BHAGAVAT DARSHAN

Bhagavat Darshan

dharmah svanusthitah pumsam visvaksena-kathasu yah
notpadayed yadi ratim srama eva hi kevalam

Srimad Bhagavatam has very directly described the practice of religion in this sloka: without developing attraction for the Lord, all our endeavors are useless. In the scriptures—the Vedas, Vedanta, Upanisads, Puranas, Itihasa—religion as well as the practice of religion are described.

Srimad Bhagavatam was revealed after Narada Goswami instructed Vedavyasa, who, by the divine inspiration of Lord Krishna, is the author of all the Vedic scriptures. Vedavyasa compiled all the scriptures in order to rescue the conditioned souls, and ultimately, to give them a chance to enter into the service of the Lord.

Bhagavan Vedavyasa, who has all opulence of scriptural wealth, gave all this knowledge to the conditioned souls, but afterwards was not satisfied and felt deficient, “I have given everything to this world to satisfy Lord Krishna. I have given for the ultimate benefit of their spiritual lives even what Krishna Himself gave directly through the knowledge of Bhagavad-gita and other scriptures, still I am not satisfied. Why am I not feeling peace in my mind?”

At that time he saw that Narada Goswami, his gurudeva, had come to see him. Seeing Narada Goswami he thought, “Now my Lord understands I am suffering.” Krishna Dvaipayana Vedavyasa worshiped Narada and asked, “Prabhu, why am I suffering from this problem?” Narada Goswami said, “Due to your despondency I have come to you. Although you have given the religion of the conditioned jiva soul to this world, which is medicine for sick men, you have not given a prescription for healthy persons.”

jugupsitam dharma-krte ‘nusasatah
svabhava-raktasya mahan vyatikramah
yad-vakyato dharma ititarah sthito
na manyate tasya nivaranam janah

“Who will give anything better than you in this material world? No one can. But what you have given is not sufficient for everyone. They can practice their own religion by the law of the Vedic scriptures, but if that does not give life to everyone, what is the value of that?

“You have blasted so many big bombs in the form of your Vedic mantras, but no positive reaction will take place in the hearts of the jiva souls because they will not be following the proper process of religion.

“Dharma-krte ‘nusasatah—even if religion is properly performed, simply by following the law of the Vedas, the jiva souls will not get the ultimate benefit of their spiritual lives. Through sravan and kirtan (hearing and chanting the glories of the Lord) the liberated souls and the practitioners of Krishna consciousness will get satisfaction of their whole existence and real life. Practicing the general religion of the Vedas is useless if one does not become more and more attached to sravan and kirtan. Through the Vedic scriptures, they may get liberation, but after liberation what is the sustenance of their lives? What is the activity of their lives? What is the duty of their lives? You have not given details of that.”

A clear example of this is given when Ramananda Raya expressed to Mahaprabhu the principle of ‘sva-dharma-tyag’ with this sloka from Bhagavad-gita:

sarva-dharman parityajya mam ekam saranam vraja
aham tvam sarva-papebhyo moksayisyami ma sucah

“Totally abandoning all kinds of religion, surrender exclusively unto Me. I will liberate you from all kinds of sins, so do not despair.”

Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu said, “Yes, but it is external. It is not eternal. Tell me what is eternal religion.”

After leaving all religious methods, when the jiva soul fully surrenders to Lord Krishna, Krishna will take charge of his spiritual life, but still that is not sufficient. It is stated in this sloka, mam ekam saranam vraja, “Come and take exclusive shelter of Me. I shall take charge of your spiritual life.” Krishna Himself said it, but Mahaprabhu said it was not sufficient.

I asked my Guru Maharaj why Mahaprabhu said that it was not sufficient. He answered, “Because there is no service of the Lord. No service to the Lord is described there.”

Narada Goswami is like Lord Krishna, so he came to Vedavyasa and said, “Krishna has given what you have given to the public, but that is not sufficient for a healthy person. No doubt it is a good prescription and medicine for the conditioned souls because they will get liberation easily, but after liberation they can have a new glorious life, and that description is not given here. Therefore, it is not sufficient.”

