Srimad Bhagavatam 09.10.50
Ram Rajya
Iskcon Noida
30-01-2024

Hare Krishna. Thank you for saying Hare Krishna and also for your coming here. There is that hope that NIDC, temple presidents and managers may be present here. I see some are here, and some are on their way and I am thinking that they will be here and you all will be here, and you will have to stay. Thinking like this I have come back from Ayodhya.

(Shouts of Haribol)! I have come from the installation ceremony of Ram lala ki jai! This is why I have chosen the fiftieth verse from the tenth chapter of canto nine, so let’s see what happens. Most definitely there will be mention of lord Rama and his reign over the world. The leaders of our Iskcon are also kings in one way.

They are warriors in their form as managers and they have to manage their zones and their own temples and this verse I have chosen for them as it will give them inspiration in their duties and so lets see what happens. There is a concept if time as there always is and lord Rama is called the lord of controlled mannerisms, Maryada Purushottam, and time also has its limits, and needs to be managed.

Keeping this in mind, we will start the recitation of the eternal Srimad Bhagavatam. Do you have the verse? Anyway,

agrahid asanam bhratra
pranipatya prasaditah
prajah sva dharma nirata
varnasrama gunanvitah
jugopa pitrvad ramo
menire pitaram ca tam
(Srimad Bhagavatam 09.10.50)

Translation
Being pleased by the full surrender and submission of Lord Bharata, Lord Ramacandra then accepted the throne of the state. He cared for the citizens exactly like a father, and the citizens, being fully engaged in their occupational duties of varna and asrama, accepted Him as their father.

People love Ram rajya, the state run by lord Ram, do they or not? Prabhupada says so but I just wanted to confirm. and even today politicians sometimes form a party called Rama-rajya, but unfortunately they have no obedience to Lord Rama. They want the kingdom of God but without God. This is because people are thinking, ‘I am God, I am the enjoyer.’ Such an aspiration, however, is never to be fulfilled. Good government can exist when the relationship between the citizens (cut).

Hari Hari. Should I speak or not speak about Ram Rajya, the kingdom of lord Rama? Rama and his citizens are called his people and what was the relationship between the people and lord Rama? As soon as you say his people, we can understand what the relationship is. Lord Rama would look after them and see to their every need. This being said, the lord would do this in the same way in which a father looks after his sons and own family members.

Actually they are because lord Rama is Aham bija pradah pita, he is the supreme lord and father of all living entities.

sarva yonisu kaunteya
murtayah sambhavanti yah
tasam brahma mahad yonir
aham bija pradah pita
(Bhagavad gita 14.4)

Translation
It should be understood that all species of life, O son of Kunti, are made possible by birth in this material nature, and that I am the seed-giving father.

Lord Krishna said this in Bhagavad gita but who is Krishna? He is the same Rama. In Treta Yuga Rama and Lakshman became Krishna and Balaram in Dwapara Yuga. And in Kali Yuga they are the same Gaura Nitai ki jai! We must understand these principles and knowledge of the supreme lord which most people do not understand. Lord Rama is certainly the supreme lord and alongside this he has become a King and a warrior.

Amongst all other warriors and Kings he is leading in an exemplary way for not only the Kings of his time but for the future warriors. Their ideal is Jai Sri Rama! How must one look after his citizens? A King should understand them to be his own people, part of his family. This intimate relationship is full of love also and so Hari Hari.

Prabhupada has written here and we have also read that people like the idea and arrangement of Rama Rajya. Lord Rama looked after and ruled his kingdom for around one million years and so when people think of their country and it’s leaders, what do they say? If there should be a King, he should be like Lord Rama. And if there should be a country, it should be like Rama’s kingdom.

So I would say that even in Iskcon what sort of management should there be? Like Lord Rama. You can say Rama Rajya, or Krishna Rajya or Chaitanya Rajya. The King of Kali Yuga or the form of lord Rama or Krishna came as lord Chaitanya Mahaprabhu in Kali Yuga. This current time span belongs to whkm? Sri Krishna Chaitanya Mahaprabhu ki jai!

In this dark age we will not only be able to have Rama Rajya, the kingdom of God but also there will be much more in this Chaitanya Rajya. Hari Hari. In Rama Rajya there is some questioning of what occurred and during the period of lord Rama there were many Yagna’s taking place and therefore dharma samsthapanarthaya -Rama descended,

paritranaya sadhunam vinashaya cha dushkritam
dharma samsthapanarthaya sambhavami yuge yuge
(Bhagavad gita 4.8)

Translation
To protect the righteous, to annihilate the wicked, and to reestablish the principles of dharma I appear on this earth, age after age.

