BG 12.6–7 – Swift Deliverance Form Birth and Death

Giriraj Swami: So, my dear Zoom devotees, as far as possible, please keep your cameras on so we can see your moonlike faces and it will be more personal and I will get to see you.

So, todays topic is from Bhagavad-gītā, Chapter Twelve, “Devotional service.” And I will read one verse which will be the main focus of today’s talk. It is Chapter Twelve, Texts Six and Seven.

oṁ namo bhagavate vāsudevāya

oṁ namo bhagavate vāsudevāya

oṁ namo bhagavate vāsudevāya

TEXTS 6–7

ye tu sarvāṇi karmāṇi
mayi sannyasya mat-parāḥ
ananyenaiva yogena
māṁ dhyāyanta upāsate

teṣām ahaṁ samuddhartā
mṛtyu-saṁsāra-sāgarāt
bhavāmi na cirāt pārtha
mayy āveśita-cetasām

TRANSLATION

But those who worship Me, giving up all their activities unto Me and being devoted to Me without deviation, engaged in devotional service and always meditating upon Me, having fixed their minds upon Me, O son of Pṛthā – for them I am the swift deliverer from the ocean of birth and death.

PURPORT by Srila Prabhupada

It is explicitly stated here that the devotees are very fortunate to be delivered very soon from material existence by the Lord. In pure devotional service one comes to the realization that God is great and that the individual soul is subordinate to Him. His duty is to render service to the Lord – and if he does not, then he will render service to māyā.

COMMENT

The living entity by nature is a servant. And in the introduction to the Bhagavad-gītā As It Is, Srila Prabhupada discusses the word dharma, which is related to the root dra, which means, characteristic or intrinsic nature. So, we can say that the dharma of a thing is the thing that cannot be separated from it. The dharma of sugar is to be sweet; if it is not sweet, it is not sugar. The dharma of chili is to be hot; if it is not hot, it is not chili. What is the dharma of the living entity? What is the characteristic of the living entity that cannot be separated from it? That characteristic is service, to render service. So the idea of becoming master is not feasible for a living entity. The living entity is not a master but is a servant. So we have to see where to render service so that we will be happy and satisfied. And that object of service is Krishna. And Lord Chaitanya says that the constitutional position of the living entity is to be the eternal servant of Krishna, jīvera ‘svarūpa’ haya — kṛṣṇera ‘nitya-dāsa. The constitutional position, or svarūpa of the living entity or jiva is to be the eternal servant of Krishna, kṛṣṇera ‘nitya-dāsa.’ And when we act in our constitutional position, we are happy and satisfied. And as Srila Prabhupada said in purport, if we don’t render service to Krishna, then we will render service to maya, to the illusory energy of the Supreme Lord, which will not satisfy us. In fact, Srila Prabhupada says that when you serve someone in the material world, you will not be satisfied, and the person you are serving will not be satisfied. And in fact, the person whom you are serving may not even realize that you are serving him or her. Srila Prabhupada gave the example of Mahatma Gandhi. He gave his life to serving his country but were his countrymen satisfied? No, he was killed by one of his countrymen.

So we should render our service to Krishna. We have to serve because that is our constitutional position, and that service should be rendered to Krishna. Now, The Nectar of Devotion or the Bhakti-rasāmṛta-sindhu gives the definition of pure devotional service, anyābhilāṣitā-śūnyaṁ, which means without any other desire; jñāna-karmādy-anāvṛtam, which means not covered by jnana, mental speculation, or karma, fruitive work, and ādi means etc. And ānukūlyena means favorable, favorable to Krishna’s pleasure; kṛṣṇā, now the word kṛṣṇā has been discussed by Rupa Gosvami and Srila Prabhupada in The Nectar of Devotion. And kṛṣṇā includes Krishna, the original Personality of Godhead, and his various expansions. It also includes His names, His forms, His qualities, and His pastimes. It includes His paraphernalia and His pure devotees. All of those come in the category of Krishna. Anu-śīlanaṁ; śīlanaṁ means cultivation, and aṇu has two meanings. Aṇu means continuous, so pure devotional is continuous. And aṇu also means to follow. We are followers of Rupa Gosvami, so we are called rūpānugas. So it should be continuous cultivation, following the great authorities. Bhaktir uttamā, that is the definition of superior devotional service or pure devotional service. 

Now, Srila Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura has given a commentary on this verse. And he has analyzed the first word, anyābhilāṣ. Anyābhilāṣ would mean no other desire, but Rupa Gosvami has added the suffix, itā, anyābhilāṣitā. And Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura explains the significance of that. Anyābhilāṣitā-śūnyaṁ means that under ordinary circumstances, one does not engage in devotional service for any purpose other than to please Krishna. Krishna. So itā, anyābhilāṣitā, means under ordinary circumstances, one has no other desire but in an extreme situation, such as when one is threatened with imminent death, one may pray to be saved. And that does not go against the definition of pure devotional service. So ordinarily, we don’t engage in devotional service for the benefit of the body. We don’t pray for the benefit of the body. But again, as Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura says, in an extreme situation when one is threatened with death, for example, one may pray for protection, and that is not against the definition of pure devotional service.

