SB 8.12.17–21 – Under the Influence of Yoga-maya We Remember Krishna

Giriraj Swami:

oṁ namo bhagavate vāsudevāya

oṁ namo bhagavate vāsudevāya

oṁ namo bhagavate vāsudevāya

Reading from Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, Canto Eight, Chapter Twelve, “Mohinī-mūrti Bewilders Lord Śiva.”

TEXT 17

śrī-śuka uvāca
iti bruvāṇo bhagavāṁs
tatraivāntaradhīyata
sarvataś cārayaṁś cakṣur
bhava āste sahomayā

TRANSLATION

Śukadeva Gosvāmī continued: After speaking in this way, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Viṣṇu, immediately disappeared, and Lord Śiva remained there with Umā, looking for Him all around with moving eyes.

TEXT 18

tato dadarśopavane vara-striyaṁ
vicitra-puṣpāruṇa-pallava-drume
vikrīḍatīṁ kanduka-līlayā lasad-
dukūla-paryasta-nitamba-mekhalām

TRANSLATION

Thereafter, in a nice forest nearby, full of trees with reddish-pink leaves and varieties of flowers, Lord Śiva saw a beautiful woman playing with a ball. Her hips were covered with a shining sari and ornamented with a belt.

TEXT 19

āvartanodvartana-kampita-stana-
prakṛṣṭa-hāroru-bharaiḥ pade pade
prabhajyamānām iva madhyataś calat-
pada-pravālaṁ nayatīṁ tatas tataḥ

TRANSLATION

Because the ball was falling down and bouncing up, as She played with it Her breasts trembled, and because of the weight of those breasts and Her heavy flower garlands, Her waist appeared to be all but breaking at every step, as Her two soft feet, which were reddish like coral, moved here and there.

TEXT 20

dikṣu bhramat-kanduka-cāpalair bhṛśaṁ
prodvigna-tārāyata-lola-locanām
sva-karṇa-vibhrājita-kuṇḍalollasat-
kapola-nīlālaka-maṇḍitānanām

TRANSLATION

The woman’s face was decorated by broad, beautiful, restless eyes, which moved as the ball bounced here and there from Her hand. The two brilliant earrings on Her ears decorated Her shining cheeks like bluish reflections, and the hair scattered on Her face made Her even more beautiful to see.

TEXT 21

ślathad dukūlaṁ kabarīṁ ca vicyutāṁ
sannahyatīṁ vāma-kareṇa valgunā
vinighnatīm anya-kareṇa kandukaṁ
vimohayantīṁ jagad-ātma-māyayā

TRANSLATION

As She played with the ball, the sari covering Her body became loose, and Her hair scattered. She tried to bind Her hair with Her beautiful left hand, and at the same time She played with the ball by striking it with Her right hand. This was so attractive that the Supreme Lord, by His internal potency, in this way captivated everyone.

PURPORT by Srila Prabhupada

In Bhagavad-gītā (7.14) it is said, daivī hy eṣā guṇa-mayī mama māyā duratyayā: the external potency of the Supreme Personality of Godhead is extremely strong. Indeed, everyone is fully captivated by her activities. Lord Śambhu (Śiva) was not to be captivated by the external potency, but because Lord Viṣṇu wanted to captivate Him also, He exhibited His internal potency to act the way that His external potency acts to captivate ordinary living entities. Lord Viṣṇu can captivate anyone, even such a strong personality as Lord Śambhu.

COMMENT

So, everyone in the material world is captivated by maya. But Lord Shiva is not under the material modes of nature. The material modes of nature are maya, mahā-māyā, and mahā-māyā is the wife of Lord Shiva. So, she is under the control of Lord Shiva. Therefore, Lord Shiva never comes under the control of mahā-māyā. But there is another energy of Krishna called yoga-māyā, which is the internal potency of Krishna, which is the spiritual energy. And even persons who are liberated from the influence of the material energy, they may come under the influence of the spiritual energy. The living entity is marginal. Sometimes he comes under the influence of the material energy, and sometimes under the influence of the spiritual energy. Srila Prabhupada compares the living entity to the seaside. Sometimes, at high tide, the shore is covered by the sea, and then it becomes part of the sea. But when the tide recedes, the same sand becomes part of the beach, part of the land. So, we are marginal, like the seaside. Sometimes we are covered by maya, by the illusory energy, and sometimes not. When we are covered by the illusory energy, we are part of the material whirlpool, and when we are not covered by the material energy, we are part of the spiritual world.

