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This question has been asked to Shrila Prabhupada as early as 1968. Let us see how Shrila Prabhupada answers it: Guest: How many other people are there on this planet who have made as much spiritual progress as you have? Prabhupada: Many. But not many, but there are many also. But there is no statistics in my possession. But... The formula is that what is the use of taking statistics how many there are? Why don't you become one of them? [laughter] Why you are wasting time in that way? These are not very intellectual questions. You just try to become enlightened. What is use of who is enlightened or not? You try to be enlightened. That's all. You are going somewhere, purchasing the plane ticket. Do you ask, "How many tickets you have sold?" Huh? What is the use of? You just purchase your ticket and get on the airplane and go. [laughter] Don't waste your valuable time in that way. If you are serious, just purchase ticket and get on the airplane and pass on. That's all. (Bhagavad-gita 2.40–45 – December 13, 1968, Los Angeles)

The following is an excerpt from Shrila Prabhupada's "Krishna, the Supreme Personality of Godhead", which is a summary study of the Tenth Canto of the Srimad Bhagavatam. King Parikshit was hearing the narrations of the pastimes of Lord Krishna and Lord Balarama from Shukadeva Gosvami. These pastimes are all transcendentally pleasurable to hear, and Maharaja Parikshit addressed Shukadeva Gosvami as follows: "My dear lord, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Krishna, is the bestower of both liberation and love of God simultaneously. Anyone who becomes a devotee of the Lord automatically attains liberation without having to make a separate attempt. Because the Lord is unlimited, His pastimes and activities for creating, maintaining and destroying the whole cosmic manifestation are also unlimited. I therefore wish to hear about other pastimes of His which you may not have described as yet. My dear master, the conditioned souls within this material world are frustrated by searching out the pleasure of happiness derived from sense gratification. Such desires for material enjoyment are always piercing the hearts of conditioned souls. But I am actually experiencing how the transcendental topics of Lord Krishna's pastimes can relieve one from being affected by such material activities of sense gratification. I think that no intelligent person can reject this method of hearing the transcendental pastimes of the Lord again and again; simply by hearing, one can remain always steeped in transcendental pleasure. Thus one will not be attracted by material sense gratification." In this statement, Maharaja Parikshit has used two important words: visanna and visesa-jna. Visanna means "morose." Materialistic people invent many ways and means to become fully satisfied, but actually they remain morose. The point may be raised that sometimes transcendentalists also remain morose. Parikshit Maharaja, however, has used the word visesa-jna. There are two kinds of transcendentalists, namely the impersonalists and the personalists. Visesa-jna refers to the personalists, who are interested in transcendental variegatedness. The devotees become jubilant by hearing the descriptions of the personal activities of the Supreme Lord, whereas the impersonalists, who are actually more attracted by the impersonal feature of the Lord, are only superficially attracted by the Lord's personal activities. As such, in spite of coming in contact with the pastimes of the Lord, the impersonalists do not fully realize the benefit to be derived, and thus they become just as morose as the materialists do in pursuing their fruitive activities. King Parikshit continued: "The ability to talk can be perfected only by describing the transcendental qualities of the Lord. The ability to work with one's hands can be successful only when one engages himself in the service of the Lord with those hands. Similarly, one's mind can be peaceful only when one simply thinks of Krishna in full Krishna consciousness. This does not mean that one has to have very great thinking power: one has to understand simply that Krishna, the Absolute Truth, is all-pervasive by His localized aspect of Paramatma. If one can simply think that Krishna, as Paramatma, is everywhere, even within the atom, then one can perfect the thinking, feeling and willing functions of his mind. The perfect devotee does not see the material world as it appears to material eyes, for he sees everywhere the presence of his worshipable Lord in His Paramatma feature." Maharaja Parikshit continued by saying that the function of the ear can be perfected simply by engagement in hearing the transcendental activities of the Lord, and the function of the head can be fully utilized when the head is engaged in bowing down before the Lord and His representative. That the Lord is represented in everyone's heart is a fact, and therefore the highly advanced devotee offers his respects to every living entity, considering that the body is the temple of the Lord. But it is not possible for all men to come to that stage of life immediately, because that stage is for the first-class devotee. The second-class devotee can consider the Vaishnavas, or the devotees of the Lord, to be representatives of Krishna, and the devotee who is just beginning, the neophyte or third-class devotee, can bow his head before the Deity in the temple and before the spiritual master, who is the direct manifestation of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Therefore, in the neophyte stage, in the intermediate stage or in the fully advanced, perfected stage, one can make the function of the head perfect by bowing down before the Lord or His representative. Similarly, one can perfect the function of the eyes by seeing the Lord and His representative. In this way, everyone can elevate the functions of the different parts of his body to the highest perfectional stage simply by engaging them in the service of the Lord or His representative. If one is able to do nothing more, he can simply bow down before the Lord and His representative and drink the charanamrta, the water which has washed the lotus feet of the Lord or His devotee. On hearing these statements of Maharaja Parikshit's, Shukadeva Gosvami was overwhelmed with devotional ecstasy because of King Parikshit's advanced understanding of the Vaishnava philosophy. Shukadeva Gosvami was already engaged in describing the activities of the Lord, and when asked by Maharaja Parikshit to describe them further, he continued to narrate Shrimad-Bhagavatam with great pleasure. There was a very nice brahmana friend of Lord Krishna. As a perfect brahmana, he was very elevated in transcendental knowledge, and because of his advanced knowledge, he was not at all attached to material enjoyment. Therefore he was very peaceful and had achieved supreme control over his senses. This means that the brahmana was a perfect devotee, because unless one is a perfect devotee he cannot achieve the highest standard of knowledge. It is stated in the Bhagavad-gita that a person who has come to the perfection of knowledge surrenders unto the Supreme Personality of Godhead. In other words, any person who has surrendered his life for the service of the Supreme Personality of Godhead has come to the point of perfect knowledge. The result of perfect knowledge is that one becomes detached from the materialistic way of life. This detachment means complete control of the senses, which are always attracted by material enjoyment. The senses of the devotee become purified, and in that stage the senses are engaged in the service of the Lord. That is the complete field of devotional service. Although the brahmana friend of Lord Krishna was a householder, he was not busy accumulating wealth for very comfortable living; therefore he was satisfied by the income which automatically came to him according to his destiny. This is the sign of perfect knowledge. A man in perfect knowledge knows that one cannot be happier than he is destined to be. In this material world, everyone is destined to suffer a certain amount of distress and enjoy a certain amount of happiness. The amount of happiness and distress is already predestined for every living entity. No one can increase or decrease the happiness of the materialistic way of life. The brahmana, therefore, did not exert himself for more material happiness; instead, he used his time for advancement of Krishna consciousness. Externally he appeared very poor because he had no rich clothes and could not provide rich clothes for his wife. Because their material condition was not very opulent, they were not even eating sufficiently, and thus both he and his wife appeared very thin. The wife was not anxious for her personal comfort, but she felt concerned for her husband, who was such a pious brahmana. She trembled due to her weak health, and although she did not like to dictate to her husband, she spoke as follows. "My dear lord, I know that Lord Krishna, the husband of the goddess of fortune, is your personal friend. You are also a devotee of Lord Krishna, and He is always ready to help His devotee. Even if you think that you are not rendering any devotional service to the Lord, still you are surrendered to Him, and the Lord is the protector of the surrendered soul. Moreover, I know that Lord Krishna is the ideal personality of Vedic culture. He is always in favor of brahminical culture and is very kind to the qualified brahmanas. You are the most fortunate person because you have as your friend the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Lord Krishna is the only shelter for personalities like you because you are fully surrendered unto Him. You are saintly, learned and fully in control of your senses. Under the circumstances, Lord Krishna is your only shelter. Please, therefore, go to Him. I am sure that He will immediately understand your impoverished position. You are a householder; therefore without money you are in distress. But as soon as He understands your position, He will certainly give you sufficient riches so that you can live very comfortably. Lord Krishna is now the king of the Bhoja, Vrsni and Andhaka dynasties, and I have heard that He never leaves His capital city, Dvaraka. He is living there without outside engagements. He is so kind and liberal that He immediately gives everything, even His personal self, to any person who surrenders unto Him. Since He is prepared to give Himself personally to His devotee, there is nothing wonderful in giving some material riches. Of course, He does not give much material wealth to His devotee if the devotee is not very much fixed, but I think that in your case He knows perfectly well how much you are fixed in devotional service. Therefore He will not hesitate to award you some material benefit for the bare necessities of life." In this way, the wife of the brahmana again and again requested, in great humility and submission, that he go to Lord Krishna. The brahmana thought that there was no need to ask any material benefit from Lord Sri Krishna, but he was induced by the repeated requests of his wife. Moreover, he thought, "If I go there I shall be able to see the Lord personally. That will be a great opportunity, even if I don't ask any material benefit from Him." When he had decided to go to Krishna, he asked his wife if she had anything in the home that he could offer to Krishna, because he must take some presentation for his friend. The wife immediately collected four palmfuls of chipped rice from her neighborhood friends and tied it in a small cloth, like a handkerchief, and gave it to her husband to present to Krishna. Without waiting any longer, the brahmana took the presentation and proceeded toward Dvaraka to see his Lord. He was absorbed in the thought of how he would be able to see Lord Krishna. He had no thought within his heart other than Krishna. It was of course very difficult to reach the palaces of the kings of the Yadu dynasty, but brahmanas were allowed to visit. When the brahmana friend of Lord Krishna went there, he, along with other brahmanas, had to pass through three military encampments. In each camp there were very big gates, and he also had to pass through them. After the gates and the camps, there were sixteen thousand big palaces, the residential quarters of the sixteen thousand queens of Lord Krishna. The brahmana entered one palace which was very gorgeously decorated. When he entered this beautiful palace, he felt that he was swimming in the ocean of transcendental pleasure. He felt himself constantly diving and surfacing in that transcendental ocean. At that time, Lord Krishna was sitting on the bedstead of Queen Rukmini. Even from a considerable distance He could see the brahmana coming to His home, and He could recognize him as His friend. Lord Krishna immediately left His seat and came forward to receive His brahmana friend and, upon reaching him, embraced the brahmana with His two arms. Lord Krishna is the reservoir of all transcendental pleasure, yet He Himself felt great pleasure upon embracing the poor brahmana because He was meeting His very dear friend. Lord Krishna had him seated on His own bedstead and personally brought all kinds of fruits and drinks to offer him, as is proper in receiving a worshipable guest. Lord Sri Krishna is the supreme pure, but because He was playing the role of an ordinary human being, He immediately washed the brahmana's feet and, for His own purification, sprinkled the water onto His head. After this the Lord smeared the body of the brahmana with different kinds of scented pulp, such as sandalwood, aguru and saffron. He immediately burned several kinds of scented incense and, as is usual, offered him arati with burning lamps. After thus offering him an adequate welcome and after the brahmana had taken food and drink, Lord Krishna said, "My dear friend, it is a great fortune