vol 13, no.2 february 2012 · krishna voice, february 2012 5 getting serious about liberation by...

His Divine Grace A. C. BhaktivedantaSwami Prabhupada, Founder-Acharya of the International Societyfor Krishna Consciousness, came toAmerica in 1965, at age 69, to fulfillhis spiritual master’s request that heteach the science of Krishnaconsciousness throughout the English-speaking world. In a dozen years hepublished some seventy volumes oftranslation and commentary on India’sVedic literature, and these are nowstandard in universities worldwide.Meanwhile, travelling almost nonstop,Srila Prabhupada moulded hisinternational society into a world wideconfederation of ashramas, schools,temples and farm communities. Hepassed away in 1977, in Vrindavana,the place most sacred to Lord Krishna.His disciples and followers are carryingforward the movement he started.

February 2012Vol 13, No.2

CONTENTS

Getting Serious About Liberation 4

Srila Prabhupada Speaks Out 10

The Final Point for the Bubble of Illusion 14

The Bird in the Cage 18

Freedom from Never-ending Karma 20

Published and owned by Sankirtana Seva Trust.Editor: Chamari Devi Dasi.Layout, design and graphics by ISKCON DesignGroup, Bangalore.For all information contact: Editor, KrishnaVoice, SST, Hare Krishna Hill, Chord Road,Bangalore - 560 010 INDIA Phone: 91-80-23471956, 91-80-2357 8346 Fax: 91-80-2357 8625.© 2012 Sankirtana Seva Trust, Bangalore. AllKrishna art and the works of Srila Prabhupadaare © Bhaktivedanta Book Trust.All rights reserved throughout the world.Reproduction in any manner is strictlyprohibited.Printed at Manipal Printers (P) Ltd., Manipal.

Krishna Voice, February 2012 3

Cover pages-4 Text pages-24

DISCLAIMER: We neither represent nor endorse the accuracy or reliabilityor the quality of any products, information, or other materials displayed,purchased, or obtained by you as a result of an offer in connection withany of the advertisements published in our magazine. We strongly encourageyou to do your own due diligence before responding to any offer.

Please chant...

Hare Krishna Hare Krishna Krishna Krishna Hare HareHare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare

...and be happy!


Getting Serious About LiberationBy His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada

Founder- Acharya of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness

We live in an unfortunate time because we’re being misdirected from the pursuit of ultimate freedom, the truepurpose of life.

[Lecture given in Vrindavana, India, November 6, 1972]

mumukshavo ghora-rupanhitva bhuta-patin athanarayana-kalah shantabhajanti hy anasuyavah

“Those who are serious about liberation are certainly nonenvious, and they respect all. Yet they reject the horribleand ghastly forms of the demigods and worship only the all-blissful forms and plenary portions of Lord Vishnu.”—Srimad-Bhagavatam 1.2.26

The first word, mumukshavah, means “desiring to be liberated.” It is very difficult to find this class of men, themumukshavah. People do not know what is meant by mumukshavah. They do not know what liberation is. Eventhe so-called scientists and philosophers of the modern age do not know what is meant by liberation, moksha.And still they are the public leaders and heads of education. They do not know the objective of life, what humanlife is meant for.

Sometime in the year 1950 or ’51 I went to Jhansi, and the friend in whose house I was staying was a leader.There was a meeting for Gandhi’s disappearance day. So I was asked to speak. At that time I was not a sannyasi.I was asked to speak on nonviolence. So I explained that if you have got some right and if somebody by forcestops you from using your right, that is violence. I have got some right to take something or enter into some room,and if somebody checks me by force—"You cannot enter"—that is violence, and it is criminal.

Our homeland is Bharatavarsha [India]. To take birth in Bharatavarsha is not an ordinary thing. Just see, practically,how many men are automatically circumambulating this temple out of respect. Even a common man will do so. Ifyou study you’ll find that by nature people in Bharatavarsha are God conscious. Even a very poor man is satisfiedin God consciousness. He doesn’t care that he is poverty-stricken. He’s satisfied: “Krishna has placed me in thisposition.” He doesn’t care to know or ask, “Why am I poverty-stricken?” He thinks, “Now I am getting some foodby the grace of Krishna.”

Not very long ago, say about two hundred or three hundred years ago, in Krishnanagara there was a big zamindarnamed Raja Krishnachandra. He went to a learned scholar, a brahmana pandita, who had voluntarily acceptedpoverty and asked him, “Panditji, can I help you in some way?”

The pandita replied, “I don’t require any help from you.”

“But I see that you are very poverty-stricken.”

“No, I am not poverty-stricken. My students get some rice for me, and my wife cooks it. I get some tamarind leaves.So it is very nice. I don’t require any help.”

This is India’s heritage. Chanakya Pandita was the greatest scholar and politician. He was the prime minister ofMaharaja Emperor Candragupta. Chanakya Puri in New Delhi is named after Chanakya Pandita. He was livingin a cottage, not accepting any salary. And as soon as Maharaja Candragupta wanted some explanation for aninstruction Chanakya had given him, Chanakya resigned. Such detachment is the standard of persons born inIndia. Take Vyasadeva, for example. Who can be a greater scholar than Vyasadeva? His last contribution is Srimad-Bhagavatam, and each word, if you study for hundreds of years, still you will have more to understand. Each word.Such a scholar, and he was living in a cottage.

This is actually India’s culture. So I explained in that meeting in Krishnanagar, “After many, many births, one isgiven the opportunity to take birth in this holy land of Bharatavarsha. Unfortunately, you leaders are by force makingthe people materialists. They had the opportunity to take advantage of the contribution of great sages, rishis, tostudy and to become successful human beings, but you are by force dragging them from that attitude to thismaterialistic way of life. This is violence. What are you speaking of nonviolence? This is violence.”

About twenty years ago I was thinking like that. Actually, people are being killed not only in India but outside also

Krishna Voice, February 20126

by these blind leaders. They do not know how to lead people, how to make them happy, how to make themsuccessful in the human form of life.

Understand Radha-Krishna

Narottama Dasa Thakura has sung,

hari hari biphale janama gonainumanushya janama paiyaradha-krishna na bhajiya

janiya shuniya bisha khainu

“My dear Lord Krishna, I have simply wasted my time.” Without Krishna consciousness, we are simply wastingtime. We have great opportunity in the human form of life, but our attention is diverted simply for eating, sleeping,mating, and defending. And our real business is spoiled. That is summarized by Narottama Dasa Thakura. Harihari biphale janama gonainu: “I have simply spoiled my life.”

