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Spirit soul is... (Letters)

Correspondence

1967 Correspondence

Letter to Mr. Taber -- New York 9 June, 1967:

A spirit soul is not impersonal, and because he is a person he has the latent desire for sense gratification; but in the material condition he does not know how to enjoy; therefore one should purify the senses being free of all material designation. In conditioned stage we are designated souls like "American," "Indian," "dog," "demigod," etc., but in pure consciousness or Krishna Consciousness, we are part and parcel of the Supreme Brahman. By Brahman realization, as you may have read in Bhagavad-gita: brahma-bhutah prasannatma na socati na kanksati (BG 18.54). So in our pure stage when we understand that we are eternal servants of Krishna there is no more distress. Therefore the devotee prays: "My Lord, when shall I be freed from all material desires and be completely engaged in your transcendental loving service. At the present moment I am forlorn and nobody is my master. When shall I have You as my Supreme Master; then shall I joyfully wander over the whole universe knowing that You are my master." Please therefore try to be in Krishna Consciousness and there will be no distress. Gradually as you realize this, you will experience it also; but the process is the same, both at the beginning and at the end.

Letter to Brahmananda -- Vrindaban 4 August, 1967:

So far my present health is concerned I think I am improving; at least I am taking my lunch better than in N.Y. So as soon as I am a little fit to return to the field of battle I shall again be in your midst.

Regarding your question about Lord Caitanya's thinking himself lower than the grass, it should be understood spiritually. The dimension of the spirit soul is 1/10,000 part of the hair tip; so the spirit soul is certainly smaller than the grass. Caitanya Mahaprabhu was teaching us as a teacher, so he represented himself as an ordinary living entity; but as the Supreme Brahman he is greater than anything.

Letter to Jananivasa -- Vrindaban 27 August, 1967:

I am very glad to receive your letter of 8/20, and glad to hear that everything is going so nicely at our newest center. It all sounds very beautiful, and I am very anxious to come to you personally. Perhaps in October I shall go directly from here to San Francisco, and then to Santa Fe, before going to N.Y. About your question: The Spirit Soul is certainly eternal and changeless; and the fall is superficial, just like the relation between father and son cannot be broken ever. Now we are simply in a phase of forgetfulness, and this forgetfulness is called Maya. There is a nice example in the waning of the moon. To us the moon appears to be changing, but in fact the moon is always the same. So as eternal servitors of Krishna—our constitutional position—we fall down when we try to become the enjoyer, imitating Krishna.

1968 Correspondence

Letter to Janardana -- Los Angeles 21 January, 1968:

Therefore the conception of Brahmajyoti is advanced realization than conception of nirvana. Nobody can be satisfied in void or Impersonalist philosophy; they are against the nature of the spirit soul. We understand from Vedanta philosophy that the spirit soul is by nature joyful. There is no joy in voidness or Impersonalism and because such imperfect philosophers do not know of the association of Krishna which is full of bliss and knowledge, they will fall down repeatedly into voidness and Impersonalism with the result that they cannot stay there and they fall down to the material atmosphere. In Bhagavad-gita it is said by the Lord that these people, void and Impersonalist philosophers, are in great trouble.

Letter to Janardana -- Los Angeles 21 January, 1968:

So if the physicist's conclusion about the measurement of the soul, that is 100 times finer than what they are already discovered. But however fine and smallest it may be, there is measurement of spirit soul, maybe beyond the experimental knowledge of human scientists. The confusion must continue because this measurement of spirit soul is beyond the range of experimental mind, and understanding. Therefore, confusion. Therefore you have to accept the experience of spirit soul from Vedic literature. If one tries to understand otherwise they will remain in confusion. Subject which is beyond their understanding by experimental knowledge, and if they try to understand it by the same experimental knowledge, that means confusion. This has to be understood by descending process of disciplic succession, or by deductive process, meaning for instance, my mother says this man is my father, I accept, there is no experience.

Letter to Mukunda, Janaki -- Los Angeles 28 February, 1968:

The foreign one I have yet to test at some shop, which I will do this week. I have written in Uddhava's letter that I shall be arriving on March 8th, and we can discuss the meeting at the Immigration Bureau at that time.

I thank you very much for that nice sketch done by Janaki, and I shall have Jadurani begin a painting from that pose. So far the spirit soul is concerned, if conditions are for some reason not favorable in some place, he is forced to leave that womb and take shelter in another. And if there is chanting of Hare Krishna, even the soul is there for a short time, oh, he will hear and become advanced. This sound vibration is not material, it is spiritual, and powerful beyond our conception. So it cannot be hindered in any way by something material; it surpasses all these material barriers.

1969 Correspondence

Letter to Vilasavigraha -- Los Angeles 22 January, 1969:

One must know his relationship to the Absolute Truth to fully know his position. The mayavadi school simply discerns spirit from matter, but that is not Ultimate Knowledge. One should know the different manifestations of the spirit also. The highest manifestation of the spirit soul is the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Lord Krishna.

