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Teachings of Lord Caitanya

Teachings of Lord Caitanya, Chapter Preface:

The Lord demands that one surrender unto Him by following these six guidelines, but the unintelligent so-called scholars of the world misunderstand these demands and urge the general mass of people to reject them. At the conclusion of the Ninth Chapter of the Bhagavad-gītā, Lord Kṛṣṇa directly orders, "Always think of Me, become My devotee, worship Me alone, and offer obeisances unto Me alone." By so doing, the Lord says, one is sure to go to Him in His transcendental abode. But the scholarly demons misguide the masses of people by directing them to surrender not to the Personality of Godhead but rather to the impersonal, unmanifested, eternal, unborn truth. The impersonalist Māyāvādī philosophers do not accept that the ultimate aspect of the Absolute Truth is the Supreme Personality of Godhead. If one desires to understand the sun as it is, one must first face the sunshine and then the sun globe, and then, if one is able to enter into that globe, one may come face to face with the predominating deity of the sun. Due to a poor fund of knowledge, the Māyāvādī philosophers cannot go beyond the Brahman effulgence, which may be compared to the sunshine. The Upaniṣads confirm that one has to penetrate the dazzling effulgence of Brahman before one can see the real face of the Personality of Godhead.

Teachings of Lord Caitanya, Chapter Prologue:

He visited Vṛndāvana and came down to Prayāga (Allahabad), converting a large number of Mohammedans to Vaiṣṇavism by argument from the Koran. The descendants of those converts are still known as Pāṭhāna Vaiṣṇavas. Rūpa Gosvāmī met Him at Allahabad. Caitanya trained him up in spirituality in ten days and directed him to go to Vṛndāvana on missions. His first mission was to write theological works scientifically explaining pure bhakti and prema. The second mission was to revive the places where Kṛṣṇacandra had at the end of Dvāpara-yuga exhibited His spiritual līlā (pastimes) for the benefit of the religious world. Rūpa Gosvāmī left Allahabad for Vṛndāvana, and Mahāprabhu came down to Benares.

Teachings of Lord Caitanya, Chapter 1:

Since Kṛṣṇa and His energies are identical, everything is Kṛṣṇa indirectly. For example, consciousness is common to every living entity, but when consciousness is centered solely on Kṛṣṇa (Kṛṣṇa consciousness) it is pure, and when consciousness is centered on something other than Kṛṣṇa, or when it is directed to sense gratification, it may be called non-Kṛṣṇa consciousness. Thus it is in the polluted state that the conception of non-Kṛṣṇa comes. In the pure state, however, there is nothing but Kṛṣṇa consciousness.

Teachings of Lord Caitanya, Chapter 5:

In truth, all Vedic literature directs the human being toward the perfect stage of devotion. The paths of fruitive activities, speculative knowledge, and meditation do not lead one to the perfectional stage, but the Lord is actually approachable by one who follows the process of devotional service. Therefore all Vedic literature recommends that one accept this process. In this regard, Caitanya Mahāprabhu quoted from the Lord's instructions to Uddhava in Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam (11.14.20-21):

Teachings of Lord Caitanya, Chapter 5:

The conclusion is that, directly or indirectly, all types of worship are more or less directed to the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Kṛṣṇa. The Bhagavad-gītā (9.23) confirms that one who worships the demigods is in fact only worshiping Kṛṣṇa because the demigods are but different parts of the body of Viṣṇu, or Kṛṣṇa, but that such worship is irregular. Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam (11.21.42–43) confirms this irregularity by answering the question "What is the purpose of the different types of worship described in the Vedic literature?" In the Vedic literature there are various divisions: one is called the karma-kāṇḍa, which describes purely ritualistic activities, and another is the jñāna-kāṇḍa, which describes speculation on the Supreme Absolute Truth.

