Pick Yourself up Nine Times – Indradyumna Swami Nectar
His Holiness Indradyumna Swami went to several holy places in Vrindavan connected to the pastimes of Lord Brahma. While at Brahma Kunda in Vrindavan, he mentioned that Lord Brahma is important in our sampradaya, because he is the original guru in our sampradaya, having been enlightened by Krishna (who is, of course, the actual original Guru). Indradyumna Swami went on to mention that Lord Brahma’s prayers, the Bramha-samhita are essential for understanding Krishna Consciousness. In fact, Srila Bhaktisiddhanta recommended that we read or sing them every day. Everything is contained in them.
He said that these prayers of the Brahma-samhita were composed after Lord Bramha realized his mistake in stealing Krsna’s cowherd boyfriends, cows, and calves. Brahma came to this particular spot and cried in remorse here and his tears filled the kunda. While it’s dry in the warmer seasons, in the monsoon season, the kunda fills up with water.
Indradyumna Swami explained that sometimes devotees make mistakes. Sometimes due to conditioning or weakness, devotees fall down but our philosophy is that they are to be forgiven. An acquaintance of his who is an imam in the Muslim tradition said that it’s understood in their religion that if you fall down eight times, you pick yourself up nine times. Of course, you must want to rectify yourself and want to be situated properly on the path of Krishna Consciousness. So remorse is the first step. Then, comes asking for forgiveness from the Lord, the Vaisnavas, and Guru and being committed to not making the mistake again.
To encapsulate this and other travels, Indradyumna Swami wrote in a Facebook post:
Today we visited a number of places related to the Brahma Vimohana Lila in which Lord Brahma steals Krsna’s cowherd boyfriends and cows. We took darshan of an ancient tree the boys took prasadam under, the exact place where Brahma stole the boys and cows, the cave he hid them in and the kunda where his tears of remorse filled up as a lake. Quite an adventure for one day!
For more on Indradyumna Swami’s transcendental travels and lectures, please visit the Swami’s facebook page and his lecture site at Narottam. On Indradyumna Swami’s official Youtube Channel, you can find many kirtans and classes from the Sadhu Sanga Retreat, his recent Russian tour, etc.