“You remember Me.”

So taking His name is a way of remembering Him. When they’re on their deathbed, they keep saying, “Ram, Ram,” “Shyam, Shyam,” or something like that. But then what happens is, if death comes at that time, let’s say that person’s last word was “Ram” or “Shyam”, but that’s not the moment they’re leaving their body. That’s just the moment their brain stopped working. Their senses shut down, their brain shut down, then their breathing stops, then their heart stops, but still their soul hasn’t left their body. Otherwise, how could someone be resuscitated after their heart has stopped?

So it’s quite a bit later, quite some time after, that the soul actually leaves the body, and that’s the moment of spiritual death. Meaning, that’s the actual death. The doctor may have pronounced you dead hours ago, but when your soul leaves your body, that’s when you’re really not coming back. So, at that moment, we have to remember God. And at that moment, an ordinary soul is not conscious; we’re unconscious.

So, at that time, Shree Krishna says, “What will you be remembering?”

Because your subconscious mind will be active. He says you’ll be thinking of whatever you’re attached to. Whatever you’re attached to in life, whatever you spent your whole life doing, chintan (contemplation) of, thinking of a lot, that is what you’ll remember at that time. And as your soul is leaving your body, accordingly you’ll be reborn.

So that’s why it’s said that we’re reborn in the field of our attachments. If we did a lot of bad actions, we might not be born as a human being again, but we’ll still be reborn in the field of our attachments. Meaning, we could be born as a dog or a fly or something. But if we’re attached to our house, say, and we didn’t want to leave it, then we could be born as a fly on a wall in our house, and someone could be chasing us around with a fly swatter. It means that we’re reborn according to whatever we’re attached to.

It makes no difference what our last word was.

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Sakhī! Ye sab ke sab baurāye.
O Sakhi! All these creatures have gone mad.

Shreemukh-kamal jāni aṃbuj chahuṁ, bhramar nikar maṇḍarāye.
The bumblebees are flying around Shree Radha’s face thinking it to be the most fragrant lotus they have ever seen.

Adhar bimb hiy jāni bimbphal, shuk ahār hit āye.
The parrots are mistaking Her red lips to be the most attractive bimba fruit and are coming to savour them.

Veṇī sheesh jāni janu nāgini, mor-vṛind lalachāye.
The peacocks are pursuing Kishori Ji’s swaying braid thinking it to be the most attractive female snake.

Madhu-vānī suni jāni venu rav, mṛig-kadamb uṭhi dhāye.
A herd of deer is coming rushing towards Her mistaking Her sweet voice to be the absolutely entrancing sound of a flute as they have never heard before.

Imi ‘Kṛipālu’ Vṛishabhānulalihiṇ lakhi, sab ik saṅg bharamāye.
Shree Kripalu Ji Maharaj says, “In this manner all these creatures have become deluded simply by seeing Vṛiṣhabhānulalī.”

Live recorded kirtan during the evening Satsang from Shree Raseshwari Radha Rani Temple of JKP Radha Madhav Dham, Austin, TX.

Song Credits:

Song - सखी! ये सब के सब बौराये । Sakhi! ye saba ke saba baurāye

Singer - Vrinda Didi

Composer - Jagadguru Shree Kripalu Ji Maharaj

Lyrics Composer - Jagadguru Shree Kripalu Ji Maharaj

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“Please, please, you have to do something to give me a child!”

And they said,

“No, no, no! You can’t mess with destiny. You’re not destined to have it. Even if we have the power to give you that, it may make your situation even worse. It’s better that you’re content with what you have.”

But he insisted. So, using their power, they gave him a blessing of a son through his eldest queen. But not long after that son was born, all of the other queens became so jealous because now that queen was getting all the attention. She was the one who had the son born to her. All of the other queens became so jealous that they conspired together and poisoned the king’s son. And he died. Now the king was far more miserable than he was before he had the son born to him.

Narad Ji came back and said,

“I told you! Sometimes you don’t like your situation, but it’s better than what you have now, isn’t it?”

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Just like Parvati (the Divine consort of Lord Shiv) asked questions in the Ramayan (the Divine epic history of Lord Ram), and Shankar Ji (Lord Shiv) gave the answers, and because of that conversation all of Ram’s leelas (Divine pastimes) were revealed - just like Arjun (the disciple of Lord Krishna) questioned Shree Krishna (the Supreme Lord) in the Bhagavad Gita (the Song of God), and because of that the knowledge of the Gita is available today. And just like in the Bhagwatam, Uddhav (Krishna’s intimate devotee) asked questions and Shree Krishna gave the answers throughout the whole 11th canto. And because of that we have all of that knowledge available to us today.

Similarly, Mahaprabhu Ji was asking questions and Raya Ramanand was answering. But although He was asking the questions, Mahaprabhu Ji was also judging the answers. He was telling whether the answer was good enough or whether more information was needed. So His question was,

“What is the aim of the soul?”

A very basic question. In other words,

“Why are we here? What are we supposed to be doing? What are we supposed to be striving for?”

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Jay Radhe Jay Radhe Rādhe Jay Radhe Jay Shree Radhe.
Glory to Radha Rani.

Gati gajgāmini chhavi abhirāmini, Braj ras Swāmini Shree Radhe.
My beautiful loving Shree Radha is the owner and bestower of Braj ras and She walks elegantly like a baby elephant (which is famous for its walk).

Ras Barsāne vārī Radhe, Barsāne vārī Radhe.
Barsane wari Radha always showers Braj ras.

Pyārī pyārī pyārī Rādhe, nath besar vārī Rādhe.
My loving Radha wears a nose ring and besar (nose pearl).

Gorī gorī bhorī bhorī, rati ras borī Shree Rādhe.
Radha has fair complexion. She is very simple and naive and She is the source of intimate Divine love.

Saras Kishorī piya chit chorī, Swāmini morī Shree Radhe.
My Swamini Kishori Ji is very sweet and steals the heart of beloved Krishna.

Tū morī maiṁ torī Rādhe, lakhu mam orī Shree Rādhe.
O Radhey, You are mine and I am Yours. Please look towards me!

Vṛindāvipin vihāriṇi Radhe, karuṇākāriṇi Shree Radhe.
My Radha wanders in the gardens of Vrindavan and She is compassionate and merciful to all the souls.

Live recorded kirtan during the evening Satsang from Shree Raseshwari Radha Rani Temple of JKP Radha Madhav Dham, Austin, TX.

Song Credits:

Song - जय राधे जय राधे रधे जय राधे जय श्री राधे। Jai Radhey, jai Radhey Radhey, jai Radhey, jai Shree Radhey

Singer - Vrinda Didi

Composer - Jagadguru Shree Kripalu Ji Maharaj

Lyrics Composer - Jagadguru Shree Kripalu Ji Maharaj

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पुनरपि जननं पुनरपि मरणं पुनरपि जननी जठरे शयनम् ।
इह संसारे बहुदुस्तारे कृपयाऽपारे पाहि मुरारे ॥

भज गोविन्दं भज गोविन्दं गोविन्दं भज मूढमते ।

Punarapi jananam punarapi maraṇam punarapi jananī jaṭhare śhayanam.
Ih saṁsāre bahu-dustāre kṛipayāpāre pāhi Murāre.

Bhaj Govindam, bhaj Govindam, Govindam bhaj mūḍha-mate.

- Bhaj Govindam 21

Shankaracharya says that we are made to take birth again and again, ‘punarapi jananam’ and ‘punarapi maraṇam’ - we are born and we die again and again. It keeps happening. And we’re put into the womb, ‘jaṭhare’, of our mother-to-be.