Teachings of Lord Caitanya, Chapter 19:

"The Māyāvāda philosophy is veiled Buddhism. (In other words, the voidist philosophy of Buddha is more or less repeated in the Māyāvāda philosophy of impersonalism, although the Māyāvādīphilosophers claim to be directed by the Vedic conclusions.) As a brāhmaṇa boy, I manufacture this philosophy in the Age of Kali to mislead the atheists. Actually, the Supreme Personality of Godhead has His transcendental body, but I describe the Supreme as impersonal. I also explain the Vedānta-sūtra according to the same principles of Māyāvāda philosophy."

Teachings of Lord Caitanya, Chapter 25:

Thus reading the Māyāvādī commentaries on the Vedānta-sūtra is always dangerous. The danger is that through these commentaries one may come to falsely equate the living entity with the Supreme Lord. In this way a conditioned living entity can be falsely directed, and then he can never come to his actual position of eternal activity in bhakti-yoga. In other words, the Māyāvādī philosophers have rendered the greatest disservice to humanity by promoting the impersonal view of the Supreme Lord and thus depriving human society of the real message of the Vedānta-sūtra.

Nectar of Devotion

Nectar of Devotion Preface:

The material comforts of life alone are not sufficient to make us happy. The vivid example is America: the richest nation of the world, having all facilities for material comfort, is producing a class of men completely confused and frustrated in life. I am appealing herewith to such confused men to learn the art of devotional service as directed in The Nectar of Devotion, and I am sure that the fire of material existence burning within their hearts will be immediately extinguished. The root cause of our dissatisfaction is that our dormant loving propensity has not been fulfilled despite our great advancement in the materialistic way of life. The Nectar of Devotion will give us practical hints how we can live in this material world perfectly engaged in devotional service and thus fulfill all our desires in this life and the next.

Nectar of Devotion Introduction:

Similarly, we can offer many services with our bodily activities. But all such activities must be in relationship with Kṛṣṇa. This relationship is established by connecting oneself with the bona fide spiritual master, who is the direct representative of Kṛṣṇa in disciplic succession. Therefore, the execution of Kṛṣṇa conscious activities with the body should be directed by the spiritual master and then performed with faith. The connection with the spiritual master is called initiation. From the date of initiation by the spiritual master, the connection between Kṛṣṇa and a person cultivating Kṛṣṇa consciousness is established. Without initiation by a bona fide spiritual master, the actual connection with Kṛṣṇa consciousness is never performed.

Nectar of Devotion 7:

In the Nāradīya Purāṇa it is directed, "One should not accept more than necessary if he is serious about discharging devotional service." The purport is that one should not neglect following the principles of devotional service, nor should one accept the rulings of devotional service which are more than what he can easily perform. For example, it may be said that one should chant the Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra at least one hundred thousand times daily on his beads. But if this is not possible, then one must minimize his chanting according to his own capacity. Generally, we recommend our disciples to chant at least sixteen rounds on their japa beads daily, and this should be completed.

Nectar of Devotion 7:

In the Skanda Purāṇa it is directed that a devotee should offer water to the tulasī plant and āmalaka trees. He should offer respect to the cows and to the brāhmaṇas and should serve the Vaiṣṇavas by offering them respectful obeisances and meditating upon them. All of these processes will help the devotee to diminish the reactions to his past sinful activities.

Nectar of Instruction

Nectar of Instruction 1, Purport:

"On the other hand, that literature which is full of descriptions of the transcendental glories of the name, fame, forms, pastimes, etc., of the unlimited Supreme Lord is a different creation, full of transcendental words directed toward bringing about a revolution in the impious lives of this world's misdirected civilization. Such transcendental literatures, even though imperfectly composed, are heard, sung and accepted by purified men who are thoroughly honest."

The conclusion is that only when we talk about devotional service to the Supreme Personality of Godhead can we refrain from useless nonsensical talk. We should always endeavor to use our speaking power solely for the purpose of realizing Kṛṣṇa consciousness.

