The Nṛsiṁha Mantra and Its Protection

0:00[Govindam record plays] [break] [long pause] [indistinct]

0:00Prabhupāda: Hare Rama Hare Rama, Rama Rama... And where is the center [indistinct]

0:08Devotee: I am just from New York.

0:13Prabhupāda: Oh? Where is that slip yesterday you gave me?

Chanting and prayers to Lord Nrsimha

0:55That mantra, nṛsiṁha-mantra? There was one extra mantra. You have got, everyone, slip? This. Namas te, narasiṁhāya, prahlāda, hlāda-dāyine, hiraṇyakaśipor, vakṣaḥ, śilā-ṭaṅka, nakhālaye.

3:01namas te narasiṁhāyaprahlādāhlāda-dāyinehiraṇyakaśipor vakṣaḥ-śilā-ṭaṅka-nakhālayeito nṛsiṁhaḥ parato nṛsiṁhoyato yato yāmi tato nṛsiṁhaḥbahir nṛsiṁho hṛdaye nṛsiṁhonṛsiṁham ādiṁ śaraṇaṁ prapadye[devotees sing with Prabhupāda]

5:11tava kara-kamala-vare nakham adbhuta-śṛṅgaṁdalita-hiraṇyakaśipu-tanu-bhṛṅgamkeśava dhṛta-narahari-rūpa jaya jagadīśa harejaya jagadīśa hare, jaya jagadīśa hare

7:07The meaning of this mantra, that "I offer my humble obeisances to Lord Nṛsiṁha, who is the source of bliss to Prahlāda, but," hiraṇyakaśipor vakṣaḥ, "but his father, Hiraṇyakaśipu, on his chest the nails of His finger is just like chisel cutting the stone."

7:45The same Personality of Godhead is prahlāda āhlāda-dāyine. Āhlāda means pleasure. For Prahlāda...

Spiritual bliss and scriptural recitation

7:59Prakṛṣṭa-rūpeṇāhlāda, prahlāda. A devotee is, being always in Kṛṣṇa consciousness, naturally he is in blissfulness. Still more, when he meets or associates with his Lord, still more blissfulness.

8:21That is the position of the theist devotee. Whereas the atheist nondevotee, he's always feeling like a strike of the chisel, like..., what do you call? Stone cutting chisel.

8:41Nakha. Nakhālaye. Simply by the nails of His finger. All right. Where is that book? Now this Bhāgavatam. Yes. Oṁ namo bhagavate vāsudevāya.

8:48SB 2.1.1श्रीशुक उवाचवरीयानेष ते प्रश्नः कृतो लोकहितं नृप ।आत्मवित्सम्मतः पुंसां श्रोतव्यादिषु यः परः ॥१॥śrī-śuka uvācavarīyān eṣa te praśnaḥkṛto loka-hitaṁ nṛpaātmavit-sammataḥ puṁsāṁśrotavyādiṣu yaḥ paraḥŚrī Śukadeva Gosvāmī said: My dear King, your question is glorious because it is very beneficial to all kinds of people. The answer to this question is the prime subject matter for hearing, and it is approved by all transcendentalists.SB 2.1.2श्रोतव्यादीनि राजेन्द्र नृणां सन्ति सहस्रशः ।अपश्यतामात्मतत्त्वं गृहेषु गृहमेधिनाम् ॥२॥śrotavyādīni rājendranṛṇāṁ santi sahasraśaḥapaśyatām ātma-tattvaṁgṛheṣu gṛha-medhināmThose persons who are materially engrossed, being blind to the knowledge of ultimate truth, have many subject matters for hearing in human society, O Emperor.