So, our goal actually should be to become free from the control of the material energy and submit ourselves to the control of the spiritual energy. The material energy is represented by Durga devi. Durga devi rides on her lion carrier and carries her trident, which has three prongs, and she pierces the demons with the trident. The three prongs represent the threefold miseries of material existence. We are all being pierced by the miseries of material existence. We are all being punished by Durga devi. And the spiritual energy is represented by Srimati Radharani. So, our success will be when we transfer ourselves from the control of Durga devi, or the external potency, and come under the protection of Srimati Radharani, or the internal potency. The internal potency is so strong that even the Supreme Lord Krishna is sometimes captivated by the internal potency, by yoga-māyā. For example, after Krishna killed Kamsa in Mathura, His mother and father, Vasudeva and Devaki, were struck with awe that their son was so powerful, He could kill the great demon Kamsa. But Krishna and Balarama wanted to play like ordinary boys, and They wanted Their parents to reciprocate with them as if They were ordinary boys. So, when Devaki and Vasudeva saw Krishna and Balarama, they began to offer prayers: “We thought You were our sons, but You are not our sons. You are the Supreme Personality of Godhead.” Then Lord Krishna expanded His yoga-māyā so that they became overwhelmed with parental affection for Krishna, and then they forgot that Krishna is the Supreme Personality of Godhead, and they began to love their sons as ordinary boys.

So even liberated souls come under the influence of yoga-māyā. In fact, yoga-māyā is meant for liberated souls. So, Lord Shiva is the master of the material energy. He cannot come under the control of the material energy. So, Lord Vishnu expanded the form of Mohini-murti from the internal potency, because Lord Shiva could only come under the bewilderment of the internal potency. In Vrindavan, everyone is under the influence of yoga-māyā, even Krishna Himself comes under the influence of yoga-māyā. There is one statement in The Nectar of Devotion that once Srimati Radharani was churning butter, but being enchanted by the beauty of Krishna, She began to churn butter in an empty pot. So even Srimati Radharani becomes bewildered, and Lord Krishna, being enchanted by the beauty of Srimati Radharani, began to milk a bull. So, yoga-māyā is so strong that all the residents of Vrindavan come under the bewilderment of yoga-māyā, even up to Radha and Krishna. But the difference between the bewilderment of yoga-māyā and mahā-māyā is that when we come under mahā-māyā, we suffer, and when we come under yoga-māyā, we enjoy. Now, under mahā-māyā, we forget Krishna, but under yoga-māyā, we remember Krishna. Otherwise, everything is the same.

Now here, Lord Vishnu has done something wonderful. He has created the form of Mohini-murti from yoga-māyā, but He has made Mohini-murti act upon Lord Shiva just as material illusion acts on conditioned souls. And that is, they forget Krishna. They forget Krishna, they forget themselves, they forget their duties, they forget their well-wishers, they forget their dependents, they forget everything under the influence of illusory energy. So, although Mohini-murti was made of yoga-māyā, but she acted upon Lord Shiva as mahā-māyā acts on ordinary people. And that is, they forget everything. Srila Prabhupada commented that when the boy and the girl kiss, they forget Krishna. It is nature; it is material nature. They forget Krishna. That is mahā-māyā. And yoga-māyā, they remember Krishna. In Goloka Vrindavan, the devotees have so much love for Krishna that they want to serve Him with such intimacy that if they knew Krishna is the Supreme Lord, they could never serve Him with such affection. Like Vasudeva and Devaki, they can’t serve Krishna and Balarama as mother and father if they think that Krishna and Balarama are the Supreme Godhead. So, yoga-māyā makes them forget that Krishna and Balarama are the Supreme Personality of Godhead, but their love increases when they think that Krishna and Balarama are their sons.

