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Appearing in English for the first time: Residence
in Vraja Excerpts from an informal
discourse given by Çréla Bhaktisiddhänta Sarasvaté
Öhäkura Prabhupäda on 8 October 1932 during
Vraja-maëòala Parikramä [NOTE: This page uses Balarama font (available here) for better transliteration of Sanskrit into English]
Hankering for Perfection In 1932 in the month of Kärttika,
the Gauòéya Maöha organised
Vraja-maëòala Parikramä, spanning eighty-four kosas,1 under the leadership of oà viñëupäda Çré Çrémad Bhaktisiddhänta Sarasvaté Prabhupäda. Thousands of devotees from all parts of India
participated. The first day of the Parikramä saw a grand procession with nagara-saìkértana, as the
pilgrims visited the holy places of Mathurä. On different days, Çréla Prabhupäda had his followers sing
various songs composed by the liberated mahäjanas, great souls. Through these songs, which are full of heart-felt
appeal, Çréla Prabhupäda showed that their example of continuous hankering for
perfection (siddhi-lälasä) should be the sole purpose of all aspirants who have attained
the stage of anartha-nivåtti, in which unwanted obstacles are cleared. Çréla Prabhupäda
personally selected the following songs by Çréla Narottama däsa Öhäkura for the
devotees to sing: 1 Eighty-four kosas is approximately 168 miles. (1) hari hari! kabe haba våndävana-väsé nirakhiba nayane yugala-rüpa-räçi Prärthanä (Song 29) 1 Eighty-four kosas is approximately 168 miles. O Çré Hari, when will I be able to live in Våndävana and be a real Vrajaväsé? When will my eyes behold the beautiful forms of the Divine Couple, Çré Rädhä- Kåñëa? ... (2) rädhä-kåñëa sevoì mui jévane maraëe tära sthäna, tära lélä dekho rätri-dine Prärthanä (Song 48) I shall serve Çré Rädhä and Çré Kåñna in life and in death. I shall behold Their transcendental abode and pastimes night and day. ... (3) hari hari ära kabe palatibe daçä ei saba kariyä bäme, äba våndävana dhäme, ei mane kariyächi äçä Prärthanä (Song 27) O Çré Hari, when will my life change? When will I renounce all worldly affairs and make my way to Çré Våndävana-dhäma? I cherish this hope. ... On Çréla Prabhupäda’s direction, the devotees also sang the following songs by Çréla Bhaktivinoda Öhäkura: (4) dekhite dekhite, bhuliba vä kabe, nija-sthüla-paricaya nayane heribo, vraja-pura-çobhä, nitya cid-änanda-maya Géta-mäla (Part 5, Song 2) When will I see that I have forgotten my gross bodily identity and am beholding the exquisite beauty of Vraja, full of eternal, spiritual bliss and cognizance. ... (5) rädhä-kuëòa-taöa-kuïja-kuöéra govardhana-parvata, yämuna-téra Çaraëägati (Svékara, Song 4) A small cottage in a grove on the banks of Rädhäkuëòa, Govardhana Hill, the banks of the Yamunä... (6) (ämi) yamunä-puline, kadamba-känane, ki herinu sakhi! äja (ämär) çyäma vaàçé-dhäré, maëi-maïcopari, kare’ lélä rasa-räja Kalyäëa-kalpataru (Ami Yamunä Puline) O sakhé, what did I see today! In a kadamba grove on the bank of the Yamunä, a beautiful blackish boy holding a flute was standing on a jewelled platform, performing
His pastimes as rasa-räja, the monarch of all transcendental mellows. ... 2 For the complete song by Çréla Narottama däsa Öhäkura, please
refer to the inside back-cover of this issue of Rays of the Harmonist., No14
Kartikka 2004 The Nature of Spiritual Rasa At midday on 8 October, at the end of a grand festival with kértana, Çréla Prabhupäda began to speak to the assembled devotees in Mathurä. On Çréla Prabhupäda’s instruction,
Çrémad Bhakti Viläsa Gabhasti-nemi Mahäräja sang the prayer “Hari Hari Ära Kabe
Palatibe Daçä”2 from Çréla Narottama däsa Öhäkura Mahäçaya’s collection of
poems called Prärthanä. At that time, Sir Çré Devaprañäda Sarvädhikäré, former Vice-Chancellor of Calcutta University,
arrived and, after paying his regards to Çréla Prabhupäda, sat down amidst the
gathering. Çréla Prabhupäda
proceeded to explain this prayer of Öhäkura Mahäçaya, one line at a time: bhramiba dvädaça vane, rasa-keli ye ye sthäne I shall wander through
the twelve forests of Våndävana where Çré Kåñëa performed His pastimes full of rasa. While explaining this part of the prayer, Çréla Prabhupäda said
that Çré Gaurasundara has stated: anyera hådaya – mana, mora mana – våndävana, ‘mane’ ‘vane’ eka kari’ jäni Çré Caitanya-caritämåta (Madhya-lélä 13.137) For most people, the mind and heart are one. But My mind is
