Murwillumbah, Australia; Feb. 18, 2002
Sri Srimad Bhaktivedanta Narayana Maharaja
(A Jaiva Dharma Class)
[There are 10 essential truths of existence, and they are called Dasamula. Dasamula Siksa, the teachings of these truths, has been delineated by Srila Bhaktivinoda Thakura.
amnaya praha tattvam harim iha paramam sarva-saktim rasabdim
tad bhinnamsamsca jivan prakrti-kavalitan tad vimuktams ca bhavad
bhedabheda-prakasam sakalam api hareh sadhanam suddha-bhaktim
sadhyam tat pritim evety upadisati janan gauracandrah svayam sah
"The message of the Vedas received through guru-parampara is called amnaya. The Vedas and smrti-sastra (such as Srimad-Bhagavatam) which follow the Vedic version have been accepted as authoritative proof, as have different types of evidence such as direct perception, inasmuch as they confirm the Vedic version. From these sources of evidence, the following essential truths are established.
1. Hari is the Supreme Truth
2. He is sarva-saktiman, possessed of all potencies
3. He is akhila rasamrta-sindu, the ocean of all nectarean transcendental mellows
4. Two kinds of jivas, namely mukta and baddha (libearated and conditioned) are His separated expansions (vibhinnamsa-tattva)
5. The conditioned souls are under the control of maya
6. The mukta-jivas are liberated from the influence of maya
7. Everything in existence, whether conscious or unconscious, is a manifestation of Sri Hari and is simultaneously and inconceivably one with Him and different form Him
8. Bhakti is the only sadhana (means to attain the goal)
9. Love for Krsna (prema) is the only objective (sadhya)
Svayam Bhagavan Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu has given instructions on ten types of tattva to the faithful jivas. Of these, the first is the principle of evidence (pramana-tattva), and the remaining nine are prameya-tattva the subject which is established by pramana-tattva." (Dasamula-tattva)
In his final Jaiva Dharma class in Murwillumbah, Srila Narayana Maharaja explained these ten truths.]
[Srila Narayana Maharaja:] Note down these principals in your heart and on your paper, and when needed, you can boldly say, "This is our philosophy."
What is amnaya?
[Sripad Asrama Maharaja:] Amnaya praha means the Vedic teachings as they are coming down in our disciplic succession. There are vast teachings in the Vedas, but not all the teachings are accepted in the line of pure devotional service. Amnayah praha means specifically those teachings within the Vedic scriptures which are accepted by our predecessor acaryas, and which is given to us in line of disciplic succession.
[Srila Narayana Maharaja:] What is second?
[Syamarani dasi] The amnaya is, in and of itself, separate. It is the pramana, evidence, and it establishes the prameya, that which established by the sastric pramana. There are nine principles established by the Vedic literatures, and they are called the prameya. The first of these nine is that Hari, Vrajendranandana Sri Krsna is the Supreme Absolute Truth. He is the advaya-jnana para-tattva. He is one without a second. All other incarnations and manifestations of Godhead are coming from Him. He is amsi, or the source of all avataras, and the other incarnations, like the purusa-avataras, lila-avataras, and guna-avataras, are all emanations from Him. This is the first prameya established by the pramana or the amnaya.
[Srila Narayana Maharaja:] You should know the word brahma, and also Allah and God, have the same meaning. Brahma means the biggest, as does Allah. But the word Bhagavan has a very sweet meaning. If someone has unlimited opulence and greatness, but he cannot be very minute and fine, how can He be God? He cannot be. Krsna has both qualities. He is the biggest, because the whole world is situated in one of His pore-holes, and He is everywhere. At the same time, He is anoraniyam; He is in every minute atom, and in each particle of the sunrays.
Krsna is everywhere. He is in us, and He is in the creepers, trees, dry stones, and everywhere else. He is also in this book. But if Krsna is everywhere - in atoms, trees, and creepers - why do they not speak? We speak because Krsna is in us, but why does this book not speak? There is no jivatma (soul) in the book. Where there is both jivatma and paramatma, speaking is possible. We can speak. Who are we? We are the soul. Krsna is present in the book, but there is no soul there. Both the soul and Supersoul are present in the trees, and thus they can feel, and they may say something in their language.
