Srila Prabhupada -- Concentrated Mercy
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By Nandanandana dasa
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Goloka is full of opulence, Radha-Krishna are superlatively beautiful and everybody is joyfully engaged in assisting in Their transcendental pastimes, and nothing else. The youthful couple, yugala kishora, goes by the names Madana-mohana and Madana-mohana-mohani, for Their beauty has not parallel and everybody is simply attracted to Them. What to speak of the Vaikunthas, full of transcendental jewels, opulence, owe and reverence. And although the inhabitants of the spiritual world are oblivious of the conditioned jivas in the material world, yet Their Lordships, been merciful, feel for these suffering souls.
"Pious activities can be executed only when inspired by Your mercy. Therefore, without taking shelter at Your lotus feet one cannot surpass the influence of material energy. Actually, we, as personified Vedic knowledge, are always engaged in Your service to help the conditioned soul to understand You.'
This prayer of the Vedas personified illustrates that the Vedas are meant for helping the conditioned souls to understand Krishna. All the srutis or personified Vedas offered glories to the Lord again and again, singing, "Jaya! Jaya!" This indicates that the Lord is praised for His glories. Of all His glories the most important is His causeless mercy upon the conditioned souls in reclaiming them from the clutches of maya.-KB 87: Prayers by the Personified Vedas.
I do not know of anybody else so merciful as your humble self, Your Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada. Certainly you are the concentrated mercy of the Divine couple Sri Sri Radha-Krishna, and of Sri Sri Gaura-Nitai, the saviors of the most fallen. Without Their combined mercy there is no way out of this entanglement called the material world; no doubt you are the personification of that sweet mercy.
Your Divine Grace has said: “Of all His glories the most important is His causeless mercy upon the conditioned souls in reclaiming them from the clutches of maya”. There is not greater opulence of Their Lordships than Their gracious mercy to the fallen souls, and you, Srila Prabhupada, are the personification of that concentrated mercy.
Literally you came from Vrindavana to serve Radha-Govinda, who else as merciful and humble as yourself?
His Divine Grace, in spite of being the direct manifestation of Radha-Krsna’s and Gaura-Nitai’s mercy, very humbly he came to canvass and to reclaim the fallen conditioned souls back to Godhead. Many may claim to be very advanced, but there is not comparison with Srila Prabhupada’s mercy and compassion toward the entire universe by brining Krishna consciousness to everyone. While some considered themselves paka brahmanas, pure brahmanas, who cannot contaminate themselves with low born people, he mercifully underwent severe penances living in such a place as the Bowery in New York.
Srila Prabhupada:
The Lord does not forget the fallen souls who have forgotten Him, and Your Divine Grace descended to save them all. You represent your Lord Caitanya, maha-vadanyaya, the most merciful, therefore deserving the title Srila Prabhupada. So simple, why they shouldn’t know and accept it? What is the reason they invent so many excuses?
Is this a title conferred by loving or sentimental disciples? or Your Divine Grace did some wonderful and extraordinary acts fulfilling the desire of Lord Caitanya and those of the great Acaryas like Srila Bhaktivinoda Thakura, who predicted a great personality would spread the Holy Name all over the world; like Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Prabhupada, who wanted this, that the Holy Name be spread, and to whom you give all credit? This is the challenge today to detractors who cannot call you simply Srila Prabhupada.
Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura comments in his Anubhasya on Caitanya-caritamrta (Antya-lila 7.11), “Without being empowered by the direct potency of Lord Krishna to fulfill His desire and without being specifically favored by the Lord, no human being can become the spiritual master of the whole world... Only an empowered personality can distribute the holy name of the Lord and enjoin all fallen souls to worship Krishna. By distributing the holy name of the Lord, he cleanses the hearts of the most fallen people; therefore he extinguishes the blazing fire of the material world. Not only that, he broadcasts the shining brightness of Krishna’s effulgence throughout the world. Such an acarya, or spiritual master, should be considered nondifferent from Krishna—that is, he should be considered the incarnation of Lord Krishna’s potency. Such a personality is krishnalingita-vigraha—that is, he is always embraced by the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Krishna. Such a person is above the considerations of the varnasrama institution. He is the guru, or spiritual master, for the entire world, a devotee on the topmost platform, the maha-bhagavata stage, and a paramahamsa-thakura, a spiritual form only fit to be addressed as paramahamsa or thakura.”
