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Ír( Gau#(ya DarßanerSa&k!ipta Parichaya

Ír( Gau#(ya Darshan A Brief Introduction

Ír( Ír(la Bhakti Rak!ak Ír(dhar Dev-Gosw*m( Mah*r*j

Translated from the original Bengali article published in Sri Gaudiya Darshan issue No.1 14 August 1955

The A c h i n t y a b h e d å b h e d a p h i l o s o p h ypreached by Ír( Chaitanyadev is famousas ‘Ír( Gau#(ya Darshan’ and is anothername for the renowned ‘Vai!@avaDarshan’. The philosophy of Ír(Råmånuja, Ír( Vi!@u Swåm( and Ír(Nimbårka is also Vai!@ava Darshan but

these Spiritual Masters were all Dravidians and due to thedifferent thought of the Dravidian schools of philosophy,the •ryan philosophy synonymous with the Gau#(yanteachings has become exclusive in its own right.

Såraswata, Kånya Kubja, Maithila, Utkala and Gau#a werethe provinces of the Vedic •ryavarta and the pure Vedicphilosophy in fact originated in the Vedic or • r y a ncommunity of Gau#a. The original Vedic philosophy wascompiled by Ír( K±!@a Dvaipåyana Veda Vyåsa and is thedistinct doctrine of the Vedånta Darshan based on theoriginal revelation. The Vyåsa P($h or the original school ofVeda Vyåsa was situated within the five provinces of Gau#aor the land of the •ryans.

The respective viewpoints of the learned preachers expressing the exclusiveVedåntic philosophy or explanations of the Brahma-s)tra were spread far andwide as separate doctrines amongst the spiritual elite. Thus the original Gau#(yaexposition became Dravidian or non-Gau#(yan. However the explanations ofthe Brahma-s)tra given by Ír( Gaurå&gadev based on the Gau#(ya Philosophyhas become well-accepted and firmly established in learned society. Thisconcludes that finally Bhagavån Ír( Vyåsaadev as instructed by his Gurudev,rendered his own natural Vedic interpretation in his monumental work entitledÍr(mad Bhågavat Sa^hitå which is the original and most perfect commentaryon Vedånta-s)tra further revealed in the Purå@a.

Ír( Chaitanyadev later contributed his own sublimerevelation showing the true meaning of the Bhågavatamand this became the Gau#(ya Darshan in its mostcomplete form.

M ( m å ̂ s å and S å & k h y a philosophies althoughapparently based on the Vedas, ultimately failed to getacceptance in spiritual society since their conclusionscould not comprehend the fundamentals of Vedic truthand like the Buddhist Philosophy were discarded due totheir anti-Vedic stance. Theflaws and imperfections ofthese doctrines were revealedin the brilliant illumination ofthe Bhågavat. Thisphilosophy, which hasmaintained the pure thoughtof the Vedic tradition, as givenby Lord Chaitanya is knownas Gau#(ya Darshan and itconfers the real meaning of Ír(Vyåsaadev’s teachings.

So the original philosophy ofthe Gaur(yan province, whichis known as the Ír( BhågavatDarshan and is based on Vedaand Vedånta and enhanced,by Ír( Gaureßvara, Ír(Gaurå&gadev, and thatselfsame Gau#(ya Vai!@avismas practiced by the geniusesunder the lotus feet of Ír(Gaurå&gadev is known as‘Gau#(ya Darshan.’

At this point it will be relevant for us to correctlyunderstand the true meaning of the term ‘Darshan.’Darshan literally means ‘the act of seeing with the eyes’,or simply ‘to see’. Mundane knowledge can only beacquired by the use of all five sensory organs includingthe eyes and ears, which are primary. The function ofthese is to enlighten us with the first principle ofknowledge through the medium of sound emanatingthe idea through words, and to gain substantiveexperience of the object, which is the second principleof knowledge through the medium of sight in order togive a more complete feeling of the subject. And so byactual perception, the Gau#(ya Darshan naturallybecame the true feelings conveyed by the people eitherborn or living in Gau#a. Through perseverence theydeveloped a special insight to understand the truth,being blessed with the richest culture and topmostknowledge. Had it been otherwise then any livingentity including animals and beasts could claim to

contribute towards the upliftment of the culture ofsociety no matter how insignificant their thought. Theyardstick to realise and measure the fundamental truthor tattva has its origin in the northwestern region ofGau#a in the monastary of Jagadguru Ír( Vyåsa. Thiswas then further propagated far and wide andnourished and graced by the teachings of Ír(Chaitanyachandra of the east, towards the ultimateprosperity of the human race. This is the most preciousgift bestowed upon India or the whole of •ryabh)mi to

in turn be presented to therest of the World for theirultimate fulfillment andattainment. No doubt thegods in heaven and mankindalike, what to speak of theanimals who may survive onalms for their existence; allwere blessed and obliged withthis great favour. Perhaps it isfor this reason, to harvest thefullest advantage, that thegods desire to be born inIndia, as is the legend of yore.

So then what is to beunderstood by thephilosophical teachings of Ír(Vyåsa on Ír( Bhågavat, Ír(Vai!@ava or Ír( Gau#(yaDarshan?

Just as the philosophyintroduced by Ír(Ía&karåchåryya came to beknown as ‘ A d v a i t a v å d ’ a n d

the philosophy of Ír( Råmånuja as ‘Vißi!$advaitavåd’, sothe philosophy of Ír( Chaitanyadev became known as‘Achintyabhedåbheda Siddhånta’. The philosophy of theVedic era took utmost care to impart instruments as themeans to help realise the Supreme Lord. This wasaccomplished by introducing three factors. The first is‘Sambandha’ or relation, which depicts the relationbetween the ‘One’ and the ‘many’ or the inter-relationship that exists between God, the living beingsand the Universe, or to be more precise the relationshipbetween one living being and another, the livingentities and the world, and between one object of thecreation and another. The other two factors are‘ A b h i d e y a ’ or the means for achievement, and‘Prayojana’ or our ultimate necessity.

Ír( Ía&karåchåryya passed his judgement in favour ofAbsolute Consciousness without any form or theeternal truth that is ‘One Brahman’ or ‘Advaitavåd’ and

Ír( K~!@a Dvaip*yana Veda Vy*saThe original author of Ír( Gau#(ya Darshan

ignored the concept of ‘the many’ based on his selfimagined theory of evolution. Learned teachers such asÍr( Råmånuja and Ír( Mådhva proclaimed, based onSpiritual Truth, that all living beings and the universeare all dependant on and inseparable from God, theSupreme Reality. Their conclusions were called‘Vißi!$advaitavåd’ and ‘Íuddhadvaitavåd’ respectively.In this way different philosophers cast their opinions onthe subject of ‘Sambandha Jåna’ more or lessaccording to their own vision and these became knownby different names.

The subject matter of our discussion is the ‘Gau#(yaDarshan’ or ‘Achintyabhedåbheda Siddhånta’ w h i c hreveals the mutual relationship of similarity andoneness between ‘The One’ and ‘the many’; betweenGod, the living beings and the universe. Each of thesebears its own specific identity, similarity and onenessbut at the same time a marked dissimilarity anddistinction from the others. This is the true conceptionof the Gau#(ya Philosophy.

As an example, the elements; Earth, Water, Fire, Airand Ether all have their common existence, but whereasEarth, Water and Fire are visible, the presence of Airand Ether is obscure. Also, these elements are allinanimate and do not possess consciousness. The livingbeings, on the other hand, are conscious but dependenton the above-mentioned inanimate elements. God, TheSupreme Consciousness, however is entirely self-

sufficient and fully independent. Thus we may safelyconclude that ‘oneness’ and ‘difference’ exist side byside in all worldly phenomenon. This forms the basis ofthe teachings of Ír( Nimbårkåchåryya and Ír(Bhaskåchåryya, etc.

Ír( Chaitanyadev in His consideration of theseapparent inconsistencies, ascertained and establishedharmony in the indefinable and inexpressible UltimateReality by using the specific term, ‘ A c h i n t y a ’– t h a twhich is beyond human perception—to conceive theAbsolute. This same principle has been followed inunderstanding the significant truths of ‘Abhideya’ and‘Prayojana’. This ‘Achintya’ relationship has also madeits mark in influencing human ‘sådhana’ and ‘sådhya’ inmuch the same way as it has in the field of transcendentrealisation.

The temperament of serving the Lord with earnest loveis the only way to attract and arrest the attention of Ír(K±!@a, the indefinable, Absolute Personality andSupreme Autocrat. One has to surrender without anyreservation whatsoever to achieve the ‘ultimatenecessity’ or ‘Prayojana’; be completely dependent onHis grace and constantly hear and chant His HolyNames. This is the only means, or ‘Abhideya’ to attainthe attention and grace of the Supreme Lord. This isthe conclusion of the Gau#(ya Vai!@ava Society underthe holy guidance of Lord Gaurå&gadev.

Ír(la Ír(dhar Mah*r*j and party outside Vy*sadev’s Cave at Badrik*ßram

will forgive my audacity, can you say why you haverenounced your home and family?”

Sweetly smiling the pleasant faced b r a h m a c h å r ( s a i d ,“Although your question is quite concise and whollyappropriate, the answer will take some time as itinvolves several other questions first. So you will haveto listen patiently.”

Everyone replied in chorus, “Let it be so—please do goo n . ”

Feeling more encouragement, the b r a h m a c h å r (commenced his reply; “You see, the first question foreveryone, what we must all know, is, ‘who am I?’ Afterascertaining this, then we can tackle the questions of‘mine?’, ‘home?’, ‘renunciation?’ and ‘why?’ etc.

