actually shown to be more glorious. Although, they were born in a demoniac family. Still, they are shown to be higher.
And, in fact, the 6th and the 8th Cantos talk about how there was a conflict and apparently the Devata won. But, it was the Asura who won. The 7th Canto takes it even further and somebody who is born in a demoniac family, and he has a demoniac father, and that father has actually defeated everyone, including all the Devatas.
His son becomes a devotee and he is exalted to the Lord personally, appears to him. So, the normal Vedic hierarchy of the Devatas being higher than the Asuras is inverted when there is a Bhakti in the Asuras. Repeatedly demonstrated.
6th, 7th, 8th Cantos are demonstrated. This Canto is another demonstration, another hierarchy. Normally, somebody who is a Sanyasi is considered to be higher than a Grahastha.
But here, Durvasa Muni is a Sanyasi and Ambarish Maharaj is a Grahastha. But, again that hierarchy is inverted. Why? Because Ambarish Maharaj is a Grahastha.
So, in this way, systematically, the Bhagavatam is establishing the position, the supreme position of Bhakti. Either we take it among the various paths of Karma, Jnana, Yoga, or even as normal progression of the different Ashramas or the different levels in the Cosmic hierarchy. If somebody has Bhakti, then he goes way above everyone else.
So, this is what is demonstrated here in the Srimad Bhagavatam. And the Srimad Bhagavatam will lead on this particular canto. It’s also the fall of another Yogi, Shabari.
He’s also a powerful Yogi. So, these two are very powerful are the lust and pride. So, pride and anger, because of pride, anger came in Durvasa Muni.
That is demonstrated through one Yogi and Shabari means the pitfall of lust is demonstrated. And after, in this way, systematically demonstrating the supremacy of Bhakti, then Shukadeva Goswami is going to lead on to the paramour Bhaktas, the topmost Bhaktas, that is the Trijivasis. This is the Bhagavatam is actually, essentially talking about Krishna.
It talks about Krishna right in the beginning. Just like sometimes when we have a movie is to be released, then they give a brief trailer of the movie. So, like that, in the Bhagavatam, in the first canto, from chapters 7 onward, they give a trailer of the 10th canto pastimes.
There is Krishna, suddenly, because if you see there is a conversation with Vyasa and Narada going on, and suddenly this chapter comes along, the son of Drona punished. And then the Bhagavatam pastime goes on and Krishna’s pastimes are there and Krishna enters as the charioteer of Arjuna. The same way he has entered in Bhagavatam.
And then it carries on till the disappearance of Krishna and the cursing of Pariksit. And then the Bhagavatam story line starts. So, what is going to come in the 10th canto that is described as a preview in the first canto, to attract the reader, the hearers to perceive it in the 10th canto.
And the Bhagavatam says, in the evocatory verses only, bahur aho rasika bhumi bhavo kaha rasika Those who are relishers of mellows, they can relish these pastimes. So, this rasa is a very commonly used word in Swarupapada’s purpose. But rasa is actually a unique contribution of the Gauriya Vaishnava tradition to the understanding of bhakti.
So, before we come to that, let’s make a little historical background. Today is the appearance day of Madhavacharya. So, we will talk a little bit about him also.
Shankaracharya was sent by the Lord, as described in the Padma Purana, to drive out mayavadam satchastram pasannam bachammam baudham ucyate. So, he came and drew out Buddhism. And he gave seemingly religious excuse for people to not surrender to God.
Those who want to pretend to be religious, but don’t want to surrender to God, for them, he gave impersonalism. Subsequently, the Vaishnavacharyas, Ramavacharya came in around 11th century, 1017 to around 1137 he was there. Shankaracharya was around 726.
So, after 300 years he came. Ramavacharya refuted Shankaracharya quite well. So, basically, what Ramavacharya did was, he took the same scriptures which Shankaracharya had taken.
Shankaracharya took Vishnu Purana, Ramavacharya also took Vishnu Purana. And he took the same scriptures and refuted Shankaracharya. About 100 years after that, Madhavacharya came.
And Madhavacharya, Shankaracharya’s hold on Hindu thought was very great. He was stronger in the hold of modern science, western science and modern thought today. So, it had to be gradually done.
So, Madhavacharya came and he launched an all-out attack. He took the scriptures which Shankaracharya had used and he used them and refuted and he took several other scriptures. An all-out attack.
And he talked about, so, Shankaracharya said, everything is one. Ekam Brahma Dvitiyanasthi. So, Ramavacharya said, yeah, everything is one, but there is a difference.
Actually, it is Vishishtadvai, that is philosophy. So, Ramavacharya’s defining analogy was that every Sampradaya has its defining analogy which in a nutshell tells what is the philosophy of every Sampradaya. So, Ramavacharya’s defining analogy was the soul and the body.
