English
Qualities of Best listener
7th September
Hare Krsna
Chanting is taking place from 740 locations. Today is Sunday. Devotees from Sydney are with us. You are welcome. Organize the World Holy Name Festival. Madhak Sevak has already given me the good news of organizing it.
Om Namo Bhagavate Vasudevaya
Shravanam week is being celebrated by the education ministry of ISKCON. You have to get in to practice to study Prabhupada books.
nityaṁ bhāgavata-sevayā.
We are discussing how can make reading and studying a part of your daily routine. According to Padma Puran when Sukadev Goswami was going to start the Bhagavad Katha to King Parikshit. At that time the Demigods arrived from heaven with the pot of Nectar. They proposed a barter. They offered their obeisances to Srila Sukadev Goswami and asked him to take the pot of Nectar from Kumbh mela which was obtained by churning the ocean, and give it to King Parikshit to make him immortal so that the bird serpent Takshaka could not kill him. And in return demigods asked to give the nectar of Bhagavatam Katha. Sukadev Goswami condemned the proposal and chastised the demigods. He said it is offensive to compare the supreme knowledge of the devotional service which is for the soul with the nectar of heaven which is for this material body.
dharmaḥ projjhita-kaitavo 'tra paramo nirmatsarāṇāṁ satāṁ
vedyaṁ vāstavam atra vastu śivadaṁ tāpa-trayonmūlanam
śrīmad-bhāgavate mahā-muni-kṛte kiṁ vā parair īśvaraḥ
sadyo hṛdy avarudhyate 'tra kṛtibhiḥ śuśrūṣubhis tat-kṣaṇāt
Translation:
Completely rejecting all religious activities which are materially motivated, this Bhāgavata Purāṇa propounds the highest truth, which is understandable by those devotees who are fully pure in heart. The highest truth is reality distinguished from illusion for the welfare of all. Such truth uproots the threefold miseries. This beautiful Bhāgavatam, compiled by the great sage Vyāsadeva [in his maturity], is sufficient in itself for God-realization. What is the need of any other scripture? As soon as one attentively and submissively hears the message of Bhāgavatam, by this culture of knowledge the Supreme Lord is established within his heart.
[ SB 1.1.2]
Srimad Bhagvat does not talk about the glories of desire to be merged in the effulgence, or practice of karma and with the desire of fruits. Srimad Bhagavatam is for the devotees who have no desire for fruitive results.
nigama kala-taror galitam phalam
sukha mukhad amrita-drava samyutam
pibata bhagavatam rasam alayam
mrihur aho rasika bhuvi bhavukah
Translation:
O expert and thoughtful men, relish Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, the mature fruit of the desire tree of Vedic literatures. It emanated from the lips of Śrī Śukadeva Gosvāmī. Therefore this fruit has become even more tasteful, although its nectarean juice was already relishable for all, including liberated souls.[ SB 1.1.3]
Srimad Bhagavatam is for devotees. Those devotees who are krsna-bhakta—niskama.
Those who have started Bhagwat Katha as a source of their earnings, to maintain the family. So This type of Katha is not beneficial. It is like poisoned milk. Both Speaker and listener should be a devotee. It is said that a speaker should be like Krsna and the listener should be like Arjun. These are the ideal examples. We are listeners so we should become like Arjun. We are a student of Gita and Bhagavatam. Srila Prabhupada is the speaker and he had the qualities of the best speaker. He dictated the purports and then they were typed and compiled in the books which we then read. So we are the shrota-listeners. Original Speaker is Lord. Then Acarya uvacha also there. Narayan uvacha and Sukadev Uvacha. For us, there is Srila Prabhupada. So we become listeners when we read the books of Srila Prabhupada. We become a student.
In the Skanda Purana, there are some Glories of Srimad Bhagavatam.There are 2 types of Listeners mentioned. One is the Sreshtha-Best/ideal. Another is Kanistha. The ideal listeners have been compared to Swan, fish, crane, and a parrot. So there are four types of best/ideal listeners or we can say that four qualities of ideal listeners. If we imbibe these qualities then we can become ideal listeners. We listen all the time, so when we are already listeners then we must try to learn about ideal listeners. Listeners should be like Swan. What is the specialty of a Swan? If you mix milk and water and offer it to a swan, it will separate it and only drink the milk. Nowadays the milkman mixes water in the milk but we don't know that and we drink it as it is. one who can extract the essential teachings while listening to various topics is called a swan listener. In sastras, everything is there.
So there are speakers who mix different types of knowledge, be it in goodness, passion, or ignorance or it can be Karmakand, etc. in the supreme knowledge of Srimad Bhagavatam. Women also when using a sieve, separate the food grains from the stones or dust. We must develop that wisdom of differentiating Bhakti knowledge from any other knowledge. So a listener should be like a swan. Next is the Cātaka bird. In the verse, this bird has been mentioned first. before swan. What does this bird do? He waits for the specific time of Swati Nakshatra and drinks only the water of rain even before it touches the ground. It is firm that it won't drink any other water that is made dirty by the mixture. This is the specialty of Chatak bird.
