The following is the script of a talk given by D.N. Persaud over Radio Demerara, Guyana, South America, on August 14, 1960, on the occasion of JANAMASHTHMI: (script written by his late son Bans Narain Persaud)
FRIENDS,
I am grateful to the sponsors of this program and to the management of Radio Demerara for providing the means for me to say a few words to you on this day, when the whole Hindu world is celebrating JANAMASHTHMI, the anniversary of the incarnation of Bhagvan Shri Krishna.
No one is more conscious of my disabilities, than I am, but I pray Shri Krishna Bhagvan will be gracious to me and grant me the inspiration to say that which would be of benefit to you and to His honor and glory.
It is now over five thousand years ago, when on the eighth day of the dark fortnight of the month of BHADRAPADA at the hour of midnight the incarnation of SHRI KRISHNA BHAGVAN occurred.
The records of his life and deeds are fully detailed in the MAHABHARATA, SHRI MAD BHAGVAT PURANA, VISHNU PURANA and other scriptures, and these establish that he was a personage without peer in all history.
Today, however, I invite you to let us think of HIM as the greatest of all teachers who handed down to us the greatest of all scriptures, comprehensive and universal in its aspects, a guide to all humanity regardless of race, creed or country. I refer to the SHRI MAD BHAGVAD GITA - the Lord's song - the song celestial - the song divine. Since it fell from the divine lips of SHRI KRISHNA BHAGVAN on the battle field of KURU KSHETRA and stilled the surging emotions of ARJUNA his friend and disciple, how many troubled hearts has it quieted and strengthened? How many souls has it led to HIM?
This friendship of ARJUNA and SHRI KRISHNA is symbolical of NARA and NARAYAN - the relationship of Man and God. In it we see the graciousness of God taking human form to assist and guide humanity.
This descent of God into man has a twofold purpose, one, to teach a way of life by following which, man may be able to remove the gross veil which covers his divinity and so be able to realize his true nature, and the other to provide a living example for all mankind to emulate.
The AVATAR sets the standard and bridges the gulf between Man and God, the transient and the eternal, the imperfections of the worldly and the perfections of the Divine, and the created and the Creator.
SHRI KRISHNA BHAGVAN taught that our objective in life should be perfect knowledge, perfect action, perfect peace, perfect happiness, perfect love, all united with perfect joy. We should convert ourselves from the narrow individual outlook to the broad universal outlook. By perfect self knowledge we should transcend the limitations of country, creed and race and fill our hearts with purity and love for all. He says to each one of us, "know thyself- realize your true nature, all while still engaged in performing your allotted duties in life.
When a man attains this self-realization, he becomes conscious of the oneness of humanity and he rises above the restrictions and limitations of selfishness. As a result he frees himself from bondage and unhappiness. He sees God in all beings and all beings in God. He hates no one, scorns no one and attains the greatest of all freedoms, the freedom from fear. He forgives those who wrong him and craves the forgiveness of the world for his own faults. He dwells in contentment and is firm in his resolves. He becomes conscious of his oneness with God and all creation. He realizes that this world is a joy of creation and rejoices therein. He sees sermons in stones, books in the running brooks and good in everything.
He becomes free from attachment, and while performing diligently and competently his various duties to his family, his community, his country and the world, he is not attached to anything. He regards the whole world as a stage on which all creatures are playing the various parts. He surrenders to the Lord his mind, his intellect, his all. He renounces all fruits of his actions dedicating them to the feet of the Lord and is therefore not affected by honour or dishonour, praise or blame, gain or loss, success or failure, victory and defeat and even life and death.
To attain this stage of perfection, the Lord prescribes a simple process. I will quote here from the revered BAPUJI'S<Gandhi> "Thoughts on the Gita," which are his interpretations of passages from the twelfth chapter. Quote: "Saith the Lord:- "Let thy mind be merged in my Universal Body which has form. Offer thy all at His feet. But if thou canst do this, practice the restraint of passions of thy mind. By observing YAMA and NIYAMA - that is the things to be done and to be avoided to lead a moral life - with the help of PRANAMAYA, ASAN, and other practices, bring the mind under control. If thou canst do thus, then perform all thy works with this in mind: that whatever thou undertakest, thou doest it all for My sake. Thus thy worldly infatuations and attachments will fade away and love will rise in thee. But if thou canst do even this, then renounce the fruit of all thy actions; yearn no more after the fruit of thy work. Always do work which falls to thy lot. Man cannot be master over the fruit of his work. The fruit of work appears only after causes have combined to form it. Therefore be thou only the instrument. Do not regard as superior or inferior any of the four methods I have shown to thee. Whatever in them is suitable for thee, that make use of in the practice of devotion." Unquote.
So friends, on this holy day whether in our homes with our families or with friends or congregated in our temples, when we join together in love and reverence to do worship and to commemorate this Divine descent of God into Man, let us reflect on this teaching which came from the Lord's own lips.
Let us resolve that we would anew reincarnate Him in our hearts and whatever may have been our past lives, we will from this day henceforth by His grace strive to pattern our lives in the manner so lovingly indicated, so that for us at least his coming and his teachings would not have been in vain.
