CC Adi 1.1–2, 1.4, 1.6 – Sri Gaura-purnima—Sri Chaitanya and Sri Radha’s Mood

Host: Wonderful, it’s beautiful. And everybody, you will be able to unmute yourself during questions and answers, and I will just ask you to please, while the class is on, make sure you are on mute so that we don’t disturb Maharaja. And let me just check ISKCON Phoenix. Yes, they’re still having audio. So, we are live on Facebook. So, thank you very much, everyone, for joining us today, happy Gaura-purnima to all. Very, very auspicious and very, very special, and of course, with His Holiness Giriraj Swami, this is even more special.

For anyone who is new, let me just give you a little bio of Maharaja. He actually met Srila Prabhupada back in 1969 while he was a student at the Brandeis University in Boston, and he accepted formal initiation from Srila Prabhupada, and Maharaja quickly became a leading member of the Boston Center and was soon given the opportunity to go to India with Srila Prabhupada, where he helped establish his mission there. In 1972, Srila Prabhupada appointed Giriraj Swami as president of ISKCON Bombay and Trustee of the Bhaktivedanta Book Trust. Since then, he has made many significant contributions to Srila Prabhupada’s mission, most notably overseeing all aspects of the development of Hare Krishna Land in Juhu.

And actually, Maharaja has recently launched his book I Will Build You a Temple: The Juhu Story. So, we are all waiting eagerly for that book, so we will get the insight of everything that happened during those years, and that was such a herculean service. Many of us thank you because for many of us, actually, the Juhu temple was the first temple, like I personally came in touch with ISKCON.

Giriraj Swami: Oh, really?

Host: Yeah, I was a tourist. And the first time I went there, I was like, “Wow, these guys have a good rhythm.” And my first book, Teachings of Queen Kunti, actually, I bought it in Juhu, and that too in Spanish.

Then, Maharaja received sannyasa initiation in 1977 and was appointed the president of ISKCON’s Board of Trustees in India. In 1982, he was appointed ISKCON’s Governing Body Commission, and he went on to oversee the Society’s activities in Bombay, Mauritius, South Africa, Spain, Portugal, Sri Lanka, and Pakistan.

Giriraj Swami has also taught at the Vrindavan Institute for Higher Education and continues to lecture and to give presentations at japa retreats and workshops around the world, including on the wonderful world of Zoom. Presently, he is based in Carpinteria, California, and Maharaja is now focusing on the main personal instruction that he received from Srila Prabhupada, that is writing books. He is the author of Watering the Seed, Many Moons, Life’s Final Exam, as I just mentioned, I’ll Build You a Temple: The Juhu Story, and many wonderful writings that Maharaja has been sharing with all of us. So, Maharaja, thank you again so much for joining us, the floor is yours. Hare Krishna.

Giriraj Swami: I would request the devotees on Zoom, as far as possible, to put on your cameras so we can see your moon-like faces, and it will be more personal.

[Prayers]

And again, for the devotees on Zoom, as far as possible, please turn on your cameras so we can see your moon-like faces, and it will be more personal. I will begin by reading some verses from Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta that give us insight into the personality of Lord Chaitanya.

Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Ādi-līlā, Chapter One, Verse One. But before that:

jaya jaya śrī-caitanya jaya nityānanda

jayādvaita-candra jaya gaura-bhakta-vṛnda

So again, Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Ādi-līlā, Chapter One, Verse One.

TEXT 1

vande gurūn īśa-bhaktān

īśam īśāvatārakān

tat-prakāśāṁś ca tac-chaktīḥ

kṛṣṇa-caitanya-saṁjñakam

TRANSLATION

I offer my respectful obeisances unto the spiritual masters, the devotees of the Lord, the Lord’s incarnations, His plenary portions, His energies and the primeval Lord Himself, Śrī Kṛṣṇa Caitanya.

TEXT 2

vande śrī-kṛṣṇa-caitanya-

nityānandau sahoditau

gauḍodaye puṣpavantau

citrau śan-dau tamo-nudau

TRANSLATION

I offer my respectful obeisances unto Śrī Kṛṣṇa Caitanya and Lord Nityānanda, who are like the sun and moon. They have arisen simultaneously on the horizon of Gauḍa to dissipate the darkness of ignorance and thus wonderfully bestow benediction upon all.