That keeps happening. And we don’t have a choice. We do not choose our mother. We do not choose to be reborn or not. We have to be reborn because we’re under the bondage of our past karma. And we receive our next family according to that karma.

However, Bhagwatam says in regard to Shree Krishna:

अस्यापि देव वपुषो मदनुग्रहस्य
स्वेच्छामयस्य न तु भूतमयस्य कोऽपि ।

Asyāpi dev vapuṣho mad-anugrahasya
svecchā-mayasyan tu bhūta-mayasya ko’pi.

- Bhagwatam 10.14.2

‘Svecchā’ - you come through Your own free will. Shree Krishna comes just by deciding to come. That’s it. He’s not bound to come. He’s not bound by karma. No one decides for Him when He’s going or where He’s going. He decides,

“I’m going to take avatar.”

And He goes. He appears. So He comes of His own free will. But is He born like we are? Even though we appear, we appear nonetheless in our mother’s womb, inside that little growing body that becomes our body for this life. And then, after nine months, when it’s finished growing, we are born into this world from our mother.

Was Shree Krishna born in that way? He says in the Gita:

अजोऽपि सन्नव्ययात्मा भूतानामीश्वरोऽपि सन् ।
प्रकृतिं स्वामधिष्ठाय सम्भवाम्यात्ममायया ॥

Ajo ‘pi sann avyayātmā bhūtānām īśhvaro ‘pi san.
Pakṛitiṁ svāmadhiṣṭhāya sambhavāmyātma-māyayā.

- Gita 4.6

He says, “I am ‘aj’, meaning never born. Yet I take birth in this world, but My birth is not the birth you think it is.”

So how is it? He says,

“First understand one thing. He is avyayātmā.

What does this mean?

Shvetashvatar Upanishad says:

न तस्य कार्यं करणं च विद्यते ।

Na tasya kāryaṁ karaṇaṁ cha vidyate.

- Shvetashvatar Upanishad 6.8

“He does not have a body-and-soul duality.”

This is a very key point. We have our true self, our soul, which inhabits this body, which is temporary. Krishna does not have a body. See, that’s why some people get confused. There are certain statements in the Vedas that say God has no body. It doesn’t mean that He’s not sakar (with form). He has a form, but He has no body. You know why? Because His soul is His body. To have a body, you need to have a soul-body duality, right? But He Himself is His body. So He does not have a body; He is His body.

We cannot say that I am not my body; I inhabit my body. But Shree Krishna is His body. So that’s avyayātmā. He is His body, and His body is Divine and eternal.

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“Wait! We’re getting ahead of ourselves! We have some questions for You. What kind of Beloved are You?”

Krishna said, “What? What do you mean?”

“There are those in the world that, even if you love them, they’re not going to love you in return. No matter what, they’re not going to love you in return. Then there are those who, if you love them, they’ll love you back. But we can’t figure out which type are You, because we love You, but Your behavior is very confusing!”

So Shree Krishna said,

“You know the kind where you love them and they love you back; this is ordinary worldly people like us. Then the other kind, no matter how much you love them, they’re not going to love you in return - paramahamsas (fully realized Saints). Their mind is completely absorbed in the bliss of the formless God. You love them or hate them, it means nothing to them.”

“But, Krishna, what category do You come in?”

He said, “I have My own category.”

नाहं तु सख्यो भजतोऽपि जन्तून् भजाम्यमीषामनुवृत्तिवृत्तये ।
यथाधनो लब्धधने विनष्टे तच्चिन्तयान्यन्निभृतो न वेद ॥

Nāhaṁ tu sakhyo bhajato ’pi jantūn bhajāmy amīṣhām anuvṛitti-vṛttaye.
Yathādhano labdha-dhane vinaṣhṭe tach-chintayānyan nibhṛito na ved.

- Bhagwatam 10.32.20

He says, “I do love you just as much as you love Me. However, I behave in an opposite way. I love you, but I give you My separation.”

Why?

He explained with an analogy. He said,

“Let’s say there’s someone who’s been a beggar for their whole life, just scratching to get by and barely getting something to put in their belly to keep themselves alive. And one day, when they were begging, they made a few dollars. They decided, ‘Instead of buying food with this, I’m going to buy a lottery ticket!’ And they won the lottery! Imagine their state of happiness. This beggar, for their whole life, has been eking out an existence, and now they just won three hundred million dollars. The level of their happiness would be beyond understanding. Now imagine they just got that three hundred million dollars, and someone just came and snatched it out of their hand and ran away with it. And now they’re back to being a beggar. Then they are going to do chintan (contemplation) of that three hundred million dollars non-stop. They won’t be able to think of anything else!”

Shree Krishna says, “That’s what I do to you! You were beggars for your whole existence, uncountable lifetimes, desiring Divine love. And then you met Me. You got God-realized. I graced you with My Divine love. And then I disappear. I give you My virah (Divine separation). So now you’re going to do chintan of Me. So it’s like putting gold in the fire. The more you put it in the fire, the more the heat of the fire purifies it. So your heart, in the heat of love for Me, in that separation, reaches the state of total purity and selflessness.”

So Shree Krishna says, “This is why sometimes I give you My separation - not because I don’t love you!”

So what I’m saying is Shree Krishna wanted to reveal to the world the height of the Gopis’ love for Him, which could only be revealed in the state of virah. The intensity of love is expressed in separation. So that’s another reason that Shree Krishna “left” the Gopis and Radha. So with one form, the form that everyone could see, He left and went to Mathura and Dwarika. But actually, His Shyam Sundar, Ras Bihari, Vrindavan Bihari Lal form was always in Braj with the Gopis and Radha.

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Alabelī Sarkār Vṛishabhānudulār.
My Vrishbhanudulari is sweet and loving.

Jāko chākar Nāgar Nandkumār.
Whose servant is all virtuous Nandkumar Krishna.

Jākī agawānī karen Braj Rājkumār.
Whose agwani Brajraj Kumar Krishna does.

Jāko gun gan gāven muralihiṁ rijhavār.
Whose virtues rijhavar Krishna sings in His flute.

Jāko charan paloṭat Hari balihār.
Whose lotus feet when Krishna presses He feels extremely blessed.

Jāke dvār baṅṭat rah nitya pyār.
At whose door the Divine love is always distributed.

Jākī charanan raj Hari nij sir dhār.
The dust of whose feet, Krishna adoringly puts on His head.

Jāke pag bahāv Hari aṁsuvan dhār.
On whose feet Krishna showers His tears of love.

Jāko ved kahat mādhurya sār.
Who is said as the essence of Divine love by the Vedas.

Jāko bhed na pāyo ved chār.
But, whose greatness even the four Vedas could not understand.

Jākī līlā adbhut aparampār.
Whose leelas are amazing and whose leela Bliss is beyond the reach of Brahma and Lakshmi.

Jāke rah dīnan ādar darbār.
Who always loves all the humble souls.

Jehi kah hlādinī shakti avatār.
Who is the descension of supreme hladini-power in Braj.

Kah apano mohiṁ ‘Kripalu’ ik bār.
O Radhe! Please say once that I am Yours.

Live recorded kirtan during the evening satsang from Shree Raseshwari Radha Rani Temple of JKP Radha Madhav Dham, Austin, TX.

Song Credits

Song - अलबेली सरकार वृषभानुदुलार । Albeli Sarkar Vrishbhanu Dular

Singer - Jas bhaiya

Composer - Jagadguru Shree Kripalu Ji Maharaj

Lyrics Composer - Jagadguru Shree Kripalu Ji Maharaj

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A seeker has asked, “What is the definition of (true) love?”

