20251227 Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 3.23.7

mūkaṁ karoti vācālaṁ paṅguṁ laṅghayate girim
yat-kṛpā tam ahaṁ vande śrī-guruṁ dīna-tāraṇam
paramānandaṁ mādhavaṁ śrī caitanya iśvaram
hariḥ oṁ tat sa

Oṁ namo bhagavate vāsudevāya
Oṁ namo bhagavate vāsudevāya
Oṁ namo bhagavate vāsudevāya

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 3.23.7

ye me sva-dharma-niratasya tapaḥ-samādhi-
vidyātma-yoga-vijitā bhagavat-prasādāḥ
tān eva te mad-anusevanayāvaruddhān
dṛṣṭiṁ prapaśya vitarāmy abhayān aśokān

Translation: Kardama Muni continued: I have achieved the blessings of the Lord in discharging my own religious life of austerity, meditation and Kṛṣṇa consciousness. Although you have not yet experienced these achievements, which are free from fear and lamentation, I shall offer them all to you because you are engaged in my service. Now just look at them. I am giving you the transcendental vision to see how nice they are.

Purport: Devahūti engaged only in the service of Kardama Muni. She was not supposed to be so advanced in austerity, ecstasy, meditation or Kṛṣṇa consciousness, but, imperceptibly, she was sharing her husband’s achievements, which she could neither see nor experience. Automatically she achieved these graces of the Lord.

What are the graces of the Lord? It is stated here that the graces of the Lord are abhaya, free from fearfulness. In the material world, if someone accumulates a million dollars, he is always full of fear because he is always thinking, “What if the money is lost?” But the benediction of the Lord, bhagavat-prasāda, is never to be lost. It is simply to be enjoyed. There is no question of loss. One simply gains and enjoys gaining. Bhagavad-gītā also confirms this: when one achieves the grace of the Lord, the result is that sarva-duḥkhāni, all distresses, are destroyed. When situated in the transcendental position, one is freed from the two kinds of material diseases — hankering and lamentation. This is also stated in Bhagavad-gītā. After devotional life begins, we can achieve the full result of love of Godhead. Love of Kṛṣṇa is the highest perfection of bhagavat-prasāda, or divine mercy. This transcendental achievement is so greatly valuable that no material happiness can compare to it. Prabodhānanda Sarasvatī said that if one achieves the grace of Lord Caitanya he becomes so great that he does not care a fig even for the demigods, he thinks of monism as hellish, and for him the perfection of controlling the senses is as easy as anything. Heavenly pleasures become to him no more than stories. Actually, there is no comparison between material happiness and transcendental happiness.

By the grace of Kardama Muni, Devahūti experienced actual realization simply by serving. We get a similar example in the life of Nārada Muni. In his previous life, Nārada was a maidservant’s son, but his mother was engaged in the service of great devotees. He got the opportunity to serve the devotees, and simply by eating the remnants of their foodstuff and carrying out their orders he became so elevated that in his next life he became the great personality Nārada. For spiritual achievement the easiest path is to take shelter of a bona fide spiritual master and to serve him with heart and soul. That is the secret of success. As stated by Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura in his eight stanzas of prayer to the spiritual master, yasya prasādād bhagavat-prasādaḥ: by serving or receiving the grace of the spiritual master, one receives the grace of the Supreme Lord. By serving her devotee husband, Kardama Muni, Devahūti shared in his achievements. Similarly, a sincere disciple, simply by serving a bona fide spiritual master, can achieve all the mercy of the Lord and the spiritual master simultaneously.

* * *

Jayapatākā Swami: So, Kardama muni and Devahūti, they were so Kṛṣṇa conscious that they became the parents of a Viṣṇu-avatāra. They became the parents of Kapiladeva. So, here Devahūti showed she served her husband very dedicatedly, very lovingly, even at the cost of her own health. Kardama muni told Devahuti that you are serving me so much but you can serve but you also should keep an eye on your health. So, Śrīla Prabhupāda uses this example, that this way a disciple should serve his spiritual master. And Śrīla Prabhupāda said by receiving the grace of the spiritual master one receives the grace of the Supreme Lord. He said by serving or receiving the grace of the spiritual master. Śrīla Prabhupāda, he wanted to serve his spiritual master’s desire. He used to say that by Śrīla Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura’s instruction, he realized that for a disciple, the service to the lotus feet of the spiritual master is the greatest thing a disciple can do in his life.

vyavasāyātmikā buddhir
ekeha kuru-nandana
(Bg. 2.41)

So, since Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura, he told Śrīla Prabhupāda to preach in the English speaking countries. So even at an advanced age, he went to America.  He took so many austerities and so many risks and still went. People ask me what enthuses you? How can we ever repay what Śrīla Prabhupāda did for us? So, Śrīla Prabhupāda showed us a great example! In ISKCON, Śrīla Prabhupāda tried to do all the things that his gurudeva asked him. He used to translate very late in the night staying up, the Bhagavad-gītā, Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, Caitanya-caritāmṛta and other Vedic literatures. He established the Governing Body Commission, GBC. And he tried his best and he tried to follow all the examples that his spiritual master had shown or given.

Śrīla Narottama dāsa Ṭhākura, he wanted to take initiation from Śrīla Lokanātha Gosvāmī. But Śrīla Lokanātha Gosvāmī said, “I will not accept any disciples.” But Śrīla Narottama dāsa Ṭhākura would go and spy on Śrīla Lokanātha Gosvāmī wherever he went to answer nature’s call. Then he would go and clean the place up, clean it and sweep it. So Lokanātha Gosvāmī was thinking, “Who is doing this?” One day, he hid himself to watch who comes and does this. He saw that Narottama dāsa was doing it. Then he thought that, “Although, I had said I would not take any disciple, but this person is serving me so dedicatedly that if I don’t accept him, I am not being Kṛṣṇa conscious!”

