HH Guru Prasada Swami

[Guest guest]

>From Sri Mayapur Candrodaya Mandir!

 

March 3, 2006

Verse: Srimad-Bhagavatam 2.2.29

Speaker: HH Guru Prasada Swami

__

 

ghranena gandham rasanena vai rasam

rupam ca drstya svasanam tvacaiva

srotrena copetya nabho-gunatvam

pranena cakutim upaiti yogi

 

TRANSLATION: The devotee thus surpasses the subtle objects of different

senses like aroma by smelling, the palate by tasting, vision by seeing

forms, touch by contacting, the vibrations of the ear by ethereal

identification, and the sense organs by material activities.

 

PURPORT: Beyond the sky there are subtle coverings, resembling the

elementary coverings of the universes. The gross coverings are a development

of partial ingredients of the subtle causes. So the yogi or devotee, along

with liquidation of the gross elements, relinquishes the subtle causes like

aroma by smelling. The pure spiritual spark, the living entity, thus becomes

completely cleansed of all material contamination to become eligible for

entrance into the kingdom of God.

 

_________________________

 

(invocatory prayers)

 

This verse continues to describe the process of dissolution. As one of

speakers in the past, I think it was Ravindra, I don't remember exactly who,

was speaking about Prthu Maharaja going through this yogic process. Many

great devotees they themselves went through this process of dissolving the

body or bursting the body into flames. We may think why do they do this? But

actually we're all doing the same process, it's just that by the mercy of

Lord Caitanya and by the mercy of the holy name and by the mercy of

Kali-yuga. . . Kali-yuga, although it's a very difficult age, manda su-manda

matayoh, we're spiritually lazy, spiritually misguided, manda bhagya,

spiritually unlucky, of course ultimately there's no luck, but whatever we

call luck, meaning the results of our past activities, is not very

auspicious. And upadrutah, we are totally disturbed, above all.

 

So these are all the bad parts of Kali-yuga, but the good part is that the

holy name is accessible and is the process by which we can purify ourselves.

So in this age this whole yogic process can be done very quickly. Krsna

mentions this in Bhagavad-gita:

 

vedesu yajnesu tapahsu caiva, danesu yat punya phalam pradistam

 

That there are many Vedic processes like studying the Vedas, doing

sacrifices, austerities, giving charity, pious activities, philosophical

speculation or philosophical discovery or ascending by the philosophical

process. These area all given as ways to attain the Supreme, but who has

time for that? Most devotees barely have time to chant their rounds, so many

things to do just to maintain this body. In Kali-yuga it's difficult to

maintain the body. The Bhagavatam says that the successful head of the

family in Kali-yuga can maintain his family. This is great success. So

maintaining the body is such a difficult process in Kali-yuga. So how do we

have time for all these things?

 

atyeti tat sarvam idam viditva

 

That the yogi can surpass all these processes, what kind of yogi? Yogi

param, the supreme yogi, or the supreme yogi means the devotee, sthanam

upaiti cadyam, because he's focused on the original, the Supreme Personality

of Godhead, Sri Krsna, then all these other things are accomplished. Or as

Lord Kapiladeva says:

 

aho bata sva pacoto gariyan

yaj jihvagre vartate nama tubhyam

 

That if we can just master, of course we can't master the process of

chanting in the sense that it's not something that's under our control, but

if we can follow this process which is being explained here so nicely in the

Bhagavatam, and Srila Prabhupada is elaborating on this, we can take shelter

of the holy name. Taking shelter means "anukirtanam," as the Bhagavatam

says, "anukirtanam" means to chant following the instructions, indications

of the spiritual master and previous acaryas. So how do they tell us to

chant? That we avoid the ten offences, that we pay strict attention. We

understand, as Srila Prabhupada said, "Here is Radha, here is Krsna, here is

Vrindavan, in the holy name. Here is the whole spiritual world because

"abhinnatvam nama namine" there's no difference between Krsna and his name.

