In Srimad Bhagavatam we have the story of Srila Narada Muni's previous birth which he narrates to Srila Vyasadev about how he became such a powerful devotee. In his previous life, Narada muni was serving in the ashram of a few sages along with his mother who was a maid-servant. He says in Srimad Bhagavatam verse 1.5.25:
ucchishta-lepaan anumodito dvijaih
sakrt sma bhunje tad-apaasta-kilbishah
evam pravrttasya vishuddha cetasas
tad-dharma evaatma rucih prajaayate
"Once only, by their permission, I took the remnants of their food, and by so doing all my sins were at once eradicated. Thus being engaged, I became purified in heart, and at that time the very nature of the transcendentalist became attractive to me."
Narada muni being a young boy, innocently took the remnants of the prasadam honored by the sages after taking their permission. As soon as he tasted the remnants, all his sinful reactions were immediately destroyed, his heart became purified and he was able to appreciate the nature of those sages. Such is the power of mahaprasadam.
Narada Waits Twelve Years for Maha-prasada
"Narada to Parvati and Lord Siva.
'Hearing conversation between Lord Krishna and Uddhava, I became dumbstruck. Although I myself have been on the path of devotion for a long time, and have been constantly chanting the holy name of the Lord, still I had no idea about the potency of Lord Krishna's mahaprasada.
Simply on the strength of the Lord's maha-prasada, Haridasa [Uddhava] had' become a powerful, pure devotee-preacher of the Supreme Lord. In the presence of the Lord, Uddhava praised that maha-prasada.
'Within my heart, however, I felt deprived because I had never tasted the Lord's maha-prasada. Then I thought of how to please the Lord with my actions, so that He would give me a taste of His maha-prasada.
With this idea, visited Vaikuntha and rendered various services to Laksmi Devi. 'Being satisifed with me, Laksmi Devi affectionately said, "Tell Me, Narada, what do you want? I will give you a boon."
'After hearing Her offer, I decided to reveal my heart 's desire. With folded hands, I told Laksmi Devi. "For a long time, I have been feeling pain within my heart. Everyone knows that I am your servant. But somehow, I never got the chance to taste the Lord's maha-prasada. Please glance favorably upon me and give me the boon of receiving a handful of Lord Narayana's maha-prasada. This is my only desire.
'Laksmi Devi became astonished and surprised to hear my request. Then she submissively said, "Narada, Lord Narayana ordered Me not to distribute His maha-prasada remnants to anyone. How can I break the order of the Lord, my dear Narada? But listen, I will disobey His order and give you some. Considering my predicament, however, you must wait for some time. Then I'll collect His maha-prasada for you."
'Fully understanding my situation, Laksmi Thakurani appropriately responded with such sweet and compassionate words. Sometime later, the Lord, in a jolly mood, took Laksmi Devi by the hand and sat her down beside Himself. At that time, Laksmi Devi wanted to ask the Lord about the maha- prasada but she feared His reaction.
'In a very submissive voice, Laksmi Devi said, "My Lord, I have something to ask You, but I am afraid to speak. I have a problem and I need your help. My Lord, please save Your maidservant.
Please listen, O abode of all transcendental qualities, I am holding Your feet."
'Smiling slightly with a sign of questioning in His eyes, Lord Narayana cast a glance toward His sudarsana disc. Beginning to tremble, Sudarsana spoke humbly to the Lord, "My Lord, I don't know the cause, but it seems that Laksmi Devi has a problem."
'Then Laksmi Devi said, "It's not Sudarsana's fault. But Narada Muni' s request has put me in anxiety. Although nobody knows it, Narada has served for twelve years. Being pleased, I offered him a boon. Narada repeatedly asked for the same thing. He wants nothing other than Your maha-prasada remnants, my Lord. Although I have no power to disobey your order, I carelessly gave this promise to Narada Muni.
O, my Lord, please save me, and engage me in Your service."
