The knowledge taught in that disciplic succession actually comes from the Lord Himself, and if the knowledge descends unbroken, it is perfect. Although we may not be in touch with the original personality who first imparted the knowledge, we may receive the same knowledge through this process of transmission. In Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam it is stated that Kṛṣṇa, the Absolute Truth, the Personality of Godhead, transmitted transcendental knowledge into the heart of Brahmā. This, then, is one way knowledge is received—through the heart. Thus there are two processes by which one may receive knowledge: One depends directly upon the Supreme Personality of Godhead, who is situated as the Supersoul within the heart of all living entities, and the other depends upon the guru, or spiritual master, who is an expansion of Kṛṣṇa. Thus Kṛṣṇa transmits information both from within and from without. We simply have to receive it. If knowledge is received in this way, it doesn’t matter whether it is inconceivable or not.
Transcendental knowledge (CC)
Sri Caitanya-caritamrta
CC Preface and Introduction
Although we may not be in touch with the original personality who first imparted the knowledge, we may receive the same knowledge through this process of transmission. In Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam it is stated that Kṛṣṇa, the Absolute Truth, the Personality of Godhead, transmitted transcendental knowledge into the heart of Brahmā. This, then, is one way knowledge is received—through the heart. Thus there are two processes by which one may receive knowledge: One depends directly upon the Supreme Personality of Godhead, who is situated as the Supersoul within the heart of all living entities, and the other depends upon the guru, or spiritual master, who is an expansion of Kṛṣṇa. Thus Kṛṣṇa transmits information both from within and from without. We simply have to receive it. If knowledge is received in this way, it doesn’t matter whether it is inconceivable or not.
CC Adi-lila
“Please hear attentively what I shall speak to you, for transcendental knowledge about Me is not only scientific but also full of mysteries.
Transcendental knowledge of Śrī Kṛṣṇa is deeper than the impersonal knowledge of Brahman, for it includes knowledge of not only His form and personality but also everything else related to Him. There is nothing in existence not related to Śrī Kṛṣṇa. In a sense, there is nothing but Śrī Kṛṣṇa, and yet nothing is Śrī Kṛṣṇa save and except His primeval personality. This knowledge constitutes a complete transcendental science, and Viṣṇu wanted to give Brahmājī full knowledge about that science.
"A person interested in transcendental knowledge must therefore always directly and indirectly inquire about it to know the all-pervading truth."
It is indicated that to learn the transcendental science, it is imperative that one avoid the company of undesirable persons and always seek the company of saints and sages who are able to impart lessons of transcendental knowledge. The potent words of such realized souls penetrate the heart, thereby eradicating all misgivings accumulated through years of undesirable association. For a neophyte devotee there are two kinds of persons whose association is undesirable: (1) gross materialists who constantly engage in sense gratification and (2) unbelievers who do not serve the Supreme Personality of Godhead but serve their senses and their mental whims in terms of their speculative habits. Intelligent persons seeking transcendental realization should very scrupulously avoid their company.
The impersonal Brahman is the goal of those who cultivate the study of books of transcendental knowledge, and the Supersoul is the goal of those who perform the yoga practices. One who knows the Supreme Personality of Godhead surpasses realization of both Brahman and Paramātmā because Bhagavān is the ultimate platform of absolute knowledge.
The Personality of Godhead is the complete form of sac-cid-ānanda (full life, knowledge and bliss). By realization of the sat portion of the Complete Whole (unlimited existence), one realizes the impersonal Brahman aspect of the Lord. By realization of the cit portion of the Complete Whole (unlimited knowledge), one can realize the localized aspect of the Lord, the Paramātmā. But neither of these partial realizations of the Complete Whole can help one realize ānanda, or complete bliss. Without such realization of ānanda, knowledge of the Absolute Truth is incomplete.
"My Lord, You kill all the enemies of the world in Your multifarious incarnations in the families of men, animals, demigods, ṛṣis, aquatics and so on. Thus You illuminate the worlds with transcendental knowledge. In the Age of Kali, O Mahāpuruṣa, You sometimes appear in a covered incarnation. Therefore You are known as Tri-yuga (one who appears in only three yugas)."
(5) From the Kṛṣṇa-yāmala-tantra: puṇya-kṣetre nava-dvīpe bhaviṣyāmi śacī-sutaḥ. "I shall appear in the holy land of Navadvīpa as the son of Śacī-devī."
