Shiva Tattva by Tridandisvami Sri Srimad Bhaktivedanta Narayana Gosvami Maharaja

Shiva_Tattva

Tridandisvami Sri Srimad Bhaktivedanta Narayana Gosvami Maharaja

Om ajnana-timirandhasya jnananjana-shalakaya
Chaksur unmilitam yena tasmai shri-gurave namah

“Ofereço minhas mais humildes e respeitosas reverências a meu mestre espiritual que, com o archote do conhecimento, abriu meus olhos que estavam cegos por causa da escuridão da ignorância.”

               Tridandisvami Sri Srimad Bhaktivedanta Narayana Gosvami Maharaja 

Rama-Navami Hari Katha by Tridandisvami Sri Srimad Bhaktivedanta Narayana Gosvami Maharaja

Rama-Navami - Bangkok, Thailand

The Vow of Ekadasi

Tridandisvami Sri Srimad Bhaktivedanta Narayana Gosvami Maharaja

The Vow of Ekadasi

Hawaii: May 13, 2000

[Dear Readers,
Please accept our humble obesances. All glories to Sri Sri Guru and Gauranga.
This month, January of 2012, the first Ekadasi is January 5th (in India). In honor of this Ekadasi we are sending this newly transcribed lecture of Srila Gurudeva, spoken by him on May 13, 2000 in Honolulu, Hawaii. To hear the sound file: 20000513HON.mp3
Your aspiring servants,
The Hari-katha team]

You are all observing Ekadasi today. We should surely observe Ekadasi – strictly avoiding grains, or anything prepared with any kind of grains, such as wheat, barley, corn, and so on. If you observe Ekadasi, chant the holy name, hear hari-katha in high-class association, always remain with elevated devotees, and perform any of the nine limbs of bhakti, you will never fall down.

Sometimes, due to Kali-yuga and maya, we become weak and cannot follow; that is why we fall down. In any situation, we must not forget to chant and remember Krsna, and also to follow Ekadasi. Even if you are weak, try to strictly follow these principles.

Do you know the reason why waves come and go, and why on special days – from Ekadasi to Purnima and Ekadasi to Amavasya – waves are very high? Even if there is no wind, still, from Ekadasi to the full moon and dark moon, the water increases and there are so many high waves. Why is this? It is due to the moon. Water and waves increase due to the moon. The moon comes nearer on those days, and extracts the water.

Similarly there is some water in our stomachs and bodies. Therefore, if we are not very careful in these five days in every fifteen, the moon will increase all your diseases. You can see in hospitals that most people die within these five days.

We have rasa, or water, within us, and wherever there is liquid, the mood attracts it. Thus, all kinds of diseases increase. However, if we are very careful by following the ancient Indian (or Vedic) process of Ekadasi, this can be controlled very easily. How do we do this? By not drinking water and taking grains. If you are weak, and you are taking water or juice but not grains, then you can save yourself. If you are taking any preparation made from grains, it will absorb the water and become saturated with that water. If you put a stone or wood in water, this will not absorb water, whereas if you give any blotting paper or cotton, it will absorb so much that it will remain fully saturated for the entire day. It will not dry, even in the sun. If you drink water but do not take grains, then like a stone, you will not be affected. However if you take grains, the moon will attract the water, those grains will become saturated with the water, and so many kinds of sickness will come. You may even die; so be careful about this.

Here is another analogy to help us understand. The government allows that within each week there is a one- or two-day holiday. Why have they made one or two holidays? Why not work for all seven days of each week? If you work every day of the seven days, you will be tired and you won’t be able to continue the next day. Similarly, the stomach contains so many worms, which digest what we eat. If you do not give them rest, they are not able to continue digesting and they will become diseased. The whole world is suffering due to not giving the stomach any rest.

Moreover, the most important reason to follow Ekadasi is that Ekadasi is Krsna Himself. Krsna has become Ekadasi. He descends to this world on Ekasasi day, looks after all the people who are observing its vows, and gives special mercy to them. So we must observe Ekadasi.

