Hare Krsna,

There is no doubt that no one can offer prayers to the Lord without His causeless mercy. When a living entity desires to serve the Lord in transcendental loving service, the Lord helps the devotee in so many ways as the caitya-guru, or the spiritual master within, and thus the devotee can perform many wonderful activities beyond material estimation. By the mercy of the Lord even a layman can compose prayers of the highest spiritual perfection. Such spiritual perfection is not limited by material qualifications but is developed by dint of one’s sincere endeavor to render transcendental service. Voluntary endeavor is the only qualification for spiritual perfection. Material acquisitions of wealth or education are not considered. (SB 3.9.38 P)

But this does not mean that one should not compose prayers in glorification of the Lord. If we are sincere in our desire and endeavor, the Supreme Lord will help us. The best example is Dhruva Maharaja. He was a young boy of five years. He did not know how to worship Lord Visnu. But seeing His determination and endeavor, the Lord instructed Narada Muni to guide and teach young Dhruva Maharaja. By following the instructions of Narada Muni, Dhruva Maharaja performed intense austerity and penance for many months. Pleased with his efforts, the Supreme Lord appeared in front of Him. The Lord touched Dhruva Maharaja with His conchshell. Immediately Dhruva Maharaja became completely self-realized and started to compose beautiful prayers to the Lord. This shows that only by the mercy of the Lord can one compose prayers.

There is a beautiful purport by Srila Prabhupada on this topic of offering prayers to the Supreme Lord.

SB 4.7.24: Although the mental scope of even demigods like Brahmā was unable to comprehend the unlimited glories of the Supreme Lord, they were all able to perceive the transcendental form of the Supreme Personality of Godhead by His grace. Only by such grace could they offer their respectful prayers according to their different capacities.

Purport: It is not possible for any ordinary living entity to understand or to glorify the unlimited Personality of Godhead, but one can offer prayers or service to the Lord according to one’s particular capacity. This capacity is increased by the service spirit. Sevonmukhe hi jihvādau means that the service of the Lord begins with the tongue. This refers to chanting. By chanting Hare Kṛṣṇa, one begins the service of the Lord. Another function of the tongue is to taste and accept the Lord’s prasāda. We have to begin our service to the Unlimited with the tongue and become perfect in chanting, and accepting the Lord’s prasāda. To accept the Lord’s prasāda means to control the entire set of senses. The tongue is considered to be the most uncontrollable sense because it hankers for so many unwholesome eatables, thereby forcing the living entity into the dungeon of material conditional life. As the living entity transmigrates from one form of life to another, he has to eat so many abominable foodstuffs that finally there is no limit. The tongue should be engaged in chanting and in eating the Lord’s prasāda so that the other senses will be controlled. Chanting is the medicine, and prasāda is the diet. With these processes one can begin his service, and as the service increases, the Lord reveals more and more to the devotee. But there is no limit to His glories, and there is no limit to engaging oneself in the service of the Lord.

This means that if we continue to engage in devotional service to the Lord through the main processes of hearing and chanting, we will be able to compose prayers to the Lord just as Lord Brahma did.

From my personal example, I could see that the forum posts that I write are nothing but mercy of the Lord. I have personal realizations that there are days when I struggle to meditate and write on a particular forum topic. I chant my japa not meditating on the topic but praying to the Lord to help me write something. When I do so and start typing in the mood that the Lord will help me from within, I see that thoughts begin to flow spontaneously and these thoughts beautifully get transformed into words. I have written many forum posts in this way. This clearly shows that without Lord’s mercy and empowerment, we cannot write anything.

Therefore Lord Brahma’s prayers are not mere prayers. They are a manifestation of Lord’s sweet mercy being pleased with Brahma’s many years of meditation, penance, and austerity.

The prayers offered by Brahma cannot be chanted by anyone who desires to fulfill his own sense gratification. Such prayers can be selected only by a person who wants to satisfy the Lord in His service. The Lord certainly fulfills all desires in regard to transcendental loving service, but He cannot fulfill the whims of non-devotees, even when such casual devotees offer Him the best of prayers. (SB 3.9.40)

All glories to Srila Prabhupada!

Hare Krsna,

Penance and perseverance are important qualities for spiritual realization. The mercy the Lord bestows upon a particular person engaged in executing the responsible work entrusted unto him is beyond imagination. But His mercy is received due to our penance and perseverance in executing devotional service.

