NBS#206
NBS#206
Circulaton 32,750
Issue no 206, Page — 2 nityaà bhägavata-sevayä
Swallowing The Forest Fire nature of all things, we have accepted You as our
Srila Sukadeva Goswami Lord, and we are souls surrendered unto You!
Sukadeva Goswami said: Hearing these piti-
Sukadeva Goswami said: While the cowherd ful words from His friends, the Supreme Lord
boys were completely absorbed in playing, their Krishna told them, “Just close your eyes and do
cows wandered far away. They hungered for not be afraid.” “All right,” the boys replied, and
more grass, and with no one to watch them they immediately closed their eyes. Then the Supreme
entered a dense forest. Passing from one part of Lord, the master of all mystic power, opened His
the great forest to another, the goats, cows and mouth and swallowed the terrible fire, saving His
buffalo eventually entered an area overgrown with friends from danger. The cowherd boys opened
sharp canes. The heat of a nearby forest fire made their eyes and were amazed to find not only that
them thirsty, and they cried out in distress. Not they and the cows had been saved from the ter-
seeing the cows before them, Krishna, Rama and rible fire but that they had all been brought back
Their cowherd friends suddenly felt repentant to the Bhandira forest. When the cowherd boys
for having neglected them. The boys searched all saw that they had been saved from the forest fire
around, but could not discover where they had by the Lord’s mystic power, which is manifested
gone. Then the boys began tracing out the cows’ by His internal potency, they began to think that
path by noting their hoofprints and the blades of Krishna must be a demigod.
grass the cows had broken with their hooves and It was now late in the afternoon, and Lord Krish-
teeth. All the cowherd boys were in great anxiety na, accompanied by Balarama, turned the cows
because they had lost their source of livelihood. back toward home. Playing His flute in a special
Within the Munjaforest the cowherd boys finally way, Krishna returned to the cowherd village in
found their valuable cows, who had lost their the company of His cowherd friends, who chant-
way and were crying. Then the boys, thirsty and ed His glories. The young gopés took the greatest
pleasure in seeing Govinda come home, since
tired, herded the cows onto the path back home.
for them even a moment without His association
The Supreme Personality of Godhead called out seemed like a hundred ages.
to the animals in a voice that resounded like a
rumbling cloud. Hearing the sound of their own - Çrémad-Bhägavatam (Bhägavata Puräëa) » Canto 10: The Summum Bonum
names, the cows were overjoyed and called out » Chapter Nineteen » Verses: 1-16 » Translations by Disciples of His Divine Grace
to the Lord in reply. A.C.Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada.
Suddenly a great forest fire appeared on all sides,
threatening to destroy all the forest creatures. Like Friendship Between Krishna
a chariot driver, the wind swept the fire onward, And Cowherd Boys
and terrible sparks shot in all directions. Indeed, His Divine Grace
the great fire extended its tongues of flame toward A.C.Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada
all moving and non-moving creatures. As the
cows and cowherd boys stared at the forest fire at- The cowherd boys of Vrndavana simply loved
tacking them on all sides, they became fearful. The Krishna as their only friend and exclusive object
boys then approached Krishna and Balarama for of devotion. To increase their ecstasy, Krishna
shelter, just as those who are disturbed by fear of displayed to them His mystic potency and saved
death approach the Supreme Personality of God- them from a terrible forest fire.
head. The boys addressed Them as follows. [The The cowherd boys could never give up their
cowherd boys said:] O Krishna! Krishna! Most ecstatic loving friendship with Krishna. Therefore,
powerful one! O Rama! You whose prowess never rather than considering Krishna to be God, after
fails! Please save Your devotees, who are about they saw His extraordinary power they thought
to be burned by this forest fire and have come to that perhaps He was a demigod. But since Lord
take shelter of You! Krishna! Certainly Your own Krishna was their beloved friend, they were on
friends shouldn’t be destroyed. O knower of the the same level with Him, and thus they thought
Bhāgavata Mahāvidyālaya www.ibmedu.org
nityaà bhägavata-sevayä Issue no 206, Page—3
that they too must be demigods. In this way Krish- We have to follow the gradual path. We must
na's cowherd friends became overwhelmed with start with hearing the holy names and kåñëa-kathä.
