Going back to Godhead is the Privilege for Mankind
Hare Krishna, quite a good gathering here like Naimisharanya. I am seeing ocean of devotees here, I am floating in the middle of the devotees, souls all over I won’t call them bodies, all devotees all over.
Radha Vrindavan Chandra ki….Jai
My family was sad when I became bramachari, they used to make remark saying “he was a good boy now he has gone mad”. When my friend’s used to play cards I used to chant, then my sister used to cry saying why my brother has become mad? Why he is not playing like others? Then things changed for betterment. My parents used to think I will become a modern man and I would come on motor bike and one day I arrived with bullock and padayatra and all their dreams were scattered.
By now all my three brothers and friends and villagers are getting ready to go back to God head. That was the theme I was going to speak today as its Sunday, I don’t have slok today. Prabhupada wrote 8000 letters, we not even write 8 letters. One letter was written on 21st Nov 1956 New Delhi to Rajendra Prasad our President that time. And wrote many letters to other politicians. One day Prabhupada was walking doing morning walk near India gate and one disciple said to him “Prabhupada you should be president of India”. And he said “I am not interested, rather I would like to become guru of president of India”.
Prabhupada is writing to president of India “I have realized thoroughly that going back to God head is the privilege for mankind. He thought president would do some arrangement. The aim of life should be to make sincere efforts to go back to Godhead. Go back to God and He is calling, going back to Godhead is going back to Krsna- Rama. But human beings should make sincere efforts to back to God head but on the contrary the tendency is to go back to hell. They are sincerely preparing to go to hell. Instead arrangements should be make to send them to Godhead.
Please note this, please therefore save the citizens of India from this great fall down to hell. Believe me or not but I have got the clue of going back to Godhead after leaving this body I will be going back to God head as I leave my present material body. In order to take all my contemporary men and women back to Godhead, I have started paper back to Godhead. Please don’t be amazed, what a wonderful thought this man has. Don’t think I am mad man, when I say I will go back to Godhead it’s quite possible for everyone and for all us. To teach us Prabhupada writes, it’s quite possible for everyone to go back. So everyone includes each one of us and all of us to go back to Godhead.
I attended the first Hare Krishna festival at Chowpatty beach. A function was held there and procession would go to cross maidan and they had advertised ‘European sadhus are in town”. I was amazed, American scientists are ok, but sadhus I was amazed. So it was catching attention so I went, I heard Prabhupada talking about going back to Godhead.
In the first meeting I was introduced to this idea of going back to Godhead. And he always talked about going back to Godhead. Politicians talk about, “chalo Delhi” you are from galli they take you to Delhi that’s all. When somebody dies they write svargavasi, who knows he is savrgavasi or narkavasi. I also have heard this prayer ‘Mora ei abhilsa” o! tulsidev america desi dibo vasa.
Braham linatva is also goal for some. But Prabhupada is a vaisnava he wants all of us to go back to Godhead to Krishna…”golok namni nija dhamani”.
Two types of kingdoms, material existence we are already here but we don’t belong to this world. This is a wrong place for us.
‘Krishna bhuliya jiva bhoga vancha kare
nikata aste maya taare jhapatiya dhare’
Bhoga vancha and immediately we are caught in that species and this species up and down and round and round. And then we become human being and that’s a privilege. If you know Krishna, you get to know everything about his kingdom and the suffering you go through “padam padam yat vipadam ne tesam” this is real, no exaggeration.
“punarapi jananam punarapi maranam punarapi jananii jathare shayanam
iha samsaare bahudustaare kripayaa apaare paahi muraare”
This is Sankaracharya he wrote this prayer, but “Mayavadam asatsastram” he messed with Mayavad also.
“I have gone through so much suffering so please Lord get me out of this”
Buddhadev also he wanted to have Bharat darshan, his father never wanted to let him go out he knew he will come across so many sufferings. No daddy I want to go, ok he saw a dead man, oh! What happen all are walking and one person is lying and all are carrying him? He is gone he is dead, Oh! Does everyone die? Ya!! You will also die for sure. Then he saw a man suffering from leprosy and pus oozing all over. Oh! Does everyone get sick? Will I also get sick? Yes of course you will have your turn and he saw a old man, does everyone become old? Yes and will I also become old? Yes of course. Siddhartha came back to palace and said I have seen much bring my chariot and I want to find solution to all these problems. And in middle of night he left the palace and young beautiful wife, he went to Gaya and became enlightened Buddha and that enlightenment was his way of getting solution.
Prabhupada knew who we are and where we have to finally go, Back to God head. Well I will go but I want to bring many men with me. So Prabhupada started in 1944 Back to Godhead magazine, he started many things, festivals, feasts, youth preaching. In jhasi there was advertisement in paper “youth wanted”, Prabhuapda said “I will train them to propagate Krishna consciousness all over, introduce dhama all over. So Prabhupada gave us dhama and festivals. Whole world is advertising- go to tajamahal, go to Hawaii and other places and they are trying to popularise those places and bring them to those places. But Krishna bhaktas they popularise dhama, vrindavan .Krishna is wonderful, his devotees are wonderful, sweets are wonderful. Everything is wonderful. So this wonderful Krishna, wonderful devotes of Krishna, wonderful dhama and its always welcoming us to return go back there . So one who is knowledgeable will go back to Godhead.
