Bala lila of Krsna

Iskcon Chowpatty Mumbai [28:42]

It’s time to go back, just to stay in the mood of Damodara. Have you got the mood? Do you have Damodara mood, its Damodara month today? Beginning today or yesterday? Actually today is technically first day of Kartik, the first day of Purnima.

Last night we were dancing and certainly Radha Gopinath was dancing but not just with Radha but with millions of Gopis at the rasa dance. That was Rasa dance night. Did you offer sweet rice? No not in the morning mangal arati bhoga, no. You go to the rooftop someplace? So the moon rays would get in there. And the moon rays, whenever the Gopis are tired, fatigued they would relish some of that sweet rice. Did you do that? Yes? Where is the sweet rice? {Laughter}.

In Krishna Balarama temple right after mangal arati, they all rush to so many pots of sweet rice. All the devotees plunder big fight. There’s enough for everybody, Deena Bandhu Prabhu makes announcement ‘sweet rice.’ Special sweet rice, so that was, or not just was but still is last night’s pastime, it did not last for one of our nights but it lasted for entire night of Brahma, an entire night of Brahma. So has it stopped, the Rasa dance has stopped now? It’s still on.

Krishna appears once in one day of Brahma and how long He dances in the Rasa? A whole night of Brahma. So while that Rasa, which comes from Rasa, the mellow of conjugal love. Yet this morning that rasa is on and we are celebrating yet another Rasa here vatsalya Rasa. That Rasa, the mellow, the relationship between Gopis and Krishna, Radha and Krishna and this one is between Yashoda and Krishna, the residents of Vraja and Krishna.

I am not going to do the verse on the board that is what I meant. Let’s stay in the mood, the mood that we have just created a little bit by singing Damodarastak. Let’s condense this mood every day for next thirty days and for all the time to come. Not that thirty days are up so let’s do omething else. Yet there is also the understanding that the most attractive pastimes of the Lord are childhood pastimes.

That is also one understanding.

Also Madhurya Rasa is the topmost Rasa, considered topmost. Krishna is Rasaraj He is the king of all the Rasas. He is the source, Rasa Vaisa. He is the source of all the Rasas, and He is the enjoyer also of all the Rasas. To know that of course there has to be reciprocation between Him and his devotees. So varieties of Rasas varieties of devotees. Varieties are the spice of life. So Krishna spices his life in this pastime, or as this lila of Damodar also has taken place in the month of Kartik on the day of Diwali.

ekada griha dasesu yasodananda gehini

This is how the pastime gets narrated by Sukadeva Goswami in tenth canto of Bhagavatam. It says ‘Ekada’ Once upon a time. So that once upon a time was the day of Diwali, so that is during Kartik. The special Rasa dance is during Kartik so just the day before, night before Kartik, Govardhan Puja that is also during this month of Kartik.

Bahulastami, the appearance day of Radha kunda is also in the month of Kartik. Gopastami Krishna becomes cowherd. He was calf herd boy and then he becomes cowherd boy. He was promoted so this promotion also took place during this month. Likewise it’s full of festivals, this month. Srila Prabhupada also chose to enter the Lord’s pastimes during this month. Did I miss anything? This is also called Urjavrata. What is Urja? Energy and this energy is Radharani.

So this is also Radha Damodar, not only Yashoda Damodar RadhaDamodar pastimes. Srila Prabhupada stayed at Radha Damodar Radha Damodar ki…. Jai! I also remember the first time ever I went to Vrindavan was during Kartik. From Juhu we went and arrived at Mathura station and the first tanga flight I had was from Mathura station to Radha Damodar Temple and as we arrived and took darsana of the first deity at that time, that we had darsana of
in Vrindavan was Radha Damodar. Beautiful and the next right after darsana of deities, we were rushed into Srila Prabhupada’s quarters.

In the early hours of the morning we had arrived, Srila Prabhupada was in there by himself in a very small room. There was not even room for this asan, if you were to place this asan and twenty six inches tall cushion something at the back, Prabhupada sat very humbly and powerfully at the same time.

So we had darsana and devotees from Bombay sat around, some in the front and some on the side. I was sitting right in the front and Srila Prabhupada was talking and getting reports of Juhu Bomabay and he was also looking at us, moving his head like a camera [Showing by action] but whenever his glance fell on me he would stop before he moved again. Whenever he would come again he would stop and so I was wondering was that? But I did not have the outcome {laughter}.