Once, on the day of Ekadasi, Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu was in Puri with all of His associates like Svarupa Damodara, Raya Ramananda, Nityananda Prabhu, and thousands of other devotees. They were performing kirtana throughout the day and night – remembering Krsna, hearing hari-katha, and not sleeping for even a moment. In the meantime, at about 8:00 in the evening, the pandas (priests) of Jagannatha Puri brought a great quantity of delicious, sweet maha-prasadam and placed it in front of Mahaprabhu and His devotees.

It has been written in the scriptures, like the Puranas and others, that when one receives maha-prasadam he should take it at once, without a moments delay. When Caitanya Mahaprabhu saw the maha-prasadam, He became so happy. He prayed to that maha-prasadam in various ways and performed its parikrama throughout the night. He quoted many slokas from sastra, explaining which he said that even the maha-prasadam taken by hogs, pigs, crows, and dogs is still maha-prasadam; it is so powerful. We should not dishonor it; rather, we should take it. Even if it is rotten or dry, or brought from faraway places, we should still honor it.

When it became morning, Mahaprabhu took bath in the sea along with all His associates, and then told them, “Let us now divide this prasadam and then honor it.”

On the day of Ekadasi, we should honor Ekadasi by not taking grains. Ekadasi is the mother of krsna-bhakti, love and affection. If you do not follow Ekadasi, krsna-bhakti will never come. If you are young and strong, you can fast all day, not taking anything: not fruits, vegetables, juice, or even water. If you are not so strong, or you are sick or old, you can take very few fruits, or juice, or milk. Don’t try to take a large quantity of juice, one or two kilos three or four times a day, or rubady (a sweet), or other preparations. You can take very little, only to maintain your life. Not sleeping at all during the day, and chanting like Srila Haridasa Thakura. Then the fruit of Ekadasi will come.

There are so many examples about Ekadasi in the Srimad-Bhagavatam, such as the story of Ambarisa Maharaja. Maharaja Ambarisa was a very powerful king, who was attacked by an agent of Durvasa Rsi. Durvasa was not an angry person. He is a manifestation of Maha-Sankara (Lord Siva). He was a high-class devotee. He wanted to glorify bhaktas and Ekadasi, so he played a trick, just as Sankara preached mayavada philosophy on the order of Krsna. Sankara did this for the welfare of the whole world.

On our own, we cannot understand why the sage Durvasa did so many apparently cruel things. Actually he is an exalted devotee, always serving and glorifying Krsna. He wanted to give some teachings to us conditioned souls. That is why, just before Dvadasi/paran (the exact time for breaking the Ekadasi fast), he told Maharaja Ambarisa, “I am accepting your invitation to take prasadam here, but first I must take bath in the river and chant my gayatri mantras.” Yamuna was very near, so he went there to take bath and recite prayers, and he intentionally returned late – after the paran (time for breaking fast) time was over. 

We should try to be humble like Ambarisa Maharaja, and very strong in the conclusions of bhakti. He was so humble that for one year he was waiting for when Durvasa would come back thinking, “I must satisfy him first, and then I can take prasada.”  He was so humble:

trnad api sunicena
taror api sahisnuna
amanina manadena
kirtaniyah sada harih

[“Thinking oneself to be even lower and more worthless than insignificant grass which has been trampled beneath everyone’s feet, being more tolerant than a tree, being pride-less, and offering respect to all others according to their respective positions, one should continuously chant the holy name of Sri Hari.” (Sri Siksastaka, verse 3)]

We should be more humble than a blade of grass which if trampled upon and never protests. We should be more tolerant than trees, whose bark, wood, fruit, shade, and seeds are all for others. Even if you come to cut down the tree, still it will give you shade, fruits, and wood for chairs, beds, etc. Even if it is drying up and dying, still, it will not ask for water. We should be more humble than that tree.

Try to give honor to all, in accordance with their qualifications in bhakti. Don’t desire your own praise. If you are like this, then when you chant and remember, you will be able to attain krsna-prema very easily; otherwise, not.