‘Who am I?’ The veryquestion immediately remindsus of Ír(la Sanåtan Goswåm(.I’m sure more or less all of youhave heard his name.”

My friend interjected, “Yes, Iremember reading a poemabout him. There was a verybeautiful description of howSanåtan Goswåm( havingfound a mystical touchstonehad simply cast it under a treelike any worthless piece ofrock. Later, a Brahmin whowas desirous of wealthapproached him, beingcommanded by Lord Shiva.Sanåtan Goswåm( told him totake the touchstone fromunder the tree. Soon aftertaking the precious stone, thatman began to realise hisfoolishness and returning hefell at the Goswåm(’s feet and beseeched him saying, “That treasure that has made you so rich that you donot consider a precious stone a jewel at all, I humblybow down and beg you, please give me just a drop ofthat.” And so saying threw the touchstone into theriver—It really is a charming account.”

“The character of great saints is surelyincomprehensible”, remarked the b r a h m a c h å r ( ,“Although they themselves are great liberated souls,they show various ways for the welfare of the fallen.Ír(la Goswåm( was Ír(man Mahåprabhu’s veryintimate associate. When Ír(man Mahåprabhu went toV±ndåvan, Ír(la Sanåtan Goswåm(, for the good ofmankind, after discarding even the prestigious positionof Chief Minister under Hussain Shah, the pleasures ofthe material world, and all other transient possessions,offered himself at the feet of Mahåprabhu at Kashi.That same Sanåtan Goswåm( asked Ír( Chaitanya on

our behalf, “Who am I, and why do I suffer from thethreefold miseries?”

Now, Mahåprabhu thoroughly knew the heart ofSanåtan and said, “You are intimately acquainted withthe Truth of Divinity and therefore there are nomiseries for you, so I can understand that you areasking this question for the benefit of all humanbeings. Please listen to my answer.” Mahåprabhu said,

j(vera ‘svar)pa’ haya-k±!@era ‘nitya-dåsa’k±!@era ‘ta$asthå-ßakti’ ‘bhedåbheda-prakåßa’

“By constitution you are a pure spirit-soul. Thismaterial body is not your real self; neither is yourmind, your intelligence or your false ego. Your real

identity is the eternal servantof the Supreme Lord Ír(K±!@a. Your natural positionis transcendental. Thesuperior energy of the Lord isspiritual and this externalmaterial energy is His inferiorenergy. You are situatedbetween the spiritual and thematerial energies andtherefore your position ismarginal. Belonging to thismarginal potency of the Lordyou are simultaneously onewith and different fromK±!@a. One with Himbecause you are also spiritualby nature but differentbecause you are only a minutepart of Him.”

“So this is our first necessity,we must know, ‘Who am I?’Please listen patiently becausein this first part of our

discussion I want to say something else.”

The second gentleman said with great modesty, “Look,you must know that we are not very conversant withthe Scriptures and moreover I’m sure there isn’t oneamongst us able to realise the mysteries of the Í å s t r a s ;so you will have to help us understand, as far aspossible, with the help of reasoning.”

“I will do my best”, replied the b r a h m a c h å r ( , “ B u tplease remember it is not possible to ascertain the truenature of the Transcendent Reality or even my ownself with the help of worldly reason, arguments,knowledge, intelligence or scholarship. But for the sakeof showing us the direction from examples observedfrom this plane I will take help, as far as possible, fromthe reasoning of the M a h å j a n s .”

Another passenger, who was up till now listening to

the conversation, suddenly broke his silence and nowassumed the role of a speaker. “Whatever you say,whether based on reason or from the Í å s t r a , as long asthere is a subject, then there will be some doubt andwhere there is doubt then there must be furtherquestions. So without a proper determination of thequestion and its conclusive settlement, then is thereany point in hearing what ‘Råma’ or ‘Shyåma’ have tosay?” [In English we would say, “what is the point inhearing what any ‘Tom’, ‘Dick’ or ‘Harry’ has to say?”E d ]

“Certainly not¡” Our brahmachår( replied with a smile,“From what you say I get the feeling that you are veryfond of logic. In any case, what I am trying to say is,are reasons and arguments capable of ascertaining thetruth of one’s self or the real nature of God? Can wefind any example anywhere of this?

The objects of this world may be governed by theoriesof argument but surely you have heard that the selfcannot be perceived by any power other than its ownpower of perception? Will it be useful to use amicroscope with your ears? Will a microscope showyou what is to be portrayed in a painting? Then how,through an instrument constructed of argument canyou expect to have knowledge of that which is beyondthe power of speech and mind? According tothe conception I have imbibed after studying theÍ å s t r a s , there is no possibility of ascertaining the truenature of the self by argument. All the Vedas agree onthis point—nåyam åtmå pravacanena labhyona medhayå na bahunå ßrutena {Mu@#aka Upani!ad3.2.3} andtarkåprati!$hånåt {Brahma-s)tra 2.1.11}, etc

There are many statements like these and so we reallydon’t need to listen to what ‘Råma’ or ‘Shyåma’ haveto say. Rather we should pay heed to the statements ofthe all-knowing Mahåtmås and the teachings of theV e d a s .

I could see that our logician was disheartened and wasabout to say something when the first gentlemanhastily said, “Brahmachår(j(, we have little time, weonly have one more station before we get off, so pleasetry and finish what you have to say. You know that iftwo learned men come across each other there may beno end to their arguments.

“Good”, the b r a h m a c h å r ( replied, “Now listen to whatI am saying. So firstly we must find out which is thereal “I”. Is it the body, the mind or something else? Inthis connection a verse from G(topani!ad will help usu n d e r s t a n d .

indriyå@i parå@y åhur indriyebhya% para^ mana%manasas tu parå buddhiryo buddhe% paratas tu sa%

{Bg 3.42}

“It is said, thesenses are superiorto the body,superior to thesenses is the mind,superior to themind is theintellect, and thatwhich is superiorto the intellect isknown as the• t m a n. ”

“The sense organsare pre-eminent inthe body, butwhen analysed wefind that they arenothing but slavesto the mind. Ifyou are unmindful then even if a drum is beaten nearto the ear you are quite likely not to hear it—is it not?Still everyone has a mind, even a madman. But becauseof his deranged brain his mind is not under his control.Everything about him will be off balance andinconsistent. As such it can be concluded that theintelligence is superior to both the mind and thesenses. Nevertheless without a support or withoutsomething to illuminate it, the intelligence cannot beactivated or become manifest. That illuminatingfactor is the • t m a n {the Soul}—full of consciousnessand self-luminous—Truth revealed by its own light.

Moreover, although the body may be self-contained, inthe absence of that one thing it becomes immobile.Today, we lavish our affection on a boy due to hisbeauty, his good qualities and his intelligent natureand we cannot bear his absence even for a moment,but should he die tomorrow, what do we do? Hisbeautiful body which was so dear to us, the object ofour deep attachment, do we keep it in our home? Wetake it immediately to the cremation ground to removeevery last trace of it. This is what we do, even thoughour heart breaks in grief—why? Because we know thathe who dwelt within that body—he who used to laughand play with us, sometimes showing annoyance,sometimes joy and sometimes sulking—today thatperson is there no more. He has left that body, theplace of his senses, and now it will simply rot. Then wecan certainly understand that the body is not the realperson, the body is his house, his residence, and he thatdwelt within has left. He that carries with him thedistant memories of his entire past, he is known as the• t m a n . In the absence of • t m a n ; earth, water, fire, airand ether, knowledge and desire, all become nothingbut inanimate objects.”

{to be continued?}

Bea uty Will Save The Wo r l dÍr(p*d Bhakti Sudh(r Gosw*m( Mah*r*j

Which view do Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn, Fydor Dostoyevsky and Ír(la Ír(dharMahåråj hold in common

In his 1970 Nobel Literature acceptance speechAleksandr Solzhenitsyn spoke the followingw o r d s :Dostoyevsky once enigmatically let drop thephrase: “Beauty will save the world.” What doesthis mean? For a long time I thought it merely aphrase. Was such a thing possible? When in our

bloodthirsty history did beauty ever save anyone fromanything? Ennobled, elevated, yes; but whom has its a v e d ?

There is, however, something special in the essence ofbeauty, a special quality in art: the conviction carried by agenuine work of art is absolute and subdues even aresistant heart. A political speech, hasty newspapercomment, a social program, a philosophical system can, asfar as appearances are concerned, be built smoothly andconsistently on an error or a lie; and what is concealed anddistorted will not be immediately clear. But then tocounteract it comes a contradictory speech, commentary,program, or differently constructed philosophy—andagain everything seems smooth and graceful, and againhangs together. That is why they inspire trust—andd i s t r u s t .

There is no point asserting and reasserting what the heartcannot believe.

A work of art contains its verification in itself: artificial,strained concepts do not withstand the test of being turnedinto images; they fall to pieces, turn out to be sickly andpale, convince no one. Works which draw on truth andpresent it to us in live and concentrated form grip us,compellingly involve us, and no one ever, not even ageshence, will come forth to refute them.

Perhaps then the old trinity of Truth, Goodness, andBeauty is not simply the dressed-up, worn-out formula wethought it in our presumptuous, materialistic youth? If thecrowns of these three trees meet, as scholars have asserted,and if the too obvious, too straight sprouts of Truth andGoodness have been knocked down, cut off, not let grow,perhaps the whimsical, unpredictable, unexpectedbranches of Beauty will work their way through, rise up tothat very place, and thus complete the work of all three?