PURPORT (continued)

As stated before, the Supreme Lord can be appreciated only by devotional service. 

COMMENT

In the Bhagavad-gītā, Krishna says, bhaktyā mām abhijānāti, that He can be understood only by devotional service. And Brahma-saṁhitā says, Vedeṣu durlabham adurlabham ātma-bhaktau, it is very difficult to understand or approach Krishna by the study of The Vedas, but it is easy to approach Him through His devotee, through devotional service.

PURPORT (continued)

Therefore, one should be fully devoted. One should fix his mind fully on Kṛṣṇa in order to achieve Him.

COMMENT

And again, Krishna includes not only Krishna but His expansions; His names, His forms, His qualities, His pastimes, His paraphernalia, His pure devotees, and His devotional service. But yena kena prakārena, somehow or other, one should fix the mind on Krishna. That is our duty; that is our assignment; mat-parāḥ, being attached to Krishna; ananyena, without division.

PURPORT (continued)

One should work only for Kṛṣṇa. It does not matter in what kind of work one engages, but that work should be done only for Kṛṣṇa.

COMMENT

So this is also a very important point. It doesn’t matter what work one does, but it should be done for Krishna. And just like in the body, there is the head, the arms, the belly, the legs, and these are compared in the social body to the brahmans, kshatriyas, vaishyas, and sudras. But it doesn’t matter what kind of work you do as long as you work for Krishna.

PURPORT (continued)

That is the standard of devotional service. The devotee does not desire any achievement other than pleasing the Supreme Personality of Godhead. His life’s mission is to please Kṛṣṇa, and he can sacrifice everything for Kṛṣṇa’s satisfaction, just as Arjuna did in the Battle of Kurukṣetra.

COMMENT

So, there is a relevant example that Srila Prabhupada gave of Maharaja Yudhisthira, during the battle of Kurukshetra. The Pandavas were facing in battle, of course the Kauravas, and with the Kauravas, Dronacharya who was such a formidable enemy. He was like the military guru of the Pandavas. He was such a formidable enemy that the only way the Pandavas would be able to defeat him was if he lost his spirit. And the way he loses his spirit to fight is if he heard that his son was killed. His son’s name is Ashwatthama. Maharaja Yudhisthira is known being truthful, and Krishna asked Maharaja Yudhisthira to call out in the battle that, “Ashwatthama is dead,” and Yudhisthira hesitated. He said, “I have never told a lie in my life.” And that hesitation to follow the order of Krishna is considered a defect. So, I will just read this sentence again from the purport: “His life’s mission is to please Krishna, and he can sacrifice everything for Krishna’s satisfaction just as Arjuna did in the Battle of Kurukshetra.” Maharaja Yudhisthira hesitated to sacrifice his principle of truthfulness for the sake of Krishna’s pleasure, and that was considered a defect. Maharaja Yudhisthira hesitated to act on the order of Krishna when Krishna told him to tell a lie because he was attached to the principle of being truthful, which ordinarily is a good quality, but for the sake of Krishna, one can tell a lie, and that is devotional service.

I had my own experiences with Srila Prabhupada. At one stage, I was making a very concentrated effort to be truthful, speak truth. So, one man came to see Srila Prabhupada and complained to him about one of Prabhupada’s disciples, and Prabhupada said, “Oh, I have rejected him. I have sent him away,” which I knew wasn’t true. But I think Srila Prabhupada was doing that, partially to pacify the man who was complaining about that disciple, but also to teach me that being truthful is not the highest principle. But these are exceptional cases, and definitely, we should be truthful as a rule. Especially brahmans, truthfulness and cleanliness are the qualities of brahmans.

PURPORT (continued)

The process is very simple: one can devote himself in his occupation and engage at the same time in chanting Hare Kṛṣṇa, Hare Kṛṣṇa, Kṛṣṇa Kṛṣṇa, Hare Hare/Hare Rāma, Hare Rāma, Rāma Rāma, Hare Hare. Such transcendental chanting attracts the devotee to the Personality of Godhead.

The Supreme Lord herein promises that without delay He will deliver a pure devotee thus engaged from the ocean of material existence. Those who are advanced in yoga practice can willfully transfer the soul to whatever planet they like by the yoga process, and others take the opportunity in various ways, but as far as the devotee is concerned, it is clearly stated here that the Lord Himself takes him. The devotee does not need to wait to become very experienced in order to transfer himself to the spiritual sky.

