## How to Recognise True Saints? / Saving the Brajvasis from the Forest Fire / Liberation of Pralambasur

Satsang of Pujya Shri Hit Premanand Govind Sharan Ji Maharaj. To hear the full discourse, watch the video above.

Full Discourse

Vrindavaneshwari, your lotus feet are full of the nectar of love's sweetness.. Millions of bows and millions of salutations to the beloved, life-giving, dear Yugal Sarkar, Shri Priya-Pritam, who are the darlings of Shri Vrindavan Dham, to all the Sakhi-vrind, to the birds, deer, animals, and creatures, to the trees and creepers, to the Yamuna, to the queen of sweetness, the dust-queen, and to the whole family of Brajvasis. Shri Shyama-Shyam are very merciful. The impressions of our past-life tendencies influence our nature, actions and thoughts in this life.

Whatever habits we had in past lives make their impact in this life. We have received this human body in order to change that impact. The consequences of past-life impressions are endured by animals; they cannot erase them. But in the human body there is the capacity to erase them. That we have a fondness for worldly enjoyments in our minds is no surprise; it is present in all beings. From the ant up to Brahma, the effort to erase this is called sadhana. Those who have received the path of sadhana through the unprompted mercy of the Lord can erase it.

If you wish to erase it. But if, instead of erasing it, you enjoy worldly pleasures and let the desire grow, that will bring a downfall. It will again create new impressions that will make you mad for enjoyments. So I pray that if the Lord has given you time for bhajan and has given you the path of the Supreme, then try that you do not make such a mistake that your life gets trapped in worldly entanglement, trapped in Maya. Make the effort. The Lord gives the capacity; our effort is ours. The Lord's victory is certain. But even if we make the effort on a wrong path, the Lord, the saints, the Sadguru, the scriptures and the heart inspire us that you are wrong.

Correct yourself. If you correct yourself, your path of the Supreme will be illuminated. If you have come to Vrindavan just with a mood of entertainment, if you are pretending to be a traveller on the path of the Supreme with a mood of entertainment, then you will not be able to spoil anyone. You yourself will be destroyed. No one here can spoil another. If we do not wish to be spoiled, we ourselves destroy ourselves. Destruction means the intellect falls. When we do not try to restrain ourselves from the faults of desire and so on, but instead try to enjoy them, the intellect becomes corrupt.

From desire arises anger; from anger arises delusion of memory; from delusion of memory comes loss of intellect; from loss of intellect a person is utterly destroyed.

So be careful. By the Lord's grace you are getting satsang every day. Understand that your welfare will happen. Thank the Lord that there is still someone to explain to you. Otherwise, no one will explain. Later a time will come when who will explain to whom? Everyone, moving freely, will consider it happiness to wander the world, submitting to the control of mind and senses. Pay attention: everyone, moving freely, will consider it happiness to indulge the objects of the senses along with the mind and senses.

Who will explain? This suffering is the only new thing. Only suffering will be found. Peace and supreme bliss come from taking refuge at the lotus feet of the Lord and doing much bhajan and effort. If we make no mistake, the Lord will grant such a state from which no mistake happens at all. No desire remains, no craving remains. Only the hunger for bhajan keeps increasing, day and night. The Lord keeps stealing the heart by showing sweet, sweet glimpses. Go forward, go forward. The place where you are standing now is not right. Here, the rush of Maya will drive you away. So move ahead. Create such a state that you see the smile of Priyaji, the smile of Lalji.

What will you get from the smiles of these mortal bodies? What will you get? Ah, the opportunity to attain Sachchidananda has come. Do not get caught up in the affection of these bodies. No one is yours. If you get trapped, it will be hard to get out again.

Do not peck at the grain of sense-objects, O mind; by pecking at it you gain only a little pleasure. Then the noose falls in such a way that there is no sorrow equal to it. A huge web of illusion and entanglement spreads, and the soul is trapped in great calamity. So be careful. Accept this matter now. When Maya attracts, no calamity appears in front of you; only happiness appears. And when the Gurujans speak, it feels bad, because they are calling this happiness suffering.

But when you get trapped, then you understand. This is such a swamp. Once a person jumps in, only the Lord can pull them out; no one else will be able to get them out. This swamp of Maya, worldly entanglement and enjoyment is such that whoever jumped in once has not been able to come out to this day. Only if the Lord pulls them out can they come out. Be careful.

Shripad Prabodhanand Ji is saying: if you wish to have love for Priyaji's feet and to attain the Lord, then..

Who can name the glory of Vrindavan.. The Radha-pad yoga.. The unfathomable ocean of love.. If you wish to attain the extraordinary feeling of the feet of Shri Radha..

then do not let your ears hear anything other than discussion of Priyaji. Do not speak with your tongue anything other than discussion of the Lord; become silent. Look very little with your eyes. When you are listening to satsang, either look at the face of the speaker, or lower your eyes and keep listening with your ears open. If the mind runs away, keep the mala aside and keep chanting the naam in between. The recitation of the Vani Ji is going on. Many times I have prayed and said that you should have a bag, and many times I have said that in it you must have these three Vanis: Shrimad Chaurasi Ji, Shrimad Sudhanidhi, and Shrimad Sevak Vani. Charnamrit and Raj (sacred dust) must be there too, at all times.

Now the one purpose of our life has become only this: that your welfare happens. Our bhajan, our sadhana, our life, our everything is for you. As much as we love you, no one else will love you.

Whoever loves you does so because of your body, your qualities, or your wealth. The karma you have done, good and bad, you will certainly have to bear the consequences of. It is like a blind person about to fall into a well: if we see it, we will not let him fall. We will stand in front of him and hold him back. "Hey brother, stop!" But nobody listens. Such is the pull of maya. The intellect changes so much that it seems this person is harming us. We were going to enjoy pleasures, and this person has obstructed our happiness.