The human form of life is especially meant for understanding Krishna, Radha-Krishna. If not Radha-Krishna, atleast Krishna, or the Battle of Kurukshetra. Mr. M. C. Chatterji was a nice friend of mine. He said, “Swamiji, I wantKrishna of the Battlefield of Kurukshetra, not of Vrindavana.” That’s all right. At least take Krishna on the Battlefieldof Kurukshetra. But take to Krishna. If you are not so fortunate as to understand Radha-Krishna, at least try tounderstand Arjuna-Krishna.

The whole world is being spoiled. I am especially drawing the attention of thoughtful men. People are being killedwithout Krishna consciousness. They got this opportunity, the human form of life, and they should have beeneducated to understand Krishna. By understanding Krishna, they can become liberated. As it is stated here:mumukshavah. Mumukshavah means those who desire liberation. But the leaders do not know what liberationis, what transmigration of the soul is, what the soul is—nothing. Simply rascals, and they are leading the wholepopulation. They do not know what liberation is. Darwin’s theory, the bodily concept of life, anthropology—that isgoing on in the university. A false theory, without any idea.

Here it is said, mumukshavah, “desiring liberation.” But the people do not know what liberation is. They are thinkingof liberation in terms of politics. We Indians have become liberated from British rule. What sort of liberation havewe achieved? During British rule, people were free to move, free to spend their money. Now you are so liberatedthat you cannot move, you cannot spend your money. This is the kind of liberation we now have. Formerly therewas no restriction for going outside the country. But as a sannyasi, I had so much difficulty obtaining the permissionof the government to go out.

Oh, with what great difficulty I got out of this country! And because I—some way or other, by Krishna’s grace—got out of this country, I could spread this Krishna consciousness movement all over the world. Otherwise, it wasnot possible. I wanted to start this movement in India, but I was not at all encouraged.

I approached so many friends: “You have four sons. Kindly give me one of your sons. I want to make him abrahmana.”

“Oh, Swamiji, what will he do, becoming a brahmana? We have to earn our livelihood.”

You see? People have forgotten what is the aim of life, what is the purpose of life. Chaitanya Mahaprabhu said,

bharata-bhumite haila manushya-janma yarajanma sarthaka kari’ kara para-upakara

“Everyone who has taken birth in the land of Bharatavarsha must make his life successful.” [Chaitanya-charitamrita,Adi-lila 9.41] Because here we actually have the opportunity for liberation. In Bharatavarsha we have informationabout liberation. No other country. Their so-called liberation means political liberation. Fighting with one another—that is not liberation. Liberation means to get out of the cycle of repeated birth and death. That is liberation. Butpeople have no idea what liberation is, or where to go after liberation. All this knowledge is practically blocked.

Therefore it is very difficult for people to understand the statements of Srimad-Bhagavatam, like this verse:mumukshavo ghora-rupan hitva bhuta-patin atha. People do not understand. They are so misguided, ill-educated,that they do not understand it.

But the land of Bharatavarsha is meant for liberation. In other lands, people take birth and have no informationabout liberation. Here, in this land, Bharatavarsha, there is the idea of liberation, mukti. We should be interestedin liberation. Our condition within this material bondage is that we are transmigrating from one body to another,

always trying to improve our material condition. Sometimes we are going up to higher planets, and sometimeswe are coming down.

The Dark Material World

This is going on. But the human form of life is meant for getting out of the darkness of the material world. Tamasima jyotir gama. This is the Vedic information: “Don’t remain in this darkness.” This material world is dark, as weexperience at night, before the sun rises. And it is also dark because of ignorance. We do not know the aim oflife. Therefore, the whole world is darkness. And the Vedic information is “Do not remain in the darkness. Cometo the light.” But that education—how to get out of the darkness of ignorance and the darkness of this materialworld—is lacking.

Here it is mentioned: narayana-kalah shanta bhajanti hy anasuyavah. Asuya means envious. When we presentKrishna, especially in India, people are sometimes envious of Him. But outside India, people have reacted differently.I have placed before them that “Krishna is the Supreme Personality of Godhead. You are searching after God.Here is God. Here is God’s name, here is God’s address, here are God’s activities. Try to understand God. Whyare you speculating?” And they have accepted. They are not asuyava. They are not envious.

Here, if I present Krishna, one may say, “Why not Kali? Oh, Kali is very active. She has a long tongue. She hasa sword in her hand, cutting heads. It is very nice. And we shall be able to eat goats.” You see? Actually Kali-pujais for the meat-eaters. Now this is the Kali-puja season. Kali-puja is there because the Vedic shastras, scriptures,are so made that everyone, from the lowest rascal to the highest intelligent man, should be elevated. That is thepurpose. All classes of men are there. Some are influenced by the mode of goodness; some are influenced bythe mode of passion; some are influenced by the mode of ignorance. And the Vedas are meant for all humanbeings.

There are different types of human beings; therefore there are different types of shastras to attract all classes ofmen, including the meat-eaters. The living entity comes to the material world to enjoy, to satisfy the material senses.That especially means eating meat, drinking wine, and having sex. So the Vedas regulate the so-called enjoyment.“You want to eat meat? All right, then sacrifice a goat before Goddess Kali and worship her on the amavasya, thedark-moon night.” There are so many regulations involved. The real purpose is restriction. But if it is directly said,“Don’t eat meat,” meat-eaters will revolt.

Therefore the Vedic literature contains so many prescriptions for worshiping different demigods. Otherwise, thereis no necessity for worshiping them. That is explained in the Bhagavad-gita (7.20). Kamais tais tair hrita-jnanahprapadyante ’nya-devatah: Those who are worshiping demigods have become blind; they have lost their senses.Hrita-jnana: Real knowledge is lost. Therefore they’re after so many demigods. I have not manufactured this point.Krishna Himself says, kamais tais tair hrita-jnanah prapadyante ’nya-devatah: There is no need to worship anydemigods.

This is the lesson of the festival of Govardhana-puja. Nanda Maharaja, Krishna’s father, was arranging for theworship of Indra. Krishna stopped it, and He engaged his father in worshiping Govardhana, which is a representationof Krishna. That is the meaning of Govardhana-puja.

We can get different types of sense pleasure in different bodies. But that is not a very good business. SometimesI become a demigod, and sometimes I become a eucalyptus tree, standing for three hundred years. Why shouldwe waste our time in that way? Asking that question is intelligence. But people do not know that “This time I ama very nice American. I have got my skyscraper and automobile and very good bank balance. I am very happy.”They don’t care. But the person does not know that next life he may become a cat or a dog That he does not know.There is that risk.

A Scientific Movement

This science is not taught in any university. People are such fools and rascals. It is a great science—transmigrationof the soul, immortality of the soul, how to elevate the soul to the highest perfection. The rascals do not know. Norare they being taught. It is such an unfortunate time.

