Chapter 5. Raksisyatiti Visvasah: Full Confidence in the Lord’s Protection

रक्षिष्यति हि मां कृष्णो भक्तानां बान्धवश्च सः।
क्षेमं विधास्यतीति यद्विश्वासोऽत्रैव गृह्यते ॥१॥

rakṣiṣyati hi māṁ kṛṣṇo bhaktānāṁ bāndhavaś cha saḥ
kṣemaṁ vidhāsyatīti yad viśvāso ’traiva gṛhyate [1]

‘Certainly Lord Krishna will protect me, because He is the friend of the devotees. He will definitely bless us with all auspiciousness and success.’

Within this chapter, such faith is sustained.

सर्व्वलोकेषु श्रीकृष्णपादाब्जैकरक्षकत्वम् —

मर्त्त्यो मृत्युव्यालभीतः पलायन्
लोकान्सर्व्वान्निर्भयं नाध्यगच्छत्।
त्वत्पादाब्जं प्राप्य यदृच्छयाद्य
सुस्थः शेते मृत्युरस्मादपैति ॥२॥
श्रीदेवक्याः

sarva-lokeṣu śrī-kṛṣṇa-pādābjaika-rakṣakatvam —

martyo mṛtyu-vyāla-bhītaḥ palāyan
lokān sarvān nirbhayaṁ nādhyagachchhat
tvat-pādābjaṁ prāpya yadṛchchhayādya
susthaḥ śete mṛtyur asmād apaiti [2]

The lotus feet of Lord Sri Krishna: the only protection for all planes of life —

O Supreme Lord, despite fleeing throughout every planet of the universe out of fear of the black snake of death, the mortal being cannot find a place devoid of fear. But when he is blessed with the fortune of coming to the shelter of Your lotus feet, he becomes reposed with a peaceful heart, and death itself flees from his company.

 — Srimati Devaki

मायाधीशस्यैव भगवतः क्षेमविधातृत्वम् —

विश्वस्य यः स्थितिलयोद्भवहेतुराद्यो
योगेश्वरैरपि दुरत्यययोगमायः।
क्षेमं विधास्यति स नो भगवांस्त्र्यधीशस्
तत्रास्मदीयविमृशेन कियानिहार्थः ॥३॥
श्रीब्रह्मणः

māyādhīśasyaiva bhagavataḥ kṣema-vidhātṛtvam —

viśvasya yaḥ sthiti-layodbhava-hetur ādyo
yogeśvarair api duratyaya-yoga-māyaḥ
kṣemaṁ vidhāsyati sa no bhagavāṁs tryadhīśas
tatrāsmadīya-vimṛśena kiyān ihārthaḥ [3]

Only the absolute magician, the Supreme Lord, is capable of bestowing all good fortune —

The Supreme Lord of the three worlds, who is the cause of the universal creation, sustenance, and annihilation, and whose magical potency is insurmountable for even the greatest yogis, will surely bless us with all good fortune. Could we ever doubt this?

 — Lord Brahma

आपद्यपि श्रीकृष्णकथैकरक्षणविश्वासः —

तं मोपयातं प्रतियन्तु विप्रा
गङ्गा च देवी धृतचित्तमीशे।
द्विजोपसृष्टः कुहकस्तक्षको वा
दशत्वलं गायत विष्णुगाथाः ॥४॥
श्रीविष्णुरातस्य

āpady api śrī-kṛṣṇa-kathaika-rakṣaṇa-viśvāsaḥ —

taṁ mopayātaṁ pratiyantu viprā
gaṅgā cha devī dhṛta-chittam īśe
dvijopasṛṣṭaḥ kuhakas takṣako vā
daśatv alaṁ gāyata viṣṇu-gāthāḥ [4]

Faith, even in the face of impending doom, that tidings of Lord Krishna (Sri Hari-katha) is the only protection —

O pure brahmans, may you kindly know me as a surrendered soul, and let Mother Ganges accept me as one whose heart is offered to Lord Krishna. Let the winged serpent Taksaka or whatever magical creation has been incited by the son of the brahman bite me immediately if it so desires; may you all simply go on singing the glories of the Lord.