In the Varāha Purāṇa this verse appears:

nayāmi paramaṁ sthānam
arcir-ādi-gatiṁ vinā
garuḍa-skandham āropya
yatheccham anivāritaḥ

The purport of this verse is that a devotee does not need to practice aṣṭāṅga-yoga in order to transfer his soul to the spiritual planets. The responsibility is taken by the Supreme Lord Himself. He clearly states here that He Himself becomes the deliverer.

COMMENT

So this calls to mind, two examples that Srila Prabhupada and Vaishnavas give in relation to death and the process of devotional service, and the Lord’s help and mercy. One example that Srila Prabhupada give is the cat and her kitten and a mouse. Someone could say, “Well, non-devotees die and devotees die, so what is the difference?” So Srila Prabhupada gave the example of the cat who lifts up or catches a mouse or a rat in her mouth. For the mouse, being caught in the mouth of the cat means death. But the cat also picks up her kitten in her mouth to carry the kitten from one place to another. And for devotees, that means being lovingly carried by the Lord from one place to another.

PURPORT (continued)

A child is completely cared for by his parents, and thus his position is secure. Similarly, a devotee does not need to endeavor to transfer himself by yoga practice to other planets. Rather, the Supreme Lord, by His great mercy, comes at once, riding on His bird carrier Garuḍa, and at once delivers the devotee from material existence.

COMMENT

In other words, we just have to surrender to Krishna, and Krishna takes care of everything else. We don’t have to worry, just surrender Krishna.

PURPORT (continued)

Although a man who has fallen in the ocean may struggle very hard and may be very expert in swimming, he cannot save himself. But if someone comes and picks him up from the water, then he is easily rescued. Similarly, the Lord picks up the devotee from this material existence. One simply has to practice the easy process of Kṛṣṇa consciousness and fully engage himself in devotional service. Any intelligent man should always prefer the process of devotional service to all other paths. In the Nārāyaṇīya this is confirmed as follows:

yā vai sādhana-sampattiḥ
puruṣārtha-catuṣṭaye
tayā vinā tad āpnoti
naro nārāyaṇāśrayaḥ

The purport of this verse is that one should not engage in the different processes of fruitive activity or cultivate knowledge by the mental speculative process. One who is devoted to the Supreme Personality can attain all the benefits derived from other yogic processes, speculation, rituals, sacrifices, charities, etc.

COMMENT

And that is the definition of faith or sraddha. The beginning of devotional service is, ādau śraddhā. Śraddhā means that one has faith that just by engaging in devotional service, all subsidiary activities are accomplished. Lord Chaitanya’s discussion with Santana Gosvami in Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Madhya-līlā, Chapter Twenty-two, He gives that definition of sraddha.

‘śraddhā’-śabde — viśvāsa kahe sudṛḍha niścaya
kṛṣṇe bhakti kaile sarva-karma kṛta haya

TRANSLATION

 “Śraddhā is confident, firm faith that by rendering transcendental loving service to Kṛṣṇa one automatically performs all subsidiary activities. Such faith is favorable to the discharge of devotional service.

COMMENT

Srila Prabhupada makes the exact same point in the purport here: One who is devoted to the Supreme Personality can attain all the benefits derived from other yogic processes, speculation, rituals, sacrifices, charities, etc.

PURPORT (continued)

That is the specific benediction of devotional service.

Simply by chanting the holy name of Kṛṣṇa – Hare Kṛṣṇa, Hare Kṛṣṇa, Kṛṣṇa Kṛṣṇa, Hare Hare/Hare Rāma, Hare Rāma, Rāma Rāma, Hare Hare – a devotee of the Lord can approach the supreme destination easily and happily, but this destination cannot be approached by any other process of religion.

COMMENT

So, this is the second time in this purport that Srila Prabhupada has quoted the entire Hare Krishna maha-mantra.

PURPORT (continued)

The conclusion of Bhagavad-gītā is stated in the Eighteenth Chapter:

sarva-dharmān parityajya
mām ekaṁ śaraṇaṁ vraja
ahaṁ tvāṁ sarva-pāpebhyo
mokṣayiṣyāmi mā śucaḥ

One should give up all other processes of self-realization and simply execute devotional service in Kṛṣṇa consciousness. That will enable one to reach the highest perfection of life.

COMMENT

What will enable one to reach the highest perfection of life? Devotional service in Krishna consciousness, leaving aside all other processes.

PURPORT (continued)

There is no need for one to consider the sinful actions of his past life, because the Supreme Lord fully takes charge of him.

COMMENT

Krishna says, ahaṁ tvāṁ sarva-pāpebhyo, “I free you from all sinful actions and reactions,” mā śucaḥ, “Don’t worry.”

