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Hare Krsna culture is one initially of bhakti yogis. Yogis, as we know, can be determined, austere, renounced, fixated on processes and rules and hierarchies and knowledge, and social acceptance by other devotees. So, no surprise that our culture is like that in good part. Kinda religio-yogi-cultish. Much Divine help descends to deliver the sincere fallen souls, often miraculous, inducing good faith.
Also, there are the cooks and artists, the happy classes, creative ones with heart, often the same people, but brahminical, not mundane, servants of Beauty. Their visions from sadhana become spontaneous love and perfect bhakti yoga, expressed in service and art and music to make the heart fly.
The more advanced elder devotees may appear like your Grandma or Grandad, simple and pure. I mean to say, they will smile and chant, trying not to receive undue service, and relishing mature fruits of love of Godhead Sri Krsna. Many may naturally be less worried or hurried, having already obtain
"I can be a pure spiritual person without depending on God."
Reply; Uh-huh. Sure. Well, here's the thing ; you ARE God. You are not different from God. Your "pure spiritual person" does not exist, seperate from Godhead. The Metaphysics is that you and God are One Being, "acintya bheda, abheda" -Sri Caitanya. So, to try to be a "pure spiritual person" seperately, is impossible. It's not real.
Anyone lovingly, with bhakti, serving Godhead and His pure servants, is liberated, needs no religion or seperate process. The eternal self is a personification of perfect religion by constitutional nature, ie the Self is part of God, Sri Govinda..
Prabhupāda: Hmm? What is it? Hell, you were speaking something of hell?
Devotee: Eternal hell.
Prabhupāda: Hmm?
Devotee: Eternal hell?
Prabhupāda: Eternal hell. Huh? What is that?
Devotee: Everlasting hell.
Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: It means that, so far as I remember, Prabhupāda, in the Bible it says that at the time of judgment...
Nara-Nārāyaṇa: Judgment, the judgment.
Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: There's a judgment...
Nara-Nārāyaṇa: You rise from the grave in the time you are judged.
Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Yes, all of the souls then rise for judgment, and accordingly they either go to heaven or to hell.
Nara-Nārāyaṇa: Or into an intermediate stage, where they can gradually go up to heaven. Limbo, I think.
Lady devotee (2): The ultimate desire of a Christian is to be with Jesus, is to go to be with him. That is their ultimate desire. Not necessarily to be with the Father, but to be with Jesus.
Gurudas: What do they do with him?
Lady devotee (2): By leading the Christian life.
Gurudas: I m
Hare Krsna culture is one initially of bhakti yogis. Yogis, as we know, can be determined, austere, renounced, fixated on processes and rules and hierarchies and knowledge, and social acceptance by other devotees. So, no surprise that our culture is like that in good part. Kinda religio-yogi-cultish. Much Divine help descends to deliver the sincere fallen souls, often miraculous, inducing good faith.
Also, there are the cooks and artists, the happy classes, creative ones with heart, often the same people, but brahminical, not mundane, servants of Beauty. Their visions from sadhana become spontaneous love and perfect bhakti yoga, expressed in service and art and music to make the heart fly.
The more advanced elder devotees may appear like your Grandma or Grandad, simple and pure. I mean to say, they will smile and chant, trying not to receive undue service, and relishing mature fruits of love of Godhead Sri Krsna. Many may naturally be less worried or hurried, having already obtained thei
ATTAINING AN ETERNAL BODY AND A LIFE OF IMMORTALITY.
His Divine Grace A.C.Bhaktivedantaswami Prabhupada:
There is life after death, and there is also the chance to free oneself from the cycle of repeated birth and death and attain a life of immortality. But because we have been accustomed to accepting one body after another since time immemorial, it is difficult for us to think of a life that is eternal. And the life of material existence is so troublesome that one may think that if there is an eternal life, that life must be troublesome also.
For example, a diseased man who is taking very bitter medicine and who is lying down in bed, eating there and passing stool and urine there, unable to move, may find his life so intolerable that he thinks, “Let me commit suicide.” Similarly, materialistic life is so miserable that in desperation one sometimes takes to a philosophy of voidism or impersonalism to try to negate his very existence and make everything zero.
