Karma and Conciousness

The law of karma describes the universe as an interconnected network in which every action causes a reaction to occur in the future. Material scientists understand the gross manifestation of this law in the form of physics, however, they have no idea of the workings of the same law on a more subtle platform.

The effects of karma are not limited to individuals, collective karma effects towns, countries and ultimately the whole planet.

Chance and Karma

The law of karma eliminates the concept of random activities within the universe. It states that everything we experience, either pleasant or unpleasant, occurs as a result of our actions in the past, in this life or in previous lives. We get what we deserve and there is very little we can do about it. For this reason transcendentalists are unattached to the happiness and distress of this material world knowing that such temporary things are inevitable reactions to the activities they have performed in the past. Such transcendentalists fix their consciousness on higher things and thus remain undisturbed in any situation.

Karma as Nature's Police Force

Karma polices the laws of nature. Nature has given universal laws which are applicable in all places and at all times. Every civilized society has some moral or religious codes presenting these universal laws in a way relevant to them. We have the freedom to choose to follow the regulative principals of the particular society we belong to or to act outside these principles.
If we choose to follow the regulative principles the result is "good karma and we reap the benefits in the future, however, if we choose to neglect the principles "bad karma" is the result and we suffer.

At the present moment practically the whole world has given up following regulative principles and is heading down the hedonistic path. As this path is detrimental to spiritual progress mother nature is responding by providing many conditions which cause us to suffer such as irregular rainfall, earthquakes, killer diseases, and so on.

After suffering in many ways we will gradually come to the point of understanding it is not possible to be happy by exploiting the material energy and we will instead turn to spiritual life.

The Earth is Conscious

This earth planet is not a lump of dead rock as many scientists would like us to believe. We have a body, the ants have a body, the earth planet is a body and the entire universe is a body. The common factor in all bodies is they are pervaded by consciousness. The earth, therefore, is in a position to react to our attempts to exploit her resources for our sense gratification.
It is only possible to experience a peaceful, comfortable life with a pleasant climate, regular rainfall, abundant food production and freedom from natural disasters if we act in accordance with the laws of nature.

Every society has some information on these laws in the form of moral and religious instructions. These principles are universal and the current problems on earth; environmental, social and economic, have been caused as a result of the people of the world ignoring these universal laws of nature.

Scientific Advancement Can't Change Karma

The underlying motivation of the technological explosion has been to improve material facilities and thus create a better world where people are happier. However, unknown to the scientists, the amount of happiness and distress experienced by each person is a result of karma, or the reactions from activities performed in this and previous lifetimes.
At birth everyone has an allotted amount of happiness and distress which they are destined to experience during their lives. This quota of happiness and distress is fixed and cannot be changed by any material advancement. If the scientists eliminate one cause of suffering mother nature will find another way to inflict the suffering.

We have reached the point in the Western countries where most people can see that despite much advanced technology and scientific knowledge we are no happier than our parents or grandparents were.

Actually, because of the dramatic increase of rape, incest, murder, violent crime, theft, stress and child abuse we are generally in a state of great anxiety which is not at all conducive to happiness or peace of mind.

The Assumption We Can Improve the Quality of Our Lives is False

It is not possible to increase the amount of pleasure we experience by exploiting the resources of the planet. We get what we deserve as a result of our past karma. One person, who has good karma, may not work very hard and still live a very comfortable life, while someone else, despite working very, very hard might find it difficult to collect even enough money to buy food.

The amount of pleasure and suffering in our life is fixed. It is decided according to our activities in
the past and cannot be changed.

A person interested in spiritual life is advised not to be attached to always being in a comfortable position and not to be distressed when put into a difficult position. A self-realized soul knows these things are temporary and they will, in time, pass.

(His Divine GraceA.C. Bhaktivedanta SwamiPrabhupada)

Troubles encountered in Your service

Srila Bhaktivinoda Thakura has instructed his followers:

"Troubles encountered in Your service shall be the cause of great happiness, for in Your devotional service joy and sorrow are equally great riches. Both destroy the misery of ignorance."

(Saranagati 8.4)

Serving the Perfect Master

During a lecture given in September 1968 in Seattle, Washington, Śrīla Prabhupāda says, “Can anybody in this meeting say that he’s not the servant of anybody or anything? No, because our constitutional position is to serve.” Then he proposes an idea new to most of his listeners: “If you agree to serve God, gradually you will realize that God is also serving you.” Śrīla Prabhupāda goes on to explain how by pleasing God the soul can enjoy unlimited happiness.

In this material world, everyone is trying to search out happiness and get relief from misery. There are three kinds of miseries caused by our material condition: ādhyātmika, ādhibhautika, and ādhidaivika. Ādhyātmika miseries are those caused by the body and mind themselves. For example, when there is some dis-arrangement of the different functions of metabolism within the body, we get a fever or some pain. Another kind of ādhyātmika misery is caused by the mind. Suppose I lose someone who is dear to me. Then my mind will be disturbed. This is also suffering. So diseases of the body or mental disturbances are ādhyātmika miseries.

Then there are ādhibhautika miseries, sufferings caused by other living entities. For example, human beings are sending millions of poor animals to the slaughterhouse daily. The animals cannot express themselves, but they are undergoing great suffering. And we also suffer miseries caused by other living entities.

Finally, there are ādhidaivika miseries, those caused by higher authorities. There may be famine, earthquake, flood, pestilence—so many things. These are ādhidaivika sufferings.

So we are always suffering one or more of these miseries. This material nature is constituted in such a way that we have to suffer; it is God’s law. And we are trying to relieve the suffering by patchwork remedies. Everyone is trying to get relief from suffering; that is a fact. The whole struggle for existence is aimed at getting out of suffering.

There are various kinds of remedies that we use to try to relieve our suffering. One remedy is offered by the modern scientists, one by the philosophers, another by the atheists, another by the theists, another by the fruitive workers. There are so many ideas. But according to the philosophy of God consciousness, you can get free of all your sufferings if you simply change your consciousness to God consciousness. That’s all.

All our sufferings are due to ignorance. We have forgotten that we are eternal servants of God. There is a nice Bengali verse that explains this point:
kṛṣṇa-bahirmukha haiyā bhoga-vāñchā karenikaṭa-stha māyā tāre jāpatiyā dhare
As soon as our original God consciousness becomes polluted with the consciousness of material enjoyment—the idea that I want to lord it over the resources of matter—our troubles begin. Immediately we fall into māyā, illusion. Everyone in the material world is thinking, “I can enjoy this world to my best capacity.” From the tiny ant up to the highest living creature, Brahmā, everyone is trying to become a lord. In your country many politicians are canvassing to become the president. Why? They want to become some kind of lord. This is illusion.

In the God consciousness movement our mentality is just the opposite. We are trying to become the servant of the servant of the servant of the servant of God (gopī-bhartuḥ pada-kamalayor dāsa-dāsānudāsaḥ). Instead of wanting to become a lord, we want to become the servant of God.
Now, people may say this is a slave mentality: “Why should I become a slave? I shall become the master.” But they do not know that this consciousness—“I shall become the master”—is the cause of all their suffering. This has to be understood. In the name of becoming master of this material world, we have become the servants of our senses.

We cannot avoid serving. Every one of us sitting in this meeting is a servant. These boys and girls who have taken to Kṛṣṇa consciousness have agreed to become servants of God. So their problem is solved. But others are thinking, “Why should I become a servant of God? I shall become the master.” Actually, no one can become the master. And if someone tries to become the master, he simply becomes the servant of his senses. That’s all. He becomes the servant of his lust, the servant of his avarice, the servant of his anger—the servant of so many things.
In a higher stage, one becomes the servant of humanity, the servant of society, the servant of his country. But the actual purpose is to become the master. That is the disease. The candidates for the presidency are presenting their different manifestos: “I shall serve the country very nicely. Please give me your vote.” But their real idea is somehow or other to become the master of the country. This is illusion.

So, we should understand this important point of philosophy: Constitutionally we are servants. Nobody can say, “I am free; I am the master.” If someone thinks like that, he’s in illusion. Can anybody in this meeting say that he’s not the servant of anybody or anything? No, because our constitutional position is to serve.

We may serve god, or we may serve our senses. But the difficulty is that by serving our senses we simply increase our misery. For the time being you may satisfy yourself by taking some intoxicant. And under the spell of the intoxicant you may think that you are nobody’s servant, that you are free. But this idea is artificial. As soon as the hallucination is gone, again you see that you are a servant.

So we are being forced to serve, but we don’t wish to serve. What is the adjustment? God consciousness. If you become the servant of Kṛṣṇa, your aspiration to become the master is immediately achieved. For example, here we see a picture of Kṛṣṇa and Arjuna. [Śrīla Prabhupāda points to a painting of Kṛṣṇa and Arjuna on the Battlefield of Kurukṣetra.] Kṛṣṇa is the Supreme Lord; Arjuna is a human being. But Arjuna loves Kṛṣṇa as a friend, and in response to Arjuna’s friendly love Kṛṣṇa has become his chariot driver, his servant. Similarly, if we become reinstated in our transcendental loving relationship with Kṛṣṇa, our aspiration for mastership will be fulfilled. If you agree to serve Kṛṣṇa, gradually you will see that Kṛṣṇa is also serving you. This is a question of realization.