Easy Journey to Other Planets

Easy Journey to Other Planets 1:

The different deities, or powerful directing officers, are appointed to act in the administration of cosmic activities. Foolish people who are unable to see the intricacies of cosmic management laugh at the idea of personal management of fire, air, electricity, days, nights, etc., by demigods. But the perfect yogīs know how to satisfy these unseen administrators of material affairs and, taking advantage of the good will of these administrators, leave their material bodies at will during opportune moments arranged for entrance into the anti-material universe or into the highest planets of the material sky. In the higher planets of the material world, the yogīs can enjoy more comfortable and more pleasant lives for hundreds of thousands of years, but life in those higher planets is not eternal.

Easy Journey to Other Planets 2:

Both Kṛṣṇa and the spiritual master help the sincere soul. The spiritual master is the external manifestation of God, who is situated in everyone's heart as Supersoul. For one who is very serious about understanding the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Supersoul immediately renders assistance by directing him to a bona fide spiritual master. In this way the spiritual candidate is helped from within and without.

Krsna, The Supreme Personality of Godhead

Krsna Book Preface:

The art of focusing one's attention on the Supreme and giving one's love to Him is called Kṛṣṇa consciousness. We have inaugurated the Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement so that everyone can satisfy his propensity for loving others simply by directing his love toward Kṛṣṇa. The whole world is very eager to satisfy the dormant propensity of love for others, but the various invented methods like socialism, communism, altruism, humanitarianism and nationalism, along with whatever else may be manufactured for the peace and prosperity of the world, are all useless and frustrating because of our gross ignorance of the art of loving Kṛṣṇa. Generally people think that by advancing the cause of moral principles and religious rites they will be happy. Others may think that happiness can be achieved by economic development, and yet others think that simply by sense gratification they will be happy. But the real fact is that people can be happy only by loving Kṛṣṇa.

Krsna Book Preface:

This book, Kṛṣṇa, is another presentation to help the Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement in the Western world. This transcendental work of literature is published with profuse illustrations. People love to read various kinds of fiction to spend their time and energy. Now this tendency can be directed to Kṛṣṇa. The result will be the imperishable satisfaction of the soul, both individually and collectively.

Krsna Book 14:

Because their attachment has been directed unto You and their homes have been converted into temples by Your constant presence there, and because they have forgotten everything for Your sake, there is no impediment. For a Kṛṣṇa conscious person, there is no such thing as impediments due to attachment for hearth and home. Nor is there illusion.

“I can also understand that Your appearance as a small cowherd boy, a child of the cowherd men, is not at all a material activity. You are so much obliged by their affection that You are here to inspire them with more loving service by Your transcendental presence.

Krsna Book 33:

Kṛṣṇa, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, was already present as the Supersoul within the bodies of the gopīs and their husbands. He is the guide of all living entities, as is confirmed in the Kaṭha Upaniṣad: nityo nityānāṁ cetanaś cetanānām. The Supersoul directs the individual soul to act, and the Supersoul is the actor and witness of all action.

It is confirmed in the Bhagavad-gītā that Kṛṣṇa is present in everyone's heart and that from Him come all knowledge, remembrance and forgetfulness. He is the original person to be known by Vedic knowledge. He is the author of the Vedānta philosophy, and He knows the Vedānta philosophy perfectly well. The so-called Vedāntists and Māyāvādīs cannot understand Kṛṣṇa as He is; they simply mislead their followers by imitating the actions of Kṛṣṇa in an unauthorized way.

Krsna Book 53:

In the Bhagavad-gītā the Lord says, yānti deva-vratā devān: (BG 9.25) "The worshipers of the demigods attain the abodes of the demigods." There were many people who worshiped the demigods and many who directly worshiped the Supreme Personality of Godhead. The system of demigod worship was directed mainly to Lord Brahmā, Lord Śiva, Lord Gaṇeśa, the sun-god and Goddess Durgā. Lord Śiva and Goddess Durgā were worshiped even by the royal families; other, minor demigods were worshiped by silly, lower-class people. As far as the brāhmaṇas and Vaiṣṇavas are concerned, they simply worship Lord Viṣṇu, the Supreme Personality of Godhead. In the Bhagavad-gītā the worship of demigods is condemned but not forbidden; there it is clearly stated that less intelligent men worship the demigods for material benefit. On the other hand, even though Rukmiṇī was the goddess of fortune, she went to the temple of Goddess Durgā because the family deity was worshiped there.