Jaya Srila Prabhupada!
GAURA-NITAI
You established the worship of Sri Sri Gaura-Nitai in all your temples for that is the purification process of the yuga-dharma, chanting of Hare Krishna Hare Krishna Krishna Krishna Hare Hare/ Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare , and the way to approach to madhurya-rasa and Radha-Krishna. This is confirmed by our great Acarya Srila Narottamadas Thakura in his Manah-siksa:
nitai-pada-kamala, koti-candra-susitala,
je chayay jagata juray
heno nitai bine bhai, radha-krsna paite nai,
drdha kori' dharo nitair pay
"What will be the result of accepting the shelter of the lotus feet of Lord Nityananda?" He says, heno nitai bine bhai: unless one takes shelter under the shade of the lotus feet of Lord Nityananda radha-krsna paite nai -- it will be very difficult for him to approach Radha-Krsna. The aim of this Krsna consciousness movement is to enable us to approach Radha-Krsna and associate with the Supreme Lord in His sublime pleasure dance. Narottama Dasa Thakura advises that if one actually wants to enter into the dancing party of Radha-Krsna, he must accept the shelter of the lotus feet of Lord Nityananda.” – Srila Prabhupada’s Purport.
se sambandha nahi ja'r, brtha janma gelo ta'r,
se pasu boro duracar
nitai na bolilo mukhe, majilo samsara-sukhe,
vidya-kule ki koribe tar
"Then he says, se sambandha nahi. Sambandha means "connection" or "contact." Anyone who has not contacted a relationship with Nityananda is understood to have spoiled his human birth. In another song also, Narottama Dasa says, hari hari bifale janama gonainu: anyone who does not approach Radha-Krsna through a relationship with Nityananda has uselessly spoiled his life. Brtha means "useless," janma means "life," ta'r means "his" and sambandha means "relationship." Anyone who does not make a relationship with Nityananda is simply spoiling the boon of his human form of life. Why is he spoiling it? Sei pasu boro duracar. Sei means ; "that," pasu means "animal," and duracar means "misbehaved" or "the most misbehaved." Without elevation to Krsna consciousness through the mercy of Lord Caitanya and Nityananda, life is simply spoiled in the animal propensities of sense gratification.”
Srila Prabhupada’s Purport:
nitaiyer koruna habe, braje radha-krsna pabe
“Narottama Dasa Thakura then says, nitaiyer koruna habe, braje radha-krsna pabe: ‘If you actually want to approach the association of Radha-Krsna, you must achieve the mercy of Lord Nityananda first. When He is merciful toward you, then you will be able to approach Radha-Krsna.’ Dharo nitai-carana du'khani. Narottama Dasa advises that one firmly catch the lotus feet of Lord Nityananda.” - Srila Prabhupada’s Purport:
gaura-prema-rasarnave, se tarange jeba dube,
se radha--madhava-antaranga
“Lord Caitanya's distribution of this love of God is compared with an ocean (rasa-arnava). What kind of ocean? Not the salty ocean that one cannot taste. The water of this ocean is so nice that if one drinks even one drop, he will like it more and more. It is not ordinary ocean water, of which one cannot taste even a drop. Therefore it is called rasarnava. In this ocean there are different waves; an ocean does not stand still, for it is not impersonal or void. And as the ocean is always dancing with waves, similarly the ocean of transcendental love of Krsna as introduced by Lord Caitanya has constant waves, constant sound. One has to dive deep into that ocean. If one knows the secret and says, "Let me dive deep into the ocean of the transcendental loving movement introduced by Lord Caitanya,'' he immediately becomes one of the confidential devotees of Radha and Krsna.” -Purport by Srila Prabhupada.
Srila Krishnadas Kaviraja Gosvami, author of Sri Caitanya-caritamrita, confirms the same truth.
“The ocean of Lord Nityananda’s glories is infinite and unfathomable. Only by His mercy can I touch even a drop of it.
Please listen to another glory of His mercy. He made a fallen living entity climb to the highest limit.
To disclose it is not proper, for it should be kept as confidential as the Vedas, yet I shall speak of it to make His mercy known to all.