So, if we want to get free of the service of this material world, the service of our senses, then we must direct our service toward God. This is Kṛṣṇa consciousness.

Śrīla Rūpa Gosvāmī quotes a nice verse in his Bhakti-rasāmṛta-sindhu concerning the service of the senses: kāmādīnāṁ kati na katidhā pālitā durnideśā. Here a devotee is saying to God that he has served his senses for a very long time (kāmādīnāṁ kati na katidhā). Kāma means “lust.” He says, “By the dictation of my lust I have done what I should not have done.” When someone is a slave, he’s forced to do things he does not wish to do. He’s forced. So, here the devotee is admitting that under the dictation of his lust he has done sinful things.

Then someone may say to the devotee: “All right, you have served your senses. But now you are done serving them. Now everything is all right.” But the difficulty is this: teṣāṁ jātā mayi na karuṇā na trapā nopaśāntiḥ. The devotee says, “I have served my senses so much, but I find they are not satisfied. That is my difficulty. My senses are not satisfied, nor am I satisfied, nor are my senses kind enough to give me relief, to give me pension from their service. That is my position. I had hoped that by serving my senses for many years they would have been satisfied. But no, they’re not. They are still dictating to me.”

Here I may disclose something one of my students told me: In old age his mother is going to marry. And somebody else complained that his grandmother has also married. Just see: Fifty years old, seventy-five years old, and the senses are still so strong that they’re dictating, “Yes, you must marry.” Try to understand how strong the senses are. It is not simply young men who are servants of their senses. One may be seventy-five years old, eighty years old, or even at the point of death—still one is the servant of the senses. The senses are never satisfied.
So this is the material situation. We are servants of our senses, but by serving our senses we are not satisfied, nor are our senses satisfied, nor are they merciful to us. There is chaos!
The best thing, therefore, is to become a servant of God. In Bhagavad-gītā [18.66] Kṛṣṇa says,
sarva-dharmān parityajyamām ekaṁ śaraṇaṁ vrajaahaṁ tvāṁ sarva-pāpebhyomokṣayiṣyāmi mā śucaḥ
You have served your senses in so many lives, life after life, in 8,400,000 species. The birds are serving their senses, the beasts are serving their senses, the human beings, the demigods—everyone within this material world is after sense gratification. “So,” Kṛṣṇa says, “just surrender unto Me. Just agree to serve Me, and I will take charge of you. You will be free from the dictation of your senses.”

Because of the dictation of the senses, we are committing sinful activities life after life. Therefore we are in different grades of bodies. Don’t think that every one of you is of the same standard. No. According to one’s activities, one gets a certain type of body. And these different types of bodies afford one different grades of sense gratification. There is sense gratification in the hog’s life also, but it is of a very low grade. The hog is so sensual that it does not hesitate to have sex with its mother, its sister, or its daughter. Even in human society there are people who don’t care whether they have sex with their mother or sister. The senses are so strong.

So, we should try to understand that serving the dictations of our senses is the cause of all our misery. The threefold miseries that we are suffering—the miseries we are trying to get free of—are due to this dictation of the senses. But if we become attracted to serving God, we will no longer be forced to follow the dictation of our senses. One name for God is Madana-mohana, “He who conquers Cupid, or lust.” If you transfer your love from your senses to Kṛṣṇa, you will be free from all misery. Immediately.

So this endeavor to be the master—“I am the lord of all I survey”—should be given up. Every one of us is constitutionally a servant. Now we are serving our senses, but we should direct this service to God. And when you serve God, gradually God reveals Himself to you as you become sincere. Then the reciprocation of service between God and you will be so nice. You can love Him as a friend or as a master or as a lover—there are so many ways to love God.
So, you should try to love Kṛṣṇa, and you will see how much you are satisfied. There is no other way to become fully satisfied. Earning great amounts of money will never give you satisfaction. I once knew a gentleman in Calcutta who was earning six thousand dollars a month. He committed suicide. Why? That money could not give him satisfaction. He was trying to have something else.
So my humble request to you all is that you try to understand this sublime benediction of life, God consciousness. Simply by chanting Hare Kṛṣṇa you will gradually develop a transcendental loving attitude for God, and as soon as you begin to love God, all your troubles will be eradicated and you will feel complete satisfaction.

Thank you very much. Are there any questions?
Question: When we engage the material energy in the service of God, what happens to it? Does it become spiritualized?
Śrīla Prabhupāda: When a copper wire is in touch with electricity, it is no longer copper; it is electricity. Similarly, when you apply your energy to the service of God, it is no longer material energy; it is spiritual energy. So as soon as you engage yourself in the service of God, you become free from the dictates of the material energy. Kṛṣṇa states that in the Bhagavad-gītā[14.26]:
māṁ ca yo ’vyabhicāreṇabhakti-yogena sevatesa guṇān samatītyaitānbrahma-bhūyāya kalpate
“Anyone who seriously engages in My service immediately becomes transcendental to the material qualities and comes to the platform of Brahman, or spirit.”
So, when you apply your energy in the service of God, do not think that it remains material. Everything used in God’s service is spiritual. For example, each day we distribute fruit prasādam [fruit that has been offered to Kṛṣṇa]. Now, one may ask, “Why is this fruit different from ordinary fruit? It has been purchased at the market like any other fruit. We also eat fruit at home. What is the difference?” No. Because we offer the fruit to God, it immediately becomes spiritual. The result? Just go on eating kṛṣṇa-prasādam, and you will see how you are making progress in God consciousness.

Here is another example. If you drink a large quantity of milk, there may be some disorder in your bowels. If you go to a physician (at least, if you go to an Āyur-vedic physician), he’ll offer you a medical preparation made with yogurt. And that yogurt with a little medicine in it will cure you. Now, yogurt is nothing but milk transformed. So, your disease was caused by milk, and it is also cured by milk. How is that? Because you are taking the medicine under the direction of a qualified physician. Similarly, if you engage the material energy in the service of Godunder the direction of a bona fide spiritual master, that same material energy which has been the cause of your bondage will bring you to the transcendental stage beyond all misery.

Question: How can you make everything so simple to understand?
Śrīla Prabhupāda: Because the whole philosophy is so simple. God is great. You are not great. Don’t claim that you are God. Don’t claim that there is no God. God is infinite, and you are infinitesimal. Then what is your position? You have to serve God, Kṛṣṇa. This is simple truth. The rebellious attitude against God is māyā, illusion. Anyone who is declaring that he is God, that you are God, that there is no God, that God is dead—he is under the spell of māyā.
When a man is haunted by a ghost, he speaks all kinds of nonsense. Similarly, when a person is haunted by māyā, he says, “God is dead. I am God. Why are you searching for God? There are so many Gods loitering in the street.” People who speak like this are all ghostly haunted, deranged.
So you have to cure them by vibrating the transcendental sound of the Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra. This is the cure. Simply let them hear, and gradually they will be cured. When a man is sleeping very soundly, you can cry out beside his ear and he’ll awaken. So the Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra can awaken the sleeping human society. The Vedas say, uttiṣṭhata jāgrata prāpya varān nibodhata: “O human being, please get up! Don’t sleep any more. You have the opportunity of a human body. Utilize it. Get yourself out of the clutches of māyā.” This is the declaration of the Vedas. So continue to chant Hare Kṛṣṇa. Awaken your countrymen from illusion, and help them get relief from their miseries.

[from: The Journey of Self - Discovery CH3, by A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, founder Acarya for ISKCON]

Avatara Sara by Srila Lochan das Thakur

"I chewed the thorns on the tree of worldly life and took the blood that flowed through my mouth to be nectar. When I was offered the nectarean fruits of love of God, however, I turned them away, thinking them to be poison. Wishing to smell perfume I sniffed at what I thought was the fragrant flower of material enjoyment. Alas, that flower was odorless like the palasa flower. When I tried to sniff its illusory aroma a bee flew up my nose and stung me. Thinking material life to be as sweet as sugarcane, I tried to taste its nectar. Instead, as I sucked I found it juiceless and dry. In this way, all my attempts at enjoyment proved false. Admitting defeat, wasted, and worn out, I await the snake of death. Declaring it to be cool and soothing, I have embraced the fire of material life, only to suffer intense miseries, as if struck by lightning. Worshiping family and material life I forgot the Lord and didn't listen to the words of the saints. Now, in my final days I realize that I am twice dead, for not only am I casting off this mortal body, but I am dead while living, having wasted my life in material indulgence."

My Only Qualification

"People say that "Swamiji, you have done miracles." But what miracles I have done? I am simply repeating Krsna's words. That's all. So everyone can do that. Everyone can take this matter very seriously. His life will be successful. He will make others successful. It is so nice thing."

(Prabhupada)

"So we have got this message from God, and we are trying our bit also to distribute this knowledge. Now, tenth, eleventh, twelfth... My Guru Maharaja is tenth from Caitanya Mahaprabhu, I am eleventh, you are the twelfth. So distribute this knowledge. People are suffering."

(Prabhupada)

"It is not difficult. It is difficult when you manufacture something. But if you simply present whatever you have heard from your spiritual master, it is very easy. If you want to become overintelligent, to present something, to interpret something, whatever over you have heard from spiritual master you can make some further addition, alteration, then you'll spoil whole thing. Then you'll spoil whole thing. Don't make addition or alteration. Simply present as it is."

