Srimad Bhagavatam 2.6.24-25 | HH Bhanu Swami Maharaj | ISKCON Chennai | 4 October 2026
jaya rādhā-mādhava kuñja-vihārī
gopījana-vallabha giri-vara-dhārī
yaśodā-nandana vraja-jana-rañjana
yamunā-tīra-vana-cārī
Hare Kṛṣṇa Hare Kṛṣṇa Kṛṣṇa Kṛṣṇa Hare Hare
Hare Rāma Hare Rāma Rāma Rāma Hare Hare
Jaya Prabhupāda Jaya Prabhupāda
Prabhupāda Jaya Prabhupāda
Oṁ namo bhagavate vāsudevāya
Oṁ namo bhagavate vāsudevāya
Oṁ namo bhagavate vāsudevāya
nama oṁ viṣṇu-pādāya kṛṣṇa-preṣṭhāya bhū-tale
śrīmate bhaktivedānta-svāmin iti nāmine
namas te sārasvate deve gaura-vāṇī-pracāriṇe
nirviśeṣa-śūnyavādi-pāścātya-deśa-tāriṇe
jaya śrī-kṛṣṇa-caitanya prabhu-nityānanda
śrī-advaita gadādhara śrīvāsādi-gaura-bhakta-vṛnda
Hare Kṛṣṇa Hare Kṛṣṇa Kṛṣṇa Kṛṣṇa Hare Hare
Hare Rāma Hare Rāma Rāma Rāma Hare Hare
Reading from Srimad Bhagavatam Canto 2 Chapter 6 Verse 24.
ŚB 2.6.24
तेषु यज्ञस्य पशव: सवनस्पतय: कुशा: ।
इदं च देवयजनं कालश्चोरुगुणान्वित: ॥ २४ ॥
teṣu yajñasya paśavaḥ
savanaspatayaḥ kuśāḥ
idaṁ ca deva-yajanaṁ
kālaś coru-guṇānvitaḥ
Synonyms
teṣu — in such sacrifices; yajñasya — of the sacrificial performance; paśavaḥ — the animals or the sacrificial ingredients; sa-vanaspatayaḥ — along with flowers and leaves; kuśāḥ — the straw; idam — all these; ca — as also; deva-yajanam — the sacrificial altar; kālaḥ — a suitable time; ca — as also; uru — great; guṇa-anvitaḥ — qualified.
Translation
For performing sacrificial ceremonies, one requires sacrificial ingredients, such as flowers, leaves and straw, along with the sacrificial altar and a suitable time [spring].
Text 25
Translation
Other requirements are utensils, grains, clarified butter, honey, gold, earth, water, the Ṛg Veda, Yajur Veda and Sāma Veda and four priests to perform the sacrifice.
Purport
To perform a sacrifice successfully, at least four expert priests are needed: one who can offer (hotā), one who can chant (udgātā), one who can kindle the sacrificial fire without the aid of separate fire (adhvaryu), and one who can supervise (brahmā). Such sacrifices were conducted from the birth of Brahmā, the first living creature, and were carried on till the reign of Mahārāja Yudhiṣṭhira. But such expert brāhmaṇa priests are very rare in this age of corruption and quarrel, and therefore in the present age only the yajña of chanting the holy name of the Lord is recommended. The scriptures enjoin:
harer nāma harer nāma
harer nāmaiva kevalam
kalau nāsty eva nāsty eva
nāsty eva gatir anyathā
HH Bhanu Swami Maharaj:
So all these verses are concerning yajna. And normally when we use that word then we talk about offering ghee into the fire with mantras. So that is the common meaning of the word. However, if we take the root meaning of the word it comes from yaj and yaj means yajanti which means to worship. So in other words yajna is a form of worship. So this particular form of worship arose with Brahma. We also know it is very much associated with the Vedas. It is also the Yuga Dharma in Treta Yuga. So therefore it is a, we can say a ritual which is firmly established. And it is recognized by the Lord. And we see even on Brahma Loka they are doing yajna. But there are other ways of worshipping also which are equally valid.