PURPORT (continued)

Therefore one should not futilely try to deliver himself in spiritual realization. Let everyone take shelter of the supreme omnipotent Godhead, Kṛṣṇa. That is the highest perfection of life.

COMMENT

So again, if we just surrender to Krishna, He will take care of us in all respects. And I mentioned that by constitution, the living entity is the eternal servant of Krishna, jīvera ‘svarūpa’ haya — kṛṣṇera ‘nitya-dāsa.’ The constitutional position of the living entity is as the eternal servant of Krishna. We have no other identity, no other true identity, and that is liberation. Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam says, muktir hitvā anyathā rūpaṁ sva-rūpeṇa vyavasthitiḥ; mukti means liberation, hitvā is giving up, anyathā all other forms or identifications, sva-rūpeṇa, being situated in one’s svarūpa, one’s constitutional position, which is to be the eternal servant of Krishna, that is liberation. And that realization comes by chanting,

Hare Krishna Hare Krishna Krishna Krishna Hare Hare

Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare

So now, we can take questions and comments. I guess if you want to say anything, you can raise your hand, literal hand or virtual hand. I see Lalita devi has raised her virtual hand.

Devotee: Hare Krishna guru Maharaja. Please accept my respectful obeisances. All glories to Srila Prabhupada. Guru Maharaja, thank you for your beautiful presentation and your time. I apologize for asking some basic questions, but because you were speaking so beautifully, I just thought I will ask you for further clarification. I have two questions. The first question is that you were saying that devotional services is performed for Krishna’s pleasure. But what I have taken away from shastra so far is that they are trying to convince my materialistic-oriented mind to accept the presence of God and to reorient myself to God. So from that place, when I am not fully cognizant of God’s presence, I can’t love Him or can’t try to do things to please Him. But if I am at the place of duty because it is the right thing to do in human form of life because I feel convinced that shastra is speaking sense, can you clarify that further?

Giriraj Swami: Could you rephrase the question very succinctly? They didn’t quite get what the question was.

Devotee: Guru Maharaja, trying to offer pleasing service, I think, as a symptom of love. But if I am not fully cognizant of Krishna’s overwhelming presence, all I am trying to be is a dutiful human being because logically, I feel convinced.

Giriraj Swami: All right, that is okay, that is good. Krishna is pleased when we do our duty. He will be more pleased when we do our duty with love but still he is pleased just we do our duty as a matter of duty. So you are pleasing Krishna.

Devotee: May I ask one more question from your class?

Giriraj Swami: Yes.

Devotee: Thank you very much. Guru Maharaja, you were saying that one could do practically anything for Krishna. I am attached to the kind of work I do because of the intellectual fulfillment I get out of it. What does it mean to do anything for Krishna, more specifically, and what to make of my intellectual satisfaction?

Giriraj Swami: So, the purport says, it does not matter in what kind of work one engages, but that work should be done only for Krishna. So, if you like your work and you are doing it for Krishna, that is well and good. Generally, if one likes one’s work, one is fortunate. So you are fortunate that you like your work, and the perfection is to do it for Krishna. Now, some work can be done directly for Krishna, for example, if someone likes gardening, he or she can grow fruits or flowers to offer to Krishna. And sometimes, we can bring Krishna consciousness into our work, even if our work is not directly related to Krishna. We can look for some opportunity, if we can speak about Krishna, that is wonderful but otherwise, if there is some good principle, like being vegetarian, we can try to work that into our work. And then the fruit of the work, which means that the money that we earn from the work, can be given to Krishna. That also counts as working for Krishna.

So next, I saw Indra Nilamani and family.

Devotee: Hare Krishna guru Maharaja. Please accept my respectful obeisances. All glories to you and Srila Prabhupada and all the devotees. So in the beginning, Maharaja, you were speaking about dharma, about our constitutional nature to engage in service, service to Krishna, and gave the example of Mahatma Gandhi, who he engaged in serving his country. But then he couldn’t please everyone, and he was even killed by one of the citizens of his country, India. Then I was thinking, but sometimes, even being engaged in devotional service doesn’t necessarily mean we will be spared of being attacked by people who may feel that they are our enemies. Or just like to give an example, maybe in Russia, in the beginning years, how devotees were put in jail, and or Mayapur, how devotees were attacked. So perhaps you can, say something about that.

Giriraj Swami: That is true. When one engages in devotional service, one may have enemies. There is a very nice purport that discusses that point. This is Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, Canto Three, Chapter Sixteen, Text Thirty-seven.