Then what Dostoyevsky wrote—”Beauty will save theworld”—is not a slip of the tongue but a prophecy.In a striking parallel Ír(la Ír(dhar Mahåråja speaks of theK±!@a conception of divinity, Reality the Beautiful, asbeing “victorious in the world.”

What is K±!@a consciousness? K±!@a consciousness meansreal love and beauty. Real love and beauty mustpredominate; not selfishness, or exploitation. Generally,whenever we see beauty, we think that beauty is to beexploited, but actually, beauty is the exploiter, beauty is themaster, and beauty is the controlling principle.

And what is love? Love means sacrifice for others. Weshould not think that sacrifice is to be exploited by us.Who is to be the recipient of sacrifice? Is it our party? No.We are in the group of those who sacrifice themselves: thepredominated negative party, Mahåbhåva’s party [Ír(Rådhå ¢håkurå@(]. The underlying principle of love issacrifice, but sacrifice for whom? And who is thebeneficiary? Love is the beneficiary. Everyone shouldcontribute to the centre, but no one should draw energyfrom there. “Die to live.” With this spirit we shouldcombine and work for real love and beauty.

And beauty will be victorious in the world. Love will bevictorious in the world. We will sacrifice everything to seethat the banner of divine love will flutter all over the world,for a particle of that divine love will be able to keep peaceand distribute peace in all directions. Just as fightingsoldiers dedicate everything, and give their lives so theircountrymen will benefit in the future, we should sacrificeour lives and work to bring real peace for everyone.

In V±ndåvan, the land of K±!@a, the standard of sacrifice isunlimited. Devotees there are willing to risk everything forK±!@a. If that principle of sacrifice is enthroned, then peacewill automatically follow. K±!@a consciousness should beenthroned above all other conceptions. All otherconceptions are meant to be subservient to K±!@aconsciousness. The ideal of V±ndåvan, K±!@a’s abode, isabove all other ideals. In theistic comparison, theconception of Ír( Chaitanya Mahåprabhu’s L(lå is aboveall other conceptions. There, theism reaches its zenith.That is our highest goal, and step by step, that should beexplained, thought out, accepted, and preached.

At the time of first initiation, what we get from Guru ismahå-mantra. We need to consciously differentiatebetween m a n t r a and m a n t r a m. In ChaitanyaCharitåm±ta Ír(la K±!@adås Kaviråja Goswåm( clearlystates the difference: by K±!@a mantra one will getliberation from material existence, but only by K±!@a-nåma will one enter the land of dedication and achieveservice of the lotus feet of K±!@a {k±!@a-mantra haitehabe sa^såra-mochana, k±!@a-nåma haite påbe k±!@erachara@a}.

With this in mind we can understand what is what. Ifwe want to enter into the transcendental world, first weneed the help of the mahå-mantra, because the mahå-mantra can rescue one from the very lowest level andtake one to the very highest level. For gåyatr( mantrasome qualification is necessary; there are rules andregulations, many obstacles etc. gåyatr( is mantram, andharinåma {the Holy Nåme of K±!@a} is mahå-mantra.The harinåma mahå-mantra is very appropriate for theage of Kali yuga. Every yuga has its own mahå-mantra,and that is called, tåraka brahma nåma {liberatingspiritual nåme}.

Like the trumpet of an elephant, it is a sound so greatthat it captures the hearts and attention of everyone.But that sound has no material form—it is purespiritual sound. And that divine sound descends intothis world from the flute of Lord K±!@a.

Some mornings I see how our temple is decorated withour Ma$h logo [in the center is a lotus flower {disciple}sheltered in the water {guru} nourished beneath theshining sun of O^ {K±!@a}. At the base is the flute ofK±!@a with its divine song of liberation descending intothis world.] I think how sweetly and intelligently Ír(laGuru Mahåråj has described this in his explanation ofgåyatr( mantra.

gåyatr( means, “Sing and you will get liberation¡” {ga@åt tråyate iti gåyatr(}. Such a very nice style¡“Dance, sing, and you will get liberation¡” This isgåyatr(—ga@åt tråyate. No one anywhere, at any time,has explained the transcendental vibration form of theLord in this way. No religion says, “Chant, dance andget liberation¡”

And what is the form of that song? Murali means theflute of K±!@a, the sound that comes out of the flute ofK±!@a {m u r a l ( ! $ a - k ( r t a n a - d h a n a ̂ }. K±!@a’s flute issinging. Flutes are for singing, not for blasting, not formaking violence. The sweet sound of K±!@a’s flutebrings peace to the heart.

And what is the flute singing? It has some target. Whenwe sing, we have some object in mind. We also employrhythm and metre. The flute has a regulator and thatmetre is—the name of Rådhårån(. No other sound iscoming out from the flute, only, “Rådhe, Rådhe,Rådhe, Rådhe, Rådhe¡” Only this sound is coming—ina variety of ways.

We can conceive something in this regard fromstudying the life and character of Ír(la Raghunåth DåsGoswåm(. Everyday Dås Goswåm( is singing,

rådhe v±ndåvana-vilåsin( rådhe rådherådhe kånu-mano mohin( rådhe rådherådhe a!$a-sakh(ra ßiroma@i rådhe rådhe

In this song every verse concludes with, “R å d h eRådhe¡” Every day this is sung in the Rådhå DåmodarTemple. When Prabhupåda Saraswat( ¢håkur first metÍr(la Gaura Kißore Dås Båbåj(, Båbåj( Mahåråj wassinging this song. And always singing this song,whether walking in the road or sitting in bhajan, he wasalways singing this song. This sound is the only songcoming from the flute of Lord K±!@a. The soundmanifestation of its divine influence spreads over theentire transcendental and mundane worlds.

This understanding we get from the description of Råsa-l(lå in Ír(mad Bhågavatam. First K±!@a calls all of theGopis to assemble for Råsa-l(lå by playing his flute. It isthe clarion call. And this call is the real property of allsouls {j(vas}. We understand this through Bhaktivinoda¢håkur:

j(v jågo, j(v jågo gaurachånda bolekota nidrå jåo måyå-pißåch(ra kole

Is this the clarion call or what? We are sleeping on the

lap of Måyå in ignorance but theclarion call is coming, “Wake up¡”The Upani!ads say, u t t i ! $ h ajågrata pråpya varån nibodhata,‘Wake up, arise and begin thesearch for Ír( K±!@a. Now is thetime to get love for K±!@a.” TheUpani!ads, Bhaktivinoda ¢håkur,the song of K±!@a’s flute—the gistof that sound, its wealth, isrealized in connection with thelotus feet {service} of Ír(mat(Rådhårå@( {Rådhå Dåsya^} .K±!@a is only attracted to hisDivine Potency. She is servingK±!@a wholeheartedly and veryextensively with her associates.She is known as Rådhårå@(. AndK±!@a is always and only thinkingof her.

The sound of K±!@a’s flute notonly regulates madhura rasa butall r a s a. In madhura rasaRådhårå@( is the chief, but allother rasas are also maintained bymadhura rasa. Madhura rasa is ådirasa the principal rasa from whichall r a s a springs. Madhura rasamaintains all variety of spiritualrelationship: passive, active—servant, friend, parent—guardian{ßånta rasa, dåsya rasa, såkhya rasa, våtsalya rasa}.Maintenance means preservation. Rådhårå@(’s supremesweet mood of service sustains the entire spiritualexistence.

gåyatr(-mural(!ta-k(rtana-dhana^. Generally we referto the Hare K±!@a mahå-mantra or any devotional songas k(rtan or sa&k(rtan. But there is a little differencebetween the two. What one does alone may be calledk(rtan. But sa&k(rtan means when, in a gathering ofdevotees, their heart comes out, that kind of k(rtan iscalled sank(rtan {bahubhir militvå yat k(rtanåm tad evasa&k(rtanåm}.

Here Guru Mahåråj has specifically mentioned k(rtanadhanåm. K(rtan is not only recommended for everyone,but it is the wealth of our life, because through k(rtanwe get entrance into the Råsa-l(lå—divine play withK±!@a, Rådhårå@(, the Vraja Gop(s—playing, singing,dancing. And this is the wealth of liberated j(va souls.

Guru Mahåråj says not only k(rtan but k(rtana dhana^.The flute is not a bamboo stick or something made outof metal. It is alive. This means it is a conscious livingbeing {chetanå}. Everyone in the transcendental andmaterial world has free will, this freedom K±!@a hasgiven to everyone. The body of the flute is a form ofconsciousness. He has desires and free will like anybeing, but he is using his freedom for this inconceivableservice to Lord K±!@a. The flute’s ecstasy is in singingthe song of the lotus feet of Rådhårå@( {R å d h åDåsyam}.

sakhi murali vißåla-chchhidra-jålena p)r@ålaghur atika$hinå tva^ granthilå n(rasåsitad api bhajasi ßaßvac chumbanånanda-såndra^hari-kara-parirambha^ kena pu@yodayena

Vidagdha Mådhava, Ír(la R)pa Goswåm(

[Hey flute-friend, what sort of good things have youdone that such a hard, dry piece of bamboo like you,with more faults {knots} than holes, enjoys beingsqueezed by K±!@a’s lotus hands and tastes an endless

stream of nectar from his kiss?]

