HH Bhakti Tirtha Swami
"HH Radhanatha Swami - The departure of Haridas Thakura"
June 12, 2005
Gita Nagari
Lord Caitanya Gladdens Haridasa Thakura
Bhaktivinoda Thakura in his wonderful prayer is glorifying the names of Lord Caitanya. We find herein that so many of the Lord’s names are in relationship to His loving devotees. Krsna is Yasoda-nandana, Nanda-nandana, Vasudeva, Devaki-nandana, Gopinatha, Radha-ramana. We find that when the Lord is… not only when He descends into this world, but in the original supreme spiritual world, He is most intimately addressed according to the loving relationships He has with His devotees. Because that is what the spiritual world is about. Bhakti means relationship, it means devotional service. Bhakti means the pure heart reciprocating with love with the object of his worship. That is bhakti. That is the bhakti of prema which is the original constitutional nature of the eternal self. To understand, jivera svarula haya, krsnera nitya-dasa. Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu explains to Sanatana Goswami, this is the very fundamental foundational principle of knowledge—that we have a relationship with God and that relationship is eternal. The relationship is to give pleasure to the Lord, and that process is called bhakti or devotional service. We are prakrti, Krsna is purusa. We are not meant to enjoy. We are eternaly by nature, designed to be enjoyed by the supreme enjoyer, Krsna.
Krsna is sac-cid-ananda—eternal, full of knowledge and full of bliss and each and every part and parcel of Him is also sac-cid-ananda, eternal, full of knowledge and full of bliss. But what is that nature of that bliss? Krsna’s bliss is that He is the supreme reservoir of all pleasure. The bliss of the soul is in giving pleasure to Krsna. And when we give pleasure to Krsna, because it is based on relationship, Krsna reciprocates and gives us supreme pleasure.
Krsnadasa Kaviraja Gosvami explains the principle of Vrindavan. Vrindavan is that place where nobody cares anything for their own pleasure. Specifically, Kaviraja Gosvami explains the quality of the love of the gopis. Gopis they never ever, ever consider their own satisfaction. They are only concerned with Krsna’s satisfaction. They are willing to go to hell for all of eternity if it would give Krsna even a moment of pleasure. That is ahaituki apratihata—unconditional, unmotivated service. And only it is only that state that the soul finds real satisfaction.
In this material world we are being cheated by illusion to think that we are… to find happiness in personal enjoyment. The senses, the mind, the false ego may find some temporary, flickering satisfaction by these pleasures but these pleasures do not even touch the soul which is the essence of our true self. The only thing, according to the Srimad-Bhagavatam, that can give pleasure to the soul is unconditional, unmotivated devotional service. That means the whole conclusion that Krsna is the enjoyer and I am simply meant for His enjoyment. As long as we have desire for any selfish enjoyment we must take another birth in this material world. But by the mercy of Sri Bhagavan, when we are cleansed from those anarthas, then we can go beyond the material existence.
The advaitavadis or the impersonalists, they extinguish their worldly desires for temporary enjoyment and therefore they can go beyond the realm of the Viraja into the brahmajyoti where they remain in a completely desire less condition. However, because the nature of the soul is love—prema pum artho mahan—the nature of the soul is to love and to be loved, those living entities within the brahmajyoti are always subjected to look for that pleasure of love. And if they do not understand the higher realm of love in Vaikuntha, then they must fall down again to express that desire in material creation. But the full-fledged understanding of desirelessness is to surrender all of our desires for the satisfaction of Krsna. We find that in the Vaikuntha planets and the deepest, most concentrated realization of pure devotional service is manifested in Vrindavan, Krsna’s eternal abode. And here we find the description of gopis—they never for moment think of their own protection, their own pleasure, their own satisfaction. Their eternal aspiration is only to please Krsna.
Srimati Radharani prays that, “My life is only for Krsna’s pleasure. If I have to suffer the most terrible heartbreaks, if I have to suffer in any way to give Krsna pleasure, that suffering would be My greatest happiness. Because My happiness is only Krsna’s happiness. If Krsna wants to leave Me and be with another lady, then I will go and I will render service to that lady and I will take her by the hand and bring her to Krsna so that Krsna can be happy.” That is the selfless nature of love. Unconditional. And that is what Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu has come to give the world, this understanding.
When Krsna sees how Sri Radha and gopis are finding bliss in giving Him happiness, He is astounded because He is reciprocating so deeply, so spontaneously with the love of His devotees that He is giving them happiness. Krsna says… He’s actually thinking this way in our scripture. Krsna’s thinking that, “I am the supreme reservoir of all pleasure but when see Srimati Radharani’s happiness in pleasing Me, then I understand that Her happiness is tens and millions of times greater than My own. I want to taste that.”