PURPORT by Srila Prabhupada

When something is arranged by the Supreme Personality of Godhead, one should not be disturbed by it, even if it appears to be a reverse according to one’s calculations. For example, sometimes we see that a powerful preacher is killed, or sometimes he is put into difficulty, just as Haridāsa Ṭhākura was. He was a great devotee who came into this material world to execute the will of the Lord by preaching the Lord’s glories. But Haridāsa was punished at the hands of the Kazi by being beaten in twenty-two marketplaces. Similarly, Lord Jesus Christ was crucified, and Prahlāda Mahārāja was put through so many tribulations. The Pāṇḍavas, who were direct friends of Kṛṣṇa, lost their kingdom, their wife was insulted, and they had to undergo many severe tribulations. Seeing all these reverses affect devotees, one should not be disturbed; one should simply understand that in these matters there must be some plan of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. The Bhāgavatam’s conclusion is that a devotee is never disturbed by such reverses. He accepts even reverse conditions as the grace of the Lord. One who continues to serve the Lord even in reverse conditions is assured that he will go back to Godhead, back to the Vaikuṇṭha planets.

Here towards the end of the purport, Srila Prabhupada is referring indirectly to Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 10.14.8. The verse begins at tat te ‘nukampāṁ su-samīkṣamāṇo, and it ends mukti-pade sa dāya-bhāk. “If one perseveres in Krishna consciousness in spite of many reverses and difficulties, he earns the right to enter the kingdom of God.”

Then we have Sāndrānanda dasa and family from Portugal.

Nanada Gopa dasa: My name is Nanda Gopa dasa.

Translator: Nanda Gopa Prabhu made a brief introduction, and he wishes to be corrected and informed by you. He spoke about Krishna, referring to His name, His form, His qualities, His pastimes, His paraphernalia, His energies. Nanda Gopa Prabhu also says that it includes there in his reasoning all the three modes, meaning sattva, raja, and tama, meaning also that the demons and everything in creation is included there. So please clarify if that is correct thinking.

Giriraj Swami: Yes, where I was giving the definition of Krishna as given in Bhakti-rasāmṛta-sindhu, or The Nectar of Devotion. And pure devotional service means to please Krishna favorably. But serving the modes of nature, which everyone is doing, and serving demons is not counted as devotional service.

Translator: Sorry Maharaja, apparently the question was not like that. I think I made a mistake. Nanda Gopa Prabhu is referring to Krishna, not in terms of the object of service of rendering service, but the concepts. The name Krishna includes everything: Krishna’s flutes, peacock feather, the devotees, and all the three modes of nature, including everything in the universe, including the demons. That is included in the name of Krishna.

Giriraj Swami: Well, yes, in a broader sense, Krishna means everything and includes everything. So as long as we are not talking about serving Krishna in those different forms, but just the conception, then yes, Srila Prabhupada says, Krishna means everything and includes everything.

Translator: So, the question is that demigods have a very long span of life, and since we are serving Radha and Krishna as devotees, it means that we go from here, we go over the heavenly planets directly to the planet of Radha and Krishna. If the devotees, they go beyond the heavenly planets and directly to Radha and Krishna’s spiritual planet?

Giriraj Swami: Yes. if one wants to stop on the way, but it would be a waste of time considering you could go directly to Krishna. So yes, you can go directly to Krishna and bypass the demigods. I like Nanda Gopa Prabhu’s questions, I never heard anyone ask a question and repeat the name of Krishna so many times.

So, Nityananda Prabhu’s hand is raised.

Nityananda Prabhu: Guru Maharaja, thank you so much for your wonderful class. Again, thank you so much for being here, and all of the devotees also. Thank you. It is explained that you mentioned in the class that Maharaja Yudhishthira’s denying to follow the instruction of Krishna was a fault on him. And in fact, we see also in the Seventh Chapter, the First Canto of Bhāgavatam, that a similar thing happened with Arjuna, and it was instructed by Krishna specifically to kill Ashwatthama. But then he didn’t do that. And in the purport, Srila Prabhupada mentioned that Krishna was testing him, I think in the words, his good sense or something like that. So, I don’t know, it looks like Krishna is dealing with different devotees in different ways but looks like a same situation but still, both of them to follow the instructions of the Krishna but one is a defect and other one in the case of Arjuna is good pointer. Could you please elaborate on that?

Giriraj Swami: Yes, that is a pertinent question. The case with Ashwatthama was complicated. It wasn’t so simple as when Krishna told Yudhisthira to tell a lie. And Arjuna was appreciating the complications of the case with Ashwatthama, and Krishna was pleased with that. So, one has to be intelligent to understand Krishna’s intentions, and tests come in different ways. Srila Prabhupada says, “First Krishna tested me by taking everything away from me, and then Krishna tested me by giving me everything.” The question is, are we going to act for the pleasure of Krishna? In the case of Maharaja Yudhisthira, he wasn’t thinking of that initially. He wasn’t thinking of Krishna’s pleasure; he was thinking of his own quality of truthfulness. Whereas Arjuna was thinking of the pleasure of Krishna.

Cristina has raised her physical hand; she can’t raise her virtual hand.

