# Back to Godhead Magazine #54 *2020 (02)* Back to Godhead Magazine #54-02, 2020 PDF-View Welcome The world of Kṛṣṇa consciousness has many terms one is unlikely to encounter elsewhere. One that may perplex someone new to this world is the phrase “lotus feet,” routinely used in reference to Lord Kṛṣṇa and His pure devotees. We can interpret the term in different ways, one of which is that it’s a way to stress Kṛṣṇa’s beauty, beginning with His feet. When looking at Kṛṣṇa, His devotees start with His feet in humility and respect. In this issue, Vaṁśi Vihārī Dāsa discusses the frequent metaphorical use of “lotus” and “moon” in describing Lord Kṛṣṇa’s beauty and character. As Kṛṣṇa’s name, meaning “all-attractive,” implies, His beauty surpasses everyone else’s. And so does His happiness. Śrīla Prabhupāda explains in his opening lecture that our happiness is contingent on our pleasing Kṛṣṇa, because we are integral parts of Him. Our mistaken conception that we’re separate from Kṛṣṇa is at the root of our material existence, the nature of which is discussed in “Who Is the Cause of My Suffering?” and “Swift Destruction.” Satyarāja Dāsa writes about another kind of root or, rather, roots—ten essential roots of the sublime philosophy of the Vedic literature, as presented by Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu. Hare Kṛṣṇa. —*Nāgarāja Dāsa, Editor* Founder's Lecture: The Process for Being Happy *Śrīla Prabhupāda explains why instead of trying to gratify our senses, we should gratify the senses of the Lord.* Calcutta—February 23, 1972 A simple analogy illustrates the basic principle underlying the philosophy of Kṛṣṇa consciousness. > sa vai puṁsāṁ paro dharmo > yato bhaktir adhokṣaje > ahaituky apratihatā > yayātmā suprasīdati “The supreme occupation [*dharma*] for all humanity is that by which men can attain to loving devotional service unto the transcendent Lord. Such devotional service must be unmotivated and uninterrupted to completely satisfy the self.”—*Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam* 1.2.6 We come here to the material world to enjoy—not enjoy, but to satisfy our senses. This is material life. But to try to develop sense enjoyment is not the right process for becoming happy. In modern civilization, people are increasing the sense enjoyment process, making life more and more complicated. The real motive of human life should be to develop devotional service to the Lord. Or in other words, instead of gratifying our senses we should gratify the senses of the Lord. That is required. We cannot independently gratify our senses. The *Īśopaniṣad* therefore says, *tena tyaktena bhuñjīthā*: we should take only what is set aside for us by the Lord. You cannot enjoy directly. The best example is that if you give me a nice foodstuff, a *rasagullā* sweet, my finger may touch it, but it cannot enjoy it directly. That is not possible. The *rasagullā* must be given to the stomach. And when it is given to the stomach, the energy produced by eating that sweet is distributed not only to this finger but to the other fingers and the other parts of the body. The Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement is based on this principle. We are making Kṛṣṇa the center. Kṛṣṇa said, > yat karoṣi yad aśnāsi > yaj juhoṣi dadāsi yat > yat tapasyasi kaunteya > tat kuruṣva mad-arpaṇam “Whatever you do, whatever you eat, whatever you offer or give away, and whatever austerities you perform—do that, O son of Kuntī, as an offering to Me.” (*Gītā* 9.27) That is Kṛṣṇa consciousness. We do not want to stop anything. People should not misunderstand that we want to stop business, stop industries, stop our general modes of life. No. Engage in your occupational duties, but offer the result of those duties to Kṛṣṇa. He says, > karmaṇy evādhikāras te > mā phaleṣu kadācana > mā karma-phala-hetur bhūr > mā te saṅgo ’stv akarmaṇi “You have a right to perform your prescribed duty, but you are not entitled to the fruits of action. Never consider yourself the cause of the results of your activities, and never be attached to not doing your duty.” (*Gītā* 2.47) Don’t take the result of your work. The same example: This hand picks up a very nice *rasagullā*, but it does not take it for itself; it gives it to the stomach. Then the hand enjoys. That is the process. This spirit of giving to Kṛṣṇa is now forgotten. Therefore people are suffering, because they are not trying to follow the process. This is the process. You take a *rasagullā* and give it to the stomach. This is the process. Similarly, whatever you possess, give it to Kṛṣṇa and take *prasādam*. Then you will be happy. Otherwise your action will not bring happiness, because that is not the process. But people are following a wrong process, trying to enjoy directly. The result is that they are implicated in the law of *karma*. In the *Bhagavad-gītā* (3.9) it is said, *yajñārthāt* *karma*ṇaḥ: you can work, but work for Kṛṣṇa. Anyatra *karma*-bandhanaḥ: otherwise you’ll be entangled. Whether the result is good or bad, you have to accept it. *Our Happiness Is Destined to Come* The *śāstric* process, the process described in the scriptures, is that whatever you’re destined to get, you’ll get. Prahlāda Mahārāja said, > sukham aindriyakaṁ daityā > deha-yogena dehinām > sarvatra labhyate daivād > yathā duḥkham ayatnataḥ “My dear friends born of demoniac families, the happiness perceived with reference to the sense objects by contact with the body can be obtained in any form of life, according to one's past fruitive activities. Such happiness is automatically obtained without endeavor, just as we obtain distress.” (*Bhāgavatam* 7.6.3) You are destined to a certain standard of sukha, happiness, according to your body. One man is born in a millionaire’s family, so he has a type of body where enjoyment is there. And at the same time, another man is born in a cobbler’s family. He cannot expect the enjoyment of the millionaire’s family. That is not possible, because the millionaire has got one type of body and the cobbler has got a different type of body. *Śāstra* says that your happiness is destined according to your body. It is already made up, set up. You cannot change it. So *śāstra* says don’t try to increase your so-called happiness by laboring so hard. Whatever body you have got, you will get a certain type of happiness. A hog has got a certain type of body; he feels pleasure by eating stool. He cannot improve it, because he has got a body like that. So according to our body, we get our happiness. Our time should be saved for improving Kṛṣṇa consciousness. That is the law of nature. Don’t try to improve your material condition. Whatever material happiness is destined according to your body, which is already given to you, you’ll have it without any endeavor. You have to suffer also; that is also according to the body. You don’t endeavor for distress, but you get it. Similarly, don’t endeavor for happiness; you’ll get it. This is the philosophy of Kṛṣṇa consciousness. We should save our time to develop our Kṛṣṇa consciousness. You should simply endeavor in that way. Then *yenātmā* *samprasīdati*: you’ll be happy. Otherwise you’ll never be happy. This is the sum and substance of the philosophy of Kṛṣṇa. *Spoiling Time* The whole summary is that this human form of life is very, very important and it is meant for developing Kṛṣṇa consciousness. If you neglect this business and simply engage in sense gratification, that is spoiling time. *Śrama eva hi kevalam.* *Karma* means that whatever happiness one has to enjoy, that will come automatically. If one is destined to have something, that will come. So our only point is that human life is very valuable. We should not waste it for nothing. The modern method of civilization is to develop economic development to live very comfortably. That’s all right. Do it. Everyone can do his own business. But don’t forget Kṛṣṇa. That is not good. The point is that our real business is to understand Kṛṣṇa. But people do not try to understand Kṛṣṇa; they simply try for economic development. Their first business should be to understand Kṛṣṇa. Other business should be secondary. At the present moment, to convince people of this is a very difficult task. Śyāmasundara Dāsa: Śrīla Prabhupāda, isn’t it true that when people developed Kṛṣṇa consciousness, they had even better economic development, higher economic development, when they were Kṛṣṇa conscious? Prabhupāda: [laughs] But we don’t take to Kṛṣṇa consciousness for developing a higher economic position. Śyāmasundara Dāsa: No, but I mean it goes to show that even though no matter how much we try to develop . . . Prabhupāda: But that is Kṛṣṇa’s mercy. Those who are engaged in Kṛṣṇa’s service, they are never put into distress. Kṛṣṇa’s devotees are never vanquished, even if they are artificially put into distresses. The Pāṇḍavas were put into distress artificially. Prahlāda Mahārāja was put into distress by his father, but ultimately he came out victorious. So we should not be disturbed even if superficially we see that a devotee is in distress. A real devotee does not take anything as distress. He takes everything as Kṛṣṇa’s mercy. Otherwise, that is not pure devotion. Actually a devotee is never in distress even if people may see that he is in distress. There is a very good example. During Lord Caitanya’s time there was a devotee in Māyāpur named Kolaveca Śrīdhara. He was very poor. At night he would chant the Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra very loudly: “Hare Kṛṣṇa, Hare Kṛṣṇa . . .” His neighboring friends would say, “This man has no income, and because he is hungry, now he is chanting ‘Hare Kṛṣṇa, Hare Kṛṣṇa.’ He’s hungry.” In a loving exchange, Caitanya Mahāprabhu used to take away his possessions, his flowers. His business was making and selling cups made of flowers. So Caitanya Mahāprabhu would take away some of his fruits and cups, as a friend. One day Caitanya Mahāprabhu said, “Śrīdhara, take a benediction from Me.” So he asked, “What benediction, sir?” “Well, you are so poor that your house is not even properly repaired. There are so many holes in the roof.” Śrīdhara replied, “Still, I have got a nice house, because it is better than the bird’s nest. They have no roof. [laughter] They have no roof, and they live on the tree. I have got a shelter. What is the difficulty? There is no difficulty.” In this way Caitanya Mahāprabhu wanted to offer him so many thing, and Śrīdhara said, “No, I have no trouble for this. If You want to benedict me, please give me pure devotion to Your lotus feet.” That is pure devotion—that we should hanker after how to fix up our mind always in the service of the Lord. That we are trying to teach, that’s all. Thank you very much. Daśa-mūla-tattva: The Ten Roots of Gauḍīya Vaiṣṇavism *In ten pithy statements, Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura summarizes the profound philosophy of Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu.* By Satyarāja Dāsa Śrīla Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura captured the essence of Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu’s teachings in ten succinct points. Botanical metaphors are often used to convey the philosophy of Kṛṣṇa consciousness. For example, Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu—Kṛṣṇa Himself in the guise of His own devotee—explained how a spiritual “seed” planted in a person’s heart by a qualified guru can grow into a vine of devotional service that ultimately produces the most valuable fruit of pure love for God. He called it the *bhakti-latā-bīja*, or “the seed of the vine of devotion.” Mahāprabhu Himself is known as the gardener of that vine. In this article I’ll focus on a similar metaphor of a plant that grows in the rich soil of Kṛṣṇa consciousness and blossoms into the ultimate goal of human life. That metaphor, which summarizes the whole of Śrī Caitanya’s teachings, was developed by the high-yielding pen of Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura (1838–1914), a prominent spiritual master in the Gauḍīya Vaiṣṇava line. He called his bullet-points summary of Mahāprabhu’s philosophy *daśa-*mūla*-*tattva**, meaning ten (*dāśa*) roots (*mūla*) of truth (*tattva*). The term daśa-*mūla* is used in Ayurvedic medicine to refer to a group of ten plants used for healing various diseases. Bhaktivinoda’s play on words is apropos, for he sees the ten roots of his *daśa-*mūla*-*tattva** as fully curing the disease of material life, as it encapsulates Mahāprabhu’s entire philosophy in terms of *sambandha* (knowledge of God, His energy, and the relationship between them), *abhidheya* (activities according to that knowledge) and *prayojana* (the ultimate goal of life, achieved by such activities). Here are Vaiṣṇavism’s “ten roots” as envisioned by Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura: 1. The Vedas constitute the principal scriptural evidence for ascertaining the Truth, and in their essence they expound the following nine principles: 2. Hari (Kṛṣṇa) is the Supreme Absolute Truth. 3. He possesses all energies, material and spiritual. 4. He is the ocean of rasa (the flavors of transcendental relationships). 5. The living entities (*jīvas*) are His separated parts. 6. These living entities, due to being minute, can become conditioned by the material energy. 7. In their liberated state, the living entities are free of the influence of material nature. 8. Everything is inconceivably one with (*a*bheda**) and different from (*bheda*) the Supreme Lord, Śrī Hari. 9. Pure devotional service (*bhakti*) is the highest duty (*dharma*) for all living beings. 10. Pure love of Kṛṣṇa (*prema*) is the ultimate goal of life. These ten roots are like sūtras, or pithy verses, and they summarize the length and breadth of Vedic knowledge. Fully unpacking them is beyond the scope of this article, but even by briefly viewing them and contemplating their meaning, one can gain entrance into the mysteries of transcendental knowledge. Earlier Versions In composing his *daśa-mūla-tattva*, Bhaktivinoda clearly drew on summaries written by his predecessors, adapting the material according to his own realization. Perhaps the earliest *sūtra*-like summary of Caitanya Mahāprabhu’s teachings is found in the work of Śrīnātha Cakravartī, who wrote in the sixteenth century. He is the *guru* of the more well-known author Kavi Karṇapūra. In Śrīnātha’s commentary on the Śrīmad *Bhāgavatam*, called *Caitanya-mata-mañjuṣā*, he offers the following five points in his introductory verse: 1. Vrajendranandana (Kṛṣṇa), the son of the king of Vraja, is the highest object of worship. 2. His home, Vrindavan, is the highest realm, and it is also worshipable. 3. The most beautiful type of worship (*upāsana*) is found in the damsels of Vraja (the *gopīs*). 4. The *Bhāgavatam* is to be considered spotless evidence. 5. Premā is the greatest of all human goals. The verse ends as follows: “This is the verdict of Śrī Caitanya, and we thus offer it the highest respect.” Śrīnātha Cakravartī’s succinct version expresses the essence of Gauḍīya Vaiṣṇavism from an esoteric point of view. He captures the substance of Mahāprabhu’s distinct system of knowledge, which focuses on *rasa*, or spiritual relationship, and the mood of the gopīs, the cowherd girls of Vraja, who love Kṛṣṇa more than life itself. Roughly contemporary with Śrīnātha Cakravartī was Vyāsatīrtha (c. 1460–1539), from the Madhva lineage, who composed a similar list: In the opinion of Madhva: 1. Hari is supreme, 2. The world is necessarily real. 3. And differences are real as well. 4. The living entities are constitutionally servants of Viṣṇu. 5. But they reach distinct destinations according to their activity. 6. *Mukti* (liberation) is experienced when one knows the self, that knowledge bringing true joy. 7. And uninterrupted *bhakti* is how one attains *mukti*. 8. Perception, inference, and testimony are the fundamental sources of valid knowledge. 9. Hari alone is to be understood from studying the Vedas. Taken together, the summaries of Śrīnātha Cakravartī and Vyāsatīrtha afford a seedlike understanding of Vaiṣṇava truth. While Śrīnātha focuses on rasa and the essential elements that make the Gauḍīya tradition distinct, Vyāsatīrtha contributes a more philosophical, *Vedāntic* vision, mentioning the nature of the individual soul, reality versus illusion, the importance of liberation, and the standard *pramāṇas* (legitimate sources of knowledge), including the Vedas. Almost two hundred years later, another celebrated Vaiṣṇava teacher, Baladeva Vidyābhūṣaṇa (c. 1700–1793), slightly reworked Vyāsatīrtha’s list in his book *Prameya-ratnāvalī* (1.8): Śrī Madhva said: 1. Viṣṇu is the Supreme Person. 2. And He is to be known through the Vedas. 3. The world is real. 4. And living beings are different from the Lord. 5. The living entities are servants of Hari’s feet. 6. And there is gradation among them. 7. Real liberation is the attainment of Viṣṇu’s feet, and not merging into the Supreme. 8. And His uninterrupted service (*bhakti*) is how such liberation (*mukti*) is attained. 