TEACHINGS OF QUEEN KUNTI
Chapter 23:

Srimad Bhagavatm 1.8.40 
ime jana-padāḥ svṛddhāḥ
supakvauṣadhi-vīrudhaḥ
vanādri-nady-udanvanto
hy edhante tava vīkṣitaiḥ

ime — all these; jana-padāḥ — cities and towns; svṛddhāḥ — flourished; supakva — mature; auṣadhi — herbs; vīrudhaḥ — vegetables; vana — forests; adri — hills; nadī — rivers; udanvantaḥ — seas; hi — certainly; edhante — increasing; tava — by You; vīkṣitaiḥ — seen.

Translation:

All these cities and villages are flourishing in all respects because the herbs and grains are in abundance, the trees are full of fruits, the rivers are flowing, the hills are full of minerals and the oceans full of wealth. And this is all due to Your glancing over them.

JOURNAL:

Srila Prabhupada begins this discussion with the topic of meat eating vs. vegetarianism.

Kuntidevi mentions that the grains are abundant, the trees full of fruits, the rivers flowing nicely, the hills full of minerals, and the oceans full of wealth, but she never mentions that industry and slaughterhouses are flourishing, for such things are nonsense that men have developed to create problems.

He points out:

The Brahma-samhita (5.32) says,

angani yasya sakalendriya-vrttimanti:

every part of Krsna's body has all the capabilities of the other parts. With our eyes we can only see, but Krsna, merely by seeing, can make others pregnant.

He states the obvious:

If Krsna likes, He can produce a huge quantity of grains, fruits, and vegetables, but if Krsna desires to restrict the supply, what good will meat do? You may eat me, or I may eat you, but that will not solve the problem.

He ends with the positive:

This is what Bhaktivinoda Thakura teaches us when he says, marabi rakhabi--yo iccha tohara: "My dear Lord, I simply surrender unto You and depend on You. Now if You like You may kill me, or else You may give me protection." And Krsna says in reply, "Yes. Sarva-dharman paritajya mam ekam saranam vraja: simply surrender exclusively unto Me." He does not say, "Yes, depend on Me, and also depend on your slaughterhouses and factories."

SLOKA OF THE DAY:

Śrīmad Bhāgavatam 10.18.2-3
vraje vikrīḍator evaṁ
gopāla-cchadma-māyayā
grīṣmo nāmartur abhavan
nāti-preyāñ charīriṇām


sa ca vṛndāvana-guṇair
vasanta iva lakṣitaḥ
yatrāste bhagavān sākṣād
rāmeṇa saha keśavaḥ

vraje — in Vṛndāvana; vikrīḍatoḥ — while the two of Them were sporting; evam — in this way; gopāla — as cowherd boys; chadma — of the disguise; māyayā — by the illusion; grīṣmaḥ — summer; nāma — thus designated; ṛtuḥ — the season; abhavat — came about; na — not; ati-preyān — very much favored; śarīriṇām — by embodied beings. saḥ — this (hot season); ca — nevertheless; vṛndāvana — of Śrī Vṛndāvana; guṇaiḥ — by the transcendental qualities; vasantaḥ — springtime; iva — as if; lakṣitaḥ — manifesting symptoms; yatra — in which (Vṛndāvana); āste — remains; bhagavān — the Supreme Personality of Godhead; sākṣāt — personally; rāmeṇa saha — together with Lord Balarāma; keśavaḥ — Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa.

TRANSLATION

While Kṛṣṇa and Balarāma were thus enjoying life in Vṛndāvana in the guise of ordinary cowherd boys, the summer season gradually appeared. This season is not very pleasing to embodied souls. Nevertheless, because the Supreme Personality of Godhead was personally staying in Vṛndāvana along with Balarāma, summer manifested the qualities of spring. Such are the features of the land of Vṛndāvana.

JOURNAL:

Today it is over 100 degrees here. Many of the people around me are complaining. I like this sloka because it points out that when one is with Sri Krishna discomfort can become very comfortable.

SLOKA OF THE WEEK:

Śrīmad Bhāgavatam 12.8.16 
gandharvāpsarasaḥ kāmaṁ
vasanta-malayānilau
munaye preṣayām āsa
rajas-toka-madau tathā

gandharva-apsarasaḥ — the celestial singers and dancing girls; kāmam — Cupid; vasanta — the spring season; malaya-anilau — and the refreshing breeze from the Malaya Hills; munaye — to the sage; preṣayām āsa — he sent; rajaḥ-toka — the child of passion, greed; madau — and intoxication; tathā — also.

