When Shripad Prabodhanand Ji said that even in Brahmanand there is no such happiness

In Shri Hit Radha Keli Kunj, Vrindavan, an intimate conversation with Pujya Shri Hit Premanand Govind Sharan Ji Maharaj. Seekers bring their questions about life and sadhana, and Maharaj Ji resolves them.

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Sachchidananda-ghan, embodiment of Premananda, the Navni Nikunj, the most exalted and sacred Shri Vrindavan Dham. The beloved divine couple of Shri Vrindavan Dham, the life-object, the dear life of the heart, Shri Priya-Pritam, the whole sakhi-vrinda, birds, deer, animals, trees, creepers, Shri Yamuna, Rasa Rani, Raj Rani, and all the Brajvasi parikar. At their feet, a crore salutations, a crore bows, and namaskar. Radha's name is like nectar. It feels as though one should hear and sing it day and night. No evil design of Kalikal can enter the heart when the heart is empty of remembrance of the Divine.

If Naam Kirtan is happening, if Naam Shravan is happening, then bhaav samadhi should set in. When the antahkaran is a little pure, bhaav samadhi should set in. There is no sadhana more powerful than Naam Kirtan for destroying sins. Naam sankirtanam yas sarva papa pranashanam. It destroys all sins. It is not merely the destruction of sins. It reveals the Naami, the Lord, within the heart. This Naam and the Naami Prabhu grant very great happiness. Shripad Prabodhanand Ji Maharaj was a great soul established in Brahma-bodh. Only one who has attained Brahma-bodh can know how much happiness is in it.

There is Akhandanand. But he swears an oath and says that the happiness he found in the darshan of Priya-Pritam and in their seva is not in Brahmanand. He says:

Shrunu ghatas tame nanu sapatha purvam vach idam hare pado jaan nahin kimapyati madhuram chamatkarvapyati madhurta parataram paraag shri vrindaa vipinvar kand padayo

Hear, brother: I swear by this word, that nothing is sweeter or more wondrous than the feet of Hari. The sweetness beyond all sweetness is the pollen of the lotus feet of Shri Vrinda-vipin-var Kand.

Brother, if you trust my words, I swear and say: Sun bhratas he bhai tame nan sapach purvam vach idam. Believe my words, which I swear to: setting aside enjoyments, even in Brahmanand there is no such happiness as in beholding the beauty of Priyaji's form.

The happiness in the seva of Priya-Pritam is not found in Brahmanand. This is Shripad Prabodhanand Ji Maharaj, the great soul who grants Brahmanand. The Brahma-bodh does not have sweetness in it. Madhurya rasa is absent from it. But Shripad received madhurya rasa here, in Vrindavan, by the grace of Shri Harivansh Mahaprabhu. Vrindavan was obtained by the grace of Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, and the nectar of love of Vrindavan was obtained by the grace of Mahaprabhu Harivansh Chandra. The first darshan described in our Vani is that of Raja Paramanand Das Ji with Shripad Prabodhanand Ji, at Vishram Ghat.

For the first time, Paramanand was absorbed in dhyan. Shripad Prabodhanand Ji was coming on foot to the bank of the Yamuna, and he saw Paramanand Das Ji absorbed in meditation. He was a disciple of Harivansh Mahaprabhu. Sometimes tears were flowing, sometimes he was smiling, sometimes there were goosebumps, sometimes a serious mudra, and no awareness of the outer world. Shripad thought: what samadhi is this? He had seen samprajnata samadhi and asamprajnata vichakshana samadhi. But what samadhi is this? This is the samadhi that Swami Haridas Ji Maharaj speaks of. Oh, the samadhi within, near Shyama-Pyari and Kunj Bihari, in which Paramanand Ji was immersed.

By the grace of Harivansh Mahaprabhu, the evening came while he was absorbed in the roop madhuri of Radhavallabh Lal and the leela madhuri. Then his outer state returned. He said, "Prabhu, I want to speak with you." Raja Paramanand Das Ji said, "What do you want to talk about?" He said, "What samadhi was that? I know every samadhi, and I am myself established in samadhi. But I do not know this samadhi." He said, "This is prem samadhi." "How will I obtain knowledge of it? Whose disciple are you?" He said, "By the grace of our Gurudev Harivansh Mahaprabhu, we have obtained this."

"Where will I meet him?" "At present he is at Mansarovar." Mahaprabhu, in the evening, after performing the utthapan of Radhavallabh Lal Ji and the utthapan seva, went directly to Mansarovar. At Mansarovar, after performing the seva of Shri Ladili Ji, he came directly back near Radhavallabh Ji and put him to sleep. At that time Mahaprabhu was at Mansarovar. Shripad Prabodhanand Ji asked the location of Mansarovar and, on Paramanand Das Ji's urging, reached Mansarovar. When he arrived, Mahaprabhu had already returned. He did not get darshan, so he thought he would stay there that night. He was qualified.