never separated from Våndävana, and therefore I consider My mind and Våndävana to be one. Çréla Prabhupäda continued:
“Rasa arises in such a pure
heart when the sthäyébhäva-rati, or permanent sentiment in one of the five primary
relationships with Çré Kåñëa, combines with four other ingredients, namely, vibhäva, anubhäva, sättvika-bhäva and vyabhicäré-bhäva.3 This rasa in the form of any of the five principal rasas complimented by the seven
secondary rasas 4 surpasses the realm of
mundane emotions and manifests on the platform of a heart that has become
resplendent with çuddha-sattva, or pure, spiritual existence. At that time, one experiences
intense astonishment in satisfying the senses of Vrajendra-nandana Çré Kåñëa,
the embodiment of all transcendental rasa. “That same heart, which shines with çuddhasattva, is indeed the platform
we call ‘vana’ and shelters the twelve rasas. Wherever Çré Kåñëa’s sweet pastimes saturated with rasa manifest, they are inundated by prema from the fusion of rasa. If, as with an ‘annicut’5, a sluice in
the form of a trace of any desire other than to serve Çré Kåñëa is placed in the path of the current of rasa, then that rasa can no longer flow as before. “Such works as Bhäva-prakäça, Sähitya-darpaëa and the rasa-çästras of Bharata Muni analyse and present the material mellows (präkåta-rasa) of this world, which
exist on the platform of whimsical, mundane conceptions. The various rasas that arise in one’s heart upon
reading the life stories of material heroes and heroines, such as Naiñadha and
Carita, Sävitré and Satyaväna, and Lailä and Majnü, merely emerge on the
platform of transient, material relationships (asthäyi-bhäva). There, the subject of rasa is not the non-dual, unprecedented Personality, Çré Kåñëa. “The only subject of the
rasa that manifests in the twelve
forests of Vraja, however, is Vrajendranandana Çré Kåñëa, the non-dual
embodiment of all transcendental rasa. He is the only subject of the five types of prema, namely, çänta, däsya, sakhya, vätsalya and mädhurya.” 3 Vibhäva is that in and by which rati is stimulated and thus caused to
be tasted. It includes Çré Kåñëa, the devotee and everything that stimulates
remembrance of Çré Kåñëa, such as His dress and ornaments, the spring season
and the bank of the Yamunä. Anubhävas are thirteen different actions that display or reveal the
emotions within the heart. They include dancing, rolling on the ground and
singing. Sättvika-bhävas are eight
symptoms of spiritual ecstasy, such as becoming stunned, perspiring and the
standing of hairs on end. Vyabhicäré-bhävas consist of thirty-three transient, internal spiritual emotions
that emerge from the ocean of stäyébhäva, such as despondency, jubilation and fear. 4 The five principal rasas are (1) neutrality (çänta), (2) servitorship (däsya), (3) fraternity (sakhya), (4)parenthood (vätsalya), and (5) conjugal love (mädhurya). The seven secondary rasas are (1) comedy (häsya), (2) wonder (adbhuta), (3) chivalry (véra), (4) compassion (dayä), (5) anger (raudra), (6) fear(bhayänaka), and (7) disgust (bébhatsa). Vraja-maëòala Parikramä with Çréla Bhaktisiddhänta Sarasvaté
Öhäkura Prabhupäda Take Shelter of the
Residents of Vraja Çréla Prabhupäda continued: sudhäiba jane jane, vrajaväsé-gaëa-sthäne, nivediba caraëe dhariyä I shall enquire about the pastimes that took place in each
location from all the Vrajaväsés, reverently offering them prayers and holding their lotus feet. “Those who reside in Vraja are conversant with kåñëa-kathä, narrations of Kåñëa’s
pastimes, for they are constantly engaged in the service of Çré Kåñëa without
cause or interruption. All the cows and calves serve Çré Kåñëa. They become
dancing dolls to enhance the pleasure of His transcendental senses. They become
instruments in His pastime of milking the cows. “Nanda-nandana Çré Kåñëa’s servants like Citraka, Patraka,
Raktaka and Bakula tend all these cows and also serve Kåñëa’s parents. They
wash Çré Kåñëa’s lotus feet with the spiritual waters of Çré Yamunä, which are
composed of liquefied transcendence. When Çré Kåñëa’s body becomes covered with
the dust of Vraja upon returning to His home in the north [Nandagräma], then
Raktaka, Citraka, Patraka and others wash Him with water from the Yamunä. “What knowledge do Çré Kåñëa’s cows possess? They are none other
than great, venerated sages who recited the Vedas and performed penance for
many lifetimes to attain Bhagavän’s service. Those very sages have appeared as
