The Thief of Time

In Srimad Bhagavatam, the result of not utilizing time for devotional service to the Supreme Lord Krishna is very emphatically stated in the following verse: SB 2.3.17

aayur harati vai pumsaam / udyann astam ca yann asau
tasyarte yat-kshano neeta / uttama-shloka vaartayaa

"Both by rising and by setting, the sun decreases the duration of life of everyone, except one who utilizes the time by discussing topics of the all-good Personality of Godhead."

In his transcendental purport, Srila Prabhupada explains:

"This verse indirectly confirms the greater importance of utilizing the human form of life to realize our lost relationship with the Supreme Lord by acceleration of devotional service. Time and tide wait for no man. So the time indicated by the sunrise and the sunset will be uselessly wasted if such time is not properly utilized for realizing identification of spiritual values. Even a fraction of the duration of life wasted cannot be compensated by any amount of gold."

Very often in devotional service, we always give excuses for not reading Bhagavad Gita and Srimad Bhagavatam.. The main reason we give is "time". 'If only I have more time!!'. The fascinating thing that we discover that when we suddenly have "more time", it is quickly taken up. The "new" time we have is somehow eaten up. It's hard to put our finger on it - material society is such that life has become complicated and unnecessarily busy. We rarely have anyone say that they have plenty of time on their hands. We always complain that there aren't enough hours in a day. Every living entity has exactly the same number of minutes - 1,440 minutes in a day. The truth is that everybody wants more time but everybody has all the time there is. It is the one that the poorest beggar on the street or the most powerful person in the world has exactly the same amount of. Everyone starts each new day with a bag filled with 1440 minutes. The problem is the existence of a "thief" - a thief who steals time from us.

At the start of every new day, a bag full of minutes is delivered to us and at that very moment onwards, the thief of time strikes at our hearts. He will rob us of our valuable time with the Supreme Lord Krishna, to do our daily chanting and reading of scriptures. This thief's name is 'Later', and he has dedicated his 'life' to stealing the living entity's time. Whenever he meets somebody who wants to engage in the process of devotional service, he says, ".. Very good. But not today. Today you should clean your car, spend time with your family, catch up on your sleep". He will urge you to do anything and everything except devotional service - that comes later! The truth is that there is no way for us to progress in devotional service until we deal with this creature. His power lies in his stealth; if you see him you have him beaten.

Therefore, as our beloved Guru Maharaj says: "No matter how small a step towards devotional service - start it now and do not delay." If the task is too great - break it down into small parts. We must be involved in a daily battle with "later" in devotional service. He must not allow us to be robbed of the chance to engage in the transcendental service of the Lord.

In the Bhagavad-gita (2.40) the Lord has explained such contact in the following words: "Endeavors in devotional service are never baffled. Nor is there failure. A slight beginning of such activities is sufficient even to deliver a person from the great ocean of material fears."

No Arguments Against Vedic Literature

We were fortunate to have the wonderful association of Maharaj in Rajkot. Maharaj gave very illuminating and wonderful explanation on Srimad Bhagavatam verse 1.6.25

etaavad uktvopararaama tan mahad / bhutam nabholingam alingam ishvaram
aham ca tasmai mahataam mahiyase / shirsnaavanaamam vidadhe ‘nukampitah

Then that supreme authority, personified by sound and unseen by eyes, but most wonderful, stopped speaking. Feeling a sense of gratitude, I offered my obeisances unto Him, bowing my head.

Purport: That the Personality of Godhead was not seen but only heard does not make any difference. The Personality of Godhead produced the four Vedas by his breathing and He is seen and realized through the transcendental sound of the Vedas. Similarly, the Bhagavad Gita is the sound representation of the Lord, and there is no difference in identity. The conclusion is that the Lord can be seen and heard by persistent chanting of the transcendental sound.

Anyone who does the transcendental vibration they will never go wrong. Vibrations are very important. By vibrating the verses of Srimad Bhagavatam and Srimad Bhagavad Gita we can achieve perfection in pronouncing the vibrations. This matter is very much settled by the verse 1.6.25 Vibration is the way to see Krishna. This is settled matter. No arguments. Nirnayam – decided matter. No appeal.. If we can develop faith in these transcendental vibrations our devotional service will increase leaps and bounds. We should not object the Vedic literature and that is Vedic culture. It is called ved vakya which is never to be questioned or argued. Each and every phase of the purport is very important and we have to realize these statements.

