Bhakti Vikasa Swami's Blog, page 174

The opulence of Vrndavana

My dear Lord, what can I say about the opulence of Your Vrndavana? Simply the ornaments on the legs of the damsels of Vrndavana are more than cintamani, and their dresses are as good as the heavenly parijata flowers. And the cows exactly resemble the surabhi cows in the transcendental abode. Therefore Your opulence is just like an ocean that no one can measure.

Bilvamangala Thakura, in Krsna-karnamrta

Quoted in Srila Prabhupada’s Nectar of Devotion

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Our worship should be in separation, but not sahajiya

So these are all symptoms of love for Krsna. That is the highest perfection of life, to shed tears for Krsna. Yugayitam nimesena caksusa pravrsayitam. Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu taught us this method of worship in separation, vipralambha seva. Not that “Oh, I have seen yesterday. Last night, I have seen Krsna. He was snatching my cloth.” These are sahajiyas. Actually, our worship should be in separation.

Srila Prabhupada, lecture, SB 1.10.14 / Mayapur — June 27, 1973

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Vrindaban vs. the nasty Western culture

To live in Vrindaban is the highest perfection and to grow up in Vrindaban the greatest fortune. Who can compare Vrindaban to the nasty western culture? Even to live in Mathura-mandala for a fortnight guarantees one liberation.

From Srila Prabhupada’s letter to Jayatirtha — Mayapur 20 January, 1976

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What is Krsna doing at Radha-kunda?

“O my beloved friend Vrnda, where are you coming from?”
“I am coming from the feet of Sri Hari.”
“Where is He?”
“In the forest on the bank of Radha-kunda.”
“What is He doing there?”
“He is learning dancing.”
“Who is His master?”
“Your image, Radha, revealing itself in every tree and creeper in every direction, is roaming like a skillful dancer, making Him dance behind.”

(Srila Prabhupada’s rendition of Cc Adi 4.125)

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Go to Krsna and see Him. It is not at all difficult.

You can go to Krsna and see Him. That requires qualification. It is very easy. It is simply, as we are teaching our students, just become a devotee, offer namaskar, man-mana bhava mad-bhakto [Bg. 18.65], always think of Him, and you will go to Him. It is not at all difficult.

From Srila Prabhupada’s Morning Walk — May 8, 1975, Perth

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Krsna plays with His friends

Once the Lord desired to go early in the morning with all His cowherd boyfriends to the forest, where they were to assemble together and take lunch. As soon as He got up from bed, He blew His buffalo-horn bugle and called all His friends together. Keeping the calves before them, they started for the forest in a great procession. In this way, Lord Krsna assembled thousands of His boyfriends. They were each equipped with a stick, flute and horn, as well as a lunch bag, and each of them was taking care of thousands of calves. All the boys appeared very jolly and happy in that excursion. Each and every one of them, including Krsna, was attentive to his personal calves as he herded them in the different places in the forest. The boys were fully decorated with various kinds of golden ornaments, yet out of sporting propensities they began to pick up flowers, leaves, twigs, peacock feathers and red clay from different places in the forest and further decorate themselves in different ways. While passing through the forest, one boy stole another boy’s lunch package and passed it to a third. And when the boy whose lunch package was stolen came to know of it, he tried to take it back. But the boy who had it threw it to another boy. This sportive playing went on amongst the boys as childhood pastimes.

When Lord Krsna went ahead to a distant place in order to see some specific scenery, the boys behind Him ran to try to catch up and be the first to touch Him. So there was a great competition. One would say, “I will go there and touch Krsna,” and another would say, “Oh, you cannot go. I’ll touch Krsna first.” Some of them played on their flutes or vibrated bugles made of buffalo horn. Some of them gladly followed the peacocks and imitated the onomatopoetic sounds of the cuckoo. While the birds were flying in the sky, the boys ran after the birds’ shadows along the ground and tried to follow their exact courses. Some of them went to the monkeys and silently sat down by them, and some of them imitated the dancing of the peacocks. Some of them caught monkeys by the tail and played with them, and when the monkeys jumped into a tree, the boys followed. When a monkey showed its face and teeth, a boy imitated and showed his teeth to the monkey. Some of the boys played with the frogs on the bank of the Yamuna, and when, out of fear, the frogs jumped into the water, the boys immediately dove in after them, and when the boys came out of the water and saw their own shadows, they would stand imitating, making caricatures and laughing. They would also go to an empty well and make loud sounds, and when the echo came back, they would call it ill names and laugh.

From Srila Prabhupada’s “Krsna Book,” ch. 12: The Killing of the Aghasura Demon

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The gopis’ spiritual anxiety

Even in Vrndavana there is anxiety. Radharani is in anxiety that “Krsna is not here. How Krsna will come?” The gopis are also in anxiety. Gopis are so in anxiety that about them it is said that when Krsna used to go to the forest for tending the cows, so gopis were thinking at home that “Krsna’s feet is so soft that we hesitate to take His feet on our breast, but He is now walking in the forest, and there were so many stones and pricks, and they are giving pain to the Krsna’s lotus feet.” And thinking like this, they fainted. This is gopi. Krsna is out of the village, and they are at home, and they are thinking of Krsna and they fainted. This is also anxiety, so much anxiety that fainted. But that is for Krsna. Therefore gopis are exalted. Ramya kecid upasana vraja-vadhu-varga virya kalpita. Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu, He recommends, “There is no better type of worshiping Krsna than it was planned by the gopis.” So there is also anxiety. So anxiety is spiritual anxiety and material anxiety. Spiritual anxiety means you are advancing in spiritual life, and material anxiety means you are going downhill.

From Srila Prabhupada’s lecture on Bhagavad-gita 16.11–12 — February 7,
1975, Honolulu

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Live simply and go to Krsna

Don’t be after these motorcars, television, and all nonsense things, sporting, wine, women. Don’t be after these. Simply eat sufficiently, keep your health nicely, chant Hare Krsna, realize Krsna, and go back to home. This is our philosophy.

From Srila Prabhupada’s Morning Walk Conversation at Villa Borghese, 25 May, 1974

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Narottama dasa and the endeavor for material opulence

An inordinate desire for economic development is considered to be like straws and grains of sand within the heart. If one is overly engaged in material activity, the heart will always remain disturbed. As stated by Narottama dasa Thakura:

samsara visanale, diva-nisi hiya jvale,
judaite na kainu upaya

In other words, endeavor for material opulence is against the principle of devotional service.

From Srila Prabhupada’s purport to Cc Madhya 12.135

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The topmost level of devotional service

Worship in separation is considered by the Gaudiya-Madhva-sampradaya to be the topmost level of devotional service. According to this conception, the devotee thinks of himself as very poor and neglected by the Lord. Thus he addresses the Lord as dina-dayadra natha, as did Madhavendra Puri. Such an ecstatic feeling is the highest form of devotional service.

From Srila Prabhupada’s purport to Caitanya Caritamrta, Madhya lila 4.197

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