Therefore there is great necessity to spread this Krishna consciousness movement to actually educate the humanbeing to the highest perfection of life. That is required. It is not a religious system, competing with some otherreligion. We are criticized for turning Christians into Hindus. This is nonsense. We are not concerned with Hindus,Muslims, or Christians. These are educated boys; they have no business becoming Hindus. Many people beforeme, many swamis, went to the West to turn Christians into Hindus. But the Western people kicked on their faces.These swamis did not become successful, because they talked nonsense. Why should a Christian become aHindu, or a Hindu become a Christian? People should know what God is and what their relationship with God is.



VEDIC THOUGHTSVEDIC THOUGHTSThe prayers of the impersonalists offend the Lord more thandenunciation by His avowed enemies.

—Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati ThakuraReal and Apparent (Divine Form)

I desire to be in Vrindavana so that I may sit on the bank of theYamuna and pass each long day of my life in thetwinkling of an eye, meditating on Lord Krishna.

—Adi SankaracharyaAbhilasastaka

Of secret things I am silence.

—Lord Krishna, Bhagavad-gita 10.38

There is no stronger obstruction to one's self-interest than thinking othersubject matters to be more pleasing than one's self-realization.

—Sanat KumaraSrimad-Bhagavatam 4.22.32

This Krishna consciousness movement is not for turning Hindus into Muslims or Muslim into Hindus or Christianinto Hindus. This is not such a movement. These Western boys and girls clearly understand this. Therefore theyare following They are accepting. If I would have preached that Hinduism is better than Christianity, they wouldhave kicked me out long ago. Krishna consciousness is a science; it is a philosophy.

There is a great necessity to educate people in the aim of life. That is Chaitanya Mahaprabhu’s mission. He wasappealing to the human beings, those who are actually human beings, not to the cats and dogs. He said, “Studythe contribution of the great sages and make your life successful. Then go out and preach this mission.” That isgoing on under the name of the Krishna consciousness movement. It is not a sentimental movement. It is a scientificmovement.

We therefore restrict our students from worshiping any demigods. When I started this mission, many friends advisedme, “Why don’t you make it ’God consciousness’?” But I insisted that it be “Krishna consciousness.” Otherwise,people would include so many gods. “Here is another god, here is another god, here is another god, here is anothergod, here is another incarnation, here is another avatara.” All nonsense. I wanted to stress the one who is actuallyGod. Krishnas tu bhagavan svayam: “Krishna is the Supreme Personality of Godhead. [Srimad-Bhagavatam1.3.28]. Or in today’s verse: narayana-kalah shantah. One should worship only Krishna and His full expansions.

Try to understand our mission. Here it is said that we have to accept the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Krishnaalso says, sarva-dharman parityajya mam ekam sharanam vraja: “Surrender unto Me only. Then you’ll be saved.”[Bhagavad-gita 18.66].

We don’t advise, “Worship Kali or Shiva or—it is all the same. Yata mata tata patha.” We don’t speak all thisnonsense. We simply say, “Come to Krishna. Then you’ll be saved.”

SRILA PRABHUPADA SPEAKS OUTOn Lust and Love, Myth and Reality

The following conversation between His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada and David Lawrence,a British schoolteacher, took place in August 1973 during an early-morning walk in London.

whatever Krishna desires, they do.Mr. Lawrence: I must confess, these activities ofKrishna's are quite beyond my comprehension.Srila Prabhupada: Yes, they are very difficult for ordinarypeople to understand. That is why this portion of Krishnaslife is depicted in the Tenth Canto of Srimad-Bhagavatam.

Nine cantos are devoted to understandingKrishna's supreme position. Then

Krishna's intimate lila [pastimes] aredescribed in the Tenth Canto. Butif one tries to read the life andpastimes of Krishna withoutunderstanding that He is theSupreme Personality of Godhead,one will be misled. Therefore theBhagavatam begins by explainingthe Supreme Lord as the originalsource of the creation (janmady asya

yatah). The Bhagavatam doesn'tabruptly introduce Krishna's

pastimes with the gopis.In the spiritual world

K r i s h n a h a su n l i m i t e d

varieties ofactivities.

David Lawrence: In the Srimad-Bhagavatam thereseems to be a great deal of . . . demonology, if you like.Now, I confess this raises problems for me. Are thereferences to, say, the demoness Putana taking Krishnaon her lap and Krishna sucking her breast and killingher—is this to be taken literally or allegorically?Srila Prabhupada: Literally.Mr. Lawrence: Literally, as a physical fact?Srila Prabhupada: Yes. Of course, in theBhagavatam there are some figurativestories, similar to Aesop's Fables. Theseare for instruction.Mr. Lawrence: What about the referenceto Krishna and the unmarried gopis[cowherd girls]? You say in your booksthat "He treated them like dolls, yet theywere well pleased with Him." What is themain point of that passage?Srila Prabhupada: When the Bhagavatamsays Krishna treated the gopis like dolls, thatmeans the gopis danced just accordingto His desire.Mr. Lawrence: Is that to be takenliterally, or is there some symbolicmeaning?Srila Prabhupada: No,literally. The gopis are sodevoted to Krishna that

10

The activities in this material world are only a pervertedreflection of those in the spiritual world.But out of foolishness we take Krishna's activities to belike ours. Krishna loved the gopis. The gopis were younggirls, and Krishna was a young boy, and He loved them.But here the so-called love between a young boy andgirl is lust. Therefore it is condemned. But in the lovebetween Krishna and the gopis there is not a trace oflust.Here lust is going on in the name of love. And becauseit is not love, it doesn't continue very long—it breaks.But in the history of the spiritual world, you don't findthat the love between the gopis and Krishna broke atany time. That is the difference between lust and love.Mr. Lawrence: In the West, one in three marriages isdestined to break up. That's what they say now—onein three.Srila Prabhupada: Just see! And they are trying to dragtheir lusty ideas into Krishna's pastimes. Generally,rascals claim that Krishna's pastimes with the gopissupport their own lusty activities: "Krishna acts lustily,so I can also." This is a gross misunderstanding. Peoplewho think like this do not take into account that here inthe material world so-called love is lust—and it breaks.But in the love between Krishna and the gopis, there isno breaking—only increase. So how can they comparetheir lusty affairs to Krishna's loving affairs with thegopis?Mr. Lawrence: I must admit that I've read far enoughin your books to see that they really can't.Srila Prabhupada: When you give an analogy, theremust be many points of similarity. So where are thepoints of similarity between Krishna's pastimes and thelusty affairs of this material world? These rascals areso dullheaded that they don't even have a logicalargument. They are comparing the lusty affairs of thismaterial world to the affairs of Krishna and the gopis.But where is the similarity?Mr. Lawrence; There's never any mention at all of lustor animal desire, is there?Srila Prabhupada: No. For example the Bhagavatamdescribes everything about Krishna's dancing with thegopis—their kissing, their embracing, and so on. Butthere is no mention of contraceptives. And the gopisnever became pregnant. So how can we compareKrishna's loving affairs with the gopis to the lusty affairsof this material world?Mr. Lawrence: It can't be done. Another question: Iwas reading a book (one not put out by the Krishnaconsciousness movement) about Lord Chaitanya, andit said that the manifestations of Krishna consciousnessHe showed during kirtana [chanting] and so on weremanifestations of madness. Can you comment on that?Srila Prabhupada: When a man is himself mad, he'll12 Krishna Voice, February 2012