The common worship that we think of is deity worship, archana. This is involving a form of the Lord. In yajna, where is the form? We offer into fire. And fire represents the Lord but it is not actually the Lord. And in deity worship we actually have a form of the Lord. So it is easier to accept that worship as worship of the Lord because there is a direct form. The negative point is that when we see the form we may think of it as a material form. Nevertheless, for many people it is easier than thinking of the Lord through worshipping in fire. For how can we conceive of Krishna doing Rasa-lila when we are looking at fire [Laughs]? However it’s even a more indirect form in one sense, that is meditation. There’s no form of a deity, there’s no form of fire. It’s just in your mind, everything. So because it is purely mental, it is more difficult and therefore that’s the method in Satya Yuga. But again, we can say it is the mental form of the Lord. So we have a mental form, we have a fire form and we have an archa vigraha form. In our mental form, we worship the Lord. And we can worship the Lord in any of these forms. So meditation has it’s own procedure. And so we have in the yoga system, Yama, Niyama and Asana, Pranayama, Pratyahara, etc. Dharana and then dhyana.
Yajna also has its particular rules outlined in the Karma kanda section of the Vedas, Brahmanas and Aranyakas. And it involves the use of Vedic mantras. So in verse 25 it mentions, Rg Veda, Yajur Veda, Sama Veda were necessary to manifest. So generally Yajna means offering ghee and grains into fire. But you need mantra and you need Vedic mantra for that. Otherwise it’s not offering. And of course, more than meditation, you need materials. Meditation, just your mind. But Yajna, you will need the Kusa grass and the flowers and the wood and the fire altar. The mantras, select a proper time. So, so many requirements for Yajna. The plus point, of course, is that unlike meditation, which is purely mental, here we have dealing with material elements. But in either case, mind is also a material element [Laughs]. But in either case, the goal is to conceive of the spiritual form of the Lord and offer to Him.
And when we come to Dwapara Yuga, we have the process of Archana. Even in its form, in Dwapara Yuga, it is very difficult for us to follow. So, for Kali Yuga, the rules remain a little easier. So we follow Pancharatra. But even with deity worship, we have many rules. As with meditation or with Yajna, so with deity worship, we require cleanliness. And there are many rules to establish the cleanliness. So, just as we have here, mentions time, etc. Proper time is there even for the deity worship. We have proper times when you do certain worships. So, of course, the rules are a little less than the rules we have for Dwapara Yuga deity worship or for homas, or for meditation. So we see for Pancharatra, that there is no restriction based on varnas. Whereas for Dwapara Yuga worship, or for Yajna, and for meditation, basically it is for Brahmanas [Laughs]. So, how can that be possible? How can Pancharatra break all the rules [Laughs]? So, definitely there has to be qualification. So, just as the qualification for being a Brahmana is you take Upanayanam and you learn the Vedas.
So, qualification for deity worship is Pancharatrika, Vaishnava Diksha. So, that type of Diksha does not rely on being a Brahmana, etc. If a guru judges you qualified as a Vaishnava, then he will give you the Diksha mantras. Then you are qualified to worship the deities. Just as in Yajna, the offerings have to be accompanied by mantra, Vedic mantra. So, in Pancharatrika deity worship also, when we offer things to the Lord, we have to use the Pancharatrika mantras. So, it is more liberal in the sense that it is not restricted by Varnas or Ashramas or anything. And consequently, it does not rely on Vedic mantras. So, in that way, the deity worship of Kali Yuga, that is Pancharatra, is available for more people. But as I said, even with Pancharatrika system of deity worship in Kali Yuga, there are many rules. And the different Sampradayas will take the Pancharatra and select the rules that they will follow.
So, we will find the rules that they follow in Ramanuja Sampradaya will be slightly different from the rules they follow in Madhva Sampradaya. However, scripture actually says that the process to follow in Kali Yuga is not deity worship at all. It is Nama Sankirtana as Prabhupada says here in the purport [Laughs]. However, most of the Vaishnava Sampradayas still rely on the archana process. Then it’s only Lord Caitanya’s movement that’s into the kirtana.
