Krishna Prema pradaya te

[Pankaja_Dasa]

 

<center>

<h2>Bhakti Vaibhava Puri Maharaja</h2>

of

<font color="red"> Sri Krishna Chaitanya Mission</font color>

</center>

<h3> Tivoli, Slovenia 24.6.1999. </h3>

 

 

 

 

But we are moving in this world

(verse?)

punar api janmam

punar api maranam

punar api janani

jadane sayanam

samsare putra para dosa

tatha ..... santosa

 

 

 

Where can we really enjoy? We are running after enjoyment. It is only deluding potency which is deluding us. Really we want happiness, we want enjoyment through our senses. We want to see and be happy. We want to hear and be happy. And we want to taste and be happy. And we also want to enjoy happiness and realize that happiness for which we are traveling since so many decades, so many centuries, so many innumerable millions of births. But, why do we take birth and die? Only for enjoyment. We could not able to have the satisfaction and enjoyment. So, dissatisfied we lose this body, enter into another body and there we enjoy, but no satisfaction.

 

 

 

Like this hundred, thousands, millions of births we had. But actually, nowhere we really enjoyed happiness or peace. We are without wants? No. Everybody has got some want. We are after want. Those wants have no end. If one goes, another comes. We are not satisfied with it. Whatever we have we are not satisfied. In order to improve our position we work hard. We struggle hard. We travel by train. We travel by airplane. We travel by more faster vehicles for the pleasures. And for what purpose? Only to satisfy ourselves. That is our want. There are many wants. No want actually we posses can give us real happiness. That we do not know. We are only running after temporary happiness. It is illusory. It is not really happiness. It's illusory. And that illusory happiness we are spending our valuable lives on. And when occasion comes, then we were fortunate when we could get the association of a realized vaisnava or a sadhu.

 

 

 

 

mamottamasloka janesu sakhyam

 

samsara-cakre bhramatah sva-karmabhih

 

tvan-mayayatmatmaja-dara-gehesv

 

asakta-cittasya na natha bhuyat

 

 

Citraketu, a great devotee of the Lord Vishnu. He praised the Lord:

 

 

"Oh Lord, I don't want anything in this world."

 

 

na naka-prstham na ca paramesthyam

 

na sarva-bhaumam na rasadhipatyam

 

na yoga-siddhir apunar-bhavam va

 

samanjasa tva virahayya kankse

 

 

"Oh Lord, I don't want the throne of Indra or throne of Brahma. I don't want to be the master or the ruler of the whole world. Though it is offered to me I won't accept. And all mystic siddhis also I don't want"

 

 

And:

 

 

"What do you want?"

 

 

"I don't want even freedom from birth and death."

 

 

"Then what do you want?"

 

 

"I want you. You are my wealth. You are the wealth. And if you bless me I will be happy. My happiness comes to an end when I see you, when I talk to you, when I do your service. Then you will be pleased and if you are pleased I will really enjoy the happiness for which I was traveling from one life to another life. Another life to another life. I had no satisfaction. I could not be fully satisfied. Now, when I could see you Lord, and when I approach you, and through your grace, and your pleasing look at this soul. My heart is burning. Now, the heart will become cold. Just like you see the hard day, in the night when you see the moonlight then your heart becomes cold."

 

 

Likewise, here in this world we are suffering. Always suffering, suffering, suffering. Nobody can say that I am not suffering. Suffering 1%, 200% and 1000%. There is no limit in suffering. Only we forget that suffering when the reaction comes and for a second we feel happy. But again we have to be dissatisfied. So, real satisfaction comes to us, real happiness comes to us through the association of a sadhu. Sadhus are, real sadhus, they don't want anything of this world. No luxuries they want. They never travel throughout the world to enjoy happiness or enjoy more and freely travel in air. No. What do they want? They want the link with the Supreme Power, Supreme Lord. So, those desires of the sincere devotees can be fulfilled through the association of a sadhu. Sadhus are like gems. If you touch the iron piece with that gem then the iron becomes gold. How is it? You see, the Lord says that... A story about a person, great scholar. And he approached Mahadeva at Benares and begged him. And he, without food. He was fasting. And begging to bless him. And

 

Mahadeva asked:

 

 

"What do you want?"

 

 

"Sir, I am suffering. You please remove my suffering."