find others mad. [Laughter.]Mr. Lawrence: He'll see a reflection of himself.Srila Prabhupada: Yes. This misunderstanding iscondemned in Bhagavad-gita, where Krishna saysavajananti mam mudha: "Because when I come to thisworld I come in a human form, rascals take Me for anordinary human being." (The word mudha means"rascals" or "asses.") So, Lord Chaitanya is KrishnaHimself, but the fools and rascals take him for an ordinaryhuman being.Mr. Lawrence; They're just talking from within their ownexperience. They can't imagine what happens whenGod presents Himself as a man.Srila Prabhupada: When they hear that Krishna liftedGovardhana Hill, they think, "This is mythology." But ifKrishna is actually God, is it very difficult for Him to lifta mountain? He's floating so many heavy planets in thesky. So if Krishna can make so many planets weightless,is it very difficult for Him to make Govardhana Hillweightless?These things are very easy for devotees to understand,but nondevotees cannot understand them. Thereforein the Bhagavad-gita Krishna clearly says, bhaktya mamabhijanati: "Only through devotional service can oneunderstand Me." So if you want to understand Krishnaand Krishna's pastimes in truth, you must take to theprocess of devotional service.

14 15

Narottama Dasa Thakura, who has written this song, is a famousacharya [spiritual master], and his compositions are accepted asVedic truth. In this song he represents himself as a common man,as one of us. He laments, appealing to Hari, Lord Krishna, harihari biphale janama gonainu: "My dear Lord, I have uselesslyspoiled my life, because I have not worshiped You."

People do not know that they are spoiling their life. They arethinking, "I've got a very nice apartment, a very nice car, a verynice wife, a very nice income, a very nice social position." All thesematerial attractions make us forget the purpose of our life—toworship Krishna.

In one verse [5.5.8], the Srimad-Bhagavatam summarizes thematerial attractions: pumsah striya mithuni-bhavam etam tayormitho hrdaya-granthim ahuh/ ato grha-ksetra-sutapta-vittair janasyamoho 'yam aham mameti. The basic principle of material attractionis sex: pumsah striya mithuni-bhavam etam. A man hankers aftera woman, and a woman hankers after a man. And when theyactually engage in sex, they become very much attracted to eachother:tayor mitho hrdaya-granthim ahuh. Hrdaya means "heart,"and granthim means "hard knot.'' So when a man and a womanengage in sex, the hard knot in the heart is tied. "I cannot leaveyou," he says. "You are my life and soul." And she says, "I cannotleave you. You are my life and soul."

For a few days. Then divorce.

But the beginning is sex. The basic principle of material attractionis sex. We have organized sex life in many social conventions.Marriage is a social convention that gives sex a nice finishingtouch, that's all. Sometimes it is said that marriage is legalizedprostitution. But for keeping up social relations one has to acceptsome regulative principles, some restrictions on sense gratification.Therefore civilized human beings recognize that there is a differencebetween sex in marriage and sex outside of marriage, which isjust like sex between animals.

In any case, when two people unite some way or other, their nextdemand is a nice apartment (grha) and some land (kshetra). Thenchildren (suta). When you have an apartment and a wife, the nextrequirement is to have children, because without children no homelife is pleasant. Putra-hinam grham sunyam:"Home life withoutchildren is just like a desert." Children are the real pleasure ofhome life. Finally there is the circle of relatives, or society (apta).And all these paraphernalia have to be maintained with money(vittaih). So money is required.

In this way one becomes entangled in the material world andcovered by illusion. Why illusion? Why are such important things—wife, children, money—illusion? Because although at the presentmoment you may think everything is all right—you have a nicearrangement of home life, apartment, wife, children, society, andposition—as soon as your body is finished everything is finished.You're forced to leave everything and move on to your nextplatform. And you do not know what your next platform will be.Your next body may be that of a human being or a cat or a dogor a demigod or anything. You do not know. But whatever it is, assoon as you leave your present body you will forget everything.There will be no remembrance of who you were, who your wifewas, what your home was like, how big your bank balance was,

and so on. Everything will be finished.

Everything will be finished in a flash, just like a bubble burstingin the ocean. The thrashing of the waves in the ocean generatesmillions and billions of bubbles, but the next moment they are allfinished. Finished.

In this way material life is going on. The living entity travels throughmany species of life, many planets, until he comes to the humanform of life. Human life is an opportunity to understand how weare transmigrating from one place to another, from one life toanother, and simply wasting our time, not understanding what ourconstitutional position is and why we are suffering so much distress.

These things are to be understood in this human form of life. Butinstead of inquiring about our real position, we are simply engagedwith mithuni-bhavam and grha-ksetra-sutapta-vittaih—sex, wife,home, property, children, society, money, and position. We arecaptivated with these things, and we are spoiling our life.

So Narottama Dasa Thakura, representing us, is lamenting, "Mydear Lord, I have spoiled my life." Why? Manusya-janama paiyaradha-krishna na bhajiya:"This human form of life is meant forunderstanding Radha-Krishna (the Lord and His energy) andworshiping Radha-Krishna. But instead of making contact withRadha-Krishna, I am simply spoiling my life in sense gratification."

Then his lament goes on. Golokera prema-dhana hari-nama-sankirtana rati na janmilo kene tay: "Alas, why have I no attractionfor chanting Hare Krishna?" The chanting of the Hare Krishnamantra is a transcendental vibration; it is not a material thing. Itis imported from the transcendental abode of Krishna. From therethe transcendental sound of Hare Krishna has come. This soundis like the sunshine coming-from the sun. Although you cannot goto the sun—it is far, far beyond your reach—you can understandthat the sunshine is coming from the sun globe. There is no doubtabout it. Similarly, the vibration of the Hare Krishna mantra iscoming from Krishna's planet, Goloka (golokera prema-dhana).And this chanting produces love of Krishna. (Prema-dhana means"the treasure of love for Krishna").

Narottama Dasa Thakura laments, hari-nama-sankirtana rati najanmilo kene tay: "Alas, why do I have no attachment for thechanting of Hare Krishna?" Why should one be attached to thischanting? That is explained in the next line. Samsara-bisanalediba-nisi hiya jwale juraite: "Chanting Hare Krishna is the onlyremedy to relieve the heart from the burning poison of sensegratification." Hiya means "heart." Our heart is always burning.Why? Because it is in touch with the sense-gratificatory process.No sense-gratificatory process can give me satisfaction, eventhough I try this way and that way, this way and that way. Peopleare trying sense gratification in so many ways, and now they havecome to the last point: the naked dance and . . . what is thatcalled—that short skirt?

