KEY TAKEAWAYS from HH Harivilas Maharaj’s Morning Bhagavatam class on SB 1:19:29
- To recognize a genuine devotee is difficult for some people. Especially someone who is engaged in sense gratification and frivolous activities.
- Sukhdev Goswami is completely self-satisfied. He is so enamored with Krsna that nothing disturbed him, even when the silly women and boys were throwing stones and spitting on him.
- That is the position of a self-satisfied devotee. Nothing can make them waiver from the strong determination to serve Krsna and spread the glories of the Lord.
- If one follows Bhakti yoga with great determination, the Lord will surely help. God helps those who help themselves.
- One should think of no pleasure aside from the pleasure of the Supreme Self. This state is easily attained by directly practicing Kṛṣṇa consciousness.
- Serving Kṛṣṇa with purified senses is called Kṛṣṇa consciousness. That is the way of bringing the senses under full control.
- One cannot remain in the quality of Brahman, the Absolute, until one’s mind is fixed on the lotus feet of the Lord
- Self-realization means knowing one’s constitutional position in relationship to the Supreme.
- Equality and Neutrality
- Lord Kṛṣṇa never disappears from the sight of the devotee, nor does the devotee ever lose sight of the Lord. (pure devotee who realized the Love of Krsna)
- Kṛṣṇa consciousness is the development of love of Kṛṣṇa – a position transcendental even to material liberation.
- There is no difference between a Kṛṣṇa conscious person always engaged in the transcendental loving service of Kṛṣṇa and a perfect yogī engaged in meditation on the Supersoul.
- Kṛṣṇa consciousness is the highest stage of trance in yoga practice.
- Śrīla Prabhupāda claimed that all of his disciples who were strictly following the intense program of Kṛṣṇa consciousness were in fact sudurlabha-mahātmās who were seeing vāsudevaḥ sarvam
SB 1.19.29 Translation
Mahārāja Parīkṣit, who is also known as Viṣṇurāta [one who is always protected by Viṣṇu], bowed his head to receive the chief guest, Śukadeva Gosvāmī. At that time all the ignorant women and boys ceased following Śrīla Śukadeva. Receiving respect from all, Śukadeva Gosvāmī took his exalted seat.
CLASS NOTES:
Sukhdev Goswami is completely self-satisfied. Even though the silly women and boys were teasing him and throwing stones and spitting on him, he was not disturbed by it, He was so enamored with Krsna. Nothing can disturb his meditation on the Lord. He walks and comes and sits on the stage to speak SB for Maharaj Parikshit. That is the position of a self-satisfied devotee. Nothing can make them waiver from the strong determination to serve Krsna and spread the glories of the Lord.
We can learn more about a self-satisfied soul in the following verses. BG 6.24 -6.31, BG 7.19 & SB 11.2.45,
(BG 6.24) IF ONE FOLLOWS BHAKTI YOGA WITH GREAT DETERMINATION, THE LORD WILL SURELY HELP. GOD HELPS THOSE WHO HELP THEMSELVES.
The yoga practitioner should be determined and should patiently prosecute the practice without deviation. One should be sure of success at the end and pursue this course with great perseverance, not becoming discouraged if there is any delay in the attainment of success. Success is sure for the rigid practitioner.
Similarly, the practice of yoga, especially bhakti-yoga in Kṛṣṇa consciousness, may appear to be a very difficult job. But if anyone follows the principles with great determination, the Lord will surely help, for God helps those who help themselves.
(BG 6.25) ONE SHOULD THINK OF NO PLEASURE ASIDE FROM THE PLEASURE OF THE SUPREME SELF. THIS STATE IS EASILY ATTAINED BY DIRECTLY PRACTICING KṚṢṆA CONSCIOUSNESS.
The mind, being controlled by conviction, meditation and cessation from the senses, should be situated in trance, or samādhi. At that time there is no longer any danger of becoming engaged in the material conception of life. In other words, although one is involved with matter as long as the material body exists, one should not think about sense gratification. One should think of no pleasure aside from the pleasure of the Supreme Self. This state is easily attained by directly practicing Kṛṣṇa consciousness.
(BG 6.26) SERVING KṚṢṆA WITH PURIFIED SENSES IS CALLED KṚṢṆA CONSCIOUSNESS. THAT IS THE WAY OF BRINGING THE SENSES UNDER FULL CONTROL.
One who controls the mind (and therefore the senses as well) is called gosvāmī, or svāmī, and one who is controlled by the mind is called go-dāsa, or the servant of the senses. A gosvāmī knows the standard of sense happiness. In transcendental sense happiness, the senses are engaged in the service of Hṛṣīkeśa, or the supreme owner of the senses – Kṛṣṇa. Serving Kṛṣṇa with purified senses is called Kṛṣṇa consciousness. That is the way of bringing the senses under full control. What is more, that is the highest perfection of yoga practice.
(BG 6.27) ONE CANNOT REMAIN IN THE QUALITY OF BRAHMAN, THE ABSOLUTE, UNTIL ONE’S MIND IS FIXED ON THE LOTUS FEET OF THE LORD
Brahma-bhūta is the state of being free from material contamination and situated in the transcendental service of the Lord. Mad-bhaktiṁ labhate parām (Bg. 18.54). One cannot remain in the quality of Brahman, the Absolute, until one’s mind is fixed on the lotus feet of the Lord. Sa vai manaḥ kṛṣṇa-padāravindayoḥ. To be always engaged in the transcendental loving service of the Lord, or to remain in Kṛṣṇa consciousness, is to be factually liberated from the mode of passion and all material contamination
(BG 6.28)SELF-REALIZATION MEANS KNOWING ONE’S CONSTITUTIONAL POSITION IN RELATIONSHIP TO THE SUPREME.
