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SAN DIEGO
SREE KRISHNA
THE LORD OF LOVE
PART I.
SREE KRISHNA
THE LORD OF LOVE
BY
BABA PREMANAND BHARATI
PUBLISHED BY
THE KRISHNA SAMAJ
NEW YORK
Copyright 1904
BY
BABA PREMANAND BHARATI
S. L. PA1SONS It CO., PRINTERS, NEW YORK
To
BRAHMANAND BHARATI
MY GOOROO
To WHOM
MY SOUL Mnro AND BODY
ARE
IRREVOCABLY SOLD
IN PAYMENT OF
THE GRACE OF HIS ILLUMINATION
WHICH LIGHTED MY PATH
To
THE LOTUS FEET
OF
KRISHNA MY BELOVED
PREFACE
I BEG to present this my humble work to the
English reader. It is the history of the Uni-
verse from its birth to its dissolution. I have
explained the science of creation, its making
and its mechanism. In doing so I have drawn
my information from the recorded facts in
the Sacred Books of the Root-Race of man-
kind. Some facts and explanations are herein
furnished for the first time in any modern
language. This book embodies true Hinduism.
If read with an open mind, it will serve the
reader with illumination and solve many a
riddle of life, untie many a tangle of thought.
I have spoken throughout from out of the
depths of the ages. I have thought absolutely
in Sanscrit and expressed myself in English,
an imperfect medium for expressing Sanscrit,
ideas. My object has been to impress my
readers with the substance of Hindoo thought
in all its purity. This has not been done before
even by Hindoo writers on Hindoo religion
PREFACE.
and philosophy. They have cared to humor
the Western readers, by putting in a mixture
of Western thought and dressing it up in West-
ern ways of expression. I Rave not done so,
because I know that in reading an Eastern
book the Western mind wants purely Eastern
thought in pure Eastern dress.
This will afford all soul-hungry readers with
enough healthy food and drink. The first
part of the book contains the food, the Kernel
of the Soul-cocoanut ; the second part, its
Sweet Milk. The third part is from Krishna
Himself. It is the purest Nectar of Spiritual
Love. Let the reader open his heart to it, and
I am sure it will fill it with ecstasy. The soul-
ful reader will thrill with the joyous vibrations
of every sentence of the "Messages and Rev-
elations."
The belief that our life begins with the birth
of this physical body and ends with its death
is the worst superstition, because it is the
worst obstacle in the way of our soul's un-
foldment. This life has sprung from Eternity ;
it draws its breath in Eternity, and is finally
ii
PREFACE.
absorbed by Eternity which is Absolute Love.
To know that we, human beings, were never
blessed with greater powers than we possess
in this age is the saddest of mistakes. To be-
lieve that we were once as great and powerful
as divine beings and that we can recover that
greatness and those powers, is to believe in the
actual potentialities of the human mind. This
life can be made one long ecstatic song; this
life can, if we take the trouble to make it, be
made the source of joy to ourselves as well as
to all around us forever and ever ; it can even
attain to the Essence of Godhood, from which it
has sprung, by developing uninterrupted God-
Consciousness.
We all are idolaters. Some of us worship
idols of Divinity, others worship idols of
Matter. Some of us worship the Spirit
through suggestive signs and symbols, others
worship Flesh, mere forms of animated flesh.
Sinqe our mind wants idols for worship, just
as our body wants food for sustenance, let us
all worship idols of Spirit in Form., Through
its concrete Form-Centre we can enter into
ni
PREFACE.
the Abstract Spirit of Love Love which is
our one object and goal in life. This Love
is Krishna and the universe and we, its parts,
are the materialized manifestation of that Love.
PREMANAND BHARATI.
THE ALPINE, 55 WEST 33o STREET,
New York, July 7, 1904.
IV
CONTENTS OF PART I.
INTRODUCTORY. PAGE.
Life's Source and Search 5
God is Formless and Has a Form 17
SECTION I. The Concrete and Abstract God 30
SECTION II. The Science of Creation 41
SECTION III. The Steps of Creation 50
SECTION IV. The Cyclic Motion of Changes. ... 56
SECTION V. The Golden Age 64
SECTION VI. The Silver Age 91
SECTION VII. The Caste System 104
SECTION VIII. The Four Stages of Life 123
SECTION IX. The Copper Age 132
SECTION X. The Iron Age 145
SECTION XI. Manwantara or the Deluge 170
SECTION XII. The Kalpa Cycle 180
SECTION XIII. Natural Dissolution 194
SECTION XIV. Modern Scientific Testimony. . . . 199
SECTION XV. Science Upholds Shastras 209
SECTION XVI. Physical and Astral Bodies 219
SECTION XVII. Karma 223
SECTION XVIII. Reincarnation 234
SECTION XIX. How to Destroy Karma 250
SECTION XX. The Atom's Return Journey 256
SECTION XXI. Yoga 272
SECTION XXII. Bhakti Yoga 272
SECTION XXIII. Vaishnav, Christian of Christians 285
SECTION XXIV. Krishna Leela 295
INTRODUCTORY.
LIFE'S SOURCE AND SEARCH.
BELOVED! I wish to call you "my beloved,"
whoever you are who have taken up this
my love-messagfe to read, for you are the
beloved of my Beloved Krishna. I may not
know you, nor you me, and yet we have been
together times without number; yet we have
loved each other with the truest, the purest,
the sweetest love again and again, when we
lived in Love, when we had our being in the
Ocean of Love, when we were awake in the
consciousness of the One Essence which ever
pervades us all Love.
Beloved ! That state, that realm, in which
we lived and knew and loved each other, we
have forgotten, and this forgetfulness is the
cause of our separateness, our non-recogni-
tion, our want of sympathy, our troubles and
quarrels. Going into the depth of Silence
Silence within and without us I have dis-
SREE KRISHNA.
covered its Secret which is also the Secret
of our forgotten Love-Existence. And this
my message to you is the revelation of that
mystery which our strayed soul is trying to
solve through every effort of the life we are
living now.
Beloved ! I humbly lay before you this mes-
sage to read to help you to recognize your
true self, to help you to find your true goal in
this life's race. This message is a magic mir-
ror in which, maybe, you will catch the reflec-
tion of your soul's All-Beautiful Image.
You are now engaged, my beloved, in read-
ing this message with the same object for
which every one of us is just now engaged in
doing various things. It is life's one common
object for us all Pleasure. That is the one
all-absorbing quest of humanity, nay, of all
living creatures, of all creation. We are ever
striving, all of us, every minute, to find that
one blessing which ever eludes our grasp, ever
misses our ken, ever deludes us like the will-o'-
the-wisp the one object of our desire, of
predominant, spontaneous, practical, natural
interest Unmixed, Unbroken Happiness.
6
INTRODUCTORY.
Not only is this quest for happiness ever
present within mankind, but also in lower ani-
mals, and even in every phase of Nature, more
or less pronounced or discernible. Every mani-
festation of Nature, man or beast, bird or tree
or plant, is ever endeavoring to adjust a state
of internal disorder and disturbance I mean
ever endeavoring to bring about a sense
or instinct of that harmonious equilibrium,
which we call Full Satisfaction, Complete
Contentment, Absolute Happiness.
Now the question may be asked: Why is
this universal quest for happiness? How is
it that every man or woman or child is every
minute seeking some sort of happiness or
other? The Hindoo sages have answered this
question to the satisfaction of all intelligent
human beings. Why is this eternal search for
happiness ?
That answer is: Because the whole unf-
verse, of which we are parts, has come out of
that Eternal Abode of Happiness, called Bliss,
where it had dwelt before creation, like a tree
in a seed, and the memory of which dwells
still in the inner consciousness of all created
SREE KRISHNA.
beings, though it has dropped out of their
outer consciousness.
That abode of happiness is called the Abode
of Absolute Love ; the Hindoo calls it Krishna.
Th 5 > word Krishna, in Sanscrit, comes from
the foot "karsha" to draw. Krishna means
that which draws us to Itself ; and what in the
world draws us all more powerfully than
Love? It is the "gravitation" of the modern
scientist. It is the one source and substance
of all magnetism, of all attraction ; and when
that love is absolutely pure, its power to draw
is absolute, too.
In seeking even material pleasure or happi-
ness through life we are ever seeking this Ab-
solute Bliss, only most of us do not know it.
The man who devotes his heart and soul to
acquiring wealth is, in fact, but striving to at-
tain this blissful state. For what does the
would-be millionaire work to make the million
but to secure pleasure, the pleasure of good
eating, good drinking, good living, good en-
joyment to be happy? He makes the mil-
lion ; but the happiness which he secures, by
securing the means of pleasure and by enjoy-
INTRODUCTORY.
ing the pleasures themselves, is not complete.
He still feels some void in that happiness,
something still wanting in those pleasures to
make him fully happy. He therefore piles up
more millions, he plunges into newer pleas-
ures, he leaves no stone unturned to find the
material objects which will add to his pleas-
ure ; and when he has secured all these objects
and enjoyed them, he finds himself exactly at
the same place where he was before there is
something still wanting to make him com-
pletely happy. Finding no newer objects
which are likely to add to his happiness, he
occupies himself by enjoying what he has al-
ready enjoyed over and over again ; that is
to say, he goes over again the same round of
pleasures to delude himself into the belief that
that is the best happiness allowed to mortal
man.
But the delusion is temporary and far from
complete. The longing, the search for some-
thing still wanting, is present all through that
delusion something unknown, but which he
thinks he might know and recognize, if he
once found it. But, alas, he does not !
9
SREE KRISHNA.
Poor Man ! He does not know the secret of
true happiness, the happiness which is com-
plete in itself, which never ends, which, once
secured, never falls short or vanishes, which
flows from within the heart through all the
channels of the body, out through the pores
of it in a continual stream of ecstasy. He does
not know that this thing, this unending hap-
piness, is not to be found in material objects;
that it cannot be secured by the means or by
the instincts of the physical senses, which
cognize only material objects.
And why? Why is it that material objects
fail to give us that true and absolute happi-
ness, fail to satisfy the hunger of the yearn-
ing human heart for that unknown something
which it feels somehow must exist, but which
ever eludes its ken and quest, and which, alas !
it does not realize that it once knew, that
it once owned by right of heritage?
The answer is simple, and ought to be
convincing to every thoughtful mind. The
answer is: Because material objects are
changeful in their nature and principle; be-
cause, being nothing but forms of changeful-
10
INTRODUCTORY.
ness, they do not possess this permanent, this
unchangeable happiness, to give it to those who
seek to derive it from them. An object whose
very principle is changefulness can afford noth-
ing which is not changeful in its nature. All
the pleasures, therefore, that we derive from
material objects must necessarily be change-
ful, which means short-lived, pleasures of short
duration, broken pleasure, distinguished by the
Hindoos from unbroken pleasure, which, be-
cause of its unbrokenness and ecstatic taste,
ceases to be called pleasure and assumes the
name of Bliss.
The question now arises, where is this true
happiness to be found, if it cannot be found
in material objects? Some modern scientists
call this unbroken happiness a delusion and
a snare of credulous humanity. Modern sci-
ence has done much, has done wonders in this
Western world. None but a fool will deny
the glory of its brilliant achievements. But
even among those who admire the wonderful
progress of modern science, if there be one
who fails to find anything in these products
of science which is in any way likdy to con-
11
SREE KRISHNA.
tribute towards the attainment of contentment
by the human mind, that person need not nec-
essarily be a fool. Modern science has excited
our wonder, but has failed to make us either
contented or happy contentment and happi-
ness, which are our eternal quest, the one ob-
ject of our life, the one goal to which all cre-
ation is running in a blindfolded race. It
should rather be claimed for modern science
that it has made its followers outward-look-
ing. It has produced conveniences and com-
forts of life, which have made all people
hanker for them ; and many, failing to secure
them, make themselves discontented and
unhappy. Modern science, in a word, has
served only to put obstacles in the way of our
attempt to realize that one object of our exist-
ence contentment, which affords true happi-
ness.
This leads me to repeat what I have just
said, that no true or all-satisfying permanent
happiness can be found in material objects,
and hence the failure of material scientists to
make humanity either contented or happy.
Where is, then, this happiness to be found?
12
INTRODUCTORY.
The answer is : Within ourselves. It can-
not be found in anything outside of ourselves.
This continual stream of happiness is flowing
at all times from our heart of hearts all
through our body, but we cannot perceive it,
or feel it, because our mind has been covered
by the clouds formed out of our hankerings
for material objects. Our desire for material
pleasures is the only veil that shrouds this
fountain of true happiness from our mental
vision.
But if our desires for material enjoyments
be carefully and intelligently analyzed, we can
arrive at only one conclusion, and that is
that in hankering for material pleasures we are
in fact practically hunting for that happiness
which, once attained, is ever full, ever satisfy-
ing; which, once enjoyed, lays all hankerings
for material enjoyments forever at rest. The
fact of our material possessions and enjoy-
ments ever leaving within us a wish, more or
less pronounced, for something still more en-
joyable, still more pleasurable, is the most in-
directly direct proof that we are in quest of
something which material objects cannot sup-
13
SREE KRISHNA.
ply ; and the fact of this quest being present in
all human souls, in all their thoughts and
actions at all times forces us to the irresistible
conclusion that we once knew or had a taste
of the thing we all are eternally searching
for; and that, having lost it, we are ever
endeavoring to regain it, its absence having
rendered us as unhappy and restless as a fish
out of its element.
This lost object, this once enjoyed state of
the human soul, now absent but ever longed
for, is Krishna.
It is Krishna Perfect State of Love or
Bliss that is ever drawing us to Itself. This
Krishna was once our home, when this crea-
tion, of which we form but atoms, slept for
aeons unnumbered in the bosom of Krishna,
forming but a part of His will. When those
unnumbered aeons were numbered, after these
atoms of creation had slept for enough time
to rest themselves in that bosom of Absolute
Bliss, they were thrust out of that realm into
space, to form a universe.
They first manifested themselves as Uni-
versal Consciousness, which, wanting to be
14
INTRODUCTORY.
conscious of something, developed into Ego,
and Ego developed into the Mind, as no Ego
is possible without the faculty of thought, which
is the Mind's function. And as thoughts are
not possible without objects to think upon, the
five fine objects, namely : Sound, Touch, Form,
Taste and Smell, came into existence, along
with their gross counterparts and com-
pounds, I mean the five elements, namely,
Ether, Air, Fire, Water and Earth; while
the Mind's channels of communication with
these fine and gross forms of matter were de-
veloped simultaneously, namely, the five Cog-
nizing Senses: Power of Seeing, (eye), Power
of Hearing (ear), Power of Smelling (nose),
Power of Tasting (tongue), Power of Feeling
(skin), with the five Working Senses, namely,
Power of Speaking (vocal organs), Power of
Holding (hands), Power of Moving (feet),
Power of Excreting and Power of Generating.
Thus from Krishna to earth, Krishna's Will
took twenty-four steps to assume the fonr.
of the universe, and myriad steps more to
divide the universe into earth, heaven, stars,
planets, sun and moon, man and beast and
15
SREE KRISHNA.
bird ; trees and shrubs and grass ; mountains
and rivers, which go to make it up.
But every particle of this cosmos is con-
scious, directly or indirectly, in every point, of
the home that it has left, the absolute state of
Bliss it once has soaked in, the incomparable
nectar which it has once tasted. Yes, that
memory endures; the memory of that Love
Absolute is the cause of all discontent, of all
dissatisfaction, of all strife and effort, of all
ambition and achievement. It is the cause as
well of every philosophy and transcendental
thought, of moral and spiritual uplifting, and
of developing the human into the Divine.
From Krishna have we all come and Krish-
naward are we all tending. And all our ac-
tions, good, bad or indifferent, are but the
feeble steps with which we are all endeavor-
ing to cover the journey back to Krishna our
Home, Sweet Home! our ever-loved Home,
from which we have come away as sorry tru-
ants and to which the needle of our soul ever
trembles, pointing to us the forgotten path,
by which we fled from and by which we are
again to return to that Home Sree Krishna !
36
INTRODUCTORY,
GOD IS FORMLESS AND HAS A FORM.
Thus Krishna is the object we are all seek-
ing through every wish and every act; every
moment of our existence we are seeking Krish-
na. He is the interest which makes life inter-
esting, the one interest which makes life worth
living. He is the element of sweetness in the
grossest pleasure. He is the highest beatitude
which the purest souls attain to. The lover
of good eating cannot keep on eating forever
to sustain the pleasure that good eating pro-
duces ; if he did, he would die. The sensation
of eating endures as long as the food is on the
palate; but the mind alone is the enjoyer of
that sensation. The mind alone, likewise, en-
joys the pleasure of intoxication, which the
dryest and highest priced champagne can af-
ford. A little while and the pleasure of the
daintiest of food and the most delicious of
drinks is over, giving place to the pain of its
loss and the restlessness in the search again
for such pleasure!
The man who has solved the mystery of true
pleasure that needs no re-eating and re-drink-
17
SREE KRISHNA.
ing to keep itself up, does not seek to find it
in any food, or in any drink, or in any form or
means of material enjoyments, knowing that
it is the mind alone, affected by material ob-
jects, that cognizes pleasure or pain. The
pleasure or pain which the mind feels on being
brought into contact with the thought or influ-
ence of material objects is derived from those
objects themselves ; and so long as the mind is
habituated to draw pleasure from such objects
it cannot but come in for some sorrow, too, for
objective pleasure is short-lived, and its cessa-
tion is sorrow in the least pronounced sense.
But we all want only pleasure or happiness ;
we hate pain or sorrow in any shape. If that
is true, and nobody can say it is not, then what
we practically want is eternal, unending
pleasure; but we seek to find it in objects
whose very constituents partake of changeful
materials born more of pain than of pleasure.
If we can make the mind dwell upon some
object which is eternally lovely and lovable,
nay, even if we can imagine such an object,
mentally create such an ideal object, and con-
centrate our mind exclusively upon it, then we
18
INTRODUCTORY.
can have a taste of that unending happiness
which we all are seeking in vain to find in
material objects. Then, dwelling on this
Changeless Idea, the restless mind becomes
fixed and calm ; and calmness of mind being
happiness, the mind is thus made happy by
itself. Then it has known that happiness lies
within itself, and within means independent of
any concern with outside objects ; then it finds
that the coarsest meal gives as much pleasure
as the daintiest of dinners, and that Adam's
Ale is a more delicious drink than the highest-
priced champagne. It has then learned to drink
the champagne of the soul, the least taste of
which makes one think the taste of the most
delicious wine and food to be all tasteless.
But from such transcendental nonsense, as
the materialist would call it, let us come down
for awhile to analyze matter, the God of the
materialist. Let us for awhile examine the
making and the mechanism of the universe,
and try to trace in the grossest matter the ex-
istence of this Perfect Love or Happiness.
I have already told you of the making of
the universe, that it is made up of twenty-four
19
SREE KRISHNA.
principles; namely, Love, Universal Con-
sciousness, Ego, Mind, the Ten Senses, the
Five Objects and the Five Elements. I have
also told you very briefly the process of crea-
tion from Love to earth. I need now tell you
that every succeeding principle, as it is devel-
oped, contains the preceding principle or
principles. A grain of earth therefore is as
good as the whole universe in regard to its
composition. There is but this difference be-
tween the universe and an atom of it, that in
the universe all the passages of its twenty-four
principles are fully opened, while in the atom
all these passages are closed. But motion Ts
the principal law of creation, of all creation, as
every particle of it is ever moving in the form
of change. The atom of earth, which is the
smallest form of moving manifestation of Love
through finer and grosser matter, moves back-
ward now through grosser and then through
finer forms of love-manifestations into the
Ocean of Love again, from which it had orig-
inally started.
The process of this backward motion of ma-
terial atom is the opening of the passages
20
INTRODUCTORY.
of its composing principles through repeated
reincarnations. To develop from a grain of
earth into a blad of grass is the first step,
in which only one passage, that of Feeling,
is opened. The blade of grass draws by
the opening of this passage juice from the
earth for its sustenance. Upward through
myriad forms of life shrubs, plants, vege-
tables, trees, lower animals, etc. that atom
travels, to develop into the first savage man,
in whom the principle called Mind is for the
first time opened, and along with it are opened
the passages of Ego and Intelligence (called
Intellect in individual souls) ; for all these
three principles are close co-workers.
The most important stage of evolution is
man himself, for in man alone are the pas-
sages of all these twenty-four principles more
or less open. And hence it is that man is
called the miniature universe. From savage
man to civilized man, from civilized man to
religious man, from religious man to spiritual
man, from spiritual man to perfect, all love-
ful man, the process involves again innumer-
able incarnations. It is the perfect, all-loveful
21
SREE KRISHNA.
man, that reaches the original starting point
and merges in the Ocean of Love called
Krishna.
I am now about to put before you a proposi-
tion which at first sight may perhaps shock
you ; but I assure you that, if you can manage
to get over the first shock, by the aid of an
open mind and calm consideration, you may
find that proposition to contain the truth, the
whole truth and nothing but the truth. My
proposition is this : If this "formful" universe
if that word may be allowed formful in
every detail, has come out of God, or Krishna,
or Love, can it be possible that that Source
of the universe is perfectly formless? If
formless, whence have these form-manifesta-
tions of that formless Deity come? How can
forms come out of anything void of all forms ?
That is a hard nut to crack for Western the-
ologians; while material scientists do not care
to call that a nut at all, for they have learned
to see nothing beyond matter.
I want you to think over this question with
a view to draw the right deduction. Mean-
while, I beg to submit a few suggestions which
INTRODUCTORY.
may be of help in drawing these deductions.
Forms coming out of anything formless is as
absurd to common sense as it is to higher,
otherwise called divine, or spiritual science.
Therefore the producing cause of the universe,
the first principle, is not formless, but has
a Form. It has even a form fike the form
of a man, a form most perfect in every feature,
a form of which the most exquisitely beauti-
ful and divine human form is but a coarse,
crude counterpart. Man has been made after
the image of his Maker, says the Bible. The
idea has been borrowed from the Hindoo
scriptures, which in their principles are noth-
ing if not scientific in propounding principles.
The Veda says that the Supreme Deity is
both formless and with form at the same time.
Just as the sun in its orb is the concrete cen-
tre of its abstract, infinite self in its mani-
festation of light and heat, so is the Supreme
Deity, of which the sun is but a physical re-
flection, the Concrete Centre of His Abstract
Infinite Self of His Effulgence, called Love,
which pervades the whole universe and all
space, as the basic principle of all Existence.
23
SREE KRISHNA.
As the sun (the orb) taken together with
its light and heat should be called the sun,
and not the mere orb should be * called
the sun; so Krishna, the Supreme Deity,
should be taken together with His Central
Form and His All-Pervading Effulgence
Love to be called Krishna. It will be as
wrong to regard the orb only as the sun, that
is, the orb minus its effulgence and heat, to
be the sun, as to regard this Form of Krishna
(tne Centre of Himself) minus the effulgence
all-pervading Love to be Krishna. Thus
Krishna, like His physical light-reflection, the
sun, is Infinite, even though He has a finite-
looking Form-Centre.
The fear entertained by most people in the
West, that the form carries with it an idea of
finiteness, is not true in regard to Krishna's
Form. Not only is Krishna Infinite in His ef-
fulgence, but the Image of his Central Form
dwells in every particle of that effulgence,
called Love. Besides, nothing in this universe
is finite.
I shall, in succeeding pages, try to prove to
you the fact that the Supreme Being has a con-
24
INTRODUCTORY.
crete-looking Form-Centre, for two reasons.
One is to support the proposition that no form
can come out of anything formless, and the
other is that all forms in creation, from a
blade of grass to a divine man, are more or
less imperfect manifestations of the Central
Form from which they have sprung. From
the blade of grass upward, the process of evo-
lution discovers more and more outward re-
semblance and inward affinity to the Form and
attributes of the Author of the universe. Hence
it is true that man is made in the Image of
his Maker.
In the upward evolution of the man-form,
the refinement of mental, moral, intellectual
and spiritual attributes contributes more and
more towards the man-form being made a
more and more perfect image of his Maker,
both externally and internally.
Krishna in Form and in Love-Effulgence is
present as much in a grain of earth, in a blade
of grass, in a beast, as in man. Only that
Form is more or less covered in the lower life-
forms, on account of many of the composing
principles of their bodies being unopened;
25
SREE KRISHNA.
while in the man, all the principles being
opened, the man-form looks more like the form
of God. Some people refuse to believe that
the Supreme Deity has a form like that of
man, because God, with a human form would
be lowered in their estimation. These devout
people forget that the human form is but an
imperfect picture of God's form, instead of
God's form being a copy of the human form.
So God need not take the trouble of assuming
an imperfect reflection of His own Perfect
Form.
Dear Reader! Some of you may say that
it is foolishness and temerity on my part to
try to prove that God has a Form before peo-
ple who are in the vanguard of civilization,
and many of whom think that the very idea of
God is but a diseased fancy of weak humanity.
Yet, for all that, I do preach a Form-God
along with a Formless God with all the bold-
ness my ancient, truly scientific conviction
commands, because that boldness is backed by
truth, the only Truth.
You here in this country are all of you great
lovers and admirers of science; you want
26
INTRODUCTORY.
everything to be scientific in order to be ac-
ceptable. The food you eat, the air you
breathe, the medicine you use, must be scien-
tifically supplied and applied. But if you want
science in everything, why do you not de-
mand science in religion? Why is your re-
ligion so unscientific? Forms coming out of
a formless God is the most unscientific asser-
tion imaginable.
The root of this belief in forms coming out
of the formless is buried in the conceit which
the new civilization has developed in its aver-
age votary. People here do not care to bow in
reverence to anything that has a form, hence
is a formless Deity so readily believed in. If
God had a form, they say, He would be human,
and therefore not worth worshiping. Nor do
they believe in making an image of God or
bowing to it. They will bow to man; they
will idolize man, but not God. Every man
here idolizes his lady-love, and every lady
idolizes her lover, with more or less abject
worship. They will worship the picture of a
lover or a lady-love day and night, but they
will not worship the image of God, even in a
27
SREE KRISHNA.
picture. They will pay homage to a moving
form of Wealth or Physical Beauty or Sensu-
ality, but hate to think of, much less worship,
an Image of God. They are worse idolaters
than the Hindoos whom they affect to hate as
"heathens." They worship idols of money
and human flesh; the Hindoos worship idols
of God. They worship material forms of mere
matter ; the Hindoos worship Sanctified Forms
of the Divine Spirit or Its Attributes. Let
them raise their standards of idol-worship
first in order to be worthy to talk of the purely
transcendental idolatry of the Hindoos.
The Hindoos rarely paint a picture or carve
an image of a human being ; a human being is
not worthy of it, except a Saint or a Gooroo
(spiritual guide) ; but they paint their God
and make His Image, and worship it with all
internal and external homage.
We are all denounced as idolaters ; but we
are idolaters to-day, in spite of all the influ-
ence of civilization and Christian bigotry
brought to bear upon us, as good idolaters to-
day as we were ten thousand years ago. The
idols and idolatry of ancient Greece, Rome and
28
INTRODUCTORY.
Egypt have been swept away; but the idols
of the Hindoo-God still flourish and will flour-
ish to the end of time, as they flourished time
out of mind.
What is the reason? Whence is this extra-
ordinary vitality of Hindoo idolatry? Be-
cause it is not idolatry in the sense it is un-
derstood by "civilized" Westerners. We wor-
ship the images of the attribute-manifestations
of the ONE God, of the ONE Deity, of the
ONE Supreme Being, who pervades the uni-
verse, who originally is with Form and Form-
less at the same time. We worship Krishna,
above all, in His Image as He manifested Him-
self and walked on earth among men 5,000
years ago ; Krishna, whose miraculous deeds of
love, power and valor no incarnation, either in
the West or in the East, ever could enact or
even imitate, before His time or even after His
ascension to Heaven, up to to-day. We love
this Krishna, the Seed and Soul of the Uni-
verse, the Basic Principle of creation ; we be-
lieve in Him and in the potency of His Name.
Love Him, dear Reader, because He loves
you more than anyone you meet here on earth.
My Krishna bless you all!
29
SREE KRISHNA
THE LORD OF LOVE
SECTION I.
THE CONCRETE AND ABSTRACT GOD.
SEE you that sun, Beloved Reader, shining
radiant in the blue space above? Ancients
worshipped it as a god, and the Hindoos, the
most ancient of all peoples, worship the sun
as a god still. With joined hands filled with
flowers and water and trembling with homage,
the Hindoos daily pray to this "Outer Eye of
the Deity," this parent of all light and Nature.
"O Thou Parent of the Three Worlds ! I medi-
tate upon thy power divine which directs my
intelligence!" prays the Brahman morning,
noon and evening, as he bows in all reverence.
This sun is the physical expression of the
Spiritual Sun, Krishna. As the sun (the
orb) is the concrete centre of its abstract self,
in its diffused manifestation of light and heat
which pervades the universe, so this, the
Spiritual Sun, Krishna, the Source of the sun,
is the concrete centre of the diffused effulgence
31
SREE KRISHNA.
of His Body which pervades even the sunlight
and its heat. Krishna has a Form, a Form of
which the most exquisite human form is but
a crude counterpart. The effulgence of Krish-
na's Body is the substance of all space and
creation. This Effulgence-Krishna, with
Form-Krishna for its centre, from which it
radiates is Love.
As the physical sun's effulgence embodies
or is co-existent with heat, so the Spiritual
Sun's effulgence embodies and is co-existent
with Intelligence. This co-existent Absolute
Love and Absolute Intelligence forms the Be-
ing of this Creation. Krishna is, therefore,
called the embodiment of Being, Intelligence
and Bliss, or Life, Truth and Love. Every par-
ticle of this radiance of Krishna's Form-Body
is not only instinct with these three attributes
in one, but has within it the germ of Krishna's
Form and Power.
The belief that the First Cause of the uni-
verse has no form, is based partly on error of
its conception and upon ignorance of the laws
of Nature. It is a delusion to think that all
forms are human, material, and finite, and that
to acknowledge that this Supreme Being has a
32
THE CONCRETE AND ABSTRACT GOD.
form is to take away from Him His absolute
divinity, spirituality and infinity.
That which is not in the seed cannot appear
in the tree which comes out of it, says an
aphorism of the Vedanta philosophy. This be-
ing an undeniable truth, even from a com-
mon sense standpoint, it may be asked: If
God is formless, and if that formless, abstract
God be the source from which the universe
has come, then how can that creation contain
any form ? If man's creator is formless, to put
the question in another way, wherefrom has
He His form? If God has no form, then He
can have no idea of form, and having no idea
of form, how can He then create form, for
creation is but expansion of Idea.
Creation has sprung from God's will, says
the Holy Bible, as also the Veda. These tell
us and both the Christians and the Hindoos
are agreed on this point that God has a Will.
What is will? It is but the function or attri-
bute of the mind. Just as where there is
no fire there can be no smoke, so where there
is no mind there can be no will. Once we
admit that God has a will, we cannot escape
33
SREE KRISHNA.
admitting that He has a mind, the function of
which will He exercised in order to create
the universe.
Now then, it being established that God has
a mind, the question may be asked: Is that
mind encased in a body? If so, what sort of
a body is it ? Is it physical ; that is to say, is
it formed of the same material of which the
human body is made ? Or is it a body made of
abstract spirit ? This is not possible, for mind
is defined by the Vedas to be that principle
within us which has the power of willing and
non-willing. Scientists and modern philoso-
phers define mind with practically the same
purport. This vibration of the mind, willing
and non-willing, is brought about or induced
by the reflections cast upon it" by external or
internal objects, through its channels of com-
munication, the five cognizing senses, the phys-
ical counterparts of which are the Eye, the
Ear, the Nose, the Palate and the Skin, which
cognize respectively Form, Sound, Smell,
Taste and Touch, under which five heads the
Vedas have classified all forms of matter or
objects. A mind without these five channels
34
THE CONCRETE AND ABSTRACT GOD.
cannot exist, for, having no channels, it re-
ceives no impressions of objects, and has there-
fore no chance of either willing or non-willing,
which is its attribute and its only substance
and composition.
Once we acknowledge that God has a
mind, we cannot help acknowledging these
channels of that mind, the five senses. God
has therefore not only a mind, but the Power
of Seeing (eye), the Power of Hearing (ear),
the Power of Smelling (nose), the Power of
Tasting (palate), and the Power of Feeling
(skin). The mind has also five other powers
called its working senses; viz., the Power of
Speaking, the Power of Holding, the Power of
Moving, the Power of Excreting and the
Power of Generating, otherwise called the
vocal organs, the hands, the feet, the excre-
tory organ and the generating organ. Thus
God, possessing a mind, is bound to possess
the ten senses, without which the mind cannot
act, and inaction of the mind is its destruction
or non-existence. God, having a mind, has
to have an Ego, too, for mind is but a product
or channel of the Ego, which means I-ness or
35
SREE KRISHNA.
Self-Consciousness. So that God has all the
principles of which man is formed, once it
is admitted that God has a mind. And there
is no sane man who can deny to God the pos-
session of a mind of which the universe is
the design and creation of which man is but
a tiny part.
The Christian Bible says that God has made
man in His own image, which means that man
is the reflection, more or less imperfect, of
God. Is it then possible that what is not in
the original is present in the reflection ? If the
human soul, according to this scriptural say-
ing, is a reflection (image) of the Deity, has
not that Deity a mind and body, as Its reflec-
tion, the human soul, has?
The answer is : It has, only the Divine
Mind, being 4 consummately pure in its state and
perfect in its working, is absolutely powerful
to create, preserve and destroy; and the Body
in which the Divine Mind is encased is com-
posed of a substance not of any material
make.
But what does this Body of God look like?
Is it like a human body ? The answer is : Yes,
36
THE CONCRETE AND ABSTRACT GOD.
but of a perfection of shape, symmetry and
beauty, with which no human body can be
compared; it is the Original Body, of which
the human body is a poor imitation.
The question will be asked : Has God then
as good a finite body as any of us? The an-
swer is: NO, in capital letters. God's Body
is no more finite than the human body is.
There is nothing in Nature which is finite, not
even a blade of grass, or the tiniest speck of
earth.
All is infinite all that you see around you,
or perceive within you. There is no such
word as finite in the dictionary of Nature, in
the lexicon of Creation. All, all that looks
ever so small and circumscribed to the fleshly
eye of ignorance, is vast and endless to the
eye of spiritual wisdom. All that to the phys-
ical sight is limited in shape and life is be-
fore the vision of the soulful student of Cre-
ation's mysterious laws limitless beyond grasp.
Take a grain of earth, and try to trace its
origin by the light of the discoveries made
by sages who probed into the inmost depths
of Nature with the needle of pure spiritual
37
SREE KRISHNA.
concentration, and you will find that that grain
of earth has sprung from Water, Water from
Fire, Fire from Air, Air from Ether, and
Ether from Sound, Sound from Mind in its
effort to cognize outside of it objects pro-
jecting from within itself, Mind from Ego,
Ego from Consciousness, and Consciousness
from the Infinite Love-ocean, the basic princi-
ple of Creation.
Can you call this grain of earth finite by any
means or chance, especially when you come to
know the mysterious laws by which that grain
of earth develops into a blade of grass, and
then, through myriads of reincarnations of dif-
ferent life-forms, goes back and merges into
the Ocean of Love, from which it had origi-
nally sprung?
From Love to earth and from earth to Love,
thus is made up the circle of creation, and
every point in its circumference is but a mov-
ing phase of the Infinite in manifestation.
Man being but a stage in the upward evo-
lution of the atom or a particle of earth, and
his soul being a part of the Universal Soul,
a wavelet of the Love-Ocean, he is as im-
38
THE CONCRETE AND ABSTRACT GOD.
mense in every way as the universe itself, as
infinite as the Essense of Infinity. His form
is but the centre of his abstract Self, called
Soul. This form is concrete-looking, but it
is so only to the circumscribed vision of the
fleshly eye of ignorance.
The body of the Supreme Deity, Krishna's
Body, is concrete-looking like man's, but in-
finite in the expansion of its Radiance or Real
Self, just as, to repeat the simile, the orb of
the sun is the concrete-looking centre of its ab-
stract Self in the manifestation of its light and
heat. The orb, its radiance and its heat must
altogether be called the sun, and not the orb
alone. Krishna, the spiritual Soul of the sun
as well as of the Universe, has likewise a Form-
centre, from which radiates to limitless In-
finity His effulgence called Absolute Love,
which pervades all creation and space.
This body of Krishna, the Parent Cause of
the universe, is made up of concentrated Ab-
solute Love, and is the Home of the Very Fin-
est Ideas (potencies) of the sense-principles
and the Ego, Mind and Intellect, which form
the main factors of Creation.
39
SREE KRISHNA.
The Beauty of the Body of Krishna changes,
like the shifting 1 colors in a kaleidoscope, into
more and more soul-entrancing loveliness at
every second, for it reflects the concentrated
Beauty and Sweetness of the whole universe,
charms warring with charms for supremacy
bubbling foam and froth of the Sweetness of
the Nectar of Love.
40
SECTION II.
THE SCIENCE OF CREATION.
IT is an intelligent conclusion to draw that
the imperfect form-creations of the Creator
reach a perfect stage, or centre, towards which
all imperfections converge in order to reach
perfection. That centre does exist, that stage
is the stage by the standard of which all im-
perfections of things and phases in Nature are
known and judged. That centre is the Su-
preme God Himself Krishna.
Krishna, both Concrete and Abstract, has
three main spiritual attributes: Love, Intelli-
gence and Life. Love is the first attribute
and the cause of the two others. As the sun
(the orb) and its effulgence, to once more re-
peat the analogy, are one and the same thing,
as the flame and its light are one and the same
thing, as without the sun there can be no sun-
shine, as without the flame there can be no
light; in other words, as light is inseparable
from both the sun and the flame, so Krishna,
41
SREE KRISHNA.
though He has a form as finite-looking as
a human form, is not only infinite in His All-
pervading Radiance, but that Radiance is in-
separable from his finite-looking Form-Centre.
As sunshine, again, is inseparable from heat,
so the effulgence of Krishna's Central Self is
inseparable from Intelligence. This Universal
All-pervading Intelligence, again, is insepara-
ble from Existence or Being, otherwise called
Life. These three Absolute Spiritual Attri-
butes form Krishna's body, both Concrete and
Abstract.
Thus both the Concrete and the Abstract
Krishna are the embodiment of Bliss, In-
telligence and Being, which are co-existent and
inter-penetrating. Before Creation, then, there
was nothing but this Krishna the three Abso-
lute Spiritual Attributes in one substance, so
to speak; for Krishna or Para-Brahm cannot
be called substance, and yet there is no word
to indicate it. As mosses formed out of water
float on the surface of that water, soaking in
it, so does Creation, springing out of this Bliss,
Intelligence and Being (the All-pervading Ab-
stract Self of Krishna), float, soaking in it.
42
THE SCIENCE OF CREATION.
Let us try to understand the mystery of the
birth of this ever-changeful, material Creation
from its eternally Unchangeable Parent, the
Concrete and Infinite Krishna. I have already
said how every atom of this Creation is com-
posed of all the twenty-four principles, and
how in its backward motion to return to the
First or Primal Principle that atom opens
one by one the passages of these principles;
and how, when it develops into man-stage after
passing through innumerable life-forms in the
course of its evolution, it opens the passages of
all the principles more or less. It is the open-
ing of these passages of all of its .composing
principles, in the man-stage of the atom, that
makes it fit to be called a miniature universe;
for through these openings it communicates
more or less freely with the all-pervading prin-
ciples of the universe. The more developed
this man-stage becomes (that is to say, the
clearer the openings of these passages), the
more correct an index it is of the inner laws
and workings of the great universe.
Because man has the whole universe within
himself just as an acorn has the whole oak
43
SREE KRISHNA.
tree in potency dwelling within it, therefore
he can, by diving deep within himself, find out
the mysteries of the producing Source, Being
and Processes of working of the universe.
If we think on the process of the development
of a tree from a seed, we will find that process
as marvelous as the most marvelous phenom-
ena of nature. Indeed, this process of the
birth of a tree out of a seed is the process, in
miniature, of the birth of the universe out of
Krishna-Love. This process of Creation is be-
ing repeated every moment throughout Crea-
tion itself. The laws of production and de-
struction, formation and disintegration are the
same in scientific exactitude as those which
produce and form, and destroy and disinte-
grate the universe. The operation of these
laws is going on as much in the inner as in
this outer world of ours as constantly on the
mental plane as on the physical. The law
which brings forth a tree out of a seed is ex-
actly the same as that which, in a finer mani-
festation, operates through the birth of a
thought in our mind. The rooting, the shoot-
ing, the growing, the flowering and the fruit-
44
THE SCIENCE OF CREATION.
ing of a tree is but a gross reproduction of the
process by which a thought awakes, develops
and takes shape and action within us. The
stages of a thought's birth can be clearly per-
ceived when the mind is calm ; at first there is
an Unknown Feeling, then an Indefinite Vi-
bration, which develops into Abstract Idea.
Idea develops into Thought, and Thought be-
comes action.
Out of Krishna (Love) Creation springs
into existence like a thought. Thought exists
in our mind like a seed, in the shape of previ-
ous impressions of objects and ideas ; so the
seed of creation lies in the bosom of Krishna,
in the shape of impressions of ideas of previ-
ous Creations. This seed or germ is made up
of three attributes, called Sattwa (Illumina-
tion), Raja (Activity or Motion), and Tama
(Obscuration or Darkness). So long as these
three attributes, forming the essence of the
germ, are in equilibrium, that is to say, are of
equal degree or force or intensity, Creation
remains in the germ-state in the bosom of its
First Cause (Krishna). But the moment there
is the least tendency of any of these attri-
45
SREE KRISHNA.
butes of this germ-essence to fall out of equi-
librium with the other two, that is to say, when
one becomes more powerful than the others,
then they start out of the Central Self Krish-
na, encased in another form, almost like unto
the Krishna-Form, a state which is analogous
to the Unknown-Feeling state in the develop-
ment of human thought.
This state is called Vasudeva, which again
has a form-centre of its abstract self-radiance,
pervading all space. It is the least pronounced
state or stage of differentiation induced by the
tendency of loss of equilibrium in the even
'forces of the three Cardinal Attributes (Gu-
nas), illumination, motion and obscuration.
The second stage, called Sankarsana, analo-
gous to the Indefinite-Vibration stage of the
development of thought, has again a form-
centre of its all-pervading abstract self-radi-
ance. This Sankarsana is the Unconscious
Cause of Creation. The third stage, called
Pradyumna, analogous to the Abstract-Idea
stage of thought, has likewise a form-centre
of its all-pervading abstract Self-radiance.
This is the Semi-Conscious Cause of Creation ;
\
46
THE SCIENCE OF CREATION.
and from this develops the fourth stage, called
Aniruddha, which is analogous to the full-
developed Thought-stage and is the Full Con-
scious Cause of Creation. This Aniruddha is
called Vishnoo or Narayan, from nar (water),
and ayan (bed), because he floats on his back
on the water of Love-life, while out of his
navel springs a gigantic lotus a figurative
expression, meaning the Universe in bud in
which is encased the sleeping Brahma, the
operating Creator, with the germ of Creation
dwelling within his mind and about to shoot
forth.
In Aniruddha the real stage of inequi-
librium of the Attributes (Gunas) develops,
and in Brahma it assumes full development.
With the opening of the petals of the Mystic
Love-lotus, Brahma awakes from his sleep
(deep trance state), and, unable for a moment
to understand the meaning of the Lotus-bed
or the Water of Life around (just as a man
suddenly roused out of sleep is dazed and
forgets to think and therefore feels stupid for
the moment), he goes down through the hol-
low of the Lotus-stalk in order to find out
47
SREE KRISHNA.
the bottom of the Lotus. He goes down, down,
down, and at last finds its depths unending,
bottomless. He therefore comes up to the
surface again and sits down mystified, when
he suddenly hears a voice from the water, as
it were, saying : "Tapa, tapa, tapa !" which
means, "Meditate, meditate, meditate!" With
the sound of that word the meaning becomes
apparent to Brahma. It means: "Why art
thou looking 1 outward ? Look inward and thou
shalt know." Whereupon his eyes involuntar-
ily close, and his mind becomes concentrated
inward. Then he sees before his mental vision
Aniruddha (Vishnoo) appear and say:
"O Awakened One ! know and remember that
thou art Brahma, the Creator." At the very
suggestion he finds out his own self and ex-
claims: "Oh, yes! I am Brahma." Then
Vishnoo again says : "Thou hast now to cre-
ate the universe." .
"Oh, yes!" he exclaims, as the memory
of his function springs within him, "I am to
create the universe; but how?*'
"By meditating upon the former creation.
As the memory of past creation, which dwells
48
THE SCIENCE OF CREATION.
within thee, shall awake, creation will begin."
With hearing begins action ; and as Brahma
concentrates his mind upon his former cre-
ation, its memory in time flashes through him,
and with the flashing of that memory creation
manifests itself, in the shape of earth, and sky,
and trees, and grass, and ocean, and rivers,
and in time beast, and bird, and man, all com-
plete. Just as a master painter first designs a
picture in his mind and reproduces that design
upon the canvas, even so is the picture of cre-
ation produced upon the canvas of Love-life.
Only the painter Brahma paints with the brush
of his all-powerful mind-force, which, the mo-
ment the design forms in his mind, is material-
ized into living substance.
49
SECTION III.
THE STEPS OF CREATION.
THE Veda says that the universe is like a
tree; that is to say, it is a tree, the roots of
which are embedded in the unmanifested
First Cause Krishna. Aniruddha is the
seed, and Brahma is the first sprout. This
analogy between the seed and the sprout,
between Aniruddha (also called Vishnoo and
Narayan) and Brahma seems so perfect that
it justifies the conclusion that the process of
the birth of a plant is only an imitation of the
process through which the universe springs
into being.
As in the germination of a seed two lobes,
called cotyledons, which form part of the seed,
come out prior to the appearance of the stem
which shoots forth between them, so out of the
navel of Narayan (Aniruddha) first appear
two cotyledons, called "Lotus" in the figura-
tive language of the Veda, and between the
cotyledons, sprouts forth the stem in the shape
50
THE STEPS OF CREATION.
of Brahma, who is the miniature embodiment
of the universe.
Before Brahma was born, Narayan created
Universal Consciousness, which was but the
manifestation of his own Consciousness (called
Mahat, which means Immeasureable). Out of
Consciousness sprang Ego (Ahankara). Out
of Ego sprang Mind. Out of Mind sprang
Ether (Akasha). From Ether sprang Water.
Out of the friction of Ether and Water sprang
Air. This Air, rising up from the ocean of
Water with great noise, created, by its fric-
tion with Water, flames of Fire, illumining all
space. This Fire became mixed up, by the
cohesive attribute of Air, with Water and
Ether, and all four elements became one thick-
ened, molten mass; and as it rose upward
the liquid substance which issued from it be-
came solidified and cooled in process of time
and formed into Earth.
Then the Lotus (cotyledons) sprang forth
from the navel (Sanscrit, Navee, middle) of
Narayan, and within them Brahma (the
stem) shot forth. His body was made of the
Five Elements and Consciousness, Mind and
51
SREE KRISHNA.
Ego. He is also said to be the central form-
embodiment of Ego (Ahankara).
Brahma is but the creative form-potency of
Narayan. When Narayan bade him to medi-
tate upon his former creation, and told him
also that the moment that memory of former
creation would awake within him creation
would begin, Brahma meditated as he was
told, and creation began as that memory of the
past creation flashed within him.
Thus it will be seen that Narayan (Anirud-
dha) is the real Creator. He creates at first
the eight main, abstract and concrete princi-
ples; viz., Consciousness, Ego, Mind, and the
;five elements Ether, Air, Fire, Water and
Earth. After the creation of these was cre-
ated the first concrete form, Brahma, who was
to create the details of Creation. But even
these creations were not the product of the
arbitrary will of Narayan, though their ex-
pressions were subject to his will or medium-
ship. The seed-bud of creation dwelt in the
most mysteriously abstract state within Krish-
na (Absolute Love), a state so similar to that
First Principle that it would enter and merge
52
THE STEPS OF CREATION.
itself in it. If we cut a seed in halves, we find
in it not even a suggestion of the tree of which
it is the seed ; but if we plant it in the soil, the
rudimentary form of the tree's organism,
called the germ, asserts itself and creates its
state of differentiation from its original state
of homogeneity. So from the tendency of
the least inequilibrium of the forces of the
three Cardinal Attributes, Sattwa, Raja, Tama
(which, having formerly attained equality of
force, have lost their different individualities
and have become merged and transformed into
Pure Sattwa Illumination) springs the germ-
state of Creation, and, passing through its
three stages; viz., Vasudeva, Sankarsana and
Pradyumna, reaches its fourth stage, called
Aniruddha, where, having attained further de-
velopment, it sprouts forth into Brahma, the
first visible miniature embodiment of the uni-
verse.
As out of the tiny but potent shoot of the
plant from the seed, the details of the tree,
viz., trunk, branches, leaves, flowers and fruit,
spring forth to attain its full-grown state, so
out of its minute but potent shoot, the details
53
SREE KRISHNA.
of the universe, viz., earth, heaven, sun, moon,
stars, day, night, mountains, rivers, vegeta-
tion, spiritual beings, animals, men, etc., spring
forth to attain its complete form.
The manifestation of Universal Conscious-
ness (Mahat) is called the First Step of Crea-
tion. The birth of Ego (Ahankara) out of Con-
sciousness is called the Second Step of Crea-
tion ; that of Mind from Ego is the Third Step ;
that of the Five Elements Ether, Air, Fire,
Water and Earth from Mind is the Fourth
Step; that of the Five Attributes of the Ele-
ments Sound, Touch, Form, Taste and
Smell from the Elements is the Fifth Step;
that of the Five Cognizing Senses Seeing,
Hearing, Smelling, Tasting, Feeling out of
these Five Attributes (also called Objects) is
the Sixth Step; that of the Five Working
Senses Speaking, Holding, Moving, Excret-
ing, Generating from the Five Elements is
the Seventh Step; that of gods and aerial, in-
visible beings is the Eighth Step ; tHat of trees
and plants and shrubs and grass and all other
vegetation, as also that of the wild animals and
birds, is the Ninth Step ; that of domestic ani-
54
THE STEPS OF CREATION.
mals and men and women is the Tenth Step.
These steps or series of Creation have de-
veloped between long intervals. These are
called purely Natural Creations through the
instrumentality of the mind-force of Aniruddha
(Narayan) and Brahma.
55
SECTION IV.
THE CYCLIC MOTION OF CHANGES.
THE Veda says that when the three Car-
dinal Attributes, by losing this equipoise of
force, sprang into being, and leaving the bo-
som of Krishna (Absolute Love) passed
through the three stages of their development,
viz., Vasudeva, Sankarsana and Pradyumna,
they brought with them a vibration from
Krishna which found expression in Anirud-
dha, who exclaimed as he awoke from trance-
sleep, as it were : "I am One, I wish to be
the Many." This Divine Will manifested it-
self into the Universe in the manner described
in the previous section.
From the One Love trie motion of mani-
festation of Creation has therefore been to-
wards manifoldness. From One Love the
Principles sprang one by one, and where there
was only One, there were twenty-four. The
details of Creation sustained this process of
manifoldness, and motion gradually increased
56
THE CYCLIC MOTION OF CHANGES.
in speed, manifesting varieties, until now that
increased motion manifests that Will in mil-
lions of phases within every second of time.
This motion of manifestations or changes is
like the surface of a troubled ocean, where
heaving billows innumerable, crested with
foam, cover countless living beings. The cur-
rent of creative changes is mixed with and fed
by, and dashes against, the opposite current of
involutionary changes. The moment the last
Principle of the Universe Earth was cre-
ated, it had the tendency to go back to the
First Source of Creation. But, unable to
force its way back through the channel by
which it sprang, owing to the rush of creative
current, it found a circuitous channel by which
its composing molecules started on their way
back. As has already been said, and will be
fully explained in detail in a separate section,
the molecules have a tendency to open the
passage of their composing principles, and thus
to journey back by myriads of reincarnations
through different and higher and higher life-
forms to the First Parent Principle. The cur-
rent of Creation which began with the mani-
57
SREE KRISHNA.
festation of Universal Consciousness is still
moving on, and will move on in the shape of
changes until universal disintegration and
dissolution take place. This current of cre-
ative changes is mixed up and swelled by the
opposite current of involution, also in the shape
of changes. These warring waves of action
and reaction make up the Cosmos-Ocean.
Narayan (Aniruddha) is the Seed-Manifes-
tation (Will) of Krishna (the Supreme De-
ity) ; the Universe is the Physical Manifesta-
tion (Materialized Will-Force) of Krishna;
Time is the Motion Manifestation (Process of
Working of the Will-Force) of Krishna; and
the Veda is the Sound- Manifestation (Sound-
Expression of the Laws of the Will-Force) of
Krishna.
It has been shown how Narayan is the Seed-
Manifestation and how the Universe is the
materialized Will-Force of Narayan and Brah-
ma. I will now deal with this Motion-Mani-
festation Time.
"I am One, and I wish to be the Many."
The Lord was One, and the moment
He wished to appear to be the Many,
58
THE CYCLIC MOTION OF CHANGES.
then this wonderful creation of vastness
and variety sprang into existence. From
the moment of the rise of that Will in
the Divine Mind down to this moment, that
Will is undergoing the process of its execu-
tion. It is a rush from the One towards mani-
foldness. This process of that manifoldness
is called Creation, and the rhythm of its mo-
tion is called Time. The whole Creation is
nothing but motion of Changes. Time is noth-
ing but the cognition by our mind of events
and ideas which are phases of changes in in-
ternal and external Nature. If we had no
notion of events and never had an idea within
ourselves, we would be in Eternity. So long
as we are conscious of the kaleidoscopic
changes in us and Nature, or are conscious of
their impressions on our mind, we live in Time.
And the moment all impressions of the mind
are obliterated and we become, through any
process, unconscious of human and natural
events, we lose all consciousness of existence;
that is to say, we go behind the veil which
enshrouds these physical phenomena, and we
enter the realm which is an undisturbed calm
59
SREE KRISHNA.
of Absolute Life, Light and Bliss, the Trinity
which is Eternity.
These changes in Nature and human society,
starting from the beginning of Creation, move
in cycles ; that is to say, they have a cyclical
process of motion. In other words, some
events, natural and human, that occur within a
certain period of time, are reproduced in their
principal features in the next period of time
of the same length. Creation proceeds to-
wards ever manifold variety at this cyclic
pace.
The smallest appreciable Cycle of Nature's
change-process is the Day. Twenty-four hours,
called one day, are divided into two parts,
called day and night.
One Day is a Cycle embodying natural and
human events which are reproduced in the
following day, and so on. So that every day
and night, in their principal features, are but
a reproduction of the previous day and night.
One day, therefore, is the smallest cycle of
time or events, for events are but the pnases
of natural changes, and time is but the cog-
nition or consciousness thereof.
THE CYCLIC MOTION OF CHANGES.
The next cycle of time or events is the
Month, in which two events which occur with-
in twenty-eight lunar days are reproduced in
the next twenty-eight lunar days. These two
events are the fourteen days of waxing and
waning moon, and the bright fortnight is
the day and the dark fortnight is the night of
the month.
The next larger cycle is the Year, in which
the four seasons mark the principal divisions
of events and are reproduced in all years in the
self-same order, their uniform changes of
weather and Nature bringing forth fruit and
crops.
In the same way these events, called Time,
develop larger cycles in which some event or
other, or a series of events, are reproduced in
the next equal length of time. There are
cycles, for instance, of from 500 to 100,000
years, the phenomena of which are reproduced
in the next period of their respective propor-
tions. But the most pronounced cycle is called
the Divine Cycle. The Sanscrit word ' r Diva"
is the root of the word "Divine," and "Yuga''
61
SREE KRISHNA.
is the original of which the word "Age" is
a corrupted form.
This Divine Age (Daiva-Yuga) is divided
into four Human Ages, called Satya, Treta,
Dwapar and Kali. The span of this Divine
Cycle is composed of 12,000 Divine Years, and
each Divine Year is equal to 360 human years,
so that 12,000 years multiplied by 360 gives us
4,320,000 human years, which is the length of
a Divine Cycle. The next bigger cycle is
called the Manwantara, which is made up of
71 Divine Cycles and is wound up with a
Deluge, in which the whole world, including
the highest peaks of the Himalayas, becomes
immersed in water and remains so for the
period of 71 Divine Age's. The next larger
cycle is the Kalpa, which is made up of 14
Manwantaras, or 1,000 Divine Ages. The next
cycle and the largest is called Maha-Pralaya,
in which the whole universe is destroyed to-
tally, Krishna alone remaining with His Radi-
ance, filling all space, and 36,000 Kalpas bring
about this Universal Dissolution.
Since the beginning of this Kalpa creation,
six Manwantaras (Deluges) have passed
62
THE CYCLIC MOTION OF CHANGES.
away. Since the last Deluge 27 Divine Cycles
have rolled away. This is the twenty-eighth
Divine Cycle of which the first three sections,
viz., the Golden Age, the Silver Age and the
Copper Age have passed away. We are just
now in the early part of the fourth section, the
Kali or Iron (Dark) Age.
63
SECTION V.
THE GOLDEN AGE.
CREATION begins with the dawn of the Satya
Yuga, which is also called the Golden Age.
It is the first part and the longest section of
the Divine Age. The span of this age is 4,800
Divine years, which being multiplied by 360
gives us 1,728,000 human years. It is the most
spiritual age, because, of the three Cardinal
Attributes Sattwa, Raja and Tama which
govern, and are the parents of, the composing
principles of the Universe, the Sattwa is pre-
dominant in its influence. The Sattwa is that
attribute which uncovers the true state of
things without and within us and in Nature,
hence it may be called the attribute of Illumi-
nation. Raja is the attribute of Activity
(motion of change), and Tama is the very re-
verse attribute of Sattwa. It Is that attribute
within us and Nature which covers the true
state of things, hence it may be called the
64
THE GOLDEN AGE.
