Joyful Return to Vrindavan
By the time you receive this edition of "Thought for the Day" we expect to be back in Sri Vrindavan Dham, the home of Lord Sri Krishna, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, whenever He visits this material world. Actually Sri Krishna is eternally present in Sri Vrindavan Dham for those who have the eyes to see Him. In this connection it is stated:
vrndavanam parityajya padam ekam na gacchati
"Krishna never goes even a step outside of Vrindavan."
By entering into the sweet transcendental atmosphere of Vrindavan we feel the wonderful mercy of Krishna all around us, uplifting us, blessing us, and protecting us. There is nothing so sublime as that sweet mercy of the Lord as manifested in Sri Vrindavan Dham.
Only after completing our assigned duties in both the Brahmachari and Grihastha Ashrams (50 years), it is ordained that in Vanaprastha Ashram that one should detach himself from the bonds of this physical world and prepare himself to start the journey towards Him on path shown by Him and only after completing 25 years of Vanaprastha Ashram one should enter in Sannyas Ashram and totally surrender himself to Him.
If the above is ordained by Lord Krishna Himself as described in the Bhagavad-gita that just by only remembering His name at the time of death one can attain Him, then why we should waste our time, energy and all our life in chanting Lord's name?
A confused devotee
Grihastha Ashram means a place of spiritual cultivation. The grihastha remains with wife and children but is completely detached, seeing them as the property of Krishna to be engaged in His service.
Krishna has ordered us in the Bhagavad-gita to chant His names. He does not say that this is only for a certain class of men. This is for everyone.
Krishna spoke the Bhagavad-gita to a Grihastha, Sri Arjuna, and told him to immediately surrender. Arjuna was not a vanaprastha or a sannyasi. Therefore we can understand that everyone, including grihasthas, are meant to immediately surrender themselves at Sri Krishna's lotus feet.
Bhaktivinode Thakur was a great acharya, a pure devotee of the Lord. Yet he was a family man with a job and about one dozen children. There is no impediment for becoming Krishna conscious in any ashram provided one is sincere.
It is a fact that if we simply remember the Lord at the time of death, we will attain Him. But it is not easy to remember Him at the time of death. Our natural tendency at the time of death is for our mind to take shelter of that which we have always clung to throughout our life. This is why we must always call out the Lord's holy names with love and develop a very strong attachment to Him. If we want to be so fortunate as to remember the Lord at the time of our passing out this body, we must practice fixing our mind on Him by chanting at least 16 rounds of the Hare Krishna Mahamantra every day on japa beads. Otherwise when death comes our mind will cling to some material desire and we will take birth again in this material world to fulfill that desire.
Sankarshan Das Adhikari
vrndavanam parityajya padam ekam na gacchati
"Krishna never goes even a step outside of Vrindavan."
By entering into the sweet transcendental atmosphere of Vrindavan we feel the wonderful mercy of Krishna all around us, uplifting us, blessing us, and protecting us. There is nothing so sublime as that sweet mercy of the Lord as manifested in Sri Vrindavan Dham.
Answers According to the Vedic Version
Question: Why Waste Time Chanting?...
Our life cycle is divided into four stages of 25 years each i.e. Brahmachari Ashram (student life), Grihastha Ashram (married life), Vanprastha Ashram (retired life), and Sannyas Ashrams (renounced life). The Lord Himself ordained us to do our duties truly and rightfully during each cycle of Ashrams which he has assigned.Only after completing our assigned duties in both the Brahmachari and Grihastha Ashrams (50 years), it is ordained that in Vanaprastha Ashram that one should detach himself from the bonds of this physical world and prepare himself to start the journey towards Him on path shown by Him and only after completing 25 years of Vanaprastha Ashram one should enter in Sannyas Ashram and totally surrender himself to Him.
If the above is ordained by Lord Krishna Himself as described in the Bhagavad-gita that just by only remembering His name at the time of death one can attain Him, then why we should waste our time, energy and all our life in chanting Lord's name?
A confused devotee
Answer: Chanting is Our Only Hope...
Your understanding is incorrect. You must detach yourself from the bonds of material existence immediately. Death can come at any time. There are two kinds of householders: grihastha and grihamedhi. Grihastha is a householder who is detached from this world. A grihamedhi is an envious householder who is very attached to this world.Grihastha Ashram means a place of spiritual cultivation. The grihastha remains with wife and children but is completely detached, seeing them as the property of Krishna to be engaged in His service.
Krishna has ordered us in the Bhagavad-gita to chant His names. He does not say that this is only for a certain class of men. This is for everyone.
Krishna spoke the Bhagavad-gita to a Grihastha, Sri Arjuna, and told him to immediately surrender. Arjuna was not a vanaprastha or a sannyasi. Therefore we can understand that everyone, including grihasthas, are meant to immediately surrender themselves at Sri Krishna's lotus feet.
Bhaktivinode Thakur was a great acharya, a pure devotee of the Lord. Yet he was a family man with a job and about one dozen children. There is no impediment for becoming Krishna conscious in any ashram provided one is sincere.
It is a fact that if we simply remember the Lord at the time of death, we will attain Him. But it is not easy to remember Him at the time of death. Our natural tendency at the time of death is for our mind to take shelter of that which we have always clung to throughout our life. This is why we must always call out the Lord's holy names with love and develop a very strong attachment to Him. If we want to be so fortunate as to remember the Lord at the time of our passing out this body, we must practice fixing our mind on Him by chanting at least 16 rounds of the Hare Krishna Mahamantra every day on japa beads. Otherwise when death comes our mind will cling to some material desire and we will take birth again in this material world to fulfill that desire.
Sankarshan Das Adhikari
Comments
Post a Comment