TRANSLATION

To ruin the sage’s spiritual practice, Lord Indra sent Cupid, beautiful celestial singers, dancing girls, the season of spring and the sandalwood-scented breeze from the Malaya Hills, along with greed and intoxication personified.

Srimad Bhagavatam 1.8.35

Srimad Bhagavatam 1.8.26

SLOKA OF THE WEEK:

Śrīmad Bhāgavatam 10.20.4
sāndra-nīlāmbudair vyoma
sa-vidyut-stanayitnubhiḥ
aspaṣṭa-jyotir ācchannaḿ
brahmeva sa-guṇaḿ babhau

sāndra — dense; nīla — blue; ambudaiḥ — by the clouds; vyoma — the sky; sa-vidyut — along with lightning; stanayitnubhiḥ — and thunder; aspaṣṭa — diffuse; jyotiḥ — its illumination; ācchannam — covered; brahma — the spirit soul; iva — as if; sa-guṇam — with the material qualities of nature; babhau — was manifest.

TRANSLATION
The sky was then covered by dense blue clouds accompanied by lightning and thunder. Thus the sky and its natural illumination were covered in the same way that the spirit soul is covered by the three modes of material nature.

PURPORT

Lightning is compared to the mode of goodness, thunder to the mode of passion, and clouds to the mode of ignorance. Thus the cloudy sky at the onset of the rainy season is analogous to the pure spirit soul when he becomes disturbed by the modes of nature, for at that time he is covered and his original brilliant nature is only dimly reflected through the haze of the material qualities.

SLOKA OF THE DAY:

Srimad Bhagavatam 7.12.25
khe khāni vāyau niśvāsāṁs
tejaḥsūṣmāṇam ātmavān
apsv asṛk-śleṣma-pūyāni
kṣitau śeṣaṁ yathodbhavam

khe — in the sky; khāni — all the holes of the body; vāyau — in the air; niśvāsān — all the different airs moving within the body (prāṇa, apāna, etc); tejaḥsu — in fire; uṣmāṇam — the heat of the body; ātma-vān — a person who knows the self; apsu — in water; asṛk — blood; śleṣma — mucus; pūyāni — and urine; kṣitau — in the earth; śeṣam — the remaining (namely skin, bones and the other hard things in the body); yathā-udbhavam — wherefrom all of them grew.

TRANSLATION:

A sober, self-realized person who has full knowledge should merge the various parts of the body in their original sources. The holes in the body are caused by the sky, the process of breathing is caused by the air, the heat of the body is caused by fire, and semen, blood and mucus are caused by water. The hard substances, like skin, muscle and bone, are caused by earth. In this way all the constituents of the body are caused by various elements, and they should be merged again into those elements.

PURPORT:

To be self-realized, one must understand the original sources of the various elements of the body. The body is a combination of skin, bone, muscle, blood, semen, urine, stool, heat, breath and so on, which all come from earth, water, fire, air and sky. One must be well conversant with the sources of all the bodily constituents. Then one becomes a self-realized person, or ātmavān, one who knows the self.

SLOKA OF THE DAY:

Bhagavad-gītā As It Is -
Chapter 2 Text 40
nehābhikrama-nāśo 'sti
pratyavāyo na vidyate
sv-alpam apy asya dharmasya
trāyate mahato bhayāt

na — there is not; iha — in this yoga; abhikrama — in endeavoring; nāśaḥ — loss; asti — there is; pratyavāyaḥ — diminution; na — never; vidyate — there is; su-alpam — a little; api — although; asya — of this; dharmasya — occupation; trāyate — releases; mahataḥ — from very great; bhayāt — danger.

TRANSLATION

In this endeavor there is no loss or diminution, and a little advancement on this path can protect one from the most dangerous type of fear.

JOURNAL:

In his purport Srila Prabhupada writes; One percent done in Kṛṣṇa consciousness bears permanent results, so that the next beginning is from the point of two percent, whereas in material activity without a hundred percent success there is no profit. Ajāmila performed his duty in some percentage of Kṛṣṇa consciousness, but the result he enjoyed at the end was a hundred percent, by the grace of the Lord. There is a nice verse in this connection in Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam (1.5.17):

tyaktvā sva-dharmaḿ caraṇāmbujaḿ harer

bhajann apakvo 'tha patet tato yadi

yatra kva vābhadram abhūd amuṣya kiḿ

ko vārtha āpto 'bhajatāḿ sva-dharmataḥ

"If someone gives up his occupational duties and works in Kṛṣṇa consciousness and then falls down on account of not completing his work, what loss is there on his part? And what can one gain if one performs his material activities perfectly?"
Or, as the Christians say, "What profiteth a man if he gain the whole world yet suffers the loss of his eternal soul?"