(6) From the Vāyu Purāṇa: kalau saṅkīrtanārambhe bhaviṣyāmi śacī-sutaḥ. "In the Age of Kali when the saṅkīrtana movement is inaugurated, I shall descend as the son of Śacī-devī."
To create such a change of heart, conclusive discussion about Śrī Kṛṣṇa and His potencies is absolutely necessary. False devotees may think that simply shedding tears will lead one to the transcendental plane, even if one has not had a factual change in heart, but such a practice is useless if there is no transcendental realization. False devotees, lacking the conclusion of transcendental knowledge, think that artificially shedding tears will deliver them. Similarly, other false devotees think that studying books of the previous ācāryas is unadvisable, like studying dry empiric philosophies. But Śrīla Jīva Gosvāmī, following the previous ācāryas, has inculcated the conclusions of the scriptures in the six theses called the Ṣaṭ-sandarbhas. False devotees who have very little knowledge of such conclusions fail to achieve pure devotion for want of zeal in accepting the favorable directions for devotional service given by self-realized devotees. Such false devotees are like impersonalists, who also consider devotional service no better than ordinary fruitive actions.
“Your inconceivable potency keeps You unattached to the mundane qualities. Surpassing all conceptions of material contemplation, Your pure transcendental knowledge keeps You beyond all speculative processes. By Your inconceivable potency, there is nothing contradictory in You.
"People may sometimes think of You as impersonal or personal, but You are one. For persons who are confused or bewildered, a rope may appear to manifest itself as different kinds of snakes. For similar confused persons who are uncertain about You, You create various philosophical methods in pursuance of their uncertain positions."
We should always remember the differences between spiritual and material actions. The Supreme Lord, being all-spiritual, can perform any act without extraneous help. In the material world, if we want to manufacture an earthen pot, we need the ingredients, a machine and also a laborer. But we should not extend this idea to the actions of the Supreme Lord, for He can create anything in a moment without that which appears necessary in our own conception.
In his Anubhāṣya, Śrī Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Gosvāmī says that the actual effect that will be visible as soon as one achieves transcendental knowledge is that he will immediately become free from the clutches of māyā and fully engage in the service of the Lord. Unless one serves the Supreme Personality of Godhead Mukunda, one cannot become free from fruitive activities under the external energy. However, when one chants the holy name of the Lord offenselessly, one can realize a transcendental position that is completely aloof from the material conception of life. Rendering service to the Lord, a devotee relates to the Supreme Personality of Godhead in one of five relationships—namely, śānta, dāsya, sakhya, vātsalya or mādhurya—and thus he relishes transcendental bliss in that relationship. Such a relationship certainly transcends the body and mind. When one realizes that the holy name of the Lord is identical with the Supreme Person, he becomes completely eligible to chant the holy name of the Lord. Such an ecstatic chanter and dancer must be considered to have a direct relationship with the Lord.
Śrīla Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura has given a summary of this chapter in his Amṛta-pravāha-bhāṣya: "In the Fourteenth Chapter there is a description of how Lord Caitanya Mahāprabhu enjoyed His childhood pastimes—crawling, crying, eating dirt and giving intelligence to His mother, favoring a brāhmaṇa guest, riding on the shoulders of two thieves and misleading them to His own house, and, on the plea of being diseased, taking prasādam in the house of Hiraṇya and Jagadīśa on the Ekādaśī day. The chapter further describes how He displayed Himself as a naughty boy, how when His mother fainted He brought a coconut to her on His head, how He joked with girls of the same age on the banks of the Ganges, how He accepted worshipful paraphernalia from Śrīmatī Lakṣmīdevī, how He sat down in a garbage pit and instructed His mother in transcendental knowledge, how He left the pit on the order of His mother, and how He dealt with His father with full affection."
When the Lord returned home, bringing with Him great wealth and many followers, He spoke to Śacīdevī about transcendental knowledge to relieve her of the grief she was suffering.
Now that the time is over, I am going elsewhere, according to Your direction. I am Your eternal servant, a dependent living being. I must act only according to Your desire. Beyond Your desire, I cannot do anything. I have no such power.” Hearing these words of the dead son, all the members of Śrīvāsa Ṭhākura's family received transcendental knowledge. Thus there was no cause for lamentation. This transcendental knowledge is described in the Bhagavad-gītā (2.13): tathā dehāntara-prāptir dhīras tatra na muhyati. When someone dies, he accepts another body; therefore sober persons do not lament. After the discourse between the dead boy and Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu, funeral ceremonies were performed, and Lord Caitanya assured Śrīvāsa Ṭhākura, "You have lost one son, but Nityānanda Prabhu and I are your eternal sons. We shall never be able to give up your company." This is an instance of a transcendental relationship with Kṛṣṇa. We have eternal transcendental relationships with Kṛṣṇa as His servants, friends, fathers, sons or conjugal lovers.
