Canto Seven / CHAPTER FIVE

Prahlāda Mahārāja, the Saintly Son of Hiranyakaśipu

The beginning of the life story of Prahlāda is recounted as follows. Śukrācārya became the priest of the atheists, especially Hiranyakaśipu, and thus his two sons, Shanda and Amarka, resided near Hiranyakaśipu’s residence. Śukrācārya should not have become the priest of Hiranyakaśipu because Hiranyakaśipu and his followers were all atheists. A brāhmana should become the priest of a person interested in the advancement of spiritual culture. The very name Śukrācārya, however, indicates a person interested in obtaining benefits for his sons and descendants, regardless of how the money comes. A real brāhmana would not become a priest for atheistic men.

Politics involves accepting one group of men as enemies and another group as friends. Everything in politics is based on this philosophy, and the entire world, especially at the present, is engrossed in it. The public is concerned with friendly countries and friendly groups or enemy countries and enemy groups, but as stated in Bhagavad-gītā, a learned person does not make distinctions between enemies and friends. Devotees, especially, do not create friends and enemies. A devotee sees that every living being is part and parcel of Krishna (mamaivāmśo jīva-bhūtah). Therefore a devotee treats friends and enemies equally by trying to educate them both in Krishna consciousness. Of course, atheistic men do not follow the instructions of pure devotees, but instead consider a devotee their enemy. A devotee, however, never creates a situation of friendship and enmity. Although Prahlāda Mahārāja was obliged to hear the instructions of Shanda and Amarka, he did not like the philosophy of friends and enemies, which forms the basis of politics. He was not interested in this philosophy.

Hiranyakaśipu did not ask his young son anything that would be very difficult for him to answer; instead, he gave the boy a chance to speak plainly about whatever he thought might be best. Prahlāda Mahārāja, of course, being a perfect devotee, knew everything and could say what the best part of life is. In the Vedas it is said, yasmin vijñāte sarvam evam vijñātam bhavati: if one properly understands God, he can understand any subject matter very nicely. Sometimes we have to challenge big scientists and philosophers, but by the grace of Krishna we emerge successful. It is impossible, practically speaking, for ordinary men to challenge scientists or philosophers concerning genuine knowledge, but a devotee can challenge them because the best of everything is known to a devotee by the grace of Krishna. As confirmed in Bhagavad-gītā (10.11):

Krishna, who is situated in the core of everyone’s heart as the Supersoul, dissipates all the ignorance from the heart of a devotee. As a special favor, He enlightens the devotee with all knowledge by putting before him the torch of light. Prahlāda Mahārāja, therefore, knew the best of knowledge, and when his father inquired from him, Prahlāda gave him that knowledge. Prahlāda Mahārāja was able to solve the most difficult parts of problems because of his advanced Krishna consciousness. Therefore he replied as follows.

Hiranyakaśipu thought that Prahlāda, being nothing but a small boy with no actual experience, might reply with something pleasing but nothing practical. Prahlāda Mahārāja, however, being an exalted devotee, had acquired all the qualities of education.

“One who has unflinching devotional faith in Krishna consistently manifests all the good qualities of Krishna and the demigods. However, he who has no devotion to the Supreme Personality of Godhead has no good qualifications because he is engaged by mental concoction in material existence, which is the external feature of the Lord.” (Bhāg. 5.18.12) So-called educated philosophers and scientists who are simply on the mental platform cannot distinguish between what is actually sat, eternal, and what is asat, temporary. The Vedic injunction is asato mā jyotir gama: everyone should give up the platform of temporary existence and approach the eternal platform. The soul is eternal, and topics concerning the eternal soul are actually knowledge. Elsewhere it is said, apaśyatām ātma-tattvam griheshu griha-medhinām: those who are attached to the bodily conception of life and who thus stick to life as a grihastha, or householder, on the platform of material sense enjoyment, cannot see the welfare of the eternal soul. Prahlāda Mahārāja confirmed this by saying that if one wants success in life, he should immediately understand from the right sources what his self-interest is and how he should mold his life in spiritual consciousness. One should understand himself to be part and parcel of Krishna and thus completely take shelter of His lotus feet for guaranteed spiritual success. Everyone in the material world is in the bodily conception, struggling hard for existence, life after life. Prahlāda Mahārāja therefore recommended that to stop this material condition of repeated birth and death, one should go to the forest (vana).

In the varnāśrama system, one first becomes a brahmacārī, then a grihastha, a vānaprastha and finally a sannyāsī. Going to the forest means accepting vānaprastha life, which is between grihastha life and sannyāsa. As confirmed in the Vishnu Purāna (3.8.9), varnāśramācāravatā purushena parah pumān vishnur ārādhyate: by accepting the institution of varna and āśrama, one can very easily elevate himself to the platform of worshiping Vishnu, the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Otherwise, if one remains in the bodily conception, one must rot within this material world, and his life will be a failure. Society must have divisions of brāhmana, kshatriya, vaiśya and śūdra, and for spiritual advancement one must gradually develop as a brahmacārī, grihastha, vānaprastha and sannyāsī. Prahlāda Mahārāja recommended that his father accept vānaprastha life because as a grihastha he was becoming increasingly demoniac due to bodily attachment. Prahlāda recommended to his father that accepting vānaprastha life would be better than going deeper and deeper into griham andha-kūpam, the blind well of life as a grihastha. In our Krishna consciousness movement we therefore invite all the elderly persons of the world to come to Vrindāvana and stay there in retired life, making advancement in spiritual consciousness, Krishna consciousness.

Hiranyakaśipu, being a demon, would always consider Lord Vishnu and His devotees to be his enemies. Therefore the word para-paksha (“on the side of the enemy”) is used here. Hiranyakaśipu never agreed with the words of Vishnu, or Krishna. Rather, he was angered by the intelligence of a Vaishnava. Lord Vishnu, Lord Krishna, says, sarva-dharmān parityajya mām ekam śaranam vraja — “Give up all other duties and surrender unto Me” — but demons like Hiranyakaśipu never agree to do this. Therefore Krishna says:

“Those miscreants who are grossly foolish, lowest among mankind, whose knowledge is stolen by illusion, and who partake of the atheistic nature of demons, do not surrender unto Me.” (Bg. 7.15) The asura-bhāva, the atheistic nature, is directly represented by Hiranyakaśipu. Such persons, being mūdha and narādhama — fools and rascals, the lowest of men — would never accept Vishnu as the Supreme and surrender to Him. Hiranyakaśipu naturally became increasingly angry that his son Prahlāda was being influenced by the camp of the enemies. He therefore asked that saintly persons like Nārada not be allowed within the residential quarters of his son, for otherwise Prahlāda would be further spoiled by Vaishnava instructions.

In our Krishna consciousness movement, the tactic of dressing oneself like an ordinary karmī is necessary because everyone in the demoniac kingdom is against the Vaishnava teachings. Krishna consciousness is not at all to the liking of the demons of the present age. As soon as they see a Vaishnava dressed in saffron garments with beads on his neck and tilaka on his forehead, they are immediately irritated. They criticize the Vaishnavas by sarcastically saying Hare Krishna, and some people also chant Hare Krishna sincerely. In either case, since Hare Krishna is absolute, whether one chants it jokingly or sincerely, it will have its effect. The Vaishnavas are pleased when the demons chant Hare Krishna because this shows that the Hare Krishna movement is taking ground. The greater demons, like Hiranyakaśipu, are always prepared to chastise the Vaishnavas, and they try to make arrangements so that Vaishnavas will not come to sell their books and preach Krishna consciousness. Thus what was done by Hiranyakaśipu long, long ago is still being done. That is the way of materialistic life. Demons or materialists do not at all like the advancement of Krishna consciousness, and they try to hinder it in many ways. Yet the preachers of Krishna consciousness must go forward — in their Vaishnava dress or any other dress — for the purpose of preaching. Cānakya Pandita says that if an honest person deals with a great cheater, it is necessary for him to become a cheater also, not for the purpose of cheating but to make his preaching successful.

Shanda and Amarka, the priests of the demons, were eager to know from Prahlāda Mahārāja who the Vaishnavas were that came to instruct him in Krishna consciousness. Their purpose was to discover the names of these Vaishnavas. In the beginning they did not threaten the boy because when threatened he might not identify the real culprits. Therefore they very mildly and peacefully inquired as follows.

Prahlāda Mahārāja was still a boy, and therefore his teachers thought that if they pacified the little boy he would immediately speak the truth, revealing the secret of how the Vaishnavas came there to teach him lessons in devotional service. It was surprising, of course, that in the same school the other boys of the Daityas were not polluted; only Prahlāda Mahārāja was supposedly polluted by the instructions of the Vaishnavas. The main duty of the teachers was to inquire who those Vaishnavas were that came to teach Prahlāda and spoil his intelligence.

Prahlāda Mahārāja’s teachers were astonished that a small boy could speak such exalted Vaishnava philosophy. Therefore they inquired about the Vaishnavas who stealthily taught it to him, in order that these Vaishnavas might be arrested and killed in the presence of Prahlāda’s father, Hiranyakaśipu.