TEXT 4

anarpita-carīṁ cirāt karuṇayāvatīrṇaḥ kalau
samarpayitum unnatojjvala-rasāṁ sva-bhakti-śriyam
hariḥ puraṭa-sundara-dyuti-kadamba-sandīpitaḥ
sadā hṛdaya-kandare sphuratu vaḥ śacī-nandanaḥ

TRANSLATION

May the Supreme Lord who is known as the son of Śrīmatī Śacī-devī be transcendentally situated in the innermost chambers of your heart.

COMMENT

This is a blessing for all of us. Listen to this again.

TRANSLATION

May the Supreme Lord who is known as the son of Śrīmatī Śacī-devī be transcendentally situated in the innermost chambers of your heart. Resplendent with the radiance of molten gold, He has appeared in the Age of Kali by His causeless mercy to bestow what no incarnation has ever offered before: the most sublime and radiant mellow of devotional service, the mellow of conjugal love.

COMMENT

Actually, this fourth verse, a beautiful verse, was composed by Srila Rupa Gosvami, and Srila Krishnadasa Kaviraja Gosvami has kept it here as the fourth verse. Now, in the Fifth and Sixth verses, we come to understand the real meaning of the advent of Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu. I’ll just read the translations.

TEXT 5

The loving affairs of Śrī Rādhā and Kṛṣṇa are transcendental manifestations of the Lord’s internal pleasure-giving potency. Although Rādhā and Kṛṣṇa are one in Their identity, previously They separated Themselves. Now these two transcendental identities have again united, in the form of Śrī Kṛṣṇa Caitanya. I bow down to Him, who has manifested Himself with the sentiment and complexion of Śrīmatī Rādhārāṇī although He is Kṛṣṇa Himself.

COMMENT

In this verse, the word bhāva means ‘mood,’ or as Prabhupada’s rendered it in the verse translation sentence, dyuti, ‘luster’ or ‘complexion.’ Originally, Krishna was one, but to increase His pleasure, He expanded Himself into two: Radha and Krishna. And now, the two, Radha and Krishna, have again been united as Sri Krishna Chaitanya.

There was once an interesting discussion of this point in Calcutta, when we were there with Srila Prabhupada in 1971, and our godbrother, Acyutananda Swami, had a discussion with our landlord, named Mr. Singh Roy, who was a Bengali. And Mr. Singh Roy had his own theory about Radha and Krishna and Chaitanya Mahaprabhu. And his theory was that Chaitanya Mahaprabhu existed first, and then came Radha and Krishna. And another part of his theory was that Chaitanya Mahaprabhu was greater than Radha and Krishna.

Acyutananda Swami brought the report of this exchange with Mr. Singh Roy to Srila Prabhupada and I and other devotees who were in the room at the time, and Acyutananda Swami asked, “Who comes first?” And Srila Prabhupada said, “Radha and Krishna come first.”

Oh, I think I forgot to mention that in saying that Chaitanya Mahaprabhu was greater than Radha and Krishna, Mr. Singh Roy gave the example of milk and sugar, which combined to make rasagullā, which is better or greater than milk and sugar.

So, Acyutananda Swami explained what Mr. Singh Roy’s theory was, and the first part was that Chaitanya Mahaprabhu came first and then Radha and Krishna. Srila Prabhupada said, “No, that is not the case,” and then, he said the same example, “First, milk and sugar exist, and then rasagullā.” Then, Acyutananda Swami inquired, “Who is greater, Radha and Krishna, or Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu?” Srila Prabhupada looked at a picture on his wall, which he pointed out to us, and the picture showed Radharani in a somewhat elevated position, in a transcendental state called “Mana.” Mana means jealousy, anger, but it’s transcendental, it’s all meant for Krishna’s pleasure.

So, She was in that state of Mana, or sometimes Srila Prabhupada translates it as “sulkiness,” and Krishna was kneeling at Her feet, begging Her to give up her Mana and accept Him. So, regarding the question, “Who is the greatest, Radha and Krishna, or Chaitanya Mahaprabhu?” Srila Prabhupada said, “Radharani is the greatest.”