Devotee: Miniskirt.

Srila Prabhupada: Miniskirt, yes. [Laughs] So, because in thematerial world the basic principle is sex, everyone is inviting, "Yes,come on, enjoy sex. Come on, enjoy sex." But no matter how youtry to enjoy sex, you cannot be satisfied. That is certain, becausesense gratification is not your real platform of enjoyment. You are

The Final Point for theBubble of Illusion

An explanation of a songby the great spiritual teacher Narottama Dasa Thakura,

given by His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada,Founder-Acharya of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness,

in the Los Angeles Hare Krishna center.

Krishna Voice, February 2012Krishna Voice, February 2012

16 Krishna Voice, February 2012

a spirit soul, and unless you come to the spiritual platformyou will never be satisfied by any sense gratification.You'll simply go on hankering after pleasure, but youwill find no satisfaction.

Therefore, Narottama Dasa Thakura says we aresuffering in samsara-bisanale. Samsara indicates ourmaterial demands for eating, sleeping, mating, anddefending. These are just like fiery poison. Then hesays, "My heart is burning from this poison, but I havenot searched out the means of relief: the chanting ofHare Krishna. I have no attachment for this chanting,and therefore I have spoiled my life." Then he says,vrajendra-nandana jei sachi-suta hoilo sei. The chantingof Hare Krishna was introduced by Krishna Himself,Vrajendra-nandana, in the form of Lord Chaitanya,Sachi-suta. Krishna took the part of the son of MaharajaNanda, the king of Vrindavana. Therefore Krishna iscalled Vrajendra-nandana. And Lord Chaitanya took therole of the son of Mother Sachi; so He is known asSachi-suta. The Supreme Personality of Godhead takespleasure when He is addressed with His devotee'sname, with His energy's name. (His devotees are alsoHis energy.) Although He has no father—He is the fatherof everyone—He accepts some devotee as His fatherwhen He appears on earth. When a pure devotee wantsKrishna as his son, Krishna accepts the devotee as Hisparent.

So Narottama Dasa Thakura says that Vrajendra-nandana (Krishna) has now appeared as Sachi-suta(Lord Chaitanya), and Balarama (Krishna's brother) hasbecome Nitai. And what is Their business? Dina-hina-jata chilo hari-name uddharilo: saving all kinds ofwretched, sinful, conditioned souls by teaching themthe chanting of Hare Krishna. In this age, Kali-yuga,you cannot find a pious man or a saintly person. Everyoneis addicted to sinful activities. But simply by distributingthe chanting of Hare Krishna, Lord Chaitanya savedeveryone, however fallen he might have been. "Comeon!" He said. "Chant Hare Krishna and be delivered."

What is the evidence that Lord Chaitanya saved eventhe most fallen? Tara saksi jagai madhai. Jagai andMadhai were two brothers who engaged in all kinds ofsinful affairs. They were born into a very high brahmanafamily, but by bad association they became sinful.Similarly, in the present age, although the people of theWest are descending from Aryan families, very nicefamilies, by association they have become fallen. Theirenvironment is full of illicit sex, intoxication, meat-eating,and gambling. So Jagai and Madhai are specimens ofthe modern population, and Lord Chaitanya deliveredthem simply by inducing them to chant the Hare Krishnamantra.

So chanting Hare Krishna will actually deliver all fallensouls, without doubt. This is not bogus propaganda.Whatever his past life, anyone who takes to this chantingprocess will become saintly. He will become a pure,

Krishna conscious person.

Chanting Hare Krishna will purify our heart, our burningheart. Then we will understand, "I am an eternal servantof the Supreme Lord, Krishna." Ordinarily we can cometo this understanding only after many, many births, asKrishna confirms in the Bhagavad-gita [7.19]. Bahunamjanmanam ante jnanavan mam prapadyate: "After many,many births, when a person becomes a man of wisdom,he surrenders unto Me." Why? Vasudevah sarvam iti:because he knows that Vasudeva, Krishna, is everything.But that kind of great soul is very rare (sa mahatmasudurlabhah).

But Lord Chaitanya has made it easy to become sucha great soul. How? Simply by chanting Hare Krishna.Therefore at the end of his song Narottama DasaThakura says, ha ha prabhu nanda-suta vrsabhanu-suta-juta koruna karoho ei-baro: "My dear Lord Krishna,You are now present before me with Your internalpotency, Your pleasure potency, Radharani. Please bemerciful to me. Don't neglect me because I am so sinful.My past life is so black, but don't neglect me. Pleaseaccept me. Don't kick me away. I surrender unto You."

So, all of us should follow in the footsteps of NarottamaDasa Thakura. The purificatory process is chanting HareKrishna. And as soon as our heart is purified, we willbecome completely convinced that Krishna is theSupreme Lord and that we are His eternal servants.We have forgotten this. We are serving, but instead ofserving the Lord we are serving our senses. We havenever become the master. We are not the masters ofour senses; we are the servants of our senses. That isour position.

So why not become the servant of the Supreme Lordinstead of remaining the servant of your senses? Actually,you can become the master of your senses only whenyou become the servant of Krishna. Otherwise, it is notpossible. Either godasa or gosvami: that is your choice.A person who is the servant of his senses is calledgodasa, and a person who is the master of his sensesis called gosvami. He controls his senses. When histongue wants to eat something not offered to Krishna,he thinks, "O tongue, you cannot taste this thing. It isnot krishna-prasadam [food offered to Krishna]." In thisway one becomes a gosvami, a master of his senses.

When a person does not allow his senses to do anythingfor sense gratification but acts only for the service ofKrishna, that is called devotional service. Hrsikenahrsikesa-sevanam bhaktir ucyate: devotional servicemeans to engage your senses in satisfying the masterof the senses. The supreme master of the senses isKrishna. Now we are trying to use our senses for ourpersonal service. This is called maya, illusion. But whenwe engage the same senses in the service of Krishna,that is perfection. We don't stop the activities of thesenses, but we purify the senses by engaging them in


the service of the Lord. This isKr ishna consc iousness .

Thank you very much. Anyquestions?

Devotee: Srila Prabhupada,how is it that Lord Jesus is calledthe son of God? If Krishna isusually the son, how is Jesus—

Srila Prabhupada: Not usually.Krishna is the Supreme Father,but He becomes His devotee'sson out of His love. Being a sonis not Krishna's constitutionalposition; being the father is Hisconstitutional position (ahambija-pradah pita). But sometimesHe voluntarily becomes a sonto taste His devotee's fatherlyor motherly love for Him.

