The endeavors human beings have made to establish a close and harmonious relationship with one another have culminated in the United Nations. This organization is based on the concept of the family unit. The gradual expansion of the family unit to a large community, to a village, to a state, to a country, and finally to a continent has given the clue for the formation of the United Nations. The thing to be noted, however, is its center. What is the central attraction? If the process of expansion were reversed, we would end up with the human body as the basic unit. The senses are of prime importance in the body; more important than the senses is the mind, then intelligence, and finally the false ego. And more important than the false ego is the real self, a pure spiritual being that is part and parcel of the Supreme Lord, Viṣṇu. Therefore the conclusion is that the fountainhead of everything is Lord Viṣṇu.
Central point of attraction
Expressions researched:
"attraction, central point"
|"central attraction"
|"central point of attraction"
Srimad-Bhagavatam
SB Canto 1
It is clear herein that the feminine attractive features which can conquer Cupid or even the supermost tolerant Lord Śiva could not conquer the senses of the Lord. Cupid's business is to invoke mundane lust. The whole universe is moving being agitated by Cupid's arrow. The activities of the world are being carried on by the central attraction of male and female. A male is searching after a mate to his liking, and the female is looking after a suitable male. That is the way of material stimulus. And as soon as a male is combined with a female, the material bondage of the living being is at once tightly interlocked by sex relation, and as a result of this, both the male's and female's attraction for sweet home, motherland, bodily offspring, society and friendship and accumulation of wealth becomes the illusory field of activities, and thus a false but indefatigable attraction for the temporary material existence, which is full of miseries, is manifest. Those who are, therefore, on the path of salvation for going back home back to Godhead, are especially advised by all scriptural instruction to become free from such paraphernalia of material attraction. And that is possible only by the association of the devotees of the Lord, who are called the mahātmās.
SB Canto 2
The camel is a kind of animal that takes pleasure in eating thorns. A person who wants to enjoy family life or the worldly life of so-called enjoyment is compared to the camel. Materialistic life is full of thorns, and so one should live only by the prescribed method of Vedic regulations just to make the best use of a bad bargain. Life in the material world is maintained by sucking one's own blood. The central point of attraction for material enjoyment is sex life. To enjoy sex life is to suck one's own blood, and there is not much more to be explained in this connection. The camel also sucks its own blood while chewing thorny twigs. The thorns the camel eats cut the tongue of the camel, and so blood begins to flow within the camel's mouth. The thorns, mixed with fresh blood, create a taste for the foolish camel, and so he enjoys the thorn-eating business with false pleasure. Similarly, the great business magnates, industrialists who work very hard to earn money by different ways and questionable means, eat the thorny results of their actions mixed with their own blood. Therefore the Bhāgavatam has situated these diseased fellows along with the camels.
Sri Caitanya-caritamrta
CC Madhya-lila
“In the Vedic literatures, Kṛṣṇa is the central point of attraction, and His service is our activity. To attain the platform of love of Kṛṣṇa is life's ultimate goal. Therefore Kṛṣṇa, Kṛṣṇa's service and love of Kṛṣṇa are the three great riches of life.
“In all revealed scriptures, beginning with the Vedas, the central point of attraction is Kṛṣṇa. When complete knowledge of Him is realized, the bondage of māyā, the illusory energy, is automatically broken.
Other Books by Srila Prabhupada
Renunciation Through Wisdom
Message of Godhead
Kṛṣṇa is the Supreme Personality of Godhead, and that all other incarnations are either His plenary portions or else portions of plenary portions. The Supreme Personality of Godhead is Śrī Kṛṣṇa; that is the verdict of the Bhāgavata school, or the transcendentalists. Also, the Brahma-saṁhitā—which is described to be compiled by Brahmā, the creator of this universe—confirms, "Śrī Kṛṣṇa is the Supreme Personality of Godhead, with an eternal, all-blissful, transcendental form. He is the original person, known as Govinda. He is without any cause, and He is the cause of all other causes." Therefore, if and only if we can establish our relationships with one another upon the central attraction of Śrī Kṛṣṇa, the prime cause of all causes, will we really turn the concepts of fraternity and equality into workable means of lasting peace.
Light of the Bhagavata
In the clear sky of autumn, the beautiful moon among the beautiful stars becomes the cynosure of all eyes, just as Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa is the central attraction in the Vṛṣṇi dynasty or in the family of Yadu.
Lectures
Srimad-Bhagavatam Lectures
So this is karma-bandhana. This karma-bandhana begins from our attachment to this material world. How our material attachment increases? That is also explained in the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam. Puṁsaḥ striyā mithunī-bhāvam etam (SB 5.5.8). Mithunī-bhāvam. There is sex impulse between man and woman. There are two classes of living entities, man and woman, or male or female. So the male is attracted by the female, and the female is attracted by the male. Puṁsaḥ striyā mithunī-bhāvam. But what is that attraction, central point? Sex life. So this mentality, this propensity, is there not only in human body, but in the animal body also, that same propensity, sex life. So... But everyone is searching after, "Where is a male? Where is a female?" And when they are united, the karma-granthi becomes tighter. That's all.
