Srimad-Bhagavatam 1.7.6-7. The glories of hearing Srimad-Bhagavatam
Бхакти Вигьяна Госвами · Bangalore · 2021
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Opening prayers and verse recitation
Oṁ namo bhagavate vāsudevāya. Oṁ namo bhagavate vāsudevāya. Oṁ namo bhagavate vāsudevāya. Nārāyaṇaṁ namaskṛtya naraṁ caiva narottamaṁ devīṁ sarasvatīṁ vyāsaṁ tato jayam udīrayet.
Naṣṭa-prāyeṣv abhadreṣu nityaṁ bhāgavata-sevayā bhagavaty uttama-śloke bhaktir bhavati naiṣṭhikī. Bhakti Bhavati Nestiki.
yaṁ pravrajantam anupetam apeta-kṛtyaṁ dvaipāyano viraha-kātara ājuhāva putreti tan-mayatayā taravo 'bhinedus taṁ sarva-bhūta-hṛdayaṁ munim nato 'smi. Hare Krishna. So I'm happy to be with you again.
And today the topic of our discussion is the glories of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam. And for that we will read sixth and seventh verses from the first canto of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, seventh chapter, the Son of Droṇa Punished.
I will read sixth verse and purport and then we will read also seventh verse, anartha-upaśamaṁ sākṣād bhakti-yogam adhokṣaje lokasyājānato vidvāṁś cakre sātvata-saṁhitām.
Samhitam, Anarthopa Shamamsachat, Anarthopa Shamamsachat, Bhakti Yogamadhoksaj, Bhakti Yoga Madhoksaje, Bhakti Matocha, Lokasya Janatovams, Lokasya Janato Vidvams, Lokasyajanatovidvams, Lokastatovidvam, Chakrisattvatasamhitam, Chakressatvatam, Chakrisattvatsamhitamhitam, Anartho Pasamam Saksat, Bhakti Yoga Doksha, Yoga Ma Doks, Lokasja dana do vidvam, Chakri sadvata samhitam.
Anartha, anartha, things which are superfluous. Upaśamam, upaśama, mitigation. Sākṣāt, directly. Bhakti-yogam. Bhakti-yogam. The linking process of devotional service.
Adhokṣaje, unto the transcendence, lokasya, of the general mass of men, ajānataḥ, those who are unaware of, those who are unaware of, vidvān, Vidman the Supremely Learned.
Chakri compiled Sattvata in relation with the Supreme Truth. Samhitamhitam Vedic Literature Vedic Literature Translation and purport by His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupāda
Keija The material miseries of the living entity, which are superfluous to him, can be directly mitigated by the linking process of devotional service.
But the mass of people do not know this, and therefore the learned Vyāsadeva compiled the Vedic literature, which is in relation to the Supreme Truths. Purport. Śrīla Vyāsadeva saw the all-perfect personality of Godhead.
This statement suggests that the complete unit of the personality of God includes his parts and parcels also. He saw, therefore, his different energies, namely the internal energy, the marginal energy, and the external energy.
He also saw his different plenary portions and parts of the plenary portions, namely his different incarnations, also, and he specifically observed the unwanted miseries of the conditioned souls, who are bewildered by the external energy.
And at last, he saw the remedial measure for the conditioned souls, namely the process of devotional service.
It is a great transcendental science and begins with the process of hearing and chanting the name, fame, begins with the process of hearing and chanting the name, fame, glory, etc., of the Supreme Personality of Godhead.
Revival of the dormant affection or love for Godhead does not depend on the mechanical system of hearing and chanting, but solely and wholly depends on the causeless mercy of the Lord.
When the Lord is fully satisfied with the sincere efforts of the devotee, He may endow him with his loving transcendental service.
But even with the prescribed forms of hearing and chanting, there is advanced mitigation of the superfluous and unwanted miseries of material existence.
Such mitigation of material affection does not wait for the development transcendental knowledge. Rather, knowledge is dependent on the devotional service for the ultimate realization of the supreme truth.
And the next verse reads as follows. Yasyām vai śrūyamāṇāyāṁ kṛṣṇe parama-pūruṣe bhaktir utpadyate puṁsaḥ śoka-moha-bhayāpahā (omitted) Simply by giving oral reception to this Vedic literature,
The feeling for loving devotional service to Lord Krishna, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, sprouts up and at once to extinguish the fire of lamentation, illusion and fearfulness.
