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Srila Bhaktivinode
Thakura Page
apara-rasa-payonidhi akhila-rasamrta-murtiSri Caitanya Mahaprabhu, who is an ocean of limitless transcendental rasa, who is the embodiment of all nectarean mellows, who is the ambrosia-producing moon attracting the chakora-bird minds of the Bengali devotees, who is the dear son of Mother Saci... one day showed His mercy to all created beings by giving the following command to Sriman Nityananda Prabhu and Sri Haridasa Thakura. As recorded in the Sri Caitanya-Bhagavata, Madhya-Khanda (13.8-10):
gauda-jana-citta-cakora-sudhakara
sri-sri-saci-nandana mahaprabhu
suno suno nityananda, suno haridas"Listen, listen, Nityananda! Listen, Haridasa! Make My command known everywhere! Go from house to house and beg from all the residents, `Please chant Krsna's name, worship Krsna, and teach others to follow Krsna's instructions.' Do not speak, or cause anyone to speak, anything other than this."
sarvatra amar ajna koroho prakas prati ghare ghare giya koro ei bhiksa
bolo `krsna', bhajo krsna, koro krsna-siksa iha bai arna boliba,
bolaiba dina-avasane asi' amare kohiba
In order to carry out this command, Prabhu Nityananda and Thakura Haridasa took the help of other devotees and went from house to house preaching the glories of the holy name. In the series of statements -- bolo `krsna', bhajo krsna, koro krsna-siksa -- there are three different commands evident. The meaning of the command bolo krsna is: "He jiva! Always chant the name of Krsna." The meaning of bhajo krsna is: "He jiva! Cause the flower of the holy name to blossom into the expanding petals of Krsna's rupa, guna, and lila, and thus enjoy that flower-like nam."
The meaning of the command koro krsna-siksa is: "He Krsna-bhaktas! Become endowed with the knowledge of sambandha-abhidheya-prayojana, and relish the supreme rasa which is the honey-nectar of that name-flower." In this chapter, we will give an explanation, to some extent, of the first command. Later in other chapters I will endeavor to give specific explanations of the second and third commands.
Mahaprabhu's order is simply this -- that everyone should incessantly chant harinam. Incessantly chant harinam -- the meaning of this command is not that people should always chant the holy name while completely desisting from all bodily activities, household duties, and dealings with others. By ceasing all actions of bodily maintenance, the body will be destroyed in a short while. In the context of this command, then, how should one engage in harinam? Since the Lord gave humanity the command to incessantly take the holy name, then the true meaning is that everyone, whether grihastha or sannyasi, vanaprastha or brahmachari, brahmana or kshatriya, vaisya or sudra, low-born or mleccha, and so forth -- all people should remain in their respective situations and chant harinam. Verily this is the only meaning. It is necessary to nicely remain in one's own natural situation because that position facilitates the proper performance of one's activities for bodily maintenance, and thus the body will not expire untimely.
Bodily maintenance requires dealing with others. It is essential that all such actions be observed in a pure and undisturbed fashion. Then all of these things will be conducted very nicely. When Sri Nityananda Prabhu was preaching the first command of Sriman Mahaprabhu, He spoke in the following manner:
kohena prabhur ajna dakiya dakiyaNityananda and Haridasa repeated the Lord's command by calling out to everyone, "Chant Krsna, worship Krsna, and accept Krsna's holy name from others. Krsna is your mother, Krsna is your father, and Krsna is the treasure of your life-breath. Krsna has incarnated just for your benefit, so please worship this merciful Krsna and give up all sinful activities." (Sri Caitanya Bhagavata, Madhya 13.82-84)
"bolo `krsna', bhajo krsna, loho krsna nam
krsna mata, krsna pita, krsna dhana-pran toma saba lagiya krsner avatar
heno krsna bhaja, saba chado anacar"
After receiving the command to preach the holy name (nam-prachar), Prabhu Nityananda and Thakura Haridasa went from village to village, house to house, and began proclaiming, "He jiva! Lord Krsna is verily the life of your life, and Lord Krsna's name is verily the treasure of your life. All of you please deliberate incessantly on that holy name.