So, the soul is Vishnu and the body is Prakriti and Jeeva. Now, this is one thing is true because Mahavishnu enters into the Pradhan and Mahavishnu is the super-soul of the whole universe. So, he says, yes, the soul is the same as the body and is different from the body.
In a conventional sense, we talk about it, we don’t always differentiate, how are you? How is your body and how is your soul? We don’t talk about it like that. So, wherever the scriptures do talk about Brahman and Jeeva as the same, we have to understand it is being talked in a conventional way. That was the analogy that he used.
He said, yes, there is oneness and there is differences. But Mahavacharya, he came and launched an all-out attack. He said, there is no oneness at all.
Everything is right. Actually, all the Upanishads talk about Tattvatraya. Tattvatraya means three truths.
There is Jeeva, Ishvara and Prakriti. So, taking this Tattvatraya, Madhavacharya talked about the pancham bhed. Five differences.
Either there is a difference between Jeeva and Ishvara. There is difference between Prakriti and Ishvara. There is difference between Prakriti and Prakriti.
There is difference between Jeeva and Jeeva. And there is difference between Jeeva and Prakriti. So, there is no question of any oneness.
There is duality everywhere. That’s why, Mahavacharya was right about it. So, there is no oneness.
There is actually duality. Duality is there. So, in our Sampradaya, Chaitanya Mahaprabhu took two things from Madhavacharya’s teachings.
And one of them was Mayavada Bhushan. Repetition of Mayavada. And one of the significant ways Madhavacharya reputed Mayavada was talking about the concept of Vishesha.
Vishesha means inherent characteristic. Like we have in Bhagavad Pranamantra, nirvishesha shunyavadi pashyanti deshavadi. So, what is this nirvishesha? So, generally, the polemic, polemic means the debate between the personalist and the impersonalist would go on, is God sagud or is he nirgud? But there are so many references in the scripture to the fact that the absolute truth is nirgud.
Now, the word nirgud has two meanings. One is, the word guna can mean qualities and the word guna can also mean modes. So, when the scriptures say that the Lord is nirgud, that means he is not affected by the material modes.
That does not mean that he has no qualities. Therefore, Madhavacharya redefined the terminology and he said instead of using nirgud and sagud, we should use nirvishesh and savishesh. So, what is nirvishesh and savishesh? He talked about the mayavadis may also sometimes worship deities, they may also sing songs and they may also do the activities that bhaktas do.
But their idea is what? Like the famous mayavadi he says that you should meditate on your Ishtadev. Choose whichever god you want to meditate. They are very broad minded.
They are having democracy. You can elect whoever you want. But according to spirituality such a democracy that you don’t need a majority.
Your own vote is the majority. You can choose your own god and worship it. So, you meditate on your deity and you concentrate, concentrate and concentrate.
And the success of your dhyan, the success of your meditation is when by the power of your concentration, the deity crumbles into formless. So, that means then by your concentration you have gone beyond form to the formless life. So, actually the Muslims came and destroyed temples and desecrated deities physically.
But the impersonalists they come and desecrate the deities intellectually, philosophically. They may accept that it is temporary but they want to go beyond the deity. So, their idea is what? That for god, even if he has a form, that form is an acquired quality.
So, acquired quality means like this seat is here. The seat has acquired by painting a particular color. Now that color is external to it.
It was given to it at a particular time and it can be removed from it. So, like that they say that god has a form which is given to him by our own mental conception. So, we are the creators of god.
We are the creators of god. So, god has a form given to us by our mental conception and that is external to him. And when we become advanced enough, we take away that form and we go beyond the form.
So, that is the acquired quality. But what is the inherent quality? Like there is a rose which is red in color. Now the redness of the rose cannot be separated from the rose.
From its very existence, the rose is always red. This is the inherent quality. The inherent quality is called as Vishesh.
So, actually, Madhavacharya talked extensively about it and Baldev Vidyabhushan and his Govinda Bhashya as well as Geeta Bhushan, he takes this concept mainly from Rishi Ramadhavacharya that the proper words that the are the lord’s inherent qualities not his acquired qualities. Not the qualities which you have given to him by some mental conception. There is inherent qualities.
And those who say that god is actually, ultimately Nirvishesh, Bhashyat Deshatan. God has come to save us. So, Madhavacharya actually refuted impersonalism in a very powerful way and he established, the Udupi Krishna temple he established and he gave a tremendous boost to the spreading of bhakti all over and Chaitanya Mahaprabhu came later and fulfilled a long time master plan which was there, 20th century master plan.