 

 

"Yes. You can have it. You go to Vrindavan. There is a Mahatma. A great soul. And he has got a touching stone. For some money it can. Tell him that I ordered him to deliver that money-gem to you. So, all you troubles, all your sufferings will be cleared."

 

 

 

 

 

 

Then he thought that:

 

 

"Definitely that touching stone will give me multimillions of rupees. I can able to obtain and get happiness."

 

 

So, went there and requested that saint:

 

 

"Sir, you have got that gem. I was informed by Mahadeva and I have come to you, beg you. As he ordered me to reach you, and I, please, can you accept my prayers?"

 

 

Then he said:

 

 

"Yes, yes. Gem is there, but I don't remember where it is."

 

 

Then he thought:

 

 

"Yes, I am unfortunate. Though my Lord Siva gave me the gem, but I am not fortunate enough to have it my hand. What shall I do?"

 

 

Then he sat for hours. Several hours. No reply. Then he said:

 

 

"I am unfortunate. So, I will take leave and go"

 

 

When he was going away then Sanatana Goswami. He is Sanatana Goswami. He has come out.

 

 

"Yes, you go and there kilometer the 10th, there is one tree. You see on east side of the tree if you dig hard 6 inches you will get that gem there."

 

 

He went there and at a particular spot he opened and saw the gem dazzling like sun.

 

 

"Oh!?"

 

 

Now he tested. A piece of iron he touched, he touched gem. Immediately it become gold.

 

 

"Oh, that's correct. This is correct. Mahadeva's boon is correct. Now, I lost my sufferings. I have no sufferings!"

 

 

He thought:

 

 

"In exchange I will get gold and all the suffering must go."

So, carefully in his cloth he kept it and walking to his village. On the way, he is thinking about:

 

 

"Such a valuable article this gem. How this saint? He has no cottage, he has no cloth. He is nakedlike with one kaupina. No, not even a glass, anything for water, no glass is there, nothing is with him. Then he is suffering. Then he is master of that gem. Why should he suffer like this? In cold wind. In cold season. No carpet. No kambl."

 

 

He asked:

 

 

"How he is suffering? Why he is suffering? Is he ignorant? Why he is suffering? When such a valuable gem is there why should he suffer?"

 

 

Then he could reconcile that:

 

 

"No. There must be some valuable, than this gem must be there with him. So, with that gem he forgot this gem which can give us happiness. He forgot that. He is more happy with that gem. Why should he take care of this material gem?"

 

 

Then he returned back to him.

 

 

"Sir , I beg you that having in possession such a valuable gem you are nakedlike. You have no cottage, no hut, nothing. You have no shelter. You are sitting under a tree. When you possess such gem which can help you to construct a skyscraper, a hundred stories building. There sufficient luxuries you can enjoy. Why, this luck was thrown? And when I asked "I don't remember where it is" he said. Now after all he gave correct information. I could get the gem, real gem. It is not a mockery. It is not. Actually I am not deceived. Mahadeva never deceived and you never deceived. You have given me that gem. But, I think that in this gem I should enjoy happiness. But in this gem you had no happiness. This gem was thrown at the shade of a tree. It is like a stone. You have treated this like a stone. And why should I kept that. You have got much more valuable stone with you. That stone you please give. We are blessed. Let me sir, give me that stone."

 

 

Then he said:

 

 

"Do you want that stone? You throw this in Yamuna."

 

 

So, immediately he threw that in Yamuna. Then, he gave:

 

 

cintamani-prakara-sadmasu kalpavrksa-

 

laksavrtesu surabhir abhipalayantam

 

laksmi-sahasra-sata-sambhrama-sevyamanam

 

govindam adi-purusam tam aham bhajami

 

 

He gave in his loan Krishna, Krishna. When he serve Krishna, when he served Krishna, when Krishna came totally in his hands then all his desires of this material gem, all his desires for material enjoyment, happiness, all evaporated.

 

 

"I have, I am free from the world's bondage. I am free. By your grace I am free. Because my life, thought could reach my Lord Krishna."

 

 

There is nothing superior to Lord Krishna and nothing superior to the blessing of Lord Krishna. No one can have that blessing except who unconditionally surrenders to the Lord. ..... there to approach blessing to the Lord is to unconditionally surrender to him. If one surrenders, Lord will destroy all his sufferings. He will, every second, every moment he will enjoy.

