19790915 Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 4.9.9 Setting Priorities in Kṛṣṇa Consciousness

The following is class given by His Holiness Jayapatākā Swami Mahārāja on September 15, 1979 in Los Angeles, California. The class begins with a reading from the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, Canto 4, Chapter 9, Text 9.

Translation by His Divine Grace Śrī Śrīmad A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupāda:

Persons who worship You simply for the sense gratification of this bag of skin are certainly influenced by Your illusory energy. In spite of having You, who are like a desire tree and are the cause of liberation from birth and death, foolish persons, such as me, desire benedictions from You for sense gratification, which is available even for those who live in hellish conditions.

Purport by Śrīla Prabhupāda: Dhruva Mahārāja repented because he had come to the Lord to render devotional service for material profit. He here condemns his attitude. Only due to gross lack of knowledge does one worship the Lord for material profit or for sense gratification. The Lord is like a desire tree. Anyone can have whatever he desires from the Lord, but people in general do not know what kind of benediction they should ask from Him. Happiness derived from the touch of skin, or sensuous happiness, is present in the life of hogs and dogs. Such happiness is very insignificant. If a devotee worships the Lord for such insignificant happiness, he must be considered devoid of all knowledge.

Thus end the purport by Śrīla Prabhupāda.

His Holiness Jayapatākā Swami: So, the five-year-old son of Mahārāja Uttānapāda, the great Dhruva Mahārāja, after completing rigorous intent concentration in devotional service of the Lord, was so fortunate that, he saw Kṛṣṇa face to face in His Nārāyaṇa form. Seeing God face to face, Dhruva Mahārāja is reflecting, how he had been worshiping God, in order to regain his kingdom, the kingdom of his father, which he was illegally and improperly evicted from.

Thinking in that way Dhruva Mahārāja was experiencing extreme pain. How he had been so foolish to worship Kṛṣṇa and in return asking for a material benefit. It describes here that the Lord is just like a desire tree. A desire tree fills all the desires of the devotee and provides wonderful things. Whatever one desires, the desire tree provides. Of course, there may be some misconception, that what kind of desire tree is the Lord. Whatever the Lord is giving, whatever the devotee wants, the Lord is giving.

There is an example about one devotee, who was so fortunate, as to achieve association with a desire tree. You see. So, first thing he thought, “Now I can desire whatever I want. So, let me desire that I can have 10 kilos of Gold. Oh, desire tree! Give me 10 kilos, 22 pounds of pure 24 carat Gold.”

Immediately he gets the gold.

“Oh, look at Gold! Gold!! I have got Gold! So wonderful to have Gold. Issh... What else can I desire? Dear desire tree, please give me a 37-room house filled with servants and all kind of provision.”

“There it is!! Look at that house!! Wow!!" (Laughter)

“Shoo!" This desire tree is really wonderful, now what will I desire? Let me.... I can be a king. Desire tree! Make me the king of a huge nation called America. Oh, look it, I am the king of America. This desire tree is really fun.”

“Anything I want I can get. What if I think about, what if think there right now a tiger was going to come and oh no oooh… he ate me…”

You see, that kind of desire tree is not what is being talked about. Because Kṛṣṇa would not give to an ignorant person that facility. He would desire a tiger come and eat him. Because people are so mad with sense gratification.

So only, the pure devotee, he won’t desire for 22 kilos of Gold for his sense gratification or for a big house for his sense gratification or for the kingdom of any country on the world for his sense gratification. He being mature, will desire what can I offer to Kṛṣṇa? Today I like to have some nice mangoes, papaya, pineapple. Let me offer nice fruit plate to Rukmiṇī Dvārakādīśa. You see. Or he may desire to offer any beautiful garland. So, he may say, “Well, here I only get a few flowers, so I would like to have Goloka Campa, Rose, Lotus, Gardenia, so many different….” So, anything that he wants, that fruit, that desire tree would offer. But he would desire only those things to use in the Lord’s service. He doesn’t want to enjoy himself. His enjoyment is giving satisfaction, pleasure to the Lord, because he is a pure devotee. So, except for pure devotees, generally speaking, others are not allowed to get the facility of this desire tree. Because they don’t know what is good for them.

So Dhruva Mahārāja he could understand all these things, that the Lord, one can get anything he wants from Him. But if someone goes to Mr. Ford or Rockefeller, and if he happens to be charitably disposed, to give something if he goes after great difficulty and then says, “My dear multi-millionaire please give me one handful of cigarette ashes.”, then he would be crazy to ask for such a thing. One should then approach him and say, “My dear sir, please give me enough fund to build a beautiful front for Rukmiṇī Dvārakādīśa temple.” Why should we go and ask him for just, just some ashes the useless thing?