R)pa Goswåm(’s Prabhu’s ßloka praises the flute.The flute has its own life which is dedicated to thismost desirable and palatable song {(!$a k(rtanadhana^}. More than that I cannot express in English.But I can see in the eyes. Cannot express—maybe. Butit is true, what the flute is playing, that is writteneverywhere. He is playing the name of the SupremeServitor of Lord K±!@a. The Supreme Servitor Form ofLord K±!@a is Ír(mati Rådhårå@(.

It is fully described in Ír( Garga Sa^hitå. I have seenyesterday maybe—I am opening and getting. This isthe mercy of Guru Mahåråj. Standing in the aråti andseeing the Ma$h logo above the Deities, my brain startsworking. Brain is material and matter cannot touch thetranscendental but everything is possible by the grace ofGurudeva. So by Ír(la Guru Mahåråj’s grace I am veryhopeful. The meaning of gåyatr( as revealed by Ír(laGuru Mahåråj is: K±!@a’s flute sings the song of thelotus feet of Rådhårå@( {Rådhå Dåsyam}.

The word dh(mahi in gåyatr( is very famous in Sanskritliterature. Two words are present most in gåyatr(mantrams: dh(mahi and prachodayåt. The concluding

word of the meditation is prachodayåt. It’s not that wewill only meditate, but the mantram will pressure us toserve Rådhårå@(.

We need to know the spiritual regulations andinjunctions {c h o d a n å m—p r a t i c h o d a n å m}. Thatscriptural advice is found in the Vedas, Upani!ads,Bhagavad G(tå, Mahåbhårata etc. Íruti and Sm±ti:Bhagavad G(tå is sm±ti and ßruti is Vedånta, Upani!adsetc. But here chodanåm means prera@a {inspiration}.What kind of inspiration? Forceful inspiration—inspiring forcefully. The mantram’s nature is like that:to capture the j(va soul’s mind through inspiration andforcefully engage one in the service of Rådhårå@(. Thisis the extraordinary meaning Ír(la Guru Mahåråj hasgiven of the gåyatr( Mantra.

And I have found this sort of nectar in the GargaSa^hita, maybe a thousand times. We should note thatin Ír(mad Bhågavatam the most exalted, qualified,exponents of Vedic m a n t r a m were all present atÍukadev’s meeting with Par(k!it Mahåråj. Veda Vyåsarecords their nåmes in the Bhågavatam because eachname also represents a different school of thought{Ír(mad Bhågavatam 1.19.9-10}.

the Lord. Then dh(r årådhanam eva nånyad iti, withoutserving the Lord, no other conception exists. That isGuru Mahåråj’s våkya, meaning—explanation. But Ihave taken, gåyatr(-gadita^ mahåprabhu-mata^,where it is a little hidden {rådhå-padam dh(mahi}.

The original ®g Veda mantram is:

o^ tad vi!@o% parama^ pada^ sadå paßyanti s)raya%div(va chak!ur åtatam vi!@or yat parama^ padam

It is called ®g mantra. But Ír(la Guru Mahåråj hasenhanced that ®g mantra:

o ̂tad vi!@o% parama ̂pada ̂ßruti matåm muhyanti yat s)raya%dra!$åh chak!ur iva pråsarita-mahå-s)ryeva d(vyatatamdhåmnå svena sadå nirasta-kuhaka ̂satya para ̂ßabdita^jyoti% pr(ti-tanu ̂hira@ya-puru!a ̂paßyanti ta ̂s)raya%

This line is especially significant: jyotih pr(ti-tanu^h i r a @ y a - p u r u ! a ̂ . Effulgence and love—heart andhalo—has taken form as Ír( Chaitanya Mahåprabhu.This sort of revelation is Guru Mahåråj’s miracle¡

So many pa@#its can understand the Sanskrit languagebut from within the Sanskrit, everyone cannot extractthe gist of ecstasy. This is a fact. In the Upani!ad it issaid very clearly, nåyam åtmå bala-h(nena labhyo,nåyam åtmå pravachanena labhyo, na medhayå nabahunå ßrutena. You know so many things— maybe.You may have so much intelligence {medha}, but youwill not understand. Without the grace of NityånandaPrabhu, without the grace of Baladev, you cannotunderstand anything.

But when K±!@a in the form of guru will give thismantram to you and you will meditate with your ownexistence, then you must understand {yam evai!a v±@utetena labhyas}. There is no doubt. But everywherepeople are plagued by doubt and questions. Thereforeeverywhere there is so much difficulty. But he willreveal himself to whom he chooses {tasyai!a åtmåviv±@ute tan)^ svåm}. It is as if we have no eyes¡ Likeowls, who don’t like to see the Sun. If we do not havea pair of eyes, how will we see? {andh( bh)ti chak!u yåravi!ayå dh)lite, kemone se parå tattva påibe dekhite}.This is a Bengali expression. Which way will one seewhose eyes are blinded by the dust of materialconception?

Hare K±!@a.

Here is the word s)raya%. Guru Mahåråj used it only tohonor the Vedas, Upani!ads. But Guru Mahåråj hasnot given the meaning of s)raya% as “the vision of thegods.” S)raya% means demigods. They are seeing, butdemigods can never see that higher reality, hira@ya-puru!a%, without the mercy of whom? Jyotih pr(ti-tanu^’s mercy—without the mercy of Mahåprabhu.Without the mercy of Nityånanda Prabhu, even thegods {s)raya%} also cannot see. This is a fact. Not thatonly I am saying this but Brahmå himself agrees:

jånanta eva jånantuki^ bah)ktyå na me prabhomanaso vapu!o våchovaibhava^ tava go-chara%

“Those who say, ‘I know K±!@a’—let them talk. But asfar as I am concerned I cannot understand even a littlebit about your glories. And for that I am misguided. Itis not only bodily, mentally, or verbally, but my wholeexistence is blind without your mercy my Lord.”

Brahmå doubted K±!@a’s divinity and wanted to test hisomnipotence. He stole K±!@a’s cows and cowherdboyfriends while they took a lunch break from theircow-herding pastimes {go!$ha-l(lå}. Brahmå kept themin a cave on his planet and after one year came back andwas shocked, “Everything is normal¡ Ír( K±!@a’spastimes in V±ndåvan are going on as ever withoutinterruption.”

He thought the cows and cowherd boys must havesomehow escaped and returned to V±ndåvan. So hechecked back on his planet Brahmaloka and saw theywere still there sleeping under the influence of hisillusion. He wanted to bewilder K±!@a but instead hewas now completely bewildered. He returned toV±ndåvan and finally fell at the lotus feet of K±!@a. Hebegged forgiveness for doubting his divinity and failingto realise his inconceivable potency.

Kneeling before K±!@a, Brahmå offered so manywonderful prayers, only to be sweetly dismissed with amere affectionate glance from K±!@a’s lotus eyes.

Every day this type of divine substance does not comeout. Today I am very fortunate—you are all veryfortunate. And it came by simply seeing our Ma$h logo.By his mercy I could give some explanation about Ír(laGuru Mahåråj’s gåyatr( conception {gåyatr(-mural(!$a-k(rtana-dhana^ rådhå-pada^ dh(mahi}.

‘Everything is possible by the grace of Ír(la Guru Mah*r*j’

Why does our

consciousness comedown to this plane?Why doesn’t it have ahigher conception of

higher spiritual existence. Instead ourattention is drawn to some materialthing on the mundane plane. We thinkthat some medicine, or someintoxication can help us. When wecannot raise our consciousness to thefiner and higher conscious substance,then we come to seek help in thematerial world. “These substances willhelp me.” This thinking is suicidal.

We cannot manage to have aconnection directly with the higherconscious substance, then we come toseek some means in the lower. “Withthe help of that I will makeadvancement toward the finerconsciousness.

The matter will help me to understand,to acquire consciousness.” We are thuswithout faith in the agents of thatAbsolute Truth, the Vai!@avas. It is dueto vai!@ava aparådha, losing faith in theconscious agents of the Supreme, thatwe go to the material substance, “Help

me¡” I lose faith in the spiritual agencyand the long and the short is this—weseek shelter in a material thing and welose our faith in the higher agency. Wecan’t see their Grace. So, that is theunderlying position of an intoxicationmonger. No faith in the higher agent,that which is spiritual which is soul-likein character, but more aspiration to gethelp from the lower substance.

The scientific conception is also likethat, degrading. Degrading, losing faithin the spiritual efficacy, their grace ortheir position, we come belowstandard. No faith.

We cannot put faith in the devotee, thescripture, or the å c h å r y y a.Disappointed we go to seek help fromsome atom of matter, “Yes this will giveme everything.”

abhyarthitas tadå tasmaisthånåni kalaye dadau dy)ta^ påna^ striya% s)nåyatrådharmaß chatur-vidha%punaß cha yåchamånåyajåta-r)pam adåt prabhu%tato ’n±ta^ mada^ kåma^rajo vaira^ cha pachamam

Charm for the material world, dy)ta^,to get money very cheaply, not in theordinary constitutional way, but bycheating process, this is dy)ta^.

Påna^ is also like that, intoxication.That is earned by black marketing, Akind of mania for påna^. The energy Ican collect in an ordinary sense, I amnot satisfied with that so in some blackway by using drugs or intoxication. Iwant to amass some energy by påna^.This is the meaning of påna^. I wantto gain energy by unfair means.

Striya%, that is raso vai sa%. He is thecenter of all ecstasy, but we go tocollect that experience of ecstasy in avery cheap way from material things.S)nå is also a cheap way to develop thebody. The flesh, må^sa, can be moreeasily utilised for the flesh in me thanby vegetables. So it is all very easy, notin a regular and proper way to preserveoneself, but in a cheap way, bycheating, we want to agrandiseourselves.