(Praphupada)


"And to become acarya is not very difficult. First of all, to become very faithful servant of your acarya, follow strictly what he says. Try to please him and spread God consciousness. That's all. It is not at all difficult. Try to follow the instruction of your Guru Maharaja and spread God consciousness. That is the order of Lord Caitanya. "By following My order, you become guru." And if we strictly follow the acarya system and try our best to spread the instruction of Krsna... Simply repeat what is said by Krsna, then you become acarya. But you should understand the meaning also; otherwise how you can explain? So, we want to spread Krsna consciousness. Simply prepare yourself how to repeat Krsna's instructions very nicely, without any malinterpretation. Then, in future... Suppose you have got now ten thousand. We shall expand to hundred thousand. That is required. Then hundred thousand to million, and million to ten million. So there will be no scarcity of acarya, and people will understand Krsna consciousness very easily. So make that organization. Don't be falsely puffed up. Follow the acarya's instruction and try to make yourself perfect, mature. Then it will be very easy to fight out maya. Yes. Acaryas, they declare war against maya's activities. So if you want to become recognized by God very quickly, you take up this process of becoming spiritual master, present the Bhagavad-gita as it is. Your life is perfect."

(Prabhupada)

Human Life Is Spoiled When Man Does Not Realize His Real Identity

"The bestial civilization of eating, sleeping, fearing, and sense-gratifying has misled modern man into forgetting how powerful a soul he has. The soul is a spiritual spark many, many times more illuminating, dazzling, and powerful than the sun, moon, or electricity. Human life is spoiled when man does not realize his real identity with his soul."

(His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada - caitanya-caritamrta, Adi-lila 5.22 , purport)

Think of the Lord

"Constant thought of the Lord is the antiseptic method for keeping oneself free from the infectious contamination of the material qualities."

(His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada - Srimad Bhagavatam 3.1.32, Purport)

On Golden Rule

The self-effulgent Spiritual Realm , by whose illumination alone all the illuminating planets within this material world give off reflected light, cannot be reached by those who are not merciful to other living entities.

(Sri Maitreya Rsi - Srimad-Bhagavatam 4.12.36)

Apathy Towards The Holy Name

“Another effective method for ridding oneself of apathy towards the Holy Name is to sit in a closed room alone and meditate on the Name as did the previous sages. Or one can cover the head and face with a cloth and concentrate on the sound of the Holy Name. This will immediately fix the mind firmly on the Holy Name; slowly, one develops attraction for the Name, and the offense of apathetic inattention will vanish.

(Bhaktivinoda Thakura, Harinama-cintamani Ch.12)

By one's engaging in the processes of demigod worship, austerities, breath control, compassion, bathing in holy places, strict vows, charity, and chanting of various mantras, one's mind cannot attain the same absolute purification as that achieved when the unlimited Personality of Godhead appears within one's heart.

(Bhumi Devi - Srimad Bhagavatam 12.3.48)

Chant to Clense the Heart

Sri Krsna, the Personality of Godhead, who is the Paramatma [Supersoul] in everyone's heart and the benefactor of the truthful devotee, cleanses desire for material enjoyment from the heart of the devotee who has developed the urge to hear His messages, which are in themselves virtuous when properly heard and chanted.

(Suta Gosvami - Srimad-Bhagavatam 1.2.17)

Awaken the Spiritual Love

The soul's nature is spiritual. In the soul's heart is pure love, love for God alone. Now the soul is covered with lust. Now that original love for God sleeps. Chase the lust far away. Awaken the spiritual love.

(Srila Bhaktivinoda Thakura - Kalyana-kalpataru 1.19.2)

Spirit and matter are completely contradictory things. All of us are spiritual entities. We cannot have perfect happiness, which is our birthright, however much we may meddle with the affairs of mundane things. Perfect happiness can be ours only when we are restored to our natural state of spiritual existence.

(His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada - The Science of Self-Realization)

Good Decisions

If something happens by providential arrangement, we should not be very sorry. The more we try to rectify such reversals, the more we enter into the darkest region of materialistic thought.

(Lord Brahma - Srimad Bhagavatam 4.19.34)

The Difference Between Lust and Love

The desire to gratify one's own senses is kama(lust), but the desire to please the senses of Lord Krsna is prema(love).

(Srila Krsnadasa Kaviraja Goswami- CC, adi 4.165)

No Equal

There is no eye equal to knowledge, no austerity equal to speaking the truth, no misery equal to attachment, and no happiness equal to detachment.

(Canakya Pandita)

If

If you have faith that the soul is the eternal servent of God , then you will have no more misery.


(Srila Bhaktivinoda Thakur - Gitavali)

Because They Are Mad

Because of so-called improvements in material opulence, people have entirely given up the path of realization. Practically no one is interested in God, one's relationship with God, or how one should act. Modern men have altogether forgotten such questions because they are mad.

(His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada - Srimad-Bhagavatam, 8.22.17, Purport)

Happiness Everywhere

For a person who has suitable shoes on his feet, there is no danger even when he walks on pebbles and thorns. For him, everything is auspicious. Similarly, for one who is always self-satisfied there is no distress; indeed, he feels happiness everywhere.

(Narada Muni - Srimad-Bhagavatam 7.15.17)

We The Spirit Souls,

For the soul there is neither birth nor death at any time. He has not come into being, does not come into being, and will not come into being. He is unborn, eternal, ever-existing, and primeval. He is not slain when the body is slain.

(Lord Sri Krsna - Bhagavad-gita 2.20)

Jaya Prabhupada!

Without becoming a devotee of the Lord, one cannot perfect one's human life. The perfection of human life is to be elevated to the spiritual world, where there is no birth, no death, no disease, and no old age ... Without this aim, any amount of material advancement in so-called comforts can only bring the defeat of the human form of life.

(His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada - Srimad-Bhagavatam 3.3.28, Purport)

Second Sight, Third Eye

The sage feels transcendental pleasure in the gradual advancement of spiritual culture, whereas the man in materialistic activities, being asleep to self-realization, dreams of varieties of sense pleasure, feeling sometimes happy and sometimes distressed in his sleeping condition. The introspective man is always indifferent to materialistic happiness and distress. He goes on with his self-realization activities undisturbed by material reactions.

(His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada - Bhagavad-gita As It Is 2.69, Purport)

I Shall Not Want

What is unattainable for one who has satisfied the Supreme Personality of Godhead, the shelter of the goddess of fortune? Even so, those who are dedicated to His devotional service never want anything from Him.

(Srila Sukadeva Gosvami - Srimad-Bhagavatam 10.39.2)

Bhakti

Firm, ceaseless, and unshakable love of God which surpasses every other form of affection or attachment, and which is based on and inspired by a full knowledge of His transcendent majesty, is called bhakti; by that alone does one attain liberation-by no other means.

(Sripada Madhvacarya)

Preaching Householders

The whole world is suffering for want of knowledge. The present civilization is animal civilization. They do not know anything beyond eating, sleeping, mating and defending. That's all. This is animal civilization. Animal does not know beyond these four principles of life: eating, sleeping, mating and defending. That's all. No. Human life is meant for something else: "What I am? What is God? What is my relation with God? What is this material world? Why I am here? Where I have to go next?" So many things one has to learn. Athato brahma-jijnasa. This is human life. Not that eat and sleep and have sex life and die someday like cats and dogs. Therefore, there is need of acaryas, teachers, for propagating spiritual knowledge, God consciousness. Although Bhaktivinoda Thakura was a grhastha, householder, a government officer, magistrate, still he was acarya. So from his dealings, from his life, we should learn how one can become a preacher in any stage of life. It doesn't matter what he is.


His Divine Grace Srila Sac-cid-ananda Bhaktivinoda Thakura's Appearance Day Lecture, London, September 23, 1969

The Lord

That head is the loftiest which is white with dust from bowing down to the Lord. Those eyes are most beautiful ,which darkness has abandoned, after they have seen the Lord. That intelligence is spotless, like the white glow of the moon or a conch shell, which concentrates on the Lord. And that tongue rains down nectar which constantly glorifies the Lord.

(King Kulashekhara - Mukunda-mala-stotra 19)

Remembering God in Surrender to Him

Forgetting God, the living entity has been attracted by the external feature from time immemorial. Therefore the illusory energy [maya] gives him all kinds of misery in his material existence. In the material condition, the living entity is sometimes raised to higher planetary systems and material prosperity and sometimes drowned in a hellish situation. His state is exactly like that of a criminal whom a king punishes by submerging him in water and then raising him again from the water.
(Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu - Sri Caitanya caritamrta, Madhya-lila 20.117-118)

Everyday With Srila Prabhupada

When we simply remember to accept the control of God and not to act independently then all fortune is automatically present.

Letter to Bramananda from Srila Prabhupada December 11, 1968

Success in Life

In a talk given in England in 1973, Srila Prabhupada provides some enlightening insight on true success in life.

