Spiritual relationship

Expressions researched:
"spiritual relationship" |"spiritual relationships"

BG Chapters 1 - 6

By māyā alone Arjuna thought that the temporary bodily relationship with his kinsmen was more important than his eternal spiritual relationship with Kṛṣṇa.

BG 4.35, Purport:

For want of sufficient knowledge in the absolute science, we are now covered with illusion, and therefore we think that we are separate from Kṛṣṇa. Although we are separated parts of Kṛṣṇa, we are nevertheless not different from Him. The bodily difference of the living entities is māyā, or not actual fact. We are all meant to satisfy Kṛṣṇa. By māyā alone Arjuna thought that the temporary bodily relationship with his kinsmen was more important than his eternal spiritual relationship with Kṛṣṇa. The whole teaching of the Gītā is targeted toward this end: that a living being, as Kṛṣṇa's eternal servitor, cannot be separated from Kṛṣṇa, and his sense of being an identity apart from Kṛṣṇa is called māyā. The living entities, as separate parts and parcels of the Supreme, have a purpose to fulfill. Having forgotten that purpose since time immemorial, they are situated in different bodies, as men, animals, demigods, etc. Such bodily differences arise from forgetfulness of the transcendental service of the Lord. But when one is engaged in transcendental service through Kṛṣṇa consciousness, one becomes at once liberated from this illusion.

SB Canto 3

Although a devotee sees all living entities on the level of spiritual existence, he is not interested in associating with everyone. Simply because a tiger is part and parcel of the Supreme Lord does not mean that we embrace him because of his spiritual relationship with the Supreme Lord.

SB 3.29.16, Purport:

Temple Deity worship is one of the functions of a devotee. He goes regularly to see the Deity nicely decorated, and with veneration and respect he touches the lotus feet of the Lord and presents offerings of worship, such as fruits, flowers and prayers. At the same time, to advance in devotional service, a devotee should see other living entities as spiritual sparks, parts and parcels of the Supreme Lord. A devotee is to offer respect to every entity that has a relationship with the Lord. Because every living entity originally has a relationship with the Lord as part and parcel, a devotee should try to see all living entities on the same equal level of spiritual existence. As stated in Bhagavad-gītā, a paṇḍita, one who is learned, sees equally a very learned brāhmaṇa, a śūdra, a hog, a dog and a cow. He does not see the body, which is only an outward dress. He does not see the dress of a brāhmaṇa, or that of a cow or of a hog. He sees the spiritual spark, part and parcel of the Supreme Lord. If a devotee does not see every living entity as part and parcel of the Supreme Lord, he is considered prākṛta-bhakta, a materialistic devotee. He is not completely situated on the spiritual platform; rather, he is in the lowest stage of devotion. He does, however, show all respect to the Deity.

Although a devotee sees all living entities on the level of spiritual existence, he is not interested in associating with everyone. Simply because a tiger is part and parcel of the Supreme Lord does not mean that we embrace him because of his spiritual relationship with the Supreme Lord. We must associate only with persons who have developed Kṛṣṇa consciousness.

CC Adi-lila

A class of so-called devotees known as sahajiyās try to imitate the Lord's pastimes, although they have no understanding of the amorous love in His expansions of pleasure potency. Their superficial imitation can create havoc on the path for the advancement of one's spiritual relationship with the Lord.

