Ocean of Nectar: Introduction And Welcome | His Holiness Bhakti Charu Swami Archives

1. INTRODUCTION & WELCOME

Guru Maharaja had each devotee introduce themselves by saying their name and from where they came. Devotees came from Johannesburg, Pretoria, Durban, Cape Town, London, Netherlands, New Jersey and USA.

The programme time sessions were discussed. Three days how much can I cover in three days of Mahaprabhu’s pastimes? Use morning sessions also for retreat. The Topic is Chaitanya Mahaprabhu’s pastimes. All three classes let’s do Mahaprabhu’s pastimes instead of Bhagavatam class. Did you all come to the retreat to have an excursion, holiday, a fun time or serious involvement to delve into Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu’s pastimes? How many of you really want to delve into Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu’s pastimes? Very good. Thank you.

Listen very very attentively

2. THREE STATUES

Once I heard a story which is actually very informative and educational. In Ujjain, there was a very famous king called Vikrama Aditya and, in his court, he had a very famous poet, Kalidas. Although it was thousands of years ago but he is recognised as one of the greatest poets of the world and he was also very intelligent. One day, a person came with three small statues made of gold, they looked absolutely identical and he asked the King to determine the values of those three. He pointed out although they are made of the same amount of gold, carved in the same way by the same artist but their values are different. The king could not make out so he asked his ministers and they also told him that they could not figure out what’s the difference. Like the amount of gold is the same, it looks the same and everything seemed absolutely identical. When the King asked Kalidas, Kalidas took a copper wire and he passed the wire through the ear of one of the statues it went in from one ear and came out through the other ear.

He took the next one and the wire went in but didn’t come out. The third one the wire went straight into the heart. He said the first one at most its value would be the weight of the gold. The other one’s value is much more than the value of the weight of the gold. The third one is priceless. He explained that there are three types of people, one hears with one ear and it goes out the other, it does not have any value useless. The second one retains what he hears, he has more value. The third one whatever he hears he takes it to his heart and that person’s value is priceless. Now to which category would you’ll like to belong? How many would like to belong to the first category? I know all will say they want to be at the third category but I will see in the next three days through your performance to which category you belong.

3. SRILA PRABHUPADA'S APPRECIATION

In that respect you also remember what Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Saraswati Thakur said about Srila Prabhupada. He noticed that Srila Prabhupada was very keen to hear and he considered him at that time to be very special. They were in a parikrama and people were just going out sightseeing even in the evening when he was giving class people were going out to the different temples in Vrindavan and so forth but Srila Prabhupada was just sitting there listening to his purport. That is why we see although Srila Prabhupada had only maximum four encounters with his spiritual master, he turned out to be the best of the disciples. Why? Because whatever he heard from him, he took it to his heart. How do we see that? Prabhupada’s life demonstrated that. Whatever his spiritual master told him that became the main objective of his existence.

4. “I PERSONALLY TAUGHT YOU, AND HOW COULD YOU FORGET?”

Especially the spiritual topics, when we hear it is very important that we remember, we retain. Do you’ll remember when Srila Prabhupada chastised me when I didn’t put chilli? Prabhupada thought that I forgot how to make that and Prabhupada chastised me for two days, whenever I went in front of him. “I personally taught you and how did you forget?” Prabhupada could not tolerate that he personally taught and then of course when I told Prabhupada I didn’t actually forget but deliberately didn’t put so much chilli because Prabhupada’s stomach was not very good that time. Prabhupada then told me why didn’t you tell me? Then Prabhupada told me when you put a lot of ghee you must put a lot of chilli. Cooks remember. I notice they put lots of chilli but no ghee that is also not good. Today I was taking Prasad and I chastised why you have to put so much chilli. I don’t know why people put so much chilli in the Prasad, burning the tongue, burning the palette, burning the stomach if that is the source of enjoyment? You’ll notice when you put a lot of ghee with a lot of chilli you don’t feel the heat of the chilli. That is what Prabhupada said when you put a lot of ghee you must put a lot of chilli because they counteract each other. Ghee is hot and chilli is hot but together they become neutralised. Chilli is not so hot when you do this. Anyway, the point I was trying to make is what Prabhupada was saying, “I personally taught you, and how could you forget?” That’s one thing I learnt when Prabhupada teaches something we must remember, we should never forget.

5. WHY PRABHUPADA CLASSIFIED THEM IN THIS ORDER?

Prabhupada mentioned that Bhagavad Gita is the graduation course, Srimad Bhagavatam is the Masters course and the Sri Chaitanya-Charitamrita is the PhD course. What does it mean actually? Why Prabhupada classified them in this order? Srila Prabhupada did that because through Bhagavad Gita we get to know who Krishna is. We get to recognise Krishna; Krishna is the Supreme Personality. What can be a better source than this to recognise the Supreme Personality when He, Himself is speaking about Himself. Like when somebody asks you to speak about yourself, how do you feel? Do you feel like going full swing and blow your trumpet to the max? No gentleman would like to do that. But somebody who loves you when he speaks about you then what happens? He not only goes full swing; he really flies to an unlimited extent so that is what Srimad Bhagavatam is. Bhagavatam is spoken but Krishna’s devotees therefore Srimad Bhagavatam is more eloquent about defining and describing Krishna’s identity and activities.