In this age the mind is so much agitated that it cannot be fixed up on the Supreme Objective. Real meditation means to fix up the mind on Krishna or on Krishna's Expansion, Lord Visnu. The modern so-called meditater has no information of Krishna or Visnu. They try to meditate on something void or impersonal which is simply troublesome.

Letter to Govinda -- Los Angeles 10 February, 1969:

Therefore, simply to know that this body is made of chemicals is not sufficient knowledge. When one can reproduce a similar body with the known chemicals, then he is to be considered as the expert scientist. The spirit soul is impossible to find out by materialistic scientific means, but if one will hear from the right authority, he may understand. The gentleman is disappointed that probably no one will ever know about spirit, but this is not true. We know what is spirit, how does it work, how does it transmigrate from one body to another or from one planet to another. We know these very scientifically, and we are firmly convinced about it. We can refute any dogmatic arguments against this conviction, and how do we do that?

Letter to Mukunda -- Los Angeles 28 July, 1969:

Caitanya Mahaprabhu did not make any distinction between the so-called brahmacari, householder, or sannyasi. He specifically stressed that these designations are superficial, pertaining to bodies. Krishna Consciousness is the function of the soul, jivatma. In the Vedas it is said that the spirit soul is without any touch of material contamination, but when he forgets Krishna he thinks himself as a material product. That is called Maya. But in any position, if one can understand the science of Krishna Consciousness, he can deliver many, many fallen souls. So it is my request to you all that you establish an exemplary character and show how householders can be the first class transcendentalists. When I feel that my householder disciples are preaching so nicely I actually feel very much proud.

Letter to Lilavati -- Los Angeles 31 July, 1969:

If such a pious child is trained properly as you and Murari are doing, then surely she will play a very worthy role in our society and in helping to improve the world condition by the propagation of Krishna Consciousness. It is not unusual that a little child is often very jolly, but in the material situation this jolliness passes very quickly. But in Krishna Consciousness, because the spirit soul is by nature very jolly and blissful, this jolliness only increases more and more as the bliss of serving Krishna increases more and more. So now your daughter has a very good opportunity to make final solution to her births in the material world, so keep her very nicely. Krishna will be kind upon you for this.

Letter to Jayapataka -- London 26 September, 1969:

That is the verdict of all scriptures. Krishna is worshipable God and the Spiritual Master is worshipper God. The exact words are sebya (worshipable) and sebak (worshipper).

Your explanation of Annamoya is all right. Pranamoya means there are different types of airs, and the spirit soul is floating on the air, just like all the planets are floating in the air. This Pranamoya air is transferred by breathing exercises, but we have nothing to do with such exercises. Our prana, or life, is surrendered to Krishna. That is the first class yoga system approved by Lord Krishna in the Bhagavad-gita. This Pranamoya, Annamoya, etc. are different stages for persons who are too much engrossed in the bodily concept of life. Our philosophy begins from the point where we immediately accept that I am not this body; I am pure spirit soul, servant of God, Krishna.

1970 Correspondence

Letter to Hamsaduta -- Los Angeles 23 January, 1970:

The next question: the body of a pure devotee is all spiritual and He is not different from His body. That is also a fact. The bodies of all living entities, even though they are not pure devotees, are not actually the bodies of the spirit soul. It is always separate from the spiritual body. The Vedic mantra confirm it by the sound vibration that this spirit soul is always nonattached with the material body. Therefore, we do not see the actual spiritual body of a pure devotee; but what we see, that is matter.

Letter to Anil Grover -- Los Angeles 5 February, 1970:

Now coming to the point of questions—your first question is: "What am I? Is the body itself matter, or spiritual soul, or a combination of both?" Answer: You are eternal servant of Krishna. The body is matter. The spirit soul is different from the body—it is not exactly combination, but it is encagement. Just like if you put oil in the water, the oil does not mix up with the water. Similarly, soul does not mix with the material body; but due to our material consciousness, we are thinking that the movement of this body is movement of the soul. Therefore, when the body is destroyed, we think the soul is destroyed. That is stated in the Bhagavad-gita, that the soul does not die with the destruction of the body. With the destruction of one body, the soul transmigrates to another body, thus the bondage of material existence.

Letter to Tamala Krsna -- Los Angeles 21 June, 1970:

Another example is given that the reflection of the moon on water appears to be moving, but actually the moon is not moving, it is fixed up. So any living entity is like that. His reflection on the material body appears to be changing, but the spirit soul is fixed up, therefore this movement is called illusion.

Liberation means liberation from this changing condition.

So far I am concerned, I cannot say what I was in my previous life, but one great astrologer calculated that I was previously a physician and my life was sinless. Besides that, to corroborate the statement of Bhagavad-gita "sucinam srimatam gehe yogabhrasta samyayate" (BG 6.41) which means an unfinished yogi takes birth in rich family or born of a suci or pious father.

