Professional Documents
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Saranagati - Surrender
Srila Bhaktivinod Thakur
Dainyatmika - Humility (Fourth Prayer)
with
Sri Laghu-candrika-bhasya
Gentle Moonlight Commentary
Srila Bhakti Raksak Sridhar Dev-Gosvami Maharaj
āmāra jīvana, sadā pāpe rata,
nāhika puņyera leśa
parere udvega, diyāchhi ye kata,
diyāchhi jīvere kleśa [1]
My life is always engrossed in sin; there is not a trace of piety
within it. I have caused others so much anxiety and trouble.
•5•
nija sukha lāgi’, pāpe nāhi ďari,
dayā-hīna svārtha-para
para-sukhe duģkhī, sadā mithyā-bhāşī,
para-duģkha sukha-kara [2]
I am never afraid to engage in sinful activities
for the sake of my own happiness. I am merciless
and selfish. I am distressed by the happiness of others,
I am a perpetual liar, and the distress of others pleases me.
aśeşa kāmanā, hŗdi mājhe mora,
krodhī, dambha-parāyaņa
mada-matta sadā, vişaye mohita,
hińsā-garva vibhūşaņa [3]
There are unlimited sinful desires within the core
of my heart. I am angry and arrogant, always maddened
with vanity, infatuated with mundanity, and ornamented
with malice and pride.
nidrālasya-hata, sukārye virata,
akārye udyogī āmi
pratişţhā lāgiyā, śāţhya-ācharaņa,
lobha-hata sadā kāmī [4]
I am subdued by laziness and sleep, averse to performing
good deeds, and eager to perform sinful deeds. I engage
in deceitful behaviour in pursuit of prestige. I am ruined
by greed and constantly covetous.
e hena durjana, sajjana-varjita,
aparādhī nirantara
śubha-kārya-śūnya, sadānartha-manā,
•6•
nānā duģkhe jara jara [5]
Such a sinner as I is shunned by devotees, and is a constant
offender. I am devoid of virtuous motives, always intent
upon evil, and racked by various miseries.
vārddhakye ekhana, upāya-vihīna,
tā’te dīna akiñchana
bhakati-vinoda, prabhura charaņe,
kare duģkha nivedana [6]
Now aged, I am devoid of any means of deliverance,
and thus destitute and distressed. Bhakti Vinod submits
this remorseful confession at the feet of the Lord.
•7•
In Praise of Saranagati
Srila Bhakti Sundar Govinda Maharaj
Amrta Vani
Srila Prabhupad Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakur
How can we understand the Absolute Truth?
• 11 •
As long as we are materially conditioned, we cannot understand
the Absolute Truth’s identity. We must hear about Him from
our spiritual master. Thus there is no way to know the Absolute
Truth except to surrender at our spiritual master’s lotus feet.
The Standard
for Nama Sankirtana
Srila Bhakti Raksak Sridhar Dev-Gosvami Maharaj
“We do not care for the sweet tone nor the expertise
in the pronunciation. We must try to improve the quality.
So there must be a connection with the divine,
a connection with a descending agent.
One who has the eye can perceive that connection.”
Srila Bhakti Raksak Sridhar Dev-Gosvami Maharaj
• 13 •
a descending agent. One who has the eye can perceive that
connection. Oń ajñāna timirāndhaysa jñānāñjana śalākayā.
Our own realization will be the guarantee, our own knowledge.
That perception is given by Gurudev. He removes the cataract
of ignorance and gives divya-darsan – the divine eye. Divya-
caksu diksa – diksa means that he imparts transcendental
knowledge. As much as one has that knowledge they will
impart it to the disciple. Guru will teach the disciple how
to exclusively connect with Krsna – exclusive identification
with the interest of Krsna. And Krsna is not seen, therefore
the connection is through Guru, or Vaisnava. In this way,
we must develop self-abnegation to the extreme and according
to our degree of surrender, we will be benefited.
Pure Devotion
(Fourth Part)
Om Visnupad Sri Srimad
Bhakti Vaibhav Puri Gosvami Maharaj
• 17 •
(Bhagavad-gita 15.6). That parama-dhāma, the supermost
dhāma, is the place from where we don’t need to return to this
world. We must always consider, and do, what’s required so
that we must not come back again. Whatever we give up in
this world, we again intensely desire. We are running after it.