The definition of love cannot be made in words. That is why when Narad ji was asked to define (Divine) love, he said,

अनिर्वचनीयं प्रेमस्वरुपम्॥ ५१॥

Anirvachanīyaṃ premaswarupam.

- Narad Bhakti Darshan Sutra 51

“The nature of Love is beyond description in words.”

That is, words cannot go there. The Vedas have gone to the extent of saying,

यतो वाचो निवर्तन्ते। अप्राप्य मनसा सह।

Yato vācho nivartante. Aprāpya manasā saha.

सत्यो नित्यः सर्वसाक्षी महेशो नित्यानन्दो निर्विकल्पो निराख्यः ।
अचिन्त्यशक्तिर्भगवान्गिरीशः स्वाविद्यया कल्पितमानभूमिः ॥ २० ॥

Satyo nityah sarvasākshī mahesho nityānando nirvikalpo nirākhyah.
Achintyashktirbhagavāgirīshah swāvidyā kalpitamānabhūmih.

- Taittiriya Upanishad

This mantra is also in Brahma Upanishad and in Shandilya Upanishad, and it is also the 20th mantra of Sharabh Upanishad. It tells us that everything we have - our mind, senses, and intellect, none of these can go close to (Divine) love. The Saints and the scriptures have tried to describe it for our sake, but it is only a mere attempt. It is not its actual form. Great Saints became exhausted thinking,

“How can I explain what is (Divine) love?”

So they helplessly wrote down ordinary examples like an attractive woman is dear to a lustful man, like money is dear to a greedy man. When you are attached in that manner, it is called love.

The Bhagwatam says the same thing, because there exists no example by which you could understand, because there is nothing else like it. All these comparisons that are given are like jokes. They describe Krishna’s beauty using material, dirty objects like ‘lotus-eyed’ or ‘eyes like that of a deer’. We see deer and lotuses daily. We did not feel such attraction to any of them that we wanted to keep looking. We just saw them and moved on.

But what can the poor Saints do? We have no experience of anything Divine. Look, understand this in simple words - a bug that lives in the bitter neem tree asks you,

“What is a rasgulla (Indian sweet) like?”

“Well, it is sweet.”

“What does ‘sweet’ mean?”

“Have you ever tasted sugar?”

“No.”

“What about jaggery?”

“No.”

“Ever tasted anything sweet?”

“No, I only know bitter neem.”

“Then you cannot understand. I cannot make you understand.”

Similarly is the nature of (Divine) love. We people have only experienced the opposite of (Divine) love.

निजेन्द्रिय-सुख-हेतु कामेर तात्पर्य ।
कृष्ण-सुख-तात्पर्य प्रेम तो प्रबल निजेन्द्रिय-सुख-वान्शा गोपी-भाव-वर्य ।

(নিজেন্দ্রিয়সুখহেতু কামের তাত্পর্য ।
কৃষ্ণসুখ-তাত্পর্য গোপীভাব-বর্য ॥ ২১৭ ॥)

Nijendriya-sukha-hetu kāmera tātparya.
Kṛiṣhṇ-sukh-tātparya gopī-bhāva-varya.

That which is for our own happiness is not love. You can call this a basic, general definition of love. We people have only thought about our own happiness since eternity.

This is a challenge by the Vedas,

न वा अरे पत्य: कामाय पतिः प्रिया भवन्ति । न वा अरे जाया कामाये जाया प्रिया भवन्ति । न वा अरे पुत्रएां कामाय पु्त्राः प्रिया भवन्ति । न वा अरे सर्वस्य कामाय सर्वें प्रियं भवान्ति ।

Na vā are patyah kāmāya patih priya bhavanti. Na vā are jayaya kāmāya jāyā priyā bhavanti. Na vā putreāng kāmāya putrah priyā bhavanti. Na vā are sarvasya kāmāya sarven priyam bhavanti.

- Brihadaranyak Upanishad

This is meaning that no father loves his son for his son’s happiness. No son loves his father for his father’s happiness. No wife loves her husband for his happiness, and the same with the husband. No one can do anything for anyone else’s happiness. We cannot even think of it. Why? Since eternity, every fiber of our being has thought and decided only one thing,

“I want my own happiness.”

If there is no self-happiness, then

“To hell with father, mother, wife, and child!”

Whether or not you say it out loud, all of you think this within.This is the opposite of (Divine) love. This is called darkness, and to think of the happiness of your Beloved is called (Divine) love. Light and darkness are opposing entities. Hence no one can understand, and no one can explain.

Narad ji said, “I will explain.”

“Oh really? How will you?”

He said,

गुणरहितं कामनारहितं प्रतिक्षणवर्धमानं अविच्छिन्नं सूक्ष्मतरं अनुभवरुपम्॥ ५४॥

Guṇ-rahitaḿ kāmanā-rahitaḿ pratikṣhaṇ-vardhamānam
avicchinnaḿ sūkṣhma-taram anubhav-rūpam.

- Narad Bhakti Darshan 54

That’s it! And what did he say at the end? ‘Anubhavarūpam’ (experience itself). You can know it by experiencing it, and he gives an example,

मूकास्वादनवत्॥ ५२॥

Mūkāsvādanavat.

- Narad Bhakti Darshan 52

A mute person eats a rasgulla. Now you ask him,

“How was it?”

The poor fellow cannot speak. What to do? You will see joy on his face, but he cannot say anything. Such is (Divine) love.

Another example is when you try to talk in a river with your head partially submerged, you make a gurgling noise. But when you talk with your head fully submerged, you make no sound at all. So as long as it is being talked about, it is not (Divine) love. When you are drowned, that is (Divine) love.

Let me share with you a sonnet,

“When I gave my hand to the drowning, from the shore,
They started advising me to drown as well.”

Come and drown with us. Don’t take us out.

Take the first word of Narad ji’s description: ‘guṇ-rahitam’ (without qualities/independent of qualities). The lover must not see the qualities of the Beloved. Not see His qualities? Then why would anyone love Him? Qualities are what everyone sees first when loving someone. He is handsome, healthy, wealthy, intelligent, and capable. He is famous, powerful. If he had no good qualities, who would love him? Would anyone love a one-eyed, one-legged, and one-armed beggar? No. But if you love someone because of their qualities, do you know what will happen? If he is wealthy today, everyone will come to him: doctors, lawyers, politicians. They keep visiting him because he is a billionaire. And if he becomes a pauper tomorrow, then no one even asks about him.

Just like when a tree bears fruits, flocks of birds come without being called. And when the fruits fall, all the birds leave without being chased away! They came without being called, and left without being chased. Such is the world and its love. Today you love someone for their quality, tomorrow that quality is gone. Today you love someone for their beauty, and tomorrow they get cancer. They lose their beauty.

There is a story of a girl named Yogasheela in the Puranas. Yogasheela was very beautiful. One day a king saw her as he was riding. He told her father that he wanted her. The father was poor, and the king was not cultured. It would be dangerous to give him his daughter, but if he did not obey then the king would kill them both.

The daughter said, “Father, tell him to come back in a month.”

The king agreed to return in a month, and he posted his military in that village so they wouldn’t escape. Such were the kings of those times! Through yog, she dried up her body such that she was just skin and bones. Even her face had shrunk to her skull!

The father brought her in. When he saw her again he said,

“Not this one! (I want) the one I saw that day!”

“My lord, she is the same girl. My only daughter! She fell ill. She got TB etc.”

The king fled without looking back because he only loved her beauty. Without that beauty, to hell with the girl! He didn’t want a bag of bones. Even in the world, no one would accept it. So true love does not see qualities.