Sometimes, while chanting my japa, I feel like I am getting nowhere; just spinning my wheels. It is at times like these I try to remember slokas such as the one above. In their remembrance I find strength to continue; hope as I push ahead.

TEACHINGS OF QUEEN KUNTI
Chapter 22:

Srimad Bhagavatam 1.8.39
neyaṁ śobhiṣyate tatra
yathedānīṁ gadādhara
tvat-padair aṅkitā bhāti
sva-lakṣaṇa-vilakṣitaiḥ

na — not; iyam — this land of our kingdom; śobhiṣyate — will appear beautiful; tatra — then; yathā — as it is now; idānīm — now; gadādhara — O Kṛṣṇa; tvat — Your; padaiḥ — by the feet; aṅkitā — marked; bhāti — is dazzling; sva-lakṣaṇa — Your own marks; vilakṣitaiḥ — by the impressions.

Translation

O Gadādhara [Kṛṣṇa], our kingdom is now being marked by the impressions of Your feet, and therefore it appears beautiful. But when You leave, it will no longer be so.

JOURNAL:

There is a lot spoken of in this chapter. I have chosen these four quotes from Srila Prabhupada. He opens the chapter thus;

There are certain particular marks on the feet of the Lord which distinguish the Lord from others. The marks of a flag, thunderbolt, and instrument to drive an elephant, and also an umbrella, lotus, disc, etc., are on the bottom of the Lord's feet. These marks are impressed upon the soft dust of the land where the Lord traverses. The land of Hastinapura was thus marked while Lord Sri Krsna was there with the Pandavas, and the kingdom of the Pandavas thus flourished by such auspicious signs. 

It is not that this applied only when Krsna was present and Kunti was speaking. Rather, the truth is always the same. Despite the advancement of our civilization, if we cannot bring Krsna and Krsna consciousness into the center of everything, our civilization will never become beautiful.

He then closes the chapter with this reminder;

"O son of Kunti [Arjuna], I am the taste of water, the light of the sun and the moon, the syllable om in the Vedic mantras; I am the sound in ether and ability in man." (Bg. 7.8) Why then do people say, "I have not seen God"? Why don't they see God as God directs them to see Him? Why do they manufacture their own way? One cannot see God by one's own way.

If I want to see the President of the United States, can I see him in my own way? If not, then how can I expect to see God in my own way?

SLOKA OF THE DAY:

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 7.7.29
tatropāya-sahasrāṇām
ayaṁ bhagavatoditaḥ
yad īśvare bhagavati
yathā yair añjasā ratiḥ

tatra — in that connection (getting out of the entanglement of material conditioning); upāya — of processes; sahasrāṇām — of many thousands; ayam — this; bhagavatā uditaḥ — given by the Supreme Personality of Godhead; yat — which; īśvare — to the Lord; bhagavati — the Supreme Personality of Godhead; yathā — as much as; yaiḥ — by which; añjasā — quickly; ratiḥ — attachment with love and affection. 

Translation

Of the different processes recommended for disentanglement from material life, the one personally explained and accepted by the Supreme Personality of Godhead should be considered all-perfect. That process is the performance of duties by which love for the Supreme Lord develops.

JOURNAL:

Srila Prabhupada opens his purport thus; Among the linking processes that elevate one from bondage to material contamination, the one recommended by the Supreme Personality of Godhead should be accepted as the best. That process is clearly explained in Bhagavad-gītā, where the Lord says, sarva-dharmān parityajya mām ekaṁ śaraṇaṁ vraja: “Abandon all varieties of religion and just surrender unto Me.” This process is the best because the Lord assures, ahaṁ tvāṁ sarva-pāpebhyo mokṣayiṣyāmi mā śucaḥ: “I shall deliver you from all sinful reaction. Do not fear.”

His lecture on this sloka can be heard on the San Francisco - 1967 page of this blog.

TEACHINGS OF QUEEN KUNTI
Chapter 21: 

Srimad Bhagavatam 1.8.38
ke vayaṁ nāma-rūpābhyāṁ
yadubhiḥ saha pāṇḍavāḥ
bhavato ’darśanaṁ yarhi
hṛṣīkāṇām iveśituḥ

ke — who are; vayam — we; nāma-rūpābhyām — without fame and ability; yadubhiḥ — with the Yadus; saha — along with; pāṇḍavāḥ — and the Pāṇḍavas; bhavataḥ — Your; adarśanam — absence; yarhi — as if; hṛṣīkāṇām — of the senses; iva — like; īśituḥ — of the living being.

