Seeing through the eyes of the Sastra

It was almost 1 AM, Saturday morning, the streets were still busy with vehicles. But the street where we live was calm and quiet and the only sound was the melodious bhajan Sri Rupa Manjari pada,playing on our car stereo. We had yet another late Bhakti Vriksha gathering and were just pulling into the drive way when the hysterical screams of  a female voice penetrated the still, spring air. Not expecting other souls to be around, we quickly alighted and went indoors, but managed to hear the words and see the couple who were having a fight in the middle of the street. The woman was probably in her early 40's and the man in his mid 40's.. The woman, still dressed in work clothes, her hair a  frizzy mass, was right at the bend of the road under the glare of the street lamp and kept screaming " I am your wife, your equal, not your puppet,"  The man appeared later, his voice was subdued, and he appeared to be calming down his wife. Drawing the curtains, I was musing on the pastime that lead to the birth of Kapila dev, the Prayers of Kardama Muni, the Marriage of Kardama Muni and Devahuti and the lamentation of Devahuti and thought of the reversal of roles in Kali Yuga. Being asked to speak to a small group of Vaisnavis, I had recently heard and read the pastime and seeing this explosion and battle between the sexes took me back to the Bhagavatam pages which describe the ideal conduct between man and wife. In the following paragraphs I will make an attempt to summarize from what I heard and read on this topic, for my own self purification.
In this post I will summarize the desire of Kardma Muni. In the following posts we will see the ideal relationship between Grhastha couples, based on the example of Sri Kardama Muni and Devahuti, from the Srimad Bhagavatam.
Background
After mother Earth was rescued from the demon Hiranyaksha and restored to her former position, Lord Brahma entrusts his sons , including Kardama Muni, with the task of populating the Earth. Kardama Muni is a perfected being, an Astanga Yogi, a liberated soul who apart from being an expert yogi is also a devotee of Lord Visnu engaged in devotional service to the Lord. He has no inclination to engage in family life but agrees to follow the instructions of his father and engages himself in prayers to the Lord. 
The narration of his austerities spanning a period of 10,000 years was recounted by sage Maitreya to Vidura, who though was not interested in mundane affairs was interested in hearing about the procreation and creation of exemplary population, as it is acceptable to all sages and authorities of scriptures and because one becomes enlightened by hearing such activities.

Conversation between Manu and Kardama Muni -Srimad Bhagavatam, Canto 3, Chapter 21
The first part of this chapter discusses the role of material desires in life, whom one must approach to fulfill the desires and the reciprocation of the Lord, through the example of Kardama Muni.

• Kardama Muni being a liberated soul and a yogi could have made his own arrangements to procure a suitable wife to carry out the orders of his father, instead he chooses to pray to Lord Visnu and performs austerities on the banks of the river Saraswati, for 10,000 years.
• Material desires are due to our being in the mode of passion. If we let the desires to dominate us, then desires take over leading to attachment, anger and eventually complete illusion, which is the mode of ignorance. This section of the Bhagavatam explains what one must do if not aspiring for pure devotional service, but has material desires. It explains how when the desires are engaged devotional services, the desires and senses get purified and we become situated in the mode of goodness.
• At the end of 10,000 years, when the Lord appears before Kardama Muni, pleased with his austerities, Kardama Muni though embarrassed to request the Lord for such a material benediction still requested the Lord to fulfill his desire for a suitable wife. Srila Prabhupada mentions that Kardama Muni could have approached Uma Devi for a suitable wife but he shows the path for others by approaching Lord Visnu who is anyway the beneficiary for all sacrifices, thereby establishing His superiority and showing the ideal behaviour of a devotee. Involving Krishna in all major decisions of life reflects the level of surrender of a person and Kardama Muni exemplified this.
• The Lord appears before his devotee to reciprocate with him. This illustrates that when Kardama Muni attained perfection through the method of worship prescribed in his times viz.Satya Yuga, the Lord appeared before him.Only someone with a purified heart can see the Lord! There was effort and this was noticed by the Lord who provided His mercy. Perfection of our sense of sight is vision of the Lord,sense of hearing is hearing the Lord etc., and Kardama Muni had attained this perfection!
• Whether one has no desires for sense gratification, has desires or is desirous of liberation, one must always approach the Supreme Lord, because he is the ultimate source and enjoyer of all sacrifices.
• The Lord informs Kardama Muni that Svyambhuva Manu, the illustrious emperor of the seven worlds, also the son of Brahma, who was a powerful Kshatriya would approach Kardama Muni with his wife Shatarupa and daughter Devahuti and would offer her in marriage to Kardama Muni. Lesson- When the Lord is involved, the result is always sweeter than what we could have arranged for, using our own intelligence.
• After the Lord's departure, on the foretold day, the emperor Svyambhuva Manu arrives with his wife and daughter Devahuti, at lake Bindu Sarovara which was created by the tears of the Lord that flowed from His lotus eyes on seeing Kardama Muni. 
• Srila Prabhupada mentions in the purports, how the parents of the girl have to involve themselves in the selection of a suitable groom for their daughter and never allow the daughter to make their own decisions because the decision could be flawed by superficial considerations.
• The next verses talk of the sweet exchange that took place between Manu and Kardama Muni and Kshatriya and a Brahmana and how there was so so much respect and mutual love between the different varnas, and also provides a beautiful description of the surroundings of Lake Bindu Sarovara.
• The chapter ends with Kardama Muni wanting to know the reason for the visit of the Emperor to his hermitage.

