# Spiritual Life ## 1. What is sannyāsa? Constant worship of Hari is actual sannyāsa. The Lord’s devotees take sannyāsa from material enjoyment and liberation and take shelter at the lotus feet of Bhaktī-devī. ## 2. Who should be given charity? If one wants to give charity or do a favor for someone, he should give only to the spiritual master and the Vaiṣṇavas. All credit is due only to those who love God. One should trust and serve those who are engaged twenty-four hours a day in the Lord’s service. One need not give anything to or trust those who do not serve the Lord but who accept service for themselves. ## 3. Do Vaiṣṇavas ever become ritually contaminated? Whether a Vaiṣṇava is a householder or a renunciant he is not impure or contaminated. Performance of funeral rites and the offering of oblations to forefathers are automatically taken care of simply by serving Hari. Devotees do not have to perform these activities separately. But to maintain worldly etiquette, householder devotees become purified by chanting Hari’s holy names and on the eleventh day after a death, or on any other day, perform the śrāddha ceremony by offering mahāprasāda to the forefathers. This is Vaiṣṇava śrāddha. ## 4. Is it beneficial to give charity to build a temple? Instead of spending lavishly to build an opulent house, if one uses his hard-earned money for the Lord’s service, the service of the spiritual master and the Vaiṣṇavas, and to help build the Lord’s temples, he will attain immense benefit. Such activities are praiseworthy, and their result cannot be described. Those who build temples for Lord Viṣṇu do not go to Yamarāja’s abode. Rather, they are taken to Vaikuṇṭha by the Viṣṇudūtas. Yamarāja and his order carriers are servants of the Lord’s servants. ## 5. What is the difference between following and imitating? Just as subordination and flattery are not synonymous, similarly following and imitating are not synonymous. Many people think imitation means following. Playing the role of Nārada in a drama is called imitating, while following the path of devotional service Nārada taught is following. To copy something artificially is imitating, but to follow in the footsteps of the great mahājanas is following. We often think we are following when we are actually imitating. Following depends on one’s own behavior, and it cannot be done while imitating. Imitation is a behavior based on a perverted reflection of an action. From the external point of view, both imitating and following appear similar, just as fool’s gold and pure gold look similar. Imitation means posing. We have the propensity to cheat others. In order to accumulate name and fame, we often pose or imitate. If we only imitate the Vedic path we will not gain the same result we would attain if we followed properly. Imitation actually has no value. ## 6. The living entities belong to the Lord’s marginal potency and therefore can serve either the Lord or Maya. The seed of enjoyment is present in them in an unmanifest form. Do the living entities carry the seed of enjoyment even after they have attained perfection? Caitanya-caritāmṛta (Ādī 7.27) states: jagat ḍubila, jīvera haila bīja nāśa tāhā dekhi’ pāṅca janera parama ullāsa When the five members of the Pañca-tattva saw the entire world drowned in love of Godhead, and the seed of material enjoyment in the living entities completely destroyed, they all became exceedingly happy. In the Supreme Lord’s marginal potency, the seed of material enjoyment in the form of aversion to Kṛṣṇa is indistinctly present along with the propensity to offer service. Because that seed is watered, the seed of material enjoyment, dropped from the tree of material existence, causes the conditioned souls to suffer the threefold miseries day and night. It binds them with the ropes of material enjoyment. As there is no possibility of a seed fructifying if it is fully submerged, similarly if the seed of material enjoyment, which is not related to Kṛṣṇa, is submerged in the vast ocean of devotional service to the Lord, there is no possibility of its fructifying. ## 7. What is the proper use of wealth? We are not performers of pious or sinful activities, nor are we mental speculators or fools. We are the shoe-carriers of the non-duplicitous devotees of Hari and are initiated into the mantra, kīrtanīya sadā hariḥ, “Always chant the holy names of Hari.” The proper use of wealth is to spend it to publish Vaiṣṇava literature, to preach the topics of Hari, and to serve Śrī Hari, guru, and the Vaiṣṇavas. Using wealth in this way awards one inexhaustible piety. ## 8. Is it condemned to blaspheme others? No one should blaspheme or glorify others’ natures or activities. Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam confirms this instruction. The Caitanya-Bhāgavata states, para carcakera gati nāhi kona kale: a blasphemer never attains benefit. Blasphemers go to hell. Instead of blaspheming others, one should rectify himself. The spiritual master’s chastisement is beneficial for ordinary persons. We should not get involved in such matters by judging them one way or another. ## 9. What is a Vaiṣṇava’s duty? Regarding the behavior of a Vaiṣṇava, Śrīman Mahāprabhu has said that a householder should maintain his livelihood by accumulating as much material enjoyment as he requires and a renunciant should maintain himself by begging alms. Both should cultivate Kṛṣṇa consciousness. Whether they manage to obtain food and clothing is dependent on the Lord’s mercy. Everyone must depend completely on the Supreme Lord. ## 10. In the Śrāddha ceremony, should the forefathers be offered mahā-prasādam? In the śrāddha ceremony, the departed souls who were inclined to chant Hari’s holy name may be offered mahā-prasādam. It is not intelligent to offer oblations to the forefathers other than mahā-prasādam. Fruitive activities invite enjoyment of their fruits. Those who chant Hari’s holy names have no desire to enjoy the fruits of their karma, and the śrāddha ceremony is a fruitive activity. Still, it is the duty of relatives to help departed souls achieve auspiciousness by offering them some of the Lord’s remnants in the Lord’s ceremony. The devotees should be satisfied by offering mahāprasādam followed by congregational chanting of Hari’s holy names. ## 11. Should we study Vedānta? We should discuss Vedānta, but we should not discuss ŚrīŚaṅkarācārya’s commentary on it. We will be greatly profited if we study Vedānta with the help of Śrībhāsya or Govindabhāsya. Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam is the natural commentary on Vedānta-sūtra. We should study Vedānta under the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam’s guidance. The Vedānta discusses topics about chanting the Lord’s holy name. We should study Vedānta and also chant Hari’s holy names. ## 12. Do rich householder devotees and Maṭha residents commit offenses if they do not use their wealth to serve the Lord? In his Bhakti-sandarbha, jagad-guru Śrīla Jīva Gosvāmī Prabhu states, ye tu sampattimanto gṛhastās tesām tu arcana mārga eva mukhyaḥ: “The rich householders must use their wealth in the worship of the Deity form of the Lord.”Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam (10.84.37) states: ayaṁ svasty-ayanaḥ panthā dvi-jāter gṛha-medhinaḥ yac chraddhayāpta-vittena śuklenejyeta pūruṣaḥ This is the most auspicious path for a religious householder of the twice-born orders: to selflessly worship the Personality of Godhead with wealth honestly obtained. If instead of doing so, rich householder devotees engage in hearing, chanting, and remembering the Supreme Lord like the akiñcana devotees, they commit the offense known as vitta-śathya, or miserliness. Therefore despite following the processes of hearing, chanting, and remembering, householder devotees and Maṭha residents should renounce miserly and cheating propensities and use all their wealth to serve Hari, guru, and the Vaiṣṇavas. Lord Śrī Hari becomes displeased when He sees the propensity to cheat or be miserly. These things are anarthas on the devotional path. Regarding the duty of householders Lord Śrī Gaurāṅgadeva instructed the residents of Kulīna-grāma: prabhu kahena, ’kṛṣṇa-sevā’vaiṣṇava-sevana’ ’nirantara kara kṛṣṇa-nāma-saṅkīrtana’ Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu replied, “Without cessation continue chanting the holy name of Lord Kṛṣṇa. Whenever possible, serve Him and His devotees, the Vaiṣṇavas.” (Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta Madhya-līla 15.104) ## 13. What do we mean by the phrase, “the favorable cultivation of Kṛṣṇa consciousness”? Our only duty is to cultivate Kṛṣṇa consciousness. The daughter of Vṛṣabhānu is most favorable to Kṛṣṇa. Another name for Vṛṣabhānu’s daughter is Anukulā, “most favorable” or “most intimate.” The dear devotees of Śrī Rādhā are all spiritual masters. The Gauḍīya Vaiṣṇavas worship Anukulās Kṛṣṇa, Śrī Rādhās Kṛṣṇa. They are more partial to the daughter of Vṛṣabhānu than to Kṛṣṇa. Favorable cultivation of Kṛṣṇa is possible under the favorable guidance of the most favorable devotee of Kṛṣṇa. We must cultivate this mentality in relation to Kṛṣṇa alone. But alas! Instead of making Kṛṣṇa the center note of our household chord, we have made ourselves the center note and thus we have become attached materialists. ## 14. What do devotees do when they meet danger? Sometimes, in order to test us, the Lord places us into difficulty. Those who are real servants of the Lord will not become disturbed in any condition of life. Instead, they will always engage in the Lord’s service with body, mind, and speech. Material enjoyment cannot influence such persons because they are always situated in devotional service. Such persons know that serving the Lord is their life and soul, their very existence, their only duty. Apart from the Lord’s service, everything leads simply toward death or material existence. ## 15. What is the difference between sādhana-bhakti and sādhana-kriyā? Sādhana-kriyā, ritualistic regulative practices, is not performed by the soul but on the platform of the mind, which is the reflection of the soul. There is a difference between eternal sādhana-bhakti (pure devotional service) and the ritualistic pious activities one performs (sādhana-kriyā). These ritualistic activities may destroy aversion to Hari under the control of time, and among the activities of sādhana-kriyā are the limbs of bhakti that when performed, attempt to destroy anarthas. When anarthas are completely destroyed, pure devotional service, sādhana bhakti, automatically manifests. Sādhana kriyā is not effective in terms of the soul, whereas sādhana-bhakti is eternally effective in the pure state. The constitutional propensity of the soul is to perform devotional service. Sādhana is meant to help one control the mind. When the mind’s material propensities are checked, the soul’s propensities can properly manifest. When sādhana-bhakti manifests in a soul, that soul gradually surpasses the platform of bhāva and ultimately attains prema. Bhāva-bhakti and prema-bhakti are the progressively matured platforms of sādhana-bhakti, like when a mango goes through the three stages of unripeness, half-ripeness, to full ripeness. Sādhana-kriyā is something different. Because people don’t understand the difference between sādhana-bhakti and sādhana-kriyā, there are various disturbances in the world. ## 16. Is the whole family benefited if a devotee takes birth in it? One hundred generations forwards and one hundred generations backwards of a family in which a mahābhāgavata appears are automatically delivered. Fourteen generations forwards and fourteen generations backwards of a family in which a madhyama-adhikārī appears are automatically delivered. Three generations forwards and three generations backwards of a family in which a kaniṣṭhā-adhikārī appears are delivered. ## 17. Is that place a dhāma where the glorification of Hari takes place? I cannot think of those places where the devotees of the Lord constantly glorify and discuss hari-kathā as other than a holy place. Such places are expansions of the eternal abode. We should also know that Lord Viṣṇu exists in the hearts of all living entities and within every atom. Thus every place is holy. When one receives the mercy of his spiritual master he understands this fact. ## 18. Why aren’t we making progress on the path of worshipping the Lord? How can we make progress? We are busy with external objects and engrossed in the material concept of life. If we want to make progress we need to give up external conceptions and become introspective. We should become eager to serve the Lord of our heart. But we don’t feel that eagerness. How then can we hope to spiritual progress? How is it possible to make spiritual advancement if we are busy enhancing our own happiness and prosperity? How will we become enthusiastic to serve our eternal well-wishers, guru and Kṛṣṇa, if we are enthusiastically and busily making our relatives, who are simply plunderers, happy? If we walk toward the west, we cannot expect to arrive in the east. We have explained these things so many times, but still illusion is not destroyed. This means that we are destined to suffer. What can we do? ## 