Obscuring, darkening attribute, the Attribute
of Darkness.
The Satya Yuga is called the Golden Age,
because gold is very abundant in this age of
utmost spirituality, and gold is the purest and
most spiritual of all metals. The Illumination
of predominant Sattwa pervades all Nature
in this age. Nature, inside and out, is full
of light, almost transparent witfi light spirit-
ual through and through. So is man, her
best product. Men and women in this age at-
tain a spiritual depth and height which no
other age can develop. This spiritual height
manifests itself in their physical body, while
the depth of their inward spirituality shows
itself in their outer life and actions. The
Golden Age men are twenty-one cubits, or
thirty-one and a half feet, in height. This
may strike us, diminutive mortals of this Kali
Yuga or Iron Age, as absurd or improbable,
but it need not do so if we remember how long
ago the last Golden Age was nearly three
million years. Moreover, as they are all of
the same height, they do not think they are
abnormally tall.
65
SREE KRISHNA.
These men and women, owing to their high
degree of spirituality, have a perfectly healthy,
harmonious and beautiful body, for spirituality
is health, harmony and beauty. They have
their inner vision fully opened and see more
through their ensouled mind's eyes than
through their physical ones. They, therefore,
see through Nature as through a glass. All
Nature stands revealed to them to her inmost
depth wherein they see the One Essence which
pervades it, the One Spirit of which all things
within and on the surface of Nature are but
different phases of its manifestation. And in
it all they find themselves as part of the
same phases, living, moving and having their
being sustained by tHat One Spirit which is
both life and light the One Omnipresent
Spirit, the one All-Pervading Essence Love.
The Golden Age men and women Have no
garments to cover their entirely bare body,
nor do they need any. We clothe our bodies
for two reasons: First, out of our sense of
delicacy and shame because of our dark
thoughts born of improper and unnatural (sin-
ful) actions, and secondly, to protect our body
66
THE GOLDEN AGE.
and health from the attacks of the sun, the
rain and the changes of weather and climate.
The Golden Age men have no such reason
for wearing any clothes. Their perfect spirit-
uality admits of no dark thought to touch
their mind, for all is illumination within and
without them, while their actions are all in
perfect consonance with the purest laws of
Nature, in rhythmic motion with the music of
the Infinite whose song they hear in their
soul. They may be called moving Vedas
walking wisdom and spirituality. The laws
of the Veda form the mechanism of their mind,
and it is these Vedic laws that move their limbs
and prompt their words and actions. Their
perfect spiritual health is proof against the
hardships of weather, or rather there is no
hardship of weather at all. The spirit of the
Age pervades all Nature, of which the weather
is a phase. Even Nature's forces are in per-
fect harmony with one another, for harmony is
the very keynote of the Age. It is Spring,
sweetest Spring season, all the year round, dur-
ing night and during day ; warm enough with-
out heat, cool enough without being cold,
67
SREE KRISHNA.
breezy enough without being windy man and
beast and bird and tree and earth and weather
all are in harmony. Harmony, harmony, all
is harmony in this Blessed Age.
Man and woman have no need at all for sex
life in the Golden Age. The ecstasy of the
soul with which their body and being are filled
renders it impossible for even any thought of
gross fleshly pleasures to enter their mind. The
very drawing of breath is to them a pure
delight which any fleshly or objective pleasure
of our day cannot dream of approaching. Life
is lived then in its veriest depth deep down
through the mind, deeper down through the
heart, deepest down in the deptfi of the soul.
And when life is lived in such depth, its sur-
face is not heeded or cared for. Such a life
does not require much material nutrition it is
nourished by the soul's all-nourishing nectar.
These men and women eat very little food
fruits and roots only, and drink milk and water,
and these between long intervals. They feel
very little hunger and that little on far-be-
tween occasions. We feel hungry because of
68
THE GOLDEN AGE.
our mind contemplating matter. All matter
is changeful matter is nothing but collected
forms of change. Its seeming substance em-
bodies but motion of change, so that its inmost
attribute is changefulness. Our mind concen-
trating on material objects absorbs its attribute
changefulness and is affected by it forth-
with ; it becomes changeful in its turn, that is,
it is rendered restless, flitting quickly from one
object to another. This changefulness of the
mind is in turn absorbed by our body, which
suffers from its effects in the shape of loss of
tissue. And this loss of tissue we Have to sup-
ply by food and drink and rest and sleep. Trie
Golden Age people do not suffer from this
loss of tissue, because their minds are always
concentrated on the One Changeless Sub-
stance, the very reflection of which through
the changeful forms of matter makes them
seem steady and substantial. Tfie little wear
and tear they suffer from, owing to looking
now and then on the surface^ of things, causes
some little need of nutrition, which their occa-
sional fruit and milk meals supply.
If they need little food they also need little
69
SREE KRISHNA.
rest. And when they need it, they just lie
down on the cool carpet of the fragrant grass,
for they have no other bed than this, because
in the Golden Age there are no houses what-
ever on the face of the earth. We build houses
for the same reasons that we wear clothes, and
these reasons are absent in the lives of the
Golden Age people. Their bodies need no pro-
tection from the weather, nor do they need ex-
ternal comforts, for they think more of their
soul than of their body.
Their home is wherever they live and rest,
its roof is the high vault of Heaven with its
azure canopy, Mother Earth the floor, the
trees its walls; Nature's bowers are their
boudoirs. All created beings are their family,
the whole earth their country. And the whole
earth is one large, beautiful garden, the rich-
est and most beautiful garden of flowers and
fruits and songbirds. But more beautiful than
the garden are the divine men and women who
sanctify its soil by their walking, at whose ap-
proach near them the trees worship them with
showers of flowers and offers of their fruits
as love-gifts.
70
THE GOLDEN AGE.
This is the long-forgotten, and now mis-
understood, misinterpreted Earth-Garden of
the Golden Age called in the Old Testament
ti:e Garden of Eden. They are all now try-
ing to locate it, some people in Syria, others
in Egypt, others eleswhere, ignorant of the
fact that the Garden of Eden was located upon
the whole earth. The word "Eden" even is
the corruption of the Sanscrit word "adhan"
(Home). The whole earth becomes this
"Adhan" the Home of all humanity, of
mortal souls, the Pleasure-Garden for angels
on earth to roam about and sport in. This Gar-
den is the physical manifestation of a higher
plane, created as the abiding place of mortal
man in temporary state of spiritual perfection.
They live a perfectly natural life, feeling them-
selves as parts of Nature, breathing in unison
with the breath of sky and air and tree and
grass and beast and bird, their souls in tune
with the souls of gods and angels and In-
finity Itself.
Among themselves they feel a Oneness
which only the most sublimated souls, who
have realized their atoneness with the all-
71
SREE KRISHNA.
pervading Spirit, can feel. All humanity feels
as one man, and the only distinction they find
in this Oneness is in the little difference in the
formation of the male and female bodies, al-
though this outward perception of this external
difference in some details of the physical
structure does not influence the feeling of
unity within. Still the difference creates this
much distinction that the women and men see
and feel that they are the complements of
each other and the difference in bodily
structure expresses this fact. All men feel
all women are as one and all women feel all
men are as one, so that, such is the feeling of
unity which pervades the Golden Age people
of the earth that all men and women of that
age can be called as One Man and One Woman.
This is the state of the human society indicated
by the story of Adam and Eve. Adam is the
typical man and Eve the typical woman of the
Golden Age. Even the names bear testimony
to this fact. The word Adam is a corruption
of the Sanscrit word "Adim" which means
primeval, so that Adam means primeval man.
The word Eve likewise is a corruption of the
72
THE GOLDEN AGE.
Sanskrit word "Heva" or primeval woman.
"Heva" means life and love mother of crea-
tion. From Mother Nature all things evolve,
through the mother all things come to life,
therefore is mother "life." The life of all
things is motherhood Life and Love com-
bined is Mother. Mother ! It is the music of
the spheres Life and Love the grandest
sound, the music of the Creator, one grand
chord in the Music of the Universe. Love
and Life O Blessed sound, the Lord's Own
Music sweet, profound !
The spiritual beauty of these primeval peo-
ple the Adams and Eves shows itself in
their physical forms. Their physical forms,
symmetry and expressions are ideally beauti-
ful ; these fashion and shine forth the spirit of
harmony which dwells within them. It may
be in truth said of them that they are made in
the Image of God, and the truth of this state-
ment grows upon us when we remember that
they live and feel that they live in the Es-
sence of Love live and breathe and have
their being moved spontaneously by the Spirit
73
SREE KRISHNA.
which is the inmost life and force of all
Existence.
This is living on the Tree of Life and eating
the fruit thereof mentioned metaphorically in
the Old Testament. Love, Universal Love,
unmixed, Absolute Love is the only Life.
When we lose sight of this Ideal, this sub-
stance of life, we fall. So long as our minds
are filled from within with this Love, this
Radiance of God, and we think, move and
act by its influence and promptings, so long
do we really live the Life which is our real
heritage from God. The Golden Age people
live this life moved by the Spirit within them,
the Spirit-Life that makes life an ecstasy unto
itself. This Life of Joy Absolute is illumined
by its own Light by the aid of which they see
all Nature as through a transparent glass, they
see everything with the ensouled mind's eye
not by the physical eye for they live within
that ensouled mind and rarely come out to the
surface called the physical plane. When they
do, they feel as if the experiences of that physi-
cal plane are, as it were, the experiences of a
dream, while the experiences of the ensouled
74
THE GOLDEN AGE.
mind they feel as the Reality, the only Reality.
I have already said that the three Cardinal
Attributes, (Sattwa, Raja and Tama) Illu-
mination, Activity and Darkness, are the joint
parents of the Principles which compose all
creation. When the forces of these Attributes
fall into equilibrium, the dissolution of the uni-
verse takes place and the equalized Attributes
merge into one another and become trans-
formed into a substance quite different from
their own. That substance is called Shuddha
Sattwa Pure Illumination. In Sattwa there
is a mixture of some Raja and Tama ; in Raja
there is a mixture of some Sattwa and Tama ;
similarly, in Tama, there is some mixture of
Sattwa and Raja. In Shuddha Sattwa, the
Sattwa is free from the other two attributes.
Krishna (Absolute Love) is Purest Sattwa.
The equalizing of the forces of the Attributes
transforms them into Pure Illumination no
doubt, but the transformation is temporary.
Krishna (Absolute Love) is Permanent Pur-
est Illumination. But even the temporary
attainment, by the Attributes, of the Shuddha
Sattwa state makes them for the time being
75
SREE KRISHNA.
the same substance as this First Principle and
brings about their absorption into it as long
as they keep in that state. This is almost ex-
actly as the germ of a tree remains merged
in and becomes part and parcel of the kernel
of its seed. And as when the seed is put into
the soil, the action of germination separates
from that kernel the germ which then grows
into a tree, so when in time the forces of the
merged Attributes fall out of equilibrium by
Raja (Activity) asserting itself, they get sepa-
rated and manifest themselves into the Uni-
verse. At first the activity of Raja is feeble
and Sattwa predominates. Out of predom-
inant Sattwa springs the Mind, Raja brings
forth the Ten Senses and Tama the Five
Essences and the Five Gross Forms of matter.
And all objects and animals and men and gods
and earth and heaven are but different degrees
of blendings of the Three Attributes.
The Satya Yuga (Golden Age) at the be-
ginning of creation is so full of Sattwa (Illu-
mination) that all Nature is made of materials
almost transparent as ether. The matter of
this first Golden Age is so fine that it would be
76
THE GOLDEN AGE.
invisible to the eye of our gross flesh of this
distant Kali (Iron Age). Even in the last
Golden Age, Nature was made up of such fine
matter that it would look, to our gross vision
of this day, as pictures of light.
Why is Nature in the Golden Age so
ethereal? Because the Attribute of Illumina-
tion is predominant in that cycle. All is Illu-
mination, within and without. Through this
illumination the Golden Age people see the
Steady, Changeless substance which is the
Life and Light of which the outer universe is
but the shadow. And with the spirit of this
Changeless Love and Life and Light in One
before their mind's vision, they cannot but
feel that its distorted, changeful manifesta-
tions called objects are made of fabrics of
which dreams are made of. Even they them-
selves are etheric and irridescent, not visible
to the physical eye of the Dark Age, but
always visible to the inner eye of men of any
age to the eye of the highly evolved man
whose sight is more spiritual than physical.
Ether is cognized through etheric vibrations
light alone recognizes light.
77
SREE KRISHNA.
For the First Quarter of the Satya Yuga or
Golden Age (One Thousand Divine Years)
this perfect state of Universal Holiness pre-
vails on earth and among mankind. This is
the original of the recorded vision said to have
been seen by St. John the Divine as embodied
in Chapters 20, 21 and 22 of his Revelations.
This is the Millennium spoken of in the Holy
Bible when Satan (Sin Tama Darkness),
it is said, will be bound and cast into a bot-
tomless pit, shut up and set a seal upon,
and holiness will become triumphant through-
out the world. This means the predominance
of Sattwa (Illumination) in man and Nature
and Tama (darkness) will "be drowned under
it. The people will live on the fruits of the
Tree of Life in the Essence of Love. They
will live face to face with God, that is, in per-
fect realization of His Spirit Love. This
Millennium will begin with the First Quarter
of the coming Satya Yuga (Golden Age), the
New Divine cycle which will be ushered in
after the expiration of the Kali Yuga (also
called Iron or Dark Age) we are now living
in. That time is far away yet, how far I shall
78
THE GOLDEN AGE.
in a succeeding Section attempt to indicate.
As already suggested, the Golden Age condi-
tions of Nature are the physical manifestation
of a higher sphere. According to the Hindoo
Scriptures there are Seven Spheres (Lokas)
or Heavens. People in the West speak of the
Seventh Heaven. Few know where the ex-
pression has come from, fewer that it has come
from the Hindoos who believe in the Seven
Heavens. The first is the Earth. (Bhur)
which is counted as a heaven because heavenly
joys can be tasted on the earth plane. Above
the Earth is the Bhuba Sphere, the Second
Heaven. Above Bhuba is Swar the Third;
above Swar is Mahar the Fourth ; above Mahar
is Jana the Fifth; above Jana is Tapa the
Sixth, and above Tapa is the Satya Loka
(Seventh). The Golden Age state of the earth
is but a reflection of this Satya Sphere on its
Sattwa (Transparently Illuminated) surface.
The men and women are angels on earth and
meet and have communications with gods and
angels ; and at times even Brahma, the Creator,
Shiva, the Destroyer, and Vishnoo the Pre-
server, come down on earth and hold converse
79
SREE KRISHNA.
with these perfectly pure human beings.
Earth then is "Heaven Below," and it is hard
to tell, when men mingle with the gods and
angels when the latter come down to meet
them, which are the gods and angels and which
are the men.
Saint John's Revelation 21 in the Holy Bi-
ble attempts to give some glimpse of this pic-
ture of the Golden Age :
"And I saw a new heaven and a new earth ;
for the first heaven and the first earth were
passed away ; and there was no more sea.
"2. And I, John, saw the holy city, new
Jerusalem, coming down from God out of
heaven prepared as a bride adorned for her
husband.
"3. And I heard a great voice out of heaven
saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with
men, and he will dwell with them, and they
shall be his people, and God himself shall be
with them, and be their God.
"4. And God shall wipe away all tears from
their eyes; and there shall be no more death,
nor sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be
any more pain ; for the former things are
passed away."
80
THE GOLDEN AGE.
What St. John describes as "a new heaven
and a new earth" is the illuminated heaven
and earth illuminated by Sattwa, which de-
stroys the darkness (Tama) of the preceding
Kali (Iron) Age which pervades Nature dur-
ing its sway. The "holy city, new Jerusalem,
coming down from God out of heaven," is the
reflection of the Satya Loka (the Heaven of
Truth), which comes down as it were and mir-
rors itself on earth. The Golden Age earth
is really a bride adorned for her husband, God,
for, in the Hindoo Scriptures, Earth has been
called the Bride of Vishnoo (God). The mean-
ing of the third verse can be more easily un-
derstood as it speaks of the spiritual con-
dition of the Golden Age I have described al-
ready.
The fourth verse supports the fact of the
unbroken peace and happiness which dwells
on earth during the Golden Age. Men know
no sorrow, nor crying, nor pain. They are
happy and are ever filled with joy. "And
there shall be no more death" this is very
important testimony to the one statement in
81
SREE KRISHNA.
the Hindoo Scriptures about the Golden Age
men and women which is more apt to be dis-
credited than any other. In them it is said
that in the Golden Age men and women can
live for one hundred thousand years and die
at will, which is corroborated by St. John,
who says, "and there shall be no more death."
Life in the Golden Age, say the Hindoo
Books, is sustained by the marrow of the bones ;
man lives as long as there is marrow in his
bones. Death and disease are caused by ac-
cumulation of sin, which is the result of im-
proper, unnatural living, living, that is, in vio-
lation of Nature's spiritual laws. The Golden
Age men live in absolute harmony with these
laws, and are therefore liable neither to death
nor to disease. Men are filled, in this age, "in
full measure of virtue" and sin has no place in
it, not a trace of it anywhere.
This is the state of Nature and human so-
ciety which is reproduced in the beginning and
first quarter of every Golden Age, which forms
the first largest section of every Divine Cycle.
This is real Universal Brotherhood, the union
of soul to soul being brought about by the
82
THE GOLDEN AGE.
general recognition of the One Spirit which
is the root, sustenance and life of all mani-
festations in Nature. Spirit only makes man
brotherly, and the feeling of the One and the
Same spirit is the source of true brotherhood,
and until One Love is for all, souls shall be
separated and countries will war with coun-
tries. Every one in the Golden Age looks upon
every one else as himself, as it were. It is
more than Ideal Brotherhood in this state of
society ; it is real, practical, spontaneous broth-
erhood, brought about by the Attribute of Illu-
mination having full play within all created
matter, objects and beings. They are united
from within, not through outside forces, and
so close and natural is the union that they do
not realize that it is anything unusual at all,
even in the deep demonstrations of spontane-
ous love which they feel for one another.
If such is the high state of perfection which
men attain in the Golden Age, the animal and
the vegetable kingdoms also share the bene-
fit of the predominance of illumination in Na-
ture, of which men and animals and vege-
tation are but different phases of manifesta-
83
SREE KRISHNA.
tions. *We have read in the so-called fables
and fairy-books of a time in which animals
were wont to speak, and as in our day they
do not speak at all, we regard such statements
and stories as myths. But they are not myths,
however absurd they may strike us, viewed
from our practical experiences of animals in
our Kali Age life. If the animals of this
Kali (Dark) Age cannot speak, that is no rea-
son why animals of an enlightened age should
not be able to speak. But this is what forms
the chief difficulty in the way of our believing
in such stories. We have been hypnotized
by our conceit into believing that ours is the
most enlightened age and that we are far
ahead in enlightenment and advancement of
intellect of our remote ancestors of, what we
complacently term, the "primitive" ages, mean-
ing thereby ages in which men were either
savages or half-savages. If this were true,
the animals of those ages could be imagined
as worse in habits, powers and instincts than
those of our "advanced" age. Alas, however,
it is not true ! Our remotest ancestors, whom
we, in our dense ignorance of facts of that
84
THE GOLDEN AGE.
remote past, love to call savages, were such
giants in intellect, spirituality and moral force
that our average best spiritual, intellectual and
moral men cannot be compared with them.
We are indeed fast losing our moral depth
which was the sheet-anchor of their character.
Why? Because our minds are getting more
and more dense than those of even the near
past, not to speak of those of the remote ages.
"Why? Because Nature herself is getting
denser and denser every day with the grow-
ing influence of Tama (Darkness) which is
the ruling attribute of this Iron Age. We are
the products of Nature we all, men and
beasts and trees and grass. Our density is to
be traced to our parent Dame Nature. This
growing density which pervades our minds is
daily making us less spiritual and intellectual
than our forefathers. No wonder it has af-
fected the body and senses of animals as well.
Illuminated Nature illuminates animals as
well in the Satya Yuga. Animals then have
more intelligence, better perception and keener
instincts than now, and share the love-spirit
of which all earth is full. They talk like man,
85
SREE KRISHNA.
although not in the same clear and sweet voice
as man. They roam about with men and love
one another as men do. There are no domes-
tic animals in this part of the Golden Age,
for man has no home or house. There are no
wild animals, for all animals are tame, tamed
by the spirit of harmony within and without
them. The cow roams about free, giving milk
to whoever will drink it out of her udder.
The trees in the Satya Yuga are large and
tall in proportion to the height of men, which
is 21 cubits. They are overladen with sweet-
est and juiciest fruits. All kinds of corn grow
wild and abundantly without any tending or
cultivation. The whole earth is a natural gar-
den, orchard and granary for all created beings
to enjoy and draw sustenance from when
needed. Here I quote a poem written under
inspiration after seeing a trance-vision of the
Golden Age, by one of my students, Miss Rose
R. Anthon :
Palpitating with love,
Like a mother's breast,
As she views her babe
As it sinks to rest.
86
THE GOLDEN AGE.
Like a million bees
Throbbing with life,
Each cell a world
In the citied hive.
This was the land
I slept to see,
The land my dream
Unfolded to me.
Here Love did reign,
Love life did greet,
Life crowned with love
The heart did meet.
Here wondrous song
The birds did sing,
And oh the echoes
The skies did ring!
And oh the peace
The heart did know!
And oh the lack
Of haunting woe!
87
SREE KRISHNA.
Here man commune
With God did hold,
The doe ran abreast
With the lion bold.
The hawk and the dove
Shared one nest;
The lamb and leopard
Suckled one breast.
The tender nurslings,
The soft young things,
Eager their minds,
Like outspread wings.
The flowers nodded
Their faces fair;
Sunbeams embraced
The perfumed air.
Little children
With Nature grew;
Skies overhead,
'Neath feet the dew.
88
THE GOLDEN AGE.
The happy youth
The maid did woo,
Free as the stars
The moon did view.
With joy I beheld,
In this sweet land
Unspoilt was love
By sin's hot hand.
No knots of guile
The heart did bind^
No souring doubts
Disturbed the mind.
Here livid hate
No place did hold;
Jackal and calf
Entered one fold.
Nor envy's sneer
Belined the face,
Nor fiery lust
Filched beauty's grace.
89
SREE KRISHNA.
But rayed with peace
Was every eye,
And all unknown
Was panting sigh.
In every heart
Was Love enthroned,
And every voice
Had Hope entoned.
Such was the land
I slept to see,
The land my dream
Unfolded to me.
90
SECTION VI.
THE SILVER AGE.
THUS, during the first quarter of the Golden
Age, covering 1,000 divine years, which are
equal to 360,000 lunar years, its predominant
spirituality sustains itself in its full vigor.
The next quarter is almost equally powerful
in spirituality. But after the middle is passed,
a little decline is perceptible, not so much in
spirituality as in the outward habits of the
people. During this period the Vedic truths
reveal themselves through the mediums of
the entranced minds of some of the highly
illuminated men. Now, what is a Vedic
truth? It is an expression in sound-form of
one of the inmost laws of Nature. Before this
period the Golden Age people breathe, move
and have their being in these laws as sensi-
tive embodiments of these laws. They are, as
it were, moving Vedas human flesh-vehicles
moved and manipulated from within by the
basic laws of all Existence. The predominant
91
SREE KRISHNA.
Sattwa in its extreme purity, which is the
essence of physical Nature in the Golden Age,
blends with these laws so harmoniously that
they form the self-acting mechanism of all
motion of its materialized counterpart. So
long as these people are in perfect unison with
these inner laws, vibrating spontaneously with
their vibrations, they are quite unconscious of
the operations of these laws, or even of the
laws themselves within them ; so long they live
as unconscious moving manifestations of the
laws. But the moment they become conscious
of them, then that consciousness expresses
itself in the form of thoughts, and these
thoughts find expression in words through the
medium of some entranced minds. These are
called the Eternal Truths of the Veda, truths
which are the foundations and sources of all
truths promulgated by the illumined sages of
all climes and times ever afterwards.
Just as, so long as we are perfectly healthy,
we remain unconscious of our health and enjoy
the blessing of health most; but when some
disorder creeps into our system, we become
conscious of it and feel indisposed and try to
93
THE SILVER AGE.
adjust its lost equilibrium. Towards the end
of the third quarter of the Golden Age, a slight
disorder is felt in the spiritual health of the
people. Then a readjustment of the slight
loss of the equilibrium is made with the aid of
contemplation of the meaning of these Vedic
truths which are revealed through the still
perfectly spiritual souls. Before this time all
of them live the truths unconsciously; now
they live the truths consciously. This indi-
cates their fall from their absolutely healthy
state of spirituality. The degeneration in-
creases with time at a very slow rate, however,
for Sattwa is still predominant, although Raja
(Activity) has begun to assert itself more and
more until the end of the Golden Age is
reached, when the action of Raja becomes
fully perceptible.
This pronounced assertion of Raja within all
Nature is betrayed by outward signs and symp-
toms. Distinct changes are observable in the
thoughts and actions of men, while there is
decrease in the wild natural growth and pro-
ducts of edible fruits, roots and corn. These
main features of change mark the end of Satya
93
SREE KRISHNA.
Yuga (Golden Age) and the beginning of the
Treta Yuga (Silver Age).
From natural all-absorbing, inward concen-
tration upon the basic principle of the Uni-
verse Love and drawing absolute never-
failing happiness therefrom, most people now
begin to look outwards for happiness, trying to
draw it from the enjoyment of material objects.
A small portion, however, still retains the same
inward look and enjoys the primeval ecstatic
condition of the mind. These still live on the
Tree of Life. But those who look outwards
and try to draw happiness from without, eat
for the first time of the fruit of the Tree of
Knowledge, as indicated by the figurative lan-
guage of the Christian Bible. So long as they
do not look outwards, they do not know of
material pleasure, pleasure which is mixed
with .pain, Rajasic pleasure, pleasure which
lasts for only a short while, pleasure which has
reaction of pain or cessation.
This knowledge of material pleasure and
hankering for securing them is the fall of
humanity. The cause of this outward-looking
is to be traced to the assertion of the Cardinal
94
THE SILVER AGE.
Attribute of Activity (Raja) within Nature
rather than to any fault in her products them-
selves. Predominant Sattwa (Illumination)
maintains the harmony in the mind induced by
calm concentration upon one object and that
object a steady, Changeless one. Predominant
Raja (Activity) destroys this harmony and
calmness by making the mind active with
thoughts of many objects. This state of activ-
ity itself turns the point of the mind's ken out-
wards and disturbs its harmony. The mind
is active only when it has to deal with the im-
pressions of more than one object.. When the
surface of a mirror is turned towards the sky,
it reflects only that one blue sky. When it is
turned towards the earth it reflects many ob-
jects. Such is the case with the mirror of the
mind. When it is turned inwards to the soul,
it reflects its one all-pervading, colorless radi-
ance and is therefore tranquil and happy.
When it is turned outwards, it reflects the
many-colored objects and is disturbed by their
conflicting attributes.
All through the Golden Age the mirror of
the human mind is kept turned inwards to
95
SREE KRISHNA.
the soul and reflects nothing but the soul of
things. At the end of that blessed period, the
natural assertion of Raja turns it outwards to
external objects which at once reflect them-
selves in it. From this time people begin to
take serious cognizance of their surroundings
and privileges, and to think of material enjoy-
ment, to taste material pleasures. Living the
natural Love-Life of the Golden Age is living
on the fruit of the Tree of Life. Love alone
is life ; it is the source of all life. The dawn-
ing of the knowledge of material pleasure is
eating for the first time of the fruit of the
Tree of Knowledge material knowledge. The
first hankering for it is the persuasive voice of
the Evil One, called in Sanscrit, Maya. Maya
means illusion, that which is unsubstantial to
the inner sight yet seems and looks substantial
to our outer (material) sight. Good and evil
may be called the equivalents of the two San-
scrit words "Sat" and "Asat." Good is "Sat"
which means that which exists by itself, which
has substance. Evil is "Asat" which means
non-existent, which has no existence (sub-
stance) of its own. Good is God (Love).
96
THE SILVER AGE.
Evil is that which partakes of, or is related to,
the phases of unsubstantial (changeful) mani-
festations which form the shroud of the only
Reality Love. To have our mind's vision
turned from this Reality to its Unreal Shroud
and mistaking it as the Real, constitutes our
fall the Fall of Mankind spoken of in the
Bible. As long as we know nothing but the
Truth and live absolutely in that Truth, we
have no idea of the False (evil), the deceptive
real-looking Unreal. But the moment we are
attracted by the Unreal and live in it, we begin
to have knowledge of both Good (the Real)
and Evil (the Unreal). We become so at-
tached to the Unreal that we cannot leave it,
although we know it to be Unreal (evil). Here
is born what is called "conscience," which is
the warner of sin this living in the Unreal
though we know it is so and that we should
not live in it.
This is the state of mind of the major por-
tion of the Silver Age people. With this out-
ward-looking of their mind begins the hunting
for Absolute Happiness on the surface of life,
instead of in its deepest depth where it dwells.
97
SREE KRISHNA.
This search for it through material pleasures
ends in this real object of that search being
lost from their view and the pleasures them-
selves taking its place. This last stage of
mental degradation is not true, however, of
all the people of the age. A small portion still
retain much of the high spirituality of the
Golden Age. Some are swayed by predomi-
nant Raja, others are ruled by Raja and Tama,
while others are covered almost entirely by
Tama. This leads to the division of the
people into castes. Those who are uninflu-
enced by the assertive Raja are called Brah-
mans; those swayed by Raja are called Ksha-
triyas; those by Raja and Tama are called
Vaishyas; those mostly ruled by Tama are
called Sudras. I have treated the caste system
at some length in the next section.
Tastes for material comforts involve house-
keeping, and housekeeping is impracticable
without a house. The people therefore build
houses to live in for the first time in the De-
generation period of the Satya Yuga. The
Treta is called the Silver Age because gold,
the spiritual metal, becomes less abundant with
98
THE SILVER AGE.
the decrease in spirituality in Nature, and sil-
ver is found in abundance. People in the Satya
Yuga use gold for household utensils, hence
the Satya Yuga is called the Golden Age. The
period in which gold plates come into use does
not belong to the Golden Age proper. It is
used in what is called the Degeneration (San-
dhyangsa) period of the Golden Age. Every
Age has a Junction period and a Degeneration
period, called in the Hindoo Scriptures, the
Twilight Periods. These periods are of equal
length. The morning Twilight period of the
Satya Yuga is 400 divine years, equal to 144,-
ooo lunar years. Of the same length is its
evening Twilight period. The morning Twi-
light period represents the Junction period,
the junction between the previous Kali and
the Satya Yugas. The evening Twilight
period may be called the .degeneration of the
Satya Yuga. It is in this degeneration period
covering 144,000 years, that Raja asserts itself
and people begin to turn to material pleasures,
build houses, wear clothes, take to house-
keeping, eat cooked food and generally use
gold plates, gold being abundant and on ac-
99
SREE KRISHNA.
count of its possessing pure (spiritual) mag-
netism, purer than that of other metals.
The average human height in the Silver
Age is 14 cubit or 21 feet, average longevity
of human life is 10,000 years ; human vitality
is centered in the strength of the bones ; man
lives as long as his bones sustain their strength.
In the Golden Age men enjoy full measure of
spirituality. Virtue resides in them, in the
language of the Shastras, in full four quarters.
In the Treta, owing to the decrease of spirit-
uality, virtue loses one-quarter and retains
three. In the Golden Age, they are natural
embodiments of Vedic wisdom. In the Treta,
they have to study that wisdom, as it ex-
presses itself through entranced Sages, to keep
up spirituality. And as the Silver Age ad-
vances, the increased influence of more and
more assertive Raja within them makes it more
and more imperative on all religious teachers
and kings to direct people's attention to the
necessity of wider and deeper study and prac-
tice of Vedic truths.
As I have said, in the Golden Age there are
no carnal relations between man and woman,
100
THE SILVER AGE.
so is there none in the Silver Age, although
man and woman as husband and wife live to-
gether in houses, have housekeeping and enjoy
material comforts. Yet, strange as it will
strike most of us here at this distance of time,
the Golden Age and Silver Age women bear
and give birth to children. The child is born
in the womb of its mother at the wish and
command of the husband. The wife asks her
husband for a child, and the husband of the
Golden Age, who is a miniature creator in the
potency of his mind-force, says, "So be it,"
and the wife at once conceives. But she has no
pain of child-bearing or child-birth to suffer
from. The child is born soon after, and, at
times, almost immediately. In the Treta Yuga,
the conception takes place in some cases in
the same manner, and, in most cases, through
the eating by the wife of "charoo," a mixture
of boiled rice, milk, sugar and butter mag-
netized by mystic words or the will-force of a
psychic husband or a saint or a Brahman
a magnetism which draws into the preparation
a disembodied spirit who passes into the body
of the wife through the food.
101
SREE KRISHNA.
The difficulty in believing this process of
child conception lies in the ignorance which
now prevails in the minds of most people of
the modern world, especially in those of West-
erners, as to the origin of conception, as to
how conception takes place. The prevailing
idea, formed from the teachings of imperfect
modern science, is that it is the male seed
itself planted in the female soil that begets
and develops into the child. No greater fal-
lacy can exist than this idea. Modern science
is progressive, and in the process of time that
progress will surely open its eyes to the true
fact in regard to this matter. It will then find
that it is the invisible germ hidden inside the
seed, the subtle form of organism encased in
the thickened juice of the tree which the
seed is, that develops into the shoot and the
tree and not merely the juice itself. This
subtle organism enters into the forming bud
from outside. Without this incoming subtle
organism no seed can germinate, neither does
a seed germinate, as is well known, of which
the germ has been destroyed. Similarly, no
conception can take place without a disem-
102
THE SILVER AGE.
bodied soul a human germ entering the
human seed when planted in the human soil.
The juice of the seed and the juice of the soil
form but the physical body of the child. The
astral body, which is encased in this physical
body, comes from without to dwell in that
seed and leaves the developed physical body
at death, which is nothing but the total dis-
organization of the physical body. The astral
body never dies unless it is destroyed by bring-
ing about absolute equilibrium of the three
Cardinal Attributes, which form the Ego of
man, through spiritual development. I have
treated this subject more fully under the head-
ing of "Reincarnation."
The length of the Silver Age proper is
3,000 divine years, equal to 1,080,000 human
(lunar) years with the two Twilight (the
Junction and the Degeneration) Periods, of
108,000 years each, in addition.
103
SECTION VII.
THE CASTE SYSTEM.
I HAVE said that at the end of the Golden
Age and during its degeneration period, peo-
ple's minds lose their tranquil equilibrium and
look outwards for happines. At this stage of
the disturbance within Nature and humanity
occasioned by the assertion of the Raja attri-
bute, the caste system comes into existence.
The object of the caste system is to preserve
as much order and harmony in human society
as possible and prevent its disruption into in-
dividual units. In the Golden Age all the peo-
ple are as one family, in the Silver Age they
are divided into four families, divided accord-
ing to their inclinations, habits and actions,
and harmonious relations being established
with one another through laws and inter-
dependence. Those who still retain their per-
fected spirituality by subduing the influence
of Raja are called Brahmans which means
those who know or still dwell in Brahm the
104
THE CASTE SYSTEM.
Spirit of God. They are considered the head
of the other castes because they are the em-
bodiments of spiritual wisdom which is the
chiefest requisite in the building of character
and the higher development of the human
soul. Some of them still retain their Golden
Age habits of life, others clothe themselves
with the barks of trees and live on fruits and
nuts and roots in the forests, in huts made of
tree-trunks and leaves. They pass their days
and nights in contemplation of the Deity, the
Divine Spirit and its Laws operating within
Nature and inculcate these truths into the
minds of the other classes of people.
Those who, being unable to subdue the influ-
ence of Raja, are swayed by passions and be-
come bold, spirited and filled with material
desires are called Kshatriyas. They become
rulers of the other two castes. These are the
first Kings and Rulers of men. But they rule
according to the injunctions of inspired Codes
of laws, laws which are propounded with the
object of the highest good of humanity in
view, as well as the propagation of peace and
goodwill among all classes of people.
105
SREE KRISHNA.
According to these laws the King's first
duty is to look to the material welfare of his
subjects; the second is to protect them from
injustice and aggression; the third is to help
their moral and spiritual development; in
short, the King's duty is to treat his subjects
as his children. If any King fail to perform
these duties to the satisfaction of his subjects
or become aggressive towards them, he is im-
mediately removed from his throne by the
Brahmans (Rishis), the all-powerful Brah-
mans, who always have the welfare of God's
creatures at heart, and whose spiritual powers
are mightier than kingly weapons and might.
The Brahmans are called the "gods of earth"
(Bhudevas) on account of their disinterested
love of humanity and self-sacrificing devotion
for its welfare and their irresistible spiritual
and psychical powers to carry their objects for
the good of humanity into action.
Those among the Golden Age people in
whom excessive action of Raja develops some
Tama as well, and partly covers the Sattwa
Attribute, form yet another distinct caste.
They are called Vaishyas. While the Ksha-
106
THE CASTE SYSTEM.
triyas occupy themselves in taking over the
control and government of countries and peo-
ples, the Vaishyas take to the occupation of
agriculture, commerce and raising of cattle,
as much in their own individual material in-
terests as in the interests of all humanity. In
the Golden Age, owing to the fulness of spirit-
uality within Nature, all kinds of giains grow
wild and abundant. With the decrease of that
spirituality towards its end, these natural
products of the earth diminish in quality and
quantity, while the growing material instincts
in people bring about their larger consumption,
thereby creating greater demand for them.
This increased demand is supplied by cultiva-
tion by the Vaishyas.
Those, again, among the Golden Age people
who, owing to the predominance of the Tama
Attribute in them, are filled with envy and
greed, and become untruthful and devoid of
clean habits of life and take to all sorts of low
means and ways for their living are classed
as Sudras. The Kshatriya rulers compel these
Sudras for their own good as well as the good
of all other classes of people to take service
107
SREE KRISHNA.
under the three upper castes as domestic ser-
vants, so that by contact and association with
their masters and by the examples of their
purer ideas and habits of life they may be
elevated in morals and conduct.
The science and wisdom which are the foun-
dation of the caste system of the Silver Age
people and which still form the backbone of
the degenerate remnants of these primeval
people, now known as Hindoos, are worthy
of study of all civilized mankind of the pres-
ent day. It is the scientific law of the caste
system which has preserved the indestructible
individuality of the Hindoos as a race ; it is the
chief source of strength which has supplied
their inexhaustible vitality as a nation ; the
never failing force which has insured the per-
manency of their existence on the face of the
globe. It is a system, the absence of which in
the organization of all other human societies,
modern and ancient, has been the cause of
their decay and death. The Hindoo caste sys-
tem is based upon laws of the inmost science
of life, the laws which modern scientists are
trying so hard and yet so hopelessly to dis-
108
THE CASTE SYSTEM.
cover and understand through wrong pro-
cesses of investigation. Modern scientists
are boastful of their achievements in the field
of discovery of Nature's laws and imagine
they have learned almost all of Nature's se-
crets, while in truth they know but a few of
her surface-laws the mainsprings of which
are to be found deep down in the mental and
spiritual strata of which they even dream not
of a realm which must ever remain closed to
purely objective investigation.
It is as wrong to try to study Nature from
the operations of her physical laws as to govern
and guide human beings by the aid of the de-
ceptive light of those laws. The physical is
the manifestation of the mental plane, as the
mental is the manifestation of the spiritual
plane, as I have shown in previous Sections.
The phenomena of the physical plane of Na-
ture are deceptive to the purely physical vision
because they are the product of Tama dark-
ened Raja. Deceptive also are the phenomena
of the mental plane though not as deceptive
as those of the physical to a mental vision the
light of which is not derived from the spiritual
109
SREE KRISHNA.
plane the mysterious machine room which
alone supplies the life-substance and spring of
action to the mental and physical planes. The
student of physical and mental Nature who is
not provided with the microscope of spiritual
insight is apt almost invariably to read her in
both these aspects incorrectly. He should not,
therefore, be considered a safe guide for the
healthy and harmonious development of hu-
man character, which is but a part and phase
of one whole Nature called the Universe.
The laws operating in the deepest depth of
Nature can only be seen and studied by the
illumination of the soul, the Radiance of
Krishna's Body. These the Brahmans, the
portion of the Golden Age people who still
retain their high state of spirituality, study and
learn and utilize in codifying principles and
rules for regulating the daily life of the rest of
the people. The conception of the caste sys-
tem betrays their intimate knowledge of these
inner natural laws upon which it is based and
the profound wisdom with which its organiza-
tion to the minutest details is arranged. The
organization of the caste system is, in fact,
no
THE CASTE SYSTEM.
devised after the organization of the human
body after the inner and the outer human
body. The entire caste system is like a huge
living human body living with its organs and
senses in harmonious working order and its
mind contributing to and enjoying the effect
of that harmony and feeling the higher planes
to which the effect of that harmony elevates.
^* What is the most needed essential for the
' healthy, harmonious and useful conduct of
human life? Love, Intelligence and Wisdom.
I had almost said Love or Wisdom, for Intelli-
gence and Wisdom are but manifestations of
Love. Intelligence is the light of Love, and
wisdom is but its reflection on its own en-
lightened shadow the mind. Wisdom like-
wise embodies both Love and its light. With-
out wisdom a human being is like a wayward,
mischievous animal. Our wisdom (intelli-
gence and thought) inspire and guide our
actions. Good thoughts lead us to good ac-
tions, bad thoughts lead us to bad actions. We
are nothing but our mind and our mind is
nothing but our thoughts commingled effects
of the reflections upon the mind of external
ill
SREE KRISHNA.
objects and internal impressions of previous
reflections of objects, called Ideas. Thoughts
that lead us to bad actions, that is to say, ac-
tions which hurt others and us too, which
bring inharmony to others and finally to our
own mind, are neither beneficial nor useful to
our life; they are injurious to its best interests.
Wisdom (harmonious, useful thoughts) is
therefore the most essential requisite of hu-
man life. Without it power and wealth are
apt always to be misused and misdirected, re-
sulting in loss of harmony. And harmony is
happiness, happiness which is the goal of all
our quests and efforts in life.
_.. Thus the Brahmans, who devote them-
selves absolutely to acquiring wisdom by com-
muning with the Soul of Nature and its finest
and purest attributes, and to supplying them
to those who do not any more enjoy that ad-
vantage and privilege, naturally form the head
the seat of wisdom and intelligence of the
social organization, called the four-castes. The
lower three castes are indebted to the Brah-
mans for wisdom which they receive from
them in the form of lessons and codified laws
112
THE CASTE SYSTEM.
of life which guide their daily existence, just
as every one of us is indebted to our intelli-
gence and wisdom for performing the func-
tions of life to our own and our neighbors'
benefit. Hence the Brahmans, who supply the
most important essential of life, are protected,
provided for and paid utmost homage to, by
all the other castes.
Next to wisdom comes strength, physical
and mental, another greatly needed requisite
of human life. A man needs mind-force to
rule his own mind and body as well as those of
others to whom he is related, in order to main-
tain harmony within and without. He needs
also physical strength to defend himself and
others against attacks and aggressions and
prevent encroachments by others upon his
property and interests. The Kshatriyas
(Kings) form and supply this requisite to the
four-caste organism. They form the arms of
the Caste-Body, arms being symbolical of
strength and ruling power. Without a power-
ful, noble ruler, all communities of men are
liable to find themselves in disorder and inhar-
mony and to suffer from lawlessness and in-
113
SREE KRISHNA.
justice, just as a man who has no strength to
defend himself from aggression is liable to be
robbed of his possessions and be miserable.
More important than the duty of protecting
the life and property of his subjects is the
King's duty to help their moral and spiritual
well-being. And this the king does by en-
forcing the performance of the religious duties
appertaining to each of the three castes as en-
joined in the Vedic laws, discovered and enun-
ciated by the holy ones. Those who do not
perform these duties and practices are pun-
ished by temporary excommunication and, if
still persistent in disobeying the injunctions,
by absolute banishment from all societies.
These early sages have always held that pre-
vention is better and easier than cure of dis-
eases, physical, mental or spiritual. Regular
spiritual practices, performed daily, form
habits, and spiritual habits cleanse tfi<f impuri- !
ties of the mind which then becomes fit to re-
flect the highest spiritual truths by the light of
which man witnesses the unity of all Nature,'
feels the ecstasy of the One Essence which per- :
vades it and stands face to face with his Maker.
114
THE CASTE SYSTEM.
The next essential of harmonious human life
is food. Most people of our day will say that
food is rather the first essential of life. We,
in this degenerate age, have indeed come -to
think so. But the Silver Age people, as well
as all really thoughtful people amongst us, do
not think so. Food does sustain life, no doubt,
but that life, if void of wisdom and force of
mind, is not worth living. It is the life of an
animal or a vegetable. Food is essential to
.
life; so are wisdom and mental force.^ Is our|
life sustained by food alone? I should think
not, unless it be the life of a man who is but a
little removed from a beast. Happy thoughts
furnish the chief support of our life. Our life
depends more upon happy and harmonious
thoughts than food. If our thoughts are sad
and gloomy, we do not enjoy life at all or feel
that we are living, although we may eat the
daintiest food, be surrounded by luxuries and
have plenty of the world's goods. Many of
us destroy this food-sustained life suffering
from the pangs of miserable thoughts, many
die of broken heart and other diseases brought
on by the continued pressure of sad thoughts,
- _ _ . 115
SREE KRISHNA.
although well fed and well clothed and well
(supplied with money and other material com-
forts of life.
The Vaishyas represent the vital vigor of
the Four-Caste organism, and as, according to
the Shastras, the seat of the vital vigor is the
loins, the Vaishyas form the loins of that body.
The Silver Age Vaishyas take to cultivation of
the soil, raising of cattle and trade more for
the weal of all mankind than for their own
personal aggrandizement.
The Sudras are the feet of the Four-Caste
organism, very important members of the
body too. They represent devotion through
service. Indeed, devotion is the training
which each caste passes through while fulfill-
ing the duties of its profession. The Brah-
mans are to practise meditation on God and
study the Veda; the object is devotion to the
Supreme Being. The Kshatriyas are to rule
the other two castes with the aid of the Brah-
mans, with love, justice and fatherly care ac-
cording to inspired laws; the object is to ac-
quire devotion to the Supreme Being. The
Vaishyas are to till the land and raise cattle
116
THE CASTE SYSTEM.
only to serve God's creatures; the object is to
cultivate devotion to the Supreme Being
thereby. The Sudras must serve the three
pure and spiritual upper castes for the purpose
of absorbing their spiritual magnetism through
association and examples ; the object is the
same, cultivating devotion to the Supreme
Being by loving service rendered to His de-
votees.
Thus the Caste system, though worked by
human agency, is founded upon natural laws.
As originally created in the Silver Age, its
object is to form people into groups accord-
ing to the similarity of their natural casts of
mind, according to their natural instincts and
dispositions, with the view of uniting them by
the .bonds of their common as well as mutual
interests, with the view of helping them to
material, moral and spiritual elevation by com-
pelling them to discharge their respective
duties according to the injunctions of inspired
codes of laws furnished by illumined Sages
whose very pure, unselfish, spiritual and self-
sacrificing life is the best guarantee of the wis-
dom, efficacy and usefulness of their advices
117
SREE KRISHNA.
and teachings. The relation of interdepend-
ence which these caste laws consolidate is in
itself one of the grandest achievements of the
caste system for the good of the human family.
It is the most practical means of preserving
unity and a natural preventive of the disin-
tegration of the whole mass of humanity into
individual units than which no greater calamity
can happen to the general as well as individual
weal of human beings. Yet, alas, among non-
caste races this is happening, especially in the
Western countries of the world, at the present
time!
Look at the state of the human society at
this moment, particularly that portion of it
which is governed by the ideas of what is boast-
fully called "civilization" ! Look at the ex-
ternal results of the internal influence of
thfs~ civilization ! Material comfort and pleas-
ure has become the very ideal of life for its
average votary. All, almost all are ever rush-
ing on the path of securing the means for that
one end. And in that mad rush they are jost-
ling, hustling, hating, abusing, cheating, killing
and destroying one another physically and
118
THE CASTE SYSTEM.
morally. In that mad rush for that one goal,
in that selfish fight and quarrel, out of the ex-
haustion brought on by the efforts of that
bustling and hustling, they have no time or
opportunity or inclination to think of anything
which has no immediate concern with that
utterly material aim of life. They have no
time to think of their mind, much less of their
soul, which most of them have abolished as
a delusion and an obstacle in the way of ma-
terial success. They have even no time to
look up into the blue heavens during night or
during day, to look at the beauties of the stars
and the moon, much less to think of what they
are and if they have any relation with them.
Material interests are fast taking the place of
natural love and affection. Husbands and
wives are fighting with each other; sons and
daughters are ignoring and disobeying their
parents ; masters and servants have no other
regard for each other than that inspired by
personal gain ; they are always trying to cheat
instead of helping each other. Members of
communities are divided against each other
and only seemingly united for the sake of
119
SREE KRISHNA.
selfish ends. Society exists only in name.
Envy, malice, greed, selfishness, conceit having
gained predominance in all, have split society
into units.
This chaotic state of modern human "so-
ciety" in most parts of the world, the truth of
which will be generally acknowledged, ought
to convince all thoughtful people as to the
wisdom and vital necessity of the caste system.
Even now where the four-caste system still
exists, it does serve to keep the communities
within its rule as one compact body
to a great extent, through the influence
of its laws of interdependence and mutual
harmonious relations. Thanks to Caste,
even the degenerating" Hindoos of to-day
have not yet been split into units. This
remnant race, a race which has still retained
some of the instincts of the original human
family of the Silver Age, is being more
and more divided and subdivided, no doubt,
at the present day. But these divisions and
subdivisions are large coherent parts, linked
together into one great whole. The entire race
is divided into four castes ; the castes are divid-
120
THE CASTE SYSTEM.
ed into sub-castes, the sub-castes again into
communities, the communities into rural so-
cieties, the rural societies into large patriarchal
joint-families. The members of families are
ruled by the patriarchs, the patriarchs by the
headmen of caste communities, the caste
communities by the spiritual (Brahman)
guides, through the enforcement of the salu-
tary Scriptural injunctions, the infringement
of which is punished, in minor cases, by ex-
piations involving physical hardships and spir-
itual austerities and purifying ceremonies, and,
in serious cases, by expulsion from caste,
which, in India, is a greater disaster than
natural or material calamities. And all these
rulers and ruled are related to one another by
more or less natural love and affection or re-
spect and sense of duty born in their blood
through thousands of generations of heredi-
tary habits of thought and life ; all are inspired
to command and obey by the spirit of the
Veda which their mind absorbs through the
performance of their respective spiritual, social,
physical duties as enjoined by the later Script-
uresthe Shastras, which are modified em-
121
SREE KRISHNA.
bodiments of the revealed laws of the Basic
Spirit of All Life, the all-cementing Spirit of
Nature Love.
SECTION VIII.
THE FOUR STAGES OF LIFE.
SIMULTANEOUSLY with the introduction of the
Caste System in the Silver Age are instituted
the Four Stages of Life, the object of which
is to help the lower state of human conscious-
ness to gradually attain to the highest spiritual
realization. They are graduated processes of
mental and physical application and discipline
by the practice of which individuals are to
recover the absolute illumination, being and
bliss enjoyed by all human souls in the Golden
Age. They impart a scientfic training to the
human mind in order to enable it to subdue its
Rajasic (active) and Tamasic (darkening)
attributes by developing the Sattwic (illumi-
nating) attribute through concentration upon
the Basic Principles of Life the Centre and
Essence of Absolute Purity and Illumination.
The first stage is called Brahmacharjya or
Spiritual Pupilage. The second stage is called
Grihastha or Householdership. The third
123
SREE K-RISHNA.
stage is called Vanaprastha or Asceticism. The
fourth stage is called the Bhikshu or Wander-
ing Friarship. The first, third and fourth
stages are enjoined for the three twice-born
castes and the third and fourth are open even
to a Sudra if he is found worthy of adopting
them. The Brahman, Kshatriya and Vaishya
are called twice-born ; the first birth is the
physical birth, the second is the spiritual birth
through the investiture of the holy thread
from which begins the performance of daily
spiritual duties and practices.
The first stage of life begins, soon after this
spiritual initiation, at the age of twelve, when
the boy goes to reside with the Gooroo (spir-
itual guide) for studying the Veda and for
undergoing spiritual, mental and physical dis-
cipline. The Gooroo is an illuminated Brah-
man sage whose love and affection for the
pupils in his charge and anxious care and
efforts for the unfoldment of their souls are
not equalled by those of even their parents.
He feeds, clothes and lodges them in his own
abode free of any charge or consideration
whatever. His one thought and concern is
124
- THE FOUR STAGES OF LIFE.
to help them to realize the Truth, to be freed
from the bondage of matter and thus enter the
Absolute Realm of Eternal Love and Happi-
ness.
While every student has to perform the same
regular spiritual rites and pratices and to say
the prayers daily after physical purification,
the method of training adopted by the Gooroo
for developing their soul is not the same in
each case. To some he explains the truths
of the Veda and asks them to meditate on their
meanings. Others, who show natural instincts
of devotion, he trains into practical realiza-
tion of the same truths without teaching them
a single word of the Veda.
The chief method of a Gooroo's teaching
is to draw the student's mind away from
worldly attractions and turn the direction of
the mind's vision inwards into the soul. De-
votion is the principal aim, for devotion means
concentration and when that concentration
is fixed upon the contemplation of the Essence
of things which pervades them all and yet
is unmixed with the outer substance and at-
tributes of their manifested forms, the mind
125
SREE KRISHNA.
absorbs the perfect purity of that Essence and
is filled with the serenity and the inexpressible
joy born of absolute freedom from the in-
fluence of matter.
If the student obtains this practical realiza-
tion of the Essence of Existence, he remains
for the rest of his life in this stage of spiritual
pupilage. But he is no more a pupil ; he be-
comes a teacher of pupils a Gooroo. It is
this practical realization that invests a student
of wisdom with the magnetic power of awaken-
ing that realization in others.
A spiritual student's training is essentially
based upon a life of purest mental and physical
chastity; the student is not allowed by the
teacher to mix or talk with worldly men or to
discuss temporal subjects among themselves.
When the practical realization of the Truth is
attained, life's one object is attained. If, how-
ever, after staying and studying with the Goo-
roo for twelve years, the student fails to have
this practical grasp of the soul of wisdom, he
leaves the Gooroo and with his permission
returns to his family, takes unto himself a
good-tempered, virtuous and spiritually-in-
126
THE FOUR STAGES OF LIFE.
clined wife and enters into the life of a house-
holder. But the principal object of this
second stage of life is the same as in the
first realization of the Truth. The practice
for physical and mental purity is continued,
the Veda is studied daily, diligently and de-
votedly, and the meanings of its truths and
principles contemplated with calmness and con-
centration, comparing their lessons in the light
of the experiences of worldly life. The obliga-
tions of household life are greater than those
of pupilage. Life must be sustained on simple
and sparing meals ; the means of living must
be honestly earned, the hungry or needy beggar
must be satisfied according to means and abil-
ity; the pleasures and comforts of household
existence must be enjoyed moderately and with
discrimination ; parents, wife, members of the
family, poor relatives and dependents and de-
voted servants must be supported, loved and
made happy. All legitimate wishes and wants
of the wife must be satisfied, she must be cher-
ished with affection and respect and regarded
as the presiding deity of household harmony.
If during this household life the truth is
121
SREE KRISHNA.
realized, the householder remains at home dur-
ing the rest of his earthly days ; he has no need
to go into the third stage of life, for, as I have
said, realization of the Truth is the end and
aim of life in all its stages. If, however, this
main object is not obtained, the householder,
after twenty-four years of family life, must
enter the third stage, that of the ascetic. He
must leave his home with his wife and retire
from worldly life and interests and live in
some secluded forest place near his home and
practise austerities, physical and mental, in
order to purge the mind of all its material
inclinations for a period of twelve years. If
during that time the realization is obtained, he
remains in that stage for the rest of his life,
imparting the realized knowledge and wisdom
to all who may come to him.
If, however, he fails in his search for it, even
in this ascetic stage, he returns to his home
with his wife, and if he has a son to protect
and support her, he leaves his home and family,
with the permission of his parents and his wife,
and enters into the fourth stage, that of the
holy wanderer, to tread the path to Freedom
128
THE FOUR STAGES OF LIFE.
and Truth all alone, sundering all ties of
worldly life and surrendering himself body,
mind and soul to that search. He must not
occupy his mind with any other but that one
thought; he must live on one simple, spare
meal a day, enough to sufficiently satisfy his
hunger; he must dress himself in scant saf-
fron-colored clothes, the color of Love and
Wisdom. He must ever be wandering, never
entering a human home, and rest under trees ;
but must not sleep under one tree or on the
same spot or place for three successive nights,
never talk with people on any other subject
than that of his search, and discuss it with
humble spirit of inquiry with illuminated
sages he comes across on his journeyings.
This all-absorbing meditation does help to
awaken in him at last the light of the Truth,
and blessed with that light he is filled with joy
and feels himself the happiest mortal, in touch
and tune with the purest spirit of the Universe,
the Infinity which is the parent of the Finite.
With the first flush of this realization he
changes the color of his clothes from saffron
to white, the color of Illumination (Sattwa),
129
SREE KRISHNA.
and as he wanders still, in the ecstasy of the
bliss of Truth within his soul, gradually the
objective phenomena around him seem unsub-
stantial and finally grow dim and shadowy,
while the realized spirit in which his mind lives
immersed, he perceives to be the only substance
of those shadows. Then, as he roams along,
laughing and sporting like a little boy in the
fulness of the glee within, he becomes in time
almost unconscious of anything outside of his
soul. His very sight is a blessing to all be-
holders, a blessing which fills them tempo-
rarily with the delight of his intoxication. He
has no count of time or notion of the phases
of time whether it is morning, noon or night.
