Jagat

A lot of stuff from a wide range of preoccupations--Gītā Govinda, Vr̥ndāvana-mahimāmr̥ta, Yoga-sūtra, American politics. Quite a mishmash. I chose for the title an utterance from seven years ago, when I seem to have been having deep thoughts.

An old baba looked at my hand and told me I would not die in Vrindavan. Perhaps a relevant post from five years ago in view of my present circumstances. Of course I do the best I can and all the advice is respected as relevant. Krishna is indeed everywhere, just sometimes more apparent than others,

Saraswatipada continues to describe a hierarchy of good fortune, finally arriving at the superlative "one who is most fortunate of the fortunate" ( dhanya-dhanyaḥ ). It is not easy to renounce, and often it seems unnecessary, especially when one has a wife or husband who is decorated with all the virtues beginning with devotion. But Prabodhananda gives so much importance to the Dham that he would even sacrifice a devotional life outside of Vrindavan for one there, even if it were to be in the company of those speaking mundane subject matters. 

śrīmad-vṛndā-kānane ratna-vallī- vṛkṣaiś citra-jyotir-ānanda-puṣpaiḥ | kīrṇe svarṇa-sthaly-udañcat-kadamba- cchāyāyāṁ naś cakṣuṣī gaura-nīle || In Vrinda's beautiful forest, sprinkled thickly with jewel vines and trees, their flowers shedding colorful joyful light, under the shade of a kadamba tree risen from golden ground, that fair and dark couple now fills our eyes. This verse strikes me as a bit of an interlude, a reversion to te kind of meditation that we saw in verses 2.30-32 , so it fits a general movement here to a meditation on the eternal abode. This is especially so since the next few verses continue a theme to which it seems Prabodhananda has been building. I have always found it difficult not to play a role in my own explanation of these verses, though it is, for all intents and purposes, freeing oneself of one's worldly identity, even that of the sādhaka-deha itself, to become immersed in that mood of the divine madhura-rasa . But I have to...

Although Hit Dhruva Das is already giving the example of how to reside in Vrindavan, as we saw in the previous installment of Vrindavana-sata-lila , here he specifically takes the voice of the teacher and advises those who have been attracted by the glories of the Dham on how they need to behave, in other words, he tells us about the nature of Vraja-vāsa sādhanā . He describes an amazing spiritual practice that seems contrary to logic: The material vision is to see Vrindavan as a part of this material world. But, in fact, it is the bridge to the spiritual world of Divine Love. It is impossible to convey this to someone who has not experienced the bliss of chanting the Holy Names, who has not experienced the joys of singing the glories of the Divine Couple. Such acts of devotion open the doors to grace, and bestow upon one such powers of perception that when the devotee lies flat in sāṣṭāṅga-daṇḍavat praṇāma in Vrindavan’s dust, s/he can feel the power of unlimited millions of dev...

Crossposted from Vrindavan Today Now Hit Dhruvdasji turns to the glories of living in the Dham. This is the lengthiest section of the short book, with 40 verses dedicated to this theme, so we are breaking it up into two postings. There are many people who believe that “Vrindavan is everywhere.” We hate to break it to you, but it is not. At least, not for those who are not on the highest platform of uttama bh ā gavata . The shastras sometimes say like that to encourage those whose fortune is not so good and who are bereft of Brajavas. The same scriptures, or the writings of devotees like Prabodhananda or Dhruvdas, know that those with better fortune feel separation from Vrindavan. The most unfortunate are those who prematurely think they have attained Vrindavan when they are far away, not just physically but spiritually. Dhruvdasji would rather you thought yourself unfortunate and pined for the day, in this life or in some other life, when you will be able to l...

Sewa Kunj (PC Newsgram ) soḍhvāpi duḥkhāni suduḥsahāni tyaktvāpy aho jāti-kulādikāni | bhuktvā śvapākair api thutkṛtāni vṛndāṭavī-vāsam ahaṁ kariṣye ||2.17|| Tolerating even intolerable sufferings, leaving behind identity with my caste or kin, and eating that which is spit out even by untouchables, but I shall make my residence in Vrindavan. Here again Prabodhananda is making no differentiation between residing in Vrindavan and renunciation. One who takes sannyāsa must be ready to suffer because he places himself entirely at the mercy of the Supreme. But the price one must pay for spiritual perfection is complete surrender. To achieve any great thing one must persist despite obstacles, and obstacles to the attainment of the goal are always painful. Yet if the goal is good, and one persists with faith, those sufferings always bear the sweetest fruit. Tapasyā means to accept physical hardships because they favor the healthy awareness of the limitations of pleasure...