The whole Srimad Bhagavatam has got a general purpose – It is included in this verse

Each and every canto has got a specific purpose – It is included in this verse.

Each and every chapter has got a specific purpose – It is included in this verse.

Each and every verse has got a specific purpose – It is included in this verse

Each and every word has got a specific purpose – It is included in this verse.

There is no other literature with so much of vast literature available in this planet. It is important to think about these things. Srimad Bhagavatam is exclusively meant for conditioned souls. We are all conditioned souls and also reconditioned. TV/AC/Fridge are reconditioning us always. Therefore in order to get out of this conditioned and reconditioned life this Vedic literature is very important. Nobody can disagree with anything mentioned in Srimad Bhagavatham. We don’t require anything else in this world except Srimad Bhagavatam. We have to have unflinching faith in the Vedic literature. By this process we will increase our devotional service.

Krishna - The All Wonderful Absolute Person

In Srimad Bhagavatam, we find in many places that Krishna is glorified as "adbhuta karmana" (one whose actions are wonderful). In the 10th canto, we come across this word when Sri Sukadeva Goswami recites the Lord's pastimes related to the killing of demons like Putana, Dhenukasura, Aghasura etc. A question came up in my mind, "The Supreme Lord is the creator, maintainer and annihilator of this material world and this activity cannot be done by anyone else. He does all this just by His sankalpa. For such a person, it is not at all a difficult task to destroy the demons who are tiny specks in creation. He is the one who gives powers to these demons. Then why He is called 'adbhuta karmana', just because He kills demons or defeats Jarasandha's army and why Srila Sukadeva Goswami should explain such incidents in great details with great wonder ?" Its like glorifying a great boxing champion as wonderful when he kills a mosquito. The person may actually get offended by this glorification(?). However by the blessings of Maharaj, I came across the answer for the above question in the following shloka of Srimad Bhagavatam (10.50.29)

sthity-udbhavaantam bhuvana-trayasya yah
samihite 'nanta-gunah sva-leelayaa
na tasya citram para-paksha-nigrahas
tathaapi martyaanuvidhasya varnyate

"For Him who orchestrates the creation, maintenance and destruction of the three worlds and who possesses unlimited spiritual qualities, it is hardly amazing that He subdues an opposing party. Still, when the Lord does so, imitating human behavior, sages glorify His acts."

Though the Lord is all powerful and can do anything He likes, even small (from His point of view) deeds such as killing demons are glorified as wonderful because of the following reasons.

1. For devotees who forget that the Lord is the Absolute Truth (because of their excessive love for Him), these superhuman activities appear wonderful because they see the Lord as their companion and not the Supreme Person.
2. For others who do not recognize Him as the Absolute Truth and consider Him to be just a powerful human being, these activities sound very wonderful because they cannot be imitated by normal human beings.
3. For great sages and scholars, the Lord's activities are wonderful because they are completely spiritual (beyond the material modes) and just by hearing them, one can attain liberation from birth and death. Nowhere, we have the instance of a person becoming liberated by hearing somebody's activities. In Bhagavatam, the pastimes of baby Krishna stealing the butter etc in Vrindavan is described in a few shlokas. Everyday many living enitities in this material world steal. But great sages like Sukadev Goswami do not glorify them or record them in the scriptures. Also we cannot attain liberation by listening to our pastimes.
4. All His activities are wonderful because whatever the Lord does is beneficial to all living entities. When He kills the demons, the demons attain liberation from material sufferings being purified by the Lord's direct touch. People who hear about such activities also become purified and walk straight on the path back to Godhead. In this regard, Srila Prabhupada writes - "God is Absolute. So even His killing is good. When He becomes angry at someone, even His object of anger is blessed". So all His actions are nothing but expression of His compassion towards all living entities. We should submissively study the scriptures with faith to appreciate this fact.

It is because of this reason the Lord makes a solemn declaration in Bhagavad Gita verse 4.9

janma karma ca me divyam / evam yo vetti tattvatah
tyaktvaa deham punar janma / naiti maam eti'so arjuna

One who knows the transcendental nature of My appearance and activities does not, upon leaving the body, take his birth again in this material world, but attains My eternal abode, O Arjuna.

