Hare Krsna,

In the Bhakti-rasāmṛta-sindhu, the word dainya (humility) is explained as follows: “When unhappiness, fearfulness and the sense of having offended combine, one feels condemned. This sense of condemnation is described as dīnatā, humility. When one is subjected to such humility, he feels physically inactive, he apologizes, and his consciousness is disturbed. His mind is also restless, and many other symptoms are visible.” (Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Madhya-līlā 2.35)

We can see the same symptoms in Lord Brahma. Because he stole Krsna’s calves and cowherd friends to rest whether Krsna in His boyhood form is truly the Supreme Personality of Godhead and after realizing Krsna is Himself the Absolute Truth, Brahma felt ashamed and apologetic. A humble soul automatically begs forgiveness for his mistakes or offenses.

We may also have observed this phenomenon in us at times. If we have offended a devotee, even unintentionally, we feel a sense of restlessness and anxiety within us. We lose taste in bhakti. And then we introspect. What did I do wrong? Why am I not getting a taste in chanting or hearing? If we are sincere, the Paramatma within us reminds us what mistake we committed. If we have too much of false ego, we will overlook these subtle signs and will continue as if it is just another bad day. However, if we are truly humble, we will seek forgiveness from the person who may have felt offended by our words or actions. Once forgiven, our taste in bhakti immediately returns. I have experienced this firsthand.

Lord Brahma seeking forgiveness from Lord Krsna is the ideal mood of a humble devotee.

I am especially touched by the way Lord Brahma seeks forgiveness. He tries to invoke the Lord’s vatsalya mood by praying:

“With great pride I think I am Your son (arising from Your navel), but I am blind in all eight eyes. But my pride will be destroyed when the moon of Your mercy shines upon me.” (Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura on Text 10)

Lord Brahmā therefore compared himself to a little child within the womb of his mother. If the child within the womb plays with his hands and legs, and while playing touches the body of the mother, is the mother offended with the child? (Krsna Book 12)

“O Lord Adhokṣaja, does a mother take offense when the child within her womb kicks with his legs? And is there anything in existence—whether designated by various philosophers as real or as unreal—that is actually outside Your abdomen?” (SB 10.14.12)

My dear Lord, it is said that when the three planetary systems are merged into the water at the time of dissolution, Your plenary portion, Nārāyaṇa, lies down on the water, gradually a lotus flower grows from His navel, and Brahmā takes birth upon that lotus flower. Certainly, these words are not false. Thus am I not born from You? (SB 10.14.13)

This set of Lord Brahma’s beautiful prayers teaches us the ACT and ART of seeking forgiveness from a superior.

“The Lord can be pleased only by a humble attitude in the service spirit. The more we render service unto the Lord under the direction of the spiritual master, the more we make advancement on the path approaching the Lord. We cannot demand any grace or mercy from the Lord because of our service rendered to Him. He may accept or not accept our service, but the only means to satisfy the Lord is through the service attitude, and nothing else.” (Krsna Book 58)

Humility is the most precious ornament of a Vaisnava. To remind this to ourselves, we write “Please accept my humble obeisances!” and/or “Your humble servant…”

There are numerous letters of Srila Prabhupada where he repeatedly advised his disciples to be always humble.

“You keep this humble attitude always, and your example will be a source of spiritual inspiration for everyone.” (Letter to Anuttama — Sydney, Australia 12 April, 1972)

“Anyway one quality of a devotee is that he is always very much tolerant of other people, so I request you simply to tolerate the faults of others and always think that I am myself the most faulty. In this way your humble attitude will qualify you to advance very quickly in Krishna Consciousness.“(Letter to Jayarge, Lindon Lomese — Los Angeles 25 May, 1972)

“Your humble attitude is very much appreciated by me. Always chant Hare Krsna and as far as possible help me push on this movement by preaching this philosophy and distributing our books.” (Letter to Karnamrta — Los Angeles 3 December, 1973)

All glories to Srila Prabhupada!

Hare Krsna,

It is a well-established fact that the Supreme Personality of Godhead is not perceivable through the gross material senses. According to Bhakti-rasāmṛta-sindhu 1.2.234, Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa’s name, fame, pastimes, etc., cannot be understood by material senses. Only to one who is engaged in pure devotional service under proper guidance is He revealed.

There are various grades of bhakti. With respect to the context we are discussing in this lesson, two of the varieties of bhakti are Jnana-sunya-bhakti (bhakti free from all speculative knowledge) and Jnana-misra-bhakti (bhakti mixed with speculative knowledge). Out of this two, Jnana-sunya-bhakti is superior to Jnana-misra-bhakti.

This is verified by Śrīla Rūpa Gosvāmī in his Bhakti-rasāmṛta-sindhu (1.1.11):

anyābhilāṣitā–śūnyaṁ jñāna-karmādy-anāvṛtam
ānukūlyena kṛṣṇānu- śīlanaṁ bhaktir uttamā

“One should render transcendental loving service to the Supreme Lord Kṛṣṇa favorably and without desire for material profit or gain through fruitive activities or philosophical speculation. That is called pure devotional service.”

Therefore, one should discard jnana-misra-bhakti and take to jnana-sunya-bhakti. The former cannot lead one to pure love of Godhead. In jnana-sunya-bhakti, there is a complete manifestation of

sambandha-jïäna, or knowledge of one’s relationship with Bhagavän. However, in the path of jnana-misra-bhakti, the jiva simply becomes a dry speculator. Upon the awakening of good fortune, by the influence of the association of pure devotees, one very quickly achieves prema–bhakti. In such a position all obstacles are gradually destroyed.

