Bhakti Vikasa Swami's Blog, page 65

Becoming purified in devotional service

Revatinandana: We always encourage chanting Hare Krsna, is that so?

Prabhupada: Yes. That is the only method in this age. By chanting Hare Krsna, one’s… The reservoir of understanding will be cleared. And then you, he can receive, he can receive the spiritual knowledge. Without cleansing the heart it is very difficult to understand and receive spiritual knowledge. All these reformatory measures — brahmacari, grhastha, vanaprastha — they are simply the cleansing method.

And bhakti is also a cleansing method, vidhi-bhakti. But by engaging oneself in this Deity worship, he also becomes cleansed. Tat-paratve… Sarvopadhi… As he becomes enlightened or advanced in understanding that he is eternal servant of Krsna, he becomes purified. He becomes purified.

Sarvopadhi means he doesn’t… Sarvopadhi. He tries to eliminate his upadhi,
his designation, that “I am American,” “I am Indian,” “I am this,” “I am
that.” So in this way, when you become fully eliminated of this bodily
concept of life, then nirmalam. He becomes nirmala, uncontaminated.

And so long this concept of life is going on that “I am this,” “I am that,” “I am that,” he’s still in the… Sa bhaktah prakrtah smrtah. Arcayam eva haraye… Even in this process, when they are engaged in Deity worship, arcayam haraye yat-pujam sraddhayehate, with great devotion doing, but na tad bhaktesu canyesu, but he has no sympathy with others or he does not know what is the position of a devotee, then sa bhaktah prakrtah smrtah: “He is called material devotee, material devotee.”

December 19, 1970

The post Becoming purified in devotional service appeared first on Bhakti Vikasa Swami.

Fearless, educated guru, non-different from Krsna

One who is engaged in devotional service has not the least fear in material existence. This is because the Supreme Personality of Godhead is the Supersoul and friend of everyone. One who knows this secret is actually educated, and one thus educated can become the spiritual master of the world. One who is an actually bona fide spiritual master, representative of Krsna, is not different from Krsna.

SB 4.29.51 text — Srila Prabhupada’s translation

The post Fearless, educated guru, non-different from Krsna appeared first on Bhakti Vikasa Swami.

Futile auspicious activities

Those who perform severe austerities and penances, those who give away all their possessions out of charity, those who are very famous for their auspicious activity, those who are engaged in meditation and mental speculation, and even those who are very expert in reciting the Vedic mantras are not able to obtain any auspicious results, although they are engaged in auspicious activities, if they do not dedicate their activities to the service of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. I therefore repeatedly offer my respectful obeisances unto the Supreme Personality of Godhead, whose glories are always auspicious.

Srimad-Bhagavatam (2.4.17), cited as CC Madhya 22.20, Srila Prabhupada’s translation

The post Futile auspicious activities appeared first on Bhakti Vikasa Swami.

Instructions from God

The Lord is the Supersoul seated in everyone’s heart, and He acts as the caitya-guru, the spiritual master within. However, He gives direct instructions only to the advanced, pure devotees. In the beginning, when a devotee is serious and sincere, the Lord gives him directions from within to approach a bona fide spiritual master. When one is trained by the spiritual master according to the regulative principles of devotional service and is situated on the platform of spontaneous attachment for the Lord (raga-bhakti), the Lord also gives instructions from within.

From Srila Prabhupada’s purport to Srimad Bhagavatam 4.28.41

The post Instructions from God appeared first on Bhakti Vikasa Swami.

Krsna’s apparent partiality

The sunrays are open to everyone, but the capacities of the receptacles differ. Foolish people think that devotional service is flattering the Lord to get special mercy. Factually the pure devotees who are engaged in the transcendental loving service of the Lord are not a mercantile community. A mercantile house renders service to someone in exchange for values. The pure devotee does not render service unto the Lord for such exchange, and therefore the full mercy of the Lord is open for him.

