Not even a drop of love for Krsna

Expressions researched:
"any drop of love for Krsna" |"not even a drop of love for Krsna"

CC Antya-lila

Wherever there is a relationship of love of Godhead, the natural symptoms are that the devotee does not think himself a devotee, but always thinks that he has not even a drop of love for Kṛṣṇa.

CC Antya 4.173, Purport:

A devotee on the topmost platform of devotional service always humbly thinks that he is not rendering any devotional service. He thinks that he is poor in devotional service and that his body is material. On the other hand, those known as the sahajiyās foolishly think that their material bodies are transcendental. Because of this, they are always bereft of the association of pure devotees, and thus they cannot behave like Vaiṣṇavas. Observing the defects of the sahajiyās, Śrīla Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura has sung as follows in his book Kalyāṇa-kalpataru:

āmi ta' vaiṣṇava, e-buddhi ha-ile,

amānī nā haba āmi

pratiṣṭhāśā āsi’, hṛdaya dūṣibe,

ha-iba niraya-gāmī

nije śreṣṭha jāni’, ucchiṣṭādi-dāne,

habe abhimāna bhāra

tāi śiṣya tava, thākiyā sarvadā,

nā la-iba pūjā kāra

“'If I think I am a Vaiṣṇava, I shall look forward to receiving respect from others. And if the desire for fame and reputation pollutes my heart, certainly I shall go to hell. By giving others the remnants of my food, I shall consider myself superior and shall be burdened with the weight of false pride. Therefore, always remaining your surrendered disciple, I shall not accept worship from anyone else.'" Śrīla Kṛṣṇadāsa Kavirāja Gosvāmī has written (Antya-līlā 20.28):

premera svabhāva—yāhāṅ premera sambandha

sei māne,—"kṛṣṇe mora nāhi prema-gandha"

"'Wherever there is a relationship of love of Godhead, the natural symptoms are that the devotee does not think himself a devotee, but always thinks that he has not even a drop of love for Kṛṣṇa.'"

Wherever there is a relationship of love of Godhead, its natural symptom is that the devotee does not think himself a devotee. Instead, he always thinks that he has not even a drop of love for Kṛṣṇa.

CC Antya 20.28, Translation and Purport:

Wherever there is a relationship of love of Godhead, its natural symptom is that the devotee does not think himself a devotee. Instead, he always thinks that he has not even a drop of love for Kṛṣṇa.

Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura comments that persons who are actually very poor because they possess not even a drop of love of Godhead or pure devotional service falsely advertise themselves as great devotees, although they cannot at any time relish the transcendental bliss of devotional service. A class of so-called devotees known as prākṛta-sahajiyās sometimes display devotional symptoms to exhibit their good fortune. They are pretending, however, because these devotional features are only external. The prākṛta-sahajiyās exhibit these symptoms to advertise their so-called advancement in love of Kṛṣṇa, but instead of praising the prākṛta-sahajiyās for their symptoms of transcendental ecstasy, pure devotees do not like to associate with them. It is not advisable to equate the prākṛta-sahajiyās with pure devotees. When one is actually advanced in ecstatic love of Kṛṣṇa, he does not try to advertise himself. Instead, he endeavors more and more to render service to the Lord.

Bhagavad-gita As It Is Lectures

If I had any drop of love for Kṛṣṇa, how I could live so long without Kṛṣṇa?

Lecture on BG 16.13-15 -- Hawaii, February 8, 1975:

But when we are preaching, we have to come to the second stage. There are three stages of devotional life. The first stage, or the lower stage, the middle stage, and the top stage. So this kind of conception, that "Nobody is my enemy," that is on the topmost stage. That is not to be imitated. When you are preaching, you have to come to the middle stage. Even if you are on the top stage, you have to come on the middle stage because you have to discriminate: "Here is a devotee; here is a demon." On the top stage there is no such thing as demon and devotee. The top stage, the devotee sees: "Everyone is engaged in Kṛṣṇa's service. Simply I am not engaged." This is topmost devotee's vision, that "I am lacking Kṛṣṇa's devotion."

Just like Rādhārāṇī thinks that "All others, they are engaged in Kṛṣṇa's devotion, but I could not." Caitanya Mahāprabhu said. Caitanya Mahāprabhu said that "I have not a pinch of devotion to Kṛṣṇa. Then if you say, 'Why you are crying?' that is to make a show." Caitanya Mahāprabhu said that "I am crying for Kṛṣṇa just to advertise Myself that I have become a big... But actually I have not a pinch of devotion to Kṛṣṇa." "No you are so great devotee. Everyone says." "No. Everyone may say, but I am not." "Why you are not?" "Now, because without Kṛṣṇa, still I am living. That is the proof that I have no love for Kṛṣṇa." This is Caitanya Mahāprabhu's statement. "If I had any drop of love for Kṛṣṇa, how I could live so long without Kṛṣṇa?" Śūnyāyitaṁ jagat sarvaṁ govinda-viraheṇa me. So this is love of Kṛṣṇa, that "How can I live?"—separation from Kṛṣṇa. This is Caitanya Mahāprabhu's philosophy. And the Gosvāmīs followed them. They never said that "Now I have seen Kṛṣṇa." Never said. The Gosvāmīs... Caitanya Mahāprabhu also said that "I was dreaming Kṛṣṇa. Why you got Me awakened? I lost the chance." But the Gosvāmīs, they said that

he rādhe vraja-devike ca lalite he nanda-sūno kutaḥ

śrī-govardhana-kalpa-pādapa-tale kālindī-vane kutaḥ

ghoṣantāv iti sarvato vraja-pure khedair mahā-vihvalau

vande rūpa-sanātanau raghu-yugau śrī-jīva-gopālakau

They were simply feeling separation. In Vṛndāvana they lived, but they never said, "Last night I saw Kṛṣṇa was dancing." Never said. They said that "Kṛṣṇa and gopīs, Rādhārāṇī, where you are all?" He rādhe vraja-devike ca lalite he nanda-sūno kutaḥ: "Where you are?" Kālindī-vane kutaḥ govardhana-kalpa-pādapa-tale: "Either on the..., near the Govardhana Hill or on the bank of the river Yamunā, where you are?" This is called bhajana, devotion in separation, feeling separation. So in this way we shall increase our aspiration more and more. That is required. That āśā, that hope, that expectation, will lead us to the topmost platform of devotion.