There is the asraya and the visaya. Krsna is visaya, He is the object of love. And the devotee is asraya, the abode of love. And Krsna reciprocates so infinitely with His devotees’ love that He gives devotees supreme pleasure. Therefore in the spiritual everyone is satisfied. There is no envy.
Caitanya Mahaprabhu prayed, gopi-bhartur pada kamalayor dasa-dasanudasa, “I don’t want anything except to be the servant of the servant of the servant.” because there is nothing that pleases Krsna more than pleasing His devotees. Mad-bhakta-puja abhyadhika. Therefore Krsna is called upon according to His loving relationships with His devotees. He loves His devotees so much. Yasya prasadad bhagavat prasado yasya prasadan na gatih kuto ‘pi. Therefore you cannot please Krsna directly. You can only please Krsna by giving satisfaction to His devotees. That is the secret of real happiness. It appears contradictory: we can only find personal happiness when you have no desire for it. That is love.
So, Bhaktivinoda Thakura in his ecstasy, he is expressing how dear the Lord is to the devotees and how dear the devotees are to the Lord. And I’m just looking at one particular line, haridas-modana dhira, how Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu gladdens Haridasa Thakura, how He gladdens Haridasa Thakura. So we will speak on this subject today—how Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu gladdened Haridasa Thakura.
Krsnadasa Kaviraja Gosvami explains in this particular narration we can understand very clearly how much the Lord loves His devotee, what the Lord is willing to do for His devotee; how the Lord is intoxicated in ecstasy by the love of His devotees. Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu, when He was living in Puri during the last eighteen years of His lila, His ecstasy of separation from Krsna was growing every day more and more and more. During the day He would perform nama-sankirtana with His devotees and during the night in the company of Svarupa Damodara Gosvami and Ramananda Raya, His love in separation would grow beyond the boundaries of human conception. He would simply hear and names and glories of the Lord throughout the night. In this way He spent His time always reciprocating with His devotees.
One day, by Lord Caitnya’s arrangement, His personal servitor Govinda brought Sri Jagannatha’s maha-prasada to the Siddha Bakula, the bhajan kutir of Srila Haridasa Thakura. When Govinda came in to Haridasa Thakura’s garden, he found that Haridasa was laying on the ground, very slowly chanting the holy names. Govinda said, “Haridasa, I have brought the maha-prasada of Lord Jagannatha on Lord Caitanya’s command. Please come and accept it.”
Haridasa Thakura looked up and with a very sad voice he said, “I have not yet finished my prescribed rounds of chanting the holy names of Krsna. Therefore I cannot eat. But at the same time this is Jagannatha’s maha-prasada! I must honor and respect it.” So Haridasa Thakura bowed down with folded hands offering prayers to the prasada and then took a very tiny portion and honored that.
Srila Prabhupada explains herein how prasada means the Lord’s favor. It should never be considered ordinary food. It is the Supreme Personality of Godhead’s favor upon the living being that He bestows the remnants of His mercy to not only satisfy their taste, their health, but to purify their hearts; to awaken their dormant love. That is the power of prasada. So devotees do not eat prasada; devotees honor the favor of the Lord that is coming in this most wonderful form.
The next day Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu came to Siddha Bakula and He saw Haridasa Thakura slowly chanting his rounds. Lord Caitanya asked, “Haridasa, are you well?” Haridasa Thakura replied, “My body is all right, but my mind and intelligence are not well.” Lord Caitanya asked, “Can you ascertain the cause of your disease?”
And Haridasa replied, he said, “My Lord, kindly hear my plea.” He said, “I am not able to complete the prescribed number of rounds that I chant of Krsna’s holy names, therefore I am in a diseased condition.”
Srila Prabhupada writes a very short, but powerful purport to this verse. He says, that if one is not able to complete the prescribed rounds that he has been assigned or she has been assigned, it is to be understood that that person in a spiritually diseased condition. And then Prabhupada said, “Knowing the difficulty of the people in the Western countries to chant large numbers of japa, we have prescribed a minimum of only sixteen rounds every day. And such rounds have to be chanted loud enough so that you and others could hear. And if one is not doing this every day it is to be understood that they are in a diseased condition.”
Lord Caitanya said to Thakura Haridasa, “You are very old. Please reduce the number of rounds you are chanting. You are already liberated. You have transcended the modes of material nature. You have achieved the perfection of life. There is no need for you to chant so much. Haridasa, you have already broadcasted the glories of the holy name all over the world for the benefit of humanity and you already perfected your own life. You have fulfilled the purpose of your incarnation in this world. Now please Haridasa, reduce the number of rounds that you chant every day.”