9. The traditional triad of proofs, beginning with perception, is to be accepted as valid evidence for achieving reality. These same truths are also taught by the Personality of Godhead Himself, Śrī Kṛṣṇa Caitanyacandra [Caitanya Mahāprabhu]. The influence of all three lists is clear in Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura’s *daśa-mūla*. He takes the best of all that came before. One other factor should be mentioned before looking at the specific contribution of Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura. His initiating *guru*, Vipina Vihārī Gosvāmī, wrote a lengthy text (over a thousand pages) called **Daśa-mūla*-rasam*, published in 1899, focusing on the same ten essential truths that we see in Bhaktivinoda’s books. While it may seem that Vipina Vihārī’s *Daśa-mūla* exploration predates Bhaktivinoda’s work, and thus influenced Bhaktivinoda’s thinking on this subject, Bhaktivinoda had already written about the ten points more than a decade earlier in his book *Vaiṣṇava-siddhānta-mālā*. Most scholars of the tradition thus acknowledge that Bhaktivinoda and his *guru* conferred on the subject for some time, and even aver that Vipina Vihārī’s magnum opus was directly inspired by Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura’s writing. *Bhaktivinoda’s Contribution* The philosophical points delineated in *daśa-mūla-tattva* permeate Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura’s work. He peppered his considerable literary output with both systematic elaborations and brief references that highlight the importance of the ten points. His earliest mention of them appears in *Vaiṣṇava-siddhānta-mālā* (1888), in which he devotes his first chapter to a series of questions and answers on this theme. Four years later, in 1892, he published *Śrīman-mahāprabhura-śikṣā*, which focused exclusively on these ten subjects, and the following year he wrote *Jaiva* *Dharma*, considered by many his greatest work (written in the form of a novel). There we find ten chapters (13–22) elaborating on the deep meaning of the ten points. Briefly, Vrajanātha, the protagonist in Bhaktivinoda’s *Jaiva* *Dharma* narrative, submitted himself as a disciple to Bābājī Mahārāja, a saint in the Gauḍīya Vaiṣṇava tradition. Feeling blessed to be in the company of such a knowledgeable Vaiṣṇava, Vrajanātha humbly said, “O great soul, yesterday you told me that you would instruct me on *daśa-mūla*, the fundamental principles of Nimāi Paṇḍita’s [Mahāprabhu’s] teachings. Kindly now bestow this knowledge upon me.” When Vrajanātha asked this penetrating question, *Jaiva* *Dharma* relates, Bābājī Mahārāja became jubilant and immediately began explaining the ten ontological truths of *daśa-mūla*. He began his discussion by elaborating on the first verse, which sets up the principle of pramāṇa, valid evidence, especially in terms of studying the Vedas: Svayaṁ Bhagavān Śrī Gaurāngadeva has herein instructed ten distinct **tattva*s* (fundamental truths) to the faithful souls of this world. The first of these is **pramāṇa*-*tattva**, and the remaining nine are *prameya* *tattva*. First you should understand the meaning of *pramāṇa*. That subject which is established by *pramāṇa* (evidence or proof) is known as *prameya* (that which is proved); and that by which *prameya* is proved is known as *pramāṇa*. These ten fundamental *tattvas* (*daśa-mūla-tattva*) are set out in the *śloka* that I have just recited. The next *śloka* will be the first actual *śloka* of the *Daśa-mūla*, and it elaborates on the first of the daśa-mūla-*tattvas*, namely the authoritative Vedic literature (*āmnāya or pramāṇa-tattva*). From the second to the eighth *śloka* *sambandha-tattva* is described. The ninth *śloka* describes *abhidheya-tattva*, which is the *sādhana* for attaining the ultimate goal; and the tenth *śloka* describes *prayojana-tattva*, which is the *sādhya* (goal) itself. [Bhaktivinoda Thakura, *Jaiva* *Dharma*: Our Eternal Nature, trans., Narayana Goswami Maharaja (Gaudiya Vedanta Publications; 2014), Chapter 13.] After this, *Jaiva* *Dharma* extensively elaborates on the ten truths. Then, in 1896, the year of *Śrī*la Prabhupāda’s birth, Bhaktivinoda completed 104 Sanskrit verses describing *Śrī* Caitanya’s most important activities and teachings. He called the work *Śrī* *Gaurāṅga-līlā-smaraṇa-maṅgala-stotram*. Included in its pages was a now famous English introduction, “*Śrī* Caitanya Mahāprabhu: His Life and Precepts,” which he published separately and sent to several Western universities in an early attempt to bring Kṛṣṇa consciousness to the West. The introduction focused on the ten points as the essence of *Śrī* Caitanya’s teachings. Finally, in 1900, Bhaktivinoda published *Harināma-cintāmaṇi*, where he devoted his entire seventh chapter to the ten points. *The Essence of Vedic Knowlege* In summary, Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura’s listing of Śrī Caitanya’s essential teachings can be narrowed down to ten Sanskrit words and phrases: (1) *pramāṇa*, (2) *parama-tattva*, (3) *sarva-śaktimān*, (4) *akhila-rasāmṛta-sindhu*, (5) *vibhinnāṁśa-tattva*; (6) *baddha-jīva*, (7) *mukta-jīva*, (8) *acintya-bhedābheda-tattva*, (9) *śuddha-bhakti*, and (10) *kṛṣṇa-prīti*. 1. *pramāṇa* (“evidence”): The evidence for knowing the Truth is the teachings of the Vedas as received through a line of bona fide spiritual masters (*guru-paramparā*). This process of acquiring ultimate knowledge is known as *āmnāya*, and Bhaktivinoda wants to establish it as the best method right in the beginning of his list. In line with Vyāsatirtha’s and Baladeva’s lists, he is thus giving the teachings Vedic support, but he adds that the authorization comes not only from the Vedas but by the fact that the Vedas are passed down in disciplic succession, using texts such as the *Bhagavad-gītā* and *Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam*. All of this is implied by the word *āmnāya*. 2. *parama-tattva* (“supreme truth”): Śrī Hari (Kṛṣṇa) alone is the Supreme Absolute Truth. 3. *sarva-śaktimān* (“possessor of all energies”): Śrī Kṛṣṇa is the possessor of all potency. Specifically, He is the source of both Śrī Rādhā (representing the spiritual energy) and Māyādevī (representing the material energy). 4. **akhila*-rasāmṛta-*sindhu**: Kṛṣṇa is the ocean (*sindhu*) of all (*akhila*) nectarean (*amṛta*) relationships and sacred rapture (*rasa*). 5. *vibhinnāṁśa-tattva* (“the principle of separated parts”): Both liberated and conditioned souls are His eternally separated and essential parts. 6. *baddha-jīva* (“bound living entity”): Conditioned souls are subject to the effects of *māyā*, or illusion. 7. *mukta-jīva* (“liberated living entity”): Liberated souls are free from *māyā*. 8. *acintya-bhedābheda-tattva*: All of existence is inconceivably one with and different from the Supreme Lord, partaking of His nature in quality but not in quantity, like sunrays as opposed to the sun itself. 9. **śuddha*-*bhakti**: Pure (*śuddha*) devotional service (*bhakti*) is the only practice by which living beings can attain the ultimate goal of life. 10. *kṛṣṇa-*prīti**: Transcendental love (*prema*) and affection (*prīti*) for Kṛṣṇa is the final object of attainment. These ten truths, Bhaktivinoda tells us, are at the core of reality and constitute the sum and substance of Vedic knowledge. To make this clear, in addition to all his specific writing on these ten truths, he composed four essays on these basic principles as found in the *Upaniṣads*, *Bhagavad-gītā*, *Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam*, and *Caitanya-caritāmṛta*, the central texts of Gauḍīya Vaiṣṇavism. He selected important verses describing each principle and gave his own translation with commentary to elaborate on it. These four essays remained unpublished for many years until they were discovered by disciples of Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura (Bhaktivinoda’s son and the spiritual master of Śrīla Prabhupāda). On the Ṭhākura’s appearance day in 1941, his long-awaited essays were finally released as a small Bengali book that was received enthusiastically by the Gauḍīya Vaiṣṇava community. Recently, ISKCON’s Brijbāsī Dāsa (Kostyantyn Perun) translated this work into English for the first time. In this way the rich tradition of *daśa-mūla-tattva* continues into the present day for the benefit of all humanity. *Satyarāja Dāsa, a disciple of Śrīla Prabhupāda, is a BTG associate editor and founding editor of the Journal of Vaishnava Studies. He has written more than thirty books on Kṛṣṇa consciousness and lives near New York City.* *For this article, he would like to thank Brijbāsī Dāsa for the fruits of his research. See Brijbāsī Dāsa (Kostyantyn Perun),* “Daśa Mūla*:* The Ten Fundamental Truths*,” in Journal of Vaiṣṇava Studies 23.1 (Fall 2014), 205–229.* Lord Kṛṣṇa: As Pure as a Lotus, As Cool as the Moon *The Vedic scriptures and Vaiṣṇava poets describe the beauty and character of Lord Kṛṣṇa.* By Vaṁśī Vihārī Dāsa Seeing Kṛṣṇa in these two material things can help us gain spiritual purity and mental coolness. Two words often used by scriptures and saints to describe this world are “contamination” and “fire.” We suffer the contamination of the external impurities of earth, water, air, and so on that constitute our material body, and we suffer from internal impurities such as lust, anger, violence, and hatred. Our body, mind, and intelligence all are contaminated to various degrees. As for “fire,” the scriptures compare the material world to a forest fire that keeps burning us. Prominently, the scriptures says, we are burnt by three types of misery: *ādhyātmika*, those caused by our own body and mind; *ādhibhautika*, those cause by other living entities; and *ādhidaivika*, those caused by nature. By honest introspection, whether rich or poor, scholar or illiterate, rough or gentle, everyone can feel the contamination and fire in their lives. These two factors give us various pains internally and externally, but the scriptures tell us that we are the cause of our own suffering. We are all part of God, meant to live in His kingdom of uninterrupted bliss and knowledge. But somehow or the other we have chosen to reside in this contaminated and burning world. Fortunately, the scriptures tell us how to attain our real home—by taking shelter of the person who is supremely pure and cool. That person is Supreme Personality of Godhead, Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa. In the scriptures, Lord Kṛṣṇa is compared to many things, two being prominent: the lotus and the full moon. The lotus is considered pure because in spite of growing in mud, it keeps its beauty intact. And after the day’s scorching sunlight, the moonlight is cooling and soothing to the heart. In reality, God cannot be compared to anything of the material world, since it comes under the three modes of material nature and God is beyond them. Still, to point out God’s various qualities and His greatness, scriptures and saints draw comparisons. Śivarāma Swami, an ISKCON leader and *guru*, writes, “The King and Queen of lotuses must have performed innumerable austerities on account of which Śrī Kṛṣṇa’s eyes, face, smile, hands, feet, and transcendental limbs are the constant object of comparison for great Vaiṣṇava poets. (*Veṇu-gītā*, Chapter 1) *Pure Like the Lotus* Kṛṣṇa in His form as Lord Nārāyaṇa holds four things in His four hands: a counchshell, a disc, a mace, and a lotus, the lotus being a symbol of tenderness and purity. Lord Nārāyaṇa and His dear wife, Lakṣmī Devī, love to sit upon a lotus. One of the Lord’s names is Kamalāsana, “one who sits on a lotus throne.” The lotus is intimately connected with Kṛṣṇa. His personal abode, Goloka, is in the shape of a lotus. This signifies that it and its inhabitants are beyond the modes of material nature, just as a lotus grown in mud remains above it, untouched. Sanskrit has many words for “lotus,” one being *paṅkaja*, or “mud-born.” *Paṅka* means “mud,” and ja means “born.” In her prayers to Lord Kṛṣṇa in *Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam* (1.8.22), Kuntī Devī compares various limbs of Kṛṣṇa’s divine body to the lotus: > namaḥ paṅkaja-nābhāya > namaḥ paṅkaja-māline > namaḥ paṅkaja-netrāya > namas te paṅkajāṅghraye “My respectful obeisances are unto You, O Lord, whose abdomen is marked with a depression like a lotus flower, who are always decorated with garlands of lotus flowers, whose glance is as cool as the lotus and whose feet are engraved with lotuses.” The famous sixteenth-century poet Tulasīdāsa, a devotee of Lord Rāmacandra, made a similar comparison in reference to His Lord. *Karakañja-locana kañja-mukha karakañja pada-kañjāruṇam*: “Lord Rāma’s eyes, His face, His hands, and His reddish feet are like lotus flowers.” *Kañja* means “lotus.” *Many Lotuses* In *Śrī* *Caitanya-caritāmṛta* (*Antya* 19.94), Caitanya Mahāprabhu provides a list of lotuses seen in Lord Kṛṣṇa’s divine body: > netra-nābhi, vadana, kara-yuga caraṇa, > ei aṣṭa-padma kṛṣṇa-aṅge > karpūra-lipta kamala, tāra yaiche parimala, > sei gandha aṣṭa-padma-saṅge “Kṛṣṇa’s eyes, navel and face, hands and feet are like eight lotus flowers on His body. From those eight lotuses emanates a fragrance like a mixture of camphor and lotus. That is the scent associated with His body.” Lotus eyes: Kṛṣṇa’s eyes are compared to lotus petals. In *Brahma-saṁhitā* Lord Brahmā glorifies Kṛṣṇa’s eyes as *arvinda-dalāyatākṣam*—“blooming like lotus petals.” Kṛṣṇa’s eyes are full of compassion. He constantly watches over His devotees, and when required, He helps them. Lord Kapila speaks about meditation on the Lord’s eyes: “The *yogīs* should contemplate with full devotion the compassionate glances frequently cast by the Lord’s eyes, for they soothe the most fearful threefold agonies of His devotees.” (*Bhāgavatam* 3.28.31) Lotus navel: *Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam* (1.3.2) compares the navel of Garbhodakaśāyī Visnu, an expansion of Lord Kṛṣṇa, to a lake. From this lake a beautiful lotus sprouts, and atop it Lord Brahmā, the engineer of the material creation, takes birth. Since a lotus sprouts from the Lord’s navel, His navel is compared to a lotus. Lord Kapila says, “The *yogī* should then meditate on His moonlike navel in the center of His abdomen. From His navel, which is the foundation of the entire universe, sprang the lotus stem containing all the different planetary systems. The lotus is the residence of Brahmā, the first created being.” (*Bhāgavatam* 3.28.25) Lotus face: Although each of Lord Kṛṣṇa’s limbs is transcendentally beautiful and enchanting, the scriptures glorify the beauty of His face as exceptional. All one’s desires to see the beautiful things of this world are satisfied simply by seeing His beautiful lotus face. Just as seeing the lotus soothes our mind, seeing Kṛṣṇa’s lotus face soothes our heart. Kṛṣṇadāsa Kavirāja Gosvāmī describes Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu’s seeing the lotus face of the Lord: “Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu was very thirsty to see the Lord, and His eyes became like two bumblebees drinking the honey from the lotuslike eyes of Lord Jagannātha, who is Kṛṣṇa Himself.” (*Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Madhya* 12.211) Kapiladeva tells of the effect of meditating on the Lord’s lotus face: “The *yogī* then meditates upon the beautiful face of the Lord, which is adorned with curly hair and decorated by lotuslike eyes and dancing eyebrows. A lotus surrounded by swarming bees and a pair of swimming fish would be put to shame by its elegance.” (*Bhāgavatam* 3.28.30) Lotus hands: One of the Lord’s hands always holds a lotus. This suggests that He is assuring His devotees, “If you take My shelter, you will be purified like this lotus. The impurity, faults, and dirtiness of the material world won’t be able to touch you.” Lakṣmī Devī prays, “O infallible one, Your lotus palm is the source of all benediction. Therefore Your pure devotees worship it, and You very mercifully place Your hand on their heads. I wish that You may also place Your hand on My head . . . .” (*Bhāgavatam* 5.18.23) *Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam* (7.9.6) describes the purifying effect of the Lord’s lotus hand: “By the touch of Lord Nṛsiṁhadeva’s hand on Prahlāda Mahārāja’s head, Prahlāda was completely freed of all material contaminations and desires, as if he had been thoroughly cleansed. Therefore he at once became transcendentally situated, and all the symptoms of ecstasy became manifest in his body.” Lotus feet: Lord Kṛṣṇa’s feet are compared to the lotus, and His devotees are compared to spotless pure swans who love to play in its stems. Śrīla Prabhupāda would often sing a related prayer by King Kulaśekhara with great feeling: > kṛṣṇa tvadīya-pada-paṅkaja-pañjarāntam > adyaiva me viśatu mānasa-rāja-haṁsaḥ > prāṇa-prayāṇa-samaye kapha-vāta-pittaiḥ > kaṇṭhāvarodhana-vidhau smaraṇaṁ kutas te “O Lord Kṛṣṇa, at this moment let the royal swan of my mind enter the tangled stems of the lotus of Your feet. How will it be possible for me to remember You at the time of death, when my throat will be choked up with mucus, bile, and air?” (*Mukunda-mālā-stotra* 33) Devotees are compared to the bumblebees always eager to relish the nectar flowing from the lotuslike feet of Lord Kṛṣṇa. The material world is compared to an endless and bottomless ocean, and Kṛṣṇa’s lotus feet are compared to a strong boat that can carry us beyond this vast ocean. While instructing King Pṛthu, the four Kumāras say: “The ocean of nescience is very difficult to cross because it is infested with many dangerous sharks. Although those who are nondevotees undergo severe austerities and penances to cross that ocean, we recommend that you simply take shelter of the lotus feet of the Lord, which are like boats for crossing the ocean. Although the ocean is difficult to cross, by taking shelter of His lotus feet you will overcome all dangers.” (*Bhāgavatam* 4.22.20) Kṛṣṇa is pure like the lotus, and if we take His shelter, we can also become pure. He declares, “One who performs his duty without attachment, surrendering the results unto the Supreme Lord, is unaffected by sinful action, as the lotus leaf is untouched by water.” (*Gītā* 5.10) *The Rising Moon* Lord Kṛṣṇa’s presence removes the darkness of ignorance from our hearts; therefore Lord Kṛṣṇa is compared to the sun. He is also compared to a full moon because He cools our hearts and our lives, which are burning in the volcanic fire of the material world. Because of His cooling quality, the word candra (“moon”) is often added to names of Kṛṣṇa and His incarnations, such as Śrī Kṛṣṇacandra, Śrī Rāmacandra, and Śrī Gauracandra. During the churning of the milk ocean, narrated in the Eighth Canto of the *Bhāgavatam*, the full moon appeared from the ocean. Thus Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu, paraphrasing the words of Śrīmatī Rādhārāṇī, says, “The family of Mahārāja Nanda is just like an ocean of milk, wherein Lord Kṛṣṇa has arisen like the full moon to illuminate the entire universe.” (*Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Antya* 19.36) While describing the birth of Caitanya Mahāprabhu, Kavirāja Gosvāmī uses the same analogy: > navadvīpe śacī-garbha-śuddha-dugdha-sindhu > tāhāte prakaṭa hailā kṛṣṇa pūrṇa indu “In Navadvīpa, Lord Kṛṣṇa appeared like the full moon, from the womb of Mother Śacī, which is like an ocean of pure milk.” (*Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Ādi* 4.272) Although Lord Kṛṣṇa is compared to the moon, He is not an ordinary moon. In the Third Canto of *Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam* Lord Kṛṣṇa’s dear devotee and friend Uddhava laments that just as fish born in the ocean consider the moon, which also arises from ocean, ordinary, the unfortunate Yādavas considered Lord Kṛṣṇa an ordinary person because He appeared in their dynasty. Śrīla Prabhupāda writes: From this ocean of milk the moon was born, but the fish in the milk ocean could not recognize that the moon, was not another fish and was different from them. The fish took the moon to be one of them or maybe something illuminating, but nothing more. The unfortunate persons who do not recognize Lord Kṛṣṇa are like such fish. They take Him to be one of them, although a little extraordinary in opulence, strength, etc. The *Bhagavad-gītā* (9.11) confirms such foolish persons to be most unfortunate: *avajānanti māṁ mūḍhā mānuṣīṁ tanum āśritam*. (*Bhāgavatam* 3.2.8, Purport) *Moons in Kṛṣṇa* Along with the lotus, Lord Kṛṣṇa’s face is also compared to the moon. Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu, speaking in the mood of Śrīmatī Rādhārāṇī, says, “Of what use are the eyes of one who does not see the face of Kṛṣṇa, which resembles the moon and is the birthplace of all beauty and the reservoir of the nectarean songs of His flute? Oh, let a thunderbolt strike his head! Why does he keep such eyes? (*Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Madhya* 2.29) The number of moons in Kṛṣṇa’s divine body exceeds the number of lotuses. Lord Caitanya gives a wonderful description of these twenty four and a half moons to Śrīla Sanātana Gosvāmī: The face of Kṛṣṇa is the king of all moons, and the body of Kṛṣṇa is the throne. Thus the king governs a society of moons. Kṛṣṇa has two cheeks that shine like glowing gems. Both are considered full moons. His forehead is considered a half moon, and the spot of sandalwood there is considered a full moon. His fingernails are many full moons, and they dance on the flute in His hands. Their song is the melody of that flute. His toenails are also many full moons, and they dance on the ground. Their song is the jingling of His ankle bells. Kṛṣṇa’s face is the enjoyer king. That full-moon face makes His shark-shaped earrings and lotus eyes dance. His eyebrows are like bows, and His eyes are like arrows. His ears are fixed on the string of that bow, and when His eyes spread to His ears, He pierces the hearts of the *gopīs*. The dancing features of His face surpass all other full moons and expand the marketplace of full moons. Although priceless, the nectar of Kṛṣṇa’s face is distributed to everyone. Some purchase the moonrays of His sweet smiles, and others purchase the nectar of His lips. Thus He pleases everyone. Kṛṣṇa has two reddish, widely spread eyes. These are ministers of the king, and they subdue the pride of Cupid, who also has beautiful eyes. That face of Govinda, which is full of happiness, is the home of the pastimes of beauty, and it is very pleasing to everyone’s eyes. If by devotional service one gets the results of pious activities and sees Lord Kṛṣṇa’s face, what can he relish with only two eyes? His greed and thirst increase twofold by seeing the nectarean face of Kṛṣṇa. Due to his inability to sufficiently drink that nectar, he becomes very unhappy and criticizes the creator for not having given more than two eyes. (*Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Madhya* 21.126–132) *Śakha-candra Nyāya* Our great *ācāryas* and poets compared Kṛṣṇa to a lotus and the moon, but Śrī Kṛṣṇa is millions of times purer than a lotus and cooler than the moon. We conditioned souls have experience of this world only; therefore the poets are left only the option of comparing Kṛṣṇa to a lotus and the moon. Śrīla Prabhupāda writes: “There was nothing comparable to the bodily features of Lord Kṛṣṇa when He was present in this world. The most beautiful object in the material world may be compared to the blue lotus flower or the full moon in the sky, but even the lotus flower and the moon were defeated by the beauty of the bodily features of Lord Kṛṣṇa, and this was certified by the demigods, the most beautiful living creatures in the universe. (*Bhāgavatam* 3.2.13, Purport) Lord Kṛṣṇa is supreme in every field. In the tenth chapter of the *Bhagavad-gītā* He explains His opulences by giving examples of persons and things of this world. For instance, He says that among immovable things He is the Himalayas, among water bodies He is the ocean, among trees He is the banyan, and so on. If we are talking about the greatest immovable thing in this world, our intelligence cannot think of a better example than the Himalayas, or if we are talking about great bodies of water, certainly we must mention the ocean. Although Kṛṣṇa is far superior to any of these, He identifies Himself with them so that we can get an idea of His greatness by meditating on the qualities they possess. Similarly, when Lord Kṛṣṇa’s purity is compared to a lotus or His coolness to a shining full moon, this is nothing but *śakha-candra nyāya*—the logic of seeing the moon through the branches of a tree, which refers to changing our frame of reference to better understand something. Remembering Kṛṣṇa in these forms purifies our existence. Śrīla Pabhupāda writes, Simply remember this one instruction from *Bhagavad-gītā*: *raso ’ham apsu kaunteya prabhāsmi śaśi-sūryayoḥ*, “I am the taste of water; I am the shining illumination of the sun and moon.” Who has not seen the sunlight? Who has not seen the moonlight? Who has not tasted water? Then why do you say, “I have not seen God”? If you simply practice this *bhakti-yoga*, as soon as you taste water and feel satisfied you will think, “Oh, here is Kṛṣṇa.” Immediately you will remember Kṛṣṇa. As soon as you see the sunshine, you will remember, “Oh, here is Kṛṣṇa.” As soon as you see the moonshine, you will remember, “Oh, here is Kṛṣṇa.” (*The Journey of Self-Discovery* 6.3) And while seeing a lotus or the shining moon, if we can remember Kṛṣṇa and His wonderful qualities, we can also feel His purity and coolness in our lives. He is so amazing! *Vaṁśī Vihārī Dāsa, a disciple of His Holiness Rādhānāth Swami, serves on the staff of the Hindi edition of Back to Godhead.* Who Is the Cause of My Suffering? *When suffering comes, we would do well to look beyond the immediate cause.* By Gaurāṅga Darśana Dāsa Externally addressing the immediate cause of suffering while internally acknowledging its ultimate cause makes life an enlivening journey. Endeavoring for happiness and attempting to avoid suffering are natural. Often, however, we don’t get the happiness we expect, and we can’t escape suffering despite our determined efforts. When our seamless plans lead to tragic results, when our good deeds performed with integrity end in tremendous tribulations, we naturally feel confusion and bewilderment. Our natural response to suffering is to identify a cause beyond ourselves. Indeed, no one desires suffering, and generally no sensible person acts with the intention to suffer. When suffering comes nonetheless, we tend to blame its immediate cause. For instance, Uttama, the brother of the famous king Dhruva, was killed by a Yakṣa (a type of entity the Vedic literature describes as having demonic tendencies). Considering all the Yakṣas offenders, Dhruva attacked them and started killing them wholesale to avenge his brother’s death. (As mentioned below, on the advice of Manu, a superior, he eventually desisted.) We often hear that we reap the results of our own actions, that the pleasant and unpleasant experiences in our life are consequences of our own deeds. Many people today accept that idea, but inconsistently. They tend to take credit for their success, and conveniently believe that their happiness is due to their own good work. But when their actions produce unintended results, they think, “Is it really due to my action?” Religious people, on the other hand, who believe that everything that happens to devotees—especially the good things—is God’s will, may be bewildered in seeing a devotee’s apparent suffering. Śrīla Prabhupāda writes, “In case of benefit, no one will deny that it is God-sent, but in case of loss or reverses one becomes doubtful about how the Lord could be so unkind to His devotee as to put him in great difficulty.” (*Bhāgavatam* 1.17.22, Purport) *What Are the Expert Opinions?* Different philosophers identify the cause of suffering in different ways. Once Mahārāja Parīkṣit, the great emperor of the world, saw a lowborn man, dressed as a king, beating a bull and a cow. The man was actually the personification of Kali, the current age of quarrel and hypocrisy. The bull was *Dharma*, or religion, and the cow was *Dhara*, the earth. Parīkṣit, being a responsible king, wanted to immediately kill Kali for his heinous deed of torturing a cow and a bull, which were traditionally honoured as our mother and father, since the cow gives us milk and the bull once tilled our fields. Parīkṣit first wanted to get a statement of accusation against Kali, so he asked the bull to identify the perpetrator. Dharma replied: O greatest among human beings, it is very difficult to ascertain the particular miscreant who has caused our sufferings, because we are bewildered by all the different opinions of theoretical philosophers. Some of the philosophers, who deny all sorts of duality, declare that one’s own self is responsible for his personal happiness and distress. Others say that superhuman powers are responsible, while yet others say that activity is responsible, and the gross materialists maintain that nature is the ultimate cause. (*Bhāgavatam* 1.17.18–19) Thus different philosophers declare different causes of suffering: one’s own self (*ātmā*), superhuman powers (*daiva*), one’s actions (*karma*), and material nature (*svabhāva*). *Who Is the Real Cause?* Such explanations about the cause of suffering may not be incorrect, but they are incomplete, for they do not recognize the sanction of the Supreme Lord, which is the ultimate cause of all causes. Although the symptoms of a disease indicate the immediate cause, an expert physician traces out the root cause. A painkiller may relieve the immediate physical pain, but proper diagnosis and medication are needed to treat the patient. A mature person tries to identify the cause behind the immediate cause, and thus traces out the ultimate cause of the misery. Śrīla Prabhupāda writes: Although the bull and the cow knew perfectly well that the personality of Kali was the direct cause of their sufferings, still, as devotees of the Lord, they knew well also that without the sanction of the Lord no one could inflict trouble upon them. Thus even if the devotees see the mischief-mongers, they do not accuse them for the sufferings inflicted. They take it for granted that the mischief-monger is made to act by some indirect cause, and therefore they tolerate the sufferings, thinking them to be God-given in small doses, for otherwise the sufferings should have been greater. (*Bhāgavatam* 1.17.18, Purport) Thus the bull says, “There are also some thinkers who believe that no one can ascertain the cause of distress by argumentation, nor know it by imagination, nor express it by words.” (*Bhāgavatam* 1.17.20) This cause that cannot be ascertained indicates the Supreme Personality of Godhead, who is inconceivable to ordinary mortals. When Dhruva attacked the Yakṣas, he became so outraged that he began to annihilate their entire race. Then Dhruva’s grandfather, Svāyambhuva Manu, came and advised him, “My dear son, those Yakṣas, who are descendants of Kuvera, are not actually the killers of your brother; the birth and death of every living entity are caused by the Supreme, who is certainly the cause of all causes.” (*Bhāgavatam* 4.11.24) Identifying the root cause of suffering—with tolerance, forgiveness, gratitude, and dependence on God’s will—is liberating. *Tolerate the Inevitable* Nothing happens without the sanction of Supreme Lord Kṛṣṇa. Śrīla Prabhupāda writes: A devotee’s conclusion is that no one is directly responsible for being a benefactor or mischief-monger without the sanction of the Lord; therefore he does not consider anyone to be directly responsible for such action. But in both the cases he takes it for granted that either benefit or loss is God-sent, and thus it is His grace. Jesus Christ was seemingly put into such great difficulty, being crucified by the ignorant, but he was never angry at the mischief-mongers. That is the way of accepting a thing, either favorable or unfavorable. By God’s grace, the devotee tolerates all reverses. A devotee has no suffering at all because so-called suffering is also God’s grace for a devotee who sees God in everything. (*Bhāgavatam* 1.17.22, Purport) After all, Lord Kṛṣṇa certifies this world as a place of suffering (*duḥkhālayam*). A conditioned soul has very little independence and is being controlled by higher powers constantly. A mature person understands that he is not the controller of his destiny despite his desires. He accepts the inevitable sufferings in this world as a reaction to his own past deeds, meant for his purification. Scriptures reveal to us this deeper philosophy of life repeatedly. For example: > sukham aindriyakaṁ rājan > svarge naraka eva ca > dehināṁ yad yathā duḥkhaṁ > tasmān neccheta tad-budhaḥ “O King, the embodied living entity automatically experiences unhappiness in heaven or hell. Similarly, happiness will also be experienced, even without one’s seeking it. Therefore a person of intelligent discrimination does not make any endeavor to obtain such material happiness.” (*Bhāgavatam* 11.8.1) Lord Kṛṣṇa tells Arjuna that to be eligible for liberation he must tolerate the inevitable dualities with equanimity: > mātrā-sparśās tu kaunteya > śītoṣṇa-sukha-duḥkha-dāḥ > āgamāpāyino ’nityās > tāṁs titikṣasva bhārata “O son of Kuntī, the nonpermanent appearance of happiness and distress, and their disappearance in due course, are like the appearance and disappearance of winter and summer seasons. They arise from sense perception, O scion of Bharata, and one must learn to tolerate them without being disturbed.” (*Gītā* 2.14) Thus a devotee gratefully accepts the will of the Supreme Lord and endures the reversals in life, as Lord Brahmā says: > tat te ’nukampāṁ su-samīkṣamāṇo > bhuñjāna evātma-kṛtaṁ vipākam > hṛd-vāg-vapurbhir vidadhan namas te > jīveta yo mukti-pade sa dāya-bhāk “My dear Lord, one who earnestly waits for You to bestow Your causeless mercy upon him, all the while patiently suffering the reactions of his past misdeeds and offering You respectful obeisances with his heart, words and body, is surely eligible for liberation, for it has become his rightful claim.” (*Bhāgavatam* 10.14.8) *Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam* presents the story of a *brāhmaṇa* from Avanti, a kingdom of ancient India, to teach how one should tolerate the disturbances of evil persons. Harsh words pierce the heart more severely than arrows, but the Avanti *brāhmaṇa* considered them simply the consequences of his own past deeds and tolerated them soberly. Previously he had been a greedy, angry, miserly agriculturalist and merchant. When he lost his wealth, everyone abandoned him. Thus he developed a deep sense of renunciation. He began to see Kṛṣṇa’s hand in his life and did not blame anyone but himself for his suffering. He said: > nāyaṁ jano me sukha-duḥkha-hetur > na devatātmā graha-karma-kālāḥ > manaḥ paraṁ kāraṇam āmananti > saṁsāra-cakraṁ parivartayed yat “These people are not the cause of my happiness and distress. Neither are the demigods, my own body, the planets, my past work, or time. Rather, it is the mind alone that causes happiness and distress and perpetuates the rotation of material life.” (*Bhāgavatam* 11.23.42) *But Is it Worth Suffering More?