First of all, let me offer my humble, respectful obeisances unto the lotus feet of my spiritual master, His Divine Grace Śrī Śrīmad Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Gosvāmī Prabhupāda. Sometime in the year 1935 when His Divine Grace was staying at Rādhā-kuṇḍa, I went to see him from Bombay. At that time, he gave me many important instructions in regard to constructing temples and publishing books. He personally told me that publishing books is more important than constructing temples. Of course, those same instructions remained within my mind for many years. In 1944 I began publishing my Back to Godhead, and when I retired from family life in 1958 I began publishing Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam in Delhi. When three parts of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam had been published in India, I then started for the United States of America on the thirteenth of August, 1965.

I am continuously trying to publish books, as suggested by my spiritual master. Now, in this year, 1976, I have completed the Seventh Canto of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, and a summary of the Tenth Canto has already been published as Kṛṣṇa, the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Still, the Eighth Canto, Ninth Canto, Tenth Canto, Eleventh Canto and Twelfth Canto are yet to be published. On this occasion, therefore, I am praying to my spiritual master to give me strength to finish this work. I am neither a great scholar nor a great devotee; I am simply a humble servant of my spiritual master, and to the best of my ability I am trying to please him by publishing these books, with the cooperation of my disciples in America. Fortunately, scholars all over the world are appreciating these publications. Let us cooperatively publish more and more volumes of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam just to please His Divine Grace Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura.

by His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupāda
from Summary to the 8th Canto, Chapter 1

Source:http://theharekrishnamovement.org/2016/01/16/srila-prabhupadas-books/

Deep in the forests of India there once lived a fierce hunter. Tawny skinned, with blood red eyes, he was like death personified to all animals. With his nets, knives and traps, he stalked among the trees carrying out his terrible business. He took pleasure from killing animals, even when he did not want them for food. Seeing him to be cruel and heartless, all his friends and relatives had shunned him, and he lived alone in a small hut. He survived on wild berries, fruits, and the meat of the birds and animals he slaughtered.

One day as he was setting his traps, a great storm blew up. Torrential rain fell and the earth quickly became flooded. The hunter could hardly keep his footing and he fell about, catching hold of hanging creepers as he struggled to stay upright. Trembling with cold, he pulled himself along as the blinding rain lashed into him. Fear seized his heart and he stumbled forward, hoping to find some high ground where he might be safe.

The force of the raging wind dashed many poor birds against the trees, and they fell stunned or lifeless to the ground. As the hunter scrambled up an incline he happened to see a pigeon lying unconscious in front of him. Without hesitation he scooped it up in his hands and put it in a bag that was tied to his belt.

“That’s dinner taken care of, if I ever survive this storm,” he said to himself.

The storm showed no sign of abating and the hunter clung onto to a sapling, looking around for some shelter. Not far in the distance, through the sheets of rain, he could make out the shape of a very large tree. Bending forward against the wind, he managed to struggle toward it. He saw that it was a great banyan tree that spread out a canopy for hundreds of feet in all directions. Beneath its branches it was dry and sheltered and the hunter flopped gratefully to the ground. He folded his hands and prayed, “Lord of the forest, mighty tree, please give me shelter.”

Surely the Creator himself placed this tree here for the refuge of all living beings, he thought, as he leaned against its massive trunk. Night fell and in time the storm began to die out. Gradually the clouds dispersed and a star-spangled sky was revealed, looking like a dark lake filled with lilies. The hunter was far from his home and exhausted from the effort of fighting the storm. He decided to rest for the night under the tree. Pulling his wet cloth around himself, he spread out some leaves and lay down with his head on a stone. He placed the bagged bird next to him.

“You shall have to be breakfast now, ” he said, and drifted into a sleep.

High up on one of the tree branches there lived a white dove with striking plumes. He and his wife had made their nest there for some years. That morning his wife had gone to fetch food and had not returned. Burning with anxiety and fearing the worst, the dove loudly lamented. “0 my wife, most beautiful bird, where are you? Have you perished in the storm? What then will be the use of my life? What of my home? Simply a house is not a home; it is the wife who makes it a home. A house without a wife is like a desert.”

With tears falling from his eyes, the dove sang the praises of his wife. “That fine lady has always served me, seeking my happiness in every way. A wife is the husband’s greatest treasure. There is no friend like a wife, nor any better refuge. If one has no wife at home he may as well enter the forest as a hermit.”

Down on the ground, tied up in the bag, was his wife. Hearing her husband’s words she flapped her wings, struggling vainly to escape. She called back, “Whether I have any merit or not, surely it is my greatest good fortune to hear my husband speak like this. A wife who does not please her husband is not a wife at all. All the gods bless a woman who satisfies her worthy husband.”

The she-dove looked up through the bag to where her husband was sitting. “My lord, ” she said, “I am here, but here also is a guest. He must be honoured. Take care of him, for that is the proper duty of householders. There is no greater sin than that of neglecting a needy person who arrives at your door.”

The dove flapped his wings with joy when he heard his wife speak. He swooped down and alighted on a branch just above the hunter, who was beginning to stir after his night’s rest. “Good sir,” said the dove, “you are welcome. Surely the Lord of all beings has brought you here. As such it is my duty to look after you. Even an enemy should be shown care if he comes to one’s house. The tree does not withdraw its shelter even from the man who comes to cut it down.”

The dove asked how he could serve the hunter, who replied, “I am freezing. Please find some way of warming me.”

“At once,” said the dove, and it immediately began gathering dry leaves and twigs into a pile. It then flew to where a number of forest hermits kept a fire burning and fetched a lighted twig, which it used to set fire to the pile. As the hunter felt his circulation returning he also began to feel great hunger. “0 bird,” he said in his rough and deep voice, “what food do you have?”

The dove looked down in dismay. “I have none. Doves like myself live like the sages and hermits, having only enough food to last us day by day.”

Feeling distressed that he could not do his sacred duty as a householder; the dove wracked his brain for some solution. He looked at his trapped wife, who said to him, “Dear husband, you know what you must do now.”

The dove nodded. He reached a firm conclusion in his mind. Looking at the hunter, he said, “Wait one moment, I will without doubt satisfy you.”

The bird recalled how he had heard the sages speak about the great benefit to be had from serving guests. “They are like God himself coming to your door, ” the sages had said. “Never neglect them in any way.”

Thinking like this, the dove flew around the fire three times to offer respects to the fire-god, and he then threw himself into the flames. “Take my flesh, ” he said to the hunter, and gave up his life.

Seeing this, the hunter was moved beyond words. He stared in amazement at the dying dove on the burning embers. For the first time in his life he felt compassion. “What am I like?” he said, tears flooding his eyes. “All my life I have acted in the most terrible way. What good is there in me? This noble pigeon is far greater than me. He has taught me a great lesson. Never again shall I kill helpless creatures.”

He at once threw away all his nets and traps. “My life as a hunter is over, ” he said, and he carefully released the she-dove. He then set off toward the northern mountains, intent on leading a life of meditation and prayer.

The she-dove grieved piteously for her dead husband. “Now my life has become useless, ” she cried. “How can a woman live without her husband? What other duty do I have than to follow him?”

With these words she too threw herself onto the fire. As she died and left her body, she saw her husband in a divine form, rising up toward heaven. “Beloved wife, come with me now,” he said. Taking her place by his side, she rose up to the skies, surrounded by celestial beings.

Source:http://www.krishnadharma.com/the-hunter-and-the-dove/

Bhismadeva, lying on the bed of arrows after being shot by Arjuna, was very peaceful and was saying that one can conquer anger by learning to forgive. So this the problem – that one cannot forgive! But why is it that we cannot forgive!? It is very hard to forgive others but it is very easy to forgive ourselves! When we do something wrong, we can give a hundred reasons to justify it – we say that we were forced to do it, that it was not actually wrong… but when someone else does a little thing, we get angry and we cannot forgive. So look at ourselves and where we forgive ourselves, we must also forgive others. One can conquer anger by learning to forgive, as Bhismadeva has spoken.

Source: https://www.kksblog.com/2016/01/conquering-anger/

Dear Prabhu, Please accept my humble obeisance. All glories to Srila Prabhupada. All glories to your devotional services.

This year 2016 is a very special year for all of us, Srila Prabhupada’s followers. We are celebrating the 50th anniversary , the silver jubilee of ISKCON this year.
Iskcon took birth in 1966 and has just reached the 50th year of its manifestation on the earthly planet. Devotees all over the world are preparing to hold many celebrations for this 50th anniversary of ISKCON. In Mayapur, which has been considered by Srila Prabhupada as a place of worship, ISKCON is going to hold a grand celebration during the 2016 Gour Purnima festival in the presence of thousands of devotees from around the world who will come to worship Lord Gouranga.

We have a very special and unique plan to celebrate the 50th Anniversary of ISKCON in a great vedic manner. There are several programs which will be the highlights of this year’s Goura Purnima festival. The most important one will be the special abhishek of Lord Gouranga with golden lotuses. There is a tradition of performing Kanak kamal abhishek during the 50th anniversary.
This year we will perform abhishek to Lord Gouranga with 50 Kanak( Gold) kamal( Lotuses). Only 50 most fortunate souls on this earthly planet will get the opportunity to participate in sponsoring Kanak kamal Abhishek. You can sponsor one Golden Lotus to be used for doing abhishek to the Golden avatara – Lord Gouranga – just by donating Rs 111,111.($1700 apx) One lac eleven thousand one hundred and eleven rupees. As a sponsor of this Kanak kamal, you will be our special guest during the last three days of the Goura Purnima festival to participate in the abhishek festival and you will get the golden lotus as Prasad which you can keep on the altar of your home as a most auspicious and memorable souvenir for many generations.

There are a few other opportunities to serve during the upcoming Goura Purnima festival. We will offer 50 special gold plated silver lamps to Lord Gouranga on the most auspicious appearance day , Goura Purnima day itself. You can sponsor one lamp for Rs55,555 ( $ 900 ).There will be a special golden kalash abhishek also for which one can sponsor by donating Rs22,222( $ 350). You will get a kalash and lamp as Prasad. As we have very limited items to sponsor, I would like to request you to let me know as soon as possible if you desire to sponsor any of the above items for this most auspicious and memorable once-in-a-life-time program. Please announce about this great news to other devotees. If you know of any other devotee who would like to participate, then please let us know.

Thank you so much for your devotional service.

Your servant Bhakti Purusottama Swami M – +91 9434 406 434 E mail – bps@ pamho.net

Source: http://m.dandavats.com/?p=18301

Bhakti Vikas Swami

(The Board of ISKCON News does not necessarily agrees with the views presented in the "Opinion" section.)

