PrabhupadaVani : Message: "Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu is not mentioned as a lila-avatara because He is an incarnation in disguise..."

Dear Prabhus,

Please accept my humble obeisances. All glories to Srila Prabhupada !

nama om vishnu padaya krishna presthaya bhutale
srimate bhaktivedanta swamin iti namine

I offer my respectful obeisances unto His Divine Grace A C Bhaktivedanta Swami
who is very dear to Lord Krishna having taken shelter at His lotus feet.

namaste sarasvati deve gaura vani pracarine
nirvisesa sunyavadi pascatya desha tarine

Our respectful obeisances are unto you, O spiritual master, servant of Saraswati Goswami.
You are so kindly teaching the message of Lord Chaitanya and delivering the Western countries
which are filled with impersonalism and voidism.

vancha-kalpatarubhyash cha
kripa-sindhubhya eva cha
patitanam pavanebhyo
vaishnavebhyo namo namaha I offer my respectful obeisances unto all the Vaisnava devotees of the Lord who can fulfill the desires of everyone, just like desire trees, and who are full of compassion for the fallen souls.

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Darshan :

http://www.prabhupadaconnect.com/Be_All-Inclusive.html

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"On the Way to Krsna"

~Chapter Four~

The Roads of the Foolish and the Wise

"... What is the nature of this illusion, and how can it be overcome? That is also explained in Bhagavad-gita:

daivi hy esa guna-mayi / mama maya duratyaya / mam eva ye prapadyante / mayam etam taranti te

"This divine energy of Mine, consisting of the three modes of material nature, is difficult to overcome. But those who have surrendered to Me can easily cross beyond it." (Bg. 7.14)

No one can get rid of the entanglement of the three qualities of material nature by mental speculation. The three gunas are very strong and hard to overcome. Can't we feel how we are in the grip of material nature? The word guna (mode) also means rope. When someone is bound by three strong ropes, he is certainly very tightly secured. Our hands and legs are all bound by the strong ropes of goodness, passion and ignorance. Are we therefore to abandon hope? No, for here Sri Krsna promises that whoever surrenders unto Him is at once free. When one becomes Krsna conscious--whether in this way or that way--he becomes free..."

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http://www.prabhupadaconnect.com/meditation9.html

"And I declare that he who studies this sacred conversation

worships Me by his intelligence.

And one who listens with faith and without envy

becomes free from sinful reactions

and attains to the planets where the pious dwell."

Bhagavad-Gita 18.70&71

Bhagavad-Gita As It Is

Chapter 9 : The Most Confidential Knowledge

Text 27

yat karosi yad asnasi
yaj juhosi dadasi yat
yat tapasyasi kaunteya
tat kurusva mad-arpanam

O son of Kunti, all that you do, all that you eat, all that you offer and give away, as well as all austerities that you may perform, should be done as an offering unto Me.

PURPORT

Thus, it is the duty of everyone to mold his life in such a way that he will not forget Krsna in any circumstance. Everyone has to work for maintenance of his body and soul together, and Krsna recommends herein that one should work for Him. Everyone has to eat something to live; therefore he should accept the remnants of foodstuffs offered to Krsna. Any civilized man has to perform some religious ritualistic ceremonies; therefore Krsna recommends, "Do it for Me," and this is called arcana. Everyone has a tendency to give something in charity; Krsna says, "Give it to Me," and this means that all surplus money accumulated should be utilized in furthering the Krsna consciousness movement. Nowadays people are very much inclined to the meditational process, which is not practical in this age, but if anyone practices meditating on Krsna twenty-four hours by chanting the Hare Krsna mantra round his beads, he is surely the greatest yogi, as substantiated by the Sixth Chapter of Bhagavad-gita.

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Prayers

Sripada Sridhara Svami has composed a nice verse :

"My dear Lord, I am a living entity perpetually disturbed by the conditions of material existence. I have been cracked into different pieces by the smashing wheel of material existence, and because of my various sinful activities while existing in this material world, I am burning in the blazing fire of material reaction. Somehow or other, my dear Lord, I have come to take shelter under Your lotus feet. Please accept me and give me protection."

Srila Narottama dasa Thakura also prays like this:

"My dear Lord, O son of Nanda Maharaja, associated with the daughter of Vrsabhanu, I have come to take shelter under Your lotus feet after suffering greatly in the material condition of life, and I pray that You please be merciful upon me. Please do not kick me away; I have no other shelter but You."