Krsna is Supreme. He can be the most minute of the minute, and He can be bigger than the biggest. Narayana has so much opulence; God has so much opulence, but most people think He has no shape and He cannot come to us. Krsna can come. It is true that Narayana does not descend in His original form to have a relationship with us, but Krsna comes to us in a very sweet form. He is very tricky and very lovely. He may come as a son, as a friend, or as the most beloved. Narayana, God, Allah, and Huda will not come like this, and therefore Krsna is Supreme. Hari parama-tattva.
The third is sarva-saktiman (the possessor of all powers or energies).
[Sripad Madhava Maharaja:] Krsna is Almighty. He has so many saktis (powers), like jiva-sakti, cit-sakti, and maya-sakti. These three are prominent. Actually, sakti is one, and that sakti is called antaranga-sakti, hladini-sakti or para-sakti. According to Krsna's desire, this one sakti is defined as different according to different functions. In the Upanisads it is stated:
na tasya karyam karanam ca vidyate
na tat-samas cabhyadhikas ca drsyate
parasya saktir vividhaiva sruyate
svabhaviki jnana-bala-kriya ca
["The Supreme Lord has nothing to do, and no one is found to be equal to or greater than Him, for everything is done naturally and systematically by His multifarious energies." (Svetasvatara Upanisad 6.8)]
In this world, everything depends on the cause and effect theory. At first there is a cause, and after that we can see an effect. But for Bhagavan Sri Krsna, na tasya karyam karanam ca vidyate. He is completely beyond the cause and effect theory.
[Srila Narayana Maharaja:] Krsna is sarva-saktiman. We cannot see Him with these eyes or with this intelligence, nor can we touch Him by these senses. Although He is beyond our limit, when He wishes, He calls Yogamaya, and Yogamaya touches this world and Krsna also, and at that time one can see Him.
Some believe that Krsna is God of gods, and some cannot believe it. Kamsa saw Krsna, and Krsna touched his body. Carana and Mustika also saw Him, and He also touched their bodies; but they never realized that He is God. Duryodhana and Jarasandha also saw Him, and Ravana, Kumbhakarana, and other demons saw Rama. Rama is also Krsna, but they never realized this. They were under the influence of Maya, whereas those who are in the association of high class Vaisnavas can realize who is God by the mercy of Yogamaya. He is therefore sarva-saktiman.
Krsna manifests this world by pradhana, which manifests as air, water, fire, ether, and earth. Pradhana is material, but it is also a sakti, and that power of Krsna is called maya-sakti or bahiranga-sakti (external energy). The mundane manifestations of pradhana are not eternal, but the power itself is eternal.
What is rasabdim?
[Pundarika dasa:] Next, Srila Bhaktivinoda Thakura explains that Krsna is also referred as rasabdim, which means the ocean of rasa, He from whom all rasas or mellows are emanating. Krsna is also referred to raso vai saha in the Vedas. He is the original fountainhead of all the rasas, and He Himself is the embodiment of rasa. What does this mean? We have just heard that Krsna is all-powerful, and He is endowed with a completely transcendental potency. That potency manifests in so many innumerable ways and fulfills Krsna's desires. Three main aspects of His internal potency are also known as samvit, hladini and sandini, and these three aspects affect all the activities of the internal potency, marginal potency, and external potency. In this material world, due to the influence of the external potency, all jivas experience jadananda, material pleasure. That material pleasure is actually a perverted reflection of the internal potency of hladini-sakti. Those who cross this level and are able to come to the platform of bramha bhuta prasanatma (experiencing brahman) are also experiencing a reflection of that internal potency of the Lord. In its purest stage, in Goloka Vrndavana and all the spiritual worlds, hladini-sakti provides all the Lord's pleasure. For this reason, it is said that He is fountainhead of all rasas experienced by everyone, anywhere.
[Srila Narayana Maharaja:] Two kinds of jivas come from Krsna. What is the meaning of bhedabheda?
[Sripad Bhakti Sara Maharaja:] In this same sloka, Srila Bhaktivinoda Thakura says, bhedabheda-prakasam. The Absolute Truth is simultaneously one and different from everything. In other words, God is everywhere, but everything is not God. This is the difference between Sankara's monist philosophy and the various schools of Vaisnava thought, like Madhva, Ramanuja, Visnusvami and Nimbaditya.
