Must tolerate

Expressions researched:
"must tolerate"

SB Canto 3

The natural instinct is that the husband wants to post himself as superior to the wife, and this must be observed. Even if there is some wrong on the part of the husband, the wife must tolerate it, and thus there will be no misunderstanding between husband and wife.

SB 3.23.2, Translation and Purport:

O Vidura, Devahūti served her husband with intimacy and great respect, with control of the senses, with love and with sweet words.

Here two words are very significant. Devahūti served her husband in two ways, viśrambheṇa and gauraveṇa. These are two important processes in serving the husband or the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Viśrambheṇa means "with intimacy," and gauraveṇa means "with great reverence." The husband is a very intimate friend; therefore, the wife must render service just like an intimate friend, and at the same time she must understand that the husband is superior in position, and thus she must offer him all respect. A man's psychology and woman's psychology are different. As constituted by bodily frame, a man always wants to be superior to his wife, and a woman, as bodily constituted, is naturally inferior to her husband. Thus the natural instinct is that the husband wants to post himself as superior to the wife, and this must be observed. Even if there is some wrong on the part of the husband, the wife must tolerate it, and thus there will be no misunderstanding between husband and wife. Viśrambheṇa means "with intimacy," but it must not be familiarity that breeds contempt. According to the Vedic civilization, a wife cannot call her husband by name. In the present civilization the wife calls her husband by name, but in Hindu civilization she does not. Thus the inferiority and superiority complexes are recognized. Damena ca: a wife has to learn to control herself even if there is a misunderstanding. Sauhṛdena vācā madhurayā means always desiring good for the husband and speaking to him with sweet words. A person becomes agitated by so many material contacts in the outside world; therefore, in his home life he must be treated by his wife with sweet words.

SB Canto 10.1 to 10.13

We should know that material suffering due to the material body will come and go. Therefore we must tolerate the suffering and proceed with discharging our duty as ordained by our spiritual master.

SB 10.8.41, Purport:

The devotee accepts that it is due to his own past misdeeds that the Supreme Personality of Godhead has caused him some small amount of suffering. Thus he offers obeisances to the Lord again and again. Such a devotee is called mukti-pade sa dāya-bhāk; that is, he is guaranteed his liberation from this material world. As stated in Bhagavad-gītā (2.14):

mātrā-sparśās tu kaunteya

śītoṣṇa-sukha-duḥkha-dāḥ

āgamāpāyino nityās

tāṁs titikṣasva bhārata

We should know that material suffering due to the material body will come and go. Therefore we must tolerate the suffering and proceed with discharging our duty as ordained by our spiritual master.

Bhagavad-gita As It Is Lectures

Titikṣā means toleration. "Oh, it is very cold. No, I cannot take bath." No. You must tolerate. You must tolerate.

Lecture on BG 2.32 -- London, September 2, 1973:

So these things should be observed. Brāhmaṇa, a brāhmaṇa's duty is to present himself an ideal human being. Satyaṁ śamo damas titikṣā. Titikṣā means toleration. "Oh, it is very cold. No, I cannot take bath." No. You must tolerate. You must tolerate. Titikṣā. Ārjavam, simplicity; jñānam, full knowledge; vijñānam, practical application. Jñānaṁ vijñānam āstikyam. Āstikyam means completely convinced of God and his relationship with God. That is called āstikyam. Or full faith in the statement of the Vedas. Whatever Veda says, that's right. Yes. No argument. That is called āstikyam. No argument.

Srimad-Bhagavatam Lectures

We have come to distribute Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement. We must tolerate and give this message to the people. Kāruṇikāḥ. Very merciful, in spite of all trouble.

Lecture on SB 3.25.21 -- Bombay, November 21, 1974:

Here there is no other thing because here all the boys and girls and devotees, they are concerned with Rādhā-Kṛṣṇa. That's all. The whole business, whole day's business, whole night's business, is Rādhā-Kṛṣṇa. From early morning at three o'clock to night, ten o'clock, they have only business of Rādhā-Kṛṣṇa. That's all. Therefore they are sādhu. Therefore they are sādhu. This is the symptom of sādhu. And so many people are criticizing. So many enemies we have got. We are not getting the sanction because there are so many enemies. We are creating "nuisance." We are chanting Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra—that is nuisance. This complaint is going to the police.

So that is very difficult. Therefore a sādhu is advised, titikṣavaḥ, tolerate! Tolerate all this nonsense! What can be done? We have no other alternative, to tolerate. Nobody's coming to help us. Our business is so thankless task. Because we are trying to create one temple, so many enemies, they are giving hindrance, "You cannot do it." Therefore titikṣava. You have to remain sādhu. You cannot become asādhu. You have to tolerate. What can be done? Titikṣavaḥ kāruṇikāḥ (SB 3.25.21). At the same time, you have to become merciful. You know what has happened in this place, Hare Krishna Land. So much attack by the police, by the Municipality, "Break this temple." So we could have gone, that "What is the use of taking so much botheration? We have got hundreds of temples outside India. If Bombay people are not liking, let us go away." No. Kāruṇikāḥ. We have come to distribute Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement. We must tolerate and give this message to the people. Kāruṇikāḥ. Very merciful, in spite of all trouble.

We must tolerate. I must tolerate that chilly cold, and still, I take my bath. This is called tapasya, not that "It is very chilly cold. I will not take my bath."