So when we chant that holy name then everything is revealed. All spiritual

life, the whole spiritual manifestation is revealed to one who has a taste

for the holy name.

 

But in order to have that taste we have to go through this yogic process.

The great devotees who did this yogic process mechanically - this is

described more in the next verse, especially in the purport Srila Prabhupada

describes. So someone will get into those details more, whoever gives class

tomorrow, but basically you offer the gross elements into the modes of

ignorance, you offer the subtle elements into the mode of passion, and you

offer the mind, the intelligence, these subtle aspects of our own

manifestation into the mode of goodness. And then what is left? As Srila

Prabhupada says here, "The pure spiritual spark, the living entity, thus

becomes completely cleansed of all material contamination. . . ."

 

So that's what we are doing. Krsna describes this process:

 

yat karosi yad asnasi yaj juhosi dadasi yat

yat tapasyasi kaunteya tat kurusva mad-arpanam

 

We're doing that. Everything we eat, we offer to Krsna. Just like the

pujaris are doing the arati, so they are offering fire and water and flower,

everything, all the material elements are being offered to Krsna. So the

devotee, just by the process of offering our bhoga, our foodstuffs to Krsna

to please him. Of course there's karma-yoga and there's bhakti-yoga.

Karma-yoga means that I want to acquire these things and I can offer them to

Krsna and then I can live by the results. And bhakti means no, let me offer

everything to Krsna. It belongs to him.

 

Just by being engaged in the process of devotional service we are

automatically doing this yoga process. This lifetime is to offer ultimately,

this material body, we offer it to the service of Krsna. That's what we

learn as especially as brahmacaris, brahmacarinis. That's why it's very good

for devotees to take some time to learn how to dedicate myself to Krsna.

Doing marathons, distributing books, holy days, Janmastami, fasting you're

just hearing and chanting and serving Krsna, learning how to sacrifice

everything.

 

Even if one cannot do the brahmacari process because they are already

married, but they can still come and surrender to Krsna. Just like

Ramanujacarya, two of his sannyasis were arguing over a piece of cloth. One

had taken a piece of cloth of the other. These were the renunciants, and

they came to him, to the acarya, to resolve the issue of a piece of cloth.

He wasn't very happy about that. So he said, "I will show you what real

renunciation is. You go to the house of this grhastha and take all of their

jewellery and bring it to me." How can we sannyasis do this? but it was the

order of the acarya so the went and they did it. Of course they were very

clumsy and they were making some noise, and the wife was moving so they

could take the other earring, and they left quickly. And she immediately

spoke to her husband and they said "Let us go, our guru must need

something." So they got all of their possessions and brought them and

offered them to Ramanuja. They said "There must be some great need if the

sannyasis are going around collecting." So he said "This is renunciation."

 

So anyone and everyone can do the process. The process means giving

everything to Krsna. And the via medium to give everything to Krsna is to

follow the instructions of Sri Guru and Sri Vaisnava. Everything is

automatically engaged, yukta-vairagya. Of course we have to be careful with

the concept of yukta-vairagya. Some people get a little carried away with

yukta-vairagya, it becomes just yukta, with no vairagya. [mild laughter]

Just like I've seen sometimes devotees they think, "What would I like to

eat, let's offer that to Krsna. Here Krsna take it, OK, you can eat with

your eyes, right, OK you're quick faster than time." And then they enjoy it

very nicely. "Krsna you eat quickly today because I'm hungry."

 

So when we base our offering, whether it be offering some foodstuffs or

offering our activities on what I like to do. . . of course in the beginning

of Krsna consciousness, that's natural and also even Arjuna was instructed

by Krsna to do that, because this was his nature, he was a ksatriya, but

Krsna told Arjuna, internally. . . externally yes, you have to follow your

nature, but internally he instructed Arjuna to be more than a sannyasi.

Internally Arjuna became totally surrendered to Krsna. The instructions of

Bhagavad-gita, the degree of sacrifice, renunciation, given in Gita is

unbelievable.

