Another part of sādhana-bhakti is called rāgānugā. Rāgānugā refers to the point at which, by following the regulative principles, one becomes a little more attached to Kṛṣṇa and executes devotional service out of natural love. For example, a person engaged in devotional service may be ordered to rise early in the morning and offer ārati, which is a form of Deity worship. In the beginning, by the order of his spiritual master, one rises early in the morning and offers ārati, but then he develops real attachment. When he gets this attachment, he automatically tries to decorate the Deity and prepare different kinds of dresses and thinks of different plans to execute his devotional service nicely. Although it is within the category of practice, this offering of loving service is spontaneous. So the practice of devotional service, sādhana-bhakti, can be divided into two parts—namely, regulative and spontaneous.
Natural love
Bhagavad-gita As It Is
BG Chapters 1 - 6
Lust is only the perverted reflection of the love of God which is natural for every living entity. But if one is educated in Kṛṣṇa consciousness from the very beginning, that natural love of God cannot deteriorate into lust. When love of God deteriorates into lust, it is very difficult to return to the normal condition. Nonetheless, Kṛṣṇa consciousness is so powerful that even a late beginner can become a lover of God by following the regulative principles of devotional service. So, from any stage of life, or from the time of understanding its urgency, one can begin regulating the senses in Kṛṣṇa consciousness, devotional service of the Lord, and turn the lust into love of Godhead—the highest perfectional stage of human life.
BG Chapters 7 - 12
This love of God is now in a dormant state in everyone's heart. And, there, love of God is manifested in different ways, but it is contaminated by material association. Now the heart has to be purified of the material association, and that dormant, natural love for Kṛṣṇa has to be revived. That is the whole process.
To practice the regulative principles of bhakti-yoga one should, under the guidance of an expert spiritual master, follow certain principles: one should rise early in the morning, take bath, enter the temple and offer prayers and chant Hare Kṛṣṇa, then collect flowers to offer to the Deity, cook foodstuffs to offer to the Deity, take prasādam, and so on.
Srimad-Bhagavatam
SB Canto 1
Both the Supreme Personality of Godhead and the living beings are undoubtedly qualitatively one, but the Lord is the controller of the illusory energy, whereas the living entity is controlled by the illusory energy. Thus the Lord and the living beings are simultaneously one and different. Another point is distinct herein: that eternal relation between the Lord and the living being is transcendental, otherwise the Lord would not have taken the trouble to reclaim the conditioned souls from the clutches of māyā. In the same way, the living entity is also required to revive his natural love and affection for the Lord, and that is the highest perfection of the living entity. Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam treats the conditioned soul with an aim to that goal of life.
SB Canto 2
O great sages, the great soul Mahārāja Parīkṣit, constantly rapt in thought of Lord Kṛṣṇa, knowing well of his imminent death, renounced all sorts of fruitive activities, namely acts of religion, economic development and sense gratification, and thus fixed himself firmly in his natural love for Kṛṣṇa and asked all these questions, exactly as you are asking me.
As a great emperor of the world, Mahārāja Parīkṣit had to observe such regulations of the Vedic karma-kāṇḍīya section, but by his slight association with Śukadeva Gosvāmī he could perfectly understand that Lord Kṛṣṇa, the Absolute Personality of Godhead (Vāsudeva), for whom he had a natural love since his birth, is everything, and thus he fixed his mind firmly upon Him, renouncing all modes of Vedic karma-kāṇḍīya activities.
SB Canto 4
"Being cultured, educated, very active and religious means developing natural love for Kṛṣṇa." (CC Antya 3.44) Everyone has dormant love for Kṛṣṇa, and by culture and education that has to be awakened. That is the purpose of this Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement. Once Lord Caitanya asked Śrī Rāmānanda Rāya what the best part of education was, and Rāmānanda Rāya replied that the best part of education is advancement in Kṛṣṇa consciousness.
