The Nectar of Devotion Chapter 05 - The Purity of Devotional Service: Difference between revisions
Visnu Murti (talk | contribs) (Created page with "Category:The Nectar of Devotion, Part One - Chapters 01 to 19 Category:The Nectar of Devotion Chapters 01 to 51") |
(Pywikibot v.2) |
||
| Line 1: | Line 1: | ||
[[Category:The Nectar of Devotion, Part One - Chapters 01 to 19]] | [[Category:The Nectar of Devotion, Part One - Chapters 01 to 19]] | ||
[[Category:The Nectar of Devotion Chapters 01 to 51]] | [[Category:The Nectar of Devotion Chapters 01 to 51]] | ||
[[Category:All Categories - Vaniquotes]] | |||
Latest revision as of 00:15, 7 July 2017
Pages in category "The Nectar of Devotion Chapter 05 - The Purity of Devotional Service"
The following 72 pages are in this category, out of 72 total.
A
- A bona fide spiritual master, under the guidance of authorities, can turn anyone to the Vaisnava cult so that naturally he may come to the topmost position of a brahmana
- All of the previous instructions imparted by Rupa Gosvami in his broad statements can be summarized thusly: as long as one is materially inclined, desirous to merge into the spiritual effulgence, one cannot enter into the realm of pure devotional service
- Anyone who is a pure Vaisnava is situated transcendentally, and therefore the highest qualification in the material world, namely to be in the mode of goodness, has already been achieved by such a person
- As is stated in the Srimad-Bhagavatam, devotional service is transcendental and has no cause. Devotional service is executed without any hope for gain, and it cannot be checked by any material circumstances
- As soon as a man takes his birth, he is immediately indebted to so many sources. He is indebted to the great sages because he profits by reading their authoritative scriptures and books. For example, we take advantage of the books written by Vyasadeva
- As such, any person who is very seriously engaged in his occupational duties in the varnas and asramas, and who does not develop love for the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Vasudeva, is to be understood as simply spoiling his human form of life
B
- Before Vyasadeva's writing, the Vedic literature was simply heard, and the disciples would learn the mantras quickly by hearing and not by reading
- Besides that, anyone who is engaged in devotional service is already on the status of being a high-class brahmana. So Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakur's struggle for this movement has come out successful
- By the one stroke of devotional service, if someone gives up all obligations and simply surrenders unto the Supreme Personality of Godhead, he is no longer a debtor, nor obliged to any other source of benefit
H
I
- If after accepting the spiritual master and being initiated one does not follow the rules and regulations of devotional service, then he is again fallen
- If one is regularly discharging devotional service, there will be no question of a falldown. But even if circumstantially there is some falldown, the Vaisnava need have nothing to do with the prayascitta, the ritualistic ceremony for purification
- If someone falls down from the principles of devotional service, he need not take to the prayascitta performances for reformation. He simply has to execute the rules and regulations for discharging devotional service
- If we do not render service to Krsna then again we fall down
- If we give up our own spiritual activities and simply become concerned with the bodily comforts of others, we will fall into a dangerous position
- In fact, they (people less than sudra) look so very beautiful that immediately they surpass the ordinary brahmanas
- In other words, the devotees of Lord Ramacandra, or Krsna, are already liberated persons and are not required to follow all the regulative principles mentioned in the ritualistic portions of the Vedic literature
- In the Bhagavad-gita also the Lord says, "Give up all your occupations and just become surrendered unto Me. I give you assurance that I shall give you protection from all sinful reactions"
- In the Middle Ages, after the disappearance of Lord Caitanya's great associate Lord Nityananda, a class of priestly persons claimed to be the descendants of Nityananda, calling themselves the gosvami caste
- In this statement of the S P of God, it is understood that people who are generally attracted to philanthropic, ethical, moral, altruistic, political and social welfare activities may be considered nice men only in the calculation of the material world
- In this way, they (a class of priestly persons) exercised their artificial power for some time, until Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakur, the powerful acarya of the Gaudiya Vaisnava sampradaya, completely smashed their idea
- In this way, we are indebted to the demigods, to the forefathers, to the sages, to the animals and to society in general
- It has been already explained that pure devotional service is without any tinge of karma or jnana. Bhakti should have no tinge of philosophical speculation or ritualistic performances
- It is also confirmed in the Bhagavad-gita in many places that the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Krsna, takes a special interest in His devotees and declares emphatically that nothing can cause His devotees to fall down. He is always protecting them
- It is on the basis of his position that anyone can now become a Gaudiya Vaisnava, from any part of the world or any part of the universe
- It is open for all, without any distinction, and it is the constitutional occupation of the living entities
- It is our duty to repay them all by proper discharge of service
K
- Karabhajana Muni addresses King Nimi and says, "As such, if by chance or mistake he does something which is forbidden, there is no need for him to perform any purificatory ceremonies"
- Karabhajana Muni addresses King Nimi and says, "My dear King, a person who has given up the worship of the demigods and has completely concentrated his energy in the devotional service of the S P of Godhead has become very, very dear to the Lord"
- Karabhajana Muni addresses Maharaj Nimi as follows, "Nor has he any obligation to perform the different kinds of activities we render to the great sages, ancestors, living entities and family and society members"
- Karabhajana Muni said, "Neither has he any need to bother executing the five kinds of yajnas (sacrifices) for becoming free from sinful contamination. Simply by discharging devotional service he is freed from all kinds of obligations"
- Karabhajana said, "My dear King, if somebody gives up his occupational duties as they are prescribed for the different varnas & asramas, but takes complete shelter, surrendering himself unto the lotus feet of the Lord, such a person is no more a debtor"
- Krsna said to Uddhava, "If one sticks to devotional service and is conducted by regulative principles given by the authorities and acaryas, that is the best qualification"