                                                                                 harikatha@​harikatha.c​om

Lord Baladeva's Appearance Day by Tridandisvami Sri Srimad Bhaktivedanta Narayana Gosvami Maharaja

Tuesday, 15 August 2000


(Vrndavana, India, August 15, 2000)


Translator: Sripad Ramacandra dasa Adhikari

You know the pastime of Sri Baladeva's killing Romaharsana Suta, but do you know why He did it? The fact is that this Romaharsana Suta never honored any devotees. He thought, "I am supreme of all. I am guru of all the 88 thousand rsis assembled here." There were thousands of devotees present who were superior to him, but he never gave any respect to them. You know that Baladeva knows all things, and so He realized this. He at once came to test him. As Romaharsana Suta was accustomed not to honor any Vaisnava, thinking himself superior to all, when Baladeva Prabhu arrived he also did not honor Him. He could not stand up from his position and do pranamas. If anyone is like this, he is neither qualified to tell hari-katha nor is he qualified to hear hari-katha. Baladeva Prabhu at once cut him. He said, "Nonsense, you don't want to respect any of the devotees, and you think you are superior to them because you are telling hari-katha and they are hearing."

He had never offered pranama to his audience. Quite opposite to this, Prabhupada Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura used to offer pranama to his entire audience. Feeling that they were prominent, he would tell them, "If you are not here, I cannot tell hari-katha to anyone. You are like my vipada uddharana bandhu. You are my friends who are saving me from great danger." If anyone explaining hari-katha thinks, "None of them know anything", what is this? It is an offence.

Although someone may not be speaking hari-katha, still he may be as qualified as Srila Haridasa Thakura or Srila Gaurkisora dasa babaji. He may be lakhs times superior to the person telling hari-katha. Those who are tasting Vaisnava seva, harinama, and hearing of hari-katha, have more sukriti than anyone. Sometimes we neglect this, but we should try not to.

Baladeva Prabhu also killed Dvivida bandara (gorilla) in Dvaraka. Dvivida bandara was present at the time of Rama. He had served Him so much, and he had helped Him to fight against Ravana. However, he had never given honor to Laksmana. He was thinking, "What has Laksmana done? Nothing." He did not understand that Laksmanji was always serving Rama, and in fact He was Rama Himself.

Dvivida lived for so long that he was also present at the time of Krsna. However, because he had the bad association of Bhaumasura, Maya Dhanava, Kala Yavana, Jarasanda, and all others demons, he became more and more stupid. He began to see everywhere, in all devotees, some loophole, some fault, and he used to criticize them. And again he was finding a 'loophole' in Laksmana, who was now in the form of Baladeva Prabhu. He became naked and began to show off his body to the young women with whom Baladeva was enjoying pastimes. In that condition he began to criticize Baladeva. He said, "How can you respect Balarama? Balarama is a lampata, a very lusty person. He has Revati as His wife, and He is so much attached to her."

Anyone can be like this if he has the association of those who criticise Vaisnavas. Such a person will have no eyes to see the qualities of Vaisnavas. Even a kanistha is superior to him. One should try to be very humble with all, and especially one should not to see faults or 'loopholes' in any Vaisnavas. If we start finding faults in Vaisnavas, then we will come to a state like Dvivida gorilla. We will also start finding fault in our guru, and also in akhanda-guru-tattva, that is, Balarama or Nityananda Prabhu. Even those who were killed by Baladeva prabhu, like Dvivida bandara and Romaharsan Suta, were fortunate. We are even worse than Dvivida and Romaharsana Suta because we don't have this opportunity to be killed by Baladeva. We are not so fortunate, and we are still cultivating so many
aparadhas.

What does Baladeva Prabhu do? He plows. What does He plows? He cultivates. In Vraja He is cultivates the field of the eternal living entities, the jivas. He is preparing them or producing them. He is creating or manifesting the sandhini-sakti.

Then, in Vaikuntha, in the form of Maha Sankarsana, Baladeva is cultivating the field of the eternal associates of Vaikunthadipati, meaning Narayana. As Karanodakasayi Visnu, Baladeva is cultivating (creating) all the tatastha-sakti living entities, those who are fit to go both to the spiritual abode and to the material abode.

