Day 29 : Third Yam
Harikatha, Sreela Bhakti Ballabh Tirtha Goswami Maharaj
8:10am to 10:34am. The aspirant who is more humbler than a blade of grass, more forbearing than a tree, and who is completely devoid of desire for getting respect from others but giving due respect to all is eligible for doing Hari-kirtan always.
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Third Period of devotional practice (Purvahna-kaliya Bhajan — forenoon worship). Fixation of mind on the object of worship
When all the desires got removed then we can concentrate our mind on the object of worship. That sort of fixation of mind is called nishta.
Who is competent or eligible to do Harinam without offences? What is the way of doing Harinam? For this Chaitanya Mahaprabhu has taught us in the third verse:
tṛṇād api sunīcena taror iva sahiṣṇunā
amāninā mānadena kīrtanīyaḥ sadā hariḥ
(3rd Verse of Sri Shikshastaka)The person entitled to do Nāma Saṇkīrtan—the procedure of doing Harinām, is ascertained in the third verse of Shikshastaka. The aspirant who is more humbler than a blade of grass, more forbearing than tree and who is completely devoid of desire for getting respect from others but giving due respect to all is eligible for doing Harikīrtan always.
ye-rūpe la-ile nāma prema upajaya
tāhāra lakṣaṇa śloka śuna, svarūpa-rāma-rāya
uttama haṣā āpanāke māne tṛṇādhama
dui-prakāre sahiṣṇutā kare vṛkṣa-sama
(Sri Chaitanya Charitamrita Antya 20/20, 22)Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu addressing Swarupa damodar and Ray Ramanand has said, “Hear about the scriptural verse expressing the characteristics of how to do Harinam by which pure devotional love can be manifested. A good person considers himself more abominable than a blade of grass. When there is any sort of pride then there is chance of occurrence of offence. In this material world even a blade of grass has ego. When goat, cow, keep their feet on the grass, it bends. When they lift their feet, it stands up. The blade of grass wants to declare to the world that it is of this world. So not that kind of humbleness. It is indicative of the mood that I am of the world. Till such ego is there, one cannot become humbler than a blade grass. So we should give up all worldly pride. Until we have any sort of material ego, there will be every possibility of committing offence.
vṛkṣa yena kāṭileha kichu nā bolaya
śukāṣā mailea kāre pānī nā māgaya
(Sri Chaitanya Charitamrita Antya 23)One who has got the quality of forbearance in two ways—like the tree, in spite of being loped, does not say anything but tolerates and has no aptitude to give trouble to anybody for it’s own sake for getting water, i.e. for sacrificing it’s own interest to fulfil the desire of others who seeks it’s help.
yei ye māgaye, tāre deya āpana-dhana
gharma-vṛṣṭi sahe, ānera karaye rakṣaṇa
(Sri Chaitanya Charitamrita Antya 24)If someone cut its branches, it gives him its own wealth. Own wealth means shelter, protection from Sun, rain and heat. It seems impossible for the conditioned souls of this world to have such forbearance. We may say, “He gives so much of troubles, how can I tolerate?” If you do not tolerate then how you will do Harinam? The tree, even if does not get any water, will not disturb any person. But it gives its own benefit to all. A person who has loped its branches, if he comes, we may say just go go go, but it gives shelter from the rays of the Sun and rains, it does not ignore that person. We cannot think of such tolerance in this world. How can we do Harinam?
uttama haṣā vaiṣṇava habe nirabhimāna
jīve sammāna dibe jāni’ ‘kṛṣṇa’-adhiṣṭhāna
(Sri Chaitanya Charitamrita Antya 25)Vaishnava should not have any mundane ego, false ego of this world. He gives respect to all human beings. Even if a person is bad, a Vaishnava gives respect to him thinking his object of worship Supreme Lord is residing in his heart. In that consideration, Vaishnava gives respect to all. Person may be rogue, very bad but Supreme Lord is residing in his heart. A Vaishnava respects everyone without desiring any respect from others. Conditioned souls of this world cannot do so. Even after listening to such teachings, if anybody says something bad, we will be ready to slap him.
Forenoon pastimes of Sri RadhaKrishna are as follows:
While doing Harinam you should think about this, then your mind will be sanctified and all these pastimes will be revealed in your heart.
pūrvāhṇe dhenu-mitrair vipinam anusṛtaṁ goṣṭha-lokānuyātaṁ
kṛṣṇaṁ rādhāpti-lolaṁ tad abhisṛti-kṛte prāpta-tat-kuṇḍa-tīram
rādhāṁ cālokya kṛṣṇaṁ kṛta-gṛha-gamanām āryayārkārcanāyai
diṣṭāṁ kṛṣṇa-pravṛtyai prahita-nija-sakhī-vartma-netrāṁ smarāmi
(Govinda-lila-amritam 5/1)Krishna, after taking break-fast, goes to forest with cows and cowherd boys. Nanda Maharaj, Yashoda Devi and all the residents of Vraja, their life is going; they have more love for Krishna than their life! As He has to graze the cows and calves, so they cannot stop Him. They are following Him as long as they can see Him. When they cannot see Him, they feel disappointed and return. They feel separation from Krishna. Where there is love there is separation, they cannot tolerate even little separation. Desiring association of Radharani, Krishna is wandering with cowherd boys.
Radharani is waiting for Krishna at Radhakunda. Being attracted by pure devotion of Radharani, Krishna desires to go there. He has given satisfaction to the cows and cowherd boys. Whiling moving, they are getting love from Krishna and they are also loving Him. They perform many pastimes there. Krishna likes to serve cows. Krishna then says them, “You people stay here for some time. I will roam around for some time and will come back.”
Cowherd boys, “Kanaiya, where are you going?”
Krishna, “We will talk later, after I come back. I will come back and stay here with all of you.”
By convincing them Krishna goes at Radhakunda to meet Radharani. The cowherd boys do not have eligibility to go there. Now their life has gone, what can they do? In this manner I remember such Krishna.
What is the condition of Radharani here? She is already informed about Krishna’s going to forest with calves or cows. She is so much eager to go there to meet Krishna. She thinks, “I am to go there. How can I go?” She is in Her husband’s place, actually, husband is Supreme Lord Sri Krishna only but externally They are enacting some pastimes in which She has to meet Him with some restriction. She is very eager to meet Krishna. Nobody will allow Her to go to meet Sri Krishna and serve Him. Her mother-in-law, Jatila, is very strict. She thinks, “How can She go anywhere without my permission?”
Krishna advises Radharani, “Why are you worried? You pray to your mother-in-law. If you say You are going to meet Me, desire to worship Me then she will not allow. You tell her that You want to worship Sun god. Then she will allow You.”
Household persons like worshiping the demi-gods so that they can get material benefits like wealth, son, wife etc. Radharani approached her mother-in-law, “I have got the desire to worship Sun god.”
Jatila, “Oh, that is good, good, good. Go and worship Sun god. It is beneficial.”
On the name of worshiping Sun god, She will meet Krishna and will worship Him. One messenger, a confident (sakhi, a gopi) is sent to know where She will go and meet Krishna. She is waiting anxiously for Her confident to come and give Her the message about Krishna. We have to remember such Radharani in the forenoon who is waiting with perturbation of heart to get the message.
Sree Chaitanya Gaudiya
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