ecstasy. Krishna’s holy name reveals Himself as the Lord’s
- Çrémad-Bhägavatam (Bhägavata Puräëa) » Canto 10: The Summum Bonum forms, qualities, pastimes, and associates. After
» Chapter Nineteen » Verse: 14 » Translations by Disciples of His Divine Grace hearing, we have to act accordingly. We have to
A.C.Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada. constantly chant whatever we have heard. Then
the state of remembrance will come. There are
Important Instructions Of five kinds of remembrance. The final stage of
Srila Rupa Goswami remembrance is called samädhi, uninterrupted
Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Saraswati Thakura remembrance. After the stage of remembrance
one attains the stage of self-realization, after which
The eighth instruction of Srila Rupa Prabhu is the one attains the ultimate goal of life and goes back
essence of all instructions. It is as follows: to Godhead.
One must properly glorify the Lord’s name, form,
tan-näma-rüpa-caritädi-sukértanänu- and characteristics. One will not yield any result if
småtyoù krameëa rasanä-manasé niyojya one simply makes a pretense of glorifying the Lord.
tiñöhan vraje tad-anurägi janänugämé Çrémad-Bhägavatam (2.8.4) states:
kälaà nayed akhilam ity upadeça-säram
çåëvataùçraddhayä nityaà, gåëataç ca sva-ceñöitam
The essence of all advice is that one should kälena nätidérgheëa, bhagavän viçate hådi
utilize one’s full time twenty-four hours a day, in
nicely chanting and remembering the Lord’s divine Persons who hear Çrémad-Bhägavatam regularly
name, transcendental form, qualities, and eternal
pastimes, thereby gradually engaging one’s tongue and are always taking the matter very seriously
and mind. In this way, one should reside in Vraja will have the Personality of Godhead Çré Krishna
[Goloka Vrndavana dhama] and serve Krishna manifested in their hearts within a short time.
under the guidance of devotees. One should follow Trying to artificially remember the Lord by giving
in the footsteps of the Lord’s beloved devotees, up one’s chanting is not real remembrance. The
who are deeply attached to His devotional service. pretension of remembrance without chanting will
We have to always remain subordinate to the leave one meditating on sense objects. The çästras
Vrajaväsés. The banks of Yamuna, the playground have described two paths, the path of çreyas and
for Krishna’s amorous pastimes, the waters of the the path of preyas. That which we like is the path of
Yamuna, the cows, sticks, horns, and flutes are all preyas, and that which we don’t like is the path of
Vrajaväsés. They are Vrajaväsés on the platform of çreyas. When çreyas and preyas merge, our hearts
çänta-rasa. Raktaka, Citraka, Patraka, and others will rush toward Sri Radha-Krishna’ service. In that
are Vrajaväsés on the platform of däsya-rasa. Ex- stage çreyas appears as preyas and preyas as çreyas.
ternally making a show of residing in Vraja while This is how exalted devotees think.
thinking internally about material enjoyment The phrase tad anurägi in the original verse refers
unrelated to Krishna cannot be called vrajaväsa, to the Vrajaväsés who are deeply attached to the
living in Vraja. Vrajaväsés are those who cannot Lord. The cows, sticks, horns, flute, kadamba trees,
engage in anything other than Krishna’s service and the banks of the Yamuna are deeply attached
even in their dreams or while unconscious, and Vrajaväsés in çänta-rasa. Raktaka, Citraka, and
who have natural attachment for Krishna. If one Patraka, who are Nanda’s house servants and who
is unable to physically live in Vraja, he should live serve Krishna when He returns from the pasturing
there mentally. This means that he must always ground, are deeply attached Vrajaväsés in däsya-ra-
keep his mind absorbed in thoughts of Vraja. One sa. Friends like Sridama or Sudama are deeply at-
has to give up both material enjoyment and dry tached Vrajaväsés of viçrambha-sakhya-rasa, friend-
renunciation. According to Çrémad-Bhägavatam, ship with love. Arjuna’s idea of the Lord is mixed
an attached householder and a staunch, dry re- with knowledge of His godhood and is therefore
nunciant cannot worship Hari. not pure friendship. There is a difference between
www.ibmedu.org Bhāgavata Mahāvidyālaya
Issue no 206, Page — 4 nityaà bhägavata-sevayä
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viçrambha-sakhya-rasa and gaurava-sakhya-rasa Materialists are motivated by a desire to become
(friendship with awe and reverence). On the plat- liberated from material existence. Renunciant
form of viçrambha-sakhya-rasa, Krishna’s friends yogés practice meditation to realize the subtle
will climb on Krishna’s shoulders, feed Him con- object. Surpassing these considerations is the
taminated tala fruits in the Talavana forest, fight topmost platform of devotional service found in
with Him, and compel Him to carry them on the gopés of Vraja. The gopés are not prepared to
His shoulders. But Arjuna is struck with wonder serve Krishna from a distance like the yogés who
when he sees Krishna’s universal form. He says, practice meditation. Their meditation is sponta-
“O Lord! You are so opulent and great. I have neous and natural.