Krsna is sac-cid-ananda-vigraha. This word actually consists of three words: sat, cit, and ananda. Krsna Himself is considered to be the predominating Deity of cit. Cit means jnana, which, when condensed or intensified, converts into bhava; and this bhava goes up to the stage of mahabhava. Baladeva Prabhu is the predominating Deity of sat. Sat means existence, and all existence comes from Balarama Prabhu. Even the existence of Krsna's body is due to Balarama. Radharani is the predominating Deity of ananda, and all these three are toether sat, cit, and ananda in Krsna.

Although all these three are in Krsna together, they are also separate. This is Krsna's inconceivable potency. Each and every potency of Krsna can take a separate form. His drsti, His sight, also becomes personified. His capacity to see is His potency, and it can also take a form. In our case, this potency is invisible, but in Krsna's case the same potency can take a form. Drsti, the potency to see, can also become personified. This is true also in the case of Radharani, Her rupa is Rupa manjari and Her sight is Nayana-mani Manjari. In this way, although the sac-cid-ananda potencies are in Krsna, when they take forms they become Balarama and Radharani.

As Ananga Manjari Balarama serves Radharani in the conjugal mellow. In Radha Kunda the central and most important kunja is Svananda sukadha kunja. This kunja belongs to Ananga Manjari, and in this kunja she always arranges nice paraphernalia for the pastimes of Radha-Krsna.

In Rama-lila this same Baladeva was Laksmana, where He was forced to perform many types of pastimes that He did not wish to perform. At that time He was the younger brother, and He could not say anything to His elder brother. He had to perform one fire test for Sita, and He had to banish Her. In Gaura-lila He came back as Lord Nityananda, the older brother, not younger brother, and He broke the ekadanda of Mahaprabhu.

Sometimes Baladeva Prabhu appears black. Why? When He came from Dvaraka, and He found the gopis so much absorbed in Krsna, then He also began feeling separation from Krsna, absorbed Himself in Krsna, and became black.

Respect all the Vaisnavas and develop your tendency to serve. Try to serve each and every Vaisnava. Cultivate this taste of serving. Jagannatha dasa Babaji Maharaja had engaged some of his disciples in cultivating the seeds of eggplants. Why? Because they were not fit to continue chanting throughout the entire day. They had wanted to learn so much from him, but upon accepting them as disciples, he asked them to cultivate a field of eggplants. When Srila Bhaktivinoda Thakura went there, they complained, "Jagannatha dasa Babaji Maharaja is so close to you. Please ask him something for us. We have left our homes to learn something about Krsna consciousness and chanting and hari-katha. Instead of giving us hari-katha he is asking us to do this field cultivation." Srila Bhaktivinoda Thakura felt their pulse and replied, "He has done correctly. This is your bhakti; this is your Krsna consciousness cultivation. Because all of us are not fit to continue chanting all day, we require to work, and we should serve according to the instructions given by Vaisnavas and Gurudeva."

Today is also Raksa-bandhana. We bind rakhi (a very fancy cloth bracelet) to Krsna. Earlier, this festival was practiced differently from today. We bind rakhi to Krsna, or to Balarama, so that they will protect us. They are our real protectors. Anantadeva is our real protector. This was the purpose of this festival. During the reign of one Muhammedan leader, the Muhammedans were inflicting so much atrocity on the Indian women. Many Indian women accepted powerful kings as their protectors. They sent their rakhi to them and said, "Please bind this rakhi and protect us." Since that time this festival has taken place: that a sister will bind a rakhi around the wrist of a brother who will protect her. The protector, however, is not, in fact, a brother. The protector is actually Balarama. We can also take Gurudeva as our protector from unwanted activities and mentalities, aparadhas etc.

We can bind this rakhi to Gurudeva, and we should have this belief in our heart that in order to serve our Gurudeva we can kill the whole world. It is not that you go and start killing the whole world, but this must be the emotion and feeling in your heart. Whoever does not have guru-nistha cannot progress. This does not mean that because I am your guru I am asking and persuading you to serve me, but this is what I am seeing from our guru parampara. Srila Prabhupada used to say about Srila Gaura Kisora dasa Babaji Maharaja: "When I approached him to take initiation, he refused me. He made a pretext that I had so much knowledge, but in fact he was saying, 'You are so much proud of being learned.' So he wanted to break my pride, and he refused to give me initiation. My whole pride was collapsed and I began a fast. I vowed that 'I will die now. I will die.' Then he gave me initiation."

