Nama Om Vishnu paadaaya..
Hari Haraya Naama Krishna …
Jai Jagannath
Mukham karoti…

Today we will be talking about Brahmadev. Krishna leela and Gauranga leela. First Sri Krishna was in Vraja. When He was six years old, He was performing leelas with His cowherd friends. Aghasura came. The cowherd boys and Krsna came and walked along that path and saw something like a huge cave. But one of the cowherd boys said, there is no need to worry, Krsna is with us! Then they all entered the mouth of Aghasura. Krsna was thinking, how do I save my cowherd boy friends? They had all entered the mouth of the demon. They were all very scared after entering the mouth and then the stomach of Aghasura. But the demon was awaiting the arrival of Krsna. Let Krsna come, the demon said, I WILL EAT HIM UP! HA! HA! What is Krsna’s unlimited energy, no one can understand! Krsna has yoga sakti, strength, and with that He entered the mouth of the Aghasura demon. The eight-fold yoga siddhis are gotten from Him. But how much strength He has, can never be estimated or found! He entered the mouth of Aghasura and expanded so much that the demon died! And that way He saved all His cowherd boy friends. Brought them all back to life again. Krsna said, that this riverside by the Yamuna, is such a beautiful place with plants and grass, I am hungry, let us sit down and have prasadam. There were calves there which were eating the grass and Krsna sat down surrounded on all four sides by His cowherd boy friends. The boys had brought some tiffin from their homes and they opened and showed it to Krsna. It looked like a flower with Krsna in the middle and His cowherd boyfriends like leaves all around him. Some had brought rice, yogurt, butter, and they were all sharing and having it with their hands. They were also teasing each other and talking. But the calves in the meantime disappeared somewhere. Looking for pasture, the calves had entered deep into the forest. The cowherd boys were now afraid, that would happen if something had happened to their calves as they would have to answer when they go home. But Krsna said, you don’t worry, you all eat, I will go and look for the calves. Krsna then left. The cowherd boys were sitting and eating. Krsna was thus playing the leela like a small child. At that time, Brahmadev came. He kidnapped the calves and the cowherd boys. Krsna looking for the calves came to the side of the Jamuna and saw the cowherd boys were missing. But He is Parameshwar, Bhagavan. He understood that Brahmadev had kidnapped the cowherd boys and the calves. If Krsna went back to the village, the parents of the cowherd boys will be worried, what happened to their children and the calves? Krsna Himself took the form of all the cowherd boys and calves. He replicated as each one of them, with every detail of their form and look, exactly the way each one looked. This way He looked exactly like them. But they were all Krsna! Brahmadev in the meantime took the cowherd boys and calves with his mystic power and hid them and put them to sleep. This way he left. He was then thinking that I have committed an offence to Lord Krsna. And he came back in one second, and one second of his life is one year of our life. For one year, the cowherd boys who were all Krsna went back to their homes. Their mothers loved their children but now Krsna had come as their children. So there was more love emanating from the mothers, seeing their children in Krsna. They were expressing their love they had for Krsna to their children. And milk was flowing from their breasts. But their children were not small enough to drink the milk. They were six years old and did not drink the milk. But the mothers had so much love that milk was flowing from their breasts, that Krsna in the form of their children, drank the milk! All the Vrajwasi mothers thus had the opportunity to serve Krsna in the form of their children. Feeding Krsna, bathing Krsna, putting Him to sleep for one year. How many of you want this opportunity? Haribol! This way one year went by. Then the cows had not felt such love for their calves as they were feeling love for Krsna. But now almost one year went by and the cows looking at their calves from the Govardhan hill, came running down, in the afternoon sun, and started licking their calves. Balaram was seeing, how is this that the cows have so much affection for their calves? He saw the cowherd boys and saw the cows coming down very fast down the hill and the moment the cows saw their calves, there were tears streaming from their eyes, so much love and they were hugging the calves and licking their foreheads and crying. Balaram saw this and wondered, what is going on? How did this happen? The love and affection the Vrajwasi mothers had for Krsna was now seen in the love they had for their children! And the cows, the kind of affection they had for Krsna, was exhibited now in their love for their calves. So being Bhagavan Himself, Balaram was thinking that Krsna has taken the form of the cowherd boys and calves. He went to Krsna and asked him, Kanhai, what is going on? Kanhai answered, Brahmadev has stolen the cowherd boys and the calves, that is why I have reproduced them. And then told Him the whole story. Then Brahmadev returned after a few days, by our calculation. Brahmadev’s one day is a thousand days of the four yugas put together. Satya yuga, Treta yuga, Dvapara yuga and kali yuga, one thousand times, that is 4,320,000 years. He came and saw what happened? I had stolen the cowherd boys and the calves, with my yoga shakti they are sleeping. But how come they are all here? He was then thinking that I have them hidden safely and how is it possible they are here? WHAT IS GOING ON? I cannot understand anything. He then saw the boys exhibiting the four handed form of Visnu and they had beautiful yellow garments, color of the rain bearing clouds, and having the conch, cakra, lotus and gada in His hands. Also Siva, Brahma, Visnu were all offering prayers. And He saw that everyone was offering prayers to Them. Then he understood that his own strength was extremely limited. But Krsna was enacting this leela with the cowherd boys and Brahmadev could not estimate or understand what Krsna’s qualities and strength was. It was impossible for him to judge or understand. He got down from his Hamsa carrier and with His golden four faced form, paid obeisances, like a golden stick, and touched his heads on the feet of Lord Krsna., again and again. Om Namo Bhagavate Vasudevaya! Govindam Adi Purusam Tam Aham Bhajami! Again and again he paid obeisances and then he offered a lot of prayers. Then after circumambulating Lord Krsna three times went back to Brahmaloka. Then Brahmadev thought that I have committed an offence. Krsna will come in another form, form of Gauranga, in Kali Yuga and I will go to Navadvip dham and get His darshan, so that I can be part of His leela. So he went to Antardvip and started chanting the names of Gauranga! Gauranga! Gauranga! Gauranga! Gauranga! Gauranga! Gauranga! Gauranga! Then Gaurangadev appeared before him. He said, Brahma, what do you want? Why did you call Me? Brahmadev said, I am in the second phase of my life, i.e. half my life is over. Even then I commit offence. Please bless me that I don’t commit such offence again. That I am able to get Your Prema. And I can participate in Your leela, in Gauranga leela. Then Gaurangadev said, thathasthaha! So be it! You will take birth in a Hindu family and that will teach you humility. And you will chant 3 lac times the holy names of Krsna. And this way you will get Krsna Prema. And your offences will be absolved. And you will perform leela along with Me. Your name will be Haridas! Brahma Haridas ki jai! This blessing Brahma got. You are all so fortunate! This Kolkata is part of Gaura Mandal Bhumi. This is also the birthplace of Srila Prabhupada! Haribol! You are so very fortunate! This Navadvip is very near. Now it takes 3-4 hours to reach. If you go by boat then 4-5 hours. This Caitanyadev enacted His leelas in all this land. That is why our acaryas have said: Gaura mandala bhumi, jebo jane chintamani, tara hoi braja bhumir vas.