The Lord descends to protect righteousness and this Lord Rama and Lakshman have performed this work. Who had come to get them? Vishvamitra had come saying, ‘give me Rama and Lakshman.’ Their father answered, ‘what are you saying? You want to take my Rama and Lakshman?!’

Rama and Lakshman were both the same age because they were both born on the same day. So it isn’t just Rama Navami, it is also Lakshman Navami and Bharata Navami and also Shatrughna Navami. We do not understand this because we do not realise that Lakshman is also the supreme lord, as is Bharata and Shatrughna. They are Vishnu Tattva and this is known only to the Gaudiya Vaishnava’s.

Some others know also and they should know this. Because of Srila Prabhupada we are also in knowledge of this principle. ‘So Dasharatha was shocked and he spoke. ‘My boys are only un shodhasa varshia.’ What does this mean, how old are they? Shodasha means sixteen and un means one. So they were one less than sixteen and so Dasharatha said ‘my sons are only fifteen years old.’

So this is not the time for Katha and so Rama and Lakshman established Yagnas and protected the principle of performing Yagna. The king of Kali will have to protect the yagna of that age and this is also a Yagna. Krishna has said yajnanam japa yagno ’smi

maharshinam bhrigur aham giram asmyekam aksharam
yajnanam japa yajno ’smi sthavaranam himalaya?
(Bhagavad gita 10.25)

Translation
I am Bhrigu amongst the great seers and the transcendental Om amongst sounds. Amongst chants know Me to be the repetition of the Holy Name; amongst immovable things I am the Himalayas.

Krishna says in the 10th chapter of the Bhagavad Gita. What is Japa? It is the best of Yagnas and Krishna says that of all Yagnas, I am the Yagna, the sacrifice of chanting Japa. There are many types of sacrifices and so Krishna says, ‘out of all these, I am the sacrifice of chanting Japa.’

‘yajnanam japa yajno ’smi,’ the lord says. And of all sacrifices, the sacrifice of chanting Japa and that too, the chanting of

Hare Krishna Hare Krishna
Krishna Krishna Hare Hare
Hare Rama Hare Rama
Rama Rama Hare Hare

This is the best of all Japa. This is also Yagna and it is called Sankirtan Yagna. So the Kings of Kali Yuga including the Kings of Iskcon who are called the Governing Body commissioners are the Parampara, the managing successors, the GBC’s, the zonal secretaries and regional secateurs and the temple presidents and managers, they are all part of the disciplic succession. Evam Parampara-praptam.

evam parampara praptam imam rajarshayo vidhu
sa kaleneha mahata yogo nashtah parantapa
(Bhagavad Gita 4.2)

Translation
This supreme science was thus received through the chain of disciplic succession, and the saintly kings understood it in that way. But in course of time the succession was broken, and therefore the science as it is appears to be lost.

All these Kings come in the succession and they are all administrators and of all these administrators, Sri Rama established religious principles that were relevant in his time, in that yuga.

krte yad dhyayato visnum
tretayam yajato makhaih
dvapare paricaryayam
kalau tad dhari kirtanat
(Srimad Bhagavatam 12.3.52)

Translation

Whatever result was obtained in Satya yuga by meditating on Visnu, in Treta yuga by performing sacrifices, and in Dv?para-yuga by serving the Lord’s lotus feet can be obtained in Kali yuga simply by chanting the Hare Krsna maha mantra

As there are four Yugas, ages of time, accordingly the paths of religion are laid out in terms of the time and circumstance of that particular Yuga. There are different practices for each age and therefore Lord Rama established the religious practice of the Yuga he had appeared in and he protected those practices also by making sure everyone was living in accordance to the religious rituals of that age.

The Kings in Kali Yuga, just like there are kings in Iskcon, who are administrators, they need to establish the religious principles of this age. What is that? The Sankirtan dharma, the chanting of the holy names. Kali kalera dharma krsna nama sankirtana

kali kalera dharma krsna nama sankirtana
krsna sakti vina nahe tara pravartana
(Chaitanya Charitamrita Antya 7.11)

Translation
The fundamental religious system in the Age of Kali is the chanting of the holy name of Krsna. Unless empowered by Krsna, one cannot propagate the sankirtana movement

Hari Hari. There is a purport to this verse but if I read the whole purport now then time will run out and that is why. This verse in question has been discussed and Lord Rama accepted the throne when he saw Bharata’s complete surrender unto him. Hari Hari. Here we see that Bharata was reigning the Kingdom in place of Lord Rama very well.