A clever sakhi (female companion of Radha) once teased Radha Rani,

“O Sakhi, why do you love Krishna? He chases after all the girls and tells them, ‘You alone are mine.’ How many of His defects can I describe? He is even a thief! He’s such a great bandit that He broke out of jail as soon as He was born! No one in history has left prison right after birth taking his father with him! His father did not break out of jail. It was all Krishna’s own doing! The guards fell asleep, the locks opened and Yamuna gave way!”

Radha Rani said, “I know all this!”

“And yet you still love Him?”

“What to do? My heart does not see His qualities, whatever they may be!”

This is (Divine) love. It is a very simple fact, and we experience it daily. If we do not get what we want from someone, we turn away from them. About turn! Murders happen everyday! It has turned into a joke. A boy asked a girl to marry him, but she turned him down, and then he shot her! Incidents of this nature are taking place everyday! He knows he will be hanged when he is caught and yet,

“I don’t care! She betrayed me!”

Hence Narad ji’s first word was ‘guṇ-rahitam’. Next, he said, “Kāmanā-rahitam (without desire).”

Don’t love your Beloved with selfish desires otherwise, your love will end if your desires are not fulfilled. A man hoped for $10 from another, but only got $9! “It’s okay, but it’s not $10.” Another gave $8 - his feelings decreased. Another gave $4 - decreased more. Another gave nothing - and he got angry! Now he begins bad-mouthing him to others!

Look at how many of our Saints were insulted and falsely accused throughout history. They were put through so much! And these are Saints who sacrifice their very lives for us! So, any love tainted with desire will one day turn us away from our Beloved and destroy our faith.

Say your son is ill and you go to Hanuman, to Devi or to Balaji with the desire to cure him,

“Hey Hanuman ji! Hey Krishno Devi! Hey Tirupathi Maharaj!”

If he is cured then you call it a miracle and praise Vaishno Devi. Next year he falls sick again and you again go to pray, but he dies while you are at the temple. Now you will lose all faith and belief.

“Oh! It’s nothing! It’s all useless!”

All love is finished! It’s just like a business in this world! We go to a shopkeeper and ask for a sari. He invites us in, fans us and serves us drinks saying,

Please come! Please come! Turn on the fan! Bring some soda!”

“I just want one sari. No need to bring out so many!”

“No problem, see them all and take the one you like!”

The seller is smart. He knows there will be at least one sari you will fall for, and then he can charge you more for it. You pick one and ask him the price,

No, I can’t pay that much.”

(The shopkeeper says,) “My shop does not bargain! We have a fixed price!”

“I can only pay you this much. It’s all I have!”

“What! Then move on ahead!”

Just see how the shopkeeper’s face has changed. This happens everyday. You don’t need me to explain. You experience this day and night from parents, spouses, children and everyone. So it is desires alone that have ruined countless lives of ours

The Vedas have gone so far as to say,

यदा सर्वे प्रमुच्यन्ते कामा येऽस्य हृदि श्रिताः ।
अथ मर्त्यो’मृतो भवत्यत्र ब्रह्म समश्नुते ॥ १४ ॥

Yadā sarve pramucyante kāmā ye’sya hṛdi śhritāḥ |
Atha martyo’mṛito bhavatyatra brahm samaśhnute || 14 ||

- Kathopanishad 2.3.14

This mantra is also in Brihadaranyak Upanishad 4.4.7, and in Shatyayani Upanishad 27.

“Let go of your desires and you will become like God - full of bliss!”

Because when desires are born, we will try to fulfill them. And to fulfill them, we will resort to all kinds of deceit. We will lie and use various types of tricks. Look at how much the big robbers do to fulfill their desires. If desires are fulfilled, they lead to greed, and if they are not then they lead to anger, depression, and harmful feelings, and then to psychological drugs,

“He has become ‘mental’.”

All humans are mental - why just him? Who is not mental? We receive all this sorrow only because we are mental. We do not know ourselves - that is the biggest proof of being mental. We believe that the world is ours and can make us happy. We accept other people to be ours despite seeing people die everyday.

“He is my father! She is my mother! She is my wife!”

Then look! They die!

“How could you die and leave me?!”

Leave or don’t leave…Who cares!

“My time has come and I’m going!”

(Another says,) “But I’m the prime minister, the king, the president!”

Whoever you are - we all have to leave at our time. Even God Himself!

Yamaraj went to Ram and said, “My Lord! I have come to inform You that Your time is here. But You may do as You like!”

It amounts to the same thing, like when someone is removed from our government, he is told to resign so that he doesn’t have to be fired. So he announces,

“I am resigning because of my health or because of my family.”

People make up stories like this.

So desires are our greatest enemy. No one can escape them. It is not that only ordinary people suffer from desire. Even Indra, the king of heaven, desires the seat of Brahma. This disease is everywhere. Since you were born, how many desires have you made and how many have been fulfilled? And yet again you desire, and again it is fulfilled, and again you desire.

The grandfather was an ordinary shopkeeper and his grandson became a billionaire or a president. This happens in the world. But their conditions are exactly the same. Everyone has the same desires, the same discontent, the same tension, the same drama of greed from fulfilled desires, and anger from unfulfilled ones. Everyone is unhappy and anxious. Countless lives have passed and yet we have not made this decision. If only we made this firm decision that desiring this material world will only give us unhappiness, both when desires are fulfilled and when they are not. And to create desires is our nature. You cannot stop creating them. You want happiness, don’t you? Yes. This is why you have to desire. So then,

“How will I get happiness?”

Saints tell you to go this way for happiness. So a handful of people tell you that your destination is to the East, but the rest are all going to the West.

“I will go where everyone else is going!”

Are they all mad?

So Narad ji said, “Love is ‘guṇ-rahitam’, ‘kāmanā-rahitam’.”

And an even greater definition is ‘pratikshanam-vardhamānam’ (ever-increasing every moment). True love goes on increasing. And worldly love? It goes on decreasing.

In Satakatrayam there is an example: Shadows are very long in the morning and they go on decreasing until at noon they are just under the body. And then again they start increasing and by evening they are long again. In the same way, false love is very great in the beginning.

Another example is in the early days of your marriage your wife will lovingly say,

“You eat first!”

And you will say, “No! You eat first!”

You all acted so much! And later you do not want to even look at your wife,

“I ruined my life by marrying her!”

It’s all over. When we see a material object for the first time, we become attracted,

“Wow! Look at the Taj Mahal! How did they raise such stones back then with no machines?!”

But when you next visit Agra, you do not want to see it a second time.

When the married women here went to their in-laws for the first time, people used to come just to see them,

“Let’s go see the new daughter-in-law!”

Why is her nose on her head? What do you want to see! She has the same body of skin and bones as your own wife. There is so much interest! But later if she is sick, her husband cannot even get a doctor to come see her. The doctor says,

“I have no time to see her!”

So the love that is for the Beloved’s happiness will go on increasing. If it does not increase, then it is not (Divine) love. And if it decreases, then it is nothing at all. It’s just an act. That is called desire - the opposite of true love. So true love is that which is for the happiness of the Beloved.

In this line of the kirtan (devotional song), the singer is saying,

“O Lord, please bestow such grace upon me that I may be happy in Your happiness!”

In the world, if one’s spouse as much as looks at another person for a while (he/she gets jealous…),

“Hey! Why is she looking at him?”

“Why is he staring at her?”

He starts to doubt. And if he sees them talking, his doubt grows, and if he sees them hug, then the world has come to an end. He is ready to shoot her!

But what do the Saints do?

“Come! Come! You also love my Lord!”

And if he starts to love God, then the Saint feels overjoyed.

