Richard’s pilgrimage next led him southeast to Prayaga, praised as the king of holy places. This was home of the Kumbha Mela, the largest gathering on earth where up to twenty million pilgrims gather every twelve years to meet saintly people and take a religious purification bath. Prayaga is situated at the confluence of three rivers: the Ganges, Yamuna, and Saraswati. Richard walked barefoot in the unbearably hot sand, and arrived at the confluence where he saw the river Yamuna embracing Mother Ganges—Yamuna with her complexion of deep blue, Ganges with hers of white, and the transparent Saraswati joined them from below.
Sitting on the sandy bank, Richard gazed into the sky and saw a hawk plunge headlong into the Ganges. There, a frantic underwater skirmish ensued until he emerged with a flapping fish, about a foot long, pierced in the grip of his talons. Squirming desperately, the fish was carried overhead and into a nearby forest. Looking on Richard reflected:
“The unsuspecting fish, who knew nothing but a life in the river, went about its routine like any other day, but in an instant was ripped out of its reality to meet with death. Like that fish, we routinely live our lives hardly aware that, at the least expected moment, the yellow-eyed hawk of fate in the form of crises, tragedy, or even death, may wrench us out of our comfortable environment. We regularly hear of it in the news or see it around us but rarely take seriously that it could happen to us. Perhaps the lesson here is to guard against complacency and give higher priority to our spiritual needs. If the fish swam deeper, the hawk would not be able reach it. Similarly, if we go deeper into our connection to God, we will find an inner reality so deep and so satisfying that it lifts the consciousness to a place where we could deal with the effects of unforeseeable fate with a stable, detached mind.”
Radhanath Swami appeals that in this material world there is danger at every step and death could come at any time. Therefore a spiritualist spends every moment remembering God so that during the eventual moment of death, he is fixed in an inner state of bliss, ready to enter the divine realm of God. Radhanath Swami says, “A spiritualist doesn’t let a breath pass without remembering God.” Although this may appear presently impractical, our goal is to attain that state of constant remembrance. Radhanath Swami’s oft quoted phrase is, “To forget God is worse than death.”
Radhanath Swami believes that for a spiritual seeker death is not the end, rather it’s a beginning of entrance into a realm of eternity, knowledge and bliss. For a materialist, death is simply the end of everything he or she identifies with. Therefore a God lover doesn’t mind getting old or nearing death, because he knows that as the body is coming closer to death, the soul is getting closer to the eternal spiritual youthful form. Therefore Radhanath Swami’s catchy reminder for us is ‘die before you die’
Radhanath Swami has observed in his four decade of spiritual practices that as inevitable death approaches, all sincere devotees of God are not fearful of losing anything of this world. I once heard Radhanath Swami’s student give a striking example, “In a typical Hindu marriage, the bride cries as she leaves her parents’ house. This is because of her familial attachments and the uncertain future waiting to unfold at her husband’s home. But if a long courtship precedes her wedding, she silently celebrates the parting from her loved ones. Similarly a devotee constantly associating with God through service and remembrance fills his life with serenity and bliss and easily turns from worldly attachments. Then when the inevitable death approaches, he is excited to be reunited with his beloved Lord”
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Founder-acharya of the International Society For Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON)
“Go to India” a sweet but commanding voice; spoke up in the heart of young Richard (later Radhanath Swami) who was immersed in meditation, his search for meaning in life has brought him to the Isle of Crete. Today he was ordered to go to India. Born and raised in the middle class suburbs of Chicago, Radhanath swami grew up in the 1950’s and 60’s era when popular musicians protested war, prejudice and social injustice. Radhanath swami would listen to these songs again and again, but their lyrics referring to God stirred his soul. Peter, Paul and Mary- the folk trio from Greenswich village sang in their debut album
“Early in the morning, about the break of day
I ask the Lord, to help me find my way”
This simple prayer was to guide Radhanath swami in the coming years of his life........
Powerful statement from Maharajah “To forget God is worse than death.”
View CommentMaharajah please bless us so that we can realize the reality of your instruction and progress on spiritual path.
very grave topic. I hope I can take it to heart immediately.
View CommentNo wonder, devotees of Lord Krishna are fearless of death…
View CommentWonderful article.we should prepared for the worst.we should remember God every moment.Radhanath swami shows how to remember God every moment by his example.
View Commentvery nice article evr moment death is coming closer. we never know what will happen when.
View CommentEvery one knows that Death can come anytime and anywhere but never make chanting the priority in life. Hope this article will inspire us to do so…
View CommentHare Krishna..
Very nice article. Thank you very much for sharing the same. c
View Commentwonderful,thank you
View CommentWonderful post! Great thought “Die before you die ” Very short quote but has a deep and very true meaning init. Thanks Maharaj.
View CommentSuch amazing instructions & that too on Sept 11 – Thank you
View CommentDeath is inevitable. No one can escape it. However, we can definitely escape from the endless cycle of birth & death by developing God consciousness under the shelter & guidance of learned saints such as Radhanath Swami.
View CommentRadhanath Swami strikes a chord in my heart as I am undergoing a similar situation in life – rattled out of my comfort zone by strike of disease to near and dear ones.
View CommentRadhanath Swami speaks such topics of relevance and reality
So important topic to contemplate on!