No!! You must give it up. You have given it up externally, but
now you must give it up internally. You should not worship the
Lord only to get material benefit. Search for spiritual benefit
and that can be attained through the teachings of Caitanya
Mahaprabhu. Caitanya Mahaprabhu said:
tŗņād api su-nīcena taror api sahişņunā
amāninā māna-dena kīrtanīyaģ sadā hariģ
One should chant the Holy Name of the Lord
in a humble state of mind, thinking oneself lower than
the straw in the street; one should be more tolerant than
a tree, devoid of all sense of false prestige, and should be
ready to offer all respects to others. In such a state of mind one
can chant the Holy Name of the Lord constantly.
(Sri Siksastaka 3)
You must give respect to all, because Krsna dwells
everywhere.
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jñāne prayāsam udapāsya namanta eva
jīvanti san-mukharitāń bhavadīya-vārtām
sthāne sthitāģ śruti-gatāń tanu-vāń-manobhir
ye prāyaśo 'jita jito 'py asi tais tri-lokyām
Those who, even while remaining situated in their
• 18 •
established social positions, throw away the process
of speculative knowledge and with their body, words and
mind offer all respects to descriptions of Your personality and
activities, dedicating their lives to these narrations, which
are vibrated by You personally and by Your pure devotees,
certainly conquer Your Lordship, although You are otherwise
unconquerable by anyone within the three worlds.
(Srimad Bhagavatam 10.14.3)
ānukūlyasya sańkalpaģ
prātikūlyasya varjanam
rakşişyatīti viśvāso
goptŗtve varaņań tathā
ātma-nikşepa-kārpaņye
şaď-vidhā śaraņāgatiģ
The six divisions of surrender are the acceptance
of those things favorable to devotional service, the rejection
of unfavorable things, the conviction that Krsna will give
protection, the acceptance of the Lord as one’s guardian or
master, full self-surrender, and humility.
(Caitanya Caritamrta, Madhya 22.100)
ā-brahma-bhuvanāl lokāģ
punar āvartino 'rjuna
mām upetya tu kaunteya
punar janma na vidyate
From the highest planet in the material world down
• 19 •
to the lowest, all are places of misery wherein repeated birth
and death take place. But one who attains to My abode,
O son of Kunti, never takes birth again.
(Bhagavad-gita 8.16)
• 23 •
Srimad Bhagavatam
Sarartha-Darsini-tika
Commentary by
Srila Visvanath Cakravarti Thakur
gŗhītvāpīndriyair arthān
yo na dveşţi na hŗşyati
vişņor māyām idań paśyan
sa vai bhāgavatottamaģ
Even while engaging his senses in contact with
their objects, one who sees this whole world as the energy
of Lord Visnu and is neither repelled nor elated is the
greatest among devotees.
dehendriya-prāņa-mano-dhiyāń yo
janmāpyaya-kşud-bhaya-tarşa-kŗcchraiģ
sańsāra-dharmair avimuhyamānaģ
• 24 •
smŗtyā harer bhāgavata-pradhānaģ
A person who, by remembering the Lord, is not
bewildered by the qualities of samsara, such as birth and
death of the body, hunger of the pranas, fear in the mind,
longing in the intelligence and fatigue in the senses, is the
best among the devotees.
na kāma-karma-bījānāń
yasya cetasi sambhavaģ
vāsudevaika-nilayaģ
sa vai bhāgavatottamaģ
The person completely surrendered to the Lord,
in whose mind no impressions, desires or actions arise,
is considered to be the best of devotees.
na yasya janma-karmabhyāń
na varņāśrama-jātibhiģ
sajjate 'sminn ahań-bhāvo
dehe vai sa hareģ priyaģ
He whose body does not give rise to false identity with
good family, pious actions, or caste considerations is dear
to the Lord.
sākşād-dharitvena samasta-śāstrair
uktas tathā bhāvyata eva sadbhiģ
(Gurvastakam - Srila Visvanath Cakravarti Thakur)
The Guru is not different from Krsna. Why is he not
different? Can he create the whole universe? No. He is not
• 27 •
different because he is moving according to Krsna’s desire. How
can one move according to Krsna’s desire? This is possible only
when one becomes a tool of Krsna, or a member of Krsna’s
family. The necessary qualification for this is surrender.