 

But actually it's not so difficult. It's not so difficult because in the

Bhagavatam later on, in the 9th Canto, teaches us how to accomplish this

form of renunciation, and who was the one who did it? Arjuna heard

Bhagavad-gita and who was the one to show practically perfect renunciation,

Ambarisa Maharaja. Ambarisa Maharaja is characterized:

 

sa vai manah krsna padaravindayoh

 

That his mind, totally immersed in Krsna, totally immersed in Krsna. And how

did he do that? In a totally practical way. Sometimes we hear that, just

like Krsna instructs us in Bhagavad-gita, that "mayy asakta manah partha",

the mind should be totally focused on Krsna. That seems rather theoretical

for someone who's still captivated by the modes of material nature, it seems

a very difficult process to do, but Ambarisa Maharaja taught us

 

vacamsi vaikuntha-gunanuvarnane

 

that if you have to hear something, not like the materialistic persons.

Materialistic persons, as the Bhagavatam said a little earlier in this

particular canto that,

 

srotavyadini rajendra, nrnam santi sahasrasah

 

that materialistic persons have thousands and thousands of things to hear

but apasyatam atma-tattvam, everything except for the Absolute Truth.

Anything else is OK, except for the Absolute Truth.

 

As Srila Prabhupada says in one purport in the first canto, that the birds

are speaking so many things, the birds are saying "Where's my foodstuff, how

are my little birdies doing," they are communicating so nicely. We hear them

every day, especially here in Mayapur there are so many birds. Nowadays in

cities you can hardly hear the birds anymore, because even if they're there

- they don't have any place to live except for window sills or something and

you can't open your windows because there's so much pollution, but even if

you do you just hear traffic. But here you can still hear the birds, in

Vrindavan you can here the birds. If you live in the country, as Srila

Prabhupada recommended, except for the preachers, we should live in the

country, we can hear the birds. But they are hearing, "Yes, let us eat, let

us sleep, let us do these things."

 

And everyone, the newspaper is giving so much information, everything except

for real information. Just like Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakur, one time

he was preaching to one British gentleman and he said, when he saw

Sajjana-tosani, "It's amazing that you can print a magazine every day about

some spiritual matters, it's amazing!"

 

And he said "Amazing? Every day in your country you have thousands and

thousands of newspapers every day speaking about eating, sleeping, mating

and defending. So the spiritual world, where Krsna the Supreme Person has

unlimited activities, we should have millions of magazines every day. There

can be millions of magazines. So one magazine is actually a shortcome. It's

not enough."

 

So many things to speak about Krsna but nobody wants to hear these things,

but the devotee is always speaking about such subject matters. And then

 

karau harer mandira-marjanadisu

 

As we sing every day that the spiritual master is teaching the disciple how

to clean the temple. This is very practical and it's very ecstatic, cleaning

the temple. It's actually one of the best, especially nowadays, nowadays we

live in a society which is governed by stress. Everyone is being beaten by

stress. One of the best therapies is floor therapy, bathroom therapy, pot

therapy, clean the pots, wipe down the floor, clean the bathroom. This is

wonderful for the mind. Just be absorbed in some simple service for Krsna.

There's no stress. You don't see someone cleaning the floor all stressed out

except they want it to be very nice and clean. Such simple things we can do.

Ambarisa Maharaja taught us. And

 

srutim cakaracyuta sat-kathodaye

 

And if we have to hear something, just like you go downtown in any city and

all the music blaring, sounds and all kinds of things trying to attract your

ears, people watching television. So many sounds trying to pull our senses

away from Krsna. But if we simply hear sat-kathodaye, subject matters about

the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Mukunda lingaya. Here is mukunda

lingaya. We see the deity of the Lord. Not only do we see the deity, but the

devotee learns, just like Krsna says in Bhagavad-gita, the devotee learns

 

yo mam pasyati sarvatra sarvam ca mayi pasyati

 

That the devotee sees everything in Krsna and that everything is coming from

Krsna and Krsna is within everything. A devotee, this is his vision. Srila

Visvanath Cakravarti Thakur says that this is what it means to see Krsna.

