SB 1.2.17 (1962)

SB (1962) Second Chapter - Divinity and Devotional Service

SB 1.2.16 (1962) - SB 1.2.18 (1962)

Compare Versions: SB 1962 with SB 1972-77

His Divine Grace
A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada

TEXT No. 17

Shrinwatam swakatham krishnah punya sharvana kirtanah Hridyantshtho hi abhadrani vidhonoti suhrit satam.

ENGLISH SYNONYMS

Srinwatam—those who have developed the urge for hearing the message of, Swakath—His own words, Krishna—The Personality of Godhead, Punya—virtues, Shravana—hearing, Keertana—chanting, Hridyantstha—within on's heart, hi—certainly, Abhadrani—desire to enjoy matter, Vidhonoti—cleanses, Suhrit—benefactor, Satam—of the truthful.

TRANSLATION

Sri Krishna the personality of Godhead who is also the Paramatama in everyone's heart and the benefactor of the truthful devotee, does cleanse the desire for material enjoyment in the heart of the devotee who has developed the urge for hearing His (Krishna's) messages which are themselves virtuous when properly heard and chanted.

PURPORT

Messages of the Personality of Godhead Sri Krishna are nondifferent from Him. Whenever, therefore, offenseless glorification and hearing of the same is undertaken, it is to be undestood that Lord Krishna is present there in the form of Transcendental Sound which is as much powerful as the Lord is personally. Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu in His Sikshastak, declares it clearly that the holy Name of the Lord has all the potencies of the Lord and He has endowed His innumerable Names with the same potency. There is no rigid fixture of time and any one can chant the holy name with attention and reverence at his convenience. The Lord is so kind to us that He can be present before us personally in the Form of sound transcendental but unfortunately we have no taste for hearing and glorifying the Lord's Name and activities. We have already discussed this point of developing a taste for hearing and chanting the holy sound. It is done through the medium of service to the pure devotee of the Lord.

The Lord is reciprocally respondent to His devotees. When He sees it that a devotee is completely sincere in getting admittance in the transcendental service of the Lord and thus becomes eager to hear about Him, the Lord acts from within the devotee in such a way so that the devotee may easily go back to Him. The Lord is more anxious to take us back into His Kingdom than we can desire. Most of us do not desire at all to go back to Godhead. Only a very few men want to back to go Godhead. But any one who desires so to go back to Godhead, Sri Krishna helps such sincere devotee in all respects.

Nobody can enter into the kingdom of God unless one is perfectly cleared of all sins. The material sins are products of our desires to lord it over the material nature. It is very difficult to get rid of such desires. Women and wealth, these two items are very difficult problems for the devotee making progress on the path of going back to Godhead. Many stalwarts in the devotional line fell a victim of these allurements and thus retreated from the path of liberation. But when one is helped by the Lord Himself the whole thing becomes as easy as anything by the Divine Grace of the Lord.

To become restless in the contact of women and wealth is not an astonishment, because every living being is associated with such things from a remote time practically immemorial and it takes time to recover from the foreign nature. But if one is engaged in the matter of hearing the glories of the Lord, gradually he realizes the real position. By the grace of God such devotee gets sufficient strength to defend himself from the state of disturbances and gradually all disturbing elements are eliminated from his mind.

(Compare SB 1.2.17 Current Edition)

SB 1.2.16 (1962) - SB 1.2.18 (1962)