8th April 2019

DO NOT STOP TILL THE GOAL IS REACHED!!

We had been doing this Japa session for three to four months. All the devotees from Latur can also join the conference and chant with the devotees all around the world. You need to have a smart phone. Some of you are trying hard to get other people to join the conference. Our target is to make seven hundred participants till Sayana Ekadasi.

I was thinking for chanting Hare Krishna we all have to make an effort, to take some trouble. That trouble could be getting you out of the bed. Effort is necessary. Chanting should be with attention and with effort, extra special effort is needed to chant with attention. Even the Bible says ‘ love thy Lord with all thy heart, with all thy strength.’ Unless we make efforts, nothing could be achieved.

Na hi suptasya sinhasya mukhe pravishyantihi mrigaha.’ ( Sanskrit Subhashita) There is a saying that the Lion is a very powerful animal, king of the forest. But just because he is the king no animal will enter his mouth. Oh! I am hungry , so the lion cannot expect that other animals will enter his mouth. He has to get up , run and chase other animals and then with great efforts he catches the deer or hare. So without effort even a lion can’t get his food. He has to make an effort. Without effort we can achieve nothing.

I was thinking when Yasoda wanted to catch and tie Krsna to the mortar she had to make a lot of efforts to catch Krishna

HARE KRISHNA HARE KRISHNA
KRISHNA KRISHNA HARE HARE
HARE RAMA HARE RAMA
RAMA RAMA HARE HARE

When we are chanting our goal is also to catch Krsna, to see Krsna, to touch Krsna. Yasoda was trying to catch Krsna. While chanting we are also trying to catch Krsna – from dhyana, dharana up to samadhi. So in the state of samadhi we want Krsna to sit on the throne of our heart. By chanting Hare Krishna with Krsna we want to retain Krsna, gain Krsna, catch Krsna, imprison Krsna within our hearts. When Yasoda was trying to catch and tie Krsna, it wasn’t an easy task for her. So much effort, try again and again and again. She was running after Krsna and Krsna was running, Yasoda was running. She was elderly and healthy and Krsna was just a small , swift boy. But Yasoda didn’t give up the efforts. She continued her efforts to run after Krsna to catch Krsna. They say, she started catching for Krsna, in the morning , which passed by and noon passed and then beyond noon( in Sanskrit it is called as Purvanna, madhyanha, aparannha) Yasoda was still running after Krsna to catch him. Many, many hours, she was running after Krsna, but she didn’t give up. She was trying and trying and trying. So while chanting Hare Krishna our goal is to attentively chant Hare Krishna controlling our mind. Controlling the mind is not an easy task, as it is very flickering and can’t be caught easily. But we should not give up. It’s difficult to control the mind. Arjuna also said, ‘No ! No! I can’t do this.’

cañcalaṁ hi manaḥ kṛṣṇa
pramāthi balavad dṛḍham
tasyāhaṁ nigrahaṁ manye
vāyor iva su-duṣkaram

The mind is restless, turbulent, obstinate and very strong, O Kṛṣṇa, and to subdue it, I think, is
more difficult than controlling the wind. (B.G. 6.34) In 6th chapter Arjuna has said it’s a difficult task , but you have to do it, make an effort.

śrī-bhagavān uvāca
asaṁśayaṁ mahā-bāho
mano durnigrahaṁ calam
abhyāsena tu kaunteya
vairāgyeṇa ca gṛhyate

Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa said: O mighty-armed son of Kuntī, it is undoubtedly very difficult to curb the restless mind, but it is possible by suitable practice and by detachment.( B.G. 6.35) Practice , endeavor everyday. Yasoda kept making efforts of trying to catch Krsna. What Krsna sees is that we are trying harder and harder and harder to see Him, to meet Him, to catch Him, to love Him, to serve Him. Lord sees our efforts. Even if we are not successful our efforts, are not fruitful, still we don’t give it up. Krsna will take note how hard this person is working, to realize Me, to see Me , to catch Me. Krsna will be pleased with our efforts. Krsna was watching Yasoda. He was pleased with her efforts and then swa bandhane …… Then Lord said okay! Okay! You are not going to give up, leave the effort until you realise Me, see Me, so okay, you can catch Me. Like that finally Yasoda could catch Krishna. She pulled his ear and tied him with the rope. In Marathi there is a saying. – “ prayatnanti parameshwar”. ( By endeavouring hard , you can achieve God.) If you make prayatna (effort) then ultimately you will get Krsna. So don’t give up your effort. Keep
chanting

HARE KRISHNA HARE KRISHNA
KRISHNA KRISHNA HARE HARE
HARE RAMA HARE RAMA
RAMA RAMA HARE HARE.

In the Bhagavatam it is mentioned that Yasoda caught Krsna but while tying Krsna to the mortar, the rope that she was using, was two fingers short. But again Yasoda was not giving up her effort. She was bringing longer and longer ropes and then Lord was pleased with that effort also of trying to bring more and more ropes. Finally only when the Lord was pleased with Yasoda’s efforts was she was able to tie Krsna. Then rope was no longer two fingers short.

These two fingers represent the following – one is our effort and other one is Krsna’s kindness.
When there is a combination of these two things, our efforts and Krsna’s kindness, our goal is reached. We have realized Krsna and we see Krsna. Ultimately we will go back to Krsna. So the point we are trying to make is – keep up the effort and never give up, especially during chanting. Try to remember Krsna, hear Krsna, remember his pastimes, form. We should never stop – “ Do not stop till the goal is reached.”