Actually, however,
Srila Prabhupada..."One should not be eager to become a spiritual master cheaply for the sake of profit and fame, but should become a spiritual master only for the service of the Lord. The Lord never tolerates the impertinence of maryādā-vyatikrama. One should never pass over the honor due to an elderly spiritual master in the interests of one’s own personal gain and fame. Impertinence on the part of the pseudo spiritual master is very risky to progressive spiritual realization."
Srimad-Bhagavatam : Canto 3: "The Status Quo" : SB 3.4: Vidura Approaches Maitreya : SB 3.4.26 : Srila Prabhupada's PURPORT
"SO THOSE WHO HAVE TAKEN, TAKE IT VERY SERIOUSLY, INCREASE YOUR LOVE FOR KRSNA."
His Divine Grace A.C.Bhaktivedantaswami Prabhupada:
This process must go on. This is śrāvaṇaṁ kīrtanaṁ viṣṇoḥ. Viṣṇoḥ (SB 7.5.23). That is Bhāgavata. Not any other nonsense talks, gossiping. Simply hear and chant. Then śṛṇvatāṁ sva-kathāḥ kṛṣṇa. If you seriously hear and chant, seriously—"Yes, this life I shall engage only for increasing my love of Vāsudeva"—if you are determined, it can be done. There is no difficulty. And as soon as you do this, you increase fully your love for Vasudeva, then there is no more chance of contacting material body.
janma karma ca divyam
me yo janati tattvataḥ
tyaktvā dehaṁ punar janma
naiti...
(BG 4.9)
That is the same thing.
And if you do not understand Kṛṣṇa, if you do not increase your natural love for Kṛṣṇa, then na mucyate deha-yogena tāvat. There is no chance. They have no chance. You may take birth next life in a very rich family, in a brāhmaṇa family, yogo
"WHATEVER I HAVE TO SPEAK I HAVE SPOKEN IN MY BOOKS-----SO LIVE FOREVER BY SERVING KRSNA."
His Divine Grace A.C.Bhaktivedantaswami Prabhupāda: Jaya.
Devotees: Jaya.
Prabhupāda: So I cannot speak. I am feeling very weak. I was to go to other places like Chandigarh program, but I cancelled the program because the condition of my health is very deteriorating. So I preferred to come to Vṛndāvana. If death takes place, let it take here. So there is nothing to be said new. Whatever I have to speak, I have spoken in my books. Now you try to understand it and continue your endeavor. Whether I am present or not present, it doesn't matter.
As Kṛṣṇa is living eternally, similarly, living being also lives eternally. But kīrtir yasya sa jīvati: "One who has done service to the Lord lives forever." So you have been taught to serve Kṛṣṇa, and with Kṛṣṇa we'll live eternally. Our life is eternal. Na hanyate hanyamāne śarīre (BG 2.20). A temporary disappearance of this body, it doesn't matter.
THOSE WHO DO NOT OFFER THEIR FOOD TO THE LORD EAT NOTHING BUT SIN AND SUBJECT THEMSELVES TO VARIOUS TYPES OF DISTRESS WHICH ARE THE RESULTS OF SIN.
His Divine Grace A.C.Bhaktivedantaswami Prabhupada:
Human beings are not meant to quarrel like cats and dogs. They must be intelligent enough to realize the importance and aim of human life. The Vedic literature is meant for humanity and not for cats and dogs. Cats and dogs can kill other animals for food without incurring sin, but if a man kills an animal for the satisfaction of his uncontrolled taste buds, he is responsible for breaking the laws of nature.
Consequently he must be punished.
The standard of life for human beings cannot be applied to animals. The tiger does not eat rice and wheat or drink cow's milk, because he has been given food in the shape of animal flesh. Among the many animals and birds, some are vegetarian and others are carnivorous, but none of them transgress the laws of nature, which have been ordained by th
Woman guest: What about meditating?
Prabhupāda: This is the best medicine, meditation.
Woman guest: It's better than the other kind?
Prabhupāda: When meditation... Meditation, dhyāna, it is very difficult nowadays. You chant to meditate, you think of your own business. That is another thing. So this is forced meditation = "Hare Kṛṣṇa!" Even if you do not want to hear, you will hear. [laughter] When there is chanting and dancing, everyone who doesn't wanted to hear, they also hear.
Type: Conversation
Date: July 30, 1973
Location: London
Woman guest (2): What about people who believe in Jesus, God? I mean, what about Christians? It might not have the same effect on them.
