The causes of suffering V

    “In the dissensions of providence, mankind cannot have any rest” _ is this demoniac mentality of exploiting and enjoying the lord’s divine energy.

       The demons do not know when or where to renounce, or do they knows when or where to accept or receive. When diagnosing a patient, one has to properly judge this accepting and rejecting principle. So, in order to cure the demoniac mentality in human society, which causes the Ravana syndrome of trying to steal Sita devi, it is essential that the demoniac nature be transformed. For any treatment, two important factors are that the patient be in clean surroundings and that his medicines and food be administered punctually. Similarly, to transform the demoniac mentality, people have to be clean, disciplined, and truthful. This end is not served by a advocating the theory of yata mat, tata path that “there are as many ways to salvation as there are opinions” for this way one confuses and deceives the populace. By bringing the clean and the unclean, the disciplined and undisciplined, the truthful and the untruthful on to the same level, one will find it impossible to cure or even treat any patient.

The causes of suffering IV

       There have always existed two types of men, the devotee and the demon. Long ago there lived a big demon named Ravana, who disguised himself as a sannyasi, a renounced mendicant, and tried to steal the wife of the supreme lord Ramachandra. She was the goddess of fortune, Sita-devi. In this way the demond brought about his own destruction.

       But now, in modern times, Ravana’s dynesty has multiplied into millions. This has given rise to many different opinions, which have made the demons inimical towards another. Thus they are all competing tooth and nail, trying to kidnap the goddess of fortune, Sita devi . Each one is thinking, “I am the most cunning, and also I will enjoy Sita-devi all by myself.” But like Ravana, all these demons, along with their entire families, are being destroyed. So many powerful leaders like Hitlar have come, but enamored by the illusion of enjoying and exploiting the supreme lord’s energy and consort---Sitadevi, the goddess of fortune all of them have been thwarted and crushed in the past, are being thwarted and crushed in the present, and will be thwarted and crushed in the future. The root causes of the aforementioned lament_

The causes of suffering III

       I am perfect, powerful, and happy. I am the richest man, surrounded by aristocratic relatives. There is none as powerful and happy as I am. I shall perform sacrifices, I shall give some charity, and thus I shall rejoice.’ in this way such persons are deluded by ignorance. Thus perplexed by various anxieties and bounded by a network of illusions, they become too strongly attached to sense enjoyment and fall down into hell.

      Self-complacent and always impudent, deluded by wealth and false prestige, they sometimes proudly perform sacrifices in name only, without following any rules or regulations. Bewildered by false ego, strength, pride, lust, and anger, the demons become envious of the supreme personality of godhead, who is situated in their own bodies and in the bodies of others, and blaspheme against the real religion. Those who are envious and mischievous, who are the lowest among men, I perpetually cast into the ocean of material existence, into various demoniac species of life. Attaining repeated birth amongst the species of demoniac life, o son of kunti, and such persons can never approach me. Gradually they sink down to the most abominable type of existence.

       These verses from the gita aptly describe the demoniac nature. 

The causes of suffering II

     In the Bagavad gita(16.7-20)    the supreme lord has exhaustively described the nature of such atheistic demons.

    Those who are demoniac do not know what is to be done and what is not to be done. Neither cleanliness nor proper behavior nor truth is found in them. They say that this world is unreal, with no foundation, no god in control. They say it is the producer of sex desire and has no cause other than lust. Following such conclusion, the demoniac, who are lost to themselves and who have no intelligence, engage in unbeneficial, horrible works meant to destroy the world. Taking shelter of insatiable lust and absorbed in the conceit of pride and false prestige, the demoniac, thus illusion, are always sworn to unclean work, attracted by the impermanent.

