Vanisource - User contributions [en]

NBS 9

2017-12-18T10:08:24Z

Jimena:

[[Category:Narada Bhakti Sutra|N09]]
<div style="float:left">[[File:Go-previous.png|link=NBS The Value of Devotion|Chapter 1: The Value of Devotion]] '''[[NBS The Value of Devotion|Chapter 1: The Value of Devotion]]'''</div>
<div style="float:right">[[File:Go-previous.png|link=NBS 8]] '''[[NBS 8]] - [[NBS 11]]''' [[File:Go-next.png|link=NBS 11]]</div>
{{RandomImage}}

==== SŪTRA 9 ====

'''COMING SOON'''

NBS 8

2017-12-18T10:08:13Z

Jimena:

[[Category:Narada Bhakti Sutra|N08]]
<div style="float:left">[[File:Go-previous.png|link=NBS The Value of Devotion|Chapter 1: The Value of Devotion]] '''[[NBS The Value of Devotion|Chapter 1: The Value of Devotion]]'''</div>
<div style="float:right">[[File:Go-previous.png|link=NBS 7]] '''[[NBS 7]] - [[NBS 11]]''' [[File:Go-next.png|link=NBS 11]]</div>
{{RandomImage}}

==== SŪTRA 8 ====

<div class="verse">
:nirodhas tu loka-veda-vyāpāra-nyāsaḥ
</div>

==== SYNONYMS ====

<div class="synonyms">
nirodhaḥ — renunciation; tu — moreover; loka — of social custom; veda — and of the revealed scripture; vyāpāra — of the engagements; nyāsa — renunciation.
</div>

==== TRANSLATION ====

<div class="translation">
Such renunciation in devotional service means to give up all kinds of social customs and religious rituals governed by Vedic injunction.
</div>

==== PURPORT ====

<div class="purport">
In a verse in the Lalita-mādhava (5.2), Śrīla Rūpa Gosvāmī describes renunciation in devotional service:

:ṛddhā siddhi-vraja-vijayitā satya-dharmā samādhir
:brahmānando gurur api camatkārayaty eva tāvat
:yāvat premṇāḿ madhu-ripu-vaśīkāra-siddhauṣadhīnāḿ
:gandho 'py antaḥ-karaṇa-saraṇī-pānthatāḿ na prayāti

"Activities such as mystic trance, becoming one with the Supreme, and the religious principles of brahminism, such as speaking the truth and tolerance, have their own respective attractions, but when one becomes captivated by love of Kṛṣṇa, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, all attraction for mystic power, monistic pleasure, and mundane religious principles becomes insignificant."

In other words, by discharging pure devotional service one attains the highest stage of love of Godhead and is freed from all other obligations, such as those mentioned in the karma-kāṇḍa, jñāna-kāṇḍa, and yoga-kāṇḍa sections of the Vedas. One who engages in pure devotional service has no desire to improve himself — except in the service of the Lord. In such devotional service there cannot be any worship of the impersonal or localized features of the Supreme Lord. The devotee simply performs activities that satisfy the Supreme Personality of Godhead and thus attains pure love for the Lord.

Only by the combined mercy of the pure devotee — the bona fide spiritual master — and the Supreme Lord Himself can one attain pure devotional service to the Lord. If someone is fortunate enough to find a pure devotee and accept him as his spiritual master, then this spiritual master, out of his causeless mercy, will impart the knowledge of pure devotional service. And it is the Lord, out of His causeless mercy, who sends His most confidential servitor to this world to instruct pure devotional service.

By the divine grace of the spiritual master, the seed of pure devotional service, which is completely different from the seed of fruitive activities and speculative knowledge, is sown in the heart of the devotee. Then, when the devotee satisfies the spiritual master and Kṛṣṇa, this seed of devotional service grows into a plant that gradually reaches up to the spiritual world. An ordinary plant requires shelter for growing. Similarly, the devotional plant grows and grows until it takes shelter in the spiritual world, without taking shelter on any planet in the material world. In other words, those who are captivated by pure devotional service have no desire to elevate themselves to any material planet. The highest planet in the spiritual world is Kṛṣṇa-loka, or Goloka Vṛndāvana, and there the devotional plant takes shelter.

The Nārada Pañcarātra defines pure devotional service as follows:

:sarvopādhi-vinirmuktaḿ tat-paratvena nirmalam
:hṛṣīkena hṛṣīkeśa-sevanaḿ bhaktir ucyate
:([[CC Madhya 19.170]])

"Devotional service to the Supreme Lord means engagement of all the senses in His service. In such service there are two important features: First, one must be purified of all designations, and second, the senses should be engaged only in the service of the Supreme Lord, the master of the senses. That is pure devotional service."

Everyone is now contaminated by various designations in relation to the body. Everyone is thinking, "I belong to such-and-such country; I belong to a certain society; I belong to a certain family." But when a person comes to the stage of pure devotional service, he knows that he does not belong to anything except the service of the Lord.

The symptom of unflinching faith in pure devotional service is that one has overcome the many disruptive desires that impede pure devotional service, such as (1) the desire to worship the demigods, (2) the desire to serve someone other than Kṛṣṇa, (3) the desire to work for sense gratification, without understanding one's relationship with Kṛṣṇa, (4) the desire to cultivate impersonal knowledge and thereby forget the Supreme Lord, and (5) the desire to establish oneself as the Supreme, in which endeavor there is no trace of the bliss of devotional service. One should give up all these desires and engage exclusively in the loving devotional service of the Lord. Except for the service of the Lord, anything done is in the service of illusion, or māyā.

One should try to get out of illusion and be engaged in the factual service of Kṛṣṇa. Service to Kṛṣṇa utilizes all the senses, and when the senses are engaged in the service of Kṛṣṇa, they become purified. There are ten senses — five active senses and five knowledge-acquiring senses. The active senses are the power of talking, the hands, the legs, the evacuating outlet, and the generating organ. The knowledge-acquiring senses are the eyes, the ears, the nose, the tongue, and the sense of touch. The mind, the center of all the senses, is sometimes considered the eleventh sense.

One cannot engage in the transcendental loving service of the Lord with these senses in their present materially covered state. Therefore one should take up the process of devotional service to purify them. There are sixty-four items of regulative devotional service for purifying the senses, and one should strenuously undergo such regulative service. Then one can enter into the transcendental loving service of the Lord. (See [[NBS 12|TEXT 12]] for a full discussion of these sixty-four items of devotional service.)
</div>

<div style="float:right">[[File:Go-previous.png|link=NBS 7]] '''[[NBS 7]] - [[NBS 11]]''' [[File:Go-next.png|link=NBS 11]]</div>
__NOTOC__
__NOEDITSECTION__

NBS 7

2017-12-18T10:07:19Z

Jimena:

[[Category:Narada Bhakti Sutra|N07]]
<div style="float:left">[[File:Go-previous.png|link=NBS The Value of Devotion|Chapter 1: The Value of Devotion]] '''[[NBS The Value of Devotion|Chapter 1: The Value of Devotion]]'''</div>
<div style="float:right">[[File:Go-previous.png|link=NBS 6]] '''[[NBS 6]] - [[NBS 8]]''' [[File:Go-next.png|link=NBS 8]]</div>
{{RandomImage}}

==== SŪTRA 7 ====

<div class="verse">
:sā na kāmayamānā nirodha-rūpatvāt
</div>

==== SYNONYMS ====

<div class="synonyms">
sā — that devotional service in pure love of God; na — not; kāmayamānā — like ordinary lust; nirodha — renunciation; rūpatvāt — because of having as its form.
</div>

==== TRANSLATION ====

<div class="translation">
There is no question of lust in the execution of pure devotional service, because in it all material activities are renounced.
</div>

==== PURPORT ====

<div class="purport">
In pure devotional service there is no question of sense gratification. Some people mistake the loving affairs between Kṛṣṇa and the gopīs (cowherd girls) for activities of ordinary sense gratification, but these affairs are not lustful because there is no material contamination. As Rūpa Gosvāmī states in his Bhakti-rasāmṛta-sindhu (1.2.285),

:premaiva gopa-rāmāṇāḿ kāma ity agamat prathām
:ity uddhavādayo 'py etaḿ vāñchanti bhagavat-priyāḥ

"Although the dealings of the gopīs with Kṛṣṇa are wrongly celebrated by many as lust, great sages and saintly persons like Uddhava hanker for such loving affairs with Kṛṣṇa." Śrīla Kṛṣṇadāsa Kavirāja, the author of Caitanya-caritāmṛta, has therefore said,

:kāma, prema, — dońhākāra vibhinna lakṣaṇa
:lauha āra hema yaiche svarūpe vilakṣaṇa

"As there is a difference between iron and gold, so there is a difference between material lust and Kṛṣṇa's loving affairs with the gopīs" ([[CC Adi 4.164|CC Ādi 4.164]]). Although such loving affairs may sometimes resemble material lust, the difference is as follows:

:ātmendriya-prīti-vāñchā — tāre bali 'kāma'
:kṛṣṇendriya-prīti-icchā dhare 'prema' nāma

"The desire to satisfy one's own senses is called lust, while the desire to satisfy the senses of Kṛṣṇa is called prema, love of God" ([[CC Adi 4.165|CC Ādi 4.165]]).

The impersonalists cannot understand the principle of satisfying Kṛṣṇa's senses because they reject the personality of Godhead. Thus they think God has no senses and therefore no sense satisfaction. But the devotees simply want to satisfy the senses of the Supreme Lord, and so they take part in the pure activities of love of Godhead. There is no question of lust in that category of pure transcendental love.

Lust leads to fruitive activity for sense gratification. There are different kinds of duties for the human being, such as political obligations, performance of Vedic rituals, obligations for maintaining the body, and social formalities and conventions, but all such activities are directed toward satisfying one's own senses. The gopīs, however, simply wanted to satisfy Kṛṣṇa's senses, and thus they completely gave up the conventional path of social restriction, not caring for their relatives or the chastisement of their husbands. They gave up everything for the satisfaction of Kṛṣṇa, showing their strong attachment to Kṛṣṇa to be as spotless as washed white cloth.

It is said that when conjugal affection between a lover and beloved comes to the point of being destroyed and yet is not destroyed, such a relationship is pure love, or prema. In the material world it is not possible to find this kind of love, for it exists only between Kṛṣṇa and His intimate devotees, such as the gopīs. The sentiment between the gopīs and Kṛṣṇa was so strong that it could not be destroyed under any circumstances. Kṛṣṇa praises the gopīs' pure love in the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam ([[SB 10.32.22|10.32.22]]):

:na pāraye 'haḿ niravadya-saḿyujāḿ
:sva-sādhu-kṛtyaḿ vibudhāyuṣāpi vaḥ
:yā mābhajan durjaya-geha-śṛńkhalāḥ
:saḿvṛścya tad vaḥ pratiyātu sādhunā

"My dear gopīs, I am not able to repay My debt for your spotless service, even within a lifetime of Brahmā. Your connection with Me is beyond reproach. You have worshiped Me, cutting off all domestic ties, which are difficult to break. Therefore please let your own glorious deeds be your compensation."
</div>

<div style="float:right">[[File:Go-previous.png|link=NBS 6]] '''[[NBS 6]] - [[NBS 8]]''' [[File:Go-next.png|link=NBS 8]]</div>
__NOTOC__
__NOEDITSECTION__

NBS 6

2017-12-18T10:07:13Z

Jimena:

[[Category:Narada Bhakti Sutra|N06]]
<div style="float:left">[[File:Go-previous.png|link=NBS The Value of Devotion|Chapter 1: The Value of Devotion]] '''[[NBS The Value of Devotion|Chapter 1: The Value of Devotion]]'''</div>
<div style="float:right">[[File:Go-previous.png|link=NBS 5]] '''[[NBS 5]] - [[NBS 7]]''' [[File:Go-next.png|link=NBS 7]]</div>
{{RandomImage}}

==== SŪTRA 6 ====

<div class="verse">
:yaj jñātvā matto bhavati stabdho bhavaty ātmārāmo bhavati
</div>

==== SYNONYMS ====

<div class="synonyms">
yat — which; jñātvā — having known; mattaḥ — intoxicated; bhavati — becomes; stabdhaḥ — stunned (in ecstasy); bhavati — becomes; ātma-ārāmaḥ — self-content (because of being engaged in the service of the Lord); bhavati — becomes.
</div>

==== TRANSLATION ====

<div class="translation">
One who understands perfectly the process of devotional service in love of Godhead becomes intoxicated in its discharge. Sometimes he becomes stunned in ecstasy and thus enjoys his whole self, being engaged in the service of the Supreme Self.
</div>

==== PURPORT ====

<div class="purport">
The Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam ([[SB 1.7.10|1.7.10]]) states,

:ātmārāmāś ca munayo nirgranthā apy urukrame
:kurvanty ahaitukīḿ bhaktiḿ itthaḿ-bhūta-guṇo hariḥ

"Although those who are ātmārāma, self-satisfied, are liberated from all material contamination, they are still attracted by the pastimes of the Supreme Lord, and thus they engage themselves in His transcendental service." When Lord Caitanya explained this ātmārāma verse to Śrīla Sanātana Gosvāmī, He described sixty-one meanings, and all of them point toward the devotional service of the Lord.

How one becomes intoxicated in devotional service is very nicely described in the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam ([[SB 11.2.40|11.2.40]]):

:evaḿ-vrataḥ sva-priya-nāma-kīrtyā
:jātānurāgo druta-citta uccaiḥ
:hasaty atho roditi rauti gāyaty
:unmāda-van nṛtyati loka-bāhyaḥ

"A person engaged in the devotional service of the Lord in full Kṛṣṇa consciousness automatically becomes carried away by ecstasy when he chants and hears the holy name of Kṛṣṇa. His heart becomes slackened while chanting the holy name, he becomes almost like a madman, and he does not care for any outward social conventions. Thus sometimes he laughs, sometimes he weeps, sometimes he cries out very loudly, sometimes he sings, and sometimes he dances and forgets himself." These are the signs of becoming intoxicated in devotional service. This stage, called the ātmārāma stage, is possible when the Lord bestows His mercy upon a devotee for his advanced devotional activity. It is the highest perfectional stage because one cannot reach it unless one has attained pure love of God.

Neither formal religious rituals, economic development, sense gratification, nor liberation can compare with this sweet stage of perfection of love of Kṛṣṇa, love of the Supreme Lord. The Caitanya-caritāmṛta ([[CC Adi 7.97|Ādi-līlā 7.97]]) describes this stage of ecstasy and intoxication as being far above the ecstasy of realizing oneself as Brahman, or the supreme spirit. Lord Caitanya says that the ecstasy of bhakti (love of Godhead) is so vast that it is like an ocean compared to the drop of pleasure derived from understanding oneself as one with Brahman. In all Vedic literature, the highest perfectional stage is said to be the state of intoxication of devotional service. It is not achieved by ordinary persons, the nondevotees.

In the stage of perfection, one's heart becomes slackened and one becomes more and more attached to attaining the lotus feet of the Lord. Śrīla Rūpa Gosvāmī, a great ācārya in the line of devotional service, has described this stage as follows: "Although appearing just like a madman, a person in the ecstasy of devotional service is not mad in the material conception of the term; this ecstasy is the manifestation of the pleasure potency of the Supreme Lord." The Lord has various potencies, one of which is called āhlādinī-śakti, His internal pleasure potency. Only one who becomes a little conversant with this potency can taste such ecstasy. The Vedānta-sūtra (1.1.12) states, ānanda-mayo 'bhyāsāt: "By nature the Lord is always joyful." This joyfulness of the Lord is due to His pleasure potency.

One who becomes affected by the pleasure potency of the Supreme Lord manifests various symptoms of ecstasy, such as slackening of the heart, laughing, crying, shivering, and dancing. These symptoms are not material. However, exhibiting such ecstatic symptoms just to get credit from the public is not approved by pure devotees. Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Prabhupāda says, "Persons without attainment of the highest perfectional stage of loving service cannot achieve any auspiciousness simply by artificially laughing, crying, or dancing without any spiritual understanding. Artificial movement of the body... must always be rejected. One should wait for the natural sequence within devotional service, and at that time, when one cries or dances or sings, it is approved. A person artificially showing symptoms of the pleasure potency creates many disturbances in the ordinary way of life."

One who attains the perfectional stage of devotional service under the guidance of a bona fide spiritual master may preach the science of devotion as Lord Caitanya did. When Lord Caitanya preached, He danced and showed other symptoms of ecstasy. Once, in Benares, a Māyāvādī sannyāsī named Prakāśānanda Sarasvatī objected to these activities. He said that since Lord Caitanya had taken sannyāsa, the renounced order of life, He should not act in such an intoxicated way.

The Lord explained that these symptoms of intoxication had automatically arisen when He had chanted the Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra, and that upon seeing this His spiritual master had ordered Him to preach devotional service all over the world. While speaking with Prakāśānanda, Lord Caitanya quoted an important verse from the Hari-bhakti-sudhodaya (14.36):

:tvat-sākṣāt-karaṇāhlāda-viśuddhābdhi-sthitasya me
:sukhāni goṣpadāyante brāhmāṇy api jagad-guro

"My dear Lord, O master of the universe, since I have directly seen You, my transcendental bliss has taken the shape of a great ocean. Thus I now regard the happiness derived from understanding impersonal Brahman to be like the water contained in a calf's hoofprint."

In this way, one who reaches the perfectional stage of devotional service becomes so satisfied that he does not want anything more, and thus he always engages in pure devotional service.
</div>

<div style="float:right">[[File:Go-previous.png|link=NBS 5]] '''[[NBS 5]] - [[NBS 7]]''' [[File:Go-next.png|link=NBS 7]]</div>
__NOTOC__
__NOEDITSECTION__

NBS 4

2017-12-18T10:06:57Z

Jimena:

[[Category:Narada Bhakti Sutra|N04]]
<div style="float:left">[[File:Go-previous.png|link=NBS The Value of Devotion|Chapter 1: The Value of Devotion]] '''[[NBS The Value of Devotion|Chapter 1: The Value of Devotion]]'''</div>
<div style="float:right">[[File:Go-previous.png|link=NBS 3]] '''[[NBS 3]] - [[NBS 5]]''' [[File:Go-next.png|link=NBS 5]]</div>
{{RandomImage}}

==== SŪTRA 4 ====

<div class="verse">
:yal labdhvā pumān siddho bhavaty amṛto bhavati tṛpto bhavati
</div>

==== SYNONYMS ====

<div class="synonyms">
yat — which; labdhvā — having gained; pumān — a person; siddhaḥ — perfect; bhavati — becomes; amṛtaḥ — immortal; bhavati — becomes; tṛptaḥ — peaceful; bhavati — becomes.
</div>

==== TRANSLATION ====

<div class="translation">
Upon achieving that stage of transcendental devotional service in pure love of God, a person becomes perfect, immortal, and peaceful.
</div>

==== PURPORT ====

<div class="purport">
The part-and-parcel living entities are entangled in the conditioned life of material existence. Because of their diverse activities they are wandering all over the universe, transmigrating from one body to another and undergoing various miseries. But when a fortunate living entity somehow comes in contact with a pure devotee of the Lord and engages in devotional service, he enters upon the path of perfection. If someone engages in devotional service in all seriousness, the Lord instructs him in two ways — through the pure devotee and from within — so that he can advance in devotional service. By cultivating such devotional service, he becomes perfect.

Lord Kṛṣṇa describes this form of complete perfection in the Bhagavad-gītā ([[BG 8.15|8.15]]):

:mām upetya punar janma duḥkhālayam aśāśvatam
:nāpnuvanti mahātmānaḥ saḿsiddhiḿ paramāḿ gatāḥ

"The great souls who engage in My devotional service attain Me, the Supreme Lord, and do not come back to this miserable material life, for they have attained the highest perfection." Both while in the material body and after giving it up, a devotee attains the highest perfection in service to the Lord. As long as a devotee is in his material body, his probational activities in devotional service prepare him for being transferred to the Lord's supreme abode. Only those who are one hundred percent engaged in devotional service can achieve this perfection.

In material, conditioned life a person always feels the full miseries caused by the transmigration of the soul from body to body. Before taking birth, he undergoes the miseries of living in the womb of his mother, and when he comes out he lives for a certain period and then again has to die and enter a mother's womb. But one who attains the highest perfection goes back to Godhead after leaving his present body. Once there, he doesn't have to come back to this material world and transmigrate from one body to another. That transfer to the spiritual world is the highest perfection of life. In other words, the devotee achieves his constitutional position of immortality and thus becomes completely peaceful.

Until a person achieves this perfection, he cannot be peaceful. He may artificially think he is one with the Supreme, but actually he is not; therefore, he has no peace. Similarly, someone may aspire for one of the eight yogic perfections in the mystic yoga process, such as to become the smallest, to become the heaviest, or to acquire anything he desires, but these achievements are material; they are not perfection. Perfection means to regain one's original spiritual form and engage in the loving service of the Lord. The living entity is part and parcel of the Supreme Lord, and if he performs the duties of the part and parcel, without proudly thinking he is one in all respects with the Supreme Lord, he attains real perfection and becomes peaceful.
</div>

<div style="float:right; clear:both;">[[File:Go-previous.png|link=NBS 3]] '''[[NBS 3]] - [[NBS 5]]''' [[File:Go-next.png|link=NBS 5]]</div>
__NOTOC__
__NOEDITSECTION__

NBS 5

2017-12-18T10:06:24Z

Jimena:

[[Category:Narada Bhakti Sutra|N05]]
<div style="float:left">[[File:Go-previous.png|link=NBS The Value of Devotion|Chapter 1: The Value of Devotion]] '''[[NBS The Value of Devotion|Chapter 1: The Value of Devotion]]'''</div>
<div style="float:right">[[File:Go-previous.png|link=NBS 4]] '''[[NBS 4]] - [[NBS 6]]''' [[File:Go-next.png|link=NBS 6]]</div>
{{RandomImage}}

==== SŪTRA 5 ====

<div class="verse">
:yat prāpya na kiñcid vāñchati na śocati na dveṣṭi na ramate notsāhī bhavati
</div>

==== SYNONYMS ====

<div class="synonyms">
yat — which; prāpya — having attained; na kiñcit — nothing; vāñchati — hankers for; na śocati — does not lament; na dveṣṭi — does not hate; na ramate — does not rejoice; na — not; utsāhī — materially enthusiastic; bhavati — becomes.
</div>

==== TRANSLATION ====

<div class="translation">
A person engaged in such pure devotional service neither desires anything for sense gratification, nor laments for any loss, nor hates anything, nor enjoys anything on his personal account, nor becomes very enthusiastic in material activity.
</div>

==== PURPORT ====

<div class="purport">
According to Śrīla Rūpa Gosvāmī, there are six impediments to the discharge of devotional service, and also six activities favorable to progress in devotional service.

The first impediment is atyāhāra, overeating or accumulating more wealth than we need. When we give free rein to the senses in an effort to enjoy to the highest degree, we become degraded. A devotee should therefore eat only enough to maintain his body and soul together; he should not allow his tongue unrestricted license to eat anything and everything it likes. The Bhagavad-gītā and the great ācāryas, or spiritual masters, have prescribed certain foods for human beings, and one who eats these foods eats in the mode of goodness. These foods include grains, fruits, vegetables, milk products, and sugar — and nothing more. A devotee does not eat extravagantly; he simply eats what he offers to the Supreme Lord, Kṛṣṇa. He is interested in kṛṣṇa-prasādam (food offered to the Lord) and not in satisfying his tongue. Therefore he does not desire anything extraordinary to eat.

Similarly, a devotee does not wish to accumulate a large bank balance: he simply earns as much as he requires. This is called yāvad-artha or yuktāhāra. In the material world everyone is very active in earning more and more money and in increasing eating and sleeping and gratifying the senses; such is the mission of most people's lives. But these activities should be absent from the life of a devotee.

The next impediment Śrīla Rūpa Gosvāmī mentions is prayāsa, endeavoring very hard for material things. A devotee should not be very enthusiastic about attaining any material goal. He should not be like persons who engage in fruitive activities, who work very hard day and night to attain material rewards. All such persons have some ambition — to become a very big businessman, to become a great industrialist, to become a great poet or philosopher. But they do not know that even if their ambition is fulfilled, the result is temporary. As soon as the body is finished, all material achievements are also finished. No one takes with him anything he has achieved materially in this world. The only thing he can carry with him is his asset of devotional service; that alone is never vanquished.

The next impediment to devotional service is prajalpa, talking of mundane subject matter. Many people unnecessarily talk of the daily happenings in the newspapers and pass the time without any profit. A devotee, however, does not indulge in unnecessary talks of politics or economics. Nor is a devotee very strict in following ritualistic rules and regulations mentioned in the Vedas. Becoming enamored of these rituals is the next impediment, called niyamāgraha. Because a devotee fully engages in the supreme service of the Lord, he automatically fulfills all other obligations and doesn't have to execute all the details of Vedic rituals. As the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam ([[SB 11.5.41|11.5.41]]) says,

:devarṣi-bhūtāpta-nṛṇāḿ pitṛṇāḿ
:na kińkaro nāyam ṛṇī ca rājan
:sarvātmanā yaḥ śaraṇaḿ śaraṇyaḿ
:gato mukundaḿ parihṛtya kartam

"Every human being born in this world is immediately indebted to the demigods, the great sages, ordinary living entities, the family, society, and so on. But a person who surrenders unto the lotus feet of the Lord and engages fully in His service is no longer indebted to anyone. In other words, he has no obligations to fulfill except executing devotional service."

Finally, a devotee should not be greedy (laulyam), nor should he mix with ordinary materialistic men (jana-sańga).

These are six negatives, or "do-nots," for the devotee; therefore one who wants to attain the perfectional stage of love of Godhead refrains from these things.

Similarly, there are six positive items for advancing in devotional service. First, while one should not be enthusiastic to attain material achievements, one should be very enthusiastic to attain the perfectional stage of devotional service. This enthusiasm is called utsāha. A living entity cannot stop acting. So when he is forbidden to become enthusiastic about material achievements, he should at once be encouraged to be enthusiastic about spiritual achievements. Enthusiasm is a symptom of the living entity; it cannot be stopped. It is just like a powerful engine: if you utilize it properly, it will give immense production. Therefore enthusiasm should be purified. Instead of employing enthusiasm for attaining material goals, one should be enthusiastic about achieving the perfectional stage of devotional service. Indeed, enthusing His devotees in devotional service is the purpose for which Kṛṣṇa descends to this material world.

The next item favorable for devotional service is niścaya, confidence. When one becomes disappointed in his service to the Supreme Lord, that disappointment must be rejected and replaced with confidence in attaining the ultimate goal, love of Godhead. The devotee should patiently follow the rules and regulations of devotional service so that the day will come when he will achieve, all of a sudden, all the perfection of devotional service. He should not lament for any loss or any reverse in his advancement in spiritual life. This patience (dhairya) is the third positive item for advancing in devotional service.

Furthermore, a pure devotee is not envious, hateful, or lazy in the discharge of devotional service. Confident of his advancement, he continually performs his prescribed devotional duties. This is called tat-tat-karma-pravartana.

The last two items are sańga-tyāga, giving up the association of nondevotees, and sato-vṛtti, following in the footsteps of the previous ācāryas. These practices greatly help the devotee remain fixed on the path of devotional service and avoid the tendency to enjoy temporary, material things. Thus the activities of a devotee remain always pure and without any contamination of the material world.

<div style="float:right">[[File:Go-previous.png|link=NBS 4]] '''[[NBS 4]] - [[NBS 6]]''' [[File:Go-next.png|link=NBS 6]]</div>
__NOTOC__
__NOEDITSECTION__

NBS 3

2017-12-18T10:05:52Z

Jimena:

[[Category:Narada Bhakti Sutra|N03]]
<div style="float:left">[[File:Go-previous.png|link=NBS The Value of Devotion|Chapter 1: The Value of Devotion]] '''[[NBS The Value of Devotion|Chapter 1: The Value of Devotion]]'''</div>
<div style="float:right">[[File:Go-previous.png|link=NBS 2]] '''[[NBS 2]] - [[NBS 4]]''' [[File:Go-next.png|link=NBS 4]]</div>
{{RandomImage}}

==== SŪTRA 3 ====

<div class="verse">
:amṛta-svarūpā ca
</div>

==== SYNONYMS ====

<div class="synonyms">
amṛta — immortality; svarūpā — having as its essence; ca — and.
</div>

==== TRANSLATION ====

<div class="translation">
This pure love for God is eternal.
</div>

==== PURPORT ====

<div class="purport">
When a person attains to the perfectional stage of love of Godhead, he becomes liberated even in his present body and realizes his constitutional position of immortality. In the Bhagavad-gītā ([[BG 4.9|4.9]]), the Lord says,

:janma karma ca me divyam evaḿ yo vetti tattvataḥ
:tyaktvā dehaḿ punar janma naiti mām eti so 'rjuna

Here the Lord says that any person who simply understands His transcendental activities and His appearance and disappearance in this material world becomes liberated, and that after quitting his present body he at once reaches His abode. Therefore it is to be understood that one who has attained the stage of love of God has perfect knowledge, and even if he may fall short of perfect knowledge, he has the preliminary perfection of life that a living entity can attain.

To conceive of oneself as being one with the Supreme is the greatest misconception of self-realization, and this misconception prevents one from rising to the highest stage of love of God. But a person who understands his subordinate position can attain the highest stage of loving service to the Lord. Although the Lord and the living entities are qualitatively one, the living entities are limited, while the Lord is unlimited. This understanding, called amṛta-svarūpa, makes one eligible for being eternally situated.

In the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam ([[SB 10.87.30|10.87.30]]) the personified Vedas pray to the Lord, "O supreme eternal, if the living entities were equal with You and thus all-pervading and all-powerful like You, there would be no possibility of their being controlled by Your external energy, māyā." Therefore, the living entities should be accepted as fragmental portions of the Supreme. This is confirmed in Bhagavad-gītā ([[BG 15.7|15.7]]) when the Lord says, mamaivāḿśo jīva-loke jīva-bhūtaḥ sanātanaḥ: "The living entities are My fragmental portions, eternally." As fragmental portions, they are qualitatively one with the Supreme, but they are not unlimited.

One who is convinced that he is eternally a servitor of the Supreme Lord is called immortal because he has realized his constitutional position of immortality. Unless one can understand his position as a living entity and an eternal servitor of the Lord, there is no question of immortality. But one who accepts these facts becomes immortal. In other words, those who are under the misconception that the living entity and the Supreme Lord are equal in all respects, both qualitatively and quantitatively, are mistaken, and they are still bound to remain in the material world. They cannot rise to the position of immortality.

Upon attaining love of God, a person immediately becomes immortal and no longer has to change his material body. But even if a devotee of the Lord has not yet reached the perfectional stage of love of Godhead, his devotional service is considered immortal. Any action in the stage of karma or jñāna will be finished with the change of body, but devotional service, even if not executed perfectly, will continue into the next life, and the living entity will be allowed to make further progress.

The constitutional position of the living entity as a fragment of the Supreme Lord is confirmed in the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam and the Upaniṣads. The Śvetāśvatara Upaniṣad (5.9) states,

:bālāgra-śata-bhāgasya śatadhā kalpitasya ca
:bhāgo jīvaḥ sa vijñeyaḥ sa cānantyāya kalpate

"If the tip of a hair were divided into one hundred parts, and if one of those parts were again divided into a hundred parts, that one ten-thousandth part of the tip of the hair would be the dimension of the living entity." As already mentioned, this position of the living entity as a fragment of the Supreme Lord is declared in the Bhagavad-gītā ([[BG 15.7|15.7]]) to be eternal; it cannot be changed. A person who understands his constitutional position as a fragment of the Supreme Lord and engages himself in devotional service with all seriousness at once becomes immortal.
</div>

<div style="float:right; clear:both;">[[File:Go-previous.png|link=NBS 2]] '''[[NBS 2]] - [[NBS 4]]''' [[File:Go-next.png|link=NBS 4]]</div>
__NOTOC__
__NOEDITSECTION__

NBS 1

2017-12-18T09:53:01Z

Jimena:

[[Category:Narada Bhakti Sutra|N01]]
<div style="float:left">[[File:Go-previous.png|link=NBS The Value of Devotion|Chapter 1: The Value of Devotion]] '''[[NBS The Value of Devotion|Chapter 1: The Value of Devotion]]'''</div>
<div style="float:right">[[File:Go-previous.png|link=NBS Introduction]] '''[[NBS Introduction]] - [[NBS 2]]''' [[File:Go-next.png|link=NBS 2]]</div>
{{RandomImage}}

==== SŪTRA 1 ====

<div class="verse">
:athāto bhaktiḿ vyākhyāsyāmaḥ
</div>

==== SYNONYMS ====

<div class="synonyms">
atha — now; ataḥ — therefore; bhaktim — devotional service; vyākhyāsyāmaḥ — we shall try to explain.
</div>

==== TRANSLATION ====

<div class="translation">
Now, therefore, I will try to explain the process of devotional service.
</div>

==== PURPORT ====

<div class="purport">
Devotional service to the Supreme Personality of Godhead is explained in the Bhagavad-gītā, where the Lord says that a self-realized person is always in the transcendental state known as brahma-bhūta, which is characterized by joyfulness. When one is self-realized he becomes joyful. In other words, he is free from the material contamination of lamentation and hankering. As long as we are in material existence, we lament for the losses in our life and hanker for that which we do not have. A self-realized person is joyful because he is free from material lamentation and hankering.

A self-realized person also sees all living entities equally. For him, there is no distinction between the higher and lower species of life. It is also stated that a learned man does not distinguish between a wise brāhmaṇa and a dog because he sees the soul within the body, not the external bodily features. Such a perfected, self-realized person becomes eligible to understand bhakti, or devotional service to the Lord.

Bhakti is so sublime that only through bhakti can one understand the constitutional position of the Lord. That is clearly stated in the Bhagavad-gītā ([[BG 18.55|18.55]]): bhaktyā mām abhijānāti. "One can understand the Supreme Lord through devotional service, and by no other process." There are different processes of understanding the Absolute Truth, but if a person wants to understand the Supreme Lord as He is, he has to take to the process of bhakti-yoga. There are other mystic processes, such as karma-yoga, jñāna-yoga, and dhyāna-yoga, but it is not possible to understand the Supreme Lord, the Personality of Godhead, except through His devotional service. This is confirmed in the Fourth Chapter of the Bhagavad-gītā ([[BG 4.3|4.3]]), where we learn that Kṛṣṇa spoke the Bhagavad-gītā to Arjuna simply because he was the Lord's devotee and friend. The Bhagavad-gītā teaches the process of bhakti-yoga, and therefore Lord Kṛṣṇa explained it to Arjuna because he was a great devotee. As far as spiritual life is concerned, becoming a devotee of the Lord is the highest perfection.

People are generally misled by the spell of the illusory energy of material nature. There are innumerable living entities within the material nature, and only some of them are human beings. According to the Vedic literature, there are 8,400,000 species of life. In the Padma Purāṇa it is said that there are 900,000 species of life in the water, 2,000,000 species of plants, 1,100,000 species of insects and reptiles, 1,000,000 species of birds, 3,000,000 species of beasts, and only 400,000 species of human beings. So the humans are the least numerous species of all.

All living entities can be divided into two divisions: those that can move and those that are stationary, such as trees. But there are also many further divisions. Some species fly in the air, some live in the water, and some live on the ground. Among the living entities who live on the ground, only 400,000 are human species, and out of these 400,000 human species, many are uncivilized or unclean; they are not up to the standard of proper civilization. From the historical point of view, the Āryans are the most civilized section of human beings, and among the Āryans, the Indians are especially highly cultured. And among the Indians, the brāhmaṇas are the most expert in knowledge of the Vedas.

The Vedic culture is respected all over the world, and there are people everywhere eager to understand it. The highest perfectional stage of understanding Vedic culture is explained in the Bhagavad-gītā, in the Fifteenth Chapter ([[BG 15.15|15.15]]), where the Lord says that the purpose of all the Vedas is to understand Him (Lord Kṛṣṇa). Fortunate are those who are attracted to the Vedic cultural life.

The Hindus call themselves followers of the Vedas. Some say they follow the Sāma Veda, and some say they follow the Ṛg Veda. Different people claim to follow different sections of the Vedas, but in fact for the most part they are not followers of the Vedas because they do not follow the rules and regulations of the Vedas. Therefore Lord Caitanya says that since the so-called followers of the Vedas perform all kinds of sinful activities, the number of actual followers of the Vedas is very small; and even among this small, exclusive number, most are addicted to the processes described in the Vedas' karma-kāṇḍa section, by which one can elevate oneself to the perfectional stage of economic development.

The strict followers of the karma-kāṇḍa portions of the Vedas perform various sacrifices for worship of different demigods in order to achieve particular material results. Out of many millions of such worshipers, some may actually engage in the process of understanding the Supreme, the Absolute Truth. They are called jñānīs. Perfection for a jñānī lies in attaining the stage of brahma-bhūta, or self-realization. Only after self-realization is attained does the stage of understanding devotional service begin. The conclusion is that one can begin the process of devotional service, or bhakti, when one is actually self-realized. One who is in the bodily concept of existence cannot understand the process of devotional service.

It is for this reason that the Nārada-bhakti-sūtra begins, "Now, therefore, I shall try to explain the process of devotional service." The word "therefore" indicates that this process of devotional service is for the self-realized soul, one who is already liberated. Similarly, the Vedānta-sūtra begins athāto brahma jijñāsā. The word brahma-jijñāsā refers to inquiry into the Supreme Absolute Truth, and it is recommended for those who have been elevated from the lower stage of addiction to the karma-kāṇḍa portion of the Vedas to the position of interest in the jñāna-kāṇḍa portion. Only when a person is perfectly situated in the realization that he is not the body but a spirit soul can he begin the process of bhakti, or devotional service.
</div>

<div style="float:right; clear:both;">[[File:Go-previous.png|link=NBS Introduction]] '''[[NBS Introduction]] - [[NBS 2]]''' [[File:Go-next.png|link=NBS 2]]</div>
__NOTOC__
__NOEDITSECTION__

RTW 1.9

2017-12-18T09:41:20Z

Jimena:

[[Category:Renunciation Through Wisdom|R19]]
<div style="float:left">[[File:Go-previous.png|link=Renunciation Through Wisdom]] '''[[Renunciation Through Wisdom]], [[RTW 1|1. Bhagavāner-kathā - Knowledge of the Supreme]]'''</div>
<div style="float:right">[[File:Go-previous.png|link=RTW 1.8]] '''[[RTW 1.8]]'''</div>
{{RandomImage}}

====In Praise of the Supreme Lord's Devotees====

The pious and saintly Vaiṣṇavas understand the exact meaning of the Bhagavad-gītā. The simple message of the Gītā is self-illuminated like the sun. Its knowledge is not hidden under a gloomy shroud of impersonalism. There is actually no room for extracting some alternative meaning and then giving a so-called esoteric dissertation on it. The devotees of Lord Kṛṣṇa alone can fully take to heart the instructions of the Gītā, and by acting accordingly they are liberated from the awesome and eternal enslavement of the cycle of karma. Such persons are not restricted to a particular country, race, or society. The Lord's devotees belong to a class of their own—they form a spiritual society unhindered by geographical conditions. God is not the monopoly of any particular group. Therefore the message of the Gītā, being universal can be followed by anyone and everyone. After all, it is in the Gītā ([[BG 9.32|9.32]]) that Lord Kṛṣṇa has unconditionally declared,

O son of Pṛthā, those who take shelter in Me, though they be of lower birth—women, vaiśyas (merchants), as well as śūdras (workers)—can attain the Supreme destination.

The demons misinterpret the words of Lord Kṛṣṇa concerning caste and social division, and they act capriciously on that basis. But this cannot blemish Lord Kṛṣṇa or His words. In the Bhagavad-gītā ([[BG 4.13|4.13]]) Lord Kṛṣṇa clearly says,

According to the three modes of material nature and the work associated with them, the four divisions of human society are created by Me. And, although I am the creator of this system, you should know that I am yet the nondoer, being unchangeable.

The four divisions of society—namely intellectuals, administrators, merchants, and laborers—should be determined not by birth but by merit, just as one becomes a doctor or a judge not by birthright but by merit alone. In this world of the three modes of material nature, social classes have always existed. Therefore a person's birth should never determine his caste or class in society. The four classes were created according to a person's qualifications.

