CONTENTS:
- WHAT IS ABHAY CHARAN AND HOW WE DID IT? (PART - 2)
- SRILA PRABHUPADA'S APPRECIATION
- GURU MAHARAJA’S INSTRUCTIONS
1. WHAT IS ABHAY CHARAN AND HOW WE DID IT? (PART - 2)
PRABHUPADA WAS HER REAL FATHER
Some of those young girls and boys did not have any place to stay so they decided to move in and Srila Prabhupada allowed them to stay. At night they would sleep in the storefront. Then one girl also wanted to move in Janet. She persuaded Srila Prabhupada and Prabhupada said girls should stay at home because they need to be protected and she came with counter arguments. She was completely bent on staying in the ashram and finally Srila Prabhupada had to let her move in and Prabhupada allowed her to stay. That apartment had one living room and two room and Prabhupada let her stay in the other room. She convinced Srila Prabhupada by saying she doesn’t have any place to go. Srila Prabhupada told her to stay at her father’s house but she convinced Prabhupada that Prabhupada was her real father. This is how ISKCON movement actually started in the early days Srila Prabhupada used to have a lot of sweet exchanges with these young devotees. They used to like sweets so Prabhupada used to make Gulab Jamuns and keep a jar in the passage and whenever somebody wanted, they would take one. They started a slogan they used to call Gulab Jamuns ISKCON bullets so the slogan was a bullet a day keeps Maya away.
“FOR THE SAKE OF SERVICE, YOU CAN EVEN STAND ON MY HEAD.”
One day Janet who later became Jadurani dasi, she was an artist and she painted something and she was about to hang it on the wall while Prabhupada was translating and dictating in his Dictaphone and while she was trying to drive a nail into the wall her feet touched Srila Prabhupada and she felt so embarrassed and profusely begged apology to Srila Prabhupada. Prabhupada said, “For the sake of service you can even stand on my head.” That is how liberal and broad minded Prabhupada was. When you consider how Srila Prabhupada conquered the world and hearts of so many devotees, we often discuss about that and we often come to the conclusion that Srila Prabhupada did that with his love. We notice Srila Prabhupada actually didn’t use the expression love with his devotees or dealings with others. Rather his teachings where love is exclusively for Krishna but his attitude and dealings very clearly indicated how much he loved everyone and that’s why everyone who came into contact with Srila Prabhupada became so attracted to him.
WHO IS THE REAL OBJECT OF OUR LOVE?
To go back to the point this is how the Sunday love feast started and this program has become a common feature in every ISKCON temple in the world. On Sundays in every temple, you have this love feast and this feast was designed to distribute Krishna’s love to everyone. Everyone wants to be loved and everyone wants to love somebody. Srila Prabhupada came to teach us who to love and how to be loved. The purpose of this gathering was simply designed for that. Who to love. We want to love somebody; our hearts are filled with love and we want to offer that love to someone but we do not know who that person is. Who is the real object of our love? Srila Prabhupada came and taught us that Krishna is that object of love. What Srila Prabhupada gave is unique, incomparable and it is the most wonderful gift that a living entity can ever receive and it is abundantly being distributed by Srila Prabhupada by the divine arrangement that he has made and if we can receive that gift and properly utilize that gift, we can become successful. It is not just some sentimental thing it is based on perfect knowledge and wisdom.
SRILA PRABHUPADA MADE US AWARE THAT WE ARE NOT OUR BODIES WE ARE SPIRIT SOULS
As I mentioned earlier the very basic teaching of Srila Prabhupada is we are not our body we are spirit souls. If we can properly implement this one understanding I personally feel that 90% of problems of the world will be solved. If people all over the world can factually recognize that they are not their bodies but they are spirit soul then all of the problems of this world will be solved because all the problems are based on this one misconception: identification with the body. Srila Prabhupada came and in a very simple way Srila Prabhupada made us aware that we are not our bodies we are spirit souls. If we consider death can come at any time and at any moment, we have to leave the body we do not know when death will come. It has been described in our scriptures that at every moment there is danger at every step and what is that danger? Danger of dying and it may come at any moment so this is how uncertain our existence is in the material world.
When we leave our bodies then what will happen to all the money we have in the bank? Can you claim after death? Others will come and claim but we will be excluded from that. In the next life can we come and claim in my previous life I had so much in such and such account. Will the bank recognize the claim? Now why put so much emphasis and importance in making money and accumulating it. Most of the crimes today are illegal deals that are going on for the sake of money. Everything practically is going on for the sake of money. Money has become the center of everything. Previously the consideration was happiness. Happiness was the base for which people did things the emphasis was not so much on money. The world today is the world of Vaisyas. The world has different phases.
WHEN THE WORLD WAS DOMINATED BY BRAHMANAS
When the world was dominated by Brahmanas then spiritual and intellectual assets are considered to be the highest and that is why we find a king would give his daughter to a saintly person who lives in the forest and doesn’t even have a place to stay. Example: Svayambhuva Manu gave his daughter Devahuti to Kardama Muni. Devahuti was a princess and not only a princess but her father was the ruler of the entire earth planet and she was offered to Kardama Muni who didn’t have a place to stay he was living in the forest. Brahma instructed Manu to give his daughter to Kardama Muni and he just abided by that instruction. Why he offered his daughter to the Muni living in the forest? It is because he recognized that Brahmanical, intellectual and spiritual power is the most important thing more powerful than all the opulence of this world and more desirable and effective than all the wealth of this world.