Narada Goswami is fully exalted with pure Krishna consciousness. He can go anywhere. Even though a rishi cursed him, “You cannot stay more than five minutes in one place,” still that curse is not effective for Narada Rishi, because that curse does not work in Dvaraka, which is in the spiritual world.

Narada is such a powerful devotee, and he wants to distribute that powerful devotion to everyone through Vedavyasa. Thus, he told Vedavyasa, whose word is law (who is bage-bhak), that if he did not give the highest conception, no one else would; people would not hear it from anyone else. In this way he chastised him:

jugupsitam dharma-krte ‘nusasatah
svabhava-raktasya mahan vyatikramah
yad-vakyato dharma ititarah sthito
na manyate tasya nivaranam janah

“You have given the wrong prescription. You have given insufficient knowledge and nourishment for the liberated souls, so you must give that now.”

Then, Vedavyasa with folded hands asked Narada Goswami, “Prabhu, tell me how I shall correct it. How shall I give full, ecstatic Krishna consciousness to everyone?”

Narada Goswami advised him, “I am giving this knowledge to you. Meditate on it, and it will reveal itself to you, then you can give that full Krishna consciousness. It will be realized through bhakti-yoga.”

bhakti-yogena manasi samyak pranihite ‘male
apasyat purusam purnam mayam cha tad-apasrayam
yaya sammohito jiva atmanam tri-gunatmakam
paro ’pi manute ’nartham tat-krtam chabhipadyate

Through his meditation he saw Krishna, His illusory potency, and His chit-sakti, by which He performs His pastimes.

anandamse hladini, sad-amse sandhini
chid-amse samvit—yare jnana kari’ mani

He saw Krishna and his potencies—eternity, knowledge, and ecstasy—and that by these powers of Sri Krishna His pastimes are going on with the Vraja-basis, the gopis, and others. He also saw the illusory energy existing behind Krishna. His meditation was in full Krishna consciousness and he gave us that knowledge of full, ecstatic joy and happiness, through Srimad Bhagavatam.

“Now I am in full-fledged Krishna consciousness and I am giving that knowledge to you. I am not cancelling what I have given before in Vedanta Darshan and other scriptures, but I am rectifying it through this scripture, Srimad Bhagavatam. I have given the gist of the Vedas in Vedanta Darshan in a very condensed way, but I am now explaining that extensively in this Srimad Bhagavatam.”

artho ’yam brahma-sutranam bharatartha-vinirnayah
gayatri-bhasya-rupo ’sau vedartha-paribrmhitah

Srimad Bhagavatam is the natural commentary of Vedanta Darshan (Vedanta Sutras) as well as Mahabharata and Brahma Gayatri. It contains the full-fledged theistic conception.

Vedavyasa then gave his own description of Srimad Bhagavatam:

nigama-kalpa-taror galitam phalam
suka-mukhad amrta-drava-samyutam
pibata bhagavatarm rasam alayam
muhur aho rasika bhuvi bhavukah

“O intelligent devotees accustomed to drinking transcendental nectar, please drink again and again the nectar of this Bhagavatam, which has been made even sweeter because it has emanated from the mouth of Sri Sukadev Goswami. This nectar is vastly superior to the nectar of the heavenly planets, so please relish it again and again.” He began Vedanta Darshan with athato brahma jijnasa, janmadyasya yatah, ata tu samanvayah—these kinds of sutras are there in Vedanta Darshan. Athato brahma jijnasa, search for Sri Krishna. Then janmadyasya yatah, who is Sri Krishna?

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

“Krishna, who is known as Govinda, is the Supreme Godhead. He has an eternal, blissful spiritual body. He is the origin of all. He has no other origin and He is the prime cause of all causes.”

