# Back to Godhead Magazine #55 *2021 (03)* Back to Godhead Magazine #55-03, 2021 PDF-View Welcome The Vedic scriptures tell us that Lord Kṛṣṇa has appeared in this world repeatedly throughout a history that stretches far beyond that known to the modern mind. He comes in many forms to give us knowledge of ultimate reality and uplift us in other ways, including providing, through the records of His descents, material for spiritual contemplation. Kṛṣṇa is not obliged to reveal Himself to us; He does so as a pure act of mercy. For this reason one of His names is Patita Pāvana, or “the purifier of the fallen.” The Deity of the Lord worshiped in the temple is considered an incarnation, and one famous Deity commonly referred to as Patita Pāvana is Lord Jagannātha, who is Lord Kṛṣṇa appearing in an unusual form. Our cover story in this issue, by Satyarāja Dāsa, tells us much about Jagannātha and His famous temple on the east coast of India. A related article tells the remarkable story of ISKCON’s Jagannātha temple just down the road from ISKCON’s vast Māyāpur Chandrodaya Mandir complex in West Bengal. Two other articles in this issue talk about Kṛṣṇa’s compassion: Gaurāṅga Darśana Dāsa’s “Who Else Could Be So Kind?” and Karuṇa Dhārinī Devī Dāsī’s “Kṛṣṇa’s Mercy.” Hare Kṛṣṇa. —*Nāgarāja Dāsa, Editor* Letters *Chanting as Transcendental Meditation* How does the chanting of Hare Kṛṣṇa relate to a form of transcendental meditation? It’s interesting in Swami Prabhupāda’s book The Science of Self-Realization on page 181 where it says: “Real meditation means to achieve a state in which the mind is saturated with God consciousness.” So is the chanting of Hare Kṛṣṇa the transcendental meditation of getting to the God conscious state? Terence Via the Internet *Reply:* The sound vibration of Hare Kṛṣṇa is from the spiritual world and attracts our attention very easily. Other meditations are not so easy for everyone and not as potent and absorbing. This process of chanting is recommended by the Lord for us who are easily distracted by so much material craziness around us. The sound is nondifferent from Kṛṣṇa, so it is a direct connection that can purify us and anyone who hears it. Of course, the more attentive you are, the more it acts. We chant on beads, individually, every day for a couple of hours, especially in the early morning, and we congregationally chant in our temples every day as well. Both these methods are certainly real transcendental meditation, and they help us focus on our actual position and duty as a spirit soul. In this lifetime we have the opportunity to fix our minds on Kṛṣṇa and engage in His service. The practice of *bhakti-yoga* is a nice combination of chanting and active service—in effect, an all-day meditation—that keeps us *busy* and happy while in these bodies. The chanting, especially, is something anyone, anywhere, can do. It is going on all over the planet at this very moment, with tangible results. As we, the soul, link to Kṛṣṇa, we become happy and content in our original position as Kṛṣṇa’s eternal loving servant. As George Harrison said in a preface to Śrīla Prabhupāda’s book Kṛṣṇa, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, “the taste of the pudding is in the eating.” So give chanting Hare Kṛṣṇa a try. *Kṛṣṇa and Us* What is our relationship with Kṛṣṇa? Raj Kumar Via the Internet *Reply*: We are eternally a part of Kṛṣṇa and exist for His pleasure. The pleasure comes from a loving relationship between Him and us, and so we share in the pleasure. It is an eternal relationship, usually under one of the general headings of loving Him as a servant, a friend, a parent, or a lover. These eternal positions are revealed when we become purified through the process of *bhakti*, or loving service to Kṛṣṇa. Though we are eternal spiritual beings, we are in the material world because we want to be served rather than to serve Kṛṣṇa. We ignore the fact that serving Kṛṣṇa means the ecstatic service of being His friend or parent and so on. Our task in the material world now is to learn our lesson. We have to be purified and change our hearts and our selfish attitude. When we become qualified by awakening our natural love for God, then He will reveal our relationship with Him. We will be totally satisfied in that position in the spiritual world. Please read The Nectar of Devotion, by Śrīla Prabhupāda, which explains all about these relationships of loving devotion. *Struggling with Fate* If fate is not on my side, as suggested by a few astrologers, then how to deal with these difficult conditions, particularly when due to the impact of such ill fate all my efforts go in the wrong direction? Despite knowing that I am wrong, I keep doing the wrong acts and don't have any courage to initiate steps to improve, which is of utmost importance. Manish Via the Internet *Reply:* Lord Kṛṣṇa says that He takes direct care of His devotees when they surrender to Him. That is the solution to everyone’s problems, not just yours. When we surrender to Kṛṣṇa, our past *karma* is mostly erased, with a tapering off over time. Kṛṣṇa minimizes any reaction that we may be due. This is His mercy on His devotees. If some bad reactions come, we can be sure that we deserved much worse, so we can be thankful to Kṛṣṇa. In this mentality we cannot be fearful and can peacefully and joyfully serve Him and please Him to the best of our ability. He is the supreme controller, supreme proprietor, and supreme friend. All of our service to Him is deposited into a transcendental bank account, never to be erased. The future is bright for the devotee. If you think about these points, redirecting your thoughts away from your failures, you will at once feel relief and hope. Kṛṣṇa is waiting to help you. The more you ask for His mercy and respond to it, the more you will see improvement in your life. From the Editor *Real Wealth in Ancient Times Prosperity was the norm during the reigns of God-conscious Vedic kings.* Los Angeles - May 15, 1973 > tadā te bhrātaraḥ sarve > sadaśvaiḥ svarṇa-bhūṣitaiḥ > anvagacchan rathair viprā > vyāsa-dhaumyādayas tathā "At that time all his brothers followed him on beautiful chariots drawn by first-class horses decorated with gold ornaments. With them were Vyāsa and ṛṣis like Dhaumya, the learned priest of the Pāṇḍavas, and others." So one very important word is here: *sadaśvaiḥ *svarṇa-bhūṣitaiḥ.** Formerly the horses were used in military division. Horses, chariot, elephants and then infantry. So not one or two, but one division of military phalanx contained..., required sixty thousand horses. *Akṣauhiṇī.* So many horses, so many elephants, so many chariot, and so many infantry soldiers—that will compose one division of soldiers. So "so many" means the, I exactly remember now, sixty thousand horses. So all the horses, when they are required for procession or for going to the fight, were well decorated with golden ornaments, *svarṇa-bhūṣitaiḥ.* So just imagine the, all the saddles of the horse, if they are golden-ornamented, how many ounces you will require to decorate the horse. Such sixty-thousand horses, how much it comes? [laughter] Where is that gold? They are very much proud, advancement of material civilization, but instead of gold, we find plastic. [laughter] And the nonsense, they are very much proud of their wealth. Just see. Even they cannot decorate their wives. And woman, they require also ornament. It is psychology. *Manu-saṁhitā,* it has been recommended that "If you want to keep satisfied your wife, then you must give her good food, good *sārī* and good ornament." This is the system. Therefore during marriage time, the girl is given by the father, according to his means, as many *sārīs,* nice *sārīs,* beautiful, costly *sārīs,* and as much as possible, golden ornaments. And those who are very rich, they, still in India, they give jewelries, means diamonds, pearls, sapphire, according to means. Those who are richer class, they don't touch gold. They must give jewelry. This is the system. So this is the opulence. So much gold. When the Kurukṣetra battle was finished, so the treasury was also finished. The treasury of the Pāṇḍavas, that was also finished. Because war means expenditure. So many hundred thousands of pounds and dollars required daily to finance the running on of the war. So Yudhiṣṭhira Mahārāja wanted to... Pradyumna: No. Prabhupāda: No. Never mind. ...wanted to perform sacrifice. So sacrifice means he requires money, so much grains, so many ornaments, so much gold and **ghee*.* Everything required. To perform sacrifice is not ordinary thing. Millions and millions of dollars required. In the Kali-yuga, because people cannot collect such costly things... Suppose **ghee*.* Tons of *ghee* was being offered to the fire. Where is that tons of *ghee*? Not available. Then all utensils made of gold. The altar made of gold. Where is that gold? Therefore the..., not many days before, five thousand years, the Indian history, or this world history... Now it is called India, but this whole world is Bhārata-varṣa. So Yudhiṣṭhira Mahārāja asked his brother Dhanañjaya, Arjuna, "So bring some money from somewhere. Otherwise how we can perform the sacrifices? We have finished all our treasury." So Arjuna was little perplexed. The elder brother was king, and the younger brothers, they were commanders. So Kṛṣṇa saw that His friend is little perturbed. So He immediately gave information. This is God, *sarva-jña.* He knows where to find out. He gave him information that formerly, one king, by the grace of Lord Śiva, he got information of a big gold mine, or gold mine mountain. So that king used to manufacture so many things of gold. Especially in sacrifice he used to give immense dishes made of gold to the *brāhmaṇas.* So at that time, the *brāhmaṇas* were also not very greedy. So the king, during the sacrifice, gave them unlimited number of dishes of gold, made of gold. So they accepted it, but when they came out of the sacrificial arena, they thought, "Who is going to carry so much load? Throw it." Just see. This is opulence. As nowadays it is our system that the plate on which you eat, that should be thrown away... Formerly, people used to eat on golden plate, at least the royal families, and after eating they used to throw away. Not for the second use. Just like India still, it is observed, earthen plate used. As here in your country paper plate, in India, earthen plate—once used, then it is thrown away. It cannot be used second time. Therefore in rigid Hindu family, they don't use these china clay plates. They don't use. Because it is made of earth. So when it is earthen pot, as soon as you eat, it becomes contaminated. It must be thrown away. You cannot use for the second time. That was... So this system was formerly even for golden plates. Once used, then it cannot be used second time. It is thrown away. And "thrown away" means some poor man will collect. So there was no question of poverty. The rich men, they eat once and throw away. Their servants or other poor man... Just like these *brāhmaṇas,* they threw away all these golden plates. *Brāhmaṇas* were not required golden plate, but they were given in charity: "*Brāhmaṇas*, you take." They accepted, but they thought it that "It is a load. Why should I carry? Throw it." So there were heaps of golden plate lying near Himalayan mountain. So Kṛṣṇa was given information, er, Arjuna was given information by Kṛṣṇa that "You go there and collect those golden plates. Then your purpose will be served." So Arjuna went there and collected and brought it to his brother, Mahārāja Yudhiṣṭhira, for converting them into money for spending in the sacrifice. So this was the system. Therefore Arjuna's another name is *Dhanañjaya*. *Dhanañjaya* means "one who can conquer over riches." His brother was in need of money, and he brought money. Therefore, from that day, his name was *Dhanañjaya*, "one can conquer over riches." So actually, human opulence means not these tin cars. Once it is dashed with another car, it is finished, no value. Human opulence means the society must have enough gold, enough jewelry, enough silk, enough grains, enough milk, enough vegetables, like that. That is opulent. That is opulence. Formerly a person was considered rich by two things, *dhānyena dhanavān:* How much grain stock he has got at his home. A big, big barn, filled with grains. Still in India, if I am going to give my daughter to some family, to see the family's opulence I go to see the house, and if I see there are many, many barns' stock of grains and many cows, then it is very good. It is opulent. *Dhānyena dhanavān, gavyaṁ dhanavān.* A man is considered to be rich when he has got enough quantity of grains, enough quantity of, I mean to say, number, enough number of cows. Just like Mahārāja..., Nanda Mahārāja, the foster father of Kṛṣṇa, he was keeping 900,000 cows. And He was rich man. He was *mahārāja,* king. But see the behavior. His beloved son, Kṛṣṇa and Balarāma, he has entrusted to take care of the calves or cows: "Go in the forest." He is well dressed with ornament and nice dress, everything. All the cowherds boys, they are very rich. They have got enough grains and enough milk. Naturally they will be rich. But not that the cows and the calves will be taken care of by some hired servant. No. They would take care himself. That was children's sport, to go to the forest, take the calves and cows and carry some tiffin*.* Eat there, dance there, play there, and again come in the evening*.* Then they will take bath and change their dress and take their meals and immediately go to sleep*.* This was the boy's, children's, engagement*.* So how they would grow healthy, because they go outside and play and work, and very happily they enjoy the company*.* So there is no question of becoming contaminated*.* *Yāmuna-tīra-vana-cārī* [*Jaya Rādhā Mādhava*]*.* *Yāmuna-tīra,* on the bank of the Yamunā*.**.**.* Just like we go to the seaside, the beach, similarly, there is bank of Yamunā, very nice river, and there are trees*.* So these boys, Kṛṣṇa and His friends, with their cows they will go and loiter on the bank of the Yamunā and sport and frivolities, everything, so nicely*.* So there was no question of education at that time. After the child is grown up, healthy, nice, then he goes to school. Otherwise, first of all eat sumptuously milk, butter and yogurt, and play sufficiently in open air with friends, take care of the cows. This is labor. But it is sporting, very nice. So these things were taught by Kṛṣṇa Himself, although He was the son of king. Then when He was grown-up, His real father took Him charge, Vasudeva. Then He was... As **kṣatriya*...* He belonged to the *kṣatriya* family. All other education was given: how to fight, how to rule, everything. So this *kṣatriya,* this Mahārāja Yudhiṣṭhira, they also *kṣatriyas.* So when they were going to see Bhīṣmadeva, they were going there in royal style, with chariots, with horse, and decorated with golden ornaments, and the **brāhmaṇas*,* Vyāsadeva and other. All the *kṣatriyas,* kings, would be always accompanied by hordes of **brāhmaṇas*.* As soon as they required any instruction, immediately consult the **brāhmaṇas*,* and they gave good advice: "Do like this." This is the business of the *brāhmaṇa.* And the kings, they would not do anything without consulting. Don't think that because there was monarchy, they were all autocrat. No. If the *brāhmaṇas* would not agree, then they won't do. The *brāhmaṇas*' community, all saintly persons and learned scholars, **brāhmaṇas*.*.. There was a committee, and the king would take their advice how to manipulate the political affairs or administration, and they would consult standard books. Just like nowadays the rascals, every day they are changing some law. Somebody told me..., where? In Africa, every week there is change of the cabinet. Every week. Means so full of rascals. So one rascal will fight with another rascal. So there is no stability of government. All these rascals, politician, they are trying to occupy the post: "I shall become president. I shall become secretary. And then I shall exploit the state like anything." This is the motive. Their manifestation, that "I am going to give you heaven. If you select me president, then I shall give you heaven within three minutes." [laughter] So these promises, they simply promise. Actually, there is nothing. But king was very responsible, as we are discussing. Now, Mahārāja Yudhiṣṭhira was thinking of the women: "Now their husbands and their sons or their fathers, so many have died. Now how to take care of them?" He was perplexed. So responsible, for children, for the **brāhmaṇa*s,* those who are helpless. Women, children, *brāhmaṇa* and old men and cows, they must be taken first care. That was the king's duty. Children. And who is taking care of the children? Who is taking care of the women? And who is taking care of the *brāhmaṇa*s? There is no *brāhmaṇa*. Even there are some *brāhmaṇa*s—we are creating now—who is taking care of us? It was the duty of the government to see to this Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement, "Oh, such an important movement is going on? Our first attention should be how this movement can go on." So nice character, so nice behavior, so nice knowledge, so nice consciousness of God, so pure, and the government has no attention. They are thinking it is something sentimental. And all the politicians, going to the brothel and drinking and dancing naked, they are all first-class men. This is the position of the society. No care for the living entities who are very important. Just like in this verse, *vipra.* Mahārāja Yudhiṣṭhira is always accompanied by *brāhmaṇas.* Without brahminical culture, what is the value of the society? There is no value. It is animal society. Therefore *Bhagavad-gītā* recommends, *cātur-varṇyaṁ mayā sṛṣṭaṁ guṇa-karma-vibhāgaśaḥ* [Bg 4*.*13]*.* Here you cannot find all one class of men*.* That is not possible*.* There is those rascals who are trying to have a classless society, no class, all one*.* That is rascaldom*.* That is not possible*.* There must be classes*.* That is scientific*.* Why? Because this material nature is being conducted under three modes: first class, second class, third class*.* Goodness, passion and ignorance*.* So how you can make classless society? There must be divisions*.* There must be classes, color, colorful*.* So it has to be scientifically arranged, how all classes can cooperate for one purpose and they develop very nicely in Kṛṣṇa consciousness. Therefore Kṛṣṇa says, *cātur-varṇyaṁ mayā sṛṣṭam* [Bg 4.13]*. Mayā sṛṣṭam* means anything created by God, you cannot nullify it, you cannot reject it. That is not possible. You have to accept it and possibly utilize it. Therefore devotees, they take it for granted, even there is distressed condition of life, they take it that "It is created by God. I am now in distress. It is creation of God. So why shall I hate it? Let me tolerate. Let me undergo this distressed condition of life." Just like suppose you are suffering from cough. Now there has been some hygienic law disregarded, so I have caught cold and cough. So why shall I deride upon it? It must be created either, you say, by bodily nature or by God. So, so long it is there, let me suffer patiently. It has come; it will go. That is instruction in the *Bhagavad-gītā:* *āgamāpāyinaḥ anityāḥ.