Govardhana-puja

1. Govardhana-puja ISKCON Hawaii Friday, 2014 October 17 Hanumatpresaka Swami ISKCON Founder-Acharya Srila A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada

2. Girivaradhari Gopal

3. Chapter 18: Lord Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu's Visit to Śrī Vṛndāvana CC Madhya 18.15-17: From Rādhā-kuṇḍa, Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu went to Sumanas Lake. When He saw Govardhana Hill from there, He was overwhelmed with joy. When the Lord saw Govardhana Hill, He immediately offered obeisances, falling down on the ground like a rod. He embraced one piece of rock from Govardhana Hill and became mad. Mad with ecstatic love, the Lord came to the village known as Govardhana. There He saw the Deity named Harideva and offered His obeisances unto Him.

4. CC Madhya 18.32-34 In the morning, Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu took His bath in a lake called Mānasa-gańgā. He then circumambulated Govardhana Hill. Just by seeing Govardhana Hill, Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu became ecstatic with love of Kṛṣṇa. While dancing and dancing, He recited the following verse.

5. Madhya 18.34 hantāyam adrir abalā hari-dāsa-varyo yad rāma-kṛṣṇa-caraṇa-sparaśa-pramodaḥ mānaḿ tanoti saha-go-gaṇayos tayor yat pānīya-sūyavasa-kandara-kanda-mūlaiḥ

6. SYNONYMS hanta — oh; ayam— this; adriḥ— hill; abalāḥ— O friends; hari-dāsa-varyaḥ— the best among the servants of the Lord; yat— because; rāma-kṛṣṇa-caraṇa— of the lotus feet of Lord Kṛṣṇa and Balarāma; sparaśa— by the touch; pramodaḥ— jubilant; mānam — respects; tanoti— offers; saha— with; go-gaṇayoḥ— cows, calves and cowherd boys; tayoḥ— to Them; yat— because; pānīya— drinking water; sūyavasa— very soft grass; kandara— caves; kanda-mūlaiḥ— and by roots.

7. TRANSLATION Of all the devotees, this Govardhana Hill is the best! O my friends, this hill supplies Kṛṣṇa and Balarāma, as well as Their calves, cows and cowherd friends, with all kinds of necessities - Water for drinking, very soft grass, caves, fruits, flowers and vegetables. In this way the hill offers respect to the Lord. Being touched by the lotus feet of Kṛṣṇa and Balarāma, Govardhana Hill appears very jubilant.

8. PURPORT This is a quotation from Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam (10.21.18). It was spoken by the gopīs when Lord Kṛṣṇa and Balarāma entered the forest in the autumn. The gopīs spoke among themselves and glorified Kṛṣṇa and Balarāma for Their pastimes.

9. KB 24: Worshiping Govardhana Hill CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR While engaged with the brāhmaṇas who were too much involved in the performance of Vedic sacrifices, Kṛṣṇa and Balarāma also saw that the cowherd men were preparing a similar sacrifice in order to pacify Indra. As stated in the Caitanya-caritāmṛta, a devotee of Kṛṣṇa has strong and firm faith in the understanding that if he is simply engaged in Kṛṣṇa consciousness and Kṛṣṇa’s transcendental loving service, then he is freed from all other obligations.

10. Caitanya-caritāmṛta (Madhya 22.62) 'śraddhā'-śabde — viśvāsa kahe sudṛḍha niścaya kṛṣṇe bhakti kaile sarva-karma kṛta haya ‘By rendering transcendental service to Kṛṣṇa, one automatically performs all subsidiary activities.’This confident, firm faith, favorable to the discharge of devotional service, is called śraddhā.

11. Because He is the omniscient Personality of Godhead, Kṛṣṇa knew that the cowherd men were preparing for the Indra sacrifice, but as a matter of etiquette He began to inquire with great honor and submission from elder personalities like Mahārāja Nanda. Kṛṣṇa asked His father, “My dear Father, what is this arrangement going on for a great sacrifice? What is the result of such a sacrifice, and for whom is it meant? How is it performed? Will you kindly let Me know? I am very eager to know this procedure, so please explain to Me the purpose of this sacrifice.” 

12. Kṛṣṇa began to talk as if He were an atheist supporting the philosophy of Karma-mīmāṁsā. Advocates of this philosophy do not accept the supreme authority of the Personality of Godhead. They put forward the argument that if anyone works nicely, the result is sure to come.

13. Their opinion is that even if there is a God who gives man the result of his fruitive activities, there is no need to worship Him, because unless man works He cannot bestow any good result. They say that instead of worshiping a demigod or God, people should give attention to their own duties, and thus the good result will surely come. 