That seeing Krsna doesn't mean that we want Krsna to be dancing before us.

We don't want to convert Krsna into an artist for my entertainment, but let

Krsna be dancing before me. Srila Prabhupada spoke about this many times

speaking about the last sloka of the Goswamyastakam, that

 

he radhe vraja devike ca lalite, he nanda-suno kutah

 

This is the vision of the Six Goswamis that "Where is Radha, where is

Krsna," otherwise, let me do service, let me try to understand Krsna by my

devotional service. Not that, "Last night I saw Krsna, I had this vision."

This is popular nowadays, "I saw, I saw, I know, I saw." This is not the

mood of a devotee. A devotee's mood is to see Krsna in everything. See how I

can offer everything to Krsna.

 

Just like part of the area of my responsibility, Venezuela. Venezuela is

bordering with Guyana. So there's one region which is just jungle and it's

is called the area of reclamation which means both countries are trying to

get it. It is a big jungle. Of course the real thing is there is petroleum

there, that's why they want it. So for a devotee this whole material world,

this whole universe, is in reclamation. We have to offer it to Krsna. One

time a devotee said "What will we do when everyone has books? What will we

do?" And Prabhupada said, "We will give them more books."

 

"But what will happen when everyone has your books," this is the enthusiasm

of a devotee. Now we're thinking, "They don't want the books, better I leave

them, let them be peaceful." But he said, "Then we go to another planet."

[mild laughter] No dearth of opportunities to serve Krsna and to save the

fallen conditioned souls. This is our great opportunity that devotional

service is so wonderful.

 

So we can hear, we can see Krsna everywhere, just by seeing that everything

is there to be offered to Krsna. Then:

 

tad-bhrtya-gatra-sparse 'nga-sangamam

 

How do we use our sense of touch? By touching the lotus feet of advanced

Vaisnavas by embracing the devotees of the Lord, by using that sense of

touch for taking things and offering them to Krsna. This is how we do it.

And everything,

 

ghranam ca tat-pada-saroja-saurabhe srimat-tulasya

 

That Tulasidevi, we smell the wonderful aroma of Tulasidevi offered to the

lotus feet of Krsna, and rasanam tad-arpite, we offer our foodstuffs to

Krsna and we satisfy the tastes, just like it is mentioned here in this

verse that "rasanena vai rasam". And our feet, we use for going to the

temple. Even if we don't have feet, we try to go. Whatever our physical

condition we try to get there somehow or other. And our head, just like

Manigriva and Nalakuvara, they were praying to Krsna and one of their

sentiments was "Now let me bow down and put my head on the ground to the

lotus feet of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Previously we were

thinking we were the sons of Kuvera and so we had our head back and our

chest out, but this is not a very good position. Better we take our chests

in and put our head down on the lotus feet of Krsna. This is a much better

position."

 

Therefore, Rupa Goswami says we should touch five points, bow down to the

Supreme Personality of Godhead touching the head to the ground, touching the

hands, symbolizing the whole body should be offered. This is devotional

service.

 

So that is the way that Ambarisa Maharaja, "kamam ca dasye na tu

kama-kamyaya" that in this way he had no desire for sense gratification

because all of his desires were offered to Krsna. And how did he do it?

"Yathottama-sloka-janasraya ratih," he developed that ability, that

attraction to do so by janasraya, by following in the footsteps of great

devotees of the Lord like Prahlada Maharaja, Srila Prabhupada mentions, so

many great devotees in the Bhagavatam that are teaching us how to perform

the process of devotional service.

 

And there are other ways. One may think that "Even that is difficult for me.