Namaam Vishnu Padaya Krishna Prishtaya Bhuta Sli Mati Bhaktivedanta Swami Dinami. Namaste Saraswati Devi Gurawani Pracharini, Nirvisy Sha Sunya, Paschatyad Setari, Vanchakal Pataruvis
Chakripa Sindhu bevacha, patitanampavane byowaisnava yu namonamaha, Sri Krishna Chaitanya Prabhunitananda, Sri Advaita Rashivasa de Gaurava Hare Krishna Hare Krishna Krishna Krishna Hare Hare Hare Rama Hare
Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare Hare Krishna Hare Krishna Krishna Krishna Hare Hare Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare Hare Krishna Hare Krishna Krishna Krishna Hare Hare Hare Rama Hare Rama
Rama Rama Hare Hare Ajahnulam Mituja Oakana Kavadatu Sankirtanaika Bitarukamala Taksa Vishwambar, Vja War Yu Gudarma Palu Van Day, Jagat Priya Karu Karu Navatar.
Yandah pravi mavachim e mampra suhtam, samji vaya te kila shakti darak s vadam na nyam, schahasta charana, shramanatva gadi prananda mo Bhagava te puša dubiem.
Swa se stu vyswassa kalah, pracy da tam, dando butani shiwamitwodiya Manaschabadrambachata Dabsaja, Avesiamnowati Abya.
Vyasadeva's dissatisfaction and Narada's guidance
Hare Krishna.
So today we have this opportunity to hear from Srimad Bhagavatam and the glory of Srimad Bhagavatam is directly described here in these verses in which Srila Sutta Gaswami is explaining how Srimad Bhagavatam appeared in this world.
What is the cause for Shrimad Bhagavatam to appear? The initial cause for Srimad Bhagavatam to appear was of course lamentation of Yasadev, who was not really satisfied. He was accomplished in all respects.
Who can be more accomplished than Srila Yasadev? Who can say about oneself that he is more accomplished than Vyasadev? I'm IT engineer in Bangalore. Therefore, I'm more accomplished than Vyasadev.
No, Vyasadev is the greatest of the sages. In Madhva tradition, he is directly worshipped as the supreme personality of God himself. And he's the most accomplished.
He wrote all the Vedic literature, he divided Vedas, he classified everything, he wrote 18 Puranas. You know, who can be more accomplished? He was very accomplished. Still, he was not satisfied.
It's the feeling of emptiness which we have when we are not doing what we are supposed to do or what we are meant to do. We all have this feeling.
When we're doing something and we're busy, we are really busy, especially nowadays, you know, Kali Yuga makes us very busy. We have to drive two hours one way, two hours another way, and you know, already four hours is gone.
Busy. Very useful engagement. And then we have to do so many other things and you know we're busy, busy, busy, busy, busy, busy. Just to not to encounter the emptiness of the heart.
You know, people they create this busyness, this busy life so that they would not have this feeling that they're wasting their time.
They made an artificial engagement in their life so that they could be somewhat peaceful.
As soon as they remain alone in lockdown, ultimately they have to do something, they have to somehow or other to save themselves from this feeling of emptiness and of course the YouTube and TV is there.
If you are not busy running all day long, then you will become busy by listening to all this useless news and useless watching this useless movies. Just because there is this empty feeling of heart. I'm wasting my time.
I'm wrong. Krishna in the heart is telling everyone you're wrong. You're not doing the right thing. To get rid of this feeling, which is very unpleasant.
Feeling, people are trying to somehow rather engage their active mind and all kinds of stuff. So the same feeling of emptiness, believe it or not, was experienced by Śrīla Vyāsadeva. He was feeling that he wasted his life.
Even though he really accomplished a lot, he could say, you know, look at me, I'm a great Vyāsadeva. But he was honest. He was sincere in the heart. And therefore he didn't want to somehow rather dismiss this feeling.
He knew I didn't do what I'm meant to do. We are all meant to do something in this world.
And if we are not doing what we are meant to do, we will have this unpleasant feeling because Krishna will not be satisfied in the heart.
He will only be satisfied if you're really doing what you're meant to do, what you're supposed to do in this life.
So Vyāsadeva experienced this and of course his guru, Nārada Muni, who knows what's going on in the heart of the disciple came. And he saw his gloomy look in his face, and he saw his disciple not very happy.
It's actually not so difficult to see that somebody is not very happy because it immediately reflects in the in his face, you know, he's he's he's not happy.
So Nārada Muni said, oh Vyāsadeva, why you're not happy while identifying yourself with body and the mind? What's wrong with you? How come you're not happy?