14. Kṛṣṇa gave them the following directions. “Prepare very nice foods of all descriptions from the grain and ghee collected for the yajña. Prepare rice, dāl, then halavā, pakorā, purī and all kinds of milk preparations, such as sweet rice, rabrī,sweetballs, sandeśa, rasagullāandlaḍḍu, Invite the learned brāhmaṇas who can chant the Vedic hymns and offer oblations to the fire. Thebrāhmaṇas should be given all kinds of grain in charity. Then decorate all the cows and feed them well. After performing this, give money in charity to the brāhmaṇas. As far as the lower animals are concerned, such as the dogs, and the lower grades of people, they also may be given sumptuousprasādam. After nice grasses have been given to the cows, the sacrifice known as Govardhana-pūjā may immediately begin. This sacrifice will very much satisfy Me.”

15. The inhabitants of Vṛndāvana assembled together, decorated their cows and gave them grass. Keeping the cows in front, they began to circumambulate Govardhana Hill. The gopīs dressed themselves very luxuriantly and sat in bull-driven carts, chanting the glories of Kṛṣṇa’s pastimes.

16. Devastating Rainfall in Vṛndāvana CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE When Indra understood that the sacrifice which was to be offered by the cowherd men in Vṛndāvana had been stopped by Kṛṣṇa, he became angry, And he vented his anger upon the inhabitants of Vṛndāvana, who were headed by Nanda Mahārāja, although Indra knew perfectly well that Kṛṣṇa was personally protecting them.  Indra

17. . . . And he vented his anger upon the inhabitants of VrIndAvana

18. Lord Kṛṣṇa immediately picked up Govardhana Hill with one hand, exactly as a child picks up a mushroom from the ground., “My dear brothers, My dear Father, My dear inhabitants of Vṛndāvana, you can now safely enter under the umbrella of Govardhana Hill, which I have just lifted.

19. Prayers by Indra The King of Heaven CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN When Kṛṣṇa saved the inhabitants of Vṛndāvana from the wrath of Indra by lifting Govardhana Hill, a surabhi cow from Goloka Vṛndāvana, as well as King Indra from the heavenly planets, appeared before Him. Indra, the King of heaven, was conscious of his offense before Kṛṣṇa; therefore he stealthily appeared before Him in a secluded place. Ooops!

20. Śrīmad Bhāgavatam 10.27.4 indra uvāca viśuddha-sattvaḿ tava dhāma śāntaḿ tapo-mayaḿ dhvasta-rajas-tamaskam māyā-mayo 'yaḿ guṇa-sampravāho na vidyate te grahaṇānubandhaḥ Your transcendental form, a manifestation of pure goodness, is undisturbed by change, shining with knowledge and devoid of passion and ignorance. In You does not exist the mighty flow of the modes of material nature, which is based on illusion and ignorance.

21. How, then, could there exist in You the symptoms of an ignorant person — such as greed, lust, anger and envy — which are produced by one's previous involvement in material existence and which cause one to become further entangled in material existence? And yet as the Supreme Lord You impose punishment to protect religious principles and curb down the wicked.

22. 10.27.6 pitā gurus tvaḿ jagatām adhīśo duratyayaḥ kāla upātta-daṇḍaḥ hitāya cecchā-tanubhiḥ samīhase mānaḿ vidhunvan jagad-īśa-māninām You are the father and spiritual master of this entire universe, and also its supreme controller. You are insurmountable time, imposing punishment upon the sinful for their own benefit. Indeed, in Your various incarnations, selected by Your own free will, You act decisively to remove the false pride of those who presume themselves masters of this world.

23. 10.27.11 svacchandopātta-dehāya viśuddha-jñāna-mūrtaye sarvasmai sarva-bījāya sarva-bhūtātmane namaḥ 10.27.10 namas tubhyaḿ bhagavate puruṣāya mahātmane vāsudevāya kṛṣṇāya sātvatāḿ pataye namaḥ Obeisances unto You, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, the great Soul, who are all-pervading and who reside in the hearts of all. My obeisances unto You, Kṛṣṇa, the chief of the Yadu dynasty. Unto Him who assumes transcendental bodies according to the desires of His devotees, unto Him whose form is itself pure consciousness, unto Him who is everything, who is the seed of everything and who is the Soul of all creatures, I offer my obeisances.

24. CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT The Govardhana-pUjAceremony took place on the new-moon day. After this, there were torrents of rain and hailstorms imposed by King Indra for seven days. Nine days of the waxing moon having passed, on the tenth day King Indra worshiped Lord KRSNa, and thus the matter was satisfactorily settled.

25. Jaya Giri-govardhana

26. Jaya Krsna-Balarama

27. Jaya Krsna-Balarama Jaya Giri-govardhana

28. Thank you AGTSP www.JayaRama.us