* Distressed condition, or happiness also, so-called happiness... Here there is no happiness; everything is distressed condition. But we are so fool that we consider distressed condition as happiness. This is called *māyā,* distressed condition as happiness. For example, suppose you have to go to see a friend, and nowadays, friend or anything, not less than ten miles. So you have to go ten miles, and then see your friend, and then do your work. So I am taking the trouble of going ten miles to see a friend or thirty miles to see a medical practitioner, but I am very much proud of my car, that I have got a car. I don't consider that although I have got car, still, I have to waste so much time; I have to take so much trouble. And there is every possibility of accidents. So many calamities are awaiting me. But we think that "Now we have discovered this horseless carriage, we are advanced." Similarly, if you study every item, you will find that although you have created by the modern scientific advancement a little comfort of life, side by side we have created many discomforts. That we do not find. That is the ways of this material nature. The ways of material nature is that you cannot remain in comfort. That is not possible, by laws of nature. *Tri-tāpa-yātana,* three kinds of miseries, **ādhyātmika,* ādhibhautika, *ādhidaivika,** they must be there always. Just like I am your spiritual master. You have kept me very nicely, to your best capacity, but I am coughing. I am coughing. So even if we are situated in one kind of comfortable position, the another uncomfort will come and attack you. That is called *tri* division: **ādhyātmika,* ādhibhautika, ādhidaivika.* Or there is no cough, or there is no trouble, but you receive one very unsatisfactory letter from a friend; you become very sorry. This is called *ādhyātmika,* pertaining to the mind, pertaining to the body. *Ādhyātmika. Adhibhautika:* troubles offered by other living entities; and *ādhidaivika,* trouble offered by the higher authorities. Just like excessive heat. You cannot control. Excessive cold. So in this material world we have to work very hard under these three kinds of miserable conditions of life, and we are actually doing that. Still, we are thinking that we are happy. And after all, after doing this, we have to change this body. That means death. We cannot avoid it. But still, we are thinking that we are happy, and we have no sense to try to understand actually what is the standard of happiness, where that happiness can be had, if it is possible. These things are understood and answered by this Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement*.* That is the importance of the Kṛṣṇa consciousness*.* All-round*.* It is not one-sided, that we are thinking of Kṛṣṇa*.* Thinking of Kṛṣṇa means thinking of everything, because Kṛṣṇa is everything*.* Without Kṛṣṇa, there is no other thing*.* **Prabhava*ḥ *pralaya*s tathā* [*Bg* 7*.*6]*.* In this world there two things: *prabhava* and *pralaya**.* *Prabhava* means generation, generating, and *pralaya* means annihilation*.* Two things*.* Everything, whatever you take, it is generated at a certain point and it will end at a certain point*.* So Kṛṣṇa says, ahaṁ kṛtsnasya sarvasya *prabhava*ḥ *pralaya*s tathā*.* That is the ultimate cause*.* Janmādy asya yataḥ*.* We don't take simply generation*.* Generation, maintenance and annihilation, three things*.* Just this body is born at a certain date, it remains for a certain period, and then it is annihilated. So everything material means it has a beginning, it is born or it is manufactured at a certain point, it keeps for some time, then it will be destroyed. Therefore the *Vedānta-sūtra* says, *janmādy asya yataḥ. Janma-sthiti-pralaya.* So, to understand Kṛṣṇa means to understand everything: how it is generated, how it is maintained and how it is annihilated. That is full Kṛṣṇa consciousness. Thank you very much. A Pause for Prayer You descend into this world, O transcendent Lord, to destroy the warlords who burden the earth and create many terrible disturbances. O Lord, you simultaneously act for the welfare of those who faithfully serve Your lotus feet. Obeisances unto You, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, the great Soul, who are all-pervading and who reside in the hearts of all. My obeisances unto You, Kṛṣṇa, the chief of the Yadu dynasty. Unto Him who assumes transcendental bodies according to the desires of His devotees, unto Him whose form is itself pure consciousness, unto Him who is everything, who is the seed of everything and who is the Soul of all creatures, I offer my obeisances. – Indra to Lord Kṛṣṇa *Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam* 10.27.9–11 A Mistaken Life *This conversation between His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupāda and some of his disciples took place in New Vrindaban, West Virginia, on June 26, 1976.* Śrīla Prabhupāda: So those who are devoted to the Lord believe they’ll become happy by seeing others becoming happy. [To Disciple:] Read the next verse. Disciple [reading from *Bhagavad-gītā* 16.11–12]: “The demoniac believe that to gratify the senses is the prime necessity of human civilization. Thus until the end of life their anxiety is immeasurable. Bound by a network of hundreds of thousands of desires and absorbed in lust and anger, they secure money by illegal means for sense gratification.” Śrīla Prabhupāda: “Illegal.” Read the purport. Disciple: “The demoniac accept that the enjoyment of the senses is the ultimate goal of life, and this concept they maintain until death. They do not believe in life after death, and they do not believe that one takes on different types of bodies according to one’s *karma*, or activities in this world. Their plans for life are never finished, and they go on preparing plan after plan, all of which are never finished. We have personal experience of a person of such demoniac mentality who, even at the point of death, was requesting the physician to prolong his life for four years more because his plans were not yet complete. Such foolish people do not know that a physician cannot prolong life even for a moment. When the notice is there, there is no consideration of the man’s desire. The laws of nature do not allow a second beyond what one is destined to enjoy. “The demoniac person, who has no faith in God or the Supersoul within himself, performs all kinds of sinful activities simply for sense gratification. He does not know that there is a witness sitting within his heart. The Supersoul is observing the activities of the individual soul. As it is stated in the *Upaniṣads*, there are two birds sitting in one tree; one is acting and enjoying or suffering the fruits of the branches, and the other is witnessing. But one who is demoniac has no knowledge of Vedic scripture, nor has he any faith; therefore he feels free to do anything for sense enjoyment, regardless of the consequences.” Śrīla Prabhupāda: Now discuss. Disciple: Śrīla Prabhupāda, one of America’s richest men. Howard Hughes, just recently died. And reportedly he had been keeping himself in a very disheveled and pathetic condition, with long hair and beard and long nails. There were sores all over his body. So despite all his billions of dollars, he died quite miserably. Just before he left his body, he lamented, “I think I’ve made a mistake.” Śrīla Prabhupāda: What had he done in his life? Disciple: In his younger days he designed and raced airplanes. And he flew around the world to help establish commercial air routes. Later he gained control over Trans World Airlines. In addition, he ran huge machine-tool and aircraft companies and treated other companies—other people, really—quite ruthlessly. After World War II, Congress held an investigation in which they proved he had bribed government officials to give weapons contracts to him. Now it has also come out that in 1968 he requested the newly elected Nixon administration to keep the Vietnam war going. His weapons were of course killing thousands of people, but he just couldn’t stop. He was making too much money. Besides all that, he produced and directed movies. In the 1930s and 1940s he helped introduce “sexploitation” films, with actresses wearing very revealing clothing. And he had many affairs, too, with all sorts of movie starlets. At the end of his life he didn’t mix with women so much, though. He became depressed, utterly despondent. He lived like a hermit and was extremely afraid of germs. Śrīla Prabhupāda: Hmm? Disciple: He became like a hermit. He withdrew into himself. No one knew very much about him. He was very mysterious. And toward the end, he didn’t at all have what we would call a life of sense gratification. He maintained a staff of doctors and clinicians to protect him from death. He spent his last days haunted by fear. *Bhagavad-gītā’s* description of the demoniac is perfect. Most of Hughes’s fortune they figure he amassed by illegal methods, such as paying off government officials to give big contracts to, for instance, his aircraft company. He had holdings in Las Vegas and was involved in all sorts of mysterious maneuvers. It appears he got much—if not most—of his money illegally. So gradually he became more and more fearful of the outside world, until in his old age he became terrified of germs. He was deathly afraid he would catch some disease that would do him in. As a result he arranged to live within hermetically sealed rooms, with artificially filtered air and light so that no germs could enter, and he would wear specially de-germed clothing. Śrīla Prabhupāda: Apparently he did not realize that he was breeding germs within his own body. Disciple: Yes, Śrīla Prabhupāda. Even with all his billions of dollars, he could not escape death. He used unlimited quantities of money to get rid of germs, but it was all a failure. Śrīla Prabhupāda: Yes. If he had actually gotten rid of the germs, then how was it that he died? [Extended silence.] Disciple: He supposedly said something to the effect that “I have achieved so many things in this life. But I really don’t know what this life was all about. I think I’ve made a mistake.” Śrīla Prabhupāda: Yes, it was a mistake. Bending Low and Rising High: The Inverted Hierarchies of Devotion *In approaching a sage, Lord Rāma displayed His characteristically strict adherence to principles of dharma.* A small incident during Lord Rāmacandra’s stay in the forest vividly illuminates a big truth about God’s loving and loveable nature. While living in the forest during His exile, Lord Rāmacandra comes to the hermitage of the sage Sutīkṣṇa. He offers His respects to the sage and is respectfully welcomed. Then Sutīkṣṇa takes Rāma to meet Agastya, Sutīkṣṇa’s *guru*. This incident might seem simple—a prince comes to a sage and is taken to that sage’s *guru*. What makes this incident special, however, is the identity of the prince: He is God descended to earth in human form, playing the role of a prince. Seen in this light, this incident involves a disciple’s taking God to his *guru*. Thus the incident features the opposite of the normal spiritual trajectory, wherein the *guru* takes the disciple to God. And this incident is just one instance of the many intriguing inversions of hierarchy in the Rāmāyaṇa and in the *bhakti* tradition at large. When Rāma reaches Agastya’s hermitage, He immediately offers His respects to that great sage. Agastya is a celebrated sage who appears frequently in *dharmic* literature, as does another well-known sage, Nārada. Agastya recognizes Rāma’s divinity yet respects the human role Rāma is playing. Accordingly, Agastya blesses Rāma while knowing that it is he who is being blessed in getting the audience of Rāma. He gives spiritual instruction to Rāma while knowing that it is he who is being instructed in humility by Rāma—he is being used by Rāma to instruct humanity about the humility with which seekers should approach seers. Rāma’s respecting Agastya is another instance of hierarchy inversion: a sage who reveres God is revered by God. *The Divine Descent: Parallel Perspectives* When Rāma descended to the world in a human form, there ensued a fascinating tension between His divinity and His apparent humanity. If we can appreciate both Rāma’s divine identity and His human role, we can relish the epic at multiple levels. If we see Rāma only at the divine level, the epic loses its special sweetness. Rāma as the omnipotent supreme can do whatever He wants, whenever He wants, however He wants—He can effortlessly overcome any problems that come His way. Yet the epic’s charm comes primarily from Rāma’s dignity amidst adversity. He responds to reversals with composure and character, setting an inspiring example for all of us when we have to face life’s trials. Yet if we see Rāma’s activities only at the human level, the epic loses its special purificatory potency. Rāma is the Supreme, as He periodically demonstrates by doing superhuman feats that far exceed those of any ordinary or even extraordinary human being. Because Rāma is the all-pure Supreme, hearing about Him purifies us, even if we don’t understand the many nuances of His activities. If we aspire to be ethically edified, we can see Rāma as an ideal human being who humbly sticks to duty amidst adversity. If we aspire to be devotionally purified, we can see Rāma as the Lord. Some of Rāma’s actions clearly establish His divinity. Some other actions of Rāma’s illustrate how He is the paragon of virtue in human form. And many incidents in the epic are multivalent; they can be seen from different perspectives to mine various nuggets of insight. One overall insight is that God bends low, playing the role of a humble human being, to rise high in the heads and hearts of those who contemplate and appreciate His activities. And this principle of God’s lowering Himself holds true not just during His descent into this world, but also in His eternal transcendental abode. *The Devotee-God Hierarchy Inversion* *Bhakti* texts stress that God, in His highest abode, doesn’t reign in majestic isolation above all others, demanding their servile supplication. Instead of delighting in the display of His Godhood, He delights in the reciprocation of love with those who choose to love Him purely. When relating with His devotees, God takes on various roles just to facilitate multifarious exchanges of love, each with its own flavor. Thus Rāma, despite being the father of all living beings, acts as a child of Daśaratha, who takes on the role of His father. Such relationships with the hierarchy inverted highlight one of God’s most endearing characteristics: His *bhakta-vātsalya*, His love for His devotees. He loves His devotees so much that to have loving exchanges with them He is even ready to subordinate Himself to them. When God descends to the material world, this inversion of hierarchy is not just continued but also expanded with an extra extension of grace. Even those people who may not be purely devoted can get opportunities to have loving exchanges with Him, thereby gaining glimpses of His world of immortal love. Since a large number of people in this world come in this category, the Lord’s descent exemplifies how He descends low to raise all of us high. How do the unqualified get opportunities to have loving exchanges with God? By assisting Him in His activities in this world. When playing a human role, God demonstrates a vital aspect of a successful life: friendship, cooperation, teamwork. When life weighs down heavily on us, as it will sooner or later, we all need someone to lean on, someone to lessen our load, someone to relieve us of our burden. Rāma demonstrates this principle by taking help of others in times of need. And whom does Rāma choose as His assistants? Monkeys. By choosing forest-dwelling creatures who are not usually known for their intelligence or diligence, He demonstrates the inclusiveness of His grace: it is broad enough to encompass everyone, even those conventionally considered lowborn. Of course, some of the leading monkeys in Rāma’s team—such as Hanumān and Sugrīva—are evolved beings; they descend with Rāma from higher levels of reality. But many other monkeys are just fortunate enough to be at the right place at the right time and to thereby gain the audience and affection of Rāma. So grateful is Rāma for the monkeys’ service to Him that He asks the gods to bless the monkeys. And significantly, Rāma’s interaction with the gods illustrates another telling hierarchy inversion. *The Gods-God Hierarchy Inversion* The Rāmāyaṇa occurs in the backdrop of a complex cosmos with multiple levels of existence. Pertinent to our discussion are three such levels: the terrestrial, the celestial, and the transcendental. The terrestrial level is where we humans exist, with all our tensions and passions and illusions. The celestial level is populated by cosmic administrators far more powerful than us humans. They can be referred to as gods, with a lower-case g and as plural. Among them, Indra is considered the head. At the transcendental level reigns the Supreme Being: God. He manifests in many forms, reciprocates immortal love with His pure devotees, and is celebrated by various names, such as Viṣṇu, Rāma, and Kṛṣṇa. A fourth level of existence is not directly relevant for this discussion. It is the subterranean, which exists below our terrestrial level and is the abode of demonic beings. When Rāma plays the role of a human being on earth, He has descended from a level in the cosmic hierarchy above the gods to a level below them, from the transcendental level to the terrestrial level. We humans, amid life’s inevitable challenges, often petition higher beings for help. When we have a holistic spiritual understanding, we worship the Supreme Being, God. When our understanding is more religious than spiritual, we worship various gods. For those of us in the latter category, Rāma sets an example about what boons to seek from the gods: boons for others, not for oneself. After the Rāmāyaṇa’s climactic war, when Rāma has finally felled Rāvaṇa, the gods appear in the sky to thank Him. Although He has blessed and protected them by neutralizing Rāvaṇa, they go along with His human role. Normally, when the gods appear before humans, they grant boons. Accordingly, they urge Rāma to ask for some boon. In response, Rāma plays the role of a conscientious human ruler to perfection; He requests the gods