Bhagavad-gītā 4.3 – February 10, 1974, Vṛndāvana

I have nothing to do except surrendering unto the lotus feet of Krsna

Prabhupada:

So this verse we discussed last night, that this bhagavad-bhakti-yoga is not a new thing. It is puratanaḥ. Krsna says, yogaḥ proktaḥ puratanaḥ [Bg 4.3]. So just like I was discussing now with Dr. Kapoor, our philosophy is not new: puratanaḥ-the old thing. At the present moment it is a fashion to propound a new kind of philosophy. Not only now; formerly also, as it is said in the Bhagavatam, nasav munir yasya matam na bhinnam [Cc Madhya 17.186].

A muni is not a muni… Muni means mental speculators; manansi, thoughtful muni, thoughtful also-always absorbed in thoughts. So a thoughtful man or a great saintly person is not a great saintly person if he hasn't got to propound a new theory-nasav munir yasya matam na bhinnam [Cc Madhya 17.186]. That is the modern philosophical way, researchment. This philosopher's contribution is up to this; and this philosopher… We have also such things. Just like our Gauḍiya Vaisnava and Ramanujacarya Vaisnava. Ramanujacarya Vaisnava, they appreciate the service of the Lord up to sakhya-rasa-visrambha-sakhya-with awe and veneration. Santa, dasya, sakhya, up to this information, Ramanujacarya. But Madhavacarya sampradaya, they have got up to madhurya-rasa. And Caitanya Mahaprabhu propounded this madhurya-rasa. Therefore He is worshiped by Rūpa Gosvami:

Unnatojjvala. Everyone has got some relationship with Krsna, but the highest, topmost relationship is madhurya-rasa-unnato-ujjvala. So Caitanya Mahaprabhu gave this madhurya-rasa, gopis, gopi-bhava-rasamrtabdhi-lahari. Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu's contribution to the Vaisnava philosophers or Vaisnavas: madhurya-rasa. Other acaryas… We have got four acaryas in Vaisnava sampradaya. Vatsalya-rasa, I think, is Vallabhacarya; they are vatsalya-rasa, Bala Krsna. And Ramanujacarya, they are up to sakhya-rasa, visrambha-sakhya. But Caitanya Mahaprabhu gives information, ramya kacid upasana vraja-vadhū-vargena ya kalpita. The method of worship as it was done by the gopis, vraja-vadhū, that is the best. Ramya kacid upasana. There is no better process of worship than the method adopted by the gopis: always thinking of Krsna. Krsna is gone to the pasturing grounds, and the gopis are thinking at home, "Oh, Krsna's lotus feet is so soft that we feel ashamed to keep His lotus feet on our breasts. We think our breast is too hard for keeping His lotus feet. Such nice lotus feet is now wandering on ground with stone chips. How much pain He is feeling!" Thinking this, the gopis were crying. How much their mind was absorbed in the thought of Krsna. Therefore the Gosvamis, they also followed: gopi-bhava-rasamrtabdhi-lahari [Sri Sad-gosvamy-astaka, verse 4]. Here also in Vrndavana, the Gauḍiya Vaisnavas especially, they worship Krsna in the madhurya-rasa. Their aspiration is how to become an assistant associate of the gopis, madhurya-rasa.

So every devotee is associated with some rasa with Krsna: raso vai saḥ [Taittiriya Upanisad 2.7.1]. The Vedic information is, "He is the reservoir of all pleasure,"raso vai saḥ. Hrdayani bhavanti: "If one gets that rasa, or mellows, then he becomes spiritually blissful." These are Vedic injunctions. So the Gauḍiya Vaisnava contribution is this madhurya-rasa. But it is not to be artificially imitated. When one becomes actually liberated, mukta-purusa, then he can relish, mali hana kare sei bija aropana [Cc Madhya 19.152].

It has been described in the Caitanya-caritamrta that at the present moment we have to become the gardener and water the bhakti-lata creeper. Then it grows. It grows, penetrating through the cover of the universe, reaches the spiritual world, and then it grows still more, and when the creeper catches some shelter, some other big tree… Similarly, this bhakti-lata creeper goes up and up, and when it catches the lotus feet of Krsna, then it is satisfied, and the bhakta who nourished this bhakti-lata-bija, when he goes back to home, back to Godhead, he relishes the fruit grown in that bhakti-lata-bija. So this is the description in the Caitanya-caritamrta in connection with Rūpa Gosvami.

So that bhakti-lata-bija begins practically by understanding Bhagavad-gita as it is. There are some so-called devotees, they jump over Bhagavatam, especially dasama skanḍa, rasa-pancadhyaya. But that is not the process. The process is to begin bhakti-lata, bhakti-lata-bija. Guru-krsna-krpaya paya bhakti-lata-bija [Cc Madhya 19.151].