* One may have to tolerate suffering that comes of its own accord. But one shouldn’t allow oneself to be exploited. While living in this world, one should be intelligent enough to avoid suffering as much as possible, and if the suffering goes beyond one’s capacity, one has to accept the inevitable as God’s will and a result of one’s past deeds. When Kaṁsa tried to kill Devakī after hearing the prophecy that her eighth child was going to kill him, Vasudeva tried to protect her. He finally convinced Kaṁsa to spare her life, promising to bring him her future newborn children. Vasudeva and Devakī then suffered the agony of the death of several children. But after Kaṁsa fell at their feet begging forgiveness, they forgave him wholeheartedly. Pointing out the immediate cause of one’s suffering is natural and needed. For instance, if someone hurts us, whether physically or verbally, unintentionally or intentionally, it’s quite natural to feel the pain. If it’s physical pain, we try to counteract it with medical treatment. If it’s emotional pain, we need to deal with it in a suitable way. In either case, to avoid a repetition of the offense, we should express our feelings to the person who caused the pain. We may sometimes suffer more than necessary by holding grudges, carrying negative impressions, making biased decisions, dealing with people based on conceptions and perceptions born of our suffering, and so on. All this leads to unnecessary suffering that we unconsciously create for ourselves and others. Being caught up in dealing with the immediate or intermediate causes of suffering creates more suffering through blame and imagination. Without maturely understanding the ultimate cause, we only find ourselves entangled in the process of blaming. Blaming inspires others to blame, and this contagious blame game can expand to multiple people for a long time and create more suffering. *Mature Vision and Responsible Action* As implied above, our understanding of the ultimate cause of our suffering shouldn’t make us neglect taking necessary corrective actions. We need to responsibly identify the immediate cause or causes of our suffering and address the situation appropriately according to the time, place, and circumstances. Śrīla Prabhupāda writes, “Dhruva Mahārāja was the king, and when his brother was unceremoniously killed, it was his duty to take revenge against the Yakṣas.” (*Bhāgavatam* 4.10.4, Purport) This act of Dhruva’s befits his position as a king, who needs to punish miscreants, and as a devotee, who has feelings for near and dear ones. Similarly, the Pāṇḍavas fought the Kurukshetra war in retaliation for all the injustices of Duryodhana and his associates. Kṛṣṇa taught Arjuna detachment and neutrality, but He ultimately inspired him to fight the war. Although *Dharma*, the bull, didn’t point out Kali as the cause of his suffering, King Parīkṣit immediately prepared himself to punish and kill Kali. Thus we cannot withdraw from responsible action even though we know that the situation is the Supreme’s will. So a mature person externally addresses the situation with responsibility while internally reconciling it as the Supreme will. A wrongdoer has to be rectified. Rectification shouldn’t be done with revenge, however, but with responsibility towards the damaged situation and even the one who “caused” it by faulty actions. And in the name of responsibility, one shouldn’t unduly get caught up in the external details of the situation and lose focus on the Supreme will. Therefore, when Dhruva became excessively angry and tried to kill many Yakṣas for one Yakṣa’s mistake, Manu came and stopped him. When Dhruva was a child, one day when he tried to sit on his father’s lap his envious stepmother, Suruci, discouraged him with harsh words. Disappointed, Dhruva went crying to his mother, Sunīti, who was already in pain, being regularly neglected by her husband, King Uttānapāda. Now she became devastated to see her child insulted by her co-wife. Being a glorious woman, a devotee of Lord Kṛṣṇa, Sunīti spontaneously pacified Dhruva with wise words, avoiding any negativity that might overwhelm him. She told him three things in particular: “(1) Never desire harm for others who might have caused you pain. (2) Everyone suffers as a reaction to his or her own past deeds. (3) Whatever may be your desire, you need to worship the Supreme Lord to fulfill it.” Thus, instead of blaming *Suruci* or *Uttānapāda* for the suffering of Dhruva and herself, Sunīti maturely diverted Dhruva towards Lord Kṛṣṇa’s shelter. Blaming, arguing, and lamenting are natural during a calamity, but one should surpass that stage and maturely consider what is the best one could do in the situation. And the best thing to do, apart from whatever is humanly possible, is to seek God’s shelter. One can be hopeful in the most hopeless situation by taking shelter of Kṛṣṇa. Having already faced many calamities, Queen Kuntī asked for more of them so that she could remember and see Kṛṣṇa. In the midst of suffering, one’s dependence on God can increase. Śrīla Prabhupāda writes about Sunīti and Dhruva: “Both the mother and the son were lamenting Dhruva Mahārāja’s having been insulted by his stepmother and his father’s not having taken any step on this issue. But mere lamentation is useless—one should find out the means to mitigate one’s lamentation. Thus both mother and son decided to take shelter of the lotus feet of the Lord because that is the only solution to all material problems.” (*Bhāgavatam* 4.8.24, Purport) *Seeing “Misery” as Mercy* Suffering is inevitable in this world because that is how the Supreme Lord has made it. But by understanding that suffering is sanctioned by the Lord for our purification and by learning to tolerate suffering with a forgiving heart while responsibly taking necessary action according to the divine teachings, one can transcend this world of suffering. The *Bhāgavatam* promises us that reading it and living by its teachings will relieve us of the miseries in this world (*tāpa-trayonmūlanam*). The *Bhāgavatam* doesn’t literally solve our health problems, financial problems, and so on, but by inspiring us to take shelter of the process of *bhakti-yoga*, it equips our consciousness with the strength to see Kṛṣṇa’s merciful hand behind those miseries. When we maturely see “misery” as the mercy of God, where is the question of suffering? *Gaurāṅga Darśana Dāsa, a disciple of His Holiness Rādhānāth Swami, is dean of the Bhaktivedānta Vidyāpīṭha (www.vidyapitha.in) at ISKCON Govardhan Eco Village (GEV), outside Mumbai. He has written study guides, including* Gītā Subodhinī, Bhāgavata Subodhinī*, and* Caitanya Subodhinī*, and* teaches śāstric *courses at several places in India. He also oversees the deity worship at GEV.* Death: At Whose Hands or for Whose Hands *The Rāmāyaṇa character Mārīca was faced with choosing who would kill him.* Caitanya Caraṇa Dāsa Knowing he’d be killed by Rāvaṇa or Rāma, Mārīca acted with spiritual knowledge, but worked against the purpose of such knowledge. We all are going to die one day. This is one of life’s hardest truths—hard to endure and hard even to contemplate. Equipping us to face this reality, Gītā wisdom explains that at our core we are eternal souls; death is an event that happens only to our bodies, not to us. Seen in this light, death is not a termination but a transition. Where do we go after death? That is determined by how we live and how we leave—by the consciousness we have at the time of death, which in turn is determined by the consciousness we cultivate throughout our life. If we die remembering God, we attain Him (*Gītā* 8.5) The Rāmāyaṇa depicts a fascinating character, named Mārīca, who uses his knowledge about one’s postmortem destination to make a decision that is life-defining, in fact, life-ending. Whether his decision was right or not is open to debate—a debate that reveals the difference between self-centeredness and God-centeredness in the application of spiritual knowledge. *Self-Fulfilling Fear* Mārīca appears first in the Bāla-kāṇḍa, the first book of the Rāmāyaṇa, wherein Rāma is still young and unmarried. The Ayodhya prince has gone to the forest with the sage Viśvāmitra to protect the sage’s sacrifices from being desecrated by demons. When Mārīca along with the demoness Tāḍakā and her son Subāhu attack Viśvāmitra’s sacrifice, Rāma and His brother Lakṣmaṇa counter the demons. Rāma slays Tāḍakā and Subāhu, but Mārīca is spared, being hit by a blunt arrow shot by Rāma. Though blunt, the arrow is so forceful that it hurls him a long distance away. Mārīca, a demon powerful enough to hurl trees far away with the force of his arms, finds himself hurled far away by the force of Rāma’s arrows. The trauma of the forced flight leaves *Rā*ma’s awesome power forever impressed in Mārīca’s mind. Experiencing *Rā*ma’s incomparable and unbearable power, he has a change of heart induced by fear. Recognizing that he will never be able to counter *Rā*ma’s power, he decides to give up his demoniac way of life and atone for his past misdeeds by becoming an austere sage. He lives on simple forest fare, chants mantras, and meditates on higher spiritual reality, yet he lives in constant fear of *Rā*ma. Such is his fear that even hearing the syllable *Rā* petrifies him, for he dreads that the sound of that syllable will be followed by the person *Rā*ma, who will kill him. Mārīca understands that *Rā*ma is God descended in human form to this world, but he doesn’t understand that God is benevolent, not malevolent. Whatever we fear fervently, we may draw towards ourselves by that concentrated negative mental energy of fear. Because our fears can become self-fulfilling, they can sabotage us by bringing upon us the very things we dread. Of course, our thinking about a thing doesn’t alone make it happen. But our obsessive thinking can make us act and can set up the circumstances that induce that thing to happen. Mārīca, who lives constantly in fear of Rāma’s arrows, eventually dies by those arrows, despite performing his austerities to avoid that fate. *Constrained into Conspiracy* To understand and analyze how this happens, we pick up the Rāmāyaṇa narrative at the point when the demon-king Rāvaṇa is scheming to abduct Rāma’s consort, Sītā. Having heard of Rāma’s formidable prowess, Rāvaṇa decides to avoid a head-on confrontation with Rāma. He hatches a conspiracy for sidelining Rāma and conscripts Mārīca into it. Mārīca is a specialist at shape-changing. Many demons have shape-shifting abilities, but Mārīca’s are extraordinary even among demons. Knowing this, Rāvaṇa goes to Mārīca and tells him about the scheme. His normal fear on hearing the name of Rāma heightens to terror when he hears about Rāvaṇa’s plan to abduct Rāma’s wife. Vehemently and desperately, he urges Rāvaṇa to avoid provoking Rāma, for the Ayodhya prince’s power is unmatchable. Cautioned by Mārīca’s assessment of Rāma’s power, Rāvaṇa reluctantly abandons his plan. Rāvaṇa had wanted to abduct Sītā primarily because he saw her as a means by which he could get back at Rāma for having destroyed the demons he had stationed at his outpost at Janasthana. Women are often treated as pawns in the power games of men, but then, women too treat men as pawns in their power games. Little did Rāvaṇa know that he was soon going to become a pawn in the hands of his sister, Śūrpaṇakha. The demoness, who feels she was dishonored by Rāma, wants Rāvaṇa to punish Him. When Rāvaṇa remains reluctant, she incites him by describing Sītā’s devastating beauty, and the lusty demon’s intelligence soon lies devastated. He resolves to abduct Sītā and again goes to Mārīca, ordering him to assume the form of an attractive deer, go the forest where Rāma and Sītā are living in exile, and lead Rāma away, thus leaving Sītā unguarded. When Mārīca protests against the foolhardy plan, Rāvaṇa silences him with an ultimatum: Do as I say, or I will kill you. Hearing Rāvaṇa declare haughtily that he has come to order Mārīca and not to hear his suggestions, Mārīca realizes that the demon king is beyond listening to any good counsel and reluctantly agrees to go along with Rāvaṇa’s scheme. He reasons that his death is inevitable—so he might as well choose the best death. Dying at the hands of Rāma will lead to his elevation, possibly even liberation, whereas dying at the hands of Rāvaṇa will take him to some unknown destination. Resigning himself to fate, Mārīca assumes the form of an irresistibly attractive deer. He starts playing near Rāma’s hermitage, thereby attracting Sītā’s attention, and Sītā begs Rāma to get her the deer as a pet. Rāma moves to catch the deer, but it flees, and Rāma follows. The deer keeps bounding away, suddenly jumping huge distances, suddenly disappearing and reappearing at a distance, and doing things impossible for ordinary deer. Rāma’s suspicion about the identity of the deer increases, and finally, when the deer has led Him far into the forest, He decides to shoot it. On being struck by Rāma’s arrow, the deer yells in Rāma’s voice, “O Lakṣmaṇa, O Sītā, help!” Hearing this, Rāma realizes that the deer’s drawing Him away from Sītā was a plot by the demons to catch her unguarded. Alarmed, He begins to turn around to rush back to his hermitage. As He turns, Mārīca breathes his last. While dying, he beholds Rāma and achieves his purpose of dying in Rāma’s presence. But he dies while working against Rāma’s purpose. *Self-centered or God-centered* The great nineteenth-century bhakti saint Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura lists in his book *Caitanya-śikṣāmṛta* four motivations with which people approach God: fear, personal desire, duty, and love. When we approach Him out of fear or personal desire, we are largely self-centered, thinking, ‘What can God do for me?” Connecting with God at any level is better than living a godless life. Still, a dutiful connection is on a higher level, and an even more mature devotional connection—when we approach God to serve Him for His pleasure—is the ideal. At one level, Mārīca’s reasoning that dying at Rāma’s hands is better than dying at Rāvaṇa’s hands reflects his spiritual knowledge. He knows that he will continue to exist after death and that his postmortem destination will be favorable by dying in Rāma’s presence. However, at another level, his failure to consider whether he is working for Rāma’s purpose or against it reflects that he hasn’t internalized the purpose of spiritual knowledge—to rise from self-centeredness to God-centeredness. Despite his spiritual knowledge, he doesn’t think of Rāma and Rāma’s service; he thinks only of his own elevation and destination. Because of his self-centeredness, he perceives God as a tool for his elevation, not as the purpose of his elevation. *Bhakti* wisdom explains that we are God’s eternal parts and when we learn to love him selflessly we find life’s highest satisfaction. We become absorbed in the Lord’s loving service, an absorption that eventually elevates us to His eternal abode for a life with Him in eternal love. Though Mārīca had spiritual knowledge, his consciousness was materialistic, and he saw God as a tool for our elevation. He ended up working against the person he should have been serving. Could he have done anything differently? Wasn’t he left with no choice when Rāvaṇa threatened him with death if he refused to cooperate? Yes, his choices were restricted, but still he could have used his intelligence. He could have gotten away from Rāvaṇa by agreeing to go along with the demon’s scheme, but taking shelter of Rāma. He could have alerted Rāma to the conspiracy that was afoot and could thus have helped foil the abduction of Sītā. Rāma would surely have protected him—as He protected another demon who sought his shelter. Later in the Rāmāyaṇa, just before the final battle between Rāma and Rāvaṇa, Vibhīṣaṇa, a younger brother of Rāvaṇa, came over to Rāma’s side, being appalled by Rāvaṇa’s unrepentant viciousness. Though Vibhīṣaṇa was not explicitly threatened with death by Rāvaṇa, he knew well what that demon would do to those he considered traitors—kill in the most heartless and cruel way possible. Despite the risks, Vibhīṣaṇa followed his intelligence and conscience. In contrast, Mārīca simply obeyed Rāvaṇa in his fiendish scheme to abduct a virtuous lady. At yet another level, the various characters in the Lord’s pastimes can be seen transcendentally—they are furthering His pastimes by acting as needed, sometimes congenially and sometimes inimically. Simultaneously, if we wish to learn ethical lessons from those pastimes and thereby make wiser decisions in our own lives, we can learn a valuable lesson from Mārīca. He serves as an excellent example of a person whose knowledge is nullified by his lack of understanding its purpose. Thus he antagonizes the person who is the purpose of that knowledge. Another bhakti saint, Rūpa Gosvāmī, an illustrious predecessor of Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura, offers a relevant insight in his classic devotional guidebook *Bhakti-rasāmṛta-sindhu*. He states that only those activities performed with a favorable disposition towards the Lord, when one seeks to please Him, are considered devotional activities. When the Lord’s service is not the intention, then what is performed is not devotional service, even if performed in relation to Him. Though such action may lead to some elevation in one’s postmortem destination, devotees don’t seek an elevation divorced from devotion. That’s why Mārīca is never considered a model of devotion, whereas Vibhīṣaṇa is. When we practice *bhakti*, our focus is not so much on how we die but how we live—not at whose hands we die, but for whose hands we live and, if necessary, die. The person for whose hands we live and die is the person for whose purpose we dedicate our life. *Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam* states that the Lord executes His will sometimes through His own hands and sometimes through the hands of His devotees, those who work for Him. The process of *bhakti*-yoga helps us become the Lord’s hands. When we become devoted, we’re concerned not so much with our pleasure in this life or even our destination after this life—we’re concerned primarily with our Lord’s purpose and His service. To live for Him and to die for Him—that is the purpose and perfection of devotion. Another character with whom Mārīca can be contrasted is Jatāyu, who died just a few hours after Mārīca. Jatāyu was an aged vulture who attained martyrdom while trying to stop Rāvaṇa from abducting Sītā. Rāma felt deeply indebted to Jatāyu for his death-embracing service. Rāma Himself performed the last rites for Jatāyu, just as a son would perform them for his father. Though Jatāyu was killed at the hands of a demon, he died for the hands of the Lord, working for His purpose. In fact, he died in the hands of the Lord—he breathed his last with his head resting on Rāma’s lap and his eyes beholding Rāma’s divine face. With such a supremely auspicious departure, he attained the supreme destination. In whose presence we die is not as important as for whose purpose we die—and for whose purpose we live. How to live in devotion, risking death for the Lord’s sake, is exemplified by Vibhīṣaṇa. And how to leave in devotion, embracing death for the Lord’s sake, is exemplified by Jatāyu. The integrated understanding of both spiritual knowledge and the purpose of spiritual knowledge is best achieved through the living bhakti tradition, whereby we can learn through both relevant exposition and living examples how to practice bhakti in our own lives. *Caitanya Caraṇa Dāsa, a disciple of His Holiness Rādhānāth Swami, serves full time at ISKCON Chowpatty, Mumbai. He is a BTG associate editor and the author of twenty-five books. To read his other articles or to receive his daily reflection on the* Bhagavad-gītā*, "*Gita-Daily*," visit gitadaily.com.