Personal deity worship | Srila Gopal Krishna Goswami

Swami Nithyananda Mahasaya. Shri Krishna Chaitanya, Rabho Nityananda, Shri Aṛka Gāḍādāśiva Sādhi, Lāumaka Vṛndāna. Hare Krishna, Hare Krishna. Hare Krishna! Hare Rama!

Hare Rama!

Rama nama hari hare. Hari Krishna! Hari Krishna! Hare Krishna! Hare Krishna! Vishnu mārtī vraja-devī satyātmā. Namo 'māmaḥ, Tulasī Kṛṣṇa-prayāsī. Namo 'māmaḥ, Rādhā-Kṛṣṇa-seva-pāvo. Hare Kṛṣṇa! Krishna! Krishna! Hari-Hari! Hari-Rama! Hari-Rama! Ramalama Hari Hari. Hari Krishna, Hari Krishna, Krishna Krishna Hari Hari. Hari Rama, Hari Rama, Ramalama Hari Hari. Hindi?

Yes, Krishna.

Any particular chapter of Ramayana? Chapter 18: Killing the Demon Pulambhasura. After extinguishing the devastating fire, Kṛṣṇa, surrounded by His relatives, friends, cows, calves, and bulls, and glorified by His friends singing again, entered Vṛndāvana. Which is full of cows. While Kṛṣṇa and Bāla Rāma were enjoying life in Vṛndāvana in the midst of the cowherd boys and girls, the season gradually changed to summer. The summer season in India is not very much welcome because of the excessive heat, but in Vṛndāvana everyone was pleased because summer appeared just like spring. This is possible only because Lord Kṛṣṇa and Bāla Rāma, who are the controllers of even Lord Brahmā and Lord Śiva, were residing there. In Vrindavan, there were many falls which are always pouring water, and the sound is so sweet that it covers the sound of the crickets. And because water flows all over, the forest always looks very green and beautiful. The inhabitants of Vrindavan are never disturbed by the scorching heat of the sun or the high summer temperatures. The lakes of Vrindavan are surrounded by green grasses and various kinds of lotus flowers bloom there, such as the kalaraj, the kanja, the utpala, and the air blowing in Vrindavan carries the aromatic pollen of those lotus flowers. When the particles of water from the waves of the Yamuna, the lakes, and the waterfalls touch the bodies of the inhabitants of Vrindavan, they automatically feel a cooling effect. Therefore, they were practically undisturbed by the summer season. Vrindavan is such a nice place. Flowers are always blooming, and there are even various kinds of decorated deer. Birds are chirping, peacocks are crowing and dancing, and bees are humming. The cuckoos sing nicely in 5 kinds of tunes. Krishna, the reservoir of pleasure, blowing his flute, accompanied by his elder brother Balaram and other cowherd boys and the cows, entered the beautiful forest of Vrindavan to to enjoy the atmosphere. They walked into the midst of newly grown leaves of trees whose flowers resembled peacock feathers. They were garlanded by those flowers and decorated with saffron chalk. Sometimes they were dancing and singing and sometimes wrestling with one another. While Kṛṣṇa danced, some of the cowherd boys sang, and others played on flutes, some bugled on buffalo horns, or clapped their hands, praising Kṛṣṇa, "Dear brother, you are dancing very nicely." Actually, all these boys were demigods descended from a higher planet to assist Kṛṣṇa in his pastimes. The demigods, garbed in the dress of the cowherd boys, were encouraging Kṛṣṇa in his dancing, just as one artist encourages another with praise. Up to that time, neither Balaram nor Kṛṣṇa had undergone the haircutting ceremony. Therefore, the hair was clustered like crow's feathers. They were always playing hide and seek with their boyfriends or jumping or fighting with them. Sometimes, while his friends were chanting and dancing, Kṛṣṇa would praise them, "My dear friends, you are dancing and singing very nicely." The boys played at catching ball with fruits such as bael and amalaka. They played blind man's bluff, challenging and touching one another. Sometimes they imitated the forest deer and various kinds of birds. They joked with the trees. Sometimes they would play like a king and his subjects amongst themselves. In this way, Balarama and Kṛṣṇa, along with their friends, played all kinds of sports and enjoyed the soothing atmosphere of Vṛndāvana, full of rivers, lakes, rivulets, fine trees, and excellent gardens filled with the fruits and flowers. Once, while the boys were engaged in their transcendental pastimes, a great demon of the name Palambasura entered their company, designed to kidnap both Balaram and Krishna. Although Krishna was playing the part of a coward boy, as the Supreme Personality of Godhead, He could understand everything. Past, present, and future. So when Pulambasura entered their company, Kṛṣṇa began to think how to kill the demon, but externally He received him as a friend. "Oh, my dear friend," He said, "it is very good that you have come