With this ultimate conclusion he started Srimad Bhagavatam. Satyam param dhimahi—we will meditate on the meaning of the gayatri mantram. On what shall we meditate? That inspiration is coming from the divine plane; it is the lotus feet of Sri Krishna and their service. If you want to make yourself a good servitor of Lord Krishna—Nandanandana Krishna who is playing sweetly and performing His divine pastimes with the Vraja-basis—and if you want to enter into the abode of that Krishna, for service, under the guidance of His associates, then you must start from this point:

jnane prayasam udapasya namanta eva
jivanti san-mukharitam bhavadiya-vartam
sthane sthitah sruti-gatam tanu-van-manobhir
ye prayaso ’jita jito ’py asi tais tri-lokyam

Ajita jito api—you can control the mind of the Supreme Controller if you proceed in this way, with the association of the divine servitors of Lord Krishna, the sadhus, and if you give your whole existence, then you will be directed by that sadhu in sravan and kirtan. Hear from that divine servitor, give your full attention to kirtan, which means the glorification of Krishna, and spread Krishna consciousness.

You can find different types of manifestations of Lord Krishna in the Vedas, but Vedavyasa was not satisfied with that. He described what Narada Goswami gave to him in Srimad Bhagavatam, and that same conception is found in Brahma Samhita:

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

He chose Govinda, not being satisfied with other manifestations of Krishna. Mahaprabhu, Narada Goswami and Vedavyasa have all directed us to go to the origin. The origin is Krishna in Vrindavan, and that Krishna never leaves Vrindavan. He is always in Vrindavan Dham, playing with the gopas and gopis as a cowherd boy. That is His divine identity. He is the creator of all the creation and He is the Supreme Personality of Godhead. We can describe Him in various ways, but that cannot limit Him or His abode, Vrindavan, where He plays.

Vedavyasa’s beginning of Srimad Bhagavatam was even more impressive. When Pariksit Maharaj was cursed by a brahmin boy that he would die within seven days, there were so many rishis, munis and dignitaries assembled to do good for Maharaj Pariksit. Because he was an extremely good king, everyone wanted to show their affection, and they joined that meeting—Atri, Chyavana, Saradvan, Aristanemi, Bhrigu, Vasistha, Parasara, Visvamitra, Angira, all the big rishis—as well as Parasurama, Vedavyasa and Narada Rishi were present there. Everyone wanted to do good for Pariksit Maharaj. Because of their affection for him, they came to support him and to try to help him in that assembly.

According to their various realizations, they advised Maharaj Pariksit:

tapasvino dana-para yasasvino
manasvino mantra-vidah sumangalah

“Maharaj do this. Maharaj do that. Maharaj do this.”

Then, by the grace of Lord Krishna, and by previous arrangement from the transcendental abode, the son of Vedavyasa, Sukadev Goswami, a sixteen- year-old naked boy, arrived at the assembly of Maharaj Pariksit. All the expert and dignified sadhus were there, and seeing him from afar they could recognize him as the son of Vedavyasa. His divine movements opened the eyes of the rishis assembled there, and they could recognize that he must be Sukadev.

“You need his mercy,” they advised Pariksit Maharaj. “This boy who is coming is the holder of supreme knowledge. Therefore you can ask him your questions. He will give you the solution, and we all will be satisfied with his gift.”

Everyone welcomed him, but Sukadev Goswami had no external awareness. He does not live in the material world and does not see anything mundane. He came directly by the will of Lord Krishna, and Pariksit Maharaj gave him the presidential seat and worshiped him. Sukadev Goswami had no material attachment.

Seated there, he was he asked Maharaj Pariksit, “Do you have any questions for me?”

Maharaj Pariksit replied, “Yes Prabhu, I am in the midst of this problem. Please give me some advice that will bring peace to my mind.”