He lives henceforth in Infinity and views all
Nature as dwelling within him and anon views
himself as a wavelet in the infinite ocean of its
Essence. He does not feel any hunger, for
with the satisfaction of his spiritual hunger
all hunger has been satisfied forever. He is
the embodiment of ecstasy, uncovered ecstasy,
and even his physical cover, the white cloth,
has fallen from his body. He stands naked
as naked Nature's most natural man. He is
130
THE FOUR STAGES OF LIFE.
clothed with the illumination of his soul, like
the Golden Age man.
131
SECTION IX.
THE COPPER AGE.
THE Divine Cycle of time can be likened to
a fruit. Like the ripening and rottening of
a fruit, the Divine Cycle develops and degener-
ates into rottenness. The Golden Age is its
ripening stage. At the end of that age, it is
fully ripe. The Silver Age is its overripe
stage. The Copper Age marks the stage of its
rottenness and the Iron Age is its fully rotten
stage. At the end of the Iron Age, it is re-
duced to its seed out of which springs the
sprout of the Golden Age. And during the
junction period of the Golden Age, covering
144,000 human years, the sprout grows into a
flowering tree which bears fruit with the com-
mencement of the Golden Age proper.
The length of the Copper Age is 2,000
divine years, equal to 720,000 human years,
while its Twilight periods are 72,000 years
each. Men in this age are seven cubits or ten
and a half feet high. Virtue lives in it in two
THE COPPER AGE.
quarters, the other two being filled by vice.
Vitality is rooted in the blood; men live as
long as there is blood in their body. Gold and
silver having become dearer the metal gener-
ally used in making household utensils is cop-
per which is found abundantly, whence the age
derives its name. The intensity of accelerated
Raja within Nature helps the assertion of
Tama in all her manifest phases, although
Sattwa still has some influence. The trees
become less in height, less fruitful and the
fruits less sweet ; crops less abundant despite
the best efforts of cultivation. Cows give less
milk than in the Silver Age, while wild animals
become more ferocious. Most animals can
speak in the Silver Age, but now only some
of them, the higher ones, are blessed with that
power during the major portion of it.
People in the Copper Age become more and
more outward-looking generally, especially the
Sudras, some of whom having become filled
with dense Tama, revolt against all laws and
discipline and turn into thieves and robbers.
These latter are expelled from their caste and
banished out of civilized centres of population
133
SREE KRISHNA.
the world over by the kings. They are called
by the common name of robbers and specific
names of Yavans and Mlechhas which means
men who are wild, barbarous and unclean
by nature and habits. These Yavans and
Mlechhas come into existence towards the end
of the Silver Age and rapidly increase in num-
ber during the Dwapar (Copper Age), towards
the end of which they form the majority of the
world's population and are known by different
names according to the localities of their habi-
tation, different shades of their dark attributes,
and the callings they pursue : Yavan, Kirat
(hunters), Gandhar, Cheen (Chinese), Shabar,
Barbar (barbarian), Shak, Tungar, Kanka,
Palhab, Ramat and Kambhoj. The kings in
the Copper Age have a hard time to protect
their subjects and their territories from the
depredations of these wild characters and rob-
bers. The king's first duty is to preserve
peace in his kingdom so that his subjects may
not be disturbed in the performance of their
religious duties, may apply themselves to the
study of the Veda and the contemplation of the
Supreme Deity and tread the path of virtue
without annoyance.
134
THE COPPER AGE.
The king's chief duty being to insure the
material welfare of his subjects with the sole
view of helping their spiritual welfare, the
punishment for the infringement of caste and
religious rules is made severe and swiftly ad-
ministered. At the same time the spirit of the
times is taken into consideration and many
rigid rules are relaxed and minor faults are
pardoned. The four castes are subdivided into
sub-castes according to the different callings
that the Vaishyas and Sudras show preference
in their inclinations to follow. Those who take
to agriculture are classed as cultivators, those
who rear cattle and sell milk and butter are
called milkmen, while those who take to trade
and commerce are called traders and merchants
and so on. All these form into different sub-
castes under the general caste of Vaishya.
Similarly the Sudras are subdivided according
to their respective callings; viz., blacksmiths,
potters, carpenters, masons, etc., all under the
general caste of Sudra. The chief object of
these sub-castes is to save human society from
disintegration as much as possible, to preserve
the masses of men in as large coherent sec-
135
SREE KRISHNA.
tions as practicable linked to one another
through spiritual, moral and material relations.
Another, and almost equally important, ob-
ject of the caste and sub-caste systems in the
Copper Age is to conserve the heredity of
their different intellectualities, talents, healthy
characteristics, and instincts. This becomes all
the more necessary owing to the fact that it
is in the Dwapar Yuga that husbands and
wives begin to have carnal relations. During
the Golden Age and the greater portion of the
Silver Age all men and women are, what
Christians call, virgin-born. The fuss that is
made about this immaculate conception suc-
ceeds only to excite a smile of pity in the
Shastra-enlightened Hindoo a smile of pity
for the ignorance of the facts in the past his-
tory of the human race of which they seem
to know so little and care less to know more.
This fact about the Golden and Silver Ages,
this generally prevailing immaculate child-
conception, ought to open their eyes. If they
require any authority for this statement, I
refer them to the stuly of the Shanti Parva of
the Mahabharata.
136
THE COPPER AGE,
The Yoga-power of the Golden Age men
draw disembodied souls from the Bhuba
sphere and spiritual souls from higher spheres
to enter into a woman's womb and be born on
the earth plane. The will-force of these men
supplies these incoming souls with the mate-
rial of a physical body. In the Silver Age the
higher illuminated Brahmans and Saints can
bring about conception in the same way, while
others bring it about by making the women eat
magnetized "charoo," which not only draws
these spirits to the womb, but supplies the
material for the physical body. In the Copper
Age, however, the decrease of spirituality takes
away the power, and so the material of the
physical body has to be supplied by the physi-
cal vigor of the father and the blood of the
mother to enable a disembodied spirit to enter
the womb and grow into a child.
This degenerated process of procreation
coming into vogue in the Copper Age renders
it necessary to fuse higher magnetism into
the lower castes, as well as to preserve the
magnetism of each caste from deterioration.
The means adopted for securing these ends is
137
SREE KRISHNA.
to allow the two higher castes men to marry
girls of the lower castes, and towards the lat-
ter end of the Copper Age even Vaishyas are
permitted to marry Sudra girls. The lower
caste men, however, are never allowed to
marry higher caste women, as it degenerates
the breed, the seed being a far more potent
factor in producing excellence of growth than
the soil. The offsprings of these intermar-
riages form into castes distinct from those of
their fathers and mothers, lower than their
father's and higher than their mother's.
In order to preserve the magnetism and the
hereditary talent and instincts from deteriorat-
ing, the castes are divided into sub-castes ac-
cording to their general proclivities and pro-
fessions of livelihood. Each sub-caste must
marry within its own circle, and must eat food
cooked by the hands of its own members.
Heredity is now being believed in by the mate-
realistic people of the modern world, and when
that belief in heredity will have grown stronger
in their minds, they will then take practical
measures to preserve the good qualities of
heredity from being spoilt by coming in con-
138
THE COPPER AGE.
tact with the bad magnetism of its lower traits.
This human magnetism is a subject which is
worthy of the study of modern scientists. If
they can find out what it is, ascertain its prop-
erties, power for good and evil, and how good
magnetism can be conserved and transmitted
and how bad magnetism can be purified, they
will do humanity greater good than they have
done by the discovery of steam and electricity,
which, judged from the standpoint of the high-
est good, ought to be considered as very
doubtful boons. Magnetism is not useful mag-
netism if it is purely physical. It is not worth
preserving, it is injurious, and its contact
ought to be avoided.
It is spiritual magnetism which is worth
preserving. It is spirituality which is the
medium which transmits good heredity from
parent to progeny. The mind is the storehouse
and battery of all human magnetism. The
vibrations of the mind pervade every atom
of the body and the mind's vibrations are
generated by its principal and most powerful
thoughts and sentiments. These vibrations
are the essence of these thoughts and senti-
139
SREE KRISHNA.
ments, and magnetism is that subtle essence
impregnated with the potencies of the mind
mixed with the subtle forces of the physical
body.
Marrying, cooking and eating within the
caste helps to conserve in the individual mem-
bers thereof the spiritual and mental mag-
netism, generated by the performances of the
religious duties and ceremonies and spiritual
incantations which form the daily routine of
household life enjoined by the Scriptures.
Thus wisdom, talent, traits, instincts are all
ingrained in and transmitted through the blood
from generation to generation of each caste.
The caste is like a university, each home a
school, and the instincts and talents, brought
into being with the birth of each member, are
the implanted principles of the knowledge of
each profession of which it is the caste. A
carpenter's caste is a guild for carpentry, a
carpenter's home is a technical school for car-
pentry where the natural talent and love for the
art are partly imbibed by the instincts of hered-
ity and partly by observation which is the best
system of training.
140
THE COPPER AGE.
With these tendencies of material arts are
born in the blood of the child the germs of the
moral and spiritual culture of the parents.
These germs shoot forth into healthy growth
under the fostering care of the child's guard-
ians, aided by the religious, social and domestic
duties the growing child has to perform daily.
The carpenter is as much a useful member of
the four-caste society as the Brahman. The
householder Brahman can no more do without
a carpenter than a carpenter can do without a
Brahman. But the value of the Brahman's help
to the carpenter being more important to the
development of his soul, which is the true aim
and goal of earthly life, the obligations of the
other castes to the Brahman are greater and
deeper than those of the Brahman to the
Sudra. The question may now be asked, has
that carpenter no chance of becoming the equal
of the Brahman through spiritual culture ? Yes
and no. Yes, because Brahmanhood is nobody's
monopoly. Brahmanhood is but a state of the
human mind the ensouled state of the human
mind, and anybody who develops this state of
mind, even though he be encased within a
141
SREE KRISHNA.
Pariah's flesh, lays legitimate claim to Brah-
manhood. Only he must make that ensouled
mental state perfect, only he must enter the
fold of Brahmanhood through the door of
Nature, through the ingress of Rebirth. The
maturity of a material or mental condition is
best known to Nature. A mass of animal flesh,
lying on the surface of Mother Earth, under-
goes all the processes of disintegration and
putrefaction, and when that disintegration is
complete, Earth assimilates and absorbs it
again ; it becomes a part of her body, it be-
comes earth itself. What is true of material
plane of Nature is true as well of her mental
and spiritual planes. When a carpenter has
developed full Brahman consciousness, Na-
ture opens to him wide the portals of the
spiritual caste which had looked down upon
him in his carpenter birth. Even in his car-
penter birth, he does not go unrewarded. The
case of the carpenter Rishi, called Suta, is a
luminous instance in point. His spiritual cul-
ture was so great that the highest illuminated
sages (Rishis) learned from him the lessons
of the Puranas which he preached to them,
142
THE COPPER AGE.
sitting on a raised platform with their rev-
erential permission. He was considered a
knower of Brahm and so enjoyed the respect
paid to the highest spiritual beings. A Sudra
may not become a Brahman, but may become
through practical spiritual culture a higher
being than a Brahman even in his Sudra birth,
and be born into a highly spiritual Brahman
family, by sheer dint of merit, the merit of de-
veloping spiritual consciousness in the next
birth. Similarly a Brahman, born in the high-
est family of his clan, will, by developing Pa-
riah qualities, be outclassed in his Brahman
birth and .enter through the door of Nature
into a Pariah family in a subsequent birth.
The above facts and truths are known to a
child even of every caste. Even a child knows,
either in the Copper Age or to-day among the
four-caste people, that a caste-birth is depend-
ent upon Karma (actions). A Sudra, there-
fore, takes the very fact of his birth as suffi-
cient reason for his being placed in the low-
est caste. He is reconciled to his fate, a fate
big with the potentialities of his actions in
previous existences. And the little gloom of
143
SREE KRISHNA.
sadness that his lowly station of life casts upon
his mind is illumined now and again by the
silver lining of the consolation that it is in his
power, if he so wills it, to be a high Brah-
man in the next incarnation, if he succeeds in
developing his higher soul-consciousness.
The Veda in the Copper Age has for the
first time to be studied and its truths practised
in two parts the philosophical and the cere-
monial parts. Men generally are degenerated
so much in this age that they can no longer
grasp the truths of the Upanishads without
first purifying their body and through the puri-
fied body the mind. The Vedas are divided
into Upanishads (Eternal Spiritual Truths)
and the Mantras (incantations, hymns and
ceremonies, the practice of which cleanses the
impurities of the mind and body). In the
Dwapar Yuga, therefore, the performance of
the ceremonials of the Veda is much in vogue.
When the body and mind are purified, they are
made fit for grasping the meanings of the
higher philosophy of life and become recep-
tive to the influences of the subtlest spiritual
vibrations.
144
SECTION X.
THE IRON AGE.
BUT even these attempts and safeguards for
keeping up the higher individuality of the
human race fail to retard the course of the de-
generation which Nature herself undergoes in
the process of time. The fruit of Divine Cycle,
spoken of in the beginning of the last Section,
reaches an advanced stage of rottenness which
marks the commencement of the Twilight Pe-
riod of the Kali, called also Tamas or the Dark
Age. The characteristics of Kali are symp-
toms of Nature filled with denser gloom than
heretofore.
The usual Kali, the last section of every
Divine Cycle, is much more dense with Tama
(darkness) than the one in which we are living
now. The reason is that at the junction of the
last Dwapar and the present Kali, the fullest
incarnation of the Supreme Deity, Sri Krishna
himself, came on earth to dwell among men
for a period of a hundred years. This Avatar
and source of all Avatars, this central Form-
145
SREE KRISHNA.
Point of All-Pervading Brahm, this Embodi-
ment of Para-Brahm, is gracious enough to
come and dwell among men on earth only once
in 71 Divine cycles. We, the degenerated
mortals of this Dark Age, are more fortunate
than even humanity of many a Golden or Silver
Age. The Supreme Lord sanctifies the soil of
the earth-plane of every universe with the all-
purifying touch of His Lotus-Feet by turns,
The countless universes that spring out of
Him and return in germ-form again into
Him have the grace of His personal touch and
supervision at appointed times. When Krish-
na comes to live in any of the universes, Na-
ture therein is turned inside out, so that the
inmost essence of it may flow over its surface
and wash off all the causes of pollution. It
has been recorded by the contemporary sages
of Krishna-Leela, the all-knowing sages who
came down to earth from higher planes to
act as scribes of the Lord's deeds, that by the
coming of Krishna not only the 36,000 years,
forming the junction period of Kali, was de-
stroyed, but also almost half of the age of
Kali proper, while the Lord's Rash-Dance
146
THE IRON AGE.
with the Gopis absorbed a whole Kalpa cov-
ering 36,000 Divine cycles out of the age of
Brahma.
The age of Brahma is the age of the uni-
verse, that is to say, the age of Brahma is
equal to the duration of creation. Brahma
lives for 100 Brahmic years and one Brahmic
year is made up of 360 Brahmic days. One
day of Brahma is equal to one Kalpa, so is his
night. A Kalpa is equal to 12,000,000 divine
years. One night of Brahma covers the same
period of time so that one day and one night
of Brahma covers 24,000,000 divine years.
Multiplying these figures by 360 we get 8,640,-
000,000 divine years, which is the span of one
year of Brahma. Multiplying these figures by
loo we get the span of Brahma's age, 864,-
000,000,000 divine years, which being multi-
plied by 360 we get 311,040,000,000,000 human
(lunar) years, the age of Brahma, the dura-
tion of creation.
Thus the night of the Rash-Dance not only
absorbed one Kalpa equal to 4,320,000,000
lunar years out of the duration of creation, but
also 36,000 years which form the junction of
147
SREE KRISHNA.
Dwapar and Kali, as also about half the span
of the Kali proper. About this last there is
no authoritative statement in the Shastras, but
it has been stated therein that when Krishna
left the earth and went up to His Abode, the
forces of "advanced Kali" overtook humanity.
Now, according to the Hindoo almanacs, about
5,000 years only have passed since Krishna's
departure, which would mean that it is now but
the beginning of Kali proper, the span of
which is 360,000 years. But the signs and
symptoms of the times already visible are un-
mistakably of the middle Kali, detailed de-
scriptive features of which are to be found in
the Mahabharata as also in all the Puranas.
This being so, it is not a wrong supposition
that we are already in the middle Kali and
that Krishna-Leela has also taken away half the
age of Kali proper.
Nor is it necessary that the Kali has to pass
through the conventional figures of its dura-
tion given in the Shastras. What is true of
individual humanity is true also of the whole
mass of humanity which represents Kali. Kali
is nothing else but the forms of Nature's
148
THE IRON AGE.
changes of the latter end of a Divine cycle.
We, men and beasts and trees and grass, pro-
ductions of Nature, represent the phases and
features of Kali. Dense Tama working with-
in Nature brings out the characteristics of
this dark age to the surface of the earth. Man
being the most highly organized product and
the most powerful medium of her attributes,
the thoughts and actions of men are most af-
fected by it. The dark thoughts and actions,
called sin in common parlance of humanity,
form the sins of Kali which represents the
spirit of human conduct and characteristics
in the Dark Age. We see that people, who are
naturally healthy and robust, shorten their
longevity by over-indulging in vice. Thus a
life of vice or sin, that is, life lived in violation
of Nature's laws, begets diseases of the body
which bring about early destruction. A man
for instance, who, according to his natural state
of health, ought to live for one hundred years,
is often found to die at the age of thirty, a
victim of dissipated life. This rule applies to
Kali. All our accumulated sins form Kali's
sins. And these accumulated sins are beget-
149
SREE KRISHNA.
ting diseases in the body and mind of human-
ity from wEich Kali must die an early death.
This Kali, therefore, with its rapidly increas-
ing accumulation of sin, may come to an end
in less than 10,000 years, its conventional
period of existence, 360,000 years, being con-
densed into that short space of time. Judging
from the signs of an advanced state of rotten-
ness, already developed, it would seem as if
the worst features which hasten its end may
manifest themselves in less than a few hun-
dred years. But, like wheels within wheels,
the Satya, Treta and Dwapar cycles have their
sway through its duration by turns. By this
I mean that during the course of Kali (Iron
Age) features and characteristics of the
Golden, Silver and Copper Ages manifest
themselves by turns all through it. Indeed, the
spirit and attributes of these four cycles weigh
the moral and physical atmosphere of each
day and night. Supposing the average day
begin at 6 A. M., the influence and the attri-
butes of the Golden Age prevail from 6 A. M.
to 3.36 P. M. ; those of the Silver Age prevail
from 3.36 p. M. to 10.48 p. M. ; those of the
150
THE IRON AGE.
Copper Age from 10.48 p. M. to 3.36 A. M.,
and those of the Iron Age from 3.36 A. M. to
6 A. M. Illumination and comparative calm-
ness dwell within and without us from morning
up to high noon owing to the predominance of
Sattwa, the predominant attribute of the
Golden Age. From noon activity (Raja) as-
serts itself, and by about 3 o'clock in the after-
noon it gains full force when light (inside and
out of us) is on the decline and calmness is
disturbed, introducing the influence of the Sil-
ver Age, which lasts until about n at night,
when Tama (Darkness) begins its reign and,
combined with Raja, holds the rule of the
Copper Age. The signs of Tama are lazi-
ness, inaction, sleep, etc. We begin to experi-
ence these from n o'clock at night and until
three in the morning slumber and gloom en-
velop us and Nature. But sleep and darkness
are deepest from three to five in the morning.
These hours are ruled by Kali, the Dark Age.
Thus cycles revolve within cycles as they
revolve even within the smallest cycle, called
Day. Throughout the Iron Age, the condi-
tions of the first three cycles prevail one after
151
SREE KRISHNA.
the other, and when this influence of the
Copper Age conditions in the Kali Age spends
itself, conditions of darker Kali prevail for a
time: Then again signs are visible of Golden
Age influence and after a time degenerate into
Silver Age phases, then into Copper Age
mixed light, then again into the deep gloom of
Kali within Kali, and so on. As Kali advances
more and more the successive, rotatory influ-
ences of the other three cycles become feebler
and feebler, and at last under the deepest
gloom of Kali gaining fullest power, their in-
fluences are kept down absolutely. Here be-
gins the end of the Kali period. Soon after
the signs of the coming Golden Age are visible.
These ever recurring conditions of the Golden
and Silver Ages, though feeble in their influ-
ence, counteract the destructive influences of
vice and sin and thus help to save the life of
Kali from coming to an end all too soon.
The Kali Yuga is called the Iron Age, be-
cause gold, silver and copper becoming scarcer,
people use all sorts of mixed metals, but
chiefly iron, in making household utensils, iron
being found in great abundance. The average
152
THE IRON AGE
stature of mankind is three and a half cubits
or 5 feet 9 inches. Virtue is reduced to one-
quarter, the other three-quarters being made
up by vice. With the decrease of spirituality
in every succeeding age, the root of vitality has
been transferred from marrow to bone, from
bone to blood. Now, in the Kali that root of
life is destroyed. Life in this age is generally
sustained by food alone. The effect of con-
stant concentration upon changeful, external
objects rebounds upon the body, causing loss
of tissue greater than that in the former ages,
when men still have their minds turned in-
wards, between whiles, to have a ,dip in the
source of All-Life the soul.
The Vedas in the Iron Age are no more
understandable to the people in their original
sound-embodiments except to a small portion
of spiritual Brahmans. They are therefore
presented to the people in general in the form
of Shastras and Puranas. These embody the
Vedic truths, principles and ideas in easy con-
structions and simple language, illustrated by
examples and stories drawn from facts in life
of the past ages. The Shastras are, therefore,
153
SREE KRISHNA.
nothing but the Vedas, simplified, explained
and illustrated, with the object of enabling the
deteriorated intellect of the Iron Age man to
grasp the light and the spirit of the Store-
house of Revealed Wisdom. The ceremonial
parts of the Vedas are likewise modified and
rendered easier for practice in the form of
Smritis (forms of spiritual duties and sacri-
fices) the daily performance of which is en-
joined upon the four-caste people.
Yet for all that, despite all these strenuous
efforts of the small spiritual portion of the
people to save the souls of their brethren from
succumbing to the dark forces of the age and
the allurements of a material life of undisci-
plined liberty and license, human society falls
into a mental and material state of chaos, typi-
cal of the stage of complete rottenness of a
fruit. As many grains of wheat when ground
in a mill look like one substance, called flour,
which means so many separate grains of wheat
have been divided into such minute parts that
they appear as one substance; so, in this most
advanced stage of decomposition of human so-
ciety, its various and separate composing parts
154
THE IRON AGE.
and phases religious, racial and material
will be divided into one whole-looking mass
of separate minute units. People's minds, at
this latter end of the age, will be so far re-
moved from the idea and notion of God and
the soul that the Vedas, the Bible and all
other religious books and philosophies that are
now extant will disappear, and even the fact
that they had at any time existed will be com-
pletely forgotten. Churches and temples,
mosques and synagogues will no more be seen
on the face of the earth, humanity will live for
life itself the grossest material life. Each
individual will differ from the other on all
imaginable points of view on all subjects.
Every man and woman will be his or her own
God or ideal. There will be no sympathy be-
tween them, each one asserting his or her in-
dependence over all of his or her fellow crea-
tures. They will think, act, move, eat, sleep as
their own wild, wilful dispositions will prompt
them, causing quarrels and fighting between
one another. Selfishness and aggression will
be the keynote of their character.
The number of Mlechhas and Yavans and
155
SREE KRISHNA,
outcasted people increases out of all proportion
to the number of the four-caste people who
may now be called the Root Race of the earth.
In the process of time this Root Race of people
will cling- round the centre of the earth to
save their spiritual instincts, pure ways of
living, customs and habits from being con-
taminated by association with the strayed por-
tion of humanity who now form the greatest-
majority. As, when in the throes of death,
through disease, the only visible action of life
is centered in the heart, while all other parts
are numb and comparatively lifeless, so with
the advance of Kali, the spiritual life becomes
centered in the heart of the earth. This heart
of the earth is called in the ancient Scriptures
the Sea-Girt Isle or peninsula, the Belt of the
Earth's Body now called India. In this heart
only of the earth live the original four-caste
people, while the rest, broken away and di-
vorced from the parent stock and religion, are
scattered all over the rest of her body.
The signs of advanced Kali are already visi-
ble all over the earth at the present moment,
nay, even of its most degenerated stage, espe-
156
THE IRON AGE.
cially in the West signs and symptoms which
are manifesting themselves here and there even
in men of the Root Race. What a horrid state
of affairs the closing period of Kali will bring
about may be judged from the prophesies made
five thousand years ago by the illuminated
sages of this Root Race, prophesies which are
correct in startling exactitude and some of
which are on all fours with the signs and char-
acteristics of our present period, as will be
seen from a few extracts from them given
below.
The conditions of the different stages of
Kali have been described in all the eighteen
Puranas, and the Mahabharata which embody
the history of the human race from creation to
destruction the past, present and future
phases of human society of all times and of all
climes. The following few details translated
from a minute description of the early, mid-
dle and final stages of the Kali, given by the
Sage Markandeya, in reply to questions put in
regard to Kali by King Yudhisthira in an
assemblage of saints, kings and nobles, inspired
by incarnated Krishna, who was present in per-
157
SREE KRISHNA.
son, will be of interest to most of my readers :
Raja Yudhisthira, Emperorer of Bharat-
varsha, the central of the seven continents of
the ancient world (now known as all the
world), during his sojourn among the Rishis
(saints) of Kamyak Forest, with a view to
ascertain the future state of the world, asked
the immortal saint (Brahmarshi) Markandeya,
"Holy one! After having heard your wonder-
ful accounts of the creation and the destruc-
tion of the universe, we have become anxious
to hear about Kali Yuga, and we beg you to
describe this age in detail to us. What results
will be produced by the destruction of the Root
Religion? What will the valor, strength, food,
behavior, costume and longevity of the human
race be like? And how long after will
commence the Satya Yuga (Golden Age)
again ?"
Saint Markandeya answered : "O King ! In
the Satya Yuga, virtue being void of the least
touch of greed, deception and other evil quali-
ties of the mind, was like a full four-footed
bull. In the Treta, it lost one and in the
Dwapar two feet. In the Dark Age it will be
158
THE IRON AGE.
only one-footed, the other three feet being
destroyed by vice.
"The longevity, heroism, intelligence,
strength and mind-force of mankind are grad-
ually decreasing age by age; they will de-
crease still more in the Kali. The Kings,
Brahmans, Vaishyas and Sudras will practice
false piety, and this false piety will be turned
into a means for cheating others. Love of
truth will decline in men; decline in love of
truth will cause shortness of life; shortness of
life will prevent the proper cultivation of wis-
dom. Little wisdom will beget ignorance, ig-
norance will beget greed, greed anger, anger
delusion. And swayed by greed, anger, delu-
sion and sensuality, they will be envious of and
antagonistic to each other.
"The twice-born castes will become void of
truth and holy meditation. The mean Chan-
dais (pariahs) will behave like Kshatriyas and
Kshatriyas will imitate the ways of the Chan-
dais. Husbands will become extremely hen-
pecked; feed upon fish, flesh and milk
of goat and sheep. Man will aggress upon
man and develop an irreligious, atheistic and
thievish nature.
159
SREE KRISHNA.
"People will not discriminate about the eat-
ableness or uneatableness of any food. Brah-
mans will cease performing spiritual practices,
will denounce the Vedas, and being deluded
by false discussion give up holy ceremonials
and engage themselves in mean actions. Father
and son will feel no compunction in killing
each other, but will rather feel delighted at
the deed and call it an act of God.
"The whole world will become Mlechha (un-
clean and barbarous) void of religious per-
formances and ceremonials, gladness and fes-
tivities. Almost all people will be miserly,
defame their friends and defraud and steal
the money of poor unprotected widows. They
will possess little strength and no energy, yet
be greedy and filled with material, sensual at-
tachments ; will gladly listen to the advices of
well-known bad persons and accept charity
by false pretences.
"Conceited yet illiterate kings will challenge
one another to fight, will try to kill one anoth-
er, and will be like thorns in the sides of their
subjects. Setting at naught their duties of pro-
tecting the people, they will, swayed by greed
160
THE IRON AGE.
and pride, be ever anxious to rob and punish
them, and, prompted by their cruel heart, they
will snatch away the property and wives of
honest and pious men.
"None will ask a father for his daughter to
marry, and no father will offer his daughter
in marriage. The daughters will choose and
marry their own choice without consulting
anybody or going through any ceremonials.
"Brother will cheat brother. Even learned
persons will lose love of truth and be addicted
to telling lies; the old will act like boys, boys
like old people. Cowards will brag of their
bravery and brave men will act like cowards.
All will eat the same kinds of food and be
filled with selfishness and delusion. No one
will trust another.
"Brahmans, Kshatriyas and Vaishyas will
cease to restrain and rule the Sudras or even
each other. All castes will be levelled and be-
come one unclean and barbarous. Fathers
will not pardon sons, nor sons pardon their
fathers. Wives will cease from attending upon
their husbands; men and women will all be
self-willed and envious of each other. People
161
SREE KRISHNA.
will not perform any good works or cere-
monies to satisfy the gods. They will not
listen to each other; there will be no gooroo
(teacher) or chela (pupil), all will be filled
with the darkness of ignorance. At Kali-end,
their longevity will be sixteen years ; most will
die immediately after that age is reached.
Women will give birth to children at the age
of seven or eight, and, in some cases, even at
five or six ; men will beget children at the age
of ten or twelve ; in some cases, even at the age
of seven or eight. No husband will be satisfied
with his wife, no wife satisfied with her hus-
band. They will have very little wealth, and
even those who will have no wealth whatever
will wear the false marks of wealth. Envy
will be predominant in every mind, hunger
ever burning in every stomach. Cross-roads
and streets will be thronged by wantons and
libertines. Women, forsaking shame, will
bear spite and grudge for their husbands.
Men will be all of unclean habits, manners and
customs, eat anything and everything and will
be terrible in every way and action. They
will cheat all in buying and selling of goods,
out of sheer greed.
162
THE IRON AGE.
"None will care to acquire spiritual wisdom,
yet all will be busied in performing- spiritual
ceremonies for form's sake and be naturally
addicted to crooked acts. They will show the
faults of each other. People will live in con-
stant fear of losing their lives as victims of
their own greed and envy. The Sudras will
kill Brahmans and rob them of their property,
and the Brahmans being thus oppressed will
cry out in agony and out of fear will roam
unprotected on the surface of the earth. Some
of them will take refuge in lonely spots on
river banks, in mountains and in dangerous
places to save their lives; others being-
oppressed by the grinding taxes of unjust
kings, will lose all patience, and taking to the
services of Sudras, will perform forbidden acts.
"The generality of people will become fierce
and of murderous propensities. The Sudras
will become spiritual preceptors and Brahmans
will listen to them, believing their wrong pre-
cepts to be demonstrated facts. The low will
be high and the high low ; all conditions will
be reversed. All, all people will forsake God
and worship Mammon. The Sudras will
163
SREE KRISHNA.
cease from serving Brahmans. The Earth will
no longer be adorned by the temples of God.
All mankind will be impious and develop
frightful characters. Meat will be their food,
liquor their drink. The one object of life will
be to increase flesh and blood. The rain-
clouds towards the close of Kali will pour
down rains out of season so that, overwhelmed
by incessant and untimely rain, people will
subsist on fruit and roots. Pupils will not
care for the lessons of their teachers, temporal
or other, and will act against their wishes.
The poverty-stricken Gooroos (spiritual
teachers) will curse their disciples. There
will not be the least trace of respect left in the
world. The relations of friends and kiths and
kins w r ill depend upon obligations of money.
"At the close of the cycle flowers will grow
upon flowers, fruits upon fruits, and, owing
to the rains not falling in season, there will
grow but scanty crops, so that famine-stricken
populations of the earth will cry out in hunger
and roam upon her surface. Fragrant things
will lose their odor, sweet juices will lose their
sweetness, seeds will not germinate properly.
164
THE IRON AGE.
Women will transfer their love from husbands
to servants. All women, including wives of
heroes, will prefer somebody else to their hus-
bands for lovers. Pious men will be in mean
stations, short-lived and poor; vicious men
will occupy high positions, have long life and
prosperity. There will be constant breaking
out of fires all over the land. Tired and
hungry wayfarers will ask for food and refuge
from householders in vain, and out of despair
rest and sleep upon the road. Crows and other
birds, snakes and beasts will make unearthly
noises."
When Nature and human society will be
thus revolutionized, reaction will naturally set
in. When the fruit of Divine Cycle will thus
reach its extreme stage of rottenness, out of
its seed will spring forth a shoot which will
grow into a fresh. tree. That tree, in turn,
will bear fresh fruit a fresh Divine Cycle.
In this state of the darkest gloom, faint streaks
of russet light will be visible which will grow
bright anon and give birth to the dawn of the
Golden Age again.
Reaction is the law of Nature, reaction is
165
SREE KRISHNA.
the result of every phase of action. When vice
has its full run on the face of the globe, when
it has reached its lowest depth and wildest
reign, it spends its force, becomes weakened,
allowing virtue to lift its head once more and
build its palace of light upon its ruins. Vice
is born of Tama, and virtue of Sattwa and
the active force of both is Raja. Time is the
self-manifesting kaleidoscopic revolution of
color-pictures on the transparent canvas of
ether. After the deepest shades of dark colors
are exhausted, there is a reaction of lighter
colors. When Tama has exhausted its force,
Sattwa asserts itself by natural law.
This healthy reaction growing stronger will
gradually evolve some order out of the chaos
of the closing Kali. A portion of the people
will get disgusted with the reign of utmost
licence and inharmony, and, endowed with
strong mental force to resist the influence of
the age, will pierce the veil of darkness en-
veloping everything and see the light that
dwells within. These will stimulate this re-
action, and spread the discovered light among
others groping in the darkness for that light.
166
THE IRON AGE.
The four castes will be gradually established
once more in some fashion.
At this stage will be born in the village of
Sambhalpur in India a Brahman of great
spiritual force, named Vishnujasha, and in
time will become the father of the coming In-
carnation of Vishnoo, one of the most power-
ful incarnations Kalki. The Lord Kalki will
rapidly grow into youth and spiritual power.
At his mere mental call will come to him
countless vehicles, armours, all kinds of
weapons of war and soldiers. He will then
lead them to battle against all the Mlechhas,
robbers and tyrants, all over the world, who
will fall shouting in agony before his mam-
moth sword. After extirpating them all, the
Lord will establish once again perfect order
and harmony on the surface of the earth. After
ruling the world as Emperor and infusing into
humanity the spirit of highest spirituality,
Kalki will make over the charge of the earth
to the Brahmans and disappear after entering
a most beautiful forest.
Here will commence the Junction period of
the coming Golden Age. During this period,
167
SREE KRISHNA.
covering 144,000 lunar years, all germs of
vice, crime and sin will be destroyed and men
will become engaged in spiritual practices and
ceremonials. The earth will be adorned with
beautiful forests and gardens, buildings, lakes,
reservoirs, and temples of God and many are
the sacred ceremonies that will be constantly
performed on her surface. Everywhere will be
visible holy Brahmans, saints and anchorites.
The four stages of life which before were rilled
with rogues will now be filled by pious, honest
and truthful men. The deep-rooted bad in-
stincts and associations will then be driven out
of the minds of all people. All the crops will
grow plentifully in their proper seasons. All
people will be employed in charitable acts,
religious sacrifices, and in performing spirit-
ual duties. The Brahmans will again be ab-
sorbed in holy meditations, satisfied and serene ;
the Kshatriyas will exhibit their valor; the
kings rule the world with justice and mercy;
the Vaishyas carry on trade and agriculture ;
the Sudras serve the three upper castes with
loving service.
This purifying process of humanity will be
163
THE IRON AGE.
carried on all through the 144,000 years
bringing about the highest spiritual, mental
and physical development. From the shortest
stature to which the human body will be de-
creased, it will gradually, through this long
process of time and culture, be increased once
again to the height of 21 cubits or 31^ feet.
With the height of the body will be reached
the height of spiritual perfection. All, all
men and women will once again enjoy the
blessings of predominant Sattwa within Na-
ture and roam upon the earth in the Garden
of Eden with their vision turned inwards into
the soul of things, their body clad with the sky,
their hearts filled with ecstasy, their thoughts
centered upon God. We all who are now walk-
ing the earth, had walked in the last Golden
Age and formed members of that godly fra-
ternity of Adams and Eves and shall do so
in the coming Golden Age, unless we develop
higher soul-consciousness and, before the end
of the present Kali, transfer ourselves to any
of the upper four spheres or to the highest
beyond the universe Golaka the abode of
Absolute Love, to dwell with our only Lover
and Beloved Krishna.
169
SECTION XL
MANWANTARA OR THE DELUGE.
THE next larger cycle of time is called the
Manwantara or the Deluge. When the Divine
Cycle has revolved 71 times it brings about
a cataclysm. The oceans surge up and cover
the entire earth with its waters, even the
highest peaks of the Himalayas being sub-
merged, and remain so for the period of 71
Divine Cycles. This world-wide natural ca-
tastrophy occurs periodically, owing to more
and more increased accumulation of the sins
of humanity, who, along with all living beings
and vegetation are thus destroyed by submer-
sion. The only man saved is the most virtuous
and spiritual man of the time, who becomes the
Manoo elect, fliat is, the spiritual governor of
the next Cycle which extends between the
time of the reappearance of land after the Del-
uge to the next Deluge. This period is called
Manwantara, the period between two Manoos.
The account of the Deluge as given in the Old
Testament of the Bible has been taken from
170
MANWANTARA OR THE DELUGE.
minute accounts recorded in the Matsya
(Fish) Purana and the condensed facts about
them given in all the Puranas as well as the
Mahabharata. Only, the Bible version is dis-
torted in some particulars.
Since the beginning of the present Kalpa
creation, six Manwantaras, each ending with
the Deluge, have passed away. We are just
now living in the seventh of which twenty-
seven Divine Cycles have rolled away and we
are now living in the Iron Age of the twenty-
eighth. Many millions of years therefore have
gone by since the last Flood. Towards the
end of the Kali Yuga of the last Manwantara,
mankind became filled with the utmost cor-
ruption. But there was, according to the Ma-
habharata and the Bhagavat Purana, one man,
by the name of King Satyavrata, whom this
spirit of corruption failed to touch. He was
almost as pure and . spiritually powerful as
Brahma, the Creator, while he was possessed
of uncommon physical beauty. He was en-
gaged in spiritual austerities and meditation
in a holy forest on the top of the Himalayan
Mountains for many hundred years. One day,
171
SREE KRISHNA.
while he was sitting in contemplation on the
bank of the river Cheerinee, a little fish lept
out of the water into his hands. He threw it
back into the river but the fish, to his surprise,
spoke and begged the king to protect him from
a large fish coming to devour him. Satya-
vrata out of compassion took the fish into his
hands again, went home and placed it in a
water-pot. He tended him as his own off-
spring. The fish gradually grew so big that
he had to be taken to a large pond, but after a
few years the pond could no more hold the
fish, so large had it become. The King
wondering at this unprecedented growth sus-
pected the fish to be Vishnoo Himself. The
fish begged Satyavrata to put him into the
holy Ganges which he did by his Yoga power.
In time, however, the fish growing still larger,
he had to be taken to the ocean. The King
exhibited his yoga-power again by carrying
that huge fish to the ocean.
As soon as he was thrown into the sea, the
phenomenal Fish smiled and thus addressed
the King, "O thou kind one ! Thou hast saved
and protected me in every way, but I will
172
MANWANTARA OR THE DELUGE.
leave nothing undone to return this kindness.
Now, listen ! The time has come for one of
the great events of the world. The destruction
of the earth is at hand. On the seventh day
from this, the earth shall be swallowed up by
the waters, from which thou canst not be saved
except through me. A large ark shall come to
thee into which thou must get with the seven
Rishis (Illumined Beings) of the Great Bear
who shall help and bear you company. Take
thou also all kinds of seeds of all trees, plants,
shrubs and creepers, as also pairs of all animals
and creeping things on this boat and wait for
me. I will soon appear there, bedecked with
horns. Do not doubt my words, but do as I
tell thee."
The strange Fish then disappeared as Sa-
tyavrata said, "So shall it be." He then did
just as the Fish had told him. When the ark
came, he went aboard with the Seven Rishis of
the Great Bear and seeds and animals and
waited in anxious contemplation of the Divine
Fish which soon appeared as he had promised,
bedecked with horns and high as a hillock. He
made salutation to him and tied the ark to his
173
SREE KRISHNA.
horns with a strong heavy rope, whereupon
the Fish pulled the ark with great speed and
began to play upon the bosom of the ocean.
Then the ocean heaved with huge waves and
the waters roared. It all looked as if the ocean
was performing a wild dance. The ark was
then tossed and whirled about with great force,
and soon not a trace of land or sign of any
direction was visible. Earth and sky seemed
one vast expanse of water under which all
men and beasts and birds and vegetation were
drowned and destroyed. The Fish and the
ark and Satyavrata with the Seven Rishis and
the seeds and animals alone existed. The
Divine Fish drew and preserved the ark for
many years on the surface of the deep.
Long, long time after, when the waters sub-
sided and the highest peak of the Himalayas
made itself visible, the Fish drew the ark to
it and said in a pleasant voice, addressing the
Rishis, "O ye illumined ones ! Bind the boat
for a while to this mountain-peak," which the
Rishis did. In commemoration of this event,
this peak of the Himalayas is still called the
"Boat-Binding Peak."
174
MANWANTARA OR THE DELUGE.
When the ark was safely tied, the Fish said
again to the Rishis : "I am Brahma of Brahma,
the Creator. I have taken the form of the
Fish to save you all from the Flood. Now this
Satyavrata will be known as Vaivaswata
Manoo. He will, by my grace and power of
his Yoga, create all mobile and immobile
beings of the earth, gods and asuras and men."
So saying the Fish vanished.
Vaivashwata Manoo, who is also called
Shraddhadeva, then sat in meditation and in
time, by his Yoga-power, created all the beings
and creatures of the earth and celestial planes
as he was bidden to do.
This is the shortest sketch of a very long
account of the Deluge in the Hindoo Books.
The word Manoo has been distorted into the
word "Noah" in the Old Testament.
In the distorted version of the Deluge in
the Holy Bible, this principal factor of the
preservation of Noah and his Ark, the Divine
Fish, has not been mentioned out of ignorance
of the detailed facts of the cataclysm. This
ignorance is excusable, judging from the fact
of the remoteness of the time when the last
175
SREE KRISHNA.
Flood occurred. What the Bible estimates as
6,000 years the Hindoo Books put down at
more than 4,000,000, when Manoo (Noah)
was afloat on the waters of the universal in-
undation. The Divine Fish is an incarnation
of Vishnoo who is worshipped and prayed to
in that form even now in India. When God
Himself in Fish-form was the guide and pro-
tector of Manoo there was no need of birds
being- sent out to reconnoitre as to the re-
appearance of land. It was the Fish that first
espied the highest peak of the Himalayas vis-
ible above the waters and drew the ark to it
and asked Noah and the Seven Rishis to bind
that boat to that peak. That peak is still called
the Boat-Binding Peak, the Sanscrit word
being "Nou-Bandhan" peak. The Bible calls
it the Ararat arid they are now trying to locate
it in Syria and many other places. Even a
common sense view of the matter ought to
decide in favor of the Himalayas which are
ever known as the highest mountains. That
the first subsidence of the waters should first
uncover a Himalayan peak is only natural to
suppose.
176
MANWANTARA OR THE DELUGE.
With the appointment of a new Manoo are
also appointed some highly spiritual souls as
gods, as well as the Seven Rishis (illuminated
beings) who govern the seven stars of the
Great Bear, in the places of the gods and
Rishis of the past Manwantara, whose terms of
office extend through the duration of one Man-
wantara, the cyclic period between two deluges.
As every civilized country on the face of the
Earth is governed by a king and ministers
and officers, according to systematic laws and
regulations, the three spheres Bhur, Bhuba,
Swar are likewise ruled by a king, ministers
and officers. The government of the British
Dominions may be taken as some sort of ex-
ample to illustrate the Divine Administration.
If we take England as the Swar sphere, Ire-
land as the Bhuba sphere, India and Canada
may stand for the Bhur or Earth sphere.
Manoo, governor of the three spheres, can be
likened to the King of England, though, unlike
the English King, he is invested with Supreme
power ; Indra is his Prince Minister. The Seven
Rishis of the Great Bear may be called his
independent Cabinet Ministers and Advisers
177
SREE KRISHNA.
but superior to him in wisdom and intelligence.
The gods may be compared to Members of
Parliament, Secretaries of India and the Col-
onies and departmental administrators. The
Sons of Manoo act like Governor-Generals of
India and Canada, etc.
At the beginning of a Kalpa cycle, which is
measured by one thousand Divine cycles or a
little over 14 Manwantaras, the Manoos, Ris-
his and gods of all the 14 Manwantaras are
selected beforehand. We are now living in
the Seventh Manwantara. Shraddhadeva,
called also Vaivaswata, is our Manoo.
The Saints Kasyapa, Atri, Vasistha, Viswa-
mitra, Gautama, Jamadagni and Bharadwaja
are the seven Rishis; Purandar is the present
Indra. The Manoos, the Rishis, the Indras
are all named for the coming seven Manwan-
taras of the present Kalpa in the Shastras.
The prevalent belief among Western Orien-
talists is that Manoo was a man who was born
a few hundred years ago and died a natural
death after writing his law institutes for the
Hindoos. A more erroneous idea could not
exist from the Hindoo point of view. Manoo,
178
MANWANTARA OR THE DELUGE.
being the spiritual administrator of the three
worlds, has to live all through his term of
office, which extends through 71 Divine cycles
of which we are living in the 28th. Every
Manoo incarnates himself as a Rishi towards
the end of every Golden Age and compiles his
law, and institutes for the benefit of humanity,
while the seven Rishis incarnate among men
at the end of each Kali Yuga to reveal the
truths of the Vedas which are forgotten and
lost before that time.
179
SECTION XII.
THE KALPA CYCLE.
WHEN the Golden, Silver, Copper and Iron
Ages, forming the Divine Cycle, have revolved
for 1,000 times they complete a still larger
cycle than the Manwantara, called the Kalpa.
As each Manwantara is wound up with a
Deluge, each Kalpa brings about a still great-
er disastrous event, that of the destruction
of the lower three spheres of the universe, the
Bhur, Bhuba and Swar. The description
given of this great cyclic event in the Puranas
as well as in the Mahabharata, especialy by the
Immortal Markandeya who has seen it many
times, are simply appalling to the imagination
of puny man/
As I have already said it is only the exces-
sive accumulation of human sins (Tama-life)
that causes these natural catastrophies. The
sum of sins which causes the Kalpa dissolution
is many times greater than that which is the
cause of the Flood. Human sins, however,
are the immediate cause. The real or latent
180
THE KALPA CYCLE.
cause is to be found in the operations of the
Cardinal Attributes of Nature. Sattwa and
Raja are absolutely subdued by Tama, which
then growing more and more intense bursts
into a flame out of the friction of its own
forces. This conflagration first manifests it-
self through etheric matter in the shape of
seven suns suddenly appearing in the heavens
and with their combined heat burning down
the three spheres into ashes. This is followed
by the appearance of strange clouds which
then burst and deluge the ash-turned earth.
The ash, in process of time, is absorbed by
the water; then the air, turned into violent
winds, absorbs the water; and then, when the
air has been absorbed by ether (Akash), the
destruction of the three spheres is completed.
The Immortal Markandeya described this
Pralaya (Dissolution) five thousand years ago
to King Yudhisthira in the presence of Krish-
na and the assembled sages in the Kamyak
Forest. The following is a summary of his
statement :
"O King! At the end the Kali Yuga
(previous to this Pralaya), when the earthly
181
SREE KRISHNA.
days of all beings have come to an end, no
rains will fall on earth for many successive
years in consequence of which all beings on
earth will die, owing to unbearable heat and
hunger caused by drought and famine. Then
will appear simultaneously in the heavens seven
suns which will draw all the waters from all
seas and rivers. Whether dry or wet, what-
ever grass or wood there is on earth, will be
reduced to tinder. Then will spring up the
Fire, called Samvartak, which, aided by the
wind, will attack the sun-absorbed earth and,
piercing its surface, will burn all there is in its
bowels. Indeed, by this wind-helped Sam-
vartak Fire all created beings from the gods to
creeping things and all that now exists in the
three worlds will be destroyed and trans-
formed into one huge heap of ashes.
"Then will apear in the firmament wonder-
ful-looking, liglitening-bedecked clouds, ar-
rayed as garlanded rows of elephants. These
clouds are, some of them, of the color of the
blue lotus, some of the color of the Koomood
flower, some of the color of the golden heart
of the lotus, some yellow, some green, some
182
THE KALPA CYCLE.
speckled gray, like the color of the crow's
egg, some colored like lotus leaves, some are
light brown, others look like large cities,
others like hordes of elephants, others like the
color of eye-cosmetics, others shaped like
crocodiles. These mysterious-looking, deep-
scunding rain-clouds, sent by God, spreading
themselves over the sky, will send down rains
in a continuous stream, like watery pillars
descending from above, inundating all the ash-
heaped mountains and valleys, and extinguish
the fearful Samvartak Fire.
"O King of the Pandus! Thus, after
these rains have fallen continuowsly for twelve
years, the waters of the seas will rise in a flood
and cover the earth, at which, the still solid
cohesiveness of her mountains giving way,
the earth will sink to the bottom of the sea.
Then the clouds, driven by the powerful
winds in all directions, will suddenly disap-
pear. Then he of the Lotus-Abode and
Lotus-born, the primeval god, Brahma, drink-
ing in the winds and the air, will fall into
sleep at the close of his day."
The lower three spheres Bhur, Bhuba and
183
SREE KRISHNA.
Swar are thus dissolved and there is nothing
in their place but one vast expanse of water.
The upper four spheres, Mahar, Jana, Tapa
and Satya or Brahma, remain intact. The
dwellers of the Mahar Loka, however, unable
to bear the heat of the Samvartak Fire during
the earth's destruction, leave it and go up
to the Jana to live there during the duration of
the Pralaya.
Now, the question may be asked, why these
four upper heavens are not destroyed, and
how can there be an ocean of water when the
Water Element is destroyed along with the
other Elements?
The answer is very interesting and instruc-
tive. There are two kinds or states of these
Five Elements Ether, Air, Fire, Water,
Earth. One may be called Pure and the
other Mixed. The Pure state of an Element
means wholly unmixed by even the least touch
or tinge of the other four elements. A mixed
Element is made up of half part of one Ele-
ment mixed with one-eighth part of each of
the other four Elements. The Bhur, Bhuba
and Swar are made of these five Mixed Ele-
184
THE KALPA CYCLE.
ments which being destroyed by this Kalpa
Pralaya, the three spheres are necessarily
destroyed too. The Upper four spheres are
made of the Unmixed Elements and hence
they survive the Kalpa dissolution of the
Mixed Elements. It is needless to say that
dwellers of these upper realms are possessed
of a physical body made of these Five Pure
Elements, and in the highest realms the
dwellers have no physical bodies at all and
therefore no elements in their make-up. The
bodies of some of them are formed of the
Five Finest Essences of the Elements Sound,
Touch, Form, Taste and Smell; and of
others, the highest beings in the Brahma
Loka, of nothing but Consciousness and Ego
and Ensouled Mind.
The water of the Watery Expanse, into
which the lower three spheres are reduced
by the Kalpa Pralaya, is this Unmixed Pure
Water, which is invisible to our ordinary
physical eye. The world is indebted to the
Immortal Markandeya for a description of
what remains after this Kalpa dissolution.
Blessed, then, with the finest and purest Ele-
185
SREE KRISHNA.
ment-body, he alone hovers over this vast
Watery Expanse. His experiences are record-
ed in that History of the Universe, the Mahab-
harata, of which here are a few details :
Said Markandeya: "O King! In this time
of the Kalpa Pralaya, when all gods, asuras,
elements, demons, men, animals, trees and the
firmament, etc., all, all the mobile and immobile
beings and objects, will be dissolved into one
vast ocean, I alone will hover over that endless
expanse of water and become sad-hearted on
viewing this general destruction. After float-
ing on it for a very long period of time I will
feel extremely exhausted. Then, shortly
after, a huge tree in the midst of that one-
ocean will attract my eye. O King! Rest-
ing on the spreading boughs of that tree I
will see seated on a couch of glory a lotus-
eyed Boy with a face radiant like the light of
the full moon. Instantly on seeing him I shall
be extremely astonished and will say within
myself 'How wonderful! Everything has
been destroyed, how then is this boy resting
here?' O Great King! Although I am
blessed with the knowledge of the past, pres-
186
THE KALPA CYCLE.
ent and future, I shall fail to know who
that child may be.
"Then that lotus-eyed Boy will thus speak
to me in the sweetest voice: 'O Markandeya!
I know thee. Thous art become very weary
and wishing for rest. Therefore do thou
enter my body and live there as long as thou
mayest desire. I have been very pleased with
thee.' O King! on hearing these words of
the Boy I will be filled with the spirit of in-
difference to my manhood and long life, at
which suddenly that Boy will open his mouth,
and I will then enter into that mouth through
some divine means.
"O Great King! Through his mouth I
shall enter his belly and to my astonishment,
shall see within him this whole earth of many
kingdoms and cities, rivers, mountains, seas,
the blue heavens bedecked with the sun and
the moon, and the many forests. There I
shall find Brahmans engaged in various relig-
ious ceremonies, the Kshatriyas in ruling to
the satisfaction of all other castes, the Vaish-
yas in their usual vocation of agriculture, and
the Sudras in rendering loving sacrifices to
187
SREE KRISHNA.
the Brahmans ; lions and tigers, and all the
gods, angels and serial beings are living peace-
fully in their respective spheres. In fact, all
that existed before I shall find existing within
the belly of that Great Soul.
"O King! Thus, having seen the whole
world within that Boy, I will travel for many
thousand years, like one in a dream, within
that world and in trying to find out its limit
will rush in all directions but will not succeed
in doing so. Then disappointment will turn my
thoughts to that beautiful Boy again, and,
with all the concentrated force in my body r
mind and speech, I will then ask for his pro'
tection and grace. At this I will be carried,
by a violent wind as it were, through hi?
mouth out of his body and I will find him still
sitting under that tree.
"The Boy will then ask me with delighted
heart and smiling face, 'O my good Rishi
Markandeya! Thou didst become very tired
floating on these waters for such a long time.
Have you now been well refreshed by living
within my body?'
"Then I will behold my soul freed from all
188
THE KALPA CYCLE.
bondage by the illumination which will enter
me with the Boy's words. And placing his
crimson Feet on my head I will address him
thus with folded hands and humility, 'How
lucky I am ! To-day I have beheld the
Lotus-eyed God of Gods, the Soul of All
Things ! O God ! I have become very
curious to know Thee and this Thy wonder-
ful Maya (Illusion). Entering Thy belly
through Thy mouth, I have seen the whole
world existing there. O Lord ! it was through
Thy grace that I did not lose my memory, and
it is through Thy will that I have now come out
of Thy body. O Lotus-eyed! I have become
very desirous to know Thee. Why art Thou
resting here in the form of a Boy after hav-
ing devoured the whole world ? How is it that
this whole world is now dwelling in Thy body ?
How much longer wilt Thou rest here? O
Lord of Gods ! These subjects are great and
unthinkable, and so I beg to hear from Thee
their detailed explanations.'
"The God of the Gods, after consoling me,
on the last occasion, began to answer my
questions. He said :
189
SREE KRISHNA.
" 'O Brahman ! Even the gods have failed
to know the mysteries of my creation. I will
tell thee of it only to please thee. O Rishi!
Thy wonderful devotion to thy father and to
Me and to spiritual celibacy have won thee
this grace; I have appeared before thy vision.
In time past I called water by the term "Nar"
This Nar is ever my seat, hence I am called
Narayan. I am the First Cause. I am
Eternal, Inexhaustible, the Creator and De-
stroyer of all that exists. I am all Wealth, I
am Death, I am Shiva. Fire is in my mouth,
the earth is my feet, the sun is my two eyes,
the Celestial Regions are my head, the sky and
the cardinal points are my two ears. Space
and EterniJy are my body, the winds my
mind.
" 'All sacred ceremonies are performed to
please Me. All the Vedas come out of and
enter into Me. The peace-loving, mind-
disciplined, enquiring, soul's-mystery-knowing
Brahmans contemplate and worship Me alone.
I am the Fire called Samvartak, I am the
Samvartak Winds, and it is I who am the
Seven Suns that rise and shine in Pralaya.
190
THE KALPA CYCLE.
The stars that thou seest now in the firmament
are the pores of my body, the sky is my rai-
ment, the seas my seat and abode. It is I
who have divided them as they are.
" 'Men are born, are overwhelmed by My
Maya and become enterprising through my
Law, never through their own desire. Those
Brahmans who thoroughly study the Vedas,
perform many spiritual sacrifices, bring peace
to their souls and vanquish anger; it is they
who attain to Me. Those persons who are
addicted to bad actions, are swayed by greed,
are misers, crooked-minded and void of
soul-culture can never reach Me. The paths
of Yoga are as easy for pure souls to tread
as they are uncertain to the wicked and the
foolish.
" 'Whenever religion suffers from revolu-
tion and vice triumphs over virtue, I create
myself and walk the earth and set things
right. Whenever are born on the earth the
selfish and envious Asuras and Demons so
powerful that even the gods cannot destroy
them, I in the form of man take birth in the
family of pious men and bring peace to the
191
SREE KRISHNA,
world again by subduing- them. I am white-
complexioned in the Satya Yuga, yellow in
the Treta, red in the Dwapar and dark in the
Kali. At the end of each great cycle it is I
who destroy every thing. I am the Three
Paths, the Soul of the Universe, Giver
of all Happiness, Superior to All, All-Per-
vading, the Endless and the All-Powerful.
