The Savior of Everyone Down to the Lowest Class of Men

[krsna 3]

"A-CANDALA-TRATA", The Savior of Everyone Down to the Lowest Class of Men

 

We have got so many big big books now, so any sane man will appreciate them, you simply have to present them, that's all. Is it very difficult? It is being done all over the world and professors and scholars are appreciating them by writing reviews and introducing them as standard text books in their university courses. So try to present my books there. It is assured of success because Lord Caitanya predicted, ``In ever town and village of the world, my name will be known'' The whole world is full of rascals presenting concocted ideas and everyone is suffering. Caitanya Mahaprabhu came just to deliver these rascals. How?

hare nama hare nama hare nama eva kevalam

kalau nasty eva nasty eva nasty eva gatir anyatha

Chant Hare Krishna, induce others to chant, and distribute prasadam. This can be done everywhere, who will object.?Temple or no temple, you simply chant and give prasadam and it will act...

 

So in India also we have to do many things because very recently, by the propaganda of the politicians, the younger generation has become victimized to become Godless. So the hankering after peace and prosperity in the world in a Godless concept of life is simply an utopian dream. People must take to God-consciousness and surely they will be happy in all respects. By the grace of Lord Caitanya, the method of self-realization is made very easy and universal by chanting the Hare Krsna mantra. It is being effective practically. So let us join together to expand this great mission of Lord Caitanya Who predicted that everywhere as many cities and towns and villages are there on the surface of the globe, His Holy Name would be glorified on account of His transcendental gift to the fallen souls of this Kali Yuga.

 

Sankirtana will always be appreciated, because it is the special blessings of Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu on the people of this fallen age of Kali. Sukadeva Goswami says, this age is an ocean of faults, but there is one boon, in this age one gets the same result as was achieved in former ages through elaborate temple worship, costly sacrifices, or introspective meditation, simply by chanting the Holy Name of The Lord. It is for this reason only that this Hare Krishna movement has spread so quickly all over the world. The people of this age are so fallen they are like cats and dogs. What cats and dogs will understand about philosophy? If a dog is barking and you speak with him very nicely ``my dear dog, please try to control your barking, it is very disturbing'' will he be able to understand? therefore we simply throw him a bone, and he is satisfied. So distribute prasadam, and chant Hare Krishna. For the mass of people this is the only medicine. Lord Caitanya never spoke philosophy in public, he held kirtana and distributed prasadam. When he meet Sarvabhauma Bhattacarya he talked high philosophy, otherwise, Chanting and prasadam distribution. (Letters from Srila Prabhupada Dec. 31,18, 1975, Mar. 4,1970)

 

Lord Gauranga calls, "Wake up, sleeping souls! Wake up, sleeping souls! You have slept so long in the lap of the witch Maya. You came into this world saying, 'O my Lord, I will certainly worship You.' but having forgotten this promise, you remain in great ignorance.

"I have descended just to save you. Other than Myself, who else is your friend? I have brought the medicine for destroying the illusion of Maya. Now beg for this maha-mantra and take it." (Srila Bhaktivinoda Thakura)

 

Hare Krsna Hare Krsna Krsna Krsna Hare Hare, Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare

 

[krsna 3]

GAURANGA:Exquisitely Beautiful Golden Body

 

The religious practice for the Age of Kali is to broadcast the glories of the holy name. Only for this purpose has the Lord, in a yellow color, descended as Lord Caitanya.

 

The luster of His expansive body resembles molten gold. The deep sound of His voice conquers the thundering of newly assembled clouds. His arms are long enough to reach His knees, His eyes are just like lotus flowers, His nose is like a sesame flower, and His face is as beautiful as the moon. He is peaceful, self-controlled and fully devoted to the transcendental service of Lord Sri Krsna. He is affectionate toward His devotees, He is gentle, and He is equally disposed toward all living beings. He is decorated with sandalwood bangles and armlets and anointed with the pulp of sandalwood. He especially wears these decorations to dance in Sri-Krsna-sankirtana.