Translation

As the name and fame of a particular body is finished with the disappearance of the living spirit, similarly if You do not look upon us, all our fame and activities, along with the Pāṇḍavas and Yadus, will end at once.

JOURNAL:

Srila Prabhupada gives us some beautiful illustrations of how things work and our absoulte need for Krishna in this chapter;

While the energy works, the energetic remains aloof, just as the sunshine spreads everywhere while the sun itself remains apart. Similarly, there is energy working throughout the cosmic manifestation. The cosmic manifestation consists of earth, water, fire, air, ether, mind, intelligence, and false ego. These eight material elements are separated material energies (me bhinna prakrtir astadha), and we can understand that behind these energies there must be an energetic source. For example, we are using electric power, but behind this power are the powerhouse and the engineer. Rascals do not understand this. They simply see the power of this cosmic manifestation, but they do not understand that behind this power is the powermaker, the source of power. Therefore Krsna comes and says, "I am the powermaker. I am behind this power."

God exists, and God's energy also exists, so if we cannot see God we can at least see His energy. We may not see the electric powerhouse and the engineer within it generating power, but we use electricity in so many ways. Therefore we should inquire where this electricity comes from. This is intelligence, and if one inquires in this way he will eventually find the powerhouse itself. Similarly, if one studies further to find out who is running the powerhouse, one will find a human being. Although the electricity is impersonal and even the powerhouse is impersonal, the man behind everything is a person. Similarly, God is a person. This is a logical conclusion. How can He be impersonal? That which is impersonal has no intelligence. We have invented so many very wonderful machines, but the machines are not intelligent. The intelligence belongs to the operator. Therefore Krsna says, mayadhyaksena prakrtih suyate sa-caracaram: "You are seeing the energy displayed in the wonderful actions and reactions of this material cosmic manifestation, but don't think that they are working independently. No, I am behind them."

He closes with this description of bhakti;

Hrsikena hrsikesa-sevanam bhaktir ucyate: bhakti means to use hrsika, the senses, in the service of Hrsikesa, Krsna, the master of the senses (tvaya hrsikesena hrdi sthitasya yatha karomi). Because I wanted some sense gratification, forgetting that everything actually belongs to Krsna, I have been given this body, which is a facility for sense gratification. But the senses have no value without Krsna, and therefore the natural conclusion is that the senses belong to Krsna. Therefore, since I have these senses, why not use them for Krsna's satisfaction? This is bhakti.

SLOKA OF THE DAY:

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 5.14.3
atha ca yatra kauṭumbikā dārāpatyādayo nāmnā karmaṇā vṛka-sṛgālā evānicchato ’pi kadaryasya
kuṭumbina uraṇakavat saṁrakṣyamāṇaṁ miṣato ’pi haranti.

atha — in this way; ca — also; yatra — in which; kauṭumbikāḥ — the family members; dāra-apatya-ādayaḥ — beginning with the wife and children; nāmnā — by name only; karmaṇā — by their behavior; vṛka-sṛgālāḥ — tigers and jackals; eva — certainly; anicchataḥ — of one who does not desire to spend his wealth; api — certainly; kadaryasya — being too miserly; kuṭumbinaḥ — who is surrounded by family members; uraṇaka-vat — like a lamb; saṁrakṣyamāṇam — although protected; miṣataḥ — of one who is observing; api — even; haranti — they forcibly take away.

TRANSLATION

My dear King, family members in this material world go under the names of wife and children, but actually they behave like tigers and jackals. A herdsman tries to protect his sheep to the best of his ability, but the tigers and foxes take them away by force. Similarly, although a miserly man wants to guard his money very carefully, his family members take away all his assets forcibly, even though he is very vigilant.

JOURNAL:

This is a very hard sloka for me. I was married for twenty years and loved my family very much. Four years ago (about the time one should take vanaprastha) my wife and I divorced. I still have my bitter moments when this sloka rings true but, most of the time, it doesn't.