CC Madhya-lila
It is therefore necessary for a spiritual master in the gṛhastha-āśrama to be a strict Vaiṣṇava. A spiritual master from the sannyāsa order has very little opportunity to perform arcana, Deity worship, but when one accepts a spiritual master from the transcendental sannyāsīs, the principle of Deity worship is not at all neglected. To implement this conclusion, Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu gave us His opinion in the verse kibā vipra kibā nyāsī, etc. This indicates that the Lord understood the weakness of society in its maintaining that only a gṛhastha-brāhmaṇa should be a spiritual master. Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu indicated that it does not matter whether the spiritual master is a gṛhastha (householder), a sannyāsī or even a śūdra. A spiritual master simply must be conversant in the essence of the śāstra; he must understand the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Only then can one become a spiritual master. Dīkṣā actually means initiating a disciple with transcendental knowledge by which he becomes freed from all material contamination.
"My Lord, You kill all the enemies of the world in Your multifarious incarnations in the families of men, animals, demigods, ṛṣis, aquatics and so on. Thus You illuminate the worlds with transcendental knowledge. In the Age of Kali, O Mahāpuruṣa, You sometimes appear in a covered incarnation. Therefore You are known as Triyuga (one who appears in only three yugas)."
Śrīla Śrīdhara Svāmī has also verified that Lord Viṣṇu appears in the Age of Kali but does not act as He does in other ages. Lord Viṣṇu incarnates for two purposes: paritrāṇāya sādhūnāṁ vināśāya ca duṣkṛtām (BG 4.8). That is, He comes to engage in pastimes with His devotees and to annihilate the demons. These purposes are visible in the Satya, Tretā and Dvāpara yugas, but in Kali-yuga the Lord appears disguised. He does not directly kill demons and give protection to the faithful. Because the Lord is not directly perceived in Kali-yuga but is directly known in the other three yugas, His name is Triyuga.
The word brāhmaṇa-mūrtinā in this verse refers to the founder of Māyāvāda philosophy, Śaṅkarācārya, who was born in the Mālabara district of southern India. Māyāvāda philosophy states that the Supreme Lord, the living entities and the cosmic manifestation are all transformations of illusory energy. To support this atheistic theory, the Māyāvādīs cite false scriptures, which make people bereft of transcendental knowledge and addicted to fruitive activities and mental speculation.
A materialistic person with material opulences should not be very proud or puffed up before a transcendental devotee. If one approaches a transcendental devotee on the strength of one's material heritage, opulence, education and beauty and does not offer respect to the advanced devotee of the Lord, the Vaiṣṇava devotee may offer formal respects to such a materially puffed-up person, but he may not deliver transcendental knowledge to him. Indeed, the devotee sees him as a non-brāhmaṇa or śūdra. Such a puffed-up person cannot understand the science of Kṛṣṇa. A proud person is deceived in transcendental life and, despite having attained a human form, will again glide into hellish conditions. By His personal example, Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu explains how one should be submissive and humble before a Vaiṣṇava, even though one may be situated on a high platform. Such is the teaching of Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu as the ācārya of the world, the supreme spiritual master and teacher.
This instruction is meant for those who are overly dependent on the mundane social order and is suitable for those who want to remain in mundane life. If one understands the truth of Kṛṣṇa consciousness and seriously desires to attain transcendental knowledge for the perfection of life, he can accept a spiritual master from any social status, provided the spiritual master is fully conversant with the science of Kṛṣṇa. Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura also states that although one is situated as a brāhmaṇa, kṣatriya, vaiśya, śūdra, brahmacārī, vānaprastha, gṛhastha or sannyāsī, if he is conversant in the science of Kṛṣṇa he can become a spiritual master as vartma-pradarśaka-guru, dīkṣā-guru or śikṣā-guru. The spiritual master who first gives information about spiritual life is called the vartma-pradarśaka-guru, the spiritual master who initiates according to the regulations of the śāstras is called the dīkṣā-guru, and the spiritual master who gives instructions for elevation is called the śikṣā-guru. Factually the qualifications of a spiritual master depend on his knowledge of the science of Kṛṣṇa. It does not matter whether he is a brāhmaṇa, kṣatriya, sannyāsī or śūdra.
Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura says that material lust should never be attributed to Kṛṣṇa, who is full of transcendental knowledge. Material lust cannot be engaged in the service of the Lord, for it is applicable to materialists, not to Kṛṣṇa. Only prema, or love of Godhead, is applicable for the satisfaction of Kṛṣṇa. Prema is full service rendered unto the Lord. The lusty affairs of the gopīs actually constitute the topmost love of Godhead because the gopīs never act for their own personal satisfaction. They are simply pleased by engaging other gopīs in the service of the Lord. The gopīs derive more transcendental pleasure from indirectly engaging other gopīs in the service of Kṛṣṇa than from engaging in His service themselves. That is the difference between material lust and love of Godhead. Lust applies to the material world, and love of Godhead applies only to Kṛṣṇa.
Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu found Rāmānanda Rāya to be the best authority in transcendental knowledge of the loving affairs between Rādhā and Kṛṣṇa. In this verse the Lord actually states that Rāmānanda Rāya was the limit of this knowledge.
Education in Kṛṣṇa consciousness is always transcendental and is the best of all forms of education. Material education aims at increasing the activities of material sense gratification. Beyond material sense gratification is another negative form of knowledge called brahma-vidyā, or impersonal transcendental knowledge. But beyond that brahma-vidyā, or knowledge of the impersonal Brahman, is knowledge of devotional service to the Supreme Lord, Viṣṇu. This knowledge is higher. And higher still is devotional service to Lord Kṛṣṇa, which is the topmost form of education. According to Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam (4.29.49), tat karma hari-toṣaṁ yat sā vidyā tan-matir yayā: “Work meant for pleasing the Supreme Lord is the best, and education that enhances one's Kṛṣṇa consciousness is the best.”
By hearing the talks between Rāmānanda Rāya and Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu, one becomes enlightened with the transcendental knowledge of the mellows of Rādhā and Kṛṣṇa's pastimes. Thus one can develop unalloyed love for the lotus feet of Rādhā and Kṛṣṇa.
He simply admits his indebtedness to the notes taken by Svarūpa Dāmodara, Raghunātha dāsa Gosvāmī and other authoritative persons. This is the way of writing transcendental literatures, which are never meant for so-called scholars and research workers. The process is mahā-jano yena gataḥ sa panthāḥ: one has to strictly follow great personalities and ācāryas. Ācārya-vān puruṣo veda: one who has the favor of the ācārya knows everything. This statement made by Kavirāja Gosvāmī is very valuable for all pure devotees. Sometimes the prākṛtā sahajiyās claim that they have heard the truth from their guru. But one cannot have transcendental knowledge simply by hearing from a guru who is not bona fide. The guru must be bona fide, and he must have heard from his own bona fide guru. Only then will his message be accepted as bona fide. Lord Kṛṣṇa confirms this in the Bhagavad-gītā (4.1):
- śrī-bhagavān uvāca
- imaṁ vivasvate yogaṁ proktavān aham avyayam
- vivasvān manave prāha manur ikṣvākave ’bravīt
"The Supreme Lord said, "I instructed this imperishable science of yoga to the sun-god, Vivasvān, and Vivasvān instructed it to Manu, the father of mankind, and Manu in turn instructed it to Ikṣvāku.""
"A human being who identifies his body made of three elements with his self, who considers the by-products of his body to be his kinsmen, who considers the land of his birth worshipable, and who goes to a place of pilgrimage simply to take a bath rather than to meet men of transcendental knowledge there is to be considered like an ass or a cow."
These are some Vedic statements about spiritual substance. Spiritual substance cannot be seen by the unintelligent, because they do not have the eyes or the mentality to see the spirit soul. Consequently they think that there is no such thing as spirit. But the followers of the Vedic injunctions take their information from Vedic statements, such as the verses from the Kaṭha Upaniṣad and Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam quoted above..