Thakura Haridasa with folded hands and a faltering voice replied, “Oh my Lord, please hear my plea. I am born in an inferior family. My body is abominable. I am always engaged in low works. Therefore I am the lowest and most condemned amongst men. I am unseeable and untouchable. But yet You have taken the opportunity to serve You. In giving me the opportunity to serve You, You have delivered me from the most horrible hellish conditions and You have elevated me to the platform of Vaikuntha.” This is a very important statement. When the Lord grants us devotional service he is granting us the platform of Vaikuntha.
Hari das Thakur continued, he said, “My Lord, you are the Supreme Personality of Godhead and your independent will is supreme. The whole world is dancing according to how you make it dance, and out of your causeless mercy you have made me dance in so many ways. For example even though I am most sinful and most condemned, in the assembly of qualified Brahmins, in the house of Advaitacarya you have given me the honors of taking the first remnants of the sradha although I have no qualification for such thing. My dear Lord, you are always merciful to your devotee. And although I am not a devotee – I am only and imitation of your devotee, I have a very strong desire that I wish you to fulfill. I have had this desire, this one single desire in my heart for a very long time.
I fear that soon you will close your pastimes in this material world. My dear Lord, please do not let me see this closing chapter of your pastimes. Before that day comes let my body fall before you. This is my one cherished desire my Lord. Allow me to take your most cherished, worship able lotus feet and embrace them to my heart. Allow my eyes to gaze at your moon-like face, and let my tongue constantly chant your holy names, Sri Krsna Caitanya. In this state take the life air from my life and allow me to fall at your feet. Please my Lord if it is possible by your mercy, fulfill my one single desire.”
Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu was deeply moved. He said, “ Haridas, what are you saying? The only happiness I find in the material world is in your association. Why do you want to leave me behind?
Haridas Thakur replied, “ My Lord, why are you creating an illusion? I am most condemned, I am most abominable, you have millions and millions of devotees, and each and every one of them is fit to sit on top my head. They are all helping you in a very useful way in your pastimes. But, I am useless, I am condemned. My Lord, if an insignificant insect dies, what is the loss to this world? If an ant dies what is the loss to this material creation of yours? My Lord, please full my desire.”
Lord Caitanya told Haridas Thakur that he would return tomorrow, and he left to perform his noon duties. The next morning, the Lord with all of his devotees in Puri, went to the house of Haridas Thakur. Haridas, was addressed by Lord Caitanya. “What is the news Haridas?” Haridas replied, “The news is whatever mercy you bestow upon me”
Then the Lord instructed his devotees to begin Nam Sankirtan. Vkesvara Pandit was the lead dancer. Svarup Domodara was the lead singer. Ramanandaraya, Sarva – Bhuma Bhattacarya and all the devotees present were chanting and dancing in ecstasy. Thakur Haridas went and took the dust of the lotus feet every devotee and placed it on his head. Then Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu began to explain to his devotees his love to Haridas Thakur. As he was describing the glories of Srila Haridas Thakur with pure, unadulterated love he was so enthused, he was so ecstatic that it seemed as though he had five mouths. The devotees were struck in wonder in transcendental ecstasy to hear the Lord praise his devotee with such deep affection – this is the difference between material consciousness and devotee consciousness. What is a true vaisnava? Do we dare to even know?
A true vaisnava is defined by this principal in one of Srila Prabhupada’s beautiful purports: A true vaisnava is one who is never envious of anyone. A true vaisnava is one who is in bliss of seeing someone else getting the mercy and the favor of the Lord. A vaisnava finds the greatest happiness in seeing other devotees exalted and glorified. And if we are envious, to that extent we are not truly Vaisnavas.
Lord Caitanya was glorifying Haridas with five mouths simultaneously, such enthusiasm, and all the devotes were enraptured to hear. Then Thakur Haridas again went and again took the dust from the lotus feet of every devotee and placed it on his head in utter humility. Then he sat Lord Caitanya down before him and took his lotus feet, those beautiful golden lotus feet, that are the shelter of all existence and the shelter of all entities spiritual and material worlds. And he pressed those feet with his two hands upon his heart, and gazed at Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu’s lotus face. His eyes were like two bumblebees drinking the nectar of the moon-like face of Sri Caithanya Mahaprabhu. And with profuse tears streaming from Haridas Thakur’s eyes, gazing at the Lord he repeatedly chanted with deep emotion. “Sri Krsna Caitanya. Sri Krsna Caitanya.”