Gold is such a substance that if one canget control over gold, he can havecontrol over all material prosperity, the

«el «elJep/j.te·. iuyA

Faith is Our

Real WealthÍr( Ír(la Bhakti Rak!ak Ír(dhar Dev-Gosw*m( Mah*r*j

dollar, the pound, therupee, everything. If I canpossess gold I can easilyget everything. This ischeating. With a smallthing like gold, j å t a -r)pam, I can control theentire food chain. I cancontrol all the necessitiesof human beings. Cheapmarketing, not a regularlife, but in a cheatingprocess. By these fivecheating processes “wecan become great”, sothey must be given up.We must be plain, simpleand truthful and live hereas a bonafide and sinceremember, where we are.When you are put in thejail don’t try any other black things tohelp yourself, but sincerely give yourlabour as it is ruled and you will be freevery soon.

When you are a criminal be a reformedcriminal then you will be able toacquire freedom. Already you are acriminal and in the prison you arecheating others. So, lead a simple life.Do not incur any further debt, but tryto pay the debt you have alreadyincured. With this process you will befree very soon. Not by any artificialprocess, but if you adopt a sincere andsimple process—not by diplomacy orany other thing. Simply, “I am thegreatest criminal. Oh my Lord, pleaseforgive me. Take me out. Please begracious upon me.” This is the way toadopt, not by any artificial means. It isonly our love for artificial things thathas brought us here. In the highestideal there is no place for diplomacy,cheating or any of these things. This isthe fashion of this m a y i c world ofmisconception. To acquire anythingtoo easily means to deceive others, butyou can’t deceive God. Simply go toHim and pray that, “I am a culprit. Iam so and so. Forgive me and acceptme.” This is a plain, simple way.Your knowledge also cannot help you,only j å n a - ß ) n y a - b h a k t i , p u r esurrender, wholesale surrender. Don’tuse any reason there. Don’t go to pleadfor your own cause. Completesurrender. Don’t plead in favour ofyourself, rather if you have to plead,plead to the Lord that you are the mostheinous. That will be more effective.This is the way.

Love Divine. It is against theconception of the ontology of love thatany particular material atom can givelove, prema, heart’s feelings. The heartcan be purchased by a chemical—byusing medicine I can get God? “Usethis medicine and God will come toplease and serve you. I am super-superGod and I am giving this medicine.”Never¡ The simple way is ‘love forlove’. Give yourself and you will getHim. It is simple and pure. Surrenderto the High and the High will comedown to welcome you.

sarva-dharmån parityajamåm eka^ ßara@a^ vrajaaha^ två^ sarva-påpebhyomok!ayi!yåmi må ßuca%

How comprehensive, reasonable andnatural this is. “Give up everything, allengagements, and come to Me freely. Iam ready to accept you anytime, at anymoment. Accept that all obligation toany other thing is stopped and come toMe. I shall welcome and embrace you.All obligations are stopped.Whatsoever obligation you incur orthink to possess in this world arediscontinued. Only My obligationremains. Your obligation to me isabsolute and these others are all relativeand temporary. They are artificial andconcocted. Your obligation to Me iswholesale, pure and clear. Try to realisethat.”

te!åm satata-yuktånå^bhajatå^ pr(ti-p)rvakamdadåmi buddhi-yoga^ ta^yena måm upayånti te

To those devotees who areconstantly dedicated toMe, and who engage inMy service out of theirlove for Me, I bestow thedivine inspiration bywhich they can approachMe and render intimateservice unto Me.

In this verse the Lord says,“The highest group of Myservitors {whose sentimentwas described in theprevious verse by the wordramanti} are those who areconstantly engaged {satata-y u k t å } in My service inconsorthood { m a d h u r a -r a s a } with heartfelt love{bhajatå^ pr(ti

p)rvakam}.” Then He says that He willgive them further inspiration or innerinstruction “by which they can come toHim” {yena måm upayånti te}. Whenalready in this and the previous versethe devotee’s service to the Lord hasbeen described as eternal {by the wordsnitya^ and satata-yuktå}, Lord Krsna’sstatement that He will give themfurther inspiration by which they cancome to Him appears to be redundant.Therefore, in the expression m a mupayanti te {“They will come to Me”},the word upayånti must be defined asparak(ya-bhåvena-upapati. Pati meanshusband, and upapati means paramour:

“For those who have already come intodivine relationship with Me as My wife{ramanti}, I give them them the specialinspiration to come to Me as aparamour { u p a p a t i }.” In V±ndåvan,Lord K±!@a is not considered a lawfulhusband, but He is the Lord of theheart, transcendental to even thehusband { p a r a k ( y a - r a s a }. Deceivingtheir husbands, the Gop(s of V±ndåvanunite with K±!@a. They do not allow asecond party to come between them.They cannot allow the interception ofeven scriptural regulation and sociallaw, because K±!@a’s position isabsolute, and such a relationship ismore relishable to Him. This isV ± n d å v a n - b h a j a n a, and this is themeaning of upapati.

“My relationship with them isindependent of everything conceivable.It crosses law, society, scripture—everything. It is most innate andnatural, and it does not require anysocial or scriptural sanction. I say to

them, ‘You may showformal respect to all theserestrictions and live in thesociety. But from yourheart of hearts you areMine.’ This is the specialinspiration and insight Igive to those devotees{yena måm upayånti te}.

“Externally there are socialand scriptural demands,but My position is overand above them. Veda isMy instruction for thebenefit of the masses, whohave deviated from Me.And the society is alsounder the jurisdiction ofthose general instructionsgiven to the public by Me.But My divine relationship witheverything is intrinsic andindependent. It does not requirerecognition from anyone.Such a relationship is the highest. It isconstant. It supercedes all law andsociety which are guided by the Vedas;rather, all the Vedas are searching forsuch a thing.”

Í r u t i b h i r - v i m ± g y å m — V i m a m a -mrgyå–the Vedas are searching afterthis ideal, divine position. In thesection of the Ír(mad Bhågavatamwhich deals with Råsa-l(lå, the Vedasare begging forgiveness:

“We are generally supposed to givetidings of You, but we could notdescribe You as we now experience Youhere. Now we understand that we havecommited an offense, because we couldnot distribute this Råsa-l(lå, this Vraja-l(lå, to the people.”

vikr(#ita^ vraja-vadh)bhir ida^ cha vi!@o%ßraddhånvito ’nuß±@uyåd atha var@ayed ya%bhakti^ parå^ bhagavati pratilabhya kåma^ h±d-rogam åßv-apahinoty achire@a dh(ra%

“A self-controlled, sense controlledperson who, having become endowedwith sublime faith in the divinepastimes transcendentally enjoyed byLord K±!@a with the Gopis {Rasa-lila},and who having heard those divinepastimes from the lotus mouth of thebona fide Guru, continuously sings ornarrates their glories—such a person

swiftly achieves the most elevated formof pure devotion for the Lord, and ispromptly able to ward off the heartdisease of lust.” {Bhag. 10. 33. 39}

In his writings, Ír(la J(va Goswåm( haslaid stress on the word meaning “self-controlled.” To hear these elevatedsubjects, one must enter into theculture of sense-control, otherwise hewill be destroyed.

naitat samåcharej jåtumanasåpi hy an(ßvara%vinaßyaty åcharan mau#hyåd yathå ’rudro ’bdhi-ja^ vi!am

“No one should ever think of imitatingthis behavior of the Supreme Lord andthe Gop(s. If out of gross foolishnessanyone tries to imitate the pastimes ofthe Lord, he will be utterly destroyed,just as if he tried to imitate Lord Sivaby drinking the poison which arosefrom the ocean.”

{Bhåg. 10. 33. 30}

Like sign-posts, all the revealedscriptures are only showing thedirection; but where, how? “We do notknow.” Only, “In this direction Hemay be available.”

Anywhere and everywhere, everythingbelongs to Him. For one who knowsthis, all possibilities of sensual pleasureand exploitation are uprooted. Forexample, an unmarried woman mayhave the possibility of beingapproached by many, but there is lesspossibility for those who are married,because they are possessed by someone.Similarly, when we are able to know

that everything is only forthe satisfaction of K±!@a,then we shall realise thatall our exploitingtendencies have vanishedforever. Nothing willremain to be utilised forthe pleasure of our sensualexperience. It will be verydeeply felt in our heartsthat everything has itsexistence only for Hissatisfaction, and there isno room for any otherexploitation.

And we are also includedthere—our existence isalso only for Hissatisfaction. Everything ismeant for His divine

pastimes { l ( l å } , and there is nopossibility for any others’ pastimes. Allare included in that one l(lå.Encroachment will disappear when welearn the proper utility of everything.He is the owner, and His ownership isabsolute. The scriptures, society, andlaw designate, “This is yours, that isanother’s, or that belongs to a thirdparty.” This is something like atemporary lease, but the permanentownership is in all respects with Him.“All others—possessor and property,master and servant—are all relative,and only sanctioned by Him for thetime being. The Absolute Owner,Possessor, and Enjoyer is He alone.

When we arrive at such a conclusion,only then is complete purification ofour hearts possible. Everyone isthinking of themselves as many mastersof many things, but this is all heartdisease { h ± d - r o g a m }. This is allconceived in a diseased state ofconsciousness. In a healthy state, whenthe heart is quite wholesome, we cansee the Supreme whole, and we can seethat everything is meant only for Hissatisfaction.

