Raw, minimally edited transcript:
Respectable Vaishnavas, honourable gentleman and ladies, my dear godbrothers and sisters, friends and beloved children, I am very happy to meet with you all here in Caracas. A few days have passed with you and I am feeling very enthusiastic to see your attitude and mood of devotion and mood of practising Krishna consciousness. So long after the disappearance of Srila Swami Maharaj and also our divine master Srila Guru Maharaj, again we are meeting in this way together and chanting the Hare Krishna mahamantra. It is giving me very much enthusiasm and I am thinking if we can meet together in this way from time to time we can preach our divine master’s conception and it will spread very quickly. I have no doubt here.
Sriman Mahaprabhu said,
bahubhir militvā yat kīrtanaṁ tad eva saṅkīrtanam
Congregational chanting is sankirtan, but without offence if we can do sankirtan we must be benefitted. In the Kali-yuga the only religion for the conditioned souls is Harinam-sankirtan. We can see this in the scriptures, all over the Vedic literature.
Sriman Mahaprabhu appeared for that yuga-dharma, spreading Krishna consciousness in this mundane world, five hundred years ago in Sridham Nabadwip, Mayapur. In Chaitanya-charitamrta we can see,
kali-yuga-dharma hari-nāma-saṅkīrtana
tāhā bilāite prabhura nade āgamana
The religion of the conditioned souls, of all the jiva-souls, is Harinam-sankirtan in this age of Kali-yuga. In Srimad Bhagavatam, the gist of all the Vedic scriptures, we can see,
kṛṣṇa-varṇaṁ tviṣākṛṣṇaṁ sāṅgopāṅgāstra-pārṣadam
yajñaiḥ saṅkīrtana-prāyair yajanti hi sumedhasaḥ
(Śrīmad Bhāgavatam: 11.5.32)
In the Kali-yuga Harinam-sankirtan is the only process, and it is a very sweet and very easy process, to go to our destiny, that Goloka Vrndavan, where we can get service to Lord Krishna. Here we are in the plane of exploitation. Everybody is trying to exploit everybody, this is the nature of this mundane world. But in the transcendental, spiritual world, all the divine entities are always engaged for the service to the Lord. All entities are doing service to everybody in favour of Sri Krishna, and they are getting joyfulness, they are getting ecstasy, they are getting love, beauty, charm, etc. We can see in Brahma-samhita this description.
We can see four ages in this mundane world: Satya, Treta, Dvapara, and Kali-yuga. Every age has a religion for rescuing the jiva-souls. We can see in the scriptures that the process is different in every yuga. We can see that there is also a chanting process, but different. The Satya-yuga chanting process is:
nārāyaṇa-para vedā nārāyaṇa-parākṣarāḥ
nārāyaṇa-parā muktir nārāyaṇa-parā gatiḥ
Treta-yuga:
rāma nārāyaṇānanta mukunda madhusūdana
kṛṣṇa keśava kaṁsāre hare vaikuṇṭha vāmana
Dvapara-yuga:
hare murāre madhu-kaiṭabhāre
gopāla govinda mukunda saure
yajñeśa nārāyaṇa kṛṣṇa viṣṇo
virāśrayaṁ māṁ jagadīśa rakṣa
And Kali-yuga:
hare kṛṣṇa hare kṛṣṇa kṛṣṇa kṛṣṇa hare hare
hare rāma hare rāma rāma rāma hare hare
This is the process given by Mahaprabhu, Sri Chaitanyadev. He did not collect it actually; Nam-sankirtan was revealed through Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu in this mundane world. Kali means the age of quarrel, and we can see all inauspiciousness in Kali-yuga, but one auspicious thing is that,
kaler doṣa-nidhe rājann asti hy eko mahān guṇaḥ
kīrtanād eva kṛṣṇasya mukta-bandhaḥ paraṁ vrajet
(Śrīmad Bhāgavatam: 12.3.51)
Many things are bad, actually we can say that everything is bad in the Kali-yuga, and there is no practical religion the jiva-souls can practise. And because of that one topmost facility is given by Krishna, that if we can chant His Name properly, without offence, then we can get liberation from this bad environment and we can establish ourselves in the divine service plane of Goloka Vrndavan where we can do seva exclusively to Sri Sri Radha Govinda.