Like that if we go to Kṛṣṇa and ask Him that, “My dear Kṛṣṇa, please give me a nice car. Please give me a nice house. Please give me nice food. Please arrange something so I can pay for my rent.” If we just ask for all these things actually we are very foolish, because Kṛṣṇa has so much more to give. God has the greatest thing to give.

No matter what we accumulate in this life in the form of material possessions at the time of death it will all be finished, from dust to dust. So, the real thing to ask from God is His pure devotion, His pure loving devotion. Because that never ends.

Just like Kṛṣṇa never ends, and we never end, so the loving relationship between the devotee and Kṛṣṇa, that never comes to an end. This is known as sambandha, eternal relationship. So, we ask the Lord first to establish us in our eternal relationship. Who am I? Jīvera 'svarūpa' haya-kṛṣṇera 'nitya-dāsa', that our eternal form is we are Kṛṣṇa’s servant. So, the devotee first wants to realize what is my relationship.

Then the second abhidheya. Alright I am eternal servant of Kṛṣṇa. He is my eternal master. I’m His servant. Now how do I act in that position? How do I obtain the perfection of life? So that I should practice the realizing one’s relationship and obtaining the perfection of life, the means is called abhidheya.

The means of obtaining perfection and the perfection himself is prayojana or pure love of Kṛṣṇa.

The sambandha ācārya of our Gauḍīya Vaiṣṇava sampradāya is Śrī Sanātana Gosvāmī. Sanātana Gosvāmī explains all the different features of the transcendental realm in the universe and what is the relationship. Sanātana Gosvāmī describes that although there is a gross relationship between the hellish planets, earthly planets, the heavenly planets of this universe and beyond the universe, the realm of Lord Śiva and the impersonal Brahman, the Brahma-jyoti and the Vaikuṇṭha planets, Ayodhyā –the place of Śrī Rāmacandra and Goloka where Śrī Kṛṣṇa resides and Śvetadvīpa - Navadvīpa where Lord Caitanya resides, that in spite of all the variegated differences in a kind of, one can see them in a perspective of, of difference in the Lord.

Actually rather than some kind of a lateral type of, vertical, lateral type of comparison, the actual comparison, is established through various rasa or mellows of devotion. That the mood of the people or devotees in the certain planets, that mood or different relationships with the Lord in loving devotion are material.

Just like in the heavenly planets, there, there is a type of bhakti mixed with desire for sense gratification. And some other places it is mixed with, bhakti mixed with desire for speculative knowledge. As it becomes pure and pure from the gross karma, vikarma to karma to akarma to bhakti mixed with karma, bhakti mixed with jñāna to pure, [Aside: jñāna is below bhakti mixed with jñāna] then gradually to the pure, pure, pure type of bhakti, coming to bhakti in neutrality, then bhakti in servitude, then devotion in friendship goes devotion in parental love and then devotion in mādhurya-rasa in conjugal love.

In this way actually Sanātana Gosvāmī apart from establishing a kind of understanding of the material and spiritual world in the extent of happiness, and he described that human being’s happiness can be taken as “1”, numeral one, denominator. Take it that the hellish planets as less than 1, negative, unhappiness. Human being happiness are “1”. Then one goes from human being up to say the Gandharvas then his happiness is 10 times more, then he goes to kinnaras 100 times, then Cāraṇas 1000. Then again, in this way as he goes up through the different demigods, each time its 10 times greater happiness than before.

Then when one gets to asura, that’s again greater, those who are cent percent mystic powerful asura. Then beyond that one comes to the platform of the demigods, that’s again... then again Indra is again 100 times more. Then Brahmā is 100 times more than they. 1000 times more than they. Then when one gets to brahma-jyoti, the impersonal effulgence of the Lord emanating from His body, then it describes that all the material happiness combined is not even one drop compared to the happiness of Brahman. And then from Brahman to pure devotional service of the Lord, that happiness of pure devotion compared to Brahman, Brahman is not even the quantity of water contained in a calf’s footprint in the mud compared to the ocean of happiness of Kṛṣṇa. So, like this he established this relation.

Also, then he went into deeper in his Mahā-Bṛhad-bhāgavatāmṛta. The relationship between different planets in the sense of transcendental rasa or mellow. So, the highest planet is Goloka Vṛndāvana. There the highest interchange of devotion is existing between devotees.