to take part in our pastimes." Kṛṣṇa then called all His friends and ordered them, "Now we shall play in pairs. We shall challenge one another in pairs." With this proposal, All the boys assembled together. Some of them took the side of Kṛṣṇa and some of them took the side of Balarama. And they arranged to play in duel. The defeated members in duel had to carry the victorious members on their backs, as a horse carries its master. They began playing and at the same time tended to the cows. They proceeded through the Bandiravan forest. The party of Balarama, accompanied by Śrīdhāma and Miśrādh, came out victorious, and Kṛṣṇa's party had to carry them on their backs through the Bandirāvana forest. The Supreme Personality of Godhead, being defeated, had to carry Śrīdhāma on His back, and Bādhurāṣyana carried Miśrādh. Imitating their play, Prahlāmbasūra, who appeared there as a cowherd boy carrying Balarama on his back—Prahlāmbasūra was the greatest of demons, and he had calculated that Kṛṣṇa was the most powerful of the cowherd boys. In order to avoid the company of Kṛṣṇa, Prahlāmbasūra carried Bāla-rāma far away. The demon was undoubtedly very strong and powerful, but he was carrying Bāla-rāma, who was compared to a mountain. Therefore, he began to feel the burden, and thus he assumed his real form. When he appeared in his real feature, he was decorated with a golden helmet, earrings, and looked just like a cloud with lightning carrying the moon. Balaram observed the demon's body expanding up to the limits of the clouds, his eyes dazzling like blazing fire and his mouth flashing with sharpened teeth. At first, Balaram was surprised by the demon's appearance, and he began to wonder, how is it that all of a sudden this Kari has changed in every way? But with a clear mind, he could quickly understand that he was being carried away from his friends by a demon who intended to kill him. Immediately, he struck the head of the demon with his strong fist, just as the king of the heavenly planets strikes a mountain with his thunderbolt. Stricken by the fist of Balaram, the demon fell down dead, just like a snake with a smashed head, and blood poured from his mouth. When the demon fell, he made a tremendous sound, and it sounded as if a great hill was falling upon being struck by the thunderbolt of King Indra. All the boys thus rushed to the spot. Astonished by the ghastly scene, they began to praise Balaram with the words, "Well done, well done." All of them then embraced Balaram with great affection. Thinking that he had returned from death, and they had offered their blessings and congratulations. All the demigods in the heavenly planets became very satisfied and showered flowers on the transcendental body of Arjuna, and they also offered their blessings and congratulations for his having killed the grateful Ambasura. Thus ends the Bhaktivedanta Purport for the 18th Chapter of Krishna. Killing the Demon, Palamba Sura. Chapter 15: The Killing of Dainakosha. In this way, Śrī Kṛṣṇa, along with His elder brother Balarama, passed the childhood age known as komāra and stepped into the age of pāvandva, from the 6th year up to the 10th. At that time, all the cowherd men conferred and agreed to give the boys who had passed their 5th year charge of the cows in the pasturing ground. Giving charge to the cows, Kṛṣṇa and Bāla-rāma traversed Vṛndāvana purifying the land with their lotus footprints. Accompanied by the cowherd boys and Bāla-rāma, Kṛṣṇa brought forward the cows and played on his flute as He entered the forest of Vṛndāvana, which was full of flowers, vegetables, and pasture and grass. The Vṛndāvana forest was as sanctified as the clear mind of a devotee. And was full of bees, flowers, and fruits. There were chirping birds and clear water lakes with waters that could relieve one of all fatigue. Sweet smelling breezes blew always, refreshing the mind and body. Krishna with His friends and Balaram entered a forest and seeing the favorable situation desired to enjoy the atmosphere to the full. Forest. Kṛṣṇa saw all the trees overloaded with fruits and fresh twigs bending down to touch the ground as if welcoming Him by touching Him with His feet. He was very pleased by the behavior of the trees, fruits, and flowers, and He began to smile, realizing their desires. Kṛṣṇa then spoke to His elder brother Balarama as follows: My dear brother, You are superior to all of us, and Your lotus feet are worshiped by the demigods. Just see how these trees full of fruits and flowers have bent down to worship Your lotus feet. It appears that they are trying to get out of the darkness that has obliged them to accept the form of trees. Actually, the trees born in the land of Vrindavan