Undoubtedly, several senior women devotees in our movement are as learned, dedicated, and in other ways spiritually qualified as many of their godbrothers. Why then should there be any hesitation to induct them as diksa-gurus?

An important consideration is that the role of a guru, although wholly spiritual by nature, also has an inescapable social dimension. No one can live in any society without having a social role, which is determined by various factors including gender. For instance, only women can be mothers, and motherhood is much more than merely a biological function.

Among all possible forms of social organization, followers of Krsna’s Vedic culture accept varnasrama-dharma as being axiomatically the best. In varnasrama-dharma, a specific, subtle, and subdued role is the norm for women, and men are accorded a more dominant role. From the beginning, Gaudiya Vaisnavas have largely accepted these gender roles, as is apparent in the sparse references to females among the associates of Lord Caitanya. More recently, Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati’s Gaudiya Matha was clearly a male-dominated institution.

Yet Lord Caitanya declared Himself to be not a member of any varna or asrama, and Gaudiya Vaisnavism aims to transcend all bodily designations and social roles. Lord Caitanya accepted among His topmost devotees Rupa, Sanatana, Haridasa, and others who were unacceptable to the social orthodoxy. Srila Prabhupada took this principle much further by inducting as brahmanas persons of wholly mleccha stock.

However, in accord with previous acaryas, Srila Prabhupada also wanted to reintroduce varnasrama-dharma. (“Varnasrama-dharma should be established to become a Vaisnava,” said Srila Prabhupada in 1977. “It is not so easy to become a Vaisnava.”) Varnasrama-dharma being a social arrangement and Vaisnavism a spiritual endeavor, there is a natural tension between the two. If devotees become overly concerned with the procedures of varnasrama-dharma, they risk subordinating its spiritual purpose and becoming dully ritualistic. Yet without varnasrama-dharma, aspiring Vaisnavas risk becoming sahajiyas, or losing Krsna consciousness altogether.

Why at all varnasrama-dharma is required, when Vaisnavism is meant to help its practitioners transcend all social considerations, was several times explained by Srila Prabhupada (e.g. in a conversation in Mayapur on 14 February 1977). Indeed, Srila Prabhupada stated that 50% of his mission was yet to be established, in the form of varnasrama-dharma. If we consider what Srila Prabhupada actually did, we can perceive a little of the massive task that Srila Prabhupada has left us. Just as spreading Krsna consciousness worldwide and compiling volumes of lawbooks for the next ten thousand years was an unprecedented and seemingly impossible achievement, so is the reestablishment of varnasrama-dharma.

Unfortunately we as an institution have opted to acquiesce with a misguided civilization that is collapsing all around us, rather than implementing varnasrama-dharma as the literally God-given remedy for all social ills. We have found it easier to be content with urban properties and followers rather than taking Srila Prabhupada’s revolution to the next level by living on the land, protecting cows, producing our own food, and being happy by chanting Hare Krsna. For several years the GBC has been conducting strategic planning, but varnasrama-dharma is not on the agenda, even as a long-term project.

There is ample evidence of ISKCON’s becoming increasingly compromised—in fact that is the subject of a whole book by Professor E. Burke Rochford (“Hare Krishna Transformed”). That we have converted the gurukulas started by Srila Prabhupada into schools that teach government syllabi (in contravention of Srila Prabhupada’s express order), and that we increasingly present our movement as being Hindu, are just two examples of our pronounced “mission drift.” (See http://www.oneiskcon.com/2012/07/explaining-some-concerns-about-iskcon-mission-drift/)

The non-implementation of varnasrama-dharma should be considered in light of the following grave words (Cc Adi 12.10):

acaryera mata yei, sei mata sara / tanra ajna langhi’ cale, sei ta’ asara

TRANSLATION

The order of the spiritual master is the active principle in spiritual life. Anyone who disobeys the order of the spiritual master immediately becomes useless.

PURPORT

Here is the opinion of Srila Krsnadasa Kaviraja Gosvami. Persons who strictly follow the orders of the spiritual master are useful in executing the will of the Supreme, whereas persons who deviate from the strict order of the spiritual master are useless.

Just as Srila Prabhupada criticized his godbrothers as being useless (see Cc Adi 12.8 purport) for not having fulfilled their guru’s open order to preach Krsna consciousness, so future generations might well criticize us as being useless for having deviated from Srila Prabhupada’s open order to establish varnasrama-dharma.

Therefore I suggest that the issue of female diksa-gurus be considered in relation to the whole direction of our movement. If we wish to continue neglecting Srila Prabhupada’s order to institute varnasrama-dharma, then introducing female diksa-gurus is the logical next step in our pandering to the egalitarian fantasy that is intrinsic to modern so-called civilization.

But if somehow we get back to what Srila Prabhupada so much wanted and we decide to implement varnasrama-dharma, then we will have to put much energy into community development, starting at the family level. If husbands and wives cannot live happily together, there cannot be stable families, without which there cannot be stable communities, without which there cannot be varnasrama-dharma.

Sannyasis tend to get all the name, fame, and glory, but it is a great mistake to underestimate the importance of mothers and grandmothers. The body and psychology of women are designed to perform an essential function that men simply cannot do, which is to be mothers. Without the total giving of themselves to their children that is the natural characteristic of motherhood, we cannot expect children to develop into emotionally secure adults. In the modern world, females are unnaturally drafted into go-getter male roles, and not encouraged to develop their innate feminine tendencies toward motherly affection and selflessness. This is undoubtedly a major unseen factor in the discontent and psychological imbalance of innumerable individuals today. People can suffer lifelong if they do not grow up being soaked in mother’s love.

ISKCON already has many devotees competent to deliver learned lectures, but we have yet to demonstrate to the world a better way of life based on stable, happy families. Because we have not yet have a developed family culture, it might seem that that the only way that senior Vaisnavis can share their years of experience in Krsna consciousness is by traveling around giving lectures. No doubt some of our exalted godsisters can lecture as well as the best sannyasis in our movement. Yet by adopting a sannyasi-like lifestyle, they are inadvertently sending a message to junior matajis that the topmost aspiration for a woman in Krsna consciousness is to be an independent preacher—and now maybe a guru also. (However, guruship in ISKCON means a lot more than just big seats and flowers, and would-be gurudevis might have second thoughts if they knew what they were getting into.)

I respectfully submit that our senior Vaisnavis can better serve Srila Prabhupada’s mission, not by trying to emulate sannyasis, but by serving as ideal grandmothers, helping to guide young mothers in how to manage households expertly, with unlimited warmth and affection, and in an exemplary Krsna conscious manner. By acting as home-based guides within small communities, senior Vaisnavis can perform a vital role in establishing Krsna conscious culture at grassroots level in a way that sannyasis cannot. Although in emergencies anything can be done, if we are to demonstrate to the world that varnasrama-dharma is the most stable, satisfying, and enlightened form of social organization, then we shall have to train our men as responsible husbands and fathers, and our women as devoted wives and affectionate mothers. Trying to cast everyone into male roles simply underlines our failure to institute varnasrama-dharma, and our unwillingness to reverse this trend.

We cannot browbeat lady devotees to adopt stri-dharma, and to attempt to do so would likely result in offenses. Yet if we are to establish that traditional household roles for women, although scorned by feminists, are indeed what Krsna has prescribed for them and is what works best for them and for the world, then first we as a society will have to understand and emphasize this point. We shall also have to praise and adore chaste women, as sastra teaches us to do, rather than simply neglect them.

The present controversy about female diksa-gurus is a symptom of the cultural rift that has been widening within ISKCON for at least fifteen years, and that if not resolved can only result in a distinct schism. It all centers on the question of the cultural orientation of our movement.

Over the years, the leadership of ISKCON has quietly, without consulting the wider body of devotees, promoted assimilation with the broader society rather than conquest of it by varnasrama-dharma. Hopefully, this current standoff concerning female gurus will lead to a society-wide reassessment of our cultural values and of the whole direction of our organization.

If that discussion were to result in a commitment to establish varnasrama-dharma, it would be a great step forward for our movement. By continuing to neglect this order of Srila Prabhupada, we risk being gradually cut off from his full mercy, as is manifest even today in our increasing adoption of secular and mundane traits.

Source: http://iskconnews.org/gurudevis-and-grandmothers,5330/

One day while Krishna was playing with His small playmates, including Balarama and other sons of the gopas, all His friends came together and lodged a complaint to mother Yasoda. “Mother,” they submitted, “Krishna has eaten earth.” Upon hearing this from Krishnas’s playmates, mother Yasoda, who was always full of anxiety over Krishna’s welfare, picked Krishna up with her hands to look into His mouth and chastise Him. Her eyes fearful, she spoke to her son as follows. Dear Krishna, why are You so restless that You have eaten dirt in a solitary place? This complaint has been lodged against You by all Your playmates, including Your elder brother, Balarama. How is this?Lord Śrī Krishna replied: My dear mother, I have never eaten dirt. All My friends complaining against Me are liars. If you think they are being truthful, you can directly look into My mouth and examine it.Mother Yasoda challenged Krishna, “If You have not eaten earth, then open Your mouth wide.” When challenged by His mother in this way, Krishna, the son of Nanda Mahārāja and Yasoda, to exhibit pastimes like a human child, opened His mouth. Although the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Krishna, who is full of all opulences, did not disturb His mother’s parental affection, His opulence was automatically displayed, for Krishna’s opulence is never lost at any stage, but is manifest at the proper time. When Krishna opened His mouth wide by the order of mother Yasoda, she saw within His mouth all moving and non-moving entities, outer space, and all directions, along with mountains, islands, oceans, the surface of the earth, the blowing wind, fire, the moon and the stars. She saw the planetary systems, water, light, air, sky, and creation by transformation of ahaṅkāra. She also saw the senses, the mind, sense perception, and the three qualities goodness, passion and ignorance. She saw the time allotted for the living entities, she saw natural instinct and the reactions of karma, and she saw desires and different varieties of bodies, moving and nonmoving. Seeing all these aspects of the cosmic manifestation, along with herself and Vṛndāvana-dhāma, she became doubtful and fearful of her son’s nature. (SB 10.8.32-45)

Full texts and purports

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam
By His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupāda
Canto 10, Chapter 8, Text 32-45

Lord Krishna Shows the Universal Form Within His Mouth

TEXT 32

ekadā krīḍamānās te
rāmādyā gopa-dārakāḥ
kṛṣṇo mṛdaṁ bhakṣitavān
iti mātre nyavedayan

ekadā—once upon a time; krīḍamānāḥ—now Kṛṣṇa, being still more grown up, was playing with other children of the same age; te—they; rāma-ādyāḥ—Balarāma and others; gopa-dārakāḥ—other boys born in the same neighborhood of the cowherd men; kṛṣṇaḥ mṛdam bhakṣitavān—O Mother, Kṛṣṇa has eaten earth (a complaint was lodged); iti—thus; mātre—unto mother Yaśodā; nyavedayan—they submitted.

