Parakiya Bhajan

By Srila B.R. Sridhar Deva Goswami

sarva-dharman parityajya

“Abandon all religion.”
Bhagavad-gita, 18.66

ajnayaivam gunan dosan, mayadistan api svakan
dharman santyajya yah sarvan, mam bhajet sa tu sattamah

“Realizing the qualities and faults of the socio-religious system which I have instituted, one who completely abandons it and serves me is the best of all sadhus.”
Srimad Bhagavatam, 11.11.32

To break the law should be the main characteristic of a Rupanuga Vaishnava. What I have conceived about this parakiya principle is important. I have thought it out in a particular way.

The pati, husband, is supposed to have full control over the wife, lordship. To disobey him, to be ungrateful to him, and to seek comfort or pleasure in another place, is to leave our obligation. All our past activities have the right to exact their demand from us. Our karma, our jnana—wandering in the world we have incurred so many obligations in so many places. That is to be considered on one side: those demands that want to exert their mastership over us, to exact the payment due to them. These demands should be considered as our pati, husband. They have their demand to realize from us. So, to disobey this “husband” and go to Krishna, to direct our free will towards Krishna, that is parakiya-bhajan.

The total demand on us by the environment that is one side and the other is directing our free will towards God, Krishna. This is pati–vanchana (deceiving the husband). If we have borrowed money from a moneylender we are obliged to him. To disobey him, to get out of our obligation to him, is not publicly possible. So from our innermost heart, we must clearly direct our free will towards Krishna. Because in our previous life we have acquired so many anti-Krishna tendencies that have captured us, we must direct our free will away from them by any means, without their awareness, and dedicate it to Krishna.

Wherever we are and to whatever extent we are indebted and burdened, we can remove our free will from the circle of such obligations and direct it to Krishna. From our innermost hearts, our desire and prayer is for that. I am in the midst of an unfavorable environment: the husband, the mother-in-law, the sister-in-law, and the society, even the scripture, are all against me. Deceiving them, I shall stealthily take my free will, and with the help of a particular group, approach Krishna.

I think that all the obligations are represented mainly by arya–patham and sva–janam (SB, 10.47.61), society and the scriptures. This includes almost everything. They are all on one side and I must take my free will, deceiving them stealthily, and dedicate my heart to Krishna. I must pray, “My Lord, with your own agent, take me out. Take me out.” We must be bold enough to courageously disobey our past obligations and approach Krishna with our innermost prayer and interest. Our desire must be to dedicate ourselves to Vrajaraja, Krishna, and his own.