In this regard Maharaj was explaining to us in Rajkot, "Why to think about His creation of this world? If we just see our body, we can understand that Krishna is adbhuta karmanah. Our mouth is the most sophisticated plumbing system. It produces the exact amount of saliva required to digest the food. There is food pipe, wind pipe inside our body. When I eat and breath at the same time, the food never goes to the wind pipe. It is so perfectly arranged. The blood vessels in our body are so much intertwined and they work in perfect co-ordination to ensure continuous pumping of blood throughout our body. In this way, if we just study our body we can understand that Krishna's acts/creation are wonderful. No one can imitate His actions."

All we need to do is to submissively study and hear His glorious activities and by such purification process we can reach His lotus feet.

I pray at the lotus feet of Maharaj and Srila Prabhupada so that I will get some taste and faith in listening to the pastimes of the Supreme Lord and get purified.

Taking Shelter Of Scriptures

When we face difficult situations in our lives, and do not know how to handle those situations, we should take shelter of sadhu/spiritual master and submissively inquire from him and learn what needs to be done and what should not be done. During times, when we are not blessed with the physical association of sadhus, we should turn our attention to scriptures bestowed by Supreme Lord, wherein He has very clearly explained the do's and dont's in our lives. Krishna resides as "mantra-murti" in these shastras and mercifully reciprocates to our queries in mind if we learn them with faith.

Srimad Bhagavatam verse 1.1.2 very nicely glorifies the beauty of Bhagavatam and also about the qualifications required for us to understand this great scripture.

dharmah projjhita-kaitavo 'tra paramo nirmatsaraanaam sataam
vedyam vaastavam atra vastu shivadam taapa-trayonmulanam
shrimad-bhaagavate mahaa-muni-krte kim vaa parair ishvarah
sadyo hrdy avarudhyate 'tra krtibhih shushrusubhis tat-kshanaat

"Completely rejecting all religious activities which are materially motivated, this Bhagavata Puraana propounds the highest truth, which is understandable by those devotees who are fully pure in heart. The highest truth is reality distinguished from illusion for the welfare of all. Such truth uproots the threefold miseries. This beautiful Bhagavatam, compiled by the great sage Vyasadeva [in his maturity], is sufficient in itself for God realization. What is the need of any other scripture? As soon as one attentively and submissively hears the message of Bhagavatam, by this culture of knowledge the Supreme Lord is established within his heart."

The quality of the person who will be able to understand the message revealed through the scriptures is very clear defined in this verse. Only if we are 100% pure in heart - nirmatsaraanam - non-envious, then we would be able to understand the message of Bhagavatam. We would not be able to gain any kind of knowledge or instruction from the scriptures - either by possessing the scriptures at home, or by reading it in challenging mood. Unless we are simple and straight forward in our thoughts, words and deeds, we will not be able to even touch the scriptures. It is not only important to seek shelter of scriptures, it is equally more important to follow the instructions provided in them.

In verse 16.23 of Bhagavad Gita, Lord Krishna very nicely explains the position of those who don't follow the scriptural injunctions.

yah shaastra-vidhim utsrjya / vartate kaama kaaratah
na sa siddhim avaapnoti     / na sukham na paraam gatim

He who discards scriptural injunctions and acts according to his own whims attains neither perfection, nor happiness, nor the supreme destination.

In his purport to the above verse, Srila Prabhupada very nicely explains the meaning for whimsical nature and also the result of this attitude - "The word 'kaama-kaaratah' is very significant. A person who knowingly violates the rules acts in lust. He knows that this is forbidden, but still he acts. This is called acting whimsically. He knows that this should be done, but still he does not do it; therefore he is called whimsical. Such persons are destined to be condemned by the Supreme Lord. Such persons cannot have the perfection which is meant for the human life."

By the mercy of spiritual master, Srila Prabhupada, Sri Krishna and Srimad Bhagavatam - we are provided with all the details of what needs to be done and what should not be done. Even after knowing these instructions, if we are lethargic and negligent in following them - then we are digging our own graves. I pray at the lotus feet of Srila Gurudev to bless me to to take shelter of the scriptures sincerely and to give up this whimsical nature.

