“O son of Kunti [Arjuna], I am the taste of water, the light of the sun and the moon, the syllable om in the Vedic mantras; I am the sound in ether and ability in man.” (Lord Krishna, Bhagavad-gita, 7.8)

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रसो ऽहम् अप्सु कौन्तेय
प्रभास्मि शशि-सूर्ययोः
प्रणवः सर्व-वेदेषु
शब्दः खे पौरुषं नृषु

raso ‘ham apsu kaunteya
prabhāsmi śaśi-sūryayoḥ
praṇavaḥ sarva-vedeṣu
śabdaḥ khe pauruṣaṁ nṛṣu

1. The light of the sun

“I cannot tell you how much a sunny day brightens my spirits. Figuratively and literally. I cannot stand it when I wake up in the morning and there is darkness outside. It is a waste of that time in the twenty-four hour cycle.

“The sun means so much to me. You might think I have hit my head on something or that I am under the influence of heavy medication, but that is fine. I will never stop appreciating the sun, as it is the clearest example of benevolence, kindness, and lack of discrimination that I know of.”

2. The taste of water

“We try these different drinks, but water is what really does it for me. After a big meal, I need a tall, cold glass of water. I usually wait about an hour before drinking it. This process seems to calm down the fire that is inside of me. I could not imagine life without water. We tend to take it for granted.”

3. The juice of vegetables

“It is funny to think that the things we eat are also able to heal us. Just look at the variety of vegetables that are available. I have certain favorites, ones I prefer over others, but if everything is properly cooked I have no issue at all.

“I don’t know how it gets that taste. Where do the amazing health benefits come from? There was no research involved. There were no clinical trials. A higher power injected those healing substances in a predictable and reliable way.”

4. The heroism of others

“They say that freedom isn’t free. We live peacefully in our community because others make a sacrifice. They don’t get the proper recognition, if you ask me. If there is a criminal roaming about, terrorizing and stealing, it takes someone brave to confront the threat. They walk into the situation knowing that there is the potential for lethal harm, and yet they still boldly proceed.”

5. The life of others

“You realize the importance after being alone for so long. Just the presence of a single person means so much. Even if they don’t share similar interests. Even if they are from a different background. At least they are there to enliven my spirits. They have a value that cannot be measured. I am so thankful for the many lives that interact with me on a daily basis.”

…

His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada recommends that one way or another we should be Krishna conscious. That alone will fulfill the highest ambitions of life. Whatever we could want, whatever highest point we could possibly reach, whatever we consider to be the pinnacle of an existence – that is met through consciousness of the one who is all-attractiveness personified.

There is the direct method. Worship Krishna as He is. For this process, we have to know who He is. There must be some identification. There is study of the history, which is limited in comparison to the timeline of creation. As Vishnu, the Supreme Lord is there even prior to the creation process starting.

अहम् एवासम् एवाग्रे
नान्यद् यत् सद्-असत् परम्
पश्चाद् अहं यद् एतच् च
यो ऽवशिष्येत सो ऽस्म्य् अहम्

aham evāsam evāgre
nānyad yat sad-asat param
paścād ahaṁ yad etac ca
yo ‘vaśiṣyeta so ‘smy aham

“Brahma, it is I, the Personality of Godhead, who was existing before the creation, when there was nothing but Myself. Nor was there the material nature, the cause of this creation. That which you see now is also I, the Personality of Godhead, and after annihilation what remains will also be I, the Personality of Godhead.” (Shrimad Bhagavatam, 2.9.33)

The history of Krishna is there in many scriptural texts. Bhagavata Purana. Vishnu Purana. Hari-vamsha. Bhagavad-gita, which is a small part of the greater work known as Mahabharata, has Krishna’s direct words. These are words of wisdom, meant to lift a kind soul out of dilemma and above but also carrying relevancy into the infinite future.

If we enter the discussion with various prejudices, if we have known a drastically different tradition of spirituality since the time of birth, inherited from our ancestors, we might not be quick to offer humble obeisances in front of the deity of Krishna. We might not be immediately drawn to the vision of the two-handed form holding a flute and wearing a peacock feather in the hair.

This should not stop us. We can continue to appreciate. We can look to aspects of our current life experience, as we recognize it, and link them to transcendence. Someone had to place those things there. That which we appreciate has a source. We may not be able to accurately trace that source, but it is a fact that something cannot be produced from nothing.

Therefore, it is entirely possible to be conscious of Krishna through an indirect method. Whatever it is we have grown to love, we should remember that the person who instructed Brahma, who guided Arjuna, who gave pleasure to the residents of Vraja, and who satisfied the intimate desires of the cowherd girls known as the gopis is responsible. It is to Him we should give thanks, and in that exchange there is nothing lost.

In Closing:

This amazing world constructed,
After Brahma instructed.

Chariot of Arjuna guided,
And wisdom confided.

Moments with the gopis to share,
Responsible for everything there.

Can appreciate even indirectly through,
Thoughts and thanks Krishna to.

Categories: the five

Tags: bhakti, god, hare krishna, hinduism, poem, poems, poetry, religion