(from the Eighty-seventh Chapter of Krsna Book, "Prayers by the Personified Vedas."

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http://www.prabhupadaconnect.com/meditation11.html

om namo bhagavate vasudevaya
om namo bhagavate vasudevaya
om namo bhagavate vasudevaya

Srimad-Bhagavatam

Third Canto, Third Chapter

"The Lord's pastimes Out of Vrndavana."

7 - There in the house of the demon, all the princesses kidnapped by Narakasura at once became alert upon seeing the Lord, the friend of the distressed. They looked upon Him with eagerness, joy and shyness and offered to be His wives.

PURPORT - Narakasura kidnapped many daughters of great kings and kept them imprisoned in his palace. But when he was killed by the Lord and the Lord entered the house of the demon, all the princesses were enlivened with joy and offered to become His wives because the Lord is the only friend of the distressed. Unless the Lord accepted them, there would be no chance of their being married because the demon kidnapped them from their fathers' custody and therefore no one would agree to marry them. According to Vedic society, girls are transferred from the custody of the father to the custody of the husband. Since these princesses had already been taken away from the custody of their fathers, it would have been difficult for them to have any husband other than the Lord Himself.

8 - All those princesses were lodged in different apartments, and the Lord simultaneously assumed different bodily expansions exactly matching each and every princess. He accepted their hands in perfect rituals by His internal potency.

PURPORT - In the Brahma-samhita (5.33) the Lord is described as follows in regard to His innumerable plenary expansions:

advaitam acyutam anadim ananta-rupam / adyam purana-purusam nava-yauvanam ca

vedesu durlabham adurlabham atma-bhaktau / govindam adi-purusam tam aham bhajami

"The Lord, Govinda, whom I worship, is the original Personality of Godhead. He is nondifferent from His innumerable plenary expansions, who are all infallible, original and unlimited and who have eternal forms. Although He is primeval, the oldest personality, He is always fresh and young." By His internal potency the Lord can expand Himself into various personalities of svayam-prakasa and again into prabhava and vaibhava forms, and all of them are nondifferent from one another. The forms into which the Lord expanded to marry the princesses in different apartments were all slightly different just to match each and every one of them. They are called vaibhava-vilasa forms of the Lord and are effected by His internal potency, yoga-maya.

9 - Just to expand Himself according to His transcendental features, the Lord begot in each and every one of them ten offspring with exactly His own qualities.

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Darshan :

http://www.prabhupadaconnect.com/Deities26.html

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"Simply hearing submissively

will free one's heart

from all the faults of ignorance,

and thus one will achieve deep love for Krsna.

This is the path of peace."

(CC, Adi 1.107)

Sri Caitanya-caritamrta

Madya

Chapter 6

The Liberation of Sarvabhauma Bhattacarya

96 - Upon hearing this, Gopinatha Acarya became very unhappy. He said to the Bhattacarya, "You consider yourself the knower of all Vedic scriptures.

97 - "Srimad-Bhagavatam and the Mahabharata are the two most important Vedic scriptures, but you have paid no attention to their statements.

98 - "In Srimad-Bhagavatam and Mahabharata it is stated that the Lord appears directly, but you say that in this age there is no manifestation or incarnation of Lord Visnu.

99 - "In this Age of Kali there is no lila-avatara of the Supreme Personality of Godhead; therefore He is known as Triyuga. That is one of His holy names."

PURPORT - A lila-avatara is an incarnation of the Lord who performs a variety of activities without making any special endeavor. He always has one pastime after another, all full of transcendental pleasure, and these pastimes are fully controlled by the Supreme Person. The Supreme Person is totally independent of all others in these pastimes. While teaching Sanatana Gosvami (Cc. Madhya 20.296-298), Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu pointed out that one cannot count the number of lila-avataras:

lilavatara krsnera na yaya ganana / pradhana kariya kahi dig-darasana

"However," the Lord told Sanatana, "I shall explain the chief lila-avataras."

matsya, kurma, raghunatha, nrsimha, vamana varahadi----lekha yanra na yaya ganana

Thus the Lord's incarnations were enumerated, including Matsya, the fish incarnation; Kurma, the tortoise; Lord Ramacandra; Nrsimhadeva; Vamanadeva; and Varaha, the boar incarnation. Thus there are innumerable lila-avataras, and all of these exhibit wonderful pastimes. Lord Varaha, the boar incarnation, lifted the entire planet earth from the depths of the Garbhodaka Ocean. The tortoise incarnation, Lord Kurma, became a pivot for the emulsification of the whole sea, and Lord Nrsimhadeva appeared as half-man, half-lion. These are some of the wonderful and uncommon features of lila-avataras.