In other ages we can see the practising process is very hard.
kṛte yad dhyāyato viṣṇuṁ tretāyāṁ yajato makhaiḥ
dvāpare paricharyāyāṁ kalau tad dhari-kīrtanāt
(Srimad Bhagavatam: 12.3.52)
[“Whatever results were obtained by meditating on the Personality of Lord Vishnu in Satya-yuga, or by performing elaborate sacrifices in Treta-yuga, or by performing Deity worship in Dvapara-yuga, can be obtained in Kali-yuga by simply performing the congregational chanting of the Holy Names of Lord Hari.”]
With so much austerity what result was obtained in the other three yugas, the conditioned souls of this Kali-yuga can get very easily through following this very happy process, and they are getting more than that: liberation, and after liberation, service to Krishna.
Actually I cannot explain in English the scriptural notes, but I am trying to explain something that is beneficial for this conditioned life. The process given by Mahaprabhu is very easy, and we can also give the explanation very easily:
harer nāma harer nāma harer nāmaiva kevalam
kalau nāsty eva nāsty eva nāsty eva gatir anyathā
(Bṛhan-Nāradīya-purāṇa)
Mahaprabhu said this mahamantram is the only process to get real liberation and the service world, the transcendental service world. Actually we are all the members of that transcendental service world; unfortunately we came here and are experiencing birth and death, sadness, happiness, and many things here, but it is all anitya, temporary. But our permanent plane is the service plane, and that is actually our home. Everyone is serving and getting happiness, joyfulness, ecstasy, nectar, love, beauty, charm, and all fulfilment there in our home and we need to go that place, and the process in Kali-yuga is Harinam-sankirtan. This is the scriptural advice and Mahaprabhu actually manifested it: punah pravartaka, through Mahaprabhu it was revealed in this mundane world. Then we have no other intention and we have no need to take other facilities from the scriptures: if we can only take that facility, we must be benefitted.
After Sriman Mahaprabhu, his dearmost associates, sad-goswami and others, preached Harinam-sankirtan in this world but in this age it was widely preached by Srila Bhakti Siddhanta Saraswati Thakur. He preached this conception of Harinam-sankirtan all over India, and he tried to preach it all over the world. And today we can see which way it has spread all over the world by our divine master Srila A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupad and also our Srila Guru Maharaj, Om Visnupad Srila Bhakti Raksak Sridhar Deva-Goswami. Now all over India, and all over the world, they are getting much peaceful and joyful happiness through chanting the Hare Krishna mahamantra and all over the world the conditioned souls are becoming inspired with this mahamantra. We are also a part of that, and we are feeling much happiness.
Actually I cannot express in English. I have much deficiency in English, but I have tried to speak something about our conception. It is more good for me to give any question’s answer; that is, an informal talk is good for me. You can make me any kind of question about Krishna consciousness, and I will have no problem; that is very easy to answer. But before I want to request Sripad Janardan Maharaj to tell something about Krishna consciousness in the Spanish language, it will be very happy for us.
[Sripad Janardan Maharaj speaks in Spanish]
Question: We have so many books in Krishna consciousness: all the Goswamis have written so many books, and also our acharyas. I would like you to explain to us, what is the best way of reading a book for the beginner; and the scriptures have also said that advancement is not necessarily happening just by reading a big amount of books, so if you can give some explanation of that too.