Devotee: So yes, maybe my brother was first. Do you want to go first, or should I?

Devotee: Thank you, Maharaja for your attention, for all this time for the dedication, and for the detailed answering of the questions. I think my question, is very simple, and also it could be quite basic. Sorry that other devotees may not benefit so much.

In relation to our constitutional position being servants of Krishna, I just got confused that we often hear that we try to be God, we try to be masters in this material world, and it feels so natural to do so. One of the reasons is that we actually can control our body to our own free-will, and we can use our body for the pleasure of Krishna, for His service, or sometimes to take care of ourselves, like giving us some downtime. And Mataji was also saying, that she likes her job, so she feels satisfaction with that. And it seems that we are free to do so, and it seems that we don’t feel any negative consequences straight away. Maybe it takes lifetimes, so it becomes so confusing that it is so deeply ingrained in us that we can be masters of our body. If Maharaja has any comment on that, any enlightenment on that, please.

Giriraj Swami: In brief, can you say exactly what the question is?

Devotee: Yes. since we don’t get an immediate reaction for misusing our free-will, if we tend to our needs and not remember to serve the Lord, and we have the free capability to use our body as we want because it is dependent on our will, so it is not so obvious that we are servants of the Lord in this material condition situation. And it takes time to realize that. So, if Maharaja can give some enlightenment in that way.

Giriraj Swami: Yes. Srila Prabhupada said that there are three ways of learning. The best way of learning is by hearing from authorities. For example, you hear from authorities that you should not steal, and so you don’t steal. The next way is by seeing. You see that someone has stolen, and he has been caught and punished. So, by seeing, you understand that you should not steal. And the third is by experiencing. You steal, you get caught and punished, and then you understand, “I should not steal.” And the fourth, never learns by any means. So, your question is that you may misuse your independence, but you might not experience the reaction for quite some time. But we don’t want to have to learn by experiencing, we want to learn by hearing. And by hearing, you can understand how to properly use your free-will. That addresses your question?

Devotee: Yes, thank you.

Giriraj Swami: Christina, younger than you are?

Christina: Yes, I am the youngest. So thank you, Maharaja. Hare Krishna, please accept my humble obeisances. Thank you once again for being here. My question is really practical because I am caught in this mixed world of the material world and spiritual world, and I have to make a decision. My question is, if there are two options of working in a place, more close to devotees, in a more devotional mood but earning really less money or going to a better work where you get more money. And usually, devotees with more money are capable of making, different and good services. What could be a criterion to prioritize in the decision? Just as an advice, not pressure on you, just as an advice.

Giriraj Swami: Almost every decision has its pros and cons, its good points and its bad points. If the situation you described is like that, in one case, you are in a more congenial situation, but you don’t get paid as much. And in the other case, you have to sacrifice more of your Krishna consciousness in a way, but you get paid better. Now, which of those two to choose is really a personal decision. I think an important question is, if you earned the extra money, what would you do with it? How would it affect your life?

Christina: I would certainly do something for ISKCON-Lisbon. Of course, I would do also something better and more for my family, but it would be always a priority to do something more but it would compromise my mood, my daily mood, because I don’t know which one is more devotional service, which one would please more Krishna. With which one, I don’t know.

Giriraj Swami: Again, I think, you can pray to Srila Prabhupada, pray to the deities to guide you. Because based on what you told me—told us—there is no definite answer that one is better than the other or one is worse than the other. Because your goal ultimately is to please Krishna through paramparā, you can pray to Krishna and the paramparā to tell you, enlighten you, what He would like you to do. And I do think of one incident. It might not be directly relevant, but I will share it with you. There was a devotee in New Vrindavan, who asked Srila Prabhupada about whether he should just stay back in the temple and chant more, or go out and work. Srila Prabhupada asked that devotee, “What would you prefer, if someone chants your name ten thousand times, or if someone gives you ten thousand dollars?” Your desire is to please Krishna so I am sure Krishna is pleased just by your desire to please Him.

Christina: I confess that it is always difficult to just wait and see and expect the signs, but we do need to have that patience.

Giriraj Swami: But what are you doing now?

Christina: Now, I am deciding what I will do. Now I am only serving ISKCON and my family, but I do have to go for professional life, and I have to decide. Thank you Maharaja. it is always good to just express and hear some—I knew it wouldn’t come a decision out of this, but I already have some.

Giriraj Swami: Okay, I will pray to Srila Prabhupada to guide you.

Host: Guru Maharaja, there is a comment here by Bhakta Devang Vain:

Hare Krishna Guru Maharaja. Please accept my humble obeisances at your most compassionate lotus feet, all glorious to Srila Prabhupada, all glories to your divine lotus feet. Thank you for this beautiful explanation, guru Maharaja, full of nectar, full of knowledge.