In his book Laghu-bhagavatamrta, Srila Rupa Gosvami has enumerated the following twenty-five lila-avataras: Catuh-sana, Narada, Varaha, Matsya, Yajna, Nara-Narayana, Kapila, Dattatreya, Hayasirsa (Hayagriva), Hamsa, Prsnigarbha, Rsabha, Prthu, Nrsimha, Kurma, Dhanvantari, Mohini, Vamana, Parasurama, Raghavendra, Vyasa, Balarama, Krsna, Buddha and Kalki.

Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu is not mentioned as a lila-avatara because He is an incarnation in disguise (channa-avatara). In this Age of Kali there are no lila-avataras, but there is an incarnation of the Lord manifested in the body of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu. This has been explained in Srimad-Bhagavatam.

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Srimati Tulasi Devi

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Krsna, the Supreme Personality of Godhead

(aka : "Krsna Book")

the Eighty-ninth Chapter of Krsna,

"The Superexcellent Power of Krsna."

...In the Bhagavad-gita it is confirmed by the Lord that there is no truth superior to Krsna. Sukadeva Gosvami also, in order to draw attention to the fact that among all visnu-tattva forms, Lord Krsna is one hundred percent the Supreme Personality of Godhead, narrated the story of an incident which took place when Lord Krsna was present.

Once upon a time, a brahmana's wife gave birth to a child. Unfortunately, however, just after being born and touching the ground, the child immediately died. The brahmana father took the dead child and went directly to Dvaraka to the palace of the King. The brahmana was very upset because of the untimely death of the child in the presence of his young father and mother. Thus his mind became very disturbed. Formerly, when there were responsible kings, up to the time of Dvapara-yuga, when Lord Krsna was present, the king was liable to be blamed for the untimely death of a child in the presence of his parents. Similarly, such responsibility was there during the time of Lord Ramacandra. As we have explained in the First Canto of Srimad-Bhagavatam, the king was so responsible for the comforts of the citizens that he was to see that there was not even excessive heat or cold. Although there was no fault on the part of the King, the brahmana whose child had died immediately went to the palace door and began to accuse the King as follows.

"The present King, Ugrasena, is envious of the brahmanas!" The exact word used in this connection is brahma-dvisah. One who is envious of the Vedas or one who is envious of a qualified brahmana or the brahmana caste is called brahma-dvit. So the King was accused of being brahma-dvit. He was also accused of being satha-dhi, falsely intelligent. The executive head of a state must be very intelligent to see to the comforts of the citizens, but, according to the brahmana the King was not at all intelligent, although he was occupying the royal throne. Therefore he also called him lubdha, which means greedy. In other words, a king or an executive head of state should not occupy the exalted post of presidency or kingship if he is greedy and self-interested. But it is natural that an executive head becomes self-interested when he is attached to material enjoyment. Therefore, another word used here is visayatmanah.

The brahmana also accused the King of being ksatra-bandhu, which refers to a person born in the family of ksatriyas or the royal order who is without the qualifications of a royal personality. A king should protect brahminical culture and should be very alert to the welfare of his citizens; he should not be greedy due to attachment to material enjoyment. If a person with no qualifications represents himself as a ksatriya of the royal order, he is not called a ksatriya, but a ksatra-bandhu. Similarly, if a person is born of a brahmana father but has no brahminical qualification, he is called brahma-bandhu or dvija-bandhu. This means that a brahmana or a ksatriya is not accepted simply by birth. One has to qualify himself for the particular position; only then is he accepted as a brahmana or a ksatriya.

Thus the brahmana accused the King that his newly born baby was dead due to the disqualifications of the King. The brahmana took it most unnaturally, and therefore he held the King to be responsible. We also find in Vedic history that if a ksatriya king was irresponsible, sometimes a consulting board of brahmanas maintained by the monarchy would dethrone him. Considering all these points, it appears that the post of monarch in the Vedic civilization is a very responsible one.

