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Duty of the soldier

Expressions researched:
"What is the duty of the soldier" |"duty of a soldier" |"duties of a soldier"

Lectures

Bhagavad-gita As It Is Lectures

He engaged Arjuna in his real work. He was a fighter. He was a soldier. He was declining to do the duty of a soldier. But Kṛṣṇa induced him, No. You must become a soldier
Lecture on BG 9.22-23 -- New York, December 8, 1966: So if you take this advantage of Krsna, Krsna, Hare Krsna Hare Krsna Krsna Krsna Hare Hare, Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare, in whatever position you may be, you will never be unhappy. You will always be prosperous. So why don't you take this advantage? Be situated. Oh, you are medical practitioner? That's all right. You are engineer? That's all right. You are a clerk? That's all right. You are a real estate man? That's all right. Never mind whatever doing. Everyone has to do something to keep his body and soul together. That is the law of nature. Niyatam kuru karma tvam karma jyayo hy akarmanah. Arjuna was Krsna's friend, but He never said that "You stop your working." Rather, He engaged him in his real work. He was a fighter. He was a soldier. He was declining to do the duty of a soldier. But Krsna induced him, "No. You must become a soldier." So we may do whatever by God's grace or by nature's freaks we are situated. That doesn't matter. But if you take this formula, ananyas cintayanto mam, always think of Krsna, then the result will be that you will never be unhappy. Just try. Make an experiment.

Srimad-Bhagavatam Lectures

What is the duty of the soldier? Kill as many as possible the enemies. But the same soldier, if he comes back home and kills some of his men or countrymen and he is arrested and in the court, he is ordered to be hanged
Lecture on SB 6.1.1-4 -- Melbourne, May 20, 1975: And who requires a guru? Guru is not a fashion. It is necessary. How it is necessary? Now, anyone who is inquisitive to understand the spiritual science, for him it is necessary. Jijñāsuḥ sreya uttamam. Even if you want to become an ordinary electrician, still, you require a teacher, and what to speak of spiritual science. So that is necessary. Tad-vijñānārthaṁ sa gurum evābhigacchet. So Arjuna followed it, and he submitted himself to Kṛṣṇa to become His disciple, not to talk as friend. So when he accepted Him as the spiritual master, so... Teacher... The teacher has the right to chastise the student. That is accepted. So He immediately chastised him, Arjuna. Arjuna was chastised. What is that? Aśocyān anvaśocas tvaṁ prajñā-vādāṁś ca bhāṣase: [Bg. 2.11] "My dear Arjuna, you are talking just like a very learned man, but you are lamenting on the subject matter on which no learned man laments. That means you are a fool." It is indirectly said. "No learned man laments on this subject." What was the subject? He was considering that "If I kill the other side, my brother or my nephew or my teacher, they will die." So that is the general impression in the whole world. Then He teaches, "No. On account of death of the body, the soul does not die. The soul simply changes another body. That's all." This is the first instruction. Tathā dehāntara-prāptir dhīras tatra na muhyati [Bg. 2.13]. For that reason you cannot kill. It is not that Kṛṣṇa was encouraging killing. No. Duty. When there is fight, there is killing. You cannot avoid it. Just like the soldier. What is the duty of the soldier? Kill as many as possible the enemies. But the same soldier, if he comes back home and kills some of his men or countrymen and he is arrested and in the court, he is ordered to be hanged, and if he pleads that "I am a soldier. In the battlefield I have killed so many persons, and now I have killed one man. Why you are ordering me to be hanged?" What will be the answer of the court? The answer that "You cannot kill on principle. But you can kill on the superior order. You cannot kill by your whims." In the battlefield the commander-in-chief orders, "Yes, you kill and get gold medal." But if you think the, "I have killed so many persons in the battlefield. Here is my enemy. I kill him." No. That you cannot do. That you cannot do. This is the principle. When there is duty, that is another thing. But not whimsically. We cannot kill. Therefore Lord Jesus Christ ordered, "Thou shall not kill." This is the order. "Thou shall not kill." But we are violating the order. We are killing so many animals. So this is not good. On the plea that "Lord Christ sometimes took some fish somewhere; therefore we will have to maintain a big slaughterhouse," this is not very good logic.

Nectar of Devotion Lectures

The Battlefield of Kurukṣetra, it was not a place of sitting down very easily and silently. When Arjuna was fighting, he was fighting just like a soldier. He took all the duties of a soldier. But it was being fought for Kṛṣṇa
The Nectar of Devotion -- Vrndavana, November 4, 1972: Actually, devotional service depends on the main principles, sravanam kirtanam visnoh smaranam pada-sevanam, arcanam vandanam dasyam [SB 7.5.23]. But within the category of dasyam,... Just like Hanuman, Hanumanji: he was engaged in the platform of dasyam. Arjuna was engaged in the platform of sakhyam. So they were also working very hard. The Battlefield of Kuruksetra, it was not a place of sitting down very easily and silently. When he was fighting, he was fighting just like a soldier. He took all the duties of a soldier. But it was being fought for Krsna. That is the attraction. That is pure devotional service. Krsna also gave him certificate: bhakto 'si priyo 'si [Bg. 4.3]. "My dear Arjuna, you are My dear friend and devotee." So by any action, if it is dovetailed for the satisfaction of Krsna, that is devotional service, and one can attract Krsna, attention of Krsna. Attention of Krsna can be attracted by pure devotional service, without any personal motive. If it is... And that motive, that order, is received through the disciplic succession of the spiritual master, how Krsna will be pleased. In the present condition, we do not know how Krsna will be pleased, but we know from the sastras... We can know also from the direction of the spiritual master how Krsna will be pleased. Yasya prasadad bhagavat-prasadah **. So Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura says you have to follow the direction of the spiritual master. He's guiding as a leader. And if he's pleased, that means Krsna is pleased. Yasya prasadad bhagavat-prasadah **.
Page Title:Duty of the soldier
Compiler:Syamananda , Visnu Murti
Created:1 of Feb, 2008
Totals by Section:BG=0, SB=0, CC=0, OB=0, Lec=3, Con=0, Let=0
No. of Quotes:3