SB Canto 7
The knowledge of the Supreme received from such a sampradāya, or disciplic succession, can give one enlightenment. If one does not take to the path of disciplic succession, it is not possible for one to understand the Supreme Personality of Godhead. If one understands the Supreme Lord through devotional service with faith in the disciplic succession and then advances further, he awakens his natural love for God, and then his success in life is assured.
Sri Caitanya-caritamrta
CC Adi-lila
The Lord, by His inherent nature, reveals Himself before His devotees according to their inherent devotional service. The Vṛndāvana pastimes demonstrated that although generally people worship God with reverence, the Lord is more pleased when a devotee thinks of Him as his pet son, personal friend or most dear fiance and renders service unto Him with such natural affection. The Lord becomes a subordinate object of love in such transcendental relationships. Such pure love of Godhead is unadulterated by any tinge of superfluous nondevotional desires and is not mixed with any sort of fruitive action or empiric philosophical speculation. It is pure and natural love of Godhead, spontaneously aroused in the absolute stage. This devotional service is executed in a favorable atmosphere freed from material affection.
But in the course of exchanging transcendental love of the highest purity, sometimes the subordinate devotee tries to predominate over the predominator. One who lovingly engages with the Supreme Lord as if he were His mother or father sometimes supersedes the position of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Similarly, His fiancee or lover sometimes supersedes the position of the Lord. But such attempts are exhibitions of the highest love. Only out of pure love does the subordinate lover of the Supreme Personality of Godhead chide Him. The Lord, enjoying this chiding, takes it very nicely. The exhibition of natural love makes such activities very enjoyable. In worship of the Supreme Lord with veneration there is no manifestation of such natural love because the devotee considers the Lord his superior.
Regulative principles in devotional service are meant for those who have not invoked their natural love of Godhead. When natural love arises, all regulative methods are surpassed, and pure love is exhibited between the Lord and the devotee. Although on such a platform of love the devotee sometimes appears to predominate over the Lord or transgress regulative principles, such dealings are far more advanced than ordinary dealings through regulative principles with awe and veneration. A devotee who is actually free from all designations due to complete attachment in love for the Supreme exhibits spontaneous love for Godhead, which is always superior to the devotion of regulative principles.
The natural love of the gopīs is devoid of any trace of lust. It is faultless, bright and pure, like molten gold.
Their natural love for each other awakened, and although it was covered by childhood emotions, it became apparent that they were mutually attracted.
CC Madhya-lila
Their natural love for each other was awakened in them both, and they embraced and fell to the ground.
Śrīla Rāmānanda Rāya was an incarnation of the gopī Viśākhā. Since Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu was Lord Kṛṣṇa Himself, there was naturally an awakening of love between Viśākhā and Kṛṣṇa. Śrī Kṛṣṇa Caitanya Mahāprabhu is the combination of Śrīmatī Rādhārāṇī and Kṛṣṇa, and the gopī Viśākhā is a principal gopī assisting Śrīmatī Rādhārāṇī. Thus the natural love between Rāmānanda Rāya and Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu awakened and they embraced.
In Vrajabhūmi, there are no regulative principles set forth for Kṛṣṇa's service. Rather, everything is carried out in spontaneous, natural love for Kṛṣṇa. There is no question of following the principles of the Vedic system. Such principles are followed within this material world, and as long as one is on the material platform, he has to execute them. However, spontaneous love of Kṛṣṇa is transcendental. It may seem that the regulative principles are being violated, but the devotee is on the transcendental platform. Such service is called guṇātīta, or nirguṇa, for it is not contaminated by the three modes of material nature.
"The transcendental ornaments of Śrīmatī Rādhārāṇī’s body include the eight sāttvikas, or transcendental symptoms, the thirty-three vyabhicārī-bhāvas, beginning with harṣa, or jubilation in natural love, and the twenty bhāvas, or ecstatic emotional ornaments."
CC Antya-lila
Because of her natural love for Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu, Damayantī considered the Lord an ordinary human being. Therefore she thought that He would become sick by overeating and there would be mucus within His abdomen.
