Death Notices December 21, 2007
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A man made an unusual agreement with the God of Death. He told the God of Death that he would be willing to accompany him (as though he had a choice) only if God would send him a notice well in advance. The agreement was made.
Weeks became months and the months into years. One bitterly cold night, as the man sat alone thinking of his success in life, the God of Death tapped his shoulder. “You are here too soon!” the man cried out. “You sent no messenger. I thought we had an agreement!”
The God of Death whispered “Notice your hair, once it was full and black, now it has streaks of silver in it! Observe your face in the mirror and see the wrinkles. Yes! I have sent many messages through the years! I have kept my part. I am sorry that you are not ready for me but the order of Almighty Lord cannot be averted!”
Srila Prabhupada explains: “The principle is that one should take it for granted that the death warning is already there, and thus at any stage of life one should prepare himself for a better next life. The system of the sanatana-dharma institution is so made that the follower is trained for the better next life without any chance that the human life will be spoiled.
It is really foolishness to engage oneself all the days of one’s life in material enjoyment and fruitive activities, because as long as the mind remains absorbed in fruitive work for material enjoyment, there is no chance of getting out from conditioned life, or material bondage. No one should follow the suicidal policy of neglecting one’s supreme task of attaining the highest perfection of life, namely going back home, back to Godhead.”
Simply by chanting the Hare Krishna maha-mantra (kirtanad eva krsnasya [SB 12.3.51]), one can become so pure that one becomes free from all the contamination of this material world (mukta-sangah) and goes back home, back to Godhead (param vrajet). The Krishna consciousness movement, therefore, is teaching people not to adopt artificial means of happiness, but to take the real path of happiness as prescribed in the shastra—the chanting of the Hare Krishna mantra—and become perfect in every aspect of material existence.
The Physician’s Knife December 21, 2007
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Amar was a village boy who had been suffering so much from a boil on his back that he attempted suicide. His mother and close relatives were all trying to alleviate his pain by using hand-fans or even by orally blowing on the swelling boil.
One of his neighbours advised that the boy should be given some anesthetic drug to save him from such unbearable physical agony. Still another person recommended that it was better to relieve him eternally from such a painful experience. His argument was that the boy has been suffering terribly because was alive, so, if he were dead he wouldn’t be in pain anymore. The result would be complete solace to both the disease and patient.
Unnerved by such advice, the wise father of the boy immediately sent for an experienced physician, disregarding his son’s so called well-wishers. When the physician advised that a minor surgery be formed on the boy, the relative including the boy’s mother, grandmother and others started weeping all in a row. The ignorant boy also started abusing the physician in the most vulgar words, saying, “You have come to kill me. Leave me alone right now, or I must send for the police to arrest you! Why don’t you strike the knife on your own body? Would you go and lynch your own son? I would rather take a dose of poison before I surrender myself to your hands for certain death.”
Turning a deaf ear to the boy’s delirious outburst, the physician held him tightly while he pressed and executed the surgical operation on the boil. After a while, the boy was completely relieved of all agony and gradually became well within a few days.
Just like a real physician, quite often the real spiritual master and saintly persons also dissect some of the knots in the obstinate mind of living entities by way of apparently distasteful injunctions and instructions varying on the degrees of entanglement. But the suffering entity is hardly inclined to agree with such injunctions and instead, misapply a lot of harsh words to those saintly persons blaspheming them as their enemies and extremely merciless executioners.
So-called relatives and friends of such suffering entities strongly advocate against such a surgical operation to avoid the apparent pain and uneasiness. Some such pseudo-friends even in the name of impersonalism advise one to commit suicide to get rid of the rut.
In fact, none of these ways can be fruitfully undertaken for eternal welfare of an entity. The constitutional position of a living entity is only realized after disentanglement from all unworthy mundane attachments with the help of saintly injunctions sincerely followed. This enables one to enter into the province of devotional service which is the only way to eternal bliss and peace of mind.
Hell & Heaven December 21, 2007
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A devotee was having a conversation with the Lord one day and said, “Lord, I would like to know what heaven and hell are like.”
The Lord led the devotee to two doors. He opened one of the doors and the devotee looked in. In the middle of the room was a large round table. In the middle of the table was a large pot of soup which smelt delicious and made the devotee’s mouth water.
The people sitting around the table were thin and sickly. They appeared to be famished. They were holding spoons with very long handles and each found it possible to reach into the pot of soup and take a spoonful, but because the handle was longer than their arms, they could not get the spoons back into their mouths. The devotee shuddered at the sight of their misery and suffering. The Lord said, “You have seen hell.”
They went to the next room and opened the door. It was exactly the same as the first one. There was the large round table with the large pot of soup which made the devotee’s mouth water. The people were equipped with the same long-handled spoons, but here the people were well nourished and plump, laughing and talking. The devotee said, “I don’t understand.”
