English
15th May 2019
60 devotees from Noida and also from different places like Greater Noida. There are 30 from Bangalore, also devotees from Mauritius. Devotees from Bangalore, Mathura base are also chanting as a result the number of participants is 650. We are still in middle of the month and we have reached our target. But we will reach target only if we have steady chanters. So, keep chanting regularly there should not be ups and downs. You get devotees from bhakti vriksha and congregation devotees to chant, of course temple devotees are chanting so that the number of participants keeps increasing.
Today is also birthday of Aradhya Bhagwan prabhu from Nagpur. He is a brahmachari. 9 devotees from Bhauvaikuntha Pandharpur. We all wish him. We will chant one maha-mantra on occasion of birthday of Aradhaya Bhagwan prabhu. He is a brahmachari. He does a lot of services, he is also a youth preacher, does lot of book distribution. I am very pleased with his services and I am sure Lord is pleased with his services as a result Lord made his parents also devotees. They also have moved into the temple. His mother, father they are also initiated and they are doing lot of services. In this way,he has proved to be genuine putra or putra in a true sense. Putra or even putri in that case, is that person who saves or stops their parents from going to hell called 'Pum.’ There is one hell called ‘pum’ and ‘putra’, means to make free from. So he is a good putra, he has made his parents devotees.
So, all of you devotees, including all other temple devotees you keep chanting and serve Lord. When Prahalad Maharaj was told to ask benediction, he said “please bless my father, oh Lord.”
And Lord Narsimha declared as you have become devotee so do not worry 21 generations have been liberated just by your becoming devotee. All your chanters are doing good service. All those who are becoming devotees of Krishna, you are rendering great services to your dynasty, to your forefathers.
mrityur mrityum namamy aham
When we chant Hare Krishna, Lord becomes mrityu of mrityu, kills the death.
Talking about Aradhya Bhagwan prabhu’s birthday today, we also received sad news of departure of my God sister Parvati mataji from Vrindavan dhama. I received the news last night.
She was staying in Vrindavan since long time. She was doing service of maintenance of Srila Prabhupad's samadhi from 20-30 years. She had also written many books for children based on Krishna. She used to co-ordinate Bhagavad Gita classes at Prabhupada’s quarters. We grew up together at Hare Krishna land Mumbai. She had joined Prabhupada at New Delhi. After spending some time in New Delhi she came to Hare Krishna land Mumbai. She was from America. So, we were first batch of devotees at Hare Krishna land.
Later, she married to Prasannath Prabhu and they had nice children. We are confident that she has attained Krishna Balarama’s lotus feet service in Vrindavan as she was serving from long time.
Parvati Mata ki Jai!
I remember once I had interviewed her when I was working for ‘Bombay is my office’ book. She said when Praphupada departed in 1977 many devotees from Hare Krishna land Juhu went but she was not allowed or she was not able to go to Vrindavan. She was feeling so much separation from Prabhupada. She was very frustrated as she was unable to go to Vrindavan when Prabhupada was leaving this world. This was her lamentation.
Lord and Prabhupada fulfilled her desires as she took charge of maintenance of Prabhupada samadhi. That is where Prabhupada resides, Prabhupada entered in samadhi there, samadhi mandir there and so she took service at Prabhupada’s samadhi mandir, maintenance of samadhi mandir and raising funds for samadhi mandir. So, in that way her desire to be always with Prabhupada was fulfilled. Lot could be said about her grace.
Today is Mohini Ekadashi reminding you of what Srila Bhaktivinoda Thakur recommends, from previous Ekadashi to this Ekadashi. Devotees should review performance of sadhana, devotional services, how I did that, how I did this quantity wise and quality wise. So, we could take advantage of this Ekadashi, and do ‘simhavalocan’.
Take note of your strong and weak points, start improving from weak points on next Ekadashi. This is homework for you. Try to improve whereever you are weak for two weeks till the next Ekadashi.
