We have assembled on the auspicious occasion of Sri Krsna Janmastami, on the sacred soil of Sri Vrndavana-dhama, a land sanctified by the presence of the Lord in His Deity form, in discussion of Him from the Bhagavad-gita and Srimad-Bhagavatam, in the chanting of His holy names, and in the utterly sincere efforts of His devotees to serve Him here.
We read from Srimad-Bhagavatam, Canto Ten, Chapter Two: “Prayers by the Demigods to Lord Krsna within the Womb.”
tato jagan-mangalam acyutamsam
samahitam sura-sutena devi
dadhara sarvatmakam atma-bhutam
kastha yathananda-karam manastah
“Thereafter, accompanied by plenary expansions, the fully opulent Supreme Personality of Godhead, who is all-auspicious for the entire universe, was transferred from the mind of Vasudeva to the mind of Devaki. Devaki, having thus been initiated by Vasudeva, became beautiful by carrying Lord Krsna, the original consciousness for everyone, the cause of all causes, within the core of her heart, just as the east becomes beautiful by carrying the rising moon.” (SB 10.2.18)
In the Bhagavad-gita Lord Krsna says, janma karma ca me divyam evam yo vetti tattvatah/ tyaktva deham punar janma naiti mam eti so ’rjuna—anyone who understands the transcendental mystery, or science, or nature, of Lord Krsna’s appearance and activities in this world is liberated: he or she never has to take birth again but goes back home, back to Krsna. Still, understanding Krsna’s birth and activities in truth (tattvatah) is not so easy. We must learn the science from the proper authorities, from the revealed scriptures and from the acaryas who explain them to us. Continue reading »