So we have to take care of the seed. That seed is the last word of Bhagavad-gita:

When one accepts Krsna in the last resort, or shelter, with faith, Krsna says,

When one accepts this philosophy, that "I have nothing to do except surrendering unto the lotus feet of Krsna," this is the beginning of that seed.

It has been explained in the Caitanya-caritamrta that,

Sraddha. Because if you want to advance in spiritual life, Krsna consciousness, the first stage is sraddha. First stage is sraddha. And what is the meaning of sraddha? Sraddha means "full faith."'Sraddha-sabde-visvasa, full faith. What is that faith? 'Sraddha-sabde-visvasa sudrḍha niscaya: firm faith, not faulted. Firm faith, that "If I surrender unto the lotus feet of Krsna, then everything is done. Everything is done. I have nothing to do any more."Krsne bhakti kaile sarva-karma krta haya. This is called sraddha, beginning. Sraddha. Adau sraddha tataḥ sadhu-sahgo [Bhakti-rasamrta-sindhu 1.4.15].

This is the process given by the Gosvamis. First sraddha-firm faith, unflinching faith, that "If I surrender unto Krsna, if I take shelter of the lotus feet of Krsna, then my life is successful; everything is done."'Sraddha-sabde-visvasa kahe sudrḍha niscaya: without any hesitation. Why shall I take shelter of Krsna? One big scholar says it is sophistry, that it is too much demanding. Krsna is demanding too much. Sarva-dharman parityajya [Bg 18.66]: "Give up everything and surrender unto Me." That is the only thing. Krsna is the Supreme Lord. He can demand like that.

So our parampara system, as it is explained,

Our parampara is: Krsna says, "Surrender unto Me," and we catch up the word, we preach, "Surrender unto Krsna." This is parampara system. Not that I have to say that "Surrender unto me." That is rascaldom. Real krsna-seva is… Because Krsna wants everyone to surrender unto Him, so if we preach to everyone that "Surrender to Krsna," then it is parampara. Then it is parampara. Parampara means what is spoken by Krsna, you preach that gospel. You preach that philosophy.

So our Krsna consciousness movement is very simple. We haven't got to manufacture anything, any philosophy, by research work. Krsna says, yogaḥ proktaḥ puratanaḥ [Bg 4.3]. We have to speak the same thing. The most…, very, very old: puratanaḥ. We haven't got to manufacture it. Nowadays we have advanced in education and civilization; therefore we have to concoct some idea. It is not our business. We have to speak the same old puratanaḥ thing. What is that puratanaḥ thing? Five thousand years ago, Krsna says, "Surrender unto Me." So we have to preach this old gospel, "Surrender unto Krsna. Finish your business." Krsna says, "I am speaking that old thing which millions of years ago I spoke to sun-god." Similarly, we have to refer to Krsna: "Five thousand years ago, Krsna said this; let us repeat that."Yogaḥ proktaḥ puratanaḥ. And who can speak this? Bhakto 'si-one who is actually devotee. Others, rascals, they interpret Bhagavad-gita in different ways. They are not speaking the puratanaḥ; therefore they are null and void, they are rejected. Sa kaleneha yogo nastaḥ [Bg 4.2]. One who does not speak the whole thing by the parampara system is speaking nonsense. Take evidence from Bhagavad-gita-sa kaleneha nastaḥ [Bg 4.2]. Krsna said that "The old parampara system, as I spoke to sun-god,"

As soon as we deviate from the parampara system…Parampara system means to receive the knowledge through disciplic succession-very simple thing. But in due course of time it becomes deviated. Just like nowadays they are interpreting Bhagavad-gita in different ways. That means kalena nasta.

This is not Bhagavad-gita. Anyone who is speaking against Krsna, they are discovering some new meaning, adhyatmika meaning. They say adhyatmika meaning. Do they not say like that, adhyatmika meaning? What is this nonsense, adhyatmika meaning? That means kalena nastaḥ. Anyone who discovers some adhyatmika meaning of Bhagavad-gita, according to his fertile brain, that sort of preaching of Bhagavad-gita is nastaḥ. It is not real Bhagavad-gita. Real Bhagavad-gita is if you speak the very old thing:

What Krsna said five thousand years ago in the Battlefield of Kuruksetra, if you speak that old thing, that "Krsna desires that everyone surrender unto Him, so let me preach this cult: 'My dear friend, please surrender to Krsna,' " then you are a good preacher. Three words-"My dear friend, please surrender to Krsna." That's all. To become a preacher in Krsna consciousness movement is not at all difficult. We have to speak the same thing. This is confirmed by Caitanya Mahaprabhu:

Yare dekha, tare kaha 'krsna'-upadesa-this is guru. Guru does not mean anything extraordinary. Any damn rascal like me can become guru. You cannot question, "You are a damn rascal. How you have become guru?" Yes… [end]