If Krsna wants something from me, I cannot say, “Sorry,
I have a very important email to write. I have no time now.
I must do this, or that.” I also cannot say, “No, this gives me too
much trouble.” No! One becomes qualified when one becomes
pure in heart. And “pure in heart” means, when one doesn’t
desire anything from this world anymore. All desire for the
things of this world become secondary- not really important.
What you desire in the first place should be Krsna’s
satisfaction. This is the qualification. If Krsna calls, or wants
something from me, then I cannot say, “But I have some very
important thing to do. You wait until later. You are in the
second or third place.”
Someone who wants to become a transparent medium
must have this qualification. He must give up pleasure seeking
and interest in this material world. It doesn’t matter if one is
brahmacari, sannyasi, grhastha or vanaprastha. These are external
designations. What matters is how much importance is given to
Krsna. When Krsna has first place I must think, “Is He satisfied
when I do this?” This is qualification. Someone who has given
up material desire and enjoyment becomes qualified.
“Let him be my master birth after birth, as he has given
me the gift of transcendental knowledge. By his mercy, divine
knowledge is revealed in the heart; installing prema-bhakti and
• 28 •
destroying ignorance.” *
By knowledge, divya-jnana, our ignorance will be
destroyed- depending on how much we let this knowledge in,
and how seriously we take the instructions. This is the point.
Nowadays we see that some Vaisnava missions have
many disciples. Most of them, however, have so many obstacles
that they cannot allow this knowledge, divya-jnana, to enter
into their hearts. They are afraid to lose all of their external
possessions and pleasure- what they think is pleasure. If you
want to get prema-bhakti you have to allow this knowledge
to enter. Then ignorance, which is coming to us through
the influence of the three gunas in this material world,
is destroyed.
Vede gay jahara carito. “The Vedic scriptures sing about
Guru’s character.” *
There is only one Guru, and the original Guru is Krsna.
So one who speaks, should speak only what he has heard, and
realized, from his spiritual master. He should speak what he
understood. As well as what he has heard from the sastras:
Srimad Bhagavatam, Bhagavad-gita, Sri Caitanya Caritamrta,
and all the sastras in the line of Rupa Gosvami. He should have
understood these properly, by the teachings of Gurudev.
Otherwise it is dangerous if we independently read
the sastras. Without the guidance of an advanced devotee we
will only speculate. We will just hear and see what we want
to hear and see. This is a common problem nowadays. Many
have lost physical association of their spiritual master and
• 29 •
“One becomes qualified (to be Guru) when one becomes
pure in heart. And ‘pure in heart’ means, when one doesn’t
desire anything from this world anymore.”
Srila Bhakti Sadhak Muni Maharaj
• 30 •
then do not accept guide anymore. They like to say, “He has
given everything in his books.” He has given everything, true.
The Caitanya Caritamrta and Srimad Bhagavatam are there.
However, they cannot understand it, this is the problem. You
have no one from the realized platform to teach the Bhagavad-
gita, Srimad Bhagavatam, and Sri Caitanya Caritamrta. And
because of this, many offenses, aparadhas, appear. In this way,
the spiritual progress of many is stunted, stuck. They cannot
go further. Many of them fall back. We always have to follow
a qualified spiritual guide.
If you know that there is only one Guru, Krsna, you
won’t differentiate between one Guru and another. Of course
there is a difference, because everyone has a different character,
a different mood. But the truth that they present must be the
same. It must come purely, uncontaminated. We may accept or
not accept the truth, but the truth must not be changed. Guru
Maharaj also said that many times.
We have to tell the truth. Why should I flatter anyone?
Nowadays many Gurus come just to flatter people. They
are nice, they smile, talk about love. They give this feeling
of being a father. But actually they just flatter and cheat.
I have seen many of this type. The problem is that they want
the disciple to feel happy and enjoy life. But actually Guru
Maharaj wants that you attain a real happiness, that you
become eternally happy.
• 32 •
Permanent Temple Program
Sunday Festival
17.00 Bhajan • 18.00 Lecture • 19.00 Sandhya Arati
•19.15 Tulasi Parikrama • 19.30 Prasadam
• 20.25 Sayan Arati