 — Maharaj Pariksit

हरिदासा हरिणा रक्षिता एव —

मा भैर्मन्दमनो विचिन्त्य बहुधा यामीश्चिरं यातना
नैवामी प्रभवन्ति पापरिपवः स्वामी ननु श्रीधरः।
आलस्यं व्यपनीय भक्तिसुलभं ध्यायस्व नारायणं
लोकस्य व्यसनापनोदनकरो दासस्य किं न क्षमः ॥५॥
श्रीकुलशेखरस्य

hari-dāsā hariṇā rakṣitā eva —

mā bhair mandamano vichintya bahudhā yāmīś chiraṁ yātanā
naivāmī prabhavanti pāpa-ripavaḥ svāmī nanu śrīdharaḥ
ālasyaṁ vyapanīya bhakti-sulabhaṁ dhyāyasva nārāyaṇaṁ
lokasya vyasanāpanodanakaro dāsasya kiṁ na kṣamaḥ [5]

The servants of Lord Hari are always protected by Lord Hari —

O wicked mind, fear not the thought of the multifarious, perpetual tortures that are your due. Your enemies — your sins, have no claim over you because the only actual lord and master is the Supreme Lord, Sridhar. Give up your apathy, and absorb your thoughts in Lord Narayan, who is happily attainable by devotion. Is not He who destroys the calamities of all planets capable of annihilating the defects of His personal servitors?

 — Sri Kulasekhar

संसारदुःखक्लिष्टानां श्रीविष्णोः परमं पदमेवैकाश्रयः —

भवजलधिगतानां द्वन्द्ववाताहतानां
सुतदुहितृकलत्रत्राणभारार्द्दितानाम्।
विषमविषयतोये मज्जतामप्लवानां
भवति शरणमेको विष्णुपोतो नराणाम् ॥६॥
श्रीकुलशेखरस्य

saṁsāra-duḥkha-kliṣṭānāṁ śrī-viṣṇoḥ paramaṁ padam evaikāśrayaḥ —

bhava-jaladhi-gatānāṁ dvandva-vātāhatānāṁ
suta-duhitṛ-kalatra-trāṇa-bhārārditānām
viṣama-viṣaya-toye majjatām aplavānāṁ
bhavati śaraṇam eko viṣṇu-poto narāṇām [6]

The holy feet of Lord Visnu are the only shelter for persons tormented by the miseries of material existence —

For those persons who, bereft of a vessel, have fallen into the ocean of mundane existence; who are being lashed by the hurricane of duality based on mundane attraction and aversion; who are crushed by the burden of protecting wife, family, and so on; who are drowning in the ghastly whirlpool of sensual pleasures — the only shelter is the lifeboat of the holy lotus feet of the Supreme Lord, Visnu.

 — Sri Kulasekhar

श्रीकृष्णभजनमेव मर्त्त्यानाममृतप्रदम् —

इदं शरीरं शतसन्धिजर्ज्जरं
पतत्यवश्यं परिणामपेशलम्।
किमौषधं पृच्छसि मूढ दुर्म्मते
निरामयं कृष्णरसायनं पिब ॥७॥
श्रीकुलशेखरस्य

śrī-kṛṣṇa-bhajanam eva martyānām amṛta-pradam —

idaṁ śarīraṁ śata-sandhi-jarjaraṁ
pataty avaśyaṁ pariṇāma-peśalam
kim auṣadhaṁ pṛchchhasi mūḍha durmate
nirāmayaṁ kṛṣṇa-rasāyanaṁ piba [7]

 — Sri Kulasekhar

Only pure devotion for Lord Krishna awards immortality to the mortal —

শত সন্ধি জর জর, তব এই কলেবর
পতন হইবে একদিন ।
ভস্ম কৃমি বিষ্ঠা হবে, সকলের ঘৃণ্য তবে
ইহাতে মমতা অর্ব্বাচীন ॥