So, in Goloka Vrindavan, the devotees forget that Krishna and Balarama are the Supreme Personality of Godhead; they just think that Krishna and Balarama are their friends, or their sons, or their lovers. And therefore, they can have more affection for Krishna and Balarama. They can enjoy greater intimacy. At the age of five, when Krishna lifted Govardhana Hill, He held the hill over His head and over the residence of Vrindavan with His little finger of His left hand for seven days. So, no ordinary person could do so. Only the Supreme Personality of Godhead could do so. But by the influence of yoga-māyā, the residents of Vrindavan were thinking that Krishna is an ordinary boy. So they were thinking that, Oh, Krishna must be feeling tired holding up the mountain. So the cowherd boys and the cowherd men, they carry sticks for controlling the cows. So they started to put their sticks up to take on some of the weight of the mountain, so that Krishna wouldn’t feel too tired. Some of the cowherd boys, they started to massage His arm because they didn’t want His arm to feel too much strain and pain. So this is the mood of the residents of Vrindavan under the influence of yoga-māyā.

I don’t know how many of you have ever looked closely at the deity of Lord Krishna, but there is a stick under the arm of Lord Krishna. And what is the reason for the stick? As devotees are thinking that, Oh, Krishna’s arm will get tired because all day He is holding up the flute. So in order to keep Krishna’s arm from feeling fatigued, they keep the stick. Srila Prabhupada is instructed in every temple; we keep the stick under Krishna’s arms so Krishna’s arm doesn’t feel fatigued while holding the flute. So this is the mood of the devotees in Vrindavan under the influence of yoga-māyā. They love Krishna more. The residents of Vrindavan love Krishna more than anyone loves Krishna. They love Krishna more than they love themselves. But not because He is God, but just because He is Krishna. He is all attractive. Srila Prabhupada said that pure love for Krishna means there is no condition. Not that, “If God, I will love Him,” but, “If He is not God, I don’t care for Him.” Pure love means that they love Krishna without any conditions. He may be God, or He may not be God, but still they love Him. It may be moral, or it may not be moral, but still they love Him.

Sometimes, when Krishna would perform superhuman feats like lifting Govardhana Hill, the residents of Vrindavan would start to think, Maybe Krishna is not an ordinary human being. Maybe He is a demigod. Maybe they were not sure also, but maybe He is a demigod. But to maintain the mood of pure love for Krishna, yoga-māyā would bewilder them. After the pastime in which Krishna lifted Govardhana Hill, everyone saw that Krishna lifted Govardhana Hill and held it over the residents of Vrindavan for seven days with the little finger of His left hand. So all the residents of Vrindavan saw. So afterwards, there was an assembly because Nanda Maharaja   always used to meet with the elderly cowherd men in assembly to discuss what was best for the community, which really meant what was best for Krishna, because Krishna was the life and soul of the community. So all the cowherd men started to advise Nanda Maharaja that Krishna is not an ordinary human being. He may be a great yogi with mystic powers, or He may even be a demigod. So you should not chastise Him, calling Him liar or thief or other names. And you do not punish Him by lifting the stick or binding Him with ropes because He is not an ordinary human being. Nanda Maharaja replied, “Well, you may think that He is a yogi or some demigod, but I know Him better than you all. Yogis are very expert in controlling their senses, yogi iti sayyāṁ. Yoga means to control the senses. But my Krishna cannot control His senses at all. As soon as He becomes a little bit hungry, He immediately starts to cry. And if we don’t immediately feed Him exactly what He wants, He becomes angry, and He starts to break pots of butter and eat the butter, and distribute it to His friends, boyfriends, and monkey friends. Is this the way a yogi acts? Or to speak of a demigod?” So in this way, Nanda Maharaja began to remember and remind the residents of Vrindavan of Krishna’s boyish pastimes. And thinking of the boyish pastimes of Krishna, they began to laugh in ecstasy. And then they completely forgot about Krishna lifting Govardhana Hill, Krishna being a yogi or a demigod, and they were just absorbed in love for Krishna as if He were an ordinary child.