Go Green

Now-a-days we see so many people insisting upon saving the environment, growing more trees, "Go-GREEN", etc. Trees are also part of Krishna's creation and killing them mercilessly is also an offense. Srimad Bhagavatam being amala-puran and practical theistic science for people of all ages - very nicely explains the importance of preserving trees.  When Maharaj Parikshit inquired about the potency of the Supreme Lord, by which he brought out the secondary creation, Sukadeva Goswami explained to him about the activities of king Prachinabarhi and his ten sons Pracetas - who were bestowed with responsibility of increasing the population. The Pracetas underwent long austerities under water and when they emerged from water, they saw the entire surface of the world covered by trees. Somehow they were annoyed by this and using the mystic power gained by their austerities - started burning the trees to ashes using fire coming from their mouth. When Soma - king of the trees and predominating deity of the moon saw their misuse of powers, he advised them very nicely - not to misuse their anger in destruction of trees which are created by Krishna for a very special purpose. In verses 6.4.7 through 15 of Srimad Bhagavatam, King Soma very nicely insists on the importance of trees.

Soma says that duty of government or king is not only to protect the citizens, but also other living entities like animals and trees. No living entity should be killed mercilessly. He also explains how fruits and flowers of trees serve as food for birds, insects - grass and legless entities serve as food for the cows and buffaloes and food-grains serve as food for human-beings. In verse 6.4.12-13 he says

tokaanaam pitarau bandhu / drshah pakshma striyaah patih
patih prajaanaam bhikshunaam / grhy ajnaanaam budhah suhrt

"As the father and mother are the friends and maintainers of their children, as the eyelid is the protector of the eye, as the husband is the maintainer and protector of a woman, as the householder is the maintainer and protector of beggars, and as the learned is the friend of the ignorant, so the king is the protector and giver of life to all his subjects. The trees are also subjects of the king. Therefore they should be given protection."

antar deheshu bhutaanaam / aatmaaste harir ishvarah
sarvam tad-dhishnyam ikshadhvam / evam vas toshito hy asau

"The Supreme Personality of Godhead is situated as the Super-soul within the cores of the hearts of all living entities, whether moving or nonmoving, including men, birds, animals, trees and, indeed, all living entities. Therefore you should consider every body a residence or temple of the Lord. By such vision you will satisfy the Lord. You should not angrily kill these living entities in the forms of trees."

If we are unable to help anyone, at least we must refrain from hurting them. So even if we don't plant and grow trees, let us not indulge in the sinful act of killing them but rather protect the existing trees in whatever way we can for His pleasure.

Commanding the Lord

The scriptures recommend that we should become the servants of the servant of Lord Krishna. But if we really become servants of the servants, then, instead of us serving the Lord, the Lord serves us beyond all our imaginations. Of course this is an embarrassment for pure devotees; their motive of service is not to get service from the Lord, but the Lord being bought over by the unmotivated service of His sincere devotees, does anything for their welfare. In Srimad Bhagavatam 1.16.16, there is a list of menial service that Lord Krishna did to the Pandavas which we cannot normally imagine the Supreme Lord to do for anyone.

saarathya paarashada sevana sakhya dautya
viraasanaanugamana stavana pranaamaan
snigdeshu paandushu jagat pranatim ca vishnor
bhaktim karoti nr-patis caranaaravinde

"Maharaja Parikshit heard that out of His causeless mercy Lord Kirshna [Vishnu], who is universally obeyed, rendered all kinds of service to the malleable sons of Pandu by accepting posts ranging from chariot driver to president to messenger, friend, night watchman, etc., according to the will of the Pandavas, obeying them like a servant and offering obeisances like one younger in years. When he heard this, Maharaja Parikshit became overwhelmed with devotion to the lotus feet of the Lord."

Lord Krishna performed services like:

1. Sarathy - He served as the Charioteer of Arjuna in the Battle. Being a charioteer is one of the most menial service one can do. In the battlefield, since the fight will be so intense and fast that the fighter will not have time to tell the charioteer which way to turn. So, many times, the fighter commands the charioteer with signs using his legs hitting the back of the charioteer.Krishna took such a low position of service to serve Arjuna in the battlefield. At the end of everyday, Krishna would also feed and bathe the horses and maintain the Rath clean for Arjuna.

2. Paarashada - Yudhishtira Maharaj wanted the Lord to preside over the Rajasuya ceremony and worship Him. Without any hesitation the Lord accepted the request of the Pandavas and in the process He delivered Sishupala who did not like Krishna being worshiped in that ceremony.