Srila Gurudev: Sripad Paramadvaiti Maharaj himself is an expert in the Krishna consciousness line, so when he has made this question, I think it is for the benefit of all of us. Questions have qualities. Random questions are not so good, but if you can question for some benefit and for searching something that will be a very good question; and it is a very good question no doubt, because he is himself an expert in the line of Krishna consciousness.
We have many books in the line of Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu. Not only that, but from Dvapar-yuga, even we can say Satya-yuga. It was not in book form, but Krishna consciousness was in the form of sruti.
kālena naṣṭā pralaye vāṇīyaṁ veda-saṁjñitā
mayādau brahmaṇe proktā dharmo yasyāṁ mad-ātmakaḥ
(Srimad Bhagavatam: 11.14.3)
The religion is one for all the conditioned souls and all the jiva-souls. Religion is, ‘to satisfy Godhead’. It is revealed for the satisfaction of Godhead. Here, all religion has shown the same method: “When God said there was water, there was water.” Then everything, all dharma, all religion is Isvara-mukhi, leading us to God. All religion is leading us to God. For that, transcendental knowledge is revealed in the heart of very auspicious souls like Brahma, chatuhsan [the four Kumaras], Narada, and from them, through hearing, it is coming down. That’s called sruti. After that it is revealed in the form of books and we can see in Dvapar-yuga it is very much revealed in the form of books. When Vedavyas appeared by the will of Krishna, we can see that he divided the Vedas in four ways—Rg, Sama, Yajur, Atharva—for the conditioned souls, because they cannot memorise everything of the Vedas.
Afterwards, for giving more benefit to the conditioned souls, he made Vedanta-darshan. Before that, he presented the gist of the Vedas in book form as the Upanisads, and also many Puranas, Mahabharata, and lastly Vedanta-darshan. And sarvases, finally, Vedavyas gave us the Srimad Bhagavatam. All the scriptures came out this way. Also other rishis like Parasar, like Vasistha, they also gave that transcendental knowledge. They tried to give transcendental knowledge in many ways and that is also in book form, including Manu-samhita. We can see now that that is also in book form. Manu-samhita has given us the Vedic knowledge about the rulings in life that will help us to proceed with sympathetic dealings with nature. That is shown in Manu-samhita. Srila Guru Maharaj said that from the time of Manu, varnasram-dharma was very widely propagated. We very happily can hear from Guru Maharaj, “sympathetic dealings with nature is varnasram-dharma.”
But all the scriptural notes came out through Srimad Bhagavatam, and that is the highest gift of Sri Vedavyas, who gave all the consciousness about Godhead. After that many interpretations, many books came out in this mundane world, but in the Vedic cultural age the two books Srimad Bhagavad-gita and Srimad Bhagavatam got the highest position. It is especially in India. And through that knowledge many books came out through the Goswamis and other sampradayas also.
But Mahaprabhu said, if you want to read any scripture you must go to an expert, otherwise you cannot understand the meaning of those scriptures. That is, we are very tiny souls and insignificant, and not only that, we have a deficiency of knowledge and also our brain is very limited. If we say it is very big or if we say it is very small, how much can we conceive within our mundane knowledge? Very big means like the sky, and very small like a dust or atom. But the range of transcendental knowledge is living beyond that position in the transcendental world. The transcendental knowledge is revealed through the books, and so it is necessary to go to an expert who has the capacity to explain them. For our facility it can come in the form of a book, but the knowledge that is inside of the book is infinite and transcendental and we can only conceive of it if we get mercy from a genuine spiritual master.
Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu told very clearly,
yāha, bhāgavata paḍa vaiṣṇavera sthāne
(Sri Chaitanya-charitamrta: 3.5.131)
If you want to read Srimad Bhagavatam, which is holding the supreme knowledge, then you must go to Vaisnavas who know the meaning of Srimad Bhagavatam—otherwise you cannot understand one word of Srimad Bhagavatam. And this method is suitable for all the scriptural books. It is good if we can read from the expert of that line, then we must understand something from that.
tad-vijñānārthaṁ sa gurum evābhigachchhet
samit-pāṇiḥ śrotriyaṁ brahma-niṣṭham
(Muṇḍaka Upaniṣad 11.2.12)
The master must be brahma-nistha, he knows all the meanings. The master must have that type of qualification, and also who wants to know that knowledge will be very humble, and faithful, and a sincere seeker, then he will get that knowledge through the books.