 

In His early pastimes He appears as a householder with a golden complexion. His limbs are beautiful, and His body, smeared with the pulp of sandalwood, seems like molten gold. In His later pastimes He accepts the sannyasa order, and He is equipoise and peaceful. He is the highest abode of peace and devotion, for He silences the impersonalist nondevotees.

 

Srila Baladeva Vidyabhusana asserts that Lord Caitanya is the Supreme Personality of Godhead according to the evidence of the Upanishads, having a complexion the color of molten gold. Another meaning of the description of the Lord as having a golden hue is that Lord Caitanya's personality is as fascinating as gold is attractive. By His superexcellent beauty He subdues all the people of the age. In other descents the Lord sometimes used weapons to defeat the demoniac, but in this age the Lord subdues them with His all-attractive figure as Caitanya Mahaprabhu. Srila Jiva Goswami explains that His beauty is His astra, or weapon, to subdue the demons. Because He is all-attractive, it is to be understood that all the demigods lived with Him as His companions. His acts were uncommon and His associates wonderful. When He propagated the sankirtana movement, He attracted many great scholars and acharyas, especially in Bengal and Orissa. Lord Caitanya is always accompanied by His best associates like Lord Nityananda, Advaita, Gadadhara and Srivasa. He has equanimity in different senses. First, He describes the confidential truth of the Personality of Godhead, and second, He satisfies everyone by knowledge and attachment to Krsna. He is peaceful because He renounces all topics not related to the service of Krsna. He is rigidly fixed in chanting the holy name of Sri Krsna. Lord Caitanya subdued all disturbing opponents of devotional service, especially the monists, who are actually averse to the personal feature of the Supreme Lord.

 

The principle of transcendental devotional service having been lost, Sri Krsna Caitanya has appeared to deliver again the process of devotion. He is so kind that He is distributing love of Krsna. Everyone should be attracted more and more to His lotus feet, as humming bees are attracted to a lotus flower. (Srila Sarvabhauma Bhattacharya CC Adi-lila 3.52)

Hare Krsna Hare Krsna Krsna Krsna Hare Hare, Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare

[krsna 3]

SRI KRSNA CAITANYA: The Original Living Force, Krsna

 

In His later pastimes He is known as Lord Sri Krsna Caitanya. He blesses the whole world by teaching about the name and fame of Lord Sri Krsna.

 

Lord Caitanya remained a householder only until His twenty-fourth year had passed. Then He entered the renounced order and remained manifest in this material world until His forty-eighth year.

 

During the time of Lord Caitanya, the influence of Sankaracharya in society was very strong. People thought that one could accept sannyasa only in the disciplic succession of Sankaracharya. Lord Caitanya could have performed His missionary activities as a householder, but He found householder life an obstruction to His mission. Therefore He decided to accept the renounced order, sannyasa. Since His acceptance of sannyasa was also designed to attract public attention, Lord Caitanya, not wishing to disturb the social convention, took the renounced order of life from a sannyasi in the disciplic succession of Sankaracharya, although sannyasa was also sanctioned in the Vaisnava sampradaya.

 

According to the regulation of the disciplic succession, one who wishes to enter the renounced order in Sankara's sect must first be trained as a brahmacari under a bona fide sannyasi, The brahmacari's name is ascertained according to the group to which the sannyasi belongs. Lord Caitanya accepted sannyasa from Keshava Bharati. When He first approached Keshava Bharati, He was accepted as a brahmacari with the name Sri Krsna Caitanya Brahmacari. After He took sannyasa, He preferred to keep the name Krsna Caitanya. Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Goswami Maharaja volunteered the explanation that because a sannyasi in the Sankara-sampradaya thinks that he has become the Supreme, Lord Caitanya, wanting to avoid such a misconception, kept the name Sri Krsna Caitanya, placing Himself as an eternal servitor. A brahmacari is supposed to serve the spiritual master; therefore He did not negate that relationship of servitude to His spiritual master. Accepting such a position is favorable for the relationship between the disciple and the spiritual master.

