Author: Purushottam Nitai Das

Why was Ved Vyasa dissatisfied even after compiling four Vedas and Vedanta Sutra?

Ved Vyasa wrote the four Vedas, the Upanishads, Mahabharata, Vedanta Sutra but still he felt dissatisfied. After writing so many wonderful books, the natural feeling should have been of satisfaction and joy, but this was not happening. The great writer and devotee of the Lord was confused.

At that time, his guru, sage Narada appeared before him and told him the reason behind his dissatisfaction. Narada said, “You are not satisfied because you have not glorified the Supreme Lord, Krishna, sufficiently. So, you should now write a book to exclusively glorify Krishna.”

Ved Vyasa said that in all my literatures I have written something about Krishna Consciousness because I feared that if I give complete Krishna Consciousness then people who are mostly materialists won’t be able to accept it.  But Narada Muni said to Ved Vyasa to present Krishna Consciousness directly.

Narada reasoned, “If you give it directly then people will accept it. It is true that everyone will not accept it but the most intelligent people who are the leaders of the society will take to Krishna consciousness. And when they will begin practicing it then others will follow them.”

The sage further said, “Now your books talk too much about sense gratification. By reading them people will get misguided. So, you write Srimad Bhagavatam and in this book you only glorify the Lord and talk about pure devotional service.”

Ved Vyasa felt satisfied after writing Srimad Bhagavatam

As per the orders of his spiritual master Ved Vyasa compiled Srimad Bhagavatam and felt lots of satisfaction and joy in his heart.

The tenth canto of this book describes in detail about Krishna – his birth, his activities and his dealing with the devotees.  It says the importance of practicing pure devotion to the Supreme Lord. This book is called amala purana i.e. spotless purana because it talks about the highest truth.

Srimad Bhagavatam courageously says that any sort of sense gratification will cause misery. So, anyone who is interested to attain freedom from all sufferings should give up desire for material enjoyment and should only have desire to serve the Lord. Service to the Lord is the natural tendency of the soul and by doing so, the soul feels satisfied and experiences joy.

“Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam is the spotless Purāṇa. It is most dear to the Vaiṣṇavas because it describes the pure and supreme knowledge of the paramahaṁsas. This Bhāgavatam reveals the means for becoming free from all material work, together with the processes of transcendental knowledge, renunciation and devotion. Anyone who seriously tries to understand Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, who properly hears and chants it with devotion, becomes completely liberated.” Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 12.13.18

This book is like touchstone. As we begin reading it, it touches our heart, cleanses it of all impurities and transforms it into diamond. This book sings the glories of Krishna and when we associate with it then our life too becomes glorious.

As Ved Vyasa felt satisfied after writing, we too will feel gratified after reading it. Bhagavatam says that we should read it daily. If we do so then anything which is troubling us will get destroyed and we will develop strong relationship with the Supreme Lord, Krishna.  

Three Reflections

• Ved Vyasa was dissatisfied because he had not glorified the Supreme Lord, Krishna, sufficiently.
• As per the orders of his spiritual master, Ved Vyasa compiled Srimad Bhagavatam and felt lots of satisfaction and joy in his heart.
• By reading Srimad Bhagavatam daily anything which is troubling us gets destroyed and we develop strong relationship with the Supreme Lord, Krishna.  

Ask Yourself

• Do I read Srimad Bhagavatam daily?

Action Item

• If not, then try to read or hear Srimad Bhagavatam daily for at least 30 min.

Regulate your life as per the teachings of Bhagavad Gita to live happily

If you want to be happy and successful, then it is important to regulate your life. Regulation is the key to success. If we aren’t regulated, then our life isn’t better than the animals. Whimsical living isn’t appreciated in the scriptures.

‘Regulate’ means to control things with the help of rules. For e.g. traffic signal regulates traffic. We see that if the signal malfunctions, then there is chaos on the roads.

You buy any product; you will get a manual with it on how to use it. If you do not follow the direction, then you will have difficulty to operate it and even if you start using it somehow you won’t get the best output.