19. Should a devotee continue to worship the Lord, even when the devotee is ill? One should not become detached from serving the Lord when one is not physically well. I will never refrain from engaging in the Lord’s service. If I am physically unable to serve, my worship will turn to remembrance of the Lord. ## 20. Should one consider a nondevotee guru a devotee, even if he presents himself as such? The spiritual master is an ācārya and chanter of the holy name. Those who offend the feet of the holy name cannot be guru. A bona fide spiritual master does not encourage anyone to seek sense gratification, nor does he flatter people. Those interested in material enjoyment do not like the devotees’ instructions, because the devotees are interested only in spiritual life. Such persons look for people who speak according to their own taste and thus they deprive themselves of any real benefit. To consider a nondevotee a devotee and nondevotional activities devotional is simply self-deception. Until one is fortunate enough to serve and respect devotees, one will continue to mistake nondevotees for devotees. Can a crow become a peacock simply by wearing peacock feathers? Can a blue fox become the king of animals? How long can cheating remain covered? Truth will certainly prevail. Those who serve Kṛṣṇa are not weak but are strong and determined. Service to Kṛṣṇa is the most important factor. Devotees of Kṛṣṇa are glorious. Only fortunate persons understand this. If out of aversion to the Lord’s service one glorifies himself for his insignificant possessions—wealth, education, beauty—then he will find himself in trouble and remain indifferent to the service of Kṛṣṇa and His devotees. ## 21. Is it good to become over-intelligent? Disobeying the spiritual master and desiring fame bring ruination. We should not be proud of our wealth or that we are intelligent. This kind of pride is not helpful to a devotee. Rather, it causes difficulties, because it causes one to transgress the spiritual master’s order. Please bless me so that my heart never runs towards over-intelligence. I apologize to all those to whom I have spoken rudely or harshly because I considered them my relatives. Instead of understanding my intentions, however, they misunderstood me, and that has made me sad. ## 22. How should an initiated devotee perform the śrāddha ceremony? An initiated devotee who has taken shelter of the holy name should offer oblations of mahā-prasāda to his forefathers on the eleventh day after his forefather’s death. Thereafter, he should feed the brāhmaṇas with mahā-prasāda. This is best done in the Maṭha. Those who are not initiated devotees, who do not chant Hari’s holy name, and who are unable to tolerate the arrowlike words of society, can offer oblations to their forefathers according to the prescribed method of the smārtas. They should eat only boiled food once a day for a month and wear a loincloth. Devotees who chant the holy name should honor mahā-prasāda every day. They need not worry about the smārtas’ prescribed methods. Please rid yourself of the superstition that a Vaiṣṇava becomes a ghost after death and that his śrāddha should be performed with foodstuff that is not first offered to the Lord. The śāstras do not approve of this idea. The arrangements provided in the smārta system are based on one’s position in society. And the smārtas say that performing the śrāddha ceremony according to their system exempts one from entering the womb of another mother. The Lord’s devotees, however, never accept such statements. Since the smārtas’ consideration is opposed to śāstra, the devotees do not accept their process. At the same time, the smārtas find the considerations of liberated souls incomprehensible. ## 23. Is simplicity essential? Simplicity means we have to become sincere. We have to give up the cheating propensity, crookedness, and blaspheming others at all costs. One cannot pass foolishness or crookedness off as sincerity. True sincerity and apparent sincerity, true punctuality and apparent punctuality—none of these are the same. What a devotee thinks and what a nondevotee thinks are not the same. If one is not engaged in hari-bhajana twenty-four hours a day, he will have to bid goodbye to worshiping Hari. ## 24. Who can understand a devotee’s activities? Only those who follow and cultivate the teachings and behavior of the Lord’s devotees can understand the activities of devotees, whose characteristics are incomprehensible. Ordinary people never understand a devotee’s dealings; Vaiṣṇava characteristics cannot be understood by mundane knowledge. Devotees are often not even recognized by examining their external behavior. If by good fortune we get the opportunity to see a devotee and his or her Vaiṣṇava characteristics with a service attitude, we will be blessed. But to try to measure transcendental objects with our sensual knowledge will only cause us problems. ## 25. Who is a brāhmaṇa? A brāhmaṇa is one who searches after Brahman. A brāhmaṇa is one who is neither in the bodily concept of life nor a mental speculator. A brāhmaṇa is one who knows the Supreme Brahman. ## 26. Is it most important to worship Hari? Without wasting more time, one should try to achieve Kṛṣṇa’s mercy. This applies to everyone—child, old man, young man, or woman. There is no guarantee that we will live for any particular amount of time; life could end at any moment. Therefore we should immediately begin to worship Lord Hari. Some people say, “Let’s enjoy life now and worship Hari at the end of life.” But this is not a reasonable idea. Time is life. At every moment our duration of life is being reduced. Time lost can never be regained. Considering this, one should not waste time in pursuits other than hari-bhajana. One of the mahājanas sings: jīvana samāpti kāle kariba bhajana ebe kari griha sukha kakhana e kathā nāhi bale vijñājana e deha patan unmukha “Let me enjoy family life now. I will worship the Lord when I an old”: A learned person never speaks like this because he knows that death is inevitable. If we lose the golden opportunity we have at present to worship Lord Hari, we will be forced to suffer the threefold miseries of materiel existence. We must associate with sādhus to help. Only in the association of saintly persons will we become fortunate enough to understand that worship of Kṛṣṇa is life’s aim. When we finally understand this point, we will give up both material enjoyment and dry renunciation and engage eagerly in His service. Thus we will attain self-realization. When we engage in the Lord’s service under the spiritual master’s guidance, reactions