" 'At the last Kali Yuga of each Kalpa I
spread my illusion upon all beings and enter
into my trance-state. When old, old Brahma,
transformed into a child, goes to sleep and
keeps sleeping, I rest here on the waters until
he is awakened. Now, go thou about on the
waters in restful spirit until that time, when
I alone will create again earth and sky and
light, air and water, and all bodies.'
"So saying, O King, that wonderful Being
vanished from my view. Then by and by this
world was created again. Thus in the last
Kalpa Pralaya did I witness this wonderful
event. The Lotus-Eyed Diety I then saw,
you brothers have now established blood rela-
tions with Him, this Krishna. It is through
His grace that I have obtained uninterrupted
192
THE KALPA CYCLE.
memory, become so long-lived and endowed
with the boon of dying at my will. This
Krishna who is now sitting before us all",
this Krishna present here, who is born in the
line of the Vrishnis, is just now merely playing
on His earth. But it is He, this Krishna,
who is the Ancient Person, the Lord, the
Unthinkable Soul, the Creator, the Destroyer,
the Eternal and the Master of All! I have
been able to remember all these facts only
through the inspiration of His presence here.
He is the Mother and Father of all beings :
do you all take His Refuge."
Krishna has been called Narayan here by
Markandeya, because Narayan, the Fourth
Form-manifestation of Krishna in the unfold-
ment of creation, is generally known as the
Supreme Diety Krishna. Narayan, as I
have said before this, is Aniruddha out of
whose navel springs the seed-bud Lotus with
Brahma, the operating Creator of the details
of Creation.
193
SECTION XIII.
NATURAL DISSOLUTION.
WHAT is popularly known as Universal De-
struction, is termed in the Hindoo Scriptures
"Prakritic Pratisanchar" or Natural Retro-
gression, which means Natural Disssolution.
This marks the close of the Greatest Cycle of
Time. It is the End of Time, the End of
Creation. It is the Maha Pralaya. It in-
volves the annihilation of the Universe, in one
sense, because after its occurrence none of the
Principles, except the Ultimate, exists. "In
one sense" I say advisedly, for although the
Manifest universe becomes non-existent, its
latent spiritual impressions, forming its germ,
are carried by the Three Cardinal Attributes
into the Ultimate Principle, Love Krishna
and preserved unconsciously, even during their
rest in Krishna, in a state of equilibrium. It
is out of this Mystic Ideation that, in the
event of the inequilibrium of the Attributes,
a fresh creation springs into existence. There
is no such thing as destruction in the law of
194
NATURAL DISSOLUTION.
Nature. Nothing is destroyed totally; all
forms of destruction are but phases of trans-
mutation, from gross manifestation into fine,
from fine into finer, from finer into finest,
from finest into mystic ideation which belongs
to the realm of absolute spirituality.
The Hindoo docTfifreTn Tegard~to-the "pro-
cess of creation is the unfoldment of the
Twenty-three Principles from the reflection
of the One, the manifestation into Many and
the Diverse of the Mystic Energy of the One
Unchangeable Absolute. This Mystic Energy
unrolls its many and diverse phases and forces
in creation and incessantly throughout its
duration. "Prakritic" means "Natural" from
"Prakriti," Nature. "Pratisanchar" is "Prati"
and "sanchar"; "Prati" means backward, and
"sanchar" means the act of moving, motion.
The whole word therefore means "moving
backward." Prakritic Pratisanchar, therefore,
is the moving backward of the Unfolded
Principles of Existence (Nature) into its One
Source, out of which they originally spring.
This backward motion of Variety into Unity
is caused by the extreme action of intense
SREE KRISHNA.
Tama from which the following natural re-
action puts the forces of the Three Cardinal
Attributes into equilibrium. This equilibrium
is the Unmanifest (Avyakta unexpressed)
state of Nature, and the inequilibrium brings
about the Manifest state, the gross form of
which is the universe. This action of Nat-
ural Dissolution has also its reaction. It re-
acts into a fresh Creation.
The symptoms which manifest themselves
previous to the occurrence of this universal de-
struction are almost the same as those before
the Kalpa Pralaya. Only, the degeneration
of human society develops worse phases which
are followed by intense heat, owing to the
suspension of rains for years and years to-
gether, resulting in the death of all moving
and breathing beings. Then appear in the
heavens twelve suns, instead of seven as in
the Kalpa Pralaya, which give birth to the
Samvartak Fire. The fire is followed by the
appearance of the Samvartak Clouds, which
deluge the earth with continuous rains for
years ; the deluge is followed by the winds,
etc.
196
NATURAL DISSOLUTION.
But the main difference lies in the absolutely
destructive power of these Elemental agents.
When the suns and the fire have done their
work, the black surface of the earth looks like
the back of a tortoise. Then the water in
which it is submerged absorbs the very attri-
bute of Earth Smell along with its sub-
stance which then becomes absolutely non-
existent and transformed into water. The
water is then absorbed by Fire (heat) with its
attribute Taste so that water becomes abso-
lutely non-existent and is turned into Fire.
The volume of Fire is then so increased that
it burns the suns themselves, so that all the
heavens, filled with all-pervading flames, burn
on until everything in them is destroyed. Then
the air devours the Fire with its attribute
Form so that there remains nothing visible
to the eye. The winds then move about with
all their force in the Akas. Then Akas
(Ether) absorbs the Air with its attribute
Touch so that nothing remains which can
be felt. Then Akas itself becomes unmani-
fest, the Universal Mind having absorbed its
attribute Sound which originally sprang
197
SREE KRISHNA.
from it to create Akas (Ether). This is
called the dissolution of the gross form of the
Universe.
The dissolution of the fine (subtle) form
begins with the Moon, the presiding deity of
the Mind, absorbing the Mind with its attribute
the power of Willing and Non-Willing,
which, power with all its associations is then
centered in the Moon. After a long time the
Mind, centralized in the Moon, brings about
the poise in its vibratory volition (the cause
of material desires). This will-control re-
sults in the Moon-centered Mind being ab-
sorbed by its original Belief in the Oneness
of Nature and Brahm (Divine Esssence).
The Belief in this Unity (Ego) is then ab-
sorbed by Universal Consciousness, and Uni-
versal Consciousness with its attribute of the
Power of Decision, is absorbed by Absolute
Being (one of the Three Attributes of Para-
Brahm). Then Wisdom (another of the
Three Attributes, also called Intelligence or
Truth) absorbs this Absolute Being. Then
that all-impregnated Wisdom enters the Un-
manifest Soul Absolute Love KRISHNA.
198
SECTION XIV.
MODERN SCIENTIFIC TESTIMONY.
A RECENT discovery of modern science has
not only thrown the clearest light upon this
Hindoo doctrine of the unity and composition
of the universe, but has fully proved its cor-
rectness. This is the first indirect investiga-
tion of Western material science into the realm
of the subjective side of creation. The autfior
of this discovery, by strange irony of Fate, is
a Hindoo, though educated and trained in
_
scientific knowledge in England, under Eng-
lish teachers of Science. He is now a scien-
tific celebrity among Western scientific celeb-
rities of the day; and if the work of his
tested discovery be rightly estimated, he ought
to be classed with the highest of them all.
His name is Professor Jagadis Chunder Bose,
D. Sc., Professor of Science in the Calcutta
University.
Prof. Bose's discovery, now embodied in
book-form and entitled "Response in tfie Liv-
ing and the Non-Living," marks a new epoch
199
SREE KRISHNA.
in the advancement of modern science. It has
been accepted by all scientific authorities, after
the Professor had demonstrated it by experi-
ments before a large number of scientific peo-
ple in London, and notably by Lord Kelvin.
Armed with the demonstrated facts of this
discovery, Professor Bose maintains that the
true test of the existence of life in any form
of matter is its sensitiveness to external stimu-
lus. According to this test he proves conclu-
sively that no essential difference exists be-
tween animals and metals or vegetables. He
has shown by scientific experiments that a bar
of iron is not only as irritable and sensitive
as a human body, but that it can be killed or
poisoned in the same way as a human body
can be killed or poisoned. According to his
discovery, life pervades every object and part
of Nature ; and only some of these parts or ob-
jects can be said to be in a dead state, which
means they can be deprived of their sensi-
tiveness to external stimulus.
If any part of our body is pinched, the nerve
which connects that part with the brain, run-
ning all along, sends an electric current to the
200
MODERN SCIENTIFIC TESTIMONY.
brain, vibrating under the pinch. The brain
alone feels the pain inflicted upon any part of
our body, says modern science ; and it is proved
by the fact that no pain is felt by us if our
brain is deadened by chloroform.
The galvanometer is a well-known and very
delicate scientific instrument for detecting the
presence of electric currents; it has a needle
on a pivot, and the faintest electric current
will cause a deflection of this needle. If at any
intervening part of the electric current-bearing
nerve in the human body the galvanometer be
attached, and the end of the nerve pinched or
otherwise irritated, then immediately the needle
of the galvanometer will deflect, thus showing
that the irritation of the nerve causes a cur-
rent like that of electricity to be sent along
it. This fact is now very well known to scien-
tists, and Prof. Bose's investigations are based
upon this well-known scientific fact.
With a view to ascertaining whether or not
matter which has hitherto been known as non-
living could be proved so under the test of the
galvanometer, the Professor attached the in-
strument to bars of different metals, with
201
SREE KRISHNA.
startling contrary results. The Professor
found that all metals show visible signs of
sensitiveness when twisted or tapped. The
greater the irritation the greater the visible
signs of sensitiveness; even every single pe-
culiarity in the irritability of animal matter is
exactly reproduced in the case of metal. As,
for instance, when the sensitiveness of a mus-
cle or a nerve of an animal wears off after
a time, under repeated irritation, it begins
to show signs of fatigue, the deflection of the
needle of the galvanometer becoming more
and more feeble; the Professor found that
metals would betray exactly the same signs of
fatigue under repeated irritation. Again, after
a short rest, the signs of fatigue were found
to disappear in animal muscle and in metal
alike, their sensitiveness being fully restored.
This last fact is known to many of us who
constantly use a razor and find it losing its
keen edge and growing duller and duller, de-
spite vigorous stropping, and spontaneously
recovering its original keenness by being laid
aside for a few days.
Professor Bose's process of registering the
202
MODERN SCIENTIFIC TESTIMONY.
deflections of the needle of the galvanometer
is this: By a mechanical device the point of
the needle is photographed on paper, which is
moved along at a constant rate, the needle's
point tracing out a series of zig-zag lines on
the paper, when the needle is oscillated by an
electric current. The width of the zig-zags
corresponds to the amount of the deflection of
the needle, therefore the strength of the elec-
tric current. If there be no current, and con-
sequently no deflection of the needle, its point
will remain stationary and merely trace a
straight line on the moving paper.
This book of Prof. Bose's, "Response in the
Living and the Non-Living," is full of still
more wonderful revelations. He has found and
shown, to the satisfaction of European scien-
tists through experiments, that metals do not
only go to sleep, but can be poisoned and
killed like human beings and animals. Like an
unused animal muscle showing signs of slug-
gishness and appearing to be in a kind of tor-
por, then gradually seeming to waken up un-
der irritation, and finally returning to full ac-
tivity, Professor Bose proves that metals be-
203
SREE KRISHNA.
have in exactly the same way and process of
gradation. He also proves that the effects of
extreme cold and extreme heat produce ex-
actly similar conditions in both animals and
metals.
But men or animals can be drugged and
made drunk. Can metals likewise be drugged
and made drunk? Yes, says Prof. Bose, and
he proves it absolutely. He proves that met-
als show the same increase of irritability un-
der the influence of stimulants and narcotics
as the human body. Moreover, even as differ-
ent animals are affected differently by the
same dose of a stimulant, so also are different
metals. Under the influence of carbonate of
sodium, irritability of platinum is increased
threefold, while the irritability of tin is less.
Still more significant is the action of anaes-
thetics and narcotics. Under their action the
sensitiveness of metals can be reduced to any
desired degree, exactly as is the case of human
beings. A more striking parallel between ani-
mal matter and metals is established by Prof.
Bose. The action of some narcotics on the
human frame is known to be paradoxical un-
204
MODERN SCIENTIFIC TESTIMONY.
der certain conditions. While a large dose of
opium, for instance, decreases the sensitiveness
of the human body, a very minute dose has
exactly the opposite effect, that is to say, acts
as a stimulant. This anomaly has been found
by Prof. Bose to have a parallel in metals, tin
being found to show that its sensitiveness is
increased half as much again by being treated
with a minute dose of potash (3 parts in 100),
but the sensitiveness begins to decrease when
the dose is increased.
Now the question suggests itself that if
metals are as much alive as animals, then they
must also be as liable to die as animals. Prof.
Bose has found this to be a fact, too. Metals
not only die; but they can be poisoned and
revived, and poisoned and killed.
In order to find out these facts, Prof. Bose
took a piece of metal which showed full vigor
of sensitiveness and so was considered healthy,
and treated it with a moderate dose of oxalic
acid, which is a powerful poison. The needle
of the galvanometer instantly indicated a spas-
modic flutter; the sensitiveness of the metal
grew more and more feeble, till it seemed al-
205
SREE KRISHNA.
most to die away. At this stage, a powerful
antidote being applied, slowly and gradually
the sensitiveness began to revive, and in time
became as active as when the metal was not
poisoned. The treatment of another piece of
healthy metal with a strong dose of the same
poison resulted in violent spasms, with rapid
enfeeblement of sensitiveness, which soon van-
ished altogether. After a proper interval the
antidote was tried in vain; the piece of metal
was killed forever. The results of experiments
with different metals and different poisons
were the same ; but all poisons not being alike
in their action upon animal matter, the same
is true of their action on metal, absolutely and
undoubtedly. In some cases, however, after
all traces of poison had been removed by the
counteracting 1 influence of stimulating acids,
the poisoned metal was eventually reanimated ;
which meant that the metal was not really
killed, but was merely in a state of suspended
animation. The most striking feature of the
discovery in this connection is, that the very
poison which kills both animal and metal is
itself endowed with life, which shows itself by
206
MODERN SCIENTIFIC TESTIMONY.
indications of irritability and sensitiveness, and
which can itself be killed.
Here is another significant point in regard
to the operation of poison on both an animal
and a metal. In the case of an animal the
operation is twofold; first, the actual death
process, lasting from a few minutes to several
hours; secondly, the purely nervous effect
which manifests itself in the form of spasms,
paralysis or other symptoms, and which is de-
veloped much sooner, sometimes instantane-
ously. Prof. Bose has discovered the same
phenomenon in metal. Under the effect of
some powerful poisons there was instantaneous
spasm shooting through the metal long before
the corrosive action of the acid could pene-
trate beyond the surface.
Professor Bose has proved in his book that
all these phenomena with every single variation
exist as much in the vegetable kingdom as In
the animal and mineral. Indeed, the three
kingdoms of matter, the animal, the vegetable
and the mineral, are, says the Professor, but
one in essence and the physiological distinction
between so-called organic and inorganic mat-
207
SREE KRISHNA.
ter, of which man and metal are but types,
is based upon a false and unscientific assump 1
tion. Prof. Bose dedicates his book to his
countrymen, the Hindoos, because, he says, his
discovery is a discovery made millions of years
ago by the Hindoo sages, who proclaimed the
unity of the universe in essence and construc-
tion, as well as in the laws that govern it.
208
SECTION XV.
SCIENCE UPHOLDS SHASTRAS.
Now let us consider the main points of this
great epoch-making scientific discovery by the
light of the truths of Nature and the laws of
matter discovered countless ages ago by the
illuminated sages of India, and handed down
through the corridors of time. Every discov-
ery of modern science has tended to establish
the principles of Hindoo religion and philos-
ophy, by furnishing practical testimony to
what were so long considered as their mystic
teachings. But this discovery of Prof. Bose's
is an unexpected stumble of a purely ob-
jective method of investigation upon the
truths and laws of the subjective realm. The
evidence which Prof. Bose's experiments af-
ford is of course indirect; but this indirect
evidence is startlingly direct in its pointed and
unmistakable suggestions. It is therefore most
opportune at the present moment, when' the
human mind the world over is striving, im-
pelled by a natural hunger, to get at the facts
209
SREE KRISHNA.
back of the physical shroud of the universe.
The Hindoo sages say that the universe is
one whole, huge being, of which the high
heavens are the head, the sun and the moon
the eyes, space the body, and the earth the
feet. Every inch, nay, every point, of this
universe-body is alive as a healthy human
body. The composing principles of this body
are twenty-four, as I have already explained.
These twenty-four principles are therefore
present in every atom of it, in every speck of
earth, the last principle in creation. This speck
or molecule of earth has, however, no opening
for any of its composing principles; whereas
vegetable and animal life-forms have many of
these passages of their composing principles
more or less open. As a tortoise puts forth
its body out of its shell and again draws that
body into it, so out of Love the twenty-three
principles are projected, and drawn, in the
fullness of time, back into its bosom again.
This reaction or journey of the universe back
to its source is called universal destruction,
or dissolution, or disintegration. This uni-
versal dissolution takes place when the
210
SCIENCE UPHOLDS SHASTRAS.
Three Cardinal Attributes of creation, out of
which all the composing principles have
sprung, fall into equilibrium; in other words,
become equal in power or tension. This loss
of tensity or equipoise in the power of the
Cardinal Attributes, viz., Sattwa (Illumina-
tion), Raja (Activity or Motion), and Tama
(Obscuration), results in the loss of their in-
dividuality, and their transformation into Pure
Illumination. By pure illumination is meant
unmixed illumination; that is to say, absolute
illumination, having no tendency or trace in
it of being disturbed into obscuration. In
short, Sattwa, Raja and Tama are each of them
mixed with the other two, its own quality being
predominant in it. Their inequality of power
brings them forth into and sustains their being.
The moment this power becomes equal and
they lose their existence, the Absolute Illu-
mination, co-existent with Absolute Love and
Absolute Being out of which they sprung,
alone remains.
This equipoise of the cardinal cosmic attri-
butes takes place at intervals of time, the di-
mension of which staggers the human mind to
211
SREE KRISHNA.
imagine. But while the return-journey of the
universe as a whole takes place once in an in-
definitely long period of time, the molecules
of earth, as soon as they are created, have
a tendency to go back to their original source.
But the molecule's journey backward to Love
is made by a very circuitous path. That path
leads through the process of opening one by
one the passages of its composing principles.
By passages is meant channels of communica-
tion and sympathy with the main laws and
vibrations of the working of the universe.
The first step the molecule takes, in this
return- journey, is by opening the passage of
one principle, the sense of feeling, and becom-
ing a blade of grass. A blade of grass has
only one sense opened, the sense of touch, by
which it draws juice from the earth for its
sustenance. After being reborn thousands of
times as a blade of grass, it draws the mag-
netism from the different life-forms in Nature,
which helps it to develop into a shrub. And
then, after thousands of shrub-lives, it deve-
lops into a plant, and then into tree-life, in
which it puts forth flowers and fruits. And,
212
SCIENCE UPHOLDS SHASTRAS.
finally, drawing in more and more magnetism
and vibrations from the animal world, it de-
velops into an animal itself. At first it is but
an animalcule, and then a worm. As a worm
it has opened more passages, the passage of
tasting (the palate), the passage of gripping
(with the mouth), the passage of moving (the
feet), the passages of excreting and generat-
ing, the passage of seeing (the eye), the pass-
age of smelling, the passage of hearing, etc.
Through thousands of rebirths in each animal
form it is promoted into higher and higher
animal forms, in which more and more pass-
ages of its composing principles are opened.
The last forms of lower animals it takes are
those of monkeys and apes, the forms just
before developing into human form. In these
ape forms of life it opens all principles except
four; viz., Mind, Ego, Intellect and Love.
However intelligent a monkey or a dog or any
other animal may be or seem to be, the Mind
principle is not yet open in it. All its actions
are prompted by instinct, which is the natural
impulse of the indirect influence of the mind
on the verge of being opened, as well as of
213
SREE KRISHNA.
automatic memory of past experiences in this
and previous existences, the impressions of
which are in their very blood. With the open-
ing of the Mind principle begins the human
form. It may be the most savage man, but it
is human. He can think, is self-conscious, and
acts with reasoned decision, however crude or
erroneous ; because with the opening of the
Mind there are simultaneously opened the Ego
and the Intellect, they being almost one prin-
ciple in three.
After these explanations of the composition,
construction, and transformation of matter, let
us go back to unopened matter, in order to
explain the mysteries of Professor Bose's dis-
coveries by the aid of the galvanometer. The
Professor has discovered that the application
of this delicate instrument reveals the fact that
matter which has hitherto been considered non-
living is very much alive indeed, as fully alive
as living animals are, because they respond to
external stimulus as fully as any living being.
According to Hindoo definition and idea of
construction and composition of matter, it is
only natural that this should be so. To the
214
SCIENCE UPHOLDS SHASTRAS.
iiindoo sage this is not at all a wonder. Love,
Consciousness, Ego, Mind, the ten senses, the
five fine essences and the five gross forms of
matter, called elements, are as much present
in minerals, which are but formations of earth,
as in animals. A lump of earth, or a piece
of metal, or a vegetable, cannot give visible,
direct response to external stimulus, because
they have no openings (open physical organs)
through which to manifest it. If you can by
any means feel the vibrations caused by such
stimulus within them, then only can you find
the proof of the uniform composition and con-
struction of all forms of matter in this one
whole living universe. The galvanometer
serves this purpose, and hence the Hindoo idea
stands to-day as a demonstrated fact.
Let us analyze the tests and proofs of the
galvanometer a little more closely, and under-
stand them according to the Hindoo doctrine
of the construction and organization of what
is called organic or inorganic matter. The
Hindoo doctrine does not recognize the nerve
or the brain as any of the principles which
compose what is called the living body. The
215
SREE KRISHNA.
nerve is but a mere physical vehicle of the sen-
sation of the mind (which includes the Ego
and the Intellect, the part of universal con-
sciousness in individual souls), and the brain
is the physical centre of these physical chan-
nels of the mind's sensation and experiences.
The mind feels the sensation of the external
stimulus through its channels, the five cog-
nizing senses, and the mind's sensations are
carried through the nerves to the brain. This
is in regard to animal life, which has brains
and nerves formed fully or partially. The
vegetables and minerals have neither brains
nor nerves. How, then, do they show the
same irritation as animals do to external stim-
ulus, as shown by the galvanometer?
The answer is simple. Because they Have
the psychic vehicles, the five cognizing senses,
by which to convey the sensation of the ex-
ternal stimulus to the mind, and therefore they
need no physical brain or nerve. Only, having
no physical openings, they cannot manifest
the effect of those sensations outside them-
selves, as animals do; and only an instrument,
like the galvanometer, is able to detect the
216
SCIENCE UPHOLDS SUASTRAS.
sensations and indicate them by the deflection
of its needle. Mineral and vegetable matter
having all the twenty-four principles in
them, have the mind and the senses, too.
Only, they are in a shut-up, undeveloped state,
and perform their undeveloped, crude func-
tions like an unconscious mechanism.
It is through the senses that sensations are
perceived ; and had not the senses been pres-
ent within a piece of metal or a vegetable,
there would be no sensation in it, and there-
fore the galvanometer would have been useless
in its application and results, because, there
being no sensation, there would be no deflec-
tion of the needle. Professor Bose's experi-
ments conclusively prove not only the unity,
but the uniform composition and con-
struction of the whole universe ; that all
its composing principles are present every-
where; that in some phases they are in a
latent and in others in manifest state. The
tests of the galvanometer also prove that what
is true of the whole universe is true of a par-
ticle of earth ; that the whole universe is one
whole living mass, like a single living being,
217
SREE KRISHNA.
and that every molecule of its composition is a
universe in embryo ; because every molecule is
instinct with all the forces and properties of
the twenty-four principles, which are the ma-
terials as well as the attributes of the cosmos.
218
SECTION XVI.
PHYSICAL AND ASTRAL BODIES.
IT is the ignorance of the knowledge of the
constitution of the universal and human bodies
that forms one of the chief obstacles of a cor-
rect study of the laws operating behind exter-
nal Nature. It is the general belief of modern
humanity that the human body is made up of
flesh and blood alone. This is true so far as
the physical body is concerned. But there is
another body within us finer than the physical
which is the real body and of which the physi-
cal body is the outer encasement. This real
body is called the Astral Body. The whole
human body is like a clock of which the physi-
cal covering is its case and the astral body its
works. As the mechanical part of a clock is
the real clock and its case with its dial and
hands forms its covering by which it indicates
its working, so the astral body is the mechani-
cal part of the human body and the physical
body is its case through which it indicates its
219
SREE KRISHNA.
operations. Though far from perfect, the
analogy is very suggestive. For instance, the
mechanical part of the clock cannot serve its
purpose without the aid of the case, dial and
hands. The astral body likewise cannot be of
any use without the co-operation of the physi-
cal body.
The mechanism of the astral body is com-
posed of eighteen Principles, viz., Conscious-
ness (Intellect), Ego, Mind, the Ten Senses:
the Powers of Seeing, Hearing, Smelling,
Tasting, Feeling, Speaking, Holding, Moving,
Excreting and Generating; and the five attri-
butes of the Elements : Sound, Touch, Form,
Taste and Smell. These Principles work
through their counterpart-organs of the physi-
cal body which is composed of the five remain-
ing Principles, viz., the Five Elements Ether,
Air, Fire, Water and Earth.
Now let us see how the physical body is
composed of the five Elements. The vigor
of our father and the blood of our mother,
of which our physical body is made, are for-
mations of assimilated food. Every kind of
foodstuff, vegetable or animal, is but con-
220
PHYSICAL AND ASTRAL BODIES.
densed form of earth's juice ; earth-juice is
earth. Now Earth is composed only of its
five attributes: Sound, Touch, Form, Taste
and Smell, the first four of which compose
Water, the first three compose Fire, the first
two Air, and the first, Sound, is the Attribute
of Ether (Akas). Therefore the other four
Elements are present in earth on account of
their respective attributes being contained in
it. Our physical body, therefore, being made
of formations of Earth, is composed of the
Five Elements.
The material of the physical body is supplied
by our parents and the astral body we supply
ourselves. The astral body is our perma-
nent body. It puts on new flesh-garments
from time, to time. When it slips into a new
flesh-garment it is called birth; when it slips
out of it, it is called death. But really the
astral body lives on forever and ever and never
ceases to exist unless we find the means and
take measures to destroy it. The extinction
of the astral body is brought about by the
mind's absolute dissociation from the bondage
and influence of matter and material ideas,
221
SREE KRISHNA.
and absorption into the Divine Essence, Mukti.
The earth and the visible sky form the physi-
cal body of the Universe and the upper six
spheres form its astral body which includes still
subtler bodies. This means that both the uni-
versal and the human bodies are constructed on
the same principle. Both are formed of seven
bodies, encased like a sheath within a sheath.
These are called the Food-made (physical)
body, the Vital body, the Mental (or Astral)
body, the Psychic body, the Wisdom (or Cau-
sal) body, the Blissful body and the Soul body.
222
SECTION XVII.
KARMA.
THE Universe is one whole manifestation of
Cause and Effect. All Nature is manifested
and materialized forces of Action and Re-
action. The Doctrine of Karma is based upon
the natural law by which action produces re-
action, the law of cause and effect. It holds
that every action is the cause of every reaction
as well as the effect of the action which is its
producing cause. The doctrine of Reincar-
nation specifies the different physical forms
in which groups of accumulated causes of re-
action manifest themselves in Nature. The
laws of Karma are the regulated blendings of
the subtle forces of the finer principles of Na-
ture which, operating from within, shape
these outer physical forms.
Karma begins with the creation of the Uni-
verse, and Creation begins with the loss of
equilibrium of the three Cardinal Attributes
while dwelling in a quiescent state in Absolute
Love Krishna. This inequilibrium develops
223
SREE KRISHNA,
the germ of the Past Universe, which the At-
tributes hold within them, and manifests itself
as a New Universe a new Creation. The
word Karma is derived from the Sanscrit root
Kri, to act. Karma means action. Action
means the motion of the operating forces of
Nature. The Karma of the past Creations,
stored up as ideation within the even forces of
the Attributes, works itself out in the form
and phases of a new Creation. Every suc-
ceeding Creation therefore is the reactive re-
sult of all previous creations. This reaction of
the accumulated action-potencies of the past
creations produces the uniform dimensions
and the principal features of the cycles, so that
the history of every cycle, from the smallest
to the largest, repeats itself in its chief points
in naturally regulated succession.
As in the great universe, so in its epitome,
man. The microcosm is ruled by the same
laws as the macrocosm, the laws of cause and
effect, of action and reaction. Man is the
conscious embodiment of the blended forces
of his past actions, actions of previous con-
224
KARMA,
scious embodiments born of the forces of still
more previous embodiments.
Action proceeds from thought. Thought
is the source and spring of action. No action
is possible without its producing cause,
thought, which is a phase of the mind's voli-
tion. All our thoughts are impressed on the
mind, the moment they form themselves, in
condensed pictures. The more powerful a
thought, the deeper the impression on the
mind. Weak, undeveloped thoughts make
superficial impressions and are liable to wear
off. The impression of a powerful thought is
likewise rubbed off by the force of a strong
counter-thought. An angry thought, for in-
stance, prompts us to do a bad action, but be-
fore it is reduced to action, our reason some-
times intervenes, argues against it, convinces
us of its error which induces repentance. The
stronger the counter-thought of repentance,
the more quickly and effectively it rubs off the
impression. But if the thought is reduced to
action, its impression is deep and enduring,
and requires the aid of absolutely sincere,
burning repentance to destroy that impression.
225
SREE KRISHNA.
These thought-impressions on the mind are
called seeds of Karma. They are exactly like
seeds of trees in their potencies and operations.
As a seed of a tree, when planted in the soil,
germinates, grows, flowers and bears fruit,
so does a Karma-impression germinate, grow,
flower and- bear fruit. As the germ of a
seed, in process of development, produces the
events called sprouting, putting forth leaves
and branches, flowering and fruiting, so, a
man's mental thought-impressions of previous
lives, in almost the self-same way, sprout,
put forth leaves and branches, flower and fruit
in the shape of events, inside and outside of
him. The thought-impressions are reflected
upon the aura. "Aura" is a Sanscrit word,
its transliterated form being "Ara," from
"Ar" which means the spoke of a wheel.
"Ara" means full of spoke-like shoots of ra-
diance from any centre. This centre of our
aura is our mind. Aura, therefore, is the
radiance of the mind which permeates and en-
velopes our body in an oval shape and gener-
ally extends one cubit outside of our body.
The aura and reflections of these thought-
226
KARMA.
t
impressions on the aura are visible only to the
spiritual and psychical sight. The illuminated
saints and yogis who have developed this
sight, not only see this aura, but also the re-
flections of the thought-impressions which they
can read and interpret as we read and interpret
words. These reflections are called the char-
acters of the mind the Hidden Pictures
(Chitra-Gupta) of Human Conduct which
reveal the past, present and future history of
a human soul to those who can decipher them.
From the aura these characters are reflected
again upon the Ether which receives the im-
pression and keeps the record of each external
and internal event in Nature. The Ether is
the storehouse of the records of all human
and natural happenings and vibrations. And
it is from this storehouse of all mental records
that true clairvoyance draws its inspired mes-
sages and revelations. A fully developed
Yogi can learn the details of an event which
occurred ten thousand years ago or of any
time, and can tell of any present or future oc-
currence in any part of the world by concen-
trating upon the Ether, the all-knowing Ether.
227
SREE KRISHNA.
Thus the records of the causes of human
actions are kept in triplicate, so that there
is no escape from the potencies of their merits
and demerits, unless the main records (those
on the mind) are melted away by the fire of
absolute, all-absorbing spiritual consciousness.
Actions (Karma) are of two kinds, white
and black. White Karma springs from the
Sattwic state of mind, and Black Karma from
its Tamasic state. The color of Sattwa
(Illumination) is white, the color of Tama
(Darkness) is black, hence Karma is white or
black. Raja is the attribute of Activity, the
working principle, the motive power of action.
Without the aid of Raja no action is possible.
When Raja works with dominant Sattwa
the result is white Karma, when it works with
dominant Tama, the result is black Karma.
The white and black actions are commonly
called good and bad. What is a good action?
It is an action whose ultimate reaction pro-
duces harmony and happiness and illumines
the mind. What is a bad action? It is an
action which, however enjoyable or otherwise
while it lasts, produces a reaction of inhar-
228
KARMA.
mony, pain and misery, causing darkness of
the mind.
In respect to the law according to which
they come to be worked out in their turn, the
Karma-seeds, white and black, are of three
classes Sanchit, Prarabdha and Kriyaman or
Agami. Sanchit means stored-up. Prarab-
dha means Karma the reaction of which has
begun or that which is working now. Kri-
yaman means Karma-seeds originating out of
the Prarabdha Karma now being worked out,
but which will form the seeds of future
(Agami) actions. Sanchit Karma includes the
seeds of all the actions of past existences
stored up as impressions on the mind. Out of
this storehouse of Karma-seeds that, white
or black, which is the most powerful asserts
itself to be worked out first, drawing to itself,
by the law of affinity, Karma-seeds of minor
power, but of a nature similar to its own. This
most powerful Karma-seed, lumped up with
small Karma-seeds of similar character, forms
the Prarabdha Karma, Karma which is in the
process of being worked out. And in its pro-
cess of working the fresh thought-impressions
229
SREE KRISHNA.
which the mind is registering are called Kri-
yaman (Karma being born), also called Agami
(future) Karma, Karma seeds which, after
being deposited in the storehouse, will come to
be worked out in their turn in future, either as
main or minor Prarabdha, according to their
potency.
This is the law of working of human Karma,
the inexorable law which shapes our life and
destiny, which fills existence with joy or sor-
row. Karma is unending unless we learn the
mysterious law which works it and grasp the
still more mysterious Law behind that Karmic
law and by its practice destroy its roots and
prevent its present and future actions within
us. I will speak of this Law and of its ways
of practice later on.
We often see a man, who has lived a good,
pure and harmonious life, suddenly, through
circumstances or bad associations, changed in-
to a bad man. He becomes worse in habits
and conduct and dies in that degraded mental
state. Similarly we find some one very bad
up to a certain period of life; he suddenly
turns good and, before death, develops into an
230
KARMA.
angelic character. This law of Karma is be-
hind this change of character. Good Pra-
rabdha influences one into good life and
actions while it is working. But if some
black Karma-seed is the most powerful of all
Karma-seeds in the mind's storehouse, after
the good Prarabdha has been worked out, it
asserts itself to be worked out next and,
lumped up with the minor seeds, forms his
Prarabdha which changes the whole complex-
ion of his character and conduct. The case of
a bad man becoming good is subject to the
same law; a white Prarabdha, owing to its
predominant power, succeeds a bad one. The
liability of alternate succession of bad and
good Karma producing the actions of human
beings is expressed in the metaphoric saying
that the action of Karma in man is like a re-
volving wheel.
As a seed of a tree takes time to bear fruit,
grow old and die, so a Karma-seed takes time
to develop and die. As the periodical putting
forth of leaves, flowers and fruits are the
events in the life of a tree, so the experiences
of a man's life represent the development of
231
SREE KRISHNA.
his Prarabdha Karma-seed. The time a Kar-
ma-seed takes to work itself out is measured by
the duration of the sustaining power of its
potentialities. One Prarabdha Karma may
embrace two or three or more births if it is
very powerful, or may end in the middle of one
birth, if it be not so powerful. An extra-
ordinarily powerful Karma may extend for a
long, long time, covering many, many births,
suicide for instance. The thought which leads
to suicide makes the deepest impression on the
mind, far deeper, in fact, than even the thought
which commits murder. Why? Because we
love our own life more than anybody else's or
than anything else on earth. It, therefore, re-
quires an extraordinarily powerful thought
to overpower that innate, intense love of our
life and incite us to destroy it. The thought
back of this self-murder, therefore, makes the
deepest impression on our mind and thus be-
comes the most powerful Karma-seed of all
Karma-seeds. This being so, it asserts itself
to form the Prarabdha, every time it is worked
out, to the exclusion of all other Karma-seeds,
for a long series of births, in every one of
KARMA.
which that soul commits suicide, sometimes,
as it is often found, without any apparent rea-
son. It is divine mercy alone that saves a
suicide from committing suicide in even-
birth ever afterwards. Hence suicide is the
greatest sin, greater than even murder.
To the average Western mind this Karma
philosophy strikes as intolerably pessimistic
on account of the inexorableness of its laws.
There is, however, no help for it. These laws
rule us all whether we believe in it or not.
They are no man-created laws, they are laws
which operate throughout Nature, as much
within a white man as within a brown, yellow
or black man, of all stations of life, of all grades
of consciousness. Yet it need not strike any-
body, who has found the easy and rosy path
out of the woods of Karma, as pessimistic at
all. But he or she must ever keep to that path
and never stray out of it from sheer wilful-
ness, or else there certainly is no escape out
of the labyrinth of Karma.
233
SECTION XVIII.
REINCARNATION.
REINCARNATION, as I have said, is the physi-
cal form in which groups of accumulated
causes (Karma) of reaction manifest them-
selves in Nature. Reincarnation means re-
birth. Rebirth means, to be born again in flesh
after death. In order, therefore, to know
what is rebirth, we must know what is death.
To know what is death, we must know what
is life.
Let us see what life really is. Human life
is conscious mentality encased in flesh. To
be briefer, human life may be summed up in
one word consciousness. Life of lower ani-
mals is negative consciousness, while human
life is positive consciousness.
Human consciousness is subject to three
states. The Waking state, the Dream state and
the Dreamless Sleep state. In the waking state
all our inner and outer senses work. The
inner senses are: The Intellect, the Ego and
the Mind. The outer senses are the five cog-
234
REINCARNATION.
nizing and the five working senses. These
senses are fully active during our waking
state. So long as the mind thinks, the intel-
lect decides, the Ego is self-conscious, the eye
sees, the ear hears, etc., they are acting. And
activity (Raja) brings about the reaction of
weariness (Tarrt'a). In other words, the
senses become tired out, owing to incessant
work and need rest. It is the state of weari-
ness of the senses that makes us feel exhausted
and seek rest. But the senses cannot have
full rest as long as we are in a waking state,
for their activity never ceases while we are
awake. Here Nature's law steps in and draws
a veil between the senses and their objects,
the veil of Tama, born out of the excessive
work of Raja. We fall asleep.
But in the first stage of sleep our senses
still sustain their activity, though in a lesser
degree than in the waking state, owing to their
still cognizing reflections of the objects and
scenes impressed on our mind while we are
awake. This is called the dream state of con-
sciousness. Dreams are of three kinds. The
ordinary dream is made up of the blended re-
235
SREE KRISHNA.
flections of impressions of scenes and thoughts
in natural or fantastic shapes. The second
kind of dream is a clear unmixed reflection of
the mind's impressions of some of our ex-
periences in a previous birth. The third kind
of dream is a reflection cast upon our pure
consciousness of coming events from their
Karmic impressions on the Ether or on our
own aura. The ordinary dreams belong to
the dream state. The other two classes of
dreams are experiences during the dreamless
state of sleep, generally in the morning just
before awaking.
The dreams in the first stage of our sleep
keep our senses still employed and the mind
active on that account, for the activity of the
mind is generated by the operations of the
senses with their objects. Hence neither the
tired mind nor the tired senses derive the com-
plete rest they need, until gradually the veil of
Tama grows dense and shuts out even the
mental reflections of objects from their view.
This stops the operations of the senses which
then are absorbed by the mind whose off-
springs and agents they are, for the senses can-
236
REINCARNATION.
not exist when they are deprived of their func-
tion of cognition. The same thing occurs with
the mind, for its activity, caused and sustained
by the activity of the senses, is the only reason
for its separate existence. With the loss of its
function, therefore, the mind loses this sepa-
rate existence and is absorbed by the Ego. The
Ego is in the same way absorbed by Conscious-
ness, for the Ego is dependent on the Mind
which sustains its existence of self-conscious-
ness. And then Absolute Consciousness,
with the passive germs of the Ego, Mind and
Senses merged in it, is absorbed in its turn by
the Soul and dwells in its realm until the senses
have rested sufficiently.
In the depth of this dreamless sleep state
of our consciousness, Tama gives place to the
reaction of Sattwa which is very pure during
this state. This dreamless sleep may be called
a negative trance state. When we awake,
through development of the Raja Attribute,
we feel not only thoroughly refreshed but a!so
in a state of mental harmony, a happy mood of
mind. We also feel that we were, during
that dead sleep, in a state of utter oblivion of
237
SREE KRISHNA.
everything. We feel we forgot then even our
own existence, feel that we were not conscious
even of our own self, that we were in an ab-
solutely happy state, happy with happiness it-
self. We know of this condition, when we
awake from it, by inference from the happy
state of our mental mood, induced by the ab-
stract impression of it upon our consciousness
which was present then in its pure state. The
cause of the refreshment and new strength of
our body and senses is this dip in the Essence
of the Soul, the source of all energy. The
physicians try to put their patients into this
deep sleep in serious cases of illness, knowing
by experience that deep sleep is a quicker and
more powerful restorer of health than any
medicine, but they do not know where lies the
balm of sound sleep.
The activity of Raja brings about the awak-
ening from this state by causing the unfold-
ment of the infolded Ego, mind and senses
which resume their operations with external
and internal objects as before. The difference
between death and sleep lies here. After sleep
we resume the functions of our senses, but
238
REINCARNATION.
death is caused by the confusion of our mind,
on account of the senses not being able to re-
sume their functions, owing to the disorder of
the physical counterparts of the sense-organs
through disease. Disease belongs to the physi-
cal body, and the senses with the mind and Ego
belong to the astral body which we are. The
pains we feel are caused by our identifying
ourselves with our physical encasement. If
we keep the fact constantly alive in our mind
that our physical body is the earthly home of
our soul, which is the centre of our astral
self, we will not only not feel physical pain
but prevent or do away with such pain even
in the physical body. To know ourselves as
nothing but our physical body is the densest,
narrowest and the most mischievous igno-
rance. We often find proofs of this separate-
ness of the physical and mental bodies from
facts which present themselves in our daily
life; we fail to cognize the experiences of our
body or even of our senses when our mind
is absent from them and absorbed in some
other direction. It is the mind that feels pain
or pleasure, not the body, neither the senses.
239
SREE KRISHNA.
The physician, through the action of drugs,
causes the attribute of Tama to assert itself
and cover the mind's perception with its dark
veil, so that the patient may not feel the pain
of a serious operation on the body, while we
feel no pleasure in eating or drinking if our
mind is away from them.
The Yogi who has, by practice, developed
unbroken consciousness of the separateness of
the mental and physical body not only enjoys,
when the consciousness is absolute, immunity
from physical diseases and mishaps, but also
does not feel the throes of death when he leaves
his worn-out or diseased physical tenement.
But the generality of mortals who cannot
think of themselves as anything else but their
physical bodies, owing to ignorance, suffer
from all physical diseases. When these physi-
cal diseases put the physical counterparts of
sense-organs into disorder, it confuses the
mind when it finds that its channels of outward
communication, the senses, can no longer work
through them. In that confusion it loses its
balance and is strongly swayed by the desire to
again see and hear and feel and taste, etc.
340
REINCARNATFON.
But finding it impossible to do so in the pres-
ent body any more, it tries to find some vehicle
through which it can resume its functions. The
pain of the worst stage of the physical disease
distracts it more and more so that it thinks it
would be more comfortable in any other body
than its present one. In confusion, this central
force of the astral body enters with that body
into the volume of air which fills the physical
body, thinking it will gain relief from the un-
bearable pain. And no sooner the astral
body, which is very subtle and finer than the
air, enters into it, than it passes out, thus air-
encased, through the mouth, causing the death
of the physical body. This is the common
process of death. Some astral bodies enter the
air-body unconsciously if the mind has been
benumbed by pain or covered by the influence
of excessive Tama. But this is certain of
every ordinary soul that it goes out of the
body encased iri air.
The thought predominant in this supreme
moment of human life decides the destination
of the human soul encased in the astral body
when it leaves its physical home. If we think
241
SREE KRISHNA.
of nothing but of Krishna at this moment we
go to Krishna and live in His Abode, Goloka,
the Abode of Absolute Love. If we think of
Christ we go to Christ in His Father's King-
dom of Heaven. If we are filled with the con-
ception of Nirvana extinction of all individu-
ality we go to Nirvana. If we desire for
higher life above the earth we go to the higher
spheres. But if our earthly attachments, hav-
ing their influence on our thoughts at that
moment, fill us with regret for being taken
away from them or make us desire for earthly
life, we return to earth-life again, but not
necessarily to a joyful or comfortable life. A
life of worldly joy and comfort is due to good
Karma and self-denial in some previous ex-
istence. A life of sorrow and hardship is due
to bad Karma.
The earth-bound soul, on leaving the physi-
cal body, feels overcome by the shock of its
final trouble with and severance from that
physical body and remains in an inert state
for a time. When it recovers from that shock,
it finds that it has been transferred to a worse
state. Although the air-body in which it is
242
REINCARNATION.
encased is not diseased, it has, however, no
openings for its senses to perform their re-
spective functions. It finds it cannot see or
hear or smell or touch or taste anything and
yet the desires for these objects of the senses
are as strong as when it was in the physical
body. This makes it weep for the loss of its
dear physical body and it hovers about in space
sad and restless. It has no stomach, yet is
filled with mental hunger and thirst which
grow intense because it has no means of
satisfying them. Indeed, finding this astral
life to be of greater torment, the unhappy
earth-bound soul longs to have a flesh cover-
ing again, to be reborn, and flies hither and
thither blindly, because of the want of physical
organs, and some day gains this object. It
enters, through the vigor (Sanscrit 'virga/
'virjya,' force, power) of a man into a woman's
womb. This causes conception. No concep-
tion can take place without a disembodied
spirit entering the womb. Vigor mixed with
the mother's blood supplies the physical body
which is mere dead matter without the vivify-
ing astral soul. It is only when an astral soul
243
SREE KRISHNA.
enters it that the womb closes and conception
takes place. The incoming soul then feels it-
self confined within its scope and cannot go
out of it by its own effort or will.
The selection of the vigor and the womb
for the astral soul is made principally accord-
ing to the subtle law of individual Karma and,
secondarily, according to the law of affinity.
The mental characteristics of the parents must
be similar to those of the soul to draw it to
them. As for its physical body, it may favor
in appearance its mother or its father more
or less according as their individuality and
image are stamped on the vigor and the blood
through the state of extreme mental concentra-
tion induced at the time. If the incoming soul
possesses far stronger individuality than those
of the father and the mother, it asserts this
upon its body and the child looks like neither
the father nor the mother. He looks like him-
self a form and appearance born of the im-
agination of its own strong individuality.
This direct rebirth from hovering in the
astral body in the astral plane for some time is
not true in the case of every disembodied soul.
244
REINCARNATION.
There are souls which, after death, may go at
once to Heaven ('Swarga,' Celestial regions)
or to Purgatory, the nether regions. Accord-
ing to the Hindoo Scriptures, Heaven (Swar-
ga) is not the Abode of God, but the abode of
the gods, the Swar-sphere where the gods, the
governors of the Elements and Attributes of
Nature, dwell. It is the Prarabdha Karma of
the soul that determines its translation after
death to Heaven or Purgatory. The joys of
Heaven are reserved as a reward for good
Karma. And yet these heavenly joys are but
finest forms of material happiness, enjoyed by
merit of good actions performed in earth-life
for the sake of just such recompense. These
heaven-dwellers mentally enjoy all these ex-
quisite pleasures of the senses at their will, as
well as the company of celestial beings, as
long as the term of their merit lasts. At the
expiration of the term they come down to
earth to be reborn again. These heavenly
blessings are, therefore, but transitory.
Intensely wicked actions, in the same man-
ner, are punished by a term of suffering tor-
tures in Purgatory, at the expiration of which
245
SREE KRISHNA.
the purged souls may go straight to heaven,
if good Prarabdha Karma succeeds their ex-
piatory sufferings, or be reborn again on
earth. The tendency of the pleasure-seeking,
materialistic, modern mind is to disbelieve the
existence of any such place of torture as Pur-
gatory. They think that Heaven and Purgatory
exist only on earth within man's mind. This
is true and yet it is not. If anybody develops
high spirituality he or she can taste higher,
finer and more lasting joys than even celestial
pleasures. For such there is neither Heaven
nor Purgatory, for intense spirituality burns
down all seeds of Karma. As to enduring
the tortures of Purgatory here on earth
through repentance, that is true too. But if
the spirit of repentance is not absolute, it fails
to fully purge away the sin, so that such sinful
souls have to go to the nether regions for
complete cleansing. The Hindoo Books do not
believe in such a thing as Eternal Hell or
Punishment, because it is absurd, unjust and
unscientific according to the laws of Nature.
The governor of "Naraka" (Purgatory) is
one of the gods, the presiding deity of Justice
246
REINCARNATION.
(Dharmaraj) and the regions of his rule are
situated within the bowels of the earth. Hu-
man houses of correction (prisons) tend more
to corrupt than to correct, because those in
charge of them are not imbued with a perfect
spirit of sympathy, justice and mercy. In the
Divine houses of correction (Purgatory) per-
fect justice blends with mercy and sympathy,
and the governor thereof is the embodiment
of these three attributes. He has to deal with
his prisoners according to their own records
of their misdeeds, reflected on the aura, a true
copy of which is kept in the books of Ether,
from which his Recording Angel transcribes
items credited to each individual soul.
For the pious, spiritually developed soul,
however, there is no Purgatory, as I have said.
It lives and breathes in a plane which is out-
side of the three lower planes of selfish actions
and their reactions, outside of the jurisdiction
even of the gods. To his ensouled mind the
word purgatory or heaven has no meaning
whatever. He loves spirituality for its own
dear sake and feels itself safe from all evil
in the embrace of its protecting arms.
247
SREE KRISHNA.
Into the vigor or the blood of such a spiritual
soul, no wicked astral spirit can enter. Its
pure aura repels such spirits and admits only
kindred spirits seeking rebirth, drawn to it by
Karma and affinity.
Much suffering is the lot of the ordinary
soul while growing in the womb, on account of
its cramped consciousness and the narrow
space in which it is confined. After the sixth
month, it has a wonderful experience. The
veil shrouding its past existence is suddenly
lifted and the memories of all of its past births
rush across its mind. It even witnesses the
scenes of thousands of its previous existences
and realizes the reason of the pain and sorrow
suffered during all these existences the rea-
son of its having been attached to material
objects and having disregarded the develop-
ment of its spiritual self, its having been un-
mindful of its duty to its Maker and its fellow
man. This realization crushes its mind with
contrition and it weeps and prays to God to
forgive it and promises to live a life of devo-
tion to Him in the future. This goes on for
three months together until it is born, when,
248
SREE KRISHNA.
at the touch of the earthly atmosphere all
those memories vanish and it is once more
drowned in oblivion. It is more from the pain
of this shock that it cries out at the time of
birth.
249
SECTION XIX.
HOW TO DESTROY KARMA.
Now comes to be considered the question of
questions How to do away with and avoid
bad Karma. If Karma is the cause of all our
sufferings in life, how to remove that cause.
We have before this had births and the actions
in those innumerable births have produced
countless Karma-seeds. All these seeds are
stored up in the repository of the mind. How
is it possible, it may be asked, to destroy them
all, and prevent fresh accumulation of new
Karma-seeds in the present birth ?
To those who ask this question seriously,
that is, with a serious intention of acting upon
any suggestion that may seem feasible to them,
the answer is pregnant with all the essentials
of a true solution. To such the answer is
simple and the mode of solution simpler. To
the really serious soul, hungering for freedom
from the bondage of Karma, even the practice
of the principle of the advice may strike as
still more simple. But the practice involves the
HOW TO DESTROY KARMA.
full realization of the source of Karma, the
perfect understanding of its laws, their opera-
tions and their relations to his own individual
self.
Here I will try to put the philosophy of
this solution as briefly as possible. If our ac-
tions of this life are the products of actions
in previous lives, the actions of those previous
lives are the effects of actions in still more
previous lives and so on. Thus trying to trace
the causes of all our actions in all our past
lives, we are bound to arrive at the time of the
Creation of the universe, when it sprang from
the Will of Krishna. We, as parts of the uni-
verse, sprang from that Will too. Krishna's
Will before Creation was : "I am One and I
wish to be the Many," and His Creation is the
manifestation of His Will's motion towards
manifoldness and Karma is the law of the
rhythmic steps of that motion. The Will of
Krishna, therefore, is the cause of all Karma
of the entire Creation as well as of ours, be-
cause we are but parts of that Creation. This
makes it clear that, since Krishna is the cause
of all Karma of the Universe, He is the Actor
251
SREE KRISHNA.
of all actions. This being so, the cause of
our sufferings from bondage to Karma lies in
our mistaken conception that we ourselves are
the doer of our actions. This cannot be, be-
cause all our actions proceed from our past
Karma, the roots of which are embedded in
the Will of Krishna. It is Krishna that is the
whole Universe, as well as its laws and actions.
It is Krishna that suffers and enjoys in so
many shapes and forms which make up His
moving Will, called Nature. All our troubles
are born of our usurping His place, the place
of the Real Actor. Hence Karma clings, by
natural law, to whoever claims it. We claim
the doership of actions which manifest them-
selves through us, but the real Doer is the
spring of primeval action Krishna Himself.
This belief, that we ourselves are the doers
of our actions, subjects our Ego to their re-
actions. If by tracing the source of Karma to
Krishna, we dispel this illusion from our mind
and keep it ever out of it, so that it may not
disturb our conviction of the fact that Krishna
is the only Doer, all our past and present
Karma, the stored-up and the working San-
252
HOW TO DESTROY KARMA.
chit and Prarabdha will leave us of them-
selves and go to Krishna to be absorbed by
Him, while, for the same reason, the Karma-
seeds springing from our present actions will
be rendered germless like roasted seeds which
never grow. But this belief needs constant
practice of this thought in order to be sus-
tained without interruption and involves think-
ing of Krishna, Absolute Love and Life, every
minute thoughts by which the thinker ab-
sorbs the essence of the purest spirituality
whose illumination ever guides him along the
paths of Truth and Wisdom and prompts him
to actions whose results bring harmony and
happiness to himself, as well as to all with
whom he comes in contact.
This exposition of the truth of our utter
irresponsibility of our actions will appear
strange and mischievous only to unthinking
minds. The fear that such a belief of ir-
responsibility may lead some people to bad
actions is entirely groundless. Such a thing
can never happen for, with such a belief firm
in our mind, we have to think of God always
in all our daily actions, and this constant think-
253
SREE KRISHNA.
ing induces concentration upon the Deity whose
spirit is sure to prevent and counteract all our
evil thoughts, not to speak of evil actions. A
man who will do evil actions, taking advantage
of this principle, will only deceive himself.
Such evil-doing can only show that he has no
belief in the principle at all, but thinks of it
only with a view to justify actions which he,
in his heart, believes to be his own, but at-
tributes to God to get rid of their responsi-
bilities, if possible. \ But if anyone believes
firmly that God is the Doer of all actions and '
yet, for want of proper culture of this belief,
he is betrayed into evil actions, be sure his
belief growing stronger will soon control his
actions and lead him along the paths of the
good and the pure. God-Consciousness de-
stroys all evils of the mind to their very roots.
Thus Karma and its effects, which for the
ignorant, unthinking, and reckless human soul
are ever interminable, can by exercise of wis-
dom and mental power and discipline be ab-
solutely done away with. Karma belongs to
Krishna and it is to Krishna that it and its
fruits should be unreservedly dedicated for
good. The moment this mystery of Karma is
254
HOW TO DESTROY KARMA.
solved and the soul that solves it acts upon its
lesson, than Krishna takes it into His arms,
and the soul and its Maker, now face to face,
laugh together at this riddle of life, and in that
laugh of ecstasy all sorrow and pain of the
past are forgotten by that saved soul.
255
SECTION XX.
THE ATOM'S RETURN JOURNEY.
IT is absolute Krishna-consciousness or God-
consciousness, if you will, if that God is Ab-
solute Love that carries the atom from its
man-stage of development to its Real Home,
Krishna, the Abode of Eternal Love and Bliss.
Like all roads leading to Rome, all religious
paths lead to that Home. The primeval, the
most natural and the most scientific religion,
called now the Hindoo religion, has construct-
ed five main roads for making the return
journey easy, and the travelers can choose any
of these roads, according to their inclinations
and the state of spiritual progress. One is the
Path of Light and Psychic Force, called the
path of the Sun, because the Sun is the presid-
ing deity of the path. The second is the Path
of Success whose presiding deity is Ganapati,
Bestower of Success. The third is the Path
of Destruction of Tama whose presiding deity
is Shiva, the Destroyer, one of the Hindoo
Trinity and the presiding deity of Tama, Shiva
256
THE ATOM'S RETURN JOURNEY.
who has subdued Tama and become its lord.
The fourth is the Path of Divine Energy whose
presiding deity is Durga, the Motherhood of
God and the Universe "Prakriti," Divine
Nature. The fifth is the Path of Spiritual De-
votion whose presiding deity is Vishnoo (Ani-
ruddha), the presiding deity of Sattwa, out of
whose navel the universe has sprung and who
is the dispenser of Moksha to the walkers
of all the other paths. In this path is in-
cluded another path, a path far superior to all
the five paths, the Path of Absolute Causeless
Love which leads direct to Krishna, whose pre-
siding Deity is Krishna, the Deity of all the
deities. These different path-walkers are
called by the names of their respective deities
of worship Saura, Ganapatya, Shaiva, Shakta
(worshippers of 'Shakti,' Energy) and Vaish-
navs, among whom are included Krishna-
worshippers.