3. Sakhya - The Lord acted as the intimate friend of the Pandavas, especially Arjuna. During informal interactions, Arjuna would often deal with the Lord as if He is his side-kick, but Krishna would always enjoy such informal interactions wherein Arjuna and the other Pandavas would forget the opulence of the Lord and deal with Him as if He is one among them.

4. Dautya - When every attempt failed to stop the war, the Lord volunteered to go to Duryodhana as a messenger on behalf of the Pandavas begging at least 5 villages for them so that there would not be unnecessary loss of lives on either sides. In that process He was even insulted by Duryodhana but the fact is that the Lord was willing to go to any extent to serve His pure devotees.

5. Viraasana - Once the battle is over for the day, both the camps will do strategic planning for the next day's fight. During that time, the Lord would act as a night watchman for the Pandavas camp so that the spies won't sneak in from the opposition camp to learn about their next day's strategy. He was doing this to protect the Pandavas at any cost.

6. Anugamana - Krishna was always following the instructions of Yudhishtira Maharaj, Kunti Maharani, Vidura etc even though He is the almighty Lord.

7. Stavana - Whenever the Lord went to meet the Pandavas, He would says glorifying prayers to them and greet them lovingly, eventhough it should have been the other way round.

8. Pranaamaan - The Lord was offering obeisances to the Pandavas whenever He met them.

He did all these to the Pandavas only because they were malleable to the will of the Lord. They were willing to act in whatever way the Lord desired. The interesting word we should observe in this connection is jagat-pranatim - The whole world is obeying the Lord, but the Lord is obeying His sincere servants.

Evaporation of Miseries

In the second chapter of Srimad Bhagavad Gita, Shri Arjuna is asking Shri Krishna about the symptoms of a transcendentally situated personality. The Supreme Personality of Godhead is clearly answering this question by explaining the qualifications of such a personality and I was listening to a lecture given by our beloved Maharaj on one of the qualifications from Srimad Bhagavad Gita 2.56 and I am summarising herewith a few of the points spoken by Maharaj.

duhkheshv anudvigna-manaah / sukheshu vigata-sprhah
vita-raaga-bhaya-krodah / sthita-dhir munir ucyate

"One who is not disturbed in mind even amidst the threefold miseries or elated when there is happiness, and who is free from attachment, fear and anger, is called a sage of steady mind."

Maharaj was telling that it is very difficult to come to the conclusion that in both happiness and misery, we should become very steady. It is nearly impossible in this age because this age is particularly meant for activities which are increasing the sense gratification and as soon as there is some impediment into it, we become angry and agitated. Here Krishna advises us that if we can cultivate Krishna consciousness in our life, then when there is misery we won't be miserable. One thing we have to understand is that everything is under the control of Krishna and as soon as we remember this control of the Supreme Authority, then whatever comes, we take it as His mercy and He never does anything wrong for us. It may appear to us that this is not good for me, but in the end it proves to be a very nice thing for us. For a few moments or few months we may feel what Krishna is doing with me. But later everything becomes clear for us.

Sudama was completely poor and he was an intimate friend of Lord Krishna but he was not at all dissatisfied with his condition and because he was equal minded in poverty too, in the end, Krishna gave him so much that he got all the opulences. On the other side, there were the two sons of Kuvera - Manigriva and Nalakuvera. As we know, rich man’s son gets easy money and as soon as the riches are there and they see that they are going to inherit the father’s property then three things follow.

1. stri – illicit connection with women
2. dyutam – gambling
3. aasavam – intoxication

These three things are there without fail, when easy money is there. Once in order to enjoy, they entered into the Kailasha gardens and were playing in the waters of the lake, completely intoxicated along with some girls. And it so happened by their destiny, that Narada muni passed that way. They were completely shameless and did not even care for Narada muni and they remained naked. Those who drink wine, they completely forget themselves and their lives are described in Srimad Bhagavad Gita 16.7 as

pravrttim ca nivrttim ca / janaa na vidur aasuraah
na shaucam naapi caacaro / na satyam teshu vidyate

"Those who are demoniac do not know what is to be done and what is not to be done. Neither cleanliness nor proper behavior nor truth is found in them."

