BG 18.65–66 – The Most Confidential Knowledge

Giriraj Swami: Hare Krishna, my dear devotees. I will sing the maṅgalācaraṇa prayers and lead a short kirtan. Then we will speak on the Bhagavad-gītā.

[Prayers and kirtan]

Host: Hare Krishna. Thank you so much for attending our Sunday Love Feast program. This is a weekly program that we have been having for more than forty years in this temple. We invite anyone who has come here for the first time, as well as everyone who has been here for years, we have the extreme privilege to have His Holiness Giriraj Swami with us. He is part of our community and is very dear to many devotees. He has been guiding the community for several years as we progress on our spiritual path. His Holiness Giriraj Swami joined Srila Prabhupada, who was the founding acharya, in 1969. Since then, he has led several different initiatives, including establishing a wonderful temple in Mumbai. He has written a wonderful book about his experiences. Along with that, he is in charge of the Bhaktivedanta Ashram, the Kirtan Ashram, and the Bhaktivedanta Hospice Palliative Care Units. He is a teacher at the Bhaktivedanta Institute of Higher Education and a trustee at the Bhaktivedanta Book Trust, which publishes all the books that Srila Prabhupada, our founder, has written and translated. These are Vedic texts that have existed for millennia, which Srila Prabhupada brought to a level where each one of us can practically understand and practice.

Today, we will be speaking and having a discussion from the Bhagavad-gītā, which will last till about 6:30. At 6:30, we will have a few questions and answers, followed by a few announcements, after which we will be heading out to a sumptuous feast that has been prepared. So please hang in there; this is a wonderful event. Without further ado, we will continue with the discussion on the Gītā. A loud Haribol for His Holiness Giriraj Swami.

Devotees: Haribol!

Giriraj Swami: Hare Krishna, my dear devotees. We shall read from Bhagavad-gītā As It Is, Chapter Eighteen, “Conclusion: The Perfection of Renunciation,” Text Sixty-five.

oṁ namo bhagavate vāsudevāya
oṁ namo bhagavate vāsudevāya
oṁ namo bhagavate vāsudevāya

TEXT 65

man-manā bhava mad-bhakto
mad-yājī māṁ namaskuru
mām evaiṣyasi satyaṁ te
pratijāne priyo ‘si me

TRANSLATION

Always think of Me, become My devotee, worship Me and offer your homage unto Me. Thus you will come to Me without fail. I promise you this because you are My very dear friend.

PURPORT by Srila Prabhupada

The most confidential part of knowledge is that one should become a pure devotee of Kṛṣṇa and always think of Him and act for Him. One should not become an official meditator. Life should be so molded that one will always have the chance to think of Kṛṣṇa. One should always act in such a way that all his daily activities are in connection with Kṛṣṇa. He should arrange his life in such a way that throughout the twenty-four hours he cannot but think of Kṛṣṇa.

COMMENT

So, it is the basic principle of vaidhī-sādhana-bhakti to always remember Krishna and never forget Him. It is stated, all the positive injunctions are servants of the one positive injunction to always remember Krishna. All the negative prohibitions are servants of the one negative prohibition to never forget Krishna.

PURPORT (continued)

And the Lord’s promise is that anyone who is in such pure Kṛṣṇa consciousness will certainly return to the abode of Kṛṣṇa, where he will be engaged in the association of Kṛṣṇa face to face.

COMMENT

So, this is our goal and the present verse in the Bhagavad-gītā tells us how we can reach that goal.

PURPORT (continued)

This most confidential part of knowledge is spoken to Arjuna because he is the dear friend of Kṛṣṇa.

COMMENT

Earlier in the Bhagavad-gītā Krishna explains why He spoke the Bhagavad-gītā to Arjuna. As Srila Prabhupada says Arjuna was not a brahman, he was not a sannyasi, he was a kshatriya and a grihastha then why did Krishna choose Arjuna to receive the all-important knowledge of the Bhagavad-gītā. And Krishna says, bhakto ‘si me sakhā ceti, because you are My devote and My dear friend. So, Bhagavad-gītā is meant for devotees, without being a devotee one cannot understand the Bhagavad-gītā, bhakto ‘si me sakhā ceti.