Sukadev replied, “I have received inspiration from above, therefore I have come to your assembly, but you must give your full attention to what I shall explain to you and believe it with full faith. The subject matter of what I am going to say to you has no connection with this material world nor with the liberated world; it exists beyond the liberated world. I used to be situated on the liberated plane, but I was attracted by this conception and I learned it from my father, Vedavyasa.”

parinisthito ’pi nairgunya uttama-sloka-lilaya
grhita-cheta rajarse akhyanam yad adhitavan

“Learning about this matter from my father, I have become attracted to the pastimes of Lord Krishna—the play of the Divine Couple that is continuously going on in Goloka Vrindavan. This is the uttama-sloka—the description of the eternal pastimes of Radha and Krishna. I have heard it from my father, and I am now going to explain it to you for the ultimate benefit of your spiritual life.

“Everyone knows me as a brahma-jnani and I can accept their opinion that I know Brahma, I know who is Brahma. That was my position before. I lived within my own beauty, charm, affection, love—everything—but I was attracted to the pastimes of Lord Sri Krishna. My father taught me this, and I am going to teach this topic for your ultimate benefit.”

jnane prayasam udapasya namanta eva
jivanti san-mukharitam bhavadiya-vartam
sthane sthitah sruti-gatam tanu-van-manobhir
ye prayaso ’jita jito ’py asi tais tri-lokyam

Jnane prayasam udapdasya namanta eva jivanti—first throw away the bucket of knowledge that you are holding on your head and become fully surrendered to the sadhus. Engage yourself with these sadhus in hearing the glories of Lord Krishna, His pastimes, etc., and propagate them. You can distribute everything—what you have understood, as well as what you have not understood—to any sincere seeker. That is called proper sravan and kirtan. You have heard these words ‘sravan’ and ‘kirtan’—hearing the glories of the Lord and distributing the glories of the Lord to everyone. Everyone’s real property exists in a very hidden way in the heart, and it is exposed by this process of sravan and kirtan.

A Ganges full of knowledge of the scriptures cannot rescue you. Knowledge has its final destination up to satya-loka. It will not get a divine connection from there to the transcendental plane. Knowledge devoid of devotion is useless for you. That real knowledge is given in Srimad Bhagavatam, and Mahaprabhu Himself recognized it:

srimad bhagavatam puranam amalam yad vaisnavanam priyam
yasmin paramahamsyam ekam amalam jnanam param giyate
tatra jnana-viraga-bhakti-sahitam naiskarmyam aviskrtam
tach chhrnvan su-pathan vicharana-paro bhaktya vimuchyen narah

Srimad Bhagavatam puranam amalam—it is the spotless Purana. In Puranas we read so many things, but here in Srimad Bhagavatam there is nothing external, nothing extra to throw out. Therefore, it is very dear to those who are whole-heartedly serving Lord Krishna. Ecstatic knowledge with the service to the Lord is given by Vedavyasa, developing up to bhava and maha-bhava. Here we find only the service of Lord Krishna, and that is the ultimate knowledge, not mixed with anything material.

Beyond this material world there exists brahma-loka. Brahma-Samhita has given its description:

yasya prabha prabhavato jagad-anda-koti-
kotisv asesa-vasudhadi-vibhati-bhinnam
tad brahma niskalam anantam asesa-bhutam
govindam adi-purusam tam aharn bhajami

I worship Govinda, the primeval Lord, whose effulgence is the source of non-differentiated Brahman mentioned in the Upanisads; being differentiated from the infinity of glories of the mundane universe, it appears as the indivisible, infinite, limitless truth. The light, the effulgence that comes from krishna-loka and permeates the spiritual world, that is brahma-loka, the entire area of spiritual existence. We must try to take the knowledge that Sukadev Goswami, Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, and Srimad Bhagavatam have given us and dive deep into that reality.

Preaching comes automatically, but this subject matter is not for preaching—it is a transcendental fuse that allows the connection from the mundane to the transcendental world. There are two waves flowing: one is this material world, which flows by a cyclic system, and the other is the free-flowing transcendental world.