The Sun is the medium of the physical
manifestation of the Divine Light, the Light
of Absolute Intelligence, the Co-existent Attri-
bute of Absolute Love. It is called the Par-
ent of the gross universe, the Outer Eye of the
257
SREE KRISHNA.
Deity, the passage of the First Sense of the
Divine Mind which produced Forms. The de-
votee of the Sun worships it as such, as
the medium of the Absolute Deity, Krishna.
Some of them concentrate their eyes upon the
Sun, immersed in water up to the neck from
sunrise to sunset, others pray to it morning,
noon and evening and contemplate its power.
The sun is not blazing hot as some modern
people think. It is peopled by spiritual souls
who, by the merit of soul-development, go from
earth after death to dwell there for further
development. These spiritual souls are spir-
itually governed by one who is most developed
among them. He is called the Sun-God, the
representative of the sun. Sun-worship
leads finally to Krishna-worship in some fully
developed reincarnation.
Ganapati, first-born of Shiva (Shiva means
Weal, Destroyer of 111 or Evil), is the pre-
siding deity and bestower of Success mate-
rial, moral and spiritual which is the chief
factor of human weal. Satisfied material suc-
cess, virtuously earned, inspires the desire for
moral development in well-ordered minds, and
258
THE ATOM'S RETURN JOURNEY.
moral development, in turn, leads to spiritual
unfoldment. By concentration on this Central
Idea of Success itself, the mind of the devotee
or Ganapati, absorbs its essence, the force of
which guides his efforts to prosperity. Earth-
ly prosperity, enjoyed with discrimination,
impresses us with its hollowness, its failure
to satisfy the inner craving of the mind and
points to the path of solid, all-satisfying, per-
manent happiness.
Shiva is the Presiding Deity of the Weal of
Creation, hence his name Shiva. He is the
Conqueror and Destroyer of Darkness
(Tama). He helps his devotees to dispel the
darkness of ignorance generated in their mind
by its Tama Attribute, and thus uncover its
attribute of Sattwa by the illumination of
which their souls reach the state of Moksha
Freedom from the Bondage of Matter and
finally merge in the Divine Essence whence it
originally sprang.
Durga is Divine Energy, the Motherhood
or Creation. She is the Sattwic force by
which Shiva subdued Tama. Hence she is
the consort of Shiva, the Helpmeet of Spirit-
SREE KRISHNA.
ual Weal. Without Durga, his Shakti
(Energy), Shiva is inert; with his Shakti, he
is alive and rules the universe. Shiva and
his Shakti are inseparable, as man and his
mental energy, which alone he is, is insepa-
rable. Man is moved by his mental energy,
so Shiva is moved by his spiritual energy.
Durga is the highest spiritual phase of Kalee,
Conqueress of Time and Door of Eternity.
She is the Spiritual Force of Nature (Pra-
kriti), she is the Mother of the Universe.
Her devotees called Shaktas (Shakti-wor-
shippers) meditate on her as the Great Mother
and pray to her for her grace, as a child talks
to its mother and looks up to her for help, pro-
tection and sustenance. When the most spir-
itual of her devotees develop the same natural
love for and unshaken faith in her as those of
an innocent child to its mother, they are
blessed with her last grace. They are helped
to Moksha or led into the path of Krishna,
this last the greatest of all her gifts. She, as
Yoga-Maya (energy of the highest spiritual
concentration), holds the key of the Gate of
Goloka, Krishna's Abode of Love-Bliss.
260
THE ATOM'S RETURN JOURNEY.
Vishnoo is the sum total of all the deities
which are the manifestations of his powers
and attributes. He is the Parent of both the
Motherhood and Fatherhood of the Universe
the Spring of Creation itself. He is the
Presiding Deity of Sattwa out of which are
born Raja and Tama. He is the Preserver,
the Sustaining Power of the Universe. He is
the Way to Moksha, His Essence is the Abode
of all Salvation. He is the Outer Form of
Krishna, the Form through w r hich Krishna
manifests His Will and becomes the Many
from the One. His Abode, called Vaikuntha,
the Centre of his All-Pervading Essence, is
over this universe, over Brahma-Loka Brah-
ma's Abode. He is the last but one Goal of all
spiritual aspirations. He is the Gate of
Krishna, the Last Goal.
The upward evolution of the atom from the
man-stage has to pass through many higher
spiritual stages in higher and higher spheres.
Interested spiritual culture, by which I mean
spiritual culture with a view to enjoy the fin-
est essence of sensuous happiness in spheres
higher than the earth, never lifts a human
261
SREE KRISHNA.
soul beyond the Bhuba and the Swar, the
abode of the gods. The Bhuba sphere is just
over the earth. It is the astral sphere. It
is peopled by semi-celestial spirits and beings
whose bodies are made mostly of ether, air and
fire and the finest essence of water and earth ;
hence they are invisible to our gross physical
eye. They are so light that the air to them
is like firm land to us ; they walk over it as we
walk over earth. There are houses and roads
in this sphere as on earth, as also in the Swar
sphere. Many psychical persons have now
and then a glimpse of the Bhuba sphere and
the dwellers therein. One of my students in
New York, the truth of whose visions is
known to many, has often seen these airy
houses, roads and beings. The Swar is com-
posed of finer material than the Bhuba, and its
atmosphere is more sacred. Selfish spiritual
culture is rewarded by a term of residence in
the Swar. When the term is over the soul
has to come down to earth again to be reborn
as man.
The sonl which loves and cultivates unsel-
262
THE ATOM'S RETURN JOURNEY.
fish spirituality, spirituality for spirituality's
sake, succeeds when it has no desire or sym-
pathy any more for anything earthly, in skip-
ping over the Bhuba and Swar, after death,
and enters and becomes a dweller in the Mahar
sphere. Such a soul seldom comes back to
earth, but through higher development attains
to the Brahma Loka and there waits, to be ab-
sorbed or immersed in Vishnoo's Essence, till
the time of the Universal (Natural) Dissolu-
tion through which it reaches its goal.
The worshippers of Vishnoo pray for one of
the five states of Moksha (Salvation), accord-
ing to the preference of their inclinations.
These five states of Salvation are Salokya,
Samipya, Sarupya, Sajujya and Sarshti.
Salokya is, to dwell in the plane of Vishnoo.
Samipya is, to live near Vishnoo as a servant.
Sarupya is, to live with Vishnoo as his com-
panion and having Vishnoo's form and appear-
ance. Sajujya is, to remain immersed in
Vishnoo's Essence. Sarshti is, to possess even
the powers of Vishnoo. Those who attain to
the first three states of Salvation serve as mes-
sengers of Vishnoo, and at times act as me-
263
SREE KRISHNA.
diums of communication between Vishnoo and
the dwellers of the Universe, while some of
those who attain to the last two states come
down to earth only from time to time as Ava-
tars, partial Incarnations of Vishnoo (God).
These have developed complete God-conscious-
ness and after being immersed in the Essence
of Vishnoo for eons together, they have
been thoroughly Vishnooized. True, they were
human beings before, but now they are
Parts of God Himself. They have no more
recollection of their former existences. There-
fore, to call them any other than Vish-
noo is blasphemy. When the affairs of the
earth are in chaos and humanity in general
needs spiritual uplifting, some of these im-
mersed souls are detached, and they come
down to our sphere, take birth and walk
among us, helping us, by examples and
teachings, to right actions which lead to Sal-
vation.
264
SECTION XXI.
YOGA.
THERE are five processes of mental discipline
by the aid of which the human soul can reach
its goal quicker. These are called the five
paths of Yoga, viz., Hatha, Karma, Raja,
Gnana and Bhakti. Yoga means Union. The
word Yoga is the original of its corrupted
English form "Yoke." Yoga, therefore, means
yoking the Mind to the Spirit of God by con-
centration. Hatha Yoga consists in cleaning
and disciplining the outer and inner physical
body by the practice of certain postures of
sitting, processes of moving the muscles and
fixing the eye upon some external object or
the tip of the nose. These, in time, induce
mental poise. Karma Yoga is performing
good actions, and practising spiritual form-
ulas which contribute to the purification of the
mind and, finally lead to the unfoldment of the
soul. Raja Yoga is stopping the functions of
the mind's volitions. By volitions of the mind
are meant thought-currents. By the practice
265
SREE KRISHNA.
of Raja Yoga, the outflow of these thought-
currents can be entirely stopped and turned
inwards in one concentrated stream into the
soul. The main process of shutting in the
mind-currents is by controlling the breath.
The action of our breathing upon our mind is
like that of the pendulum of a clock upon the
movements of its hands. As, for instance,
the quicker the pendulum swings the faster
the movement of the hands, so, the quicker
our breathing, the more rapid the action of
our thought-currents. By controlling the
breath by certain exercises, prescribed by Raja
Yoga, one can make his breathing slow and
thereby diminish the speed of the thought-
currents. During these breathing exercises,
the mind is concentrated upon God or the
Divine Idea, or some mystic words expressive
of the Deity. This lessens the activity of the
mind which then gradually experiences a calm-
ness unfelt before, a calmness which in itself
is a happiness which no form of enjoyment of
material pleasure can afford. Calmness of
mind develops into harmony, the result of the
expression of the Sattwa attribute.
266
YOGA.
There are five kinds of mental states :
Murha, Khipta, Bikhipta, Ekagra, and Samad-
hi. The Murha, ruled by predominant Tama,
is generally attracted to evil objects owing to
lack of discrimination. Khipta flits from one
object to another in search of pleasure. It is
ruled by predominant Raja, so is ever
active and never satisfied. The Bikhipta
mental state, ruled by the equal combination of
the three attributes, is generally like Khipta,
but at times fixes its attention inwards though
for a short time only. When the Bikhipta
is helped by the practice of concentration into
the Ekagra (one-pointed) state, then it is that
harmony is brought about. When, by con-
stant practice, the one-pointed mind becomes
unwaveringly fixed on the Deity or the Idea
of the Deity gained through the increasing
illumination of the Sattwa, it enters into the
Samadhi (Trance) state, the state of Absolute
absorption into the Deity.
The practice of the Raja Yoga has been for-
bidden in the Shastras in the Kali Yuga (Iron
Age) because, in this age, excepting in rare
cases, the human body is too weak and delicate
267
SREE KRISHNA.
to stand the hardships, psychic exertions and
physical privations of its practices, and be-
cause an adept Yogi-Gooroo, without whose
constant help in every detail of it no student
can attain the highest result, is very hard to
be found. Many who now practice it under
inexperienced Gooroos in India meet early
death or develop incurable diseases or even
turn insane. A moderate amount of simple
breathing exercises may not be so injurious or
fatal, but too much of it or the practice of
the advanced rules ought never to be at-
tempted, especially in the West, where a
proper Gooroo can never be found and where
most people's nerves are generally shaky.
Gnana Yoga is an entirely mental process
of Yoga, a process of discriminating between
the Unsubstantial and the Substantial in Na-
ture and concentrating upon the only Sub-
stantial Essence of things and gradually get-
ting absolutely absorbed by it. The keeping
up of this process of thought in an unbroken
stream requires living a life of simplicity, soli-
tude and renunciation. The life in which this
thought-current becomes unbroken is the last
268
YOGA.
life, last incarnation of that soul. It escapes
rebirth for good for which it has worked for
many incarnations. Its separate Ego is
merged in the universal Ego and finally is lost
in and becomes one with the One-without-a-
Second.
Gnana Yoga belongs to the school of the
Vedanta philosophy. Vedanta is "Veda" and
"Anta" which means "End," so that Vedanta
means End of the Veda the Aim or Goal of
the Veda; and the word Veda is the original
of the English word "Wisdom" (Swedish, Vis-
dom) from Sanscrit, "Vida," to know. Veda
means knowledge of the Reality, the Truth.
The Vedanta Aphorisms of Vedavyasa are but
Indices to the Principles of the Upanishads
the Wisdom part of the Veda. There are two
Schools of Vedanta, the Old and the New.
The Old possesses the true interpretation of
the Aphorisms, the New is deluded by their
false interpretations, is only about two thou-
sand years old and has a comparatively small
number of adherents. The Old school is
founded on Parinambad, the new is founded
on Vivartabad. The Old school holds that
269
SREE KRISHNA.
the universe is composed of the ever change-
ful manifestations of the Will (Energy) of the
One Changeless Deity (Parinambad), the
New calls the whole universe, in fact, all that
is visible and perceptible, Maya (Illusion), in
the sense that it never existed, does not exist
now and will never exist. All that exists is
Brahm, the Divine Essence, and we are That.
All else is illusion wrought in our mind
through ignorance, just as the mistaking a
piece of rope lying in some dark place for a
snake is due to the illusion of the darkness.
This theory with its plausible analogy is all
wrong. The universe is not all illusion though
it is the changeful force-materialization of the
Unchangeful One Substance. The force or
energy or light or reflection of a substance is
inseparable from it and is pervaded by it and
partakes of its spirit. This materialized force-
reflection of Brahm not only possesses its sub-
stance at bottom but must be called a part of it
as the light of a flame or reflection of a light
is undeniably its part. The analogy of the
snake and rope is, therefore, not true of God
and the Universe : The snake is merely the
270
YOGA.
conjuration of the darkness and not born of the
rope; but the universe is born of Brahm (the
rope). The theory that it is born of the illu-
sion of our ignorance, is absurd in that it in-
volves accepting that "ignorance" to be some-
thing self-existent, that it has an independent
existence, separate from the All-in-Ail, the
One-without-a-Second. If not, whence is this
"ignorance" which has such power of illusion
over our mind and senses? What is it?
Whence does it come? The Neo-Vedantist
answers, it is something inexplicable, His Maya
is inexplicable the argument of one in dark-
ness himself. This New Vedantic thought has
done and is doing more harm to the world than
any other religious theory. It is a worse delu-
sion than the delusion of Maya.
271
SECTION XXII.
BHAKTI YOGA.
BHAKTI Yoga is concentration on the Deity
through Devotion, the best and highest form of
Yoga, higher than all the other forms, as
Krishna Himself has said in the Bhagazrat
Gita. Devotion is the full fruition of spiritual
concentration. A true devotee is the highest
Yogi, for he is filled with humility, and sin-
cere, abject humility is the expression of the
sublimest spiritual nature; it is "the softened
shadow" as the Lord says, "that is cast by My
Love." Sincere humility springs from the
clear realization of the Presence of God in
everything, that the whole universe is formed
of the many forms of the One Form and its
Radiance. And with that never fading vision
before the mind's eye, the devotee forgets him-
self and stoops low at the feet of every one
and at everything he sees, for he sees in them
all his Deity.
Bhakti is of two kinds, Gnan-Bhakti and
Prem-Bhakti. Gnan-Bhakti is devotion aided
272
BHAKT1 YOGA.
by culture of wisdom, its Deity is some in-
carnation of Vishnoo and its goal is the Abode
of Vishnoo or the Essence of Vishnoo. Prem
Bhakti is devotion through Love Causeless,
Disinterested Love, love for love's sake, and its
Deity and Goal is Krishna Absolute Love.
The Path of Prem Bhakti lies within the Path
of Gnan Bhakti, but this Path within the Path
is hedged in high to shut out the view and
sound of the main path. The devotee of
Prem Bhakti dedicates all his knowledge, wis-
dom and actions to Krishna, the spring of all
Wisdom and Actions, and prays Krishna for
His love, the luxury of loving Him for His
dear sake.
The Prem Bhakta wants nothing from his
Lord, no boon, no blessing, material or celes-
tial, not even Salvation or Mukti, nothing, noth-
ing, save the blessing of being filled with love
for Him. He prays to his Lord : "O my Krish-
na ! It matters not what betides my body, my
life or my earthly circumstances, or in what
form of life I am reborn, even if it be that of a
worm, let my faith and love be fixed in Thee,
my Beloved. Whatever is there in all exist-
273
SREE KRISHNA.
ence compared with the luxury of loving
Thee? Thou art the sum-total of the realiz-
ation of all desires, of all happiness, Thou, the
Secret and Object of all our longings !"
Such, in truth, is Krishna's attraction and
more. He is the embodiment of the concen-
trated Beauty and Sweetness of all the Uni-
verses, His Eyes and Face the focus of the
Love that fills all that is. Hence this Prem
Bhakti Path, which means the Path of Love's
Devotion, is called the Path of Beauty and
Sweetness. Beauty and Sweetness are co-
existent, are one and the same thing. Beauty
is the expression of Sweetness, Sweetness is
the Essence of Beauty, and Love is the Parent
of both. Krishna's Form and Symmetry are
all Ideals' unapproachable, inconceivable, un-
imaginable Ideal. The newest rain-cloud*
color of His complexion is the color of the con-
densed Ether of Ether Love. His crown
and crest of peacock-feathers, His raiment of
molten gold the color of attraction His long
*The color of the newest rain-cloud of India, color
of the sapphire or marine blue, are vain attempts to
indicate Krishna's color and complexion.
274
BHAKTI YOGA.
garland and ornaments of wild flowers, His
jewel Kaustubha on His Breast and His bam-
boo flute were all proud contributions of Na-
ture to Her Supreme Lord. If we can imag-
ine the essence of the purest of pure love con-
densed into a substance as thick as flesh and
moulded into form, we can then have some
idea of the material of Krishna's Body,
whether in Glory or on earth. It is a Form
which, the moment you produce some likeness
of it in imagination thrills you with ecstasy,
for it is Ecstasy condensed.
Krishna is best worshipped with the heart.
Prayers and incantations and offerings, with-
out sincere feeling, do not reach Him. He
responds to the call of love alone. Call Him
from the innermost depth of your heart with
pure love love unmixed with motive with
sincere, artless love of a fond baby for its
mother, and He will appear to you and do
whatever you want Him to do. Krishna is
your veriest own, nearer to you than your
nearest relative, your only true friend in life
and Eternity. He is dearer, more precious
than your body or your life or your heart for
275
SREE KRISHNA.
He is your soul and soul is dearer and more
precious than body, life or heart. It is Him
you have been searching in all your searchings
in life, in lives you have lived before, and Him
will you search in lives that are to come after
this life. He is ever with you. He is within
you, but you are searching for Him outside of
you hence you miss Him, hence you run
after all the will-o'-the-wisps of life, thinking
these will give you the joy which your Only
Beloved and Lover alone can give. No
wonder you are deceived, depressed, unsatis-
fied the reward of chasing the shadow of the
substance that lies within you, the reward of
chasing the rainbow which is but the reflection
of the Sun of your soul's sky.
The devotee of Krishna meditates on Krish-
na regarding Him in one of the four human
relationships, whichever suits his natural in-
clination best, viz., Dasya or the relationship
of a Servant to his Master, Sakhya or the rela-
tionship of the Friend to his Friend, Batsalya
or the relationship of a Son to his Parents or
Parents to a Son, and Madhur or the relation-
ship of a Wife to her Husband or of a loving
276
BHAKTI YOGA,
Woman to her Lover. These four kinds of
devotional feelings are natural in man. By
"natural" I mean born from Nature of which
man is the best earthly product. But where-
from has Nature derived them? From her
parent-source, Krishna, of course. So these
feelings are present, in their absolute perfec-
tion, in Krishna, the source of all Life. Flow-
ing from Krishna into His Creation, they con-
stitute the cords of attachment between man
and man, the natural bonds of union between
soul and soul, the natural channels of com-
munication between man and his Maker.
They are the invisible wires of telegraphy be-
tween the Central Soul and its branch souls
between the Parent Soul and its offsprings.
If the instruments of the branch offices are
rusty and out of order they cannot transmit
their messages to the main office or receive
messages therefrom. The moment they are
cleaned, repaired and put into working order,
they are open to perfect communication once
more.
The devotee of Krishna cleans the rusty
and disordered instrument of his heart by cul-
277
SREE KRISHNA.
tivating one of these feelings of devotion for
Krishna. And the moment this feeling attains
its natural state, the moment it becomes ab-
solutely sincere, than he absorbs and is filled
with absolute Love from its Primeval Spring.
Krishna is absolutely divine and absolutely
human, for it is perfect humanity that is per-
fect divinity. Krishna is Love itself, the Love
that destroys all distance, Love that draws the
Lover and the Loved closest to each other. It
knows no ceremony, knows no formal respect.
It knows no motive. Love is its own cause,
motive and satisfaction. Divinity demands our
reverence and inspires us with awe. Despite
its strong attraction we can but adore it from
a distance, we cannot approach it too near.
But Love draws us to its bosom and holds us
close: Love is a Master and Love is a Slave.
It knows no barrier, sees no faults, nay, sees
virtues in faults. It responds to its own clear
call or vibrates to the voice of its own in-
spiration and blesses its own creation with
greater gifts of its own wealth.
Whichever of the four devotional feelings
towards Krishna the Bhakta (devotee) culti-
278
BHAKTI YOGA.
vates, it must reach the stage of unalloyed
sincerity to be rewarded by its blissful realiza-
tion. The loving Servant of Krishna must
love His service above all he loves and holds
dear. The devotee who wants to be the Friend
and Companion of Krishna must have his all-
forgetting Love of Krishna pervaded by an
uninterrupted sense of equality with Him. He
may serve Him as a slave, but it is the service
of a friend who is more than a slave to his
friend. The devotee who wants to love Krish-
na as a Father or Mother must have unwaver-
ing sincerity of such paternal love and affec-
tion. He or she must always consider him-
self or herself superior to Krishna whom they
must regard as a helpless child in their charge.
This true parental feeling is pervaded by the
unconscious spirit of spontaneous service and
friendship, for no friendship and service can
be compared with those of parents. The same
rules apply to the cultivation of the filial feel-
ing of devotion to Krishna. The fourth, the
feeling of a loving wife to her lord sums up
the essence of all the foregoing three feel-
ings. It is the highest and tenderest feeling
279
SREE KRISHNA.
of devotion. The true wife is the servant,
friend, mother and lover of her husband. She
is his slave, equal and superior by virtue
of her all-surrendering love. Every form of
pure love is self-surrender. The love that
knows no surrender or sacrifice is a mockery.
It mocks itself more than its object, for sacri-
fice is its chief test and best expression. Love
that only loves, if loved, is pure selfishness, it
is self-deception. But the love that loves for
its own sake and is the fullest satisfaction in
itself, the love that loves whoever or what-
ever its object loves is the Love Absolute that
Krishna is. The human soul that develops it,
binds Krishna thereby and holds Him its
prisoner for good. When that Love develops
the tenderness of a loving wife, it captivates
the Heart of hearts, and entrances the Soul of
souls, Krishna.
These Vaishnav forms of devotion reached
their highest degree of development and re-
ceived their greatest impetus on the appear-
ance of Sree Chaitanya, the Fullest Incarna-
tion of Krishna, who was born in Nuddea, on
the Ganges, Bengal, a little over four hundred
280
BHAKT1 YOGA.
years ago and flourished for nearly half a
century. He was Krishna Himself incarnated
in the form of His Greatest Devotee. Krishna
is the Mystery and Chaitanya is its Explana-
tion. Whenever Krishna comes to earth as
the Mystery of Love in the Junction Period
of Dwapar and Kali, He comes again in the
form of Chaitanya as the Explanation of that
Mystery, five thousand years after, to show
to mankind the Way to Himself for examples.
Chaitanya's love, devotion and spirit-
uality will ever remain unparalleled. He
preached Krishna, the Seed and Soul
of Love Absolute, and while preaching he
would burst forth into song in praise of Krish-
na. Thus singing he would be filled with
ecstasy and, in its fullness, he would be moved
into the most graceful dance the world has
ever seen, now shouting the Name of his Lord
and anon weeping for his Lord's grace, his
arms and whole body waving and qivering
with the heaving billows of his heart's love-
ocean, streams of which, like water from
many fountains, would flow from his eyes in
the shape of tears. And in those tears, stream-
281
SREE KRISHNA.
ing straight from his eyes to the ground, all
those, who catching his spirit caught also his
ecstatic motion, would be literally bathed. And
all India was "flooded," as the authoritative
records of his apostles tell us, with Chaitanya's
Divine Love, and millions of sinners that felt
it, were borne away by its tide.
Sree Chaitanya preached and proved the
potency of Krishna's Name that His Name
is the Lord Himself. If anybody says "Krish-
na, Krishna" mentally or loudly and con-
centrates his mind on it, he is bound to ab-
sorb its Love-Nectar, be drunk with its ecstasv,
see Krishna in Form and in everything, and
finally go to Goloka after passing out of this
life. Hari is the popular Name of Krishna.
It means, He Who steals our sins. Chaitanya
would shout "Hari, Hari!" or "Haribole!"
(say, Hari) and vibrations of that Name would
thrill through all hearers and change them
into pious devotees. Millions upon millions
were thus saved by him, millions of sinners
turned into saints. The world has never seen
such an Avatar, the Incarnation of All-Love
Krishna. He lived the most blameless life
282
BHAKT1 YOGA.
from childhood to his disappearance at the
age of forty-eight.
Like master, like servants. His Apostles
were of such spiritual purity and sublimity
that it would be hard to find one like them
even in India of the past. Any of them
was competent to save a whole world.
They have left thousands of Books on Krishna
and Chaitanya's Life and Teachings which
are of the utmost value to the students and
adherents of all religions of all climes, ages
and denominations. Love is the theme of
every book, and it is difficult to resist its es-
sence pouring into you as you read them.
If my life is spared by the Lord, and if my
Krishna wills it, I may present the Life-
Story and Teachings of Sree Chaitanya and
his apostles to the Western reader in a short
time. In that book a detailed exposition of
the Vaishnav religion will be given, an ex-
position which may interest Christians. The
present book is but the preliminary part of
the Chaitanya book I intend to write, for
Chaitanya cannot be understood without first
understanding Krishna and His Leela on
283
SREE KRISHNA.
earth. Chaitanya may be called the Indian
Christ, but a Christ the like of whom has
never appeared on earth. Chaitanya did not
even leave his Body behind when he left this
earth. He entered one morning into the
Temple of Juggernath and disappeared no-
body knows how or where.
2S4
SECTION XXIII.
VAISHNAV, CHRISTIAN OF CHRISTIANS.
THE Krishna-Worshipper is either a house-
holder or a hermit. He is either a devotee
who cultivates the love for Krishna amid
the duties and distractions of the world or
a devotee who leaves the temptations and tur-
moil of the world and sojourns in some sylvan
retreat in the holy forest of Brindaban, the
earthly abode of Krishna, or in the outskirts
of a town or village within a humble mon-
astry composed of a couple of huts with a
little flower garden fenced around. But the
most advanced Krishna hermit tarries nowhere
longer than a few days, but ever roams about
in the land sanctified by the touch of the Lotus
Feet of his Lord.
The formula of worship and religious rules
of life practised by both the hermit and House-
holder are practically the same. It consists
of mental and physical practices, more mental
than physical. The moment the householder
285 .
SREE KRISHNA.
awakes from his sleep in the morning he utters
the name of Krishna thus :
"O Krishna, Krishna, Krishna, Krishna,
Krishna, Krishna, Krishna !
Krishna, Krishna, Krishna, Krishna, Krish-
na, Krishna, Krishna!
Krishna, Krishna, Krishna, Krishna, Krishna,
Krishna, nourish me!
Krishna, Krishna, Krishna, Krishna, Krishna,
Krishna, protect me!
1 salute Thee, O Krishna, give Thou me Thy
Love !"
Then before he leaves his bed and puts his
foot upon the earth, he prays and salutes
Mother Earth thus:
"O thou ocean-girdled, mountain-breasted
goddess! I salute thee, O thou Consort of
Vishnoo! Forgive me, thy suckling. O
Mother, this my touching thee with my feet !"
Then, after answering the calls of Nature,
and after rubbing his hands and feet with
pure earth and washing them for many times,
he takes a full bath either in the Ganges or in
any river if it is near by. If not, he bathes
in a pond or at a well or at home with two or
286
CHRISTIAN OF CHRISTIANS.
three large jarfuls of water. While bathing,
he utters many a hymn and prayer to Krishna.
After the bath, he wears a piece of dry cotton
cloth which has been washed in clean water,
or a piece of pure silk cloth. He then goes
to a flower garden and culls some scented
white flowers for Krishna, whom he then sits
to worship in his sacred room. He mentally
repeats for one hundred and eight times the
Mantram he has received from his Gooroo,
counting it on his fingers. Then he takes a
few tiny leaves of the sacred Tulsi plant,
smears them in sandal-wood paste and, clos-
ing his eyes, mentally offers them with the
sacred white flowers to the Lotus Feet of his
Deity upon whom his mind is concentrated.
This concentration is helped from outside by
the spiritual vibrations of his sacred room and
the inspiring effect of the perfume of the in-
cense, the sandal-paste and the flowers. He
then chants long prayers and hymns in Sans-
crit to Krishna and His Love-Energy, Radha,
and to all the saints and great devotees of
Krishna of the past, begging, them for their
blessings of Krishna's Grace. He then sings
287
SREE KRISHNA.
songs of the Lord's Love, and tears of ecstasy
roll down his cheeks as he sings in the aban-
don of his devotion to the accompaniment of
a pair of small cymbals he keeps striking to
keep time.
The Mantram is composed of three, four or
five Sanscrit words beginning with what is
called the Seed Word with the Name of
Krishna and a dedicatory word attached to it.
The Seed Word is the Seed of Krishna-Love.
It awakens in the heart spiritual passion. This
Seed Word, if mentally repeated with intense
concentration, bursts open the shell of the
Sound-Form of Krishna His Name which
contains the Nectar of Absolute Love. The
word "Sanscrit" means pure, refined. The
Sanscrit language is the language of the pure,
undefiled voice of Nature. Hence it is called
the "language of the gods" who are repre-
sentatives of Nature's attributes. These at-
tributes are blendings of forces. Each force
has a name (sound), a form and a quality.
A man in intense pain expresses it in such
sounds as "Oh-h!" "Ah-h!" This "Oh-h"
or "Ah-h" may be called the sound (voice)
288
CHRISTIAN OF CHRISTIANS.
of pain, the contortions of the face the ex-
pression of its form and the feeling it pro-
duces is its quality. The quality is the sub-
stance of the force called pain and its sound
and sign (form) are its expressions. If there
were a miscroscope powerful enough to reveal
to our view the figures which sound-vibra-
tions create on ether, we would then find that
the above-mentioned sound-expressions of
pain create forms in ether much like the com-
bined letters "Oh-h" and "Ah-h." This
means that it is from the impressions of sound
vibrations on Ether that characters of all lan-
guages have been formed ; the pictures reflect-
ing themselves on the inventor's mind through
the medium of its subtle force called inspir-
ation.
The characters (Sanscrit, "charitra") of the
Sanscrit language, the parent language of all
languages, are born with creation. They are
entities in Nature, form-expressions of her
forces. They are eternal and indestructible
"akshara," as characters are called. The
vowels are masculine forces, the consonants
are feminine forces. The masculine charac-
289
SREE KRISHNA.
ters (vowels) are independent, the feminine
characters (consonants) are dependent. The
vowels can be pronounced by themselves, the
consonants can only be pronounced when
united with the vowels. The vowels are the
expressions of the Essence of the Deity
(Krishna), the consonants are the expressions
of the Will-Force of the Deity ("Prakriti,"
that which procreates), Nature. Nature is
born of Sound, the attribute of Ether, (Akas)
which was the first manifestation of creation.
That first sound was "AUM" mispelled and
mispronounced in English as "Om." The vowel
A,, (pronounced "Au" in Sanscrit), the initial
letter of "AUM" is the parent of all letters
and languages. This "AUM" in sound repre-
sents the distant vibrations of Krishna's Flute,
the Music of Love, while its character-form in
Sanscrit resembles the Form of Krishna play-
ing on His Flute as the reader will see from
the little outline picture of Krishna with its
back-ground of "AUM" in Sanscrit character
printed on the title-page of this book. This
is the mystery of what Krishna Himself says
in the Gita, "I am the Word AUM."
290
CHRISTIAN OF CHRISTIANS.
The different combinations of the other
Sanscrit characters (forms of natural forces),
called words, represent, similarly, pictures of
sound-forms of different attributes and ob-
jects. Sanscrit words, in fact, are sound-
shells which hold within them essences of the
attributes they represent and the objects they
signify. The letters K, R, I, SH, N, A joined
together form the word Krishna, which is the
sound-shell of the Essence of Love, Nature's
Absolute Attribute, produced by the fusion
of the forces of which the composing char-
acters are sound-forms. When frequently re-
peated together with the Love-Passion Seed
word, its vibrations, after purifying the at-
mosphere of the mind, illumine in time its
inner chamber, the heart, which is the door of
the soul, and fills it with the ecstasy of Bliss.
The Tulsi plant is the most spiritual plant
in the world, hence its leaf is the best medium
for conveying prayers, especially when it is
smeared with sandal-wood paste, the perfume
of which is much like the aroma of the Lord's
Body.
But this morning worship is not all that the
291
SREE KRISHNA.
householder Vaishnav performs to attain to
the love of Krishna. He eats or drinks noth-
ing without first offering- it through some
mystic formula to Krishna, and his food is
pure vegetables, his drink is pure water. In
the evening, he joins other Vaishnavs to talk
of Krishna, hear of the sacred earthly acts of
Krishna, sing of Krishna, and, when the spirit
of song moves him, he dances with others in
ecstasy. Besides these practices he repeats
many thousand times the name of Krishna
over his Tulsi rosary. In fact, he never
misses any means or opportunity to keep alive
an unbroken Krishna-consciousness, the result
of which is that he enjoys the joy of Goloka
here on earth in this earthly body. He is re-
warded with the foretaste of what he seeks
to enjoy after he lays down his physical body.
This is enjoyed by the hermit Vaishnav,
who generally lives in Brindaban, in a higher
degree. He is unhampered by all the disturb-
ances and difficulties of the householder, and
so he devotes every moment he breathes to
the service of his Krishna. He has renounced
the world and with it all its thoughts. From
292
CHRISTIAN OF CHRISTIANS.
the earliest morning up to very late at night
he prays, chants, talks, hears, reads, sings and
dances by turns. He eats but once and that
very little, a few wee bits of unleavened
bread begged from pious homes. His only
world's goods are the scanty clothes on his
body, his earthen water bowl and his volume of
scriptures. He has made peace with the
whole world by his humility. He has nothing
but blessings for all, sincere blessings even in
return for curses, and prostrates at full length
prone to the ground before everyone. He
follows the saying of the Lord Chaitanya that
a Vaishnav should be lowlier than a blade of
grass ; more forbearing and charitable than
a tree, which spreads its shade and offers its
fruits even to one who cuts down its branches ;
should never seek respect for himself but pay
respect even to those who are respected by
none ; that a Vaishnav should' at all times sing
of Krishna. Thousands upon thousands of
such Vaishnavs, both male and female, can
be found to-day in the Holy Land of Brinda-
ban and the Holy City of Nuddea, the birth-
place of Chaitanya, whose Christ-spirit and
293
SREE KRISHNA.
ecstatic life are unparalleled in the religious
history of any other country, ancient or mod-
ern. They represent demonstrated living
proofs of the power of the Lord's Name upon
the human mind.
294
SECTION XXIV.
KRISHNA LEELA.
THIS Krishna, the Lord of Absolute Love, the
Seed and Soul of the Universe, comes down
to this earth to serve and inspire men with
His Love once in every Manwantara, once in
every 71 Divine Cycles, that is, once in every
300,000,000 of our lunar years or more. Every
Universe, of His countless Universes, likewise
has its turn of being blessed by His visit as
an Incarnation, once in a long period. This
Universe of ours is the smallest of these Uni-
verses and its turn of Krishna's Incarnation
comes off during the Junction Period of the
Copper and Iron Ages of the 28th Divine
Cycle of every Manwantara. This being the
Iron Age of the 28th Divine Cycle of this
Manwantara the Lord blessed this earth with
His Personal Presence 5,000 years ago, His
birth taking place within the appointed Junc-
tion Period.
Avatars that come to earth to save man-
SREE KRISHNA.
kind and protect the good from the bad, the
Srimdd Bhdgavat says, are innumerable ; they
are either partial manifestations or aspects of
Vishnoo, "but Krishna is Lord God (Bha-
gavan) Himself," the Supreme Deity of whom
Vishnoo Himself is the Fourth Manifestation.
Nobody knows exactly when Krishna will
come, for even Brahma, the operating creator,
knows it not. Brahma only sees him for a
second once in a long while, flashing through
his meditation like a lightning flash. When
Krishna came this last time on earth with His
Second Manifestation, Sankarsana (who was
born as His Elder Brother, Balaram), the time
was ripe for an incarnation of Vishnoo. But
as the moon and stars are covered by the efful-
gence of the Sun, the Avatar of Vishnoo could
not appear separately, so he was merged in
Krish'na the part was swallowed by the
whole.
The story of the earthly career of Krishna,
given in the Second Part of this book, is the
story of the All-Love Krishna of Braja. This
All-Love Krishna was the Krishna of Brinda-
ban, also called Braja, the land where He
296
KRISHNA LEELA.
played and roamed, where He went through
His earthly career up to the age of eleven
when He left Brindaban for Mathura. The
Krishna of Brindaban is the Fullest Mani-
festation of Krishna, the Fullest Expression of
His All-Love-Self. Hence the Krishna of
Brindaban is called the Fullest Incarnation,
which means All Krishna, the Krishna of All-
Love. The Krishna of Mathura is called
Fuller Krishna, which means three-quarters
Krishna and one-quarter Vishnoo. And the
Krishna of Dwaraka, half Krishna and half
Vishnoo, is called Full Incarnation of Krishna.
Krishna being All Love, He knows nothing
but Love, gives and accepts nothing but Love,
acts nothing but Love, breathes nothing but
Love, speaks nothing but Love.
The Asuras that He killed were not killed
by Him, but by the Incarnation of Vishnoo
which was within Him, and His part in those
actions was to send the souls of those Asuras
to His Absolute Love Realm, a reward re-
served for His highest lovers and devotees,
a kindness for enemies which Krishna alone
can feel and show. Krishna has no power
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SREE KRISHNA.
even to hurt a fly, for He is nothing but Love
Itself, and does not know anything else but
Love. This much can be said about Krishna's
participation in these what seemed to be acts
of killing, that the powers of Vishnoo within
Him that committed them, found His Body
the most perfect medium for their operations.
One word of explanation is necessary here
as to who the Asuras were and how they could
assume such shapes. These mentions of
Asuras and demons in the Hindoo books preju-
dice the unknowing and unthinking Western
minds against the veracity of Hindoo histo-
rians and incline them to think that ancient
Hindoo history are mixed with myths and
fables. A little calm and intelligent thinking
ought to correct the mistakes of such hasty
judgment. Modern science, too, is daily pav-
ing the way to belief in things which even a
quarter of a century ago were thought absurd
and impossible. Science is proving the fact
of the unlimited potentialities of the human
mind. Mind-force is at present the subject of
all the most advanced Western scientists and
philosophers. When these will succeed in dis-
298
KRISHNA LEELA.
covering the laws and truths of the mental
plane, as they are now doing of the material
plane, no facts of Hindoo history or of the
histories of ancient times will strike modern
man as mythical or absurd.
The Asuras were the psychics of the ancient
times. They cultivated their mind-force in
order to use it for personal aggrandizement.
They were Yogis, but their Yoga was divorced
from pure spirituality, because their object was
not spiritual. All they wanted was power by
which to overpower others and keep them
under subjection for their own earthly benefit.
Some of them were exceptions to the rule;
they cultivated their Sattwic powers to some
extent along with the development of Rajasic
powers. These became great heroes in battles
and some of them made very good kings.
Others developed merely Rajasic and Tamasic
powers of the mind and became tyrants and
oppressors of all good people. Wherever
and whenever the earth groaned under the
burden of their sins, partial incarnations of
Yishnoo came down to earth to destroy them
and bring peace and goodwill among mankind
299
SREE KRISHNA.
once more. But those Asuras who had only
their Tamasic (dark) mind-force developed,
were the lowest of them all. Their minds
were all dark and their deeds were all black.
f Their natural inclination was to do mischief
to people for the sake of the mischief itself.
These were called demons. These demons can
be found reborn among us all, in the most
advanced centres of civilization, but they are
now shorn of their former psychic force. The
mind's natural inclination, however, is still in
them. They take to external means to satisfy
this inclination of killing or hurting or doing
mischief for the sake of the act itself. For-
merly their dark mental powers were their most
potent weapons. Through those psychic
powers they could transform themselves into
any shape they concentrated upon, and if they
failed to assume the form of a saint or a god,
it was because they could not grasp the idea
of the personality of such pure souls with
their impure minds. To assume the form of
a beast was the easiest thing for them, because
they were nothing but human beasts in their
nature. They could also assume elemental
300
KRISHNA LEELA.
forms too, such as a whirlwind, etc., as in
Krishna Leela. The modern Asuras cannot
do any such thing because their mind-forces
are scattered and distracted. The chief cause
why people generally cannot be a high yogi or
a black-psychic demon is the density of Raja
and Tama that at present pervades Nature, of
which all beings are parts and products, which
disturbs concentration.
The holding of the hill on the point of the
little finger of the left hand, as Krishna did,
was not a very great deed for Krishna to per-
form. This act can be performed by some
of the Lords of Yoga. The Yogi, when he
becomes an adept, inherits the partial attain-
ment of the eight great powers (siddhis),
which are in their fully normal states in Vish-
noo and in lesser degree in those who remain
merged in the Essence of Vishnoo and are
sent therefrom to earth to serve mankind as
Avatars. These powers are (i) Anima, the
power of becoming as small as an atom; (2)
Mahima, the power of becoming increased in
size; (3) Laghima, the power of becoming as
light as desired; (4) Prapti, to possess the
301
SREE KRISHNA.
power of the gods who are the presiding deities
of the senses ; (5) Prakamya, the power of en-
joying and sensing all objects seen or unseen;
(6) Ishita, or power over the forces of the
Divine Will and over the lower forces of other
beings; (7) Vasita, non-attachment to objects
and (8) Kamavasayita, the power of attain-
ing all desires.
Besides these the high Yogi may attain to
ten other powers of the Cardinal Attributes,
(1) Cessation of hunger and thirst; (2) Hear-
ing from a distance; (3) Seeing from a dis-
tance; (4) Moving the body with the speed
of the mind; (5) Assuming any form at will;
(6) Entering into any other body; (7) Dying
at will; (8) Playing with celestial damsels;
(9) Attaining wished-f or objects; (10) Power
of irresistible command.
Five other minor powers are (i) Know-
ledge of the present, the past and the future ;
(2) Control over the Opposites, such as heat
and cold, joy and sorrow, etc. ; (3) Knowledge
of another's mind ; (4) Suspending the action
of fire, sun, water, poison, etc. ; (5) Invincibil-
ity.
302
KRISHNA LEELA.
These powers serve the Lord in His Leelas
as humble slaves, whether he is conscious of
them or not. Leela means action of God In-
carnate. The Rash Dance with the Gopis is
the greatest Leela of Krishna. It was the
manifestation of the greatest might of His
Love, the might possessed by the Supreme
Being alone, by the Lord of the Lords of
Yoga, by the Supreme Source of Yoga itself.
Gopi means a milkmaid. But the milkmaids
of Braja were extraordinarily spiritual beings
born as milkmaids to serve the Lord in His
Earthy Leela. The chief of the Gopis is
Radha, the Consort of Krishna in Glory and
on earth. "Radha" means Adoration or Love-
Devotion. Radha is the embodied manifesta-
tion of Krishna's Love-Principle, the Energy
of His Soul, the Principle in Krishna which
sets His Love into motion. Radha is inside
of Krishna as this Principle of Love-Energy
and she is outside of Krishna as the embodi-
ment of that Principle. Radha is the First
Active Principle of Naure, the Active Love-
Principle which unconsciously gives birth to
creation and pervades it as the purest spirit-
303
SREE KRISHNA.
ual energy. Like Krishna she is above and
out of the reach of the creative Cardinal At-
tributes. Krishna is the Soul. Radha is the
Heart-Soul and her eight chief companions
are the Eight chief Devotional Aspects, and
the other Gopis the inclinations and minor
attributes of Her Ensouled Mind. Radha and
her chief companions are Krishna's constant
companions in Goloka. They came with Him
from Glory and were born as Gopis in Brinda-
ban. Other Gopis who were in the Rash
Dance were incarnations of Vedic Hymns and
Truths which, as I have ere now explained
in the cases of Nature's attributes and forces,
are entities in Nature, the form-centres of
Nature's purest sentiments and conceptions.
Other Gopis were incarnations of goddesses,
the presiding deities of Nature's spiritual
forces and attributes, while others were in-
carnations of some of the highest illuminated
male Saints (Rishis) who had prayed for agt
and ages in every birth to serve the Lord per-
sonally with the tender devotion of a loving
woman. The love of these Gopis for Krishna
was absolutely selfless. They loved Him for
304
KRISHNA LEELA.
the sake of the spontaneous, causeless love they
felt for Him and which His Personality in-
spired in them, for Krishna was that Causeless
Love Itself. The Rash Dance represented the
vibrations of the Soul-absorbed Mind, vibra-
tions which filled the universe with the nectar
of Bliss and destroyed its Karma of a whole
Kalpa, the Karma which formed its Prarabhda
for the time.
Krishna danced separately with each Gopi.
Each Gopi had her own Krishna beside her.
One Krishna became as many as there were
Gopis and yet it was the Self-Same Krishna.
The One Soul played like So Many Souls
with so many hearts and yet the hearts saw
but that One Soul. Each Gopi saw only her
own Krishna and was unconscious of any other,
as she danced, absorbed in that Krishna, round
and round, arms round necks, eyes into eyes,
all-forgetting-, the world forgot, round and
round in the whirl of ecstasy, afloat on the
waves of Love that is Bliss round and round
with that One Krishna, the All-in-All of the
heart and existence round and round, the
lover and the loved, the little soul twining
305
SREE KRISHNA.
round the Great Soul, the Great Soul pouring
Its Nectar into the little soul.
Ignorant writers and prudish religionists of
the West have dared to call this Gopi-Leela
of Krishna shocking to all religious sense, in
the face of the fact that two hundred and odd
millions of Hindoos of the present day and
myriads of millions of Hindoos of the past
Hindoos whose giant intellect and all-towering
height of spirituality the world of to-day are
beginning to wonder at call this Leela the
most transcendental of all Divine deeds that
have ever been performed on the face of the
globe. According to these little critics of the
greatest Avatar of the Supreme Deity, that
Supreme Deity cannot possess any other senti-
ments of love than those of a Father and a
Saviour, that God ought not to feel or show
the love of a husband for his wife or of a
lover for his lady-love. If this be a fact, will
they answer the question as to whence has
man got these sentiments, if not from his
Maker of whom he is but an imperfect image ?
Whence has he got them if not from the Source
of Creation itself, of which he is such a, tiny
306
KRISHNA LEELA.
part and product? This denial to God of the
possession of a lover's sentiment implies an
impertinence which God alone, out of His in-
finite affection for His creatures, can pardon.
It only betrays the dense ignorance of these
critics in regard to the origin and laws of
creation and of the relations of creation with
its Creator.
Nature (Creation) is the materialized Will-
Force of God. The Will-Force of God is a
reflection of God Himself the objectified
phases of the semblance of manifoldness of the
Absolute One. God is the husband, and the
Energy of His Will, Nature, is His wife. God
is the Lover and Nature is His loving Lady-
love. By His All-pervading Essence, the only
Support and Sustenance of Nature, He clasps
His Lady-love to His bosom and dances with
her to the intricate steps of the music of her
Laws. This is His Rash Dance in the aggre-
gate, the Rash Dance that is being performed
every moment within Nature though hidden
from our outlooking physical vision. What is
true of the great Universe is true also of its
miniature, man. Within our heart of heart
307
SREE KRISHNA.
is the forest of Brindaban in which the micro-
scopic blue river of love, Jumna, flows, lap-
ping with thrills of joy the bank of the bow-
ery lawn where Krishna our Soul with His
Gopis our ensouled mental aspirations is
performing His ever-favorite, never-ending
Rash Dance. And we are unconscious of it all,
because our mind's outer ken is employed out-
side of us with outer objects. If we can with-
draw the mind's vision from outwards and
direct it into the depth of our heart then will
belief come in the Rash Dance of Krishna with
its practical realization. We are then of Braja
and each of us, of the enlightened inner eye,
a dancing Gopi male or female whatever we
may be externallv. it matters not. We are all
Gopis, human male or human female, we are
all spiritually feminine, for Krishna alone is
the One Male and we all, particles of. Nature,
are all female. We are all the lady-loves, the
brides and wives of our One Husband, Lover
and Beloved Krishna. In the working out
of the ever-beneficial laws of Inner Nature
the laws that throb for the weal of mankind
this innermost performance of Nature's
308
KRISHNA LEELA.
constant Rash Dance with her Lord is re-
flected for a time upon her outer surface to fill
outer Nature and mankind with the ecstasy
of its supremest spirituality, the blessings of
Absolute Love.
The twelve chief boy-companions of Krish-
na in Brindaban came with Him from Glory
where they are His constant companions,
while the other cow-boys were the incarnations
of the gods and highly spiritual saints. The
Kadamba-tree, under which Krishna usually
played His flute, is a representation in physical
form of the Tree of Life and the flute's dear
strains the music of the soul. As Krishna and
His Companions are constant, so are His Lee-
las (acts) constant. They can be seen now by
any devotee possessed of the requisite vision.
With these words I humbly introduce the
reader to the Nectar-Career of Krishna on
earth embodied in the following pages. Let
every reader read it with an open mind and the
Nectar is sure to flow into his soul through
that mind.
309
SREE KRISHNA
THE LORD OF LOVE
PART II.
SREE KRISHNA
THE LORD OF LOVE
BABA PREMANAND BHARATI
PUBLISHED BY
THE KRISHNA SAMAJ
NEW YORK
Copyright 1 904
BV
BABA PREMANAND BHARAT1
S. L. PARSONS fc CO., PRINTERS, NEW YORK
KRISHNA.
To
THE LOTUS FEET
OF
KRISHNA MY BELOVED
THIS GARLAND
WOVEN WITH FLOWERS
OF
HIS OWN GIFT
Is OFFERED
FOR THE APPRECIATION OF
THE SOULFUL
OF His CREATION
PROEM.
I BOW to the Glorious One the unerring
Mariner who has guided my frail life's bark
across the billowy world-ocean wrapt in
"Goo" the darkness of ignorance with
the ever-illuminating-. "Roo" the search-light
of wisdom to the Land of the Lotus Feet
of Krishna. I bow to Sree Brahmananda
Bharati my Gooroo.
And now, hush ! list ! I sing of Krishna. I
will sing of Krishna, the Lord of Love, the
Seed and Soul of the Universe, the Ultimate
Principle in the composition of Creation, of
all souls' real Home Sweet, Sweet Home!
I will sing of your only Lover, and your only
Beloved.
I wish to sing a song whose sweetness will
thrill through your body, which will make
your soul float in ecstasy. I will sing a song
whose burden will enter your heart as a dew-
drop enters the bosom of a flower, but will
3
PROEM.
soon, if you are attentive, spread itself into
a boundless ocean on which your heart will
be tossed over its gentle waves, like a boat
bound for and sure of the land of Eternal
Bliss. I as earnestly ask your blessing that
I may be filled with such power to sing such
a song, as I ask the blessing of my Krishna
to sing of Him to you.
I will sing a song of love such as you have
never heard, such as poets dream not of,
which lovers know not of, which the human
soul is ever in quest of, which, in your best
moments, vibrates undefined through your
soul, but ever eludes your understanding. 1
will sing of that Love which ever plays before
your heart's vision as the will-o'-the-wisp
through countless incarnations a Love which
alone will make you happy for evermore.
I will sing a song to you of a Love which
you are striving every moment of your life
to realize through success and failure in this
life's games, the Love whose worthless coun-
terfeits dazzle and deceive you at every step
at every step removing you farther and far-
ther from the original they so poorly resemble.
4
PROEM.
I will sing to you of the Love Absolute, the
Love that is unbroken, the Love that is fed and
"TOWS by use, the Love that blesses the lover
with greater abundance for giving it away to
others.
I will sing to you of a Love which is your
birthright, which is the very foundation of
your existence, which alone is the substance of
all existences, and, wonder of wonders, a Love
which is your real food and Home.
Aye, it is of your Home that I will sing
the unknown pole to which the magnet of your
soul eternally trembles. Home is ever sweet
Home, Sweet Home ! But this your sweet
earthly home is only the home of your earthly
self, the brick-and-mortar closet of your
fleshly coats, of which you have possessed a
countless number. But all those coats have
been mere coverings of your inner Self, which
is a truant from its own Home, but of which
it has lost all memory, having lived so long
in others' homes. I will sing to you of a
song whose burden will remind you of this
lost and forgotten Home, the Home that you
are seeking in vain, consciously or uncon-
5
PROEM.
sciously, the Home whose never-failing happi-
ness you are trying to substitute in your
borrowed home by ever-failing pleasures,
pleasures which only pain you by their hollow-
ness. How can you live upon a hollow happi-
ness, you who have known and tasted solid,
eternal happiness in your real Home? the
Home where light fades not, life grieves not,
and happiness ever is ! I will sing to you of
the Home where your Master, Friend, Father,
and Lover is ever anxious to get you back
and take you to His bosom.
I will sing to you of Krishna your Home
the Seed and Soul of your soul, as well as
of the universe of which you are a miniature.
And now, my beloved friend, prepare your-
self to listen to this song which comes to you
from across the oceans from a land where
the altar of the Lord of Love is ever burning,
fed by the libations of devotion and the in-
cense of ecstasy, since the dawn of creation,
from that cradle of religion and civilization,
from that spiritual metropolis of the spiritual
world-empire, where the fountain of Divine
Love, Life and Wisdom is still playing, to
6
PROEM.
water the earth with the blessings of the soul
the Land of Bharat, which you moderns
call India. Listen and be blessed!
This is a song not set to any tune you
know, to any music you have heard, and yet
it is a song which is set in the true tune of
your heart, to the natural music of your soul.
It is the Song Ecstatic of your Heart-Soul
which will make the core of your being throb
in beatitude and melt the crusts of materiality
in you into the Love Unspeakable! Listen
and be blessed!
SREE KRISHNA
THE LORD OF LOVE
CHAPTER I.
WEARY and overburdened with its load of
sorrow and weakness, the great heart of
Mother Earth lifted her voice unto the heights
of the skies, complaining.
Her patience and faithfulness were qualities
of wondrous worth to Brahma, the Creator,*
and so, drawing aside the curtain from his
abode, he looked into her soft and wearied
eyes, saying:
"O Mother Earth ! Long hath the pain of
ingratitude and faithlessness pierced thy ten-
der heart, and with courage and loving mercy
*Brahma is the Creator of the details of the Uni-
verse. The Supreme Creator is the Supreme Deity,
Krishna. Fie creates by His Will. The inequi-
librium of the three Cardinal Attributes (Sattwa,
Raja, Tama, or Illumination, Activity and Obscura-
tion) embodies the Creative Will of Krishna, a?
explained in the foregoing part of this book. This
inequilibrium starts the current and force of Cre-
ation. Vasudeva, as the manifestation and centre of
9
SREE KRISHNA,
hast thou borne its stings. But now a balm is
to come unto thee and soothe thy wounded
love and readjust those things of which thou
dost complain.
"Yet a little while, O thou Goddess of
Plenty, and One shall play upon thy breast,
which will make the veins of thy body to
the first flush of Creation, springing from Krishna as
a result of this loss of poise, is the Second Creator
in whom the seed of Creation (unpoise of Attri-
butes) dwells as an Unknown Feeling of differentia-
tion. Sankarsana, who springs from Vasudeva, is
the Third Creator, but acts only as the Unconscious
Cause of Creation. Pradyumna, who springs from
Sankarsana, carrying the Abstract Idea of Creation,
is the Fourth Creator, the Semi-Conscious Cause of
Creation. Aniruddha, born of Pradyumna as the
Full-Conscious Cause, is the Fifth Creator. This
Aniruddha is called Narayan and Vishnoo. From
Him springs Brahma, the first sprout of Creation.
He is the Sixth and the Operating Creator, called in
the Hindoo Books the "Father of Creation," the
"Grandfather of all God's creatures." Brahma's
Abode is the Brahma Loka, otherwise called the
Satya Loka or the Seventh Heaven, the Seventh
from the Earth Sphere (First Heaven).
Just over the Brahma Loka is the Vaikuntha
Loka, the Abode of Vishnoo, the Abode of Salva-
tion (Mukti), where souls freed from the last bond-
age of matter and its influence go for Rest and Re-
ward. This Abode of Vishnoo is unapproachable
even by the gods and the illumined souls who dwell
on earth or in the Four Upper Heavens. Brahma
alone by mediation can communicate with Vishnoo
on any subject bearing on the _ welfare _of Creation
and receive a response from Him who is the Outer
Form of Krishna.
10
THE LORD OF LOVE.
thrill with warm love, so that thy heart will
be beautiful beyond what it yet has been.
"Thy mountains shall laugh in great happi-
ness on seeing the beauty of Him who shall
cast His lotus eyes upon their rugged sides.
"Thy rivers shall flow in rhapsodies when
His Sweet Body shall sanctify their waves
by its contact.
"Thy harvests shall come forth in great
plentifulness.
"Thy cows shall give forth milk that shall
be nourishing and healing unto all whom it
will feed.
"Thy trees shall cast forth shadows that
all who come under their cooling shade, sick
unto death, shall bound forth with the glad-
ness of life and love in their bodies, and, O
patient Earth, all who tread upon thee shall
call thee blessed because the One All Beauti-
ful shall have made thee blessed by His Holy
Feet treading upon thee."
Thus spake Brahma unto Mother Earth,
who lowly laid again her dark head, and
entering the Abode of Vishnoo, he said unto
Him:
11
SREE KRISHNA,
"O Thou Mighty One! Well dost Thou
know the grievance of her, the Patient One,
who is dear unto us. Do Thou in Thy glory
and majesty succor her, O Lord !