PURPORT (continued)

Everyone who follows the path of Arjuna can become a dear friend to Kṛṣṇa and obtain the same perfection as Arjuna.

These words stress that one should concentrate his mind upon Kṛṣṇa – the very form with two hands carrying a flute, the bluish boy with a beautiful face and peacock feathers in His hair. There are descriptions of Kṛṣṇa found in the Brahma-saṁhitā and other literatures. One should fix his mind on this original form of Godhead, Kṛṣṇa. One should not even divert his attention to other forms of the Lord. The Lord has multiforms as Viṣṇu, Nārāyaṇa, Rāma, Varāha, etc., but a devotee should concentrate his mind on the form that was present before Arjuna. Concentration of the mind on the form of Kṛṣṇa constitutes the most confidential part of knowledge, and this is disclosed to Arjuna because Arjuna is the most dear friend of Kṛṣṇa’s.

COMMENT

And then the most important verse.

TEXT 66

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

TRANSLATION

Abandon all varieties of religion and just surrender unto Me. I shall deliver you from all sinful reactions. Do not fear.

PURPORT by Srila Prabhupada

The Lord has described various kinds of knowledge and processes of religion – knowledge of the Supreme Brahman, knowledge of the Supersoul, knowledge of the different types of orders and statuses of social life, knowledge of the renounced order of life, knowledge of nonattachment, sense and mind control, meditation, etc. He has described in so many ways different types of religion. Now, in summarizing Bhagavad-gītā, the Lord says that Arjuna should give up all the processes that have been explained to him; he should simply surrender to Kṛṣṇa. That surrender will save him from all kinds of sinful reactions, for the Lord personally promises to protect him.

In the Seventh Chapter it was said that only one who has become free from all sinful reactions can take to the worship of Lord Kṛṣṇa. Thus one may think that unless he is free from all sinful reactions he cannot take to the surrendering process. To such doubts it is here said that even if one is not free from all sinful reactions, simply by the process of surrendering to Śrī Kṛṣṇa he is automatically freed. There is no need of strenuous effort to free oneself from sinful reactions. One should unhesitatingly accept Kṛṣṇa as the supreme savior of all living entities. With faith and love, one should surrender unto Him.

The process of surrender to Kṛṣṇa is described in the Hari-bhakti-vilāsa (11.676):

ānukūlyasya saṅkalpaḥ
prātikūlyasya varjanam
rakṣiṣyatīti viśvāso
optṛtve varaṇaṁ tathā
ātma-nikṣepa-kārpaṇye
ṣaḍ-vidhā śaraṇāgatiḥ

COMMENT

So, ānukūlyasya saṅkalpaḥ prātikūlyasya varjanam: one should accept whatever is favorable and reject whatever is unfavorable; rakṣiṣyatīti viśvāso: one should have faith that Krishna will protect him; goptṛtve varaṇaṁ tathā ātma-nikṣepa-kārpaṇye ṣaḍ-vidhā śaraṇāgatiḥ. These are the six divisions of surrender.

PURPORT (continued)

According to the devotional process, one should simply accept such religious principles that will lead ultimately to the devotional service of the Lord. One may perform a particular occupational duty according to his position in the social order, but if by executing his duty one does not come to the point of Kṛṣṇa consciousness, all his activities are in vain. Anything that does not lead to the perfectional stage of Kṛṣṇa consciousness should be avoided. One should be confident that in all circumstances Kṛṣṇa will protect him from all difficulties. There is no need of thinking how one should keep the body and soul together. Kṛṣṇa will see to that. One should always think himself helpless and should consider Kṛṣṇa the only basis for his progress in life. As soon as one seriously engages himself in devotional service to the Lord in full Kṛṣṇa consciousness, at once he becomes freed from all contamination of material nature. There are different processes of religion and purificatory processes by cultivation of knowledge, meditation in the mystic yoga system, etc., but one who surrenders unto Kṛṣṇa does not have to execute so many methods. That simple surrender unto Kṛṣṇa will save him from unnecessarily wasting time. One can thus make all progress at once and be freed from all sinful reactions.