In relation to jnana-sunya-bhakti, Sri Ramananda Raya quoted the prayer of Lord Brahma (SB 10.14.3)

“My dear Lord, those devotees who have thrown away the impersonal conception of the Absolute Truth and have therefore abandoned discussing empiric philosophical truths should hear from self-realized devotees about Your holy name, form, pastimes and qualities. They should completely follow the principles of devotional service and remain free from illicit sex, gambling, intoxication and animal slaughter. Surrendering themselves fully with body, words and mind, they can live in any āśrama or social status. Indeed, You are conquered by such persons, although You are always unconquerable.”

By presenting this verse from Çrémad-Bhägavatam, Çré Rämänanda Räya has made it totally clear that the sädhaka is able to achieve everything by only hearing hari-kathä from the mouths of the unalloyed devotees. To obtain sambandha, abhidheya, and prayojana (knowledge of the relationship, process, and ultimate goal) rests on the basis of this hari-kathä, which is both the sädhya (goal) and the sadhana (process).

Therefore the key message is that in this Age of Kali Yuga, the best means to attain self-realization is through the process of bhakti beginning with hearing and chanting.

“This age of Kali is not at all suitable for self-realization by the methods practiced in Satya-yuga, the golden age, or Tretā– or Dvāpara-yugas, the silver and copper ages. For self-realization, the people in Satya-yuga, living a lifetime of a hundred thousand years, were able to perform prolonged meditation. And in Tretā-yuga, when the duration of life was ten thousand years, self-realization was attained by performance of great sacrifice. And in the Dvāpara-yuga, when the duration of life was one thousand years, self-realization was attained by worship of the Lord. But in the Kali-yuga, the maximum duration of life being one hundred years only and that combined with various difficulties, the recommended process of self-realization is that of hearing and chanting of the holy name, fame, and pastimes of the Lord.” (SB 1.1.21, Purport)

Just by thirstily endeavoring to hear the topics of Sré Kåñëa (hari-kathä), a person is not merely liberated, but he subjugates the Supreme Lord. If someone tries to obtain jnana alone, then just like a person threshing empty husks of rice, he achieves nothing.

“My dear Lord, devotional service unto You is the best path for self-realization. If someone gives up that path and engages in the cultivation of speculative knowledge, he will simply undergo a troublesome process and will not achieve his desired result. As a person who beats an empty husk of wheat cannot get grain, one who simply speculates cannot achieve self-realization. His only gain is trouble.” (SB 10.14.4)

I think it may be fair to say that say that this jïäna-çünyä-bhakti is one of the milestone on the path to attain prema-bhakti (as elucidated by Sri Ramananda Raya in his conversation with Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu). Real success lies in hearing and chanting the sweet name, form, qualities and pastimes of the Supreme Lord in the association of like-minded and serious devotees – as we are engaging here in this Sadhu Sanga course.

All glories to Srila Prabhupada!

Hare Krsna,

This is such a sweet pastime for meditation on Krsna’s sweetness and opulence. One may be tempted to think that Krsna is upset with Lord Brahma for having stolen His cowherd friends and calves. But here we see a sweet exchange of love between the two. It takes lots of mercy, good fortune, and bhakti to be able to see Ktsna’s original two-handed form as a young boy – His svayam-rupa sac-cid-ananda form – the source of all forms of eternity, knowledge and bliss. That Lord Brahma could see such a form reveals Krsna being pleased with Brahma’s devotion.

Brahma said, “My dear Vasudeva! You are the source of countless forms, and are the only worshipable Lord. You are glorified by everyone in the universe from me down to the grass. In order to attain You, I offer these praises unto You. Or, simply to please You, I glorify You in verse. Your transcendental body, dark blue like a fresh rain cloud, is wrapped in a garment more brilliant than lightning.” (SVT commentary)

This pastime between Lord Krsna and Lord Brahma is so special that even Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu quotes this prayer of Lord Brahma in His conversation with Srila Sanatana Goswami (CC Madhya Chapter 21). The chapter is titled – The Opulence and Sweetness of Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa. As described by Mahaprabhu in that chapter, Kṛṣṇa had unlimited calves and cowherd boys with Him. No one could count their actual number. Each of the cowherd boys was tending calves to the extent of a koṭi, arbuda, śaṅkha and padma. That is the way of counting. All the cowherd boys had unlimited calves. Similarly, their canes, flutes, lotus flowers, horns, garments and ornaments were all unlimited. They cannot be limited by writing about them. The cowherd boys then became four-handed Nārāyaṇas, predominating Deities of Vaikuṇṭha planets. All the separate Brahmās from different universes began to offer their prayers unto the Lords. All these transcendental bodies emanated from the body of Kṛṣṇa, and within a second They all entered again into His body. When the Lord Brahmā from this universe saw this pastime, he was astonished and struck with wonder. After offering his prayers, he gave the following conclusion.”

Lord Brahma prayed: “If someone says that he knows everything about Kṛṣṇa’s opulence, let him think that way. But as far as I am concerned, with my body and mind I consider it in this way. My Lord, Your opulence is like an unlimited ocean of nectar, and it is verbally and mentally impossible for me to realize even a drop of that ocean. There are people who say, “I know everything about Kṛṣṇa.” Let them think that way. As far as I am concerned, I do not wish to speak very much about this matter. O my Lord, let me say this much. As far as Your opulences are concerned, they are all beyond the reach of my mind, body and words.” (CC Madhya 21.25-27)

These prayers of Lord Brahma’s will appear later in this chapter of Srimad Bhagavatam.

The key lesson I take away from this study is that it is almost impossible to understand Krsna’s personal form – as experienced by Lord Brahma himself. Lord Brahma says that his mind is completely withdrawn from material affairs, but still, he cannot understand the Lord’s personal form. What to speak of understanding the happiness He experiences within Himself?

[Side note: I can see this realization of Lord Brahma about Krsna’s experiencing His own happiness leads to the appearance of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu in the next yuga.]

Krsna’s name, form, pastimes, abode, paraphernalia and even His devotees can be understood only by pure devotional service.