Krsna Book 53:

While Rukmiṇī was praying, she presented a variety of items before the deity, chief of which were water, different kinds of flames, incense, garments, garlands and various foods prepared with ghee, such as purīs and kachoris. She also offered fruits, sugarcane, betel nuts and spices. With great devotion, Rukmiṇī offered them to the deity according to the regulative principles, directed by the old brāhmaṇa ladies. After this ritualistic ceremony, the ladies offered the remnants of the food to Rukmiṇī as prasādam, which she accepted with great respect. Then Rukmiṇī offered her obeisances to the ladies and to Goddess Durgā. After the business of deity worship was finished, Rukmiṇī caught hold of the hand of one of her girlfriends in her own hand, which was decorated with a jeweled ring, and left the temple in the company of the others.

Krsna Book 63:

As stated in the Bhagavad-gītā, You appear in order to protect the devotees, and thus Your appearance indicates good fortune for all the universe. All of the demigods are directing different affairs of the universe by Your grace only. Thus the seven upper planetary systems are maintained by Your grace. At the end of this creation, all manifestations of Your energies, whether in the shape of demigods, human beings or lower animals, enter into You, and all immediate and remote causes of the cosmic manifestation rest in You without distinctive features of existence. Ultimately, there is no possibility of distinction between You and any other thing on an equal level with You or subordinate to You. You are simultaneously the cause of this cosmic manifestation and its ingredients as well.

Krsna Book 76:

Pradyumna severely injured Śālva's commander in chief. He then released another one hundred arrows toward the body of Śālva. After this, he pierced each and every soldier by releasing one arrow, he killed the chariot drivers by firing ten arrows at each one of them, and he killed the carriers like the horses and elephants by releasing three arrows directed toward each one. When everyone present on the battlefield saw this wonderful feat of Pradyumna's, the great fighters on both sides praised his acts of chivalry.

Krsna Book 87:

As the Lord advises in the Bhagavad-gītā, "Whatever you do, do it for Me; whatever you eat, first offer it to Me; whatever charity you want to give, first give it to Me; and whatever austerities and penances you want to perform, perform them for Me." In this way the karmīs are directed gradually to develop Kṛṣṇa consciousness. Similarly, Kṛṣṇa directs the philosophers to approach Him gradually by discriminating between Brahman and māyā, for at last, when one is mature in knowledge, he surrenders unto Kṛṣṇa. As Kṛṣṇa says in the Bhagavad-gītā, "After many, many births, the wise philosopher surrenders unto Me."

Krsna Book 87:

The yogīs are also directed to concentrate their meditation upon Kṛṣṇa within the heart, and by such a continuous process of Kṛṣṇa consciousness they can also become free from the clutches of the material energy. The devotees, however, are engaged in devotional service with love and affection from the very beginning, and therefore the Lord personally directs them so that they can approach Him without difficulty or deviation. This is stated in the Bhagavad-gītā. Only by the grace of the Lord can the living entity understand the exact position of Brahman, Paramātmā and Bhagavān.

Krsna Book 87:

The Supreme Personality of Godhead is so great, independent and perfect that even without having any eyes, legs or ears He is not dependent on others for His activities. On the contrary, others are dependent on Him for the activities of their different sense organs. Unless the living entity is inspired and directed by the Supersoul, he cannot act.

The fact is that ultimately the Absolute Truth is the Supreme Person. But because He acts through His different potencies, which are impossible for the gross materialists to see, the materialists accept Him as impersonal.

Krsna Book 87:

That is my desire, life after life.” In other words, a devotee does not much care whether or not he is liberated; he is eager only for devotional service. Devotional service means that one does not do anything independently of the sanction of the ācāryas. The actions of the Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement are directed by the previous ācāryas, headed by Śrīla Rūpa Gosvāmī; in the association of devotees following these principles, a devotee is able to perfectly maintain his transcendental position.