the treasure of Vraja in the form of its cows, and have learnt the art of
giving milk for Çré Kåñëa’s service. They are not ordinary, so-called munis and åñis who have studied Vedänta but not
realised its purport. “It is necessary for everyone to reside in Vraja, taking shelter
of its residents. We have learned that Çré Rüpa Gosvämé Prabhu has said: tan-näma-rüpa-caritädi-sukértanänusmåtyoù krameëa rasanä-manasé niyojya tiñöhan vraje tad-anurägi janänugämé kälaà nayed akhilam ity upadeça-säram Çré Upadeçämåta (8) It is imperative that a person engage himself in thoroughly and
exquisitely singing the glories of Çré Kåñëa’s names, form, qualities, associates and eternal pastimes.
And in the course of remembering these, he should give up discriminating
between what is immediately pleasing to him (preyaù) and what is to his long-term benefit (çreyaù). Controlling the whims of the
mind, a person should spend all his time residing in Vraja following the mood
of any one of the Vrajaväsés. This alone is the essence of all advice. The term
‘Vrajaväsé’ refers only to those servants of Hari who are endowed with transcendental
realisation. It does not refer to persons who are averse to devotees and
engaged in material sense enjoyment. “We come to Vraja in vain if we do not become followers of Çré
Kåñëa by accepting the guidance of Citraka, Patraka and Bakula but, instead,
are led by the senses – like the eyes and ears – to enjoy material objects.
This will not awaken intense spiritual ardour (anuräga) in the heart. “I am enjoying the
objects of the senses, and the objects of the senses visible to me are giving me pleasure: this is called material sense gratification, or
indifference to the service of Çré Kåñëa. How can we attain residence in Vraja
if we do not develop uncommon attachment for Citraka, Patraka and Raktaka, who are the abode of däsya-rasa; for Sudäma and Çrédäma, who are the abode of sakhyarasa; for Çré Nanda and Yaçodä, who are the abode of vätsalya-rasa; and for Çré Rüpa
Maïjaré and the other gopés, who are the abode of mädhurya-rasa. These are the eternally
liberated residents of Vraja. 5 Annicut: a dam or other large solid
structure made in the course of a stream for the purpose of regulating the flow of a system of irrigation. The Path to Success sudhäiba jane jane, vrajaväsé-gaëa-sthäne “One has to enquire about Çré
Kåñëa’s pastimes in the
same rasa towards which one is
inclined. If I wishto learn about mädhurya-rasa, then I have to approach a Vrajaväsé established in mädhurya-rasa. If I approach
someone who has not met Çré Lalitä and Çré Viçäkhä or not directly seen Çré Rüpa Maïjaré, then I shall only end up hearing from
him about something else,
like the history of Nala and Damayanté or the abduction of Sétä by Rävaëa. “The gopés solicited news of Çré Kåñëa from each and every tree and creeper
of Våndävana: cüta-priyäla-panasäsana-kovidära jambv-arka-bilva-bakulämra-kadamba-népäù ye ’nye parärtha-bhavakä yamunopaküläù çaàsantu kåñëa-padavéà rahitätmanäà naù Çrémad-Bhägavatam (10.30.9) O cüta, O priyäla, O panasa, äsana and kovidära, O jambu, O arka, O bilva, bakula and ämra, O kadamba and népa and all you other plants and
trees living by the banks of the Yamunä who have dedicated your very lives to
the welfare of others, we are suffering in separation from Çré Kåñëa, so please
tell us where He has gone. In separation from Him, everything appears void. “I have heard that panasa, the jackfruit tree, is no
longer found in the land of Vraja. During His visit to Våndävana, Çré
Gaurasundara, who was absorbed in His internal state, saw on the bank of Yamunä
many of the trees from which the renowned Kabul dried fruits are made. This is
explained in the Anubhäñya commentary on Çré Caitanya-caritämåta. Çré Jayadeva Gosvämé Prabhu has also mentioned this. “Vrajaväsés in the mood of çänta-rasa are of five types: the cow (go), cane (vetra), horn (viñäëa), flute (veëu) and shore of the Yamunä (yamunä-saikata). “It is impossible for us
to reside in Vraja without the mercy of the Vrajaväsés. But why would they even
want to talk to us? How is it possible for us to attain their darçana with these material eyes? We are
overcome with pride and envy, and therefore they turn a deaf ear to our
prayers. Until we become tadanurägi, deeply attached to them and to the object of their affection,
they will not speak to us. Why should the Vrajaväsés who have entered the
