Prabhupada : When the brahmana asked the woman who the man lying on the floor was, she answered that he was her spiritual master and that she was perplexed about who to do in his absence. At such a time the Supersoul immediately appears, provided the devotee is purified in heart by following the direction of the spiritual master. A sincere devotee who follows the instructions of the spiritual master certainly gets direct instructions from him from Supersoul. This is confirmed in Caitanya-caritamrta : guru-krsna- prasade paya bhakti-lata-bija. If the devotee serves his spiritual master sincerely, Krsna automatically becomes pleased. Yasya Prasadad bhagavad - prasadah. By satisfying the spiritual master, one automatically satisfies Krsna. Thus the devotee becomes enriched by both the spiritual master and Krsna. The Supersoul is eternally the friend of the living-entity and always remains with him. The Supersoul has been ready to help the living-entity, even before the creation of this ma
who (31)
TRANSLATION
O my Lord, proprietor of all creation, You have now appeared in my house, desiring to protect this world. I am sure that You will kill all the armies that are moving all over the world under the leadership of politicians who are dressed as kṣatriya rulers but who are factually demons. They must be killed by You for the protection of the innocent public.
PURPORT
Kṛṣṇa appears in this world for two purposes, paritrāṇāya sādhūnāṁ vināśāya ca duṣkṛtām: to protect the innocent, religious devotees of the Lord and to annihilate all the uneducated, uncultured asuras, who unnecessarily bark like dogs and fight among themselves for political power. It is said, kali-kāle nāma-rūpe kṛṣṇa avatāra. The Hare Kṛṣṇa movement is also an incarnation of Kṛṣṇa in the form of the holy name (nāma-rūpe). Every one of us who is actually afraid of the asuric rulers and politicians must welcome this incarnation of Kṛṣṇa: Hare Kṛṣṇa, Hare Kṛṣṇa, Kṛṣṇa Kṛṣṇa, Hare Hare/ Hare Rāma, Hare Rāma, Rāma R
Srila Prabhupada writes - "Anyone who gives some service to this Krishna Consciousness movement is fortunate proportionately. At least the seed of his fortunate life is sown there. Whether he gives service of some sort, willingly or even unwillingly, the seed is sown, and the fortune will come proportionately."
_________
Letter to: Tosana Krsna
Los Angeles
13 November, 1968
68-11-13
My Dear Tosana Krishna,
Please accept my blessings. I am in due receipt of your letter (undated) and thank you very much for it. Your sentiments are very kind, and I very much appreciate them. Regarding your question about what determines our fortune, generally when we are in the material world, we try to be prosperous by material opulence. Just like a common man tries to have a good house, a good wife, a good property, good social prestige, and this way, go on increasing the bodily concept of life, and possess more and more in relationship to the body. This is unfortunate. All living entities beginning
Prabhupada: We Vaiṣṇavas do not say that there is no need of fighting. We never say. When there is need of fighting we must fight. Rather, somebody in New York, some Goldsmith, he was that, 'Why Krishna is advising Arjuna to fight, to become violent?'
So somebody protests like that. But there is no meaning of protesting against the action of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. That is our view. So we Vaiṣṇavas, we are chanting.
It does not mean that when there is need of fighting with avaiṣṇava (non-vaishnava) we shall lack in strength. We can fight. One gentleman inquired from me that 'Vaiṣṇavism makes one dull. He cannot act.' And, 'No. You have not seen a Vaiṣṇava.' In the two fightings, great fighting, the Rāmāyaṇa and Mahābhārata, the hero was Hanuman and Arjuna, and they fought.
Guest: They fought.
Prabhupada: Yes. And who can be better Vaiṣṇava than them?
Guest: Nobody.
Prabhupada: So Vaiṣṇava does not mean he is dull. No.
Guest: No, that is well proved. If there is need...
Pr
Prabhupāda states:
Śrīla Śukadeva Gosvāmī was a Vaiṣṇava from the beginning; therefore, there was no need for him to undergo all the processes of the varṇāśrama institution. Ultimately the aim of varṇāśrama-dharma is to turn a crude man into a pure devotee of the Lord, or a Vaiṣṇava. Anyone, therefore, who becomes a Vaiṣṇava accepted by the first-class Vaiṣṇava, or uttama-adhikārī Vaiṣṇava, is already considered a brāhmaṇa, regardless of his birth or past deeds. Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu accepted this principle and recognized Śrīla Haridāsa Ṭhākura as the ācārya of the holy name, although Ṭhākura Haridāsa appeared in a Mohammedan family.