One should be attracted by the beautiful vision of Kṛṣṇa. His name is Kṛṣṇa because He is all-attractive. One who becomes attracted by the beautiful, all-powerful, omnipotent vision of Kṛṣṇa is fortunate. There are different kinds of transcendentalists – some of them are attached to the impersonal Brahman vision, some of them are attracted by the Supersoul feature, etc., but one who is attracted to the personal feature of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, and, above all, one who is attracted by the Supreme Personality of Godhead as Kṛṣṇa Himself, is the most perfect transcendentalist. In other words, devotional service to Kṛṣṇa, in full consciousness, is the most confidential part of knowledge, and this is the essence of the whole Bhagavad-gītā. Karma-yogīs, empiric philosophers, mystics, and devotees are all called transcendentalists, but one who is a pure devotee is the best of all. The particular words used here, mā śucaḥ, “Don’t fear, don’t hesitate, don’t worry,” are very significant. One may be perplexed as to how one can give up all kinds of religious forms and simply surrender unto Kṛṣṇa, but such worry is useless.

COMMENT

So, my dear devotees, Lord Krishna has given very clear instructions, especially here at the end of the Bhagavad-gītā, Chapter Eighteen, “Conclusion: The Perfection of Renunciation.” By the grace of Srila Prabhupada, our founder-acharya, we have been given the process of bhakti-yoga by which we can fulfill the instructions and the desires of Lord Krishna. In the Bhakti-rasāmṛta-sindhu, Srila Rupa Gosvami enumerates sixty-four items of devotional service, but he says that of the sixty-four, five are most potent, and a little association with any one of the five can awaken dormant love for Krishna. What are the five? Sādhu-saṅga—association with devotees, and there is a specific definition of sadhu that Rupa Gosvami gives. Nāma-kīrtana—chanting the holy names; bhāgavata-śravaṇa—hearing Bhagavad-gītā and Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam; mathurā-vāsa—residing in Mathura, Srila Prabhupada explains the all his temples, where Krishna is the center and everyone is working together in service of Krishna, for the pleasure of Krishna is Vaikuntha; and mūrtira śraddhāya sevana—worshiping the deity with faith and veneration. So, sādhu-saṅga, nāma-kīrtana, bhāgavata-śravaṇa, mathurā-vāsa, and mūrtira śraddhāya sevana. Rupa Gosvami gives a precise definition of sādhu-saṅga, sajātīyāśaye snigdhe sādhau saṅga svato vare. Sajātīyā, in a literal sense, it means in the same caste or community, and in our context, it would mean a follower of Srila Prabhupada. And snigdhe means that the sadhu should be affectionate to you. svato vare means that the sadhu should be more advanced than you.

So, that is one of the five most potent items of devotional service: sādhu-saṅga, nāma-kīrtana, bhāgavata-śravaṇa, mathurā-vāsa, and mūrtira śraddhāya sevana. We can engage in all of these here at this temple. All of these processes are followed in this temple, and you can do them at home also. But, as Krishna has been saying and as Srila Prabhupada has been explaining, we should mold our lives in such a way that twenty-four hours a day, we can’t but think of Krishna. That will purify us and, in the end, qualify us or enable us to go back home, back to Godhead, and associate with Krishna eternally in pastimes of love. Especially in Kali-yuga, it is recommended,

harer nāma harer nāma
harer nāmaiva kevalam
kalau nāsty eva nāsty eva
nāsty eva gatir anyathā

“One should chant the holy names, chant the holy names, chant the holy names of Hari, Krishna. There is no other way, no other way, no other way for success in this age of Kali.” So, as Srila Prabhupada said in a lecture in Los Angeles, “If you have time, chant Hare Krishna. Don’t speak nonsense, don’t waste time, chant Hare Krishna.” So, whenever we have time, and we always have time, we should chant:

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

And always remember Krishna, never forget Him. Smartavyaḥ satataṁ viṣṇuḥ vismartavyo na jātucit. One should always remember Krishna, never forget Him. As I mentioned, all the positive injunctions are servants of the one positive injunction to always remember Krishna, smartavyaḥ satataṁ viṣṇuḥ. All the negative prohibitions are servants of the one negative prohibition to never forget Krishna, vismartavyo na jātucit. 