If we do not cultivate knowledge, we are no better than animals. An animal may say that there is no need of books and that he has become a guru, but how can anyone obtain knowledge without the study of authoritative books on science and philosophy? Rascal gurus try to avoid these things. We must understand that we are all born rascals and fools and that we have to be enlightened. We have to receive knowledge to make our lives perfect. If we do not perfect our lives, we are defeated. What is this defeat? The struggle for existence. We are trying to obtain a better life, to attain a superior position, and for this we are struggling very hard. But we do not know what a superior position actually is.

Whatever position we have in this material world must be given up. We may have a good position or a bad position; in any case, we cannot remain here. We may earn millions of dollars and think, "Now I am in a good position," but a little dysentery or cholera will finish our position. If the bank fails, our position is gone. So actually there is no good position in this material world. It is a farce. Those who try to attain a better position in the material world are ultimately defeated, because there is no better position. The Bhagavad-gita (14.26) says what the better position is:

mam ca you `vyabhicarena
bhakti-yogena sevate
sa gunan samatityaitan
brahma-bhuyaya kalpate

"One who engages in the spiritual activities of unalloyed devotional service at once transcends the modes of material nature and is elevated to the spiritual platform."

Is there any science that gives us the knowledge by which we may become immortal? Yes, we may become immortal, but not in the material sense. We cannot receive this knowledge in so-called universities. However, there is knowledge contained in the Vedic scriptures by which we may become immortal. That immortality is our better position. No more birth, no more death, no more old age, no more disease. Thus the guru takes on a very great responsibility. He must guide his disciple and enable him to become an eligible candidate for the perfect position-immortality. The guru must be competent to lead his disciple back home, back to Godhead.

Everyday With Srila Prabhupada

Devotee means very liberal and kind to everyone, always gentleman under all kinds of conditions of life.

Letter to Hamsaduta, December 10, 1972

Everyday With Srila Prabhupada

Who feels humble and meek has the door, for the Kingdom of God, opened for him or her

Letter to Janaki from Srila Prabhupada, December 9, 1968

Everyday With Srila Prabhupada

We are not enemies of machines. If they can be used for Krishnas service then we welcome them.

Letter to Kirtanananda, December 8, 1968

Everyday With Srila Prabhupada

The conditioned soul is forced to act under the pressure of the modes of material nature. He has no independence. When he is under the direction of the supreme personality of godhead he is free.


Srila Prabhupada - Srimad Bhagvatam 3.27.2, purport

Everyday with Srila Prabhupada

"Devotees, they are para-duhkha-duhkhi. The symptom a devotee is that they are unhappy by seeing others unhappy."

Ahmedebad, december 6, 1972

An Introduction to Gaudiya Viasnavism: Philosophy and Theology

We will delve deep into the fundamental questions of life, offering an overview of the vast and penetrating wisdom of the Gaudiya Vaishnava tradition.

ON ACQUIRING KNOWLEDGE

A philosopher will first ask, "What is the means to know?" In studying this perennial question, the philosophers have categorized all methods of attaining knowledge into three basic categories:

(1) Pratyaksa (sense perception): The knowledge directly perceived by the five sense organs and the mind is known as pratyaksa. The knowledge perceived through the senses can never be fully relied upon due to our inherent human defects. Our senses are limited by time and space, and our mind is biased by various desires. We do not see things very far or very near, and we may see things which hold no substance in reality, such as a mirage or a magician's show -- we mistake it to be something it is not, and we are confused over the reality of the matter. Even the reality of a mundane object can not be known with certainty through the means of sensory perception. How could transcendence then be proven through our material senses?

(2) Anumana (reasoning): Knowledge inferred from our observations is known as anumana. For example, we have seen smoke and fire together. When we observe smoke rising from behind a mountain, we reason there is fire. However, we may have mistaken a cloud for smoke, or a rain cloud may have already extinguished the fire, leaving only the smoke behind, and therefore our conclusion is false. If the reason is mistakenly understood, or there is an exception in the principle, our conclusion will be false. Therefore, reasoning is not an infallible means of acquiring knowledge. Moreover, being limited to our experiences in this world, reasoning lacks a capacity to reach into the specifics of transcendence with any degree of certainty.

(3) Shabda (revealed knowledge): For knowledge to be beyond human limitations, it must descend from beyond the human plane. The scriptures are understood to be apauruseya, or of divine origin. The writings of the sages are born of divine revelation, consisting of knowledge handed down by God, which is then passed on and preserved over the generations to provide an adequate means of insight into the transcendence. Naturally, for accepting the evidence of scripture, an initial leap of faith is required -- but is this not the same in accepting any lesson from anyone? Initial faith is certainly required before understanding literature on any given subject matter, in order to facilitate study and to eventually progress to a stage of personal realization and divine insight.

The Gaudiya school accepts a threefold division of revealed knowledge, namely (1) shastra -- the considerations of the scripture, (2) sadhu -- the considerations of the saints, and (3) guru -- the considerations of one's own guru. There is a relation of interdependence between the three. The guru is a representative of scriptures and the predecessor saints, the saints' teachings must be in harmony with the teachings of scripture and understood with the help of the guru, and the various scriptural statements are properly understood through the teachings of the saints and the guru. If the testimony of one of them is not compatible with the other two, it is not to be accepted as conclusive.

That being said, we may legitimately ask: Why should there be any defect in the scripture, since it is said to originate from God? The scripture itself answers the question: The vast body of Vedic literature is compared to a wish-fulfilling tree offering fruits of choice to one and all to facilitate their spiritual growth according to their inclinations in any given situation of life. What is a valid advice for one may be contrary to the progress of another. Consequently, a tradition of saints and a realized guru who teaches the scripture in a relevant way is necessary for obtaining valid knowledge of that which is beyond the range of sensory perception.


ESSENTIAL CATEGORIES

To begin with, we should determine that which is to be understood. In examining the nature of existence, we divide philosophy into three basic categories:

(1) Sambandha (relationship) -- the nature of and relationships between the individual living entity and the Supreme;

(2) Abhidheya (method of attainment) -- the proper course of action in accordance with the aforementioned understanding;

(3) Prayojana (ultimate perfection) -- the ultimate goal and purpose of the living entity in relation with the Supreme.

Let us reflect on these concepts and their various constituents.


SAMBANDHA -- RELATIONSHIP

There are two fundamental factors in existence: (1) The living entities, who have an eternal relationship with (2) the Supreme Person.

(1) The living entities -- The living entity, an eternal spiritual being, is encaged within a world of matter since beginning less time. On account of ignorance of its essential nature, the eternal living entity identifies itself with various attributes of this world life after life. From childhood to youth, from youth to old age, from old age to death and again to a new birth in accordance with its desires and deeds, the living entity wanders in this world.


Sometimes thinking of himself as a male, sometimes a female, sometimes an American, sometimes an Indian, and sometimes a camel or an ass, the living entity meets happiness and distress among various species of life, birth after birth. Longing to satisfy its unfulfilled desires, the living entity roams about in this world in an endless quest for love and happiness, never to be satisfied. That which is of spirit in nature will never find its peace in a world made of matter.

(2) The Supreme Person -- The Supreme Person is the ultimate manifestation of the Absolute Truth, the original cause of all creation, maintenance and destruction. He is simultaneously transcendent and immanent, being beyond the influence of this world, yet eternally aware of everything therein. Whatever exists in all the material and spiritual worlds consists of Him and His infinite energies only. His various energies are divided in three basic categories:

(1) External energy -- His external energy consists of the material world. This energy is divided into eight basic elements, namely five gross elements, and three subtle elements. They are (1) Earth, or all that is solid, (2) Water, or all that is liquid, (3) Fire, or all energy, (4) Air, or all aeriform substance, (5) Ether, or the space in which everything exists, (6) Mind, or the emotional faculty of the psyche, (7) Intelligence, or the discriminating faculty of the psyche, and (8) False ego, or the faculty of the psyche which forms a mundane conception of personality. This combination of elements known as the material world is temporary in nature.

(2) Marginal energy -- His marginal energy consists of the living entities of this world, the tiny spiritual sparks which are situated in a marginal position between the material world and the spiritual world, having the possibility of choosing between the two in accordance with their desires. The living entities are simultaneously one with and different from the Supreme, just as a ray of sun is one with and different from its origin, the sun.

(3) Internal energy -- His internal energy consists of sandhini (eternity), samvit (consciousness) and hladini (ecstasy), forming the basis of existence in the spiritual world. The feature of eternity is the ingredient of which all spiritual worlds consists, the feature of consciousness is the ingredient from which varieties of awareness arise, and the feature of ecstasy is the ingredient from which divine, blissful loving emotions arise.

The Gaudiya Vaishnava school's concept of Divinity in His infinite aspects, culminating on its ultimate object of worship, the Divine Couple, Radha and Krishna.


Some of the descriptions found on this page are kept rather concise in to limit the bulk of the presentation.


THREE ASPECTS OF DIVINITY

Learned men understand the Divine to manifest in three aspects, which are known as His all-pervading formless aspect, His aspect as the Lord of the heart, and his aspect as the Supreme Person.

(1) Brahman (the All-pervading Spirit): The non-differentiated aspect of the Divine is known as Brahman. This all-pervading spiritual substance is known to be the support of all the worlds, and whatever exists is known to be of Brahman only in its various manifestations. Brahman is understood to be the halo of the Supreme Person.

