SB 10.1.5-16: Meditations on Becoming “Purified”

Hare Krsna,

The word “purification” is a deep subject matter. The mundane understanding of purification is at a gross bodily level, and therefore cleanliness is considered the same as purification. However for devotees on the path of attaining complete Krsna consciousness, purification is a journey and not just an activity that we perform each day (like taking a bath).

Srila Prabhupada in his purport to SB 3.6.34 brilliantly explains the essence of purification.

“All the conditioned souls are impure due to contact with the material energy in three modes of nature. Therefore it is necessary that they purify themselves under the guidance of the bona fide spiritual master, who not only is a brāhmaṇa by qualification but must also be a Vaiṣṇava. The only self-purifying process mentioned herein is to worship the Lord under the recognized method — under the guidance of the bona fide spiritual master. That is the natural way of purification, and no other method is recommended as bona fide. The other methods of purification may be helpful to come to this stage of life, but ultimately one has to come to this last point before he attains actual perfection.”

Purification of existence means, and includes purification of body and senses (eating, sleeping, mating and defending), mind, intelligence, speech and consciousness. Therefore, the whole process of devotional service is to accelerate the process of purification.

I could write an essay on purification. But to get to the essence, my realization of perfect purification is a state where one can engage in hearing Krsna-katha with perfect attention. Undeviated attention to such an extent that nothing can disturb our concentration. Taking my personal example, I can hardly concentrate for more than a few minutes. My body and mind are just too restless. I am unable to sit in a place for a long time; the body and mind keep throwing distractions at me; the body disturbs me with thirst, hunger, and lethargy; the mind brings up unwanted thoughts, worries, memories, desires, and mental speculation. The intelligence keeps disturbing with discriminating thoughts of what is right and what is wrong. Pure consciousness is covered with material desires, unwanted desires for liberation from pains and worldly miseries; and past karmic impressions. These are all symptoms of gross and subtle contaminations due to which we are unable to hear in rapt attention.

I remember a particular purport of Srila Prabhupada even today since I first read it. It is imprinted permanently in my mind and heart. Here it goes:

“Simple hearing is not all; one must realize the text with proper attention. The word niviṣṭa means that Sūta Gosvāmī drank the juice of Bhāgavatam through his ears. That is the real process of receiving Bhāgavatam. One should hear with rapt attention from the real person, and then he can at once realize the presence of Lord Kṛṣṇa in every page. The secret of knowing Bhāgavatam is mentioned here. No one can give rapt attention who is not pure in mind. No one can be pure in mind who is not pure in action. No one can be pure in action who is not pure in eating, sleeping, fearing, and mating. But somehow or other if someone hears with rapt attention from the right person, at the very beginning one can assuredly see Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa in person in the pages of Bhāgavatam.” (SB 1.3.44 Purport).

Simply brilliant!! In one stroke, Srila Prabhupada gave us a clue how to become perfectly purified. Knowing it will be too much of a struggle to tackle purification at multiple levels (gross body, subtle body, consciousness, etc.) when we are too materially conditioned, he sums up the purificatory process in just one step – just hear from a self-realized bonafide source.

This is perfectly emulated by Pariksit Maharaja when he tell Sukadeva Goswami:

SB 10.1.13: Because of my vow on the verge of death, I have given up even drinking water, yet because I am drinking the nectar of topics about Kṛṣṇa, which is flowing from the lotus mouth of your Lordship, my hunger and thirst, which are extremely difficult to bear, cannot hinder me.

This, is to, is the characteristic and symptom of one who is completely purified. A completely purified person acts perfectly on the platform of the spirit soul. The best food for the soul is hari-katha because conszitutionally the soul is an eternal servant of Lord Hari. Therefore only the name, form, qualities, and pastimes of Lord Hari can satisfy the spiritual thirst and hunger of the soul.

“But unless one hears kṛṣṇa-kathā from a realized soul like Śukadeva Gosvāmī, one cannot relish the nectar of kṛṣṇa-kathā, which puts an end to all material fatigue, and enjoy the blissful life of transcendental existence. In relation to the Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement, we actually see that those who have tasted the nectar of kṛṣṇa-kathā lose all material desires…” (SB 10.1.13 Purport)

In this Age of Kali, the process of purification withing bringing in the chanting of the Holy Name of the Lord. Chanting of the Holy Name is the perfect purification process suggested by none other than the Supreme Lord in His form as Lord Caitanya.

“Let there be all victory for the chanting of the Holy Name of Lord Hari, Lord Krishna, which can cleanse the mirror of the heart and stop the miseries of the blazing fire of material existence. That chanting is the waxing moon which spreads the white lotus of good fortune for all living entities. It is the life and soul of all education. The chanting of the Holy Name of Krishna expands the blissful ocean of transcendental life. It gives a cooling effect to everyone and enables one to taste full nectar at every step.” (Siksastaka 1)

Chanting of the Holy Name is both cause and effect. It is the cause of all purification, and it is the result of all purification. The Holy Name is the best method of purification and once purified, one can chant the Holy Name without offenses ultimately leading to Krsna-prema.

Therefore, using our ears and tongue to hear Krsna-katha and chant the Holy Name respectively, we can achieve all purification. And once completely purified, we can engage in Hari-katha in rapt attention like Pariksit Maharaja.

SB 10.1.16: The Ganges, emanating from the toe of Lord Viṣṇu, purifies the three worlds, the upper, middle and lower planetary systems. Similarly, when one asks questions about the pastimes and characteristics of Lord Vāsudeva, Kṛṣṇa, three varieties of men are purified: the speaker or preacher, he who inquires, and the people in general who listen.

The topics of Hari purify the speaker, the inquirer, and the listener in descending order. Hari-katha is most purifying for the speaker, then the inquirer and then the listener.

All glories to Srila Prabhupada!