'Chant Hare Krishna and Be Happy!'

This time last year

As anyone reading these blogs will see, I make my Krishna conscious practicing life extremely complicated at times. After reading 'Self-examination: D+,' a friend asked me, “Damayanti, does your brain hurt sometimes?” I think it’s a valid question.

Today, reading this beautiful passage from ‘Affectionate Guidance,’ I was reminded of how it all began for us; how we fallen souls were given this connection we have with Krishna consciousness in the first place, and the way we are advised to go forward on our way back home, back to Godhead.

Mahaprabhu’s conception is very simple but we are making it complicated in so many ways, because we are tainted with a kind of uncleanliness. Mahaprabhu has given within His Siksastakam a sloka about Harinam-sankirttan, and I think this is sufficient for us. What could we need more than this?

cheto-darpana-marjjanam bhava-mahadavagni-nirvvapanam
sreyah-kairava-chandrika-vitaranam vidyavadhu-jivanam
anandambudhi-varddhanam prati-padam purnamrtasvadanam
sarvatma-snapanam param vijayate sri-krsna-sankirttanam

Cheto-darpana-marjjanam—that is the full, clean position of the jiva. The mind, the consciousness, is being fully cleansed by the performance of Nama-sankirttan. But cleanliness, purity, on its own is not sufficient. When you are cleaning something, all the dirt that will come out as a result, you will have to do something with that. The dirty things—our mundane wealth, our mundane conceptions, all our evil tendencies—what will we do with them?

Bhava-mahadavagni-nirvvapanam—you make a fire there, and that fire of Nama-sankirttan will burn all those things to ashes. First you will clean your house and then you will burn all the filth accumulated there. And then in its place you will need to establish something good.

Sreyah-kairava-chandrika-vitaranam vidya-vadhu-jivanam—you can start a new life there and you will see the nectarean ray of Krishna-nama bestowing grace upon your head; the service of Sri Krishna in Madhura-rasa.

Sometimes I think that this one sloka is sufficient. There we find Chaitanya, Advaita and Nityananda.

When Sri Chaitanya appears in our heart then all that is a-chaitanya flees from there. Then Sri Advaita; The feeling of so ‘ham—that means Krishna is the Supreme Personality of Godhead, and I am a part of Him, and Nityananda—ecstasy, nectar, everything. Through the chanting of Hari-Nama, the non-different form of Krishna, the Pastimes of Krishna will play in the heart.

Comments

[Krishnendrani DD]

All Glories to Sri Guru and Sri Gauranga

Dear Damayanti Devi Dasi,

Please accept my humble obeisances. I mentioned your mail to Ramaray Prabhu who is in charge of the Turkish Math, and he said we could happily post a copy of the Hidden Treasure for your friend Mariam.
He says we can also post a pack of ten or sixteen Sri Gitas to the London Math. Hoping to hear from you, my humble obeisances to your pure self and all the devotees in your association,

Your servant,
Krishnendrani dd