      They believe that to gratify the senses is the prime necessity of human civilization. Thus until the end of  life their anxiety is immeasurable. Bounded by a network of hundreds and thousands of desires and absorbed in lust and anger, they secure money by illegal means for sense gratification. The demoniac person thinks, ‘so much wealth do I have today, and I will gain more according to my schemes. So much mine now, and it will increase in the future, more and more. He is my enemy, and I have killed him, and my other enemies will also be killed. I am the lord of everything. I am the enjoyer

The causes of suffering I

        Mahisasura*, the most powerful demon, who was the personification of the forces of evil, was in fact endowed with intelligence, education, wealth, the  ability to perform severe penances and attract large followings, and so on. His present – day followers, possessing identical qualifications, are no less enterprising and expert in exploiting the divine energy. They carry out elaborate scientific research, misspending huge amounts of money, time, energy, intelligence, men, and so on. But instead of peace and joy, what they discover through these researchers end up producing untold misery for humanity. This is a perfect example of daivi maya’s throwing agency in action. All these evil activities bring great losses to human society. As a result of this evil, the mundane scientists incur grievious sin, which destroys their real intelligence. And this loss of intelligence turns them away from god and robs them of their chance to surrender to him. Thus in the Bhagavad gita (7.15) the supreme lord says:

Na mam duskrtino mudhah

Prapadyante naradhamah

Nayayapahrta jnana

Asuram bhavam asritah

     Those miscreants who are grossly foolish, who are lowest among mankind, whose knowledge is stolen by illusion and who partake of the atheistic nature of demons do not surrender unto me.

  

This material nature is full of miseries 3

       Western thinkers have become gravely concerned about the extent of destruction an atomic explosion can cause. Some leaders are trying to calm the alarm with platitudes about how atomic energy is used solely for peaceful purposes, but this is another form of deception caused by daivi maya, or nature’s law.

         It is impossible for anyone to surmount the two pronged attack of daivi maya- that is, her covering potency and her throwing potency. The more we try to conquer this divine energy, the more powerfully we are defeated by her exciting us through the mode of passion and punishing us with the three –fold miseries, culminating in all devouring death. This struggle between divine energy and the evil forces is eternal. Our inability to understand the struggle has let us lament, “In the dispensation of providence, mankind cannot have any rest.”

          Despite repeatedly tasting defeat at the hand of the divine energy, the evil forces cannot understand why “Mankind cannot have any rest.” Yet in the Bhagavad Gita the supreme personality of godhead clearly explains this. At first he sternly warns the evil forces with these words, daivi hy esa guna-mayi mama maya duratyaya:

  “This divine energy of mine, consisting of the three modes of material nature, is difficult to overcome”; and then in the next line he tells them how to overcome this divine energy, mam eva ye prapadyante mayam etam taranti te: “but those who have surrendered unto me can easily cross beyond it.”

This material nature is full of miseries 2

     

         In other words, when we calculate according to the scripture, India has exercised absolute sovereignty over the entire planet Earth for a period of 3,888,000 years, till maharaja Pariksit’s rule. Hence the meager thousand years of foreign subjugation are not such a lamentable thing. Neither in the past nor at present has India’s political serfdom or freedom been the prime concern of India’s greatest thinkers and philosophers, who well knew the actual value of such things. The king of India up to maharaja Pariksit was able to rule the entire world, and not for a mere couple of centuries but for hundreds of thousands of years. The reason for their rule was not a political one.

      Thus millennium ago the Bhagavad- gita comprehensively discussed the same topic the editor of Amrit Bazar Patrika writes about it in a despondent mood: “If one kind of trouble goes, another quickly follows.” In the Gita (7.14) lord Krishna says, “The divine energy of mine, consisting of the three modes of material nature, is difficult to overcome.” The Sanskrit words daivi Maya used here can be translated into modern term as “nature’s law”. This natural law is so stringent that it is impossible to overcome it, in our big conferences tabling motions that run into volumes. Our advanced technological and scientific efforts aimed at protecting us from the clutches of nature’s law are futile because they are all controlled by by the very same nature’s law, or daivi maya. Therefore trying to utilize mundane science to overpower nature’s law is like creating a Frankenstein. Efforts to extirpate human suffering through advanced technology and bring about lasting happiness have brought us to atomic age. 