ওরে মন শুন মোর এ সত্য বচন ।
এ রোগের মহৌষধি, কৃষ্ণনাম নিরবধি
নিরাময় কৃষ্ণ রসায়ন ॥
(শ্রীল ভক্তিবিনোদ ঠাকুর)

śata sandhi jara jara, tava ei kalevara,
patana haibe eka-dina
bhasma kṛmi viṣṭhā habe, sakalera ghṛṇya tabe,
ihāte mamatā arvāchīna

ore mana śuna mora e satya vachana
e rogera mahauṣadhi, kṛṣṇa-nāma niravadhi,
nirāmaya kṛṣṇa rasāyana

A dancing puppet of a hundred joints
your mortal coil in its last moments:
this physical form is doomed to destruction.

Ashes to ashes, worm and dung
what was beautiful once is a horrible thing …
to adore it is the gravest misconception.

My dear mind, hear the truth attentively:
the panacea for this malady —
chant Krishna’s name constantly;
Krishna is the life of immortality.

अत्यधमेष्वपि भगवन्नाम्नोऽभीष्टदातृत्वम् —

सत्यं ब्रवीमि मनुजाः स्वयमूर्द्ध्वबाहु
र्यो यो मुकुन्द नरसिंह जनार्द्दनेति।
जीवो जपत्यनुदिनं मरणे रणे वा
पाषाणकाष्ठसदृषाय ददात्यभीष्टम् ॥८॥
श्रीकुलशेखरस्य

aty-adhameṣv api bhagavan-nāmno ’bhīṣṭa-dātṛtvam —

satyaṁ bravīmi manujāḥ svayam ūrdhva-bāhur
yo yo mukunda narasiṁha janārdaneti
jīvo japaty anudinaṁ maraṇe raṇe vā
pāṣāṇa-kāṣṭha-sadṛṣāya dadāty abhīṣṭam [8]

The Holy Name of the Lord bestows the most cherished objective upon even the most fallen —

O human civilisation, with arms upraised I proclaim this truth! The Holy Name awards all desired success upon even stone- or wooden-hearted persons who, in the struggle for existence, constantly chant the Lord’s names such as Mukunda, Narasimha, and Janardan.

 — Sri Kulasekhar

स्वशत्रवेऽपि सद्गतिदायको हरिः —

अहो बकी यं स्तनकालकूटं
जिघांसयापाययदप्यसाध्वी।
लेभे गतिं धात्र्युचितां ततोऽन्यं
कं वा दयालुं शरणं व्रजेम ॥९॥
श्रीमदुद्धवस्य

sva-śatrave ’pi sad-gati-dāyako hariḥ —

aho bakī yaṁ stana-kāla-kūṭaṁ
jighāṁsayāpāyayad apy asādhvī
lebhe gatiṁ dhātry-uchitāṁ tato ’nyaṁ
kaṁ vā dayāluṁ śaraṇaṁ vrajema [9]

Sri Hari awards a divine destination to even His enemy —

How astonishing! When Putana, the wicked sister of Bakasura, tried to kill child Krishna by offering Him deadly poison on her breast, she reached a position befitting the Lord’s nursemaid. Could I ever have as merciful a shelter as that Lord Krishna?