View CommentA devotee of the lord has no fear of death because he has gone deep into the self realisation
View CommentMaharaj is showing by example, how nature teaches us lessons for life. It takes a sincere and humble heart to grab these lessons and apply.
View CommentMaharaj gives practical and easy to follow instructions through these experiences. JAI !!!
It is been sometime now, that a good soul guided me to read the Journey Home book by Radhanath Swami, no amount of referrals could have substituted the sheer ‘JOY’ one can get by reading it. It opens your heart inside out and you just want to meet the author, knowing well here is a person who put life in such a perspective it is like “Inhaling pure Oxygen without any sort of pollution”.
View CommentGood causes are initiated by many organizations; the purpose may vary though, for some it may be a PR exercise in disguise or in memory of a loved one and so on. What one gets to see in activities initiated by Radhanath Swami and his followers is, though the processes may vary as per the need ,there is a genuine concern and care for helping all souls in seeking perfection for the ultimate goal of this human form that being love and service to the supreme Lord.
View CommentI heard this story from Radhanath swami live on 14th April 2008. He mentioned this and said that you may be comfortable, but any time your phone can ring and bring you the news of death of a near and dear one.
three days later, on 17th April 2008, while travelling in a train, my cell phone rang bringing the news of the death of my father in law due to a sudden heart attack. My wife was too shocked, but we immediately remembered this same story we had heard just 3 days ago in Chowpatty mandir on Ram Navami. It brought us solace.
View CommentRadhanath Swami Maharaj’s deep meditations on the incidents happening in his own life and connectiong them to real life is very thought provoking and reminds me to never become complacent but ‘die before you die’.
View CommentOh my God !! what a saint His Holiness Radhanath Swami Maharaj is. I’m just completely bowled over by the bride example. If his disciples are so brilliant it speaks a lot about the inspiration they have from their master.
View CommentWhat a powerful line..! Guess we are already dead since time immemorial. It is only a true soul who can revive the spark and get us to life…
View CommentI dont have enough words to glorify Radhanath Swami….He is simply great!
View Comment“The hawk of time will devaor us”. What a realization through this beautiful narration, shared herein by Radhanath Swami.
View Commentamazing explanation!
View CommentWE REALLY HAVE TO PREPARE FOR OUR DEATH, TO HAVE A BEAUTIFUL FUTURE. THANK YOU MAHARAJ.
View CommentOne can take spiritual life seriously when one is conscious of death. Thank you Radhanath Swami for always reminding us.
View CommentThis is really sobering. All frivility in life evaporates with the heat of this topic. Can someone pray for me to get courage to follow these instructions and face them boldly?
View CommentAll the problems in our life prepare are small as compared to death. So if we can have remembrance of Lord during these small problems we can prepare for death.
View CommentThanks for such wonderful insights..!
View Commentexcellent analogy of weeding to death and spirituality concept. thank you very much.
View CommentThanks for expalining the importance of going deeper in connection with the God. Also how important urgent this task is as death can approach us any time. Thanks for the inspiration.
View CommentOne can realize the urjency of taking up devotional service by the association of Radhanath Maharaj.
View CommentDie before you die-a statement to be pondered upon.
View CommentThe example of a bride going to her new house after marriage is really striking. If we are accustomed to spending time with God in our day to day life, we will actually be looking forward to the time when we quit this body. Thank you for sharing such nice reflections.
View CommentWE REALLY HAVE TO PREPARE FOR OUR DEATH, TO HAVE A BEAUTIFUL FUTURE. THANK YOU MAHARAJ.
View CommentAll GLories To H.H.Radhanath Swami Maharaj
Hare Krishna. What an wornderful lecture. How profound is the meaning of this rather intricate subject which Maharaj makes easy to understand but gives us such deep conviction that otherwise wouldnt come if it were not our Guru.
The Lesson is so profound that even the most ignorant of person is likely to get moved when he understande how should one be preparing for the afterlife and thus the spirit to b in at the time of embracing death.
Hare Krishna
View CommentThank you Radhanath Swami Maharaj for showing us the right attitude towards life.
View CommentI am now regular reader for these blogs, please keep them posting and thanks for sharing today’s blog.
View CommentIts really eye opening incident. Thanks Maharaj
View Commentserious topic for all people…but maharaj nicely showing right path…
View Commentthank you for the inspiring anecdote
View CommentThanks to Radhanath swami for reminding us how we need to go deeper spiritually. I hope and pray that I can follow this important instruction of this great soul Radhanath Swami
View Commentso true ..that we constantly need to be shaken out of the complacency that sets in our lives…and be awoken to the reality that death could be just around the corner…waiting for us.Thank you for reminding us .
View Comment“To forget God is worse than death.” This statement is very powerful and make us realize how serious we need to be in our spiritual progress
View CommentAny one can relate with such simple and deep explanation.
View CommentA secret courtship with God will keep us stable and detached. Then we need not fear death.
View CommentThank you for sharing this. Radhanath Swami very nicely compares our state with the state of the fish. We feel we are happy until we know what is real happiness.
View CommentMaharaj is explaining the very essence of how to attain success in this human form of life.
View CommentYes what Radhanath Swami has said is very true,death can come at any time.Thanks for nice example
View CommentHow True is this, Death can come any moment. The Question is are we prepared for it. Thank you Maharaj for enlightning us.
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