Hare Krishna,
Dandavaat Pranam,
Following a spiritual lifestyle requires strength. Strength to hold off the advances of a world intent on selling you products and life choices you don’t need. Strength to aspire for goals of the spirit, outside this body of flesh and blood that we inhabit. Strength to aim for a spiritual destination despite the seeming pleasures of this world. It’s hard.We all know it. Anyone who is trying to live a spiritual life knows it.
That’s why today is one of the most important festival days of the year for ISKCON devotees. For by worshiping Lord Balarama on the occasion of his appearance, we will get strength from the strongest.
That’s why today is one of the most important festival days of the year for ISKCON devotees. For by worshiping Lord Balarama on the occasion of his appearance, we will get strength from the strongest.
During the Shravana paurnami (the full moon day in the month of Shravana), Balarama Purnima (the appearance day of Lord Balarama) is celebrated.
WHO IS BALARAMA?
According to Krishnadasa Kaviraja’s Chaitanya Charitamrita—a manual of devotion and biography of Gaudiya Vaishnavism's founder Shri Chaitanya—he is the first expansion of God, Krishna, and assists the Lord in his pastimes. Yet while appearing to be a separate person from Krishna, Balarama is also intriguingly non-different. Chaitanya Charitamrita describes him as Krishna’s “second body,” and explains, “These two are one and the same identity. They differ only in form.”
Still, Balarama serves as Krishna’s elder brother, both in their eternal state of being in the Spiritual World, and during their recorded earthly pastimes. In a way, this gives him a senior position to God, a fascinating prospect that has an equally fascinating story behind it.
According to the ancient Puranas, each cycle of time contains four Yugas: Satya, Treta, Dvapara and Kali. As Krishna himself states in Bhagavad-gita, he appears in each of these Yugas along with his associates, “To deliver the pious and to annihilate the miscreants, as well as to reestablish the principles of religion.”
One of these appearances, during Treta Yuga, was as Lord Ramachandra. In this Avatar, Krishna was assisted by his female energy and eternal consort Radharani as Rama’s wife Sita, and Balarama as his younger brother Lakshman.
Still, Balarama serves as Krishna’s elder brother, both in their eternal state of being in the Spiritual World, and during their recorded earthly pastimes. In a way, this gives him a senior position to God, a fascinating prospect that has an equally fascinating story behind it.
According to the ancient Puranas, each cycle of time contains four Yugas: Satya, Treta, Dvapara and Kali. As Krishna himself states in Bhagavad-gita, he appears in each of these Yugas along with his associates, “To deliver the pious and to annihilate the miscreants, as well as to reestablish the principles of religion.”
One of these appearances, during Treta Yuga, was as Lord Ramachandra. In this Avatar, Krishna was assisted by his female energy and eternal consort Radharani as Rama’s wife Sita, and Balarama as his younger brother Lakshman.
APPEARANCE OF LORD BALARAM
Hearing the celestial voice that the eighth child of Devaki would kill the demoniac King Kamsa, he killed all the children born from Devaki. Mother Devaki was in deep distress during her seventh pregnancy because she felt the child would be divine in nature. To allay the fear of Devaki, Lord Krshna called Yogamaya and told her to transfer the child in the womb of Rohini, another wife of Vasudeva living in Nanda Gokula.
Balarama grew up into a handsome and powerful youth. He was gaura (fair in complexion) and adored always in blue. He preferred the colour blue because it resembled the embodiment of the Supreme Lord Krshna.
Balarama always carried a plow on hand as His weapon. Krishna and Balarama moved together from childhood and He rarely remained separate from the Supreme Lord and always participated in the nectarine lilas of His Younger Brother.
HE IS OUR ORIGINAL GURU
In fact, Balarama is known to all Gaudiya Vaishnavas as the original guru, which brings us back to the topic of spiritual strength. According to the Bhagavad-gita, one cannot approach God without the help of a guru. So the guidance of Lord Balarama is not only helpful to one’s spiritual life, but it is essential—one cannot reach Krishna without it!
“One cannot attain the goal of life without the mercy of Balarama,” states the Mundaka Upanishad emphatically. And Srila Prabhupada writes, “If one has no connection with Balarama, then even though one is a very learned scholar or has taken birth in a very respectable family, these assets will not help him.”
DON’T WORRY – RECHARGE YOUR SPRITUAL STRENGHT TODAY
So don’t worry—you needn’t travel as far as India in your search for spiritual strength. If the pressures of this material world are feeling heavy on your shoulders these days, just visit the nearest ISKCON temple today closest to you and pray to Lord Balarama or his Avatar Nityananda Prabhu.
Anyone who fasts and listen to the glories of Lord Balarama and Lord Krishna on the day of Balaram-Jayanti and sing in praise of Them will verily become eligible to live in Goloka Vrindavan and witness their divine nitya-lilas eternally.
Thank you very much
YS
Aarti L
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