that you have come here." The brahmana, being very poor, was not dressed nicely; his clothing was torn and dirty, and his body was very lean and thin. He appeared not very clean, and because of his weak body, his bones were distinctly visible. The goddess of fortune Rukminidevi personally began to fan him with the chamara fan, but the other women in the palace were astonished at Lord Krishna's behavior in receiving the brahmana in that way. They were surprised to see how eager Lord Krishna was to welcome this particular brahmana. They wondered how Lord Krishna could personally receive a brahmana who was poor, not very neat or clean, and poorly dressed; but at the same time they could realize that the brahmana was not an ordinary living being. They knew that he must have performed great pious activities; otherwise why was Lord Krishna, the husband of the goddess of fortune, taking care of him so much? They were still more surprised to see that the brahmana was seated on the bedstead of Lord Krishna. They were especially surprised to see that Lord Krishna had embraced him exactly as He embraced His elder brother, Balaramaji, because Lord Krishna used to embrace only Rukmini or Balarama, and no one else. After the brahmana had been received nicely and seated on Lord Krishna's own cushioned bed, he and Krishna took each other's hands and began to talk about their early life, when they had both lived under the protection of the gurukula (a boarding school). Lord Krishna said, "My dear brahmana friend, you are a most intelligent personality, and you know very well the principles of religious life. I believe that after you finished your education at the house of our teacher and after you sufficiently remunerated him, you must have gone back to your home and accepted a suitable wife. I know very well that from the beginning you were not at all attached to the materialistic way of life, nor did you desire to be very opulent materially, and therefore you are in need of money. In this material world, persons who are not attached to material opulence are very rarely found. Such unattached persons haven't the least desire to accumulate wealth and prosperity for sense gratification, but sometimes they are found to collect money just to exhibit the exemplary life of a householder. They show how by proper distribution of wealth one can become an ideal householder and at the same time a great devotee. Such ideal householders are to be considered followers of My footsteps. I hope, My dear brahmana friend, that you remember all those days of our school life when you and I were living together at the boarding school. Actually, whatever knowledge you and I received in life was accumulated in our student life. "If a man is sufficiently educated in student life under the guidance of a proper teacher, his life becomes successful in the future. He can very easily cross over the ocean of nescience, and he is not subject to the influence of the illusory energy. My dear friend, everyone should consider his father to be his first teacher because by the mercy of one's father one gets this body. The father is therefore the natural spiritual master. Our next spiritual master is he who initiates us into transcendental knowledge, and he is to be worshiped as much as I am. The spiritual master may be more than one. The spiritual master who instructs the disciple about spiritual matters is called the siksha-guru, and the spiritual master who initiates the disciple is called the diksha-guru. Both of them are My representatives. There may be many spiritual masters who instruct, but the initiator spiritual master is one. A human being who takes advantage of these spiritual masters and, receiving proper knowledge from them, crosses the ocean of material existence is to be understood as having properly utilized his human form of life. He has practical knowledge that the ultimate interest of life, which is to be gained only in this human form, is to achieve spiritual perfection and thus be transferred back home, back to Godhead. "My dear friend, I am Paramatma, the Supersoul present in everyone's heart, and it is My direct order that human society follow the principles of varna and ashrama. As I have stated in the Bhagavad-gita, human society should be divided into four varnas, according to quality and action. Similarly, everyone should divide his life into four parts. One should utilize the first part of life in becoming a bona fide student, receiving adequate knowledge and keeping oneself in the vow of brahmacharya, so that one may completely devote his life for the service of the spiritual master without indulging in sense gratification. A brahmachari is meant to lead a life of austerities and penance. The householder is meant to live a regulated life of sense gratification, but no one should remain a householder for the third stage of life. In that stage, one has to return to the austerities and penances formerly practiced in brahmachari life and thus relieve himself of the attachment to household life. After being relieved of his attachments to the materialistic way of life, one may accept the order of sannyasa. "As the Supersoul of the living entities, I sit in everyone's heart and observe everyone's activity in every stage and order of life. Regardless of which stage one is in, when I see that one is engaged seriously and sincerely in discharging the duties ordered by the spiritual master and is thus dedicating his life to the service of the spiritual master, that person becomes most dear to Me. As far as the life of brahmacharya is concerned, if one can continue the life of a brahmachari under the direction of a spiritual master, that is extremely good; but if in brahmachari life one feels sex impulses, he should take leave of his spiritual master, satisfying him according to the guru's desire. According to the Vedic system, a gift is offered to the spiritual master, which is called guru-dakshina. Then the disciple should take to householder life and accept a wife according to religious rites." These instructions given by Lord Krishna while talking with His friend the learned brahmana are very good for the guidance of human society. A system of human civilization that does not promote varna and ashrama is nothing but a polished animal society. Indulgence in sex life by a man or woman living single is never acceptable in human society. A man should strictly follow the principles of brahmachari life or, with the permission of the spiritual master, should get married. Single life with illicit sex is animal life, for the animals have no such institution as marriage. Modern society does not aim at fulfilling the mission of human life, which is to go back home, back to Godhead. To fulfill this mission, the system of varna and ashrama must be followed. When the system is followed rigidly and consciously, it fulfills this mission, but when followed indirectly, without the guidance of superior authority, it simply creates a disturbing condition in human society, and there is no peace and prosperity. Krishna continued to talk with His brahmana friend: "My dear friend, I think you remember our activities during the days when we were living as students. You may remember that once we went to collect fuel from the forest on the order of the guru's wife. While collecting the dried wood, we entered the dense forest and by chance became lost. There was an unexpected dust storm and then clouds and lightning in the sky and the explosive sound of thunder. Then sunset came, and we were lost in the dark jungle. After this, there was severe rainfall; the whole ground was overflooded with water, and we could not trace out the way to return to our guru's asrama. You may remember that heavy rainfall -- it was not actually rainfall but a sort of devastation. On account of the dust storm and the heavy rain, we began to feel greatly pained, and in whichever direction we turned we were bewildered. In that distressed condition, we took each other's hand and tried to find our way out. We passed the whole night in that way, and early in the morning, when our absence became known to our gurudeva, he sent his other disciples to search us out. He also came with them, and when they reached us in the jungle they found us very much distressed. "With great compassion our gurudeva said, ‘My dear boys, it is very wonderful that you have suffered so much trouble for me. Everyone likes to take care of his body as the first consideration, but you are so good and faithful to your guru that without caring for bodily comforts you have taken so much trouble for me. I am glad to see that bona fide students like you will undergo any kind of trouble for the satisfaction of the spiritual master. That is the way for a bona fide disciple to become free from his debt to the spiritual master. It is the duty of the disciple to dedicate his life to the service of the spiritual master. My dear best of the twice-born, I am greatly pleased by your acts, and I bless you: May all your desires and ambitions be fulfilled. May the understanding of the Vedas which you have learned from me always continue to remain within your memory, so that at every moment you can remember the teachings of the Vedas and quote their instructions without difficulty. Thus you will never be disappointed in this life or the next.'" Krishna continued: "My dear friend, you may remember that many such incidents occurred while we were in the ashrama of our spiritual master. Both of us can realize that without the blessings of the spiritual master no one can be happy. By the mercy of the spiritual master and by his blessings, one can achieve peace and prosperity and be able to fulfill the mission of human life." On hearing this, the learned brahmana replied, "My dear Krishna, You are the Supreme Lord and the supreme spiritual master of everyone, and since I was fortunate enough to live with You in the house of our guru, I think I have nothing more to do in the matter of prescribed Vedic duties. My dear Lord, the Vedic hymns, ritualistic ceremonies, religious activities and all other necessities for the perfection of human life, including economic development, sense gratification and liberation, are all derived from one source: Your supreme personality. All the different processes of life are ultimately meant for understanding Your personality. In other words, they are the different parts of Your transcendental form. And yet You played the role of a student and lived with us in the house of the guru. This means that You adopted all these pastimes for Your pleasure only; otherwise there was no need for Your playing the role of a human being." Lord Krishna, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, the Supersoul of all living entities, knows everyone's heart very well. He is especially inclined to the brahmana devotees. Lord Krishna is also called brahmanya-deva, which means that He is worshiped by the brahmanas. Therefore it is understood that a devotee who is fully surrendered unto the Supreme Personality of Godhead has already acquired the position of a brahmana. Without becoming a brahmana, one cannot approach the Supreme Brahman, Lord Krishna. Krishna is especially concerned with vanquishing the distress of His devotees, and He is the only shelter of pure devotees. Lord Krishna engaged for a long time in talking with Sudama Vipra about their past association. Then, just to enjoy the company of an old friend, Lord Krishna began to smile and asked, "My dear friend, what have you brought for Me? Has your wife given you some nice eatable for Me?" While addressing His friend, Lord Krishna looked upon him and smiled with great love. He continued: "My dear friend, you must have brought some presentation for Me from your home." Lord Krishna knew that Sudama was hesitating to present Him with the paltry chipped rice, which was actually unfit for His eating. Understanding the mind of Sudama Vipra, the Lord said, "My dear friend, I am certainly not in need of anything, but if My devotee gives Me something as an offering of love, even though it may be very insignificant, I accept it with great pleasure. On the other hand, if a person is not a devotee, even though he may offer Me very valuable things, I do not like to accept them. I actually accept only things offered to Me in devotion and love; otherwise, however valuable a thing may be, I do not accept it. If My pure devotee offers Me even the most insignificant things -- a little flower, a little piece of leaf, a little water -- but saturates the offering in devotional love, then not only do I gladly accept such an offering, but I eat it with great pleasure." Lord Krsna assured Sudama Vipra that He would be very glad to accept the chipped rice he had brought from home, yet out of great shyness Sudama Vipra hesitated to present it to the Lord. He was thinking, "How can I offer such an insignificant thing to Krishna?" and he simply bowed his head. Lord Krihsna, the Supersoul, knows everything in everyone's heart. He knows everyone's determination and everyone's want. He knew, therefore, the reason for Sudama Vipra's coming to Him. He knew that, driven by extreme poverty, he had come there at the request of his wife. Thinking of Sudama as His very dear class friend, He knew that Sudama's love for Him as a friend was never tainted by any desire for material benefit. Krishna thought, "Sudama has not come asking anything from Me; being obliged by the request of his wife, he has come to see Me just to please her." Lord Krishna therefore decided that He would give more material opulence to Sudama Vipra than could be imagined even by the king of heaven. He then snatched the bundle of chipped rice which was hanging on the shoulder of the poor brahmana, packed in one corner of his wrapper, and said, "What is this? My dear friend, you have brought Me nice, palatable chipped rice!" He encouraged Sudama Vipra, saying, "I consider that this quantity of chipped rice will satisfy not only