to bless His assistants, the monkeys, with abundant provisions wherever they may live. Because He is in exile, He doesn’t have any royal wealth to reward them for their gallant service in His war against Rāvaṇa. Still, He is conscious of His obligation to them, and resourcefully uses the gods’ boons to have them rewarded. *The Servitor-Master Hierarchy Inversion* While devotees always know that God is supreme and that they are His humble servants, God by His grace empowers them to do extraordinary things, things that He Himself may not do. When we bow to Him, He raises us far beyond our usual level of consciousness and abilities. Thus, for example, Hanumān leaps across the ocean to reach Lanka—a stupendous feat that he attributes to Rāma’s grace. And yet Rāma Himself takes a more normal, human way to cross the ocean: He has a bridge built. Some people think that devotion means eternally bowing down to a God who delights in our servility. Far from such a stereotype, the *bhakti* tradition reveals a God who delights in our abilities and adventures. Rāma profusely appreciates, privately and publicly, Hanumān’s stupendous feats such as penetrating Lanka single-handedly to find Sītā. God’s greatest joy is not in proclaiming His own glories, but in proclaiming the glories of those who proclaim His glories. Such is the wondrous dynamic of the devotee-God relationship. This inversion of hierarchies involving God and His devotees is dynamic, as is seen in the Mahābhārata war, where Kṛṣṇa becomes Arjuna’s charioteer. Despite taking that humble position, akin to a chauffeur, Kṛṣṇa remains supremely enlightened. When needed, He speaks the **Gītā*’s* enlightening wisdom to free Arjuna from confusion about duty. And though the *Gītā* establishes Kṛṣṇa as the supreme divinity, it also sets the stage for Arjuna, not Kṛṣṇa, to be the main warrior in the ensuing Kurukshetra war; Kṛṣṇa resumes the relatively low-profile role of a charioteer and counselor. Can we too enter into such loving exchanges with God now when He is no longer manifest in this world? Yes, we can, by assisting in His mission, which continues even without His manifest presence. During His descent in the world, the activities God performs are many. But all those activities, indeed His descents themselves, are driven by an overarching mission: to raise human consciousness from the material level to the spiritual level. Significantly, this mission doesn’t end when God’s descent to this world ends—it continues forever. And that mission provides opportunities for service to all people at all times. To aid in this mission, we need to take the responsibility to raise our own consciousness and help others raise theirs. Even though God isn’t visibly manifest at present in the world, He is always present invisibly in our heart. If we compare our body to a chariot, Kṛṣṇa is present within this body-chariot as the charioteer, guiding our wanderings in material existence *(Gītā* 18.62). We just need to change the chain of command in our relationship with Him: instead of asking Him to execute our plans, we ask Him how we can execute His plan. By that change, we all can gain the privilege of being parts of a divine plan far bigger than us and our plans. The divine plan acts around us, through us—and for us. When we become committed to doing His will, He empowers us to do that will by channeling our individuality, creativity, and ability. Our entry into His team begins with our determination to serve Him in a mood of surrender. *Inversion Within Devotion: Surrender Brings Adventure* For many people, surrender connotes defeat and domination—for example, when a frustrated military general faced with a far superior opponent raises the white flag of surrender. However, in the devotional context, surrender is entirely different: it is the willing and loving offering of oneself to one’s object of love. And such devotional surrender ushers us to a life of adventure, not indenture. In the *Gītā* (18.66) Lord Kṛṣṇa asks Arjuna to surrender, and he agrees (18.73). And yet that surrender inspires Arjuna to raise his bow in readiness to fight the biggest war of his life (18.78). In that war, he repeatedly demonstrates peerless feats of archery expertise. Arjuna bends low in surrender and rises high in adventure. In our spiritual journey, we need surrender to accept life’s ultimate purpose: elevation of consciousness. But executing this purpose opens the door to adventure. How we use the constellation of abilities, interests, passions, deficiencies, and limitations that we embody to make our contribution is up to us, up to our inspiration, our dedication, our resilience. Thus devotion simultaneously upholds and upends hierarchies. Devotion upholds hierarchies, for we need to accept the hierarchy of being, wherein God exists at the apex and we exist as His eternal servitors. But devotion upends hierarchies too, for God enables us to do things that He Himself doesn’t do and that we ourselves couldn’t have done, given our limitations. The Rāmāyaṇa upholds hierarchies in the sense that it is Rāma who kills the strongest of all demons, Rāvaṇa—and all the monkeys assist Him in subordinate roles. But the Rāmāyaṇa also upends hierarchies in that Rāma empowers Hanumān to do singularly spectacular feats such as leaping across the ocean and carrying a hillock full of medicinal herbs over vast distances. When we take up the mantle to serve God and receive His empowerment, that devotional reciprocation infuses our life with endless adventure. Indeed, surrender opens for us the door to the world of supreme adventure. *Caitanya Caraṇa Dāsa serves full time at ISKCON Chowpatty, Mumbai. He is a BTG associate editor and the author of twenty-five books. To read his other articles or to receive his daily reflection on the* Bhagavad-gītā, “Gītā-Daily,” *visit gitadaily.com.* Who Else Could Be So Kind? *Four stories illustrate how Lord Kṛṣṇa* *bestows His blessings beyond our expectations.* by Gaurāṅga Darśana Dāsa God doesn’t miss an opportunity to show His mercy to those who serve Him or seek His shelter even indirectly, inattentively, or unintentionally. *Story 1: “To Whom It May Concern”* Would you be willing to help someone who doesn’t call out to you specifically? How concerned would you be about such a person? Here is a story where Lord Hari (Viṣṇu) once eagerly protected a suffering animal although the animal didn’t call out His name specifically. Gajendra, the king of elephants on the paradisiacal Trikuṭa Mountain, once entered a lake along with his wives, children, and companions and happily enjoyed in its waters. In the midst of this apparently unobstructed enjoyment, an unexpected tragedy came upon him. An angry crocodile caught his leg in its jaws. Mighty Gajendra, with all his strength, tried to free himself but couldn’t. The other elephants couldn’t rescue him either. Like all of us in this world, he encountered a difficulty he couldn’t possibly overcome by his own strength or even with others’ help. Gajendra and the crocodile fought for a thousand years, pulling each other in and out of the water. Seeing the fight, even the demigods were astonished. Gradually, Gajendra’s mental and physical strength depleted due to his being in a foreign environment (water). On the other hand, the crocodile’s strength increased because of its being a water animal. Weakened, finding no refuge, Gajendra thought that there must be a supreme person with the power to protect him. But Gajendra didn’t know His name or who He was. By the grace of that person, God, in this time of crisis Gajendra remembered a prayer he had learned in his previous life. The Lord is grateful for even the slightest amount of *bhakti* rendered by His devotees and protects them in the most dangerous circumstances. Gajendra’s prayer appears in *Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam*, Canto Eight, chapter three. Here’s a paraphrase of some of that prayer: “O Lord! You are the supreme father, supreme director, supreme enlightener, supreme master, supreme source, and supremely worshipable one. You are attained by a devotee who acts in *bhakti-yoga*. You can liberate surrendered animals like me from bondage because You are capable, merciful, and attentive to the needs of Your dependents. I don’t wish to live anymore after being released from the jaws of this crocodile. What is the use of an elephant’s body covered by ignorance anyway? I desire liberation from this body.” Gajendra didn’t call out to any specific form of God, such as Kṛṣṇa, Rāma, Narasiṁha, or Varāha. In fact, he didn’t know the identity of God. But he described the qualities of a Supreme Person whom he thought of as having the power to protect him. The demigods also heard Gajendra’s prayers, and although they were capable of protecting him, they didn’t intend to do so, because Gajendra didn’t call out their names. But the Supreme Lord Hari is never indifferent towards the suffering of a devotee. Although Gajendra didn’t call out a name of the Lord, all the qualities that he described in his prayers are present in Lord Hari. So the supremely compassionate Lord Hari hastily arrived on His bird carrier, Garuḍa, to protect Gajendra. In fact, the Lord Himself inspired Gajendra from within to offer this prayer, and He responded to the prayer by coming to rescue him. Overwhelmed by His magnanimity, Gajendra, though reeling in acute pain, picked up a lotus with his trunk and offered it to the Lord with devotion. Lord Hari severed the crocodile’s head with His Sudarśana cakra and saved Gajendra. The Lord saved Gajendra even though he had not called the Lord by name. Surely the Lord will respond to the devotee who addresses Him lovingly and eagerly by His holy name. *Story 2: “My dear child, please come here.”* Would you go to help a person calling out to someone whose name happens to be the same as yours? Once Lord Nārāyaṇa protected someone who on his deathbed was calling his son whose name was Nārāyaṇa. Ajāmila was a brāhmaṇa well versed in the scriptures and a reservoir of good qualities. He was pure, simple, gentle, truthful, self-controlled, and nonenvious. Once he went to the forest to collect fruits and flowers for worship. On the way home, he saw a lusty man shamelessly hugging a prostitute. Both were drunk. Infected by the vulgar scene, Ajāmila felt his lusty desires arise. He tried to control them by remembering scriptural injunctions but couldn’t. Losing all good sense, he constantly thought of the prostitute and gradually abandoned all brahminical principles. He even gave up his chaste wife and started to live with the prostitute. He had children with her, and he maintained his family by sinful means. Ajāmila had ten sons, of whom the youngest was named Nārāyaṇa. The eighty-eight-year-old Ajāmila was so attached to his son Nārāyaṇa that he always thought of him and called his name with great affection. When Ajāmila’s death arrived, three fierce Yamadūtas came with ropes to take him to hell. With tears in his eyes, Ajāmila loudly and anxiously called out for his son Nārāyaṇa, who was playing nearby. The servants of Lord Nārāyaṇa, the Viṣṇudūtas, hearing their master’s name being chanted so desperately, at once arrived there. They cut the Yamadūtas’ ropes and stopped them from taking Ajāmila to hell. Previously, when addressing or talking about his son, Ajāmila had often affectionately uttered “Nārāyaṇa.” Now, on his deathbed, he anxiously uttered “Nārāyaṇa” in a helpless state of mind. His chanting of the name of Nārāyaṇa was unintentional, without faith, and meant to indicate his son. Yet this chanting had purified Ajāmila of all his sinful reactions from millions of lifetimes and saved him from entering hell. After being protected by the Viṣṇudūtas, Ajāmila regretted his misdeeds and became determined to perform *bhakti* unto Lord Nārāyaṇa by all means. Thus he went to Hardwar and worshiped Him without deviation. At the end of his life Ajāmila once again saw the Viṣṇudūtas, who took him to Vaikuṇṭha in a golden airplane. The Lord’s name is identical to Him. Even if one chants the Lord’s name to indicate someone else, or while joking, for musical entertainment, or out of neglect, He destroys unlimited sins and the material desires of that person. What then must be the potency of chanting attentively to call the Lord with love? Of all the qualities of God, His mercy upon His devotees is the foremost. The Lord finds some reason or other to show compassion to His children. *Story 3: “I will kill him with milk!”* Would you entertain someone who came to you in attractive attire but with an atrocious attitude? Knowing that there was malice and deceit behind that person’s pleasant dealings, would you be willing to show any kindness? Lord Kṛṣṇa once bestowed great mercy on a witch who came to kill Him. Pūtanā was a *rākṣasī*, a cannibal, and she was accustomed to drinking the blood of infants. Once, shortly after Kṛṣṇa’s birth, she smeared her breast with a fierce poison and went to His home in Gokula to kill Him. Disguising herself as a beautiful woman, she attracted the attention and won the trust of all the residents of Gokula. She entered Nanda Mahārāja’s house and walked to the cradle of baby Kṛṣṇa. Even Kṛṣṇa’s mother, Yaśodā, didn’t stop her. Pūtanā took infant Kṛṣṇa on her lap and started feeding Him her poisonous milk. The Supreme Lord Kṛṣṇa eagerly sucked her milk along with the poison and her very life. Unable to tolerate the acute pain, Pūtanā loudly wailed and ran out of the house. Assuming her original gigantic and ghastly form as a witch, she collapsed, crushing all the trees under her twelve-mile-long body. Seeing this unusual incident, the women of Gokula, the gopīs, were terrified. They picked up baby Kṛṣṇa, who was unharmed and playing happily on the rākṣasī’s body. The gopīs then did various rituals and chanted *mantras* to invoke Lord Viṣṇu’s protection for the baby. The Vrajavāsīs, the residents of Gokula, cut up the body of Pūtanā and burned it with wood. The burning body of Pūtanā emanated a sweet fragrance due to its having been purified by Lord Kṛṣṇa’s spiritual touch. Because she had offered her milk to Kṛṣṇa, despite its having been poisoned He nonetheless gave her the position of being a motherly nurse in the spiritual world. Kṛṣṇa accepted Pūtanā’s motherly appearance and actions, overlooking her wicked intentions. Who else could be more merciful than Kṛṣṇa? Kṛṣṇa searches for some reason, direct or indirect, to shower His mercy even on the demons, not to speak of His devotees. *Story 4: “I have to avenge the death of my siblings!”* Could you be kind to someone who intends to kill you? Could you forgive someone who tried to harm your near and dear ones? Here is a story where Lord Kṛṣṇa once showed unparalleled mercy to a python who tried to kill Him and His young cowherd friends, the gopas. Aghāsura was the brother of Pūtanā and Bakāsura. Earlier, little Kṛṣṇa had killed Pūtanā and Bakāsura, who came to kill Him. Seeking revenge for the deaths of his siblings, envious Aghāsura wanted to kill not only Kṛṣṇa but His gopas and calves as well. Aghāsura thought that if the gopas and calves were killed, their parents would also die. Thus Agha essentially wanted to destroy the entire cowherd community in Vrindavan. Aghāsura appeared in the forest in the form of a huge python eight miles long. He lay down on the road, opening his mouth wide like a cave. The innocent little friends of Kṛṣṇa mistook the python’s body for a nice scenic spot. Attracted by what appeared to be a cave, they playfully entered the python’s mouth along with their calves. Kṛṣṇa wanted to stop them, but they had already gone. Aghāsura didn’t immediately swallow the gopas and calves, but waited for Kṛṣṇa to enter. Invincible Kṛṣṇa then entered Agha’s mouth and enlarged Himself within his throat. Agha also increased his body, yet he was suffocated, and his breathing stopped. His eyes popped out, and he (the soul) burst through the top of his head. Kṛṣṇa then glanced at the gopas and the calves, who had collapsed from the poisonous fumes inside the demon, and brought them back to life. The glaring soul that had come out of Agha’s body and hovered in the sky entered Kṛṣṇa’s body. Kṛṣṇa gave Agha sārūpya-mukti, or the liberation of attaining a spiritual form matching the Lord’s form in Vaikuṇṭha. Although Aghāsura intended to kill all the Vrajavāsīs, Kṛṣṇa took pleasure in entering his mouth in a sporting spirit along with the gopas. By that sporting of the Lord and His dear devotees, Aghāsura was purified of all sinful contamination and achieved the eternal association of the Lord in the spiritual world. After Agha’s death, his dried-up python body became a playground for the Vrajavāsīs for a long time. Aghāsura’s purpose was to kill Kṛṣṇa. Kṛṣṇa liberated him for at least two reasons: Aghāsura thought of Kṛṣṇa with devotion for a moment, and Kṛṣṇa and His associates enjoyed sporting within Aghāsura’s mouth. Incidents like this show that Kṛṣṇa sometimes grants salvation to someone who thinks of Him only once or even by force. How much more fortunate must be those who always lovingly think of the Lord within their hearts. *The Take-home Message* • The elephant Gajendra didn’t specifically call out the Lord’s name. • The fallen brāhmaṇa Ajāmila didn’t even call out for the Lord but called his son. • The witch Pūtanā even tried to kill the Lord. • The python Aghāsura intended to kill not only Kṛṣṇa but all the Vrajavāsīs. But the Lord took only the good in all of them and gave them His mercy. He considered that • Gajendra had described the Lord’s qualities while in deep anxiety. • Ajāmila had chanted the Lord’s name Nārāyaṇa. • Pūtanā had displayed the appearance and behavior of a mother. • Aghāsura had given sporting pleasure to the Lord and His associates. Kṛṣṇa does reciprocate according to the mood in which a person approaches Him, yet in His various forms He is merciful enough to forgive and accommodate even sinful people. Still one shouldn’t take undue advantage of His mercy and purposely commit sins. A father is kind and affectionate to his child even if the child is mischievous and whimsical, trying his best to reform the child by educating, counseling, or even punishing the child if needed. But the father will be happier if the child voluntarily behaves well and aligns with the will of the well-wishing father. The same is true for God. He doesn’t miss an opportunity to shower His mercy upon those who serve Him or seek His shelter even indirectly, inattentively, or unintentionally. How much more so will He respond with mercy to those who directly, attentively, and intentionally serve Him and seek His shelter. *Gaurāṅga Darsana Dāsa, a disciple of His Holiness Rādhānath Swami, is dean of the Bhaktivedanta Vidyapitha (www.vidyapitha.in) at ISKCON Govardhan Eco Village (GEV), outside Mumbai. He is the author of Gita Subodhini, Bhagavata Subodhini, Caitanya Subodhini, Disapproved but Not Disowned, and Bhagavata Prava¯ha. He teaches scriptural courses at several places in India and oversees the Deity worship at GEV.