So this is the function of yoga-māyā. They increased the love of the devotees for Krishna. And therefore, we actually want to come under the influence of yoga-māyā, out of the influence of mahā-māyā, and under the influence of yoga-māyā. And when one becomes attracted to Krishna, when one falls in love with Krishna, he loses all attraction for maya. He loses all attraction for maya. It was like Raghunatha dasa Gosvami. He was so austere; he was so renounced. Although his father and uncle were great landlords in Bengal, and their monthly income was twelve million rupees, and that was like five hundred years ago. We can’t even imagine how much their income was. Srila Prabhupada said they were like king. And Raghunatha’s wife was just like an angel, not of this world, from heaven. And his opulence was more than the king of heaven, Indra. But he had no attachment. He was just thinking day and night how to get out of the house and join Chaitanya Mahaprabhu. And he was just a young boy; when he first met Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, he was about sixteen years old. Raghunatha dasa’s mother naturally wanted to keep him because he was the only son, both of the father and of the uncle. She wanted to bind him, but his father said that, “We cannot bind him. He has the most beautiful wife. He has the most opulent position, but he has no attraction. One who is got the mercy of Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, he cannot be bound by any material force.”

So Raghunatha dasa left home and joined Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu. And gradually, he gave up this, gave up that, gave up this, gave up that. Then he would dress himself by picking up rejected pieces of old cloth, torn cloth, and sewing the pieces together, he would make a little covering, and that is all he would wear. And as far as eating, he would eat the rejected foods that the cows ate, and the hard grains that even the cows could not digest, he would eat. So he was so detached. But although he was most detached from all sorts of material enjoyment and material objects, he was very attached to Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu and to the associates of Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, Svarupa Damodara Gosvami and others. And when Lord Chaitanya finished His pastime, and shortly thereafter, in separation, Svarupa Damodara also left this world to join Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, Raghunatha dasa was so distraught. He couldn’t live. He felt he couldn’t live without their association. And he decided he would go to Vrindavan and give up his life by jumping from Govardhana Hill. Then at Vrindavan, he met Rupa and Sanatana, and they appealed to him that, “You had the personal association of Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu. You witnessed the Lord’s pastimes in Jagannatha Puri. So don’t give up your life. You stay with us, and every day you speak to us about Chaitanya Mahaprabhu.” And for many hours every day, they would meet and discuss. But after some time, Sanatana Gosvami left this world, and Rupa Gosvami also left this world. And at that time, Raghunatha dasa Gosvami felt so much pain of separation that he was simply weeping and crying day and night. Previously, he would take a little leaf cup of buttermilk every two or three days. But after Rupa and Sanatana left, he stopped eating altogether. And he couldn’t do anything. He was just crying day and night until he gave up his body.

So there are so many other examples also, among the associates of Lord Chaitanya. They were completely renounced, completely detached. Lokanatha Swami, he was so simple, so humble. Although he was highly exalted in Krishna consciousness, but he didn’t want to accept any disciples, because he felt himself unfit. He personally requested Krishnadasa Kaviraj Gosvami, “Don’t mention me in Chaitanya-Caritāmṛta.” He was so humble. But when Rupa and Sanatana left, he also couldn’t do anything except cry in separation. And Narottama dasa Thakura also. Therefore, he wrote “ye anilo prema-dhana,” So, the idea is that one may be completely detached from material objects and from material relationships, but it doesn’t mean that we don’t have feelings for devotees, for pure devotees. And the examples are Raghunatha dasa Gosvami, and so many others. They were so attached to the devotees. They couldn’t live without the devotees. They could live without their wives, their fathers, their mothers, their houses, fine food, and nice clothes. They could live without all of those things, but they couldn’t live without the Vaishnavas, to whom they were so attached. So, this is the process of Krishna consciousness: to become attached to Krishna and Krishna’s associates. And that will bring us the greatest benefit in life. And if we don’t become attached to Krishna and His associates, we become attached to maya and her representatives, then we will remain bound in the material world, life after life, and we will be forced to suffer birth, death, old age, and disease.

Recently, somehow, I have been meeting many people who have lost a father, lost a son. Of course, death is extremely painful for the person who died; we don’t know. But it is extremely painful for the person who leaves the body because we are so attached to material things. Even if any little material thing is taken from us, we cry. But I am seeing how much people cry when their loved ones are taken from them: father, mother. Today, I saw one; they are devotees also. It doesn’t mean that devotees have no material attachment. The person’s son died; he was twenty-eight years old. So death is painful, not just for the person who was dragged away from the body and all the relatives and loved ones and possessions, but it is painful for the loved ones. So, there is so much misery in the material world, and the worst misery appears to be death for everyone. Therefore, we should not want to continue in this world of death, martya-loka. On the higher planets, the Earth is known as martya-loka, the planet of death. We don’t want to stay here; we shouldn’t want to stay here. Rather, we should transfer ourselves to Krishnaloka, where life is eternal, full of knowledge, and full of bliss. There is no death, and all the relationships are eternal and full of knowledge and full of bliss. So, if we transfer our attachment to Krishna and Krishna’s devotees, then, as we discussed the other day, the door to liberation is open. And if we remain attached to materialistic persons, then we are on the path to hell.