Maharaj’s question is that we are living all over the world in a very spreaded way, part by part, and we do not always have the chance to get good Vaisnava association; and many of the books in front of us have been revealed through our fortune, and we will understand which way and what will be super beneficial for us if we read the books. Here we can see, within our jurisdiction many books have been published from our society and also Iskcon’s society. I have not read all the books, that is I do not know English, but in Bengali script I read many books. Actually I learned Srimad Bhagavad-gita from Srila Swami Maharaj by the order of Srila Guru Maharaj in my young age, and also some parts of Sri Chaitanya-charitamrta from Srila Guru Maharaj. I think it is very good if we read Srimad Bhagavad-gita and Prapanna-jivanamrtam and also the gist of the supramental knowledge of the books published in English and also Spanish language: that is Golden Volcano, Search for Sri Krishna, Srimad Bhagavad-gita, Subjective Evolution, and other books.
But the reading process is the mood of service. If we do not try to read with that mood we will not get the benefit. Srimad Bhagavad-gita said, and it was a very dear sloka of Srila Swami Maharaj Prabhupad,
tad viddhi praṇipātena paripraśnena sevayā
upadekṣyanti te jñānaṁ jñāninas tattva-darśinaḥ
(4.34)
If you want to know that supramental knowledge you must go to the expert with humility, a sincere searching mood, and also the mood of service.
There are many books of Swami Maharaj Prabhupad—I read a little of some of them, like Back to Godhead. You will see many questions and answers there. That must also be super-beneficial for everybody. But I have seen Srila Swami Maharaj’s answers are very direct and with some hitting attitude. When he came in the West, the Western world’s mood was not suitable to take Krishna consciousness, and so in a hitting way he gave answers. I have seen this in some of the books. And that was fruitful no doubt, otherwise which way all over the world they are now chanting the Hare Krishna mahamantra?
But we will not forget another comment of his: that is, when finishing a world tour, every time Srila Swami Maharaj Prabhupad would meet with Guru Maharaj, and at that time he told Guru Maharaj many times, “Maharaj, I am bringing the raw materials from the world, and you make them into good weapons for Mahaprabhu’s sampradaya. You make it fine.” And Guru Maharaj was always very firm and their relationship was very intimate and also very friendly. And he believed Srila Guru Maharaj could do all the corrections, where there was necessity. Actually he wanted to engage Guru Maharaj for the preaching all over the world, but Guru Maharaj was a very renounced type and a back pusher sometimes. But Guru Maharaj was very strong, firmly in the supramental knowledge, and also he helped the devotees all over India in many ways. And everybody would time to time come to see Guru Maharaj for getting some benefit about Krishna consciousness. Lastly we can see Swami Maharaj successfully used Guru Maharaj. And another way we can see, what was unexpected, that the books from Guru Maharaj came out. And that is our wealth now in the sampradaya. And I am praising that it has come out from San Jose Math. They can do anything but I am always feeling that I am a slave of that centre. I cannot read English no doubt but I know there is question and answer, and they must be super answer, and the questions also very nice. Now you are getting that in your hand. And in a variety of languages it is being published. Now in Spanish language many also came out. And before Srimad Bhagavad-gita, I think there was Spanish language of Srila Swami Maharaj’s Bhagavad-gita. That is a very valuable book. And there are many other books.