The astonishing thing is that he was not even eager or wanting to do this. He was not at all interested in having the seat, which seat? The seat which would give him power. Of course Bharata is Rama’s Bharata and therefore he was not power hungry. They had an argument, lord Rama and Bharata, ‘no I dont want to be King, you be the King, no,no you be the king.’

There is so much devotion and love is shown here between Rama and Bharata and this should be studied by us. We must learn from this encounter. Bharata becomes the citizen of Lord Rama and of course he is Rama’s younger brother anyway and he can also be counted as a citizen. Lord Rama love for Bharata and also Bharata’s love for Rama, sad vidham priti lak?a?am.

dadati pratigrhnati
guhyam akhyati prcchati
bhunkte bhojayate caiva
sad vidham priti laksanam
(Nectar of instruction 4)

Translation
Offering gifts in charity, accepting charitable gifts, revealing one’s mind in confidence, inquiring confidentially, accepting prasada and offering prasada are the six symptoms of love shared by one devotee and another

Srila Rupa Goswami Prabhupada has written about what sort of relationship there must be between Vaishnava’s. That is the relationship of love and attachment. One must establish this relationship of love and affection by following these six principles of giving gifts and receiving them and so on. Those who are the leaders in Iskcon, the administrators and temple presidents, they should also have this relationship with the temple congregation members.

Just like Rama had with Bharata and with everyone actually, the lord loved all his citizens like he did Bharata. ‘No you come back and you look after all the affairs of the kingdom.’ As Bharata spike like this, at the end Rama gave his slippers to Bharata. Bharata took the lord’s slippers considering them to be non different to Rama himself.

He installed these slippers and he was thinking ‘lord Rama is ruling through these slippers and Rama is the one sitting on the throne.’ In this way our administrators and temple managers should have the same feelings and understanding that Bharata had. They should feel Dasosmi, Dasosmi or Das anu Das, they are the servants and the servants of the servants of Srila Prabhupada.

our position actually gets higher this way. The more people we put above us the more higher our position gets. When you become a servant of the servant you have a high position. So when you are a servant of the servant if the servant then what happens? That is a even bigger position and so what must you do if you want a bigger position? You must become the servant of the servant of the servant of the servant of the servant.

This is amanina manadena. The congregation on the temple and the devotees should respect their authorities and what else should happen? What do the authorities need to do? They also need to act in a certain way towards the devotes and the congregation members. What is that? Amanina manadena, this is the instruction of Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu.

Bharata had said, ‘Prabhu Prabhu, oh my lord Rama, you will now say you will mit come back until the fourteen years are over, and although I am not happy I will agree to what you say. But you will have to come back before the time is over or at least on time. If you are even a moment late then you may as well not come because you will mot find me alive.

After the fourteen years were over, Rama left very swiftly. The lord had walked to Lanka but if he was to walk back then many more months would pass. Do you know why he went back on the flying chariot? The Lord was remembering his promise to Bharata, ‘i’ll be back on time or actually before time.’ That is why the Lord was hurrying on the flying chariot to reach back to Ayodhya.

At that time, the respect and welcome there was in place for lord Rama, Jai Sri Rama! That is the exact same welcome that happened just now on the 22nd January when lord Rama came back to Ayodhya! Mahatma Gandhi especially had this dream and he used to think that when Bharat, India would become independent, India, Bharat will establish Rama Rajya.

But seventy five years had passed and some years ago there was a movie that came to the cinemas and the name of the movie was Ravan Rajya. I know ow you would not have seen this movie, or maybe you did. Along with opening of Rama temple and the installation of Rama Lala in Ayodhya, you can say he is the King also, Modi Raja.

There is Rama Raja, and then there is Modi Raja and this King promised something he went on to fulfil. Along with the opening with the temple, the mood and exemplary acts of Rama Rajya have also been put there. Haribol! ‘Good days will come now.’ Do you remember those promises?