“He listened to me and has started loving Krishna! Never mind if Krishna doesn’t look at me! Let Krishna look at him!”

They feel happiness. This is the difference between (Divine) love and desire. That which is done for Krishna’s happiness, that is (Divine) love.

This is the meaning in brief.

Source: Excerpt from the Discourse published onKripaluji Maharaj Special Lectures YouTube channel.

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Then Raya Ramanand Ji said, quoting from Bhagwatam says,

नायं श्रियोऽङ्ग उ नितान्तरतेः प्रसादः
स्वर्योषितां नलिनगन्धरुचां कुतोऽन्याः ।
रासोत्सवेऽस्य भुजदण्डगृहीतकण्ठ-
लब्धाशिषां य उदगाद् व्रजवल्लभीनाम् ॥

Nāyaṁ śhriyo ’ṅga u nitāntarateḥ prasādaḥ
swar-yoṣhitāṁ nalin-gandh-ruchāṁ kuto ’nyāḥ.
Rāsotsave ’sya bhuj-daṇḍ-gṛihīt-kaṇṭh-
labdhāśhiṣhāṁ ya udagād vraj-vallabhīnām.

- Bhagwatam 10.47.60

He said (this about) these Gopis (cowherd maidens of Braj). This is actually a quote of Uddhav Ji after he had been to Braj and met all the Gopis and came back to Mathura. He was telling Shree Krishna,

“Who could understand the greatness of Gopis, who during rāsleelā, Shree Krishna puts His arm around their necks, and they are dancing together?”

He said,

“Even Lakshmi (the Goddess of fortune) did not receive such close association with Shree Krishna. What to say of other maidens of swarg (the celestial realm) or the ladies of the Earth planet? These Gopis have received the most proximity with Shree Krishna. Nobody is closer than the Gopis who loved Shree Krishna with madhurya bhav (the mood of Divine conjugal love), selfless madhurya bhav!”

See, there are three kinds (of bhav): sadharana rati madhurya bhav, samanjasa rati madhurya bhav, and samartha rati madhurya bhav. Samartha rati madhurya bhav means loving Shree Krishna as your sweetheart, as your Beloved, with one desire in mind - His happiness.

आश्लिष्य वा पादरतां पिनष्टु माम्
अदर्शनान्मर्महतां करोतु वा ।
यथा तथा वा विदधातु लम्पटो
मत्प्राणनाथस्तु स एव नापरः ॥

Āśhliṣya vā pāda-ratāṁ pinaṣhṭu mām
adarśhanān marma-hatāṁ karotu vā.
Yathā tathā vā vidadhātu lampaṭo
mat-prāṇ-nāthas tu sa eva nāparaḥ.

- Shikshashtakam 8.

Other gyānīs (seekers of knowledge) are amazed, seeing in Braj,

“My Brahm (the Absolute Reality) is being called lampaṭa (a rogue lover) and chaur (a thief) by the Gopis.”

They are scolding Him, and He is chasing behind them. Young Krishna (saying)

“O Gopi!”

And the Gopis scolding Him, “Imagine what has happened to my Brahm!”

The gyānīs get confused. What has happened is that your Brahm is under the control of bhakti (Divine love devotion), and those Gopis have the highest form of bhakti.

अहं भक्तपराधीनो ह्यस्वतन्त्र इव द्विज ।

Ahaṁ bhakta-parādhīno hy asvatantra iva dvija.

- Bhagwatam 9.4.63.

“I am under the control of My bhakt (devotee).”

So the Gopis are the highest of all the bhaktas because they have the most intimate love for Shree Krishna and the most selfless love for Shree Krishna.

This shlok (verse) said by Chaitanya Mahaprabhu expresses those feelings of selflessness, where a Gopi is saying to Shree Krishna,

“However You treat me, whether You shower Your affection on me by embracing me, or You tell me to get lost (by saying) get out! I never want to see you again! Or You completely ignore me! These are the only three ways in which You can treat me. And my challenge to You is, no matter how You treat me, only You are mine! I have nowhere else to go. There is no one else for me. You are the soul of my soul. You are my only life! You are my everything! So my love for You will only go on increasing. My job is to love You. Whether You love me in return is of no concern to me!”

Only the Gopis embody this pure selflessness in love for Shree Krishna.

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Ham chākar kuṇj vihāriṇi ke.
We are servants of Kunj Viharini, that Kishori Ji, who performs intimate pastimes in the groves of Vrindāvan.

Ḍarat na ḍar Rukmiṇi Vallabh aru, Shree Rukmiṇi avatāriṇi ke.
I have no fear of Rukmini and Her Husband, the Lord of Dwarikā, because I am a maidservant of Her, who is the source of all descensions.

Mukti chār manuhār karat pai, jāuṁ na ḍhiṅg jag tāriṇi ke.
The four types of liberation conciliate me hoping to be accepted by me, but I do not even go anywhere near them!

Nitya-vihār lakhauṁ gahavar van, saras rās-ras kāriṇi ke.
I watch the eternal amorous pastimes of the Divine Couple in Gahavaravan and experience the nectarean bliss of the rās, which is instigated by Kishori Jī.

Bani alamast nām gun gāūṁ, sharaṇāgat-bhay hāriṇi ke.
I remain ever intoxicated, singing the names and glories of Kishori Jī, remaining in the shelter of She who dispels every kind of fear.

Jūṭhani khāūṁ ‘Kripalu’ jāūṁ bali, nit neelāmbaradhāriṇi ke.
Shree Kripalu Ji Maharaj says, “I feel overwhelmed with joy, eating the food remnants of Neelambaradharini, the one who is always clad in Her favourite blue color.“

Live recorded kirtan during the evening Satsang from Shree Raseshwari Radha Rani Temple of JKP Radha Madhav Dham, Austin, TX.

Song Credits:

Song - हम चाकर कुंज विहारिणि के । Ham chakar kunj Viharini ke

Singer - Vrinda Didi

Composer - Jagadguru Shree Kripalu Ji Maharaj

Lyrics Composer - Jagadguru Shree Kripalu Ji Maharaj

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A leelā may be exactly the same on the outside, in terms of what it appears to be, as a karm. In other words, Krishna may have done many of the things that we do in our everyday life. He ate, He slept, He played with His friends. He did all of these things, yet when He does them, they are leelā, and when we do them, they are karm.

So, what’s the difference? What’s inside? What do we have inside? Māyā (material energy). What does Krishna have inside? Yogamāyā (God’s Divine internal power). That’s the difference.

I spoke to you about Yogamāyā. That is Krishna’s most personal power. And it is through that Yogamāyā-śhakti (Divine power of Yogamāyā) that He performs all of the amazing actions that He does. Whether they are Almighty actions like creating the universe, or loving actions like the leelās we’ve been hearing about in the Bhagwatam.

All of these leelās are made possible and performed through Yogamāyā. And all of our actions are because of māyā. We are under māyā. Our mind is under māyā. In fact, our mind is made of māyā, so all of our thoughts are māyic (from māyā). All of our emotions are māyic.

Add to this that Krishna has no desires. That’s another internal difference. Our desires are what impel us to perform any action. Because we have a desire to attain something, we decide to do any particular action. That’s why it is called karm. Karm are those actions performed by souls like us who are under māyā. And here we have all our own personal desires, and depending on what those desires are, then we perform our actions.

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अथैकयोर्ध्व उदानः पुण्येन पुण्यं लोकं नयति ।
पापेन पापमुभाभ्यामेव मनुष्यलोकम् ॥

Athaikayordhva udānaḥ puṇyena puṇyaṁ lokaṁ nayati.
Pāpen pāpamubhābhyāmev manuṣhyalokam.