But all the books’ matter you cannot understand if you do not go and read from an expert. That way I can say, question-answer books will be more beneficial for you all. You may not know, but only of Srimad Bhagavad-gita there are over a thousand commentaries. A thousand different commentaries of only one book, Srimad Bhagavad-gita! And all claiming, “I am expert and my commentary is the supreme.” When I published Srimad Bhagavad-gita, at that time there were 700 and something commentaries, and now maybe twenty or twenty-five years have passed; then you can understand that in the meantime more commentaries have come and everybody is claiming, “My commentary is the supreme.” Then in which way can we understand the meanings?
But where the speaker is Sri Krishna Himself and the hearer is Arjuna, his dearmost friend, that is the Srimad Bhagavad-gita. The speaker is Krishna and the hearer Arjun. Both are dear friends and one is the Supreme Personality of Godhead, another is the dearmost devotee in sakhya-rasa. Then we can think, who can give real commentary? This question can come, and the answer is that who is the dearmost devotee of Krishna, who is the exclusive servitor of Krishna, he can give real commentary of Srimad Bhagavad-gita.
Srila Swami Maharaj Prabhupad gave his commentary, ‘Srimad Bhagavad-gita As It Is’. He was not fully satisfied with that, but he gave this name for the general people, the general mass. And when he got time he would come to Srila Guru Maharaj and discuss a few very beautiful and mysterious slokas with Guru Maharaj. After one discussion when they were discussing in Bengali language, one devotee of Srila Swami Maharaj asked Srila Swami Maharaj, “Prabhupad, for two hours you were discussing one sloka with Sridhar Maharaj, what is the matter inside of that?” Prabhupad said, “If you hear that you will faint.” Then you can understand what kind of matter is inside of that sloka of Srimad Bhagavad-gita. They are both holding super knowledge about Krishna consciousness, and which books came out from them will be very beneficial for the conditioned souls. And if we read that under the guidance of any good Vaishnava we will be benefitted.
Maharaj has given me a chance to explain something about the books, and I am very grateful to Maharaj.
Question: Here there are present different disciples of different gurus, so we want you to please explain, how without fanaticism we can understand this variety, this unity in diversity?
kālena naṣṭā pralaye vāṇīyaṁ veda-saṁjñitā
mayādau brahmaṇe proktā dharmo yasyāṁ mad-ātmakaḥ
(Srimad Bhagavatam: 11.14.3)
Religion is one, and Krishna said, “All religion’s target is myself, service to me”, and that transcendental knowledge Krishna Himself told to Brahma. Then Guru is one. Krishna is Guru: he gave knowledge to Brahma. Here is no different opinion. But, when from one guru five disciples are hearing, then that knowledge is also going some different way. And it must go.
evaṁ prakṛti-vaichitryād bhidyante matayo nṛṇām
pāramparyeṇa keṣāñchit pāṣaṇḍa-matayo ’pare
(Srimad Bhagavatam 11.14.8)
This is in Bhagavatam, Bhagavan said. Above your question is this question. This question is, “Knowledge is one, guru is one, giver is one.” Then why is it coming in many channels? That is the question, and Krishna answered that,
evaṁ prakṛti-vaichitryād bhidyante matayo nṛṇām
Who is hearing has their own feeling, willing, and thinking, and so it is coming out in five ways. A little difference must be there and that is called paramparya. And one matter, if you give somewhere, after ten years you will not get that potency from that matter. You will lose some potency.
evaṁ prakṛti-vaichitryād bhidyante matayo nṛṇām
pāramparyeṇa keṣāñchit pāṣaṇḍa-matayo pare
Pāramparyeṇa means hearing from one guru to others, and pāṣaṇḍa-matayo pare: another thing is that, you know that when one thesis comes out, then an antithesis immediately will grow side by side. Thesis, antithesis, and synthesis. When thesis will grow antithesis must grow. It is natural. And when thesis and antithesis are both mixing, another synthesis will come, and that will take the position of thesis.