Mādhavendra Purī, he was served by Īśvara Purī so well that he would bathe him, clean him, take away his stool, so he got the mercy of Mādhavendra Purī! Rāmacandra Purī was also a disciple of Mādhavendra Purī. Mādhavendra Purī was feeling great separation for Lord Kṛṣṇa and in his love he was crying out! But Rāmacandra Purī thought that his spiritual master was expressing sorrow like people do in the material world. So he was instructing him that he should meditate on the impersonal Brahman and be peaceful! And Mādhavendra Purī said, “You rascal! You rascal!” So, Rāmacandra Purī, he became an offender to everybody and Īśvara Purī, he was so fortunate that he had Lord Caitanya as his disciple!

Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Antya-līlā 8.31 says:

sei haite īśvara-purī—‘premera sāgara’
rāmacandra-purī haila sarva-nindākara

So if you serve the spiritual master nicely then you can get kṛṣṇa-prema! So this verse in the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam is very important for us.

In this month of December, the last days, we are trying to distribute Śrīla Prabhupāda’s books and that was Śrīla Prabhupāda’s desire. We are trying to do all the things that Śrīla Prabhupāda wanted. He told me that I should preach unlimitedly! But I am not able to, I am wheelchair bound and have many difficulties. So I need help to spread this Kṛṣṇa consciousness all over the world! At least to those who come to Māyāpur, we can distribute Śrīla Prabhupāda’s books and try to preach to them. Who can help me? (Haribol!) Thank you! Thank you!

So, we are trying to carry out the wishes of our previous ācāryas. Śrīla Prabhupāda wanted us to develop the Gaura-maṇḍala bhūmi, we did not know how it would be possible. But now, different temples, different devotees are sponsoring some of the holy places in Gaura-maṇḍala bhūmi. Like the Chennai temple is sponsoring the Śrīla Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura’s birthplace. It is not far from here, it is in Devagrāma, Murshidabad. Kṛṣṇa-kathā Deśa, one of the Gulf countries is helping us to acquire the birthplace of Śrīla Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura. So like this, now there are different śrīpāṭs around Bengal which are being sponsored. Even we have in Bangladesh Advaita Gosāñī, Gadādhara and Śrīvāsa’s birthplaces. There are many, many memories there.

Like Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura, he established possibly eight lotus foot prints of Lord Caitanya He visited. He wanted to install 108. Now with the help of Śyāma Rasika dāsa, we are establishing the lotus footprints of Lord Caitanya, wherever He visited. How many were established?

Śyāma Rasika dāsa: 35 so far!

Jayapatākā Swami: How many in Vṛndāvana?

Śyāma Rasika dāsa: 22.

Jayapatākā Swami: How many in South India?

Śyāma Rasika dāsa: 10.

Jayapatākā Swami: And this is just the beginning! This year we are going to start in Gaura-maṇḍala bhūmi! One of the things, apparently, Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura said that it is not how many disciples you make, it is how many gurus you make! Everyone joins ISKCON as a bhakta, as a student. But eventually, they should become a teacher! This was Śrīla Prabhupāda’s desire. Now, we are trying to make that happen, but there are many obstacles! Even we see in the case of Sāraṅga Ṭhākura, he had only one disciple, but that disciple made many disciples! So, everyone has to become a teacher eventually.

Anyway this verse is very important where Devahūti got the mercy by serving Kardama Muni, the disciple can get the mercy by serving his or her guru. Śrīla Prabhupāda wrote me a letter on 17 August 1970, if we work sincerely, keeping faith in Kṛṣṇa and the spiritual master there will be no difficulty at all in our preaching work. So, we see that by Devahūti in serving very dedicatedly, she got all the mercy. When it comes to Kṛṣṇa consciousness, man, woman, śūdra, whatever, does not make any difference!

Alright, question and answer.

Bhakti Vijaya Bhāgavata Swami: It was a very beautiful class with inspiration and encouragement. Today in the beginning of the class, you said that Devahūti without caring for herself, she served her husband, Kardama Muni and as a result received Kapila as her son. Same way disciple should serve Gurudeva as a result the disciple can attain Lord and get kṛṣṇa-prema. You also quoted Śrīla Narottama dāsa Ṭhākura, Mādhavendra Purī, how they served and received their gurudeva’s blessings. And your sevā also, how dedicated you are to please Śrīla Prabhupāda by distributing books. Also sometime we receive from spiritual master  instruction, you should take care of yourself so with that body we can serve the Lord. During Marathon I have seen that devotees are distributing books enthusiastically and are not able to take care of themselves well, not getting prasāda from time to time. My question is how to balance, to take care of yourself and how to serve and please Lord and guru?

Jayapatākā Swami: I was recently in Navi Mumbai, Kharghar temple. They have an Ayurvedic Wellness center. So on the wall they had different quotes of Śrīla Prabhupāda. One quote said: You should see to your health. Because if your health is bad that may affect your other services! So, in the quote it said: First comes health. Second, is japa. Third, service. Fourth, reading. Now, I think that Devahūti, she was healthy but she became thin and she wasn’t able to care for her body but she was not sick or anything. So, Śrīla Prabhupāda wrote me a letter 4 December 1976, “I think you are working too hard. Your illness is the result of too hard work. Remain in Māyāpur, take rest as much as necessary and work through your assistants and chant Hare Kṛṣṇa!” Haribol! Gaurāṅga!

So, I have to undergo a very intensive two-week program. And there will be a lot of restrictions put on me. But I hope I can stay in Māyāpur! So, we will have someone announce the details, I don’t know. I may not be able to give class on Saturday, maybe some way of giving online or something. Anyway we have to end here. Haribol!