O Lord Nityananda, I write of Your mercy out of great exultation. Please forgive me for my offenses”. -CC Adi 5.157-160.
"All glory, all glory to Lord Nityananda Balarama, by whose mercy I have attained shelter in the transcendental abode of Vrndävana!
All glory, all glory to the merciful Lord Nityananda, by whose mercy I have attained shelter at the lotus feet of Sri Rupa and Sri Sanatana!
By His mercy I have attained the shelter of the great personality Sri Raghunatha dasa Gosvami, and by His mercy I have found the refuge of Sri Svarupa Damodara.
Purport by Srila Prabhupada:
"Anyone desiring to become expert in the service of Sri Sri Radha and Krishna should always aspire to be under the guidance of Svarupa Damodara Gosvami, Rupa Gosvami, Sanatana Gosvami and Raghunatha dasa Gosvami. To come under the protection of the Gosvamis, one must get the mercy and grace of Nityananda Prabhu. The author has tried to explain this fact in these two verses.
By the mercy of Sanatana Gosvami I have learned the final conclusions of devotional service, and by the grace of Sri Rupa Gosvami I have tasted the highest nectar of devotional service."
All glory, all glory to the lotus feet of Lord Nityananda, by whose mercy I have attained Sri Radha-Govinda!
I am more sinful than Jagai and Madhai and even lower than the worms in the stool.
Anyone who hears my name loses the results of his pious activities. Anyone who utters my name becomes sinful.
Who in this world but Nityananda could show His mercy to such an abominable person as me?
Because He is intoxicated by ecstatic love and is an incarnation of mercy, He does not distinguish between the good and the bad.
He delivers all those who fall down before Him. Therefore He has delivered such a sinful and fallen person as me.
Although I am sinful and I am the most fallen, He has conferred upon me the lotus feet of Sri Rupa Gosvami.
I am not fit to speak all these confidential words about my visiting Lord Madana Gopala and Lord Govinda.
Lord Madana Gopala, the chief Deity of Vrndavana, is the enjoyer of the rasa dance and is directly the son of the King of Vraja.
He enjoys the rsa dance with Srimati Radharani, Sri Lalita and others. He manifests Himself as the Cupid of Cupids.
“Wearing yellow garments and decorated with a flower garland, Lord Krishna, appearing among the gopis with His smiling lotus face, looked directly like the charmer of the heart of Cupid.”
With Radha and Lalita serving Him on His two sides, He attracts the hearts of all by His own sweetness.
The mercy of Lord Nityananda showed me Sri Madana-mohana and gave me Sri Madana-mohana as my Lord and master.
He granted to one as low as me the sight of Lord Govinda. Words cannot describe this, nor is it fit to be disclosed.
On an altar made of gems in the principal temple of Vrndavana, amidst a forest of desire trees, Lord Govinda, the son of the King of Vraja, sits upon a throne of gems and manifests His full glory and sweetness, thus enchanting the entire world.
By His left side is Srimati Radharani and Her personal friends. With them Lord Govinda enjoys the rasa-lila and many other pastimes. -CCS Adi 5.200-220.
Therefore Locana dasa Thakura says,
bhajo bhajo bhai, caitanya-nitai
"My dear brother, I request that you just worship Lord Caitanya and Nityananda with firm conviction and faith."
parama koruna, pahu dui jana,
nitai gauracandra
saba avatara-sara siromani,
kevala ananda-kanda
The two Lords, Nitai-Gauracandra, Lord Nitai and Lord Caitanya, are the most merciful. They are the essence of all incarnations. They are the crest jewel of all incarnations. The specific significance of these incarnations is that prosecuting Their way of self-realization is simply joyful (kevala ananda-kanda), for They introduced chanting and dancing.
Dear brothers don’t be misled, don’t be confused, just be attached to Srila Prabhupada’s lotus feet. Don’t you chant sri-guru-carane rati, ei se uttama-gati, every morning? “Attachment to his lotus feet is the highest perfection”.
Jaya Srila Prabhupada! Your concentrated mercy is showering on everyone, including me.
I am just always grateful to Gaura-Nitai and my Godbrothers that I have ever met Your Divine Grace, to whom I am eternally indebted.
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