Hare Krsna-Below we have arranged some conversations and quotes from Srila Prabhupada regarding the effects of living and dying in a Holy Dhama.
My interest began when Srila Prabhupada began talking about how so many Bengalis and Oriyans eat fish, including the Jagannatha Puri temple pujaris. And as we all know eating any kind of meat is sinful, so how can these pious devotees who live in Puri still eat fish and then go back to Godhead at the end of that life or maybe at most, one more lifetime? The only conclusion I could come up with is that these Dhamas are so spiritually potent that even fish eaters go back to Godhead. It is obviously not in any way an ordinary birth to appear,and live there
Anybody have any different realizations? (
Hare Krsna
Damaghosa das
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Jan 27 1977 Bhubanesvara.
Prabhupāda: Japan also, same thing like Bengal and Orissa. They take rice and fish. That is their staple.
Hari-śauri: In the West they regard rice as the poor man's food.
Prabhupāda: But Japanese are very intelligent, Bengalis are intelligent, by taking fish and rice. In Bengal ninety percent people, they take fish. Here also, Orissa, cent percent, even the Jagannātha pūjārīs. In Bihar also, fifty percent. The more you go towards Western part of India, you get more wealthy province, just like Uttar Pradesh, very wealthy province, enlightened. All the big cities are there: Allahabad, Kanpur, Agra, Lucknow. Every hundred miles you get a very nice city in UP, the best province in India. All the holy places-Vṛndāvana, Prayāga, Hardwar, Ayodhyā, many celebrated holy places. Ganges and Yamunā flowing, two sacred rivers. Both of them through in Uttar Pradesh. And all the cities are either on the bank of the Yamunā or Ganges. And that is the best province, state, in India. It has got fifty districts. And fifty districts means fifty towns. Little more or less important. But the Kanpur is the third important city in India. First Calcutta, Bombay, and next, Kanpur.
Aug 24 1968
Hope this will find you both in good health, along with your good child Candramukhi.
Your ever well-wisher, A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami
*That the people of Orissa and Bengal eat fish in their private homes is a fact. But they do not offer anything like that to the Lord Jagannatha. The Lord is offered all nice foodstuffs as we are striving to do in our all our temples here.
The news of the Car festival of Lord Jagannatha of S.F. was published not only in the local papers but also in India as in the Yugavtar A.B. Patrik, Truth, and many others on 10th July 1968.
April 10 1977
"What is this? Onions?" I was surprised. "I don't eat."
Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: He must have been surprised that you wouldn't eat it.
Prabhupāda: Well, they know... Mostly Hindus they do not eat. But they are accustomed now. Just like Bengal, fish eating is no offense.
Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Even the brāhmaṇas.
Prabhupāda: Oh, yes. Brāhmaṇa, gosāis, so-called gurus.
Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: When has this all begun, this fish-eating in Bengal? This was always going on?
Prabhupāda: Oh, yes. Fish, ninety-nine percent people take fish in Bengal. Only few, they do not. When there is some, what is called, ceremony, fish must be there. [break] And fish is available. Now Bengal is divided. Otherwise, immense fish in Bengal.
Dec 31 1976
Prabhupāda: No, Bengal... They maintained the culture. But therefore I say that Vivekananda broke that Bengali culture.
Dr. Patel: Bengali culture is fish-eating. Even brāhmaṇas eating.
Prabhupāda: No. They are eating fish only. Because Bengal is full of rivers. But not for all. Mass of people, that's a fact. But he introduced, "You can eat anything. It has nothing to do with religion." In Bengal in our childhood we have seen if anyone was habituated to take meat... Common man would not. Rich man. The rich men they have their sahis. Sahis you know, who takes care of the horse. So he would cook in the horse shed.
Dr. Patel: And eat there.
Prabhupāda: No. Then he'll bring the (indistinct) and eat it. It was never brought within the precincts of the house.
Dr. Patel: (indistinct) Gujarat and Maharastra (indistinct).
Prabhupāda: No, no... These people who were eating meat, they knew that "I am doing wrong." But Vivekananda approved, "No, it is not wrong. It is wrong. Whatever you like you can do." Then they began to eat meat. Fish they were already eating. Meat and chicken and eggs and everything.
Dying in the Holy Dhamas
Antya 2.172 purport...(6) If one dies in such a celebrated holy place as Prayāga, Mathurā or Vṛndāvana, one can be relieved of the reactions to sinful life and then attain the shelter of the Supreme Personality of Godhead.
SB 10.1.28 purport...
It is understood that Mathurā City is the transcendental abode of Lord Kṛṣṇa; it is not an ordinary material city, for it is eternally connected with the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Vṛndāvana is within the jurisdiction of Mathurā, and it still continues to exist. Because Mathurā and Vṛndāvana are intimately connected with Kṛṣṇa eternally, it is said that Lord Kṛṣṇa never leaves Vṛndāvana (vṛndāvanaṁparityajya padam ekaṁ na gacchati). At present, the place known as Vṛndāvana, in the district of Mathurā, continues its position as a transcendental place, and certainly anyone who goes there becomes transcendentally purified. Navadvīpa-dhāma is also intimately connected with Vrajabhūmi. ... Anyone who executes devotional service in these places certainly goes back home, back to Godhead, after giving up his body. Thus the words mathurā bhagavān yatra nityaṁ sannihito hariḥ are particularly important. A devotee should fully utilize this instruction to the best of his ability.
June 1 1974...So tīrthī, tīrtha. Tīrtha means holy place of pilgrimage. In every religion there is the system that the followers, they go to the holy place of pilgrimage. Just like in India, there are many holy places: Gayā, Prayāga, Mathurā, Vṛndāvana, Haridvar, Rāmeśvaram, Jagannātha Purī, Navadvīpa. Many. Some of them are very prominent, and still there are many nonprominent.
SB 4.8.42 purport...There are many places of pilgrimage in India, and especially prominent are Badarī-nārāyaṇa, Dvārakā, Rāmeśvara and Jagannātha purī. These sacred places are called the four dhāmas. Dhāma refers to a place where one can immediately contact the Supreme Lord. To go to Badarī-nārāyaṇaone has to pass through Hardwar on the path to the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Similarly, there are other holy places of pilgrimage, such as Prayāga(Allahabad) and Mathurā, and the topmost of them all is Vṛndāvana. Unless one is very advanced in spiritual life, it is recommended that he live in such holy places and execute devotional service there.
Madhya 22.132 purport-Navadvīpa-dhāma, Jagannātha Purī-dhāma and Vṛndāvana-dhāma are considered to be identical. If one goes to Mathurā-maṇḍala-bhūmi for sense gratification or to make a livelihood, he commits an offense and is condemned. Whoever does so must be penalized in the next life by becoming a hog or a monkey in Vṛndāvana-dhāma. After taking on such a body, the offender is liberated in the next life. Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura remarks that residing in Vṛndāvana with a view to enjoy sense gratification surely leads a so-called devotee to a lower species.