So, kirtana also is yajna. It is worship also. Whereas in Satya Yuga, it is mental form and in Treta Yuga, fire form and Archa Vigraha in Dwapara Yuga and in Pancharatra as well. In Kali Yuga, the form is sound, name of the Lord. So, these four processes are all ways of realizing the Supreme Lord and therefore they are all valid. But more and more qualification is required as we go to the previous Yuga until we get to Satya Yuga. You have to be highly qualified and then you can do meditation and people were highly qualified. So, in Nama Sankirtana, you can start the process with very little qualification. Still, you can get the same goal. So, it can never be considered a lesser process. And of course, though they all lead to Supreme Lord realization, ultimately chanting the name of the Lord is the quickest process. And if we want to realize Krishna, we have to do Nama Sankirtana. So, of course, Lord Caitanya also says that we should worship Krishna. So, the convenient method is Nama Sankirtana.
So, like Pancharatrik worship for Kali Yuga, deity worship for Kali Yuga, Nama Sankirtana has no consideration of varnas or ashramas. But the qualification is still Diksha. So, the Guru will judge whether you are qualified, then he will give you Diksha. So that puts some level of qualification there. But the judgment of the Guru is not in terms of varnas or ashramas. So, Nama Sankirtana also has no regard for varna or ashrama, but it doesn’t even require Diksha. So, therefore, Lord Caitanya was going throughout India, telling everybody to chant the holy name. That’s it. No Diksha [Laughs]. So, in that way, it is also freer than Pancharatrika Diksha and deity worship.
And though we do deity worship following Caitanya Mahaprabhu and we follow Pancharatra for the deity worship, even then the rules become less than following the rules in Ramanuja Sampradaya, Madhva Sampradaya. And the reason is, we rely on our purification, everything, even our deity worship upon Nama Sankirtana. So, as I said, this process of kirtana is not less powerful simply because it’s open to everybody and doesn’t require Diksha. It’s actually more powerful [Laughs]. So, in any case, chanting the name of the Lord is powerful. So, in terms of destroying sinful reactions and purifying, even if you chant accidentally, it works [Laughs]. However, if we want to attain Prema through Nama Sankirtana, we do need knowledge. One, of course, is to avoid misconceptions and offenses. If we have misconceptions about Krishna or about Prema or about pure bhakti, how can we attain Prema?
Our goal is attained when we define our goal. You define the wrong goal, then you get the wrong goal [Laughs]. So, if you have some misconceptions about Krishna, about who He is, or is He material or whatever, that’s what you attain. You don’t get Krishna with Prema. So, that knowledge, knowledge of scripture, gives us some basic qualification also for Prema. But, though the scripture is there, again, the main sadhana is Nama Sankirtana. So this is the main process but then we need knowledge, so we have sravanam, study of scripture etc. And this is the effect of chanting of the name.
So, therefore, to get that knowledge, we need scripture, to get the scripture, we need devotees. So, we have Harinama, we have scriptural knowledge, we have sadhu sanga. And through the sadhu sanga, we get some Guru, Siksha Guru. Then, to further engage us, we have things like the deity worship. Of course, some devotees do deity worship, some don’t. Traditionally, the deity worship was within the realm of grhasthas. Of course, we see that Rupa Goswami, Sanatana Goswami, they all had deities. But, sooner or later, they gave off that worship to grhastha devotees to do [Laughs]. So, for doing that worship nicely, then you have to follow Pancharatra. To get Pancharatra, you need Vaishnava Diksha.
So, though the main element is Nama Sankirtana that does not require Diksha, but requires some Siksha Guru, still, we also take Diksha, because deity worship is also there. But, in all cases, our main sadhana is through Nama Sankirtana. And though we can do some meditation, we can do some Homa, we can do some deity worship, they are all secondary. And to give us the proper perspective, then we have the scripture there to help us.
Hare Krishna!
Q & A :
1.) Maharaj, in Srimad Bhagavatam 2nd canto, there are two statements. See, when Brahmaji was alone, he didn’t know what to do, then he heard the sound of tapa. So, then he started doing Tapasya. That is one statement. And here we see that Brahmaji wanted to do sacrifice and he needed ingredients and other things. Although Brahmaji, in the beginning of the Satya Yuga, but why is he doing sacrifice? He is supposed to do meditation.
HH Bhanu Swami Maharaj: Where?
Devotee: Brahmaji, he is supposed to do meditation, but he is doing here sacrifice. This is not Yugadharma.