Doctors are available in every country and society; similarly, the four classes of men are also present in every country and society. A son born to a doctor is not necessarily sure to grow up to be a doctor; similarly, the progeny of the four classes of society do not automatically fix their future career according to that of their parents. The scriptures describe in detail the divisions of society, with their inherent characteristics. Therefore we commit a serious mistake when we regard the different classes of men as belonging to particular countries or races. The Indian culture of today is restricted by the hereditary caste system and kept in the custody of narrow-minded people who are like frogs in a well. If instead India had spread the transcendental message of Bhagavad-gītā in the generous manner befitting a noble brāhmaṇa, then peace and tranquillity in this world would not be in such acutely short supply. By the propagation of brahminical culture, the world would have greatly prospered. Instead, the Vedic culture has been seriously maimed by the imposition of the hereditary caste system, and this has had grievously adverse effects on the world. The Supreme Lord in His incarnation as Lord Caitanya has opened many avenues to peaceful living by propagating the brahminical culture, which He calls the religion of the soul. Those who are fortunate can emulate His life, follow His divine teachings, and perfect their lives.

Varṇāśrama-dharma, the system of four spiritual orders and four social orders of life, is of two kinds: demoniac and transcendental. They have nothing in common. The divisions of society mentioned in the scriptures are present at all times and in all lands. If one with knowledge of the scriptures scrutinizes the different societies, he can easily discern the four classes. Persons possessing brahminical or priestly qualities in varying degrees are seen in practically every society. In modern terms they are called intellectuals. All the other classes are also present. Therefore it is an established fact that the four divisions of society, according to merit, are, were, and will be present everywhere.

Those who think that brāhmaṇas and the other three castes exist only in Indian society are sadly mistaken. The scriptures have declared that in Kali-yuga everyone is born a śūdra, or a menial laborer, a member of the fourth class. Still, India has many persons endowed with high, brahminical characteristics, and without doubt such persons are also seen in every other country. Every country has these four classes of men, determined according merit. As a matter of a fact, even those who are less than śūdras—the caṇḍālas or dog-eaters—are eligible to perform devotional service. If a caṇḍāla becomes an elevated devotee of the Lord, then on the basis of his merit he should be respected by all other classes. There is much scriptural evidence in this regard: The Hari-bhakti-vilāsa (10.91) states, "A devotee caṇḍāla achieves the same spiritual success as the devotee brāhmaṇa." And in the Bhāgavatam ([[SB 7.9.10|7.9.10]]), Prahlāda Mahārāja says, "A devotee caṇḍāla is many times more elevated than an ordinary ritualistic brāhmaṇa." Indeed, such a devotee caṇḍāla can be the guru of the brāhmaṇas; this has been shown throughout history by many spiritual preceptors who were born in a low caste but who initiated persons of higher castes. So, the castes are classified according to merit and activity, but a pure devotee of the Lord is beyond all these classifications. He is transcendental to everything material. How can a person who is elevated beyond all castes, a saint, be adequately worshiped if he is worshiped only as a brāhmaṇa? Therefore one who has taken shelter of the Supreme Personality of Godhead is the recipient of all good fortune in all countries and at all times. The Bhagavad-gītā mentions this in several places.

Whatever part of this world a person belongs to, if he follows the instructions of the Supreme Lord in the Bhagavad-gītā, then he attains the transcendental platform and can become even more elevated than a brāhmaṇa. As Lord Kṛṣṇa says in the Gītā ([[BG 4.24|4.24]]),

A person who is fully absorbed in Kṛṣṇa consciousness is sure to attain the spiritual kingdom because of his full contribution to spiritual activities, in which the consummation is absolute and that which is offered is of the same spiritual nature.

This verse explains how one can attain spiritual knowledge by performing activities that please the Supreme Lord.

Śrīpāda Śaṅkarācārya propounded the impersonal theory, citing phrases like sarvaṁ khalv idaṁ brahma: "By nature everything is Brahman, spirit." Śaṅkarācārya's theory has caused great confusion about established scriptural conclusions, but this phrase clearly supports the Gītā verse quoted above.

At this point it is urgent that we discuss how one can perform devotional service for the Supreme Lord's pleasure. In this regard it is also noteworthy how saintly leaders like King Janaka executed karma-yoga, or devotional service, by performing sacrifice. The aim of all sacrifices should be to please the Supreme Lord, Viṣṇu or Kṛṣṇa. Contact with matter is unavoidable in our present conditioned state, because while performing activities to sustain the body and to accomplish other purposes, we become intimate with material nature. But if we can spiritualize these activities by performing every one of them as a service to Brahman, the Supreme Absolute Truth, then these activities become yajña, or sacrifice. When the Vedic phrase sarvaṁ khalv idaṁ brahma is interpreted in this way, it is acceptable. In other words, when one invokes the spiritual or transcendental or absolute in everything, then matter loses its mundaneness, and then only can one realize the perfect meaning of the phrase sarvaṁ khalv idaṁ brahma. The Vaiṣṇavas say that anything connected with the Lord in devotional service is transcendental. In other words, it is nondifferent from the Supreme Lord Himself, Mādhava. Just as iron in long and constant touch with fire loses the characteristics of iron and becomes fiery, so everything offered in sacrifice to the Absolute, or the Transcendence, becomes absolute, or transcendental.

In the Bhagavad-gītā ([[BG 14.27|14.27]]) Lord Kṛṣṇa says, "And I am the basis of the impersonal Brahman, which is the constitutional position of ultimate happiness." This verse unequivocally declares that Brahman is Lord Kṛṣṇa's bodily effulgence. Since Lord Kṛṣṇa is the source of Brahman, devotional service to Lord Kṛṣṇa establishes the true meaning of sarvaṁ khalv idaṁ brahma. A sacrifice is properly performed only when all the sacrificial ingredients—the offerings, the fire, the ghee, and so on—become spiritualized, or reach the stage of Brahman, by their contact with Lord Kṛṣṇa. And since the performance of sacrifice culminates in the manifestation of real love for Lord Viṣṇu, loving devotional service to Lord Viṣṇu is the very best form of sacrifice. Such a stage can be also described as total absorption in Brahman.

Persons who act in this way become progressively detached from matter and attached to Lord Kṛṣṇa's devotional service. Thus they are able to purify the mirror of their hearts, extinguish the forest fire of material existence, and become situated in their original, spiritual position. They exist at a level of realization far above the impersonal realization of the Absolute, for they are free from the contamination of vainly trying to merge with the Supreme and usurping His Absolute position. They never fall from this stage of consciousness. Fully absorbed in their own transcendental identity, they are the complete masters of their senses. They are the perfect persons to rule this universe, if they so desire, and they alone bring good fortune to everyone. The conditioned souls, however, are unable to benefit the world in any way. The purified, rare souls continuously perform karma-yoga and are always in a liberated state. In the Bhagavad-gītā ([[BG 5.7|5.7]]) it is stated,

One who works in devotion, who is a pure soul, and who controls his mind and senses is dear to everyone. Though always working, such a man is never entangled.

There are those who live and act in a manner exactly opposite to that of the pure souls, who are constantly acting in karma-yoga. Such fruitive workers have no connection with the Supreme Lord, Kṛṣṇa. Therefore, they cannot cleanse their heart of material contamination. They are slaves of their sensual urges, spending their time in gratifying their senses according to their whims. Yet they shamelessly say that all their actions are prompted by the Supreme Lord. Being cheaters and atheists, they speak like this so that their impious acts may be acceptable, and thus they inflict untold misfortunes and calamities on the world. By contrast, the pure, self-realized souls are constantly absorbed in serving Lord Kṛṣṇa's lotus feet with their body, mind, and words. They never associate with atheistic people. These saintly persons know that although the spirit soul is infinitesimal, it is nevertheless endowed with minute free will at all times. The Supreme Lord is absolutely independent and can exercise absolute free will over all; because the spirit soul is qualitatively the same as the Supreme Lord, the Lord does not annul his minute free will.

The spirit soul unfortunately misuses this God-given minute free will and falls into the dark well of nescience and illusion. Once the spirit soul takes shelter of māyā, the illusory material energy, he develops the material qualities of goodness, passion, and ignorance. The spirit soul loses his original characteristics and develops a new nature, which is controlled by the three modes of material nature, and this continues until such time as he transcends them. His actions are prompted accordingly. If it happened in any other way, then material variegatedness would not be visible in this phenomenal world. So if a person fails to inform himself about the very subtle laws and workings of material nature, and at the same time he argues that all activities are sanctioned and inspired by the Supreme Lord, then he is reducing the Supreme Lord's position and making Him out to be partial and unjust. The Lord never favors one and discriminates against another. Factually, He advises everyone to give up all material activities, which are by nature unstable and temporary. Because of forgetfulness of God, a man becomes an eternal victim of ignorance, which then colours all his actions. The Bhagavad-gītā ([[BG 5.14|5.14]]) says,

The embodied spirit, master of the city of his body, does not create activities, nor does he induce people to act, nor does he create the fruits of action. All this is enacted by the modes of material nature.

Therefore all activities except those performed as a sacrifice to Lord Viṣṇu are whimsical actions done of one's own volition. They are not performed under the Supreme Lord's direction or sanction. Since such activities stem from the material modes of nature, they are automatically under nature's total control. The Supreme Lord is merely an impartial and silent witness to such activities.

The actions of the karma-yogī, or devotee, are always connected with the Absolute Truth. Hence the devotee remains situated on the transcendental platform, far beyond the mundane sphere. In such a realized position, he does not see this material creation as separate from the Supreme Lord but as a transformation of His energy. Such perceptions are unhindered by the material modes of nature. Indeed, the karma-yogī's realization of everything's inherent connection with Lord Kṛṣṇa is equipoised and transcendental. The Gītā ([[BG 5.18|5.18]]) states, "The humble sages, by virtue of true knowledge, see with equal vision a learned and gentle brāhmaṇa, a cow, an elephant, a dog, and a dog-eater [outcaste]."
The brāhmaṇa endowed with such learning is primarily in the material mode of goodness. Among the animals, the cow is also in the mode of goodness; elephants, lions, and so on, are situated primarily in the mode of passion; dogs and some humans (such as the caṇḍālas and other outcastes) are in the mode of ignorance. The karma-yogīs, who are always meditating on the Supreme, never see these outer coverings of the soul, but rather the pure soul proper. This is true equal vision in relation to the Supreme. The karma-yogīs perceive that all elements and objects in this world are materials for the Supreme Lord's worship and that all living entities are eternal servitors of Lord Kṛṣṇa. One attains the purest stage of equal vision when one ceases to take into consideration the outer covering of the soul, the body, but rather is established in the soul's innate nature of serving the Lord. In this stage one engages all things in devotional service to the Supreme Lord by using them as ingredients for sacrifice to please Lord Viṣṇu.

The karma-yogī knows that Lord Kṛṣṇa is the only enjoyer and exploiter of all material objects and that He is the only Lord and master of all living entities. Forgetful of this relationship with Lord Kṛṣṇa, the living entity falls into the clutches of māyā, or illusion. Under the influence of māyā, he tries in vain to act the part of an enjoyer or a renouncer—but this is all a mere fantasy. In fact, the real affliction of the living entity is the pretense he is the enjoyer or renouncer. All types of good and pious activities—like yoga, the cultivation of knowledge, austerity, and renunciation—are misapplied labor if they cannot kindle in the heart the flame of loving attraction for topics relating to the Supreme Lord. As Lord Kṛṣṇa declares in the Bhagavad-gītā ([[BG 5.29|5.29]]),

A person in full consciousness of Me, knowing Me to be the ultimate beneficiary of all sacrifices and austerities, the Supreme Lord of all planets and demigods, and the benefactor and well-wisher of all living entities, attains peace from the pangs of material miseries.

Earlier in this book we discussed the need for performing work as sacrifice, and now from this verse the truth that Lord Kṛṣṇa is the original Supreme Person, the enjoyer of all sacrifices, comes out with clarity. It must be understood that the results of sacrifice performed by the karma-yogīs, as well as the austerities of the knowledge-seekers, are all meant to be enjoyed by Lord Kṛṣṇa alone. The object of the yogīs' meditation, the Supersoul within the heart, is actually a partial expansion of Lord Kṛṣṇa. We will discuss this subject matter in detail later in this book.

Lord Kṛṣṇa is the well-wisher of the followers of all the different disciplines—karma-yoga, jñāna-yoga, aṣṭānga-yoga (meditation), and bhakti-yoga. And because Lord Kṛṣṇa is the well-wisher of everyone, He sends His close associates to the world to establish proper religious teachings in every millennium. Lord Kṛṣṇa is the supreme master of all the planets, the original Lord, and the cause of all causes. The only path to peace is the path of gradual elevation in karma-yoga, leading to realization of the Absolute Truth, Lord Kṛṣṇa.

Those who are already executing their work for the satisfaction of Lord Kṛṣṇa are not required to separately perform sacrifices, austerities, or meditation, that are not on the platform of pure Kṛṣṇa consciousness. Previously we explained that a pure karma-yogī is automatically a brāhmaṇa, sannyāsī, and a yogī. Like a karmī, or fruitive worker, he is expert in performing sacrifices and executing his duties; like a jñānī, or seeker of knowledge, he is renounced and austere; and like a yogī, he is also detached from the fruits of his work and has brought his senses under control. One who is completely detached from all fruitive work and has become attracted to the Supreme Lord and His loving devotional service is simultaneously ornamented with all good qualities. As Lord Kṛṣṇa says in the Bhagavad-gītā ([[BG 6.1|6.1]]),

One who is unattached to the fruits of his work and who works as he is obligated is in the renounced order of life, and he is the true mystic, not he who lights no fire and performs no duty.

Since the karma-yogī knows that the ultimate enjoyer of the fruits of all his activities is Lord Kṛṣṇa, he does not hanker after those fruits and is fully detached from them. He always thinks of doing everything for Lord Kṛṣṇa. Such an unattached karma-yogī never thinks that action in Kṛṣṇa consciousness is meant for enjoying sense pleasure or avoiding pain. The sannyāsī renounces everything, including activities prescribed by the scriptures, in favor of cultivating knowledge of the Absolute. The yogī retires from active service and, desiring to see the Supersoul within his heart, spends his days in meditation with half-closed eyes. But he whose work is a sacrifice for the satisfaction of the Supreme makes no endeavors for his physical requirements. Since he is engaged in devotional service to the Supreme Lord, he is not required to execute the ritualistic activities recommended in the scriptures. Such a detached karma-yogī is superior to one who is merely unattached to the fruits of his work. The karma-yogī is automatically accomplished in the knowledge of the Absolute that the sannyāsī seeks and the eight mystic perfections that the meditating yogī aspires for.

The real karma-yogīs are in fact devotees of the Supreme Lord. Since they have attained perfection, they do not hanker for profit, adoration, or distinction. In their state of perfection, all knowledge and mystic powers automatically embellish them. With everything desirable available to them, why should they need anything else?

Following the eightfold path of Patañjali, the meditative yogīs gradually elevate themselves, mastering the different stages until they reach samādhi, or the state of absorption in the Supersoul. In their desire to reach perfection, they tolerate all sorts of adversities and sufferings and remain fixed on their goal. Ultimately they attain a state of consciousness that cannot be compared to anything in this material world. In this state of mystic perfection, no suffering—not even death—seems formidable. Lord Kṛṣṇa's comment about such yogīs has been recorded in the Bhagavad-gītā ([[BG 6.22|6.22]]),

Established thus, one never departs from the truth, and upon gaining this he thinks there is no greater gain. Being situated in such a position, one is never shaken, even in the midst of greatest difficulty."

In his purport to this verse, Śrīla Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura says that when one detaches himself from the sensual world and becomes situated in samādhi, complete absorption in the Absolute Truth, one perceives the pure spiritual self and is rewarded with intense bliss. Such a yogī never deviates his concentration from the Absolute Truth, the object of his meditation. The eight mystic perfections—aṇimā, laghimā, prāpti, prākāmya, and so on—which the yogī acquires during his discipline, are by-products of his yoga practice. In samādhi the yogī regards all these mystic perfections as insignificant. Many yogīs, after mastering a few of these mystic perfections, pretend to have mastered them all, and because of a restless mind they deviate from the goal of permanent samādhi. On the other hand, for the karma-yogī, the devotee of the Lord, there is no such possibility: his heart and concentration remain fixed on his goal because he always works for the pleasure of Lord Kṛṣṇa. He is always in samādhi, the yogī's ultimate destination. In the Lord's devotional service, the devotee experiences ever-fresh emotions, and his perfections become more mature, the transcendental bliss he relishes is inexplicable and inconceivable to mundane mercenaries.

Not to speak of karma-yoga, even in the lesser discipline of eightfold yoga, whatever progress the yogī makes on the path toward the goal of samādhi does not go in vain, although he may not reach the ultimate goal in one lifetime. In his next life he will continue his progress. By contrast, when the fruitive worker dies, whatever wealth and education he has acquired, along with the endeavor that went into acquiring them, all become null and void. As for the pure karma-yogī, or devotee, his devotional activities are all beyond the level of mind and body. They are related to the soul and the Supreme Soul, and hence his activities become the wealth of his pure, eternal soul. Just as the soul is never destroyed with the disintegration of the body, so this wealth of devotional service is never devalued. Thus the Bhagavad-gītā says that the karma-yogī always works for the benefit and elevation of his soul, and that this endeavor and its results remain permanent spiritual assets in this life and the next. These spiritual assets are never liquidated. As Lord Kṛṣṇa says in the Bhagavad-gītā ([[BG 6.40|6.40]]),

Son of Pṛthā, a transcendentalist engaged in auspicious activities does not meet with destruction, either in this world or in the spiritual world; one who does good, My friend, is never overcome by evil.

Human beings are divided into two categories: the law-abiders and the law-breakers. Those who care only about satisfying their senses and do not submit to discipline and law are like animals, completely uncontrolled. Whether such an uncontrolled person is cultured or uncultured, educated or uneducated, weak or strong, his actions are always bestial. Their can never benefit anyone.

The law-abiding human beings are further divided into three groups: the karmīs, or fruitive workers, the jñānīs, or knowledge-seekers, and the bhaktas, or devotees. The karmīs are divided into two sections: the sakāma-karmīs, or fruitive workers who want to enjoy the results of their labor, and the naiṣkāma-karmīs, who renounce the fruits of action. The sakāma-karmīs are greedy after insignificant, transient happiness. They make progress in their mundane activities and enjoy the heavenly planets in the life hereafter, but all that enjoyment is temporary. Therefore the soul's real benefit evades them.

To attain true, eternal happiness, which comes only after the dissipation of material bondage, is the real benefit for the soul. Thus any path that does not lead the soul to strive for this supreme goal—eternal transcendental bliss—is considered useless. When eternal bliss is the goal of ritualistic activities (karma-kāṇḍa), then they are transformed into karma-yoga. Through the practice of karma-yoga, the heart is purified of material contamination and one gains knowledge of the Absolute. Thereafter one becomes situated in meditation on the Absolute, and finally one attains bhakti, pure devotional service. In the process of karma-kāṇḍa, it is recommended that one renounce physical pleasures for a time; so a karmī may sometimes be called an ascetic. Yet however much penance a karmī may perform, ultimately this penance is another form of sensual enjoyment, since that is its ultimate goal. The demons also perform penance to increase their powers, but it is all simply to enjoy their senses. Once the living entity can transcend the stage of hankering after sensual pleasures, he comes easily to the stage of karma-yoga, which is in all respects good. Only such a person can benefit society.

The spiritual progress the karma-yogī makes in this lifetime remains intact, and he continues in his next life from that point. In the Bhagavad-gītā ([[BG 6.43|6.43]]), Lord Kṛṣṇa comments, "On taking such a birth, he revives the divine consciousness of his previous life, and he again tries to make further progress in order to achieve complete success, O son of Kuru." In his next life the unsuccessful yogī may be born in the family of a pious brāhmaṇa or wealthy merchant. When we talk of failure in yoga, we refer karma-yogīs, dhyāna-yogīs, and jñāna-yogīs. Among the followers of these paths, the karma-yogī is closest to becoming a pure devotee, since he has dedicated his activities to the Supreme Lord's service. Gradually, acting in this manner, he becomes a bhakta-yogī. Such a yogī is in the highest order, and he is fit to instruct all other yogīs.

In the Bhagavad-gītā ([[BG 6.47|6.47]]) Lord Kṛṣṇa says,

And of all yogīs, the one with great faith who always abides in Me, thinks of Me within himself, and renders transcendental loving service to Me—he is the most intimately united with Me in yoga and is the highest of all. That is My opinion.

The fruitive workers cannot be counted among the yogīs. The actual yogīs are the karma-yogīs, the jñāna-yogīs, the aṣṭāṅga-yogīs, and the bhakti-yogīs. Factually they are the same, although named differently. The yogic process is like a ladder one ascends gradually toward the final goal of the Absolute Truth. Niṣkāma-karma, or renunciation of the fruits of one's labor, is the first step on this ladder. When knowledge and austerity are added to it, it becomes jñāna-yoga, the second step in this ladder. And when meditation on the Supreme is added to jñāna-yoga, the third step is reached, namely aṣṭāṅga-yoga. Finally, when loving devotional service to the Supreme Lord is practiced along with aṣṭāṅga-yoga, it is transformed into bhakti-yoga. This entire successive process is yoga. For an exact and clear delineation of the subject of yoga, all four steps need to be explained separately. Those who desire the best for humanity take to the path of yoga. The process for progressing in yoga requires, first, determination and strict execution of discipline at each stage. When a person is firmly situated at one stage, he then has to relinquish attachment and adherence to the practices of that stage in order to elevate himself to the next higher stage. Those who cannot reach the top for some reason and get stuck at any one of the four stages acquire the designation of that particular stage. Thus there are karma-yogīs, jñāna-yogīs, aṣṭāṅga-yogīs, and bhakta-yogīs. Lord Kṛṣṇa instructs Arjuna that one who renders loving devotional service to Him, the Supreme Lord, is the highest among all yogīs, and that Arjuna should thus strive to become such a bhakti-yogī.

The successive, step-by-step spiritual path is not the same as step-by-step progress in the material world. In the mundane process the rules of progress are strict and cannot be transgressed. If one wants to acquire a doctorate at a university, he has to begin from the elementary school level and gradually work upwards. It is impossible to go directly to the university without prior schooling. In spiritual life, however, although there are strict regulations, by the Supreme Lord's grace one can bypass many intermediary stages and reach the top, or "doctorate" level. One can attain this divine grace by intimate and constant association with the Supreme Lord. And such intimate association with the Lord comes about through confidential exchanges with a pure devotee of the Supreme Lord. Everyone of us is intimately and eternally related to the Supreme Lord, but due to the bad influence of māyā we have forgotten our relationship with Him.

The living entities are like sons of the Lord, and as such they are rightful heirs to the great wealth of their rich father. But because of the reactions to sins committed in previous lives, they are roaming about without a home, suffering acute poverty. That the living entities are suffering is quite clear to all. But they do not know who their wealthy father is or where they can go to reclaim their valuable inheritance. Without proper knowledge, they are trying in vain to escape from their poverty while aimlessly roaming about like poor beggars. They meet many who promise to help them, but in the end such helpers turn out to be beggars themselves. A few among these strangers seem rich and prosperous, but the directions they give do not lead to the father's house, and so the living entities' poverty knows no end. The wealthy strangers suggest many paths, such as karma, jñāna, or dhyāna, but the problem of poverty remains unsolved. The living entities can escape their poverty only by learning and practicing the science of devotional service to the Supreme Lord. Caitanya Mahāprabhu, the Supreme Personality of Godhead and the source of all incarnations, explained the science of devotional service to Śrīla Rūpa Gosvāmī at Prayāga (Allahabad). These instructions are the crest jewel of teachings for all humanity. In Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta ([[CC Madhya 19.151|Madhya 19.151]]), the Lord says,

According to their karma, all living entities are wandering throughout the entire universe. Some of them are being elevated to the upper planetary systems, and some are going down to the lower planetary systems. Out of many millions of wandering living entities, one who is very fortunate gets an opportunity to associate with a bona fide spiritual master by the grace of Lord Kṛṣṇa. By the mercy of both Lord Kṛṣṇa and the spiritual master, such a person receives the seed of the creeper of devotional service.

By the mercy of Lord Kṛṣṇa, this seed of devotion is available in the Bhagavad-gītā. Only one who is able to receive this devotional seed can understand the purport of the Bhagavad-gītā. Otherwise, simply repeatedly reading the Bhagavad-gītā and discussing its teachings will not produce any results.

In the Bhagavad-gītā, Lord Kṛṣṇa Himself reveals the truth about Himself. When an ordinary mortal writes an autobiography, he receives many accolades, but when the Supreme Lord writes about Himself, we unfortunately do not fully believe in His words. Furthermore, we overlook the cardinal issues in His writings and quibble over lesser subjects, trying to magnify them by giving them concocted connotations and meanings. This practice is stretched to such absurdity that the original meaning is lost and the lop-sided conclusions attract only ridicule from readers. In the Bhagavad-gītā Lord Kṛṣṇa unequivocally declares that He is the Supreme Absolute Truth and that it is the duty of everyone to render Him loving devotional service. The Bhagavad-gītā was revealed for the sole purpose of explaining these two principal points. One who understands them is eligible to begin spiritual life as a neophyte devotee. Śraddhā, or faith, is the first prerequisite in spiritual life and is described as synonymous with neophyte devotion. Thus Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta ([[CC Madhya 22.62|Madhya 22.62]]) says,

By rendering transcendental loving service to Kṛṣṇa, one automatically performs all subsidiary activities. This confident, firm faith, favorable to the discharge of devotional service, is called śraddhā.

<div style="float:right">[[File:Go-previous.png|link=RTW 1.8]] '''[[RTW 1.8]]'''</div>
__NOTOC__
__NOEDITSECTION__

RTW 1.8

2017-12-18T09:41:05Z

Jimena:

[[Category:Renunciation Through Wisdom|R18]]
<div style="float:left">[[File:Go-previous.png|link=Renunciation Through Wisdom]] '''[[Renunciation Through Wisdom]], [[RTW 1|1. Bhagavāner-kathā - Knowledge of the Supreme]]'''</div>
<div style="float:right">[[File:Go-previous.png|link=RTW 1.7]] '''[[RTW 1.7]] - [[RTW 1.9]]''' [[File:Go-next.png|link=RTW 1.9]]</div>
{{RandomImage}}

====The Living Entities' Real Identity====

A man's relationship with his sister's husband is based on his relationship with his sister. The brother-in-law, prior to his marriage with the sister, was a complete stranger to the man. And when their children become the man's nieces and nephews, his relationship with them is also based on his sister. Similar relationships grow up among races and nationalities, centering on the country of birth. Thus we have Indians, Bengalis, Punjabis, Germans, and so on. We also find relationships centering on religious beliefs. Thus there are Hindus, Muslims, Christians, and so on. But however much we might endeavor to adapt to such partial personalities of the self, and however we try to increase the number of these fractional identities, we will remain infinitesimal and partial. Being part and parcel of the Supreme Lord, if we do not aspire to serve Him, then we forgo our actual identity and fall down into nescience. An appropriate parallel is the functioning of the body: If a limb refuses to execute its usual duty, it becomes useless to the body. Similarly, if our activities are not focused on Lord Kṛṣṇa, they are rendered impotent and valueless. The eternal constitutional position of the self is to serve the Supreme Lord, Kṛṣṇa. In fact, all our sufferings start from our refusal to act in our original capacity as Lord Kṛṣṇa's eternal servants. Therefore, the prime duty of all living entities is to become re-instated in their original, consitutional position. The first step toward that goal is to perform karma-yoga. In the Caitanya-caritāmṛta it is stated, "The living entity is bound around the neck by the chain of māyā because he has forgotten that he is eternally a servant of Kṛṣṇa."

People in general are ignorant and addicted to fruitive activities. Without disturbing their minds, the karma-yogī can benefit them by explaining the truth about man's eternal position as Lord Kṛṣṇa's servant. Thus in the Bhagavad-gītā ([[BG 3.26|3.26]]) Lord Kṛṣṇa instructs,

So as not to disrupt the minds of ignorant men attached to the fruitive results of prescribed duties, a learned person should not induce them to stop work. Rather, by working in the spirit of devotion, he should engage them in all sorts of activities [for the gradual development of Kṛṣṇa consciousness].

It is very difficult to convince those who adhere to fruitive activities that they should render devotional service to Lord Kṛṣṇa. The reason is that most fruitive workers are foolish, fallen and impious. Therefore all their activities are whimsical and motivated by evil. Their intelligence and expertise are thus utilized in defiance of the Supreme Lord. They are totally in the grip of the illusory potency, māyā, and so they imagine themselves to be the Supreme Lord Himself, or at least His biggest competitor, like the demon Śiṣupāla. They simply try to enjoy this material world in various ways. In fact, their hopes for enjoying this world are just make—believe, or māyā, and this make-believe yearning leaves them hopelessly cheated. Yet they cannot give up the hope to enjoy. And when they realize that fruitive activities are futile and are more or less forced to renounce them, then such renunciation becomes merely another illusory scheme for a greater enjoyment.

Those who hanker after the fruits of their actions undertake many hardships in executing their work, their imagination wanders like an untethered bull, and all the while their mind dictates to them that they are the actual enjoyers. Therefore, without disrupting the minds of these foolish, perverted karmīs, the intelligent person should engage them in doing what they are expert in and using the fruits in Lord Kṛṣṇa's service. Such a course of action will automatically uncover the fruitive workers' eternal relationship with Lord Kṛṣṇa. So, to instruct the people for their benefit, the servant of Kṛṣṇa, who is free from the reactions of fruitive activities, will lead a life seemingly like that of the fruitive workers, but actually he is all along performing karma-yoga.

Had not Lord Kṛṣṇa mercifully instructed the process of karma-yoga to His devotee Śrī Arjuna, the ignorant souls would have suffered miserably for all time. These wretched karmīs have the noose of māyā constantly wrapped around their necks and are living from one distress to another, but because the Lord's deluding potency covers their intelligence, they cannot understand any of this. However much they might pretend to be the controllers, they are being continuously goaded by māyā, who leaves them helpless and impotent. Lord Kṛṣṇa has explained this in the Bhagavad-gītā ([[BG 3.27|3.27]]), "The spirit soul bewildered by the influence of false ego thinks himself the doer of activities that are in actuality carried out by the three modes of material nature."

The foolish karmī cannot comprehend that because he has forgotten Lord Kṛṣṇa and is trying to usurp His position, the Lord's external potency, māyā, has tied a noose around his neck with the rope of the three modes of nature and is making him suffer excruciating pains. Although all of his activities are within the grip of the three modes of material nature and orchestrated by māyā, still the grossly foolish karmī believes that he is the master of his situation. Thus he busies himself with trying to make better arrangements for living in the world of duality.

Lord Kṛṣṇa instructs us that the living entities are His separated parts. The duty of the part is to serve the whole. A complete body has different parts and limbs, such as hands, legs, eyes, and ears. The hands and legs work the hardest, but they do not refuse to give food to the stomach, although the stomach does very little. On the other hand, if the hands and legs act contrarily and actually refuse to feed the stomach, then an impossible situation is created. There is no question of the hands and legs trying to enjoy in this situation, because the lack of food in the stomach will cause the hands and legs to become weak and useless. The book Hitopadeśa explains this point in detail in the story "The Belly and the Senses."

Lord Kṛṣṇa is like the life air and the soul of the massive body of the entire cosmos. In several places in the Bhagavad-gītā Lord Kṛṣṇa makes this point—that He is the origin and cause of everything. Especially notable are [[BG 7.7|7.7]], "There is no truth superior to Me," and [[BG 9.24|9.24]], "I am the only enjoyer and master of all sacrifices." Therefore, how can there still be any doubt that Kṛṣṇa is the Supreme Lord and that the living beings are His eternal servitors? We have forgotten this simple truth, and thus instead of using our mind and senses in the Supreme Lord's service, we ourselves are posing as little Supreme Lords and utilizing our mind and senses to enjoy this material world. This is māyā.

Nowadays, different societies are shooting up like mushrooms. One such society that has made its presence felt claims to have started a movement for establishing the ideal kingdom of Lord Rāmacandra. But the kingdom of Rāma it is propagating seems to be without Lord Rāma. Lord Rāma's biggest competitor was a demon named Rāvaṇa, and present-day descendants of Rāvaṇa are also busy trying to kill Lord Rāma. So, where is the question of wanting to usher in the golden age of Lord Rāma? If one is sincere about establishing the ideal kingdom of Lord Rāma, then everything in the world should be engaged in Lord Rāma's service. But the attempt to reduce the position and prestige of Lord Rāma is in fact an attempt to establish the tyrannical rule of Rāvaṇa, the demon king. And if such a mistake is committed, then Hanumān, the valiant and invincible servant of Lord Rāma, will have to come and rectify the situation by destroying the entire race of demons. In order to avoid this mistake at the outset, we must follow the path of karma-yoga taught by Lord Kṛṣṇa.

The karmīs are foolish and ignorant, whereas the karma-yogīs are wise and learned. These wise men know that the nature of the material modes and material activities is exactly opposite to that of the soul. For this reason the karma-yogīs never engage in material activities under the modes of material nature, as the karmīs do, but rather perform karma-yoga, which is meant to satisfy Lord Viṣṇu. Such wise men always keep themselves aloof from close association with this phenomenal world, for they aspire to elevate the soul to its original spiritual position. They understand that the soul has come into contact with matter only by a freak arrangement. Therefore, although their ears, eyes, and other senses are involved in this phenomenal world, the sages refrain from material activities. As Lord Kṛṣṇa says in the Bhagavad-gītā ([[BG 3.28|3.28]]),

One who is in knowledge of the Absolute Truth, O mighty-armed one, does not engage himself in the senses and sense gratification, knowing well the differences between work in devotion and work for fruitive results.

Then in [[BG 3.30|Chapter 3.30-31]], Lord Kṛṣṇa describes the means for achieving such a liberated state,

Therefore, O Arjuna, surrendering all your works unto Me, with full knowledge of Me, without desires for profit, with no claims to proprietorship, and free from lethargy, fight. Those persons who execute their duties according to My injunctions and who follow this teaching faithfully, without envy, become free from the bondage of fruitive actions.

Identifying the self with the material body and mind, or thinking that the soul is material, or thinking that everything in relation to the body belongs to oneself—such illusions keep a person ignorant and bereft of self-realization. Therefore Lord Kṛṣṇa advises us to be situated in knowledge of the self. When we become spiritually aware, we can understand that the "I," the self, is not the body or mind; we can realize that we are products of the superior, spiritual energy of the Supreme Lord and hence fully spiritual and eternal. With realization of these transcendental truths comes knowledge of the actual nature of the material energy in its pure form. And when these spiritual realizations gradually mature, one achieves a natural distance from the dualities of material nature. At this stage of spiritual development, the false ego is destroyed, all false identification and titles are removed, and we are liberated from the shackles of the illusory, material energy on the strength of our spiritual association with the Transcendence. No longer does māyā entangle us in material activities.

There are sufficient scriptural proofs to substantiate that Lord Kṛṣṇa is the Supreme Absolute Truth. Even scriptures like the Bible or the Koran, declare that the Absolute Truth is the all-powerful, all knowing Supreme Person. Throughout the Vedic literature, that Supreme Person is declared to be Lord Kṛṣṇa. And in the Bhagavad-gītā, Lord Kṛṣṇa Himself says that He is the Absolute Truth. Thus simply by associating somehow with Lord Kṛṣṇa, we can become illuminated about the divine Self. When the sun rises in the morning, everything again becomes visible in the sunlight. Similarly, when the sun of Lord Kṛṣṇa rises on the horizon of the transcendental spiritual sky of our realization, the darkness of illusion is immediately extirpated. Then only does one become purified and radiant with pristine beauty.

These facts may sound exaggerated or mythical to a foolish man, but these are not fairy tales for little boys: they are the reality and the truth. Those who have taken shelter of Lord Kṛṣṇa or His devotee can appreciate and fathom this subject matter. The only ones who will not accept this truth are those who are inimical toward Lord Kṛṣṇa and who want to be the Supreme Lord themselves because of a perverted mind. As Lord Kṛṣṇa says in the Bhagavad-gītā ([[BG 9.11|9.11]]), "Fools deride Me when I descend in the human form." Such men are envious of the Lord. The truth about Lord Kṛṣṇa and His transcendental position can never enter such confused and deluded brains.

<div style="float:right">[[File:Go-previous.png|link=RTW 1.7]] '''[[RTW 1.7]] - [[RTW 1.9]]''' [[File:Go-next.png|link=RTW 1.9]]</div>
__NOTOC__
__NOEDITSECTION__

RTW 1.6

2017-12-18T09:40:56Z

Jimena:

[[Category:Renunciation Through Wisdom|R16]]
<div style="float:left">[[File:Go-previous.png|link=Renunciation Through Wisdom]] '''[[Renunciation Through Wisdom]], [[RTW 1|1. Bhagavāner-kathā - Knowledge of the Supreme]]'''</div>
<div style="float:right">[[File:Go-previous.png|link=RTW 1.5]] '''[[RTW 1.5]] - [[RTW 1.7]]''' [[File:Go-next.png|link=RTW 1.7]]</div>
{{RandomImage}}

====Life's Only Goal====

Our objective is not the temporary peace and happiness available in the material world. As living entities we are eternal, and hence the desire for permanent happiness should be our prime motive. Yet we souls change millions of bodies, going up and down the fourteen material planetary systems, chasing after illusory peace and pleasures, expending huge amounts of blood and energy. The permanent peace and happiness we demonically run after eludes us constantly; we do not know where real peace and happiness are available. As Prahlāda Mahārāja says in the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam ([[SB 7.9.25|7.9.25]]),

In this material world, every living entity desires some future happiness, which is exactly like a mirage in the desert. Where is water in the desert, or, in other words, where is happiness in this material world?

In search of truth we become deviated and, taking shelter of the boat of the material body and mind, travel aimlessly in the ocean of material existence, with no land in sight. Mercilessly tossed about, we brood, "In the dispensation of providence, man cannot have any rest." If only we knew that our ultimate destination is Lord Viṣṇu, the Supreme Personality of Godhead! Then we could end our suffering. To dispel our ignorance about this fact, Lord Krṣṇā has informed us that we must perform all activities as a sacrifice for Lord Viṣṇu's satisfaction. The Ṛg Veda confirms this: "Lord Viṣṇu is the Supreme shelter of everything. All the demigods are constantly meditating on Him." Thus we see that the demigods also consider Lord Viṣṇu's lotus feet their supreme destination, and they become liberated simply by performing all activities for His pleasure. One who wants release from the vicious karmic cycle must have Lord Viṣṇu's lotus feet as his final objective. Otherwise, he will have to become demoniac.

The followers of the varṇāśrama way of life, or sanātana-dharma, are now being called Hindus. Their forefathers, especially those who belonged to the upper castes—the brāhmaṇas, kṣatriyas, and vaiśyas—centered their lives on Lord Viṣṇu. In every stage of life, especially in the householder stage, people worshiped Lord Viṣṇu in their homes, performing devotional service for His satisfaction. A few very devoted souls continue to do so even today. They collect money only for the Lord's service. The money buys grains and vegetables, which they cook with devotion and then offer to Lord Viṣṇu. Later the devotees honor this prasādam, the Lord's mercy in the form of food, by eating it. In all these activities Lord Viṣṇu is the enjoyer, and one seeks to please Him. In the past, the times were conducive to such activities, and even now they are practiced in many places. Actually, such devotional service is applicable to everyone, to all places, and to all times.

Lord Viṣṇu is the Supreme Personality of Godhead, the goal of everything. Performing all works for His satisfaction is the only way to open up the path of liberation from the cycle of fruitive action, or karma. It is recommended that all progressive and beneficial activities be executed for the pleasure of the Supreme Lord, Viṣṇu. Echoing the words of the scriptures, the learned sages proclaim "the attainment of Lord Viṣṇu's lotus feet is the same as becoming liberated." The final step in the karma-yoga process is to satisfy Lord Viṣṇu, at which point one's own desires are automatically fulfilled. While delineating this point, Lord Kṛṣṇa says that if work is not performed for His satisfaction, then all activities are tainted with sin and result in sinful reactions, which created havoc in society. In the Bhagavad-gītā ([[BG 3.13|3.13]]), Lord Kṛṣṇa says, "The devotees of the Lord are released from all kinds of sins because they eat food which is first offered for sacrifice. Others, who prepare food for personal sense enjoyment, verily eat only sin."