* Book Excerpt: I’ll Build You a Temple: The Juhu Story *Defending the Deities A pivotal episode in the great drama of Śrīla Prabhupāda’s fight to build the Bombay temple.* [Excerpted from I’ll Build You a Temple: The Juhu Story, by Giriraj Swami. Copyright © 2020 The Bhaktivedanta Book Trust. This excerpt retains the book’s style for Sanskrit words and other considerations. Available from the Kṛṣṇa.com Store.] *Defending the Deities* *Juhu devotees put up a heroic defense against attacks by corrupt police and municipal workers.* Tamal Kṛṣṇa and his party were traveling in Madhya Pradesh, and I was keeping him informed by post. He would come every now and then, just to see how things were going, and a few weeks later, in mid-May, he came for a visit, enlivened and full of stories about his preaching. At around ten o’clock on the morning of May 18, Tamal Kṛṣṇa left to rejoin his party, and less than two hours after his departure, two large trucks from the Bombay Municipal Corporation drove onto Hare Kṛṣṇa Land and fifty municipal workers carrying crowbars, chisels, and sledgehammers descended on the temple. Following close behind was a big police truck, from which twenty or thirty constables emerged. I rushed forward to meet the municipal officer in charge and asked him what was happening, why were they there. He said that the structure was unauthorized and that they had come to demolish it. I replied that the temple was authorized and that I had the papers to prove it, that I had just had our permit renewed. “We have permission,” I said. “You can’t do this.” The officer, however, seemed uninterested, even after I showed him the permit and the letter I had received at city hall, signed by the municipal commissioner himself. “We don’t accept your papers,” he said. And he ordered the demolition to begin. I approached the policemen for help but was told offhandedly, “We are just here to see that there is no trouble.” Actually, they knew that we would try to stop the demolition, and they were there to make sure it continued without interference. What we heard later was that Mrs. Nair had collected twenty-five thousand rupees on the death of her husband and had distributed the money to the municipal corporation and the police; and the municipal councilor for Juhu, Pushpakant Mhatre, who had been supporting Mr. Nair all along, had arranged for the temple to be demolished. Some workers put a ladder up against the temple, but when one of them was about to climb up with a sledgehammer to break the roof, I knocked the ladder over. Three policemen grabbed me—one by each arm and one by the neck—and tossed me into the police truck. Other devotees rushed forward to stop the demolition, but one by one each was apprehended and thrown into the truck—maybe twenty of us in all. The last one left was Maithili, the head *pujari*. She had locked the doors to the Deity chamber and was standing steadfast in front of them, ready to knock down anyone who came near. “I was carrying the Deities’ *rāja-bhoga* offering,” she later recalled. “When I saw that there were a lot of policemen surrounding the temple, I dropped the plates and started to run towards the temple. I closed, locked, and bolted the Deity-room doors, which were up a few steps, and I stood on the top step with my back to the doors. The workers were knocking down the whole roof of the temple hall, including the long tube lights, as well as the framed pictures of Kṛṣṇa, and when they turned to destroy Tulasi I left my position with my back to the doors and went to the middle of the temple, where she was standing from the morning—because they were going to hit her—and at that point they grabbed me. I hit one of the officers in the face—then they all came around me and starting to drag me out of the temple. “On the way, I wrapped my elbow around one of the steel tubes supporting the corner of the temple and held on as hard as I could.” She was a big, strong woman, and they couldn’t pry her off. “They started hitting my elbow with a stick so I would let go, and I fell onto the floor of the temple, and then they picked me up by one foot and one braid of my hair and dragged me across the field, which was now full of people watching the whole thing. They carried me halfway across the field and, as many people watched in horror, threw me face down into the police wagon.” When Prabhupāda heard that Maithili had been kicking and screaming at the policemen as they were dragging her by the hair, he said that she would go back to Godhead kicking and screaming. And he compared her to Draupadi, whose hair, infamously, had been grabbed by the evil Duḥśāsana. After Maithili had been dragged from the temple, two women—Jagat Purusa’s mother-in-law, Yashoda, and another local woman—guarded the Deities. And because they were Hindu Indian ladies, the police did not touch them. But other than them, no one—not any of the hundreds of neighbors, tenants, or passersby—lifted a finger to help us. When the demolition squad had destroyed or dismantled the entire temple hall except for the steel poles supporting the roof, they called for a blowtorch. Meanwhile, some of the neighbors who opposed us had gathered to watch and were laughing and joking together. Mhatre was standing by the little Shiva temple across the street, and he and his accomplices were enjoying the show. One man who lived across the street, Kṛṣṇa Rao Rane, stood quite close and was laughing as he watched the workers cutting the steel rods with the blowtorch. Before we arrived on the land, he had distilled illegal liquor there and hid it in the overgrown weeds and bushes. He was quite influential in Juhu in a tamasic sort of way and didn’t think he would maintain the same power—the same hold on people—with us there. Yashoda was also something of a mystic, and when she saw the man watching and laughing, she cursed him, “Just as you are laughing now when Kṛṣṇa’s temple is being burned, one day you will also burn.” Only one devotee wasn’t arrested during the demolition—Manasvi. He was crouched behind some bushes watching the whole thing. When he saw us all being carried away, he found a telephone, called Mr. Mahadevia, and asked him to help. Mr. Mahadevia phoned Bal Thackeray, a staunch Hindu and the founder and leader of the Shiv Sena, one of Bombay’s most powerful political parties, and told him what was happening. If he did not intervene, Mr. Mahadevia told him, the temple would be destroyed and he would get a bad name. Bal Thackeray phoned the municipal commissioner, informed him of what was taking place, and told him to stop the demolition. The municipal commissioner, being part of the clique that had conspired against the temple, objected, but Bal Thackeray warned him, “Just remember who this city belongs to.” “Okay, Balasaheb, okay,” the commissioner said, and he called the local ward, which had dispatched the attackers, and told them to halt the demolition. The ward officer himself came running, reached the site just as the workers were getting ready to dismantle the Deity chamber, and ordered them to stop. They had already completely destroyed the darshan-mandapa (viewing area) and had removed the first few pieces of the roof covering the Deities. Those of us in the police truck were taken to the Santa Cruz station and locked up in a holding cell. “I want to phone my lawyer,” I called out. “No phone calls,” they said. “Stay where you are. You’re not going anywhere.” When Dr. Singhal heard that we had been arrested, he came to the station and appealed to the officer in charge on our behalf. “They are not sinful,” he said. “Or criminals. And they are not hypocrites. They are genuine people. We know them. They should be released.” The police allowed Dr. Singhal to come inside and see us. “The devotees were doing kirtan,” his wife recounted, “sitting and chanting with kartals. They were not sad—except for the Deities and the temple. Otherwise, they were happy there. They had full faith in Kṛṣṇa.” Only after several hours were we released from custody and able to return to the site. When we got back from the police station, we came upon a strange scene. In the middle of a vacant lot strewn with rubble and the metal bars that had once supported the temple structure were the beautiful Śrī Śrī Rādhā-Rasabihari, dressed in Their green-and-silver outfits and garlanded with flowers. They stood on Their carved teakwood altar amid the fragrant scent of burning incense and warm glow of ghee lamps. Only a few small pieces of the roof over Them had been removed; other than that, They and Their Deity room remained intact. And the picture of Lord Nṛsiṁhadeva over the altar doors, though slightly tilted to the side, had survived as well, as if He was looking down upon us and assuring us that He had been there to protect the Deities. “It was amazing,” Maithili recalled. “The flower that I had put behind the ear of Rādhā-Rasabihari was still there and the ghee lights were still burning. The only offering They had missed was the rāja-bhoga offering.” The next morning, headlines broadcast the news of the temple demolition. “UNAUTHORIZED TEMPLE DEMOLISHED BY MUNICIPAL AUTHORITIES,” announced the Free Press Journal. “The makeshift Rādhā-Kṛṣṇa temple constructed about a year ago by followers of the Hare Kṛṣṇa sect at Nairwadi, Juhu, was demolished by thirty municipal officers amidst police security. This resulted in a clash between members of the Hare Kṛṣṇa sect and the municipal officers.” Mhatre had arranged for hostile reports about us to appear everywhere, which, as we learned, could be achieved by bribing the newspaper people. He had been paying people off and spreading his false propaganda, telling them that we were hippies, drug users, kidnappers, even CIA agents. He raised questions about our charitable status with the charity commissioner and even more alarming, had approached the Foreigners Registration Office to have us kicked out of India. When Śrīla Prabhupāda was informed of what had happened, he was, of course, concerned, but he told us not to worry. The episode was part of Kṛṣṇa’s plan, he said, and if we took it as an opportunity the results would be positive. The demolition of our temple by the municipality would actually strengthen our position. Still, he told us, the incident showed that we could not manage it all on our own; we needed the help of our life members. We should take advantage of the incident to organize them and get them more involved in our activities and, along with our other supporters and sympathizers, to publicly protest the attack, expose the persons responsible, and begin the rebuilding process. He suggested several who might be of particular assistance. Mr. Sadajiwatlal, who led the Vishva Hindu Parishad, an organization that defended Hindu dharma, could help with publicity, and Mr. Sethi could help prevent further attacks. We began to approach our friends and life members. Prabhupāda himself sent an open letter, which we published in the next edition of The Hare Kṛṣṇa Monthly. “The Kṛṣṇa Consciousness Movement is considerably well known all over the world,” he began. “This Movement is meant for the total reformation of the whole human society. It is not a sectarian religious movement, but is a scientific method to awaken dormant God consciousness in every human being. . . . In 1965 I went to the States, and for more than one year I had no support there. Later on, by July 1966, some of the younger section of America had joined me, and they supported this movement wholeheartedly. Our basic principle is the *Bhagavad-gītā* as it is. After organizing this movement in America, Europe, Canada, Australia, etc., I came back to India in 1970 with a group of American assistants. . . . With this purpose I took the Hare Kṛṣṇa Land.” He then reported the latest development, “that the Bombay Municipality, under the influence of Mrs. Nair, had the audacity to smash our temple, against the law and principle of religious faith. So, a great clique is going on in Bombay to drive us away from the land, without returning our money or [compensation for] damages. “We have many sympathizers and life members of our society, and I wish they may come forward to help us in this precarious position and save the situation. Our cause is so noble, scientific, and pure, that everyone, irrespective of caste, creed, and religion, should come forward and save us from this position. I hope that my appeal to the people of Bombay will not go in vain.” *Giriraj Swami met Śrīla Prabhupāda in 1969 and followed him to India, where he made significant contributions to Prabhupāda’s mission, most notably overseeing the development of Hare Kṛṣṇa Land in Juhu, Bombay. He has preached extensively in India and throughout the world and has written three other books, available from the Kṛṣṇa.com Store and his website: girirajswami.com.* Kṛṣṇa’s Mercy *Among other attributes, the Lord’s mercy is unparalleled because it reveals our relationship with Him.* by Karuṇā Dhārinī Devī Dāsī Mercifulness is a most important quality of the Lord, and His pure devotees embody it. When we read about the glories of Lord Kṛṣṇa, nothing seems more appealing or reassuring than descriptions of Kṛṣṇa’s mercy. The Vedas offer descriptions of the kindness and compassion of God for the living beings. As a matter of fact, the Vedas personified—liberated sages who embody the teachings of the Vedas, or śrutis—explain that it is their imperative as servants of Kṛṣṇa to help the conditioned souls get Kṛṣṇa’s mercy. Kṛṣṇa’s mercy comes to us through the association of His devotees. Just making the acquaintance of a soft-hearted, thoughtful Vaiṣṇava devotee can be a revelation in itself. Advanced devotees are like a faceted crystal jewel that reflects Kṛṣṇa’s love in all directions. Such devotees include the spiritual master and Lord Caitanya, who is Kṛṣṇa in the role of His own devotee. Also known as *guru* and Gaurāṅga, the spiritual master and Lord Caitanya are special agents of the mercy of the Lord. *The Mission of the Vedas* In *Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam*, Canto Ten, chapter eighty-seven, entitled “The Prayers of the Personified Vedas,” King Parīkṣit asks Śukadeva Gosvāmī how the glories of Kṛṣṇa, the Supreme Personality, can be communicated effectively by mere words—that is, by the Vedas. How can literary works, as creations of the mundane world, be used to glorify the Supreme, who is ultimately not of this world at all? Śukadeva Gosvāmī quotes the personified Vedic literatures, who explain that as personal servants of the Lord, they are always committed to informing embodied souls, hopelessly conditioned by mundane experience, how to realize the transcendental glories of Kṛṣṇa. They plead for Kṛṣṇa’s mercy upon them. The *śrutis* said: Victory, victory to You, O unconquerable one! By Your very nature You are perfectly full in all opulences; therefore please defeat the eternal power of illusion, who assumes control over the modes of nature to create difficulties for conditioned souls. *(Bhāgavatam* 10.87.14) We conditioned souls are struggling very hard to escape the bondage of life in this world, always looking for remedies to compensate for what is lacking. We want education to compensate for our ignorance, a good position to get status or wealth, and insurance plans to protect it all. We struggle to be beautiful, respected, or loved. Life is all too often bent around correcting lack or loss. The Vedas explain, however, that Kṛṣṇa alone awakens the energies of the embodied living beings. The verse quoted above continues, “O You who awaken all the energies of the moving and nonmoving embodied beings, sometimes the Vedas can recognize You as You sport with Your material and spiritual potencies.” Pious activities can be executed only when inspired by Kṛṣṇa’s mercy, and without taking shelter of Him one may never surpass suffering. Therefore the Vedas explain that their mission as personified Vedic knowledge is to help the conditioned souls understand who Kṛṣṇa is. They want those people who suffer due to separation from the Lord to hear of His pastimes. Their prayers reveal that they are not simply high-browed intellectuals with no practical mission. Śrīla Prabhupāda writes, All the śrutis, or personified Vedas, offered glories to the Lord again and again, singing, “Jaya, Jaya!” This indicates that the Lord is the most glorious. Of all His glories, the most important is His causeless mercy upon the conditioned souls in reclaiming them from the clutches of māyā. (*Kṛṣṇa,* chapter 87) *All-Pervasive and Unparalleled* The Lord empowers material nature to act upon us, and sometimes even cataclysmic miseries inflict us because of our *karma*. The cause of the misery can be so mind-boggling that people will call it “an act of God” for lack of any better definition. Suddenly a life-changing event may compel a population of otherwise neglectful people to beg and pray for God’s help. Like the sweep of a wide broom, a shift takes place in the collective human psyche; faith in materialism loosens, and people are humbled and become pious. Historical records of art and literature reflect divine influence following a war or a plague. Even in the material conditions of this world there is potential for realizing Kṛṣṇa’s mercy. The greatness of such mercy is compared to Brahman, the all-pervasive power of Kṛṣṇa Himself. Devotees too experience surrender to God through miseries. For pure devotees, however, there is only the broadest, fullest experience of mercy, personally delivered by the Lord. This is shown by the example of the life of King Yudhiṣṭhira, who was repeatedly persecuted by his own family members and made to live in a dangerous forest and then fight in a treacherous war. Śrīla Prabhupāda writes, “Lord Kṛṣṇa said to King Yudhiṣṭhira: ‘My devotee is not deterred by any adverse condition of life; he always remains firm and steady. Therefore I give Myself to him, and I favor him so he can achieve the highest success in life.’” (Kṛṣṇa, chapter 88) This broad plan for reclaiming the relationship with His dear servant shows that Kṛṣṇa’s mercy, although not always predictable or acceptable in the mundane sense, is incomparable to any other kindness or love. Lord Kṛṣṇa says, “A person who has thus become sober fully realizes the Absolute as the highest truth [parama], the most subtle [sukṣma] and perfect manifestation of spirit [cin-mātram], the transcendental existence without end [anantakam]. In this way realizing that the Supreme Truth is the foundation of his own existence, he is freed from the cycle of material life.” *(Bhagavatam*, 10.88.10) Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu is the example of the distribution of such all-pervasive