While Śrīmatī Rādhārāṇī was thinking in this way, the characteristics of natural love became manifest because of Her pure heart.
Other Books by Srila Prabhupada
Nectar of Devotion
Lectures
Bhagavad-gita As It Is Lectures
Devotee: The question: how does our love for Kṛṣṇa somehow or other get transformed into lust?
Jayatīrtha: In contact with the material energy.
Prabhupāda: That is not very difficult. One has got his wife or husband, but he or she transfers the love towards somebody else, how does he look?
Jayatīrtha: Personal choice.
Prabhupāda: Yes. It is happening every moment. Natural love is between the husband and wife, but the wife goes somewhere and the husband goes somewhere else. The basic principle is enjoyment. He or she thinks that "I shall be able to enjoy more in this way." So this misguided spirit puts him into trouble. Kṛṣṇa-bahirmukha hañā bhoga vāñchā kare. He does not know the aim of life and therefore his energy is transferred to something else misleading.
Srimad-Bhagavatam Lectures
So that has been explained by Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu, what is that aim: premā pum-artho mahān. That is wanted. That is wanted. You have to develop your natural love for God, Kṛṣṇa. Then it is perfect. That, therefore, anarthopaśamam. As soon as we come to the stage how to love Kṛṣṇa, then our all anarthas, misgivings, are finished.
So the service mood is going on everywhere. But the highest perfection of service is when we learn to serve the Supreme Absolute Lord. That is called bhakti. And that bhakti execution of service to the Lord is ahaitukī. Just like we have got some little examples. This mother is serving the child not with any expectation. She loves to serve the child. She wants to see the child is in comfort, the child does not feel any discomfiture. That is her pleasure. There is no reason why she is loving. That is natural. Similarly, when we invoke our natural love for God, that is the highest perfection of religious principle.
If you want to awaken your dormant love for Kṛṣṇa... There is, because we are part and parcel. Just like father and son. There is natural love. But somehow or other, son is out of home and forgotten. Father, of course, thinks, "My such-and-such son has gone out. If he comes back..." So Kṛṣṇa thinks like that. Because we are sons of Kṛṣṇa, Kṛṣṇa is more anxious to get us back to home, back to Godhead. Therefore He comes and says, "You rascal, give up all these engagements."
And if you do not understand Kṛṣṇa, if you do not increase your natural love for Kṛṣṇa, then na mucyate deha-yogena tāvat. There is no chance. They have no chance. You may take birth next life in a very rich family, in a brāhmaṇa family, yogo-bhraṣṭaḥ, but that is also not release. Again you may fall down.
So we should not imitate prema-bhakti without going through vidhi-bhakti. This is vidhi-bhakti. Just like we rise early in the morning, perform maṅgala-ārati, all regulative principles, then wash the temple, dishes, and then dress the Deities, then again ārati, then class. In this way, according to... Because we have no natural..., we have not awakened yet our natural love for Kṛṣṇa, so it requires practice, practicing this vidhi-bhakti, compulsory. Vidhi-bhakti means the injunction of the śāstras and the order of spiritual master, one has to follow. Not whimsically we can do anything. Vidhi-bhakti is required.
Kṛṣṇa manifested in so many ways big, big activities in Vṛndāvana, killing daily almost a demon. But still, the Vṛndāvana-vāsī did not accept Him as the Supreme Lord. They thought that some demigod has appeared. They did not know that He is the Supreme Lord. That is another māyā, yoga-māyā. If the Vṛndāvana-vāsī saw Kṛṣṇa that He is the Supreme Lord, then they could not love Him so nicely, because too much opulent conception diminishes natural love. Therefore in the Vṛndāvana there is no such exhibition of Kṛṣṇa's form. But in the material world, just to convince Brahmā that the Supreme Personality of Godhead, He appeared, sahasra vadanāṅghri-śiraḥ-karoru-nāsādya-karṇa-nayanābharaṇaya-a yudhāḍhyam. Not only many faces, many ears, many legs, but each of them very nicely decorated. You have seen the picture of Lord Viṣṇu, very decorated, very much decorated. But you'll see Kṛṣṇa, He is decorated with the Vṛndāvana flowers. That is Kṛṣṇa's real form. He does not appear with many hands, many ornaments, many... No. Simple boy.