Preparing and eating food in the way just mentioned is service to the Supreme Lord, Viṣṇu. Sometimes it may appear that some sin is being committed in its execution, but if one takes and honors the remnants of the sacrifice, or offering to Lord Viṣṇu, then one is automatically exonerated from all binding reactions and becomes liberated. Though we may live very carefully, trying to avoid sins and strictly follow the path of nonviolence, still our lives are controlled by the cycle of karmic reactions. Hence, unwittingly we are forced to commit many kinds of sin. We commit so many sins in business transactions, common human dealings, daily chores, and especially political and administrative activities. It fine to vociferously support nonviolence, but in actual life one is compelled to commit acts of violence. One may succeed in avoiding many kinds of sin, but it is impossible to escape committing the five great sins called pañca-sūnā. While walking on the street we may crush many ants to death against our wishes. While cleaning house, we may squash many insects to death. While grinding food grains or lighting a fire, we destroy many tiny lives. In this way, while executing our ordinary, daily chores we are forced to commit violence and take many innocent lives. Willingly or unwillingly, we commit sins. Thus, when a religion fabricated by the human brain prompts one to embrace the path of nonviolence for its own sake, it inevitably gives advantage to one and difficulty to another.

It is impossible to be exempted from the adversities caused by mentally concocted beliefs. According to man-made laws, if one person murders another he is condemned to the gallows, but no action is taken against a man for killing animals. Such is not the law of providence. The law of God is such that it punishes the killers of both man and animals; both acts of murder are penalized. The atheists deny the existence of God because in this way they think they can commit sins unhindered. But all the revealed, authorized scriptures say that by killing innocent creatures, the householders commit many sins willingly or unwillingly while performing their normal daily activities. To get release from these sins, the householders are enjoined to perform certain sacrifices. Foremost of these is to eat and honor the remnants of food offered to Lord Viṣṇu. As for those selfish householders who cook food only for their own sensual pleasure and not for the service of Lord Viṣṇu, they have to suffer all the sinful reactions incurred while cooking and eating. This is the law of providence. Therefore, to get rid of these sins, the followers of the Vedic religion dedicate their household activities to Lord Viṣṇu's service.

The leaders of society are therefore advised to perform devotional service for Lord Viṣṇu's satisfaction—both for their own benefit and for the benefit of those they lead. As Lord Kṛṣṇa says to Śrī Arjuna in the Bhagavad-gītā ([[BG 3.21|3.21]]), "Whatever action a great man performs, common men follow. And whatever standards he sets by exemplary acts, all the world pursues." Because everyone follows their example, the leaders are required to carefully study the process of devotional service to Lord Viṣṇu. This is their duty. Thus for the benefit of human society, there is a great need to construct universities that will impart knowledge of devotional service.

Alas! The times are such that those who are considered leaders and stalwarts of society are more viciously inimical to God than others. Therefore, what devotional service for Lord Viṣṇu's satisfaction can they perform? And if they cannot perform devotional service, then how will they gain release from their innumerable sins? If the stalwarts of society are not willing to declare that Lord Viṣṇu is the omnipresent Absolute Truth, and that He is all-pervasive due to His being both a person as well as formless, then what can the lesser men, the man on the street, understand about this esoteric subject matter? The Supreme Lord is the sole proprietor of everything. We cannot take the position of the enjoyer and proprietor of this material world. Whatever the Supreme Lord mercifully gives us as His remnants, that alone should we accept. We must never desire another's property. As the Īśopaniṣad states,

Everything animate or inanimate that is within the universe is controlled and owned by the Lord. One should therefore accept only those things necessary for himself, which are set aside as his quota, and one should not accept other things, knowing well to whom they belong."

Only when the leaders of society center all their activities on the Supreme Lord, Viṣṇu, will these activities bring good fortune and benediction to the leaders themselves, as well as to their followers. But if the leaders avoid performing their activities for Lord Viṣṇu and instead pose as Lord Viṣṇu themselves—taking worship, wealth, and praise from their followers and returning the same to them as remnants—then others might become attracted by their pretentious renunciation and thus follow their path to doom. But nothing further will be achieved. Such leaders uselessly excite their ignorant sycophants, inducing them to perform many sinful activities. In this way such selfish leaders bring about their followers' doom simply to increase their own distinction, adoration, and wealth. Unfortunately, the leaders do not know that these miniscule portions of distinction, adoration, and wealth will be burned to ashes with their death. But the sinful methods used to acquire these temporary material advantages will beget results, which will then very subtly mix with their subtle body, namely mind, intelligence, and false ego. And these results will later become the seeds of further sinful activities, which will entangle the soul in the cycle of karmic reactions birth after birth, forcing him go through many different species of life.

<div style="float:right">[[File:Go-previous.png|link=RTW 1.5]] '''[[RTW 1.5]] - [[RTW 1.7]]''' [[File:Go-next.png|link=RTW 1.7]]</div>
__NOTOC__
__NOEDITSECTION__

RTW 1.7

2017-12-18T09:40:32Z

Jimena:

[[Category:Renunciation Through Wisdom|R17]]
<div style="float:left">[[File:Go-previous.png|link=Renunciation Through Wisdom]] '''[[Renunciation Through Wisdom]], [[RTW 1|1. Bhagavāner-kathā - Knowledge of the Supreme]]'''</div>
<div style="float:right">[[File:Go-previous.png|link=RTW 1.6]] '''[[RTW 1.6]] - [[RTW 1.8]]''' [[File:Go-next.png|link=RTW 1.8]]</div>
{{RandomImage}}

====How to Cure the Material Disease===

The general populace simply follows the dictates and decisions of the leaders, who are bereft of any spiritual realization. Therefore it is advised that the leaders of society should act responsibly. The easy path to prosperity opens up when these leaders intelligently put into practice the precepts of karma-yoga. Without first becoming adept at curing one's own disease, why try to treat many patients? This is unreasonable. First a leader has to adopt the principles of karma-yoga in his own life; then he has to diagnose the disease of the people; then the medicine is to be prescribed and the proper diet given. Simply to offer the suffering people a sense-gratificatory cure that titillates their senses—this is not going to make them healthy. Rather, this will spread the disease further, and at one stage the doctor himself will be infected and finally die from it.

Forgetfulness of the Supreme Lord, Viṣṇu, is human society's real and original disease. So, if one does not treat this ailment but instead shows insincere and shallow concern for the patients, one might give them some momentary relief and pleasure, but ultimately such a course of action cannot cure them permanently. If the patient goes for proper medicine and diet but is instead administered bad medicine and diet, then he is certainly in the jaws of death.

The remnants of food offered to the Supreme Lord, known as prasādam, is the best diet for all patients. And to discuss and hear topics glorifying the Supreme Lord, to see the Lord's Deity form and offer worship to Him, and to completely surrender oneself to the Lord—these constitute the greatest medicine, the panacea. These activities are the only secure path to prosperity, whereas other activities will wreak disaster. The practices of devotional service to the Lord can never cause harm to society; rather, they can only usher in an age of opportunities and benedictions. Those who are opportunists and financial speculators should calmly consider these facts.

Stalwarts of society like Mahātmā Gandhi are trying in various ways to usher in an age of peace, but because such endeavors are not inspired or blessed by the spiritually evolved saints, they are not turning out successful, nor will they be fruitful in the future. The God of the monists, or Māyāvādīs, cannot eat, see, or hear. Such a concocted, formless God can never bring peace to the world. How can a God who has no sensory organs see the miseries of the people or hear their heartfelt prayers? To worship such a formless God in the name of searching for spiritual truth can only produce misfortune in the world, never good fortune. In the Māyāvāda school of philosophy, discussions on pure knowledge can throw some light on the real nature of the Absolute Truth, but they are unable to fully reveal the esoteric and personal aspects of the Supreme Absolute Being. These dry, empirical discussions fall far short of their objective: a complete understanding of the Absolute Truth. Therefore only if leaders like Mahatma Gandhi strive to realize the Supreme Absolute Person-not a formless energy—can they truly benefit human society.

Conditioned human beings are expert at dealing with this material body and mind. These gross materialists, who cannot see beyond materialistic activities, find it impossible to believe that besides our material universe, a spiritual universe exists. Completely identifying with the body, such materialists are like animals, simply eating, sleeping, mating, and defending. They are so captivated by these four animalistic propensities that they lose the power to discriminate between sinful and pious activities. They tirelessly endeavor for a little sense gratification, but all their efforts end in futility. Many modern scientists have taken up the role of priests facilitating such gross activities, which are unbeneficial and fatal. These scientists have made available a variety of products meant simply to titillate the senses, thus creating a deadly competitive mood among the materialists, which has in turn caused an obnoxious atmosphere in society. People think they become free and independent through such sensual activities, but factually they become more tightly bound up in chains. The greater their accumulated wealth, the greater their anxiety and depravity. As much as they try to usurp the Supreme Lord's position of being the only enjoyer, that much and more are they drawn into the jaws of a horrible death. And these activities make a Herculean task out of such a simple and basic activity as sustaining the body, which needs a little nourishment only.

A grade higher than this mean class of gross materialists are those who believe in the transmigration of the soul. These are the fruitive workers who perform pious activities such as giving in charity, but their only motive is to ensure that their next life is one of luxury and sense enjoyment. Neither of these grades of fruitive workers realizes that both pious as well as sinful activities cause bondage. These materialists do not know that karma-yoga, activity performed without fruitive desire, is the best form of activity. Therefore they often think that the karma-yogīs are as attached to this material world as the gross materialists. The sole motive of the karma-yogī, however, is to instruct the members of society for their benefit. As Lord Kṛṣṇa, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, says in the Bhagavad-gītā ([[BG 3.25|3.25]]) "As the ignorant perform their duties with attachment to results, the learned may similarly act, but without attachment, for the sake of leading people on the right path."

Like others, sages who are in knowledge of the Absolute Truth maintain their bodies, but the difference is that the goal of all their activities is to satisfy Lord Viṣṇu. Although the general mass of people may wrongly think that the sages' activities are the same as their own, in fact the sages are performing karma-yoga, not fruitive activity.

Present times have seen the widespread expansion of modern science and technology in our world in a variety of forms, which have entangled society more and more in the vicious cycle of karma. Huge factories, universities, hospitals, and so on, are certain to entangle society further in the karmic cycle. Bygone ages never witnessed such huge, complex arrangements for gross materialistic activities. Wrong and simply bad association has tightly bound up the innocent populace in mean activities. But the learned man, the karma-yogī, can show society how to perform all these activities for the satisfaction of the Lord.

Previously, sages arranged for Lord Viṣṇu's Deity to be worshiped in practically every household, thereby creating the atmosphere for people to become karma-yogīs. Similarly, it is now urgent that similar arrangements be made to worship and serve Lord Viṣṇu in the huge factories, mercantile firms, hospitals, and so on. This can firmly establish true equality among men under a spiritual banner. Lord Nārāyaṇa is not poor; He is the Supreme Lord of Lords. And hence attempts to say that the poor people are "Nārāyaṇas" is foolish. Rather, by widely organizing the worship and service of the Lord, one can greatly benefit everyone, including the poor. The Supreme Personality of Godhead manifests Himself in many forms, but the sages have chosen three of His multifarious forms to serve and worship as the Deity. They are Lakṣmī-Nārāyaṇa, Sītā-Rāma, and Rādhā-Kṛṣṇa. These three Deity couples are widely worshiped all over the Indian subcontinent. Therefore, we request the owners of large factories and business firms to establish the worship and service of any of these three Deities in their establishments. The owners can then distribute prasādam, offered food, to everyone. This practice will repair any disagreements between worker and owner, because both will become karma-yogīs.

Most factory workers and other laborers cannot maintain a good character and thus slide down to depravities. And if such derelicts increase in population, the world has no chance for a prosperous and fortunate future. But if the owners give their laborers and office staff prasādam, then both the givers and the receivers will gradually become purified and more attracted to the Supreme Lord. The whole society will become elevated, civilized, and united in harmony. On the other hand, by trying to achieve only their selfish interests, the owners create a situation in which any harmony or unity is not only fragile but dangerous. And when the owners fire these degraded laborers in pursuit of their crass self-interest, neither the owners themselves nor the laborers are benefited. Soon the workers automatically turn inimical toward their employers.

When laborers and bosses perform activities that are not intended to please Lord Viṣṇu and are in fact troublesome to the Lord, they end up arguing and fighting with each other, thus creating an awful situation in society. The Communists and Socialists are spending money, intelligence, and even lives propagating their "isms"; the Bolsheviks revolted, disrupting the entire land of Russia and promising to fulfill the people's dream of a prosperous household life on a mass scale; the workers' unions are constantly at odds with the employers. All these complicated problems have one simple solution: everyone should perform karma-yoga, or work meant to please the Supreme Lord.

The endeavors human beings have made to establish a close and harmonious relationship with one another have culminated in the United Nations. This organization is based on the concept of the family unit. The gradual expansion of the family unit to a large community, to a village, to a state, to a country, and finally to a continent has given the clue for the formation of the United Nations. The thing to be noted, however, is its center. What is the central attraction? If the process of expansion were reversed, we would end up with the human body as the basic unit. The senses are of prime importance in the body; more important than the senses is the mind, then intelligence, and finally the false ego. And more important than the false ego is the real self, a pure spiritual being that is part and parcel of the Supreme Lord, Viṣṇu. Therefore the conclusion is that the fountainhead of everything is Lord Viṣṇu. For this reason Prahlāda Mahārāja said,

Persons who are strongly entrapped by the consciousness of enjoying material life, and who have therefore accepted as their leader or guru a similar blind man attached to external sense objects, cannot understand that the goal of life is to return home, back to Godhead, and engage in the service of Lord Viṣṇu.

Those who lose sight of the center and become attracted to the externals are shallow and misguided. These misguided persons are in a sense blind; hence the world cannot expect them to give any guidance toward enlightenment. However much these blind people may pretend to guide and benefit other blind people, factually they are fully controlled by the will of providence. We should make the effort to understand that the cause and source of everything is Lord Viṣṇu, the Absolute Truth, and that the fullest manifestation of this Absolute Truth is Lord Kṛṣṇa, the source of even Lord Viṣṇu. As Lord Kṛṣṇa says in the Bhagavad-gītā ([[BG 7.7|7.7]]), "O conqueror of wealth, [Arjuna], there is no truth superior to Me."

Thus the ultimate source of everything is indeed Lord Kṛṣṇa Himself, the all-attractive Supreme Personality of Godhead. After considerable deliberation, the sages in the past concluded that Lord Kṛṣṇa is the Supreme Being, the origin of all expansions and manifestations of the Supreme Absolute Truth. As the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam ([[SB 1.3.28|1.3.28]]) declares, "All of the abovementioned incarnations are either plenary portions or portions of the plenary portions of the Lord, but Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa is the original Personality of Godhead..." Later we will discuss more thoroughly the subject of the expansions of Lord Viṣṇu, but for now let us establish that Lord Kṛṣṇa is the highest aspect of the Supreme. The Brahma-saṁhitā (5.1) confirms this: "Kṛṣṇa who is known as Govinda is the Supreme Godhead. He has an eternal blissful spiritual body. He is the origin of all. He has no other origin and He is the prime cause of all causes."

Thus if we can transcend the material body and its physical relationships and become connected with everyone through the Lord Kṛṣṇa, the original Godhead, we can relate on a platform of truth and reality. Then the actual meaning of fraternity and equality will crystalize.

<div style="float:right">[[File:Go-previous.png|link=RTW 1.6]] '''[[RTW 1.6]] - [[RTW 1.8]]''' [[File:Go-next.png|link=RTW 1.8]]</div>
__NOTOC__
__NOEDITSECTION__

RTW 1.5

2017-12-18T09:40:16Z

Jimena:

[[Category:Renunciation Through Wisdom|R15]]
<div style="float:left">[[File:Go-previous.png|link=Renunciation Through Wisdom]] '''[[Renunciation Through Wisdom]], [[RTW 1|1. Bhagavāner-kathā - Knowledge of the Supreme]]'''</div>
<div style="float:right">[[File:Go-previous.png|link=RTW 1.4]] '''[[RTW 1.4]] - [[RTW 1.6]]''' [[File:Go-next.png|link=RTW 1.6]]</div>
{{RandomImage}}

====The Formula for Peace====

Lord Krṣṇa, seeing the distressful condition of the living entities and forseeing their bleak future, spoke the scripture known as Bhagavad-gītā, which contains unequivocal instructions for mankind. These instructions are like the cooling showers of peace on the blazing forest fire of material existence. Ordinary human activities are quite different from the activities recommended in the Śrīmad Bhagavad-gītā; understanding this difference is essential for us. In our times we find many fruitive workers who claim to be karma-yogīs but in fact are seen to enjoy the fruits of their labor. What is needed is not this false karma-yoga but genuine buddhi-yoga, which Lord Kṛṣṇa several times explains in the Bhagavad-gītā. Buddhi-yoga means "devotion to the Supreme Lord." The Lord says in the Gītā ([[BG 10.10|10.10]]), "To those who are constantly devoted to serving Me with love, I give the understanding by which they can come to Me." Elsewhere in the Gītā ([[BG 18.55|18.55]]) the Lord says, "One can understand Me as I am, as the Supreme Personality of Godhead, only by devotional service." Therefore, since buddhi-yoga is the means to attain the Supreme Lord, then buddhi-yoga is nothing other than devotional service. The Supreme Lord is attained through loving devotional service. This fact is well known. Hence the Lord is also known as bhakta-vatsala, "He who is especially inclined toward His devotees."

The course of action one chooses through executing buddhi-yoga is the very means for mankind to attain lasting peace. Such a course of action will enable man to find rest "in the dispensation of providence." We can clearly understand the essence of buddhi-yoga from the Bhagavad-gītā ([[BG 2.39|Chapter 2.39-40]]):

Thus far I have described this knowledge to you through analytical study. Now listen as I explain it in terms of working without fruitive results. O son of Pṛthā, when you act in such knowledge you can free yourself from the bondage of works. In this endeavor there is no loss or diminution, and a little advancement on this path can protect one from the most dangerous type of fear.

The attainment of peace through the process of sāṅkhya-yoga is for the modern man almost impossible. But peace is easily available through the process of buddhi-yoga, or loving devotional service to the Supreme Lord. And this peace is of the highest nature: it far exceeds the happiness experienced through any other process. Activities that are directly connected to devotional service blossom and develop unhindered by anything external. The amount of devotional activity one performs always remains intact; it is a permanent spiritual gain for the performer, never to be rendered futile. Even a little execution of devotional service is enough to save one from the greatest type of fear.

The process of pure devotional service is one. At the same, time the Gītā points out how to execute buddhi-yoga through jñāna, or analytical study, and karma, or fruitive action. When buddhi-yoga is executed in conjunction with fruitive activity, it is known as karma-yoga. Similarly, when it is executed in conjunction with analytical study, then it is called jñāna-yoga. And when buddhi-yoga, or devotional service, transcends both karma-yoga and jñāna-yoga and becomes completely unalloyed, that devotion is called pure bhakti-yoga, or loving devotional service to the Supreme Lord.

The fruitive activities one performs in this world, whether according to social norms or Vedic standards, give different results. Again, by experiencing the fruits of those labors, one creates new sets of activities and their concomitant results, which in turn give rise to newer sets of activities and their results. All these activities and their results cannot automatically be labeled karma-yoga. We can see that the process of performing fruitive actions and experiencing their results is like a mammoth tree sprouting endless branches and twigs. Can the performer of actions who experiences the endless fruits of that mammoth tree ever enjoy peace and benediction? No. Therefore it is said, "In the dispensation of providence, mankind cannot have any rest." Even in this lifetime, one who performs fruitive work is totally entangled in the cycle of karma as he sits on the tree of material existence. As a result, the soul must enter 8,400,000 species and suffer the threefold miseries, never finding any rest or peace.

Yet people find it impossible to renounce fruitive activities. Even the so-called sannyāsīs who make a show of renouncing such activities must still perform many activities, at least to relieve their hunger. Śrīpāda Śaṅkarācārya, seeing the condition of the sannyāsīs during his time, commented, "One takes on many different garbs just to fill one's stomach." And trying to give up all activities is no solution. When Śrī Arjuna, a warrior, wanted to forsake his duty of fighting a war, the Supreme Lord, Kṛṣṇa, advised him, "Perform your prescribed duty, for doing so is better than not working. One cannot even maintain one's physical body without work." ([[BG 3.8|Bhagavad-gītā 3.8]])

A person should never give up his prescribed duty without scriptural authorization, for this will cause chaos in the world. Since it is impossible to maintain the body without activities, it is impossible to totally renounce activities. On the other hand, the tree of material entanglement, which thrives on fruitive activities and their results, can never bring forth any hope for peace. It is for this reason that the Supreme Lord has explained how one is to perform activities:

Work done as a sacrifice for Viṣṇu has to be performed; otherwise work binds one to this material world. Therefore, O son of Kuntī, perform your prescribed duties for His satisfaction, and in this way you will always remain free from bondage. ([[BG 3.9|Bhagavad-gītā 3.9]])

It is another kind of "dispensation of providence" when the fruits of actions do not bind one. To perform all activities only as a sacrifice for the satisfaction of Lord Viṣṇu is true freedom from the results of activities, or the real art of karma-yoga. Through this process of karma-yoga one is freed from the shackles of fruitive results and one's inherent eternal loving devotion for the Supreme Lord gradually manifests. This type of karma-yoga is also referred to as desireless actions, or naiṣkarmya, or in other words activities performed without expectation of any sense gratification. One who works in this way offers all the results of his actions to the Supreme Lord instead of enjoying them himself.

All of us must try to earn whatever money is required to maintain ourselves and our family. Money buys food, and food maintains our body. Without sufficient food, the body becomes weak and useless, and then it cannot generate further means for its sustenance. Which is the cause and which the effect is very difficult to establish. Such is the cycle of fruitive activities. Our material existence birth after birth consists of going round the great cycle of fruitive activity. If, by the mercy of the Supreme Lord or His pure representative, a fortunate soul caught in the midst of this turning wheel can understand his distressful condition, he begins to perform activities that will free him from this bondage.

<div style="float:right">[[File:Go-previous.png|link=RTW 1.4]] '''[[RTW 1.4]] - [[RTW 1.6]]''' [[File:Go-next.png|link=RTW 1.6]]</div>
__NOTOC__
__NOEDITSECTION__

RTW 1.4

2017-12-18T09:39:14Z

Jimena:

[[Category:Renunciation Through Wisdom|R14]]
<div style="float:left">[[File:Go-previous.png|link=Renunciation Through Wisdom]] '''[[Renunciation Through Wisdom]], [[RTW 1|1. Bhagavāner-kathā - Knowledge of the Supreme]]'''</div>
<div style="float:right">[[File:Go-previous.png|link=RTW 1.3]] '''[[RTW 1.3]] - [[RTW 1.5]]''' [[File:Go-next.png|link=RTW 1.5]]</div>
{{RandomImage}}

====The Cause of the Demoniac Mentality====

There are numerous causes of the demoniac mentality, but in this essay we shall broadly delve into only three: lust, anger, and greed. In the Bhagavad-gītā ([[BG 16.21|16.21]]) Lord Kṛṣṇa describes these three characteristics as destroyers of the self-portals leading to hell.

The Supreme Personality of Godhead is the sole proprietor and enjoyer of everything. When the living entities forget this fact, they develop an intense desire to enjoy this phenomenal world. But they cannot be fully satisfied by such endeavors, and thus anger develops. Anger causes frustration, as in the story of the unsuccessful fox and the "sour grapes." The living entity is then forced to pretend to be a renouncer. But at the bottom of such renunciation burns the great flame of greed and the desire for enjoyment. This is only another stage of material desire. Therefore, unless one transcends this stage of acceptance and rejection of physical pleasures and becomes situated on the platform of the eternal self, one cannot understand the sublime message of the Lord. And without this understanding, one will continue to cultivate the demoniac mentality.

The only method by which one can elevate himself form the depths of demoniac depravity to the path of self-realization is to learn the injunctions of the scriptures and act accordingly. Chaotic and undisciplined activities contrary to scriptural instructions are actions performed out of lust. It is not possible to eradicate anger and greed through such acts of lust; nor is it possible to experience true happiness and divine elevation. Therefore if we wish to find the path to spiritual upliftment and eternal peace—the need for which is expressed in the lament "In the dispensation of providence, mankind cannot have any rest"—revealed scriptures are our only guide. Simply by executing the injunctions of the scriptures, we can become free from acts of lust and chaotic living.

At present we are living in the thick of Kali-yuga. The people of this age are mostly short-lived, misguided, unfortunate and always tormented by disease and distress. Therefore it is not easy for them to appreciate the words of the scriptures. The followers of the world's various religions—Hindus, Muslims, Christians, Buddhists, and so on—are transgressing the scriptural injunctions of their own faiths to varying degrees and living as they like. Many people, far from following scriptural injunctions, ridicule the sacred texts and thus gradually slide down to a demoniac life of unrestricted sense enjoyment. The Supreme Lord and His devotees are very much concerned about the deliverance of these conditioned souls afflicted by the ill influence of Kali-yuga. The devotees, or Vaiṣṇavas, are the most compassionate, saintly souls, and thus they ardently desire to deliver the fallen living entities. The Supreme Lord always responds to the desires of these Vaiṣṇavas, and so He answers their prayers for the salvation of these suffering souls of Kali-yuga.

Seeing the miserable condition of the living entities in the Kali-yuga, Lord Caitanya, the savior of the fallen souls, has expounded a method for their salvation. This method is taken from the scriptures and is applicable to everyone. In previous ages, one could study the Vedas and purify oneself by living according to those instructions. But it is impossible for the present population to properly execute scriptural injunctions, which includes strictly following vows of celibacy. One who is extremely degraded and sinful cannot find the accurate path to realization by studying the Vedas. It is a waste of time even to explain the meaning of the Vedas to such persons, who are devoid of proper up-bringing and discipline. Lord Caitanya has indeed showered His mercy upon these Kali-yuga people. So there is no doubt that those who are unable even to receive this mercy from Lord Caitanya are forever bereft of saving grace. As for those fortunate souls who, after realizing the greatness of Lord Caitanya's mercy, have accepted it—they have escaped the punishments of māyā, or "the dispensation of providence." But for those who have agreed to come under the influence of the cycle of karmic reactions and are being pummeled about by māyā, the Supreme Lord has arranged the process of karma-yoga, or fruitive activities with the aim of sacrifice to the Supreme Lord.

The learned sages say that the living entities go through 8,400,000 species of life. There are 900,000 aquatic species; 2,000,000 plants, mountains, and other nonmoving species; 1,100,000 insect and worm species; 1,000,000 bird species; 3,000,000 animal species; and 400,000 human species. After passing through all these species, the soul is finally born as a human being in Bhārata-varṣa, India. He achieves this birth by gradually awakening his consciousness. Many millions of years flash by as the soul goes through each of the above-mentioned species of life. So, even after all this, if the soul, despite being born as a human being in India, continues to be subjugated by māyā and goes round in the whirlpool of "the dispensation of providence," then there is no limit to his misfortune. Śrīla Kṛṣṇadāsa Kavirāj has therefore written,

:bhārata-bhūmite haila manuṣya-janma yāra
:janma sārthaka kari' kara para-upakāra
:([[CC Adi 9.41|CC Ādi 9.41]])

One who has take his birth as a human being in the land of India (Bhārata-varṣa) should make his life successful and work for the benefit of all other people.

Human beings can perfect their lives by following in the footsteps of those great sages of India who have all along shown the proper path. The reason for this is simple: Nowhere else can we find an example of the manner in which the sages of India have endeavored to find absolute cessation of māyā's attack and to become an eternal dust particle of the Supreme Lord's lotus feet. In other countries, especially in the Occident, tremendous progress has been a made in the various fields of material science—but it is all based on the material mind and body, which are creations of māyā, the illusory potency. It is for this reason that the Westerners lament, "In the dispensation of providence, man cannot have any rest." At present, the Indians have similarly taken to the path of self-destruction by aping the Western ways. The have discarded and desecrated their own culture and have become beggars at another's door. They are now flying their flag of independence, but this is also a dispensation of māyā. Factually, they cannot gain anything from it. The Occident has never delved into the three stages in the development of the eternal relationship between the infinitesimal soul and the infinite Supreme Whole. These stages are, first, the initial contact with the Supreme Lord and the re-awakening of one's relationship with him; second, the execution of the means to achieve one's eternal relationship with Him; and finally, the blossoming of that relationship into one of love and total dependence of the soul upon the Lord.

Although Western people have brilliantly developed in mundane matters, they are tossed about in a sea of despair and listlessness. Similarly, the Indians, although trying to feel grateful for their mundane development, are experiencing the same listlessness and dissatisfaction. Strangely enough, now the Western thinkers are looking toward India to find peace and calm. We can safely harbor the firm conviction that soon the message of peace will reach their ears.

<div style="float:right">[[File:Go-previous.png|link=RTW 1.3]] '''[[RTW 1.3]] - [[RTW 1.5]]''' [[File:Go-next.png|link=RTW 1.5]]</div>
__NOTOC__
__NOEDITSECTION__

RTW 1.3

2017-12-18T09:38:48Z

Jimena:

[[Category:Renunciation Through Wisdom|R13]]
<div style="float:left">[[File:Go-previous.png|link=Renunciation Through Wisdom]] '''[[Renunciation Through Wisdom]], [[RTW 1|1. Bhagavāner-kathā - Knowledge of the Supreme]]'''</div>
<div style="float:right">[[File:Go-previous.png|link=RTW 1.2]] '''[[RTW 1.2]] - [[RTW 1.4]]''' [[File:Go-next.png|link=RTW 1.4]]</div>
{{RandomImage}}

====The Godless Demons====

The grossly materialistic demons are so completely bereft of spiritual knowledge that although at every moment they perceive the transience of the material body, all their activities center on the body. They are unable to understand that the soul within the body is the permanent and essential substance and that the body is mutable and temporary. Becoming first enamoured of then deluded by vivartavāda (the theory of evolution), they conclude that the entire cosmic body also lacks a Soul. Since the fallacious theory they apply to their own physical existence leads them to reject any research into the existence of a soul residing within the body, they fail to perceive the presence of the Supersoul within the gigantic body of the cosmic manifestation. They falsely conclude that the body is everything, that there is nothing beyond it; similarly, they think that the material creation, which is the universal body, is factually governed only by the laws of nature. Any discussion on this subject is invariably put to premature death by their insistence that nature is the be—all and end—all. The more intelligent among them carry this discussion a little further and postulate that impersonalism is the quintessence of everything. But far beyond this realm of manifest and unmanifest material nature is the transcendental and eternal state. The atheists, however, are characteristically unable to believe in its existence.

In this way, with their perverted minds bereft of far-sightedness, demoniac men perform activities that bring only misery to the people. And as a result of many such unwanted activities, the atom bomb was discovered. The endless plans these demoniac men chalk out can never bode well for humanity. In the past, Rāvaṇa attempted to build a stairway to heaven, claiming this was for humanity's benefit. Actually, he was trying to cheat the Supreme Lord, Rāmacandra. But he was unsuccessful. History repeats itself, for now we find that Rāvaṇa's descendants are attempting to cheat the Lord in the name of planning to benefit society. The thing to take note of is that no demon will compliment other demons' plans. Every demon will declare that since his plan is the most wonderful, all others must vote for him. Then an opponent will say that in actuality his plan is the best and hence he should rightfully be given all the votes. In this age of votes, the fighting over who is to actually get the votes has untimely broken all the stairways to heaven. If one calmly considers the facts, one will easily conclude that all these plans manufactured by the perverted brains of the demons, with their myopic vision, can never bring peace in the world. Of course, in one matter all the demons readily agree, and that is to surreptitiously enjoy Lakṣmī, the goddess of fortune and eternal consort of the Supreme Lord, without the knowledge of the Lord Himself.

Every demon is vainly proud, thinking no one is more intelligent and esteemed than himself. Therefore the overpowering desires that urge him on to perform various activities are, according to him, ultimately beneficial for human society. In the end, of course, it is inevitably revealed that all his aspirations were illusory and unrealistic. Yet despite this revelation, the demons continue to influence the populace through manipulations and lies.

There are no limits to the imagination of these unclean and deluded demons. They pose as self-styled leaders and endlessly worry about the welfare of society. They worry, for example, about where to lodge the people who come to purchase in the marketplace. What they actually think about is how to make foolproof arrangements to secure their own long-lasting enjoyment, along with their children's, their grandchildren's, and their great-grandchildren's enjoyment, up to the final dissolution of the world. But when they experience suffering instead of pleasure, the demons revert to violence against their fellow men to accumulate wealth. Their material desires are insatiable, and so even billions of dollars cannot appease them. Whoever is expert in illegally amassing huge fortunes becomes the top dog. The demons are full of hate, greed, anger, lust, etc., and they are tireless in their efforts to illicitly amass great wealth merely to gratify their sensual urges. On the other hand, their competitors are no less expert in cheating them of their black wealth. How can such ruthless competition aimed at stealing one another's illegally-earned money bring about peace and prosperity? Hence the demons can never help the person who laments, "In the dispensation of providence, man cannot have any rest."

The demon is always ruminating on how to increase their bank balance: "Today the stocks have gone up, and so also have my profits. Tomorrow, if these other commodities become dearer, my bank balance will further increase. And so my future looks bright and prosperous." The demon continues to think, but now on a slightly different subject: "One of my enemies has already been destroyed, and another one is soon to meet his end. This puts me in a more secure position. So now that I have become adept at eliminating my enemies, I am God Almighty. Why must one look in search of God? Hundreds of 'Gods' are floating right before your eyes." Such thoughts and actions make the demons more and more atheistic, and thus they refuse to hear the transcendental message of God. They proudly declare, "Who is God? Why, I am God! When I can illegally manipulate funds and become so wealthy that I can enjoy everything in this world, then I am indeed Almighty God. I am strong and happy and accomplished. Those who are weaklings, without money and means, must respect me as God. What is the use of crying after any other God?"

The demons are under the impression that no one is more wealthy and popular than themselves. They think that their wealth will somehow be protected by some spirit, and in this way they are deluded. Their final destination is hell.

The few religious deeds that the demons perform are merely a show; they are meant only to flatter their false ego and bring them more recognition and respect. They perform them only for their own sense enjoyment and are invariably acts of violence. The demons engage in these rituals without following the scriptural injunctions, merely to appease their vainglory.

Strutting with false pride, strength, anger, lust, and so on, the demons become totally absorbed in bodily consciousness, thinking "This is my body. I am Indian, Bengali, and so on. He is a Muslim; he is a Hindu; he is a German." In this way they perpetrate acts of violence on others. The Supreme Lord repeatedly puts these most abominable, wretched sinners into the most distressful conditions, constantly punishing them with His stringent laws of nature, or daivī māyā. Thus taking repeated births as demons, these reprobates can never appreciate the transcendental pastimes, names, beauty, and so on, of the Supreme Lord. Gradually cultivating the impersonal knowledge of the Absolute, they are destined to suffer the worst possible life.

<div style="float:right">[[File:Go-previous.png|link=RTW 1.2]] '''[[RTW 1.2]] - [[RTW 1.4]]''' [[File:Go-next.png|link=RTW 1.4]]</div>
__NOTOC__
__NOEDITSECTION__

RTW 2.11

2017-12-18T09:37:23Z

Jimena:

[[Category:Renunciation Through Wisdom|R29.1]]
<div style="float:left">[[File:Go-previous.png|link=Renunciation Through Wisdom]] '''[[Renunciation Through Wisdom]], [[RTW 2|2. Bhakti-kathā - The Science of Devotion]]'''</div>
<div style="float:right">[[File:Go-previous.png|link=RTW 2.10]] '''[[RTW 2.10]] - [[RTW 2.12]]''' [[File:Go-next.png|link=RTW 2.12]]</div>
{{RandomImage}}

====Offering a Leaf, a Flower, a Fruit, or a Little Water====

One should always keep in mind that it is unnecessary to worship anyone but Lord Kṛṣṇa. Especially in this Age of Kali it is impossible to perform opulent sacrifices and worship. Of late, it has become a popular practise to publicly worship demigods with great pomp. Such worship is conducted whimsically, without following the scriptural rules. It is an excuse for people in the mode of ignorance to engage in base sense enjoyment and fiendish revelry. No ethics are maintained, no arrangements made for sumptuous public feasting, no authorized mantras chanted, no proper offerings made to the deities. These occasions are simply an excuse for wild singing, dancing, and misbehaving. All such worship is unauthorized.

Therefore intelligent people will follow the process of the congregational chanting of the holy names of God and in this way worship Lord Gaurāṅga who is Kṛṣṇa Himself with a golden complexion. Worshiping Lord Kṛṣṇa is not an expensive affair, and worshiping Lord Caitanya is even easier and less expensive than worshiping Lord Kṛṣṇa. The reason is that the little effort taken to collect a leaf, a flower, a fruit, or some water for the worship of Lord Kṛṣṇa is not even required in Lord Caitanya's worship. But in any case, both the Supreme Lords can be worshiped easily in any country, in any condition, by anyone—be he foolish or wise, sinful or pious, highborn or lowborn, rich or poor. Thus we find Lord Kṛṣṇa saying in the Bhagavad-gītā ([[BG 9.26|9.26]]),

:patraṁ puṣpaṁ phalaṁ toyaṁ
:yo me bhaktyā prayacchati
:tad ahaṁ bhakty-upahṛtam
:aśnāmi prayatātmanaḥ

If one offers Me with love and devotion a leaf, a flower, a fruit, or water, I will accept it.

Once the Supreme Lord is satisfied, the entire world is automatically satisfied, for by worshiping Him, one worships everyone else. Just as an entire tree-branches, leaves, and so on—receives water once the root of the tree is watered, so when the Lord Kṛṣṇa is worshiped and satisfied, then all the demigods and human beings are worshiped and satisfied.

There is no mention anywhere that worship of Lord Kṛṣṇa has to be conducted with large expenditures and pomp. Nor is there any restriction of time, place, or circumstance. Just as everyone has the right to bathe in the Ganges, so everyone has the right to serve Lord Kṛṣṇa. Flowers, fruit, leaves, and water are available everywhere. Even a pauper can arrange to find these four things with very little effort and at no cost. Thus the process of worshiping Lord Kṛṣṇa is so simple that anyone from anywhere can participate.

Lord Kṛṣṇa is unborn, yet He can accept any form imaginable. And because He is the supreme father of every living being, anyone—whether a high-born brāhmaṇa or a social outcast—can offer Him a flower, a fruit, a leaf, and water with love and devotion. Then Lord Kṛṣṇa, the cause of all causes, will accept this offering, and by such spiritual activity the worshipper becomes eligible to enter His eternal abode. Who could be more foolish than the person who rejects this easy and joyful process and, becoming captivated by the mirage of material existence and craving for temporary mundane facilities, takes shelter of demigods? Recent times have witnessed a concerted and noble effort on all fronts to bring about unity, peace, and harmony in the world, but these are possible only when people worship Lord Kṛṣṇa and render Him devotional service.

Such a proposal is neither preposterous nor comic. In fact, if someone is a sincere seeker of the Absolute Truth, then whatever his present situation may be, by regularly offering the Supreme Lord flowers, fruit, leaves, and water with love and devotion, he will readily experience that the Supreme Absolute Truth, Lord Kṛṣṇa, is gradually coming nearer to him. We humbly request all our readers to kindly try this excellent method of approaching Lord Kṛṣṇa's lotus feet. This method requires no monetary expenditure, physical exertion, philosophical knowledge, or noble birth.

The differences between a demigod-worshipper and a devotee of Lord Kṛṣṇa are wide and numerous. In general, persons approach demigods only out of temporary material desires, whereas the devotees aim to re-establish their eternal loving relationship with the Supreme Lord. To that end the devotees offer Him worship, gifts, and anything they can collect, together with love and devotion, and the Lord accepts all these with relish. Such devotional offerings are free of any cravings for material benefit.

By contrast, the polytheists' offerings, which are laden with selfish motivations for material gain, are never accepted by the Supreme Lord, even if these offerings are opulent and elaborate. The demigod-worshippers have no real love or devotion for the particular demigod they worship, yet Lord Kṛṣṇa is so merciful that He fulfills the material desires of the foolish demigod worshippers.

Lord Kṛṣṇa never accepts any offering bereft of love and devotion. A person who is not hungry cannot suddenly develop an appetite, even if he is given delectable food. Similarly, the Lord has no attraction for opulent offerings made without love and devotion. We have already discussed that unauthorized worship of the Supreme Lord stems from the absence of devotion and the presence of material desire. One who is full of devotion aims to satisfy the Supreme Lord's senses, while one who is full of material desire aims to gratify his own senses. Those who carry in their hearts the desire to gratify themselves but make a show of serving the Supreme Lord will never experience the joys of being a real devotee. The scriptures have aptly described them as mercenaries. Devotion's prime objective is the attainment of God. Therefore, one must offer the Lord everything in one's possession, including the results of karma-yoga, jñāna-yoga, mystic yoga, austerity, meditation, and so on. This perfect process of surrender will lead to the attainment of God. Thus Lord Kṛṣṇa openly proclaims in the Bhagavad-gītā ([[BG 9.27|9.27]]),

:yat karoṣi yad aśnāsi
:yaj juhoṣi dadāsi yat
:yat tapasyasi kaunteya
:tat kuruṣva mad-arpaṇam

Whatever you do, whatever you eat, whatever you offer or give away, and whatever austerity you perform-do that, O son of Kuntī, as an offering to Me.