Madhavacharya himself, Hanumanji, Bhima, extremely powerful. Physically also he was powerful, intellectually also he was powerful. One time impersonalists they found that he is just too powerful to debate with.
Then they sent a body builder. They said, oh you were a wrestler earlier, I want to wrestle with you. Madhavacharya said, I have given up wrestling now.
Oh, that means you are a coward. Madhavacharya said, okay, if you want to wrestle with me, first, you move my toe. You, he put his leg forward, move my toe.
If you can move my toe, then, I will accept that you are worthy of fighting with me. Madhavacharya said, the wrestler felt very excited. He just took his leg and pulled him down and knocked him and beat him to death.
He took his leg and was trying to move it and he was struggling and shaking and fighting and ranting and honestly he was not able to do anything. He started sweating. He was getting all the sweat.
He was holding the leg and he was again wiping off the sweat and again he was trying to pull and Madhavacharya was just meditating with the supreme law. And what was happening? The wrestler was taking the dust of Madhavacharya’s feet on his head. And eventually, not only was he physically defeated, but he was spiritually purified.
And he fell at the feet of Madhavacharya, not just physically, but he was spiritually. And he became his disciple afterwards. So, after Madhavacharya, he had Chaitanya Mahaprabhu coming and he synthesized Advaita and Dvaita by talking about Achintya Bheda, the simultaneous oneness and difference.
And Bhakti Rasamrith Sundu, which was written by Rupa Goswami, talked about the absolute truth in terms of Rasa. Now, Rasa, before coming to Krishna Consciousness, probably we heard of Rasa only in Amaras. You know, mango juice.
That’s our idea of Rasa. So, what exactly is this Rasa? Bharat Muni has written the Natya Shastra. And in Natya Shastra is described how the Devatas once went to Brahmaji and told that we would like to have a form of entertainment that will be simultaneously uplifting as well as entertaining.
That will involve all the senses and engage all the talents that are there. And at that time Brahmaji instructed the Devatas in the Natya Shastra. So, in the Natya Shastra, the concept is that when certain actors dressed in a particular way, they do certain gestures and speak certain expressions in particular ways, those that background, that setting, those expressions, they create certain emotions in the audience.
The emotions that are created by a proper dramatic setting and a dramatic performance is called as Rasa. So, depending on how expert firstly the actors are and how Rasik the audience is. Even the audience has to be cultured to be able to experience the emotions.
When the audience is cultured and the actors are expert, then certain Rasas are experienced, certain emotions are experienced. So, the Natya Shastra Bharat Muni mainly talks about Rasa as an emotion that is occasionally experienced when there is a good dramatic performance. Rupa Goswami took the basic theory which Bharat Muni had given and he went forward and explained that for a devotee, Rasa is not just an occasional emotion experienced by a dramatic performance.
It is a constant fact of life. And the Natya Shastra is not necessarily devotional. Generally, most of the Ramas in Vedic culture were devotional, but they are not necessarily devotional.
But Rupa Goswami explained that Rasa is the emotion that a devotee experiences constantly in relationship with the Supreme Lord. So, for us, Rasa has different meanings. Like we have these five Rasas which are the Sthai Bhav, the constant relationship.
So, Sakhya, Vatsalya, Madhurya these are constant relationships. This is the predominant steady emotion within any relationship. And beyond that also, there are the secondary Rasa.
So, these secondary Rasa, like Vipatsa or Bhayanaka or Haasya, they embellish the relationship, the primary relationship which is a particular Rasa. So, for example, in Yashodamayi, the predominant Rasa is in Vatsalya. She thinks that she is the protector of Krishna.
But, when Prabhupada comes and takes Krishna and she is blinded and she takes back her vision, she says, Krishna is not there anymore. She is overpowered, horrified. So, at that time, that Rasa of Vatsalya is embellished, is enhanced by the Rasa of Vipatsa.
So, Rasa means first the predominant relationship and within that predominant relationship, there are emotions. So, Rasa means relationship as well as emotions within the relationship. So, Bhakti Rasa Amritsindhu talks about the different emotions that a devotee experiences in relationships with the Supreme Lord.
And, those same relationships, which I talked about in Bhakti Rasa Amritsindhu, are elaborated by Rupa Goswami further in Ujjwal Neelamani, where he focuses exclusively on the Madhurya Rasa relationships, the relationship between Krishna and the devotees. So, this concept of Rasa, Rasa means analysis of emotions to show how emotions can be related to the Supreme Lord, is very beautifully explained in Ars Ampradaya. In fact, in the Ramayan, today is also Dasera, so, in the Ramayan, when Lord Ram and Lakshman are in the forest, they have just come to Chitrakoot.