So, Lord Krishna comes and manifests His beautiful pastimes in Vrindavan just to attract us to Him, to life with Him and His associates. So, if we become attracted to life with Him and His associates, then we are saved. Otherwise, we are plunged into the whirlpool of material miseries, and we have no way out. So, what is the purpose of the pastime of Lord Shiva and Mohini-murti? The purpose is to show us how dangerous is material attachment, how dangerous is attachment to the opposite number, that one can forget anything, everything, if he becomes materially attached. And that is the greatest calamity. One scripture has stated that there is no greater calamity than to forget Krishna, even for one moment. So, that is the lesson to be learned by the bewilderment of Lord Shiva. Don’t be bewildered by the illusions of maya and forget Krishna, because the result will only be humiliation and defeat. So, we should try to become attracted to Krishna. Even if we are not so attracted, if we continue the process. Iron is covered with dirt; it won’t be attractive. So, first, we have to wash away the dirt; we have to remove the rust. Then, naturally, we will be attracted. We won’t have to make any effort; spontaneously, we will be attracted. And the process for removing the dirt is to serve the pure devotees and chant the holy name. So, let us all chant.

Hare Krishna Hare Krishna Krishna Krishna Hare Hare
Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare

Are there any questions or comments?

Devotee: [Unintelligible 00:41:40]

Giriraj Swami: Well, as Krishna says in Bhagavad-gītā. . . So, under the influence of yoga-māyā, the residents of Vrindavan forget that Krishna is the Supreme Personality of Godhead, and therefore they can enjoy their relationship with Him more because they are devoid of awe and reverence. So, under the same influence of yoga-māyā, Krishna also forgets that He is the Supreme Personality of Godhead, and He also enjoys more. Srila Prabhupada gave the example of Lord Zetland. He was a great Lord in the British Empire. So, one person came to meet him at his chamber, and his secretary told the person that Lord Zetland is engaged now; you will have to wait. So, the gentleman was waiting, waiting; there was no word from inside the chambers, and he became a little impatient. So, he just went to the door and slowly pushed open the door and peeked inside. And there he found Lord Zetland on the floor, on his hands and knees, playing like a horse, and his grandson was riding on his back, treating him like a horse and telling him to go here, go there, go faster. And he was enjoying. So, for those moments, he forgot that he was Lord Zetland, the great Lord of the British Empire. He was enjoying more being controlled by his little grandson and becoming his grandson’s horse.

So, Krishna’s also the same way. He doesn’t always like to be thinking, I am the Supreme Personality of Godhead, always being worshiped with prayers and rituals. He also like to forget. And when He forgets that He is God, He enjoys more than when He is thinking that He is God. But yoga-māyā is Krishna’s energy, so she fulfills Krishna’s desire. But Krishna’s greatest desire is to give pleasure to His devotees. So, she fulfills Krishna’s desire because when He forgets that He is God, and He feels like a little boy, and Mother Yasoda forgets that He is God, and she thinks that He is her little son, then the reciprocation is perfect. When she lifts the stick, Krishna actually becomes afraid. He is not just pretending, but He actually becomes afraid. And therefore, the human-like pastimes are perfected. But sometimes, demons come to attack the devotees, and the devotees have no other shelter but Lord Krishna. So, yoga-māyā, understanding the same desire of Krishna to please His devotees, same yoga-māyā will make Him remember that He is the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Otherwise, if He was thinking that He is also a cowherd boy like them, then if there is a fire, He will also be afraid like them. So then, yoga-māyā reminds Him, “Actually, You are the Supreme Personality of Godhead.” And then, for the protection of His devotees and the pleasure of His devotees, He will swallow the fire. And then, when it is over, when there is no need for Him to think that He is God, yoga-māyā will again come, and they will be eating their picnic lunch on the banks of the Yamuna. They won’t even remember much what happened. So, this is how yoga-māyā serves Krishna.