TRANSLATION

One day while Kṛṣṇa was playing with His small playmates, including Balarāma and other sons of the gopas, all His friends came together and lodged a complaint to mother Yaśodā. “Mother,” they submitted, “Kṛṣṇa has eaten earth.”

PURPORT

Here is another of Kṛṣṇa’s transcendental activities invented to please the gopīs. First a complaint was lodged with mother Yaśodā about Kṛṣṇa’s stealing, but mother Yaśodā did not chastise Him. Now, in an attempt to awaken mother Yaśodā’s anger so that she would chastise Kṛṣṇa, another complaint was invented—that Kṛṣṇa had eaten earth.

TEXT 33

sā gṛhītvā kare kṛṣṇam
upālabhya hitaiṣiṇī
yaśodā bhaya-sambhrānta-
prekṣaṇākṣam abhāṣata

sā—mother Yaśodā; gṛhītvā—taking; kare—within the hands (being anxious about what Kṛṣṇa might have eaten); kṛṣṇam—Kṛṣṇa; upālabhya—wanted to chastise Him; hita-eṣiṇī—because she was anxious for the welfare of Kṛṣṇa, she became very much agitated, thinking, “How is it that Kṛṣṇa has eaten earth?”; yaśodā—mother Yaśodā; bhaya-sambhrānta-prekṣaṇa-akṣam—began to look very carefully within Kṛṣṇa’s mouth in fear, to see if Kṛṣṇa had eaten something dangerous; abhāṣata—began to address Kṛṣṇa.

TRANSLATION

Upon hearing this from Kṛṣṇa’s playmates, mother Yaśodā, who was always full of anxiety over Kṛṣṇa’s welfare, picked Kṛṣṇa up with her hands to look into His mouth and chastise Him. Her eyes fearful, she spoke to her son as follows.

TEXT 34

kasmān mṛdam adāntātman
bhavān bhakṣitavān rahaḥ
vadanti tāvakā hy ete
kumārās te ’grajo ’py ayam

kasmāt—why; mṛdam—dirt; adānta-ātman—You restless boy; bhavān—You; bhakṣitavān—have eaten; rahaḥ—in a solitary place; vadanti—are lodging this complaint; tāvakāḥ—Your friends and playmates; hi—indeed; ete—all of them; kumārāḥ—boys; te—Your; agrajaḥ—older brother; api—also (confirms); ayam—this.

TRANSLATION

Dear Kṛṣṇa, why are You so restless that You have eaten dirt in a solitary place? This complaint has been lodged against You by all Your playmates, including Your elder brother, Balarāma. How is this?

PURPORT

Mother Yaśodā was agitated by Kṛṣṇa’s restless misbehavior. Her house was full of sweetmeats. Why then should the restless boy eat dirt in a solitary place? Kṛṣṇa replied, “My dear mother, they have plotted together and lodged a complaint against Me so that you will punish Me. My elder brother, Balarāma, has joined them. Actually, I have not done this. Take My words as true. Do not be angry and chastise Me.”

TEXT 35

nāhaṁ bhakṣitavān amba
sarve mithyābhiśaṁsinaḥ
yadi satya-giras tarhi
samakṣaṁ paśya me mukham

na—not; aham—I; bhakṣitavān—have eaten dirt; amba—My dear mother; sarve—all of them; mithya-abhiśaṁsinaḥ—all liars, simply complaining against Me so that you may chastise Me; yadi—if it is actually a fact; satya-giraḥ—that they have spoken the truth; tarhi—then; samakṣam—directly; paśya—see; me—My; mukham—mouth.

TRANSLATION

Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa replied: My dear mother, I have never eaten dirt. All My friends complaining against Me are liars. If you think they are being truthful, you can directly look into My mouth and examine it.

PURPORT

Kṛṣṇa presented Himself as an innocent child to increase the transcendental ecstasy of maternal affection. As described in the śāstra, tāḍana-bhayān mithyoktir vātsalya-rasa-poṣikā. This means that sometimes a small child speaks lies. For example, he may have stolen something or eaten something and yet deny that he has done so. We ordinarily see this in the material world, but in relation to Kṛṣṇa it is different; such activities are meant to endow the devotee with transcendental ecstasy. The Supreme Personality of Godhead was playing as a liar and accusing all the other devotees of being liars. As stated in Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam (10.12.11), kṛta-puṇya-puñjāḥ: a devotee may attain such an ecstatic position after many, many births of devotional service. Persons who have amassed the results of a vast amount of pious activities can attain the stage of associating with Kṛṣṇa and playing with Him like ordinary playmates. One should not consider these transactions of transcendental service to be untruthful accusations. One should never accuse such devotees of being ordinary boys speaking lies, for they attained this stage of associating with Kṛṣṇa by great austerities (tapasā brahmacaryeṇa śamena ca damena ca [SB 6.1.13]).

TEXT 36

yady evaṁ tarhi vyādehī-
ty uktaḥ sa bhagavān hariḥ
vyādattāvyāhataiśvaryaḥ
krīḍā-manuja-bālakaḥ

yadi—if; evam—it is so; tarhi—then; vyādehi—open Your mouth wide (I want to see); iti uktaḥ—in this way ordered by mother Yaśodā; saḥ—He; bhagavān—the Supreme Personality of Godhead; hariḥ—the Supreme Lord; vyādatta—opened His mouth; avyāhata-aiśvaryaḥ—without minimizing any potencies of absolute opulence (aiśvaryasya samagrasya); krīḍā—pastimes; manuja-bālakaḥ—exactly like the child of a human being.

TRANSLATION

Mother Yaśodā challenged Kṛṣṇa, “If You have not eaten earth, then open Your mouth wide.” When challenged by His mother in this way, Kṛṣṇa, the son of Nanda Mahārāja and Yaśodā, to exhibit pastimes like a human child, opened His mouth. Although the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Kṛṣṇa, who is full of all opulences, did not disturb His mother’s parental affection, His opulence was automatically displayed, for Kṛṣṇa’s opulence is never lost at any stage, but is manifest at the proper time.

PURPORT

Without disturbing the ecstasy of His mother’s affection, Kṛṣṇa opened His mouth and displayed His own natural opulences. When a person is given varieties of food, there may be a hundred and one varieties, but if one likes ordinary śāka, spinach, he prefers to eat that. Similarly, although Kṛṣṇa was full of opulences, now, by the order of mother Yaśodā, He opened wide His mouth like a human child and did not neglect the transcendental humor of maternal affection.

TEXTS 37–39
sā tatra dadṛśe viśvaṁ
jagat sthāsnu ca khaṁ diśaḥ
sādri-dvīpābdhi-bhūgolaṁ
sa-vāyv-agnīndu-tārakam

jyotiś-cakraṁ jalaṁ tejo
nabhasvān viyad eva ca
vaikārikāṇīndriyāṇi
mano mātrā guṇās trayaḥ

etad vicitraṁ saha-jīva-kāla-
svabhāva-karmāśaya-liṅga-bhedam
sūnos tanau vīkṣya vidāritāsye
vrajaṁ sahātmānam avāpa śaṅkām

sā—mother Yaśodā; tatra—within the wide-open mouth of Kṛṣṇa; dadṛśe—saw; viśvam—the whole universe; jagat—moving entities; sthāsnu—maintenance of nonmoving entities; ca—and; kham—the sky; diśaḥ—the directions; sa-adri—with the mountains; dvīpa—islands; abdhi—and oceans; bhū-golam—the surface of the earth; sa-vāyu—with the blowing wind; agni—fire; indu—the moon; tārakam—stars; jyotiḥ-cakram—the planetary systems; jalam—water; tejaḥ—light; nabhasvān—outer space; viyat—the sky; eva—also; ca—and; vaikārikāṇi—creation by transformation of ahaṅkāra; indriyāṇi—the senses; manaḥ—mind; mātrāḥ—sense perception; guṇāḥ trayaḥ—the three material qualities (sattva, rajas and tamas); etat—all these; vicitram—varieties; saha—along with; jīva-kāla—the duration of life of all living entities; svabhāva—natural instinct; karma-āśaya—resultant action and desire for material enjoyment; liṅga-bhedam—varieties of bodies according to desire; sūnoḥ tanau—in the body of her son; vīkṣya—seeing; vidārita-āsye—within the wide-open mouth; vrajam—Vṛndāvana-dhāma, Nanda Mahārāja’s place; saha-ātmānam—along with herself; avāpa—was struck; śaṅkām—with all doubts and wonder.

TRANSLATION

When Kṛṣṇa opened His mouth wide by the order of mother Yaśodā, she saw within His mouth all moving and nonmoving entities, outer space, and all directions, along with mountains, islands, oceans, the surface of the earth, the blowing wind, fire, the moon and the stars. She saw the planetary systems, water, light, air, sky, and creation by transformation of ahaṅkāra. She also saw the senses, the mind, sense perception, and the three qualities goodness, passion and ignorance. She saw the time allotted for the living entities, she saw natural instinct and the reactions of karma, and she saw desires and different varieties of bodies, moving and nonmoving. Seeing all these aspects of the cosmic manifestation, along with herself and Vṛndāvana-dhāma, she became doubtful and fearful of her son’s nature.

PURPORT

All the cosmic manifestations that exist on the gross and subtle elements, as well as the means of their agitation, the three guṇas, the living entity, creation, maintenance, annihilation and everything going on in the external energy of the Lord—all this comes from the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Govinda. Everything is within the control of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. This is also confirmed in Bhagavad-gītā (9.10). Mayādhyakṣeṇa prakṛtiḥ sūyate sa-carācaram: everything in the material nature (prakṛti) works under His control. Because all these manifestations come from Govinda, they could all be visible within the mouth of Govinda. Quite astonishingly, mother Yaśodā was afraid because of intense maternal affection. She could not believe that within the mouth of her son such things could appear. Yet she saw them, and therefore she was struck with fear and wonder.