In that way many gurus come out in this mundane world but everybody has some potency, everybody has some power, and everybody has some consciousness. But that difference must live within this consciousness. You see, in Srimad Bhagavad-gita five kinds of knowledge are distributed: pratyaksa (direct perception), paroksa (collective), aparoksa (subtle), adhoksaja (transcendental), and aprakrta (supramundane). These five kinds of knowledge are distributed in Srimad Bhagavad-gita. Even we know in India that anarchists who are always carrying a revolver gun are also carrying one Bhagavad-gita in their pocket. And when the supreme court is giving some person a hanging order, the hangman, before giving hanging, is also reading Srimad Bhagavad-gita.
vāsāṁsi jīrṇāni yathā vihāya navāni gṛhṇāti naro ’parāṇi
tathā śarīrāṇi vihāya jīrṇāny anyāni saṁyāti navāni dehī
(2.22)
The hangman is hearing all these slokas at that time from Bhagavad-gita. Then we can understand, from one small book everybody is getting inspiration in his own way. That is why Prabhupad gave ‘Srimad Bhagavad-gita As It Is’.
Five kinds of knowledge are distributed in Bhagavad-gita, but the supreme knowledge is that which gives service mood to Krishna and entrance into the service world. That is the supreme knowledge given in Srimad Bhagavad-gita. And Krishna himself said,
bahūnāṁ janmanām ante jñānavān māṁ prapadyate
vāsudevaḥ sarvam iti sa mahātmā su-durlabhaḥ
(Śrīmad Bhagavad-gītā: 7.19)
And prapadyate, that means surrender. And which kind of mood of surrender will be there, that’s also expressed in another place,
s
arva-dharmān parityajya mām ekaṁ śaraṇaṁ vraja
ahaṁ tvāṁ sarva-pāpebhyo mokṣayiṣyāmi mā śuchaḥ
(Śrīmad Bhagavad-gītā: 18.66)
Krishna took place here as guru of Arjuna. Arjuna said,
śiṣyas te ’haṁ śādhi māṁ tvāṁ prapannam
(Śrīmad Bhagavad-gītā: 2.7)
And what kind of teachings did Krishna give to Arjuna? “You leave all the religion.” Sarva-dharmān parityajya means adharma, non-religion, you must leave, there is no question, but where is religion, you also leave all religion. Who is the preacher of religion is telling, “Leave all the religions and take shelter at my lotus feet.”
Then there must be gurus of different moods for disciples of different types. Disciples are of different types, receivers are of different types, so the speakers must be of different types. It is like different television channels. There are one, two, three, four, twelve channels. That must be but it is also necessary to harmonise everything. And Mahaprabhu gave the formula to harmonise these different groups. Bhakti Vinod Thakur also told very clearly, “Don’t abuse other religions.”
All the religions are coming from the Lord, there is no doubt, but the conditioned souls cannot understand this, and so they are shown in a deviated way in the scriptures.
If you tell a five-year-old child that the earth is moving around the sun, he cannot believe it. Every day he sees the sun rise in the east and set in the west. Which way is the earth moving around the sun? If you give that knowledge to that boy he cannot understand. In this way all the scriptural knowledge is distributed in a step-by-step way. In Srimad Bhagavad-gita you will also see: karma-yoga, jnana-yoga, dhyana-yoga, bhakti-yoga. There are many kinds of yoga, sometimes presented in a mixing way, sometimes in a clear way. Sometimes you can also see paramour love there. But everything is important for some section. And harmony will come in this way, Mahaprabhu said,
tṛṇād api su-nīchena taror iva sahiṣṇunā
amāninā māna-dena kīrtanīyaḥ sadā hariḥ
Humility, tolerance and giving honour to others: then nobody will be your enemy and you will get everybody’s affection.
There must be thousands and thousands of varieties of gurus in this mundane world: everybody has some position, so give them their position, according to what they have, and try to practise Krishna consciousness with humility, tolerance, and giving honour to others. That is the teaching of Sriman Mahaprabhu and our Guru Maharaj, Srila Swami Maharaj Prabhupad, etc.