You're supposed to be happy because you are this body and this body is giving you so much pleasure. How come you're not happy? He's asking, are you happy while identifying yourself with your body and the mind?
And this is the question to us. My dear sir, are you happy identifying yourself with the body and the mind? And the honest answer is that no, I'm not happy. I'm still in this lamentable position of thinking that
I'm this piece of flesh and uh you know this is the most near and near thing you know this little leg is so nice Because it's mine.
So, uh, Nārada Muni was joking of course, which is you know proper way of dealing with the disciples. And you see a disciple and see his condition, you should joke a little bit to make the whole atmosphere a little not so heavy,
you know, because if somebody is really heavy so guru comes and says so you're happy my dear sir and, uh, and Vyāsadeva said, no, something is wrong. I'm not doing the right thing. I'm not really absorbing my mind in the right thing. My mind is not in the right place.
You know, we have to absorb our mind, there's no doubt about it, but we have to know how to engage our mind. In which thing we have to engage our mind.
And then, of course, Narada Muni told him the reason for his dissatisfaction. He said, because you distracted your own mind and the mind of your readers, your future readers.
You did not give them the proper focus, the proper perspective.
You gave him so many valuable advices, so many valuable procedures, you prescribe so many good methods, but you really didn't emphasize properly what is supposed to be emphasized.
You know the prop the problem of human beings is that we always place the emphasis in the wrong place. We do so many things, but it's very difficult for us to correctly emphasize the right things.
We always, you know, if we absorb ourselves again very correctly and very sincerely we will see that always we try to emphasize something which is not that important, something which is of less importance.
Because we are absorbed in dwitiya, in the secondary things. It's something which is not this is the nature of conditioned living entities. Bayam dvitiya bhini Vesha Taksiat.
Because we absorbed in dhitiya, in something not important, something secondary, not the first thing. We have our mind is absorbed in dwitya, in not pratama.
Our mind should be absorbed in the first thing, but it is it is concentrated in vitiya and therefore all the problems are there.
And believe it or not, again, amazingly enough, even Vyāsadeva his mind was not properly focused according to Narada Muni and according to the version of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam.
And he said, moreover, you created God d'abord in something, which never. You wrote all these nice stories and people, you know, like these stories, Nala and Damayanti, you know, oh, such a nice love story.
Oh, Nala was in love with Damayanti, and Damayanti was in love with Nala, and then he, you know, he wasted all his wealth by dice game and this and that. So many other stories.
And people, yeah, they can be engaged in listening to these stories, and that's nice. But you didn't really emphasize properly the need to hear about Krishna exclusively.
You'd needn't really, and you know, and it it's it's a very amazing statement because Krishna Charity, the stories about Krishna are in every Purana.
The stories about Ramachandra is in in every Purana and of course the whole Mahabharata is about Krishna. But because there are so many other things and because we already have this tendency to be distracted.
We already have this tendency to distract our mind into different things. Nārada Muni didn't approve Vyāsadeva's strategy. You know, we know that the mind likes to be distracted. The mind just wants to be distracted.
So Radhan Maharaj said that there is now, uh, there is a uh there is a weapon of mass uh destruction and there is a weapon of mass destruction.
You may destroy this world by this weapon and there is much more powerful weapon to distract your mind.
All these gadgets, all these you know smartphones, you know you can be distracted the whole day long by doing something with this little machine. This is the weapon.
This is the weapon to really absorb your mind in the wrong thing. This is the weapon of Kali Yuga, very powerful weapon of Kali Yuga, which actually destroys your mind. Destroys the purity and the innocence of your mind.
The real capacity, abilities of your mind. It's a clinical fact because now there is this how this inattention syndrome how it's called? Yeah, whatever it is.
So people cannot concentrate on anything because there are too many things to be distracted for.
And that's exactly the reason why Nārada Muni said to Vyāsadeva: you created something which instead of giving the proper focus, the proper absorption, the proper understanding of the values of life, you created something which will ultimately you know create a disservice to people. Even though superficially they will be spiritual or they will be doing something which is which is good.
So and therefore ultimately Narada Muni he predicted that uh people because of this they will ultimately reject what you have written. This is what is going on especially here in India.
Potency of Srimad-Bhagavatam to transform
People superficially pious but ultimately they reject these things? Because there is no transformation of the heart.