mercy. Sometimes His mercy is compared to a great, unlimited flood of love of God in which some people drown while others only float. He inaugurates the mass distribution of the holy names of Kṛṣṇa—nāma-saṅkīrtana ¬– by loud singing and dancing, whether by outside public performance or inside temples. His movement has grown so far-flung that it has changed the lives of hundreds of thousands of people the world over, often even without their complete awareness of it. The sacrifice for this age, the continual practice of nāma-saṅkīrtana, is the incomparable method for distribution of love of God. Which brings us to parama (from *Bhāgavatam* 10.88.10, quoted above), or “unparalleled,” an adjective that describes perhaps the most sublime ornament of Kṛṣṇa’s mercy. Kṛṣṇa’s mercy is parama because it gives realization of our original relationship with Kṛṣṇa. Out of compassion, philosophers, sociologists, and other well-intentioned people discuss a great variety of problems—disease, famine, racism, etc. However, as sincerely as they try to alleviate the problems of the people, material problems seem to expand. It is only absolute knowledge of the eternal soul that permanently solves all problems. Only by the mercy of Kṛṣṇa can we understand parama karuṇā, the topmost compassion, experienced in the realm of the highest degrees of prema, the most exalted ecstatic pure love of Godhead exhibited by Caitanya Mahāprabhu. *Very Fine, Absolute, and Unlimited* Mercy described as sukṣma, “very fine,” is particularly intriguing. Refined by the practice of *bhakti*, devotees experience from moment to moment the perception of God in everything they come in contact with; therefore their conscious awareness, freed from material association, becomes as fine as Kṛṣṇa Himself. The devotee can perceive what is imperceptible to the mundane mind. For example, the *sukṣma* quality of Śrīla Prabhupāda’s perception in relationship to Kṛṣṇa was evident. He said that one can experience Kṛṣṇa in the taste of water. Upon seeing the sky, he said the color came from Kṛṣṇa’s body. A blossoming flower was Kṛṣṇa’s smile. While walking by the sea he remarked that the sound of the waves endlessly rising and crashing upon the sand was like the sound of the gopīs yearning for Kṛṣṇa. *Śāstra* says that the words from a pure devotee’s mouth are *sukṣma*. They are saffron particles that carry the dust of the Lord’s lotus feet. Upon hearing the pure devotee speak, living entities remember their relationship with the Lord. Another feature of Kṛṣṇa’s mercy is *cin-mātram*, “completely spiritual.” Cin-mātram means that there never is and never will be a substitute for the absolute, natural relationship between Kṛṣṇa’s mercy and our lives. As Prahlāda Mahārāja told his schoolmates *(Bhāgavatam* 7.6.19): My dear sons of demons, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Nārāyaṇa, is the original Supersoul, the father of all living entities. Consequently there are no impediments to pleasing Him or worshiping Him under any conditions, whether one be a child or an old man. The relationship between the living entities and the Supreme Personality of Godhead is always a fact, and therefore there is no difficulty in pleasing the Lord. [From Śrīla Prabhupāda’s Purport:] As there is no difficulty in establishing the intimate relationship between a father and son, there is no difficulty in reestablishing the natural, intimate relationship between Nārāyaṇa and the living entities. . . . Therefore, pleasing Nārāyaṇa does not require as much endeavor as pleasing one's family, community and nation. We have seen important political leaders killed for a slight discrepancy in their behavior. Therefore pleasing one's society, family, community and nation is extremely difficult. Pleasing Nārāyaṇa, however, is not at all difficult; it is very easy. One more adjective used to describe the Lord’s mercy is anantakam, “unlimited.” While it is true that greatly elevated personalities such as Śiva or Brahmā can bestow wealth, longevity, education, or beauty, their benedictions are associated with the material atmosphere, composed of goodness, passion, and ignorance. The mood of the demigods is conditional, dependent on their relationship with their petitioner. Moreover, if there is a miscalculation, the petitioners and their benefactors sometimes suffer materially, such as when Brahmā awarded benedictions to Hiraṇyakaśipu or when Śiva awarded Vṛka and Bhaumāsura. But Lord Viṣṇu acts differently in response to His devotees. When a devotee wants something from the Lord, by His absolute omniscience He considers whether such a benediction will ultimately prove beneficial for the devotee. He is always bent on reestablishing our perfect relationship with Him. Never the loser in any exchange, He remains our ultimate support and most benevolent well-wisher. *Qualification for the Mercy* Previously mentioned was the mercy of Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu’s saṅkīrtana movement and its worldwide flood, inundating all people with the chanting and hearing of the holy names of Kṛṣṇa. Souls not directly participating are benefited by the mercy of the saṅkīrtana movement even if they simply smile in response or hear the chanting from a distance. But what of those who choose to participate in the chanting and seek the mercy of the Lord in their lives? They will eventually identify Kṛṣṇa’s mercy as their utmost hope. For starters, devotees seek Kṛṣṇa’s blessings even by eating. Nourishment can be understood as the kind gift of Kṛṣṇa. Food cooked for Kṛṣṇa and offered to Him with love is called mahā-prasāda, or the great mercy of Kṛṣṇa. Exclusively relishing prasāda, the devotee wants only to experience how the Lord enjoyed His meal, to taste what Kṛṣṇa tasted. Just as a devotee of Kṛṣṇa does not want to taste ordinary food, a devotee is not keen to engage in ordinary association but looks for people who will guide him in spiritual life. The medieval mendicant preacher and songwriter Narottama Dāsa Ṭākura repeatedly prays to obtain the mercy of Lord Caitanya and His movement of chanting and dancing. In his Lālasāmayī Prārthanā he sings of his hankering for Lord Caitanya and His ecstatic ocean of love of Godhead. And he recommends that to access the full experience of Gaurāṅga Mahāprabhu we must first approach Him through the backing of Lord Nityānanda, Lord Caitanya’s chief colleague in the distribution of love of God. Nityānanda is the avatar of Balarāma, the first expansion of Kṛṣṇa and thus the original spiritual master. He is an ambassador of the Lord’s mercy to this material world. Unconditional mercy for fallen souls was Nityānanda Prabhu's most extraordinary quality. In this age the fallen souls are so badly misguided that they have no interest in Kṛṣṇa or Gaurāṅga; nevertheless Nityānanda searches them out and begs them to take to Gaurāṅga’s service. His transcendental form is so wonderful and ecstatic that many people who even just saw Him became converted to Kṛṣṇa consciousness. It is through Lord Nityānanda that Gaurāṅga may be known and understood. Śrīla Prabhupāda writes, What is the symptom of a person who has achieved the causeless mercy of Lord Nityānanda? Narottama Dāsa Ṭhākura says that the symptom of one who has actually received the causeless mercy of Lord Nityānanda is that he will have no more material desire. Saṁsāra-bāsanā means desire for material enjoyment, and Narottama Dāsa wonders when it will become insignificant. (Commentary on *Lālasāmayī Prāthanā*) To give up material plans, habits, and desires, as suggested here, is often a lifelong struggle, so we need to get the mercy of a Vaiṣṇava spiritual master following in the line of Nityānanda who will help us chart a customized spiritual course. A Vaiṣṇava spiritual master is the direct representative of the mercy of Kṛṣṇa. By the *guru’s* merciful association and guidance, we can become less distracted from our spiritual purpose. Material things will pale and seem insignificant in the light of the *guru’s* knowledge and experience. *Kṛṣṇa’s Representatives* Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura describes the spiritual master as that great devotee who has been given special access to the ocean of Kṛṣṇa’s mercy. Just as a cloud may rain on a blazing wild forest fire, the Vaiṣṇava spiritual master can pour water from the ocean of mercy on the burning heart of the conditioned soul. Only by the mercy of Kṛṣṇa does one become a disciple in the line of authentic representatives of the Lord. In the *Bhagavad-gītā* (18.68–69) Lord Kṛṣṇa expresses His appreciation for His representatives: “For one who explains this supreme secret [of Kṛṣṇa consciousness] to the devotees, pure devotional service is guaranteed, and at the end he will come back to Me. There is no servant in this world more dear to Me than he, nor will there ever be one more dear.” If Kṛṣṇa’s mercifulness is His most important quality, the value of the representative of His mercy cannot be fathomed. The grand, fine, complete, unlimited, and incomparable wonder called Kṛṣṇa’s mercy is awarded by pure devotees who constantly offer us the Lord’s instructions and descriptions of Him. In his commentary on *Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam* (10.88.10) Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura writes, The mercy is equivalent to the Lord. Because of its greatness it is invisible to the material eye. Therefore it is equated with Brahman. It is supreme (*paramam*), being the most excellent among all. It is subtle (*sukṣmam*), not being understood even by the devotee who is the object of mercy. It is purely spiritual (*cin-mātram*) because of its ability to give experience of prema rasa, devoid of any material happiness. It is eternal (*sat*), existing in all time. It is without fear of death (*anantakam*). The saṅkīrtana movement of Lord Caitanya is the activity of offering the flood of love of Godhead to the conditioned souls of this age, no matter their position. To receive the mercy of Lord Caitanya and Kṛṣṇa it is essential to seek out the mercy of the original spiritual master, Lord Nityānanda, and a bona fide spiritual master in His succession of perfect *bhakti-yogīs*. His pure devotees are the embodiment of Kṛṣṇa’s most important quality. *Karuṇā Dhārinī Devī Dāsī, a disciple of His Grace Vīrabāhu Dāsa, serves the Deities at ISKCON Los Angeles, where she joined ISKCON in 1979. She has also been distributing Śrīla Prabhupāda’s books since her earliest days in Kṛṣṇa consciousness. She lives with her husband and daughter.* Does Spirituality Destroy Our Passion? *Our natural talents and inspirations can accompany us when we replace our material goals with spiritual ones.* by Rukmiṇī Vallabha Dāsa A fundamental principle of *bhakti-yoga* is to engage the work we have a passion for in the service of the Lord. Many people regard spirituality as inaction. They view it as the resort of social outcastes, failures in life, and the jobless. They think that youth and adulthood are meant for unleashing our passion within to make it big in life and enjoy, and that spirituality is something to be looked into after retirement. Thus they are apprehensive of taking to spirituality, fearing they may lose their passion for life. Beginners in devotional service are often confronted by the question “Am I missing something by taking to *bhakti-yoga* too early?” From childhood I had great zeal for technology and an aptitude for logical thinking. I completed my bachelor’s degree in computer science and engineering in one of India’s premiere institutes. During my college days I was introduced to spirituality in the form of *bhakti-yoga*, or devotional service to Lord Kṛṣṇa. In my initial days of practicing *bhakti-yoga*, a few of my acquaintances often discouraged me, saying that spirituality would make me inefficient and less ambitious. They were echoing the sentiments of a famous India media personality: “Passion is energy. Feel the power that comes from focusing on what excites you.” *What Is Passion?* The word passion suggests an intense and often overpowering drive within. Let us study its effect on various aspects of our life. (a) Passion as an intense inclination for a particular activity Generally a person has interest and competence in a particular trade or profession, such as science, technology, business, art, or commerce, and is naturally eager to learn that trade or profession and becomes focused on it. Lord Kṛṣṇa confirms in the *Bhagavad-gītā* (4.13) that we have individual tendencies. He says that according to our personal traits and our inclinations to perform certain activities, we can belong to one of four classes: intellectual, administrative, mercantile, or labor. Some discover their place and feel comfortable there, and some don’t. For example, according to a survey done by the research group The Conference Board, forty-seven percent of employees in the USA are dissatisfied in their jobs. One of the main reasons is that many people are unable to identify their niche and thus end up doing something they don’t like. Dissatisfaction in professional life can spread to other aspects of life, such as family relationships. Therefore, to have a satisfied professional life it is important to identify one’s passion for a particular occupation or trade and engage in it. (b) Passion as an obsession for sensual enjoyment Every one of us craves bodily pleasures—eating, sleeping, sex, and so on. And we crave the money to secure these things, as well as things that lead to addictions like smoking and drinking. A major part of the modern economy capitalizes on catering to these human cravings and intensifying them. The nature of a craving is that if one indulges it, it intensifies. Lord Kṛṣṇa says in the *Bhagavad-gītā* (3.37) that lust is born of the mode of passion. Often passion as lust overpowers our sense of discrimination, our moral and ethical values, and our conscience. Excessive passion is one of the most prominent reasons behind, for example, financial frauds, political scandals, and sexual violence. It is one of the biggest distractions for modern youth, disrupting their studies. Once passion gets out of control, it damages all aspects of life—mental, physical, social, professional. Therefore people must become aware of the ill effects of overindulging their passions and of the need and ways to regulate them. (c) Passion as harsh behavior If we look into our lives, we’ll see times when we acted harshly because we acted in haste. We had to repent afterwards. Arrogance, impudence, and condescension are commonplace in personal and professional lives in today’s fast-paced world of increased self-centeredness. These attitudes and behaviors, glamorized by the modern media, lead to strained and broken relationships and even violence and crime. They also impel one to make snap decisions and judgments. Therefore it is important for everyone to recognize the ill effects of passionate behavior and develop polite and pleasing behavior. *Regulate or Reject* In summary, every one of us possesses a set of passions. We need to discover them and then decide which we must regulate and which we must reject. For example, a new smartphone comes with various default settings and enabled features. The user may find some default features, such as unwanted ads and notifications, distracting and irritating and decide to disable them. This is similar to situation (c) above. The user may find some default settings, such as volume, screen brightness, or vibration intensity, too high and reduce them to a comfortable level. This is similar to situation (b). In a situation similar to (a), the user may be interested in a few specific features, such as Production Scheduling Profile or Schedule SMS. The user may be unable to locate them at first, and it may take some time to find them. Or the user may do so with the help of friends or end up contacting customer support and ultimately locate them that way. The user is anxious and not content with the smartphone until finding the features of interest. *What Is Spirituality?