SB 3.9.30: O Brahmā, situate yourself in penance and meditation and follow the principles of knowledge to receive My favor. By these actions you will be able to understand everything from within your heart.

In Canto 2, Chapter 9 Lord Krsna repeats the same instructions that he gave to Lord Brahma after underwent penance for 1000 celestial years by the calculations of the demigods. The Personality of Godhead, being thus very much satisfied with the penance of Lord Brahmā, was pleased to manifest His personal abode, Vaikuṇṭha, the supreme planet above all others. This transcendental abode of the Lord is adored by all self-realized persons freed from all kinds of miseries and fear of illusory existence. Then Lord Krsna said:

SB 2.9.20: The beautiful Personality of Godhead addressed Lord Brahmā: O Brahmā, impregnated with the Vedas, I am very much pleased with your long-accumulated penance with the desire for creation. Hardly am I pleased with the pseudo mystics.

SB 2.9.21: I wish you good luck. O Brahmā, you may ask from Me, the giver of all benediction, all that you may desire. You may know that the ultimate benediction, as the result of all penances, is to see Me by realization.

SB 2.9.22: The highest perfectional ingenuity is the personal perception of My abodes, and this has been possible because of your submissive attitude in the performance of severe penance according to My order.

SB 2.9.23: O sinless Brahmā, you may know from Me that it was I who first ordered you to undergo penance when you were perplexed in your duty. Such penance is My heart and soul, and therefore penance and I are nondifferent.

SB 2.9.24: I create this cosmos by such penance, I maintain it by the same energy, and I withdraw it all by the same energy. Therefore the potency is penance only.

SB 2.9.31: Knowledge about Me as described in the scriptures is very confidential, and it has to be realized in conjunction with devotional service. The necessary paraphernalia for that process is being explained by Me. You may take it up carefully.

In essence, if a devotee is sincere in executing devotional service to the Supreme Lord but do not know how to engage in the process, the directions come from within… from the Paramatma. When Dhruva Maharaja went to the forest at the young age of five to attain Visnu, he did not know how to perform tapasya (penance and austerities). The Supreme Lord then directed his dear disciple Narada to go to Dhruva Maharaja to teach him the necessary process.

BG 10.10: To those who are constantly devoted to serving Me with love, I give the understanding by which they can come to Me.

BG 15.15: I am seated in everyone’s heart, and from Me come remembrance, knowledge and forgetfulness. By all the Vedas, I am to be known. Indeed, I am the compiler of Vedānta, and I am the knower of the Vedas.

The Supreme Lord is situated as Paramātmā in everyone’s heart, and it is from Him that all activities are initiated. Brahmā’s enlightenment in knowledge was due to the Lord sitting within his heart. After being created, Brahmā could not ascertain the source of his appearance, but after penance and mental concentration he could see the source of his birth, and thus he became enlightened through his heart. The spiritual master outside and the spiritual master within are both representations of the Lord.

The Supreme Lord can be experienced only by His causeless mercy, not by mental speculation or with the help of the material senses. Such mercy is bestowed upon the Lord’s pure devotees like Brahma and those in his disciplic succession. Any person authorized by either the Lord or by His bona fide representative is already blessed, as is the work entrusted to him. Of course, the person entrusted with such a responsibility should always be aware of his incapability and must always look for the mercy of the Lord for the successful execution of his duty. One should not be puffed up because he is entrusted with certain executive work.

The conclusion of my understanding is that the degree of instructions we received from the Lord in our heart is proportional to the degree of our surrender to the Lord, and penance and austerity performed to please the Lord.

ye yatha mam prapadyante tams tathaiva bhajamy aham

BG 4.11: All of them—as they surrender unto Me—I reward accordingly. Everyone follows My path in all respects, O son of Prtha.

The best penance and austerity we can perform in this age is waking up very early in the morning (brahma-muhurta) and chanting our stipulated 16 rounds of the Hare Krsna maha mantra. This is the special mercy of Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu.

All glories to Srila Prabhupada!

Hare Krsna,

In this lesson, my meditation topics are verse 22 to 25. A short essence of these verses and my realizations are below. In these verses, Lord Brahma ends his prayers with specific requests to the Lord.

SB 3.9.22: Empower me: You, endowed with six opulences, are the friend and maintainer of all (samasta-jagatam suhrd). Please empower me, with the introspection to create, for I am also one of the surrendered souls (pranata).