(SB 1.2.2 Purport)
Share
"Those who think that the Sanskrit language in its lexicographical sense is the language of the Divinity are as deluded as those who hold that the Divine Message is communicable through any other spoken dialects. All languages simultaneously express and hide the Absolute. The mundane face of all languages hides the Truth. The Transcendental face of all sound expresses nothing but the Absolute. The pure devotee is the speaker of the Transcendental language. The Transcendental Sound makes His appearance on the lips of His pure devotee. This is the direct, unambiguous appearance of Divinity."
from the article THAKURA BHAKTIVINODA
By Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Saraswati Thakura Prabhupada
Srila Prabhupada Speaks Out-
"So you cannot change the words of Bhagavad-gītā. That is foolishness.
Anyone who changes the orders and the words of Bhagavad-gītā, they are rascal; they'll not get any benefit."
Hare Krsna. All glories to His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada.
Following are some quotes that are direct instructions against the whimsical changes in the original Bhagavad Gita As It Is.
There is no difference. Just like we are reading Bhagavad-gītā. Why we're interested? Because Bhagavad-gītā and the speaker of Bhagavad-gītā, Kṛṣṇa, they are identical. So you cannot change the words of Bhagavad-gītā. That is foolishness. Anyone who changes the orders and the words of Bhagavad-gītā, they are rascal; they'll not get any benefit. Because you cannot correct Kṛṣṇa, what Kṛṣṇa says or God says. That is not in your power. So these rascals, they want to interpret, "This is like this, this is this, I think it is this." No. Kṛṣṇa did not live for you, for your Prabhupāda: (laughs) Krodha bhakta-dveṣi-jane. That is Narottama Ṭhākura's instruction. You must be very angry, those who are against God and devotee, very angry. Utilize your anger for them. Krodha bhakta-dveṣi-jane. That anger is service. Kṛṣṇa-sebā kāmārpaṇe. For Kṛṣṇa's service one should be mad. Kāma-krodha should be given up, but a bhakta does not give up. Utilize it. A bhakta should be very much for kamut(?) serving Kṛṣṇa. And he must utilize his anger for the bhakta-dveṣi, those who are not devotee.
I continue to encounter who cannot accept that ISKCON has been infiltrated by persons of ill-intent. Well, how about if one our Acharyas - Srila Bhaktivinoda Thakur - says it? This quote in my book is taken from the Sajana Tosani of 1915, where he writes how the devotees of Lord Chaitanya were infiltrated ***for the purpose of creating confusion among them - and causing pure bhakti to vanish***:
After the time of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu, those faithful to Him kept apart from non-devotees, to avoid contamination. Seeing this, the personality of Kali sent his representatives in disguise to pollute the Vaishnava sampradaya. Posing as Vaishnavas, they spread their wicked doctrines, and appeared so intelligent and devoted that only pure devotees could detect their real identity. Most devotees – not only the most neophyte – were enchanted by their tricks. In this way Kali's agents expertly introduced karma,
''Those who are demoniac do not know what is to be done and what is not to be done. Neither cleanliness nor proper behavior nor truth is found in them.
They say that this world is unreal, that there is no foundation and that there is no God in control. It is produced of sex desire, and has no cause other than lust.
Following such conclusions, the demoniac, who are lost to themselves and who have no intelligence, engage in unbeneficial, horrible works meant to destroy the world.''
Bg:16/7-9
According to the Vaiṣṇava regulative principles, one must be initiated as a brāhmaṇa. The Hari-bhakti-vilāsa (2.6) quotes the following injunction from the Viṣṇu-yāmala:
adīkṣitasya vāmorukṛtaṁ sarvaṁ nirarthakam
paśu-yonim avāpnotidīkṣā-virahito janaḥ
“‘Unless one is initiated by a bona fide spiritual master, all his devotional activities are useless. A person who is not properly initiated can descend again into the animal species.’”