(2) Paramatma (the Supreme Soul): The localized aspect of the Divine is known as Paramatma. Known as the Lord of the heart, this aspect of the Supreme has expanded within the hearts of all living entities, invoking inspiration, knowledge and forgetfulness in them. He is the silent witness in our hearts, the impartial overseer and permitter of everyone's activities, and the one who keeps the world turning in accordance with the deeds of all living entities. He is an expansion of the Supreme Person for the maintenance of the cosmic manifestation.

(3) Bhagavan (the Supreme Person): The ultimate aspect of the Divine is known as Bhagavan. He is simultaneously transcendent and immanent, being situated in His own divine realm and simultaneously pervading everything through His infinite manifestations. This Supreme Person is the ultimate master, friend, father, son and beloved of all living entities. In His kindness, He manifests to everyone in accordance with their desires to serve Him, while remaining at the same time in His supremely attractive form of Sri Krishna, in whom all beauty and love find its pinnacle.


DIFFERENT ASPECTS OF THE SUPREME PERSON

An ancient prayer in Brahma Samhita says, "I worship Govinda, the primeval Lord, whose non-dual, perfect and eternal forms are unlimited, who is the original ancient person, yet in his blossoming youth, and who is beyond access for the Vedas, but very near to those with a pure, devoted heart."

The original Supreme Person, Krishna, expands into various forms to fulfill various purposes within His creation. He is known as Svayam Bhagavan (the Supreme Person Himself) and Lila Purusottama (the Supreme Enjoyer of Pastimes). To taste the full variety of loving exchanges with His devotees, He manifests various forms in both the material and the spiritual worlds.

Within the spiritual world, the Lord manifests Himself in His original form, in multiple forms with identical characteristics (such as in the rasa-dance and in the palaces of Dvaraka), as well as in multiple forms with different moods and characteristics (such as His brother, Balarama), which include the unlimited four-armed Vishnu forms pervading the vast spiritual sky.

When the Lord manifests Himself in the material world, the form which He displays is called "avatara", or "descent", that which descends from the world beyond. These avataras are classified under several categories in accordance with Their purpose. The general purpose of the descents is told to be threefold, namely (1) to bring joy to His devotees, (2) to destroy wicked elements in the world, and (3) to re-establish the principles of religion. These avataras are classified as follows:

(1) Lila-avatara (pastime descents): These forms of the Lord have very distinct features, and they enact unparalleled activities in this world. Some of them are Ramacandra (the ideal king and ruler), Narasimha (half-man half-lion form who saved His devotee Prahlada), and Matsya (the fish-form who swam in the waters of devastation).

(2) Purusa-avatara (descent for creation): There are three forms of the Lord particularly meant for the maintenance of the cosmic manifestation. They are (1) Karanodakasayi Vishnu who manifests all the universes, (2) Garbhodakasayi Vishnu who presides in each universe, and (3) Ksirodakasayi Vishnu, who presides in the hearts of all living entities, and is also known as the Paramatma.

(3) Guna-avatara (descents for controlling the modes of nature): There are three forms of the Lord meant for controlling each of the three modes of nature, namely goodness, passion and ignorance. (1) Brahma, who is generally an empowered living entity, is in charge of the mode of passion, and takes care of creation. (2) Vishnu is in charge of the mode of goodness, and takes care of maintenance. (3) Shiva, who is a transformed form of the Lord, is in charge of the mode of ignorance, and takes care of destruction.

(4) Saktyavesa-avatara (descents endowed with potency): When the power of the Lord for fulfilling a particular purpose is bestowed to a living entity, he is known as a saktyavesa-avatara. The powers bestowed are the power to teach divine wisdom, the power to instill devotion into others, the power to rule the world, and the power to create, among others. They are further divided into those who are directly empowered by the Lord and those who manifest a reflection of the Lord's potency.

(5) Manvantara-avatara (descents for the era of Manu): There are fourteen Manus who rule the humanity during each cosmic day of Brahma, and during each era there is a form of the Lord who descends to this world. The Lord's fourteen descents are known as Yajna, Vibhu, Satyasena, Hari, Vaikuntha Ajita, Vamana, Sarvabhauma, Risabha, Visvaksena, Dharma, Sudharma, Yogesvara and Brihadbhanu. Additionally, each Manu is a descent of the Lord.

(6) Yuga-avatara (descents for the age): There is a form of the Lord who descends in each of the four ages in the cosmic cycle of time, known as Satya, Treta, Dvapara and Kali-yugas. The Lord descends to teach the method of religion relevant for the particular age.


VARIETIES OF LOVING EXCHANGE

Considering the various manifestations of the Supreme Person from the point of view of ontological truth, they are non different from each other, being manifestations of the Lord. However, there are definite differences between His various manifestations in terms of the taste experienced in loving exchanges with Him.

Primary loving relationships with the Supreme Person are known to be five-fold, namely:

(1) Santa-rasa (neutrality): When love for the Supreme is experienced upon beholding His glory, without experiencing a particular impetus for engaging in His service, the relationship is known as santa-rasa.

(2) Dasya-rasa (servitude): When love for the Supreme Person is experienced either as the reverence and submission felt by a servant towards his master, or as the respect and esteem that a son feels for his father, the relationship is called dasya-rasa.

(3) Sakhya-rasa (friendship): When love for the Supreme Person is experienced with feelings of intimacy and equality, devoid of the sense of obligation felt by a servant, the relationship is called sakhya-rasa.

(4) Vatsalya-rasa (parental love): When love for the Supreme Person is experienced as His dependence upon the devotee's nourishing, blessing and looking after Him, the relationship is called vatsalya-rasa.

(5) Madhurya-rasa (amorous love): When love for the Supreme Person is experienced as feelings of amorous love, as experienced between the lover and the beloved, or between the husband and the wife, the relationship is called madhurya-rasa.

Each subsequent relationship has more attributes and an increased feeling of intimacy. To facilitate the compatible existence of various relationships with Him, the Lord manifests His different aspects in different regions of the spiritual sky.


GRADATIONS OF PERFECTION

The spiritual sky is understood as having multiple regions wherein the Supreme Person manifests His pastimes in the company of His loving devotees. The progressive supremacy of these spiritual regions is determined in accordance with the degree of intimacy of love.

To comprehend the hieararchy of the various regions, we need to accustom ourselves with two basic concepts: (1) aisvarya (supernatural might and opulence), and (2) madhurya (natural sweetness and intimacy).

(1) Aisvarya: The Lord's exhibition of supernatural might and opulence which causes a feeling of fearful awe and reverence in the heart of the devotee, is known as aisvarya.

(2) Madhurya: The abundant sweetness of human-like relationships with the Lord, which covers any considerations of His Godhood under the veil of loving intimacy, is known as madhurya.

The more intimate and independent of the status of the object of love the love is, the more complete it is understood to be. Therefore gradations of perfection among the Lord's various features are measured on the scale of the presence of madhurya.

The spiritual sky is known as "Vaikuntha". In the shining realm of Vaikuntha, in the midst of innumerable Vaikuntha-planets, there is a divine planet called Goloka, which is the pinnacle of the spiritual sky. Goloka is further divided into three main sections, namely Dvaraka, Mathura and Vraja. Let us examine them:

(1) Vaikuntha: In Vaikuntha, the Lord is present in His four-armed Vishnu-forms, manifesting His supernatural opulences. The devotees in Vaikuntha-region serve the Lord filled with awe and reverence. Here the Lord is known to be complete.

(2) Dvaraka and Mathura: In Dvaraka and Mathura, the mood of devotion is a mixture of alternating reverence and sweetness. Here the Lord is known to be more complete.

(3) Vraja: In Vraja, the mood of devotion is of pure sweetness, and even the Lord's display of unparalleled majesty does not diminish the natural love of His devotees. Here the Lord is known to be most complete.

When Sri Krishna descends to this world, He manifests three ages: (1) childhood, (2) boyhood, and (3) youth. The first period of five years is filled with pastimes of parental love, the second with pastimes of friendly love, and the third with pastimes of amorous love. This enchanting form saturated with carefree blossoming youth is considered to be the perfection of His being, and the most attractive among all of His forms.

Though the various forms of the Lord are analyzed and hierarchically presented, there is certainly no fault in any of them. They are all eternal, filled with knowledge and ecstasy, and perfect in their position of enabling His experience of the full spectrum of loving interaction.


THE DIVINE COUPLE

The divine counterpart of Sri Krishna is known as Sri Radha. Sri Radha is the complete energy, and Sri Krishna is the complete source of energy. They are nondifferent from each other, just as musk and its scent are inseparable, or as fire and its heat are nondifferent.

Just as Krishna expands Himself to Dvaraka and to Vaikuntha, so Radha expands along with Him to assume the forms of the Queens of Dvaraka and the Laksmi-goddesses of Vaikuntha. The cowherd maidens of Vraja are manifest from Her being to expand the relish of amorous adventures.

Radha and Krishna are one, yet They have assumed two separate forms to enjoy loving pastimes. She is Krishna's own divine potency who accompanies Him in His pleasure sports, being thoroughly imbued with and consisting of love for Him. Since Radha is filled with all divine qualities, She alone is able to fulfill all the desires of Krishna.