[Srila Narayana Maharaja:] In one sense we can see that the jivas are not different from Krsna, but at the same time they are different. The jivas have come from sakti, and they are a transformation of sakti; they are not full manifestations like svamsa. There is some difference and some non-difference. The jivas have some qualities of parambrahma, but not all. They cannot create. They cannot be like the svamsa, plenary (Visnu) expansions of Krsna. They can be covered at any time. This difference and non-difference is not conceivable by conditioned souls. Only by the gurus words, that is, by amnaya, understanding through Veda-sastra, can they know this.
[Devotee:] You just said the jiva can always be covered; but two days ago you were quoting from Jaiva Dharma that Baladeva manifests certain jivas who are Krsna's eternal associates in Vrndavana.
[Srila Narayana Maharaja:] They are not jivas.
[Devotee:] But the word in the book is jiva.
[Srila Narayana Maharaja:] There is no (proper) word (in our language). They are all parikaras (eternal associates). The word jiva is only applicable here - in this world. All jivas can be covered. In that realm they are called parisada (associates), and they are called nitya-mukta (ever-liberated). Here they are not nitya-mukta; they are nitya-baddha. And actually, they are not nitya-baddha (eternally conditioned), but anadi-baddha (conditioned since time immemorial). They can be liberated.
What is sadhana?
[Vraja Vallabha dasa:] Sadhana is the process by which the jiva can free himself from the realm of maya as well as.
[Srila Narayana Maharaja:] This is external. What is internal?
[Vraja Vallabha dasa:] By this process he will achieve suddha-bhakti.
[Srila Narayana Maharaja:] By sadhana, by bhakti, we can achieve bhava and gradually prema. Sadhana is the execution of sravanam, kirtanam, visnu smaranam, pada-sevanam, arcanam, vandanam, dasyam, sakhyam, and atma-nivedanam.
["Hearing and chanting about the transcendental holy name, form, qualities, paraphernalia and pastimes of Lord Visnu, remembering them, serving the lotus feet of the Lord, offering the Lord respectful worship with sixteen types of paraphernalia, offering prayers to the Lord, becoming His servant, considering the Lord one's best friend, and surrendering everything unto Him (in other words, serving Him with the body, mind and words)." (SB 7.5.23)]
Moreover, the five most important processes are:
sadhu-sanga, nama-kirtana, bhagavata-sravana
mathura-vasa, sri-murtira sraddhaya sevana
["One should associate with devotees, chant the holy name of the Lord, hear Srimad-Bhagavatam, reside at Mathura and worship the Deity with faith and veneration." (Cc Madhya 22.128)]
Among these five processes, the three most prominent are sravanam, kirtanam, and visnu smaranam; and among these, the single most important process is chanting Hare Krsna.
harer nama harer nama
harer namaiva kevalam
kalau nasty eva nasty eva
nasty eva gatir anyatha
["In this age of quarrel and hypocrisy the only means of deliverance is chanting the holy name of the Lord. There is no other way. There is no other way. There is no other way." (Cc Adi 17.21)]
Nama-sankirtana is the best sadhana of all, because the holy names are Radha and Krsna Themselves. By chanting we can achieve prema, and this prema is our prayojana. The first of the ten essential truths is the evidence, and that evidence is amnaya - that which is accepted by our guru-parampara. Among all sastric evidence, Srimad-Bhagavatam is supreme. The next truths reveal sambanda-jnana, abhideya, and krsna prema-prayojana. Krsna is Supreme, without a second, the advaya-jnana-para-tattva. He is the ocean of rasa, and He is sarva-saktiman. There are two kinds of jivas coming from Him, and there is a difference and non-difference between the jivas and the Supreme God. Sadhana is the practice of suddha-bhakti, and prema is the prayojana (ultimate goal). In this way, there are ten. This Dasamula Siksa has been given in brief in Jaiva Dharma, and all of you should remember all ten truths.
My thanks to all those who have somehow assembled here. I pray to Krsna to sprinkle His mercy on those who have helped by their money, by their energy, or by giving classes. I pray to Krsna and Caitanya Mahaprabhu to be merciful to them. Also, for those who are singing (bhajanas and kirtanas) and those who are helping me in any way - I pray that they develop love and affection for Krsna, and attachment to krsna-nama. They should never be weak.
My heartly blessings to you all.
Transcribers: Raghunatha dasa and Jagad Mohini dasi
Editor: Syamarani dasi
Typist: Radhika dasi