Giriraj Swami: Okay. He is in Mauritius. So, are we finished? Does anyone have more to say?

Brahma Samhita Prabhu: I don’t know, for some reason my hair keeps going out. Anyway, I thought maybe somebody was doing it on purpose. But anyway, now I was wondering as far as, doing service to please Krishna, I was wondering, different people, different devotees, they are inclined to serve Krishna in different ways, and even in the spiritual world, different devotees have different moods. And, I am just kind of wondering, though, should we be aware if we may have a particular type of inclination or a particular type of mood, then we have to be aware that maybe at some point, what we are doing, maybe, in our heart, our heart is in the right place, but what we may be doing might be causing a disturbance to others. And, I suppose, you could, for example, it may be not a so many pleasant things for me to bring up. But at one time, devotees had various techniques of going out and building saṅkīrtana, and at some point, it becomes such a disturbance, that, it was kind of giving our movement an unfavorable reputation. So anyway, I am just wondering if at some point, what we are doing in this service, we have to be aware of kind of what our mood is affecting others, and how can we be aware of that? Where do we draw the line?

Giriraj Swami: Yes, we engage in devotional service to please Krishna, but as you said, we should also be aware of the effect that our service, or so-called service, is having on others, because we want people to like us. Srila Prabhupada said that if someone just appreciates devotees, they make spiritual advancement. So, we want people to like us, but we can’t compromise any of our basic principles so that people like us. But if we can make some adjustments in our style so that people appreciate us more, then we should. I recall a conversation with Srila Prabhupada about book distribution, and I believe it was Harishouri Prabhu. Anyway, some devotee told Srila Prabhupada that the way his disciples were distributing books, many people were annoyed or disturbed. Srila Prabhupada replied, “If you can find some better way to distribute books, it will be most welcome. But the thing is, I wanted my books distributed.” If we can find a way to do something that will be more pleasing to others, then by all means, we should go in that direction.

So, Brahma Samhita Prabhu, does that address your question?

Brahma Samhita Prabhu: That is good. Can I maybe go a little bit further and ask this? It is a bit different, but I guess it is along the same lines. So, there is a story about one devotee, and I guess this is more in terms of our interactions with that devotee. There is a story about one Rambha who was being induced to direct his devotion more towards Krishna, but despite, the devotees, doing that, he just felt, I just can’t do it, I am just like that. So, I am just wondering, along those lines, could we maybe come across a situation where, it just might be that nature is so strong, that we have to have some accommodation, we have to just realize, “I have a nature like that. That is just the way that I serve.” And I don’t know, what do we do when we find ourselves in that situation?

Giriraj Swami: The question about your nature and whether it is proper to consider your nature when it comes to devotional service, the answer is yes. But the example you gave is a little different because that was referring to that devotee’s eternal love for Krishna. There are two examples of that in caitanya-līlā. One was Sri Vallabha, who was the younger brother of Rupa Gosvami and Sanatana Gosvami, Anupama. And I will just read that section from Caitanya-caritāmṛta because it is very nice. This is Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Antya-līlā, Chapter Four,

TEXT 30–46

“From the very beginning of his childhood, my younger brother Anupama was a great devotee of Raghunātha [Lord Rāmacandra], and he worshiped Him with great determination.

“He always chanted the holy name of Raghunātha and meditated upon Him. He continuously heard about the activities of the Lord from the Rāmāyaṇa and chanted about them.

“Rūpa and I are his elder brothers. He stayed with us continuously.

“He heard Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam and talks about Lord Kṛṣṇa with us, and both of us examined him.

“ ‘Dear Vallabha,’ we said, ‘please hear from us. Lord Kṛṣṇa is supremely attractive. His beauty, sweetness and pastimes of love are without limit.

“ ‘Engage yourself in devotional service to Kṛṣṇa with the two of us. We three brothers shall stay together and enjoy discussing the pastimes of Lord Kṛṣṇa.’

“In this way we spoke to him again and again, and because of this persuasion and his respect for us, his mind turned somewhat toward our instructions.

“Vallabha replied, ‘My dear brothers, how can I disobey your orders? Initiate me into the Kṛṣṇa mantra so that I may perform devotional service to Lord Kṛṣṇa.’

“After saying this, at night he began to think, ‘How shall I give up the lotus feet of Lord Raghunātha?’

“He stayed up all night and cried. In the morning, he came to us and submitted the following plea.

“ ‘I have sold my head at the lotus feet of Lord Rāmacandra. I cannot take it away. That would be too painful for me.

“ ‘The two of you please be merciful to me and order me in such a way that life after life I may serve the lotus feet of Lord Raghunātha.

“ ‘It is impossible for me to give up the lotus feet of Lord Raghunātha. When I even think of giving them up, my heart breaks.’