to our previous misdeeds will gradually be destroyed and we will attain perfection. ## 27. How does one’s propensity for material enjoyment diminish? Material existence is like a well covered by grass. It is difficult to get out of such a well if one should fall into it. No one can deliver himself from material existence without the Lord’s mercy. As soon as we forget that we are Kṛṣṇa’s servants, we begin to serve Maya. Service to Kṛṣṇa is called devotional service, and the desire for material enjoyment is called nondevotional service. The only way to give up nondevotional desires is to hear kṛṣṇa-kathā from the spiritual master and the Vaiṣṇavas with surrender, honest inquiry, and a service attitude. Thus one’s material propensities will be destroyed and one will begin to taste Kṛṣṇa’s name. ## 28. Is it necessary to worship Hari after having taken birth in a human body? By good fortune and the Lord’s mercy we have been given a human birth. The human form of life is extremely rare, and there is no guarantee that in our next life we will again become humans. By some misfortune we might become a ghost, witch, hobgoblin, animal, bird, or insect. It is not possible to worship Hari in those species. Therefore we should not use whatever time we have left in our present body for pointless activities. Life is temporary. Still, human life can award spiritual salvation. Therefore as long as we are alive, we should quickly earn our spiritual perfection. Human beings proudly consider themselves brāhmaṇas, kṣatriyas, vaiśyas, or śūdras, brahmacārīs, gṛhasthas, vānaprasthas, or sannyāsīs. Those who are intelligent, however, should not claim these false identities. We are simply the Lord’s servants. We are not products of this world. To consider the body the self is an illusion. Śrī Mahāprabhu said: jīvera svabhāva, kṛṣṇa-’dāsa’-abhimāna dehe ātma-jñāne ācchādita sei ’jñāna’ The original nature of every living entity is to consider himself the eternal servant of Kṛṣṇa. But under the influence of Maya he thinks himself to be the body, and thus his original consciousness is covered. (Caitanya-caritāmṛta Madhya 24.201) Hari’s holy name does not appear on the tongues of persons puffed up with the false ego of material proprietorship. We are eternally conditioned souls. Due to our forgetfulness of Kṛṣṇa we have fallen into illusion. Now we have no alternative but to give up our false ego and take complete shelter at the lotus feet of guru and Kṛṣṇa. Elephants think themselves elephants and dogs dogs, but humans should not think like this. Rather, they should be proud of their real identity. Śrī Mahāprabhu said, jīvera ’svarūpa’ haya kṛṣṇera ’nitya-dāsa’: “It is the living entity’s constitutional position to be an eternal servant of Kṛṣṇa” (Caitanya-caritāmṛta Madhya 20.108) Lord Hari is situated in every atom, and He attracts fools and the learned alike. Only those who have no desire for material enjoyment, for becoming the master, no desire to command respect as sādhus, are qualified to hear His instructions. Those who are attached to something so insignificant as their own pride, however, will not hear the Lord’s call. Still, such persons should know that death is inevitable. adya vābda śatānte vā mṛtyur vai prānināṁ dhruvaḥ: either today or in a hundred years every living entity must die. We are cognizant, but if despite our cognizance we did not approach the Lord’s devotees and hear their instructions attentively, ruination is inevitable. There is no chance to worship Hari in any form of life other than the human form. Therefore we should engage in hari-bhajana until we die by giving up all other engagements. That’s the only way we can attain the ultimate goal of life. Everyone in this world is ready to ruin us. In this land of no-friendship, our so-called relatives are unfavorable for our devotional service. We therefore have no alternative but to take shelter of Vaiṣṇavas. Vaiṣṇavas are our actual relatives. We do not need to do anything for anyone. Just serve the Lord’s devotees along with others. Let everyone serve the Lord with his or her knowledge, intelligence, academic qualification, physical strength, wealth, and expertise. The more we delay doing so, the more trouble we will find ourselves in. People who follow non-Vaiṣṇava religious principle cannot attain auspiciousness. All auspiciousness is held in the hand of those who take shelter at the lotus feet of a Vaiṣṇava. The non-Vaiṣṇavas are decorated only with the garlands of birth and death. Persons attached to hari-bhajana no longer enter the wombs of mothers. What to speak of Vaiṣṇavas, even those who have the opportunity to see the lotus feet of an extraordinary Vaiṣṇava will not take birth again. 29. What is the difference between the words of a sādhaka and the words of a person who has achieved perfection? To express one’s own realization or distress is easier than pleading the realization or distress of others. A person who can plead his own case can speak without duplicity, whereas those who are advocating on behalf of someone else may not have the same power. That is the difference between a sādhaka and a siddha. ## 30. Is it proper to touch a sannyāsīs feet? One should not touch the lotus feet of a saintly person or sannyāsī with his enjoyment-prone body or sinful body. If the saintly person becomes displeased as a result of our touching his lotus feet, then it will certainly create inauspiciousness for us. Sannyāsī devotees do not like people touching their feet. It is currently become a fashion— a disease—to touch the lotus feet of guru and sādhu. We should pay close attention to whether the spiritual master and Kṛṣṇa are being pleased by each one of our actions. If we do not do so, then we will dig our own grave. Let me tell those who, under the control of their emotions, attempt to touch the feet of a sannyāsī like me. In the language of my spiritual master, “Why should they dare to stretch their hands to take dust from the feet of the saintly persons? Is such boldness proper? What qualification do they have? What right? An attached householder, who has no real interest in serving the saint, is certainly unjustified in touching his lotus feet. Better that we offer one another obeisances from a distance. If an attached householder forcibly tries to touch the saint’s feet, it means his mind is attracted to gross matter. That will cause him more harm than good. Those who desire fortune should carefully refrain from committing such offensive activities. ## 31. How should we see sense gratification? We should accept as much sense gratification as is necessary to