eternal, transcendental pastimes of Çré Kåñëa want to communicate with us? They
will first check to see whether we still seek material enjoyment or whether we
have made Çré Kåñëa the object of our search. “It is impossible to understand the topics of Vraja without
first becoming subservient to Çré Rüpa Maïjaré and Çré Rati Maïjaré. I shall be
able to understand the mercy of Çré Rüpa and Rati Maïjarés only from that day
when Çré Nityänanda Prabhu bestows His mercy upon me. Until then, I shall
remain bewildered in the manner described in Bhagavad-gétä
(3.27): prakåteù kriyamäëäni guëaiù karmäëi sarvaçaù ahaìkära-vimüòhätmä kartäham iti manyate The spirit soul deluded by the influence of false ego thinks
himself the doer of activities that are in fact carried out by the three modes of material nature. And, thus, I shall be unable to realise the verse sarvadharmän parityajya mäm ekaà çaraëaà vraja (Bhagavad-gétä 18.66): ‘Abandon all varieties of religion and just surrender
unto Me.’ Give Up Hypocrisy and
Speculation “When aversion to the service of Çré Kåñëa appears in our
hearts, it leads to calamities. And as a result of sinful activities from
previous lives, we worship various demigods. Unless we take shelter of the feet
of those who are engaged in Çré Kåñëa’s service with a favourable mood, our
path will never be smooth. If while walking through a forest in Vraja, I happen
to eat the fruits from its trees or smell its flowers, I will not have actually
visited that forest. I will merely have committed offences by stepping on these
sacred places. “We are forbidden to
step on Govardhana Hill. From this we should understand that we should not
touch Çré Kåñëa’s body with our feet. Until supramundane sakhya-rasa awakens in the heart,
placing one’s feet on Bhagavän’s shoulder is wholly inappropriate. One does not
gain the right to climb Bhagavän’s shoulder merely by imitating sakhya-rasa. It is impossible for us
to enter the forests of Vraja as a ‘lucre-hunter’, with the intention of
enjoying worldly pleasures. “How many more days do I have left? And why should I spend these
days otherwise engaged? Çréla Narottama däsa Öhäkura Mahäçaya has said: haiyä mäyära däsa, kari nänä abhiläña, tomära smaraëa gela düre artha-läbha ei äçe, kapaöa-vaiñëava-veçe, hramiyä bulaye ghare ghare Prärthanä (Song 6: Hari Hari Kåpä Kari
Räkha Nija-pade) I have become a slave to illusion, and am filled with material
desires. My memory of You has fled far away. Disguised as a Vaiñëava, I wander from house to house,
hoping to get some money. “The symptoms of hypocrisy have been described in the first
verses of Çrémad-Bhägavatam: dharmaù projjhita-kaitavo ’tra paramo nirmatsaräëäà satäà vedyaà västavam atra vastu çivadaà täpa-trayonmülanam Çrémad-Bhägavatam (1.1.2) This Bhägavata Puräëa propounds the highest truth, completely rejecting all religious
works that are materially motivated. Only those devotees who are fully pure in heart
can understand this highest truth, which is reality distinguished from illusion for the welfare of
all. Such knowledge uproots the three-fold miseries “Occupational duties (dharma), economic development (artha) and sense gratification (käma) are contemptible and should be
rejected. Only material enjoyers strive for them. But the five schools of philosophy apart from the doctrine of Vedänta all more or less
present only these three goals. Vedänta as explained by the impersonalists is
simply an invention of their speculative minds; it is merely the opposite
extreme of the desire for sense gratification. It is reprehensible to reject
the existence of transcendental variety and embrace the mundane variegatedness
of this world. But it is equally or even more inauspicious to impose mundane
variegatedness on transcendence. This is a case of the cow who, once caught in
a fire, becomes fearful whenever he sees red clouds in the sky.6” Some devotees noticed that many flies kept disturbing the divine
body of Çréla Prabhupäda, who was engaged in speaking hari-kathä, and they approached him with a palm-leaf stalk to drive the flies away. Çréla Prabhupäda said,
“These are all Vrajaväsés. They should not be troubled. Engage in speaking hari-kathä. Engage me in constantly hearing
harikathä. Absorb
yourself in that activity which will lead to your hari-bhajana becoming perfect. I had
many relatives, but they have now become engrossed in other activities.