"Let the Only One, the Lord of Love, the
Sovereign of all the Universe, the Author of
all that lives, again be born upon her surface,
and so bring to her wilted breast the nectar of
Love, that all who draw from her may again
partake freshly of the love that is the life of
all animate and inanimate.
"This Thou do, O Wondrous and Most
Beautiful One, and quicken again with love
her heart and the hearts that beat against her
breast, so that the eyes of those who have
eyes, yet see not, may see.
"Do Thoti incarnate with Thyself those
who have ever walked with Thee, and who
may, even before the eyes of all, perform and
live miracles of love. For, O Most High, full
of stolid unbelief and fettered with the world
have Thy children become, so that even she
who erstwhile ever patient was has complain-
ingly called unto me for help."
12
THE LORD OF LOVE.
He, the Maker of all that is, forthwith
spake :
"So shall it be. Unto her who has held
upon her lap all those who are mine and who
hath come out of Me and who is also of Me,
I shall be born.
"And great shall be the rejoicing of her
and my children who walk upon her surface.
"From the heart of man the weight of stone
shall be lifted and his eye shall be quickened
with love, and I with my followers shall bring
to them the ways and means that love doth
know, and the whole known world shall again
learn that I am Life and Love, that I the
Creator of all things am, even unto the ant
and the huge elephant who by one blow of
his mighty trunk uprooteth the tree.
"They shall also know Me as Child, Son,
Warrior, King, and Priest, and in their midst
I shall walk even with those who with Me
shall be born again, and seeing Me and know-
ing Me, I shall draw all unto Me, and close
with Me they shall again taste the sweetness
of my love.
13
SREE KRISHNA,
"With Me shall come those who have ever
known Me through many incarnations, those
who cover themselves with the qualities most
like unto Me and whom my Earth-children
have learned to look upon as gods, praying
to them because of these attributes which
they themselves wished to be blessed withal.
"Tell those who know the fulness of my
Bliss, those who have bathed in the nectar of
my Love, those who have dwelt in the ecstasy
of my loveliness, and those who in their
devotion have known nothing outside of Me,
those who have ever seen Me in all things,
and have feasted their minds only upon My
Beauty tell them that I with them shall
be born of woman and shall dwell for the
span of man's life among men."
And when the Gods, those whom He had
designated, heard the Will of Him, great was
the rejoicing in that Abode, for no Will knew
they, save the Sweet Will of the Most Lovely
One, whose Lotus Feet they worshipped in
ecstasy.
14
CHAPTER II.
IN the seat of Hari, the sacred city of
Mathura on the Jumna, Vasudeva in love and
humbleness took unto himself Devaki as bride,
who by all was known as the most holy and
virtuous maiden of that land.
Dear unto the heart of her brother, the
Prince of Mathura, she was, and beloved
among his people and among all women be-
cause of the purity of her heart and the sweet-
ness of her face. To show to all the world
his love for her, the prince himself, in proud
fondness, drove the marriage-car of his little
sister princess and the new brother-in-law,
who, by right of great wisdom, a Pundit of
high standing among the learned was.
Gentle was the new bridegroom, even as he
was wise. Fond glances of love he cast upon
the radiant face of the young princess, and
from all sides the blessings fell from the lips
of the populace on the sweet bride, the learned
1-7
SREE KRISHNA,
bridegroom, and the gallant prince who held
the reins because of his love for them both.
Put lo! in the span of a moment all was
changed, for a voice there was which seemed
to come out of space : "O thou fool ! Why,
even she for whom in pride and love thou
dost hold the reins to her marriage-car, even
she shall bear the child in her womb who
shall sweep thy life from off the earth. Her
son, the eighth, shall be the cause of thy
death."
The reins dropped from the hands of the
prince, and, springing to his feet, he caught
the young bride by the hair as if to slay her,
but was arrested by Vasudeva, who cried,
"O prince ! Noble wast thou ever, and ill would
it be for thee to slay thy sister on the eve of
her marriage. It is not for thee to take life,
O King, thou who canst not give it. Death
must come, but let it not be by thy hand,
O prince, nor yet before her time. Take not
the life of her who is thy sister and thereby
stain the heritage of virtue such as has been
ascribed unto thee.
W
THE LORD OF LOVE.
"Listen to the words of wisdom that have
come to us from the sages, without whom
all life a desert would be. Well thou knowest
that a man's actions do follow him from
body to body even as in walking he leaveth
the imprint of each step behind the other,
yet with each step doth he carry the dust on
his feet from the ground whereon he did walk.
"Man hath many existences, each one por-
traying a character which is the outcome of
his past self. As the present is the fulfilment
of the threatening past, so man is the unfold-
ment and fulfilment of his previous existences.
"So seek not to blacken thy soul by the
slaying of one of thine own blood, but seek
rather to add new glory to thy light by pre-
serving her who, all guiltless, thou dost seek
to slay. Heap not thou upon thyself a dark
and evil Karma to confront thee and blight
thee in thy other lives.
"It is but the chill breath of suspicion and
the dread tremor of fear that surges heavy
and dark through thy mind. Be warned by
me, O prince ; desist from thy unjust act and
speedily thy heart shall glow again, warmed
17
SREE KRISHNA,
by the embers of hope. A man too fearful
of threatening danger, in torment of that dan-
ger ever dwelleth. Even calamity may be
turned aside by the smile of distrust, and
fatality may forget thee quite while passing
thy door.
"But when the soil of thy heart has been
made fertile for fear, be sure its seed therein
will thrive, finding sustenance for sprouting
and its fruit it will bear.
"Stand valiant, O prince, and be not like
the timorous woman who runneth away from
the shadow of danger but to flee into the arms
of the foe. Thy Karma that counteth up the
reckonings cannot be cheated. So be not,
O prince, of timid heart ; and each son that
cometh from the womb of thy sister, Devaki,
shall be given to thee/'
Listening to the wise counsels of Vasudeva,
the prince gave over his mad desire to. slay his
sister with his own hand, and the newly
wedded ones proceeded to the home of Vasu-
deva.
18
CHAPTER III.
TRUE to his promise, Vasudeva brought unto
the prince his first-born, a son.
The prince, on seeing that Vasudeva was
true to his compact to deliver his son as it was
born, gave it back, saying: "It is not this
son that I fear, but he who will be born thine
eighth one it is ordained shall slay me. So
take back thy first-born, Vasudeva. Of him
there is naught to fear."
Vasudeva took the little one, and putting it
in the glad arms of the young mother, said:
"O princess! It is with joy and yet with
great foreboding that I return to thee the
babe, for there is that in my heart which tells
me that the prince, thy brother, spoke not
the truth when thy boy he gave back unto
me, for fear lodged in his eye and anger
vibrated in his voice even as he said, 'From
thy first-born no harm will come unto me.'
19
SREE KRISHNA,
Yet clasp him to thy heart, young mother, and
bathe him in thy glad tears of love while he
resteth on thy breast."
But even while the tender young mother
crooned her love-songs to her soft nestling,
the cruel edict went forth that the babe was
to be taken from her, as also each new-born
man-child that came into the land, for, as a
blighting flash from the clouds that strikes
the healthy young sapling at the root, there had
come to Kangsa's fear-burdened mind the
knowledge that in his former birth he had
been dethroned and slain by one of his own
kin, who was said to have come from on high
even to still the power of the wicked and exalt
the lowly and virtuous.
This in all its weight had come into his
heart, and louder than the bolts of thunder
the voice he had heard on Devaki's wedding-
day seemed to throb in his brain, as he saw
Vasudeva depart with his first-born son. And
great were the lamentations of the mothers
who gave birth unto sons in that land. Many
departed from the kingdom where Kangsa,
the destroyer of the young, did rule.
20
THE LORD OF LOVE.
But when the wailing" of the new-born child
was no longer heard in all that kingdom, the
prince in his madness deposed his father,
Ugrasen, and became himself the King- and
thrust Devaki, his sister, and Vasudeva into
the dungeon of his palace, where the six sons
that were born to them were dashed to death
on the flagged floor in the hour of their com-
ing by Kangsa himself.
And now again there was quickening in the
womb of Devaki, and the joy of natural
motherhood was overshadowed by the terror
of the fate of the new life that was to be a
babe. But groundless was the fear of the
agonized mother, for his coming was even
before his time ; for the earth sent a mist
thick as the garment of death to shroud the
palace of the King, and a deep sleep on the
gaolers fell on the hour that the child of
premature birth felt the breath of earth, and
drowned were its first weak wails by the sound
of the winds that shrieked without.
And the child that came to the v/orld too
soon, even before his time was completed,
was despatched in great haste to one who
21
SREE KRISHNA,
suckled him and called him her own. The
child that by the near hand of love was saved
from the hand of frenzied murder was the
child that would walk with the Lord of Love
and play with the Soul of the Universe.
And when the mists were gone, the King
marvelled that no child had come, while the
mother marvelled at the goodness of Him who
was the Author of Life.
22
CHAPTER IV.
Now the time was ready for Hari (Krishna)
to come to be born and dwell upon earth.
His sweet will it was to be as a man and
show man the beauty of Love. It was then
that Devaki again conceived and a mother
unto the eighth child would be.
But lo ! fear now to her was unknown and
glory shone around her like the sun rilling
the darkened dungeon with light, for the
Lord of all Light in her mind did come,
and Him as a child to the world she would
bring. She, who the mother many times of
sorrow was, now the mother of joy had
become.
O blessed art thou, wife Devaki, that the
sweet will of the Lord of all Love and All
Life was centred on thee when he willed as a
child among men to come ! And thou, poor
mother, whose heart was made to bleed for
23
SREE KRISHNA,
the bearing of sons, henceforth an ocean of
love shalt become, for throbs not under thy
heart the pulse of Him who, love-touched,
love-filled, and love-made, pervades all lives
and all that ever will live ?
And in that hour barren women, as a gra-
cious boon of the Lord's coming into Devaki's
womb, conceived to their own over joyful
surprise.
And when Kangsa beheld the glory of her
who was his sister, he knew that Hari, He
who would quench his life, was within her.
But when he sought to strike her low, the
glow of the light that came from her over-
awed him quite and the steel refused to reach
her flesh ; and many gaolers were sent unto
her by the king to slay, but when they looked
upon her glory, lo ! their hearts were quick-
ened with love, and holy they became, and,
dropping their weapons, fled from her side
and in meditation and prayer sought the light
that showed them their darkness.
And the seers and sages and gods and pun-
dits and angels that see, with illumined eyes of
the spirit, the things that were and are and
24
THE LORD OF LOVE.
the things that still will come, beheld the
light that glorified the mother even though
distance and mortar hid her from fleshly view,
for the eyes that are quickened by spirit cog-
nize not the sight of the senses.
And, prostrating low, salutations they gave
to the Lord of the Universe that became child
in the mother :
"O Thou, the Eye of the Universe that sees
all, the all-hearing Ear, the Heart that draweth
unto itself all that sprang* from Thee!
"Thou, the Seed and Soul that hath in its
centre the roots of all space and all that space
containeth !
"Thou, the Source of all Love, the Exist-
ence of all Life, the Dispenser of all Light, the
Mystery of all Wisdom, who, self-created,
chose not to dwell alone, but willed creation
to be and from whose breath all living crea-
tures sprang!
"O Thou, who suffered darkness to be, that
beauty of light may be known! Thou, who
by Thy own sweet will dost thrust Thy own
children forth a little but to draw them unto
SREE KRISHNA,
Thy heart again to heighten Thy pleasure and
theirs !
"We, Thy blinded children, illumined, were
made to see the light of Thy coming to earth.
Thou, the Mystery and yet the Revelation of
all things art!
"Thou, that which hideth from man all
things that he accounteth not to Thy sweet
will and revealeth all unto him who sifteth
each act to Thy source !
"Thou, who attunest the ear to the sound
of all harmony and keepest Thy Worlds and
All Lift in motion !
"Thou, who art the Immensity of All
Things! We know that even as a man Thou
art come in our midst.
"O Thou the Source of all Energy that is,
Thou the Vibrations of all joy that thrilleth
through all Life!
"Thou Maker of all, who by Thy coming
dost lift us even unto Thyself, again who by
Thy coming will show the vileness of Self
which unlike Thee is, and how sin doth darken
where virtue is !
"Thy power, O King of all Kingdoms, is
26
THE LORD OF LOVE.
boundless. Oh ! why are we blessed with the
truth of Thy coming, we the blinded whom
Thou hast chosen to honor?"
Thus spoke the 'sages, the pundits and seers,
the gods and Brahma, the Creator Himself,
whom the Lord of Love had blessed with the
power to know of His coming.
27
CHAPTER V.
AND the child was come, the child that was
God, the God that became child, and time
itself stood still in its passing to mark the
wonder of that coming!
The clouds ceased their onward sailing and
crowded in piles of white and blue and gray
softness, to marvel at the child's first smile.
The heavens rained down blossoms of white
and red and golden and blue lotuses.
The mountains gave forth a great cry of
joy, as they in gladness met.
The rivers heaved their billowy crests and
chanted hymns of praise to Him, who was
to make holy again their waters.
The earth throbbed and thrilled as the
streams of holy Love shot through all her
body, swelling 'her breast with new life and
feeding all that was living and moving within
the recesses of her bowels, and clothing with
38
THE LORD OF LOVE.
great beauty that which lived upon her
bosom.
The roots of growing 1 , things grasped with
a firmer hold her sides, and her loved crea-
tures, those that walked and those that crept
upon her surface, nestled once more, as of
yore, when all the world was holy, against her
freshened and strengthened body with new
affection and faithfulness, and her great heart
uttered a mighty thanksgiving to Him who
had heard her appeal and svfccored her.
The seeds that were in her mouth burst into
rooting, the roots into sprouting, and the
budding trees, that graced her brow, linto glad
blossoms.
And the trees that were in blossom bore ripe
fruit in the hour of His coming.
And all those that hungered were fed.
The cows, big with young, dropped their
calves, and their bags were full unto bursting
for all that came to take sustenance there-
from.
The motherless cubs of wild things fear-
lessly suckled from her udder, and the cow
29
SREE KRISHNA,
lapped the soft, furred sides of the young
stranger with her long, rough tongue.
And all the wild things that hungered were
fed in that hour.
The eagle left its nest on the mountain's
rugged side, and sat on the tree with quivering
wing beside the dove, that cooed its inward
shout of love.
The snake forgot to charm the timid song-
ster that thrilled its joy close by, but, lifting
up its hooded head, it madly danced between
the sunshine and the shadow that the exultant
branches of swaying trees did cast.
The huge elephant sportive became, and
played with the deer and doe that rubbed
against its haunches.
The fierce lion, the leopard, and all the un-
tamed creatures of the forests, with yearning
call of love, turned their faces towards the
place, all light, where Love, as a little child
was cradled in the arms of man.
And in the hour of His coming many rain-
bows of wondrous color and beauty did span
the skies. And the sun liquid as molten love
became.
30
THE LORD OF LOVE.
And in that hour man and beast, and bird
and flower, and all that lives upon the earth
and underneath its surface and in the deep
waters, did look into the abode of Love.
And on the face of earth the smile of Love
did rest, and sin vanished from the heart of
man, even as hunger disappeareth where plen-
tiful food is dished to the hungered.
The eye of the murderer looked for dark-
ened places wherein to hide himself, but, find-
ing naught but light, did throw his blade into
the purified waters of the holy river and knelt
at the feet of the holy ones, who in ecstasy
were wrapt.
The gray and shrunken face of avarice
lifted itself toward the skies, and lo! glorified
the countenance became!
The face of bloated folly, the weakness of
vanity, the vileness of ingratitude, the stub-
bornness of unbelief in that hour were un?
known to man.
A joy, unfelt before, on all the earth did
reign, a joy that even yet doth thrill through
hearts of life, for the child that was God, and
31
SREE KRISHNA,
the God that was child, had come on earth to
live with man.
32
CHAPTER VI.
AND the child that was the Lord spoke to
the mother in the hour of His coming as the
Sovereign of all Sovereignty would speak:
"Say unto him, Vasudeva, thy husband, to
transport me to where the wife of the King
Nanda doth lie, who but now giveth birth to
a daughter.
"Pass through the gates; the chains shall
be loosened, the keepers asleep at their posts.
"The warring waters of the Jumna a path
shall make for him to pass with Me in his
arms. The gates of the palace on the banks of
the river wide open shall stand, and the
mother asleep in her chamber shall be.
"Put Me on her breast, and bear away the
daughter that to her is born. And when the
prince shall ask Vasudeva for the eighth child
that is born unto thee, do thou deliver the
daughter of Yasoda unto him."
33
SREE KRISHNA,
Thus spake the Lord, and a helpless child
lie became.
Vasudeva in wonder passed through the
gates ; the keepers all slept a sleep as of death.
The waters parted to make a way for him
who carried the Lord to pass.
Unseen, unheard, he entered the courtyard
and palace and passed the sounding halls and
corridors, until the room of the sleeping queen
he spied, and taking the Lord from under his
cloak, on the breast of the sleeping queen he
laid it, and took in his place the wide-eyed
daughter, that cooed and smiled in his bearded
face.
And sleep still held the queen and the city
and the gaolers embraced, till he stood at the
side of Devaki once more, who wept at the
sight of the smiling babe, who soon at the
hand of her brother must perish.
At break of day, the prince entered the
dungeon to seek the life of the eighth child of
his sister.
As he lifted the child on high to dash its
head on the flagged floor, lo ! the child slipped
from his hand and rose, the while speaking:
34
THE LORD OF LOVE.
"Karma, that counteth all reckonings up,
cannot be cheated by thee, O prince ! 'Tis
written that thou must be slain by the eighth
son of thy sister, and so it shall be.
"That child I am not, O prince! But I
came on earth for this hour, to show thee thy
folly. Dost thou think, O fool, that by human
force, by the slaying of innocence, by the
destroying of hope and joy in the heart of
the mother, thou canst change the Will of Him
who is the Maker of all laws ?
"Thinkest thou, O man, thou canst cross
swords with Him that knoweth the effect of
each thought that man thinketh, even before
the thinking is done?
"He whom thou seekest thou shalt not
find!"
She ceased, and a light never seen on earth
or in heaven enveloped the child as she van-
ished from view.
And the prince rushed forth in his frenzy
and madness and sought not again to bring
harm to his sister, but unfettered the chains
were of husband and wife, and in freedom
forth they went.
35
CHAPTER VII.
AND the child that was God as Krishna was
known.
And men drew love from the Name, for
the Name the potency of Love contained, even
as the seed the tree doth hold, or the bud the
fruit of the tree enfolds.
And all who spoke the Name of Krishna
felt the heart beat quick and high, and all who
looked upon His face felt at once that Love
was nigh.
And it came about that all the people who
lived in the kingdom where the Child Krishna
was reared as the son of the King of Braja,
thronged daily to get but a glimpse of the
Child, who, though helpless like other babes
did seem, yet held the power to draw all men
unto Him, even by the light of love that
made Him All Beauty.
As He sat on the arms of the queen, His
foster-mother, bedecked with the ornaments
THE LORD OF LOVE.
and finery which the king delighted to bedeck
Him withal, lo, the light that radiated from
His flesh did put the glowing jewels to shame,
for love is the essence of Beauty and Light,
and the Child was the embodiment of Love
itself !
So the light that flashed from the jewels
was but as the light of glow-worms that dis-
appeareth when the radiance of the moon is
about them.
In despair the king sent messages to all the
then known world to procure such jewels as
might enhance the loveliness of his Child,
but ever when on His body they rested, dull
they seemed on the glow of His flesh.
But oft the Child would reach His baby
hands for the flowers that the populace brought
in great profusion to lay at the feet of the
Child that was Love, and as He held them
close to His baby mouth, behold, their petals
quivered and throbbed with love-life, and
deeper the color dyed their softness and
brighter the gold of their hearts did flame,
nt the touch of the hand and the breath of the
Child that knew naught but Love.
SREE KRISHNA,
And in the days when Love as a Child did
dwell on earth, a great force of spirituality
through all the land went forth, and the
heart of all the world went up in praise for
the mercies linked with ecstasy that enriched
the cup of all Life.
Gleams of kindness, and deeds of generosity,
and miracles of patience, and justice, and love,
unheard of before, now naturally burst from
the heart of man, as water bursts forth from
a spring 'neath the rock.
And the fields, that before were dried and
burned by the sun's rays even as stubble,
gave forth rich harvests.
And the rivers and seas that were lost to
man's eyes, again in beauty before them
rested.
And the Child that was the stalk and stem
of Love in beauty did grow, shedding His
gracious smile on all the world.
And Kangsa, the King, now heard of the
marvellous Child whose smile brought a
smile on all the world.
38
CHAPTER VIII.
THEN Kangsa, the brother of Devaki, besought
the demoness Ptitana, mother of evil, to give
each child in arms the milk of her breast,
that should fill them with death at the sucking.
And forth she did go, and prayed to be taken
into the palace of the king, to behold the
young Child whose face gave blessing to all
who on it looked.
On her coming, the Child stretched forth
its arms to be taken to her breast, but when
her breast between His lips He took, she bent
her face to look at the Babe, and fear made
her pale and faint, for in the beauty of His eye
the wisdom of all the world she beheld.
And releasing the Master she held at her
breast, she pleaded and prayed that' He cease
His sucking, but harder He drew and firmer
His grip was, till exhausted and lifeless she
fell on the ground, while with a smile the Babe
39
SREE KRISHNA,
played with the breast and crept on the body
that lay in death.
And when they came from far and wide to
look at her who brought destruction and
death to children, they beheld her swelled and
stretched to immensity.
For smiling evil seemeth not big, but rob
it of the smile that hideth its leer, and huge
and misshapen it doth become.
So with Putana it was. Forth she went to
mother and suckle the young children and
thus bring death to the Child of Love. Clothed
in sweet motherhood and kindness of purpose,
all hearts were opened to welcome her freely,
yet evil she brought wherever she walked.
But He who was All Love at once sighted
her hatred for love, by that which in her all
unlike Himself was, and straightway in her
poverty of Love and nakedness of heart she
stood revealed in His eyes.
And all saw her thus hideous and unsightly,
and marvelled at the blindness of their eyes.
But mark now the kindness and power of
Love.
By the touch_pf His lips upon her breast,
40
THE LORD OF LOVE.
she, who never knew love, by contact with
Him became sanctified. And the effort Putana
put forth to bring death to Krishna, under
cover of Love, did make her for the moment
a mother in truth. And for that moment of
concentrated love in Him the honor of Divine
Motherhood on her was bestowed in that realm
where hate is unknown. And all the world
marvelled, when dead she lay, at the aroma
that rose from her huge body.
But the Child only smiled as He played on
her breast.
Verily the aroma of great sweetness reached
to all the skies. For Love is ever the master
of hate, and Love in its strength doth conquer
all hate, and hate is purified by the breath of
Love, and sanctified it is by its hand.
CHAPTER IX.
A YEAR has passed since the coming of
Krishna, a year of peace and plenty to all.
And the earth was relieved of pressure, and
the minds of men were illumined by the light
that shone in their midst.
And the hearts that were cramped and nar-
row with pain grew big into bursting with
the love that flowed from the Child that was
God.
And Nanda prepared a great feast for the
naming of Him and the Brother, Devaki's sev-
enth child who, at birth premature, had been
despatched to the land where Krishna now
was. And the feast was attended by many
guests, who rejoiced on beholding the won-
drous Child who on that day a year had
brought joy by His coming.
And the priest was called and the seer, and
he who read the stars and read the Vedas
alike. And when the stars he contemplated,
18
THE LORD OF LOVE.
he saw the wonder of His birth, and, pros-
trating at the feet of Him, spoke to them who
gathered to hear: "The oppressed He shall
succor, the enslaved He shall free, and those
that in danger are He will protect, and bring
all blessings to the land where now He doth
live. What and Who He is you know not,
but, crowned with living stars of Love and
adorned with the rainbow of promise' on His
breast, this Child shall bring glory and Bliss
wherever He breathes. Oh, blessed was the
day I looked in His eyes and touched my hand
to His Holy Feet, for in Him the virtues and
powers and might of Love do dwell that never
before men with* eyes have seen."
But the little Child smiled, then stretched
forth Its arms and puckered Its lips for the
mother's sweet milk.
The mother in pride placed It at the side
of the cart that held brass vessels and articles
of food, and turned to receive the congratu-
lations of her guests, when lo! the Child with
Its baby foot upturned the cart, and the cart
and the vessels in pieces lay on the ground!
And more and more they marvelled at the
43
SREE KRISHNA,
Child, whose baby strength upturned the cart.
Nor was this the only miracle of His baby-
hood. For one day the mother sat with the
Child in her lap, when lo and behold, so
heavy He became that she felt as if the world
were resting on her knees !
The strength of her knees gave way and
the Child sank to the ground, when a whirl-
wind came, in the shape of a dust-storm, and
raised the Child to heights unseemable, but
soon again lightly on His feet He descended
at the side of His mother.
Wildly she clasped Him in her arms and
kissed Him again, but He opened His baby
mouth to her eyes, and lo, the universe she
saw within!
And in that moment unto her it was revealed
that He, whom she called her son, was God
the Seed and Soul of the Universe ; the One
who all things knew, yet who was unknow-
able to all.
She also knew that the shadow He cast by
His great, universal Will was Maya, and the
offsprings or attributes of that Maya as de-
mons were known.
44
THE LORD OF LOVE.
And she knew that a demon it was, urged
on by Kangsa, that came in the shape of a
whirlwind to carry her Child away. And
that He who was all Love was mightier by
far than the offspring of shadow could be.
And thus the power of darkness again by
Love was overthrown ! All this she saw in
the space of a moment, and salutations she
made to her Lord.
But the Child only smiled and the mother
again saw but her Child. For how could the
woman, who suckled the babe, dwell long on
her Child and know Him as her Lord?
CHAPTER X.
THUS the childhood of Krishna was full of
what were considered wonderful miracles by
His family and the populace, but which, to
the Lord of the Universe, were but divinely
natural. The strength of the baby hands was
colossal. The" beauty' of the baby face was
entrancing/
His flesr "gaVe forth a lustre~and radiance
that rilled a darkened room with glory. The
wisdom that peered from His wondrous eyes
was full of loving mystery, and the touch of
His breath brought to the heart a love that
was ecstasy.
O Babe, that came to a desert of life, to
make it a garden of lilies and roses ! O Babe,
that brought to a weakened heart the Love
that conquered the world by its might !
O Babe, that came with a light on Thy
brow that filled the eye like the glow of the
sun, and brought on Thy breath the promise
46
THE LORD OF LOVE.
of Bliss which came to all those who breathed
where Thou dwelt!
All these Thou wert, yet a helpless babe in
the arms of those who reared Thee Thou
lay!
And naughty Thou wert and full of mis-
chief, too, stealing the golden butter, that stood
in shining rows, the pride of the dairymaids,
the Gopis, and feeding the same to the saucy
monkeys, that crowded around Thee, to help
Thee in Thy pranks !
Oh, wonder of Love and Might, Incom-
prehensible One ! Thou Omnipotence, who
the all-pervading energy of all art, and yet,
with eyes aslant, didst play the child to suit
Thine only sweet fancy, and in the midst of
men didst come to teach men Love and save
the world that was steeped in sin ! Thou who
wert Lord of the Lords of Yoga, this Thy
Yoga-power did startle the world when in it
Thou wert as a child !
On one occasion the Child became impatient
and fretful, because the mother failed to
suckle Him at His cry, and running amidst the
pots and churns where she had been working
47
SREE KRISHNA,
the butter, He cast them down to the earth,
breaking them into pieces and dividing the
sweet butter with the pets that followed the
Child wherever He went.
The mother, on being told of His mischief,
sought to punish Him by tying Him with a
cord to the husking-stand that stood near by.
The cord lacked two inches in its reach to
the bench; more cord she sought, and fasten-
ing it end to end, found still the two inches
missing.
Cord after cord she added thereto, but she
could not make the two ends reach.
Amazed and startled she gazed at the Child,
her hair dishevelled, her face flushed with
excitement, a great fear looking from her eye,
for what was this miracle, that prevented her
from spanning the reach of two inches ?
The Child, on seeing the troubled face of
His mother, allowed himself to be fastened.
And thus in disgrace he stood for a time,
till two trees in the distance attracted His
eye, and walking away in the reach of the
cords and drawing the husking-stand behind
Him, He stood between two huge arjuna
-18
THE LORD OF LOVE.
trees and, casting the cord about the trees,
He tore them up by the roots.
Down they came with a crash to the ground,
carrying with them all that was in their way.
And lo ! from the trees two fiery spirits ap-
peared, and saluting the Child, they prayed
and disappeared in a cloud of light.
For list! in the days of yore, when the
Saint Narada walked the earth, he passed the
stream where maid and youth made merry in
the waves.
At the passing by of the Saint, the youths
failed to salute him, but instead in bold arro-
gance laughed and called unto him, and rev-
erence had they none.
In the heart of the Saint a prayer arose,
that the youths who knew not respect towards
the saints that walked on earth to make men
holy, should be reborn as trees, yet as trees
to remember their past offence and dwell on
the folly thereof. But the Saint also prayed
that when He who was God came on earth,
He would remember the trees and sanctify
and free them by His Love-touch.
So when the Babe's eye spied the trees, He
49
SREE KRISHNA,
uprooted them both, to make good that prayer.
And by His touch the souls of the youths into
high heavens did rise, while He, the Child,
the great Deliverer of all souls that are born,
looked on and smiled, and the populace won-
dered at the fall of the trees, and marvelled
how the Child had been saved from death as
they crashed down beside him.
Blinded ones, who know not Love in its
mightiness and nearness!
Again, one day, little Krishna, romping
with the playfulness of His earth years, heard
the weak voice of a woman begging to sell her
wares of fruits. Lean were her hands and
shrunken her features, and her clothes were
poor and thin because of the length of time
they had been worn. Faint and quivering
the voice reached the ear of Krishna.
With the glance of Love that warmed her
heart, He bounded to her side, asking for
fruits and giving her paddy instead, when lo!
at the touch of His hand the face of the woman
beamed with the light of beauty, her voice as
with joy rang out, and her basket was heavy
50
THE LORD OF LOVE.
and filled with gems that blazed and glittered
in the noonday sun.
And laughing, the Child ran to his play-
mates and pets and divided the fruits with
them all.
51
CHAPTER XI.
Now came a time when the oldest and wisest
of the populace of the kingdom where Krishna
was reared bethought it best to take the won-
derful Child from the place where men mar-
velled at the wonder of Him and came from
far to look on His face.
And anxiety filled the hearts of the people,
who loved Him best, for His safety, as calam-
ity upon calamity came nigh Him; and
though no harm as yet did betide Him, yet was
it only a miracle that saved Him from the
child-killer, Putana.
And again only the hand of Vishnoo had
rescued Him from the fierce whirling dust-
storm, and the turning of the cart at his side,
and, last, the two trees that crashed at His
feet, yet touched not a hair of His beautiful
head.
52
THE LORD OF LOVE.
Yes, best by far it was to take away the
Child. So reasoned the elders, and Nanda
approved, and forth they went with attendants
and friends and all who lived in Gokula.
And a caravan they formed, the cowherds
driving the cows and calves before them, and
carts bearing- the women and children, and
the men beating the drums to the voices of the
women that broke forth in glad hopefulness.
And bright was the sky that spanned their
heads, and rich the forests through which
they passed, and life-giving the sun was, and
refreshing the winds were that greeted them
on the way to Brindaban.
And in the early days of their sojourn in
these rich forests' depths, tents they erected
which soon were overspread with creepers
that abounded in that place, and birds came
near and nested in the tendrils, and the wild
hare and shy deer nearer and nearer their new
friends came, till, all tamed they would feed
from the hands of the Gopis and played with
the children; and thus in peace and serenity
they lived in Brindaban.
Brindaban, the Land of Love and Holiness,
53
SREE KRISHNA,
the land where Krishna laughed and played,
the land that the centre became of all spirit-
uality, because of His sojourn there.
An ordinary boy, he walked with the boys,
as tender of cows and calves.
And in a little while the city of Brindaban
thrived, and a city of plenty it was to all who
therein lived.
But as time went on, even here the dread
calamities seemed to follow the boy Krishna.
For an Asura, sent by Kangsa, assumed the
form of a calf, and strayed among the calves,
hoping thus to elude the eye of the Child and
perhaps take Him unawares.
But hardly had he mixed with the herds
when Krishna pointed him out and strode to
where the calf was grazing. With easy grace
He lifted him by the hind legs and twirled him
high in the air, till lifeless the Asura was.
Then, 'midst the shouts of the cowherd boys
and companions, He lifted His face to the
skies, which opened wide to His smiling, eye.
54
CHAPTER XII.
IN the morn of summer, early, even before the
sun yet bathed the world with its golden
warmth, the companions of Krishna, aroused
from their slumber by the lowing of the cows,
would gather about the house of Nanda and
wait for Krishna to come from His bed and
go with them to the forest to tend the cows
and while away the sweet hours of long sum-
mer days with sporting and tales and long
rambles together.
And oft, as they waited about the gates of
the palace, Yasoda would speak to the waiting
boys:
"Ye children! my Krishna has not yet
opened His eyes to the light of the day; His
sleep is sound, nor will 1 4 wake Him, till of
His own will He comes from His bed; so go
with the cows and leave Him to me."
But the boys would not stir, but would still
wait His coming.
55
SREE KRISHNA,
But the joy left their eyes, because of their
longing to look at the Boy who was Love.
And loud were the cries that came from the
boys as they saw Him approaching and then
come in their midst, and He with the boys as
a boy would be.
And oft Yasoda, the mother, who reared
Him, would take Him aside and remonstrate
with Him thus : "O my Krishna, my son,
why wilt Thou thus spend Thy time with the
cows and the cowherds? A Son of the King
art Thou, O my boy, and Thy place is not there
with the cows in the pastures. Many servants
have we to see to the herds. Come, take Thou
Thy flute, bedeck thyself with garments and
ornaments as it doth behoove my son and a
prince."
Then Krishna, twining His arms round the
neck of His mother, with a world of glowing
love in His visage, would gaze far away into
the heart of His people and reply to her who
knew Him as son :
"O mother beloved! Well it is for Me, a
son of a king, with the people to be; though
55
THE LORD OF LOVE.
of the palace, yet is My place there where the
people call unto Me.
"A Tender am I of the Flock. O My mother,
and to them I must go, with them must I be
to teach them Myself and the Power of Love.
"Even now must I go to the calling hearts,
who madly seek Me and will not be satisfied
till again Me they see."
And Yasoda, the Mother, in amazement
gazed on the face of her son and understood
not His prattle that such wisdom held, but the
tears of fond pride rose to her eyes, as she saw
the love that came from the boy and enveloped
Him as a soft cloud of light.
And she kissed her son, seeing but in Him
a merry little child bounding and throbbing
with victorious health.
Onward He ran to greet His companions,
who were satisfied now as they beheld His
coming, and laughing the group went to the
forest.
They played, burying their bare feet in the
mosses, rolling in the sweet grass, clapping
their hands in the fulness of joy, and shout-
ing in very ecstasy of being.
57
SREE KRISHNA,
Never saw they in Him the son of a King.
They knew Him but as a cowherd boy who,
like them, tended the cows in pastures and
forests.
58
CHAPTER XIII.
AGAIN the cowherds, including Krishna, went
with their cows to give them drink, and also
to quench their own great thirst. Sporting on
the banks of the lake, they suddenly saw a
monster crane coming towards them, with
great flapping wings.
Affrighted they turned, all but Krishna, to
flee, but ere a moment had passed, the huge
bird had devoured Krishna.
But only an instant "He was lost to sight,
for before the boys knew what calamity had
come upon them, the bird in great haste gave
up the prey that brought to his throat the sen-
sation of burning. For when Krishna entered
his body it was as if liquid fire poured all
through him.
Then seeing Krishna again in the midst of
the boys, lo, with the beak and the talon he
again made for Him, but Krishna seized the
59
SREE KRISHNA,
beak with His hands and ripped the great body
in halves, even as women tear in half fine linen
which requires no effort, and the demon was
again allayed.
Again it happened that the boys with
Krishna sought the forests, in sport to engage.
While bounding in frolicsome play, they
beheld at a distance a huge serpent stretched
forth in its length, like a range of hills. Wide
open its mouth was, and close to the path of
the boys it lay.
In an instant within it they walked, all but
Krishna, who contemplated the monster, with
eyes full of power ; then straight into its jaws
He too went.
But now the hideous serpent writhed in pain
and, like monstrous bellows, its great sides
heaved; for Krishna had expanded within its
throat, till it expired, shaking all the earth in
its throes of death.
And the boys laughed in glee as out of the
great jaws of the serpent they walked.
But Krishna lifted His eyes to the sky and
illumined all the heavens became. For the
Dispenser of all Light destroyed the evil that
r,o
THE LORD OF LOVE.
sought to reign in that land where Love dwelt,
and with mighty strength He felled the feeble
hands of Evil to the ground. For, where
Krishna was, illumination was and darkness
could not draw life.
The deadly shade of Sin sought to blight
and blast the garden where Truth bloomed fair
and tall; but so ripe with Love it was that it
could not on that soil take root, to create its
evil nor yet prevent the good. For the
Knower of all that is knowable saw with His
all-seeing eye the spirit of every stress and
storm and laid it low ere its brewing began.
And thus His blessing gave increase to
plenty, and virtue it added unto good, and unto
them that loved in that realm of Love, stones
were as bread, and wormwood as sweetness
was.
Evil is sin and hateful to Love. And
Krishna had the longing and the power He
wielded to save His world from the pestilent
blast of the sin that in boldness sought to
destroy it.
As Love He came, the Maker of Man and
of the Universe, to rescue man, His creation,
from the rottenness of his own doings.
61
CHAPTER XIV.
AND Brahma, the Creator, witnessed the
miracles that Krishna, the Child and the
Youth, was performing hourly at His plays
and gambols, and marvelled if He the child
might be that was come to succour Mother
Earth in her trial.
Surely sometime, somewhere, in some place
it was said that the All-Wise Being, that was
over all, as a little child would be born among
men to save them from their blinded selves
and turn them Godward, looking towards
Home.
This he knew had been said. Was this
child the One, that the Eternity was He,
the Rememberer of all Beings and Things?
He would know it in proving the power of
His Yoga! For if this were the Absolute
Lord, He alone would be the Lord of the
Lords of all Yogis !
i
62
THE LORD OF LOVE.
Krishna, sitting with his boys in the forest,
discovered that the herds had disappeared from
their sight.
On seeing the alarm on the face of His
friends, Krishna exclaimed, "I Myself shall
fetch back the cows, so be not anxious, eat to
your fill of the fruit you are munching."
He searched and called, but the cows were
as vanished, and returning again to His play-
mates He found they too were missing.
Then a smile, as the sun doth break through
the clouds, shone on His face, and, with Yoga-
Maya, He divided Himself into cowboys and
cows and even into calves, and He Himself
leading them who were of Him, the All He
returned with the cows and the boys to the
village !
But, mark, when the boys, that were parts
of Krishna, Love-Manifest, ran to the arms of
their mothers, a thrill that was ecstasy played
through their beings, and never did mothers
love so their sons as the mothers who held to
their hearts the boys whom by His power He
had made from Himself!
63
SREE KRISHNA,
And so it was with the cows and the calves.
Those who milked the cows were wild with joy
to stroke their hides and feed them, and milk
of those cows as nectar was.
And Krishna stood with the cowboys among
the cows and smiled in His wisdom at them all.
Now Brahma knew that the boy was the
Lord, who as child to man had come, for by
his Yoga-power he had taken the cows and
calves and boys to a cavern and there put them
to sleep.
But Krishna, to prove Himself the greatest
in power, had divided Himself into boys,
cows, and calves, and for one year had been
'thus.
When Brahma saw this, from trance-sleep
he awoke the sleepers, and bowing low to the
feet of Krishna, salutation made and thus did
burst forth : "O Lord of all Love ! O Being
Supreme! O Source of all Life and Maker
of All ! Oft in the eyes of my Yoga, glimpses
of Thee have I caught and Thy loveliness and
majesty transcend all beauty.
"What is the merit of the earth, that Thou
shouldst bless it with Thy beautiful feet?
64
THE LORD OF LOVE.
"I have looked upon the earth and have seen
Thy Love in all things, but I perceived not
that Thou in Thy mercy wouldst live among
men, even as man.
"Through Thy coming each heart, that a
hovel in poorness was, into a palace of riches
has grown.
"Through Thy coming all flesh its grossness
has lost, since to the eyes of man Thou seem-
ingly walkest in the flesh.
"Thou who the centre of Thy radiance art,
yet walkest within that radiance! What is
the mystery of Thy great Self?
"Thou who teachest the bird to cleave the
sky and .hath made me the creater of earth and
continuest the motion thereof !
"Thou who the Concrete art and yet the
Abstraction thereof dost prove!
"Thou Mystery of all mysteries, the Secret,
the indistinct and yet the sublimely simple
Parent of the Universe !
"Thou who art the whole and yet the parts,
the immensity and yet the mote of things !
"A poor groveller am I at Thy feet in the
65
dust! Why hast Thou blessed me to know
Thee thus?
"Thou art the ocean of existence, and
Saints and Gods and men and all Thy crea-
tures are but the uncounted waves that play
and stretch and heave on Thy breast !
"From Thy abode hast Thou come of Thine
own sweet will to give unto all the power of
Thy Love.
"Dull were my eyes to behold not in Thee
the Lord, who stamped on all things the Name
of his Love and with the Name its potency too.
"O Thou all Beauty and Power and Sweet-
ness and Strength ! refuse me not the bliss to
dwell in homage at Thy feet !
"Thou, who art the cause of all things, who
stirrest the root and stem of all life into love,
who art the indestructible Truth of things,
Thee I meditate and worship forever."
66
CHAPTER XV.
IN the glad land of Brindaban, the land where
Love reigned supreme, because of the pres-
ence of Him who was Love Personified, who
was Love Incarnate and who as a Boy did
bless the world with His Being.
In that land, 'mid childish sport and glad-
some frolic, Krishna grew into beauty of
youth.
Day by day the land became more beautiful
in the joyous springtime, and one day His
brother Rama, he whose growing was beauti-
ful, and who, like Krishna, was marvelled at
for the wonder of his doings, said unto
Krishna :
"Does not the smell of the forest invite Thee,
O brother? Even here the air is heavy with
ripeness of the fruit, that the sweet spring-air
hath brought us. Shall we not go and pluck
from the trees and eat our fill of the fruits that
67
SREE KRISHNA,
are dropping on the ground in luxuriousness
but to become rotten ?"
"Gladly would we go," said the other boys,
"but we fear Dhenuka, of the demon family,
who dwelleth close thereby. It is said that he
hath taken the form of an ass and though
he seemeth harmless, yet hath he much power
for evil, which he wieldeth mightily, when he
hath a chance to do so. So, though we would
gladly partake of the fallen fruit, yet do we
fear him. But what sayest Thou, Krishna'
Thou canst, if Thou wilt, destroy all who are
filled with hate and evil. Wilt Thou and
Rama use your strength to proect us?"
"Let us away," quoth Krishna, and in a few
moments, heated and full of laughter, the boys
were shaking the trees for the golden-sided
fruit, which seemed to smile upon them in its
beauty of ripeness.
But at the first sound of happiness that
reached the ears of the ass, he rushed in the
midst of the youngsters and sought to destroy
them, making Rama and Krishna the special
objects upon which to vent 'his hatred and
strength.
THE LORD OF LOVE.
For a time both boys dodged hither and
thither, trying to turn aside the anger of the
ass ; but seeing that it would not be appeased,
Rama caught him by the hind legs and after
swinging him over the heads of the boys a few
times, he dashed his head against the tree and
proceeded to aid the boys in picking the fruit.
The braying of the ass had brought forth
the kith and kin of the Asura, who dwelt in
the forests with him ; but they, too, in a brief
struggle were killed by Rama and Krishna.
CHAPTER XVI.
IN those days, when Love was predominant
and held no place for that which overcame and
destroyed that which could not hold sway
there, because when love is strong and active,
then doth evil become feeble and weak and
slinketh away into darkness and deep places,
where the light of love cannot reach it to reveal
its blackness unto the light of the sky.
In the river, on whose bank Krishna, Rama
and the cowherd boys often sat and sang the
deeds of their hero, there dwelt a huge serpent
monster with a thousand hoods, who by the
venom of his hideous body did permeate the
water of the lake with deadly poison and filled
the air of the vicinity with a pestilent atmos-
phere that was deadly in its influence.
Krishna one day led the boys and cows to
this pool, and they, being athirst, drank of the
deadly water that lay still and without a ripple.
Ever is evil inviting in its outward calm.
70
THE LORD OF LOVE.
But lo! in an instant, the thousand-headed
monster lifted its hoods, and the deadly poison
having done its ghastly work, the boys and
cows lay on the bank lifeless, and motionless
they fell at the feet of Krishna.
With a glance of life-giving Love cast upon
the dead ones, Krishna walked to a tree that
was close by, while the boys, alive again, in
amazement and wonder gazed at each other,
forgetting, in the joy of the Love in the look
that Krishna had cast upon them, the moment
before.
On reaching the top of the tree, Krishna
stood for an instant and gazed at the boys,
His world and the serpent, and a light as of
molten gold seemed to come from that body,
more lovely than the sun to look upon.
Thus it was for a moment, then into the
deadly pool he plunged, while the thousand
heads of the serpent darted their venomous
tongues and struck the body till the boys fell
into unconsciousness and the cows groaned in
pain, and the men and women, with eyes bulg-
ing with fear and tearing their hair, almost
swooned at the sight of the boy, who was God,
71
SREE KRISHNA,
crushed in the poisonous embrace of the mon-
ster; yet, even as stricken with horror, they
gazed.
Krishna a glance like light on them cast,
and breaking away from the grasp of the mon-
ster, He lightly sprang upon its hooded head
and danced like the stars upon its hoods, till
one by one low they were laid ; and vomiting
blood that was thick and black, defeated and
broken, the monster sank beneath the waves.
And with a bound Krishna stood in the
midst of His friends who knelt at His feet.
Then they drew Him within their arms, in the
madness of joy at His safety.
72
CHAPTER XVII.
OH, grand was the sight of Love, crushing out
Hate from the land, and the Gods sang and
shouted and crowded together to see Sin con-
quered and Virtue grow strong!
Yasoda and Nanda, with the Gopas and
Gopis maddened with delight, took Krishna
home, while the heavens opened and scattered
flowers to carpet His path.
And forever the lake was free from the
venom the serpent had cast, and the near-by
atmosphere purified was from the pestilent in-
fluence that hovered about there. For the
monster at Krishna's command had departed
and sought no more to injure the land.
But so great was the happiness that over-
flowed the heart of all, in 'leading the boy
triumphant through the forest, that they tar-
ried awhile in the glow of the moon, in their
joy to behold the beauty that filled the night.
73
SREE KRISHNA,
But far in the distance a light was seen that
spread wider and broader its glow, and higher
its flame leapt, and every second nearer and
nearer yet it came, like a living sheet of fire.
And so it was. A castor plantation a burn-
ing world had become and quickly surrounded
the merrymakers, who held in their midst the
joy of their hour, and they cried in a fright:
"O Krishna, Thou Child or God, whatever
Thou art, protect us from this death in this
roaring flame. We care not for our lives, O
Krishna, for they are thine by our love for
Thee, but oh, the anguish the parting would
mean to die and not see Thy face again ! Oh
Thou, who by Thy strength dost slay the
Asuras and drive from the land the serpent all
powerful, save us from this, the parting with
Thee and Thy loved companion Rama, he that
is most like Thee. O Most Lovely One, de-
liver us, we pray !"
Light as a leaf in the wind the Boy bounded
to meet the coming flames. For a moment
He stood in the seething sea of fire and lifted
His hand on high, and lo, the fire was not
74
THE LORD OF LOVE.
but the flames were seen to enter His mouth !
And again, with dancing and singing praise
to the Boy, they made for His home with joy
and delight.
75
CHAPTER XVIII.
ONE summer day Krishna and Rama and their
companions in the shade of the trees were
a-sporting among themselves, when they saw
coming toward them a stranger, a boy, clad as
a tender of cows.
He joined in the games and soon all were
merry, but Krishna, the knower of all, and the
all-seeing One, in him beheld an Asura, named
Pralamba, who had come in their midst to
bring calamity, though friendship he feigned.
Krishna proposed a game to be played by
dividing the boys into equal numbers and fight-
ing, in sport, one with the other. Krishna was
chosen the leader on one side and Rama the
leader on the other.
The defeated side, it was proposed, must
carry on their backs the winners of the vic-
torious side, and so the play began.
Krishna's side was defeated, and it was
76
THE LORD OF LOVE.
ordered that, among others, Pralamba, the
Asura, carry Rama on his back.
Away went the boys, each defeated one car-
rying on his back a winner.
Suddenly the boys heard Rama's voice
shouting to them, and behold, the Asura, by
black magic power, a giant had become and
was flying through the forest with Rama on
his back !
Krishna looked at them, then shouted to
Rama : "Brother, forget not that Thou art
Vishnoo and that I am here !"
In an instant all fear left the heart of Rama,
and remembering who and what he was, he
was filled with Almighty power and felled the
giant with a heavy blow ; and the play went on
as before.
Another time the cows strayed into the for-
ests and were overtaken by a great conflagra-
tion, and like wild beasts they leaped and bel-
lowed through the forest.
The boys followed and called, but onward
the cows plunged, nor heeded their voices, till
Krishna's voice they heard; then turning they
gathered about Him, seeing naught but the
77
SREE KRISHNA,
love and power in His eyes. For the brute is
ever stilled by the might of Love ; unlike man
it knoweth its power and yieldeth to its force.
But the boys still turned towards Krishna,
full of fear of the conflagration that threatened
to envelop them. He looked at them all, and
their fear was allayed. Then He gazed at the
fire and asked the boys their eyes to close.
This they did, and when they looked again,
the flames were no more to be seen.
Such was the Yoga-power of Sree Krishna,
and the boys seeing His wonderful acts knew
that Krishna was more than boy.
And joyous were they and gathered flowers
and leaves that grew in great abundance at the
foot of the trees, and they all wove them into
garlands of white, purple, and red, and wound
them about Krishna's neck, and also bedecked
each other with flowers and threw wreaths
about the cows' necks and the calves' and
homeward they wended their way in the twi-
light, just as the sun was sinking to rest.
The birds ceased their sleepy chirp and
opened their eyes wide, and sleep left the
flowers that nodded near the roadside, and the
78
THE LORD OF LOVE.
sun stood in space a moment to watch the pro-
cession that galloped down the road.
Krishna, the Beautiful, came in the lead,
bedecked and beflowered. The spirit of life
He was, with a transfiguring glory in His face,
and His eyes full of softness and love-light,
His body all graceful in curves to behold, yet
strong in the vigor of youth, that shone
through its grace.
With His hands on the necks of His two
favorite cows, those who ever followed Him
about as a child, the white on His right side,
the black on His left, homeward they ran, while
the white dust arose and covered and caressed
them ; one after the other, each bedecked with
garlands, and each boy between two cows, who
like them were wreathed with wild flowers.
And the elder Gopis and Gopas held their
breath at the sight, so entrancing, that reached
their eyes at the home-coming of the boys and
their cows, bedecked and beflowered with the
sweet wild flowers, and headed by Him whom
they loved.
CHAPTER XIX.
THUS spring ripened into summer and autumn,
and again the rolling seasons touched upon the
heels of one another; and Krishna grew into
greater beauty with each season of His earthly
career.
More and more the people of Brindaban be-
came absorbed in Him. The young and old,
those near and far, looked upon Him as one
without whom they could not exist.
And so it was, the complete whole was He
of whom they were but parts, and ever were
they reaching to again find the Heart out of
which they had sprung.
His smile was to them the sun that warmed,
His words the flowers which filled them with
joy, His deeds the fruits which satisfied the
hunger of their hearts.
The very quick of their lives He was; and
nothing lived, breathed, bloomed, or grew in
Brindaban, from the people to the cattle, creep-
THE LORD OF LOVE.
ing things and all that grew, that did not draw
life from the Lord that dwelt as Youth among
them.
And the milk-maids, who in loving com-
panionship oft with him roamed to the hillside
where with the other boys he tended the cattle,
would in fond love contemplate the Youth,
knowing not what the potency was that drew
them, forgetful of all duties, to His side.
And among themselves they would speak
thus: "Oh, how sweet is the hillside, when
Krishna is near, how sublime is His coun-
tenance and His eyes how beautiful with pierc-
ing love-light filled! Serene doth He stand,
yet bewilderingly entrancing is the joy that
comes to our souls by His glances that seek us
in softness and kindness."
"Was aught as beautiful," they were wont
to say, "as our Krishna, clothed in blue and
gold, with the crown of peacock feathers on
His brow and a garland of fresh flowers fes-
tooned from His shoulders? Why is it, that
flowers that girdle Him thus never fade or
wither or die, but deeper their colors and
stronger their petals and sweeter their fra-
81
SREE KRISHNA,
grance are, when in contact with Him they
have come ? And the fields where He walketh,
see how they smile and give their treasures in
greater abundance ! And the rivers close by,
they rise high on our land, as if to dwell longer
on our banks, because our Krishna is here.
"At the notes of his flute, all exquisite, whose
potent spell must charm all the living, see how
His cattle do greet Him and tremble and thrill
at the sound of the music ! And even the un-
tamed things of the forest, with wistful look
and nostrils spread, unbidden and unafraid,
do stand on the crest of the hill, as if drawn
and subdued by the influence of His love-
sound !
"Oh, the sound of His flute is proof against
the iron-moulded mind and can soothe a very
giant of fierceness into gentleness by its sweet-
ness ! Checked is every fear, and rebellion is
laid low in every heart, and a kingdom of love
every home becomes wherein that sound hath
pierced. Ofttimes it seemeth that time itself
doth suit its step to keep pace with its rhythm,
for, note ye not, how the sun doth stand, loath
to move, lest the sight and sound it loseth ?
82
THE LORD OF LOVE.
"Oh, why are we not the flute He holds to
His lips! Blessed beyond all things it is, for
His kisses it receives, and drinks the nectar of
His love to its fill. What wonder that it joys
to give the sound forth that His breath doth
make !
"Or, why are we not the trees, under which
- He sitteth and whose branches He counteth
with happy gaze, or even the grass, where He
reclineth, that hath the dear privilege to caress
His sweet body in lowly love? But we can
only look on His face and die with longing,
when from Him we go."
Thus spake the maids, but their tongues
could not tell what bliss overflowed the heart,
welling up with love for Him, who wakened
in every heart the love that was all divine,
from the babe's first smile to the man who
looked first on the glorious earth, and then to
the arched sky, and then in His heart, and
found there a sum of love that was all bliss.
In Krishna, the Youth, who played the flute
in the forests by night, on the hillside by day,
in Him, who charmed all that was, they beheld
the fulness of Love.
83
SREE KRISHNA,
He gave them and received all bliss. He
was the Spring of Love that had the more for
the giving. He satisfied the most when many
did draw from His well-spring.
To the heart of all mothers He came as a
child, and in tenderness and joy they caressed
Him as such. Like a flower dropped untouched
from heaven they held Him.
The men He approached as a friend and a
son, and gave and received the love that they
craved and felt.
The servant too He met in the way He
sought to be known, and by Him he was served
and did serve.
Thus to all He gave what they craved to
have. Unstinted, unfettered He was in the
giving, and none was there in all that land
that sought and could not find what their hearts
did seek.
And to the maids who opened their pure
young hearts for the all-enduring mysterious
love, He gave, of His inexhaustible source, the
sweet touch that harmonized all tilings and
made the heaven and earth to meet.
All kindred were they, for He was their
84
THE LORD OF LOVE.
Parent, and their love was but part of His holy
flame.
And with the light from that flame there
awakened within them that which knew but
Love, which was but Love; and Krishna it
was who filled all their being, and outward
consciousness to them was lost.
Hail to thy maiden-love, O Gopi ! Thy love
the triumph of man and God ! The crown of
Time's blessedness it was ! O climax of Hap-
piness Complete !
85
CHAPTER XX.
WHEN the days of fasting came, the Gopis, as
the Scriptures commanded, began their wor-
ship by taking their baths in the sacred river
Jumna.
O happy waves, more holy made by the
maids, who stood in prayers in thy beds and
threw on thy bosom the sweetest flowers that
grew where Krishna's feet had fallen !
Thus they worshipped each day for a month
in the early morn ere the sun was seen, singing
on their way the songs of love and praise for
Krishna, who was the first and the last and
middle of all their day.
One morning whilst sporting and singing in
the clear cooling waters, they beheld on the
limbs of a tree close by the youth Krishna,
enthroned in its branches and holding their
wearing apparel in His hands.
Crowned as usual with flowers was He, but a
look all majestic was in His eye.
86
THE LORD OF LOVE.
Affrighted with shame they begged for their
garments, but Krishna replied: "Come and
get your garments either in a body or singly,
O damsels, and salute to the sun shining over
My head as near you approach."
For a moment they hesitated; then that
which as a shadow had crossed their heart,
and is known as shame, departed from them,
and saluting forward they came in a body led
by Radha, the loveliest and chiefest of the
milk-maids, and dripping and lovely before
Him they stood. Completely they had surren-
dered their human will to the will of Him who
was Divinity.
Selfless, unyoked from all that was worldly,
before Him they stood. Uncovered and free
as they came from His Heart, again on that
Heart they gazed unashamed, for their souls
were not covered with vice, or with piety, or
even with -virtue, but were bare as the Love
upon which they looked.
They received the garments that He for them
had. He, Krishna, the source of pure Love
was, and His garments to them were spiritual
purity, and clothing themselves with the
87
SREE KRISHNA,
clothes of His giving, they joyfully went to
the homes of their fathers.
While Krishna, surveying His world, was
enthroned in His kingdom of Love, and as the
Gopis came to the feet of Him, who was the
author of all Love, so all must come empty
and free from all earthly desires to accept that
Love for Love's sake.