'Understanding her dilemma, Lord Narayana said, "Listen, My dear Laksmi, You made a big mistake. Without My knowledge, you can secretly give My remnants to Narada."
'After some days had passed, the mother of the universe, Laksmi, gave me some of Lord Narayana's mahaprasada remnants. I honored the maha-prasada to my full satisfaction. Of course, the incomparable effulgence of Lord Narayana's transcendental form defeats the combined brilliance of millions of moons and millions of suns. And His indescribable beauty puts millions of Kamadevas [Cupids] to shame.
'Yet, by the touch of the Lord 's maha-prasada, my own effulgence and spiritual potency has increased one hundred times. Feeling intense spiritual ecstasy, I chanted Hare Krishna and played my vina as I traveled to Kailasa to see you.'
"Lord Siva said to Narada Muni, 'I must say, Narada, you look extraordinary. Tell my, why do you appear so spiritually surcharged and effulgent?'
"After hearing Narada describe his experiences, Lord Siva scolded him, 'Narada, after getting the Lord's mahaprasada, which is rarely attained, you ate it all yourself, without offering any to me. Out of affection, you have come to see me, but why didn't you bring any of this rare treasure?'
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The Effect of Maha-prasada on Lord Siva
"Hearing Siva's statements of dissatisfaction, Narada hung his head down in shame. Then Narada remembered that he still had a morsel of maha-prasada. With great delight, he quickly gave it to Mahesa. Immediately, Lord Siva ate the maha-prasada.
"Then to everyone's surprise, Mahesa Thakura [Siva] began dancing uncontrollably in the joyous ecstasy of love of God. The earth trembled under the pounding of his feet. Everyone became amazed, seeing Mt. Sumeru rocking back and forth in ecstasy, due to Siva's powerful dance. Vasumati [Mother Earth] was also rocking dangerously.
"Overcome by the bliss of pure love of Krishna, Lord Siva totally forgot himself. His devastating dance threatened to drive the earth planet down to Rasatala, the bottom of the universe. The hood of Ananta Deva was stretching back to the point of touching the back of Kurma. Startled by this strange tickling sensation, Kurma poked His head out of his shell and stared at Ananta.
"Lord Siva's loud and euphoric roaring of the Lord's holy names bounced off the dome-like covering of the universe, reverberating throughout the ten directions. Seeing the whole universe shaking in ecstasy, and unable to tolerate the weight of Siva's dancing, Mother Bhumi [earth personified] ran to Mt. Kailasa.
"With folded hands, Mother Bhurnii appealed to Goddess Katyayani, 'O Parvati Devi, please, I will die if your husband keeps on dancing. I see that the whole material word is also in great danger. So you better do something if you want to save the creation from destruction.'
"After heating Mother Bhumi's plea, Parvati rushed to the place where Pasupati [Siva-the lord of the living entities] was dancing in a trance of divine ecstasy. With folded hands, Parvati Devi spoke some harsh words to break Lord Siva's absorption.
"His ecstasy broken by Parvati's strong words, Lord Siva regained exte.rnal consciousness. Feeling very sad, he said, 'Devi, what you just did is not proper. Why did you interrupt my ecstasy? By doing so, you have practically killed me. You are acting like my enemy. I've never tasted so much bliss before in my whole life. Why did you stop it?'
Feeling great distress, Parvati Devi spoke again with doleful words, 'My Lord, just see the earth before you. The weight of your dancing has pushed her down to the bottom of the universe. Because you're threatening to destroy the universe, I spoke such strong words to you. Please forgive me for my offense.'
"With a smile of satisfaction, Lord Siva pardoned his wife. Seeing her husband in a relaxed mood, Parvati humbly asked him a question, 'Prabhu, everyday you dance in the ecstasy of pure Krishna consciousness. Why is it that today your dancing has pushed the earth down to Rasatala? Your spiritual effulgence is as brilliant as ten million suns. I've never seen you exhibit such a magnificent form.