“It is simple” said the Lord, “It requires but one skill. You see, they have learned to feed each other. While the greedy think only of themselves.”
Lord Krishna declares in the Bhagavad-gita, “There are three gates leading to this hell — lust, anger and greed. Every sane man should give these up, for they lead to the degradation of the soul.”
In the mode of passion, people become greedy, and their hankering for sense enjoyment has no limit. One can see that even if one has enough money and adequate arrangements for sense gratification, there is neither happiness nor peace of mind. That is not possible, because one is situated in the mode of passion. If one wants happiness at all, his money will not help him; he has to elevate himself to the mode of goodness by practicing Krishna consciousness. When one is engaged in the mode of passion, not only is he mentally unhappy, but his profession and occupation are also very troublesome. He has to devise so many plans and schemes to acquire enough money to maintain his status quo. This is all miserable.
Perfecting Ourselves & Others December 21, 2007
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There was a millionaire who was suffering with severe eye pain. He consulted many physicians, consumed various medicines, but the pain remained.
At last a monk, who was expert in treating such patients, was called for by the millionaire. The monk understood the problem and instructed that for sometime the millionaire should concentrate only on green colour; and avoid seeing any other colour. The millionaire immediately employed a group of painters, purchased barrels of green paint and directed that every object his eye was likely to fall upon be painted green just as the monk had directed.
When the monk came to visit him after a few days, the millionaire’s servants ran with buckets of green paint and emptied it on the sage.
Seeing this, the monk smiled and said, “If only you had purchased a pair of green spectacles, worth just a few rupees, you could have saved these walls, furniture, jewels and other articles; and also saved a large fortune. It is childish to think that you can paint the whole world green.”
Let us change our vision. It is foolish to shape the world, let us shape ourselves first.”
Chaitanya Mahaprabhu’s instruction is that you can improve the welfare of others when your own life is a success:
bharata-bhumite haila manushya-janma yara
janma sarthaka kari’ kara para-upakara
[Cc. Adi 9.41]
First make your life perfect. Then try to teach others. Lord Chaitanya has given the greatest boon: in this age one simply has to chant the holy name of God to attain perfection in spiritual life.
Following in the footsteps of Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, the Krishna consciousness movement is recommending this process all over the world. We are saying, “Chant the Hare Krishna maha-mantra, be freed from all the complexities of life, and realize Krishna, the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Engage in His devotional service and perfect your life so that you can return home, back to Godhead.”
There Runs the Thief! December 21, 2007
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There was once a village that was plagued with constant theft. The villagers were unable to detect the thief in spite of all efforts. Whenever the people were alerted, the thief would run away. A hue and cry would be raised by the people, and the villagers gathered only to be disappointed.
Finally, the headman in the village called for all the victims of the theft individually and questioned them in confidence. Upon a through inquiry, he discovered that one particular person was found to be present and anxious to find out the thief every time there had been a crime.
The village headman became suspicious at this coincidence. Therefore he devised a plan and advised the village guard to keep an eye on the suspected person at his house from midnight and report his movements. The headman himself was also carefully watching the guard and regularly supervised his duties.
One night the guard saw the suspect coming out of his house at about 2 o’clock, hiding a burglar’s tool for house-breaking under his shawl.
As the guard followed him, making sure that he was hidden from view, he observed the suspected man breaking through the wall of a villager’s house with the help of a burglar’s tool. After a while, the house owner started screaming, “Thief, thief!!”, and the guard watched as the suspected man came out of the house with the stolen goods and hurriedly entered into the nearby jungle.
When the villagers gathered as usual after the house owner started screaming for help, the suspected man came out of the opposite side of the jungle and innocently joined the crowd of villagers inquiring about the incident. He was just pretending to look for the thief and running up and down in all directions. Thus coming across the village guard patrolling nearby, he caught hold of him and started shouting, “Here is the burglar, here is the burglar!”
Attracted by his screaming, the people gathered around them and started jeering at the guard, taking him to be the burglar. Some of them were preparing to beat him.
Luckily, the village headman appeared on the spot and appeasing them, he took the guard to the side and asked him to give a complete report on the incident. He advised some other villagers to observe the reactions of the man who was the real culprit.
Thereafter, he proceeded towards the jungle as directed by the guard, along with other people, while the thief repeatedly asked them, “Why on earth are you going into the jungle for the burglar? On this dark night, that snake-infested jungle is most dangerous. No burglar can hide himself in there, for sure!”
When everyone was walking into the jungle, disregarding his constant grumbling, the man started gradually backing away with the idea of running off. It appeared from his face that he was greatly frightened.