“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.” (BG 18.55)

I can only endeavor to engage in pure devotional service unto sweet Lord Ktsna. And it is upto Him to mercifully reveal His name, form, pastimes, etc. as he revealed to Lord Brahma. We just have to offer prayers of surrender to the Lord as Lord Brahma did.

All glories to Srila Prabhupada!

Hare Krsna,

The Absolute Truth always remains the Absolute Truth irrespective of form, place, time, and circumstances. When Krsna appeared as a child with four arms to Devaki and Vasudeva, He was still the same Absolute Truth. When Krsna was caught stealing butter and bound up by Mother Yasoda, He was still the same Absolute Truth. When Krsna appeared in lower forms such as tortoise and hog, He was still the same Absolute Truth. When Krsna became a charioteer of Arjuna, He was still the same Absolute Truth. When Krsna appeared as Lord Rama and associated with monkey soldiers, He was still the same Absolute Truth. When Krsna appeared as a devotee (Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu), He was still the same Absolute Truth. Similarly, when Krsna assumed the role of a child in a family of cowherd men and standing all alone, just as before, with a morsel of food in His hand, searching everywhere for the calves and His cowherd friends., He was still the same Absolute Truth.

The Absolute Truth taking up any other form still remains the Absolute Truth without a second. Why? It is the oṁ pūrṇam adaḥ pūrṇam idaṁ principle.

Sri Isopanisad Invocation: “The Personality of Godhead is perfect and complete, and because He is completely perfect, all emanations from Him, such as this phenomenal world, are perfectly equipped as complete wholes. Whatever is produced of the Complete Whole is also complete in itself. Because He is the Complete Whole, even though so many complete units emanate from Him, He remains the complete balance.”

The Supreme Personality of Godhead remains as He is, never changing. He is complete.  Even if a complete manifestation is taken away from Him, He continues to be complete. The material creation is manifested by the energy of the Lord, but He is still the same person. His form, entourage, qualities and so on never deteriorate.

Śrīla Jīva Gosvāmī, in his Paramātma-sandarbha, comments regarding the vivarta-vāda as follows: “Under the spell of vivarta-vāda one imagines the separate entities, namely the cosmic manifestation and the living entities, to be one with Brahman. This is due to complete ignorance regarding the actual fact. The Absolute Truth, or Parabrahman, is always one and always the same. He is completely free from all other conceptions of existence. He is completely free from false ego, for He is the full spiritual identity. It is absolutely impossible for Him to be subjected to ignorance and fall under the spell of a misconception (vivarta-vāda). The Absolute Truth is beyond our conception. One must admit that He has unblemished qualities that He does not share with every living entity. He is never tainted in the slightest degree by the flaws of ordinary living beings. Everyone must therefore understand the Absolute Truth to possess inconceivable potencies.” (CC Adi 7.122 Purport)

Brahma could understand that although Kṛṣṇa was not demonstrating His power, He was the same Supreme Person. Although Kṛṣṇa did not manifest anything wonderful, Brahmā could understand that the same wonderful person was present like an ordinary child, although He was the master of the whole creation.

Srila Prabhupada tries to tell us that we should not act like material scientists and try to understand the Absolute Truth with our limited intelligence. Brahma tried to test Krsna and failed miserably. Kṛṣṇa’s intelligence resembles the ocean, for one cannot imagine how vast it is. The best course, therefore, is to surrender to Kṛṣṇa.

On another note, I was reflecting on the govindam ādi-puruṣaṁ prayer. Srila Prabhupada mentions in the purport: “Thus Brahmā prayed, govindam ādi-puruṣaṁ tam ahaṁ bhajāmi: “You are the original person, the cause of everything. I bow down to You.” This was his realization. Tam ahaṁ bhajāmi. This is what is wanted.”

For a second, I was wondering whether Brahma composed the Brahma-samhita prayers in that specific pastime with Krsna in Vrndavana. Then I realized that he actually composed them at the beginning of creation. Srila Prabhupada was mentioning it here as a case in point to highlight Brahma’s realization about the Absolute Truth.

The key takeaway is that instead of getting into all technicalities about the Absolute Truth, it is better to simply surrender unto Him. That would be the most intelligent thing to do.

śrutim apare smṛtim itare

bhāratam anye bhajantu bhava-bhītāḥ

aham iha nandaṁ vande

yasyālinde paraṁ brahma

“Let others study the Vedas, smṛti and Mahābhārata, fearing material existence, but I shall worship Nanda Mahārāja, in whose courtyard is crawling the Supreme Brahman. Nanda Mahārāja is so great that the Parabrahman is crawling in his yard, and therefore I shall worship him.” (Padyāvalī 126)

What a beautiful prayer!

Let us also try to offer prayers to that beautiful son of Nanda Maharaja with great humility, respect, attention and love.

All glories to Srila Prabhupada!

Hare Krsna,

It is good to review the basics sometimes – Avaroha-pantha and Aroha-pantha.

Modern science has very limited understanding of the first two of the five subjects of Bhagavad-Gita (Isvara and Jiva) and even more limited and imperfect understanding of the last three subjects (Prakrti, Kala and Karma). This is because the very process of acquiring knowledge that is follows is defective. It is called the ascending or inductive process (aroha-pantha). The inductive or ascending process means to not accept any authority and to try to find our truth by one’s own endeavor and speculation. A popular example is if someone wants to find out who his father is, and if he tries to do it by research and experimentation, by surveying the male population, that is inductive process. Another example is when told that ‘Man is mortal’, if someone wants to research and verify this statement, that is again, the inductive process.