At that time, they just hear a loud noise and they see birds flying in the sky. Lord Ram asks Lakshman, what is happening? He is flying up a tree and Lakshman climbs up and he is in the distance. He sees the elephant of Maharaj Dashrath, Shatruj.
He looks, he doesn’t see anybody on the elephant, but that is what is striking. Just seeing the elephant, he immediately comes up. That wicked Bharat, after sending you, after conspiring with his mother to send you to the forest, has now come with the entire army to kill you.
But, oh Ram, he doesn’t know that I am there to protect him. I will send him to the abode of death and I will take you back to Ayodhya. And Lord Ram is there.
Oh Lakshman, has Bharat offended you in any way? That you are so angry with him? Or is it that in a way of emotion, you felt that you can come with me to the forest, but now you are finding the forest too austere and that is why you are wanting to go back to the kingdom? If you want that, then I will tell Bharat and he will stay with me and you can go back and rule the kingdom. So, Lakshman is completely mortified. And then… Actually, Bharat comes and he sees Bharat is wearing the robes of ascetic.
And then the whole conversation takes place. And then the whole event takes place where very elaborate discussion. Actually, the conversation between Bharat and Ram is like a conflict between the pinnacle of duty and the pinnacle of love.
So, Lord Ram is the pinnacle of duty. He is dutifully bound to follow the words of his father. That is his duty.
And Bharat is the pinnacle of love. Bharat is not. There is a long discussion that goes two and four.
They make over an hour to have the whole discussion. But in the end, Bharat… If you don’t come back, then I will sit here and pass to death. And then Lord Ram becomes very grave.
And then he smiles. Oh Bharat, you wanted me to accept the kingdom? And you had come with the forest for that purpose? I accept your love. Your love has conquered me.
And everybody becomes very happy. Lord Ram seems very grave. I accept your kingdom and I accept your love, oh Bharat.
But at the same time, in order that our father’s words not be falsified, I entrust the kingdom to you for 14 years. Now Bharat is defeated. So, and then Bharat agrees to go back.
But after seeing this whole loving exchange between Bharat and Lord Ram, then Lakshmi feels very very embarrassed and mortified. And they are almost like a… He is a younger brother. Sometimes he acts like a small child.
So he asks, asks Lord Ram, you know, why is it that I get so angry, oh Lord? Why is it that I get so angry? Lord Ram very sweetly replies, Oh, Lakshman, you are an emotional person. So there, Lakshman asks, are relations bad? Are relations bad? And that time, Lord Ram, says, no, emotions are not at all bad. Emotions are what give beauty to life.
But our emotions should be such that they attract us toward Dharma and not away from Dharma. Certainly we should have emotions, but our emotions should be such that they attract us toward Dharma and not away from Dharma. So, you know, when suppose a student comes to a hostel, when he comes to a hostel, away from his parents, the whole world of sin is open to him.
And he may get attracted to the opposite sex and he may fall for sin. So there are some emotions which are attracting him away from Dharma. On the other hand, he may think of his parents and how much they are sacrificing for me.
And those emotions will attract him to do his duty. Similarly, when we take initiation, so at that time, you know, we may still be prone to be attracted by sense objects. Our spiritual master and the vow that we have taken.
The remembrance of the spiritual master and the emotions that we feel for him, they will attract us towards Dharma. So we cannot give up emotions, but we can channelize the emotions. We channelize the emotions so that they attract us towards Dharma.
And that is what the whole concept of Rasa is about. For example, there is Rupa Goswami and then Vishwanath Chakravarthy. They are called the Rasika Acharyas.
Vishwanath Chakravarthy wrote the Madhurya Kadambini, which is like a commentary on the Raghav Shraddha Sadhu Sangam, that verse of the Bhakti Samasindhu. And then he also wrote Raghav Asma Chandrika, which is like a commentary sort of on the individual element. So the whole science of how emotions can be developed and channelized for the service of the Lord, is talked about in the Gaudiya Vishnu Sampradaya quite extensively.
So now, even when we hear the past tense of the Lord, we can have mundane emotions or we can have divine emotions. Essential tragedy of the modern times is to mistake Vasanas to be Bhavanas. What is the difference between a Vasana and a Bhavana? Vasana is something which is very external and superficial.
It is like sometimes there are small children and we tickle their stomach. We tickle their stomach and they start laughing. They are laughing, but are they happy? No, that is not happiness.
If that is their happiness, then if that were happiness and everybody wants to be happy, then you know, we could just, everybody manufacture perpetual tickling machines and just keep tickling each other and be happy. So that is very superficial. Although there is a apparent external expression of happiness, but that is not happiness.
That is just something which is biologically triggered and it doesn’t touch the heart at all. So, similarly, Vasanas are actually some things which go outwards and they don’t go inwards much. They start from the biology and they go to the psychology.