- Prashna Upanishad 3.7

Mundakopanishad also says, “If you do puṇya (virtuous deeds), if you do a lot of good actions, you go to swarg. If you do a lot of bad actions, you go to narak, and if you do a mixture of the two, you are immediately reborn here.”

Shree Krishna is giving Arjun some incentive. But it is the type of incentive which is only useful to an agyani (ignorant person). This is the type of incentive which will motivate someone who believes himself to be the body. If someone has understood that he is the soul, this incentive will not motivate him at all.

Why? Imagine, Shree Krishna is telling Arjun, “If you fight the war and win, you’ll become king, and you’ll enjoy the pleasures of this world.” Arjun is thinking,

न काङ्क्षे विजयं कृष्ण न च राज्यं सुखानि च ।

Na kāṅkṣhe vijayaṁ Krishna na cha rājyaṁ sukhāni cha.

- Gita 1.32

“I already told him I have no desire for the pleasures of kingship. I’ve already experienced that. I know there’s no true happiness in that. You Yourself have just explained to me the fleeting and limited nature of worldly pleasures, and now you’re dangling that in front of me as if it’s some kind of incentive to do my duty. In addition to that, you’re saying that I may get to go to swarg.”

However, listen to what Shree Krishna says about swarg right here in second chapter,

यामिमां पुष्पितां वाचं प्रवदन्त्यविपश्चित: |
वेदवादरता: पार्थ नान्यदस्तीति वादिन: ||

Yāmimāṁ puṣhpitāṁ vāchaṁ pravadanty-avipaśhchitaḥ.
Veda-vāda-ratāḥ pārth nānyadastīti vādinaḥ.

- Gita 2.42

He says, “O Arjun, those who dream of going to swarg and perform a lot of good actions with so much effort in order to attain swarg, they are foolish.”

(नान्यदस्तीति वादिन) Nānyad astīti vādinaḥ - those vādinaḥ (arguers), those talkers who tell you that going to swarg is such a great thing, that you should strive to go to swarg - they are fools. And those who listen to their talks and follow what they say, they are even more foolish.

Why?

इष्टापूर्तं मन्यमाना वरिष्ठं नान्यच्छ्रेयो वेदयन्ते प्रमूढाः ।
नाकस्य पृष्ठे ते सुकृतेऽनुभूत्वेमं लोकं हीनतरं वा विशन्ति ॥

Iṣhṭāpūrtaṃ manyamānā variṣhṭhaṃ nānyacchreyo vedayante pramūḍhāḥ.
Nākasya pṛiṣhṭhe te sukṛte’nubhūtvemaṃ lokaṃ hīnataraṃ vā viśhanti.

- Mundak Upanishad 1.2.10

The Vedas say that those who go to swarg are pramūḍhāḥ (extremely foolish).

So it means Shree Krishna is trying to make a fool of Arjun by telling him, “Do your duty and you’ll get to go to swarg”? Why is it so foolish to go to swarg? Because it takes so much effort to accumulate enough good actions in one lifetime to earn a trip to swarg, and once you get there, it is only temporary. You stay there for some time and then you come back here - right back where you started.

You won’t come back in the same body looking like you do now. In fact: (हीनतरं वा विशन्ति) hīnataraṃ vā viśhanti - you may be born in lower species before you again get a chance to be born as a human.

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Ab to kṛipā karo Shree Radhe. Tumhare dwār paro Shree Radhe.
A devotee suffering in the world and longing for Radha Rani’s Divine love and Grace calls out to Her and says, “O Shree Radhe, please bestow Your Grace on me now! O Shree Radhe, I am now lying in front of Your door (and will not go away ).”

Jāt tritāp jaro Shree Radhe. Hauṁ hauṁ patit kharo Shree Radhe.
“O Radhe, I have been constantly suffering from tritap (physical, mental and accidental sufferings). O Radhe, I know for sure that I am a very fallen soul.”

Mam agh yamahuṁ ḍaro Shree Radhe. Māyā moh haro Shree Radhe.
“O Radhe, I have committed so many sins that even Yamraj (god of death) is scared of me (doesn’t know what to do with me). O Radhe, please liberate me from maya and worldly attractions.”

Mam ur mahuṁ viharo Shree Radhe. Avaguṇ chit na dharo Shree Radhe.
“O Radhe, please come and reside in my heart forever. O Radhe, please do not look to my faults.”

Chah shishu bani jhagaro Shree Radhe. Mam pāpan na ḍaro Shree Radhe.
“Radhe I want to be Your child and playfully quarrel with You. O Radhe, looking at my uncountable sins, please do not be scared.”

Shaṭh man haṭhahiṇ aro Shree Radhe. Māyā timir haro Shree Radhe.
“O Radhe, my stubborn mind is now stuck with You forever. O Radhe, please liberate me from the darkness of maya.”

Būḍat kar pakaro Shree Radhe. Ab jal nāv bharo Shree Radhe.
“O Radhe, I am now drowning (in this cosmic ocean), please hold my hand. O Radhe, the boat of my life is now full of water (I am about to drown).”

Ab jani ber karo Shree Rādhe. Mam ur bhagati bharo Shree Radhe.
“O Radhe, please do not delay any longer! O Radhe, please fill my heart with Your bhakti (devotion)!”

Chah pad rati na taro Shree Radhe. Hauṇ ‘Kripalu’ tumharo Shree Radhe.
“O Radhe, I want my mind to be engrossed in Your lotus feet. (I know that) without that, I will not receive Your Grace. Jagadguru Shree Kripaluji Maharaj says, in the words of a devotee, “O Radhe, I am only Yours! Please bestow Your Grace on me””

Live recorded kirtan during the evening satsang from Shree Raseshwari Radha Rani Temple of JKP Radha Madhav Dham, Austin, TX.

Song Credits

Song - अब तो कृपा करो श्री राधे । तुम्हरे द्वार परो श्री राधे । Ab to kripȧ karo Shree Radhey. Tumhare dwår paro Shree Radhey

Singer - Jas bhaiya

Composer - Jagadguru Shree Kripalu Ji Maharaj

Lyrics Composer - Jagadguru Shree Kripalu Ji Maharaj

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… सर्वात्मस्नपनं परं विजयते …
… sarvātma-snapanaṁ paraṁ vijayate …

- Siksastakam Verse 1

In this seventh stage, the effect of maya (material energy) is finished, and the devotee exceeds all types of Divine blissfulness. ‘Vijayate’ means ‘supersedes, exceeds, goes beyond’ - all other Divine abodes, exceeds all other types of Divine blissfulness. The devotee experiences the ultimate bliss of the Divine realm when, with Guru’s grace, the effect of maya is finished.

भिद्यते हृदयग्रन्थिश्छिद्यन्ते सर्वसंशयाः ।
क्षीयन्ते चास्य कर्माणि तस्मिन्दृष्टे परावरे ॥
Bhidyate hṛidayagranthiśhchidyante sarvasaṃśayāḥ |
Kṣhīyante chāsya karmāṇi tasmindṛiṣhṭe parāvare ||

- Mundak Upanishad 2.2.8

With Guru’s grace, the bondage of maya is finished. The bondage of karma (fruitive actions) is finished. The bondage of ignorance is finished, and you get the Divine vision of God.

So in this case, we’re getting the Divine vision of Radha Krishna. The heart is completely suffused with swaroop shakti (God’s intrinsic Divine power) of Shree Krishna, which Divinizes it, and our senses also become Divine, and we see Radha Krishna before us. And then Guru gives us that prem-shakti (the Divine power of love), the ultimate Divine power. That ultimate Divine power, that prem-shakti, gives life to the entire Divine world. Even the bliss of Vaikunth abode is due to prem-shakti, even though it’s not being revealed there.