 

Caitanya means spiritual, living force, Krsna. When we are alive the body is moving and we can understand what is living force. We can understand further when the body does not move— “Now this living force is gone out of this body; therefore the body is no longer moving and it is a dead matter.” So this Caitanya-caritamrta means we are talking of the living force, not of the dead matter. We should always remember this. The Lord, His devotee, His representative, everyone, they belong to the spiritual platform, living force. That personification of all living forces is Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu. Krsna Caitanya means the original living force, Krsna. Sarvabhauma Bhattacharya understood Him. Srila Rupa Goswami understood Him. Similarly, the followers of the Goswamis, they will understand Krsna Caitanya Mahaprabhu. And one who understands or follows the path enunciated by Krsna Caitanya Mahaprabhu, for them Krsna is very easily obtained. (CC Adi-lila 3.34, Class by Srila Prabhupada Mar. 25,1975)

 

Let me offer my respectful obeisances unto the spiritual master of the entire world, Lord Sri Krsna Caitanya Mahaprabhu, by whose mercy even a dog can swim across a great ocean. (Srila Krsnadasa Kaviraja Goswami CC Adi-lila 9.1)

 

Hare Krsna Hare Krsna Krsna Krsna Hare Hare, Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare

 

[krsna 3]

"GAURAHARI" Lord Hari with a Golden Complexion

 

Almost like a mad lion, Lord Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu went on His tour filled with ecstatic love and performing sankirtana, chanting Krsna's names as follows.The Lord chanted:

Krsna! Krsna! Krsna! Krsna! Krsna! Krsna! Krsna! he

Krsna! Krsna! Krsna! Krsna! Krsna! Krsna! Krsna! he

Krsna! Krsna! Krsna! Krsna! Krsna! Krsna! Raksha mam

Krsna! Krsna! Krsna! Krsna! Krsna! Krsna! Pahi mam

That is, "O Lord Krsna, please protect Me and maintain Me."

He also chanted:

Rama! Raghava! Rama! Raghava! Rama! Raghava! Raksha mam

Krsna! Keshava! Krsna! Keshava! Krsna! Keshava! pahi mam

That is, "O Lord Rama, descendant of King Raghu, please protect Me. O Krsna, O Keshava, killer of the Keshi demon, please maintain Me."

 

Chanting this verse, Lord Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu, known as Gaurahari, went on His way. As soon as He saw someone, He would request him to chant "Hari! Hari!" Whoever heard Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu chant "Hari, Hari," also chanted the holy name of Lord Hari and Krsna. In this way they all followed the Lord, very eager to see Him. After some time the Lord would embrace these people and bid them to return home, having investing them with spiritual potency. Being thus empowered, they would return to their own villages, always chanting the holy name of Krsna and sometimes laughing, crying and dancing.

 

These empowered people used to request everyone and anyone-whomever they saw-to chant the holy name of Krsna. In this way all the villagers would also become devotees of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Simply by seeing such empowered individuals, people from different villages would become like them by the mercy of their glance. When these individuals returned to their villages, they also converted others into devotees. When others came to see them, they also were converted. In this way, as those men went from one village to another, all the people of South India became devotees.

 

Srila Bhaktivinoda Thakura explains that this spiritual potency is the essence of the pleasure potency and the knowledge potency. By these two potencies, one is empowered with devotional service. Lord Krsna Himself or His representative, the unalloyed devotee, can mercifully bestow these combined potencies upon any man. Being thus endowed with such potencies, one can become an unalloyed devotee of the Lord. Anyone favored by Lord Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu was empowered with this bhakti-shakti. Thus the Lord's followers were able to preach Krsna consciousness by divine grace.