 

 

And, Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, when he took initiation from Iswara Puri at Gaya. When he returned from there he was a great scholar, he was a teacher of several thousands students to whom he used to teach. And everybody, there are so many thousands schools, but they teach sanskrit and scholars are many, yet everybody is anxious to reach Chaitanya Prabhu. He is called Nimai pandit. His name was Nimai pandit then. So, giving up all the pundits they used to come to Nimai. And whatever they learned after ten years, Mahaprabhu used to tell them in two years. He was great because he is the Lord. Now, these students, when Mahaprabhu returned from Gaya, Mahaprabhu told all the students:

 

 

"You have studied. I am not going to teach you the same subject again. I will teach you about the Supreme Lord. That subject you have to hear."

 

 

vidya bhagavata avati

 

 

Now, you have become great devotees. Now, you must try to know the transcendental science. I will teach you that transcendental science. You should learn this. Many who are after worldly learning, they went to different pundits. And Mahaprabhu, very few with, was very eager to be with Mahaprabhu only. So Mahaprabhu he was preaching about devotion. The devotion. Because till then he was a great scholar. Everybody, he used to defeat them, questioning about philosophical and grammatical aspects, used to fight with them. But now he gave it up. He wants to reveal himself that he has come to this world to spread this devotion. Unconditional devotion and pure devotion. And the devotion, devotional gem he wants to:

 

 

krishna prema pradaya te

 

 

He distributed that devotional love to all without distinction of caste, creed or wealth or knowledge. One may have knowledge, one may have no knowledge. One may have wealth, one may have no wealth. One belongs to high class, one belongs to poor class. Whoever he may be if he comes in his view, whenever he sees him, he delivers that prema, that wealth, that spiritual wealth to all. Then after some time he looks at the world. He thought:

 

 

"The world is free from influence of kama. Now flooded with prema. They are floating on prema, Krishna prema."

 

 

So now, these people who were suffering birth after birth, birth after birth due to their ambitions, greed for happiness and wealth and enjoyment. Now, by the grace of Lord Chaitanya, they are free from greed, free from anger, free from all these qualities which distract a person from devotional thoughts. They are now happy. All these people of Navadvip, they were very happy. Because they have got transcendental love. That love is what we want. We are loving the material objects here. We are loving the nature. We are loving the trees. We are loving the valuable articles. We love golden ornaments. We love buildings. We love dogs. We love cats.

 

 

 

We love our social friends. But, we do not know wherefrom in this world love has come. The love is, the origin of this love is Krishna. Between Krishna and his servant. There are four stages of love. That dasya rasa, sakhya rasa, vatsalya rasa and sringara. One jiva who considers that he is eternal servant of the Lord. As a servant he serves him. Like Hanuman who served Krishna. And again, little advanced prema is sakhya prema. Sakhya prema means friendship. Friendship. When Krishna went to the forest, taking their breakfasts the boys also followed him.

 

 

(break of tape)

 

 

And this is sringara.

 

 

"And what shall we eat, Yashoda?"

 

 

One day Krishna spoiled that pot. That pot where she used to churn and prepare butter. Daily big pot is there. And daily at four o'clock morning she gets up and churns that, what you call, the milk or little curd, but we say curd, that curd is churned. From it this butter will float on the surface and they remove that butter and take it. Yashoda has hundreds of maidservants. Inspite of that there are only certain cows ......

 

 

 

Krishna will drink that milk. And those cows, their milk, she herself prepares the butter. And keep that butter on her hand always. Whenever Krishna will get from the sleep. Without opening his eyes, she feeds that butter. So she was serving. Now, one day Krishna destroyed that pot. Then she grew angry:

 

 

"Why you have destroyed that pot? Tomorrow how can I prepare butter? For you. How can I prepare?"

 

 

She angry, she wanted to beat him with the cane. But he may run away. So, without beating she wanted to tie him. And to a roll when they used to prepare all with wheat and dry powder. Now, when she wanted to tie Krishna with one rope. That rope, one meter rope is sufficient to tie him. Because his body is so much. This body how much rope wants to tie? Only one yard. One meter is sufficient. But the body is not enlarged. Body is same. But she could not able to tie with that one rope. And it is two inches short. Then she thought:

 

 

"Two inches short. All right, I shall add another meter."

