Balarama’s Appearance Day To glorify the Supreme Personality of Godhead Lord Balarama, to purify ourselves, and to increase the pleasure of the devotees, we shall now read from Sri Caitanya-caritamrta, Adi-lila, Chapter Five, “The Glories of Lord Nityananda-Balaramaâ€: This chapter is chiefly devoted to describing the essential nature and glories of Sri Nityananda Prabhu. Lord Sri Krsna is the absolute Personality of Godhead, and His first expansion in a form for pastimes is Sri Balarama. TEXT 1 vande ’nantadbhutaisvaryam sri-nityanandam isvaram yasyecchaya tat-svarupam ajnenapi nirupyate TRANSLATION Let me offer my obeisances to Lord Sri Nityananda, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, whose opulence is wonderful and unlimited. By His will, even a fool can understand His identity. TEXT 2 jaya jaya sri-caitanya jaya nityananda jayadvaita-candra jaya gaura-bhakta-vrnda TRANSLATION All glories to Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu! All glories to Lord Nityananda! All glories to Advaita Acarya! And all glories to all the devotees of Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu! TEXT 4 sarva-avatari krsna svayam bhagavan tanhara dvitiya deha sri-balarama TRANSLATION The Supreme Personality of Godhead, Krsna, is the fountainhead of all incarnations. Lord Balarama is His second body. PURPORT by Srila Prabhupada Lord Sri Krsna, the absolute Personality of Godhead, is the primeval Lord, the original form of Godhead, and His first expansion is Sri Balarama. The Personality of Godhead can expand Himself in innumerable forms. The forms that have unlimited potency are called svamsa, and forms that have limited potencies (the living entities) are called vibhinnamsa. TEXT 5 eka-i svarupa donhe, bhinna-matra kaya adya kaya-vyuha, krsna-lilara sahaya TRANSLATION These two are one and the same identity. They differ only in form. Lord Balarama is the first bodily expansion of Krsna, and He assists in Lord Krsna’s transcendental pastimes. PURPORT Balarama is a svamsa expansion of the Lord, and therefore there is no difference in potency between Krsna and Balarama. The only difference is in Their bodily structure. As the first expansion of Godhead, Balarama is the chief Deity among the first quadruple forms, and He is the foremost assistant of Sri Krsna in His transcendental activities. COMMENT by Giriraj Swami At the beginning of the Srimad-Bhagavatam, Srila Prabhupada explains the difference between the conception of the Absolute Truth and the conception of God. God (in Sanskrit, isvara) means “controller.†But the Absolute Truth, as defined in the Vedanta-sutra and explained in the Srimad-Bhagavatam, is “He from whom everything emanates.†Someone may be God, creator and controller of the entire cosmos, but not necessarily the origin of everything. So the concept of the Absolute Truth goes beyond the concept of God as the controller. Janmady asya yatah. Om namo bhagavate vasudevaya, janmady asya yatah: Lord Krsna is the Absolute Truth. He is the origin of everything, both material and spiritual. Lord Balarama is the first expansion of Lord Krsna. The Brahma-samhita gives an example: from one candle you can light a second candle, from the second you can light a third, from the third a fourth, and so on. All have the same candlepower, but still there is only one original candle. Similarly, Lord Krsna expands into innumerable plenary portions and portions of plenary portions, but Krsna is the original Absolute Truth, the original Personality of Godhead. And Balarama is the first expansion, the first candle lit by the original candle. Here Srila Krsnadasa Kaviraja Gosvami and Srila Prabhupada explain that there is no difference between Krsna and Balarama in potency; the only difference is of bodily construction. Once, in Allahabad, at the Kumbha-mela, a dispute took place between two devotees on this very same point. One devotee, Madhudvisa Prabhu, said, “There is no difference between Krsna and Balarama. The only difference is that Krsna is blackish and Balarama is whitish.†But Mother Yamuna disagreed. “No,†she held. “There is another difference, because Krsna is the only enjoyer of Srimati Radharani.†So the two were arguing, and His Holiness Tamal Krishna Goswami, who was Srila Prabhupada’s zonal secretary for India then, brought the matter to Srila Prabhupada. He began, “Srila Prabhupada, Madhudvisa Prabhu says that the only difference between Krsna and Balarama is the color—Krsna is blackish and Balarama is white.†Srila Prabhupada replied, “He is right.†Then Tamal Krishna Goswami continued, “But Mother Yamuna is saying that there is another difference, because Krsna is the only enjoyer of Srimati Radharani.†And Srila Prabhupada responded, “She is right.†Then Tamal Krishna Goswami offered, “Srila Prabhupada, they are saying different things. They both cannot be right.†And Srila Prabhupada replied, “You are right.†Then Tamal Krishna Goswami asked, “Then, which is right?†Srila Prabhupada answered, “You decide.†TEXT 6 sei krsna—navadvipe sri-caitanya-candra sei balarama—-sange sri-nityananda TRANSLATION That original Lord Krsna appeared in Navadvipa as Lord Caitanya, and Balarama appeared with Him as Lord Nityananda. COMMENT There is another incident along the same lines. Srila Prabhupada asked, “Who is stronger, Krsna or Balarama?†Although both have equal potencies as svamsa, still there may be some difference. So Srila Prabhupada asked, “Who is stronger?