What is the most important thing about these verses of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam is that which we read is that this this Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam which appeared as a result of this crisis in the life of Vyāsadeva, successful resolution of this crisis in the life of Vyāsadeva, the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam appeared.
And the difference between Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam and any other literature is that if you apply your mind properly to this particular literature, it's an important if.
It's not a mechanical thing, as Prabhupāda says, it's not a mechanical process. But if you really use Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam properly, the transformation of the heart will take place.
Whereas if you read any other literature, even if you read it very nicely, you know it may not really take place. You will remain the same.
So, the most important feature of this literature is that as it is said here, śoka moha bhaya apaha, uh that uh as a result of hearing Shrimad Bhagavatam, you will be able to get rid of this shoka moha and baya, of this lamentation, moha, bewilderment, and baya the fear.
This is the literature. This is the special device or the special process by which you can be completely free from shoka, mocha, and bayah. You can be completely joyful because there is no shoka.
You can be completely clear in your mind because there is no moha. And you can be completely peaceful because there is no bha'i, because there is no fear.
Somebody wants to have this qualities, shoka, moha, payapha, free from all these things. This is the purpose for which Srimad Bhagavatam was created or was composed by Śrīla Vyāsadeva.
And he says here clearly, Anartha Pasha Mam Saksad Bhakti Yogo Mahdoksu J Lokas Yajanatovidvams Chakri Satvata Samhita because, people don't know how to connect with God. Really.
Even when we chant Krishna, you know, it's not often when we think about Krishna while chanting Krishna's name. It's paradoxical phenomena, but we think about anything else but Krishna.
Krishna, Krishna, Krishna, yeah, Krishna, yeah, Krishna, Krishna, Krishna, Krishna. Hare Krishna, Hare Krishna, Krishna, Krishna. We think about ourselves, we think about other things. We don't think about Krishna.
Direct process to mitigate anarthas
So for that, Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam is created. If we apply our mind to Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, that's the direct process to mitigate our anarthas. The direct process to get rid of the anarthas.
Because if we apply our mind to hearing Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, everything will become very clear. Anarthas, something which is not valuable, something which doesn't have any artha, any value, will become an arthas for us.
The problem with an artha is not that they are an artha, the problem with an artha is that subjectively we think that they're very valuable. And therefore we stick for them. You know, that's the problem with anartas.
There is no anartha which is not valuable for us. Kama, lust is very valuable, isn't it? How you can live without karma? You cannot live without karma. And krodha, anger is extremely valuable.
And greed, I mean what what can be more valuable than greed? How you can live without greed? You all need this, we need this, and envy you know. How you can succeed in this world without envy?
How you can be promoted if you're not envious? We all need this. We need these things. We we hold. We keep these things.
We don't, even though we may theoretically understand that this is something which actually brings suffering to me. But in reality we think it's it's valuable. We we need it, you know for for the time being, we need it.
You know, there is a very nice quote which I like to quote. It's from Saint Augustine from his confession. He writes there, when I was a young boy, I was praying to the Lord, my dear Lord, please free me from this lust.
But then immediately I would say, but not now. So sometimes we are in the same position. Please free me from lust, but you know, a little bit after. I'm not ready yet. I still need them.
So this is exactly what uh what is there, you know, even though people are suffering, people are in complete anxiety, people are bewildered, people are fearful. But we don't want to get rid of all these things.
And therefore, Śrīla Vyāsadeva, cākrī sātvata-saṁhitām, he created this very literature in connection with the Supreme Truth, as Prabhupada translates, sātvata-saṁhitām.
He created this Vedic literature which is, it's called Samhita. It means that Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam is on the level of the Vedas. Sometimes people say, you Gauḍīya Vaiṣṇavas don't know the Vedas. We know the best of the Vedas.
This is Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam. Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam is sātvata-saṁhitā because it directly gives you understanding of the values of life and brings you in connection with the Lord.
Śrīla Prabhupāda says, because the Lord is absolute and the hearing about him means meeting with him. He is absolute. It means that there is no difference between the Lord and hearing about him.
Provided you do it properly. Provided you apply your hearing propensities in the proper way. Śrīla Prabhupāda explains this in great detail to the purport or to the seventh verse which we read.
So basically, what is the specialty of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam? The specialty of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam is that it transforms the heart. If we read Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam properly, it changes the heart.
It is very clearly said: yasyāṁ vai śrūyamāṇāyāṁ kṛṣṇe parama-pūruṣe, bhaktir utpadyate puṁsaḥ The bhakti, love for God, as Śrīla Prabhupāda translates immediately, utpadyate, hṛdi utpadyate.