The lotus feet of Shri Kishori Ji are an ocean of boundless love. If you want to attain the extraordinary wealth of their bhaav, then correct three things. With the tongue: if you are not speaking of Priya-Pritam, then keep silent and do naam jap. With the ears: if you are not listening to talk of Bhagavan, keep your distance. Don't talk idly, and don't listen to worldly or dirty talk. The eyes must be guarded very carefully, very carefully. All my life I have kept them guarded like this, and so I have lived. Sometimes, when someone speaks to me, and now that I have been given seva, I lift my eyes and look, whether I am in solitude or someone has something to say.

Otherwise, no matter. I have kept no concern with anyone. Pranam to all, namaskar to all. My concern is my own path. After doing seva, the lock was put on from outside, then seva again, then many days without food. Inside the lock, the mind, intellect and chitta must be applied to Priya-Pritam. Now I have left myself in the hands of the Lord. Whatever work happens now, I understand my Lord is getting it done. Whoever it happens with, I understand it is happening with my Lord. I see my Lord. Yesterday I told someone: do not think that I see you.

I see my Lord. I pray to my Lord. I do the service of my Lord. I want to please my Lord, not a person, not a man or woman in a body. In that person, seeing my Lord, I say: "Swami, you are present in this form. I am your servant. Use me as you wish. Keep me as you wish. If you give your support, you can get out." Again and again it is said that through three things, sadhana can be destroyed and sadhana can progress. Keep the eyes, ears and tongue, these three, under control, and your sadhana will mature.

Stay silent. Why do you talk? Hear with the ears only as much as is needed. Put cotton plugs in your ears, packed tight, and inside, hear Radha Radha. Outside, have no concern with anyone. Through the tongue, ears and eyes, sadhana grows; through these three, sadhana falls. Now the most dangerous time has come. Young children of the new generation, with mobile phones: when wrong conduct and wrong talk are found in them, the cause is kusang, bad company. Outside, it is the bad company of people; in solitude, it is the bad company of the mobile. For young children, if you have the courage, look only at Bhagwatik talk, and otherwise shut the device off. When your mind wants to search for something wrong, switch it off completely and put it away. If you see wrong things, your eyes will be spoiled, your mind will be spoiled, and your body will become impure. As the manan is, so the conduct becomes.

If you are getting satsang by the grace of Bhagavan, is it rare for you? Two rare things were spoken of: sant samagam hari katha tulsi durlabh do samatma su durlabh ma sangst durlabh ho

Association with saints and the stories of Hari are rare, says Tulsi. A true self is rare, and the company of..

This is called rare, but for you satsang is easily available. Satsangis, yet the conduct of kusang remains. I cannot understand what satsang you hear, since you hear it every day. One satsang can bring about the attainment of Bhagavan, because a single satsang contains the complete material. Take any satsang: one satsang a day can bring about the attainment of Bhagavan, because in it are the words of mahapurushas.

Their words are experiential and come from realisation. If you accept them, your supreme welfare can be achieved. But how is one to accept them? This is not rabri or rasgulla, where someone says, "Brother, eat this." Even there, you yourself have to swallow it. The nectar-like, experiential words of mahapurushas are being searched out and made for you to hear. If nothing changes in you, then what more can be done? This itself is the power of Bhagavan's maya, very difficult to overcome. This is all that can be said. True saints who walk on the path of Bhagavan have one single purpose: that the welfare of the world be achieved. Let there be as much naam jap as possible, so that suffering is removed.

May everyone be healthy, may everyone's thoughts be pure, and may everyone attain the blissful Bhagavan. This is the cry of every true saint's heart. How can one recognise that these are true saints?

Pujyapad Udiya Baba Ji Maharaj, what is the sign of a true saint?

Pujya Baba: Mahatmas can only be recognised by a mahatma, or by someone who is an exclusive devotee of a mahatma. I will describe a few characteristics. First, a true saint never speaks ill of anyone. Second, whether someone does good to him or does harm to him, he has equal feeling toward both. Whether they harm him or do good, his feeling is the same; such a person is called a saint. Third, the sign of a true saint: on hearing the greatest criticism, no grief arises in his heart, and on receiving the greatest praise, honour, namaskar, glory, fame or victory, there is not even the slightest disturbance of joy in his heart. This joy falls under the category of vikar, disturbance. When faced with the harshest criticism, there is no sorrow, and when faced with the greatest praise, honour, namaskar and fame, there is no joy. Fourth, in whom no kind of asat chintan exists, one who is constantly immersed in contemplation of the goal of Paramatma.

The key point is that all the qualities described above will come on their own through this. Those are called saints who are absorbed only in contemplation of God. Pujya Pandit Gaya Prasad Ji Maharaj said: accept that your bhajan has ripened when, even for the greatest auspicious work, the mind does not get tempted. Leave aside inauspicious work. Even if the greatest anushthan or festival comes along, the mind should not be unsettled, or your bhajan will be lost. In continuous bhajan there is no greater auspicious work. Nothing is greater than bhajan.

shri Harivansh chandra shubh naam sab sukh sindhu prem ras dham jam ghati bisre nahi
The auspicious name of Shri Harivansh Chandra, the ocean of all happiness, the abode of the nectar of love, may it not be forgotten even for a moment.

Sevak Ji is saying: may it not be forgotten even for a jaam or a ghadi.

yah jo par sahaj swabhav shri Harivansh naam ras chav nav sudridh bhav taran ko
This natural disposition, the love for the nectar of Shri Harivansh's name, is a sturdy boat for crossing the ocean of worldly existence.

naam japat ai sab soh dev subuddhi kripa kar mohi koi sugun mala racho nitya sukanth jo pahro das jas barno Harivansh vilas
While chanting the naam, everything comes. O Lord, by your grace grant me such wisdom that I may always weave a garland of virtues and wear it on my sweet throat. Let this servant describe the glory of Harivansh's leela.

While chanting Shri Harivansh's naam, all of it will come to you: the complete knowledge of the supreme goal, and the full capacity for the supreme goal will awaken within you.

naam jap tai sab soi dev subuddhi kripa kar moh mujhe aisi subuddhi pradan karo ki main sadaiv naam ratu ek kshan ke liye bhi naam na chhodu aapke leela gun ka gayan chintan karun
Grant me such wisdom that I always recite the naam, never give up the naam even for a single moment, and sing and contemplate your leela and qualities.