Explaining the meaning of Ekadashi -upvasa, we say ‘today is Ekadasi upavasa.’ We know they are fasting but true meaning, upa means near and vasa means residence.
So, today is a day near or nearer to Lord Krishna. Take upavasa as fasting day - day of fasting from maya. As we do fast from maya, we get ‘upavasa’ and we get closer to Krishna.
I would like to share one of prayers of queen Kunti on the occasion of Ekadasi today. The prayer begins with first word is ‘janma'
Janma aiswarya shruta shrivih edhamana madah puman
Na eva arhati abhidhatum bai twam akinchanagocharam
(SB 1.8.26)
This is wonderful prayer by Kunti Maharani. Kunti Maharani is talking about four things- Janma- birth, Aishwarya-your wealth, your opulence, Shruti- your education and Shri- your beauty but these could be cause of intoxication also.
We all are more or less affected and conditioned by these four things. That is why we are bond. So many times, we are proud of our birth; I am from this family, this aristocratic family. Oh! I am born in America. I am from this family that family. We are mostly proud of our birth, our origin, our belonging to this and that family which is false we have to be free from this kind of pride.
But we are born in this material world, in prison house. You are born in ‘dukhalayam asasvatam’ kind of world. There is nothing to be proud of. One should be ashamed of the fact, that I am born here. Oh! I should not be here. This is so fortunate, doesn’t matter high or low you are already low,lowest birth. The whole act of taking birth in this material world is condemned.
Janma , aishwarya, then we accumulate some wealth then we become more proud. Then there is Käma krodha lobha moha mätsarya and mada.on, mätsarya.
"shadripu”- 6 enemies are there. As we are greedy, we accumulate more and as we accumulate more we become proud, the mada develops. This is Queen Kunti talking about ‘janma aiswarya shruta shrivih edhamana madah.’
In English it’s said ‘Even a beggar is proud of his penny.’ Even little wealth person immediately becomes very proud.
One Indian family settled in Great Britain they are the wealthiest family. As they became wealthiest the news spread around, that made them more proud oh! I am the wealthiest person.
So,’janma aiswarya shruta’
As we do our studies graduation and post-graduation and oversees education and this and that. These days we go on studying and half-life in studying this and studying that. You become specialist, you become wormologist, and you go to New Zealand. They study worms and germs and they get upadhi – this doctor is wormologist. They come to Delhi airport and big press is waiting for them “Doctor wormologist is in town.” So all these studies that we do makes one proud.
Queen Kunti says.
vidya dadati vinayam,
raja vidya raja guhyam
(BG 9.2)
When one gets Rajavidya true knowledge one becomes humble.
But as one acquires mundane knowledge one becomes more and more proud. Queen Kunti says, puman , people become madanvit or they get intoxicated by their janma, aishwarya, shruta, shri. We did not touch upon shri or the beauty. They have beautiful body and they are proud of their beautiful body. When they look into the darpan (mirror) their dhamba (pride) touches the sky. So ‘madandha’, this false pride that one gets due to aishwarya etc. person becomes blind, madandha, krodhandha, lobhandha, dhanandha he becomes blind.
So main point Queen Kunti wants to making in this sloka is, ‘na eva arhati abhidhatum.’
Such persons who is madandha cannot glorify the Lord with feelings, emotions. He does not have feelings for the Lord. As he is chanting ‘Hare Krishna’ he does not have feeling, no emotion because of this false pride. Lord could be perceived, received, experienced by those who are ‘akinchan gochara’ -materially exhausted, materially disinterested in these material acquisitions, material position. They can experience Lord with his senses.
Hrsikena hrsikesa-sevanam bhaktir ucyate
(CCA Madhya lila19.170 CCA)
Bhakti is that activity, in which we engage our senses in service of Lord’s senses. That
reciprocation results in Lord revealing to us. That is ‘gochara’
Hare Krsna