Suffering and needy men, inquisitive persons, or philosophers make temporary connections with the Lord to serve a particular purpose. When the purpose is served, there is no more relation with the Lord. A suffering man, if he is pious at all, prays to the Lord for his recovery. But as soon as the recovery is over, in most cases the suffering man no longer cares to keep any connection with the Lord. The mercy of the Lord is open for him, but he is reluctant to receive it. That is the difference between a pure devotee and a mixed devotee. Those who are completely against the service of the Lord are considered to be in abject darkness, those who ask for the Lord’s favor only at the time of necessity are partial recipients of the mercy of the Lord, and those who are cent-percent engaged in the service of the Lord are full recipients of the mercy of the Lord. Such partiality in receiving the Lord’s mercy is relative to the recipient, and it is not due to the partiality of the all-merciful Lord.

Srila Prabhupada; Teachings of Queen Kunti chapter 12: Bewildering Pastimes

The post Krsna’s apparent partiality appeared first on Bhakti Vikasa Swami.

Unknowingly serving or insulting a Vaisnava

When one serves a Vaisnava unknowingly, one still gets the good result, and if one unknowingly insults a Vaisnava, one suffers the bad result. A Vaisnava is especially favored by the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Pleasing him or displeasing him directly affects the pleasure and displeasure of the Supreme Lord. Srila Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura, in his eight stanzas of prayer to the spiritual master, has sung, yasya prasadad bhagavat-prasadah: by pleasing the spiritual master, who is a pure Vaisnava, one pleases the Personality of Godhead, but if one displeases the spiritual master one does not know where he is going.

Srila Prabhupada – SB 4.8.23  purport

The post Unknowingly serving or insulting a Vaisnava appeared first on Bhakti Vikasa Swami.

Home deity worship

You have asked about Gaura Nitai deity worship by the householders in Los Angeles. That is for those who live far away from the temple and cannot attend. Otherwise, such worship is redundant; there is already deity worship going on in the temple and they should attend the aratis, not install their own deities.

From Srila Prabhupada’s letter to Jayatirtha — 5 May, 1974

The post Home deity worship appeared first on Bhakti Vikasa Swami.

Who is a mahatma?

Your final question is how can you become a pure devotee, and the answer to this is given in Bhagavad-gita. Krishna instructs Arjuna that the mahatma, the pure devotee, is he who has fully surrendered himself unto the spiritual nature. And how can we tell if one is completely surrendered unto the spiritual nature? He is always fully engaged in devotional service to Krishna. So this is the process of becoming a pure devotee. We have to engage all of our words, thoughts, and activities in Krishna Consciousness under the direction of the Spiritual Master. Therefore, at every moment you should be busy in some way in serving Krishna and His pure devotees, and automatically you will become purified in Krishna Consciousness. Krishna is always willing to shower His mercy upon His devotees, so we have simply to become receptive to this mercy by devotional service, and then the path is very easy.

Srila Prabhupada — Letter, June 16, 1969

The post Who is a mahatma? appeared first on Bhakti Vikasa Swami.

Krsna is the only enjoyer

We have to understand that Krsna is the only enjoyer. The consciousness of this is developed in a Krsna conscious temple where the central point of all activities is Krsna. All cooking is carried on for Krsna, not for one’s own purposes. Ultimately we shall eat the prasada (offered food), but when we cook we should think that we are cooking for Krsna and not for ourselves. When the members of a temple go into the streets, they do not do so for their own sake but to distribute Krsna conscious literatures in order to make people aware of Krsna’s presence. All monies acquired are spent for Krsna, in spreading His message in so many ways. Such a style of life, in which everything is done for Krsna, promotes the development of Krsna consciousness within the living entity.

From: Krsna Consciousness, the Matchless Gift, by Srila Prabhupada

The post Krsna is the only enjoyer appeared first on Bhakti Vikasa Swami.

Krsna is eager to have rasa-lila

In the Brhad-vamana Purana, the Lord says, “Although I have many fascinating pastimes, whenever I think of the rasa-lila, which I perform with the gopis, I become eager to have it again.”

From The Nectar of Devotion, by Srila Prabhupada

The post Krsna is eager to have rasa-lila appeared first on Bhakti Vikasa Swami.