†And I will ask the same question to you all. Devotee (1): [inaudible] Giriraj Swami: She says that Krsna is stronger because Balarama receives His strength from Krsna. Well, that is true. You are right. Murari Caitanya: [inaudible] Giriraj Swami: Yes. Murari says he agrees that Krsna is stronger because Krsna is full in all opulences, and one of the opulences is strength. Devotee (2): [inaudible] Giriraj Swami: He says that Balarama is stronger because He is Krsna’s elder brother. Srila Prabhupada answered, “Krsna is stronger,†but the evidence he gave is different from what anyone here has suggested. The evidence Srila Prabhupada offered does not come from the books. Srila Prabhupada explained, “Krsna is stronger, because the Deity of Lord Balarama rests His arm on Krsna’s shoulder.†Now we shall come to the pastimes. TEXT 149 nityananda-svarupa purve ha-iya laksmana laghu-bhrata haiya kare ramera sevana TRANSLATION Lord Nityananda Svarupa formerly appeared as Laksmana and served Lord Ramacandra as His younger brother. PURPORT Among the sannyasis of the Sankara-sampradaya, there are different names for brahmacaris. Each sannyasi has some assistants, known as brahmacaris, who are called by different names according to the names of the sannyasi. Among such brahmacaris there are four names: Svarupa, Ananda, Prakasa, and Caitanya. Nityananda Prabhu maintained Himself as a brahmacari; He never took sannyasa. As a brahmacari, His name was Nityananda Svarupa, and therefore the sannyasi under whom He was living must have been from the tirthas or asramas of the Sankara-sampradaya, because one of the names for the assistant brahmacari of such a sannyasi is Svarupa. TEXTS 150 ramera caritra saba,—duhkhera karana svatantra lilaya duhkha sahena laksmana TRANSLATION The activities of Lord Rama were full of suffering, but Laksmana, of His own accord, tolerated that suffering. TEXT 151 nisedha karite nare, yate chota bhai mauna dhari’ rahe laksmana mane duhkha pai’ TRANSLATION As a younger brother, He could not stop Lord Rama from His resolution, and so He remained silent, although unhappy in His mind. COMMENT Just as Krsna took the form of Lord Ramacandra, Balarama took the form of Laksmana. In terms of the cycle of ages, Lord Ramacandra appeared earlier, in Treta-yuga, and Lord Krsna appeared later, in Dvapara-yuga. The pastimes of Lord Rama were full of suffering. Rama and Laksmana were the most qualified sons of King Dasaratha, and everyone expected Lord Rama to be crowned as the king of Ayodhya. At the last moment, however, Queen Kaikeyi reminded Dasaratha that he had once given her two boons when he was pleased with her service to him while he was in grave danger. When Dasaratha had offered her these boons, Kaikeyi had said she would not take them at that time, but would ask for them later. For various reasons, Kaikeyi wanted her son Bharata to become the king instead of Lord Rama, so she asked for this boon. Because Dasaratha had given his word to her, he was bound to keep it. She also asked that Lord Rama be sent into exile for fourteen years so that Bharata could enjoy the throne without any disturbance. The Ramayana is full of ideals. Lord Rama is the ideal king, the ideal son, the ideal stepson, the ideal husband; Sita is the ideal wife; Laksmana is the ideal brother. Lord Ramacandra, the ideal son, seeing how distressed His father was when obliged to ask Him to give up the throne and go into the forest, of His own accord volunteered, “Yes, I will happily go. Do not worry.†When Lord Rama decided that He would go, Laksmana declared, “You cannot go into the forest alone. I will also go with You.†And Lord Rama agreed. Then Sitadevi insisted, “I am Your wife and must be with You in all circumstances.†Ultimately, Rama agreed that she could come, too. Practically everyone else in Ayodhya also wanted to come with Rama. But Lord Ramacandra said, “If you all come with Me, there will be no one left in Ayodhya. So you must stay.†In the forest, Lord Ramacandra had to endure so many difficulties. There is a beautiful verse in the Srimad-Bhagavatam about how the tender lotus feet of Ramacandra had to traverse the floor of the jungle, which was filled with stones and pebbles and thorns. The gopis also used to cry, thinking that the lotus feet of Krsna would be pricked and pierced by stones and thorns. And just as devotees of Krsna consider His pastimes in Vrndavana most relishable because of their sweetness and intimacy, so devotees of Lord Rama consider His pastimes in the forest to be most sweet and relishable. Yet externally, the Lord suffered in the forest, and Laksmana was unable to do anything to stop Him. As Krsnadasa Kaviraja Gosvami explains so nicely in the Caitanya-caritamrta, everyone—from Lord Balarama, the first expansion, down to the other expansions of Krsna—has the sentiment of servitorship to Lord Krsna, and even the other expansions of Krsna take pleasure in service to Krsna. In other words, they feel happy when Krsna is happy. Laksmana could not bear all the sufferings that Lord Rama underwent, but because He was the younger brother, He could not stop Lord Rama. There were other instances also where He was in an awkward position. For example, when Ravana was killed and Sitadevi was freed, Laksmana was obliged to do something very painful. Lord Ramacandra declared that He would not take Sita back. Sita responded, “If You are not going to take me back, what was the point of the war—so much bloodshed and death?†Rama replied, “We have not fought this war to get you back. We have fought this war to show the strength of our dynasty, lest the world think that we are weak. You have spent the night with another man, and we cannot take you back.†Then Lord Rama told Laksmana, “Now You take Sita and place her in the fire.