In the assembly of devotees, by Lord Caitanya’s grace, Haridas Thakur’s life air left his body. As he lay there… lifeless, Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu became uncontrollably, ecstatically in love for his devotee. The entire Kirtan became tumultuous. The Mrdanga, the kartals, the enthusiasm and the love in the devotees’ voices cried out Krsna’s holy names. Sri Caitanya maddened by his love, lifted us Haridas and placed him on his lap and then began to dance!
Sri Gauranga Mahaprabhu ki Jaya!
He danced and he danced and he danced! And Haridas’s tears like torrents, rivers were flowing from his eyes. His hairs were standing on end. His limbs were trembly. With a choked voice he was chanting Krsna’s names.
Hare Krsna Hare Krsna Krsna Krsna Hare Hare Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare!
All the devotees seeing their beloved Haridas Thakur like this, he had left them. They were weeping, weeping in the agony of separation. But, at the same time seeing the Lord’s love for his devotee they were in ecstasy. They chanted and they danced and they chanted and they danced. And Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu would not give up the body of Haridas. Svarup Damodara Gosvami somehow stopped the Lord from dancing. He said, “My Lord it is time for the last rites. We must perform the funeral ceremony. Let us make the arrangements.”
During that time a palanquin was made which resembled an air ship, they laid Thakur Haridas’s body on that. They had a Nama Sankirtan procession from Siddha Bakula to the ocean. Vrkesvara Pandit was dancing, Svarup Damodara and others were singing, and Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu out of love for his devotee lead the procession, dancing in ecstasy until they arrived at the sea. There Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu personally took the body of Haridas Thakur. That body that many condemned to be that of a melecha. That body that was considered untouchable by materialist so-called Brahmins and religionists, that body that was considered and outcast to people who had superficial conceptions of spiritually, The Supreme personality of Godhead lovingly held that body and personally bathed it with his own hands in the waters of the sea. And then Sri Caitanya proclaimed that for all time to come that this sea is now a holy place of pilgrimage because it has bathed the body of Thakur Haridas. Lord Caitanya bathed in the sea every single day, but his opinion is, now it has become a holy place of pilgrimage because it has bathed Haridas Thakur’s body. And as Sri Caitanya was bathing Thakur Haridas’s feet the devotees were drinking that water and sprinkling it on their heads in ecstatic love.
Then Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu brought his body to the shore, and with his own hands began to dig in the sand. No shovel, with is hands he was digging. The devotees were helping him dig until there was a suitable hole in the ground. Then Sri Caitanya had Haridas Thakur’s body lowered . They anointed his limbs with fresh, fragrant sandal wood pulp which was the remnants of Jagannatha. Then they place upon his body Jagannatha’s remnants, some pieces of the silk rope that is used to pull Jagannath, and they put garlands and some of Jagannatha’s ornaments and clothes and Jagannatha’s prasadam. And then Lord Caitanya with his own hand very lovingly put the sand on Haridas’s form amongst the devotees. After he was buried in his samadhi the devotees right then and there put a sign to commemorate. Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu lead all the devotees to take their bath in the sea and then coming out of the sea they circumambulated the Samadhi Mandir of Haridas Thakur about four times, again and again.
Then Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu came into the town of Puri. He went to the main gate entrance to Jagannatha’s temple. There the prasadam of Jagannatha is brought out in large quantities every day and given to shop keepers to sell. Lord Caitanya declared “Today we are having a feast, in the honor of the great Vaisnava acarya Haridas Thakur”!
And Lord Caitanya taking the position of the most menial servant or servants went to each shop to beg alms for the feast. With tears of love in his eyes he would beg each shopkeeper with his cloth open. “Please in honor of Haridas Thakur I beg some alms for you.” And each shopkeeper, and there were hundreds of them were bringing entire baskets full of prasadam. Svarup Damodar Goswami said, “Lord Caitanya, why don’t you go home for a few minuets we will do this begging.”
They were bringing so much prasadam that Svarup Damodara Gosvami said to each shopkeeper, “just give four or five handfulls of each preparation. That’s all, that will be more than enough.” Here Svarup Damodara Gosvami – Lalita Sakhi, who is the most confidential assistant of Radha-Damodar in the Spiritual World begging, begging from ordinary people to glorify a vaisnava.