“Upon hearing this, we each embraced him and encouraged him by saying, ‘You are a great saintly devotee, for your determination in devotional service is fixed.’ In this way we praised him.

“My dear Lord, the family upon which You bestow even a little mercy is always fortunate, for such mercy makes all miseries disappear.”

Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu said, “There was a similar incident concerning Murāri Gupta. Formerly I examined him, and his determination was similar. 

“Glorious is that devotee who does not give up the shelter of his Lord, and glorious is that Lord who does not abandon His servant.

COMMENT

And my dear godbrother, Bhurijana Prabhu, wrote an autobiographical book called My Glorious Master, taking the phrase from these two verses: “If by chance a servant falls down and goes somewhere else, glorious is that master who captures him and brings him back by the hair.” And he related to that tell how Srila Prabhupada dealt with him.

Brahma Samhita Prabhu: That was very beautiful. Thank you so much. I got much more. Thank you.

Giriraj Swami: I see Malati dasi’s hand is up.

Malati dasi: Hare Krishna guru Maharaja. Please accept my respectful obeisances. All glories to you and Srila Prabhupada. Sometimes guru Maharaja, we take decisions according to our circumstances at that particular time, but those decisions are not correct. But still, we take it because our intelligence is not sharpened. Still, you take the decision according to your own mind. But ignorance is bliss, it is said, and we take it, but we suffer afterward. So, my question is, our intention was to please Krishna, but then we have to suffer. I can’t understand that. How is it that when our intention is to please Krishna, we have to suffer? But the principles were wrong. I hope I can put the question correctly guru Maharaja.

Giriraj Swami: She said that someone may have the intention to please Krishna, due to lack of experience or lack of knowledge, one may make a bad decision. Srila Prabhupada often quoted the saying, “To make the best use of a bad bargain.” For example, you may get on a flight to Calcutta. But after you are on the flight, you might realize, I made a mistake. I should have caught a flight to Delhi. But given that you are on the flight to Calcutta, which might not have been the best decision, you still have the choice of how to spend your time on the flight. You can chant, you can read. So, even though the choice you made about what flight to take might not have been the best, you still can make good choices in the context of being on the flight to Calcutta.

Do you want to say anything else Malati dasi?

Malati dasi: No, guru Maharaja. Thank you.

Giriraj Swami: Are there any more questions or comments?

Devotee: I have a question. Hare Krishna. Can I ask a question? Please accept my humble obeisances. All glories to Srila Prabhupada, all glories to your divine lotus feet. How can we always choose Krishna and not maya?

Giriraj Swami: Well, you have to be sincere. And in reply to the question of how to be sincere, Srila Prabhupada has given two answers. One answer was to, “Follow all of my instructions, however big or small.” And the other answer was to associate with sincere devotees. And if you are sincere, then you will choose Krishna, you will not choose maya.

Devotee: So, I feel I am sincere. I tell myself every day that I will choose Krishna, but then always the opposite happens. So then, and right now, association of devotees is very difficult because we are stuck at home. So, what to do?

Giriraj Swami: Well, if you don’t mind my asking, what would be an example of choosing maya? It is hard to see how it is.

Devotee: So, I work night shift, so every day to finish my rounds in the morning becomes very difficult. So I try my level best to do it, but sometimes, because of sleep, I am not able to. So that I feel is like choosing maya. And a lot of other things, small things. You go online to see, I want to listen to your class, and I end up listening to something else which is not Krishna conscious. So how to stop doing that?

Giriraj Swami: Yes, first example is all right that you want to chant your rounds early in the morning after you come home from the night shift. But if you are too tired, then what can you do. You have to take rest and then chant later. But as far as the other example, that you go online to hear a Krishna conscious lecture and then you get diverted into something that is not Krishna conscious, that can happen. But the question is, how long do you stay with the thing that is not Krishna conscious? If you watch for five minutes, maybe ten minutes, and think, “Oh, this is not Krishna conscious. I am wasting my time,” and then you leave it, that is not so bad. But if you get sucked into it and keep watching it, that I would say could be an obstacle in your spiritual progress. There is one talk that Srila Prabhupada gave in Los Angeles, and basically he said, “If you have time, chant Hare Krishna, don’t waste time.” So we should be conscious of how valuable our time is. So, you can think of that when you get tempted. So, don’t waste time. Chant Hare Krishna. Don’t speak nonsense. So we should be very careful about how we use our time because our time is our life.

Are there any more questions, comments?

All right, if not, then we can conclude by offering by Vaishnava praṇāma.

vāñchā-kalpatarubhyaś ca kṛpā-sindhubhya eva ca 

patitānāṁ pāvanebhyo vaiṣṇavebhyo namo namaḥ

Ananta-kotivaishnava-vrinda ki jaya!

Srila Prabhupada ki jaya!

Thank you very much. Thank you.