* Spirituality can have various definitions. Here I’m speaking of it as a reasoned study of the metaphysical aspects of our existence, including the influence of the metaphysical reality on the physical reality we experience. *Bhakti-yoga* fits that definition. It educates us in the process of correcting our misgivings about our metaphysical and physical existence, leading to peace and happiness in this life and beyond. Each of us is a spirit soul covered by a subtle covering of mind, intelligence, and ego and a gross covering of a physical body with five knowledge-acquiring senses (eyes, ears, nose, tongue, and skin) and five working senses (hands, legs, speech, anus, and genitals). The perception of outer reality happens through the gross body; the perception is captured, stored, and processed in the subtle body; and the response is delivered through the gross body. The gross body is like a computer’s hardware, the subtle body is like software, and the soul is like the user. We can understand that our existence is beyond the physical body by considering that the cells in our body all get replaced but our identity and memory are retained. This implies that our memory, feelings, and so on are stored in some place beyond the physical body. During sleep, the physical body is shut down completely, but still one is conscious and experiencing a reality beyond physical reality. *Effects of Spirituality* Spirituality influences our passions in the following ways: (a) Spirituality helps us look within and uncover our hidden potential. Every one of us has a conception of what we are and what the world around us is about. Our mind is a storehouse of all the conceptions we acquire through our education, through our interactions with different people, and in various other ways. For example, in every country certain professions are glamorized, and this glamorizing influences people’s definition of success. The mind is like a dusty mirror that portrays a distorted image of our self. *Bhakti-yoga* helps us clean the dust accumulated on our mind and thus understand and realize our true self. We are different from what we think we are. Every one of us is gifted with certain talents and interests we can use to benefit ourselves and others. Hence spirituality helps us discover our passion and engage it in a purposeful way. Every one of us has something wonderful to contribute to the world. Taking to the practice of *bhakti-yoga* helps one move from the mindset of taking for oneself to that of giving to the world. As we take to devotional service seriously, the Lord from within helps us discover the gifted talents we can offer in service to Him and humanity. This is the way most of us can render devotional service—by dovetailing our abilities and resources in the Lord’s service rather than renouncing them in the name of so-called spirituality. The *Bhagavad-gītā* (18.46) says that by worshiping the Lord through one’s work one can attain perfection. (b) Spirituality connects us to real happiness. Every one of us seeks pleasure. In general, we acquire the definition of happiness from the society around us. But the happiness defined by any given society is transient. We end up pursuing things that initially promise a lot of happiness but eventually end up in frustration and suffering. Unless we know what we are, we cannot clearly understand what can make us happy. By helping us regulate our sensual urges, *bhakti-yoga* connects us to a source of happiness beyond the worldly limitations of time and space. (c) Spirituality helps us choose our responses to whatever life sends our way. Our thoughts add up to make our attitude, which influences our speech and actions, our behavior. Negative thoughts result in negative responses to the things that happen in our life. *Bhakti-yoga* teaches us to see everyone as a spirit soul and to ignore the superficial differences with respect to race, education, social position, and so on. This enables us to have harmonious relationships with everyone. Spirituality also enhances our ability to discriminate between positive and negative emotions, with positive thoughts eventually crowding out the negative ones. For example, someone interested in sports will search online for sports websites, and the default auto-fill suggestions in the search engine will be related to sports. If that person finds an interest in music and starts searching for music content, the suggestions will start to change to music. In this way positive thoughts can eventually replace negative thoughts. Hence spirituality replaces our passionate emotions and reforms our behavior. *Connecting* *Bhakti-yoga* does not emphasize disconnecting from the world around us. Rather, since everything and everyone belongs to the Supreme Lord and is divine, *bhakti-yoga* helps us to be more conscious of the world around us and more concerned with benefiting it. *Bhakti-yoga* helps us use everything we have and everything around us in the service of Lord. In *bhakti-yoga* the ultimate motivating force is selfless love, in contrast to selfish gain, the motivating force in the world around us. In my own life I can see how *bhakti-yoga* helped me realize my own potential and direct it for a right cause. After college, I ended up as a software developer in a multinational corporation. I was caught up in the corporate rat race, with hardly any time for myself. Later, with guidance from my spiritual mentors, I began to use my technical talents in sharing spirituality. I oversee a media department that broadcasts spiritual seminars over social media. It manages e-learning courses that reach spiritual seekers and practitioners across the globe. I also discovered a new interest in the analytical study of the spiritual wisdom of books like the *Bhagavad-gītā* and *Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam*. Thus I find great fulfilment and meaning in using my talents for a higher, selfless cause. Spirituality in the form of *bhakti-yoga* does not destroy our passion; it helps us discover our passion and direct it in a purposeful way. It does not reject our passions; it refines them and regulates them. The following process can make life fulfilling and meaningful by adding spirituality: • Pursue *bhakti-yoga* with passion. • Discover your innate passion by inner exploration and give it a positive direction. • Refine and regulate your lower passions. • Transform your outlook from one of selfish passion to one of selfless compassion. • Share with passion the message of *bhakti-yoga*. *Rukmiṇī Vallabha Dāsa, a disciple of His Holiness Rādhānāth Swami, came to Kṛṣṇa consciousness in 2010. He serves full time at ISKCON Pune, India. His blog: spiritualwisdomonline.com.* Lord Jagannātha: God Transformed by Ecstasy *Why Lord Jagannātha doesn’t conform to our usual image of Kṛṣṇa.* By Satyarāja Dāsa A look at the history, significance, and spread of one of the world’s longest-running religious festivals and the Deity at the center of it all. “The same result obtained from seeing the Lord’s ten most prominent incarnations is available simply by once gazing upon the Supreme Person in His form as Lord Jagannātha.” (*Skanda Purāṇa, Utkala Khaṇḍa*) Upon first viewing Lord Jagannātha, especially for one reared in the Western world, one is likely to think of Native American totem poles—primitive-looking painted faces carved one above the other on large vertical wooden beams. The poles represent “spirit-beings,” embodying the essence of family, clan, lineage, tribe, or locally worshiped guardian spirits. But the image of Jagannātha goes far beyond such conceptions. With His reddish crescent-moon smile, jutting arms, rectangular legless torso, and large, perfectly symmetrical black-and-white eyes—visually so different from flute-carrying Kṛṣṇa, the Supreme Person, of whom Jagannātha is a manifestation—He is traditionally viewed as the epitome of beauty. He is God in a most confidential and ecstatic feature. The word jagannātha literally means “Lord of the universe.” The most famous Jagannātha is the wooden Deity of Kṛṣṇa who for centuries has been worshiped and adored in the main temple at Jagannath Puri, in the state of Odisha, on the eastern coast of India. The name itself gives us the English word juggernaut, “a massive and unstoppable force.” But the Jagannātha story harkens to a more thoroughly transcendental phenomenon, wherein God Himself experiences transformative joy by the simple act of hearing His own pastimes. *The Essential Narrative* Slightly divergent versions of the Jagannātha story appear in the *Skanda* *Purāṇa* (*Utkala* *Khaṇḍa*, chapters 1–19), the Brahma *Purāṇa* (part 2, chapters 41–47), the *Nārada* *Purāṇa* (*Uttara-bhaga*, chapters 53–54), and elsewhere. The summary below is chiefly based on these accounts. Long ago, during the epoch of world history known as Satya-yuga, Indradyumna Mahārāja was king of the Sūrya dynasty. He ruled in Avantipura (Ujjain), then associated with the country of Malava. After meeting a traveling Vaiṣṇava who happened into his royal assembly exclaiming about the beauty and excellence of Nīla-Mādhava, the “Blue Lord,” Indradyumna became obsessed with seeing this divine entity. The king sent numerous brāhmaṇas in search of the Lord. Unfortunately, each one soon returned to the capital without success. Only the royal priest known as Śrī Vidyāpati was unaccounted for. Vidyāpati was relentless, and he eventually found himself in the midst of obscure jungle tribesmen in the hills of Odisha. They were known as Śabaras. To his surprise, the Śabaras were secretly worshiping Nīla-Mādhava deep in a nearby forest. After seeing the Deity, Vidyāpati returned to Indradyumna’s kingdom and announced that he had found Nīla-Mādhava. The king was thrilled and set off with Vidyāpati to see the Lord. It was a long journey to where Nīla-Mādhava stood. Previously, the wise Vidyāpati, knowing that it would be difficult to retrace his steps, had sprinkled mustard seeds to mark the path, and those seeds had now grown into mature plants, which were easy to follow. Consequently, he and the king were able to find their way to Lord Nīla-Mādhava. But all was not so easy. Indradyumna was not able to see the Lord, because the Deity had been moved. At that point the king’s life lost meaning. Like the *yogi* king that he was, he decided to fast until death. But the Lord would not have it. He appeared to Indradyumna in a dream, insisting that his lamentation was needless. “Build a large temple for Me on top of Nīla Hill in Puri. There you will see Me—not as Nīla-Mādhava, but in a form made of wood.” The Lord told Indradyumna to wait for a giant log to float to Puri’s beach. When the log arrived, the king appointed Viśvakarmā, architect of the gods, to carve the Deity from it. (Jagannātha is thus called dāru-brahma, “wood-spirit”.) The eccentric Viśvakarmā stipulated that he would carve the Deity only if he could remain undisturbed for twenty-one days. If anyone interrupted him before that allotted time had passed, he would leave, even if his work remained unfinished. The king consented, and the divine carpenter toiled behind closed doors. After some time, however, Indradyumna’s curiosity got the better of him, though some say it was Queen Guṇḍicā, his wife, who could wait no longer. Whatever the case, the royal doors were flung open, and Viśvakarmā, true to his word, had disappeared from the room, leaving behind three unfinished Deities: Jagannātha, Baladeva, and Subhadrā, i.e., Kṛṣṇa, the Supreme Lord; His brother Balarāma (an alternate name for Baladeva); and His sister Yogamāyā. They had no hands or feet, and they didn’t look like Kṛṣṇa, Viṣṇu, or any divinity Indradyumna was familiar with. Still, because both Indradyumna and the sculptor had exhibited attachment (*rāga)* and divine love (*prema*) for the Lord, and because they both had the proper conception (*bhāva*) that allowed for the flow of devotion *(bhakti)*, the Lord agreed to fully manifest in the unfinished Deities. *An Esoteric Narrative* This story of Jagannātha’s origins is often coupled with one about His specific countenance. While the sculptor’s leaving prematurely explains the Deity’s odd, unfinished features, there is an esoteric narrative that more thoroughly explains Jagannātha’s unique form. It tells us that Jagannātha is Śrī Kṛṣṇa in the mood of acute separation from Rādhā, His female counterpart. Jagannātha is Kṛṣṇa transformed by intense emotion. Once, in Dwarka, Kṛṣṇa’s many wives asked Rohiṇī Devī, Lord Balarāma’s mother, about Kṛṣṇa’s time in Vrindavan, Rohiṇī Devī having lived there while Kṛṣṇa was growing up. “Sometimes we hear Him talking in His sleep,” they said. “With a sweet voice He calls out the names of His friends like Śrīdāmā and Subala and the names of His cows. At times He shouts, ‘O Lalitā! Viśākhā! O Rādhikā!’ Or He says, ‘Mother, where is My fresh butter today?’ Sometimes He cries in His sleep and then He wakes up and sobs for hours. How special are those residents of Vraja! Please tell us everything about them.” Seeing their love for Kṛṣṇa, Rohiṇī agreed to describe His wonderful pastimes for them. But she stipulated that Kṛṣṇa and Balarāma should not hear these talks under any circumstances, lest They become uncomfortably self-conscious. She suggested that she meet with the queens when the two divine brothers were not nearby. And so, one day when Kṛṣṇa and Balarāma were busy with other concerns, all the queens gathered in a huge hall, anxious to hear Rohiṇī revel in Kṛṣṇa’s Vrindavan pastimes. This she did, but not before instructing Subhadrā to guard the front door to make sure Kṛṣṇa and Balarāma did not come back unexpectedly and perchance overhear their discussion. As Rohiṇī rapturously communicated the childhood pastimes of Kṛṣṇa, the queens listened with full attention, never once becoming distracted from the nectar that filled their ears. Even Subhadrā, stationed at the door, became absorbed in hearing the narration, and though she tried to be conscientious about the task given to her, she failed: Kṛṣṇa and Balarāma suddenly appeared and stood on either side of her. No matter. The three of them found themselves ecstatically engrossed in Rohiṇī’s words, and mystical transformations turned them into unrecognizable beings. Their eyes became oversized and dilated; their hands and legs withdrew into their bodies. They became Jagannātha, Balarāma, and Subhadrā as they now appear in Puri. Lord Jagannātha is identical to Śrī Kṛṣṇa and is thus the supreme divinity, the source of all avatars. This is confirmed by the most senior of the six Gosvāmīs, Śrīla Sanātana Gosvāmī: “His transcendental form, the one source of all incarnations [*avatāra eka nidhāna*], expands all of His various pastimes. Whichever of His forms a devotee finds attractive, that form the Lord shows him.” (*Bṛhad-bhāgavatāmṛta* 3.5.211) *The Glorious Rathayātrā Festival* In the rainy season (June or July) Lord Jagannātha is brought out into the street, revealing His form and abundant mercy for all to see. Millions attend this festival, celebrating, singing, and reciting songs with unabashed devotion. The three Deities—Jagannātha, the Lord of the universe; Balarāma, His first expansion, manifesting as His elder brother; and Subhadrā, His energy potency, manifesting as His sister—are lifted onto massive Rathayātrā chariots waiting just outside their home at Puri’s main temple. There is much history, philosophy, and nuance to this festival, and only the best Vaiṣṇava scholars know it all. The rich tradition of Rathayātrā includes a vast variety of overarching truths, tangential storylines, and numerous subplots, permeating every aspect of the celebration. Here we will summarize only the main parts of the festival. Rathayātrā is a “journey” (yātrā) of “chariots” (ratha). The three chariots, each about forty-five-feet high, are made of wood, like Jagannātha Himself. Jagannātha’s chariot has eighteen wheels, Balarāma’s sixteen, and Subhadrā’s fourteen. A platform bearing the Deity and the priests is topped by bright red, green, blue, and yellow canopies stretched high into the sky and elegantly embroidered with simple designs of Odisha. Thousands of devotees and pilgrims pull the chariots along Grand Road using long yellow ropes, the pulling being a metaphor for pulling the Lord back into one’s heart. Scriptural sources say that merely touching the ropes or seeing Lord Jagannātha on His chariot is enough for one to achieve liberation. The festival begins with the ritual called Chera Pahara (“cleansing with water”), wherein the current king of Puri sweeps the road, humbly making way for the Deities and their chariots. This act conveys the notion that Jagannātha is the real king of the region, and that everyone—even the king—must bow down and perform menial service in His presence. Then, in the midst of intense song and dance, with millions in attendance, the Deities are pulled on their chariots from the Jagannātha temple to the Guṇḍicā shrine, two miles away. Pilgrims saturate the area for as far as the eye can see, not just on the street but on rooftops and terraces, hanging out of windows, cheering and crying. The Deities stay at Guṇḍicā for nine days while the devotees sing and laugh and feast, deepening their devotion for Lord Jagannātha. Thereafter, the Deities enjoy yet another journey on their chariots as the devotees return them to the main temple. *The Meaning of the Festival* What does this festival mean, and why is it so important to Gauḍīya Vaiṣṇavas, the followers of Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu? Its esoteric significance may be traced to an incident in Lord Kṛṣṇa’s pastimes on earth. When Kṛṣṇa left the simple, rural atmosphere of Vrindavan to rule as king of Dwarka, the residents of His rustic home missed Him more than life itself. Especially Śrīmatī Rādhārāṇī. She could not bear His loss and yearned intensely to meet Him again. By Kṛṣṇa’s arrangement They would meet at Kurukshetra some years later, the meeting orchestrated by the Lord to bring Rādhārāṇī’s love to even greater heights. Śrī Rādhā loves Kṛṣṇa with all Her heart, but She shows us through Her own example how love for Kṛṣṇa deepens. Separation makes the heart grow fonder, and Rādhikā demonstrates for all souls exactly how this is so. To secretly meet Rādhā at Kurukshetra, Kṛṣṇa used the occasion of a solar eclipse to travel there on pilgrimage along with Balarāma, Subhadrā, and many other residents of Dwarka. But when Śr Rādhā saw Kṛṣṇa surrounded by regal splendor, She could think only of bringing Him back to the simple village of Vrindavan, with its unique mood of intimacy. Although Her joy at again being with Kṛṣṇa knew no bounds, Her sense of separation from Him in Vrindavan intensified Her feelings. This is the inner meaning of Rathayātrā. The celebration harkens to this event, and just as it did in Rādhā’s life, it is meant to entice us to deepen our own love for Kṛṣṇa by reuniting Him with Rādhā, His greatest love in Vrindavan. Thus Rathayātrā is a regional festival embraced by millions and particularly important to locals and those who make Jagannātha worship their daily devotions. But it is also an esoteric phenomenon, universal in application, embodying the deepest theological implications of the Gauḍīya tradition. “The Rathayātrā expands divine love in circles of increasing grace,” Caitanya Caraṇa Dāsa wrote in a July/August 2015 Back to Godhead article. He continued: First, it expands divine grace from the sacred space of the temple to the rest of the city. The Lord riding atop the majestic chariot offers the blessing of His darśana (audience) to one and all—even those who do not come to the temple. The sway of the magnificent chariots, the embellishments with many meaningful motifs, the beauty of the three Deities (Jagannātha with His brother Baladeva and sister Subhadrā), the symphony of musical eulogies by skilled singers, and the worshipers’ heartfelt cries of “Jaya Jagannātha!”