Soon there were huge amounts of prasadam. Vaninatha Misra and Kasi Misra, they brought huge quantities of Prasadam. Then Lord Caitanya came to serve the prasadam. He began to serve each preparation, however Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu was so eager to satisfy his devotees that one handful was more than five men could eat. That was his enthusiasm to serve. Just as his mouth when he wanted to glorify the devotees, it was as if he had five mouths. When he wanted to serve the devotees he has so such love and enthusiasm to serve his hands held more than five people could eat. Svarup Damodara Gosvami approached Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu and said, “ My Lord please let us serve, because no one is going to eat until you eat.”
So he sat down with Brahmananda Bharati and Paramananda Puri. Svarup Damodara- listen to this - these were the top devotees serving prasadam. Svarup Damodara Gosvami, the most confidential associate, the Siksa guru of Ragunatha das Gosvami, he was serving prasadam to all the devotees, and everyone there. Jagat-anada Puri, the great devotees in conjugal rasa was serving all the devotees and guests. And there was Damodara Pandit, and Sankara Pandit and Kasisvara Pandit. Who was Kasisvara? He was Isvara Puri’s personal servant. The are all serving.
We should understand that serving prasadam is not just a chore. It is a most exalted privilege. The most highly elevated paramahamsa’s of Mahaprabhu’s lila are serving the prasadam to the devotees. What is our right, what is our qualification to serve Krsna’s prasadam? We have none. It is out of causeless mercy that we are allowed such an exalted position. And let us carefully analyze, what is this exalted position? It is to take the most menial position of serving. The most exalted position is menial service. Svarup Damodara Gosvami, Jagatananda Pandit, Sankar Pandit – Sankar Pandit was know as the pillow of Lord Caitanya. During Lord Caitanya’s most intimate lila in the Gambhira, where he was in such ecstasy that he would sometimes escape from his room and just go out and . Sankar Pandit was assigned to stay alone with the Lord at night in the night and go mad alone. Sankar Pandit was assigned to stay in the his room in Gambhira and keep the Lord’s feet on his lap like a pillow and massage him all night long… He was serving prasadam with great enthusiasm, with great ecstasy to serve the vaisnava’s.
And Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu, he wasn’t allowed to serve the prasadam. He wanted to serve, but he was not allowed. His devotees would not eat. So for the satisfaction of his devotees and the vaisnava he sat to eat – or let us say to honor. But the Lord eats, we honor, because for Him it is bhoga. In the role of a devotee he was honoring prasadam.
Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu was instructing the servants, “Give them more, Give them more!” And as he was eating Prasadam with all of the devotees, he still said “Give them more, Give them more!”
In another place it explains how Sri Caitanya is the paramatma in everyone’s heart. Therefore, when you are taking prasadam the Lord knows just what preparations you like and he knows exactly what you want more. And he was ordering the servant “Give him rasgula! More! More! More! Give him this nice cake” He kept telling “give them more! Give them More” until the devotees were fed up to their necks.
Then to honor Srila Haridas Thakur Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu got up to wash his hand and when all the devotees got up to wash their hands Sri Caitanya personally gave each devotee a garland with his own hands. And with his own hands he took sandalwood pulp and ornamented their limbs with that - serving his devotees. And then Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu spoke to everyone. He said, “Today we have honored this celebration of the passing of Haridas Thakur. How fortunate is anyone who in anyway participated in this most sacred event. Anyone who was in the kirtan in the passing of Haridas, anyone who was there to bathe his body in the sea, anyone who has honored this prasada or heard the kirtan, all of you will become most dear to Krsna. You will achieve the supreme mercy of Krsna. That is the power of Haridas Thakur. By the Lord’s love and kindness he has given me the association of Haridas Thakur, the Namacarya, But, now by the Lord’s inconceivable will he has taken away that association. Haridas Thakur is the acarya of the chanting of the holy names. He has spread the holy name of Krsna in all directions. But now the Lord has taken him away from us. He was the crown jewel of this entire world, but now the world is bereft of that jewel. Everyone very loudly with raised arms call out Jai Jai Haridas! Jai Jai Haridas! Jai Jai Haridas! And chant the hold names of the Lord! Hare Krsna Hare Krsna Krsna Krsna Hare Hare Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare.”
The devotees chanted the holy names with great love and then the lord returned to his abode of Gambhira. As he was walking he was simotaniously feeling the deep anguish of separation from his devotee. And at the same time he was feeling ecstatic. This is something that can not be understood by material consciousness. Actually it can only be understood by the mercy of the Lord. We can theoretically comprehend certain things, but bhakti is about the experience of the heart. Yes we can read books, learn philosophies and site them very wonderfully as scholars. But to actually experience, to actually understand trueth, it is only possible by the mercy of the Lord. And that mercy only come to one whom the Lord is pleased by. Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu proclaimed Haridas Thakur to be the crest-jewel of all scholars. Srila Prabhupada explained, how is Haridas Thakur such a scholar - because he experienced, he realized Krsna’s love. He realized how his service to the Lord, His pleasure to the Lord was by promoting the chanting of the Holy names, which is the essence of all knowledge.