Caitanyadev, He also came. When He was walking and touring around South India, He went to Vijayawada to the Nrsimha temple. He also went to Narasaraopet. I told the residents of Narasaraopet that Gauranga and Krsna had come there! And they said, we are the residents of Narasaraopet and we don’t know that! What you are saying is right. This way, so many avatars have come. They have come to Navadvip dham – Sita Rama had come, Balaram had come, Sri Krsna had come, Gauranga had come. So all these leelas took place in Navadvip. By going around doing the Navadvip mandal parikrama, we see and hear about the various leelas. This very land, the Lord had touched and walked! If we take this dust of this land and apply it on our foreheads, how fortunate would we be! But people are more interested in mobile phone, parties, and worried about such things. But serving the Lord, chanting the names of the Lord, gives so much happiness! They are devoid of this happiness! It depends on all of you, to give this to the conditioned souls so that they get the opportunity to serve Krsna, to chant the names of Krsna. Haribol!

Brahmadev came and he was born in the Gaura leela in Benaphol. Then he moved to Haridaspur. He was for one or two days in Haridaspur and chanted three lac names of Krsna. Then on this village was called Haridaspur. There is a high school by that name. Whatever place there bore the name of Haridaspur. The Iskcon temple was also called Haridaspur. The place where Haridas Thakur sat and chanted japa is there. Also there is a zamindar, he wanted to torture Haridas Thakur and he sent a prostitute, Hira, to him. If you get Haridas Thakur to break his regulative principles, then I will reward you 8 thousand gold coins, the zamindar told Hira. She said, no problem. She went, dressed up very nicely and went to Haridas. Haridas told her, I have a vrata I am doing. I have to do one crore Harinams in one month. I have just a little to complete. Please just wait a little. I will definitely please you. Then he was chanting Hare Krsna. Then the lady, Hira, also started chanting Hare Krsna with him! By then the day dawned. Then next evening she came again. She told Haridas Thakur that I am very much attracted to you, please fulfill my desire. Haridas Thakur said, I have not finished my japa yet. Please wait a little, I will finish it and surely I will please you. Again, he started chanting Hare Krsna and Hira also heard the names of Krsna and chanted as well. By that time again the day broke. The third day she again came. Said the same thing. Haridas Thakur, said, definitely today it will finish, please wait a little. That night, listening to the chanting of Haridas Thakur, Hira experienced a change of heart! She paid obeisances to Haridas Thakur and confessed that she had actually come to entice him and the zamindar had said he would reward me. But chanting the Harinam with you, don’t know what happened to me! Please be my guru! And please instruct me what I should do. Then Haridas Thakur instructed her how to chant the Harinam and asked to leave all the things she had. She should wear white clothes and sit near the Tulasi and chant. The zamindar, Ramachandra Khan could not believe when he saw that Hira was wearing white clothes and chanting Harinam! Brahma Haridas ki jai! This way Haridas Thakur went to many places. He went to Kulia and stayed there in a cave.