Eventually, the jewellery box which the thief had taken from the villager’s house was found in the jungle along with the burglar’s tool. It was then crystal-clear to everyone present that the man complaining was the burglar himself, and so the crowd ran out of the jungle and started chasing him. As he was running away, they all shouted out, “There goes the thief. There goes the thief!”
The cunning thief also started shouting while running, “There goes the thief, there goes the thief,” and pointing to all the innocent passers-by, he got away by creating an utter confusion.
PURPORT
There is no dearth of such mischievous atheists among the people. They constantly malign the real protectors of the society who are like watchmen, and harass those great souls who are truly and selflessly benevolent to common people, only to tarnish their reputation by a vile attempt to prove those saintly persons as thieves and the like.
In all Vedic literature, Gita, Bhagavata, Upanisads etc., it has been specifically advocated that this material world belongs to the Supreme Lord, He is the proprietor of everything, and one who does not offer everything to the Supreme Lord for His satisfaction through preaching His glories and the holy name, simply devours His property for one’s own sense gratification, and as such, he is a thief.
Such a thief is always endeavouring to indicate that any person who is preaching the holy name of the Supreme Godhead, and going from door to door in order to wake everyone up from their illusory state of living, is only worthless, idle and a thief of social wealth. This is just like the motivated tendency of a thief who points to a sadhu as if he is running away from a burglary.
Golden, Silver, and Iron Shackles December 21, 2007
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There was once a prince, a minister’s son, and a treasurer’s son who were all close friends. Once upon a time, all three of them set out on a long journey to different distant lands. On the way they happened to arrive at a royal palace where the king of that land was absent, but his daughter, the princess, was staying there along with her two closest friends - one the minister’s daughter and the other the treasurer’s daughter of that land. Those three ladies were also similarly close friends like the prince, the minister’s son and the treasurer’s son mentioned above.
The prince and his two friends exchanged their acquaintances with the princess and her two consorts. And it wasn’t long before the three young men proposed to marry those three damsels. But they hesitated as it was custom to get permission from their respective parents for the marriage. However, they decided to marry without further delay, according to the old saying “anything auspicious should be hastened.”
So their happy marriages were solemnised. Thereafter the king of the land, with his minister and treasurer, came back from their travels and entered the royal palace only to see in great astonishment, that the princess and her two friends were chatting with three strangers. Upon hearing that those three men had trespassed into the royal palace, only to flirt with the young women and talk them into an illegal marriage, the king ordered their arrest.
The princess then begged her father to release her husband. The treasurer’s daughter and the minister’s daughter, also respectively fell on their knees in front of their fathers and begged them for their husbands’ release. However, the king did not release the young husbands, but ordered that proper respect should be shown to the young prince by tying him up with golden shackles, whereas the young son of the minister should be given silver shackles, and the treasurer’s son should be bound with iron shackles, all according to their respective status.
PURPORT
The Supreme Lord binds up all living entities similarly in three types of shackles, namely the material modes, according to the reactions of their respective fruitive activities. The bondage of goodness may very well be compared to golden shackles, that of passion to silver shackles, and the entanglement in ignorance is tantamount to iron shackles.
Whatever might be the elements or metals with which the shackles are made, they are simply meant for imprisonment. Unless and until one goes beyond these three material modes or entanglements, one can never be considered free and liberated. Only one who completely surrenders unto the lotus feet of the Supreme Lord unconditionally may thus be delivered from such bondage.
The Ultimate Sanctioner December 21, 2007
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When Akbar was the Emperor of Delhi there lived a hermit in a hut in the forest. Many people visited the holy man. At one time he felt a great desire to entertain his visitors. But how could he do so without money? So he decided to go to the Emperor for help, for the gate of Akbar’s palace was always open to holy men.
The hermit entered the palace while the Emperor was at his daily devotions and took a seat in a corner of the room. He heard the Emperor conclude his worship with the prayer, “O God, give me money; give me riches”, and so on and so forth. When the hermit heard this, he was about to leave the prayer hall, but the Emperor signed to him to wait.
When the prayer was over the Emperor said to him, “You came to see me: how is it that you were about to leave without saying anything to me?”
“Your Majesty need not trouble yourself about it.”, answered the hermit. “I must leave now.” When the Emperor insisted, the hermit said: “Many people visit my hut, and so I came here to ask you for some money.”
“Then”, said Akbar, “Why were you going away without speaking to me?”
The hermit replied: “I found that you too were a beggar; you too prayed to God for money and riches. There upon I said to myself: ‘Why should I beg of a beggar? If I must beg, let me beg of God.”