I am busy. I am working. I have a scientific mind. I am a poet. I am an

artist. So what can I do? How can I offer this?" So also, Narada Muni offers

that solution, that

 

idam hi pumsas tapasah srutasya va

svistasya suktasya ca buddhi-dattayoh

avicyuto 'rthah kavibhir nirupito

yad-uttamasloka-gunanuvarnanam

 

How can we do it? Everything we're doing: austerities, Vedic study, process

of acquiring knowledge - and Srila Prabhupada includes other things -

science, chemistry, psychology, everything can be offered. Whatever our

profession may be, the important thing is "avicyuto 'rthah", the infallible

purpose of every activity, according to learned personalities, is to glorify

that person, uttamasloka, the only person who's worthy of glory. Otherwise

by saying uttama-sloka it means that every word, every action, every thought

- everything has to be offered to Krsna. This is the point of devotional

life.

 

So this is the yoga process and this is all being done by every one of us at

every moment. This is the process of gradual renunciation by engaging in

devotional service and tasting devotional service, "param drstva nivartate,"

that acquiring a higher taste in devotional service. We've all done that.

Sometimes with devotees there's a certain mid-devotional life crisis. Just

like people have mid-life crisis, so there's a mid-devotional life crisis.

First we come in very enthusiastic then you get to the point that "Hey, I

really have to do this, this is full time, this is for the whole life." It's

not like boot camp, I go for two years and go back to material activities,

though some people do go for that option.

 

But no, this is serious and I have to do this all my life, and it becomes

difficult, or else because our mind is not tasting the chanting of the holy

name or getting a taste for devotional service, then everything seems to be

very routine, doing the same thing every day. Although everyone in the

material world does the same thing every day. First of all they're all

eating, sleeping, mating and defending, and they're all going to work at the

same time, they're all doing the same thing basically. And even when they're

not doing the same thing, basically they're doing the same thing by the four

basic activities.

 

So sometimes a devotee gets into this crisis that devotional service has

become very difficult. This can happen to us. And the solution is that by

associating with Vaisnavas who have this taste, by getting a higher taste

all the time. . . we should just reflect if this thing happens to us we

should reflect, "When I first came to Krsna consciousness, if I wasn't a

vegetarian, then vegetarianism seemed like something very difficult. Or I

had some other habit that doesn't fall in line with the four regulative

principles, it seemed so difficult to give up. Now it seems atrocious, now

it seems abominable, after.

 

So we should see our progress, we shouldn't rest on that progress and think

now I've made it, but when difficult times come we should see our progress.

Or as Srila Prabhupada says when there's difficulty in devotional service

then one should think that this difficulty is. . . "I deserve so much

difficulty, but this difficulty is a little something of the difficulties I

should be experiencing thousands of. . . . Krsna, you're so merciful."

 

And if there's some material enjoyment, we don't think, "Yes, Krsna wants

this for me, great. I knew that I was special, I knew that Krsna would give

me special compensation." No, the devotee thinks that "I don't deserve this,

therefore Krsna is offering me this facility to use in his service. So I

certainly don't deserve this." This is how a devotee always maintains a

progressive attitude in devotional service. Anything that happens we find a

way to offer it to Krsna.

 

That's the way we come to the position, as said here in this purport, of

realizing that I am a pure spiritual spark the living entity then is

cleansed of all material contamination and is eligible for gaining entrance

into the kingdom of God. So this eligibility has been made very simple. Just

by chanting

 

hare krsna hare krsna krsna krsna hare hare

hare rama hare rama rama rama hare hare

 

we become eligible. And that chanting, although it seems very simple and

even Srila Prabhupada's translation of the maha-mantra, "O my Lord, please

engage me in your devotional service", it seems at first glance very simple,

but the one word, Please engage me", this is the difficulty. It means that

it's up to Krsna. And Krsna is not making some kind of capricious. . . some

people think that, "God, what is his basis of discrimination? These people

get fortune, other people get difficulty." But the devotee understands that

Krsna has perfect discrimination. Therefore he begs, please engage me. That

attitude of begging means that I have to give up the false ego. That's

discussed in the next verse in detail. But I have to give up all these

things and ultimately I have to give up the false ego which has so many

dimensions. That's been described:

 

sarvopadhi-vinirmuktam, tat paratvena nirmalam

 

Give up all my designations, just understand there's only one designation,

krsnera nitya dasa, this is the seed of devotional service which gradually

sprouts and one ultimately comes to understanding who I really am. First of

all who I am is who everybody is - a servant of Krsna. But then which

servant of Krsna? That will be revealed to us by purely chanting the holy

name of Krsna. And that pure chanting of the holy name of Krsna will come

about by serving the pure devotee of the Lord and the pure devotees of the

Lord, and serving all the devotees and serving all the living entities,

"suhrdam sarva-dehinam," seeing them all as our friend and being their

well-wisher and seeing them as our well-wishers. They're all there to play

some part in my very existence. And in that way we can complete this process

of offering everything back to the Supreme Personality of Godhead, "I have

nothing, I only have this prayer, please engage me in your devotional

service." So although very simple, it is actually one of the greatest sutras

that has ever been spoken because it means that I have to completely

surrender unto Krsna, that thing which those in the material world never

want to do.

 

So I'll stop here. Are there any questions?

 

Question: It's seems that it's easier to surrender the more gross types of

enjoyment like say you're working in a factory but you're thinking of Krsna.

.. .? but the more subtle types of enjoyment, let's say you're a research

scientist. It's not so easy because you really have to surrender to their

way of doing things. Ycou can't go to work every day and ?? that Darwin is

wrong. So devotees who PHD's in science they pretty much have to surrender

to the scientific establishment and just go there and work and put their

nose to the grindstone, come home with their pay cheque and give some of it

to Krsna. . . it's very difficult. . . ?

 

Maharaja: It's true, it may seem to take more effort, but I just remember

even those devotees engage in full time service, like the sankirtana

devotees, they go out they have to confront the modes of nature head on,

just battling it out with all kinds of false ego and all kinds of

conceptions. And then they come back and the temple is like an oasis. So

they are so appreciative, coming back, but sometimes those who stay in the

temple are arguing who's going to get the maha prasadam. So the temple

becomes a battleground. So it just depends on a devotee's good

consciousness.

 

I remember one devotee specifically. There was one devotee in Chicago and he

was working in a factory. His job was to put bolt no. A17 into screw B19.

That was his job, every day that's what he was doing. But he'd always be

chanting, just a very nice devotee, simple. Work wasn't that complicated,

maybe a nuclear physicist is more complex, but he was just there chanting

and every day he would take prasadam and his co-workers would see him

relishing prasadam. They were saying, "Why are you so happy? You can't be

happy, you have to miserable like us."

 

"Well," he said, "Actually, it's because I eat this special food." And he

asked his wife to prepare a little more prasadam and he started giving

prasadam to everyone. And he said, "And I just sing this song, it's the

names of God." And he taught some of his workers and they actually thought

it was nice, they started doing it and started working harder. And the

supervisor said, "You know, we're going to promote you, because you've got

everybody else to work, you have some ability." [laughter] Just by chanting.

Even in my own life, I've experienced that. At one time I was in the army,

it was very miserable, I was trying to chant and I was thinking this is very

miserable, please Krsna save me. Then all of a sudden - everyone was getting

disgusted because I would get up early in the morning and chant - they would

throw something over. Because we didn't have any walls, we just had

partitions. So I'd turn on my little light and immediately some boot or some

can would fly over, "Shut up, turn off that light!Hare Krsna, Hare

Krsna." Finally I thought this is really going to be difficult. Then a few

days later one of the officers called me in and said you don't belong here

so he transferred me to chaplain school and pretty soon I didn't even have

to come any more. Just by Krsna's mercy.