So Gita, Srimad Bhagavatam, and Caitanya Caitanya Caritāmrta such clean and pure scriptures.
trai-gunya-visaya veda
nistrai-gunyo bhavarjuna
nirdvandvo nitya-sattva-stho
niryoga-ksema atmavan
Translation:
The Vedas mainly deal with the subject of the three modes of material nature. Rise above these modes, O Arjuna. Be transcendental to all of them. Be free from all dualities and from all anxieties for gain and safety, and be established in the Self.[ BG 2.45]
Krsna says that the Vedas have knowledge which is in the 3 modes of nature, but one must be beyond these 3 modes. Srimad Bhagavatam and Bhagavad Gita are above the modes of nature. So listener who accepts only pure knowledge is the ideal listener.
Next is a parrot. The specialty of a parrot is that it will repeat only what has been taught to it by his master. It will not utter a single word other than what has been taught.
evam parampara-praptam
imam rajarsayo viduh
sa kaleneha mahata
yogo nastah parantapa
Translation:
This supreme science was thus received through the chain of disciplic succession, and the saintly kings understood it in that way. But in course of time the succession was broken, and therefore the science as it is appears to be lost.[ BG 4.2]
Ideal listeners are one who listens and repeats only what has been attained from the bona fide disciplic succession. Such a follower is considered to be an ideal follower. He only repeats what he has learned from his teachers, authentic knowledge. If he says a concocted version of this knowledge, or he preaches his idealogy which has not been approved by his teachers or the scriptures then he is a cheater. It is also called Gambling.
All the 'Isms' like Gandhism, Capitalism, and many in the world are a result of this characteristic of preaching self ideology based on one's limited understanding. This is what is happening in the world. The scientists, politicians, social workers, Godman's etc.preach their ideologies which are not approved by the scriptures. This can be stopped if the listener is like a Parrot.
The 4th one is a fish. What is the specialty of a fish? The fish always stays in the water. It doesn't go out of the water ever. Similarly, we should also try to be engrossed in the knowledge received from bona fide sources. We should not try to go out of it. If the fish is out of water for even a short time then it suffers and tries all possible ways to get back into the water. We should try to be in the ocean waters of Nectar of devotion, the nectar of Holy name, Nectar of hearing, nectar in the form of prasadam. In this way these 4 qualities of best/ideal listeners are mentioned by comparison with a Craunch/crane, swan, parrot, and a fish.
So by learning from them we can also become ideal listeners. Being a swan we must leave all other mantras and accept only Hare Krsna Mahamantra, like a parrot we should only repeat the mantra received in bona fide succession.
Like a fish, we must not leave the realm of Scriptures.like a craunch/crane we will not drink any impure knowledge, we will not drink tea /coffee. Once I was in Nashik for Kumbha Mela and there was a board where it was written that drink the nectarian tea. In Badrinath, people go for darshan, and from there further, they go towards Swargarohanam on the path made by the Pandavas. There was a board that read before you go further have tea at the last tea stall of India. So we may get such mixtures, but we must accept only that what is pure. So take a vow to read-only Srila Prabhupada's books or books by his followers. Listen to only about Krsna and his related people.
sravanam kirtanam visnoh smaranam
Sing kirtans and listen to kirtans of Krsna.
Many things are available in the market/on the internet. There is milk also and water also. So be like a swan and accept only milk. This internet is in many ways making the world a worse place. The Internet is opening gates of lust, greed, and anger. This leads to the destruction of intelligence.
krodhad bhavati sammohah
sammohat smrti-vibhramah
smrti-bhramsad buddhi-naso
buddhi-nasat pranasyati
Translation:
From anger, delusion arises, and from delusion bewilderment of memory. When memory is bewildered, intelligence is lost, and when intelligence is lost, one falls down again into the material pool.[ BG 2.63]
They say that when your smartphone is in your hands, you have the world in your fist. So your future is in your hands. You must know how to differentiate between milk and water. This will be achieved by the regular study of Srila Prabhupada's books. Be Cautious!
Also, along with the reading, I hope you all are preparing for the World Holy Name Week. Some are sending their reports and some are not reporting, they may be doing but I am not being informed. Do inform your authorities. I am getting a lot of news from Sydney, Melbourne, and Brisbane. I have not received any information from the Gold Coast and Govardhan farm. Thane center has pledged to chant 10 million names. So today is already the 6th and we only have 10-11 days. Planning is a need for good accomplishment of your contribution to the celebration. Every town and Village the names should echo. It is not to be only there in someplace in every town and village. It should reach every street, every house, that is our aim/target. We must preach the glories of Holy Name to every person, We have to get the videos from the Fortunate people program, make them dedicate the chant...many of you have already started this and others are doing.
Hari Naam Prabhu Ki Jay
Granthraj Srimad Bhagavatam ki Jay
Gaur Premanande
Hari Hari Bol