As stated in Bhagavad-gītā (5.18):

“The humble sage, by virtue of true knowledge, sees with equal vision a learned and gentle brāhmana, a cow, an elephant, a dog and a dog-eater [outcaste].” Panditāh, those who are actually learned — the equipoised, advanced devotees who have full knowledge of everything — do not see any living entity as an enemy or friend. Instead, with broader vision, they see that everyone is part of Krishna, as confirmed by Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu (jīvera ‘svarūpa’ haya — krishnera ‘nitya-dāsa’). Every living entity, being part of the Supreme Lord, is meant to serve the Lord, just as every part of the body is meant to serve the whole body.

As servants of the Supreme Lord, all living entities are one, but a Vaishnava, because of his natural humility, addresses every other living entity as prabhu. A Vaishnava sees other servants to be so advanced that he has much to learn from them. Thus he accepts all other devotees of the Lord as prabhus, masters. Although everyone is a servant of the Lord, one Vaishnava servant, because of humility, sees another servant as his master. Understanding of the master begins from understanding of the spiritual master.

“By the mercy of the spiritual master one receives the benediction of Krishna. Without the grace of the spiritual master, one cannot make any advancement.”

“The spiritual master is to be honored as much as the Supreme Lord because he is the most confidential servitor of the Lord. This is acknowledged in all revealed scriptures and followed by all authorities. Therefore I offer my respectful obeisances unto the lotus feet of such a spiritual master, who is a bona fide representative of Śrī Hari [Krishna].” The spiritual master, the servant of God, is engaged in the most confidential service of the Lord, namely delivering all the conditioned souls from the clutches of māyā, in which one thinks, “This person is my enemy, and that one is my friend.” Actually the Supreme Personality of Godhead is the friend of all living entities, and all living entities are eternal servants of the Supreme Lord. Oneness is possible through this understanding, not through artificially thinking that every one of us is God or equal to God. The true understanding is that God is the supreme master and that all of us are servants of the Supreme Lord and are therefore on the same platform. This had already been taught to Prahlāda Mahārāja by his spiritual master, Nārada, but Prahlāda was nonetheless surprised by how a bewildered soul thinks one person his enemy and another his friend.

As long as one adheres to the philosophy of duality, thinking one person a friend and another an enemy, he should be understood to be in the clutches of māyā. The Māyāvādī philosopher who thinks that all living entities are God and are therefore one is also mistaken. No one is equal to God. The servant cannot be equal to the master. According to the Vaishnava philosophy, the master is one, and the servants are also one, but the distinction between the master and servant must continue even in the liberated stage. In the conditioned stage we think that some living beings are our friends whereas others are enemies, and thus we are in duality. In the liberated stage, however, the conception is that God is the master and that all living entities, being servants of God, are one.

When Prahlāda Mahārāja’s teachers and demoniac father asked him how his intelligence had been polluted, Prahlāda Mahārāja said, “As far as I am concerned, my intelligence has not been polluted. Rather, by the grace of my spiritual master and by the grace of my Lord, Krishna, I have now learned that no one is my enemy and no one is my friend. We are all actually eternal servants of Krishna, but under the influence of the external energy we think that we are separately situated from the Supreme Personality of Godhead as friends and enemies of one another. This mistaken idea has now been corrected, and therefore, unlike ordinary human beings, I no longer think that I am God and that others are my friends and enemies. Now I am rightly thinking that everyone is an eternal servant of God and that our duty is to serve the supreme master, for then we shall stand on the platform of oneness as servants.”

Demons think of everyone as a friend or enemy, but Vaishnavas say that since everyone is a servant of the Lord, everyone is on the same platform. Therefore a Vaishnava treats other living entities neither as friends nor as enemies, but instead tries to spread Krishna consciousness, teaching everyone that we are all one as servants of the Supreme Lord but are uselessly wasting our valuable lives by creating nations, communities and other groups of friends and enemies. Everyone should come to the platform of Krishna consciousness and thus feel oneness as a servant of the Lord. Although there are 8,400,000 species of life, a Vaishnava feels this oneness. The Īśopanishad advises, ekatvam anupaśyatah. A devotee should see the Supreme Personality of Godhead to be situated in everyone’s heart and should also see every living entity as an eternal servant of the Lord. This vision is called ekatvam, oneness. Although there is a relationship of master and servant, both master and servant are one because of their spiritual identity. This is also ekatvam. Thus the conception of ekatvam for the Vaishnava is different from that of the Māyāvādī.

Hiranyakaśipu asked Prahlāda Mahārāja how he had become antagonistic to his family. When a family member is killed by an enemy, all the members of the family would naturally be inimical to the murderer, but Hiranyakaśipu saw that Prahlāda had become friendly with the murderer. Therefore he asked, “Who has created this kind of intelligence in you? Have you developed this consciousness by yourself? Since you are a small boy, someone must have induced you to think this way.” Prahlāda Mahārāja wanted to reply that an attitude favorable toward Vishnu can develop only when the Lord is favorable (sa yadānuvratah). As stated in Bhagavad-gītā, Krishna is the friend of everyone (suhridam sarva-bhūtānām jñātvā mām śāntim ricchati). The Lord is never an enemy to any of the millions of living entities, but is always a friend to everyone. This is true understanding. If one thinks that the Lord is an enemy, his intelligence is paśu-buddhi, the intelligence of an animal. He falsely thinks, “I am different from my enemy, and my enemy is different from me. The enemy has done this, and therefore my duty is to kill him.” This misconception is described in this verse as bheda-gatāsatī. The actual fact is that everyone is a servant of the Lord, as confirmed in Caitanya-caritāmrita by Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu (jīvera ‘svarūpa’ haya — krishnera ‘nitya-dāsa’). As servants of the Lord, we are one, and there can be no questions of enmity or friendship. If one actually understands that every one of us is a servant of the Lord, where is the question of enemy or friend?

Everyone should be friendly for the service of the Lord. Everyone should praise another’s service to the Lord and not be proud of his own service. This is the way of Vaishnava thinking, Vaikuntha thinking. There may be rivalries and apparent competition between servants in performing service, but in the Vaikuntha planets the service of another servant is appreciated, not condemned. This is Vaikuntha competition. There is no question of enmity between servants. Everyone should be allowed to render service to the Lord to the best of his ability, and everyone should appreciate the service of others. Such are the activities of Vaikuntha. Since everyone is a servant, everyone is on the same platform and is allowed to serve the Lord according to his ability. As confirmed in Bhagavad-gītā (15.15), sarvasya cāham hridi sannivishto mattah smritir jñānam apohanam ca: the Lord is situated in everyone’s heart, giving dictation according to the attitude of the servant. However, the Lord gives different dictation to the nondevotees and devotees. The nondevotees challenge the authority of the Supreme Lord, and therefore the Lord dictates in such a way that the nondevotees forget the Lord’s service, life after life, and are punished by the laws of nature. But when a devotee very sincerely wants to render service to the Lord, the Lord dictates in a different way. As the Lord says in Bhagavad-gītā (10.10):

“To those who are constantly devoted and worship Me with love, I give the understanding by which they can come to Me.” Everyone is actually a servant, not an enemy or friend, and everyone is working under different directions from the Lord, who directs each living entity according to his mentality.

Prahlāda Mahārāja admitted frankly, “My dear teachers, you wrongly think that Lord Vishnu is your enemy, but because He is favorable toward me, I understand that He is the friend of everyone. You may think that I have taken the side of your enemy, but factually He has bestowed a great favor upon me.”

For iron to be attracted by a magnet is natural. Similarly, for all living entities to be attracted toward Krishna is natural, and therefore the Lord’s real name is Krishna, meaning He who attracts everyone and everything. The typical examples of such attraction are found in Vrindāvana, where everything and everyone is attracted by Krishna. The elderly persons like Nanda Mahārāja and Yaśodādevī, the friends like Śrīdāmā, Sudāmā and the other cowherd boys, the gopīs like Śrīmatī Rādhārānī and Her associates, and even the birds, beasts, cows and calves are attracted. The flowers and fruits in the gardens are attracted, the waves of the Yamunā are attracted, and the land, sky, trees, plants, animals and all other living beings are attracted by Krishna. This is the natural situation of everything in Vrindāvana.

Just contrary to the affairs of Vrindāvana is the material world, where no one is attracted by Krishna and everyone is attracted by māyā. This is the difference between the spiritual and material worlds. Hiranyakaśipu, who was in the material world, was attracted by women and money, whereas Prahlāda Mahārāja, being in his natural position, was attracted by Krishna. In replying to Hiranyakaśipu’s question about why Prahlāda Mahārāja had a deviant view, Prahlāda said that his view was not deviant, for the natural position of everyone is to be attracted by Krishna. Hiranyakaśipu found this view deviant, Prahlāda said, because of being unnaturally unattracted by Krishna. Hiranyakaśipu therefore needed purification.

