KEY TAKEAWAYS FROM HH HARIVILAS MAHARAJ’S MORNING BHAGAVATAM CLASS ON SB 2.1.19
• Viṣṇu form is the ultimate goal of meditation, and as such it is better to concentrate upon the forms of Viṣṇu than on impersonal oṁkāra.
• The Viṣṇu forms of worship in great temples of India are not arrangements of idol worship, as they are wrongly interpreted to be by a class of men with a poor fund of knowledge; rather, they are different spiritual centers of meditation on the transcendental limbs of the body of Viṣṇu.
• The worshipable Deity in the temple of Viṣṇu is identical with Lord Viṣṇu by the inconceivable potency of the Lord.
• The common man can benefit more by meditating on the form of Viṣṇu in the temple than on the oṁkāra, the spiritual combination of a-u-m as explained before. Also, for the common man, the method of impersonal realization ( is very difficult.
• Without developing the spiritual body and without being situated on one of the spiritual planets, the so-called liberation is also an illusion, or it is not complete.
• From the Brahmajyoti there is no direct promotion to the spiritual planets, and it is clearly stated in the Bhagavatam that such souls fall down – patanty adha
• In Bhagavadgita Chapter 6 the peak of the yoga ladder is described. Yoginaam api sarvesaam
• Ashtanga yoga when practiced as prescribed will lead to liberation. But how many can perform? It is extremely difficult in this age of Kali.
• A Kṛṣṇa conscious person, however, being always engaged in devotional service, does not risk losing his senses to some other engagement. This is a better way of controlling the senses than by aṣṭāṅga-yoga.
• To attain peace, we need to know three things –
Krsna is Bhoktaram (Supreme Enjoyer)
Krsna is Mahesvaram (Supreme Controller)
Krsna is Suhrdam (Well Wisher of all living entities)
• No possibility of peace when not connected with krsna – One who is not connected with the Supreme [in Kṛṣṇa consciousness] can have neither transcendental intelligence nor a steady mind, without which there is no possibility of peace. And how can there be any happiness without peace?
SB 2.1.19 TRANSLATION:
Thereafter, you should meditate upon the limbs of Viṣṇu, one after another, without being deviated from the conception of the complete body. Thus the mind becomes free from all sense objects. There should be no other thing to be thought upon. Because the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Viṣṇu, is the Ultimate Truth, the mind becomes completely reconciled in Him only.
CLASS NOTES:
VIṢṆU FORM IS THE ULTIMATE GOAL OF MEDITATION, AND AS SUCH IT IS BETTER TO CONCENTRATE UPON THE FORMS OF VIṢṆU THAN ON IMPERSONAL OṀKĀRA.
Viṣṇu-tattva is an unlimited expansion of different transcendental forms of the Personality of Godhead, and the supreme or original form of viṣṇu-tattva is Govinda, or Lord Kṛṣṇa, the supreme cause of all causes. Therefore, thinking of Viṣṇu or meditating upon the transcendental form of Viṣṇu, specifically upon Lord Kṛṣṇa, is the last word on the subject of meditation. This meditation may be begun from the lotus feet of the Lord. One should not, however, forget or be misled from the complete form of the Lord; thus one should practice thinking of the different parts of His transcendental body, one after another
The Viṣṇu forms of worship in great temples of India are not, therefore, arrangements of idol worship, as they are wrongly interpreted to be by a class of men with a poor fund of knowledge; rather, they are different spiritual centers of meditation on the transcendental limbs of the body of Viṣṇu. The worshipable Deity in the temple of Viṣṇu is identical with Lord Viṣṇu by the inconceivable potency of the Lord.
The common man can benefit more by meditating on the form of Viṣṇu in the temple than on the oṁkāra, the spiritual combination of a-u-m as explained before.
How far away from the truth Mayavadis are. They reject everything as material. There is no such thing as Krsna in the absolute realization. They reject all of that. Their whole spiritual quest is a failure from beginning to end and they end up in person less Brahma Jyothi, eventually, they fall down as they did not take refuge in Vishnu. They reject Krsna in order to merge into impersonal Brahman. It is like one who climbs the ladder to the top of a building and then throws the ladder away. They get stranded. They use the deity of the lord to attain Brahman effulgence and abandon it later.
Why does he say VISHNU in this verse? Those who are engaged in the ritualized worship of the Lord. Chanting Pranava and meditating on the body of the Vishnu. They are Sri Vaishnavas worshipping Narayana. It is a bonafide process. It is difficult but not recommended. This verse explains that. SP says – “The common man can benefit more by meditating on the form of Viṣṇu in the temple than on the oṁkāra, the spiritual combination of a-u-m as explained before. There is no difference between oṁkāra and the forms of Viṣṇu, but persons unacquainted with the science of Absolute Truth try to create dissension by differentiating between the forms of Viṣṇu and that of oṁkāra…..” Chanting Om kara is difficult than Vishnu
The name mayavad means they are worshipping something which is false.
LETTER TO RUPANUGA JULY 24TH, 1969
https://vedabase.io/en/library/letters/letter-to-rupanuga-14
IMPERSONALISTS HAVE NO CHANCE OF GOING TO SPIRITUAL PLANETS FROM BRAHMA JYOTHI, UNLESS THEY FALL DOWN AND MEET A DEVOTEE.
