(13/16) Ekadasi Vrata (1)

His Divine Grace Om Vishnupad
Srila Bhakti Nirmal Acharya Maharaj
Temple inauguration programme, Hooghly
26 January 2020, noon, part 13
Translated from Bengali

I have spoken much Hari-katha. You can ask some questions now. Do not be shy. If you have not understood something, ask questions. By the mercy of my Guru and Vaishnavs, but the mercy of Gurudev, I may be able to answer them—my mouth can say many things, but if you give me your mercy, then some Krishna-katha can come out.

Question: How should we observe ekadasi?

Gurudev told to follow ekadasi, Mahaprabhu told to follow ekadasi, so we are doing it. We do not want to enjoy any result, so we do not follow ekadasi hoping to get any result. There are books describing the glories of ekadasi, the same as there are glories of Srimad Bhagavad-gita also, but the gist is that if you follow ekadasi, it is good for your health, and the main thing is that when you follow ekadasi, the Lord becomes pleased. We must follow ekadasi to show our love for the Lord. For example, people read that if you follow Putrada ekadasi, you will get a son, but that son can become a dacoit and kick you out of your home!

Question: People say that only widows should follow ekadasi, why is it so?

Oh yes, widows must follow ekadasi, right. If widows must follow ekadasi, then when somebody's wife dies, they must also follow ekadasi! [Devotees laugh] When somebody's wife dies, they run to sit for another marriage. There is no scripture that tells that only widows must follow ekadasi.

In the previous age (those who studied history have read about it), the rule was that widows cannot get married again, and people were married at a very young age. For example, when Srila Bhaktivinod Thakur got married, his wife was five years old, and he was about twelve years old. In olden days, people got married in childhood (often at thirteen-fourteen). So, when husbands died in those days, the wife would often be burnt together with the dead husband. It was a very hard and bad rule. They would bind the woman and forcefully burn her—she would be sometimes conscious, sometimes unconscious. This is how women had to keep their chastity.

[Somebody brings up Lord Ramachandra.]

Why do we not say that Ramachandra is the Supreme Lord? He is the Lord (Bhagavan), but He is not the Supreme Lord (purna Bhagavan). He is not the Supreme Lord because He is law-abiding (maryada-purush). People said that Ravan had kidnapped Sita Devi, so Ramachandra had to test her purity by placing her into fire. Even after Ramachandra did that—after He has put Sita Devi into fire and proved her chastity—there was still some doubt, so people said that if Sita Devi stayed, they would not follow Him. So, Ramachandra sent His wife to Valmiki Muni's ashram. It was such a hard decision, but He did it to please His subjects. However, Vraja gopis' love and Krishna's love are much higher. This is why Ramachandra is not the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Dasarath felt pain, it is vatsalya-rasa. Nanda Maharaj and Yasoda cried so much for Krishna, but Dasarath sent his son to live in a forest. So, Ramachandra is the Lord, but He is not the Supreme Personality of God.

ঈশ্বরঃ পরমঃ কৃষ্ণঃ সচ্চিদানন্দবিগ্রহঃ ।
অনাদিরাদির্গোবিন্দঃ সর্ব্বকারণকারণম্ ॥

isvarah paramah krsnah sach-chid-ananda-vigrahah
anadir adir govindah sarva-karana-karanam

"Krishna, who is known as Govinda, is the supreme controller. He has an eternal, blissful, spiritual body. He is the origin of all. He has no other origin, for He is the prime cause of all causes."

(Sri Brahma-samhita, 5.1)

— : • : —

{ 2001  |   2002  |   2003  |   2005  |   2009  |   2010  |   2011  |   2012 }
{ 2013  |   2014  |   2015  |   2016  |   2017  |   2018  |   2019  |   2020  |   2021 }

CLICK TO LISTEN TO THE LECTURE

Size: 58 Mb
Length: 120 min
Language: Bengali

READ OTHER PARTS:

1) Opening Temple—Opening Your Eyes
2) Live As a Member of Krishna's Family
3) Meaning of Surrender (1)
4) Meaning of Surrender (2)
5) How to Pray to Vaishnav Thakur
6) Orphaned and Blind
7) Satisfying Lord and Your Soul
8) Trade Secret of Krishna Consciousness
9) Taste for Hari-Katha
10) Eternal Nourishment
11) Align Your Life
12) Two Keys to Success
13) Ekadasi Vrata (1)
14) Ekadasi Vrata (2)
15) Practise Day and Night
16) If You Want, You Can