—all such potent devotional stimuli at the Rathayātrā kindle life-transforming spiritual experiences. Second, the globalization of Rathayātrā expands the grace beyond Jagannātha Puri and even India. In 1967, Śrīla Prabhupāda inspired the first Rathayātrā outside India, in San Francisco, which also hosted Jagannātha’s first Western temple (New Jagannātha Purī). Since then, the festival has assumed international proportions. Indeed, Jagannatha has become a charming face of the beauty and mystery of Indian spirituality. . . . The Rathayātrā expands divine love from the temple to the rest of the city, and indeed the whole world. And it offers us a chance to elevate our devotional love from separation to union, from disconnection from the Lord to reconnection with Him. *The Force Moves West* Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu, Kṛṣṇa Himself in the guise of His own devotee, spent the last eighteen years of His life in Jagannath Puri. His deep emotional relationship with the Deity serves as a profound template for Vaiṣṇava devotion, embraced by Gauḍīya Vaiṣṇavas for more than five hundred years. The desire to spread the glory of Jagannātha worldwide, in fact, was initially suggested in the *Caitanya-bhāgavata* *(Antya* 4.126), one of Mahāprabhu’s earliest biographies, even if Jagannātha is not explicitly mentioned. In that verse the Lord Himself says, “The chanting of My name will spread to every town and village of the world.” The reference to “My name” indicates the names of Kṛṣṇa, of which “Jagannātha” is prominent. The fateful scenario depicted in that verse would be pushed to the fore some four hundred years later, in the time of Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura (1838–1914), whose life and work—due to both globalization and his profound spiritual insight—would plant the seed for Jagannātha’s journey to the Western world. Through his books Bhaktivinoda developed the overall vision of sending Vaiṣṇavism to the West. His son Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura (1874–1937) tangibly put into effect his father’s dream by sending disciples to England and Germany. But in the present context, it is especially significant that Sarasvatī Ṭhākura was precise, mentioning Jagannātha specifically. On May 19, 1934, at the ancient temple of Lord Alarnatha in Brahmagiri, Odisha, near Puri, he said, “We must take Lord Jagannātha in an airplane chariot to Eastbourne and to London.” He further opined that the mercy of Jagannātha, in accordance with His name, should be available throughout the jagat (universe), adding that Jagannātha Deities are especially needed outside India. He was firm on this latter point because Jagannātha is renowned for being kind to those who need Him most. He is popularly known as Patita Pāvana, “deliverer of the most fallen.” People in the Western world, said Bhaktisiddhānta, are generally bereft of Vaiṣṇava teaching and all it implies, and could thus particularly benefit from Jagannātha’s mercy. The climax of this story is traceable to Śrīla Prabhupāda, the founder of the Hare Kṛṣṇa movement, who at the behest of Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī brought Vaiṣṇavism to Western shores and established it as an irrevocable fact. It might be added that Prabhupāda was devoted to Jagannātha in particular even as a five-year-old in Kolkata. He celebrated Rathayātrā with a miniature homemade cart, pulling it throughout his neighborhood with local friends. In other words, he had an inborn love for Lord Jagannātha throughout his life. Thus, in 1967, a year after incorporating his International Society for Kṛṣṇa Consciousness (ISKCON), he planted the seeds for establishing the festival worldwide by inaugurating the first Rathayātrā in the Western world. Today his disciples continue to watch those seeds sprout in cities around the world, as Rathayātrā annually makes its way to London, Paris, Sydney, Tokyo, San Francisco, Los Angeles, and on New York’s renowned Fifth Avenue, to name but a few cities. The festival not only replicates the mammoth chariots and traditional parade of Puri, but it now includes a Festival of India in place of Guṇḍicā, with colorful displays, entertainment stages, musical performances, free-feast booths, and a variety of cultural displays and exhibits. Prabhupāda was obviously aware of Sarasvatī Ṭhākura’s statements about Lord Jagannātha and the West. For example, in February 1970, when his movement was already firmly established in the West, Śrīla Prabhupāda wrote to Hanuman Prasad Poddar, the founder of *Gita* Press, with whom he had a friendly relationship: “The Deities worshiped in ISKCON temples are Jagannath Swami with Balarāma and Subhadra and Rādhā-Kṛṣṇa. When we first start a temple, we start with Jagannath Swami. My Guru Mahārāja recommended temples of Jagannath in these countries, so I was inspired to establish first of all Jagannath Swami because He is kind even to the mlecchas [foreigners]. Then, when there is the opportunity, I establish Rādhā-Kṛṣṇa murti.” From the very beginning of ISKCON, Prabhupāda wanted to install Lord Jagannātha in his temples. In a little-known incident, for example, Prabhupāda asked Brahmānanda Dāsa, one of his first disciples, to help him in this regard, even before there were any Deities in the movement. Brahmānanda recalled in an interview by me: I had first come to a kīrtana in the first week of August, 1966, and was initiated in September [Rādhāṣṭamī]. Shortly after this, say in October or November, I was sitting with Śrīla Prabhupāda in his room, and he gave me an assignment. He wanted a statue [mūrti] made from stone. He made a drawing of this flat-headed stubby image with funny arms, which he said was the shape of Lord Jagannātha, the primary manifestation of Kṛṣṇa in Puri as worshiped by Lord Caitanya—it was “the Lord of the universe,” he said. And he wanted me to go across the street and ask the tombstone seller to carve this shape out of granite. This was Provenzano Lanza Funeral Home, at 43 Second Avenue, directly across the street. It’s still there. Anyway, from Prabhupāda’s point of view, this was a perfectly reasonable request, but I was shocked by it. How could a tombstone seller make this shape he had never seen before, and, more, why should he do it? How could I explain why I wanted this thing? To me it seemed like an untenable idea. At the time, I didn’t know that Deities are routinely hand-carved from marble slabs in India and then decorated and worshiped. I don’t think I had ever seen a photo of a Deity at that point of time, only artwork, paintings of Kṛṣṇa. Anyway, I obediently went across the street and carried out the assignment. I was relieved that they didn’t give much attention to the strange shape in the drawing and politely explained that they only sell the tombstones and do not manufacture them. And the stone-cutters use machines to cut the quarried stone into fixed shapes and sizes and do not do custom hand-carved shapes, especially something as unconventional as this. So, Lord Jagannātha did not appear in Śrīla Prabhupāda’s movement at this time; it would happen a short time later in San Francisco, where he was provided not only the Deities by Mālatī’s grace, but a disciple [Śyāmasundara] who could carve and paint large Deities out of wood, exactly like the Lord of the universe at Puri. *Jagannātha’s Appearance in San Francisco* The story to which Brahmānanda refers at the end of his quote happened in the spring of 1967. One day, Śyāmasundara, one of Śrīla Prabhupāda’s earliest West Coast disciples, hurried into his *guru’s* San Francisco apartment, carrying a surprise. He excitedly took a small item out of his shopping bag and placed it on Prabhupāda’s desk for authoritative perusal. “What is this?” Prabhupāda asked, his eyes opening wide as he looked down at the three-inch wooden image before him. For Prabhupāda it was a familiar form, but entirely out of context—what was it doing here in San Francisco, in the middle of the hippie era? It was His very own Lord Jagannātha, making an unexpected if long-awaited appearance. Śrīla Prabhupāda immediately folded his palms in traditional añjali style and bowed down, offering the exotic figure full Vaiṣṇava respects. Prabhupāda then started reciting melodious Sanskrit prayers and encouraged both Śyāmasundara and Mukunda, another early disciple in the room, to bow before little Jagannātha as well. With no knowledge of the rich tradition behind the Prabhupāda’s actions, the disciples were shocked. “You have brought Jagannātha, the Lord of the universe,” he said, smiling, and delighted beyond words. “He is Kṛṣṇa. Thank you very much.” Prabhupāda was overcome with joy and proceeded to tell them the Jagannātha story. “But where did you get this Deity?” The young men explained that Mālatī, Śyāmasundara’s wife, had found it in a store called Cost Plus Imports. “Bring her to me.” And so they did. “Mālatī, you have found this?” “Yes.” “There are others?” “Oh yes, a whole barrelful.” “No, no. Two others?” “Yes, two more barrels with different figures.” Prabhupāda held up little Jagannātha and said, “This is Kṛṣṇa. The other two figures will be His sister, Subhadrā, and His brother, Balarāma. Bring them.” Mālatī and Śyāmasundara rushed to the imports store and bought the two other figures in the set. They hurried back and dutifully gave the little statues to their spiritual master. As he placed the three forms on his desk, he looked at them with loving affection. Then he looked up at his disciples and asked if any of them knew how to carve. By Kṛṣṇa’s divine arrangement, Śyāmasundara had been a wood sculptor by profession. Prabhupāda asked him to carve larger replicas of the little Deities. He did so, and thus Lord Jagannātha manifested in the Western world. On March 26, 1967, at 518 Frederick Street, Śrīla Prabhupāda conducted ISKCON’s first installation ceremony, effectively bringing the Deities Jagannātha, Balarāma, and Subhadrā to the Western world, as predicted by his spiritual master. He also introduced ISKCON to a new *mantra*, jagannāthaḥ svāmī nayana-patha-gāmī bhavatu me: “Lord Jagannātha, Lord of the universe, please be visible to me.” *Satyarāja Dāsa, a disciple of Śrīla Prabhupāda, is a BTG associate editor and founding editor of the Journal of Vaishnava Studies. He has written more than thirty books on Kṛṣṇa consciousness and lives near New York City.* Lord Jagannātha’s Appearance in Māyāpur *The history of ISKCON’s Jagannātha Mandir in Māyāpur, West Bengal.* by Śyāmāgopīkā Devī Dāsī Five hundred years ago, at the time of Lord Caitanya, there lived a very wonderful devotee named Jagadish Ganguli. His residence was in a small village near Māyāpur. Although he was advanced in age, every year he would go on the nine-hundred-kilometer journey to Jagannātha Purī on foot to associate with his master, Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu, take darśana of his beloved Jagannātha, Baladeva, and Subhadrā Devī, and participate in the all-auspicious Rathayātrā festival. One day, less than a month before his scheduled departure for Puri, Jagadish’s plans were foiled. He was stricken with a terrible disease that left him completely blind. Because he was optimistic by nature, this did not dampen his desire to make the yearly padayātrā to Puri. He would no longer be able to see the divine, all-merciful forms of Lord Caitanya and Lord Jagannātha; that was for sure. But still he could relish the sound of sweet kīrtana and discourses given by exalted Vaiṣṇavas. His friends and associates, however, were not so keen on him traveling. They considered the annual pilgrimage too long and dangerous for a blind man and refused to take him with them. Jagadish was heartbroken. His existence in this world became a cause for his constant lamentation and despondency. Somehow he passed his days, calling out for the all-merciful Jagannātha to be merciful to him. Then, one night, Lord Jagannātha appeared to His devotee in a dream. The Lord told him that on the following day when he went for his daily bath in the Ganges, a log would touch his head and restore his vision. The Lord instructed Jagadish to take that log to a nearby village and request a certain devotee carpenter there to carve a Deity of Lord Jagannātha. The Lord also explained that at first the carpenter would refuse to do the work because he was a leper and his hands were very deformed. It was Jagadisha’s task to convince him to do the service. The Lord assured him that when the carpenter had completed the Deity his leprosy would be cured. At the break of dawn Jagadish woke from his dream and marveled at it. Eagerly he readied himself for his daily bath. He paid his obeisances to Mother Gaṅgā and then entered her sacred waters. Lord Jagannātha’s words were quickly proven true. A log touched his head and promptly restored his vision. Enlivened by the Lord’s shower of mercy, he took the log and quickly proceeded towards the nearby village. After many hours, an exhausted Jagadish found the leper carpenter, who flatly refused to carve the Deity. *The Reluctant Carpenter* He showed his deformed fingers and asked his expectant customer, “How is it possible for me to carve the divine form of the Lord with these hands?” An intense exchange followed, each devotee speaking his mind. Finally the leper agreed to carve Lord Jagannātha. Jagadish lived with the devotee leper carpenter while he was carving his Lord. He saw him suffering terribly. Blood and pus oozed from the stumps that were once his fingers, and his face was distorted by pain. He wanted to stop this torturous work. Somehow or other Jagadish managed to convince him to continue and constantly spoke to him the pastimes of his beloved Lord Jagannātha to distract his mind from the pain. Finally the Deity was completed, and to his amazement the devotee leper was cured of his leprosy. In great pomp and celebration, Lord Jagannātha was carried to the site of the present temple, and His worship was established there. A few nights later Jagadish had another dream. This time Lord Jagannātha instructed him to take some nearby neem wood and request the same carpenter to make the Deities of Subhadrā Devī and Lord Baladeva. The devotee carpenter was delighted to offer his service, and very soon Their Lordships were installed with great love and attention by their trusted devotee. *The Forgotten Lords* But then one day Jagadish left this mortal world. His beloved Deities were neglected. Indeed, Lord Jagannātha, Subhadrā Devī, and Lord Balarāma were completely forgotten, and over time their temple deteriorated and collapsed around them. Some centuries later, a local villager noticed a unique, beautiful blue flower growing on top of a termite hill. Curious, he ventured closer and was amazed to hear a voice calling, “Please, please give Me some water.” Quickly he began digging, eager to search out the owner of the voice that instructed and intrigued him. To his utter surprise he unearthed the beautiful transcendental trio: Lord Jagannātha, Subhadrā Devī, and Lord Baladeva. He was further astonished to see that although the Deities had been residing in the middle of a termite hill, their wood was miraculously unharmed. This event happened about sixty years ago. Once again a temple was constructed and elaborate worship established. In 1978 the aging *pujārī* of Their Lordships, his health failing, began to worry. He was fearful that history would repeat itself, and could not bear the thought of his beloved Lords being neglected and inconvenienced again. He decided to offer their property to ISKCON. On the Gaura Pūrṇimā day of 1978 the most auspicious transaction took place, and a beautiful new temple has since been constructed for Their Lordships’ pleasure. The holy *dhāma* of Śrī Kṣetra, or Jagannātha Purī, is eternally manifest in this holy place, and all the benefits one can attain by visiting Jagannātha Purī may be achieved visiting the Jagannātha Mandir at Sīmantadvīpa in Śrī Navadvīpa-maṇḍala. One of these many benefits is the opportunity to partake of Lord Jagannātha’s famous *mahā-prasādam*. Lord Jagannātha’s mercy—in its most delicious form—is waiting for your visit, and surely you will be blessed once you visit Their Lordships. *Śyāmāgopīkā Devī Dāsī, a disciple of His Holiness Jayapatāka Swami, manages Māyāpur.com and ISKCON Māyāpur’s Donor Care Services. Originally from Chennai, she and her husband, Gopījana Vallabha Dāsa, live in Māyāpur with their daughter, Antaraṅga Devī Dāsī.* Victims All? *Claims of victimhood prevail today, but at the root of all our suffering are the choices we make with our own free will.* by Viśākhā Devī Dāsī Instead of blaming others for our suffering, we’d do better to understand that we’re all fundamentally complicit in our so-called victimhood. A victim is a person who suffers from a destructive action. Often we think of victims as innocent and neither responsible nor accountable for what’s happened—for example, people who are randomly shot or children who are abused. There are victims, however, who may not be completely innocent—for example, a chain smoker who’s aware that smoking may be hazardous to his health yet who gets fatal lung cancer after forty years of smoking. One could argue that that person should have had the intelligence and self-control to stop smoking (or to have never started). Or one could point out that the tobacco industry purposefully made cigarettes highly addictive by adding extra nicotine. Has the smoker created his own misfortune, or is he a victim of the tobacco industry? (In a number of cases, the courts decided that smokers were victims of the tobacco industry and awarded hundreds of thousands of dollars in damages to them.) Another example: If I knowingly continue to associate with a person who abuses me, am I a victim, or am I simply foolish? Again the answer is not straightforward, as emotional, social, and economic factors may be involved. Each case is individual, and the degree of the victim’s responsibility is unique to each case. In other words, the issue of victim/perpetrator may be more complex and nuanced than a first glance reveals. *Transcendental Teachings* Another meaning of victim is a person who is adversely affected by a force, which includes a person who is deceived by his or her own emotions or ignorance. It is in this sense that, through the eyes of the scriptures, we can explore victims and their innocence or lack of it. In the *Bhagavad-gītā* Kṛṣṇa makes it clear that we have free will. We are not incapable, helpless pawns. After instructing Arjuna He says, “Deliberate on this fully and then do what you wish to do.” (*Gītā* 18.63) As adults, each one of us has some ability to decide how we want to act; we have some self-mastery and personal power, and therefore we are responsible for our actions. Yet, at the same time and perhaps surprisingly, the scriptural view is that those of us who are not strong devotees of Kṛṣṇa are victims—victims of Kṛṣṇa’s illusory energy. We are adversely affected by Kṛṣṇa’s material nature. Śrīla Prabhupāda explains: The material world is called illusory because it is a place of forgetfulness of the transcendental service of the Lord. Thus one engaged in the Lord’s devotional service in the material world may sometimes be very much disturbed by awkward circumstances. There is a declaration of war between the two parties, the illusory energy and the devotee, and sometimes the weak devotees fall victim to the onslaught of the powerful illusory energy. *(Bhāgavatam* 3.10.5, Purport) The idea is that we, spirit souls, are pure because we are an integral part of Kṛṣṇa, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, who is the supreme pure. When we come under the grip of Kṛṣṇa’s material energy, we become a victim of the three modes of material nature, namely goodness, passion, and ignorance. Then whatever we do, we do under the influence of those modes. Thus we are victims. The *Bhagavad-gītā* (3.27) confirms: > prakṛteḥ kriyamāṇāni > guṇaiḥ karmāṇi sarvaśaḥ > ahaṅkāra-vimūḍhātmā > kartāham iti manyate “The bewildered spirit soul, under the influence of the three modes of material nature, thinks himself the doer of activities that are in actuality carried out by nature.” And a bit later (5.14): > na kartṛtvaṁ na karmāṇi > lokasya sṛjati prabhuḥ > na karma-phala-saṁyogaṁ > svabhāvas tu pravartate “The embodied spirit, master of the city of his body, does not create activities, nor does he induce people to act, nor does he create the fruits of action. All this is enacted by the modes of material nature.” In other words, if we’re without proper knowledge, we’re in the hands of the material energy in