If a person follows this injunction and with love offers the Lord everything he has-wife, house, family, intelligence, learning, business, religiosity, labor, food, water, whatever is required to maintain the body, and even lust, greed, and anger—then the Lord accepts these offerings and completely satisfies the offerer. And at the time of death the Lord takes such a surrendered soul to His Supreme abode.

The demigods are empowered to accept only certain types of offerings, whereas Lord Kṛṣṇa can accept the karma-phala, or fruitive results, of everyone. The Supreme Lord alone is powerful enough to accept conflicting fruitive results and moods of worship. This indicates Kṛṣṇa's supreme lordship and absolute position. It is unlikely that all of humanity will be able to understand the science of pure devotional service, yet everyone always has the ability to attain the Lord's lotus feet, even in the face of striking odds. Therefore the best course is to offer everything to the Supreme Lord.

All the points we have discussed regarding niṣkāma-karma are mentioned in detail in the scriptures. Paṇḍitas define niṣkāma-karma as "activities free from the desire for fruitive gain or empirical knowledge." Only such transcendental activities can be offered to Lord Kṛṣṇa. But all activities—whether verbal, physical, or mental—are transcendental if offered to the Lord with love and devotion. And He duly receives these offerings by His causeless mercy.

However, at this juncture we must avoid committing a mistake. Our present discussion does not include the materialistic caste brāhmaṇas' offering of oblations or fruitive work to Lord Nārāyaṇa. Because such offerings are not devoid of lust, there is no love or devotion in them. We have earlier established that the main criterion for a proper offering to the Lord is that it be done with love and devotion, for the satisfaction of His senses. Hence we must understand that only those things or services offered solely for the pleasure of the Supreme Lord are actually accepted by Him.

Exerting oneself to satisfy one's own hunger is kāma-karma, fruitive activity, but to tirelessly toil to feed the Supreme Lord with delicacies is niṣkāma-karma, transcendental work aimed at pleasing Him. Pleasing the Lord should be the sole purpose of commerce and trade, and also of research, science, charity, austerity, and all other activities. Such a practice will inspire one to hear and chant transcendental topics related to Lord Kṛṣṇa, and this hearing and chanting are the foremost of the ninefold devotional activities. In Vedic times, all human activities were strongly affiliated with devotional service to the Supreme Lord. Today the same eternal principle applies: everything must be utilized in the Lord's service.

Lord Kṛṣṇa is the supreme enjoyer of all sacrifices. Thus He accepts the fruits of everyone's labor, and by so doing He crowns all His devotees' endeavors with glowing success. Such is the transcendental potency possessed by the omnipotent Lord. We must pay careful heed, however, never to allow the desire for self-aggrandizement or sense gratification to surreptitiously slip into our consciousness while we are performing devotional service. We should simply follow in the footsteps of the previous spiritual masters. In the Lord's presence, everyone is equal. Therefore, whoever serves the Lord with unwavering single-mindedness is listed among His close associates. They are truly "hari-janas," Lord Hari's own men. To rubber-stamp as a hari-jana a person who does not possess the prerequisite—devotional service—is a farce and an onerous hindrance on the path of devotional surrender.

Lord Kṛṣṇa says in the Bhagavad-gītā ([[BG 9.29|9.29]]),

:samo 'haṁ sarva-bhūteṣu
:na me dveṣyo 'sti na priyaḥ
:ye bhajanti tu māṁ bhaktyā
:mayi te teṣu cāpy aham

I envy no one, nor am I partial to anyone. I am equal to all. But whoever renders service unto Me in devotion is a friend, is in Me and I am also a friend to him.

One must not misunderstand the meaning of the word samaḥ, "equal." It does not mean that the Lord is impersonal and that He will bless any whimsical act, even unruly behaviour. The Lord is absolutely personal, the reservoir of divine sentiments, the supreme performer of transcendental pastimes. And He is the well-wishing friend of all living beings. But friendship has different degrees of intimacy. Thus the Lord's equal disposition is not without varieties of personalism. In other words, the Lord reciprocates with us according to our intensity of love for Him. In the Gītā ([[BG 4.11|4.11]]) He says, ye yathā māṁ prapadyante tāṁs tathaiva bhajāmy aham: "As all surrender unto Me, I reward them accordingly." He responds to all the different devotional mellows—servitorship, fraternity, parental affection, and conjugal love. Similarly, he ignores those who disrespect Him by regarding Him as an ordinary mortal. Conversely, He always shelters and protects those who accept Him as the Supreme Lord and serve Him with loving devotion, following in the footsteps of past saintly masters.

<div style="float:right">[[File:Go-previous.png|link=RTW 2.10]] '''[[RTW 2.10]] - [[RTW 2.12]]''' [[File:Go-next.png|link=RTW 2.12]]</div>
__NOTOC__
__NOEDITSECTION__

RTW 2.10

2017-12-18T09:37:18Z

Jimena:

[[Category:Renunciation Through Wisdom|R29.0]]
<div style="float:left">[[File:Go-previous.png|link=Renunciation Through Wisdom]] '''[[Renunciation Through Wisdom]], [[RTW 2|2. Bhakti-kathā - The Science of Devotion]]'''</div>
<div style="float:right">[[File:Go-previous.png|link=RTW 2.9]] '''[[RTW 2.9]] - [[RTW 2.11]]''' [[File:Go-next.png|link=RTW 2.11]]</div>
{{RandomImage}}

====The Supreme Lord: Lover of His Devotees====

Members of the so-called educated class ask, "If one is busy all the time rendering devotional service to Lord Kṛṣṇa, how is one to maintain himself and his family?" The so-called educated men think only a fool would be blind to his immediate physical needs and uselessly waste his time in devotional service so he could rise to the platform of a mahātmā. In fact, they think that a real mahātmā is he who strives to improve his material facilities from good to better. They say that it is because of the economists' poor planning that the world is facing a major crisis in food production. Both the economists and their critics should turn to the Bhagavad-gītā ([[BG 9.22|9.22]]) and hear what Lord Kṛṣṇa has to say on this subject:

:ananyāś cintayanto māṁ
:ye janāḥ paryupāsate
:teṣāṁ nityābhiyuktānāṁ
:yoga-kṣemaṁ vahāmy aham

But those who always worship Me with exclusive devotion, meditating on My transcendental form - to them I carry what they lack, and I preserve what they have.

It is relevant to mention here how in the Western world one atheistic government tried to induce the innocent citizens to embrace atheistic views. The government sent their propagandists to proselytize the people in the villages. They asked the innocent villagers, "Why do you all go to church? What do you pray to God for?" The villagers simply answered, "God gives us food." The atheists then led the villagers to the church and asked them to pray to God for food. The villagers, of simple faith, began to pray to God. At the end of their prayers, the officials asked them if they had received food or not. Bewildered, the people shook their heads. The atheists then asked the villagers to pray to them for food, which they did. Immediately, with a look of triumph, the atheists brought out baskets of bread. The villagers became happy and thought that the government representatives were more responsive and productive than God.

Alas! If only a devotee of the Lord had been present there, the villagers' devotion would not have been molested. The neophyte devotees' tender devotion is always susceptible to damage. But bread, after all, does came from God, and not from the atheists. If those villagers had been more conversant with the scriptures, the atheists would never have been successful in their evil plan. The simple villagers were illiterate, and hence they had no idea that the Supreme Lord alone can give them food. If the earth did not produce grain, then the atheists, despite their advanced material science, could never make bread or other foods.

Many may claim that in the modern age material scientists have helped increase agricultural yield. But we fearlessly proclaim that it is precisely such atheistic views that have brought the world to the present acute food crisis. If we are not careful, the day will soon come when fruits will be reduced to just skin and seed, cows' udders will dry up, and paddy fields will grow only grass. The scriptures predict that these things will come to pass in the Kali-yuga.

In reality, the Supreme Lord is always protecting us. The inmates of a prison are being punished by the government, yet the same government feeds them and looks after them. Similarly, sinful, atheistic people, though punished by the Lord's illusory energy (māyā personified as Durgā-devī), are still fed and cared - for by the Lord Himself. And if the Supreme Lord feeds and maintains even the worst sinners, reprobates, and helpless souls, then what to speak of those who are eternally surrendered to His lotus feet? He is like a king who takes proper care of his subjects, but who especially looks after the needs of his near and dear relatives. Therefore it is not true that a comfortable life can be enjoyed only by those who perform ordinary pious activities, but not by the devotees, who are free from fruitive action and empirical knowledge. The devotees do not always suffer, for the Supreme Lord personally takes care of them. The devotees are the Lord's relatives and family members. Just as ordinary people feel joy and satisfaction when they look after the needs and comforts of their family, the Lord also feels pleasure when he tends to the well-being of His devotees. Thus the Supreme Lord is known as Bhakta-vatsala, "the maintainer of the devotees." But He is never referred to as Karmī-vatsala, "the maintainer of fruitive workers," or Jñānī-vatsala, "the maintainer of empiric philosophers."

The devotees of the Lord fully depend on Him for everything, and so whatever they do to maintain themselves and their family is favorable to devotional surrender. Such pure souls are always fixed in devotion, never wasting a moment in activities outside the Lord's service. They are not assailed by materialistic desires, because everything they do is for the Lord's pleasure. Hence they alone are truly peaceful.

The devotee himself arranges for all expenditures incurred in executing devotional service. To an ordinary eye, earning and spending money in this way may look like sense enjoyment. But when the devotee is devoid of all material desires, the Supreme Lord feels great satisfaction in fulfilling all his needs. Though the obedient son may never express his wants to his father, the loving father spontaneously tries to make his son happy and derives joy from doing so. Therefore the Lord's devotees never lack anything, even materially, and at the end of this life, after leaving the body, they are situated in eternal bliss. This is the transcendental wealth a devotee inherits. Others - the fruitive workers, empiric philosophers, demigod-worshippers, and mystic yogīs - cannot attain eternal bliss.

Although Lord Kṛṣṇa is equally disposed toward all, He is nonetheless especially concerned about His devotees' well-being. However, one should not conclude that the Lord is nepotistic. As He declares in the Bhagavad-gītā ([[BG 4.11|4.11]]), ye yathā māṁ prapadyante tāṁs tathaiva bhajāmy aham: "As all surrender unto Me, I reward them accordingly." Though the devotees are desireless and undemanding, the Lord always sees to their requirements. The devotees are ever-joyful upon receiving such grace from the Lord, and there is no offence or sin in accepting His benedictions.

Here one may pose a question: "Why do only the devotees of Lord Kṛṣṇa attain to His transcendental abode? After all, the demigods are simply energies of Lord Kṛṣṇa, and the scriptural conclusion is that the energy and the energetic are nondifferent. Therefore, why can't those who worship the demigods, Kṛṣṇa's energies, attain to the transcendental abode of the Lord?"

In reply, let us first refer to what Lord Kṛṣṇa Himself says on this subject in the Bhagavad-gītā ([[BG 9.23|9.23]]):

:ye 'py anya-devatā bhaktā
:yajanti Śraddhayānvitāḥ
:te 'pi mām eva kaunteya
:yajanty avidhi-pūrvakam

Those who are devotees of other gods and who worship them with faith actually worship only Me, O son of Kuntī, but they do so in a wrong way.

People worship demigods to fulfill temporary material desires, and the results they achieve from such worship are equally temporary and material. But if one worships the demigods with the knowledge that they are the Supreme Lord's energies, then this worship is accepted as authorized, and gradually such a worshipper becomes a devotee of Lord Kṛṣṇa, the Supreme Godhead. But if one worships the demigods with the idea that they are on an equal level with Lord Kṛṣṇa, then such worship is unauthorized, because Lord Kṛṣṇa is the Supreme Personality of Godhead, unequalled and unsurpassed. Therefore no demigod can exist independent of Lord Kṛṣṇa. Lord Kṛṣṇa is just like a king, and the demigods are like his ministers. The minister may sit on a throne and manage state affairs, but he is not independent: his powers come from the king.

By virtue of being the Supreme Absolute Truth, Lord Kṛṣṇa is eternally full of knowledge and bliss, beyond this material world. In the material world we often compare one person with another in terms of their position and power, and so we can rightly say that in comparison with human beings, the demigods are very highly placed. But there is no comparison between the Supreme Lord and the demigods, who are simply living entities belonging to the category as humans. Living entities, or jīvas, belong to the Lord's marginal potency, which emanates from His transcendental, internal potency. Therefore anyone who considers the demigods to be independent Supreme Gods is speculating and is totally wrong, because as jīvas they are invested only with temporary powers and position.

If a highly placed servant in the king's court is mistakenly honored as the king, that does not mean the king becomes the servant and vice versa. Similarly, Lord Kṛṣṇa is the only Supreme Person, and everyone else is His servant. The Brahma-saṁhitā clearly explains the relationship between Lord Kṛṣṇa and the demigods. There are numerous proofs that beings who are in the category of viṣṇu-tattva-supreme personalities on the level of Lord Viṣṇu - are the highest absolute beings. The Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam confirms this truth by proclaiming that of all kinds of worship, worship of Lord Viṣṇu, or Kṛṣṇa, is the most elevated.

In India, the Hindus worship many gods - the sun-god, the moon-god, and so on. But the rituals of worship always begin with the worship of Lord Viṣṇu, and in the end everything is offered to Lord Viṣṇu's lotus feet because He is the Supreme Personality of Godhead. A brāhmaṇa, a member of the priestly class, must start every ritual of worship by invoking Lord Viṣṇu as the Supreme Being; otherwise all his worship and rituals will be rendered useless. This same Lord Viṣṇu is, in fact, a partial expansion of Lord Kṛṣṇa, who is the ultimate cause of all causes and the original Supreme Lord. Therefore Lord Kṛṣṇa is the receiver of all oblations and sacrifices and is the ultimate benefactor of all worship. As He says in the Bhagavad-gītā ([[BG 9.24|9.24]]),

:ahaṁ hi sarva-yajñānāṁ
:bhoktā ca prabhur eva ca
:na tu mām abhijānanti
:tattvenātaś cyavanti te

I am the only enjoyer and master of all sacrifices. Therefore, those who do not recognize My true transcendental nature fall down.

At the time of worshiping the demigods, the reason for placing Lord Nārāyaṇa, or Kṛṣṇa, on the throne as the supreme enjoyer of the ritual or sacrifice is that the various demigods also worship Him and offer Him sacrifices. Therefore He is the Lord and master of all sacrifices. The Supreme Lord fulfills the desires of the demigod-worshippers through the agency of the demigods, but because the demigod-worshippers are ignorant of the Supreme Lord's transcendental position, their unauthorized demigod-worship leads them to confusion and illusion.

Demigod-worshippers often try to rationalize their worship of the demigods by thinking, "I am a devotee of this demigod, so he will certainly shower his grace upon me and fulfill all my heart's desires. Hence he is indeed the Supreme Lord." But the authorized scriptures condemn such demigod-worshippers and their worship as unethical and philosophically wrong. Such worshippers cannot understand that Kṛṣṇa is the Supreme Lord, the ultimate source of all energies. The demigods are in fact manifestations of the Lord's energies, though to the illusioned demigod worshippers they appear to be the ultimate object of their worship and devotion. Those who persist in this misunderstanding will never attain the Absolute Truth. On the other hand, those who worship the demigods strictly according to scriptural injunctions quickly realize that their object of worship is subordinate to the Supreme Lord, Kṛṣṇa. With this realization, their illusion is destroyed and they take shelter of Lord Kṛṣṇa's lotus feet.

<div style="float:right">[[File:Go-previous.png|link=RTW 2.9]] '''[[RTW 2.9]] - [[RTW 2.11]]''' [[File:Go-next.png|link=RTW 2.11]]</div>
__NOTOC__
__NOEDITSECTION__

RTW 2.12

2017-12-18T09:34:16Z

Jimena:

[[Category:Renunciation Through Wisdom|R29.2]]
<div style="float:left">[[File:Go-previous.png|link=Renunciation Through Wisdom]] '''[[Renunciation Through Wisdom]], [[RTW 2|2. Bhakti-kathā - The Science of Devotion]]'''</div>
<div style="float:right">[[File:Go-previous.png|link=RTW 2.11]] '''[[RTW 2.11]] - [[RTW 2.13]]''' [[File:Go-next.png|link=RTW 2.13]]</div>
{{RandomImage}}

====Give Up all Kinds of Religion and Surrender unto Me====

The so-called progressive modern civilization has produced reprobate human beings, whose sins have been accumulating over many lifetimes. Yet if they surrender to Lord Kṛṣṇa, even they will have all their sins eradicated forever. The process of devotional service and remembrance of Lord Kṛṣṇa will gradually dissipate unwanted, base desires from within their hearts. And those hearts, which previously sheltered immoral yearnings will become fully cleansed and auspicious.

The sinful and the destitute can understand their mistakes and misfortune only by Lord Kṛṣṇa's mercy. Once they begin to repent for their sins and surrender to the Lord, they are saved; they become purified and start manifesting saintly characteristics. And if even after a person takes to the devotional process some vestige of immorality remains in his character, that also will soon be eradicated by the Lord's grace. The single-minded devotee who never offends the Supreme Lord or His devotees is to be considered a saintly soul. Even if it seems that such a saint is not yet rid of all sinful propensities, he will never be destroyed, as are the yogīs and karmīs in a similar situation. This the Supreme Lord Himself has declared.

The Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam's account of the deliverance of Ajāmila conclusively proves this fact. Once undeviating faith in devotional service to Lord Kṛṣṇa penetrates a person's heart, the process of purification is firmly underway, even though his external activities may show residues of sin. Lord Kṛṣṇa has boldly broadcast in the Bhagavad-gītā ([[BG 9.31|9.31]]) His promise that His surrendered devotees can never be vanquished: kaunteya pratijānīhi na me bhaktaḥ praṇaśyati. That Lord Kṛṣṇa will always protect His devotees is proved in this verse, especially since the Lord, instead of declaring the promise Himself, asks the valiant prince Arjuna to do so on His behalf. The Lord may break His own promise, but because He is favorable to His devotees, He will always try to uphold their promises. By breaking His own promise and keeping Bhīṣmadeva's on the battlefield of Kurukṣetra, the Lord has proved beyond a doubt that He favors His surrendered devotees .

A brāhmaṇa or someone of noble birth endowed with beauty, wealth, and learning may fallaciously conclude that elimination of degraded habits still visible in a devotee can occur only in the case of a brāhmaṇa like Ajāmila. Ajāmila was a brāhmaṇa by birth, but on account of sinful activities caused by bad reactions from his past life, he began performing abominable activities. At the end of his life, however, his remembrance of the Supreme Lord absolved him of all sins. But deliverance is possible for everyone, not just those of high birth. Even the lowest people, who are naturally given to base activities, can reach the spiritual abode of Lord Kṛṣṇa if they simply surrender at His lotus feet. As He says in the Bhagavad-gītā ([[BG 9.32|9.32]]):

:māṁ hi pārtha vyapāśritya
:ye 'pi syuḥ pāpa-yonayaḥ
:striyo vaiśyās tathā śūdrās
:te 'pi yānti parāṁ gatim

O son of Pṛthā, those who take shelter in Me, though they be of lower birth—women, vaiśyas [merchants], and śūdras [workers]—will attain the supreme destination.

When the lowest of human beings can attain the supreme destination by surrendering to Lord Kṛṣṇa, then what to speak of high-born brāhmaṇas? Those who follow the path of devotional service to the Supreme Lord are not hounded by caste and colour discrimination. Monotheism—one religion and one creed—is possible only under the shelter of Lord Kṛṣṇa's lotus feet, and not in any other way.

The illusory potency, māyā, constantly terrorizes and shackles the people in the present Age of Quarrel, Kali-yuga. Due to forgetting their real identity as spirit souls, they bring disaster to the world. Under such a siege, modern-day thinkers and philosophers are desperately trying to bring purity and unity into society. They are conducting in-depth research into this problem. But Lord Kṛṣṇa long ago gave the solution to our modern problems in the Bhagavad-gītā ([[BG 9.34|9.34]]):

:man-manā bhava mad-bhakto
:mad-yājī māṁ namaskuru
:mām evaiṣyasi yuktvaivam
:ātmānaṁ mat-parāyaṇaḥ

Engage your mind always in thinking of Me, become My devotee, offer obeisances to Me and worship Me. Being completely absorbed in Me, surely you will come to Me.

O people of the world! Please try to translate the Gītā's message into action and channel your thoughts toward Lord Kṛṣṇa's lotus feet. Serve Him with your mind and body. If you dovetail all your energy in the Lord's service, then not only will you feel intense exhilaration in this lifetime, but you will be immersed in eternal bliss in the spiritual world, perpetually serving Him. The most munificent incarnation of Godhead, Lord Caitanya Mahāprabhu, recently advented in the Age of Kali to propagate this message. By the great fortune of all Bengalis, He appeared in Bengal and blessed the Bengali race. Thus Bengalis can preach His mission and instructions to the entire human race and deliver the people of the planet and themselves. The presentation of this knowledge in a systematic and scientific manner will bring about universal sublime peace. Yet the shocking fact is that thirteen unauthorized cults have mushroomed into prominence and are fast expanding their illegitimate fold with naive disciples. What one fails to comprehend is how the leaders of these cults, who have never accept discipleship and tutelage from any bona fide spiritual master, can suddenly rise to the position of spiritual master themselves. The subject matter that needs to be promulgated among the people is not some cheap, sentimental concoction meant to deceive them; it is in fact a deeply profound and esoteric theology. The words of Lord Caitanya can never be disseminated by unscrupulous self-styled "gurus" who fake spiritual sentiments to impress the ignorant mass of people. All saintly persons beware!

Our general experience is that impersonalists, given as they are to speculation and sophistry, hesitate to accept Lord Kṛṣṇa as the Supreme Godhead. Thus they will always be frustrated in their endeavors to know the Supreme Absolute Truth by dint of their own intelligence. They cannot perceive this shortcoming in themselves, and even if it is pointed out to them by persons who know the science of Kṛṣṇa consciousness, they cannot grasp it. Such polluted consciousness is a result of not surrendering to Lord Kṛṣṇa. The Lord's name, form, qualities, pastimes, and paraphernalia are all transcendental and extraordinary; hence blunt material senses cannot perceive them. The sun becomes visible only by the help of sunlight; similarly, the Supreme Lord reveals Himself only to those engaged in His devotional service.

The facilities available to us in our material condition are many. One facility in the mode of goodness is intelligence, which gives us the ability to distinguish subtle elements and to discriminate between matter and spirit, and in this way to avoid coming under illusion. Also in the mode of goodness are tolerance, truthfulness, control of the senses, equanimity, and other such qualities. Added to the list are qualities in the mode of passion, such as strong desire, fearlessness, and unwavering determination, as well as qualities in the mode of ignorance, such as fear, madness, and distress over birth, death, old age, and disease. All these facilities are products of the Lord's external, material energy. Since māyā is under the Supreme Lord's control, all the above-mentioned qualities also emanate from Kṛṣṇa Himself. But Lord Kṛṣṇa is beyond the periphery of our sensual experience, and therefore simply cultivating the nobler qualities—those in the mode of goodness—is not sufficient spiritual practice to elevate us to the Lord's lotus feet. The only way to overcome māyā is to take complete shelter at the Lord's lotus feet. Kṛṣṇa states in the Gītā ([[BG 7.14|7.14]]) that those who surrender to Him can easily cross beyond māyā. Once māyā is surmounted, one's endeavor is crowned with the realization that Lord Kṛṣṇa is the Supreme Personality of Godhead. As Lord Brahmā says in the Brahma-saṁhitā (5.1):

:īśvaraḥ paramaḥ kṛṣṇaḥ
:sac-cid-ānanda-vigrahaḥ
:anādir ādir govindaḥ
:sarva-kāraṇa-kāraṇam

Kṛṣṇa who is known as Govinda is the Supreme Godhead. He has an eternal blissful spiritual body. He is the origin of all. He has no other oridin and He is the prime cause of all causes.

Only when one is free from the influences of māyā can one perceive the transcendental opulence, power, fame, beauty, knowledge, and renunciation of the Supreme Lord. With this transcendental realization one can fathom the Supreme Lord's own words in the Bhagavad-gītā ([[BG 10.8|10.8-10]]):

I am the source of all spiritual and material worlds. Everything emanates from Me. The wise who perfectly know this engage in my devotional service and worship Me with all their hearts. The thoughts of My pure devotees dwell in Me, their lives are fully devoted to My service, and they derive great satisfaction and bliss from always enlightening one another and conversing about Me. To those who are constantly devoted to serving Me with love, I give the understanding by which they can come to Me."

<div style="float:right">[[File:Go-previous.png|link=RTW 2.11]] '''[[RTW 2.11]] - [[RTW 2.13]]''' [[File:Go-next.png|link=RTW 2.13]]</div>
__NOTOC__
__NOEDITSECTION__

RTW 2.13

2017-12-18T09:34:01Z

Jimena:

[[Category:Renunciation Through Wisdom|R29.3]]
<div style="float:left">[[File:Go-previous.png|link=Renunciation Through Wisdom]] '''[[Renunciation Through Wisdom]], [[RTW 2|2. Bhakti-kathā - The Science of Devotion]]'''</div>
<div style="float:right">[[File:Go-previous.png|link=RTW 2.12]] '''[[RTW 2.12]]'''</div>
{{RandomImage}}

====All Perfections Come from Bhakti-yoga====

Whatever exists—manifest or unmanifest, material or spiritual—has one primary source: the Supreme Lord, Kṛṣṇa. He is the primeval, supreme controller, the cause of all causes, the Lord of all lords. As the Supersoul within the heart, He inspires all the activities of a transcendentally situated devotee. Those who possess true knowledge of the Absolute can render service to Lord Kṛṣṇa in the mood of a servitor, a friend, and so on. Their hearts are always absorbed in thoughts of Lord Kṛṣṇa, and they yearn to perceive and relish His eternal, transcendental pastimes.

By the grace of the Supreme Lord, these unalloyed devotees can unravel the mysteries of His intimate worship. Then, due to their love for the Lord, they find it difficult to maintain their lives without hearing and chanting the glories of the Lord's name, form, qualities, pastimes, associates, and paraphernalia. They seek the association of like-minded devotees, and with them they dive into the ocean of the nectar of devotion. Situated in their spiritual identity, they relish spiritual exchanges and hear, discuss, and remember the all-auspicious topics of Lord Kṛṣṇa's transcendental pastimes, thus practising the ninefold devotional process.

They execute this ninefold devotional service in the stage of sādhana, or practice, and feel deep satisfaction in the perfected, or siddha, stage. They become saturated with the transcendental spiritual mellows of servitorship, friendship, and so on, from which they derive divine ecstasy. Lord Kṛṣṇa grants genuine transcendental understanding, buddhi-yoga, to those devotees who experience spiritual satisfaction and divine bliss through constant devotional service; gradually their specific devotional attitude increases to the point where they can relish pure love of God.

In the stage of bhāva, or spontaneous devotional service in ecstasy, there is a direct transcendental exchange of mellows between Lord Kṛṣṇa and His pure devotee. The Supreme Lord Himself gives His devotee buddhi-yoga, or spiritual intelligence, and the devotee, acting with that intelligence, serves the Lord until he gradually approaches the Lord's supreme abode. Such a devotee can never be affected by ignorance.

The impersonalists and empiric philosophers consider the unalloyed devotees of the Lord sentimental fools, and thus they deride them. This is a big offense. Such offences cause the impersonalists and pseudo-devotees to slowly become demoniac. Having lost good sense and a stable mind, they gradually develop animosity toward the Supreme Lord and find all their life's endeavors reduced to suffering and futility. If one of these deluded demoniac impersonalists comes in contact with a pure devotee and by his mercy regains his lost insight, then he can begin to understand that the pure devotees he offended are exchanging spiritual mellows with Lord Kṛṣṇa and are thus forever free from ignorance and illusion. The impersonalists must understand that the Supreme Lord, acting from within as the Supersoul, removes all ignorance from the devotee's heart. As Lord Kṛṣṇa states in the Bhagavad-gītā ([[BG 10.11|10.11]]):

:teṣām evānukampārtham
:aham ajñāna-jaṁ tamaḥ
:nāśayāmy ātma-bhāva-stho
:jñāna-dīpena bhāsvatā

To show them special mercy, I, dwelling in their hearts, destroy with the shining lamp of knowledge the darkness born of ignorance.

The dry speculative philosophers may kindly note one point: By using the word teṣām, Lord Kṛṣṇa openly declares that He is always merciful to His surrendered devotees. The reason that the Lord expands Himself as the Supersoul and enters everyone's heart is not to bless the empiric philosophers and yogīs but to bless the devotees from within. If the Supreme Lord Himself wishes to enlighten the devotees with spiritual knowledge and gradually draw them closer to Him, then what question is there of such devotees ever coming under the spell of nescience? Rather, it is out of nescience only that the empiric philosophers try to approach the Supreme Truth on the strength of their own intellect. We know that the Supreme Lord can dissipate the darkness of ignorance with the spiritual effulgence emanating from His body. Can the empiricists do the same? One can never lift the gloom of nescience by one's own efforts. Empiricists such as the atheist Kapila, unable to reach enlightenment by their own efforts, feel great relief in trying to explain away the Absolute Truth as unknowable and unmanifest. But great suffering befalls these dry speculators attached to the theory of the unmanifest Absolute, as Lord Kṛṣṇa confirms in the Bhagavad-gītā ([[BG 12.5|12.5]]):

:kleśo 'dhikataras teṣām
:avyaktāsakta-cetasām
:avyaktā hi gatir duḥkhaṁ
:dehavadbhir avāpyate

For those whose minds are attached to the unmanifested, impersonal feature of the Supreme, advancement is very troublesome. To make progress in that discipline is always difficult for those who are embodied.

The austerities a monist performs are painful both during the initial stage of practice (sādhana) and when he has supposedly reached perfection. The impersonalists suffer excruciating pains trying to establish the oneness of matter and spirit through speculative theories. Thinking that Brahman is impotent, through sophistry they try to equate the Lord's inferior, material energy with His superior, spiritual energy, thus reaping ridicule from truly learned circles. In attempting to prove that the Absolute Truth cannot be the Supreme Personality of Godhead with unlimited energies, they argue that this would mean immutable Brahman is actually mutable. Thus their logic loses all cohesion and they become a laughingstock. In trying to refute the established theory of pariṇāma-vāda, or the "transformation of energy," they accuse Śrīla Vyāsadeva of being mistaken when he says that the material universe and the living entities are all transformations of the Lord's energy and are therefore real, not false. Thus in their philosophical discussions the monists reject the main purport and essence of all Vedic scriptures and their corollaries and hang on to nonessential injunctions, such as tat tvam asi, "You are that." They like to deliberate on these subpoints, but when confronted with the arguments of a learned Vaiṣṇava, they turn and run from the battlefront.

Without understanding that the Supreme Lord is a transcendental personality, the monists make futile and grossly mundane attempts at restraining their senses, meditating on the Lord's impersonal aspect as the ultimate and original Absolute Truth. As it is impossible to dam a flooding river, so it is impossible to control the senses by meditating on the impersonal Brahman. As the great sage Sanat Kumāra says in the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam ([[SB 4.22.39|4.22.39]]):

:yat-pāda-paṅkaja-palāśa-vilāsa-bhaktyā
:karmāśayaṁ grathitam udgrathayanti santaḥ
:tadvan na rikta-matayo yatayo 'pi ruddha-
:sroto-gaṇās tam araṇaṁ bhaja vāsudevam

The devotees, who are always engaged in the service of the toes of the lotus feet of the Lord, can easily overcome hard-knotted desires for fruitive activities. Because this is very difficult, the nondevotees—the jñānīs and yogīs—although trying to stop the waves of sense gratification, cannot do so. Therefore you are advised to engage in the devotional service of Kṛṣṇa, the son of Vasudeva.

Lord Viṣṇu's impersonal aspect is known as Brahman. So when the jīva soul, a product of Lord Viṣṇu's superior, spiritual energy, attains sāyujya-mukti, or liberation by merging with Brahman, it is not at all surprising. The energetic principle always enjoys the prerogative of enfolding within itself His own energy, but that does not destroy the energy's eternal individuality. The impersonalists, desiring to merge with Brahman and knowing that it is feasible, still experience intense suffering in their effort to reach brahmānanda, "the bliss of Brahman." The Lord's devotees consider the pleasures of such liberation worse than hell. The impersonalists, in trying to destroy the illusion inherent in material forms, do away with even the eternal spiritual forms. That is indeed very foolish. Treating a patient to cure his disease is one thing, but ending the patient along with the disease is the work of an idiot. Thus we have this instruction from the great authority Brahmā in the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam ([[SB 10.14.4|10.14.4]]):

:śreya-sṛtiṁ bhaktim udasya te vibho
:kliśyanti ye kevala-bodha-labdhaye
:teṣām asau kleśala eva śiṣyate
:nānyad yathā sthūla-tuṣāvaghātinām

My dear Lord, devotional service unto You is the best path for self-realization. If one gives up that path and engages in the cultivation of speculative knowledge, he will simply undergo a troublesome process and will not achieve his desired result. As a person who beats an empty husk of wheat cannot get grain, one who simply speculates cannot achieve self-realization. His only gain is trouble.

Instead of becoming an impersonalist and inviting misfortune and misery, the devotee surrenders to Lord Kṛṣṇa and never suffers in this world. When he leaves his present body, he transcends the material platform and becomes eligible to participate in the Lord's eternal pastimes. As the Supersoul, Lord Kṛṣṇa enlightens the devotee from within the heart and disperses the gloom of ignorance. The Lord gives the devotee the spiritual intelligence to attain Him. The ocean of nescience is very difficult to cross, but when the devotee attempts to cross it, the Lord Himself intervenes to help. Alone the devotee would surely drown, but with the Lord's help he easily crosses over. Thus taking shelter of the Lord is the surest way to surmount the ocean of material existence. As Lord Kṛṣṇa says in the Bhagavad-gītā ([[BG 12.6|12.6-7]])

:ye tu sarvāṇi karmāṇi
:mayi sannyasya mat-parāḥ
:ananyenaiva yogena
:māṁ dhyāyanta upāsate

:teṣām ahaṁ samuddhartā
:mṛtyu-saṁsāra-sāgarāt
:bhavāmi na cirāt pārtha
:mayy āveśita-cetasām

But those who worship Me, giving up all their activities unto Me and being devoted to Me without deviation, engaged in devotional service and always meditating upon Me, having fixed their minds upon Me, O son of Pṛthā—for them I am the swift deliverer from the ocean of birth and death.

Those who surrender to Lord Kṛṣṇa, who repose their unflinching faith in the personal form of the Supreme Lord, offer him their mental and physical activities, along with everything else. With unalloyed, single-minded devotion unencumbered by desires for empirical knowledge, fruitive activity, or severe austerities, they worship and meditate on the eternal, beautiful, two-handed form of Lord Kṛṣṇa playing a flute. Such pure devotees, their hearts saturated with love for Kṛṣṇa, quickly and easily transcend the cycle of material existence, for Lord Kṛṣṇa personally helps them. The merciful Lord promises to reciprocate with each one according to his degree of devotion.

The impersonalists are obsessed with the idea that the Supreme Being is impersonal and that the final goal is to merge into that Brahman existence. Naturally the Lord does not object. If a patient wants to end his disease by ending his life, then who will suffer but him? The more intelligent person will surely want to cure his disease without ending his life, and to that end he will strive to regain his original health. Similarly, the soul infected with the material disease should want to return to his pure, original state without annihilating his individual identity. Lord Kṛṣṇa saves such persons from the jaws of the demoniac conception of trying to become one with God. It is suicidal for the spirit soul to attempt to lose his inherent individuality. The happiness the impersonalist experiences by disentangling himself from the knots of material existence is automatically available to the Lord's devotee as a by-product of devotional service. As the Nāradīya Purāṇa says,

One should not engage in fruitive activity or cultivate knowledge by mental speculation. One who is devoted to the Supreme Lord, Nārāyaṇa, can attain all the benefits derived from other processes, such as yoga, mental speculation, rituals, sacrifices, and charity. That is the specific benediction of devotional service.

And in the Kṛṣṇa-karṇāmṛta (107), Bilvamaṅgala Ṭhākura states:

:bhaktis tvayi sthiratarā bhagavān yadi syād
:daivena naḥ phalati divya-kiśora-mūrtiḥ
:muktiḥ svayaṁ mukulitāñjali sevate 'sṁān
:dharmārtha-kāma-gatayaḥ samaya-pratikṣāḥ

O Lord! If our devotion to You is undeviating, then Your ever-youthful form will spontaneously manifest within our heart. At that time liberation personified will serve us like a maidservant, and religiosity, economic development, and sense gratification [the other three goals of the Vedas] will humbly await our bidding.

:yā vai sādhana-sam pattiḥ
:puruṣārtha-catuṣṭaye
:tayā vinā tad āpnoti
:naro nārāyaṇāśrayaḥ

Even without the usual requirements for achieving the perfection of life, a person will gain that perfection if he is simply a surrendered devotee of Nārāyaṇa. (Nāradiya Purāṇa)

<div style="float:right">[[File:Go-previous.png|link=RTW 2.12]] '''[[RTW 2.12]]'''</div>
__NOTOC__
__NOEDITSECTION__

RTW 2.9

2017-12-18T09:28:19Z

Jimena:

[[Category:Renunciation Through Wisdom|R29]]
<div style="float:left">[[File:Go-previous.png|link=Renunciation Through Wisdom]] '''[[Renunciation Through Wisdom]], [[RTW 2|2. Bhakti-kathā - The Science of Devotion]]'''</div>
<div style="float:right">[[File:Go-previous.png|link=RTW 2.8]] '''[[RTW 2.8]] - [[RTW 2.10]]''' [[File:Go-next.png|link=RTW 2.10]]</div>
{{RandomImage}}

====Following in the Footsteps of Self-Realized Saints====

Atheists gradually develop a demoniac nature and live in the world like beggars chasing after name, fame, wealth, and so on. Constantly deluded by māyā, they live useless lives. On the other hand, those who are truly dedicated to serving the Supreme Lord are never attacked by such a demoniac mentality. These great souls do not carry the title "Mahātmā" as an appendage. Someone who follows the satanic path and always challenges the Supreme Lord may try to fool the people into thinking he is a mahātmā, but the characteristics of an actual mahātmā are found in the Bhagavad-gītā ([[BG 9.13|9.13]]):

:mahātmānas tu māṁ pārtha
:daivīṁ prakṛtim āśritāḥ
:bhajanty ananya-manaso
:jñātvā bhūtādim avyayam

O son of Pṛthā, those who are not deluded, the great souls, are under the protection of the divine nature. They are fully engaged in devotional service because they know Me as the Supreme Personality of Godhead, original and inexhaustible.

Real mahātmās do not distract their minds with sense gratification and material desires, but with single-minded resolve they engage in the devotional service of the Supreme Lord. Because they are under the protection of His divine energy, they understand that Lord Kṛṣṇa is the supreme cause of all causes. Such persons alone possess all saintly qualities. Lord Kṛṣṇa's devotees are exceptional personalities, for at all times they are embellished with extraordinary characteristics rarely attained even by the demigods. To usher in the age of peace in this world, the presence such mahātmās is imperative.

Recently, at a medical convention held in New Delhi, our honorable prime minister made the following observation in his speech:

We go in for public health, sanitation, and all kinds of preventive measures rather than wait for people to fall ill and then treat them. Why not apply that principle in the larger sphere and prevent social diseases that, left untreated, we will have to deal with later in a much more difficult form? So when wise men like you gather together, perhaps you might think of the ills and diseases of humanity as a whole that create so many conflicts and troubles and impede human progress.

Factually, whatever problems crop up in the world are caused by the mind. Paṇḍitas have researched the scriptures thoroughly and held many discussions on this topic. If we can follow the example set by the subjects of King Ambarīṣa, who under his guidance concentrated their minds on the lotus feet of Lord Kṛṣṇa, then the mind can be cured of all ills. Any other process will bring upon us the fate described by Prahlāda Mahārāja in the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam ([[SB 5.18.12|5.18.12]]): harāv abhaktasya kuto mahad-guṇāḥ manorathenāsati dhāvato bahiḥ.

... a person devoid of devotional service and engaged in material activities has no good qualities. Even if he is adept at the practice of mystic yoga or the honest endeavor of maintaining his family and relatives, he must be driven by his own material speculations and must engage in the service of the Lord's external energy. How can there be any good qualities in such a man?