Devotee: But Kṛṣṇa is God, and Jesus is teaching exactly what Kṛṣṇa taught, so there is no difference to a person that has a pure heart. If we chant, all of us who have come to Kṛṣṇa consciousness, we've realized that Jesus Christ's teachings are fulfilled in Kṛṣṇa consciousness.
Woman guest (2): Oh, I see.
Devotee: Yes.
Prabhupāda: But Jesus said that he's son of God. So we say Kṛṣṇa is God. So what is the conflict? God must have a son, one or two? So he's also the son. Where is conflict? [everyone laughs]
Satish Kumar: No conflict.
Woman guest (2): I am not sure. I think people might think there was a conflict. I mean...
Prabhupāda: Conflict is there when you disobey Christ. Just like Christ said, "Thou shall not kill." All the Christians are simply killing. Where is a Christian? There is conflict. They will support = "This killin
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iTHApjlyVa0
Speculative "scientists" change their minds on everything every few years, demonstrating that the way of ascending knowledge is imperfect. Indeed, some say there is no end to the paradigms, one can go on approximating truth eternally and never reach a final conclusive vision.
The "science" of bhakti is different ; we accept the words of God, accepting that the Divine Supercomputor not only has full knowledge, but is in fact the original energy of all knowing. Vedas say ; isvarah parama Krsna, anadir adir govinda, sarva karana karanam, Krsna is the supreme controller, first being, cause of all causes.
So, when we accept this descending knowledge, we supposedly get perfect knowledge, provided we are perfectly receptive and compare notes with other saintly and advanced persons and corroborating scriptures ; they should say the same things if they are truly from the Perfect Source.
@1234gone We are forever seeing new paradigms, scie
Does Prabhupada say its ok to break laws or societies norms to preach and serve Krishna?
Murari Gupta Das
No...he told for his disciples follow up countries laws.
Thomas Garden Tamoharadasa Acbssp
We are law-abiding, conservative, do not wish to create a loud sensation or disturb in normal human society. We obey all the righteous Kings and laws of countries we reside in. On the other hand, sometimes yes ! This creates a comedic or tragic or astonishing humor etc in bhakti rasa. Recall the brahmanas doing strict sacrifice, who failed to feed Krsna Balarama due to being absorbed in pukka ritual. By being so strictly religious, they failed to serve. Recall, even more close, the activities of the gopis, who leave their own homes to sneak out at night. Or Sri Govinda, Lord Caitanya's servant, who chose to step over the sleeping form of Lord Mahaprabhu as s
"ONE WHO CAN UNDERSTAND GOD MUST BE FREE FROM THE CONTAMINATION OF THIS MATERIAL NATURE."
His Divine Grace A.C.Bhaktivedantaswami Prabhupada:
Those who are contaminated with tamo-guṇa, rajo-guṇa, they can create their own God. There are different types of "God" also. In one sense everyone is God. God means the controller. So everyone is to some extent a controller. But as I have explained several times, real controller means who is not controlled by others. That is God. If I am controlled by the material nature, daivī hy eṣā guṇamayī mama māyā duratyayā... (BG 7.14).
Birth, death, old age and disease, if I am controlled by these conditions of nature, then how I can become God? God is never controlled. Therefore one who can understand God must be free from the contamination of this material nature. Mukta-saṅgasya.
This is also confirmed in the Bhagavad-gītā:
brahma-bhūtaḥ prasannātmā
na śocati na kāṅkṣati
samaḥ sarveṣu bhūteṣu
mad-bhaktiṁ labhate parām
(BG 18.54)
"Unless one is initiated by a bonafide spiritual master, ALL his devotional activities are USELESS. A person who is not properly initiated can again descend into the animal specie." CC Madhya Lila 15 .
Kam Batra
Is this true? So we who have no initiation all our devotional activities are useless?
10h
Reply
Bhakt Mohan
Kam Batra many times srila prabhupada said initiation is just formality !
3h
Reply
Thomas Garden Tamoharadasa Acbssp
Bhakt Mohan False. You have been conned by envious rascals. I told people not to come to facebook, as it is filled with liars and demons. Do our acaryas just do this and spend money and insist on it, just for a laugh? Every single acarya took diksha, SP travelled extensively doing dikshas, he wrote every disciples name in his book of disciples, he wrote the above quote, even Mahaprabhu took diksha and had all His followers do the same. His diksha was a big lesson in caitanya bhagavata. Suddenly