«el «elJep/j.te·. iuyA

Bhaktivinodaby

Ír( Ír(la Bhaktisiddh*nta Saraswat( Prabhup*daOriginally published in

The Harmonist, December 1931, vol. XXIX No.6

¢håkura

e avail of the opportunity offered by theAnniversary Celebrations of the advent of ¢håkuraBhaktivinoda to reflect on the right method of obtainingthose benefits that have been made accessible tohumanity by the grace of this great devotee of K±!@a.¢håkura Bhaktivinoda has been specifically kind to thoseunfortunate persons who are engrossed in mentalspeculation of all kinds. This is the prevalent malady ofthe present Age. The other åchåryyas who appearedbefore ¢håkura Bhaktivinoda did not address theirdiscourses so directly to the empiric thinkers. They hadbeen more merciful to those who are naturally disposedto listen to discourses on the Absolute without beingdissuaded by the specious arguments of avowedopponents of Godhead.

Srila ¢håkura Bhaktivinoda has taken the trouble ofmeeting the perverse arguments of mental speculators bythe superior transcendental logic of the Absolute Truth.It is thus possible for the average modern readers to profitby the perusal of his writings. That day is not far distantwhen the priceless volumes penned by ¢håkuraBhaktivinoda will be reverently translated, by therecipients of his grace, into all the languages of the world. The writings of ¢håkura Bhaktivinoda provide thegolden bridge by which the mental speculator can safelycross the raging waters of fruitless empiric controversiesthat trouble the peace of those who choose to trust intheir guidance for finding the Truth. As soon as thesympathetic reader is in a position to appreciate thesterling quality of ¢håkura Bhaktivinoda’s philosophythe entire vista of the revealed literatures of the world willautomatically open out to his reclaimed vision.

There have, however, already arisen seriousmisunderstandings regarding the proper interpretation ofthe life and teachings of Srila ¢håkura Bhaktivinoda.Those who suppose they understand the meaning of hismessage without securing the guiding grace of the•chåryya are disposed to unduly favour the methods ofempiric study of his writings. There are persons who havegot by heart almost everything that he wrote withoutbeing able to catch the least particle of his meaning. Suchstudy cannot benefit those who are not prepared to act upto the instructions lucidly conveyed by his words. Thereis no honest chance of missing the warnings of ¢håkuraBhaktivinoda. Those, therefore, who are misled by theperusal of his writings are led astray by their ownobstinate perversity in sticking to the empiric coursewhich they prefer to cherish against his explicit warnings.Let these unfortunate persons look more carefully intotheir own hearts for the cause of their misfortunes.

The personal service of the pure devotee is essential forunderstanding the spiritual meaning of the words of¢håkura Bhaktivinoda. The Editor of this Journal {TheHarmonist}, originally started by ¢håkura Bhaktivinoda,has been trying to draw the attention of all followers of¢håkura Bhaktivinoda to this all-important point of histeachings. It is not necessary to try to place ourselves ona footing of equality with ¢håkura Bhaktivinoda. We arenot likely to benefit by any mechanical imitation of anypractices of ¢håkura Bhaktivinoda on the opportunistprinciple that they may be convenient for us to adopt.The Guru is not an erring mortal whose activities can beunderstood by the fallible reason of unreclaimedhumanity. There is an eternally impassable line ofdemarcation between the Saviour and the saved. Those

W

who are really saved can alone knowthis.¢håkura Bhaktivinoda belongs tothe category of the spiritual world-teachers who eternally occupy thesuperior position.

The present Editor has all along felt ithis paramount duty to try to clear upthe meaning of the life and teachings of¢håkura Bhaktivinoda by the methodof submissive listening to theTranscendental Sound from the lips ofthe pure devotee. The Guru whorealises the transcendental meaning ofall sounds, is in a position to serve theAbsolute by the direction of theAbsolute conveyed through everysound. The Transcendental Sound isGodhead, the mundane sound is non-Godhead. All sound has got theseopposite aptitudes. All sound reveals itsDivine face to the devotee and onlypresents its deluding aspect to theempiric pedant. The devotee talksapparently the same language as thedeluded empiric pedant who had gotby heart the vocabulary of theScriptures. But notwithstandingapparent identity of performance, the one has no access to thereality while the other is absolutely free from all delusion.

Those who repeat the teachings of ¢håkura Bhaktivinoda frommemory do not necessarily understand the meaning of the wordsthey mechanically repeat. Those who can pass an empiricexamination regarding the contents of his writings are notnecessarily also self-realised souls. They may not at all know thereal meaning of the words they have learnt by the method ofempiric study.Take for example the Name “K±!@a”. Every readerof ¢håkura Bhaktivinoda’s works must be aware that the Namemanifests Himself on the lips of His serving devotees although Heis inaccessible to our mundane senses. It is one thing to pass theexamination by reproducing this true conclusion from the writingsof ¢håkura Bhaktivinoda and quite another matter to realise theNature of the Holy Name of K±!@a by the process conveyed by thewords.

¢håkura Bhaktivinoda did not want us to go to the clevermechanical reciter of the mundane sound for obtaining access tothe Transcendental Name of K±!@a. Such a person may be fullyequipped with all the written arguments in explanation of thenature of the Divine Name. But if we listen to all these argumentsfrom the dead source the words will only increase our delusion.The very same words coming from the lips of the devotee will havethe diametrically opposite effect. Our empiric judgment can nevergrasp the difference between the two performances. The devotee isalways right. The non-devotee in the shape of the empiric pedantis always and necessarily wrong. In the one case there is alwayspresent the Substantive Truth and nothing but the SubstantiveTruth. In the other case there is present the apparent or misleadinghypothesis and nothing but un-truth. The wording may have thesame external appearance in both cases. The identical verses of theScriptures may be recited by the devotee and the non-devotee, maybe apparently misquoted by the non-devotee but thecorresponding values of the two processes remain always

categorically different. The devotee isright even when he apparentlymisquotes, the non-devotee is wrongeven when he quotes correctly thevery words, chapter and verse of theScriptures.

It is not empiric wisdom that is theobject of quest of the devotee. Thosewho read the scriptures for gatheringempiric wisdom will be pursuing thewild goose chase. There are not a fewdupes of their empiric Scripturalerudition. These dupes have theiradmiring under-dupes. But themutual admiration society of dupesdoes not escape, by the mere weightof their number, the misfortunes dueto the deliberate pursuit of the wrongcourse in accordance with thesuggestions of our lower selves.

What are the Scriptures? They arenothing but the record by the puredevotees of the Divine Messageappearing on the lips of the puredevotees. The Message conveyed bythe devotees is the same in all ages.

The words of the devotees are ever identical with the Scriptures.Any meaning of the Scriptures that belittles the function of thedevotee who is the original communicant of the Divine Messagecontradicts its own claim to be heard. Those who think that theSanskrit language in its lexicographical sense is the language of theDivinity are as deluded as those who hold that the Divine Messageis communicable through any other spoken dialects. All languagessimultaneously express and hide the Absolute. The mundane faceof all languages hides the Truth. The Transcendental face of allsound expresses nothing but the Absolute. The pure devotee is thespeaker of the Transcendental language. The TranscendentalSound makes His appearance on the lips of His pure devotee. Thisis the direct, unambiguous appearance of Divinity. On the lips ofnon-devotees the Absolute always appears in His deluding aspect.To the pure devotee the Absolute reveals Himself under allcircumstances. To the conditioned soul, if he is disposed to listenin a truly submissive spirit, the language of the pure devotee canalone impart the knowledge of the Absolute. The conditioned soulmistakes the deluding for the real aspect when he chooses to lendhis ear to the non-devotee. This is the reason why the conditionedsoul is warned to avoid all association with non-devotees.

¢håkura Bhaktivinoda is acknowledged by all his sincere followersas possessing the above powers of the pure devotee of Godhead.His words have to be received from the lips of a pure devotee. Ifhis words are listened from the lips of a non-devotee they willcertainly deceive. If his works are studied in the light of one’s ownworldly experience their meaning will refuse to disclose itself tosuch readers. His works belong to the class of the eternal revealedliterature of the world and must be approached for their rightunderstanding through their exposition by the pure devotee. If nohelp from the pure devotee is sought the works of ¢håkuraBhaktivinoda will be grossly misunderstood by their readers. Theattentive reader of those works will find that he is always directedto throw himself upon the mercy of the pure devotee if he is notto remain unwarrantably self-satisfied by the deluding results of his

The Author Ír( Ír(la Bhaktisiddh*nta Saraswat( ›h*kur

wrong method of study.

The writings of ¢håkura Bhaktivinoda are valuable because theydemolish all empiric objections against accepting the only methodof approaching the Absolute in the right way. They cannot andwere never intended to give access to the Absolute without helpfrom the pure devotee of K±!@a. They direct the sincere enquirerof the Truth, as all the revealed scriptures do, to the pure devoteeof K±!@a to learn about Him by submitting to listen with an openmind to the Transcendental Sound appearing on His lips. Beforewe open any of the books penned by ¢håkura Bhaktivinoda weshould do well to reflect a little on the attitude, with which as theindispensable pre-requisite, to approach its study. It is byneglecting to remember this fundamental principle that theempiric pedants find themselves so hopelessly puzzled in their vainendeavour to reconcile the statements of the different texts of theScriptures. The same difficulty is already in process of overtakingmany of the so-called followers of ¢håkura Bhaktivinoda and forthe same reason.