In the Bhagavad-gītā the Lord says that a devotee who knows Him perfectly is very dear to Him. Four kinds of pious men take to devotional service. If a pious man is in distress, he approaches the Lord for mitigation of his distress.

Krsna Book 89:

In such assemblies, the great sages present usually discuss Vedic subject matters and philosophical topics, and in this particular meeting the following question was raised: The three predominating deities of this material world, namely Lord Brahmā, Lord Viṣṇu and Lord Śiva, are directing all the affairs of this cosmos, but who among them is the Supreme? After much discussion on this question, the great sage named Bhṛgu, the son of Lord Brahmā, was deputed to test all three predominating deities and report to the assembly as to who is the greatest.

Renunciation Through Wisdom

Renunciation Through Wisdom 2.6:

The activities of the day evoke dreams at night and induce emotions appropriate to those activities. Similarly, the activities performed in one's lifetime flash across one's mind at the moment of death and determine one's next life. Therefore, if one's present activities are directed toward chanting, hearing, and remembering the Supreme Lord's transcendental name, along with descriptions of His beauty, qualities, pastimes, associates, and paraphernalia, then one's consciousness at the moment one leaves his body will automatically be attracted to the Lord. Such a spiritual state of consciousness at the moment of death ensures the soul entry into the Supreme Lord's eternal abode in his very next birth. To awaken this spiritual consciousness is man's prime goal in life.

Renunciation Through Wisdom 2.6:

Those neophyte devotees of Kṛṣṇa who try to appease demigods like the sun-god in order to escape ill health do so because they succumb to serious doubts about Lord Kṛṣṇa's supreme divinity. In analyzing the word anyābhilāṣa ("desires other than those directed toward serving Lord Kṛṣṇa"), we find that one fosters this type of perverted intelligence when one thinks that the sun-god, who is merely a manifestation of the Supreme Lord's potency, can protect one from ill health but that the Supreme Lord, Kṛṣṇa, cannot. Once these mind—clouding doubts disperse, one enters the doors of pure devotional service. Karmīs and jñānīs are also tainted by material desires—the desire to enjoy their senses and the desire for liberation, respectively. Pure devotional service is attained only when these material desires are dissipated and one renders unbroken, favorable devotional service to the Lord Kṛṣṇa.

Renunciation Through Wisdom 4.1:

These six limbs of surrender should be followed in relation to Kṛṣṇa, or Viṣṇu, because this instruction on the process of surrender appears in a Vaiṣṇava scripture. Dr. Radhakrishnan has translated the first limb (ānukūlyasya saṅkalpaḥ) as "good will to all." Question: Is it possible to surrender to everyone? Surrender should be directed toward the Supreme Lord alone. Dr. Radhakrishnan's proposal is impractical, and indeed impossible. Long before Dr. Radhakrishnan wrote his commentary, many realized spiritual preceptors, including the famous Gosvāmīs of Vṛndāvana, explained that the words ānukūlyasya saṅkalpaḥ mean that one should render transcendental loving service to the Supreme Lord, Kṛṣṇa, favorably. No genuine scholar would be willing to disregard all other spiritual authorities and accept Dr. Radhakrishnan's version.

Renunciation Through Wisdom 5.1:

These practices are, in a sense, meant to increase physical prowess for better sense enjoyment. The devotee, on the other hand, follows the best yoga system of God-realization, which is enunciated in the Bhagavad-gītā. His activities are not selfishly motivated, aimed at realizing his own cherished dreams, but are directed toward fulfilling the will of God on earth. This yoga is known as buddhi-yoga, wherein lies the entire world's good fortune.

Renunciation Through Wisdom 5.1:

Yoga and meditation societies have mushroomed expressly to transmit the knowledge of the Bhagavad-gītā, but how this will be accomplished is still a question. We are confident that Lord Caitanya's teachings on the process of loving devotional service will easily harmonize all conflicting concepts.