Devotee: [Unintelligible 00:47:01]

Giriraj Swami: Yes, she knows that Krishna wants to please His devotees, and when it is more favorable to pleasing His devotees for Him to forget He is God, she arranges that He forgets that He is God. But when it is necessary to know that He is God to please His devotees, to protect His devotees, to swallow the forest fire, to lift Govardhana Hill, to kill the terrible demons, then she reminds Him that He is God.

Devotee: [Unintelligible 00:47:01]

Giriraj Swami: Maharaja asked that can we think that yoga-māyā is non-different from Krishna and completely independent?

According to Srila Cakravarti Thakura, yes. That just as Krishna is independent, His spiritual energy is also independent. And they are not different; this is same conclusion given by Srila Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura.

Devotee: [Unintelligible 00:48:35]

Giriraj Swami: It is said that Krishna’s coming in the material world are His pastimes to attract the conditioned souls to Him, but at the same time, He deputes maya to keep us in illusion and separate from Krishna. At the same time, He shows His Dvaraka pastimes, which are full of opulence, so some people might become attracted to the opulence of Dvaraka and not attracted to pastimes of Vrindavan. So, he says, what is going on does Krishna want us come back to Him to Goloka Vrindavan while doing all these things?

Well, no doubt Krishna wants us to come back to Him, and Durga’s punishing us is actually meant for helping us to surrender to Krishna. In one lecture, after the lecture, the devotees all bowed down, and also offered obeisances to Srila Prabhupada. So, one young man in the audience raised his hand after the lecture, and asked his question, “Why do all have to bow down to you?” Srila Prabhupada said, “It is submissiveness; devotees are learning submissiveness, so they bow down.” So then the boy said, “Well, I don’t want to bow down.” Srila Prabhupada said, “You have diagnosed your own disease. You don’t want to bow down, but you are forced to bow down. You are forced to bow down to birth, to death, to old age, to disease; you are forced to bow down. So if you don’t bow down to Krishna, you will have to bow down to repeated birth and death.” Srila Prabhupada said one more thing that, “When you go to work, you have to bow down to your boss but you don’t mind.” So then the boy said, “Well, that is material. I don’t mind if I have to bow down to my boss, but in spiritual life, why should I have to bow down? Spiritual life is supposed to be free. So, spiritual life, why should I have to bow down?” But the conclusion is that if you don’t bow down to Krishna and Krishna’s representative, you will be forced to bow down before maya, repeated birth, old age, disease, and death.

Then Srila Prabhupada said that, “Actually, maya’s business and our business is the same. Maya is also servant of Krishna, so maya’s business and our business is the same but her method is different and our method is different.” The business is how to get conditioned souls surrender to Krishna. And our method is preaching, by humble appeal, dante nidhāya tṛṇakaṁ padayor nipatya. That, “I take a straw in my teeth and I bow down on your feet, and I am flattering you hundred times that you are so nice, you are so wonderful.” Then naturally, when people are appreciated, they become appreciative of you. Then they want to know, “What do you want to say? You are giving me so much appreciation. What do you really want to say?” “That whatever nonsense you have learned, forget it all.” And caitanya-candra-caraṇe kurutānurāga, just become the devotee of Lord Chaitanya. So, that is our preaching method. But whole purpose is to get conditioned soul surrender to Krishna and get benefited. And maya’s business is the same but her method is different. Her method is kicks. “Okay, you are not surrendered to Krishna or Krishna’s representative, I will kick you. If you won’t surrender, I will kick right, if you won’t surrender, I will kick you harder.” But the purpose is the same because she is also a servant of Krishna. We should think, why did Krishna put us in maya? First of all, you are in maya because you want to be in maya, but even being in maya, maya is acting in such a way that you should come to Krishna. And despite the opulence of Dvaraka, Dvaraka is also spiritual, and somehow, we should be attracted to Krishna.