The greatest sign of a mahatma is that no unreal thinking arises in any way. At all times, one remains focused on one's goal, contemplation of the Supreme.

The fifth point is the shloka:

manasya vachasyat karm duratma naam manaskam vachkam karmankam mahatum naam
One who keeps one thing in the mind, speaks another with the tongue, and acts in yet another way is called a duratma. The one who speaks what is in the mind, and whose conduct matches it, is called a mahatma.

mansam vachsam karmanam mahatum naam
Mahatma is the name for one whose speech, mind and action are the same.

Do sins get destroyed by the darshan of a mahatma? Yes. If sins are only averted by the darshan of a mahatma, that is an ordinary result.

The true fruit of a mahatma's darshan is giving up all wrong conduct, developing love for the Lord's naam, and becoming a mahatma oneself. Being a mahatma does not mean changing one's clothes; it means changing one's purpose. Inwardly, one takes on saintliness.

They say one should not go empty-handed to mahatmas. One should bring something. And they say one should take prasad from the hands of mahatmas. What is your view on this? Pujya Pad Baba Ji answers: when you go to mahatmas with anything at all, with feeling, the bond of served and servant is strengthened, and the scriptural command is followed.

The scripture's command is that if saints and gurus have nothing, place a tulsi leaf, a durvankur, or any single flower at their feet and offer pranam. The purpose of receiving prasad from their hands is this: mahatmas carry particles of bhajan. [clearing throat] When they touch you, your sins are destroyed and particles of bhajan enter you. So if they give you charanamrit or prasad, or in any way touch you, your welfare is assured. Therefore, take prasad from mahatmas by asking for it.

Offer fruit, flowers and the like at the feet of mahatmas. Just as darkness is certainly destroyed when the sun rises, so by the darshan of a true mahatma, the transformation of life is certain. If you follow their command, and if you demand comfort with contentment, it is hard to hold your ground.

When a brahm-attained mahatma, out of compassion, shares the knowledge he has experienced within, then unless you walk according to his words, your ego will be nourished. The knowledge that is experienced, the distinction between matter and consciousness and the knot of the heart, will not come to you.

Without the destruction of ego, there is no realisation of Brahm. On one side is Brahm-realisation, on the other a bride. If you are offered a bride, you will accept her. Brahm-realisation? No. Such is maya. On one side is a heap of money, on the other is attainment of Bhagwan. You will turn toward the heap of money. On one side is fame, praise and reputation, on the other is Shri Bhagwan. Like praise, maya has been created like this. It is no trifling matter.

Just as one who sits by fire loses the cold, so for one who serves mahatmas, the stiffness of inertia, which is like winter cold, does not set in. Only be surrendered with skill.

Look, a blacksmith cuts iron to make a weapon. But at that stage it is not fit for striking. Then he puts it in the fire. Then he shapes its edge with the hammer. Even then it will not cut. Then it is filed with a rasp until it becomes a fine, sharp blade, and only then does it cut. So becoming a traveller on the path of the supreme goal is like cutting iron and giving it shape. And the blows of the guru's words are like giving it an edge. Then, through discernment, it is like putting a polish on it. Now that the polish of discernment has been applied, the tree of the world is cut down with one blow. We are explaining each point to you in such detail for this reason.

Maya is the opponent. It will drag you away. By going to a mahatma and bowing to him, sins are destroyed. But by following his words, the tendency to sin is destroyed. One advances on the path to attaining Bhagwan. The glory of mahatmas surpasses that of the Ganga, the wish-fulfilling tree and the moon.

ganga ppam shash tapam dainyam kalpatrush tatha ppam tapam tatha dainyam harti sadhu samagma
The Ganga removes sin, the moon removes heat, and the wish-fulfilling tree removes poverty. But the company of a sadhu removes sin, heat and poverty alike.

The Ganga destroys sin. The moon destroys heat. The wish-fulfilling tree destroys poverty. But if one meets a mahatma who is devoted to Bhagwan, then sin, heat and poverty are all removed together.

If you walk according to his command, you become an emperor. An emperor without a crown. The happiness of one who wants nothing is something even an emperor does not want.

miti chinta miti manva beparwah
Worry is gone, the mind is carefree.

jinko kachu na chahiye wo shahan ke shah bhagwan
Those who want nothing are kings of kings. Bhagwan

When Bhagwan shows his grace, he gives the company of a true mahatma. And when a true sadguru shows his grace, he brings about the attainment of Bhagwan.

One should not pay attention to the outward behaviour of mahatmas. Whatever they do, as conveyed through their words, one should accept.

Remaining pranams.

What do they say? How do they walk?

What are his practices? Some of his practices are beyond you. Accept the conduct that matches his teaching. Do not follow everything he does in full.

Take Adi Guru Bhagavan Shankaracharya Ji. His disciples walked behind him, and to test them, he put out fish. Many of them ate the fish. Only four remained standing. The others were left behind. The disciples saw that Shankaracharya was truly Shankar himself, Shankaram Shankaracharyam. When he went ahead, glass was being boiled, and he drank the boiling molten glass poured into a coconut shell.

Then all the disciples stood before him. He asked those who had eaten the fish, "Why did you eat the fish?" They said, "Gurudev, you drank the melted glass. Why did you drink it? Why would we not drink it? We will follow you." Then he asked those who had not drunk, "Why did you not drink? Why did you not eat the fish?" They said, "Bhagavan, it was not your command. If you had commanded us, we would have obeyed at once. You did not command us, so we did not eat the fish. Command us now, whatever you wish." He was pleased.

Yes, we should not imitate every conduct of our elders. We should do only what they command for us. We should not give attention to the outward actions of great souls. We should listen to their words. What are they saying? We should accept whatever conduct their words point to.

The one who is devoted to the saints without exception will be devoted to God without exception. The one who is devoted without exception will attain God. What are the qualities of a sadhak who attains God?