†Mother Sita was the worshipable Deity of Laksmana. How could He put her in the fire? And yet, as the younger brother, He had no choice. So, Laksmana had to do many things that were painful to Him, ultimately because they were painful to Sita-Rama, and He could do nothing about it because of His inferior position. Accordingly, He vowed that in the future He would never again take birth as the Supreme Lord’s younger brother. Therefore, we see that in krsna-lila He appears as the older brother, Balarama, and in gaura-lila He also appears as the older brother, as Nityananda. TEXT 152 krsna-avatare jyestha haila sevara karana krsnake karaila nana sukha asvadana TRANSLATION When Lord Krsna appeared, He [Balarama] became His elder brother to serve Him to His heart’s content and make Him enjoy all sorts of happiness. TEXT 153 rama-laksmana—krsna-ramera amsa-visesa avatara-kale donhe donhate pravesa TRANSLATION Sri Rama and Sri Laksmana, who are plenary portions of Lord Krsna and Lord Balarama respectively, entered into Them at the time of Krsna’s and Balarama’s appearance. PURPORT With reference to the Visnu-dharmottara, the Laghu-bhagavatamrta explains that Rama is an incarnation of Vasudeva, Laksmana is an incarnation of Sankarsana, Bharata is an incarnation of Pradyumna, and Satrughna is an incarnation of Aniruddha. The Padma Purana describes that Ramacandra is Narayana and that Laksmana, Bharata, and Satrughna are respectively Sesa, Cakra, and Sankha (the conchshell in the hand of Narayana). In the Rama-gita of the Skanda Purana, Laksmana, Bharata, and Satrughna have been described as the triple attendants of Lord Rama. TEXT 154 sei amsa lana jyestha-kanisthabhimana amsamsi-rupe sastre karaye vyakhyana TRANSLATION Krsna and Balarama present Themselves as younger brother and elder brother, but in the scriptures They are described as the original Supreme Personality of Godhead and His expansion. TEXT 155 ramadi-murtisu kala-niyamena tisthan nanavataram akarod bhuvanesu kintu krsnah svayam samabhavat paramah puman yo govindam adi-purusam tam aham bhajami TRANSLATION “I worship Govinda, the primeval Lord, who by His various plenary portions appears in the world in different forms and incarnations such as Lord Rama, but who personally appears in His supreme original form as Lord Krsna.†PURPORT This is a quotation from Brahma-samhita (5.39). TEXTS 156 sri-caitanya—sei krsna, nityananda—rama nityananda purna kare caitanyera kama TRANSLATION Lord Caitanya is the same Lord Krsna, and Lord Nityananda is Lord Balarama. Lord Nityananda fulfills all of Lord Caitanya’s desires. TEXT 157 nityananda-mahima-sindhu ananta, apara eka kana sparsi matra,—se krpa tanhara TRANSLATION The ocean of Lord Nityananda’s glories is infinite and unfathomable. Only by His mercy can I touch even a drop of it. TEXT 134 ei-rupe nityananda ‘ananta’-prakasa sei-bhave—kahe muni caitanyera dasa TRANSLATION Thus Lord Nityananda has unlimited incarnations. In transcendental emotion He calls Himself a servant of Lord Caitanya. TEXT 135 kabhu guru, kabhu sakha, kabhu bhrtya-lila purve yena tina-bhave vraje kaila khela TRANSLATION Sometimes He serves Lord Caitanya as His guru, sometimes as His friend and sometimes as His servant, just as Lord Balarama played with Lord Krsna in these three different moods in Vraja. COMMENT “Sometimes He serves Lord Caitanya as His guru†means He serves as the older brother, as the teacher. Lord Balarama, as the older brother of Lord Krsna, was in the position of a teacher or an authority for Lord Krsna, and therefore He served the Lord with an element of vatsalya-rasa. Vatsa in Sanskrit means “calf†or “dear child,†and the cow is one of our mothers, too. Thus, motherly or fatherly affection is vatsalya-rasa. So, as the elder brother is sometimes asked to care for the younger brother, Lord Balarama in Vrndavana sometimes served Lord Krsna in vatsalya-rasa. He served as Krsna’s guru, and He also sometimes served Krsna as His friend or equal in sakhya-rasa, and sometimes as His servant in dasya-rasa. Lord Nityananda serves Lord Caitanya in the same three moods. TEXT 136 vrsa hana krsna-sane matha-mathi rana kabhu krsna kare tanra pada-samvahana TRANSLATION Playing like a bull, Lord Balarama fights with Krsna head to head. And sometimes Lord Krsna massages the feet of Lord Balarama. COMMENT Once, after the Ardha-kumbha-mela in 1971, we were on a train with Srila Prabhupada, and a few of us were in Srila Prabhupada’s compartment. Srila Prabhupada asked a devotee to read from the Krsna book. The devotee asked, “Should I read from any particular place?†Srila Prabhupada replied, “No, it is all nectar.†So the devotee opened the book to the story of Dhenukasura, the ass demon that was killed by Lord Balarama. At the beginning of the story the cowherd boys approach Lord Krsna and say, “We smell such sweet fruits in the Talavana forest, but we cannot enjoy them because of the demons there.†When the devotee read this, Srila Prabhupada opened his eyes very wide and then exclaimed, “Just see how the cowherd boys were trying to engage Lord Krsna for their sense gratification!†After reading some time more, the devotee showed us all the picture of the pastime. Srila Prabhupada was very pleased with it and remarked, “The artists have done a great service; their service will not go in vain.