keep body and soul together. We should not live in luxury. At the same time, we should not unnecessarily trouble the body so that it dies. We should lead our lives in a way that is favorable for cultivating Kṛṣṇa consciousness. There is no way to attain perfection if we don’t serve the transcendental sound vibration. Therefore the Vedānta-sūtra states: anāvṛttiḥ sabdāt, one becomes liberated by sound. Simply by glorifying the Lord He is satisfied. The mass of people cannot find their real welfare either collectively or individually by satisfying their senses. The body should be maintained only for the Lord’s service. What is the use of maintaining a body simply to gratify its senses? This will result only in one’s going to hell. Maintaining the body means accepting as much material enjoyment as necessary to be able to serve Lord Hari. We should take neither more nor less than that. ## 32. How should one show others respect? A devotee is not in favor of giving respect to others unless they are directly or indirectly related to Kṛṣṇa. However, knowing that Kṛṣṇa is situated in the hearts of all living entities as the Supersoul, devotees give respect to all living entities, including the demigods and humans, as servants of the Supreme Lord. Śrī Mahāprabhu states (Caitanya-caritāmṛta Antya 20.25): uttama hañā vaiṣṇava habe nirabhimāna jīve sammāna dibe jāni’ ’kṛṣṇa’-adhiṣṭhāna Although a Vaiṣṇava is the most exalted person, he is prideless, and gives all respect to everyone, knowing everyone to be the resting place of Kṛṣṇa. ## 33. Can one be attached to sense gratification even after taking initiation? The process of attaining transcendental knowledge is called initiation. We should know that the Supreme Lord is the transcendental Absolute Truth, we are His eternal servants, and we have no duty other than to serve Him. Knowing this is actual initiation. The absence of this understanding is ignorance. At present, there is a controversy about the word “initiation”. People proudly claim that they have taken initiation from a bona fide spiritual master, but how can they maintain material attachment even after taking initiation? How can they desire to make advancement in material life? If they don’t learn about their relationship with the Lord, independent and proud people uselessly brag about their initiations. Rather than treating their spiritual master as if he were as good as God, they treat him as their disciple, fit to be their order-supplier. Considering the guru an ordinary mortal being, these persons become offenders at his lotus feet. The spiritual master is worshipable. There is no one more worshipable to us than guru. Serving the guru is superior to serving the Lord. There is no greater religious principle than serving the spiritual master. Even though we repeatedly hear this, due to our strong attachment for body and house, we forget it and think that serving our family members and ourselves is more important. Our position is similar to that of the boy who forgets his duty and absorbs himself in play rather than study. If after accepting initiation we do not awaken our propensity to serve the Lord, then we must be cultivating a desire for fame, wealth, and serving our family members. It is only by good fortune that one receives the opportunity to serve the Lord, but we foolishly waste that opportunity. The results of our folly are so poisonous that we are left only with disappointment. Do not doubt my words. If we do not follow the guru and the Vaiṣṇavas’ orders, what can they do to help us? ## 34. What is the object of our meditation? There is nothing in this material world that attracts us. Lord Kṛṣṇa is the actual truth, the Absolute Truth. That Lord Kṛṣṇa, along with His associates, is the focus of our thoughts. ## 35. How will we realize the Supreme Lord? Śrīman Mahāprabhu said that serving Kṛṣṇa and the devotees and congregationally chanting the holy name are the living entity’s three duties. Kṛṣṇa is the object of service, and one who serves Him is His servant. The propensity to engage in that service is called bhakti. The object of service, the servant, and the propensity to serve are eternal and are not subject to the material time factor. They are not created or destroyed as are the conditioned souls. Only those who sincerely endeavor to serve the Lord can realize this fact. The Absolute Truth is not understood by adulterated endeavor. If we do not follow the spiritual path and do not become eager to always serve the Supreme Lord, we will go to hell, praising the path of material enjoyment. We cheat people when we tell them that we worship Viṣṇu or serve Kṛṣṇa when we are actually serving our senses. We serve our wives, children, and other relatives, enjoy our senses, and are good for nothing. Until a living entity develops the pure and unadulterated propensity to serve the Supreme Lord, he is still in ignorance. Our present pathetic condition is because Śrī Gaurasundara’s teachings have not yet entered our hearts. Until we realize that service to Kṛṣṇa and His devotees is our prime duty, we will continue to be cheated by Maya. We can get freedom from our sinful mentality only when we sincerely take shelter at the lotus feet of Kṛṣṇa’s devotees. If we serve those who constantly worship the Supreme Lord, then by their mercy we can go back to Godhead. However, if we think the Nārada in the drama party to be the real Nārada, and if we think a mixture of water and chalk to be milk, we are deceived. Only service to a great personality who is always engaged in the service of the Lord and nothing else can award us realization of the Supreme Lord. As long as people who are fond of sense gratification remain captivated by mental speculation and covered by the rasa of sense objects, they cannot realize the Supreme Lord. Kṛṣṇa is the devotees’ property, and only a devotee can give Kṛṣṇa to us. We cannot understand Kṛṣṇa if our heart is full of material desire. We can understand Him only if our hearts are inclined to service. Spiritual realization is attained when we constantly serve the Supreme Lord while thinking ourselves His servants. Meeting Kṛṣṇa is possible only through the devotional process and in no other way. ## 36. What is the meaning of Kṛṣṇa’s appearance? The complete manifestation of the Super Consciousness within the pure hearts of all living entities is known as the appearance of Kṛṣṇa, the birth of Lord Kṛṣṇa. At present we are absorbed in mundane subject matters. If we can somehow reduce that absorption, we will get a respite from material existence or the mundane conception. ## 37. Is a devotee’s body the