KEY TAKEAWAYS FROM HH HARIVILAS MAHARAJ’S MORNING BHAGAVATAM CLASS ON SB 3.2.9 & 10 TODAY (5/18/22)
- In the Vedas it is said that the Supreme Lord or the Paramātmā cannot be understood simply by the strength of one’s erudition or power of mental speculation. He can be known only by one who has the mercy of the Lord.
- The Yādavas were all exceptionally learned and experienced, but in spite of their knowing the Lord as the one who lives in everyone’s heart, they could not understand that He is the original Personality of Godhead. This lack of knowledge was not due to their insufficient erudition; it was due to their misfortune
- In Vṛndāvana, the Lord was not even known as the Paramātmā because the residents of Vṛndāvana were pure unconventional devotees of the Lord and could think of Him only as their object of love. They did not know that He is the Personality of Godhead.
- The Yadus, accepted Lord Kṛṣṇa as the Supersoul incarnated in their family, and not more than that.
- The illusory energy acts very powerfully on them because in spite of their elevated mundane education, such persons are faithless and are infected by the mentality of atheism.
- They are always very eager to establish that Lord Kṛṣṇa was an ordinary man who was killed by a hunter due to His many impious acts in plotting to kill the sons of Dhṛtarāṣṭra and Jarāsandha, the demoniac kings of the earth. Such persons have no faith in the statement of the Bhagavad-gītā that the Lord is unaffected by the reactions of work:
- All these blasphemies do not touch the heart of the devotees of the Lord because they know perfectly well what is what. Their intelligence regarding the Lord is never disturbed. But those who are disturbed by the statements of the asuras are also condemned.
- BG 4.14 – There is no work that affects Me; nor do I aspire for the fruits of action. One who understands this truth about Me also does not become entangled in the fruitive reactions of work.
- BG 7.7 – O conqueror of wealth, there is no truth superior to Me. Everything rests upon Me, as pearls are strung on a thread.
- BG 14.26 – One who engages in full devotional service, unfailing in all circumstances, at once transcends the modes of material nature and thus comes to the level of Brahman.
SB 3.2.9 TRANSLATION:
The Yadus were all experienced devotees, learned and expert in psychic study. Over and above this, they were always with the Lord in all kinds of relaxations, and still they were only able to know Him as the one Supreme who dwells everywhere.SB 3.2.10 TRANSLATION:
Under no circumstances can the words of persons bewildered by the illusory energy of the Lord deviate the intelligence of those who are completely surrendered souls.
In the Vedas it is said that the Supreme Lord or the Paramātmā cannot be understood simply by the strength of one’s erudition or power of mental speculation: nāyam ātmā pravacanena labhyo na medhayā na bahunā śrutena (Kaṭha Upaniṣad 1.2.23). He can be known only by one who has the mercy of the Lord. The Yādavas were all exceptionally learned and experienced, but in spite of their knowing the Lord as the one who lives in everyone’s heart, they could not understand that He is the original Personality of Godhead. This lack of knowledge was not due to their insufficient erudition; it was due to their misfortune. In Vṛndāvana, however, the Lord was not even known as the Paramātmā because the residents of Vṛndāvana were pure unconventional devotees of the Lord and could think of Him only as their object of love. They did not know that He is the Personality of Godhead. The Yadus, or the residents of Dvārakā, however, could know Lord Kṛṣṇa as Vāsudeva, or the Supersoul living everywhere, but not as the Supreme Lord. As scholars of the Vedas, they verified the Vedic hymns: eko devaḥ . . . sarva-bhūtādhivāsaḥ . . . , antaryāmī . . . and vṛṣṇīnāṁ para-devatā. . . . The Yadus, therefore, accepted Lord Kṛṣṇa as the Supersoul incarnated in their family, and not more than that.
SB 3.2.10
Under no circumstances can the words of persons bewildered by the illusory energy of the Lord deviate the intelligence of those who are completely surrendered souls.
Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa is the Supreme Personality of Godhead according to all the evidences of the Vedas. He is accepted by all ācāryas, including Śrīpāda Śaṅkarācārya. But when He was present in the world, different classes of men accepted Him differently, and therefore their calculations of the Lord were also different. Generally, persons who had faith in the revealed scriptures accepted the Lord as He is, and all of them merged into great bereavement when the Lord disappeared from the world. In the First Canto we have already discussed the lamentation of Arjuna and Yudhiṣṭhira, to whom the disappearance of Lord Kṛṣṇa was almost intolerable up to the end of their lives.
