Nityānanda Prabhu and Baladeva Tattva
A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada · Bhubaneswar · 1977
Chapters
Prabhupāda: My foreign disciples, they could not understand either Hindu or Oriya.
Identity and power of Nityananda Prabhu
So for this movement, I am very much obliged to these American boys.
The history of this movement is that my Guru Mahārāja, His Divine Grace Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura, and before him, Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura, they had an intense desire to preach Caitanya Mahāprabhu's message throughout the whole world.
That was the intense desire of Caitanya Mahāprabhu. CC Antya 4.126সিংহদ্বারে যাইতে মোর নাহি অধিকার ।বিশেষে — ঠাকুরের তাহাঁ সেবকের প্রচার ॥ ১২৬ ॥siṁha-dvāre yāite mora nāhi adhikāraviśeṣe — ṭhākurera tāhāṅ sevakera pracāra“I have no right to pass by the Siṁha-dvāra, for the servants of Jagannātha are always coming and going there.He wanted it. Because this is the only message to bring the human society into oneness.
There is no other alternative. That is confirmed in the Śrīmad-Bhagavatam: SB 12.3.51कलेर्दोषनिधे राजन्नस्ति ह्येको महान् गुण: ।कीर्तनादेव कृष्णस्य मुक्तसङ्ग: परं व्रजेत् ॥ ५१ ॥kaler doṣa-nidhe rājannasti hy eko mahān guṇaḥkīrtanād eva kṛṣṇasyamukta-saṅgaḥ paraṁ vrajetMy dear King, although Kali-yuga is an ocean of faults, there is still one good quality about this age: Simply by chanting the Hare Kṛṣṇa mahā-mantra, one can become free from material bondage and be promoted to the transcendental kingdom.
So this Kali-yuga, as described by our Gaura-Govinda Mahārāja, a bhankara [?] yuga. But there is one opportunity, kīrtanād eva kṛṣṇasya mukta-saṅgaḥ paraṁ vrajet. This is the message of Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu, and a little attempt was made at the age of seventy years.
Of course, my Guru Mahārāja asked me... When I was twenty-five years old, I first met him. He asked me to do this task.
But I thought that "Let me adjust my family life, and then I shall do this." But I took it very seriously. But family life, never it was adjusted, so he forced me at the ripe old age to take up this work.
So I tried to make an experiment that nobody had done = "Let me try." But I tried sincerely, so by the grace of my Guru... Guru-Kṛṣṇa, they favored me.
When I was on the Commonwealth Jetty, Pier, yes, I was thinking that "Who will hear me?
As soon as I shall say to these people that 'No illicit sex, no meat-eating, no intoxication and no gambling,' immediately they will say, 'Please go home.
Distinction between body and soul
Don't talk here.' " Because I know that. This is their daily life. But by the grace of Kṛṣṇa they agreed. All these students, all these disciples...
I do not accept anyone as my disciple that "You can do whatever you like." No. My first condition is that "You must be sinless." At least you must try to become sinless, because in the Bhagavad-gītā we understand,
BG 7.28येषां त्वन्तगतं पापं जनानां पुण्यकर्मणाम् ।ते द्वन्द्वमोहनिर्मुक्ता भजन्ते मां दृढव्रताः ॥२८॥yeṣāṁ tv anta-gataṁ pāpaṁjanānāṁ puṇya-karmaṇāmte dvandva-moha-nirmuktābhajante māṁ dṛḍha-vratāḥPersons who have acted piously in previous lives and in this life and whose sinful actions are completely eradicated are freed from the dualities of delusion, and they engage themselves in My service with determination.
Without being sinless, one cannot make any advance. So Caitanya Mahāprabhu introduced this movement. Ceto-darpaṇa-mārjanam That is the first installment.
Finding peace through spiritual shelter
Actually, if we chant Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra, the first installment is that we cleanse our heart. It is simply misunderstanding. Kṛṣṇa also wanted to start this movement. When He instructed Arjuna, the first word He spoke,
BG 2.13देहिनोऽस्मिन्यथा देहे कौमारं यौवनं जरा ।तथा देहान्तरप्राप्तिर्धीरस्तत्र न मुह्यति ॥१३॥dehino 'smin yathā dehekaumāraṁ yauvanaṁ jarātathā dehāntara-prāptirdhīras tatra na muhyatiAs 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.