So, Dhruva he is understanding that, “I was approaching the Lord for some fruitive result like a businessman I was going and saying. And I was thinking that, I’ll worship the Lord, when I get it, and then I will ask Him for a great kingdom, for so much power. Instead I’m feeling such transcendental ecstasy, I’m feeling such wonderful love to see His lotus feet, that I realize I’m so foolish to desire anything but simply to serve Him. What can be greater than that? Why am I clinging onto the broken glass of these material objects which are only temporary in nature, which are going to be destroyed at any moment? At any moment Kṛṣṇa can take them away from me. I have got no stability. Simply by His mercy I’m holding on, in spite of that I’m only thinking how to increase my material entanglement, how to increase my material liabilities, rather than accept Kṛṣṇa’s mercy and fully fix my mind in His service.”

Of course, this is very advanced, not everyone can immediately obtain this perfection. Therefore, it is recommended that if one cannot fully fix his mind in Kṛṣṇa’s devotion, if he is so unfortunate then at least he should give the fruits of his activity. He should use his time, use some of his energy, use some of his wealth to further the service of the Lord and prepare himself for full dedication.

So, Dhruva Mahārāja, he was already beyond all those stages, he was completely fully dedicated. There was no doubt. He had that desire. So, therefore he made this wonderful prayer which was deriding the pleasure of the senses, that we are so foolish we ask for the pleasure of the senses.

Of course, this same kind of… there was... In India of course, the people worship many demigods. Because demigods are known to give very quick results. They don’t inquire. Actually, the demigods are great devotees of Kṛṣṇa. They don’t ask, “What will be the result of what you are asking, whether it would be good or whether it would be bad?” You see. They don’t think that this devotee is worshiping me out of what kind of mood. Alright. The demigods are preoccupied in management and in the service to Kṛṣṇa. Someone is worshiping, alright you are approaching me, what do you want? Then they ask, “Please give me this, please.” And in Bengal, they do Durgā-pūjā, there I was walking by and I heard the brāhmaṇa. Their prayer after saying that they say first worship Durgā, “You are Nārāyaṇī – you are the consort of Nārāyaṇa, you are Vaiṣṇavī – you are devotee of Viṣṇu, you are the Jagat-Mohini, - you are the person who keeps the whole world in illusion.” In this way they glorify and then they get to the punch line. Then they pray, “Deya deya deya.” “Deya”, they say.

“Dhanam deya, śriyam deya, pratiṣṭhāṁ deya, pūjyaṁ deya, saubham deya, deya, deya, deya.” Deya means give me, give me, give me. “Give me wealth, give me establishment, give me beauty, give me power, give me a good wife, give me a home.” In this way, they go on. Janam deya, dhanam deya - give me wealth. This is their prayer. How can Durgā be fooled?

“Oh, you are so wonderful, so wonderful, so wonderful give me this, give me this, give me this, give me this.”

They are not loving Durgā, they are not loving these demigods, they are loving the wealth, the fame, the powers, the other things that they can get from her. So, they are not pure devotees.

There is a great demon called Narakāsura. Right by our temple in Guwahati, there is the famous temple of Kāmakhyā-devī. Kāmakhyā-devī is one of the Ādipithas or main places of Durgā. When Durgā became little uncontrollable then Kṛṣṇa divided her with His Sudarśana cakra on the request of the other demigods. [Aside: into how many pieces?]

56 different pieces and different pieces fell over India. So, this one piece fell in Assam. So there, there was a demon. All the worshipers of Devī they go there. But, actually Devī, when Kṛṣṇa personally He also visited the valley of Guwahati, at that time, she ordered one of her demon daughter, devotees to actually surrender to Kṛṣṇa.

So, she has, she is, so many there, so many stories how she has brought devotees to Kṛṣṇa. But, of course, the demons they simply worship her for material things. Everyone goes and says simply give me, give me, give me, give me. Of course, she is in a very, I mean, it must be very tiring for her to go and hear all these demands of all the people. Nobody asks for any pure, nobody with a pure heart is going.

One devotee Narakāsura, he worshiped just vigorous, worship and fasting and everything. Finally, she came and said, “Alright, you have satisfied me, what would you like to have as a benediction?” And Narakāsura, he said, looked at her and said, “You will satisfy my desire.”

“What is your desire.?”

He said, “I want to marry you.”