So if someone is attracted to Krishna in opulence, although they may have some desire to enjoy the spiritual opulences of Krishna with Krishna, but still, it is better than being attracted to material opulence without Krishna. So Krishna, He is giving us the chance to fulfill all of our desires, but at the same time, He has His desire, which is to bring us back to Him. But His methods are difficult for conditioned souls to understand. But the pure devotees can understand Krishna’s method. They know that Krishna is all kind, and He just wants to bring us back. And whatever He is doing is ultimately to bring us back to Him, even if we don’t appreciate it at the time. Sometimes the father will take something away from the child, so at the time, the child doesn’t appreciate it, but later, when he becomes mature, he understands that, “Oh, my father was doing the best for me.” Sometimes the father will ask the child to do something which the child does not want to do, but the child does it because the father has ordered. But later, when the child is mature, he realizes that, “Oh, my father was so good to me. He has done everything good for me, but I could not appreciate it at the time.” So, Krishna is the Supreme father, the best father, whatever he does is best for us.

Mahaprabhu dasa asked that sometimes when we preach, people say that if even Lord Shiva got confused, what is the problem if we get confused?

So, Srila Prabhupada gave the answer that the pastimes where Lord Brahma becomes bewildered or Lord Shiva becomes bewildered are meant to make us more careful, that if even such great personalities as Brahma and Shiva can become bewildered, then what to speak of us. So we have to be very careful. See, we should never think that we are liberated, especially in the matter of association with the opposite number. We should never think that we are liberated or beyond attraction and therefore we should always be careful. We should never be alone with a woman even if we are trying to be devotee. Just like recently I heard one conversation where Srila Prabhupada was in Mayapur. And the electricity went off in the evening. So, they were complaining that electricity gone off. So, one devotee told Srila Prabhupada that, “The electricity was running all day long. It runs all day long. It is only in the evening that it goes out. And Srila Prabhupada said, “Yes, and it runs all night long also. It doesn’t run only in the evening when we need it. During the day when we don’t need it, it runs, and at night when we don’t need it, it runs. It is only in the evening when we need it, but it doesn’t run.” So, Srila Prabhupada said that, if it was in America, people would not tolerate. They would demand that the electricity must work properly. So then one devotee said that some years ago, there was some mishap in New York, and the electricity failed in New York for about an hour. Srila Prabhupada said, he was there. It just after when he came to New York. He was there. It went off not one hour, for hours. He said that he was in a room but there was no light. He said he was just sitting there, then some man came, he offered him a candle. Otherwise, Srila Prabhupada didn’t even have a candle. Prabhupada said, Krishna sent him. Then one devotee, Hari Shauri Prabhu commented that after the night the electricity failed, there was a record number of births in New York City. So, Srila Prabhupada said, “What else we do?” So, one devotee replied, “Chant Hare Krishna.” And Prabhupada replied, “Even Hare Krishna people,” And then he said that, “Maya is so strong that even one is Hare Krishna person, still he has to be very, very careful. And if he is alone in a room with a woman, especially in the dark, something will happen.” So therefore, he said, one must be very careful. He should never be alone in a room with a woman.

So therefore, the shastra says that one should never be alone with a woman, even one’s mother, or one’s sister, or one’s daughter. That is for rascals, that is not for descent people. Bhāgavatam says, even people who are learned and trying to make advancements in spiritual life, even for them, they should not be alone with a woman. So the example of Lord Brahma and Lord Shiva is that we should be careful. That we should be careful. It is not that only rogues and rascals should be careful, even great devotees, great demigods, they can be bewildered. So what to speak of us? So we have to be careful. So, that is the lesson.

Devotee: [Unintelligible 01:01:47]

Giriraj Swami: What is the relevance of Raghunatha dasa Gosvami’s austerities for us because we cannot perform such austerities?

Well, it is mentioned in Caitanya-caritāmṛta that Raghunatha dasa Gosvami’s regulative practices were like lines on stone. Just like lines on stone cannot be erased, his regulative practices could never be changed. And Srila Prabhupada mentioned that Raghunatha dasa Gosvami is the example for all of us. Maybe he was chanting one lakh names daily, we require to chant sixteen rounds. But as he was fixed in chanting his so many rounds, we can fix in chanting our sixteen rounds. He used to offer obeisances to Vaishnavas two thousand times every day. So, we can’t do two thousand times, but at least do once. When we come to morning program, we can offer after maṅgala-ārati. So whatever little austerity Srila Prabhupada has prescribed for us, we should follow as rigidly as Raghunatha dasa Gosvami followed his great austerities, which are beyond us.

Srila Prabhupada ki jaya!

Nitai-Gaura premānande Hari Haribol!