As soon as one is purified of material contamination, he is again attracted by Krishna (sarvopādhi-vinirmuktam tat-paratvena nirmalam). In the material world, everyone is contaminated by the dirt of sense gratification and is acting according to different designations, sometimes as a human being, sometimes a beast, sometimes a demigod or tree, and so on. One must be cleansed of all these designations. Then one will be naturally attracted to Krishna. The bhakti process purifies the living entity of all unnatural attractions. When one is purified he is attracted by Krishna and begins to serve Krishna instead of serving māyā. This is his natural position. A devotee is attracted by Krishna, whereas a nondevotee, being contaminated by the dirt of material enjoyment, is not. This is confirmed by the Lord in Bhagavad-gītā (7.28):

“Persons who have acted piously in previous lives and in this life, whose sinful actions are completely eradicated and who are freed from the duality of delusion, engage themselves in My service with determination.” One must be freed from all the sinful dirt of material existence. Everyone in this material world is contaminated by material desire. Unless one is free from all material desire (anyābhilāshitā-śūnyam), one cannot be attracted by Krishna.

The word śukra means “semen.” The sons of Śukrācārya were brāhmanas by birthright, but an actual brāhmana is one who possesses the brahminical qualities. The brāhmanas Shanda and Amarka, being seminal sons of Śukrācārya, did not actually possess real brahminical qualifications, for they engaged as servants of Hiranyakaśipu. An actual brāhmana is very much satisfied to see anyone, not to speak of his disciple, become a devotee of Lord Krishna. Such brāhmanas are meant to satisfy the supreme master. A brāhmana is strictly prohibited from becoming a servant of anyone else, for that is the business of dogs and śūdras. A dog must satisfy his master, but a brāhmana does not have to satisfy anyone; he is simply meant to satisfy Krishna (ānukūlyena krishnānuśīlanam). That is the real qualification of a brāhmana. Because Shanda and Amarka were seminal brāhmanas and had become servants of such a master as Hiranyakaśipu, they unnecessarily wanted to chastise Prahlāda Mahārāja.

In political affairs, when a person disobediently agitates against the government, four principles are used to suppress him — legal orders, pacification, the offer of a post, or, finally, weapons. When there are no other arguments, he is punished. In logic, this is called argumentum ad baculum. When the two seminal brāhmanas Shanda and Amarka failed to extract from Prahlāda Mahārāja the cause for his having opinions different from those of his father, they called for a stick with which to chastise him to satisfy their master, Hiranyakaśipu. Because Prahlāda had become a devotee, they considered him to be contaminated by bad intelligence and to be the worst descendant in the family of demons. As it is said, where ignorance is bliss, it is folly to be wise. In a society or family in which everyone is a demon, for someone to become a Vaishnava is certainly folly. Thus Prahlāda Mahārāja was charged with bad intelligence because he was among demons, including his teachers, who were supposedly brāhmanas.

The members of our Krishna consciousness movement are in a position similar to that of Prahlāda Mahārāja. All over the world, ninety-nine percent of the people are godless demons, and therefore our preaching of Krishna consciousness, following in the footsteps of Prahlāda Mahārāja, is always hampered by many impediments. Because of their fault of being devotees, the American boys who have sacrificed everything for preaching Krishna consciousness are charged with being members of the CIA. Moreover, the seminal brāhmanas in India, who say that one can become a brāhmana only if born in a brāhmana family, charge us with ruining the Hindu system of religion. Of course, the fact is that one becomes a brāhmana by qualification. Because we are training Europeans and Americans to become qualified and are awarding them brahminical status, we are being charged with destroying the Hindu religion. Nonetheless, confronting all kinds of difficulties, we must spread the Krishna consciousness movement with great determination, like that of Prahlāda Mahārāja. In spite of being the son of the demon Hiranyakaśipu, Prahlāda never feared the chastisements of the seminal brāhmana sons of a demoniac father.

Thorn trees generally grow in deserted places, not in sandalwood forests, but the seminal brāhmanas Shanda and Amarka compared the dynasty of the Daitya Hiranyakaśipu to a sandalwood forest and compared Prahlāda Mahārāja to a hard, strong thorn tree that could provide the handle of an axe. They compared Lord Vishnu to the axe itself. An axe alone cannot cut a thorn tree; it needs a handle, which may be made of the wood of a thorn tree. Thus the thorn tree of demoniac civilization can be cut to pieces by the axe of vishnu-bhakti, devotional service to Lord Krishna. Some of the members of the demoniac civilization, like Prahlāda Mahārāja, may become the handle for the axe, to assist Lord Vishnu, and thus the entire forest of demoniac civilization can be cut to pieces.

In this verse the words prahrādam grāhayām āsa are important. The words grāhayām āsa literally mean that they tried to induce Prahlāda Mahārāja to accept the paths of dharma, artha and kāma (religion, economic development and sense gratification). People are generally preoccupied with these three concerns, without interest in the path of liberation. Hiranyakaśipu, the father of Prahlāda Mahārāja, was simply interested in gold and sense enjoyment. The word hiranya means “gold,” and kaśipu refers to soft cushions and bedding on which people enjoy sense gratification. The word prahlāda, however, refers to one who is always joyful in understanding Brahman (brahma-bhūtah prasannātmā). Prahlāda means prasannātmā, always joyful. Prahlāda was always joyful in worshiping the Lord, but in accordance with the instructions of Hiranyakaśipu, the teachers were interested in teaching him about material things. Materialistic persons think that the path of religion is meant for improving their material conditions. The materialist goes to a temple to worship many varieties of demigods just to receive some benediction to improve his material life. He goes to a sādhu or so-called svāmī to take advantage of an easy method for achieving material opulence. In the name of religion, the so-called sādhus try to satisfy the senses of the materialists by showing them shortcuts to material opulence. Sometimes they give some talisman or blessing. Sometimes they attract materialistic persons by producing gold. Then they declare themselves God, and foolish materialists are attracted to them for economic development. As a result of this process of cheating, others are reluctant to accept a religious process, and instead they advise people in general to work for material advancement. This is going on all over the world. Not only now but since time immemorial, no one is interested in moksha, liberation. There are four principles — dharma (religion), artha (economic development), kāma (sense gratification) and moksha (liberation). People accept religion to become materially opulent. And why should one be materially opulent? For sense gratification. Thus people prefer these three mārgas, the three paths of materialistic life. No one is interested in liberation, and bhagavad-bhakti, devotional service to the Lord, is above even liberation. Therefore the process of devotional service, Krishna consciousness, is extremely difficult to understand. This will be explained later by Prahlāda Mahārāja. The teachers Shanda and Amarka tried to induce Prahlāda Mahārāja to accept the materialistic way of life, but actually their attempt was a failure.

It is essential for a student who is going to be a ruler or king to learn the four diplomatic principles. There is always rivalry between a king and his citizens. Therefore, when a citizen agitates the public against the king, the duty of the king is to call him and try to pacify him with sweet words, saying, “You are very important in the state. Why should you disturb the public with some new cause for agitation?” If the citizen is not pacified, the king should then offer him some lucrative post as a governor or minister — any post that draws a high salary — so that he may be agreeable. If the enemy still goes on agitating the public, the king should try to create dissension in the enemy’s camp, but if he still continues, the king should employ argumentum ad baculum — severe punishment — by putting him in jail or placing him before a firing squad. The teachers appointed by Hiranyakaśipu taught Prahlāda Mahārāja how to be a diplomat so that he could rule over the citizens very nicely.

If a child or disciple falls at the feet of the father or spiritual master, the superior responds by smelling the head of the subordinate.

In this verse, Hiranyakaśipu inquires from his son what he has learned from his guru. Prahlāda Mahārāja’s gurus were of two kinds — Shanda and Amarka, the sons of Śukrācārya in the seminal disciplic succession, were the gurus appointed by his father, but his other guru was the exalted Nārada Muni, who had instructed Prahlāda when Prahlāda was within the womb of his mother. Prahlāda Mahārāja responded to the inquiry of his father with the instructions he had received from his spiritual master, Nārada. Thus there was again a difference of opinion because Prahlāda Mahārāja wanted to relate the best thing he had learned from his spiritual master, whereas Hiranyakaśipu expected to hear about the politics and diplomacy Prahlāda had learned from Shanda and Amarka. Now the dissension between the father and son became increasingly intense as Prahlāda Mahārāja began to say what he had learned from his guru Nārada Muni.

When Prahlāda Mahārāja was asked by his father to say something from whatever he had learned, he considered that what he had learned from his spiritual master was the best of all teachings whereas what he had learned about diplomacy from his material teachers, Shanda and Amarka, was useless. Bhaktih pareśānubhavo viraktir anyatra ca (Bhāg. 11.2.42). This is the symptom of pure devotional service. A pure devotee is interested only in devotional service, not in material affairs. To execute devotional service, one should always engage in hearing and chanting about Krishna, or Lord Vishnu. The process of temple worship is called arcana. How to perform arcana will be explained herein. One should have complete faith in the words of Krishna, who says that He is the great well-wishing friend of everyone (suhridam sarva-bhūtānām). A devotee considers Krishna the only friend. This is called sakhyam. Pumsārpitā vishnau. The word pumsā means “by all living entities.” There are no distinctions permitting only a man or only a brāhmana to offer devotional service to the Lord. Everyone can do so. As confirmed in Bhagavad-gītā (9.32), striyo vaiśyās tathā śūdrās te ’pi yānti parām gatim: although women, vaiśyas and śūdras are considered less intelligent, they also can become devotees and return home, back to Godhead.