 

So if one withstands the initial difficulties of having to work in some

position in material nature, I always tell devotees, because devotees always

come and say "It's so difficult, family life and demanding and work and this

and that." And I say "Just do it and chant and meditate on Krsna and if you

accept it as Krsna's mercy very soon - now very soon may be one year, ten

years, twenty years, thirty years, whatever, we have to think in terms of

Krsna's time calculation, not our own - very soon Krsna will change your

situation. And I see that when devotees do that they actually become happy

even whatever struggle is imparted by their work or lifestyle. Krsna makes

an arrangement if they keep a very positive attitude. So it doesn't mean

that we have to be in a temple, but Krsna will make that arrangement, he'll

put you in a better position. And if he doesn't it just means you have to go

through a certain number of things but it will come soon.

 

That's called, according to Rupa Goswami, "asa-bandha samutkantha", I always

have high hopes and I'm always very eager to engage in devotional service,

everything seems so wonderful. This is the nature of devotional service. Any

other questions? Yes, take the microphone over so we can hear that nice

echo.

 

Question: Hare Krsna Maharaja, you said about mid-life devotional crisis.

Now Prabhupada once mentioned that we want someone with independent

thoughts. In this reference, if, say, someone after twenty years of

devotional service or whatever, one fine day expresses his independent

thoughts in a very disturbing(?) way and someone who is hearing this view

and due to material opulence or whatever he proceeds the person to stand

outside as a pet dog, rather than thinking on the viewpoint.(??) In these

circumstances how to maintain our enthusiasm and determination in devotional

life. Because a person's ego has not purified so it pinches and still he

wants to continue so what's the solution?

 

Maharaja: A devotee's position is internal, doesn't depend on external

circumstances, doesn't depend on what people say to us, how people treat us.

This is the lesson given by so many devotees, and especially Rsabhadeva, the

Supreme Lord. People were spitting on him, people were urinating on him,

that's certainly more difficult circumstances than any of us are

experiencing. Someone may bother our false ego or say things to us or makes

things difficult for us, but a devotee has to become absorbed in Krsna. Then

anything that we have to go through we'll see it as something that Krsna is

putting us through for our own purification. Because if we react to anything

it is simply false ego. If we react to any circumstance, however difficult

or however challenging it may be, a devotee accepts that. Just like what the

devotees experienced with Srila Prabhupada in Juhu, after all that

experience with Mr. Nair and everything, Srila Prabhupada sat down after it

was all over and Prabhupada said "That was a good fight". In that way a

devotee accepts any difficulty or circumstance as an opportunity to

intensify our devotional service. Any other question?

 

Thank you, oh here's one more question.

 

Question: You talked about the false ego, so may be you can explain a little

bit more about the mechanics of the false ego, especially when we are on

sankirtana, so we can discriminate if we are on the false ego platform. How

does it work actually?

 

Maharaja: Actually I didn't speak about it so much because that's the

subject matter of the next verse. But false ego, just like I quoted

"sarvopadhi vinirmuktam," means I'm giving up designations. So the false ego

when we're on sankirtana, what is that? We may think "I don't want to

approach that person that person looks a little difficult, that person may

insult me, that person may not take a book and then I won't be celebrate as

the biggest book distributor because I just to have to find. . ." if we're

thinking in terms of numbers, false ego. I've go to do this many books so

that people will worship me, puja, this is false ego. But if we think "Let

me encourage this person," then Krsna will guide us to those people who

deserve a book. And if our false ego is very big he'll guide us to people

who will smash it down. That's how it works. That's the mechanism. The

mechanism is Krsna's will. If I go out there and do my service, then by

Krsna's will everything will happen in such a way that we become purified.

 

That's the mechanical process which is a spiritual process, but those are

the mechanics of it. And in tomorrow's verse there's a very detailed

analysis in Srila Prabhupada's purport of the false ego. So we'll leave that

for tomorrow's speaker.

 

Thank you all very much. All glories to Sri Guru, Sri Gauranga, Srila

Prabhupada ki jai!