Srimad Bhagavatam is describing Krishna’s leelas, His pastimes, in the tenth canto which is actually the ultimate purpose of the Bhagavatam but that also we should not jump to the tenth canto; we should go step by step from first to tenth gradually. It is something like seeing the personality from his lotus feet. First two cantos are described as Krishna’s lotus feet, third and fourth canto is the thighs, fifth canto, His belly, Krishna’s chest is the sixth canto; seventh and eighth, Krishna’s two arms then Krishna’s neck, ninth canto; tenth canto is Krishna’s smiling lotus face, eleventh canto His forehead and twelfth canto His head. This is how the perception of the Supreme Personality of Godhead is complete. Srimad Bhagavatam is identical to Krishna, non-different to Krishna. Bhagavatam is the entire body of Krishna, therefore, understanding Krishna’s identity as the Supreme Personality of Godhead is so important that’s why in Bhagavad Gita, we get to know who Krishna is and the ultimate culmination is surrender to Krishna. When we recognise Krishna to be the Supreme Personality of Godhead, then we become eligible to enter into Srimad Bhagavatam. After graduation now we are getting admitted to the Master degree course.

6. WE WON’T BE ABLE TO UNDERSTAND

After completing the Master’s degree comes Sri Chaitanya-Charitamrita, after reading Srimad Bhagavatam. We can very easily recognise the fact that if we do not recognise who Krishna is and enter into Srimad Bhagavatam we won’t be able to understand and if we go straight to the tenth canto then what will happen? Without recognising that Krishna is the Supreme Personality if Godhead, if we go into Krishna’s intimate pastimes then what will happen? We will end in total misunderstanding thinking that Krishna is an ordinary person and Krishna’s dealings with the Gopis is like an ordinary person’s unethical, clandestine immoral activities. Somebody who is having affairs with women who he is not married to. He is having an affair with women who are married to others. Even in India many people think that Krishna’s activities with the Gopis are not proper. Why Krishna did that, it’s not right. Yes, it will appear to be unethical and immoral only when you do not recognise who Krishna is. The same question one lady asked me some time ago and was pointing out why Krishna did that, it was not right. My response to that was when a husband dances with his wife is there anything wrong, she admitted nothing is wrong. Why not?

7. WE HAVE TO RECOGNISE KRISHNA’S POSITION

The answer I provided because morally it is understood that the wife is the property of the husband. The husband owns the wife therefore when he dances with his wife there is nothing wrong in it. When we recognise that Krishna is the proprietor of everyone, everyone is Krishna’s property then doesn’t it include the Gopis? Isn’t the Gopis Krishna’s property? Somebody may say no they are their husband’s property. My response to that will be who does the husbands belong to? Aren’t the husbands Krishna’s property? So, if Krishna is the husband of the husbands can’t Krishna dance with their wives? So that is how we have to recognise Krishna’s position before we enter into the tenth canto of Srimad Bhagavatam and in order to understand that we have to recognise Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu.

Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu is Krishna Himself who is telling us who is Krishna. See the different stages of development, in Bhagavad Gita, Krishna is telling about Himself and Krishna is telling us to become a devotee. In Srimad Bhagavatam, Krishna’s devotees are describing the activities of Krishna and Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, Krishna Himself is acting like a devotee in order to teach us how to become a devotee and that is the purpose of Chaitanya Mahaprabhu’s pastimes. Krishna Himself came to teach us how to become Krishna Conscious and the pastimes of Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu is so wonderful. Although He is hiding His identity it is becoming clear when you probe into Chaitanya Mahaprabhu’s pastimes, it becomes clear that Chaitanya Mahaprabhu is none other than Krishna Himself that is what we recognise as devotees of Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu. Mahaprabhu is hiding His identity; He is refusing to Sri Chaitanya-Charitamrita that He is the Supreme Personality of Godhead but His devotees are recognising Him as the Supreme Personality of Godhead.

8. IT IS WITH LOVE…

Here we also have to recognise one factor that the way to understand the quality to recognise the Supreme Personality of Godhead is LOVE. It is with love only that we can recognise Him. Do you remember that verse premäïjana-cchurita-bhaktivilocanena when the eyes become anointed with love and with that vision when one sees Krishna then he recognises. In Bhagavad Gita Krishna is telling Arjuna, bhakto ’si me sakhä ceti rahasyaà, you are my devotee and you are my friend therefore you are qualified to recognise me. Indirectly that is what Krishna is telling him. Those who are not devotees of Chaitanya Mahaprabhu and Krishna they will never be able to recognise Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu but those who are devotees of Krishna, they will recognise Him immediately that He is Krishna Himself. So that is what we will discuss through these pastimes for the next few days. Thank you very much. All glories to Srila Prabhupada!

9. GURU MAHARAJA’S INSTRUCTIONS

Listen very very attentively;
Especially the spiritual topics, when we hear it is very important that we remember, we retain;
Prabhupada told me when you put a lot of ghee you must put a lot of chilli. Cooks remember;
It is with love only that we can recognise Him.

(Compiled and Edited by Hemavati Radhika Devi Dasi)

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