You can think of prem-shakti, this Divine love power, like the sun. And then, let’s say, you have a crystal globe. So that crystal globe receives the shine of the sun. Maybe the globe itself is red-colored, and so it’s got its own qualities.Now the shine from the sun is the one that’s illuminating this crystal globe. But once the light has been reflected by the globe, the original quality of the light, the sunlight, is not seen. It takes on a different character altogether.

Similarly, that light of prem-shakti, gives life to all the different experiences of blissfulness in all the other Divine abodes, even Vaikunth abode, where prem-shakti isn’t revealed at all. Only Almightiness is there. But it’s the light of that prem-shakti that’s enlivening the Almighty bliss of Vaikunth abode.

So imagine if one could actually experience that ultimate prem-shakti. Never mind the bliss of formless God. Even the bliss of the personal form of God of Vaikunth has been considered to be negligible in front of prem-shakti. Even Mahalakshmi (the Divine consort of Lord Narayan) desired it. Mahalakshmi is the very form of that Almighty blissfulness, that sandhini-shakti (the Divine existential potency) in Vaikunth abode. She desired for the experience of premānand (the bliss of Divine love).

…विहाय कामान् सुचिरं धृतव्रता ॥
…vihāya kāmān suchiraṁ dhṛitavratā.

- Bhagwatam 10.16.36

“She went and did austerities, extreme austerities, for a long period of time, trying to earn the right to experience that premānand.”

So all of this happens by practicing sādhanā (spiritual practice).

If we practice sādhanā correctly, with the grace of a true Guru, then eventually we pass through these stages of bhāv-bhakti (the stage of devotional ecstasy), and eventually we will attain that Divine love power, that prem-bhakti (Divine love devotion).

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Like a Prime Minister is not only a Prime Minister. He is the father of his son, he is the husband of his wife, and he is the son of his mother as well. When he goes back home from his office, then if he also wants them to respect him like a Prime Minister, then nobody would care. His wife, although she does not know anything about the politics of the country, she has no knowledge and she is not that educated as well, would also suggest to him,

“You should do that!”

If there is any problem, some problem at the world level, even then she will reach over there to give a suggestion,

“You should not do that! You should do that!”

“Why? You know more than me? I am Prime Minister! You are just cooking food at home. How do you know what I should do with other countries or what I should not do?”

But this is nature; this is her right. She doesn’t accept him as a Prime Minister. She only knows,

“He is my husband.”

The mother always says to her son, no matter whether he is Prime Minister or President or whatever,

“You have grown up so much, but still you have no brain. You cannot decide anything correctly!”

Mother always says that. The child will immediately go and directly sit in his lap. Here he cannot say,

“I am Prime Minister! Speak to me like this! How are you saying that?”

“No, no. If you have this ego, go to the office and sit down there. Don’t come home!”

In the same way, Shree Krishna is God, but we don’t accept Him. We don’t accept that form of God of Shree Krishna. Take it out. We know only one thing - how should we worship Shree Krishna? He is mine, and I am His alone. We have to increase this feeling, “He is mine, He is mine.” Then we can perform devotion.

When Lord Krishna came back to the Gopis (milkmaids of Braj) at the time of Mahārās (the Divine dance of Radha Krishna and unlimited numbers of Gopis when Krishna multiplied Himself in unlimited forms), He disappeared. Then the Gopis, along with Shree Radharani, were all bewailing. They were crying intensely. They were remembering Shree Krishna all the time. At the same time, they sang the Gopi Geet (the song of the Gopis) as well.

After that, when Shree Krishna came back in the form of God with four arms, the Gopis, who had been crying bitterly, immediately drew their veils and said,

“Who are you? Why did you come here? Go away from here! All the ladies are sitting here. We are not in a good condition also. We are suffering from virah (separation), and you came just like that. Get out from here!”

Shree Krishna said, “You were crying for Me for such a long time. You were remembering Me all the time. Now I have come, and you are saying, “‘Get out from here!””

They said, “Yes, we were crying for our Priyatam (beloved)! We are crying for our Priyatam Shyamsundar.”

He said, “I am your Priyatam Shyamsundar!”

“No, no, no! Our Priyatam Shyamsundar is not so horrible with four arms and this and that! He is so beautiful! His body is so soft, so beautiful! You are looking very horrible. We cannot accept you! How can you say that you are our Priyatam? Go and see your face in the mirror first, and compare it with the face of our Shyamsundar.”

Then Shyamsundar had to come in His own form. Only then did the Gopis accept Him.

So if the form of God is fearful we cannot love it.

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Pyār vār tū kā jāne Kānhā, Kānhā Kānhā Kānhā.
A Gopi tells Shree Krishna in a sweet taunting style, “O Kanha, you do not know the etiquettes of love!”

Deno pyār rasik jan mānā, leno jānā Kānhā, Kānhā Kānhā Kānhā.
Rasik Saints tell that ‘love’ means ‘to give’ but whomever You love You ‘take’ everything from him.

Tūne chorī karno jānā, dadhi mākhan paṭ Kānhā, Kānhā Kānhā Kānhā.
Since childhood, You only know how to steal curd, butter and clothes of the Gopis.

Sab kahuṁ duḥkh deno hī jānā, sukh denā nahiṁ Kānhā, Kānhā Kānhā Kānhā.
You never give any comfort to anyone, rather You only cause them pain (of separation).

Tūne jhūṭh bolno jānā, Maiyā hūṁ te Kānhā, Kānhā Kānhā Kānhā.
You even lie to mother Yashoda. You only know how to lie.

Tūne bāt banāno jānā, sakhan sakhin soṁ Kānhā, Kānhā Kānhā Kānhā.
You only know how to make up stories and talk to Gopis and Gwalbals.

Tūne āṅkhi mārno jānā, chhoṭā khoṭā Kānhā, Kānhā Kānhā Kānhā.
Even as a child You winked at the Gopis with Your loving eyes.

Lūṭi lūṭi dadhi khānā jānā, lakhi ikalī sakhi Kānhā, Kānhā Kānhā Kānhā.
You only know how to snatch the curd and eat it, whenever You find a Gopi alone.

Muralī bajāno tūne jānā, mohe Shiv, Shuk, Kānhā, Kānhā Kānhā Kānhā.
You know how to play on Your flute which entices the hearts of God Shiv and Shukdeo.

Swārth siddh karno bhī jānā, nij māyā te Kānhā, Kānhā Kānhā Kānhā.
Using Your yogmaya power You know to do whatever You want to do.

Sakhi saṅg nartan tūne jānā, rāt rāt bhar Kānhā, Kānhā Kānhā Kānhā.
You also know how to dance with the Gopis the whole night.

Hamane to ‘Kripalu’ yah jānā, bhakt vashya tū Kānhā, Kānhā Kānhā Kānhā.
Jagadguru Shree Kripaluji Maharaj says, “O Krishn, I know only one thing - that You are bhakt vashya (bound by Your Devotee’s love, so You do these loving leelas to give them immense joy).

Live recorded kirtan in May 2026 during Evening Satsang from Shree Raseshwari Radha Rani Temple of JKP Radha Madhav Dham, Austin, TX.

Song Credits:

Song - प्यार वार तू का जाने कान्हा, कान्हा कान्हा कान्हा। Pyar var tu ka jane Kanha, Kanha Kanha Kanha.