Practical lessons:

Whenever we are executing any service for the Lord, we should beg the Lord for empowerment and blessings. If we do not know what service we can perform for the Lord, we can simply pray to the Lord for engaging us in His services and to empower us accordingly.  The mahamantra that we chant everyday is, in essence, a prayer to the Lord to engage us in His services. Lord Brahma, despite being so elevated and learned, is still requesting the Lord for empowerment. This should be our mood as well. We should always think that we are insignificant and incapable. We should beg the mercy of the Lord to help us.

SB 3.9.23: Protect me from false ego: You are the benefactor of surrendered souls. When I create this universe endowed with Your power, I wish to not be materially affected by my works and able to give up the false prestige to being the creator.

Practical lessons:

Once the Lord engages us in His services, we should not be unnecessarily proud and attached to our works. Our mood should be like that of a bank cashier who handles the money of the bank but is not attached to the money. He is just doing his duty on behalf of the bank. Similarly we should not think that we are the doer. Rather we should be grateful that the Lord is executing His services and mission through us. Hence the Supreme Lord is the supreme doer and enjoyer. All the results of the work should be offered to Him for His pleasure. We just have to work sincerely as a humble servant.

SB 3.9.24: Save me from deviation: In the course of manifesting Your diverse energies in the form of the cosmic manifestation, may I not be deviated from the vibration of the Vedic hymns.

Practical lessons:

This is another important lesson. Just as Lord Brahma is praying not to be deviated from the vibration of the Vedic hymns, similarly we should never forget our chanting and hearing despite being busy in performing other limbs of devotional services. Chanting is the most important limb of bhakti in this Age. Hence no matter where we are and how busy we are, we should always chant the Holy Name of the Lord. Kirtaniya sada harih.

SB 3.9.25: Please wake up: May the Lord who is the Supreme, the oldest and unlimitedly merciful, smilingly bestow His benediction by opening His lotus eyes. He can uplift the entire cosmic creation and dispel my sorrow by speaking His sweet directions.

Practical lessons:

We should always beg for the mercy of the Lord and His devotees. Once we have attained a certain proficiency in Lord’s service, we should not be puffed up. We must always pray for His mercy so that we stay humble and eager to perform more services for the pleasure of the Lord and His devotees.

Thus, these four concluding prayers by Lord Brahma has lots of practical applications for sadhakas like us.

All glories to Srila Prabhupada!

 Hare Krsna,

In this lesson, I chose to meditate upon verse 15 as it described the glories of the Holy Name.

SB 3.9.15: Let me take shelter of the lotus feet of Him whose incarnations, qualities and activities are mysterious imitations of worldly affairs. One who invokes His transcendental names, even unconsciously, at the time he quits this life, is certainly washed immediately of the sins of many, many births and attains Him without fail.

The Holy Name of the Lord is so powerful and potent that by chanting it even unconsciously one can be delivered. Ajāmila remembered the holy name of the Lord, Nārāyaṇa, by merely calling the name of his son Nārāyaṇa, and that gave him a complete opportunity to achieve the highest perfection of life.

The highest perfection of human life, achieved either by complete knowledge or matter and spirit, by practice of mystic powers, or by perfect discharge of occupational duty, is to remember the Personality of Godhead at the end of life. (SB 2.1.6)

O Kind, constant chanting of the Holy Name of the Lord after the ways of the great authorities is the doubtless and fearless way of success for all, including those who are free from all material desires, those who are desirous of all material enjoyment, and also those who are self-satisfied by dint of transcendental knowledge. (SB 2.1.11)

O King, it is therefore essential that human beings hear about, glorify and remember the Supreme Lord, the Personality of Godhead always and everywhere. (SB 2.2.36)

Chanting of the Holy Name of the Lord is so simple and effective in this age of Kali that it is astonishing less intelligent people do not want to take it up seriously.

“Absolute devotional service, conducted in nine different spiritual activities — hearing, chanting, remembering, worshiping, praying, etc. — does not always appeal to people with a pompous nature; they are more attracted by the Vedic superficial rituals and other costly performances of social religious shows.” (SB 3.9.13 P)

Therefore the Lord is very merciful to His pure devotees who are engaged in missionary work of engaging the non-devotees in devotional service to the Lord that also includes hearing and chanting of the Lord.