We will now take a quick peek into the next chapter but delve more in detail in the coming days.
Srimad Bhagavatam - Canto 3, Chapter 22

• The talks lead to verses where Svyambhuva Manu offers his daughter Devahuti in marriage to the sage Kardama. Princess Devahuti has her heart set on marrying Kardama Muni,after hearing all about his glories from the celestial sage Narada.
• Kardama Muni also reveals how the mind of the Sadhaka has to be fixed on the goal i.e pure devotional service to Sri Radha and Krishna while still being in the material world, and carrying out the responsibilities.He accepts Devahuti as his bride but vows to leave family life as soon as their union produces suitable progeny.
• Svyambhuva Manu returns to his kingdom after entrusting his daughter to the care of Kardama Muni and performs his duties in perfect Krishna consciousness.

The Bhagavatam surely is the ripened fruit of vedic knowledge and has the cure for the myriad situations that we find ourselves in life. This series is an attempt to look at things through the eyes of the Sastra, with Sastra Caksusa!, in the hopes that it will inspire us to live it!
To be continued.

Nimai-NItai.

Little Nimai Nitai after a month's stay.

Our Nitai

Our Nimai

Little Nimai-Nitai, when They came home.

As I open the guest altar two smily faces affront me. The gleaming spring sun casts its rays through a parting in the window, this makes the already shiny faces glisten like the morning dew. Whenever i see the little Nimai-Nitai  deities as i call Them, visions of Their past flash through my mind. "They are from Ekacakra and the shopkeeper who made Them said They were very special," the voice of my friend echoes in my mind. I envision Them having been served by associates of Caitanya Mahaprabhu in the times of great Sankirtan Revolution that took place long ago in Nadia..Visions of Gauridas Pandit's Gaura Nitai deities jumping off the altar and running to join the Kirtan. Visions of Pisima Goswamini's Gaura Nitai trading Their jewelry for rabri. Visions of Nimai crying for the moon and visions of Vasudev ghosh glorifying Nimai playing hide and seek with his brother in his enchanting childhood form."But aren't all deities special?" counters my mind. It then goes on to answer its own question by putting forth arguments and counter arguments about how the deities are special aand how the deities from Ekacakra are still special. All the while my hands are moving briskly collecting the Nirmalya flowers, filling water in Their pots and trying to concentrate on the seva at hand. But my mind and and gaze returns to the sweet faces of the two boys. For a moment as I admire Their chubby legs, flood pants, curly locks of hair and wondrous eyes, time stands still...I'm brought to the present by the sound of the cooker and the chirping of the noisy birds, which seem to be instructing me to chant my Gayatri mantra and rush back to the kitchen to tend to the bhoga. They came to stay for week, but stayed for over a month and have my heart in Their grasp. My heart overflows with gratitude for my spiritual master, who named our own Gaura Nitai deities as Nimai- Nitai and for Srila Prabhupada who gave us this scientific method of devotional service to the Lord, paving the way to reclaiming our lost idetitities and establishing our true connections, being in the world and not being of  it. Jai Nimai -Nitai, Jai Srila Prabhupada!

Attachments keep us in this material world. The good thing is that these very same attachments when directed to  residents of the spiritual world can free us.  Thank you for letting this crazy soul to serve you!