SLOKA OF THE DAY:

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 5.14.2
yasyām u ha vā ete ṣaḍ-indriya-nāmānaḥ karmaṇā dasyava eva te; tad yathā puruṣasya dhanaṁ yat kiñcid
dharmaupayikaṁ bahu-kṛcchrādhigataṁ sākṣāt parama-puruṣārādhana-lakṣaṇo yo ’sau dharmas taṁ tu
sāmparāya udāharanti; tad-dharmyaṁ dhanaṁ darśana-sparśana-śravaṇāsvādanāvaghrāṇa-saṅkalpa-vyavasāya-
gṛha-grāmyopabhogena kunāthasyājitātmano yathā sārthasya vilum-panti. 

yasyām — in which; u ha — certainly; vā — or; ete — all these; ṣaṭ-indriya-nāmānaḥ — who are named the six senses (the mind and the five knowledge-acquiring senses); karmaṇā — by their activity; dasyavaḥ — the plunderers; eva — certainly; te — they; tat — that; yathā — as; puruṣasya — of a person; dhanam — the wealth; yat — whatever; kiñcit — something; dharma-aupayikam — which is a means to religious principles; bahu-kṛcchra-adhigatam — earned after much hard labor; sākṣāt — directly; parama-puruṣa-ārādhana-lakṣaṇaḥ — whose symptoms are worship of the Supreme Lord by performance of sacrifices and so on; yaḥ — which; asau — that; dharmaḥ — religious principles; tam — that; tu — but; sāmparāye — for the benefit of the living entity after death; udāharanti — the wise declare; tat-dharmyam — religious (relating to the prosecution of the varṇāśrama-dharma); dhanam — wealth; darśana — by seeing; sparśana — by touching; śravaṇa — by hearing; āsvādana — by tasting; avaghrāṇa — by smelling; saṅkalpa — by determination; vyavasāya — by a conclusion; gṛha — in the material home; grāmya-upabhogena — by material sense gratification; kunāthasya — of the misguided conditioned soul; ajita-ātmanaḥ — who has not controlled himself; yathā — just as; sārthasya — of the living entity interested in sense gratification; vilumpanti — they plunder.

TRANSLATION

In the forest of material existence, the uncontrolled senses are like plunderers. The conditioned soul may earn some money for the advancement of Kṛṣṇa consciousness, but unfortunately the uncontrolled senses plunder his money through sense gratification. The senses are plunderers because they make one spend his money unnecessarily for seeing, smelling, tasting, touching, hearing, desiring and willing. In this way the conditioned soul is obliged to gratify his senses, and thus all his money is spent. This money is actually acquired for the execution of religious principles, but it is taken away by the plundering senses.

JOURNAL:

In his purport Srila Prabhupada gives us a solution for this miserable condition; This Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement is therefore teaching people to control the mind and five knowledge-acquiring senses by a definite process. One should practice a little austerity and not spend money on anything other than the regulative life of devotional service. The senses demand that one see beautiful things; therefore money should be spent for decorating the Deity in the temple. Similarly, the tongue has to taste good food, which should be bought and offered to the Deity. The nose can be utilized in smelling the flowers offered to the Deity, and the hearing can be utilized by listening to the vibration of the Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra. In this way the senses can be regulated and utilized to advance Kṛṣṇa consciousness.

SLOKA OF THE DAY:

Śrīmad Bhāgavatam 2.1.15
anta-kāle tu puruṣa
āgate gata-sādhvasaḥ
chindyād asaṅga-śastreṇa
spṛhāṁ dehe ’nu ye ca tam

anta-kāle — at the last stage of life; tu — but; puruṣaḥ — a person; āgate — having arrived; gata-sādhvasaḥ — without any fear of death; chindyāt — must cut off; asaṅga — nonattachment; śastreṇa — by the weapon of; spṛhām — all desires; dehe — in the matter of the material tabernacle; anu — pertaining; ye — all that; ca — also; tam — them.

TRANSLATION

At the last stage of one’s life, one should be bold enough not to be afraid of death. But one must cut off all attachment to the material body and everything pertaining to it and all desires thereof.

JOURNAL:

Srila Prabhupada states in his purport;

Death is nothing but sleeping for a few months in order to develop another term of bodily encagement, which we are awarded by the law of nature according to our aspiration. Therefore, one has only to change the aspiration during the course of this present body, and for this there is need of training in the current duration of human life.

Desire is the concomitant factor of the living entity. The living entity is eternal, and therefore his desires, which are natural for a living being, are also eternal. One cannot, therefore, stop desiring, but the subject matter for desires can be changed. So one must develop the desire for returning home, back to Godhead, and automatically the desires for material gain, material honor and material popularity will diminish in proportion to the development of devotional service. A living being is meant for service activities, and his desires are centered around such a service attitude. Beginning from the top executive head of the state down to the insignificant pauper in the street, all are rendering some sort of service to others. The perfection of such a service attitude is only attained simply by transferring the desire of service from matter to spirit, or from Satan to God.

