The Potency Of Devotional Service

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The Potency Of Devotional Service

via kksblog.com by Aatish on 5/3/11

Transcribed By Madhumati Devi Dasi

(Kadamba Kanana Swami, Stockholm, 2010)

If one appreciates the potency of devotional service and if one appreciates how powerful it is, and that the tiny little insignificance of material trouble that will strike is totally unimportant.

I saw a cartoon on think tank where a group of people were sitting on a big meeting table and under it, it was written, " A worry tank",
and one said:
"What if something goes wrong?"

And then one said:
"What if nothing goes wrong?!"

So like this we can just worry and worry and that is how we live to worry for nothing at all, because it doesn't make a difference. Oh! No now it is raining and what are we going to do the summer is coming? Well! The same as winter. Somehow or the other, things just keep going on. There is a saying – that there was a Dutch sailor and he said it is too early enough to worry about drowning up until when the water comes up to the lips.

I like that! I am not like that as I worry a little earlier, but I must admit that I remind myself of this sailor and it helps. Yes,there are people who don't worry, and if only we come to the fact that we are Vaikuntha people – the secret is to be in the spiritual world. In the morning when we rise, we should say another day in the spiritual world because that's where we are!

"Not, oh! God why am I in Stockholm? Oh Dear! in the material world – back in my life can I sleep more? Can I just ignore it? Can I act as if I am not awake? Can I just deny it a little longer?"

This negativity – that we have about our life is very deeply rooted in our consciousness, and a Vaikuntha person is one who is free from all worries. Who is free and has no worries?

Australia is a funny Country, because they always say:
"How are you? – no worries. How are you going?"

But it is one of the Countries that has the highest rates of intoxication and drugs and the Australian way of getting intoxicated is to get "Zonked".

So, it goes on quite a bit and in the public bathroom there are white purple lights, so you can't see your veins no matter what, can't see much at all. …."To get zonked and have no worries?"

So, it is not possible to have a life with no worries. It is not possible by declaration. You have worries as long as you identify with the material world.

But, as long as we understand that we are in Vaikuntha and act like that – I am in Vaikuntha when I serve, every moment and we experience it sometimes when we surrender a little bit – we really make a sacrifice and after that we really feel blissful and so nice just for may be half a day, but if we do it all the time, then we will be always be in that Vaikuntha state – the blissful state and when you are in that state Yeah! What do you care? Nothing can touch you! The milk boiled over – okay. Thus, one becomes transcendental, absorbed and relishes the nectar of surrender, the nectar of service that is the spiritual world.

In the Vaikuntha planets the ladies although, living like queens in palaces, they sweep those palaces themselves daily even though there is no dust. Here we say:

"Is there anybody who is going to sweep our floor, when there is no dust?"

Here we need the dust. Just like somebody writes on the dust of the car that, 'I want to be washed!' Here we have the dust to force us to do the service, but in the spiritual world they understand that the purpose of cleaning the floor is to please Krishna. So, floors are meant to be swept and that's what they are meant for and the purpose of sweeping is to serve Krishna. Here the purpose of sweeping is cleaning the dust and without dust we wouldn't clean it.

If we are always absorbed in service to Krishna then everything becomes blissful and positive and that's how Prabhupada had the positive outlook.