Considering that we will be celebrating Sri Gaura Purnima in 2 days, I want to remember repeatedly the causeless mercy of Lord Caitanya who appeared on this planet to propagate the congregational chanting of the Holy Name.

“The Lord is unmindful of the nondevotees, although He is sitting within everyone’s heart as well-wisher and Supersoul. However, He also gives them the chance to receive His mercy through His pure devotees who are engaged in missionary activities. Sometimes the Lord Himself descends for missionary activities, as He did in the form of Lord Caitanya, but mostly He sends His bona fide representatives, and thus He shows His causeless mercy towards the nondevotees. The Lord is so satisfied with His pure devotees that He wants to give them the credit for missionary success, although He could do the work personally.” (SB 3.9.12 P)

In the above purport, it is said that the Lord is so satisfied with His pure devotees that He wants to give them the credit for missionary success. One such pure devotee who has been extremely successful in Lord Caitanya’s missionary mission is our very dear Srila Prabhupada. The Lord left it for his dearest servant (Srila Prabhupada) to preach the Holy Name of the world all over the world. It all started with the public harinama at Thompkins Square Park on the summer of 1966.  We are all congregated here because of the causeless mercy of His Divine Grace Srila Prabhupada.

All glories to Srila Prabhupada! All glories to Sri Sri Gaura Nitai!

Hare Krsna,

I have been meditating on the first three verses of Lord Brahma’s prayers:

SB 3.9.1: Lord Brahmā said: O my Lord, today, after many, many years of penance, I have come to know about You. Oh, how unfortunate the embodied living entities are that they are unable to know Your personality! My Lord, You are the only knowable object because there is nothing supreme beyond You. If there is anything supposedly superior to You, it is not the Absolute. You exist as the Supreme by exhibiting the creative energy of matter.

SB 3.9.2: The form which I see is eternally freed from material contamination and has advented to show mercy to the devotees as a manifestation of internal potency. This incarnation is the origin of many other incarnations, and I am born from the lotus flower grown from Your navel home.

SB 3.9.3: O my Lord, I do not see a form superior to Your present form of eternal bliss and knowledge. In Your impersonal Brahman effulgence in the spiritual sky, there is no occasional change and no deterioration of internal potency. I surrender unto You because whereas I am proud of my material body and senses, Your Lordship is the cause of the cosmic manifestation and yet You are untouched by matter.

I could see that these verses have similarities with the very first verse of SB – SB 1.1.1 – janmady asya yatah as described below:

My Lord, You are the only knowable object because there is nothing supreme beyond You.

• He is directly and indirectly conscious of all manifestations, and He is independent because there is no other cause beyond Him. (SB 1.1.1)

The form which I see is eternally freed from material contamination

• I therefore meditate upon Him, Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa, who is eternally existent in the transcendental abode, which is forever free from the illusory representations of the material world. (SB 1.1.1)

Your Lordship is the cause of the cosmic manifestation and yet You are untouched by matter.

• He is the Absolute Truth and the primeval cause of all causes of the creation, sustenance and destruction of the manifested universes. He is directly and indirectly conscious of all manifestations, and He is independent because there is no other cause beyond Him. (SB 1.1.1)

If there is anything supposedly superior to You, it is not the Absolute.

• I meditate upon Him, for He is the Absolute Truth. (SB 1.1.1)

The key lessons for me from this lesson are:

1. The Lord’s illusory energy is extremely captivating. It is not only captivating but also distracting from our goal of Krsna consciousness. Lord. Under illusion, the general mass of people deny the existence of the Supreme Lord and accept the foolish products of illusory energy as supreme.
2. The Supreme Lord can be known only by His mercy invoked by sincere devotional service unto Him practiced in accordance with the teachings of disciplic succession.
3. Penance and austerities are important and fruitful as long as they are practiced to satisfy the Supreme Lord. By acts of penance only was Lord Brahmā able to see the Garbhodakaśāyī Viṣṇu, and by realization only could he understand the Lord as He is.
4. Human life is wasted if it is not used to realize the Supreme Absolute Truth (srama eva hi kevalam). It is imperative that every human being try for such knowledge, and if anyone does not do so, his life is spoiled.
5. The easiest way to understand the Supreme Lord is by approaching His pure devotees who always have the Lord in their hearts.
6. We can revive our eternal relationship with the Lord by the process of devotional service. The relationship of the pure devotees with the Lord develops because of devotional service to the Lord on the authentic basis of Vedic authority.
7. This highest stage of relationship with the Lord can be attained simply by hearing about Him (His name, form, quality, etc.) from authentic sources like Bhagavad-gītā and Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, recited by pure, unalloyed devotees of the Lord.
8. Simply by chanting and hearing the glories and pastimes of the Lord, one can obtain total freedom from the cares and anxieties of material existence.