 

In order to become an empowered preacher, one must be favored by Lord Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu or His devotee, the spiritual master. One must also request everyone to chant the maha-mantra. In this way, such a person can convert others to Vaisnavism, showing them how to become pure devotees of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. (CC Madhya-lila 7:95-107)

 

Chant the holy name of Hari! O brothers, you have obtained a human birth, now chant the holy name! Whether you are in happiness or distress, chant the holy name of Hari!

Chant the holy name of Hari! O brothers, give up the association of non-devotees and chant the holy name! Falling at the feet of the Vaisnavas, chant the holy name of Hari! (Srila Bhaktivinoda Thakura)

 

Hare Krsna Hare Krsna Krsna Krsna Hare Hare, Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare

 

[krsna 3]

WHAT IS THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THE DEVOTEE AND THE MATERIALIST?

 

Narada Muni thought in that way. "When my mother died, I thought it a special grace of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. I at once took leave of my so-called home and went away.” That is the difference between the devotees of the Lord and materialistic persons. When a devotee's materialistic relationship, comforts, are taken away, they think “Oh, it is all grace.” And the materialistic person, when their materialistic comforts are increased, they think, “It is grace.”

 

There is a drama in Bengali, that in a house a doctor came to diagnose two patients, the housewife and the maidservant. The doctor said, “The maidservant’s fever is 105, so there is some anxiety. I'll give some medicine. And the landlady, she has practically no fever, 99, so there is no anxiety.” But the landlady became angry, “This doctor is useless. I am the landlady. I have got 99, and my maidservant 105. The maidservant should have 98. I should have 110!” (laughter) This is the mentality. The modern civilization is trying to increase the degree of fever to 110 degrees. And, you know, as soon as the degree comes to 107 it is death. Therefore as soon as the high fever is there, the doctor tries to decrease it by icebags and so many things because 107 or 8, means immediate death. So the modern civilization is trying to increase the degree of material fever, and they have come to the point, 107 degrees, the atomic bomb. Now they are going to die.

 

The devotees want to decrease the fever. Therefore the highest, ideal life, according to Vedic civilization is the brahmana, Vaisnava. They decrease their demands of the body to the minimum and accept everything in relationship with Krsna. They accept everything as Krsna-prasadam, actually offering to Krsna, working for Krsna, living for Krsna. This is the best use. My Guru Maharaja used to say, “The best use of a bad bargain.” When we are attached to Krsna, automatically we are detached from maya. Not artificially. Just like, theoretically I know that I am not this body, but the bodily necessities are there because I am encaged in the body. Therefore the bodily necessities—eating, sleeping, mating, defending—should be done in relationship with Krsna. Then my consciousness is always in Krsna, and I am detached to my bodily demands. And those who are not Krsna conscious, their bodily demands are on the materialistic platform. They are going on, increasing the degree of fever and coming to 107.

 

There is a stage in the beginning when one is poverty-stricken, he may think “Money, woman, good apartment and a good car can give me satisfaction.” But after enjoyment they see there is no satisfaction. In America you have got enough for enjoyment, enough food, enough woman, enough wine, enough house—everything enough. But there is more confusion and dissatisfaction your country than in India, which is said to be poverty-stricken. In India still, although they are poverty-stricken, because they are continuing that old culture, they are not disturbed. Why? Because they have got a little tinge of spiritual platform. That will make them happy. All these people are in darkness. They do not know where they are going. They have no aim. But when you are spiritually situated, you know what you are doing, where you are going and what is your future. Everything is clear. (Conversations with Srila Prabhupada Oct. 27 and Dec. 30, 1968)

 

Hear, O Lord, the story of my sadness. I drank the deadly poison of worldliness, pretending it was nectar, and now the sun is setting on the horizon of my life. Devoid of even a particle of devotion, lacking any enlightenment---what help is there for me now? Only You ,O Lord, friend of the fallen. I am certainly fallen, the lowest of men. Please therefore, lift me to Your lotus feet. (Srila Bhaktivinoda Thakura)

 

Hare Krsna Hare Krsna Krsna Krsna Hare Hare, Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare

 

[krsna 3]

"ALALA-DARSHANANANDI" Ecstatic at the sight of Alalanatha

 

All the devotees followed Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu to a place known as Alalanatha. There they all offered respects and various prayers. In great ecstasy, Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu danced and chanted for some time. Indeed, all the neighbors came to see Him. All around Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu, who is also known as Gaurahari, people began to shout the holy name of Hari. Lord Caitanya, immersed in His usual ecstasy of love, danced in the midst of them.