“I am already married with Lord Śiva.”

“Well, I want to at least enjoy you.”

Durgā was astonished that what predicament. You give a boon, and these demons are so lusty, they are so envious that, they even want to have a lusty relation with the very Goddess they are worshiping.

So, she tricked him and said, “Alright. I will satisfy your desire. Living in the top of this hill it is very hard for the devotees to come up here. So, you build a big stone staircase, if you can build it from the sunset before sunrise, then sure demon, your power gets stronger and in the night time I will give you that advantage. If you complete it before the morning, then I will satisfy your desire.”

So, this huge demon is picking up big boulders and building this up this huge mountain. He is building the staircase. Not huge, about very big hill, about 1500 or 2000 feet high.

Today - this is in the bygone yugas, many, many thousands and thousands of years ago, and he is building and building this single handedly. Just as the sunrise is coming, he is about 100 feet short.

“I am sorry”, she said, “You didn’t make it. Thank you for the pathway.”

[Aside: Devotess: Jaya!!]

So, the thing is that, these demigods, they are in a predicament, very bad predicament, because everybody is going and bothering them. They get so disgusted sometimes that everybody is coming. When a devotee comes and begs them, “Please tell me, how I can serve Kṛṣṇa?”, they feel very good. They feel very good to give such advice.

Lord Śiva himself is the founder of a Vaiṣṇava-sampradāya. There is a story how one devotee worshiped Lord Śiva, then he got the darśana of Lord Śiva and begged Lord Śiva, “Please give me the most wonderful thing in the whole universe.” And so, Lord Śiva said, “Yes I can give you. So, then you should go and see Sanātana Gosvāmī.” He said, “I would like a touchstone.” He said, “Oh you like a touchstone? He also has one of those. Anyway, you can see Sanātana Gosvāmī.”

Of course, many devotees… this is a common story. Then we all know how this devotee went to Sanātana Gosvāmī in Vṛndāvana and he was looking, looking and then he finally found where Sanātana Gosvāmī was, fell down at his Lotus feet and he prayed, “My dear Sanātana Gosvāmī! Lord Śiva has sent me that you have the most wonderful thing in the universe. I understand you have a touchstone.” The devotee you know.

Sanātana Gosvāmī said, “Make up your mind.”

So, he said, “I would like a touchstone.”

Touchstone, what a touchstone is almost like a desire tree in the sense that touchstone anything you touch with it, it turns into gold. So, for materialists this is very handy. If anything, you touch turns to gold, then you can have a very big budget for sense enjoyment.

So he asked, “Please I would like to have the touchstone.” Sanātana Gosvāmī said, “Yes you go in the back, there is a garbage pit, you find in the garbage pile, there is one touchstone somewhere there. You can just look.”, and he started doing his worship. So, then he, the devotee, goes in the back there he sees a huge pile of garbage leaves, everything there all the refuse. He looks, looks, looks through them and finds one brilliant stone. He touches, “Gold! Gold! Gold! Gold! Gold! Gold! Gold! Gold! I am rich, I am rich, gold! More than a million Krugers, everywhere gold.” He was so happy just getting everything gold.

Then he started to think that Sanātana Gosvāmī kept it… Everyone I said, “I wanted the greatest thing” they said, “Yes.” And I said, “Touchstone.” And I found this touchstone in the garbage pit. What is the really valuable thing? He must have something more valuable. Who keeps a touchstone in the garbage? What is his real wealth that is what I must find.

So, then he went back, and he said Sanātana Gosvāmī, “You have kept this touchstone in the garbage pit, I am thinking that my dear master, you must have something more valuable even than this.”

“Oh yes, I have something much more valuable.”

“Oh! May I have that? May I have that most precious object?”

“Why not?! But you must first throw away this touchstone.”

“Throw away my touchstone?! But I just got so much gold.”

“Well, if you want the greatest thing, the most valuable thing, then you can't hold on to this petty thing.”

“Well you let me on the right path once, so I have faith in you.”

So, he went and threw away the touchstone back in the garbage pit, came back, paid his obeisances.

“Now please tell me, what is the most valuable thing? Please give it to me.”

So, then of course Sanātana Gosvāmī said, “Alright! Come over here. This is a great secret, listen – Hare Kṛṣṇa, Hare Kṛṣṇa, Kṛṣṇa Kṛṣṇa, Hare Hare/ Hare Rāma, Hare Rāma, Rāma Rāma, Hare Hare. [Aside: All devotees chanting in unison.] Chant this mahā-mantra, this holy name of God, this is the most valuable thing that I possess. It will satisfy all of your desires.”