TEXT 40

kiṁ svapna etad uta devamāyā
kiṁ vā madīyo bata buddhi-mohaḥ
atho amuṣyaiva mamārbhakasya
yaḥ kaścanautpattika ātma-yogaḥ

kim—whether; svapnaḥ—a dream; etat—all this; uta—or otherwise; deva-māyā—an illusory manifestation by the external energy; kim vā—or else; madīyaḥ—my personal; bata—indeed; buddhi-mohaḥ—illusion of intelligence; atho—otherwise; amuṣya—of such; eva—indeed; mama arbhakasya—of my child; yaḥ—which; kaścana—some; autpattikaḥ—natural; ātma-yogaḥ—personal mystic power.

TRANSLATION

[Mother Yaśodā began to argue within herself:] Is this a dream, or is it an illusory creation by the external energy? Has this been manifested by my own intelligence, or is it some mystic power of my child?

PURPORT

When mother Yaśodā saw this wonderful manifestation within the mouth of her child, she began to argue within herself about whether it was a dream. Then she considered, “I am not dreaming, because my eyes are open. I am actually seeing what is happening. I am not sleeping, nor am I dreaming. Then maybe this is an illusion created by devamāyā. But that is also not possible. What business would the demigods have showing such things to me? I am an insignificant woman with no connection with the demigods. Why should they take the trouble to put me into devamāyā? That also is not possible.” Then mother Yaśodā considered whether the vision might be due to bewilderment: “I am fit in health; I am not diseased. Why should there be any bewilderment? It is not possible that my brain is deranged, since I am ordinarily quite fit to think. Then this vision must be due to some mystic power of my son, as predicted by Gargamuni.” Thus she finally concluded that the vision was due to her son’s activities, and nothing else.

TEXT 41

atho yathāvan na vitarka-gocaraṁ
ceto-manaḥ-karma-vacobhir añjasā
yad-āśrayaṁ yena yataḥ pratīyate
sudurvibhāvyaṁ praṇatāsmi tat-padam

atho—therefore she decided to surrender unto the Supreme Lord; yathā-vat—as perfectly as one can perceive; na—not; vitarka-gocaram—beyond all arguments, reason and sense perception; cetaḥ—by consciousness; manaḥ—by mind; karma—by activities; vacobhiḥ—or by words; añjasā—taking all of them together, we cannot understand them; yat-āśrayam—under whose control; yena—by whom; yataḥ—from whom; pratīyate—can be conceived only that from Him everything emanates; su-durvibhāvyam—beyond our sense perception or consciousness; praṇatā asmi—let me surrender; tat-padam—at His lotus feet.

TRANSLATION

Therefore let me surrender unto the Supreme Personality of Godhead and offer my obeisances unto Him, who is beyond the conception of human speculation, the mind, activities, words and arguments, who is the original cause of this cosmic manifestation, by whom the entire cosmos is maintained, and by whom we can conceive of its existence. Let me simply offer my obeisances, for He is beyond my contemplation, speculation and meditation. He is beyond all of my material activities.

PURPORT

One simply has to realize the greatness of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. One should not try to understand Him by any material means, subtle or gross. Mother Yaśodā, being a simple woman, could not find out the real cause of the vision; therefore, out of maternal affection, she simply offered obeisances unto the Supreme Lord to protect her child. She could do nothing but offer obeisances to the Lord. It is said, acintyāḥ khalu ye bhāvā na tāṁs tarkeṇa yojayet (Mahābhārata, Bhīṣma parva 5.22). One should not try to understand the supreme cause by argument or reasoning. When we are beset by some problem for which we can find no reason, there is no alternative than to surrender to the Supreme Lord and offer Him our respectful obeisances. Then our position will be secure. This was the means adopted in this instance also by mother Yaśodā. Whatever happens, the original cause is the Supreme Personality of Godhead (sarva-kāraṇa-kāraṇam [Bs. 5.1]). When the immediate cause cannot be ascertained, let us simply offer our obeisances at the lotus feet of the Lord. Mother Yaśodā concluded that the wonderful things she saw within the mouth of her child were due to Him, although she could not clearly ascertain the cause. Therefore when a devotee cannot ascertain the cause of suffering, he concludes:

tat te ’nukampāṁ susamīkṣamāṇo
bhuñjāna evātma-kṛtaṁ vipākam
hṛd-vāg-vapurbhir vidadhan namas te
jīveta yo mukti-pade sa dāya-bhāk
(Bhāg. 10.14.8)

The devotee accepts that it is due to his own past misdeeds that the Supreme Personality of Godhead has caused him some small amount of suffering. Thus he offers obeisances to the Lord again and again. Such a devotee is called mukti-pade sa dāya-bhāk; that is, he is guaranteed his liberation from this material world. As stated in Bhagavad-gītā (2.14):

mātrā-sparśās tu kaunteya
śītoṣṇa-sukha-duḥkha-dāḥ
āgamāpāyino nityās
tāṁs titikṣasva bhārata

We should know that material suffering due to the material body will come and go. Therefore we must tolerate the suffering and proceed with discharging our duty as ordained by our spiritual master.

TEXT 42

ahaṁ mamāsau patir eṣa me suto
vrajeśvarasyākhila-vittapā satī
gopyaś ca gopāḥ saha-godhanāś ca me
yan-māyayetthaṁ kumatiḥ sa me gatiḥ

aham—my existence (“I am something”); mama—my; asau—Nanda Mahārāja; patiḥ—husband; eṣaḥ—this (Kṛṣṇa); me sutaḥ—is my son; vraja-īśvarasya—of my husband, Nanda Mahārāja; akhila-vitta-pā—I am the possessor of unlimited opulence and wealth; satī—because I am his wife; gopyaḥ ca—and all the damsels of the cowherd men; gopāḥ—all the cowherd men (are my subordinates); saha-godhanāḥ ca—with the cows and calves; me—my; yat-māyayā—all such things addressed by me are, after all, given by the mercy of the Supreme; ittham—thus; kumatiḥ—I am wrongly thinking they are my possessions; saḥ me gatiḥ—He is therefore my only shelter (I am simply instrumental).

TRANSLATION

It is by the influence of the Supreme Lord’s māyā that I am wrongly thinking that Nanda Mahārāja is my husband, that Kṛṣṇa is my son, and that because I am the queen of Nanda Mahārāja, all the wealth of cows and calves are my possessions and all the cowherd men and their wives are my subjects. Actually, I also am eternally subordinate to the Supreme Lord. He is my ultimate shelter.

PURPORT

Following in the footsteps of mother Yaśodā, everyone should follow this mentality of renunciation. Whatever wealth, opulence or whatever else we may possess belongs not to us but to the Supreme Personality of Godhead, who is the ultimate shelter of everyone and the ultimate owner of everything. As stated by the Lord Himself in Bhagavad-gītā (5.29):

bhoktāraṁ yajña-tapasāṁ
sarva-loka-maheśvaram
suhṛdaṁ sarva-bhūtānāṁ
jñātvā māṁ śāntim ṛcchati

“The sages, knowing Me as the ultimate purpose of all sacrifices and austerities, the Supreme Lord of all planets and demigods and the benefactor and well-wisher of all living entities, attain peace from the pangs of material miseries.”
We should not be proud of our possessions. As expressed by mother Yaśodā herein, “I am not the owner of possessions, the opulent wife of Nanda Mahārāja. The estate, the possessions, the cows and calves and the subjects like the gopīs and cowherd men are all given to me.” One should give up thinking of “my possessions, my son and my husband” (janasya moho’yam ahaṁ mameti [SB 5.5.8]). Nothing belongs to anyone but the Supreme Lord. Only because of illusion do we wrongly think, “I am existing” or “Everything belongs to me.” Thus mother Yaśodā completely surrendered unto the Supreme Lord. For the moment, she was rather disappointed, thinking, “My endeavors to protect my son by charity and other auspicious activities are useless. The Supreme Lord has given me many things, but unless He takes charge of everything, there is no assurance of protection. I must therefore ultimately seek shelter of the Supreme Personality of Godhead.” As stated by Prahlāda Mahārāja (Bhāg. 7.9.19), bālasya neha śaraṇaṁ pitarau nṛsiṁha: a father and mother cannot ultimately take care of their children. Ato gṛha-kṣetra-sutāpta-vittair janasya moho ’yam ahaṁ mameti (Bhāg. 5.5.8). One’s land, home, wealth and all of one’s possessions belong to the Supreme Personality of Godhead, although we wrongly think, “I am this” and “These things are mine.”

TEXT 43

itthaṁ vidita-tattvāyāṁ
gopikāyāṁ sa īśvaraḥ
vaiṣṇavīṁ vyatanon māyāṁ
putra-snehamayīṁ vibhuḥ

ittham—in this way; vidita-tattvāyām—when she understood the truth of everything philosophically; gopikāyām—unto mother Yaśodā; saḥ—the Supreme Lord; īśvaraḥ—the supreme controller; vaiṣṇavīm—viṣṇumāyā, or yogamāyā; vyatanot—expanded; māyām—yogamāyā; putra-sneha-mayīm—very much attached because of maternal affection for her son; vibhuḥ—the Supreme Lord.

TRANSLATION

Mother Yaśodā, by the grace of the Lord, could understand the real truth. But then again, the supreme master, by the influence of the internal potency, yogamāyā, inspired her to become absorbed in intense maternal affection for her son.

PURPORT

Although mother Yaśodā understood the whole philosophy of life, at the next moment she was overwhelmed by affection for her son by the influence of yogamāyā. Unless she took care of her son Kṛṣṇa, she thought, how could He be protected? She could not think otherwise, and thus she forgot all her philosophical speculations. This forgetfulness is described by Śrīla Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura as being inspired by the influence of yogamāyā (mohana-sādharmyān māyām). Materialistic persons are captivated by mahāmāyā, whereas devotees, by the arrangement of the spiritual energy, are captivated by yogamāyā.

TEXT 44

sadyo naṣṭa-smṛtir gopī
sāropyāroham ātmajam
pravṛddha-sneha-kalila-
hṛdayāsīd yathā purā

sadyaḥ—after all these philosophical speculations, mother Yaśodā fully surrendered to the Supreme Personality of Godhead; naṣṭa-smṛtiḥ—having gotten rid of the memory of seeing the universal form within Kṛṣṇa’s mouth; gopī—mother Yaśodā; sā—she; āropya—seating; āroham—on the lap; ātmajam—her son; pravṛddha—increased; sneha—by affection; kalila—affected; hṛdayā—the core of her heart; āsīt—became situated; yathā purā—as she was formerly.

TRANSLATION

Immediately forgetting yogamāyā’s illusion that Kṛṣṇa had shown the universal form within His mouth, mother Yaśodā took her son on her lap as before, feeling increased affection in her heart for her transcendental child.