Poet Krishnadas Kaviraja has described the unparalleled beauty of the Divine Couple:

"May that Sri Krishna, son of the king of the cowherd men — whose effulgent bodily complexion defeats the luster of a fresh monsoon cloud, collyrium and sapphire, whose yellow cloth is more effulgent than kunkuma, the rising sun and a flash of lightning, and whose entire form is anointed with sandalwood paste mixed with camphor and saffron — bestow upon me the service of His lotus feet!

May that Srimati Radhika — whose bodily complexion snatches away the pride of a golden lotus flower tinged with kunkuma, whose bodily fragrance reproaches the fame of a fragrant lotus sprinkled with saffron powder, and who fulfills all the desires of the prince of Vraja, Sri Krishna — always bestow upon me the service of Her lotus feet!

May that Sri Krishna, son of the king of the cowherd men — who pleases Srimati Radhika and the cowherd maidens with the nectar of His pastimes in the forest groves and in the circle-dance, who nourishes them with His jokes and tricks, and who delights the hearts of everyone with His supernatural love, character, playfulness, and fame — bestow upon me the service of His lotus feet!

May that Srimati Radhika — whose softness defeats the fame of delicate budding flowers, whose body's coolness is worshipable for the moon, sandalwood-paste, the lotus, and camphor, and whose touch dispels the heat of Sri Krishna's amorous desires — always bestow upon me the service of Her lotus feet!"

In the wake of these prayers, Gaudiya Vaishnavas aspire to personally serve the Divine Couple in their amorous pastimes in the role of Sri Radha's manjaris (handmaids), assisting Them in various ways in the fulfillment of Their love.



Having clarified the theoretical basis of everything, let us examine the functional basics for existence.

ABHIDHEYA -- MEANS OF ATTAINMENT

In accordance with their insight or lack thereof, the living entities of this world are engaged in various pursuits. Some are engaged in attempts to produce bodily and mental comfort for theirselves, for the society or for the world at large. However, since we are living in a temporary world, nothing of a permanent nature can be achieved by such endeavors.

Others are engaged in a pursuit for wisdom to negate the joys and grieves of the temporal world, longing for salvation or emancipation. However, in lack of a positive spiritual alternative, how could the individual spiritual being attain the fulfillment of its eternal, individual desires?

The path of bhakti, of loving devotional service to the Supreme Person, is known as the path for attainging the ultimate good. Prayojana, or the ultimate perfection for the living entity, is known as pure, unnalloyed, ecstatic love for the Supreme Person. The path for attaining bhakti is called "sadhana", or "that which leads to the goal".

There are two paths of bhakti in practice -- (1) vaidhi-bhakti, and (2) raganuga-bhakti. They are understood as follows:

(1) Vaidhi-bhakti (devotional practice of rules and regulations) -- When one hears from the saints about the scriptural statements on the duty of all living entities is to serve and worship the Lord, a feeling of obligation and reverence may awaken within the heart. When such a conception acts as the impetus for his pursuing the path of bhakti, his path is called vaidhi-bhakti, or devotional practice following in the wake of scriptural injunctions.

(2) Raganuga-bhakti (devotional practice in search of loving attraction) -- When one hears from the saints about the sweetness of the Lord's pastimes with His associates, a sacred greed for obtaining loving feelings similar to one of His associates may awaken within the heart. When such a conception acts as the impetus for his pursuing the path of bhakti, his path is called raganuga-bhakti, or devotional practice in the wake of loving attachment.

These two paths lead the aspirants to two different goals in the spiritual world. The practice of vaidhi-bhakti leads the aspirant to Vaikuntha, where a sense of awe and reverence towards the Lord prevails, whereas raganuga-bhakti leads the aspirant to Vraja, where natural loving feelings are prominent.

Externally the practices of the sadhaka (practitioner) on both paths look similar. The difference is in the inner motivation. Various practices of sadhana will be discussed in a separate essay on the [practices] page. Let us now examine the gradual ninefold evolution of the aspirant from the beginning of his journey to the perfection of ecstatic love of God.

(1) Sraddha (faith) -- In the beginning, there is faith in the scriptures describing bhakti. This faith arises from contact with saints. In one person faith appears spontaneously, and in another it appears as the result of resolving doubts and misconceptions about the scriptures and the words of the saints.

(2) Sadhu-sanga (association of saints) -- After attaining faith, one naturally seeks the shelter of a spiritual teacher (guru), and inquires from him and receives initiation into the various practices of devotion. Then one receives the fortune of associating with soft-hearted, realized saints who are endowed with similar spiritual aspirations.

(3) Bhajana-kriya (engagement in worship) -- In the course of engaging in various devotional practices, one will undergo various phases in progressing from unsteadiness to steady practices. One will meet with initial enthusiasm, oscillating attention and slackness, indecision, struggling with the uncontrolled senses, inability to uphold vows, and straying after the by-products of advancement arising from the admiration of others, such as profit, fame and adoration.

(4) Anartha-nivritti (cessation of unwanted elements) -- In the course of devotional practices, one will become purified of "anartha", or various undesirable elements which obstruct devotion. They are known as (1) anartha arising from sinful works, (2) anartha arising from pious works, (3) anartha arising from offences, and (4) anartha arising from devotion. These four cause the following obstacles: (1) ignorance, false egotism, attachment, hatred, and entanglement in bodily enjoyment, (2) affection for the pleasures of this world obtained as the fruit of good works, (3) lack of taste, love and affection for the Lord and His name, and (4) various by-products of bhakti, such as profit, fame and adoration, which may lead one astray. By the power of devotional practice, all of the aforementioned unwanted elements will gradually be destroyed.

(5) Nistha (steadiness) -- After overcoming laziness, distraction, inability to engage in devotional practices despite being in a suitable situation, attachment to old bad habits, and the influence of sensual pleasures, one comes to a stage of steadiness in practice. At this point, no obstacles can waver him from his determined practice of devotion.

(6) Ruci (taste) -- The treasure of bhakti illuminated by the fire of devotional practices gives rise to a special taste for all aspects of practice, such as chanting the holy names, hearing the pastimes of Krishna and so on. At this stage, the sadhaka never feels the slightest fatique even by repeated hearing and chanting. This taste gives rise to his intense absorption in the same.

(7) Asakti (attachment) -- When one's taste becomes very thick and mature, one arrives to the stage of attachment. In the stage of ruci, engagement in devotion is the dominant object of taste, but in the stage of asakti, the Lord Himself becomes the dominant object of taste. In the stage of ruci, some effort is required for focusing the mind on the Lord, but in the stage of asakti, this paramount absorption comes about naturally and without separate endeavours.

(8) Bhava (intense emotion) -- Asakti in its extreme maturity is known as bhava, or intense emotion. At this stage, the naturally soft heart of the aspirant melts like butter or honey scorched by the rays of the sun, an unquenchable yearning for meeting the Lord is ever-present in his heart, and he is plunged into a whirlpool of loving emotions. At this point, he attains complete identification with his perfect spiritual form (siddha-deha) in which he has longed to serve the Lord.

(9) Prema (ecstatic love) -- Finally the loving aspirant obtains the fruit of prema, and tastes the joint experience of all divine emotions known as bhakti-rasa or sacred rapture. This prema within the heart of the devotee becomes like a powerful magnet attracting the dark iron-like Krishna. Eventually the Lord reveals to him His most auspicious qualities like beauty, nice odour, sweet voice, His tenderness, nice taste, generosity and compassion, overwhelming all of his senses. All these attributes are most sweet and eternally fresh, and when the devotee begins to relish them with love, this relish increases within his heart at every moment. This causes a powerful eagerness and finally creates an ocean of ecstacy which no poet could properly describe.


The perfection of all devotional endeavours is further described in the following section.


PRAYOJANA -- ULTIMATE PERFECTION

The Lord, while eternally residing in His divine abode in the world beyond, also eternally displays His pastimes in this world, moving about from one universe to another to bless the souls of this world with the nectar of His pastimes. The pastimes of the Lord in the spiritual world are called His unmanifest pastimes, and the pastimes in this world are called His manifest pastimes.

As the aspirant reaches the stage of ecstatic love (prema), attaining direct vision of his beloved Lord, his journey for perfection in this world is completed. As he departs from this world, he is taken to the universe where the Lord displays His pastimes at that time. He takes birth from the womb of a gopi (divine cowherd lady) in the village of Krishna, attaining a spiritual body suitable for further expressions of divine love.

During that life, he or she (depending on the kind of relationship the aspirant has longed for) spends her time with the eternally perfected associates of the Lord who have descended with Him from the unmanifest world, and is acquainted with life in the spiritual world, gradually mastering the expression of all divine emotions. Then, at the end of the Lord's manifest pastimes, she is transferred to the eternal, unmanifest pastimes of the Lord in the spiritual abode.

Now, let us examine the concept of bhakti-rasa, the collective expression of divine love, according to its different constituents, known to be of five kinds.

(1) Sthayi-bhava (permanent emotion) -- Sthayi-bhava is the basis of experiencing bhakti-rasa, and it has five prominent varieties: (1) neutrality, (2) servitude, (3) friendship, (4) parental love, and (5) amorous love.