Nishkinchan indriya daman rama raman ek tar, Tulsi aise sant jan birle ya sansar.
Such saints are rare in this world: free of possessions, controlling the senses, absorbed in the Lord's remembrance, single-minded.

Those who have brought their senses under their control attain God. Nishkinchan indriya daman rama raman ek tar, Tulsi aise sant jan birle ya sansar. They say that great benefit comes from serving the saints. Yes, because their bodies contain such particles that they create distaste for worldly pleasures. It comes firmly from within you: "I do not want any worldly pleasure. I want only the direct longing for God." "I want to be jitendriya, I want to be one who has conquered the mind. I do not want the pleasures of the world."

This treasure has been transferred into his heart. The fruit of serving the saints is that their pure particles come out and burn away the sinful particles from the hearts of those who stay near them, serve them, and obey their command. Therefore, the company of great souls brings all auspiciousness.

Once I went to a learned old man's house to receive alms. Pujyapad Baba was there. After I had taken the alms and came out, he was sitting quietly outside the house. I said, "Pandit Ji, you have grown old. You have sons and daughters, and now you have grandsons too. Go and sit alone on the bank of the Ganga and do bhajan. This is the highest auspiciousness of life."

The Pandit Ji replied, "Swami Ji, one who never looks at another's wife with lust, never stretches out his hand to take another's wealth, and does not slander others, and who constantly chants naam, has no need to go to the bank of the Ganga. He is pure himself and has the power to purify everyone."

Baba said, "I asked you this question only to hear this. You are blessed, because you were sitting quietly at the door contemplating the auspicious Lord." He stated three things: one who has renounced lust for another's wife, renounced another's wealth, and renounced slander, and who chants naam, has no need to run anywhere. He will attain God while sitting at home. Three things: no lust for another's wife, no greed for another's wealth, no slander.

Goswami Tulsidas Ji also said:

Satya vachan adhinta, partiya maat saman. Itne pe hari na mile, Tulsidas satya vachan.
Truthful speech, submission to God, and seeing other women as one's mother. Even with these, Hari may not be found, Tulsidas says, but truthful speech [is essential].

The name of the Lord, the form of the Lord, the leela of the Lord, and the qualities of the Lord are true. When there is surrender to the Lord and a pure attitude toward mothers and sisters, the boat has crossed over. Dvaidha, vaidha, bhram chakra, kanak cha. These two create illusion, and they are very capable of pulling one away from God. One is through lust, and the other is through greed.

Lobh pas jag na bandhaya, so nar tum saman Raghurayaa.

Kanchan aur kamini, dvaidha vaidha bhram chakra. Kasu kanake cha tasu te virakto.

Whoever has never cast a sinful glance at another's wife, has never touched another's wealth, and has never destroyed his brahmacharya, and who constantly contemplates the Lord, and has no intention of taking another's wealth, is truly Narayan in human form. Vidhata has thrown all of maya into three things: kamini, kanchan, and keerti. Whoever escapes from these is verily the Lord.

Gyan yog param tu pad prakshalitam jalam, bhav shuddham gyanam ta teertha muni pango.
The water with which the feet of a supreme knower are washed, that water is holy, purified by pure bhava. It is the tirtha of the sages.

Victory over gold, victory over women, victory over fame. If one drinks the charanamrit of such a mahatma's feet, the purity of all the tirths of the world will enter his heart.

Yadyat pani bhyam yadyat pashyati chakshusa, sthavaranam jangamam va kim punah pamara.
Whatever is touched by the hands, whatever is seen by the eyes, even the stationary and moving beings, what to say of the lowly. [Such a soul frees them all.]

If such a mahatma touches with his hands, or looks with his eyes, anyone at all is freed from the bondage of maya.

Yadyat sprishati pabhyam yadyat pashyati chakshusa.
Whatever is touched by the hands, whatever is seen by the eyes.

If he looks with the eyes or touches with the body, that person becomes sinless and gains the capacity for attaining God.

When you meet a saint's company, you should not look at these four things. What caste is this saint from? What is his age? Is he educated or not? Does he not show any special radiance? Form, colour, age, and education are all created by maya. Ashtavakra Ji was bent in eight places, yet he became the guru of Janak Ji. A mahatma can be recognised only a little by these things.

Form, colour, age, education and literacy do not decide the matter. In childhood, Ashtavakra was a child, and in old age, Maharaj Janak was the elder who was wise in knowledge. Janak Ji's guru was Ashtavakra Ji.

What level of realisation is a great soul's experience of Bhagwan? It cannot be seen from outside. Even without literacy, one can be beyond the letters. Such a person is established in Bhagwan. How can He be known?

Worldly people look on sadhus as beggars and madmen, because they renounce the pleasures that the worldly regard as everything. So they think, "He is mad, he is wasting his whole life."

Those who regard the pleasures as everything, the saints see as a dream. They think of them as mad. "He is mad, he wasted his whole life in enjoyments and never once chanted the naam of Bhagwan with love."

True mahatmas are the very form of bliss. From seeing them there is bliss, from speaking with them there is bliss. Bhartrihari Ji asked Lord Shankar for only this: "Let me never receive honour, and let alms not come to me through honour. Why? Because honour destroys bliss. Honour strengthens the sense of being the body. A person who identifies with the body can enjoy the pleasures of the senses."

The Paramatma is not bliss. That is why we have been given the company of saints, so that we keep striving to immerse our lives in the bliss of Bhagwan. By the grace of Shri Bhagwan, we will certainly be established in Bhagavadananda.

Let us come to Sachchidanand Bhagwan Shri Krishna Chandra, who revived his friends, the cowherd boys, the calves and the cows with his nectar-like gaze. After they had drunk the poisoned water of Kaliya's pool and died, Bhagwan, with the intention of purifying Kaliya's pool, leapt in. He churned the water with his vast arms. Kaliya, who hears with his eyes, saw someone fearlessly playing in his pool, insulting him.