Maybe you don’t understand, but this is what Sir Modi used to say, he would assure us that good days will come. But good days can only come when there is the kingdom of lord Rama. Srila Prabhupada ki jai! When I was in Ayodhya in between all the ceremonies of the opening of Ram lala temple, I was seeing that all the leaders who were present there, including many saints, they were all dancing and singing the glories of Modi Raja, Kimg Modi.

They weee also speaking about the bright future of Bharat, India and about how they would make India the Viswaguru, the global teacher of the whole world. So all these talks were going on, and I was listening to all this, and at the same time, I was also thinking, ‘fifty years before this, Srila Prabhupada was the one who had started this Rama Rajya or Chaitanya Rajya.

According to the order of his spiritual master, Prabhupada had started building temples. Okay, because Ayodhya is the place of Lord Rama, they have built a temple there, but Srila Prabhupada had built a temple of lord Rama many years ago in Delhi. And England is such a big name, that England that ruled over so many places and countries, the British Raja.

In London, Srila Prabhupada installed lord Rama at Bhaktivedanta Manor, a huge property given to Prabhupada by George Harrison. We all know about the influence of America upon the world, and in that America, in Washington DC, Srila Prabhupada bought lord Rama there. (Shouts of Haribol)!

This is not all, and Modi was speaking something about the next thousand years to come and he was speaking about the great things he wants to achieve. You can call this his devotion to lord Rama, or you could call it, nationalism, a Hindu nationalist. So this is his vision for the next one thousand years, and he was speaking about great things he wants to do.

But Srila Prabhupada had a plan for the next ten years and that vision was Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu’s vision actually.

Prthivite ache yata nagaradi grama
sarvatra pracara haibe mora nama
(Chaitanya Bhagavat Antya 4.126)

Translation
In every town and village throughout the world, said Lord Caitanya, the chanting of My holy name will be heard.

And wherever the chanting of the holy names will reach, in that place people will join together to perform kirtan. There will be some Nama hatta, where people can come to chant and there will be Bhakti Vriksha’s, small temples where there will be structured sanga’s. Then one day what will happen?

Will, there not then be opening of a Temple in these places? Of course they will! Wherever the holy name reaches, people come together and then a temple is opened. So these ten thousand years, to come are called the golden period. This has been prophesied by the Sastra’s and Lord Chaitanya Mahaprabhu himself.

So whatever has been said, or prophesied will certainly come true. At that time, in ten thousand years, how many temples will there be? How many? There must be a limited number. So as many towns and villages there are in each country, that many temples there will be, and there will be congregation in all of the places.

I think we should clap now upon hearing this, and that is if you want to. So Srila Prabhupada has become Viswaguru, the guru of the whole world and books are the basis, Srila Prabhupada’s books are being distributed throughout the whole world. People come across the Hare Krishna Mahamantra and then they join Harinama and take Prashad.

It could be that someone came across one of Srila Prabhupada’s books, or they came to a festival like Rathayatra and in this way he becomes a devotee, or he is becoming a devotee. We already have millions all over the world, devotees of Rama, devotees of Krishna or lord Chaitanya, and in this way they are becoming Gaudiya Vaishnava’s.

Srila Prabhupada introduced the four regulative principles based upon the teachings of the Bhagavatam. ‘No meat eating, no intoxication, no illicit sex and no gambling.’ These are the principles of Iskcon and it’s beauty. People have become ready to follow these principles, and this is true even for people in China. Patran puspam phalam toyam, no
mutton-am chicken-am or biryani.

Patran puspam phalam toyam
yo me bhaktya prayacchati
tad aham bhakty upahrtam
asnami prayatatmanah
(Bhagavad Gita 9.26)

Translation
If one offers Me with love and devotion a leaf, a flower, a fruit or water, I will accept it.

Radha Govinda deva ki jai. And in this way

Om Sarve Bhavantu Sukhinah
Sarve Santu Niraamayaah
Sarve Bhadraanni Pashyantu
Maa Kashcid Duhkha Bhaag Bhavet
Om Shaantih Shaantih Shaantih
(Upanishads)

Translation:
Om, May All be Happy,
May All be Free from Illness.
May All See what is Auspicious,
May no one Suffer.
Om Peace, Peace, Peace

Rama was always making sure that everyone was happy and the same for Srila Prabhupada and all his followers. What is are goal? Sarve sukhina bhavantu, eveeyone should be happy. That is why Chaitanya Mahaprabhu’s movement is not limited to Hindus or India and that is why Srila Prabhupada named this movement the international Society of Krishna consciousness.