(2) Vibhava (provoking emotion) -- Vibhava is known to be that which inspires the experience of sthayi-bhava, and is of two varieties, (1) the persons who provoke the exchange of emotions, namely the object of love, Krishna, and the reservoir of love, the devotee, and (2) items connected with Krishna.

(3) Anubhava (consequent emotion) -- Anubhavas are expressions of emotion such as crying, laughing and singing, which naturally follow in the wake of the primary emotion.

(4) Sattvika-bhava (ecstatic emotion) -- Sattvika-bhavas are powerful ecstatic emotions which arise in the devotee without any conscious intention when he is overwhelmed with blissful love. Becoming stunned, fainting and faltering of voice are examples of sattvika-bhava.

(5) Vyabhicari-bhava (surging emotion) -- Vyabhicari-bhavas are surging emotions, which appear on the foundation of sthayi-bhava just as waves rise and fall in the ocean. Excitement, shyness and jubilation are examples of vyabhicari-bhava.

The collective experience of these five emotions is known as bhakti-rasa, or the sacred rapture of devotion. Bhakti-rasa is a complete expression of exquisite love of God, the ultimate goal for all living entities. Initial experience of bhakti-rasa takes place already in this world, but the fullest extent of expression is only possible in a spiritual body of an associate of the Lord in His abode.

This divine abode is described in the ancient words of the Brahma Samhita:


"I worship the divine abode of Goloka, which is rarely reached by the sages of this world. There Sri Krishna, the supreme lover and enjoyer, sports with His divine beloveds. There every tree is a desire tree, the soil consists of wish-fulfilling desire gems, and the water in the rivers and lakes is made of nectar.

In this world, every word is a song, every step is a dance, and the flute is always the Lord's dear companion. Everything is permeated with supreme effulgence of cognizance and bliss, and an ocean of milk flows from the divine surabhi-cows of the Lord. There time certainly does not pass away for even a splinter second, since it is eternally beyond the deteoriating influence of time."

The Lord's abode is further revealed in the prayers of Raghunatha Das Gosvami:

"I take shelter of the pasture fields of Vraja, where even today Krishna, His brother, and His dearest friends are engaged in their pastimes of herding the cows with great affection. The indescribable sweetness of Vraja is manifest in the hearts and minds of the sensitive devotees who are conversant with the mellows of devotion.

I worship the most enchanting abode of Sri Vrindavana, which is made fragrant by the lotus feet of the adolescent Divine Couple, Radha and Krishna, who are surrounded by many laughing and joking girlfriends, who are very expert all varieties of arts of the amorous play. In Vrindavana, the Divine Couple passionately sports day and night in the forest groves surrounded by trees, vines and fresh leaves, as well as in the caves of its mountains."

Thus we conclude our discussion on the philosophical precepts behind the Gaudiya Vaishnava tradition, having described the conceptions of the living entities' relationship with the Supreme Person, the supreme goal of life, and the process for its attainment.


HISTORY


The roots of the Gaudiya Vaishnava tradition lie several millenia in the past of India. The four Vedas, Rig, Sama, Yajur and Atharva, the Purana-epics illustrating the precepts of the Vedas, and the vast Mahabharata narrating the story of Krishna and the Pandava-brothers, in which the famous Bhagavad-gita is included, form the ancient basis of the Gaudiya Vaishnava tradition.

The Gaudiya Vaishnava tradition is a part of a larger section of Hinduism known as Vaishnavism. The Vaishnavas understand Vishnu, the Almighty Supreme, as the preserving and purpose-giving God of existence. Some Vaishnava-traditions focus on God in his divinely magnificent Vishnu-form, while others accept the all-enchanting form of Krishna as the object of their worship. The devotional religions of India are collectively known as the bhakti-tradition.


THE FOUR VAISNAVA TRADITIONS

The ancient Vaishnava-tradition felt a breeze of renewal around 1000 CE as four great Vaishnava-teachers presented their commentaries on the essence of Vedanta and taught the same to their numerous followers. They were Vishnusvami (born ca. 700 CE) who founded his own school; Ramanuja (1017-1137 CE), who founded a tradition known as the Sri-sampradaya, basing his views on the teachings of the Alvar-saints of the past and forming a theology called visishta-advaita; Nimbarka (ca. 1100 CE), who founded his own tradition; as well as Madhva (1199-1278 CE), who also offered his own interpretation of Vedanta, establishing his own theology known as dvaita.


THE BHAKTI-MOVEMENTS OF THE 16th CENTURY

The renaissance of Vaishnavism began in the early 1600's as Sri Krishna Chaitanya Mahaprabhu (1486-1534 CE) started his bhakti-movement in West Bengal in the district of Nadia. Despite having been initiated in the Madhva-tradition, Sri Chaitanya practically founded his own tradition, having marked differences with the practices and the theology of the Madhvites as he taught of devotion for Radha and Krishna, the divine couple of Vrindavan. The followers of Chaitanya took him to be the embodiment of Radha and Krishna who had descended to this world to show the path for attaining the devotional service of Radha and Krishna, the ultimate goal of life.

Vallabha (1479-1531 CE) was a contemporary of Chaitanya, who founded one of the most influential traditions of Northern India. The Vallabha-tradition claims a connection with the branch of Vishnusvami. The traditions of Chaitanya and Vallabha seem to have had much in common over their first two generations. During these years many others, such as Hit Harivamsha (1502-1553 CE) and Swami Haridas (1480-1575 CE), founded their own traditions, not particularly claiming for a connection with the older traditions. The famous female saint and poet, Mirabai (1498-1547 CE), was influential during this time.


THE ASSOCIATES OF SRI CHAITANYA

Sri Chaitanya spent the first 24 years of his life in Navadvipa, West Bengal. Most of Chaitanya's followers knew him since his early years. For example Advaita (1454-1550 CE), a leading figure among the Vaishnavas of Navadvipa from before Chaitanya's birth, and Nityananda (1473-1545 CE), a charismatic and eccentric saint, arose to key roles in creating the future of Chaitanya's tradition. Gadadhara Pandit and Vakresvara Pandit, Chaitanya's companions since his childhood, Narahari Cakravartin of Sri Khanda, Nityananda's wife Jahnava, along with many others, contributed their share in initiating the tradition. Disciplic lines descending from the associates of Chaitanya form the majority of the modern Gaudiya Vaishnava - tradition.

Chaitanya spent the remainder of his life, another 24 years, in Jagannath Puri in the company of some of his intimate followers, such as Svarupa Damodara and Ramananda Raya, steeped in deep devotional rapture. During those years, he practically demonstrated the pinnacle of devotional attainment in both his words and his deeds.


SRI CHAITANYA AND THE SIX GOSWAMIS OF VRINDAVAN

Sri Chaitanya is not known to have written anything but a series of verses known as the Siksastaka, the eight verses of instruction. He requested a select few among his followers, who later came to be known as the Six Goswamis of Vrindavan, to systematically present in their writings the theology of bhakti he had taught.

These six saints and theologians were Rupa Goswami, Sanatana Goswami, Gopala Bhatta Goswami, Raghunatha Bhatta Goswami, Raghunatha Das Goswami and Jiva Goswami. In his writings, Rupa focused particularly in explaining the principles of the sacred rapture of devotion, Sanatana along with Gopala Bhatta wrote of the rituals of the tradition, Raghunatha Das focused on the esotera of raganuga-bhajan, and Jiva, the most voluminous author among the six, wrote the elaborate theological thesis known as the Sat-sandarbha among other works.


THE NEXT GENERATION OF THE TRADITION

Narottama Das Thakur, Srinivasa Acarya and Syamananda Pandit were among the stalwarts of the second generation of Gaudiya Vaishnavism. Having studied under Jiva, they were instrumental in propagating the teachings of the Goswamis throughout Bengal, Orissa and other regions of Eastern India. Many among their associates, such as Ramacandra Kaviraja and Ganga-narayana Cakravartin, were also eminent teachers in their own right.

The famous festival of Kheturi, presided over by Jahnava Thakurani, the wife of Nityananda, was the first time the leaders of the various branches of Chaitanya's followers assembled together. Through such festivals, members of the loosely organized tradition became acquainted with other branches along with their respective theological and practical nuances. That notwithstanding, the tradition has maintained its plural nature, having no central authority to preside over its matters.

Around these times, the descendants of Nityananda and Advaita, headed by Virabhadra and Krishna Mishra respectively, started their family-lineages (vamsha) to maintain the tradition. The vamsha descending from Nityananda through Virabhadra forms the most prominent branch of the modern Gaudiya tradition, though descendants of Advaita, along with the descendants of many other associates of Chaitanya, maintain their following especially in the rural areas of Bengal.

Gopala Guru Goswami, a young associate of Chaitanya and a follower of Vakreshwar Pandit, founded another branch based in Orissa. The writings of Gopala Guru, along with those of his disciple Dhyanacandra Goswami, have had a substantial influence on the methods of internal worship in the tradition.


17th AND 18th CENTURIES

The period following the earliest generations of the tradition gave rise to many a controversy in its course. Vishwanath Chakravarti, an illustrious teacher whose period of influence began in late 17th century, is credited with resolving major theological conflicts surrounding the practice of raganuga-bhajan and the nature of the amorous relationship between Radha and Krishna. His student, Baladeva Vidyabhushan, hailing from a disciplic line descending from Rasikananda, authored the famous Govinda Bhashya commentary on Vedanta-sutra in defense of the Gaudiya sampradaya in the royal assembly of Jaipur in early 18th century.