HH Bhanu Swami Maharaj : So, all the processes are actually eternal. But then they will be practically applied in the different Yugas. So, we find that he produced the four Vedas from his mouth [Laughs]. But then it says also in Satya Yuga, there was only one Veda. Then in Treta Yuga, it began to divide. And then finally, at the end of Dwapara Yuga, he wrote four Vedas [Laughs]. So, in one sense, everything is manifest in the beginning, but they are used in different Yugas.
2.) See for each and every process, like Satya Yuga, Treta Yuga, Dwapara Yuga and Kali Yuga, especially Satya Yuga, to do meditation needs so much qualification. So, that qualification, how do you categorize, how do you measure that qualification? Because the more one is in Sattva Guna, he is more qualified. The more one is in Rajo Guna, he is less qualified. The more one is in Tamoguna, he is not much qualified. But still, the person who is in Sattva Guna or Rajo Guna or Tamoguna, this quality, that Guna, still it is material. Then how do you measure it? Through the Guna only we are measuring that he is qualified or not?
So, the Gunas have their particular qualities. So, we see if a person is nicely situated in Sattva Guna, it’s easy to control the senses and mind. If the person is in Tamoguna, cannot control the senses and mind. If the person is in Rajo Guna, they can control their senses and mind to the extent that they can attain their material goals. And in terms of knowledge, Sattva Guna reveals knowledge. So, you can understand, I am not the body, I am the Atma. Tamoguna means ignorance. So, we think I am the body, nothing else exists [Laughs]. And Rajo Guna also think, I am the body to enjoy. So, based on that we have different qualities and therefore we have different occupations and different duties. To make it easier, then they decided, okay, if you are born as a Brahmana, then you are a Brahmana [Laughs]. If you are born as a Sudra, you are a Sudra. So, it works maybe 80% or 90% of the cases. But that also requires that we do have proper systems in place. So, if you are born as a Brahmana, your Brahmana community is operating properly. And then it is more likely that the Brahmana will give birth to a person who is qualified as a Brahmana child. So, the environment and the education are also very necessary. But there are the exceptional cases. So, even when one is born in a Brahmana family, he may become a Kshatriya or whatever. Or if they are born as a Kshatriya, some may be sages, become rishis also.
3.) We see Maharaj, in the three Yugas like Satya Yuga, they are worshipping the mental form. In Treta Yuga, they are worshipping the form in the fire. And in Dwapara Yuga, they are worshipping the deity form. The form is still existing in all the Yugas. But in Kali Yuga, the name is given. We also say, name also has a form. That is non-different from Krishna. But for the beginner, it is very difficult to understand that name has a form. So, how to understand? Because in other Yugas, form is already mentioned that you have to do like this, like this. In Kali Yuga, in the beginning, no one can realize that name has a form. It is very difficult to understand.
So, in all the Yugas, of course, it is based upon form of the Lord. But if it is purely meditational, where is the form? We don’t see anything [Laughs]. So, because it is difficult, they said, okay, worship through fire. We will give you a form. But how to identify Krishna or Vishnu in fire? It’s difficult also. So, therefore, they say, okay, you have archa vigraha. So, that is, we can say, the most convenient form. But then, in order to prevent material conceptions there, then you have all sorts of rules and regulations. So, therefore, alternative is something else. So, therefore, it is Nama Sankirtana. So, Nama Sankirtana is sound. So, the sound itself, of course, then we will say, how sound is form? So, of course, sound represents forms. We say house, then we think of a house. We say Krishna, we think of Krishna. So, at least through the sound, we can get a mental image of the form of Krishna. And so that we don’t speculate about that, then we have scriptural descriptions, and we also have the deity forms. We don’t reject that. So, therefore, scripture and archana support Nama Sankirtana. But the approach is easier because less rules.
4.) Hare Krishna Maharaj, thank you for the wonderful class. My question was, if somebody performs chanting, like without taking Diksha or Siksha from a Guru, what will be his destination?
In the case of Ajamila, no Siksha, no Diksha, not even a conception of bhakti, and he got karmas destroyed. If we do it intentionally, and we think, okay, the name is Krishna, and I’m worshipping Krishna by doing kirtan, but we do it with all sorts of misconceptions, again, we can purify ourselves of all of our karmas. But because our goal is not prema, we don’t attain prema. So only by getting the proper scriptural teachings, then we can understand what the true goal is, and concentrate on that when we chant the name. Of course, even if we don’t have good scriptural knowledge, and we’re a little bit contaminated in our goal, we have mixed bhakti, even then, we can get much better than liberation. We can get at least salokya or sarupya.