After performing sacrifices, sometimes a person engaged in fruitive activity customarily offers the results to Vishnu. But here it is said, bhagavaty addhā: one must directly offer everything to Vishnu. This is called sannyāsa (not merely nyāsa). A tridandi-sannyāsī carries three dandas, signifying kaya-mano-vākya — body, mind and words. All of these should be offered to Vishnu, and then one can begin devotional service. Fruitive workers first perform some pious activities and then formally or officially offer the results to Vishnu. The real devotee, however, first offers his surrender to Krishna with his body, mind and words and then uses his body, mind and words for the service of Krishna as Krishna desires.

Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Thākura gives the following explanation in his Tathya. The word śravana refers to giving aural reception to the holy name and descriptions of the Lord’s form, qualities, entourage and pastimes as explained in Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, Bhagavad-gītā and similar authorized scriptures. After aurally receiving such messages, one should memorize these vibrations and repeat them (kīrtanam). Smaranam means trying to understand more and more about the Supreme Lord, and pāda-sevanam means engaging oneself in serving the lotus feet of the Lord according to the time and circumstances. Arcanam means worshiping Lord Vishnu as one does in the temple, and vandanam means offering respectful obeisances. Man-manā bhava mad-bhakto mad-yājī mām namaskuru. Vandanam means namaskuru — offering obeisances or offering prayers. Thinking oneself to be nitya-krishna-dāsa, everlastingly a servant of Krishna, is called dāsyam, and sakhyam means being a well-wisher of Krishna. Krishna wants everyone to surrender unto Him because everyone is constitutionally His servant. Therefore, as a sincere friend of Krishna, one should preach this philosophy, requesting everyone to surrender unto Krishna. Ātma-nivedanam means offering Krishna everything, including one’s body, mind, intelligence and whatever one may possess.

One’s sincere endeavor to perform these nine processes of devotional service is technically called bhakti. The word addhā means “directly.” One should not be like the karmīs, who perform pious activities and then formally offer the results to Krishna. That is karma-kānda. One should not aspire for the results of his pious activities, but should dedicate oneself fully and then act piously. In other words, one should act for the satisfaction of Lord Vishnu, not for the satisfaction of his own senses. That is the meaning of the word addhā, “directly.”

“One should render transcendental loving service to the Supreme Lord Krishna favorably and without desire for material profit or gain through fruitive activities or philosophical speculation. That is called pure devotional service.” One should simply satisfy Krishna, without being influenced by fruitive knowledge or fruitive activity.

The Gopāla-tāpanī Upanishad says that the word bhakti means engagement in the devotional service of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, not of anyone else. This Upanishad describes that bhakti is the offering of devotional service unto the Supreme Personality of Godhead. To perform devotional service, one should be relieved of the bodily conception of life and aspirations to be happy through elevation to the higher planetary systems. In other words, work performed simply for the satisfaction of the Supreme Lord, without any desire for material benefits, is called bhakti. Bhakti is also called nishkarma, or freedom from the results of fruitive activity. Bhakti and nishkarma are on the same platform, although devotional service and fruitive activity appear almost the same.

The nine different processes enunciated by Prahlāda Mahārāja, who learned them from Nārada Muni, may not all be required for the execution of devotional service; if a devotee performs only one of these nine without deviation, he can attain the mercy of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Sometimes it is found that when one performs one of the processes, other processes are mixed with it. That is not improper for a devotee. When a devotee executes any one of the nine processes (nava-lakshanā), this is sufficient; the other eight processes are included. Now let us discuss these nine different processes.

(1) Śravanam. Hearing of the holy name of the Lord (śravanam) is the beginning of devotional service. Although any one of the nine processes is sufficient, in chronological order the hearing of the holy name of the Lord is the beginning. Indeed, it is essential. As enunciated by Lord Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu, ceto-darpana-mārjanam: by chanting the holy name of the Lord, one is cleansed of the material conception of life, which is due to the dirty modes of material nature. When the dirt is cleansed from the core of one’s heart, one can realize the form of the Supreme Personality of Godhead — īśvarah paramah krishnah sac-cid-ānanda-vigrahah. Thus by hearing the holy name of the Lord, one comes to the platform of understanding the personal form of the Lord. After realizing the Lord’s form, one can realize the transcendental qualities of the Lord, and when one can understand His transcendental qualities one can understand the Lord’s associates. In this way a devotee advances further and further toward complete understanding of the Lord as he awakens in realization of the Lord’s holy name, transcendental form and qualities, His paraphernalia, and everything pertaining to Him. Therefore the chronological process is śravanam kīrtanam vishnoh. This same process of chronological understanding holds true in chanting and remembering. When the chanting of the holy name, form, qualities and paraphernalia is heard from the mouth of a pure devotee, his hearing and chanting are very pleasing. Śrīla Sanātana Gosvāmī has forbidden us to hear the chanting of an artificial devotee or nondevotee.

Hearing from the text of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam is considered the most important process of hearing. Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam is full of transcendental chanting of the holy name, and therefore the chanting and hearing of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam are transcendentally full of mellows. The transcendental holy name of the Lord may be heard and chanted accordingly to the attraction of the devotee. One may chant the holy name of Lord Krishna, or one may chant the holy name of Lord Rāma or Nrisimhadeva (rāmādi-mūrtishu kalā-niyamena tishthan). The Lord has innumerable forms and names, and devotees may meditate upon a particular form and chant the holy name according to his attraction. The best course is to hear of the holy name, form and so on from a pure devotee of the same standard as oneself. In other words, one who is attached to Krishna should chant and hear from other pure devotees who are also attached to Lord Krishna. The same principle applies for devotees attracted by Lord Rāma, Lord Nrisimha and other forms of the Lord. Because Krishna is the ultimate form of the Lord (krishnas tu bhagavān svayam), it is best to hear about Lord Krishna’s name, form and pastimes from a realized devotee who is particularly attracted by the form of Lord Krishna. In Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, great devotees like Śukadeva Gosvāmī have specifically described Lord Krishna’s holy name, form and qualities. Unless one hears about the holy name, form and qualities of the Lord, one cannot clearly understand the other processes of devotional service. Therefore Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu recommends that one chant the holy name of Krishna. Param vijayate śrī-krishna-sankīrtanam. If one is fortunate enough to hear from the mouth of realized devotees, he is very easily successful on the path of devotional service. Therefore hearing of the holy name, form and qualities of the Lord is essential.

In Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam (1.5.11) there is this verse:

“Verses describing the name, form and qualities of Anantadeva, the unlimited Supreme Lord, are able to vanquish all the sinful reactions of the entire world. Therefore even if such verses are improperly composed, devotees hear them, describe them and accept them as bona fide and authorized.” In this connection, Śrīdhara Svāmī has remarked that a pure devotee takes advantage of another pure devotee by trying to hear from him about the holy name, form and qualities of the Lord. If there is no such opportunity, he alone chants and hears the Lord’s holy name.

(2) Kīrtanam. The hearing of the holy name has been described above. Now let us try to understand the chanting of the holy name, which is the second item in the consecutive order. It is recommended that such chanting be performed very loudly. In Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, Nārada Muni says that without shame he began traveling all over the world, chanting the holy name of the Lord. Similarly, Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu has advised:

A devotee can very peacefully chant the holy name of the Lord by behaving more humbly than the grass, being tolerant like a tree and offering respects to everyone, without expecting honor from anyone else. Such qualifications make it easier to chant the holy name of the Lord. The process of transcendental chanting can be easily performed by anyone. Even if one is physically unfit, classified lower than others, devoid of material qualifications or not at all elevated in terms of pious activities, the chanting of the holy name is beneficial. An aristocratic birth, an advanced education, beautiful bodily features, wealth and similar results of pious activities are all unnecessary for advancement in spiritual life, for one can very easily advance simply by chanting the holy name. It is understood from the authoritative source of Vedic literature that especially in this age, Kali-yuga, people are generally short-living, extremely bad in their habits, and inclined to accept methods of devotional service that are not bona fide. Moreover, they are always disturbed by material conditions, and they are mostly unfortunate. Under the circumstances, the performance of other processes, such as yajña, dāna, tapah and kriyā — sacrifices, charity and so on — are not at all possible. Therefore it is recommended:

“In this age of quarrel and hypocrisy the only means of deliverance is chanting of the holy name of the Lord. There is no other way. There is no other way. There is no other way.” Simply by chanting the holy name of the Lord, one advances perfectly in spiritual life. This is the best process for success in life. In other ages, the chanting of the holy name is equally powerful, but especially in this age, Kali-yuga, it is most powerful. Kīrtanād eva krishnasya mukta-sangah param vrajet: simply by chanting the holy name of Krishna, one is liberated and returns home, back to Godhead. Therefore, even if one is able to perform other processes of devotional service, one must adopt the chanting of the holy name as the principal method of advancing in spiritual life. Yajñaih sankīrtana-prāyair yajanti hi sumedhasah: those who are very sharp in their intelligence should adopt this process of chanting the holy names of the Lord. One should not, however, manufacture different types of chanting. One should adhere seriously to the chanting of the holy name as recommended in the scriptures: Hare Krishna, Hare Krishna, Krishna Krishna, Hare Hare/ Hare Rāma, Hare Rāma, Rāma Rāma, Hare Hare.

