A casual Airport Darśana | House of Bhakti

The following is a transcription of an airport darśana with Śrīla Bhaktivedānta Nārāyaṇa Mahārāja in Berlin, Germany, on July 7, 2003

Paurṇamāsī dāsī: She wants your blessings.

Śrīla Bhaktivedānta Nārāyaṇa Mahārāja: Even without her asking, I have given my blessings.

Śrīla Bhaktivedānta Nārāyaṇa Mahārāja: (Speaking to another devotee) You? What is your schedule? Yes, you ([the devotee] from Finland). Will you return to Finland and then come to Vraja-maṇḍala Parikramā?

Kṛṣṇa-vallabha dāsī: Yes.

Śrīla Bhaktivedānta Nārāyaṇa Mahārāja: Very good. Bring more devotees.

Śrīla Bhaktivedānta Nārāyaṇa Mahārāja: (Asking another devotee) Do you want to come to India?

Gopī dāsī: Yes, but I am afraid of India.

Śrīla Bhaktivedānta Nārāyaṇa Mahārāja: Yes, because Kṛṣṇa is tricky there. He may overpower you. He will smile and take your heart.

(Śrīla Bhaktivedānta Nārāyaṇa Mahārāja now speaks to the whole assembly) Very good. You should all come to Vraja-maṇḍala Parikramā, and we will give classes there for one month as we did in Berlin. You will see Girirāja Govardhana Himself, Yamunā herself, and kadamba trees.

Taruṇa-kṛṣṇa dāsa: When you were in Bombay, I was there with you on a japa walk, and I had the opportunity to stand near you. I was looking at you very materially at that time, and after that, I felt very bad about it. I thought I had many obstacles in my spiritual life. I want to beg for forgiveness.

Śrīla Bhaktivedānta Nārāyaṇa Mahārāja: (Putting his hand up as if blessing) Yes, I have forgiven you.

Śrīpāda Araṇya Mahārāja: Gurudeva, last night in your lecture, you talked about saṁyoginī, viyoginī, and Vṛṣabhānu-nandinī (the three features of Śrīmatī Rādhikā). After that, you made a comparison with Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu, and you said that in Navadvīpa, He is in the mood of Vṛṣabhānu-nandinī (Rādhikā when She is enjoying Her morning-to-morning pastimes with Kṛṣṇa in Vṛndāvana). Then you said that in Purī He is like viyoginī (Rādhikā at Uddhava-kyārī in Vṛndāvana, feeling separation for Kṛṣṇa who is in Mathurā), and when He goes to Sundarācala (the Guṇḍicā Mandira) in Purī He is like saṁyoginī (Rādhikā meeting Kṛṣṇa at Kurukṣetra). You also said that He is like saṁyoginī at Godāvarī. In what sense is there a similarity between saṁyoginī in Godāvarī (when Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu is meeting with Śrī Rāmānanda Rāya) and saṁyoginī in Sundarācala? Regarding His journey to Sundarācala at the time of Ratha-yātrā it is very obvious, but not so with Godāvarī.

Śrīla Bhaktivedānta Nārāyaṇa Mahārāja: It is because He showed His form as rasarāja-mahābhāva at Godāvarī. There, Kṛṣṇa was meeting with Viśākhā (in the form of Śrī Rāmānanda Rāya). And, meeting with Viśākhā, because she resembles Śrīmatī Rādhikā in her age and beauty and all qualities, Kṛṣṇa thinks that He is meeting with Śrīmatī Rādhikā.

Sunīti dāsī: Are you going to Nigeria, Africa?

Śrīla Bhaktivedānta Nārāyaṇa Mahārāja: If they invite me and it is favourable, then I want to go to Africa at least once. I have gone practically everywhere, but not to any country in Africa.

Premavatī dāsī: This year, we had our public Ratha-yātrā Festival when you were in Birmingham, but Mahāprabhu was not present to give His darśana. How was He being merciful to the people of Berlin when He didn’t go on the Ratha-yātrā? His cart was prepared and began to move, but then it stopped suddenly, and a devotee accidentally fell into it. So His deity couldn’t go to the festival. I was wondering why He didn’t go that day. How is this His mercy?