Self-realization means knowing one’s constitutional position in relationship to the Supreme. The individual soul is part and parcel of the Supreme, and his position is to render transcendental service to the Lord. This transcendental contact with the Supreme is called brahma-saṁsparśa..
(BG 6.29) Equality and Neutrality
Equality: A Kṛṣṇa conscious yogī is the perfect seer because
- he sees Kṛṣṇa, the Supreme, situated in everyone’s heart as Supersoul (Paramātmā)
- can see Kṛṣṇa in the heart of both the believer and the nonbeliever
- sees equally because he sees that all living entities, although in different situations according to the results of fruitive work, in all circumstances remain the servants of God.
- While in the material energy, the living entity serves the material senses; and while in the spiritual energy, he serves the Supreme Lord directly. In either case the living entity is the servant of God. This vision of equality is perfect in a person in Kṛṣṇa consciousness.
THE SUPREME NEUTRALITY OF THE LORD.
The Lord in His Paramātmā feature is situated within both the heart of the dog and that of a brāhmaṇa. The perfect yogī knows that the Lord is eternally transcendental and is not materially affected by His presence in either a dog or a brāhmaṇa. The Lord, being the source of all beings, is like the mother and the maintainer. As the mother is neutral to all different kinds of children, the supreme father (or mother) is also. Consequently, the Supersoul is always in every living being.
(BG 6.30) LORD KṚṢṆA NEVER DISAPPEARS FROM THE SIGHT OF THE DEVOTEE, NOR DOES THE DEVOTEE EVER LOSE SIGHT OF THE LORD. (PURE DEVOTEE WHO REALIZED THE LOVE OF KRSNA)
For one who sees Me everywhere and sees everything in Me, I am never lost, nor is he ever lost to Me.
Nothing can exist without Kṛṣṇa, and Kṛṣṇa is the Lord of everything – this is the basic principle of Kṛṣṇa consciousness. Kṛṣṇa consciousness is the development of love of Kṛṣṇa – a position transcendental even to material liberation. At this stage of Kṛṣṇa consciousness, beyond self-realization, the devotee becomes one with Kṛṣṇa in the sense that Kṛṣṇa becomes everything for the devotee and the devotee becomes full in loving Kṛṣṇa. An intimate relationship between the Lord and the devotee then exists. In that stage, the living entity can never be annihilated, nor is the Personality of Godhead ever out of the sight of the devotee.
At this stage, Lord Kṛṣṇa never disappears from the sight of the devotee, nor does the devotee ever lose sight of the Lord. In the case of a yogī who sees the Lord as Paramātmā within the heart, the same applies. Such a yogī turns into a pure devotee and cannot bear to live for a moment without seeing the Lord within himself.
(BG 6.31) THERE IS NO DIFFERENCE BETWEEN A KṚṢṆA CONSCIOUS PERSON ALWAYS ENGAGED IN THE TRANSCENDENTAL LOVING SERVICE OF KṚṢṆA AND A PERFECT YOGĪ ENGAGED IN MEDITATION ON THE SUPERSOUL.
Such a yogī, who engages in the worshipful service of the Supersoul, knowing that I and the Supersoul are one, remains always in Me in all circumstances.
There is no difference between a Kṛṣṇa conscious person always engaged in the transcendental loving service of Kṛṣṇa and a perfect yogī engaged in meditation on the Supersoul. The yogī in Kṛṣṇa consciousness – even though he may be engaged in various activities while in material existence – remains always situated in Kṛṣṇa.
Kṛṣṇa consciousness is the highest stage of trance in yoga practice.
(ŚB 11.2.45) ŚRĪLA PRABHUPĀDA CLAIMED THAT ALL OF HIS DISCIPLES WHO WERE STRICTLY FOLLOWING THE INTENSE PROGRAM OF KṚṢṆA CONSCIOUSNESS WERE IN FACT SUDURLABHA-MAHĀTMĀS WHO WERE SEEING VĀSUDEVAḤ SARVAM
Śrī Havir said: The most advanced devotee sees within everything the soul of all souls, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Śrī Kṛṣṇa. Consequently, he sees everything in relation to the Supreme Lord and understands that everything that exists is eternally situated within the Lord.
Śrīla Prabhupāda claimed that all of his disciples who were strictly following the intense program of Kṛṣṇa consciousness were in fact sudurlabha-mahātmās who were seeing vāsudevaḥ sarvam. In other words, if one is constantly engaged in Kṛṣṇa consciousness with an intense desire to please the Lord and one day gain His association, it is to be understood that in one’s life there is nothing but Kṛṣṇa. Śrīla Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura has warned us, however, that a mere theoretical or academic understanding that Kṛṣṇa is everything does not qualify one as a first-class devotee. One must actually have developed love for Kṛṣṇa. Therefore it can be practically understood that anyone who enthusiastically adopts the Kṛṣṇa consciousness program and eagerly participates in the preaching activities of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness is acting on the platform of a madhyama-adhikārī devotee. When such a devotee becomes overwhelmed by his desire to serve Kṛṣṇa and associate with the Lord, so much so that he is not attracted to anything else within the universe, he should be understood to be an uttama-adhikārī Vaiṣṇava, as mentioned in this verse.