At midnight, 12:00, first a very strong storm arose. It was not blowing anywhere else, only for him. In that tempest he remained calm. After a little while he saw hissing snakes and scorpions and other frightening sights. Still he did not flee, because he was a great soul of Brahma-bodh, beyond body-consciousness. He did not run away from fear, but as soon as he heard the jingle of anklets, he fainted. Because he had never received this happiness, the sound of the flute and the jingle of anklets, Shripad had never experienced them. Madhurya rasa is the essence of all happiness, and the flute is its essence.

Even the flute becomes abashed where the jingle of anklets is. The anklets are the lotus feet of Priyaji.

Nupuron ki jhankar: the jingle of anklets. Hearing it, he fainted. The cool, gentle, fragrant breeze of the nikunj made Shripad unconscious. He had no strength left to hear or to see. He did not see anything at all. When his eyes opened, he was back at Vishram Ghat, where he had met Paramanand Ji. "This is a great miracle! I fainted at Mansarovar. How did I come here?" After his morning routine and bathing in the Yamuna, he went straight to Vrindavan and asked where Harivansh Mahaprabhu sits. He was told, "In Seva Kunj." In Seva Kunj, after Mahaprabhu had finished the morning seva and routine of Shri Ladili Ji, the attendants said, "Some sannyasi mahatma wishes to meet you."

Mahaprabhu took fruit and other offerings with him. When Shripad saw Mahaprabhu's beautiful form, his golden radiance was shining, meaning a golden lustre was manifesting. His eyes were full of Priyalal, eyes brimming with rasa, the eyes of Harivansh Mahaprabhu. Mahaprabhu offered fruit in the pranam mudra and said, "Prabhu, no, do not deceive us any more. You are a sannyasi. You are worthy of worship." "No, Prabhu, now take us into your refuge." Mahaprabhu Harivansh Chandra showed them grace at that very moment and gradually led them into his eternal vihar rasa.

Then Shripad Prabodhanand ji wrote the Harivansh Ashtak. Prabodhanand ji says, "I swear, I cannot speak for them, but we too have come by that same path. We too swear that the bliss we found in taking refuge at Shyama ji's feet was not found even in Brahmanand. We do not say it is the mahadhurya rasa, but we do say this much: the joy we found in refuge at Shyama ji's feet was not present even in Brahmanand. It is not that, even by the grace of Lord Shiva, one who has slightly entered that path does not experience that joy."

Shripad is saying, "I swear, brother, there is no need to wander here and there. The highest bliss, Brahmanand, and even in that I did not find the joy that I found in the maha madhurya rasa, through worshipping Priya Pritam's feet in Vrindavan. So if you get to come to Vrindavan, get the company of rasikas, and worship while taking refuge in the Acharya, you will very quickly attain that joy. It is not attained even by Brahma, not by the gods, not by the devotees of Hari. Na deva brahma na cha hara bhakta na da Radha Madhupati rahasyam shrutam ta dasi tad .. Keli rasam ho .. Pratyasha har har .. Gocharit. It shakes the heart to its core. All knowledge and dispassion gets set aside in a corner. Just sit alone and keep weeping while contemplating Priyaji's sweetness of form and sweetness of qualities. That is all there is to it. What kind of rasa is this? It simply shakes the heart. It paralyses the intellect."

The state of the mind becomes still. This is a wonderful effect of Priyaji. By the grace of Raj Rani, the queen of Vrindavan's dust, all those excellent qualities are seated in this dust, through which Priyaji is served and through which we can see Priyalal and serve the limbs of Priyalal. Those qualities are seated in Raj Rani. If faith comes, and one partakes of the dust of Vrindavan and takes refuge in Vrindavan, then Priyaji's feet are not far away. They are very near, and Kunj Bihari bows down at the lotus feet of Shyama-Pyari.

Shri Haridas ke Swami Shyama Kunj Bihari, reejh reejh paayan parat
Enchanted, Shyama Kunj Bihari, the Lord of Haridas, falls at the feet.

Such is the great bliss. Shripad seems to be saying: I swear, do not waste your time by turning your attention to other means. Take refuge only at the feet of Shri Ladili Lal, and worship Priya Pritam colored with the hue of the company of the rasikas of Vrindavan. In this, right from the beginning, there is a joy that is not in Brahmanand. Right from the beginning, this attachment at Shri Ji's feet, "my Maharani, my Ladli, my Priyaji", there is no joy greater than this.

As this attachment (mamatva) grows deeper, Priyalal's form-sweetness keeps shining forth in the heart, and it remains with you every moment. Every moment, while rising, sitting, walking and moving about, what description can there be of this joy—

This text is taken from the auto-generated subtitles of the video, so there may be word errors. For the authentic words, be sure to listen to the video.

Original video: Bhajan Marg (YouTube)