— { SERMONS OF THE GUARDIAN OF DEVOTION, IV } —

INTRODUCTION

SRI VYASA-PUJA ADDRESS
by Sri Srimad Bhakti Raksak Sridhar Dev-Goswami Maharaj,
9 Nov. 1982

The Lord says that, “My servant’s position is also as respectable as Mine. He serves Me and he also is worthy of the same reverence and worship as I am. He is My part and parcel, a member of my family, and my family is the purest of the pure. All of My family are agents of purity and are distributing purity to the world.” Purity is not only self-abnegation but the higher purity is in self-surrender. That service is not calculative nor with any motive, but it is automatic, spontaneous service: service of the beautiful, service of love divine. It is not the service of power, but it is service of beauty, love. Satyam, sivam, sundaram. Sundaram is the most original factor ever discovered in this world. So Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu and Srimad Bagavatam preached about sundaram, which is not mere unassailable eternal existence to be adored, and not mere consciousness of the material substance which may be discovered as a wonderful thing to be adored, but sundaram, is the fulfilment of the consciousness. The real existence of that highest substance was given exclusively by Srimad Bhagavatam and then by Sri Chaitanyadev and His followers. We are worshipers of the beautiful. Reality the beautiful, reality the love, reality the harmony. That is the highest quarter of the existence and we are connected internally with that and so we must aspire after that scientifically. There is a particular method and we are to follow that. The sastra, the scripture, is there and the living sastra, the sadhu, the saint, is there and under their guidance we can hope to attain the highest fulfilment of life. “Die to live.” So many proposals in the name of helping are only helping us to incur debt in this world. Already one is under the pressure of a heavy burden and again in the name of help he is securing a fresh loan and so more burden is coming on his head. This is the nature of help in this world. No work can be fully pure in this world. It may be said that at least there is good-will but we say that good-will is also impure and filthy. Everything is impure and rubbish here, but with the help of the scripture and the real agent we are to come to know what is good and what is bad. Then we are to accept the good and eliminate the bad. Previously Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu came distributing this conception and in the modern time our Srila Guru Maharaj, Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Saraswati Prabhupad, came and almost single-handedly began his fight against the so-called existing principles of help in the environment. The Vedas say, “In the garb of religion so many materialistic things are being delivered. It is a treachery to the ordinary people.” We are to know what it pure religion, what is the real recommendation of the Vedas, which has its conclusion in Srimad Bhagavatam. The Veda is likened to a wish-fulfilling tree, kalpa-vriksa: whatever we want it can supply that. And from that has come naturally the ripe product, the ripe fruit of the Vedas, and that is Srimad Bhagavatam. There is no artificial colour there that any scholar can come and thrust his own interpretation into the Bhagavatam and say, “This is Bhagavatam’s opinion.” Bhagavatam is not subject to the Vedas’ or the Upanisads’ opinions but the Srimad Bhagavatam has come automatically from the Veda tree.

One who cannot tolerate another’s position is a jealous person. This Bhagavatam is only meant for those that are free from jealousy so that they can understand that there is only one principal Who is all in all. He is autocrat and He is all in all. He is our master and He can make or mar. Only those who have no jealousy can come to such a level as to enquire about truth. Whereas the jealous cannot admit that there is God and that the whole creation is designed and destined by Him.

There is the land of the Lord and if we can enter into that plane then we can be really happy by giving and not by exerting. To sacrifice for Him will bring for us both quantity and, especially, quality. If we can have entrance into that plane we shall be able to swim in the pool of nectar. It is very much appreciable.

We can understand that it is very much appreciable, that so many from foreign lands have also come being attracted by the instructions and advice of Mahaprabhu and Srimad Bhagavatam. So many young people have been charmed by the beauty of the teachings of Sri Chaitanyadeva, Srimad Bhagavatam and Their agents. That they would come to join us was already predicted by Srila Bhaktivinod Thakur someone hundred years ago and our Srila Guru Maharaj began the work in a humble way. After that, one of his disciples, Sripad A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Maharaj, went to the West empty-handed but by the grace of Mahaprabhu, Krishna and Nityananda Prabhu he was very much successful to push this high level of advice to the West. Attracted by his earnest desire to distribute this nectar, the westerners have come in their hundreds to join the sankirtan party under the banner of the Gaudiya Math, Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Saraswati Thakur and A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Maharaj. I am sure that you will be pleased at heart to find them amongst you here. They are taking all sorts of risks in their lives in order to preach these truths to the whole of the world with all the might and resources at their command. There are men of all different types who have joined this movement including bright scholars, doctors and businessmen. They are taking this message to every corner of the earth most skilfully and so we must feel and express our gratitude towards their divine attempt, and to their earnestness to know and distribute this sort of high order of knowledge of relief to the people at large. We appreciate their presence here and their attempt and I feel that you are all of the same opinion as myself that they have encouraged us in a very extraordinary way to search. Many Indians are encouraged by their presence. They are also very inquisitive, “What is there that so many foreigners of high grades are also coming to appreciate? There must be something to be enquired.” In this way so many Indian persons who are holding high positions in the worldly educated society are also coming.

So we give our thanks to those noble persons for their attempts and we pray to our Guru and Vaishnavs that their attempts may be fulfilled by Them.

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CONTENTS

Foreword
Introduction
• (1) The Four Sittings of Srimad Bhagavatam
• (2) The Free Flow of the Absolute
• (3) Truth by Instalments
• (4) With Sincerity to Safety
• (5) Highest Dedication, Highest Gain

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