Our life too needs regulation if we want to live happily. And how to regulate our life is given in Bhagavad Gita. It is the manual of life given to us by Krishna who is our creator and the creator of the entire creation.

If we act as per the teachings of Bhagavad Gita, then we will be happy always – materially as well as spiritually.

For material life too we need to lead a regulated and balanced life. This is what Gita emphasises on. For happy life, energy of our body, mind and soul should be properly channelized and nourished. Unwanted stuffs should not be allowed to enter into our life and even if it has penetrated somehow then should be quickly flushed out.

Meditation especially on the holy names of the Lord gives us inner strength, keeps us calm and free us from all anxieties.  This is why we see many top performing executives of the company – CEOs, CFOs, CTOs – taking out time for meditation in the morning.

Bhagavad Gita gives tips for happy living

Along with helping us to lead a better life here, Gita also tells us the necessity of connecting to the Supreme Lord.  Everything material comes to an end a day, but our relationship with the Lord remains intact forever.

So, this transcendental book urges us to seriously take up devotional life. And if we act as per its guidelines then success in spiritual life is guaranteed.

Krishna always wants best for us, so he gave this great knowledge to us. As human beings we have an opportunity to read it, understand it and apply it. If we do not do so and try to live as per our whims and fancies, then how are we better than animals?

Animals act on their impulses. Eating, sleeping, mating they can do anytime and anywhere. If we too have similar habits, then we are misusing the human life which we have got.

Krishna, the architect of our body, tells us how to regulate life in Bhagavad Gita 6.16 and Bhagavad Gita 6.17. He advises us not to eat too much or too little, sleep too much or not sleep at all and asks us to maintain balance in work and in recreation.

This is especially for those who want to seriously practice spiritual life. And Krishna wants each one of us to be sincere in our devotional journey.

If we regulate our life as per the teachings of Bhagavad Gita then we will be able to mitigate material pains, live happily in this world and will eventually attain spiritual perfection.

“He who is regulated in his habits of eating, sleeping, recreation and work can mitigate all material pains by practicing the yoga system.” Bhagavad Gita 6.17

Three Reflections

• Bhagavad Gita is the manual of life given to us by Krishna who is our creator and the creator of the entire creation.
• Meditation especially on the holy names of the Lord gives us inner strength, keeps us calm and free us from all anxieties.
• Krishna advises us not to eat too much or too little, sleep too much or not sleep at all and asks us to maintain balance in work and in recreation.

Ask Yourself

• Am I regulated in eating and sleeping?

Action Item

• Fix your time for breakfast, lunch, dinner and the time to go to bed which preferably should be early and not late night. Stick to it for few weeks and see how it impacts your life.

Krishna is eager to have us back in his kingdom

Not sure how much we are desirous to go but Krishna is very eager to have us back in his kingdom.  For example, in this world we see that if somehow parents lose their child, then every moment, they keep on looking for their child and desperately want him to come back home.

Krishna is our actual father; he is the Supreme father.  In Bhagavad Gita 14.4, he says, “It should be understood that all species of life, O son of Kuntī, are made possible by birth in this material nature, and that I am the seed-giving father.”

As our original father, he eagerly wants us to come back to his kingdom.

In Maharashtra, there is a place called Pandharpur. There Krishna is worshipped as Pandurang. There he stands on a brick with his hands on the waist.

We keep hand on our waist when we wait for someone. Krishna is standing like that because he is waiting for us. He is thinking when my devotees will come.

But to be with Krishna, it is important that we get completely purified of all material contamination. Without being pure, we cannot go to him.

Just like Krishna is eager to have us back, his pure devotees too want to send us to Kishna. Srila Prabhupada is one such devotee of Krishna who desperately wanted everyone to go back to Krishna and become free from all the sufferings.

For this purpose, he established Iskcon to give opportunity to all to practice pure devotion to Krishna.

