ANCIENT VEDIC HISTORY

AND CULTURE 1

NAME:______________________________________

CLASS:______________________________________

ROLL NO:________________

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I offer my respectful obeisances to His Divine Grace A.C.

Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada who has been my

primary source of knowledge and inspiration in Krsna

Consciousness.

Please continue to guide me in this venture of teaching

children as you have taught us.

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INTRODUCTION

My dear children,

The decision to revert back to the textbook form of the matter which

is needed for this subject was taken solely for your convenience since many

of you end up losing your papers and then do not having exclusive matter for

studying. I have tried to make each chapter more interesting with activities

along with the lessons. You will also learn new words, their meanings and

enjoy some stress busting activities.

There are blank pages after every chapter to do your questions and

answers so there is no need for a separate notebook or extra sheets.

This is the first level of Vedic Studies in the secondary school so you

may find it a little difficult. On the separate sheet for ‘Notes’, write down

your difficulties after every chapter and discuss them with me during class.

While studying the Introduction to Bhagavad Gita you will find it useful to

read the introduction in the first few pages of the Bhagavad Gita As It Is. I

hope you enjoy studying this subject as much as I enjoy teaching it to all of

you.

Hare Krsna!

- Gandhari devi dasi

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CONTENTS

1. Birth and childhood of Srila Prabhupada

2. Birth and childhood of Lord Chaitanya

3. Chanting of the Hare Krsna Mahamantra

4. The Pancatattva

5. Why be a vegetarian

6. The Brahmin’s offering

7. How to offer prasadam

8. Introduction to Bhagavad Gita As It Is

9. Moral Behaviour

Songs and Slokas

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CHAPTER I

BIRTH AND CHILDHOOD OF SRILA PRABHUPADA

In a little house in the suburbs of Calcutta (now known as Kolkata), a

baby boy was born to Rajni De and Gour Mohan De. He was named Abhay

Charan, or ‘one who is fearless having taken shelter at the Lord’s Lotus

Feet’. It was also Nandotsava or the day Nanda Maharaj observed a great

feast and celebrations in honor of Lord Krsna’s birth. Abhay Charan’s uncle

also called him Nandulal. He was also later called Moti, Nandu and Kocha

lovingly by his family.

Gour Mohan De was a pure Vaishnava. In his entire life he never

touched meat, fish, tea or coffee. He raised his son Abhay, also as a pure

Vaishnava.

Gour Mohan would arise a little late around 7 or 8 am and after his

bath he would go to the market. After he returned, from 10 am to 1 pm he

would do his puja, after which he took ate his lunch and went to his shop.

Gour Mohan was a cloth merchant and he would attend to business till 10

pm after which he left a bowl of rice in the middle of the shop to feed the

rats so that they did not chew the cloth in hunger. He then returned home

and did some more puja. He also read the Srimad Bhagavatam and chanted

on his japa beads.

Abhay would be asleep with his brothers and sisters. They would

awaken on hearing the bell and see their father bowing before the deities of

Radha and Krsna.

Gour Mohan wanted his son to be a servant of Radharani, to be a

preacher of Bhagavatam and to learn the devotional art of playing Mrdanga.

In fact from very early childhood Gour Mohan had had a teacher to come

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home and teach Abhay how to play the mrdanga. Abhay started to play with

his arms extended as far as he could reach around the drum. In fact his small

hands could barely reach the opposite ends of the drum.

On the other hand, Abhay’s mother Rajni wanted him to go to London

to study to become a lawyer. Rajni was not happy about Abhay’s learning to

play the mrdanga. “What is the purpose of teaching such a young child how

to play mrdanga? It is not so important!” she said.

Abhay simply loved Kachoris! His grandmother called him ‘Kachori

Mukhi’ because of his fondness for Kachoris. Both, his mother and

grandmother would give him kachoris which he’d fill his pockets with. He

loved to watch the vendors cook them on the busy street. He collected

kachoris from them as well as from the neighbors till his pockets were full.

Once Abhay demanded kachoris but his mother refused and promptly sent

him to bed. Gour Mohan returned home that night and heard about Abhay’s

demand. He immediately woke him up and made kachoris and puris for him.

As a little baby Abhay visited the famous Sri Sri Radha Govinda

temple owned by the aristocratic Mullick family. He heard Kirtan being

performed with drums and kartals. Abhay and his friend Subidhi watched as

the Pujari offered the deities, incense, lamp, conch and flowers.

When Abhay was one and a half years old he fell ill with typhoid. The

family physician prescribed Chicken soup as a remedy. But Gour Mohan

protested and said that they were vegetarians and could not cook meat in

their kitchen. Dr. Bose offered to cook it at his own residence. Gour Mohan

was not at all pleased that his son was going to have non vegetarian food but

he thought that if it was necessary for him to survive the illness then maybe

it was alright. But fortunately as soon as Dr. Bose brought the soup to Abhay

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he began to vomit and gradually recovered without having to drink the

chicken soup. Gour Mohan knew that this was Srimati Radharani’s mercy.

Abhay was a naughty child. Once he broke the glass hookah which his

father had kept for guests. He hated going to school. His mother had hired a

man named Damodar to take him to school. Damodar would tie Abhay’s

waist with a rope and bring him to his teacher. And then when Abhay would

try to run away, Damodar would carry him and bring him along. Once when

the teacher pulled his ear for being naughty, Abhay spilt the kerosene from

the lamp and accidentally started a fire.

Abhay was brought up in a very devotional atmosphere. In the

evenings everyone from the neighborhood would assemble in one place and

hear the Lord’s pastimes. As they returned they’d discuss and remember all

that they had heard.

When Abhay was four, a plague hit Calcutta. Dozens of people died

everyday. An old babaji started a Hare Krishna sankirtan all over Calcutta,

and regardless of religion, Hindus, Muslims, Christians, all joined him. A

large party of chanters traveled from street to street chanting the names

Hare Krsna Hare Krsna Krsna Krsna Hare Hare

Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare

The group arrived at Goura Mohan’s house at 151 Harrison Road and Goura

Mohan eagerly received them. Although Abhay was a child, he also joined

in the chanting. Shortly after this the plague subsided.

Abhay was a mischievous child. He broke the glass hookah, which his

father had kept for the guests. Rajni was upset because the boy would not

go to school and she hired a man for four rupees to escort him there. The

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man, whose name was Damodar, would tie Abhay above the waist with a

rope as a customary treatment to get him into the school and present him

before the teachers. Then when Abhay would try to run away, Damodar

would pick him up and carry him in his arms. After being taken by force for

a few times, Abhay started to go on his own. Abhay was an attentive and

well-behaved student but sometimes he was naughty. Once when the

teacher pulled his ear, Abhay threw a kerosene lamp to the floor accidentally

starting a fire.

In those days, everyone would assemble in the evening to hear some

scripture in some common place. Abhay’s father would sometimes go in the

evenings to his maternal uncle’s house about ten miles away where they

would assemble and hear about the Lord’s pastimes. They would return

home discussing and remembering them and then go to bed after reading the

Ramayana, Mahabharata and Bhagavatam. After his afternoon rest and

bath, Abhay would often go to his neighbor’s house and look at the black

and white pictures of the Mahabharata. His grand mother asked him daily to

read the Mahabharata. Thus by looking at pictures and reading with his

grand mother, Abhay imbibed the Mahabharata.

When Abhay was about six years old, he asked his father for a Deity of his

own to worship. Since infancy he had watched his father worship at home

and had been regularly seeing the worship of Radha Govinda and thinking,

“When will I be able to worship Krishna like this?” On Abhay’s request, his

father purchased a pair of Radha Krishna Deities and gave Them to him.

From then onwards, whatever Abhay ate, he first offered to the deities. He

imitated his father and the priests of Radha Govinda, offer his deities a ghee

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lamp and put Them to rest at night. Abhay and his sister Bhavatarini

became dedicated worshippers of their little Radha Krishna deities spending

much of their time in dressing and worshipping Them, and sometimes

singing bhajans.

As a child Abhay had heard about the grand Ratha Yatra of Lord Jagannatha

at Puri. He often looked at the timetable to see which trains went to Puri.

The Ratha yatra or cart festival of Lord Jagannatha, Lord Baladeva and

Subhadradevi is an age old tradition followed since time immemorial.

Abhay was enamoured by the Rathyatra festivals of Lord Jagannath held

yearly in Calcutta. The biggest Calcutta Rathyatra was the Mullick’s with

three separate carts bearing deities of Jagannath, Baladeva and Subhadra.

The Mullicks would distribute large quantities of Jagannath prasadam to the

public on the street. Even as a child, Abhay had heard how Lord Chaitanya

Himself four hundred years before had danced and led ecstatic chanting of

Hare Krishna at the Puri Ratha Yatra festival. Abhay would sometimes look

at the railway timetable or ask about the fare to Vrndavana and Puri,

thinking of how he would collect money and go there. Abhay wanted to

have his own cart and to perform his own Ratha Yatra and he turned to his

father for help. Goura Mohan had agreed, but they had difficulties. When

they went to the carpenter they found that he could not afford to have a cart

made. On their way home, Abhay began crying. An old Bengali woman

approached them and asked what the matter was with him.

Goura Mohan explained that the boy wanted a Ratha Yatra cart and they

couldn’t afford to have one made. The woman said that she had a cart and

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offered to give it to them. It looked old, but it was operable and it was of

just the right size, about three feet high. Goura Mohan purchased it and had

it restored and decorated. He got the sixteen supporting columns and placed

a canopy on top resembling as closely as possibly the ones in the big carts at

Puri. They also attached a traditional wooden horse and driver at the front of

the cart. Abhay insisted that it must look authentic. Goura Mohan bought

paints and Abhay personally painted the cart copying the Puri originals. His

enthusiasm was great and he insisted on organizing the various aspects of

the festival.

Abhay engaged his playmates in helping him, especially his sister

Bhavatarini. Amused mothers in the neighborhood agreed to cook special

preparations so that he could distribute the prasadam at the Ratha Yatra

festival. Like the festival of Puri, Abhay’s Ratha Yatra continued for eight

continuous days. His family members gathered and the neighborhood

children joined in the procession pulling the carts, playing kartals and drums

and chanting. Wearing a dhoti and no shirt in the heat of summer Abhay led

the children in chanting Hare Krishna and singing Bengali bhajans.

When Abhay was about sixteen years old his mother suddenly died and he

was then forced to grow up and take up his own responsibilities. His father

gave him solace and instructed Abhay that there was nothing to lament. The

soul is eternal and everything happens by the will of Krsna. So we should

have faith and depend upon Krsna. Abhay listened and understood..

When Abhay grew up, he met his spiritual master His Divine Grace

Bhaktisiddhanta Saraswati Goswami Thakur. He accepted him as his

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spiritual master. And on his instructions he went to the western countries to

preach the message of Lord Caitanya, the chanting of the Holy Names of

Krsna: Hare Krsna Hare Krsna Krsna Krsna Hare Hare, Hare Rama Hare

Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare. He soon took sanyas and was now named

Abhay Caranaravinda Bhaktivedanta Swami.

He translated the Srimad Bhagavatam and the Bhagavad-Gita into English

for the westerners to understand and study. He built many temples of Radha

and Krsna all over the world. He wanted to “build a house where the whole

world can live.” In fulfillment of this vision he formed the ISKCON

(International Society for Krishna Consciousness). Today there are devotees

from all over the world: Indians, Americans, Russians, Africans, Polish,

Chinese, Japanese, etc, who are a part of ISKCON. They chant the Holy

Names of Krsna and live like pure Vaishnavas, just as his father taught

Abhay as a child. His disciples lovingly called him Srila Prabhupada.

Even today when we enter any temple built by Srila Prabhupada or his

disciples, we see a life-like deity of Srila Prabhupada. We offer obeisances

before this deity, before we offer obeisances to the deities of the Lord. This

is because we have the mercy of Lord Krsna only by the mercy of Srila

Prabhupada. When we offer obeisances we say:

Namah om Vishnu padaya Krsna preshthaya bhutale

Srimate Bhaktivedanta Swamin iti namine

Namaste Sarasvate deve Gaura vani pracharine

Nirvishesha shunyavadi pashchatya desha tarine.

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Translation:

Our respectful obeisances to you, O spiritual Master, servant of Sarasvati

Goswami. You are kindly preaching the message of Lord Chaitanya and

delivering the western countries, which are filled with impersonalism and

voidism.

His instructions are very important to us as they are meant to bring us closer

to Krsna. He wanted us all to understand Lord Krsna’s message that He

spoke to Arjuna on the battlefield of Kurukshetra. He wanted all of us to

chant the Holy names and be good devotees and finally return to our eternal

abode-Goloka Vrindavan, where Lord Krsna lives eternally.

QUESTIONS

ANSWER IN SHORT:

1. What are the things Gour Mohan did not touch as a Vaishnava?

2. Why did Gour Mohan leave a bowl of rice for the rats in his shop?

3. What did Gour Mohan want his son to become?

4. Why was Abhay called Kachori mukhi?

5. What did Abhay’s mother want Abhay to become?

6. When and where was Abhay born?

7. How did Abhay and his sister play in their childhood?

8. What were the instructions of Srila Bhaktisiddhanta to Abhay?

9. What did Abhay do after sanyas?

10. What vision did Srila Prabhupada have?

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ANSWER IN DETAIL:

1. What was Gour Mohan’s daily routine?

2. Describe Abhay’s love for Kachoris.

3. How did Abhay imbibe the Mahabharata?

4. Describe Abhay’s school life

FILL IN THE BLANKS :

1. Srila Prabhupada was named ________ _________ by his parents.

2. Vaishnava families do not eat _______, ________ or eggs.

3. Srila Prabhupada’s father’s name was _______________ and his

mother’s name was ______________ .

4. Abhay’s spiritual master’s name was _______________________.

5. After sannyas Abhay’s name was changed to Abhay ___________

_________________ Swami.

ACTIVITY

• Write a short note on the childhood activities of Srila Prabhupada.

• Learn the Prabhupada pranam mantra.

• Write and direct a short play on any one of Srila Prabhupada’s

childhood incidents.

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CHAPTER 2

BIRTH AND CHILDHOOD OF LORD CHAITANYA

It was a full-moon evening of the month of Phalguna when the Lord took

birth. It was also a lunar eclipse. In jubilation everyone was chanting the

holy name of the Lord – “Hari! Hari!” – First causing the appearance of the

holy name. At His birth, in His childhood and in His early and later

boyhood, as well as in His youth, Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu, in different

ways, induced people to chant the holy name of Hari [the Hare Krsna

mahamantra].

In His childhood, when the Lord was crying He would stop immediately on

hearing the holy names Krsna and Hari. All the friendly ladies who came to

see the child would chant the holy names, “Hari, Hari” as soon as the child

would cry. When all the ladies saw this fun, they laughed and called the

Lord “Gaurahari.” From then on, Gaurahari became another of His names.

Another incident occurred when Nimai was a little boy: A brahmana was

touring all over the country, traveling from one place of pilgrimage to

another. He reached Navadvipa and lived as a guest in the house of

Jagannatha Mishra. Jagannatha Mishra gave him all ingredients for cooking,

and the brahmana prepared his food. When the brahmana was offering the

food to Lord Visnu in meditation, Nimai came before him and began to eat

the food, again spoiling the offering. The brahmana cooked for a third time.

The child had been locked within a room and everyone was sleeping because

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it was late at night but for a third time Nimai came before him and began to

eat the food. Thus, thinking that on that day Lord Visnu was not willing to

accept his food and that he was therefore destined to fast, the brahmana

became very upset and cried aloud, “Look, what has been done! What can I

do now?” When Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu saw the brahmana in that

agitated state, He told him, “Formerly I was the son of mother Yasoda.

Then also you came as a guest in the house of Nanda Maharaja, and I

disturbed you in this way. I am very pleased by your devotion. Therefore I

am eating the food you have prepared.” Understanding the favor offered to

him by the Lord, the brahmana was very pleased, and was overwhelmed

with love of Krsna. He was thankful to the Lord, for he felt himself greatly

fortunate. Then the Lord asked the brahmana not to disclose the incident to

anyone else.

Once upon a time, when the Lord was playing outside His house, two

thieves passing on the street saw the opportunity to rob Him. Therefore they

took Him on their shoulders, pleasing Him by offering Him some

sweetmeats. The thieves thought they would carry the child to the forest and

then kill Him and take away the ornaments. The Lord, however, misled

them, so much so that instead of carrying Him to the forest they came right

back in front of His house. They were scared because everyone was looking

for Nimai. Therefore the thieves thought it was dangerous to stay there,

went away and left Him.

Once on Ekadasi in the house of Jagadisa and Hiranya Pandita there were

arrangements for preparing special prasadam for Lord Visnu, and Nimai

asked his father to go there to ask for the Visnu-prasadam because He was

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feeling ill. The house of Jagadisa and Hiranya Pandita was situated about

two miles from the house of Jagannatha Mishra. Therefore when Jagannatha

Mishra came to ask Jagadisa and Hiranya for the prasadam, they were a little

astonished. How could the boy understand that special prasadam was being

prepared for Lord Visnu? They immediately concluded that Nimai must

have supernatural mystic power. Otherwise how could He understand that

they were preparing special prasadam? Therefore they immediately sent the

food to Him through His father. Nimai was feeling sick, but immediately

after eating the Visnu-prasadam He was cured, and He also distributed the

prasadam among His friends.

Such were the wonderful childhood pastimes Lord Caitanya, who appeared

in Kali Yuga to propagate the chanting of the Holy Name: Hare Krsna Hare

Krsna Krsna Krsna Hare Hare Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare

Hare.

FILL IN THE BLANKS:

1. Lord Caitanya was also known as ____________ and _________

2. ___________________ was the father of Lord Caitanya

3. Nimai asked for the prasad being cooked in the house of

_________ and __________ Pandit

4. Lord Caitanya appeared in ________________

ANSWER THE FOLLOWING IN 12-SENTENCES

1. When did Lord Caitanya appear?

2. How did Lord Caitanya make the ladies chant?

3. Why did Nimai eat the Brahmin’s offering?

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CHAPTER 3

CHANTING OF THE HARE KRSNA MAHAMANTRA

The present age in which we live is known as the Kaliyuga. According to

the scriptures, this age is described as an age of anxiety, quarrel and

tensions. But the scriptures have given a solution for these effects of

Kaliyuga and that is the chanting of the Hare Krsna Mahamantra.

Harer nama harer nama harer nama eva kevalam

Kalau nasty eva nasty eva nasty eva gatir anyatha.

In this age of Kali there is no other way no other way no other way to attain

salvation than to chant the name of Lord Hari chant the name of Lord Hari

chant the name of Lord Hari.

The Hare Krsna Mahamantra was propagated by Lord Caitanya.

What is a mantra:

The word “Mantra” means ‘that which delivers or liberates the mind from

material illusions and anxieties.’ (“Man” means mind and “tra” means to

liberate).

Chanting purifies the mind just as medicine prescribed for a disease slowly

restores the body to its natural, healthy condition. One who engages in this

practice known as the “mantra mediation” gradually develops great mental

control. In this pure state of spiritual consciousness one is free from tension,

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confusion, depression, envy and hatred and one experiences real peace of

mind.

The 16 Sanskrit words Hare Krsna Hare Krsna Krsna Krsna Hare Hare

Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare are prescribed by great

spiritual authorities as the easiest and most effective method of attaining

self-realization in the present age of Kali Yuga.

The Padma Purana states that the Holy name of Krsna is like the Cintamani

gem, which can bestow all spiritual benedictions. There is no difference

between Krsna and His name. Lord Caitanya says that Krsna’s name is full

of unlimited spiritual energy. Chanting the Hare Krsna Mahamantra is the

quickest and easiest way to realize God and attain perfection in life. It is so

simple that even a child can chant.

Why is it called Mahamantra:

1. This mantra contains all the other mantras such as the Gayatri mantra,

Om, etc.

2. This Mahamantra can be chanted by anyone anywhere regardless of

class, caste or creed.

3. In this dark age of Kali this is the only mantra that can bring us closer

to Lord Krsna and liberate us from the cycle of birth and death.

4. The Hare Krsna Mahamantra has no rules or regulations to chant it. It

can be chanted anywhere and anytime.

5. The Hare Krsna Mahamantra bestows unlimited blessings and mercy

of Lord Krsna.

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6. The Hare Krsna Mahamantra wipes away all the sins accumulated for

many lifetimes.

Thus all the scriptures describe the Hare Krsna Mantra as the

MAHAMANTRA.

Hare Krsna Hare Krsna Krsna Krsna Hare Hare

Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare

FILL IN THE BLANKS:

1. The present age is known as ________________.

2. The chanting of the _______ ____________ Mahamantra is the

only solution for the effects of _______________ .

3. The word “______________” to liberate.

4. The Hare Krsna Mahamantra is compared to the __________ gem.

5. The Hare Krsna Mahamantra was propagated by Lord _________.

ANSWER THE FOLLOWING IN 1-2 SENTENCES:

1. What is the present age known as?

2. What are the symptoms of Kali Yuga?

3. What is the Hare Krsna mantra compared to?

4. What does the word “mantra” mean?

5. Who propagated the chanting of the Hare Krsna Mahamantra?

Write a short note on why the Hare Krsna mantra is called the Mahamantra.

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CHAPTER 4

PANCHATATTVA

Lord Caitanya is the incarnation (Yuga-avatar) of Lord Krsna in Kaliyuga.

He is actually Krsna who has appeared in the mood of Radharani. As

Radharani’s colour is golden so also Lord Caitanya appeared with a golden

complexion. Therefore he is called ‘Gauranga’ – “Gau’ means gold and

‘ranga’ means colour.

Radharani is the greatest devotee of Lord Krsna but somehow Krsna wanted

to understand her great love and devotion. Therefore he appeared as a

devotee of Himself, in the mood of Radharani. Whenever Lord Krsna

appears in the material world, His associates come along with Him to help

Him in His activities and to enjoy with Him in His transcendental pastimes.

The associates of Lord Caitanya are Nityananda, Advaita Acharya,

Gadadhar Pandit and Srivas Acharya. Together they are known as the

‘Pancatattva’ – ‘Panca’ means five and ‘tattva’ means potency or energy.

There is no difference between Lord Krsna and his energy because He is

Absolute. Thus there is no difference between Lord Caitanya and His

associates. They are five in one Absolute Truth. They are five different

expressions to enjoy the transcendental pastimes of Lord Caitanya.

Advaita Acarya :-

He was a very great devotee of Lord Krsna. When he saw that the world

was overcome by materialism he prayed to Lord Krsna to appear although it

wasn’t yet time for Him to appear in Kaliyuga. He offered Tulsi leaves and

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Gangajal to Saligram Sila and implored to Lord Krsna to come and save the

world.

Nityananda Prabhu :-

The scriptures inform us that Lord Nityananda is the first expansion of the

Lord and is Balarama Himself. He was instructed by Lord Caitanya to go

and propagate the chanting of the Hare Krsna Mahamantra to everyone.

Srivas Acharya :-

He is originally Narada Muni in the eternal pastimes of Lord Krsna. Lord

Caitanya would meet His four closest associates at the House of Srivas

Acharya which is also known as ‘Srivas Angan’ and discuss the most

intimate pastimes of Lord Krsna.

Gadadhara Pandit:-

He is the expansion of Srimati Radharani and assisted the Lord in His

pastimes.

Together, the four associates of Lord Caitanya assist Him in propagating the

Harinam Sankirtan in Kaliyuga.

‘Jai Sri Krsna Caitanya

Prabhu Nityananda

Sir Advaita, Gadadhara

Srivas adi Gaur bhakta Vrnda’.

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Translation

I offer my obeisances to Sri Krsna Caitanya, Prabhu Nityananda Sri Advaita,

Gadadhara, Srivasa and all others in the line of devotion.

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CHAPTER 5

WHY BE A VEGETARIAN

“The word vegetarian, coined by the founders of the British Vegetarian

Society in 1842, comes from the Latin word vegetus, meaning whole, sound,

fresh, or lively,” as in homo vegetus – a mentally and physically vigorous

person. Some of the famous vegetarians are Pythagoras, Akbar, John

Milton, Sir Isaac Newton, Benjamin Franklin, Waldo Emerson, Henry David

Thoreau, Leo Tolstoy, George Bernard Shaw, Rabindranath Tagore,

Mahatma Gandhi and Albert Einstein.

SCIENTIFIC EVIDENCE AGAINST MEAT-EATING:

CHARACTERISTICS HERBIVORES CARNIVORES

CLAWS Absent Sharp

INTESTINES Long tract Short tract

TEETH Blunt canines Sharp canines

The Human anatomy is not designed to eat meat. E.g., carnivorous animals

have sharp claws to catch their prey while human beings do not.

Carnivorous animals have sharp canines to tear the flesh of their prey while

humans have flat molars to chew vegetables. Humans have a long intestinal

tract where the digestives juices and acids break down the food and aid

digestion. Meat eating animals have smaller intestines, which throw out

waste matter from the stomach sooner than humans.

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The reason for non-vegetarians being more prone to diseases as given by

biologists and nutritionists is that man’s intestinal tract is simply not suited

for digesting meat. Flesh-eating animals have short intestinal tract (three

times the length of the animal’s body), to pass fast decaying toxin-producing

meat out of the body quickly. Since plant foods decay more slowly than

meat, plant-eaters have intestines at least six times the length of the body.

Man has the long intestinal tract of an herbivore, so if he eats meat, toxins

can overload the kidneys and lead to gout, arthritis, rheumatism, and even

cancer.

And then there are the chemicals added to meat. As soon as an animal is

slaughtered, its flesh begins to putrefy, and after several days it turns a sickly

grey-green. The meat industry masks this discoloration by adding nitrites,

nitrates, and other preservatives to give the meat a bright red color. But

research has now shown many of these preservatives to be carcinogenic.

“The animals are kept alive and fattened by continuous administration of

tranquilizers, hormones, antibiotics, and 2,700 other drugs. The process

starts even before birth and continues long after death. Although these drugs

will still be present in the meat when you eat it, the law does not require that

they be listed on the package.” But wait a minute! Weren’t human beings

designed to be meat eaters? Don’t we need animal protein?

The answer to both these questions is no. Although some historians and

anthropologists say that man is historically omnivorous, our anatomical

equipment – teeth, jaws, and digestive system – favors a fleshless diet. The

American Dietetic Association notes that “most of mankind for most of

human history has lived on vegetarian or near-vegetarian diets.”

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ETHICAL REASONS:

Many people consider the ethical reasons the most important of all for

becoming vegetarian. The beginning of ethical vegetarianism is the

knowledge that other creatures have feelings, and that their feelings are

similar to ours. This knowledge encourages one to extend personal

awareness to encompass the suffering of others.

VEDIC REASONS

All living entities possess a soul. In the Bhagavad-Gita, Krsna describes the

soul as the source of consciousness. Krsna also instructs us to adopt the

principles of spiritual vegetarianism when He states, “Offer Me with love

and devotion a fruit, a flower, a leaf, or water, and I will accept it.” The

Sanskrit word karma means “action”, or more specifically, any material

action that brings a reaction that binds us to the material world. According

to the law of karma, if we cause pain and suffering to other living beings, we

must endure pain and suffering in return, both individually and collectively.

We reap what we sow, in this life and the next, for nature has her own

justice. The person who eats an animal may say that he hasn’t killed

anything, but when he buys his neatly packaged meat at the supermarket he

is paying someone else to kill for him, and both of them bring upon

themselves the reactions of karma.

As Srila Prabhupada says in his explanations of Bhagavad-Gita “Those who

kill animals and give them unnecessary pain – as people do in

26

slaughterhouses – will be killed in a similar way in the next life and in many

lives to come.

The taking of any life, even that of a plant is certainly sinful, but Krsna, the

Supreme Controller frees us from sin by accepting what we offer. Eating

food first offered to the Lord is like a soldier’s killing during wartime. In a

war when the commander orders a man to attack, the obedient soldier who

kills the enemy gets a medal. But if the same soldier kills someone on his

own, is punished. Similarly, when we eat only prasada, we do not commit

any sin. This is confirmed in the Bhagavad-Gita (3.13) “The devotees of the

Lord are released from all kinds of sins because they eat food which is

offered first for sacrifice. Others, who prepare food for personal sense

enjoyment, eat only sin.”

Offered food traditionally called prasada, “the mercy of God,” offers not

only the healthy life of a vegetarian, but also God realization; not just food

for the starving masses, but spiritual nourishment for everyone. When Krsna

accepts an offering He infuses His own divine nature into it. Prasada,

therefore, is not different from Krsna Himself. Out of His unbounded

compassion for the souls entrapped in the material world, Krsna comes in

the form of prasada, so that simply by eating, we can come to know Him.

Eating prasada nourishes the body spiritually. By eating prasada not only

are past sinful reactions in the body vanquished, but also the body becomes

immunized to the contamination of materialism. Just as an antiseptic

vaccine can protect us against an epidemic, eating prasada protects us from

the illusion and influence of the materialistic conception of life. Therefore, a

27

person who eats only food offered to Krsna can counteract all the reactions

of one’s past material activities, and readily progress in self-realization.

Because Krsna frees us from the reactions of karma, or material activities,

we can easily transcend illusion and serve Him in devotion. One who acts

without karma can dovetail his consciousness with God’s and become

constantly aware of His personal presence. This is the true benefit of

prasada.

In fact, Krsna does ask for these offerings, not because He needs our rice

and vegetables, but because He wants our devotion. In Bhagavad-Gita

(9.26) He says, “If one offers Me with love and devotion a leaf, a flower,

fruit, or water, I will accept it.”

When Krsna asks us to offer Him food, we should understand that He is

actually inviting us to reawaken our eternal loving relationship with Him.

At first we comply in a mood of faith mixed with duty; later, as our

realization matures, we do it with affection and love. Just as anybody

naturally offers the best he has to his beloved, the devotee offers Krsna his

wealth, his intelligence, his life, and his vegetarian food.

FILL IN THE BLANKS:

1. The word “vegetarian” means whole, _______, ___________ or

lively.

2. Human anatomy is not designed to eat _______________.

3. The Sanskrit word “karma” means _____________.

4. Offered food is called _______________ .

5. Eating prasad nourishes the body _________________.

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ANSWER IN 1-2 SENTENCES:

1. What is the difference between the intestines of the carnivores and

Herbivores?

2. How is dead flesh (meat) made to look more attractive?

3. How does Lord Krsna free us from sin?

4. Why must we eat prasad?

ANSWER IN DETAIL:

1. How are carnivores different from herbivores?

2. Why is the human anatomy not designed to eat meat?

3. Why must we offer food to Lord Krsna?

4. What is the “material conception of life?

5. What are the benefits of eating prasad?

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CHAPTER 6

THE BRAHMIN’S OFFERING

Scene I

(The scene is set in the town of Nadia inside a simple house. Saci devi is

seated on one side doing some needlework. Jagannath Mishra is seated on a

cot, reading.)

Narration: A little over five hundred years ago, Lord Chaitanya was born

in Nadia to Jagannath Mishra and Saci devi. He was called

Nimai because He was born under a neem tree. Jagannath

Mishra always welcomed in his house, traveling scholars,

pundits, sages and other devotees of the Lord. On one such

occasion, a traveling Brahmin who was a devotee of Gopala

came to reside at his house.

Brahmin: Jai Govinda, Jai Gopala, Jai Gopala ! All glories to my Lord,

Gopala!

Jagannath Mishraji, you are very kind to let me stay here with

you. I assure you I will not be of any trouble to you. I cannot

stay at any one place for long as my mind is very restless and I

have no fixed abode. Secondly, I will not be a burden for

Mother Sacidevi too, as I only eat the prasadam offered to my

Gopala. My daily routine begins and ends with service to my

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Lord, for I have put myself entirely in His care. May He keep

me at His Lotus Feet as He wills.

Jagannath: My dear Brahmin, your devotion to your Lord is certainly

wonderful and so inspiring. You are most welcome to stay here

as long as you like.

Nimai: (Entering the house) Oh, Baba, another devotee of the Lord has

come to stay with us? How wonderful. Now I can hear many

more stories and pastimes of Lord Visnu.

Jagannath: Nimai, this Brahmin is a great devotee of the Lord and will be

saying with us for some time. Please do not trouble him with

your mischievous ways. But help him when you can, and if he

needs anything to help him with his service to his deities.

(Fade out)!!

Scene II

Narration: The brahmin settled down to doing his service to his Gopala, all

the while chanting and singing His glories.

Brahmin: Jai Govinda, Jai Gopala, Keshava Madhava, Dinadayal.

Dinadayal prabhu, Dinadayal, Keshava Madhava Dinadayal

(repeat). (After dressing the deity..) My Lord, You look so

beautiful today. Look at me; poor as I am, I have no means to

dress You in the finest clothing and jewelry. But You are so

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merciful that You are taking care of Yourself and simply giving

me the credit for it. Now I request You to please wait while I

make an offering for You.

Narration: And thus, the brahmin began cooking for his deity. As he was

doing this little Nimai was watching and hearing all this quietly.

He waited for the brahmin to finish cooking. And as he began

to offer the foodstuffs to his Gopala…………..

(The brahmin is paying obeisance and offering the food. Nimai walks in on

tip toes and begins to eat the prasadam with glee. As the brahmin finishes

offering, he looks up and sees Nimai eating.)

Brahmin: Oh, child, look what you have done! You have defiled the

offering of the Lord. You have tasted the offering of Gopala,

even before He could have it! Oh, what will I do now? I have

committed a great offence to the Lord. He will never forgive

me!

(Hearing the commotion, Saci devi rushes out into the room.)

Saci devi: What is the matter, revered brahmin? Is there anything wrong?

Brahmin: Your son has eaten the offering I cooked for the Lord even

before my Gopala could have it. I am a great offender; I do not

know what to do now. I will have to perform severe penances

to wash away this sin. Oh, what will I do?

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Saci devi: Don’t worry. The Lord is kind to all and you are after all His

great servitor. Please have the Prasad that I have cooked. You

may cook for your deity later on.

Brahmin: No, no. I cannot do that. I only eat the remnants of my Gopala.

I will not eat anything else.

Saci devi: In that case, why don’t you cook again? I will keep Nimai with

me so that he does not disturb you.

Brahmin: (Pausing and thinking) Oh all right. But please make sure that

this boy does not come here again.

Narration: And so the brahmin started cooking all over again for his deity.

But once again, as he was offering the foodstuff, Nimai entered

and started eating the prasadam. And once again…….

Brahmin: (Crying) Oh no, you naughty child. Look what you have done?

Will I not be able to make an offering today? Will my Gopala

remain hungry today?

Jagannath: (Rushing in). What is the matter, O brahmin, are you in pain?

Have we fallen short in our hospitality? Is there anything I can

do?

Brahmin: It is this naughty son of yours. Every time, I make an offering

to Gopala, this boy comes and starts eating it. Maybe my

33

Gopala is angry with me and that’s why he is not accepting the

prasadam I offer him. What a great offender I am!

Jagannath: Nimai! Is it true? Did you eat the offerings of this brahmin?

Do not worry, O brahmin, I will lock Nimai in the other room

and make sure that he does not disturb you. You may go ahead

and cook for your deity now. Come along with me, Nimai.

Narration: Thus for the third time, the brahmin began to cook for his deity.

And once again as he was offering the foodstuff, Nimai entered

the room and began to eat the prasadam. The brahmin again

saw this and……….

Brahmin: Oh no! Oh child why are you troubling me so much? Why are

you coming and eating the prasadam again and again? What do

you want me to do?

(Nimai assumes His Krsna form.)

Nimai: Oh brahmin, don’t you recognize me? I am the very object of

your worship and devotion. Everyday you pray to me. So very

lovingly you dress me up and make nice foodstuff for me to eat,

but now that I am here in front of you, you have failed to

recognize me. And now that I have come to eat the prasadam

you cooked for me, you are turning me away!

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Brahmin: (Crying tears of happiness) Oh my Lord! My Gopala! How

wretched I am that You were present before me all the while

and I did not recognize You! I am so sinful that I have

repeatedly offended You by turning You away! Please forgive

me, my Lord, please forgive me.

Narration : In this way, the Brahmin received Lord Caitanya’s mercy.

The End

ANSWER IN SHROT:

1. Who are the parents of Lord Caitanya?

2. Why did Saci devi name Lord Caitanya, Nimai?

3. What did Nimai do to the Brahmin’s offering?

ANSWER IN DETAIL:

1. Why did Nimai repeatedly eat the Brahmin’s offering?

2. How did Lord Caitanya give mercy to the brahmin?

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CHAPTER 7

HOW TO OFFER PRASADAM

The Bhagavad-Gita (3.13) states, “The devotees of the Lord are released

from all kinds of sins because they eat food which is offered first for

sacrifice. Others, who prepare food for personal sense enjoyment, eat only

sin.”

Offered food, traditionally called prasada, “the mercy of God,” offers not

only the healthy life of a vegetarian, but also God realization; not just food

for the starving masses, but spiritual nourishment for everyone. When Krsna

accepts an offering, He infuses His own divine nature into it. Prasada,

therefore, is not different from Krsna Himself. Out of His unbounded

compassion for the souls entrapped in the material world, Krsna comes in

the form of prasada, so that simply by eating, we can come to know Him.

Contrary to this, bhoga is unoffered food. Bhoga literally means to suffer.

So when we eat unoffered food, we suffer the reactions of the karma.

The first factor to be taken into consideration while offering prasad to Lord

Krsna, is devotion. However simple a meal is, if it is offered with love and

devotion Lord Krsna will accept it. Secondly, one must maintain complete

cleanliness during the process of cooking and offering. One must also not

taste the meal before it is offered. Very often we do feel the need to check if

the food cooked is tasty; salt, sugar, etc, are in correct proportions. But once

we do this task with total devotion, we will keep all necessary factors in

mind, i.e., the cleanliness, the taste and the presentation.

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In the Bhagavad-Gita, (9.26) Krsna states, “Offer Me with love and devotion

a fruit, a flower, a leaf, or water, and I will accept it.” Here Lord Krsna has

specifically stated what He wants and if we want to please Him, we have to

keep this in mind. Thus, it is clear that Lord Krsna wants a vegetarian meal!

But then, why do Vaishnavas not eat onions and garlic also? The scriptures

explain that all foods like other things in the material world fall into the

category of the three modes of material nature: Sattva (goodness), Rajas

(passion) and Tamas (ignorance). Onions and garlic fall into the category of

passion and ignorance. One, who seriously wants to understand the

teachings of Lord Krsna and move ahead in his devotion for the Lord, must

abstain from eating foods that fall in the category of ignorance and passion.

THE PROCESS

Ensure that there is a clean and unused (suci) plate kept exclusively for Lord

Krsna’s use. Place all cooked foodstuffs in this plate and place a Tulsi leaf

over each item. Then place the plate in front of Lord Krsna’s deity or

picture and humbly bow down before the Lord, asking Him to accept the

offering saying the following prayer:

Nama om visnupadaya Krsna presthaya bhutale

Srimate bhaktivedanta swamin iti namine

Namaste sarasvate deve gaura vani pracarine

Nirvisesa sunyavadi pascatya desa tarine

37

Namo maha vadanyaya Krsna prema pradayate

Krsnaya Krsna Caitanya Namine Gaura tvise namah 3

Namo brahmanya devaya go-brahmana hitaya ca

Jagad-dhitaya Krsnaya Govindaya namo namah 3

Jai Sri Krsna Caitanya Prabhu Nityananda

Sri Advaita Gadadhara Srivasa adi Gaura bhakta vrinda

Hare Krsna Hare Krsna Krsna Krsna Hare Hare

Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare

Then you must leave Lord Krsna alone with His meal so He can enjoy it.

After about 10 minutes, pay obeisances to Lord Krsna and clap your hands

three times, to announce your arrival and take the plate away. Now transfer

the remnants into their original pots and pans and wash the plate before you

enjoy the prasadam.

ANSWER THE FOLLOWING IN SHORT:

1. What is the difference between prasad and bhoga?

2. What is prasad known as?

3. What is bhoga known as?

4. What is the first factor in offering to the Lord?

ANSWER IN DETAIL:

1. Why are onion and garlic not eaten by Vaishnavas?

2. What is the process for offering prasad?

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CHAPTER 8

INTRODUCTION TO BHAGAVAD GITA AS IT IS

Nama om visnupadaya krsna presthaya bhutale

Srimate bhaktivedanta swamin iti namine

Namaste sarasvate deve gaura vani pracarine

Nirvisesa sunyavadi pascatya desa tarine

What exactly is the Bhagavad-Gita? Is it a religious text? Is it a

manual/guide for code of conduct? Bhagavad means “of God”, while Gita

means “song” so literally speaking Bhagavad Gita actually means, “Song of

God”. Let us first understand the circumstances under which the Bhagavad-

Gita was sung or spoken. On the Battle field of Kurukshetra the Pandavas

fought against the Kauravas for the kingdom of which the Pandavas were the

rightful heirs. Lord Krsna was the chariot driver of Arjuna. When faced

with his grandfather, uncles, cousins, teacher, other elders on the battlefield,

Arjuna became weak in spirit and refused to fight. It was at this time that

Lord Krsna instructed Arjuna. This instruction is known as the Bhagavad-

Gita.

In his introduction to Bhagavad-Gita As it is, Srila Prabhupada has given an

analysis of the main points to be understood. These cover:

1. The spirit in which the Gita should be approached.

2. The purpose of the Gita

3. The subject matter of the Gita

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4. The process of understanding of the Gita

5. The result of understanding the knowledge presented: going back to

Godhead.

6. How to practically apply this knowledge to attain the desired results.

THE SPIRIT OF BHAGAVAD GITA

a) Krsna is the Supreme Lord

b) A devotee like Arjuna who is in a direct relationship with Lord Krsna

understands Gita.

c) Only by the process of devotional service can one revive one’s

relationship with Krsna.

d) Therefore Bhagavad-Gita should be taken up in a spirit of devotion.

We should at least theoretically accept Krsna as the Supreme Personality of

Godhead to understand Bhagavad-Gita.

Having explained the spirit of Gita, Srila Prabhupada goes on to outline:

THE PURPOSE OF BHAGAVAD GITA

Everyone is full of anxiety because of this material existence. The cause of

suffering and the actual destination of life are proper subjects of inquiry.

Krsna spoke Bhagavad-Gita to answer these queries, and to make Arjuna

understand his position, thus relieving him from all miseries.

40

With the overwhelming need of spiritual knowledge clearly established,

Srila Prabhupada outlines the contents of Bhagavad-Gita, which can be

summarized as follows:

THE SUBJECT OF BHAGAVAD GITA

The five basic truths: Isvara, jiva, prakriti, kala and Karma

Isvara - Krsna is the controller of everything

Jiva - the living entity is only a subordinate controller, is also prakriti

and controlled by Krsna.

Prakriti - material nature is constituted of the three qualities --- sattva,

rajas and tamas.

Kala - eternal time, energy of Krsna

Karma - a combination of the three modes and under the control and

purview of eternal time, there are activities.

The material nature is eternal and real. The manifestation of the material

world is also real but there are intrinsic differences between the Supreme

Lord, the living entities, and the material nature. The Lord is supremely

conscious, conscious of all bodies, the living entity is only conscious of his

particular body. Even when the Lord descends into the material universe,

His consciousness is not materially affected. (If it were, He would have

been unfit to speak Bhagavad-Gita). Both the living entities and the

41

material nature are prakritis, energies of the Lord. But the jiva’s

consciousness in the conditional world is materially contaminated. Due to

this, he is entangled in the actions and reactions of his own karma. One

must become free from this bodily conception of life. The living entity,

being a part and part parcel of the Supreme Lord, is neither the creator nor

the enjoyer but a cooperator. The relationship is like that of a master and a

servant. If the master is satisfied then the servant is satisfied.

In pure consciousness, the activities will be dovetailed with the will of Krsna

and that will make one really happy. This purified activity called bhakti and

is transcendental to the three modes of material nature. (Srimad Bhagavatam

defines: muktir hitvanyatha rupam svarupena vyasasthita – liberation means

attaining one’s constitutional position of service to the lotus feet of Sri Hari)

In order to ensure the correct appreciation of this knowledge, Srila

Prabhupada next clarifies:

THE PROCESS OF UNDERSTANDIG BHAGAVAD GITA

Vedic knowledge is infallible, above all doubts and mistakes. Bhagavad-

Gita is the essence of Vedic knowledge. Vedic knowledge is not a question

of research. We have to accept the knowledge, which comes down in

disciplic succession. The Gita should be accepted without interpretation,

without deletion and without our own whimsical participation in the matter.

The words spoken by the Lord are ‘apauruseya’ : all perfect transcendental

knowledge by revelation. If the Lord’s words are followed in this way, then

follows the results, as summarized as under:

42

THE RESULTS OF BHAGAVAD-GITA

At the end of Bhagavad-Gita Arjuna says: ‘karisye vacanam tava’ I shall act

according to your words.

Like Arjuna, if we properly utilize the instructions of Bhagavad-Gita, then

our whole life becomes purified and ultimately we will be able to reach the

destination, which is beyond this material sky (yad gatva na nivartante tad

dhama paramam mama)

The material world has inconveniences of birth, disease, and old age. The

abode of Krsna has no such inebriations, and therefore the Bhagavad-Gita

recommends that one must reach the kingdom of the Supreme, the Sanatana

dhama. Having once attained that kingdom, the living entity does not return

to this material world; of this the Lord says, “There is no doubt.’

The eternal jiva has an eternal relationship with the eternal Lord in that

eternal spiritual sky.

Services is the constant companion of the living being and rendering

service to the Supreme Personality of God head is the eternal religion,

Sanatana dharma.

By understanding the instruction of Bhagavad-Gita, we can revive the

eternal occupation (Sanatana dharma). This is perfection of life. Thus

Krsna confirms that the purpose of the human life is to return back home,

back to Godhead, to serve him there.

43

Finally Srila Prabhupada poses and answers the question, ‘How does one go

about approaching that abode of the Supreme Lord?’

PROCESS GIVEN IN THE BHAGAVAD GITA FOR ATTAINING

THE ABODE OF KRSNA

Simply by thinking of Krsna at the time of death, one can enter the spiritual

kingdom.

Our thinking, now absorbed in the material energy, must be transferred to

the spiritual energy. Therefore we have to practice remembering the Lord

always by chanting His names (which are non-different from Him) and

mould the activities of our life in such a way that we can remember him

always.

The Bhagavad-Gita teaches:

a) How to absorb the minds and intelligence in the thoughts of the Lord.

b) If the intelligence and the mind are always engaged in thought of the

Supreme Lord, then naturally the senses are also engaged in His

service.

c) The practice is the process of devotional service

d) One must learn this process by rendering service to and inquiring

submissively from a self-realized soul.

ANSWER THE FOLLOWING QUESTIONS IN DETAIL:

1. How can the Bhagavad-Gita be understood?

2. Discuss the five basic truths of the Bhagavad-Gita.

44

3. How can one attain liberation?

4. What is the result of understanding the Bhagavad-Gita?

FILL IN THE BLANKS

1. Bhagavad-Gita literally means ____________ of ________.

2. Lord Krsna instructed Arjuna on the battlefield of _________.

3. Lord Krsna is the Supreme __________ of _____________ .

4. The five basic truths of the Bhagavad-Gita are _____________,

Jiva, _________________ kala, and _______________ .

5. In Sanskrit, Material nature means ____________ .

6. In Sanskrit, material activity is known as _______________ .

7. Purified activity is known as _________________.

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CHAPTER 9

MORAL BEHAVIOUR AND ETIQUETTE

Moral behaviour refers to that code of conduct that is accepted within the

society that we live in. Each society is different as are various cultures

around the world. Thus the accepted norms of behavior vary from my

society to another. E.g.:- In France it is considered wrong not to greet with a

kiss. But in India this kind of behavior would not be acceptable.

Times have changed and the distances between cultures have shrunk. It is

now hard to determine which act forms a part of which culture.

The moral behavior that we will learn about in this chapter goes way beyond

day to day social acts. The moral behavior that we will study, form the roots

of Indian culture. These codes of conduct stem from our Vedic Ethos and

the scriptures form our guidebooks.

To understand what is good or bad one must first understand who is God and

who we are in relation to him. This is because goodness or evil differs from

one person to another. E.g.: In a restaurant two men are seated. One is a

smoker while the other is not. The non-smoker gets disturbed by the smoke

and asks the man to leave but the smoker objects saying that he believes

smoking is good and he enjoys it. While the non-smoker says smoking is

bad for health. Now who is right and who is wrong? According to them each

one of them are right. There has to be a fixed norm to decide what is really

good or bad. The material world, our material senses and all that exists here

46

is temporary, changing and destructible. The only thing that is indestructible,

eternal and constant is the Supreme Personality of Godhead Himself.

Let us begin by understanding who we really are.

Science describes man as a social animal. Thus we can conclude that we are

also animals! They sleep, eat, mate and protect themselves. We also sleep,

eat, mate and protect ourselves. They have intelligence and so do we. But

we have an edge over the animals. We have a higher reasoning power that

helps us to distinguish between right and wrong.

“Athato brahma jignasa”.

Translation: - Now having acquired the human form of life let us enquire

into the Brahman.

Keeping the above in mind one must ask oneself the questions: “Who am I?”

“Why am I here”? The answer to these questions is that we are spirit souls,

part and parcel of the Supreme soul, Lord Krsna and we are here to enjoy or

suffer the reactions of the Karmas of our past lifetimes and to liberate

ourselves from the process of action and reaction.

The next step would be to understand what is our real duty and activity. As

we have studied earlier our real dharma is to serve the Supreme Personality

of Godhead Lord Krsna and purify our senses and our actions and become

free from the cycle of action and reaction.

But before going so deep within the Vedic Philosophy let us first learn how

to behave in our day to day lives. Just the understanding that we are parts of

47

Krsna should prod us into good behavior. Krsna wouldn’t want any

miscreants as His representatives, would He?

DAILY:

As soon as we wake up we must remember the Lord and thank him for the

day. Then one must wash oneself clean by using the toilet, brushing one’s

teeth and bathing. In many households people bathe after having breakfast.

This is inappropriate. One must bathe before doing anything else. Then after

paying obeisances to the deities or pictures of the Lord, one must pay

respects to one’s parents and then go about the rest of the day. Touching the

feet of elders to get their blessings and goodness, especially parents, is very

beneficial for the progress in one’s life.

IN THE TEMPLE:

One must lightly knock the door three times to announce one’s arrival.

Women must always cover their heads in the temple. Then one must pay

obeisances to the Guru first, i.e., Srila Prabhupada. Then one must pay

obeisances to the deities respectfully. One must not talk too loudly or behave

in a boisterous manner in the temple.

DRESS:

Our clothes signify who we are. A policeman would not be recognized if he

is not in his uniform. The growing western trends have permeated so deep

within Indian society that our youngsters have taken to western clothes with

a vengeance. Clothes that expose the body unduly are indicative of bad

upbringing and character. Our body is a temple within which Lord Krsna

resides in our hearts. To care for our body and to adorn it is our privilege.

Girls and boys who do not cover the bodies properly are displaying a lack of

self respect and self worth. It only attracts undue unhealthy attention and

lack of love for oneself. Well combed hair and short nails, all signify

48

neatness and cleanliness. A dirty body will only attract negative energies to

you.

All these seem very rigid and old fashioned rules but they do make sense.

After all they are the stepping stones to developing God consciousness!

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ANCIENT VEDIC HISTORY

AND CULTURE 2

NAME: ______________________________________

CLASS: ______________________________________

ROLL NO: ________________

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I offer my respectful obeisances to His Divine Grace A.C.

Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada who has been my

primary source of knowledge and inspiration in Krsna

Consciousness.

Please continue to guide me in this venture of teaching

children as you have taught us.

51

INTRODUCTION

My dear children,

The decision to revert back to the textbook form of the matter which

is needed for this subject was taken solely for your convenience since many

of you end up losing your papers and then do not having exclusive matter for

studying. I have tried to make each chapter more interesting with activities

along with the lessons. You will also learn new words, their meanings and

enjoy some stress busting activities.

There are blank pages after every chapter to do your questions and

answers so there is no need for a separate notebook or extra sheets.

This is the first level of Vedic Studies in the secondary school so you

may find it a little difficult. On the separate sheet for ‘Notes’, write down

your difficulties after every chapter and discuss them with me during class.

While studying the Introduction to Bhagavad Gita you will find it useful to

read the introduction in the first few pages of the Bhagavad Gita As It Is. I

hope you enjoy studying this subject as much as I enjoy teaching it to all of

you.

Hare Krsna!

- Gandhari devi dasi

52

CONTENTS

1. A VERY NICE SAINTLY PERSON

2. GIFT OF THE SUN GOD

3. GLORIES OF THE HARE KRSNA MAHAMANTRA

4. BHAKTA VAKSALA – STORY OF NARSINGHADEVA

5. CHAPTER 1 BHAGAVAD GITA

6. PASTIMES OF LORD CAITANYA

7. THE BRAHMIN AND THE COBBLER

8. LORD KRSNA’S HEADACHE

9. MORAL BEHAVIOUR AND ETIQUETTE

SONGS AND SLOKAS

53

CHAPTER 1

A VERY NICE SAINTLY PERSON

Abhay had seen many sadhus in his childhood. Some of them were no more

than beggars and some even smoked ganja. A sadhu from Mayapur had

come to a place, a few blocks away. Abhay’s friend Narendranath Mullick

was insisting him to see the sadhu, Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Saraswati.

One of the sannyasi’s disciples had visited the Mullicks’ house and had

invited them to meet Srila Bhaktisddhanta. Some of the Mullicks went to

meet him and were greatly impressed by him. Hence, Naren put his hand

around his friend’s arm trying to drag him, while Abhay smiled and

stubbornly pulled the other way. “Oh no, I know all these sadhus”, he said

skeptically, “I am not going.” Naren explained to Abhay that the sadhu,

Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Saraswati, was a Vaishnava, and a great devotee of

Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu.

Sitting with his back very straight, Srila Bhaktisiddhanta appeared tall. He

was slender. His arms were long and his complexion was fair and golden.

He wore round bifocals with simple frame. His nose was sharp, his forehead

broad and his expression was very scholarly. The vertical markings of

Vaishnava tilaka on his forehead and his simple sanyasa robes were familiar

to Abhay. His robe draped over his right shoulder, left the other shoulder

and half his chest bare. He wore Tulasi neck beads. The clay Vaishnava

markings of the tilaka on his throat, shoulder, and upper arm were clearly

54

visible. A clean white brahminical thread was looped around his neck and

draped across his chest.

While the two men were still preparing to sit, Srila Bhaktisiddhanta

immediately said, “You are an educated young man. Why don’t you preach

Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu’s message to the world?” They had not begun

any preliminary formalities of conversation. Before they could exchange

views, this sadhu was telling them what they should do. Abhay could hardly

believe what he had just heard.

Abhay was immediately impressed. Srila Bhaktisiddhanta had firm

conviction in his words. As Abhay continued to listen, he was won over by

them. He could sense that Srila Bhaktisiddhanta didn’t care for anything but

Lord Caitanya. This was the cause of his greatness. That was why his

followers had gathered around him. This quality of the sadhu attracted

Abhay. He felt drawn, inspired, and humbled. He felt like hearing more

from the sadhu, so he began to inquire from him. Just to be provocative,

Abhay asked an interesting and a challenging question, “Who will hear your

Caitanya’s message? We are a dependent country. First, India must become

independent. How can we spare India’s culture if we are under the British

rule?”

Srila Bhaktisiddhanta replied in a quiet, deep voice, “Krsna consciousness

does not have to wait for a change in India politics. Nor is it dependent on

who rules. Krsna consciousness is so important, so exclusively important

that it cannot wait. Whether one power or the other rules is a temporary

situation, but the eternal reality is Krsna consciousness and the real self is

55

the spirit soul. No man-made political system, therefore, can actually help

humanity. This is the verdict of the Vedic scriptures and the line of spiritual

masters.” He continued further, “Everyone is an eternal servant of God. But

at times, one considers oneself temporary, and regards the nation of his birth

worthy of worship. In such situations, he is said to be under the influence of

illusion. The leaders and followers of the world’s political movements are

cultivating this same illusion. The movement of swaraj is also cultivating

this illusion. Real welfare work should help prepare a person for his next

life. It could be individual, social or political in nature. It should also help a

person in reestablishing his eternal relationship with the Supreme.”

Since Abhay had been raised as a Vaishnava, he could appreciate what Srila

Bhaktisiddhanta was saying. He understood that this sadhu was not

preparing his own philosophy. The sadhu wasn’t simply proud or

belligerent. Yes, he spoke in a manner that would practically kick out every

other philosophy. He was speaking the eternal teachings of the Vedic

literature and the sages. And Abhay loved to hear it.

Bhaktisiddhanta explained, “The people are now faithless. Hence, they no

longer believe that devotional service can remove irregularities that exist

even on the political front.” He criticized the persons who called themselves

leaders and were ignorant of the soul.

While walking away from the ashram, Naren inquired, “So, Abhay, what

was your impression? What do you think of him?” Abhay, who was fully

impressed replied, “He’s wonderful. The message of Lord Caitanya is in the

hands of a very expert person.” Srila Prabhupada explains, “I accepted him

56

as my spiritual master immediately. Not officially, but in my heart. I thought

that I had met a very nice saintly person.”

Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Saraswati was one of the ten children to Srila

Bhaktivinoda Thakura. He was a great Vaishnava teacher in the discipline

from Lord Caitanya Himself. Earlier, the teachers and other sects that

claimed to be the followers of Lord could not explain clearly the teachings

of the Lord. Instead, they would preach things that would deviate drastically

from the original. The good reputation of Vaishnavism had been

compromised, but it was Bhaktivinoda who clarified the teachings of the

Lord. He also enjoyed a social position as a high government officer. He

reestablished the respectability of Vaishnavism through his vast and

abundant writings. He preached that the teachings of Lord Caitanya were the

highest form of theism. He clarified that these teachings were not meant only

for a particular group or sex but for all the people in the world. He predicted

that Lord Caitanya’s teachings would go worldwide, and he yearned for it.

Bhaktivinoda Thakura was a prominent magistrate and a responsible

government officer. He served also as superintendent of the temple of Lord

Jagannatha. He was also the father of ten children. Despite so many

responsibilities, he served the cause of Krishna with immense energy. One

of his most important contributions was to locate the exact birthplace of

Lord Caitanya in Mayapur, about sixty miles north of Calcutta. Jagannath

dasa Babaji and Gaurakishora dasa Babaji cooperated in his work.

He prayed for a son to help him in his preaching. The Vaishnavas considered

the birth of Srila Bhaktisiddhanta as an answer to Srila Bhaktivinoda’s

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prayers. Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Saraswati was born on 6 February 1874.

When he was born, the umbilical cord draped his chest and wrapped around

his neck. It looked like the sacred thread worn by the brahmanas. His parents

named him Bimala Prasada.

When Bimala Prasada was six months old, the carts of the Jagannatha

festival stopped at the gate of Bhaktivinoda’s residence and for three days

could not be moved. Bhaktivinoda Thakura’s wife brought the infant on to

the cart and approached Lord Jagannatha. Spontaneously, the infant

extended his arms and touched the feet of Lord Jagannatha. He was

immediately blessed with a garland that fell from the body of the Lord.

When Srila Bhaktivinoda learnt this he realized that this was the son whom

he had prayed for.

At the age of four Bimala Prasada was mildly rebuked by his father for

eating a mango that was not yet offered to Lord Krsna. Bimala Prasada,

though only a child, considered himself an offender to the Lord and vowed

never to eat mangoes again. This was the vow that he followed throughout

his life. By the time Bimala Prasada was seven years old, he had memorized

the entire Bhagavad Gita and could even explain its verses. His father then

began training him in proofreading and printing, in conjunction with the

publishing of the Vaishnava magazine Sajjana-tosani. With his father, he

visited many holy places and heard discourses from the learned panditas.

58

Meanings of difficult words

Ganja - intoxicant that is smoked

Slender – slim

Sannyasa – order of renunciation

Preliminary – initial, first

Formalities – necessary regulations

Conviction – firm belief

Provocative – intentionally annoying

Illusion – false impression

Umbilical cord - birth cord that attaches the mother to the baby inside the

Womb

Rebuked – disapproved

Questions

Fill in the blanks:

1. Naren explained to Abhay that the sadhu was a Vaishnava, and a great

Devotee of ______________________

2. Srila Bhaktisiddhanta was one of ten children born to

______________

3. His father then began training him in proofreading of the Vaishnava

Magazine ____________________

59

4. Abhay’s friend ____________________ was insisting him to see the

Sadhu.

Answer the following:

1. Why did Abhay refuse to go with Naren to see the sadhu from

Mayapur?

2. Describe the appearance of Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Saraswati.

3. Which qualities of the sadhu attracted Abhay?

4. What did Abhay inquire from the sadhu? What did he reply?

5. Why did Abhay think that he had met a very nice saintly person?

6. What were the responsibilities of Srila Bhaktivinoda Thakura?

Write a short note on “Bhaktivinoda Thakura’s contribution in

reestablishing Vaishnavism.”

60

CHAPTER 2

THE GIFT OF THE SUN GOD

The five Pandava princes were heirs to the throne of the world. Duryodhana,

their envious cousin, was always scheming how to get rid of them so he

could claim the crown for himself. Killing the Pandavas, though, was not so

easy for Lord Krsna was their special friend. And everyone knew that

Krsna’s powers were unlimited. However, by cheating at a gambling match,

Duryodhana managed to banish his cousins to the forest for thirteen years.

They took with them Draupadi, the devoted and beautiful wife of the five

brothers.

To assist the Pandavas during their exile, the Sun God gave Draupadi a

special pot as a gift. With it she could always feed her own family as well as

an unlimited number of guests. The only rule was that after Draupadi had

eaten for that day the magical pot would produce no more food until the next

day. So, even though they were living in the forest, the Pandavas were never

hungry.

Duryodhana and his brothers often spied on the Pandavas during their exile

in the forest. One day, while camping nearby Duryodhana was visited by a

famous mystic yogi, Durvasa. Durvasa was very quick-tempered. If he ever

became angry he would put dreadful curses on people. And if he was

pleased he was quick to offer benedictions as well.

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On this particular visit, Durvasa was not alone. He had come with a

thousand disciples. Duryodhana was crafty as well as evil-hearted. So he

was exceedingly careful to welcome the great saint with utmost care and

attention. He personally made sure that whenever Durvasa said he was

hungry even in the middle of the night, food was brought to him.

The yogi was obviously pleased with Duryodhana’s service, and after a few

days he said, “Ask me for a benediction. I’ll give you whatever you desire.”

Duryodhana was elated. This was just what he hoped would happen. But he

didn’t want the yogi to know that his desire was for something wicked, so

very innocently he said, “You are very kind. The only thing I would like is

for my beloved cousins, the Pandavas, to have the pleasure of your

company. Fortunately, they are staying not far from here. I simply wish that

you visit them.”

Durvasa agreed to this simple request. Duryodhana watched as the sage and

his ten thousand disciples departed. He chuckled to himself, thinking, “The

Pandavas have taken lunch already. Now they’ll never be able to feed

Durvasa and all his disciples. I can’t imagine what kind of terrible curse he

will cast upon them.”

The eldest of the Pandavas, Yudhisthira, along with his brothers, greeted

Durvasa and his men when they reached the camp. It was a shock for the

princes to see so many guests. As the entourage walked in the camp,

Yudhisthira turned to Draupadi and whispered, “Quick! Get your magic pot

so we can offer them something to eat.” “But I have already eaten”, she

confessed. “The pot is now empty until tomorrow.” After exchanging a few

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polite words with the sage, Yudhisthira requested, “My dear Durvasa,

you’ve been walking for so long in the forest. Please go and bathe. When

you return, your meals will be waiting for you.”

Durvasa and his disciples happily made their way to the river. The Pandavas,

meanwhile, were in panic. They knew of Durvasa’s reputation; of how was

so easily upset, and of the power of his curse. Draupadi was in tears. In that

condition, she did the only thing she could possibly help. From the depths of

her heart she called on Lord Krsna. “O master of the universe, O Lord of the

gods, please protect us. Without you we are lost.”

Miraculously as if from nowhere, Krsna appeared before her. He listened as

Draupadi explained the whole situation, but He did not offer a solution.

Instead He said, “I am hungry, Draupadi. Would you please bring me some

food?”

Bewildered, Draupadi replied, “But I’ve already told you, the pot the Sun

God gave me is empty. It won’t yield any more food today. Now I have two

problems: I cannot feed you, nor can I feed Durvasa and his men.” Krishna

merely smiled. “Don’t worry. Just bring me the pot.” Still puzzled, Draupadi

fetched the pot and Krishna inspected it closely. “Oh, this looks delicious,”

Krishna said, having discovered a morsel of food stuck on the rim. Taking it

between His fingers He popped it in His mouth.

Then he requested Bhima, the strongest of the Pandava princes to call

Durvasa and his men from the river. “Tell them their meal is ready.” As

Bhima approached the riverside he saw Durvasa and the other sages standing

63

waist-deep in the water. They were all doing a very curious thing: they were

rubbing their bellies as if they were filled with food.

Bhima then heard Durvasa say, “Oh no! Look! Here comes Bhima carrying

a club. If we insult him by refusing to eat what Draupadi has prepared, he

will be furious. But how can we eat? We’re all feeling completely satisfied. I

can’t eat anything, no matter how delicious it is.”

Bhima could hardly believe his eyes and ears. Durvasa’s ten thousand

disciples were all saying, “Me too! I can’t even think about eating now.”

Then as Bhima got closer, they all ran into the forest, still wet from their

bath, only half-dressed. Bhima laughed and ran back to tell the Pandava

princes. Much to their relief, the guests never returned. Draupadi said, “I

realize what has happened. If you water the roots of a tree then its other

parts-the twigs, leaves, branches, and flowers are all benefited. Krsna is like

the root of a tree. So when Krsna is satisfied, everyone is satisfied, including

Durvasa and his thousands of followers.” Through Draupadi’s devotion and

the kindness of Lord Krishna, the Pandavas were saved from Duryodhana’s

evil plans.

Questions

Give reasons:

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1. Duryodhana was always scheming how to get rid of the Pandavas.

2. Killing the Pandavas was not so easy.

3. The Pandavas were in panic as Durvasa and his men went to bathe.

4. Durvasa thought that Bheema would feel insulted.

Answer the following:

1. What was the speciality of the magical pot? Who gifted it to

Draupadi?

2. Why was Durvasa happy with Duryodhana?

3. What benediction did Duryodhana ask from Durvasa?

4. What was Draupadi’s dilemma?

5. What do we learn from this historical incidence?

ACTIVITY

Enact this story after writing your own play based on this chapter.

65

CHAPTER 3

GLORIES OF THE HARE KRSNA MAHAMANTRA

The present age in which we live is known as the Kali Yuga. According to

the scriptures this age is described as an age of anxiety, quarrel and tensions.

Lord Caitanya appeared in this Yuga to propagate the chanting of the Hare

Krishna Mahamantra, which is the only solution to combat the ills of

Kaliyuga. The world was being consumed by materialism wherein people

philosophized that there is no God. Advaita acharya, a great devotee of the

Lord prayed to him to appear and save the world. He is known as the

Yugavatar.

GLORIES:

The scriptures state:

Harer Nama Harer Nama Harer Nama eva Kevalam

Kalau nasty eva nasty eva nasty eva gatir anyatha

“There is no other way no other way no other way to attain liberation than

by chanting the Holy names of the Lord, chanting the Holy names of the

Lord, chanting the Holy names of the Lord.”

The 16 Sanskrit words Hare Krsna Hare Krsna Krsna Krsna Hare Hare Hare

Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare is prescribed by great spiritual

66

authorities as the easiest and most effective method of attaining self-

realization in the present age of Kali Yuga.

The Padma Purana states that the Holy name of Krsna is like the Cintamani

gem, which can bestow all spiritual benedictions. There is no difference

between Krsna and His name. Lord Caitanya says that Krsna’s name is full

of unlimited spiritual energy. Chanting the Hare Krsna Mahamantra is the

quickest and easiest way to realize God and attain perfection in life. It is so

simple that even a child can chant.

Srila Prabhupada once said that it was so easy to attain self-realization in

Kali Yuga that even the demigods lined up to take birth on earth and get

liberated immediately. He said that the process was so simple that even a

child could chant. The chanting of the Hare Krsna Mahamantra is described

to be easier than meditating for millions of years or performing the most

elaborate of fire sacrifices or doing the most pure form of deity worship, yet

bringing the best of results.

Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Goswami says, “The Holy name of Krsna

means divine sound. It can be compared to a capsule of medicine. It cures all

diseased of material desires and fills one with pure love and devotion of

Lord Krsna.

Why is it called Mahamantra:

1. This mantra contains all the other mantras such as the Gayatri mantra,

Om, etc.

67

2. This Mahamantra can be chanted by anyone anywhere regardless of

class, caste or creed.

3. In this dark age of kali this is the only mantra than can bring us closer

to Lord Krsna and liberate us from the cycle of birth and death.

4. The Hare Krsna Mahamantra has no rules or regulations to chant it. It

can be chanted be chanted anywhere and anytime.

5. The Hare Krsna Mahamantra bestows unlimited blessings and mercy

of Lord Krsna.

6. The Hare Krsna Mahamantra wipes away all the sins accumulated for

many lifetimes.

Thus all the scriptures describe the Hare Krsna Mantra as the

MAHAMANTRA.

Hare Krsna Hare Krsna Krsna Krsna Hare Hare

Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare

ANSWER IN SHORT:

1. Who prayed to the Lord to appear?

2. What is Lord Caitanya also Known as?

ANSWER IN DETAIL:

1. Quote the acharyas on the importance of the Hare Krsna Mahamantra.

68

CHAPTER 4

BHAKTA VATSALA- LORD NARSINGHADEVA

Scene I

(Hiranyakasipu is standing on the left side of the stage, on his toes, looking

upwards with his hands raised high above his head. Music with slow

increasing crescendo according to the dialogues may be played in the

background. A soft spot light is trained on him.)

Narration: Once upon a time there was a demoniac king by the name of

Hiranyakasipu. He wanted to gain all yogic perfections, to be

deathless and to be the only king in the entire universe. Thus in

the valley of the Mandara hill, Hiranyakasipu began performing

austerities by standing on his toes, keeping his arms upwards

and looking towards the sky. Because of his severe austerities,

fire came from his head and this fire and its smoke spread

throughout the entire universe. All the rivers and oceans were

agitated; the surface of the globe with its mountains and islands

began trembling. The stars and planets too fell. Extremely

disturbed by all this, the frightened demigods approached Lord

Brahma and begged him to stop Hiranyakasipu from

performing these severe austerities. Lord Brahma immediately

proceeded to meet Hiranyakasipu and grant him his

benediction.

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Brahma: O! Hiranyakasipu, please get up. All good fortune unto you!

You are perfect in the performance of your austerities. Even

the great sages in the past could not perform such severe

austerities, nor do I think anyone in the future will be able to do

so. You have thus won my good will. You may ask whatever

you wish for and I shall try to fulfill your desire.

Narration: Lord Brahma then sprinkled some water from his kamandalu on

Hiranyakasipu and enlivened him.

(Hiranyakasipu pays obeisances to Brahma)

Hiranya: I offer my obeisances unto you, O my Lord, O best of the giver

of benedictions, please grant me immortality.

Brahma: O Hiranyakasipu, I cannot grant you eternal life, for I too have

to face death at the end of a hundred million years. Only Sri

Krsna, Who is the Supreme Personality of Godhead and the

Father of all living entities, is eternal.

Hiranya: In that case, please grant me that I may not meet with death

from any living entities created by you; inside a house or

outside it; by day or by night; by any human being or animal;

nor by any weapon.

Brahma: These boons for which you have asked are difficult to get for

the best of men, yet I will grant them to you.

(So saying Brahma sprinkles water on Hiranyakasipu from his Kamandalu)

Fade Out!!

Scene II

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(No backdrops required here. The scene consists of Narada Muni, Kayadu,

Indra and a few guards. The scene is of the heavenly planets and is on the

right side of the stage. The left side is now darkened and preparations for the

next scene there, i.e., Prahlad’s school, may commence.)

Narration: While Hiranyakasipu was performing penance, all the demigods

led by Indra attacked his kingdom and began to harass the

citizens. King Indra was himself about to kidnap his pregnant

wife Kayadu.

Indra: Ha, ha, ha. So your husband thinks he is very great? Where is

he now to protect you? Take her away, it will teach that demon

a good lesson.

Kayadu: Please, please have mercy on me. I am pregnant, and even the

scriptures say that a woman must be protected.

Indra: Yes, you are carrying the child of a demon. And who knows,

maybe this child will create more havoc than his father! So it is

all the more important to kill that child.

Kayadu: No, no, please spare me, please spare my child.

(Narada Muni enters)

Narada: All glories to Lord Narayana! This lady is right, O King! It is

her husband who is your enemy. You have no reason to punish

her. So please spare her. Besides, she is carrying a child who

will be a great devotee of Lord Krsna!

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Kayadu: But what will happen to me now? Who will take care of me

while my husband is away?

Narada: Don’t worry, mother. You can stay at my ashram till your child

is born, after which I shall return you to your husband with due

honor.

(Narada leads her away)

Fade Out!!

Scene III

(The scene is on the left side that is now lit. It consists of a few trees and a

hut depicting Prahlad’s school. The teachers, Skanda and Amarka, Prahlad

and his friends are present in the scene. The right side of the stage is dark in

preparation for the next scene, i.e., Hiranyakasipu’s palace.)

Narration: At the ashram of Narada Muni, Kayadu would hear of the

glories of Lord Visnu and so the child received the knowledge

of devotional service while still in the womb of his mother.

Meanwhile, after receiving the boons from Brahma,

Hiranyakasipu, returned to his palace, a jubilant king! Soon a

baby boy was born to Kayadu who was named Prahlad. Narada

Muni then returned, both, mother and son to Hiranyakasipu.

(Pause) After Prahlad grew up his father sent him to a school

attended by other asura children.

72

Skanda: So, therefore when you become the king, or are involved with

any part of the government management, you must befriend

only those who can be of use to you. Never be friendly with

those who make a great show of friendship for these are the

very people who will stab you in the back. Is that all right?

Prahlad: But, teacher, since every living entity is part and parcel of the

Supreme Lord, Sri Krsna, why must we consider one as friend

and the other as enemy?

Amarka: (Scolding) Prahlad! Being the on of the mighty asura King

Hiranyakasipu, it does not suit you to say such things. If you

want to become a great ruler like your father, then you must

give up such ideas, or you will never progress in life.

(A bell rings and the teachers leave. As the teachers leave, Prahlad addresses

his friends)

Prahlad: My dear friend, our eternal father is Sri Krsna. He teaches us to

serve Him with love and devotion. Why must we then make

enemies? Come let us sing and glorify the Lord.

(As the children get up and start kirtan, which should go on for 15seconds,

the teachers enter suddenly)

Skanda: Prahlad! What is going on here? You are all children of asuras

and such behavior does not suit you at all.

Amarka: Can you imagine? Asuras and chanting the name of Lord Hari:

73

Skanda: Tell me, Prahlad, where have you learnt all this? Who has been

teaching you this nonsense?

Prahlad: O Brahmins, as iron is attracted to magnet, so also my heart and

soul are attracted to Lord Visnu.

Amarka: (Shouts) Bring me a stick somebody. Let me teach this boy a

good lesson. He is creating nuisance in this great family of

asuras and is also ruining our name.

Fade out!!

Scene IV

(The scene is set in the palace of Hiranyakasipu, where he is seated on his

throne and his courtiers, Prahlad’s teachers and guards are around him)

Hiranya: Where is my beloved son? I wish to meet him at once.

(A guard goes to get Prahlad)

Prahlad: My respectful obeisances unto you, dear father. Did you wish to

see me?

Hiranya: Come, my beloved son. Come here and sit on my lap.

(Prahlad goes and sits on his lap)

Hiranya: (Smiling) Tell me all that you have learnt from your teachers.

74

Prahlad: My teacher has taught me that one must fully dedicate one’s life

to serving Lord Visnu with pure love and devotion, by

becoming his servant and surrendering unto Him.

Hiranya: (Standing and shouting). What?! You have taught my son to

take shelter of my enemy? You shall be punished.

Skanda: My Lord, we are innocent. We do not know where he has learnt

all this.

Amarka: You know that we have always been loyal to you. How can you

believe that we have taught your son to be against you?

Hiranya: I shall excuse you this time, but take him back and teach him

the ways of our forefathers, our clan.

Fade out!!

Scene V

(The same section with the same characters is repeated)

Narration: In spite of the repeated efforts of the teachers, Skanda and

Amarka, Prahlad continued to be completely devoted to Lord

Visnu. Eventually, Hiranyakasipu feels that his enemies have

been meeting Prahlad on the sly and plotting him against his

father.

Hiranya: This boy is our enemy because he has taken shelter of my

enemy. He has given up the instructions of his father for

that……that Visnu! He has gone out of my hands and therefore

he has to be killed!

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Narration: The demon guards of Hiranyakasipu tried various methods to

kill Prahlad. They threw him in a pit of poisonous snakes, they

threw him from a high mountain, tried to burn him, put him in a

pot of boiling oil, but Prahlad always called out to Lord Visnu,

who saved him from all danger.

(The same section with the same characters is repeated again. The demons

enter)

Guard 1: All glories to the great King Hiranyakasipu. My Lord, we tried

every method of killing Prahlad, but nothing seems to harm

him.

Guard 2: He is completely fearless.

(Hiranyakasipu paces up and down in fury)

Hiranya: Bring that rascal to me, I will deal with him.

(Prahlad is brought in tied with ropes)

Hiranya: Prahlad! You rascal! You know that when I get angry, the

whole world trembles. Then why did you disobey me and yet

seem completely fearless?

Prahlad: (appearing calm). My dear father, we all get our strength from

that same person. He is Lord Krsna, the Supreme Controller.

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Hiranya: Oh! So now you are trying to challenge me? Are you trying to

say that your Krsna is greater than me? Are you saying that He

can control me? You are talking so much nonsense; let me see

if your God comes to save you when I kill you? Where is your

God? Is He here in this palace? Is He present in these walls? Is

He present in this pillar?

(So saying, he strikes the pillar and a loud background sound and flash of

light and Lord Narsinghadev appears from the pillar. The rest of the scene

shows Hiranyakasipu fighting with Narsinghadev, while background music

is on throughout)

Narration: Lord Narsinghadev, who is Lord Visnu Himself, played with

Hiranyakasipu as a cat plays with a mouse before killing it.

Thus, Lord Vishnu killed the demon king Hiranyakasipu by

appearing as Narsinghadev, i.e.: half-man, half-lion, killing him

at the threshold of his at the palace, at twilight, with His nails.

In this way He did not disturb the boon granted by Lord

Brahma to Hiranyakasipu.

The End

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CHAPTER 5

SUMMARY STUDY OF CHAPTER 1 OF BHAGAVAD-GITA

Text 1

Bhagavad-Gita should be learnt from a person who is a devotee of Sri Krsna

and understands it without personally motivated interpretations. Bhagavad-

Gita can be clearly understood only if a person from the line of disciplic

succession explains it because only such a person would explain the same

without motivated interpretations. The benefit derived by doing so would be

that the individual would surpass all studies of Vedic wisdom and all

scriptures of the world.

The word Dharmaksetra (a place where religious rituals are performed) is

significant because on the Battlefield of Kuruksetra, the Supreme

Personality of Godhead was present on the side of Arjuna and the sons of

Pandu, who were virtuous by nature. Dhritarastra deliberately claimed only

his sons as Kurus, and he separated the sons of Pandu from the family

heritage. As the father of religion, Sri Krsna, was present, only the

thoroughly religious persons headed by Yudhisthira would win the battle.

This is the significance of the words Dharmaksetra and Kuruksetra apart

from their historical and Vedic importance of being a place of worship.

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Text 2-13

Duryodhana could not suppress his fear when he saw the military

arrangement of the Pandavas. So he at once went to the commander in chief,

Dronacarya to inform him of the real situation. He was fearful of the

outcome due to the defects of Dronacarya. Firstly, Dhrstadyumna the son of

Drupada, was born with the benediction that he would be able to kill

Dronacarya. He had also received the military training from Dronacarya. In

the Battlefield of Kuruksetra, he had arranged the Pandavas’ military

phalanx. Secondly, Pandavas were Dronacarya’s affectionate students. So he

feared that Dronacarya would be lenient towards Arjuna, his most

affectionate and brilliant student. There were many others who were causes

of fear besides the powerful Bhima and Arjuna, like Dhrstaketu, Cekitana,

Kasiraja, Purujit, Kuntibhoja, and Saibya. Yudhamanyu and Uttamauja the

great chariot fighter added to Duryodhana’s fear.

Duryodhana had great fighters like Dronacarya, Bhismadeva, karna, Krpa,

Asvatthama, Vikarna, Bhurisrava, and many other who would be ready to

lay down their lives for him. He also tried to estimate the comparative

strength by comparing Bhisma the most experienced general, with Bhima on

the Pandavas’ side. He had clearly felt that the victory of the Kurus

depended on the presence of Bhismadeva. He clearly emphasized that

Bhismadeva was undoubtedly the greatest hero, but he was an old man. So

everyone must especially think of his protection from all sides. Hence he

wanted Dronacarya to remain alert. Thus Duryodhana tries to inspire his

army by his expert diplomacy. Bhisma can foresee the outcome of the battle,

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but still, as a matter of duty, tries to encourage Duryodhana by blowing his

conch shell.

Text 14

Whenever and wherever the Lord is present, the Goddess of fortune is also

there because the Goddess of fortune never lives alone without her husband.

Therefore, victory and fortune were awaiting Arjuna as indicated by the

transcendental sound produced by the conch shell of Visnu, or Lord Krsna.

Besides that, Arjuna’s chariot had been donated by Agni and this indicated

that the chariot was capable of conquering all sides wherever it was drawn

over the three worlds.

Text 15

Lord Krsna is referred to as Hrsikesa in this verse because He is the owner

of all senses. The living entities are part and parcel of Him, and therefore the

senses of the living entities are also part and parcel of His senses. The Lord

situated in the hearts of all living entities directs their senses in terms of the

surrender of the living entity. In case of a devotee, He directly controls the

senses. Here on the Battlefield of Kuruksetra the Lord directly controls the

transcendental sense of Arjuna, and thus His particular name of Hrsikesa.

The Lord has different names according to His different activities. His name

is Madhusudana because He killed the demon by the name of Madhu; His

name is Govinda because He gives pleasure to the cows and to the senses;

His name is Vasudeva because He appeared as the son of Vasudeva; His

name is Devakinandana because He accepted Devaki as His mother; His

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name is Yasodanandana because he awarded his childhood pastimes to

Yasoda at Vrndavan; His name is Partha-sarathi because he became a chariot

driver for his friend Arjuna, who is referred to as Dhananjaya in this verse

because he helped his elder brother in fetching wealth when it was required

by the king to make expenditure for different sacrifices. Similarly, Bhima is

known as Vrkodara because he could eat as voraciously as he could perform

Herculean tasks, such as killing the demon Hidimba. The soundings of the

transcendental conch shells beginning with the Lord’s, were all very

encouraging to the fighting soldiers. On the other side there were no such

credits, nor the presence of Lord Krsna, the Supreme director, nor that of the

Goddess of fortune. So they were predestined to lose the battle and that was

the message announced by the sounds of the conch shells.

Lord Krsna blew His conch shell called Pancajanya, Arjuna blew his conch

shell called Devadatta and Bhima blew his terrific conch shell called

Paundra. King Yudhisthira blew his conch shell called Anantavijaya, Nakula

and Sahadeva blew Sughosa and Manipuspaka

Text 16 – 18

The signs already clearly indicated that the whole Kuru dynasty would be

killed in that great battle, beginning with the grandsire, Bhisma, down to the

grandsons like Abhimanyu and others. The whole calamity was due to King

Dhrtarastra, because he encouraged the policy followed by his sons.

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Text 19

The vibrating sounds of the conch shells by Pandavas shattered the hearts of

the sons of Dhrtarastra. But there was no heart-breaking on the part of

Pandavas when Bhisma and Duryodhana blew their conch shells. This is due

to the Pandavas and their confidence in Lord Krsna. One who takes shelter

of the Supreme Lord has nothing to fear, even in the midst of the greatest

calamity.

Text 20

The emblem of Hanuman on the flag of Arjuna is another sign of victory

because Hanuman cooperated with Lord Rama in the battle against Ravana,

and Lord Rama had emerged victorious. Now both Lord Rama and

Hamuman were present on the chariot of Arjuna to help him. Lord Krishna

is Lord Rama Himself, and wherever Lord Rama is, His eternal servitor

Hanuman and His eternal consort Sita, the goddess of fortune, are present.

Therefore Arjuna had no cause to fear. Above all Lord Krsna, the Lord of

senses, was personally directing him. In such auspicious conditions,

arranged by the Lord for His eternal devotee, lay the signs of assured

victory.

Text 21-27

Although Krsna is the Supreme Personality of Godhead, out of His causeless

mercy He was engaged in the service of his friend. Since He is the master,

everyone is under His orders and no one is above Him to order Him. But

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when he finds that a pure devotee is ordering Him He obtains transcendental

pleasure although He is the infallible master of all circumstances. As

charioteer, He had to carry out the orders of Arjuna, and since He did not

hesitate to do so, He is addressed as Acyuta, or the infallible one.

As a pure devotee of the Lord, Arjuna had no desire to fight with his cousins

and brothers. But he was forced to come onto the battlefield due to

Duryodhana, who would never agree to any peaceful negotiations. Therefore

he wanted to see who the leading persons were and how eager they were

upon demanding an unwanted war.

Arjuna only wanted to see them to make an estimate of the strength that he

had to face, although he was confident of victory because Krsna was sitting

by his side. Arjuna is referred to as Gudakesa because he had conquered

both sleep and ignorance because of his friendship with Krsna. As a great

devotee of Krishna, he could not forget Krishna even for a moment, because

that is the nature of a devotee.

Hrsikesa, as the Super soul of all living entities, could understand what was

going on in the mind of Arjuna. He fuels Arjuna’s confusion in a friendly

joking by pointing out all his relatives, friends and well-wishers. When he

saw all these different grades of friends and relatives, he became

overwhelmed with compassion.

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Text 27 – 36

Being a pure devotee of the Lord, Arjuna was softhearted. And he felt

compassion for his kinsmen, friends, and relatives who had decided to fight

amongst themselves. Apart from concern and sympathy for his own soldiers,

he felt compassion even for the soldiers of the opposite party, foreseeing

their imminent death. Due to this compassion mixed with material

attachment to family members his body starts trembling. He became so

impatient that his famous bow Gandiva was slipping from his hands.

Arjuna thought that his victory in the battle would only be cause of

lamentation for him. Due to his material attachment for his material well-

being, he loses his calm. Without knowing that one’s self-interest is in

Krsna, conditioned souls are attracted to bodily relationships, hoping to be

happy in such situations. Arjuna appears to have even forgotten the moral

codes for a ksatriya. He thinks that by killing his kinsmen, there would be no

happiness in life and therefore is not willing to fight. He is reluctant even to

kill his enemies let alone his relatives. Since he does not like to do so he

considers himself fit to go to the forest to live a secluded life of frustration.

By addressing Krsna as Govinda, Arjuna indicates that Krsna should

understand what would satisfy Arjuna’s senses. One must actually try to

please the senses of Govinda; only then can one be fully satisfied. As the

devotees of the Lord do not retaliate against the wrongdoer, Arjuna wanted

to excuse them. The Lord was determined to kill the miscreants because He

can excuse a person on His own account but not one that harms His

devotees. At this point Arjuna did not know that Krsna had already killed his

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relatives before their coming into the battlefield and that he was only to

become an instrument for Krsna.

According to the Vedic injunctions there are six kinds of aggressors: (1) a

poison giver, (2)one who sets fire to the house, (3) one who attacks with

deadly weapons, (4) one who plunders riches, (5) one who occupies

another’s’ land, and (6) one who kidnaps a wife. Such aggressors are at once

to be killed and no sin is incurred by killing such aggressors. Arjuna regards

killing his relatives as sinful and therefore prefers to forgive them in spite of

their aggression. But this kind of saintliness is not for a ksatriya. Arjuna

addresses Krsna as Madhava, or husband of goddess of fortune. This is quite

significant, because he wanted to point out that as husband of the goddess of

fortune He should not induce Arjuna to take up a matter which would

ultimately bring about misfortune. Krsna, however, never brings misfortune

to anyone, especially, not to His devotees.

Text 37-46

Although Duryodhana and his men might not see the effect of their actions,

Arjuna considers it sinful to take part in war, which will destroy the entire

dynasty. And considering the ill effects, though a ksatriya, decides not to

fight although challenged to do so. He fears that with the older family

members gone, coming generations will develop irreligious habits. “Good

population in human society is the basic principle for peace, prosperity and

spiritual progress in life. Such population depends on the chastity and

faithfulness of its womanhood.” Also, with the increase in unwanted

children, family traditions will stop. And so the whole family – past, present

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and future – will be cast to hellish life. Hence Arjuna decides not to fight.

But by serving Krsna one automatically fulfills all obligations to one’s

forefathers.

He also bases his point by saying that irresponsible leaders would be unable

to maintain sanatana-dharma and therefore the community and family

welfare projects would be hampered and thereby lead to a society with chaos

and consequently people will forget the aim of life – Visnu. Thus Arjuna

intelligently refers to scriptural authorities to justify his conclusions about

the sinful nature of his participation in the battle. He is convinced that the

war is sinful, and therefore decides not to fight, even if the opposing soldiers

attack him.

Questions

Fill in the blanks:

1. __________________ was the commander-in-chief of the Kaurava

sena.

2. Lord Krishna is referred to as _____________________in verse 15,

chapter 1 of the Bhagavad Gita.

Give reasons:

1. Gita should be understood from a person from the line of disciplic

succession.

2. Bheema is referred to as Vrkodara.

Answer the following:

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1. Why is Kuru Kshetra also called Dharma Kshetra?

2. What did Duryodhana think, were the defects of Dronacharya?

3. What were the signs of the Pandavas’ victory in the battle, even

before it begun?

4. Who are the aggressors according to the Vedas?

Write a short note on:

1. Reasons for Arjuna “Not to Fight”.

State whether the following warriors were from Kaurava sena or Pandava

sena?

Krpa Saibya

Kuntibhoja Bhurisrava

Purujit Dronacharya

Bhishmadeva Dhrstaketu

Kashiraja Yudhamanyu

Aswatthama Vikarna

Karna Uttamauja

Cekitana

Explain how Krishna or Arjuna got the following names:

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Hrishikesha Devakinanadana Gudakesha

Madhusudana Parthasarathi Dhananjaya

Vasudeva Acyuta Madhava

Which conch shell did each of them blow?

1. Krishna

2. Arjuna

3. Bheema

4. Yudhisthira

5. Nakula

6. Sahadeva

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CHAPTER 6

PASTIMES OF LORD CAITANYA - NIMAI’S PUPPY

When Lord Caitanya was a small boy, everyone called Him Nimai. One

day, little Nimai was playing outside with His friends. All of a sudden, four

puppies appeared. When Nimai saw them he pointed at one of the dogs and

said, “Look, what a sweet little puppy! He is going to be My new pet.”

Nimai immediately wanted to play with him. The other boys were tired and

hungry, so they decided to go home for dinner. They left Nimai alone, but

He did not care. He continued to play with the puppy, laughing and rolling

on the ground.

Later, He found a piece of twine to tie around the neck of his pet, so He

could bring him home. After a while, they reached His home and Nimai tied

the puppy in front of His house. As Nimai entered the house, His mother,

Saci, was leaving with her servants.

“I am glad You came, Nimai. I am going down to the Ganges to take a bath.

Stay here and I will be right back.”

Nimai now had the whole house to Himself. He ran out, untied the puppy

and brought him inside. He was running and jumping with the dog like a

whirlwind, and doing all kinds of funny tricks.

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They were having so much fun when suddenly, Mother Saci returned home.

“Eeeeeech! A dirty dog!” Mother Saci said. “What is he doing here?

Can’t you see that he is completely covered with dust? You are a brahmana

boy and you are not supposed to play with dogs!”

“But he is My new pet,” Nimai said. “What is wrong with that?”

“This is unheard of!” Mother Saci said. “Dogs are unclean.

They eat dead animals and all kinds of things that we would not even touch.

You must get rid of him immediately.”

“If he wants to, he can leave,” Nimai said. “Do you want to leave?” Nimai

asked the puppy.

The dog looked from one to another with his eyes wide open.

“You see, Mother?” Nimai said, “He does not want to go away. He wants

to stay with Me.”

Nimai begged His mother to let Him keep the little puppy.

“Well, then, we will let him stay,” Mother Saci said. “But, You will have to

tie him up outside the house.”

Nimai did as His mother said and took the puppy outside. He tied him up at

the bottom of the steps.

“Mother, I am going down to the river to take a bath,” Nimai called from

outside.

“That is a good idea, but first please come here,” Mother Saci said.

Mother Saci smeared Nimai’s body with sacred oils to purify Him. Nimai

lovingly embraced His mother and ran swiftly out of the door.

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Down by the Ganges Nimai found all of His friends. He jumped into the

water to play with them. Splish! Splash! They were frolicking and

splashing in the water just like little elephants.

Meanwhile at home, Mother Saci was thinking of ways to get rid of the dog.

Just then, the mother of the puppies walked past. Mother Saci untied

Nimai’s pet and set him free. The little puppy was very happy to see him

mother and quickly disappeared with her and his brothers and sisters.

One of the boys from the neighborhood saw what happened and ran down to

the Ganges to tell Nimai the terrible news.

“Nimai! Nimai! Mother Sachi has just let Your pet loose!”

“What?!” Nimai jumped up onto the bank and ran home as fast as His little

legs could carry Him.

Nimai could not find His pet anywhere. He looked and looked, but the

puppy was nowhere to be found.

“Someone has stolen my puppy,” Nimai cried.

Mother Saci held Him and tried to comfort Him.

“Do not cry, my little Nimai,” Mother Sachi said. “Please do not cry. You

do not have any reason to be unhappy.”

“Somebody took My puppy!” Nimai said. “I cannot find him anywhere.

He is gone.”

“Oh, that is why you are crying,” Mother Saci said. “Never mind Nimai.

Everything is going to be alright.”

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“But, I want my puppy back!” Cried Nimai.

Nimai just cried and cried. Mother Saci took Him on her lap and tried to

calm Him.

“Look, we will try to find him tomorrow, so please do not cry anymore, my

sweet little Nimai. With your eyes filled with tears, You do not have Your

usual moon-like face,” Mother Saci said.

Mother Saci comforted Nimai with her gentle voice. She gave Him some

tasty prasadam and He was soon very happy again.

In the meantime, the puppy had reached the other end of the town. Because

Nimai had touched and embraced the dog, he was now ecstatic.

“Radha-Krsna, Radha-Krshna, Gauranga, Gauranga!” the puppy started to

sing. “Radha-Krshna, Radha-Krshna, Gauranga, Gauranga!”

The puppy called out at the top of his voice. People looked at each other

with amazement when they saw how the puppy was dancing.

“What happened to this dog?” Someone asked. “He is dancing and singing

and rolling on the ground!”

“Hare Krsna, Hare Krsna, Krsna Krsna, Hare Hare,

Hare Rama, Hare Rama, Rama Rama, Hare Hare,” the puppy chanted.

People began to gather around the dancing dog. They had never seen such

an event in their whole lives and they could not understand what was going

on. They did not know that Nimai had touched the dog and given him love

of Krsna.

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This went on for a few days. The puppy continued to sing and dance in

ecstasy.

“Gauranga, Gauranga, Gauranga, Gau …!” when all of a sudden the puppy

fell down dead on the ground.

The people who were standing around the dog suddenly heard a whizzing

sound and the pounding of drums. A dazzling light illuminated the entire

sky. Everybody looked up and wondered what was happening. The light

was so intense that they had to step back. After a while, they figured out

what it was. A self-effulgent flowered airplane, decorated with thousands of

jewels and a beautiful satin seat, came down from the sky. The airplane

stopped and Gandharvas began to sing and blow conch shells. From

everywhere, one could hear the sound of “Hari, Hari!”

Suddenly, a brilliant light came out of the body of the dog. An effulgent

personality, dressed in divine clothes appeared and climbed onto the

flowered airplane. It was the spirit soul who had just left the dog’s body.

Now liberated, he was sitting on the airplane ready to go back to the spiritual

world to be with Lord Krsna eternally. The demigods showered flowers,

offered prayers and bid farewell.

All glories to Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu! He saves those who do not have

any hope of becoming liberated, simply by touching them. Let us pray that

Lord Caitanya will touch us with His mercy!

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Answer the following questions:

1. Where did Nimai find the puppy?

2. Why did Mother Saci tell Nimai that He could not keep the puppy?

3. What did Nimai do when He found out that the puppy was gone from

His house?

4. When spirit

soul left the dog’s body, where did he go and why?

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CHAPTER 7

THE BRAHMIN AND THE COBBLER Narada Muni traveled all over the Universe singing the glories of Lord

Krishna. On one such a journey to earth, he met a brahmin priest.

The brahmin was a proud man. He has just finished his daily rituals when

Narada Muni met him.

“Namaste, Oh Naradaji”, said the brahmin. “May your life be successful, Oh

Brahmin”, replied Narada Muni.

“Since you travel all over the Universe will you be visiting Vaikuntha soon?

If so, will you please ask Lord Narayan when I will join Him there? I am

sure it will be soon. But I just want to make sure” asked the arrogant priest.

A little later Narada Muni came across a cobbler. He sat on the roadside

mending shoes. He humbly paid obeisances to Narada Muni, “All glories to

you, Oh exalted Muni”!

“All glories to all the devotees of Lord Narayan”, said Narada Muni. “I hope

all is well with you by the grace of the Lord”

“Yes, all is well. You are so fortunate that you can see Lord Narayan

whenever you wish. I wonder when I will be able to see Him!”

“I’ll definitely ask Him the next time I see Him,” replied Narada Muni.

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Narada Muni then departed for the Spiritual world. There he met Lord

Narayan and mentioned to him about the Brahmin priest and the cobbler.

Lord Narayan then told Narada Muni, “Tell the Brahmin that he will return

to me only after one hundred lifetimes, while the cobbler can be told that he

will see me at the end of this present life.

Narada Muni was surprised because the priest was supposed to be of an

elevated status while the cobbler was that of a lowly caste of people who

made shoes from the skin dead animals. So he naturally believed that the

priest had the first hand chance of going to Vaikuntha.

Lord Narayan understood what was going on in Narada Muni’s mind. He

addressed him, “When you meet them they will ask you what I was doing

when you met me. Tell them I was threading an elephant through the eye of

a needle.”

Although Narada Muni was perplexed he continued on his journey.

When he met the Brahmin he told him that Lord Narayan said he would

have to wait a hundred lifetimes before he went to Vaikuntha. The arrogant

brahmin was shocked. “What! A hundred lifetimes? I do all my daily rituals

with so much care. I come from such an elevated family and you say a

hundred lifetimes? I’m sure you didn’t even meet Lord Narayan. If you did,

then tell me what was he doing when you saw him?”

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Narada replied, “He was threading an elephant through the eye of a needle.

“What?!!” How ridiculous! Is it possible to thread a huge elephant through

the miniscule eye of the needle? It is clear now that you did not see him and

are making all this up.”

Narada Muni next met the cobbler. He told him that he would soon be

returning to the Spiritual abode of Lord Narayana. “The Lord is so merciful!

He’ll take me back at the end of this life!” Then he asked Narada Muni,

“Tell me sir, what the Lord was doing when you met Him?”

Narada Muni replied, “He was threading the elephant through the eye of a

needle.”

“Oh how wonderful!” exclaimed the cobbler. Narada Muni was surprised!

He asked, “Do you actually believe that?” he exclaimed.

“Of course I do. Do you see that huge Oak tree? Where do you think it came

from? It came from a tiny acorn. So if He can pack a huge tree in a tiny

acorn why can’t he thread the eye of a needle with an elephant?”

At first Narada Muni was perplexed when Lord Narayana told him what he

had to say to the Brahmin and the cobbler. But now seeing the difference

between the proud faithless Brahmin and the humble cobbler, he understood

the judgment of Lord Narayana.

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CHAPTER 8

LORD KRSNA’S HEADACHE

Narada Muni, the great sage was given a special benediction by the Supreme

Personality of Godhead, Krsna. He could now travel all over the universe

without any difficulty and always glorify the names of the Supreme Lord.

Once Narada was thinking, ‘There so many devotees of Lord Krsna. I

wonder which devotee is dearest to Lord Krsna.’ He set off to Goloka

Vrndavana to ask this question to Lord Krsna Himself. But as he reached

there he was disturbed by what he saw. Lord Krsna had a headache!

“Oh, ohh, I am in so much pain. I have a headache,” cried out Krsna. Narada

Muni asked Him if he could massage His forehead. But the Lord declined

saying, “Oh Narada, I have tried everything. I even called the Vaidya but he

said that the only cure for my headache is the dust of the Lotus Feet of my

devotee. Will you be kind enough to get me some dust of the Lotus feet of

my devotees?”

Narada Muni was perplexed. Who would be foolish enough to give the dust

of his feet to the Supreme Personality of Godhead who is the Creator of the

Universe? Such a person will go straight to hell!

So Narada ventured out to find such a devotee on earth. On the way he came

across some learned Brahmins. He mentioned the Lord’s request to them.

They were dumbfounded. “The dust of our feet?” they said. How can we

commit such a great offence? It is impossible. Sorry Naradaji we are not

willing to take such a big risk. All our knowledge, learning and austerity will

amount to nothing if we go to hell”

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Narada Muni wondered where he could go next to find such a devotee who

didn’t mind going to hell! He went up to the Himalayas where many yogis in

meditation. They were performing severe austerities to achieve liberation.

Some stood on one leg, while another stood on his head. Some hadn’t eaten

anything for years! Narada Muni was sure that there would surely be one

amongst these who would want to help the Lord get rid of His headache.

After all these were all great devotees! He went up to them and told them

about his dilemma. But they too refused. They also felt, like the Brahmins

that their austerities would be a waste if they had to go hell after such an

offensive act.

Narada muni was very dejected and went to Dwarka. There he met the

queens of Lord Dwarkadhish. He told them that Lord Krsna was in pain.

Usually a wife is ever ready to help her husband, especially if he is in pain.

But the queens said, “Oh Naradaji, if only you had asked for something else,

we would have gladly done it for our beloved Krsna. But according to our

scriptures and our culture if our husband touches our feet or the dust of our

feet we will perish in hell for many many lifetimes. It is indeed the greatest

offence.”

Once more Narada muni went around looking for a pure devotee who would

give the dust of his lotus feet for Krsna. After a while he reached Vrndavana.

There he saw the gopis gathered together. Some were milking their cows

while some were stringing garlands. All the while they were describing the

wonderful childhood pastimes of the Lord. They remembered his pranks and

his heroic feats when he saved them all from the demons sent by Kamsa.

Narada muni walked up to them and told them what brought him there.

Immediately they all rushed to him and offered the dust of their feet to him

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for curing Lord Krsna’s headache. Narada Muni was amazed. How was it

that these gopis were not worried about going to hell? They did not question

his motive nor did they hesitate even for a moment. He asked them about it

and they replied, “If Krsna’s headache is relieved by such a simple thing as

the dust of our feet then we don’t mind going to the most hellish planets

again and again for even a million lifetimes.

Narada Muni then understood the true love of these gopis for Lord Krsna.

He returned to Goloka and applied the dust of the gopi’s feet on the Lord’s

head and cured Him of His headache. He also found the answer to his

question as to who was the greatest devotee of Lord Krsna.

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CHAPTER 9

MORAL BEHAVIOUR AND ETIQUETTE

Moral behaviour refers to that code of conduct that is accepted within the

society that we live in. Each society is different as are various cultures

around the world. Thus the accepted norms of behavior vary from my

society to another. E.g.:- In France it is considered wrong not to greet with a

kiss. But in India this kind of behavior would not be acceptable.

Times have changed and the distances between cultures have shrunk. It is

now hard to determine which act forms a part of which culture.

The moral behavior that we will learn about in this chapter goes way beyond

day to day social acts. The moral behavior that we will study, form the roots

of Indian culture. These codes of conduct stem from our Vedic Ethos and

the scriptures form our guidebooks.

To understand what is good or bad one must first understand who is God and

who we are in relation to him. This is because goodness or evil differs from

one person to another. E.g.: In a restaurant two men are seated. One is a

smoker while the other is not. The non-smoker gets disturbed by the smoke

and asks the man to leave but the smoker objects saying that he believes

smoking is good and he enjoys it. While the non-smoker says smoking is

bad for health. Now who is right and who is wrong? According to them each

one of them are right. There has to be a fixed norm to decide what is really

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good or bad. The material world, our material senses and all that exists here

is temporary, changing and destructible. The only thing that is indestructible,

eternal and constant is the Supreme Personality of Godhead Himself.

Let us begin by understanding who we really are.

Science describes man as a social animal. Thus we can conclude that we are

also animals! They sleep, eat, mate and protect themselves. We also sleep,

eat, mate and protect ourselves. They have intelligence and so do we. But

we have an edge over the animals. We have a higher reasoning power that

helps us to distinguish between right and wrong.

“Athato brahma jignasa”.

Translation: - Now having acquired the human form of life let us enquire

into the Brahman.

Keeping the above in mind one must ask oneself the questions: “Who am I?”

“Why am I here”? The answer to these questions is that we are spirit souls,

part and parcel of the Supreme soul, Lord Krsna and we are here to enjoy or

suffer the reactions of the Karmas of our past lifetimes and to liberate

ourselves from the process of action and reaction.

The next step would be to understand what is our real duty and activity. As

we have studied earlier our real dharma is to serve the Supreme Personality

of Godhead Lord Krsna and purify our senses and our actions and become

free from the cycle of action and reaction.

But before going so deep within the Vedic Philosophy let us first learn how

to behave in our day to day lives. Just the understanding that we are parts of

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Krsna should prod us into good behavior. Krsna wouldn’t want any

miscreants as His representatives, would He?

DAILY:

As soon as we wake up we must remember the Lord and thank him for the

day. Then one must wash oneself clean by using the toilet, brushing one’s

teeth and bathing. In many households people bathe after having breakfast.

This is inappropriate. One must bathe before doing anything else. Then after

paying obeisances to the deities or pictures of the Lord, one must pay

respects to one’s parents and then go about the rest of the day. Touching the

feet of elders to get their blessings and goodness, especially parents, is very

beneficial for the progress in one’s life.

IN THE TEMPLE:

One must lightly knock the door three times to announce one’s arrival.

Women must always cover their heads in the temple. Then one must pay

obeisances to the Guru first, i.e., Srila Prabhupada. Then one must pay

obeisances to the deities respectfully. One must not talk too loudly or behave

in a boisterous manner in the temple.

DRESS:

Our clothes signify who we are. A policeman would not be recognized if he

is not in his uniform. The growing western trends have permeated so deep

within Indian society that our youngsters have taken to western clothes with

a vengeance. Clothes that expose the body unduly are indicative of bad

upbringing and character. Our body is a temple within which Lord Krsna

resides in our hearts. To care for our body and to adorn it is our privilege.

Girls and boys who do not cover the bodies properly are displaying a lack of

self respect and self worth. It only attracts undue unhealthy attention and

lack of love for oneself. Well combed hair and short nails, all signify

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neatness and cleanliness. A dirty body will only attract negative energies to

you.

All these seem very rigid and old fashioned rules but they do make sense.

After all they are the stepping stones to developing God consciousness!

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SONG

(1)

jiv jago, jiv jago, gauracanda bole

kota nidra jao maya-pisacira kole

(2)

bhajibo boliya ese samsara-bhitare

bhuliya rohile tumi avidyara bhare

(3)

tomare loiter ami hoinu avatara

ami bina bandhu ara ke ache tomara

(4)

enechi ausadhi maya nasibaro lagi’

hari-nama maha-mantra lao tumi magi’

(5)

bhakativinoda prabhu-carane pariya

sei hari-nama-mantra loilo magiya

Translation

(1) Lord Gauranga calls, “Wake up, sleeping souls! Wake up, sleeping

souls! You have slept so long in the lap of the witch Maya.

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(2) “You came into this world saying, “O my Lord, I will certainly

worship You,’ but having forgotten this promise, you have remained in

great ignorance.

(3) “I have descended just to save you. Other than Myself, who else is

your friend?

(4) “I have brought the medicine for destroying the illusion of Maya.

Now pray for this hari-nama maha-mantra and take it.”

(5) Thakura Bhaktivinoda fell at the lotus feet of Lord Gauranga, and

after begging for the holy name he received that maha-mantra.

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ANCIENT VEDIC HISTORY

AND CULTURE 3

NAME: ______________________________________

CLASS: ______________________________________

ROLL NO: ________________

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I offer my respectful obeisances to His Divine Grace A.C.

Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada who has been my

primary source of knowledge and inspiration in Krsna

Consciousness.

Please continue to guide me in this venture of teaching

children as you have taught us.

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INTRODUCTION

My dear children,

The decision to revert back to the textbook form of the matter which

is needed for this subject was taken solely for your convenience since many

of you end up losing your papers and then do not having exclusive matter for

studying. You will also learn new words, their meanings and enjoy some

stress busting activities.

There are blank pages after every chapter to do your questions and

answers so there is no need for a separate notebook or extra sheets.

I hope you enjoy studying this subject as much as I enjoy teaching it to all of

you.

Hare Krsna!

- Gandhari devi dasi

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CONTENTS

1. A lifetime in preparation

2. Mrgari the hunter

3. The four Yugas

4. The King’s finger

5. Bhagavad-Gita Chapter 2: I am not this body

6. God is everywhere

7. You are what you eat

8. The Sadhu’s blessings

9. Moral values and etiquette

Songs and slokas

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CHAPTER - 1

THE JOURNEY TO AMERICA

Abhay Charan De left home in disgust after he saw that his family was not

interested in spiritual matters and after his business crashed. But the ultimate

disappointment for him was when his wife sold his Bhagavatam for money

to buy tea and biscuits.

He soon took sanyas on the order of his spiritual master, Srila

Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Goswami who appeared in his dream and

instructed him to do so. He was now known as Abhay Caranaravindam

Bhaktivedanta Swami. He spent the next few months in Vrindavan at the

Radha Damodar Temple, reading and writing. He’d often go to Delhi to sell

his magazine, “Back to Godhead”.

He remembered his spiritual master’s instruction to him, ‘If you ever get

money print books’. Srila Bhaktisiddhanta also instructed Abhay to go to the

Western countries and preach the glories of the Holy Name and the message

of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu.

He approached Mrs. Sumati Morarjee, the owner of the Scindia Steam

Navigation Company for a complimentary ticket to go to America. But she

refused at first as he was very old. She told him it would be very cold and he

would not be able to survive the winters. Eventually she agreed and he was

taken on board bearing “a complimentary ticket with food.”

He set forth on his remarkable journey that changed the western countries.

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Bhaktivedanta Swami suffered immensely on board Jaladuta. The sea was

stormy and he became sea sick and even had two heart attacks. That night he

dreamt of Lord Krsna who had personally taken charge of his ship and was

rowing it to safety. The storm stopped and the sea was calm again. He

survived ‘only by the Lord’s mercy’. Externally, Srila Prabhupada was

experiencing great inconvenience; he had been aboard ship for a month and

had suffered heart attacks and repeated seasickness. Moreover, even if he

were to recover from these difficulties, his arrival in America would

undoubtedly bring many more difficulties. But remembering the desire of

his spiritual master, taking strength from his reading of Caitanya-caritamrta,

and revealing his mind in his prayer to Lord Krsna, Prabhupada remained

confident.

After a thirty-five-day journey from Calcutta, the Jaladuta reached Boston’s

Commonwealth Pier at 5:30 A.M. on September 17, 1965.

On the nineteenth of September the Jaladuta sailed into New York Harbor

and docked at a Brooklyn pier, at Seventeenth Street. Srila Prabhupada saw

the awesome Manhattan skyline, the Empire State Building, and like

millions of visitors and immigrants in the past, the Statue of Liberty.

Srila Prabhupada was dressed appropriately for a resident of Vrndavana. He

wore kanthi-mala (neck beads) and a simple cotton dhoti, and he carried

japa-mala (chanting beads) and an old chadar, or shawl. His complexion

was golden, his head shaven, shikha in the back, his forehead decorated with

the whitish Vaisnava tilaka. He wore pointed white rubber slippers, not

uncommon for sadhus in India. But who in New York had ever seen or

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dreamt of anyone appearing like this Vaisnava? He was possibly the first

Vaisnava sannyasi to arrive in New York with an uncompromised

appearance.

Srila Prabhupada was on his own. He had a sponsor, Mr. Agarwal,

somewhere in Pennsylvania. Surely someone would be here to greet him.

He was met by a representative from Traveler’s Aid, sent by the Agarwals in

Pennsylvania, who offered to take him to the Scindia ticket office in

Manhattan to book his return passage to India.

Mr. Forester had never seen a passenger wearing the traditional Vaisnava

dress of India. He found Srila Prabhupada to be “a pleasant gentleman” who

spoke of “the nice accommodations and treatment he had received aboard

the Jaladuta.” Prabhupada asked Mr. Foerster to hold space for him on a

return ship to India. His plans were to leave in about two months, and he

told Mr. Forester that he would keep in touch. Carrying only forty rupees

cash, which he himself called “a few hours’ spending in New York,” and an

additional twenty dollars he had collected from selling three volumes of the

Bhagavatam to Captain Pandya, Srila Prabhupada, with umbrella and

suitcase in hand, and still escorted by the Traveler’s Aid representative, set

out for the Port Authority Bus Terminal to arrange for his trip to Butler.

The bus came swinging out of the terminal into the daylight of mid-town

Manhattan, riding along in the shadows of skyscrapers, through asphalt

streets crowded with people, trucks, and automobiles and into the heavy

traffic bound toward the Lincoln Tunnel. The bus entered the tunnel and

emerged on the Jersey side of the Hudson River, continuing down the New

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Jersey Turnpike past fields of huge oil tanks and sprawling refineries. The

Manhattan skyline was on the left, while three lanes of traffic sped sixty

miles an hour in each direction. Newark Airport came up close by on the

right, with jets visible on the ground. Electric power lines, spanning aloft

between steel towers, stretched into the horizon.

Srila Prabhupada had never before witnessed anything of such magnitude.

He was now seeing for himself that American culture was based on passion

for more and more sense gratification – and it was a scene of madness. For

what important business were people rushing to and fro at breakneck speed?

He could see their goals advertised on the billboards.

Meat-eating, illicit sex, intoxication, and gambling – the very sins Srila

Prabhupada had come to preach against – were proudly glamorized on mile

after mile of billboards. The signs promoted liquor and cigarettes, roadside

restaurants offered slaughtered cows in the form of steaks and hamburgers,

and no matter what the product, it was usually advertised by a lusty-looking

woman. But Prabhupada had come to teach the opposite: that happiness is

not found in the passion for sense gratification, and that only when one

becomes detached from the mode of passion, which leads to sinful acts, can

one become eligible for the eternal happiness of Krsna consciousness.

The journey marked the beginning of Krsna Consciousness in the West.

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CHAPTER – 2

MRGARI, THE HUNTER

Narada Muni is a liberated pure devotee of Lord Krsna. By Lord Krsna’s

mercy, he can travel to any planet in the universe. If we want to go to any

other planet, we require a spaceship. But, Narada Muni can go to any planet

without spaceship. He can even go to the spiritual Vaikuntha planets. These

spiritual planets are situated beyond the material universe in which we live.

He always travels everywhere to spread the glories of Lord Krsna. His aim is

to teach people how to surrender to the Lord.

This great devotee of the Lord once visited this planet earth. As he was

moving through the forest he saw a deer lying on the path, shot with an

arrow. Its legs were broken and it was suffering in great pain. Farther

ahead, Narada Muni saw a boar, also pierced by an arrow. Its legs were

broken and it was twisting in pain. Farther still, he saw a rabbit in the same

condition. Narada Muni was heartbroken to see these animals in so much

pain. The devotees of the Lord are para-dukha-dukhi. They feel pain at

seeing others in pain, whereas non-devotees are para-dukha-sukhi. They

enjoy seeing the suffering of others.

Narada Muni, to find out who could have left the animals in such conditions,

went deeper into the forest. In the denser part of the jungle, he saw a black

person hiding behind a tree. He was looking fierce. His eyes were red. He

was holding a bow and a quiver full of arrows in his hands. Obviously, he

was a hunter and wanted to kill more animals. To the poor animals he

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appeared like Yamaraja, the Lord of Death. As Narada Muni walked

towards the hunter, the animals fled in fear in all directions. Seeing this, the

hunter came out of his hiding place. He was angry to see that the animals he

wanted to kill had fled because of Narada Muni. He wanted to chastise the

saintly personality. However, Narada Muni stood fearless and influential in

front of him.

The hunter addressed Narada Muni, “O saintly person! Why have you left

the normal path through the forest to come to me? By seeing you, all the

animals I was hunting have fled.” Narada Muni replied, “I have come this

way to settle a doubt. I was wondering if all the half-killed boars and other

animals belong to you.” “Yes” the hunter replied, “they all belong to me.”

“Why didn’t you kill them completely? Why have you half-killed them by

piercing their bodies with arrows”? Inquired Narada Muni. The hunter

replied, “My dear sir, I am Mrgari, the enemy of the animals. My father

taught me to half-kill them. Before that, his father taught him the same way.

This is how our family has always lived. Seeing the animals in pain while

they are dying is fun. When I see half-killed animals suffering, I feel great

pleasure.”

Narada Muni then told the hunter, “I beg a humble favor from you.” The

hunter replied, “You may take whatever animals or anything else you would

like. I have many animal skins. If you like I can give you a deer skin or a

tiger skin?” Narada Muni said, “I do not want any of these skins. I only ask

one thing in charity. I beg that from this day onward you kill the animals

completely and not leave them half-dead.”

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The devotees of Lord Krsna have no selfish desires. Material things do not

tempt them. Their only mission is to preach about Krsna all over the world.

The hunter replied, “Why are you speaking like that? What is wrong with

the animals lying there half-killed? Will you please explain this to me?”

Narada Muni replied, “If you leave the animals half-dead you are purposely

giving them pain. Therefore you will have to suffer the reaction.”

Whatever Narada Muni says is considered authoritative. This is so because

what he speaks is from the Vedic literature. He knows all the Vedas. He

knows how to apply Vedic knowledge in a practical way so that everyone

can become happy. He explained to Mrgari that if one gives another living

being unnecessary pain, one would certainly be punished by the laws of

nature with similar pain. According to nature’s law, it is “life for life”.

Nature’s laws are very strict. No one can get away from them. A sinful

person has to suffer in this life and also in the next life and in lives after next

life. Narada Muni continued, “My dear hunter, your business is killing

animals. That is already a crime on your part. But when you purposely give

them unnecessary pain by leaving them half-dead, you incur very great sins.

All the animals that you have killed and given unnecessary pain will kill you

one after other in your next life and in lives after next.”

By these words, Narada Muni explained that any person, who eats meat,

fish, etc., incurs sin of killing that animal. He or she has to suffer the sinful

reaction for the act of killing. People are killing thousands of animals in a

slaughterhouse so that meat can be made easily and abundantly available.

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These people must get ready to be killed in a similar way in their next lives

and further.

Narada Muni’s only purpose was to save the hunter from this grossly sinful

lifestyle. He himself followed the principles that he was instructing. His

face was effulgent. Truthfulness was emanating from his words. His

character was influential. Because of his divine presence, his words, and his

association, the heart of Mrgari started melting. He could clearly understand

the religious principles explained by Narada Muni. He became afraid of the

impending sinful reactions to his past activities. He said, “I have been

engaged in these sinful activities from my very childhood. Now I wonder

how I can be free from these volumes of sinful activity. My dear sir, please

tell me how to free myself from these sinful reactions. I fully surrender unto

you and fall down at your lotus feet. Please deliver me from sinful

reactions.”

This is the process of surrender. By associating with a saintly person, one is

able to understand the reactions of his sinful life very fast. One should

voluntarily surrender to a saintly person, who is a representative of Lord

Krsna. And if one follows his instructions, one can be freed from all sins.

Narada Muni assured the hunter, “If you listen to my instructions, I shall

find the way by which you can be liberated.”

The pure devotees of Lord Krsna are very powerful. Each of them can save

the whole world. Then what to speak of Narada Muni who is the spiritual

master of so many pure devotees like Prahlad Maharaja, Dhruva Maharaja,

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Valmiki, etc.? If one follows his instructions one can be delivered from any

number of sins.

The hunter then said, “My dear Muni, I will do whatever you say.”

Narada Muni looked at the hunter with compassion and said, “First of all,

break your bow. Then I will tell you what is to be done next.” The hunter

was shocked. “If break my bow”, he said, “how will my family live?”

Narada Muni replied, “Do not worry. I shall supply all your food every

day.”

Narada Muni knew that in fact, Krsna is the real supplier of everyone’s

needs. The hunter would not suffer by breaking the bow. There was no

doubt that Krsna would supply him food, because he was following the order

of Krsna’s pure devotee.

The hunter having developed faith in Narada Muni’s words, followed the

first order of his guru, and broke his bow. He fell down at the lotus feet of

Narada Muni waiting for his next instruction. Narada Muni reached down to

lift the hunter up and said, “Now go home and give whatever you have to the

Brahmin priests. Then leave home with your wife taking only the clothes

you are wearing. Go to the river and build a small cottage. In front of the

house please grow a Tulasi plant on a raised platform. Every day, walk

around this holy Tulasi plant. Serve her by giving water and continuously

chant the Mahamantra:

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Hare Krsna Hare Krsna Krsna Krsna Hare Hare

Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare

I will send you both enough food every day. You can take as much food as

you want.”

Then Narada Muni went to the three half-killed animals he had seen on his

way and cured them. Indeed, the animals got up and swiftly ran away. The

hunter was struck with wonder to see this. He offered his respectful

obeisances to Narada Muni then left for Prayag. At this holy place, the three

rivers, Ganga, Yamuna, and Saraswati meet. The hunter returned home and

followed all the instructions given by Narada Muni.

The news that the hunter had completely changed, spread all over. He had

become a saintly Vaisnava devotee. The people were very happy to know

this.

It is an Indian custom that a saintly person should be maintained by the

grhasthas, the householders, so people started bringing gifts like fruits,

vegetables, grains, and milk for him. In a day they brought sufficient food

for ten or twenty people. But the couple would accept only as much as they

wanted. They would give away the rest to others. In this way their days

passed by chanting the holy name of Lord Krsna and engaging in other

devotional activities.

One day, Narada Muni’s friend Parvata Muni expressed a desire to see his

new Mrgari disciple. They both went to see him. As soon as Mrgari saw

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Narada Muni, he ran out to greet him. The greatest bliss for a disciple is to

have darshan of his spiritual master. He came near the sages, and wanted to

fall on the ground to offer his obeisance to the saintly personalities. But he

saw that there was a line of ants on the ground. Some ants were running here

and there around his feet. The ants would be crushed if he offered

obeisance. He brushed the ants carefully out of the path with his own cloth.

He did not want to harm a single ant! After clearing the area he fell down

straight as a stick in front of his spiritual master. It is the duty of a disciple

to offer dandavats to his spiritual master, whenever he sees him.

Parvata Muni looked at Narada Muni surprisingly, and asked, “Is this the

same cruel hunter you described to me? He can not even bear to give pain to

the lowly ants on the ground!” Narada Muni replied, “Actually, this is not

very surprising. This is the power of chanting. The Mahamantra develops in

one all good habits and one becomes a gentleman. He would never want to

give pain to others.”

Mrgari then received the two great sages in the courtyard of his house. He

made nice seats for the sages out of the straw mats, and fetched them water.

He washed their feet and collected the water in a vessel. Both husband and

wife drank that water with love and devotion and sprinkled it on their heads.

The hunter sang Krsna’s glories before his spiritual master. His body

trembled, and tears flowed from his eyes. Ecstatic with love, he raised his

hands, and began to dance. He was waving his clothing up and down. He

was remembering the mercy that Narada Muni had bestowed upon him.

Narada Muni looked happily at his disciple, and asked, “My dear Vaisnava,

do you have enough to live on?” The former hunter replied, “My dear sir,

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everyone you send to see me brings me something. Please do not send so

much, for we only need enough for two of us.”

A devotee of Krsna is satisfied with whatever Krsna supplied him. He just

accepts as much as is needed to maintain his body and soul together. He

does not work hard for over-acquiring material things. His real purpose is

only to serve Krsna. Narada Muni smiled. He was pleased to notice how

the hunter had left all the many bad habits. “You are very fortunate,” he

said.

Parvata Muni looked at his friend and said, “Narada, you are a touchstone.

Just by meeting you once, this hunter has become filled with pure love of

God. Even the demigods praise you because you can distribute love of Krsna

even among such lowborn sinful persons. Anyone who meets a pure

devotee of Krsna like you surely becomes infected with all good qualities.”

Parvata Muni thought that it was wonderful that this hunter had been

converted into such a nice devotee of Krsna. He asked, “How was such

sinful person delivered?”

Narada Muni replied, “He was sinful, but not a hypocrite. He was a simple

person. As soon as he understood his sinful activities, he admitted his

mistake. He surrendered fully, and did exactly as I said. So he could make

progress. Further, after giving up sinful life, he did not take it up again. He

left the sinful life forever.” Then Narada Muni and Parvata Muni gave

blessings to the hunter and his wife, and disappeared from there.

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This wonderful historical incident proves that the greatest blessing for all

living beings is the association of a pure devotee of Lord Krsna.

1. How does Narada Muni travel? Why?

2. What did Narada Muni see on his visit to earth?

3. What are the devotees of the Lord described as?

4. How did Mrgari hunt? Why?

5. What did Narada Muni advise Mrgari to do?

6. What change overcame Mrgari? Why?

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CHAPTER - 3

THE FOUR YUGAS

We all know that a whole day lasts for 24 hours. The concept of time that

we are aware is very different from the Universal concept of time. In the

Vedic scriptures, the Universal concept of time is mentioned as Kalpa, this

Kalpa is further divided into four Yugas – the Satya Yuga, Treta yuga,

Dwapar yuga and Kaliyuga. Each Yuga is characteristically different. Let

us study each Yuga or age in detail.

SATYA YUGA:

The cycle of Satya is characterized by virtue, wisdom and religion; there

being practically no ignorance and vice. This Yuga lasts for 1,728,000

years. The people in this Yuga lived for a hundred thousand years. They

were thus able to perform prolonged meditation. Everyone practiced the

mystic yoga system for spiritual understanding and realization of God.

Because everyone was always absorbed in samadhi, no one was interested in

material sense enjoyment. In Satya Yuga, Lord Narayana was worshipped

by meditation. The only mantra was ‘Omkara’ and the religious principles

were observed in full without deviation.

In Satya Yuga, the Supreme Lord is white in colour, has four arms, dresses

as a brahmacari and is known as Hamsa. He has matted locks and wears a

garment made of tree bark. He carries a black deerskin, a sacred thread,

prayer beads and the rod and water pot of a brahmacari.

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The people in Satya Yuga are described as santah, nirvairah, suhrdah and

samah – peaceful, free from envy, the well-wishers of every entity and fixed

on the spiritual platform beyond the modes of material nature. They

worshipped the Supreme Lord by austere meditation and external sense

control. Therefore Satya Yuga is also known as Krta Yuga.

TRETA YUGA:

In Treta Yuga, vice is introduced and this Yuga lasts for 1,296,000 years.

The duration of life or life span was 10,000 years. Self-realization was

attained by the performance of fire sacrifice. (Tretayam yajato mukhaih).

The colour of this Yuga is red. People enjoyed sense pleasure without

tribulations and religious principles were somewhat neglected, since only

three-fourths of the religious duties were being performed. Yet, the people

were dharmisthah and brahma vadinah – thoroughly religious and followers

of the Vedic injunctions. The personality of God in Tetra is red in colour

and four armed. He is the Personification of fire sacrifice. He is

characterized by the symbols of the sacrificial spoon, ladle, etc and is known

by such names as Yajna.

DWAPAR YUGA:

The duration of the Dwapar Yuga was 864,000 years. There was further

decline in religious principles. Vice increased and virtue and religion

decreased. The duration of life was one thousand years. Self-realization

was attained through deity worship. The colour of the Yuga was black. The

Supreme Personality of Godhead, Lord Krsna Himself, appeared in Dwapar

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Yuga, wearing a yellow garment, marked by symbols such as the Srivatsa

and is known by names such as Vasudeva. He is worshipped in this Yuga in

His deity form by the regulations of the Vedas and Tantras. The Inhabitants

of Dwapar Yuga are said to be simply jijnasavah, desiring to know of the

Absolute Truth.

KALI YUGA:

Finally, the Kali Yuga, which is what we are experiencing right now, lasts

for 4, 32,000 years, of which, 5000 odd years are already over. There is

abundance of strife, ignorance, irreligion and vice in this Yuga. Virtue is

practically non-existent. At the termination of this Yuga, the Supreme Lord

Himself appears as the Kalki avatar, vanquishes the demons and saves His

devotees, then the process of the four Yugas sets rolling all over again. In

the Kali Yuga, the life span of an individual is one hundred years only and

that is too combined with various difficulties. In Kali Yuga, everyone is on

the platform of a sudra as only one-fourth of the religious principles exist.

The only recommended process of Self-realization in this age is the Harinam

Sankirtan, the hearing and chanting of the Holy Name of the Lord. The

Supreme Personality of Godhead appears in Kaliyuga in golden colour and

is accompanied by His associates who are His primary and secondary limbs

and His weapons. He is absorbed in Krsna-kirtan and is worshipped by the

performance of the Sankirtan Yajna. Since in Kali Yuga, all the goals can

be achieved simply by the glorification of the Holy Name of Lord Sri Krsna.

The sastras have recommended the chanting of the Hare Krsna Mahamantra,

by which one becomes free from the bondage of material existence.

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Harer Nama Harer Nama Harer Nama eva kevalam

Kalau Nasty eva Nasty eva Nasty eva gatir anyatha

In this age of Kali, there is no other way no other way no other way to attain

salvation except by chanting the Holy Name chanting the Holy Name

chanting the Holy Name.

Thus whatever result was obtained in Satya yuga by meditation, in Treta

yuga by performing sacrifices, in Dwapar Yuga by serving the Lord’s Lotus

feet can be obtained in Kaliyuga simply by chanting the Hare Krsna

Mahamantra. Thus those who can really appreciate the real essence of

things, praise Kaliyuga.

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CHAPTER 4

THE KING’S FINGER

Once upon a time there lived a king and his minister. The king, though

strong and generous, possessed a short temper. His minister was wise,

patient, and devoted to god. In everyday affairs, the king usually thought he

was the one making everything happen. Then minister, however, saw the

hand of God everywhere. Despite these differences, the king appreciated the

minister and they were good friends.

To protect his citizens from dangerous beasts, the king, armed with a bow

and arrow would often ride into the forests with a small party of men. His

minister would also go with them.

One day while they were out hunting, the king proudly charged through the

thicket on his fine steed. But a large cobra slithered in front of the horse,

spitting poison from his fangs. The frightened horse kicked violently,

hurtling the king through the air. The king crashed to the ground beside the

snake. The snake promptly sank his fangs into the king’s finger and then

slithered back into the undergrowth.

The king realized that unless his finger was quickly removed, the poison

would travel through his body, reach his heart and kill him. Without

hesitating he unsheathed his sharp sword and chopped off the finger. His

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minister bandaged the king’s hand and tried to pacify him with wise words,

“Take this as simply the mercy of the Lord. Accept it as part of His plan.”

The king, shaken and upset, did not appreciate the minister’s view. “Be

quiet!” he snapped.

But the minister continued to speak of the Lord’s mercy. This enraged the

king so much that he ordered his men, “Take this foolish minister back to the

city and cast him in the dungeon.”

Determined not to change his hunting plan for the day, the king, his hand

neatly bandaged, continued alone through the forest searching for wild

beasts.

A short while later he was ambushed by a gang of bandits. They captured

and bound him. Their leader, grinning broadly, spoke in a gruff voice, “This

is your lucky day. I am going to sacrifice you to the Goddess Kali. It’s not

every day she enjoys royal blood!”

The king, however considered himself most unlucky. Bound with ropes he

had no way of saving himself from the bloody death on Kali’s altar.

Pointing to the king, the leader ordered his men, “Our human offering

should be stripped, washed and wrapped in new cloth.”

As the dacoits stripped him, one cried out, “Look, there is a finger missing.”

Inspecting the king’s hand, the leader of the dacoits was disappointed. “We

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cannot possibly offer an incomplete human to Kali,” he grunted. “Release

him you fools, and find someone else.”

Unexpectedly freed from his bonds, the king mounted his horse and sped

back to the city. Going straight to the dungeons, he ordered the release of is

minister. Embracing his friend, the king apologized, “By the mercy of the

Lord I lost a finger. And as result I had my life spared!”

After explaining the incredible incident to his minister, the king paused

thoughtfully, “I’m still a little puzzled. If everything that happens is the

mercy of the Lord, what is the point in you being thrown in the dungeon?”

With a knowing twinkle in his eye, the minister replied, “If you hadn’t

ordered me to be thrown in the dungeon, I would have been with you when

you were captured. Finding me with no parts missing, the Kali worshippers

would undoubtedly have used me as the human offering!”

Both the king and the minister laughed loudly, tears streaming down their

faces. Glad to be alive, they agreed that it certainly was all the mercy of the

Lord.

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Questions

Give meanings of the following words in context with the chapter:

Thicker Steed Slithered Hurling

Sank Unsheathed Enraged Ambushed

Bandits Gruff Grinning Grunted

I. Give reasons:

1. The king chopped off his finger at once

2. The king was upset with his minister

3. The gang of bandits captured and bound the king.

II. Answer the following:

1. How did the king differ from his minister in nature and thinking?

2. Why did the bandits release the king?

3. Why did the king and the minister think that whatever happened to

them was the mercy of the Lord?

III. Use the following in sentences of your own:

1. To see the hand of God in everything

2. To accept everything as Krsna’s plan

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CHAPTER - 5

I AM NOT THIS BODY

(BHAGAVAD-GITA CHAPTER 2)

Dehino ‘smin yatha dehe

Kaumaram yauvanam jara

Tatha dehantara praptir

Dhiras tatra na muhyati

“As the embodied soul continuously passes in this body, from boy-hood to

youth to old age, the soul similarly passes into another body at death. A

sober man is not bewildered by such a change.”

Simply by understanding that the body and the soul are actually separate can

make it easier to delve deeper into spiritual understanding. Only a clear

understanding of this fact, that we are not this body, will help us understand

ourselves in relation to God. For example: The car and the driver of the car

are different from each other, similarly the soul (the driver of the body) and

the body are two separate entities. And just like the car is dependent on the

driver, our body is dependent on the soul for its existence.

Srila Prabhupada has cited an excellent example of simplify the

understanding. The son of a deceased person was crying, “He has gone, “he

has gone.” But everybody could see the body of the father lying there, so

whom was the boy mentioning as gone? What was that missing element that

the boy was referring to as “gone”?

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All the chemicals and sense organs that a living man has are also present in

the dead body, yet one cannot bring back life into the body. This indicates

that there is another component within the body which is missing in the dead

body. This missing element is the SOUL, as it is called in the Vedas.

Krsna argues in Bhagavad-Gita, chapter 2, text 26,

atha caiman nitya-jatam

nityam va manyase mrtam

tathapi tvam maha-baho

nainam scoitum arhasi

“I am going to explain to you, you are not the body, but the spirit soul. But

even if you think there is no soul then also, there is no need for lamenting”

The body is nothing but a composition of chemicals. It is nothing more than

some neurobiological functioning in the body like the functions of the brain.

One has to accept his basic knowledge to go beyond to understand the

concept of good or bad or of values. Only an understanding of the soul will

explain the reason for the existence of good, bad and evil values.

Srila Prabhupada has again given a very nice example which will help in

understanding the matter clearly. Suppose you take a kilo of uranium which

is the most expensive chemical and throw it into the sea, no one will object.

And even if someone asks the reason for this, one can simply say that since

you are the owner of the bag, it is your wish to do so. But the next day if

you take your five-year-old brother or sister and throw him or her in the sea,

then will you be spared? You will probably be charged for murder.

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Moreover, even if you try to give the same earlier explanation that the child

is yours and according to modern science, it is nothing but a bag of

chemicals, and that you are doing so out of your own wish, the explanation

will not be accepted. The people will definitely object by saying that it is

something beyond private concern. Hence, it clears up the point that there is

more than a chemical value present within the living body. But it is still

more important to understand that the body that we are taking so much care

of day and night gets its value only because of the presence of the soul (the

driver of the body).

Srila Prabhupada has given another example. We are all attracted by beauty

in this world. A rose is a beautiful and fragrant flower. But, if someone

plucks the flower, it gradually loses its beauty and fragrance because it is

dead. Then, nobody will be attracted towards it, however beautiful it may

be. Thus, one can understand that it is the soul that has true value. The soul

is truly beautiful because, without the soul, the body and all its beauty are of

no value.

After being convinced of its existence, one has to understand the nature of

this soul. Each one takes so many pains for this body, so as conditioned

souls we tend to act in terms of the body or mind. It is very easy to interpret

that if one’s body is hurt, the individual is hurt. Thereby making it more

complicated to distinguish between the individual soul and the body. Just

like a car that turns left makes people occupying the car that it was they who

turned left.

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“Those with the vision of eternity can see that the soul is transcendental,

eternal, and beyond the modes of nature. Despite contact with the material

body, O Arjuna, the soul neither does anything nor is entangled.” (Bg.

13.32)

The single most important point to understand is that you are not your body.

You are the soul within it. The soul is completely transcendental to the body

and does not come under the same designations that we give to the body. It

does not belong to a certain family name or ethnic group. The soul is not

Hindu, Christian, Muslim, Jewish, etc. It is also not American, Indian,

Russian, Chinese, Pakistani, or anything else. According to the Upanishads

it is also not happy, sad, frustrated or content, nor does it imagine anything

but what it ought to imagine. It does not take birth, grow, change or die. It

may be in the body and we may think we are the body due to illusion, but we

have the freedom to think whatever we like.

Only with genuine spiritual vision can we see our real identity, beyond the

body, beyond all of material nature. The soul is never entangled in the

material energy or actions, nor does it engage as such. It is only the body

and our bodily desires, which keep us bound up in material nature. The

more spiritual we become, the more we can perceive the spiritual dimension.

Questions

Answer the following:

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1. Which understanding is most basic in advancing towards spiritual

life?

2. Which simple example illustrates, “I am not this body?”

3. What happens when a person dies?

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CHAPTER 6

GOD IS EVERYWHERE

There was once a Guru who lived in a simple cottage near the edge of a

forest. He had a number of disciples who lived with him. The guru took

great pains to teach the young boys to become good devotees. He taught

them about Deity worship, chanting and reading from Holy Scriptures. The

boys were eager to learn and were always ready to serve their spiritual

master.

One day the spiritual master called all his disciples. He made them all sit

and placed a big ripe mango in each boy’s hand.

“Now I want all of you to take a mango each and go to a solitary place and

eat it. Remember, you have to eat it in a place where absolutely no one can

see you. When you are done, return to me.”

“Yes Guruji”, said the boys, eager to please their spiritual master.

A few boys ran away quickly.

One boy went into a dark cave. Two boys walked into the forest and

climbed tall trees, some crawled under the bushes.

After some time all the boys had eaten the mangoes and returned.

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They shared their experience with their Guru. He smiled and said nothing.

Finally, only one boy remained. It had become dark but there was no sign of

him. The boy had not retuned even by mid-night. Everyone went to sleep.

The Guru chanted softly on his beads, waiting for his disciple.

Next morning when the disciples got up they saw their missing friend. His

clothes were crumpled. He looked tired. It seemed as if he had been

walking all night. They were surprised to see that he still had the mango in

his hand.

“O Spiritual Master, I am sorry. I could not follow your instructions. I

searched everywhere but could not find a single place where I could eat the

mango without anyone watching me. Everywhere I went God was present.

He was watching me all the time”

The guru smiled. He was very pleased. He said to everybody, “This is the

only student who has understood all that I have taught till today. He has

understood that God is omnipresent and oversees everything that happens,

even in the material world.

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CHAPTER - 7

YOU ARE WHAT YOU EAT

“The word vegetarian, coined by the founders of the British Vegetarian

Society in 1842, comes from the Latin word vegetus, meaning whole, sound,

fresh, or lively,” as in homo vegetus – a mentally and physically vigorous

person. The original meaning of the word implies a balanced philosophical

and moral sense of life, a lot more than just a diet of vegetables and fruits.

Some of the famous vegetarians are Pythagoras, Socrates, Plato, Clement of

Alexandria, Plutarch, King Asoka, Leonardo da Vinci, Montaigne, Akhar,

John Milton, Sir Isaac Newton, Emanuel Swedenbourg, Voltaire, Benjamin

Franklin, Jean Jacques Rousseau, Lamartine, Percy Bysshe Shelley, Ralph

Waldo Emerson, Henry David Thoreau, Leo Tolstoy, George Bernard Shaw,

Rahindranath Tagore, Mahatma Gandhi, Albert Schweitzer, and Albert

Einstein.

SCIENTIFIC EVIDENCE AGAINST MEAT-EATING:

Why do meat-eaters seem more prone to these diseases? One reason given

by biologists and nutritionists is that man’s intestinal tract is simply not

suited for digesting meat. Flesh-eating animals have short intestinal tracts

(three times the length of the animal’s body), to pass rapidly decaying toxin-

producing meat out of the body quickly. Since plant foods decay more

slowly than meat, plant-eaters have intestines at least six times the length of

the body. Man has the long intestinal tract of a herbivore, so if he eats meat,

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toxins can overload the kidneys and lead to gout, arthritis, rheumatism, and

even cancer.

And then there are the chemicals added to meat. As soon as an animal is

slaughtered, its flesh begins to putrefy, and after several days it turns a sickly

grey-green. The meat industry masks this discoloration by adding nitrites,

nitrates, and other preservatives to give the meat a bright red color. But

research has now shown many of these preservatives to be carcinogenic.

“The animals are kept alive and fattened by continuous administration of

tranquilizers, hormones, antibiotics, and 2,700 other drugs. The process

starts even before birth and continues long after death. Although these drugs

will still be present in the meat when you eat it, the law does not require that

they be listed on the package.” But wait a minute! Weren’t human beings

designed to be meat eaters? Don’t we need animal protein?

The answer to both these questions is no. Although some historians and

anthropologists say that man is historically omnivorous, our anatomical

equipment – teeth, jaws, and digestive system – favors a fleshless diet. The

American Dietetic Association notes that “most of mankind for most of

human history has lived on vegetarian or near-vegetarian diets.”

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ETHICAL REASONS

Many people consider the ethical reasons the most important of all for

becoming vegetarian. The beginning of ethical vegetarianism is the

knowledge that other creatures have feelings, and that their feelings are

similar to ours. This knowledge encourages one to extend personal

awareness to encompass the suffering of others.

The truth of animal slaughter is not at all pleasant – commercial

slaughterhouses are like visions of hell. Screaming animals are stunned by

hammer blows, electric shock, or concussion guns. They are hoisted into the

air by their feet and moved through the factories of death on mechanized

conveyor systems. Still alive, their throats are sliced and their flesh is cut

off while they bleed to death. Pythagoras, famous for his contributions to

geometry and mathematics, said, “Oh, my fellow men, do not defile your

bodies with sinful foods. We have corn; we have apples bending down the

branches with their weight, and grapes welling on the vines. There are

sweet-flavored herbs, and vegetable, which can be cooked and softened

over the fire, nor are you denied milk or thyme-scented honey. The earth

affords a lavish supply of riches of innocent foods, and offers you banquets

that involve no bloodshed or slaughter; only beasts satisfy their hunger with

flesh, and not even all of those, because horses, cattle, and sheep live on

grass.”

VEDIC REASONS

All living entities possess a soul. In the Bhagavad-Gita, Krsna describes the

soul as the source of consciousness. Krsna also instructs us to adopt the

principles of spiritual vegetarianism when He states, “Offer Me with love

and devotion a fruit, a flower, a leaf, or water, and I will accept it.” The

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Sanskrit word karma means “action”, or more specifically, any material

action that brings a reaction that binds us to the material world. According

to the law of karma, if we cause pain and suffering to other living beings, we

must endure pain and suffering in return, both individually and collectively.

We reap what we sow, in this life and the next, for nature has her own

justice. The person who eats an animal may say that he hasn’t killed

anything, but when he buys his neatly packaged meat at the supermarket he

is paying someone else to kill for him, and both of them bring upon

themselves the reactions of karma.

As Srila Prabhupada says in his explanations of Bhagavad-Gita “Those who

kill animals and give them unnecessary pain – as people do in

slaughterhouses – will be killed in a similar way in the next life and in many

lives to come. One of the most common objections non-vegetarians raise

against vegetarianism is that vegetarians still have to kill plants, and that this

is also violence. In response it may be pointed out that, vegetarian foods

such as ripe fruits and many vegetables, nuts, grains, and milk do not require

any killing. But even in those cases where a plant’s life is taken, because

plants have a less evolved consciousness than animals, we can presume that

the pain involved is much less than when an animal is slaughtered, what to

speak to the suffering a food-animal experiences throughout its life.

Its true vegetarians have to kill some plants, and that is also violence, but we

do have to eat something, and the Vedas say, jivo jivasya jivanam: one

living entity is food for another in the struggle for existence. So the problem

is not how to avoid killing altogether – an impossible proposal – but how to

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cause the least suffering to other creatures while meeting the nutritional

needs of the body.

The taking of any life, even that of a plant, is certainly sinful, but Krsna, the

supreme controller, frees us from sin by accepting what we offer. Eating

food first offered to the Lord is something like a soldier’s killing during war.

In war, when the commander orders a man to attack, the obedient soldier

who kills the enemy gets a medal. But if the same soldier kills someone on

his own, he will be punished. Similarly, when we eat only prasad, we do not

commit any sin. This is confirmed in the Bhagavad-Gita (3.13) “The

devotees of the Lord are released from all kinds of sins because they eat

food which is offered first for sacrifice. Others, who prepare food for

personal sense enjoyment, eat only sin.”

Offered food, traditionally called prasad, “the mercy of God,” offers not

only the healthy life of a vegetarian, but also God realization; not just food

for the starving masses, but spiritual nourishment for everyone. When Krsna

accepts an offering, He infuses His own divine nature into it. Prasada,

therefore, is not different from Krsna Himself. Out of His unbounded

compassion for the souls entrapped in the material world, Krsna comes in

the form of prasada, so that simply by eating, we can come to know Him.

Eating prasada nourishes the body spiritually. By eating prasada not only

are past sinful reactions in the body vanquished, but also the body becomes

immunized to the contamination of materialism. Just as an antiseptic

vaccine can protect us against an epidemic, eating prasada protects us from

the illusion and influence of the materialistic conception of life. Therefore,

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a person who eats only food offered to Krsna can counteract all the reactions

of one’s past material activities and easily progresses in self-realization.

Because Krsna frees us from the reactions of karma or material activities we

can easily transcend illusion and serve Him in devotion. One who acts

without karma can dovetail his consciousness with God’s and become

constantly aware of His presence. This is the true benefit of prasada.

In fact Krsna Himself asks for these offerings not because He needs our rice

and vegetables but because He wants our devotion. In Bhagavad-Gita (9.26)

He says, “If one offers me with love and devotion , a leaf, a flower, a fruit or

water, I will accept it.”

When Krsna asks us to offer Him food, we should understand that He is

actually inviting us to reawaken our eternal loving relationship with Him. At

first we comply in a mood of faith mixed with duty; later as our realization

matures we do it with affection and love. Just as anybody naturally offers the

best he has to his beloved, the devotee offers Krsna his wealth, his

intelligence, his life and his vegetarian food.

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CHAPTER 8

SAKSHI GOPAL

Many years ago in Vidyanagar in South India, there lived two Brahmans

who set off for a pilgrimage at the same time. They made a long tour of

different holy places like Gaya, Kashi and Prayag. Finally they came to

Mathura.

Mathura is the place where Lord Krishna appeared five thousand years ago.

The river Yamuna flows here. There are twelve forests situated on the banks

of the Yamuna. One of the forests is named Vrindavana. The Vrindavana

forest stretches from the town of Vrindavana up to Nanda-grama and

Varsana.

The village of Panchakashi is situated here. In that village there was a big

temple where Lord Gopal was worshiped in a very opulent way.

These two Brahmans visited all these holy places. Now, one of the

Brahmans was rich and elderly and the other was young and quite poor.

The younger Brahman helped the elderly Brahman throughout the

pilgrimage. He tried to make the journey comfortable for him in every

possible way. He was even ready to do menial service.

The two Brahmans bathed at different bathing places along the river

Yamuna,such as Keshi ghata and Kaliya ghata. Then they arrived at the

temple of Gopal.

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They stayed there for a few days. The beauty of the Gopal deity attracted

their hearts and made them feel very happy.

One day as they were standing in front of the Lord, the older Brahman said,

“You have served me so nicely during this pilgrimage. Due to your

assistance I have been able to travel comfortably without feeling tired. Even

my own son has never served me so well. I would like to repay you in some

way. Therefore I promise to give you my daughter in charity.”

The younger Brahman was surprised to hear these words. He replied, “My

dear sir, you are saying something quite unusual. Such things never happen.

You are from a rich aristocratic family and you are well educated. I am a

simple Brahman with no decent education and no wealth. Dear sir, I am not

a suitable bridegroom for your daughter, I rendered service to you only for

the satisfaction of Krsna. It is said that the Lord is pleased when we serve

the Brahmans.”

But the older Brahman was not ready to listen. “My dear boy, please do not

doubt me. I will surely give my daughter to you in charity. I have given my

word.”

The younger Brahman tried once more to convince the older one. “You

have a wife and sons and you have a large circle of relatives and friends.

You will have to take permission from all of them.

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The older Brahman had made up his mind. “My daughter is my own

property. Therefore I can do what I want and no one can stop me. I don’t

care about anyone else’s opinion. Just accept my proposal.”

“If you have decided to give your daughter to me then say so before the

Gopal deity.”

The elderly Brahman made a solemn promise in front of the Gopal deity to

give his daughter in charity to the younger Brahman.

“My dear Lord, You are the witness. I shall call You to testify, if it is

necessary, later on.”

Soon afterwards the Brahmans set off on their return journey. As before, the

younger Brahman served the elder one very sincerely. After returning to

Vidyanagar, both Brahmans went to their respective homes.

Some days passed by and the elderly Brahman started feeling anxious. He

thought to himself, “I have given my word to a Brahman in a holy place. The

time has come to fulfill my promise.”

A few days later the elderly Brahman called for a meeting of all his relatives

and friends. He told them the whole story. The friends and relatives were

shocked. They started protesting and expressing their disapproval.

“If you give your daughter to a poor person the name of our family will be

ruined”, said a friend. “People will laugh at you”, said another.

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The elderly Brahman explained that he had made a promise in a holy place

while on pilgrimage. Therefore he wanted to keep his word under any

circumstance. The relatives did not agree. “If you give your daughter to

that boy we shall cut off all connections with you”.

His wife said, “If such a thing happens, we shall take poison and die.”

The elderly Brahman said, “If I do not give my daughter to the young

Brahman he will call Gopalji as a witness.”

His son said, “The deity may be a witness but He is in a distant place. How

can He come here to bear witness against you? When the young Brahman

comes here, just say that you do not remember what you said. I will handle

the situation.”

The elderly Brahman was quite confused and started to pray to Lord Gopal

to help him.

The next day the young Brahman came to the elderly Brahman’s house. He

bowed down and spoke in a humble voice, “You have promised to give your

daughter in charity to me. Why are you quiet? Is there some problem?”

The elderly Brahman remained silent. In the meanwhile his son came

running out with a stick in his hand. “Oh! What a fool! You want to marry

my sister? You are just like a dwarf who wants to catch the moon.”

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Seeing the stick, the young Brahman fled from the place. The next day

however, he gathered all the people of the village and asked them to help

him. These people called for the elderly Brahman and held a meeting. The

young Brahman told them all about the promise made by the elderly

Brahman. The villagers told the elderly Brahman that he should fulfill his

promise.

“My dear friends please hear me; I do not exactly remember making a

promise like that.”

The elderly Brahman’s son took this opportunity to speak before the

assembly, “While on pilgrimage to the various holy places, my father carried

much money. Seeing the money, this rogue stole it and gave my father some

herbs to make him forget everything. Now he is claiming that my father

promised to give him his daughter in charity. All of you assembled

gentlemen, please judge whether this poor Brahman is a worthy husband for

my father’s daughter.”

Hearing this story the people gathered there started having doubts. They

were thinking that it was possible for a poor person to be tempted by riches

and also give up religious principles.

The young Brahman begged the village people to believe him and not to

listen to the son of the elderly Brahman. He explained to them how the

elderly Brahman had insisted upon making this promise in front of the deity.

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Finally he said, “I have called upon a great personality in this transaction. I

have asked Him to be my witness. The entire world accepts the words of the

Supreme Personality of Godhead.”

Hearing these words, the elderly Brahman said, “If Gopal personally comes

here to serve as a witness, I shall surely give my daughter to the young

Brahman.” His son also agreed to this condition.

Krsna is the Supersoul present in the heart of all living entities. He knows

the desires of everyone. The elderly Brahman was willing to give his

daughter to the young Brahman but his son and relatives were stopping him.

The son was an atheist and very cunning. He was thinking of ways to stop

the wedding. Now Krsna had created a situation wherein they all agreed.

The assembled people prepared an agreement which was signed by both

parties. The young Brahman declared, “This elderly Brahman is certainly

truthful and is following religious principles. He had no desire to break his

promise, but fearing that his relatives would commit suicide, he deviated

from the truth. I shall call the Supreme Personality of Godhead as a witness.

Thus I shall keep his promise intact.”

Some villagers started disbelieving and joking. Some said, “Who does he

think he is? He wants the Lord Himself to come and bear witness.” “Have

you ever heard of such a thing?” said another.

After the meeting the young Brahman set off for Vrindavana. He bowed

down to the deity and narrated the whole story in full detail. He prayed to

the Lord, “My dear Lord, I don’t want to become happy by marrying a rich

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girl. I am thinking that the Brahman has broken his promise and will have to

suffer the reaction. You are very merciful. Therefore kindly protect the

religious principles of us two Brahmans. Please bear witness in this case and

help us.”

Lord Krsna said, “My dear Brahman, please go back to your home and call a

meeting of all the men. In that meeting, just try to remember Me. I shall

certainly appear there and at that time I shall protect the honour of both of

you Brahmans.”

The Brahman said, “My Lord, even if You appear as a four handed Visnu

deity, none of these people will believe Your words. Only if You go there in

this form of Gopal and speak Yourself will these people be satisfied.”

Krsna said, “I’ve never heard of a deity walking from one place to another.”

The Brahman replied, “That is true, but how is it that You are speaking to

me although You are a deity? My dear Lord, You are the son of Nanda

Maharaja. If you can talk, you can walk as well.”

Sri Gopalji smiled and said, “My dear Brahman, just listen to Me. I shall

walk behind you and go with you. Do not try to see Me by turning around.

As soon as you see Me, I shall remain stationary in that very place. You will

know that I am walking behind you by the sound of my ankle bells. Cook

one kilo of rice daily and offer it, I shall eat that rice and follow behind

you.”

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The next day, the Brahman set off and Gopal followed him, step by step.

The Brahman was very happy to hear the tinkling sounds of His ankle bells.

The young Brahman walked in this way till he reached his town. Along the

way, he offered rice to the Gopal deity.

When he neared his own village, he began to think, “I have now come to my

village and I shall go to my home and tell all the people that the witness has

arrived.” The Brahman thought, if the people didn’t directly see the Gopal

deity, they would not believe that He had arrived. Thinking thus, he turned

to look back. He saw the Supreme Personality of Godhead, smiling. The

Lord said, “Now you can go back home. I shall stay here and shall not

leave.”

The young Brahman went to the town and informed the people about

Gopal’s arrival.

All the villagers gathered there and bowed with great respect. The people

were attracted to the beauty of Gopal.

The elderly Brahman was very pleased and fell like a stick in front of the

deity.

In the presence of all the people, Krsna bore testimony that the elderly

Brahman had offered his daughter in charity to the young Brahman.

After the marriage ceremony was performed, the Lord said, “You two

Brahmans are my eternal servants birth after birth. I am very pleased with

the truthfulness of both of you. Now please ask for a benediction.”

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The Brahmans begged for a benediction with great happiness. “Please

remain here so that people all over the world will know how merciful You

are to Your servants.” Eventually the king heard this wonderful story and

came to see Gopal and was very satisfied. He constructed a nice temple.

The Gopal deity was worshipped in the town of Vidyanagar for a long time

and is famous as ‘Sakshi Gopal’.

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CHAPTER 9

MORAL BEHAVIOUR AND ETIQUETTE

Moral behaviour refers to that code of conduct that is accepted within the

society that we live in. Each society is different as are various cultures

around the world. Thus the accepted norms of behavior vary from my

society to another. E.g.:- In France it is considered wrong not to greet with a

kiss. But in India this kind of behavior would not be acceptable.

Times have changed and the distances between cultures have shrunk. It is

now hard to determine which act forms a part of which culture.

The moral behavior that we will learn about in this chapter goes way beyond

day to day social acts. The moral behavior that we will study, form the roots

of Indian culture. These codes of conduct stem from our Vedic Ethos and

the scriptures form our guidebooks.

To understand what is good or bad one must first understand who is God and

who we are in relation to him. This is because goodness or evil differs from

one person to another. E.g.: In a restaurant two men are seated. One is a

smoker while the other is not. The non-smoker gets disturbed by the smoke

and asks the man to leave but the smoker objects saying that he believes

smoking is good and he enjoys it. While the non-smoker says smoking is

bad for health. Now who is right and who is wrong? According to them each

one of them are right. There has to be a fixed norm to decide what is really

good or bad. The material world, our material senses and all that exists here

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is temporary, changing and destructible. The only thing that is indestructible,

eternal and constant is the Supreme Personality of Godhead Himself.

Let us begin by understanding who we really are.

Science describes man as a social animal. Thus we can conclude that we are

also animals! They sleep, eat, mate and protect themselves. We also sleep,

eat, mate and protect ourselves. They have intelligence and so do we. But

we have an edge over the animals. We have a higher reasoning power that

helps us to distinguish between right and wrong.

“Athato brahma jignasa”.

Translation: - Now having acquired the human form of life let us enquire

into the Brahman.

Keeping the above in mind one must ask oneself the questions: “Who am I?”

“Why am I here”? The answer to these questions is that we are spirit souls,

part and parcel of the Supreme soul, Lord Krsna and we are here to enjoy or

suffer the reactions of the Karmas of our past lifetimes and to liberate

ourselves from the process of action and reaction.

The next step would be to understand what is our real duty and activity. As

we have studied earlier our real dharma is to serve the Supreme Personality

of Godhead Lord Krsna and purify our senses and our actions and become

free from the cycle of action and reaction.

But before going so deep within the Vedic Philosophy let us first learn how

to behave in our day to day lives. Just the understanding that we are parts of

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Krsna should prod us into good behavior. Krsna wouldn’t want any

miscreants as His representatives, would He?

DAILY:

As soon as we wake up we must remember the Lord and thank him for the

day. Then one must wash oneself clean by using the toilet, brushing one’s

teeth and bathing. In many households people bathe after having breakfast.

This is inappropriate. One must bathe before doing anything else. Then after

paying obeisances to the deities or pictures of the Lord, one must pay

respects to one’s parents and then go about the rest of the day. Touching the

feet of elders to get their blessings and goodness, especially parents, is very

beneficial for the progress in one’s life.

IN THE TEMPLE:

One must lightly knock the door three times to announce one’s arrival.

Women must always cover their heads in the temple. Then one must pay

obeisances to the Guru first, i.e., Srila Prabhupada. Then one must pay

obeisances to the deities respectfully. One must not talk too loudly or behave

in a boisterous manner in the temple.

DRESS:

Our clothes signify who we are. A policeman would not be recognized if he

is not in his uniform. The growing western trends have permeated so deep

within Indian society that our youngsters have taken to western clothes with

a vengeance. Clothes that expose the body unduly are indicative of bad

upbringing and character. Our body is a temple within which Lord Krsna

resides in our hearts. To care for our body and to adorn it is our privilege.

Girls and boys who do not cover the bodies properly are displaying a lack of

self respect and self worth. It only attracts undue unhealthy attention and

lack of love for oneself. Well combed hair and short nails, all signify

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neatness and cleanliness. A dirty body will only attract negative energies to

you.

All these seem very rigid and old fashioned rules but they do make sense.

After all they are the stepping stones to developing God consciousness!

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ANCIENT VEDIC HISTORY

AND CULTURE 4

NAME:______________________________________

CLASS:______________________________________

ROLL NO:________________

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I offer my respectful obeisances to His Divine Grace A.C.

Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada who has been my

primary source of knowledge and inspiration in Krsna

Consciousness.

Please continue to guide me in this venture of teaching

children as you have taught us.

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INTRODUCTION

My dear children,

The decision to revert back to the textbook form of the matter which

is needed for this subject was taken solely for your convenience since many

of you end up losing your papers and then do not having exclusive matter for

studying. I have tried to make each chapter more interesting. There are

blank pages after every chapter to do your questions and answers so there is

no need for a separate notebook or extra sheets.

This is the last level of Vedic Studies in the secondary school so a lot

of matter which has been studied in your entire school life may be repeated,

albeit on a higher level. On the separate sheet for ‘Notes’, write down your

difficulties after every chapter and discuss them with me during class. A lot

of matter in this book has been adapted from the Srimad Bhagavatam and

Bhagavad-Gita. Besides that some of the chapters have been “stolen” and

adapted from material compiled by His Grace Radheshyam das, an ex-IITian

who now in fully engaged in preaching to the youth through VOICE ( Vedic

Oasis for Inspiration, Culture and Education).

I hope you enjoy studying this subject as much as I enjoy teaching it to all of

you.

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Hare Krsna!

- Gandhari devi dasi

CONTENTS

1. Material problems and spiritual solutions

2. The Enchanted Lake

3. Benefits of chanting

4. Women of Substance

5. Plover’s eggs

6. Universal Revolution

7. Science of Reincarnation

8. Book report

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Chapter I

MATERIAL PROBLEMS AND SPIRITUAL SOLUTIONS

yah sastra-vidhim utsrjya vartate kama-karatah

na sa siddhim avapnoti na sukham na param gatim

TRANSLATION

He who discards scriptural injunctions and acts according to his own whims

attains neither perfection, nor happiness, nor the supreme destination. [BG

16.23]

REAL PROBLEMS

People lament that they do not have water supply in their apartment or that

they do not have a nice car or a high paying job or a palatial bungalow.

Being caught up in the immediate problems of life, they hardly think of the

real problems that every one of us has to face in life. If we do not find

solutions to these problems, we will have to suffer perpetually in this world

of birth and death. All the petty problems that we face in our day-to-day

lives are a subset of these four real problems of life.

Death: In the Garuda Purana, one of the ancient Vedic scriptures, it is

mentioned that death is extremely painful and the dying person experiences

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a pain that is equivalent to forty thousand scorpions biting simultaneously.

The great sage Kapiladev informs about the ghastly nature of the experience

of death, “In that diseased condition the dying person’s eyes bulge due to the

pressure of air from within, and his glands become congested with mucus.

He has difficulty in breathing, and there is a rattling sound within his throat.

Thus he dies most pathetically.” (SB 3.30.16-18). The soul is so habituated

to living in the body that he must be forced out by the laws of nature at the

time of death. Just as a person suffers greatly when he is evicted from his

home, similarly the soul suffers immensely when he is forcibly kicked out of

the body. No one wants death.

In nature, we see that even the tiniest creatures display amazing abilities and

techniques for escaping death when their lives are threatened. But death is

inevitable for all living beings and everyone has to face it one day, though it

is fearsome and painful.

Old age: An American millionaire spent millions of dollars employing

several doctors to find out whether he could stop getting old and remain

youthful forever. But the doctors realized that, even if they were to

understand the mechanism of ageing, they wouldn’t be able to do anything

about that, just as they couldn’t stop the rising and setting of the sun. Thus

inevitable time does not spare anybody. We were all children some years

ago; we grow to youth and eventually to old age. People capture ‘sweet

memories’ because they know that when they are forced to grow old –

helplessly, their appearances won’t look sweet anymore. The cosmetic

industry is flourishing due to fear of old age.

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Disease: There are so many different kinds of diseases and medical science

is trying to find out remedies for them. But medical history shows that by the

time science finds the cure for one disease, another even more deadly

disease comes up, as has happened in the case of cancer, syphilis, gonorrhea,

AIDS, etc. we may cure one disease for some time, but we cannot eradicate

all diseases. The pain suffered through disease is a common experience for

everyone and needs no explanation. Rockefeller, one of the richest men in

the world, had chronic indigestion and consequently all he could eat lifelong

was only vegetable soup. Another rich man suffered severe pain while

urinating. Once, when a TV reporter asked him what he feared the most in

life, he replied, “The next moment of passing urine!”

Birth: Birth is an extremely painful experience for the living entity. For

nine long months, the human fetus lies cramped within the darkness of the

womb, suffering severely, scorched by the mother’s gastric fire, continually

jolted by sudden movements, and felling constant pressure from being

contained in a small sack which surrounds him in the womb. This tight,

constricting packet forces the child’s back to arch constantly like a bow.

Furthermore, hungry worms in the abdominal cavity torment the child. The

child passes stool and urine in the same packet. Such is the misery of birth.

Thus Lord Krsna says in Bhagavad-Gita that it is very important for every

sane human being to perceive the evils of birth, old age, disease and death

and find out the permanent solution for them.

Some people may argue, “The problems of birth, old age, disease and death

come only once in a while. We can just ignore them and enjoy life for the

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remaining time.” But at every moment everyone is suffering due to at least

one of the following threefold misery:

1) Miseries caused by one’s own mind and body (adhyatmika klesha):

The body and the mind give rise to innumerable problems. According to

World Health Organization (WHO) statistics, in the year 2000, in America,

19 million youths were suffering from mental-related illness; everyday 1200

youths were attempting to commit suicide and one tenth of them were

successful. Thus sometimes people are driven to the point of suicide due to

mental frustration. In old age, the deteriorating body gives varieties of

problems. For example, once a person grows beyond 80 years, generally

can’t sit or stand without a backache.

2) Miseries caused by other living entities (adhibhautika klesha): Even

if we have a healthy body and mind, others will not let us live in peace. Even

if everything is nicely arranged in our life, some other living entity, such as

our enemy, boss, colleague, relative, family member or friend, terrorists or,

if no one else, then a mosquito or a virus is sure to make our life miserable.

3) Miseries caused by nature (adhidaivika klesha): Floods, droughts,

famines, earthquakes, hurricanes, etc are devastating calamities imposed

upon us through the agency of nature. A volcanic eruption at Pompeii

devoured 20,000 people under a 20 ft high lava layer. The recent tsunami

tidal wave disaster swallowed 3, 80,000 lives in a few minutes. Even if

these come only occasionally, they wreak havoc whenever they come. And

moreover, we are being constantly tormented by the changes in the weather

such as scorching heat, freezing cold and untimely rains.

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Who can say that he is not being harassed constantly by these problems? The

very fact that more than a dozen tranquilizers or painkillers are advertised on

TV shows that there must be some suffering. Everyone is spending every

moment to preserve his life, belongings, kith and kin, job or post, reputation

etc. But the world we live in takes away all these eventually, despite our

efforts to hold on to them. Thus a wise person should wonder, “Why should

our lives be ridden with the anxiety of facing and tackling one problem after

another? Is it all life is meant for? Or is there a life of eternal joy that is

never inhibited by sufferings?”

DO I NEED GOD IN MY LIFE

In modern times, we see youngsters work over fourteen or sixteen hours in a

software company and spend the rest of the time in restaurants or clubs; the

old people spend their time watching TV, reading newspapers, playing

cards, playing golf and discussing useless socio-political topics. Whenever

someone starts talking about God, people tend to put off the subject by

saying, “What is the need to know anything about God – whether He exists

or not, who is He? I am not interested; I have many other things to do in

life.” But actually knowledge of God is not a matter of interest or intellectual

gratification – it is an absolute necessity for every same human being.

To understand why spiritual knowledge is necessary, we have to first

understand that all of us are searching for happiness at every moment in our

lives. But unfortunately, this world is a place where our attempts to become

happy are repeatedly frustrated. God is the source of everything. The

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universe is a cosmic machine designed and manufactured by God. He knows

why He has created it, why He has put us all here, what He wants us to do,

what He wants us to avoid, and there is no one better than Him to tell us why

we exist and why we suffer in this world. He has the key to release us from

this world of sufferings and take us beyond to the world of everlasting bliss.

Then why not surrender to God and ask Him, “Please tell me what I should

do?”

Can you confidently say: ‘I get what I want’ and ‘I don’t get what I don’t

want’?

When we are waiting for a particular bus, all other buses come and go except

the one that we are waiting for! What else can we do other than become

frustrated? One thing that we could realize is, “I am not God-the supreme

controller of situations or things, nor even of our local buses. It is He who

puts us in sufferings and happiness in this world according to our karma.”

Napoleon Bonaparte was such a famous King of his times that there was a

statue of Napoleon in Paris with the slogan, ‘Napoleon is France, France is

Napoleon’. Although one may be proud of accomplishing many great things

in life, one cannot be a hero forever. During the last part of his life,

Napoleon was kept under arrest at St. Helena and was forcibly fed horse

urine with a sword at his neck.

Chris Reeves acted as Superman in a movie of the same name. In this movie

he performed miraculous and amazing feats that had made people worship

him like God. In 1995, he met with an accident – he was thrown off a horse

– and was crippled neck down for life. Thus it may be nice to dream of being

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Superman ourselves, but the truth is that in this world we are like the

helpless ant in the midst of the Atlantic Ocean.

The only son of one of the richest men was eaten alive by cannibals on an

island, when he had gone for researching on tribal culture. A boatload of

assistants was following him, but they reached too late. On hearing the sad

news, the devastated Rockefeller said, “From today till death, I’ll have no

peace”.

Mohammed Ali, the famous World heavyweight-boxing champion who was

practically undefeatable, proclaimed himself as, “The greatest”. Later when

he got Parkinson’s disease, his hands became invalid and he could not even

lift a cup of coffee. When someone reminded him about his earlier slogan, ‘I

am the greatest’, he replied, “Yes, I am the greatest – the greatest fool,

because no one can claim to be the greatest other than God.”

Why do even such great personalities suffer from problems? God is the root

of all existence and if we can get to know Him we can find a permanent

solution to all these problems of life. Only in human life are we endowed

with the intelligence to inquire, “Why is everyone suffering? Why am I

suffering? Is there no permanent solution to these problems? Should I cry in

vain and die in pain? Or can I do something about it?”

The first aphorism of the Vedanta-sutra says: athato brahma jijnasa “Now

that you have achieved a human body, you should inquire about the

Absolute Truth.”

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This truth lies in understanding and accepting that you are not this body but

the spirit soul and are eternal servants of Lord Krsna. To fulfill the duty of

this soul one must find the right spiritual master and ask the right question

and engage one’s thoughts, actions and deeds in Lord Krsna’s service. That

is the perfection of human life.

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Chapter 2

THE ENCHANTED LAKE

Once upon a time the Pandavas, the sons of King Pandu were living in the

forest during their exile. One day a Brahmin came to them for help.

“Maharaj Yudhisthira, you must help me,” he begged of the eldest Pandava.

“The arani sticks with which I make fire are missing. A deer came into my

hut, caught the sticks in its horns, and ran away. Without fire I cannot

perform my daily religious duties.”

The Pandavas went out to search for the deer. They quickly spotted it but it

ran away. Hour after hour they pursued the nimble deer, but were unable to

capture it. Finally, overtaken by exhaustion and thirst, they rested in the cool

shade of a tree.

Yudhisthira spoke to his youngest brother, “Nakula, we need water. Climb

this tree and see if there is a river in sight.”

Nakula, although tired, climbed high into the tree. “Yes, I see a lake

nearby,” he shouted, much to the relief of the others.

“Good,” Yudhisthira croaked, his throat parched with thirst. “Please, would

you fetch us some water?”

Nakula ran to the lake. He could almost taste the cooling waters refreshing

his dry mouth. He knelt down, and was raising a palm-full of water to his

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mouth, when a loud voice boomed out. : Stop! Do not drink until you have

answered my question. I am the keeper of this lake. If you don’t do as I say

then you will die.”

Completely exhausted, Nakula decided to ignore the mysterious voice. He

took a large gulp of the cool water – and immediately fell down dead.

Meanwhile the other Pandavas were waiting for what seemed like ages.

Each minute made their thirst more desperate.

So Yudhisthira begged another brother, “Sahadeva, would you please help

Nakula bring back the water?”

Sahadeva practically crawled to the lake and was shocked to find his brother

dead. But his own throat now burning with thirst, he rushed o the water’s

edge.

Again the voice ordered him to stop.

Sahadeva, ignored the advice and scooped up a palmful of water. Like his

brother, he dropped dead on the spot.

Yudhisthira next sent Arjuna, and then some time later, Bheema. Neither of

them returned.

Yudhsthira, now understanding that something was terribly wrong, went

himself. He could scarcely believe his eyes. The lifeless bodies of four

powerful warriors lay scattered by the shore of the lake. How could they be

killed so easily with no sign of a fight?

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He sank to his knees in grief. It was not possible for him to live without his

faithful brothers. They had sacrificed so much to please him, and now they

were gone forever. Then his own fierce thirst overcame his anguish, and he

crawled towards the cool refreshing water.

“Stop!” the voice called out ominously. “You cannot drink this water until

you’ve answered my questions. Heed this warning or you’ll meet the same

fate as your brothers.”

Yudhisthira stopped and, scanning the sky, replied, “I’ll do as you request to

the best of my ability. But before I do so, please show yourself to me. I am

astonished how a single person has the power to kill all four of my brothers.

Bhima himself had the strength of ten thousand elephants. Not even a

demigod has the power to kill any one of my brothers.”

A mighty and frightening Yaksha, a magician, appeared before the prince.

With respect, Yudhisthira joined his palms and bowed slightly before the

sorcerer. “Thank you. Please ask me your questions.”

“Your humility is charming,” the Yaksha said. “Here is my first question:

What is faster than the wind?”

Without hesitation Yudhisthira replied, “The mind of course.”

The Yaksha rubbed his hands together. “Quite right. But do you know that

the most valuable possession is?”

“That’s also easy – it’s knowledge.”

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“Aha,” said the Yaksha. “But what is real knowledge?”

“True knowledge is knowledge of the divine,” Yudhisthira replied.

“Yes, that is right,” the Yaksha agreed. “Now tell me what makes something

agreeable only when it is given up?”

Yudhisthira looked first at the enticing water and then to his dead brothers.

“It can only be pride.”

“And what is wickedness?” the Yaksha challenged.

“Speaking ill of others,” Yudhisthira said.

“But do you know what charity is?” the Yaksha asked.

Yudhisthira looked over to his brothers lying dead on the lake-side. With

tears in his eyes he said, “Charity is giving protection to all creatures.”

The Yaksha smiled wryly, also looking at the dead men, and nothing how

Yudhisthira was licking his own lips in what must have been unbearable

thirst. He then asked, “What is patience?”

Yudhisthira drew his eyes away from the cool waters of the lake and tried to

ignore the increasing dryness in his throat. He took a deep breath and said,

“Patience can only be the ability to control the senses.”

“Yes,” the Yaksha continued. “But now for my last question: What is the

most amazing thing in the world?”

Yudhisthira considered carefully before answering this final question. He

glanced once again over at his dead brothers. With confidence he said, “Day

after day living beings are entering the house of death. No one escapes it, but

those remaining think they will not die. Can there be anything more amazing

than this?”

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The Yaksha smiled broadly. “I am satisfied by your intelligent answers,” he

said. You are the wisest person alive and deserve to take a boon from me. I

grant you the life of one of your brothers. Please choose which one.”

After pausing to consider, Yudhisthira replied, “I choose Nakula,”

“But why Nakula?” enquired the Yaksha. “Why not the mighty Bhima or

Arjuna? They surely are more valuable to you?

Yudhisthira explained, “My father had two wives, Kunti and Madri. Bhima,

Arjuna and I are Kunti’s sons. So for Madri’s benefit I choose Nakula.”

Overjoyed at hearing such a selfless answer, the Yaksha brought all the dead

brothers back to life. He then revealed to Yudhisthira his true identity. “I am

your father, the God of Death. I’m also called Dharma, the knower of what

is right and what is wrong. I wanted to test your wisdom. I am proud that

you answered so well. My son, because you are devoted to truth and

righteousness, you will never know defeat.”

Yudhisthira humbly fell down at his father’s feet and wept tears of joy.

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Chapter 3

THE BENEFITS OF CHANTING

Everyone knows that a happy life requires good health. Proper diet, adequate

exercise, and sufficient rest are necessary to keep our bodies strong and fit.

If we neglect these demands, our bodies become weakened and resistance

wanes. Highly susceptible to infection, we eventually become ill.

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,

loneliness, prejudice, greed, boredom, envy, and anger.

In order to counteract and prevent these subtle infections of the self, we

should, as recommended in the Vedic literatures, incorporate into our lives a

program of self-examination and steady inner growth, based on spiritual

strength and clarity of thought.

The transcendental 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 Krsna mantra is the most powerful.

The initial result of chanting the Hare Krsna mantra is summarized by Srila

Prabhupada in his commentary on the Bhagavad-Gita: "We have practical

experience that any person who is chanting the holy names of Krsna (Hare

Krsna Hare Krsna, Krsna, Hare Hare/ Hare Rama, Hare Rama, Rama Rama,

Hare Hare) in course of time feels some transcendental pleasure and very

quickly becomes purified of all material contamination."

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In the Caitanya-Caritamrta, a seventeen-volume commentary on the life and

teachings of Sri Caitanya, founder of the modern-day Krsna consciousness

movement, the ultimate benefit of chanting is described. "The result of

chanting is that one awakens his love for Krsna and tastes transcendental

bliss. Ultimately, one attains the association of Krsna and engages in His

devotional service, as if immersing himself in a great ocean of love."

So by chanting Hare Krsna, one reaps innumerable benefits, culminating in

Krsna consciousness and love of God. We can realize the fruits of chanting

by adopting the process of mantra meditation and applying it systematically.

For clear understanding of the progressive effects of chanting, some of the

more important benefits are discussed separately.

Peace of Mind:

Initially meditation focuses on controlling the mind, for in our normal

condition, we are slaves to any whimsical thoughts, desires, and appetites

the mind may generate. We think of something and immediately we want to

do it. But the Bhagavad-Gita tells us that the meditating person must learn to

control the mind: "For one who has conquered the mind, then his mind is the

best of friends; but for one who has failed to do so, his mind will be the

greatest enemy.

The materialistic mind attempts to enjoy by employing the senses to

experience matter and material relationships. It is full of unlimited ideas for

sense gratification, and being perpetually restless, it constantly flickers from

one sense object to another. In doing so, the mind vacillates between

hankering for some material gain and lamenting some loss or frustration.

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In the Bhagavad-Gita Krsna explains, "One who is not in transcendental

consciousness can have neither a controlled mind nor steady intelligence,

without which there is no possibility of peace. And how can there be any

happiness without peace?" By chanting the Hare Krsna mantra, we can

control the mind, instead of letting it control us.

Mantra is a Sanskrit word. Man means "mind," and tra means "to deliver."

Thus, a mantra is a transcendental sound vibration with potency to liberate

the mind from material conditioning.

In his commentary on Srimad-Bhagavatam, Srila Prabhupada explains, "Our

entanglement in material affairs is begun from material sound." Each day we

hear material sounds from radio and television, from friends and relatives,

and based on what we hear, we act. But as Srila Prabhupada points out,

"There is sound in the spiritual world also. If we approach that sound, then

our spiritual life begins." When we control the mind by focusing it on the

purely spiritual sound vibration of the Hare Krsna mantra, the mind becomes

calm. As "music has charms to soothe a savage breast," so the spiritual

sound of the mantra soothes the restless mind. The Hare Krsna mantra, being

imbued with God's own supreme energies, has the power to subdue all kinds

of mental disturbance. Just as a reservoir of water is transparent when

unagitated, our mental perceptions become clear and pure when the mind is

no longer agitated by the waves of material desires. The mind in its pure

state, like a mirror cleansed of dust, will then reflect undistorted images of

reality, allowing us to go beneath the surface and perceive the essential

spiritual quality of all life's experiences.

Knowledge of the Self:

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The Vedas state that consciousness is a symptom of the soul. In its pure

condition, the soul exists in the spiritual world; but when it falls down into

contact with matter, the living being is covered by an illusion called false

egoism. False ego bewilders the consciousness, causing us to identify with

our material bodies. But we are not our material body. When we look at our

hand or leg, we say, "This is my hand" or "This is my leg." The conscious

self, the "I," is therefore the owner and observer of the body. Intellectually,

this fact is easily understandable, and by the spiritual realization that results

from chanting, this truth can be directly and continuously experienced.

When the living being identifies with the material body and loses awareness

of his real, spiritual self, he inevitably fears death, old age, and disease. He

fears loss of beauty, intelligence, and strength and experiences countless

other anxieties and false emotions relating to the temporary body. But by

chanting, even in the early stages, we realize ourselves to be pure and

changeless spirit souls, completely distinct from the material body. Because

the mantra is a completely pure spiritual sound vibration, it has the power to

restore our consciousness to its original, uncontaminated condition. At this

point, we cease to be controlled by jealousy, bigotry, pride, envy, and hatred.

As Lord Krsna tells us in Bhagavad-Gita, the soul is "unborn, eternal, ever-

existing, undying, and primeval." As our false bodily identification dissolves

and we perceive our true transcendental existence, we automatically

transcend all the fears and anxieties of material existence. We no longer

think "I am American. I am Russian. I am black. I am white."

Attaining real self-awareness also gives us the ability to see the spiritual

nature of all living beings. When our natural, spiritual feelings are

awakened, we experience the ultimate unity of all life. This is what it means

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to become a liberated person; by spiritual realization we become free of all

animosity and envy toward other living things.

Brings Real Happiness:

Everyone is thirsting for true and lasting happiness. But because material

pleasure is limited and temporary, it is compared to a tiny drop of moisture

in the desert. It gives us no permanent relief, because material sensations and

relationships lack the potency to satisfy the spiritual desires of the soul. But

the chanting of Hare Krsna provides complete satisfaction because it places

us in direct contact with God and His spiritual pleasure potency. God is full

of all bliss, and when we enter His association, we can also experience the

same transcendental happiness.

In the Vedic literature there is an interesting account of how the pleasure of

chanting far exceeds any material benefit.

Liberation from Karma:

The law of karma means that for every material action performed, nature

forces an equivalent reaction upon the performer, or, as the Bible states, "As

ye sow, so shall ye reap."

Material activities can be compared to seeds. Initially they are performed, or

planted, and over the course of time they gradually fructify, releasing their

resultant reactions. Enmeshed in this web of actions and reactions, we are

forced to accept one material body after another to experience our karmic

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destiny. But freedom from karma is possible by sincere chanting of Krsna 's

transcendental names. Since God's names are filled with transcendental

energy, when the living being associates with the divine sound vibration, he

is freed from the endless cycle of karma.

Just as seeds fried in a pan lose their potency to sprout, so karmic reactions

are rendered impotent by the power of the holy names of God. Krsna is like

the sun. The sun is so powerful that it can purify whatever comes into

contact with it. If any object enters the sun globe, it is immediately

transformed into fire. Similarly, when our consciousness is absorbed in the

transcendental sound of Krsna, His internal energies act to purify us of all

karmic reactions.

Freedom from Reincarnation:

The Vedas teach that the living entity, the soul, is eternal, but due to past

activities and material desires, it perpetually accepts different material

bodies. As long as we have material desires, nature, acting under God's

direction, will award us one material body after another. This is called

transmigration of the soul, or reincarnation. Actually, this changing of

bodies is not surprising, because even in this life we go through many

bodies. First we have the body of an infant, then a child, later an adult, and

finally the form of an old man or woman. Similarly, after the passing of our

old body, we get a new one.

Liberation from this cycle, known as samsara, or the endless wheel of birth

and death, is possible by freeing our consciousness from material desires. By

chanting Hare Krsna, we revive the natural spiritual desires of the soul. Just

as the nature of the body is to be attracted to sense gratification, the nature of

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the soul is to be attracted to God. Chanting awakens our original God

consciousness and our desire to serve and associate with Him. By this simple

change in consciousness, we can transcend the cycle of reincarnation.

Srila Prabhupada discusses this in his commentary on the Bhagavad-Gita.

"The cumulative effect of the thoughts and actions of one's life influences

one's thoughts at death; therefore the actions of this life determine one's

future state of being. If one is transcendentally absorbed in Krsna 's service,

then his next body will be transcendental [spiritual], not physical. Therefore

the chanting of the Hare Krsna mantra is the best process for successfully

changing one's state of being to transcendental life."

The Ultimate Benefit-Love of God:

The final goal and the highest fruit of chanting are complete God realization

and pure love of God.

As our consciousness becomes increasingly purified, our steady spiritual

advancement is reflected in our character and behavior. As the sun

approaches the horizon, it is preceded by increasing warmth and

illumination. Similarly, as realization of Kåñëa's holy name is revived within

the heart, this increasing spiritual awareness manifests in all aspects of our

personality. Ultimately, the eternal, loving relationship between God and the

living being is revived. Before entering the material world, each soul had a

unique spiritual relationship with God. This loving relationship is thousands

of times greater and more intense than any love experienced in the material

world.

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CHAPTER 4

WOMEN OF SUBSTANCE

Women have played a major role in shaping the history of the world from

time immemorial. From the recent achievers like Kalpana Chawla, Sonia

Gandhi to an earlier phase of Indira Gandhi, and then further back to Rani

Lakshmibai, all of them have contributed to the shaping of the world’s

history.

This chapter goes back further in History to the Vedic age. Many dismiss

this period as ‘Mythological’ meaning something that is a myth or untrue.

But that is far from the truth. Not only is the era real and true, but it is also

far advanced than the so-called modern age. Hard to believe but true!

Let us now begin with the women of substance of this great Vedic age.

There have been so many women who made a mark in history such as

Draupadi, Gandhari, Kunti, Parvati, etc.

Draupadi was born in unusual circumstances. Her father King Drupada

wanted a great warrior son who would defeathis friend turned foe,

Dronacharya. He called all the great sages to help him perform a fire

sacrifice for this purpose. We have studied earlier that in the earlier yugas

methods of worship and mental and spiritual capacities were different and

far more advanced than they are in the present yuga, i.e., Kali yuga.

Invocation with the help of mantras and the power of fire sacrifice was

highest. Even begetting a child could be done with the help of mantras.

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Draupadi and her brother Dhristadyumna was born as a result of the fire

sacrifice performed by her father King Drupada. It is mentioned in the

historical scriptures that in a previous life Draupadi was a great yogini and

as a result of great penances to Lord Shiva she acquired a boon of five

valiant husbands in her next life. As we know, her husbands were the

Pandavas, Yudhishthira, Bhima, Arjuna, Nakula and Sahadeva. She was

born a princess and was married to five great princes but life was far from a

bed of roses. She struggled along with her husbands and mother-in-law,

Kunti as they fought against the atrocities of the Kauravas.

Kunti was also born in a royal family to King Kuntibhoja. One day the king

had a very difficult guest. Durvasa Muni who was known for his vile temper

paid them a visit. Kunti took extremely good care of him and as a reward he

granted her a wish. He gave her some mantras that could be invoked to call

upon demigods to beget a child. Kunti was a very young girl and in her

excitement to test out her gift, she called upon Indra, the king of heavens. As

a result she gave birth to her first born son, Karna, thus named because he

appeared through her ear. She was suddenly very scared of public ridicule

and the dishonor this would bring her father so she put her baby in a basket

and floated it in the river with the hope that someone would find him and

look after him. Later in life this very boon proved to be a gift because her

husband, Pandu was unable to beget children and Kunti used the boon to

have her five famous sons. Even her life was rife with difficulties because of

the atrocities of the Kauravas.

Next we go on to Gandhari. Like her counterparts, she too was a very

virtuous and spiritually enlightened personality. The most cited of her virtue

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was when she decided to blindfold her eyes for the rest of her life when she

got to know that her husband was blind. This is seen as a very great

austerity. She had a hundred sons and one daughter. But unfortunately her

sons, the Kauravas, were the cause of a lot of death and destruction. On one

hand she knew of their fallacies and yet she could not say a word because of

her attachment to them as a mother.

Firstly, why are we studying the life of all these women who have also in

some way led a very disturbing and difficult life? Secondly, what is the

significance of their lives to us?

Two things are very significant about the lives of these remarkable women.

Firstly, they never veered from their duties towards their families despite the

difficulties they endured. Secondly, they were very devoted to Lord Krsna.

They accepted Him as the Supreme Personality of Godhead and looked up to

Him in every adversity for help and guidance. There is the famous story of

Draupadi who called out to Lord Krsna when she was being disrobed in the

full assembly by Duhshana, the younger brother of Duryodhana, the eldest

of Kauravas. Lord Krsna who was hundreds of miles away immediately

covered her with a stream of garments by His mystic powers. At another

time Durvasa muni paid the Pandavas a visit when they were in exile. Her

special gift from the Sun God which provided an endless supply of food till

Draupadi ate. Durvasa muni was incited by Duryodhana to visit the

Pandavas. Unfortunately by then Draupadi had already had her meal. There

was nothing to offer the muni and his thousands of disciples. That was when

she called out to Lord Krsna who came immediately to her rescue.

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Kunti prayed to Lord Krsna throughout her difficulties. She asked Him not

to decrease her troubles lest she forgets Him. Kunti was Lord Krsna’s aunt

but she revered Him as the Supreme Lord.

In another era there was a lady named Savitri who saved her husband from

the clutches of Yamaraj the God of death by her determination and devotion

towards her husband.

These are amazing stories of some great women of substance. But they are

not mere stories. They are real life accounts from the pages of our ancient

history.

What was so remarkable about these women? How do we differentiate them

from women of today? To begin with people of the earlier yugas had great

spiritual powers. And the women were no different. By just a glance from

under her blindfold Gandhari burnt Yudhishthira’s toe. Such were her

powers which she acquired by her austerity alone. These women were chaste

and devoted to their husbands. Moreover their faith in Lord Krsna was

unshaken.

Can we even begin to draw a comparison of these women with women of

today? You decide.

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CHAPTER 5 THE PLOVER’S EGGS

Once, a pair of plovers lived by the shore of the mighty ocean. Whales, dolphins, turtles and all kinds of fish swam in those waters, and along the shore were all varieties of crabs and water birds. The hen plover laid her eggs in her nest near the shore and happily waited

for her chicks to hatch.

Not long after, the spring tide came, raising the waters higher than usual.

The ocean’s watery hands swept away the poor bird’s eggs. Though the

plover cried in despair, the ocean paid no attention to her piteous calls.

Unable to bear the loss, and determined to recover her eggs, the heartbroken

plover resolved to empty the ocean. She plucked out drops of water with her

tiny beak, while beating her wings against the waves, as if to dry the waters

up.

The fish were amused. “What is she making so much fuss about?” One

trout laughed. “We lay our eggs in the water with no problem at all.”

The shore birds did not think it was so funny. They felt sorry for their sister

bird. One gull said, “That Ocean is so heartless. He should be taught a

lesson.”

“But what can we do?” Asked another.

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The great albatross spoke up. Not only was he the oldest of the birds, but

the wisest as well, having flown far and wide and seen many things. “This

ocean is not so great. Garuda is far more powerful. He is king of all birds,

and the carrier of Lord Vishnu. He is the protector of the weak. Let’s seek

his help.”

So all the birds gathered together and sang out in a rousing chorus.

Hearing their cries, Garuda, the giant eagle, flew from the heavenly sky, his

huge wings humming with the sound of the Vedic hymns. The birds’ breasts

swelled in great joy as their famous relative landed on the beach. His

brilliant body glowed with spiritual energy. His sharp beak and talons gave

the birds confidence, but struck fear into the hearts of snakes and envious

people.

The King of Birds witnessed the plover’s determination to empty the ocean.

Feeling compassion for his small sister, he rose high into the air, his body

casting dark shadows over the waves. “O miserly ocean,” he boomed, “I

demand you return the plover’s eggs, lest I myself take up her task.”

Upon hearing these words, the ocean and its residents trembled in fear.

They knew that if he wished, Garuda could swallow them all up in one go.

So to pacify him, the ocean carried the plover’s eggs on its waves and

returned them to their rightful owner.

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The delighted plover took her eggs, and moved the nest to a safer place

along the shore. All the other birds helped her with much cheering and

sweet singing.

Later, when they had all finished and the moon was rising, the wise old

albatross called everyone together. “Our sister the plover overcame disaster

by the strength of her unflinching determination. Let this be a lesson to us

all.”

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CHAPTER 6

UNIVERSAL REVOLUTION

When His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada frst arrived

in America in the midst of the cultural turmoil of the sixties, he quickly

captured the hearts and minds of the New York hippies and the San

Francisco flower children with the chanting of the Hare Krsna mantra.

Within three years, he journeyed to London, and by 1971, Hare Krsna had

been recorded on hit records by former Beatles John Lennon and George

Harrison. By then the mantra had been heard by hundreds of millions of

people, and the International Society for Krishna Consciousness, formed in

New York in 1966, had spread to six continents. How could an elderly

Indian swami in a strange, foreign land, with no money, no support, no

friends, and no followers, achieve such phenomenal success?

After landing in America with the Indian rupee equivalent of eight dollars,

he spent his first year in the United States with a family in Butler,

Pennsylvania; an Indian yoga teacher in Manhattan; and later, with the help

of friends, rented a small room in upper Manhattan.

By the summer of 1966, he had found a larger location more suited to

propagating the Hare Krsna Mahamantra and the ancient science of Krsna

consciousness. That summer Prabhupada had met a young man named

Harvey Cohen, who offered him an old artist-in-residence loft in lower

Manhattan's Bowery.

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Here, a small group of young Bohemian types would join Srila Prabhupada

every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday evening for chanting Hare Krsna and

classes on the Bhagavad-Gita. Although not yet incorporated or known by

its present name, the International Society for Krsna Consciousness had been

born.

Few of Srila Prabhupada's guests, whose interests included music, drugs,

macrobiotics, pacifism, and spiritual meditation, knew very much about

what they were chanting or exactly why they were chanting it. They just

enjoyed it and liked being in the presence of the man they affectionately

called "Swamiji." These musicians, artists, poets, and intellectuals, most of

whom had chosen to live outside of mainstream society, felt that by chanting

Hare Krsna they were taking part in something mystical and unique.

Srila Prabhupada led the solo chanting: Hare Krsna, Hare Krsna, Krsna

Krsna, Hare Hare/ Hare Rama, Hare Rama, Rama Rama, Hare Hare. The

melody was always the same-a simple four-note phrase, the first four notes

of the major scale. Prabhupada led the kirtana with small three-inch-

diameter hand cymbals he had brought with him from India. He would ring

them in a one-two-three, one-two-three fashion. Some of his followers

clapped along with him, and some joined in with small finger-cymbals of

their own. Others sat in yoga postures, hands outstretched, chanting and

meditating on this novel transcendental vibration. Guests would sometimes

bring other instruments, including guitars, flutes, tambourines and a wide

variety of drums.

After a few months some of Srila Prabhupada's followers secured for him a

better place to live and spread the chanting of the holy name. The new

Second Avenue location on the hippie-filled Lower East Side included an

apartment for Srila Prabhupada one floor up and a ground-floor storefront,

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which he would use as a temple. Within a few weeks, the small sixty-by-

twenty-five-foot storefront was packed with young people three nights a

week.

Prabhupada’s kirtana were lively and captivating, with numerous guests

spontaneously rising to their feet, clapping and dancing. Srila Prabhupada,

always conducting the kirtana in call-and-response fashion and playing a

small African bongo-like drum, would accelerate the chant faster and faster,

until after about half an hour it would reach a climax and suddenly end.

Chanting along with Srila Prabhupada in this small room on Second Avenue,

guests found themselves transported into another dimension, a spiritual

dimension, in which the anxieties and pressures of everyday life in New

York City simply did not exist. Many soon caught on that chanting Hare

Krsna was an intense and effective form of meditation, a direct means of

communion with something greater than themselves, no matter what their

conception of the Absolute.

Prabhupada’s flock soon began to print and distribute invitations and leaflets

such as this one:

Practice the transcendental sound vibration,

Hare Krsna, Hare Krsna, Krsna Krsna, Hare Hare

Hare Ram, Hare Ram, Ram Ram, Hare Hare.

This chanting will cleanse the dust from the

Mirror of the mind.

Another invited America's youth to

STAY HIGH FOREVER!

No More Coming Down

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Practice Krishna Consciousness

Expand your consciousness by practicing the

*TRANSCENDENTAL SOUND VIBRATION*

HARE KRISHNA, HARE KRISHNA

KRISHNA KRISHNA, HARE HARE

HARE RAMA, HARE RAMA

RAMA RAMA, HARE HARE

In the mornings Srila Prabhupada would lead the devotees in one round of

japa (chanting on beads). After chanting with Prabhupada, the devotees

would chant their remaining sixteen rounds on their own.

The celebrated American poet Allen Ginsberg, accompanying the kirtana on

his harmonium, had by now become a regular at the evening chanting

sessions at the temple and in nearby Tompkins Square Park.

The chanting of Hare Krsna seemed to spread in an almost magical way, and

as time went on, the number of people attracted to it increased

geometrically. Even in this unlikely New York setting, the mantra seemed to

have a life of its own. Whether it was the melody, the beat, the sound of the

words, the look of the devotees, or Prabhupada’s humility or serenity, nearly

everyone who then came in touch with the chanting of Hare Krsna

responded favorably.

In December 1966,Srila Prabhupada would explain on his first record album,

the LP that introduced two of the Beatles, John Lennon and George

Harrison, to Hare Krsna, that "the chanting Hare Krsna, Hare Krsna, Krsna

Krsna, Hare Hare/ Hare Rama, Hare Rama, Rama Rama, Hare Hare is not a

material sound vibration, but comes directly from the spiritual world."

Prabhupada’s Tompkins Square Park kirtana were spiritual happenings that

are now legendary. Hundreds of people from all walks of life took part;

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some as observers and some as eager participants, chanting, clapping their

hands, dancing, and playing musical instruments.

The October 9 edition of the New York Times described the Tompkins

Square Park kirtana with the following headline: "SWAMI'S FLOCK

CHANTS IN PARK TO FIND ECSTASY."

Sitting under a tree in a Lower East Side park and occasionally dancing, fifty

followers of a Hindu swami repeated a sixteen-word chant for two hours

yesterday afternoon to the accompaniment of cymbals, tambourines, sticks,

drums, bells, and a small reed organ.... Repetition of the chant, Swami A.C.

Bhaktivedanta says, is the best way to achieve self-realization in this age of

destruction.

... many in the crowd of about a hundred persons standing around the

chanters found themselves swaying to or clapping hands in time to the

hypnotic rhythmic music. "It brings a state of ecstasy," said Allen Ginsberg

the poet.... The ecstasy of the chant or mantra Hare Krishna, Hare Krishna,

Krishna Krishna, Hare Hare/ Hare Rama, Hare Rama, Rama Rama, Hare

Hare has replaced LSD and other drugs for many of the Swami's followers."

At the same time, New York's avant-garde newspaper The East Village

Other ran a front page story with a full-page photograph of Srila Prabhupada

standing and speaking to a large group of people in the park. The banner

headline read "SAVE EARTH NOW!!" and in large type just below the

picture, the Mahamantra was printed: "HARE KRISHNA HARE KRISHNA

KRISHNA KRISHNA HARE HARE HARE RAMA HARE RAMA RAMA

RAMA HARE HARE." The article admired the chanting and described how

Srila Prabhupada "had succeeded in convincing the world's toughest

audience-Bohemians, acidheads, potheads, and hippies-that he knew the way

to God."

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By 1970, when George Harrison's "My Sweet Lord"- with its beautiful

recurring Iyrics of Hare Krsna and Hare Rama-was the international

number-one hit song of the day, devotees in dhotis and sarees, chanting the

Mahamantra with musical instruments, were now a familiar sight in almost

every major city throughout the world. Because of Srila Prabhupada’s deep

love for Lord Krsna and his own spiritual master, his amazing determination,

and his sincere c sincere compassion, "Hare Krsna" had become a household

word.

CHAPTER 7

SCIENCE OF REINCARNATION

"I am confident that there truly is such a thing as living again, that the living

spring from the dead, and that the souls of the dead are in existence."

-Socrates

"The soul comes from without into the human body, as into a temporary

abode, and it goes out of it anew ... it passes into other habitations, for the

soul is immortal."

-Ralph Waldo Emerson

Journals of Ralph Waldo Emerson

"I did not begin when I was born, nor when I was conceived. I have been

growing, developing, through incalculable myriads of millenniums.... All my

previous selves have their voices, echoes, promptings in me.... Oh,

incalculable times again shall I be born."

-Jack London

The Star Rover

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"There is no death. How can there be death if everything is part of the

Godhead? The soul never dies and the body is never really alive."

-Isaac Bashevis Singer

Nobel laureate

Stories from Behind the Stove

"He saw all these forms and faces in a thousand relationships ... become

newly born. Each one was mortal, a passionate, painful example of all that is

transitory. Yet none of them died, they only changed, were always reborn,

and continually had a new face: only time stood between one face and

another."

-Herman Hesse,

Nobel laureate

Siddhartha

" 'Do you have any idea how many lives we must have gone through before

we even got the first idea that there is more to life than eating, or fighting, or

power in the Flock? A thousand lives, Jon, ten thousand! ... We choose our

next world through what we learn in this one.... But you, Jon, learned so

much at one time that you didn't have to go through a thousand lives to reach

this one.' "

-Richard Bach

Jonathan Livingston Seagull

"As we live through thousands of dreams in our present life, so is our

present life only one of many thousands of such lives which we enter from

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the other more real life ... and then return after death. Our life is but one of

the dreams of that more real life, and so it is endlessly, until the very last

one, the very real the life of God."

-Count Leo Tolstoy

We were behaving like we were going to live forever, which is what

everyone thought in the Beatles days, right? I mean, whoever thought we

were going to die?

-Beatle Paul McCartney

If you want to gain real control over your destiny, you must understand

reincarnation and how it works. It's that simple.

No one wants to die. Most of us would like to live forever in full vigor,

without wrinkles, gray hair, or arthritis. This is natural, because the first and

most basic principle of life is to enjoy. If we could only enjoy life forever!

Man's eternal quest for immortality is so fundamental that we find it nearly

impossible to conceive of dying. Pulitzer Prize winner William Saroyan

(author of The Human Comedy) echoed the views of most people when, in

the days just prior to his death, he announced to the media, "Everybody has

got to die, but I have always believed an exception would be made in my

case. Now what?"

Most of us seldom, if ever, think about death or what happens afterward.

Some say that death is the end of everything. Some believe in heaven and

hell. Still others hold that this life is only one of many we have lived and

will live in the future. And more than one third of the world's population-

over 1.5 billion people-accept reincarnation as an irrevocable fact of life.

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Reincarnation is not a "belief system," or a psychological device for

escaping the "grim finality" of death, but a precise science that explains our

past and future lives. Many books have been written on the subject, usually

based on hypnotic regression, near-death experiences, accounts of out-of-

body experiences, or deja-vu.

Death. Man's most mysterious, relentless, and inevitable adversary. Does

death mean the end of life, or does it merely open the door to another life,

another dimension, or another world?

If man's consciousness survives the death experience, then what determines

its transition to new realities?

When man endeavors to understand something beyond the scope of the

material senses, beyond instruments of measurement and the faculty of

mental speculation, then there is no alternative but to approach a higher

source of knowledge.

No scientist has successfully explained through laboratory investigations the

mystery of consciousness or its destination after the destruction of the

material body. Research in this field has produced many divergent theories,

but their limitations must be recognized.

The systematic principles of reincarnation, on the other hand,

comprehensively explain the subtle laws governing our past, present, and

future lives.

Professor John Pfeiffer notes, "Your body does not contain a single one of

the molecules that it contained seven years ago." Every seven years one's old

body is completely rejuvenated. The self, however, our real identity, remains

unchanged. Our bodies grow from infancy, to youth, to middle age, and then

to old age, yet the person within the body, the "I,"always remains the same.

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Bhagavad-Gita: The Timeless Sourcebook on Reincarnation:

Among all available literatures, the Sanskrit Vedas of India are the oldest on

earth and present the most comprehensive and logical explanations of the

science of reincarnation, teachings that have maintained their viability and

universal appeal for more than five thousand years.

The most fundamental information about reincarnation appears in

Bhagavad-Gita, the essence of the Upanisads and of all Vedic knowledge.

The Gita was spoken fifty centuries ago by Lord Kåñëa, the Supreme

Personality of Godhead, to His friend and disciple Arjuna on a battlefield in

northern India. A battlefield is the perfect place for a discussion about

reincarnation, for in combat, men directly confront the fateful questions of

life. death, and the afterlife.

As Krsna begins to speak on the immortality of the soul, He tells Arjuna,

"Never was there a time when I did not exist, nor you, nor all these kings;

nor in the future shall any of us cease to be." The Gita further instructs,

"That which pervades the entire body you should know to be indestructible.

No one is able to destroy that imperishable soul." The soul-here we speak of

something so subtle that it is not immediately verifiable by the limited

human mind and senses. Therefore, not everyone will be able to accept the

existence of the soul. Krsna informs Arjuna, "Some look on the soul as

amazing, some describe him as amazing, and some hear of him as amazing,

while others, even after hearing about him, cannot understand him at all."

Accepting the existence of the soul is, however, not merely a matter of faith.

It is impossible to understand reincarnation unless one knows the difference

between the actual self (the soul) and the body. The Gita helps us see the

nature of the soul by the following example. "As the sun alone illuminates

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all this universe, so does the living entity, one within the body, illuminate

the entire body by consciousness."

Consciousness is concrete evidence of the presence of the soul within the

body. On a cloudy day, the sun may not be visible, but we know it is there in

the sky by the presence of sunlight. Similarly, we may not be able to directly

perceive the soul, but we may conclude it is there by the presence of

consciousness. In the absence of consciousness, the body is simply a lump of

dead matter. Only the presence of consciousness makes this lump of dead

matter breathe, speak, love, and fear. In essence, the body is a vehicle for the

soul, through which it may fulfill its myriad material desires. As one grows

older, this distinction between the conscious self and the physical body

becomes more obvious. The soul falsely identifies with the body, carrying its

different conceptions of life from one body to another as the air carries

aromas. Just as an automobile cannot function without the presence of a

driver, similarly, the material body cannot function without the presence of

the soul.

As one grows older, this distinction between the conscious self and the

physical body becomes more obvious. Within his lifetime a person can

observe that his body is constantly changing. It does not endure, and time

proves the child ephemeral. The body comes into existence at a certain time,

grows, matures, produces by-products (children), and gradually dwindles

and dies. The physical body is thus unreal, for it will, in due time, disappear.

As the Gita explains, "Of the nonexistent there is no endurance." But despite

all the changes of the material body, consciousness, a symptom of the soul

within, remains unchanged. ("Of the eternal there is no change.") Therefore,

we may logically conclude that consciousness possesses an innate quality of

permanence that enables it to survive the dissolution of the body. Krsna tells

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Arjuna, "For the soul there is neither birth nor death at any time.... He is not

slain when the body is slain."

But if the soul is "not slain when the body is slain," then what becomes of it?

The answer given in the Bhagavad-Gita is that the soul enters another body.

This is reincarnation. This concept may be difficult for some people to

accept, but it is a natural phenomenon, and the Gita gives logical examples

to aid our understanding: "As the embodied soul continuously passes, in this

body, from boyhood to youth to old age, the soul similarly passes into

another body at death. A sober person is not bewildered by such a change."

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ANCIENT VEDIC HISTORY

AND CULTURE 5

NAME:______________________________________

CLASS:______________________________________

ROLL NO:________________

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I offer my respectful obeisances to His Divine Grace A.C.

Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada who has been my

primary source of knowledge and inspiration in Krsna

Consciousness.

Please continue to guide me in this venture of teaching

children as you have taught us.

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INTRODUCTION

My dear children,

The decision to revert back to the textbook form of the matter which

is needed for this subject was taken solely for your convenience since many

of you end up losing your papers and then do not having exclusive matter for

studying. I have tried to make each chapter more interesting. There are

blank pages after every chapter to do your questions and answers so there is

no need for a separate notebook or extra sheets.

This is the last level of Vedic Studies in the secondary school so a lot

of matter which has been studied in your entire school life may be repeated,

albeit on a higher level. On the separate sheet for ‘Notes’, write down your

difficulties after every chapter and discuss them with me during class. A lot

of matter in this book has been adapted from the Srimad Bhagavatam and

Bhagavad-Gita. Besides that some of the chapters have been “stolen” and

adapted from material compiled by His Grace Radheshyam das, an ex-IITian

who now in fully engaged in preaching to the youth through VOICE ( Vedic

Oasis for Inspiration, Culture and Education).

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I hope you enjoy studying this subject as much as I enjoy teaching it to all of

you.

Hare Krsna!

- Gandhari devi dasi

CONTENTS

1. Punar Musika Bhava

2. Yoga as meditation on Krsna

3. Total Surrender – The Story of Ambarisha Maharaja

4. Chanting – The only remedy

5. Hare Krsna Mahamantra in the West

6. The life and pastimes of Lord Caitanya

7. Understanding the Scriptures

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CHAPTER 1

PUNAR MUSIKA BHAVA

In a small clearing deep in the forest a mystic yogi sat absorbed in

meditation. Sitting on the ground with crossed legs and with closed eyes the

yogi was as still as a statue. He was appreciating the calm and peace

surrounding him.

Without warning a frightened mouse jumped onto the yogi’s lap. He

squeaked, “Please save me. A cat in chasing me.”

The yogi slowly opened one eye then the other. He peered down at the

mouse. “It’s not my business to go chasing cats.”

“Please sir, please help me,” the mouse squeaked.

“All right,” the yogi said. “You can become a cat.” Then he waved his

hand, cast a spell, and the mouse became a cat.

The cat then dashed away, back into the forest.

A few days later, the yogi was sitting, as always, in peaceful meditation.

This time a cat crept from the bushes. It was miaowing pitifully, “Please

save me! A ferocious dog is after me.”

The yogi said, “I recognize you. You’re the mouse I changed into a cat the

other day.”

The cat miaowed louder.

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“Well, well, what shall we do this time?” Then he cast another spell and

transformed the cat into a big barking dog.

The dog ran into the jungle, and the yogi continued his meditation.

A couple of days later the dog returned, in a very distressed condition. He

ran up to the yogi, panting and whimpering, “Please help me. A great tiger

is chasing me.”

The king yogi considered the plight of the terrified dog. He replied, “Oh

you are such a fearful creature. Stop shaking.

You too will be a tiger. Have no more fear.” With that he cast a spell and

the dog turned into the most dangerous beast in the forest.

But instead of going away, the tiger paced around proudly, admiring His

new body. He licked his black and yellow striped coat with his long tongue,

and with great satisfaction examined his razor-sharp claws.

When the yogi noticed the tiger eyeing him, he said, “So, tiger, what do you

want now?”

With a sly smile, the tiger replied, “I want to eat you.” He made ready to

pounce.

The yogi was too quick for him. Pointing his finger, he cast another spell.

“Ungrateful wretch! Again become a mouse!”

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CHAPTER 2 YOGA AS MEDITATION ON KRSNA

It is specifically stated in Bhagavad-gita that to perform meditational yoga one should go to a secluded and holy place. In other words, it is necessary to leave home. In this age of overpopulation it is necessary to leave home. In this age of overpopulation it is not always possible to find a secluded place, but this is not necessary in bhakti-yoga.

In the bhakti-yoga system there are nine different processes: hearing,

chanting, remembering, serving, worshiping the Deity in the temple,

praying, carrying out orders, serving Krsna as a friend and sacrificing for

Him. Out of these, sravanam kirtanam, hearing and chanting, are considered

the most important.

The whole process of the yoga system is to purify oneself. And what is this

purification? Purification ensures upon the realization of one’s actual

identity. Purification is realizing that “I am pure spirit – I am not this

matter.” Due to material contact, we are identifying ourselves with matter,

and we are thinking, “I am this body.” But in order to perform real yoga one

must realizes his constitutional position as being distinct from matter. The

purpose of seeking out a secluded place and executing the meditational

process is to come to this understanding. It is not possible to come to this

understanding if one executes the process improperly. In any case, this is

the consideration of Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu:

Hare nama harer nama Harer namaiva kevalam

Kalau nasty eva nasty eva

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Nasty eva gatir anyatha

“In this age of quarrel and disagreement [Kali-yuga], there is no other way of spiritual realization but this chanting of the names. there is no other way, there is no other way, there is no other way.”

It is generally thought, at least in the Western world, that the yoga system

involves meditating on the void. But the Vedic literatures do not

recommend meditating on any void. Rather, the Vedas maintain that yoga

means meditation on Visnu, and this is also maintained in Bhagavad-gita.

In many yoga societies we find that people sit cross-legged and very straight,

then close their eyes to meditate, and so fifty percent of them go to sleep

because when we close our eyes and have no subject matter for

contemplation. Of course this is not recommended by Sri Krsna in

Bhagavad-Gita. One must sit very straight and the eyes are only half-closed,

gazing at the tip of one’s nose. If one does not follow the instructions, the

result will be sleep and nothing more. One must be always undisturbed. If

the mind is agitated or if there is a great deal of activity going on, one will

not be able to concentrate. In meditational yoga one must also be devoid of

fear. There is no question of fear when one enters spiritual life. When there

are no demands, and one executes this system properly, then he can control

his mind. After one has met all the requirements for meditation, he must

transfer his whole thought to Krsna or Visnu. It is not that one is to transfer

his thought to vacancy. Thus Krsna says that one absorbed in the

meditational yoga system is “always thinking of Me.”

The yogi obviously has to go through a great deal of difficulty to purify the

atma (mind, body and soul), but it is a fact that this can be done most

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effectively in this age simply by the chanting of Hare Krsna, Hare Krsna,

Krsna Krsna, Hare Hare/ Hare Rama, Hare Rama, Rama Rama, Hare Hare.

This is because this transcendental sound vibration is no different from Him.

When we chant His name with devotion, then Krsna is with us, and when

Krsna is with us, then what is the possibility of remaining impure?

Consequently, one absorbed in Krsna consciousness, in chanting the names

of Krsna and serving Him always, receives the benefit of the highest form of

yoga. The advantage is that he doesn’t have to take all the trouble of the

meditational process. That is the beauty of Krsna consciousness.

In yoga it is necessary to control all of the senses, and when all the senses

are controlled, the mind must be engaged in thinking of Visnu. One

becomes peaceful after thus conquering material life.

Jitatmanah prasantasya Paramatma samahitah

“For one who has conquered the mind, the Supersoul is already reached, for he has attained tranquility.” (Bg. 6.7) This material world has been likened to a great forest fire. As in the forest, fire may automatically take place, so in this material world, although we may try to live peacefully, there is always a great conflagration. It is not possible to live in peace anywhere in the material world. But for one who is transcendentally situated – either by the meditational yoga system or by the empirical philosophical method, or by bhakti-yoga – peace is possible. All forms of yoga are meant for transcendental life, but the method of chanting is especially effective in this age. Kirtana may go on for hours, and one may not feel tired, but it is difficult to sit in lotus position perfectly still for more than a few minutes. Yet regardless of the process, once the fire of material life is extinguished, one does not simply experience what is called impersonal void. Rather, as Krsna tells Arjuna, one enters into the supreme abode.

Yunjann evam sadatmanam Yogi niyata-manasah

Santim nirvana-paramam

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Mat-samstham adhigacchati

“By meditating in this manner, always controlling the body, mind and activities, the

mystic transcendentalist attains to the kingdom of God through cessation of material

existence.” (Big 6.15) Krsna’s abode is not void. It is like an establishment, and in an

establishment there is a variety of engagements. The successful yogi actually attains to

the kingdom of God where there is spiritual variegation. The yoga processes are simply

ways to elevate oneself to enter into that abode. Actually we belong to that abode, but,

being forgetful, we are put in this material world. Just as a madman becomes crazy and

is put into a lunatic asylum, so we, losing sight of our spiritual identity, become crazy

and are put into this material world. Thus the material world is a sort of lunatic asylum,

and we can easily notice that nothing is done very sanely here. Our real business is to

get out and enter into the kingdom of God. In Bhagavad-gita Krsna gives information of

this kingdom and also gives instructions about His position and our position – of what He

is and what we are. All the information necessary is set forth in Bhagavad-gita, and a

sane man will take advantage of this knowledge.

CHAPTER 3

TOTAL SURRENDER- THE STORY OF AMBARISHA

MAHARAJA

Long long ago there lived a great king named Ambarisha. He ruled over the entire earth. He ruled very well and was also a great devotee of the Lord.

Maharaja Ambarisha engaged all his senses in devotional service. His mind

was engaged in meditating on the lotus feet of Krsna. His words were used

in describing the glories of the Lord. His hands were used in cleaning the

Lord’s temple and his ears in hearing Krsna katha. He engaged his sense of

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smell in smelling the fragrance of tulasi offered to the Lord and his tongue in

tasting the Lord’s prasada. He used his legs only for visiting the temples and

other holy places. His head was for bowing down before the Lord and all

his desires in serving the Lord twenty four hours a day.

Maharaja Ambarisha performed many great sacrifices like the Ashwamedha

yagya. During these sacrifices, under the guidance of great saintly persons

many things were given away in charity. Hence all the citizens were used to

receiving charity and hearing about the activities of the Supreme Personality

of Godhead.

Maharaja Ambarisha had once observed a vow of Ekadashi for one year. At

the end of the year he fasted without water for 3 days, bathed, performed

deity worship and gave many cows in charity. The cows were decorated

with silver and gold ornaments. He distributed prasada to everyone. When

he was about to break the fast, the great sage Durvasa Muni came there as an

uninvited guest. King Ambarisha welcomed him with great honour and

requested him to eat. Durvasa Muni accepted the invitation but first wanted

to bathe in the Yamuna.

In the meantime the auspicious time for breaking the fast was almost ending.

Maharaja Ambarisha was wondering what he should do. He consulted the

brahmanas. “O brahmanas, out of respect I must wait for Durvasa Muni and

at the same time break the fast at the prescribed time. What should I do?

May be I could drink water. This may be accepted as eating and also not

eating.” He drank a few drops of water.

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Durvasa Muni returned from the Yamuna. By his mystic power he could

understand that Ambarisha had drunken water without his permission

Durvasa Muni became very angry. He said, “O proud king, you have invited

me as a guest but instead of feeding me, you yourself have eaten first. Now

I shall punish you.”

With an angry red face, Durvasa Muni uprooted a bunch of hair from his

head and created a fiery demon with a trident in his hand. The demon

charged towards Ambarisha but the king was not at all disturbed and

meditated on the Supreme Personality of Godhead in his heart.

It is said that a fire in the forest immediately burns to ashes an angry snake.

In the same way, to protect His devotee, the Lord’s Sudarshan Chakra came

and immediately burnt the demon to ashes. Then the Sudarshan Chakra

started moving towards Durvasa Muni who became frightened and started

running to save his life.

Durvasa Muni ran in all directions to save himself in the sky, on the earth, in

the ocean, on different planets. But wherever he went he could feel the

unbearable fire of the Sudarshan Chakra following him. He tried to seek

protection from Lord Bramha and Lord Shiva but both of them advised him

to take the shelter of the Supreme Personality of Godhead.

Finally Durvasa Muni went to the abode of Lord Narayana and fell at His

lotus feet. He prayed, “O Lord, please protect me. I have offended Your

most dear devotee. Kindly save me from the reaction of this offence. Even

if a person is going to hell, You can deliver him simply by awakening Your

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holy name within his heart. “The Supreme Personality of Godhead said, “I

am completely under the control of my devotees and My devotees are very

dear to Me. You should go immediately to King Ambarisha and beg

forgiveness. Only he can save you now.”

Durvasa Muni approached Maharaja Ambarisha and fell at his feet.

Maharaja Ambarisha felt very embarrassed and started offering prayers to

the Sudarshan Chakra. First he glorified the powerful weapon of the Lord

and then begged the Sudarshan Chakra to spare the life of Durvasa Muni.

In this way Durvasa Muni was freed from the fire of Sudarshan Chakra.

Durvasa Muni said, “My dear king , now I have understood the greatness of

devotees of the Supreme Personality of God head. I committed an offence,

yet you prayed for my good fortune. The pure devotees of the Lord can

achieve anything and give up anything. O king, you are so merciful. You

have saved my life.

All this time, Maharaja Ambarisha had not eaten anything and had been

waiting for Durvasa Muni. For one complete year he had been drinking only

water. He received the sage very respectfully and fed him a variety of tasty

dishes. Durvasa Muni was satisfied and asked the king to eat. He said, “My

dear king, I am very pleased with you. You are a great devotee of the Lord.

All the three worlds shall sing your glories.” The great mystic yogi glorified

the king and went through the skyway to Bramhaloka.

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CHAPTER 4

CHANTING – THE ONLY REMEDY

THE SCIENCE OF MANTRA MEDITATION.

In India there are sacred places where yogis go to meditate in solitude, as

prescribed in Bhagavad-gita. Traditionally, yoga cannot be executed in a

public place, but insofar as kirtana-mantra-yoga, or the yoga of chanting the

Hare Krsna mantra: Hare Krsna, Hare Krsna, Krsna Krsna, Hare Hare/ Hare

Rama, Hare Rama, Rama Rama, Hare Hare – is concerned, the more people

present, the better. When Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu was performing

kirtana in India some five hundred years ago, He organized in each group

sixteen persons to lead the chanting, and thousands of persons chanted with

them. This participation in kirtana, in the public chanting of the names and

glories of God, is very possible and is actually easy in this age At a public

kirtana one person can chant Hare Krsna, Hare Krsna, Krsna Krsna, Hare

Hare/ Hare Rama, Hare Rama, Rama Rama, Hare Hare, while a group

listens, and at the end of the mantra, the group can respond, and in this way

there is a reciprocation of hearing and chanting. This can easily be

performed in one’s own home, with a small group of friends or with many

people in a large public place. One may attempt to practice meditational

yoga in a large city or in a society, but one must understand that this is one’s

own concoction and is not the method recommended in Bhagavad-gita.

Caitanya Mahaprabhu introduced the chanting of Hare Krsna, Hare Krsna,

Krsna Krsna, Hare Hare/ Hare Rama, Hare Rama, Rama Rama, Hare Hare

as a great means of propaganda for spreading love of God. It is not that it is

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recommended only for Kali-yuga. Actually, it is recommended for every

age. There have always been many devotees who have chanted and reached

perfection in all ages. That is the beauty of this Krsna consciousness

movement. It is not simply for one age, or for one country, or for one class

of people. Hare Krsna can be chanted by any man in any social position, in

any country and in any age, for Krsna is the Supreme Lord of all people in

all social positions, in all countries, in all ages.

Sometimes Krsna descends personally, and sometimes He descends as sound

vibration, and sometimes He descends as a devotee. There are many

different categories of avataras [incarnations]. In this present age Krsna has

descended in His holy name, Hare Krsna, Hare Krsna, Krsna Krsna, Hare

Hare/ Hare Rama, Hare Rama, Rama Rama, Hare Hare. Lord Caitanya

Mahaprabhu also confirmed that in this age of Kali, Krsna has descended in

the form of sound vibration. Sound is one of the forms which the Lord takes.

Therefore it is stated that there is no difference between Krsna and His name

Awakening Our Original Consciousness:

It is said in the Caitanya-Caritamrta, "Pure love for Krsna is eternally

established in the hearts of living entities. It is not something to be gained

from another source. When the heart is purified by hearing and chanting, the

living entity naturally awakens." Since Krsna consciousness is inherent in

every living entity, everyone should be given a chance to hear about Krsna.

Simply by hearing and chanting -one's heart is directly purified, and one's

original Krsna consciousness is immediately awakened. Krsna

consciousness is not artificially imposed upon the heart, it is already there.

When one chants the holy name of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, the

heart is cleansed of all material contamination

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The Holy Name acts like fire. Fire will act, regardless of whether handled by

an innocent child or by someone well aware of its power. For example, if a

field of straw or dry grass is set afire, either by an elderly man who knows

the power of fire or by a child who does not, the grass will be burned to

ashes. Similarly, one may or may not know the power of chanting the Hare

Krsna mantra, but if one chants the holy name he will become free from all

sinful reactions.

Liberation from Ego: The effect of chanting the holy name of the Lord is perceived by the chanter

as liberation from the conception of false egoism False egoism is exhibited

by thinking oneself to be the enjoyer of the world and thinking everything in

the world to be meant for the enjoyment of one's self only. The whole

materialistic world is moving under such false egoism of "I" and "mine," but

the factual effect of chanting the holy name is to become free from such

misconceptions.

Chanting Defeats Death: By the grace of the Lord, if a devotee, at the time of death, can simply chant

His holy names-Hare Krsna, Hare Krsna, Krsna Krsna, Hare Hare/ Hare

Rama, Hare Rama, Rama Rama, Hare Hare-simply by chanting this

Mahamantra, he immediately surpasses the great ocean of the material sky

and enters the spiritual sky. He never has to come back for repetition of birth

and death. Simply by chanting the holy name of the Lord, one can surpass

the ocean of death.

Everyone knows that a happy life requires good health. Proper diet, adequate

exercise, and sufficient rest are necessary to keep our bodies strong and fit.

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If we neglect these demands, our bodies become weakened and resistance

wanes. Highly susceptible to infection, we eventually become ill.

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,

loneliness, prejudice, greed, boredom, envy, and anger.

Therefore, if you want peace at all, you will have to change your

consciousness into Krsna consciousness, both individually and collectively,

by the simple process of chanting the holy name of God. This is a standard

and recognized process for achieving peace in the world. We therefore

recommend that everyone become Krsna conscious by chanting Hare Krsna,

Hare Krsna Krsna Krsna, Hare Hare/ Hare Räma, Hare Räma, Räma Räma,

Hare Hare.

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CHAPTER 5

HARE KRSNA MAHAMANTRA IN THE WEST

When His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupäda frst arrived

in America in the midst ol the cultural turmoil of the sixties, he quickly

captured the hearts and minds of the New York hippies and the San

Francisco flower children with the chanting of the Hare Krsna mantra.

Within three years, he journeyed to London, and by 1971, Hare Krsna had

been recorded on hit records by former Beatles John Lennon and George

Harrison. By then the mantra had been heard by hundreds of millions of

people, and the International Society for Krishna Consciousness, formed in

New York in 1966, had spread to six continents. How could an elderly

Indian swami in a strange, foreign land, with no money, no support, no

friends, and no followers, achieve such phenomenal success?

The arduous sea voyage from Calcutta to Boston was finally over. The lone

passenger aboard the cargo ship Jaladuta, a seventy-year-old Indian holy

man, had been given free passage by the owner of the Scindia Steamship

Company. His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupäda arrived

at Commonwealth Pier on September 17, 1965.

For thousands of years kåñëa-bhakti, love of Krsna, had been known only in

India, but now, on the order of his spiritual master, Srila Prabhupada had

come to awaken the natural, dormant Krsna consciousness of the American

people.

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On his arrival day onboard the Jaladuta, he wrote in his diary the following

words:

Absorbed in material life, they [Americans] think themselves very happy

and satisfied, and therefore they have no taste for the transcendental message

of Väsudeva [Krsna].... But I know that Your causeless mercy can make

everything possible, because You are the most expert mystic ... How will I

make them understand this message of Krsna consciousness? ... O Lord, I

am simply praying for Your mercy so that I will be able to convince them

about Your message.... I am seeking Your benediction ... I have no devotion,

nor do I have any knowledge, but I have strong faith in the holy name of

Krsna...

After landing in America with the Indian rupee equivalent of eight dollars,

he spent his first year in the United States with a family in Butler,

Pennsylvania; an Indian yoga teacher in Manhattan; and later, with the help

of friends, rented a small room in upper Manhattan.

By the summer of 1966, he had found a larger location more suited to

propagating the Hare Krsna mahä-mantra and the ancient science of Krsna

consciousness. That summer Prabhupäda had met a young man named

Harvey Cohen, who offered him an old artist-in-residence loft in lower

Manhattan's Bowery.

Here, a small group of young Bohemian types would join Srila Prabhupada

every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday evening for chanting Hare Krsna and

classes on the Bhagavad-Gita. Although not yet incorporated or known by

its present name, the International Society for Krsna Consciousness had been

born.

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Few of Srila Prabhupada's guests, whose interests included music, drugs,

macrobiotics, pacifism, and spiritual meditation, knew very much about

what they were chanting or exactly why they were chanting it. They just

enjoyed it and liked being in the presence of the man they affectionately

called "Swamiji." These musicians, artists, poets, and intellectuals, most of

whom had chosen to live outside of mainstream society, felt that by chanting

Hare Krsna they were taking part in something mystical and unique.

Srila Prabhupada led the solo chanting: Hare Krsna, Hare Krsna, Krsna

Krsna, Hare Hare/ Hare Rama, Hare Rama, Rama Rama, Hare Hare. The

melody was always the same-a simple four-note phrase, the first four notes

of the major scale. Prabhupada led the kirtana with small three-inch-

diameter hand cymbals he had brought with him from lndia. He would ring

them in a one-two-three, one-two-three fashion. Some of his followers

clapped along with him, and some joined in with small finger-cymbals of

their own. Others sat in yoga postures, hands outstretched, chanting and

meditating on this novel transcendental vibration. Guests would sometimes

bring other instruments, including guitars, flutes, tambourines and a wide

variety of drums.

After a few months some of Srila Prabhupada's followers secured for him a

better place to live and spread the chanting of the holy name. The new

Second Avenue location on the hippie-filled Lower East Side included an

apartment for Srila Prabhupada one floor up and a ground-floor storefront,

which he would use as a temple. Within a few weeks, the small sixty-by-

twenty-five-foot storefront was packed with young people three nights a

week.

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Prabhupada’s kirtana were lively and captivating, with numerous guests

spontaneously rising to their feet, clapping and dancing. Srila Prabhupada,

always conducting the kirtana in call-and-response fashion and playing a

small African bongo-like drum, would accelerate the chant faster and faster,

until after about half an hour it would reach a climax and suddenly end.

Chanting along with Srila Prabhupada in this small room on Second Avenue,

guests found themselves transported into another dimension, a spiritual

dimension, in which the anxieties and pressures of everyday life in New

York City simply did not exist. Many soon caught on that chanting Hare

Krsna was an intense and effective form of meditation, a direct means of

communion with something greater than themselves, no matter what their

conception of the Absolute.

Prabhupada’s flock soon began to print and distribute invitations and leaflets

such as this one:

Practice the transcendental sound vibration,

Hare Krsna, Hare Krsna, Krsna Krsna, Hare Hare

Hare Ram, Hare Ram, Ram Ram, Hare Hare.

This chanting will cleanse the dust from the

Mirror of the mind.

Another invited America's youth to

STAY HIGH FOREVER!

No More Coming Down

Practice Krishna Consciousness

Expand your consciousness by practicing the

*TRANSCENDENTAL SOUND VIBRATION*

HARE KRISHNA, HARE KRISHNA

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KRISHNA KRISHNA, HARE HARE

HARE RAMA, HARE RAMA

RAMA RAMA, HARE HARE

In the mornings Srila Prabhupada would lead the devotees in one round of

japa (chanting on beads). After chanting with Prabhupada, the devotees

would chant their remaining sixteen rounds on their own.

The celebrated American poet Allen Ginsberg, accompanying the kirtana on

his harmonium, had by now become a regular at the evening chanting

sessions at the temple and in nearby Tompkins Square Park.

The chanting of Hare Krsna seemed to spread in an almost magical way, and

as time went on, the number of people attracted to it increased

geometrically. Even in this unlikely New York setting, the mantra seemed to

have a life of its own. Whether it was the melody, the beat, the sound of the

words, the look of the devotees, or Prabhupada’s humility or serenity, nearly

everyone who then came in touch with the chanting of Hare Krsna

responded favorably.

In December 1966,Srila Prabhupada would explain on his first record album,

the LP that introduced two of the Beatles, John Lennon and George

Harrison, to Hare Krsna, that "the chanting Hare Krsna, Hare Krsna, Krsna

Krsna, Hare Hare/ Hare Rama, Hare Rama, Rama Rama, Hare Hare is not a

material sound vibration, but comes directly from the spiritual world."

Prabhupäda's Tompkins Square Park kirtana were spiritual happenings that

are now legendary. Hundreds of people from all walks of life took part;

some as observers and some as eager participants, chanting, clapping their

hands, dancing, and playing musical instruments.

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The October 9 edition of the New York Times described the Tompkins

Square Park kirtana with the following headline: "SWAMI'S FLOCK

CHANTS IN PARK TO FIND ECSTASY."

Sitting under a tree in a Lower East Side park and occasionally dancing, fifty

followers of a Hindu swami repeated a sixteen-word chant for two hours

yesterday afternoon to the accompaniment of cymbals, tambourines, sticks,

drums, bells, and a small reed organ.... Repetition of the chant, Swami A.C.

Bhaktivedanta says, is the best way to achieve self-realization in this age of

destruction.

... many in the crowd of about a hundred persons standing around the

chanters found themselves swaying to or clapping hands in time to the

hypnotic rhythmic music. "It brings a state of ecstasy," said Allen Ginsberg

the poet.... The ecstasy of the chant or mantra Hare Krishna, Hare Krishna,

Krishna Krishna, Hare Hare/ Hare Räma, Hare Räma, Räma Räma, Hare

Hare has replaced LSD and other drugs for many of the Swami's followers."

At the same time, New York's avant-garde newspaper The East Village

Other ran a front page story with a full-page photograph of Srila Prabhupada

standing and speaking to a large group of people in the park. The banner

headline read "SAVE EARTH NOW!!" and in large type just below the

picture, the Mahamantra was printed: "HARE KRISHNA HARE KRISHNA

KRISHNA KRISHNA HARE HARE HARE RAMA HARE RAMA RAMA

RAMA HARE HARE." The article admired the chanting and described how

Srila Prabhupada "had succeeded in convincing the world's toughest

audience-Bohemians, acidheads, potheads, and hippies-that he knew the way

to God."

By 1970, when George Harrison's "My Sweet Lord"- with its beautiful

recurring Iyrics of Hare Krsna and Hare Rama-was the international

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number-one hit song of the day, devotees in dhotis and sarees, chanting the

Mahamantra with musical instruments, were now a familiar sight in almost

every major city throughout the world. Because of Srila Prabhupada’s deep

love for Lord Krsna and his own spiritual master, his amazing determination,

and his sincere c sincere compassion, "Hare Krsna" had become a household

word.

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CHAPTER 6

THE LIFE OF LORD CAITANYA

In the latter part of the fifteenth century, India's most extraordinary political,

cultural, and religious reformer appeared in a small town in West Bengal.

Five hundred years before Gandhi, this remarkable personality inaugurated a

massive nonviolent civil disobedience movement. He swept aside the stifling

restrictions of the hereditary caste system and made it possible for people

from any station in life to achieve the highest platform of spiritual

enlightenment. In doing so, He broke the stranglehold of proud intellectual

elite on India's religious life. Ignoring all kinds of outmoded rituals and

formulas, He introduced a revolutionary spiritual movement that was rapidly

accepted all over India, a movement which, because of its universal appeal,

has now spread all over the world. The name of this powerful reformer was

Sri Krsna Caitanya Mahaprabhu, the founder of the modern-day Hare Krsna

movement.

The Vedic scriptures of India had long predicted His birth, in 1486 in

Mayapur, a quarter of the city of Navadvipa. Great saints and scholars soon

detected that He was not an ordinary human being, but an incarnation of the

Supreme Personality of Godhead, Lord Krsna Himself, appearing as a great

devotee of the Lord.

Caitanya had little patience with ritualistic religious functions, and as He

grew to young manhood, He began to carry out His divine mission. He

wanted all people, everywhere, to have access to the actual experience of

love of God, by which one can feel the highest spiritual ecstasies. This

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awakening, Sri Caitanya taught, could be attained by sankirtana-the chanting

of the holy names of the Lord, the Hare Krsna mantra.

Caitanya rapidly acquired many followers, who immediately took up the

chanting, sometimes performing it in their homes and sometimes in the

streets of Navadvipa. The Lord's sankirtana movement immediately

threatened the established groups in the social hierarchy-the Muslim rulers

of Bengal and the hereditary Hindu priestly class, the caste priests who were

attempting to artificially monopolize religious leadership. Members of both

groups lodged complaints with the local Muslim ruler, Chand Kazi.

Agreeing that Caitanya and His followers threatened the established order,

the Kazi tried to suppress the growing sankirtana movement. On his order,

constables raided the home of one of Caitanya's followers and smashed the

drums used in the chanting. The Kazi ordered that the chanting of the holy

names of the Lord be immediately stopped and threatened that if it began

again in Navadvipa, he would ruthlessly punish those responsible.

When informed of the raid, Sri Caitanya immediately organized the largest

peaceful civil disobedience movement in Indian history up to that time. On a

prearranged evening, Sri Caitanya and one hundred thousand of His

followers suddenly appeared in the streets of Navadvipa and divided into

many well-organized chanting parties. As they danced through the city, the

sound of the Hare Krsna mantra resounded in a deafening roar. Finally, the

chanters converged on the residence of the Kazi, who hid inside.

At the Lord's invitation, however, the Kazi appeared, and the two began

negotiations. Speaking politely, and with great logic and reason, the Lord

convinced the Kazi that the complaints against sankirtana were groundless.

In a dramatic conversion, the Kazi himself became a follower of Caitanya

and actively promoted and protected the sankirtana movement. To this very

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day, Hindus visit the tomb of this Muslim magistrate to pay their respects.

Since the time of the Kazi, the Muslim inhabitants of Navadvipa have never

interfered with the public chanting of the Hare Krsna mantra, even during

the time of the Hindu-Muslim riots.

Not long after this important victory in His native town, Sri Caitanya began

to spread His movement all over India. For six years He traveled the length

and breadth of the country, chanting the Hare Krsna mantra and spreading

love of God. At many places, crowds of hundreds of thousands of people

would join with Him in massive chanting parties. Nevertheless, He also

encountered opponents, the strongest of whom were the Mayavadis, an

elitist group of philosophers who had spread throughout India, twisting the

meaning of the Vedic scriptures in a vain attempt to prove that God has no

personality or form. The impersonalists also believed that spiritual

enlightenment could be obtained only by a chosen few who knew Sanskrit

and arduously studied the Vedanta-sutra.

One of the Lord's disciples, Haridasa Thakura, was born a Muslim and thus

was considered an outcast in Hindu society. Yet Sri Caitanya elevated him to

the exalted position of namacarya, the spiritual master of the holy name of

Krsna.Sri Caitanya judged people not by their social status but by their

spiritual advancement.

In this way, Lord Caitanya laid the foundation for a universal religion for all

mankind, a scientific process of spiritual awakening that is now rapidly

spreading around the globe. In this present age, when attendance at

churches, temples, and mosques is diminishing daily, and the world is torn

with violence between numerous religious and political sects, it is easy to

see that people are growing more and more dissatisfied with external,

divisive religious formulas.

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People are hungering for an experience of spirituality that transcends all

boundaries. Millions are now finding that experience in the worldwide

sankirtana movement of Lord Caitanya, who said, "This sankirtana

movement is the prime benediction for humanity at large because it spreads

the rays of the benediction moon. It is the life of all transcendental

knowledge. It increases the ocean of transcendental bliss, and it enables us to

fully taste the nectar for which we are always anxious."

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CHAPTER 7

UNDERSTANDING THE SCRIPTURES

We have discussed in the earlier classes about the importance of chanting.

Let us this We have discussed in the earlier classes about the importance of

chanting. Let us this year understand even more deeply the meaning and the

urgency of chanting the Hare Krsna Mahamantra.

For that we must go back to our basics and understand the following:

� In the Bhagavad-Gita (6.46) Krsna says, “One must become a Yogi”.

� Yoga – What is it NOT!

�

• Mere physical exercise for shaping the body, good health & long

life.

• Emaciated enunciate in meditation.

• Man with some extra-ordinary powers

� Yoga – what it actually is?

�

• “Union” in love between individual consciousness & Supreme

Consciousness, i.e. between Soul & God

• Yogi is a person whose life & activities are oriented towards re-

establishing his relationship with God

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� Different Types of Human Beings

HUMAN BEINGS

LAW ABIDERS LAW

BREAKERS

KARMIS JNANIS DHYANIS BHAKTAS

SAKAMA NISKAMA

� Law Breakers

• Hard working Materialists

• Sophisticated animals conditioned to the bodily concept of life

• Don’t believe in soul, rebirth, God & Spiritual World

• Don’t discriminate between sinful & pious activities.

• Make futile attempts at being controller & enjoyer (prakrteh

kriyamanani… …BG 3.27)

� Sakama Karmis:

• Perform pious activities with fruitive intent

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• Don’t know that both pious & sinful activities are binding

• In the madness, forget the goal of life. E.g. Story of Indra as a pig

• It is meant for gradual elevation & not an end in itself

• Mostly worship demigods, with material desires.

� Different types of YOGAS

Bhagavad-Gita describes four types of Yoga

� NISKAMA KARMA YOGA

• Process of performing work without selfish desire for personal

gain

• Art of living without entanglement

� JNANA YOGA

• Impersonal, transcendentalist

• Elevation process to spiritual consciousness through cultivation of

philosophical knowledge

• Troublesome path

• Promoted to Bhakti-yoga only through association of devotees

� ASTANGA YOGA

• Mechanical meditative process meant to control the mind & senses

to focus one’s concentration on the Supreme

• Strict rules & regulations which are impractical in kali-yuga

• Dangers of falling in the trap of Siddhis.

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� BHAKTI YOGA

• Yoga for selfless, ecstatic love for God through transcendental

devotional service to Lord

• Easiest means to derive our dormant, inherent constitutional

position

• Includes three term – Servitor, Served & Service

• Nine Process of Devotional Service

� BHAKTI YOGA: CULMINATION OF ALL YOGA &

TOPMOST YOGA SYSTEM

“Of all yogis, the one with great faith who always abides in Me, thinks of

Me within himself, and renders transcendental loving service to Me is the

most intimately united with Me in yoga and is the highest of all. That is My

opinion.” [B.G. 6.47]

� THE TWO METHOD OF ATTAINING BHAKTI YOGA

� Gradual Method

� Direct Method

Gradual Method

The steps involved in Gradual Method of Bhakti Yoga are:

STEP 4: Ashtanga Yoga + Loving devotional service to the Supreme

Lord, KRISHNA. (BHAKTI YOGA)

STEP 3: Renouncing fruits + Knowledge + Control of Mind & Senses

by eight fold

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Path + Meditation on Paramatma / Super-soul in the Heart

(ASHTANGA YOGA)

STEP 2: Renouncing Fruits + Speculative Knowledge about Brahman

+ Austerity

(JNANA YOGA)

STEP 1: Renouncing the fruits of one’s labor

(KARMA YOGA / NISKAMA KARMA)

STEP 0: Fruitive worker performing rituals for elevation to heavenly

planets.

Regulated sense gratification in accordance with Scriptures (KARMA

KANDA)

Direct Method

• Devotional Service in Krishna Consciousness is Direct Method.

� This direct method is like taking an elevator for going up, instead of

walking up all the steps. The most powerful of the nine processes of

bhakti is

Hearing & Chanting of Lord’s Holy Name.

Having understood by evaluation we know now that we have had the easiest

way to attain Supreme realization and reach the topmost goal of human life,

i.e., the chanting of the Hare Krsna Mahamantra

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BHAKTIVEDANTA SWAMI

MISSION SCHOOL

ANCIENT VEDIC HISTORY

AND CULTURE 6

NAME:______________________________________

CLASS:______________________________________

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ROLL NO:________________

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I offer my respectful obeisances to His Divine Grace A.C.

Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada who has been my

primary source of knowledge and inspiration in Krsna

Consciousness.

Please continue to guide me in this venture of teaching

children as you have taught us.

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CONTENTS

1. Struggling alone

2. Khira-Cora Gopinath

3. The Challenge

4. Material problems and spiritual solutions

5. With love and devotion

6. Relishing the Pastimes of Lord Krsna

7. Offering to Lord Krsna

8. Do you need God in your life?

9. Moral values and etiquette

Vaishnava Songs/ Slokas

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CHAPTER - 1

STRUGGLING ALONE

This chapter deals with all the trials and tribulations that Prabhupada went through in establishing ISKCON. We cannot help admiring and loving Prabhupada all the more. When we look at this colossal organization and the movement today that has spread in every nook and corner of the world, and when we read about how Prabhupada had struggled all alone in the beginning, it touches our heart and moves us to tears to think that today we are very comfortably enjoying the fruits of all his endless endeavors. It was on Friday, August 13, 1965 that Prabhupada boarded Jaladuta, the cargo carrier of the Scindia Steam Navigation Company on a voyage to America. The voyage was from Calcutta to New York. He was sixty-nine years old and was taken on board bearing “a complimentary ticket with food”. Janmastami, the appearance day of Lord Krsna, fell on the twentieth of August that year. Bhaktivedanta Swami took the opportunity to speak to the crew about the philosophy of Lord Krsna, and he distributed prasadam he had cooked himself. He was suffering from pain, seasickness, dizziness, headaches, no appetite, and vomiting. In two days he suffered two heart attacks. He tolerated the difficulty, meditating on the purpose of his mission, but after two days of such violent attacks he thought that if another were to come he would certainly not survive. On the night of the second day, he had a dream. Lord Krsna, in His many forms, was rowing a boat, and He told Bhaktivedanta Swami that he should not fear, but should come along. Bhaktivedanta Swami felt assured of Lord Krsna’s protection, and the violent attacks did not recur. By the sixth day he had recovered a little from his illness and he reported in his diary on Friday, September 10, that he was feeling separation from Sri Vrindavan Dham, Lord Sri Govinda, Gopinath, and Radha Damodara. He was fully dependent on the mercy of Sri Krsna. While crossing the Atlantic Ocean the sea was unusually very calm. Bhaktivedanta Swami understood that the calmness was Lord Krsna’s mercy. After a thirty-five day journey from Calcutta, the Jaladuta reached Boston on September 17, 1965. The most significant thing about his stay in Boston is that he wrote a Bengali poem entitled “Markine Bhagavata-dharma”

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(Teaching Krsna Consciousness in America). On the 19th of September 1965, the Jaladuta sailed into New York Harbor and docked at a Brooklyn pier, at Seventeenth Street. Bhaktivedanta Swami was dressed appropriately for New York City. Bhaktivedanta Swami knew no one in New York City, but he had a contact, Dr. Ramamurti Mishra, who welcomed Bhaktivedanta Swami to join him in New York. Dr. Ramamurti Mishra said that Prabhupada was an incarnation of love. Bhaktivedanta Swami would sometime discuss with Dr. Mishra the aim of his visit to America, expressing his spiritual master’s vision of establishing Krishna Consciousness in the west. Philosophically at complete odds with Bhaktivedanta Swami, Dr. Mishra accepted the Absolute truth in the impersonal feature (or Brahman) to be supreme. Bhaktivedanta Swami stressed the supremacy of the personal feature (or Bhagavan), following the Vedic theistic philosophy that the most complete understanding of the Absolute truth is personal. Bhaktivedanta Swami considered Dr. Mishra a “Mayavadi” because of his inadvertent acceptance that maya, illusion, is greater than the Absolute Truth. For Bhaktivedanta Swami not only was the impersonal philosophy unpalatable, it was an insult to the Personality of Godhead. On November 8, Bhaktivedanta Swami wrote to his Godbrother Tirtha Maharaja, who had become the president of the Gaudiya Math, to remind him that their spiritual master, Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati, had a strong desire to open preaching centers in the western countries. But when Bhaktivedanta Swami finally got Tirtha Maharaja’s reply, he found it unfavorable. His Godbrother did not argue against his attempting something in New York, but he politely said that the Gaudiya Matha’s funds could not be used for such a proposal. On January 30, the East Coast was hit by severe blizzards. Seven inches of snow fell on the city. Bhaktivedanta Swami saw these as mere symptoms of the age of Kali. There would always be misery in the material world. Bhaktivedanta Swami wanted to construct a Radha-Krsna temple in New York, but his success was that he was remembering Krsna, even in New York city in the winter of 1965-66, whether the world recognized him or not. Not a day went by when he did not offer food to Krsna and speak on Krsna’s philosophy of Bhagavad-Gita.

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Lord Krsna says in Bhagavad-Gita, “For one who sees Me everywhere and sees everything in Me, I am never lost to him, and he is never lost to Me.” Krsna assures His pure devotees that “My devotee will never be vanquished.” There was never any doubt about this for Bhaktivedanta Swami. On February 15, Bhaktivedanta Swami moved from Dr. Mishra’s yoga studio to a room of his own two floors down to room 307, so that people could come regularly, chant Hare Krsna, take Prasadam in his company, and hear him speak from Bhagavad-gita and Srimad-Bhagavatam. He decided to lecture three evenings a week (Monday, Wednesday, and Friday) to whoever would come. His first audiences consisted mainly of people who had heard about him or met him at Dr. Mishra’s yoga Studio. The Paradox, at 64 East, Seventh Street on the Lower East Side, was a restaurant dedicated to the philosophy of Georges Ohsawa and the macrobiotic diet. Harvey Cohen, a free-lance artist, and Bill Epstein, a worker at the Paradox, were friends. After Harvey had been a Bhaktivedanta Swami’s place at Dr. Mishra’s yoga studio a few times, he came by the Paradox and began to describe all about the new Swami to Bill and other friends. Someone broke into room 307 while Bhaktivedanta Swami was out and stole his typewriter and tape recorder. Bhaktivedanta Swami had lost his spirit for living in room 307. So he changed place to Bowery. He had neither more fixed income than the derelicts, nor was any greater security of a fixed residence, yet his consciousness was different. He was translating Srimad-Bhagavatam into English, speaking to the world through his Bhaktivedanta purports. His duty was to establish Krsna Consciousness as the prime necessity for all humanity. He went on with his translating and with his constant vision of a Krsna temple in New York City. News of the Swami’s move to the Bowery loft spread, mostly by word of mouth at the Paradox restaurant, and people began to come by in the evening to chant with him. Every morning he would hold a class on Srimad-Bhagavatam and occasionally he would teach cooking to whoever was interested. As Bhaktivedanta Swami”s presentation of the Hare Krsna mantra was both musical and meditative, they were automatically interested. Bhaktivedanta Swami’s emphasis was on getting people to chant God’s personal, transcendental name, whether they took to it as jazz, folk music. Rock or

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Indian meditation made no difference, as long they began to chant Hare Krsna. The Bowery artists and musicians saw him as “highly evolved.” They felt that a spirit was moving him and were eager to help him set up his own place so that he could do his valuable spiritual thing and spread it to others. He was depending on them for help, yet they knew he was “on a higher level”; he was his own protector, or, as he said, God protected him. At first Bhaktivedanta Swami and his roommate, David lived together peacefully. David, however, insisted on taking marijuana, LSD, and amphetamines, and the Swami had no choice but to tolerate. Bhaktivedanta Swami, however, had a plan to use the loft as a temple-to transform it into New York’s first temple of Radha and Krsna and he wanted David’s cooperation. Bhaktivedanta Swami was trying to help David, but David was too disturbed. One day, on a dose of LSD, David went completely crazy. Bhaktivedanta Swami moved quickly down the four flights of stairs. He had not stopped to gather up any of his belongings or even to decide where he would go or whether he would return. There had been no time to consider anything. He had taken quite a shock, and now he was leaving the arena of David’s madness. Bhaktivedanta Swami faced the crisis as a test from Krsna. The instruction of Bhagavad-Gita was to depend on Krsna for protection. He decided to phone Carl Yeargens, one of his regular comers at the evening meetings, and ask him to help. Carl at once agreed that he could move in with him and his wife. When a week had passed and Carl and his friends had not found the Swami a suitable place, Bhaktivedanta Swami suggested that he and Carl take a walk up to Michael Grant’s place and ask him to help. As Michael listened to the Swami’s story he felt obligated. So the next day he went to The Village Voice, got the first newspaper off the press, looked through the classified ads until he found a suitable prospect. It was a storefront on Second Avenue. Perhaps this new address would be the place where he could actually get a footing with his ISKCON. The Krsna Consciousness movement took root.

Questions

Fill in the blanks:

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1. Srila Prabhupada was _____________ years old when he went to

America.

2. Prabhupada traveled by the ship named ______________ .

3. Srila Prabhupada had constant vision of _______________ in New

York.

4. Srila Prabhupada featured in _______________ for the first time.

Answer the following:

1. How was Srila Prabhupada dressed when he reached New York?

What does the dress signify?

2. Which magazine featured Prabhupada for the first time? What was

written about him in the article?

3. What was Prabhupada’s mission in America?

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CHAPTER 2

A POT OF MERCY- THE ENDEARING PASTIMES OF

MADHAVENDRA PURI

This is the story of Srila Madhavendra Puri, a great devotee of Lord Krsna,

of Gopala Who is the lifter of Goverdhan Hill and of Ksira-Cora Gopinath

who got His name because He stole a pot of Ksira (sweet rice) for His

devotee, Madhavendra Puri. This story is taken from the Caitanya

Caritamrta, a scripture that describes the glories and pastimes of Lord

Caitanya. The deity of Lord Ksira-Cora Gopinath is situated at Remuna is a

little village on the border of Orissa.

Once, Madhavendra Puri was traveling in Vrindavan. He circumambulated

the Goverdhan hill and then sat down to rest under a tree on the banks of the

Govinda kunda. Suddenly out of nowhere, a little cowherd boy appeared and

gave him a pot of milk and said, “I’ve noticed that unlike other sadhus you

are not begging for food. Why are you fasting? Are you performing any

penances? Please drink this milk that I have got for you.” Hearing the sweet

words of the little boy, Madhavendra Puri felt so content that he forgot his

hunger and thirst. He asked, “Who are you? Where do you live? And how

did you know I was fasting?”

“I am a cowherd boy and I reside in this village. Here a person can beg for

food from others. And if one does not ask anyone for food, I give them their

food and water. No one fasts here. The women who come here to draw water

saw you and sent this milk for you. I must go now to milk my cows. But I’ll

return to collect my pot.” Saying this, the boy left the place.

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He suddenly could be seen no more, and Madhavendra Puri’s heart was

filled with wonder. After drinking the milk, Madhavendra Puri washed the

pot and put it aside. He looked down the path, but the boy never returned.

He soon fell asleep. He had a dream in which he saw the same boy who

brought him milk earlier. He came before him and, holding his hand, took

him to a bush in the jungle.

The boy showed Madhavendra Puri the bush and said, “I reside in this bush,

and because of this I suffer from severe cold, rain, winds and scorching heat.

Please bring the people of the village and get them to take me out of this

bush. Then have them situate me nicely on top of the hill. Please construct a

temple on top of that hill,” the boy continued, “and install Me in that temple.

After this, wash me with large quantities of cold water so that my body may

be cleansed.”

“For many days I have been observing you, and I have been wondering,

‘When will Madhavendra Puri come here to serve Me?”

He then added, “My name is Gopala. I am the lifter of Govardhana Hill. I

was installed by Vajranath, and here I am the authority.

He continued, “When the Muslims attacked, the priest who was serving me

hid me in this bush in the jungle. Then he ran away out of fear of the attack.”

After saying this, the boy disappeared. Then Madhavendra Puri woke up and

began to ponder about his dream. He began to think, ‘I saw Lord Krsna face

to face and I did not recognize Him!’ Thinking thus, he began to cry but

after remembering the task that Gopala had given him, he calmed down and

assembled all the people.

“The proprietor of this village, Govardhana-dhari, is lying in the bushes. Let

us go there and rescue Him from that place”, he said.

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The villagers said, “The bushes are very dense, and we won’t be able to

enter the jungle. Therefore take choppers and spades to clear the way.”

After a while when they finally unearthed the deity which was covered with

dirt and grass they were all awestruck. After they had cleansed the body of

the Deity, some of them said, “The Deity is very heavy. No single person

can move Him.” Thus some of the stronger men assembled to carry Him to

the top of the hill along with Madhavendra Puri.

Soon a stone was cut to be His throne and another for a back support. Water

from the Govinda kunda was brought for the installation ceremony.

Some people sang and some danced. All the milk, yogurt and clarified butter

in the village were brought to the festival. Various foods and sweetmeats, as

well as other kinds of offerings were brought there.

After the body of the Deity was cleansed, He was dressed very nicely with

new garments. Then sandalwood pulp, tulasi garlands and other fragrant

flower garlands were placed upon the body of the Deity. Large amounts of

food delicacies were prepared by the villagers. Huge mounds of rice were

also placed for offering to the Lord.

In this kind of ceremony, which is called Annakuta, cooked rice is stacked

like a small mountain for prasadam distribution.

Many pots were filled with scented water for drinking, and Lord Gopala,

who had been hungry for many days, ate everything offered to Him.

Although Gopala ate everything offered, still, by the touch of His

transcendental hand, everything remained as before.

Lord Krsna says, “If one offers Me with love and devotion a leaf, a flower, a

fruit or water, I will accept it.” The Lord is purna or complete, and therefore

He eats everything offered by His devotees. However, by the touch of His

transcendental hand, all the food remains exactly as before. It is the quality

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of the food that is changed. After it is offered the food acquires a

transcendental quality. Because the Lord is purna, He remains the same even

after eating. The food offered to Krsna is qualitatively as good as Krsna; just

as Krsna is avyaya, indestructible, the food eaten by Krsna, being identical

with Him, remains as before.

Apart from this, Krsna can eat the food with any one of His transcendental

senses. He can eat by seeing the food or by touching it. Nor should one think

that it is necessary for Krsna to eat. He does not become hungry like an

ordinary human being; nonetheless, He presents Himself as being hungry,

and as such, He can eat everything and anything, regardless of quantity. The

philosophy underlying Krsna’s eating is understandable by our

transcendental senses. When our senses are purified by constantly being

engaged in the devotional service of the Lord, we can understand Krsna’s

activities, names, forms, qualities, pastimes and entourage.

After the ceremonies, the Lord was put to rest. After which Madhavendra

Puri asked everyone to honor the prasadam. People from throughout the

country heard about Lord Gopala and came to see Him. So there were

throngs of people coming constantly for a glimpse of Lord Gopala.

In this way the Deity worship in the temple was very nicely performed for

two years. Then one day Madhavendra Puri again had a dream.

Gopala once again appeared to him and said, “My body temperature still has

not decreased. Please bring sandalwood from the Malaya province and

smear the pulp over My body to cool Me.”

The Deity of Gopala had been buried within the jungle for many years, and

although He was installed and was offered thousands of pots of water, He

still felt very hot. He therefore asked Madhavendra Puri to bring sandalwood

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from the Malaya province. Ecstatic on being ordered to perform a task for

the Lord Himself, Madhavendra Puri left.

On the way he stopped at Remuna where the deity of Lord Gopinatha is

situated. He chanted and danced in front of the Lord.

Madhavendra Puri thought, “I shall inquire from the priest what foods are

offered to Gopinatha so that by making arrangements in our kitchen, we can

offer similar foods to Sri Gopala.”

While he was talking with the brahmana priest, some sweet rice was placed

before the Deity as an offering. Seeing this, Madhavendra Puri thought as

follows.

“If, without my asking, a little sweet rice is given to me, I can then taste it

and make a similar preparation to offer my Lord Gopala.”

Madhavendra Puri immediately became greatly ashamed that he desired to

taste the sweet rice, and he immediately began to think of Lord Visnu. While

he was thus thinking of Lord Visnu, the offering was completed and the arati

ceremony began.

After the arati was finished, Madhavendra Puri offered his obeisances to the

Deity and then left the temple. He did not say anything more to anyone.

Madhavendra Puri avoided begging. He was completely unattached and

indifferent to material things. If, without his begging, someone offered him

some food, he would eat; otherwise he would fast.

He left the temple and sat down in the village marketplace, which was

vacant and began to chant. In the meantime, the temple priest laid the Deity

down to rest.

Finishing his daily duties, the priest went to take rest. In a dream he saw the

Gopinatha Deity come to talk to him, and He spoke as follows.

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“O priest, please get up and open the door of the temple. I have kept one pot

of sweet rice for the sannyasi Madhavendra Puri.

“This pot of sweet rice is just behind My cloth curtain. You did not see it

because of My tricks.

“A sannyasi named Madhavendra Puri is sitting in the vacant marketplace.

Please take this pot of sweet rice from behind Me and deliver it to him.”

Awaking from the dream, the priest immediately rose from bed and thought

it wise to take a bath before entering the Deity’s room. He then opened the

temple door.

According to the Deity’s directions, the priest found the pot of sweet rice

behind the cloth curtain. He removed the pot and mopped up the place where

it had been kept. He then went out of the temple.

Closing the door of the temple, he went to the village with the pot of sweet

rice. He called out in every stall in search of Madhavendra Puri

Holding the pot of sweet rice, the priest called, “Will he whose name is

Madhavendra Puri please come and take this pot! Gopinatha has stolen this

pot of sweet rice for you!”

The priest continued, “Would the sannyasi whose name is Madhavendra Puri

please come and take this pot of sweet rice and enjoy the prasadam with

great happiness! You are the most fortunate person within these three

worlds!”

Hearing this invitation, Madhavendra Puri came out and identified himself.

The priest then delivered the pot of sweet rice and offered his obeisances,

falling flat before him.

When the story about the pot of sweet rice was explained to him in detail,

Madhavendra Puri at once became absorbed in ecstatic love of Krsna.

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The priest offered his obeisances to Madhavendra Puri and returned to the

temple. Then, in ecstasy, Madhavendra Puri ate the sweet rice offered to him

by Krsna.

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CHAPTER 3

MATERIAL PROBLEMS AND SPIRITUAL SOLUTIONS

What exactly are problems? Is there anyone in the world who does not have

any problems in life? What does one do to solve these problems? Is there a

solution to every problem? These are questions we will attempt to answer in

this chapter.

The poor feel they do not have enough money to clothe or feed them or to

provide for their basic amenities. They feel the rich are free of all problems

because they have money. On the other hand the rich feel that their life is

full of problems because of too much money that also attracts unwanted

attention from thieves, cheats and even distant relatives! A rich man hardly

ever has a peaceful night’s sleep because he is always worried if his money

is safe.

In general, people lament that they do not have water supply in their

apartment, or that they do not have a nice car, or a high paying job, or a

palatial bungalow. Being caught up in the immediate problems of life, they

hardly think of the real problems that every one of us has to face in life. If

we do not find solutions to these problems, we will have to suffer

perpetually in this world of birth and death. All the petty problems that we

face in our day-to-day lives are a subset of these four real problems of life.

Death: No one wants death. In the Garuda Purana, one of the ancient Vedic

scriptures, it is mentioned that death is extremely painful and the dying

person experiences a pain that is equivalent to forty thousand scorpions

biting simultaneously. The great sage Kapiladev informs about the ghastly

nature of the experience of death, “In that diseased condition the dying

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person’s eyes bulge due to the pressure of air from within, and his glands

become congested with mucus. He has difficulty in breathing, and there is a

rattling sound within his throat…. Thus he dies most pathetically.” (SB

3.30.16-18). The soul is so habituated to living in the body that he must be

forced out by the laws of nature at the time of death. Just as a person suffers

greatly when he is evicted from his home, similarly the soul suffers

immensely when he is forcibly kicked out of the body. In nature, we see that

even the tiniest creatures display amazing abilities and techniques for

escaping death when their lives are threatened. But death is inevitable for all

living beings and everyone has to face it one day, though it is fearsome and

painful.

Old age: No one wants to get old. An American millionaire spent millions

of dollars employing several doctors to find out whether he could stop

getting old and remain youthful forever. But the doctors realized that, even if

they were to understand the mechanism of ageing, they wouldn’t be able to

do anything about that, just as they couldn’t stop the rising and setting of the

sun. Thus inevitable time does not spare anybody. We were all children

some years ago; we grow to youth and eventually to old age. People capture

‘sweet memories’ because they know that when they are forced to grow old

– helplessly, their appearances won’t look sweet anymore. The cosmetic

industry is flourishing due to fear of old age.

Disease: No one wants any disease. There are so many different kinds of

diseases and medical science is trying to find out remedies for them. But

medical history shows that by the time science finds the cure for one disease,

another even more deadly disease comes up, as has happened in the case of

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cancer, syphilis, gonorrhea, AIDS, etc. we may cure one disease for some

time, but we cannot eradicate all diseases. The pain suffered through disease

is a common experience for everyone and needs no explanation. Rockefeller,

one of the richest men in the world, had chronic indigestion and

consequently all he could eat lifelong was only vegetable soup. Another rich

man suffered severe pain while urinating. Once, when a TV reporter asked

him what he feared the most in life, he replied, “The next moment of passing

urine!”

Birth: No one wants to suffer the pain of birth. Birth is an extremely

painful experience for the living entity. For nine long months, the human

fetus lies cramped within the darkness of the womb, suffering severely,

scorched by the mother’s gastric fire, continually jolted by sudden

movements, and felling constant pressure from being contained in a small

sack which surrounds him in the womb. This tight, constricting packet forces

the child’s back to arch constantly like a bow. Furthermore, hungry worms

in the abdominal cavity torment the child. The child passes stool and urine in

the same packet. Such is the misery of birth.

Thus Lord Krsna says in Bhagavad-Gita that it is very important for every

sane human being to perceive the evils of birth, old age, disease and death

and find out the permanent solution for them.

Some people may argue, “The problems of birth, old age, disease and death

come only once in a while. We can just ignore them and enjoy life for the

remaining time.” But at every moment everyone is suffering due to at least

one of the following threefold miseries:

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1) Miseries caused by one’s own mind and body (adhyatmika klesha):

The body and the mind give rise to innumerable problems. According to

World Health Organization (WHO) statistics, in the year 2000, in America,

19 million youths were suffering from mental-related illness; everyday 1200

youths were attempting to commit suicide and one tenth of them were

successful. Thus sometimes people are driven to the point of suicide due to

mental frustration. In old age, the deteriorating body gives varieties of

problems. For example, once a person grows beyond 80 years, generally he

can’t sit or stand without back-pain.

2) Miseries caused by other living entities (adhibhautika klesha): Even

if we have a healthy body and mind, others will not let us live in peace. Even

if everything is nicely arranged in our life, some other living entity, such as

our enemy, boss, colleague, relative, family member or friend, terrorists or,

if no one else, then a mosquito or a virus is sure to make our life miserable.

3) Miseries caused by nature (adhidaivika klesha): Floods, droughts,

famines, earthquakes, hurricanes, etc are devastating calamities imposed

upon us through the agency of nature. A volcanic eruption at Pompeii

devoured 20,000 people under a 20 ft high lava layer. The recent tsunami

tidal wave disaster swallowed 3, 80,000 lives in a few minutes. Even if these

come only occasionally, they wreak havoc whenever they come. And

moreover, we are being constantly tormented by the changes in the weather

such as scorching heat, freezing cold and untimely rains.

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Who can say that he is not being harassed constantly by these problems? The very fact that more than a dozen tranquilizers or painkillers are advertised on TV shows that there must be some suffering. Everyone is spending every moment to preserve his life, belongings, kith and kin, job or post, reputation etc. But the world we live in takes away all these eventually, despite our efforts to hold on to them. Thus a wise person should wonder, “Why should our lives be ridden with the anxiety of facing and tackling one problem after another? Is it all life is meant for? Or is there a life of eternal joy that is never inhibited by sufferings?”

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CHAPTER – 4

THE CHALLENGE

Once the ruling king of India passed a law that anyone defeated in debate

with his court Pandit (scholar) had to pay a yearly tax or else face execution.

Kolahala, the court Pandit, was very proud that with his clever words he had

defeated the learned teacher, Bhasyacharya.

For two years Bhasyacharya paid the fine, but now he didn’t have enough

money. One day he went on a business trip, leaving a twelve-year-old

student, Yamunacharya, alone in the school. Two bullies arrived at the

school and told Yamunacharya, “We are Kolahala’s disciples. As you

know, he is the greatest scholar. What you may not know is that your guru

owes him some tax money. If he doesn’t pay it by tomorrow, he’ll be put to

death.”

Although usually gentle by nature, Yamunacharya felt himself burning with

anger. “You both foolish disciples of a foolish master! Why should my

noble teacher waste time with the likes of you? Go tell your teacher that I,

who am but the lowest disciple of my guru, challenge him. Let him face me,

if he dares!”

Speechless, Kolahala’s disciples stormed out of the school. The king and

the court Pandit were amused when they heard the challenger’s age. But

understanding that Yamunacharya was serious; the king sent a carriage and

an escort of soldiers to bring him to the palace. Bu that time Bhasyacharya

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had returned. Upon hearing that his young student had challenged a Pandit,

whom he himself had not been able to beat, he was worried. Nevertheless,

he could find no way to stop the contest.

News spread quickly and a crowd gathered to watch the debate. The pious

Brahmins blessed the brave boy, “May you smash the pride of that cruel

Pandit just as Visnu in the form of a dwarf defeated Bali, the demon king.”

Even the Queen shared this attitude and sensing intuitively that this would

be the pandita’s downfall, she addressed the king, “As a mountain of cloth is

reduced to ashes by a mere spark, so the mountain-like pride of Kolahala

will be destroyed by this young boy.”

The king laughed at this. “I’ll bet that you are wrong.” “All right,” replied

the queen. “If I am proven wrong, then I promise to become the servant of

your maidservant.” The king raised his eyebrows in surprise, but with

confidence met the wager. “All right, and if the boy wins, then half my

kingdom will be his.” The queen nodded in agreement.

When everyone had taken their seats in the royal court, the king signaled for

the contest to begin. Kolahala asked one question after another, but

Yamunacharya answered all of them easily. The boy then commented, “You

are asking simple questions just because you judge a person’s learning by

his size. If that’s true then a water buffalo must be more intelligent than

you.”

Restraining his anger, Kolahala twisted his mouth into a smile. “Well

answered. So now it is your turn to put questions to me.” “Very well,”

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responded Yamunacharya. “I will make three statements and you must

prove that they are false. Do you accept this challenge?” Kolahala, who

was very expert at juggling words, nodded in approval.

“Firstly, I say that your mother is not a barren woman. Prove this to be

wrong if you can.” Kolahala, considering that had his mother been barren he

would not have been born, was unable to speak. Yamunacharya spoke

again. “Sir, as you appear to have no answer, I’ll make a second statement

for you to prove wrong. It is this: Our king is the most righteous person.”

Kolahala’s reddened face now turned white with anger; how could he deny

the godly qualities of the king who was sitting there? Again he remained

painfully silent.

Yamunacharya again spoke. “Listen to my third statement and prove it

wrong if you can. It is this: The good queen, present here today, is

completely faithful to her husband.”

Unable to speak against the queen, the defeated Pandit exploded with rage.

“You rogue, I will admit defeat only if you can prove your own statements

to be wrong. Failing this, you should be executed for your insolence.”

The crowd erupted, setting the entire place in an uproar. Yamuchacharya

stood up, raised his hands high and cried out, “I will do it. I will prove all

three statements to be wrong.” The crowd hushed. The boy continued,”

Firstly, I said that the Pandit’s mother was not barren. In the Manu Samhita,

the law book of mankind, it is stated that a woman who has only one child is

to be considered barren.

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“Secondly, I said that the king is the most righteous man. According to the

law books a king takes credit for one sixth of the good acts performed by his

subjects, but also has to answer for one sixth of their sinful acts. Therefore,

although our king is sinless himself, out of duty he is burdened by the selfish

deed of his citizens.

“Regarding my third statement about the queen being faithful to her

husband, I say this to refute it. According to Manu’s laws the king represent

the sun god, the air god, the fire god, the moon god, the god of death, the

god of the waters, the king of heaven, the heavenly treasurer, Kuvera.

Therefore queen is married not only to the king but to eight demigods. So

how can she be called faithful?”

Everyone except Kolahala and his disciples clapped, cheered, and marveled

at Yamunacharya’s victory-especially the queen, who had now won her

wager. The noble king embraced the boy, declaring “You have defeated the

proud Kolahala who wished you to die. Now you can do with him as you

like for you are the rightful victor. “The saintly Yamunacharya, however,

forgave the despondent Pandit, took half the kingdom, and above all, made

his guru very happy.

Questions

Answer the following:

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1. Why was Kolahala proud?

2. What was the law passed by the ruling king of India?

3. What message did the bullies convey to Yamunacharya?

4. What did the king and the queen put on bet over the contest

between Kolahala and Yamunacharya?

5. What was Yamunacharya’s challenge to Kolahala?

6. How did Yamunacharya prove his own statements wrong?

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CHAPTER 5

WITH LOVE AND DEVOTION

Not far from Navadvipa, is a little village named Shrikhanda. The people here were kind

and loving. Mukunda das, a sincere devotee of Lord Krsna and a physician in the king’s

court, lived here with his family five hundred years ago. In the heart of this village, was

a temple of Gopinath, the worshippable deity of Mukunda das. He loved and served Him

in the best way possible. He offered the Raj bhoga, the afternoon lunch to Him, daily.

One morning it so happened that the king called upon Mukunda

das to go somewhere. Mukunda first went home and asked his son,

“Raghunandan I have to leave the village for some time. You must

do Gopinath’s Raj bhoga offering.

“But I don’t know how to do the offering”. Raghunandan replied.

“Your mother will cook the bhoga and give you the offering plate.

All you have to do is take the offering from your mother and place

it in front of Gopinathji. Then chant the mantra and pray to

Gopinath to accept the offering”.

Raghunandan looked up at his father with the big eyes and nodded.

Mukunda das left for his official work. After some time the bhoga

was ready and Raghunandan’s mother called out to him.

Raghunandan was very excited about doing the offering for the

very first time. He carefully carried the big plate walking slowly

towards the temple. He unlocked the door and entered the temple

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room. There stood Lord Gopinath, flute in hand, smiling sweetly,

dressed in yellow silken garments.

Raghunandan placed the plate in front of Gopinath. He sprinkled

holy water on his palm as he had seen his father do. Bell in hand,

he closed his eye and chanted the mantra. He did everything just

as his father had said. He opened his eyes slightly to see if

Gopinath had eaten. The plate was as it was before (full). Once

again he closed his eyes to give Gopinath more time to eat. Sitting

there he waited for the Lord to accept the offering. Then he slowly

opened his eyes. Once more he saw that the plate was as it was

before.

“Gopinath O Gopinath, why aren’t you eating? Please eat or my

father will be angry with me.” Big tears welled up in his eye and

fell down his chubby cheeks. “Gopinath please eat.” He looked

up at Gopinath. “Why won’t you eat?”

Lord Gopinath said, “Ragunandan I have eaten.”

Raghunandan cried, “But everything is still over here.” “I just glance at the bhoga and it is offered. I can do everything

with all my senses.”

“I don’t understand. All I know is that the food is still here”. He

wept and wept, pleading to Gopinath to eat.

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Gopinath, seeing little Raghu’s love and devotion, said, “All right,

Raghunandan I will eat as you want me to eat”.

Then a very amazing thing happened. Gopinath with His lotus

hand ate everything what was there on the plate. Raghunandan

was overjoyed that the offering had been accepted. He washed the

Lord’s hands and ran back to his mother with the empty plate.

“Raghunandan where is the prasad?”, she asked.

“What prasad, Mother? I did the offering and Gopinath ate it all.”

Puzzled, his mother didn’t say anything. Meanwhile Mukunda das

returned.

“I have had a very busy day today. Bring me Gopinathji’s prasad

to honour.”

“What prasad? Raghunandan says that Gopinath ate all. I think

Raghunandan must have eaten all the prasad,” replied his wife.

Mukunda das knew that his son was very special. He asked

Raghunandan to relate everything that had happened. Then he said

to his son.” Can you make another offering to the Lord? Let me

see how you offer these ladoos”.

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Raghunandan joyfully ran to the temple. This time Mukunda das

hid behind the curtain to watch. Raghunandan said the mantra but

nothing happened; he started to cry and begged Gopinath to eat.

Finally Gopinath took the ladoo from the plate and ate it.

Mukunda das fell to his knees bowing to the Lord. With tears in

his eyes, he embraced his little son and said, “All glories to Lord

Gopinath and His devotees!”

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CHAPTER – 6

RELISHING THE PASTIMES OF LORD KRSNA The word ‘pastime’ does not mean ‘time pass’ or leisure activity here, as it

usually does, colloquially speaking. In this case it refers to the activities of

Lord Krsna.

The question now arises: why do we need to relish the pastimes of Lord

Krsna? For that we must try to understand why Krsna performs these

pastimes. To begin let us look at some of the pastimes of Lord Krsna. The

most popular and relished pastime is that of Krsna stealing butter.

This is a story when Krsna was a little baby. He lay down on the lap of his

mother Yashoda to have some breast milk. Yashoda suddenly remembered

that she had kept milk on the boil on the stove. She ran to take it off before it

spilt over. Krsna got very angry as he did not have his fill of the milk. In his

anger he went to the store and broke some butter pots and began to eat the

butter while also distributing it to the monkeys. When Yashoda saw the mess

in the store room she knew who the culprit was and chased him to punish

him, but Krsna kept running away from her. When she finally caught him

she began to tie him to a grinding stone to punish him. Each time she wound

her rope around him it was short by 2 inches. She got another rope to

lengthen the first one and it was till short by 2 inches. Eventually she was

fed up and gave up, feeling very exasperated. That is when Krsna actually

allowed her to tie the rope around him. When Krsna was tied he pulled the

“ukhli” or mortar to the area where there were two huge trees. These were

actually two personalities namely Nalakuvera and Manigriva, the sons of

Kubera. They were cursed for thousands of years as trees in the courtyard of

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Nanda Maharaj. Krsna pulled the Mortar from between the two trees. He

tugged hard when he got stuck. And eventually the two trees got uprooted

with his tugging and two beautiful personalities came out of the trees and

went straight to the heavenly planets.

Hearing the crashing sound of the two trees all the residents of Vrindavan

gathered there to see what had happened. Nanda Maharaj and Yashoda

mayya were relieved to see that their darling son was safe.

Although Krsna displayed various pastimes as a child in Vrindavan

everyone believed him to be a specially blessed child. They did not know

that he was the Supreme Personality of Godhead. He had put them under the

spell of Yogamaya! Yogamaya is the external energy of Lord Krsna.

All the incarnations that have appeared on this planet and displayed various

pastimes and saved the devotees and destroyed the demons, are incarnations

of Lord Vishnu. But Lord Krsna is known as the “Purna avatar” He is said

to have appeared ‘as He is’ in the Goloka Vrindavan.

In His various forms or ‘avatars’ also Lord Krsna performs various activities

for the pleasure of His devotees; and the devotees are not necessarily human

beings. Animals have also been known to express their love for the Lord.

Let us look at this one particular incident as it happened during the time of

Lord Rama in Treta Yuga.

In order to recue Sita from the clutches of the evil Ravana, Rama had to

cross the ocean to the city of Lanka. Lord Rama called for the monkey Nila,

to build a bridge for Him. Millions of monkeys came to help. Some were so

strong that they uprooted giant trees. Others dragged them to the shore and

threw them into the water. Because of their strength they were able to hurl

huge boulders and mountain tops into the ocean to help form the bridge.

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A small squirrel watched Hanuman and Nila and the others monkeys as they

worked hard for Lord Rama. “I too want to help build the bridge for Lord

Rama,” he thought. But the squirrel was not able to uproot huge trees nor

was he able to push huge rocks into the ocean. He looked at the tiny pebbles

and stones on the shore and looked at his own tiny legs. He had an idea! He

picked up the tiny pebbles and dropped them into the ocean to help build the

pile of logs and rocks.

“Get out of our way, please, said Hanuman. “You are getting in our way and

will get hurt. What you are doing is of no use. You are only disturbing us as

we do important work for Lord Rama.” When Lord Rama heard this he

immediately said, “To me each of your service is equal as long as you do it

with love and devotion. So do not belittle this little squirrel.”

So the monkeys and the squirrel worked hard, each in their own ways to

please Lord Rama and finally they completed the bridge that went all the

way up to Lanka.

So why does Lord Krsna appear in these various ways and perform all these

pastimes? What is the purpose and how do we gain from these? Lord Krsna

says in the Bhagavad Gita, “Yada yada hi dharmasya glanir bhavati bharata

abhyuttanam adharmasya tadatmanam srijanyaham” Whenever and

wherever there is a rise of irreligion and a decline in the religious practices, I

appear to destroy the demons and establish religious principles.

“Paritranaya sadhunam vinasaya ca duskrtam dharma samsthapanarthaya

sambhavami yuge yuge”

To annihilate the demons and to protect my devotees I myself appear

millennium after millennium.

Sometimes the Lord performs various pastimes only for the pleasure of His

devotees as we saw in the pastime of Krsna stealing butter. And sometimes

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He performs certain acts for us to learn from and emulate in principle. Like

Lord Rama who exhibited the qualities of the perfect King who did not

hesitate to banish his wife, Sita who was the Goddess of Fortune herself, just

to set an example of how a King or a leader should be above reproach.

Lord Krsna is also known as ‘Bhakta Vatsala’. .

This He has shown many times in various pastimes for the pleasure of His

devotees, like when He acted as a chariot driver for Arjuna on the battlefield

of Kurukshetra or when He appeared as Lord Nrsinghadev for his beloved

devotee Prahlad, keeping in mind all the boons given to Hiranyakasipu by

Brahma.

Lord Krsna says “Fools deride me as I appear in My human form”

Although all these activities form a repertoire of our ancient history, we still

consider them to be mythology or ‘mithya’ or untrue. We fail to understand

Krsna as a real person who is the Supreme Personality of Godhead. The

Brahma Samhita says “ Isvara paramah Krsna saccidananda vigrah anadir

adir Govinda sarva Karana karanam”. Lord Brahma glorifies Krsna saying

that Krsna is the Primeval Lord, the Supreme Controller who is full of

Knowledge, bliss and is eternal, who has no beginning or end.

For foolish people like us who choose to look upon Krsna as an ordinary

living being, the only way to understand Him is by pure unalloyed

devotional service or ‘bhakti’. It is through serving the Lord through seva

one can gradually come to the platform of understanding Him and His

glorious pastimes and understand our true position as His eternal servitors

and eventually relish His transcendental pastimes. We may continue to think

of all His pastimes as mere stories but even by hearing and speaking of these

wonderful pastimes, one can eventually develop love in our hearts for Lord

Krsna.

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CHAPTER-7

OFFERING TO KRSNA

In the earlier chapters we studied the importance of a vegetarian diet. Now

let us understand the importance of offering everything to Lord Krsna.

WHY WAS THE MATERIAL WORLD CREATED

Krsna created the material world to facilitate one’s journey back home, back

to Godhead, implying complete freedom from the cycle of birth and death. It

is quite contrary to the actual understanding to the material world. In the

material world one is lured into various traps created by one’s senses. One’s

senses create desires and these very desires bind one to the material world.

How then can the material world facilitate one’s journey back to Godhead?

Lord Krsna says that when he created the Universe, He gave, along with

mankind and the demigods, a set of rules (sacrifices) to be performed to

please the demigods who supply us all that we need to survive. E.g. Surya,

or the Sun God gives us light and heat, Chandra, or the Moon God gives us

the taste in the fruits and vegetables, Indra gives us rain, etc, etc. The

demigods are authorized supplying agents of Lord Krsna. No one can

manufacture anything. In fact we are completely dependent on the demigods

for our daily supplies of raw materials.

AIM OF HUMAN EXISTENCE

There are many types of yajnas or sacrifices mentioned in the Vedic

scriptures. But Lord Krsna says that eventually He is the enjoyer and the

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Master of all the sacrifices (B.G:9.24). All these sacrifices are meant for

satisfying the Supreme Lord. It is not just the food we eat but every activity

of ours should be an offering to Lord Krsna. This process is known as

‘bhakti’ or devotional service. The aim of human existence is self-

realization, the ultimate goal of life is to go back to Godhead and get

completely liberated from the cycle of material existence. If we forget the

purpose of human life and simply take supplies from the agents of the Lord

for personal sense gratification we are no better than thieves and get

ourselves more and more entangled in the material cesspool and eventually

get punished by the laws of nature. One blatant example staring in our faces

today is the deterioration of the environment because of its misuse.

Lord Krsna says that a society of thieves can never be happy because they

have no aim in life. A materialistic person similarly has no other aim in life

than to engage in the satisfaction of the senses.

HOW TO ATTAIN LIBERATION

Lord Chaitanya inaugurated the easiest form of yagna, namely the Sankirtan

yagna which can be performed by anyone and get completely liberated from

the clutches of material existence.

QUESTIONS

1. ANSWER THE FOLLOWING IN SHORT

1. How do our senses bind us in the material world?

2. What is ‘bhakti’

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3. What is the aim of human life?

2. ANSWER IN DETAIL

1. How does one attain total liberation?

2. What role do the demigods play in the material existence?

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CHAPTER 8

DO YOU NEED GOD IN YOUR LIFE?

All around us nowadays we see youngsters working hard to make money, in

Call centers, in software companies, in the media, etc. Magazines, health

journals and Television programs discuss an early burn-out in the younger

generation. All this work around the clock in the pursuit of money, luxuries

and eventually ‘happiness’, has led to anything but happiness! The club

culture that has sprung up of late, serves to satisfy this pursuit of happiness.

But is this happiness real? To understand the concept of “Happiness” one

first needs to understand GOD.

. Whenever someone starts talking about God, people tend to put off the

subject by saying, “What is the need to know anything about God – whether

He exists or not, who is He? I am not interested; I have many other things to

do in life.” But actually knowledge of God is not a matter of interest or

intellectual gratification – it is an absolute necessity for every same human

being.

To understand why spiritual knowledge is necessary, we have to first

understand that all of us are searching for happiness at every moment in our

lives. But unfortunately, this world is a place where our attempts to become

happy are repeatedly frustrated. God is the source of everything. The

universe is a cosmic machine designed and manufactured by God. He knows

why He has created it, why He has put us all here, what He wants us to do,

what He wants us to avoid, and there is no one better than Him to tell us why

we exist and why we suffer in this world. He has the key to release us from

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this world of sufferings and take us beyond to the world of everlasting bliss.

Then why not surrender to God and ask Him, “Please tell me what I should

do?”

Can you confidently say: ‘I get what I want’ and ‘I don’t get what I don’t

want’?

When we are waiting for a particular bus, all other buses come and go except

the one that we are waiting for! What else can we do other than become

frustrated? One thing that we could realize is, “I am not God-the supreme

controller of situations or things, nor even of our local buses. It is He who

puts us in sufferings and happiness in this world according to our karma.”

Napoleon Bonaparte was such a famous King of his times that there was a

statue of Napoleon in Paris with the slogan, ‘Napoleon is France, France is

Napoleon’. Although one may be proud of accomplishing many great things

in life, one cannot be a hero forever. During the last part of his life,

Napoleon was kept under arrest at St. Helena and was forcibly fed horse

urine with a sword at his neck.

Chris Reeves acted as Superman in a movie of the same name. In this movie

he performed miraculous and amazing feats that had made people worship

him like God. In 1995, he met with an accident – he was thrown off a horse

– and was crippled neck down for life. Thus it may be nice to dream of being

Superman ourselves, but the truth is that in this world we are like the

helpless ant in the midst of the Atlantic Ocean.

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The only son of one of the richest men was eaten alive by cannibals on an

island, when he had gone for researching on tribal culture. A boatload of

assistants was following him, but they reached too late. On hearing the sad

news, the devastated Rockefeller said, “From today till death, I’ll have no

peace”.

Mohammed Ali, the famous World heavyweight-boxing champion who was

practically undefeatable, proclaimed himself as, “The greatest”. Later when

he got Parkinson’s disease, his hands became invalid and he could not even

lift a cup of coffee. When someone reminded him about his earlier slogan, ‘I

am the greatest’, he replied, “Yes, I am the greatest – the greatest fool,

because no one can claim to be the greatest other than God.”

Why do even such great personalities suffer from problems? God is the root

of all existence and if we can get to know Him we can find a permanent

solution to all these problems of life. Only in human life are we endowed

with the intelligence to inquire, “Why is everyone suffering? Why am I

suffering? Is there no permanent solution to these problems? Should I cry in

vain and die in pain? Or can I do something about it?”

The first aphorism of the Vedanta-sutra says: athato brahma jijnasa “Now

that you have achieved a human body, you should inquire about the

Absolute Truth.”

All the advancements in science and technology – whether in the form of a

grinder, fan, car or washing machine – are oriented towards eliminating or

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reducing the problems of life. Everyone is struggling to increase happiness

unlimitedly and eliminate all suffering. But despite all of man’s efforts, he is

increasing his sufferings unlimitedly and scarcely able to trace happiness in

the rat race.

Have we become successful in counteracting the real problems of life –

birth, old age, disease and death? We have only become experts in covering

up the reality. In fact, ‘scientific advancement’ means ‘newer and more

ingenuous ways of covering up the reality’.

Once a man became allured by the beauty of a young girl who seemed to be

in her teens; she was tall, had long hair and wore stylish sunglasses. He

followed her all the way to her house in order to get to know more about her.

When she entered her house, he peeped in through the window. He found

her removing her high heels and her height reduced drastically. She removed

her wig and her white hair showed up. She removed her sunglasses and her

eyes sunken within their sockets were exposed. She removed the make up

and her skin showed ugly wrinkles. She removed her dentures and her actual

age stood exposed – as sixty and not sixteen.

Similarly modern science has come up with many sophisticated

technological gadgets, which give a superficial covering of comfort and

advancement to life. But actually when one gets a deeper understanding, one

learns that below this razzle-dazzle, the problems of life still persist; we still

have to suffer due to old age, disease and death.

Man is trying to create a heaven on hell, but his ‘covering up the reality’

business will very soon be exposed. Washington once said. “You can cheat

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some people all the time, all the people some of the time, but not all the

people all the time.” Anybody with a little common sense can understand

that science has hardly begun to address the real problems of life!

Science gives only patch up solutions to cover up problems, but does not

help solve problems.

Many scientific inventions have apparently increased the comforts of man,

but they have given rise to secondary problems that never existed before.

What is a solution today is the cause of a problem tomorrow. For example

when the automobile was introduced the first time, everyone rejoiced,

thinking that they could now cover large distances in a short time. But the

situation today is highlighted by a World Bank Research report dealing with

the Bombay city pollution problem-

- 97% Bombayites are affected by pollution beyond the danger level

- Every Bombayite is inhaling smoke equivalent to 2.5 cigarette packets

a day

- The life of every Bombayite will be reduced by 10 years due to this

pollution

Thus despite his much-touted technological growth, man has not become

happy because the problems created by technology keep tormenting

him, neither has he found the technology helpful in solving the real

problems of life.

Based on one principal law such as electricity or electro-magnetic radiation,

thousands of appliances such as fan, grinder, washing machine, mobile, TV

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set, etc. are floated amongst the masses. The gullible masses forget God,

who created the principal laws of electricity; electro-magnetic waves etc and

become falsely proud by possessing these appliances. Without such

fundamental laws made by the supreme lawmaker, God, all our mobiles and

TVs would be rendered useless. Therefore Srila Prabhupada said, “Give God

the Nobel prize”. But the so-called advancement in Science and Technology

has not been able to solve the real problems of life. It has only intoxicated

man to become godless, ignoring his prime duty of Krishna consciousness.

A powerfully built, blind and crazy man who is equipped with a knife is

certainly dangerous. Similarly the spiritually ignorant and materially

infatuated modern man who has the advanced human intelligence and the

knowledge of science is certainly a curse.

Unfortunately the modern educated man is purchasing the attractive

comforts of the materialistic civilization at the expense of ignoring

knowledge of the soul and God. Such a life with no proper direction will

only make one miserable now and in the future too.

Fortunately there is a perfect solution – Krishna consciousness. By

understanding: Who am I? Who is God? What is my relationship with God?

And acting in accordance with that wisdom, we can not only get rid of the

real problems of life, but also attain an eternal life, full of bliss and

knowledge.

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CHAPTER 9

MORAL BEHAVIOUR AND ETIQUETTE

Moral behaviour refers to that code of conduct that is accepted within the

society that we live in. Each society is different as are various cultures

around the world. Thus the accepted norms of behavior vary from my

society to another. E.g.:- In France it is considered wrong not to greet with a

kiss. But in India this kind of behavior would not be acceptable.

Times have changed and the distances between cultures have shrunk. It is

now hard to determine which act forms a part of which culture.

The moral behavior that we will learn about in this chapter goes way beyond

day to day social acts. The moral behavior that we will study, form the roots

of Indian culture. These codes of conduct stem from our Vedic Ethos and

the scriptures form our guidebooks.

To understand what is good or bad one must first understand who is God and

who we are in relation to him. This is because goodness or evil differs from

one person to another. E.g.: In a restaurant two men are seated. One is a

smoker while the other is not. The non-smoker gets disturbed by the smoke

and asks the man to leave but the smoker objects saying that he believes

smoking is good and he enjoys it. While the non-smoker says smoking is

bad for health. Now who is right and who is wrong? According to them each

one of them are right. There has to be a fixed norm to decide what is really

good or bad. The material world, our material senses and all that exists here

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is temporary, changing and destructible. The only thing that is indestructible,

eternal and constant is the Supreme Personality of Godhead Himself.

Let us begin by understanding who we really are.

Science describes man as a social animal. Thus we can conclude that we are

also animals! They sleep, eat, mate and protect themselves. We also sleep,

eat, mate and protect ourselves. They have intelligence and so do we. But

we have an edge over the animals. We have a higher reasoning power that

helps us to distinguish between right and wrong.

“Athato brahma jignasa”.

Translation: - Now having acquired the human form of life let us enquire

into the Brahman.

Keeping the above in mind one must ask oneself the questions: “Who am I?”

“Why am I here”? The answer to these questions is that we are spirit souls,

part and parcel of the Supreme soul, Lord Krsna and we are here to enjoy or

suffer the reactions of the Karmas of our past lifetimes and to liberate

ourselves from the process of action and reaction.

The next step would be to understand what is our real duty and activity. As

we have studied earlier our real dharma is to serve the Supreme Personality

of Godhead Lord Krsna and purify our senses and our actions and become

free from the cycle of action and reaction.

But before going so deep within the Vedic Philosophy let us first learn how

to behave in our day to day lives. Just the understanding that we are parts of

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Krsna should prod us into good behavior. Krsna wouldn’t want any

miscreants as His representatives, would He?

BEHAVIOUR WITH PARENTS:

BEHAVIOUR WITH OTHERS:

BEHAVIOUR WITH FRIENDS:

DAILY:

As soon as we wake up we must remember the Lord and thank him for the

day. Then one must wash oneself clean by using the toilet, brushing one’s

teeth and bathing. In many households people bathe after having breakfast.

This is inappropriate. One must bathe before doing anything else. Then after

paying obeisances to the deities or pictures of the Lord, one must pay

respects to one’s parents and then go about the rest of the day. Touching the

feet of elders to get their blessings and goodness, especially parents, is very

beneficial for the progress in one’s life.

IN THE TEMPLE:

One must lightly knock the door three times to announce one’s arrival.

Women must always cover their heads in the temple. Then one must pay

obeisances to the Guru first, i.e., Srila Prabhupada. Then one must pay

obeisances to the deities respectfully. One must not talk too loudly or behave

in a boisterous manner in the temple.

DRESS:

Our clothes signify who we are. A policeman would not be recognized if he

is not in his uniform. The growing western trends have permeated so deep

within Indian society that our youngsters have taken to western clothes with

a vengeance. Clothes that expose the body unduly are indicative of bad

upbringing and character. Our body is a temple within which Lord Krsna

resides in our hearts. To care for our body and to adorn it is our privilege.

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Girls and boys who do not cover the bodies properly are displaying a lack of

self respect and self worth. It only attracts undue unhealthy attention and

lack of love for oneself. Well combed hair and short nails, all signify

neatness and cleanliness. A dirty body will only attract negative energies to

you.

All these seem very rigid and old fashioned rules but they do make sense.

After all they are the stepping stones to developing God consciousness!