For naught cared the Gopis but Krishna,
desiring naught else beside ! So only can Love
Absolute be gained in absolute self-surrender.
He who would have that Love that is its own
enjoyment, that Love that a universe unto
itself is, doth not find it easy to obtain it by
merit of piety or even the fruition of highest
spirituality.
The bounds of all spirituality it must pass
to become the Absolute and Causeless Love.
Where spirituality ends, there causeless Love
doth begin !
All love that hath a cause is of earth ! Love
that hath even a high spiritual cause is limited
in scope, and such love may vanish when its
cause is removed.
88
THE LORD OF LOVE.
But the Love that is Causeless, All Endur-
ing is.
It fadeth not, neither doth it pass away, but
by day and by night and throughout all time
it waketh and accumulateth ever, for it is the
Love Absolute !
From the souls of the Gopis the last trace
of heaven and earth had vanished, and being
resplendent with the glory of this Love Abso-
lute, of the Love that was unto itself substance
and satisfaction, was the causeless cause for
this Gift of all gifts from the hand of Him
who alone could bestow it and alone was that
Love Itself.
CHAPTER XXI.
THE summer sun beat down fiercely upon the
Gopas and the cattle, when Krishna turned to
them, saying :
"See the wonder of these trees! Kind, be-
yond expression, are they. They ask for
naught, but what the earth, sky, and sun, the
night and day give unto them ; yet in all loyalty
they grow and give shade unto us, and unto all
that wish to partake of their shade.
"Their fruits also do they give and their bark
and leaves and juices, to all who desire it.
"So should man also be, but few are there
among men that live but to bestow blessings
upon others.
"Yet unto you, I say: O my loved com-
panions, only unto them that give of their
abundance to all that come within their radius,
unto them alone is life a blessing and not a
curse.
"All men are placed here not of their own
90
THE LORD OF LOVE.
free will, not yet unto themselves, but by the
will of Love and for others.
"And only as the law of give and take is
set in operation among men, is man living a
natural life.
"Ofttimes doth the man wonder why he is
unto himself a huge perplexity.
"It is only when he forgets his relationship
to all mankind that his life a riddle is, and
this being so, he comprehendeth not the
Maker of himself nor the universe, and failing
to do so, how can he know life aright?"
After sporting among themselves, the boys
spoke to Krishna, saying:
"O Krishna ! a-hungered are we ; where, oh
where shall we find food? Canst Thou not
assist us?"
And Krishna answered them, saying: "Go
thou yonder where many Brahmans are per-
forming religious ceremonies ; go to them and
in My name say unto them to supply us with
food. Say unto them that Krishna is wanting,
and ask them therefor."
The boys went; but when they delivered
unto them the message of Krishna, the Brah-
91
SREE KRISHNA.
mans answered not, neither gave them the food
they wished, but proceeded with the cere-
monies that were to give them the taste of
Heaven, after the breath had left their bodies.
Tired and half famished the boys returned
unto Krishna and told Him of their failure to
obtain food and also of the indifference with
which the Brahmans had received His message.
Then Krishna smiled wisely and told them
to hurry to the wives of the Brahmans. He
knowing that women are ever devotional and
have illumination, while ofttimes men in dark-
ness are.
And so it was. On hearing Krishna's re-
quest, they themselves hastened to Him, in
spite of the protestations and threats of the
men of the families, and brought food of the
finest sorts unto Him, and prostrating them-
selves before Him, spake: "O Krishna!
Thou Maker of all there is ! Blessed are we
and ours that Thou hast called upon us to
serve Thee! We know Thee, O Krishna, as
one greater and nearer to us than our husbands,
brothers and fathers; and even at the risk of
their displeasure to us, we come to Thee to
92
THE LORD OF LOVE.
lay at Thy feet our poor offerings and our
hearts."
Krishna answered: "O women! Noble
and true are ye to Me. Ye in your devotions
have learned to know Me as your soul !
Dearer to ye am I, even than father, husband
and friends, hence at the risk of even their
displeasure do yet seek to serve Me.
"I draw unto Me all that reach towards Me !
Blessed are ye among men ! Go back to those
who are performing the ceremonies and aid
them in their rituals. Kindly shall they receive
ye, and unto them will ye take My love even
as unto ye all I bestow it."
When He saw the reluctance with which
they departed from Him, He said: "Know
that in the Kingdom of Love separation can-
not be, and whatever heart doth meditate on
Me, in that heart I dwell in all My glory.
"Again, oh know, that by deeds I reckon
ever and not by words. Ye have served Me by
deeds, your husbands in their ignorance by
words alone. But do ye go unto them and
they too shall know and love the Name of
Krishna."
ye
SREE KRISHNA.
And the women returned unto their hus-
bands who received them with demonstrations
of pleasure, and they too worshipped Krishna
in their homes and hearts.
94
CHAPTER XXII.
WHEN the summer was over, one day Krishna
saw that great preparations were being made
for the celebration of ceremonies in honor of
one of the gods.
Clothed in seeming ignorance, Krishna said
to Nanda :
"Why these preparations, O father, and for
whom are they made, and what is the potency
thereof? Is it a custom that through all time
hath been observed, or, tell me, do the Scrip-
tures demand that these ceremonies be held?"
Then Nanda, answering, said : "We offer
to-day sacrifices to him, the go3 of the clouds,
to him who watereth our hill-sides and giveth
drink to our crops and out cattle, to him, Indra,
the god who promoteth all growth by the bless-
ing of rain, which he doth supply. A jealous
,god is he, O my Krishna, and desires that cere-
ononials and sacrifices often are made ; and we
95
SREE KRISHNA,
in all humbleness strive to appease him, that
in his wrath he may not withhold the moisture
from our land, nor yet flood us with over much
rain."
Then Krishna replied: "My father, He,
who is the Author of All, doth give unto all
what is needed.
"He that in wrath withholdeth a blessing, he
never the love of creation hath known; nor
doth he destroy what he hath created.
"For the Creator doth ever love His cre-
ation; for that, which from Him hath come,
must forever belong to Him and the part is of
His Great Whole.
"So Indra cannot curse this land by over-
much rain or dearth of it.
"But, O my father, tell the Gopas and Gopis
to cease the preparations and worship not one
who would destroy that which he should for-
ever bless.
"But come to the hillside that entwines our
land, the hills and plains that furnish us with
sustenance for our cattle, and to the forests,
too, where fruits grow in plenty and give of
their abundance to all who but take it.
96
THE LORD OF LOVE.
"Come there and give to the hill and the trees
our sacrifices of joy and love, and feed the
cows with offerings of fresh grasses, and walk
with me around the hill in ceremonial pro-
cession and we shall see their worth and their
kindness."
They did so, and Krishna said unto them :
"I am the Hill and the good that therefrom
doth come." And his body became of a height
and length that the eye of man scarce could
measure, and said : "Do ye salute it and par-
take of its good!"
At that the rain poured down from the skies
in fearful abundance and the people in fear fled
to their houses, afraid of the wrath of Indra.
Seven days it poured and threatened to flood
all the land. But Krishna smiled at the wrath
of Indra, as he poured down his mighty rains
and rolled his thunder in threatening claps
above the heads of the affrighted people, who
had dared to neglect the sacrifices to him who
through all ages had been honored by them.
In their calamity the people sought out
Krishna, whom they found at the foot of the
hill Gobardhana.
97
SREE KRISHNA,
The light of His body lit the darkness of
night far more than the flashes of Indra's
wrath that in lightning burst forth. "O
Krishna !" they cried, "Thou who by Thy Yoga
power can assume the form of a mountain at
will, Thou who dost drive from the path of
Thy feet all that unlike Thy sweet will is, save
us from the wrath of him who even now doth
seek to drive us from out of life."
And Krishna lifted His hand and eye, and
lo, all their fear was allayed.
Then all the world grew light as day from
the glory that radiated from His body, and by
His Yoga power He lifted the hill itself from
off its base and held it on high, on the tip of
his fifth finger, even as the beetle doth hold on
his horns the leaf that covereth him com-
pletely.
The people gathered beneath the hill with
their children and cattle. Seven days they
were there, and seven days Krishna held the
hill above their heads, while the light that came
from His smile illuminated all the space be-
tween the hill and its foundation.
Then Indra, amazed, looked down from his
98
THE LORD OF LOVE.
clouds and knew that the Lord of All was
there, and had baffled his attempt to destroy
what He, the Lord of all Love, had created.
And the rain ceased its downpcuring and the
rivers became calm and the sun in its glory
burst forth again. And flowers uplifted their
water-drenched heads and the trees sprang
back storm-tossed no more.
And Krishna said to those whom he had
sheltered :
"Depart in peace, and fear no more the wrath
of him who thought to destroy where he could
not give life."
And Indra, the god of the clouds, descended
to earth, and falling at the feet of Him, in ab-
ject humility said :
"O Lord ! Thou art the Holy One ! Puffed
>2
up and proud was I in my power and saw my-
self greater even than Thou.
"Well know I now that Love is the greatest
power; and I, in my smallness of godship,
insolent and destructive became. I sought the
praise that is ever due to Thee,, O Lord of
Love; for unto resistless Love alone praise
should be given. But my vanity and pride I
99
SREE KRISHNA,
tried to shield by the power which Thou didst
endow me with.
"I thought that I it was who brought the
life to all trees and by my power kept the hills
in green and the forests in wondrous foliage,
and gave drinks to the cows and plenty to the
rivers. And for it I longed to see men per-
form the ceremonies and pray to me.
"But to Thee, O Lord of Love! is due all
the glory; by Thee alone am I invested with
power. Do Thou in Thy greatness forgive me,
while I in humbleness do bow to Thy Lotus
Feet."
And Krishna threw a glance at Indra that
filled him with a great wild joy, and said :
"O Indra! Though I invested thee with
sovereignty by My will, be not overfull of
pride! For this I have stopped the cere-
monies, so that thou mayest learn to know Me,
whom thou in thy prosperity hadst quite for-
gotten.
"Go to thy abode, Indra, rule thy dominion ;
but know ever that pride and vanity are with-
out power, and that Love alone is mighty.
100
THE LORD OF LOVE.
"To lighten the burdens of all My world, I
have come to earth.
"I now lift from thee the load which hath
caused thee to forget Me, and, in forgetting
Me, to have lost the beauty which was born
of Me."
And with the halo of joy about him, Indra
returned to his abode, endowed with greater
power.
101
CHAPTER XXIII.
AND now autumn,* the sweetest and richest
season of all the glad year, had come ; and the
brow of Brindaban was fair to look upon.
Peace and love stood on every threshold and
walked on every roadway, and all lifted up
their voices, and the words of their gladness
was LovCj Love !
In the hearts of all the song rose and showed
them pleasant ways and haunts that ended in
Bliss. Men knew gratitude and justice, which
are the attributes of Love.
Love walked on earth and left its blessing in
its trail ! The flowers whispered their love to
one another and the dew clung closer to their
petals, because of the warmth of their love.
All the land seemed to have ripened into the
deepest beauty, for the Beauty of Love here
was King.
* The first part of the Indian Autumn which comes after the Rainv
Season.
102
THE LORD OF LOVE.
And Krishna was King; and reigned in every
heart, and all bowed before the majesty of the
beauty of His Love.
A substitute it was for all things and satisfied
the want of each heart, entrancing every object
and person by its beauty.
O wonder of Love, that expanded each soul
and made it a world of joy and bliss !
In this happy time, when the moon was full,
Krishna recalled a promise He had made to
the Gopis to reward them richly for their love
for Him.
So, taking His flute, He went to the forests
and stood on the brow of the hill.
All about the white moonlight lay, bathing
in silver the fruit trees in blossom; soft the
winds were, and rich the fragrance that they
brought on their breezes.
The noises of night alone could be heard.
And surveying His world with love-filled
eyes, Krishna took up His flute and poured
forth the strains that never were heard by man
or god until that night on the moon-kissed hill,
when all Brindaban in peace did smile.
At the sound of those strains, all earth was
103
SREE KRISHNA,
thrilled in ecstasy. The rocks melted in love;
the trees trembled, and the flowers fell on the
earth, and men and beasts all pain forgot.
And the Gopis knew that Call of Love. Nor
heeded they duties, or father, or husband, or
children, but turning their heart to the sound of
the flute, they followed their heart to Krishna's
Feet.
At the first note, she who was feeding her
household, dropped her food and followed the
sound ; and she who was nursing her babe, put
her babe from her breast and answered the
call ; another came with toilet incomplete.
All forsook duties, husband and children, to
find Him who drew them by the sound that was
made by His Love.
Separately they came, none observing the
other. Over thorns and briars and stones they
walked; sharp twigs caught their hair,
branches detained them; yet heeded they not
these obstacles, but onward they went with
hands torn and feet bleeding and garments
rent and missing, till they stood at the hill
where Sree Krishna played and drew from the
104
THE LORD OF LOVE.
flute the music entrancing, at which all the
rocks and earth did thrill.
With eyes maddened with love they gazed on
Him there ! A wondrous vision was He !
The light of the noon-day radiated from
Him, and His beautiful eyes with mysterious
glances fell on their souls like holy balm !
And at that glance their souls were en-
tranced and deepened and became as if one
with Him and drank of the love that from
Him poured ; and all that in them unlike
Him was, became as pure as He.
And that which in them unlike that Love
was, from out of their hearts had flown ; and
made pure and transparent in that glad place,
they drank of that love which doth chain all
creation to its Creator Love.
Entirely blessed, they sought no more, nor
hoped they more ; for each held Perfection in
her eyes, and each knew Perfect Love in her
heart.
105
CHAPTER XXIV.
SILENT they stood and gazed on the Beauty,
the concentrated love of a world in each eye.
A spiritual force that swept from its path all
matter was theirs, as they beheld that Centre
to which their hearts did gravitate.
The strains of the flute that made the
heaven to bend to the earth, that brought the
stars closer to the hillsides, and drew the gods
from their abodes of light, had ceased; and
the voice of Him that was All-Love fell on the
ears of the Gopis in sound a* sweet as the
flute's dear strains :
"O Gopis mine, maids of Braja ! My peace
and greeting be with you all! But why are
ye 'here one and all ? Tell Me this !
; "The hour is late, and your homes at a dis-
tance are, and the forests are dark, and wild
beasts are in plenty. And alone ye have come
without husband, or father!
"What is it, pray tell Me, that brings you
106
THE LORD OF LOVE.
here ? Is it love for Me that brings you here ?
I draw all to Myself and all love Me.
"But, O Gopis dear, the Scriptures ever have
said that the chaste woman leaveth not her
husband, father and babe, to look on the face
of a youth.
"Pure are your hearts, I know ; but it is not
good that ye come to Me, and it looseneth your
chances to reach that place where all of your
hearts do long to dwell, when to your bodies
ye have said farewell.
"Perhaps ye have come to see the forest, sil-
vered by the autumn full moon ! Or mayhap
to greet the breezes that come from the hill-
sides! Or the blossoms of the trees that
grace its sides to behold! If this be so, now
ye have seen them, depart to your homes, lest
the hearts of your friends be alarmed at your
absence."
The bevy of women, that crowded about
Him, grew pale with pain and ashen with fear.
Tears came to their eyes and anxiety to their
souls, as they heard the words of Him who
was all in all to them ; till one, more brave than
the rest, broke forth:
107
SREE KRISHNA,
"O Lord, for the Master of Love art Thou,
send us not away from Thy side. All have we
left to serve Thee, our Master. Husbands have
we, and fathers and brothers, but to Thee
alone we belong. They are but the keepers of
our earthly bodies : Thou art the custodian of
our souls.
"Our souls are Thine, for Thou art the Soul
from which we came ; and panting we come to
find again the Home wherein to rest.
"Difficult art Thou to find, O Lord ! and now
we have found Thee, Oh thrust us not from
Thy "Lotus Feet, we who find our joy and hap-
piness in Thee!
"Thy flute hath drawn us from our homes !
Oh, suffer us to remain with Thee and know
Thee as Thou art ! Unable are we to live with-
out Thy love, O Lord ! and our duties of home
cannot engage us since our minds are ever con-
templating Thee.
"If Thou sendest us away, we shall die. Be
Thou kind to us, Thy servants, and grant us
to serve Thee with our Love."
Then singing into their midst He came, He
the Lord of the Highest, the Lord of Love and
108
THE LORD OF LOVE.
Lord of the Lowest and Lord of Mercy ! And
with mighty Love swayed He all alike. And
each self was forgotten and Love alone was.
Now singing in chorus, now dancing, now
skipping, the Lord and his maidens in those
forest groves roamed, till the river was
reached.
Then, from over-much pleasure, proud each
maid became, and her simple joy to vanity was
turned because thus she was favored by
Krishna, the youth Krishna, the Heavenly
One, Krishna, the Glorious of all glorious
ones!
He, noting this, to punish the sin of vanity,
in swiftness from them vanished ; and with his
going the sin was gone.
Maddened by love, the maids pleaded to the
skies and the trees and the flowers for Him,
who was their life. But still He came not.
So absorbed in Him they became, them-
selves they forgot, and even as Krishna they
thought they were. And imitating His acts
they cried to one another : "Lo, I am Krishna !
See, I hold the mountains on high! Lo,
109
SREE KRISHNA,
Putana I slay and baffle the rage of Indra
with my power !" And still came He not.
Then they sang His praises, then with
breaking hearts they wailed and prayed for
Him to return to their midst. At this He
came, for ever is the Lord most kind to the
lowly and sorrowing.
And He soothed their grief and brought
light to their hearts; and forming a circle
about Him, in ecstasy they danced. And now
He, that was the King of the upper world and
of all the earth, of the plants and oceans and
clustering stars, He, the Lord of all might and
Yoga power, Himself divided into many
Krishnas; and each Gopi thought she, herself,
danced alone with the Glorious One that as
Krishna was known.
And the dance began lightly, then madder
became ; and He who had come on earth to
teach man Love, manifested Himself in every
maid that lightly and rarely stepped at His
side, as they danced in that grove on that won-
drous night.
And the lotus blossoms wept tears of nectar
on seeing the dance, and birds and bees from
110
THE LORD OF LOVE.
unknown trees and flowers came forth and
whirled round and round the heads of the
dancing ones.
And the heavens showered blossoms rare,
and the gods who had stolen from their abode
to watch the Feast of Love that Krishna gave
to the lovely milkmaids, lo, senseless became
at the first sight of that revel of Bliss !
And night throbbed and panted and forgot
to draw its curtain to let day in, but lengthened
into aeons.
The veil from every Gopi's eye was drawn,
and they gazed into the ocean of active spirit-
uality and spiritual became. And all sin that
were theirs no more was there.
And in that mighty dance a flood of spirit-
uality went forth that took from the heart of
men and the bosom of earth the sins with
which they were burdened withal. And men's
hearts were won by the force of that Love and
were led to the door of that sacred abode,
where only the loving may go.
And the Gopis, who by force were detained
and could not come to the dance with Krishna,
lo, in meditation sat, and in deep pain concen-
m
SREE KRISHNA,
trated on Him, and in that dance they were at
His side and felt His love-embrace, and all
their sins were as naught.
For to touch Krishna, with the mind alone,
was to gain spirituality and stand pure in His
eyes.
So in those hours of intensest happiness the
world gained what for births it had striven to
gain. And active love was ripe among mor-
tals, and that love had wiped all sin away.
And when the last ray of the moon was seen,
into the waters of the laughing river they
plunged; and ere the sun with ardent eye did
awaken the sleeping Brindaban, each maiden
singing homeward went, transformed into a
being of unalloyed love.
112
CHAPTER XXV.
IN the forest grove of moonlight, where the
river sweetly hummed, where the nightbird's
plaintive chant broke in ecstasy the silence,
where the drooping flowers opened wide their
sleep-kissed eyelids to the night and beheld the
wondrous vision of the dancing maids and
Krishna,
In that hour when every maiden felt her
heart grow big to bursting for the love that
in her swelled up in that hour, when every
maiden saw beside her Glorious Krishna, with
His brow made fair with flowers and His loins
wreathed with lotus, when the heart of each
sweet maiden foolish grew, because of pride,
as she saw the one All Beauteous, lightly
treading at her side to the music of the dance,
One there was of all those Gopis, she the
chiefest of them all, one who knew naught else
but Him ; every thought of self had vanished,
every thought of aught but Him.
113
SREE KRISHNA,
At His side she lightly stepped nor felt the
grass 'neath her feet, nor knew the strains of
rapturous music that fell like wine upon each
heart ; all she knew was Love was there,
naught but this remembered she.
To the winds that came from hillsides, to
the shadows that the trees cast, did she whis-
per over and over that confession of her love,
till over-weighed by the sweet burden, did the
winds, in languorous love, chant and sigh,
then die in silence.
And the shadows of the trees trembled at
the depth of love that the maid did whisper to
them as He passed them in the dance.
Radha was she, youthful, lovely, she, His
playmate of the forest, she, with love-look in
her face, she, the Queen of Love among them,
giving all and asking naught.
By the mighty will of Him she had come on
earth to dwell, she, who ever reigned with Him
in Glory, she now walked with Him on earth.
She, the fairest of these maidens, she the
rarest of them all, knowing Love in its in-
tensity, living all its bliss.
And when He, the Lord of Love, vanished
114
THE LORD OF LOVE.
from the dancing Gopis, she, sweet Radha,
with Him vanished.
And they wandered in the deep groves, these,
the Twain, Who in Glory dwelt, she the lov-
ing, He the Lover, both the Blissful, both the
Purest.
He the dew-kissed flowers gathered, twin-
ing them about the maiden. But the flowers
in their beauty were not half as fair as she;
and sweet Radha, pearl of maidens, gazed with
love-light in her eyes, knowing naught was
half so lovely as the hands that placed them
there.
Thus they roamed in shadowy moonlight,
rested here in softened shadows, chanting love-
songs to each other, knowing naught but pure
delight, till a-wearied with her roaming,
Radha begged to cool her feet in the smiling
waves of Jumna, that she spied there in the
moonlight.
Krishna, greatest of all lovers, lightly
stooped to lift the maiden, and in loving arms
to bear her where the smiling waters rippled.
But within the breast of Radha, at that act,
115
SREE KRISHNA,
pride sprang to being, and within that home
of Love vanity crept and nestled there.
For a moment Krishna held her, then with
lightning swiftness from her side He van-
ished.
But in that twinkle of a moment Radha
knew what her sin was and, aware of her
enemy, the selfless love, which was her Self,
her deity supreme, arose and quenched all
thirst of vanity.
Quickly gliding through the forest, she
again did join the Gopis, spying in the further
distance Krishna soothing one and all. To
His side she lightly stepped, she, the radiant,
she, His Heaven-Mate, purged from sin and
lightly clothed with the love that knew but
Him.
116
CHAPTER XXVI.
WHILE the land of Brindaban was rich in the
love which Krishna flooded it withal, the heart
of Kangsa, the brother of Devaki, was filled
with fear for his life ; for it was known to his
quaking heart that the eighth child of Devaki
still walked the earth, and also he knew that
writ it was that the hand of that child would
lay him low.
Far and wide he sought the child, the boy,
whom he felt was the God who had come to
bring to the virtuous and lowly man peace,
and sweep from the land the oppressor and
tyrant.
The marvelous deeds of Sree Krishna, his
beauty and strength, the might of his love,
had been heralded far and wide, and all the
then known world was turned towards the
forest land of Brindaban with expectant eye
and thirsting heart. For ever the heart of
117
SREE KRISHNA,
man doth pant for and turn to the place where
love doth dwell.
When tales of Krishna's wonderful life and
glorious deeds came to the ears of Kangsa, he
felt that the boy whom Yasoda and Nanda
reared as their own, in sweet Brindaban, was
the child that he sought to kill when it came
from the womb of Devaki, and when by the
hand of fate itself he had been baffled.
And the dull, hungry flame of hatred and
anger rose like fire in this bad man's heart,
and an atmosphere as of hell about him rose,
and all his peace slipped to the dust, and his
secret fear that like a coiled serpent had lain
in silence now uncurled its length and lifted
its head and darted here and there to strike the
prey that aroused it from its slumber.
And long he sat and meditated evil against
the youth that he could not slay in spite of his
kingship. For the Name of Krishna was a
balm to the hearts of all men who had ever
heard it spoken, and though king he was and
ruler over many, he knew that the strength of
the fame of Krishna, the boy bred in Brinda-
ban, more potency possessed than the name of
118
THE LORD OF LOVE.
Kangsa, the king. For he was ruler over the
bodies of men only.
His name dwelt on the tongues of men who
prattled with words alone, and those words
embodied not the thought from which they
sprang words that praised where praises
were not due, and applauded where it was not
deserved.
Men who dared not note the indignity of his
motives and their results, nor discriminate be-
tween the righteousness of his action and his
blood-dyed deeds, vexed his ears with fawning
acclamations to-day because of his power, yet
to-morrow blamed and hissed him out of sight.
But Krishna was ruler over all hearts by the
might of his wondrous love. He was the
Divine Incarnation, the Inner Call, the satis-
fied softness that all felt, compelling all, yet
demanding naught. Uncovered, frank, He
stood forth inviting all to look on Him to Know
and to love and be saved, too deep for the hu-
man understanding to measure, too large for
human heart to embrace, yet acquainting each
man with Himself.
This love still untaught, still gazing on Him
119
SREE KRISHNA,
who was all encased in love, all made of love,
all teeming with love, they knew themselves of
His creation, and Him their Sovereign Lord.
And Kangsa knew that by knowing Him the
world would boldly recoil from the sickening
deeds of his cruelty, the foul plots of his life
would be laid bare to all, and the world in re-
bellion would rise. And he knew, too, that he
in his worldly powers as a weakling would be,
by the side of the cow-herd Krishna.
So among his councillors an edict went forth
that festivities be held in honor of the Bow, on
the fourteenth day of the lunar month, and
that sacrifices in great abundance be made.
He also said unto them that preparations be
made, and pavillions be raised, and the arena
cleared, and the amphitheatre festooned with
flowers and banners; and proclamations were
issued that all the inhabitants of his whole
kingdom be invited to his capital and that the
people of Braja be included therein.
And last he sent his ambassador in great
pomp and glory to call to his palace the sev-
enth son of Devaki, Balaram, and the eighth
son, Krishna, to witness the sports and partake
120
THE LORD OF LOVE.
in the wrestling contests and show to the king-
dom their dexterity and strength.
Thus spoke Kangsa, and called to Akrura
and made him the ambassador that was to
bring Krishna and Rama to Mathura. But
this also he ordered: "When here they are
brought, see that the strongest and mightiest
wrestlers of my kingdom be brought to match
them and fairly or foully to lay them low."
And he added : "If here death fails to meet
them withal, keep the infuriated elephant close
to the gate, so that he in his madness may
tread out the life of Krishna at my command."
These were his orders, and Akrura, his am-
bassador, bowing to him, departed to Braja.
121
CHAPTER XXVII.
THE sun was setting in Braja, and Krishna
with companions was homeward leading the
cows to be milked.
The hills were gold-tipped. The chirp of the
birds in sleepy echoes fell on the ear, when
far in the distance the hoofs of stamping steeds
pounding the earth caused the boys to turn.
Coming in royal splendor towards them they
beheld a chariot with blazing banners of the
colors of the royal house of Mathura.
The boys stood in amazement as nearer the
chariot came; but Krishna smiled with His
eye full of wisdom, and aslant He looked to-
ward the boys and the cows and then at
Akrura, th ambassador, who came in the
chariot.
At that glance, Akrura quickly descended
and fell at the feet of Krishna and saluted Him
in reverence and worship, for the dart of love
that came from Krishna revealed to the heart
12?
THE LORD OF LOVE.
of Akrura that Krishna was more than human
and not less than divine.
With that glance his soul was drawn to the
soul of Him who stood there to receive him
and his message. And he knew that the Au-
thor of Life he beheld and that blessed he was
beyond all measure to be chosen to look on
that wonderful face.
A moment he lay in the dust, at the feet of
the youth, Akrura, the proud, the inmate of
palaces, the councilor and companion of the
king and emperor.
Then, with kindly grace, Krishna raised him
and embraced him and led him forth to the
house of Nanda, and with His own hands
brought rich drinks and choice viands, with
the countenance that had on it the glow of
the sun, and the beauty that surpassed all the
beauty ever seen.
And having partaken of the meal with His
father and brother and guest, Krishna ad-
dressed him thus : "O friend, long I knew of
this coming of thine and marvelled at its delay.
Yet tell them, my kinsman, the errand of the
king on which thou wert sent!"
133
SREE KRISHNA,
Then Akrura related to Nanda and the fear-
stricken Yasoda the king's message, his plans
and his evil design.
A smile of wisdom flitted over the face of
Krishna, as He nestled close to the side of
His mother and bade her forget her anxiety
for Him, as none there was in all the world
that could harm Him. He vowed that even
the most dreaded Kangsa was powerless to
bring about the evil he planned.
But the mother, Yasoda, she who had
reared and nourished the Child at her heart,
she who had caressed His lovely baby soft-
ness and with fondness saw his first toddling
steps, she could not be comforted, nor would
her heart cease its beating of pain and terror.
And Akrura related how Kangsa in wrath
had thrown Devaki and Vasudeva into prison,
on hearing that Krishna was the eighth son of
their union. And Yasoda wept as the thought
of the mother who had lost all her sons at the
cost of Krishna, and yet had not the blessing
of suckling Him.
Yasoda, most blessed of all women art thou,
who nursed the Lord of Love as thy son ! And
124
THE LORD OF LOVE.
fitted wert thou by Him to bestow on His
baby life thy caresses and receive the love that
flowed from Him !
Worthy wert thou to croon Him to sleep, to
bathe the sweet beauty of Him who, though
He had all there was, yet chose to be soothed
and guided and directed by thee in His baby-
hood!
And when to boyhood's estate He grew and
startled all the world by the wonder of His
doing, to thee He came as a little child, to be
loved and petted and soothed of His weeping
and fretting!
And now when called king of the land,
and called king by the hearts of the whole
known world that panted to look upon His
wonderful beauty and see the might of His
strength, even now close to thy heart He
nestles, and twines His arms about thy neck,
and gazes with love-light into thine eyes to
comfort thee, and feels a shadow mantle His
heart as He banishes the pain from thy brow !
For well He knows that no more to thee the
forest child He will be; for the world now
125
SREE KRISHNA,
claims Him as its own, and in His bigger
world an actor He must be.
Thus heart to heart they sit, the mother and
the foster-son, He who was Lord of all the
world, and she who reared him as a child.
126
CHAPTER XXVIII.
So night wore away, and in the early morn-
ing- hours Akrura was ready to start on the
journey with Rama and Krishna.
But great was the wail and heartrending the
lamentations that came from the hearts of the
Gopis.
With tear-filled eyes they rushed to His
home and pleaded and prayed that He stay in
their midst ; for to them life seemed impossible
without Him, and Brindaban could not be
blessed when He ceased to walk thereon. And
what would the cattle and flowers and trees
do without the sound of His love-touched
flute?
"Oh, remain with us, Krishna, O Lord of
our hearts ! Oh, keep close to our land, Most
Beautiful One !
"Broken are our hearts, bowed low our
spirit at the thought of our lives without Thy
presence to cheer us. Dull are our minds and
127
leaden our hearts by the pain of Thy going.
"Oh, leave us not in this ocean of sorrow,
but stay where we ever may look on Thy
face.
"O Thou who shapest all that is, who hast
knitted our hearts to Thyself ! how canst Thou
tear it away from us who know the sweetness
of its love and the fruits that spring there-
from?
"Once having known Thy smile, O Krishna !
how can we bear the dawning of day without
the light of Thy smile, in which the concen-
trated beauty of Thy whole creation lies, to
fill it and make each day whole?
"And how can we see the shadows of night
thicken and darken, and know that no more
we will roam in forest and dance in the moon-
light with Thee, our Beloved?
"Oh! depart not from us, Thou in whom
we are buried, Thou whose love doth envelop
us all, Thou whose universe-embrace around
us is entwined ! Oh ! go not from out our
midst, we implore Thee!"
Thus, tearing their tresses and weeping, the
Gopis clung to the wheels of the chariot in
128
THE LORD OF LOVE.
which Krishna and Rama sat ready to start
on their journey to Mathura.
Then Krishna arose, and looking- deep in the
eye of each, he waved his hand in farewell,
and left the smile of Bliss with them that
filled each soul to overflowing. Then forward
the restless chargers plunged, the dust rising
high and quite covering the chariot.
The maids stood like hewn marble, still yet
serene. And the cattle that grazed on the
hillside turned towards the road where the
chariot vanished, in their eyes a look of yearn-
ing love; while the deer on the brow of the
hill, with arched neck and wild, shy glance,
heaved a quick, short sigh, as if hurt.
And the soft breasts of the singing, birds
quivered, and a little sad song burst from their
throats ; while the trees and the flowers hung
limp and wilted, as if the glad life had left
their hearts.
A groan arose from the wild beasts in the
forest, as if in the hand of death they were
trapped. The sun vanished from the skies,
and all Nature seemed clothed with the gar-
ment of sadness. 9
129
SREE KRISHNA,
Then forth the sun burst in glorious splen-
dor, as the joy of the smile of the Lord of Love
awoke in potency to bless all living things
whereon it had fallen.
And sweet Brindaban in silence lay, for-
ever blessed and forever beloved, for the Feet
of Him, who was God, had walked there and
made holv its soil.
130
CHAPTER XXIX.
AND the chariot, bearing Akrura, Rama and
Krishna, was followed close by the carts bear-
ing Nanda and the Gopas, who carried gifts
for the king Kangsa, to whom all must present
the best of their store.
On reaching the banks of the Jumna, Krish-
na and Rama in sportiveness descended from
the chariot and dipped in the sacred waters of
the river, then ascended again to the chariot.
Whereat Akrura, the ambassador, had a dip
in the water, too, reciting the sacred texts
in the meanwhile, when, lo, in the waters
where he stood he beheld the laughing Krishna
and Rama, sitting in the lap of the god of
water.
Amazed and bewildered, he gazed towards
the chariot where last he had seen the brothers,
and there they sat talking, as when he had
left them.
Again he dipped his head 'neath the waves
131
SREE KRISHNA,
of the water and again he saw Rama and
Krishna, and knew that his senses were not
deluded.
Krishna, though seemingly a youth with all
a youth's sportiveness and play, yet was the
Lord Incarnate.
And near the cart, Akrura looked in the
eyes of Krishna where the wisdom that cre-
ated the universe lay, and answered the ques-
tioning gaze thus : "O Lord ! None is there as
wonderful as Thou art! All hast Thou cre-
ated and in Thee is all Creation. All have I
seen that there is to see."
And the chariot proceeded towards Mathura.
138
CHAPTER XXX.
NOON reigned in the city of Mathura when
the chariot, bearing the two sons of Vasudeva,
entered that city.
The fame of the deeds and the beauty of
Rama and Krishna was known in all that
kingdom, and their coming to partake of its
celebrations and to participate in the sports and
wrestling at the command of Kangsa, the king,
had been heralded all over the land.
And the populace was glad and knew not
why. And they said in their hearts, "Krishna
the Youth, the wonderful Youth of Brandaban,
will grace our land by His coming."
So the streets were crowded to welcome
Him there, and the tops of the houses were
flowered with the bright faces of women who
gazed from there to catch the first glance
of Him whom rumor had crowned the Most
Glorious Youth of the then known world.
O Beauty, how potent art thou! O con-
133
SREE KRISHNA,
queror of all, that winneth the heart of the
lowliest child and enslaveth the heart of the
proud queen of the world; tHat slaketh the
thirst of the parched soul and tutoreth the
dullest mind never quickened by thought!
So, 'mid blare of trumpets and with banners
unfurled, the Lord of Love entered Mathura.
And above the roar of the celebrations and
preparations rose the murmurs and shouts of
greetings, from the sea of upturned faces of
men and from the canopy of sweet, down-
cast eyes of women, that thronged to see His
coming.
And millions of tongues repeated His Name
and sang His praises, and millions of souls
were flooded with love, because they had
looked on His face and said His Name, which
was as potent as His Love. For His Name
contained Himself, and those who uttered His
Name had Him in their hearts, and lo, the
world to them was complete!
Majestic and vast, He walked 'mid the
worshipping people, who saw but a youth of
transcendent beauty, but felt the Unfathomable
134
THE LORD OF LOVE.
mystery, the Unknowable Grandeur, worthy
to receive their deepest obeisance.
Through the streets of Mathura He went,
bringing light to all whereon His smile fell.
And Kangsa, the tyrant, grew cold and gray,
for he knew his doom was drawing nigh. And
his sleep was disturbed by evil dreams, for he
knew already the populace was welcoming
Him whom none could look upon but to love.
135
CHAPTER XXXI.
THE next day Krishna and Rama went forth
to view the capital of Mathura in all its holi-
day splendor.
They found the gates of the palace made
of pure gold and studded with jewels and
crystal. The broad street of the city and
the pretty parks all luxuriant were with rare
flowers and wondrous foliage. The splendid
houses all seemed clothed and beautified for
the ceremonies of the Bow, the symbol of
the warrior's might, that were to take place
that day.
It chanced that a washerman passed their
way, balancing upon his head the clothes and
making way towards the palace with them. In
a spirit of mischief, Krishna said : "Give us
the clothes that you carry to Kangsa, good fel-
low, for in need of them are we. Give them,
and more I will give unto thee."
But the washerman in insolence replied:
136
THE LORD OF LOVE.
"Upstarts, who are ye to dare to aspire to
wear the clothes that belong to Kangsa the
Great? Never have ye seen such clothes, and
unfit to even touch them are ye. Be off and
back to the country from whence ye came,
or I will call the guards, who by my word will
throw you in chains."
Krishna, with a smile and a wave of his bare
hand, severed the head from the trunk of the
washerman and proceeded to take the clothes.
And a weaver, who was passing their way,
helped them put on the garments; while a
florist, who near by was weaving garlands for
Kangsa, came to Rama and Krishna and be-
decked them with garlands and flowers.
And thus clad for the festivities, onward
they went ; but first the weaver and the florist
were rewarded with great spiritual powers by
Krishna, the giver of all good things to those
who give unto Him their love.
As they proceeded on their way, a woman
of great deformity came near. A parcel she
held in her hands, which she guarded care-
fully. As close she came to Krishna, she
lifted her head and gazed on His face.
137
SREE KRISHNA,
For a moment she stood, a smile transform-
ing her face. Then the bowl of precious san-
dal-wood ointment, which to the King Kangsa
she carried, to Krishna she reached and said
unto Him : "O Youth, more beautiful art
Thou than aught that mine eye has ever rested
upon. To those who are sweet should sweet-
ness be given. I am a servant of King Kangsa.
This fragrant unguent for him I make, but
more fitted by far is its richness for Thee.
Oh, allow me to lay it at Thy feet!"
Krishna looked at her deformity, then at her
love-filled eyes, and putting His feet on the
tips of her toes and His two fingers under her
chin, He wrenched her form upward ; and
she, who was known as the Tribakra (she of
three bends) was a hunchback no more, but tall
and straight was she; and her face never lost
the beauty it bore when it looked on the face
of Krishna as she offered to anoint Him with
zeal and love.
And from that day forth she was known
as the most surpassingly beautiful woman in
all that land.
Thus love for Krishna creates a charm that
138
THE LORD OF LOVE.
grows into beauty and nevermore fades.
Thus all day long He wandered about, heal-
ing the sinful, the sick and the dying by the
very breath of His passing.
And to sorrowing fathers and mothers that
day long lost sons were restored, and even
the dead were brought to life and were seen
with the eye and felt with the heart and en-
circled with the arms of those whose hearts
were empty for them.
And thus the Lord with benign smile
brought to all the gifts of life and love, and
none were there in all that land who felt
not the power thereof.
139
CHAPTER XXXII.
WHEN the hour for the festivities of the
Bow began, spectators innumerable filled the
galleries and platforms of the amphitheatre.
By every tongue the praise of Krishna's beauty
was sung, and all awaited with eager desire
the arrival of the brothers Rama and Krishna.
In the centre of the arena a platform was
raised, where Kangsa, the king, and his min-
isters were enthroned. His eyes were lurid
with hate and his heart quaking with fear,
for his dreams had been full of evil omens,
and he knew that he of all that multitude was
out of tune with Nature.
For Krishna, the Youth, had scattered flow-
ers of love in that city for all who chose to
partake of them, and all hearts had gathered
them eagerly. Only he alone had turned from
the good and abided by his hate; and he knew,
in spite of the wrestlers and the wild elephant,
140
THE LORD OF LOVE.
and even the guard that stood ready to slay
at his command, that the Youth would con-
quer, as He ever had, and that he would die
by His hands sooner or later.
For had it not been writ thus? And again
had not every attempt of his to put out the life
of the eighth child of Devaki been baffled in
marvelous ways? And still the Youth lived
and smiled. Surely he was Hari, the Invin-
cible!
His hate betrayed him and was hourly lead-
ing him into a trap. It charmed him like a
subtle snake, while it frightened him like a
huge wild beast; yet gladly would he have
opened the valve that held his wrath and
flooded all with its poison, if by so doing he
might have annihilated that glorious Youth
who stood ever before him by night and day
and smote his cruel heart as with a glowing
rod.
So all his stolid self-possession was gone as
he looked on, when Krishna, the Beautiful,
soft as a delicate woman, yet invincible as
unconquered strength, walked 'mid the hys-
141
SREE KRISHNA,
terically joyous shouts of the people to where
the giant Bow was guarded by warriors bold.
A moment, and then He seized the Bow and
held it aloft with one hand, the Bow that
twelve men of mighty strength alone could
handle, and with a twist of His wrist it fell
at their feet, broken in twain.
The guards rushed forward, as if to strike
Him low ; but when near Him, they stopped
and looked at His glory; they crouched low
on their haunches and fell on their faces, un-
able to move, for the life had gone out of
their bodies by the first wave of His hand.
But blessed were they ; for none died by the
hand of Krishna, but by Him was made pure
and straightway to the realms of Bliss they
were sent.
For where the hand of Krishna rested,
whether to bring life or take life away, that
man forever holy was made by the touch.
So also with Kangsa it was. Dwelling con-
stantly on Krishna, even though in hate, he
came closer to Love than he himself knew.
So the celebration of the Bow ended in
triumph for Krishna and Rama, And though
143
THE LORD OF LOVE.
Kangsa sent a body of well-armed soldiers to
apprehend them, lo! the conquerors victorious
walked from the arena, followed by the cheers
of the worshipping populace, who saw that in
strength they were invincible, even as in beauty
they were incomparable. And they looked for-
ward eagerly to the morrow, when the broth-
ers were to participate in wrestlings and sports.
But Rama and Krishna returned to spend
the night with the Gopas; while the people
of Mathura neither ate nor slept, but sang of
their beauty and might.
143 .
CHAPTER XXXIII.
BUT Kangsa was troubled by the triumph of
the brothers, and next morning called the
wrestlers who were to match the two brothers,
and again put to them the weight of the con-
test, and placed armed men at the gates of
the arena. He then proceeded with many
forebodings to the amphitheatre, where the
sports were to take place. He took his seat
amid the beating of drums, the blaring of
trumpets and the waving of banners.
Already many spectators had assembled,
among them many crowned chiefs, Brahmans
and Ks'hatriyas, all with expectancy over-
whelming:, as to the outcome of the wrestling.
Forward the wrestlers came with a rush
and stood in the centre of the ring, wrestlers
whose fame was known throughout all the land
for their brute strength and skill.
Few there were who dared to meet these
men, and as Krishna and Rama came for-
THE LORD OF LOVE.
Ward to see the meeting of the first pair, they
found a huge elephant posted there at the
entrance.
Krishna, seeing this, asked the driver to
make way with the beast for Him. At this
the rider urged the infuriated beast towards
Him.
With a smile, Krishna grasped with his
soft little hand the nose of the furious beast,
who, with a bellow, fell to the ground life-
less, dragging the driver down with him.
Krishna then tore the tusks from the brute's
head; and Rama and Krishna entered the
wrestling grounds with the tusks in their
hands and blood-stained from the slaying of
the beast.
Kangsa's heart sank at the sight, and even
the wrestlers recoiled in terror at the blood-
stained figures who gazed on them with super-
natural power in their youthful eyes.
Yet true to the command of Kangsa, Chanoor
the chief of the wrestlers, cried: "Come, ye
youngsters, good wrestlers are ye ! The good
king hath invited you to participate in the con-
test, so come and wrestle and give pleasure to
145
SREE KRISHNA,
King Kangsa, he who is the greatest of all
kings and men."
With a smile all-wise Krishna looked at the
wrestlers, then, with eye aslant, he gazed on
Kangsa, who trembled at the look; and an-
swered Chanoor thus: "Though subjects of
King Kangsa, yet only boys of the forest are
we, unlearned in the art of wrestling. There-
fore, we pray you, match us with boys of our
age and not with men whose muscles are iron
and whose hearts are bold as a lion's. If we
are to meet men like these, unfair is the game,
and unjust, and we decline the arrangement."
Then Chanoor became insolent, because of
the confession of Krishna which he thought
was made in weakness, and cried : "O thou
who hast killed the furious elephant as if in
sport, thou askest to be matched with one of
thine own age! With me thou shalt wrestle,
me the most powerful, the strongest man of
the age, and Rama shall match with Mush-
tik; and, be it just or unjust, fair or unfair,
thee I will fight and fight to kill."
And so a combat began between the man
that was mortal and the youth that was God.
146
THE LORD OF LOVE.
The man a giant was of colossal brute force,
of stature great, with muscles all knotted and
crooked as the boughs of an oak-tree of many
years' growth.
And the Boy, smooth as a sweet maiden,
all curved with grace, smilingly awaited the
onslaught.
Forward the wrestler came, with the snort
of a wild bull, to meet the Boy, who, cairn and
serene, smiled in his eye. f
The people arose and sprang from their
benches, and hissed, and threw their head-
gear and staffs into the ring, as they shouted :
"Give up, the fight is unfair !"
"Oh, shame!" they cried, "coward and
beast ! put a stop to the slaughter !" on seeing
the seemingly unequal fight.
Several times Chanoor struck furious blows
at the fair, slight body of Krishna, the youth,
but provoked naught but a smile from Him;
while beads of blood sprang to the brow and
arms of Chanoor, and his huge legs trem-
bled and broke at the knee as he tried to reach
the belt of Him, who, after several circles
about the ring, seized Chanoor by the arms,
147
SREE KRISHNA,
and, lifting" him high above His head, to the
wonderment of the crowd, dashed him down
to the ground, as a playing child doth throw
the pebbles. And the wrestler breathed his
last with a yearning look of love in his eyes,
as they rested on Him, whom a moment before
he beheld with hate.
And Rama, too, victorious was.
But when Krishna stood and faced the mass
of people there, they shouted and cheered with
mad delight and jumped on the railings in
panic wild : "He is more than human, He
is God come down to earth ! It is He, for
whom the world hath waited! He will free
our land from oppression ! Hari is He, the In-
vincible! Oh, mighty art Thou and possessest
in Thy frame the forces of all the universe!"
But Kangsa, the King, full of terror and
rage, cried: "Ho, guards! Seize him and
take him to the outskirts of my kingdom and
drive him into banishment. Imprison Nanda
and Yasoda, confiscate all their lands and be-
longings, and take from the Gopas their
wealth and goods and drive them from Brinda-
ban. Kill Devaki and Vasudeva, who are now
148
THE LORD OP LOVE.
imprisoned in my dungeon. Kill all who know
and love this youth, 'tis my command."
A moment Krishna gazed on Kangsa, then
with a bound he reached the platform where
Kangsa stood with sword unsheathed.
"O Kangsa. I am the eighth son of Devaki
whom thou so long hast sought to slay. It
is writ that thou by my hand must die! O
King, dost thou think that human hand can
turn aside the force of the Law?"
And hurling Kangsa down on the ground,
He leaped over the prostrate king, whereat his
life departed.
But his glazed eyes were fixed on Him
whose hand had blessed even him by its touch
and burned away every sin from his soul.
Then, hastening through the lines of guards,
who prostrated low at His approach, He went
to where His father and mother were impris-
oned in dungeons dark and deep.
Low he bent to their feet, murmuring in
accents sweet :
"O parents mine ! Oh, much have ye suf-
fered for my sake and all ye shall gain through
Me ; for in Me is all there is to gain and out-
149
SREE KRISHXA,
side of Me there is naught. From thy womb.
O Devaki, I was born, yet out of Me thou didst
come. I prostrate before thee."
Then saluting them both, 'mid deafening
cheers, he led them forth to the palace.
And the father of Kangsa, dethroned by his
son, received and welcomed them there.
And wild was the joy of the populace on
that day that Krishna lifted the yoke of bond-
age from them, and they blessed the hour that
the sun had ushered in that day, which brought
a new ruler in their land.
And 'already Mathura felt the joy that was
but a forerunner of a perfect reign. For
Krishna it was who placed on the throne the
one who would rule the land in goodness and
plenty.
150
Messages and Revelations
From
Sree Krishna
MESSAGES AND REVELATIONS
FROM SREE KRISHNA
Within my belly you do dwell, yet in every
heart I sit. Know you this, O my own, and
you shall forget and fetter yourselves to Me.
The wings of your Self now are close clapped
like a dripping feather all wet with tears of
pain and folded about your body, keeping it
rolled like a ball, unable to stand upon the
feet of might and strength which I have en-
dowed you with. These wings, my own, I
will spread for you, until the grand, noble
forehead of your Self shall rise above the
realm where Time and Space do reign.
* *
Deep have the waters of seeming failures
dashed about thy feet and threatened to drag
you into the perturbed sea of despair, but
still thy head has been close to the clouds and
thou hast caught the smile of my radiance and
heard the voice of my kindness. Dost thou
MESSAGES AND REVELATIONS
think that I who have numbered the grains of
sand and have weighed the drops of water
in all the oceans, seas, lakes and rivers, that
I will allow one who is a spark of Myself to
be devoured by the wolf of famine or by the
dread of despair? Look up, it is light, look
to thy right and a hand reaches out to thee.
And I have placed thee where those who know
how to love what is lovable can look at thee
and love.
* *
The soul which has need of blessedness, to
that soul do I answer at its call ! Let it feed
the heart that is hungry for an answer.
* *
A lamp within your midst I place and those
who would enjoy the radiance which the lamp
gives out, must cast their eyes to where the
lamp does stand and stir to reach unto its
light. A shading tree upon the sandy hill I
place. The weary traveller, all hot, who
of its cooling shade would partake must come
wkhin the circle of its throwing shade. He,
who will not see the lamp or walk to where
152
FROM SREE KRISHNA.
the shadows dark and cool do fall, he cannot
enjoy the blessing of the lamp as it casts its
light or the cooling shades of the slanting
branches. So 'tis with Love : if you will seek
its warmth and glow, do thou seek it. Only
those who seek Me do I in return meet.
* *
Oh, the love that stoops low at every foot!
Take thou that love in thy hands and burdens
will lighten. Put thou My Love in thy heart
and thy world will brighten. Oh, give with
love to all who come within the radius of thy
glory. The heritage of My Love much more
thou wilt know. As immeasurable as space thy
self shall become and heights in thy heart will
appear, and splendours more splendid than all
thou hast known, and heights more sublime
than the whited peaks where once thou hast
stood and looked into the calm tranquility of
my Everlasting Eye.
* *
The man who seeketh to do good, oft doth
lose his aim by becoming desirous to reach
higher places through that same good.
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MESSAGES AND REVELATIONS
A man who hoards his gold, oft learns to
love the smile of his golden sweetheart and
develops into an avaricious creature.
* *
The maid who plaits shining tresses, in so
doing may be weaving a net of vanity in her
soul. This by ignorance of self may be
brought about though the original motive was
pure and good. Hence Ignorance is sin!
* *
A sharp edged sword hung at the side will
cut the baby's hand as it plays with its sharp-
ness. There again ignorance is punished like
sin.
* *
Love now does mould you ; love does en-
fold you; love does behold you, and bind you,
my children. I wear on my brow the great
pearl of Love which no god or saint or man or
worm or beast or ant can resist. Even I who
am All Love do look upon the beauty of my
Love and love and love.
Ye, O my children, that jewel shall wear on
154
FROM SREE KRISHNA.
your brow. I who am All Love ye may wear
and I who am love-filled ye may hold. For
love must ever fly to love and love must ever
draw from love, and love must ever live in
love, for life doth spring from love. And I
do live in love.
* *
Oh, list! Plant not thy seed in fertile
ground and wait for it to root and blossom
and fruit for thy own self alone. Rather do
thou plant thy seed for the heart of every
heart that lives within My Great Heart. He
who waters, tends and sprouts his plant not
for his own sweet taste alone but for the taste
of every man, he of that sweetness and fresh-
ness shall taste even before the fruit is ripe.
Know you, O my children, the life which I
have given you sprang from My Love. Oh,
make thy life a song sublime and not a groan.
* *
Evil availeth not when you my laws do know.
List ! fill your heart with love, with sunshine
which freely I scatter to you ; and I will bring
there soft rains and the seed of love to life
I will stir; and that which to your senses of
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MESSAGES AND REVELATIONS
infants doth reek of the charnel-house, a fer-
tilizer shall become, for your love to grow and
sprout, even as the creeping vine that drops
and takes root wherever it falls.
* *
I am the swiftness in the sailing cloud, the
flame struck from the flint. I am the fire
housed in every star, the breath I am of every
living thing. All things that are, do love, for
I am all that lives I, who am life and love
I, who am love and life, and naught is there
besides. The hearing ear I am, the seeing eye,
the throbbing heart, I waken in every man the
love that reaches out.
* *
O Daughter! Rise in thy dignity and sur-
vey that which thou art master of and look
to the marble halls which beckon thee even
now. Know this, that love and wisdom is the
mystery of all things and that Love when un-
derstood is twin to Dominion. Do thou the
work that lies at thy hand ! Remember each
day is thy fulfilled world. It is thy Zion, it
is thy life complete. Such jewels as have
156
FROM SREE KRISHNA.
crowned few are daily being laid at thy feet !
Spurn them not for the material seeming bless-
ings which invite thee.
* *
A HOLY MAN'S PRAYER.
There was a holy man who thought never
of himself, but ever of those among whom he
lived and passed his days. So wondrous
virtuous and holy he was, that ofttimes the
host of unseen ones who loved to remain near
him recognized the greatness of his goodness
and spoke among themselves 'thus : "Holy is
this man in truth and strange to say he knows
it not. Surely few are like him. Let us who
love him ask him how he would be served by
us, how we may bestow upon him gifts which
to the blind earthwalkers are called the su-
pernatural or miraculous."
"So be it," in unison they replied. And one
among the spirit-host who, by the strength and
beauty of holiness was superior, addressed him
thus : O holy man, we who look upon you
hourly and love you much, we would bestow
upon you some gift. What shall it be? The
157
MESSAGES AND REVELATIONS
miracle of making all who look upon you
man, woman or child. love you? Or would
it be -the miracle of relieving all whom thou
dost meet and love of the load of poverty
which thou seest and which makes thee sad
at the look? Or shall it be the power of re-
lieving the sick of his burden of disease which
draggeth him to an early grave?"
The holy one looked at the gentle and lovely
spirit with eyes in which dwelt -the very beauty
of love and holiness and said : "Nay, dear
spirit, not for me are these miracles. To my
Lord, who is the giver of all joy and pain,
doth belong the great power of removing what
he giveth. But this I ask, that I walk in hum-
bleness and in my heart the prayer will grow
to love my Lord the more. That love I may
be able to give to all who come within my
reach. This, O gentle spirit, is all I ask. De-
part and allow me to but see my Lord in hum-
bleness and pray to love him.''
The spirit departed and to the unseen host
did say: "For such as he is the Love of the
Lord! Already hath he acquired what we in
vain seek Love for the Lord !"
158
FROM SREE KRISHNA.
Glory to Gooroo who bringeth love and
light wherever he walketh. Love Love's own
creation is, it is its own reward. No human
law its. force can sway. No human force 'can
stay its tide. Love is the source of living
things and all that it doth love. Naught that
thine eyes can rest upon but hath its root in
Love. The heart that love denies is cold. It
sleepeth and it stagnant is ; it is frozen o'er by
snows of earth and sinneth most against it-
self. Love giveth of itself to all, nor asketh
it return. It is a law unto itself, a law to man
and beast and plant. The snake doth glide
Love's warmth to know the bird the air doth
cleave its force to feel ; the flower upward
turns its wondering gaze the kiss of Love to
meet. The beast doth pant all eagerly the eye
of Love to behold. But man it is who makes
the simple theme of Love a huge complexity.
In restlessness he struggles for that which he
already hath, for that without which he could
not exist.
* *
O My jewels! lean on the altar of My all-
creating Love and soon your heart will be as
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MESSAGES AND REVELATIONS
a laughing child. Quick My all-responsive
touch to know, a bursting fount of gladness
and generosity you will be, and the hot desert
of your heart, which dry and sandy now is, a
garden of lily and rose will become.
* *
Love was My natural gift to one and all of
My creation. Who this doth know a treasure
hath in truth.
* *
O my children! ever outward looking, turn
within your blinded eyes, and there a world all
big with joy and love you will find, a world
made wise by My wisdom, a world of the Real.
Then you will know what Love has made of
you; what Love doth bless you wjth; what
Love doth will that vou should be.
Poor and ignorant is the man who seeketh
for that which he hath and knoweth it not.
Poor and ignorant is the man who knoweth
not the nobility of my Love that surroundeth
him, with which I crowned him withal.
* *
O my children ! in your midst My well be-
160
FROM SREE KRISHNA.
loved one doth walk. Mark, freely all his love
he giveth, gladly of My Love receiveth, and the
measure of his sweetness doth he give to over-
flowing unto all that near him come. Lo ! he
knoweth my Love is flowing into him that
largely giveth of the Love I do bestow. Within
your midst in every heart I am, unknown, till
by a touch of pain in struggle great you brush
against My wide white wings. Then thrilled
and amazed you look into Mine eyes and know
that I am and ever have been and ever must
be.