In the heart, the love for God, it's a natural natural byproduct of hearing Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam. It becomes a natural propensity of the heart. We have our love. We have this propensity to love something.
We love this material world, we love the material things. But the glory of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam is that it changes the direction of love. We invest in our love in in the material things, right?
Our love is in in our, you know, I don't know. In our smartphone mostly. That's where we we invested our loving propensity. So this is the thing. But, you know, it changes the reaction. Kṛṣṇa parama-pūruṣa.
We understand that there is parama-pūruṣa and that we are prakṛti, that our natural propensity is to serve, is to give enjoyment to parama-pūruṣa. We are female principle. And there is a male principle.
God, Supreme Personality of Godhead. And we are his energy. We are meant to serve him. And as soon as we do this, as soon as this propensity becomes very prominent in
the heart, then the result is this śoka-moha-bhaya-apahā. We become free from this śoka, moha, and bhaya. We become very joyful, we become completely clear, and we become fearless. We're not afraid of death anymore.
Glorification of Bhagavatam from first canto
So that's the transformation of the heart which is supposed to take place if we hear Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam.
And in the beginning of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, Śrīla Vyāsadeva himself glorifies Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam when he says that dharmaḥ projjhita-kaitavo 'tra paramo nirmatsarāṇāṁ satāṁ vedyṁ vāstavam atra vastu śivadaṁ tāpa-trayonmūlanam, śrīmad-bhāgavate mahā-munir kṛte kiṁ vā paraiḥ īśvaraḥ sadyo hṛdy avarudhyate 'tra kṛtibhiḥ Satam Vedjam Vastava Matravastu Shivadam tapotrayon mulanam, simad Bhagavatam
Mahamu nikrit, kimva parai rishwarah, sadya kridya varudat e trakritibis He glorifies Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam. He says in this verse again and again and again, Atra, Atra, Atra. Atra means here. We're here in Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam.
Dharma projjhita kaitavo 'tra atra. There is no kaitava-dharma. When you read Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, you can be sure that Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam will properly give you the proper perspective of what is your duty in life.
Whereas, if you read some other literature, you know this is your duty, and this is your duty, and that is your duty, this is you sh- sh- you should do, and you will waste your time.
If you reach him at Bhagavatam, atra dharma projjhata kaitavo 'tra, there is no- There is no wrong or cheating dharmas here.
Śrīla Vyāsadeva will tell you the complete truth. This is what you're supposed to do. Don't do anything else. What is this dharma? Kaitava projjhita dharma projjhita kaitavo 'tra paramo nirmatsarāṇāṁ satām.
When you read this Bhagavatam, uh, then this mātsarya or competitive spirit, the envy toward other living entities, toward other human beings, will ultimately be washed out from your heart.
Because you will want to understand the Supreme Lord, and it is said very clearly here that to understand the Supreme Lord, you have to be free from envy.
That's why we don't understand the Supreme Lord yet. We are envious. We think I am better, and I have to prove that I am the best.
It is said that you know there is a joke, it's actually in one culture that the mythology is there.
When God creates the soul, of course God never creates the soul, but when at the first moment when the soul appears from God, God whispers in his ear, you are the best. And sends him to the material world.
And this is the mantra which we all remember. I'm the best. I am the best. I' them best. So that's that creates matsari in the heart.
I I cannot I cannot really allow that somebody is better than me. Matsarati, it's it's not possible that somebody is better than me, that somebody is ahead of me. I have to be the best.
And therefore, we cannot understand the Lord because He's the best, unfortunately for us. He's the best. Unless you understand that you're not the best, he is the best. Nothing will work, nothing will happen.
And, uh, uh, and then, uh, what is it? Vedyaṁ vāstava-vastu vātra śivadaṁ. Here, this, in this atra, again, in this Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, you will be able to understand not just vastu, not just the substance, vāstavaṁ vastu.
You will understand the essence of the essence. We all try to understand the essence, we all try to understand what is most important.
So Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam is that explaining vāstava vastu, the real vastu, which is the essence of all essence, the quintessence of all the essences, the most important thing is here in Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam.
Vedyaṁ vāstava-mātra-वस्तु śivadaṁ tāpa-trayon-mūlanam.
And the beauty of this, as soon as you understand this vāstava vastu not just vastu not just vāstu-śāstra or jyotiṣa śāstra or any other śāstra but vāstava vastu śivadaṁ tāpa-trayon mūlanaṁ, uh you will immediately be free from from the root of threefold sufferings in this world.