And then, the next picture showed Krishna carrying Nanda Maharaja’s slippers on His head, and Srila Prabhupada said, “Nanda Maharaja is the greatest because Krishna is carrying his slippers on His head,” And then, Srila Prabhupada said, “The devotee is the greatest.” Of course, we know that of all the devotees, Srimati Radharani is the greatest, so She is the greatest, but Srila Prabhupada didn’t say that, he just said the devotee is the greatest. I’ll read this verse again, it’s very significant, and then I will go on to the next.

TEXT 5

The loving affairs of Śrī Rādhā and Kṛṣṇa are transcendental manifestations of the Lord’s internal pleasure-giving potency. Although Rādhā and Kṛṣṇa are one in Their identity, previously They separated Themselves. Now these two transcendental identities have again united, in the form of Śrī Kṛṣṇa Caitanya. I bow down to Him, who has manifested Himself with the sentiment and complexion of Śrīmatī Rādhārāṇī although He is Kṛṣṇa Himself.

COMMENT

And Text Six, which gives further insight into Krishna’s impetus for coming as Chaitanya Mahaprabhu.

TEXT 6

Desiring to understand the glory of Rādhārāṇī’s love, the wonderful qualities in Him that She alone relishes through Her love, and the happiness She feels when She realizes the sweetness of His love, the Supreme Lord Hari, richly endowed with Her emotions, appeared from the womb of Śrīmatī Śacī-devī, as the moon appeared from the ocean.

COMMENT

So, this is a very confidential subject, but by the mercy of Srila Krishnadasa Kaviraja Gosvami and other acharyas, especially Srila Svarupa Damodara Gosvami and Srila Rupa Gosvami, we are given insight into this most mysterious and confidential manifestation of Lord Krishna. In fact, one of the Lord’s names is Triyuga, which means that He appears only in three ages, or yugas; Satya-yuga, Treta-yuga, and Dvapara-yuga. It is generally understood that He does not come in Kali-yuga. But He does come, but His appearance as Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu is called a channa-avatāra, which means a hidden incarnation or a concealed incarnation. Because as Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, the Lord does not assert Himself as the Lord, but He plays the part of a devotee. So, because Sri Chaitanya has come in the mood of Srimati Radharani, it will be worthwhile to consider what is Srimati Radharani’s mood.

So, in The Nectar of Devotion, Chapter Twenty-Two: “Qualities of Kṛṣṇa Further Explained,” the thirty-second quality is compassionate. And listen to this definition of compassion.

CHAPTER 22

A person who is unable to bear another’s distress is called compassionate.

Kṛṣṇa’s compassion was exhibited when Grandfather Bhīṣma was lying on the bed of arrows which had been shot through his body. While lying in this position, Bhīṣma was very anxious to see Kṛṣṇa, and thus Kṛṣṇa appeared there. Upon seeing the pitiable condition of Bhīṣma, Kṛṣṇa began speaking with tears in His eyes. Not only was He shedding tears, but He also forgot Himself in His compassion. Therefore, instead of offering obeisances to Kṛṣṇa directly, devotees offer obeisances to His compassionate nature. Actually, because Kṛṣṇa is the Supreme Personality of Godhead, it is very difficult to approach Him. But the devotees, taking advantage of His compassionate nature, which is represented by Rādhārāṇī, always pray to Rādhārāṇī for Kṛṣṇa’s compassion.

COMMENT

So, Srimati Radharani represents Krishna’s compassionate nature, and Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, in the mood of Srimati Radharani, exhibited the same compassionate nature. “A person who is unable to bear others distress is called compassionate.” So, Chaitanya Mahaprabhu’s compassion in the mood of Srimati Radharani was manifested in His desire to deliver all conditioned souls within the world, and He expressed that desire, Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, in a conversation with Haridasa Thakura.

This conversation is described in Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Antya-līlā, Chapter Three. It begins with Text Forty-Nine.

TEXT 49

One day Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu met Haridāsa Ṭhākura as usual, and in the course of discussion He inquired as follows.

TEXT 50

“My dear Ṭhākura Haridāsa, in this Age of Kali most people are bereft of Vedic culture, and therefore they are called yavanas. They are concerned only with killing cows and brahminical culture. In this way they all engage in sinful acts.