5.) Thank you so much, Maharaj. Hare Krishna. Actually, while taking Diksha, so there is a sense of commitment to the Guru and the disciple. But in the Siksha process, there is no formal commitment or surrender, I would say. Like, how that without Diksha, the Guru-disciple relationship will evolve eventually to attain prema Maharaj?
So, our conception of Diksha within ISKCON has evolved in a certain way. So, it becomes quite a complicated ceremony. And the two parts may be separated by many years. And of course, part of the reason for making these ceremonies is to get serious commitment. And the reason is, if you don’t have a ceremony, you are not serious. However, ultimately, seriousness should not depend on ceremony. In other words, we have degrees in university and you get your degree, so you get serious to study to get your degree. So, there is some sort of ceremonial function in getting your degree. And you strive for it. But one who is really serious about knowledge will study very seriously and probably go beyond qualification of a degree because he has the interest in that knowledge. So, he gets his degree also, but he is in a much superior position. So, his goal is not just to get the certificate [Laughs]. And thus, he gets much more qualification than the other person who also gets the certificate, but that’s his basic goal.
So, if we examine Diksha within Gaudiya Sampradaya, we will find, of course, it’s Pancharatrika and Lord Caitanya took Diksha, Nityananda took Diksha. There was no ceremony. Guru gave them a secret mantra. Finished. That’s the Diksha. And, of course, the others also, Jahnava gave mantra to 3000 people. That was it. Diksha [Laughs]. So, there was no ceremony really attached to it. He didn’t get a name, nothing happened. No Yajna, nothing. Just get the name finished.
One reason, perhaps, was that ultimately, more important than getting a mantra and the Diksha was chanting the Holy Name, which is Lord Caitanya’s main emphasis. And, of course, with Bhakti Siddhanta Saraswati Thakur and Srila Prabhupada, we emphasize the line of Siksha more than Diksha. So, we don’t trace Bhaktivinoda’s line to his Diksha Guru at all. We don’t mention. He had a Diksha Guru, but we don’t mention it. And the reason for that is we’re tracing teachings, how the teachings come down, not how your mantra comes down, because the teachings are more important. So, there is no particular ceremony or anything. You just start teaching and you accept teachings. For Diksha, it became very unceremonial. Just get the mantra finished [Laughs].
So, whether we get Diksha or not, ultimately does not determine our seriousness and commitment. So, if we say Bhakti Vinoda Thakur, we’re not mentioning his Diksha Guru, therefore he wasn’t committed. What does that mean [Laughs]? It doesn’t mean anything [Laughs]. So, what is our commitment? So, we should be serious about following the path of Bhakti Yoga. And how do we become serious about that? So, it’s not just a vow. We have to actually get some knowledge and seriously practice. And the knowledge and the inspiration to practice will come from Siksha Guru. It may also come from a Diksha Guru if the Diksha Guru actually gives teachings and inspiration, but sometimes they just give the mantra, as in the case of Nityananda, he got the mantra and then he disappeared.
6.) Hare Krishna Maharaj. Thank you for the wonderful class. Maharaj, I just want to ask, there are different ways to chant the holy name, like you can chant it in the beads, in Tulasi beads, or sometimes devotees chant in the clicker, like clicker, we chant. So, sometimes they say that, why chanting in clicker? You should chant it in beads. That’s a better way of chanting. But holy name, is it dependent on how we chant, or is it the same thing? We chant in clicker or this one?
Ultimately, the name is not dependent on rules and regulations. When Lord Caitanya was travelling in South India, He chanted on His fingers. No beads. It’s described in one poetic work that Lord Caitanya had a piece of cloth with knots in it in Puri, and He would chant on the cloth with the knots on it. Of course, traditionally, probably going back to the Goswamis, they use Tulasi mala. So, generally we follow that example, but there can be exceptions also.
7.) Maharaj, Vedas is always eternal, like that Itihasa, Mahabharata, Ramayana also eternal?
