Lect SEA 1968-10-20 Initiation--On the Maha-Mantra
ANNOUNCER: Next is a lecture on chanting the Hare Kṛṣṇa Mahā-mantra,
given by His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupāda,
recorded on October 20th, 1968, in Seattle.
PRABHUPĀDA: So harā, harā is the form of the word…
Hare is the form of the word harā when address… when She is addressed.
And Kṛṣṇa, when He’s addressed, the form does not change; this is grammatical rule.
So Hare Kṛṣṇa means, “Oh, the energy of Kṛṣṇa, or energy of the Lord,”
and Kṛṣṇa, “the Lord.”
So Hare Kṛṣṇa.
Hare Kṛṣṇa means I am praying not only to the Lord, but to the energy also.
This is natural.
Just like a man and woman.
In whole world there is combination of male and female, either…
Any society, human society, or bird society or dog society or animal society.
Why this male and female? Why?
Female is the energy.
Energy of the male.
Why a man takes—marries a woman and takes responsibility?
Of course, in your country they marry as a matter of joke:
Immediately divorce after week or after seven days.
But marriage means to take full responsibility of a woman.
That is real marriage: Vedic marriage.
We… When I get married our boys and girls… we…
The boy takes this vow that,
“I take responsibility of your maintenance throughout your whole life.”
And the girl promises that “I desire to serve you throughout my whole life.”
So the woman, the female, is energy.
When a man comes at home, he… he sees that everything is nicely decorated.
My wife is well-dressed and foodstuff is nicely prepared, he becomes encouraged.
He can work more nicely.
Therefore, woman is the energy.
The woman gives the energy and he can work.
Why… Where… Wherefrom this idea came?
The idea came because it is originally there: janmādy asya yataḥ [SB 1.1.1].
Everything is coming from the Supreme; otherwise where do you get this idea?
sarvaṁ khalv idaṁ brahma [Chāndogya Upaniṣad 3.14.1]
Without being in the origin?
bījaṁ māṁ sarva-bhūtānāṁ [Bg 7.10]
Kṛṣṇa says that “I am the root of everything.”
So, if this energy, male and female combination, is a necessity…
So wherefrom this necessity came into existence unless it is there in the origin?
Therefore it is to be understood that the Absolute has energy.
He has got different energies.
By His energies He is acting, and that is a… confirmed in the Vedic sūtra:
parāsya śaktir vividhaiva śrūyate [Śvetāśvatara Upaniṣad 6.8].
The Supreme Absolute Truth has multi-energies.
Parāsya śaktir vividhaiva śrūyate: Multi-energies.
And: svābhāvikī jñāna-bala-kriyā ca [Cc. Madhya 13.65, purport].
And by His energies he’s working in such a nice way
that it appears that it is being automatically done.
Just like this tape recorder is working.
How it is working?
The electric energy is there.
By the electric energy the machine is so nicely working
that when it is replayed: Exactly I am speaking.
So energy is working.
I am speaking; My speaking energy is acting.
Electric energy is helping.
This machine energy is accepting and a nice thing is coming.
Similarly, the whole cosmic manifestation is the manifestation of the energies.
The rascals: They do not understand.
And when it is stated that everything is Brahman,
A that…
That is to be understood that everything is working
under the energy of the Supreme Brahman.
That is real meaning.
But at the…
This is simultaneously one and different.
When this tape recorder will play, it will play exactly how I am speaking to you.
There will be no difference of voice.
If somebody hears from other room, he’ll understand that Swamiji’s speaking.
But still, that speaking is different from me.
Because my energy is working there.
Similarly, there are two kinds of energies.
Just like when I am speaking, this is my real energy.
And when this tape recorder will speak,
that is also my energy, but that is separated energy.
Similarly, this material manifestation is separated energy.
And there is direct energy.
The direct…
This material energy, separated energy, is the reflection of the direct energy.
Just like when this tape recorder will be replayed
it is the reflection of my original speech.
Similarly, this material manifestation is a reflection of the original energy:
Internal energy.
Therefore in the Bhagavad-gītā it is stated that perverted reflection.
Ūrdhva-mūlam adhah-śākham [Bg. 15.1]; perverted… A tree.
This ma… mata…
cosmic manifestation is compared just like a tree with root upwards.
That means perverted.
Have you seen a tree [with] upward root[s]?
JĀHNAVĀ: [indistinct] I’ve heard an analogy to that before.
Yes.
So this… this material world is perverted reflection of the original energy.
So, this “Hare” means we are directly approaching the original energy
of the Supreme Lord.
“Please accept me, under You.
Now I am under reflection.
I am trying to get substance from the reflection.”
Suppose a tree is reflected by the bank of a river: The exact [reflection].
So if somebody dives into the river and tries to take fruit from that tree,
it will not be possible because that is reflection.
One has to go to the real tree.
So we are hankering after life.
We are hankering after pleasure.
But we are seeking pleasure in the reflection: Māyā.
Therefore we are frustrated, confused.
Therefore this prayer is to the original energy.
Without energy…
The Lord is not without energy.
Rādhā-Kṛṣṇa; Lakṣmī- Nārāyaṇa; Sītā-Rāma.
So God is always with energy.
Without energy, he is incomplete.
Sun without sunshine is incomplete.
Is it possible?
One…
Can one think of sun without sunshine?
Similarly, the Māyāvāda theory that the absolute is without energy:
“There is no energy; absolute is…” They have misunderstood.
The energy is not different from the energetic.
Just like sunshine is not different from the sun.
Neither the sunshine has got any existence without the sun.
Nor the sun can exist without sunshine; they are so intimately related.
Similarly, the Lord and the energies are so intimately related.
It cannot be separated, but they are not one.
This is the whole philosophy.
So, we are praying to the original energy: Hare Kṛṣṇa.
So because energy and the energetic: Rādhā-Kṛṣṇa.
Rādhā-Kṛṣṇa; They are not separate, but it is pleasure.
When They are separated; Rādhā and Kṛṣṇa,
that is energetic; that is giving impetus. [splice]
So one has to learn all this thing; everything is there.
Subtitles by Pratyatoṣa Dāsa, Causelessmercy.com