8:48SB 2.1.3निद्रया ह्रियते नक्तं व्यवायेन च वा वयः ।दिवा चार्थेहया राजन्कुटुम्बभरणेन वा ॥३॥nidrayā hriyate naktaṁvyavāyena ca vā vayaḥdivā cārthehayā rājankuṭumba-bharaṇena vāThe lifetime of such an envious householder is passed at night either in sleeping or in sex indulgence, and in the daytime either in making money or maintaining family members.SB 2.1.4देहापत्यकलत्रादिष्वात्मसैन्येष्वसत्स्वपि ।तेषां प्रमत्तो निधनं पश्यन्नपि न पश्यति ॥४॥dehāpatya-kalatrādiṣvātma-sainyeṣv asatsv apiteṣāṁ pramatto nidhanaṁpaśyann api na paśyatiPersons devoid of ātma-tattva do not inquire into the problems of life, being too attached to the fallible soldiers like the body, children and wife. Although sufficiently experienced, they still do not see their inevitable destruction.

8:48SB 2.1.5तस्माद्भारत सर्वात्मा भगवानीश्वरो हरिः ।श्रोतव्यः कीर्तितव्यश्च स्मर्तव्यश्चेच्छताभयम् ॥५॥tasmād bhārata sarvātmābhagavān īśvaro hariḥśrotavyaḥ kīrtitavyaś casmartavyaś cecchatābhayamO descendant of King Bharata, one who desires to be free from all miseries must hear about, glorify and also remember the Personality of Godhead, who is the Supersoul, the controller and the savior from all miseries.SB 2.1.6एतावान्साङ्ख्ययोगाभ्यां स्वधर्मपरिनिष्ठया ।जन्मलाभः परः पुंसामन्ते नारायणस्मृतिः ॥६॥etāvān sāṅkhya-yogābhyāṁsva-dharma-pariniṣṭhayājanma-lābhaḥ paraḥ puṁsāmante nārāyaṇa-smṛtiḥThe highest perfection of human life, achieved either by complete knowledge of matter and spirit, by practice of mystic powers, or by perfect discharge of occupational duty, is to remember the Personality of Godhead at the end of life.

8:48SB 2.1.7प्रायेण मुनयो राजन्निवृत्ता विधिषेधतः ।नैर्गुण्यस्था रमन्ते स्म गुणानुकथने हरेः ॥७॥prāyeṇa munayo rājannivṛttā vidhi-ṣedhataḥnairguṇya-sthā ramante smaguṇānukathane hareḥO King Parīkṣit, mainly the topmost transcendentalists, who are above the regulative principles and restrictions, take pleasure in describing the glories of the Lord.SB 2.1.8इदं भागवतं नाम पुराणं ब्रह्मसम्मितम् ।अधीतवान्द्वापरादौ पितुर्द्वैपायनादहम् ॥८॥idaṁ bhāgavataṁ nāmapurāṇaṁ brahma-sammitamadhītavān dvāparādaupitur dvaipāyanād ahamAt the end of the Dvāpara-yuga, I studied this great supplement of Vedic literature named Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, which is equal to all the Vedas, from my father, Śrīla Dvaipāyana Vyāsadeva.

12:22SB 2.1.9परिनिष्ठितोऽपि नैर्गुण्य उत्तमश्लोकलीलया ।गृहीतचेता राजर्षे आख्यानं यदधीतवान् ॥९॥pariniṣṭhito 'pi nairguṇyauttama-śloka-līlayāgṛhīta-cetā rājarṣeākhyānaṁ yad adhītavānO saintly King, I was certainly situated perfectly in transcendence, yet I was still attracted by the delineation of the pastimes of the Lord, who is described by enlightened verses.SB 2.1.10तदहं तेऽभिधास्यामि महापौरुषिको भवान् ।यस्य श्रद्दधतामाशु स्यान्मुकुन्दे मतिः सती ॥१०॥tad ahaṁ te 'bhidhāsyāmimahā-pauruṣiko bhavānyasya śraddadhatām āśusyān mukunde matiḥ satīThat very Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam I shall recite before you because you are the most sincere devotee of Lord Kṛṣṇa. One who gives full attention and respect to hearing Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam achieves unflinching faith in the Supreme Lord, the giver of salvation.

