Thursday, December 1, 2016

MANAGEMENT

Some of the difficulties of management can be understood from the chastisement of Indra.
Srila Prabhupada explains that the demigods are administrators of universal affairs on behalf of the Lord. They are servants of the Lord for management within the material universe. People in general are advised to worship the demigods as a way to acknowledge the supremacy of the Lord. After all they are recognized by Him as administrators and are given all facilities to perform their duties. 

"The demigods are servants of the Lord deputed to look after the management of various activities of universal affairs. Therefore it is advised in the Vedic scriptures that one should perform yajñas to appease the demigods." SB 3.2.32 purport

But, and here is the "big but," for those who already acknowledge the Lord it is not necessary to worship the demigods. Such persons worship the Lord Himself. 

"But one who is devoted to the Supreme Lord has no need to appease the demigods." SB 3.2.32 purport

The demigod managers become confused from time to time by receiving all the worship of others and they actually forget the Lord, Which means they forget their position as servant and representative authority for management of material affairs only. 

This happens to Indra. When the Lord arranged for worship of Govardhana and the cows showing how this worship was as good as worship of Lord Krishna Himself... the master of Indra... Indra's pride was challenged. He could not recognize his own relationship with Lord in the situation.
That means his idea of Himself and the Lord had become clouded. How could anyone worship the Lord without worshiping him, Indra, first? Why would anyone even need to worship the Lord if they simply worshiped him, Indra. Indra was supplying everything they needed for material opulence. Rain for growing crops and grasses for the cows. What need had they to worship Lord Krishna?
Indra had lost is spiritual vision. This is the situation for conditioned souls when in contact with the material nature... blinded by the glare. How much more difficult for King Indra whose residence is so opulent? We can not even imagine. He is the King of the heavenly planets. What sense gratification is not available there? Long life, no disease.. death yes, but no disease. How much more confusing.
And everyone in the universe worshiping you. And you having the facilities to supply their material needs. We cannot even imagine how bewildering that could become. So from time to time Indra becomes bewildered. Lord Krishna has his ways of rectifying Indra's mentality. The lifting of Govardhana Hill in Vrndavan lila is one way Lord Krishna was able to humble King Indra.
Worshiping Lord Krishna, His Name. pastimes, form.. always trumps worship of the demigods.

There was another time King Indra became confused and challenged Lord Krishna. This is in the Dvarka lila as regards the parijata tree. 

Indra is indeed a henpecked husband. His beautiful wives captivate him. When Lord Krishna removed the parijata tree from the heavenly planet to offer to Satyabhama, King Indra thought Lord Krishna was a henpecked husband like himself. To please His wives, headed by Saci devi, Indra attacked Lord Krishna with military force. He was defeated and again was humbled so that he could again understand the Supreme Personality of Godhead's position.

Indeed what looked like a henpecked husband, Srila Prabhupada explains, was not the case in the least. Lord Krishna has so many beautiful queens, Satyabhama is one, but He is not controlled by them. For Lord Krishna his offering of the tree to Satyabhama was simply a way to reciprocate the loving devotion Satyabhama offers to Him. In any case, everything belongs to Lord Krishna anyway. King Indra appears to have temporarily contracted the "Me, My and Mine" disease.

"He [Indra] forgot that the Lord is the proprietor of everything and cannot be henpecked. The Lord is fully independent, and by His will only He can have hundreds and thousands of wives like Satyabhāmā. He was not, therefore, attached to Satyabhāmā because she was a beautiful wife, but He was pleased with her devotional service and thus wanted to reciprocate the unalloyed devotion of His devotee." SB 3.3.5 purport

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