Sharanagati

(from a lecture of Swami Tirtha, 23.08.2016, morning, Ludasto)

(continues from the previous Friday)

Shrimad Bhagavatam is a fruit. And fruits are sweet. How to judge whether a fruit is really ripe or not? If it is touched and picked by the beak of a parrot, then you can be sure that this is sweet. The fruit of the Shrimad Bhagavatam was emanating from the beak, from the lips of Shukadeva Goswami.

Parrots are considered very precious in our process. In India, also in Vrindavana, there are a lot of parrots. They are this green type, very loud. Nevertheless you are never annoyed by their noise. And why they are appreciated so much there? Because they are transmitting messages. When Radha and Govinda cannot meet, They want to communicate. It’s little complicated – under the care of the families and the social customs, etc. etc. it’s impossible to meet. There were no handy phones at that time. So, some kind of communication must have been there. And They have chosen the parrots to be Their messengers. From this you can see how much we have degraded in this Kali Yuga. Instead of green parrots we use black telephones. There is a living messenger and here is a dead construction. Yet usually people use this messenger for the same purpose – love messages. But the messages that you send should reflect the victory of dharma over adharma, the victory of the spirit over the matter, the victory of the truth over the illusion. Because this is provided by Shukadeva Goswami in the Shrimad Bhagavatam. It became more tasteful than before. Although it was relishable for all, including liberated souls.

Pibata bhagavatam rasa[1]. Pibata – drink, taste the nectar of the Bhagavatam. And how you can drink the nectar of the Bhagavatam – by your ears. So, a mystic transformation happens to the audience. Now you removed your locks to open up your ears more. This is the mystic transformation that we need. So that we can convert this limited material constitution into a spiritual receiver. A spiritual receiver of the transcendental message. And just like in the first verse there was one very important expression, this was the svarat – the independent Supreme, here is another very important thing mentioned – rasika. Rasika! “Those who are expert in relishing rasa.”

This is a very delicate part of spiritual cultivation. This is not jungle warfare. This is a very delicate part of spiritual cultivation. This is a search for the treasure. Just to take one example from cultivating rasa. Mahaprabhu’s devotees were so sensitive that whenever they met Mahaprabhu, their beloved Lord, immediately they could understand and feel the special emotional mood that He enjoyed. And they could quote the shastras, the shlokas, the rasik stories accordingly. When Mahaprabhu was too much in the mood, they started to quote something that will pacify Him. When He was too much passive, then they quoted something that will agitate Him. Always according to His taste. So, you see what a depth of refined sensitive approach! It’s not that ‘I come with my problems’. No, ‘I come to serve You according to Your taste’. When you come with your problems – this is the jungle warfare. When you understand something about this rasik approach – this is the search for the treasure. So, decide for yourself whether you want to be an anarchist, in the group of the partisan warfare, or you are a hunter for the treasures. And if you enroll in the hunters’ group for the treasures, then come with rasa. Don’t come with a bag of problems.

(to be continued)

[1] Shrimad Bhagavatam 1.1.3