Tāpa-trayon-unmūlanam. The mūla, the root of all this tāpa-traya, Ādhyātmika kleśa, Ādhibhautika kleśa, and Ādidaivika kleśa. You will not be suffering because you will not identify with this body anymore.
You will be very free soul. You will be really amazingly beautiful person. And then Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam mahāmuni-kṛte kiṁ vā parair īśvaraiḥ sadyo hṛdy avarudhyate 'tra kṛtibhiḥ śuśrūṣubhis tat-kṣaṇāt.
What is the use in any other literature?
Because while reading this literature, sadyo hṛdy avarudhyate īśvara, hṛdy avarudhyate, he becomes the prisoner of your heart. He will be encaged in your heart forever. He will have life sentence within your heart.
Avarudhyate. Avarudhyate means he will not be able to move from your heart, sadyo, immediately. There is of course little catch 22 as usually. Kṛtibhiḥ. If you are an accomplished person, śuśrūṣubhiḥ. If you want to hear.
So that's what I wanted to say. But first I wanted to explain this. It is said that there is no use of reading other literature because just by reading this literature you will be able to catch the Supreme Lord and the Supreme Lord will feel that He is obliged to stay within your heart. He will always be there. You will always feel that He is there and you can converse with Him.
So this is the glory of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam if if you are kṛti kṛtibhiḥ. So that's the most important thing. śuśrūṣubhiḥ.
Art of submissive and non-mechanical hearing
If you want to hear this Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, first the and the foremost qualification is the desire to hear.
As Prabhupada explains in the purport of this verse, love of Godhead is given by the Lord. It's not the result of mechanical process.
What the point here is that hearing of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam is very important, but we should properly understand, uh, that, uh, while hearing, uh, Śrīla Śukadeva Gosvāmī, or whatever, uh, does not mean, uh, hearing does not mean that we just formally come and see it as a ritual.
Here is the ritual, Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam. Let's hear Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam. Hare Krishna. Let's huge, very nice, very nice. Very nice. When is the breakfast? Oh my goodness, it's so late. So So uh you know all
this glorification of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam is not a result of mechanical hearing of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam if you're doing it in a ritualistic way. Like people you know we know in India there is a custom, you know, your grandfather died, and you have some extra rupees, and you hire some professional Bhagavatam reciter, and this Bhagavatam reciter, you know, and you arrange Bhagavatam Patha and in memory of your grandfather so that your grandfather would get some benefit.
And all these ladies comes and these ladies they clap the hands and you know and they chant nice bhajans and they hear some stories and they say very nice, very nice, very nice.
No, no, no, this is not, this is not a ritual. Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam is sādhana. Hearing Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam is a very powerful sādhana.
Śrīla Vyāsadeva created Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam to give us the chance to get in touch with this sadhana. If we understand nityṁ bhāgavata-sevayā, every day I should hear Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam.
And hearing Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam means hearing like Śukadeva Gosvāmī was hearing Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam. I'm about to die. I may die today. It may happen. You know. Maybe not today, maybe tomorrow.
If not tomorrow, within seven days you will die. Because you will die either on Monday or on Tuesday or on Wednesday or Thursday. You know, within seven days you will definitely die. There's not much choice. You know.
Śukadeva Gosvāmī was supposed to die within seven days. It's about us. We are supposed to die within seven days. In one of the days of the week, we will die. It will come.
So if we hear with the same eagerness as him, I am dying, please tell me what is the duty of the dying man? What is the duty of somebody who is dying?
Who is already, you know, 60 years closer to death or 50 years closer to death or 25 years closer to death. It doesn't really matter. We are in the process of dying. Mriyamanaam, Briyanas, yeah.
What is the what is the duty of those people who are dying?
The duty of those people who are dying is to listen Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, to hear Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam from beginning to end and then come again to the beginning and listen again and hear again with the same eagerness.
And then very soon if we do this kṛtiḥ biḥ means without offenses. All the commentators when they uh comment on this kṛtiḥ biḥ uh you know how to really why we don't get such immediate result of hearing Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam.
We heard Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam many times but we don't experience the same result. The catch is in this word kṛtibhiḥ, kṛtibhiḥ means without offenses. And because we have offenses, we have offensive mentality,
we you know, or we created we we committed some offenses in the past, these offenses stick in our heart. Therefore, Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam will gradually purify us.
In this verse of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, it is said, Tat kṣaṇāt, the same moment, Sadyo hṛdy avarudhyate atra kṛtibhiḥ śuśrūṣubhis tat kṣaṇāt.