As opposed to the inductive or ascending process is the deductive or descending process (avaroha-pantha). This means to accept a bonafide authority and learn the truth by inquiring from that authority. To go back to the earlier example of who one’s father is, the simple way is to ask one’s mother. The power of her authority in terms of reliability of information is greater than all sources of evidence. This is the deductive process. Similarly when told that ‘man is mortal’, we accept it. We do not experiment unnecessarily. The inductive process is always fraught with uncertainty and inaccuracy. Scriptures like the Bhagavad-Gita are the perfect authority from which we can acquire perfect knowledge, because they are the word of God. This is the simple and straightforward method to obtain true knowledge.

The Vedas say that there are basically three kinds of ‘proof’. The Sanskrit word for ‘proof’ or ‘evidence’ is ‘pramana’. The three kinds of Pramana are: pratyaksa Pramana (knowledge obtained by direct perception through our senses), anumana Pramana (knowledge arrived by making hypothesis or inference), and sabda Pramana (knowledge or evidence obtained by hearing from a bonafide authority). Among these three kinds of evidence or sources of knowledge, “Sadba Pramana” is the best because it is authorized, reliable, free from defects and capable of revealing the Absolute Truth.

“Therefore one must accept the paramparā system. And the best paramparā is that which extends from Kṛṣṇa (evaṁ paramparā-prāptam). What Kṛṣṇa says, we should accept (imaṁ rājarṣayo viduḥ). This is called the avaroha-panthā.”

“Brahmā, however, adopted the āroha-panthā. He wanted to understand Kṛṣṇa’s mystic power by his own limited, conceivable power, and therefore he himself was mystified. Everyone wants to take pleasure in his own knowledge, thinking, “I know something.” But in the presence of Kṛṣṇa this conception cannot stand, for one cannot bring Kṛṣṇa within the limitations of prakṛti. One must submit. There is no alternative. Na tāṁs tarkeṇa yojayet. This submission marks the difference between Kṛṣṇa-ites and Māyāvādīs.” (SB 10.13.57 Purport)

Another important point from Srila Prabhupada’s purport is about the pitfalls of arguing. He says that if one argues, for him the knowledge is lost. Recently I was studying Sri Caitanya Caritamrta, Madhya lila, Chapter 8 – Talks Between Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu and Rāmānanda Rāya. At the end of this beautiful (but highly esoteric) chapter, the author Krsnadas Kaviraj Goswami writes in Phala-sruti:

“The author requests every reader to hear these talks with faith and without argument. By studying them in this way, one will be able to understand the confidential truth of Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu. This part of Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu’s pastimes is most confidential. One can derive benefit quickly only by faith; otherwise, by arguing one will always remain far away.”  (CC Madhya 8.308-309)

Here also it is recommended that we accept transcendental knowledge without argument. We can make inquiries and express our doubts sincerely and with faith. But unnecessary arguments, instead of revealing, hide the true knowledge.

All glories to Srila Prabhupada!

Hare Krsna,

SB 10.13.54: The viṣṇu-mūrtis all had eternal, unlimited forms, full of knowledge and bliss and existing beyond the influence of time. Their great glory was not even to be touched by the jñānīs engaged in studying the Upaniṣads.

I was wondering why the cowherd boys appeared as Visnu-murti forms to Lord Brahma. We know they are expansions of Krsna. Krsna expanded as the cowherd boys and calves. Why did Krsna manifest them as four-handed Visnu form and not self-same two-handed form of Krsna? What is the lesson that Ktsna is trying to teach us through this manifestation? I had to read Srila Prabhupada’s purport again and again to understand the deeper meaning. I even had to go back to the previous texts and purport to find the answer.

I think I found the answer in text 19.

SB 10.13.19: By His Vāsudeva feature, Kṛṣṇa simultaneously expanded Himself into the exact number of missing cowherd boys and calves, with their exact bodily features, their particular types of hands, legs and other limbs, their sticks, bugles and flutes, their lunch bags, their particular types of dress and ornaments placed in various ways, their names, ages and forms, and their special activities and characteristics. By expanding Himself in this way, beautiful Kṛṣṇa proved the statement samagra-jagad viṣṇumayam: “Lord Viṣṇu is all-pervading.”

There lies the answer. By expanding Himself in this way, beautiful Kṛṣṇa proved the statement samagra-jagad viṣṇumayam: “Lord Viṣṇu is all-pervading.”

Now the purport and the acarya commentaries on verse 54 makes sense.

Brahma Samhita 5.33 says:

advaitam acyutam anādim ananta-rūpam

ādyaṁ purāṇa-puruṣaṁ nava-yauvanaṁ ca

Krsna is advaitam – without a second; acyutam – He does not fall down from His original form as Kṛṣṇa; anādim – without a beginning; ananta-rūpam – He possesses unlimited forms; ādyaṁ – He is the beginning; purāṇa-puruṣaṁ ­- the most ancient person; nava-yauvanaṁ – a blooming youth.

“This is the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Sarvaṁ viṣṇumayaṁ jagat. Sarvaṁ khalv idaṁ brahma. Kṛṣṇa thus proved that He is everything, that He can become everything, but that still He is personally different from everything (mat-sthāni sarva-bhūtāni na cāhaṁ teṣv avasthitaḥ). This is Kṛṣṇa, who is understood by acintya-bhedābheda-tattva philosophy. Pūrṇasya pūrṇam ādāya pūrṇam evāvaśiṣyate: Kṛṣṇa is always complete, and although He can create millions of universes, all of them full in all opulences, He remains as opulent as ever, without any change (advaitam).” (SB 10.13.19 Purport)

Since all the forms emanated from Krsna (who is full of eternity, knowledge and bliss), Lord Brahma realized that the Visnu-murtis are also the reservoir of all truth, knowledge and bliss. Brahmā realized that all the different forms of cows, boys and calves transformed into Viṣṇu forms were not transformed by mysticism of the type that a yogī or demigod can display by specific powers invested in him. The cows, calves and boys transformed into viṣṇu-mūrtis, or Viṣṇu forms, were not displays of viṣṇu-māyā, or Viṣṇu energy, but were Viṣṇu Himself.