Srila Prabhupada explains: Ashaya means “determination.” Generally a conditioned soul has the determination for material profit, but when these desires for material profit are satisfied through performance of yajna, one gradually achieves the spiritual platform. Then his life becomes perfect. Srimad-Bhagavatam (2.3.10) therefore recommends:
akamah sarva-kamo va
moksa-kama udara-dhih
tivrena bhakti-yogena
yajeta purusam param
If a person wants to return home, back to Godhead, or wants to become a pure devotee (akama), or wants some material prosperity (sakama or sarva-kama), or wants to merge into the existence of the Supreme Brahman effulgence (moksa-kama), he is recommended to take to the path of devotional service and hear and chant of Lord Vishnu or of His devotee. This is the sum and substance of all Vedic literatures.
Eagerness December 21, 2007
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A hermit was meditating by a river when a young man interrupted him.
“Master, I wish to become your disciple,” said the man. “Why?” replied the hermit. The young man thought for a moment. “Because I want to find God.”
The master jumped up, grabbed him by the scruff of his neck, dragged him into the river, and plunged his head under water. After holding him there for a minute, with him kicking and struggling to free himself, the master finally pulled him up out of the river. The young man coughed up water and gasped to get his breath. When he eventually quieted down, the master spoke.
“Tell me, what did you want most of all when you were under water.”
“Air!” answered the man.
“Very well,” said the master. “Go home and come back to me when you want God as much as you just wanted air.”
Srila Prabhupada explains, “Eagerness is the price for achieving success in Krishna consciousness. Everything has some value, and one has to pay the value before obtaining or possessing it. It is stated in the Vedic literature that to purchase the most valuable thing, Krishna consciousness, one has to develop intense eagerness for achieving success. If one wants to achieve success at the end of his life, the process of remembering Krishna is essential. Therefore one should constantly, incessantly chant the maha-mantra—Hare Krishna, Hare Krishna, Krishna Krishna, Hare Hare/ Hare Rama, Hare Rama, Rama Rama, Hare Hare.”
Hate Good December 21, 2007
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A dull headed boy was once happily flying a kite from an unwalled rooftop. He became so engrossed in playing that he lost his awareness. His playmates were also encouraging him very much. The boy got so carried away that he failed to notice that one of his legs was hanging over the edge of the roof. None of the other boys alerted him to this peril; rather they simply continued to encourage him to fly the kite.
At that critical moment, a wise man happened to pass by. He saw that the boy was in imminent danger of falling from the roof. He immediately rushed up to save the boy although the others saw no danger. He pulled the boy away from the edge, tore off the thread of the kite and took away the spool of thread.
But the foolish boy and his friends, rather than feeling thankful, began to curse the well-meaning gentleman. They called him a thief, rascal, trespasser, gunda, hooligan, ruffian and other such names. They even threatened to take the gentleman to court after complaining to their over-indulgent parents. Some even tried to physically assault him. Bearing all this, the kind-hearted gentleman saved the boy from imminent death.
Materialistic persons embrace their certain death by accepting whatever is apparently palatable to them. By no means are they prepared to accept anything which is apparently bitter but ultimately pleasant. Many of our so-called friends in this material world also encourage us in sense gratificatory activities that lead us to certain death and destruction.
By chance if one comes across a benevolent saintly person, he preaches to us out of his sheer mercy some real truths although in an unpleasantly stern exposition (like a dose of strong medicine) in spite of our unwillingness to accept it. Therefore we should accept all good sermons from saintly persons delivered in the cause of our eternal welfare, even if those words appear utterly bitter and heart rending.
Good Association December 21, 2007
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“Why do people attend satsanga? Are they of any real benefit?”
Once a saint approached a lady for bhiksha, and this was the question that she posed to him. He in turn asked her to prepare buckets full of kheer for him the next day, when he would answer her query. The next day he came back with a bowl filled up to the brim with cow dung and asked her to pour the kheer in it. Dumbfounded, the lady poured buckets and buckets of kheer. Initially the kheer spilled on the earth but gradually, the cow dung spilled down with the sheer force of the kheer and the bowl became clean and filled up with the sweet kheer.
The saint explained, “I have demonstrated the effect satsanga has on a stained soul. Constantly pour satsanga on the hearts and minds filled up to the brim with lust, hatred, attachment, desire, selfishness and viciousness till complete clarity and total cleansing is achieved. Only then will you be able to purify your existence and understand things as they are.”
Srila Prabhupada explains: “By association with undesirable companions we have learned so many bad habits and similarly by association with pure persons or devotees we can become purified of our acquired bad habits.”
“Simply by associating with exalted devotees, anyone can attain perfection of knowledge and with the sword of knowledge can cut to pieces the illusory associations within this material world. Through the association of devotees, one can engage in the service of the Lord by hearing and chanting [shravanam kirtanam]. Thus one can revive his dormant Krishna consciousness and, sticking to the cultivation of Krishna consciousness, return home, back to Godhead, even in this life.”