Letter to Jagadisa -- Los Angeles 9 July, 1970:

Regarding your several questions: Where are the spirit souls coming from that are taking microbe bodies? It is not a matter of any particular body. These spirit souls and all spirit souls are coming from Vaikuntha, but in these material worlds they are taking various grades of bodies according to their material activities. There is no "new" soul. "New" and "old" are due to this material body, but the soul is never born and never dies, so if there is no birth how there can be new soul?

1971 Correspondence

Letter to Gopala Krsna -- Bombay 4 April, 1971:

So far as your plan for producing one French BTG for both Paris and Montreal, that is a very good idea. You might be interested to know that Dr. Bigelow has already acknowledged my letter and he has already admitted that our knowledge of the spirit soul is far greater than in the Western world. That he has admitted. So far as going to U.S.A., I am glad that you are going there for better occupation. And if your mentality for devotional service is good and you continue in that spirit, then surely you are a pure devotee.

1975 Correspondence

Letter to Mrs. Mohini H. Singh -- Brooklyn 6 March, 1975:

In the Bhagavad-gita, the spiritual hint is there in the beginning of the lesson to Arjuna. Krishna wanted to pick up the spiritual soul from within the body: dehino 'smin yatha dehe kaumaram yauvanam jara (BG 2.13). So, the spirit soul is within the body. Unless we catch up the spirit soul within the body, there is no question of spiritual life or culture. Still, we are trying to push this movement in the western countries and many of them are taking it very seriously. I hope Sriman Kirtanananda Maharaja will be able to convince you further in the meeting and I hope you will give him some time to speak on the subject matter on my behalf. Further in order to convince people more about this movement philosophically and scientifically, we have published up to date about 50 books.

Letter to Mr. K. C. Nigam -- Perth, Australia 11 May, 1975:

I am very glad that you are holding some spiritual conference, but my only request is to follow the standard method of spiritual consciousness. One must know first of all, what is the spiritual basis. Anyone who is accepting this body as the self, he is no better than the cats and dogs. One must know what the spirit soul is within this body. He is eternal part and parcel of God, therefore, his only business is to revive his eternal relation with God and work on that fundamental basis so that he can achieve the ultimate goal of life. The whole thing is instructed in the Bhagavad-gita and if we accept the teachings of Bhagavad-gita, as it is without unnecessary commentary on it, then our spiritual movement will be successful. But, if we manufacture something out of our own concoction, it will never be successful. This is confirmed in the Bhagavad-gita (16/23):

Letter to Professor Stillson Judah -- Honolulu 11 June, 1975:

Whereas a nondevotee, even he is decorated with material qualities, he is forced to act on the material plane and he stays in temporary field of activities. The idea is that spirit-soul is eternal and the material body is temporary, or for the sake of sense gratification. The mental plane is also material. People being forced to stay on the material platform, they are planning for temporary happiness, and being frustrated, they are jumping from one platform to another which are all temporary. But, fortunately, if one becomes situated on the platform of Krishna Consciousness, then his jumping over material platforms becomes ceased. It is confirmed in the Bhagavad-gita as follows: yam labdhva caparam labham manyate nadhikam tatah—Upon gaining this, he thinks that there is no greater gain.

Letter to Svarupa Damodara -- Los Angeles 23 June, 1975:

They think that the picture is moving. Similarly every second every moment we are changing the body.

Those who are not sober cannot understand how the spirit soul is changing from one body to another. Krsna therefore says that this change of body can be appreciated only by the dhiras. dhiras tatra na muhyati (BG 2.13). While those who are not dhiras cannot understand how the soul is changing from one body to another. There are two kind of men, dhira and adhira. The modern education is producing only the adhira class who are neither sober or educated.

1976 Correspondence

Letter to Aditya -- Mayapur 4 February, 1976:

I beg to acknowledge receipt of your letter dated 28th January, 1976.

The spirit soul is equal in either a man or woman. One who is actually engaged in the service of Krishna, there is no such distinction as man or woman. In the Bhagavad-gita, 6th Chapter, 1st Verse it is stated anasritah karma-phalam karijam karma karoti yah/ sa sannyasi ca yogi ca na niragnir na cakriyah (BG 6.1). Anyone acting for Krishna, he is a sannyasi or sannyasini. It is also stated: striyo vaisyas tatha sudras te'pi yanti param gatim. So spiritually everyone is equal. But materially a woman cannot be given Sannyasa. But you should not be bothered because you are serving on the spiritual platform.

Page Title:Spirit soul is... (Letters)
Compiler:Visnu Murti, RupaManjari
Created:20 of Dec, 2011
Totals by Section:BG=0, SB=0, CC=0, OB=0, Lec=0, Con=0, Let=21
No. of Quotes:21