Iskcon is kind of refinery, in this refinery our souls are getting refined by practicing bhakti. Raw diamond looks like a normal stone, but when we polish it properly then its real nature becomes visible and then it becomes so valuable.

Pure heart is eager to go to Krishna

Our atma, soul, is also like raw diamond. Because of covering of so many impurities in the form of lust, anger, greed, pride, envy, illusion and false ego, its actual quality is not revealed. But as we progress by practicing devotion to Krishna, the impurities get cleansed, and our soul begins to shine.

In New Vrindavan, which is in West Virginia, USA, devotees were constructing “Palace of Gold.” Once Srila Prabhupada came to see the progress of the temple. One of the devotees there asked him, “I heard that in Dwarka there was no light and everything would shine because of gold and diamond.”  The devotee further said, “Let us make your palace like that.”

Prabhupada looked at him and said, “My devotees who have dedicated their lives to Krishna are like diamonds and they will illuminate the whole world.” 

We have been given this wonderful opportunity by Srila Prabhupada to purify our lives and become a priceless jewel in the service of Krishna.

In this world, we should do everything which is required but let us not forget that this is not our ultimate goal. Our life’s goal is to return to the spiritual world.

This is possible when our heart gets cleansed of all the contaminations and we develop distaste for sense gratification and taste for Krishna consciousness. Best way to achieve this is by chanting the names of Krishna like the Hare Krishna Mahamantra. Chanting will purify our heart and make our heart Krishna conscious. And once we become conscious of Krishna then we too will be eager to go to Krishna just like Krishna is eager to have us back in his kingdom.

(This article is based on the congregation class given by HG Dwarkadhish Prabhu & HG Vishkhapriya Mataji at Uniclub One, Uniworld on 27^th July 2025)

Three Reflections

• Pandurang in Pandharpur is standing with his hands on his waist eagerly waiting for us.
• Iskcon is kind of refinery, in this refinery our souls are getting refined by practicing bhakti.
• Once our heart is free from all impurities then we too will be eager to go to Krishna just like Krishna is eager to have us back in his kingdom.

Ask yourself

• Am I eager to go back to Krishna?

Action Item

• Read the story of Pandurang and meditate on his wonderful pastime in Pandharpur.

Two qualifications to understand the message of Bhagavad Gita

Ever wonder why even after reading Bhagavad Gita, people are not interested in dedicating their life to Krishna. The answer is given by Krishna himself in Bhagavad Gita. In the verse 4.3 of this book, Krishna says that to understand his message which he is giving in Bhagavad Gita one should be his friend and also his devotee. These are the two qualifications required to understand Bhagavad Gita.

Krishna spoke Gita to Arjuna, and even Dhritarashtra through Sanjaya came to know about the knowledge but still the blind king was not able to appreciate the knowledge. It was because he wasn’t a devotee of Krishna and never considered Krishna his friend.

In fact, he became more disturbed when at the end Sanjaya informs him that wherever Krishna is and wherever Arjuna is opulence, victory, extraordinary power and morality is guaranteed. Bhagavad Gita 18.78.

Any sane man after knowing Gita and knowing who Krishna is would have immediately given up all false notions and would have taken shelter of Krishna just like Arjuna.

Krishna spoke this great knowledge 5000 years ago and after that many people tried to share this with others. But there are people who may know all the 700 verses of Gita but are still not interested in Krishna. Why? The answer is simple – they have not developed friendly relationships with Krishna and have not decided to become a devotee of Krishna.

Srila Prabhupada knew this fact so the first thing he did was to make everyone a devotee of Krishna. In fact, the most important qualifications to share the knowledge of this great literature is to first be a devotee of Krishna. Intellectual rendition may attract people’s attention but may not transform people’s heart.

Knowing Gita from Srila Prabhupada

Srila Prabhupada being a pure devotee of Krishna could easily comprehend the message which Krishna wanted to share with all the suffering souls of this world. And moreover, Prabhupada knew Krishna’s heart. He knew that Krishna wants everyone to get connected to him and come back to him.