†In Srila Prabhupada’s quarters in Juhu we had a beautiful picture of Lord Balarama lying under a tree with Lord Krsna massaging His lotus feet. That is mentioned here: Sometimes Krsna would massage the lotus feet of Balarama, as a disciple serves the guru, or as a son serves his father. TEXT 137 apanake bhrtya kari’ krsne prabhu jane krsnera kalara kala apanake mane TRANSLATION He considers Himself a servant and knows Krsna to be His master. Thus He regards Himself as a fragment of His plenary portion. COMMENT Even Lord Balarama desires to serve Krsna, considering Himself very insignificant in comparison. Although He is actually the Lord’s first expansion, with all the same potencies as Krsna, still He regards Himself as just a fragment of a fragment of Krsna (kalara kala). In other words, He is humble. The mood of service and the mood of humility go together. When I consider myself to be very small, naturally I want to serve the great. Lord Balarama is the original spiritual master, so we should learn from Him how to feel ourselves to be humble and insignificant, and thus develop the mood of wanting to serve the great, the Supreme. TEXT 138 vrsayamanau nardantau yuyudhate parasparam anukrtya rutair jantums ceratuh prakrtau yatha TRANSLATION “Acting just like ordinary boys, They played like roaring bulls as They fought each other, and They imitated the calls of various animals.†PURPORT This and the following quotation are from the Bhagavatam (10.11.40 and 10.15.14). COMMENT Krsna, Balarama, and the cowherd boys play just like ordinary friends. TEXT 139 kvacit krida-parisrantam gopotsangopabarhanam svayam visramayaty aryam pada-samvahanadibhih TRANSLATION “Sometimes when Lord Krsna’s elder brother, Lord Balarama, felt tired after playing and lay His head on the lap of a cowherd boy, Lord Krsna Himself served Him by massaging His feet.†TEXT 140 keyam va kuta ayata daivi va nary utasuri prayo mayastu me bhartur nanya me ’pi vimohini TRANSLATION “Who is this mystic power, and where has she come from? Is she a demigod or a demoness? She must be the illusory energy of My master, Lord Krsna, for who else can bewilder Me?†PURPORT The playful pastimes of the Lord caused suspicion in the mind of Lord Brahma, and therefore Lord Brahma, to test Krsna’s Lordship, stole all the Lord’s calves and cowherd boys with his own mystic power. Sri Krsna responded, however, by replacing all the calves and boys in the field. Lord Balarama’s thoughts of astonishment at such wonderful retaliation are recorded in this verse (SB 10.13.37). COMMENT Lord Brahma was struck by wonder at how all the inhabitants of Vrndavana had so much affection for Krsna. Therefore, to see more of Krsna’s glorious pastimes, he stole the cowherd boys and calves by his mystic power. Then Lord Krsna, by His greater mystic power, expanded Himself into an exact duplicate set of cowherd boys and calves. And for one year the cowherd boys and calves were actually direct expansions of Lord Krsna. Many unusual events took place during that year, and Lord Balarama suspected that something was different—though He wasn’t sure what. Thus He thought, “How could I be bewildered? How could I be confused?†He concluded, “Only by Lord Krsna’s potencies could I be mystified.†So He glorifies the potency of Lord Krsna. TEXT 141 yasyanghri-pankaja-rajo ’khila-loka-palair mauly-uttamair dhrtam upasita-tirtha-tirtham brahma bhavo ’ham api yasya kalah kalayah sris codvahema ciram asya nrpasanam kva “What is the value of a throne to Lord Krsna? The masters of the various planetary systems accept the dust of His lotus feet on their crowned heads. That dust makes the holy places sacred, and even Lord Brahma, Lord Siva, Laksmi and I Myself, who are all portions of His plenary portion, eternally carry that dust on our heads.†PURPORT When the Kauravas, to flatter Baladeva so that He would become their ally, spoke ill of Sri Krsna, Lord Baladeva became angry and spoke this verse (SB 10.68.37). COMMENT As stated by Srila Prabhupada here, the Kauravas wanted to lure Lord Balarama into their camp against Lord Krsna and His party, so they accused Lord Krsna of being arrogant and impudent. Lord Balarama, however, defended Lord Krsna and declared, “What is the value of a throne to Lord Krsna? The masters of the various planetary systems accept the dust of His lotus feet on their crowned heads. They are the kings of the universe, but rather than their priceless crowns on their heads, they simply desire that the dust of the lotus feet of Lord Krsna be placed there. So what is the value of some throne to Lord Krsna?†Lord Balarama declares Himself to be kalah kalayah, the portion of a portion, or fragment of a fragment, of Lord Krsna, as Krsnadasa Kaviraja also remarks above (kalara kala). Here we see not only how humble Lord Balarama is and how much He appreciates Lord Krsna, but also how loyal He is. The way of politics is to create division, to try to make a party weak by dividing it. (Therefore, Srila Prabhupada said that the only thing that can destroy ISKCON is fighting among ourselves. Nothing can destroy ISKCON from outside.) Here we see how faithful Lord Balarama was to Lord Krsna. Sometimes we might hear someone speak ill of a devotee, and we might think that a good way to make friends with the critic is to agree with him or her. But if we go along with that criticism, especially in the absence of the devotee being criticized, and without any intention of helping the devotee, we weaken our spiritual position by indulging in finding fault with a Vaisnava, and we also weaken Srila Prabhuapda’s mission. Srila Prabhupada often quoted, “There is strength in unity.