The Pursuit of Bliss

"O Krishna, please give in" - Jagadguru  Shri Kripaluji Maharaj An incredible 1987 lecture by Jagadguru Shri Kripaluji Maharaj, titled "Tum Hi Maan Lo Haar". with English Subtitles

Shri Radha appears in our world - by Jagadguru Shri Kripaluji Maharaj Pad Leela [Eng Subtitles]

Shri Radha complains to Her mother - Jagadguru Shri Kripaluji Maharaj [Eng Subtitles]

उद्धव गोपी संवाद - Conversation of Uddhao with Gopis Lecture by Jagadguru Shri Kripalu Ji Maharaj Ji with English Subtitles Part 1 Part 2 Part 3

Surrender to God (The most confidential of all knowledge!) Shri Krishna says to Arjun in the Gita: सर्वगुह् तमं भूयः श्रृणु मे परमं वचः (Gita) “Arjun! I have disclosed some confidential knowledge, and also some very confidential knowledge to you. Now listen to the most confidential of all knowledge.” After hearing about the paths of Karm, Gyan and Bhakti, Arjun had not yet reached the point where he would be ready to fight the Mahabharata war and kill everyone as per Shri Krishna’s instruction. Arjun did not have the courage to say, “I will fight not one but ten Mahabharata wars; I will kill them all.” So God said to him, “Because you are very dear to me, I will disclose to you the most confidential of all knowledge.” Shri Krishna said, सर्वधर्मान् परित्यज्य मामेकं शरणं वज्र (Gita) Most acharyas have explained this verse to mean, “Renounce all dharma, or prescribed Vedic duties, and surrender to Me alone.” Only Adi Jagadguru Shankaracharya has explained it as, धर्म अधर्म च...

Ishton men Radha Krishna Govinda Radhey, Bhavon men madhurya shreshta bata dey. (Synopsis of a talk given by Jagadguru Shri Kripalu Ji Maharaj on January 17, 2011, in Bhakti Dham, Manghar, India, explaining this new kirtan verse.) The one who is worshiped (ishta) or the one who is served (sevya) is of many kinds. Some are even mayic or material, such as celestial gods and goddesses. These include Indra, Varuna, Kuber and others. Such ishtas are millions in number. By acquiring spiritual understanding through the teachings of a true Saint, we come to know that the worship of a material personality results in a material consequence. The word deva applies to both celestial beings and to supreme God. Kah paramo devah. Krishno ha vai paramam daivatam. This verse asks: Who is the greatest deva? Here the word deva refers to supreme God. Similarly, the word divya (divine) refers to both material celestial beings and also to God. The word atma (soul) refers to both the individual soul and God. ...

Hari Guru chumbak Govinda Radhey, Man loha shuddhi matra so kinchva dey. (Synopsis of a talk by Jagadguru Shri Kripalu Ji Maharaj on January 16, 2011, in Bhakti Dham, Mangadh, India, explaining this new kirtan verse.) A mother and father have four children. They all live in the same home, share the same environment and eat the same food, but the aim and interest of each is different. All four children went to see a Saint. One of them sincerely followed the Saint’s teachings. One half-heartedly following them and then stopped. One didn’t follow them at all. One criticised the family member who was practising devotion, “Why has he started this ‘Radhey Radhey’ in our home?” Why is there so much difference? This verse gives the reason. Our mind is filled with the stored impressions of actions from uncountable past lifetimes. This is collectively called sanchit karma. During this time we have committed uncountable sins. There is no such sin, even one such as murder, that we have committed j...

On January 14, Makar Sakranti, millions took an early morning dip in the chilly waters at the sangam of Ganga and Yamuna in Allahabad. Further downstream, in Varanasi, Kripaluji was formally installed as the Fifth Jagadguru. I mention this because, to a non-believer like me, Kripaluji’s sayings make more sense than the others who appear on TV channels to discourse on spirituality. All of them have the gift of the gab, but he is more forthright, logical, lucid and gives chapter and verse of the sacred texts he quotes from. His memory is truly phenomenal. He was born Ram Kripalu, into an affluent Brahmin, land-owning family of Mangarh near Allahabad. He received his prilimary education in Hindi and Sanskrit at the local school. He went on to study advanced Sanskrit and Ayurveda, and spent another year studying the Vedas, Upanishads, the epics and Bhakti literature. Besides giving spiritual discourses, he has set up two well-equipped hospitals. He provides all the modern methods of diagno...