Singer - Chirag Bhaiya

Composer - Jagadguru Shree Kripalu Ji Maharaj

Lyrics Composer - Jagadguru Shree Kripalu Ji Maharaj

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जब समझ प्रेम में डूब गई, तब क्या होगा समझने से ।
Jab samajh prem meiṇ doob gayiī, tab kyā hogā samjhaane se.

There comes a point when ‘samajh (intellect) prem (Divine love) mein doob gayi’ - the intellect drowns in love.

So now, when love is formed, the intellect is no longer active. The intellect is now suppressed; it is drowned in love. Now only the mind, only the heart, is in āsakti (attachment).

And then bhāv bhakti, the stage of bhāv bhakti, is reached. I must caution you - many think that bhāv bhakti means when someone goes into bhāv (devotional emotion), when an aspiring devotee starts crying a little bit for God, or when he or she starts trembling a little bit in love for God, with the grace of the Guru, people may say,

“Oh, you know what? He’s gone into bhāv bhakti.”

That’s not bhāv bhakti. That is just the grace of God and Guru. One moment we are in bhāv, and next moment we are in tāv (agitation). One moment we look so devotional, “Oh, she’s like Meera Bai (a God realized Devotee of Shree Krishna)!”, the next moment she’s getting angry; she’s speaking very cruel words. That’s not bhāv bhakti. That was just, we were experiencing the grace of God and Guru, and wonderful sanskārs (spiritual impressions) came to the forefront, and we had few tears in the eyes. And the moment that the thought comes,

“Oh, I’m really a good devotee,” there’s a dry period, there’s a dry spell. We’ve all experienced it, haven’t we? Bhāv bhakti is totally different. It’s a stage of bhakti, a stage of devotion. But now we think,

“How can I be sure that I haven’t reached it? Have I reached it? Have I reached that stage?”

We may think we have reached it, so it’s good to know what Roop Goswami says in Bhakti Rasamrit Sindhu about the signs and indications, the anubhāv (symptoms) of bhāv bhakti. He says,

क्षान्तिरव्यर्थकालत्वं विरक्तिर्मानशून्यता ।
आशाबन्धः समुत्कण्ठा नामगाने सदा रुचिः ॥ १८ ॥

(ক্ষান্তিরব্যর্থকালত্বং বিরক্তির্মানশূন্যতা ।
আশাবন্ধঃ সমুৎকণ্ঠা নামগানে সদা রুচিঃ ॥ ১৮ ॥)

Kṣhāntir avyartha-kālatvaṁ viraktir māna-śhūnyatā.
Āśhā-bandhaḥ samutkaṇṭhā nāmagāne sadā ruchiḥ.

- CC Madhya 23.18-19

Some of the ‘anubhāv’. Let’s start with some of them; there are nine all in all.

First of all, he says there is kṣhānti (tolerance). Look out for kṣhānti. It’s not to be confused with the word ‘shānti’, which means ‘peace’. This is kṣhānti, ‘k-sh-h-a-n-t-i’, if you will, kṣhānti, meaning ‘tolerance’.

“Tolerance? I’m tolerant. I am tolerant! I have reached bhāv bhakti.”

We ask our intellect, Buddhi Devi (the faculty of intelligence),

“Am I tolerant? Do I have kṣhānti?”

And our intellect is the biggest fan we have. The intellect says,

“But of course, you are very tolerant!”

We are tolerant when no one is saying something to us. We are sitting down and watching TV at home.

“I’m very tolerant when I’m watching TV at home because no one is saying anything. No one is speaking, no one is talking to me, no one is insulting me. So, I’m not getting angry. That doesn’t prove my tolerance.”

So what is tolerance?

क्षोभ-हेताव् अपि प्राप्ते क्षान्तिर् अक्षुभितात्मता ॥१.३.२७॥
Kṣhobh-hetāv api prāpte kṣhāntir akṣhubhitātmatā ||1.3.27||

- Bhakti-Rasamrta-Sindhu 1.3.27

Roop Goswami Ji says, “Tolerance is when there is a cause for anger and you don’t get angry. When there is a reason to get tense and upset, you don’t become tense, you don’t get tense, you don’t get upset; you remain calm. There is a reason for anger, but there is no anger. You are calm. Your mind is very calm.”

That is kṣhānti.

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इमं विवस्वते योगं प्रोक्तवानहमव्ययम् | …
Imaṁ vivasvate yogaṁ proktavān aham avyayam…

- Gita 4.1

“Hey Arjun, this knowledge of the Gita is eternal. It is avyayam (imperishable). It exists eternally. It can never disappear or be destroyed. And I gave this same knowledge that I am giving to you now to Vivasvan, the celestial sun god. I gave it to him a long time ago, and he gave it to his son, Vaivasvat, and he gave it to his son, Ikshvaku, and it was passed on like that through generations of Rajarishis (Saintly kings). But eventually this knowledge became lost, you can say. It was unavailable for ordinary souls on the earth planet, so I am revealing the same knowledge again to you now.”

So Arjun asked, “But Vivasvan is the father of Vaivasvat, who is the current manu (progenitor of mankind for a manvantar). So You must have told this knowledge to him millions of years ago, before the current civilization began on this earth planet. So how is it possible for You? I see You standing here now before me. We are both here. How is it that You are saying that You gave this same knowledge to Vivasvan so long ago?”

The beginning of our manvantar (the reign of one manu) is more than 120 million years ago. That is when Krishna is saying He gave this knowledge to the father of our current manu. Manu means the one who started civilization on the Earth planet. There is a different manu for each manvantar. A day of Brahma has 14 manvantars. Just like our day has 12 hours and our night has 12 hours, Brahma’s day has 14 divisions. Each division is called a manvantar. And each manvantar is 71 cycles of the four yugas (ages). The four yugas are satyug (age of truth), treta yug, dwapar yug, and kali yug. One cycle of these four yugas is 4.32 million years.

Kali yug is 432,000 years long. Dwapar yug is twice that, 864,000 years long. Treta yug is three times that, 1,296,000 years long. And sat yug is four times the duration of kali yug, 1,728,000 years long. When you add them all up, you get 4,320,000 years. That is one mahayug (complete cycle of the four yugas), one full cycle through the four yugas. Do that 71 times and you get one manvantar. And 14 of those manvantars make one day of Brahma. So Brahma’s day is, in fact, 4,320,000,000 years long.

But Krishna is saying, “I am not talking about the beginning of Brahma’s day. I am just talking about the beginning of this manvantar.”

And we are in the 28th cycle of the four yugas in this manvantar. Remember, 71 cycles make the whole manvantar. We are through 28 cycles. So it is more than 120,000,000 years ago that Krishna is saying He gave this knowledge to Vivasvan. And he gave it to his son, Vaivasvat, who is the current manvantar’s Manu. So it means that Manu and his wife produced the first offspring on the Earth planet, and we are all descendants of them. That is why we are called manushya (human beings), because we are descended from Manu. And Manu is the son of Brahma. And Brahma is the son of Krishna. So, in fact, we are all children of Shree Krishna.

…अमृतस्य वै पुत्राः…
…amṛtasya vai putrāḥ..

The Vedas (eternal Divine scriptures) say,

“All souls are the children of Shree Krishna.”

And we do not just mean that figuratively. Literally, we are!

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Live recorded kirtan in May 2026 during Evening Satsang from Shree Raseshwari Radha Rani Temple of JKP Radha Madhav Dham, Austin, TX.

Song Credits:

Song - Bhakti Challenge 2

Singer - Jas bhaiya

Composer - Jagadguru Shree Kripalu Ji Maharaj

Lyrics Composer - Jagadguru Shree Kripalu Ji Maharaj

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