So, in this way Dhruva Mahārāja he was saying that Kṛṣṇa Himself is the desire tree. Why was I desiring such insignificant thing? He realizes that his duty is to satisfy the desires of Kṛṣṇa. So, he simply focuses that not on obtaining Kṛṣṇa in an indirect way, but he sees that actually the direct process is by simply carrying out the order of the spiritual master. Then automatically whenever Kṛṣṇa is pleased, He will appear. So, we simply try to carry out the orders of our previous ācāryas, of our disciplic succession. Actually, Prabhupāda revealed that there is a great secret to becoming advanced in Kṛṣṇa consciousness. There is a great secret, that secret is one should constantly pray for the mercy of his spiritual master and the previous ācāryas to advance in pure devotional service. One should pray, he should desire the mercy of the great Vaiṣṇavas.

This is the open secret, that they are very easily satisfied. But, one cannot approach without going through his spiritual master. If one does that is called Māyāvādī. He is trying to say I and my guru are one. That cannot. One has to approach to his spiritual master and he begs previous ācāryas, Lord Caitanya, Nityānanda for mercy, for help to perfect oneself in pure Kṛṣṇa consciousness.

Śrīla Prabhupāda he always showed this, he always was trying to satisfy the desires of the previous ācāryas. Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura had said that, “More important than big temples is book distribution.” When he was at his last few days, he told Prabhupāda confidentially that, “In the Gauḍīya Maṭha when we build such big building, we moved from our rented house, then immediately there was a conflict when we had our marble temple. Who would stay in which room? Who would take which position? Who would sit where? Now I’m thinking better to simply take out all the marble stone, sell it and print books and distribute profusely.”

The purport is that our first business is book distribution. And Prabhupāda he is seeing what is the mood of my spiritual master, what is the mood of the previous ācāryas? They want Lord Caitanya’s movement to be spread. So, he saw that first there must be book distribution. Then there must be temple construction. The basis is books, basis is transcendental books. So, in the same way, Śrīla Prabhupāda, he always was looking for a chance to satisfy one of the predictions or one of the desires of the previous ācāryas.

Śrīla Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura, he predicted in many places in his writings, in his monthly journals, in his books, that the whole world would one day become Kṛṣṇa conscious just as Lord Caitanya had predicted. And he would offer and invite all the people of the world to take part in his transcendental market place of the Holy Name. Although it was 1890, when every Indian was thinking that British with a big iron horses, the locomotives, they have given us the greatest thing. There is nothing greater than this. When people were wearing suits and coats and were proud to be given the title of Sir, Asutosh sir, such and such Mukherjee. They were so pleased to become the, get these titles from the western people and drink tea and take on the western affinities and the ways and mannerisms. He was saying, No the whole world will embrace Lord Caitanya’s saṅkīrtana movement. This is a very dynamic and far reaching understanding.

So, of course Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura he predicted that, “At the holy birthplace of Śrīdhāma Māyāpur that one day will come, when there will be devotees from all over the world who would come to pay homage at the birthplace of Lord Caitanya, who would come and serving in the birthplace of Lord Caitanya, they would chant together – Jaya Śacīnandana! Jaya Śacīnandana! Jaya Gaurahari!”

So, Prabhupāda, he saw the desire of the previous ācārya to have devotees from all over the world come to that Holy place and so then he took the opportunity, anything he could do. What does the previous ācārya, ācāryas want, he just jumped to the chance, “Anything I can do to satisfy their desires! Anything! Whatever they want.”

You see. Just like when we were in the Kumbha-melā in 1971, January and February, very cold, right in the, right in the very bank of Yamunā and Gaṅgā, at the confluence. Some of us would bathe at three four in the morning in the very cold waters, to get the sacred dip. At that year, about only about 20 million people showed up. It was a small year half Kumbha not the full one. With the full one, 33 million people attend it. They only have for 10 miles from the river they had big bamboos and wood things to make the people stand in queue for 10 miles; so, they wouldn’t stampede because many, many decades ago there was a stampede where a few 100 people saw their last holy darśana. So, they have a big arrangement there.

So, we were at that festival. There are so many sādhus go. Prabhupāda said that, “Many sādhus come to this special meeting. That from the Himalayas many great yogīs are still meditating, and they come down.” He said that the thing about these yogīs is that, “Every morning they bathe in the seven rivers. They dip down in the Ganges, Yamunā, Sarasvatī confluence, come up in the, in the Godāvarī, go down in Kṛṣṇa and then go down and again up in Kṛṣṇa. Up. In this way they go to seven rivers.”

