"G u r u m u k h p a d m a v a k y a"
All forms of Sri Krishna are attractive….………...... Nectarean Mellows
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Srila Prabhupada explains that according to a devotee's particular inclination to serve the Lord, the Lord awakens our love accordingly. Krsna consciousness is beyond sectarian conceptions. God is one-that is a fact-but by the Lord's inconceivable potencies, He can appear in different forms to different people with so much variegatedness.
In the Navadvipa Mahatmya, as well as the Bhakti Ratnakara, we read about a devotee named Vasudeva. He knew about Rama, he understood the various forms in which the Lord has taken incarnations in this world, but he particularly was so deeply attached to Varaha, the form of the Lord as a boar. Now relatively, most people consider even a tortoise more pretty than a boar-an uncivilized pig in the jungle-but that was his goal of life. He just wanted to have darshan of Lord Varahadeva. That was his only passion. He was performing great austerities just to get that darshan of Lord Varaha. Why? Why not Krsna, why not Rama, why not Mohini Murti? [laughter] He wanted darshan of Lord Varahadeva. That was his goal of life, his everything. And Lord Varahadeva, in a place called Koladvipa, gave him His darshan. Because the Lord awakened within him the realization of the greatness of this beautiful form.
In Srimad Bhagavatam we find when Varahadeva appeared, the sages, the rsis, all the devotees were offering prayers of love to him. They saw he had the most attractive lotus like eyes. His paws were the essence of all beautiful things, His hooves. And the bristling hairs on his body were just magnificent, mind boggling, the way they were attracting their hearts with love. What to speak of his irresistibly attractive nose. Not too many people are attracted to the snout of a pig. But for Lord Varahadeva, that snout is more attractive, unlimitedly, than the nose of any lover in this world, because He is Krsna, the all attractive one, whose body is eternal and spiritual. When He awakens that attraction in our hearts, then what we see and what we remember is irresistible.
So we cannot bring Krsna down to our mentality. This is the condition of a neophyte devotee. We try to judge Krsna through the limited perception of our eyes and our ears.
Sometimes we see these ancient deities, and they are just not as pleasing to look at as the modern deities that are carved very precisely in a very beautiful way so that the eyes just see such a beautiful lady in Radharani and such a beautiful man in Krsna, the features so nice. Some of the ancient deities have hardly any features that we can see. Just black stones that just have a basic shape, but we find that the acaryas, what were they seeing? Rupa Goswami was warning us, if you are attached to your family, friendship, love and home in this world, don't go to Kesi Ghat because the form of Govindaji is there and once you see the form of Govindaji, how can you ever be attracted to anything in this world again? He is taking about the deity of Govindaji. This what he is seeing. He is seeing Krsna. So no, we cannot judge things by our material senses. When Krsna appears, our attraction should not be based on superficial sentiment. Our attraction has to be based on love.
Therefore, Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarsavati Thakur has told us again and again, do not try to see Krsna, because you cannot see Krsna. Even if you see Krsna, you can't see Krsna. You cannot see Krsna with your eyes, even if he is standing right before you. You have to see Krsna with your heart. Kamsa saw Krsna but he wasn't feeling love, he was feeling hatred. Prahlada was ecstatically worshipping Lord Nrsimhadeva, but when Hiranyakasipu saw him, what did he see? He saw the most horrible form of death. Varahadeva, Hiranyaksa was not attracted by Him. The form of Varahadeva only awakened fear and hatred in his heart.
Krsna reciprocates with our devotion, and this is the difference between a neophyte devotee and one who is actually striving for spiritual progress. A neophyte devotee remains too much attached to the external form, to the external rituals. A devotee who is actually aspiring for real advancement understands that all these forms and rituals that the Lord has given us, it is simply a facility, an opportunity to surrender our lives and awaken love. Srila Prabhupada explained that we could do without everything else, but we must have the association of devotees and we must have holy name of Krsna. But even the name of Krsna, why are we not tasting the sweetness and the
ecstasy? All the opulences and beauty of Krsna is in His name. It is because of our service attitude. We must develop this selfless service attitude to understand Krsna.
A devotee, if he understands his own Lord with love and devotion, then he will understand the other forms that the Lord may take. It is said that even a dog understands his master regardless of how the master may dress. The master may be dressed in a business suit or in a simple dhoti or kurta another day, or simply kaupina another day; [laughter] the master may have hundreds of dresses, but the dog will love the master regardless.
Similarly when you love the Lord, if you actually have some love for God, if you see Him in other dresses, in other forms, you can only love Him. And if you do not appreciate the other forms and ways that the Lord is revealing Himself in other religions, then what does that mean? It means you are less than a dog, that's all. Less than a dog. Srila Prabhupada emphasizes this point, Sukadeva Goswami loved Krsna. He is a parrot in Vrindavana, the intimate servant of Radharani, he is coming form Goloka, witnessing and participating the most intimate pastimes of Radha and Krsna, but yet with such ecstasy he is describing Kurma, Varaha Matsya, the Lord's form as a fish.
For Satyvrata Muni that fish was so attractive he could not conceive of letting his mind divert to any other form. Sukadeva Goswami is glorifying these devotees of the fish incarnation, the boar incarnation, the half-man, half-lion incarnation. Why? Because he loves Krsna. If you love Krsna you love everything about Krsna. God is great; to understand how God is great is bhakti.
H H Radhanath Swami Maharaj
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