In Houston, on May 26th, he gave a class at the home of Taruna-krsna dasa and Bindu devi dasi, where he was residing at that time.
At first he spoke in Hindi, and this was translated by Visnu dasa. He then spoke in English, and told some very interesting details regarding the history of Sri Prahlada Maharaja.
The following is an excerpt of the translation by Visnu dasa: “In this Kali-yuga (the Age of quarrel and hypocrisy), we are very unfortunate. Our life span is very short, and our living conditions and the food that we eat are of very poor quality compared to previous ages. Our intelligence is also of a very low level. There is so much conflict around us – in our communities and with neighbors, and on top of this we are suffering from many kinds of diseases.
“The main symptom in this Kali-yuga is that people are duplicitous and they cheat. There are many so-called gurus who have abominable characters, who are engaged in meat-eating and drinking, and who have even been in prison. Still, people worship them and consider them gurus. We should be very careful of these so-called gurus. A guru should have realization of Krsna; he should be expert in the Vedic scriptures, and he should be able to remove all doubts of his disciples.”
The following is an excerpt of Srila Narayana Mahraja speaking in English: “My request is that you should not think that you are this body. In this body, Krsna and your real self are present. Very soon you should select any qualified guru, and under his guidance start at once to chant and engage in devotional practices. Krsna is very merciful and powerful, and He can create and destroy millions of universes in a moment. He has invested all his powers and mercy in the chanting of the mantra, ‘Hare Krsna Hare Krsna Krsna Krsna Hare Hare, Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare.’”
“There is one condition in chanting. Don’t eat meat, fish or eggs. Don’t drink alcohol or smoke. Meat means ME-EAT. He whom you will eat, will eat you. Eggs are embryos. *[See endnote 1] They are babies. Krsna has not made them for you to eat. You should avoid all these things and chant Hare Krsna, and then Krsna-prema (love of Godhead) will come. You will realize Krsna and your self, you will never be old, and you will never return to this world.”
On the next evening, Srila Narayana Maharaja spoke in the home of Vinode-bihari dasa and Laksmi dasi. Part of his talk was broadcasted live on Houston’s radio show called Meditation Hour and heard by over 10,000 radio listeners.
The following is an excerpt from his discourse: “God is very merciful. He has created us humans, and He wants His sons and daughters to always be happy. Unfortunately we have forgotten that Supreme Lord who is really a friend, and father, and mother. That is why we are struggling in this endless chain of birth and death, with so many pains and sufferings….”
Another excerpt is as follows: “Krsna personally comes to this world, and sometimes He sends His incarnations and associates to this world to preach His mission. He says, ‘I Myself go to this world and perform so many sweet pastimes.’ Everyone who hears His pastimes will become liberated souls. He sends His associates in the forms of acaryas (gurus) like Brahma, Sankara and others. In this Age of Kali-yuga, Ramanuja Acarya, Madhvacarya, Visnusvami and Nimbaditya have come. Krsna Himself has come in the form of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu. He has sent His associates such as Srila Rupa Gosvami, Srila Sanatana Gosvami and others, and they have preached His mission throughout the world.
“They tell us that we are not really inhabitants of this world; we are inhabitants of Goloka Vrndavana. We are like refugees here. If we want to be happy here, we are quite foolish.
“In this Kali-yuga, Lord Krsna has invested all His mercy, powers and qualities in His holy names: ‘Hare Krsna Hare Krsna Krsna Krsna Hare Hare, Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare.’ If you chant this name with strong faith, very soon you will be liberated and achieve Krsna-prema.”
Since that day, May 27th, was the holy day of Ekadasi, Srila Narayana Maharaja spoke about the importance of its observance. The entire class will be sent to you at a later date. In the meantime, kindly be pleased with the following excerpt:
“Ekadasi day is nothing but Krsna Himself – God Himself. He has personally taken the form of Ekadasi. Once, when He was passing through the hellish planets, He saw the people there crying bitterly. Why were they crying so bitterly? They were in a very miserable condition. Those who are of bad character have to embrace a pillar of red-hot iron which feels like burning fire. *[See endnote 2] They do not die; they only suffer. They are also put into boiling oil to suffer, but they so not die.
“Krsna thought, ‘Oh, this is a very bad thing. They are all My daughters and sons. Today, I am becoming Ekadasi. On this day of Ekadasi, those who do not take grains or foodstuffs prepared from grains will very soon be liberated. On the other hand, if they do not fast from grains or those foods prepared from grains, then all sins will enter into those grains, and all those persons’ good activities will go to Mohini.’*[See endnote 3]
“Pure bhakti is very easily attained by following Ekadasi. In no way should one disobey Ekadasi, whether one is male or female, widow or married. The only concession is for a boy or girl who is less than five years old, or for a man or woman who is more than eighty years old. If such persons are otherwise not able to maintain their life, then they can take some grains (prasada) – in a limited amount.
“So we should all observe Ekadasi, whether we are male or female, old or young.
“In our Matha (temple) there was a devotee named Sripad Muni Maharaja. When he was over 95 years old, he wanted to give up Ekadasi. Our Guru Maharaja told him, “If you are taking maha-prasada and you can walk and speak, why not follow Ekadasi? You should not give it up.” Having heard this from Guru Maharaja, Muni Maharaja followed Ekadasi and continued for the remainder of his life.
“So observing Ekadasi is a very important and easy method to achieve Krsna-prema and attain liberation.
(BVML will soon publish the transcription of entire class about Ekadasi.)
The hari-katha festival in Houston is from May 29-June 3, and will be broadcasted live on www.purebhakti.tv.
[*Endnote 1: An egg is pre-born baby’s body, consisting of an ovum surrounded by layers of membranes and an outer casing of some type, which acts to nourish and protect the developing embryo.]
[*Endnote 2: “A man or woman who indulges in sexual intercourse with an unworthy member of the opposite sex is punished after death by the assistants of Yamaraja in the hell known as Taptasurmi. There such men and women are beaten with whips. The man is forced to embrace a red-hot iron form of a woman, and the woman is forced to embrace a similar form of a man. Such is the punishment for illicit sex.” (Srimad-Bhagavatam, 5.26.20; translation by Srila Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada)]
[*Endnote 3: – Stay tuned. BVML will soon publish the transcription of entire class about Ekadasi, and at that time the explanation of Mohini will be presented.]
Transcriber and reporter: Vasanti dasi
Editorial Advisors: Sripad Madhava Maharaja and Sripad Brajanath dasa
Editor: Syamarani dasi
Photograher: Anita dasi
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