(Synopsis of a lecture given by Jagadguru Shri Kripalu Ji Maharaj in Shyama Shyam Dham, Bhubhaneshwar, India. This lecture was given 2 or 3 years ago, but the topic is as relevant now as it was then.) Today is the last day of this year. Tomorrow, the world will joyfully celebrate the new year. But this is wrong. Because this is actually not a joyful situation. Rather it is an occasion for remorse. Imagine you saved 100,000 rupees. If you spent 50,000 of this, you don’t celebrate. Instead you think, “Oh, now only 50,000 are left!” Eventually only 2,000 are left. Now only 1,000 are left. Similarly, this human body was given to us by God to attain our ultimate aim. How much closer have we come to that aim? How much devotion or upasana did we do? Upasana (devotion) means to go ‘pas‘, close. The meaning of upasana is to go close to God. How much closer to God have we gone? For example, someone is feeling cold. Before him there is fire. The closer he goes to the fire, the more his feeling of...

(Part 4 – Synopsis of a lecture given by Jagadguru Shri Kripalu Ji Maharaj on November 17, 2009, in Bhatinda, India) It matters not what name and form of God you use. Call out to Him with whatever name you prefer, whether that is in Hindi, Urdu, English, Punjabi or any other language. But this should be done with love. It should be done with as much feeling as a drowning man calls out to his beloved or a dying father says, “Bring my daughter here so I may see her for the last time!” Many people offer food to God before eating. Some sprinkle water over their food, some don’t. Their eyes are closed. Some fold their hands. This becomes an even bigger ritual when done in temples. But has there ever been a temple priest, holy man or anyone else, who opened his eyes and looked at the food after it was offered to God and asked, “What did God eat? Oh, He didn’t eat anything?” Has anyone ever felt bad as a result and cried because nothing was eaten? “He didn’t eat a single thing! How great a si...

(Part 3 – Synopsis of a lecture given by Jagadguru Shri Kripalu Ji Maharaj on November 17, 2009, in Bhatinda, India) So the conclusion is that it is the mind alone that has to be purified. Whether you practice devotion to the world or to God, wherever the mind is attached is where you will have raga or love. Vairagya or without raga means to detach the mind from the world. But what do we think detachment means? “Look! That renunciate is living in the jungle! He doesn’t wear any clothing and he only eats fruits! He never speaks to anyone!” But we don’t see that he is still thinking of the world. Instead we fall at his feet thinking he is as great as God’s own father. This is due to our ignorance. Renunciation means to have no mental attachment in the world. There were uncountable Saints in the age of Sat Yuga, some who ruled over this entire earth like Prahlad, Dhruva and Ambarish. There were Saints like Vasishtha and Bharadwaj, and Lord Ram, Bharat, Lakshman, and Shatrughan – they were...

(Part 2 – Synopsis of a lecture given by Jagadguru Shri Kripalu Ji Maharaj on November 17, 2009, in Bhatinda, India) Action refers to your mental motivation, your intention. Because of this, it is the mind that is the cause of your liberation from Maya or your bondage in Maya. Those who do perform religious rituals and scriptural recitations don’t do this while engaging the mind. They read the Gita, Bhagawat or Ramayan, or any other scripture with their tongue. They are merely reciting the words. Some people use prayer beads, but this is just the physical activity of the hands. Some take a ritual bath in the Ganges River. During the time they are bathing, where is their mind? “Oh, look, there’s a boat. Hey, that person is also here bathing. Oh no, my purse might get stolen!” But you are bathing in the Ganges! Do you know who Ganga Ji is? You reply, “This water.” This is the extent of your knowledge. Before bathing, ask your Guru about Ganga Ji’s personality. Invoke Ganga ji with your m...

(Synopsis of a lecture given by Jagadguru Shri Kripalu Ji Maharaj on November 17, 2009, in Bhatinda, India) In India and in the world, a lot of religious activity and fervor are seen nowadays. There are so many temples, mosques, gurudwaras, and every other kind of place of worship, and although people go to these every day, and practice devotion according to their religion, still we find that sinful tendencies are increasing everywhere. So much has changed in the last 100 years – what will happen in the future? So much spiritual practice wasn’t seen in the past as is seen nowadays. When so many things are being done in the name of religion, why are there so many wrong things happening in the world? This question is asked by those who don’t believe in any religion and their question is correct. Why do people follow a religion when so many contrary results are seen everywhere? You may say that you are doing this to receive a benefit after your death. But you will receive after death only...