Me but the whole creation." It is understood from this statement that Krishna, being the original source of everything, is the root of the entire creation. As watering the root of a tree immediately distributes water to every part of the tree, so an offering made to Krishna, or any action done for Krishna, is to be considered the highest welfare work for everyone, because the benefit of such an offering is distributed throughout the creation. Love for Krishna is distributed to all living entities. While Lord Krishna was speaking to Sudama Vipra, He ate one morsel of chipped rice from his bundle, and when He attempted to eat a second morsel, Rukminidevi, the goddess of fortune herself, checked the Lord by catching hold of His hand. After touching the hand of Krishna, Rukmini said, "My dear Lord, this one morsel of chipped rice is sufficient to cause him who offered it to become very opulent in this life and to continue his opulence in the next life. My Lord, You are so kind to Your devotee that even this one morsel of chipped rice pleases You very greatly, and Your pleasure assures the devotee opulence in both this life and the next." This indicates that when food is offered to Lord Krishna with love and devotion and He is pleased and accepts it from the devotee, Rukminidevi, the goddess of fortune, becomes so greatly obliged to the devotee that she has to go personally to the devotee's home to turn it into the most opulent home in the world. If one feeds Narayana sumptuously, the goddess of fortune, Laksmi, automatically becomes a guest in one's house, which means that one's home becomes opulent. The learned brahmana Sudama passed that night at the house of Lord Krishna, and while there he felt as if he were living on a Vaikuntha planet. Actually he was living in Vaikuntha, because wherever Lord Krishna, the original Narayana, and Rukminidevi, the goddess of fortune, live is not different from the spiritual planets, Vaikunthaloka. The learned brahmana Sudama did not appear to have received anything substantial from Lord Krishna while at His palace, yet he did not ask anything from the Lord. The next morning he started for his home, thinking always about his reception by Krishna, and thus he merged in transcendental bliss. All the way home he simply remembered the dealings of Lord Krishna, and he felt very happy to have seen the Lord. The brahmana thought, "It is most pleasurable to see Lord Krishna, who is most devoted to the brahmanas. How great a lover He is of the brahminical culture! He is the Supreme Brahman Himself, yet He reciprocates with the brahmanas. He also respects the brahmanas so much that He embraced to His chest such a poor brahmana as me, although He never embraces anyone to His chest except the goddess of fortune. How can there be any comparison between me, a poor, sinful brahmana, and the Supreme Lord Krishna, who is the only shelter of the goddess of fortune? And yet, considering me a brahmana, with heartfelt pleasure He embraced me in His two transcendental arms. Lord Krishna was so kind to me that He allowed me to sit on the same bedstead where the goddess of fortune lies down. He considered me His real brother. How can I appreciate my obligation to Him? When I was tired, Shrimati Rukminidevi, the goddess of fortune, began to fan me, holding the camara whisk in her own hand. She never considered her exalted position as the first queen of Lord Krishna. I was rendered service by the Supreme Personality of Godhead because of His high regard for the brahmanas, and by massaging my legs and feeding me with His own hand, He practically worshiped me! Aspiring for elevation to the heavenly planets, liberation, all kinds of material opulence, or perfection in the powers of mystic yoga, everyone throughout the universe worships the lotus feet of Lord Krishna. Yet the Lord was so kind to me that He did not give me even a farthing, knowing very well that I am a poverty-stricken man who, if I got some money, might become puffed up and mad after material opulence and so forget Him." The statement of the brahmana Sudama is correct. An ordinary man who is very poor and prays to the Lord for benediction in material opulence, and who somehow or other becomes richer in material opulence, immediately forgets his obligation to the Lord. Therefore, the Lord does not offer opulences to His devotee unless the devotee is thoroughly tested. Rather, if a neophyte devotee serves the Lord very sincerely and at the same time wants material opulence, the Lord keeps him from obtaining it. Thinking in this way, the learned brahmana gradually reached his own home. But there he saw that everything was wonderfully changed. He saw that in place of his cottage there were big palaces made of valuable stones and jewels, glittering like the sun, moon and rays of fire. Not only were there big palaces, but at intervals there were beautifully decorated parks, in which many beautiful men and women were strolling. In those parks there were nice lakes full of lotus flowers and beautiful lilies, and there were flocks of multicolored birds. Seeing the wonderful conversion of his native place, the brahmana began to think to himself, "How am I seeing all these changes? Does this place belong to me or to someone else? If it is the same place where I used to live, then how has it so wonderfully changed?" While the learned brahmana was considering this, a group of beautiful men and women with features resembling those of the demigods, accompanied by musical chanters, approached to welcome him. All were singing auspicious songs. The wife of the brahmana was very glad on hearing the tidings of her husband's arrival, and with great haste she came out of the palace. The brahmana's wife appeared so beautiful that it seemed as if the goddess of fortune herself had come to receive him. As soon as she saw her husband present before her, tears of joy fell from her eyes, and her voice became so choked up that she could not even address her husband. She simply closed her eyes in ecstasy. But with great love and affection she bowed down before her husband, and within herself she thought of embracing him. She was fully decorated with a gold necklace and ornaments, and while standing among the maidservants she appeared like a demigod's wife just alighting from an airplane. The brahmana was surprised to see his wife so beautiful, and in great affection and without saying a word he entered the palace with her. When the brahmana entered his personal apartment in the palace, he saw that it was not an apartment but the residence of the king of heaven. The palace was surrounded by many columns of jewels. The couches and the bedsteads were made of ivory and bedecked with gold and jewels, and the bedding was as white as the foam of milk and as soft as a lotus. There were many whisks hanging from golden rods, and many golden thrones with sitting cushions as soft as lotus flowers. In various places there were velvet and silken canopies with laces of pearls hanging all around. The structure of the building stood on excellent transparent marble, with engravings made of emerald stones. All the women in the palace carried lamps made of valuable jewels. The flames and the jewels combined to produce a wonderfully brilliant light. When the brahmana saw his position suddenly changed to one of opulence, and when he could not determine the cause for such a sudden change, he began to consider very gravely how it had happened. He thus began to think, "From the beginning of my life I have been extremely poverty-stricken, so what could be the cause of such great and sudden opulence? I do not find any cause other than the all-merciful glance of my friend Lord Krishna, the chief of the Yadu dynasty. Certainly these are gifts of Lord Krishna's causeless mercy. The Lord is self-sufficient, the husband of the goddess of fortune, and thus He is always full with six opulences. He can understand the mind of His devotee, and He sumptuously fulfills the devotee's desires. All these are acts of my friend Lord Krishna. My beautiful dark friend Krishna is far more liberal than the cloud, which can fill the great ocean with water. Without disturbing the cultivator with rain during the day, the cloud brings liberal rain at night just to satisfy him. And yet when the cultivator wakes up in the morning, he thinks that it has not rained enough. Similarly, the Lord fulfills the desire of everyone according to his position, yet one who is not in Krishna consciousness considers all the gifts of the Lord to be less than his desire. On the other hand, when the Lord receives a little thing in love and affection from His devotee, He considers it a great and valuable gift. I am a vivid example of this: I simply offered Him a morsel of chipped rice, and in exchange He has given me opulences greater than those of the king of heaven." What the devotee actually offers the Lord is not needed by the Lord, for He is self-sufficient. If the devotee offers something to the Lord, it acts for his own interest because whatever a devotee offers the Lord comes back in a quantity a million times greater than what was offered. One does not become a loser by giving to the Lord; one becomes a gainer by millions of times. The brahmana, feeling great obligation to Krishna, thought, "I pray to have the friendship of Lord Krishna and to engage in His service, and to surrender fully unto Him in love and affection, life after life. I do not want any opulence. I only desire not to forget His service. I simply wish to be associated with His pure devotees. May my mind and activities be always engaged in His service. The unborn Supreme Personality of Godhead, Krishna, knows that many great personalities have fallen from their positions because of extravagant opulence. Therefore, even when His devotee asks for some opulence from Him, the Lord sometimes does not give it. He is very cautious about His devotees. Because a devotee in an immature position of devotional service may, if offered great opulence, fall from his position due to being in the material world, the Lord does not offer opulence to him. This is another manifestation of the causeless mercy of the Lord upon His devotee. His first interest is that the devotee not fall. He is exactly like a well-wishing father who does not give much wealth into the hand of his immature son, but who, when the son is grown up and knows how to spend money, gives him the whole treasury house." The learned brahmana thus concluded that whatever opulences he had received from the Lord should be used not for his extravagant sense gratification but for the service of the Lord. The brahmana accepted his newly acquired opulence, but he did so in a spirit of renunciation, remaining unattached to sense gratification, and thus he lived very peacefully with his wife, enjoying all the facilities of opulence as the prasadam of the Lord. He enjoyed varieties of food by offering it to the Lord and then taking it as prasadam. Similarly, if by the grace of the Lord we get such opulences as material wealth, fame, power, education and beauty, it is our duty to consider that they are all gifts of the Lord and must be used for His service, not for our sense enjoyment. The learned brahmana remained in that position, and thus his love and affection for Lord Krishna increased day after day; it did not deteriorate due to great opulence. Material opulence can be the cause of degradation and also the cause of elevation, according to the purposes for which it is used. If opulence is used for sense gratification it is the cause of degradation, and if used for the service of the Lord it is the cause of elevation. It is evident from Lord Krishna's dealings with Sudama Vipra that the Supreme Personality of Godhead is very, very much pleased with a person who possesses brahminical qualities. A qualified brahmana like Sudama Vipra is naturally a devotee of Lord Krishna. Therefore it is said, brahmano vaishnavah: a brahmana is a Vaishnava. Or sometimes it is said, brahmanah panditah. Pandita means a highly learned person. A brahmana cannot be foolish or uneducated. Therefore there are two divisions of brahmanas, namely Vaishnavas and panditas. Those who are simply learned are panditas but not yet devotees of the Lord, or Vaishnavas. Lord Krishna is not especially pleased with them. Simply the qualification of being a learned brahmana is not sufficient to attract the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Not only must a brahmana be well qualified according to the requirements stated in scriptures such as Shrimad Bhagavad-gita and Shrimad-Bhagavatam, but at the same time he must be a devotee of Lord Krishna. The vivid example is Sudama Vipra. He was a qualified brahmana, unattached to all sorts of material sense enjoyment, and at the same time he was a great devotee of Lord Krishna. Lord Krishna, the enjoyer of all sacrifices and penances, is very fond of a brahmana like Sudama Vipra, and we have seen by the actual behavior of Lord Krishna how much He adores such a brahmana. Therefore, the ideal stage of human perfection is to become a brahmana-vaishnava like Sudama Vipra. Sudama Vipra realized that although Lord Krishna is unconquerable, He nevertheless agrees to be conquered by His devotees. He realized how kind Lord Krishna was to him, and he was always in trance, constantly thinking of Krishna. By such constant association with Lord Krishna, whatever darkness of material contamination remained within his heart was completely cleared away, and very shortly he was transferred to the spiritual kingdom, which is the goal of all saintly persons in the perfectional stage of life. Shukadeva Gosvami has stated that all persons who hear this history of Sudama Vipra and Lord Krishna will know how affectionate Lord Krishna is to brahmana devotees like Sudama. Therefore anyone who hears this history gradually becomes as qualified as Sudama Vipra, and he is thus transferred to the spiritual kingdom of Lord Krishna.