the form of goodness, passion, ignorance, or some combination thereof, and we suffer. Due to ignorance, we’re deceived by material nature. How much are we innocent victims, and how much are we culpable? “According to Śrīla Madhvācārya, persons above the age of fourteen are considered capable of distinguishing between good and bad and are thus responsible for their pious and sinful activities. Animals, on the other hand, being merged in ignorance, cannot be blamed for their offenses or praised for their so-called good qualities, which all arise ultimately from ignorance.” *(Bhāgavatam* 11.21.16, Purport) If I remain ignorant and continue to misidentify the body and mind as my self, then I also remain bewildered and weak and a victim of Kṛṣṇa’s powerful illusory energy. My basic misidentification makes me prey to a cascade of difficulties and suffering. Therefore *Bhagavad-gītā* begins with the spiritual instruction that no one is their body or mind but each one of us is a spiritual being existing within the body and mind. Forgetting this, I become a victim of whatever befalls my body and mind. To stop being a victim, I need to address its root cause—that I’ve misidentified the body and mind as my self—and correct that misconception. My misidentification creates three kinds of mundane urges: the urge to speak, the urges or demands of the mind, and the demands of the body. In Prabhupāda’s words, “When a living entity falls victim to these three types of urges, his life becomes inauspicious. One who practices resisting these demands or urges is called a tapasvī, or one who practices austerities. By such tapasya one can overcome victimization by the material energy, the external potency of the Supreme Personality of Godhead.” (The Nectar of Instruction, Text 1, Purport) Those of us who are unused to austerities may cringe at the thought of doing any. The very word austerity may induce a shudder. But practically everyone already performs austerities, sometimes severe ones. For example, students spend long hours studying or sitting in classes; workers and businesspeople spend long hours getting to their place of work and back, and long hours working in less than ideal circumstances; parents must deal with difficult children; everyone deals with difficult relationships; and so forth. Like it or not, austerities are already integral to our lives. By the right kind of austerities, however, we can forever end our victimization at the hands of material nature. Śrīla Prabhupāda explains, In executing penance, one must be determined to return home, back to Godhead, and must decide to undergo all types of tribulations for that end. Even for material prosperity, name and fame, one has to undergo severe types of penance; otherwise no one can become an important figure in this material world. Why, then, would there not be severe types of penance for the perfection of devotional service? An easygoing life and attainment of perfection in transcendental realization cannot go together. The Lord is more clever than any living entity; therefore He wants to see how painstaking the devotee is in devotional service. The order is received from the Lord, either directly or through the bona fide spiritual master, and to execute that order, however painstaking, is the severe type of penance. One who follows the principle rigidly is sure to achieve success in attaining the Lord’s mercy. *(Bhāgavatam* 2.9.24, Purport) We begin by accepting, even theoretically, that because we are spiritual beings temporarily inhabiting a material body and mind, we can never be satisfied by trying to enjoy matter in whatever form it takes. Without this acceptance, our indefatigable desire to enjoy matter will continue, and with it our continued victimization. We escape such false promises of enjoyment by the process of *bhakti*, devotional service to Kṛṣṇa, the Supreme Lord. Instead of allowing our senses to try to gratify themselves materially, we use our senses in the service of the master of the senses, Kṛṣṇa. Take, for example, the sense of hearing. In Śrīla Prabhupāda’s words, “If human society gives itself to the process of hearing the Vedic literature, it will not become a victim to the impious sounds vibrated by impious men who degrade the standards of the total society.” *(Bhāgavatam* 2.2.36, Purport) In other words, we as spiritual beings are actually the lord of our senses and mind, although temporarily we have become victims of their influence. By *bhakti-yoga*, Kṛṣṇa consciousness, we may resume our rightful position as master of our mental and sensory faculties. At that point, whatever happens externally, we are heroes instead of victims. “Material activities are false heroic activities,” Prabhupāda writes, “whereas restraining the senses from material engagement is great heroism.” *(Bhāgavatam* 4.25.25, Purport) *Bitterness* When I fail to master my mind and senses, I may feel bitter about my experiences. “Why did this happen to me? I didn’t do anything to deserve this!” While the scriptures agree that we’re victims in the sense that we’re adversely affected by material nature, they don’t accept the bitterness that can accompany victimhood. Rather, that anger and bitterness is evidence that I’m allowing myself to be even further victimized. Lord Kṛṣṇa says, “While contemplating the objects of the senses, a person develops attachment for them, and from such attachment lust develops, and from lust anger arises. From anger, complete delusion arises, and from delusion bewilderment of memory. When memory is bewildered, intelligence is lost, and when intelligence is lost one falls down again into the material pool.” *(Gītā* 2.62–63) Śrīla Prabhupāda explained in a lecture, “So how we become victim of this māyā, that is described here, that from anger, delusion arises. . . . I have forgotten completely that I am not this body, I am spirit soul, ahaṁ brahmāsmi; I am part and parcel of the Supreme Brahman, spirit, absolute whole. That I have forgotten.” (Lecture on *Bhagavad-gītā* 2.62–72, December 19, 1968, Los Angeles) Devotees do not become angry and bitter about their fate. Instead, they use their apparently negative situation to make spiritual progress, accepting that ultimately the source of the problem that created their suffering is within them, not without. Our purification from material consciousness demands that we accept responsibility for our circumstances. If we get bitter it means we haven’t accepted that responsibility, which makes it difficult to get better. *A Victim’s Freedom* To stop thinking of myself as a victim I’ve started to ask myself, “What is it about the situation that has me so triggered?” Is my self-esteem threatened, my good name, my loss of what is rightfully mine, or have I been hurt by false assumptions? Whatever the case, what will gradually uplift me is to understand and accept my actual eternal identity as a spiritual being, an integral part of Kṛṣṇa, and to try to act in that capacity. If that’s the situation, the question then becomes how might I respond in a way that helps this understanding? How can I shift my focus away from victimhood? A first step may be humility. Years ago, when a devotee absconded with a life member’s money, Śrīla Prabhupāda told that life member, “Do not be angry with the instrument of your *karma*.” Who knows what we’ve done in the past to create our present situation? We can only know that what we’ve experienced as well as our present circumstances are not accidents, because there are no accidents in Kṛṣṇa’s creation. Somehow or other, what happens in Kṛṣṇa’s creation is Kṛṣṇa’s plan, directly or indirectly. The unhappiness suffered by a sincere devotee is technically not a *karmic* reaction; it is rather the Lord’s special mercy to induce His devotee to completely let go of the material world and return home, back to Godhead. There are many examples in the *Śrīmad-*Bhāgavatam** of devotional responses to injustice. One prominent one is Mahārāja Parīkṣit, who was cursed to die for a small mistake. Śrīla Prabhupāda writes, “The best example is Mahārāja Parīkṣit himself, who was a recognized sinless, pious king. But he also became a victim of the offense he had committed against a brāhmaṇa, even though he was ever unwilling to commit such a mistake. He was cursed also, but because he was a great devotee of the Lord, even such reverses of life became favorable.” (*Bhāgavatam* 1.19.7, Purport) Mahārāja Parīkṣit did not wallow in his misfortune. He did not rail against the brāhmaṇa who cursed him or the brahminical class for fostering such an unqualified person. Rather, he took his impending death as an opportunity to rid himself of all distractions and concentrate exclusively on understanding a person’s duty, especially his duty—the duty of one about to die. As a result, he heard the beautiful *Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam* concerning the name, fame, form, activities, qualities, and teachings of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa. Mahārāja Parīkṣit brilliantly arranged his life to elevate his consciousness. Granted, this is an exalted example that many of us, myself included, are not ready to fully embrace. But we can take responsibility for our situation, avoid blaming others, and remain confident that if we simply try to see our situation spiritually, Kṛṣṇa will help us, although we can never know exactly how He will help. Trying to understand our situation from a spiritual perspective can open us to a more meaningful and positive attitude. Kṛṣṇa’s perspective, after all, may be different from ours; but we should know for certain that He wants the best for us. > tat te ’nukampāṁ su-samīkṣamāṇo > bhuñjāna evātma-kṛtaṁ vipākam > hṛd-vāg-vapurbhir vidadhan namas te > jīveta yo mukti-pade sa dāya-bhāk “My dear Lord, one who earnestly waits for You to bestow Your causeless mercy upon him, all the while patiently suffering the reactions of his past misdeeds and offering You respectful obeisances with his heart, words and body, is surely eligible for liberation, for it has become his rightful claim.” *(Bhāgavatam* 10.14.8) Often, if we can simply express what we’re going through to an empathetic devotee, it will help us start to heal and engage more positively. *Temporary Setbacks* It’s easy to think of myself as a hapless victim just as it’s easy to blame someone for my mistakes rather than to accept responsibility. Once a small group of leaders was in Śrīla Prabhupāda’s room discussing a difficulty. These leaders agreed that the cause of the difficulty was another leader, who wasn’t present. Prabhupāda wryly pointed out how convenient it was to blame someone who wasn’t around to defend himself. The easy way is not always the best way. However difficult it may be, we can start to take some responsibility for our circumstances. As a child learning to walk will regularly fall down and get up to try again, we may sometimes fall into blaming others and then get back up to continue our heroic efforts. Śrīla Prabhupāda wrote in a letter (October 26, 1967): In the material world there is a constant fight between maya & the living entity. Maya is very strong & we can fall a victim at her hand at any moment. The only means of protecting us from the attack of maya is to be fully Kṛṣṇa Conscious. The proportion in which we fall back in Kṛṣṇa Consciousness is filled up by the influence of maya. It is exactly like the proportion of negligence of our health is subsequently resulted in our falling ill. The person who is very careful about his health does not generally fall ill. Similarly a person who is always fixed up in Kṛṣṇa Consciousness cannot be defeated by maya. Sometimes in spite of our full Kṛṣṇa Consciousness we fall a victim to maya but that is temporary just as seasonal changes such calamities do come & pass away & we have to endure them. In other words, let’s never stop trying to live our lives meaningfully and heroically, in full awareness of our identity as an integral part of Kṛṣṇa, the Supreme Personality of Godhead. *Viśākhā devī dāsī has been writing for BTG since 1973. The author of six books, she has been serving as the temple president at Bhaktivedanta Manor in the UK since January 2020. She and her husband, Yadubara Dāsa, produce and direct films, most recently the biopic on the life of Śrīla Prabhupāda Hare Kṛṣṇa! The Mantra, the Movement, and the Swami Who Started It All. Visit her website at OurSpiritualJourney.com.* From the Editor *Lord Nṛsiṁha’s Exalted Devotee* Whenever we celebrate the appearance day of the Lord as one of His incarnations, such as Lord Nṛsiṁha, whose appearance coincides with this issue of BTG, we naturally honor the Lord’s devotees connected to that incarnation. In the case of Nṛsiṁha, the Lord’s half-man, half-lion avatar, the most special devotee is Prahlāda Mahārāja. The history of Lord Nṛsiṁha is told in various places in the Vedic literature. Many of us are familiar with the story as related by Śrī Nārada in the Seventh Canto of *Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam*, and we may know of relevant citations from other sources, such as the *Narasiṁha* *Purāṇa* and the *Hari-bhakti-sudhodaya*. Śrī Nārada’s telling of the story, which begins in the second chapter of the *Bhāgavatam’s* Seventh Canto, contains much more information about Prahlāda Mahārāja and his demonic father, Hiraṇyakaśipu, than about Lord Nṛsimha, who makes His dramatic appearance in the eighth chapter. By then we’ve heard about Prahlāda’s exalted devotional character. Although only five years old, he was so mature in his pure devotion for the Lord that he was often unaware of his surroundings, his consciousness being fixed in transcendence. The *Bhāgavatam* (7.4.39) says, “Because of advancement in Kṛṣṇa consciousness, he sometimes cried, sometimes laughed, sometimes expressed jubilation and sometimes sang loudly.” We hear praise of Prahlāda’s elevated spiritual status in Śrīla Sanātana Gosvāmī’s Śrī Bṛhad-Bhāgavatāmṛta. In part one of that book, Nārada is traveling throughout the universe, searching for “the greatest recipient of Kṛṣṇa’s mercy,” which means Kṛṣṇa’s greatest devotee. At one point, Lord Śiva directs Nārada to Prahlāda Mahārāja, who is living on a lower planet called Sutala. Lord Śiva says, “There is a greater recipient of Kṛṣṇa’s mercy than your father [Brahmā], me, and other servants like Garuḍa, and even than the goddess of fortune. His name is Prahlāda. He is famous throughout the world as the dearmost devotee of Kṛṣṇa.” When meeting Prahlāda in Sutala, Nārada mentions that, after killing Hiraṇyakaśipu to protect Prahlāda, Lord Nṛsiṁha could not be pacified. All the demigods and other celestial beings who had arrived on the scene, including Lakṣmī Devī, the Lord’s consort, were afraid to even go near Him. Nāradā said to Prahlāda, “Brahmā, terrified, begged you to approach Śrī Nṛsiṁha. And when you fell at the Lord’s divine lotus feet, the Lord stood up and raised you from the ground. He put His lotus hand upon your head and began to lick your entire body.” Prahlāda offered many wonderful prayers to the Lord, related in Canto Seven, chapter 9, of the *Bhāgavatam*. Śrīla Prabhupāda lectured daily on this chapter during ISKCON’s 1976 Māyāpur-Vrindvan Festival. He remarked how amazing it was that a five-year-old boy was offering such meaningful prayers, filled with knowledge and devotion. When Prahlāda finished His prayers, Lord Nṛsiṁha asked him to request anything from Him, including liberation. Prahlāda replied that he only wanted devotion to the Lord. He said that his service to the Lord was inspired by his being the Lord’s eternal servant and that receiving a reward for his service would be unbefitting. Pressed by Lord Nṛsiṁha, Prahlāda finally asked that his demonic father be delivered from the horrible results of his sinful life. The Lord assured him that not only was Hiraṇyakaśipu already delivered from material existence, but twenty-one generations of his forebears were as well (which would include ancestors from Prahlāda’s previous birth). Prahlāda is an example of how the Lord’s devotee delivers the Lord to us. It is because of Prahlāda’s pure devotion that the history of Lord Nṛsiṁha has been retold for millennia for the benefit of all who hear it. Hare Kṛṣṇa. —*Nāgarāja Dāsa, Editor* Vedic Thoughts Those who are artists, overtaken by the beautiful creation, should better look to the beautiful face of the Lord for complete satisfaction. The face of the Lord is the embodiment of beauty. What is called beautiful nature is but His smile, and what are called the sweet songs of the birds are but specimens of the whispering voice of the Lord. His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupāda *Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam* 1.11.26, Purport The holy name is by nature eternal and full of knowledge and bliss. By the holy name’s mercy, a living entity revives his spiritual consciousness. Śrī Kṛṣṇa, who is the reservoir of all transcendental pleasure, manifests in a heart filled with simplicity, before eyes that have been fully spiritualized, on a tongue inclined to His service, and in an ear inclined to hear *kṛṣṇa-kathā*. The holy name manifests in those senses that are engaged only in pleasing His senses. Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura *Amṛta-vāṇī*, Section “108 Essential Instructions” O Arjuna! The greatest among all My names is the name “Kṛṣṇa.” Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa *Padma Purana, Prabhasakhanda* In this material world, to render service to the lotus feet of Govinda, the cause of all causes, and to see Him everywhere, is the only goal of life. This much alone is the ultimate goal of human life, as explained by all the revealed scriptures. Śrī Prahlāda Mahārāja *Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam* 7.7.55 One should hear of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. One should gaze upon Him. *Brhadaranyaka Upanisad* 4.4.22 The heart of My devotee is actually the place of My residence. Just as I live in Vaikuṇṭha along with Lakṣmī Devī, in the same way I live in the heart of My devotee. Lord Viṣṇu *Hari-bhakti-suddhodaya* 14.57 Attaining the Supreme Lord is the medicine to cure the suffering soul. That medicine fills the taker with transcendental bliss. *Śrī Viṣṇu Purāṇa* 6.5.59 When one understands that the Supreme Personality of Godhead and the individual spirit souls are eternally distinct entities, then he may become qualified for liberation and live eternally in the spiritual world. *Śvetāśvatara Upaniṣad* 1.6 O best of the Kurus, the earth continued as follows: “Although in the past great men and their descendants have left me, departing from this world in the same helpless way they came into it, even today foolish men are trying to conquer me. Śrī Śukadeva Gosvāmī *Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam* 12.3.6 BTG55-04, 2021