 

 

When another meter was tied at that, and she went to tie, that also became two inches short. Then another piece of rope. Like this the rope became ten meters, twenty meters. And the body is the same. It is not developing.

 

 

Just like in Vamana avatara. He came. The Lord, as Vamana avatara, as a dwarf, came to Bali Chakravarti. And when he asked:

 

 

"What do you want?"

 

 

"I want only three my feet. I want three feet of land."

 

 

"What will you do with this three feet of land? You take more. I am the Lord of three worlds. If you want I can give you three worlds. You have come to me. I am a great donor. You ask three feet. No, take three worlds."

 

 

"No, No. I will be happy with that."

 

 

But, inspite of it, spiritual master told him that, told to Bali:

 

 

"Don't believe that he may be dwarf. He is not a dwarf. He is Vishnu. He will take away all your belongings. He will... nothing will be left to you. Even one inch of land there will be, no. You cannot stand."

 

 

"I have promised already. So... No, he is Vishnu. Unless you give your promised article then he will forcefully take. So I want to give that."

 

 

When it was given he became Trivikrama. The one foot whole world and second foot all ether. The third foot he placed on his head. Now Vamana told Garuda to tie him with a Varuna's yantra and he was tied. Then all the family members have come. And all his friends. All his followers. All his ministers. All his supporters came to Vamana. And they challenged Vamana:

 

 

"Is it the way that you should plunder our Lord? You have plundered. You came as a small dwarf. Now you have increased your body, developed your body and became too great. Though you became great my Lord gave everything to you. His house. Then why should you tie? It is justifiable? No."

 

 

Then, Bali says:

 

 

"No, you cannot argue for me. I have surrendered my life to the Lord. My body belongs to him. Bali's Chakravarti empire come first and Bali also lost his body to the Lord. This body belongs to my Master and he should protect this body. It is his responsibility. He can protect it. He can bury it. He can do it as he likes. You have noting to say, argue or... You should not advocate for me. You go."

 

 

Then they went away. Then the Lord the same... Then he told Bali:

 

 

"Whatever the empire that I have taken from you, it belongs to Indra. I will offer to Indra. And you have dedicated all heart and you have dedicated, submitted to me. Now, in return I will be your servant. You will be here as long as in Sutala loka... Now he is the emperor in Sutala loka. As long as you are an emperor I will be as your gatekeeper. Gatekeeper. I will be standing at the gate."

 

 

Now he is standing at the gate. Now, this is the surrender.

 

 

The thing is. There Yashoda was tying Krishna. Though the body of Krishna is not developing, the same body, but the rope become very long, yet two inches short. What are those two inches? What is the meaning of that two inches? Two inches short means when the devotee offers everything to the Lord:

 

 

"Everything's lost. I gave you everything."

 

 

Yet, he has to serve the Lord. If he won't serve the Lord then he cannot conquer the Lord. He must submit and do service. One thing is you have to submit. Second thing is you should then receive the blessings of the Lord. The blessings of the Lord one inch. The service offered by this devotee one inch. Two inches. Now if Yashoda, though she wants to tie, but she has no surrender, yes, yes surrender. Yet she considered that the Lord is my boy. I have the capacity to control him, to abuse him, to teach him, to kill him, to beat him. I have got. That is why, as long as she possesses that. Krishna:

 

 

"Mother, you want to tie me. All right, tie. But, I have no beginning, no end. How can you tie? You cannot tie."

 

 

But, inspite of that majestic conception, he, the Lord, though he possesses, but the devotee, she thinks that he is my boy.

 

 

"Unless I teach my boy, who will teach? I will teach my boy by punishing. I will punish. For his welfare I am doing this."

 

 

But when the majestic conception enters into her then she can realize:

 

 

"No, No. Who am I to control the Lord? He is Lord. He is not my boy."

 

 

So, this, she cannot exhibit prema by that. Prema means the devotee thinks that:

 

 

"I am superior to the Lord."

 

 

Unless he thinks superior and protector and savior of this Lord, then he cannot, she cannot exhibit that prema. The father can exhibit prema towards the child. If the child thinks that:

 

 

"I must obey my father, and obey my father and obey".