"Dīkṣā is the process by which one can awaken his transcendental knowledge and vanquish all reactions caused by sinful activity. A person expert in the study of the revealed scriptures knows this process as dīkṣā." The regulative principles of dīkṣā are explained in the Hari-bhakti-vilāsa (2.3–4) and the Bhakti-sandarbha (283). As stated:
- dvijānām anupetānāṁ svakarmādhyayanādiṣu
- yathādhikāro nāstīha syāc copanayanād anu
- tathātrādīkṣitānāṁ tu mantra-devārcanādiṣu
- nādhikāro ‘sty ataḥ kuryād ātmānaṁ śiva-saṁstutam
"Even though born in a brāhmaṇa family, one cannot engage in Vedic rituals without being initiated and having a sacred thread. Although born in a brāhmaṇa family, one becomes a brāhmaṇa only after initiation and the sacred thread ceremony. Unless one is initiated as a brāhmaṇa, one cannot worship the holy name properly."
"A human being who identifies the body made of three elements with his self, who considers the by-products of the body to be his kinsmen, who considers the land of birth as worshipable, and who goes to a place of pilgrimage simply to take a bath rather than meet men of transcendental knowledge there is to be considered like an ass or a cow."
Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu personally renovated Vṛndāvana-dhāma and advised His chief disciples, Rūpa and Sanātana, to develop it and open it to attract the spiritual vision of the general populace. At present there are about five thousand temples in Vṛndāvana, and still our society, the International Society for Krishna Consciousness, is constructing a huge, magnificent temple for the worship of Lord Kṛṣṇa and Lord Balarāma, along with Rādhā-Kṛṣṇa and Guru-Gaurāṅga. Since there is no prominent Kṛṣṇa-Balarāma temple in Vṛndāvana, we are attempting to construct one so that people will be attracted to Kṛṣṇa-Balarāma, or Nitāi-Gauracandra. Vrajendra-nandana yei, śacī suta haila sei.
"A human being who identifies this body made of three elements with his self, who considers the by-products of the body to be his kinsmen, who considers his land of birth worshipable, and who goes to a place of pilgrimage simply to take a bath rather than meet men of transcendental knowledge there is to be considered like an ass or a cow." (SB 10.84.13) Those who accept the logic of gaḍḍālikā-pravāha and follow in the footsteps of pseudo mahājanas are carried away by the waves of māyā. Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura therefore warns:
One deals with transcendental knowledge (parā vidyā) and the other with material knowledge (aparā vidyā). All the Vedas—the Ṛg Veda, Yajur Veda, Sāma Veda and Atharva Veda, along with their corollaries, known as śikṣā, kalpa, vyākaraṇa, nirukta, chanda and jyotiṣa—belong to the inferior system of material knowledge (aparā vidyā). By parā vidyā one can understand the akṣara—Brahman or the Absolute Truth.” As far as the Vedic literature is concerned, the Vedānta-sūtra is accepted as the parā vidyā. Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam is an explanation of that parā vidyā. Those who aspire for liberation (mukti or mokṣa) and introduce themselves as vaidāntika are also equal to those groups aspiring to improve religion (dharma), economic development (artha) and sense gratification (kāma). Dharma, artha, kāma and mokṣa are called catur-varga. They are all within the system of inferior, material knowledge. Any literature giving information about the spiritual world, spiritual life, spiritual identity and the spirit soul is called parā vidyā. Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam does not have anything to do with the materialistic way of life; it gives transcendental information to educate people in the superior system of parā vidyā. Sanātana Gosvāmī was engaged in discussing the bhāgavata-vidyā, which means he discussed transcendental superior knowledge.
The śaktyāveśa-avatāras are categorized into (1) forms of divine absorption (bhagavad-āveśa), such as Kapiladeva or Ṛṣabhadeva, and (2) divinely empowered forms (śaktyāveśa), of whom seven are foremost: (1) Śeṣa Nāga in the Vaikuṇṭha world, empowered for the personal service of the Supreme Lord (sva-sevana-śakti), (2) Anantadeva, empowered to bear all the planets within the universe (bhū-dhāraṇa-śakti), (3) Lord Brahmā, empowered with the energy to create the cosmic manifestation (sṛṣṭi-śakti), (4) Catuḥsana, or the Kumāras, specifically empowered to distribute transcendental knowledge (jñāna-śakti), (5) Nārada Muni, empowered to distribute devotional service (bhakti-śakti), (6) Mahārāja Pṛthu, specifically empowered to rule and maintain the living entities (pālana-śakti) and (7) Paraśurāma, specifically empowered to cut down rogues and demons (duṣṭa-damana-śakti).
“"After Lord Kṛṣṇa departed for His abode along with religious principles and transcendental knowledge, this Purāṇa, Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, has arisen like the sun in this Age of Kali to enlighten those who have no spiritual vision."