This is a very nice description of the transcendental nature of Krishna prasadam taken from the translations and purports of the Sri Chaitanya Charitamrta Antya Lila 16th Chapter. Enjoy! VERSES 81-97 One day, when Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu went to visit the temple of Lord Jagannatha, the gatekeeper at Simha-dvara approached Him and offered respectful obeisances. The Lord asked him, "Where is Krishna, My life and soul? Please show Me Krishna." Saying this, He caught the doorkeeper's hand. The doorkeeper replied, "The son of Maharaja Nanda is here; please come along with me, and I shall show You." Lord Chaitanya said to the doorman, "You are My friend. Please show Me where the Lord of My heart is." After the Lord said this, they both went to the place known as Jagamohana, where everyone views Lord Jagannatha. "Just see!" the doorkeeper said. "Here is the best of the Personalities of Godhead. From here You may see the Lord to the full satisfaction of Your eyes." Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu stayed behind the huge column called the Garuda-stambha and looked upon Lord Jagannatha, but as He looked He saw that Lord Jagannatha had become Lord Krishna, with His flute to His mouth. In his book known as Gauranga-stava-kalpavrksa, Raghunatha dasa Gosvami has described this incident very nicely. " 'My dear friend the doorkeeper, where is Krishna, the Lord of My heart? Kindly show Him to Me quickly.' With these words, Lord Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu addressed the doorkeeper like a madman. The doorkeeper grasped His hand and replied very hastily,'Come, see Your beloved!' May that Lord Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu rise within my heart and thus make me mad also." The offering of food known as gopala-vallabha-bhoga was then given to Lord Jagannatha, and arati was performed with the sound of the conch and the ringing of bells. When the arati finished, the prasada was taken out, and the servants of Lord Jagannatha came to offer some to Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu. The servants of Lord Jagannatha first garlanded Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu and then offered Him Lord Jagannatha's prasada. The prasada was so nice that its aroma alone, to say nothing of its taste, would drive the mind mad. The prasada was made of very valuable ingredients. Therefore the servant wanted to feed Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu a portion of it. Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu tasted a portion of the prasada. Govinda took the rest and bound it in the end of his wrapper. To Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu the prasada tasted millions upon millions of times better than nectar, and thus He was fully satisfied. The hair all over His body stood on end, and incessant tears flowed from His eyes. Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu considered, "Where has such a taste in this prasada come from? Certainly it is due to its having been touched by the nectar of Krishna's lips." Understanding this, Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu felt an emotion of ecstatic love for Krishna, but upon seeing the servants of Lord Jagannatha, He restrained Himself. The Lord said again and again, "Only by great fortune may one come by a particle of the remnants of food offered to the Lord." The servants of the Jagannatha temple inquired, "What is the meaning of this?" PURPORT BY SHRILA PRABHUPADA The remnants of Krishna's food are mixed with His saliva. In the Mahabharata and the Skanda Purana it is stated: maha-prasade govinde nama-brahmani vaisnave svalpa-punyavatam rajan visvaso naiva jayate "Persons who are not very highly elevated in pious activities cannot believe in the remnants of food [prasada] of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, nor in Govinda, the holy name of the Lord, nor in the Vaishnavas." VERSES 98-109 Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu replied, "These are remnants of food that Krishna has eaten and thus turned to nectar with His lips. It surpasses heavenly nectar, and even such demigods as Lord Brahma find it difficult to obtain."Remnants left by Krishna are called phela. Anyone who obtains even a small portion must be considered very fortunate. "One who is only ordinarily fortunate cannot obtain such mercy. Only persons who have the full mercy of Krishna can receive such remnants. "The word 'sukrti' refers to pious activities performed by the mercy of Krishna. One who is fortunate enough to obtain such mercy receives the remnants of the Lord's food and thus becomes glorious." After saying this, Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu bade farewell to all the servants. After seeing the next offering of food to Lord Jagannatha, a function known as upala-bhoga, He returned to His own quarters. After finishing His noon duties, Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu ate His lunch, but He constantly remembered the remnants of Krsna's food. Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu performed His external activities, but His mind was filled with ecstatic love. With great difficulty He tried to restrain His mind, but it would always be overwhelmed by very deep ecstasy.After finishing His evening duties, Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu sat down with His personal associates in a secluded place and discussed the pastimes of Krishna in great jubilation. Following the indications of Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, Govinda brought the prasada of Lord Jagannatha. The Lord sent some to Paramananda Puri and Brahmananda Bharati. Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu then gave shares of the prasada to Ramananda Raya, Sarvabhauma Bhattacarya, Svarupa Damodara Gosvami and all the other devotees. As they tasted the uncommon sweetness and fragrance of the prasada, everyone's mind was struck with wonder. Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu said, "These ingredients, such as sugar, camphor, black pepper, cardamom, cloves, butter, spices and licorice, are all material. Everyone has tasted these material substances before." PURPORT BY SRILA PRABHUPADA The word prakrta refers to things tasted for the sense gratification of the conditioned soul. Such things are limited by the material laws. Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu wanted to make the point that material things have already been experienced by materially absorbed persons who are interested only in sense gratification. VERSES 110-112 "However," the Lord continued, "in these ingredients there are extraordinary tastes and uncommon fragrances. Just taste them and see the difference in the experience. "Apart from the taste, even the fragrance pleases the mind and makes one forget any other sweetness besides its own."Therefore, it is to be understood that the spiritual nectar of Krishna's lips has touched these ordinary ingredients and transferred to them all their spiritual qualities. PURPORT BY SHRILA PRABHUPADA Since everyone had previously tasted these ingredients, why had they become extraordinary and spiritually tasteful? This was proof that food, prasada, becomes uncommonly flavorful and tasteful by touching Krishna's lips. VERSES 113-116 "An uncommon, greatly enchanting fragrance and taste that makes one forget all other experiences are attributes of Krishna's lips. "This prasada has been made available only as a result of many pious activities. Now taste it with great faith and devotion." Loudly chanting the holy name of Hari, all of them tasted the prasada. As they tasted it, their minds became mad in the ecstasy of love.

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The Bhagavad-gita is the timeless classic of Vedic literature. Spoken more than 5000 years ago by Lord Krishna, who is the Supreme Personality of Godhead, it offers interesting philosophical concepts. In the 16th chapter Lord Krishna is describing the nature of a demoniac materialistic living entity. We may relate the following verses to the threat of nuclear war ever present in our day and age. asatyam apratistham te jagad ahur anisvaram aparaspara-sambhutam kim anyat kama-haitukam etam drstim avastabhya nastatmano 'lpa-buddhayah prabhavanty ugra-karmanah ksayaya jagato 'hitah TRANSLATION " They say that this world is unreal, that there is no foundation and that there is no God in control. 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 ." PURPORT BY HIS DIVINE GRACE A.C.BHAKTIVEDANTA SWAMI PRABHUPADA The demoniac are engaged in activities that will lead the world to destruction. The Lord states here that they are less intelligent. The materialists, who have no concept of God, think that they are advancing. But, according to Bhagavad-gita, they are unintelligent and devoid of all sense. They try to enjoy this material world to the utmost limit and therefore always engage in inventing something for sense gratification. Such materialistic inventions are considered to be advancement of human civilization, but the result is that people grow more and more violent and more and more cruel, cruel to animals and cruel to other human beings. They have no idea how to behave toward one another. Animal killing is very prominent amongst demoniac people. Such people are considered the enemies of the world because ultimately they will invent or create something which will bring destruction to all. Indirectly, this verse anticipates the invention of nuclear weapons, of which the whole world is today very proud. At any moment war may take place, and these atomic weapons may create havoc. Such things are created solely for the destruction of the world, and this is indicated here. Due to godlessness, such weapons are invented in human society; they are not meant for the peace and prosperity of the world. (Bg 16.8-10) TO STUDY MORE NECTAR FROM LORD KRISHNA’S FAMOUS BOOK PLEASE DOWNLOAD THE BHAGAVAD-GITA AS IT IS FROM OUR E-BOOKS SECTION .

An episode of the BLISS PODCAST: Chatting with the Hare Krishnas discusses the American president candidate Tulsi Gabbard and her devotion to Lord Krishna. (16/12/2019)

A desire for illicit sex is like a disease. It complicates our existence and puts us into miseries and suffering just like any other disease. Any sensible person must be interested in curing a disease he is infected with. In order to cure the disease of illicit sex, we should know its origin. Knowing its origin can help us to deal with the diease effectively and thoroughly without unnecessarily depending on temporary " fixes" and superficial treatments. Our material disease, or bhava-rhoga is the misuse of our minute independence and a desire to enjoy in this world without Krishna. Shrila Prabhupada writes: As stated in Bhagavad-gita (7.27): iccha-dvesa-samutthena dvandva-mohena bharata sarva-bhutani sammoham sarge yanti parantapa "O scion of Bharata [Arjuna], O conqueror of the foe, all living entities are born into delusion, overcome by the dualities of desire and hate." This is an explanation of how the living entity falls down into this material world. In the spiritual world there is no duality, nor is there hate. The Supreme Personality of Godhead expands Himself into many. In order to enjoy bliss more and more, the Supreme Lord expands Himself in different categories. As mentioned in the Varaha Purana, He expands Himself in visnu-tattva (the svamsa expansion) and in His marginal potency (the vibhinnamsa, or the living entity). These expanded living entities are innumerable, just as the minute molecules of sunshine are innumerable expansions of the sun. The vibhinnamsa expansions, the marginal potencies of the Lord, are the living entities. When the living entities desire to enjoy themselves, they develop a consciousness of duality and come to hate the service of the Lord. In this way the living entities fall into the material world. In the Prema-vivarta it is said: krsna-bahirmukha hana bhoga-vancha kare nikata-stha maya tare japatiya dhare The natural position of the living entity is to serve the Lord in a transcendental loving attitude. When the living entity wants to become Krishna Himself or imitate Krishna, he falls down into the material world. Since Krishna is the supreme father, His affection for the living entity is eternal. When the living entity falls down into the material world, the Supreme Lord, through His svamsa expansion (Paramatma), keeps company with the living entity. In this way the living entity may some day return home, back to Godhead. By misusing his independence, the living entity falls down from the service of the Lord and takes a position in this material world as an enjoyer. That is to say, the living entity takes his position within a material body. Wanting to take a very exalted position, the living entity instead becomes entangled in a repetition of birth and death. (SB 4.28.53) This idea of trying to imitate Krishna and a desire to become Him is our original problem. The more the jiva desires to become the Lord, the more he becomes entangled in the material existence. And similarly, the more we try to come back to our original position as the Lord's servants, the more independence we gain. This principle is very nicely expressed by Krishna in the Bhagavad-gita: The bewildered spirit soul, under the influence of the three modes of material nature, thinks himself to be the doer of activities, which are in actuality carried out by nature. (Bg 3.27) Shrila Prabhupada explains: The material atmosphere, in which we are now living, is called maya, or illusion. Maya means that which is not. And what is this illusion? The illusion is that we are all trying to be lords of material nature, while actually we are