CC Adi 4.34, Purport:

A class of so-called devotees known as sahajiyās try to imitate the Lord's pastimes, although they have no understanding of the amorous love in His expansions of pleasure potency. Their superficial imitation can create havoc on the path for the advancement of one's spiritual relationship with the Lord. Material sexual indulgence can never be equated with spiritual love, which is in unadulterated goodness. The activities of the sahajiyās simply lower one deeper into the material contamination of the senses and mind. Kṛṣṇa's transcendental pastimes display eternal servitorship to Adhokṣaja, the Supreme Lord, who is beyond all conception through material senses. Materialistic conditioned souls do not understand the transcendental exchanges of love, but they like to indulge in sense gratification in the name of devotional service. The activities of the Supreme Lord can never be understood by irresponsible persons who think the pastimes of Rādhā and Kṛṣṇa to be ordinary affairs. The rāsa dance is arranged by Kṛṣṇa's internal potency yogamāyā, and it is beyond the grasp of the materially affected person. Trying to throw mud into transcendence with their perversity, the sahajiyās misinterpret the sayings tat-paratvena nirmalam (CC Madhya 19.170) and tat-paro bhavet. By misinterpreting tādṛśīḥ krīḍāḥ, they want to indulge in sex while pretending to imitate Lord Kṛṣṇa. But one must actually understand the imports of the words through the intelligence of the authorized gosvāmīs.

CC Madhya-lila

Śrīla Mādhavendra Purī was the spiritual master of Īśvara Purī, who was the spiritual master of Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu. Thus a spiritual relationship is established on the spiritual platform, without consideration of material inferiority or superiority.

CC Madhya 17.179, Purport:

The Kālawāras generally take wine and other intoxicants. Although they are vaiśyas, they are considered to belong to a lower class. The priests who guide the Kālawāras and the Sānwāḍas are called Sanoḍiyā brāhmaṇas. Śrīla Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura states that the word sānoyāḍa in Bengal indicates suvarṇa-vaṇik. In Bengal there are priests who guide the suvarṇa-vaṇik community, which is also considered a low class. There is little difference between the Sānwāḍas and the suvarṇa-vaṇiks. Generally the suvarṇa-vaṇiks are bankers dealing in gold and silver. In western India, the Āgarwālās also belong to the banking profession. This is the original business of the suvarṇa-vaṇik or Āgarwālā community. Historically, the Āgarwālās came from the up-country named Ayodha, and the suvarṇa-vaṇik community also came from Ayodha. It therefore appears that the suvarṇa-vaṇiks and the Āgarwālās belong to the same community. The Sanoḍiyā brāhmaṇas were the guides of the Kālawāras and Sānwāḍas. They are therefore considered to be lower-class brāhmaṇas, and a sannyāsī is not allowed to take alms or food from them. However, Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu accepted lunch cooked by a Sanoḍiyā brāhmaṇa simply because he belonged to Mādhavendra Purī’s community. Śrīla Mādhavendra Purī was the spiritual master of Īśvara Purī, who was the spiritual master of Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu. Thus a spiritual relationship is established on the spiritual platform, without consideration of material inferiority or superiority.

Nectar of Devotion

The childish propensity of stealing is there even in the Supreme Personality of Godhead, and therefore this propensity is not artificial. However, in the spiritual relationship there is no inebriety to this stealing propensity, as there is in the material world.

Nectar of Devotion 43:

In enjoying Kṛṣṇa's attitude of stealing butter very stealthily, mother Yaśodā experienced the ecstasy of maternal love by smelling His head, sometimes patting His body with her hand, sometimes offering blessings, sometimes ordering Him, sometimes gazing at Him, sometimes maintaining Him and sometimes giving Him good instructions not to become a thief. Such activities are in maternal ecstatic love. An important point to be observed in this connection is that the childish propensity of stealing is there even in the Supreme Personality of Godhead, and therefore this propensity is not artificial. However, in the spiritual relationship there is no inebriety to this stealing propensity, as there is in the material world.

Krsna, The Supreme Personality of Godhead

In a spiritual relationship, sense gratification is most insignificant. Anyone who desires a relationship of perverted sense gratification with Kṛṣṇa must be considered less intelligent. His mentality requires to be reformed.