Hari-bhakti-vilāsa (2.10) further quotes:
ato guruṁ praṇamyaivaṁsarva-svaṁ vinivedya ca
gṛhṇīyād vaiṣṇavaṁ mantraṁdīkṣā-pūrvaṁ vidhānataḥ
“‘It is the duty of every human being to surrender to a bona fide spiritual master. Giving him everything — body, mind and intelligence — one must take Vaiṣṇava initiation from him.’”
"One should not proudly think that one can understand the transcendental loving service of the Lord simply by reading books... One must accept a Vaisnava guru (adau gurv-asrayam), and then by questions and answers one should gradually
Hare Krishna!
Many arguments are made in this respect, that as long as we don't cut the animal we do not incur sin.
In the Mahabharata, there is a verse which states that one who sells the animal, one who buys the animal, one cuts the animal,one who cooks the animal, one who serves the animal and one who eats the animal, all are bound equally by the chain of Karma.
But leaving the spiritual aspect of it, anatomically, the human body is not structured to eat animal flesh. Studies have shown the length of the intestine of a tiger is 4 times the length of it's torso so when it eats flesh the toxins in the flesh are not kept for long in the intestine and are expelled at the earliest. Also the concentration of acid secreted in the stomach is so strong that it burns the bacteria in the flesh. While in the cow, the length of the intestine is 12 times it's torso and so the food takes longer time to be expelled from the body. We have seen that the incidence of the Mad Cow disease (bovine spongi
Once there was a sweeper in the Dwarakadish temple and he was very sincere and devoted. Every time he saw thousands of devotees coming to take darshan of the Lord, he thought that the Lord is standing all the time and giving darshan and He must be feeling very tired.
So one day very innocently he asked the Lord whether he can take the place of the Lord for a day so that the Lord can have some relief and rest.
The Deity of Dwarakadish replied, "I do not mind taking a break. I will transform you like Myself, but you must do one thing. You must just stand here like Me, smile at everyone and just give benedictions. Do not interfere with anything and do not say anything. Remember you are the deity and you just have faith that I have a master plan for everything." The sweeper agreed to this.
The next day the sweeper took the position of the deity and a rich man came and prayed to the Lord. He offered a nice donation and prayed that his business should be prosperous. While going, the rich man in
'Come as you are... No suit required'.
I shook my head in disbelief. This couldn't be the right place. After all, I couldn't possibly be welcome here. I had been given an invitation several times, by several different people, and I had finally decided to see what this place was all about.
But, this just couldn't be the right place. Quickly, I glanced down at the invitation that I clutched in my hand. I scanned past the words, "Come as you are. No suit required," and found the location. Yes, I was at the right place.I peered through the window again and saw a room of people whose faces seemed to glow with joy. All were neatly dressed, adorned in fine ethnic garments and appeared strangely clean as they dined at this exquisite restaurant.
Ashamed, I looked down at my own tattered and torn clothing, covered in stains. I was dirty, in fact, filthy. A foul smell seemed to consume me and I couldn't shake the grime that clung to my body.
As I turned around to leave, the words from the in
Hare Krishna!
"The rain drop from the sky, if it is caught in hands is pure enough for drinking.
If it falls in gutter, it's value drops so much that it can't be used for washing the feet.
If it falls on hot surface, it perishes.
If it falls on lotus leaf, it shines like a pearl and finally,
if it falls on oyster, it becomes a pearl.
The drop is same, but it's existence & worth depends on with whom it associates."
We are these rain drops that have come from the spiritual sky. So don't look down upon one that falls in the gutter because you fell in an oyster or on lotus leaf. Instead, with compassion guide others not so fortunate, to have right association so they becomes pure..
Hare Krishna.
Hare Krishna!
According to an old Hindu legend, there was a time when all human beings were gods, but they abused their divinity.
So, Brahma, the chief God, decided to take the divinity away from them and hide it somewhere they could never find it.
Brahma called a council of the gods to help him decide where to hide the divinity.
“Let’s bury it deep in the earth,” said the gods. But Brahma answered, “Humans will dig into the earth and find it.”
Some gods suggested, “Let’s sink it in the deepest ocean.” But Brahma said, “No, Human will learn to dive into the ocean and will
find it.”
