Bhagavat Katha 2017: Day Six

Venue: Ganesh Kala Krida Manch, Swargate, Pune.

Date: 30 December 2017

Topic:  The definition of Bhakti rasa (Bhakti rasa ki paribhasa)

sri krsna caitanya radha krsna nahi anya.

We are remembering Caitanya Mahaprabhu, His associates and His different Lilas. Sometimes the basis of the katha becomes Bhagavad-gita, sometimes Srimad-Bhagvatam and sometimes Caitanya Caritamrita, Caitanya Bhagavat. Our discussions are based on these books. There is  just one day left of this Bhagavat katha. Is that good news? You must be counting the days as to when the katha will be over. You will be free. How many of you would like the katha to continue? Haribol. Your ruci for this katha is increasing and that means that the ruci for the Lord is increasing. Katha is Lord, Lila is Lord.

visvaksena-kathasu yah
notpadayed yadi ratim
srama eva hi kevalam (SB 1.2.8) 

Everything we do is useless labor if they do not provoke attraction for the message of the Personality of Godhead. What do we get from katha? Someone asked, “What will we get from chanting?” More chanting. So when you hear katha you will feel like hearing more katha.

mac-citta mad-gata-prana bodhayantah parasparam
kathayantas ca mam nityamtusyanti ca ramanti ca  (BG 10.9)

Pure devotees, whose characteristics are mentioned here, engage themselves fully in the transcendental loving service of the Lord. Their minds cannot be diverted from the lotus feet of Krsna. Their talks are solely on the transcendental subjects. They are daily engaged in glorifying the pastimes of the Supreme Lord. Their hearts and souls are constantly submerged in Krsna, and they take pleasure in discussing Him with other devotees.

radha-krishna prana mora jugala-kisora jivane marane gati aro nahi mora

The divine couple, Sri Sri Radha and Krsna, are the life and soul of the devotees. They are their only shelter  and they are always satisfied in the  Lord. Everywhere people are dissatisfied, because whatever they  achieve in this material world is not for the soul. There is lobha (greed) all over, that brings about dissatisfaction.  We have to satisfy our soul then we will become atmaram (self satisfied) . Katha is Krsna and katha is for the soul. Hear katha with all your heart and meditate on the topic of the katha. Then you will be satisfied and happy.

Raise your both arms while you take Lord Gauranga’s name and dance

gauranga bhajile gauranga japile hoy duh?khera abasana re

Today is the sixth session. We welcome all of you – susvagatam.

yesha krsna ratih sthayi bhavo bhakti raso bhavet (Nectar of devotion 2.1.5)

Krsna rati or rasa of bhakti bhava . Bhakti-rasa is a mellow different from the ordinary rasa enjoyed by mundane workers. I am trying to talk about the bhakti rasa as presented by the sad- goswami’s  of Vrndavana.

There are two types of  rasas (mellows) of devotion.

The five primary rasas (santa, dasya, sakhya, vatsalya and madhurya.  They are the main rasas. There are seven secondary types of rasas known as Hasya (humourous mood), Adbhuta (astonishment), Veera (chivalrous mood), Karuna (compassionate mood), Raudra (angry mood), Bhayanaka (mood of awe and dread) and Vibhasta (ghastliness).

The loving dealings and reciprocation and relations  between the Lord and the living entities is rasa. We all have a relationship with the Lord. With sambandha jnana, dharma begins. One is isvarya jnana misra rati  and other is kevala rati. Isvarya  rati  means the Lord is great and we are small. In this bhava, the jiva remains away from the Lord. It’s based mainly on isvarya jnana of the Lord. Kevala rati means pure devotion.

An example of santa rasa is the 4 Kumaras. Once they were situated in santa rasa, but once while on yatra of Vaikuntha  they smelt the tulsi at the Lotus Feet of the Lord.

In Vrndavana there is sakhya bhava. There is also sakhya bhava in Dwaraka  and Vaikuntha but its mixed with isvarya bhava. We can see vatsalya bhava in Mathura. Vasudev and Devaki gave birth to a child and they are offering obeisances to their child. This is also vatsalya bhava. 

gopala gopala devakinandana gopala
yasomati-nandana, braja-baro-nagara, gokula-ranjana kana 

There is a difference between vatsalya and sakhya bhava. The vatsalya, sakhya and madhurya bhava in Goloka dhama is supreme.  We will see there is a difference in the madhurya bhava also. The madhuryain Golok is supreme. There is madhurya, sakhya in Dwaraka, but its level is different. They are good at their respective places, but there is  a difference on the divine level in love. Good, better and best like that. So this is rasa sastra.

parakiya-bhave jaha brajetepracar

The mellow of conjugal love is the most excellent of all rasas and is propagated in Vraja by Sri Krsna in the form of the divine parakiya-bhava [paramour love]. The conjugal relations are also there in Dwaraka with the Queens, but it is svakiya bhava. In Vrndavana however it is the supreme parakiya bhava. The conjugal mellow decreases  in Vaikuntha. There is madhurya rasa between Laxmi and Narayana, but its at a lower degree than Vrndavana and Dwaraka.