The only way to cure this mental disease is to wholeheartedly follow Lord Caitanya's instruction to chant the holy names of Kṛṣṇa. This will cleanse the heart of all impurities. Until this esoteric truth is propagated widely, the world will remain deprived of the panacea that cures all mental diseases. Our honorable prime minister should seriously consider this. If the number of Lord Kṛṣṇa's devotees even slightly increases, there will immediately be a resurgence of peace and prosperity in the world. For man to rise to the glorious heights of a demigod, he needs only to revive his latent Kṛṣṇa consciousness. Thus Kṛṣṇa consciousness is the greatest boon to humanity.

The mahātmās possess other wonderful qualities, some of which Lord Kṛṣṇa describes in the Bhagavad-gītā ([[BG 9.14|9.14]]):

:satataṁ kīrtayanto māṁ
:yatantaś ca dṛḍha-vratāḥ
:namasyantaś ca māṁ bhaktyā
:nitya-yuktā upāsate

Always chanting My glories, endeavoring with great determination, bowing down before Me, these great souls perpetually worship Me with great devotion.

This text gives some hints of how to become a devotee of Lord Kṛṣṇa. The word satatam ("always") has been used to indicate that the process of purifying one's consciousness does not depend on fruitive activity, empiric knowledge, yoga, or on time, place, or circumstance.

A living entity becomes free from all suffering as soon as he admits that he is an eternal servant of Lord Kṛṣṇa. Such a servant of the Lord need not perform fruitive activity or cultivate empiric knowledge, nor does he have to undergo any other process of purification. The only essential factor is his intense greed for devotional service to the Lord.

An extreme longing for Lord Kṛṣṇa is the only means for attaining Him. Thus intense, unflinching devotional service is another symptom of a mahātmā. These mahātmās execute all nine limbs of devotional service, beginning with hearing, chanting, and remembering the name, form, qualities, pastimes, and paraphernalia of Lord Kṛṣṇa. Such devotional service is transcendental to any mundane consideration of time, place, or circumstance. Mahātmās are always eager to render loving devotional service to the Lord. They tirelessly dedicate their lives, energy, words, intelligence, body, society - everything - in the service of the Lord.

The great endeavor the mahātmā undertakes to execute devotional service is more intense than the ordinary man's voluntary acceptance of excessive pains and troubles to maintain his family and home. The struggle for maintaining family and relatives is illusion, or māyā. Hence it is truly distressing. By contrast, the difficulties one accepts in serving the Supreme Lord are transcendental, and therefore they are a source of sublime bliss. Moreover, a person who serves the Supreme Lord automatically serves his family. But the opposite is not true: serving the family is not equivalent to serving the Lord. All mahātmās agree on this point. Not only does the person who serves the Supreme Lord serve his relatives, but he also serves the entire world of moving and nonmoving living beings. Thus service to Lord Kṛṣṇa is the prime cause of world peace and harmony.

The mahātmās are always ready to render such service to the Lord with great determination. In this regard His Divine Grace Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura once made this comment in a lecture:

The neophyte Vaiṣṇava devotees' ringing the bell even once during worship of the Deity of the Supreme Lord is a million times more valuable, spiritually and otherwise, than the charitable fruitive workers building many hospitals, feeding thousands of the poor, or building homes, or even the empirical philosophers' Vedic studies, meditation, austerities, and penances.

The mahātmās have shown the perfect path of charity: devotional service to the Lord. If anyone ignores this path and instead builds hospitals, his effort to help humanity is a mere pretense. Humanity can never reap any permanent advantage from such activities. Indeed, the number of patients only increases along with the number of hospitals. And as for feeding the poor, this will never eradicate poverty, but encourage it. Frankly speaking, we are not against opening hospitals or feeding the poor, or any other such humanitarian service. But what we have learned from our beloved spiritual master is that when devotional service to the Lord is neglected, every other activity is illusory and futile. Without genuine devotional service, even opening hospitals and feeding the poor in the name of Lord Kṛṣṇa is futile. Spiritual groups that do not strictly follow in Lord Caitanya's line cannot comprehend this because they do not wish to abide by the instructions of the mahātmās. They do not follow Lord Caitanya's injunction to be "more humble than a blade of grass." If they were that humble, they would give up their pride in being the doer of good deeds, the wisest person, the most devoted, and so on.

Those who strive to emulate the mahātmās never fall prey to passivity and regression. Their eagerness and determination to serve the Lord steadily increase. Such followers observe spiritual occasions like Janmāṣṭamī and Ekādaśī for the pleasure of the Lord, in the way that the previous ācāryas and mahātmās have recommended. This is devotional service proper. Because the mahātmās are more humble than a blade of grass, they worship Lord Kṛṣṇa and everything in relation to Him. Atheists, however, exhibit a different mentality altogether: they want to flaunt their abilities and charitable disposition. They may pretend to serve Lord Kṛṣṇa, but their aim is "to sit on the Lord's head" once they attain perfection. In other words, they want to usurp His position. Therefore they do not really serve Lord Kṛṣṇa, nor is He their real object of worship. The mahātmās never associate with these demoniac people. They are fixed in their resolve to serve the Lord, and thus they always remain connected to Him through devotional service.

<div style="float:right">[[File:Go-previous.png|link=RTW 2.8]] '''[[RTW 2.8]] - [[RTW 2.10]]''' [[File:Go-next.png|link=RTW 2.10]]</div>
__NOTOC__
__NOEDITSECTION__

RTW 2.8

2017-12-18T09:28:10Z

Jimena:

[[Category:Renunciation Through Wisdom|R28]]
<div style="float:left">[[File:Go-previous.png|link=Renunciation Through Wisdom]] '''[[Renunciation Through Wisdom]], [[RTW 2|2. Bhakti-kathā - The Science of Devotion]]'''</div>
<div style="float:right">[[File:Go-previous.png|link=RTW 2.7]] '''[[RTW 2.7]] - [[RTW 2.9]]''' [[File:Go-next.png|link=RTW 2.9]]</div>
{{RandomImage}}

====The Supreme Lord always resides in the eternal Vaikuṇṭha planets====

This material creation is manifested and subsequently destroyed during Lord Brahmā's day and night. But beyond this material world is an eternal existence - the spiritual sky - which is untouched by creation and annihilation. That spiritual abode is known as the Vaikuṇṭha planets. Even when this material creation is destroyed, the Vaikuṇṭha planets remain unscathed and intact. Once anyone enters these planets, he never again suffers the repetition of birth and death, which is inevitable for earthly beings. While the material world is covered and pervaded by the material sky, the spiritual planets are suspended in the spiritual sky, known as paravyoma. All the planetary systems within the paravyoma are transcendental abodes where the Supreme Lord performs His pastimes eternally.

Earlier we discussed that the Supreme Lord possesses two main energies, the material energy and the spiritual energy. The Vaikuṇṭha planets are a product of the spiritual energy of the Lord. The living entities belong to this spiritual energy, but because they can reside in either the spiritual world or the material world, even though they are originally spiritual they are designated as taṭastha-śakti, or "marginal potency."

The Vaikuṇṭha planets are a manifestation of the Lord's internal potency, while the material world is a manifestation of His external potency. Since the Supreme Lord is the master of all energies, it is an irrefutable fact that He is in full control of both the spiritual and material worlds. The perfect analogy is an earthen pot: What is needed to manufacture an earthen pot are clay, a potter's wheel, and a potter. The clay is the material, or ingredient cause of the pot, the wheel is the instrumental or efficient cause, and the potter is the prime cause. Similarly, while the material energy is both the ingredient and efficient cause of this cosmic creation, the Supreme Lord, Kṛṣṇa, is the prime cause. Like a shadow, the material energy works strictly in accordance with the Supreme Lord's dictates. As Lord Kṛṣṇa explains in the Bhagavad-gītā ([[BG 9.10|9.10]]):

:mayādhyakṣeṇa prakṛtiḥ
:sūyate sa-carācaram
:hetunānena kaunteya
:jagad viparivartate

This material nature, which is one of My energies, is working under My direction, O son of Kuntī, producing all moving and nonmoving beings. Under its rule this manifestation is created and annihilated again and again.

The sad fact is that although Kṛṣṇa reveals the truth about Himself throughout the Bhagavad-gītā and other Vedic literatures, the luckless populace cannot regard Him as the Supreme Lord. In particular, the impersonalistic philosophers, who make tall claims of being bastions of religiosity, reduce the Supreme Lord to the level of a mediocre mortal and thereby accrue heavy sins. Such atheistic offenders can never approach the subject of God on their own merit. The Supreme Lord and His surrendered servitors have in various ways clarified and transmitted the knowledge of the Supreme Absolute, but those who offend the Supreme Lord and His devotees can never comprehend such topics. As Śrī Prahlāda Mahārāja says in the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam ([[SB 7.5.30|7.5.30-31]]),

:matir na kṛṣṇe parataḥ svato vā
:mitho 'bhipadyeta gṛha-vratānām
:adānta-gobhir viśatāṁ tamisraṁ
:punaḥ punaś carvita-carvaṇānām

:na te viduḥ svārtha-gatiṁ hi viṣṇuṁ
:durāśayā ye bahir-artha-māninaḥ
:andhā yathāndhair upanīyamānās
:te 'pīśa-tantryām uru-dāmni baddhāḥ

Because of their uncontrolled senses, persons too addicted to materialistic life make progress toward hellish conditions and repeatedly chew that which has already been chewed. Their inclinations toward Kṛṣṇa are never aroused, either by the instructions of others, by their own efforts, or by a combination of both. Persons who are strongly entrapped by the consciousness of enjoying material life, and who have therefore accepted as their leader or guru a similar blind man attached to external sense objects, cannot understand that the goal of life is to return home, back to Godhead, and engage in the service of Lord Viṣṇu. As blind men guided by another blind man miss the right path and fall into a ditch, materially attached men led by another materially attached man are bound by the ropes of fruitive labor, which are made of very strong cords, and they continue again and again in materialistic life, suffering the threefold miseries.

Lord Kṛṣṇa also describes this kind of person in the Bhagavad-gītā ([[BG 9.11|9.11]]):

:avajānanti māṁ mūḍhā
:mānuṣīṁ tanum āśritam
:paraṁ bhāvam ajānanto
:mama bhūta-maheśvaram

Fools deride Me when I descend in the human form. They do not know My transcendental nature as the Supreme Lord of all that be.

Puny human beings can manufacture only insignificant items like pots, pans, and factories. Therefore, when a personality who was born not so long ago in Mathurā and who looks like a human being is introduced as the Supreme Controller of the entire cosmic manifestation, the Lord of all lords and possessor of all absolute qualities, then, no matter how clearly one explains these truths, ordinary people cannot absorb them, due to their tiny dog's-bent-tail intelligence. Thus they embrace monistic, impersonal philosophy. Denying that Lord Kṛṣṇa alone is God, they insist that they are also "Gods." In this manner they embrace grossly foolish ideas about themselves and God and try to compete with Him, completely disregarding all etiquette and sound philosophical conclusions.

Spiritualists from the West often conclude that such atheistic people are possessed by Satan. In bygone ages many such satanic persons - Rāvaṇa, Hiraṇyakaśipu, Jarāsandha, Kaṁsa - challenged the Supreme Lord's authority. In modern times they have steadily multiplied. These demons have dismissed even Lord Caitanya Mahāprabhu, insulting Him with derogatory name - calling as "son of aunt Śacī."

The point to consider is that no one can really compete with God. The Supreme Lord is unparalleled, second to none. As it is said in the Caitanya-caritāmṛta, ekale īśvara kṛṣṇa, āra saba bhṛtya: ([[CC Adi 5.142|CC Ādi 5.142]]) "Lord Kṛṣṇa alone is the Supreme Godhead, and all others are His servants." Only those who go through life being kicked about by fate, slaving hard to fill their bellies and maintain a roof overhead, can harbor so preposterous a wish as to compete with the omnipotent Supreme Controller. It is ludicrous. They dare harbor such desires because they are totally ignorant of the supreme, transcendental position of the Lord. Yet the Supreme Lord is so compassionate that by various tricks He tries to teach even these fools the facts of His transcendental and supreme position. And the Lord's confidential servitors, accepting many hazards and pains, also try every possible means to exorcise Satan from these people, who are possessed by the demon of atheism.

Then there are those so-called scholars who claim that they they alone know the scriptures and that all others are illiterate fools. Such "scholars" say that research of the holy texts clearly reveals that Kāraṇodakaśāyī Viṣṇu is the cause of this material creation and that Lord Kṛṣṇa, the son of Vasudeva and Devakī, is at best Viṣṇu's partial expansion. Thus we see that even intelligent men are sometimes bewildered by the illusory potency, māyā, and subscribe to demoniac ideas. How is it possible for such bewildered souls to accept that Lord Kṛṣṇa is the Supreme Personality of Godhead, the cause of all causes?

If we consult the śruti and smṛti scriptures on this topic, we will find many references proving that Lord Govinda, Kṛṣṇa, is the origin of Kāraṇodakaśāyī Viṣṇu, and not vice-versa. For example, the Brahma-saṁhitā (5.47) states,

:yaḥ kāraṇārnava-jale bhajati sma yoga-
:nidrām ananta-jagad-aṇḍa-sa-roma-kūpaḥ
:ādhāra-śaktim avalambya parāṁ sva-mūrtiṁ
:govindam ādi-puruṣaṁ tam ahaṁ bhajāmi

I adore the primeval Lord Govinda who assuming His own great subjective form, who bears the name Śeṣa, replete with the all-accommodating potency, and reposing in the Causal Ocean with the infinity of the worlds in the pores of His hair, enjoys creative sleep [yoganidrā].

The Bible says, "God created man after His own image." According to this statement, man possesses two hands because he has a form similar to God's. But this doesn't mean that God is a human being because He has two hands. It is a heinous offence to try to diminish the position of Lord Kṛṣṇa because He appeared in a human form. The truth about His divine potency and supreme position should be learned from the self-realized spiritual master, the saintly souls, and the revealed scriptures.

Demonic persons fail to understand the real purpose of human life. Instead, they are always quick to try to diminish the supreme position of Lord Kṛṣṇa. Such atheists may have very high ambitions and may perform great, noble deeds, but because their ambitions and deeds are cut off from a loving relationship to Lord Kṛṣṇa, the Supreme Godhead, they are all useless. The demon Rāvaṇa wanted to reach heaven by constructing a stairway, but he failed. And all atheists' ambitions are like that. A zero placed next to the number one gives ten, a second zero makes one hundred, and so on. As long as the number one is there, the value keeps rising as the zeroes increase. But without the number one, any number of zeroes are valueless. Similarly, if a person spends his whole life simply increasing the "zeroes" of material wealth, fame, and learning, without any relationship to the "one" - Lord Kṛṣṇa - then his whole life is valueless. As Lord Kṛṣṇa says in the Bhagavad-gītā,

:moghāśā mogha-karmāṇo
:mogha-jñānā vicetasaḥ
:rākṣasīm āsurīṁ caiva
:prakṛtiṁ mohinīṁ śritāḥ
:([[BG 9.12]])

Those who are thus bewildered are attracted by demoniac and atheistic views. In that deluded condition, their hopes for liberation, their fruitive activities, and their culture of knowledge are all defeated.

Although a person may call himself a devotee of Lord Kṛṣṇa, if he considers Kṛṣṇa a human being or thinks that He started off as a human being and then evolved into God (as is now in vogue, with so many "incarnations" mushrooming), then such a person is not a devotee but an imposter. One often comes across monists and pseudo-devotees posing as Lord Kṛṣṇa's devotees, but eventually they try to usurp Kṛṣṇa's position. They want to be Lord Kṛṣṇa themselves. Persons with such insidious desires are totally bewildered. If a fruitive worker thinks that Lord Kṛṣṇa is an ordinary mortal, he does not attain the goal of his fruitive work - elevation to the heavenly planets. And if an anthropomorphist happens to be a jñānī, an empirical philosopher, then he also fails to achieve the goal of his pursuit of knowledge - liberation from the material modes.

<div style="float:right">[[File:Go-previous.png|link=RTW 2.7]] '''[[RTW 2.7]] - [[RTW 2.9]]''' [[File:Go-next.png|link=RTW 2.9]]</div>
__NOTOC__
__NOEDITSECTION__

RTW 2.7

2017-12-18T09:27:59Z

Jimena:

[[Category:Renunciation Through Wisdom|R27]]
<div style="float:left">[[File:Go-previous.png|link=Renunciation Through Wisdom]] '''[[Renunciation Through Wisdom]], [[RTW 2|2. Bhakti-kathā - The Science of Devotion]]'''</div>
<div style="float:right">[[File:Go-previous.png|link=RTW 2.6]] '''[[RTW 2.6]] - [[RTW 2.8]]''' [[File:Go-next.png|link=RTW 2.8]]</div>
{{RandomImage}}

====Under Illusion of Māyā Man has Forgotten Lord Kṛṣṇa====

The karmīs, jñānīs, and yogīs, as well as the common politicians and anyone else who is working hard to make a comfortable and peaceful situation in this material world, must clearly realize that the world is transitory and full of misery. However much one may toil to make a permanent settlement in this world, at the end everyone is forced to leave. As long as one stays here, one must come to grips with the reality of suffering. Since time immemorial the soul has been coming and going. The Lord's devotees, however, not only live happily in this world, but after they leave here they enter the eternal and ever-blissful abode of the Lord. As the Lord says in the Bhagavad-gītā ([[BG 8.15|8.15]]),

:mām upetya punar janma
:duḥkhālayam aśāśvatam
:nāpnuvanti mahātmānaḥ
:saṁsiddhiṁ paramāṁ gatāḥ

After attaining Me, the great souls, who are yogīs in devotion, never return to this temporary world, which is full of miseries, because they have attained the highest perfection.

According to the above verse, the devotees attain the highest perfection - that is, they join the elevated corps of the Lord's eternal associates. The mystic yogī's eightfold mystic perfection is not the same as the devotee's para-siddhi, or "highest perfection." While mystic yoga brings perfections that are material and temporary, devotional service to the Supreme Lord brings absolute perfection, which is transcendental and eternal. The Supreme Lord incessantly manifests His ever-fresh transcendental pastimes within this unlimited material universe, which He has created. These pastimes, known as bhauma-līlā, have been going on since time immemorial. The sun remains in one place, yet somewhere on earth people see it rising, while elsewhere people see it setting. This rising and setting has been going on since the dawn of creation. Similarly, although Lord Kṛṣṇa eternally resides in Goloka, His eternal abode, He manifests His transcendental pastimes at every moment in the countless universes of this cosmic creation. As it is a mistake to think the sun rises and sets, it is a gross misconception to think that Lord Kṛṣṇa was born on such-and-such a day and was slain by someone on such-and-such a day. The Lord's birth and activities are all transcendental and miraculous. And those who can comprehend this esoteric truth attain the highest perfection. As the Lord states in the Bhagavad-gītā ([[BG 4.9|4.9]]),

:janma-karma ca me divyam
:evaṁ yo vetti tattvataḥ
:tyaktvā dehaṁ punar janma
:naiti mām eti so 'rjuna

One who knows the transcendental nature of My appearance and activities does not, upon leaving the body, take his birth again in this material world, but attains My eternal abode, O Arjuna.

When Lord Kṛṣṇa desires to manifest His earthly pastimes, He appears through His eternal parents, Śrīmatī Devakī and Śrī Vasudeva, and is later brought up by His foster parents, mother Yaśodā and Nanda Mahārāja. Saintly souls who perfect their devotional service by following in the footsteps of the Lord's eternal parents are elevated to the highest position as eternal associates of the Supreme Lord. Once having entered into the Lord's eternal transcendental pastimes, these great souls relish superexcellent devotional mellows in ecstatic love of Godhead.

In the innumerable universes, Lord Kṛṣṇa reveals His earthly pastimes with His intimate friend and eternal associate Arjuna. The Lord makes this clear in two Bhagavad-gītā verses ([[BG 4.5|4.5-6]]):

:bahūni me vyatītāni
:janmāni tava cārjuna
:tāny ahaṁ veda sarvāṇi
:na tvaṁ vettha parantapa

:ajo 'pi sann avyayātmā
:bhūtānām īśvaro 'pi san
:prakṛtiṁ svām adhiṣṭhāya
:sambhavāmy ātma-māyayā

Many, many births both you and I have passed. I can remember all of them, but you cannot, O subduer of the enemy! Although I am unborn and My transcendental body never deteriorates, and although I am the Lord of all living entities, I still appear in every millennium in My original transcendental form.

As for those unfortunate souls who do not strive for the supreme goal of entering the eternal pastimes of the Supreme Lord and instead become attracted to the mundane practices of karma, jñāna, and yoga, which ultimately elevate one to the heavenly planets - such souls must once again take birth in this material world. Although they may reach a high status in this cosmic system, they must come down as if on a ferris wheel. Kṛṣṇa describes this phenomenon in the Bhagavad-gītā ([[BG 8.16|8.16]]):

:ā-brahma-bhuvanāl lokāḥ
:punar āvartino 'rjuna
:mām upetya tu kaunteya
:punar janma na vidyate

From the highest planet in the material world down to the lowest, all are places of misery wherein repeated birth and death take place. But one who attains to My abode, O son of Kuntī, never takes birth again.

The higher planetary systems in this material world are Bhūrloka, Bhuvarloka, Svargaloka, Maharloka, Janaloka, Tapoloka, and up to Satyaloka, or Brahmaloka. Whichever of these planets one rises to in his next life, one must finally return to earth. What to speak of the next life, even in this life the high position one attains after considerable hard work - such as king, emperor, minister, governor, or president - is lost after some time, and one is thrown back to a mean and humble status. Only leaders who have experienced this kind of humiliation can know the trepidation that accompanies it. But if at any stage of life the grossly foolish miscreants described in the Gītā decide to render devotional service to Lord Kṛṣṇa, they can escape the ferris wheel of karma. On this wheel, sometimes one goes to heaven and sometimes to hell, sometimes one is born a king and sometimes a slave, sometimes one becomes a brāhmaṇa and sometimes śūdra, and so it goes on. But once a person enters the spiritual abode of the Supreme Lord, he begins his eternal life in his original, constitutional position.

By the influence of karma, one who is attached to the material body and mind has to change bodies life after life. In this way the soul roams the fourteen planetary systems within this material universe, sometimes going up and sometimes coming down. These planets are transitory - merely theatrical stages upon which the soul enacts his mundane existence. But when the living entity is elevated to spiritual perfection and is situated in his pure, eternal identity, devoid of all mundane designations, he attains the natural habitat of the spirit soul, the supramundane realm transcending this material creation and the intermediary zone of the unmanifested Brahman effulgence.

The material body, made up of material ingredients such as earth, water, fire, and air, is mortal. Similarly, because this material universe is an amalgam of earth, water, fire, air, etc., it is also transitory. But the spirit soul (which, incidently, has never been duplicated in the laboratory despite repeated efforts) is imperishable, as is its natural, eternal home - the kingdom of God. The process that takes the eternal soul to his eternal home is called sanātana-dharma, or "the eternal religion."

Empirical, atheistic philosophers like Kapila spent innumerable tedious hours researching the material phenomena of this cosmic creation. Yet it remained beyond the grasp of their limited intelligence to understand that there exists a realm transcendental and far superior to this manifested material world. Finally, when their probing minds failed to sight land in an ocean of speculation, they concluded that the absolute truth is unmanifest.

Compared to other species, human beings are certainly endowed with good intelligence, yet unless they are devotees of the Lord, all their thinking is limited within mundane boundaries. Therefore it is impossible for the mundane mind to approach the transcendence. But instead of surrendering to the Supreme Lord or His representative, the empirical philosophers try to explain away as "unmanifest" that which is beyond their mundane minds. This is known as the logic of the frog in the well.

No matter how big a thinker a tiny living entity may be, all his activities are limited by mundane boundaries, just as a frog in the well can never comprehend that such a thing as an ocean exists outside his little domain. He refuses to acknowledge that a mass of water infinitely bigger than his tiny puddle can at all be possible. Similarly, we are trapped in the dark well of our body and mind. And although we may try hard through yoga or empirical speculation to overcome our limitations, no matter how erudite we are it is impossible to reach beyond the limitations of our self-made well.

So, who can bring us news of the great ocean? Is there any record of how long we have been struggling in the water to stay afloat in the well of this material world, sometimes going up to the higher planets, sometimes coming down? Only the Supreme Lord Himself or His empowered representative can possibly free us from confinement in this dark well. Under their guidance we can come to know of the limitless ocean of the spiritual sky. This process - hearing from higher authorities - is called the deductive, or descending, process of knowledge. It is the only authorized way to learn transcendental knowledge. By this method alone is eternal truth transmitted.

And what can we learn by this process? Lord Kṛṣṇa describes the spiritual and material worlds as follows in the Bhagavad-gītā ([[BG 8.17|8.17-20]]):

By human calculation, a thousand ages taken together form the duration of Brahmā's one day. And such also is the duration of his night. At the beginning of Brahmā's day, all living entities become manifest from the unmanifest state, and thereafter, when the night falls, they are merged into the unmanifest again. Again and again, when Brahmā's day arrives, all living entities come into being, and with the arrival of Brahmā's night they are helplessly annihilated. Yet there is another unmanifest nature, which is eternal and is transcendental to this manifested and unmanifested matter. It is supreme and is never annihilated. When all in this world is annihilated, that part remains as it is."

People become awestruck when they learn that the life span on Brahmaloka is many millions of years. One has to undergo severe austerities and renunciation, accepting the sannyāsa order of life, in order to reach Brahmaloka. However, we must consider one essential fact: even Lord Brahmā, the presiding deity of that planet, is not immortal. Those who have researched the Vedic scriptures in depth can calculate the lifetime of Brahmā. Human beings count 365 days in their year, and the cycle of four yugas comprises approximately 4,320,000 such years. A thousand cycles of four yugas make up one day-time (twelve hours) of Lord Brahmā's life. In this way his month and year can be calculated, and Brahmā lives for a hundred years of his time. But despite this vast life span - 311 trillion 40 billion human years - Lord Brahmā is a mortal being, and this universe created by him is also perishable. Thus it is not strange that human beings, who are also his creation, should perish. As human beings seem immortal to a tiny insect, so Lord Brahmā and the demigods seem immortal to us. In fact, however, no material body of any form is ever eternal.

At the end of Lord Brahmā's day, when night approaches, a partial dissolution inundates the universe up to the Svargaloka, the abode of the demigods. All the living entities of this world are created at the dawn of Lord Brahmā's day and annihilated at dusk, and this creation and annihilation go on in a continuous cycle.

<div style="float:right">[[File:Go-previous.png|link=RTW 2.6]] '''[[RTW 2.6]] - [[RTW 2.8]]''' [[File:Go-next.png|link=RTW 2.8]]</div>
__NOTOC__
__NOEDITSECTION__

RTW 2.3

2017-12-18T09:26:34Z

Jimena:

[[Category:Renunciation Through Wisdom|R23]]
<div style="float:left">[[File:Go-previous.png|link=Renunciation Through Wisdom]] '''[[Renunciation Through Wisdom]], [[RTW 2|2. Bhakti-kathā - The Science of Devotion]]'''</div>
<div style="float:right">[[File:Go-previous.png|link=RTW 2.2]] '''[[RTW 2.2]] - [[RTW 2.4]]''' [[File:Go-next.png|link=RTW 2.4]]</div>
{{RandomImage}}

====Dr. Ane's comment on the system of education====

We were pleased to hear Dr. Ane's address at the Calcutta University convocation on January 12, 1957. Dr. Ane is presently the honorable governor of the state of Bihar. An excerpt from his speech follows:

Our youth are being brought up in a tradition of veiled contempt for religion and everything religious. Spiritualists and religious devotees are the laughing-stock of the educated youth, and as the general masses are religious-minded and have great respect and reverence for such devotees and spiritualists, they feel generally disgusted with the attitude of the educated class and have no regard for them. The educated class has also no affection for the masses, whose way of life is mostly molded by religious ideas. The result is that the educated classes have not been able to produce a sufficient number of servants to work with a real missionary spirit for the amelioration of the suffering of the masses.

Dr. Ane goes on to say that the existing academic courses in schools and colleges exclude classes on religion.

We have included this portion of Dr. Ane's speech, taken from a local newspaper, because we want to impress upon the reader the urgent need for introducing religious studies into the universities. Because in the past strong objections were raised against including religious classes in the schools, they have been excluded, and now severe reactions are being seen in today's youth. I think that excluding spiritual studies from education thwarts all chances for the human mind to awaken and blossom. Because of a lack of spiritual education, today's youth are undisciplined. Students who do not pray or meditate in the early morning, and again in the evening, gradually become agnostics, and their minds float about aimlessly without purpose. They reject religious ideas and ethics and instead embrace logic and argument as supreme. Often they fall into the vicious grip of some unscrupulous politician. The exclusion of religious courses from the universities is the main reason one does not see nowadays a pure and sublime relationship between student and teacher. Many educators feel the need for religious education today.

A few months ago (on January 18, 1957) we had the opportunity of meeting Dr. Ane at the Government House in Patna, and we had some discussions. Being a pious man, he could appreciate our spiritual topics and offered us full support for our missionary activities which are aimed at eradicating the demoniac mentality on a wide scale. His recent speech gives us hope of improvement.

Possessed of perverted intelligence, the demons, rascals, and fools can never surrender to Lord Kṛṣṇa. Similarly, Lord Kṛṣṇa never shows them His mercy. The most munificent incarnation of Godhead, Lord Caitanya, repudiated the sinner Gopāla Cāpala because he was envious of the Lord's devotee. In this regard, the Supreme Lord states His opinion in the Bhagavad-gītā ([[BG 4.11|4.11]]): ye yathā māṁ prapadyante tāṁs tathaiva bhajāmy aham. "As all surrender unto Me, I reward them accordingly." Thus the Lord arranges for the demons to slide lower and lower into degraded species of life and suffer hell for many millions of births. In [[BG 16.19|Chapter 16.19-20]] the Lord says:

:tān aham dviṣataḥ krūrān
:saṁsāreṣu narādhamān
:kṣipāmy ajasram aśubhān
:āsurīṣv eva yoniṣu

:āsurīṁ yonim āpannā
:mūḍhā janmani janmani
:mām aprāpyaiva kaunteya
:tato yānty adhamāṁ gatim

Those who are envious and mischievous, who are the lowest among men, I perpetually cast into the ocean of material existence, into various demoniac species of life. Attaining repeated birth amongst the demoniac species of life, O son of Kuntī, such persons can never approach Me. Gradually they sink down to the most abominable type of existence.

Yet the Supreme Lord's devotees, being more merciful than the Lord Himself, are compassionate toward even the lowest demons like us.

The Lord's devotees can save even those whom the Lord Himself rejects. This is their unique character. Therefore the devotees of the Lord arrange various means to save the fallen, reprobate souls from perdition. In fact, they live among these spiritual derelicts to encourage them toward spiritual perfection, using any means at hand-even tricks. His Divine Grace Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura Prabhupāda wanted to open a students' hostel in London, the logic being that it was necessary to give sugar-coated pills, in the form of a little sense gratification, to those debauched students in order to attract them to join the path of God-realization.

If they so desire, powerful spiritual masters, or pure devotees of the Lord, can instantly deliver the entire universe and take everyone to the shelter of the Supreme Lord's lotus feet. Śrīla Vāsudeva Datta declared to Lord Caitanya that he was prepared to take on all the sinful reactions of every living entity in the universe and suffer eternally in hell if the Lord was willing to liberate all the living entities at one time. The pure devotees are so magnanimous that they are always concerned about the spiritual well-being of every soul. The only way to receive the Supreme Lord's mercy is to bathe oneself in the dust of the lotus feet of such unalloyed devotees.

The devotees of the Lord understand that it is māyā's influence that has spoiled the people and made them demoniac. Thus the inherently noble disposition of the devotees leads them to think only of the demons' benefit, without a tinge of envy. The devotees are therefore known as patita-pāvana, "the saviors of the fallen." In fact, the devotees are more compassionate than the Supreme Lord Himself. Of course, it is the Supreme Lord's grace alone that makes them more compassionate than the Lord. And by the mercy of such devotees, the lowest sinful men and women can attain the lotus feet of the Lord.

On the other hand, offending such pure devotees finishes all possibility of salvation. If one offends the Supreme Lord, only His pure devotees can save the offender, but if one offends the pure devotee, then even the Supreme Lord will not save the offender from doom. For this reason alone, pure devotees never feel offended. When Jesus Christ was being crucified, he did not blame anyone for it. Haridāsa Ṭhākura was severely lashed in twenty-two marketplaces by the Muslim Kazi's sentries. Still he prayed to the Lord not to punish his tormentors. Lord Nityānanda was wounded by the two rascals Jagāi and Mādhāi, yet the Lord stood His ground, bleeding profusely. He delivered the two notorious brothers and thus brilliantly exemplified the title patita-pāvana. Such is the profound compassion of the pure devotees.

Therefore the reprobates' only means of attaining any piety is through the association of devotees. We are looking forward to that time when the stalwart disciples of that illustrious crest jewel of all Vaiṣṇavas, His Divine Grace Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura Prabhupāda, having received the blessings of their spiritual master, will come together again for the benediction of the whole world and, without wasting any more time, preach the message of Śrīla Rūpa Gosvāmī and Śrīla Raghunātha dāsa Gosvāmī. Śrīla Gaurakiśora dāsa Bābājī always tried to dissuade his disciple, Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura, from going to Calcutta, which he considered a bastion of Kali-yuga. Yet though some might think Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura disobeyed his guru's order, he preached not only in Calcutta but in other capitals of Kali-yuga, such as London, Berlin, Bombay, Madras, and Delhi. He vehemently opposed the idea of constructing a temple in some quiet spot and leading a passive and uneventful life in the monastery. He represented perfectly the ideal of utilizing 100 percent of one's energy in God's service for the spiritual upliftment of humanity. A certain Gujarati friend offered to build him a temple in Ville Parle, a quiet and remote section of Bombay. He immediately refused. We had the greatest good fortune of seeing him act and preach in this way. And now it is our ill fate that after the passing away of Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura, the exemplar of patita-pāvana, we have returned to our lowly, fallen ways. Is there a glimmer of hope for our deliverance?

From the ocean of loving compassion, which had been completely dammed up, Lord Nityānanda cut a canal of love of Godhead and flooded the entire world. And then some persons called caste Gosvāmīs, claiming to be the Lord's descendants, again dammed up that ocean of mercy with their malpractices of fruitive activities and rituals. Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura once more cut open the canal of love of Godhead and brought in the flood waters. And now are we, of all persons, trying once more to dam it up like the caste Gosvāmīs? By the influence of the good association of the Lord's devotees, even a fool and rascal like me, possessed of a destructive, demoniac mentality, can accumulate enough piety to become inspired to serve the Supreme Lord.

By nature children are restless and playful, so in the kindergarten they are given toys and games to interest them in learning. Similarly, a neophyte is trained to perform activities in the mood of sacrifice, and he is encouraged to worship the Deities according to the scriptural injunctions. The expert Vaiṣṇava preceptor then gradually draws him toward the platform of pure devotion by narrating the spiritually potent topics of Kṛṣṇa consciousness and giving him the remnants of food offered to the Supreme Lord. These two aspects of devotional life act like medicine on the neophyte, who, like the rest of the world, is affected by the material disease. Devotional service to Lord Kṛṣṇa is the living entity's eternal birthright; it is not a new subject fabricated by the human mind. A base fool thinks that devotion to Lord Kṛṣṇa is merely a mundane psychological state of mind. But in truth devotional service is our eternal spiritual substance—"the essential spiritual reality" (vāstava-vastu), according to the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam ([[SB 1.1.2|1.1.2]]). Devotion to Lord Kṛṣṇa can be invoked naturally in the purified hearts of devotees. When a disease is cured, the patient feels hungry; similarly, when a neophyte accrues sufficient piety by associating with devotees, he feels attraction for devotional service within his heart.

Four kinds of pious men establish a relationship with the Supreme Lord, Kṛṣṇa. As the Lord states in the Bhagavad-gītā ([[BG 7.16|7.16]])

:catur-vidhā bhajante māṁ
:janāḥ sukṛtino 'rjuna
:ārto jijñāsur arthārthī
:jñānī ca bharatarṣabha

O best among the Bhāratas, four kinds of men begin to render devotional service unto Me—the distressed, the desirer of wealth, the inquisitive, and he who is searching for knowledge of the Absolute.

One obtains another kind of piety by strictly executing his duties under the system of varṇāśrama-dharma, a social system containing four spiritual orders and four social orders. Learned sages have long propagated this system. As the Viṣṇu Purāṇa (3.8.9) states,

:varṇāśramācāravatā
:puruṣeṇa paraḥ pumān
:viṣṇur ārādhyate panthā
:nānyat tat-toṣa-kāraṇam
:([[CC Madhya 8.58]])

The Supreme Personality of Godhead, Lord Viṣṇu, is worshiped by the proper execution of prescribed duties in the system of varṇa and āśrama. There is no other way to satisfy the Supreme Personality of Godhead. One must be situated in the institution of the four varṇas and āśramas.

The brāhmaṇas (the intellectual, priestly class), the kṣatriyas (kings and administrators), the vaiśyas (the mercantile community), and the śūdras (menial workers) are the four social orders, or varṇas. If they live according to the scriptural injunctions pertaining to their particular varṇa, then they can accrue piety. Similarly, if the members of the four āśramas—namely, the brahmacārīs (celibate students), gṛhasthas (householders), vānaprasthas (pilgrims), and sannyāsīs (renunciants)—also act in conformity with the scriptural edicts, they too acquire immense piety. But when the ill influence of Kali-yuga corrupts this varṇāśrama system, human society is beset by all sorts of degradations. As a result, the living entities are punished by a variety of natural calamities caused by the illusory potency of the Lord. When the citizens abide by the rules of the king, the kingdom runs smoothly and everyone is prosperous and content. But when the demoniac population of thieves, rogues, and criminals steadily increases, the kingdom is filled with chaos and terror.

<div style="float:right">[[File:Go-previous.png|link=RTW 2.2]] '''[[RTW 2.2]] - [[RTW 2.4]]''' [[File:Go-next.png|link=RTW 2.4]]</div>
__NOTOC__
__NOEDITSECTION__

RTW 2.4

2017-12-18T09:25:56Z

Jimena:

[[Category:Renunciation Through Wisdom|R24]]
<div style="float:left">[[File:Go-previous.png|link=Renunciation Through Wisdom]] '''[[Renunciation Through Wisdom]], [[RTW 2|2. Bhakti-kathā - The Science of Devotion]]'''</div>
<div style="float:right">[[File:Go-previous.png|link=RTW 2.3]] '''[[RTW 2.3]] - [[RTW 2.5]]''' [[File:Go-next.png|link=RTW 2.5]]</div>
{{RandomImage}}

====In search of the Supreme Lord====

Varṇāśrama religion cannot be practised in an atmosphere of such chaos and violence. The system now being called varṇāśrama is actually ungodly, demoniac religion in disguise. To wear the holy thread and go through the purificatory process within this demoniac system does not result in piety. Discarding all purificatory processes and religious rites, the men of Kali-yuga vie with each other to become the biggest and the strongest. A person becomes a "brāhmaṇa" just by slipping a holy thread over his head-indeed, such has been predicted in the scriptures—but this does not earn him any piety. Lord Caitanya rejected this kind of cheating varṇāśrama system. Foreseeing the degraded condition of Kali-yuga, Lord Kṛṣṇa hardly discusses varṇāśrama religion in the Bhagavad-gītā and instead stresses the performance of work as sacrifice. Hence it is clearly understood that by the performance of sacrifice for Lord Viṣṇu, the Supreme Person, He becomes satisfied and all ill effects are eradicated.

Persons afflicted by disease or other miseries are known as ārta, "the distressed." Commonly, a sick person depends on a doctor and medicine to cure his disease. But far-sighted scholars say that suffering of any kind is a result of sinful activities performed in the past. Ordinary people do not understand that sinful reactions result from ignorance. This ignorance exists in manifest (prārabdha), unmanifest (aprārabdha) and latent (kuṭashta) form.

There is no material means of counteracting these sinful reactions. Administering a pain-killer provides temporary relief but cannot remove the root cause of a disease. Similarly, no materialistic effort aimed at counteracting sinful reactions can provide ultimate relief. One obtains maximum only by surrendering to the Supreme Lord. The Bhakti-rasāmṛta-sindhu [The Nectar of Devotion] supplies us with numerous proofs of how devotional service to the Lord destroys sinful reactions, and ignorance, the root of all sin. Hence we see that pious men depend solely on the Supreme Lord in moments of distress.