are not ordinary living entities. Having held their impersonal point of view in their past lives, They have been put there in this stationary condition of life, but now they have the opportunity of seeing you in Vṛndāvana, and they are praying for further advancement in spiritual life through your personal association. Generally, living entities in the mode of darkness obtain the bodies of trees. The impersonalist philosophers are in the darkness, but they are— but they eradicate it by taking full advantage of your presence. I think that drones are buzzing all around you must have been your devotees in their past lives. They cannot leave your company because no one can be a better, more affectionate master than you. You are the Supreme Original Personality of Godhead, and the drones are just trying to spread your glories by chanting at every moment. I think some of them must be great sages, devotees of Your Lordship, and they are distinguishing— excuse me, they are disguising themselves in the form of drones because they are unable to give up Your company even for a moment. My dear brother, You are the supreme worshipable Godhead. Just see how the peacocks are dancing before You in great ecstasy. The deer, whose behavior is just like that of the gopis, are welcoming You with the same affection. And the cuckoos who are residing in the forest are welcoming you with their joyful sweet cries because they consider that your appearance in their home is so auspicious. Even though they are trees and animals, these residents of Vrindavan are glorifying you. They are prepared to welcome you to the best of their ability, as is the practice of great souls in receiving another great all at home. As for the land, it is so pious and fortunate because the footprints of your lotus feet are marking its body. It's quite natural for those who bring love and happiness to rush to see this great personal personality like you. The herbs, creatures, and plants are also so fortunate to touch your lotus feet, and by your touching the twigs with your fingernails. These small plants are also made glorious. As for the hills and rivers, they too are now glorious because you are glancing at them. Above all, the gopis are most glorious because you embrace them with your strong arms, being attracted by their beauty. In this way, Lord Kṛṣṇa and Bāla Rāma began to enjoy the residence of Vṛndāvana. To their full satisfaction as they herded the calves and cows on the banks of the Yamuna. In some places, Krishna and Balarama were accompanied by their friends. The boys, singing, imitating the humming sound of the drones, accompanied Krishna and Balarama, who were garlanded with forest flowers. While walking, the boys sometimes imitated the quacking sound of swans in the lakes. Or when they saw the peacocks dancing, they imitated them before Kṛṣṇa. Kṛṣṇa also moved His neck imitating the dancing and making His friends laugh. The cows taken care of by Kṛṣṇa had different names, and Kṛṣṇa would call them with love. After hearing Kṛṣṇa call, the cows would immediately respond by mooing, and the boys would enjoy this exchange to their heart's content. They would all imitate the sound vibrations made by the different kinds of birds, especially the chakoras, peacocks, kookoos, and barn wedges. Sometimes when they would see the weaker animals fleeing out of fear of the sounds of tigers and lions, the boys along with Kṛṣṇa and Balarama would imitate the animals and run away with them. When they felt some fatigue, they would sit down and Balarama would put His head on the lap of one of the boys just to take rest. And Kṛṣṇa would immediately come and massage the legs of Balarama. And sometimes He would take a palm fan and fan the body of Balarama, causing a pleasing breeze to relieve Him of His fatigue. Other boys would sometimes dance or sing while Balarama took rest. Sometimes they would wrestle amongst themselves or jump. When the boys were thus engaged, Kṛṣṇa would immediately join them in catching their hands. He would enjoy their company and laugh and praise their activities. When Kṛṣṇa would feel tired and fatigued, He would sometimes take shelter of the root of a big tree or the lap of a cowherd boy and lie down. When He would lie down with a boy or a root as His pillow, some of the boys would massage His legs. And someone would fan His body with a fan made from leaves. Some of the more talented boys would sing in very sweet voices to please Him. Thus, very soon His fatigue would go away. The Supreme Personality of Godhead, whose legs are tended by the goddess of fortune, shared Himself with the cowherd boys as one of them, expanding His internal potency to appear exactly like a village