As soon as you just want to hear Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, if you are offenseless, then Krishna will run to your heart and stay in your heart. But if we are uh not so pure in the heart, then what will happen? Krishna will come.
But it will be a gradual process. It is said very clearly in Vedānta-sūtra that uh why do we have to repeat sadhana?
Why you know everywhere it is glorified that you just chant once Krishna and you will be liberated, right? Hare Kṛṣṇa, Hare Kṛṣṇa, Kṛṣṇa Kṛṣṇa, Hare Hare, Hare Rāma, Hare Rāma, Rāma Rāma, Hare Hare.
Why there is no vimāna from Vaikuṇṭha? Why there should be you know the whole you know flock of women to take us there? Because we are offensive.
And we know that this uh Dhundhulī, he was hearing Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam in Bhāgavatam-māhātmya in Padma Purāṇa. He was hearing for seven days, and you know every day Dundukari was very sinful.
And every day while he was listening, Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, hearing Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, and the end of the day there was some sort of explosion. Very you know the story, right? Yeah.
You know, every day at the end of hearing Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, on this day when Gokarṇa was telling this, there was an explosion and you know one, uh, one note uh in this bamboo stick where the ghost was there would explode with very loud sound.
And what was happening actually, what is this note? The note is this ahaṅkāra in the heart. We have naughty heart. It's really naughty. This heart has so many notes.
Karmaśaya. Karma means the notes which connect us with our previous existence and with our previous memories. So this all create ultimately very hard knot within the heart.
So when we listen to Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam properly, with the proper attitude, then one after another, these knots will be exploding, will be cut to pieces. Knots untied.
So in, in case of this Dhundhukāri, you know, seven days was required to him because there were seven knots. There were seven very hard knots which would connect him with the body.
And after seven days, you know, vimāna came and you know took him to the spiritual world. But the amazing thing is that there were so many people who were listening to Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam at the same time.
The same Gokarṇa was explaining Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, everyone was listening, and you know the vimāna came only for Dhundhukāri, not for anyone else. So the question was asked to Gokarṇa, what happened?
Why all these people were not liberated? Why they were not taken back to Godhead?
And he said, it's very simple because they were listening and it was very nice, you know, very nice kathā. Nice katha. Many jokes, nice, nice.
And then, you know, it was coming here, coming out of there, because conveniently we have two ears, you know, so that it would not stick too much. So they would come home and drink tea and watch TV.
You know, all these listeners of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, they would go back home and you know it was nice, you know, nice, nice day, nice hearing, nice session, nice Bhagavatam class, Sunday feast class, very nice.
They would come home and do the same thing which they usually do. But Dhundhu-kārī, He was thinking very carefully about what he has heard. And that was the difference. Others they heard, but they didn't think about it.
Dhundhu-kārī was remembering what he has heard and trying to understand deeply the deeper meaning or deeper dimension of what he has heard, and therefore it was so successful.
So that's very important because when we do it as a ritual, as Prabhupada says, when we do it in a mechanical way, as a ritual we don't think you know, yeah nice, nice, nice. When is the story coming? You know.
But if we really understand properly that every verse of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, uh which is in connection with the Supreme Truth, Bhagavatam, uh which is in connection with the Supreme Truth,
created by Śrīla Vyāsadeva to give us relief from all the anarthas, to set us free from this, you know, from the slavery of anarthas. Because now we are slaves of anarthas.
Anarthas, you know, they rule supreme within our heart. We do everything which our anarthas wants us to do. And we think, I'm free. I'm a free man of a free country. It's an illusion.
You will only be free if you're free from from what? Śoka, moha, and bhaya. Then only you will be free.
If you're completely free from lamentation, from depression, if you don't go to the you know neurologist or psychiatrist and say I need some antidepressant. If you're free from fear, who is free from fear really?
Freedom from lamentation illusion and fear
And if you're free from moha, from the bewilderment.
And it's actually interesting, very interesting again, point which helps us to understand what it means to hear Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam properly, to get the... He says that śoka, moha, and bhaya, these are three emotional states which are connected with the three phases of time.
Regarding the past, we always lament, you know, oh, it was so nice. I was young and I was so energetic, and I was, you know, and it was so nice before. You know, we always think that uh the past was nice.
We forget all the bad things and we only remember nice things, and you know we lament. When we go about past, we think you know that this is something nice. And about the future we're always fearful, right?