†He cited the story of a father who wanted his sons to co-operate. First the father gave each son a thin stick and asked him to break it, and each broke his stick very easily. Then the father took a bunch of similar thin sticks and bound them together and then asked his sons to break them. Because the sticks were all bound together, none of the sons could break them. So the father said, “In the same way, if you stay together, no one will be able to defeat you. But each of you alone can be defeated; each of you alone can be broken.†So, Srila Prabhupada wanted us to be united. From unity comes strength—with Srila Prabhupada, Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu, and Lord Krsna as the center, of course. Srila Prabhupada gave another example of a father and his sons. The father was sick, and he needed his sons to massage him, but the sons began to fight among themselves about who would massage which part of the father’s body. One brother was massaging the head, but the brother who was massaging the feet said, “I want to massage the head—you massage the feet.†Another brother was massaging the left arm, and he began to fight with the brother massaging the right arm: “I am going to massage the right arm—you massage the left arm.†They got so absorbed in fighting with each other about who was going to massage which part of the father’s body that the father died. “So,†Srila Prabhupada concluded, “you should co-operate in the service of your father, not become so absorbed in fighting about who is going to do which service for him, that you forget your father altogether.†Now here is Lord Balarama’s great example for us to follow: how to be a humble servant, and how to be faithful and fearless. Balarama wasn’t afraid to express His devotion to Lord Krsna, to proclaim the glories of Lord Krsna—even to Krsna’s enemies. So we should learn this from Lord Balarama. We should pray for His mercy, that He may teach us the mood of humble service, and also the mood of loyal devotion, the mood of fearlessly defending Krsna and fearlessly preaching Krsna’s glories. The earlier verses describe a nice contrast. One verse explains how Lord Krsna massaged the lotus feet of Lord Balarama, and the next explains how Lord Balarama considers Lord Krsna His master. We can also have similar sentiments in our association with each other, because we too are brothers and sisters—spiritual brothers and sisters—and each of us should have the mood of service to the others. Thus Srila Prabhupada said we should address each other as prabhu, because prabhu means “master.†We are the servants, and our prabhus are our masters—though they are also servants. Sometimes Balarama massaged the lotus feet of Krsna, and sometimes Krsna massaged the lotus feet of Balarama. Each was in the mood of giving pleasure to the other, and thus Their relationship was so sweet and sublime. We too should have this mood of service. Once in Mayapur, just after he had finished taking prasada, Srila Prabhupada heard shouting from the next room. So he sent Hari-sauri Prabhu, his servant, to see what the shouting was all about. Hari-sauri came back and explained, “Srila Prabhupada, your two secretaries are arguing.†So Srila Prabhupada called them and asked, “What is the difficulty?†One secretary replied, “Srila Prabhupada, I’m sick and the only food I can really eat is your remnants, so I wanted your remnants.†The other secretary countered, “Srila Prabhupada, I feel every disciple should get some of your remnants, not just one.†Then Srila Prabhupada responded: “He is sick, and if all he can eat and digest is my remnants, then you should have given him my remnants.†Srila Prabhupada explained, “It is not enough just to be the servant of the spiritual master; you must also be the servant of the other servants of the spiritual master.†Srila Prabhupada said that by developing the humble mood of being the servant of the servant, one can make wonderful advancement. He gave the example that in Bengal, whenever a saintly person would come to a village, all the villagers would come to him, wanting to take dust from his feet and invite him to their homes to feed him and serve him. All of them would think, “Oh, he is such a holy person. I want to get the dust of his feet and serve him.†And the saintly person would think, “Why do they want to take my dust? Why do they want to serve me? I’m just an ordinary person.†Srila Prabhupada said, “Because both groups were humble, both made wonderful advancement.†Among ourselves, like Krsna and Balarama, each of us should feel that the other is my prabhu: “I want to serve my prabhu.†Thus everyone will make wonderful advancement, and our relationships will be sweet and pure and sublime. And then people will be attracted. Not only will they be attracted, but they will naturally want to bring other people, too. The other night, we celebrated Jhulana-yatra in Santa Barbara. There was a talk, and of course the swinging of Radha and Krsna, but mainly we were just doing kirtana. There was such a pleasing atmosphere. I really felt like going out and telling people, “This is such a nice thing. You should come and experience it.†But after I felt the spontaneous desire to go and call people, so they too could experience the sweetness of Krsna consciousness, I considered, “Sometimes I don’t really feel like inviting people to a temple, because I don’t know what they’ll experience when they come.†I’m sure that’s not the case here in Chicago, and it may just be due to my own fallen nature that I have such reservations, but I know that I don’t always have that confidence I felt the other night in Santa Barbara. As I and the other devotees there were relishing the kirtana and swing festival so much, I realized that the process of Krsna consciousness in and of itself—the process of chanting the holy names together with other devotees—is naturally sweet and blissful and pleasurable. And when you feel that pleasure, you naturally want to invite others: “Come, it’s such a wonderful thing. Come and experience it for yourself.