mata more putra bhave karena  bandhan atihina jnane  kare  lalan palan

This is the vatsalya bhava of Vrndavana. “Sometimes mother ties me to the mortar out of love.”

bandha ukhadala yalaha ukhadala nanda ghar cha chor (Marathi)

This does not happen in Vaikuntha. Who can think of punishing  the Lord? That only happens in Vrndavana.

madhurya rase krsna nista 

Krsna is mine, He is my Krsna-this is mamta. Krsna is mine, and I am His, Can you say that? Yes, we all belong to Krsna. This is determination and service. In vatsalya bhava, sometimes devotees’ think that they are the caretakers of the Lord. This bhava is also there between the Lord and His devotees.

priya yadi  mane karaya …

Sometimes Radha and the gopis do not talk to Krsna, they say bad words to Him, and do not even look at him. This is a higher mellow.

We keep saying prema, Krsna prema. How to reach from sraddha to prema?

adau sraddha tatah sadhu- sango ’tha bhajana-kriya
tato ’nartha-nivrttih syat tato nistha rucis tatah  (CC Madya 23.14.15)

adau  sradhha is faith. Everything begins with faith. Then we have sadhu sanga like you all are here for katha. Bhajan kriya  is then taught. We follow kriya and then comes anartha nivrutti. We get rid of all papa vasana (kama, krodha..). One is freed from all unwanted habits and becomes firmly fixed in devotional service. We become nistavan, we were sraddhavan now we have become nistavan and that stage is irreversible. From there we move forward.  Ruci in the Lord’s holy name increases and then we develop asakti. Thereafter, one develops taste and attachment. This is the way of sadhana-bhakti, the execution of devotional service according to the regulative principles.

Then bhava arises in us-santa, dasya, sakhya, madhurya, vatsalya. Bhava is the prior stage of prema. Just as we see a little light before sunrise, that’s bhava. When the sun rises it is prema. When premabecomes more solid is called sneha. When we  boil sugarcane, it becomes jaggery and then when you  boil it further, there is more purification. You get solidified sugar. When sneha becomes more solid it is mana, pranaya then raga, bhava and mahabhava.

Radharani is Mahabhava Thakurani Radha. These are all the rasas of the spiritual world.  Each one of us has an  eternal relationship with the Lord with Him in the centre. The relationships of this world are temporary.  Kya bharosa isi jindagi ka. It is just for some time. We study some books, but we don’t learn anything.There is so much knowledge, but we don’t read

maya-mugdha jivera nahi svatah krsna-jñana: jivere krpaya kaila krsna veda-purana.

Who will read Gita, Bhagavad and Caitanya Caritamrita?

There is one brahmanda/universe and at the bottom is Garbhodakshayi Vishnu. From His umbilical comes a lotus and on the lotus is Brahma. Once he said

 iti shodasakam namnam, kali-kalmasha-nasanam;
natah parataropayah, sarva-vedeshu drisyate. 

Lord Brahma said, the sixteen words, Hare Krishna, Hare Krishna, Krishna Krishna, Hare Hare; Hare Rama, Hare Rama, Rama Rama, Hare Hare, are especially meant for completely destroying all the contamination of Kali. To save oneself from the contamination of Kali-yuga, there is no alternative in all the Vedas except the chanting of this sixteen-word mantra. So the best you can do in Kaliyuga is chant the holy name.

The  10 topics of Bhagavatam

Sarga – Primary creation by the Lord.

Upasarga –  secondary creation by Brahma. He is empowered by the Lord.  He is not just the secondary creator, but he is the first acarya of our sampradaya. He is on the top. He is jnavan.

In the Brahmanda  and coming from the stem of the lotus from Garbhodakshayi Vishnu  are the 14 planetary systems.  In between, there is Earth, which we call Bhurloka. At the equator below the earth is Atal Loka; Vital Loka; Sutal Loka; Talatal Loka; Mahatal Loka;Rasatal Loka; Patal Loka.Generally we say tribhavan- svarga, bhulok and patal.

urdhvam gachchhanti sattva-stha madhye tishthanti rajasah
jaghanya-guna-v?itti-sth? adho gachchhanti tamasah

Those situated in the mode of goodness rise upward; those in the mode of passion stay in the middle; and those in the mode of ignorance go downward.

Srimad-Bhagavatam has wonderfully described the hellish planets or narkaloka. When Parikshit Maharaja heard it, he was scared. We can ask who has seen narka, but we cannot hide from it. Above that there are Maharloka, Janaloka, Tapoloka and Satyaloka. Those who follow karma kanda they go to svarga loka, jnana kanda go into the  brahman effulgence and yogis go to Tapolok. All these lokas are inside the universe.

a-brahma-bhuvanal lokah  punar avartino ‘rjuna

One who attains to Lord’s  abode,  never takes birth again. But from heavenly planets one has to return.

ksine punye martya-lokam visanti  (BG 9.21)

One who is promoted to those higher planetary systems enjoy a longer duration of life and better facilities for sense enjoyment, yet one is not allowed to stay there forever. One is again sent back to this earthly planet upon finishing the resultant fruits of pious activities. You  even reach Svarga loka but you can’t always remain there. Once your pious deeds are over, you have  to come back to Pune, back to square one. Krsna says this and you have to follow it.