TEXT 51

“How will these yavanas be delivered? To My great unhappiness, I do not see any way.”

COMMENT

And in the purport, Srila Prabhupada explains. . .

PURPORT by Srila Prabhupada

This verse reveals the significance of Lord Śrī Caitanya’s appearance as patita-pāvana, the deliverer of all the fallen souls. Śrīla Narottama dāsa Ṭhākura sings, patita-pāvana-hetu tava avatāra: “O my Lord, You have appeared just to deliver all the fallen souls.” How Śrī Kṛṣṇa Caitanya Mahāprabhu was always thinking about the deliverance of the fallen souls is shown by the statement e duḥkha apāra (“It is My great unhappiness”). This statement indicates that Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu, who is the Supreme Personality of Godhead Kṛṣṇa Himself, is always very unhappy to see the fallen souls in the material world. Therefore He Himself comes as He is, or He comes as a devotee in the form of Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu, to deliver love of Kṛṣṇa directly to the fallen souls.

COMMENT

When Rupa Gosvami met Lord Chaitanya, he understood who Lord Chaitanya was, and he addressed Him namo mahā-vadānyāya krsna-prema-pradaya te. Maha-vadanyaya: “You are the most merciful incarnation of Godhead.” Why? krsna-prema-pradaya te, because you are giving love of Krishna.

PURPORT (continued)

Those who are following in the footsteps of Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu should take the Lord’s mission most seriously.

One who identifies himself as a follower of Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu should feel like Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu, who said, “How will all these yavanas be delivered?” Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu was always anxious to deliver the fallen souls because their fallen condition gave Him great unhappiness. That is the platform on which one can propagate the mission of Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu.

COMMENT

Haridasa Thakura explained how the yavanas can be delivered, and Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu was very happy to hear this. But still, He inquired further in Text sixty-seven.

TEXT 67

“On this earth there are many living entities,” the Lord said, “some moving and some not moving. What will happen to the trees, plants, insects and other living entities? How will they be delivered from material bondage?”

COMMENT

So, Lord Chaitanya is concerned only with human beings, but also with others. Bahu-jiva, “many living entities,” sthāvara, “some are not moving,” like trees and plants they’re not moving, and jaṅgama some are moving. So how will they be delivered?

TEXT 68

Haridāsa Ṭhākura replied, “My dear Lord, the deliverance of all moving and nonmoving living entities takes place only by Your mercy. You have already granted this mercy and delivered them.

TEXT 69

“You have loudly chanted the Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra, and everyone, moving or not moving, has benefited by hearing it.

TEXT 70

“My Lord, the moving entities who have heard Your loud saṅkīrtana have already been delivered from bondage to the material world, and after the nonmoving living entities like trees hear it, there is an echo.

TEXT 71

“Actually, however, it is not an echo: it is the kīrtana of the nonmoving living entities. All this, although inconceivable, is possible by Your mercy.

TEXT 72

“When loud chanting of the Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra is performed all over the world by those who follow in Your footsteps, all living entities, moving and nonmoving, dance in ecstatic devotional love.

TEXT 75

“My dear Lord, You have accepted the form of a devotee just to deliver all the fallen souls of this world.

TEXT 76

“You have preached the loud chanting of the Hare Kṛṣṇa mahā-mantra and in this way freed all moving and nonmoving living entities from material bondage.”

COMMENT

Now, Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta explains the reasons for Sri Krishna Chaitanya’s appearance. Lord Krishna, in His pastimes, was unable to experience the glory of Srimati Radharani’s love for Him, the wonderful qualities in Him that She relishes through her love, and the indescribable happiness She feels when She realizes the sweetness of His love. Lord Krishna, assuming the guise of a devotee, adopted the mood and complexion or luster of Srimati Radharani, and descended in Navadvipa dhāma to fulfill His innermost desire to experience Srimati Radharani’s ecstatic love for Him. So, Navadvipa dhāma is a manifestation of Srimati Radharani’s love for Krishna.

The Puranas also describe that when in the state of mahā-bhāva, Srimati Radharani reached the extreme in ecstatic separation from Krishna, He entered into Her heart and “stole” Her feelings of mahā-bhāva. That mahā-bhāva became manifest as Navadvipa dhāma.

