Bhakti Vikasa Swami's Blog, page 74

Srila Prabhupada kicks out the stumbling blocks

You mentioned that your pathway has become filled with stumbling blocks, but there are no stumbling blocks, I can kick out all those stumbling blocks immediately, provided you accept my guidance. With one stroke of my kick I can kick out all stumbling blocks.

From Srila Prabhupada’s letter to Krsna dasa — 9 September, 1972

The post Srila Prabhupada kicks out the stumbling blocks appeared first on Bhakti Vikasa Swami.

Being anxious for us, Krsna comes

Krsna is very much anxious because we are suffering and we are sons of Krsna; we are part and parcel of Krsna. He is unhappy to see that you are suffering. That is natural. If the son is suffering from ailment, the father also suffers: “How the son will be cured?” The son may not know it, but the father is suffering without having that ailment. Similarly, Krsna, the…, He is the father of all living entities. Aham bija-pradah pita. Krsna says. It is not my word, but Krsna says. Sarva-yonisu kaunteya [Bg 14.4]: “All different forms of life,” sambhavanti, aham bija-pradah pita. So Krsna is the father of everyone, and He is very much anxious for us, to get us back. Therefore He is ordering, “You rascal, why you have created so many ‘isms’? Just surrender to Me. I will give you protection. Just surrender.” Sarva-dharman parityajya mam ekam saranam vraja [Bg 18.66]. For this purpose He comes.

From Srila Prabhupada’s lecture on Srimad-Bhagavatam 3.26.18 – December 27, 1974, Bombay

The post Being anxious for us, Krsna comes appeared first on Bhakti Vikasa Swami.

Sweet Krsna

Sugar cane juice is sweet. Concentrate it, it becomes molasses, further concentrate it, it becomes sugar, further concentrate it, it becomes candy. So the same sweetness, when it is concentrated, Oh that is Krsna. The highest degree of sweetness is Krsna.

Srila Prabhupada, Conversation regarding philosophy of Edmund Husserl.

The post Sweet Krsna appeared first on Bhakti Vikasa Swami.

Krsna is attracted by His own beauty

How Krsna is attracted by His own beauty is described in Lalita-madhava (8.34). Upon seeing His own picture, Krsna lamented, “How glorious this picture is! It is attracting Me just as it attracts Radharani.”

From “The Teachings of Lord Caitanya,” by Srila Prabhupada

The post Krsna is attracted by His own beauty appeared first on Bhakti Vikasa Swami.

Krsna: The Attractor of Liberated Souls

There are many examples of how Krsna attracted even great liberated souls like Sukadeva Gosvami and the Kumaras. In this connection the following statement was given by the Kumaras: “How wonderful it is that although we are completely liberated, free from desire and situated at the stage of paramahamsa, we are still aspiring to taste the pastimes of Radha and Krsna.”

From “The Nectar of Devotion,” by Srila Prabhupada

The post Krsna: The Attractor of Liberated Souls appeared first on Bhakti Vikasa Swami.

Everything Krsna is Krsna

To be attracted by the qualities of Krsna means to be attracted by Krsna Himself, because there is no real distinction between Krsna and His qualities. Krsna’s name is also Krsna. Krsna’s fame is also Krsna. Krsna’s entourage is also Krsna. Krsna and everything related with Krsna which gives stimulation to love of Krsna are all Krsna, but for our understanding these items may be considered separately.

From “The Nectar of Devotion,” by Srila Prabhupada

The post Everything Krsna is Krsna appeared first on Bhakti Vikasa Swami.

Duryodhana was a devotee

After the class, as Srila Prabhupada sat for a few minutes in his room waiting for breakfast, I asked him about Duryodhana’s relationship with Lord Balarama. I was puzzled how an apparent demon like Duryodhana could be favored by the Supreme Lord Baladeva, and even taught how to fight with a club by Him. “Was Duryodhana actually a devotee playing the part of a demon?” I asked. “Yes,” Prabhupada told me. “Otherwise Balarama could not have been favorable to him.”

From Hari Sauri Prabhu’s Transcendental Diary

The post Duryodhana was a devotee appeared first on Bhakti Vikasa Swami.

Why Srila Prabhupada established Krsna-Balarama temple

CC Madhya 16.281, Purport, by Srila Prabhupada:

Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu personally renovated Vrndavana-dhama and advised His chief disciples, Rupa and Sanatana, to develop it and open it to attract the spiritual vision of the general populace. At present there are about five thousand temples in Vrndavana, and still our society, the International Society for Krishna Consciousness, is constructing a huge, magnificent temple for the worship of Lord Krsna and Lord Balarama, along with Radha-Krsna and Guru-Gauranga. Since there is no prominent Krsna-Balarama temple in Vrndavana, we are attempting to construct one so that people will be attracted to Krsna-Balarama, or Nitai-Gauracandra. Vrajendra-nandana yei, saci suta haila sei. Narottama dasa Thakura says that Balarama and the son of Maharaja Nanda have advented Themselves as Gaura-Nitai. To propagate this fundamental principle, we are establishing a Krsna-Balarama temple to broadcast to the world that worship of Gaura-Nitai is the same as worship of Krsna-Balarama.

The post Why Srila Prabhupada established Krsna-Balarama temple appeared first on Bhakti Vikasa Swami.