All glories to Srila Prabhupada!

Hare Krsna,

The Supreme Personality of Godhead, Sri Krsna cannot be understood by one’s material endeavor. Srila Prabhupada loves to quote that there are some froggish philosophers who want to know the Supreme Soul by means of philosophy and mental speculation. These philosophers, like the frog in the well who tried to estimate the measurement of the Pacific Ocean, like to take trouble over fruitless mental speculation instead of taking instructions from devotees like the original poet, namely Brahmā. Lord Brahmā underwent a severe type of meditation for one thousand celestial years, yet he said that the glories of the Lord are inconceivable.

On the other hand, the devotees do not waste time in such vain searching after knowledge of the Supreme, but they submissively hear the glories of the Lord from bona fide devotees. Thus they transcendentally enjoy the process of hearing and chanting.

In the sixth chapter, we have studied that the pure devotees of the Lord take shelter of the parā prakṛti, the internal potency of the Lord called Lakṣmīdevī, Sītādevī, Śrīmatī Rādhārāṇī or Śrīmatī Rukmiṇīdevī, and thus they become actual mahātmās, or great souls. Mahātmās are not fond of indulging in mental speculations, but they actually take to the devotional service of the Lord, without the slightest deviation. Devotional service is manifested by the primary process of hearing and chanting about the activities of the Lord. This transcendental method practiced by the mahātmās gives them sufficient knowledge of the Lord because if the Lord can at all be known to some extent, it is only through the means of devotional service and no other way.

In a verse right before the Catuh sloki verses (Canto 2 Chapter 9), the Supreme Lord said to Brahma:

“Knowledge about Me as described in the scriptures is very confidential, and it has to be realized in conjunction with devotional service. The necessary paraphernalia for that process is being explained by Me. You may take it up carefully.”

Right here the Supreme Lord revealed how He can be realized and understood – the process is devotional service. Lord Krsna also revealed the same message to Arjuna in Bhagavad Gita (18.55) – bhaktya mam abhijanati.

“One can understand the Supreme Personality as He is only by devotional service. And when one is in full consciousness of the Supreme Lord by such devotion, he can enter into the kingdom of God.”

I personally have realized that by the simple process of hearing and chanting, my understanding of the Supreme Lord increases day by day. I am not even at the stage of pure chanter. Imagine how much revelation there would be when I would be able to chant the Holy Name offenselessly and hear about the Lord in rapt attention. This is the most confidential formula. Why would anyone want to waste time in useless mental speculation like the froggish philosophers? The Supreme Lord is a person and exists within everyone of us. He has given us scriptures that describes everything about Him. He sends us His pure devotees and bonafide representatives from time to time to reveal about Him. What is the need to go elsewhere to understand the Supreme Lord?

When the Lord sees that we are eager to know Him and engage sincerely in His devotional service, the Lord Himself enlightens us.

BG 10.10 – 11

teṣāṁ satata-yuktānāṁ

bhajatāṁ prīti-pūrvakam

dadāmi buddhi-yogaṁ taṁ

yena mām upayānti te

“To those who are constantly devoted to serving Me with love, I give the understanding by which they can come to Me.”

teṣām evānukampārtham

aham ajñāna-jaṁ tamaḥ

nāśayāmy ātma-bhāva-stho

jñāna-dīpena bhāsvatā

“To show them special mercy, I, dwelling in their hearts, destroy with the shining lamp of knowledge the darkness born of ignorance.”

In conclusion, devotional service to the Lord through the process of hearing and chanting is the only process to attain ultimate realization of the Supreme Lord.

All glories to Srila Prabhupada!

Hare Krsna,

The importance of receiving knowledge through the parampara (disciplic succession) system is cited repeatedly in our Gaudiya Vaisanava sampradaya. Srimad Bhagavatam is a collection of conversations spoken by pure-hearted devotees like Sukadeva Goswami and Pariksit Maharaja, Suta Goswami and Saunakadi Rsis, Maitreya and Vidura, etc. Along with the contents of these conversations, it’s a great learning experience to look at the wonderful mood and attitude of the speakers and hearers, and the consciousness in which they discuss hari-katha. A speaker of Srimad Bhagavatam must be authoritative and competent in conveying its real meaning, having personally realized the subject matter. To receive this Vedic knowledge, one must approach a spiritual master with submission, inquire in a humble mood and hear the explanations attentively.

