Sharanagati

(continues from the previous issue) 

“Mach-chitta mad-gata-prana/ bodhayantah parasparam/ kathаyantash cha mam nityam/ tushyanti cha ramanti cha – The thoughts of My pure devotees dwell in Me, their lives are fully devoted to My service and they derive great satisfaction and bliss from always enlightening one another and conversing about Me.”[1]

Actually here Krishnamentions different grades of devotees. Those who enlighten others, bodhayantah, they will be only fulfilled, tushyanti. Enough? But those “who glorify Me, kathayantah”, they will be happy, ramanti. Bodhayantah is on the platform of sadhana-bhakti. This is madhyama-adhikari level – I teach you, I enlighten you, I explain to you. This is a level of distinction: I am higher than you. What will come from that attitude? Maximum some insignificant satisfaction, some tushti. But where is the happiness there? There is not so much happiness. Rama, Rama Devi is the Goddess of happiness, so ramanti is under Her control. You cannot enlighten others; you can only glorify the Lord! This is a completely different approach. Those who glorify the Supreme Lord – they will achieve spiritual inner bliss.

Ramanti is a very complicated word again. Rama Devi is the Goddess of bliss, of happiness, another name for Srimati Radharani. And rama also means “happiness”. “Anti” is just like “ante”. “Ante” means the end of something – like Veda – Vedanta. Vedanta means “in the end of Veda”. So ramanti, ramante can mean that you are in the supreme happiness. You will enter the topmost satisfaction, the topmost bliss. Tushti and rama – you feel the difference? Big difference. If you practice bhakti on the elementary platform, sadhana-bhakti, you can achieve tushti, you can achieve satisfaction. If you come to the higher platform of bhakti, if you start to glorify the Supreme Lord, then you can reach spiritual bliss.

In one little verse the steps of the spiritual progress are also contained. If you speak nonsense you will not be satisfied. If you speak about spiritual things you can achieve satisfaction. If you start to glorify our Krishnawhat will be the result? First result will be that you cannot speak anymore. Your voice will choke up. This is the real glorification. Until you can speak, you are scratching the surface. But when your voice chokes up like when Mahaprabhu was in ecstasy… Usually He was glorifying Lord Jagannath, this beautiful loving form of Krishna. But whenever He could not compose Himself, He just fainted and fell in ecstasy and He could not speak nicely. Then instead of “Jagannath” He could say only “Ja ja ga ga du du…” That is the real thing. Until you can give an eloquent speech on the lecture, there is maximum tushti. Some satisfaction on your side, because everybody likes to hear his own voice. But when you cannot speak anymore, that is ramanti. That is happiness for the audience. Here we stop.

Because real glorification cannot be expressed by words, but in this verse it is contained how to express yourself when words fail. What is given in the first line? Chitta and prana. Chitta is residing in the heart. And prana is your breath. So if your words fail, then your breath and your heartbeat will tell the story. These are the ultimate rhythms of your body. Your heartbeat and your breathing. If your words fail, your heart and your prana will tell.

Question of Yamuna: Maharaj, I have read some commentaries that Krishna is actually speaking at two levels in this verse. It sounds like He is speaking about the future, like wishing something to happen, but actually He speaks about the past. He speaks about the gopis here. Can you please comment on this?

Tirtha Maharaj: I think I have told my opinion about this: tushti is for the elementary practitioners and ramanti is for the higher practitioners. Tushti you can achieve on the elementary rasas and ramanti you can achieve on madhurya-rasa.

Hare Krishna Hare Krishna Krishna Krishna Hare Hare/ Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare. If you start to nicely chant these names then a certain very subtle change will start in your life. Without anything else some purification will happen. And the more you practice, and the more deep you practice – more results, more sweet taste you will reach. Therefore one word is said here: nityam – always! Until your heart beats, until your breath works, all the time.

Yamuna: And after? After the heart stops and the breath ceases?

Tirtha Maharaj: He reasons ill who thinks that the devotee dies.