SLOKA OF THE DAY:

Garga Samhita
Chapter Nine Text Eleven
ittham kauravendra yaadavendrasya raamatah sarvaa vaasantikir nishaa vyatitaa babhuvuh. bhagavato balabhadrasya hastinaapuram iva viryam sucayativa hy adyaapi ca krishta-vartmanaa yamunaa vahati. imam raamasya raasa-kathaam yah shrinoti shraavayati ca sa sarva-paapa-patalam chittvaa tasya parasparam aananda-padam pratiyaati. kim bhuyah shrotum icchasi.

ittham-thus; kauravendra-O king of the Kauravas; yaadavendrasya-of the king of the Yaadavas; raamatah-from Lord Balaraama; sarvaa-all; vaasantikih-springtime; nishaa-night; vyatitaa-passed; babhuvuh.-became; bhagavatah-of the Supreme Personality of Godhead; balabhadrasya-Lord Balaraama; hastinaapuram-to Hastinaapura; iva-like; viryam-power; sucayati-shows; iva-like; hy-indeed; adyaapi-even today; ca-and; krishta-vartmanaa-by the dragged path; yamunaa-the Yamunaa; vahati-flows; imam-this; raamasya-of Lord Balaraama; raasa-ofd the raasa dance; kathaam-the narration; yah-one who; shrinoti-hears; shraavayati-recounts; ca-and; sa-he; sarva-paapa-patalam-the entirety of a great host of sins; chittvaa-destroying; tasya-of him; parasparam-mutual; aananda-padam-the abode of bliss; pratiyaati-goes; kim-what?; bhuyah-more; shrotum-to hear; icchasi-do you wish.

TRANSLATION

O king of the Kauravas, in this way Lord Balaraama, the king of the Yaadavas, spent that springtime night with the gopis. Even today the Yamuna' flows in many divided streams at that place, a testimony to the great strength, equal to that of a host of elephants, of Lord Balaraama, the Supreme Personality of Godhead. A person who hears or recounts these pastimes of Lord Balaraama destroys the entirety of a great host of sins and attains transcendental bliss. What more do you wish to hear?"

[Thus ends Chapter Nine of the Garga Samhita also known as Shri Raama-raasa-kridaa (Lord Balaraama's Raasa Dance).]

JOURNAL:

My closest family connection is with my older brother. He is a great guy, well to do, with a quiet Christian attitude. He supports my lifestyle and sometimes helps financially.

Back on March 31 I read Srila Prabupada's purport on SB10.2.13 where he explains how Balarama is in the Maha-mantra (see post March 31, 2014).  I also read an article online (see post April 14) which said; Balarama, who has the same original form of Krsna, is Himself a cowherd boy in Vrndavana, and He also considers Himself to belong to the ksatriya race in Dvaraka. Thus His color and dress are different, and He is called a pastime form of Krsna. I found it odd that Krishna was the younger brother instead of the older. The fact was that I had never

considered Lord Balarama and his activities.

This thought led me to thoughts of all the love I have for my older brother so, I decided to make Krishna/Balarama a focus of my meditations with the hope that I might more fully understand this rasa that both Krishna and I enjoy. I went online and found a beautiful photo of the deities in Vrndavana and, for the last few months, I have been saying my japa in front of it.

Of course, there have been many benefits to saying  japa. Since adding the photo of Krishna/Balarama, one of the more noticeable benefits has been increased feelings of thankfulness and protection, stemming from a "brotherly" love.

TEACHINGS OF QUEEN KUNTI
Chapter 20:

 Śrīmad Bhāgavatam 1.8.37
apy adya nas tvaà sva-kåtehita prabho
jihäsasi svit suhådo ’nujévinaù
yeñäà na cänyad bhavataù padämbujät
paräyaëaà räjasu yojitäàhasäm

api—if; adya—today; naù—us; tvam—You; sva-kåta—self-executed; éhita—all duties; prabho—O my Lord; jihäsasi—giving up; svit—possibly; suhådaù—intimate friends; anujévinaù—living at the mercy of; yeñäm—of whom; na—nor; ca—and; anyat—anyone else; bhavataù—Your; pada-ambujät—from the lotus feet; paräyaëam—dependent; räjasu—unto the kings; yojita—engaged in; aàhasäm—enmity.

TRANSLATION

O my Lord, You have executed all duties Yourself. Are you leaving us today, though we are completely dependent on Your mercy and have no one else to protect us, now when all kings are at enmity with us?

JOURNAL:

The title of this chapter is "Full Surrender" and Srila Prabhupada, using Queen Kunti and the Pandavas, as examples, shows us the proper attitude as well as some basic instructions.

The Pandavas are most fortunate because with all good luck they were entirely dependent on the mercy of the Lord.