Prabhupada worked on this mission. He dedicated his life in bringing people closer to Krishna and making them understand Krishna’s message as it is. This is why he wrote book Bhagavad Gita as it is.

Many so-called scholars to capitalize the popularity of Gita wrote commentary on Bhagavad Gita but added their own interpretation and so the original message of Krishna was lost.

But Prabhupada said to us what Krishna wanted to share with us. Those who heard him their heart got transformed and could understand their relationship with Krishna.  Prabhupada went to west and the western people after hearing Gita from Prabhupada gave their life to Krishna.

Today we see thousands and thousands of people chanting the names of Krishna all over the world, singing the glories of Krishna, worshipping Krishna in the temple selflessly.

This is because they have come to know that Krishna is the topmost reality, he is everyone’s friend, and the goal of all living beings is to become a devotee of Krishna.

With this understanding, knowing Gita becomes easy.  The message of Krishna penetrates our heart and love of Krishna manifests in it.

Three Reflections

• In Bhagavad Gita 4.3, Krishna says that to understand his message which he is giving, one should be his friend and also his devotee.
• There are people who may know all the 700 verses of Gita but are still not interested in Krishna.
• Those who heard from Srila Prabhupada, their heart got transformed and they could understand their relationship with Krishna. 

Ask Yourself

• Do I consider Krishna my true well-wishing friend?

Action Item

• Hear at least one lecture of Srila Prabhupada on Bhagavad Gita per week.

Are you ready to choose Krishna in all circumstances?

Let us honestly ask ourselves, “If given an option to choose between Krishna and his material energy, what are we going to choose?” Are we going to select Krishna or are we going to opt for his energy so that we can enjoy disproportionately in this world.

Krishna has given us the free will to exercise our choice. He never interferes with our free will. But the Supreme Lord always test us to check if we really love him or we love to live without him.

For example, before the onset of Mahabharata war, Krishna gave opportunity to both Arjuna and Duryodhana to exercise their free will. Both had to choose either Krishna or Krishna’s Narayani sena (army). Not just this, Krishna had declared that he would not fight but his powerful army would fight during the war.

Arjuna made up his mind and Duryodhana was also not confused. At the end both were happy. Arjuna, without any hesitation, chose Krishna and Duryodhana was jubilant because he got the mighty Narayani Sena.

In our life too you and I get opportunities to exercise our free will. Whether we choose Krishna or Krishna’s material energy reflects our true character. Most of us often get enamored by material life. Externally we may demonstrate our longing for Krishna but within our heart what we long for is more important. Krishna does not see how we behave externally but he sees what is there in our heart.

Those who chose Krishna never regret but those who foolishly turn away from him always lament.

During the Mahabharata war Duryodhana was ultimately defeated and whoever was on his side also met with the same destiny. In fact, in this world everyone is always defeated.

Spiritual life is full of nectar

Only the Lord is always victorious and those who are with him too never face defeat. Arjuna was on the side of Krishna, so he too tasted victory.

At present material life attracts us and spiritual life seems to be boring and also difficult. It is because we have been disconnected with Krishna for several lifetimes. But if we connect with Krishna then we will begin seeing how pleasurable spiritual life is. In fact, in our current situation also if we can absorb ourselves in spiritual activities then our heart experiences deep joy.

For example, if we can sit in front of the Lord in temple and chant 16 rounds of Hare Krishna Mahamantra which takes around 2 hours then after finishing our chanting we feel lots of happiness. But suppose that we spend 2 hours watching movies or YouTube videos then we do not feel that joy, in fact most of the time we feel frustrated after that.

This is why it is said that material life appears to be nectar in the beginning but becomes poisonous in the end whereas spiritual life may appear poisonous in the beginning but is nectar at the end.

If we continue choosing Krishna and practicing Krishna consciousness, then we will gradually start experiencing pleasure while doing devotion too.