* Stubbornness: Vice or Virtue? *An act viewed as obstinacy may in fact be one of righteous determination.* By Mathurā Vāsī Devī Dāsī *Stubbornness covers a spectrum from obstinacy to resolute determination.* One day when I was five or six years old, in India, while my father was busy shopping at the market I saw a little white lamb outside the store gazing at me with eyes that wanted to say something. Fascinated, I followed it and, not realizing I had lost my way, was led unaware into a slaughterhouse. Suddenly a bulky man came and dragged the little lamb by the rope tied around its neck and flung it into another room. What I saw and heard next shocked me so deeply I’ll never forget it—gruesome images of blood-smeared walls, foul-smelling chambers engulfed in a cloud of terror, mutilated body parts of gullible animals strewn all over the floor, painful cries and panic-stricken eyes of half-dead animals writhing in pain. By the time I realized what was happening there, I felt a strong arm get hold of me. It was our driver. He had seen me entering that dreaded place. I was terrified by the scene I had just witnessed. In the meantime my father was frantically looking around for me, and as my driver brought me back and narrated the incident, my father immediately took me in his arms and warned me to never go out of his sight again. *Respect vs. Righteousness* Recently I was invited to a friend’s relatives’ home to speak about how to practically implement the teachings of the scriptures in our day-to-day lives. The hospitable family had arranged a delectable buffet for the invited guests, and after the session I was escorted to the dining hall, where the host served me a huge plate of fine vegetarian dishes. As I was about to offer the food to the Lord, the host informed me that another platter of delicacies was on its way. He proudly announced that these were especially prepared to honor my presence at their residence. But when the gigantic trolley of preparations was wheeled into the hall, I was shocked to see that it was overflowing with all possible varieties of meat preparations. I was instantly transported in time to the slaughterhouse I had wandered into as a child. The vivid memories of the mass killings triggered an acute, stinging pain somewhere deep down, as if the core of my heart had been pierced with sharp arrows. I was shattered just at the thought. How can anyone forsake the virtue of mercy and massacre innocent living creatures just to temporarily satisfy one’s taste buds? Jolted back to reality, I politely refused to partake of the nonvegetarian preparations. Then I overheard an elderly gentleman mumbling under his breath, “This girl is very stubborn. What harm would it do if she ate some meat? She could have had it, to show respect to the host.” Although he wasn’t addressing me directly, I felt compelled to reply. So, while my host and others listened, I explained the śāstric injunctions against meat-eating, why meat cannot be offered to God, and why it is considered to be in the mode of darkness. I spoke of the gravity of my spiritual vows and of the health reasons for not eating meat. The perceptive host immediately comprehended the deeper significance of not eating meat and promised to never touch meat again. He also promised to share this pivotal knowledge with all his acquaintances. Though it might be hard to believe that my few words could so quickly change this man’s life, in fact they did. He and his family gave up eating meat. They are now under my spiritual counseling and are sincere followers of the Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement. I’ve mentioned this incident here because it relates to the topic I wish to discuss, and that is the accusation by some people that we Hare Kṛṣṇa people are too stubborn about our principles. The word stubborn can mean both “leaning towards obstinacy or fanaticism” and “leaning towards firmness or determination.” An understanding of this dynamic quality can help us make it a virtue in our own lives rather than a vice. In his authoritative book *Śrī Upadeśāmṛta*: The Nectar of Instruction, Śrīla Rūpa Gosvāmī writes that one’s devotional service is spoiled when one rejects the rules and regulations of the scriptures and works independently or whimsically. It’s seems accurate to say that such a rejection comes from stubbornness. To some degree, we all possess the quality of being stubborn, in the positive or negative sense. It manifests in varying degrees at different stages and in myriad circumstances of our lives. This personality trait stems from our desires, conditioning, upbringing, and association, from fear of change, and most importantly from the consciousness we have developed or nurtured over time. Stubbornness is like an oscillating point on a line between determination and obstinacy. Though often highlighted in a negative light, stubbornness can be a positive characteristic when it helps us remain focused on a higher principle, such as when it aids us in rejecting the lower objects of sensual gratification. *Stubbornness as a Vice* In the epic Mahābhārata, Duryodhana is a classic example of stubbornness that leans towards obstinacy. After repeated urges from Lord Kṛṣṇa and other superiors to make peace and avert a massacre on the battlefield of Kurukshetra, he remained adamant. Duryodhana was acquainted with the terrible results of such a degree of stubbornness, but his intellect was covered by the ugly vices of greed, pride, arrogance, and obstinacy. No amount of logical explanation or reasoning could help him see his folly. Sometime before the war, Lord Kṛṣṇa showed him His universal form while trying to prevent the war, but the ignorant Duryodhana paid no heed to His divine advice. The result was destruction—the annihilation of millions of soldiers. Remorse and grief afflicted relatives and friends on both sides. Our mind too may fall prey to the vice of stubbornness. In spite of understanding the need to serve the Absolute Truth, and knowing well that the proposed change would be beneficial, we may continue to lead an animalistic life that results in our downfall, entangling us in the repeated cycle of birth and death. Studies show that even when people see that spirituality has transformed innumerable lives for the better, they fail to take up a life of enlightenment and wisdom. Unconsciously, their minds are ruled by their false ego. They are overcome by fear and resistance to change, unwilling to leave their comfort zone. Conscious reflection and self-awareness can aid in overcoming this negative pattern of stubborn behavior. *Stubbornness as a Virtue* The great devotee Prahlāda Mahārāja was also labeled “stubborn” by his demon father, Hiraṇyakaśipu. The evil father wanted his son to worship him as the Supreme Lord, and he inflicted all kinds of barbarity on the child. He had him put into a blazing fire, dropped from a mountain peak, thrown into a pit of poisonous snakes, tossed under herd of wild elephants to be crushed, locked in a dark cell without food or water, exposed to freezing winds and violent storms, pushed into the sea, attacked with sharp weapons, and fed poison, but none of these could harm the five-year-old pure devotee, who was constantly under God’s protection. And nothing could swerve the unflinching faith of Prahlāda, who remained fixed and determined in his devotion. Ultimately, the Lord appeared in the form of Narsiṁhadeva (the half-man, half-lion avatar) to protect His devotee and kill the demonic father. Another perfect example of being stubborn on the side of determination is Haridāsa Ṭhākura. Born in a Muslim family, he received enlightenment and would unfailingly chant 300,000 names of the Lord each day. After all efforts of the wicked atheist Ramchandra Khan failed to dissuade Haridāsa from chanting the glories of the Lord, he sent a prostitute to defame him and tarnish his pristine character. But the holy name is so powerful that as the prostitute listened to him chanting, the contaminations in her mind melted away and she regretted her mission. She finally fell down at his feet and begged him for forgiveness. The prostitute became a celebrated devotee. She conquered her senses and became very advanced in spiritual life, ultimately attaining pure love for Lord Kṛṣṇa. On another occasion, the local Kazi (Muslim magistrate) complained to the Nawab (Muslim king) that Haridāsa had rejected the religion of his birth to worship the Hindu’s God. The king told Haridāsa that if he didn’t give up his worship, he would be punished. The *Caitanya-bhāgavata* beautifully portrays Haridāsa’s reply: “You may cut my body to pieces, and the life may leave it. But I will never abandon the holy name, which my tongue will ever continue to chant.” This statement demonstrated Haridāsa’s unswerving determination in his worship of the holy name. He was branded as “stubborn,” and the Kazi ordered that he be flogged in twenty-two marketplaces. But the cruel tortures did not cause him even the slightest discomfort, as he continued to chant and was protected by the Lord Himself. By the Lord’s grace and Haridāsa’s unwavering determination, both the Nawab and the Kazi realized their mistake and were able to become free of the consequences of their evil misdeeds. *Stubbornness: Right or Wrong?* How can we determine whether our stubbornness in a particular instance is positive or negative. We need to conduct a simple test: If our thoughts, words, or actions are favorable to devotion and pleasing to the Lord, then we are on the correct path. But if we realize that the Lord would be displeased, then we must immediately take corrective measures, open ourselves to accepting favorable change, and slide from obstinacy to firm determination and finally to virtuosity. Since every devotee of the Lord is under the protection of His supreme potency, we should not deviate from the path of devotional service under any condition. Hence, by such dedicated faith and firm conviction, stubbornness becomes an asset. *Priceless Learning* My humble proposal to the gentleman who randomly commented that I should consume meat to show respect to the host is “Showing ‘respect’ by compromising the higher principles of righteousness equals cheating both God and the soul towards whom such perceived respect is exhibited. In a real sense, it means showing disrespect towards God’s will and encouraging an ignorant soul to continue functioning in the mode of ignorance or darkness.” Stubbornness can be a virtue or a vice depending on how we exercise the choices at our disposal. During my college days, I was subjected to peer pressure and expected to relish the flesh of dead animals, to gossip, and to savor alcoholic beverages, but I never relented even for a fraction of a second. Yes, I was labeled “stubborn” back then. But I’m proud of it, because rather than becoming a slave of the senses, yielding to carnal pleasures, or hankering for the need to be accepted in a Godless civilization, I prefer being “stubborn” to maintain high moral standards, to remain virtuous, ethical, and chaste, and to honor our Creator. As we become stronger and more serious in our perseverance to love God and serve Him, our consciousness becomes purified. We begin to see with clarity. We no longer submit to bodily cravings or an obstinate mindset of aspiring to fit in with the mindless crowd. We learn to dovetail the trait of being stubborn, moving along the spectrum from obstinacy to firmness and determination. The key is to mold our lives in such a fashion that we become determined, persistent, and “stubborn” to cultivate attraction for the holy name, that we seek guidance from bona fide counselors and self-realized souls, that we equip ourselves with proper knowledge from the Vedic literature, and that we perennially remain fixed on the celestial journey to our ultimate destination—back home, back to Godhead. *Mathurā Vāsī Devī Dāsī (Meghna Choudhury) is an international life coach, spiritual guide, author, social activist, and artist. She is the founder of The Evolve Group (a holistic healing platform) and SEWA Foundation (an NGO working to uplift underprivileged children, women, and senior citizens, and to protect animals. She has won a national award for her book* The Path of Success: Embark on an Inspiring Journey from Confusion to Clarity*. She resides in Mumbai with her mother, Mohinī Devī Dāsī (Mila Subir Choudhury), who is also a dedicated bhakti-yoga practitioner, an influencer, and a preacher.* Swift Destruction *The days and nights of our passing years are Time’s soldiers, and our body’s defeat is inevitable.* by Viśākhā Devī Dāsī Even the most powerful among us must eventually fall to the attack of Time and his multitude of soldiers. In an extended allegory in the Fourth Canto of *Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam*, time is personified as a king named Caṇḍavega, meaning that he moves “violently and quickly.” He is figuratively described as having 720 soldiers—the days and nights of a year—that relentlessly attack. The main character in the allegory is Purañjana, who represents each of us—the spiritual being encased in a material body. Purañjana is protected by a five-headed serpent, which represents our five life airs, mentioned in the *Muṇḍaka Upaniṣad* (3.1.9): “The soul is atomic in size and can be perceived by perfect intelligence. This atomic soul is floating in the five kinds of air (*prāṇa, apāna, vyāna, samān*a, and *udāna*), is situated within the heart, and spreads its in?uence all over the body of the embodied living entities.” When we’re young, the five-headed serpent is strong and easily resists the attacks of Time’s multitude of soldiers. Thus young people often think they will remain vibrant and hardy perpetually. But the passing days and nights mean those soldiers pound nonstop, and eventually the serpent weakens. Gradually Old Age (*jarā*) enters the scene. She is known as Kālakanyā, “the daughter of Time.” Although no one likes Old Age, she inevitably comes to us anyway, and as a result of her presence, all kinds of happiness disappear, and often we cannot enjoy our hard-earned wealth, opulence, and comforts. Time’s army, combined with Old Age, plunders all our paraphernalia for sense enjoyment. In the allegory, Old Age was once wandering all over the universe when she met the great sage Nārada Muni on earth. Although she knew he was an avowed *brahmacārī* (celibate), she proposed marriage to him. When Nārada Muni refused her, she became angry and cursed him to be unable to stay in one place for long. Taking advantage of the curse, Nārada Muni began constantly traveling, spreading the glories of Kṛṣṇa and His devotees. Although disappointed by Nārada Muni, with his permission Old Age approached Fear (*bhaya*) to be her husband. Unfortunately, Fear did not accept her as his wife but instead accepted her as his sister. Śrīla Prabhupāda comments: Kālakanyā [Old Age] was sent by Nārada Muni to *Yavana-rāja* [King of the Uncultured] so that she might become his wife, but instead of accepting her as his wife, *Yavana-rāja* accepted her as his sister. Those who do not follow the Vedic principles are unrestricted as far as sex life is concerned. Consequently they sometimes do not hesitate to have sex with their sisters. In this Age of Kali there are many instances of such incest. Although *Yavana-rāja* accepted the request of Nārada Muni to show respect to him, he was nonetheless thinking of illicit sex. (*Bhāgavatam* 4.27.30, Purport) *City Under Attack* Fear has an older brother named High Fever (*prajvara*), specifically the fever of 107 °F that immediately precedes death. As the story continues, we learn that the body is considered a city and the body’s