This morning hundreds of you are there all over India and all over the world chanting, but today we also had a large number of devotees from Latur attending. So the Lord has seen you attending mangal-aarti and seen you chanting. He must be pleased seeing this. So everyday you could make Krsna happy by making this effort to chant Hare Krishna attentively, offenselessly and lovingly.

When the Lord sees all these efforts, His heart will melt , as He is very merciful to His devotees. Today we have Ratha-yatra Festival in Latur. Lord is so kind, Normally we say, ‘Meri Dori tere haath,’ ( My ropes are in your hands Oh Lord) but today ‘ Unaki Dori aapane haath.’ ( Ropes of His cart are in our hands. ) Lord is merciful, and today you also become merciful, by pulling the rope of His cart. Lord says, “Fine, take me wherever you want.” Those people who don’t come for His darsana, you will take the Lord to them. Show such mercy.

Jive daya name ruci vaisnava seva ( Gopala Champu by Jiva Goswami)

So serve Vaisnavas. Those who are lost in the world of Maya, show your mercy to them. By doing this also you will get, name ruci – Your taste in the holy name will increase. By whatever efforts we do to chant daily by that we meet the Lord every day, not 100% , lesser in intensity, but we do meet. Ceto darpan marjanam also happens. Whatever we have chanted attentively, offenselessly, we get the fruit of it everyday, and we do move few steps closer towards Lord. Ceto darpana marjanam will happen. Yesterday evening I was saying that by having a Ratha-Yatra here , we will purify Latur. We will not only clean, because cleaning happens just superficially, but purification is much deeper. It is cleansing the minds. Purifying the minds, the hearts and consciousness by which people will be benefited. Their souls will be happy, and your soul will also be happy. This program of Swachha Bharat does the cleaning and decoration of the cage. But Hare Krishna devotees serve the parrot within that cage. So which seva is greater? Of the cage? Or of the parrot? There should be little of serving the cage , but most of it should be serving the parrot. What the parrot likes ‘Peruchi fod laagate god’ ( a parrot likes guava) but no one is feeding the parrot.

Nobody is giving the parrot any attention.

na te viduhu swarth gatim hi visnu ( SB. 7.5.31)

Our real ‘swarth’ is in achieving the Lord or Paramatma and also in understanding, ‘I am soul’. Then we have to think, how to care for the soul, but no one talks about it. So whatever is in shortage in Latur, the Hare Krishna devotees will supply that. That is the objective behind Ratha- yatra, to satisfy the souls of the people. Only having a mall culture and five star hotels is not sufficient. Then from five star hotels they are transferred to five star hospital. They will also die in style. All this is planning for dying only. Nothing is for soul. Everything ls for the body. “ Aapali mate konala? Hyana tyana “( Who will you vote for? ) All this is going on. But does anyone remember the Lord? Residents of Latur are souls. So whatever promises politicians give, we will do this or that , but there is zero goal for the soul. People are also mad. They are not aware what they really need.

HARE KRISHNA HARE KRISHNA
KRISHNA KRISHNA HARE HARE
HARE RAMA HARE RAMA
RAMA RAMA HARE HARE

The Soul needs the Lord and we have had enough of Maya. Our politicians are giving only Maya. Krsna se tomar, Krsna dite par tomar shakati aache. ( Vaishnav Bhajan) But we devotees of Hare Krishna movement pray to acaryas, ‘You have Krsna. Krsna is yours, Can you give that to me.’ and for that only – aami to kangal krsna krsna boli dhai tava paache paache. ( Vaishnav Bhajan) We are running behind you with this hope that you will give Krsna to us. Happiness of all souls lies in this. Husband will be happy by getting Krsna, and wife will also become happy and children will also become happy forever, when they get Krsna. Your neighbours , relatives also will be happy when they get Krsna. All the souls in this world can become happy only when they get Krsna. This Hare Krishna mahamantra is Krsna.

HARE KRISHNA HARE KRISHNA
KRISHNA KRISHNA HARE HARE
HARE RAMA HARE RAMA
RAMA RAMA HARE HARE

So give Krsna and take Krsna. When we do Nagar sankirtana or we do kirtana. We give Krsna and take Krsna. Serve society serve country, serve people in your locality. Serve your friends, relatives. Help! Help! Help! By giving them Krsna. Whatever you will give them except Krsna, all that is poison. Maush Janam paiya Radha Krsna na bhajiya janiya Sunita Vish khainu. (Ista-deve Vijnapti by Srila Narottam Das Thakura) You have got human birth, but you have not served Radha Krsna then that means one is drinking poison. So Maya is poison or Maya is darkness

kṛṣṇa—sūrya-sama; māyā haya andhakāra
yāhāṅ kṛṣṇa, tāhāṅ nāhi māyāra adhikāra

Kṛṣṇa is compared to sunshine, and māyā is compared to darkness. Wherever there is sunshine,

there cannot be darkness. As soon as one takes to Kṛṣṇa consciousness, the darkness of illusion
(the influence of the external energy) will immediately vanish. ( CC Madhya-lila 22.31)

We are all dependent be on Krsna. Light is also Krsna or it is Krsna’s light.

Nitai Gaura premanande Hari Hari Bol.

All right we will stop here. Today we had little longer session, as so many devotees are sitting with
me over here. Tomorrow I will be travelling, so we will not have a Japa session tomorrow morning.
So we will meet day after tomorrow.
Hare Krishna!