Prabhupāda said, "I have seen with my own eyes. I have seen within a matter of minutes they dip in all of the rivers.” How can Prabhupāda see, someone dip in rivers over two, three thousand miles apart in matter of minute? Of course, we meditated on that one. So, I personally saw there was some yogi there who had been meditating so long that his fingernails had come out of the other side of his hand. I don’t know if it was… how he did it. But that was how he was meditating. Maybe it was a done-up thing. I couldn’t, I didn’t. It looked pretty real. (Laughter)

But there are quite a many people go for the show. So many sādhus. So, Prabhupāda said, “We are coming, we also want to preach, we want to have association of sādhus, and give association to the people.” He was very humble, he said, “We want association.” Of course, we knew that he was going to give association of pure devotion to purify all the different people, Māyāvādīs and karma-kāṇḍīs and different people that were going there. In the morning mostly, our devotees were up at so early in morning.

Prabhupāda would give a lecture and ask the question. So, we had just done many programs for purchasing the Māyāpur land and at that time one devotee asked Śrīla Prabhupāda that, “Śrīla Prabhupāda, that if we are able to bring…” [Aside: because the topic of discussion was – there was a lot there, about opening of the big temple. Prabhupāda wanted the big temple built immediately in a few years.] That if we for the opening of the big temple bring the President of the United States and the Queen of England to the opening will Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura be pleased by that or not”.

So, then Śrīla Prabhupāda replied, "If you bring the President of United States and the Queen of England to the opening of the Māyāpur temple, Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura will come down from Goloka Vṛndāvana, take you in his hand and head back to Goloka Vṛndāvana right on the spot!” (Laughter)

So, if anyone is ambitious?! I’ve already in London mentioned this. They, they at least have to if they their queen… And that in America who will bring the President? You see. So here Los Angeles is our biggest community in America. Here of course, Mukunda is going, commuting back and forth. But there is your assignment, for instant, instant mercy. So, London said, “No problem.” But I don’t know about Los Angeles. No problem?! Very nice. So, this is the great opportunity. Actually I, when I, I realized there was kind of a transcendental competition. When I was in London, lot of time you heard the name Los Angeles a little bit. I think there was some transcendental mood between London and Los Angeles in saṅkīrtana and bhakta and different things. Sometime I get that impression.

When I was there, of course when I first landed in Germany, then they gave me a very nice garland of flowers, carnation, of course the carnations didn't have any smell there. Harikeśa said, what can I do, you know the flowers they don't smell, there is so many chemicals they use. So, then I went to, when I landed in London, then when I was leaving, then they gave me a garland of 10-pound notes and said, and so then I had to admit they had given the best garland to date. So, in that way there very nice time everywhere I go I get very nice association of all the devotees. I always feel reluctant to leave.

Of course, actually Los Angeles is the big brother of Māyāpur. You know sometimes people they say different thing, why is Los Angeles the big brother. Everyone feels that this is very appropriate of course some people they say that well, Los Angeles should be Māyāpur’s big brother because Los Angeles is the very biggest project in the western world right now and Māyāpur is the biggest project in India and in the world for so it’s natural that they should be big. Then other people say well, that Los Angeles is the most broad minded, there are so many different projects, they are very broad minded. Because Māyāpur is encompassing so many different things varṇāśrama, world planetarium and samādhi and so many different things, therefore it should be the, the big brother. So, there are many different… Then some people will say that, “Well that Los Angeles is proper that it’s the big brother because the intimate relationship between all of the leaders and all of the devotees is basically a wonderful exchange.”

Of course, all these things are correct, even more, more ideal. But I think that Māyāpur is related with Los Angeles particularly because His Divine Grace Śrīla Rāmeśvara Swami is so keenly intent upon capturing all the mercy of the previous ācāryas. And because he has that transcendental vision of what the previous ācāryas desire. Therefore, he had above all other reasons grabbed at the chance to be the big brother, have Los Angeles be the big brother of Māyāpur.

So, I feel, you see, this is very - I mean already he is getting so much mercy from printing and distributing so many books. And on top of that now he is getting, he is trying to capture all the mercy from Māyāpur. I say he is giving such a wonderful example of a transcendental capitalist getting/capturing all the transcendental capital, the real wealth all the mercy of the ācāryas.