Harinama, Harinama, Harinama ewa kevalam
Kalau nasteva, nasteva, nasteva, gatih anyatha
In the age of kali the only way of protection is through God’s names. It is explained that this mantra: Hare Krsna Hare Krsna Krsna Krsna Hare Hare Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare, is the essence of the Vedas. All vedic knowledge culminates in the understanding of the greatness of this Maha-mantra. Everything can be realized through this process. So because Haridas Thakur had complete faith in the holy name of the Lord, therefore he was the greatest of all scholars.
So, yes understanding spiritual maters in not a matter of scholarship. It is not a question of futile brain substance. It is only possible through our humility and our dedication to the Lord. How is it possible that at the passing of a great vaisnava that a person can be simultaneously in complete tribulation, heart-breaking anguish, and at the same time ecstasy. Actually it is incomprehensible, but by the mercy of the Lord it can be experienced.
Thus Lord Caitanya returned feeling deep, deep separation from his devotee who had returned back home, back to Godhead. Krsnadas Kaviraj Gosvami summarizes the story by explaining how the Lord loves his devotee, how the Lord serves his devotee. On Haridas Thakur’s order, which came in the form of a humble appeal – The Lord took his life even though he was dearer to the Lord than even life itself. The Lord was willing to bear intense, immense separation in order to fulfill the desire of his devotee.
Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu, he danced with that body of Haridas. He bathed the body of Haridas. He worshipped the body of Haridas. He begged for Haridas. He glorified to the whole world the Namacarya. Srila Prabhupada explains that the Lords mission of coming to this world is to deliverer the fallen souls and in this age of Kali, especially through Nama Sankirtan. And similarly the Lord’s associated they come to this world and they stay in the world for one purpose, assisting the Lord in his mission of connecting people to the Lord for their ultimate deliverance. Haridas Thakur never claimed to be anyone great. Previously Sri Caitanya revealed his divine opulence’s to Haridas. He revealed himself to be Krsna, the Lord of Vrndavan. And then he commanded Haridas to ask for benediction. Now Haridas Thakur, he had no home, he had no possessions, he had no wife, he had no family, he had no bank account, he had nothing in this world. He just lived in caves and jungles, begged some food from time to time. He was constantly preaching the glories of the holy name and chanting a minimum of 192 rounds a day, 300,000 names. So Haridas Thakur was told by Sri Caitanya to ask for a benediction so Thakur Haridas said he wanted nothing.
Haridas Thakur is said, in our holy scriptures to manifest the qualities of Prahlad Maharaj. When Nrsimha Bhagavan ordered Prahlad to take a benediction Prahlad said “My Lord if I take anything from my service to you than I am not a devotee, I am a business person.”
A devotee is surrendering. Bhaktivinode prays “ My home my family, my abilities, everything I have I surrender to you Nanda Kishore .. My Lord if you want you can sustain me or if you want you can kill me. You have any right to deal with me in any way you please because I am your servant.” That is the mood of a surrendered devotee.
Haridas Thakur said “I don’t want anything my Lord” Lord Caitanya said, “But it will make me happy if you ask for something.” The Lord is the supreme in debate you cannot defeat Him. Yet the Lord is pleased to be defeated by his devotees. The Lord defeated Haridas! “You do not want anything, but I will be pleased if you ask for something.”
So Haridas defeated him he asked for something, he said, “Let me be born in every birth in such a place where I will get the remnants of the food that has been left from the plate of your devotee. Let that wealth be mine, the remnants of the food of your devotees. Let me be born as a dog or an insect in the vicinity of your devotees’ home so when they throw the scraps and remnants in the dust bin I will get to eat it.” Then Haridas became very ashamed he said, “ My Lord I have no right to ask for such an exalted benediction like this, please forgive me.”
trinad api sunicena, taror api sahishnuna
amanina manadena, kirtaniya sada hari
That is why Thakur Haridas was chanting the name of the Lord constantly. “Just let me be the servant of the servant of the servant and honor and worship in the most menial way Your servants.”
Lord Caitanya was so pleased he just roared in ecstasy, “Haridas, I grant you this benediction, that whoever sees you, whoever hears you chanting, even whoever hears your name will get Krsna’s supreme mercy.”