In this lesson, we have seen Maitreya Rsi narrating the topics of Srimad Bhagavatam to Vidura with relish. Maitreya felt happy to have such glorious company as Vidura. He considered the company of Vidura most desirable because such association can accelerate one’s dormant propensities for devotional service. Similarly Sanat-kumara and the sages from the higher planets also heard Srimad Bhagavatam from Sankarsana. This is the way of the paramparā system. Although Sanat-kumāra, the well-known great saintly Kumāra, was in the perfect stage of life, still he heard the message of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam from Lord Saṅkarṣaṇa.

This means that Srimad Bhagavatam is so relishable that both the hearers and speaker want to relish it again and again.

SB 1.1.3: O expert and thoughtful men, relish Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, the mature fruit of the desire tree of Vedic literatures. It emanated from the lips of Śrī Śukadeva Gosvāmī. Therefore this fruit has become even more tasteful, although its nectarean juice was already relishable for all, including liberated souls.

“By submissively hearing this transcendental literature, one can attain the full pleasure of his heart’s desire. But one must be very careful to hear the message from the right source. Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam is exactly received from the right source. It was brought by Nārada Muni from the spiritual world and given to his disciple Śrī Vyāsadeva. The latter in turn delivered the message to his son Śrīla Śukadeva Gosvāmī, and Śrīla Śukadeva Gosvāmī delivered the message to Mahārāja Parīkṣit just seven days before the King’s death.” (SB 1.1.3 P)

The ripened fruit of Srimad Bhagavatam has come down carefully through the chain of disciplic succession without change or disturbance. Therefore, we must be very eager to hear and discuss the topics of Srimad Bhagavatam in the association of sincere devotees who follow disciplic succession strictly. Only pure devotees can churn the nectar out of Srimad Bhagavatam. Our life become successful and perfect when we come in contact with the book Bhāgavatam as well as with the devotee bhāgavata, who knows what the Bhāgavatam. We are extremely fortunate to receive Srimad Bhagavatam from a maha-bhagavata – our dearest Srila Prabhupada. It is a pleasure to read the translation and purports of His Divine Grace who came in perfect disciplic succession. Personally, I can say my heart and life has been transformed by coming in contact with Srimad Bhagavatam by His Divine Grace.

It’s a pleasure and good fortune to study Srimad Bhagavatam in this forum.

All glories to Srila Prabhupada!

Hare Krsna,

I was going through the set of questions asked my both Vidura (to Rsi Maitreya) and Pariksit Maharaja (to Sukadeva Goswami). What is common in these sets of questions is that both the inquirers did not ask about the confidential pastimes of the Lord. They first enquired about the Lord’s material and spiritual world and energies. Even in the prelude to Catuh Sloki verses (SB 2.9), we see that the Lord Brahma asked the following questions to the Supreme Lord:

1. Please tell me about Your material and spiritual forms.
2. How are the various spiritual and material energies of the Lord working?
3. What are the Lord’s activities in relation to His material and spiritual energies?

Lord Brahma did not ask questions about the 10^th canto pastimes of the Lord. Rather he is more interested to know about the creation of the universe. Similarly, Saint Vidura and Pariksit Maharaja desired to understand the Lord’s form, qualities, creation/abode, activities, etc.

In 2^nd Canto in the section of the vira-rupa description of the Lord, it is recommended that for those human beings who have a difficulty in meditation on the personal aspect of the Lord (due to contamination in their hearts), meditation on virat-rupa form of the Lord is recommended. This meditation will gradually cleanse the dirty things from their hearts in order to become qualified to actually see the transcendental form of the Lord in the near future.

It is impossible for anyone to fully understand the Supreme Lord. Being the Supreme, His magnanimity cannot be surpassed by our limited intellect. Therefore, in various scriptures the aisvarya (opulence) aspect of the Lord is always presented before one can truly appreciate the madhurya (sweetness) aspect of the Lord’s nature. The first nine cantos help one to know the amazing omnipotence of the Lord before entering into his confidential madhurya pastimes found in the tenth canto.