Similarly, my Gurudeva served Prabhupada so earnestly. In one night he changed a graveyard into a garden. Whenever he used to talk about his Gurudeva, he could not utter the words 'Srila Prabhupada', and he used to weep bitterly. We see that this does not take place in our case. He was so much dedicated to his Gurudeva.

If someone is criticizing one's Gurudeva and the disciple remains quiet, then he is not more than an impotent eunuck. When our Gurudeva started Ratha-yatra in Navadvipa, no one criticized him. When he left this world, however, a very highly advanced devotee spoke something against Ratha-yatra in Navadvipa. The day I heard it I could not sleep at night. I was restless and so much agitated. Soon after that I wrote an article in our magazine, and that article created chaos, havoc and very great agitation on the other side. Hence there was a fight, and that fight lasted for an entire year. If we do not do these things, we are not doing mano-bhista seva, service to the inner heart's desire of Sri Gurudeva. We should establish our Gurudeva's principles and, when any opposition comes, we should defeat it.

fonte - >
http://www.purebhakti.com/teachers/bhakti-discourses-mainmenu-61/19-discourses-2000/195-lord-baladevas-appearance-day.html


Jaya Srila Gurudeva !!!

LORD NITYANANDA IS NEVER ANGRY

Tridandisvami Sri Srimad Bhaktivedanta Narayana Gosvami Maharaja

LORD NITYANANDA IS NEVER ANGRY

[February 16, 2011 is the appearance day of Lord Nityananda Prabhu. The following is a class given by Srila Gurudeva on this auspicious day in Teresopolis, Brazil: Feb 14, 2003:]

Nityananda Prabhu served Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu in Navadvipa, and performed His Vyasa-puja there. Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu is Lord Sri Krsna Himself. If one worships Krsna, Vyasa-puja is automatically done.

After Caitanya Mahaprabhu took sannyasa, He wanted to go to Vrndavana, but Nityananda Prabhu kindly, by trick, changed His direction and took Him to Santipura, the village of Sri Advaita Acarya. Nityananda Prabhu called all the people of Nadia, especially Mahaprabhu's mother Saci-maiya, to come and meet Him. There, Saci-maiya met with Him when He was in sannyasa dress.

After that, Caitanya Mahaprabhu went to Puri, and Nityananda Prabhu followed Him there. Nityananda Prabhu wanted to always serve Mahaprabhu, but because he had been initiated by Sri Laksmipati-tirtha, Mahaprabhu honored Him as a guru. Laksmipati-tirtha was the diksa-guru of Madhavendra Puri, Sri Madhavendra Puri's disciple was Sri Isvara Puri, and Isvara Puri’s disciple was Mahaprabhu. In this way Mahaprabhu is in the disciplic succession two generations after Nityananda Prabhu, and He therefore used to show him great respect.

Nityananda Prabhu served in so many ways at the Ratha-yatra Festival, and after the festival Mahaprabhu ordered him to return to Bengal and preach His mission there. He preached without care for caste or creed, and he especially preached to those who were inferior in caste and very poor.

In the course of his preaching, he once came to the village of Ramacandra Khan, who had previously sent a prostitute to Srila Haridasa Thakura and who was always against Caitanya Mahaprabhu and bhakti. Ramacandra Khan could not understand the glory of Haridasa Thakura and had wondered, "Even though I am king of the state, nobody honors me. Instead they honor Haridasa Thakura, even though he is a Muslim." He had committed grievous offenses against Haridasa Thakura, and now Nityananda Prabhu wanted to liberate him from his sinful body.

Nityananda Prabhu went to Ramacandra Khan's village at night, with hundreds of His devotees. As it was nighttime, he requested Ramacandra Khan's servant to tell him, "Today we want to take rest in your Durga Mandapa. Hearing this, Ramacandra Khan ordered his servant to tell Nityananda Prabhu there is no place for Him in the temple, but he and his disciples could go to the goshala (cowshed), and remain in that very sacred place. Again he committed an offense.