Krsna Book 48:

After satisfying Kubjā with sweet words, Kṛṣṇa returned home with Uddhava. There is a warning in Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam that Kṛṣṇa is not very easily worshiped, for He is the Supreme Personality of Godhead, the chief among the viṣṇu-tattvas. To worship Kṛṣṇa or have association with Him is not very easy. Specifically, there is a warning for devotees attracted to Kṛṣṇa through conjugal love: it is not good for them to desire sense gratification by direct association with Kṛṣṇa. Actually, the activities of sense gratification are material. In the spiritual world there are symptoms like kissing and embracing, but there is no sense-gratificatory process as it exists in the material world. This warning is specifically for those known as sahajiyās, who take it for granted that Kṛṣṇa is an ordinary human being. They desire to enjoy sex life with Him in a perverted way. In a spiritual relationship, sense gratification is most insignificant. Anyone who desires a relationship of perverted sense gratification with Kṛṣṇa must be considered less intelligent. His mentality requires to be reformed.

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

Philosophers with a poor fund of knowledge cannot conceive of these positive spiritual relationships between the Lord and the all-spiritual living beings, and thus they simply think in terms of negating material relationships.

Mukunda-mala-stotra mantra 6, Purport:

Therefore any relationship the Lord has with His many devotees—whether fatherhood, sonhood, or any other—is not at all material. The Lord is pure spirit, and only when the living being is in his pure spiritual state can he have all sorts of relationships with Him. Philosophers with a poor fund of knowledge cannot conceive of these positive spiritual relationships between the Lord and the all-spiritual living beings, and thus they simply think in terms of negating material relationships. In this way such philosophers naturally adopt the concept of impersonalism.

The pure devotee, being in full knowledge of spiritual life, simultaneously rejects material relationships and cultivates his spiritual relationship with the Lord.

Mukunda-mala-stotra mantra 6, Purport:

By contrast, a pure devotee like King Kulaśekhara has complete knowledge of both matter and spirit. He does not say that everything material is false, yet he has nothing to do with anything material, from heaven down to hell. He fully understands the statement in the Bhagavad-gītā that from the lowest planets up to Brahmaloka, the highest planet in the universe, there is no spiritual bliss, which the living beings hanker for. Therefore the pure devotee, being in full knowledge of spiritual life, simultaneously rejects material relationships and cultivates his spiritual relationship with the Lord. In other words, the spiritual knowledge a devotee possesses not only allows him to reject material existence, but it also provides him with an understanding of the reality of positive, eternal spiritual existence. This is the understanding King Kulaśekhara expresses in this prayer.

Srimad-Bhagavatam Lectures

Kuntīdevī did not say that "You are my nephew." No. That is not spiritual relationship. But Kṛṣṇa-sakha, Arjuna, is related with Kṛṣṇa eternally. Eternally as friend.

Lecture on SB 1.8.43 -- Mayapura, October 23, 1974:

Therefore Kṛṣṇa's name is Kṛṣṇa-sakha here. Here it is said that śrī-kṛṣṇa kṛṣṇa-sakha: "My dear Kṛṣṇa, You are..." Kuntīdevī did not say that "You are my nephew." No. That is not spiritual relationship. But Kṛṣṇa-sakha, Arjuna, is related with Kṛṣṇa eternally. Eternally as friend. How eternally? What is the proof? There is in the Bhagavad-gītā. When Arjuna inquired... When Kṛṣṇa said that "This system of yoga I explained to the sun-god millions of years ago," imaṁ vivasvate yogaṁ proktavān aham avyayam (BG 4.1), at that time, to clear the idea, Arjuna, for our sake, he inquired, "My dear Kṛṣṇa, we are contemporaries. You are born the other day along with me. How can I believe that millions of years ago You spoke this philosophy to the sun-god? So what is the answer?" The answer is, "My dear Arjuna, both you and Me, we take so many incarnations, but you forget. But I do not forget. I do not forget." Therefore Arjuna is always with Kṛṣṇa. It is not that in this age, this millennium, Arjuna is friend of Kṛṣṇa. No. He is eternal friend. He has made friendship with Kṛṣṇa. It is never to be broken. It is never to be broken. So if you want to relish the rasa, the mellow, the taste of friendship, make friendship with Kṛṣṇa. Kṛṣṇa is prepared to make you friend. Therefore He comes: "Please come. Become My friend." But we are denying. Make Kṛṣṇa your friend. Make Kṛṣṇa your son. Then you'll never lament, "Oh, my son is lost" or "My son has gone bad." No.