All the scriptures are eternal, in the sense that the teaching is eternal. The Vedas are eternal, in the sense that the words are always the same, in every day of Brahma, in every lifetime of every Brahma, in every universe, in the past, present and future. The words are always the same. Works like Puranas and Mahabharata, or Valmiki’s Ramayana, are written by a sage at a certain time, and in each day of Brahma, they may be slightly different. But even though they use different words every day of Brahma, ultimately the message is the same.
8.) Maharaj, is there any commitment from Guru’s side when disciple gets Diksha from Diksha Mantra, that Guru will help him to go back to Godhead something like that?
So, any Guru, of course, is a teacher, so they are responsible. But then, even a regular purohit to take disciples or students is responsible also. So, in all cases, where there is responsibility, then there is also obligations on both parts. But the Siksha Guru may be more committed to disciple than the Diksha Guru. It just depends on the relationship between the two.
9.) Devotee accepts someone as a Siksha Guru, but Siksha Guru doesn’t know that he accepted him as a Siksha Guru. Then how do you know the relationship and commitment will be there? Because we don’t have such kind of ceremony at all, like how we have a Diksha ceremony.
Well, it is not so much ceremony. You can have a Siksha ceremony and still the disciple may be accepting teachings but doesn’t communicate with the Guru. And everybody in ISKCON accepts Srila Prabhupada as the main Siksha Guru. But again, we just study the books and we are not communicating directly with Srila Prabhupada. But some devotee may take that as his main Guru and become very committed to studying Prabhupada’s works and following those instructions more, than he is committed to any other Siksha Guru or Diksha Guru.
10.) Hare Krishna Maharaj. We see this material world is the reflection of spiritual world. But here we find hospitals, schools, colleges and jails. But what about in spiritual world? Are they in spiritual world?
Well, when we say the material world is a reflection of the spiritual world, we can’t take it literally. However, we do find in the Rasa, there is Vyabhichari Bhavas, one of them is Vyadi. Sickness. So in a great ecstasy, you look like you are sick. So out of separation from Krishna, the Gopis become very thin, they faint, they appear sick and they look like they are dying. Mrithi is also another Vyabhichari Bhava. Death like symptoms.
11.) How to understand that the highly qualified souls who lived in Satya, Treta, Dwapara Yugas doesn’t get access to highest goal Krishna Prema, which is offered only by Nama Sankirtana in this Kali Yuga. Whereas the most unqualified people get the access. Scriptures say Lord is equal to all, but how to understand this in this context?
So the Lord is equal to all, but He has more attraction for the devotees than He has for others. So He is not actually equal. And there’s different types of devotees. And therefore His attraction will also be different for different types of devotees. So in this way, those who are attracted to Vishnu get to realize Vishnu with a certain rasa. Those who are attracted to Krishna realize Krishna, they get a different rasa, which is superior. So that is the general response of the Lord. According to your desires and your intensity, you get response. And it is also rarest to aspire for the highest goal. But once that goal is made available, then Caitanya Mahaprabhu wants to give it to everybody. So therefore He appears in Kali Yuga and gives them the method through Nama Sankirtana.
12.) Srila Bhakti Siddhanta Saraswati Thakur instructed Srila Prabhupada, if you get money, print books. If you get money, print books. That is an instruction in addition to chanting the Hare Krishna Mahamantra. So how to get this additional personal instruction that one can make his life’s words and please the spiritual master?
So, of course, Bhakti Siddhanta Saraswati Thakur also gave different other instructions, like preach to the English-speaking people, for instance. That’s the first instruction he gave. So all these instructions are ultimately related to serving Krishna and attaining Krishna. So a particular Guru may give many different instructions on how to do that, how to attain Krishna. Some of the instructions may be very particular. Some of them may be more general. But in any case we try to follow those instructions. Ultimately we see in, Prabhupada refers to vyavasāyātmikā buddhi [Bg 2.41] verse. So in Vishwanath Chakravarti’s purport there he says that one should take the order of guru as one’s life sustaining medicine. But then he obviously says what is the order that the Guru gives? The order is to attain the lotus feet of Radha and Krishna [Laughs]. So that’s the ultimate order.
Devotees: Grantharaj Srimad Bhagavatam ki jai!!! HH Bhanu Swami Maharaj ki jai!!! Srila Prabhupada ki jai!!! Nitai Gaura Premanande Hari Haribol!!!