 — Srimad Uddhava

अयोग्यानामप्याशास्थलम् —

दुरन्तस्यानादेरपरिहरणीयस्य महतो
विहीनाचारोऽहं नृपशुरशुभस्यास्पदमपि।
दयासिन्धो बन्धो निरवधिकवात्सल्यजलधेस्
तव स्मारं स्मारं गुणगणमितीच्छामिगतभीः ॥१०॥
श्रीयामुनाचार्य्यस्य

ayogyānām apy āśā-sthalam —

durantasyānāder apariharaṇīyasya mahato
vihīnāchāro ’haṁ nṛ-paśur aśubhasyāspadam api
dayā-sindho bandho niravadhika-vātsalya-jaladhes
tava smāraṁ smāraṁ guṇa-gaṇam itīchchhāmi gatabhīḥ [10]

The reservoir of hope for even the unqualified —

O sea of compassion, I am no better than a wicked animal on two feet, the most incorrigible parasite — a beginningless and endless reservoir of the greatest inauspiciousness. Nonetheless, I abide in fearlessness, repeatedly remembering the divine qualities of You — the endless ocean of affection and the supreme friend.

 — Sri Yamun Acharya

असकृदपराधिनामपि मोचकः —

रघुवर यदभूस्त्वं तादृशो वायसस्य
प्रणत इति दयालुर्यस्य चैद्यस्य कृष्ण।
प्रतिभवमपराद्धुर्मुग्ध सायुज्यदोऽभूर्
वद किमपदमागस्तस्य तेऽस्ति क्षमायाः ॥११॥
श्रीयामुनाचार्य्यस्य

asakṛd-aparādhinām api mochakaḥ —

raghuvara yad abhūs tvaṁ tādṛśo vāyasasya
praṇata iti dayālur yasya chaidyasya kṛṣṇa
pratibhavam aparāddhur mugdha sāyujyado ’bhūr
vada kim apadam āgas tasya te ’sti kṣamāyāḥ [11]

The deliverer of even repeated offenders —

O Lord of the Raghu dynasty, just for bowing his head to You, You were merciful upon that crow (who was so offensive that he clawed at the breast of Sitadevi).

O charming Krishna, You awarded the salvation of merging into Your effulgence (sayujya-mukti) to Sisupal, who was an offender birth after birth.

Now please tell me, is there any offence that cannot be pardoned by You?

 — Sri Yamun Acharya

शरणागतहेलनं तस्मिन्नसम्भवम् —

अभूतपूर्व्वं मम भावि किंवा
सर्व्वं सहे मे सहजं हि दुःखम्।
किन्तु त्वदग्रे शरणागतानां
पराभवो नाथ न तेऽनुरूपः ॥१२॥
श्रीयामुनाचार्य्यस्य

śaraṇāgata-helanaṁ tasminn asambhavam —

abhūta-pūrvaṁ mama bhāvi kiṁvā
sarvaṁ sahe me sahajaṁ hi duḥkham
kintu tvad agre śaraṇāgatānāṁ
parābhavo nātha na te ’nurūpaḥ [12]

It is impossible for Him to neglect His surrendered devotee —

O Lord, after all, what unprecedented trials may befall me now? I can tolerate anything and everything; no doubt, unhappiness is my natural companion. Nonetheless, it will not become You to allow the neglect of Your surrendered soul who now stands before You.

 — Sri Yamun Acharya

बहिरन्यथा प्रदर्शयतोऽपि स्वरूपतः पालकत्वम् —

निराशकस्यापि न तावदुत्सहे
महेश हातुं तव पादपङ्कजम्।
रुषा निरस्तोऽपि शिशुः स्तनन्धयो
न जातु मातुश्चरणौ जिहासति ॥१३॥
श्रीयामुनाचार्य्यस्य

bahir anyathā pradarśayato ’pi svarūpataḥ pālakatvam —

nirāśakasyāpi na tāvad utsahe
maheśa hātuṁ tava pāda-paṅkajam
ruṣā nirasto ’pi śiśuḥ stanandhayo
na jātu mātuś charaṇau jihāsati [13]

He is our natural guardian, even if externally He shows otherwise —

O Almighty Lord, even if You make me hopeless, I can never leave Your lotus feet in any condition. If the mother becomes angry and separates her child from her breast, does the child thereby leave the feet (shelter) of his mother?