In this way, Krsna proves that He is all-pervading. By this incident, Lord Brahmā was able to see how Kṛṣṇa maintains the entire universe in different ways. He manifests everything that everything is visible.

SB 10.13.55: Thus Lord Brahmā saw the Supreme Brahman, by whose energy this entire universe, with its moving and nonmoving living beings, is manifested. He also saw at the same time all the calves and boys as the Lord’s expansions.

The most important take-away for me is that none of these (Krsna’s forms, etc.) can be understood my mere śāstra jnāna – knowledge in the Vedas. vedeṣu durlabham adurlabham ātma-bhaktau.

“The Supreme Lord is not obtained by expert explanations, by vast intelligence, or even by much hearing. He is obtained only by one whom He Himself chooses. To such a person, He manifests His own form.” (Muṇḍaka Upaniṣad 3.2.3)

Interesting it says that the Lord is not even obtained by ‘much hearing.’ Wow! Hard to believe when hearing and chanting are the main limbs of bhakti!

The Supreme Lord can be understood only by one who is favored or shown mercy by the Lord can understand Him. He can be understood only by devotional service.

“The seriously inquisitive student or sage, well equipped with knowledge and detachment, realizes that Absolute Truth by rendering devotional service in terms of what he has heard from the Vedānta-śruti.” (Bhāg. 1.2.12)

Not by mere hearing. But hearing equipped with bhakti (devotional service).

Through the mercy of Srila Prabhupada, we are able to understand, to some extent, the Supreme Lord and everything related to Him. I love how Srila Prabhupada closes his purport on Text 54 with this advice and assurance:

“We should discuss Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam daily as much as possible, and then everything will be clarified, for Bhāgavatam is the essence of all Vedic literature (nigama-kalpa-taror galitaṁ phalam). It was written by Vyāsadeva (mahā-muni-kṛte) when he was self-realized. Thus the more we read Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, the more its knowledge becomes clear. Each and every verse is transcendental.”

All glories to Srila Prabhupada!

Hare Krsna,

SB 10.13.40-43: When Lord Brahmā returned after a moment of time had passed (according to his own measurement), he saw that although by human measurement a complete year had passed, Lord Kṛṣṇa, after all that time, was engaged just as before in playing with the boys and calves, who were His expansions.

Lord Brahmā thought: Whatever boys and calves there were in Gokula, I have kept them sleeping on the bed of my mystic potency, and to this very day they have not yet risen again.

A similar number of boys and calves have been playing with Kṛṣṇa for one whole year, yet they are different from the ones illusioned by my mystic potency. Who are they? Where did they come from?

Thus Lord Brahmā, thinking and thinking for a long time, tried to distinguish between those two sets of boys, who were each separately existing. He tried to understand who was real and who was not real, but he couldn’t understand at all.

*****

Lord Brahma’s confusion to find another set of boys and calves is bewildering but understandable. As a condition soul, we, including Brahma, are all subjected to four defects – making mistakes, being illusioned, having a tendency to cheat others, and having imperfect senses.

First of all, Brahma made the mistake of messing with Krsna and stealing His cowherd friends and calves. Secondly, he became illusioned after seeing the same set of boys and calves that he stole playing with Krsna – as if nothing had happened. Thirdly, he was trying to bewilder Krsna with his limited mystic power by his imperfect senses (I am taking the liberty to say that Brahma’s senses are imperfect even though he is an exalted personality).

“Brahmā wanted to bewilder Kṛṣṇa, who bewilders the entire universe. The whole universe is under Kṛṣṇa’s mystic power (mama māyā duratyayā), but Brahmā wanted to mystify Him. The result was that Brahmā himself was mystified, just as one who wants to kill another may himself be killed. In other words, Brahmā was defeated by his own attempt.” (SB 10.13.44 Purport)

Keeping aside for a moment that this is also a divine plan of Krsna, we find it astonishing that Brahma could even think about trying to bewilder Krsna. Every pastime has a deeper lesson and a key takeaway for us. Srila Prabhupada unravels that lesson for us by saying that Brahma’s act is non-different than the act of the scientists and philosophers who want to overcome the mystic power of Krsna. For example, scientists claim to be able to create life from matter. Srila Prabhupada fought against that idea by reiterating that life comes from life, not from matter. The more scientists and philosophers try to challenge Krsna or the concept of Godhead, the more they are implicated in suffering.

Nowadays a rather peculiar theory is going around in the country. The theory of Flying Sphagetti Monster or Pastafarianism. It is a parodic new religious movement that promotes a light-hearted view of religion. It originated in opposition to the teaching of intelligent design in public schools in the United States. According to adherents, Pastafarianism (a portmanteau of pasta and Rastafarianism) is a “real, legitimate religion, as much as any other”. It has received some limited recognition as such. It originated in protest of the Kansas State Board of Education decision to permit teaching intelligent design as an alternative to evolution in state school science classes. (Source: Wikipedia)

Where are we heading with the modern education system with all these nonsense theories? I am quoting this example to highlight how so-called scientists and philosophers repeatedly come up with absurd theories to challenge the existence of God and His teachings. Flying Sphagetti Monster is one such ridiculous idea.

Being an empowered personality and acarya, Srila Prabhupada is tri-kala-jna: one who could see past, present and future. He could see the future and knew what was coming. Therefore he strongly admonishes us to stop trying to challenge Krsna.