General Lectures
Everyone is God's, but he has forgotten. In the animal species of life, they cannot revive, they haven't got that chance, but here is the chance, human form of life. If you miss this chance, then you again go to the cycle of so many species of life. Then our human form is spoiled. So we should try for it. That is the perfection of life. Premā pumartho mahān. Lord Caitanya preaches the highest perfection of life, to revive our natural love for God. And any religion which preaches love of God, that is perfect religion. It doesn't matter whether it is Christianity or Buddhism or Hinduism or anything. That is Bhāgavata religion.
Philosophy Discussions
Prabhupāda: But one thing, according to Vedic conception life, that women and children are on the same level, so they should be given protection by men. In childhood the protection is from the father, in youthhood the protection is from the husband, and in old age the protection is from the grown-up sons. So they should never be given independence. They should be given protection, and their natural love for father or for husband or for children, then that propensity will grow very smoothly, and that will establish the relationship with woman and man very happy, and both of them will be able to execute their real function, spiritual life, by cooperation.
Conversations and Morning Walks
1969 Conversations and Morning Walks
Prabhupāda: So Kṛṣṇa was their enjoyment. That's all. The mother is speaking of Kṛṣṇa, the boy is speaking of Kṛṣṇa. So therefore they did not know anything but Kṛṣṇa. Kṛṣṇa. Whenever there is some trouble, "Oh Kṛṣṇa." When there is fire, "Oh, Kṛṣṇa." That is the beauty of Vṛndāvana. Their mind is absorbed in Kṛṣṇa. Not through philosophy. Not through understanding, but natural love. "Kṛṣṇa is our village boy, our relative, our friend, our lover, our master." Some way or other, Kṛṣṇa. That is the beauty.
1975 Conversations and Morning Walks
Prabhupāda: God, God and His love towards us... Because we are sons of God, therefore Father has natural love for sons, therefore God comes. God sends His son or representative to canvass that "You come to God, you'll be happy there."
1976 Conversations and Morning Walks
Prabhupāda: That is Vṛndāvana life. The cows, the calves, the trees, the flowers, the water, the elderly men, Nanda Mahārāja and Yaśodāmayī, everyone is attached, central point is Kṛṣṇa. Everyone is loving Kṛṣṇa. And there is no such knowledge that Kṛṣṇa is the Supreme Personality.... Sometimes they see Kṛṣṇa's wonderful activities and they talk on: "Kṛṣṇa may be some demigod. He has come here." But they could never recognize that Kṛṣṇa is the Supreme Personality of Godhead. When Kṛṣṇa passed some dangerous position, so many demons were coming, mother Yaṣodā was chanting some mantras to protect Kṛṣṇa that "He may not be put into some calamity." They never understood that Kṛṣṇa is the Supreme Personality. But their natural love for Kṛṣṇa so intense. Therefore Vṛndāvana life is so exalted.
1977 Conversations and Morning Walks
Lokanātha: At Janmasthāna we had program last year, for four days having programs. Same as we have here. Kīrtanas, discourses, dramas, cinemas, prasādam distribution, book distribution. Many, many people came. Whole ground was...
Prabhupāda: This year or last year?
Gopāla Kṛṣṇa: This year. Over ten thousand people came.
Prabhupāda: They are, after all, Mathurā men, after Kṛṣṇa. They have got natural love for Kṛṣṇa.
| Page Title: | Natural love |
| Compiler: | Siddha Rupa, Visnu Murti, Labangalatika |
| Created: | 22 of Jan, 2008 |
| Totals by Section: | BG=2, SB=5, CC=11, OB=1, Lec=9, Con=4, Let=0 |
| No. of Quotes: | 32 |