 — Sri Yamun Acharya

तदितराश्रयाभावात्तस्यैवैकरक्षकत्वम् —

भूमौ स्खलितपादानां भूमिरेवावलम्बनम्।
त्वयि जातापराधानां त्वमेव शरणं प्रभो ॥१४॥
स्कान्दे

tad itarāśrayābhāvāt tasyaivaika-rakṣakatvam —

bhūmau skhalita-pādānāṁ bhūmir evāvalambanam
tvayi jātāparādhānāṁ tvam eva śaraṇaṁ prabho [14]

He is proven to be the only shelter since there is actually no shelter but Him —

For those who have stumbled and fallen upon the ground, that very ground is the only support by which they can arise once again. Likewise, for those who have offended You, O Lord, You alone are their only refuge.

निराश्रयाणामेवैकाश्रयः —

विवृतविविधबाधे भ्रान्तिवेगादगाधे
बलवति भवपुरे मज्जतो मे विदूरे।
अशरणगणबन्धो हा कृपाकौमुदीन्दो
सकृदकृतविलम्बं देहि हस्तावलम्बम् ॥१५॥
श्रीरूपपादानां

nirāśrayāṇām evaikāśrayaḥ —

vivṛta-vividha-bādhe bhrānti vegād agādhe
balavati bhavapure majjato me vidūre
aśaraṇa-gaṇa-bandho hā kṛpā-kaumudīndo
sakṛd-akṛtavilambaṁ dehi hastāvalambam [15]

The only shelter for the shelterless —

I am drowning in some remote region of a fathomless, treacherous ocean — the vast sea of frustration, swept by the tide of hallucination. O friend of the shelterless, O benediction moon, please just once now lend me Your helping hand.

 — Sri Rupa Goswami

विलम्बासहनस्य भक्तस्य तद्रक्षणविश्रब्धत्वम् —

या द्रौपदीपरित्राणे या गजेन्द्रस्य मोक्षणे।
मय्यार्त्ते करुणामूर्त्ते सा त्वरा क्व गता हरे ॥१६॥
जगन्नाथस्य

vilambāsahanasya bhaktasya tad raksaṇa-viśrabdhatvam —

yā draupadī paritrāṇe yā gajendrasya mokṣaṇe
mayy ārte karuṇā-mūrte sā tvarā kva gatā hare [16]

The devotee who needs immediate protection has full faith that the Lord will come to his aid —

O compassion incarnate, now I am in danger. O Lord Hari, where is that urgency You showed in delivering Draupadi and liberating Gajendra?

 — Jagannath

रक्षिष्यतीतिविश्वासस्य प्रकाशमाधुर्य्यम् —

तमसि रविरिवोद्यन्मज्जतामप्लवानां
प्लव इव तृषितानां स्वादुवर्षीव मेघः।
निधिरिव निधनानां तीव्रदुःखामयानां
भिषगिव कुशलं नो दातुमायाति शौरिः ॥१७॥
श्रीद्रौपद्याः

rakṣiṣyatīti-viśvāsasya prakāśa-mādhuryam —

tamasi ravir ivodyan majjatām aplavānāṁ
plava iva tṛṣitānāṁ svādu-varṣīva meghaḥ
nidhir iva nidhanānāṁ tīvra-duḥkhāmayānāṁ
bhiṣag iva kuśalaṁ no dātum āyāti śauriḥ

The revealed sweetness of confidence in the Lord’s protection —

Like the sun ascending through the darkness
like a boat for the helplessly drowning
like a raincloud of sweet waters for the parched;
like a treasure for the impoverished
like a physician for the deadly afflicted —
the Lord Sri Krishna is now coming to bless us
with all good fortune.