But they don’t go to spirituality at all. So, that is Vasana. Whereas Bhavana, of course, Bhavana emotions can also be spiritual, they can be material.
But Bhavana is more in the mind. And actually Rasa is something which is ordered from the soul, comes into the mind and then expresses in the body. So, when there is male-female attraction, what is there mainly is Vasana.
It’s basically a biological attraction which people gave a romantic garb to it. But it doesn’t last for very long. So, the Vasanas are very superficial.
The Bhavanas, especially when they are in connection with Krishna, they are very deep. So, the whole Bhakti Rishambhu Sindhu talks about how we can develop our Bhavanas for Krishna. That’s why, you know, the English translation of this call is Antarashti Krishna Bhavana Amritsam.
It’s not something Antarashti Krishna Chetana or something like that. The word consciousness is Prabhupada’s unique rendition of Krishna Rasa Bhavita Madhi. So, how it gets translated, it’s very distinct, you know.
But the point here is that the Rasa is experienced in a particular way. That is, when there is a cultured audience to experience the Rasa. Nowadays, there are a lot of TV serials which may talk about Ramayana, Mahabharata or Krishna Leela.
But when people hear these pastimes, those pastimes often just become another source of entertainment. When people watch a movie, at that time unconsciously they identify with the hero. They identify with the hero and they get some enjoyment when the hero and heroine come together, people start whistling.
Because, basically they imagine it would be so nice if I would be there and I would be enjoying. It’s all second-hand enjoyment. Somebody else is enjoying.
Somebody else is enjoying and people imagine that we are there. But the important thing is that when there is a movie, people identify with the hero. They identify with the hero and that’s how they get enjoyment.
And when we hear Krishna Leela also, we may identify with Krishna. And we may think that I am Krishna and I am enjoying. And if that is the case, then that enjoyment is not spiritual.
It is still, it is conditioned by the ego and it is still a material form of enjoyment. And we do not even know whether it is material or spiritual. But this especially comes out when we hear the conjugal pastimes of Krishna.
When we hear the conjugal pastimes of Krishna, if we identify ourselves as the enjoyer, whether in the male body or the female body, if we identify ourselves as the enjoyer, then the conjugal pastimes of Krishna directly trigger our material emotions. And when we hear the childhood pastimes of Krishna, even if our material emotion of caring for our children is triggered, that is still immovable. But the madhuras pastimes often trigger the mundane emotions.
And that’s why Pramukha is so careful that we have to hear philosophically the nine cantos of Bhagavatam. And when we have heard that, we have philosophically understood the position of Krishna, then when a devotee hears Krishna’s pastimes with the gopis, he does not see Krishna as a boy and the gopis as girls. He sees Krishna as the lord and the gopis as devotees.
And the devotees identify that pastime with the gopis. So, mind you, Krishna is reciprocating love with them. And when this mood is there, then the conjugal pastimes of Krishna can also be relished.
Without that, often the mood of enjoyment will drag us down rather than dragging us up. So, our acharyas have written a lot on the tenth canto. That’s why Srila Prabhupada translated the Krishna book, which is a summary study of the tenth canto.
So, here it is described that kriya-satpati-yatha and just as a wife brings her husband under control by her devoted service. So, this is also eternal rasa in the spiritual world. The highest, the madhurya rasa.
Now, Krishna’s madhurya rasa pastimes are there in Dwarka, to some extent in Madhura and also in Vrindavan. So, it’s interesting that both Jyotirtha Madhava as well as Jyotirtha Madhava is by Rupa Goswami and Jiva Goswami is by Gopalaswami. They describe how the gopis of Vrindavan expand as the queens of Dwarka.
And the interesting thing is that according to both Acharyas, Radharani expands not as Rukmini but as Satyabhama. And Chandravali expands as Rukmini. So, why is that? Because the relationship between Krishna and the right wing gopis is Radharani and the left wing gopis are headed by Chandravali.
So, Chandravali is always very humble and subversive to Krishna. And Radharani actually controls Krishna. Radharani orders Krishna.
Radharani chastises Krishna. So, Rauchul Neelamani describes that you know, Chandravali’s love for Krishna, for Krishna it is like Bhrutarasa. Bhrutarasa means it’s the taste of ghee.
And Radharani’s love for Krishna is like Madhurasa. It’s the taste of honey. Both are wonderful.
Ghee and honey. But honey is more delicious. In Dwarka, Krishna is manifesting as the ideal king.
And ideal king needs the ideal queen. And ideal queen is one who is submissive to the king. And Radharani cannot play that role.
Radharani is actually, she controls Krishna. And that’s why Chandravali plays that role of Rukmini. And just as we see in the Krishnamukha, how Rukmini never gets angry with Krishna.