 

The body of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu was naturally very beautiful. It was like molten gold dressed in saffron cloth. Indeed, He was most beautiful for being ornamented with the ecstatic symptoms, which caused His hair to stand on end, tears to well in His eyes, and His body to tremble and perspire all over. Everyone present was astonished to see Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu's dancing and His bodily transformations. Whoever came did not want to return home. Everyone-including children, old men and women-began to dance and chant the holy names of Sri Krsna and Gopala. In this way they all floated in the ocean of love of Godhead.

 

Upon seeing the chanting and dancing of Lord Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu, Lord Nityananda predicted that later there would be dancing and chanting in every village. Seeing that it was already getting late, Lord Nityananda Prabhu, the spiritual master, invented a means to disperse the crowd. When Lord Nityananda Prabhu took Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu for lunch at noon, everyone came running around Them. After finishing Their baths, They returned at noon to the temple. Admitting His own men, Sri Nityananda Prabhu closed the outside door. Gopinatha Acharya then brought prasada for the two Lords to eat, and after They had eaten, the remnants of the food were distributed to all the devotees. Hearing about this, everyone there came to the outside door and began chanting the holy name, "Hari! Hari!" Thus there was a tumultuous sound. After lunch, Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu made them open the door. In this way everyone received His audience with great pleasure. The people came and went until evening, and all of them became Vaisnava devotees and began to chant and dance.

 

This prediction of Sri Nityananda Prabhu is applicable not only in India but also all over the world. That is now happening by His grace. The members of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness are now traveling from one village to another in the Western countries and are even carrying the Deity with them. These devotees distribute various scriptures all over the world. We hope that these devotees who are preaching the message of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu will very seriously follow strictly in His footsteps. If they follow the rules and regulations and chant sixteen rounds daily, their endeavor to preach the cult of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu will certainly be successful. (CC Madhya-lila 7.76-89)

 

O devotees, may the transcendental life and characteristics of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu be always heard, chanted and meditated upon with great happiness. All glories to Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu, who is all-merciful!

(Krsnadasa Kaviraja Goswami CC Antya-lila 12.1-2)

 

Hare Krsna Hare Krsna Krsna Krsna Hare Hare, Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare

 

[Guest guest]

Please credit the source and give the all references when quoting directly, word-for-word, in order to avoid any possible misunderstandings on the part of the readers.

[Guest guest]

Sorry about that. I plead temporary blindness due to my fault-finding propensity.

[krsna 3]

"BHAKTERA GAURAVA-KARI" The Glorifier of His Devotees

 

Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu replied, "My dear Vallabha Bhatta, you are a learned scholar. Kindly listen to Me. I am a sannyasi of the Mayavada school. Therefore I have no chance of knowing what Krsna-bhakti is. Nevertheless, My mind has become purified because I have associated with Advaita Acharya, who is directly the Supreme Personality of Godhead. He is unparalleled in His understanding of all the revealed scriptures and the devotional service of Lord Krsna. Therefore He is called Advaita Acharya. He is such a great personality that by His mercy He can convert even the meat-eaters to the devotional service of Krsna. Who, therefore, can estimate the power of His Vaisnavism?

 

"Lord Nityananda Prabhu, the avadhuta, is also directly the Supreme Personality of Godhead. He is always intoxicated with the madness of ecstatic love. Indeed, He is an ocean of love of Krsna. Sarvabhauma Bhattacharya perfectly knows the six philosophical theses. He is therefore the spiritual master of the entire world in the six paths of philosophy. He is the best of devotees. Sarvabhauma Bhattacharya has shown Me the limit of devotional service. Only by his mercy have I understood that devotional service to Krsna is the essence of all mystic yoga.