Outwardly they pretend to be engaged in hari-bhajana, but internally they are busy with other things. “By discussing scriptures that deal with logic, like Çankara-bhäñya, one can never
understand the eternally liberated Vrajaväsés. One becomes a street sweeper by
serving a dog, a stableman by grooming a horse, an ironsmith by beating iron,
and a goldsmith by being absorbed in gold. It is essential to serve the
eternally liberated Vrajaväsés to become a Vrajaväsé .” Regarding selecting one’s place of bhajana, Çréla Prabhupäda said, “Charity
begins at home.7” 6 According to this old adage, the cow traumatised by fire
transposes the qualities of her experience onto the brilliant sunset. Similarly, persons who have suffered the repeated
disappointment of material existence may mistakenly assign the defects of matter, like impermanence and limitation
in space, to the transcendental reality. 7 In an article published in Çré Gauòéya
Patrikä (Year 38, Issue 11), Çréla Bhaktivedänta Vämana
Gosvämé Mahäräja explains that the word “home” in the saying “Charity begins at
home” refers to our hearts, where Çré Kåñëa resides. In other words, if we can love Çré Kåñëa in our hearts,
all else will follow naturally. The Vision of a True
Aspirant Çréla Prabhupäda continued: “There is a class of people called the
Bäulas, who consume semen, blood, stool and urine. They glorify the concept of jïänamiçra, service mixed with empirical
knowledge. There are countless people of this class in many places of East Bengal
like Yaçohara, Khulnä, Nadéyä and Dhäkä. People like the Bäulas, who belong to
the thirteen type of apasampradäyas, or spurious schools of thought, can never understand the
twelve kinds of transcendental rasa. If these twelve rasas are found only in Çré Kåñëa, why then do these people search for
them elsewhere? This is my question to all those in the line of the präkåta-sahajiyäs 8 “In order to find Çré Kåñëa, first we must wander throughout the
entire universe searching for a kärñëa, one who belongs to Kåñëa. The cause of all our troubles is our
failure to take shelter of the lotus feet of a pure Vaiñëava and our tendency
to consider a non- Vaiñëava to be a Vaiñëava. Some ignorant people will accept
any imitator to be accomplished in bhajana –even a man who happens to clench his teeth while playing a ghini 9. “To achieve the most worshipable object means to be completely
absorbed in the mood of serving Çré Kåñëa. He is not made of any gross substance, but exists beyond
the limits of sense perception. Is it possible to see Him with these paltry eyes engrossed in material
enjoyment, which Çré Bilvamaìgala Öhäkura pierced out? Some people think that Çré Kåñëa is the
supplier of their sense gratification and that the objects of sense
gratification are non-different from Him. Both the sense objects and one’s futile
eyes, which are prone to being afflicted with cataracts in but a short while,
hinder one from beholding one’s worshipable deity and the place of worship. “Çré Rüpa Gosvämé has
revealed the secret of bhajana in two verses: anäsaktasya viñayän yathärham upayuïjataù nirbandhaù kåñëa-sambandhe yuktaà vairägyam ucyate präpaïcikatayä buddhyä hari-sambandhi-vastunaù mumukñubhiù parityägo vairägyaà phalgu kathyate Bhakti-rasämåta-sindhu (2.255–6) Appropriate renunciation is to accept objects favourable to
one’s devotional service while being detached from what is unrelated to Çré Kåñëa and attached to
what is related to Çré Kåñëa. A person who rejects everything without knowledge of its relationship to Çré
Kåñëa is imperfect in his renunciation. “If I am afflicted with the evil-mindedness of a worldly
perspective, seeing myself as either an enjoyer or a renunciant, and this world as either to be enjoyed
or to be renounced by me, then I am at once dismissed from qualifying as a
practitioner in devotional service.” 8 These are so-called Vaiñëavas, like the Bäulas, who variously
misinterpret the original teachings of Çréla Rüpa Gosvämé. Some even indulge in debauchery in the name of bhakti, by trying to imitate the
transcendental loving affairs of Çré Rädhä and Çré Kåñëa. 9 Appears to be a musical intrument of some kind. ...”
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