To better understand Sri Mayapur dhāma and the mood of Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, we should understand Radharani’s mood. Once, when Krishna left the companies of the gopīs, Radharani began to search for Him in one forest after another, crying in intense separation. She approached a kadamba tree: “Where is Krishna?” She approached Govardhana Hill: “Where is Krishna?” She wandered everywhere throughout Vrindavan, crying: “Where is Krishna? He is more dear to Me than My own life. How can I live without His service?” Then, in divine madness, She fainted.

After some time, when Krishna appeared, He addressed Srimati Radharani: “I am extremely pleased with You. You may ask from Me whatever You wish.” We can get an insight into Srimati Radharani’s mood here by what she asked. Radharani requested three things: “Please promise Me that You will always remain in Vraja, unseen by those without devotion; please never disappoint the devotees who reside here, maintaining their lives by their love for You alone, hoping to attain Your lotus feet; and please always shower Your mercy on Your devotees and give them shelter at Your lotus feet.”

We see that even though Srimati Radharani had been experiencing extreme separation from Krishna, when Krishna asked for what She wanted, She did not think of Herself. She thought of the suffering of others. This is the mood of compassion. Srimati Radharani’s desire to please Krishna is so pure and so intense that She wants to engage every living entity for Krishna’s pleasure, to give them Krishna’s service and association.

Krishna has unlimited desires to enjoy, and Radha has unlimited desires to fulfill Krishna’s desires. And Lord Chaitanya has the same desire, to engage unlimited numbers of living entities in Krishna’s service. Like Srimati Radharani and Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, the preacher wants to arrange for others to get Krishna’s association, to serve Him.

So, this discussion is significant, not only for us to understand Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu and Srimati Radharani’s mood, which Chaitanya Mahaprabhu adopted, but it’s important for us to understand what should be our mood, what should be our motivation. We should also have that mood, para-duḥkha-duḥkhī, as Srila Raghunatha dasa Gosvami said in one prayer to the Vaishnava. Para-duḥkha-duḥkhī, the Vaishnava is unhappy to see the unhappiness of others, or in other words, the Vaishnava is compassionate, para-duḥkha-duḥkhī. And therefore, he works to make others happy. And the only way they can really become happy is through Krishna consciousness. Therefore, the Vaishnavas, the devotees, the members of ISKCON, the followers of Srila Prabhupada, try to preach Krishna consciousness to engage others in devotional service, so they can become happy. Srila Prabhupada used to quote the Vedic injunction, sarve sukhinah bavhantu, “Let everyone be happy.” That was Srila Prabhupada’s mood and motto.

So, thank you very much for giving me this opportunity to be with all of you on the auspicious occasion of Gaura-purnima. We have used up, so to speak, fifty-five minutes of our hour. So, I could close and in the next five minutes, we can see if there are any questions or comments. If you have any questions or comments, you can raise your hand physically, or there’s a function in the Zoom, you can make a hand appear on your picture.

Host: Hare Krishna, Maharaja, thank you. Rasakrida, he has a question. I don’t know if he has a question or Jia has a question, please go ahead.

Bhaktin Jia: Hare Krishna, Guru Maharaja, happy Gaura-purnima, thank you for the wonderful class.

Giriraj Swami: Thank you.

Rasakrida dasa: I have a question too, Maharaja. Thank you, happy Gaura-purnima, please accept my humble obeisances. You made a wonderful point that by saṅkīrtana, by chanting, even non-moving entities also can get benefit out of it. So, when they do that, in the next birth, do they get a human form of life? Or do they directly get liberated? Is there any description of that?

Giriraj Swami: It might be a matter of the quality of the chanting. The reason I say so is because my godbrother Bhurijana Prabhu told me about an incident, in which, I think, a cat was mortally injured. I don’t remember the exact cause, but the cat was about to leave her body. And so, Bhurijana Prabhu was chanting very intensely for the cat, and then the cat left her body. Bhurijana Prabhu asked Srila Prabhupada, “What is the destination of the soul of the cat?” I forget the exact distinction that Srila Prabhupada made, but basically, he said that if it’s just regular chanting, the cat will get a human birth. And if it’s pure chanting, the cat will get liberated. So, we should try to come to that stage of pure chanting, not just for our sake, but for the people for whom we can chant at the end.