The brahmana therefore said, "No one should offer respects or worship to a king whose only business is envy. Such a king spends his time either hunting and killing animals in the forest or killing citizens for criminal acts. He has no self-control and possesses bad character. If such a king is worshiped or honored by the citizens, the citizens will never be happy. They will always remain poor, full of anxieties and aggrievement, and always unhappy." Although in modern politics the post of monarch is abolished, the president is not held responsible for the comforts of the citizens. In this age of Kali, the executive head of a state somehow or other gets votes and is elected to an exalted post, but the condition of the citizens continues to be full of anxiety, distress, unhappiness, and dissatisfaction.

The brahmana's second child was also born dead, and the third also. He had nine children, and each of them was born dead, and each time he came to the gate of the palace to accuse the King. When the brahmana came to accuse the King of Dvaraka for the ninth time, Arjuna happened to be present with Krsna. On hearing that a brahmana was accusing the King of not properly protecting him, Arjuna became inquisitive and approached the brahmana. He said, "My dear brahmana, why do you say that there are no proper ksatriyas to protect the citizens of your country? Is there not even someone who can pretend to be a ksatriya, who can carry a bow and arrow at least to make a show of protection? Do you think that all the royal personalities in this country simply engage in performing sacrifices with the brahmanas but have no chivalrous power?" Thus Arjuna indicated that ksatriyas should not sit back comfortably and engage only in performing Vedic rituals. Rather, they must be very chivalrous in protecting the citizens. Brahmanas, being engaged in spiritual activities, are not expected to do anything which requires physical endeavor. Therefore, they need to be protected by the ksatriyas so that they will not be disturbed in the execution of their higher occupational duties....

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Srila Prabhupada Lecture

"The All Pure and Powerful"

Srimad-Bhagavatam 7.9.32
Mayapur, March 10, 1976

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"Without much bother, if one simply keeps a picture of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu at home and chants Hare Krsna, then one will realize God. Anyone can adopt this simple method. There is no expenditure, there is no tax, nor is there any need to build a very big church or temple. Anyone, anywhere, can sit down on the road or beneath a tree and chant the Hare Krsna mantra and worship God. Therefore it is a great opportunity."

(Srila Prabhupada teaches us in Science of Self-Realization, p.134

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Prayer

" Simply our prayer should be, My dear Krishna, please remind me to always chant Your Holy Name, please do not put me into forgetfulness. You are sitting within me as Supersoul, so you can put me into forgetfulness or into remembering You. So please do not put me into forgetfulness. Please always remind me to chant, even You send me into the hell, it doesn't matter, just so long as I can always chant Hare Krishna."

~Srila Prabhupada ~

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jaya sri-krsna-caitanya prabhu-nityananda
sri-advaita gadadhara srivasadi-gaura-bhakta-vrnda

Hare Krsna Hare Krsna Krsna Krsna Hare Hare

Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare

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Meaning of the Hare Krsna Maha Mantra

http://www.prabhupadaconnect.com/HareKrsna.html

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"In the Nrsimha Purana, Lord Nrsimhadeva says:

'Anyone who prays unto Me

and takes shelter from Me becomes my ward,

and I protect him always from all sorts of calamaties.' "

(from Nectar of Devotion, Chapter 11)

namas te narasirmhaya prahladahlada-dayine

hiranyakasipor avksah sila-tanka-nakhalaye

I offer my obeisances to Lord Narasimha, who gives joy to

Prahlada Maharaja and whose nails are like chisels on the

stonelike chest of the demon Hiranyakasipu.

ito nrsimhah parato nrsimho yato yato yami tato nrsimhah

bahir nrsimho hrdaye nrsimho nrsimham adim saranam prapadye

Lord Nrsimha is here and also there. Wherever I go Lord

Nrsimha is there. He is in the heart and is outside as well. I

surrender to Lord Nrsimha , the origin of all things and the

supreme refuge.

tava kara-kamala-vare nakham adbuta-srngam

dalita-hiranyakasipu-tanu-bhrgam

kesava dhrta-narahari-rupa jaya jagadisa hare

O Kesava! O Lord of the universe! O Lord Hari, who have

assumed the form of half-man half-lion! All glories to you!

Just as one can easily crush a wasp between one's fingernails,

so in the same way the body of the wasplike demon

Hiranyakasipu has been ripped apart by the wonderful pointed

nails on Your beautiful lotus hand.

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