Ajab Bihari murtis in Cchipi Gali, Vrindavan vṛndāraṇye varaṁ syāṁ kṛmir api parato no cid-ānanda-deho raṅko'pi syām atulyaḥ param iha na paratrādbhutānanta-bhūtiḥ | śūnyo'pi syām iha śrī-hari-bhajana-lavenātitucchārtha-mātre lubdho nānyatra gopī-jana-ramaṇa-padāmbhoja-dīkṣā-sukhe'pi ||2.1|| I would rather reside even as a worm in Vrindavan, than in a blissful spiritual body  somewhere else . I would rather live here, even as a poverty-stricken beggar, than as one possessing wonderful, unlimited wealth elsewhere.   I would rather reside here in Vrindavan, even without doing any bhajan to Lord Hari whatsoever, absorbed in greed for the most trivial things, even if elsewhere I could know the joy of being initiated in the service of the lotus feet of Lord Krishna, the lover of the gopis. Commentary Prabodhananda Saraswati is the ācārya for Braja-vāsa-sādhana , i.e., the devotional practice of living in the Dham. After praying so intensely in p...

I have been intermittently posting verses from Vṛndāvana-mahimāmṛta and commenting on them. The following verse touches on some of the points that I am trying to make. Indeed, living in Vrindavan here at this time in my life (I am 68), I am taking the teachings of Vṛndāvana-mahimāmṛta as my guiding principle for Braja-vāsa-sādhanā , which I consider to be the "end-game" of all Vaishnava spiritual practice. Due to the famous problems we have had with  Vrindavan Today , the archive seems to have been lost, unfortunately. We are starting to repost, but at a very slow rate.. I reposted this on June 17, 2018, out of sequence, so am reposting it again here in the proper order..  vṛndāṭavī sahaja-vīta-samasta-doṣā doṣākarān api guṇākaratāṁ nayantī | poṣāya me sakala-dharma-bahiṣkṛtasya śoṣāya dustara-mahāgha-cayasya bhūyāt || Vrindavan is naturally free of all flaws; it transforms those who are reservoirs of faults  into reservoirs of virtue.  May ...

premautkyena vicintyatāṁ viluṭhanaiḥ sarvāṅgam āyojyatāṁ dehasyāsya samarpaṇena sudṛḍha-premā samāsthīyatām| rādhājānir upāsyatāṁ sthiracara-prāṇīha santoṣyatāṁ śrī-vṛndāvanam eva sarva-paramaṁ sarvātmanāśrīyatām|| Think of Vrindavan with loving longing! Engage your every limb by rolling in its dust, Be fixed unshakably in divine love by offering up your body to the Dham. Worship Radha’s lover and give full satisfaction to every creature here, moving or unmoving. Vrindavan alone is the supreme destination, take shelter of it with your entire being. (1.5) Commentary After briefly glorifying Vrindavan, Prabodhananda for the first time gives the basics of Braja-vāsa-sādhanā . Surrender and taking shelter are the essence of this practice. tavāsmīti vadan vācā tathaiva manasā vidan |  tat-sthānam āśritas tanvā modate śaraṇāgataḥ || One who has taken shelter ( śaraṇāgati ) leads a life of happiness, for with his words says, "I am yours, O Lord....

vṛndāvaneśaika-pada-spṛho’pi mahattamānāṁ śruta-bhāṣito’pi | vidann api svārtha-vighāti sarvaṁ hā dhik na vṛndāvanam āśrayāmi || Alas! How shameful! Although I yearn exclusively for the feet of Vrindavan's Lord and Lady, although I have heard the speeches spoken by the greatest saints, and although I know that everything in this world is an obstacle to my attaining the ultimate good, I still do not take shelter of Sri Vrindavan Dham. (1.99) Commentary Prabodhananda Saraswatipada is now once again talking about the adhikāra for residing in Vrindavan. These are more important than the vairāgya spoken of earlier, even though the spirit of renunciation is present here too. He does this through this dainya-bodhikā vijñapti , or a statement expressing humility and utter dependence on the mercy of the Lord. And that is the point of the verse: despite having all qualifications, without grace of the Dham herself, Vrindavan- vāsa is not possible. And yet, ...

Crowds in the narrow alleyways trying to get darshan of Bihariji. Part I of this three part series. [Introduction, Places of Pilgrimage: Tirtha, Kshetra and Dham, Vaishnava criticisms of tīrtha-yātrā, Braj/Vrindavan is a dhāma] Part II of this three part series. [How a Gaudiya Vaishnava performs pilgrimage to the Dham, The eternal glory of residence in the Dham] Part III : Sattva-guṇa and Nirguṇa, Globalization and the Dham, Can a culture truly be translated? Sattva-guṇa and Nirguṇa At this point it is necessary to say a word or two about faith in the Dham and the Vaishnava dogma that the Dham is beyond the qualities of nature ( nirguṇa , rather than saguṇa , or under the control of the material qualities of sattva, rajas and tamas ). [ Bhakti Sandarbha  (152-159) ] According to the Gītā and Sāṅkhya philosophy, everything in this world is just the interplay of these three qualities. How can something like Vrindavan, which is clearly being influenced by the mat...