To set an example for us, Vidura and Pariksit Maharaja asked their questions in relation to the opulence aspect of the Lord first. Mahārāja Parīkṣit and Vidura intelligently put questions before their spiritual master for scientific understanding of the transcendental body of the Lord. This teaches us that we should not jump to the confidential topics of the Lord without having a good understanding of the Lord’s supremacy and magnanimity. In order words, we must understand the science of the Supreme Personality of Godhead through a good study of scriptures such as Bhagavad Gita and Srimad Bhagavatam.

“Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam is the science of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, and as such, all questions that may arise in the mind of a serious student must be cleared by the statements of the authority. Mahārāja Parīkṣit, being a typical devotee, is not only satisfied by confirming the importance of hearing the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam from the representative of Brahmājī by disciplic succession, but he is still more anxious to establish the philosophical basis of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam. A person on the path of devotional service may inquire from his spiritual master all about the spiritual position of God and the living beings. From the Bhagavad-gītā, as well as from the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, it is known that qualitatively the Lord and the living beings are one. The living being in the conditioned state of material existence is subjected to many transmigrations by continuous changing of the material body. But what are the causes of the material embodiment of the part and parcel of the Lord? Mahārāja Parīkṣit inquires about this very important matter for the benefit of all classes of candidates on the path of self-realization and devotional service to the Lord.” (SB 2.8.7 Purport)

In the process of devotional service, the first step is to take shelter of the spiritual master and then inquire from the spiritual master all about the process. This inquiry is essential for immunity to all kinds of offenses on the path of devotional service. Even if one is fixed in devotional service like Mahārāja Parīkṣit, he must still inquire from the realized spiritual master all about this. In other words, the spiritual master must also be well versed and learned so that he may be able to answer all these inquiries from the devotees. (SB 2.8.7 Purport)

All glories to Srila Prabhupada!

Hare Krsna,

Upon taking a “small step” onto the surface of the moon in 1969, Neil Armstrong uttered what would become one of history’s most famous one-liners. “That’s one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind.“

Similarly, a jiva makes one “small (mis)step” i.e., it misuses its free-will and chooses to lord it over the material nature rather than serve the Supreme Lord – the supreme proprietor of everything. A jiva makes one mistake and thus has to undergo countless lifetimes of sufferings and misery. One small (mis)step for man, one giant suffering for mankind.

As a suffering jiva, I have asked myself several times – Why did I misuse my freewill? What is it about the material nature that attracted me more than the sweet loving exchange with my Lord? Realizing that I have made this mistake, why is it so difficult to rectify my mistake and return to Krsna? Why is it so hard to become completely purified of all material contamination? Why is it so hard to get out of the entanglement of the illusory energy of the Lord? How many more lifetimes do I have to go through these sufferings?

Maitreya Muni reasons that the living entity is in distress regarding his self-identity. He has not factual background, like a man who dreams that he sees his head cut off. As the moon reflected on water appears to the seer to tremble due to being associated with the quality of the water, so the self associated with matter appears to be qualified as matter. (SB 3.7.10-11)

“The pure soul is pure consciousness and is never out of consciousness, either due to circumstances, time, situations, dreams or other causes.” (SB 3.7.5)

Because the living entity decided to serve the illusory energy of the Lord, it appears to be tainted by material qualities like illusion, lamentation and miseries.  Factually the living entity is pure consciousness, but it appears to be contaminated because it identifies with the material qualities. As soon as the living entity realizes that it is not this material body but a spirit soul (an eternal servant of Krsna) his misconception of self-identity will gradually diminish.

The most auspicious and perfect process to come to this realization is devotional service to the Lord.

“But that misconception of self-identity can be diminished gradually by the mercy of the Personality of Godhead, Vāsudeva, through the process of devotional service to the Lord in the mode of detachment.” (SB 3.7.12)

“The quivering quality of material existence, which comes from identification with matter or from thinking oneself, under the material influence of philosophical speculation, to be God, can be eradicated by devotional service to the Lord, by the mercy of the Personality of Godhead, Vāsudeva… Only knowledge in devotional service can elevate one towards the path of liberation… Lord Vāsudeva is pleased by devotional service only, and thus His mercy is realized by association with pure devotees of the Lord. Pure devotees of the Lord are transcendental to all material desires, including the desire for the results of fruitive activities and philosophical speculation. If one wants to acquire the mercy of the Lord, he has to associate with pure devotees. Such association alone can, by degrees, release one from the quivering elements.” (SB 3.7.12 Purport)

The clue in the above purport is “pure devotees…”. We need to be pure devotees to completely vanquish our material miseries. The path from being “a devotee” to “a pure devotee” is the toughest one. Alas…that’s where I seem to be stumbling repeatedly.