The highest achievement of perfect civilization is to work with valor but at the same time depend completely on the Lord.

After the Battle of Kuruksetra ended and the Pandavas were established in their kingdom, Krsna, before going back home to Dvaraka, was taking leave of His aunt and bidding her farewell. It was at that time that Kunti offered this prayer. Now she directly asks, "Is it a fact that after finishing Your duty You are going away and leaving us alone?" This is the devotee's position. Kuntidevi says, yesam na canyad bha vatah padambujat: "We have no means of protection other than Your lotus feet." This is full surrender.

He then gives us these practical instructions: In the process of surrender (saranagati) there are six items. The first is that one should completely depend on Krsna, and the next is that one should accept everything favorable for Krsna's service (anukulyasya sankalpah). ... Another item of surrender is pratikulya-vivarjanam, rejecting everything unfavorable to the procedures of Krsna consciousness. ... Furthermore, one should believe with full faith, "Krsna will give me protection," and one should count oneself as one of the servants of Krsna. These are some of the items of saranagati, full surrender.

Then, with emphasis, he writes; A devotee always has a taste for chanting Hare Krsna: "Oh, very nice. Hare Krsna, Hare Krsna, Krsna Krsna, Hare Hare/ Hare Rama, Hare Rama, Rama Rama, Hare Hare. " This is taste. Of course, this taste takes time to awaken, but when Rupa Gosvami was chanting he was thinking, "I have only one tongue and two ears. What can I appreciate of chanting? If I could have millions of tongues and trillions of ears, then I could relish something by chanting and hearing."

He closes with this statement; This verse illustrates the position of a surrendered soul seeking the protection of Krsna. If we remain in this position, knowing that our only protector is Krsna and that our only duty is to serve Krsna, then our life is successful.

TEACHINGS OF QUEEN KUNTI
Chapter 19:

Śrīmad Bhāgavatam 1.8.36
śṛṇvanti gāyanti gṛṇanty abhīkṣṇaśaḥ
smaranti nandanti tavehitaṁ janāḥ
ta eva paśyanty acireṇa tāvakaṁ
bhava-pravāhoparamaṁ padāmbujam

śṛṇvanti — hear; gāyanti — chant; gṛṇanti — take; abhīkṣṇaśaḥ — continuously; smaranti — remember; nandanti — take pleasure; tava — Your; īhitam — activities; janāḥ — people in general; te — they; eva — certainly; paśyanti — can see; acireṇa — very soon; tāvakam — Your; bhava-pravāha — the current of rebirth; uparamam — cessation; pada-ambujam — lotus feet.

Translation

O Kṛṣṇa, those who continuously hear, chant and repeat Your transcendental activities, or take pleasure in others’ doing so, certainly see Your lotus feet, which alone can stop the repetition of birth and death.

JOURNAL:

The emphasis of this chapter is on hearing and chanting although Srila Prabhupada writes of a few of the other processes of Bhakti. He opens with; The Supreme Lord, Sri Krsna, cannot be seen by our present conditional vision. In order to see Him, one has to change his present vision by developing a different condition of life, full of spontaneous love of Godhead.

Therefore, even though the Lord may be present before our eyes, it is not possible to see Him unless we have the necessary vision. This necessary qualification is developed by the process of devotional service only, beginning with hearing about the Lord from the right sources.

One must hear about the Lord from the very beginning, as in the Srimad- Bhagavatam or any other scriptures, and that will help the hearer attain perfection by progressive development.

He then lists the processes of Bhakti;
sravanam kirtanam visnoh
smaranam pada-sevanam
arcanam vandanam dasyam
sakhyam atma-nivedanam
iti pumsarpita visnau
bhaktis cen nava-laksana
kriyeta bhagavaty addha
tan manye 'dhitam uttamam
Hearing and chanting about the transcendental holy name, form, qualities, paraphernalia, and pastimes of Lord Visnu, remembering them, serving the lotus feet of the Lord, offering the Lord respectful worship, offering prayers to the Lord, becoming His servant, considering the Lord one's best friend, and surrendering everything unto Him (in other words, serving Him with the body, mind, and words)--these nine processes are accepted as pure devotional service.

He emphasizes that the order is not arbitrary; For those who are cultivating Krsna consciousness, the first business is hearing. 

And if one has actually heard about Krsna, one's next engagement in bhakti-yoga will be to chant (gayanti). 

Therefore those who are cultivating Krsna consciousness have to hear about Krsna, speak about Krsna, and deal only in relationship with Krsna. "By this process," Kuntidevi tells the Lord, "one will one day come to see You."