Rasakrida dasa: Wow, very nice. Thank you, Maharaja, thank you for explaining very nicely. I think that applies also if you are chanting for somebody, for their benefit, even if they are humans, but if we try to chant with that pure stage, then they also get different kinds of benefits, it depends on how we chant for them.

Giriraj Swami: Yes. His Holiness Sacinandana Swami has raised a startling question, and the question is, “Whose prayers does Krishna listen to?” And definitely, when one has surrendered to Krishna, when one is Śaraṇāgata, then Krishna will hear those prayers. Of course, He hears everyone’s prayers, but He’ll take the prayers of the surrendered soul more seriously. So, we should surrender as soon as possible.

Rasakrida dasa: Yes, thank you Maharaja, wonderful explanation. Thank you for that, Hare Krishna.

Giriraj Swami: Hare Krishna.

Host: Hare Krishna, Maharaja, we have a question through Messenger. “What is the difference between Vaishnavas and Gaudiya Vaishnavas?”

Giriraj Swami: That is a good question. Vaishnava means a devotee of Vishnu, and there are four bona fide Vaishnava sampradāyas in Kali-yuga. There is the Kumara sampradāya, coming from the four Kumaras; there’s the Rudra sampradāya, coming from Shiva; there’s the Sri sampradāya, coming from Laksmi, and then the Brahma sampradāya, which comes from Lord Brahma.

Now, Lord Chaitanya chose to, you could say, affiliate Himself with the Brahma sampradāya. So, our sampradāya after Lord Chaitanya is called the Gauḍīya-sampradāya. It’s part of the Brahma sampradāya, and in fact, the more complete name of our sampradāya is the Brahma Madhva Gaudiya Vaishnava sampradāya. But Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati made a very interesting statement. He said that one who worships Vishnu is called a Vaishnavite, one who worships Krishna is called a Krishnite, and one who worships Srimati Radharani is called Gaudiya. She is our Supreme object of worship and service.

Host: Thank you very much, Maharaja. There’s another question. “Why does the Lord only seem to appear in India? Are there incarnations anywhere else?”

Giriraj Swami: Yes, Srila Prabhupada addresses that point in a purport in the Bhagavad-gītā, and he says it is not that the Lord has to appear only in India. The example is sometimes given of an embassy. I’m just making this up. Say the American embassy in India, it’s technically not part of India, it’s part of America, there is the rule for embassies. So, in a way, you could say that India is the embassy of the spiritual world. So, it’s natural that the Lord will appear in India, but He’s not limited to that. Srila Prabhupada is very clear about that and his purport in the Bhagavad-gītā. Now, who asked that question?

Host: It came through Messenger, Maharaja.

Giriraj Swami: I see. So, we don’t know who asked it.

Host: Yes, Susan, it’s a newcomer, some of the new people.

Giriraj Swami: Okay, it doesn’t really matter. But yeah, the Lord can appear anywhere He likes, He’s free to appear anywhere.

Host: Thank you. Jai Bikhchandani, please go ahead.

Jai Bikhchandani dasa: Hare Krishna, Maharaja. Happy Gaura-purnima and thank you for the wonderful lecture, Maharaja. Maharaja, my question is related to a technical point you covered. You mentioned that one of the main qualities of Chaitanya Mahaprabhu is of Radharani, which is of compassion, and as Gauḍīya-sampradāya, we feel that it’s one of the most important qualities we want to imbibe. So, my question is, Maharaja, how can we use compassion to improve the quality of our japa?

Giriraj Swami: Well, if we feel compassion for others, we want to help them. And the better our japa is, the more we can be of service to others. Definitely, good japa will purify our consciousness, and it inspires us and enlightens us on how to help others. Good japa is very important for helping others. And if we’re compassionate and we want to help others, we should really, very intensely chant with attention and in a prayerful mood, so that we can help others, which will please Krishna. It’s a very pertinent question.

Jai Bikhchandani dasa: Thank you, Maharaja, thank you.

