01 November 1996
audio 1: from 20:40 to 26:02
audio 2: from 00:00 to 06:34
We are now in Vamsi-vata. These trees are the pilu trees. Someone went from here and gave pilu fruits to Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu. Krsna used to take pilu fruits here. They are very sweet, small, and of golden color. Caitanya Mahaprabhu used to take these fruits like Krsna, Baladeva, and all cowherd boys. There are so many trees in Vraja. Among them—tamala, kadamba, pilu, mango, and the jackfruit trees are prominent. At that time the forest was very beautiful and decorated. Now, the forest has been cut and a little remains as an example. I think that after some years whatever remains will also vanish. They don’t know the glories of all these trees.
I thought that Western devotees like doing kirtana. But I am seeing that they are only keeping their hands in their bead bags. They are not dancing and doing kirtana. They want to be alone and very far away from kirtana. This is not the pure mood of Caitanya Mahaprabhu and His followers. Svamiji didn’t want this. You can chant in your homes when you are alone. During kirtana, you should give up your bead bags and participate.
Devotees: Harinama-sankirtana ki jaya!
You shouldn’t be like the babajis who always keep their hands in their bead bags. But their mouths don’t chant. Krsna has given you this mouth to sing krsna-kirtana. He has given you hands and legs to raise your hands and dance during kirtana. Try to follow. Your hands are in the bead bags but you are looking here and there.
Caitanya Mahaprabhu came to this place that is called Vamsi-vata. He used to weep here and sing, “When will that day come when I will come to this tree and weep while remembering the pastimes of Krsna. When will I go to Bhandiravata? When will I go to Radha-kunda and touch Her waters? When will I go to Vamsi-vata and take shelter of it’s sacred shade. I will then weep and feel separation for Krsna. When will I touch and drink the water of Manasi-ganga? When will I always remember the pastimes of Krsna?”
These places are very sacred. If I will see anyone having their hands in their bead bags, then I will snatch their bead bags. You can chant when you are alone, but not at the time of kirtana. You can never chant just by keeping your hands in the bead bags. You cannot chant when there is so much sound. I pray to all of you that you should do kirtanaand dance while remembering these pastimes.
[Devotees sing ‘Hari Hari! Kabe Habo Vrndavana-vasi?’]
Srila Narottama Das Thakura sings, “When will I give up all kinds of desires and come to Vrndavana?”
All of you have come here while leaving aside all kinds of happiness and comforts. I have seen your palatial buildings in England, Holland, America, Canada, and other places. Even a king cannot enjoy like this. But you are now wandering barefoot in Vrndavana while giving up all kinds of sense-gratification. I know that some devotees want to take delicious food. They don’t like the food we are offering to the deity. They want fine rice; they want nice comforts. They don’t want any kind of discomfort. If they want like so then they should return to their homes and eat dehradunarice, rabadi, and rasagullas. Caitanya Mahaprabhu never took any delicious food. He only ate mixed sabji. You cannot do bhajana while wanting to eat lavishly. We should try to be austere for at least one month. Try to be akincana or niskincana. Give up all kinds of desires in your homes and come with me to Vrndavana. Srila Narottama Das Thakura is praying like this. Come to Vrndavana and lament to have the darsana of Sri Radha-Krsna. If you are not feeling any separation for Krsna, then going to all these places is in vain. So, try to realize all these moods.
When will that day come when we will roll in the dust of Vraja? We sense that this dust will make us dirty. But Srila Narottama Das Thakura prays, “When will that day come when I will roll in the dust of Vraja and cover my body entirely with it?” Don’t try to fear from this dust. This dust will make your heart clear of lust and all kinds of impurities. We should not try to take the six kinds of delicious food. The Gosvamis only ate chana without salt. We ate chana at Madhuvana. The Gosvamis only fasted and wept in separation. So, try to be like that. But you may feel, “Maharaja’s management is not good. We are not eating delicious food. We don’t have nice beds, or pillows. The homes we are hosted at have no bathrooms.”
You should try to be austere for one month. You will then realize the glories of Vrndavana. Srila Narottam Das Thakura prays, “When will that day come when I will go to Vrndavana daily? I will see the groves there; I will see Giriraja Govardhana, Radha-kunda, and Syama-kunda.”
This place is very special. Vamsi-vata is not only in Vrndavana. There are so many Vamsi-vatas. Krsna used to play on His flute and dance under the shade of this tree. Krsna and the gopis used to dance on the banks of the Yamuna and they engaged in rasa-lila here as well. When Krsna went to Mathura, all the gopis and gopas lamented bitterly. Sridhama used to weep here.
He thought, “I will live here if Krsna will not return to Vraja. I will fast and not even drink water. I will go to Vrndavana only when Krsna returns from Mathura.”
Sridhama used to always weep and wait for Krsna here. He was here for five thousand years. When Caitanya Mahaprabhu came, Sridhama thought, “He is golden from outside. But He is the same Krsna.” They then embraced each other. Sridhama then became happy otherwise he was no unhappy. We will have to be like so. Being in Vrndavana and all these places, we should think, “When will Krsna come and give me darsana? Otherwise I will die.”This is the symptom of doing bhajana.