Then some gods suggested, “Let’s take it to the top of the highest mountain and hide it there.”
Brahma replied, “Human will eventually climb every mountain and take up their divinity.” Then all the gods gave up and said, “We do not know where to hide it, because it seems that there is no place on earth or ocean that human beings will not eventually reach.”
Brahma thought for a long time said, “We will hide their d
Hare Krishna!
The Scriptures mention the story at the beginning of creation when the representatives of the Devas (Demi-Gods), the Asuras (Humans) and the Rakshasas (Demon) approached their Creator, for guidance on how to improve them-selves so they can serve Him better.
The Lord spoke just one syllable to them “Da” and sent them back.
The three went back to their respective kingdom to contemplate what the Lord was trying to say.
The Rakshasas who were violent by nature understood the Lord’s message “Da” as Daya – be Merciful or compassionate to evolve spiritually
The Asuras who were controlling and possessive by nature understood the Lord’s message “Da” as Daana – Give to evolve spiritually.
The Devas who were by nature used to enjoying the nectar of heavenly planets understood the Lord’s message “Da” as Dama – be Austere (Tapasya) to evolve spiritually.
In Kaliyug all these 3 qualities of Devas (Satva), Asuras (Rajo) and Rakshasas (Tamo) are within us.
Hence each one of us takes home the mes
Hare Krishna!
God Is Watching
Man: God, can I ask You a question?
God: Sure.
Man: Promise You won't get mad...
God: I promise.
Man: Why did You let so much stuff happen to me today?
God: What do you mean?
Man: Well, I woke up late.
God: Yes...
Man: My car took forever to start.
God: Okay...
Man: At lunch they made my sandwich wrong & I had to wait.
God: Huummm...
Man: On the way home, my phone went DEAD, just as I picked up a call.
God: All right...
Man: And to top of it all off, when I got home, I just want to soak my feet in my new foot massager & relax. But it wouldn't work!!! Nothing went right today! Why did You do that?
God: Let me see, the Angel of Death was at your bed this morning & I had to send one of My Angels to battle him for your life. I let you sleep through that.
Man (humbled): OH...
God: I didn't let your car start because there was a drunk driver on your route that would have hit you if you were on the road.
Man: (Hangs his head in shame)
God: The first person
What is Bhagavad Gita?
What is the purpose of Bhagavad Gita?
Chaitanya Maha Prabhu was once travelling through a town where in a temple many erudite brahmin Sanskrit scholars were reciting the verses from the Gita. Chaitanya Maha Prabhu noticed that one of them, an old brahmin was sitting alone in a corner and trying to read but had tears rolling down his cheeks. He could not pronounce the verses properly. Some of the brahmins listening to him were giggling and laughing at him. So Chaitanya Maha Prabhu approached him and told him not to worry about others and to continue reciting.
The old brahmin said that he was not even aware others were laughing at him. He was emotional because whenever he saw the beautiful image of Krishna on the cover of Gita he could not stop the flow of tears.
Maha Prabhu said, "you're the one who has really understood the purpose of the Bhagavad Gita. You need not study the verses".
The purpose of the Bhagavad Gita is to develop pure love for Krishna.
Some
Courtesy Ines Naradic, ie Naradakunda devi dasi; Meaning of Perfect
Prabhupada: Yes. Acarya is explained, bhakti-samsanah: “One who’s preaching the cult of devotional service, he’s acarya.” Then why should you find any discrepancy?
Jayadvaita: Because we see … For instance, sometimes the acarya may seem to forget something or not to know something, so from our point of view, if someone has forgotten, that is an imperfection.
Prabhupada: Then you do not understand. Acarya is not God, omniscient. He is servant of God. His business is to preach bhakti cult. That is acarya.
Jayadvaita: And that is the perfection.
Prabhupada: That is the perfection. Hare Krsna.
Jayadvaita: So we have a misunderstanding about what perfection is?
Prabhupada: Yes. Perfection is here, how he is preaching bhakti cult. That’s all.
Satsvarupa: Prabhupada, in one purport in the Bhagavad-gita, you write that a disciple of a bona fide spiritual master is supposed to know everything.
Prabhupada: Yes, if he follows th