 

"Srila Ramananda Raya is the ultimate knower of the transcendental mellows of Lord Krsna's devotional service. He has instructed Me that Lord Krsna is the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Through the mercy of Ramananda Raya, I have understood that ecstatic love of Krsna is the highest goal of life and that spontaneous love of Krsna is the highest perfection. It is impossible to describe the influence and knowledge of Ramananda Raya, for only by his mercy have I understood the unalloyed love of the residents of Vrndavana.

 

"The transcendental mellow of ecstatic love is personified by Svarupa Damodara. By his association I have understood Vrndavana's transcendental mellow of conjugal love. I have learned about transcendental loving affairs of Lord Krsna from Svarupa Damodara. Haridas Thakura, the teacher of the holy name, is among the most exalted of all devotees. Every day he chants 300,000 holy names of the Lord. I have learned about the glories of the Lord's holy name from Haridas Thakura, and by his mercy I have understood these glories.

 

"Acharyaratna, Acharyanidhi, Gadadhara Pandita, Jagadananda, Damodara, Shaikara, Vakreshvara, Kasisvara, Mukunda, Vasudeva, Murari and many other devotees have descended in Bengal to preach to everyone the glories of the holy name of Krsna and the value of love for Him. I have learned from them the meaning of devotional service to Krsna." Knowing that Vallabha Bhatta heart was full of pride, Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu spoke these words, hinting at how one can learn about devotional service.

(CC Antya-lila 7.16-55)

 

Simply hearing submissively will free one's heart from all the faults of ignorance, and thus one will achieve deep love for Krsna. This is the path of peace. If one patiently hears about the glories of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu, Sri Nityananda Prabhu and Sri Advaita Prabhu-and Their devotees, devotional activities, names, fame, and the mellows of Their transcendental loving exchanges-one will learn the essence of the Absolute Truth.

(Srila Krsnadasa Goswami CC Adi-lila 1.107-109)

 

Hare Krsna Hare Krsna Krsna Krsna Hare Hare, Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare

 

[krsna 3]

"PREMA-DATA", the Bestower of Love of God

 

My Dear Japanese brothers and sisters,

Please accept my greetings. It is a great opportunity that Sriman Sudama Das Adhikari, one of my American students, has gone to your country to spread the gospel of Krishna Consciousness under superior order. The original order is from Lord Caitanya Who appeared 484 years ago at Navadvipa, a district in Bengal, India...

 

Lord Caitanya preached this cult of Krishna Consciousness in a simple and practical way so that everyone can take it without any trouble and thusly become happy in this life as well as in the next. The purpose of Krishna Consciousness is to love Krishna or God. We have a general propensity to love someone else, which is the basic principle of living condition. Nobody can live without loving somebody else besides himself. This loving propensity for someone else is present in every living being. Even an animal like tiger has this loving propensity in dormant state, and what to mention of the human kind. But the missing point is where to repose our love so that everyone can become happy...

 

The idea is that our loving propensity expands as vibration of air and light expands, but we do not know where it ends. The Krishna Consciousness movement teaches us this science how one can love everyone of the living entities perfectly by an easy method. We have failed to bring in peace and harmony in the human society even by such big attempts like the organization of United Nations because we do not know the method. The method is very simple, but one has to understand it with a cool head. The method is simple and natural, and this movement teaches you how to do it. We teach all men to love Krishna, the Supreme Personality of Godhead. If you learn how to love Krishna, which is very easy, then immediately you love every living being simultaneously...