But that is not true for material activities. No matter how much we try to seek happiness from material things we will not get it. Duryodhana, after getting Narayana sena thought he would be victorious and will become happy, but the result was just the opposite.

So, let us be like Arjuna and choose always Krishna – victory and happiness is guaranteed.

In our life whenever we get to choose, let us choose always Krishna.

Three Reflections

• Krishna always tests us to check if we really love him or we love to live without him.
• Only the Lord is always victorious and those who are with him too never face defeat; Arjuna was on the side of Krishna, so he too tasted victory.
• Let us be like Arjuna and choose always Krishna – victory and happiness is guaranteed.

Ask Yourself

• Given an option to attend a program in the temple or watch a movie or a cricket match or a soccer match what do I choose?

Action Item

• Once in every week go to temple and chant the Hare Krishna Mahamantra in front of the Lord with full absorption.

The Supreme Lord gives us many opportunities to take his shelter

The Lord gives everyone an opportunity, or we can say many opportunities to come to the right path and take his shelter. But many times, we refuse his advances.

While constructing the Rama-setu bridge, the monkey – warriors used to write the name of Lord Rama on the stones and would throw them in the mighty ocean; the stones used to float.  Once Lord Rama Himself threw the stone in the ocean and surprisingly the stone sank.  When Hanuman saw this, he started smiling. 

Hanuman with folded hands said, “My dear Lord this is just one of your lilas.  You make huge planets float in the sky so what is the difficulty for you to make these stones float in the ocean? By this act of yours, you just want to highlight that those who take your shelter will fearlessly cross this ocean of material existence but those who leave your shelter sink in this ocean of nescience.”

Lord is willing to give his shelter to us but unfortunately, we, the adamant souls, are not willing to take his shelter.

Take the example of Ravana, he got so many opportunities to correct his mistakes, but he wasted all those chances. First Vibhishana counselled him then Hanuman and then Angad but each time Ravana refused to listen to them.

In our life too we get good advice from sincere devotees of the Lord but still we refuse to take complete shelter of the Lord. Many of us may say that we are religious because we regularly visit temple and believe in God.

Never leave the shelter of Lord Rama

But if we closely observe our consciousness, we will see that we worship God not because we love God but because we love to get something from him so that we can enjoy independently from God. We just want him to help us in sense gratification.

When our desires are fulfilled then we even forget to remember God. This is why we see people who are rich and famous generally say that they do not believe in God or hardly go to temple to take darshan of the Lord. And if our ask is not fulfilled by Lord then we even become upset with him or we even stop believing in him.

Ask any atheist and they will tell you that what God has done for me. I have seen people saying that we have to defeat God. Ravana is gone but people who have mentality like him are still there in this world.

Let us not forget that this life which we try to enjoy is full of uncertainties. Anything happens at any time. And most importantly the physical body and the adulation and adoration which we get here are temporary.

So, let us never leave the shelter of the Lord. Even if the circumstances are unfavorable, we should remain under the shelter of the Supreme Lord. Vibhishana did so and made his life glorious. We should follow the footsteps of Vibhishana and never leave the lotus feet of Rama.

Lord Rama repeatedly gives us many opportunities to take his shelter. We should grab this opportunity and always remain under his care and protection. If we are with Lord Rama, then we will eventually get free from all bodily and mental sufferings.

Distress, disease, lamentation & fear will completely get vanished.  We can then swiftly sail through this ocean of nescience and reach our ultimate destination which is the abode of the Supreme Lord.  

Three Reflections

• Those who take shelter of Lord Rama will fearlessly cross the ocean of material existence but those who leave his shelter will sink in this ocean of nescience.
• Ravana got so many opportunities to correct his mistakes, but he wasted all those chances.
• If we are with Lord Rama, then we will eventually get free from all bodily and mental sufferings.

Ask Yourself

• Do I sincerely listen to the advice of sincere and senior devotees?

Action Item

• Reflect upon an advice given by a sincere devotee who is your well-wisher and try to act upon it.