†I also realized why we don’t feel this pleasure all the time, and why we are facing so many disturbances that undermine our spontaneous, enthusiastic desire to go out and bring in others so they, too, will experience that pleasure. What is the reason? I realized that it is the way we too often deal with each other, especially the way we sometimes fight with each other and criticize each other. That’s what pollutes the whole atmosphere. That’s what covers the pure, natural beauty and splendor and pleasure of chanting the holy names in the association of devotees, which is really our only interest and goal. If we could just deal with each other the way Krsna and Balarama deal with each other, we would have no such problem. It makes no difference that They are great and we are small. The point is that in Their relationships with each other, each one is humble, and each one wants to serve and please the other. Sometimes Krsna plays the part of the master and Balarama serves Him; sometimes it’s the other way around and Krsna serves Balarama. And that’s how it should be among ourselves—no politics, just humble and faithful service. Of course, I don’t want to oversimplify the problems, but these are some of my thoughts. Now we come to the famous verse: TEXT 142 ekale isvara krsna, ara saba bhrtya yare yaiche nacaya, se taiche kare nrtya TRANSLATION Lord Krsna alone is the supreme controller, and all others are His servants. They dance as He makes them do so. TEXTS 143–145 ei mata caitanya-gosani ekale isvara ara saba parisada, keha va kinkara guru-varga,-nityananda, advaita acarya srivasadi, ara yata-laghu, sama, arya sabe parisada, sabe lilara sahaya saba lana nija-karya sadhe gaura-raya TRANSLATION Thus Lord Caitanya is also the only controller. All others are His associates or servants. His elders such as Lord Nityananda, Advaita Acarya and Srivasa Thakura, as well as His other devotees—whether His juniors, equals or superiors—are all His associates who help Him in His pastimes. Lord Gauranga fulfills His aims with their help. COMMENT Someone may play the part of an elder, someone the part of an equal, and someone the part of a junior, but everyone’s mood is to serve the Supreme Lord, and everyone wants to fulfill the Supreme Lord’s desires. In our relationships, too, because there are differences of spiritual advancement and seniority, someone may play the role of a senior, someone the role of an equal, and someone the role a junior. Yet whatever part we play, our inner motive should always be to serve the other devotees, to help the other devotees in Krsna consciousness and in devotional service, and to make the other devotees happy. When we adopt this mood, Srila Prabhupada will be happy, Sri Sri Gaura-Nitai will be happy, Sri Sri Krsna-Balarama will be happy, and automatically we too will be happy. Bala means “strength,†and rama means “pleasure.†Lord Balarama is the source of the devotees’ spiritual strength. He is the original spiritual master, and we can get spiritual strength from Him. Once, Srila Prabhupada commented, “‘Strength’ means intelligence.†Therefore, we can pray to Lord Balarama for spiritual strength and intelligence so we can be faithful servants of our spiritual master, of Srila Prabhupada and of his other servants, and of every living entity—for Srila Prabhupada’s mission is really to deliver every living entity to Krsna consciousness. So, we do make friends with devotees, but we also show mercy to the innocent and try to encourage them in Krsna consciousness. We try to encourage our superiors in their service in Krsna consciousness, we try to encourage our friends in Krsna consciousness, and we try to encourage new people in Krsna consciousness. And by such service—giving, encouraging, and helping others—Lord Balarama may be pleased. Hare Krsna. Are there any questions or comments? Devotee: [inaudible] Giriraj Swami: We were reading about the pastime when Brahma stole the cowherd boys and calves from Lord Krsna. That was the last chapter of the Srimad-Bhagavatam that Srila Prabhupada translated, lying on his bed in Vrndavana. He was very weak. His disciples would hold the dictaphone right up to his mouth; we could hardly hear what he was saying. And one of the last purports that he dictated was, “We should discuss Srimad-Bhagavatam daily as much as possible, and then everything will be clarified. The more we read Srimad-Bhagavatam, the more its knowledge becomes clear. Each and every verse is transcendental.†(SB 10.13.54 purport) So, one method of coming to a conclusion regarding a controversial point is to discuss it. Srila Prabhupada said we should come together and discuss the subject threadbare. If there is no personal motivation, and if we discuss simply to come to the proper conclusion, then—by hearing the ideas of others and clarifying our own ideas through discussion—we get answers, by the mercy of the Lord within the hearts of the devotees who sincerely discuss His service. But sometimes—because Krsna consciousness is inconceivable—two quite different views may both be right. One thing might be good for one person but not for another, and it’s a sign of maturity to appreciate such differences and not fight because of them. Once, soon after I joined, I was riding in the temple’s car. I remember that one devotee was saying we should go a certain way to reach our destination, and another was saying we should go another way. Then a wise, Krsna conscious devotee said, “You both are right, because you both want to serve Krsna in the best way.