When a pure devotee prays,"My dear Lord, I want You formy son," Krishna accepts hisprayer. Vasudeva and Devakibecome Krishna's parents inthis way. In a previous life theyunderwent severe austerities.They were married, but they hadno sex. They were determinedthat unless they could get theLord as their son they would nothave a child. So they performedsevere austerities for manythousands of years. Then theLord appeared to them andasked, "What do you want?"

"Sir, we want a son like You."

"How can you get a son like Me? I'll become your son!"

So Krishna, the Lord, is the father of everyone, but Hevoluntarily becomes the son of His devotee. Otherwise,His position is always the Supreme Father.

Devotee: Srila Prabhupada, I read in the Srimad-Bhagavatam that when one becomes a liberated soulhe attains perfect freedom and that sometimes hisfreedom is on the same level as Krishna's or even morethan Krishna's. Can you explain this?

Srila Prabhupada: Yes. Take Vasudeva, for example.He's more than Krishna. Or Mother Yashoda. You haveseen the picture of Yashoda binding Krishna?

Devotee: Krishna looks like a little baby?

Srila Prabhupada: Yes. The Supreme Personality ofGodhead is feared by everyone, but He becomes fearfulof Mother Yashoda: "My dear mother, kindly do not bind

Me. I shall obey your orders."

So Mother Yashoda has become more than God, morethan Krishna. The mayavadi [impersonalistic]philosophers want to become one with the Lord, but ourphilosophy is to become more than Krishna. Why onewith Krishna? More than Krishna. And, actually, Krishnadoes make His devotee more than Himself. Anotherexample is Arjuna. Krishna took the part of his chariotdriver. Krishna was actually the hero of the Battle ofKurukshetra, but He gave that position to His devotee:"Arjuna, you become the hero. I shall be your charioteer."

Krishna is just like a father who wants to see his sonbecome more than himself. If the father has an M.A.,he wants to see his son get a Ph.D. Then the father issatisfied. He'll not tolerate an outsider's becoming morethan him, but he's glad if his son becomes more thanhim. Similarly, Krishna, the Supreme Lord, wants to seeHis devotee become more than Himself. That is Hispleasure.

18 Krishna Voice, February 2012

The Bird in the CageHey lady! Lady!! Wake up! Your bird is starving. Hey lady!

by Dravida DasaWhy is that woman blithely dusting the birdcage whenit's the bird itself, obviously sick or hungry, that urgentlyneeds attention? She seems so caught up in polishingher golden cage that she's forgotten all about the poorcreature. Or perhaps she's just too deaf and nearsightedto perceive its distress.The urgency we feel in wanting to do something toremedy this outrage roughly parallels the urgency aself-realized spiritual master feels as he looks uponthose of us who are suffering the pains of life in thematerial world. The parrot, you sec, represents thespiritual soul, the spark of consciousness encaged withinthe material body. The cage is the body itself, whichcovers the soul and keeps him trapped in the materialworld. And the old woman represents the person inspiritual ignorance, oblivious of the needs of the spiritualself within and absorbed in satisfying the demands ofthe external body.His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupadafelt intense compassion for people suffering from spiritualignorance, and he dedicated his life to teaching thescience of Krishna consciousness so they could beenlightened. In his commentary on India's greatestspiritual classic, Srimad-Bhagavatam, he writes, "Thespirit soul's needs must be fulfilled. Simply by cleansingthe cage of the bird, one does not satisfy the bird. Onemust actually know the needs of the bird himself. Theneed of the spirit soul is that he wants to get out of thelimited sphere of material bondage and fulfill his desirefor complete freedom. He wants to get out of the coveredwalls of the greater universe. He wants to see the freelight and the spirit. That complete freedom is achievedwhen he meets the complete spirit, the Personality ofGodhead."Now, you may ask. How did the bird ever get into thecage in the first place? How did the soul ever becomecovered by matter? How did we ever lose sight of God?The Vedic literature explains that each of us is a partof God, a minute particle of His spiritual energy. Andbecause we are part of God we have His qualities, butin minute quantity. One of those qualities isindependence.God, or Krishna, has complete independence—He cando whatever He wants whenever He wants. Ourindependence consists of being able to choose betweenserving Krishna and trying to imitate Him.Serving Krishna is our constitutional activity and bringsus eternal bliss in Krishna's spiritual world. But whenwe try to imitate Krishna—when we try to usurp Hisposition of supreme enjoyer and controller—we mustcome to the material world. Here we forget Krishna,

acquire a body made of matter, and suffer perpetuallyin the cycle of repeated birth, old age, disease, anddeath. Eons ago, in some unimaginably distantmillennium, we chose not to serve Krishna but to imitateHim. And we've been encaged in matter ever since.To end our suffering, we need only choose now to serveKrishna. There is no other way, as Krishna affirms inthe Bhagavad-gita (7.14): "My material energy isinsurmountable—unless one surrenders to Me." Afterall, Krishna is God, the supreme controller of both thespiritual and material energies. He has created thematerial world only to teach us that living apart fromHim is misery. Once we learn that and begin to serveHim again, He compassionately lifts us above the painfuldualities of material life.The Vedic literature says that one who serves the Lordwith his full energy is free of material bondage, evenwhile still living in the material body. In other words, atevery moment he understands himself to betranscendental to the pleasures and pains, the ups anddowns, of material existence. Even in the greatestdifficulty he remains undisturbed, serene in histranscendental loving relationship with Krishna. So lifein the world of matter can be a pleasure when we'renourished by spiritual contact with Krishna, just as lifefor our bird in the golden cage would be a pleasure ifhe were properly fed and cared for.Of course, the bird in the cage would find ultimatehappiness only in freedom: he wants to return to hishome in the forest. Similarly, the self-realized soul yearnsto return home, back to Godhead, to live with Krishnaeternally. And this is the fruit of full surrender to theLord."Wake up!" call out the Vedas. "Try to understand thegreat value of the human form of life. Don't remain inthe darkness of spiritual ignorance. Come to the lightof transcendental knowledge." The devotees in theKrishna consciousness movement, following the leadof Srila Prabhupada, echo this call of the Vedic literature.Human life is very rare, and it is the only form of life inwhich the soul enwrapped in ignorance can understandthe science of God consciousness. The purpose of theInternational Society for Krishna Consciousness is toprovide knowledge of God in the form of books andother media, to provide a practical method forreestablishing our loving relationship with God throughbhakti-yoga, devotional service, and to show by examplehow we can live in this world in a liberated and joyfulstate, serving God with all our vital energy. Now it issimply up to each of us to choose to quit polishing thecage and take care of the suffering bird within.