Srila Thakura Mahasaya then prays, “When will I drink water from the Yamuna when I become tired from doing parikrama? I will give up all my tiredness this way.”
I think all of you are very tired because you are not doing kirtana and dancing. I want that all of you should do kirtanaand dance during parikrama.
“When will I sit in the cool shade of Vamsi-vata and weep?”
tavaivasmi tavaivasmi / na jivami tvaya vina
iti vijnaya devi tvam / naya mama caranantikam
[“I am Yours! I am Yours! I cannot live without You! O Devi Radhe, please understand this and bring me to Your lotus feet.”]
We should pray, “I want to be the maidservant of Srimati Radhika. I want to serve Radha-Krsna conjugal. Please fulfill my desire. I don’t desire any worldly sense gratification. I only want to be Yours.”
Caitanya Mahaprabhu ki jaya!
Gaura premanande! hari haribol!
There is a little pond nearby called ‘Syama-talaiya’, the pond of Syama. When the gopis became tired during rasa, Krsna made this pond by His flute to relieve their fatigue. Sridhama waited for Krsna in the temple nearby. He met Gaura Nityananda Prabhu afterwards. Now we will go to Mana-sarovara.
[Srila Gurudeva and the devotees arrive at Mana-sarovara.]
All of you should take darsana of this picture where Krsna is massaging the feet of Srimati Radhika. Krsna is keeping His head at the lotus feet of Srimati Radhika. He has also offered His flute. Yet, Srimati Radhika is not speaking a word to Him.
Being unhappy, Srimati Radhika came here alone. She wept so much that the tears of Her eyes made this pond. When rasa-lila was taking place in Vrndavana, Krsna was dancing with all the gopis. Srimati Radhika couldn’t bear this and left. Dana-gali, Kunja-gali, Mana-gali, and Yamuna-gali is near our temple. She came here alone weeping. At that time, the forest was very dense. I first came here with our Gurudeva about 55 years ago with 600-700 devotees. We walked from Vrndavana through the dense forest. There was only a palm tree here. This pond is full of the tears of Srimati Radhika. How did Krsna break the mana of Srimati Radhika? You have just heard.
Now we will go to Gokula and Brahmanda-ghata. We will reach Mathura at four in the afternoon. This place is very important because it proves that Srimati Radhika is most beloved among all the gopis like Candravali, Saibya, Shyamala, Bhadra, and Padma. Krsna offered His flute and peacock feather at Srimati Radhika’s lotus feet and hoped to attain Her shelter. The alta of Srimati Radhika was then imprinted on Krsna’s head.
Krsna prayed, “I am only Yours! Not anyone else’s! I will never commit any offense at Your lotus feet. I will listen to everything You say.”
We will offer our pranama to this place and pray that this hari-katha will manifest in our hearts. You should remember these pastimes when you return to your homes and chant Hare Krsna. All kinds of worldly desires and offenses will automatically go away. If a person is not out of offenses and anarthas then he cannot do raganuga-bhakti. But this is quite false. Even if a man is surrounded by many offenses and anarthas, he can be qualified for raganuga-bhakti if he listens to hari-katha from the Vaisnavas and has greed to serve in a proper way. A person can be lame, old, or poor, but he may have greed to marry a princess. There is no harm in this although he cannot marry her. But a desire may come. A poor lady may also want to marry a handsome prince. Similarly, an ugly lady may see Krsna playing on His flute.
She will then think, “I want to meet Him. He should be my husband.”
What harm is there in this? This is a sign of raganuga-bhakti. A man maybe drowning in anarthas, but in the association of devotees, he may have the desire to serve Radha-Krsna like their maidservant. Anyone can desire like this. Such a desire cannot be controlled. I desire that I should be in Goloka Vrndavana at once. Can anyone control this? Never. The only qualification is that we listen to Bhagavan’s lila-katha from the Vaisnavas and have greed to serve Radha-Krsna under the guidance of the gopis.
Some devotees think, “We should be out of maya. Only then can we think of this i.e. when we are liberated.”
This is quite false and against Vaisnava siddhanta. A man in any condition (like Bilvamangala Thakura) can have this desire by the association of a rasika and bhavuka bhakta. He will at once try to follow raganuga-bhakti—no harm—this is the qualification. If you have any misconception like this, then wash it away in Mana-sarovara. Otherwise, don’t come with me if you have any apasiddhanta like this. But don’t try to be a ‘goopi’. Try for this when you can follow raganuga-bhakti. Begin from vaidhi-bhakti and practice in pure Vaisnava association. Suddha-sattva will then appear i.e. the stage of bhava. We should then try to think like gopis, otherwise we will be ruined. We can have a desire like this. But don’t think, “I am Lalita! I am Subal! I am Yasoda!” Otherwise you will become a sahajiya. Now we will go to Brahmanda-ghata.
Devotee: You are lucky that Srila Trivikrama Maharaja is not here. Or else, he will be fighting with you.
Srila Gurudeva: I would have defeated him. He is trivikrama (three steps) and I am four-vikrama (four steps, one step ahead).