I was trying to understand why I was getting Srila Prabhupada’s attention. So it went on many times and I could not figure it out until he said ‘Stop it!’ What did he say? ‘Stop it.’ And then I realised. In those days, while in some kind of attention I would hear and I used to do this {leg motion up and down, laughter}.

You have seen some people doing this, huh? This was getting his attention, trying to understand but I couldn’t figure it out {laughter}.
Then he said ‘stop it’ and then I stopped, never did that again. Only when I do demonstration.

So that was my first instruction in fact from Srila Prabhupada. Started with nisheda directly ‘Don’t do this, do this, don’t do this.’ So with having stopped this a lot of things need to be stopped this is just one nonsense, one distraction. We had the great fortune of being with Srila Prabhupada during the month of Kartik – this is ’72, 1972 and other devotees also had come, from different parts of the world.

There were maybe forty fifty devotees. The first official Vrindavan festival was being held, and there were forty, fifty devotees we thought ‘so many devotees!’ If we had the opportunity to tell someone ‘so many devotees!’‘How many?’‘Forty devotees!’ Forty devotees were so many. In ’73, beginning of ’73 Srila Prabhupada stayed at Mahadeviai? Kartikeya Mahadevia, you have seen his photographs with Prabhupada. Prabhupada used to stay, he used to stay downtown few times. So I had gone to get my Gayatri mantra from him and so it was just myself and Srila Prabhupada. Srila Prabhupada asked me ‘in Juhu, how many visitors come?’ And I told Srila Prabhupada ‘lots of visitors come.’ ‘How many?’ Prabhupada asked. I said ‘Fifty, sixty visitors come.’ And Srila Prabhupada said ‘so many?’

So fifty, sixty was so many. Prabhupada asked ‘so many?’ Now fifty, sixty visitors enter every minute, huh? Entering, exit so many.

So that was Kartik festival was new to us, everything in Vrindavan was new. So devotees – I think it was Gurudas. ‘So what are we supposed to be doing?’

Srila Prabhupada said ‘Nothing much just chant Hare Krishna twenty four hours a day during this Kartik.’ ‘What are we supposed to be doing?’ ‘Chant twenty four hours.’ This month is considered the month that helps in mantra siddhi achieving perfection in chanting the holy names of the Lord, Mantra Siddhi. So a lot of devotees come to Vrindavan and so they do a lot of chanting during this month. They get a lot of blessings of Radharani also during this month.

So Urja vrata, sitting here as if Bombay does not exist. So you’re in another world. It’s a concrete jungle and we are in the forest also here in Vrindavan. So many youths also here, how many youths are here? I know some of you are young at heart as they say [laughter]. If you are under 30 raise your hands. Oh! You are not, you are 35. So just majority 30 or 35. So the times have changed, youths are going to the temples during early morning hours. This wasn’t happening, so times have changed. Everyone used to think ‘when we get old’ religion was for those who were failures. Only turning to God when there was some difficulty. After enjoying his body and life and senses, when the body is getting rotten and then svaha. After we had enjoyed the useless when we get old we will think. Whats the hurry? So that attitude is changing. For that cause Sri Krishna Chaitanya Mahaprabhu’s sankirtana movement is causing that change. We are very happy, youths are stepping forward. Anyway, no one is old or young. This is again dvadva.

dvandvatito vimatsarah [BG 4.22]

dvandva of this world, to think someone is old someone is young is illusion also.

 'ei bh?la, ei manda,'—ei saba 'bhrama' [Caitanya Caritamrta Antya 4.176]

Young means bhalo, nice. Manda means old and useless. This is also bodily concept. ‘Srila Prabhupada, Srila Prabhupada’ one devotee said while Prabhupada not well, ’77. Pancha Dravida Swami, my God brother said to Srila Prabhupada ‘I am young man, could I offer my youth so that you may live longer? Could I offer my youth so you may live longer?’ ‘Doesn’t matter if I leave.’ Did I make it clear? One is leaving ‘so that you may live’ and ‘I don’t mind if I have to leave.’ ‘Please accept my youthful days or years’ at that time Prabhupada said ‘you’re not young, I’m not old.’ He was explaining.