He fulfilled his innermost desire… Lord Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu is conquered by the simplicity, the humility and the love, of his devotee. And how the devotee’s love each other, sharing the spirit of the Lord is the innermost secret of the spiritual world that is what we learn from this story.
Our beloved Bhakti Tirtha Maharaja is performing his closing pastimes in this material world, and how painful it is to observe it. However, we must understand this most glorious, wonderful lila through the eyes of the scripture, a devotees’ body is the Lords’ own property. Why? Because the devotee has surrendered his body, mind, words, and life to the service of the Lord.
We remember the story of the Sanatan Gosvami, he had a very diseased body with itching, oozing, painful sores all over – blood, puss. He was thinking, “let me put my body under the wheel of the chariot wheel of Lord Jagannatha in the presence of Lord Caitanya and all of the devotees chanting in kirtan”. Then he was thinking in an auspicious way, “then I can get a better birth in my next life.” He didn’t say this it was a secret plan that he had in his heart. But, Mahaprabhu is paramatma; he is the knower of all from within and without. Krsna says in the Gita, “I know all things that have happened in the past and what is to come in the future. And I know every living being, I know every thought, every desire.” Krsna is watching from within.
Our Spiritual Advancement does not come by how the people in the world see us. Because we can be clever and fooled, but spiritual progress is not about being clever it is about being genuine and pleasing the Lord who is seeing from within. And he never sleeps. Paramatma never goes to sleep. He is watching, he is listening 24 hours a day, birth after birth after birth, doesn’t that sound wonderful?! [laughter] He is our ever well-wishing friend we shouldn’t disappoint him!
Haribol, what was I saying [laughter].
Advaitacarya: Sanantana Gosvami
RNS: Sanantana Gosvami, yes, we have Advaitacarya here.
So, Lord Caitanya understood Sanatan Gosvai’s heart. One day he just spoke, he was standing with Haridas Thakur. He said “this Sanatan Gosvami is a thief, he wants to destroy another man’s property. He has already surrendered his body to me and now he wants to destroy my property. I have so many things that I want to do through your body. My mother, by her order I have to stay in Jagannath Puri. I want you to go to Vrndavan to reestablish the holy places, to build beautiful temples and establish deity worship, to write books extracting all of the knowledge of the Vedas. And by your own exemplary behavior to teach what is the etiquette and lifestyle of a vaisnava, especially one in the renounced order of life. How could you desire to destroy the property that I will perform so many incredible services through?”
Therefore the devotee surrenders their body to the Lord, so their body is Krsna’s property. Krsna can do whatever he wants with his property. He can empower our bodies to perform inconceivable, incomprehensible services.
Or like Arjuna’s chariot - when the Lord desires he can remove us from this body in any way that he pleases. Now what is the difference between a mystic yogi and a bhakta? A mystic yogi becomes completely detached from his body when he is in the perfect state desire less. I have seen with my eyes mystic yogis, they can inflict any pain upon the body and not care. I have seen them with eight fires around them sitting ine meditation in heat of the sun from sunrise to sunset in the summer, Hare Krsna, and not move, eat, or drink. I have seen others piercing themselves with hooks all over the place. Even yogis who’s sadhana is to meditate from sunrise to sunset laying dagger-like thorn bushed, with blood oozing out of their bodies and all kinds of pulses and sores, “om” and they are smiling. (Haribol.)
But what is a vaisnava? A vaisnava does not care about that. A vaisnava becomes softhearted in order to please he Lord. A vaisnava doesn’t mind if the body feels pain or whatever. Even if he does mind he is willing to endure it, for the service of the Lord. A devotee is willing to endure anything and to remain faithful to Krsna.
The Christians glorify Jesus. It is not like he was just hanging on the cross saying “om”. He was suffering, but because he was suffering in the services of the Lord, that is love.
Prabhupada had heart attacks, seasickness, he writes about it in his diaries. He endured amazing pain for the service of the Lord. That is the glory of the Lord. That is love, love is not about indifference love is about surrender.
There is that very famous tape of Srila Prabhupada. I often quote this tape . An Indian scholar was challenging Prabhupada. “Krsna told Arjuna in the Bhagavad Gita that the non-permanent appearance of happiness and distress are like the appearance and disappearance of the winter and summer seasons. One should learn to tolerate them without being disturbed.” The professor knew the verse. “So why after realizing this when Abhimanyu was killed on the battlefield, Arjuna, Bimha, Yudhistir, Nakula, Sahadev, Draupadi, and even Subhudra were all weeping and crying that Abhimanyu was dead. Haribol, you are not supposed to be disturbed by these things.” Would you like to hear Prabhupada’s answer?