While chanting the holy name of the Lord, one should be careful to avoid ten offenses. From Sanat-kumāra it is understood that even if a person is a severe offender in many ways, he is freed from offensive life if he takes shelter of the Lord’s holy name. Indeed, even if a human being is no better than a two-legged animal, he will be liberated if he takes shelter of the holy name of the Lord. One should therefore be very careful not to commit offenses at the lotus feet of the Lord’s holy name. The offenses are described as follows: (a) to blaspheme a devotee, especially a devotee engaged in broadcasting the glories of the holy name, (b) to consider the name of Lord Śiva or any other demigod to be equally as powerful as the holy name of the Supreme Personality of Godhead (no one is equal to the Supreme Personality of Godhead, nor is anyone superior to Him), (c) to disobey the instructions of the spiritual master, (d) to blaspheme the Vedic literatures and literatures compiled in pursuance of the Vedic literatures, (e) to comment that the glories of the holy name of the Lord are exaggerated, (f) to interpret the holy name in a deviant way, (g) to commit sinful activities on the strength of chanting the holy name, (h) to compare the chanting of the holy name to pious activities, (i) to instruct the glories of the holy name to a person who has no understanding of the chanting of the holy name, (j) not to awaken in transcendental attachment for the chanting of the holy name, even after hearing all these scriptural injunctions.

There is no way to atone for any of these offenses. It is therefore recommended that an offender at the feet of the holy name continue to chant the holy name twenty-four hours a day. Constant chanting of the holy name will make one free of offenses, and then he will gradually be elevated to the transcendental platform on which he can chant the pure holy name and thus become a lover of the Supreme Personality of Godhead.

It is recommended that even if one commits offenses, one should continue chanting the holy name. In other words, the chanting of the holy name makes one offenseless. In the book Nāma-kaumudī it is recommended that if one is an offender at the lotus feet of a Vaishnava, he should submit to that Vaishnava and be excused; similarly, if one is an offender in chanting the holy name, he should submit to the holy name and thus be freed from his offenses. In this connection there is the following statement, spoken by Daksha to Lord Śiva: “I did not know the glories of your personality, and therefore I committed an offense at your lotus feet in the open assembly. You are so kind, however, that you did not accept my offense. Instead, when I was falling down because of accusing you, you saved me by your merciful glance. You are most great. Kindly excuse me and be satisfied with your own exalted qualities.”

One should be very humble and meek to offer one’s desires and chant prayers composed in glorification of the holy name, such as ayi mukta-kulair upāsya mānam and nivritta-tarshair upagīyamānād. One should chant such prayers to become free from offenses at the lotus feet of the holy name.

(3) Smaranam. After one regularly performs the processes of hearing and chanting and after the core of one’s heart is cleansed, smaranam, remembering, is recommended. In Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam (2.1.11) Śukadeva Gosvāmī tells King Parīkshit:

“O King, for great yogīs who have completely renounced all material connections, for those who desire all material enjoyment and for those who are self-satisfied by dint of transcendental knowledge, constant chanting of the holy name of the Lord is recommended.” According to different relationships with the Supreme Personality of Godhead, there are varieties of nāmānukīrtanam, chanting of the holy name, and thus according to different relationships and mellows there are five kinds of remembering. These are as follows: (a) conducting research into the worship of a particular form of the Lord, (b) concentrating the mind on one subject and withdrawing the mind’s activities of thinking, feeling and willing from all other subjects, (c) concentrating upon a particular form of the Lord (this is called meditation), (d) concentrating one’s mind continuously on the form of the Lord (this is called dhruvānusmriti, or perfect meditation), and (e) awakening a likening for concentration upon a particular form (this is called samādhi, or trance). Mental concentration upon particular pastimes of the Lord in particular circumstances is also called remembrance. Therefore samādhi, trance, can be possible in five different ways in terms of one’s relationship. Specifically, the trance of devotees on the stage of neutrality is called mental concentration.

(4) Pāda-sevanam. According to one’s taste and strength, hearing, chanting and remembrance may be followed by pāda-sevanam. One obtains the perfection of remembering when one constantly thinks of the lotus feet of the Lord. Being intensely attached to thinking of the Lord’s lotus feet is called pāda-sevanam. When one is particularly adherent to the process of pāda-sevanam, this process gradually includes other processes, such as seeing the form of the Lord, touching the form of the Lord, circumambulating the form or temple of the Lord, visiting such places as Jagannātha Purī, Dvārakā and Mathurā to see the Lord’s form, and bathing in the Ganges or Yamunā. Bathing in the Ganges and serving a pure Vaishnava are also known as tadīya-upāsanam. This is also pāda-sevanam. The word tadīya means “in relationship with the Lord.” Service to the Vaishnava, Tulasī, Ganges and Yamunā are included in pāda-sevanam. All these processes of pāda-sevanam help one advance in spiritual life very quickly.

(5) Arcanam. After pāda-sevanam comes the process of arcanam, worship of the Deity. If one is interested in the process of arcanam, one must positively take shelter of a bona fide spiritual master and learn the process from him. There are many books for arcana, especially Nārada-pañcarātra. In this age, the Pañcarātra system is particularly recommended for arcana, Deity worship. There are two systems of arcana — the bhāgavata system and pāñcarātrikī system. In the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam there is no recommendation of pāñcarātrikī worship because in this Kali-yuga, even without Deity worship, everything can be perfectly performed simply through hearing, chanting, remembering and worship of the lotus feet of the Lord. Rūpa Gosvāmī states:

“Parīkshit Mahārāja attained salvation simply by hearing, and Śukadeva Gosvāmī attained salvation simply by chanting. Prahlāda Mahārāja attained salvation by remembering the Lord. The goddess of fortune, Lakshmīdevī, attained perfection by worshiping the Lord’s lotus feet. Prithu Mahārāja attained salvation by worshiping the Deity of the Lord. Akrūra attained salvation by offering prayers, Hanumān by rendering service, Arjuna by establishing friendship with the Lord, and Bali Mahārāja by offering everything to the service of the Lord.” All these great devotees served the Lord according to a particular process, but every one of them attained salvation and became eligible to return home, back to Godhead. This is explained in Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam.

It is therefore recommended that initiated devotees follow the principles of Nārada-pañcarātra by worshiping the Deity in the temple. Especially for householder devotees who are opulent in material possessions, the path of Deity worship is strongly recommended. An opulent householder devotee who does not engage his hard-earned money in the service of the Lord is called a miser. One should not engage paid brāhmanas to worship the Deity. If one does not personally worship the Deity but engages paid servants instead, he is considered lazy, and his worship of the Deity is called artificial. An opulent householder can collect luxurious paraphernalia for Deity worship, and consequently for householder devotees the worship of the Deity is compulsory. In our Krishna consciousness movement there are brahmacārīs, grihasthas, vānaprasthas and sannyāsīs, but the Deity worship in the temple should be performed especially by the householders. The brahmacārīs can go with the sannyāsīs to preach, and the vānaprasthas should prepare themselves for the next status of renounced life, sannyāsa. Grihastha devotees, however, are generally engaged in material activities, and therefore if they do not take to Deity worship, their falling down is positively assured. Deity worship means following the rules and regulations precisely. That will keep one steady in devotional service. Generally householders have children, and then the wives of the householders should be engaged in caring for the children, just as women acting as teachers care for the children in a nursery school.

Grihastha devotees must adopt the arcana-vidhi, or Deity worship according to the suitable arrangements and directions given by the spiritual master. Regarding those unable to take to the Deity worship in the temple, there is the following statement in the Agni Purāna. Any householder devotee circumstantially unable to worship the Deity must at least see the Deity worship, and in this way he may achieve success also. The special purpose of Deity worship is to keep oneself always pure and clean. Grihastha devotees should be actual examples of cleanliness.

Deity worship should be continued along with hearing and chanting. Therefore every mantra is preceded by the word namah. In all the mantras there are specific potencies, of which the grihastha devotees must take advantage. There are many mantras preceded by the word namah, but if one chants the holy name of the Lord, he receives the result of chanting namah many times. By chanting the holy name of the Lord, one can reach the platform of love of Godhead. One might ask, then what is the necessity of being initiated? The answer is that even though the chanting of the holy name is sufficient to enable one to progress in spiritual life to the standard of love of Godhead, one is nonetheless susceptible to contamination because of possessing a material body. Consequently, special stress is given to the arcana-vidhi. One should therefore regularly take advantage of both the bhāgavata process and pāñcarātrikī process.

Deity worship has two divisions, namely pure and mixed with fruitive activities. For one who is steady, Deity worship is compulsory. Observing the various types of festivals, such as Śrī Janmāshtamī, Rāma-navamī and Nrisimha-caturdaśī, is also included in the process of Deity worship. In other words, it is compulsory for householder devotees to observe these festivals.