One reporter said ‘Why you are offering sannyasa to your young disciple? This is when they get old they should be given sannyasa but you are offering in the young age.’ Prabhupada asked so what is your definition of old age, or who is old?’ The reporter said ‘one who is about to die is old.’

Then Srila Prabhupada said ‘well I am old so I am seventy five, eighty years old and my disciples are twenty five, thirty years old. Is there
guarantee that they will not die before I do?’ You understand? And many disciples did die before Srila Prabhupada so one who is about to die is old. Who is not about to die, anyone here?

So we have to take birth with a death certificate. Here it goes guaranteed, one thing guaranteed. If you’re looking for a guarantee, one thing is certain. What is that? As sure as death. What happened? We wanted to stay in the mood of Yashoda Damodar {laughter}. Because of not having enough time I thought I would not do a Bhagavatam verse, just talk something about Damodar or Damodarastak. So I was saying, you probably have heard this is Bala Krishna. Yashodanandan, yes so that will bring us back into the mood again, childhood pastimes so many of them. Stealing butter, makhan chori is his favourite pastime, of the Lord and devotees also.

There is so many, unlimited pastimes like waves. Waves day and night, waves in the Arabic ocean here, and all the oceans, and all the oceans most of the ocean. Some oceans are less. So this is in Gokul and its night time, so late in the evening Yashoda is sitting in the courtyard outside Nanda bhavan. Krishna is in the lap of mother Yashoda.

Yashoda ca maha bhaga

Yashoda is very, very fortunate. Krishna is lying where? In the lap of mother Yashoda, and then when Krishna looked up, what did he see?
Moon, and he thought this is some kind of toy and he wanted to have that toy.

Children think in terms of playing and eating? It is these two things they like the most how to play with any object they get they like to see if they could play with it or eat it. You know toys they would eat sometimes. So Lord is acting like that, like a child from this world, and acting like children from this world. In this way He’s hiding His ID. His identity the Supreme Personality of Godhead. He is the creator of the moon. He is creator of the moon, He is playing ‘oh mummy, that toy’ {weeping sounds}.

maiya chand khilona laio

O Mother, bring me that toy which is the moon. Chanda khilona, Please you get chand khilona, that toy. And if you don’t do so then, now I am in your lap but not for very long. If you don’t give me the toy, that one,

lauta jau dharnipar teri goda na ayoo maiya

I will roll on the ground but not lie ion your lap because you are not giving me the toy! So hurry up!

surabhi ko paya pana na kariya sira choti na gayo

And if you do not give me that toy. I will not drink Surabhi’s milk anymore. What would you drink, Coca cola, or Limca? [laughter] One young man opened his heart, he was from Bombay or at least his photograph was there, holding {Laughter}. I was looking at it, it was many years ago when we were going downtown to Juhu and we closely looked at it and the heart of the young man was a Limca bottle.

Here is Hanuman opening his heart {Laughter} Hanuman has Sita Ram and this young man had a Limca bottle. He had so many things and one of them was this Limca bottle [laughter]. Yet Krishna also had ‘maiya, why is Balaram’s sikha big one? He has lots of hair, big sikha and my sikha is very tiny. And Yashoda because Balarama drinks milk, if you drink you will also have bigger sikha.

But now He says ‘No I will not drink milk and I don’t care for my sikha.’

kaho nanda baba ko, tero suta na kahiyo

Now Yashoda is not taking any action and not giving that toy. ‘Not that toy! You know there is a toy shop around the corner let’s go there. ‘No no! Not that one.

And as Yashoda has not fulfilled her child’s desire, now He says ‘you know, I’m gonna tell everyone.’ ‘What will you tell?’ ‘I will tell everyone that I’m a son of Nanda Maharaja. And I could also rent some PA system, public address and go all over Gokul, tell everyone that I’m the son of Nanda Maharaja.’

‘That’s nice, you are the son of Nanda Maharaja, you may make that announcement there’s no problem.’ He might make that announcement but then He says ‘but I will also tell everyone,

tero suta na kahiyo

I’m not your son, I’m only Nanda Maharaj’s son, I’m gonna tell everyone. So you had better hurry up, like giving ultimatum. Krishna’s steals butter after He wakes up, right? So He’s already up.

Now someone says I should wake up Gopal, maybe in another brahmanda it’s time to wake him up while he has already stolen lots of butter in one brahmanda.

It is in the samaraag so we will do this quickly {referring to singing bhajan}.