 — Srimati Draupadi

तद्रक्षकत्वे तत्कारुण्यमेव कारणम् —

प्राचीनानां भजनमतुलं दुष्करं शृण्वतो मे
नैराश्येन ज्वलति हृदयं भक्तिलेशालसस्य।
विश्वद्रीचीमघहर तवाकर्ण्य कारुण्यवीचीम्
आशाबिन्दूक्षितमिदमुपैत्यन्तरे हन्त शैत्यम् ॥१८॥
श्रीरूपपादानां

tad rakṣakatve tat kāruṇyam eva kāraṇam —

prāchīnānāṁ bhajanam atulaṁ duṣkaraṁ śṛṇvato me
nairāśyena jvalati hṛdayaṁ bhakti-leśālasasya
viśva-drīchīm aghahara tavākarṇya kāruṇya vīchīm
āśā-bindūkṣitam idam upaity antare hanta śaityam [18]

The cause of the Lord’s protectiveness is His mercy alone —

O destroyer of sin, my heart is averse to a trace of devotion, and it burns in the fire of hopelessness when I hear about the incomparable, formidable devotional services rendered by the great predecessor devotees. But now that I have heard about the wave of Your mercy which floods the universe, the core of my heart, sprinkled by a drop of hope, is soothed with cooling relief once again.

 — Sri Rupa Goswami

भगवतः श्रीचैतन्यरूपस्य परमौदार्य्यम् —

हा हन्त चित्तभुवि मे परमोषरायां
सद्भक्तिकल्पलतिकाङ्कुरिता कथं स्यात्।
हृद्येकमेव परमाश्वसनीयमस्ति
चैतन्यनाम कलयन्न कदापि शोच्यः ॥१९॥
श्रीप्रबोधानन्दपादानां

bhagavataḥ śrī-chaitanya-rūpasya param audāryam —

hā hanta chitta-bhuvi me paramoṣarāyāṁ
sad-bhakti-kalpa-latikāṅkuritā kathaṁ syāt
hṛdy ekam eva paramāśvasanīyam asti
chaitanya-nama kalayan na kadapi sochyah [19]

The supreme magnanimity of the Supreme Lord Sri Chaitanyadev —

Alas, alas! How will the charming wish-fulfilling creeper of pure devotion ever sprout from the desperately barren planes of my consciousness?

Despite my predicament, just one great hope awakens in my heart: by chanting the name of Sri Chaitanyadev, nothing can remain to be lamented for by anyone at any time.

 — Sri Prabodhananda Saraswati

श्रीगौरहरेः सर्व्वोपायविहीनेष्वपि रक्षकत्वम् —

ज्ञानादिवर्त्मविरुचिं व्रजनाथभक्ति
रीतिं न वेद्मि न च सद्गुरवो मिलन्ति।
हा हन्त हन्त मम कः शरणं विमूढ
गौरोहरिस्तव न कर्णपथं गतोऽस्ति ॥२०॥
श्रीप्रबोधानन्दपादानां

śrī-gaurahareḥ sarvopāya-vihīneṣv api rakṣakatvam —

jñānādi-vartma-viruchiṁ vraja-nātha-bhakti-
rītiṁ na vedmi na cha sad-guravo milanti
hā hanta hanta mama kaḥ śaraṇaṁ vimūḍha
gauro-haris tava na karṇa-pathaṁ gato ’sti [20]

Sri Gaurahari is the saviour of even those bereft of any method of approach —

I know not the way of love in Sri Vrndavan
which breeds disloyalty to wisdom and the world;
nor do I come to meet with saintly teachers —
to whom shall I surrender, where shall I go?
O foolish fellow! You cannot have heard about
the Golden Lord, Sri Gaura Mahaprabhu.

 — Sri Prabodhananda Saraswati

इति श्रीप्रपन्नजीवनामृते

श्रीभक्तवचनामृतान्तर्गतो

रक्षिष्यतीति विश्वासो नाम पञ्चमोऽध्यायः।

iti śrī-prapanna-jīvanāmṛte

śrī-bhakta-vachanāmṛtāntargato

rakṣiṣyatīti viśvāso nāma pañchamo ’dhyāyaḥ

thus ends the fifth chapter

Confidence in the Lord’s Protection

from

Words of Nectar from the Devotees

in