.by Madhavananda Das on Saturday, July 23, 2011 at 4:12pm.When giving birthday wishes, sometimes devotees say, "And may you never take birth again."That's certainly a nice sentiment. However, it's not our philosophy. Our goal is prema, not mokṣa. Kaviraj Goswami writes in Cc. adi 7.84:
-----------
kṛṣṇa-viṣayaka premā—parama puruṣārtha
yāra āge tṛṇa-tulya cāri puruṣārtha
“Dharma (religiousity), artha (economic development), kama (sense gratification), and mokṣa (liberation) are known as the four goals of life, but compared to kṛṣṇa-prema, the fifth and highest goal, these appear as insignificant as straw in the street."
-----------
The Bhakti-rasāmṛta-sindhu (1.2.232) quotes the Padma Purāṇa:
-----------
yena janma-sahasrāṇi vāsudevo niṣevitaḥ |
tan-mukhe hari-nāmāni sadā tiṣṭhanti bhārata ||232||
"The names of the Lord remain constantly in the mouth of that person who serves Vāsudeva for a thousand births."
Jiva Goswami’s Commentary: In order to increase that person’s eagerness for devotion, the Lord, by His own will, will make that person take repeated birth.
-----------
Why will the all-merciful Lord make his devotee take birth again? Liberation is not such a big deal, Kaviraj Goswami describes:
-----------
mukti’ tuccha-phala haya nāmābhāsa haite --"Liberation is the insignifican fruit of even nama-bhasa chanting." (Cc. 3.186)
-----------
Going back to Godhead is not such a big achievement. However, once we attain the spiritual abode, it's very, very rare for someone to continue to make progress. Gopa Kumara's example in Brhad Bhagavatamrta is extraordinary. It's something like picking a rose before it's fully blossomed. Once picked it won't bloom any further. Similarly, once the living entity arrives in the spiritual abode, wherever that may be Vaikuntha, Ayodya or something more, they generally don't progress further.
So, please don't bless me to never take birth again :-)
Our birthday prayer for our devotee friends is: "May you take birth again and again and again until you attain Krishna-prema and manjari-seva."
By Madhavananda Das
.
You need to be a member of ISKCON Desire Tree | IDT to add comments!
Replies
Hare Krshna , My pranams.
this topic reminds me of some verses from Mukund Mala Stotra
mukunda mūrdhnā praṇipatya yāce
bhavantam ekāntam iyantam artham
avismṛtis tvac-caraṇāravinde
bhave bhave me 'stu bhavat-prasādāt
O Lord Mukunda! I bow down my head to Your Lordship and respectfully ask You to fulfill this one desire of mine: that in each of my future births I will, by Your Lordship's mercy, always remember and never forget Your lotus feet.(Text 3)
nāsthā dharme na vasu-nicaye naiva kāmopabhoge
yad bhāvyaḿ tad bhavatu bhagavan pūrva-karmānurūpam
etat prārthyaḿ mama bahu mataḿ janma-janmāntare 'pi
tvat-pādāmbhoruha-yuga-gatā niścalā bhaktir astu
O my Lord! I have no attachment for religiosity, or for accumulating wealth, or for enjoying sense gratification. Let these come as they inevitably must, in accordance with my past deeds. But I do pray for this most cherished boon: birth after birth, let me render unflinching devotional service unto Your two lotus feet. (text 5)
Hari Bol
Hare Krshna
These verses are from sri Damdara astakam.
O Lord, although You are able to give all kinds of benedictions, I do not pray to You for the boon of impersonal liberation, nor the highest liberation of eternal life in Vaikuthha, nor any other boon [which may be obtained by executing the nine processes of bhakti ]. O Lord, I simply wish that this form of Yours as Bäla Gopäla in Vrndävana may ever be manifest in my heart, for what is the use to me of any other boon besides this?
O Lord, Your lotus face, which is encircled by locks of soft black hair tinged with red, is kissed again and again by mother Yasodä, and Your lips are reddish like the bimba fruit. May this beautiful vision of Your lotus face be ever manifest in my heart. Thousands and thousands of other benedictions are of no use to me.
So the mood expressed in this song from Padma Purana is very intresting. Why is it that eternal life in vaikuntha is not desired and considered of no use? Can anyone tell me?
This is very nice pr ji. But Srila Prabhupada also told many times to practice devotional service and come back to Godhead in this very life. Should we as a practicing devotees not aspire for this?
Hare Krishna.
DearSudheendra prabhu. please accept my pranam If you like you may go to Vaikuntha. Lord Chaitanya's sankirtan movement will certainly and easily give this. But Goloka is the only place I want to go. I aspire to go to Goloka in one life time too but I know what it will take to get there. So when they come and offer me Vaikuntha I'll refuse. forget it. If Radha and Krsna are not there I'll stay here life after life until I can go to Them and serve Them.
I offer my hummble obeisances to all the resident of Vaikuntha. All glories to Laksmi Narayan. Please bless me that I attain eternal service to Sri Sri Radha and Krsna in Goloka Vrndavan Dhama. Hare Krsna.
Jai Shri Krishna..
Please keep a place for me so that I can serve you as you serve Prabhupada as He serves Krishna..
HariBol!