At once he bound Him in his coils, and many times struck the soft body of the Lord with his hoods. He kept spitting out poison, but Bhagwan is Sachchidanand. For those natural poisons there is no entry at all. Poison strikes the five-element body, not the Sachchidanand. Just as no Varuna, Agni, Vayu, Brahmastra or any such weapon can have any effect on the Atma, so the Atma-tattva of Shri Krishna, which is of the form of Sachchidanand, was not affected at all by the snake's binding or its poison. Bhagwan expanded His body, and the veins and nerves of the snake began to snap. It let go and stood some distance away.

Then it attacked Bhagwan with force. Bhagwan played for a while. After that, He gave one slap and climbed onto its hoods. The devas and gandharvas saw that Bhagwan wanted to dance. Wondrous instruments began to play. Bhagwan performed the tandava. Whichever hood did not bow, He crushed with the blow of His heel. Fountains of blood began to spurt out. At the feet of Shri Bhagwan, those fountains of blood looked as if someone had worshipped the feet of Shri Bhagwan with red flowers. Bhagwan crushed Kaliya.

Then, when Kaliya saw that his death was certain, he called out to Bhagwan Narayan.

"O Narayan, O Lord of infinite compassion and power, be merciful to us." He did not realise that it was Narayan Himself who was standing on him. The wives of the nagas folded their hands, bowed to Bhagwan and said, "Prabhu, forgive his offence." He is certainly an offender, for if he were not an offender, he would not have been born in a serpent's form. Nath, he has committed an offence. Please forgive him. O merciful Prabhu, Namo Anantaya Sukshmaya Kutasthaya Vipashchite, Nanavadanurodhaya Vacho Vacakasaktaye, Pramana Mulaya Kavaye Shastra Yoni Pravartakaya, Nivrtta Nigamaya namo namah namah. Krishnaya Ramaya Vasudeva Sutaya cha, Pradyumnaya Aniruddhaya Satvataya namah. Namo Gunapradipaya Guhyamanaya cha..

Salutations to the infinite, the subtle, the unchanging, the all-knowing; to the one whose argument rests on many views and who gives power to words and their speakers; to the root of all proofs, the seer, the source of scripture's guidance and of the Vedas' turning towards renunciation. Salutations, salutations to Krishna, to Rama, to Vasudeva's son, to Pradyumna, to Aniruddha, to the Satvata. Salutations to the lamp of the qualities, to the one hidden in the heart..

O Prabhu, you are the one who establishes all proofs, such as direct perception, inference and the rest.

Who can establish you? Just as yesterday a science student, a science student, said: "Although we have some feeling, our scientific test demands proof. If it does not stand up to proof, we do not accept it. So you can give proof that God exists." So here, what is being said is that you are the proof of all proofs, direct perception, inference and so on. Who can give proof of you? Even so, how do we believe that God exists? [nasal voice] The answer is what Bhagwan inspired at that time. Look, everyone agrees that you are. Tell the truth: this structure, the body, do you accept it as your own form? Do you accept it as yourself, as "I"? But when the one inside departs, why don't you accept it? Then why do you burn it? You were not acquainted with the one inside, yet you destroy the one outside. When they say, "He has gone," who has gone? You are there, but you are not seen.

To this day no instrument has been made. Among all the great scientists in the world, no one can X-ray the mind and intellect. This is the subtle body. Then there is the causal body. The one who illuminates all three bodies is you. You have not seen yourself. How will you come to know Bhagwan? You are a part of Bhagwan. You have seen yourself, yet you believe that you exist, but you do not believe that your Prabhu exists. Consider this: there is ghee in milk. You cannot make ghee from the whole milk in one go, but there is a process for it. Do the process and the ghee will come out. There is redness in henna. You cannot show a single drop of redness throughout the whole tree, but there is a process. Do the process, and the redness will appear in your hand. In the same way, the Paramatma exists. Do sadhana, and it will come into your experience. This is not a matter of proof. Here, in the Shrimad Bhagavatam, it is said: O Prabhu, you are the one who establishes all proofs, direct perception, inference and the rest.

Then who can certify you? So we simply bow to you. Your knowledge is self-established. You are breathing all this air, aren't you? [sound made through the nose] It is visible. Inference is known from its visible effects. When some object hanging from a thread starts swinging, people say the air is moving it. Without that, how would we know the air exists? Air exists, right? And you accept that everyone is alive because of it. Likewise, you are moving and swaying only because of the Supreme Lord. Science reaches only up to prakriti (nature), and kriti means creation. The one who created prakriti is the Supreme Lord. If there is a photograph, there must be someone who took it. This vast picture of sky, earth, water, fire, sun, moon, wind, stars, the animate and the inanimate, men and women, the whole moving and unmoving world: someone must have made it. He alone is the one. He is the father of all, the mother of all, everything. He alone is the Lord. How will you know Him? Go to the refuge of the saints and do sadhana, and then you will know. You will know Him the way that ghee is removed from milk through a process. In this way you can know the Supreme Lord through a process, through sadhana. In the way you are arguing now, you cannot know Him.

People say, "Science does not accept what is not seen." Look at how many things you accept without seeing them. Have you seen oxygen? Do you know what it looks like: its color, whether it is fair or dark, thick or thin, tall or short? Yet you accept that oxygen exists. There are so many things in nature that exist only because we believe in them. Our life is like this. The Supreme Lord seated within us is our life, our breath. How will you know Him? Do sadhana. The scripture itself says that the proofs of perception and inference, and everything that establishes them, are established by you. So who will establish you?

You are self-established. How can the Supreme Lord be known? When the mind is fixed on the Supreme Lord, what is the method for that? Remove the mind from everything and accept the path of renunciation (nivritti marg) that Gurudev revealed as the form of the Supreme Lord. In other words, give up everything from within, and the contemplation of the Supreme Lord alone will be experienced right now. O pure, Sattvamaya Vasudeva, son of Vasudeva, who appeared as Sankarshana, Pradyumna, and Aniruddha in the form of the four-fold Vyuha to give happiness to devotees, O Shri Krishna, we bow to You. You are not within the grasp of the mind (antahkaran) and its modifications.