 

 

When he obeys his father then father will be happy. Now, the father whose or son whose conception is not here. Father whose conception is not here. He teaches supreme prema. That prema, now the devotees can control the Lord. The master cannot be controlled by his servant. But the servant has got all right to control the master. Now, Yashoda wanted to control the master by tying, but actually when Krishna reserved his opulence then though she adds more from morning till evening, bringing ropes and adds. She has no rest. Restless she is trying her best to tie him. The Lord, Krishna, to tie him. But she is unable. So now, the Lord, when he saw that:

 

 

"My mother. She is my mother. She is my mother. Mother is suffering to tie me. Mother. You have suffered. Know that. You will tie now."

 

 

kirtaya acyuta vasoti(verse ?13:13)

 

 

Then. Then he obliged to accept the bondage:

 

 

"Yes, now you can tie."

 

 

Now mother tied. And tied him to something and she went away. And Krishna thought:

 

 

"There are two trees. Yamala-arjuna, joint trees. They are standing there."

 

 

And these two trees. Who are these two trees? Nalakuvera, Manigriva. The children of Kuvera. They are trees. Narada has cursed them to become trees. Because these two fellows, when they were drinking wine and they were playing in that tank in that Ganga river. And they have no clothes, no clothes. They were dancing with damsels. And when Narada was passing that day, Narada saw that these are all the demigods and now they are reckless. They have no shame. But, the humans came to this shore and tied their clothes. But these two fellows never came. They were very arrogant. And through this wine they forgot themselves.

 

 

"Yes. You are like trees. The tree has no shame. But you are not tree. You are now behaving like tree. You have got sense, senseless, you have lost your senses. You drink lots of wine. You must become tree."

 

 

Then they said:

 

 

"Sir, how long can we be like tree?"

 

 

"As long as Krishna appears. If Krishna appears when he touches your body then you get released. Till then you must suffer."

 

 

And now Krishna went there with that load. And he was dragging that. He went inside, out, but that big one, thick one doesn't come. So, when he applied due force to these fellows; very big trees, thousands of years trees. And all of them, when they heard this sound, all of them came running to see what's happened. The boy is happy. But the bondage is there. So, mother, not, that not, Krishna cannot able to remove.

 

 

 

But, Krishna can remove all our bondage. But, the bondage given to Krishna by his devotees he cannot untie. Because the reciprocation. But we, if offer ourselves unconditionally to the Lord, Lord will unconditionally surrender to you. Don't think Lord is that imperial power as the Ravanasura or Hiranyakasipu who has engaged all the demigods in his service, so the Lord also is like that. No! Lord is not like that. Lord is always:

 

 

hari sevaka sevana dharma balo

 

 

When we offer our worship to the Lord in return Lord will worship you. So, this is the conception of prema. And the kama. Kama is greediness, self enjoyment. Prema is always we want to please the Lord. Kama is we want to please ourself. The difference between kama and prema: kama is darkness, darkness. In the dark new moon light, amavasya there. There is no moon. On that day is very dark. So, like that our desires.

 

 

 

As long as we possess our desires, with the desires our heart will be impure, become impure. And if we give up the desires. Then we offer everything to the Lord. Then we will be happy. Lord will accept our service. And in return Lord will surrender to us. If we surrender to him, reciprocation is that he will surrender to us. You can command your son, but you cannot command the Lord. He is the commander. But when he is born here, appeared in this Vrindavan as the son of Nanda, he must obey the orders of Nanda. He carries the sandals of Nanda.

 

 

"Krishna, bring those sandals."

 

 

Can you order Krishna? Can you order? Who can order? A loving devotee can order. It is said:

 

 

aham iha nandam vande

 

yasyalinde param brahma

 

 

He says, this scholar, the scholar. Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, when he was going to Vrindavan, on the way he met this scholar. He asked this scholar to whom you worship? To whom you worship? He says:

 

 

srutim apare smrtim itare bharatam anye bhajantu bhava-bhitah

 

aham iha nandam vande yasyalinde param brahma

 

 

"Rest people follow the dictations of vedas and upanishads or dharma shastras or bhagavat-gita. And I am not going to follow that. So, according to them the Lord may be different, but according to me I want to worship Nanda."

 

 

"Nanda is the Lord?"

 

 

"No. But he is the father of the Lord. He obeys the command of Nanda, the father. A son, a devoted son always obeys the command of the father."