The mentality of persons intoxicated with riches is wonderfully spoken by the Lord in Srimad Bhagavad Gita 16.13-15:

The demoniac person thinks: “So much wealth do I have today, and I will gain more according to my schemes. So much is mine now, and it will increase in the future, more and more. He is my enemy, and I have killed him, and my other enemies will also be killed. I am the lord of everything. I am the enjoyer. I am perfect, powerful and happy. I am the richest man, surrounded by aristocratic relatives. There is none so powerful and happy as I am. I shall perform sacrifices, I shall give some charity, and thus I shall rejoice.” In this way, such persons are deluded by ignorance.

When Narada muni saw that these 2 boys were behaving like trees standing naked, he cursed them to accept the body of the trees. By the causeless mercy of Narada muni, they became the yamalarjuna trees in the courtyard of Nanda maharaj and they were delivered by Krishna. The point is that if we do not behave properly, then we are going to glide down. Intoxicated by riches, if we ignore the saintly elderly persons, then the horrible results awaits us. That is why Krishna advises us that in miserable conditions we should not be disturbed at all. When we are in nice situations, we should not be elated, as this elation will throw us into bad activities.

Nobody really can escape the miseries and we all have 7 problems (birth, death, old age, disease, adhibautic, adhyatmic, adhidaivic) in front of us. These 7 problems are inevitable and there is no cure for it.

Krishna advises us to get attached to Him and all these miseries even though inevitable become happily bearable. Without Krishna we cannot face the misery. That is why Chaitanya Mahaprabhu and Srila Prabhupada insist us that we chant the holy names of Krishna. Communion with the Lord through the transcendental sound vibration is the complete perfect way out of our miseries. If we take advantage of these transcendental vibrations, then we cannot go wrong at all. In the same way, if we learn a few verses and we sing them, we become completely elevated from the material platform to the spiritual platform. As soon as we speak a verse from Bhagavad Gita, we are speaking out Krishna. As soon as we get in touch with the whole spirit Krishna, our mind leaves the limited boundary and there is complete evaporation of miseries.

Importance of Arcanam

While explaining about the nine process of devotional service Prahlad Maharaj says in Srimad Bhagavatam verse 7.5.23 as follows..

shri-prahraada uvaaca

shravanam kirtanam vishnuh / smaranam paada-sevanam
arcanam vandanam daasyam / sakhyam aatma-nivedanam
iti pumsaarpitaa vishnau / bhaktis cen nava-lakshanaa
kriyeta bhagavaty addhaa / tan manye 'dhitam uttamam

Prahlada Maharaja said: Hearing and chanting about the transcendental holy name, form, qualities, paraphernalia and pastimes of Lord Vishnu, remembering them, serving the lotus feet of the Lord, offering the Lord respectful worship with sixteen types of paraphernalia, offering prayers to the Lord, becoming His servant, considering the Lord one's best friend, and surrendering everything unto Him (in other words, serving Him with the body, mind and words) — these nine processes are accepted as pure devotional service. One who has dedicated his life to the service of Krishna through these nine methods should be understood to be the most learned person, for he has acquired complete knowledge.

Among the above nine process - arcanam means worshiping the Deity. Deity worship is very essential for householders. The bliss and benefit of having Deity at home can only be experienced individually and indeed cannot be expressed in few words. Deities regulate our life and force our dirty, lazy minds to keep things clean. They eliminate the feeling of voidness in the home and our lives and keeps us going at all times. We remember our Maharaj giving the example of how even an adult feels scared to enter a big hall when its dark - whereas if we have Deity of Lord, even a small child enters the hall bravely without any fear. Such is the power and potency of the Deity. The process and mood with which we should worship the Deity is very nicely explained by His Divine Grace in his purport to the above verse.

He says - "Especially for householder devotees who are opulent in material possessions, the path of Deity worship is strongly recommended. An opulent householder devotee who does not engage his hard-earned money in the service of the Lord is called a miser. One should not engage paid brahmanas to worship the Deity. If one does not personally worship the Deity but engages paid servants instead, he is considered lazy, and his worship of the Deity is called artificial. An opulent householder can collect luxurious paraphernalia for Deity worship, and consequently for householder devotees the worship of the Deity is compulsory."

Having Deity at home is to revive our lost relationship with the Supreme Lord. So understanding this, we should serve the Deities with our own endeavor and not employ others for serving Them. If we keep servants for serving our Deities at home, then even after millions of birth, we will not be able to revive our relationship with Him. We might very well see that even in case of our own relatives like parents, grand-parents or our children, the loving reciprocation which we experience, the satisfaction which we get when we serve them directly is much more than when we employ care-takers for the same.