under the grip of her stringent laws. When a servant artificially tries to imitate the all-powerful master, it is called illusion. We are trying to exploit the resources of material nature, but actually we are becoming more and more entangled in her complexities. Therefore, although we are engaged in a hard struggle to conquer nature, we are ever more dependent on her. This illusory struggle against material nature can be stopped at once by revival of our eternal Krishna consciousness. (TYS 6: The Hare Krishna Mantra) Krishna consciousness is not an artificial imposition. It is our original consciousess, but in the state of maya, it appears to be foreign to the conditioned soul. In the Chaitanya Charitamrta it is said: "Pure love for Krishna is eternally established in the hearts of the living entities. It is not something to be gained from another source. When the heart is purified by hearing and chanting, this love naturally awakens." Madhya 22.108 Shrila Prabhupada explains: Practice means employing our senses in some particular type of work. Therefore devotional service in practice means utilizing our different sensory organs in service to Krishna. Some of the senses are meant for acquiring knowledge, and some are meant for executing the conclusions of our thinking, feeling and willing. So practice means employing both the mind and the senses in practical devotional service. This practice is not for developing something artificial. For example, a child learns or practices to walk. This walking is not unnatural. The walking capacity is there originally in the child, and simply by a little practice he walks very nicely. Similarly, devotional service to the Supreme Lord is the natural instinct of every living entity. Even uncivilized men like the aborigines offer their respectful obeisances to something wonderful exhibited by nature's law, and they appreciate that behind some wonderful exhibition or action there is something supreme. So this consciousness, though lying dormant in those who are materially contaminated, is found in every living entity. And, when purified, this is called Krishna consciousness. There are certain prescribed methods for employing our senses and mind in such a way that our dormant consciousness for loving Krishna will be invoked, as much as the child, with a little practice, can begin to walk. One who has no basic walking capacity cannot walk by practice. Similarly, Krishna consciousness cannot be aroused simply by practice. Actually there is no such practice. When we wish to develop our innate capacity for devotional service, there are certain processes which, by our accepting and executing them, will cause that dormant capacity to be invoked. Such practice is called sadhana-bhakti. (NoD 2: The First Stages of Devotion) A jiva at one point decides to overtake the position of Krishna in the spiritual world and thus he becomes degraded and entangled in his material desires which force him to transmigrate from one material body to another. However, this very desire to lord it over material nature is in its original pure form the very desire to love Krishna. It simply acts pervertedly. The analogy is given by Shrila Prabhupada that just like a rain water becomes polluted by earth when landing on the ground, similarly in contact with material nature our original consciousness of Krishna becomes polluted by material desires. However, just as a dirty rain water can be distilled by a certain process to its original pure form, our material lust can be purified by the process of sadhana bhakti to its original state, namely love of Godhead. Shrila Prabhupada explains: When a living entity comes in contact with the material creation, his eternal love for Krishna is transformed into lust, in association with the mode of passion. Or, in other words, the sense of love of God becomes transformed into lust, as milk in contact with sour tamarind is transformed into yogurt. Then again, when lust is unsatisfied, it turns into wrath; wrath is transformed into illusion, and illusion continues the material existence. Therefore, lust is the greatest enemy of the living entity, and it is lust only which induces the pure living entity to remain entangled in the material world. Wrath is the manifestation of the mode of ignorance; these modes exhibit themselves as wrath and other corollaries. If, therefore, the modes of passion, instead of being degraded into the modes of ignorance, are elevated to the modes of goodness by the prescribed method of living and acting, then one can be saved from the degradation of wrath by spiritual attachment. The Supreme Personality of Godhead expanded Himself into many for His ever-increasing spiritual bliss, and the living entities are parts and parcels of this spiritual bliss. They also have partial independence, but by misuse of their independence, when the service attitude is transformed into the propensity for sense enjoyment, they come under the sway of lust. This material creation is created by the Lord to give a facility to the conditioned souls to fulfill these lustful propensities, and when they are completely baffled by prolonged lustful activities, the living entities begin to inquire about their real position. This inquiry is the beginning of the Vedanta-sutras, wherein it is said, athato brahma-jijnasa: one should inquire into the Supreme. And the Supreme is defined in Shrimad-Bhagavatam as janmadyasya yato 'nvayad itaratas ca, or, "The origin of everything is the Supreme Brahman." Therefore, the origin of lust is also in the Supreme. If, therefore, lust is transformed into love for the Supreme, or transformed into Krishna consciousness-or, in other words, desiring everything for Krishna -- then both lust and wrath can be spiritualized. Hanuman, the great servitor of Lord Rama, engaged his wrath upon his enemies for the satisfaction of the Lord. Therefore, lust and wrath, when they are employed in Krishna consciousness, become our friends instead of our enemies. (Bg 3.38, 1972) So this is very significant. This very desire for illicit gratification is actually our original pure desire for Krishna. They are not two separate things. We should keep this in mind. Of course, the impersonalists who simply want to deny any form of desire completely due to their bad experience in the material world become at this point bewildered. Lust and wrath can become our friends? How could this be?? Unable to use these in Krishna’s service, they continuously fall down and artificially renounce and again fall down and renounce. Because their mind is not fixed on Krishna’s service, they are forced by their consitutional position to seek pleasure in material gratification. In the Bhagavad-gita Lord Krishna explains how such fall downs work: While contemplating the objects of the senses, a person develops attachment for them, and from such attachment lust develops, and from lust anger arises. While contemplating the objects of the senses, a person develops attachment for them, and from such attachment lust develops, and from lust anger arises. Bg 2.62-63 Srila Prabhupada comments: One who is not Krishna conscious is subjected to material desires while contemplating the objects of senses. The senses require real engagements, and if they are not engaged in the transcendental loving service of the Lord, they will certainly seek engagement in the service of materialism. In the material world everyone, including Lord Shiva and Lord Brahma -- to say nothing of other demigods in the heavenly planets -- is subjected to the influence of sense objects, and the only method to get out of this puzzle of material existence is to become Krishna conscious. Lord Shiva was deep in meditation, but when Parvati agitated him for sense pleasure, he agreed to the proposal, and as a result Kartikeya was born. When Haridasa Thakur was a young devotee of the Lord, he was similarly allured by the incarnation of Maya Devi, but Haridasa easily passed the test because of his unalloyed devotion to Lord Krishna. As illustrated in the above-mentioned verse of Sri Yamunacarya, a sincere devotee of the Lord shuns all material sense enjoyment due to his higher taste for spiritual enjoyment in the association of the Lord. That is the secret of success. One who is not, therefore, in Krishna consciousness, however powerful he may be in controlling the senses by artificial repression, is sure ultimately to fail, for the slightest thought of sense pleasure will agitate him to gratify his desires. By development of Krishna consciousness one can know that everything has its use in the service of the Lord. Those who are without knowledge of Krishna consciousness artificially try to avoid material objects, and as a result, although they desire liberation from material bondage, they do not attain to the perfect stage of renunciation. On the other hand, a person in Krishna consciousness knows how to use everything in the service of the Lord; therefore he does not become a victim of material consciousness. For example, for an impersonalist, the Lord, or the Absolute, being impersonal, cannot eat. Whereas an impersonalist tries to avoid good eatables, a devotee knows that Krishn is the supreme enjoyer and that He eats all that is offered to Him in devotion. So, after offering good eatables to the Lord, the devotee takes the remnants, called prasadam. Thus everything becomes spiritualized and there is no danger of a downfall. The devotee takes prasadam in Krishna consciousness, whereas the nondevotee rejects it as material. The impersonalist, therefore, cannot enjoy life due to his artificial renunciation; and for this reason, a slight agitation of the mind pulls him down again into the pool of material existence. It is said that such a soul, even though rising up to the point of liberation, falls down again due to his not having support in devotional service. (Bg 2.63-64 purport) So we must use this desire to lord it over material nature and dovetail it in the service of Krishna. It is just like they say the vaccine works. By taking a miniscule amount of a virus under superior guidance of a physician and injecting the body with it, the body develops the immunity to fight the same virus. This is very nicely explained in the Shrimad Bhagavatam in connection with Narada Muni explaining to Shrila Vyasadeva the importance of propagating the transcendental pastimes of the Lord: O good soul, does not a thing applied therapeutically cure a disease which was caused by that very same thing? (SB 1.5.34) Srila Prabhupada comments: An expert physician treats his patient with a therapeutic diet. For example, milk preparations sometimes cause disorder of the bowels, but the very same milk converted into yogurt and mixed with some other remedial ingredients cures such disorders. Similarly, the threefold miseries of material existence cannot be mitigated simply by material activities. Such activities have to be spiritualized, just as by fire iron is made red-hot, and thereby the action of fire begins. Similarly, the material conception of a thing is at once changed as soon as it is put into the service of the Lord. That is the secret of spiritual success. We should not try to lord it over the material nature, nor should we reject material things. The best way to make the best use of a bad bargain is to use everything in relation with the supreme spiritual being. Everything is an emanation from the Supreme Spirit, and by His inconceivable power He can convert spirit into matter and matter into spirit. Therefore a material thing (so-called) is at once turned into a spiritual force by the great will of the Lord. The necessary condition for such a change is to employ so-called matter in the service of the spirit. That is the way to treat our material disease and elevate ourselves to the spiritual plane, where there is no misery, no lamentation and no fear. When everything is thus employed in the service of the Lord, we can experience that there is nothing except the Supreme Brahman. The Vedic mantra that "everything is Brahman" is thus realized by us. (SB 1.5.34 purport) Now, this material disease of lording it over the material nature exhibits itself in two forms as a) gross sex desire (desire to gratify the senses grossly) and b) subtle desire (a desire for name, fame, profit and distinction) Both can be purified if we simpyl engage in the devotional service under the guidance of a pure devotee. It is important to note that in order to come out of the material disease completely it is necessary to purify both gross and subtle sex desire. One may be able to control his gross senses for some time, but unless the purification is complete and the subtle sex manifesting in a desire to have worship, profit or distinction is also purified he may again relapse into gross sense gratification. So, the acharyas have given the remedial measure to purify our gross and subtle sex desire by the process of pancaratrika viddhi (temple worship) and bhagavat vidhi (hearing and chanting under the guidance of a Bhagavata, a pure devotee) . One process supports the other and combinedly they help us to come to the state of pure devotional service. Although the bhagavad-vidhi does not depend on the pancaratrika system, such exclusive worship is meant only for very elevated devotees and it is not meant for neophytes. Although initiation may depend on purascarya or purascarana (activities before initiation), the actual chanting of the holy name does not depend on purascarya-vidhi, or the regulative principles. If one chants the holy name once without committing an offense, he attains all success. Generally brahmanas are puffed up with false prestige because they belong to the aristocracy and perform many Vedic sacrifices. In South India especially, this fastidious position is most prominent and this was the case five hundred years ago also. Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu actually started a revolution against this brahminical system by inaugurating the chanting of the Hare Krsna mantra. By this chanting, one can be delivered regardless of caste, creed, color or social position. Whoever chants the Hare Krsna maha-mantra is immediately purified due to the transcendental position of devotional service. One might ask, if by chanting the holy name of the Lord, one can reach the platform of love of Godhead, then what is the necessity of being initiated? The answer is that even though the chanting of the holy name is sufficient to enable one to progress in spiritual life to the standard of love of Godhead, one is nonetheless susceptible to contamination because of possessing a material body. Consequently, special stress is given to the arcana-vidhi. Srila Jiva Gosvami says that although sankirtana is sufficient for the perfection of life, the arcana, or worship of the Deity in the temple, must continue in order that the devotees may stay clean and pure. Even at the present moment people are attracted more if there is a temple. If one simply chants, very few people will come. Therefore both are recommended: chanting and at the same time temple worship. People’s minds are so materialistic that they cannot give proper respect to or understand the importance of chanting the holy name. Generally, they are attracted by the karma-kandiya vicara (fruitive activities). If the preachers of the Krsna consciousness movement do not arrange for a gorgeous system, people will not be attracted. Therefore sometimes, in order to attract people to chant, gorgeous temple is required. Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura says that simply by chanting the holy name of Krsna once, a person becomes perfect. Such a person is understood to be a Vaisnava. With such faith and belief, one may begin a life of Krsna consciousness, but an ordinary person cannot chant the holy name of Krsna with such faith. This is confirmed by Srila Rupa Gosvami in his Upadesamrta: krsneti yasya giri tam manasadriyeta. One should accept the holy name of Krsna to be identical with the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Transcendence Himself. The holy name of Krsna is also identical with Krsna and is also cintamani. The name Krsna is the personification of sound perfectly transcendental and eternally liberated from material contamination. One should understand that the name Krsna and Krsna are identical. Having such faith, one must continue to chant the holy name. When one is situated on the neophyte platform, one cannot understand the devotional ingredients of a pure, unalloyed devotee. However, when the novice engages in devotional service-especially in Deity worship-and follows the order of a bona fide spiritual master, he becomes a pure devotee. Anyone can take advantage of hearing about Krsna consciousness from a pure devotee and thus gradually become purified. In other words, the chanting of the Hare Krsna maha-mantra is so powerful that it does not depend on official initiation, but if one is initiated and engages in pancaratra-vidhi (Deity worship), his Krsna consciousness will awaken very soon, and his identification with the material world will be vanquished. Sometimes neophyte devotees think that they can continue the sravana-kirtana process without worshiping the Deity, but the execution of sravana-kirtana is meant for highly developed devotees like Haridasa Thakura, who engaged in the sravana-kirtana process without worshiping the Deity. However, one should not falsely imitate Haridasa Thakura and abandon Deity worship just to try to engage in sravana-kirtana. This is not possible for neophyte devotees.The path of Srimad-Bhagavatam is for the paramahamsas, and the path of Pancaratra is for the neophytes. The temple worship is necessary for the beginners so that by following the regulative principles such devotees become more and more purified and thus gradually come to the platform of understanding Srimad-Bhagavatam. One's gross body should be engaged in the service of the Lord through the path of archan or worshipping the Lord in the temple, whereas the subtle mind should be engaged in the matter of hearing the transcendental pastimes of the Lord, thinking about them and chanting His name. All such activities are transcendental. None of the gross or subtle senses should be engaged otherwise. Most of our difficulties in devotional service comes from either neglecting bhagavad-viddhi, when we put too much emphasis on temple construction, formalities and expansion of the mission in terms of naumber of devotees, the opulence of the temples etc and neglect the hearing and instruction of a pure devotee, or by neglecting the pancaratrika viddhi, when devotees simply engage in mental speculation, politics, or exclusive discussion on highly elevated topics about the nature of transcendence without following the basic rules and regulations. Both are the manifestation of being deviated from the order of the spiritual master. It is very important therefore to take shelter of a pure devotee and follow his instructions strictly in terms of both bhagavad-viddhi and pancaratrika viddhi. We should hear from a pure devotee, but at the same time we should engage practically in the execution of his preaching mission by setting up places of worship where neophyte devotees can be invited and engaged in the bhagavad-viddhi process. It is not sufficient to simply hear without following the orders to please the spiritual master. By pleasing the spiritual master, Krsna is pleased yasyad prasada bhagavat prasada, yasya aprasada na gatih kutopi. By displeasing the spiritual master, Krsna is displeased. When Krsna is displeased, we cannot derive any pleasure from our service and our attachment to service dwindles. Thus, the original disease relapses again and we fall down. It is therefore crucial for us to engage in favorable devotional service under the order of the acharya. The more we please the spiritual master and the more we engage in such purely intentioned service for the pleasure of the Lord, the more we will be able to conquer over material desires. And a slight deviation from the order of the guru will create havoc and plunges us back into material tabernacle. So this faithful execution of devotional service under the guidance of the guru can never overemphasized. So practically speaking, we should always try to create preaching centers and temples and center all our activities for this purpose. To say that we do not need temples and we should simply distribute books and the pure devotee will preach to the people of the world for us is simply laziness and it is in roundabout way negligence of the guru's order. As mentioned above, the general mass requires a place of worship to be inspired to chant and hear, so it is the duty of the acharya to establish temples where the general mass of people can be taught practical devotional service and engage their gross senses by sweeping the temple floor, cutting vegetables, collecting funds, training new devotees, etc. Srila Prabhupada says one must be always busy with activities otherwise the senses will be engaged otherwise. The Bhagavad-gita says: "As a boat on the water is swept away by a strong wind, even one of the senses on which the mind focuses can carry away a man's intelligence." (Bg 2.68) Srila Prabhupada comments: Unless all of the senses are engaged in the service of the Lord, even one of them engaged in sense gratification can deviate the devotee from the path of transcendental advancement. As mentioned in the life of Maharaja Ambarisa, all of the senses must be engaged in Krsna consciousness, for that is the correct technique for controlling the mind. (Bg 2.68 purport) At the same time, the whole purpose of the temple is to make people qualified to accept Srila Prabhupada as their spiritual master and hear from him. So side by side, we must make sure that we hear regularly from Srila Prabhupada and understand the siddhanta so we can protect the devotees from deviant philosophies or deviant conclusions that might completely destroy the purpose of our establishing such centers. Organizing preaching centers, collecting donations for such purpose and engaging the general mass of people in temple worship will purify our gross senses and engaging in the glorification of the Lord and His devotee will result in purifying our desire for worship, distinction and profit. This powerful process will assure we will never fall down into material contamination again.

The following is a class on Shrimad Bhagavatam 1.8.7 by His Grace Purujit Dasa.

Today we commemorated the disappearance day of His Divine Grace Shrila Gaurakisora dasa Babaji, the spiritual master of Shrila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura Maharaja, who is the guru of our Shrila Prabhupada. "In order to avoid contradiction, botheration and unfavorable situations created by materialistic persons, a great saintly person like Jada Bharata or Utkala remains silent. The less intelligent consider such saintly persons to be mad, deaf or dumb. Factually, an advanced devotee avoids speaking with persons who are not in devotional life, but to those who are in devotional life he speaks in friendship, and he speaks to the innocent for their enlightenment. For all practical purposes, the whole world is full of nondevotees, and so one kind of very advanced devotee is called bhajananandi." (SB 4.13.10) "There are two kinds of devotees. One is called gosthanandi and the other bhajananandi. The word bhajananandi refers to the devotee who does not move, but remains in one place. Such a devotee is always engaged in the devotional service of the Lord. He chants the maha-mantra as taught by many acaryas and sometimes goes out for preaching work." (SB 4.30.37) Yamuna: What is adhut? What is the (indistinct) adhu? Prabhupada: Dut? Avadhuta. Paramahamsa. Paramahamsa stage, the highest stage of perfection... They are not under any rules and regulations, paramahamsa. Yamuna: How does such a person engage? Prabhupada: That's a long history. You'll find in the Bhagavad-gita, sthita-prajnasya. Sthita-prajna. So there are many symptoms. On the whole, avadhuta or paramahamsa is not subjected to any rules and regulations. They are so elevated. That is not to be imitated. That is a post, position, very exalted, perfectional stage, spiritual advancement. So if you want to know the symptoms, that is in the Bhagavad-gita. There is a list. But one thing you can simply know, a paramahamsa is a stage who is above all rules and regulations. That's all. Hamsaduta: (indistinct) disturbed. Prabhupada: Another nonsense. That's all. Revatinandana: So if he continues to follow these rules and regulations... Prabhupada: He doesn't follow. He doesn't follow. I can... I understand from his behavior. Revatinandana: But generally they do follow in the sense that they generally... Prabhupada: No, no. Paramahamsa... Revatinandana: For setting example for others? Prabhupada: Yes. Paramahamsa, they do not come in the society because people may imitate and they fall down. Therefore they are aloof. Just like Gaura Kishora dasa Babaji Maharaja. He was aloof, bhajananandi. But one who will act as preacher or spiritual master, even if he is paramahamsa, he should live ordinary so that his disciples may follow. He comes to second stage. Paramahamsa is the first stage, and preacher is in the second stage, and neophytes are in the third stage. So the neophyte should try to come to second stage. Ishvare tad-adhinesu balisesu dvisatsu. They have got discrimination: Ishvara, Bhagavan, the Supreme Personality of Godhead; tad-adhina, the devotees; balisa, innocent; and dvisat, those who are atheists, envious of... As soon as they hear that here is something going on, talking about God, they become immediately envious. We have increased the number of this kind of men. There is someone interested in God. They simply challenge. They are called dvisat. So a preacher should avoid them. But the paramahamsa, he does not avoid. So there are so many things. So we haven't got to imitate the activities of... A paramahamsa is a position, exalted position. They are very rare to be visible because they do not care to come in the society. So, and if you want to know about the paramahamsa, the sthita-prajna description in the Bhagavad-gita, I think, in the Twelfth Chapter, you can know it. (Shrimad-Bhagavatam 6.1.34-39 -- Surat, December 19, 1970) 13-14: One who is not envious, but is a kindly friend to all creatures, who does not think himself a proprietor; who is free from false ego, and equal both in happiness and distress, always satisfied, and engaged in devotional service with determination, and who is compact in mind and intelligence with Me-he is very dear to Me. 15: He for whom no one is put into difficulty, and who is not disturbed by anxiety, steady in happiness and distress-he is very dear to Me. 16: A devotee who is not dependent on the ordinary course of activities, who is pure, expert, without cares, free from all pains and not striving for some result-he is very dear to Me. 17: One who does not grasp either pleasure or grief, who neither laments nor desires, and renounces both auspicious and inauspicious things-he is very dear to Me. 18-19: One who is equal to friends and enemies, in honor and dishonor, in heat and cold, happiness and distress, and who is always free from contamination; who is equal both to infamy and repute, always silent, and satisfied with anything; who doesn't care for any residence, fixed in knowledge and engaged in devotional service-he is very dear to Me. (Bhagavad-Gita 12.13-20) "There