These are such important words, and thats why Prabhupada did not say international temples, no he said an international society. This means that as many people there are this earth and wherever they may be, for them this international society has been created. This has been down so that these people can become Krishna conscious, Rama conscious, or Chaitanya, conscious.

This society is also called Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam (the whole world is one family). What happened recently in India in the G20 summit? It was a G20 convention and what else could happen better than what Srila Prabhupada has done and what Iskcon is doing? In Iskcon the whole world is one family.

One world, one family. Therefore they say that you must walk the talk, that means that some people are talking big but Seila Prabhupada didn’t just talk, but he did what he proposed. In Mayapur festival which takes place, there are devotees from around the whole world from fifty, sixty or seventy countries. From how many countries do devotees gather?

Devotees come from more than seventy countries and when we all come together, we all stay like one family. It’s like one kitchen, one family. There is one kitchen only and some people are still just thinking to propose these things or they are just talking about it and they cannot do anything more than this. Apart from imagining these things, they cannot do anything more.

Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu ki jai! That Rama becomes even more merciful, and how could he be Rama if he was not merciful? So Rama was always merciful and Krishna Krishna

he krishna karuna-sindho dina-bandho jagat-pate
gopesa gopika-kanta radha-kanta namo ’stu te
(Sri Krishna Pranam)

O my dear Krishna, ocean of mercy, You are the friend of the distressed and the source of creation. You are the master of the cow herd men and the lover of the gopis, especially Radharani. I offer my respectful obeisances unto You.

So Rama and Krishna are very merciful but even more merciful than them is Sri Krishna Chaitanya Mahaprabhu ki jai! The people of this age were more fallen and so the lord had to descend as more magnanimous than other incarnations of the lord. Rama cannot do this because when he comes as Rama or as Krishna, the lord has to play a befitting role according to time and circumstance.

The role of lord Chaitanya is the most magnanimous because he comes to liberate the most fallen souls. I’ll just say this one last item and then i will stop. Mostly all people know lord Rama and they know Krishna also but although Chaitanya Mahaprabhu is that same Rama and he is the same Krishna, still people do not know him.

I was feeling that way, especially in recent times where the Ayodhya temple is opening and everyone is chanting ‘Rama Rama.’ Rama is known and called everywhere is Ayodhya and in Bharat but amongst all this lord Chaitanya is missing. He is the missing link and so it is our job to bring back that which is missing, which is lacking, we must bring Chaitanya Mahaprabhu as we are feeling his absence.

This is the job of Iskcon devotees, the administrators, managers and the governing body. It is the work of all of us and that is why Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu has said

yare dekha, tare kaha ‘krsna’-upadesa
amara ajnaya guru hana tara’ ei desa
(Chaitanya Charitamrita Madhya 7.128)

Translation
Instruct everyone to follow the orders of Lord Sri Krsna as they are given in the Bhagavad gita and Srimad Bh?gavatam. In this way become a spiritual master and try to liberate everyone in this land

So continue giving this message of lord Krishna to the whole world and become Guru’s in this way. If you cannot become Viswaguru then at least become the Guru’s of your household members. Become the Guru of your neighbourhood or your town and townspeople.

Try and make bigger this sphere of influence. In this way all the Iskcon devotees around the world should spread Chaitanya Mahaprabhu’s mossion. We must tell everyone who is Chaitanya Mahaprabhu and so on, so on. We must especially introduce the chanting of

Hare Krishna Hare Krishna
Krishna Krishna Hare Hare
Hare Rama Hare Rama
Rama Rama Hare Hare

As you do this, you can remember Srila Prabhupada and understand that you are indebted to him. Are we indebted to him or not? Who here understands that we are indebted to Srila Prabhupada? (Shouts of jai)! Srila Prabhupada was having a casual conversation once with some of his disciples. His disciples were telling Srila Prabhupada, ‘Prabhupada, we are indebted to you.’

Prabhupada said, ‘yes, that is ture. You are indebted.’ So the disciple asked, ‘is there anything we could do to become free from this debt?’ So Prabhupada answered ‘there is nothing you could do.’ Then Prabhupada paused and then he said, ‘yes yes, you could do one thing.’ They asked. ‘What is that Srila Prabhupada?’ He answered’ You do as i did.’

He was saying that whatever he had established, they should continue that and also expand his teachings to further places. ‘By doing that, you can get free from this debt to some extent.’ Who here wants to try and do this? (Shouts of haribol)!