Pleasing Krishna is so simple

Lack of time, lack of resources and lack of skill generally prevent us from achieving something great in life. But to achieve the greatest of all things, i.e. the love of Krishna is the simplest thing in this world to do.

The only requirement is to have the desire to attain Krishna. And the only prerequisite is to give up the desire to enjoy independently from Krishna. Anyone who wants Krishna, attains Krishna. And those who attain Krishna are never deprived of anything in this world. Krishna makes sure that his devotees get the best.

When Dhruva took shelter of the Supreme Lord then Krishna made him the emperor of the whole world.  Krishna helped Pandavas to defeat the insurmountable army of Kauravas. As Lord Narasimhadeva, he saved Prahlada from the jaws of death. And we all know how Krishna gave his dear friend Sudama opulence greater than the king of the world although Sudama never asked for it.  

Worshipping Krishna, loving Krishna and pleasing Krishna is so simple. He does not demand anything from us; in fact, he can be pleased if we simply offer him a leaf, a flower, a fruit or water. Bhagavad – Gita 9.26

What did Dhruva and Prahlada offer to Krishna? Nothing. What did Sudama give to Krishna? Broken chipped rice. And what did they all get in return? Everything. 

We never hear of any incident of someone asking something from Krishna and Krishna refuses to give him. Yes, he will not give something which is harmful to his devotees but will surely give things which are beneficial for the devotees.

So, the scriptures vehemently ask us to give up our reluctance to not surrender to Krishna. Instead, the holy books ask us to put everything aside and immediately take to Krishna Consciousness.

Simple heart pleases Krishna

Let us give it a try at least once. The result will be awesome. This is confirmed in all revealed scriptures and Krishna’s devotees vouch for it.

It is said that the taste of the pudding lies in tasting it. So, without practicing devotion to Krishna how will we taste the nectar of Krishna consciousness?

Let’s do a simple exercise. Let us close our eyes, think about Krishna, chant the mahamantra, Hare Krishna Hare Krishna Krishna Krishna Hare Hare/ Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare and in a prayerful mood reveal our hearts desire to Krishna.

Krishna guarantees us in Bhagavad – Gita that those who willfully seek his blessings he never disheartens them.

When he sees that his devotee is sincerely seeking him then the Supreme Lord is immensely pleased. With our material opulence or achievement, we won’t be able to please him. Duryodhana tried but failed. But by simple devotion, we can please Krishna easily.

Overwhelmed with emotion, Vidura’s wife was throwing away banana and was offering banana peels to Krishna and the Supreme Lord was happily eating it.

If we too have such a simple heart and great desire to please Krishna, then Krishna will surely be pleased because pleasing him is so simple.

Three Reflections

• Those who attain Krishna are never deprived of anything in this world; Krishna makes sure that his devotees get the best.
• Worshipping Krishna is so simple, he can be pleased if we simply offer him a leaf, a flower, a fruit or water.
• Overwhelmed with emotion, Vidura’s wife was throwing away banana and was offering banana peels to Krishna and the Supreme Lord was happily eating it.

Ask Yourself

• Am I daily offering something to Krishna with love and devotion?

Action Item

• Daily offer something to Krishna either fruits, flowers, milk and anything which is without onion and garlic.

If we have desire then we can practice devotion to Krishna in any circumstances

We always have excuses for not being serious in our devotion to Krishna. Now if we look at the life of great devotees, we will see that they also had excuses to be lackadaisical in devotional life but they choose to practice devotion to Krishna in any circumstances.

So, it is entirely upon us whether we want to be serious in practicing devotion to Krishna or we just want to make so many excuses for being engaged in non-Krishna conscious activities.

Let us see the example of 4 devotee friends who were always practicing Krishna Consciousness although everyone had different sets of problems and different lifestyles.

The four devotee friends

These 4 friends would meet regularly to chant the names of Krishna together and to discuss various pastimes of the Lord. One day they all decided to know the secret of their attraction & attachment to Krishna. Among the 4, one was a celibate monk, another a widower and the other 2 were householders. Each of them spoke about their motivation.