Sometimes it is necessary to remove obstacles in a blasting way. Srila Swami Maharaj did that and it is for the benefit of the jiva-souls. And lastly he said, “If I have made any offence, forgive my offences, because I have done this for the benefit of the jiva-souls. I have not done it for myself, it is for the preaching of Sriman Mahaprabhu.” That is humility. We can understand in this way.
[applause]
Question: What is the difference between ‘siddha’ and ‘Isvara’?
‘Siddhi’ means what someone is trying to get: that result is called ‘siddhi’. Siddhi means success. In yoga there is aṇimā, laghimā, mahimā, prāpti, prākāmya, īśitva, vaśitva—we can see many kinds of siddhi’s names, and especially there are eight kinds of siddhi. This is in the line of yoga. But ‘siddha’ may be in every position. If I want to make one vegetable, which will be very tasteful and healthy, if I can make it that’s also one kind of siddha. If we are boiling one potato, when it is boiled, that is also siddha. Then siddhi or siddha is depending upon its own stage.
But Isvara’s position is completely different. Who has control all over the whole is Isvara. All over the whole. That is called Isvara. There are also six varieties:
aiśvaryasya samagrasya vīryasya yaśasaḥ śriyaḥ
jñāna-vairāgyayoś chaiva saṇṇāṁ bhaga itiṅgana
(Viṣṇu Purāṇa 6.5.47)
[“He who is full with all the six opulences of wealth, power, fame, beauty, knowledge, and renunciation is known as Bhagavān, the Supreme Lord.”]
Aiśvarya (Lordship), vīrya (strength), jñāna (knowledge), yaśa (fame), śrī (wealth), and vairagya (renunciation): who is holding six kinds of qualities and can control them, he is Isvara. Then Isvara has many forms. It is infinite knowledge, actually. Then we can proceed up to Svargaloka, from there Vaikunthaloka, from there Goloka: there are many varieties of Isvara. They all have power, and they are all controlling. We can name one by one and thousands of thousands.
Even the bhakta, the devotee, can hold that position. In Srimad Bhagavatam I can immediately remember two places: one for Narad Goswami, and another for Sukadev Goswami.
atrir vasiṣṭhaś chyavanaḥ śaradvān ariṣṭanemir bhṛgur aṅgirāś cha
parāśaro gādhi-suto ’tha rāma utathya indrapramadedhmavāhau
medhātithir devala ārṣṭiṣeṇo bhāradvājo gautamaḥ pippalādaḥ
maitreya aurvaḥ kavaṣaḥ kumbhayonir dvaipāyano bhagavān nāradaś cha
(SB: 1.19.9–10)
[From different parts of the universe there arrived great sages like Atri, Chyavana, Śaradvān, Ariṣṭanemi, Bhṛgu, Vasiṣṭha, Parāśara, Viśvāmitra, Aṅgirā, Paraśurāma, Utathya, Indrapramada, Idhmavāhu, Medhātithi, Devala, Ārṣṭiṣeṇa, Bhāradvāja, Gautama, Pippalāda, Maitreya, Aurva, Kavaṣa, Kumbhayoni, Dvaipāyana and the great personality Nārada.]
Here the word Isvara, Bhagavan, is used; Isvara means Bhagavan, and he is Narada.
And another place we can remember,
harer guṇākṣipta-matir bhagavān bādarāyaṇiḥ
(1.7.11)
Here Vedavyasa is explaining about Sukadev Goswami: Bhagavan Badarayanih, He has six kinds of sense control and power, and he is the Isvar of that. Isvar is explained in this way in the scriptures.
And siddha: who in his own knowledge has got a successful position, he is siddha in that knowledge. That also has no limit, that is from potato to mahasiddha. Everybody may get that position of siddha. [chuckling] Jay Guru Maharaj.