Our hunger cannot be satisfied, if we ask someone else to eat for us. Similarly we will never remember Krishna - if  we keep delegating to others, even the basic service which we are supposed to do Him. Ambarsih Maharaj was the king of the whole planet and had so many people under his control. But still He used to clean the temple with his own hands (karau harer mandira-maarjanaadishu - SB 9.4.18-20), bathe the Deities, offer flowers to Them, perform pooja etc.

We are nothing when compared to Ambarish Maharaj's powerful position. So let us atleast sincerely endeavor to serve our Deities at home to the best of our capabilities. Indeed the only way to control our wavering senses, is to engage them in the service of Deity who is non-different from the Lord of Senses - Hrshikesha.

Supreme Lord's Will is Supreme

Atheistic persons, in order to avoid Krishna consciousness, in order to avoid Krishna, the Supreme Person, they push forward the theory that life is caused by matter. But that is not the fact. It is Krishna who has entered this material world and He is supervising all the actions and reactions of this material world. Therefore it is moving. Foolish persons, they are thinking that material world is by chance and the prakrti is working automatically. Prakrti is jada. Jada-prakrti. without any sense. The motor car has got the wheels, the machine, everything, but it has no sense. So unless there is a sensible driver there, it cannot move. But we are so foolishly educated that we do not accept this fact. We say that:"Matter is the cause of life. We do not accept this theory that life is the cause of matter." As soon as they accept that life is the cause of matter, they have to accept God. Immediately. Immediately they have to accept God.

Lord Krishna said in Bhagavat Gita 9.10:

mayaadhyakshena prakrtih / suyate sa-caraacaram
hetunaanena kaunteya / jagad viparivartate

"This material nature, which is one of My energies, is working under My direction, O son of Kunti, producing all moving and nonmoving beings. Under its rule this manifestation is created and annihilated again and again."

It is clearly stated that the Supreme Lord is the Supreme director Supreme will and the background of this material manifestation, but the management is being conducted by material nature and without the superintendence of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, cannot do anything. The Supreme Lord by His mere glance injects all the living entities into the womb of material nature, and they come out in their different forms and species, according to their last desires and activities. He simply glances over material nature; material nature is thus activated, and everything is created immediately according to supreme will. In this context there is a story of Jagannathji. In Puri temple every day at night at the time of Shayan arati, the Lord wears new dress because after closing the Jagannathaji temple the demigods visits the temple. One night when demigods were taking darshan of Lord Jagannathji. Yamaraj saw one bird sitting on one of the pillar. Garuda dev saw Yamaraj looking at the bird and thought that Yamaraj will take the life of this small bird because once Yamaraj drshti is cast on someone, it means he is sure to die.To save this bird Garuda dev took the bird and left him at long distance in a tree hole near Mansarovar in Himalaya and thought that Yamaraj cannot find the bird. After darshan when Yamaraj saw up, the bird was not there he got angry on Jagannathji and said that you tell us to do our work properly and on the other hand you are interferring in our work. I saw a bird who was sitting here, his life had come to an end but you gave him protection. Then Jaganathji himself looked into the matter and said that this bird is suppose to die after 2 minutes by snake in a hole on the tree at Manasarovar. and Garuda dev kept this bird at the same place. This means every thing happens according to Supreme will of the Lord.

What Is the Bhagavad-gita?

The Bhagavad Gita is the divine conversation between a man named Arjuna and God himself in the human form, Lord Krishna. The conversation took place in the middle of the battleground 5137 years ago just before the start of a great war in Kurushastra, India. Kamlesh Patel

Spiritual realization and not war is the subject matter of the Bhagavad Gita. It should be understood that it was circumstances that led to the Bhagavad Gita being spoken on the battle ground and the war was not the reason for it's revelation.

The Bhagavad Gita is the word of God, as it was spoken by God himself and not a self declared son of God or prophet. The Bhagavad Gita was spoken by Lord Krishna, 3100 years before Jesus and 3700 years before Muhammad. It is the only known scriptures spoken by God in person. Hinduism is the only religion based on following a God who has been actually seen by millions. All other religions are based on believing in a God who has never been seen. The Bhagavad Gita gives exact information regarding God, the soul, material nature, birth, death and life after death. No other religious scripture provides this information.