Through the subtle body too, because You are its illuminator. You illuminate the mind. The mind cannot know You. When the mind becomes pure, a sign of God begins to come. You are the witness of the mind. We bow to You. This is the three-guna nature that has manifested from primordial prakriti. You play in primordial prakriti. These gross, subtle, and causal worlds are established by You. So the Supreme Lord cannot be known through them. The Imperishable can be known only through the Imperishable, through His own form.

One can know the Self by the Self. It is a very pure path, and it requires great purity of the mind. After negating the entire world-illusion, what remains is your true nature. O primal deity of the universe, witness, because of ignorance, the illusion of truth has arisen. Therefore no one is realizing their own nature, and so You are not being directly realized. Who is seated there? In their own nature. Everyone is seated in the body. The defects and feelings of the body alone are there. Although, O Lord, in You there is no sense of doership, so no action can bind You, because You are inactive.

Still, by accepting the beginningless power, through the qualities of prakriti You perform the leela of the creation, sustenance, and dissolution of this universe. Your leela is infallible. You are true in resolve. Therefore You awaken the hidden natures, in the form of the impressions of living beings, by Your glance. In the three worlds there are three kinds of beings: those predominantly in sattva, calm; those predominantly in rajas, restless; and those predominantly in tamas, dull. All of them are the forms of Your leela. Yet the calm ones, predominant in sattva, are especially dear to You. Your incarnations and leelas are for the protection of saints, the protection and expansion of dharma.

Lord, one should at least once forgive the offence of one's servant. This serpent is foolish. He does not recognize You, so please forgive him. Lord, now show mercy. No, this Kaliya is about to die. He will die. Since ancient times, sadhus have shown mercy to us women. So have mercy: give us our husband, the very life of us. We are Your maidservants. Give us Your command. What service should we perform for You? One who follows Your command with faith is freed from all fears. Parikshit, the serpent wives praised such a Lord.

By the blows of the Lord's lotus feet, the hoods of the black serpent were shattered. He had become unconscious. When the serpent wives offered praise, the Lord released him. Now slowly the black serpent regained strength and consciousness. With great difficulty he took a breath, opened his eyes, and looked. Now he feels that this is verily the Lord Himself. With great humility he folded his hands and said, "Look, what Kaliya is saying is true." This transformation is brought about through bhajan. Kaliya said, "Do not be angry, Maharaj. We, by birth, have a wicked and tamasic nature.

If someone holds enmity with us, we keep that enmity in our nature for many years, and then we surely take revenge. For many years your image will remain in his mind, and when you fall into his trap, he will take his revenge. And, O Lord, this nature was created by You. This is what must be changed. Or, the supreme natural state of drowning in the nectar of the naam of Shri Harivansh. If our contemplation of God continues at all times, the nature created by maya will change. Lord, giving up one's nature is very difficult. One's own nature is very hard to give up. The nature that has been formed, its cause is the body."

If this gets transformed, then the effect of bhajan has taken place. Heroism, strength, the womb, the forms that arise from seed: all of this happens according to one's nature.

Lord, of all the creatures in creation, we serpents are born with a very angry nature. Master, we are all being deluded in the cycle of your maya. Then how can we give up this maya, which is so hard to renounce, through our own effort? You are all-knowing, the master of the entire world. You are the master of our nature too. You are the master of maya. Now I have come to know who you are. Lord, whether you forgive me or punish me, I see your grace in both.

Hearing Kaliya Naag's words, Lord Shri Krishna, in his human-like leela, said: "Kaliya, you must not stay here in Vrindavan any longer. This is our leela-bhoomi. Because of your presence, all the water is being polluted. Take your wives, sons and all your family and leave this place. Let the cows and humans use the Yamuna's water. Whoever hears this word of yours and mine will never fear serpents. Whoever hears the account of Kaliya's subjugation, the story of Kali Dah, and the Lord's words will have no fear of serpents."

The Lord gives this command: "I have performed my leela in this Kali Dah. So whoever bathes in the Kali Dah, offers tarpan to the ancestors, and observes a fast will be freed from all sins. Now the Yamuna has moved away and flows over there. Earlier, the Yamuna used to flow from right here. I know that out of fear of Garuda you left Ramanak Island and came to settle here. Garuda cannot come here because of Sobhari Ji's curse. Now my footprints have been inscribed on your body, so you no longer have any protection from Garuda. Each and every leela of Lord Shri Krishna is wondrous."

Receiving such a command, Kaliya Naag and his wives worshipped the Lord with great joy. With divine garments, flower garlands, jewels, priceless ornaments, divine fragrance, sandalwood, and garlands of excellent lotuses, Kali Naag worshipped Shri Krishna, the master of the world, whose banner bears Garuda. Then, with great love and joy, he circumambulated the Lord, prostrated fully before him, and took his leave. Along with his wives, sons, and kinsmen, Kali Naag set out for Ramanak Island, the dwelling place of serpents in the ocean. By the grace of the human-like leela of Lord Shri Krishna, the water not only became free of poison but became as potent as nectar, so that when the cows, calves, and friends drank it, they all came back to life.

King Parikshit asked: "Lord, why did Kali Naag leave Ramanak Island, the dwelling place of serpents, and what offence did he commit that he came to fear Garuda?"

Shri Sukhdev Ji replied: "Parikshit, in ancient times, any serpent that Garuda chose as his food, whether it had a thousand hoods or a hundred, was torn to pieces by the blows of Garuda's claws and beak. Then an arrangement was made: every month, one great and mighty serpent would be offered to you as food. Do not attack and destroy the serpents beyond this arrangement."

This had been approved by Brahma Ji. On the day of Amavasya, once a month, a mighty serpent was offered to the great Garuda, and he would eat it. Among the serpents, Kali Naag was the son of Kadru. He had a very arrogant nature. Let alone offering a serpent to Garuda, whichever serpent was told to be offered to him, Kali Naag would devour himself. When the mighty Garuda, the beloved attendant of the Lord, learned of this, he attacked Kali Naag intending to kill him.