Now let us discuss the offenses in Deity worship. The following are offenses: (a) to enter the temple with shoes or being carried on a palanquin, (b) not to observe the prescribed festivals, (c) to avoid offering obeisances in front of the Deity, (d) to offer prayers in an unclean state, not having washed one’s hands after eating, (e) to offer obeisances with one hand, (f) to circumambulate directly in front of the Deity, (g) to spread one’s legs before the Deity, (h) to sit before the Deity while holding one’s ankles with one’s hands, (i) to lie down before the Deity, (j) to eat before the Deity, (k) to speak lies before the Deity, (l) to address someone loudly before the Deity, (m) to talk nonsense before the Deity, (n) to cry before the Deity, (o) to argue before the Deity, (p) to chastise someone before the Deity, (q) to show someone favor before the Deity, (r) to use harsh words before the Deity, (s) to wear a woolen blanket before the Deity, (t) to blaspheme someone before the Deity, (u) to worship someone else before the Deity, (v) to use vulgar language before the Deity, (w) to pass air before the Deity, (x) to avoid very opulent worship of the Deity, even though one is able to perform it, (y) to eat something not offered to the Deity, (z) to avoid offering fresh fruits to the Deity according to the season, (aa) to offer food to the Deity which has already been used or from which has first been given to others (in other words, food should not be distributed to anyone else until it has been offered to the Deity), (bb) to sit with one’s back toward the Deity, (cc) to offer obeisances to someone else in front of the Deity, (dd) not to chant proper prayers when offering obeisances to the spiritual master, (ee) to praise oneself before the Deity, and (ff) to blaspheme the demigods. In the worship of the Deity, these thirty-two offenses should be avoided.

In the Varāha Purāna the following offenses are mentioned: (a) to eat in the house of a rich man, (b) to enter the Deity’s room in the dark, (c) to worship the Deity without following the regulative principles, (d) to enter the temple without vibrating any sound, (e) to collect food that has been seen by a dog, (f) to break silence while offering worship to the Deity, (g) to go to the toilet during the time of worshiping the Deity, (h) to offer incense without offering flowers, (i) to worship the Deity with forbidden flowers, (j) to begin worship without having washed one’s teeth, (k) to begin worship after sex, (l) to touch a lamp, dead body or a woman during her menstrual period, or to put on red or bluish clothing, unwashed clothing, the clothing of others or soiled clothing. Other offenses are to worship the Deity after seeing a dead body, to pass air before the Deity, to show anger before the Deity, and to worship the Deity just after returning from a crematorium. After eating, one should not worship the Deity until one has digested his food, nor should one touch the Deity or engage in any Deity worship after eating safflower oil or hing. These are also offenses.

In other places, the following offenses are listed: (a) to be against the scriptural injunctions of the Vedic literature or to disrespect within one’s heart the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam while externally falsely accepting its principles, (b) to introduce differing śāstras, (c) to chew pan and betel before the Deity, (d) to keep flowers for worship on the leaf of a castor oil plant, (e) to worship the Deity in the afternoon, (f) to sit on the altar or to sit on the floor to worship the Deity (without a seat), (g) to touch the Deity with the left hand while bathing the Deity, (h) to worship the Deity with a stale or used flower, (i) to spit while worshiping the Deity, (j) to advertise one’s glory while worshiping the Deity, (k) to apply tilaka to one’s forehead in a curved way, (l) to enter the temple without having washed one’s feet, (m) to offer the Deity food cooked by an uninitiated person, (n) to worship the Deity and offer bhoga to the Deity within the vision of an uninitiated person or non-Vaishnava, (o) to offer worship to the Deity without worshiping Vaikuntha deities like Ganeśa, (p) to worship the Deity while perspiring, (q) to refuse flowers offered to the Deity, (r) to take a vow or oath in the holy name of the Lord.

If one commits any of the above offenses, one must read at least one chapter of Bhagavad-gītā. This is confirmed in the Skanda-Purāna, Avantī-khanda. Similarly, there is another injunction, stating that one who reads the thousand names of Vishnu can be released from all offenses. In the same Skanda-Purāna, Revā-khanda, it is said that one who recites prayers to tulasī or sows a tulasī seed is also freed from all offenses. Similarly, one who worships the śālagrāma-śilā can also be relieved of offenses. In the Brahmānda Purāna it is said that one who worships Lord Vishnu, whose four hands bear a conchshell, disc, lotus flower and club, can be relieved from the above offenses. In the Ādi-varāha Purāna it is said that a worshiper who has committed offenses may fast for one day at the holy place known as Śaukarava and then bathe in the Ganges.

In the process of worshiping the Deity it is sometimes enjoined that one worship the Deity within the mind. In the Padma Purāna, Uttara-khanda, it is said, “All persons can generally worship within the mind.” The Gautamīya Tantra states, “For a sannyāsī who has no home, worship of the Deity within the mind is recommended.” In the Nārada-pañcarātra it is stated by Lord Nārāyana that worship of the Deity within the mind is called mānasa-pūjā. One can become free from the four miseries by this method. Sometimes worship from the mind can be independently executed. According to the instruction of Āvirhotra Muni, one of the nava-yogendras, as mentioned in Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, one may worship the Deity by chanting all the mantras. Eight kinds of Deities are mentioned in the śāstra, and the mental Deity is one of them. In this regard, the following description is given in the Brahma-vaivarta Purāna.

In the city of Pratishthāna-pura, long ago, there resided a brāhmana who was poverty-stricken but innocent and not dissatisfied. One day he heard a discourse in an assembly of brāhmanas concerning how to worship the Deity in the temple. In that meeting, he also heard that the Deity may be worshiped within the mind. After this incident, the brāhmana, having bathed in the Godāvarī River, began mentally worshiping the Deity. He would wash the temple within his mind, and then in his imagination he would bring water from all the sacred rivers in golden and silver waterpots. He collected all kinds of valuable paraphernalia for worship, and he worshiped the Deity very gorgeously, beginning from bathing the Deity and ending with offering ārati. Thus he felt great happiness. After many years had passed in this way, one day within his mind he cooked nice sweet rice with ghee to worship the Deity. He placed the sweet rice on a golden dish and offered it to Lord Krishna, but he felt that the sweet rice was very hot, and therefore he touched it with his finger. He immediately felt that his finger had been burned by the hot sweet rice, and thus he began to lament. While the brāhmana was in pain, Lord Vishnu in Vaikuntha began smiling, and the goddess of fortune inquired from the Lord why He was smiling. Lord Vishnu then ordered His associates to bring the brāhmana to Vaikuntha. Thus the brāhmana attained the liberation of sāmīpya, the facility of living near the Supreme Personality of Godhead.

(6) Vandanam. Although prayers are a part of Deity worship, they may be considered separately like the other items, such as hearing and chanting, and therefore separate statements are given herewith. The Lord has unlimited transcendental qualities and opulences, and one who feels influenced by the Lord’s qualities in various activities offers prayers to the Lord. In this way he becomes successful. In this connection, the following are some of the offenses to be avoided: (a) to offer obeisances on one hand, (b) to offer obeisances with one’s body covered, (c) to show one’s back to the Deity, (d) to offer obeisances on the left side of the Deity, (e) to offer obeisances very near the Deity.

(7) Dāsyam. There is the following statement in regard to assisting the Lord as a servant. After many, many thousands of births, when one comes to understand that he is an eternal servant of Krishna, one can deliver others from this universe. If one simply continues to think that he is an eternal servant of Krishna, even without performing any other process of devotional service, he can attain full success, for simply by this feeling one can perform all nine processes of devotional service.

(8) Sakhyam. In regard to worshiping the Lord as a friend, the Agastya-samhitā states that a devotee engaged in performing devotional service by śravanam and kīrtanam sometimes wants to see the Lord personally, and for this purpose he resides in the temple. Elsewhere there is this statement: “O my Lord, Supreme Personality and eternal friend, although You are full of bliss and knowledge, You have become the friend of the residents of Vrindāvana. How fortunate are these devotees!” In this statement the word “friend” is specifically used to indicate intense love. Friendship, therefore, is better than servitude. In the stage above dāsya-rasa, the devotee accepts the Supreme Personality of Godhead as a friend. This is not at all astonishing, for when a devotee is pure in heart the opulence of his worship of the Deity diminishes as spontaneous love for the Personality of Godhead is manifested. In this regard, Śrīdhara Svāmī mentions Śrīdāma Vipra, who expressed to himself his feelings of obligation, thinking, “Life after life, may I be connected with Krishna in this friendly attitude.”

(9) Ātma-nivedanam. The word ātma-nivedanam refers to the stage at which one who has no motive other than to serve the Lord surrenders everything to the Lord and performs his activities only to please the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Such a devotee is like a cow that is cared for by its master. When cared for by its master, a cow is not in anxiety over its maintenance. Such a cow is always devoted to its master, and it never acts independently, but only for the master’s benefit. Some devotees, therefore, consider dedication of the body to the Lord to be ātma-nivedanam, and as stated in the book known as Bhakti-viveka, sometimes dedication of the soul to the Lord is called ātma-nivedanam. The best examples of ātma-nivedanam are found in Bali Mahārāja and Ambarīsha Mahārāja. Ātma-nivedanam is also sometimes found in the behavior of Rukminīdevī at Dvārakā.

In this verse the word asāram, meaning, “having no substance,” is significant. For a demon there is no substance in the process of devotional service, but to a devotee devotional service is the only essential factor in life. Since Hiranyakaśipu did not like devotional service, the essence of life, he chastised Prahlāda Mahārāja’s teachers with harsh words.