Of course, Prabhupāda was the most expert in this. Whenever he saw a chance to fulfill some desire he would jump at it. But already you see in Māyāpur we feel that, we are already hard placed, of course Prabhupāda said ultimately the projects are for book distribution. But at the present time, due to the poor situation in India, book distribution is a big struggle. People don’t have so much money. We are racking our brains for ways and means. But because some people think that well what is the relationship between this Māyāpur Indian project and between book distribution.

So Prabhupāda he never made any qualms. There was no secret that what he, where he put his priorities. As far as we were concerned, and we know that wherever Prabhupāda went around the world, he would encourage each zone in different ways. But we were never confused that, we were the most important project in ISKCON. That was because Prabhupāda he wouldn’t let us have that particular confusion.

I remember that in 1973 or 4 I think it was, that we were just finishing the big building and Prabhupāda gave a tremendous – he wanted to have about 150 different rooms and big building everything built within 3 months. So, at that time we had this big building and we only had 10 devotees. Because what happens is that when all devotees come for the festival, they already gone to Vṛndāvana. When they go especially in those days, when it was so much more austere we don’t have this problem anymore so much. Just they go as far as Vṛndāvana and come back usually.

This is kind of like a, like a after a jet, just like a vacuum created. When the jet takes off and ooooop… everything behind it is sucked. So especially in those days, when all devotees would come and then when they would go then you would find that half of the devotees would be gone. They all go follow with the devotees. They just stay there one day after the festival, it feels so empty - one day you have got 600, next day you have got 20. 10 people would shoo…. and go with the devotees. So, there would be a regular turn over for the first few years. Many devotees came for a year so but at the festival we have our biggest casualty. This was right in the very beginning.

So, I remember Bhavānanda Goswami was completely in anxiety. He had just came to Māyāpur a year or so earlier and then he saw that, there is nobody here, I mean there is no way we can build these buildings, there is no way we can do the preaching, no way we can expand these programs. So, he rushed to Vṛndāvana, fell at Prabhupāda’s lotus feet. He went and asked all the leaders. At that time the leaders each one said, “Well, you know we've got so many projects, this, that. We can't help you out. But, you know, maybe I think there is one Bhakta that’s about to leave anyway (Laughter) I'll send him over.” You know, and this was like an eternal problem we were solving/facing in those days. So, then he went to Śrīla Prabhupāda and said there is just no one we can get. I mean just you know there are many of the people who would like to go but they can’t get the permission. Even though you said that you should encourage them there was no one. I mean factually everyone they can't see it to give someone at this particular time.

Prabhupāda said, “Yes, you have to understand from their viewpoint. Alright.” He thought for a while and said, "Alright, you can take anyone you want. You just go without asking, you go at night or something, anyone you want you can take. But, please don’t take my big book distributors. Please don’t take them." So, I mean Prabhupāda he was very clear. I mean he felt that of all the projects this big book distribution was first. Then there are so many projects which I’m sure we can all show different letters how he encouraged and felt that these projects could spread Kṛṣṇa consciousness if they were properly developed. Anyway, not to leave you hanging, Bhavānanda Goswami went that night with his flashlight and woke up different people, gathered about ten to twelve devotees together, put them on the train, and ishhh… went back to Māyāpur.

So, then we took the things like that to actually get the buildings and the things there, so that devotees are able to come and enjoy. Now there is a much different mood of course and the need of course is not so acute, there is just a few key positions. So, the things are much different. But we always knew that book distribution was Prabhupāda’s main and then he always said that only through book distribution will the Indian projects be built. I don't want it. I want it to come through book distribution. Let the people double their book distribution. Then he showed how by doubling book distribution that ultimately, the Indian projects can be especially Māyāpur and Vṛndāvana. Vṛndāvana was to be built first and that's practically finished. And then Māyāpur finally, the big center of Lord Caitanya’s glory would be built.

So, he always intended that the book distribution that should go on. That should be everyone’s first look. Then automatically through book distribution the different foreign BBTs would help and see that these projects go on. This was Prabhupāda’s plan. That this is natural that Lord Caitanya has given us the transcendental vāṇī. He has given us this message. So, by distributing His message we should also do something for Him. So, it’s very encouraging whenever we see the book score is increased.

Now of course we're going through a transition. We may have to take a strategical revamping. And so many plans have been made by our great saṅkīrtana generals and Los Angeles generals here, how to ultimately increase book distribution. People ask that what can we do to help Māyāpur. Of course, anything that one does directly is alright, but the overall massive help apart from what any individual does is collectively if everyone simply works to expand book distribution. Ours is the same, the same goal that will ultimately see all of these wonderful things manifest.