The most effective method for directing humanity toward a positive and favorable consciousness is available in India. Any person, under any circumstances, can reach an elevated state of consciousness by properly hearing the Bhagavad-gītā, and then, by constantly chanting the name of God, he can win God over. The present state of world affairs is full of foreboding, strife, and struggle. These are the effects of Kali-yuga.

Renunciation Through Wisdom 5.1:

The Supreme Lord is situated in everyone's heart, O Arjuna, and is directing the wanderings of all living entities, who are seated as on a machine, made of the material energy.

The Lord is present in everyone's heart by His inconceivable spiritual potency. He also directs the movements of the jīvas by means of His material energy, consisting of the three modes of nature. After placing the jīvas in a material body, the Lord controls their wanderings. The intelligence of those jīvas who surrender to the Lord is fixed in devotional service, and so they are never again attracted to mundane activities. Transcending the three modes, they dispassionately observe all activities within the realm of the three modes.

Message of Godhead

Message of Godhead 2:

The people in general are extremely busy in the affairs of the material body and mind. Those who are in the lowest stage of such mundane activities very rarely can understand the activities of the spiritual plane. These people are generally baffled because their various acts of sin and virtue are directed merely toward ameliorating the distress and enhancing the happiness of the temporary body and mind by behavior like eating, sleeping, defending, and gratifying the senses. The material scientists—the modern quasi priests who invoke such material activities—invent many objects to gratify the material senses such as the eye, ear, nose, and tongue and ultimately the mind, and there results a field of unnecessary competition for enhancement of such material happiness, which leads the whole world into the whirlpool of uncalled—for clashes.

Message of Godhead 2:

Once this misconception is cleared up and if we remember that the Supreme Spirit is indeed omnipresent, we can create a spiritual atmosphere by performing all our activities in relation to the Supreme Spirit, with everything directed by one who is a self-realized soul. Then the whole thing is transformed into spirit.

An example may be given here to illuminate the above process of spiritualization. When the iron is put into the fire and becomes red hot, the iron then develops the qualities of fire and stops functioning as iron. In the same way, when all our activities are done in terms of our relationship with Kṛṣṇa, then everything is surcharged with spiritualization.

Message of Godhead 2:

Thus, all acts performed by the living entity—except those with transcendental results—are self—created engagements arising from an abuse of the free will, and therefore such acts or engagements are never to be considered as if the works and the results were somehow ordained by the almighty Godhead. Such works are all material and are therefore conditioned and directed by the modes of nature. The Personality of Godhead has nothing to do with such works.

Similarly, the karma-yogī exists always in a transcendental position, far away from the conditions of the modes of nature, for all his works attain to the platform of the Absolute.

Light of the Bhagavata

Light of the Bhagavata 16, Purport:

This is the path of knowledge, and complete knowledge fixes the living being in the orbit of spiritual activities.

The spiritual living force is always active by nature. By illusion his activities are wrongly directed in relation with the body, but in the liberated condition of complete knowledge his activities are conducted in spiritual devotion. Liberation does not mean stopping activities; it means being purified of illusory activities and becoming transcendental to relations with the gross and subtle bodies.

Light of the Bhagavata 18, Purport:

To attain liberation, one must be completely purified of perverted forms of desire. A living being cannot snuff out desires, and to practice artificially erasing the actions of desire is more dangerous than the active desires themselves. All desires should be reformed and directed toward spiritual activities; otherwise those same desires will repeatedly manifest themselves in different varieties of material enjoyment, thus conditioning the living being perpetually in material bondage.

Sri Isopanisad

Sri Isopanisad 9, Purport:

As far as vidyā is concerned, the first mantra has explained very clearly that the Supreme Lord is the proprietor of everything and that forgetfulness of this fact is ignorance. The more a man forgets this fact of life, the more he is in darkness. In view of this, a godless civilization directed toward the so-called advancement of education is more dangerous than a civilization in which the masses of people are less "educated."