Let us like ARJUNA completely surrender ourselves to His feet and like ARJUNA resolve to do his will, and verily like ARJUNA we would be partakers of the bliss which passeth all understanding.
FRIENDS,
I am grateful to the sponsors of this program and to the management of Radio Demerara for providing the means for me to say a few words to you on this day, when the whole Hindu world is celebrating JANAMASHTHMI, the anniversary of the incarnation of Bhagvan Shri Krishna.
No one is more conscious of my disabilities, than I am, but I pray Shri Krishna Bhagvan will be gracious to me and grant me the inspiration to say that which would be of benefit to you and to His honor and glory.
It is now over five thousand years ago, when on the eighth day of the dark fortnight of the month of BHADRAPADA at the hour of midnight the incarnation of SHRI KRISHNA BHAGVAN occurred.
The records of his life and deeds are fully detailed in the MAHABHARATA, SHRI MAD BHAGVAT PURANA, VISHNU PURANA and other scriptures, and these establish that he was a personage without peer in all history.
Today, however, I invite you to let us think of HIM as the greatest of all teachers who handed down to us the greatest of all scriptures, comprehensive and universal in its aspects, a guide to all humanity regardless of race, creed or country. I refer to the SHRI MAD BHAGVAD GITA - the Lord's song - the song celestial - the song divine. Since it fell from the divine lips of SHRI KRISHNA BHAGVAN on the battle field of KURU KSHETRA and stilled the surging emotions of ARJUNA his friend and disciple, how many troubled hearts has it quieted and strengthened? How many souls has it led to HIM?
This friendship of ARJUNA and SHRI KRISHNA is symbolical of NARA and NARAYAN - the relationship of Man and God. In it we see the graciousness of God taking human form to assist and guide humanity.
This descent of God into man has a twofold purpose, one, to teach a way of life by following which, man may be able to remove the gross veil which covers his divinity and so be able to realize his true nature, and the other to provide a living example for all mankind to emulate.
The AVATAR sets the standard and bridges the gulf between Man and God, the transient and the eternal, the imperfections of the worldly and the perfections of the Divine, and the created and the Creator.
SHRI KRISHNA BHAGVAN taught that our objective in life should be perfect knowledge, perfect action, perfect peace, perfect happiness, perfect love, all united with perfect joy. We should convert ourselves from the narrow individual outlook to the broad universal outlook. By perfect self knowledge we should transcend the limitations of country, creed and race and fill our hearts with purity and love for all. He says to each one of us, "know thyself- realize your true nature, all while still engaged in performing your allotted duties in life.
When a man attains this self-realization, he becomes conscious of the oneness of humanity and he rises above the restrictions and limitations of selfishness. As a result he frees himself from bondage and unhappiness. He sees God in all beings and all beings in God. He hates no one, scorns no one and attains the greatest of all freedoms, the freedom from fear. He forgives those who wrong him and craves the forgiveness of the world for his own faults. He dwells in contentment and is firm in his resolves. He becomes conscious of his oneness with God and all creation. He realizes that this world is a joy of creation and rejoices therein. He sees sermons in stones, books in the running brooks and good in everything.
He becomes free from attachment, and while performing diligently and competently his various duties to his family, his community, his country and the world, he is not attached to anything. He regards the whole world as a stage on which all creatures are playing the various parts. He surrenders to the Lord his mind, his intellect, his all. He renounces all fruits of his actions dedicating them to the feet of the Lord and is therefore not affected by honour or dishonour, praise or blame, gain or loss, success or failure, victory and defeat and even life and death.
To attain this stage of perfection, the Lord prescribes a simple process. I will quote here from the revered BAPUJI'S<Gandhi> "Thoughts on the Gita," which are his interpretations of passages from the twelfth chapter. Quote: "Saith the Lord:- "Let thy mind be merged in my Universal Body which has form. Offer thy all at His feet. But if thou canst do this, practice the restraint of passions of thy mind. By observing YAMA and NIYAMA - that is the things to be done and to be avoided to lead a moral life - with the help of PRANAMAYA, ASAN, and other practices, bring the mind under control. If thou canst do thus, then perform all thy works with this in mind: that whatever thou undertakest, thou doest it all for My sake. Thus thy worldly infatuations and attachments will fade away and love will rise in thee. But if thou canst do even this, then renounce the fruit of all thy actions; yearn no more after the fruit of thy work. Always do work which falls to thy lot. Man cannot be master over the fruit of his work. The fruit of work appears only after causes have combined to form it. Therefore be thou only the instrument. Do not regard as superior or inferior any of the four methods I have shown to thee. Whatever in them is suitable for thee, that make use of in the practice of devotion." Unquote.
So friends, on this holy day whether in our homes with our families or with friends or congregated in our temples, when we join together in love and reverence to do worship and to commemorate this Divine descent of God into Man, let us reflect on this teaching which came from the Lord's own lips.
Let us resolve that we would anew reincarnate Him in our hearts and whatever may have been our past lives, we will from this day henceforth by His grace strive to pattern our lives in the manner so lovingly indicated, so that for us at least his coming and his teachings would not have been in vain.
Let us like ARJUNA completely surrender ourselves to His feet and like ARJUNA resolve to do his will, and verily like ARJUNA we would be partakers of the bliss which passeth all understanding.
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