“‘Please hear attentively what I shall speak to you, for transcendental knowledge about Me is not only scientific but full of mysteries.
That is the platform of oneness and the basis for a classless society. In his Amṛta-pravāha-bhāṣya, Śrīla Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura confirms that one has to learn from a bona fide spiritual master about religious principles, economic development, sense gratification and ultimately liberation. These are the four divisions of regulated life, but they are on the material platform. On the spiritual platform, the four principles are jñāna, vijñāna, tad-aṅga and tad-rahasya. Rules, regulations and restrictions are on the material platform, but on the spiritual platform one has to be equipped with transcendental knowledge, which is above the principles of religious rituals. Mundane religious activity is known as smārta-viddhi, but transcendental devotional service is called gosvāmi-viddhi. Unfortunately many so-called gosvāmīs are on the platform of smārta-viddhi, yet they try to pass as gosvāmi-viddhi, and thus the people are cheated. Gosvāmī-viddhi is strictly explained in Sanātana Gosvāmī’s Hari-bhakti-vilāsa, wherein it is stated:
“‘A person interested in transcendental knowledge must therefore always directly and indirectly inquire about it to know about the all-pervading truth.
CC Antya-lila
A pure devotee, free from the reactions of the material modes of nature, executes devotional service with tolerance like that of a tree. He also feels humbler than the grass. Such a devotee, who is called niṣkiñcana, or free from all material possessions, is always absorbed in emotional love of Godhead. He is reluctant to perform any kind of sense gratification. In other words, such a devotee is free from all material bondage, but he engages in Kṛṣṇa conscious activities. Such expert devotional service is performed without hypocrisy. Humility, renunciation and learned scholarship were combined in Sanātana Gosvāmī, the ideal pure devotee, who was on the same level of understanding as Śrīla Rāmānanda Rāya. Like Rāmānanda Rāya, Sanātana Gosvāmī was a fully cognizant expert in the conclusions of devotional service and was therefore able to describe such transcendental knowledge.
The brahminical qualifications are truthfulness, control of the senses and mind, tolerance, simplicity, knowledge, practical application of transcendental knowledge in one's life, and full faith in the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Persons engaged in pursuing spiritual understanding have no time to earn their livelihood. They depend completely on the mercy of the Lord, who says in the Bhagavad-gītā (9.22) that He personally carries to them all their necessities (yoga-kṣemaṁ vahāmy aham).
The Vedic civilization recommends that one give charity to brāhmaṇas and sannyāsīs, not to the so-called daridra-nārāyaṇas. Nārāyaṇa cannot be daridra, nor can daridra be Nārāyaṇa, for these are contradictory terms. Atheistic men invent such concoctions and preach them to fools, but charity should actually be given to brāhmaṇas and sannyāsīs because whatever money they get they spend for Kṛṣṇa. Whatever charity one gives to a brāhmaṇa goes to Kṛṣṇa, who says in the Bhagavad-gītā (9.27):
"O King, constant chanting of the holy name of the Lord after the ways of the great authorities is the doubtless and fearless way of success for all, including those who are free from all material desires, those who are desirous of all material enjoyment, and those who are self-satisfied by dint of transcendental knowledge."
In Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam (6.3.22) Yamarāja says:
- etāvān eva loke ‘smin
- puṁsāṁ dharmaḥ paraḥ smṛtaḥ
- bhakti-yogo bhagavati
- tan-nāma-grahaṇādibhiḥ
"Devotional service, beginning with the chanting of the holy name of the Lord, is the ultimate religious principle for the living entity in human society."
“Hearing the poetry of a person who has no transcendental knowledge and who writes about the relationships between man and woman simply causes unhappiness, whereas hearing the words of a devotee fully absorbed in ecstatic love causes great happiness.
Let me offer my respectful obeisances unto Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu, who personally tasted the nectar of ecstatic love for Kṛṣṇa and then instructed His devotees how to taste it. Thus He enlightened them about ecstatic love of Kṛṣṇa to initiate them into transcendental knowledge.
| Page Title: | Transcendental knowledge (CC) |
| Compiler: | Mayapur, RupaManjari |
| Created: | 06 of Oct, 2011 |
| Totals by Section: | BG=0, SB=0, CC=38, OB=0, Lec=0, Con=0, Let=0 |
| No. of Quotes: | 38 |