committed an offense by addressing You as friend. These above mentioned five kinds of rasas are
Please forgive me.” He spoke like this because he found in Goloka and in the Vraja of this world.
was overwhelmed by Krishna’s opulence. In Vaikuëöha there are two and half kinds of
Personalities like Nanda and Yasoda are deeply rasas, çänta, däsya, and gaurava-sakhya. Viçram-
attached Vrajaväsés in vätsalya-rasa. Raghupati bha-sakhya does not exist there.
Upadhyaya, a disciple of Sri Madhavendra Puri In Sri Rupa Prabhu’s ninth instruction, he
said: determines the best place to perform bhajana as
çrutim apare småtim itare follows:
bhäratam anye bhajantu bhava-bhétäù
aham iha nandaà vande vaikuëöhäj janito varä madhu-puré
yasyälinde paraà brahma taträpi räsotsaväd
våndäraëyam udära-päëi-ramaëät
Those who are afraid of material existence taträpi govardhanaù
worship the Vedic literature. Some worship rädhä-kuëòam ihäpi gokula-pateù
småti, the corollaries to the Vedic literature, and premämåtäplävanät
others worship the Mahäbhärata. As far as I am kuryäd asya viräjato giri-taöe
seväà viveké na kaù
concerned, I worship Krishna’s father, Maharaja
Nanda, in whose courtyard the Supreme Person- The holy place known as Maöhura is spiritually
ality of Godhead, the Absolute Truth, is playing. superior to Vaikuëöha, the transcendental world,
(Padyävali 126) because the Lord appeared there. Superior to
The Vrajagopés are deeply attached Vrajaväsés in Maöhurapuri is the transcendental forest of Vrn-
the topmost mädhurya-rasa. When the gopés, who davana, because of Krishna’s räsa-lélä pastimes.
were afflicted by separation from Krishna met Him And superior to the forest of Vrndavana is Gov-
at Kurukñetra during the solar eclipse, they said: ardhana Hill, for it was raised by the divine hand
of Sri Krishna and was the site of His various
ähuç ca te nalina-näbha padäravindaà loving pastimes. And, above all, the superexcel-
yogeçvarair hådi vicintyam agädha-bodhaiù lent Sri Radha-kunda stands supreme, for it is
saàsära-küpa-patitottaraëävalambaà over-flooded with the ambrosial nectarean prema
gehaà juñäm api manasy udiyät sadä naù of the Lord of Gokula, Sri Krishna. Where, then,
is that intelligent person who is unwilling to serve
Dear Lord whose navel is just like a lotus flow- this divine Radha Kunda, which is situated at the
er, Your lotus feet are the only shelter for those foot of Govardhana Hill?
who have fallen into the deep well of material As the surrendered maidservants of Sri Radha,
existence. Your feet are worshiped and meditated we have to constantly live on the banks of Radha
upon by great mystic yogés and highly learned Kunda. In the conception of Narayana there is
philosophers. We wish that these lotus feet may no existence of father and mother. Narayana is
also be awakened within our hearts, although we unborn. But when that unborn Lord appears as
are only ordinary persons engaged in household the son of Devaki and Vasudeva in Mathura, He
affairs. (Çrémad Bhagavatam 10.82.48) performs the pastime of taking birth. The Lord of