This material nature is full of miseries 1

     The editor of the daily Amrita Bazar Patrika, published from Allahabad, began the editorial the other day on a rather sad note:

     The nation’s week began with memories of “Jalhianwallah- Bagh,” and political serfdom no longer troubles us. But our troubles are far from being at the end. In the dispensation of providence, mankind cannot have any rest. If one kind of trouble goes, another quickly follows. India, politically free, is faced with difficulties that are no less serious than the troubles under foreign rule.

     Now, if one consults the accounts ledger of India’s serfdom and freedom, and views the contents from a spiritual perspective, the conclusion will be as follows: the four yugas, or ages, namely Satya, Treta, Dvapara, and Kali, add up to 4,320,000 years. Kali- yuga, which lasts 432000 years, began from the time of maharaja Pariiksit’s rule, some five thousand years ago. For approximately one thousands of these five thousand years i.e., since the invasion of Mohammad Ghori in A.D. 1050 India has been experiencing foreign rule.

Who is Ekadasi? XIV

     If one doesn’t follow Ekadasi because of illusion, he is still considered the utmost sinner. For every mouthful of grain that is eaten by a resident of the earthly region, one receives the effect of kiling millions of brahmanas. It is definately necessary that one give up eating grains on Ekadasi. I very strongly say again and again, ‘On Ekadasi, don’t eat grains, don’t eat grains, don’t eat grains!’ Whether one be a ksatriya, vaisya, shudra, or of any family, he should follow the lunar day of Ekadasi. From this the perfection of varna and ashram will be attained. Especially since even if one by trickery follows Ekadasi, all of his sin become destroyed and he very easily attains the supreme goal, the abode of Vaikuntha.”

Who is Ekadasi? XIII

       “After this, Lord Vishnu, observing the condition of the Papapurusha with laughter, began to speak thus: ‘Oh Papapurusha! Rise up! Don’t lament any longer. Just listen, and I’ll tell you where you can stay on the auspicious lunar day of Ekadasi. On the day of Ekadasi, which is the benefactor of the three worlds, you can take shelter of foodstuff in the form of grains. There is no reason to worry about this any more, because My form as Sri Ekadasi Devi will no longer impede you.’ After giving direction to the Papapurusha, the Supreme Lord, Vishnu, disappeared and the Papapurusha returned to the performance of his own activities. “Therefore those persons who are serious about the ultimate benefit for the soul will never eat grains on the Ekadasi tithi. According to the instructions of Lord Vishnu, every kind of sinful activity that can be found in the material world takes its residence in this place of foodstuff (grain). Whoever follows Ekadasi is freed from all sins and never enters into hellish regions.

Who is Ekadasi? XII

   

      There will be no one to enact the pastimes in the earthly planetary systems! Oh Keshava! If You want these eternal pastimes to carry on, then You please save me from the fear of Ekadasi. No type of pious activity can bind me. But Ekadasi only, being Your own manifested form, can impede me. Out of fear of Sri Ekadasi I have fled and taken shelter of men; animals; insects; hills; trees; moving and nonmoving living entities; rivers; oceans; forests; heavenly, earthly, and hellish planetary systems; demigods; and the Gandarvas. I cannot find a place where I can be free from fear of Sri Ekadasi. Oh my Master! I am a product of Your creation, so therefore very mercifully direct me to a place where I can reside fearlessly.’ Srila Vyasadeva then said to Jaimini, “After saying this, the embodiment of all sinful activities (Papapurusha) fell down at the feet of the Supreme Lord, Vishnu, who is the destroyer of all miseries and began to cry.

Who is Ekadasi? XI

   etac canyac ca viprarse vicintya karunamayah babhuva sahasa tatra svayam ekadasi tithih ‘After the merciful Supreme Lord thought over what He had previously considered, He suddenly manifested from His own form the deity of the lunar day Ekadasi.’ Afterwards the different sinful living entities began to follow the vow of Ekadasi and were then elevated quickly to the abode of Vaikuntha. Oh my child Jaimini, therefore the lunar day of Ekadasi is the selfsame form of the Supreme Lord, Vishnu, and the Supersoul within the heart of the living entities. Sri Ekadasi is the utmost pios activity and is situated as the haed among all vows. “Following the ascension of Sri Ekadasi, that personality who is the form of the sinful activity gradually saw the influence she had. He approached Lord Vishnu with doubts in his heart and began offering many prayers, whereupon Lord Vishnu became very pleased and said, ‘ I have become very pleased by your nice offerings.

        What boon is it that you want?’ “The Papapurusha replied, ‘I am your created progeny, and it is through me that you wanted distress given to the living entities who are very sinful. But now, by the influence of Sri Ekadasi, I have become all but destroyed. Oh Prabhu! After I die all of Your parts and parcels who have accepted material bodies will become liberated and therefore return to the abode of Vaikuntha. If this liberation of all living entities takes place, then who will carry on Your activities?

Who is Ekadasi? X

          The Supreme Lord, Vishnu, became seated on the throne, Where upon He heard very loud crying sounds coming from the southern direction. He became surprised by this and thus enquired from Yamaraj, ‘From where is this loud crying coming?’ “Yamaraj in reply said, ‘Oh Deva! The different living entities of the earthly planetary systems have fallen into the hellish regions. They are suffering extremely for their misdeeds. The horrible crying is because of suffering from the inflictions of their past bad karma (actions).’ “After hearing this the Supreme Lord, Vishnu, went to the hellish region to the south. When the inhabitants saw who had come they began to cry even louder. The heart of the Supreme Lord, Vishnu, became filled with compassion. Lord Vishnu thought to Himself, ‘I have created all this progeny, and it is because of Me that they are suffering.'” Srila Vyasadeva continued: “Oh Jaimini, just listen to what the Supreme Lord did next.

Who is Ekadasi? IX

      In this way, a horrible personality embodying all the sinful activities and vices was created. His bodily colour is black, and his eyes are yellow. He inflicts extreme misery upon sinful persons.” “The Supreme Personality of Godhead, Lord Vishnu, upon seeing this personality of sin, began to think to Himself as follows: ‘I am the creator of the miseries and happiness for the living entities. I am their master because I have created this personality of sin, who gives distress to all dishonest, deceitful, and sinful persons. Now I must create someone who will control this personality.’ At this time Sri Bhagavan created the personality known as Yamaraj and the different hellish planetary systems. Those living entities who are very sinful will be sent after death to Yamaraj, who will in turn, according to their sins, send them to a hellish region to suffer. “After these adjustments had been made, the Supreme Lord, who is the giver of distress and happiness to the living entities, went to the house of Yamaraj, with the help of Garuda, the king of birds. When Yamaraj saw that Lord Vishnu had arrived, he immediately washed His feet and made an offering unto Him. He then had Him sit upon a golden throne.

Who is Ekadasi? VIII

But I will give a very brief description in answer to your question.” “At the beginning of the material creation, the Supreme Lord created the moving and nonmoving living entities within this world made of five gross material elements. Simultaneously, for the purpose of punishing the humans beings, He created a personality whose form was the embodiment of sin (Papapurusha). The different limbs of this personality were constructed of the various sinful activities. His head was made of the sin of murdering a brahmana, his two eyes were the form of the sin of drinking intoxicants, his mouth was made of the sin of stealing gold, his ears were the form of the sin of having illicit connection with the spiritual master’s wife, his nose of the sin of killing one’s wife, his arms the form of the sin of killing a cow, his neck made of the sin of stealing accumulated wealth, his chest of the sin of abortion, his lower chest of the sin of having sex with another’s wife, his stomach of the sin of killing one’s relatives, his navel of the sin of killing those who are dependent on him, his waist of the sin of self appraisal, his thighs of the sin of offending the guru, his genital of the sin of selling one’s daughter, his buttocks of the sin of telling confidential matters, his feet of the sin of killing one’s father, and his hair the form of lesser, less severe sinful activities. 

Who is Ekadasi? VII

Sri Gurudeva, now, with great enthusiasm, I desire to hear the benefits of fasting on Ekadasi and the appearance of Ekadasi. kasmad ekadasi jata tasyah ko va vidhir dvija kada va kriyate kim va phalam kim va vadasva me ka va pujyatama tatra devata sad-gunarnava akurvatah syat ko dosa etan me vaktum arhasi “Oh Gurudeva! When did Ekadasi take birth and from whom did she appear? What are the rules of fasting on the Ekadasi? Please describe the benefits of following this vow and when it should be followed. Who is the utmost worshippable presiding deity of Sri Ekadasi? What are the faults in not following Ekadasi properly? Please bestow your mercy upon me and tell about these subjects, as you are the only personality able to do so.” Srila Vyasadeva, upon hearing this enquiry of Jaimini Rsi, became situated in transcendental bliss. “Oh brahmana sage Jaimini! The results of following Ekadasi can only be perfectly described by the Supreme Lord, Narayana, because Sri Narayana is the only personality capable of describing them in full. 

Who is Ekadasi? VI

          That is nice. Vrataih. Srimad-Bhagavatam Canto 9: Chapter Four, Text 29 PURPORT To observe Ekadasi-vrata and Dvadasi-vrata means to please the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Those interested in advancing in Krsna consciousness must observe Ekadasi-vrata regularly. The Story of Ekadasi (This article was originally written in 1956 by Sri Navincandra Cakravarti, a disciple of Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Saraswati Thakura and in 1979 translated into English by Vyenkata dasa brahmacari.) Many devotees are very inquisitive about the appearance of Sri Ekadasi and about her special characteristics. Therefore I am presenting this description from the fourteenth chapter of the Padma Purana, from the section entitled “Kriya-sagara-sara.” Once the great sage Jaimini Rsi said to his spiritual master Srila Vyasadeva, “Oh Gurudeva! Previously, by your mercy, you described to me the history of the glories of the Ganga river, the benefits of worshipping Vishnu, the giving of grains in charity, the giving of water in charity, and the magnanimity of drinking the water that has washed the feet of the brahmanas. O best of the sages, Sri

Who is Ekadasi? V

    

    So, paravare brahmani dharmato vrataih. So one should execute Krsna consciousness, dharmato, in right path, and vrataih. Bhajante mam drdha-vratah. Just like today,# ekadasi-vrata. Vrataih. This ekadasi-vrata is required. Just see. Here it is that You have performed all the vratas.’ The purpose of ekadasi-vrata is that today we should not eat much usual food, grains. The actual prescription is fasting. Nirjala ekadasi. Nirjala means there are many devotees who does not take even water. Water, drinking water, according to sastra, it is taking food… It is drinking of food or no food. We can take both ways. So sometimes drinking of water is excused as upavasa also. But there are many devotees who even…, drink even a drop of water. Whole day and night they fast and observed ekadasi-vrata. And the night is called harivasa. Harivasa means the whole night they would chant Hare Krsna, Hare Krsna, Krsna Krsna, Hare Hare/ Hare Rama, Hare Rama… This is called vrata. Drdha-vrata. Drdha-vrata.Drdha means very firm, steady. Krsna is so kind that He has given us so many concession. But we should be… Because there are some concession, better we should not take advantage of the concession, but we should be very steady and strong in our conviction and perform devotional service strictly.