senses, limbs, skin, muscles, blood, marrow, organs, limbs, mind, and intelligence are like its citizens. The city gates are the body’s nine holes: two eyes, two ears, two nostrils, the mouth, the anus, and the genitals. Fear, Old Age, and High Fever travel throughout the universe with their soldiers, attacking the body by entering through its nine gates. Śrīla Prabhupāda describes: When one is harassed by the invalidity of old age, various diseases manifest at the gates of the body. For example, the eyes become so dim that one requires spectacles, and the ears become too weak to hear directly, and therefore one requires hearing aids. The nostrils are blocked by mucus, and one has to always sniff a medicinal bottle containing ammonia. Similarly, the mouth, too weak to chew, requires false teeth. The rectum also gives one trouble, and the evacuation process becomes difficult. Sometimes one has to take enemas and sometimes use a surgical nozzle to accelerate the passing of urine. . . . Thus in old age all the gates of the body are blocked by so many diseases, and one has to take help from so many medicines and surgical appliances. (*Bhāgavatam* 4.28.4, Purport) As one loses control of the weakened senses and organs, the former objects of enjoyment become stale, and one laments one’s frightful condition. The proprietor of the body, the living soul, becomes sad at not being able to use the city of the body properly. To make matters worse, as Old Age gradually takes away our beauty, intelligence, and opulence, our relatives and friends may become cold and indifferent, even disrespectful, and oppose our wishes. In Śrīla Prabhupāda’s words, “A man keeps a family for enjoyment, and similarly family members demand enjoyment from the head of the family. When they do not receive sufficient money from him, they grow disinterested and ignore his commands or desires.” (*Bhāgavatam* 4.28.7, Purport) The dwindling body is unable to counteract the effects of Old Age, and our anxiety increases. Although the next life is a fact, people with no information about it are completely absorbed in this current life. This is the position of present society, a civilization of sense gratification. Almost everyone is engaged only in maintaining the body, home, and family, and as the end of life approaches, people are confused, not knowing what spiritual life and the goal of human life are. Because people think only of this life, they avoid entertaining the idea of spiritual life. Eventually, although the soul has no desire to leave the city of the body, Old Age forces the soul to leave. Then High Fever sets fire to the city, destroying the body’s parts, the citizens. The living entity, the proprietor of the body, is unhappy. *The Bright Side* There is, however, a bright side to this grim scenario. By bringing on the dwindling of the body, Old Age offers a service to Kṛṣṇa, the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Due to old age, sane people may become fearful of death and feel an impetus for spiritual life. In other words, Jarā, the invalidity of old age, can evoke Bhaya, fear of death, and induce us to prepare for our next life. Then we will understand that materialistic advancement is not actual progress. In Śrīla Prabhupāda’s words, “What is that ‘progress’? A dog’s jumping is progress? A dog is running here and there on four legs, and you are running on four wheels. Is that progress?” Furthermore, Śrīla Prabhupāda writes: The Vedic system is this: The human being has a certain amount of energy—better energy than the animals’, better consciousness—and that energy should be utilized for spiritual advancement. So the whole Vedic system is meant for spiritual advancement. Human energy is employed in a more exalted direction than to compete with the dog. Consequently, sometimes those who have no idea of religion notice that the Indian saintly persons are not working hard like dogs. Spiritually uncultured people think the dog race is life. But actual life is spiritual progress. (*Civilization and Transcendence,* Chapter 2) In the words of the *Bhāgavatam* (2.1.6), “The highest perfection of human life, achieved either by complete knowledge of matter and spirit, by practice of mystic powers, or by perfect discharge of occupational duty, is to remember the Personality of Godhead at the end of life.” Real progress is not advancement in technology or medicine or any other mundane achievements, however helpful and ingenious they may be. Real progress is to put an end to birth, death, disease, and old age, and that is achieved though self-realization. And if we realize who we are—spiritual beings—we can also have an understanding of who God is—the supreme spiritual being. For devotees, another bright side to this grim Time scenario is that time does not affect them in the same way it affects the spiritually uninformed. The *Bhāgavatam* (2.3.17) says, “Both by rising and by setting, the sun decreases the duration of life of everyone, except one who utilizes the time by discussing topics of the all-good Personality of Godhead.” “How is this?” one may ask. “Doesn’t the year have the same number of days for devotees and nondevotees? Don’t devotees grow old and die like nondevotees?” Yes, devotees age and die. But unlike nondevotees, they are not vanquished. Unlike nondevotees, they don’t fear death. In Śrīla Prabhupāda’s words, If a person is Kṛṣṇa conscious, he can work like a young man even if he is seventy-five or eighty years old. Thus the daughter of Kāla (Time) cannot overcome a Vaiṣṇava. . . . Apparently a devotee may grow old, but he is not subjected to the symptoms of defeat experienced by a common man in old age. Consequently, old age does not make a devotee fearful of death, as a common man is fearful of death. When *jarā*, or old age, takes shelter of a devotee, Kālakanyā diminishes the devotee’s fear. A devotee knows that after death he is going back home, back to Godhead; therefore he has no fear of death. Thus instead of depressing a devotee, advanced age helps him become fearless and thus happy. (*Bhāgavatam* 4.27.24, Purport) An analogy can make this point clear: If we think of death as a cat, and think of a person devoid of spirituality as a rat, when the cat comes for the rat, the rat is overwhelmed with fear—“What will become of me? What will become of my spouse and children, of my assets and legacy?” On the other hand, a spiritualist, a devotee, is compared to a kitten. When the same cat comes for the kitten, although the cat has the same strong jaws with the same gleaming white fangs, the kitten feels protected and comforted. The kitten thinks, “Yes, now my mother has come to pick me up and carry me to safety.” Similarly, the devotee sees old age and inevitable death as Kṛṣṇa. Ultimately, Kṛṣṇa is both Time and Death, and He will carry His devotee to safety. *Viśākhā Devī Dāsī has been writing for BTG since 1973. Visit her website at OurSpiritualJourney.com.* Book Excerpt: Hiding in Unnatural Happiness *Come in From the Storm* *Genuine human progress begins when we acknowledge our predicament: our failure at material enjoyment.* By Devamrita Swami Wandering the forest of our hopes and dreams, we desire more than to survive—our hearts long to thrive. [On the opening spread: Excerpted from *Hiding in Unnatural Happiness*, Copyright 2015 The Bhaktivedanta Book Trust. Available from the Kṛṣṇa.com Store.] *Chapter 2: Walking the Forest of Unnatural Happiness* “I’m famished for satisfaction,” the mind begs the body. “Make me feel like a natural enjoyer.” “Set us loose,” the senses respond. They need no pleading. “We’ll satisfy your every desire.” “I’ve worked hard for the right to enjoy,” the mind computes. “I’ve earned it. Senses, lead me on—happy times are here!” *The Crucial Admission* Amazing opportunities open up for us when we admit that we don’t know real happiness. Genuine human progress begins when we acknowledge our predicament, which is actually universal: our failure at material enjoyment. The struggle, the daily grind to squeeze true satisfaction from the rock of material nature, has cheated us. Wielding bodies and minds in countless lifetimes, we’ve gained only a mirage. But who would dare confess this? When Hollywood megastar comedian Robin Williams took his life in 2014, the world took note. How could a man with everything—talent, wealth, fame, a cherished wife—wrap a belt around his neck and kill himself?” Once, walking off the stage to thunderous acclaim, his fans on their feet, Williams disclosed to talk-show host Dick Cavett, “Isn’t it funny how I can bring great happiness to all these people, but not to myself? *Less funny than tragic.* What may bewilder us even more is a report by social scientists measuring global happiness that a coolie carrying loads on his back through the streets of Kolkata experiences the same level of life-satisfaction as the average American. How can we solve the riddle of real happiness? Brave minds abandon fantasies like “Be happy in your own way” and “Whatever gets you through the night.” If the courageous, potential inner explorers, frustrated by today’s predatory lifestyles, take the path of valor, they can do the most good for the outer world. The reality check begins with classic honesty that cuts to the chase: “Never mind the media-hype; the hell with what people say—I don’t think I actually know what is substantial or lasting happiness.” This entry-level candor can swing the door open to real answers—to the timeless wisdom of the ancients. In the *Bhagavad-gita*, Kṛṣṇa explains, “Now please hear from Me about the three kinds of material happiness by which the illusioned soul enjoys, and by which he sometimes comes to the end of all distress.” *Material Happiness Laid Bare* Repeatedly stung and bitten in the forest of temporary enjoyment, how can we reach the end of suffering and despair? First, let’s get an overview of Kṛṣṇa’s three categories of material happiness. Type one is rare these days—virtuous goodness. Relished by those dedicated to mastering their own mind and senses, this topmost material happiness can lead further—to spiritual enlightenment. “In the beginning,” Kṛṣṇa tells us, it “may be just like poison, but at the end it is just like nectar . . . and awakens one to self-realization” (*Bhagavad-gita* 18.37). To the uneducated eye looking through the lens of material consciousness, a lifestyle of self-discipline and sense control can seem unattractively strict and rigorous—even repressive. Our vision victimized by hedonistic propaganda, we think the more we toss away the reins to our mind and senses—the more we let them stampede, consume, and cavort—the more pleasure we’ll achieve. But if we become determined practitioners of authentic yogic discipline, climbing steadfastly up the ladder of self-awareness, we can work through this misguided understanding and experience true inner calm and tranquility. This goodness of self-mastery, the highest level of material happiness, can then become a springboard for accessing the nonmaterial pleasure of the nonmaterial self in connection to the Supreme Self. The second type of material happiness is the most common—passion: work hard, party hard—the grunt and groan approach to life, with the attractions of mind-numbing entertainment and sexual encounters, spiced by intoxication. It is a seductive process, hard for most people to resist. Happiness in passion, Kṛṣṇa tells us, “derived from contact of the senses with their objects . . . appears like nectar at first but poison at its end” (*Bhagavad-gita* 18.38). Sooner or later, passionate, mundane accomplishments and sensual gratifications all lead to dissatisfaction, disappointment, and distress—even disaster, with the heavy price of depletion and dehumanization. For most, the third, rock-bottom level of material happiness is easier to reject, at least as a constant way of life. Kṛṣṇa classifies it as ignorance—outright darkness from beginning to end, “blind to self-realization” (*Bhagavad-gita* 18.39). Absorbed in this debased happiness—a type easily recognized as perverse—dedicated devotees of drink, drugs, and half-day sleeping waste their life. Lost in cloudlands of intoxication, inertia, and daydreaming, these most unfortunate persons are more self-destructive than even those driven to achieve and indulge on the hedonistic treadmill. The everyday go-getter, committed to passion, pursues happiness in the routine slavish existence that consumer societies promote. Attracted by the mirage of material success, this false hero labors mightily to squeeze out some shadowy, insubstantial version of happiness. At the onset, these gutsy adventures seem sure to deliver their promised fulfillment, but the thrill inevitably fades, abruptly or gradually—morphing in the end into painful dismay. The temporary, false reprieve of intoxication—the weekend foray into ignorance—segues into the hung-over reality of Monday morning. The hardcore inhabitant of happiness in lethargic ignorance fares much worse: aimlessness and intoxication almost 24/7. Not even a false ray of light beckons them onward. All is darkness and delusion—a wasteland from start to finish. *Genuine Heroes* Sometimes, however, a soul journeying through the matrix of these three flavors of material happiness, trapped in the maze of illusion, may reach the end, escape. And that greatest fortune can be yours—if you can count as your friends, your allies, experts who can expose the illusion for what it is and the naught it is worth. The preeminent *bhakti* preceptor of our time, A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, world-renowned for his *Bhagavad-gita* As It Is, elaborates on what could happen to us while trekking through the forest of material fulfillment: The conditioned soul tries to enjoy material happiness again and again. Thus he chews the chewed. But sometimes, in the course of such enjoyment, he becomes relieved from material entanglement by association with a great soul. In other words, a conditioned soul is always engaged in some type of sense gratification, but when he understands by good association that it is only a repetition of the same thing, and he is awakened to his real Kṛṣṇa consciousness, he is sometimes relieved from such repetitive so-called happiness. (*Bhagavad-gita* 18.36 commentary) Yes, it can happen—real light at the end of the materialistic tunnel. But we don’t get there by attempting to “thoroughly” experience material happiness. Endeavors to experience illusion simply grant us . . . more illusion. The night of the forest of self-deception finally turns to enlightening day when we associate with the right people—society’s genuine heroes—living and thriving outside the stale materialistic mirage and inside a dynamic spiritual reality. Come in from the storm. Directly from Kṛṣṇa—the ultimate goal of all yoga and meditation—the wisdom-culture of nonmaterial life and happiness awaits you. *Chapter 3: Hot for the Party That’s Not: Dance to Keep from Crying* “You’re too late.” Who savors that news? Flights missed, business opportunities squandered, romantic possibilities bungled—“too late” means time has hurtled onward, forcing us to accept outcomes ranging from routine inconveniences to devastating setbacks. The roomful of South African university students peer at me silently, thoughtfully. Have I delivered the goods compassionately? They are processing. These members of the “Rainbow Nation,” mostly African, are burning with the desire to succeed. The barriers of apartheid now twenty years gone, their eyes are glued to what appears to be an open expressway ahead, and they’re pressing the pedal to the floor. Vroom, vroom! *Destination? The hype of material prosperity and happiness.* Craving a consumer paradise, my audience is desperate to join the First World in the soul-killing flames of material satisfaction. Like people throughout the developing world, these South African hopefuls feel they’ve stood by long enough. Now they want to take their place on the planetary stage of the materialistic bash. The global party-lights are flashing, bewitching—who can resist? “Our ancestors died, the freedom fighters endured, and the national leaders connive,” they say, “all to award us precious entrance to the party. Why just survive? Sense indulgence, gratification, is a basic human right. Let’s get it on!” But the midnight hour has long passed; the sun is about to rise: smashed furniture, broken bottles, stained carpets, drugged and drunken guests colliding or collapsed in stupor, an argument here, vomiting there, sad hookups everywhere. “You’ve arrived too late,” I inform my audience. The all-night rave, one hell of a hedonistic blast, is over. Politicians everywhere promise to rake the dying embers, reigniting the wildfires of materialistic hopes. But the gap between the haves and have-nots—the 1 percent and the 99 percent—continues to widen. It’s a worldwide no-win situation for everyone. Meanwhile, maddened by the fever of false progress, we’ve trashed the planet. Our environmental woes are publicized daily, but we can’t find the collective motivation to change course. “Admit it,” I beg them, “the revelry is finished. A long shot is the only hope—fire up an after-party! Rally a group of come-latelies and rekindle the flames—frantic, flickering, futile. *Let’s dance amidst our tears.