Nityananda Prabhu began to laugh very loudly, and while laughing he told the king's servant, "Certainly your place is not pure enough for me. A cowshed is superior. You should tell the king, "Many Muslim generals and soldiers will come to your house. They will destroy you, your entire family, your cows and everything you possess; and they will
eat meat here. You have no place for me, but you will have to make a place for them." After saying this, he left the village and went to another.

The next day many Muslim soldiers came, killed the king's family, slaughtered cows and cooked them there, and then they set the entire village on fire. Those who were in favor of that king were destroyed, and thus, what Nityananda Prabhu had told was proven true.

There are many pastimes, but I am only touching some.

akrodha paramananda nityananda raya
abhimana sunya nitai nagare bedaya

["The noble Nityananda Prabhu is never angry, for he is the personification of supreme transcendental bliss. Devoid of all false ego, Nitai wanders about the town." (Akrodha Paramanda by Locana dasa Thakura, verse 1)]

The meaning is very important. Akrodha means 'not angry'. We should try to give up anger, which is the root of all kinds of evil. Even if there is a reason to be angry, we should not be angry. Nityananda Prabhu is telling us this, through the medium of this song. He is saying, "You should be like me." When Jagai and Madhai hit him and he was bleeding, he prayed to Mahaprabhu, "In this incarnation, You should forgive them, and give them krsna-prema." Thus, by the request of Nityananda Prabhu, Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu gave the brothers krsna-prema.

Mahaprabhu and all our Gosvamis have told us that even if there is a cause to be angry, we should not be angry. We should control our anger. If there is need, however, if someone is criticizing one's Gurudeva, or any pure devotee, or Krsna, Mahaprabhu, or Nityananda Prabhu, then we can use our anger. At that time we should be like Hanuman, who burned all of Lanka into ashes.

Sri Vrndavana dasa Thakura has declared: "Ati parihare jei papi nindakara tabe / lati marun tera sirera upare." Do not disobey or dishonor Nityananda Prabhu. If you do so, I will kick you on your head." Only in the highest stage of bhakti are you allowed to be angry. You should control your anger; not be controlled by it. If you are so controlled, you will be destroyed.

kama esa krodha esa
rajo-guna-samudbhavah
mahasano maha-papma
viddhy enam iha vairinam

["The Supreme Personality of Godhead said: It is lust only, Arjuna, which is born of contact with the material mode of passion and later transformed into wrath, and which is the all-devouring sinful enemy of this world." (Bhagavad-gita 3.37)]

Those who have worldly desires for position and so on, and who have a false ego in this regard, will lose everything. If you cannot control your mind, you may also disobey your Guru, and you may even give up your Guru. That is why Lord Sri Krsna has told us not to be angry. Keep the anger finger out of your bead bag. Do not use this (pointer) finger in chanting, because it denotes anger. It says, "I will punish you! I will shoot you!
Do you not know who I am?! I will break your legs!" Be careful.

adhama patita jivera dvare dvare giay
hari-nama maha-mantra dicchena bilaiya

["Going from door to door, to the houses of the most fallen and wretched souls, He freely distributes the gift of the harinama maha-mantra." (Akrodha Paramananda verse 2)]

Taking the flood of krsna-prema, Nityananda Prabhu went door to door, to give that love and affection.

Gaura-Nityananda Prabhu Ki Jaya!

Gaura premanande

Movies
 19970220_Brisbane Class Lord Nityananda App Tape 20.wmv
 19990129_30_Aust Class AM Class PM CC Nityananda App.wmv

MP3
 19970220_Australia Nityananda Trayodasi.mp3
 20010206BALI NITYA NANDA TRAYODASI  AM T9.mp3
 20010206BALI NITYANANDA APP.mp3
 20010206BALI NITYANANDA TRAYODASI AM T6.mp3
 20030214_BRASIL_PM_ENG_NITYANANDATRAIYODASIbb.mp3

Bhajans by Srila Gaura Govinda Maharaja for Lord Nityananda

http://harikathanewsletter.com/sggm/

Jay Sri Goura Nitai Srila Gurudeva Nitai Nitai Nitai Gouranga !!!