12:42Then here text number 11. SB 2.1.11एतन्निर्विद्यमानानामिच्छतामकुतोभयम् ।योगिनां नृप निर्णीतं हरेर्नामानुकीर्तनम् ॥११॥etan nirvidyamānānāmicchatām akuto-bhayamyogināṁ nṛpa nirṇītaṁharer nāmānukīrtanamO King, constant chanting of the holy name of the Lord after the ways of the great authorities is the doubtless and fearless way of success for all, including those who are free from all material desires, those who are desirous of all material enjoyment, and also those who are self-satisfied by dint of transcendental knowledge.

Human nature and achieving fearlessness

12:57Again. Again. Etan nirvidyamānānām. There are three classes of men. One class of men, karmīs, they are trying to enjoy the material resources.

13:13Icchatām, always desire: "I want this, I want this, I want this." And another class, they are con..., or rather, what is called? Frustrated.

13:45After trying utmost, "I want this, I want this, I want this," when at the end do not get anything, he is frustrated.

13:47That is called nirvidyā. "I don't want." Or actually one is satiated or disgusted: "No more material world.

14:00I don't want it." They are called nirvidyamānām. So the one class is trying to possess, and another class is trying to renounce: "I don't want."

14:17And another class is akuto-bhayam. Akuto-bhayam. Who is akuto-bhayam?* Akuto-bhayam* means one who does not fear. And who does not fear? Because fearfulness is one of the items of our conditional life.

14:41Āhāra-nidrā-bhaya-maithuna [Hitopadeśa]: eating, sleeping, fearing and mating. So who is without any fear? That means he's also liberated.

14:58He's not in the material platform: transcendental, who is out of the limits of fearfulness. So akuto-bhayam means the devotees.

15:13The devotees, just like Prahlāda Mahārāja, his father teased him in so many ways, but he was not at all fearful. He was simply thinking of Nṛsiṁha-deva and he was fearless.

15:32So only the devotee who has fully surrendered to Kṛṣṇa, he can be fearless.

15:51Nārāyaṇa-parāḥ sarve na kutaścana bibhyati SB 6.17.28*. Nārāyaṇa-parāḥ* means devotees who have dedicated their life to the service of Nārāyaṇa, Kṛṣṇa.

16:01Na kutaścana bibhyati. He does not fear in any condition of life. So here, icchatām akutaḥ. Icchatām means those who are desiring. Nirvidyamānām means those who are not desiring; renouncing.

16:15And the other class, akuto-bhayam, fearless. And yoginām. Another class—mystic yogīs.

Spiritual paths and the importance of chanting

16:27So generally, these four classes men are there.

16:33So Śukadeva Gosvāmī says that for all of them, either he is karmī or he is jñānī or he is yogī or he is bhakta. Karmī means fruitive worker, and jñānīs means empiric philosophers, and yogīs, mystic, I mean to say, yogīs, and bhaktas, and the devotees.

17:12Generally, these four classes of men. So Śukadeva Gosvāmī gives his judgment. Nṛpa, "My dear king, for all these classes of men," nirṇītam, "it is already decided." This is Vedic conclusion.

17:30You haven't got to search out. You have to take information from the authority. So here Śukadeva Gosvāmī is authority, that "For all these classes of men, this is decided conclusively." What is that? Harer nāmānukīrtanam SB 2.1.11

17:48: chant Hare Kṛṣṇa. Either you are jñānī, either you are yogī, either you are karmī, you desiring something or not desiring something, but you have got your objective, perfection of life.

18:05So if you want that, then chant Hare Kṛṣṇa, Hare Kṛṣṇa, Kṛṣṇa Kṛṣṇa, Hare Hare/ Hare Rāma, Hare Rāma, Rāma Rāma, Hare Hare. Thank you very much.

28:08Devotees: All glories to Śrīla Prabhupāda.

28:09Karandhara: We're going to pose.

Concluding congregational chanting and instructions

28:10We're just about ready. Everyone can pose?

28:11Prabhupāda: This is all right. Oh, yes, special pose.

28:12Karandhara: If everyone stands up and dances, then we won't be able to... You can sit for just a minute longer.

28:15Prabhupāda: So chant Hare Kṛṣṇa. Sit down for a moment. [japa] Chant. Chant. [Viṣṇujana leads kīrtana] [Prabhupāda plays gong] [prema-dhvani] [end]