Lord’s temple? The living entity’s body is the temple and residence of the Lord. The Lord’s various Deity forms are installed in temples built of bricks, wood, and stone, but the Lord resides eternally in the temple of the devotee’s spiritualized body. When devotees honor mahā-prasāda, they are attempting to protect the Lord’s temple. ## 38. Who will attain success in spiritual life? The Supreme Lord is one without a second. Those who think there is something beyond the Lord suffer from an incomplete and defective conception. The Supreme Lord is ekam eva advitīyam, one without a second. He is not five or ten. Those who think the Absolute Truth can be successfully challenged cannot attain success. We worship the personal Godhead and are not impersonalists, and therefore our success is inevitable provided we surrender. Worshipers of the Supreme Personality of Godhead Viṣṇu can capture Nanda Maharāja’s son, who is the ultimate object of service, within the core of their hearts. The second verse of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam proves this. Those who take shelter of the Lord attain liberation. Such persons can walk over the head of unlimited dangers and attain success simply with guru and Kṛṣṇa’s blessings. Devotees who have taken complete shelter of the spiritual master, Kṛṣṇa’s topmost devotee, will never fail. The community of nondevotees will collapse in due course of time, but devotees never fall down. The nondevotees fall down. Hypocrites who make a show of performing devotional service also fall down. Mental speculation will be vanquished. ## 39. Why are we bereft of Kṛṣṇa’s darśana? Without approaching the lotus feet of a bona fide spiritual master one cannot approach Kṛṣṇa or His service. Because we do not hear properly from the mouth of the spiritual master we are unable to see Kṛṣṇa. If we hear properly, then we will chant properly. If we chant properly, then we will remember Kṛṣṇa properly and thus realize Him. We must surrender everything at the spiritual master’s lotus feet, because Kṛṣṇa Himself appears before the fortunate souls in the form of guru. He does not appear before unfortunate souls at all. The first order is to take shelter of a spiritual master. That requires humility. Actually, humility and taking shelter are synonymous. If we do not take shelter, who can help us? One attains a spiritual master by the Lord’s grace. Everything becomes possible by Kṛṣṇa’s mercy. If we fail to attain His mercy, then we will achieve nothing, even if we try forever. His mercy is most important. If we are sincere at heart and are eager to attain His lotus feet, he will certainly bestow His mercy on us. If out of good fortune we receive a bona fide spiritual master, we must observe carefully how he serves Kṛṣṇa constantly with all his senses. Unless we hear from the spiritual master and apply his instructions in our lives, how can we give up material enjoyment? One cannot hear properly if he is too attached to worldly matters. If hearing is not done properly, one will be far from achieving auspiciousness. ## 40. What is the duty of a householder? To please the Supreme Lord, the householder devotees should associate with and serve the spiritual master and saints with love and devotion. This will enable them to become spiritual householders. If householders do not associate, serve, and discuss about both the book Bhāgavata and the devotee Bhāgavata, they cannot attain auspiciousness. They should live at home with the resolution, “I will serve Kṛṣṇa with all respect.” Otherwise their household life, devoid of Hari’s service, will lead them to hell. If family life is favorable to the cultivation of Kṛṣṇa consciousness, then it is acceptable and praiseworthy. If it unfavorable, then family life, which is compared to a dark well, should be rejected. There is no difference between devotees living at home or at the Maṭha, because in either case they are constantly engaged in the Lord’s service. But one should not confuse the life of an attached householder with the life of a a devotee who lives at home. By serving and associating with pure devotees who have made guru and Kṛṣṇa their life and soul, attachment for family life and material existence is destroyed. There is no way to become free of family attachment without sincerely serving the spiritual master. One should live at home only to serve Kṛṣṇa under the guru’s guidance. The householders should refrain from eating too much or accumulating more than he needs. He should not over-endeavor, gossip, become overly attached to following the rules and regulations, associate with nondevotees, or be greedy. He must also maintain his enthusiasm, confidence, determination, patience, taste for hearing and chanting Hari’s holy name, and firmness in service to guru and Kṛṣṇa. A householder has no business indulging in illicit sex, in becoming overly attached to his wife, or in becoming henpecked. He should give up bad association and tolerate the urges of speech, mind, anger, tongue, belly, and genitals. A householder should not only refrain from sinful activities but should also avoid the pious activities that are unfavorable to devotional service. By engaging in sinful activities he will definitely not be able to serve Hari. The desire to accumulate piety will also block his worship. A householder devotee must not become indifferent to the service of Hari, guru, and the Vaiṣṇavas on the pretext of chanting the holy name. This is nothing but cheating, and it will lead to greater feelings of family attachment rather than devotion. Unless the living entity serves guru and Kṛṣṇa, he or she cannot develop love of God. A householder should always try to assist those devotees who are constantly engaged in Kṛṣṇa’s service. ## 41. O Master, will you go to Guṇḍicā? Guṇḍicā is the heart of the human being. When the mirror of one’s heart is cleansed, it becomes a suitable place for the Lord’s residence. I have no intention to visit the Gundicā of your consideration, because I could not clean the temple of my own heart. I am proud of my position as enjoyer and master. I am gradually becoming disappointed, and my hope in life is fading. I am forced to associate with insincere people; I always meet them. I have no intention to come in contact with Śrī Rūpa and Sanātana. I gladly invite my own danger. Anyway, as long as we have this material body we are in an ocean of discomfort. Therefore we prefer to be absorbed in Cārvākism. We do not understand that these discomforts are Kṛṣṇa’s mercy, so we leave spiritual life and go home. We do not remember that Kṛṣṇa’s lotus feet are