It is not the prime duty of human beings to try to relieve their present sufferings. The search in life is for that medicine—that panacea—which will cure the material disease altogether. This disease manifests itself in countless ways, such as birth, old age, disease, and death. The pious person seeks the association of saintly persons and follows the scriptures, and in this way he endeavors for his greatest good. The beginning of devotional service is the development of faith in the scriptures and the words of the saints. This faith destroys all unwanted desires in the heart and increases one's surrender to the Supreme Lord's will.

Innocent enquirers are known as jijñāsu, "those who are inquisitive." These innocent enquirers are society's hope for the future. Most intelligent and innocent young children are inquisitive: they question their parents about many things and remember the answers. When these bright young boys and girls receive proper guidance from parents and teachers who can lucidly answer their queries, they easily understand each point and gradually develop fine brains. From among these intelligent souls, those who are especially pious begin to keenly enquire about God and other spiritual topics. Others, who pursue ignoble material knowledge, cannot become successful in life and end up beating the chaff. Those who are inquisitive about the self and the Absolute Truth, Brahman, quickly surrender to Lord Kṛṣṇa and His devotees. Such surrender proves their good measure of piety brought over from their previous births. Beginning with fundamental enquiries about Brahman, they swiftly become elevated, understand the statement of Lord Kṛṣṇa in Bhagavad-gītā ([[BG 14.27|14.27]]) that He is the basis of the impersonal Brahman, and begin to worship Him.

A person with meagre piety, however, can never become a devotee of the Supreme Lord. As the scripture states,

:mahā-prasāde govinde
:nāma-brahmaṇi vaiṣṇave
:svalpa-puṇyavatāṁ rājan
:viśvāso naiva jāyate

O king! A person with little piety can never develop faith in Lord Govinda, His mercy, His holy name, or His pure devotees.

Most householders desire material gain. Nowadays especially, everyone is feeling the pinch of poverty. The ordinary man thirsts for money solely to enjoy his senses. Once a person falls into the useless company of sense gratifiers, he spends his wealth on fineries, gold, and women. With more wealth, he seeks adoration and distinction, and along with these he gets mansions, cars, and so on. There is only one interest in this endeavor, and that is to enjoy the senses. Persons whose only goal in life is to gratify the senses were referred to earlier as the less intelligent fruitive workers, or karmīs. If any among them happen to have some piety, then this select group will not merely fritter away all their time in titillating their senses, but will spend some time worshiping the Supreme Lord. Although these elite karmīs do not associate with the pure devotees of the Lord, they call themselves spiritualists. Actually, they harbor the desire to gratify their carnal desires. They fail to comprehend that the Supreme Lord is known as Hṛsīkeśa, "the supreme master of the senses." Sometimes a jñānī (a seeker of knowledge) or a practitioner of mystic yoga will also worship the Lord, but they also are merely interested ultimately in sensual pleasures. The only way these adulterated devotees can become pure devotees is if they read Śrīla Rūpa Gosvāmī's Bhakti-rasāmṛta-sindhu. This book is an authority on the science of devotional service.

Genuine jñānīs know how everything is connected to Brahman, the Absolute Truth. They are humble, unassuming, clean, brahminical, and reverent toward the guru, and they possess many other good qualities. Most often they take to the renounced order (sannyāsa) and lead a pure and saintly life. Yet frequently these sannyāsīs develop one major fault: they consider themselves God. They misinterpret the meaning of the Vedic phrase ahaṁ brahmāsmi, "I am Brahman," and thus they cannot realize pure knowledge of Brahman. They end up deifying the process of negation, and that finally leads to absolute monism. In this way, many jñānīs who want to know the Absolute Truth, the Supreme Brahman, get somehow misled by the illusory potency, māyā. Māyā prepares her last fatal trap, liberation, by which she keeps the monists stranded in the ocean of material existence. She deludes them into thinking "I am that," "I am He," as if they were in a drunken daze.

If by some chance the Māyāvādī sannyāsīs can earn a little piety and then be graced by a pure Vaiṣṇava devotee—as the Māyāvādīs of Benares were by Lord Caitanya—then they can easily realize that knowledge of the impersonal Brahman or the Supersoul is incomplete. Then they can be enlightened with the transcendental knowledge of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Many sages in the past, like the great Sanaka Ṛṣi, and many self-realized renunciants, like the famous Śukadeva Gosvāmī, got a taste for knowledge of the Supreme Personality of Godhead after practicing their impersonal disciplines. Then they relished indescribable bliss by hearing the Supreme Lord's transcendental pastimes. In the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam ([[SB 2.1.9|2.1.9]]), Śukadeva Gosvāmī says,

:pariniṣṭhito 'pi nairguṇya
:uttama-śloka-līlayā
:gṛhīta-cetā rājarṣe
:ākhyānaṁ yad adhītavān

O saintly King [Parīkṣit], I was certainly situated in transcendence, yet I was still attracted by the delineation of the pastimes of the Lord, who is described by enlightened verses.

One of the stalwarts in the spiritual line of Gauḍīya Vaiṣṇavas, Śrīla Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura, has given his opinion on the four types of pious men who approach the Lord—namely, the distressed, those desiring material gain, the inquisitive, and those who knows things as they are. He says,

The distressed, those in need of material gain, and the inquisitive—these three are neophyte fruitive devotees. Their devotion is mixed with fruitive desires. All of them want to fulfill their desires according to their specific qualities. Finally, when they become purified, they desire to reach the divine abode of the Supreme Lord—the Vaikuṇṭha planets. They are not like the karmīs, or fruitive workers, who want to attain to the heavenly planets. As Kṛṣṇa says in the Bhagavad-gītā ([[BG 9.25|9.25]]) yānti mad-yājino 'pi mām: "One who worships Me attains My supreme abode." The jñānī, or one who knows things as they are, is the fourth type of pious man, and he is superior to the other three kinds. He attains a higher result because his devotion is mixed with knowledge. Like Sanaka Ṛṣi, he attains the devotional mellow of neutrality. Moreover, because the Lord and His pure devotees shower their causeless mercy upon him, a jñānī devotee can also achieve pure love of Godhead, as in the case of Śukadeva Gosvāmī. When devotion mixed with fruitive desires becomes free from those fruitive desires, it is automatically transformed into devotion mixed with knowledge. The result of practising this devotion mixed with knowledge is mentioned above.

Sometimes, when devotees belonging to the categories of mixed devotion develop a taste for the devotional mellow of servitude and practice it, they attain devotion in servitude mixed with awe and reverence. When their devotion becomes more purified, they attain pure devotion in the mellow of servitude, friendship, and so on, and due to their love for the Lord they become His eternal associates. All this is clearly delineated in the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam. Here we have discussed only a few points for reference."

<div style="float:right">[[File:Go-previous.png|link=RTW 2.3]] '''[[RTW 2.3]] - [[RTW 2.5]]''' [[File:Go-next.png|link=RTW 2.5]]</div>
__NOTOC__
__NOEDITSECTION__

RTW 2.6

2017-12-18T09:23:38Z

Jimena:

[[Category:Renunciation Through Wisdom|R26]]
<div style="float:left">[[File:Go-previous.png|link=Renunciation Through Wisdom]] '''[[Renunciation Through Wisdom]], [[RTW 2|2. Bhakti-kathā - The Science of Devotion]]'''</div>
<div style="float:right">[[File:Go-previous.png|link=RTW 2.5]] '''[[RTW 2.5]] - [[RTW 2.7]]''' [[File:Go-next.png|link=RTW 2.7]]</div>
{{RandomImage}}

====Lord Kṛṣṇa Incarnates in Kali Yuga in the Form of His Holy Name====

Persons with meagre intelligence worship the demigods for fleeting fortunes. So one may ask, "If by worshiping the Supreme Lord one can have all his desires fulfilled, why doesn't everyone worship Him?" Devaṛsi Nārada once answered a similar question posed by Yudhiṣṭhira Mahārāja. The sage said,

:mahā-prasāde govinde
:nāma-brahmaṇi vaiṣṇave
:svalpa-puṇya-vatāṁ rājan
:viśvāso naiva jāyate

O king, a person with little piety can never develop faith in the Lord Govinda, His mercy, His holy name, or His pure devotees.

Lord Kṛṣṇa has corroborated this in the Bhagavad-gītā ([[BG 7.28|7.28]]):

:yeṣāṁ tv anta-gataṁ pāpaṁ
:janānāṁ puṇya-karmaṇām
:te dvandva-moha-nirmuktā
:bhajante māṁ dṛḍha-vratāḥ

Persons who have acted piously in previous lives and in this life and whose sinful actions are completely eradicated are freed from the dualities of delusion, and they engage themselves in My service with determination.

Persons with a demoniac mentality are steeped in sin; hence their understanding of the importance of spiritual knowledge is nil. Those who have been able to eradicate their sins by living according to the dictates of their social and spiritual order, and who have thus acquired sufficient piety, are qualified to practice karma-yoga. Gradually they progress to jñāna-yoga, and finally, in meditation, they realize the transcendental and supreme position of the Lord. Such highly fortunate realized souls can see in their hearts the eternal, transcendental, two-handed form of the Supreme Lord, known as Śyāmasundara, playing His flute. The description of the Lord in Śrī Brahma-saṁhitā (5.30) reads,

:veṇuṁ kvaṇantam aravinda-dalāyatākṣaṁ
:barhāvataṁsam asitāmbuda-sundarāṅgam
:kandarpa-koṭi-kamanīya-viśeṣa-śobhaṁ
:govindam ādi-puruṣaṁ tam ahaṁ bhajāmi

I worship Govinda, the primeval Lord, who is adept at playing on His flute, with blooming eyes like lotus petals, with head bedecked with peacock's feather, with the figure of beauty tinged with the hue of blue clouds, and His unique loveliness charming millions of cupids.

Those who are committing sins like illicit sex, fault-finding, and unjustified violence rarely attain spiritual knowledge or realization. Sinful activities deepen the dark gloom of ignorance, while pious activities bring the light of transcendental knowledge into one's life. This knowledge culminates in realization of Kṛṣṇa. However, simply performing pious activities does not make one eligible for God-realization. Only when a person performs pious activities and associates with saintly persons does spiritual knowledge dawn on his consciousness. Then, when he transcends the platform of duality - especially when he no longer takes part in the controversy over the Absolute Truth's monistic or dualistic existence - he sees Lord Kṛṣṇa in his enlightenment and worships Him with determination as one without a second, matchless and supreme. In the perfected stage of pious activities, the mode of goodness dominates the consciousness, dissipating the darkness of nescience and illusion, which are products of the mode of ignorance. As soon as the mode of passion is fully subdued, spiritual realization illuminates the sky of one's consciousness.

The point to consider at this juncture is, does anyone in the present age, Kali-yuga, have the means to properly perform such pious activities as fire sacrifices, giving in charity, penances, or austerities? It is universally accepted that the unfortunate people of Kali-yuga are absolutely unable to undertake such extravagances. For this reason Lord Caitanya, the most munificent incarnation of Godhead and the savior of the Kali-yuga, has declared the truth of the following mantra from the Bṛhan-nāradīya Purāṇa:

:harer nāma harer nāma
:harer nāmaiva kevalam
:kalau nāsty eva nāsty eva
:nāsty eva gatir anyathā
:([[CC Adi 17.21|CC Ādi 17.21]])

In this age of quarrel and hypocrisy, the only means of deliverance is chanting the holy name of the Lord, chanting the holy name of the Lord, chanting the holy name of the Lord. There is no other way. There is no other way. There is no other way.

In the age of Kali the only process for attaining perfection is to hear, chant, and remember the holy name of the Supreme Lord. Numerous quotes from the scriptures substantiate this. All inauspiciousness is destroyed by chanting the all-auspicious name of Lord Kṛṣṇa. The Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam ([[SB 12.12.55|12.12.55]]) confirms this:

:avismṛtiḥ kṛṣṇa-padāravindayoḥ
:kṣiṇoty abhadrāṇi ca śaṁ tanoti
:sattvasya śuddhiṁ paramātma-bhaktiṁ
:jñānaṁ ca vijñāna-virāga-yuktam

Remembrance of Lord Kṛṣṇa's lotus feet destroys everything inauspicious and awards the greatest good fortune. It purifies the heart and bestows devotion for the Supreme Soul, along with knowledge enriched with realization and renunciation.

Therefore, to remain beyond the reach of delusion and duality, one has to always remember and meditate on the beatific form of Lord Kṛṣṇa, who has a darkish complexion and is playing His flute. One must also remember and chant the holy name of Kṛṣṇa, which is nondifferent from Him, its nature being eternal, perfect, pure, and independent. In the Bhagavad-gītā ([[BG 8.6|8.6-7]]) Lord Kṛṣṇa explains the importance of remembering Him always:

:yaṁ yaṁ vāpi smaran bhāvaṁ
:tyajaty ante kalevaram
:taṁ tam evaiti kaunteya
:sadā tad-bhāva-bhāvitaḥ

:tasmāt sarveṣu kāleṣu
:mām anusmara yudhya ca
:mayy arpita-mano-buddhir
:mām evaiṣyasy asaṁśayaḥ

Whatever state of being one remembers when he quits his body, O son of Kuntī, that state he will attain without fail. Therefore, Arjuna, you should always think of Me in the form of Kṛṣṇa and at the same time carry out your prescribed duty of fighting. With your activities dedicated to Me and your mind and intelligence fixed on Me, you will attain Me without doubt.

At the time of death, our state of consciousness determines our next birth. Death destroys the body made up of the five gross elements, but the subtle body, consisting of mind, intelligence, and false ego, remains. As the air carries the scent of the place it blows over, so the soul carries a person's subtle body of mind, intelligence, and false ego, along with his state of consciousness, on to his next birth, and his body is determined accordingly. When a breeze blows over a garden, it carries the fragrance of flowers with it, but when it blows over a rubbish heap, the breeze is filled with the stench. Similarly, the activities a person performs during his lifetime continuously influence his mentality, and at the time of death the cumulative effect of these activities determines his state of consciousness. Thus the subtle body formed during one's lifetime is carried over to one's next birth and manifests as the soul's next gross body. Naturally, therefore, the gross body reflects one's state of consciousness. As the popular saying goes, "The face is the index of the mind." And the mind is the product of the activities of one's present and previous lives. In other words, one's mind, intelligence, and false ego, which are influenced by one's habits in this and previous births, form the matrix that determines the type of body and mentality one will have in the next life. Hence the connection between one's previous, present, and future lives is the mind, intelligence, and false ego.

The activities of the day evoke dreams at night and induce emotions appropriate to those activities. Similarly, the activities performed in one's lifetime flash across one's mind at the moment of death and determine one's next life. Therefore, if one's present activities are directed toward chanting, hearing, and remembering the Supreme Lord's transcendental name, along with descriptions of His beauty, qualities, pastimes, associates, and paraphernalia, then one's consciousness at the moment one leaves his body will automatically be attracted to the Lord. Such a spiritual state of consciousness at the moment of death ensures the soul entry into the Supreme Lord's eternal abode in his very next birth. To awaken this spiritual consciousness is man's prime goal in life. We therefore find that Lord Kṛṣṇa, out of compassion for the conditioned souls, instructs Arjuna to fight and at the same time remember Him. This is called karma-yoga. Therefore devotees always remember Him in all their activities - in their endeavors for food and safety and even in the middle of the battlefield while fighting a war. Life being like a battlefield, in which one may die at any time, the devotees remember Him at every moment, and He willingly becomes the charioteer of their chariotlike bodies. The activities of their bodies, minds, and words are thus prompted by the Supreme Lord's will, and at the end, when they leave their gross and subtle bodies, they go directly to the spiritual sky.

The prime symptom of pure devotional service is constant chanting, hearing, and remembrance of the holy name. Mixed devotional service, as we have previously discussed, is devotional service adulterated by karma (fruitive desire) and jñāna (attachment to knowledge). Such devotional service is often impeded by the particular situation or association a person finds himself in. But there is never any impediment to pure devotional service. Perfect realization of the Supreme Lord does not occur until one is firmly situated in unalloyed devotional service. Lord Kṛṣṇa confirms this in the Bhagavad-gītā ([[BG 18.55|18.55]]): bhaktyā mām abhijānāti yāvān yaś cāsmi tattvataḥ. "One can understand Me as I am, as the Supreme Personality of Godhead, only by pure devotional service." And in verse [[BG 8.14|8.14]] the Lord mentions the primary characteristic of this pure devotional service:

:ananya-cetāḥ satataṁ
:yo māṁ smarati nityaśaḥ
:tasyāhaṁ sulabhaḥ pārtha
:nitya-yuktasya yoginaḥ

For one who always remembers Me without deviation, I am easy to obtain, O son of Pṛthā, because of his constant engagement in devotional service.

Undeviating concentration on the Supreme Lord is the first sign of pure devotion. In other words, a pure devotee is one who wards off all desires and thoughts not related to unflinching devotional service to the Supreme Lord. Many spiritual stalwarts have commented upon pure devotional service. For example, Śrīla Rūpa Gosvāmī, the foremost of the great spiritual preceptors in the time of Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu, wrote in his Bhakti-rasāmṛta-sindhu (Bhakti-rasāmṛta-sindhu 1.1.11):

:anyābhilāṣitā-śūnyaṁ
:jñāna-karmādy-anāvṛtam
:ānukūlyena kṛṣṇānu-
:śīlanaṁ bhaktir uttama
:([[CC Madhya 19.167]])

One should render transcendental loving service to the Supreme Lord Kṛṣṇa favorably and without desire for material profit or gain through fruitive activities or philosophical speculation. That is called pure devotional service.

People propitiate demigods to satisfy their material desires. Those neophyte devotees of Kṛṣṇa who try to appease demigods like the sun-god in order to escape ill health do so because they succumb to serious doubts about Lord Kṛṣṇa's supreme divinity. In analyzing the word anyābhilāṣa ("desires other than those directed toward serving Lord Kṛṣṇa"), we find that one fosters this type of perverted intelligence when one thinks that the sun-god, who is merely a manifestation of the Supreme Lord's potency, can protect one from ill health but that the Supreme Lord, Kṛṣṇa, cannot. Once these mind - clouding doubts disperse, one enters the doors of pure devotional service. Karmīs and jñānīs are also tainted by material desires - the desire to enjoy their senses and the desire for liberation, respectively. Pure devotional service is attained only when these material desires are dissipated and one renders unbroken, favorable devotional service to the Lord Kṛṣṇa. The great sage Nārada has said,

:sarvopādhi-vinirmuktaṁ
:tat-paratvena nirmalam
:hṛṣīkeṇa hṛṣīkeśa-
:sevanaṁ bhaktir ucyate
:([[CC Madhya 19.170]])

Bhakti, or devotional service, means engaging all our senses in the service of the Lord, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, the master of all the senses. When the spirit soul renders service unto Him, there are two side effects-one is freed from all material designations, and, simply by being employed in the service of the Lord, one's senses are purified. (Nārada-Pañcarātra).

The various identities a person adopts in relation to his mind and body are all material designations. The pure soul is unencumbered by such mundane designations, for the only identity he has is that of a servant and inseparable part of the Supreme Lord. Thus, with the shedding of all false designations, one enters a state of transcendence, and when one is firmly situated in transcendence, one becomes pure. Serving the Supreme Lord, the master of all senses, with such purified senses is unalloyed devotional service.

In Bhagavad-gītā ([[BG 8.14|8.14]]), the two words ananya-cetāḥ ("without deviation") and nitya-yukta ("regularly") are very significant. One cannot become undeviating in devotional practice without being fixed in undeviating faith. When a person regularly serves the Supreme Lord with this faith, he automatically loses all desires for fruitive activity, speculative knowledge, worship of the demigods, and ritualistic pious activities, and he becomes undeviating in his devotional service. The word satatam ("always") must be understood to imply that devotional service is independent of time, place, circumstance, adversity, and so on. Everyone, regardless of race, caste, sex, or other material designation, can give up mental speculation, fruitive actions, and yoga practice and take complete shelter of Lord Kṛṣṇa's lotus feet without deviation. The word nitya means "daily," "regularly," or "constantly." Those who meditate constantly on Lord Kṛṣṇa's lotus feet can easily attain Him. As Lord Brahmā states in the Brahma-saṁhitā (5.33),

:advaitam acyutam anādim ananta-rūpam
:ādyaṁ purāṇa-puruṣaṁ nava-yauvanaṁ ca
:vedeṣu durlabham adurlabham ātma-bhaktau
:govindam ādi-puruṣaṁ tam ahaṁ bhajāmi

I worship Govinda, the Primeval Lord, who is inaccessible to the Vedas, but who is obtainable by pure unalloyed devotion of the soul, who is without a second, who is not subject to decay, is without a beginning, whose form is endless, who is the beginning, and the eternal puruṣa, yet He is a person possessing the beauty of blooming youth.

In the process of executing religious duties, performing fruitive activities, cultivating empiric knowledge, and practising mystic yoga, much endeavor, time, and money is spent. One has to accept the sinful reactions along with the pious results of such activities. The only way to nullify these results and reactions is to worship the Supreme Lord, Kṛṣṇa. Thus worshiping and serving Lord Kṛṣṇa are the only advantageous activities for the entire world.

The Supreme Lord is the embodiment of eternal bliss and is always engaged in transcendental pastimes. The only thing required to worship Him is undeviating devotion - ostentation will not please Him. Devotional service to Lord Kṛṣṇa does not produce hate or envy; only the agnostic reprobates are strongly opposed to the Lord's devotional service and His devotees. One derives the greatest bliss in devotional service. Indeed, when one finally obtains the Lord, it is like being drowned in an ocean of unlimited ecstasy. Only the devotees of Lord Kṛṣṇa can taste this ecstasy and be always joyful.

<div style="float:right">[[File:Go-previous.png|link=RTW 2.5]] '''[[RTW 2.5]] - [[RTW 2.7]]''' [[File:Go-next.png|link=RTW 2.7]]</div>
__NOTOC__
__NOEDITSECTION__

RTW 2.5

2017-12-18T09:22:31Z

Jimena:

[[Category:Renunciation Through Wisdom|R25]]
<div style="float:left">[[File:Go-previous.png|link=Renunciation Through Wisdom]] '''[[Renunciation Through Wisdom]], [[RTW 2|2. Bhakti-kathā - The Science of Devotion]]'''</div>
<div style="float:right">[[File:Go-previous.png|link=RTW 2.4]] '''[[RTW 2.4]] - [[RTW 2.6]]''' [[File:Go-next.png|link=RTW 2.6]]</div>
{{RandomImage}}

====Lord Kṛṣṇa Alone Is the Supreme Godhead; Everyone Else Is His Servant====

Generally the tendency of the jñānīs is to veer toward impersonal monistic thought. Their idea of monism is this: having experienced the transience and bitterness of material existence and recognized the futility of fruitive activity, they now realize that they are the Self, Brahman, the Absolute Truth. In fact, when realization of the transcendence is perfectly complete, one perceives the personal aspect of the Absolute Truth in the highest spiritual abode. And when the perception of the personal aspect of the Supreme Godhead deepens, one becomes naturally attracted to the absolute transcendental beauty of Lord Kṛṣṇa. As the Lord says in the Bhagavad-gītā ([[BG 7.19|7.19]]),

:bahūnāṁ janmanām ante
:jñānavān māṁ prapadyate
:vāsudevaṁ sarvam iti
:sa mahātmā sudurlabhaḥ

After many births and deaths, he who is actually in knowledge surrenders unto Me, knowing Me to be the cause of all causes and all that is. Such a great soul is very rare.

One who fully understands Lord Kṛṣṇa never experiences any bitterness anywhere in the entire material existence. He thrives on the knowledge of His of eternal relationship with the Lord; indeed, he sees everything in the world, and the world itself, in relation to Kṛṣṇa. In this way he is unlike the impersonalistic salvationists, who regard this world as merely evanescent matter. Such a wise devotee realizes that everything is engaged in Lord Kṛṣṇa's service, that nothing can exist outside this relationship, independent of Lord Kṛṣṇa. In other words, for the devotee this world becomes transformed, surcharged with the existence of Kṛṣṇa in everything. The illusory potency recedes into oblivion, and this world takes on the characteristics of the spiritual world, Vaikuṇṭha. Such a pure devotee of Kṛṣṇa is not selfish, thinking he alone will enjoy the benefits of surrendering to Lord Kṛṣṇa's lotus feet. Rather, he tries to attract everyone in the world to Lord Kṛṣṇa, and by this effort he becomes known as a mahātmā, a magnanimous soul. Such magnanimous souls are truly rare.

It is seen that many so-called mahātmās, without first realizing that this entire world is pervaded with Lord's Kṛṣṇa's presence, want to become the Lord and master themselves and be served in that capacity. In this way they become fully imprisoned by His illusory potency. They become hounded and bombarded by endless desires, which finally force them to begin worshiping demigods, who are inferior to the Supreme Lord. As Kṛṣṇa says in the Bhagavad-gītā ([[BG 7.20|7.20]]),

:kāmais tais tair hṛta-jñānāḥ
:prapadyante 'nya-devatāḥ
:taṁ taṁ niyamam āsthāya
:prakṛtyā niyatāḥ svayā

Those whose intelligence has been stolen by material desires surrender unto demigods and follow the particular rules and regulations of worship according to their own natures.

Persons who are thus constantly tormented by unlimited desires suffer much distress, which spoils their intelligence. That is why Kṛṣṇa calls them hṛta-jñānāḥ, "men with lost intelligence." They become polytheists and hasten to worship various demigods. Polytheists cannot comprehend that kṛṣṇe bhakti kaile sarva-karma-kṛta haya: "By worshiping Lord Kṛṣṇa, one automatically takes care of all other, subsidiary duties." Polytheists think that demigods like the sun-god are equal to the Supreme Lord, Kṛṣṇa. Such men of distorted intelligence can never take shelter of Lord Kṛṣṇa's lotus feet. On the other hand, lofty-minded persons with incisive intelligence are convinced that Lord Kṛṣṇa is the Supreme Being. If somehow they harbor some material desires, they immediately approach Lord Kṛṣṇa and pray to Him. In the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam ([[SB 2.3.7|2.3.7]]) we find this verse:

:akāmaḥ sarva-kāmo vā
:mokṣa-kāma udāra-dhīḥ
:tīvreṇa bhakti-yogena
:yajeta puruṣaṁ param

A person who has broader intelligence, whether he be full of all material desire, without any material desire, or desiring liberation, must by all means worship the supreme whole, the Personality of Godhead.

Whatever desire a person may have, to fulfill it he must serve Lord Kṛṣṇa, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, with intense and unfaltering devotion. (This point was discussed earlier by Śrīla Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura.) If this injunction is followed, then even those who have an aversion to Lord Kṛṣṇa will eventually decide to surrender to Him.

Lord Kṛṣṇa is the Supreme Controller and the Supreme Absolute Being, yet He never forces His will upon the infinitesimal living entities. Rather, it is to the living entity's own benefit to recognize that Lord Kṛṣṇa alone is the Supreme Personality of Godhead and that everyone else is His servitor. The sun-god and other demigods perform their duties according to Lord Kṛṣṇa's wishes; indeed, this is why they are called demigods. And since a devotee of the Supreme Lord also follows His wishes, he is also known as a sura, or demigod. Conversely, those who are oppose the Lord's wishes are known as asuras, demons.

The demigods do not possess any independent powers. In fact, they do not wield enough power even to invoke respect for themselves. That is done by the Supreme Lord. Lord Kṛṣṇa's partial expansion, the Supersoul, resides in everyone's heart, and it is He who instills within one's heart faith and respect for the various demigods. The extraordinary powers seen in the sun-god and other demigods are in fact the Supreme Lord's powers. Once attracted to these extraordinary powers, an intelligent person will gradually be drawn to the source of that power, the Supreme Energetic, Lord Kṛṣṇa. Worship of demigods is indirect, inferior, and unsystematic worship of the Supreme Lord. Those who are too attached to fulfilling their material desires are naturally more attracted to the energy than to the Energetic, the source of that energy. Hence in the Bhagavad-gītā ([[BG 7.21|7.21-22]]) Lord Kṛṣṇa says,

:yo yo yāṁ yāṁ tanuṁ bhaktaḥ
:śraddhayārcitum icchati
:tasya tasyācalāṁ śraddhāṁ
:tām eva vidadhāmy aham

:sa tayā śraddhayā yuktas
:tasyārādhanam īhate
:labhate ca tataḥ kāmān
:mayaiva vihitān hi tan

I am in everyone's heart as the Supersoul. As soon as one desires to worship some demigod, I make his faith steady so that he can devote himself to that particular deity. Endowed with such a faith, he endeavors to worship a particular demigod and obtain his desires. But in actuality these benefits are bestowed by Me alone.

The demigods' powers are like those of a king's officers. The demigods have no independent powers because they are jīvas, minute living entities. An officer of the king can bestow some favors because of the powers invested in him by the king. Similarly, a demigod can shower benefits upon his worshipper because the Supreme Lord has given the demigod some power. If the desire-filled demigod-worshipper becomes a little enlightened about the fact that the demigod he worships is fulfilling his desires by the grace of Lord Kṛṣṇa, then with clear intelligence he will begin worshiping Lord Kṛṣṇa directly.

Different demigods have different powers. The sun-god has the power to cure diseases; the moon-god imbues plants with taste and nutritional or medicinal potency; Goddess Durgā gives strength and courage; Goddess Sarasvatī bestows learning; Goddess Lakṣmī grants wealth; Goddess Cāṇḍī offers one the opportunity to consume meat and intoxicants, and Gaṇeśa gives success in one's endeavors. But all these powers are invested in the demigods by the Supreme Lord, and thus only He, the complete whole, can bestow every kind of benediction. There is an immeasurable difference between a well and the ocean.

We have already touched on the point that everything in the world has been produced by the interaction of the Lord's kṣetra-śakti (His inferior energy, comprising the "field of action") and His kṣetrajña-śakti (His superior energy, which is "the knower of the field"). Therefore everything in this world is merely a transformation of Lord Kṛṣṇa's energies. In one sense the energy principle and the energetic principle are nondifferent, just as fire and its burning potency are inseparable and non-different. Unfortunately, the impersonalists, the monistic philosophers, have wreaked havoc in the world with their misguided opinions concerning transformation of the Lord's energy.

Demigods and all other living entities belong to the energy principle, as does the universe itself. No one but the Lord and His plenary expansions are in the category of the energetic principle. Thus the energy and the energetic are one and different. A person who cannot grasp this subtle principle of simultaneous, inconceivable oneness and difference of the Lord and His energies will surely degenerate into an impersonalist, or Māyāvādī. He will be forced from the path of devotion and become silent. The Supreme Lord, the source of all opulence, is the energetic principle. If we consider Him to be impersonal, then we limit His absoluteness. The words "Supreme Absolute" are applicable to Lord Kṛṣṇa alone. The Lord is the Supreme Absolute Principle, unequalled and unsurpassed. Thus the Vedas say He is "one without a second." The Lord's energies are manifested in various forms, and those who become bewildered by these variegated manifestations end up becoming polytheists. It should be clear to all that whatever variegatedness we see in the universe is but a transformation of the Supreme Lord's diverse energies.

The Māyāvādīs reject the theory of transformation of energy and subscribe to the theory of the transformation of Brahman itself. Thus they become fixed in their belief that Brahman is impersonal. The Supreme Lord has described the specific situations in which He manifests Himself in His impersonal form. There are many quotes from the scriptures substantiating this point. The Supreme Lord, by manifesting both His personal and impersonal features, has firmly established the principle that the Supreme Absolute Person is inconceivably and simultaneously one with and different from His energies. This philosophical conclusion—called acintya-bhedābheda-tattva—has been explained by Lord Kṛṣṇa Himself in the Bhagavad-gītā ([[BG 7.12|7.12]]): matta eveti tān viddhi na tv ahaṁ teṣu te mayi. "I am, in one sense, everything, but I am independent. I am not under the modes of material nature, for they, on the contrary, are within Me."

The Supreme Energetic is the source of all energies. Yet although all energies emanate from Him, He remains aloof from the workings of these energies. From this we can conclude that the demigods' extraordinary potencies are an intrinsic part of the Supreme Lord's potencies, but that the demigods are separate from the Lord. Hence the boons granted by demigods benefit the recipient only temporarily. Lord Kṛṣṇa confirms this fact in the Bhagavad-gītā ([[BG 7.23|7.23]]):

:antavat tu phalaṁ teṣāṁ
:tad bhavaty alpa-medhasām
:devān deva-yajo yānti
:mad-bhaktā yānti mām api

Men of small intelligence worship the demigods, and their fruits are limited and temporary. Those who worship the demigods go to the planets of the demigods, but My devotees ultimately reach My supreme planet.

We have already discussed that if fruitive workers filled with fruitive desires approach the Supreme Lord instead of going to the demigods, then the benedictions they receive from the Supreme Lord will be everlasting. They will automatically rise a step higher in the ladder of yoga—from fruitive activities to jñāna-yoga, or the path of absolute knowledge. This means that instead of being elevated to the heavenly planets within this material world, they will attain liberation in the Vaikuṇṭha planets, the Lord's spiritual abode beyond this material world. The demigod-worshippers go to the planets of the demigods, the heavenly planets, which are temporary. Once a person's accrued piety is used up, he has to come back to earth. On the other hand, once the devotees of the Supreme Lord attain to Vaikuṇṭha, His supreme abode in the spiritual sky, they never have to return to this world of mortality.

<div style="float:right">[[File:Go-previous.png|link=RTW 2.4]] '''[[RTW 2.4]] - [[RTW 2.6]]''' [[File:Go-next.png|link=RTW 2.6]]</div>
__NOTOC__
__NOEDITSECTION__

RTW 1.2

2017-12-18T09:19:44Z

Jimena:

[[Category:Renunciation Through Wisdom|R12]]
<div style="float:left">[[File:Go-previous.png|link=Renunciation Through Wisdom]] '''[[Renunciation Through Wisdom]], [[RTW 1|1. Bhagavāner-kathā - Knowledge of the Supreme]]'''</div>
<div style="float:right">[[File:Go-previous.png|link=RTW 1.1]] '''[[RTW 1.1]] - [[RTW 1.3]]''' [[File:Go-next.png|link=RTW 1.3]]</div>
{{RandomImage}}

====The Cause of Suffering====

Mahisāsura, the most powerful demon, who was the personification of the forces of evil, was in fact endowed with intelligence, education, wealth, the ability to perform severe penances and attract large followings, and so on. His present-day followers, possessing identical qualifications, are no less enterprising and expert in exploiting the divine energy. They carry out elaborate scientific research, misspending huge amounts of money, time, energy, intelligence, men, and so on. But instead of bringing peace and joy, what they discover through these researches ends up producing untold misery for humanity. This is a perfect example of daivī māyā's throwing agency in action. All these evil activities bring great losses to human society. As a result of this evil, the mundane scientists incur grievous sin, which destroys their real intelligence. And this loss of intelligence turns them away from God and robs them of their chance to surrender to Him. Thus in the Bhagavad-gītā ([[BG 7.15|7.15]]) the Supreme Lord says:

:na māṁ duṣkṛtino muḍhāḥ
:prapadyante narādhamāḥ
:māyayāpahṛta-jñānā
:āsuraṁ bhāvam āśritāḥ

"Those miscreants who are grossly foolish, who are lowest among mankind, whose knowledge is stolen by illusion, and who partake of the atheistic nature of demons do not surrender unto Me."

In the Bhagavad-gītā ([[BG 16.7|16.7-20]]) the Supreme Lord has exhaustively described the nature of such atheistic demons:

Those who are demoniac do not know what is to be done and what is not to be done. Neither cleanliness nor proper behaviour nor truth is found in them. They say that this world is unreal, with no foundation, no God in control. They say it is produced of sex desire and has no cause other than lust. Following such conclusions, the demoniac, who are lost to themselves and who have no intelligence, engage in unbeneficial, horrible works meant to destroy the world. Taking shelter of insatiable lust and absorbed in the conceit of pride and false prestige, the demoniac, thus illusioned, are always sworn to unclean work, attracted by the impermanent.

They believe that to gratify the senses unto the end of life is the prime necessity of human civilization. Thus until the end of life their anxiety is immeasurable. Bound by a network of hundreds and thousands of desires and absorbed in lust and anger, they secure money by illegal means for sense gratification. The demoniac person thinks, 'So much wealth do I have today, and I will gain more according to my schemes. So much is mine now, and it will increase in the future, more and more. He is my enemy, and I have killed him, and my other enemies will also be killed. I am the lord of everything. I am the enjoyer. I am perfect, powerful, and happy. I am the richest man, surrounded by aristocratic relatives. There is none so powerful and happy as I am. I shall perform sacrifices, I shall give some charity, and thus I shall rejoice.' In this way such persons are deluded by ignorance. Thus perplexed by various anxieties and bound by a network of illusions, they become too strongly attached to sense enjoyment and fall down into hell.

Self-complacent and always impudent, deluded by wealth and false prestige, they sometimes proudly perform sacrifices in name only, without following any rules or regulations. Bewildered by false ego, strength, pride, lust, and anger, the demons become envious of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, who is situated in their own bodies and in the bodies of others, and blaspheme against the real religion. Those who are envious and mischievous, who are the lowest among men, I perpetually cast into the ocean of material existence, into various demoniac species of life. Attaining repeated birth amongst the species of demoniac life, O son of Kuntī, such persons can never approach Me. Gradually they sink down to the most abominable type of existence.

These verses from the Gītā aptly describe the demoniac nature.

There have always existed two types of men, the devotee and the demon. Long ago there lived a big demon named Rāvaṇa, who disguised himself as a sannyāsī, a renounced mendicant, and tried to steal the wife of the Supreme Lord, Rāmacandra. She was the goddess of fortune, Sītā-devī. In this way the demon brought about his own destruction.

But now, in modern times, Rāvaṇa's dynasty has multiplied into millions. This has given rise to many different opinions, which have made the demons inimical toward one another. Thus they are all competing tooth and nail, trying to kidnap the goddess of fortune, Sītā-devī. Each one is thinking, "I am the most cunning, and so I will enjoy Sītā-devī all by myself." But like Rāvaṇa, all these demons, along with their entire families, are being destroyed. So many powerful leaders like Hitler have come, but enamoured by the illusion of enjoying and exploiting the Supreme Lord's energy and consort—Sītā-devī, the goddess of fortune—all of them have been thwarted and crushed in the past, are being thwarted and crushed in the present, and will be thwarted and crushed in the future. The root cause of the aforementioned lament—"In the dispensation of providence, mankind cannot have any rest"—is this demoniac mentality of exploiting and enjoying the Lord's divine energy.

The demons do not know when or where to renounce, nor do they know when or where to accept or receive. When diagnosing a patient, one has to properly judge this accepting and rejecting principle. So, in order to cure the demoniac mentality in human society, which causes the Rāvaṇa syndrome of trying to steal Sītā-devī, it is essential that the demoniac nature be transformed. For any treatment, two important factors are that the patient be in clean surroundings and that his medicine and food be administered punctually. Similarly, to transform the demoniac mentality, people have to be clean, disciplined, and truthful. This end is not served by advocating the theory of yata mat, tata path—that "there are as many ways to salvation as there are opinions"—for in this way one confuses and deceives the populace. By bringing the clean and the unclean, the disciplined and undisciplined, the truthful and the untruthful onto the same level, one will find it impossible to cure or even treat any patient.

<div style="float:right">[[File:Go-previous.png|link=RTW 1.1]] '''[[RTW 1.1]] - [[RTW 1.3]]''' [[File:Go-next.png|link=RTW 1.3]]</div>
__NOTOC__
__NOEDITSECTION__

RTW 1.1

2017-12-18T09:18:45Z

Jimena:

[[Category:Renunciation Through Wisdom|R11]]
<div style="float:left">[[File:Go-previous.png|link=Renunciation Through Wisdom]] '''[[Renunciation Through Wisdom]], [[RTW 1|1. Bhagavāner-kathā - Knowledge of the Supreme]]'''</div>
<div style="float:right">'''[[RTW 1.2]]''' [[File:Go-next.png|link=RTW 1.2]]</div>
{{RandomImage}}

====This Material Nature Is Full of Suffering====

The editor of the daily Amrita Bazar Patrika, published from Allahabad, began the editorial the other day on a rather sad note:

The nation's week began with memories of 'Jalhianwallah-Bagh,' and political serfdom no longer troubles us. But our troubles are far from being at an end. In the dispensation of providence, mankind cannot have any rest. If one kind of trouble goes, another quickly follows. India, politically free, is faced with difficulties that are no less serious than the troubles under foreign rule.