Krsna and Balarama enjoy in Vrndavana

In this way, Lord Krsna and Balarama began to enjoy the residents of Vrndavana to Their full satisfaction as They herded the calves and cows on the bank of the Yamuna. In some places Krsna and Balarama were accompanied by Their friends. The boys were singing, imitating the humming sound of the drones and accompanying Krsna and Balarama, who were garlanded with forest flowers. While walking, the boys sometimes imitated the quacking sound of the swans in the lakes, or when they saw the peacocks dancing, they imitated them before Krsna. Krsna also moved His neck, imitating the dancing and making His friends laugh.

From Srila Prabhupada’s Krsna Book, ch. 15

The post Krsna and Balarama enjoy in Vrndavana appeared first on Bhakti Vikasa Swami.

Becoming a pure devotee

Virabhadra:  … when you say brahmana, do you mean… I mean are they… the devotees who are not pure but…

Prabhupada: Yes, they’re also pure devotees because they’re following my instruction. Just like a technician, he is expert, but somebody is assisting him. So the assistants, because they are following the instruction of the expert, therefore their work is also complete. So it is not necessarily that one has to become pure devotee immediately. Just like we are also following the instruction of our spiritual master. I don’t claim that I am pure devotee or perfect, but my only qualification is that I am trying to follow the instruction of the perfect. Similarly… This is called disciplic succession. Just like here it is stated that Krsna is the original spiritual master and Arjuna is the original student. So Arjuna said that sarvam etad rtam manye yad vadasi kesava [Bg. 10.14]. “My dear Krsna, whatever You are saying, I accept in toto,” in the Tenth Chapter.  Just like Dr. Radhakrishnan says, “It is not to Krsna, it is something else.” He does not accept in that way. He says that “Whatever You are saying, I accept it. You are saying that You are the Supreme, I accept it. I don’t say that You have got a separate thing within. That is Supreme, You are not Supreme, as person.” This is impersonalist. They do not know that Krsna has no such… A conditioned soul… Just like we are, I am different from my soul. “I am” means my body, or I am soul, different from the body. So Krsna has no such differentiation. He does not know that. Because he’s not following Krsna, the perfect spiritual master. He’s following some rascal spiritual master. Therefore he has this mistake. But if we follow Arjuna and Krsna, then we get the perfect knowledge. We may not be cent percent perfect, but as far as possible, if we follow the instruction as it is, that much perfect. In this way one will get perfection.

So one has to follow. The same example, try to understand, that a perfect, expert technologist or technician or mechanic is working, and somebody is working under his instruction. So this somebody, because he is strictly working under the instruction of the expert, he’s also expert. He may not be cent percent expert, but his work is expert. Is that clear? Because he is working under the expert. Do you follow? So if you follow pure devotee, then you are also pure devotee. It may not be one is cent percent pure. Because we are trying to raise ourself from the conditional life. But if we strictly follow the pure devotee, then we are also pure devotee. So far we do, that is pure. So pure devotee does not mean one has to become immediately cent percent pure. But if he sticks to the principle that “We’ll follow a pure devotee,” then his actions are… He is as good as a pure devotee. It is not I am explaining in my own way. It is the explanation of Bhagavata. Mahajano yena gatah sa panthah [Cc. Madhya 17.186]. We have to follow the footprints of pure devotees. It is said that tarkah apratisthah. If you want to become pure by your arguments and logic, that is not possible. I may be defeated by another strong man who is stronger in argument than me, so this is not the way of becoming purified, tarka, simply arguing. Tarkah apratisthah smrtayo vibhinnah [Cc. Madhya 17.186] . Srutayah, scriptures. Suppose somebody sticks to the scriptures. So scriptures, there are different types of scripture. So they are vibhinna. Vibhinna means different types. So how we can become purified by, even by following the scriptures? Tarko ‘pratisthah smrtayo vibhinna na casav rsir yasya matam na bhinnam. Muni means thoughtful, philosophers. If we follow a particular type of philosopher, that is also not perfect because I may be under the care of a philosopher, frog philosopher. So that is also not sure. Tarko ‘pratisthah smrtayo vibhinna na casav rsir yasya matam na bhinnam, dharmasya tattvam nihitam guhayam.

Therefore to become pure or to understand the essence of purity is very confidential. It is not to be acquired by our own efforts, by argument or by being expert in scripture or by becoming a philosopher or a similar way. It is very confidential. Then how? Mahajano yena gatah sa panthah [Cc. Madhya 17.186]. You have to follow a pure devotee, acknowledged devotee. Similarly, in the Bhagavad-gita, if we follow Arjuna, then we understand Bhagavad-gita as it is. But if we don’t follow Arjuna, if we follow somebody, Dr. Frog, or create our own interpretation, then we remain impure. So mahajano yena gatah sa panthah. We have to follow the footprints of mahajana, great soul. So here is directly you are meeting great soul, Arjuna. He is directly being taught Bhagavad-gita by the original teacher. Who can be greater authority than Arjuna? So as Arjuna accepts Bhagavad-gita, if you accept Bhagavad-gita in that way, then your study of Bhagavad-gita is perfect. It is very simple. Therefore I’m saying here that Krsna is the original teacher, and Arjuna is the original student. So you follow the original student, you understand Bhagavad-gita. Even Krsna is not present before you. He is present by His words. This is the way of following what is pure.

Bhagavad-gita 2.1-10 and Talk — Los Angeles, November 25, 1968

The post Becoming a pure devotee appeared first on Bhakti Vikasa Swami.