Canto 1 Chapter 11 Flashcards
- Out of the four problems of material life, which problem gives us the most trouble?(3
The fear problem gives us more trouble than the others. We are always fearful due to our ignorance of the next problem. The whole material existence is full of problems, and thus the fear problem is always prominent. This is due to our association with the illusory energy of the Lord, known as māyā or external energy,
- List some of the opulences of Dvärakäpuré (12)
There were hermitages, orchards, flower gardens, parks and reservoirs of water breeding lotus flowers all over.
- Describe the difference between pious and impious trees (12)
Pious trees which produce seasonal flowers and fruits. The impious trees are useless jungles only, and they can only be used to supply fuels.
- Identify the different elements of a Vedic reception (13-18)
Mango trees, coconut palms and plantain trees are still accepted as auspicious signs.
Flags marked with the picture of either Garuḍa or Hanumān, the two great servitors of the Lord
Scented waters prepared by distilling flowers like rose and keora were requisitioned to wet the roads, streets and lanes of Dvārakā-dhāma. Such places, along with the marketplace and public meeting places, were thoroughly cleansed.
Worshiping the Lord with requisite ingredients like incense, lamps, flowers, sweets, fruits and other palatable eatables, according to one’s capacity. All were offered to the Lord, and the remnants of the foodstuff were distributed amongst the gathering citizens.
- Explain why it is better that prostitutes be available in the marketplace (19)
It is better that prostitutes be available in the marketplace so that the sanctity of society can be maintained. It is better to maintain a class of prostitutes than to encourage prostitutes within society.
- What general principle does Srila Prabhupäda draw from the fact that the prostitutes of
Dvärakä were all unalloyed devotees? (19)
The difference is that the devotees of the Lord are on the path of liberation, whereas the nondevotees are on the path of further entanglement in material bondage. The criterion of advancement of civilization is whether the people are educated and advanced on the path of salvation.
- The festivities in the temple of the Lord are like what? (24)
Therefore, festivities in the temple of the Lord, as held generally, are like festivals performed during the manifestive days of the Lord of Dvārakā, about five thousand years ago.
- Explain how “female respectability is preserved more elegantly” (24)
The ladies got up on the roofs just to have a look at the procession and the Lord. The ladies did not mix with the crowd on the street, and thus their respectability was perfectly observed.
- List some of the features of the Lord that you find particularly attractive (26-27)
The face of the Lord is the embodiment of beauty. What they call beautiful nature is but His smile, and what they call the sweet songs of the birds are but specimens of the whispering voice of the Lord.
The Lord’s bodily hue is just like a new monsoon cloud. He is compared herein to the cloud. The white umbrella over His head is compared to the sun. The movement of the bunch-hair fan of flukes is compared to the moon. The showers of flowers are compared to the stars. His yellow garments are compared to the rainbow.
- Identify the seven mothers (28)
(1) the real mother, (2) the wife of the spiritual master, (3) the wife of a brāhmaṇa, (4) the wife of the king, (5) the cow, (6) the nurse, and (7) the earth.
- What is the meaning of vaibhava? (31)
The Personality of Godhead manifested Himself in 16,108 plenary expansions and simultaneously entered into each and every one of the palaces of the queens. This is called vaibhava, or the transcendental potency of the Lord.
- What general principle can be drawn from the Lord’s marrying 16,000 wives? (31)
One should not, therefore, become astonished to learn that the Lord married so many wives. On the contrary, one should affirm that even if the Lord marries sixteen thousand million wives, He is not completely manifesting His unlimited and inexhaustible potency. He married only sixteen thousand wives and entered in each and every one of the different palaces just to impress in the history of the human beings on the surface of the earth that the Lord is never equal to or less than any human being, however powerful he may be. No one, therefore, is either equal to or greater than the Lord. The Lord is always great in all respects. “God is great” is eternal truth.
- Analyze the relationship between Kåñëa and His queens in Dvärakä (36-39)
He plays exactly like a lover in the presence of the cowherd damsels, and He plays exactly like a husband in the presence of the queens of Dvārakā. Such devotees of the Lord never think of the Lord as the Supreme, but think of Him exactly as a common friend, a pet son, or a lover or husband very much dear to heart and soul. That is the relation between the Lord and His transcendental devotees, who act as His associates in the spiritual sky, where there are innumerable Vaikuṇṭha planets.
When the Lord descends, He does so along with His entourage to display a complete picture of the transcendental world. The wives of Lord Kṛṣṇa were made to forget the immeasurable glories of the Lord by the internal potency so that there might not be any flaw of exchange, and they took it for granted that the Lord was a henpecked husband, always following them in lonely places.
The Lord can be known by the mercy of the Lord only, and by no other means. But since the dealings of the Lord with His wives are based on pure transcendental love and devotion, the wives are all on the transcendental plane without material contamination.