And Krishna wants Rukmini to get angry. But he never gets angry. And Radharani Satyabhama, the very word Satyabhama means Satya is nature.
Bhama is angry. So, one of angry nature. And sometimes, as Lalit Mahadev has described, how at one time, Krishna teases Rukmini and she finally gets angry.
And she angrily says, Krishna, what are you doing? And then suddenly she feels, Oh noble husband, Oh Arya, please don’t do like this. And then Krishna becomes very happy. He says, Oh Rukmini, after giving me a flood of nectar, by calling me Krishna angrily, why are you giving me this well water? By calling me Arya.
He wants to see her angry. But the mood of Rukmini is that she never becomes angry. So, Satyabhama, we say, she becomes angry.
And that anger is also to please Krishna. She becomes angry, but that anger is for pleasing Krishna. So, let’s say, relationship between Krishna and the Gopis, which is described in the Tenth Canto of Shri Bhagavatam, is elaborated by Gopalji.
So, the Tenth Canto, past ten which I have described, are also elaborated further in several books by our Acharyas, like the Gopaljampu and Amaljampu. So, in the Amaljampu it is described how Krishna played his flute and all the Gopis came. And Krishna told them, Now please, you can go back.
We wanted to come and see this forest. See this forest, and now you can go back. And the Gopis become very annoyed and they say, You know why we have come here.
And then they have a very nice discussion. And then, as they are about to perform, Krishna disappears. They look around and then they see that one Gopi is missing.
And they realize that this one Gopi, Krishna is going with her. And then they start searching around. Where is Krishna? The Lord of our hearts is gone.
How can we live without Krishna? They are all calling out to Krishna. And they start speaking in a frantic way. They say, Krishna is the Lord of our senses and our mind.
So, our senses and our mind are always with him. So, what is the question of separation for me? Our senses and mind have gone with him. Yet, who is the wicked person who has created another set of senses and mind? This is torturing us so much.
They are so dazed by thoughts of Krishna. It appears as if they are just like statues who are animated by some ghost. They are dazed.
In desperation, they start searching here and there. They ask for peacocks. They ask for sea plants.
They ask for trees. Where is Krishna? And then they start performing the pastimes of Krishna. And trying to somehow alleviate the pain of separation from Krishna.
And finally, they perform all the pastimes. While performing the pastimes, again they come to the pastime of Krishna playing his flute and all the gopis coming and running. And Krishna and gopis talking.
And they perform the asana. And then suddenly they come to a point where Krishna leaves them in a daze. And then he draws them back to the external consciousness.
And all the pain of separation starts burning their heads. As they are moving around frantically, suddenly they see that there are footprints of Krishna. They look at the footprints and they see, oh these gopis, it is so cool.
But the weapons that are there, they are actually meant to pierce our heart and gouge our eyes. Where is Krishna now? They start looking after the gopis. They start searching.
Way, way inside, they see another set of gopis. They understand there are some gopis there. And in time, those gopis also disappear.
And they are then buried. So that time, Radharani is with Krishna. And with Krishna, she is all alone.
On other hand, the other gopis are talking. And there is Janaravani in this group. Padma says to Lalita and Nisargadatta.
She says, you say that Radharani is your leader, but what kind of leader is she? She says that all of you are dear to her, but she has left all of you and gone away alone with Krishna. Leaving not only us, but leaving even you to suffer. Her love is only an illusion.
And that time, Shyama says, that Radharani is like an aquatic plant which has thrown itself into the flowing river of Krishna’s love. Therefore, she has no control over herself. Whatever Krishna wants, she has to do.
Just as a flower grows with its keys. But when the flower is to be offered to the Lord, the key is taken away and the flower is offered. So like that, we are always with Radharani.
But what Krishna wants her, if she goes alone, that is no fault of hers. And they keep searching. Finally, they come to a place where Radharani is unconscious.
And as she is unconscious, they do not know what is happening. So, as Radharani is going with Krishna, she remembers. She feels overjoyed on one side to see that she is there with the Lord.
But when she thinks of Naita, Vishaka and other sakhis, she thinks that they are all being deprived of the enjoyment of Krishna’s association. And she feels very sad. And since she decides that let me ask Krishna to carry me.
Krishna has to carry me when he is slowed down. And the other sakhis will be able to catch up with us. So, sometimes Radharani also became proud.
Actually, that is only external. Radharani was of her concern for the other gopis. And Krishna also understood the heart of Radharani.
But he pretended. He said, You are feeling tired since this is jungle and we cannot get a palanquin for you. So, please climb on my back and I will carry you.
