The Glories of Damodara month

20/9/2006

The Glories of Offering a lamp during Karttika Text 99 In the Skanda Purana it is said: “When one offers a lamp during the month of Karttika, his sins in many thousands and millions of births perish in half an eye blink.” Text 100 It is further said: “Please hear the glories of offering a lamp during pleasing to Lord Kesava. O King of brahmanas, a person who offers a lamp in this way will not take birth again in this world.” 

Text 101 By offering a lamp during the month of Karttika one attains a pious result ten million times greater than the result obtained by bathing at Kuruksetra during a solar eclipse or by bathing in the river Narmada during a lunar eclipse. 

Text 102 O Tiger of sages, for a person who thus offers a lamp burning with ghee or sesame oil, what is the use of performing an asvasmedha-yajia? 

Text 103 Even if there are no mantras, no pious deeds, and no purity, everything becomes perfect when a person offers a lamp during the month of Karttika. 

Text 104 A person who during the month of Karttika offers a lamp to Lord Kesava has already performed all yajnas and bathing in all holy rivers. 

Text 107 The ancestors say: When someone in our family pleases Lord Kesava by offering to Him a lamp during the month of Karttika, then, by the mercy of the Lord who holds the Sudarsana-cakra in His Hand, we will all attain liberation.

Text 108 It is further said: “By offering a lamp during the month of Karttika one burns away a collection of sins as big as Mount Meru or Mount Mandara. Of this there is no doubt.  Text 111 A person who offers a lamp during the month of Karttika attains a result that cannot be obtained with even a hundred yajnas or a hundred pilgrimages.  Text 112 Even a person addicted to all sins and averse to all pious deeds who somehow offers a lamp during Karttika becomes purified. Of this there is no doubt.

Text 113 O Narada, no sin exists anywhere in the three worlds that will not be purified by offering a lamp to Lord Kesava during Karttika.

Text 114 A person who offers a lamp to Lord Krsna during Karttika attains the eternal spiritual world where there is no suffering.

Text 120 As fire is present in all wood and may be extracted by friction, so piety is always present in the offering of a lamp during the month of Karttika. Of this there is no doubt. 

Text 121 It is further said: “O King of brahmanas, when someone offers Him a lamp on the full-moon day of the month of Karttika, Lord Krishna, finding that He does not have sufficient money to repay that gift, gives Himself in exchange for that lamp.

In the Padma Purana it is said: “One who offers a steady lamp to Lord Hari during the month of Karttika enjoys pastimes in Lord Hari’s splendid spiritual world. (found in the Padma Parana of Krsna Dvaipayana Vyasa, spoken by Satyavrata Muni in a conversation with Narada Muni and Saunaka Rsi)   

In the month of Karttika one should worship Lord Damodara and daily recite the prayer known as Damodarastaka, which has been spoken by the sage Satyavrata and which attracts Lord Damodara.(Sri Hari-bhakti-vilasa 2.16.198)

1) namamisvaram sac-cid-ananda-rupam,lasat-kundalam gokule brajamanamyasoda-bhiyolukhald dhavamanam,paramrdstam atyantato drutya gopya

2) rudantam muhur netra-yugmam mrjantam, karambhoja-yugmena stanka-netram muhuh svasa-kampa-trirekhanka-kantha- sthita-graivam damodaram bhakti-baddham 

3) itidrk sva-lilabhir ananda-kunde,sva-ghosarh nimajjantam akhyapayantamtadiyesita-jnesu bhaktair jitatvampunah prematas tarn satdvrtti vande 

4) varam deva moksam na moksavadhim vana canyam vrne ‘ham varesad apihaidam te vapur natha gopala-balamsada me manasy avirastam kim anyaih 

5) idam te mukhambhojam atyanta-nilairvrtam kuntalaih snigdha-raktais ca gopya muhus cumbitam bimba-raktadharam me manasy avirastam alam laksa-labhaih  6) namo deva damodarananta visnoprasida prabho duhkha-jaldadhi-magnamkrpa-drsti-vrstyati-dinam batanu-grhanesa mam ajnam edhy aksi-drsyah 7) kuveratmajau baddha-murtyaiva yadvattvaya mocitau bhakti-bhajau krtau catathd prema-bhaktim svakam me prayacchana mokse graho me ‘sti damodareha  8) namas te ‘stu damne sphurad-dipti-dhamne tvadiyodarayatha visvasya dhamne namo radhikayai tvadiya-priyayai namo ‘nanta-lilaya devaya tubhyam 

1) To the Supreme Controller who possesses an eternal form of blissful knowledge, whose glistening earrings swing to and fro, who manifested Himself in Gokula, who stole the butter that the gopis kept hanging from the rafters of their storerooms and who then quickly jumped up and ran in retreat in fear of Mother Yasoda but was ultimately caught – to that Supreme Lord, Sri Damodara, I offer my humble obeisances. 

2) Upon seeing His mother’s whipping stick, He cried and rubbed His eyes again and again with His two lotus hands. His eyes were fearful and His breathing quick, and as Mother Yasoda bound His belly with ropes, He shivered in fright and His pearl necklace shook. To this Supreme Lord, Sri Damodara, who is bound with His devotee’s love, I offer my humble obeisances. 

3) Those superexcellent pastimes of Lord Krsna’s babyhood drowned the inhabitants of Gokula in pools of ecstasy. To the devotees who are attracted only to His majestic aspect of Narayana in Vaikuntha, the Lord herein reveals: ‘I am conquered and overwhelmed by pure loving devotion.’ To the Supreme Lord, Damodara, my obeisances hundreds and hundreds of times.  4) O Lord, although You are able to give all kinds of benedictions, I do not pray to You for liberation, nor eternal life in Vaikuntha, nor any other boon. My only prayer is that Your childhood pastimes may constantly appear in my mind. 0 Lord, I do not even want to know Your feature of Paramatma. I simply wish that Your childhood pastimes may ever be enacted in my heart.  5) O Lord, the cheeks of Your blackish lotus face, which is encircled by locks of curling hair, have become reddened like bimba fruit due to Mother Yasoda’s kisses. What more can I describe than this? Millions of opulences are of no use to me, but may this vision constantly remain in my mind. 

6) O unlimited Visnu! O master! O Lord! Be pleased upon me! I am drowning in an ocean of sorrow and am almost like a dead man. Please shower the rain of mercy on me; uplift me and protect me with Your nectarean vision. 

7) O Lord Damodara, in Your form as a baby Mother Yasoda bound You to a grinding stone with a rope for tying cows. You then freed the sons of Kuvera, Manigriva, and Nalakuvera, who were cursed to stand as trees, and You gave them the chance to become Your devotees. Please bless me in this same way. I have no desire for liberation into Your effulgence. 

8) O Lord, the entire universe was created by Lord Brahma, who was born from Your abdomen, which was bound with a rope by Mother Yasoda. To this rope I offer my humble obeisances. I offer my obeisances to Your most beloved Srimati Radharani and to Your unlimited pastimes.