“The lesson here is that we should not try to overcome Kṛṣṇa. Rather, instead of endeavoring to surpass Him, we should surrender to Him (sarva-dharmān parityajya mām ekaṁ śaraṇaṁ vraja).” (SB 10.13.44 Purport)

Rather than paraphrasing, it is better I quote what Srila Prabhupada explains:

“Instead of defeating Kṛṣṇa, Brahmā himself was defeated, for he could not understand what Kṛṣṇa was doing. Since Brahmā, the chief person within this universe, was so bewildered, what is to be said of so-called scientists and philosophers? Sarva-dharmān parityajya mām ekaṁ śaraṇaṁ vraja. We should give up all our tiny efforts to defy the arrangement of Kṛṣṇa. Instead, whatever arrangements He proposes, we should accept. This is always better, for this will make us happy. The more we try to defeat the arrangement of Kṛṣṇa, the more we become implicated in Kṛṣṇa’s māyā (daivī hy eṣā guṇa-mayī mama māyā duratyayā). But one who has reached the point of surrendering to the instructions of Kṛṣṇa (mām eva ye prapadyante) is liberated, free from kṛṣṇa-māyā (māyām etāṁ taranti te). The power of Kṛṣṇa is just like a government that cannot be overcome. First of all there are laws, and then there is police power, and beyond that is military power. Therefore, what is the use of trying to overcome the power of the government? Similarly, what is the use of trying to challenge Kṛṣṇa?” (SB 10.13.44 Purport)

Srila Prabhupada tries to say, “it is impossible to beat the system and win against it.” He says the power of Krsna is just like a government that cannot be overcome. Therefore, what is the use of trying to overcome the power of the government? There is a popular saying in the casino world, “The house always wins.” No matter what game you choose to play, the odds of the casino winning your money are greater than the odds of you winning the casino’s money. That’s because all casino games are designed to provide the house with a built-in edge, diminishing the chances and sizes of potential payouts. Similarly, the government machinery is cunningly designed to fool us at every step. Try beating the IRS, the Social Security System, the healthcare provider-insurance company nexus the immigration system (familiar to people like us who need a visa to stay in this country), the gun lobby, and so on. The system is designed for the rich and powerful. Lower and middle class are pawns to be crushed in between. Similarly, it is pointless to try to mess around with Krsna and His supremely intelligent design of the creation.

The simple way out is to simply surrender to Krsna acknowledging that He is the most powerful, supreme controller and also supremely merciful and loving.

 “As the darkness of snow on a dark night and the light of a glowworm in the light of day have no value, the mystic power of an inferior person who tries to use it against a person of great power is unable to accomplish anything; instead, the power of that inferior person is diminished.” (SB 10.13.45)

“Similarly, Brahmā became insignificant in the presence of Kṛṣṇa’s mystic power. Kṛṣṇa’s māyā was not diminished in value, but Brahmā’s māyā was condemned. Therefore, one should not try to exhibit one’s insignificant opulence before a greater power.” (SB 10.13.45 Purport)

Therefore, it is wise to surrender to Krsna unconditionally and lovingly. This is the most sensible thing to do in life.

All glories to Srila Prabhupada!

Hare Krsna,

It took me a significant amount of research to determine the type of expansion of Krsna when he expanded as the cowherd boys and calves. I still do not have a conclusive answer.

It is generally understood that Krsna has three main forms – svayam-rupa, tad-ekatma -rupa and avesa-rupa. It is in these three features that He manifests Himself in His transcendental form. The feature of svayam-rūpa is the form by which Kṛṣṇa can be understood by one who may not understand His other features. In other words, the form by which Kṛṣṇa is directly understood is called svayam-rūpa, or His personal form. The tadekātma-rūpa is that form which most resembles the svayam-rūpa, but there are some differences in the bodily features. The tadekātma-rūpa is divided into two manifestations-the personal expansion (svāṁśa) and the pastime expansion (vilāsa). As far as the āveśa-rūpa is concerned, when Kṛṣṇa empowers some suitable living entity to represent Him, that living entity is called āveśa-rūpa, or śaktyāveśa-avatāra.

The personal form of Kṛṣṇa can be divided into two: svayam-rūpa and svayam-prakāśa. As far as His svayam-rūpa (or pastime form) is concerned, it is in that form that He remains always in Vṛndāvana with the inhabitants of Vṛndāvana. This personal form (svayam-rūpa) can be further divided into the prābhava and vaibhava forms.

My analysis indicates that Krsna’s expansion as cowherd boys and calves is tad-ekatma-rupa form – same expansion of His svayam-rupa form but there are some differences in the bodily features as can be seen by the form of calves and cowherd boys. I could be wrong! I hope our teachers can correct if I am wrong!

Anyway, the point to understand clearly is that there are unlimited expansions of the forms of Kṛṣṇa, but even when they are divided or expanded without limit, they are still one and the same. There is no difference between one form and another. That is the absolute nature of the Supreme Personality of Godhead.

As it is stated in the Bhagavad-gītā, Kṛṣṇa’s expansion is situated in everyone’s heart as the Supersoul. But in this case, instead of expanding Himself as the Supersoul, He expanded Himself as a portion of calves and cowherd boys for one continuous year.

BG 10.20: I am the Supersoul, O Arjuna, seated in the hearts of all living entities. I am the beginning, the middle and the end of all beings.

As far as we living entities are concerned, we are Krsna’s eternal fragmental parts.

BG 15.7: The living entities in this conditioned world are My eternal fragmental parts. Due to conditioned life, they are struggling very hard with the six senses, which include the mind.

The living entities belong to the superior nature (or energy) of the Supreme Lord. The inferior energy is matter manifested in different elements, namely earth, water, fire, air, ether, mind, intelligence and false ego. Both forms of material nature, namely gross (earth, etc.) and subtle (mind, etc.), are products of the inferior energy. The living entities, who are exploiting these inferior energies for different purposes, are the superior energy of the Supreme Lord, and it is due to this energy that the entire material world functions.

BG 17.4-5: “Earth, water, fire, air, ether, mind, intelligence and false ego — all together these eight comprise My separated material energies. But besides this inferior nature, O mighty-armed Arjuna, there is a superior energy of Mine, which consists of all living entities who are struggling with material nature and are sustaining the universe.”