Tomorrow, I will speak more. This way, maya, in many ways tests us. How do we help others to get into bhakti? If I have ego, how do I tolerate it? But having ego is not right. Mahaprabhu in His Siksastakam, says in the third verse, trnad apai suni cena, taror api sahisnunam, amaanina mana dena, kirtaniya sada Harihi. When we walk over grass, it bends down. But after we have walked past, it again comes up. This way, we should also be like that. There is an example. Here we have strong winds sometimes. The very strong trees, they break and fall down. But the flexible trees, near the sea, they sway and then come back when the wind reduces. This is the way we should be. If someone says something, it is their problem. Who will be more popular? That does not matter to us. We want to see how guru and Gauranga will be pleased. And leaving this, whether people talk good or ill of us, that is of no concern. Now Brahmadev understood that these material things, Krsna has nothing like that. With His spiritual energy, Krsna is producing everything. Brahma cannot understand the strengths in Krsna’s body, what is His mercy. Whatever, we see what are the good qualities in others. That someone will praise us, we will not expect. Aminana mana dena kirtaniya sada Hari. If this mood is there, then we can chant the names of Krsna all the time. I wanted to talk more of Haridas Thakur’s leelas. Speaking of Brahmadev’s leela took a lot of time. Brahma came as Haridas. There are many leela of Haridas. I will speak about it tomorrow. I have been told that we will have question answer session now. You can write down your questions.

Question: What were Srila Prabhupada’s desires with regard to advancement of Kolkata in devotional practice? And what is expected of the brahmacharis and grihasthas in fulfilling those wishes of Srila Prabhupada?

Guru maharaj: Srila Prabhupada sent me to Mayapur in 1971, I think. But before that I was President in Kolkata temple. After my leaving for Mayapur, one devotee had written to Prabhupada that preaching in Kolkata was very difficult and that we should close down the temple there and go elsewhere. Prabhupada replied, that is my birthplace. How can you close it? Whatever way, Kolkata temple has to stay. Prabhupada desired that Kolkata would reverberate with the names of Lord Krsna and Lord Caitanya! And this would be the best and biggest in the world! Now Prabhupada had great desire that preaching should go on. One person had offered, Markim Sarkar, that every year, he will buy butter from the manufactures, the butter whose price is highest in the market, he will buy a mountain of butter. He would send 10 thousand tons butter oil or ghee, he will give, this free of cost. But 10 thousand tons, how many boats that would be we had no idea. But this proposal was put to Prabhupada and he said, that every house in Kolkata be given half or one kilo of ghee. This was Prabhupada’s vison of Kolkata, which is such a big city, but every house in Kolkata should get one kilo of ghee, free of cost! Unthinkable. Now Iskcon is not able to do that but maybe in the future. Prabhupada’s vision was that there should be extensive preaching in Kolkata. For that the brahmacaris should actively participate and help and grihastas, the husband and wife, should conduct bhakti vrksha, namahatta, book distribution and opening temples. Every individual should get Krsna bhakti, Caitanyadev’s mercy. Caitanyadev’s instructions were not difficult – He said, bolo Krsna, bhajo Krsna, koro Krsna shikha. Bolo Krsna – chant the name of Krsna. Hare Krsna Hare Krsna Krsna Krsna Hare Hare, Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare. Krsna bhajan and service to Krna, devotional service to Krsna and think of Krsna. And koro Krsna shikha. Gita was spoken from the lotus mouth of Krsna. And SRIMAD BHAGAVAT MAHA PURANA is the leelas of Lord Krsna. Haribol! There is one devotee who has distributed 20,000 Bhagavad-gitas. This way, as much as possible by each person, being empowered by Krsna, if they make an effort, what can they not achieve? Any other question?

Time up!

Transcribed by Jayaraseshwari devi dasi
27 April 2019

PLEASE NOTE, THIS DOCUMENT IS AT DRAFT STAGE, FURTHER NEEDS PROOF READING BEFORE PUBLIC CIRCULATION.