The scientist also are coming to this conclusion “if there is matter then there must antimatter also” so what’s that antimatter, that’s spirit soul. What matters is- we are sprit souls we are not matter. Those who come to this conclusion- the most confidential matter explained in Gita – “are you here Arjuna come here, come near, oh! Dear do not fear I am here”.
“man-mana bhava mad-bhakto mad-yaji mam namaskuru
mam evaisyasi satyam te pratijane priyo ‘si me”
Prabhupada also said this when we went to see Prabhupada after are sanyasa ceremony, four of us sitting Prabhupada said ‘you just do these things – Always think of Me and become My devotee. Worship Me and offer your homage unto Me. Thus you will come to Me without fail. I promise you this because you are My very dear friend. So Lord is swearing here “satyam te” we also promise but we don’t follow…”zhoot ke alava kucha nahi kahunga”
So Arjuna says -I will follow as you say, Krishna promises you will come to me “pratijane priyo si me”
Promise is a promise gentleman’s promise and why I m doing this because you are very dear to me O! Arjuna . Why does Krishna come to this world? To bring the forgotten souls back to Godhead.
“maya-mugdha jivera nahi svatah krishna-jnana
jivere kripaya kaila krishna veda-purana”
So that the souls return back to him, Krishna comes here. I am fine and the world is fine I am ok but Srila Prabhupada always emphasized on going back to Godhead. What’s the purpose behind all this – Krishna wants to go back to Godhead. One Mataji was saying “I am old maharaj I want to make sure that I will go back to God head” so she also had got clue.
It’s not that only Indians are allowed to go back to Godhead- no, all are allowed . There was a time when not even a single muslim, single christian, single hindu existed there was no discrimination there was only sanatana dharma. They were all souls this designations were not there. Kali is making this all very complex and entangling. So for all the souls globally Prabhupada made that arrangement that all go back. So Prabhupada went to New York in Jaladuta. So ISKCON is also boat collecting devotees and taking them back to Godhead. Once you see the beauty of Radha Vrindavan candra, you won’t go back …hye! Don’t go to keshi ghata and if you go don’t look at that blue boy and if you see that blue boy you will be mad man you will never come back…he was a good boy (laughter)
“Kamaladala jala jivan talamala” whole existence is like this hence the advice is “bhajahu hari-pada niti re” -be engaged in devotional service.
“samasrita ye pada-pallava-plavam mahat-padam pu?ya-yaso murare?
bhavambudhir vatsa-padam param padam padam padam yad vipadam na tesam”
The lotus feet of the Lord are like boat and If you board the boat the material ocean will become equal to hoof print of calf then its dam easy to cross over, this was said by Brahma Ji.
Lotus feet are boat you get into the boat and reach the shore of material existence and you reach Krishna’s kingdom. ISKCON temple is also boat – prasadam, kirtan, sravanam and Prabhupad is the captain of that boat, Prabhupada ki ..jai.
Foreign devotees sing with guitar “we are going back to Godhead join us Prabhupada is are captain” that was Prabhupada’ s mission ultimately Krishna’s mission -taking all back to God head. Seeing all of you I can say Prabhupada’s mission is getting accomplished. All our Aharyas are pleased seeing this and you are all linked to Paramapara family and there are 602 temples all over and then there are centres and Namahatas. So stepping In the ISKCON boat and going back to Godhead is pleasing to Prabhupada Krishna and for all of us. So all of you spread the words around- “youth wanted” – It’s not only for old ladies but it’s for all .As souls we are all young, Prabhupada said once in a lecture there is no question of young or old, we are same age. As soul there is no old or young it’s never too late, grab the opportunity.
I asked a man what’s your name? He said I am Mr karmarkar …kar …mar…kar, , kar ..mar then kar. So I thought we are all kar..mar..kar. Life is tough then you die then you again take birth, life is tough and then you die..kar…mar ..kar..We have to stop this kar…mar ..kar..business. So Krishna has made that arrangement and we are on our way, forget the rest it’s all illusion. The world has created this illusion. Stop all this get out, if someone says God is not there, I don’t have to go back to Godhead, God has created such philosophy. God created such illusion.
“avatirne guar chandre vistirne prema sagare
yena majyanti majyanti te maha anartha sagare”
Caitanya Mahaprabhu has expanded this Krsna prema. ISKCON is also doing the same thing and “Those who do not throw themselves in this prema sagar then they will drown in mahaanartha sagare. If you try to enjoy here you will end up in sufferings. There are two sagars – Prema Sagar and Mahaanartha sagar and those who are intelligent will always go for Gauranga….Gauranga ..Gauranga.