our eternal home and that our soul’s eternal health lies at Kṛṣṇa’s lotus feet. ## 42. From whom should we take guidance? No one who places obstacles in the path of Kṛṣṇa’s sense gratification is allowed to enter Kṛṣṇa’s kingdom. Thus we should not follow such people. We will not allow anyone to lord it over or subdue us. Only Lord Viṣṇu and His servants can establish their undisputed domain over us. Apart from Lord Viṣṇu and the Vaiṣṇavas, if we allow others to lord it over us on the pretext of being magnanimous, or if we compare guru and Kṛṣṇa with these others, then we should know that Maya has certainly spread her mastery over us. We should kick out the idea of so-called impersonal liberation. Liberation in the form of merging into the Brahman is the topmost offense. Māyāvādis are offenders at the Lord’s feet. They cannot chant Kṛṣṇa’s holy name. Their pretension of chanting pierces Lord Kṛṣṇa’s body like a thunderbolt. We will not resolve that mental speculation or dry arguments alone are our destination. We will not reach any conclusion on the strength of argumentation. Argument does not allow us to realize subject matter that is beyond the reach of argument. Therefore in order to know Lord Hari, one must give up the path of argument and take shelter of the Lord’s devotees. We should neither become materialists nor follow in the footsteps of materialists. ## 43. What is the difference between Bhagavad-gītā and Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam? Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam preaches the impartial Absolute Truth. It is the most desirable object for the nonenvious devotee. Bhagavad-gītā is the curriculum of the infant class, whereas Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam is the curriculum of the postgraduate class. In order to qualify for the postgraduate class, those who do not know anything about spiritual life use Bhagavad-gītā as the entrance exam. Bhagavad-gītā awards them the necessary knowledge. Those who want to pick up a masters or doctorate degree in spiritual subject matter are required to study further. However, impartial devotees do not discriminate between Bhagavad-gītā and Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam. The variety of adjectives and grammatical explanations found in this world only increase the beauty of the lotus feet of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam. Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam explains the spirit souls’ constitutional duty. Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam is directly the Lord’s incarnation. No one can shake Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam from its unique position even by an inch. Bhagavad-gītā is recommended for the infant class in the spiritual school as well as for those new students who desire to enter the spiritual kingdom. Those who have finished studying Bhagavad-gītā and who wish to attain higher spiritual knowledge can gain immense profit by properly hearing and studying Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam from a pure devotee. Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam is directly the incarnation of the Supreme Lord, the Absolute Truth. He cannot be measured by our blunt material senses. That which is rare and confidential is more protected. Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam does not reveal itself before the godless people. ## 44. How does Vaiṣṇava dharma benefit the whole world? Even a one-millionth portion of the great favor attributed to the people of this world by Vaiṣṇava dharma cannot be attributed by thousands of yugas of political maneuvering. We do not instruct people to become narrow-minded and sectarian like politicians. ## 45. How many persons know about Vaiṣṇava dharma? How many people can study at the postgraduate level? How many people can become Newtons? Is it reasonable to stop discussing science because there are no Jagdish Chandra Basus? ## 46. Some people may personally benefit by following Vaiṣṇava dharma, but how is the whole world benefited? Only a neophyte will think like this. Those who are advanced in spiritual activities and who engage in glorifying the Lord would not agree. Those who worship the Deity think only of their own benefit, but those who chant the Lord’s glories benefit everyone in the world, including the beasts, birds, demigods, demons, and even the trees, creepers, and stones. ## 47. Is Vaiṣṇava dharma meant to be accepted by all? Vaiṣṇava dharma is the only propensity for all living entities. It is their eternal occupational duty. There is no need to become a Muslim, Christian, or Hindu, or an animal, bird, demigod, demon, or human being. All that is required is to become a Vaiṣṇava. In other words, simply take to the soul’s eternal occupational duty. This is exactly what Śrī Mahāprabhu did when He traveled to south India, where He loudly chanted the Lord’s glories while traveling. His chanting created many Vaiṣṇavas. By His mercy even the birds, animals, trees, and creepers became Vaiṣṇavas as He walked through the Jhārikhaṇḍa forest. Worshipers of Śiva and Durgā, the atheists, Hindus, Muslims, Buddhists, impersonalists, materialists, mental speculators, yogīs, ascetics, learned, foolish, sick, and healthy all became Vaiṣṇavas. Mahāprabhu’s only weapon was the chanting of Kṛṣṇa’s holy names. Those who became Vaiṣṇavas in turn made others Vaiṣṇavas by acting as spiritual masters under Mahāprabhu’s order. ## 48. Although demigod worship is unauthorized, doesn’t it amount to worship of Kṛṣṇa in the end? Worship with true understanding and by following the proper rules and regulations bears fruit. Unauthorized worship is useless. Lord Kṛṣṇa is the undisputed emperor of the entire universe and of Vaikuṇṭha, which is beyond the material universe. Therefore no one can challenge Him or place obstacles on the path of His enjoyment. In fact, everyone worships Him. Some worship with understanding and some worship without understanding. Those who worship without understanding accomplish nothing. Those who worship Gaṇeśa, Sūrya, or Durgā, worship Kṛṣṇa’s shadow potency, because no one has an existence of Kṛṣṇa. But since they are worshiping Kṛṣṇa’s shadow potency, they do not attain self-realization or knowledge of their relationship with the Lord. When they attain self-realization, they will understand that Kṛṣṇa alone is their supreme master and that all living entities are His eternal servants. They will know that service to Kṛṣṇa is their eternal occupational duty. Worship of Kṛṣṇa, the Lord of all, is the living entity’s eternal