PURPORT

Mother Yaśodā regarded the vision of the universal form within Kṛṣṇa’s mouth as an arrangement of yogamāyā, like a dream. As one forgets everything after a dream, mother Yaśodā immediately forgot the entire incident. As her natural feeling of affection increased, she decided to herself, “Now let this incident be forgotten. I do not mind. Here is my son. Let me kiss Him.”

TEXT 45

trayyā copaniṣadbhiś ca
sāṅkhya-yogaiś ca sātvataiḥ
upagīyamāna-māhātmyaṁ
hariṁ sāmanyatātmajam

trayyā—by studying the three Vedas (Sāma, Yajur and Atharva); ca—also; upaniṣadbhiḥ ca—and by studying the Vedic knowledge of the Upaniṣads; sāṅkhya-yogaiḥ—by reading the literature of sāṅkhya-yoga; ca—and; sātvataiḥ—by the great sages and devotees, or by reading Vaiṣṇava-tantra, Pañcarātras; upagīyamāna-māhātmyam—whose glories are worshiped (by all these Vedic literatures); harim—unto the Supreme Personality of Godhead; sā—she; amanyata—considered (ordinary); ātmajam—as her own son.

TRANSLATION

The glories of the Supreme Personality of Godhead are studied through the three Vedas, the Upaniṣads, the literature of Sāṅkhya-yoga, and other Vaiṣṇava literature, yet mother Yaśodā considered that Supreme Person her ordinary child.

PURPORT

As stated in Bhagavad-gītā (15.15) by the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Kṛṣṇa, the purpose of studying the Vedas is to understand Him (vedaiś ca sarvair aham eva vedyaḥ). Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu explained to Sanātana Gosvāmī that there are three purposes in the Vedas. One is to understand our relationship with Kṛṣṇa (sambandha), another is to act according to that relationship (abhidheya), and the third is to reach the ultimate goal (prayojana). The word prayojana means “necessities,” and the ultimate necessity is explained by Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu. premā pum-artho mahān: the greatest necessity for a human being is the achievement of love for the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Here we see that mother Yaśodā is on the highest stage of necessity, for she is completely absorbed in love for Kṛṣṇa.

In the beginning, the Vedic purpose is pursued in three ways (trayī)—by karma-kāṇḍa, jñāna-kāṇḍa and upāsanā-kāṇḍa. When one reaches the complete, perfect stage of upāsanā-kāṇḍa, one comes to worship Nārāyaṇa, or Lord Viṣṇu. When Pārvatī asked Lord Mahādeva, Lord Śiva, what is the best method of upāsanā, or worship, Lord Śiva answered, ārādhanānāṁ sarveṣāṁ viṣṇor ārādhanaṁ param. Viṣṇūpāsanā, or viṣṇv-ārādhana, worship of Lord Viṣṇu, is the highest stage of perfection, as realized by Devakī. But here mother Yaśodā performs no upāsanā, for she has developed transcendental ecstatic love for Kṛṣṇa. Therefore her position is better than that of Devakī. In order to show this, Śrīla Vyāsadeva enunciates this verse, trayyā copaniṣadbhiḥ etc.
When a human being enters into the study of the Vedas to obtain vidyā, knowledge, he begins to take part in human civilization. Then he advances further to study the Upaniṣads and gain brahma jñāna, impersonal realization of the Absolute Truth, and then he advances still further, to sāṅkhya-yoga, in order to understand the supreme controller, who is indicated in Bhagavad-gītā (paraṁ brahma paraṁ dhāma pavitraṁ paramaṁ bhavān/puruṣaṁ śāśvatam [Bg. 10.12]). When one understands that puruṣa, the supreme controller, to be Paramātmā, one is engaged in the method of yoga (dhyānāvasthita-tad-gatena manasā paśyanti yaṁ yoginaḥ [SB 12.13.1]). But mother Yaśodā has surpassed all these stages. She has come to the platform of loving Kṛṣṇa as her beloved child, and therefore she is accepted to be on the highest stage of spiritual realization. The Absolute Truth is realized in three features (brahmeti paramātmeti bhagavān iti śabdyate), but she is in such ecstasy that she does not care to understand what is Brahman, what is Paramātmā or what is Bhagavān. Bhagavān has personally descended to become her beloved child. Therefore there is no comparison to mother Yaśodā’s good fortune, as declared by Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu (ramyā kācid upāsanā vrajavadhū-vargeṇa yā kalpitā). The Absolute Truth, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, may be realized in different stages. As the Lord says in Bhagavad-gītā (4.11):

ye yathā māṁ prapadyante
tāṁs tathaiva bhajāmy aham
mama vartmānuvartante
manuṣyāḥ pārtha sarvaśaḥ

“As men surrender unto Me, I reward them accordingly. Everyone follows My path in all respects, O son of Pṛthā.” One may be a karmī, a jñānī, a yogī and then a bhakta or prema-bhakta. But the ultimate stage of realization is prema-bhakti, as actually demonstrated by mother Yaśodā.One day while Krishna was playing with His small playmates, including Balarama and other sons of the gopas, all His friends came together and lodged a complaint to mother Yasoda. “Mother,” they submitted, “Krishna has eaten earth.” Upon hearing this from Krishnas’s playmates, mother Yasoda, who was always full of anxiety over Krishna’s welfare, picked Krishna up with her hands to look into His mouth and chastise Him. Her eyes fearful, she spoke to her son as follows. Dear Krishna, why are You so restless that You have eaten dirt in a solitary place? This complaint has been lodged against You by all Your playmates, including Your elder brother, Balarama. How is this?Lord Śrī Krishna replied: My dear mother, I have never eaten dirt. All My friends complaining against Me are liars. If you think they are being truthful, you can directly look into My mouth and examine it.Mother Yasoda challenged Krishna, “If You have not eaten earth, then open Your mouth wide.” When challenged by His mother in this way, Krishna, the son of Nanda Mahārāja and Yasoda, to exhibit pastimes like a human child, opened His mouth. Although the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Krishna, who is full of all opulences, did not disturb His mother’s parental affection, His opulence was automatically displayed, for Krishna’s opulence is never lost at any stage, but is manifest at the proper time. When Krishna opened His mouth wide by the order of mother Yasoda, she saw within His mouth all moving and non-moving entities, outer space, and all directions, along with mountains, islands, oceans, the surface of the earth, the blowing wind, fire, the moon and the stars. She saw the planetary systems, water, light, air, sky, and creation by transformation of ahaṅkāra. She also saw the senses, the mind, sense perception, and the three qualities goodness, passion and ignorance. She saw the time allotted for the living entities, she saw natural instinct and the reactions of karma, and she saw desires and different varieties of bodies, moving and nonmoving. Seeing all these aspects of the cosmic manifestation, along with herself and Vṛndāvana-dhāma, she became doubtful and fearful of her son’s nature. (SB 10.8.32-45)

Full texts and purports

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam
By His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupāda
Canto 10, Chapter 8, Text 32-45

Lord Krishna Shows the Universal Form Within His Mouth

TEXT 32

ekadā krīḍamānās te
rāmādyā gopa-dārakāḥ
kṛṣṇo mṛdaṁ bhakṣitavān
iti mātre nyavedayan

ekadā—once upon a time; krīḍamānāḥ—now Kṛṣṇa, being still more grown up, was playing with other children of the same age; te—they; rāma-ādyāḥ—Balarāma and others; gopa-dārakāḥ—other boys born in the same neighborhood of the cowherd men; kṛṣṇaḥ mṛdam bhakṣitavān—O Mother, Kṛṣṇa has eaten earth (a complaint was lodged); iti—thus; mātre—unto mother Yaśodā; nyavedayan—they submitted.

TRANSLATION

One day while Kṛṣṇa was playing with His small playmates, including Balarāma and other sons of the gopas, all His friends came together and lodged a complaint to mother Yaśodā. “Mother,” they submitted, “Kṛṣṇa has eaten earth.”

PURPORT

Here is another of Kṛṣṇa’s transcendental activities invented to please the gopīs. First a complaint was lodged with mother Yaśodā about Kṛṣṇa’s stealing, but mother Yaśodā did not chastise Him. Now, in an attempt to awaken mother Yaśodā’s anger so that she would chastise Kṛṣṇa, another complaint was invented—that Kṛṣṇa had eaten earth.

TEXT 33

sā gṛhītvā kare kṛṣṇam
upālabhya hitaiṣiṇī
yaśodā bhaya-sambhrānta-
prekṣaṇākṣam abhāṣata

sā—mother Yaśodā; gṛhītvā—taking; kare—within the hands (being anxious about what Kṛṣṇa might have eaten); kṛṣṇam—Kṛṣṇa; upālabhya—wanted to chastise Him; hita-eṣiṇī—because she was anxious for the welfare of Kṛṣṇa, she became very much agitated, thinking, “How is it that Kṛṣṇa has eaten earth?”; yaśodā—mother Yaśodā; bhaya-sambhrānta-prekṣaṇa-akṣam—began to look very carefully within Kṛṣṇa’s mouth in fear, to see if Kṛṣṇa had eaten something dangerous; abhāṣata—began to address Kṛṣṇa.

TRANSLATION

Upon hearing this from Kṛṣṇa’s playmates, mother Yaśodā, who was always full of anxiety over Kṛṣṇa’s welfare, picked Kṛṣṇa up with her hands to look into His mouth and chastise Him. Her eyes fearful, she spoke to her son as follows.

TEXT 34

kasmān mṛdam adāntātman
bhavān bhakṣitavān rahaḥ
vadanti tāvakā hy ete
kumārās te ’grajo ’py ayam

kasmāt—why; mṛdam—dirt; adānta-ātman—You restless boy; bhavān—You; bhakṣitavān—have eaten; rahaḥ—in a solitary place; vadanti—are lodging this complaint; tāvakāḥ—Your friends and playmates; hi—indeed; ete—all of them; kumārāḥ—boys; te—Your; agrajaḥ—older brother; api—also (confirms); ayam—this.

TRANSLATION

Dear Kṛṣṇa, why are You so restless that You have eaten dirt in a solitary place? This complaint has been lodged against You by all Your playmates, including Your elder brother, Balarāma. How is this?

PURPORT

Mother Yaśodā was agitated by Kṛṣṇa’s restless misbehavior. Her house was full of sweetmeats. Why then should the restless boy eat dirt in a solitary place? Kṛṣṇa replied, “My dear mother, they have plotted together and lodged a complaint against Me so that you will punish Me. My elder brother, Balarāma, has joined them. Actually, I have not done this. Take My words as true. Do not be angry and chastise Me.”