We are qualitatively the same but quantitatively different from the Supreme Lord. Our constitutional position is servitorship whereas the Lord is always served. Devotional service unto Him is our constitutional position. Only by devotional service can Krsna be understood (bhaktya-mam abhijanati).

The other reflection I had on this lesson is why were the parents and their cows spontaneously attracted to their children (manifested as Krsna’s expansion as cowherd boys and calves). This was bewildering even to Lord Balarama.

SB 10.13.35: Because of an increase of affection, the cows had constant attachment even to those calves that were grown up and had stopped sucking milk from their mothers. When Baladeva saw this attachment, He was unable to understand the reason for it, and thus He began to consider as follows.

Srila Prabhupada explains this phenomenon beautifully in one of his lectures:

“This can be understood in another way: Just like every one of us we love our body. Or I love your body. But what is the reason? The reason is because the spirit soul is there. Nobody loves a body, either his own body or other’s body, when it is dead. Therefore the conclusion is that each, every one of us, we love our body because I, the spirit soul, is there. Therefore the conclusion is that I love myself, or yourself, the spirit soul. Then the next question will be “Then why one should love the spirit soul?” The spirit soul is loved because it is part and parcel of Kṛṣṇa. Therefore ultimate goal is Kṛṣṇa. We do not know that. Therefore we sometimes love the body or sometimes love the mind or sometimes love the soul or in this way, but the ultimate aim is to love Kṛṣṇa. That is our natural instinct.” (Lecture on BG 4.11 — Geneva, June 1, 1974)

SB 10.13.25: Previously, from the very beginning, the gopīs had motherly affection for Kṛṣṇa. Indeed, their affection for Kṛṣṇa exceeded even their affection for their own sons. In displaying their affection, they had thus distinguished between Kṛṣṇa and their sons, but now that distinction disappeared.

It is interesting to know that Prema is not dependent on Him. Rather He is dependent on prema and controlled by prema.

“Such uncontrollable prema was in the hearts of the mothers towards Kṛṣṇa in the form of their sons. Thus Kṛṣṇa in the form of their sons forgot His powers as God. Since He assumed the role of their sons, He remained dependent on them, like a commander next to the king. One should not say that such dependence on love is a fault; rather it is Kṛṣṇa’s ornament. As the living entity’s dependence on maya is the cause of his sorrow, so Kṛṣṇa’s dependence on prema is the cause of ever-increasing bliss. This is the realization of the great devotees.” (Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura commentary on SB 10.13.25)

I am yet to fully understand this aspect of Prema. It seems complicated for my tiny material brain to grasp.

All glories to Srila Prabhupada!

Hare Krsna,

Meditation on this pastime brought me to think about the past and present condition of the jivas (conditioned living entities) who are struggling in this material world. At several places of this lesson where the calves wandered too far and the cowherd boys stolen, I was drawing parallel to the fate of the jivas.

For example:

SB 10.13.12: O Mahārāja Parīkṣit, while the cowherd boys, who knew nothing within the core of their hearts but Kṛṣṇa, were thus engaged in eating their lunch in the forest, the calves went far away, deep into the forest, being allured by green grass.

Like the calves, we, jivas, have also gone far away from Krsna (and His abode) being allured by the green grass of the material world.

SB 10.13.13-14: When Kṛṣṇa saw that His friends the cowherd boys were frightened, He, the fierce controller even of fear itself, said, just to mitigate their fear, “My dear friends, do not stop eating. I shall bring your calves back to this spot by personally going after them Myself. Let Me go and search for the calves.”

I am sure Krsna always contemplates, “How shall I bring these lost jivas back to the spiritual world – their eternal home? How will they turn towards Me?”

Kṛṣṇa assured His friends, “Don’t be afraid. I am going personally to search for your calves.” This was Kṛṣṇa’s causeless mercy. (SB 10.13.14 Purport)

To reclaim the lost jivas, sometimes Krsna personally appears or sends His bonafide agents. Krsna appeared as Lord Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu who gave us the Holy Name by chanting which we can gradually realize our eternal spiritual identity (that we are the eternal servants of the Lord) and revive our original Krsna consciousness.

This can be understood from the later statement: kṛṣṇa maya hatatmanam, “the cowherd boys were bewildered by Kṛṣṇa’s maya…Thus when Brahma desired to steal the boys and calves, yogamaya hid the real boys and calves and mahamaya instantly produced exact replicas for Brahma to steal.” (Srila Visvanath Chakravarty Thakura’s commentary on SB 10.12.15)

Were we also bewildered and kidnapped by Krsna’s other maya – Mahamaya? Or was it misuse of our freewill that we left Krsna and opted to serve maya?

Now that we are stuck in this material world suffering the repeated cycle of birth, death, old age and disease and the three-fold material miseries, we have naturally become extremely fearful of material existence. In such a situation, does everything look hopeless and bleak? Is there any way out of this material entanglement?

The simple answer is THERE IS ALWAYS HOPE. Srila Prabhupada reassures us repeatedly (in this lesson and in his other writings and lectures) that in the presence of Kṛṣṇa’s friendship, a devotee cannot have any fear. Krsna is the supreme controller and is also feared by fear personified. Our fear arises because of our forgetfulness of Krsna. But if we always remember our supreme father and eternal friend Krsna, this material world appears less dangerous. Therefore, I find Srila Prabhupada’s instruction very comforting, “Everyone, therefore, should take shelter of the Supreme Person, who is the source of fearlessness, and thus be secure.” (SB 10.13.13 Purport)

While we are taking a step closer to fully taking shelter of Krsna’s lotus feet each day, we must be aware that we should not try to become another Brahma – trying to test Krsna’s supremacy, control and energy. As much as we should respect Krsna’s controllership, we must also respect Krsna various energies – mainly Mahamaya who always somehow manages to bewilder us and keep us entangled in this material world. Brahma thought he managed to fool Krsna by stealing His cowherd friends. Little did he realize that he instead had been fooled by Krsna’s maya. Perfect example of a hunter becoming the hunted. Since even Brahma could not fully understand Krsna, we, who are so infinitesimal even compared to Brahma, should not try to pull that stunt. As they say, don’t try this at home. We must all take lessons from Krsna and His devotees. Therein lies our security, safety and true identity.