Now, if one consults the accounts ledger of India's serfdom and freedom, and views the contents from a spiritual perspective, the conclusion will be as follows: The four yugas, or ages, namely Satya, Tretā, Dvāpara, and Kali, add up to 4,320,000 years. Kali-yuga, which lasts 432,000 years, began from the time of Mahārāja Parīkṣit's rule, some five thousand years ago. For approximately one thousand of these five thousand years—i.e., since the invasion of Mohammad Ghori in A.D. 1050—India has been experiencing foreign rule. In other words, when we calculate according to scripture, India has exercised absolute sovereignty over the entire planet Earth for a period of 3,772,000 years, till Mahārāja Parīkṣit's rule. Hence the meagre thousand years of foreign subjugation are not such a lamentable thing. Neither in the past nor at present has India's political serfdom or freedom been the prime concern of India's greatest thinkers and philosophers, who well knew the actual value of such things. The kings of India up to Mahārāja Parīkṣit were able to rule the entire world, and not for a mere couple of centuries but for hundreds of thousands of years. The reason for their rule was not a political one.

India's wise men of yore easily realized that the threefold miseries we humans are condemned to suffer can never be mitigated by the political condition controlling the country—whether foreign rule or freedom from it. At the dawn of modern history, the Armageddon fought in India over a political question lasted only eighteen days. On that historic battlefield the problem of human suffering and its permanent solution was discussed, and this discussion was compiled in the form of the Bhagavad-gītā.

Thus millennia ago the Bhagavad-gītā comprehensively discussed the same topic the editor of Amrita Bazar Patrika writes about in a despondent mood: "If one kind of trouble goes, another quickly follows." In the Gītā ([[BG 7.14|7.14]]) Lord Kṛṣṇa says, "This divine energy of mine, consisting of the three modes of material nature, is difficult to overcome." The Sanskrit words daivī māyā used here can be translated into modern terms as "nature's law." This natural law is so stringent that it is impossible to overcome it, in spite of our prolific articles in the newspapers or our big conferences tabling motions that run into volumes. Our advanced technological and scientific efforts aimed at protecting us from the clutches of nature's law are futile because they are all controlled by the very same nature's law, or daivī māyā. Therefore trying to utilize mundane science to overpower nature's law is like creating a Frankenstein. Efforts to extirpate human suffering through advanced technology and bring about lasting happiness have brought us to the Atomic Age. Western thinkers have become gravely concerned about the extent of destruction an atomic explosion can cause. Some leaders are trying to calm the alarm with platitudes about how atomic energy is to be used solely for peaceful purposes, but this is another form of deception caused by daivī māyā, or nature's law.

It is impossible for anyone to surmount the two-pronged attack of daivī māyā—that is, her covering potency and her throwing potency. The more we try to conquer this divine energy, the more powerfully she defeats us by exciting us through the mode of passion and punishing us with the threefold miseries, culminating in all-devouring death. This struggle between the divine energy and the evil forces is eternal. Our inability to understand this struggle has led us to lament, "In the dispensation of providence, mankind cannot have any rest."

Despite repeatedly tasting defeat at the hands of the divine energy, the evil forces cannot understand why "mankind cannot have any rest." Yet in the Bhagavad-gītā the Supreme Personality of Godhead clearly explains this. At first He sternly warns the evil forces with these words, daivī hy eṣā guṇa-mayī mama māyā duratyayā: "This divine energy of Mine, consisting of the three modes of material nature, is difficult to overcome" ([[BG 7.14]]); and then in the next line He tells them how to overcome this divine energy, mām eva ye prapadyante māyām etāṁ taranti te: "But those who have surrendered unto Me can easily cross beyond it."

<div style="float:right">'''[[RTW 1.2]]''' [[File:Go-next.png|link=RTW 1.2]]</div>
__NOTOC__
__NOEDITSECTION__

RTW 2.1

2017-12-18T09:17:15Z

Jimena:

RTW 2.2

2017-12-18T09:15:12Z

Jimena:

[[Category:Renunciation Through Wisdom|R21]]
<div style="float:left">[[File:Go-previous.png|link=Renunciation Through Wisdom]] '''[[Renunciation Through Wisdom]], [[RTW 2|2. Bhakti-kathā - The Science of Devotion]]'''</div>
<div style="float:right">[[File:Go-previous.png|link=RTW 2.1]] '''[[RTW 2.1]] - [[RTW 2.3]]''' [[File:Go-next.png|link=RTW 2.3]]</div>
{{RandomImage}}

====Lord Kṛṣṇa Is the Supreme Absolute Truth====

The famous atheist Kapila propagated the Sāṅkhya philosophy. He concluded that the material world consists of twenty-four material elements, namely, earth, water, fire, air, and ether; form, taste, smell, sound, and touch; eyes, tongue, nose, ears, and skin; mouth, hands, legs, anus, and genitals; mind, intelligence, and false ego; and the unmanifested state of the three modes of nature (pradhāna). When Kapila was unable to perceive the unmanifested soul after analyzing the twenty-four elements, he concluded that God does not exist. Thus the devotee community regards Kapila as an atheist.

Lord Kapila, the son of Devahūti, is a different person altogether from the agnostic Kapila. Lord Kapila is accepted as an empowered incarnation of the Supreme Godhead. In the Bhagavad-gītā Lord Kṛṣṇa refutes the atheist Kapila's Sāṅkhya philosophy and its contention that the unmanifested soul is nonexistent. In the Gītā ([[BG 7.4|7.4]]) Lord Kṛṣṇa also establishes that the material ingredients are all under His control and supervision:

:bhūmir āpo 'nalo vāyuḥ
:khaṁ mano buddhir eva ca
:ahaṅkāra itīyaṁ me
:bhinnā prakṛtir aṣṭadhā

Earth, water, fire, air, ether, mind, intelligence, and false ego—all together these eight comprise My separated material energies.

Who is Lord Kṛṣṇa, and what is His original form? Unless one knows about His opulence, potencies, fame, beauty, knowledge, and renunciation, one can never enter into the realm of pure devotional service. As stated in the Caitanya-caritāmṛta ([[CC Adi 2.117|Ādi 2.117]]),

:siddhānta baliyā citte nā kara alasa
:ihā ha-ite kṛṣṇe lāge sudṛḍha mānasa

A sincere student should not neglect the discussion of such philosophical conclusions, considering them controversial, for such discussions strengthen the mind. Thus one's mind becomes attached to Śrī Kṛṣṇa.

One who is situated in knowledge of Kṛṣṇa and acts accordingly is executing devotional service. In pursuing the process initiated by Kapila man failed to fathom the same for hundreds and thousands of years. The Supreme Lord Kṛṣṇa has, in a few words, lifted the shroud of mystery and revealed the truth:

Earth, water, fire, air, ether, mind, intelligence, and false ego—all together these eight constitute My separated material energies. Besides these, O might-armed Arjuna, there is another, superior energy of Mine, which comprises the living entities who are exploiting the resources of this material, inferior nature. All created beings have their source in these two natures. Of all that is material and all that is spiritual in this world, know for certain that I am both the origin and the dissolution.

Those who cannot understand this truth remain far from the science of devotional service, while those who do understand it are strengthened in their devotional life. Lord Kṛṣṇa is the Supreme Personality of Godhead, the supreme male. So, when the supreme male is present, automatically material nature, his female counterpart, is there to serve Him. Those who falsely pose as the Supreme Person claim to have the material nature at their disposal and conclude that nature is no longer at Lord Kṛṣṇa's beck and call. Naturally this is absurd, and only fools will make such a claim.

Similarly, those philosophical schools which propound that the Supreme Person is subservient to prakṛti, or nature, are also far from the truth. When one thinks about nature and nothing further, the thought is left incomplete. One has to inquire, "Whose nature is it?" Nature has to belong to someone; she cannot exist on her own. Thus what must be established is the identity of the Supreme Person, or puruṣa—the male factor. Prakṛti is the same as śakti, or energy. Through the energy, an intelligent person will seek out the possessor of the energy. The Upaniṣads and other Vedic scriptures clearly state that Brahman is the Absolute Truth and the possessor and source of multifarious energies. In the Bhagavad-gītā ([[BG 14.27|14.27]]) this Brahman is said to be the bodily effulgence of Kṛṣṇa (brahmaṇo hi pratiṣṭhāham). This is confirmed in the Brahma-saṁhitā (5.40):

:yasya prabhā prabhavato jagad-aṇḍa-koṭi-
:koṭiṣv aśeṣa-vasudhādi-vibhūti-bhinnam
:tad brahma niṣkalam anantam aśeṣa-bhūtaṁ
:govindam ādi-puruṣaṁ tam ahaṁ bhajāmi

I worship Govinda, the primeval Lord, whose effulgence is the source of the nondifferentiated Brahman mentioned in the Upaniṣads, being differentiated from the infinity of glories of the mundane universe appears as the indivisible, infinite, limitless, truth.

Brahman exists as the all-pervading energy in this phenomenal world. Therefore the Vedas have defined Brahman as formless, impersonal, pure, and so on. But the source of Brahman is an eternal personality who has no material form but who has a transcendental form full of spiritual potencies and all divine qualities. He is the Supreme Personality of Godhead, the embodiment of eternity, knowledge, and bliss. He possesses all six transcendental opulences to an infinite degree, He performs superexcellent divine pastimes, and He alone is to be searched out and known in all the scriptures. The materialistic, fruitive workers make the mistake of thinking that this supreme transcendental personality is mundane, and thus they become degraded into pseudodevotees. And the dry speculators, having been repulsed by the material phenomena in their search for knowledge of the Absolute, think that the transcendental form of the Supreme Personality of Godhead is also repulsive, thus clearly proving that their ascending process of acquiring knowledge is insufficient and inferior. Both these groups are in a pathetic spiritual state. Therefore, to shower His causeless mercy upon them, the Supreme Lord has revealed the truth about Himself and His transcendental potencies in the Bhagavad-gītā.

The above-mentioned eight ingredients make up the material nature, or the Supreme Lord's external potency. These material ingredients—earth, water, fire, air, and so on—are devoid of any free will, and so they are known as the Lord's inferior energy. By contrast, the potency that activates the inferior energy is known as the Lord's superior energy, or spiritual potency. On principle the energy cannot be the enjoyer; nor can one energy enjoy another energy. Energy is the enjoyed, and the energetic is the enjoyer.

The living entities are a product of the Lord's superior, spiritual energy, and so they are superior to earth, water, fire, and so on, which are always devoid of volition. But that does not mean the living entities are on the same platform as the Supreme Lord, who is the absolute controlling principle. It is easy to discern the superiority of spirit over inert matter. The jīva principle is setting into motion and sustaining everything in this material world. And if the jīvas did not try to lord it over the material nature, then there would be no variegatedness in this phenomenal world. The material elements would have remained unchanged if the jīvas had not been inclined to control and enjoy them. Only through the material energies' connection with the conscious living entity can such substances as earth, wood, stone, and iron be orchestrated so as to give rise to huge, opulent buildings, factories, and cities. Matter cannot organize itself.

From the foregoing one can understand that this massive cosmic creation, with its innumerable planetary systems and heavenly bodies, has come about only through the interference of some superior and powerful consciousness. It is beyond doubt that matter is inert, incapable of voluntary action, and that consciousness has activated the twenty-four material ingredients so as to exhibit variegatedness in material nature. All this goes to prove the inherent insufficiency and imperfections in material nature. Thus transcendental happiness is possible only in spiritual variegatedness. In the Bhagavad-gītā ([[BG 7.5|7.5]]) Lord Kṛṣṇa confirms that the jīvas belong to His superior energy:

:apareyam itas tv anyāṁ
:prakṛtiṁ viddhi me parāṁ
:jīva-bhūtaṁ mahā-bāho
:yayedaṁ dhāryate jagat

Besides these material energies, O might-armed Arjuna, there is another, superior energy of Mine, which comprises the living entities who are exploiting the resources of this material, inferior nature.

Because the spirit soul (jīva) is born of the Lord's superior, spiritual energy, it has little in common with the material energy, just as the aquatics have no affinity for the land and the land beasts are out of place in the water. The apparent close connection between the material energy and the spiritual energy is in fact illusory. The jīvas, being a product of the spiritual energy, try to exploit the material energy, but ultimately such attempts fail, because it is impossible for one energy to always exploit and lord it over another energy. The jīvas can, however, eternally serve the Supreme Energetic, Lord Kṛṣṇa. When the jīva exploits the material energy in his endeavor to serve the Lord, that activity is transcendental—the performance of sacrifice. Any other kind of activity amounts to nothing but materialistic, fruitive work.

In the Viṣṇu Purāṇa (6.7.61) one reads about the three kinds of energy:

:viṣṇu-śaktiḥ parā proktā
:kṣetra jñākhyā tathā parā
:avidyā-karma-saṁjñānyā
:tṛtīyā śaktir iṣyate
:([[CC Madhya 6.154]])

The potency of Lord Viṣṇu is summarized in three categories—namely, the spiritual potency, the living entities, and ignorance. The spiritual potency is full of knowledge; the living entities, although belonging to the spiritual potency, are subject to bewilderment; and the third energy, which is full of ignorance, is always visible in fruitive activities.

Thus all phenomena in this material world are simply interactions of the Supreme Lord's superior, spiritual energy with His inferior, material energy. The material energy is known as the kṣetra, or field of activity, and the spiritual energy is known as the kṣetra-jña, or the knower of the field of activity. All the different species of living entities, with their varied characteristics, are produced by the interaction of the kṣetra and the kṣetra-jña. The energetic principle, the controller of both these energies, is the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Kṛṣṇa. He must be recognized as the ultimate cause of the creation, maintenance, and annihilation of this cosmic manifestation. As He says in the Bhagavad-gītā ([[BG 7.6|7.6-7]]),

:etad yonīni bhūtāni
:sarvāṇīty upadhāraya
:ahaṁ kṛtsnasya jagataḥ
:prabhavaḥ pralayas tathā

:mattaḥ parataraṁ nānyat
:kiñcid asti dhanañjaya
:mayi sarvam idaṁ protaṁ
:sūtre maṇi-gaṇā iva

All created beings have their source in these two natures [the inferior and the superior energies of the Lord]. Of all that is material and all that is spiritual in this world, know for certain that I am both the origin and the dissolution. O conqueror of wealth, there is no truth superior to Me. Everything rests upon Me, as pearls are strung on a thread.

The various quotations we hear from the Vedas concerning Brahman—ekam evādvitīyaṁ brahama: "Brahman is one without a second"; neha nānāsti kiñcana: "Besides this, nothing exists"; sarvaṁ khalv idam brahma: "Everything and everywhere is Brahman"; ahaṁ brahmāsmi: "I am by nature Brahman," and so on—find their conclusion in the verses from the Bhagavad-gītā quoted above. The Supreme Lord, endowed with the six transcendental opulences to the absolute degree, is the highest governing principle. Thus no other personality is equal to or greater than He. Lord Kṛṣṇa confirms this point by saying "There is no truth superior to Me," and then explaining how He is present everywhere and intimately connected with everything through His all-pervasive energies.

The material nature is the result of the transformation of the Lord's energies. Both the energies and the energetic are inconceivable, and they are simultaneously one and different. Hence the phrase sarvaṁ khalv idaṁ brahma, ("Everything is Brahman") in fact declares that everything consists of transformations of the Supreme Lord's material and spiritual energies. The transformation of His energies neither increases nor decreases the Supreme Absolute Truth; hence Brahman is described as changeless. And the inferior energy, being only the reflection of Brahman, is nirākāra, impersonal.

Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu propagated the philosophy of the simultaneous oneness and difference of the Lord and His energies. The highest esoteric truth is that Lord Kṛṣṇa is the Supreme Absolute Truth and that both the living entities and the material world are His subordinate energies. Those who fail to understand this principle are materialists, while those who do understand it and are trying to reestablish their relationship with Lord Kṛṣṇa are liberated souls, devotees of the Lord. Lord Kṛṣṇa explains this in the Bhagavad-gītā ([[BG 7.13|7.13-14]]):

:tribhir guṇa-mayair bhāvair
:ebhiḥ sarvam idaṁ jagat
:mohitaṁ nābhijānāti
:mām ebhyaḥ param avyayam

:daivī hy eṣā guṇa-mayī
:mama māyā duratyayā
:mām eva ye prapadyante
:māyām etāṁ taranti te

Deluded by the three modes [goodness, passion, and ignorance], the whole world does not know Me, who am above the modes and inexhaustible. This divine energy of Mine, consisting of the three modes of material nature, is difficult to overcome. But those who have surrendered unto Me can easily cross beyond it.

The dualities of like and dislike, good and bad, are all due to the three modes of material nature—goodness, passion, and ignorance. These modes hold all conditioned living entities under their sway. Therefore it is difficult for conditioned souls to understand that the Supreme Lord, being absolutely spiritual, is above the three modes and thus param avyayam, absolutely inexhaustible. The reason the Lord uses these words param avyayam is that although He permeates everything by means of His transcendental energies, He remains eternally unchanged and the complete whole. One should avoid making the mistake of thinking that because Brahman, the Supreme Absolute Truth, pervades the entire cosmic manifestation, therefore He cannot possess a definitive form or personality. The heat radiating from a fire spreads in all directions, yet the fire remains unchanged. Similarly, the sun has been emanating light and heat since time immemorial, yet it has not lost any of its potency. And the sun possesses but a minuscule fraction of the Supreme Lord's inexhaustible potency. So what question is there of the Lord's potency being either transformed or decreased? The Lord's energies, like a fire's heat and light, spread everywhere, yet His energies can never diminish at any time. Thus in the Bhagavad-gītā He describes Himself as param avyayam, inexhaustible, the supreme energetic principle. The Vedas describe Him in the following way:

:pūrṇasya pūrṇam ādāya
:pūrṇam evāvaśiṣyate

Whatever is produced of the complete whole is also complete in itself. Because He is the complete whole, even though so many complete units emanate from Him, He remains the complete balance. ([[ISO Invocation|Īśopaniṣad, Invocation]])

Like the Supreme Lord Himself, the process for freeing oneself from the mesmerizing grip of the material energy and coming closer to the Lord is also one without a second. As the only way to see the sun is by the help of sunlight, so the only way to see the Supreme Personality, Lord Kṛṣṇa, is by the illumination of sunlike Kṛṣṇa Himself. Only by surrendering to His lotus feet and rendering Him loving devotional service can one approach Him. Neither fruitive activity through physical strain nor speculative knowledge through mental gymnastics can help one attain the highest perfection of God consciousness. Only through bhakti, or devotion, can the Supreme Lord be achieved. Speculative knowledge and mystic yoga can at best accord one a partial realization of the Absolute Truth—namely, realization of Brahman and Paramātmā (the Supersoul), respectively. It is through the singular means of bhakti that one can perceive face to face the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Kṛṣṇa, the embodiment of eternity, knowledge, and bliss. When the rising sun chases away the blackness of night, everything becomes clearly visible. Similarly, when the sun of Kṛṣṇa rises above the horizon of one's consciousness, the stygian gloom of māyā, the illusory energy, is driven away, and the original form of every object comes into distinct focus. Thus full knowledge and realization of the Absolute Truth come exclusively through devotion to the Supreme Lord.

However, the path to this perfect realization is fraught with hindrances caused by māyā, the insurmountable material energy. In this regard one may ask, "If by serving Lord Kṛṣṇa one can automatically discharge all subsidiary duties, then why doesn't everyone in the world surrender to Lord Kṛṣṇa and worship Him as the supreme absolute being? Almost everyone in the world more or less agrees that there is only one God, not two or more. Yet when that one and only Supreme Personality, Lord Kṛṣṇa, comes personally to declare this truth, why do people still refuse to surrender to Him? Perhaps it is understandable that those who are illiterate and ignorant cannot accept Lord Kṛṣṇa's supremacy and therefore do not surrender to Him. But there are many erudite scholars, philosophers, and leaders of society who extensively discuss the scriptures yet still do not take shelter of Lord Kṛṣṇa's lotus feet. Why?" The Lord Himself answers this question in His Bhagavad-gītā ([[BG 7.15|7.15]]):

:na māṁ duṣkṛtino mūḍhāḥ
:prapadyante narādhamāḥ
:māyayāpahṛta-jñānā
:āsuraṁ bhāvam āśritāḥ

Those miscreants who are grossly foolish, who are the lowest among mankind, whose knowledge is stolen by illusion, and who partake of the atheistic nature of demons do not surrender unto Me.

People with demoniac mentalities never surrender to the Supreme Lord. There have always existed two kinds of men: the good, pious men and the impious reprobates. These two types of people are always present in every country and at every period in history. Pious men obey God's laws and are gradually elevated to perfection. The impious, on the other hand, capriciously flaunt God's laws and try to be independent. The racial strife, civil wars, violent revolutions, and world wars so common in the modern age are all caused by the whimsical and selfish nature of impious men.

Pious people can live in any country and adhere to the instructions of their scripture, or they can associate with other pious men from another country and exchange knowledge and realizations. As a result, these seekers of the Absolute Truth can certainly perceive that Lord Kṛṣṇa is the Supreme Personality of Godhead. On the other hand, sinful persons have one interest: to satisfy their egoistic cravings. They may make a show of being vanguards of religion, but behind this facade they continue their reprehensible activities. They vilify the sanctity of the religion of their birth and go against their own country's interest. Their self-centered lives preclude their following even the common etiquette of human behavior, what to speak of dedicating their lives to Lord Kṛṣṇa's devotional service. Such demoniac persons are more dangerous than poisonous snakes.

Generally, the gross fools and the ignorant fruitive workers do not surrender to the Supreme Lord. Such people never enquire into the Absolute Truth. They never ask such questions as "Who is God?" "What is the world?" "Who am I?" "Why am I working like an ass my whole life?" or "What is the result of my endeavors?" The ass slaves his whole life carrying the washerman's burden, just for a handful of grass. Similarly, the karmīs (fruitive workers) toil tirelessly simply to secure a supply of food and other necessities. The ass is a symbol of foolishness, for he works hard only to fill his belly and copulate with a she-ass. So also do the asinine karmīs toil tirelessly out of affection and attachment, struggling to maintain their homes and, beyond that, the land of their birth, which they consider worshipable. In the home the karmī's sole source of enjoyment is his wife, who cooks for him and provides pleasure for his misery-ridden senses. The shortsighted karmīs do not want to know of any broader issues concerning themselves or their world; they are simply tethered to their home and bodily cares. And those leaders who foster the people's sensual lives are bigger fools and rascals than the ordinary karmīs. Therefore they never come in contact with the Bhagavad-gītā or Lord Kṛṣṇa. The word surrender means nothing to them.

People who do not surrender to the Supreme Lord are called narādhama, "the lowest of men." Such men fritter away their human lives, behaving like animals. In other words, when a person does not use this rare human birth to achieve its actual purpose but wastes it in degraded activities, he is called a narādhama. When a beggar suddenly finds a treasure yet continues to live like a beggar, he is surely a miser and a narādhama. Similarly, when someone receives the priceless gift of a human birth yet squanders it by living like an animal—simply eating, sleeping, mating, and defending—then such a person is a narādhama. These fools do not realize that after many millions of births in lower species, the soul finally receives the rare human birth. And it is in this birth that the soul must sincerely endeavor to elevate himself to the transcendental platform, attain the Absolute Truth, and return to his original home in the spiritual world. If in this human life the soul makes no attempt to alleviate his situation, even after learning how horribly he has suffered in millions of previous lifetimes, then such a person is certainly a miserable miser and narādhama. But if one tries to utilize his rare human birth for self-realization by becoming elevated to the brahminical class, then his life is successful. Brāhmaṇa does not mean brāhmaṇa by birth. A brāhmaṇa is one who surrenders to Lord Kṛṣṇa, the Lord of the brāhmaṇas. A narādhama cannot do so. Therefore another meaning of narādhama is "one who rejects devotional service."

Another class of men who do not surrender to Lord Kṛṣṇa are the demons, those who are staunchly inimical to Him. Famous and powerful demon kings like Rāvaṇa, Hiraṇyakaśipu, Jarāsandha, and Kaṁsa acquired many mystic powers through learning and severe austerities. But because they always challenged the various incarnations of the Supreme Lord, such as Lord Rāma, Lord Nṛsiṁhadeva, Lord Viṣṇu, and Lord Kṛṣṇa, they are known as demons. Often the demons do not lack education or intelligence, but because of their fiendish mentality toward the Supreme Lord, their learning and brain capacity come to naught. Their abilities, being fully in the grip of material nature, are ultimately taken from them. The reason for the demons' failure has been stated earlier: If one does not surrender to Lord Kṛṣṇa, it is impossible to surmount material nature.

Torturing the devotees of Kṛṣṇa is the preoccupation of the demons, who think that Lord Rāma and Lord Kṛṣṇa cannot punish them because They are ordinary mortals. Thus the demons conclude that they themselves are as learned and intelligent as Lord Rāma and Lord Kṛṣṇa. The atheistic students of Navadvīpa thought Lord Caitanya was an ordinary human being, and thus to win their respect the Lord accepted the renounced and austere sannyāsa order of life. In this way the Lord showed Himself to be the personification of divine magnanimity. The demons invariably confuse matters: they worship humans as gods and call God a human being. In the Bhagavad-gītā the Lord fittingly describes such grossly foolish persons: avajānanti māṁ mūḍhā mānuṣīṁ tanum āśritam ([[BG 9.11]]). "Fools deride Me when I descend in the human form." The demons' learning, intelligence, and titles are like the gems that glitter on a poisonous snake's hood. The presence of a priceless gem on a snake's hood does not decrease his venom. Similarly, a demon's erudition, intelligence, and titles do not make him less of a demon, and thus he is as horrendous as a venomous snake.

Decorating a dead body and taking it to the funeral pyre with pomp is certainly nothing but a flagrant display for entertainment only. The public is similarly cheated when accolades and scholarly degrees are piled on a demon who is an arrant competitor of the Supreme Lord. The atheistic, demoniac education imparted to the young in modern universities is simply producing a bunch of demons with titles. Proof of this is the recent incident in which Principal Garg of Aligarh University was murdered by some students. The whole state of Uttar Pradesh is shocked and has opened a probe into this vicious act. The governor has called for a conference of the leaders and teachers, but in the past all such conferences have met with the same frustrating fate: no solution. We think the present conference will also fail. The only means to eradicate the demoniac mentality in society is to teach the science of Kṛṣṇa consciousness. Having taken note of all the disaster and corruption wreaked by the demons, it is the moral responsibility of every citizen in the world to learn and teach the science of Kṛṣṇa consciousness.

<div style="float:right">[[File:Go-previous.png|link=RTW 2.1]] '''[[RTW 2.1]] - [[RTW 2.3]]''' [[File:Go-next.png|link=RTW 2.3]]</div>
__NOTOC__
__NOEDITSECTION__

RTW 5

2017-12-18T09:06:01Z

Jimena:

[[Category:Renunciation Through Wisdom|1e]]
<div style="float:left">[[File:Go-previous.png|link=Renunciation Through Wisdom]] '''[[Renunciation Through Wisdom]], 5. Buddhi-yoga - The Highest Use of Intelligence'''</div>
<div style="float:right">[[File:Go-previous.png|link=RTW 4]] '''[[RTW 4]]'''</div>
{{RandomImage}}

===Buddhi-yoga===

'''[[RTW 5.1|The Highest Use of Intelligence]]'''

__NOTOC__
__NOEDITSECTION__

RTW 4

2017-12-18T09:05:46Z

Jimena:

[[Category:Renunciation Through Wisdom|1d]]
<div style="float:left">[[File:Go-previous.png|link=Renunciation Through Wisdom]] '''[[Renunciation Through Wisdom]], 4. Muni-gaṇera Matibram - The Deluded Thinkers'''</div>
<div style="float:right">[[File:Go-previous.png|link=RTW 3]] '''[[RTW 3]] - [[RTW 5]]''' [[File:Go-next.png|link=RTW 5]]</div>
{{RandomImage}}

===4. Muni-gaṇera Matibram===

'''[[RTW 4.1|The Fundamental Question Evades the Erudite Scholar]]'''

'''[[RTW 4.2|Transcendental Devotional Service Reveals the Real Form of the Lord]]'''

'''[[RTW 4.3|Lord Kṛṣṇa Is the Supreme Controller Godhead]]'''

'''[[RTW 4.4|Lord Kṛṣṇa Is the Supreme Personality of Godhead]]'''

'''[[RTW 4.5|Captivated by Māyā, the Jīva Has Forgotten Lord Kṛṣṇa]]'''

__NOTOC__
__NOEDITSECTION__

RTW 3

2017-12-18T09:04:59Z

Jimena:

[[Category:Renunciation Through Wisdom|1c]]
<div style="float:left">[[File:Go-previous.png|link=Renunciation Through Wisdom]] '''[[Renunciation Through Wisdom]], 3. Jñāna-Katha - Topics of Spiritual Science'''</div>
<div style="float:right">[[File:Go-previous.png|link=RTW 2]] '''[[RTW 2]] - [[RTW 4]]''' [[File:Go-next.png|link=RTW 4]]</div>
{{RandomImage}}

===3. Jñāna-Katha===

'''[[RTW 3.1|Extinguishing the Flames of Material Existence]]'''

'''[[RTW 3.2|Devotion Resides in Perfect Knowledge of the Supreme]]'''

'''[[RTW 3.3|The Mind Is Purified of Its Attachment to Matter]]'''

'''[[RTW 3.4|Constitutionally, the Jīva is an Eternal Servant of Kṛṣṇa]]'''

'''[[RTW 3.5|The Means to Liberation]]'''

__NOTOC__
__NOEDITSECTION__

BG 18.2

2017-12-14T16:35:07Z

Jimena:

[[Category:Bhagavad-gita As It Is (1983+) - Chapter 18|b02]]
<div style="float:left">'''[[Bhagavad-gita As It Is (1983+)]] - [[BG 18 (1983+)|Chapter 18: Conclusion - The Perfection of Renunciation]]'''</div>
<div style="float:right">[[File:Go-previous.png|link=BG 18.1]] '''[[BG 18.1]] - [[BG 18.3]]''' [[File:Go-next.png|link=BG 18.3]]</div>
{{CompareVersions|BG|18.2|BG 1972|BG 1983+}}
{{RandomImage}}

==== TEXT 2 ====

<div class="devanagari">
:श्रीभगवानुवाच ।
:काम्यानां कर्मणां न्यासं संन्यासं कवयो विदुः ।
:सर्वकर्मफलत्यागं प्राहुस्त्यागं विचक्षणाः ॥२॥
</div>

<div class="verse">
:śrī-bhagavān uvāca
:kāmyānāṁ karmaṇāṁ nyāsaṁ
:sannyāsaṁ kavayo viduḥ
:sarva-karma-phala-tyāgaṁ
:prāhus tyāgaṁ vicakṣaṇāḥ
</div>

==== SYNONYMS ====

<div class="synonyms">
''śrī-bhagavān uvāca''—the Supreme Personality of Godhead said; ''kāmyānām''—with desire; ''karmaṇām''—of activities; ''nyāsam''—renunciation; ''sannyāsam''—the renounced order of life; ''kavayaḥ''—the learned; ''viduḥ''—know; ''sarva''—of all; ''karma''—activities; ''phala''—of results; ''tyāgam''—renunciation; ''prāhuḥ''—call; ''tyāgam''—renunciation; ''vicakṣaṇāḥ''—the experienced.
</div>

==== TRANSLATION ====

<div class="translation">
The Supreme Personality of Godhead said:The giving up of activities that are based on material desire is what great learned men call the renounced order of life [sannyāsa]. And giving up the results of all activities is what the wise call renunciation [tyāga].
</div>

==== PURPORT ====

<div class="purport">
The performance of activities for results has to be given up. This is the instruction of ''Bhagavad-gītā''. But activities leading to advanced spiritual knowledge are not to be given up. This will be made clear in the next verses. In the Vedic literature there are many prescriptions of methods for performing sacrifice for some particular purpose. There are certain sacrifices to perform to attain a good son or to attain elevation to the higher planets, but sacrifices prompted by desires should be stopped. However, sacrifice for the purification of one's heart or for advancement in the spiritual science should not be given up.
</div>

<div style="float:right; clear:both;">[[File:Go-previous.png|link=BG 18.1]] '''[[BG 18.1]] - [[BG 18.3]]''' [[File:Go-next.png|link=BG 18.3]]</div>
__NOTOC__
__NOEDITSECTION__

BG 18.9

2017-12-14T16:34:34Z

Jimena:

[[Category:Bhagavad-gita As It Is (1983+) - Chapter 18|b09]]
<div style="float:left">'''[[Bhagavad-gita As It Is (1983+)]] - [[BG 18 (1983+)|Chapter 18: Conclusion - The Perfection of Renunciation]]'''</div>
<div style="float:right">[[File:Go-previous.png|link=BG 18.8]] '''[[BG 18.8]] - [[BG 18.10]]''' [[File:Go-next.png|link=BG 18.10]]</div>
{{CompareVersions|BG|18.9|BG 1972|BG 1983+}}
{{RandomImage}}

==== TEXT 9 ====

<div class="devanagari">
:कार्यमित्येव यत्कर्म नियतं क्रियतेऽर्जुन ।
:सङ्गं त्यक्त्वा फलं चैव स त्यागः सात्त्विको मतः ॥९॥
</div>

<div class="verse">
:kāryam ity eva yat karma
:niyataṁ kriyate 'rjuna
:saṅgaṁ tyaktvā phalaṁ caiva
:sa tyāgaḥ sāttviko mataḥ
</div>

==== SYNONYMS ====

<div class="synonyms">
''kāryam''—it must be done; ''iti''—thus; ''eva''—indeed; ''yat''—which; ''karma''—work; ''niyatam''—prescribed; ''kriyate''—is performed; ''arjuna''—O Arjuna; ''saṅgam''—association; ''tyaktvā''—giving up; ''phalam''—the result; ''ca''—also; ''eva''—certainly; ''saḥ''—that; ''tyāgaḥ''—renunciation; ''sāttvikaḥ''—in the mode of goodness; ''mataḥ''—in My opinion.
</div>

==== TRANSLATION ====

<div class="translation">
O Arjuna, when one performs his prescribed duty only because it ought to be done, and renounces all material association and all attachment to the fruit, his renunciation is said to be in the mode of goodness.
</div>

==== PURPORT ====

<div class="purport">
Prescribed duties must be performed with this mentality. One should act without attachment for the result; he should be disassociated from the modes of work. A man working in Kṛṣṇa consciousness in a factory does not associate himself with the work of the factory, nor with the workers of the factory. He simply works for Kṛṣṇa. And when he gives up the result for Kṛṣṇa, he is acting transcendentally.
</div>

<div style="float:right; clear:both;">[[File:Go-previous.png|link=BG 18.8]] '''[[BG 18.8]] - [[BG 18.10]]''' [[File:Go-next.png|link=BG 18.10]]</div>
__NOTOC__
__NOEDITSECTION__

BG 18.8

2017-12-14T16:34:20Z

Jimena:

[[Category:Bhagavad-gita As It Is (1983+) - Chapter 18|b08]]
<div style="float:left">'''[[Bhagavad-gita As It Is (1983+)]] - [[BG 18 (1983+)|Chapter 18: Conclusion - The Perfection of Renunciation]]'''</div>
<div style="float:right">[[File:Go-previous.png|link=BG 18.7]] '''[[BG 18.7]] - [[BG 18.9]]''' [[File:Go-next.png|link=BG 18.9]]</div>
{{CompareVersions|BG|18.8|BG 1972|BG 1983+}}
{{RandomImage}}

==== TEXT 8 ====

<div class="devanagari">
:दुःखमित्येव यत्कर्म कायक्लेशभयात्त्यजेत् ।
:स कृत्वा राजसं त्यागं नैव त्यागफलं लभेत् ॥८॥
</div>

<div class="verse">
:duḥkham ity eva yat karma
:kāya-kleśa-bhayāt tyajet
:sa kṛtvā rājasaṁ tyāgaṁ
:naiva tyāga-phalaṁ labhet
</div>

==== SYNONYMS ====

<div class="synonyms">
''duḥkham''—unhappy; ''iti''—thus; ''eva''—certainly; ''yat''—which; ''karma''—work; ''kāya''—for the body; ''kleśa''—trouble; ''bhayāt''—out of fear; ''tyajet''—gives up; ''saḥ''—he; ''kṛtvā''—after doing; ''rājasam''—in the mode of passion; ''tyāgam''—renunciation; ''na''—not; ''eva''—certainly; ''tyāga''—of renunciation; ''phalam''—the results; ''labhet''—gains.
</div>

==== TRANSLATION ====

<div class="translation">
Anyone who gives up prescribed duties as troublesome or out of fear of bodily discomfort is said to have renounced in the mode of passion. Such action never leads to the elevation of renunciation.
</div>

==== PURPORT ====

<div class="purport">
One who is in Kṛṣṇa consciousness should not give up earning money out of fear that he is performing fruitive activities. If by working one can engage his money in Kṛṣṇa consciousness, or if by rising early in the morning one can advance his transcendental Kṛṣṇa consciousness, one should not desist out of fear or because such activities are considered troublesome. Such renunciation is in the mode of passion. The result of passionate work is always miserable. If a person renounces work in that spirit, he never gets the result of renunciation.
</div>

<div style="float:right; clear:both;">[[File:Go-previous.png|link=BG 18.7]] '''[[BG 18.7]] - [[BG 18.9]]''' [[File:Go-next.png|link=BG 18.9]]</div>
__NOTOC__
__NOEDITSECTION__

BG 18.7

2017-12-14T16:34:00Z

Jimena:

[[Category:Bhagavad-gita As It Is (1983+) - Chapter 18|b07]]
<div style="float:left">'''[[Bhagavad-gita As It Is (1983+)]] - [[BG 18 (1983+)|Chapter 18: Conclusion - The Perfection of Renunciation]]'''</div>
<div style="float:right">[[File:Go-previous.png|link=BG 18.6]] '''[[BG 18.6]] - [[BG 18.8]]''' [[File:Go-next.png|link=BG 18.8]]</div>
{{CompareVersions|BG|18.7|BG 1972|BG 1983+}}
{{RandomImage}}

==== TEXT 7 ====

<div class="devanagari">
:नियतस्य तु संन्यासः कर्मणो नोपपद्यते ।
:मोहात्तस्य परित्यागस्तामसः परिकीर्तितः ॥७॥
</div>

<div class="verse">
:niyatasya tu sannyāsaḥ
:karmaṇo nopapadyate
:mohāt tasya parityāgas
:tāmasaḥ parikīrtitaḥ
</div>

==== SYNONYMS ====

<div class="synonyms">
''niyatasya''—prescribed; ''tu''—but; ''sannyāsaḥ''—renunciation; ''karmaṇaḥ''—of activities; ''na''—never; ''upapadyate''—is deserved; ''mohāt''—by illusion; ''tasya''—of them; ''parityāgaḥ''—renunciation; ''tāmasaḥ''—in the mode of ignorance; ''parikīrtitaḥ''—is declared.
</div>

==== TRANSLATION ====

<div class="translation">
Prescribed duties should never be renounced. If one gives up his prescribed duties because of illusion, such renunciation is said to be in the mode of ignorance.
</div>

==== PURPORT ====

<div class="purport">
Work for material satisfaction must be given up, but activities which promote one to spiritual activity, like cooking for the Supreme Lord and offering the food to the Lord and then accepting the food, are recommended. It is said that a person in the renounced order of life should not cook for himself. Cooking for oneself is prohibited, but cooking for the Supreme Lord is not prohibited. Similarly, a ''sannyāsī'' may perform a marriage ceremony to help his disciple in the advancement of Kṛṣṇa consciousness. If one renounces such activities, it is to be understood that he is acting in the mode of darkness.
</div>

<div style="float:right; clear:both;">[[File:Go-previous.png|link=BG 18.6]] '''[[BG 18.6]] - [[BG 18.8]]''' [[File:Go-next.png|link=BG 18.8]]</div>
__NOTOC__
__NOEDITSECTION__

BG 18.6

2017-12-14T16:33:45Z

Jimena:

[[Category:Bhagavad-gita As It Is (1983+) - Chapter 18|b06]]
<div style="float:left">'''[[Bhagavad-gita As It Is (1983+)]] - [[BG 18 (1983+)|Chapter 18: Conclusion - The Perfection of Renunciation]]'''</div>
<div style="float:right">[[File:Go-previous.png|link=BG 18.5]] '''[[BG 18.5]] - [[BG 18.7]]''' [[File:Go-next.png|link=BG 18.7]]</div>
{{CompareVersions|BG|18.6|BG 1972|BG 1983+}}
{{RandomImage}}

==== TEXT 6 ====

<div class="devanagari">
:एतान्यपि तु कर्माणि सङ्गं त्यक्त्वा फलानि च ।
:कर्तव्यानीति मे पार्थ निश्चितं मतमुत्तमम् ॥६॥
</div>

<div class="verse">
:etāny api tu karmāṇi
:saṅgaṁ tyaktvā phalāni ca
:kartavyānīti me pārtha
:niścitaṁ matam uttamam
</div>