Springtime Visitors

It was the day of Akshaya tritiya, the third day of the bright fortnight, in the month of Vishaka, our already crowded home was having a splurge of transcendental visitors. First it was Gaura Nitai, Gopal, and Little Jagannath Baladev Subhadra, and on Akshaya Tritiya, Radha Vrindavan Chandra, 2 Laddu Gopals and Nitai Gaurasundara came for a visit. Its always a pleasure to have guests at home timely or untimely and this was the best blessing that one could ask for and that too on such an auspicious day. The guest altar was brought out and room was made for the distinguished guests. Observing the Lords in various ages, spanning from kaumara, through yauvana, i was awestruck by His beauty and smile. The Nectar of Devotion provides a beautiful account of exactly this sweetness possesed by Krishna. For the three days that the festival of Inspiration was happening in New Vrindavan, West Virginia, we were having a spiritual retreat of our own. It is said in the scriptures that one should invite limited number of guests so that we can serve them nicely, instead of having a large gathering where we cannot take care of any of the guests in a proper manner. So, on one hand i was plagued with thoughts of seva aparadha and on the other hand i just could not push away this opportunity for seva. Posted below are some pictures of the visitors...As i looked throught the lens of my Nikon, i was imagining how the King who later became a disciple of Sri Ramanuja and acquired the name of Dhanurdasa must've felt on being granted Divya Caksu to see the beautiful eyes of Lord Ranganatha....As a result, i ended up taking numerous  pictures of the deities. Though one might think that the pictures are the same, they are spread over  4 days and have subtle variations. Its a visit that I will always treasure!

Nitai's Staff

Nitai on Nityananda Trayodasi 2011

Srila Vrindavan Das Thakura receiving Darshan of Nitai.

Sri Nityananda Astakam

By Vrindavan Das Thakura

1) I perpetually worship Shri Nityananda Prabhu, the root of the Krishna-bhakti tree, whose bright face   mocks the full autumn moon, whose pure complexion glistens, whose gait is like that of a maddened elephant, who is always intoxicated in Krishna-prema, who embodies pure spiritual energy, whose face holds a gentle smile, whose eyes are always rolling due to His absorption in Krishna-prema, whose lotus hand holds a glowing staff, and who, by the performance of nama-sankirtana, pierces the influence of Kali-yuga.

2) I perpetually worship Shri Nityananda Prabhu, the root of the Krishna-bhakti tree, who is the mainstay of all the rasas, who is everything to His devotees, who is beyond compare, who is the master of both Vasudha and Jahnava-devi, who consider Him more dear than their own lives, who is always maddened in Krishna-prema, and who is unknown only to those of meager intelligence.



3) I perpetually worship Shri Nityananda Prabhu, the root of the Krishna-bhakti tree, who is very dear to Shri Saci-nandana, who is worshipped by the entire universe, who is the embodiment of happiness, who possesses infinite mercy for delivering the souls who are drowning in the age of Kali, and who, by the performance of shri-harinama-sankirtana, thwarts the progressing false pride of the ocean of repeated birth and death.



4) I perpetually worship Shri Nityananda Prabhu, the root of the Krishna-bhakti tree, who said to Shri Krishna Chaitanya, "Hey brother Gauranga! What will be the destination of the sinful souls of Kali-yuga and how will they be redeemed? Please devise a method by which they will easily attain You."


5) I perpetually worship Shri Nityananda Prabhu, the root of the Krishna-bhakti tree, who wandered around Bengal and, approaching the door of each and every home, threw open His arms and exclaimed, "O brothers! All of you should eternally perform shri-harinama-sankirtana together. By doing so, I will take the responsibility to deliver you all from the ocean of material existence."


6) I eternally worship Shri Nityananda Prabhu, the root of the Krishna-bhakti tree, who is the Agastya Muni who forcibly swallows the ocean of repeated birth and death, who is a rising full moon which increases the ocean of the saintly persons' welfare, and who is a sun which dissipates the darkness of ignorance cast by the various classes of miscreants.


7) I eternally worship Shri Nityananda Prabhu, the root of the tree of Krishna-bhakti, who wandered on every path in Bengal dancing, singing, and calling out "Hari bol! Hari bol!" and who lovingly bestowed merciful sidelong glances upon those who were not compassionate to even their own selves.


8) I eternally worship Shri Nityananda Prabhu, the root of the Krishna-bhakti tree, who held the supremely soft lotus-hand of His brother Shri Gauranga Mahaprabhu, whose heart became filled with the highest bliss when the two brothers gazed into each other's faces, and who wandered here and there delighting the townspeople with His sweetness. 8) May Shri Nityananda Prabhu place His lotus feet in the heart of one who lovingly recites this unprecedented Nityanandastaka, which is the reservoir of rasa, the greatest treasure of the most exalted of rasika Vaishnavas, and the storehouse of the essence of bhakti-rasa.