All glories to Srila Prabhupada!

Hare Krsna,

SB 10.12.40-42:

Śrī Sūta Gosvāmī said: O learned saints, the childhood pastimes of Śrī Kṛṣṇa are very wonderful. Mahārāja Parīkṣit, after hearing about those pastimes of Kṛṣṇa, who had saved him in the womb of his mother, became steady in his mind and again inquired from Śukadeva Gosvāmī to hear about those pious activities.

Mahārāja Parīkṣit inquired: O great sage, how could things done in the past have been described as being done at the present? Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa performed this pastime of killing Aghāsura during His kaumāra age. How then, during His paugaṇḍa age, could the boys have described this incident as having happened recently?

O greatest yogī, my spiritual master, kindly describe why this happened. I am very much curious to know about it. I think that it was nothing but another illusion due to Kṛṣṇa.

O my lord, my spiritual master, although we are the lowest of kṣatriyas, we are glorified and benefited because we have the opportunity of always hearing from you the nectar of the pious activities of the Supreme Personality of Godhead.

Sūta Gosvāmī said: O Śaunaka, greatest of saints and devotees, when Mahārāja Parīkṣit inquired from Śukadeva Gosvāmī in this way, Śukadeva Gosvāmī, immediately remembering subject matters about Kṛṣṇa within the core of his heart, externally lost contact with the actions of his senses. Thereafter, with great difficulty, he revived his external sensory perception and began to speak to Mahārāja Parīkṣit about kṛṣṇa-kathā.

Suta Goswami’s beautiful narration of the conversation between Pariksit Maharaja and Sukadeva Goswami resembles the expert narration of theatrical play of actors on a stage. An expert narrator like Suta Goswami provides vivid descriptions and sensory details of Krsna’s pastimes that help the audience visualize scenes and immerse themselves in the story. Not only that, but he is also able to capture, understand and convey the emotions and motivations of the characters (Pariksit Maharaja and Sukadeva Goswami), creating a deeper connection with the pastime.

Suta Goswami’s narration is imbued with a profound sense of reverence and curiosity, reflective of the sacred and wondrous nature of the pastimes being recounted. He exudes a tone of respectful admiration as he addresses the learned saints, highlighting the extraordinary and enchanting childhood pastimes of Śrī Kṛṣṇa. The mood is one of awe and devotion, emphasizing the divine and miraculous qualities of Kṛṣṇa’s pastimes.

Mahārāja Parīkṣit’s inquiries to Śukadeva Gosvāmī are filled with sincere curiosity and a deep desire for understanding. His respectful address, “O great sage,” and his expression of curiosity about the temporal discrepancies in Kṛṣṇa’s pastimes reveal his earnest quest for spiritual knowledge. Parīkṣit’s mood is one of humble reverence towards his spiritual master, combined with a thirst for the divine nectar of Kṛṣṇa’s pastimes.

Śukadeva Gosvāmī’s reaction to Parīkṣit’s inquiries is profoundly mystical. As he contemplates Kṛṣṇa within the core of his heart, he momentarily loses contact with his external senses, indicating his deep absorption in the divine. This momentary lapse into a state of transcendental meditation highlights the powerful effect of Kṛṣṇa’s pastimes on a realized soul. The effort he makes to revive his external sensory perception and resume the narration underscores his dedication to sharing the divine stories with Mahārāja Parīkṣit.

The overall mood of the narration is one of sacred devotion and spiritual absorption. The narrators, Sūta Gosvāmī and Śukadeva Gosvāmī, convey the divine and miraculous nature of Kṛṣṇa’s pastimes with a tone of deep reverence and spiritual intensity, while Mahārāja Parīkṣit’s inquiries reflect his humble devotion and eager curiosity to learn more about the Supreme Personality of Godhead.

Not to overlook another narrator of this beautiful conversation. Our beloved Srila Prabhupada. He speaks with a tone that conveys the sacredness and confidentiality of the Supreme Personality of Godhead’s activities. His words underscore the exceptional fortune required to hear such divine pastimes, highlighting the spiritual privilege of those who can access this knowledge. Sūta Gosvāmī’s description of Mahārāja Parīkṣit’s self-reflection reveals a layer of humility and penitence. Mahārāja Parīkṣit, despite possessing the noble qualities of a kṣatriya, sees himself as the lowest among them due to his past misdeed. Srila Prabhupada emphasizes Parīkṣit’s humility and remorse, particularly in his interaction with the brāhmaṇas, which adds depth to his character as a devoted disciple. The mood is thus a blend of respect for the divine, acknowledgment of human fallibility, and the earnest pursuit of spiritual enlightenment through humility and devotion.

I must say that I feel extremely fortunate to be able to hear these divine pastimes of Krsna coming through the medium of our parampara – starting with Sri Narada Muni advising Srila Vyasadeva to broadcast the sublime and spotless glories of the Personality of Godhead, through Sukadeva Goswami, Pariksit Maharaja, and Suta Goswami, through Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Saraswati Thakura instructing his disciple Srila Prabhupada to publish the books in English for the western world, through Srila Prabhupada’s realization through his purports, and finally through our dear teachers who are conducting this wonderful course. Not to forget my dear classmates who are receiving this transcendental knowledge with equal attention, devotion, and relish as the sages of Naimisaranya. Perfect sadhu sanga!!

All glories to Srila Prabhupada!