duty. All the demigods are Lord Viṣṇu’s servants. Therefore it is their duty to follow the Lord’s order. Those who instead of recognizing the demigods as Lord Viṣṇu’s servants imagine them to be as good as or superior to Lord Viṣṇu never become liberated. ## 49. Is Vaiṣṇava dharma the original religious principle? Vaiṣṇava dharma is the supreme religious principle, the ultimate occupational duty of all living entities. All other forms of religious systems are either supports of Vaiṣṇava dharma or perversions of it. When they are supportive, particular classes of transcendentalists will accept them, and when they are perverted, they are completely rejected. ## 50. How do the five-god worshipers worship Viṣṇu? Devotees are firmly fixed in devotional service. Wherever there is an absence of fixity, there is a lack of unalloyed attention. There is certainly such a thing as adulterous or pseudo devotional service. The five-god worshipers are like that. They are not devotees of the Supreme Lord but nondevotees. Lord Viṣṇu is the transcendental Cupid and the supreme controller of all the universes. He is eternally worshipable for all living entities, including human beings and demigods. The demigods act simply as coverings of Lord Viṣṇu’s. They serve as universal order-suppliers. When the five-god worshipers worship Viṣṇu in order to fulfill their material desires or attain liberation, they categorize Lord Viṣṇu as a demigod. Thus Lord Viṣṇu’s actual identity remains covered. ## 51. What is the most essential activity for living entities? Our most desirable object is remembrance of Hari. Our ability to remember Him will depend on our hearing and chanting. If we hear, we can chant. Remembrance will come automatically. “We are in trouble”: this mentality often produces taste for hearing hari-kathā. While hearing hari-kathā, chanting and remembering occur naturally. Whenever we glorify Hari, we remember Him. To develop a natural taste for the Lord is called total surrender. arādhanānāṁ sarveṣāṁ, viṣṇor ārādhanaṁ param tasmāt parataraṁ devī, tadīyānāṁ samarcanam My dear Devī, although the Vedas recommend worship of demigods, the worship of Lord Viṣṇu is topmost. However, above the worship of Lord Viṣṇu is the rendering of service to Vaiṣṇavas, who are related to Lord Viṣṇu. (Padma Purāṇa) When we realize the import of this verse, our lives will be successful. We associate with many sinful people every day, and this certainly increases our troubles. We must renounce bad association and thrive on good association. Engaging in public service by giving up Kṛṣṇa’s service will only yield temporary results. Mundane welfare work does not award actual peace or even help the mind’s restlessness to subside. If the Lord favors us, then only will we receive the association of the most sanctified devotees. We are constantly attracted to sense objects based on form, taste, smell, sound, and touch. We must learn how to remain in the Lord’s association. We have rendered public service for many births. Animals also work hard for their fellow animals. As human beings, don’t we deserve a promotion? Everything in this world is temporary and perishable. Have we ever discussed eternal objects? The special characteristic of the human form of life is that we can discuss life after death and eternal life. Hearing and chanting hari-kathā is possible only in the human form of life, and such hearing and chanting is the only way to remember the Lord. We have no duty other than glorifying Hari. While we are alive and after death we must sing Hari’s glories. Intelligent persons chant kṛṣṇa-kathā and fools engage in sense gratification, karma, or jñāna. The daughter of Vṛṣabhānu always chants Kṛṣṇa’s name even though She is nondifferent from Kṛṣṇa. The daughter of Vṛṣabhānu is the crest jewel among the intelligent. Similarly, Śrī Gaurasundara is the original personality among intelligent persons. ## 52. What is renunciation? Vairāgya means to not become attached to objects unrelated to the Lord but to simply cultivate Kṛṣṇa consciousness. If instead of this we become pseudo renunciants, we will find ourselves cheated, just as by cheating a blacksmith of iron we cheats ourselves. Therefore I advise you: whether you live at home or in the forest, simply cultivate Kṛṣṇa consciousness. If you discuss hari-kathā, your attachment for material objects will vanish automatically. ## 53. What is our topmost duty? We have many duties. Which is most important among them? Lord Śiva states: “Among the various duties of the living entities worship of Viṣṇu is the most essential. Still more essential is the worship of the spiritual master and the Vaiṣṇavas.” Lord Hari is the supreme Absolute Truth. He is the transcendental personality of Godhead. We are also eternally individual persons. Therefore we need to worship the eternally transcendental personality of Godhead. A relationship between persons is natural and opens the scope for service. If we need to reestablish our relationship with the Absolute Truth, then it is reasonable that all our activities be performed for the sake of that Absolute Truth. ## 54. What does it mean to limit the Supreme Lord? Measuring things means to enjoy them. In order to attain real liberation, we must give up the tendency to measure things with our senses. ## 55. Who is a tridaṇḍī sannyāsī? The topmost desire in human life is to become a tridandī. The word tridandī refers to a devotee who chants Hari’s holy name while offering respects to others and without expecting respect for himself. Such a devotee is also tolerant. Vaiṣṇavas are godly, but they never proudly consider themselves godly. Rather, they remain humbler than a blade of grass. It is the duty of those who possess brahminical qualification to accept tridaṇḍī sannyāsa. Such acceptance means to engage the body, mind, and speech in the Lord’s service Lord and to not use them in any other activity. ## 56. What is jñāna and what is vijñāna? Jñāna refers to information about the Supreme Lord, and vijñāna refers to knowledge about the Supreme Lord along with His associates and characteristics. ## 57. Is it prohibited to look at women? Looking at women is prohibited for sannyāsīs and brahmacārīs, but this does not mean that we should consider women bad. That would not be intelligent. Looking at a woman with the spirit of enjoyment is prohibited and condemnable. In this case, there is no fault in the object, only in how we are approaching it. The variety in this world is not bad or faulty, but to misuse it is condemned. What we see is good and acceptable only if it is engaged in the Lord’s service.