 

 

(verse ?20:45 gurva chetasya arjam)

 

 

Ramacandra went to the forest. Who has commanded him? His father. Father said:

 

 

"You go."

 

 

No, father never said that. Yet, this was told by Kaikeyi. He loved more Kaikeyi. So, he was then, this boon was asked by Kaikeyi. Then Dasaratha Maharaj senseless. He fell unconscious. When Ramacandra went on the day of incarnation to get his blessings, father is in unconscious stage and Kaikeyi informed:

 

 

"Boy, you are a true son of Dasharatha Maharaja. I have helped him. Long, long ago he has promised me two boons. Now he has promised those two boons. I ask."

 

 

"What do you want?"

 

 

"Now, you must give those two boons."

 

 

Then, the one boon Rama should go to forest for fourteen years and Bharata should control, rule this Ayodya for fourteen years. When he heard this he become senseless and he has died that ...(?). But now, he went. The moment he received the blessing to sit on the throne, that blessing has gone, and the blessing is now the mother told:

 

 

"It is why father is now unconscious. Don't wake him up. And this is, you are a truthful boy. You please obey this."

 

 

Yes.................... though Bharata came from ... and requested Rama .... He said:

 

 

"No, I won't return back."

 

 

"My father has asked you to rule for fourteen years. You must rule. And she has asked me to be in the forest for fourteen years. I must go to forest. Now, father is no more. Who can cancel that order? Nobody can cancel it, father's order. Even the government's order can be canceled but father's orders can not be canceled. Who can cancel this?"

 

 

So he went.

 

 

(verse ?23:15) gurva chetasya arjam

 

 

So, Lord is so kind. He teaches us in various ways that these instruction for only to awake us from this slumber. We are sleeping. We are in ignorance. We are sleeping. We do not know all these things. So, Lord himself came as a devotee. That devotee is Chaitanya. He went to home. He went teaching. This boy took his hand, took his hand. And he danced. He was beating the drum. He was dancing. Throughout the night dancing. Sankirtan. Sankirtan till three. Through sankirtan you can understand this subject.

 

 

 

This love. The love you can understand through sankirtan. If you repeat namam without offense. Without offense if you go on repeating namam then you can clear your heart. Now it is enveloped by all this ignorance and all that dirt. Now we must surrender to the Lord and repeat their namam and repeat. After surrender we repeat the namam through his blessings. Then he will bless you to destroy your ignorance. Then you will be free from influence of maya. Your heart will be pure. In that pure heart. In that pure mirror you can see who am I. I am eternal servant of my Lord Krishna. You can see your face. Now, your face is glooming. Because it is not wrong thing. Because the mirror through which you see your reflection. It is covered with all dirt. Now, our mind, if it is in pure state, if I am in the pure state then I will be always happy. And to make my heart purified, to make my heart mirror purified I must perform sankirtan. Mahaprabhu says, Krishna:

 

 

"You do kirtan. If the kirtan... You must perform kirtan."

 

 

ceto darpanam marjanam bhava maha davagni nirvapanam

 

sreyah kairava candrika-vitaranam vidya vadhu jivanam

 

anandambudhi vardanam prati-padam purnamrtasvadanam

 

sarvatma-snapanam param vijayate sri krsna sankirtanam

 

 

We will be drown in the ocean of sankirtan. We'll forget ourself, forget the world, forget our kits and kins, forget the enjoyment for we are day and night struggling to have that enjoyment. Purified through sankirtan. Hari kirtan, hari kirtan, hari kirtan. So you give up all your offenses and repeat sankirtan. Today we are happy to be with you. You are all Vaisnavas.

 

 

(verse27:00 ?) vaisnava sangete mor anande ..sada hoi krishna para sanga

 

 

The Vaisnava doesn't want anything of this world. Luxuries or opulence. They want only Lord Krishna. They want always to sing the Lord. They want the Absolute Truth. Worldly attachment, worldly enjoyment, this is not Absolute Truth. Not that thing. It is only dazzling like. But actually the glitters, all that glitters is not gold. The gold is not. Always we seek. Seeing the glitter, we cannot accept it it is gold. You are all fortunate. All the Vaisnavas have come here and you saw them. You have heard sankirtan. Now you perform sankirtan. After sankirtan you will be given prasad. You go. And we have brought very fine books. And these books were written by our scholars.