The 1^stfriend who was a celibate monk (brahmachari) said, “Since I am unmarried and do not have to bother about any material responsibilities, so I try to utilize each moment of my life in practicing devotional life”.

The 2^nd friend who was a widower said, “Due to the will of providence, I lost my wife and am all alone now. I came to understand that all relationships of this world are temporary. We can only have permanent relationships with Krishna and his devotees. So, I try to best utilize my time in reviving that relationship with Krishna.”

The 3^rdfriend said, “I am married but my life is miserable. My wife is very quarrelsome and arrogant. She has made my life hell. The only solace I get is when I chant the names of Krishna and associate with the devotees. So, I try my best to remain engaged in devotional life.”

The 4^thfriend said, “I am also married but my wife is too good and a devotee of the Lord. She takes care of everything very nicely and at my home there is always a devotional atmosphere. Because of the cooperation of my wife, I am able to spend most of my time in practicing devotional life.”

All the 4 friends were in different situations and circumstances but every one of them practiced devotional life with great zeal and determination.

Our choice to be serious or not serious

The above story illustrates one thing – we can have hundreds of excuses for not practicing devotional life & we can also have hundreds of reasons for practicing it.

Everything depends on us. If we have desire to practice devotion to Krishna in any circumstances then Krishna will give us intelligence to do so, “To those who are constantly devoted to serving Me with love, I give the understanding by which they can come to Me.” Bhagavad Gita 10.10

Or else we can always give justification for not practicing devotional life. The choice is always ours!

Three Reflections

• Great devotees had excuses to be lackadaisical in devotional life, but they choose to be serious in devotional life.
• All the 4 friends were in different situations and circumstances but every one of them practiced devotional life with great zeal and determination.
• We can have hundreds of excuses for not practicing devotional life & we can also have hundreds of reasons for practicing it.

Ask Yourself

• Do I give excuse for not completing 16 rounds of chanting Hare Krishna Mahamantra?

Action Item

• Take a vow to always chant at least 16 rounds of Hare Krishna Mahamantra irrespective of situations and circumstances.

Gita’s wisdom makes us strong enough to face any challenges of this world

Our internal thoughts and consciousness mostly determine how we see the world around us. We have almost no control on how people around us is going to behave with us and how the situations and circumstances are going to shape up. Sometimes everything may be as per our liking and sometimes just the opposite may happen.

If we are not internally strong and wise, then we will remain forever at the mercy of our surroundings.  So, it is important that we always remain prepared and alert to deal with any kind of people and any sort of situations.

Our consciousness shapes our vision. External world may not change for us or will never change for us but if we purify our consciousness then the way we see the world will drastically change.

Krishna transformed Arjuna’s life

Let us take the example of Arjuna. Just before the Mahabharat war he was in a pitiable situation. He was so overwhelmed with emotions that he was willing to leave the battlefield and was ready to live by begging.

Although he was a fearsome fighter, had defeated great warriors but he was not able to hold his bow and arrow, they were slipping from his hand, and he was not able to even stand properly. It was not that he had become fearful seeing the Kaurava armies who were his own relatives, but he was utterly confused about his duty.   

But he was fortunate because Krishna was with him. Krishna’s guidance transformed Arjuna’s life.

The external situation for Arjuna remained the same. He had to fight the war; he had to fight against his grandfather Bhisma, guru Drona and his cousin brothers. But Krishna’s timely intervention dispelled all his ignorance. He now knew what to do, what not to do and why to do. Arjuna’s consciousness changed and he became ready to battle against the mammoth army of Kauravas. He eventually became victorious in the gruesome war.

Gita’s timeless wisdom

The knowledge which Krishna gave to Arjuna is available with us in the form of Bhagavad Gita. If we read it and understand it then we will also be equipped with the knowledge to deal with the external world. Gita’s wisdom will transform us internally. It will make us internally strong, will help us to understand the world around us and most importantly it will help us to understand who we are.

