Bhaktivedanta VedaBase: Mukunda-mālā-stotra 32

vyāmoha-praśamaushadham muni-mano-vritti-pravritty-aushadham

daityendrārti-karaushadham tri-bhuvane sañjīvanaikaushadham

bhaktātyanta-hitaushadham bhava-bhaya-pradhvamsanaikaushadham

śreyah-prāpti-karaushadham piba manah śrī-krishna-divyaushadham

SYNONYMS

vyāmoha — utter bewilderment; praśama — for subduing; aushadham — the herbal medicine; muni — of sages; manah — of the minds; vritti — the functioning; pravritti — which initiates; aushadham — the medicine; daitya — of the demoniac descendants of Diti; indra — for the leaders; ārti — distress; kara — which causes; aushadham — the medicine; tri-bhuvane — within the three worlds; sañjīvana — for bringing the dead back to life; eka — the only; aushadham — medicine; bhakta — of the Lord's devotees; atyanta — absolute; hita — for benefit; aushadham — the medicine; bhava — of material existence; bhaya — fear; pradhvamsana — for destroying; eka — the only; aushadham — medicine; śreyah — of supreme good; prāpti — attainment; kara — which effects; aushadham — the medicine; piba — just drink; manah — O mind; śrī-krishna — of Lord Śrī Krishna; divya — transcendental; aushadham — the medicinal herb.

TRANSLATION

O mind, please drink the transcendental medicine of Śrī Krishna's glories. It is the perfect medicine for curing the disease of bewilderment, for inspiring sages to engage their minds in meditation, and for tormenting the mighty Daitya demons. It alone is the medicine for restoring the three worlds to life and for bestowing unlimited blessings on the Supreme Lord's devotees. Indeed, it is the only medicine that can destroy one's fear of material existence and lead one to the attainment of the supreme good.

PURPORT

My colleague Gopīparānadhana Prabhu notes, "Mani, mantra, and aushadha [jewels, mantras, and medicine] are often grouped together by Vedic philosophers as examples of things in this world that have acintya-śakti (inconceivable energy)." Since the Supreme Personality of Godhead and His energies are inconceivable, it is understandable why the poets and philosophers compare Him to jewels and medicine and praise the wonderful powers of mantras composed of His names.

Aside from jewels, mantras, and medicine, every living being in the creation possesses acintya-śakti to some degree. Although human beings often consider themselves the most powerful of all God's creatures, many lowly creatures possess abilities far beyond those of human beings. For example, growing grass endures trampling and stays out all night in freezing weather without a protest. A human being is not so tolerant. Frogs possess an inconceivable ability to maintain their lives even while buried under the earth. Hummingbirds and insects are flying machines so sophisticated that they can outmaneuver airplanes in many ways. Although scientists tend to think of their work as demystifying the secrets of the universe, they admit that nature at its most basic level remains inconceivable.

The presence of acintya-śakti in both the smallest and the greatest aspects of the universe should lead us to ask, Who is the source of this inconceivable energy? That source is described in the Brahma-samhitā as the acintya-rūpa, or inconceivable form, of Lord Govinda, the Supreme Personality of Godhead.

The process of bhakti-yoga is also inconceivable. Every person fortunate enough to take up the process of Krishna consciousness can attest to the inconceivable potency of the medicine of devotional service. Although we may have tried to give up vices before encountering Krishna consciousness, we could not do so for long. But as soon as we began serving Krishna and the pure devotee and chanting the Lord's holy names, the "impossible" was easily accomplished. The inconceivable energy that brings about these changes is called krishna-śakti.

By the grace of the Supreme Lord, a pure devotee possesses this krishna-śakti, and when he chants the holy name or speaks about Krishna, the potent sound enters the consciousness of the receptive hearer and purifies him. By contrast, when a nondevotee speaks of Krishna or chants His name, the effect on the hearer is not purifying but poisonous. Only one who is directly empowered by the Supreme Lord can spread Krishna consciousness through krishna-śakti. Thus only from the pure devotees can we gain the jewel, mantra, or medicine of devotional service, from which we can derive the inconceivable benefits of love of God.

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His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupāda, Founder Ācārya of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness
Satsvarupa dasa Goswami
Gopiparanadhana dasa Adhikari