Nectar of Devotion Lectures
Our business is not to be attracted by the glimmer of this material world, but to be attracted by Kṛṣṇa. That is Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement. Unless you become attracted by the beauty of Kṛṣṇa, we must have to be satisfied by beauty of this false beauty of this material world. Therefore Śrī Yamunācārya said that yadāvadhi mama cetaḥ kṛṣṇa-padāravindayor nava-nava-dhāma rantum āsīt: "So long I have been attracted by the beauty of Kṛṣṇa and I have begun to serve at His lotus feet, and I am getting newer, newer energy, since then, as soon as I think of sex intercourse, I want to spite on it." That is vitṛṣṇā, no more attraction... The central point of attraction of this material world is sex life, and one, when one gets detached from sex life... Tadāvadhi mama cetaḥ...,
- yadāvadhi mama cetaḥ kṛṣṇa-padāravindayor
- nava-nava-(rasa-)dhām(anudyata) rantum āsīt
- tadāvadhi bata nārī-saṅgame smaryamāne
- bhavati mukha-vikāraḥ suṣṭu niṣṭhīvanaṁ ca
"As soon as I think of sex intercourse, immediately my mouth becomes turned aside and I want to spite on it." So therefore Kṛṣṇa is Madana-mohana. Madana is attracting everyone, sex life, and Kṛṣṇa, when one is attracted by Kṛṣṇa, then madana also becomes defeated. So as soon as madana becomes defeated, we conquer over this material world. Otherwise it is very difficult.
Sri Caitanya-caritamrta Lectures
Actually this is the platform where we can unite. And by practical example you have shown. Everyone was engaged in dancing and chanting, never mind whether Indian, American, black, white, children, or old like me. This is wanted. This is wanted. And when we thoroughly understand what is the basic principle of Kṛṣṇa consciousness and we understand, "Vāsudeva, Kṛṣṇa, is the central point of attraction," then our life is successful.
Festival Lectures
Our inclination is to enjoy the senses. This is general. Everyone within this material world, even the animals, birds, beasts, human being or more elevated than human beings, the demigods, kinnaras, or the, many other higher types of living entities... There are different grades of living entities-8,400,000 different bodies. So what is their pravṛtti, inclination? The inclination is attraction of man and woman. This is the central point of attraction. Puṁsāṁ striyaḥ maithuni-bhāvam etad: the whole material world is existing on this point—sex, man and woman.
Conversations and Morning Walks
1976 Conversations and Morning Walks
Prabhupāda: This is the trap of māyā, to keep them captivated by sex attraction. All these living entities who are in this material world, beginning from the higher planetary system down to the ants and germs and flies. This is the primary enjoyment, sex. The central attraction is sex. Yan maithunādi-gṛhamedhi-sukhaṁ hi tuccham (SB 7.9.45). The human being, the same sex desire, they decorate it in a different way. But the central point is the same. "So all right, why? It is enjoyment, why you are forbidding?" Saintly persons say, yan maithunādi-gṛhamedhi-sukhaṁ hi tucchaṁ kaṇḍūyanena karayor iva duḥkha-duḥkham. It is a pleasure of itching sensation. Itching sensation, when you itch, it is very pleasing. But bahu-duḥkha-bhājaḥ (SB 7.9.45). Aftereffect is very bad, suffering. Itching, if you itch more, it aggravates, sometimes causes so many other by-products and so on, so on. That is fact. But everyone knows it, that "I may enjoy sex pleasure now; the aftereffect will be very bad." Bahu-duḥkha-bhājaḥ. But why people do it again and again? Tṛpyanti neha kṛpaṇā bahu-duḥkha-bhājaḥ. Those who are kṛpaṇa-kṛpaṇa means not brāhmaṇa—those who are not trained up as a brāhmaṇa, they cannot tolerate this itching sensation. They become victimized and the aftereffect is very, very bad. So either illicit or not illicit... They know it. The modern civilization, they have adopted the means of killing. First of all, they try to stop pregnancy by contraceptive method, and still if it is not stopped, then kill. And if he's still born, then again they put up in a box and go away. You know this?
| Page Title: | Central point of attraction |
| Compiler: | Labangalatika, Tugomera |
| Created: | 01 of Oct, 2009 |
| Totals by Section: | BG=0, SB=2, CC=2, OB=3, Lec=4, Con=1, Let=0 |
| No. of Quotes: | 12 |