Living thus absorbed, the only other thing of concern is to see that no sinful behavior contaminates your actions of bodily or household maintenance." The meaning of the word anacar is asadacar, or activities of impious nature.
There are many different types of sinful behavior that are classified as asadacar or anacar, such as: speaking lies, thievery, wantonness, doing harm to others, killing any living being, disrespect for superiors, and so forth. Sri Nityananda Prabhu has personally explained the meaning of the word anacar as follows (Sri Caitanya Bhagavata, Antya-Khanda 5.685-686):
suno dvija, jateka pataka kaili tui ar"Listen, O brahmana! You have performed many sinful actions. If you abstain from committing these any further, then I forgive them. Doing harm to others, committing theft -- all these things constitute sinful behavior. Now give up such actions, and do them no more."
jadi na koris, saba nimu mui
para-himsa, daka-curi, saba anacar
chado giya iha tumi, na koriho ar
While repeating the command to engage in chanting harinam, Lord Nityananda gives negative advice regarding abstention from anacar or impious activities; the counterpart of this is to give instructions on chanting harinam while offering positive advice for performing sadacar or pious activities (5.687-688):
dharma pathe giya tumi loho harinam"Embarking upon the path of dharma, chant the holy name of Lord Hari. Then you will also deliver others. Now please go and call as many thieves and criminals that you can; gathering them together, cause them to similarly adhere to the path of dharma."
tabe tumi anyere koriba paritran
jata saba dasyu cora dakiya aniya
dharma-pathe sabare laoyao tumi giya
Nityananda Prabhu said, "He vipra! Just give up the path of irreligiosity (adharma) once and for all. Do not perform any further sinful actions. However, by renouncing adharma alone you should not live carelessly, but rather make a positive endeavor to accept the path of dharma." The principles of dharma are described in the Srimad-Bhagavatam as follows (7.11.8-12):
satyam daya tapah saucam titikseksa samo damahNarada said, "He Yudhisthira! The following thirty types of religious duties should be performed by those who have obtained the human form of life: truthfulness (satya), compassion (daya), exertion in pious austerities (tapa), cleanliness (sauca), tolerance (titiksa), seeing [discernment of what is proper or improper] (iksa), mental restraint (sama), sense control (dama), non-violence (ahimsa), celibacy (brahmacarya), renunciation [giving in charity] (tyaga), study of the Vedas (svadhyaya), simplicity (arjava), satisfaction (santosa), service of saintly persons who have equal vision (sama-drk-seva), gradual detachment from worldly household life (gramyehoparama sanaih), deliberation on the degradation of fallen worldly souls (nrnam viparyayeheksa), abstinence of useless topics of conversation (mauna), searching for the true self as different from the material body (atma-vimarsana), distribution of grains and other foodstuffs to appropriate recipients (annadyadeh samvibhago bhutebhyas ca yatharhatah), seeing all living beings in relationship to Krsna, and especially those in the human form (tesv atma-devata-buddhih sutaram nrsu), hearing topics of Lord Hari (sravana), chanting His glories (kirtana), remembrance (smarana), rendering service (seva), offering worship (puja), offering prayers (vandana), becoming a servant (dasya), becoming His friend (sakhya), and offering unto Him the totality of one's very being (atma-samarpana). O King, these qualifications must be acquired by human beings, for this satisfies the Supreme Lord, the Supersoul of all."
ahimsa brahmacaryan ca tyagah svadhyaya arjjavam
santosah samadrk-seva gramyehoparamah sanaih
nrnam viparyayeheksa maunam atma-vimarsanam
annadyadeh samvibhago bhutebhyas ca yatharhatah
tesv atma-devata-buddhih sutaram nrsu pandava
sravanam kirtanan casya smaranam mahatam gateh
sevejyavanatir dasyam sakhyam atma-samarpanam
nrnam ayam paro dharmah sarvesam samudahrtah
trimsal-laksanavan rajan sarvatma yena tusyati
O brothers! For the purpose of passing your lives nicely, please desire to engage in these activities that constitute the principles of dharma. Just behave honestly in this way, and incessantly remain absorbed in harinam -- this is my only advice to you.