Please tell me, why is it that today you displayed such unlimited rapture in Krishnaprema?'
"Lord Siva replied, 'Devi, listen to the joyful news of my good fortune. Today, the great sage, Narada, gave me some of Lord Narayana's maha-prasada remnants. Although glorified in the Vedas, Vishnu's mahaprasada is inconceivably rare. In all three worlds, it is very difficult to get the Lord's remnants, which are mixed with the nectar of Krishna's lips. Today, my life is a success. By the mercy of Narada Muni, I received Lord Narayana's maha-prasada. This is my real wealth and the source of my ecstasy.'
"Noticeably disturbed by her husband's statement, Mahamaya [Parvati] said, 'For all this time, I thought that you were always kind and merciful to me. As husband and wife we are one, for you have accepted me as half of your body.
'But today, your false love is revealed. It's all just pretension. You cheated me! After getting that rarely attainable maha-prasada, you ate it all yourself. You didn't even give me a speck of it.'
"Sulapani [Siva, holder of the trident] feeling slightly guilty, said, 'O Bhavani [Parvati, goddess of the material energy] you have no right to receive this transcendental wealth.'
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The Vishnu-Katyayani Samvada
"These words inflamed adya-sakti [Parvati] with furious anger. ParvatiSaid, 'One of my names is Vaisnavi; and I also have devotion for Lord Vishnu. Now before this assembly, I make a solemn vow. If Lord Narayana bestows His compassion upon me, I will make sure that the Lord' s maha-prasada is distributed to everyone throughout tee universe, even to the dogs and jackals.'
"At that moment, the Lord of Vaikuntha, Vishnu Himself, arrived in Kailasa to uphold Parvati's promise. Respectfully, Parvati stood up and offered obeisances to the Lord. With tears in her eyes, she let out a sigh and told her problem to the Lord."
In a joyful mood, I, Locana Dasa narrate this story. Murari Gupta continued speaking to Damodara Pandita.
"Then Lord Vishnu spoke in a sweet voice, 'Katyayani, don't be in ignorance.
You are My adya-sakti, and ,through you I manifest the entire material creation. I know that you have devotion for Me.
'You are My prakrti svarupini [the form of Vishnu's energy]. You always engage in My devotional service.
Without you, the material creation can't exist. The whole creation worships you and your husband, Lord Siva, as Hara and Gauri knowing that you both are My very self. Pleasing you removes the. misconception that you and Lord Siva are different from Me.
Please be assured I will keep your promise. I will personally distribute My
maha-prasada to everyone in the univere.' "Lord Vishnu, the possessor of all jewel-like qualities, continued speaking. 'Listen, Katyayani Devi. Now I'll tell you a secret about an ancient episode which will alleviate the miseries of the material world.
No one knows the inner meaning of the story concerning the demigods' churning of the 'ocean of nectar. They used Mandara mountain as the churning rod, and Vasuki, the king of the snakes, as the rope. The first object they produced from churning was a kalpa-taru, a tree which gives unlimited wealth and fulfills all a person desires.
'Within that special tree there was a transcendental effulgence emanating from the beautiful form of Lord Caitanya, the supreme embodiment of pure mercy. There has never been a form or incarnation equal to the form of Sri Krishna Caitanya. He is the fountainhead of all incarnations. He will appear in the word, displaying His transcendental pastimes. By preaching Krishna consciousness, I will distribute My mercy to the people in general. 'In the age of Kali, I will manifest the golden form of Sri Gauranga Mahaprabhu to propagate the sankirtanayajna,
congregational chanting of My holy names. Taking the form of the golden avatara, I will fulfill your vow Parvati, 'and give love of Krishna to everyone.
Please keep this confidential topic secret. In the form of Lord Gauranga, the essence of all incarnations and full of all transcendental qualities, I will deliver all people in Kaliyuga.'
'The preceding conversation between Lord Vishnu and Parvati Devi, which is called the Vishnu-Katyayani Samvada, was taken from the Padma Purana.
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