If we imbibe the true spirit of Gita, then we won’t get bewildered when we encounter difficulties. Gita’s wisdom nourishes intelligence, strengthens will power and imparts discriminatory power. Armed with these weapons we can face the challenges of life with vigour.

Most importantly, this life transforming book teaches us that we belong to Krishna and if we live as per the teachings of Krishna then Krishna will always be there for us just as he was with Arjuna.

Three Reflections

• External world may not change for us or will never change for us but if we purify our consciousness then the way we see the world will drastically change.
• The external situation for Arjuna remained the same but Krishna’s timely intervention dispelled all his ignorance.
• If we live as per the teachings of Krishna, then Krishna will always be there for us just as he was with Arjuna.

Ask Yourself

• Do I get bewildered by how people around us behave with me?

Action Item

• Read 2^nd chapter of Bhagavad Gita and try to understand what Krishna says about the relationship we have in this world with different people.

How a devotee of Krishna observes maun vrat i.e. vow of silence

Silence has always been glorified.  So, it is expected that a devotee of Krishna should also observe the vow of silence i.e. maun vrat.

Krsnadasa Kaviraja Goswami, a renowned saint and author of Chaitanya Charitamrita, says that a devotee should have 26 qualities, “silence” is one of those noble qualities.

Many people keep maun brat i.e silence on a specific day. On that day they do not speak anything.  To communicate with others, they use hand gestures or pen and paper.

Once two persons observing maun vrat were sitting under a tree. On that day there was a cricket match. So, one person got up and went away. He came after some time. The other person who had remained sitting under the tree wrote on the sand with a stone, “What is the score?” The other person who had come just now took the stone and wrote the score of the match.

If this is how people observe maun vrat then what is the use of such a vow.

Maun vrat can help one to control the tongue but what about the mind? Does it help to control the endless chatter which goes on in the mind?

Our mind does not remain calm and quiet even for a single moment. Mentally we keep on talking to ourselves, we keep on contemplating on things like money, job, family, friends, politics, opposite sex, cricket match, soccer match and so on.

There are some meditation schools who teach to mediate on something null & void. According to them this will help to silence our mind. They say to think “nothing.” But “nothing” is also “something.” We can never empty our mind of the thoughts. This is impossible.

Real maun vrat or vow of silence

Scriptures say that real silence means “to not think of anything material” but to “think on only spiritual subject matters.” Out of 26, one of the qualities of a devotee as given in scriptures is that “a devotee is always surrendered to Krishna.”

Surrender to Krishna means to always think of Krishna and be always absorbed in Krishna.

So, real silence is to stop contemplating & speaking on unnecessary subject matters which disturb our mind. Instead of this we should contemplate on & speaking on topics which are related to Krishna.

Sravanam and kirtanam as the two processes of devotional service. Sravanam means to hear about Krishna and kirtanam means to always speak about Krishna. These two processes will take us closer to Krishna, the Supreme God.  

So, instead of wasting our precious time and energy thinking and speaking about unworthy subject matters let us use our tongue to chant the names of Krishna and sing the glories of Krishna. This is real silence.

And when we will engage in constantly chanting and hearing about Krishna then our mind will get flooded with Krishna Conscious thoughts. If it happens then we will lose taste for material sense gratification. We will not be interested in watching cricket matches or political news or movies.

There will be no need to observe artificial maun vrat and communicate with others with pen and paper. A devotee of Krishna observes maun vrat i.e. vow of silence by constantly chanting the names of Krishna.

Three Reflections

• Silence is one of the 26 qualities of a devotee.
• Maun vrat can help one to control the tongue but not the mind.
• Real silence or maun vrat is to constantly chant the names of Krishna.

Ask Yourself

• Do I mostly speak on non-Krishna Conscious subject matters?

Action Item

• Read Krishna book and start sharing Krishna’s pastimes with your friends and family members.