He spoke in harsh voice. Krishna disappeared. Everything that was expected for Radharani turned into a beautiful forest lion which seemed to be pulling out sharp arrows and piercing her legs.
Her necklaces seemed to have thorns which pierced her body. Radharani, where is Krishna? Krishna, where are you? And she had this conversation with Krishna. Imagine the conversation with Krishna.
You are proud, so I left you. I don’t like pride. No, but I am not proud.
I am only concerned about my sakhis. For their sake, I told you, please, wait and carry me. I don’t like such arrogant behavior.
Oh, Krishna, please appear back. If you do not appear back, I will not be able to live. I will die.
And you do not have to carry my head or anything else. I left the other sakhis and I am leaving you also. They didn’t die and you will also not die.
No, they have each other and they will talk to each other and they will remember you. I am all alone. Krishna, please wait for me.
Please come back. If all other sakhis come here and they see that you have abandoned me like this, then they will punish you. And, I cannot tolerate you being punished.
Even if they don’t see me, I will die before that. And if I am dead, then I cannot tolerate that you be criticized for my sins. She was doing things to me.
And, one side, Radharani, her lover, who is neglected, there is no need for life. She is thinking, when Krishna comes back later and I am not there to serve him, then, it is suffering and I am going to die. And then, Krishna, please come back.
I am waiting for you. The Brajwasis are ready to give up their lives. But the only thought that keeps him alive is that Krishna will come back.
And it’s not that they want to enjoy Krishna, they think that if Krishna comes back, and if Krishna hides, that we are not there to serve Him, then Krishna will be there. So, there are constantly letters going on between Dwarka and Vrindavan. So in one letter, Krishna writes, he writes to Vrindavan, he says, I am so ungrateful son, that although you cared for me throughout my childhood, I left you and went away.
The only way I can be forgiven for my offence is, if I come back to you, please forgive me directly. And Maharaj replies to Krishna, he says, we are separated from you, and you suffer. But we don’t mind our suffering.
We are separated from you, and you suffer because of that, and that causes suffering. Vrindavan says, he says that, actually, no, I am longing for the day when we will be reunited. And therefore, I have created some beautiful gardens, and I am watering them personally, so that we can perform fast time in the bowels.
Vrindavan says, yes, we have also made gardens over here, and we are watering them. But before water on the garden, and then our hot tears fall on the same land, and they dry up these gardens. We cannot live without them.
So there is an immense separation from Krishna. And at that time, the only way she can enter in her life is, when her satsanghi goscha, when her satsanghi goscha her unconsciousness, she becomes an embracing garden, her unconsciousness. And other satsanghis come over there, and they say, is this Radharani to somebody else? And then she arrives in Radharanjara, and is filled with a mixture of respect, disappointment, anger, envy.
She sees, she sees, she sees, she sees who has been separated from Krishna. And then, of course, she will know that Krishna has been separated from Krishna. And then after that, Radharani tells them what has happened.
They all come to the Yamuna banks. The Yamuna banks, where they start seeing the devotee. And when they see the devotee, eventually, Krishna appears, and he gives different justifications in his life.
Actually, you know, I separate myself from my devotees so that I can intensify their love for me. If they obtain me easily, then they will not understand. So I sometimes separate myself.
And then, here is how Krishna arrives. He says, actually, this is all for me. I am external for other devotees.
But you have already attained the perfection of love. And I cannot raise your love in my life. And he chokes towards Krishna and says, I cannot repay the debt of love that I owe you.
Therefore, let your own glorious deeds be the remuneration. And then, Bashi Guru went to meet Krishna. And Krishna is conquered by the love of his devotees.
And that’s what his story is. And we know that same Radha Krishna, who will tell you about Shaitanya Mahaprabhu. And Lord Shaitanya Mahaprabhu sent a special Srinapati Mahaprabhu.
He reached into Durga. He reached all over the world. He was unique in our Gola Sampradaya.
In that, he explained how that Isodic pastimes of Radha Krishna become accessible to us. In the Chaitanya Charita Amrita where Radha Krishna, where Shaitanya Mahaprabhu is expressing separation from Radha Krishna at that time, from Krishna. And then Prabhupada is talking about preaching Krishna.
Why? Because the essence of the Gopi’s love for Krishna is not that they are dancing in the forest of Krishna. The essence of the Gopi’s love for Krishna is that they are ready to sacrifice everything for Krishna. You know that pastime when they are ready to offer their own dust and ready to go to hell for Krishna.
So, that mode of sacrifice is personification of Prabhupada. For the sake of fulfilling Radha Krishna’s desire, Shaitanya Mahaprabhu’s desire, Prabhupada was not just ready to go to hell, but he literally went to hell. He went from the capital of devotion, Vrindavan, to the capital of degradation.