Being anxious about the education of his boy Prahlāda, Hiranyakaśipu was very much dissatisfied. When Prahlāda began teaching about devotional service, Hiranyakaśipu immediately regarded the teachers as his enemies in the garb of friends. In this verse the words rogah pātakinām iva refer to disease, which is the most sinful and miserable of the conditions of material life (janma-mrityu-jarā-vyādhi). Disease is the symptom of the body of a sinful person. The smriti-śāstras say:

Murderers of brāhmanas are later afflicted by tuberculosis, drunkards become toothless, those who have stolen gold are afflicted by diseased nails, and sinful men who have sexual connections with the wife of a superior are afflicted by leprosy and similar skin diseases.

Śrīla Viśvanātha Cakravartī Thākura explains that devotional service is actually bhadrā satī, not abhadra asatī. In other words, knowledge of devotional service can be neither inauspicious nor contrary to etiquette. To learn devotional service is the duty of everyone. Therefore the spontaneous education of Prahlāda Mahārāja is supported as auspicious and perfect.

In this verse the words matir na krishne refer to devotional service rendered to Krishna. So-called politicians, erudite scholars and philosophers who read Bhagavad-gītā try to twist some meaning from it to suit their material purposes, but their misunderstandings of Krishna will not yield them any profit. Because such politicians, philosophers and scholars are interested in using Bhagavad-gītā as a vehicle for adjusting things materially, for them constant thought of Krishna, or Krishna consciousness, is impossible (matir na krishne). As stated in Bhagavad-gītā (18.55), bhaktyā mām abhijānāti: only through devotional service can one understand Krishna as He is. The so-called politicians and scholars think of Krishna as fictitious. The politician says that his Krishna is different from the Krishna depicted in Bhagavad-gītā. Even though he accepts Krishna and Rāma as the Supreme he thinks of Rāma and Krishna as impersonal because he has no idea of service to Krishna. Thus his only business is punah punaś carvita-carvanānām — chewing the chewed again and again. The aim of such politicians and academic scholars is to enjoy this material world with their bodily senses. Therefore it is clearly stated here that those who are griha-vrata, whose only aim is to live comfortably with the body in the material world, cannot understand Krishna. The two expressions griha-vrata and carvita-carvanānām indicate that a materialistic person tries to enjoy sense gratification in different bodily forms, life after life, but is still unsatisfied. In the name of personalism, this ism or that ism, such persons always remain attached to the materialistic way of life. As stated in Bhagavad-gītā (2.44):

“In the minds of those who are too attached to sense enjoyment and material opulence, and who are bewildered by such things, the resolute determination for devotional service to the Supreme Lord does not take place.” Those who are attached to material enjoyment cannot be fixed in devotional service to the Lord. They cannot understand Bhagavān, Krishna, or His instruction, Bhagavad-gītā. Adānta-gobhir viśatām tamisram: their path actually leads toward hellish life.

As confirmed by Rishabhadeva, mahat-sevām dvāram āhur vimukteh: one must try to understand Krishna by serving a devotee. The word mahat refers to a devotee.

“O son of Prithā, those who are not deluded, the great souls, are under the protection of the divine nature. They are fully engaged in devotional service because they know Me as the Supreme Personality of Godhead, original and inexhaustible.” (Bg. 9.13) A mahātmā is one who is constantly engaged in devotional service, twenty-four hours a day. As explained in the following verses, unless one adheres to such a great personality, one cannot understand Krishna. Hiranyakaśipu wanted to know where Prahlāda had gotten this Krishna consciousness. Who had taught him? Prahlāda sarcastically replied, “My dear father, persons like you never understand Krishna. One can understand Krishna only by serving a mahat, a great soul. Those who try to adjust material conditions are said to be chewing the chewed. No one has been able to adjust material conditions, but life after life, generation after generation, people try and repeatedly fail. Unless one is properly trained by a mahat — a mahātmā, or unalloyed devotee of the Lord — there is no possibility of one’s understanding Krishna and His devotional service.”

Since there must always be a difference of opinion between demons and devotees, Hiranyakaśipu, when criticized by his son Prahlāda Mahārāja, should not have been surprised that Prahlāda Mahārāja differed from his way of life. Nonetheless, Hiranyakaśipu was extremely angry and wanted to rebuke his son for deriding his teacher or spiritual master, who had been born in the brāhmana family of the great ācārya Śukrācārya. The word śukra means “semen,” and ācārya refers to a teacher or guru. Hereditary gurus, or spiritual masters, have been accepted everywhere since time immemorial, but Prahlāda Mahārāja declined to accept such a seminal guru or take instruction from him. An actual guru is śrotriya, one who has heard or received perfect knowledge through paramparā, the disciplic succession. Therefore Prahlāda Mahārāja did not recognize a seminal spiritual master. Such spiritual masters are not at all interested in Vishnu. Indeed, they are hopeful of material success (bahir-artha-māninah). The word bahih means “external,” artha means “interest,” and mānina means “taking very seriously.” Generally speaking, practically everyone is unaware of the spiritual world. The knowledge of the materialists is restricted within the four-billion-mile limit of this material world, which is in the dark portion of the creation; they do not know that beyond the material world is the spiritual world. Unless one is a devotee of the Lord, one cannot understand the existence of the spiritual world. Gurus, teachers, who are simply interested in this material world are described in this verse as andha, blind. Such blind men may lead many other blind followers without true knowledge of material conditions, but they are not accepted by devotees like Prahlāda Mahārāja. Such blind teachers, being interested in the external, material world, are always bound by the strong ropes of material nature.

Becoming Krishna conscious brings about anartha-apagamah, the disappearance of all anarthas, the miserable conditions we have unnecessarily accepted. The material body is the basic principle of these unwanted miserable conditions. The entire Vedic civilization is meant to relieve one from these unwanted miseries, but persons bound by the laws of nature do not know the destination of life. As described in the previous verse, īśa-tantryām uru-dāmni baddhāh: they are conditioned by the three strong modes of material nature. The education that keeps the conditioned soul bound life after life is called materialistic education. Śrīla Bhaktivinoda Thākura has explained that materialistic education expands the influence of māyā. Such an education induces the conditioned soul to be increasingly attracted to materialistic life and to stray further and further away from liberation from unwanted miseries.

One may ask why highly educated persons do not take to Krishna consciousness. The reason is explained in this verse. Unless one takes shelter of a bona fide, fully Krishna conscious spiritual master, there is no chance of understanding Krishna. The educators, scholars and big political leaders worshiped by millions of people cannot understand the goal of life and take to Krishna consciousness, for they have not accepted a bona fide spiritual master and the Vedas. Therefore in the Mundaka Upanishad (3.2.3) it is said, nāyam ātmā pravacanena labhyo na medhayā na bahunā śrutena: one cannot become self-realized simply by having an academic education, by presenting lectures in an erudite way (pravacanena labhyah), or by being an intelligent scientist who discovers many wonderful things. One cannot understand Krishna unless one is graced by the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Only one who has surrendered to a pure devotee of Krishna and taken the dust of his lotus feet can understand Krishna. First one must understand how to get out of the clutches of māyā. The only means is to become Krishna conscious. And to become Krishna conscious very easily, one must take shelter of a realized soul — a mahat, or mahātmā — whose only interest is to engage in the service of the Supreme Lord. As the Lord says in Bhagavad-gītā (9.13):

“O son of Prithā, those who are not deluded, the great souls, are under the protection of the divine nature. They are fully engaged in devotional service because they know Me as the Supreme Personality of Godhead, original and inexhaustible.” Therefore, to end the unwanted miseries of life, one must become a devotee.

“One who has unflinching devotional faith in Krishna consistently manifests all the good qualities of Krishna and the demigods.” (Bhāg. 5.18.12)

“Only unto those great souls who have implicit faith in both the Lord and the spiritual master are all the imports of Vedic knowledge automatically revealed.” (Śvetāśvatara Upanishad 6.23)

“The Lord is obtained only by one whom He Himself chooses. To such a person He manifests His own form.” (Mundaka Upanishad 3.2.3)

These are Vedic injunctions. One must take shelter of a self-realized spiritual master, not a materially educated scholar or politician. One must take shelter of a nishkiñcana, a person engaged in devotional service and free from material contamination. That is the way to return home, back to Godhead.

Hiranyakaśipu considered his son Prahlāda Mahārāja to be the killer of his brother because Prahlāda Mahārāja was engaged in the devotional service of Lord Vishnu. In other words, Prahlāda Mahārāja would be elevated to sārūpya liberation, and in that sense he resembled Lord Vishnu. Therefore Prahlāda was to be killed by Hiranyakaśipu. Devotees, Vaishnavas, attain the liberations of sārūpya, sālokya, sārshti and sāmīpya, whereas the Māyāvādīs are supposed to attain the liberation known as sāyujya. Sāyujya-mukti, however, is not very secure, whereas sārūpya-mukti, sālokya-mukti, sārshti-mukti and sāmīpya-mukti are most certain. Although the servants of Lord Vishnu, Nārāyana, in the Vaikuntha planets are equally situated with the Lord, the devotees there know very well that the Lord is the master whereas they are servants.

Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu has instructed all devotees of the Lord to be humbler than the grass and more tolerant than trees; otherwise there will always be disturbances to their execution of devotional service. Here is a vivid example of how a devotee is disturbed by a nondevotee, even though the nondevotee is an affectionate father. The material world is such that a nondevotee father becomes an enemy of a devotee son. Having determined to kill even his son, Hiranyakaśipu gave the example of amputating a part of one’s body that has become septic and therefore injurious to the rest of the body. The same example, of course, may also be applied to nondevotees. Cānakya Pandita advises, tyaja durjana-samsargam bhaja sādhu-samāgamam. Devotees actually serious about advancing in spiritual life should give up the company of nondevotees and always keep company with devotees. To be too attached to material existence is ignorance because material existence is temporary and miserable. Therefore devotees who are determined to perform tapasya (penances and austerities) to realize the self, and who are determined to become advanced in spiritual consciousness, must give up the company of atheistic nondevotees. Prahlāda Mahārāja maintained an attitude of noncooperation with the philosophy of his father, Hiranyakaśipu, yet he was tolerant and humble. Hiranyakaśipu, however, being a nondevotee, was so polluted that he was even prepared to kill his own son. He justified this by putting forward the logic of amputation.

Hiranyakaśipu planned a campaign to kill Prahlāda Mahārāja. He would kill his son by administering poison to him while he was eating, by making him sit in boiling oil, or by throwing him under the feet of an elephant while he was lying down. Thus Hiranyakaśipu decided to kill his innocent child, who was only five years old, simply because the boy had become a devotee of the Lord. This is the attitude of nondevotees toward devotees.

Prahlāda Mahārāja was constantly and fully engaged in thought of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. As it is said, govinda-parirambhitah. Prahlāda Mahārāja engaged himself always in meditation, and thus he was protected by Govinda. Just as a small child on the lap of his father or mother is fully protected, a devotee, in all conditions, is protected by the Supreme Lord. Does this mean that when Prahlāda Mahārāja was attacked by the demons, the Rākshasas, Govinda was also attacked by the demons? This is not possible. There have been many attempts by the demons to hurt or kill the Supreme Personality of Godhead, but He cannot be injured by any material means because He is always in transcendence. Therefore the words pare brahmani are used here. The demons, the Rākshasas, can neither see nor touch the Supreme Lord, although they may superficially think that they are striking the Lord’s transcendental body with their material weapons. The Supreme Personality of Godhead is described in this verse as anirdeśye. We cannot understand Him to be in a particular place, for He is all-pervasive. Moreover, He is akhilātmā, the active principle of everything, even material weapons. Those who cannot understand the position of the Lord are unfortunate. They may think that they can kill the Supreme Personality of Godhead and His devotee, but all their attempts will be futile. The Lord knows how to deal with them.

The word śunah means “of a dog,” and śepa means “tail.” The example is ordinary. However one may try to straighten a dog’s tail, it is never straight but always curved. Śunah śepa is also the name of the second son of Ajīgarta. He was sold to Hariścandra, but he later took shelter of Viśvāmitra, Hariścandra’s enemy, and never left his side.

Hiranyakaśipu wanted Prahlāda Mahārāja to be trained as a diplomatic king in ruling the kingdom, the country or the world, but not to be advised about renunciation or the renounced order of life. The word dharma here does not refer to some religious faith. As clearly stated, dharmo hy asyopadeshtavyo rājñām yo griha-medhinām. There are two kinds of royal families — one whose members are simply attached to household life and the other consisting of rājarshis, kings who govern with ruling power but are as good as great saints. Prahlāda Mahārāja wanted to become a rājarshi, whereas Hiranyakaśipu wanted him to become a king attached to sense enjoyment (griha-medhinām). Therefore in the Āryan system there is varnāśrama-dharma, by which everyone should be educated according to his position in society’s division of varna (brāhmana, kshatriya, vaiśya and śūdra) and āśrama (brahmacarya, grihastha, vānaprastha and sannyāsa).

A devotee purified by devotional service is always in the transcendental position above the mundane qualities. Thus the difference between Prahlāda Mahārāja and Hiranyakaśipu was that Hiranyakaśipu wanted to keep Prahlāda in mundane attachment whereas Prahlāda was above the modes of material nature. As long as one is under the control of material nature, his occupational duty is different from that of a person not under such control. One’s real dharma, or occupational duty, is described in Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam (dharmam tu sākshād bhagavat-pranītam). As described to his order carriers by Dharmarāja, or Yamarāja, a living being is a spiritual identity, and therefore his occupational duty is also spiritual. The real dharma is that which is advised in Bhagavad-gītā: sarva-dharmān parityajya mām ekam śaranam vraja. One must give up one’s material occupational duties, just as one must give up his material body. Whatever one’s occupational duty, even according to the varnāśrama system, one must give it up and engage in one’s spiritual function. One’s real dharma, or occupational duty, is explained by Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu. Jīvera ‘svarūpa’ haya — krishnera ‘nitya-dāsa’: every living being is an eternal servant of Krishna. That is one’s real occupational duty.

There are four processes for human society — dharma, artha, kāma and moksha — and they culminate in liberation. Human society must follow a process of religion to advance, and on the basis of religion one should try to develop his economic condition so that he can fulfill his needs for sense gratification according to the religious rules and regulations. Then liberation from material bondage will be easier to attain. That is the Vedic process. When one is above the stages of dharma, artha, kāma and moksha, one becomes a devotee. He is then on the platform from which he is guaranteed not to fall again to material existence (yad gatvā na nivartante). As advised in Bhagavad-gītā if one transcends these four processes and is actually liberated, one engages in devotional service. Then he is guaranteed not to fall to material existence again.

The entire world is interested in the materialistic way of life. Indeed, practically 99.9 percent of the people in the three worlds are uninterested in liberation or spiritual education. Only the devotees of the Lord, headed by such great personalities as Prahlāda Mahārāja and Nārada Muni, are interested in the real education of spiritual life. One cannot understand the principles of religion while staying on the material platform. Therefore one must follow these great personalities. As stated in Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam (6.3.20):

One must follow in the footsteps of such great personalities as Lord Brahmā, Nārada, Lord Śiva, Kapila, Manu, the Kumāras, Prahlāda Mahārāja, Bhīshma, Janaka, Bali Mahārāja, Śukadeva Gosvāmī and Yamarāja. Those interested in spiritual life should follow Prahlāda Mahārāja in rejecting the education of religion, economic development and sense gratification. One should be interested in spiritual education. Therefore the Krishna consciousness movement is spreading all over the world, following in the footsteps of Prahlāda Mahārāja, who did not like any of the materialistic education he received from his teachers.

In tiffin hours, the hours when the teachers were absent from the classroom, the students called Prahlāda Mahārāja, wanting to play with him. As will be seen from the following verses, however, Prahlāda Mahārāja was not very much interested in playing. Instead, he wanted to utilize every moment for advancing in Krishna consciousness. Therefore, as indicated in this verse by the word krita-kshanaih, at the opportune moment when it was possible to preach about Krishna consciousness, Prahlāda Mahārāja used the time as follows.

Prahlāda Mahārāja’s smiling is very significant. The other students were very much advanced in enjoying materialistic life through religion, economic development and sense gratification, but Prahlāda Mahārāja laughed at them, knowing that this was not actual happiness, for real happiness is advancement in Krishna consciousness. The duty of those who follow in the footsteps of Prahlāda Mahārāja is to teach the entire world how to be Krishna conscious and thus be really happy. Materialistic persons take to so-called religion to get some blessings so that they can improve their economic position and enjoy the material world through sense gratification. But devotees like Prahlāda Mahārāja laugh at how foolish they are to be busy in a temporary life without knowledge of the soul’s transmigration from one body to another. Materialistic persons are engaged in striving for temporary benefits, whereas persons advanced in spiritual knowledge, such as Prahlāda Mahārāja, are not interested in the materialistic way of life. Instead, they want to be elevated to an eternal life of knowledge and bliss. Therefore, as Krishna is always compassionate to the fallen souls, His servants, the devotees of Lord Krishna, are also interested in educating the entire populace in Krishna consciousness. The mistake of materialistic life is understood by devotees, and therefore they smile upon it, considering it insignificant. Out of compassion, however, such devotees preach the gospel of Bhagavad-gītā all over the world.

The words bālā adūshita-dhiyah indicate that the children, being of a tender age, were not as polluted by materialistic life as their fathers. Prahlāda Mahārāja, therefore, taking advantage of the innocence of his class friends, began teaching them about the importance of spiritual life and the insignificance of materialistic life. Although the teachers Shanda and Amarka were instructing all the boys in the materialistic life of religion, economic development and sense gratification, the boys were not much polluted. Therefore, with great attention they wanted to hear from Prahlāda Mahārāja about Krishna consciousness. In our Krishna consciousness movement, the gurukula plays an extremely important part in our activities because right from childhood the boys at the gurukula are instructed about Krishna consciousness. Thus they become steady within the cores of their hearts, and there is very little possibility that they will be conquered by the modes of material nature when they are older.