Balarama Purnima

[Paramananda das]

dear devotees

Please accept my humble obaisences

All glories to Srila Prabhupada

One devotee asked me:

Now; Lord Balaram is the first expansion of the Lord Sri Krishna and as such He is the original Visnu Tattva !. Did Srila Prabhupada gave any instructions concerning avoiding grains on His Appearance Day ?  Half day fasting is mentioned in all calendars!

 

If you could find anything; please let me know. I would appreciate it. Hare Krishna !!!!

my response:

Please accept my humble obaisences

All glories to Srila Prabhupada

I have not found any quotes by Srila Prabhupada about Balarama Purnima

Balarama Purnima is fasting from all grains like ekadasi , and best is to take anukalpa prasadam in the evening or do nirjala until next day, In ISKCON the fast is set to noon .And some temples follow the old ISKCON standard which is fasting until moonrise and take ekadasi prasadam(anukalpa is the technical term) 

Actually the beautiful full moon on Balarama purnima ,even reminds devotees of Lord Balarama 

When I joined in 1979 fasting for Lord Balarama was at moon rise,  and all I recall was ekadasi prasadam.Some fast until noon and take grains prasadam feast.

However it appears from all sastras that taking grains on Visnuttava days is not auspiscious.

Anyhow I hope this will not create any controversy.

Actually Haribhakti Vilasa is very specific about fasting on Ramanavami, it is recommended to do Nirjala .The same for Lord Narasimha  ,Janmastami etc.

Now when it comes to Balarama Purnima there is no mention in Haribhakti Vilasa and we have to remember Haribhakti Vilasa are quotes from sastra

about these days of fasting ,and was compiled on the direct order of Lord Caitanya to Srila Sanatana Goswami. .Now Sanatana Goswami has not mentioned,Gaura Purnima,Advaita Acaryas Apperance day,Nityananda Trayodasi 

and Radhastami. Lord Balarama is the souce of all other incarnations and expansions of Krsna.

 

vaibhava-prakasa krsnera-sri-balarama
varna-matra-bheda, saba-krsnera samana

Balarama. Balarama is considered to be the elder brother of Krsna. When Krsna was present, Balarama became His elder brother. When Rama was there, thisBalarama represented Himself as His younger brother, Laksmana. So Balarama is the first manifestation of His personal expansion.

see Srila Prabhupadas lecture:

http://www.prabhupadavani.org/main/Caitanya_Caritamrta/CC052.html

 

 Lord Balarama is the vaibhava prakash the first expansion of Lord Krsna, and from Lord Balarama is manifested , Vasudeva, Sankarsana, Pradyumna and Aniruddha. 

Even Vasudeva Krsna is thus inferior to Lord Balarama.

 Srila Prabhupada writes in the Krishna book ch.46,

 “When Krishna was starting for Mathura on the chariot driven by Akrura and the gopis were blocking the way, Krishna assured them that He was coming back just after finishing His business in Mathura. He told them not to be overwhelmed and in this way pacified them. But when He failed to come back with Nanda Maharaja, it appeared that He either cheated them or could not keep His promise. Expert devotees, however, have decided that Krishna was neither a cheater nor a breaker of promises. Krishna, in His original identity, returned with Nanda Maharaja and stayed with the gopis and mother Yashoda in His bhava expansion. Krishna and Balarama remained in Mathura not in Their original forms but in Their expansions as Vasudeva and Sankarsana. The real Krishna and Balarama were in Vrindavan in Their bhava manifestation, whereas in Mathura They appeared in the prabhava and vaibhava expansions. This is the expert opinion of advanced devotees of Krishna. Externally, however, They were absent from Vrindavan.”

 

What this means is that when Krsna Balarama goes to Mathura and Dvaraka that is their expanded form, Vasudeva and Sankarsana.

 

In the CC Adi lila chapter 5 we read:

 

CC Ādi 5.4: The Supreme Personality of Godhead, Kṛṣṇa, is the fountainhead of all incarnations. Lord Balarāma is His second body.

CC Ādi 5.5: These two are one and the same identity. They differ only in form. Lord Balarāma is the first bodily expansion of Kṛṣṇa, and He assists in LordKṛṣṇa's transcendental pastimes.

CC Ādi 5.6: That original Lord Kṛṣṇa appeared in Navadvīpa as Lord Caitanya, and Balarāma appeared with Him as Lord Nityānanda.

Now we fast till sunset for Lord Ramachandra if we follow Srila Prabhupadas strict instruction and only take anukalpaprasadam,so how can we do anything less when Lord Ramachasra is a manifestation  of the second expansion of Vasudeva

,Sankarsana ,Pradyumna and Aniruddha , so for Lord Ramachandra and Lord Narasimha full Nirjala fasting is recommended

or ordered if you like in sastra (and recorded in Hari Bhakti Vilasa).So how can Lord Balarama's fasting be any less than that?

 

Adi Purana states:

"He who is Krsna is He who is Balarama, and he who is Balarama is He who is Krsna.Anyone that sees Them as being different will never leave the world of birth and death." 

Hari Vamsa states:

That jiva who makes a distinction between the Balarama and Krsna verily lives in hell.This is spoken by the great sages.

So the vasinava calendar committe has avoided these issues as they could not come up with the proper Siddhanta.

I have written an article about Lord Nityananda Prabhu also, 

 http://www.iskcondesiretree.net/profiles/blogs/shri-nityaananda-ash...

 Sarvabhauma Bhattacarya has clearly stated that Lord Nityananda Prabhus apperance should be celebrated as a fast.

He has done so in his confidential names of Lord Nityananda Prabhu's 108 holy names at the very end:

maaghe maasi site pakshe
trayo-dashyaam tithau sadaa
uposhanam pujanam ca
shri-nityaananda-vaasare
yad yat sah kurute kaamam
tat tad eva labhen narah

Paatha Mahaatmya:-

The most fortunate soul, who recites this Stotra, fasts and offers worship to the Supreme Lord Shri Nityananda Prabhu on the most auspicious thirteenth day of the bright fortnight in the month of Maagha{Jan-Feb} [ Shri Nityananda Trayodashi Tithi ], will certainly have all of ones desires quickly fulfilled.

Lord Balarama and Lord Nityananda Prabhu are the same Supreme Lords,Srila Narottama das Thakura has sung:

  balarama hoilo nitai

 In my humble opinion this is   the correct siddhanta about Balarama Purnima and I hope it inspires  devotees to fast from grains.In Haribhakti Vilasa many quotes are there that grains is never allowed on Janmastami so the same is certainly true for Balarama Purnima.If there is so much strict fasting for Lord Ramachandra and Lord Narasimha at least in my humble opinion we should not take grain prasadam, Ramachandra and Narasimha are  expansions of expansions of Lord

Balarama

 your humble servant

 Paramananda  das

The Strength of Balaram
by His Divine Grace A. C.Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada

The first expansion of the unlimited forms of
Krishna is Balaram, Baladeva. In the Upanishads
it is stated, nayam atma bala-hinena labhyah —
“Atma, the supreme soul, cannot be understood
without being favored by Balaram.” This statement
is sometimes misunderstood to be referring to
bodily strength — “Atma, the supreme soul, cannot
be understood without physical strength.” But that
is not the fact. Bala-hinena means that one who is
not favored by Balaram or Nityananda cannot make
any progress to understand the Supreme Personality
of Godhead. That is the real meaning. Balaram is
guru-tattva, and Balaram is present in this age as
Nityananda. So bala-hinena labhyah does not mean
“without any physical strength”. It means that one
has to get the favor of Nityananda Prabhu. ·

 
 

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