Host: Radhika dasi, she cannot connect her audio, but she is asking, “Apart from serving and preaching the Krishna conscious movement, is there another way to first understand and develop a relationship, especially with Radharani? Any specific books or līlās that you would suggest? Or is reading the Caitanya-caritāmṛta and developing a relationship with Lord Chaitanya as good as understanding Srimati Radharani?”

Giriraj Swami: Yes. Well, we can read about Srimati Radharani, probably the best source is Caitanya-caritāmṛta. The whole Third and Fourth Chapters are about Srimati Radharani. But She’s there, of course, in Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, and She’s there in The Nectar of Devotion. That’s a nice question. But I would say the best source would be Srimati Radharani. And there’s a very important verse in the Caitanya-caritāmṛta that describes the difference between love and lust. Prema is the desire to please Krishna’s senses, and lust, or kāma, is the desire to please our own senses. So, Srimati Radharani and all the gopīs and all the residents of Vrindavan, they have a pure love for Krishna, they desire only to please the senses of Krishna, and they have no desire to please their own senses.

So, for us to attain that position, we have to work to come to that level of purity. And our whole process is meant to bring us to that position of purity; our chanting, our hearing, our preaching, our serving, it’s all meant to help us develop that pure love.

Host: Thank you very much, Maharaja. Ramadhatri, is your audio right? Because I know you wanted to talk, but we’re having some issues with the connecting live. Actually, we’re having darshan tonight at the temple for a couple of hours.

You can try, Ramadhatri Mataji, please. No. But I’m sure she’s saying that she’s very happy that you were able to give us a wonderful class, and that she hopes that you will please join us again. And she will want Sri Govinda Prabhu to also talk on her behalf. See? I’m very good at lip reading.

Giriraj Swami: Lip reading and mind reading!

Devotee: Hare Krishna, can you hear me now?

Giriraj Swami: Yes, yes!

Devotee: Okay, we found the magic answer. Thank you, Maharaja. Happy Gaura-purnima, so nice to see you. We are very fortunate to have you. It’s the Sunday Feast class on Gaura-purnima, and the actual day. So, we are very, very blessed, and it’s so nice to see your wonderful class. Please keep us first on the list when everything opens up, we’d like to see you in person. I know that you have many devotees who really want to have your personal darshan. Thank you so much, I really enjoyed the class, and I love the bead bag you showed at the beginning, very nice, it touched my heart. Beautiful gift, very nice. Thank you so much, very nice. Thank you so much. Hare Krishna.

Giriraj Swami: Hare Krishna.

Devotee: Syama Mohini Mataji you can continue with the announcements if you wish.

Host: I think Jia wants to share something. We usually like to close our programs with, “Always remember Krishna, never forget Krishna,” but today being Gaura-purnima, we have a different phrase. Before I disconnect, I please invite you all to go to our Facebook page to see the wonderful offerings made by our Sunday School Children. It would be nice if you like them, it would motivate them. So, Jia, what is our phrase for today?

Bhaktin Jia: It is jiv jago, jiv jago, gauracanda bole.

Giriraj Swami: Perfect, perfect!

Host: Thank you. So, Sri Govinda Prabhu?

Sri Govinda dasa: Thank you so much, Mataji. Thank you so much, Maharaja, for kindly blessing us, and we look forward to your association again in the future. Hare Krishna.

Giriraj Swami: Thank you.

Host: Once again, we’ll let you go, Maharaja. We know that you’ve been giving programs back-to-back, and on top of that, guiding us through japa sessions. So, thank you so much. We really appreciate your association, and we hope to see you personally very soon.

Giriraj Swami: If we’re going to end now, I suggest we conclude with Vaishnava praṇāma. I’ll say the English, and then we can say the Sanskrit.

Let us offer our respectful obeisances unto all the Vaishnava devotees of the Lord who are just like desire trees who can fulfill the desires of everyone and are full of compassion for the fallen conditioned souls.

vāñchā-kalpatarubhyaś ca

kṛpā-sindhubhya eva ca

patitānāṁ pāvanebhyo

vaiṣṇavebhyo namo namaḥ

Host: You all can unmute and say Hare Krishna to Maharaja.

Devotees: Hare Krishna. Happy Gaura-purnima.

Giriraj Swami: Hare Krishna.