There are antakoti  brahmas and our brahma is the smallest. He has four heads. As the size increases, the number of Brahma’s heads also increases,  5 heads, 6 heads…. The universe is in the shape of an egg. Prabhupada would say that it is shaped is like  a football and we are inside it and it has a cover. Each universe has a very thick cover. Ksirodaksayi Vishnu resides in our hearts.

isvarah sarva-bhutanam  hrd-dese ‘rjuna tisthati (BG 18.61)

The Supreme Lord is situated in everyone’s heart.  It’s not that He only resides in the heart of Indians, but in everyones’ heart, including he hearts of animals.

vidya-vinaya-sampanne brahmane gavi hastini
suni caiva sva-pake ca panditah sama-darsinah

The humble sage/pandit, by virtue of true knowledge, sees with equal vision a learned and gentle brahmana, a cow, an elephant, a dog and a dog-eater (outcaste)

Katha-Upanisad states that in our heart there is a tree and on that tree there are two birds – one is jivatma  and other is Ksirodaksayi  Vishnu (parmatma).

There is the Viraja River on which Karanodakshayi Vishnu lies down. From him comes the various universes. Once we cross the Viraja River, we face the brahma jyoti – effulgence coming from Lords body.

koti surya samaprabha – The Lord  is as lustrous as a million suns.

vadanti tat tattva-vidas tattvam yaj jñanam advayam
brahmeti paramatmeti bhagavan iti sabdyate (SB 1.2.11)

Lord is the source of  Brahman, Paramatma and Bhagavan and  we can’t separate them.   They are  different forms of the Lord.

goloka eva nivasaty akhilatma-bhuto

Lord Krsna resides in Golok. Then there is Devi dhama, Mahesh dhama, Hari dhama, Vaikuntha dhama. These are all spiritual kingdoms. The brahmandas are the material kingdoms of the Lord. Lord Siva stays in Mahesh loka.Then there is isvaraya dhama. That’s Vaikuntha. Laxmi and Narayan reside there.

We are jiva tattva. All the Lords are Vishnu tattva. Siva is neither jiva nor Vishnu tattva. Brahma Sahmita says that if the Lord is milk, then Siva is curd. He has his different tattva. From Krsna comes Balarama, from  Balarama Sankarsana, then Aniruddha, Pradyumna, Narayana and then the purusa-avataras–Maha-Visnu, Garbhodakasayi Visnu and Ksirodakasayi Visnu.Mahavisnu.

Eka pada vibhuti is Devi dhama. That is the material world and tripada vibhuti is the spiritual world. As we move above Vaikuntha, we get Ayodhya dhama and Golok dhama. In Golok dhama is Dwaraka, Mathura, Navadvipa and Vrndavana. There are two parts in Golok.

ekatmanav api bhuvi pura deha-bhedam gatau tau (CC Adii 1.5)

Although Radha and Krsna are one in Their identity, They separated Themselves eternally. Now these two transcendental identities have again united, in the form of Sri Krsna Caitanya.

The place where Radha Krsna lila takes place is Vrndavana.  Where there is Gauranga, it  is Navadvipa. Both are Golok.

caitanyakhyam prakatam adhuna tad-dvayam caikyam aptam (CC Adi 1.5)

Radha and Krsna are two different personalities then they become one. That’s Gauranga Mahaprabhu who stays at Navadvipa dhama. Krsna and Radha’s pastimes were taking place in Golok, but once He developed a desire to taste the bhava of Radharani so Radha and Krsna become one as Gauranga Mahaprabhu. Names of Radha Krsna are wealth. There is a locker in Golok dhama where the jewel of Harinama is kept. Five hundred years ago Caitanya Mahaprabhu came and opened the locker and brought that mahamantra for all of us. That’s why he is called the most merciful, udara, mahavadanyaya.

vedais ca sarvair aham eva vedyo

By all the Vedas am I to be known

This is all sastra. If we can’t see, then we need to get operated on and the ointment of knowledge has to administered.

om ajnana-timirandhasya jnananjana-salakaya
cakshur unmilitam yena tasmai sri-gurave namah

The acarya or the spiritual master,  opens  our eyes, which were blinded by the darkness of ignorance, with the torchlight of knowledge.

cakhu-dan dilo jei, janme janme prabhu sei  divya-jnana hrde prokasito

The acarya opens our darkened eyes and fills our heart with transcendental knowledge. So divine knowledge is given to us by the  Gaudiya  Vaisnava acaraya.  A lot of knowledge is being distributed all over and that work is done by ISKCON. 

Krishna Govind Govind Gopal Nandalal..singing the glories of Krsna

Jai jai yasoda dulal girivardhari gopal

Nitai Gaura Premanande…..Hari Hari Haribol.