†Sometimes we can’t say really what the best way is. There might be a shorter route that goes through a bad part of town, and a longer route that is more scenic. Or there may be a shorter route that uses less gas, and a longer route that is faster because the road is better. So we cannot say absolutely which is better: one person may value his or her time more, and another person may value his or her money more—depending upon the circumstances. So it is a sign of immaturity to quarrel over something as if it were absolute when actually it is not. What is absolute is the desire to serve Krsna. However, there may be different ways to serve Him. Still, one way may not necessarily be better than another—rather, it might just be better for one person or in one circumstance. My own conclusion is that Srila Prabhupada had so much love for the living entities, and so much potency, that he could do things that no one else ever did. Even most of his godbrothers could not fathom his greatness. Therefore, they applied ordinary standards to him, but such criteria were not really appropriate—because he was so inconceivably empowered. (At the same time, Srila Prabhupada said he didn’t want ISKCON to become a personality cult. He was teaching a science, and he wanted us to know the science and to follow it.) So, we have to appreciate Srila Prabhupada’s greatness. Personally, I feel that whatever I could ever want in Krsna consciousness I can get from Srila Prabhupada. I don’t feel I have to go anywhere else to get it. I don’t feel there is anything lacking in what Srila Prabhupada has given us. Sometimes Krsna would massage the lotus feet of Balarama, and sometimes Balarama would massage Krsna’s lotus feet. So, sometimes Krsna would be a superior, sometimes an equal or friend, and sometimes a junior. In every position, we are meant to serve, and all such service is absolute. In one letter, Srila Prabhupada wrote to a disciple: “The practice of serving one’s godbrothers is very good. The spiritual master is never without his followers, so to serve the spiritual master means also to serve his disciples. When you serve the king, you must also serve his ministers, his secretaries, and all who serve him. And the king may be more pleased if we serve his servants than if we serve him personally. So, the spiritual master is not alone. He is always with his entourage. We are not impersonalists. We want to serve every part of the whole, just as one takes care of the hat as well as the shoes. Both are equally important for the upkeep of the body.†One of my godbrothers once remarked that we want Srila Prabhupada in the center, and the ritviks want Srila Prabhupada in the center, but the difference is that they want Srila Prabhupada without associates, while we want Srila Prabhupada with associates. That was actually Srila Prabhupada’s mood, and that’s the difference between a neophyte devotee and a more advanced devotee. The neophyte devotee knows only Krsna, and only his or her guru. A more advanced devotee can recognize other devotees and appreciate their relationship with Krsna and guru, and she or he wants to serve them, too. Actually, it is inconceivable: inconceivable oneness and difference. The sun and the sunrays are the same, yet at the same time they are not the same. Still, they comprise one complete whole. Therefore, Krsna with His devotees is one complete whole, and serving Krsna without serving His devotees is not complete. Similarly, Srila Prabhupada with his devotees is one complete whole, and just serving Srila Prabhupada without serving his devotees won’t please Srila Prabhupada as completely as serving him with his other servants. So fighting for supremacy—philosophical supremacy, political supremacy—is not really the mood we want or need. But there are others who also wanted to speak. They may add more. Murari Caitanya: [inaudible] Giriraj Swami: When Murari Prabhu began his question, I thought of the first time when Tamal Krishna Goswami and Brahmananda Prabhu visited Boston. They were legends in their own time. Brahmananda said something that really struck me. It was so simple. He said, “Everyone wants love. So if we just give each other the love we want, then everyone will be satisfied.†Also, I feel we need to hear and chant about Krsna more, because just sitting and chanting the Hare Krsna maha-mantra opens the heart. So many problems go away just by chanting. In 1977, Srila Prabhupada established the program that on Sundays in Juhu we would simply chant kirtana in the temple all day, from nine in the morning until nine at night. I was the temple president, and we had problems (there are always problems in the material world), but I remember that by Thursday I would hardly deal with them, because I knew that on Sunday I would get all the answers in the kirtana. And we always did. Just sitting and chanting, I got so many answers. The same thing happened during pada-yatra. When I had visa difficulties and couldn’t go to India, we did pada-yatra in Mauritius, from Radhastami in 1984 to Gaura Purnima in 1986, and it was just the same: with my mind and intelligence I couldn’t figure out the answers to many problems, but simply by chanting for hours—walking and chanting—so many answers came to me. So in one sense, ISKCON is a vehicle to carry Krsna consciousness, but the actual medium is hearing and chanting and remembering Krsna. Devotee: [inaudible] Giriraj Swami: Ista-gosthi: ista means “desirable,†and gosthi means “association.