("O my dear Kṛṣṇa, ocean of mercy, You are the friend of the distressed and the source of creation. You are the master of the cowherd men and the lover of the gopīs, especially Rādhārāṇī. I offer my respectful obeisances unto You.")
- tapta-kāñcana-gaurāṅgi rādhe vṛndāvaneśvari
- vṛṣabhānu-sute devi praṇamāmi hari-priye
("I offer my respects to Rādhārāṇī, whose bodily complexion is like molten gold and who is the Queen of Vṛndāvana. You are the daughter of King Vṛṣabhānu, and You are very dear to Lord Kṛṣṇa.")
- vāñchā-kalpatarubhyaś ca kṛpā-sindhubhya eva ca
- patitānāṁ pāvanebhyo vaiṣṇavebhyo namo namaḥ
("I offer my respectful obeisances unto all the Vaiṣṇava devotees of the Lord. They can fulfill the desires of everyone, just like desire trees, and they are full of compassion for the fallen souls.")
- śrī-kṛṣṇa-caitanya prabhu nityānanda
- śrī-advaita gadādhara śrīvāsādi-gaura-bhakta-vṛnda
("I offer my obeisances to Śrī Kṛṣṇa Caitanya, Prabhu Nityānanda, Śrī Advaita, Gadādhara, Śrīvāsa and all others in the line of devotion.")
- hare kṛṣṇa hare kṛṣṇa kṛṣṇa kṛṣṇa hare hare
- hare rāma hare rāma rāma rāma hare hare
("My dear Lord, and the spiritual energy of the Lord, kindly engage me in Your service. I am now embarrassed with this material service. Please engage me in Your service.")
Ladies and Gentlemen, this Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement is known also as bhagavat-dharma. Bhagavat-dharma means the religious principles by which the lost relationship between God and the living entities are reestablished. At the present moment we are forgetful of our relationship with God, or Kṛṣṇa. When I speak "Kṛṣṇa," Kṛṣṇa means God, and when I speak "God," God means Kṛṣṇa. Kṛṣṇas tu bhagavān svayam (SB 1.3.28). Īśvaraḥ paramaḥ kṛṣṇaḥ (Bs. 5.1).
People are searching after God, "Where is God?" But they do not see that here is God: Kṛṣṇa. Kṛṣṇa appeared Himself five thousand years ago in India, and He exhibited His godly qualities, established Himself as the Supreme Personality of Godhead by His various activities, and still people are dying to see God. That is very regrettable.
At least in India one should not be speaking to know what is God, what is God's qualities, what is God's pastimes, what is God's name, what is God's form. This is due to forgetfulness. Kṛṣṇa is God. That is accepted by all the ācāryas. We are guided. Our Indian civilization, our religious life, our culture, our Vedic knowledge, they are all directed by the ācāryas. Therefore in the Bhagavad-gītā, in the chapter, the Thirteenth Chapter, it is..., there are different states for God realization, or self-realization, and one of the item is ācārya-upāsanam: to follow the footsteps of the ācāryas.
So all the ācāryas in India—Madhvācārya, Rāmānujācārya, Viṣṇu Svāmī, Nimbārka and Śrīpāda Śaṅkarācārya... Although Śaṅkarācārya's philosophy and Vaiṣṇava philosophy there is little difference of opinion, but still Śrīpāda Śaṅkarācārya has accepted Kṛṣṇa as the Supreme Lord: sa bhagavān svayaṁ kṛṣṇaḥ. He has very expressly stated in his comments on Bhagavad-gītā that Kṛṣṇa is the Supreme Personality of Godhead. And people may not be misdirected; therefore he specifically mentioned "the son of Devakī and Vasudeva." Just like our identification in the law court is made by the father's name, so Śrīpāda Śaṅkarācārya has not only mentioned the father's name—the mother's name.
So Kṛṣṇa is accepted not in this modern age but in the past also, like Vyāsadeva, Nārada, Asita, all of them have accepted. And Lord Caitanya also. His method is kṛṣṇa-bhakti. His philosophy is ārādhyo bhagavān vrajeśa-tanaya: "The only worshipable Lord is Kṛṣṇa." He specifically mentions vrajeśa-tanaya, "the son of Nanda Mahārāja, the king of Vrajabhūmi." Ārādhyo bhagavān vrajeśa-tanaya tad-dhāma vṛndāvanam (Caitanya-manjusa)—and His abode, Vṛndāvana.
Kṛṣṇa, Kṛṣṇa's name, Kṛṣṇa's form, Kṛṣṇa's abode, Kṛṣṇa's pastimes, Kṛṣṇa's entourage—they are all Absolute Truth. There is no difference between Kṛṣṇa and Kṛṣṇa's name, because Kṛṣṇa is Absolute. There cannot be any difference. Just like in the Bhagavad-gītā it is stated, mayā tatam idaṁ sarvaṁ (BG 9.4): His all-pervasive nature. There cannot be anything except Kṛṣṇa. Mayā tatam idaṁ sarvaṁ. So how Kṛṣṇa vibration can be different from Kṛṣṇa?
That is stated in the śāstras also: abhinnatvān nāma-nāminoḥ (CC Madhya 17.133). Kṛṣṇa and His name, they are identity. There is no difference. Therefore in this age it is recommended... Not only for this age, but other ages also. The importance of chanting holy name of the Lord is there in all Vedic scripture, but it is specially mentioned that it is useful in this age of Kali, because they cannot perform any other method. It is impossible.
There are different methods—karma, jñāna, yoga and bhakti—but everything is leading to bhakti. When karma leads to bhakti, that is called karma-yoga. When jñāna leads to bhakti, that is called jñāna-yoga. And when yoga... Actually, yoga means bhakti-yoga.