 

We do not condemn any way of materialistic life, but we simply request everyone to learn how to love Krishna. This is the missing point. You live in any way as it may be suitable for your comfortable life, but side by side you learn the art of loving Krishna. Please therefore try to understand this Krishna Consciousness movement. I have sent there three of my young students to preach this sublime cult in Japan. Please cooperate with them and you will be happy. We do not want any remuneration for this service because we have engaged ourselves in the service of the Lord and we love each and every living being as part and parcel of the Lord. Neither we are sentimentalists without any background of philosophy and knowledge. We have got an immense treasure-house of knowledge and philosophy. We have got our books BG, TLC, Bhagavatam, Isopanisad, etc. being published also with monthly magazines. But at the same time, we educate the mass of people by a simple process. namely chanting the holy Name of Krishna. It is not at all difficult; even a child can take part in this holy chanting and derive the sublime benefit. Please therefore chant the mantra:

Hare Krishna Hare Krishna Krishna Krishna Hare Hare

Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare

and thus be happy. Thank you very much.

(A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami, 10 March, 1970)

 

Let me offer my respectful obeisances unto Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu, who personally tasted the nectar of ecstatic love for Krsna and then instructed His devotees how to taste it. Thus He enlightened them about ecstatic love of Krsna to initiate them into transcendental knowledge. (Krsnadasa Kaviraja Goswami CC Antya-lila 16.1)

 

[krsna 3]

"SVANANDA-ASVADANANDI" He is ecstatic by tasting the bliss of Himself if the form of Krsna

 

During a night of the autumn season when a full moon brightened everything, Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu wandered all night long with His devotees. He walked from garden to garden, seeing the pastimes of Lord Krsna and hearing and reciting songs and verses concerning the rasa-lila. He sang and danced in ecstatic love and sometimes imitated the rasa dance in emotional ecstasy. He sometimes ran here and there in the madness of ecstasy and sometimes fell and rolled on the ground. Sometimes He became completely unconscious. When He heard Svarupa Damodara recite a verse concerning the rasa-lila or He Himself recited one, He would personally explain it, as He had previously done. In this way, He explained the meaning of all the verses concerning the rasa-lila. Sometimes He would be very sad and sometimes very happy.

 

To explain fully all those verses and all the transformations that took place in the Lord's body would require a very large volume. If Ananta, with His one thousand hoods, tried to describe even one day's pastimes of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu, He would find them impossible to describe fully. If Ganesha, Lord Shiva son and the expert scribe of the demigods, tried for millions of millenniums to fully describe one day of the Lord's pastimes, he would be unable to find their limit. Even Lord Krsna is struck with wonder at seeing the transformations of ecstasy in His devotees. If Krsna Himself cannot estimate the limits of such emotions, how could others?

 

Krsna Himself cannot fully understand the conditions, the mode of progress, the happiness and unhappiness, and the moods of ecstatic love of His devotees. He therefore accepts the role of a devotee to taste these emotions fully. Ecstatic love of Krsna makes Krsna and His devotees dance, and it also dances personally. In this way, all three dance together in one place. One who wants to describe the transformations of ecstatic love of Krsna is like a dwarf trying to catch the moon in the sky. As the wind can carry away but a drop of the water in the ocean, a living entity can touch only a particle of the ocean of love of Krsna. Endless waves arise moment after moment in that ocean of love. How could an insignificant living entity estimate their limits? Only a person on the level of Svarupa Damodara Goswami can fully know what Lord Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu tastes in His love for Krsna.When an ordinary living entity describes the pastimes of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu, he purifies himself by touching one drop of that great ocean. (CC Antya-lila 18.4-23)

 

The ocean of ecstatic love for Krsna is very difficult to understand, even for such demigods as Lord Brahma. By enacting His pastimes, Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu submerged Himself in that ocean, and His heart was absorbed in that love. Thus He exhibited in various ways the exalted position of transcendental love for Krsna. All glories to Sri Krsna Caitanya, the Supreme Personality of Godhead! (Srila Krsnadasa Kaviraja Goswami CC Antya-lila 15.1-2)

 

Hare Krsna Hare Krsna Krsna Krsna Hare Hare, Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare