Sunday, March 31, 2013

Easily Available for Devotees


Srimad-Bhagavatam 7.9.3
Mayapur, February 17, 1977

download  flash player

Srila A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada
 
Take a test

Pradyumna: (leads chanting, etc.) "Translation: Thereafter Lord Brahma requested Prahlada Maharaja, who was standing very near him: My dear son, Lord Nrsimhadeva is extremely angry at your demoniac father. Please go forward and appease the Lord."

Prabhupada:

prahradam presayam asa
brahmavasthitam antike
tata prasamayopehi
sva-pitre kupitam prabhum
 [SB 7.9.3]

So Nrsimhadeva was very, very angry. Now the atheist class of men, who do not know what is the nature of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, they will say, "Why God should become angry?" So God, why He should not be angry? God must have everything; otherwise how He is God complete? Purnam. The anger is also another quality of living symptom. The stone does not become angry because he's stone. But any living being, he becomes angry. That is a quality. And why God should not be angry? They imagine God; not they have got any factual conception of God. They imagine that "God must be like this. God must be nonviolent. God must be very peaceful." Why? Wherefrom the anger comes? It comes from God. Otherwise there is no existence of anger.

Everything is there. Janmady asya yatah [SB 1.1.1]. That is the definition of Brahman. Whatever we have got in experience and whatever we haven't got in experience... We haven't got everything in experience. Just like about Nrsimhadeva it is said Laksmi also had no experience that the Lord can become half-lion, half-man. Even Laksmi, what to speak of others. Laksmi, she is constant companion of the Lord. So it is said, asruta. What is that? Adrsta. Adrsta asruta purvatvat. She became afraid because she also never saw such gigantic form and half-lion, half-man. God has so many forms: advaita acyuta anadi ananta-rupam. Ananta-rupam; still, advaita. So in the Bhagavata it is said that God's incarnations are exactly like the waves of the river or the sea. Nobody can count. You'll be tired if you want to count the number of waves. It is impossible. So God's incarnations are as many as there are waves. So you cannot count the waves; therefore you cannot understand how many incarnations He has got. Even Laksmi, even Anantadeva, they haven't got. So our experience -- very limited. Why should we say that "God cannot have this, God cannot have..." like that? This is godlessness. They make section. They say... Even in our so-called Vedic Arya-samajhi, they assert that God cannot take incarnation. Why? If God is all-powerful, then why He shall not be able to accept incarnation?

Therefore we should not take lessons of God from these rascals. We should take lessons of God from sastra, from guru and from sadhu, one who has seen God, tattva-darsina. Tad viddhi pranipatena pariprasnena sevaya, upadeksyanti tad jnanam [Bg. 4.34]. Tad jnanam means spiritual knowledge. Tad-vijnanam.

tad-vijnanartham sa gurum evabhigacchet
samit-panih srotriyam brahma-nistham
 [MU 1.2.12]

So tad-vijnanam, you cannot imagine, speculate. That is not possible. You have to learn it from a person who is tattva-darsinah, who has seen God. Even by seeing, you cannot... Just like Laksmidevi, she is seeing every moment, constant... Even she does not know. Asruta-purva. Adrstasruta-purva. So whatever we see or we do not see, everything is there. Aham sarvasya prabhavah [Bg. 10.8]. Krsna says: "Whatever you see, whatever you experience, I am the origin of everything." So anger must be there. How you can say that "God should not be angry. God should not be like this. God should not..."? No. That is not fact. That is our inexperience.

So Brahma, Lord Brahma, he is supposed to be the first living being within this universe. Laksmi became afraid; Brahma also became very afraid. Therefore Brahma requested Prahlada Maharaja that "You go forward, my dear son, and appease the Lord. You can do because for you He has appeared in this fierceful feature. Your father offended Him in so many ways by teasing you, by punishing you, by putting you into difficulty. Therefore He has appeared in very angry. So you can appease Him. We cannot. It is not possible." Prahlada presayam asa brahma avasthita antike. So Prahlada Maharaja, being very exalted devotee, he could appease the Lord. Bhaktya, by bhakti, you can control the Supreme Lord. That is the only way. Bhaktya mam abhijanati [Bg. 18.55]. The understanding is also through bhakti, and through bhakti you can control God. Vedesu durlabha adurlabha atma-bhaktau. You cannot understand God by studying Vedas. Vedesu durlabha. Adurlabha atma-bhaktau. But for His devotees, He is very, very easily available. Therefore bhakti is the only source. Bhaktyam ekaya grahyam. Only through bhakti you can approach, you can talk with God on equal level just like friend. The cowherd boys, they were treating Krsna on the same status: "Krsna is like us." But they loved Krsna very, very intensely. That is their qualification. Therefore Krsna sometimes agreed to take the cowherd boys on His shoulder. So this is the... Krsna wants that, that "My bhakta... Be My bhakta and control Me. Everyone worships Me with awe and veneration. I want somebody should come forward and control Me." That He wants. Therefore He has accepted mother Yasoda to control Him. How God can be controlled? Isvarah paramah krsnah [Bs. 5.1]. He's the supreme controller. Who can control Him? It is not possible. But He agrees to be controlled by His pure devotee. He agrees, "Yes, mother, you control Me. You bind Me. You show Me your stick so that I may be afraid."

So everything is there. Don't think that God is zero. No. Sunyavadi. Everything. Janmady asya yatah [SB 1.1.1]. Athato brahma jijnasa. You are inquiring about Brahman. Param brahma param dhama pavitram paramam bhavan [Bg. 10.12]. So there must be anger, not that God should be always peaceful. But the difference is His anger and His peaceful attitude produces the same result. Prahlada Maharaja, a devotee, He is very satisfied with Prahlada Maharaja and He is very much dissatisfied with his father, but result is the same: both of them got liberation. Although a devotee becomes associate whereas the demon who is killed by God, he does not become an associate... He is not qualified. But he enters into the spiritual kingdom. He gets liberation from this material bondage. So why a devotee should take the same position? Therefore, mam eti. Tato mam tattvato jnatva visate tad-anantaram. They visate, enters, enters in the spiritual kingdom. Everyone who is liberated, he is entered.

brahma-bhutah prasannatma
na socati na kanksati
samah sarvesu bhutesu
mad-bhaktim labhate...
 [Bg. 18.54]

But those who are devotees, they are allowed to enter into the planet, Vaikuntha planet or Goloka Vrndavana planet. In this way one gets his original position. But if we do not take to bhakti, then we may enter into the Brahman effulgence, but there is chance of falling down. Aruhya krcchrena param padam tatah patanty adho 'nadrta-yusmad-anghrayah [SB 10.2.32]. So those who are impersonalist, they may enter into the spiritual kingdom. That is called param padam. Padam padam yad vipadam na tesam [SB 10.14.58]. But there is also chance of fall down. Aruhya krcchrena. After severe austerities and penances one can enter into the Brahman effulgence. But unless one gets information of the param padam-samasrita ye pada pallava plavam -- there is chance of falling down. In the material world there is bhutva bhutva praliyate [Bg. 8.19]. But in spiritual also, if you enter into the spiritual kingdom, from there also... Even sometimes it so happens. Of course, that is by God's desire. Just like Jaya-Vijaya. They were personal associates. But the explanation is Krsna wanted that "They should go..., the Hiranyakasipu..., these two, Jaya-Vijaya, they should go to the material world, and I must fight with them." Because that fighting, to become angry, that tendency is there. Where He will exhibit? In the Vaikuntha there is no chance of exhibiting this anger and fighting. That is not possible. Therefore He induces His devotee to "Go to the material world and become My enemy, and I shall fight. I shall become angry," because in the Vaikuntha, spiritual kingdom, there is no chance. Everyone is serving; everyone is friendly. Some relation... Where is the question of fighting? But fighting spirit is there; anger is there. Where He shall exhibit? And therefore Krsna incarnates, He becomes angry, and a devotee becomes enemy, and this is Krsna-lila, nitya-lila. It is going on.

Thank you very much. (end)
 
>>> Ref. VedaBase => Srimad-Bhagavatam 7.9.3 -- Mayapur, February 17, 1977
© 2001 The Bhaktivedanta Book Trust International.

No comments:

Post a Comment