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Service to God (Books)

Bhagavad-gita As It Is

BG Chapters 7 - 12

BG 9.26, Purport:

Here Lord Kṛṣṇa, having established that He is the only enjoyer, the primeval Lord and the real object of all sacrificial offerings, reveals what types of sacrifices He desires to be offered. If one wishes to engage in devotional service to the Supreme in order to be purified and to reach the goal of life—the transcendental loving service of God—then one should find out what the Lord desires of him. One who loves Kṛṣṇa will give Him whatever He wants, and he avoids offering anything which is undesirable or unasked. Thus meat, fish and eggs should not be offered to Kṛṣṇa. If He desired such things as offerings, He would have said so. Instead He clearly requests that a leaf, fruit, flowers and water be given to Him, and He says of this offering, "I will accept it." Therefore, we should understand that He will not accept meat, fish and eggs. Vegetables, grains, fruits, milk and water are the proper foods for human beings and are prescribed by Lord Kṛṣṇa Himself. Whatever else we eat cannot be offered to Him, since He will not accept it. Thus we cannot be acting on the level of loving devotion if we offer such foods.

Srimad-Bhagavatam

SB Canto 1

SB 1.6.24, Purport:

Devotional service rendered to the Personality of Godhead never goes in vain. Since the Personality of Godhead is eternal, intelligence applied in His service or anything done in His relation is also permanent. In the Bhagavad-gītā it is said that such transcendental service rendered unto the Personality of Godhead accumulates birth after birth, and when the devotee is fully matured, the total service counted together makes him eligible to enter into the association of the Personality of Godhead. Such accumulation of God's service is never vanquished, but increases till fully matured.

SB Canto 8

SB 8.9.28, Purport:

It is also said, phalena paricīyate: one's success or defeat in any activity is understood by its result. There are many karmīs in the dress of devotees, but the Supreme Personality of Godhead can detect their purpose. The karmīs want to use the property of the Lord for their selfish sense gratification, but a devotee endeavors to use the Lord's property for God's service. Therefore a devotee is always distinct from the karmīs, although the karmīs may dress like devotees. As confirmed in Bhagavad-gītā (3.9), yajñārthāt karmaṇo 'nyatra loko 'yaṁ karma-bandhanaḥ. One who works for Lord Viṣṇu is free from this material world, and after giving up his body he goes back home, back to Godhead. A karmī, however, although externally working like a devotee, is entangled in his nondevotional activity, and thus he suffers the tribulations of material existence. Thus from the results achieved by the karmīs and devotees, one can understand the presence of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, who acts differently for the karmīs and jñānīs than for the devotees. The author of Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta therefore says:

Sri Caitanya-caritamrta

CC Adi-lila

CC Adi 7.14, Purport:

Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu. In another place in the Caitanya-caritāmṛta (CC Adi 5.142) it is said, ekale īśvara kṛṣṇa, āra saba bhṛtya: the only supreme master is Kṛṣṇa, and all others, both viṣṇu-tattva and jīva-tattva, engage in the service of the Lord. Both the viṣṇu-tattva (as Nityānanda Prabhu and Advaita) and the jīva-tattva (śrīvāsādi-gaura-bhakta-vṛnda) engage in the service of the Lord, but one must distinguish between the viṣṇu-tattva servitors and the jīva-tattva servitors. The jīva-tattva servitor, the spiritual master, is actually the servitor God. As explained in previous verses, in the absolute world there are no such differences, yet one must observe these differences in order to distinguish the Supreme from His subordinates.

Other Books by Srila Prabhupada

Nectar of Devotion

Nectar of Devotion 30:

When a person is fully satisfied due to attaining knowledge, transcending all distress or achieving his desired goal of life in transcendental devotional service to God, his state of endurance or steady-mindedness is called dhṛti. At this stage one is not perturbed by any amount of loss, nor does anything appear to be unachieved by him.

According to the opinion of Bhartṛhari, a learned scholar, when a person is elevated to this state of endurance, he thinks as follows: "I do not wish to be a highly posted government servant. I shall prefer to remain naked, without proper garments. I shall prefer to lie down on the ground without any mattress. And despite all these disadvantages, I shall refuse to serve anyone, even the government." In other words, when one is in ecstatic love with the Personality of Godhead, he can endure any kind of disadvantages calculated under the material concept of life.

Nectar of Instruction

Nectar of Instruction 3, Purport:

Under the direction of the bona fide spiritual master, one has to make everything favorable for Kṛṣṇa's service. For example, at present we are using a dictaphone. The materialist who invented this machine intended it for businessmen or writers of mundane subject matters. He certainly never thought of using the dictaphone in God's service, but we are using this dictaphone to write Kṛṣṇa conscious literature. Of course, the manufacture of the dictaphone is wholly within the energy of Kṛṣṇa. All the parts of the instrument, including the electronic functions, are made from different combinations and interactions of the five basic types of material energy—namely, bhūmi, jala, agni, vāyu and ākāśa. The inventor used his brain to make this complicated machine, and his brain, as well as the ingredients, were supplied by Kṛṣṇa. According to the statement of Kṛṣṇa, mat-sthāni sarva-bhūtāni: (BG 9.4) "Everything is depending on My energy."

Krsna, The Supreme Personality of Godhead

Krsna Book Words from Apple:

There are many yogic Paths—Raja, Jnana, Hatha, Kriya, Karma, Bhakti—which are all acclaimed by the MASTERS of each method.

SWAMI BHAKTIVEDANTA is, as his title says, a BHAKTI Yogi following the path of DEVOTION. By serving GOD through each thought, word and DEED, and by chanting HIS Holy Names, the devotee quickly develops God-consciousness. By chanting

Hare Kṛṣṇa, Hare Kṛṣṇa
Kṛṣṇa Kṛṣṇa, Hare Hare
Hare Rāma, Hare Rāma
Rāma Rāma, Hare Hare

One inevitably arrives at KṚṢṆA Consciousness. (The proof of the pudding is in the eating!)

I request that you take advantage of this book, KṚṢṆA, and enter into its understanding. I also request that you make an appointment to meet your God now, through the self-liberating process of YOGA (UNION) and GIVE PEACE A CHANCE.

Renunciation Through Wisdom

Renunciation Through Wisdom 2.3:

He vehemently opposed the idea of constructing a temple in some quiet spot and leading a passive and uneventful life in the monastery. He represented perfectly the ideal of utilizing 100 percent of one's energy in God's service for the spiritual upliftment of humanity. A certain Gujarati friend offered to build him a temple in Ville Parle, a quiet and remote section of Bombay. He immediately refused. We had the greatest good fortune of seeing him act and preach in this way. And now it is our ill fate that after the passing away of Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura, the exemplar of patita-pāvana, we have returned to our lowly, fallen ways. Is there a glimmer of hope for our deliverance?

Page Title:Service to God (Books)
Compiler:Mayapur, RupaManjari
Created:04 of Oct, 2011
Totals by Section:BG=1, SB=2, CC=1, OB=4, Lec=0, Con=0, Let=0
No. of Quotes:8