* My challenge to the students: Why seek to beat the dead horse? Why compete for the chance to chomp what the First World has already thoroughly chewed? Don’t swallow it, I plead. Let’s start anew—build this new nation on a spiritual platform. As the erudite *bhakti-yogi* Prahlada Maharaja states in *Srimad-Bhagavatam*, “Because of their uncontrolled senses, persons too addicted to materialistic life make progress” (7.5.30). But to where? Their achievement is ever more complicated, unsolvable distresses, both individually and socially. They “make progress toward hellish conditions and repeatedly chew that which has already been chewed,” energetically munching on the remnants of previous generations. Consequently, their dormant inclinations toward nonmaterial lifestyles, leading to the all-attractive spiritual reality, “are never aroused.” We can no longer buy into the usual promises of material analyses. We need a new, solution-focused generation to grace the earth—a new wave that strives to make a real difference by analyzing human problems and comprehending that they are never truly solved on the same materialistic level that gave rise to them. Real human progress kicks in when the mirage, the mass consensual trance, loses its attraction. When the constant stream of our material attempts exhausts us, when we are weary of the illusory matrix of consumer culture—that is when our actual advancement in real human life finally begins. In the *Bhagavad-gita*, Kṛṣṇa assures us that even if we are the most deluded of hardcore materialists, acting as if nothing exists other than matter and its movements and modifications, “when you are situated in the boat of transcendental knowledge, you will be able to cross over the ocean of miseries,” the ocean of perpetual material bafflement and unrest (4.36). Transcendental knowledge means information and education beyond that which has a beginning and an end, which is beyond the permutations and adaptations of physiology and psychology. What the Gita grants us exceeds the limited, temporal domain of time and space. Kṛṣṇa goes on to declare that we’ll never find in this world any prosperity or acquisition as sublime and pure as nonmundane, transcendental wisdom. Simply by seeking to understand who Kṛṣṇa is—through authenticated, nonmaterial processes—we will walk away with what no financial market indices can measure. Our priceless treasure is irrevocably beyond the gains and losses, booms and busts, of temporary material existence. “There is nothing so sublime and pure,” Kṛṣṇa tells us, “as transcendental knowledge. Such knowledge is the mature fruit of all mysticism.” And the genuine yogi, accomplished in *bhakti*—the yoga of ultimate connection—experiences and enjoys this knowledge within (*Bhagavad-gita* 4.38). Rather than saluting a wannabe civilization insistent on partying itself to death, we can join the wise, who’ve had enough. We can work to eradicate the material illusion—both individually and en masse. And when we do, the timeless spiritual art, science, and culture that emanate from Kṛṣṇa, the infinite Superconsciousness, awaits us, the minute particles of consciousness. “One should meditate upon the Supreme Person as the one who knows everything, as He who is the oldest, who is the controller, who is smaller than the smallest, who is the maintainer of everything, who is beyond all material conception, who is inconceivable, and who is always a person. He is luminous like the sun, and He is transcendental, beyond this material nature” (*Bhagavad-gita* 8.9). After focusing in this way, we can advance to the last stop in our quest for the most profound and comprehensive spiritual knowledge: awareness of Kṛṣṇa as the Supreme Beloved and Enjoyer. *Devamrita Swami has been a member of ISKCON’s governing body since 2001. He is the author of Searching for Vedic India and Perfect Escape. Born in the United States, he graduated from Yale University and is based in Australia and New Zealand.* Rūpa Gosvāmī’s Superlative Travel Guide *The book Śrīla Prabhupāda called ISKCON’s lawbook will direct us on our journey to Kṛṣṇa abode.* by Karuṇā Dhārinī Devī Dāsī On the order of Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu, one of His leading disciples wrote an in-depth guide for our journey back to Godhead. Everyone likes a change of scenery. At any given moment there are tens of thousands of planes crossing the skies, carrying millions of people here and there. Many are bound for the world’s favorite destinations, such as those offering awe-inspiring scenery or other sensual pleasures. Long-distance travel has become so common that analysts say it will likely double in the next twenty years. Meanwhile there’s a spiritual text containing singular, surprisingly tempting descriptions of a destination that may also appeal to the travel-minded. The book is Śrīla Rūpa Gosvāmī’s Bhakti-rasāmṛta-sindhu, which Śrīla Prabhupāda presented to us as an extensive summary study called The Nectar of Devotion. It makes no mention of travel by combustion engines or of hotel reservations, and the atmosphere of the destination it offers us far exceeds the pinnacle of pleasurable conditions in the most coveted travel destinations on this planet, or even in the heaven of this material world. Truly, upon arrival at this superior destination, the traveler will never wish to return to his point of departure. Never return? Why, even the most seasoned traveler sometimes longs for home! Rūpa Gosvāmī cautions his readers to beware the powerful allurement of the travel spot at the heart of his book. His warning: do not attempt this trip if disruption to the usual course of life constitutes problems for you. He makes his point by way of a verse of his own composition in which one of Kṛṣṇa’s beloved cowherd girlfriends speaks: “My dear friend, if you still have any desire to enjoy the company of your friends within this material world, then don't look upon the form of Kṛṣṇa, who is standing on the bank of Keśī-ghāṭa [a place for entering the Yamunā River in Vṛndāvana]. He is known as Govinda, and His eyes are very enchanting. He is playing upon His flute, and on His head there is a peacock feather. And His whole body is illuminated by the moonlight in the sky.” (*Bhakti-rasāmṛta-sindhu* 1.2.239) *Hankering for Our Place of Origin* What will people not do to get to an attractive place like Paris or a white sandy beach in the Bahamas? They may save money for their whole lives for that one trip, or work extra hours to buy a choice property with the promise of paradise. It seems within our very nature to hanker for any place other than wherever we are. Fragrant forests and clear green-blue waters, high-mountain ski resorts, waterfalls, tropical flower-gardens, pyramids, cathedrals—any detour from the ordinary. Perhaps we know deep down inside that we are not meant to be bored or to suffer because of our surroundings, but to be nurtured by them. We long for that perfect place where we’ll feel validated by a plentiful natural environment and loving family and friends. Especially as we grow older, the apprehension of the end of a lifetime pushes us to search for something dear to hang on to. It must be someplace, somewhere. Śrīla Prabhupāda writes, “The people I have seen in America are very restless. They go from one apartment to another or from one country to another country. That restlessness is there because we are searching after our real home. To go from this place to that place will not give eternal life. Eternal life is with Kṛṣṇa.” (*Easy Journey to Other Planets,* Chapter 2) Ironically, placing our hopes and dreams in finding a place of pleasure or relief in the material world only further binds us to the conditions of the place, for wherever we go we are subjected to variabilities in climate, economy, status, security, and so on. Inevitably, for every one of us there is the suffering of birth, death, old age, and disease, experienced by transmigration through 8,400,000 species of life. One fine day we shall become exhausted and opt for a superior itinerary. Reading The Nectar of Devotion surely helps us re-route our travel and eventually eliminate our worn-out network of dead-end roads in the material world. The strict practice of the rules and regulations recommended to us by the previous ācāryas, all emissaries of the spiritual destination, qualifies us for the ultimate excursion. Their compassion is in liberating the spiritually comatose traveler on the bad road of material life. Śrīla Rūpa Gosvāmī recommends the perfect antidote for spiritual coma. Just as a snake charmer’s chanting of a potent mantra can arouse a dying man from the poisonous effects of snakebite, the chanting of the names of God in the Hare Kṛṣṇa *mahā-mantra* can revive the wayward traveler and speed up his journey. Just as an astronaut repeatedly re-determines his trajectory in order to transition into space, we can know how clear the path to the spiritual destination is by how well we are chanting. Chanting Hare Kṛṣṇa is the primary activity in what *Bhakti-rasāmṛta-sindhu* calls **vaidhi*-*sādhana*-*bhakti**, or the regulated (*vaidhi*) practice (*sādhana*) of *bhakti*. Vaidhi-*bhakti* begins when we make the rare acquaintance of a true “Golokanaut,” a seasoned traveler on the road to the ultimate spiritual destination—Goloka Vṛndāvana, Lord Kṛṣṇa’s eternal home in the spiritual world. *A Path with Nine Landmarks* *Śraddhā*, or initial faith in the value of bhakti, is the first of nine major landmarks on the road to the goal of love of God. *Śraddhā* is the first discovery. The dawning of *śraddhā* is something like stumbling upon an old and vaguely familiar trailhead in the fresh illumination of the sunrise. That discovery leads to *sādhu-saṅga*, association with devotees—merciful wish-fulfilling trees who offer their shade on the path. The next major landmark is *bhajana-kriyā*, the discovery of devotional service; the candidate attends devotional programs and learns the philosophy and practices of *bhakti-yoga*, including songs of glorification of the spiritual master and the Supreme Lord. He takes up the process of rendering service to Kṛṣṇa. As a result of sincere *bhajana-kriyā*, a special milestone rises high: *anartha-nivṛtti*, the decreasing of material burdens, internal and external, that impede one’s progress. From here forward, the burdens fall away, one after another, just as when a hiker discards unnecessary items from a weighty backpack. The next marker—*niṣṭhā*, or steady, firm faith—shows that one has made significant progress on the path. Further along, the prospect of pleasing Kṛṣṇa develops to the point of ruci, a great relish or taste for devotional service. Then the traveler becomes so attached to the journey back to Godhead that it becomes his very life. This is called *āsakti*, or strong attachment. When *āsakti* is prominent, the scenery is always filled with ecstatic opportunities for devotional service. The candidate may start to think of many ways and means to best serve the spiritual master. This surrender of the inner heart melts into pure, unadulterated affection for Kṛṣṇa, or *bhāva*, the eighth landmark and the beginning of prema, which is the destination: pure love of God. The traveler has arrived; his destiny is manifest. He is imbued with the joy of the ecstasy of a humble service attitude in the transcendental realm of the Godhead. *Six Symptoms of Progress* Material travel is a kind of movement, or motion, but as Śrīla Prabhupāda said in a March 1, 1974, lecture, “Real movement means to go forward to reach the Supreme Personality of Godhead.” Prabhupāda often used the term “the Hare Kṛṣṇa movement” to refer to his organization or Caitanya Mahāprabhu’s mission in general. While “movement” in this sense means “a group of people tending toward a common goal,” ISKCON is surely a movement in another sense: It is meant for moving people from one place to another—from the material world to Goloka Vṛndāvana. Besides the markers on the journey already mentioned, the author of *Bhakti-rasāmṛta-sindhu* lists six results obtained through devotional service. The spiritual traveler can also refer to these to determine whether or not there has been any authentic movement of the soul toward the Godhead. Here is the list as Śrīla Prabhupāda presents it in his Nectar of Devotion: (1) Pure devotional service brings immediate relief from all kinds of material distress. (2) Pure devotional service is the beginning of all auspiciousness. (3) Pure devotional service automatically puts one in transcendental pleasure. (4) Pure devotional service is rarely achieved. (5) Those in pure devotional service deride even the conception of liberation. (6) Pure devotional service is the only means to attract Kṛṣṇa. In summary, through *bhakti* the distresses of material life, including those caused by mundane travel, become null and void in anticipation of the svārtha-gati, or superior destination; one’s life becomes auspicious, or favorable to success; the beginning of the soul’s progress produces transcendental pleasure (Our happiness will know no limit, and even just hearing the descriptions of the destination will fill us with satisfying bliss); we’ll attain something extremely rare, and thus of the highest value; the hankering to become free from suffering in the realm of material existence will lose its grip; and the very personality who is the leader and maintainer of the spiritual realm of Goloka will become attracted to us. This brings us to the unique accessibility to Goloka offered by Rūpa Gosvāmī. He declares that the origin or nationality of the aspirant is of no consequence. Moving all souls toward the Godhead requires no bondage to the designations that only cause suffering in the hearts of people everywhere. *Diving in the Ocean of Devotion* Carefully guiding all kinds of travelers to the Goloka destination, *Bhakti-rasāmṛta-sindhu* gives some playful analogies to identify the exact route. In the Introduction to The Nectar of Devotion, Śrīla Prabhupāda refers to an ocean of bliss that contains a variety of aquatics. *Bhakti-yoga* practitioners are fish swiming down the rivers to the ocean of dedication and love for the service of Śrī Kṛṣṇa, the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Upon arrival, they dive and surface in that vast ocean, knowing no end to it, because the pleasure they experience in devotional service is so delectable it can only be compared to the pleasure of an extremely thirsty man diving into a fully satisfying ocean of delicious nectar. Meanwhile, others approach the ocean of transcendence from a less advantaged direction. They also wish to taste the bliss of the nectar ocean, but they do not follow the map left by the *bhakti-yoga* *ācāryas*. Śrīla Rūpa Gosvāmī recommends that one need only play in the ocean of opportunity for service to the Godhead, yet these others experiment with merging their very existence into spiritual waters in an attempt to dissolve all attributes of the self. They are under the impression that they must surrender themselves to becoming devoid of the characteristics of personality. They want to become indiscernible from the spiritual vastness and lost forever in it. Their concocted travel plans are their temporary solution to personal suffering. These materially conceived plans are unfulfilled as surely as are the travel plans of unfortunate travelers who lose their passport, photo ID, or suitcase, mumbling, “It wouldn’t have been a good trip anyway.” The frustrated traveler who desired to merge must surely return to his place of departure to sort out the details of a trip embarked upon without the guidance of a pure devotee of Kṛṣṇa. Rūpa Gosvāmi warns that no one can attain any perfect stage in devotional service without first bowing down before a pure devotee of the Lord and fully accepting his guidance. A pure devotee of Kṛṣṇa always represents the topmost reality, the transcendent personal service relationship with Kṛṣṇa on His planet, where pure-devotee cowherd men, women, cows, tulasī plants, wish-fulfilling trees, flowering creepers, cintāmaṇi stones, forest animals, and clear rivers and lakes full with love of God represent the Godhead’s full variegated splendor. In *Bhakti-rasāmṛta-sindhu*, Śrīla Rūpa Gosvāmī quotes the *Varāha Purāṇa*: “Any person who becomes attracted to places other than Mathurā [Lord Kṛṣṇa’s abode on earth] will certainly be captivated by the illusory energy.” *Arriving on the Path* *Bhakti-yogīs* make plans to go back to Godhead, and as they progress, they tolerate the turbulence of material atmospheric conditions. They remain enthusiastic and blissful while taking an uncommon journey that may require lifetimes of attempts to reach its destination. Just as a certain taste may inspire a politician, philanthropist, or family man to sacrifice for society or family, the taste of service to Kṛṣṇa inspires the devotee to serve Him despite all obstacles. The materialists’ sacrifice in service is so appealing that it drives people on and on every waking hour, day after day, month after month, year after year. However, unlike any materially motivated service, which ends with one’s lifetime, true bhakti-yoga produces a pure taste of unique and eternal spiritual emotions. Eventually one may acquire laulyam, which is greed and crying for the goal of love of God. Śrīla Prabhupāda writes, “One should learn this small technique.” A devotee who becomes greedy for Kṛṣṇa consciousness becomes so filled with purpose that he will never trade his begging to attain Kṛṣṇa’s lotus feet for the meager goal of a mundane destination, no matter its opulence. While the mundane traveler comes under the influences of this planet, the devotional traveler is impelled by bhakti to leave the material world and go back home, back to Godhead. The later part of *Bhakti-rasāmṛta-sindhu* describes a great variety of transcendental emotional experiences as well as the attributes of the sublime atmosphere of the transcendental destination. All happy, successful travelers who enter it have developed uninterrupted attraction and love for Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa. Their hearts are melted in humble service to Him. This pure loving service is categorized in five primary relationships, along with many ecstatic subdivisions. The rare, brilliant soul who arrives at the simple cowherder’s village described with many tender details in *Bhakti-rasāmṛta-sindhu* will never leave it. He has arrived at his primordial favorite place. The whereabouts of this most favorite, blissful place is revealed in Śrīla Rūpa Gosvāmī’s quintessential *bhakti* classic, which he wrote on the order of Sri Caitanya Mahāprabhu and after thorough study of all Vedic literatures. Only eternally liberated souls in an authorized chain of disciplic succession of spiritual masters are the authentic Goloka travel agents, deputed to write transcendental travel guides. They are as genuinely liberated as anyone who lives in the ultimate destination. By taking shelter of Śrīla Rūpa Gosvāmī’s instructions, we become his followers—Rūpānugas—on the path to the most beloved home. *Karuṇā Dhārinī Devī Dāsī, a disciple of His Grace Vīrabāhu Dāsa, serves the deities at ISKCON Los Angeles, where she joined ISKCON in 1979. She has also been distributing Śrīla Prabhupāda’s books since her earliest days in Kṛṣṇa consciousness. She lives with her husband and daughter.