Who is Ekadasi? IV

      O Lord, whether a person observes complete fasting, eats only in the evening, or eats only at midday, please grant him a religious attitude, wealth, and at last liberation.” The Supreme Personality of Godhead said: “O most pious lady, what you have requested is granted. All My devotees in this world will surely fast on your day, and thus they will become famous throughout the three worlds and finally come and stay with Me in My abode. Because you, My transcendental potency, have appeared on the eleventh day of the waning moon, let your name be Ekadasi. If a person fasts on Ekadasi, I will burn up all his sins and bestow upon him My transcendental abode.”

Who is Ekadasi? III

      Suddenly that effulgent goddess shattered all of Mura’s weapons and in a moment deprived him of his chariot. He ran toward her to attack her with his bare hands, but when she saw him coming she angrily cut off his head. Thus the demon at once fell to the ground and went to the abode of Yamaraja. Then the Supreme Lord woke up and saw the dead demon before Him, as well as the maiden bowing down to Him with joined palms. The Lord, being pleased with the girl, offered to give her a boon. The maiden said: “O Lord, if You are pleased with me and wish to give me a boon, then give me the power to deliver from the greatest sins that person who fasts on this day. I wish that half the pious credit obtained by one who fasts will accrue to one who eats only in the evening [abstaining from grains and beans], and that half of *this* pious credit will be earned by one who eats only at midday. Also, one who strictly observes a complete fast on my appearance day, with controlled senses, goes to the abode of Lord Visnu for one billion kalpas after he has enjoyed all kinds of pleasures in this world. This is the boon I desire to attain by Your mercy, my Lord.

Who is Ekadasi? II

         The Lord wrested with Mura for one thousand celestial years and then, apparently fatigued, left for Badarika-asrama. There He entered a very beautiful cave, named Himavati, to rest. The demon followed Him into the cave, and, seeing Him asleep, started thinking within his heart: “Today I will kill this slayer of all demons, Hari.” While the wicked demon Mura was making plans in this way, from Lord Visnu’s body there manifested a young girl who had a very bright complexion. Mura saw that she was equipped with various brilliant weapons and was ready to fight. Challenged by that female to do battle, Mura prepared himself and then fought with her, but he became very astonished when he saw that she fought with him without cessation. The king of demons then said: “Who has created this angry, fearsome girl who is fighting me so powerfully, just like a thunderbolt falling upon me?” After saying this, the demon continued to fight with the girl.

Who is Ekadasi? I

   In the Satya-yuga there once lived an amazing fearsome demon called Mura. Always very angry, he terrified all the demigods, defeating even Indra, the king of heaven; Vivasvan, the sun-god; the eight Vasus; Lord Brahma; Vayu, the wind-god; and Agni, the fire-god. With his terrible power he brought them all under his control. Then the demigods approached Lord Visnu, and prayed to Him for help. Hearing the prayers and request from Indra, Lord Visnu became very angry and said: “O powerful demigods, all together you may now advance on Mura’s capital city of Candravati.” Encouraged thus, the assembled demigods proceeded to Candravati with Lord Hari leading the way. Then there was a big fight between the soldiers of Mura and the demigods. Many hundreds of demons were killed by the Lord’s hand. At last the chief demon, Mura, began fighting with the Lord, first with weapons, then with bare hands.

Chanting Hare Krishna is for everyone

       This Hare Krishna Mantra is a universal chant, it can be chanted by anyone. It is for people of all religions, all nations, all colours, and both sexes. There’s no need to pay any fees, join any group, or turn your life around. It only requires your time and effort. Furthermore the people who chant Hare Krishna are developing good character, gaining knowledge of both the material and spiritual worlds, and helping others to also become free from material anxiety.

So, whoever you are, whatever you do, you can try the chanting for yourself and experience its result.

Chant “Hare Krishna” and be Happy!

What’s the benefit of chanting Hare Krishna?

    In the preliminary stages of chanting, the practitioner experiences peace of mind, and relief from unwanted drives and habits. As one develops more realization by chanting, one perceives the original, spiritual existence of the self, and one can understand one’s relationship with the Lord.

