Monday, January 30, 2012

Caitanya Caritamrta

Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Ādi-līlā 1.1

Māyāpur, March 25, 1975  

jaya-radha-madhava 
Radha Madhva

     Prabhupāda:  

 
     vande gurūn īśa-bhaktān
īśam īśāvatārakān
tat-prakāśāṁś ca tac-chaktīḥ
kṛṣṇa-caitanya-saṁjñakam
[Cc. Ādi 1.1]   


     Kṛṣṇa Caitanya is Kṛṣṇa. That was observed by Sārvabhauma Bhaṭṭācārya. He composed one hundred verses praising the glories of Lord Caitanya, but because Caitanya Mahāprabhu was playing the part of a devotee, He threw away the ślokas, because "This is not for Me." That was Caitanya Mahāprabhu's humbleness. But the devotees know that Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu is Kṛṣṇa Himself. Śrī-kṛṣṇa-caitanya rādhā-kṛṣṇa nahe anya. Rādhā-Kṛṣṇa combination of Śrī Caitanya... Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu means Rādhā and Kṛṣṇa combined. In the beginning there is Kṛṣṇa, and then Kṛṣṇa divided into two, Rādhā and Kṛṣṇa. And then again combined, that is Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu.   

rādhā-kṛṣṇa-praṇaya-vikṛtir hlādinī śaktir asmād
ekātmānāv api (bhuvi purā) deha-bhedaṁ gatau tau
caitanyākhyaṁ prakaṭam adhunā tad-dvayaṁ caikyam āptam...
[Cc. Ādi 1.5]    
   

So the Gosvāmī's siddhānta, that Kṛṣṇa is one. There is no rivalry with Kṛṣṇa. God is one. Eka-brahma dvitīya nāsti. There cannot be many Gods. So when God, Kṛṣṇa, wants to enjoy His pleasure potency, that is Rādhārāṇī. So He manifests Himself, manifests His energy... His energy and He, there is no difference. Śakti-śaktimator abhedaḥ. The śāstra says śakti and the śaktimat—means one who possesses the śakti (śakti means power, potency)—they are equal. There is no difference. Just like the sun. Sun is the powerful, and the sunshine is the power. So there is heat in the sun and there is heat also in the sunshine. There is light in the sun and there is light in the sunshine also. Therefore qualitatively they are one so far heat and light is concerned. But the temperature of the sun and the temperature of the sunshine may be different. May be not. Actually there is difference. This is the basic principle of all philosophies. Acintya-bhedābheda. Acintya means inconceivable, bheda means different, and abheda means nondifferent. The whole situation... The one is there, God, but He has expanded Himself in different way. Eko bahu syām.   

So that is described here. Kṛṣṇa-caitanya-saṁjñakam. Kṛṣṇa Caitanya Mahāprabhu, He has expanded Himself as gurūn. The guru, the spiritual master, he's also Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu. Sākṣād-dharitvena samasta-śāstrair uktaḥ **. In all the śāstras, guru is accepted as Kṛṣṇa. Sākṣād-dharitvena. Sākṣād means directly. Just like you offer your devotion, respects, to guru. So that respect is offered to Kṛṣṇa. Guru also does not think himself that he is Kṛṣṇa, but he collects the devotional services of the disciples to offer to Kṛṣṇa. This is the process. We cannot approach Kṛṣṇa directly. We should approach through guru. Tasmād guruṁ prapadyeta jijñāsuḥ śreya uttamam [SB 11.3.21]. That is the injunction of the śāstra, that one should approach the guru who can transfer the service from the disciple to the Supreme Person. So... Therefore the first offering is guru, vande gurūn. Then guru creates many devotees. Guru's business is to canvass on behalf of Supreme Lord. That is guru's business. Kṛṣṇa says, sarva-dharmān parityajya mām ekaṁ śaraṇaṁ vraja [Bg. 18.66], so, "You give up all material, engage..." Sarva-dharmān means in the material world we have created so many so-called duties. This is our material disease. People are interested in material engagements and they have created different varieties of engagements. Sociology, communism, and this "ism," that "ism," philanthropism, altruism, internationalism, nationalism—many, many duties they have created. That is all material. Kṛṣṇa, out of His causeless mercy... (children crying) Stop that children. Out of His causeless mercy, He comes, He descends. Yadā yadā hi dharmasya glānir bhavati bhārata [Bg. 4.7]. Glānir, this is glānir. Human life is meant for one thing, athāto brahma jijñāsā, to inquire about the Supreme Absolute Truth. But instead of doing that, they have created so many "isms." That is their misfortune.