So, my dear devotees, thank you for listening so patiently and attentively. Now, if any of you have any questions or any comments, any reflections you would like to share, you can raise your hand. Yes.

Devotee: Guru Maharaja, thank you so much for your association. In the purport, you read that the segment of “Krishna will always protect, that a devotee is not put into difficulty.” At the same time, we see devotees go through many difficulties externally, where they seem to be protected by Krishna eventually, but sometimes we see that those difficulties also overwhelm their small spiritual attempts. So how do we understand Krishna’s plan?

Giriraj Swami: Well, everyone in the material world faces difficulties, not just devotees. When difficulties come, the devotee should take more shelter of Krishna. There is a very nice verse in the Tenth Canto of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, which is quoted by Srila Prabhupada in The Nectar of Devotion or by Rupa Gosvami in the Bhakti-rasāmṛta-sindhu, under the item of expecting the mercy of the Lord. The idea is that when difficulties arise, the devotee should serve the Lord and increase his service to the Lord with body, mind, and words. One who passes his time in that way, mukti-pade sa dāya-bhāk, he inherits the kingdom of God. The commentary on this verse says that just as a son has to do nothing but to remain alive to inherit the property of the father, similarly, all a devotee has to do is to remain alive in Krishna consciousness by chanting the holy names and following the regulative principles, and he will inherit the kingdom of God. So yes, we should not be discouraged if there are reversals or there will be reversals. But we should see every situation as an opportunity to increase our surrender to Krishna and dependence on Krishna. Yes.

Devotee: Hare Krishna Maharaja. So, my question was, in the purport, Prabhupada had mentioned that we should mainly focus on the Lord’s form, the Supreme Lord Krishna, even though He has many other forms like Rama and Vishnu, Narayana. My question is, if you are attached to a particular form of the Lord that may not be the ultimate form, the Supreme Lord, is that still okay? Will you still be able to gain qualities of a devotee? It said that devotees are recommended to focus mainly on Krishna’s form, right? But if you are more attached to Jagannatha or Narasingha, is there any slight deviation or anything?

Giriraj Swami: No, Krishna is the original personality of Godhead, and all the other forms come from Him. But there are devotees who have special attraction, say, to Lord Ramachandra, and that is fine. Lord Chaitanya had two devotees who were especially attracted to Lord Ramachandra, and he appreciated them. He accepted them as his dear devotees. But usually, in the beginning, we don’t have any particular attraction to any particular form of Godhead, and so we just focus on Krishna, and all the other forms are included within Him.

Devotee: Hare Krishna Maharaja, in the purport, Prabhupada said that one shouldn’t think about how to keep body and soul together. One should leave that to Krishna. And I was curious because in most practical examples, we see devotees are very much practically absorbed in how to be materially and spiritually balanced. That instruction seems maybe for more of a sannyasi, or is it applied for all devotees?

Giriraj Swami: It applies to all devotees in the sense that we don’t have to worry about it. Krishna will take care, as Srila Prabhupada says. But at the same time, especially grihasthas, they need to work, and working to earn money to maintain one’s Krishna conscious lifestyle is not against the principles of devotional service. It is within the range of devotional service because the ultimate goal is Krishna consciousness.

Devotee: Please do not be shy. Are there any other questions?

Thank you, Giriraj Swami Maharaja, for the wonderful discussion. Thank you, devotees, for participating in the discussion by being very attentive. We will be showing a small presentation. The temple, as Maharaja explained, is a place where we get educated on how to practice spiritual life in a practical way, how to remember Krishna, how to remain on the spiritual platform twenty-four hours a day, remembering our service to the Lord. His Holiness has written several books inspired by the teachings of our founder Srila Prabhupada that elaborate based on his experiences, practical experiences of his participation in helping Srila Prabhupada build this educational institution, this spiritual institution, this cultural institution. So, we have a small presentation about his journey and, of course, a presentation of the books that he has written. He is a very prolific writer and a very wonderful elaborator on the principles of spiritual life. I don’t even think that is a word, but really appreciate that you please pay attention to this wonderful video and stay for a few minutes to then have a few announcements about the wonderful books that are there.

[Video is played]