Sri Isopanisad 11, Purport:

A man should lead a healthy life with a sound mind just to realize vidyā, true knowledge, which is the aim of human life. This life is not meant for working like an ass or for culturing avidyā for sense gratification.

The path of vidyā is most perfectly presented in Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, which directs a human being to utilize his life to inquire into the Absolute Truth. The Absolute Truth is realized step by step as Brahman, Paramātmā and finally Bhagavān, the Personality of Godhead. The Absolute Truth is realized by the broadminded man who has attained knowledge and detachment by following the eighteen principles of the Bhagavad-gītā described in the purport to Mantra Ten. The central purpose of these eighteen principles is the attainment of transcendental devotional service to the Personality of Godhead.

Sri Isopanisad 15, Purport:

In the Bhagavad-gītā (6.46-47) there is a comparative analysis of the three types of transcendentalists—the worshipers of the impersonal Brahman (jñānīs), the worshipers of the Paramātmā feature (yogīs) and the devotees of Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa (bhaktas). It is stated there that the jñānīs, those who have cultivated Vedic knowledge, are better than ordinary fruitive workers, that the yogīs are still greater than the jñānīs, and that among all yogīs, those who constantly serve the Lord with all their energies are the topmost. In summary, a philosopher is better than a laboring man, a mystic is superior to a philosopher, and of all the mystic yogīs, he who follows bhakti-yoga, constantly engaging in the service of the Lord, is the highest. Śrī Īśopaniṣad directs us toward this perfection.

Sri Isopanisad 17, Purport:

One should therefore not indulge in hearing and speaking of the rubbish activities of worldly politicians and so-called big men in society but should mold his life in such a way that he can engage in godly activities without wasting a second. Śrī Īśopaniṣad directs us toward such godly activities.

Unless one is accustomed to devotional practice, what will he remember at the time of death, when the body is dislocated, and how can he pray to the almighty Lord to remember his sacrifices? Sacrifice means denying the interest of the senses. One has to learn this art by employing the senses in the service of the Lord during one's lifetime. One can utilize the results of such practice at the time of death.

Sri Isopanisad 18, Purport:

Since the omnipotent Lord is situated within the heart of everyone, He can give directions to His sincere devotees by which they can attain the right path. Such directions are especially offered to the devotee, even if he desires something else. As far as others are concerned, God gives sanction to the doer only at the risk of the doer. But in the case of a devotee, the Lord directs him in such a way that he never acts wrongly. The Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam (11.5.42) says:

Mukunda-mala-stotra (mantras 1 to 6 only)

Mukunda-mala-stotra mantra 5, Purport:

The perfection of religion is to attain complete satisfaction of the spirit soul, and this is accomplished by rendering devotional service to the Lord, who is beyond the perception of the material senses. When the living being directs his eternal service attitude toward the eternal Supreme Being, such service can never be hampered by any sort of material hindrance. Such transcendental service is above even salvation, and therefore it certainly does not aim at any kind of material reward in the shape of name, fame, or gain.

Narada-bhakti-sutra (sutras 1 to 8 only)

Narada Bhakti Sutra 7, Purport:

Lust leads to fruitive activity for sense gratification. There are different kinds of duties for the human being, such as political obligations, performance of Vedic rituals, obligations for maintaining the body, and social formalities and conventions, but all such activities are directed toward satisfying one's own senses. The gopīs, however, simply wanted to satisfy Kṛṣṇa's senses, and thus they completely gave up the conventional path of social restriction, not caring for their relatives or the chastisement of their husbands. They gave up everything for the satisfaction of Kṛṣṇa, showing their strong attachment to Kṛṣṇa to be as spotless as washed white cloth.

Page Title:Directed (Other Books)
Compiler:Visnu Murti, RupaManjari
Created:15 of Dec, 2011
Totals by Section:BG=0, SB=0, CC=0, OB=45, Lec=0, Con=0, Let=0
No. of Quotes:45