He Said, “It is natural to be disturbed when your son dies, that’s nature, that is natural.” He said, “But his service to Krsna was not disturbed. Even baring that wound in his heart of that pain which is more difficult than any physical pain. Arjuna had all kinds of arrows piercing his body and everything – that was painful. But not as painful of the arrow in heart of the death of his son, and in such an unfair way.” Prabupada said “He carried on with his service, he carried on with his devotion. His service was not disturbed, that means his service attitude, his attachment to Krsna. In all circumstances a devotee even though being physically and mental tormented in a situation a great devotee of the Lord never gives up his longing for Krsna.”
Following in the footsteps of Haridas Thakur, everyday I see Bhakti Tirtha Maharaja; no matter what happens he chants twenty rounds minimum of japa. He told me many times with great confidence since the day that he was initiated he never missed chanting a minimum of twenty rounds every day. Sometimes, Maharaja is just struggling and straining to chant. I say, “Maharaj, you don’t have to do to now. You have done it all these years. You have done such immense, amazing service. You have enthused thousands and thousands of people to chant the holy name.” But in the spirit of Haridas he said “No, I must please Prabhupada by keeping my word.”
That was the example of Haridas Thakur. The example of Ragunath das Gosvami, Srila Prabhupada quote : “That even though Ragunath das Gosvami lived on the highest platform, having the highest service of being a maid servant of Sri Radhika at Radha Kund. Still he would chant minimum 100,000 names of Krsna a day. 200,000 names of Krsna a day. Two laks every day. And without fail he would offer obeisance to the deities and the devotees many thousands of times a day.” It is explained that the regulative principals of Ragunath das Gosvami were like the lines in stone, so deep and unchangeable.
Haridas Thakur is Namacarya. So, yes Bhakti Tirtha Maharaj to breaks our heart in millions and millions of pieces to see the condition of his body. Vaisnava’s are not insensitive to that. It is not that you just say “You are not the body” No we feel for the condition.
Srila Prabhupada explained that when the spiritual master is in a painful or diseased condition it is for several reasons. One, he is accepting that sins of disciples, and accepting the sin of the world. Two, is to give and opportunity for those who are sincere to render a very deep, deep service to the spiritual master in that condition. Mahavendra Puri was the highest of all vaisnavas, yet he was in such a condition at the end of his life that his disciple had to clean his stool and urine from his body. Madhavendra Puri was crying out, “I did not reach Krsna. Oh, Lord of Mathura I have not reached you. Therefore my mind is in great anxiety, what am I to do?”
He was begging his disciple Isvara Puri to help him remember Krsna. Isvara Puri’s service was to clean the stool and urine from his body and constantly chant the names of Krsna, to help his guru remember Krsna. And Madhavendra Puri, his love was the seed was the of Lord Caitanya’s entire mission. Is that comprehendible? Yes, if we have the mercy of the vaisnava’s we can understand, at least to some extent. Srila Madhavendra Puri was feeling pain in his heart in separation, for humbly asking his disciple to help him remember Krsna. That is the nature of a humble soul. That is the nature of love. We should not be confused.
The Third reason is that their suffering is a symptom of their ecstatic absorption.
Srila Bhakti Tirtha Maharaja he put his body through such sever austerities. For years he was the top book distributor in ISKCON. Putting in the longest hours, when his was doing the sets of Prabhupada’s books to colleges he wouldn’t eat until very late at night when all of the colleges were closed. This is because he did not want to waste a moment that he could be distributing Prabhupada’s books. He surrendered his body, he surrendered his mind, he surrendered his heart and soul. And even though at this time he is going through a very inconceivable physical situation he is still totally faithful - Faithful to please Prabhupada by chanting the holy names. He pleaded with devotees to tell him about Krsna, eager, so eager for Krsna despite all the apparent needs of his body. His core essential purpose of everything is just to please Prabhupada, to please the devotees. It is a transcendental consciousness to be afraid of forgetting Krsna, to be afraid of forgetting Krsna at the time of death. That is a humble, transcendental state. That is a feeling of separation. So, when I am with Maharaj for several hours sometimes I very much remember the qualities and attributes of Haridas Thakur.
Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu actually taught the world through Haridas Thakur, how to live and how to leave. Let us be very, very, very grateful and with faithful hearts to honor and love with great gratitude this great soul.
Srila Bhakti Tirtha Maharaja Ki! Jaya!
Thank you very Much. Should we have Dancing Kirtan? It will help you have deeper enthusiasm when you honor Prasadam.
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