20

Everyone in the material world is subject to the laws ofkarma, except the pure devotees of the Lord.In Sydney, Australia, 1993, my good friend showed meone of the most attractive beaches in the world, withcrystal-clear water and snow-white sand. As we walkedalong the beach, I commented that the scenery wasextremely beautiful. Then we both reflected on the factthat nothing is permanent in this world and we cannotremain in any situation forever. I thought about how weshould use this temporary lifetime to stop the repetitionof birth and death and be freed from the clutches ofendless karma.Karma is broadly defined as material activities and theirreactions. People commonly paraphrase the conceptof karma as "What goes around comes around" or, asthe Bible states, "As you sow, so shall you reap."Sri Chaitanya Shikshamrita explains that karma arisesfrom forgetfulness of our essential svarupa, or form—our identity as servants of God. Not understandingkarma, the living entity keeps trying to dominate materialnature, with suffering as the result. Materialistic activitieskeep us bound within the material realm in an unbrokenchain of repeated births and deaths. Without properdirection, the jiva (living entity) can't escape, like a birdcaught in a hunter’s net that futilely flaps its wings. Stuckwithin the material world, entwined by the three modesof material nature, the living entity thinks that senseenjoyment is the ultimate goal.The laws of karma are intricate and difficult to understand.The ancient Vedic literature, however, clearly explainsentanglement in material nature and how to get free ofit. By following the prescription of Vedic philosophy, astaught by pure teachers in disciplic succession, we aresure to cut the bonds of karma and achieve spiritualperfection.Caught up in DesireBeing part of the Supreme Lord, the living entity isspiritual by nature, but its sheer desire for sensegratification (pleasing the mind and senses) is a primecause of material bondage. Trying to enjoy in materiallife, the living entity stays within the unbroken cycle ofbirth, death, old age, and disease. Continually performingmaterial activities, the soul roams from one species toanother without end. This is called reincarnation orsamsara-chakra, the wheel of birth and death.People often have a hard time understanding the conceptof reincarnation. First one has to understand the soul,God, and their relationship. Krishna says that the soulis eternally part of Him. As such, both God and the soulare eternal, as is their relationship. Rejecting God, thesoul takes on one body after another, supplied by God

in response to the soul's desire to enjoy separately fromHim. This is reincarnation. To become free from thisbondage, we must endeavor to reestablish our eternalrelationship with the Lord.We stay in the material world because it seems beautifuland attractive to us. But experience should teach usthat it contains many cruelties. By the law of karma, wesuffer because of our own acts. The Lord gives usindependence to act according to our individualpropensities, and we reap the results. The mostdevastating karmic reaction is endless entanglement inthe material world, a dangerous place. Scripture explainsthat in the material world one living entity survives onanother (jivo jivasya jivanam). The tiger in the forestcatches the deer and enjoys the feast. The rich oppressthe poor, and the strong overpower the weak. That isthe law of nature.God is not cruel, but He has created this system to keepbalance in nature. It is important to understand thatwhen the tiger kills its prey, it is free of sinful reactionor bad karma. Animals act out of their natural propensity(dharma) to survive. On the other hand, when man doesthe same activities, such as slaughtering cows or evenkilling an insect, he is liable to be punished.Human beings possess a developed brain and thepotential to cultivate higher knowledge and reestablishtheir relationship with the Lord. Of the 8,400,000 species,humans are superior to all others because of their abilityto develop spiritual knowledge. By acting in thatknowledge, they can become free from the bondage ofkarma. If we take to spiritual life wholeheartedly, we cancut the bonds of our karma and achieve completefreedom, happiness, and spiritual perfection.Mrigari TransformedChaitanya-charitamrita recounts a story from SkandaPurana about a hunter named Mrigari (literally "killer ofanimals"), who was killing many animals and leavingothers half dead to suffer. When he took shelter of thegreat devotee Narada Muni, who became his spiritualmaster, he gave up his sinful activities and would noteven step on an ant. By chanting Hare Krishna on theorder of Narada Muni, he came to an elevated spiritualposition. His devotional service destroyed the karmicreactions to his sinful activities. (Krishna openly declaresthat those who render devotional service to Him areexempt from all sinful reactions, but it is a great offenseto intentionally commit sinful activities on the strengthof devotional service).Mrigari was saved by taking shelter of Narada Muni,Krishna's representative. That's the authorized way toturn to Krishna. In his Bhagavad-gita commentary, Srila

Freedom from Never-ending KarmaBy Narada Rishi Dasa



Prabhupada presents the metaphor of two birds sittingin a tree. One bird, which represents the individual soul,is eating, and the other, which represents Krishna inthe heart, is simply watching. The eating bird enjoys thefruits of the tree (karma), some sweet, some bitter. Butthe moment it turns its face toward its friend Krishna,it becomes free from karma. By not taking shelter of theLord through His devotees, souls suffer the results oftheir actions until they realize the higher truth that theymust surrender to Krishna.Krishna has given us freedom, but misuse of that freedomresults in perpetual bondage in the material world. Thematerial energy conditions us to act in certain ways, inignorance. Lacking transcendental knowledge, rebellioussouls are born again and again because they repeatedlycommit sinful acts. They continuously engage theirsenses in selfish gratification rather than in devotionalservice to the Supreme Lord, who is Hrishikesha, themaster of the senses.The living entities are constitutionally eternal servantsof the Supreme Lord. Those who reject His direct servicemust serve Him nonetheless. Entangled in conditionallife, they are forced to serve His material energy (maya).Unlike the Lord's devotees, they swim in the ocean ofkarma and never become free from it.Only pure devotional service can break the bonds ofendless karma. Krishna Himself recommends, “All thatyou do, all that you eat, all that you offer and give away,as well as all austerities you may perform, should bedone as an offering unto Me.” (Bhagavad-gita 9.27)Krishna wants us to direct all of our activities towardHim.Prescribed PracticesThe Vedic scriptures recommend that we regularlypractice some simple techniques to become puredevotees of the Lord.We should always chant the Lord's holy names: HareKrishna, Hare Krishna, Krishna Krishna, Hare Hare/Hare Rama, Hare Rama, Rama Rama, Hare Hare.Chanting this maha-mantra is the prime process forcleansing our heart, mind, and senses of the accumulateddirt of many lifetimes—the "dirt" being material reactionsand desires.To understand higher truths—including the self, itsrelationship with God, the intricacies of karma, theprocess of reincarnation, and liberation—we shouldregularly study the Bhagavad-gita, Srimad-Bhagavatam,and other Vedic books that promote pure devotion tothe Supreme Lord.To be free from all karma, good and bad, we must eatonly food that has been offered to Krishna. He acceptsonly pure vegetarian food, and we can receive theremnants as His mercy (prasadam). Krishna clearlystates, “If one offers Me with love and devotion a leaf,a flower, fruit, or water, I will accept it.” (Bg. 9.26) He