He ends the chapter with a beautiful promise; We are spirit souls, but because we have been put into the material ocean, the currents are carrying us away. However, if we engage twenty-four hours a day in hearing, chanting, and seriously serving Krsna, the current will stop.

There may be currents in the ocean, but if one gets a good boat, one can cross over these currents very nicely. As mentioned in another verse of Srimad-Bhagavatam (10.14.58), samasrita ye pada-pallava-plavam. A lotus petal is something like a small boat, and therefore this verse says that if one takes shelter of the petal boat of the lotus feet of Krsna, the great ocean of birth and death becomes as insignificant as the water contained in the hoofprint of a calf.

SLOKA OF THE DAY:

Śrīmad Bhāgavatam 10.15.35
naitac citraḿ bhagavati
hy anante jagad-īśvare
ota-protam idaḿ yasmiḿs
tantuṣv ańga yathā paṭaḥ

na — not; etat — this; citram — surprising; bhagavati — for the Personality of Godhead; hi — indeed; anante — who is the unlimited; jagat-īśvare — the Lord of the the universe; ota-protam — spread out horizontally and vertically; idam — this universe; yasmin — upon whom; tantuṣu — upon its threads; ańga — my dear Parīkṣit; yathā — just as, paṭaḥ — a cloth.

TRANSLATION

My dear Parīkṣit, that Lord Balarāma killed Dhenukāsura is not such a wonderful thing, considering that He is the unlimited Personality of Godhead, the controller of the entire universe. Indeed, the entire cosmos rests upon Him just as a woven cloth rests upon its own horizontal and vertical threads.

JOURNAL:

Srila Prabhupada writes in his purport; In this connection Śrīla Jīva Gosvāmī explains that the Supreme Lord possesses unlimited potency and strength, as expressed here by the word anante.

SLOKA OF THE DAY:

Śrīmad Bhāgavatam 10.15.14
kvacit krīḍā-pariśrāntaḿ
gopotsańgopabarhaṇam
svayaḿ viśramayaty āryaḿ
pāda-saḿvāhanādibhiḥ

kvacit — sometimes; krīḍā — by playing; pariśrāntam — fatigued; gopa — of a cowherd boy; utsańga — the lap; upabarhaṇam — using as His pillow; svayam — personally; viśramayati — relieves Him from His fatigue; āryam — His elder brother; pāda-saḿvāhana-ādibhiḥ — by massaging His feet and offering other services.

TRANSLATION

When His elder brother, fatigued from playing, would lie down with His head upon the lap of a cowherd boy, Lord Kṛṣṇa would help Him relax by personally massaging His feet and offering other services.

SLOKA OF THE DAY:

Śrīmad Bhāgavatam 10.2.13
garbha-sańkarṣaṇāt taḿ vai
prāhuḥ sańkarṣaṇaḿ bhuvi
rāmeti loka-ramaṇād
balabhadraḿ balocchrayāt

garbha-sańkarṣaṇāt — because He will be taken from the womb of Devakī to that of Rohiṇī; tam — Him (Rohiṇī-nandana, the son of Rohiṇī); vai — indeed; prāhuḥ — people will call; sańkarṣaṇam — by the name Sańkarṣaṇa; bhuvi — in the world; rāma iti — He will also be called Rāma; loka-ramaṇāt — because of His special mercy in enabling people in general to become devotees; balabhadram — He will also be called Balabhadra; bala-ucchrayāt — because of extensive bodily strength.

TRANSLATION

The son of Rohiṇī will also be celebrated as Sańkarṣaṇa because of being sent from the womb of Devakī to the womb of Rohiṇī. He will be called Rāma because of His ability to please all the inhabitants of Gokula, and He will be known as Balabhadra because of His extensive physical strength.

PURPORT

These are some of the reasons why Balarāma is known as Sańkarṣaṇa, Balarāma or sometimes Rāma. In the mahā-mantra — Hare Kṛṣṇa, Hare Kṛṣṇa, Kṛṣṇa Kṛṣṇa, Hare Hare/ Hare Rāma, Hare Rāma, Rāma Rāma, Hare Hare — people sometimes object when Rāma is accepted as Balarāma. But although devotees of Lord Rāma may object, they should know that there is no difference between Balarāma and Lord Rāma. Here Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam clearly states that Balarāma is also known as Rāma (rāmeti). Therefore, it is not artificial for us to speak of Lord Balarāma as Lord Rāma. Jayadeva Gosvāmī also speaks of three Rāmas: Paraśurāma, Raghupati Rāma and Balarāma. All of them are Rāmas.