Across the 18th century, descendants of the various vamshas of Chaitanya's companions continued their endeavors in furthering Sri Chaitanya's cause in their respective locales around Bengal. During this period, many illustrious saints, among whom perhaps the most influential was Siddha Krishna Das Babaji of Govardhan, guided the community of devotees in Vraja on matters of bhajan, an influence that carries to the present day.


TOWARDS EARLY 20th CENTURY

The 19th century India, now under substantial influence from the West with the establishment of the British rule, reflected on its values and cultural heritage in diverse avenues. Vaishnavism was not unaffected this was to be an era of new movements and revolutionaries.

The need to influence the colonisers was felt strongly among the Bengali intelligentsia. This spirit touched Kedarnath Datta Bhaktivinoda, a deputy magistrate under the British government, who sent an English biography of Chaitanya's he had authored in 1896 to numerous Western universities. The first missionary to cross the ocean was Baba Premananda Bharati, a follower of Jagatbandhu Sundar's, who arrived in the United States in 1902, establishing a Krishna-temple in Los Angeles and, according to some accounts, raising up to 5000 followers. His disciple, Mahanambrata Brahmachari, was to lecture in dozens of universities across the country in the 1930's. Their Western following is said to have later dwindled under religious persecution in their absence.

Radharaman Charan Das Babaji, also known as Boro Baba, was one of the leading characters of the era, gathering a substantial following of his own. This group, popularized further through the efforts of Ramdas Babaji, is known for their "Nitai Gaura Radhe Shyam" chant. Despite some doctrinal disagreements, Boro Baba's followers have gained acceptance among the tradition.

In 1919, Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati founded a monastic movement called Gaudiya Matha. Under his inspiration, Bhaktihridoy Bon and Bhaktipradip Tirtha journeyed to England for missionary work, meeting with only limited success. Over the next two decades to follow, until his departure in 1936, Bhaktisiddhanta propagated his reformist movement across India and vocally expressed his dissatisfaction over the current state of the tradition, and purportedly offered sharp critique of both the householder gurus in the vamsha-traditions and the babaji-renunciates. This spirit, accompanied with some theological revisions, led the majority of the tradition to distance itself from the new movement.

As printing presses grew more popular and became more readily available, the old literature of the tradition, earlier available only as hand-written manuscripts, was widely published in a printed form. Perhaps the greatest among publishers was Haridas Dasji of Haribol Kutir, who spent the entirety of his life searching, editing and translating old manuscripts for publication. Other stalwart publishers were Puri Das, known from his days in Gaudiya Matha as Ananta Vasudeva, and Krishna Das Babaji of Kusuma Sarovara.


THE MODERN DAY

The tradition settled on the Western soil for good with the efforts of A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami, who reached the United States in 1965. The people of the love-and-flowers decade, filled with curious subcultures and a search for spirituality, were open for the Swami's message, and the movement spread rapidly across the continents. Bhaktivedanta's movement, ISKCON International Society for Krishna Consciousness otherwise known as the Hare Krishna movement, has translated and published his literature in dozens of languages over the decades.

Inspired by the success, some other followers of Bhaktisiddhanta Saraswati have also established their respective movements in the Western hemisphere. Others have, learning of the Gaudiya tradition and often after meeting representatives of the aforementioned movements, traveled to the sacred places of India, such as Vraja in northern India and Navadwipa in Bengal, in search of the roots of the tradition. The classical alignments of the Gaudiya Vaishnava tradition are yet to see organized activity on a larger scale in the West quite possibly owing to the trend of priorizing individual spiritual growth over dedicated missionary work.

In its motherland, the diverse branches of the classical tradition are largely going on the way they have been for the past century. With the increased availability of communication facilities, knowledge of these original flag-bearers of the heritage is gradually becoming available for the global audience as well.

IntroductionTo Gaudiya Vaisnavism: Basic Premises

The presentation given in the Teachings section of krishna.com rests upon these premises.



An absolute reality exists.



For any reasonable discussion to take place, those involved must agree on certain things that cannot be proven. Both science and religion rest on unproven assumptions, some agreeable to both, some not. Premise 1 is generally accepted by both. It states, to put it simply, that reality is what it is. Reality is an objective fact, independent of our subjective beliefs. The statement “Everyone has their own reality” is incorrect. There is one reality, and the scientific method is just one way of trying to comprehend that reality.





True success in life comes only by understanding reality and our place within it.



Because we are part of an objective reality that encompasses everything, for us to wonder where we fit in is natural. Our human nature drives us to pursue happiness and success, but how can we achieve these things without understanding reality? Not seeing the whole picture, we may be inviting harm to ourselves and others. The mere fact that happiness seems so elusive inspires mankind’s perennial search for the meaning of life.





Science gives a limited picture of reality; abundant evidence suggests that part of reality exists beyond the reach of our senses and scientific instruments.



Generally speaking, the scientific quest as we know it today seeks to explain all of reality in terms of fundamental elements and forces and the laws that govern them. According to science, reality is simply matter and energy. Despite this belief, however, scientists have yet to explain convincingly the most important part of reality: consciousness, or the subjective experience of conscious awareness.Science hypothesizes that the brain generates consciousness, but the brain is simply a complex machine, executing huge numbers of operations at every moment. Even if a computer could be programmed to mimic human behavior, there is no reason to believe that it will ever be conscious.Besides consciousness, another aspect of reality that seems to elude scientific investigation and explanation is the realm of the paranormal. Credible experiments by scientists at places like Princeton University have shown that people can do things with their minds that contradict the laws of physics. (For example, with their thoughts, test subjects have been able to influence the output of a computer that generates random numbers.) And many people claim to have had out-of-body experiences, witnessed apparitions, accurately foretold the future, and experienced a number of other things that science can’t explain—and therefore refuses to accept.The world seems to consist of more than the pushes and pulls of sub-atomic particles. To fill in the picture, we need to go to another source.





The scriptures of the world purport to reveal the spiritual aspect of reality, including God, the source of all existence.



We can’t expect our scientific instruments to detect things beyond matter. We need knowledge that comes from the other side. Billions of people accept revealed scripture as that kind of knowledge. God, who is “on the other side,” tells us who we are, why we’re here, what this world is, how to live here, how to relate to Him, and so on.Our own efforts can take us only so far in understanding reality. Beyond the scientific method, we can pursue an internal mystical search through yoga and meditation, and that will get us closer to the truth. But even that endeavor has its limits. Because the Truth is infinitely greater than we are, we can know Him and all that He has created only when He reveals that knowledge to us.





God can reveal Himself to us and explain reality.



Some people contend that God is so great that He’s unknowable. But here’s another way of looking at it: Because God is great, He can find ways to make Himself known to us. We’ll never know Him in full, of course, but He has revealed an immense amount of information about Himself. All we have to do is take advantage of it.





God primarily reveals Himself through scripture, and the scriptures known as the Vedas contain a vast amount of knowledge about God and reality.



The Vedas are books of wisdom that have guided Indian civilization for millennia. While they deal with practically every field of knowledge, the theological and philosophical portions of the Vedas are extremely deep and comprehensive.Among them, the Srimad-Bhagavatam and Bhagavad-gita provide the most focused explanation of God and reality.A survey of the vast Vedic scriptures can be quite daunting. These books are meant to guide human civilization and therefore deal with numerous fields of knowledge. While much of the information may be irrelevant today (such as the intricate rituals of various sacrifices), the theological parts of the Vedas are as important as ever.The Bhagavad-gita is the most concise compendium of Vedic philosophy. Most important, it not only establishes that God is a transcendental person; it reveals His identity. In our quest for knowledge of things beyond matter, we will find no better starting place than the Bhagavad-gita.Where the Bhagavad-gita leaves off, the Srimad-Bhagavatam (or Bhagavata Purana) begins. Early in the book, the author, who edited and organized the Vedic library, is enjoined by his spiritual master to focus this book on the science of God. His masterful presentation is said to have been written when he reached spiritual maturity.The Srimad-Bhagavatam rejects the temporary goals promoted in other Vedic books. It emphatically delivers the message that the perfection of life rests in constant union with God through acts of love and devotion.





Religion should be understood to mean, not faith, but our intrinsic nature and eternal relationship with God.



While reality is one, so also, rightly understood, is religion. Religion is not what we believe to be true. It is our actual relationship with God. Human life should be used to uncover that religion, which is everyone’s natural heritage.





Discovering that relationship is the goal of life, and it is possible by following time-tested, scientific spiritual principles under the guidance of the Vedas and self-realized souls.



The spiritual realm is not simply theoretical. The Vedas prescribe various processes by which one can get in touch with some aspect of the spiritual nature. The highest aspect of spirit is the personal form of God, an objective reality that one can directly perceive, provided one carefully follows the procedure for getting the result.That procedure is the practice of Bhakti yoga, which must be conducted under the careful guidance of a master of the science of Bhakti. A sincere student receives the blessings of the teacher (guru), and of God Himself, and thereby progresses through higher and higher levels of perception. Attaining ever deeper states of love, the student finally attains pure love for God, which awards one His direct audience.