The person to whom the •chåryya is pleased to transmit his poweris alone in a position to convey the Divine Message. Thisconstitutes the underlying principle of the line of succession of thespiritual teachers. The •chåryya thus authorised has no other dutythan that of delivering intact the message received from all hispredecessors. There is no difference between the pronouncementsof one •chåryya and another. All of them are perfect mediums forthe appearance of the Divinity in the Form of the TranscendentalName Who is identical with His Form, Quality, Activity andParaphernalia.

The Divinity is Absolute Knowledge. Absolute Knowledge has thecharacter of indivisible Unity. One particle of the AbsoluteKnowledge is capable of revealing all the potency of the Divinity.Those who want to understand the contents of the volumespenned by the piece-meal acquisitive method applicable todeluding knowledge available to the mind on the mundane plane,are bound to be self-deceived. Those who are sincere seekers of theTruth are alone eligible to find Him, in and through the propermethod of His quest.

In order to be put on the track of the Absolute, listening to thewords of the pure devotee is absolutely necessary. The spokenword of the Absolute is the Absolute. It is only the Absolute Whocan give Himself away to the constituents of His power. TheAbsolute appears to the listening ear of the conditioned soul in theform of the Name on the lips of the sådhu. This is the key to thewhole position. The words of ¢håkura Bhaktivinoda direct theempiric pedant to discard his wrong method and inclination onthe threshold of the real quest of the Absolute. If the pedant stillchooses to carry his errors into the Realm of the Absolute Truth heonly marches by a deceptive bye-path into the regions of darkerignorance by his arrogant study of the scriptures. The methodoffered by ¢håkura Bhaktivinoda is identical with the object of thequest. The method is not really grasped except by the grace of thepure devotee. The arguments, indeed, are these. But they can onlycorroborate, but can never be a substitute for, the word from theliving source of the Truth who is no other than the pure devoteeof K±!@a, the concrete Personal Absolute.

¢håkura Bhaktivinoda’s greatest gift to the world consists in this;that he has brought about the appearance of those pure devoteeswho are, at present, carrying on the movement of unalloyeddevotion to the Feet of Ír( K±!@a by their own wholetime spiritual

service of the Divinity. The purity of the soul is only analogouslydescribable by the resources of the mundane language. The highestideal of empiric morality is no better than the grossest wickednessto the Transcendental perfect purity of the bonafide devotee of theAbsolute. The word ‘morality’ itself is a mischievous misnomerwhen it is applied to any quality of the conditioned soul. Thehypocritical contentment with a negative attitude is part andparcel of the principle of undiluted immorality.

Those who pretend to recognise the Divine Mission of ¢håkuraBhaktivinoda without aspiring to the unconditional service ofthose pure souls who really follow the teachings of the ¢håkura bythe method enjoined by the scriptures and explained by ¢håkuraBhaktivinoda in a way that is so eminently suited to therequirements of the sophisticated mentality of the present Age,only deceive themselves and their willing victims by theirhypocritical professions and performances. These persons mustnot be confounded with the bona-fide members of the flock.

¢håkura Bhaktivinoda has predicted the consummation ofreligious unity of the world by the appearance of the only universalchurch which bears the eternal designation of the BrahmåSampradåya. He has given mankind the blessed assurance that allTheistic churches will shortly merge in the one eternal spiritualcommunity by the grace of the Supreme Lord Ír( K±!@aChaitanya. The spiritual community is not circumscribed by theconditions of time and space, race and nationality. Mankind hadbeen looking forward to this far-off Divine Event through theLong Ages. ¢håkura Bhaktivinoda has made the conceptionavailable in its practicable spiritual form to the open mindedempiricist who is prepared to undergo the process ofenlightenment. The key stone of the Arch has been laid which willafford the needed shelter to all awakened animation under itsample encircling arms. Those who would thoughtlessly allow theirhollow pride of race, pseudo-knowledge or pseudo-virtue to standin the way of this long hoped for consummation, would have tothank only themselves for not being incorporated in the spiritualsociety of all pure souls.

These plain words need not be misrepresented, by arrogantpersons who are full of the vanity of empiric ignorance, as thepronouncements of aggressive sectarianism. The aggressivepronouncement of the concrete Truth is the crying necessity of themoment for silencing the aggressive propaganda of specificuntruths that is being carried on all over the world by the preachersof empiric contrivances for the amelioration of the hard lot ofconditioned souls. The empiric propaganda clothes itself in thelanguage of negative abstraction for deluding those who areengrossed in the selfish pursuit of worldly enjoyment.

But there is a positive and concrete function of the pure soul whichshould not be perversely confounded with any utilitarian form ofworldly activity. Mankind stands in need of that positive spiritualfunction of which the hypocritical impersonalists are in absoluteignorance. The positive function of the soul harmonises the claimsof extreme selfishness with those of extreme self-abnegation in thesociety of pure souls even in this mundane world. In its concreterealisable form the function is perfectly inaccessible to the empiricunderstanding. Its imperfect and misleading conception alone isavailable by the study of the Scriptures to the conditioned soul thatis not helped by the causeless grace of the pure devotees ofGodhead.

Nabadw(p Dhåm holds the key to thehighest and sweetest mood within ourheart. It is the key to the world ofß r a d d h å, faith. It is the key for our reallife and our real home. Ír(la GuruMahåråj has said, “If I can know my realprospect in life, I shall find that the keyto my sweetest home is here.” And whatis distributed here in Nabadw(p Dhåm?It is our highest necessity. Guru Mahåråjsaid that our own feeling of necessity isimperfect, but the Lord has come to giveus “what is best from the standpoint ofH i s will, and that is what is distributedhere. ‘Take Me, accept Me, I am yourmost innate and intimate friend. Youhave no friend like Me. I am guardian,friend, and everything to you. Come toM e . ’ ”

For the Necessity of Service

In Nabadw(p, our auspicious days beginwith the ringing of bells, the blowing ofconchshells, the sweet singing of birdsand the beautiful ma&gal årati o f f e r i n g sto Ír( Ga&gådhar, Ír( Sadå Íiva; to Ír(Giriråj in His water mandir; to Ír(laGuru Mahåråj at his Temple of Union inSeparation and to Ír( Ír( Guru Gaurå&gaGåndharva Govindasundarjiu in themain mandir. Following ma&gal åratithe veil of darkness lifts and the coloursof the early morning sky over Ír(Govinda are lucent, almosttransparent—a vast canvas of pink andlavender brush strokes. Seeing the skyand the deep purple of the horizonbeyond Ír(man Mahåprabhu’s DivineWaterplay and Ír( Gupta Govardhan Ír(Mandir, I am reminded of how the poetGerard Manley Hopkins sometimeswrote about the perfection of God andthe awkwardness and imperfection of thepoet. In trying to give words about theSupreme Lord, he once described Himas a “very-violet sweet God.”

Soon, the sun, like a brilliant red jewel,floats up with a fury of light andeverything—each flower petal, leaf, andripple of water on the k u @ # a is bathed inits golden light. The air around Ír(Govinda Ku@#a is heavy and sweet withthe scent of hundreds of brilliantlyflowering plants. I think that it is thefragrance of sanctity. Here, everything,animate and inanimate, is in servingmood. All are contributing to theCentre, to the beautiful Reality.

In Ír( Nabadw(p, we are reminded thateverything, every particle of dust, isc h i n m a y a , pure transcendentalconsciousness. Each atom has thecapacity to award complete K±!@aconsciousness. For one who has the pure

eye to see and the pure heart to feel, theywill understand that every minuteparticle of the environment is pullingthe heart and the attention towards theSupreme Lord. Hearing this, one mustbegin to feel oneself very small, veryinsignificant and very unworthy to behere. As Ír(pad Bhakti Sudh(r Goswåm(Mahåråj asked in class one morning:how dare we walk upon this sacred dust,e x c e p t for the necessity of service?

Bridge to the Spiritual World

Now, the rope of their affection ispulling many devotees from around theworld to the holy dhåm. A t ( r t h a or aholy place, like Ír( Nabadw(p, is like abridge between this world and thespiritual world. When one tries to crossa chasm or a wide and turbulent river, abridge may serve as a safe passage on thedifficult and dangerous journey. Notonly the holy place itself, but also thespiritually pure guardians who areguiding us across toward that realm areconsidered t ( r t h a s . They are our link, ourconnection to that world of infinitebeauty that we cannot yet see ore x p e r i e n c e .

bhavad-vidhå bhågavatåst(rtha-bh)tå% svaya^ vibhot(rth(-kurvanti t(rthånisvånta%-sthena gadåbh±tå

SB 1.13.10

The pure devotee is a place of pilgrimagepersonified. Now, wave after wave ofdevotees are coming from Russia,Ukraine, Hungary, Venezuela, Australia,United Kingdom, USA, Mexico,Singapore, Brazil, Portugal, Italy, Siberia…to seek the divine darshan and shelterof Ír(la Govinda Mahåråj. He is happilyand enthusiastically receiving thesedevotees from around the globe. And weare happily observing that His DivineGrace has been displaying several weeksof steady good health and energy that wehave not seen for some years.

Every day—often more than once aday—His Divine Grace rides hismotorised scooter around the grounds ofthe Math and around Ír( GovindaKu@#a. Each day he follows the pathpast the mandir of Ír( Ga&gådhar, SadåÍiva where he offers his p r a n a m s a n dthen visits the peacocks and the gentledeer. He watches with amusement as thedevotees feed fruit or biscuits to the deeras well as to the many huge fish in theku@#a. Almost every morning afterma&gal årati, Ír(la Govinda Mahåråj hasbeen giving darshan on his veranda. Hismood has been relaxed and happy. Many

times he is speaking for over an hour onspiritual topics and giving sweetnourishment, affection andencouragement to the devotees. He isenjoying the company of the youngchildren here and is at times playful andjoking. Everyone is relieved and joyful tosee His Divine Grace feeling energetic,healthy and happy.