That was New York. And the way he preached over there was, in the early days of our movement, Prabhupada was all alone. And when he had a severe stroke, he came back to India.
When he went to America, he had gone to Canada, because he had not yet got a permanent residency. And from there he was coming to America back. So, he had to go to Santa Fe.
And at that time, because his coin did not have so much money, Prabhupada was travelling alone. So, he came down to Chicago, and he had to transit, take another airport and go from there. So, he was all alone.
He had his luggage with him. And several flights he had to climb up and climb down. Gohar is a very big airport.
You know that airport is Gohar airport. Prabhupada, Drupadi Maharaj was distributing books over there. He told Drupadi Maharaj, they already have got the name Hare.
You tell them to add Krishna. Oh, Hare Krishna airport. So, Drupadi Maharaj was looking back.
He said, Prabhupada, they would listen to us. That is not your problem. That is their problem.
You go and tell them. After that, at that time, there was no book distribution going on over there. So, Prabhupada came all alone.
He climbed down a long flight of stairs and suddenly, somebody pushed him. So, after that, he rolled down the stairs. His bag went off his hand.
His head got bruised. His arms got bruised. And there was no one to accompany him.
He was reaching out. Nobody cared for Prabhupada and so on. So, Prabhupada was lying down there.
And somebody came to lift him up. He was still caught up. So, he was all right.
So, Prabhupada got up. Just three minutes before his flight. He went and rushed and caught his flight.
He saw that the wounds on his arms were rotting. He was serious. He remembered just when he was leaving.
When he was leaving Montreal, at that time, as a reporter, I asked him, Swamiji, do you have any difficulties when you preach this mission? Prabhupada replied at that time, I have no difficulties. Because Krishna is always with me. Because Krishna is always with me.
Remember, Prabhupada was very sick. And at that time, an astrologer came to him. He said, Swamiji, you know why you are so sick? Because you have accepted to be a disciple.
You are giving that karma. Prabhupada was very grateful. He said, yes.
I came to this world. I came to this world. So, Prabhupada, here, is focusing on this Parvatra, Sarva, Samadhi.
Sadhu sees that the main cause of suffering of people is that they are not attached to Krishna. And out of his attachment to Krishna, he wants to make others attached to Krishna. And Prabhupada says, Swamiji, Krishna Consciousness means, in which, we can practically perform devotional service, by hearing Krishna Katha, by practicing the philosophy, by doing different forms of services, and gradually advancing Krishna Consciousness.
And this way, we can all, gradually, prematurely, gradually, come to a level, where we can also experience preaching Rasa. Where we can experience divine emotions when we are performing, hearing Krishna Katha. And that Rasa can also become a fact of life for us.
Till that time happens, Prabhupada said, that we will enter into Radha Krishna Nila, by preaching Krishna Consciousness. We try to serve Krishna in a practical way. The Rasa that we experience in that, is actually the Rasa of Bhakti.
It is accessible to us at our level. In the Gauri Sampradaya, before Bhakti Sannyasini Thakur, the idea of Sankirtan was, that we do Kirtan. Bhakti Sannyasini Thakur expanded that by explaining that, even printing books is also possible.
Prabhupada expanded that further, that all the missionary activities of Krishna Consciousness, are actually Sankirtan. So, whatever we are doing, whatever it be, DT services, cleaning, or preaching, or distribution, all these are the means, by which we can develop our relationship with Krishna. And through all these, we experience spiritual Rasa.
And by experiencing that spiritual Rasa, we can get rid of the literal Vasanas. And the more we can get rid of the literal Vasanas, the more we become steady in spiritual Rasa. So, once we come to that stage, there is a stage called Thaibhav.
Thaibhav means steady attraction. When we come to that stage in our Bhakti, then it is almost certain from there, that we will advance and go back home, back to Godhead. So, to summarize what I discussed, I started by talking about how Bhagavatam establishes the supreme position of Bhakti and the supreme position of Bhagavan through Krishna.
Then we discussed about how the Rasas, the different Rasas are talked about in our Sampradaya. And it is the education of emotions. How emotions can drag us down, or they can lift us up.
And how those emotions that can be used to lift us up, that is systematically taught in all the Sampradayas. And even in Krishna’s pastimes, to experience the appropriate Rasa, we have to have the appropriate philosophical understanding. To identify not with Krishna, but with the devotees of Krishna.
And then we discussed how the devotees experience intense and intense liberation from Krishna. And lastly, we discussed how at our level, the Rasa we experience primarily within our service to Krishna. And through our service to Krishna, which we have got by the mercy of Satguru, we can all come to sthaiva, and ultimately experience whatever Rasa we have, it will be Krishna’s Rasa.
Thank you very much.