Lecture on SB 3.26.35-36 -- Bombay, January 12, 1975:

So He is teaching us. Caitanya Mahāprabhu is the teacher. Āpani ācari' prabhu jīvere śikhaila. But still, it is very difficult to strictly follow. But we must try to follow as far as possible. So Caitanya Mahāprabhu has therefore taught us, tṛṇād api sunīcena taror api sahiṣṇunā. We must be tolerant like the trees or more than the tree. The trees, they are standing in the open air, and there are so many disturbances, storms, scorching heat, and somebody is taking the leaf, somebody cutting. It doesn't protest. Tolerance. This is very good example of tolerance. So in order to execute our spiritual consciousness or Kṛṣṇa consciousness, we shall learn tolerance. Tolerance, that is advised in Bhagavad-gītā, that tāṁs titikṣasva bhārata: "Don't be disturbed." Just like a brāhmaṇa or a sannyāsī has to take three times bath. And if it is very chilly cold, it does not mean that he will give up that taking bath three times, early in the morning. He must take. That is called tolerance. This is one of the example of tolerance. There is severe cold, chilly cold, but my duty is to take bath in the morning. So we must tolerate. I must tolerate that chilly cold, and still, I take my bath. This is called tapasya, not that "It is very chilly cold. I will not take my bath." No, that is not allowed. Then you are lagging behind. You must take. Of course, if it is very serious, somebody is seriously ill, that is different thing. Generally, Kṛṣṇa advises, tāṁs titikṣa... Mātrā-sparśās tu kaunteya śītoṣṇa-sukha-duḥkha-dāḥ, anityāḥ (BG 2.14). Anitya. Anitya means they are not permanent. Āgamāpāyino 'nityāḥ. They are seasonal changes. They will come, and they will go. Simply ethereal arrangement only, we must know, external arrangement. It is, rather, illusion.

1969 Correspondence

Of course disease will always be there at some time while there is this material body, but this we must tolerate and not be very much agitated by.

Letter to Balabhadra -- Columbus, Ohio 12 May, 1969:

Regarding your question about maintaining your body nicely, I think that if you follow our regulations of diet, sufficient sleeping, and keep to the prescribed rules of cleanliness, two baths per day,* then you will be able to keep yourself in proper health. Of course disease will always be there at some time while there is this material body, but this we must tolerate and not be very much agitated by. Actually, the Vaisnava who knows that he is not this body, he does not therefore neglect his body, but he takes very nice care so that he may utilize his body in the service of Krishna. Just like a man may know that he is not his car, so he does not therefore neglect his car, but he will take care of it so it will be able to render service to him. So we must take sufficient care to provide our bodies with its demands, but when disease or other necessary inconveniences arrive, we do not become disturbed because such troubles are simply temporary manifestations.

I hope this will meet you in good health.

Your ever well-wisher,

A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami

*at least one

1971 Correspondence

At first, there may be some inconveniences, but we must tolerate them and we shall realize the goal.

Letter to John H. Morgan -- Allahabad 16 January, 1971:

You write to say that you have become frustrated with so many dualities of the material world and that sometimes you are engaged in sense gratification and sometimes renouncing. This is called bhoga-tyaga, or alternating between sense gratification and renunciation. A living entity cannot remain steady in one or the other because changes are going on. That is the nature of the material world. Just like the businessman who works so hard the whole week long and then on the weekend takes rest and tries to forget his business. But bhakti, or devotional service, does not change. It does not even finish with the end of the body, but it continues eternally. And it is joyfully performed. At first, though, there may be some inconveniences, but we must tolerate them and we shall realize the goal. Krishna says in Bhagavad-gita that such rules and regulations in the beginning may be just like poison but at the end are like nectar and they awaken one to self-realization. (B.G. 18/37). So strictly follow all the regulative principles, chant Hare Krishna Mantra regularly, 16 rounds daily, and your rapid advancement in Krishna Consciousness will be certain.

You should train your wife like that instead of fighting and creating misunderstanding. You must tolerate such misunderstandings.

Letter to Sudama -- Allahabad 22 January, 1971:

It is very good news that your wife has taken to learn the Japanese language. So you should train your wife like that instead of fighting and creating misunderstanding. You must tolerate such misunderstandings. Train her for useful purpose and it will be a great help to both you and the society. Offer my blessings to her.

For the present we must tolerate such conditions. Actually, these are material considerations only. By offering our foodstuffs to Krishna with love and devotion, Krishna says he wiil accept and it becomes spiritually purified because he is the supreme pure.

Letter to Edith -- Bombay, INDIA January 28th, 1971:

We are presently in the age; called Kali yuga, or the age of quarrel and dissention where man is very shortlived and not so very intelligent, But the most regrettable characteristic of this age, is that man has forgotten God. He is claiming God is dead or I am god, etc. Just try to understand how much degraded this age is. One of the anomolies,- of this Kali yuga is that our foodstuffs have been grown with so many chemicals, etc. Actually nothing in this Kali yuga is pure. The soil is polluted, the air, so many things as well as man's motives, but by firmly establishing our Krishna Consciousness Movement all over the world, such unfavorable conditions can be terminated.

That is our program.So for the present we must tolerate such conditions. Actually, these are material considerations only. By offering our foodstuffs to Krishna with love and devotion, Krishna says he wiil accept and it becomes spiritually purified because he is the supreme pure. So love and devotion to Krishna is the purifying agent and nullifies all the bad effects of this age of Kali yuga. Simply let as offer to Krishna with love and devotion and chant the -Hare Krishna Mantra: Hare Krishna Hare Krishna, Krishna Krishna Hare Hare, Hare Rama Hare Rama, Rama Rama Hare Hare) and our very existence will become purified.