Guru is the Helmsman

This morning His Divine Gracecommented, “I am invalid, but still I amvery enthusiastic.” He has been recalling,with smiles and amusing stories,memories of past world tours to Russia,Hungary and California. Several timeshe has expressed a desire to travel againto Russia, V±ndåvan and Pur(. On thebeautiful advent festival of PrabhupådÍr(la Bhakti Siddhånta Saraswat(¢håkur, His Divine Grace Ír(la GovindaMahåråj pleased the hearts of all thedevotees by riding in the freshly paintedand decorated swan boat with Ír(manMahåprabhu to the temple of Ír( Giriråj.Watching His Divine Grace and thebeautiful family of devotees—from tinychild to the venerable ¢håkurmå—floating over the sacred waters of Ír(Govinda Ku@#a and feeling the sweetbreeze of mercy, I remembered Ír(laGuru Mahåråj’s analogy:

“The destination has been settled, buthow shall I reach it? When shall I reachit? Those who come to my aid to take methere—they are my masters, my Gurus:Í i k ! å - g u r u s and D ( k ! å - g u r u . W h o e v e rhelps me to go there is my Guru. He ismy guide who will help me to reach mylocated destination, the station of myinnermost hankering {R å d h i k å -Mådhavåßam pråpto yasya prathitak±payå Ír(-Guru^ ta^ nato ’smi}. Hehas helped me to locate my destination;he has educated me how and what toaspire after, and how to reach thathighest aspired shelter. I have attainedall these things through him. He is myall-in-all in life, the master of my life.There is a boat, and he is the helmsman{ G u r u - k a r @ a - d h å r a m } . I havesurrendered unto him. I have acceptedhim. I have boarded his boat and he istaking me towards the goal of my life.”

After the divine water Pastimes, Ír(laGovinda Mahåråj came into the nå$-mandir, which had been decorated like aheavenly abode with hundreds ofexquisite flowers and flags. He, and thesenior devotees spoke about theunlimited glories of Jagad-guru Ír(laSaraswat( ¢håkur, and to the delight ofeveryone, Ír(la Govinda Mahåråj sang

beautifully and energetically the k ( r t t a n sin glorification of His Divine Grace.

Leaving Aside the Mundane

In an earlier address to the devotees onthe advent of Ír(la Prabhupåd Saraswat(¢håkur, His Divine Grace Ír(la GovindaMahåråj said, “Ír( ChaitanyaMahåprabhu came to distribute theecstasy of our transcendental life. Andafter Mahåprabhu, many of His purefollowers or associates, p å r ! a d a s , c a m einto this world. In this way, we thinkourselves most fortunate to have as ourGuardian, Ír(la Bhakti Rak!ak Ír(dharDev-Goswåm( Mahåråj. We are trying toserve him to our best capacity, in thecompany of the Vai!@avas. That is ourhappiness. I am very happy when thedevotees from all over the world comehere to Ír( Nabadw(p Dhåm fortranscendental life, leaving aside themundane. We are trying to practise inthe plane of s e v å—Divine Service. Thatalone can give us the highest goal.”

In the weeks preceding the grand festivalof Ír( Gaura P)r@imå, Ír( ChaitanyaSåraswat Ma$h, Nabadw(p, is pulsingwith the service activities of devoteesfrom around the world. Many times, wecannot speak the same language, butÍr(la Govinda Mahåråj reminds us “wecan communicate by heart.” A travellingparty has just come back from preachingand collecting grains in the villages. TheMa$h has its own green travelling busand a supply truck for this service. Thesecollections will be used to cook for theDeities and serve to the thousands ofvisitors expected for the festival.Workers are building huge bamboostructures on the rooftops toaccommodate the overflow of guests.Many buildings are getting a fresh coatof paint, new flags are being placed atopthe m a n d i r s and all the grounds arebeing swept clean of leaves and debris.The new p r a s å d a m hall is complete withits beautiful blue tile work and ready toserve the Lord’s divine remnants to allthe devotees and guests.

Devotees have started special projects toenhance the beauty of the Ma$h and toplease His Divine Grace Ír(la GovindaMahåråj. Ír( Giriråj’s water m a n d i r h a sbeen lovingly cleaned and fitted withnew glass doors, golden yellow curtainsand altar cloth, and Ír( Giriråj Himselfhas been offered a new outfit and crown.In Ír(la Guru Mahåråj’s quarters there isnew upholstery and covers for the chairsthat Ír(la Guru Mahåråj sat in and gavedarshan for many years. The openveranda has been screened to keep out

small living entities. The walls have beenpainted, pictures reframed and the floorsbeautifully refinished.

The Centenary Hall and Museum hasbeen cleaned and redecorated and newdisplay cases and bulletin boards havebeen built and filled with archive photosand memorabilia. Every day the devoteesare filling their hours with s e v å . Í r ( l aGovinda Mahåråj has been very pleasedwith the service activities of all thedevotees. One morning, he said, “Serviceto Guru and Vai!@ava, that is our life¡”And Ír(la Guru Mahåråj reminds us,“Thinking only of service, whatever wedo, or think, or speak, everything shouldbe done for the service of K±!@a.”

In the Heart of a Vai!@ava

In the d h å m there is a holiness, ablessedness, which spills down throughour days and nights. But how to putoneself in the way of that grace? Ír(laGuru Mahåråj said, “So helplessly, whenone is searching by this method or thatmethod, when he practically comes incontact with the service of a Vai!@ava hegets real benefit. How to seek shelterfrom the devotees? Superficially we canget something from the ß å s t r a , b u tsubstantially from the devotee. Theinfluence you catch from the devotee,what they hold in their heart, withintheir endeavour, pervading through alltheir activities, that particular attractionis the divine thing that I want. Thatmost subtle of the subtle… …that innerenergy of the devotee, that makes him dowhat we do not find in the world, withno attraction for sense pleasure, fame,name, money, etc., but for somethingelse, for K±!@a. We must follow theirp a t h . ”

When Uddhava entered V±ndåvan hefelt, “Upon seeing the devotional moodof the residents of V±ndåvan, my pride ismelted.” And when Ír(man Mahåprabhusaw the saintly behavior of Ír( R)pa andÍr( Sanåtan He said, “Now pleaseabandon your humility, for My heart isbreaking to see you so humble.”

aji haite du&håra nåma ‘r)pa’ ‘sanåtana’dainya chå#a tomåra dainye phå$e mora mana

Cc Madhya 1.208

When I am allowed to enter the holydhåm and to observe the s e v å a n ddedicated mood of the Vai!@avas,particularly the devotees who are hereoffering their luminous lives and servingsteadily every day of every year, then mypride must also begin to melt.Sometimes, seeing just a tiny glimpse of

a sincere servitor’s silent and beautifulexample of humility is enough to breakone’s heart. And, at times, observing amost simple act of devotion catches theheart off-guard and softens it.

Now, with evening, many visitors havecome to see the beauty of Ír( GovindaKu@#a and to take darshan of theDeities. The lights of the m a n d i r s s h i n e .There is the glow of the golden moon,pinpricks of stars in the night sky andBh)dev Prabhu’s voice floating andcarrying the songs of devotionthroughout the Ma$h. Here, there is afeeling of home comfort, homesweetness. As one poet said, “Where welove is home—home that our feet mayleave, but not our hearts.”

Ír(la Guru Mahåråj said that, “Weshould feel within, ‘I want no less thanthat highest thing. I want Him andnothing less, and I should live and move,and feel in myself that whatever I shalldo, at every second, I am meant for that.I am meant for my ideal. I have no timeto waste, or to hesitate for anything. Ifevery moment I move in every way withthe ideal in my heart, I shall always makesome progress towards it.’” Our time inthe holy d h å m is so sweet, so nourishingand extremely valuable. But I feel thatmy time is always too brief. When thetime comes that I must leave, I feel asense of urgency and feel ashamed of thetime wasted while in the association ofÍr( Guru and Vai!@ava. If only I hadtried to grasp every precious moment forsincere service. If only I could have onemore day, one more hour to try toappreciate and catch the current of theholy d h å m , the current of devotion.With the help and guidance of theVai!@avas, I pray to keep this ideal abovemy head and within my heart.

I offer my heartfelt obeisances at thelotus feet of Ír(la •chåryyadev BhaktiSundar Govinda Dev-Goswåm( Mahåråjwho is the manifestation of the mercy ofÍr( Guru and Gaurå&ga, to our divineG u r u - v a r g a and to the feet of all thesincere Vai!@avas in India and all aroundthe world.

ithe aparådha mora nå la-io, bhakta-ga@atomå-sabåra cara@a—mora ekånta ßara@a

Cc Madhya 7.154

O devotees, please do not consider myoffences in this regard. Your feet are myonly shelter.

Ír(la Bhakti Sundar Govinda Dev-Goswåm( Mahåråj

. ..

hatever we want in this mundane world

within our conditionedposition & beyond that,

in the TranscendentalWorld, that Divine Love is

always waiting for us,waiting to embrace us.

That is the actualposition, and one who

can understand thiscannot live without giving

that gift to others. That isKrsna consciousness.