It is called gṛhastha-āśrama. Whenever we speak of āśrama, it has got spiritual relationship.

Lecture on SB 2.1.2-5 -- Montreal, October 23, 1968:

The same subject matter, that those who are too much attached in the family affairs, gṛheṣu gṛha-medhinām. Gṛhamedhī means one who has made his center of activity home. He is called gṛhamedhī. There are two words. One word is gṛhastha, and one word is gṛhamedhī. What is the significance of these two words? Gṛhastha means one... Not only gṛhastha. It is called gṛhastha-āśrama. Whenever we speak of āśrama, it has got spiritual relationship. So all these four divisions of social orders-brahmacārī-āśrama, gṛhastha-āśrama, vānaprastha-āśrama, sannyāsa-āśrama... Āśrama. Āśrama means... Whenever... Āśrama, this word, has become little popular in your country also. Āśrama means situation for spiritual cultivation. Generally, we mean that. And here also, there are so many yoga-āśrama. I have seen in New York so many āśramas. "New York Yoga Āśrama," "Yoga Society," like that. Āśrama means it has got a spiritual connection. It doesn't matter whether a man... Gṛhastha means living with family, wife and children.

I have got hundreds and thousands of servants who I haven't got to pay. This is spiritual relationship. This is spiritual relationship. They are serving not for being paid. What I have got? I am poor Indian. What can I pay? But the servant is out of love, spiritual love.

Lecture on SB 3.25.38 -- Bombay, December 7, 1974:

So if you love Kṛṣṇa, there will be no destruction like the material things. Either you love Him as your master... Here master, so long you are serving, the master is pleased. And the servant is pleased so long you are paying. But in the spiritual world there is no such thing. If I cannot serve under certain condition, then master is pleased. And the servant also—the master does not pay—he is also pleased. That is called oneness, Absolute. That is... This example is here. There are so many students in this institution. We are not paying anything, but they will do everything for me. This is spiritual relationship. That paṇḍita Jawaharlal Nehru, when he was in London, his father gave him, the Motilal Nehru, three hundred rupees for keeping a servant. Then once he went to London, so he saw that the servant is not there. The paṇḍita says, "Where is your servant?" He says, "What is the use of servant? I have no, nothing to do. I do it personally." "No, no. I wanted that an Englishman should be your servant." So he has to pay for it. This is an example. I have got hundreds and thousands of servants who I haven't got to pay. This is spiritual relationship. This is spiritual relationship. They are serving not for being paid. What I have got? I am poor Indian. What can I pay? But the servant is out of love, spiritual love. And I am also teaching them without any salary. This is spiritual. Pūrṇasya pūrṇam ādāya (Īśo Invocation). Everything is full.

Unless that spiritual want is fulfilled, unless that spiritual relationship is reestablished, nobody can be happy.

Lecture on SB 7.9.11 -- Montreal, August 17, 1968:

So Kṛṣṇa consciousness means to be rightly situated in the original consciousness that we are all sons of God, Kṛṣṇa. We have got eternal relationship with Him and He is the richest, the most opulent. As a rich man's son has no scarcity, no want, everything is supplied amply... Just like the Americans, they are... American or many other Western countries, the young men, they belong to a rich nation, so practically they have no want. But still why they are becoming hopeless and confused? Because this material want is not all. There is spiritual want. Unless that spiritual want is fulfilled, unless that spiritual relationship is reestablished, nobody can be happy. So in order to make us happy, Kṛṣṇa says that "Begin with little flower, little water, or little fruit, and try to offer Me."