One of the very beautiful songs by Srila Narottama Dasa Thakura is Gora Pahun. He depicts the condition of a struggling practitioner. One simply wastes one’s life having not worshipped Lord Gauranga. He compares it to having lost a very valuable jewel – prema ratana dhana helaya harainu.
Shrila Prabhupada writes in his purport to this song,
“prema-rathana-dhana helāya hārāiṅu. Spiritual life means to develop real love. Everyone says love. There are so many signboards, so many papers, “love, love.” But there is no love. This is illusion. It is all lust. Love for intoxication, love for sex, love for this… This is going on. So actual love means… “Love,” this word can be applicable only with Kṛṣṇa, with God. Because we are created for that purpose. To love means to love Kṛṣṇa. So that is wanted. That is spiritual love. So prema-rathana: “I could achieve that transcendental position of love, but I am neglecting. Therefore I am calling my spiritual death. And these things are happening due to my past misdeeds.”
Love for Krishna is the most valuable jewel that we have already attained by coming in contact with Krishna Consciousness. Actually, we all eternally possess love of Krishna , but we have forgotten it.
nitya-siddha kṛṣṇa-prema ’sādhya’ kabhu naya
Pure love for Kṛṣṇa is eternally established in the hearts of the living entities. It is not something to be gained from another source. CC Madhya 22.107
Bhagavatam also talks about jewels. Shyamantaka jewel is one of the most famous pastimes in the 10th canto, where this one jewel caused the deaths of so many people! Satrajit’s brother, Prasena was killed. Then Satrajit got killed, then Satadhanva was killed. Rukmi and Ashwatthama also had jewels on top of their heads which were removed by Krishna and Arjuna respectively. In contrast, Lord’s Kaustubha jewel remains eternally on His chest. Jewel of bhakti is also eternal, but it can be hidden or lost from our vision.
Two things can make us lose the precious jewel of Krishna Consciousness.
1] When we don’t worship Gauranga – na bhajanti
Less bhajan or no bhajan is a result of either becoming lax in the process which is in the mode of ignorance, or wanting to enjoy one’s senses – which is in the mode of passion. In this song itself, Narottama Dasa Thakura says,
viṣaya-viṣama-viṣa satata khāinu
gaura-kīrtana-rase magana nā hainu
“I continually drank the virulent poison of sense-gratification. I refused to swim in the nectar of Lord Caitanya’s sankirtana movement.”
2] When we commit offenses – avajananti
Scriptures are full of examples of how even devotees lost the bhakti jewel due to committing offenses. Ramachandra Puri, Rupa Kaviraja, Saubhari Muni, Daksha etc. are a few examples. Daksha even had the darshana of the Supreme Lord! Still, the only thing he asked for was to beget more progeny. Ramachandra Puri was on and off seeing Lord Caitanya while he was in Jagannath Puri. But his absorption was to find faults even in the Lord.
Scriptures also give examples of devotees who had sense gratificatory desires or committed offenses prior to coming in bhakti, but later they very cautiously protected this valuable jewel of bhakti.
Dhruva Maharaja had a material desire. But he understood that the real jewel was the Lord, and he was only looking for broken pieces of glass.
He says,
sthānābhilāṣī tapasi sthito ’haṁ
tvāṁ prāptavān deva-munīndra-guhyam
kācaṁ vicinvann api divya-ratnaṁ
svāmin kṛtārtho ’smi varaṁ na yāce
’O my Lord, because I was seeking an opulent material position, I was performing severe types of penance and austerity. Now I have gotten You, who are very difficult for the great demigods, saintly persons and kings to attain. I was searching after a piece of glass, but instead I have found a most valuable jewel. Therefore I am so satisfied that I do not wish to ask any benediction from You.’ CC Madhya 22.42
Gopal Chapal offended Srivas Thakura very badly. Later, recognizing his mistake, he sincerely begged forgiveness. And he became Devakinandan Das Thakura who wrote various Vaishnava songs. In one of his famous songs, he offers his respects to all the Vaishnavas.
vṛndāvana-vāsī jata vaiṣṇavera gaṇa
prathame vandanā kari sabāra caraṇa
First of all I offer dandavat pranams to the feet of all of the Vaisnavas of Vrndavana.
Dhruva and Gopal Chapala regained their lost jewel by humbling themselves in front of devotees – in case of Dhruva, he took the shelter of Narada, Gopala Chapala took Srivas’s shelter. Actually, devotees possess this jewel of krishna prema and therefore, they are the right candidates who can give us the same.
John Milton wrote ‘Paradise Lost’ wherein he justifies God’s actions in this world, and also talks about the fall of Adam and Eve, and later he wrote ‘Paradise Regained’. Even though we might have lost this jewel of prema – prema ratana, if we worship Lord Gauranga and associate with devotees without offending them, we will regain our lost jewel and ascend to higher stages of spiritual evolution.