When Kali Naag saw that Garuda was attacking him with great speed, he spread his hundreds of hoods and pounced on Garuda to bite him. Then came the blows of Garuda's wings, the blows of his beak, and the blows of his claws. Tarkshya Garuda is the vehicle of Lord Shri Hari, and his speed and valour are incomparable. Garuda saw that the serpent was very audacious and arrogant, so he struck him with his wing, with a jerk. The serpent was wounded. He knew that Sobhari Ji had cursed that Garuda must never enter this area, so he fled and hid in the Kali Dah. He had been hiding there ever since. Garuda could not come to this place.

Look, even if elders make a mistake, one should not punish them. One should remain humble. Once, while Sobhari Ji was doing tapasya in that same area, Garuda ate a big fish. Sobhari Ji said: "Garuda, how dare you eat a fish in front of us?" Garuda replied: "This very fish is my prescribed food." Sobhari Ji said: "From today onward, I curse you: if you eat any fish here, your head will break into a hundred pieces." Garuda said, "Go on, brother, you are a great soul," and so he let him go and went away.

But he became corrupted through the mating of that very fish. He had to take fifty wives. This was Garuda's offence. A great soul like that, yet, taking the side of the fish, he cursed Garuda, and through the fish itself, Garuda fell. Kali knew this, so he fled and hid in this pool. Only Kaliya knew this. That is why he was living here out of fear of Garuda. Now that the Lord's footprints have been made, Garuda will never eat him.

The Lord, adorned with divine fragrance, garlands, garments, and the serpent's jewels, emerged from the pool. Seeing him, all the Brajvasis rose up as if life had returned to dead bodies. The hearts of all the cowherds were filled with joy. Yashoda Maiya and Nand Baba embraced their Kanhaiya. Rohini Ji, the gopis, and the gopas all embraced the Lord in turn. Balram smiled and met the Lord, saying: "How were we to know you intended to perform this leela? That is why you didn't bring us along. For the serpents, the elder brother is indeed this one. Balram is the first son. Lord Shesha, from Kadru's womb, was the first; then Vasuki; then all the nagas." Balram embraced Shri Krishna from the heart and began to laugh.

The trees, cows, bulls, mountains and calves all became absorbed in bliss. The family priests of the cowherds, the Brahmins, came to Nanda Baba with their wives and said, "Nanda Ji, Kaliya the serpent had seized your child, and he has come back free. Give daan-dakshina. Do charity and merit-making, make an offering." Nanda Baba gave so much charity and merit that the child was saved. That is right: the serpent's poison, its grip. Nanda Baba was very pleased and donated a great deal of gold and many cows to the Brahmins. The most fortunate Mother Yashoda took her Lala, who had been spared from the jaws of death, into her lap and held him to her heart.

Tears of ecstatic joy kept falling again and again from her eyes. Now the cows of the Vrajvasis were very tired. They were hungry and thirsty too, so everyone rested that night in a grove near the Yamuna. It was the month of summer and much of the forest had dried up. Suddenly, at midnight, a fire broke out. Calamity upon calamity: just escaped from Kaliya, and now a forest fire, spreading so that it surrounded them on every side, with no way out for the Vrajvasis in the middle. Great tall tongues of flame. Now the Vrajvasis woke up completely. "What is this?" Balram Ji signaled to Lord Shri Krishna.

All the Vrajvasis said, "O Shri Krishna, O Shyamsundar, O most fortunate Balram, do something! Otherwise all of us Vrajvasis will die. Look, this terrible fire has already surrounded us on every side. We are not afraid of death, but it is also not good to die leaving you." "O Lord Jagadishvar, everyone, close your eyes!" Everyone closed their eyes. The Lord opened his mouth in such a way, and drew the whole fire in, closing it up, and it went into the Lord's mouth. See, this is how we are the servants of the Lord. If they ate butter, then they have also swallowed the fire. Whatever Shri Krishna did, never imitate it; follow his command.

The fire had arisen from the Lord's own mouth. As if the Lord, attracting the entire fire back to the place from which it had manifested, settled it in his mouth. Now he told the Vrajvasis, "Open your eyes." When they opened their eyes, a cool, gentle, fragrant breeze was blowing. No fire anywhere. So wondrous are our Lord. This is a matter of great joy. If we walk in truthfulness, we can become intimate with the Lord. Now all the Vrajvasis were delighted, and everyone knew that our Shri Krishna is something supernatural.

Singing the glories of Shri Krishna and beholding his blessed face, the Lord now entered the cowpen. Shri Krishna and Balram, taking the form of cowherd boys through Yogamaya, were playing in Braj. It was the summer season. This season is generally not pleasing to embodied beings: great heat, sweat, all of it. But because of the natural qualities of Vrindavan, a divine spring-like splendor prevails there, so the heat is not felt much. Now it has begun to be felt, because the creepers, all "Radhe Radhe," and the stones and bricks, and inside the AC it is cool but outside it is throwing out heat, so much heat. In Vrindavan there is a natural spring-like splendor.

In Vrindavan, where the supremely sweet Lord Shyamsundar Shri Krishna and Balram Ji used to dwell, a cool, gentle, fragrant breeze blows. The sharp tinkling of bees, the sweet sounds of waterfalls, always, and a very cool spray of water from the waters of the Yamuna. Greenery spreads throughout all of Vrindavan. Wherever you look, it is green, the earth is green with greenery. Touching the waves of rivers, lakes and waterfalls, the wind that blew carried the pollen of many kinds of lotuses: red, yellow, blue, freshly bloomed kalhar, utpal and others. Because of this cool, gentle, fragrant breeze, the residents of Vrindavan did not have to bear the distress of heat, nor feel the heat of the forest fire or the glare of the sun. The rivers were full of unfathomable water, and huge waves used to kiss their banks.