TEXT 35

nāhaṁ bhakṣitavān amba
sarve mithyābhiśaṁsinaḥ
yadi satya-giras tarhi
samakṣaṁ paśya me mukham

na—not; aham—I; bhakṣitavān—have eaten dirt; amba—My dear mother; sarve—all of them; mithya-abhiśaṁsinaḥ—all liars, simply complaining against Me so that you may chastise Me; yadi—if it is actually a fact; satya-giraḥ—that they have spoken the truth; tarhi—then; samakṣam—directly; paśya—see; me—My; mukham—mouth.

TRANSLATION

Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa replied: My dear mother, I have never eaten dirt. All My friends complaining against Me are liars. If you think they are being truthful, you can directly look into My mouth and examine it.

PURPORT

Kṛṣṇa presented Himself as an innocent child to increase the transcendental ecstasy of maternal affection. As described in the śāstra, tāḍana-bhayān mithyoktir vātsalya-rasa-poṣikā. This means that sometimes a small child speaks lies. For example, he may have stolen something or eaten something and yet deny that he has done so. We ordinarily see this in the material world, but in relation to Kṛṣṇa it is different; such activities are meant to endow the devotee with transcendental ecstasy. The Supreme Personality of Godhead was playing as a liar and accusing all the other devotees of being liars. As stated in Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam (10.12.11), kṛta-puṇya-puñjāḥ: a devotee may attain such an ecstatic position after many, many births of devotional service. Persons who have amassed the results of a vast amount of pious activities can attain the stage of associating with Kṛṣṇa and playing with Him like ordinary playmates. One should not consider these transactions of transcendental service to be untruthful accusations. One should never accuse such devotees of being ordinary boys speaking lies, for they attained this stage of associating with Kṛṣṇa by great austerities (tapasā brahmacaryeṇa śamena ca damena ca [SB 6.1.13]).

TEXT 36

yady evaṁ tarhi vyādehī-
ty uktaḥ sa bhagavān hariḥ
vyādattāvyāhataiśvaryaḥ
krīḍā-manuja-bālakaḥ

yadi—if; evam—it is so; tarhi—then; vyādehi—open Your mouth wide (I want to see); iti uktaḥ—in this way ordered by mother Yaśodā; saḥ—He; bhagavān—the Supreme Personality of Godhead; hariḥ—the Supreme Lord; vyādatta—opened His mouth; avyāhata-aiśvaryaḥ—without minimizing any potencies of absolute opulence (aiśvaryasya samagrasya); krīḍā—pastimes; manuja-bālakaḥ—exactly like the child of a human being.

TRANSLATION

Mother Yaśodā challenged Kṛṣṇa, “If You have not eaten earth, then open Your mouth wide.” When challenged by His mother in this way, Kṛṣṇa, the son of Nanda Mahārāja and Yaśodā, to exhibit pastimes like a human child, opened His mouth. Although the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Kṛṣṇa, who is full of all opulences, did not disturb His mother’s parental affection, His opulence was automatically displayed, for Kṛṣṇa’s opulence is never lost at any stage, but is manifest at the proper time.

PURPORT

Without disturbing the ecstasy of His mother’s affection, Kṛṣṇa opened His mouth and displayed His own natural opulences. When a person is given varieties of food, there may be a hundred and one varieties, but if one likes ordinary śāka, spinach, he prefers to eat that. Similarly, although Kṛṣṇa was full of opulences, now, by the order of mother Yaśodā, He opened wide His mouth like a human child and did not neglect the transcendental humor of maternal affection.

TEXTS 37–39
sā tatra dadṛśe viśvaṁ
jagat sthāsnu ca khaṁ diśaḥ
sādri-dvīpābdhi-bhūgolaṁ
sa-vāyv-agnīndu-tārakam

jyotiś-cakraṁ jalaṁ tejo
nabhasvān viyad eva ca
vaikārikāṇīndriyāṇi
mano mātrā guṇās trayaḥ

etad vicitraṁ saha-jīva-kāla-
svabhāva-karmāśaya-liṅga-bhedam
sūnos tanau vīkṣya vidāritāsye
vrajaṁ sahātmānam avāpa śaṅkām

sā—mother Yaśodā; tatra—within the wide-open mouth of Kṛṣṇa; dadṛśe—saw; viśvam—the whole universe; jagat—moving entities; sthāsnu—maintenance of nonmoving entities; ca—and; kham—the sky; diśaḥ—the directions; sa-adri—with the mountains; dvīpa—islands; abdhi—and oceans; bhū-golam—the surface of the earth; sa-vāyu—with the blowing wind; agni—fire; indu—the moon; tārakam—stars; jyotiḥ-cakram—the planetary systems; jalam—water; tejaḥ—light; nabhasvān—outer space; viyat—the sky; eva—also; ca—and; vaikārikāṇi—creation by transformation of ahaṅkāra; indriyāṇi—the senses; manaḥ—mind; mātrāḥ—sense perception; guṇāḥ trayaḥ—the three material qualities (sattva, rajas and tamas); etat—all these; vicitram—varieties; saha—along with; jīva-kāla—the duration of life of all living entities; svabhāva—natural instinct; karma-āśaya—resultant action and desire for material enjoyment; liṅga-bhedam—varieties of bodies according to desire; sūnoḥ tanau—in the body of her son; vīkṣya—seeing; vidārita-āsye—within the wide-open mouth; vrajam—Vṛndāvana-dhāma, Nanda Mahārāja’s place; saha-ātmānam—along with herself; avāpa—was struck; śaṅkām—with all doubts and wonder.

TRANSLATION

When Kṛṣṇa opened His mouth wide by the order of mother Yaśodā, she saw within His mouth all moving and nonmoving entities, outer space, and all directions, along with mountains, islands, oceans, the surface of the earth, the blowing wind, fire, the moon and the stars. She saw the planetary systems, water, light, air, sky, and creation by transformation of ahaṅkāra. She also saw the senses, the mind, sense perception, and the three qualities goodness, passion and ignorance. She saw the time allotted for the living entities, she saw natural instinct and the reactions of karma, and she saw desires and different varieties of bodies, moving and nonmoving. Seeing all these aspects of the cosmic manifestation, along with herself and Vṛndāvana-dhāma, she became doubtful and fearful of her son’s nature.

PURPORT

All the cosmic manifestations that exist on the gross and subtle elements, as well as the means of their agitation, the three guṇas, the living entity, creation, maintenance, annihilation and everything going on in the external energy of the Lord—all this comes from the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Govinda. Everything is within the control of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. This is also confirmed in Bhagavad-gītā (9.10). Mayādhyakṣeṇa prakṛtiḥ sūyate sa-carācaram: everything in the material nature (prakṛti) works under His control. Because all these manifestations come from Govinda, they could all be visible within the mouth of Govinda. Quite astonishingly, mother Yaśodā was afraid because of intense maternal affection. She could not believe that within the mouth of her son such things could appear. Yet she saw them, and therefore she was struck with fear and wonder.

TEXT 40

kiṁ svapna etad uta devamāyā
kiṁ vā madīyo bata buddhi-mohaḥ
atho amuṣyaiva mamārbhakasya
yaḥ kaścanautpattika ātma-yogaḥ

kim—whether; svapnaḥ—a dream; etat—all this; uta—or otherwise; deva-māyā—an illusory manifestation by the external energy; kim vā—or else; madīyaḥ—my personal; bata—indeed; buddhi-mohaḥ—illusion of intelligence; atho—otherwise; amuṣya—of such; eva—indeed; mama arbhakasya—of my child; yaḥ—which; kaścana—some; autpattikaḥ—natural; ātma-yogaḥ—personal mystic power.

TRANSLATION

[Mother Yaśodā began to argue within herself:] Is this a dream, or is it an illusory creation by the external energy? Has this been manifested by my own intelligence, or is it some mystic power of my child?

PURPORT

When mother Yaśodā saw this wonderful manifestation within the mouth of her child, she began to argue within herself about whether it was a dream. Then she considered, “I am not dreaming, because my eyes are open. I am actually seeing what is happening. I am not sleeping, nor am I dreaming. Then maybe this is an illusion created by devamāyā. But that is also not possible. What business would the demigods have showing such things to me? I am an insignificant woman with no connection with the demigods. Why should they take the trouble to put me into devamāyā? That also is not possible.” Then mother Yaśodā considered whether the vision might be due to bewilderment: “I am fit in health; I am not diseased. Why should there be any bewilderment? It is not possible that my brain is deranged, since I am ordinarily quite fit to think. Then this vision must be due to some mystic power of my son, as predicted by Gargamuni.” Thus she finally concluded that the vision was due to her son’s activities, and nothing else.

TEXT 41

atho yathāvan na vitarka-gocaraṁ
ceto-manaḥ-karma-vacobhir añjasā
yad-āśrayaṁ yena yataḥ pratīyate
sudurvibhāvyaṁ praṇatāsmi tat-padam

atho—therefore she decided to surrender unto the Supreme Lord; yathā-vat—as perfectly as one can perceive; na—not; vitarka-gocaram—beyond all arguments, reason and sense perception; cetaḥ—by consciousness; manaḥ—by mind; karma—by activities; vacobhiḥ—or by words; añjasā—taking all of them together, we cannot understand them; yat-āśrayam—under whose control; yena—by whom; yataḥ—from whom; pratīyate—can be conceived only that from Him everything emanates; su-durvibhāvyam—beyond our sense perception or consciousness; praṇatā asmi—let me surrender; tat-padam—at His lotus feet.

TRANSLATION

Therefore let me surrender unto the Supreme Personality of Godhead and offer my obeisances unto Him, who is beyond the conception of human speculation, the mind, activities, words and arguments, who is the original cause of this cosmic manifestation, by whom the entire cosmos is maintained, and by whom we can conceive of its existence. Let me simply offer my obeisances, for He is beyond my contemplation, speculation and meditation. He is beyond all of my material activities.