==== SYNONYMS ====

<div class="synonyms">
''etāni''—all these; ''api''—certainly; ''tu''—but; ''karmāṇi''—activities; ''saṅgam''—association; ''tyaktvā''—renouncing; ''phalāni''—results; ''ca''—also; ''kartavyāni''—should be done as duty; ''iti''—thus; ''me''—My; ''pārtha''—O son of Pṛthā; ''niścitam''—definite; ''matam''—opinion; ''uttamam''—the best.
</div>

==== TRANSLATION ====

<div class="translation">
All these activities should be performed without attachment or any expectation of result. They should be performed as a matter of duty, O son of Pṛthā. That is My final opinion.
</div>

==== PURPORT ====

<div class="purport">
Although all sacrifices are purifying, one should not expect any result by such performances. In other words, all sacrifices which are meant for material advancement in life should be given up, but sacrifices that purify one's existence and elevate one to the spiritual plane should not be stopped. Everything that leads to Kṛṣṇa consciousness must be encouraged. In the ''Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam'' also it is said that any activity which leads to devotional service to the Lord should be accepted. That is the highest criterion of religion. A devotee of the Lord should accept any kind of work, sacrifice or charity which will help him in the discharge of devotional service to the Lord.
</div>

<div style="float:right; clear:both;">[[File:Go-previous.png|link=BG 18.5]] '''[[BG 18.5]] - [[BG 18.7]]''' [[File:Go-next.png|link=BG 18.7]]</div>
__NOTOC__
__NOEDITSECTION__

BG 18.5

2017-12-14T16:33:30Z

Jimena:

[[Category:Bhagavad-gita As It Is (1983+) - Chapter 18|b05]]
<div style="float:left">'''[[Bhagavad-gita As It Is (1983+)]] - [[BG 18 (1983+)|Chapter 18: Conclusion - The Perfection of Renunciation]]'''</div>
<div style="float:right">[[File:Go-previous.png|link=BG 18.4]] '''[[BG 18.4]] - [[BG 18.6]]''' [[File:Go-next.png|link=BG 18.6]]</div>
{{CompareVersions|BG|18.5|BG 1972|BG 1983+}}
{{RandomImage}}

==== TEXT 5 ====

<div class="devanagari">
:यज्ञदानतपःकर्म न त्याज्यं कार्यमेव तत् ।
:यज्ञो दानं तपश्चैव पावनानि मनीषिणाम् ॥५॥
</div>

<div class="verse">
:yajña-dāna-tapaḥ-karma
:na tyājyaṁ kāryam eva tat
:yajño dānaṁ tapaś caiva
:pāvanāni manīṣiṇām
</div>

==== SYNONYMS ====

<div class="synonyms">
''yajña''—of sacrifice; ''dāna''—charity; ''tapaḥ''—and penance; ''karma''—activity; ''na''—never; ''tyājyam''—to be given up; ''kāryam''—must be done; ''eva''—certainly; ''tat''—that; ''yajñaḥ''—sacrifice; ''dānam''—charity; ''tapaḥ''—penance; ''ca''—also; ''eva''—certainly; ''pāvanāni''—purifying; ''manīṣiṇām''—even for the great souls.
</div>

==== TRANSLATION ====

<div class="translation">
Acts of sacrifice, charity and penance are not to be given up; they must be performed. Indeed, sacrifice, charity and penance purify even the great souls.
</div>

==== PURPORT ====

<div class="purport">
The ''yogīs'' should perform acts for the advancement of human society. There are many purificatory processes for advancing a human being to spiritual life. The marriage ceremony, for example, is considered to be one of these sacrifices. It is called ''vivāha-yajña''. Should a ''sannyāsī'', who is in the renounced order of life and who has given up his family relations, encourage the marriage ceremony? The Lord says here that any sacrifice which is meant for human welfare should never be given up. ''Vivāha-yajña'', the marriage ceremony, is meant to regulate the human mind so that it may become peaceful for spiritual advancement. For most men, this ''vivāha-yajña'' should be encouraged even by persons in the renounced order of life. ''Sannyāsīs'' should never associate with women, but that does not mean that one who is in the lower stages of life, a young man, should not accept a wife in the marriage ceremony. All prescribed sacrifices are meant for achieving the Supreme Lord. Therefore, in the lower stages, they should not be given up. Similarly, charity is for the purification of the heart. If charity is given to suitable persons, as described previously, it leads one to advanced spiritual life.
</div>

<div style="float:right; clear:both;">[[File:Go-previous.png|link=BG 18.4]] '''[[BG 18.4]] - [[BG 18.6]]''' [[File:Go-next.png|link=BG 18.6]]</div>
__NOTOC__
__NOEDITSECTION__

BG 18.4

2017-12-14T16:33:14Z

Jimena:

[[Category:Bhagavad-gita As It Is (1983+) - Chapter 18|b04]]
<div style="float:left">'''[[Bhagavad-gita As It Is (1983+)]] - [[BG 18 (1983+)|Chapter 18: Conclusion - The Perfection of Renunciation]]'''</div>
<div style="float:right">[[File:Go-previous.png|link=BG 18.3]] '''[[BG 18.3]] - [[BG 18.5]]''' [[File:Go-next.png|link=BG 18.5]]</div>
{{CompareVersions|BG|18.4|BG 1972|BG 1983+}}
{{RandomImage}}

==== TEXT 4 ====

<div class="devanagari">
:निश्चयं शृणु मे तत्र त्यागे भरतसत्तम ।
:त्यागो हि पुरुषव्याघ्र त्रिविधः सम्प्रकीर्तितः ॥४॥
</div>

<div class="verse">
:niścayaṁ śṛṇu me tatra
:tyāge bharata-sattama
:tyāgo hi puruṣa-vyāghra
:tri-vidhaḥ samprakīrtitaḥ
</div>

==== SYNONYMS ====

<div class="synonyms">
''niścayam''—certainty; ''śṛṇu''—hear; ''me''—from Me; ''tatra''—therein; ''tyāge''—in the matter of renunciation; ''bharata-sat-tama''—O best of the Bhāratas; ''tyāgaḥ''—renunciation; ''hi''—certainly; ''puruṣa-vyāghra''—O tiger among human beings; ''tri-vidhaḥ''—of three kinds; ''samprakīrtitaḥ''—is declared.
</div>

==== TRANSLATION ====

<div class="translation">
O best of the Bhāratas, now hear My judgment about renunciation. O tiger among men, renunciation is declared in the scriptures to be of three kinds.
</div>

==== PURPORT ====

<div class="purport">
Although there are differences of opinion about renunciation, here the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Śrī Kṛṣṇa, gives His judgment, which should be taken as final. After all, the ''Vedas'' are different laws given by the Lord. Here the Lord is personally present, and His word should be taken as final. The Lord says that the process of renunciation should be considered in terms of the modes of material nature in which it is performed.
</div>

<div style="float:right; clear:both;">[[File:Go-previous.png|link=BG 18.3]] '''[[BG 18.3]] - [[BG 18.5]]''' [[File:Go-next.png|link=BG 18.5]]</div>
__NOTOC__
__NOEDITSECTION__

BG 18.3

2017-12-14T16:32:57Z

Jimena:

[[Category:Bhagavad-gita As It Is (1983+) - Chapter 18|b03]]
<div style="float:left">'''[[Bhagavad-gita As It Is (1983+)]] - [[BG 18 (1983+)|Chapter 18: Conclusion - The Perfection of Renunciation]]'''</div>
<div style="float:right">[[File:Go-previous.png|link=BG 18.2]] '''[[BG 18.2]] - [[BG 18.4]]''' [[File:Go-next.png|link=BG 18.4]]</div>
{{CompareVersions|BG|18.3|BG 1972|BG 1983+}}
{{RandomImage}}

==== TEXT 3 ====

<div class="devanagari">
:त्याज्यं दोषवदित्येके कर्म प्राहुर्मनीषिणः ।
:यज्ञदानतपःकर्म न त्याज्यमिति चापरे ॥३॥
</div>

<div class="verse">
:tyājyaṁ doṣa-vad ity eke
:karma prāhur manīṣiṇaḥ
:yajña-dāna-tapaḥ-karma
:na tyājyam iti cāpare
</div>

==== SYNONYMS ====

<div class="synonyms">
''tyājyam''—must be given up; ''doṣa-vat''—as an evil; ''iti''—thus; ''eke''—one group; ''karma''—work; ''prāhuḥ''—they say; ''manīṣiṇaḥ''—great thinkers; ''yajña''—of sacrifice; ''dāna''—charity; ''tapaḥ''—and penance; ''karma''—works; ''na''—never; ''tyājyam''—are to be given up; ''iti''—thus; ''ca''—and; ''apare''—others.
</div>

==== TRANSLATION ====

<div class="translation">
Some learned men declare that all kinds of fruitive activities should be given up as faulty, yet other sages maintain that acts of sacrifice, charity and penance should never be abandoned.
</div>

==== PURPORT ====

<div class="purport">
There are many activities in the Vedic literature which are subjects of contention. For instance, it is said that an animal can be killed in a sacrifice, yet some maintain that animal killing is completely abominable. Although animal killing in a sacrifice is recommended in the Vedic literature, the animal is not considered to be killed. The sacrifice is to give a new life to the animal. Sometimes the animal is given a new animal life after being killed in the sacrifice, and sometimes the animal is promoted immediately to the human form of life. But there are different opinions among the sages. Some say that animal killing should always be avoided, and others say that for a specific sacrifice it is good. All these different opinions on sacrificial activity are now being clarified by the Lord Himself.
</div>

<div style="float:right; clear:both;">[[File:Go-previous.png|link=BG 18.2]] '''[[BG 18.2]] - [[BG 18.4]]''' [[File:Go-next.png|link=BG 18.4]]</div>
__NOTOC__
__NOEDITSECTION__

BG 18.1

2017-12-14T16:32:26Z

Jimena:

[[Category:Bhagavad-gita As It Is (1983+) - Chapter 18|b01]]
<div style="float:left">'''[[Bhagavad-gita As It Is (1983+)]] - [[BG 18 (1983+)|Chapter 18: Conclusion - The Perfection of Renunciation]]'''</div>
<div style="float:right">[[File:Go-previous.png|link=BG 17.28]] '''[[BG 17.28]] - [[BG 18.2]]''' [[File:Go-next.png|link=BG 18.2]]</div>
{{CompareVersions|BG|18.1|BG 1972|BG 1983+}}
{{RandomImage}}

==== TEXT 1 ====

<div class="devanagari">
:अर्जुन उवाच
:संन्यासस्य महाबाहो तत्त्वमिच्छामि वेदितुम् ।
:त्यागस्य च हृषीकेश पृथक्केशिनिषूदन ॥१॥
</div>

<div class="verse">
:arjuna uvāca
:sannyāsasya mahā-bāho
:tattvam icchāmi veditum
:tyāgasya ca hṛṣīkeśa
:pṛthak keśi-niṣūdana
</div>

==== SYNONYMS ====

<div class="synonyms">
''arjunaḥ uvāca''—Arjuna said; ''sannyāsasya''—of renunciation; ''mahā-bāho''—O mighty-armed one; ''tattvam''—the truth; ''icchāmi''—I wish; ''veditum''—to understand; ''tyāgasya''—of renunciation; ''ca''—also; ''hṛṣīkeśa''—O master of the senses; ''pṛthak''—differently; ''keśī-niṣūdana''—O killer of the Keśi demon.
</div>

==== TRANSLATION ====

<div class="translation">
Arjuna said:O mighty-armed one, I wish to understand the purpose of renunciation [tyāga]and of the renounced order of life [sannyāsa], O killer of the Keśi demon, master of the senses.
</div>

==== PURPORT ====

<div class="purport">
Actually the ''Bhagavad-gītā'' is finished in seventeen chapters. The Eighteenth Chapter is a supplementary summarization of the topics discussed before. In every chapter of ''Bhagavad-gītā'', Lord Kṛṣṇa stresses that devotional service unto the Supreme Personality of Godhead is the ultimate goal of life. This same point is summarized in the Eighteenth Chapter as the most confidential path of knowledge. In the first six chapters, stress was given to devotional service: yoginām api sarveṣāṁ... . "Of all ''yogīs'' or transcendentalists, one who always thinks of Me within himself is best." In the next six chapters, pure devotional service and its nature and activity were discussed. In the third six chapters, knowledge, renunciation, the activities of material nature and transcendental nature, and devotional service were described. It was concluded that all acts should be performed in conjunction with the Supreme Lord, represented by the words ''oṁ tat sat'', which indicate Viṣṇu, the Supreme Person. The third part of ''Bhagavad-gītā'' has shown that devotional service, and nothing else, is the ultimate purpose of life. This has been established by citing past ''ācāryas'' and the ''Brahma-sūtra'', the ''Vedānta-sūtra''. Certain impersonalists consider themselves to have a monopoly on the knowledge of ''Vedānta-sūtra'', but actually the ''Vedānta-sūtra'' is meant for understanding devotional service, for the Lord Himself is the composer of the ''Vedānta-sūtra'' and He is its knower. That is described in the Fifteenth Chapter. In every scripture, every ''Veda'', devotional service is the objective. That is explained in ''Bhagavad-gītā''.

As in the Second Chapter a synopsis of the whole subject matter was described, in the Eighteenth Chapter also the summary of all instruction is given. The purpose of life is indicated to be renunciation and attainment of the transcendental position above the three material modes of nature. Arjuna wants to clarify the two distinct subject matters of ''Bhagavad-gītā'', namely renunciation (''tyāga'') and the renounced order of life (''sannyāsa''). Thus he is asking the meaning of these two words.

Two words used in this verse to address the Supreme Lord—Hṛṣīkeśa and Keśi-niṣūdana—are significant. Hṛṣīkeśa is Kṛṣṇa, the master of all senses, who can always help us attain mental serenity. Arjuna requests Him to summarize everything in such a way that he can remain equipoised. Yet he has some doubts, and doubts are always compared to demons. He therefore addresses Kṛṣṇa as Keśi-niṣūdana. Keśi was a most formidable demon who was killed by the Lord; now Arjuna is expecting Kṛṣṇa to kill the demon of doubt.
</div>

<div style="float:right; clear:both;">[[File:Go-previous.png|link=BG 17.28]] '''[[BG 17.28]] - [[BG 18.2]]''' [[File:Go-next.png|link=BG 18.2]]
__NOTOC__
__NOEDITSECTION__

BG 17.9

2017-12-14T16:30:13Z

Jimena:

[[Category:Bhagavad-gita As It Is (1983+) - Chapter 17|b09]]
<div style="float:left">'''[[Bhagavad-gita As It Is (1983+)]] - [[BG 17 (1983+)|Chapter 17: The Divisions of Faith]]'''</div>
<div style="float:right">[[File:Go-previous.png|link=BG 17.8]] '''[[BG 17.8]] - [[BG 17.10]]''' [[File:Go-next.png|link=BG 17.10]]</div>
{{CompareVersions|BG|17.9|BG 1972|BG 1983+}}
{{RandomImage}}

==== TEXT 9 ====

<div class="devanagari">
:कट्वम्ललवणात्युष्णतीक्ष्णरूक्षविदाहिनः ।
:आहारा राजसस्येष्टा दुःखशोकामयप्रदाः ॥९॥
</div>

<div class="verse">
:kaṭv-amla-lavaṇāty-uṣṇa-
:tīkṣṇa-rūkṣa-vidāhinaḥ
:āhārā rājasasyeṣṭā
:duḥkha-śokāmaya-pradāḥ
</div>

==== SYNONYMS ====

<div class="synonyms">
''kaṭu''—bitter; ''amla''—sour; ''lavaṇa''—salty; ''ati-uṣṇa''—very hot; ''tīkṣṇa''—pungent; ''rūkṣa''—dry; ''vidāhinaḥ''—burning; ''āhārāḥ''—food; ''rājasasya''—to one in the mode of passion; ''iṣṭāḥ''—palatable; ''duḥkha''—distress; ''śoka''—misery; ''āmaya''—disease; ''pradāḥ''—causing.
</div>

==== TRANSLATION ====

<div class="translation">
Foods that are too bitter, too sour, salty, hot, pungent, dry and burning are dear to those in the mode of passion. Such foods cause distress, misery and disease.
</div>

<div style="float:right; clear:both;">[[File:Go-previous.png|link=BG 17.8]] '''[[BG 17.8]] - [[BG 17.10]]''' [[File:Go-next.png|link=BG 17.10]]</div>
__NOTOC__
__NOEDITSECTION__

BG 17.8

2017-12-14T16:29:59Z

Jimena:

[[Category:Bhagavad-gita As It Is (1983+) - Chapter 17|b08]]
<div style="float:left">'''[[Bhagavad-gita As It Is (1983+)]] - [[BG 17 (1983+)|Chapter 17: The Divisions of Faith]]'''</div>
<div style="float:right">[[File:Go-previous.png|link=BG 17.7]] '''[[BG 17.7]] - [[BG 17.9]]''' [[File:Go-next.png|link=BG 17.9]]</div>
{{CompareVersions|BG|17.8|BG 1972|BG 1983+}}
{{RandomImage}}

==== TEXT 8 ====

<div class="devanagari">
:आयुःसत्त्वबलारोग्यसुखप्रीतिविवर्धनाः ।
:रस्याः स्निग्धाः स्थिरा हृद्या आहाराः सात्त्विकप्रियाः ॥८॥
</div>

<div class="verse">
:āyuḥ-sattva-balārogya-
:sukha-prīti-vivardhanāḥ
:rasyāḥ snigdhāḥ sthirā hṛdyā
:āhārāḥ sāttvika-priyāḥ
</div>

==== SYNONYMS ====

<div class="synonyms">
''āyuḥ''—duration of life; ''sattva''—existence; ''bala''—strength; ''ārogya''—health; ''sukha''—happiness; ''prīti''—and satisfaction; ''vivardhanāḥ''—increasing; ''rasyāḥ''—juicy; ''snigdhāḥ''—fatty; ''sthirāḥ''—enduring; ''hṛdyāḥ''—pleasing to the heart; ''āhārāḥ''—food; ''sāttvika''—to one in goodness; ''priyāḥ''—palatable.
</div>

==== TRANSLATION ====

<div class="translation">
Foods dear to those in the mode of goodness increase the duration of life, purify one's existence and give strength, health, happiness and satisfaction. Such foods are juicy, fatty, wholesome, and pleasing to the heart.
</div>

<div style="float:right; clear:both;">[[File:Go-previous.png|link=BG 17.7]] '''[[BG 17.7]] - [[BG 17.9]]''' [[File:Go-next.png|link=BG 17.9]]</div>
__NOTOC__
__NOEDITSECTION__

BG 17.7

2017-12-14T16:29:45Z

Jimena:

[[Category:Bhagavad-gita As It Is (1983+) - Chapter 17|b07]]
<div style="float:left">'''[[Bhagavad-gita As It Is (1983+)]] - [[BG 17 (1983+)|Chapter 17: The Divisions of Faith]]'''</div>
<div style="float:right">[[File:Go-previous.png|link=BG 17.5-6]] '''[[BG 17.5-6]] - [[BG 17.8]]''' [[File:Go-next.png|link=BG 17.8]]</div>
{{CompareVersions|BG|17.7|BG 1972|BG 1983+}}
{{RandomImage}}

==== TEXT 7 ====

<div class="devanagari">
:आहारस्त्वपि सर्वस्य त्रिविधो भवति प्रियः ।
:यज्ञस्तपस्तथा दानं तेषां भेदमिमं शृणु ॥७॥
</div>

<div class="verse">
:āhāras tv api sarvasya
:tri-vidho bhavati priyaḥ
:yajñas tapas tathā dānaṁ
:teṣāṁ bhedam imaṁ śṛṇu
</div>

==== SYNONYMS ====

<div class="synonyms">
''āhāraḥ''—eating; ''tu''—certainly; ''api''—also; ''sarvasya''—of everyone; ''tri-vidhaḥ''—of three kinds; ''bhavati''—there is; ''priyaḥ''—dear; ''yajñaḥ''—sacrifice; ''tapaḥ''—austerity; ''tathā''—also; ''dānam''—charity; ''teṣām''—of them; ''bhedam''—the differences; ''imam''—this; ''śṛṇu''—hear.
</div>

==== TRANSLATION ====

<div class="translation">
Even the food each person prefers is of three kinds, according to the three modes of material nature. The same is true of sacrifices, austerities and charity. Now hear of the distinctions between them.
</div>

==== PURPORT ====

<div class="purport">
In terms of different situations in the modes of material nature, there are differences in the manner of eating and performing sacrifices, austerities and charities. They are not all conducted on the same level. Those who can understand analytically what kind of performances are in what modes of material nature are actually wise; those who consider all kinds of sacrifice or food or charity to be the same cannot discriminate, and they are foolish. There are missionary workers who advocate that one can do whatever he likes and attain perfection. But these foolish guides are not acting according to the direction of the scripture. They are manufacturing ways and misleading the people in general.
</div>

<div style="float:right; clear:both;">[[File:Go-previous.png|link=BG 17.5-6]] '''[[BG 17.5-6]] - [[BG 17.8]]''' [[File:Go-next.png|link=BG 17.8]]</div>
__NOTOC__
__NOEDITSECTION__

BG 17.5-6

2017-12-14T16:29:26Z

Jimena:

[[Category:Bhagavad-gita As It Is (1983+) - Chapter 17|b05-06]]
<div style="float:left">'''[[Bhagavad-gita As It Is (1983+)]] - [[BG 17 (1983+)|Chapter 17: The Divisions of Faith]]'''</div>
<div style="float:right">[[File:Go-previous.png|link=BG 17.4]] '''[[BG 17.4]] - [[BG 17.7]]''' [[File:Go-next.png|link=BG 17.7]]</div>
{{CompareVersions|BG|17.5-6|BG 1972|BG 1983+}}
{{RandomImage}}

==== TEXTS 5-6 ====

<div class="devanagari">
:अशास्त्रविहितं घोरं तप्यन्ते ये तपो जनाः ।
:दम्भाहंकारसंयुक्ताः कामरागबलान्विताः ॥५॥
:कर्षयन्तः शरीरस्थं भूतग्राममचेतसः ।
:मां चैवान्तःशरीरस्थं तान्विद्ध्यासुरनिश्चयान् ॥६॥
</div>

<div class="verse">
:aśāstra-vihitaṁ ghoraṁ
:tapyante ye tapo janāḥ
:dambhāhaṅkāra-saṁyuktāḥ
:kāma-rāga-balānvitāḥ

:karṣayantaḥ śarīra-sthaṁ
:bhūta-grāmam acetasaḥ
:māṁ caivāntaḥ śarīra-sthaṁ
:tān viddhy āsura-niścayān
</div>

==== SYNONYMS ====

<div class="synonyms">
''aśāstra''—not in the scriptures; ''vihitam''—directed; ''ghoram''—harmful to others; ''tapyante''—undergo; ''ye''—those who; ''tapaḥ''—austerities; ''janāḥ''—persons; ''dambha''—with pride; ''ahaṅkāra''—and egoism; ''saṁyuktāḥ''—engaged; ''kāma''—of lust; ''rāga''—and attachment; ''bala''—by the force; ''anvitāḥ''—impelled; ''karṣayantaḥ''—tormenting; ''śarīra-stham''—situated within the body; ''bhūta-grāmam''—the combination of material elements; ''acetasaḥ''—having a misled mentality; ''mām''—Me; ''ca''—also; ''eva''—certainly; ''antaḥ''—within; ''śarīra-stham''—situated in the body; ''tān''—them; ''viddhi''—understand; ''āsura-niścayān''—demons.
</div>

==== TRANSLATION ====

<div class="translation">
Those who undergo severe austerities and penances not recommended in the scriptures, performing them out of pride and egoism, who are impelled by lust and attachment, who are foolish and who torture the material elements of the body as well as the Supersoul dwelling within, are to be known as demons.
</div>

==== PURPORT ====

<div class="purport">
There are persons who manufacture modes of austerity and penance which are not mentioned in the scriptural injunctions. For instance, fasting for some ulterior purpose, such as to promote a purely political end, is not mentioned in the scriptural directions. The scriptures recommend fasting for spiritual advancement, not for some political end or social purpose. Persons who take to such austerities are, according to ''Bhagavad-gītā'', certainly demoniac. Their acts are against the scriptural injunctions and are not beneficial for the people in general. Actually, they act out of pride, false ego, lust and attachment for material enjoyment. By such activities, not only is the combination of material elements of which the body is constructed disturbed, but also the Supreme Personality of Godhead Himself living within the body. Such unauthorized fasting or austerities for some political end are certainly very disturbing to others. They are not mentioned in the Vedic literature. A demoniac person may think that he can force his enemy or other parties to comply with his desire by this method, but sometimes one dies by such fasting. These acts are not approved by the Supreme Personality of Godhead, and He says that those who engage in them are demons. Such demonstrations are insults to the Supreme Personality of Godhead because they are enacted in disobedience to the Vedic scriptural injunctions. The word ''acetasaḥ'' is significant in this connection. Persons of normal mental condition must obey the scriptural injunctions. Those who are not in such a position neglect and disobey the scriptures and manufacture their own way of austerities and penances. One should always remember the ultimate end of the demoniac people, as described in the previous chapter. The Lord forces them to take birth in the wombs of demoniac persons. Consequently they will live by demoniac principles life after life without knowing their relationship with the Supreme Personality of Godhead. If, however, such persons are fortunate enough to be guided by a spiritual master who can direct them to the path of Vedic wisdom, they can get out of this entanglement and ultimately achieve the supreme goal.
</div>

<div style="float:right; clear:both;">[[File:Go-previous.png|link=BG 17.4]] '''[[BG 17.4]] - [[BG 17.7]]''' [[File:Go-next.png|link=BG 17.7]]</div>
__NOTOC__
__NOEDITSECTION__

BG 17.4

2017-12-14T16:29:07Z

Jimena:

[[Category:Bhagavad-gita As It Is (1983+) - Chapter 17|b04]]
<div style="float:left">'''[[Bhagavad-gita As It Is (1983+)]] - [[BG 17 (1983+)|Chapter 17: The Divisions of Faith]]'''</div>
<div style="float:right">[[File:Go-previous.png|link=BG 17.3]] '''[[BG 17.3]] - [[BG 17.5-6]]''' [[File:Go-next.png|link=BG 17.5-6]]</div>
{{CompareVersions|BG|17.4|BG 1972|BG 1983+}}
{{RandomImage}}

*'''[[Vanipedia:BG 17.04 - study resources|BG 17.4 - study resources]]'''

==== TEXT 4 ====

<div class="devanagari">
:यजन्ते सात्त्विका देवान्यक्षरक्षांसि राजसाः ।
:प्रेतान्भूतगणांश्चान्ये यजन्ते तामसा जनाः ॥४॥
</div>

<div class="verse">
:yajante sāttvikā devān
:yakṣa-rakṣāṁsi rājasāḥ
:pretān bhūta-gaṇāṁś cānye
:yajante tāmasā janāḥ
</div>

==== SYNONYMS ====

<div class="synonyms">
''yajante''—worship; ''sāttvikāḥ''—those who are in the mode of goodness; ''devān''—demigods; ''yakṣa-rakṣāṁsi''—demons; ''rājasāḥ''—those who are in the mode of passion; ''pretān''—spirits of the dead; ''bhūta-gaṇān''—ghosts; ''ca''—and; ''anye''—others; ''yajante''—worship; ''tāmasāḥ''—in the mode of ignorance; ''janāḥ''—people.
</div>

==== TRANSLATION ====

<div class="translation">
Men in the mode of goodness worship the demigods; those in the mode of passion worship the demons; and those in the mode of ignorance worship ghosts and spirits.
</div>

==== PURPORT ====

<div class="purport">
In this verse the Supreme Personality of Godhead describes different kinds of worshipers according to their external activities. According to scriptural injunction, only the Supreme Personality of Godhead is worshipable, but those who are not very conversant with, or faithful to, the scriptural injunctions worship different objects, according to their specific situations in the modes of material nature. Those who are situated in goodness generally worship the demigods. The demigods include Brahmā, Śiva and others such as Indra, Candra and the sun-god. There are various demigods. Those in goodness worship a particular demigod for a particular purpose. Similarly, those who are in the mode of passion worship the demons. We recall that during the Second World War a man in Calcutta worshiped Hitler because thanks to that war he had amassed a large amount of wealth by dealing in the black market. Similarly, those in the modes of passion and ignorance generally select a powerful man to be God. They think that anyone can be worshiped as God and that the same results will be obtained.

Now, it is clearly described here that those who are in the mode of passion worship and create such gods, and those who are in the mode of ignorance, in darkness, worship dead spirits. Sometimes people worship at the tomb of some dead man. Sexual service is also considered to be in the mode of darkness. Similarly, in remote villages in India there are worshipers of ghosts. We have seen that in India the lower-class people sometimes go to the forest, and if they have knowledge that a ghost lives in a tree, they worship that tree and offer sacrifices. These different kinds of worship are not actually God worship. God worship is for persons who are transcendentally situated in pure goodness. In the '''''Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam''''' '''([[SB 4.3.23]])''' it is said, ''sattvaṁ viśuddhaṁ vasudeva-śabditam:'' "When a man is situated in pure goodness, he worships Vāsudeva." The purport is that those who are completely purified of the material modes of nature and who are transcendentally situated can worship the Supreme Personality of Godhead.

The impersonalists are supposed to be situated in the mode of goodness, and they worship five kinds of demigods. They worship the impersonal Viṣṇu form in the material world, which is known as philosophized Viṣṇu. Viṣṇu is the expansion of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, but the impersonalists, because they do not ultimately believe in the Supreme Personality of Godhead, imagine that the Viṣṇu form is just another aspect of the impersonal Brahman; similarly, they imagine that Lord Brahmā is the impersonal form in the material mode of passion. Thus they sometimes describe five kinds of gods that are worshipable, but because they think that the actual truth is impersonal Brahman, they dispose of all worshipable objects at the ultimate end. In conclusion, the different qualities of the material modes of nature can be purified through association with persons who are of transcendental nature.
</div>

<div style="float:right; clear:both;">[[File:Go-previous.png|link=BG 17.3]] '''[[BG 17.3]] - [[BG 17.5-6]]''' [[File:Go-next.png|link=BG 17.5-6]]</div>
__NOTOC__
__NOEDITSECTION__

BG 17.3

2017-12-14T16:28:53Z

Jimena:

[[Category:Bhagavad-gita As It Is (1983+) - Chapter 17|b03]]
<div style="float:left">'''[[Bhagavad-gita As It Is (1983+)]] - [[BG 17 (1983+)|Chapter 17: The Divisions of Faith]]'''</div>
<div style="float:right">[[File:Go-previous.png|link=BG 17.2]] '''[[BG 17.2]] - [[BG 17.4]]''' [[File:Go-next.png|link=BG 17.4]]</div>
{{CompareVersions|BG|17.3|BG 1972|BG 1983+}}
{{RandomImage}}

==== TEXT 3 ====

<div class="devanagari">
:सत्त्वानुरूपा सर्वस्य श्रद्धा भवति भारत ।
:श्रद्धामयोऽयं पुरुषो यो यच्छ्रद्धः स एव सः ॥३॥
</div>

<div class="verse">
:sattvānurūpā sarvasya
:śraddhā bhavati bhārata
:śraddhā-mayo 'yaṁ puruṣo
:yo yac-chraddhaḥ sa eva saḥ
</div>

==== SYNONYMS ====

<div class="synonyms">
''sattva-anurūpā''—according to the existence; ''sarvasya''—of everyone; ''śraddhā''—faith; ''bhavati''—becomes; ''bhārata''—O son of Bharata; ''śraddhā''—faith; ''mayaḥ''—full of; ''ayam''—this; ''puruṣaḥ''—living entity; ''yaḥ''—who; ''yat''—having which; ''śraddhaḥ''—faith; ''saḥ''—thus; ''eva''—certainly; ''saḥ''—he.
</div>

==== TRANSLATION ====

<div class="translation">
O son of Bharata, according to one's existence under the various modes of nature, one evolves a particular kind of faith. The living being is said to be of a particular faith according to the modes he has acquired.
</div>

==== PURPORT ====

<div class="purport">
Everyone has a particular type of faith, regardless of what he is. But his faith is considered good, passionate or ignorant according to the nature he has acquired. Thus, according to his particular type of faith, one associates with certain persons. Now the real fact is that every living being, as is stated in the Fifteenth Chapter, is originally a fragmental part and parcel of the Supreme Lord. Therefore one is originally transcendental to all the modes of material nature. But when one forgets his relationship with the Supreme Personality of Godhead and comes into contact with the material nature in conditional life, he generates his own position by association with the different varieties of material nature. The resultant artificial faith and existence are only material. Although one may be conducted by some impression, or some conception of life, originally he is ''nirguṇa'', or transcendental. Therefore one has to become cleansed of the material contamination that he has acquired, in order to regain his relationship with the Supreme Lord. That is the only path back without fear: Kṛṣṇa consciousness. If one is situated in Kṛṣṇa consciousness, then that path is guaranteed for his elevation to the perfectional stage. If one does not take to this path of self-realization, then he is surely to be conducted by the influence of the modes of nature.

The word ''śraddhā'', or "faith," is very significant in this verse. ''Śraddhā'', or faith, originally comes out of the mode of goodness. One's faith may be in a demigod or some created God or some mental concoction. One's strong faith is supposed to be productive of works of material goodness. But in material conditional life, no works are completely purified. They are mixed. They are not in pure goodness. Pure goodness is transcendental; in purified goodness one can understand the real nature of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. As long as one's faith is not completely in purified goodness, the faith is subject to contamination by any of the modes of material nature. The contaminated modes of material nature expand to the heart. Therefore according to the position of the heart in contact with a particular mode of material nature, one's faith is established. It should be understood that if one's heart is in the mode of goodness his faith is also in the mode of goodness. If his heart is in the mode of passion, his faith is also in the mode of passion. And if his heart is in the mode of darkness, illusion, his faith is also thus contaminated. Thus we find different types of faith in this world, and there are different types of religions due to different types of faith. The real principle of religious faith is situated in the mode of pure goodness, but because the heart is tainted we find different types of religious principles. Thus according to different types of faith, there are different kinds of worship.
</div>

<div style="float:right; clear:both;">[[File:Go-previous.png|link=BG 17.2]] '''[[BG 17.2]] - [[BG 17.4]]''' [[File:Go-next.png|link=BG 17.4]]</div>
__NOTOC__
__NOEDITSECTION__

BG 17.2

2017-12-14T16:28:37Z

Jimena:

[[Category:Bhagavad-gita As It Is (1983+) - Chapter 17|b02]]
<div style="float:left">'''[[Bhagavad-gita As It Is (1983+)]] - [[BG 17 (1983+)|Chapter 17: The Divisions of Faith]]'''</div>
<div style="float:right">[[File:Go-previous.png|link=BG 17.1]] '''[[BG 17.1]] - [[BG 17.3]]''' [[File:Go-next.png|link=BG 17.3]]</div>
{{CompareVersions|BG|17.2|BG 1972|BG 1983+}}
{{RandomImage}}

==== TEXT 2 ====

<div class="devanagari">
:श्रीभगवानुवाच ।
:त्रिविधा भवति श्रद्धा देहिनां सा स्वभावजा ।
:सात्त्विकी राजसी चैव तामसी चेति तां शृणु ॥२॥
</div>

<div class="verse">
:śrī-bhagavān uvāca
:tri-vidhā bhavati śraddhā
:dehināṁ sā svabhāva-jā
:sāttvikī rājasī caiva
:tāmasī ceti tāṁ śṛṇu
</div>

==== SYNONYMS ====

<div class="synonyms">
''śrī-bhagavān uvāca''—the Supreme Personality of Godhead said; ''tri-vidhā''—of three kinds; ''bhavati''—becomes; ''śraddhā''—the faith; ''dehinām''—of the embodied; ''sā''—that; ''sva-bhāva-jā''—according to his mode of material nature; ''sāttvikī''—in the mode of goodness; ''rājasī''—in the mode of passion; ''ca''—also; ''eva''—certainly; ''tāmasī''—in the mode of ignorance; ''ca''—and; ''iti''—thus; ''tām''—that; ''śṛṇu''—hear from Me.
</div>

==== TRANSLATION ====

<div class="translation">
The Supreme Personality of Godhead said: According to the modes of nature acquired by the embodied soul, one's faith can be of three kinds—in goodness, in passion or in ignorance. Now hear about this.
</div>

==== PURPORT ====

<div class="purport">
Those who know the rules and regulations of the scriptures but out of laziness or indolence give up following these rules and regulations are governed by the modes of material nature. According to their previous activities in the mode of goodness, passion or ignorance, they acquire a nature which is of a specific quality. The association of the living entity with the different modes of nature has been going on perpetually; since the living entity is in contact with material nature, he acquires different types of mentality according to his association with the material modes. But this nature can be changed if one associates with a bona fide spiritual master and abides by his rules and the scriptures. Gradually, one can change his position from ignorance to goodness, or from passion to goodness. The conclusion is that blind faith in a particular mode of nature cannot help a person become elevated to the perfectional stage. One has to consider things carefully, with intelligence, in the association of a bona fide spiritual master. Thus one can change his position to a higher mode of nature.
</div>

<div style="float:right; clear:both;">[[File:Go-previous.png|link=BG 17.1]] '''[[BG 17.1]] - [[BG 17.3]]''' [[File:Go-next.png|link=BG 17.3]]</div>
__NOTOC__
__NOEDITSECTION__

BG 17.1

2017-12-14T16:28:21Z

Jimena:

[[Category:Bhagavad-gita As It Is (1983+) - Chapter 17|b01]]
<div style="float:left">'''[[Bhagavad-gita As It Is (1983+)]] - [[BG 17 (1983+)|Chapter 17: The Divisions of Faith]]'''</div>
<div style="float:right">[[File:Go-previous.png|link=BG 16.24]] '''[[BG 16.24]] - [[BG 17.2]]''' [[File:Go-next.png|link=BG 17.2]]</div>
{{CompareVersions|BG|17.1|BG 1972|BG 1983+}}
{{RandomImage}}

==== TEXT 1 ====

<div class="devanagari">
:अर्जुन उवाच
:ये शास्त्रविधिमुत्सृज्य यजन्ते श्रद्धयान्विताः ।
:तेषां निष्ठा तु का कृष्ण सत्त्वमाहो रजस्तमः ॥१॥
</div>

<div class="verse">
:arjuna uvāca
:ye śāstra-vidhim utsṛjya
:yajante śraddhayānvitāḥ
:teṣāṁ niṣṭhā tu kā kṛṣṇa
:sattvam āho rajas tamaḥ
</div>

==== SYNONYMS ====

<div class="synonyms">
''arjunaḥ uvāca''—Arjuna said; ''ye''—those who; ''śāstra-vidhim''—the regulations of scripture; ''utsṛjya''—giving up; ''yajante''—worship; ''śraddhayā''—full faith; ''anvitāḥ''—possessed of; ''teṣām''—of them; ''niṣṭhā''—the faith; ''tu''—but; ''kā''—what; ''kṛṣṇa''—O Kṛṣṇa; ''sattvam''—in goodness; ''āho''—or else; ''rajaḥ''—in passion; ''tamaḥ''—in ignorance.
</div>

==== TRANSLATION ====

<div class="translation">
Arjuna inquired:O Kṛṣṇa, what is the situation of those who do not follow the principles of scripture but worship according to their own imagination? Are they in goodness, in passion or in ignorance?
</div>

==== PURPORT ====

<div class="purport">
In the Fourth Chapter, thirty-ninth verse, it is said that a person faithful to a particular type of worship gradually becomes elevated to the stage of knowledge and attains the highest perfectional stage of peace and prosperity. In the Sixteenth Chapter, it is concluded that one who does not follow the principles laid down in the scriptures is called an ''asura'', demon, and one who follows the scriptural injunctions faithfully is called a ''deva'', or demigod. Now, if one, with faith, follows some rules which are not mentioned in the scriptural injunctions, what is his position? This doubt of Arjuna's is to be cleared by Kṛṣṇa. Are those who create some sort of God by selecting a human being and placing their faith in him worshiping in goodness, passion or ignorance? Do such persons attain the perfectional stage of life? Is it possible for them to be situated in real knowledge and elevate themselves to the highest perfectional stage? Do those who do not follow the rules and regulations of the scriptures but who have faith in something and worship gods and demigods and men attain success in their effort? Arjuna is putting these questions to Kṛṣṇa.
</div>

<div style="float:right; clear:both;">[[File:Go-previous.png|link=BG 16.24]] '''[[BG 16.24]] - [[BG 17.2]]''' [[File:Go-next.png|link=BG 17.2]]
__NOTOC__
__NOEDITSECTION__