wants pure vegetarian food, not meat, fish, eggs, orliquor. When we offer vegetarian food with love, devotion,and deep faith, our offering becomes free of sin andkarmic reaction. Those who prepare food for their ownsense enjoyment, however, eat only sin. (Bg. 3.13)Vegetarianism is also important because it means weavoid sinning by killing animals or connecting ourselveswith animal killing. The law of karma dictates that thosewho kill animals and eat them will be killed and eatenin their next life.We must also seek the association of devotees tryingto be free from karma. Just as contact with a sick mancan infect one with his disease, so contact with Krishnaor His pure devotee elevates one spiritually. We canthen be cured of what Srila Prabhupada called “thematerial disease.”Cultivating Krishna consciousness reminds us that bothsuffering and enjoyment come uninvited according toour good and bad activities. But pure devotion to theLord surpasses everything.Krishna is known as bhakta-vatsala, or one who is verymerciful to His devotees. He is more concerned aboutour going back home, back to Godhead, then we areconcerned about Him. He wants us to get out of thismiserable material world to join Him in His eternal abode.“As all surrender unto me," Krishna says, "I will rewardthem accordingly.” (Bg. 4.11)The Brahmana and the CobblerHere's an example of two of the Lord's devotees, showinghow He looked at their devotion and rewarded themaccording to His promise in the Gita.Once, Narada Muni was going to meet Lord Narayana(Krishna in His four-armed form) in the spiritual world.A smarta brahmana (one attached to rituals but lackingdevotion) and a poor cobbler both requested Narada toask the Lord when they would go back home, back toGodhead. They also asked Narada to report what theLord was doing when Narada saw Him.After Narada's departure, the smarta brahmana keptbusy with rituals aimed at gaining wealth and perfection,while the poor cobbler simply chanted Hare Krishna ashe repaired shoes to maintain his family.When Narada returned, the smarta brahmana askedhim, “My dear Narada Muni, please tell me what wasmy Lord doing when you saw Him?”“Oh!" Narada exclaimed "The Lord was passing anelephant through the eye of a needle.”Blinded by false ego and fake devotion, the smartabrahmana said, “That's impossible! How can an elephantpass through the eye of a needle?”When the smarta brahmana asked when he would goback to Godhead, Narada Muni replied that he wouldtake as many millions of years as there are leaves ona tamarind tree.


Feb 18 EkadashiFeb 19 break fast

Mar 4 EkadashiMar 5 break fast

FastingFeb 12 Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati

Thakura - Appearance(fasting till noon)

Feb 25 Ratha Yatra in MangaloreMar 8 Sri Gaura Purnima - Appearance of

Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu(fasting till moonrise)

Festivals

When the cobbler heard about the Lord’s passing anelephant through the eye of a needle, he exclaimed,“Yes! Yes! It is possible! My Lord can make impossiblethings possible. Nothing is impossible for Him. He caneasily pass an elephant through the eye of a needle,just as he packs millions of trees within the seeds of atamarind tree.”Narada then told the cobbler he would return to the Lordat the end of that very life.What a wonderful arrangement of the Supreme Lord!The cobbler’s simple devotion qualified him to be freefrom the karmic cycle and to go back home, back toGodhead. The smarta brahmana’s pride andpretentiousness were obstacles to his spiritual success.When, like the cobbler, a person knows the simpleprocess of Krishna consciousness and has some loveand devotion for the Lord, his efforts become successful.Others, like the smarta brahmana, fail, despite knowingmany things. The smarta failed because of his incorrectmotives, while the poor cobbler, in spite of his humble

occupation, was favoured by the Supreme Lord andbecame eligible to go back home, back to Godhead.Why not all of us? Let’s get rid of all our karma. If a poorcobbler can do it, then surely we can. And let’s do itwholeheartedly. Rich or poor, all are subject to the lawsof karma, but those who are Krishna conscious surpasseverything. Anyone who sincerely chants Hare Krishna,whether a big industrialist or a pauper, can attain theLord’s abode. The Bhagavatam promises that chantingHare Krishna can burn all our karma, just as a forestfire burns gigantic trees to ashes and the sun dissolvesthe fog by its rays.Spiritual activities are beyond the laws of karma, andtherefore no bondage can stop or bind pure devoteeswithin the material world. We too can escape by cuttingthe bonds of never-ending karma with continuous,unflinching, and determined devotional service. Thatservice will always remind us of our natural position asthe eternal servants of Krishna. It is the positive pathwayto lead us back to His abode.

Sri Vaikuntha Ekadashi 2012BANGALORE:

Abhisheka

Laksharchana

Vaikuntha DwaraKrishna Voice, February 2012 23

Sri Vaikuntha Ekadashi 2012Vaikuntha Dwara Darshana

at Hare Krishna Hill

Vaikuntha Dwara Darshanaat Vaikuntha Hill

Dr Vidyabhushana sings the glories ofLord Srinivasa

Among dignitaries who visited the temple onthis auspicious occasion was Sri K H Muniyappa,

Union Minister of State for RailwaysKrishna Voice, February 201224

Sri Vaikuntha Ekadashi 2012

Bellary

Hubli

Mysore


Ratha Yatra 2012

BANGALORE:

left: Sri Sri KrishnaBalarama on Their grandratha.

below: Devotees participateenthusiastically in pullingthe ratha.

Mysore Bellary

left: Sri Narahari, President, AkhilaBharatiya Shaikshanika Mahasanghainaugurates the Ratha Yatra at Bangalorein the presence of other dignitaries.


Bhagavad-gita distributed to dignitaries during Gita Jayanti month

Dr V S AcharyaMinister for Higher Education, GOK

Sri B N Bacche GowdaMinister for Labour, GOK

Sri H D KumaraswamyMP & President JD(S), Karnataka

Sri B K HariprasadMember, CWC

Sri V Dhanajaya KumarSpecial Representative of Karnataka in Delhi

Sri B Z Zameer Ahamad KhanMLA, Chamarajpet

The Akshaya Patra Foundation, has been awarded theGold Shield for ‘Excellence in Financial Reporting’ by theInstitute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI) for thethird year in succession. Akshaya Patra received the awardfrom Veerappa Moily, Union Minister for Corporate Affairs,at a function organized for this purpose by ICAI at ChennaiTrade Centre, Chennai.

ICAI Award for Akshaya Patra


Krishna Voice Monthly Magazine, February 2012 Vol.13, No.2 Price Rs 15/-Posted on 5th or 10th of the Month at MBC, Manipal, License to post without prepayment No. WPP 8, Reg No. KA/BGGPO/2521/2012-2014, Registered with Registrar of Newspapers for India under No. RNI 71022/99, Posted at MBC, Manipal, 576104.

vol 13, no.2 february 2012 · krishna voice, february 2012 5 getting serious about liberation by...

Documents