PURPORT

One simply has to realize the greatness of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. One should not try to understand Him by any material means, subtle or gross. Mother Yaśodā, being a simple woman, could not find out the real cause of the vision; therefore, out of maternal affection, she simply offered obeisances unto the Supreme Lord to protect her child. She could do nothing but offer obeisances to the Lord. It is said, acintyāḥ khalu ye bhāvā na tāṁs tarkeṇa yojayet (Mahābhārata, Bhīṣma parva 5.22). One should not try to understand the supreme cause by argument or reasoning. When we are beset by some problem for which we can find no reason, there is no alternative than to surrender to the Supreme Lord and offer Him our respectful obeisances. Then our position will be secure. This was the means adopted in this instance also by mother Yaśodā. Whatever happens, the original cause is the Supreme Personality of Godhead (sarva-kāraṇa-kāraṇam [Bs. 5.1]). When the immediate cause cannot be ascertained, let us simply offer our obeisances at the lotus feet of the Lord. Mother Yaśodā concluded that the wonderful things she saw within the mouth of her child were due to Him, although she could not clearly ascertain the cause. Therefore when a devotee cannot ascertain the cause of suffering, he concludes:

tat te ’nukampāṁ susamīkṣamāṇo
bhuñjāna evātma-kṛtaṁ vipākam
hṛd-vāg-vapurbhir vidadhan namas te
jīveta yo mukti-pade sa dāya-bhāk
(Bhāg. 10.14.8)

The devotee accepts that it is due to his own past misdeeds that the Supreme Personality of Godhead has caused him some small amount of suffering. Thus he offers obeisances to the Lord again and again. Such a devotee is called mukti-pade sa dāya-bhāk; that is, he is guaranteed his liberation from this material world. As stated in Bhagavad-gītā (2.14):

mātrā-sparśās tu kaunteya
śītoṣṇa-sukha-duḥkha-dāḥ
āgamāpāyino nityās
tāṁs titikṣasva bhārata

We should know that material suffering due to the material body will come and go. Therefore we must tolerate the suffering and proceed with discharging our duty as ordained by our spiritual master.

TEXT 42

ahaṁ mamāsau patir eṣa me suto
vrajeśvarasyākhila-vittapā satī
gopyaś ca gopāḥ saha-godhanāś ca me
yan-māyayetthaṁ kumatiḥ sa me gatiḥ

aham—my existence (“I am something”); mama—my; asau—Nanda Mahārāja; patiḥ—husband; eṣaḥ—this (Kṛṣṇa); me sutaḥ—is my son; vraja-īśvarasya—of my husband, Nanda Mahārāja; akhila-vitta-pā—I am the possessor of unlimited opulence and wealth; satī—because I am his wife; gopyaḥ ca—and all the damsels of the cowherd men; gopāḥ—all the cowherd men (are my subordinates); saha-godhanāḥ ca—with the cows and calves; me—my; yat-māyayā—all such things addressed by me are, after all, given by the mercy of the Supreme; ittham—thus; kumatiḥ—I am wrongly thinking they are my possessions; saḥ me gatiḥ—He is therefore my only shelter (I am simply instrumental).

TRANSLATION

It is by the influence of the Supreme Lord’s māyā that I am wrongly thinking that Nanda Mahārāja is my husband, that Kṛṣṇa is my son, and that because I am the queen of Nanda Mahārāja, all the wealth of cows and calves are my possessions and all the cowherd men and their wives are my subjects. Actually, I also am eternally subordinate to the Supreme Lord. He is my ultimate shelter.

PURPORT

Following in the footsteps of mother Yaśodā, everyone should follow this mentality of renunciation. Whatever wealth, opulence or whatever else we may possess belongs not to us but to the Supreme Personality of Godhead, who is the ultimate shelter of everyone and the ultimate owner of everything. As stated by the Lord Himself in Bhagavad-gītā (5.29):

bhoktāraṁ yajña-tapasāṁ
sarva-loka-maheśvaram
suhṛdaṁ sarva-bhūtānāṁ
jñātvā māṁ śāntim ṛcchati

“The sages, knowing Me as the ultimate purpose of all sacrifices and austerities, the Supreme Lord of all planets and demigods and the benefactor and well-wisher of all living entities, attain peace from the pangs of material miseries.”
We should not be proud of our possessions. As expressed by mother Yaśodā herein, “I am not the owner of possessions, the opulent wife of Nanda Mahārāja. The estate, the possessions, the cows and calves and the subjects like the gopīs and cowherd men are all given to me.” One should give up thinking of “my possessions, my son and my husband” (janasya moho’yam ahaṁ mameti [SB 5.5.8]). Nothing belongs to anyone but the Supreme Lord. Only because of illusion do we wrongly think, “I am existing” or “Everything belongs to me.” Thus mother Yaśodā completely surrendered unto the Supreme Lord. For the moment, she was rather disappointed, thinking, “My endeavors to protect my son by charity and other auspicious activities are useless. The Supreme Lord has given me many things, but unless He takes charge of everything, there is no assurance of protection. I must therefore ultimately seek shelter of the Supreme Personality of Godhead.” As stated by Prahlāda Mahārāja (Bhāg. 7.9.19), bālasya neha śaraṇaṁ pitarau nṛsiṁha: a father and mother cannot ultimately take care of their children. Ato gṛha-kṣetra-sutāpta-vittair janasya moho ’yam ahaṁ mameti (Bhāg. 5.5.8). One’s land, home, wealth and all of one’s possessions belong to the Supreme Personality of Godhead, although we wrongly think, “I am this” and “These things are mine.”

TEXT 43

itthaṁ vidita-tattvāyāṁ
gopikāyāṁ sa īśvaraḥ
vaiṣṇavīṁ vyatanon māyāṁ
putra-snehamayīṁ vibhuḥ

ittham—in this way; vidita-tattvāyām—when she understood the truth of everything philosophically; gopikāyām—unto mother Yaśodā; saḥ—the Supreme Lord; īśvaraḥ—the supreme controller; vaiṣṇavīm—viṣṇumāyā, or yogamāyā; vyatanot—expanded; māyām—yogamāyā; putra-sneha-mayīm—very much attached because of maternal affection for her son; vibhuḥ—the Supreme Lord.

TRANSLATION

Mother Yaśodā, by the grace of the Lord, could understand the real truth. But then again, the supreme master, by the influence of the internal potency, yogamāyā, inspired her to become absorbed in intense maternal affection for her son.

PURPORT

Although mother Yaśodā understood the whole philosophy of life, at the next moment she was overwhelmed by affection for her son by the influence of yogamāyā. Unless she took care of her son Kṛṣṇa, she thought, how could He be protected? She could not think otherwise, and thus she forgot all her philosophical speculations. This forgetfulness is described by Śrīla Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura as being inspired by the influence of yogamāyā (mohana-sādharmyān māyām). Materialistic persons are captivated by mahāmāyā, whereas devotees, by the arrangement of the spiritual energy, are captivated by yogamāyā.

TEXT 44

sadyo naṣṭa-smṛtir gopī
sāropyāroham ātmajam
pravṛddha-sneha-kalila-
hṛdayāsīd yathā purā

sadyaḥ—after all these philosophical speculations, mother Yaśodā fully surrendered to the Supreme Personality of Godhead; naṣṭa-smṛtiḥ—having gotten rid of the memory of seeing the universal form within Kṛṣṇa’s mouth; gopī—mother Yaśodā; sā—she; āropya—seating; āroham—on the lap; ātmajam—her son; pravṛddha—increased; sneha—by affection; kalila—affected; hṛdayā—the core of her heart; āsīt—became situated; yathā purā—as she was formerly.

TRANSLATION

Immediately forgetting yogamāyā’s illusion that Kṛṣṇa had shown the universal form within His mouth, mother Yaśodā took her son on her lap as before, feeling increased affection in her heart for her transcendental child.

PURPORT

Mother Yaśodā regarded the vision of the universal form within Kṛṣṇa’s mouth as an arrangement of yogamāyā, like a dream. As one forgets everything after a dream, mother Yaśodā immediately forgot the entire incident. As her natural feeling of affection increased, she decided to herself, “Now let this incident be forgotten. I do not mind. Here is my son. Let me kiss Him.”

TEXT 45

trayyā copaniṣadbhiś ca
sāṅkhya-yogaiś ca sātvataiḥ
upagīyamāna-māhātmyaṁ
hariṁ sāmanyatātmajam

trayyā—by studying the three Vedas (Sāma, Yajur and Atharva); ca—also; upaniṣadbhiḥ ca—and by studying the Vedic knowledge of the Upaniṣads; sāṅkhya-yogaiḥ—by reading the literature of sāṅkhya-yoga; ca—and; sātvataiḥ—by the great sages and devotees, or by reading Vaiṣṇava-tantra, Pañcarātras; upagīyamāna-māhātmyam—whose glories are worshiped (by all these Vedic literatures); harim—unto the Supreme Personality of Godhead; sā—she; amanyata—considered (ordinary); ātmajam—as her own son.

TRANSLATION

The glories of the Supreme Personality of Godhead are studied through the three Vedas, the Upaniṣads, the literature of Sāṅkhya-yoga, and other Vaiṣṇava literature, yet mother Yaśodā considered that Supreme Person her ordinary child.

PURPORT

As stated in Bhagavad-gītā (15.15) by the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Kṛṣṇa, the purpose of studying the Vedas is to understand Him (vedaiś ca sarvair aham eva vedyaḥ). Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu explained to Sanātana Gosvāmī that there are three purposes in the Vedas. One is to understand our relationship with Kṛṣṇa (sambandha), another is to act according to that relationship (abhidheya), and the third is to reach the ultimate goal (prayojana). The word prayojana means “necessities,” and the ultimate necessity is explained by Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu. premā pum-artho mahān: the greatest necessity for a human being is the achievement of love for the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Here we see that mother Yaśodā is on the highest stage of necessity, for she is completely absorbed in love for Kṛṣṇa.