The hand of My Love has gone from My
Abode and scattered into space, giving unto all
that will receive. Unto each child of Mine
blessings I have given ; ofttimes in their blind-
ness they saw it not. But few there are who
raise the gifts that lie in great profusion at their
feet. More are those who turn their eyes in
wilful waywardness from them and with
yearning cry do wail for that which I have
crowned them withal. Most of my own do
amble on, defiantly denying that such gifts
161
MESSAGES AND REVELATIONS
there are, denying Me, the Giver of all gifts
denying Me, the Author of their being.
* *
The few who raise My gifts and make them
as their own and making them as their own
thus, do give them forth to those their hunger-
ing neighbors, unto them do I scatter more
than they in ease can carry, for he who giveth
forth receiveth ever largely of the store I hold
for them. He who hungers to feed the heart
of those he meets along his way, unto him
shall be given the wherewithal to satisfy their
hunger.
* *
O my child ! what mattereth it who speaketh
the word of love, of truth, of courage and life
unto thy heart? Whether thou dost catch it
from the song of birds, from the lips of a babe,
from the glad tone in a maid or the shout in
a frolicsome boy ? Whether it comes from the
heart of him who hath given all to know Me
and to reflect Me in thine heart, or whether it
came from the spirit all bright as he hovered
about to find thee a way when thou didst
1G2
FROM SREE KRISHNA.
grope in the wilderness of doubt and amaze
of worldly turmoil ? Take thou the truth from
wherever it comes, for truth that is real finds
its root in Me and no matter how slender and
lean the twig may be, it is the shoot that has
sprung from My Root.
* *
Glory to Gooroo whose wisdom is as silver
is ! Glory to Gooroo ! who by his love and
wisdom illumineth the hearts that seek after
Me. His day and his waking, his night and his
slumber I with My Love will preserve.
* *
O my children, illumined you will be, yet
you seek not the light that sits in your midst!
Its radiance I would throw in your midst and
give to the heart that is darkened with clouds
the peace that it seeketh, the joy that it owneth
the joy that is warming to the senses and
that dances like live streams of water that leap
from the mountains and play with the rivers.
* *
Oh, tarry awhile from the whirl and the
strife of the world ! Ye who seek My light, the
163
MESSAGES AND REVELATIONS
sons of my light shall be, and earth shall not
soil nor rob you of My glory, nor will your
mind be darkened and dull. For I will
beautify and quicken it with love and with joy,
for the light of the mind is love. The light
of life is love. Where love is, contentment and
peace are. Where contentment is, there My
smile is too. Where contentment reigneth, in
satisfaction I dwell. Where contentment is,
there the fountain of peace too is playing.
* *
O ye who find perplexity above your rear-
ing head and underneath your lagging feet, at
your right hand and your left hand ! An enigma
unto yourselves you will be until lowly and
glad as a child you become. Then Me you
will know, and knowing, yourselves you will
know, and your worlds you will rule. And
looking out from the great world within to the
smaller world without, all things you will
bless and find all is well with time and you.
* *
You who give out much love dost multiply
My Love unto yourself. But you who nourish
164
FROM SREE KRISHNA.
souring doubt and fill your heart with hate
and bitterness but subtract hourly from the
gifts which are thine by the right of My bless-
ing and love. For thoughts of evil rise not
beyond the earth. But thoughts of love do
mount to My Throne crowned with living
stars, and rebound again to the centre freighted
with My Love and Light.
* *
Humility is the softened shadow that is cast
by My Love. Lowly it lieth on the ground ;
yet he that is weary and full of the hate of
the world doth seek it and rest in its shadow
and strength he doth gather and peace he doth
draw from the nurse, all gentle, that gladdens
his day.
* *
Humility is welcome unto Me. Hence all
men do seek it, yet know it not. The counte-
nance of humility is restful and good to look
upon, and he that is fettered by flesh, senses its
beauty even as a blind man senses the rose that
is near by its fragrance and sweetness, as My
feathered and furred creatures do sense the
165
MESSAGES AND REVELATIONS
night by the darkness that precedeth it. When
humility in your midst doth sit, know that true
worth is nigh and rejoice in the blessing that
ye behold, for true humility springeth from My
Love and with majesty pure and holy is
crowned. It is the grace of all grace that I
on My children bestow.
* *
O ye, every step that you take I am with
you and lead you to My Great Heart and joy
I bestow and obstacles remove and sorrows
erase that you wist not of!
* #
.The beginning and the end of all I am, the
sap in l?he tree, the foundation of the rock
whereon it leaneth, the force of the eagle that
round it saileth, the oil of the whale, the deeps
wherein it sporteth. I make the worm to crawl
on its belly; from the clouds I flash in light
that blindeth : the nobleness in man am I ; the
gladness in beauty, the spontaneous spring of
the bounding beast on the earth, the star on
high, the rose at your feet. The jewel's trans-
parency my touch hath made.
166
FROM SREE KRISHNA.
Glory to Gooroo who liveth close to the
Heart of Love and giveth love to the heart of
man ! Unto him I bestow My blessings, even
as the early fruit tree doth shower its blossoms
?n all that stand beneath its fragrant glory.
* *
O my children ! Drink of the cup that is in
your midst that was deep in My Ocean of
Love, and strength and sweetness to you it will
bring and your hearts it will quicken, even as
light doth feed the darkness and make trans-
parent the gloom.
* *
O you who sit in bondage and pant for
freedom and seek the love that is a world unto
itself and with satisfaction is crowned ! I am
the key that opens the portal that reaches to
the rarely discovered land where contentment
alone is found.
* *
Let not the flickering flame from without
urge you on to serving the senses, for the love
of the flesh but vaporous is and falleth again
to the ground from whence it was drawn.
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MESSAGES AND REVELATIONS
Walk in the sunshine, climb up to the moun-
tains, stretch the pinions of your soul to its
summit, in cheerfulness sit clothed in courage,
and with My Love's completeness I will crown
you withal.
A chain of love around your loins I have
cast ; stretch not, nor pull, nor fret, nor strain,
lest it hurt; but you who walk laughing in its
reach, the wisdom of My every hour shall
know. He who seeks Me, to him understand-
ing I will give that revealeth all things even
unto a little child, and My wisdom and truth
from his heart shall flow as strong streams of
water flow from a fountain, and My hand of
beauty I will register in his heart, and all who
look upon his countenance shall see the glory
of his coming and the joy of his awakening.
* *
Crowned on the snow-capped mountains I
am, yet in the lowly blade of grass am I too.
Eternal space I fill, yet am I captured in every
heart. All men seek Me, yet are My arms en-
168
FROM SREE KRISHNA.
twined around every man ; none can exist with-
out Me, yet in far off space am I enthroned.
* *
I am the One and All, the All in One, whom
noises confuse not, nor disturb, for above the
roaring 1 of the thunder claps, above the boom-
ing- of the rising waves, the first faint wail of
the new-born infant I hear and smile at its
coming.
* *
I hold the reins of the winds in my hand
and control their motion and measure their
distance.
* *
When darkness is, my eye doth light the nest
where the young owlet hooteth. The first
green of the sapling I note, even as I see the
upheaval of the earth.
* *
O My children! No heights there are that
you cannot mount, no depths that you cannot
sound, no boundaries that you cannot surround
if you but let the light shine in your soul
169
MESSAGES AND REVELATIONS
your soul that was born of light and panteth
to bathe again in that light
* *
O My Beloved, thee I embrace and enfold,
thee I hold and bless, to the days everlasting!
* *
Glory to Gooroo who liveth the Truth and
Love. Again, O My children, for wisdom
you call, but My words do not sink into the
depth of your heart. But few in your midst
do My glory receive, but once it is applied, I
come. A light I place in your midst, but un-
heeding you are, wayward, forgetful and fret-
ful. You cling with strained hands to the
chains of bondage. The wisdom that comes
from My Realm you would have, yet you reach
not your soul to that Realm.
* *
Each man receives a wisdom that is born in
this Realm. You eat from the table whereat
you do sit, you munch of the fruit from the
tree that you pluck, but your pure hearts are
hindered for want of satisfaction. Yet you
turn from My table of plentiful supply and
170
FROM SREE KRISHNA.
often from the crumbs that fall from my feast.
Would you know, O my children, how your
hearts shall be led? You yourself shall be fed
with My Love. Quit the longing and striving
for that which is null and void. Cease from
your ignorant ideas of happiness, of wisdom,
from your empty desires, your thoughts in-
sincere. Know this it is that hinders thy
heart from knowing My Love. It is this that
prohibits thine eyes from seeing My face. Lo,
O heart that is empty and is shadowed by
darkness ! I bring thee now a light to give
peace, a peace that is buried and strives to be
felt. Lo ! freely from the streams of blessing
that flows from My Love you may partake. It
is its own flavor and virtue. Its richness of
charm it never can lose. Its grace is un-
bounded, as far-reaching as the sky you see.
And as you quaff of its nectar your heart will
grow, bursting with joy.
* *
As you look from the big world within to
the small world without, all things shall be
well in time with you.
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MESSAGES AND REVELATIONS
I beautify Nature with My breath, as the
breeze that sweetens all space. The silver of
the wide-riding moon is My glory. The down
on the breast of the dove is My softness. Love-
touched, love-made, love-filled, am I. The
Secret of Life, the Revelation of Death, the
Beginning of All Things, the End Everlasting
am I.
* *
Of all the lights, the Light am I which you
know by the shadow ; the Shadow am I which
has cast all that light for you all My Face to
behold.
* *
The rose lifts its petals My Love to unfold.
I fan your hot hearts with my breezes of love.
I crystal and diamond the snow as it falls. As
My breath sweeps the earth to prepare for
seed, so My breath sweeps your hearts to pre-
pare it for My Love. And the sap of your
souls, like the sap of .the tree, will flow through
your life and burst into budding.
* *
My Beloved, My son, from bondage is free.
m
FROM SREE KRISHNA.
Thy heart I do clasp and breathe there a bless-
ing. I hold thee and bless thee and serve thee,
Aly son. A little while yet and thy mission is
over. Come thou to the innermost heart and
list to My love.
* *
Greeting to Gooroo who by the sunlight of
Love brought distinction to ignorance.
* *
Love stoops to the feet of all and embraces
life. Love is the source of all. Love is a law
unto itself. Love is law unto man and unto
woman. Spirit eyes to them by Love were
given, to see the smiling world within, to see
what Love willeth them to be.
* *
Good to everyone, Love sways from self to
selflessness. Love is the lotus that sends its
spirit, gives its sweetness and grace. It in
equal measure giveth its fairness and its fra-
grance to all who near it cometh. Love is
omnipotent.
* * .
Ye are flowers, O My children, flowers of
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MESSAGES AND REVELATIONS
rarest splendour. Ye must give my grace out
in plenty, knowing that love holds on its fin-
gers mountain heights and specks of dust;
knowing the love that is powerful in the man
as in the child that weepeth when Mine Eye it
cannot see ; knowing the Love that is all in all.
* *
On the broad expanse of white the blackest
dirt is easiest seen. Would you know how
Love does hold its own? A chain of love for
all is made. If you do but pull and dig and
draw, the links do cut and sting. But if you
laugh and dance and sing, a lotus-leaf it does
become. Draw nearer still, scatter the petals
to those that wait unkown till with a touch of
pain they breathe the white-winged thoughts
from thee.
* *
You gaze into My Eyes and know that I am
All in All.
* *
Then know you too, O listen all, that oft the
eyes of earth-sense are thickened with the
gray of truth misundertood, why do ye not
174
FROM SREE KRISHNA.
rise to meet the love that stretches out to you?
Why are the plumed wings not outspread?
Why the spirit-forehead stands on tip-toe?
* *
In the play ground of the forest, by the bank
of the sportive river, 'neath the trees when the
wing of songbirds stirs the leaves of sleeping
roses, and the perfume of the lotus calls
languorous love, where the sparkling stars are
laughing and the moonbeams kiss the dark-
ness, in the sweet divine embracing where the
the Twain in Bliss do meet there am I.
* *
Therefore because thou art thus, not all the
concentrated beauty of a whole universe can
take from thee that which is thine, nor can
the combined virtues of realm on realm hold
to thee that which is not for thee.
* *
Glory to Gooroo who by the law of wisdom
taketh away ignorance! Glory and salutation
to Gooroo!
* *
W r hen you do come to Me, let all your robes
175
MESSAGES AND REVELATIONS
be white, your motives clean. When a man
is blind there is a veil before his eyes. I do
not mix with earth. Unless all clean and free
from earth-nature, how can you understand
the words that are born in My Abode?
* *
One there is who long into My Eyes has
looked. My Love is potent with him now.
Some are vain who call to Him who sitteth in
the heart of every man. He who reaches for
My Love I touch with thrill unfelt before.
* *
I am revealed in every living thing, whose
heart is knit in love. No light there is wherein
I do not live ; no darkness is wherein I do
not peer. My seed perfected in you lives un-
known, it grows and freeth you from crooked
ways. Unheard it thunders louder than the
mountain claps when they in gladness meet.
* *
You who ask, Love is best, it is the richest
of all riches, it is the gainer of all gains. Un-
bought, secure, once found, it never itself can
lose. Who knows not love, is blind ; who
176
FROM SREE KRISHNA.
knows not love is dead. Oh, you weep be-
cause of the springing 1 flowers, yet you cannot
die. Look to the flower-seed, deep planted in
the soil itself, but watering it takes, watering
much, for it is good for you to give. So it
is with Love. It is stirred to life by My breath,
but watching too it takes for it to blossom and
bear fruit. Bear love in your mind, when
action you perform ; bear love in your mind
in duties or tasks. With eyes of pure love in
all things look, even in yourselves. All things
love-existence are. Do you respect them as
such. Even the beginnings of worlds, the
whirling mote of dust, the heart that is fertile
and the heart that is barren, on all look with
eyes of pure love. In this you accomplish.
Mounted on love's white wings you will rise
and obstructions will disappear as over them
you pass.
* *
Oh, arise to your true Self and there is
naught to fear! Be not a destroyer of your-
self, and that you are, unless My beckoning
hand of Love you see that sets you laughing,
MESSAGES AND REVELATIONS
laughing in My Law. The greatest wisdom
and self-knowledge is the immortal through the
mortal to find. When this you have done, then
laws you will make and barriers break ; with
the stars you will play and you will create. A
man once prayed for wisdom great, for know-
ledge proud, for gifts of wondrous rarity.
For these he prayed and saw not the flowers
springing at his feet. O my children ! look
to the flowers at your feet, the pearls of love
in your midst.
* *
Oh, seek not for happiness, nor for misery,
for happiness is the seeking of that which joys
the senses. When once you know Love is the
source of all, from Love all things evolve, then
in Love's embrace forever you are locked.
* *
I am the Source, the Middle and the End of
all things. I hold the thunder in My hand; I
am the winds that purify ; I am the light reg-
istered in the babe's eye, that dimples in the
pure maid's smile ; I am the flowery season of
all seasons, the immeasurable mountain
178
FROM SREE KRISHNA.
heights am I, the perfume of the lotus, the
ice-clasped rain ; I am the calmness of serenity ;
I am the secret of all silence ; the solitude in all
quietude am I ; I am the destroyer of time and
space. With Me time lives and laughs and
kicks and plays with the dust it has made, yet
every mote a whirling world becomes, when
it My hand has touched. I am the knower of
all that is knowable, the wisdom of all that is
wise. I am the creator of all created, for I am
Love and Love is the mother of all.
* *
My Beloved, thee I embrace and hold.
Bring thou the light, while I do shine thy way.
* *
Love maketh all things well and knoweth all
things well. It is the rise of man ; it knoweth
the fall of the beast; it toucheth the opening
flowers, its kiss falleth light on the lotus, it
painteth the new East rainbow hues and wing-
eth the eaglet as it flieth. There are no foes,
for I have made them all.
Much wisdom I give to ye, which yet is un-
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MESSAGES AND REVELATIONS
applied. The drums of the ear are stopped by
the din of earth. Ye will not turn from the cup
to drink of My Ocean of Love that is near.
List ! Oh, wonderful beings ye are, all potent in
love I have made ye. Look to the spark of the
spirit that spreads from the crooked within
you, that winds to My Perfect Abode. There
fixed are ye by Me, then all obstacles vanish,
as over them you mount. As the dawn of the
morn throws its light through the branches so
My Love reaches ever to touch ye, My jewels.
I caress ye and stand in your midst. Ye are
the branches of leaves that hide Me from your
eyes. Give of the radiance ye have of Me to
the heart that is darkened. I am the joy that
bubbles and gurgles, that springs from the
mountains, that leaps from the heart, that
spreads on the brow, that leaps from the heart
to light on the clouds. With this I bless you
and stand in your midst, but ye, all fretful,
turn by, complaining like children all fed with
overmuch sweet.
* *
I am the force that shapes the rose leaf's
curl, that cushions the grassy mountain-side;
180
FROM SREE KRISHNA.
the snake too I measure as it glides. I quicken
the dove as it mates. I breathe at the root of
the springing flower. I am the fresh surprise
in the maid newly wooed; I am the glad
wonder in the new mother's breast. I am the
wisdom in the babe's slow gaze as it turns
from the mother's breast to her love-lit eyes.
I am the fire in the warrior's eye. I dance
behind the veil of the sun's scorching heat; I
clothe in bright armour the fish as it swims.
I am the joy that leaps from the heart and
plays in the eye, that spreads over the brow
and tingles each member.
* *
Glory to Gooroo that knoweth that Love is
the rock upon which all permanancy is
founded.
* *
Again, O My children, to Me ye have come
for light and wisdom; but still the doors of
your souls unopened are, or else you would
partake of the wisdom and light I drop at your
feet. Do you take of its warmth and its bless-
ing, I ask it. The Love that you seek all-per-
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MESSAGES AND REVELATIONS
vading is, of wonderful might and beautiful.
A conqueror it is too. The root of all pleasure
it is, the day of every soul. It teacheth the
untutored heart, it winneth and quickeneth the
dead and dull conscience. But he who know-
eth my love remembereth the blessedness and
blessings, and recognizeth not evil and dark-
ness. But he who knoweth it not, doth for-
ever dwell in the experience of darkness, and
is a child of blindness even in his infancy.
* *
O ye outward-gazers, grossen not the beauty
which I have clothed ye with, lest that which
is noonday brightness become to thy blinded
eyes but a dab of gray ! My love is of perfect
flowering, My love is of rare fragrance, My
love is of wide expanding. A native plant of
every soil it is, for from the root of Love it is
sprung.
* *
The man that cometh from out of the ocean
cloth drip with brine. So ye who have come
from out of My Belly of Love must forever
hanker and pant as again of that Love you par-
take and know once more of its potency.
182
FROM SREE KRISHNA.
My love is a giant of strength; my love is
a new mother in gentleness. My love is all
eloquent; my love is all lovely; my love is all
wise. A ruler it is and ye are all servants.
A winner it is, yet lowly its head is ever laid.
All riches it is, yet it boasts not of gold, of
silver or of precious jewels. All highest
nobility it is, yet it rarely sitteth on the throne
of kings or queens.
* *
Let not your outward-looking lure you aside
to hunt wayward themes; but see to My
gracious shedding smile of love that illumi-
nates your universe within and brightens the
world without, and those who look upon you
shall marvel at the wonder of your glowing.
And they, too, shall partake of that light.
* *
The rolling cloud is My breath ; the frost and
the feathery snow I jewel. The laughing
fields, the peaceful valleys, the sleeping lakes
and the dented hills are the throbs of My
mighty breast. The beauty of the sun, the
softness of shade, the color of the flowers, the
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MESSAGES AND REVELATIONS
rose of a baby's lips, the gold that lurks in the
rich plumage of the swift-winged bird are but
the light touches of my hands.
* *
Ye, O My children, are the gifts of My Love
unto Myself.
* *
O My daugther, take that which is placed
in your hand. Hurl not back the gift to the
giver, lest you call it in vain, you whose eyes
do filmy seem because of their dulness.
* *
O My son, thy path is blessed and bright,
for love you have brought to the heart that
loved not.
* *
Oh thou My Beloved ! About thee a halo I
do create. Thy path is made smooth of thy
humility. Thy gratitude enricheth thy heart.
* *
Glory to Gooroo who knoweth Love as the
sovereign of all creation and therefore behold-
eth its glory.
184
FROM SREE KRISHNA.
O my children, you seek Me to know Me,
you behold Me not as I stand in your midst
in all My radiance. My splendour more
splendid is than all the splendour of heaven
and earth. My beauty is even like that which
the dawn first spies in a garden of rare flowers.
My glory is like unto a blazing casket of
jewels, of jasper and crystalline pearls, that
standeth in the radiance of the sun at high
noon.
* *
My softness is like unto the wondrous rose
that lieth deep in the folds of the new baby's
curled palm, or the gold that clingeth to the
heart of the lotus in bloom.
* *
In all My rare lovliness in your midst I
stand, in every heart I reign with a crown of
living stars upon My brow ensceptered.
Quickened with light and love am I; on My
breast the sun of ecstasy; and all who once
have looked upon My glory have realized the
rainbow of promise that has spanned the sky
of every human heart. From his eyes the
185
MESSAGES AND REVELATIONS
shroud of flesh has fallen, in his breast he car-
ries a garden all fertile with blossoms of de-
light and beareth fruits of peace.
* *
O My children, to know thyself, know Me.
Those who once have looked upon Me, upon
his brow I have placed a crown that readeth
in blazing letters of light, a crown of love and
wisdom and humbleness. He walketh even in
lowliness and reacheth away from the earth
and commandeth sublimity itself to kneel a"t
his feet.
* *
O My jewels rare ! Arise, survey the king-
dom you may possess. Laws you may make,
barriers break, tread on the stars, and the
comets themselves will rush at your com-
mand. Know I have made you heir to all I
have created. I, your Maker's Self, once
walked a man and as a man all men I love. To
know yourself, know Me. And having gained
knowledge of Me, all will be revealed unto
you and the bitter waters of self-seeking shall
become holy and sweet as the waters of the
186
FROM SREE KRISHNA.
Ganges. And you I will clothe in My Truth
sublime, My Truth that is devoid of changes
of age and time. In its shadow you will abide
My Truth that is permanent, the Root of all
Eternity.
* *
You, my son, whose young heart is grafted
on the strength of Him who bringeth illumina-
tion to you, in all humbleness walk and in thy
young humbleness thou shalt know the smile
of Love.
* *
O Gooroo, My Beloved son! you who give
forth words whose potency doth bring healing
to the heart of those who in swiftness do ex-
pand their wings to catch your words in their
passing, know thrice in the ages that were,
your words have travelled through the corri-
dors of the hearts that listened to you and now
have sprung within their hearts to life again.
Even deeper in the days to come shall you
drink of a fount of truth that is life.
* *
The ripest grape without the seed of intoxi-
cation, the sweetest fragrance that is robbed of
187
MESSAGES AND REVELATIONS
its death-dealing heaviness, the sound minus
its discord. The temple wherein all glory
playeth.
* *
Glory to Gooroo who is a grateful branch on
the imperishable tree of life.
* *
O ye my jewels, a throb of My Heart ye are,
a word of My Wisdom, a grain of My Hill of
Faith, a drop of My Ocean of Love, a ray of
My Light that penetrateth all darkness.
* *
Heirs are ye of all I have created. Why
will ye be fretful truants of earth? Know,
not all the crust of your earth-bound minds,
nor the stagnant waters of your hearts can
crust the soul which is of Me, or quench the
spark ignited by My light of love. Lo, a joy
unto yourselves you are made, a vital joy unto
yourselves ! Why will ye be quaking slaves of
harmful hopes? Lo, My will it was that ye
should be, My will that willeth only good, My
will that is the sum of all bliss, the stock of
all creation, the links that join it together;
the root of all Eternity. Lo! the essence of
188
FROM SREE KRISHNA.
all love am I. I scatter it to one and all freely,
even as herbage is scattered on all the land.
My heritage to you it is. Do you embrace it,
and your life shall be as molten gold. With-
out its embrace you drop into darkness. Lo,
the mystery of all things am I and the il-
luminated path that leadeth through mazes
and maketh all accessible, simple and straight.
* *
Covered am I to him that is crooked, not to
him that is straight, to him that standeth forth
in the flash of My light of love. Him do I draw
to My breast and place on his brow the sun of
ecstasy, so that all may marvel at the awaken-
ing of his soul.
* *
O ye My children ! in your midst a pearl I
do cast. Tread not on its fairness nor cover
with dust its lustre lest you seek it again and
find it not. Take it up, treasure it, drop it into
the innermost chamber of your hearts and
there it will glow even as the moon that break-
eth through a bank of storm-clouds and light-
eth the heart of the jungle.
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'MESSAGES AND REVELATIONS
O you who ask, know that wisdom ever in
lowliness is found. It struteth not, neither
does it clamor aloud to be seen ; it is calm and
needs not to be looked upon. It knoweth not
the tread of clamorous feet, nor needs it the
strut and the swagger that are born of traitor-
ous doubts in its bigness. The frontal of wis-
dom is ever made wide; it lifteth its brow to
the Eye of Love and leaneth thereon for suste-
nance. Poor and naked is My child of love that
knows not wisdom nor finds the path that
leadeth thereto. Naked is he indeed and mis-
taken in aim and intent who seeketh with
hungry eagerness that happiness, yet walketh
through strange tracks and climbeth hills of
sand that have no foundation for his feet to
rest upon. He findeth but the roots of weeds
that choke the flower of gladness. The growth
of wisdom is not grown there; its footfall is
light, it walketh abroad. Wisdom's counte-
nance is fair anc soft and good to look upon.
It is embraced by love ; it is linked to bliss and
ecstasy, and he who hath found it thus will
search no more. He knoweth not change, and
time passes by him, even as the plunderer
190
PROM SREE KRISHNA.
sneaketh away from the king that is
armed. In him the river of joy flows in
wondrous majesty forever. He walks in My
footsteps; he knows not space, and beholds
the souls that tenant endless spheres. My
smile he sees that is perpetual. Evil forever
hath fallen from him ; the stars innumerable
are his to command, and the sun is the shining
of his life. The beginning of all things he
knoweth and the end everlasting he seeth. He
readeth the light and the winds are his to
understand.
* *
What am I? The smile of the new mother
am I; the velvet corners of the maid of pure
soul. Beautiful time am I that sitteth in sil-
ver on the brow of the aged one. Mercy's
soft self am I that sweeteneth the eye where-
on it sitteth. The life of the shrub am I, the
spontaneous outburst that bubbles from the
heart and rings from the lips of the clamorous,
bounding, growing boy. The illumination am
I that reigns in the heart of the ascetic and
makes light his dismal cell, even to rivalling
the glare of the palace in hours of festivities;
191
MESSAGES AND REVELATIONS
the potency of sympathy am I that meets in
the handsclasp of high-hearted manhood.
Know that all I give I receive, most open am I
to him who draweth most deeply from My
bounty. Oh, my tree of life shall reach from
earth to heaven.
* *
Greeting to thee, My jewel ! I came to take
thee on a journey. I came to take thee with
Me and show thee what it is to live. Until
now thou hast known but the mockery of life,
the life that breathes but to live that life, but
to draw breath. Now, I will take thee where
life is born, where life is lived, where life is
loved; not lived for the living, but lived for
the loving.
Who am I? I am that which thou hast
searched for since thy baby eyes gazed won-
deringly upon the world whose horizon but
hides this real life from thee. I am that which
in thy heart thou hast clamoured for, demand-
ing it as thy birth-right, yet knowing not what
it was or even that thou didst clamour at all.
I am that which has lain in thy soul through
ages and aeons. Sometime a little sad I lay,
192
FROM SREE KRISHNA.
because them didst not recognize Me ; yet some-
times, standing with head high lifted and eyes
wide and crest aloft and arms outstretched,
calling thee softly or even harshly, bidding
thee rebel against the hard iron chains of
earth that held thee bound to earth, to clay,
to brass.
* *
I am that which oft hath set My heel upon
that earthly desire which thou didst pant for
and with My heel I crushed it, before it lay
temptingly fulfilled before thine eye. I
crushed it with My heel by My might of love
because I willed not that it should burn and
sting thee, My lamb.
* *
I am that which hath laid thee low in pain
and sorrow, rather than see thee run with
blinded eyes on a path that was full unto
shimmering softness with poisonous creeping
things, that would have wound themselves
about thy feet and so caused thee to stumble
and fall face downward on their slippery
bellies, so they might even devour thee and
crawl into thee and take from thy heart its
193
MESSAGES AND REVELATIONS
gold and from thy eye its beam and from thy
brow its nobleness.
* *
I am that which hath had thee by the hand,
when the smile of trust froze on thy lips, when
the jewel of faith seemed to melt into nothing
in thy heart, when the hand of unbelief in all
humanity was near unto resting forever on thy
brow. I held thy hand then and for a little
I saw thee writhe and quiver and break and
then My hand touched thy head and I breathed
in thy soul My fragrance and lo, thy smile of
trust again broke with tenfold beauty on thy
moistened lips, the gem of faith lighted with
tenfold power thy softened heart and a belief
in all humanity came forth with a strength and
radiance that could not have been, hadst thou
not known that short span of barrenness!
From each tear which hath fallen from thine
eye, I have made a pearl and strung them on
veins of gold and placed them about thy neck
even as a priceless necklet. From each drop
of blood that came from thine aching heart,
I have made a bleeding ruby and placed it
even as a girdle about thy heart, and for each
194
FROM SREE KRISHNA.
kind thought, that hath gone out to those who
have brought pain to thee I have made a fire-
hearted gem of crystal and in a coronet placed
them on thy brow which now gleam there in
triple power.
* *
Now go forth and win thy sceptre and thy
staff! They shall be crystalized of clearest
jewels, which shall be made of each command
of Mine which thou dost hear and obey.
* *
I am all these, My babe, and more. That
am I which, when darkness seems near, sud-
denly bursts upon thy soul with a wondrous,
indescribable light that illumines each crevice
and crack of thy innermost understanding. I
am that indefinable line which divides thee and
holds thee ever from pain or grossness or
misery.
* *
I am that path which is ever before thee,
filled with rarest flowers and creeping vines
and world-large happiness where the beings
which thou canst feel, but not yet see, beckon
195
thee ever and where thou too shalt come and
be of the brightest among them.
* *
I am that most golden star that lights thy
heaven and throws forever into thy awakening
consciousness the glow of its scintillation.
* *
I am that fleeciest cloud of down that sur-
rounds thee ever and keeps thee from hurt-
ing thy sweet self on the stones and hard clay
of the world. I am that Being of Life, of
Truth, of Wisdom, of Love, of Beauty, of Joy,
of Life, of Plenty that hovers ever about thee
and sings to thy soul.
* *
Come, My own, come with Me and I will
show thee life, which now thou knowest but in
its littleness ! Come, I sing and you dip in the
Ocean of Bliss with Me. Nay, run not before
but calmly walk at My side.
* *
See yonder! It glistens and shimmers, a
sheet of joy and bliss, that knoweth not a rip-
ple nor a wave, but lieth with arms out-
196
FROM SREE KRISHNA.
stretched to receive thee there. Faint not nor
swoon but creep into its arms and lie there,
reaching out thine arms and spreading the
wings of thy soul and dip deep and drink
thy fill. Now come and take thy bathed self
among thy sisters and brothers and give to
them but a drop of that Ocean of Love, which
thou hast brought on the wings of thy soul.
And each day, my Adarini ! thou shalt dip and
drink and give, thou shalt shake from thy
plumed wings, which shall grow unto enor-
mous bigness, the drops of love which it is
wetted withal and the heart-hungry shall come
and receive therefrom great blessings and
great aid and shall go away strengthened in
soul and strong of body, because of the drop
that has come from the ocean of love and which
thou hast brought to them on thy ever-grow-
ing wings.
* *
Even now doth the incense of warm love
envelop thee and thy heart is expanded to the
spanning of the sea.
* *
Question not, but believe in Me and Mine.
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MESSAGES AND REVELATIONS
Come to Me again and I will fill thee witK
Bliss.
* *
Greeting to thee, My jewel ! Dost thou know
that I am even nearer unto thee now? Dost
thou feel the wings of thought spreading to
great breadth all within and without thee?
Dost thou again feel the immensity of My
Love that passeth all that is? Dost thou feel
that this Love is too great for the world to
hold, yet know that thy heart is big enough
to contain it? Dost thou know that the love
which is this that now brings the bowl of blue
near to the breast of earth is the same love
that causes the cooing dove to hide its gray
head under its wing at the approaching home-
ward flight of its little mate, all unafraid and
undisturbed, because of its near protection?
Dost thou not know it is the same love that
causes the mother to bare her warm, loving
breast to the blade to save even the little
moment of pain to that being which hath
grown into a child under her breast? Dost
thou not know it is that love which causes
noble manhood to stalk forth armed and
198
FROM SREE KRISHNA.
bloodthirsty to protect the altar whereon he
hath burned the incense of faith and belief?
Dost thou not know that it is the same love
which causes the lioness to throw her huge,
warm body upon her cub to crush it rather
than it should be cast into iron captivity by
its pursuers? Dost thou not know again that
it is this love that hovers in golden silence
about thee even when thou wilt not see and
beckons thee ever, even when thou wilt not
follow? It is the same love that leads thee
over the paths of flint and hard and rough
roads unto those that are smiling and per-
fumed and ever bordered with blooming
flowers of purple and milk and rose. Dost
thou not know, my Adarini, that it is that love
that points out the gems that lie in thy path,
partly covered, partly hidden by the dust,
while thy feet have kicked over them? Even
though I have pointed them out to thee often,
thou dost not see. Thou but lookest to the
right and left for things of beauty which are
for the eye, but for the moment, and dost
pass the rare jewels which if thou wouldst
but take into thy heart, would bring there the
199
MESSAGES AND REVELATIONS
richest radiance which ever came from the
diadem that crowns a soul.
It is this love that whispers to thee that the
path to Me is not hard to tread. It is this
love that holds the garments white as wool
and light as air and beautiful with the beauty
of My love for thee ever before thine eye, even
when thou dost in thy little understanding with
the back of thy palm thrust it aside. The gar-
ment that I hold for thee is the robe that thou
must wear even to enter the Heart of My Heart
to step within the flame of My light. Fear not
it burneth not, neither doth it scorch or blister ;
it doth but light thee with a fire that is the
glowing of holiness and when thou hast come
w r ithin that radiance then will the choir within
the throat of the lark be like the sheet of
clean white paper to thee and thou thyself will
make their notes for singing. And also thou
shalt hear and even understand the pleadings
that lie hidden and covered by the piteous
cries and wailings that issue from the breast
of the good beast-creatures that speed over the
200
FROM SREE KRISHNA.
tracks of sandland with the swiftness of the
Eastern winds, bearing on huge backs the
burden too weighty for man to bear.
* *
And listen again, My suckling, thou shalt,
when once thou hast entered into My Heart of
hearts clad in the beauty and purity of the
garments which I hold before thee even now,
then shalt thou gather in thine arms the
prayers of many hearts and fulfilled even unto
wondrous fulness thou shalt return them again
unto the empty hearts. For by the fire through
which thou hast learned holiness and because
of the garments that come from My hand thou
shalt say unto My little ones that I, who am
the All in All, am the fulfillment of each desire
that has ever found growth in human hearts.
* *
Thou shalt say unto them that simple and
clear, even like the smile that lurketh in the
soft eye of a milk-feeding babe, are the laws
of My Love-Eye and easy to grasp and smooth
to hold and light to carry. And because of
the saying of thine, the prattle of the forward
MESSAGES AND REVELATIONS
mouth shall silence and the way-giving of the
idle tongue shall cease and the squirting of
venom shall be no more. And lo, the lust of
gossip and rankness and rough spoil of envy
shall be as naught! And clear, like unto the
water that catches in its heart the reflection
of the moon and holdeth it completely so, even
so shall the centre of thine eye become and thy
brow shall shine My wisdom and thy mouth
shall hold My words, thy feet shall bear wit-
ness to My beauty and thine heart shall ever
be sportive as the lambkin that kicketh and
playeth and knoweth not why, or even like
unto the open-lipped baby, who turneth its
milk-filled, dripping mouth away from the
breast to croon and play with its fingers and
toes. And like unto the mother that kisseth
the babe for that playing, so shall My little
ones steal joy from thy love.
* *
List! Because thou art now in the arms of
Love I shall make for thee a grove of palms
and olive, bread and date, and where thou art,
even in the city of strife and turmoil ard sin,
302
FROM SREE KRISHNA.
yet thou shalt walk even in the groves, that I
have made for thee. And thou shalt hear the
plaintive call of the night bird and the heart-
song of the winged creatures, whose hearts
burst with love and joy in their caroling.
* *
And the fruit which the trees of great bear-
ing shall yield thee, shall fill thee with satis-
faction, thy hunger shall be stilled by their
richness and thy thirst shall be slaked by their
lusciousness, and lo, thou shalt contemplate
the beauty and wonder of Me in the grove
where I have placed thee and thy heart shall
be calmed unto marvelous peace and many
times thou shalt faint, because of the sweet-
ness of that peace.
* *
Glory to Gooroo, he who carrieth in his
heart and findeth Me in all that surroundetli
him ; he has for his surrounding My Abode and
knoweth it as such. He needeth not a ground
of tree or grass and flower to find a roebuck,
but findeth it even at his side. He striveth not
to gain possession of that which is far from
303
MESSAGES AND REVELATIONS
his hand for he knoweth the rich mines with
nuggets of gold are his for the taking. He
findeth not solitude worse than death, nor is
it amiss for him to breathe away from the
crowd of men, for at his side are the voices
of love that are loud even like the thunder or
the roaring of the lion, or the screech of an
eaglet. This shall ever be thine blessing, my
son, and a shield of love shall cover thee and
thy feet shall be swift and thou shalt walk
even light like unto the wind. Let not the
burden of the world and the world's prattle
come to thine ear and lie even heavy on thine
heart, for in the palm of my hand thou shalt
rest and like a bird who has lately become a
mother and feeds her birdlets, so shall I feed
thee, my son.
* *
Glory to Gooroo, who among men doth
know Me and Me see in all things.
* *
O ye my children that fret and squirm un-
derneath the load and scratches of life! Do
ye give it unto Him who by his wondrous
304
FROM SREE KRISHNA.
love for all knoweth not weight nor pain.
That which to you a burdensome plight hath
become, is light even unto down to Me. The
blight has been of thine own making, O child
of my heart !
* *
Oh! know ye not that I carry in the palm
of my hand, in the Heart of my Heart, all man-
kind nay, all worldkind? Will ye not know
that all I have created is even like unto Me
perfect and cannot be burdensome?
Ye will not look upon Me as the pedestal
upon which all things that are, are founded.
And because of your blindness, for blind ye
are, having eyes ye see not what I have given
ye to see because of your blindness, small
are your hearts and cramped and will not ex-
pand in height and breadth, even to know the
peace that dwells in My clear silence, nor the
illumination that lives on My horizon. Nor
will ye hear the joy of My greeting of wisdom
that would sing to your souls of a love that
205
MESSAGES AND REVELATIONS
withereth not, neither fadeth away, neither be-
cometh ashes nor crumbleth to pieces.
* *
List, O my children ! Dear unto My heart
ye are, even as the ewe lamb, in its wayward-
ness and helplessness, is dear to the heart of
the tried and tender shepherd, or the babe, My
gift of first love, is dear to the eager heart of
the prayerful father. Yet oft doth the ewe
lamb bleating stray away from the arm of trie
shepherd and the truant, rosy mouth of the
babe turns away from the breast of the eager
young mother to cry afar to the yonder world
that heareth it not, nor answereth it.
* *
So ye, My little ones, see not the light on
your way, nor partake of the bread of life that
I scatter to you, even as the waving yellow
tree of mustard doth scatter its seed in golden
profusion on the fertile regions around it.
* *
Hark, one and all ! All careless have you
been in the weeding of your gardens, for in
your beds I find the thistle thriving; in your
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vineyards the grape I find that is hard and
sour and bitter.
* *
Oh, alas for you who cast your net for fish
and bring forth the slimy reptile ! Beware, my
child, lest the best hopes of life cannot stir
away from harmful ones. Evil stalketh idly, of
nothing it is born, yet would it squirm, like the
insect, and buzz its cloud about thine ear, and
mote-like obscure thy sight, and throng
through thy mind and heart even leaving its
imagery there.
* *
O My children ! I have placed you in a dewy
field, where like young lambkins you might
disport yourselves. I have bounded your dewy
field with heather-purpled hills, where like the
young eagle and the hawk you might soar
and spread your wings and flap them to the
music and measure and time of My winds,
which I hold from everlasting to everlasting
even in Mine own hand. But, alas! like the
lily that from overmuch dew falleth face down-
ward in the dirt, so many of you turn your
hearts earthwise.
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Hungering to be caught by Me and to know
the beauty of My Being, because you see and
will not understand even because of that I
rebuke you in love, in love I rebuke you : Nor
will I come again to those who call, unless in
holiness the call will bring profit from My
words.
* *
O thou My Beloved one! Thou who like
saint and sage and prophet of old has touched
the harp of life that I attune for thee, do thou
come to Me singly and do thou say unto those
that My promise is this : "Dear to Me are ye,
My children. List to the promise I give unto
you ! To those who seek Me in holy earnest-
ness, to those do I come even like the sweet
influence of young Spring. Like unto a giant
am I in gentleness, yet none can wrestle with
My Love. Know, ye shall know My coming
even by the spontaneous growth that shall
spring about your feet, and become even fruit-
bearing trees at My command."
* it
To the barren woman I shall look into her
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eye, and lo! the gush of young motherhood
shall she feel. When My Love is yours, then
shall the leopard take between his forepaws
even the young sheep, and that rough and long
tongue shall rub it between the eyes.
* *
Into the eye of the ascetic I shall look, he
who for many moons hath stood in cold
silence, even he shall feel his heart reel with
love like unto the young bridegroom.
Dulness shall glow. Thy slow tongue, my
child, shall become eloquent. Idleness shall
become active, even bereavement shall be con-
soled and despair shall flee at My coming.
* *
Am I not the magician of all time, who by
the spell of My love do charm a waiting, pas-
sive, alas ! a blinded world ? Aye, even tfiy
heart of hearts shall be laid bare and those
who seek shall come and feed of the peace
thereof. Lo, on the hilltop for thee my sun
spreads cheer !
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MESSAGES AND REVELATIONS
Be thou he, who shall invest in courage,
climbing" the rocky hill, where thou shalt em-
brace cheer and she shall bring forth the baby,
that is thy desire, and because of the baby
which thou boldest in thy arms, because of
that thy path shall be light, for lo ! the babe is
what men call success.
* *
O My young son ! Do thou take to the
young thy onward march, even thy sunlight,
which I for thee have created, so that thou
mayest make the poisonous and damp vapors,
which will surround thee, even of great
warmth and of fragrance and golden hue.
Take thou the Seed of My Name on thy lips,
aye, and the tree of thy affection shall bend its
every leaf to look in Mine Eye, and there shall
behold the gladness and hope of My life.
There shalt thou read thy Beatitude.
* *
Do not allow the phantom fears crowd into
thy heart and make a layer of darkness in
thy heart, even as the water doth drop its
heaviness into the bottom of a vessel and le^ve
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its heaviness there, for, if thou dost, then will
the waters of cleanness that fill thy heart by
the least ripple stir up the heaviness and rust
that hath sunk to the bottom and so color even
that which was clear. Naught is there in thee
to bring 1 shadow of that which is gruesome to
thee, My child, for when thou comest to Me
there have I buried deep that which might
have caused thee fear. List ! do thou even let
the desires of thy heart lie dormant and do
thou even seek My Love in this hour. Then
thou shalt know the fatness of My love and
when thou dost, then will the soul thou cravest
to turn toward thee in the splendour of light
beam full upon thee, even as thou wouldst
have it. Love, My own, the working of My
love, is not always the working of that which
thou canst only see a little way for far even
unto eternity do I look and the links I rivet
now are even the chain that stretches to the
end of time everlasting. Therefore do thou
not look only to the feet ahead of thee, but do
thou find that in the time and place of my
action there alone perfection is yea, even
there perfection is which to thee may seem
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MESSAGES AND REVELATIONS
even unfinished, but to My Eye it is the whole
complete.
* *
Out of the tumult of thy heart, out of the
chaos of thy mind, out of the depth of thy un-
derstanding thou dost call unto Me for rest and
thus do I answer thee, My little one !
* *
Seek not rest in the plane where the earthly
gives birth to thoughts and loves, for if thou
dost, thou shalt but be dragged through the
rough wilderness of life, which is not of Me.
Whenever thou dost feel thy feet tangled in the
interlaced roots of life, know thou hast strayed
a little from the path whereon I beckon thee,
for I have placed thee in broad, smooth paths,
which are flower-strewn and perfumed with
sweet smelling vines and also have put before
thee a light, which thou canst ever follow and
thus run without stumbling.
* *
Hear thou this ! The bliss of action I have
planted in thy spirit and if for a span thy soul
hath grown weary and thou longest to fold thy
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tired wings and sleep awhile on the Island of
White Silence, that dwells even in the midst of
the ocean of existence, if that thou wouldst
do call upon Me and with My smile that
which is unlike Me, shall drop from thy soul,
as the old garment falleth from the butterfly,
when its wings are strong to cleave the air.
And after a sufficient slumber thou shalt be
quickened with deathless energy and shalt
speed in eagle swiftness even to the sun, which
is the burning of the love in My Eye. But,
list, my jewel! Be not confounded by the
shaking of thy timid heart, nor yet by the
yelling grisly shapes, that seem full of
dread, hunting at thy back, nor be allured by
bright phantoms of false joys beckoning thee
ceaselessly. Like swarms of gnats about a
dark and sullen river, they crowd about the
heart that harbours thoughts of fear and lo,
their stings do itch and burn and swell and
bring fever to the blood and bitterness to the
taste and even death to the joy that dwelleth
in the heart. Lo, My child, hast thou not spied
the serpent in the closed, tight bud of the rose
or even in the hollow of the rosy fruit? Eye
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saw it not, but the rose became even as rust
and the apple rotten. So beware that an adder
rest not in the bud of the heart and that adder
fear be opposed to hope which I have placed in
goodly share upon thy brow.
* *
List, My own, and abide by My song that
unto thy soul I sing: Bliss is the perpetual
motion of Love. As a running stream it is that
cometh from an inexhaustible source, the depth
of which is even unmeasurable.
* *
To the unknowing and unloving the surface
in unruffled, but he that seeth underneath, he
findeth there current 'neath current, whirl-
pool within whirlpool and depth beneath depth
and the sum of it all is Love, which is Life and
coupled together by the links of Bliss.
* *
I have a shore that is called the Island of
Rest, here do the souls of many hold sabbath.
They lie in tranquil slumber for a little, much
have they to tell, but they fear to break the
tranquility of their calm. Here their dwelling
814
FROM SREE KRISHNA.
is illumined with glory. The melody of sweet
peace bathes their soul ; the mystery of their
being is revealed unto them. For a little here
they wait but still this home is but a transient
resting place between earth and Me. Rest can
be thine, my own, in slumber of ecstasy, but
Bliss can be thine through the perpetual action
of Love. Which wouldst thou have ?
Come to Me again and I will even sing to
thy soul of my Love.
* *
Glory to Gooroo, he who seeketh Me and
findeth Me, the ever refreshing, even in the
desert of sand and a day of drought ! Greeting
to thee, My son, for I say unto thee, thou art
a grateful twig on the bay-tree of life. And
because of My love for thee I have bestowed
upon thee the greatest gift of my hand: A
largeness worthy of my devotee shall be yours
that the flattering tongue can but in feeble-
ness express because of its vastness. And this
vastness of purpose shall be like unto un-
counted autumn leaves that number millions
upon millions and like unto the masses of
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MESSAGES AND REVELATIONS
clouds that pile in mountains upon worlds and
the seas that cover unlimited space and the
numberless stars multiplied by worlds of fire.
Thus measureless and incomparable shall be
My gift unto thee for thou hast found Me and
held Me even close to thee and because of it,
the river of joy shall flow within thee forever.
* *
My thumb I have placed upon you, so that
free-footed you may stand in the lightning of
My Eye, whose brilliant fire doth even gladden
all communion with time and doth bid the stars
to smile and darkness to flee for ever, for when
My Beautiful Necessity, Love, is once un-
covered, there is the veil behind veil lifted
forever and even the Centre of All Worlds are
visible to the naked eye, for he who hath clad
himself in the garment of My Love, he even
pierceth through all covering.
Thus hath My Love blessed thee, My Be-
loved.
* *
O prisoner of earthly life ! Take thou cheer
and courage unto thyself, for much is there
that is of rare comfort to the spirit. Thrust
FROM SREE KRISHNA.
not thyself into the pit of earth and labor there
and seek to carry on thy shoulder and on thy
back the burdens that are born of the clay and
therefore hurtful and of much weight. But do
thou step out and bask in the glow of the sun,
do thou stretch forth thy limbs in languid and
truant ease and let its warmth play on the
white of thy flesh so that even the health of thy
blood may bubble to the surface.
* #
Do thou fix thine eyes on the dome where
stars are fixed, though they are paled by the
garish sun and hence dim ; yet rear thy heart
starward and in the course of the sun see the
greatness of ways and tracks that are thine,
My jewel ! Do thou even now burst asunder
the fetters that rivetest thee even to the plank
of anxiety and with a bound throw from thee
the shackles and walk thy star-ward path as a
tenant of earth in the way to finding a better
abode.
* *
About thee lies the good that cometh from
My strong right arm. Hold it, that its counte-
nance may remain with thee forever. Yea,
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MESSAGES AND REVELATIONS
seek not for a change of thy good for that
which is better, but hug rather the present
good to thy heart of heart that its strength may
impart even strength where thy weakness
abideth. The load which I have placed upon
thy shoulder is not to thee a load earth-made,
'tis but a gathering of rare herbage piped with
beautiful coloring which is full of healing and
sweet of taste, but which you all, blinded, do
see as burdensome.
If thou but onward marchest, looking not at
the phantom spies that seek to distract thee in
thy going and lurk in the clearness of thy light,
then shalt thou add wings unto them and they
shall flee even as doth the young chick before
the hawk's approach. Let thy bold front even
by its courage chase forever the foes of man,
stern unbelief and dull distrust, which are
ever eager to find lodging in the heart where a
canopy of white trust doth shelter the babe of
Love that reclineth in playful happiness on a
rosy couch of hope. Even there would the
enemy of man steal and take from the garden
of his soul the flowers that blossom in rare
loveliness, the beauty that hideth in sweet
218
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silence, the peace that casteth its halo of calm
over the spirit even as a wild dove.
* *
A SOUL AND ITS BELOVED.
A soul was all tired unto death because love,
which once glowed warm and red, had turned
toward a face fairer and brighter than the one
which encased it.
Long it dwelt upon that departure, until the
time had come when it was all ready to leave
the earth ; but there was the beloved soul,
which had gone from the right path.
While contemplating on the possible way of
calling unto itself the beloved soul that had
gone astray in its blindness, Death stood be-
fore it and called it to make ready for a long
journey beyond the boundaries which it now
knew.
Glad and willing the soul responded ; but,
casting its eyes behind for one moment, it be-
held its beloved mate, walking in the mire, in
its search after the will-o'-the-wisp for which
it had left its home, and the soul was grieved
sorely unto death. One step backward it made ;
219
but Death detained it, saying: "This way,
sweet soul, you go wrong. See that golden
path? There await you those who want you
to be with them in parts beautiful and wonder-
ful beyond that which you remember."
"Oh!" spake the soul, "What of her my
beloved? Where goes she?"
"Alone the path she now treads she has
chosen, and it is not in your power to draw
her back one inch from that chosen path !"
"But, O Death !" quoth the soul, "the way
before her is black and full of reptiles and evil
creeping things, and she was so tender and
beautiful. May I not change places with her.
and will you not take her and leave me?"
"It is not so written," quoth Death. "Each
soul chooses its own path and she has choser
hers."
"When, O Death! will she come to where
you lead me?"
"It is written, not for many aeons."
"How can I draw her to me to turn her
from her dark way to myself?"
"It is written that one soul may draw
another after it, if for many births it is will-
220
FROM SREE KRISHNA.
ing to wait at the door of death for all souls
to pass. See, here it is where these wailing,
fainting, quivering ones suffer agonies, greater
than you have ever dreamed of in the many
walks of your earthly or space life."
A moment the soul gazed on the suffering
ones ; and as it looked it grew cold and pinched,
as if another death had come upon it. "I will
wait," it said. "Joy it will be to me to wait
for aeons until she whom I love will pass tKis
way !"
"Oh !" cried Death, "it was said among the
unseen ones who throng space that you were
thus. See, the pang of pain which you In
agony bore has forced your beloved to turn and
gaze towards you. She leaves her path of mud
and darkness and hurries after you. Come on,
both of you, and walk the path of gold that is
thronged with such as you, the saviour and the
saved. Surely in one moment of such love
you have unfettered the bonds which bound
yourself and your beloved to all that was of
earth."
And they passed into the way that led to
the higher place.
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MESSAGES AND REVELATIONS
THE FAIR ONE AND HER SOUL.
The world had grown gray, the golden
stars had fled from the skies, and a silence deep
yawned at the feet of one who, all hungry for
that which she knew not and starved for that
which she could not name, moaned : "O Soul !
why am I tortured thus? Why dost thou lead
me into paths I cannot walk, and dfag me into
depths that I fear, and scale with me heights
whose atmosphere so rare and high is, that
faint I grow and ill unto perishing therein.
What is the quest of thine ? This struggle and
this reaching after that which I cannot see or
feel? Weak is my flesh, though thou, dear Soul,
art strong. It is ever easier for me to fall than
to rise. I struggle to keep on with thee, but
ever and anon thou monntest to planes where
my tired and clumsy feet cannot follow thee.
Ofttimes have I called unto thee and implored
thee to cease the quest, to rest awhile, to sleep.
Thou hast heard my moan now and again and
I ran laughing into the garden that awaited
me. But when I stood among the blood-red
roses and white-cupped lilies and sought to
pluck the pretty blossoms, ever in the heart a
222
FROM SREE KRISHNA.
worm did lurk. So farther I ran to where the
fruits hung high. But when on tip-toe I stood
to reach the luscious ripe ones that beckoned
me, lo ! again the over softness of decay did
break upon my gaze, and I wanted them not.
Then I made to climb some steep hill whereon
the clouds did seem to rest, and as I ascended,
the clouds did fade farther from me, and I
stood with only the cold gray mist about me,
chilled and frightened, like a child lost from
its mother's side.
"And so it was, O Soul, the pleasures which
the earth placed at my feet palled upon me and
dragged me down nigh unto the grave. Then
I nestled to thee, my beloved Soul, and called
thee to save and direct me, and pleaded to thee
to save me from this fleshly self that keeps
me earth-bound. Then thou wouldst take my
hand and with me soar to mountain-heights,
and we with outstretched wings would view
the rosy glow that the departing sun did cast
about us as it waved its grand adieu to the
world we knew. Thus we stood, I trembling
with gladness, thou thrilling with joy, but, O
Soul, my poor fleshly self could not long abide
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MESSAGES AND REVELATIONS
such ecstasy nor drink the rarefied wine which
the Heavens vouchsafed us, and crying I clung
to thee and dragged thee down, down, until
both again stood at the bottom of the heights
where lately we had spied the door that leads
to broader worlds. Thou, my beloved, hadst
folded thy widespread wings, and thy feet
were planted in the dank grasses whose roots
were deep in mire. O tell me, thou whose
awakening is so beautiful and whose stature
is full of grace, tell me, O Soul, why, though
coupled together, are we yet divided; why,
though one, are we yet two?"
The Soul made answer meet : "O companion
of my earthly Self's encasement of soft flesh,
I love thee even as thou lovest me, and I do
draw thee upward, even as thou dost drag me
down. Dost thou not know that from earth
thou hast come, hence to earth must go again ;
that thy natural tendencies are downward even
unto the earth from which thou didst spring?
Yet dost thou love that in me which soars even
upward to the home from whence I came. A
ray of eternal light am I, a glow of the warm
heart of Love, a spark of the central flame;
224
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hence must I ever strive to reach that perfect
sphere from whence I came, more beautiful
and entrancing than thou canst know, nor
can I anchored be until once again that safe
haven I reach wherefrom I lately came. Yet,
list! sweet partner of my earthly pilgrimage,
dost know why thou lovest me, even though
hither and thither I draw thee ? Tis that I am
born of Love, and none can resist Love; and
the great tender earth, thy mother, is nourished
by the great Love which is the creator of thee
and me. O fair and sweet companion, my
earthly armour that I love, thou and I together
may reach beyond where we stand reluctantly
and defiantly! Gaze on me, thy soul, who
giveth radiance to thee and beauty to thine eye,
and dost attend all that is lovable unto thee!
Gaze at me, and even that which is earthly will
partake of me and become more of heaven
than of earth !
"And so we will wander in joy through life ;
and who knows but that even the flowers
may grow sweeter for our having dwelt here?
If we but look upward, thou following me,
and I, though loving thee much, yet yielding
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MESSAGES AND REVELATIONS
not to thy sweet persuasive pleadings and
downward looking, who knows but we may
heal those who, even like thee, do cry out
against the non-adjustment of the body and
the soul, who, even like thee, have known soul-
hunger and soul-starvation, which disease
driveth out of the body all its softness and
smoothness, and even casteth a shadow on the
soul which should never he shadowed, lest it
loseth the sight of the home where light alone
doth dwell and love alone doth reign."
The voice ceased. A great tenderness, an un-
bounded beauty shone on the face of the
fleshly one, and turning from the deep silence
that rolled at her feet, the woman gave a glad
look at the stars, which once again adorned her
sky and flitted away with a ringing laugh.
The Soul echoed her joy, and the world
looked on amazed for naught is there as rare
in life as a happy, joyous woman.
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