Splashing against their sandbanks and making them pure, the water kept the surrounding land moist. The sun's extremely fierce and sharp rays could not dry up the earth or the green grass there. There was greenery all around. In Vrindavan every branch of every tree was covered with flowers. Wherever you looked, beauty was bursting forth. Here colorful birds were chirping; there, deer of many kinds were leaping in herds; somewhere peacocks were calling, somewhere bees were humming; somewhere cuckoos were calling, and somewhere cranes were singing their own distinctive melody.

Seeing such a supremely beautiful Vrindavan, Shyamsundar Shri Krishna and Gaur Sundar Balram Ji desired to revel in it. The cows walked in front, the cowherd boys followed behind, and in the middle Shri Krishna played the flute with his elder brother. See, even the Lord had to face struggle, so when our people are born, they should not fear struggle. Having just dealt with Aghasur, then Kaliya, then the forest fire, now another one is coming, Pralambasur. A new crisis every day, so stay prepared. We too are parts of the Lord. Sorrow, calamity and disease will keep attacking.

Shyam and the cowherd boys adorned themselves with fresh leaves, bunches of peacock feathers, beautiful garlands of flowers, and colored minerals like geru, decorating one another. When the Lord was thus adorned with the cowherd boys, some friend would begin dancing before the Lord, another would slap his thigh and wrestle, giving joy to Shri Krishna, and some would begin to sing ragas. When Shri Krishna danced, all the cowherd boys began to sing, clap, play flutes and blow the horn (singi), and they would say, "Wah wah, Parikshit!" At such a time they praise their leader, as dancers praise the lead performer.

In the same way, the gods would come there disguised as cowherd boys and praise Lord Shri Krishna and Balram ji, who had taken birth in the cowherd community.

Lord Shri Krishna, with his curly locks, and Balram ji would hold each other's hands and play ghumri pheta, spinning like a potter's wheel. Sometimes, wanting to leap farther than each other, they would hop and jump. Somewhere they would wager and throw clods of earth, somewhere they would slap their thighs in challenge, somewhere they would have a tug of war, and somewhere they would skip rope. The Lord was playing these childlike sports. When the other cowherd boys began to dance, Shri Krishna and Balram would stand with their arms around each other's necks and cheer, "Wah!" and praise them.

Sometimes they would take bel fruit, nutmeg and amla in their hands and throw them at each other. Sometimes they would cover each other's eyes and hide. The one left behind would search, and they played hide-and-seek. Sometimes they played, hopping like birds and animals. Sometimes they made faces and mocked others, like frogs and sometimes like monkeys. Sometimes they tied ropes to trees and swung on swings. Sometimes two boys would stand, and they would hang from the strength of their arms. Sometimes one of them would mimic a king. In this way, Ram and Shyam, that is Balram and Shri Krishna, played in the rivers, mountains, valleys, groves, forests and lakes of Vrindavan, playing the games that ordinary children play.

One day Balram and Shri Krishna went to that forest with the cowherd boys to graze the cows. Then a demon named Pralambasur came. His desire was to abduct Shri Krishna and Balram. Lord Shri Krishna, being omniscient, recognised him the moment he saw him. He had come in the form of a friend. It was as if the Lord was showing him great affection, though he did not know the truth. The Lord began to consider how to kill him. Shri Krishna, the greatest player among the cowherd boys and master of games, called the cowherd boys together and said, "Friends, let us divide ourselves into two teams and then play."

In the game, the cowherd boys formed two teams. Shri Krishna was the leader of one, and Balram of the other. Now the members of one team were to carry the other team on their backs to a designated spot. The winning team rode, and the losing team carried. This game was taking place near the banyan tree named Bhandir. Once, the cowherd boys on Balram's team, Shridama, Vrishabh and others, won the game. Then Shri Krishna and the others began carrying them on their backs. Shri Krishna carried Shridama on his back. Bhadrasen carried Vrishabh, and Pralambasur, who was disguised as a friend, carried Balram ji. The mighty Pralambasur saw that Shri Krishna was very skilled and could not be beaten. So he quickly ran off with Balram on his back and went past the place where he was supposed to set him down. Balram ji thought, "He has not put me down here. Where will he take us?" When he saw that the demon was carrying him farther, Balram ji revealed his true form, the mighty Balram. Pralambasur staggered, and his pace stopped. Pralambasur took on his demon form, a form like a mountain with a black body, and gold ornaments glittering. The gold ornaments looked like lightning on a dark cloud, and he was carrying the fair Balram ji.

Pralambasur looked terrifying. His eyes were red, and his eyebrows were huge and frightful, and his reddish hair was dishevelled. He had gold bangles on his hands and feet, a crown on his head, and earrings in his ears, and he looked very frightful. At first Balram ji was startled, but then, on remembering his own form, Balram ji saw it as if a thief were stealing someone's wealth. "Like this, he is stealing me away." Balram ji struck Pralambasur with a punch. As soon as the punch of the mighty Balram landed, the demon began spewing blood from his mouth. He lost consciousness and died, letting out a terrible cry.

Hurling him to the ground, Balram ji, the supremely strong, stood up. When the friends saw that Balram ji had killed Pralambasur, they began to cry, "Wah! Wah! Wah! Wah!" All the cowherd boys came and embraced Balram ji heartily. Everyone felt that if Balram ji had not been there, this demon would have killed one of the friends. Pralambasur was sin personified. The gods were greatly delighted. They showered flowers on Balram ji and praised him, saying, "Very good, very good, Bhagwan!" Lord Shri Krishna embraced Balram ji heartily.

Pralambasur attained the state that great yogis aspire to. Blessed is the Lord's incarnational leela, in which even such great sinners attain the supreme abode. Let us contemplate what we hear in satsang, and let us put it into practice. Let us live a pure life, constantly doing naam jap. Then in this very life, by the Lord's grace, we will attain union with God or divine love. [sound of clearing throat] The rest of the discussion will continue. Shri Radhavallabh Lal

This text has been taken from the video's auto-generated subtitles. It may contain word errors. Please be sure to listen to the video for the authentic words.

Original video: Shri Hit Radha Kripa (YouTube)