are gosthy-anandi and bhajananandi. Bhajananandi is interested for his own welfare, or they think it that he is not competent enough to preach; therefore he does not go for preaching work. Sva-vimukti-kama: "Let me look after my own affairs." "Oil your own machine." (Shrimad-Bhagavatam 7.9.44 -- Delhi, March 26, 1976) "Who says you are a bhajananandi. Don't be a bhajananadi. As soon as you become a bhajananandi you'll be spoiled. You'll be spoiled as Nitai has spoiled himself. You have an intense desire to preach, so do that. So far as your engagement is concerned, you are already engaged as pujari, so do that and whenever you get time preach Bhagavad-gita." (Letter to: Purnaprajna — Hyderabad 11 December, 1976) "It is stated in the Hari-bhakti-vilasa that one should not accept initiation from a person who is not in the brahminical order if there is a fit person in the brahminical order present. This instruction is meant for those who are overly dependent on the mundane social order and is suitable for those who want to remain in mundane life. If one understands the truth of Krishna consciousness and seriously desires to attain transcendental knowledge for the perfection of life, he can accept a spiritual master from any social status, provided the spiritual master is fully conversant with the science of Krishna. Shrila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura also states that although one is situated as a brahmana, ksatriya, vaishya, shudra, brahmachari, vanaprastha, grihastha or sannyasi, if he is conversant in the science of Krishna he can become a spiritual master as vartma-pradarsaka-guru, diksha-guru or shiksha-guru. The spiritual master who first gives information about spiritual life is called the vartma-pradarsaka-guru, the spiritual master who initiates according to the regulations of the shashtras is called the diksha-guru, and the spiritual master who gives instructions for elevation is called the shikhsa-guru. Factually the qualifications of a spiritual master depend on his knowledge of the science of Krsna. It does not matter whether he is a brahmana, ksatriya, sannyasi or shudra. This injunction given by Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu is not at all against the injunctions of the sastras. In the Padma Purana it is said: na sudrah bhagavad-bhaktas te 'pi bhagavatottamah sarva-varnesu te sudra ye na bhakta janardane One who is actually advanced in spiritual knowledge of Krishna is never a shudra, even though he may have been born in a shudra family. However, even if a vipra, or brahmana, is very expert in the six brahminical activities (pathana, pathana, yajana, yajana, dana, pratigraha) and is also well versed in the Vedic hymns, he cannot become a spiritual master unless he is a Vaisnava. But if one is born in the family of chandalas yet is well versed in Krishna consciousness, he can become a guru. These are the sastric injunctions, and strictly following these injunctions, Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, as a grihastha named Shri Vishvambhara, was initiated by a sannyasi-guru named Ishvara Puri. Similarly, Shri Nityananda Prabhu was initiated by Madhavendra Puri, a sannyasi. According to others, however, He was initiated by Laksmipati Tirtha. Advaita Acharya, although a grihastha, was initiated by Madhavendra Puri, and Sri Rasikananda, although born in a brahmana family, was initiated by Shri Shyamananda Prabhu, who was not born in a caste brahmana family. There are many instances in which a born brahmana took initiation from a person who was not born in a brahmana family. The brahminical symptoms are explained in Shrimad-Bhagavatam (7.11.35), wherein it is stated: yasya yal-laksanam proktam pumso varnabhivyanjakam yad anyatrapi drsyeta tat tenaiva vinirdiset If a person is born in a shudra family but has all the qualities of a spiritual master, he should be accepted not only as a brahmana but as a qualified spiritual master also. This is also the instruction of Shri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu. Shrila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura therefore introduced the sacred thread ceremony for all Vaishnavas according to the rules and regulations. Sometimes a Vaishnava who is a bhajananandi does not take the savitra-samskara (sacred thread initiation), but this does not mean that this system should be used for preaching work. There are two kinds of Vaishhnavas-bhajananandi and gosthy-anandi. A bhajananandi is not interested in preaching work, but a gosthy-anandi is interested in spreading Krishna consciousness to benefit the people and increase the number of Vaishnavas. A Vaishnava is understood to be above the position of a brahmana. As a preacher, he should be recognized as a brahmana; otherwise there may be a misunderstanding of his position as a Vaishnava. However, a Vaishnava brahmana is not selected on the basis of his birth but according to his qualities. Unfortunately, those who are unintelligent do not know the difference between a brahmana and a Vaishnava. They are under the impression that unless one is a brahmana he cannot be a spiritual master. For this reason only, Shri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu makes the statement in this verse: kiba vipra, kiba nyasi, sudra kene naya yei krsna-tattva-vetta, sei 'guru' haya If one becomes a guru, he is automatically a brahmana. Sometimes a caste guru says that ye krsna-tattva-vetta, sei guru haya means that one who is not a brahmana may become a shiksha-guru or a vartma-pradarsaka-guru but not an initiator guru. According to such caste gurus, birth and family ties are considered foremost. However, the hereditary consideration is not acceptable to Vaishnavas. The word guru is equally applicable to the vartma-pradarsaka-guru, shiksha-guru and diksha-guru. Unless we accept the principle enunciated by Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, this Krishna consciousness movement cannot spread all over the world. According to Shri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu's intentions: prthivite ache yata nagaradi-grama sarvatra pracara haibe mora nama. Shri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu's cult must be preached all over the world. This does not mean that people should take to His teachings and remain shudras or chandalas. As soon as one is trained as a pure Vaishnava, he must be accepted as a bona fide brahmana. This is the essence of Shri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu's instructions in this verse." (Shri Chaitanya Caritamrta Madhya-lila 8.128) "So far as your second question, Thakura Bhaktivinode was not official Spiritual Master of Gaura Kishora dasa Babaji Maharaja. Gaura Kishora dasa Babaji Maharaja was already renounced order, Paramahamsa, but Thakura Bhaktivinode, while He was even playing the part of a householder, was treated by Gaura Kishora dasa Babaji Maharaja as Preceptor, on account of His highly elevated spiritual understanding, and thus He was always treating Him as His Spiritual Master. The Spiritual Master is divided into two parts; namely, shiksha guru and diksha guru. So officially Bhaktivinode Thakura was like shiksha guru of Gaura Kishora das Babaji Maharaja." (Letter to: Dayananda — Allston, Mass 1 May, 1969) "Devotional service does not depend on material assessment. It is said in Shrimad-Bhagavatam, "ahaituki apratihata''. Devotional service must be without any material ambition and there is no material impediment which can check advancement in devotional service. Srila Gaura Kishora das Babaji was unable to sign his name, and yet he became the spiritual master of Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Gosvami Maharaja, the most erudite learned scholar of His time. We should begin our devotional service in whichever position we are. It isn't that we have to learn something extra for advancing in devotional service." (Letter to: Jitadusana — Vrindaban 20 November, 1976) "So everything is going on. Either Christian, Mohammedan or Hindu, so-called. All of them have become rascal. That's all. This is Kali-yuga. Mandah sumanda-matayah. They have created their own imaginary religious principle, and therefore they are condemned. They do not know. Adanta-gobhir visatam tamisram punah punas carvita-carvananam [SB 7.5.30]. The life, the aim of life is to realize God. This is human life. But they are so much embarrassed with this uncontrollable senses that they are going to the darkest region of material existence. Adanta-gobhih. Adanta means uncontrolled. They cannot control the senses. They have become so unfortunate that simple thing, little effort, little austerity, to control the senses. The yoga process means to control the senses. Yoga does not mean that you show some magic. The magic, magician also can show magic. We have seen one magician, he created immediately so much coins—tung tung tung tung. Next moment it is all finished. So the life, they're missing the aim of life. Mandah sumanda-matayah. Why? Manda-bhagyah. They are unfortunate. So you take it for granted. We are trying, even our Krishna consciousness mission, we are trying to awaken. Still they are so unfortunate they cannot give up sense gratification. So unfortunate. Condemned, unfortunate. Repeatedly we are spending our gallons of blood—"Don't do this"—still they are doing. Cannot give up even sleeping. So condemned. Kali-yuga. Mandah sumanda-matayah. So it is very difficult with these rascals. Very, very difficult. Therefore my Guru Maharaja's Guru Maharaja, Gaura Kishora dasa Babaji Maharaja, they were not preaching. They were disgusted that "I have no power to reform these rascals. Better don't bother. Let them go to hell. At least... Let them." (Bhagavad-gita 2.17 -- London, August 23, 1973) "And you will be surprised that my Guru Maharaja's spiritual master was Gaura Kishora dasa Babaji Maharaja. He was completely illiterate. He did not know how to sign, and my spiritual master was the most learned man of his age. He accepted that guru who was completely illiterate. But when he would speak, that Gaura Kishora dasa Babaji Maharaja, he would speak with all Vedic references. And you will find in the Veda that: yasya deve para bhaktir yatha deve tatha gurau tasyaite kathita hy arthah prakasante mahatmanah [SU 6.23] So the spiritual knowledge becomes revealed. It is not subjected to any material acquisition. It is not subjected to any material acquisition of knowledge. It becomes revealed. How? Yasya deve para bhaktir yatha deve tatha gurau. One who has a staunch faith in the Supreme Lord and staunch faith in the personality of his spiritual master, bona fide, then he gets all the things revealed in himself. Spiritual things are not just like material things." (Bhagavad-gita 4.24-34 -- New York, August 12, 1966) "So nirbandhah krsna-sambandhe. For Krsna's... Therefore you'll find in India, there are many very big, big, costly temples, not personal house. You'll never find all over India. You go and see. They have spent lots of money for temple. That was the Oriental civilization. Even the Muhammadans, they would construct very costly mosque, but they would live in huts. That was the intention. One... When... Whenever one is a little bit rich, he'll find out how to spend it for Krishna, not for his sense gratification. Just like this Madana-mohana temple was constructed by a big merchant. He approached Sanatana Gosvami: "Sir, what can I do for you? I want to serve you." So Sanatana Gosvami said, "My Madana-mohana... I am living underneath the tree, and my Madana-mohana is hanging. So if you can, you can construct a temple for Madana-mohana." Similarly, Maharaja Mansingh approached Rupa Gosvami. They never constructed big, big temple for their own living purpose, but Krishna's purpose. That is the way. For Krishna, we must have everything very gorgeous and first class, but not for me. That is akinchana. Personally we should not possess anything, simply for Krishna. So that attitude should be maintained because here it is said, tvam akincana-gocaram [SB 1.8.26]. And Chaitanya Mahaprabhu also, he said that niskincanasya. Here it is called akinchana. And the same thing in different way, niskinchana. Akinchana."A" means negation, and "na" means negation. Niskinchana. So Chaitanya Mahaprabhu said that niskinchanasya bhagavad-bhajanonmukhasya. Bhagavad-bhajana, to advance in spiritual life, to be engaged in Krishna's devotional service, that is the aim of life. That is the purpose of human form of life. So for him, he should always remain niskinchana. Niskinchanasya bhagavad-bhajanonmukhasya. So therefore Gaura-kishora dasa Babaji, he remained niskincana. And his disciple, Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati, he also remained niskincana although he possessed so many temples, because nothing was for his personal..., but for Krishna. So one may question that "Your Guru Maharaja was sitting on the ground in a municipal lavatory..." Because he did not like that "Anybody should disturb me," he was sitting by the side of municipal lavatory. Because so many people will come for darsana and asirvada, he did not like it. He did not like to be disturbed by these asirvada. You see? They will not take any spiritual instruction. They are thinking that "Here is a saintly person, and he'll bless me. So I have got now one thousand. I'll take ten thousand." That's all. Therefore they come. They do not come to take any spiritual instruction. Therefore it is botheration. It is botheration. So Gaura-kishora dasa Babaji Maharaja did not like this botheration. He was sitting by the side of a municipal lavatory so that "These rascal will not come out of the bad smell and will not disturb me." You see? So Maharaja Mahindranandi, he was one of the... He had organized one sankirtana festival. So he came to Gaura-kishora dasa Babaji Maharaja and to invite him. So after many requests, Gaura-kishora dasa Babaji Maharaja said, "Maharaja, you have got many tenants. You are Maharaja. Why you are trying to make me your tenant? Because you are rich man, you also want... As your tenants carries your order, so you also want me. So why you are...?" "No, sir, no. You are my lord. Whatever you say, I shall carry out." "Will you carry out?" "Why not?" So he said that "Don't go home. Sit down here. Chant Hare Krsna." He fled away. (laughter) You see. So he was very humorous also, Gaura-kisora dasa Babaji, that "If you are so obedient, then I ask you, 'Don't go home. Better give up your dress and chant Hare Krsna here.' " (Srimad-Bhagavatam 1.8.26 -- Mayapura, October 6, 1974) "So Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu was a great scholar. There is no doubt of it. But in spite of His becoming a great scholar, He is presenting Himself as a great fool. He says, "My Guru Maharaja saw Me a great..." Even one is very great scholar, he has to abide by the decision of his spiritual master. Even one is very great scholar, and if his spiritual master says that "You are a great fool," he should accept it. This is called full surrender. For example, I'll give you a practical... My Guru Maharaja was very great scholar, and his Guru Maharaja, from literary point of view, he could not even sign his name, Gaura-kishora dasa Babaji Maharaja. And Bhaktivinoda Thakura asked Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura to accept Gaura-kishora dasa Babaji Maharaja as his, as his spiritual master, that "You go and take your initiation from Gaura-kishora dasa Babaji Maharaja." So he thought that "I am a great scholar, and I am son of a magistrate, Bhaktivinoda Thakura, and great Vaishnava. He'll be very much pleased to accept me." Of course, he was very much pleased. But in the beginning he refused. He refused. Because... Of course, that is only show. He was not proud. Just to teach us. Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati explained that "I was little proud. So I was thrice refused by Guru Maharaja," although he was the only disciple. So the scholarship is not a qualification of becoming devotee. That is Chaitanya Mahaprabhu's teaching. Scholarship may help, but it is not necessary. Real necessary is that one should be humble and meek and follow the instruction of the spiritual master. This is real qualification. trnad api sunicena taror api sahisnuna amanina manadena kirtaniyah sada harih [Cc. Adi 17.31] Because bhakti does not depend on any material qualification. Bhakti is different subject matter. Aprakrta. Adhoksaja. Sa vai pumsam paro dharmo yato bhaktir adhoksaje [SB 1.2.6]." (Sri Caitanya-caritamrta, Adi-lila 7.91-2 -- Vrndavana, March 13, 1974) "There are four Sampradayas from the beginning of the creation. One is called Brahma Sampradaya, and is coming down by disciplic succession from Brahma; another Sampradaya is coming down from Laksmi, called Shri Sampradaya; another is coming down from the Kumaras, they are known as Nimbarka Sampradaya; another Sampradaya is coming from Lord Shiva, Rudra Sampradaya or Vishnu Swami. These are four bona fide Sampradayas that are accepted by the bona fide spiritualists. The Impersonalist Sampradaya is not original neither the Impersonalist Sampradaya or party can help us. At the present moment there are so many Sampradayas, but we have to test them about their method of disciplic understanding. Anyway, all the four Sampradayas above mentioned, they are after worshiping the Supreme Lord Vishnu, in His different Expansions, and some of them are in favor of worshiping Radha Krishna. In the later age the Brahma Sampradaya was handed down though Madhva Acarya; in this Madhva Acharya disciplic succession came Ishvara Puri. This Ishvara Puri was accepted as Spiritual Master of Lord Chaitanya. Therefore, we being in disciplic succession of Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, we are known as the Madhva Sampradaya. And because Lord Chaitanya appeared in Bengal, which country is called Gaudadeshha, our Sampradaya party is known as Madhva Gaudiya Sampradaya. But all these Sampradayas are non-different from one another because they believe and worship the Supreme Lord. Any other Sampradaya who are Impersonalist or voidist or nondevotee, they are rejected by us. My Guru Maharaja was in the 10th generation from Lord Caitanya. We are 11th from Lord Caitanya. The disciplic succession is as follows: 1. Sri Krishna, 2. Brahma, 3. Narada, 4. Vyasa, 5. Madhva, 6. Padmanabha, 7. Nrihari, 8. Madhava, 9. Akshobhya, 10. Jayatirtha, 11. Jnanasindhu, 12. Purusottama, 13. Vidyanidhi, 14. Rajendra, 15. Jayadharma, 16. Purusottama, 17. Vyasatirtha, 18. Laksmipati, 19. Madhavendra Puri, 20. Isvara Puri (Advaita, Nityananda) 21. Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, 22. (Svarupa, Sanatana) Rupa, 23.(Jiva) Raghunath, 24. Krishna dasa, 25. Narottama, 26. Visvanatha, 27. (Baladeva.) Jagannatha, 28. (Bhaktivinode) Gaura-kishora, 29. Shrila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati, Sri Barshabhanavidayitadas, 30. Sri Shrimad Bhaktivedanta." (Letter to: Upendra — Los Angeles 13 February, 1968) "Many learned and educated persons came into contact with Shrila Gaura-kishora Prabhu, yet they could not realize his true identity. This is indeed the mystic opulence of the devotees of Lord Krishna. Only they can recognize true devotion. Many people came to consult with Srila Gaura-kishora Prabhu about their insignificant, worldly desires. He would always try to help them, but his suggestions were usually the cause of their disappointment, for he was relentless in his attempt to get them to go further, to transcend their attached and compromised level of existence. Many, too, accepted the Babaji dress and acted as devotees of the Lord, but actually they were imposters, far away from being real sadhus. Shrila Gaura-kishora never accepted such a false way of life; his sincerity was apparent in itself. His loving attitude was such that even when he obtained a very opulent offering, his renunciation predominated. He preferred a simple life in connection with God. Shrila Gaura-kishora was equal to all. He never displayed any distaste for those persons who were inimical to him, nor did he manifest any special affection for those very dear to him. He often said, “In this material world I am all alone in my service to Lord Krishna. Still, I offer all respects to others—everyone is worshipable by me.” (Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura)

From Bhakti: The Art of Eternal Love: Shrila Prabhupada defines devotional service. What is it and how can one attain it? The authorized descriptions of bhakti, or devotional service, following in the footsteps of previous ācāryas, can be summarized in the following statement by Śrīla Rūpa Gosvāmī: “First-class devotional service is known by one’s tendency to be fully engaged in Krishna consciousness, serving the Lord favorably.” The purport is that one may also be in Krishna consciousness unfavorably, but that cannot be counted as pure devotional service. Pure devotional service should be free from the desire for any material benefit or for sense gratification, as these desires are cultivated through fruitive activities and philosophical speculation. Generally, people are engaged in different activities to get some material profit, while most philosophers are engaged in proposing transcendental realization through volumes of word jugglery and speculation. Pure devotional service must always be free from such fruitive activities and philosophical speculations. One has to learn Krishna consciousness, or pure devotional service, from the authorities by spontaneous loving service. In the Nectar of Instruction, Rūpa Gosvāmī gives six unique features of pure devotional service: 1. Pure devotional service brings immediate relief from all kinds of material distress. 2. Pure devotional service is the beginning of all auspiciousness. 3. Pure devotional service automatically puts one in transcendental pleasure. 4. Pure devotional service is rarely achieved. 5. Those in pure devotional service deride even the conception of liberation. 6. Pure devotional service is the only means to attract Krishna. Krishna is all-attractive, but pure devotional service attracts even Him. This means that pure devotional service is even transcendentally stronger than Krishna Himself, because it is Krishna's internal potency. So, let us all strive to become pure devotees! Jaya Srila Prabhupada!

Bellow is a description of when the famous freedom fighter, Sri Subhas Chandra Bose, who is often forgotten as the actual liberator of India from British rule (replaced by Gandhi), met His Divine Grace Shri Shrimad Bhaktisiddhanta Saraswati Takura, who is never forgotten as a liberator of the whole world from the rule of material nature. (Credit to Bhaktin Reena for digging this one up) Sri Subhas Chandra Bose, the famous freedom fighter of India, came to Sri Gaudiya Matha along with many distinguished personalities to meet Shrila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Takura. During their meeting, Sri Subhas Chandra Bose told Shrila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Takura, “Having taken a vow to free our motherland from foreign rule, I have declared a slogan throughout the country: ‘Give me your blood and I promise you freedom.’ I have recently come to know that many young men have taken your shelter. Please entrust some of these men to me, so that they may fight for the freedom of this country.” In reply, Srilla Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura asked him, “Have you read Shrimad Bhagavad-gita?” Sri Subhas Chandra Bose replied, “Yes, I have.” Srilla Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura further inquired, “Do you remember this verse: yam yam vapi smaran bhavam tyajaty ante kalevaram tam tam evaiti kaunteya sada tad-bhava-bhavitah Srimad Bhagavad-gita (8.6) O son of Kunti, without fail, a person attains the state of being he remembers at the time he gives up the body. “Yes, certainly.” “Then you must definitely believe in reincarnation.” “Of course I do,” Sri Subhas Chandra Bose answered. “Which Hindu in this world does not believe in reincarnation?” Shrila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Takura then asked him, “If incidentally you happen to die today and are born in England in your next life, will you continue to fight for India’s freedom, or will you fight to maintain dominance over India?” Sri Subhas Chandra Bose replied, “I understand your point, but we must certainly think about the freedom of our motherland.” To this, Shrila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Takura said, “You are concerned merely for the temporary, worldly freedom and liberation of a few persons who at the moment happen to possess the material designation of being Indian. I, however, am concerned about the liberation of not only the whole human race, but of every living entity in this world from the bondage of this material world.” Shri Subhas Chandra Bose replied, “I have never heard anything like this before. Before meeting you, nobody had ever described to me such meaningful explanations of the teachings of the Gita. But I fear I have come a bit too far in my struggle for freedom to look back.” Saying this, Shri Subhas Chandra Bose left the matha without making any further requests for Shrila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Takura to provide him with men to fight for India’s independence.

Yamuna Devi dasi was an exemplary, early disciple of Shrila Prabhupada. She was an expert cook and renowned among the devotees for the art. Here she is fondly retelling a memory of how Shrila Prabhupada educated her in the subtilties of devotional cooking, cooking for Krishna, with great care and leniency. Yamuna: The first time that I assisted Shrila Prabhupada in the kitchen was in New York on the occasion of my sister's wedding. Shrila Prabhupada cooked in his apartment in a small galley kitchen with counters on both sides. He gave me the singular task of making a very difficult preparation called aloo kachori. It's one of the most complex pastries to cook properly because it has to cook for a long time without becoming greasy, which is almost impossible. For nearly eight hours I made aloo kachoris while Shrila Prabhupada single-handedly cooked a fourteen-course wedding feast in his small kitchen. In the course of cooking for that feast, I made many mistakes. It was my very first day, and the first mistake I made was to wear a short skirt and a little T-shirt. Sitting crossed-legged I said, "Swamiji, may I have a cigarette?" He popped his head out of the corner and said, "Go wash your hands." I washed my hands. Then he explained the four prohibitions in Krishna consciousness: no meat eating, no gambling, no illicit sex life, and no intoxicants. A short time later I said, "Swamiji, may I have a glass of water?" He said, "Go wash your hands." Then he explained that the first and foremost principle in cooking was to engage our senses in the service of the Lord. He said that we should cook for Krishna with love and devotion and not think about our senses, our tongue, our sense of smell or our belly, because we were cooking for Krishna's pleasure. A short time later I said, "Swamiji, it's very hot in here." I was fighting perspiration. "Go wash your hands." In this way he introduced me to the simplest, most rudimentary principle of external cleanliness. He also explained a simple touch of internal cleanliness and said, "We can serve Krishna through the art of cooking when we are externally and internally clean."