Vedavyasa said:

tatra jnana-viraga-bhakti-sahitam naiskarmyam aviskrtam
tach chhrnvan supathan vicharana-paro bhaktyavimuchyen narah

Tatra jnana-viraga-bhakti-sahitam—this is not ordinary knowledge, nor an ordinary renounced mentality. It is enriched with the devotion and service of Lord Krishna. Everything is done for Krishna, not for yourself. That type of devotional spirit exists within the real devotees.

Everything is going on happily in the nirguna bhumika, the transcendental world. If you live with that kind of sadhu, if you hear that (tat srnvan supathan), read that (vicharana-paro) and try to discuss and consider the meaning of that sloka, then easily liberation will come to you, and you can refuse that liberation and proceed to Goloka Vrindavan, crossing the specific gravity of the illusory environment. First attempt to engage yourselves in hearing and glorifying the Lord’s pastimes; and engage yourselves in the service of the members of that divine abode.

We live in bhu-loka, the earth planet, and all the lokas—bhu, bhuvar, svah, maha, jana, tapa, satya—exist within this universe. But beyond this universe is brahma-loka, the spiritual world, and at its center is the transcendental abode of Lord Krishna. You can cross everything very easily through bhakti-yoga. All spiritual practices will help you to direct yourselves to that abode through bhakti-yoga. Therefore, practice bhakti-yoga and be happy.

How many days are there in our hand? Can we say that? No, we do not know it. In the future how many days can I enjoy with this illusory environment? I cannot even say who I was in my previous life. I have got, as a reaction, this human body with some fine brain. I have willing, feeling, thinking power within this body, but I must try to discover something that will give me eternity, and also that which is very important for me—love, beauty, affection and dedication. Various qualities will come to me for the service of that transcendental abode of Lord Sri Krishna.

We want many things for our pleasure and enjoyment, but everything exists eternally with its transcendental form within the qualities of Krishna. Therefore if we try to get it through bhakti-yoga, we can easily attain that property.

We are so fortunate that we have received everything from Vedavyasa: the description of that transcendental abode of Lord Krishna, and the process to attain that abode through the channel of bhakti-yoga.

Vedavyasa had heard many things from Narada Goswami, but Narada said, “Now meditate through bhakti-yoga, then you will feel and see everything. You can see there the full form of the Divine Couple and Their pastimes and join those pastimes. That chance will come to you very easily through this process given by Srimad Bhagavatam.”

There is no end to our desires. Even if we get what we want, we will not be satisfied. Some satisfaction may come, but that is only temporary. How can anyone who has a little consciousness be satisfied with this material world? Because we have no divine connection, we are trying to enjoy in this material world by thinking, feeling and willing so many things.

sarva-vedanta-saram hi sri-bhagavatam isyate
tad-rasamrta-trptasya nanyatra syad ratih kvachit

“Srimad Bhagavatam is the essence of all philosophy. One who has tasted this essence will never be attracted by any other conception.” From here we cannot understand how much ecstasy exists in the divine service of the Lord. First, it is necessary to purify ourselves, to be surrendered, and to join the servitors of that transcendental abode in sravan and kirtan—all nine kinds of devotional activities; then, we will be promoted gradually and easily.

My good fortune (and I feel the good fortune of you all) is that we attempted to glorify the Lord herein. We can preserve this moment eternally and progress on to that transcendental destination. Krishna has given a chance to us all, therefore we cannot lose this property.

By the order of my Guru Maharaj, I am going from country to country with this news, with this divine knowledge about Krishna consciousness. Seeing the successful results I feel more enthusiasm, and because of that I do not care about my health. Sometimes I am suffering, but I pray to you all to give me strength so that I will not stop preaching Krishna consciousness.

ayur harati vai pumsam
udyann astam cha yann asau
tasyarte yat-ksano nita
uttama-sloka-vartaya

The sun is rising and setting, taking one day from my life’s account. For one who is sixteen years and one day old, sixteen years and one day have passed from his life. In this way we are losing our lives. Day by day we are losing our lives, and life is not certain. Therefore do not delay getting an opportunity for spiritual life for even one moment.

Contents

Preface
Bhagavat Darshan

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