In the beginning, the Vedic purpose is pursued in three ways (trayī)—by karma-kāṇḍa, jñāna-kāṇḍa and upāsanā-kāṇḍa. When one reaches the complete, perfect stage of upāsanā-kāṇḍa, one comes to worship Nārāyaṇa, or Lord Viṣṇu. When Pārvatī asked Lord Mahādeva, Lord Śiva, what is the best method of upāsanā, or worship, Lord Śiva answered, ārādhanānāṁ sarveṣāṁ viṣṇor ārādhanaṁ param. Viṣṇūpāsanā, or viṣṇv-ārādhana, worship of Lord Viṣṇu, is the highest stage of perfection, as realized by Devakī. But here mother Yaśodā performs no upāsanā, for she has developed transcendental ecstatic love for Kṛṣṇa. Therefore her position is better than that of Devakī. In order to show this, Śrīla Vyāsadeva enunciates this verse, trayyā copaniṣadbhiḥ etc.
When a human being enters into the study of the Vedas to obtain vidyā, knowledge, he begins to take part in human civilization. Then he advances further to study the Upaniṣads and gain brahma jñāna, impersonal realization of the Absolute Truth, and then he advances still further, to sāṅkhya-yoga, in order to understand the supreme controller, who is indicated in Bhagavad-gītā (paraṁ brahma paraṁ dhāma pavitraṁ paramaṁ bhavān/puruṣaṁ śāśvatam [Bg. 10.12]). When one understands that puruṣa, the supreme controller, to be Paramātmā, one is engaged in the method of yoga (dhyānāvasthita-tad-gatena manasā paśyanti yaṁ yoginaḥ [SB 12.13.1]). But mother Yaśodā has surpassed all these stages. She has come to the platform of loving Kṛṣṇa as her beloved child, and therefore she is accepted to be on the highest stage of spiritual realization. The Absolute Truth is realized in three features (brahmeti paramātmeti bhagavān iti śabdyate), but she is in such ecstasy that she does not care to understand what is Brahman, what is Paramātmā or what is Bhagavān. Bhagavān has personally descended to become her beloved child. Therefore there is no comparison to mother Yaśodā’s good fortune, as declared by Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu (ramyā kācid upāsanā vrajavadhū-vargeṇa yā kalpitā). The Absolute Truth, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, may be realized in different stages. As the Lord says in Bhagavad-gītā (4.11):

ye yathā māṁ prapadyante
tāṁs tathaiva bhajāmy aham
mama vartmānuvartante
manuṣyāḥ pārtha sarvaśaḥ

“As men surrender unto Me, I reward them accordingly. Everyone follows My path in all respects, O son of Pṛthā.” One may be a karmī, a jñānī, a yogī and then a bhakta or prema-bhakta. But the ultimate stage of realization is prema-bhakti, as actually demonstrated by mother Yaśodā.

Source: http://theharekrishnamovement.org/2016/01/14/lord-k%E1%B9%9B%E1%B9%A3%E1%B9%87a-shows-the-universal-form-within-his-mouth/

To give or not to give? Answer by Radhanath Swami.
Question: While traveling by trains I see many children begging. They seem hungry and I can’t bear the sight. When they ask for money, one side of me says I shouldn’t give them the money, for they might give it to people who’ll misuse it. My other side says that I should. What should I do? 
Radhanath Swami: Real joy comes through service – through serving without expecting anything material in return. When we do something and we get something in return, it gives satisfaction to the mind and to the senses, but it does little for the heart. Actual inner wealth is the propensity to serve, not to exploit – not to take, but to give. There are different levels of service that give different levels of inner fulfillment. Philanthropy is to serve those who are in physical or mental need. That service is in sattva guna, the mode of goodness, if it is done properly. And that gives us a higher sense of gratification than just making and taking, because it gives us a chance to express a selfless spirit of servitude. To give without expecting anything in return is love, and ultimately it is love that we are all looking for. Greater service is done when we cater to the needs of a person’s soul. While giving a person inner enlightenment, we are not just solving temporary needs which will come back in a few hours. We are actually giving them inner eternal wealth. When these children come to beg from you, in my opinion, as far as possible you should give them something. If you are afraid that they are going to misuse your money, then always carry some prasad, nice food that’s sanctified by offering it first to the Lord. Have a little bag of prasad, or a big bag of prasad, and give them prasad. You will see that the children will become HAPPY! We have an instruction for our entire congregation: wherever you go in your car, have prasad in your compartment; and if you’re walking, have some prasad in your bag, and never leave a beggar empty handed. If you give beggars money they may spend it on food, or they may spend it on drugs or they may give it to some mafia person who’s hiring them – you don’t know. But then, YOU DON”T KNOW! They may give it for food. So no harm in giving them money. But if you want to be sure of really helping them, give them some prasad, and then they will be very happy. In fact, whenever we drive in Mumbai, at the stop lights little children come running to our car, and they surround us saying, “prasad, prasad, prasad.” They jump, they laugh, and they are happy to get the prasad. Thus they get some nourishment, their bodies get some fulfillment, and they are also getting spiritually enlightened through the process. There is a certain natural guilt in our heart if you just refuse a beggar, and that guilt in the heart is your higher nature saying, “Somebody has come; you should help them if you can.”

Source: http://m.dandavats.com/?p=18307

In his upcoming new book “Our Family Business: The Great Art of Distributing Srila Prabhupada’s Books” – out February 24th -- veteran distributor Vaisesika Das shares the history, key principles and techniques of book distribution, drawing from a lifetime of experience.

Vaisesika, a disciple of Srila Prabhupada, is known for strategizing innovative ways to distribute his spiritual master’s books on spiritual knowledge, and for teaching these methods to devotees around the world.

The ISKCON spiritual community of three hundred families he developed in Silicon Valley, California is based on the study and distribution of Prabhupada’s books, and consistently ranks high amongst the list of small temples in these efforts. 

A year and a half ago, after both senior ISKCON leaders from around the world, and trustees of the publishing company Bhaktivedanta Book Trust had requested him to share his knowledge and insight, Vaisesika sat down to write. 

“It was great to consolidate all the things that I had learned throughout the years from mentors, and to dig deep and think about my own realizations, and how this service had actually molded my life,” he says.

Our Family Business is divided into four sections. The first, Chronicles, gives a basic history of book distribution in the Gaudiya Sampradaya, in Srila Prabhupada’s life, and in ISKCON up to his passing in 1977, describing how it got off the ground in the U.S. and spread all over the world.

“I wanted to show how Prabhupada developed it from nothing, so I compared his starting in a dusty little room in Vrindavana to other family businesses like Hewlett Packard and Apple, which both started in a garage,” says Vaisesika. “I call it ‘spiritual entrepreneurialism.’”

The first section also includes an account of how Vaisesika himself received his first book from a friend in high school.

The Cover of Our Family Business

The second section, Tenets, outlines the reasons why ISKCON devotees distribute books. In the chapter “The Pen is Mightier than the Sword,” Vaisesika talks about the written word’s sway on humanity, and about how Krishna consciousness is most solidly spread through it. He also discusses how books are part of the yuga dharma; that according to Srila Prabhupada, there is no difference between chanting Hare Krishna in public, and distributing books, or literary kirtan.

“In that section, I also talk lot about how book distribution is confidential service, high sadhana [spiritual practice],” Vaisesika says. “Because when you go out on the street, you face your own mind, you face other kinds of challenges, and in that tension, you grow.”

The third section, Axioms, describes the foundational principles for building a successful book distribution program, with a whole chapter on how to improve one’s personal spiritual practice – something Vaisesika considers of paramount importance. It also talks about new methods of book distribution, such as the monthly sankirtana festival, in which householders go out to distribute books just once a month, but can make a huge impact.

“I also go into the four laws of book distribution,” Vaisesika says. “They are: 1) Your sadhana must be strong, 2) You must get books -- because you can’t distribute books you don’t have, 3) The more you show, the more you sell, and 4) You must organize.”

In the final part of Our Family Business, Vaisesika discusses Ajnata Sukriti – how people derive great benefit from coming in contact with Prabhupada’s message, even if they don’t know exactly what they’re receiving.

“I also talk about how important it is for us to make a good presentation, to leave people with good impressions,” he says. “Because just because there’s power in the Holy Name doesn’t mean that people will be mentally able to accept it, unless we make it available to them within their cultural perspective. So in that regard, I give a lot of evidence about how Lord Chaitanya particularly honed His message so that people would accept it.”

The book also includes illustrative and inspirational first-person book distribution stories with dialogue, secrets of highly effective book distributors, and more.

It has been highly praised by ISKCON leaders including Jayapataka Swami, Giriraj Swami, Indradyumna Swami and many more as a must-read for all devotees, not just book distributors.

“The work covers its subject so thoroughly and deeply, that it simultaneously serves as a superb instructional manual for Krishna Bhakti itself,” writes Ravindra Svarupa Das in his forward. “Even if book distribution is not your primary service, you will still find yourself enlightened, encouraged and enlivened by reading and re-reading Our Family Business.”

Vaisesika himself, in his introduction, adds: “Experts, newcomers, well-wishers, and retirees in need of a refresher course – all will find something in this book to inspire them. Finally, this book is meant to give a fresh and favorable second look at distributing books for those who, for whatever reason, now think of it disparagingly.”

At 540 pages, Our Family Business: The Great Art of Distributing Srila Prabhupada’s Books is published by the BBT and will be available to temple presidents for pre-order at this week’s North American Leaders’ meetings in Houston, Texas. It will then be physically released on February 24th at the ISKCON Leadership Sanga in Mayapur, West Bengal, followed by a North American release soon after. 

“I hope readers will get a sense for Prabhupada’s compassion, and for his penchant for literature, which he inherited from his spiritual master,” says Vaisesika. “And I hope they’ll also get a sense that book distribution is a holistic service -- that which educates us, enlivens us, and is a centerpiece for our entire movement.”

Source: http://iskconnews.org/veteran-preacher-shares-family-business-secrets,5332/

The Amazon Prime ad stated in bold letters : No Patience Required. Wow, I thought. That is the antithesis of spiritual life. Patience is the delightful component that moves us forward on our inner journey. Patience makes us wait, and in the practice of waiting we become ready to receive. In the quiet and stillness of patience we hear and see better. Patience is our friend and guide to going home. Much patience required!

My herbal tea bag later gave me another message: Recognize that you are the truth. Mmm. I think it’s suggesting that I am God. Not feeling that right now – have a headache, wish I had more money, and could control my mind. What kind of God is that? The truth is, we are part of God, as a spark is part of a fire. When we connect with that identity, we are touching the ultimate truth of who we are. Until we do that we could say, in truth, the rest is all a lie.

As I sipped my tea, I looked at the other messages on the other tea bags and mused over their meaning:

“Dignity and tranquility last forever”. In reality, in this world dignity and tranquility are as fleeting as the wind. The body itself is a noisy embarrassment we are stuck with and the mind is rarely tranquil. Nothing connected to this body lasts forever, except our spirit selves, who move on when the body folds.

“Our intuition comes from innocence”. In bhakti, intuition comes from the Lord in the heart, our wise friend and guide. It also comes from prayer, experience, honesty, and the desire to do the right thing and the best good.

“Where there is love there is no question”. Actually, where there is love there are lots of questions – How can I serve you? What would you like? Can I help you? We express our love by the things we do. To love Krishna, we do devotional service and we ask lots of questions.

“Joy is the essence of success.” We might say that joy is a byproduct of success, but that grace is really the essence of success. If we can connect with Krishna as the source of our inspiration and action, then joy will be there – in success or failure.

Messages come at us all day long. Play with them. They will either reveal a great truth in bhakti or remind us if we are heading in the wrong direction. They too will be our teachers.

Source: http://iskconofdc.org/wild-messages/