* Letters *In Need of a Goal* My mother is mentally ill, and my father has died. I want to choose a goal. Please reply about what I am to do in this dilemma. Kiranmai Via the Internet *Reply:* We are sorry to hear about your situation. You haven’t given many details, but if you have time for study, you will find answers is the books of His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupāda. You should also consider having an occupation that allows you time to pursue spiritual life. We are usually too worried about our material status when we should be trying to depend on Kṛṣṇa and get our spiritual life together. Life is very short, and it is best if we can finish up our business here and go back to Kṛṣṇa. As you are experiencing, material life is miserable, so we don't want to remain in the material world. Find some work according to your nature and also feed your soul as much spiritual food as possible by hearing and chanting the glories of Kṛṣṇa. If you live near a Hare Kṛṣṇa temple, try to visit and render some service there. These are all purifying activities that will protect you from the bad influences of Kali-yuga, the current degraded age. We all need to stay strong and connected to Kṛṣṇa. The Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement is a *bhakti* movement, and *bhakti* is a joyfully performed process of spiritual advancement. Hare Kṛṣṇa devotees have many websites that make seminars, classes, and *kīrtanas* available to you. Please take advantage of them. *Bad Thoughts When Chanting* When I am chanting, a lot of bad thoughts come to my mind. Why is that, and what can I do about it? Bikash Via the Internet *Reply*: Continue chanting; eventually the bad thoughts will go away. It is something like this: Before cleaning your house, everything looks in order. When you start cleaning, you move things around. In the middle of the cleaning, you will see that the house seems dirtier than it was before you started cleaning. But if you continue cleaning, gradually everything will be clean and back in place. Similarly when the mind is not cleansed (before chanting), it looks like everything is normal. But when you start cleaning the mind by chanting, the dirty things in your mind will come to the surface. By continuing your sincere chanting and by taking shelter of Kṛṣṇa’s lotus feet, the dirty thoughts that come up to the surface of the mind will be completely wiped off. This is how the chanting process works. So do not quit. Just continue, and gradually your mind will become cleaner and cleaner and cleaner—to the point where you will have tears of love for Kṛṣṇa when you chant. A Pause for Prayer *Caption: Lord Kapila, an incarnation of Lord Kṛṣṇa* My Lord, even Lord Brahmā is to this very day unable to understand Your position, which is far beyond himself, either by meditation or by mental speculation. So what to speak of others like us, who have been created by Brahmā in various forms as demigods, animals, human beings, birds and beasts? We are completely in ignorance. Therefore, how can we know You, who are the Transcendence? My Lord, You are fully situated in everyone's heart, but the living entities, covered by the material body, cannot see You, for they are influenced by the external energy, conducted by the three modes of material nature. Their intelligence being covered by *sattva-guṇa*, *rajo-guṇa* and *tamo-guṇa*, they can see only the actions and reactions of these three modes of material nature. Because of the actions and reactions of the mode of ignorance, whether the living entities are awake or sleeping, they can see only the workings of material nature; they cannot see Your Lordship. *—Aṁśumān* to Lord Kapila *Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam* 9.8.21–22 Śrīla Prabhupāda Speaks Out: Training for Liberation *This conversation between His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupāda and some of his disciples took place in New Vrindaban, West Virginia, on June 26, 1976.* Śrīla Prabhupāda: If you scrutinizingly examine all these various godly qualities that constitute advancement of life, modern man has no idea. That is being explained here in the Sixteenth Chapter of *Bhagavad-gītā*. There is no such education in godly qualities, nor are people interested. Now higher art classes in the colleges, universities—no students will join. They are simply learning technological processes. [To a disciple, who is reading from *Bhagavad-gītā As It Is*:] Go on reading. Disciple: ‘Those who are situated in the transcendental nature make progress on the path of liberation. For those who are acting in the modes of passion and ignorance on the other hand, there is no possibility of liberation.” Śrīla Prabhupāda: People say, “What do we care about liberation? It is all troublesome. You have to sacrifice so many things. We don’t want liberation. It is nonsensical. You keep your liberation. We don’t want it.” This is the problem. As you said earlier, to these people “liberation” means “Whatever I like I will do.” But actually, one cannot do that. Still, one is thinking that he’s liberated: “Can you do that—whatever you like?” “No, not actually.” But still he’s thinking he’s liberated. Therefore—rascal. Dog’s life. The dog is jumping, barking that “I’m free now.” But he forgets that soon the master will call and chain him. The master will do it. But still the dog is thinking that “I’m liberated.” This is the problem. What is modern man’s “liberation”? He does not know what liberation is. Disciple [continuing to read]: “Either they will have to remain in this material world as human beings, or they will descend among the species of the animals or even lower life forms.” Śrīla Prabhupāda: “Ah,” people will say, “—all bogus. This life is all. After this life, everything is finished. I am free.” This is the problem. This is their position. Disciple: When we speak at schools and colleges, Śrīla Prabhupāda, we find that people cannot defeat what you are saying, They have to admit, “Yes, our society does have many shortcomings. We don’t seem to know how to organize things properly, so that all our citizens can become happy.” And people also have to admit, “Yes there probably is life after death, and transmigration of the soul. And our society has this great shortcoming—that it teaches us nothing spiritual, nothing about preparing for the life after death.” Even when they reach the college level, people have quite a bit of difficulty really understanding the basic idea that “I am not this material body—I’m a spiritual being.” Śrīla Prabhupāda: They’ll understand. I’m just pointing out the difficulties of your preaching. You’ll have to face all these difficulties. In the materialistic society, people have become like cats and dogs. Therefore the business of preaching is somewhat a hard job. You have to deal with cats and dogs. But still there is hope, because they have got this human form of life. There is hope. It is not hopeless. Don’t be discouraged. But this is the job. You have to meet with cats and dogs. That is my point. When you go to preach, you must know that “I’ve come to preach among the cats and dogs, and I have to deal with them carefully. Otherwise, they will bark.” That was why, upon arriving in your country, I wrote a poem with an apparent air of disappointment. The idea was, “What will these people be able to understand about this sublime spiritual philosophy?” [To disciple:] Go on reading. Disciple: “In this Sixteenth Chapter the Lord explains both the transcendental nature and its attendant qualities and the demoniac nature and its qualities. He also explains the advantages and disadvantages of these qualities. “The word *abhijātasya* in reference to one born of transcendental qualities or godly tendencies is very significant. To beget a child in a godly atmosphere is known in the Vedic scriptures as *garbhādhāna-saṁskāra*. If the parents want a child in the godly qualities, they should follow the ten principles recommended for the social life of the human being. In *Bhagavad-gītā* we have studied also before that sex life for begetting a good child is Kṛṣṇa Himself. Sex life is not condemned, provided the process is used in Kṛṣṇa consciousness. Those who are in Kṛṣṇa consciousness at least should not beget children like cats and dogs but should beget them so that they may become Kṛṣṇa conscious after birth. That should be the advantage of children born of a father and mother absorbed in Kṛṣṇa consciousness. “The social institution known as *varṇāśrama-dharma*—the institution dividing society into four divisions of social life and four occupational divisions or castes—is not meant to divide society according to birth. Such divisions are in terms of educational qualifications. They are to keep the society in a state of peace and prosperity. The qualities mentioned herein are explained as transcendental qualities meant for making a person progress in spiritual understanding so that he can get liberated from the material world.” Śrīla Prabhupāda: So where is that institution for training people to acquire these transcendental qualities? There is no such institution. We are attempting to train people in transcendental qualities. This is the only institution. Other than our International Society, where is the institution for training people in transcendental qualities? I don’t think throughout the whole world there is any institution for training the students in transcendental qualities. Who cares about transcendental qualities? From the Editor *Bhakti and Liberation* The concept of liberation plays an important role in the Vedic literature and its teachings on how human beings should live to get the most out of life. Known as *mokṣa* or *mukti*, liberation is the fourth in the list of the *puruṣārthas*, or worthy human objectives: *dharma* (religion or occupation), *artha* (income, wealth), *kāma* (satisfaction of bodily and mental needs and desires), and *mokṣa*. There’s a progression here. By our work and our worship (*dharma*) we get what we need (*artha*) so that we can live a comfortable life (*kāma*). Then we should aim for liberation (*mokṣa*). The word *dharma* in this context is closely related to the concept of *karma*, which refers to both action and the results of action. Because most people, absorbed in their daily lives, are uninterested in the possibility of liberation, much of the Vedic literature teaches how to live a responsible, godly life. Following Vedic directions, people earn favorable karmic rewards by which they can gain a relatively happy human life in the next birth or even ascend to heavenly worlds. But a life lived under the laws of *karma* binds one to an unending cycle. After some time in heaven, for example, one must return to earth, with its inevitable suffering even in the best situation. The quest for liberation from the bonds of *karma* interests those who have realized the ultimate futility of the karmic path. While there are various forms of liberation, essentially it means to be free from material existence and situated in the spiritual realm. Standard discussions of Hinduism generally focus on the impersonal liberation of merging or becoming one with Brahman, the absolute reality. While it is true that many traditional schools rooted in the Vedic literature do promote that goal, many others, including Gauḍīya Vaiṣṇavism, which the Hare Kṛṣṇa movement represents, do not. Those who aspire for impersonal liberation usually follow the paths of *jñāna* or *yoga*. *Jñānīs*, whom Śrīla Prabhupāda refers to as “philosophical speculators,” spend their time studying Vedānta, or the often perplexing philosophy of the *Upaniṣads*, which tends to emphasize our oneness with the Absolute, giving relatively less attention to our uniqueness as individual souls. Yogis hope to attain liberation primarily by controlling the mind and senses and thereby raising themselves (the soul) to the realm of transcendence. Citing numerous verses from the authoritative Vedic literature, great Vaiṣṇava teachers throughout the ages have shown that success in either *jñāna* or *yoga* is possible only when *bhakti*, devotion to the Lord, infuses these paths. Lord Kṛṣṇa corroborates this view in the *Bhagavad-gītā*. And He goes further, saying that His devotee is already liberated because *bhakti* takes place on the spiritual platform. That’s because we have to be situated in transcendence to truly serve Kṛṣṇa. He exists in transcendence, and we—eternal spirit souls—belong there with Him. Serving Kṛṣṇa in transcendence is real liberation. An often cited verse in *Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam* (10.2.32) says that *yogis* and *jñānīs* are not secure in their so-called liberation because they have not yet attained the soul’s natural position as devoted servant of Kṛṣṇa. The Vedic literature tells of many *yogis* and *jñānīs* who supposedly attained liberation in Brahman, only to return to life on the material plane, the *karmic* plane of the unenlightened. On the other hand, Lord Kṛṣṇa’s liberated pure devotees never leave His lotus feet for a material life. They regard impersonal liberation in Brahman as detestable, since it would mean losing the company of Lord Kṛṣṇa, the object of their eternal love. Hare Kṛṣṇa. —*Nāgarāja Dāsa, Editor* Vedic Thoughts Materialistic scientists, puffed-up by the magical changes their so-called inventions have brought about, cannot see the real potency of Godhead behind matter. Therefore the jugglery of science is gradually leading people to a godless civilization at the cost of the goal of human life. Having missed the goal of life, materialists run after self-sufficiency, not knowing that material nature is already self-sufficient by the grace of God. Thus creating a colossal hoax in the name of civilization, they create an imbalance in the natural self-sufficiency of material nature. His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupāda *Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Ādi-līlā* 5.51, Purport I offer my obeisances to Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu, by whose mercy even an ignorant child can swim across the ocean of conclusions about the ultimate truth, which is full of the crocodiles of various theories. Śrīla Kṛṣṇadāsa Kavirāja Gosvāmī *Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Ādi-līlā* 2.1 One who has accepted Me as the supreme goal of life should strictly observe the scriptural injunctions forbidding sinful activities and, as far as possible, should execute the injunctions prescribing minor regulative duties such as cleanliness. Ultimately, however, one should approach a bona fide spiritual master who is full in knowledge of Me as I am, who is peaceful, and who by spiritual elevation is not different from Me. Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa *Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam* 11.10.5 Persons who hear *Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam* regularly and are always taking the matter very seriously will have the Personality of Godhead Śrī Kṛṣṇa manifested in their hearts within a short time. Mahārāja Parīkṣit *Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam* 2.8.4 Anyone whose work is not meant to elevate him to religious life, anyone whose religious ritualistic performances do not raise him to renunciation, and anyone situated in renunciation that does not lead him to devotional service to the Supreme Personality of Godhead, must be considered dead, although he is breathing. Śrīmatī Devahūti *Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam* 3.23.56 Renouncing all other goals, one should think, “Śrī Śrī Rādhā-Kṛṣṇa are the only goal of my life.” Lord Śiva *Sanat-kumāra-saṁhitā* 126 Even a person who could count all the dust particles of the earth could not possibly enumerate the glory of Śrī Viṣṇu. *Ṛg Veda* 1.154.1 The Lord is beyond imperishable Brahman. *Muṇḍaka Upaniṣad* 2.1.2 Because worshipers have differences in knowledge, their perception of the Lord differs accordingly. *Vedānta-sūtra* 3.3.52 Kṛṣṇa is established in truth, and truth is established in Him. Govinda is more true than truth itself, and so He has the name Truth. *Mahābhārata, Udyoga-parva* 68.12 BTG54-03, 2020