- Krsna said to Uddhava, "Persons who are already elevated in discharging devotional service will never again take shelter of the processes of fruitive activities or philosophical speculation"
L
- Later on, Vyasadeva thought it wise to write down the Vedas because in this age people are short-memoried and unable to remember all the instructions given by the spiritual master
- Lord Krsna said to Uddhava, "The distinction between qualification and disqualification may be made in this way"
- Lord says to Uddhava, "My dear Uddhava, any person who takes shelter of Me in complete surrender and follows My instructions, giving up all occupational duties, is to be considered the first-class man"
N
- Narada Muni advises Vyasadeva thusly, "Even if one does not execute his specific occupational duty, but immediately takes direct shelter of the lotus feet of Hari (Krsna), there will be no fault on his part, & in all circumstances his position is secure"
- Narada Muni advises Vyasadeva, "A person who is simply discharging his occupational duty in varna and asrama, however, with no Krsna consciousness, practically does not gain the true benefit of human life"
- Narada Muni advises Vyasadeva, "Even if, by some bad association, he falls down while executing devotional service, or if he doesn't finish the complete course of devotional service and dies untimely, still he is not at a loss"
- Next, Rupa Gosvami states that devotional service is transcendental to all material considerations and that it is not limited to any particular country, class, society or circumstance
O
- One may think that because he is surrendering unto the Supreme Personality of Godhead, he will not be able to perform all of his other obligations
- One must be very vigilant to remember that he is the part and parcel of the transcendental body of Krsna, and that it is his duty as part and parcel to give service to the whole, or Krsna
- One still has to follow the rules and regulations very carefully
- Our Krsna consciousness movement in the Western world is based on the above-mentioned proposition of Srila Bhaktisiddhanta, our spiritual master. On his authority, we are claiming members from all sections of the Western countries
P
- Padma Purana said, "And when they (people lower than sudra) are properly dressed, with tilaka on their bodies and beads in their hands and on their necks, they appear to be coming from Vaikuntha"
- Practically there are three processes for elevating one to the platform of spiritual consciousness. These processes are called karma, jnana and bhakti
R
- Ritualistic performances are in the field of karma. Speculative processes are in the field of jnana. One who has taken to bhakti, the devotional service of the Lord, need have nothing to do with karma or jnana
- Rsabhadeva said to his sons, "Persons engaged in fruitive activities are repeatedly accepting birth and death, and until they develop a loving feeling for Vasudeva, there will be no question of getting out from these stringent laws of material nature"
S
- Similarly, we are obliged to our forefathers because we take our birth in a particular family, where we take all advantages and inherit property
- Simply becoming initiated does not elevate one to the position of a high-class brahmana. One also has to discharge the duties and follow the regulative principles very rigidly
- Sri Rupa Gosvami also says that if anyone is regularly discharging devotional service there will be no question of a falldown
- Srila Rupa Gosvami specifically mentions herein that every man has the birthright to accept devotional service and to become Krsna conscious
- Srila Rupa Gosvami warns, however, that if a person is properly initiated by a bona fide spiritual master, he should not think that simply by the acceptance of such initiation his business is then finished
T
- The Lord says repeatedly, "Don't hesitate. Don't consider that because you are giving up all other engagements there will be some flaw in your life. Don't think like that. I will give you all protection." That is the assurance of Lord Krsna in the BG
- The purport is that all conditioned souls who are engaged very frantically in activities for sense gratification, without knowing that this process will never help them to get out of material contamination, are awarded only with repeated births & deaths
- The so-called brahmanas claim that one who is not born into a brahmana family cannot receive the sacred thread and cannot become a high-grade Vaisnava. But we do not accept such a theory, because it is not supported by Rupa Gosvami
- There are many other sages, like Sankaracarya, Gautama Muni, Narada Muni, etc., to whom we are indebted because we take advantage of their knowledge
- There is additional evidence in the Agastya-samhita - As the regulative principles of scripture are not required by a liberated person
- There is additional evidence in the Agastya-samhita, "A person who is engaged duly in the service of Lord Ramacandra is also not required to discharge the ritualistic principles which are indicated in the Vedic supplimentaries"
- There is more evidence in Padma Purana, in the Kasikhanda portion, where it is said, "In the country known as Mayuradhvaja, the lower caste people who are considered less than sudras are also initiated in the Vaisnava cult of devotional service"
- There is no need for him to perform any purificatory ceremonies. Because the Lord is situated within his heart, He takes compassion for the devotee's accidental mistake and corrects him from within
- There was a great hard struggle for some time, but it has turned out successfully, and it is now correctly and practically established that devotional service is not restricted to a particular class of men
- Therein he (Sanatana Gosvami) has clearly stated that any person who is properly initiated into the Vaisnava cult certainly becomes a brahmana, as much as the metal known as kamsa (bell metal) is turned into gold by the mixture of mercury
- They (a class of priestly persons) further claimed that the practice and spreading of devotional service belonged only to their particular class, which was known as Nityananda-vamsa
- Thus a Vaisnava automatically becomes a brahmana. This idea is also supported by Sanatana Gosvami in his book Hari-bhakti-vilasa, which is the Vaisnava guide
- To the people in general we are also indebted, as well as to our relatives, friends and even animals such as cows and dogs who render us so much service
W
- We are indebted to the forefathers and have to offer them pinda (prasadam) after they are dead
- We learn further that if a person simply acts in K C and discharges devotional service, he is considered to be far, far better situated than all of those persons engaged in philanthropic, ethical, moral, altruistic and social welfare activities
- When a person is advanced in spiritual consciousness or Krsna consciousness, he naturally becomes very sympathetic toward all living entities suffering in the material world. Naturally such an advanced person thinks of the suffering of people in general