THEN CAME THE KSHATRIYAS’ POWER
Then came the Kshatriyas’ power. When Kshatriyas became powerful what happened? Might is right. If you have strength then you can do anything and everybody wanted the strength especially the Kshatriyas, they wanted to have the power and rule. They did not think of buying things at that time, that’s the difference between a Kshatriya and a Vaishya. Vaishya wants to have everything by exchange of money but a Kshatriya wants to have whatever he wants by strength. Example: If a Kshatriya likes a kingdom, then he will send a proposal to the king, “Look I like your kingdom either you give it to me or get ready for a battle.” They would challenge the king to battle and fight and whoever won would keep the kingdom. Not only kingdom a Kshatriya likes a beautiful princess what would he do? He would go and claim her and if anybody wants, he can try to stop him that is called svayamvar and there used to be terrible fights like one Kshatriya would fight an entire army and that’s what happened.
Like Bhisma claimed Amba, Ambika and Ambalika, the three daughters of Kashiraj were extremely beautiful princesses, they were actually the incarnations of Durga so you can well imagine how beautiful they were. They were about to select their own husbands. Kings and princes were invited and, in that assembly, she would choose her husband. Bhisma decided that these three girls are very suitable candidates for his brother Vichitravirya so he went there to that assembly in the kingdom of Kashiraj and introduced himself, “I am Bhisma, son of Shantanu and Vichitravirya is about to ascend the throne, he needs to get married and I selected these three girls for his brides so I am taking them.” He took them by the hands and pulled them onto the chariot. All the Kings and princes surrounded Bhisma and, in a battle, Bhisma fought alone and defeated them all.
Not only Bhisma it happened to Krishna and also Arjuna. It was Krishna’s divine arrangement Arjuna kidnapped and stole Subadra and the army was sent. Subadra was driving the chariot. She was also a Kshatriya princess and was an expert horseman. She was driving the chariot and Arjuna was fighting. A terrible situation came when Balarama got this news and He was very upset and said, “How dare he take my sister without my permission?” You can well imagine When Balarama got angry the whole universe is in trouble but Krishna pacified Balarama and that is how Arjuna got away with the act of stealing Subadra. Krishna did that when he stole Rukmini. In this way when the Kshatriyas rule the world then power becomes the most important consideration.
WHEN VAISHYAS AND SHUDRAS RULE THEN
When Vaishyas rule the world then what happens? Then money becomes the most important criteria. We can see what the situation of the world today is. It is actually being dominated by the Vasihyas and now it is being dominated by the Shudras and this power is not just money power but power of the masses political power. In the world of demon crazy the political is the most powerful. If you have political power, you can do anything. In this way you can see the power of labour unions and the power of all kinds of things and that power is more powerful than money.
PRABHUPADA CAME TO GIVE PURE LOVE OF GODHEAD AND PURE SPIRITUAL POWER
Anyway, this is how the world goes through different phases. The thing is that the most effective wealth is spiritual wealth. When one has spiritual wealth, he has everything. When one has spiritual wealth the kings and monarchs will fall at his feet. He doesn’t have to become powerful himself. If one has spiritual wealth the whole world will come and fall at his feet. Prabhupada came to distribute that spiritual wealth. This Brahman, Kshatriya, Vaishya and Shudra are all varna ashram considerations but Prabhupada didn’t come here to establish varna ashram, Prabhupada came to give pure love of Godhead and pure spiritual power.
2. SRILA PRABHUPADA'S APPRECIATION
This is how ISKCON movement actually started in the early days Srila Prabhupada used to have a lot of sweet exchanges with these young devotees. When you consider how Srila Prabhupada conquered the world and hearts of so many devotees, we often discuss about that and we often come to the conclusion that Srila Prabhupada did that with his love. Srila Prabhupada came to teach us who to love and how to be loved. Srila Prabhupada came and taught us that Krishna is that object of love. What Srila Prabhupada gave is unique, incomparable and it is the most wonderful gift that a living entity can ever receive and it is abundantly being distributed by Srila Prabhupada by the divine arrangement that he has made and if we can receive that gift and properly utilize that gift, we can become successful. It is not just some sentimental thing it is based on perfect knowledge and wisdom. Prabhupada came to distribute that spiritual wealth. This Brahman, Kshatriya, Vaishya and Shudra are all varna ashram considerations but Prabhupada didn’t come here to establish varna ashram, Prabhupada came to give pure love of Godhead and pure spiritual power.
3. GURU MAHARAJA’S INSTRUCTIONS
- The thing is that the most effective wealth is spiritual wealth. When one has spiritual wealth, he has everything.
(The content of this E-magazine is based on a lecture given by His Holiness Bhakti Charu Swami entitled “What is Abhay Charan and how we did it”)
(Compiled and Edited by Hemavati Radhika Devi Dasi)