What is going to happen, you know, oh no, no, no, no, that is, dear astrologer, please tell us, you know, what is going to be in this 2021, 2020 was bad and astrologers will tell you 2021 be careful 2021 will be worse.
So we are always fearful. What's going to happen? What's going to happen when I retire? And uh do I have my pension and do I have my retirement plans? What's going to happen uh after that?
After this, you know, we always concerned about the future. Therefore astrologers, they're so popular, especially here in Karnataka, you know, you can see everywhere this, you know, palm side. Come here.
Because because of the fear.
And regarding the present state, we always in in moha, we're always bewildered, you know. Oh it's so nice, oh it's so bad, you know. Always there is this emotional three emotional phases connected with the time.
We're either in the we never we actually very rarely live in the present and even if we live in the present we live in a bewildered condition in the present you know, ah.
Like, you know, you can look in the little children. They live in present. How they live in present, they just run. Run here and then run there. So no lamentation, no fear, but complete bewilderment. Moha.
So we being adults we always either in the past or in the future, you know, I will enjoy whatever it is. But we're bewildered.
But what Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam give us, if we really hear Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam properly, we will be free from this imprisonment within the material time.
Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam will give us the sense what it will what it will be like to be with Krishna all the time in the eternal life, in the eternal time.
We will be free from this conditioning when we are forced to be either in the past or in the future, or even if we are in the present to be in a bewildered state. We will be in a very clear condition here and now.
We will be in this ecstatic condition of life without going either to the future or to the past. We will be always in the present. We will be very clear and concentrated. We will be totally conscious.
You know, like people they have such a difficult time to be conscious, to be, you know, they they go to this meditation course to be conscious, awareness.
You know, Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam is the way to be constantly aware of who you are in relationship to the Supreme Lord. If you hear Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam properly and if you think about what you have heard.
And this is the art, as Śrīla Prabhupāda says beautifully. In this first canto of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam he repeats this phrase many times and he says this in uh in in the purport to the second verse, to the seventh verse.
These are practical test for one who has actually given a submissive hearing to the readings of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam. Śrīla Prabhupāda says in one purport, the art of submissive hearing.
What we should learn, what does it mean not to hear Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam mechanically, in a ritualistic way? It means to learn this art of submissive hearing.
That we are giving oral reception as Śrīla Prabhupāda says in a very submissive way.
We are really receptive to the to the sound of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam to allow the sound of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam to go deep into our heart and to change our heart. This is what is supposed to take place.
As Śrīla Prabhupāda says, this change of the heart is the test that we heard Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam. If the change of the heart does not take place, if the same set of values which we had before is there.
If there is no change of values, if there is no change of relationship with other people, if we still have broken relationship with other people.
If the relationship does not become more profound, more deep and more loving with other people.
If the service attitude does not appear within our heart, then it means that we are hearing Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, but not properly.
Not with the full attention and with the full submission, with the full understanding of what this literature, this sound vibration created by Śrīla Vyāsadeva, can give to us.
Therefore, this is such a powerful sadhana, but we should understand how to do this sadhana properly. Every day we should do at least half an hour. You know, of course we're busy we we have to do all this other stuff.
But half an hour is enough. But every day. And with the proper mood and the proper attitude, then shoka moha bayapa.
We will be free from all these three things, three emotional states. We will be completely free and happy. And the loving propensity, bhakti towards Krishna Parama Purusha will be invested in Krishna.
Instead of investing this very valuable propensity of attachment to the useless things, we will invest our propensity in Krishna, in God. And we serve other people, our relationship will improve, everything will improve.
It's very practical. The quality of our life will improve greatly. We will not have all these psychosomatic diseases, you know, because all the diseases have psychosomatic problems.
And psychosomatic means it's coming from what? From śoka, moha and bhaya. All diseases are coming from this.
You will lead very healthy and happy life with very fulfilling relationship if you do this sādhana properly of hearing Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam in submissive spirit how it is explained by Śrīla Prabhupāda who was laboring so hard to give us this process of freeing our heart from anartas, from unwanted things.
And uh you know, Kama, Kroda, Loba, Mohamada, Matsarya, they will run away from our heart. They will say, you know, it's not a nice place to be. I feel very uncomfortable here because Krishna will occupy our heart.
Krishna will be uh there avarudhya te prisoner of our heart. So that's the glory of hearing Srimad Bhagavatam. Thank you very much. Śrīla Prabhupāda ki jaya. Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam grantharāja mahā-purāṇam ki jaya gura-premānande