In the Bhagavad-gita, it is clearly said by the Lord that the only way of not coming back to the material world is to be promoted to the spiritual planets. For the impersonalists there is no such assurance of not falling down in the whole Vedic literature. The conclusion is that without developing the spiritual body and without being situated on one of the spiritual planets, the so-called liberation is also an illusion, or it is not complete. A spirit soul who falls down from the Brahmajyoti to the Kingdom of Maya may have a chance of associating with a pure devotee, and then he may be elevated to the spiritual planets of Vaikuntha or to Goloka Vrindaban. From the Brahmajyoti there is no direct promotion to the spiritual planets, and it is clearly stated in the Bhagavatam that such souls fall down – patanty adha
BrahmaJyothi is made up of infinite spirit souls. Pencils of light. They do not have a physical body. In the material world, there are Ghosts. Even SB confirms that. Who is a ghost, who becomes a ghost? Who is taking drugs, who commit suicide, who have a weak will to live. Millions and millions of ghosts are produced every year. They are an unbelievable amount of desires. They cannot satisfy any of it. There are infinite souls in the Brahma Jyothi. They don’t have material desires. But, they get bored and they eventually fall down to get a material body.
(BG 12. 3-4) BONAFIDE IMPERSONALIST REALIZATION IS VERY DIFFICULT
But those who fully worship the unmanifested, that which lies beyond the perception of the senses, the all-pervading, inconceivable, unchanging, fixed and immovable – the impersonal conception of the Absolute Truth – by controlling the various senses and being equally disposed to everyone, such persons, engaged in the welfare of all, at last achieve Me.
In order to perceive the Supersoul within the individual soul, one has to cease the sensual activities of seeing, hearing, tasting, working, etc. Then one comes to understand that the Supreme Soul is present everywhere. Realizing this, one envies no living entity – he sees no difference between man and animal because he sees soul only, not the outer covering. But for the common man, this method of impersonal realization is very difficult.
For bonafide impersonalists itself, it is extremely difficult. There is no question of Mayavadis as they are blaspheming the Lord.
(BG 12.5)
For those whose minds are attached to the unmanifested, impersonal feature of the Supreme, advancement is very troublesome. To make progress in that discipline is always difficult for those who are embodied.
Yoga Ladder – The top of the ladder is explained in the end of the 6th chapter Yoginam api sarvesam…
(BG 5.26)
Those who are free from anger and all material desires, who are self-realized, self-disciplined, and constantly endeavoring for perfection, are assured of liberation in the Supreme in the very near future.
(BG 5.27-28) ASTANGA YOGA LEADS TO LIBERATION, BUT VERY DIFFICULT
Shutting out all external sense objects, keeping the eyes and vision concentrated between the two eyebrows, suspending the inward and outward breaths within the nostrils, and thus controlling the mind, senses and intelligence, the transcendentalist aiming at liberation becomes free from desire, fear and anger. One who is always in this state is certainly liberated.
There is no benefit in closing the eyes altogether, because then there is every chance of falling asleep. Nor is there benefit in opening the eyes completely, because then there is the hazard of being attracted by sense objects.
This yoga process helps one become free from all kinds of fear and anger and thus feel the presence of the Supersoul in the transcendental situation.
This will be thoroughly explained in the next chapter. A Kṛṣṇa conscious person, however, being always engaged in devotional service, does not risk losing his senses to some other engagement. This is a better way of controlling the senses than by aṣṭāṅga-yoga.
(BG 5.29) PEACE FORMULA
A person in full consciousness of Me, knowing Me to be the ultimate beneficiary of all sacrifices and austerities, the Supreme Lord of all planets and demigods, and the benefactor and well-wisher of all living entities, attains peace from the pangs of material miseries.
WE NEED TO KNOW THREE THINGS FOR PEACE –
Krsna is Bhoktaram
Krsna is Mahesvaram
Krsna is Suhrdam
(Śvetāśvatara Upaniṣad 6.7)
tam īśvarāṇāṃ paramaṃ maheśvaraṃ taṃ devatānāṃ paramaṃ ca daivataṃ /
patiṃ patīnāṃ paramaṃ parastād vidāma devaṃ bhuvaneśam īḍyam // 6.7 //
O Supreme Lord, You are the Supreme Maheśvara, the worshipable Deity of all the demigods and the Supreme Lord of all lords. You are the controller of all controllers, the Personality of Godhead, the Lord of everything worshipable.
The Supreme Lord is described as tam īśvarāṇāṁ paramaṁ maheśvaraṁ. Under the spell of illusion, living entities are trying to be lords of all they survey, but actually they are dominated by the material energy of the Lord.
(Śvetāśvatara Upaniṣad 6.8)
na tasya kāryaṃ karaṇaṃ ca vidyate na tatsamaś cābhyadhikaś ca dṛśyate /
parāsya śaktir vividhaiva śrūyate svābhāvikī jñānabalakriyā ca // 6.8 //
The Supreme Lord has nothing to do. Nothing is equal to Him or greater than Him. He acts in different phases by manifesting His parts and parcels, which are all simultaneously differently situated by His unlimited, variegated potencies. Each potency acts quite naturally in sequences, providing Him full knowledge, power and pastimes.
(BG 2.66) NO POSSIBILITY OF PEACE WHEN NOT CONNECTED WITH KRSNA
One who is not connected with the Supreme [in Kṛṣṇa consciousness] can have neither transcendental intelligence nor a steady mind, without which there is no possibility of peace. And how can there be any happiness without peace?
You have to have peace to have happiness. You cannot be peaceful without Krsnaa.
Krishna -> Peace – > Happiness