Śrīla Bhaktivedānta Nārāyaṇa Mahārāja: Sometimes, in Jagannātha Purī, Jagannātha does not reach His chariot for two, three or four days. And sometimes He stops midway. Why does He do so? Because He is independent. What mood is in Kṛṣṇa and when it is in Him, only He knows. Even Baladeva may not know. Only Śrīmatī Rādhikā can know; we cannot know. It is very mysterious. Once, our Śrīla Bhaktivedānta Vāmana Mahārāja was going somewhere with his party. He wanted to get onto a bus, but someone pushed him and he could not get on. All his devotees were lamenting and thinking, “We missed our program, but after some time they heard that the bus had been smashed and so many died. So Kṛṣṇa does what He wants, and we cannot understand why. Only Śrīmatī Rādhikā can tell us. There must be something okay about whatever He does. Whatever He does is good. I never wanted to come to this country but I have been forcibly dragged here and there and everywhere. I don’t know why.

Devotee: What is Śrīmatī Rādhārāṇī doing now?

Śrīla Bhaktivedānta Nārāyaṇa Mahārāja: (In a tone that sounded somewhat annoyed) She is sleeping.

Devotee: And Kṛṣṇa?

Śrīla Bhaktivedānta Nārāyaṇa Mahārāja: (In the same tone) Kṛṣṇa is waking Her up and saying, “Time is over; We should go to Our homes. There is no need for these questions. Try to remove your anarthas. This is important at your present stage; not asking what Rādhā and Kṛṣṇa are doing now. Even if I will tell you, you will not be able to understand or realize what I say. Only an eternal associate can tell all these things. In Dvārakā, Uddhava can tell, and in Vraja, sometimes Mother Yaśodā can tell, and sometimes the gopīs can tell.

(Addressing all the devotees)

You can remember those times when Śrīla Bhaktivedānta Svāmī Mahārāja used to travel. Compare his [travelling] with my travelling and remember him, and then you can have some idea of how he was travelling and what he was doing.

Sunīti dāsī: Now we can understand that he never left us.

Śrīpāda Bhaktisāra Mahārāja and Śrīpāda Araṇya Mahārāja: This is Anaṅga Mañjarī and her husband Sadānanda prabhu. They hosted us at their house. They are exceptionally prominent among the devotees here in Berlin. For many years, they have preached in ISKCON here.

Śrīla Bhaktivedānta Nārāyaṇa Mahārāja: Thank you. You should be very strong. You should realize hari-kathā. What we gave in Berlin is the life of hari-kathā. (Addressing all the devotees) When Śrīla Prabhupāda went to his Goloka-dhāma, many devotees became weak and left the mission. They left chanting and remembering Kṛṣṇa, and I don’t want you to follow them. As long as you are alive, you should all be very bold. If you are, Kṛṣṇa will be very happy and sprinkle His mercy in such a way that you will have taste in chanting His name, in hearing hari-kathā, and in performing the other limbs of bhakti. At that time you will have no fear.

Devotee: (Giving Śrīla Bhaktivedānta Nārāyaṇa Mahārāja a long-stemmed yellow flower with many leaves) I would like to give you one flower.

Śrīla Bhaktivedānta Nārāyaṇa Mahārāja: I’ve heard she is very bold and she is preaching in her country.

These leaves are Śyama (dark), and they are like Kṛṣṇa. And the yellow flower is like Śrīmatī Rādhikā. If there is no yellow with Śyama, then there is no beauty.

Vicitra dāsī: I am reading in your Brahmā-saṁhitā your description of the kuñjas in Vṛndāvana. That description is very beautiful.

Śrīla Bhaktivedānta Nārāyaṇa Mahārāja: One day the entire world will be amazed at what I have given. Not now, but later they will realize what I am giving.

Vicitra dāsī: Has anyone else described the kuñjas as you have?

Śrīla Bhaktivedānta Nārāyaṇa Mahārāja: Śrīla Rūpa Gosvāmī and all of our ācāryas have done so. I am only following in their footsteps.

(It is now time to go to the gate, and Śrīla Bhaktivedānta Nārāyaṇa Mahārāja stands to leave the lobby)

Goodbye to Berlin and goodbye to all the devotees of Berlin.

Source: Purebhakti.com

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Unless indicated differently, all verse translations and quotes are from the books by Śrīla Prabhupāda (Vedabase.com)