The Yādavas were only partially cognizant of the Lord, but they are also glorious because they had the opportunity to associate with the Lord, who acted as the head of their family, and they also rendered the Lord intimate service. The Yādavas and other devotees of the Lord are different from those who wrongly calculated Him to be an ordinary human personality. Such persons are certainly bewildered by the illusory energy. They are hellish and are envious of the Supreme Lord. The illusory energy acts very powerfully on them because in spite of their elevated mundane education, such persons are faithless and are infected by the mentality of atheism. They are always very eager to establish that Lord Kṛṣṇa was an ordinary man who was killed by a hunter due to His many impious acts in plotting to kill the sons of Dhṛtarāṣṭra and Jarāsandha, the demoniac kings of the earth. Such persons have no faith in the statement of the Bhagavad-gītā that the Lord is unaffected by the reactions of work: na māṁ karmāṇi limpanti. According to the atheistic point of view, Lord Kṛṣṇa’s family, the Yadu dynasty, was vanquished due to being cursed by the brāhmaṇas for the sins committed by Kṛṣṇa in killing the sons of Dhṛtarāṣṭra, etc. All these blasphemies do not touch the heart of the devotees of the Lord because they know perfectly well what is what. Their intelligence regarding the Lord is never disturbed. But those who are disturbed by the statements of the asuras are also condemned. That is what Uddhava meant in this verse.
The proof that someone is infected by demoniac philosophy and mundane knowledge is that they do not engage in devotional service enthusiastically.
The pure devotees do understand that Krsna is the supreme personality of Godhead..they only are interested in the shyam sundar Vrindavan Krsna..
Better than the demons is the ones who understand BJ, Paramatma,….
Sri Vaishnavas believe that Narayana is the source of everything and think that Krsna is the paramatma.. If they are envious of Krsna they will fall down.. But if they are attached to Narayana and not envious of Krsna then that is ok..
BG 4.14
There is no work that affects Me; nor do I aspire for the fruits of action. One who understands this truth about Me also does not become entangled in the fruitive reactions of work.
As there are constitutional laws in the material world stating that the king can do no wrong, or that the king is not subject to the state laws, similarly the Lord, although He is the creator of this material world, is not affected by the activities of the material world. He creates and remains aloof from the creation, whereas the living entities are entangled in the fruitive results of material activities because of their propensity for lording it over material resources. The proprietor of an establishment is not responsible for the right and wrong activities of the workers, but the workers are themselves responsible. The living entities are engaged in their respective activities of sense gratification, and these activities are not ordained by the Lord. For advancement of sense gratification, the living entities are engaged in the work of this world, and they aspire to heavenly happiness after death. The Lord, being full in Himself, has no attraction for so-called heavenly happiness. The heavenly demigods are only His engaged servants. The proprietor never desires the low-grade happiness such as the workers may desire. He is aloof from the material actions and reactions. For example, the rains are not responsible for different types of vegetation that appear on the earth, although without such rains there is no possibility of vegetative growth. Vedic smṛti confirms this fact as follows:
“In the material creations, the Lord is only the supreme cause. The immediate cause is material nature, by which the cosmic manifestation is made visible.” The created beings are of many varieties, such as the demigods, human beings and lower animals, and all of them are subject to the reactions of their past good or bad activities. The Lord only gives them the proper facilities for such activities and the regulations of the modes of nature, but He is never responsible for their past and present activities. In the Vedānta-sūtra (2.1.34) it is confirmed, vaiṣamya-nairghṛṇye na sāpekṣatvāt: the Lord is never partial to any living entity. The living entity is responsible for his own acts. The Lord only gives him facilities, through the agency of material nature, the external energy. Anyone who is fully conversant with all the intricacies of this law of karma, or fruitive activities, does not become affected by the results of his activities. In other words, the person who understands this transcendental nature of the Lord is an experienced man in Kṛṣṇa consciousness, and thus he is never subjected to the laws of karma. One who does not know the transcendental nature of the Lord and who thinks that the activities of the Lord are aimed at fruitive results, as are the activities of the ordinary living entities, certainly becomes entangled himself in fruitive reactions. But one who knows the Supreme Truth is a liberated soul fixed in Kṛṣṇa consciousness.
We cannot get anything without the help of Krsna..
If you are sincerely dedicated and pray then Lord will help you to fulfill your desire to Serve Him..
A couple driving in a truck whole of NA…..Prabhu- I have been to almost all temples in North America – only temple which gives free prasadam..
SP said Prasadam should never be sold. ..
Lady came who is a hindu who is visiting her children here came to temple by bus.. Sub people said we know that Iskcon temple gives lot of free food..
Distribution of prasadam is very important..
SP says you are getting free food from the government you need to distribute to the public freely.. Free distribution of prasadam.. We should have this moral responsibility of distributing the prasadam..
BG 14.26
One who engages in full devotional service, unfailing in all circumstances, at once transcends the modes of material nature and thus comes to the level of Brahman.
BG 7.7
O conqueror of wealth, there is no truth superior to Me. Everything rests upon Me, as pearls are strung on a thread.
VOCAB – Apparent..
VOCAB – Mules – one who carries illegal good across the borders..
We do not know what real education is.. We follow the crowd.. Brains twisted in wrong directions..
If you know Krsna is the supreme personality of Godhead.. Then you engage with all your heart in serving Krsna.. If one is busy in mundane education and other material engagements and have no time for service.. Then they are not KC.. if someone has half the time for service then they are on the path.. They are dovetailing and it should be under the guidance of the spiritual masters.. Go for a parikrama.. Instead of disneyland for vacation..