The power of transcendental sound 2

    They simply become absorbed in the mundane thoughts of whatever type of sound vibration that enters their consciousness.

            The mind is especially affected by the kind of sound energy it picks up or tunes into. By chanting the Hare Krishna mantra, it helps re-direct the minds attention to Krishna, and our loving relationship with Him. The soul by nature already loves Krishna, but that relationship has been covered over by the material energy. The spiritual potency of the Hare Krishna mantra can help us to revive that eternal love for the Lord. This is the power of transcendental sound vibrations.

The power of transcendental sound 1

          It may be somewhat surprising for the average Westerner to hear about the power within the vibrations of mantras, but the potency is real. For example, any numerologist will tell you that by associating with particular sound vibrations one becomes influenced by them.

    According to the predominant types of sound vibration people associate with through T.V. and radio, or in reading articles in magazines and newspapers, they become attracted to certain things or drawn towards certain viewpoints. When television shows, songs on the radio, stories in magazines, and advertising everywhere propagates the concern for temporary sense pleasure, then people lose their interest in their spiritual goal of life.

Why chant Hare Krishna?

         The Hare Krishna mantra is a spiritual sound vibration, which is like nourishment for the inner-self. It allows us to associate with Krishna directly because Krishna is not different from His name. That God’s names are transcendentally powerful is celebrated by all religious traditions (example, “Hallowed by Thy Name”).

            Everyone knows that a happy life requires good health. A proper diet, adequate exercise, and sufficient rest are necessary to keep our bodies strong and fit. More important, but less well known, is the inner-self’s need for spiritual nourishment and attention. If we ignore our spiritual health requirements, we become overwhelmed by negative material tendencies like anxiety, hatred, and loneliness.

          The potency necessary for developing complete psychological and spiritual fulfillment is already present within everyone. It must, however, be uncovered by a genuine spiritual process.

           Of all such authentic processes, India’s timeless Vedas tell us that meditation on the Hare Krishna mantra is the most powerful.

What does the Hare Krishna Mantra mean?

  

        The mantra is a spiritual call to the Lord, meaning, “Oh energy of the Lord, please engage me in the loving service of Lord Krishna.”Who is Krishna?Krishna is a name of the Supreme Lord, or God. It means “the all-attractive person.” And “Rama” means “the source of all pleasure.” Each of us, every living entity, seeks pleasure. But we do not know how to seek pleasure perfectly. With a materialistic concept of life, we are frustrated at every step in satisfying our pleasure because we are constantly being told to enjoy through our bodily senses. To enjoy real pleasure, one must first understand that he is not the body but consciousness, or the spirit within.

Who is Krishna? 10

         It is said in the Bhagavad-gita that even a little effort expended on the path of Krishna consciousness can save one from the greatest danger. Hundreds of thousands of examples can be cited of people who have escaped the greatest dangers of life due to a slight advancement in Krishna consciousness. We therefore request everyone to take advantage of this great transcendental literature. One will find that by reading one page after another, an immense treasure of knowledge in art, science, literature, philosophy and religion will be revealed, and ultimately, by reading this one book, Krsna, love of Godhead will fructify.

Who is Krishna? 9

   

         The Krishna consciousness movement is the unique gift of Lord Caitanya to the fallen souls of this age. It is a very simple method which has actually been carried out during the last four years in the Western countries, and there is no doubt that this movement can satisfy the dormant loving propensities of humanity. The book Krsna is another presentation to help the Krishna consciousness movement in the Western world. This transcendental literature is published in two parts with profuse illustrations. People love to read various kinds of fiction to spend their time and energy. Now this tendency can be directed to Krishna. The result will be the imperishable satisfaction of the soul, both individually and collectively.