boy. But despite His appearing like a village boy, There were occasions when He proved Himself to be the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Sometimes men pose themselves as Supreme Personality of Godhead and cheat innocent people, but they can only cheat. They cannot exhibit the potency of God. While Kṛṣṇa was thus engaged in His transcendental pastimes, exhibiting His internal potency in the company of the supremoṣ fortunate cowherd boys, There occurred another chance for Him to exhibit His superhuman powers. His most intimate friends, Śrīda, Subāhu, and Stoka Kṛṣṇa, addressed Kṛṣṇa with great love and affection, "Deva Prabhupāda, You are very powerful. Your arms are very strong. Dear Kṛṣṇa, You are very expert in killing all kinds of disturbing demons. Will You kindly know, just near this place there is a big There is a forest by the name of Talavana. This forest is full of palm trees and all the trees are filled with fruits. Some have fallen down and some are very ripe even in the trees. It is a very nice place. Because of the demon Dainaka Sura, it is very difficult to go there. No one can reach the trees to collect the fruits. Dear Kṛṣṇa and Bāla, this demon is present there in the form of an ass. He is surrounded by similar demons, friends who have assumed the same shape. All of them are very strong, so it is very difficult to approach this place. Dear brothers, you are the only persons who can kill such demons. Other than you, no one can give— can go there for fear of being killed. Not even animals, and no birds are living there. They are all left. One can only appreciate the sweet aroma that is coming from that place. It appears that up until now no one has tasted the sweet fruits there, either on the tree or on the ground. Dear Krishna, to tell you frankly, we are very attracted by this sweet aroma. Dear Vāra, if you like, let us all go there and enjoy these fruits. The aroma of these fruits is now spread everywhere. Don't you smell it from here?

When Balaram and Krishna were thus petitioned by their intimate friends, they were inclined to please them, and with smiling faces they proceeded towards the forest surrounded by all their friends. Immediately upon entering the talavan, Balaram began to yank the trees with his arms, exhibiting the strength of an elephant. Because of this jerking, all the ripe fruits fell down on the ground. Upon hearing the sound of the falling fruits, the demon Denukasura, who was living there in the form of an ant, approached with great force, shaking the whole field. So that all the trees moved as if there were an earthquake. Demon appeared before Balaram and kicked his chest with his hind legs. At first, Balaram did not say anything, but with a great anger, the demon kicked him again more violently. This time, Balaram moaned, caught hold of the legs of the ass with one hand and wheeling him around, threw him into the water. While he was being wheeled around by Balaram, the demon lost his life. Balaram threw the demon into the biggest palm tree about, and the demon's body was so heavy that the palm tree fell upon other trees and several fell down. It appeared as if a great hurricane had passed through the forest and all of the trees were falling down one after another. This exhibition of extraordinary strength is not Astounding, because Bala Ram is the personality of Godhead known as Ananta Sheshanam, who is holding all the planets on the hooves of his millions of heads. He maintains the whole cosmic manifestation exactly as horizontal and vertical thread holds the weaving of a cloth. After a demon had been thrown into the tree. All the friends and associates of Dainuka immediately assembled and attacked Balaram and Krishna with great force. They were determined to retaliate and avenge the death of their friend. But Krishna and Balaram caught each of the asses by hind legs and exactly in the same way, wheeled them around. Thus they killed all of them and threw them into the palm trees. Because of the dead bodies of the asses, there was a panoramic scene. It appeared as if clouds of various colors were assembled in the trees. Hearing of this, In this great incident, the demigods from the higher planets showered flowers on Krishna and Balarama and beat their drums and offered devotional prayers. A few days after the killing of Janukāśura, people began to come into Talavana forest to collect the fruits, and animals began to reek in without fear to feed on the nice grasses growing there. Just by chanting or hearing these transcendental activities and pastimes of the brothers Krishna and Balaram, one can enmasque past activities. When Krishna and Balaram entered the village of Vrindavan along with