†So that’s the meaning. We should get together and talk about Krsna and Krsna’s service. I didn’t mean to suggest that because we chant together we don’t have to talk to each other. Rather, I meant that chanting together can create a nice mood within ourselves and among ourselves so that when we do talk we will be more spiritual and congenial. Srila Prabhupada would sometimes discuss even the most practical matters for hours. For example, once, Gargamuni imported some Mercedes vans into India for traveling sankirtana, but the Indian government then was very strict: either one had to pay a huge duty to bring a vehicle into the country, or one had to take it out within six months and then keep it out for at least another six months. So, Gargamuni had imported these vans, and the time was coming to take them out; otherwise he would have to pay the duty, 220% of the original cost. So it was a big topic. Gargamuni asked Srila Prabhupada, “What should I do with the vans? Should I take them to Nepal and preach there for six months and bring them back, or should I take them back to Europe?†Srila Prabhupada spent literally hours with him. There were so many alternatives and so many pros and cons. Many times with the Juhu project, too, Srila Prabhupada would stay up until late at night just discussing with us, trying to figure out what to do. So it is impersonal to think, “Oh, I just want to chant the holy name. I don’t want to have anything to do with this world. I don’t want to talk or do anything; I just want to merge into Brahman.†I do not know how many hours Srila Prabhupada spent trying to help devotees find solutions to their problems. He was really with us. But sometimes he would also tell us not to bother him too much. I remember once we overdid it. We were going to him with any practical or managerial question we had, and finally, after so generously giving himself and his time to us, he quipped, “The guru is not a question-answering machine.†Then he said, “So-and-so should become the vice-president, and no more arguments. Now I have to translate my books.†But yes, we need to discuss. In any relationship we have to be able to discuss. Damodar Pandit: [inaudible] Giriraj Swami: Thank you for that moving description. I went through a personal upheaval recently too. And afterwards, while looking through the Bhagavad-gita, I happened to come to the verse, api cet su-duracaro bhajante mam ananya-bhak sadhur eva sa mantavyah: “Even if one commits the most abominable action, if he is engaged in devotional service he is to be considered saintly because he is properly situated in his determination.†“Properly situated†means engaged in devotional service—even if one commits the most abominable action. I was reading the Bhagavad-gita along with the book called Surrender Unto Me, written by Bhurijana Prabhu. Bhurijana Prabhu includes some commentaries by previous acaryas, and, in one place, Srila Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura rewords the discussion between Krsna and Arjuna. Where Krsna says, “Declare it boldly My devotee never perishes,†Srila Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura paraphrases, “O Kaunteya, declare it with drums and cymbals that My devotee will never perish.†Then Sri Visvanatha introduces a hypothetical questioner. When Krsna says that a devotee who commits even a most abominable action “is still considered saintly,†this questioner raises the objection, “Yes, one may be considered saintly to the extent that one is engaged in pure devotional service,†to which Lord Krsna replies, “No. Even if he is not cent percent engaged, still he is to be considered saintly.†Then the hypothetical questioner asks, “But what if the devotee fails to give up his bad behavior throughout his whole life?†Krsna replies, “I, Krsna, am the Supreme Lord, and even if my devotee fails, he will never perish. On the contrary, he is sure to become successful.†Now when I read that (and I was feeling really fallen at the time), I had a realization similar to what you just described. (I guess what I experienced was the extreme of what you did, because I had just gone through open-heart surgery, and I was feeling, “What a failure I am! I can’t even carry out the most basic function of keeping body and soul together. What a complete failure I am!â€) But then, when I read this strong and merciful affirmation, I realized that in Krsna’s eyes, by the grace of the acaryas, I nevertheless am considered a devotee. The other realization that came then was that, although I am a devotee, I am also an individual. There is no stereotype of what a devotee should be. As no two individuals are the same, so no two devotees are the same. And the fact that I am not exactly the same as someone else who is a greater devotee doesn’t mean I am not a devotee. My point of view as a devotee has its own validity, because somehow or other I am a devotee—even though not as powerful or successful or learned as some other devotee may be. So I think what you say is true: we have to accept our own individuality, and then we can accept the individuality of others. Otherwise, if we try to measure ourselves against some artificial standard or some impossible standard and we don’t accept our own individuality, then we’ll also measure others against the same artificial standard and we’ll see that we’re failing, they’re failing, everyone is failing, and the whole process will become very depressing. Thank you very much. All glories to Srila Prabhupada! Sri Balarama Prabhu ki jaya!
Posted on: Wed, 21 Aug 2013 03:53:12 +0000
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