“The material miseries of the living entity, which are superfluous to him, can be directly mitigated by the linking process of devotional service. But the mass of people do not know this, and therefore the learned Vyāsadeva compiled this Vedic literature, which is in relation to the Supreme Truth.” (SB 1.7.6)

“Simply by chanting and hearing of the transcendental name, form, etc., of the Personality of Godhead, Śrī Kṛṣṇa, one can achieve the cessation of unlimited miserable conditions. Therefore what to speak of those who have attained attraction for serving the flavor of the dust of the Lord’s lotus feet?” (SB 3.7.14)

The great sage Maitreya now gives the final answer to all the questions of Vidura: devotional service to the Lord is the ultimate means to mitigate all the miserable conditions of material existence. (SB 3.7.14 Purport)

All glories to Srila Prabhupada!

Hare Krsna,

Vidura asked the following questions to Maitreya in a pleasing manner.

His first three questions are about the “Isvara.” Vidura asked (I am paraphrasing):

1. How is the Lord who is spiritual, and transcendental be connected with material gunas? How can the Lord who is unchangeable perform actions that indicate change?
2. Children play being impelled by desire. But the Lord is self-satisfied (without desires) and detached? Then why does He create, maintain, and dissolve the universe by His maya-sakti?

Vidura’s next three questions are about the “Jiva.”

• How does the pure soul become engaged in nescience?
• Why does the living entity suffer in spite of the Lord’s presence in his heart?
• My mind is illusioned, and I request you to clear it up?

Vidura’s inquiries about the jiva really resonated with me. It indicates the principle of “athato brahma jijnasa.” As a suffering and conditioned soul, I have asked these questions to myself a number of times. The questions may not have been worded the way Vidura did, but the underlying essence is the same. Questions such as ‘Why am I suffering?’, ‘Why do bad things happen to good people?’, ‘Why am I being punished for crimes/sins I may not have committed?’, ‘If God exists, how can he allow His living entities to suffer so miserably?’, ‘God says He is our father; then how can He see and do anything when His children suffer?” and so on.  

Vidura is a great devotee of the Lord and an expert philosopher. He knows the difference between the spirit soul and the body. Thus his questions pertain more to the spirit soul (unlike my questions that pertain mostly to bodily consciousness). He is asking if the soul is pure, then how can it be covered by ignorance and nescience? If the Lord exists in everyone’s heart as Paramatma, why does the living entity still suffer?

Vidura’s inquiries show his compassionate nature. He is truly concerned about the suffering of the whole humanity. These inquires wouldn’t arise in someone who does not feel pain and distress by the suffering of the conditioned soul. It takes someone with a massive loving and kind heart to inquire such.

In his purports, Srila Prabhupada gives a clue to the reasons the spirit souls are covered in nescience. He comments:

“The conclusion is that the living entity is influenced by the avidyā potency, as confirmed in both the Viṣṇu Purāṇa and the beginning of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam…The jīva potency, or the kṣetrajña-śakti of the Lord, has the tendency to be overpowered by the external potency, avidyā-karma-saṁjñā, and in this way he is placed in the awkward circumstances of material existence. The living entity cannot be forgetful of his real identity unless influenced by the avidyā potency. Because the living entity is prone to the influence of the avidyā potency, he can never equal the supreme potent.” (SB 3.7.5 P)

“From another point of view, it is understood that the jīva living entity is qualitatively one with the Lord, and thus his knowledge in the pure state of life cannot be covered by nescience, especially in the presence of the Supreme Lord. How then does the living entity become subjected to ignorance and covered by the influence of māyā? The Lord is the father and protector of every living entity, and He is known as the bhūta-bhṛt, or the maintainer of the living entities. Why then should the living entity be subjected to so many sufferings and misfortunes? It should not be so, but actually we see that it happens everywhere. This question is therefore put forward by Vidura for solution.” (SB 3.7.6 P)

I am eager to hear Maitreya Rsi’s answers and how he dispels all misconceptions about isvara and jivas. I also look forward to hearing his recommended solution to get out of nescience.

All glories to Srila Prabhupada!