Who is Krishna? 8

          Yet we can directly experience the results of this science of Krishna consciousness because it is very easy to practice and is very pleasurable. Whatever percentage of Krishna consciousness we can perform will become an eternal asset to our life, for it is imperishable in all circumstances. It has now been actually proved that today’s confused and frustrated younger generation in the Western countries can directly perceive the results of channeling the loving propensity toward Krishna alone.

         It is said that although one executes severe austerities, penances and sacrifices in his life, if he fails to awaken his dormant love for Krishna, then all his penances are to be considered useless. On the other hand, if one has awakened his dormant love for Krishna, then what is the use in executing austerities and penances unnecessarily?

Who is Krishna? 7

       Krishna can perfectly reciprocate one’s loving propensities in different relationships called mellows or rasas. Basically there are twelve loving relationships. One can love Krishna as the supreme unknown, as the supreme master, the supreme friend, the supreme child, the supreme lover. These are the five basic love rasas. One can also love Krishna indirectly in seven different relationships, which are apparently different from the five primary relationships. All in all, however, if one simply reposes his dormant loving propensity in Krishna, then his life becomes successful. This is not a fiction but is a fact that can be realized by practical application. One can directly perceive the effects that love for Krishna has on his life.

      In the Ninth Chapter of the Bhagavad-gita this science of Krishna consciousness is called the king of all knowledge, the king of all confidential things, and the supreme science of transcendental realization.

Who is Krishna? 6

      Since Krishna is all-attractive, one should know that all his desires should be focused on Krishna. In the Bhagavad-gita it is said that the individual person is the proprietor or master of the body but Krishna, who is the Supersoul present in everyone’s heart, is the supreme proprietor and supreme master of each and every individual body. As such, if we concentrate our loving propensities upon Krishna only, then immediately universal love, unity and tranquility will be automatically realized. When one waters the root of a tree, he automatically waters the branches, twigs, leaves and flowers; when one supplies food to the stomach through the mouth, he satisfies all the various parts of the body.

         The art of focusing one’s attention on the Supreme and giving one’s love to Him is called Krishna consciousness. We have inaugurated the Krishna consciousness movement so that everyone can satisfy his propensity for loving others simply by directing his love towards Krishna. The whole world is very much anxious to satisfy the dormant propensity of love for others, but the inventions of various methods like socialism, communism, altruism, humanitarianism, nationalism, and whatever else may be manufactured for the peace and prosperity of the world, are all useless and frustrating because of our gross ignorance of the art of loving Krishna.

Who is Krishna? 5

         Within the prison of His maternal uncle Kamsa, where His father and mother were confined, Krishna appeared outside His mother’s body as the four-handed Visnu-Narayana. Then He turned Himself into a baby and told His father to carry Him to the house of Nanda Maharaja and his wife Yasoda. When Krishna was just a small baby the gigantic demoness Putana attempted to kill Him, but when He sucked her breast He pulled out her life. That is the difference between the real Godhead and a God manufactured in the mystic factory. Krishna had no chance to practice the mystic yoga process, yet He manifested Himself as the Supreme Personality of Godhead at every step, from infancy to childhood, from childhood to boyhood, and from boyhood to young manhood. In the book Krsna, all of His activities as a human being are described. Although Krishna plays like a human being, He always maintains His identity as the Supreme Personality of Godhead.

Who is Krishna? 4

      Krishna’s knowledge is so perfect that He remembers all the incidents of His appearances some millions and billions of years in the past, but Arjuna’s memory and knowledge are limited by time and space, for he is an ordinary human being. In the Fourth Chapter Krishna states that He can remember instructing the lessons of the Bhagavad-gita some millions of years ago to the sun-god, Vivasvan.

      Nowadays it is the fashion of the atheistic class of men to try to become God by following some mystic process. Generally the atheists claim to be God by dint of their imagination or their meditation prowess. Krishna is not that kind of God. He does not become God by manufacturing some mystic process of meditation, nor does He become God by undergoing the severe austerities of the mystic yogic exercises. Properly speaking, He never becomes God because He is the Godhead in all circumstances.