In fact, that’s what, just like people say, well, New Vṛndāvana was built by the sweat and the devotion of the devotees. And that’s a fact. But and that is what the real significance is when we see the palace of Prabhupāda there. But of course, even in Māyāpur, we hire the cooleys to sweat and, and do the actual construction with a few devotees supervising them and seeing that everything goes on properly.

Maybe directly the sweat of the devotees is not involved in mixing the cement except for a few of the people, of us who we have to stand and watch these cooleys and scream at them. The thing is that whose sweat-whose devotion has built these things, that is directly every book distributor around the world, who is distributing and whose BBT donations are coming to build these things for the previous ācāryas. Their direct, their devotion is building. That is got to me the greatest significance. Because all of the previous ācāryas’ desires are being manifested. Kṛṣṇa was able to do with one activity many things He would achieve. So, by one activity so many things are being accomplished. That’s mean to me a much higher principle, than to do anything which involves stopping book distribution.

So just like Rāmeśvara Swami said, he wants to build this, but he doesn’t want to stop book distribution. This kind of attitude, this is directly in line with the previous ācāryas. This is something Prabhupāda would say. So many. What is the quality of a pure devotee? He represents the mood of his ācārya. That is the qualification. So, Dhruva Mahārāja before he met Kṛṣṇa he may have been confused. But once he saw Kṛṣṇa then he became very clear, he wanted simply to serve Kṛṣṇa. Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura said that, “If anyone can construct a 20-story building (20 story skyscraper literally - it is right in the books) in Śrī Māyāpur, that they would directly go back to Godhead.”

So of course, the opportunity is there for everyone to get the mercy of previous ācāryas. Anyone who is distributing massive books everything, there is no question. So, the devotee doesn’t care about liberation or about sense gratification. It is already that's just a cheap thing begging at his doorstep. Simply he is trying to develop his mood of surrender to the ācārya, surrender to Kṛṣṇa, to satisfy Their desire. And he tastes more and more nectar increasing day by day, moment by moment that desire increases and increases so much. We should, we should culture that desire. If we, if we look at ourselves, we should see that what desire, how earnestly, how deeply are we desiring to love Kṛṣṇa, to satisfy his desire to the spiritual master.

The result would be while we are chanting we should be crying for Kṛṣṇa. We should be crying for Kṛṣṇa. Every time we chant Hare Kṛṣṇa, Hare Kṛṣṇa, Kṛṣṇa Kṛṣṇa, Hare Hare/ Hare Rāma, Hare Rāma, Rāma Rāma, Hare Hare, we should be crying for Kṛṣṇa. If we are not crying for Kṛṣṇa while we are chanting, we should know that our heart is very hard. We are very fallen. Therefore, when we are saying “Kṛṣṇa” Instead of our heart melting, its staying like a rock. We should be feeling so sad that while I’m chanting I’m not crying. My voice is not choking up. My eyes are not filling with tears. My hairs are not standing on end. I’m not quivering in my body. Our heart is so hard then we should cry that, we are not crying for Kṛṣṇa.

And if we are so hard hearted that we are not able to realize how unfortunate it is that we are not crying for Kṛṣṇa to the extent that we are not crying for Kṛṣṇa. Then we should deeply meditate, and then we should cry that, we are not crying that we are not crying for Kṛṣṇa. And if we are not crying that we are not crying that we are not crying for Kṛṣṇa then we should cry that we are not crying that we are not crying that we are not crying for Kṛṣṇa. And if we are not crying that we are not crying that we are not crying that we are not crying for Kṛṣṇa then we should cry that we are not crying that we are not crying that we are not crying that we are not crying for Kṛṣṇa. And if we are not crying that we are not crying that we are not crying that we are not crying that we are not crying for Kṛṣṇa then we should cry that we are not crying that we are not crying that we are not crying that we are not crying that we are not crying for Kṛṣṇa.

In other words, at least we should be crying that we are not crying that we are not crying that we are not crying that we are not crying that we are not crying that we are not crying that we are not crying for Kṛṣṇa. At least we should be crying for Kṛṣṇa somehow or the other, how to satisfy His transcendental desires. That should be our mood, so intense, so fixed. Then Kṛṣṇa, He cannot resist. Alright!! Thank you very much!! Jaya!!!