The purpose of human life
So in this age practically there is nil who is a dhīra. Everyone is adhīra. But the saṅkīrtana movement is so nice, as it is spoken by Śrīnivāsa Ācārya on behalf of Narottama dāsa Ṭhākura, kṛṣṇot-kīrtana-gāna-nartana parau premāmṛtāmbho-nidhī dhīrādhīra-jana-priyau. This movement is so nice that it will be pleasing to the dhīras and the adhīras.
dhīrādhīra-jana-priyau priya-karau nirmatsarau pūjitauśrī-caitanya-kṛpā-bharau bhuvi bhuvo bhārāvahantārakauvande rūpa-sanātanau raghu-yugau śrī-jīva-gopālakau
So the disease is there, but the remedy is also there. Ceto-darpaṇa-mārjanam We are misunderstanding.
Overcoming material anxiety and civilization
The human society, they are trying to adjust things by the United Nations, but it is not possible. United Nations cannot do.
In Melbourne I was speaking, so I accused the United Nations, "They're assembly of barking dogs." Because you cannot be united on this material platform.
Eternal pleasure through devotional service
If you keep yourself that "I am dog," "I am tiger," "I am American," "I am Indian," "I am brāhmaṇa," "I am śūdra," then there is no question of United Nations.
United Nations is possible when sarvopādhi-vinirmuktaṁ tat-paratvena nirmalam You have to become purified on Kṛṣṇa consciousness, not "I am American," not "I am Indian." No. This will not help.
CC Madhya 19.170সর্বোপাধিবিনির্মুক্তং তৎপরত্বেন নির্মলম্ ।হৃষীকেণ হৃষীকেশ-সেবনং ভক্তিরুচ্যতে ॥ ১৭০ ॥sarvopādhi-vinirmuktaṁtat-paratvena nirmalamhṛṣīkeṇa hṛṣīkeśa-sevanaṁ bhaktir ucyate“ ‘Bhakti, or devotional service, means engaging all our senses in the service of the Lord, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, the master of all the senses. When the spirit soul renders service unto the Supreme, there are two side effects. One is freed from all material designations, and one’s senses are purified simply by being employed in the service of the Lord.’
So factually we see that these Americans, Europeans, they are Christian, Jews, or there are Muhammadans also in our movement, Africans, all over the world, but they no more think that he is African or Indian or American.
They think Kṛṣṇa dāsa. As Caitanya Mahāprabhu taught us, jīvera svarūpa haya nitya kṛṣṇa dāsa Unless we come to that platform, that we are servants of Kṛṣṇa, there is no question of unity. That is brahma-bhūtaḥ stage.
BG 18.54ब्रह्मभूतः प्रसन्नात्मा न शोचति न काङ्क्षति ।समः सर्वेषु भूतेषु मद्भक्तिं लभते पराम् ॥५४॥brahma-bhūtaḥ prasannātmāna śocati na kāṅkṣatisamaḥ sarveṣu bhūteṣumad-bhaktiṁ labhate parāmOne who is thus transcendentally situated at once realizes the Supreme Brahman and becomes fully joyful. He never laments or desires to have anything. He is equally disposed toward every living entity. In that state he attains pure devotional service unto Me.
Unless you come to that brahma-bhūtaḥ stage, that "I am not this body. I am soul, ahaṁ brahmāsmi. I am part and parcel of the Supreme Brahman"—paraṁ brahma paraṁ dhāma pavitraṁ paramaṁ bhavān
—there is no question of unity. So Caitanya Mahāprabhu wanted to introduce this movement how actually there can be possibility of being united. That is possible. That is not difficult because they are all sons of Kṛṣṇa.
Sarva-yoniṣu kaunteya sambhevanti..., ahaṁ bīja-pradaḥ pitā He's the original father.
So this Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement is trying to introduce in the human society, and not on my conviction, on the assurance of the śāstras, that if you want to be united, you'll have to come to this platform of Kṛṣṇa consciousness; otherwise it is not possible.
So I do not wish to take much of your time. It is already late. Kindly take little prasādam, whatever they have arranged, and I thank you very much for your coming in this occasion.
And I must also thank Śrīmatī Cori [?] Ānanda, this young girl. Out of her own accord, she contributed this piece of land so that we can begin Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement in this city. Thank you very much. [end]