When the drunkard ran into our car that day, if I had been a dullard,
I might have thought, "Im the spiritual maser and am busy with
service, but now this wretched soul has bumped into our car. Rather we
just leave him on the side of the road since we are so busy with our
important preaching work." When we get too caught up in our
obligations, even if we have a chance to do what is Krishna conscious,
we may be too distracted. In one of my Beggar books, I wrote a prayer
describing how we can sometimes be so busy serving the spiritual
master that we have no time to serve the spiritual master. We are so
busy with our idea of serving Krishna that we have no time to really
serve Krishna. We are busy dovetailing, trying to do what we want to
do for Krishna, and then we propose to Him, "Krishna, just accept this
offering." There are so many subtle things we have to be aware of. Its
a matter of our consciousness. Are we angry at that devotee or are we
sad that that devoteee is hurting themselves? Are we angry at that
person, or are we disturbed because that person is cheating
themselves? If we are angry at them, then there is something lacking
in our depth of understanding. If we are oblivious and just do not
care, then there is also something wrong with us because we are
reinforcing deviant activities. We should be concerned because that
person is hurting themselves, and they can hurt others when other
people start following their bad example. There is a difference
between that kind of disturbance created by anger and holding a
grudge. The presence of a grudge or anger means that I am going to
create an obstacle. I am going to create a way to make life more
miserable for others. Bhakti Tirtha Swami, Reflections on Sacred
Teachings, Vol 6, Radha Sunya: Missing Mercy, Ch 1, Page 39-43

--
Yours
Dinesh
Blog:http://dinesh-krsna.blogspot.com

BTS: Are we part of the problem or the solution; dealing with grudges, anger and disturbances-Part - 2

"Association is the principle impetus in human life to serve Sri
Hari. Due to the association of non- devotees, one gets material
prosperity. Due to the association of devotees, the spirit soul
gradually becomes absorbed in serving Sri Hari. This is the greatest
shelter for a human being. Never become averse to that. We should
always seek out higher association and understand that association
with materialists will lower the consciousness. Whether we work or
simply go out into the public to preach, we will associate with people
carrying all kinds of contamination and anger towards Krishna. We pick
up some of their consciousness just by being around them. We then have
to shed it by strong chanting, hearing of classes and engaging in
kirtan. All of these activities are part of the cleansing process.
Without these spiritual activities, we will get more absorbed in
material culture. We will start losing our desire to engage in the
devotional process, and start becoming more interested in temporary
pleasures. Srila Bhaktisiddhanta tells us to never become averse to
good association, but we also have to be able to recognize good
association. We cannot buy a good quality diamond if we do not know
what a diamond is. In the process of shopping arond, we will
definitely get cheated. But if we know what we want, we will find a
diamond of the highest quality, and after making the purchase, we will
keep it in very secure place. Similarly, we must know what is good
association. It is association that reminds us of our eternal position
as servitors, increases our appreciation of Vaisnavas, enhances our
love and increases our wonderful appreciaton of Krishna's magnanimity.
It will increase our understanding of our own insignificance as we
attach ourselves to the most significant." Bhakti Tirtha Swami,
Reflections on Sacred Teachings, Vol 5, Srila Bhaktisidddhanta's 64
Principles for Community, Principle 44, page 149-150

--
Yours
Dinesh
Blog:http://dinesh-krsna.blogspot.com

BTS: Examining the quality of our Association By Gopisvari Devi Dasi

1. "The fundamental need of all of us is love. Every living being is
looking for pleasure—from the insignificant insect to the kings and
prime ministers. Everyone is seeking pleasure, but there is only one
pleasure that can reach the heart, and that is the pleasure of
experiencing the heart's need to give love and receive love. The
pleasures of sensual experience, fame, acquisition of wealth, etc. can
reach the mind and the senses, but they don't really touch the heart.
What if you were the proprietor of everything on earth when you were
the only being on earth? There will be no one to love you and there
will be no one to be loved by you. We need love; that's our nature."
2. "Everyone is looking for pleasure. That essential need for
pleasure, in its most important form, is the pleasure of love. Even if
you were the proprietor of everything on the entire planet earth but
you were the only person on earth, you would be unhappy. There can be
no real satisfaction of the heart without having people to love and
without being loved. The real problem in the world is poverty of the
heart. The only way to fill that hunger is love. The only thing that
touches the heart is love. To love means to give. The child gives
nothing to the mother, but the mother is found to take more
satisfaction in that child than practically anything or anyone else
and all she is doing is giving her love, all she is doing is just
sacrificing. A mother finds pleasure in giving satisfaction to her
child. A father finds pleasure in seeing the family prosper. Because
that is real pleasure. Love is not just to take, love is to give. The
more you give, the more genuine your giving is, the more people will
naturally reciprocate, thus bringing satisfaction to the heart." 3.
"Human nature is that everyone essentially wants to love and be loved.
If we show affection people open up and we can disarm them of their
prejudices against us. ....Believes that truly appreciating the other
over looking his/her flaw is a divine quality, it means overlooking
our own egoistic tendencies and looking for purity in the other person
and inadvertently we purify ourselves." - HH.Radhanath Swami

--
Yours
Dinesh
Blog:http://dinesh-krsna.blogspot.com

Radhanath Swami: Quotes on Love

"Association is the principle impetus in human life to serve Sri
Hari. Due to the association of non- devotees, one gets material
prosperity. Due to the association of devotees, the spirit soul
gradually becomes absorbed in serving Sri Hari. This is the greatest
shelter for a human being. Never become averse to that. We should
always seek out higher association and understand that association
with materialists will lower the consciousness. Whether we work or
simply go out into the public to preach, we will associate with people
carrying all kinds of contamination and anger towards Krishna. We pick
up some of their consciousness just by being around them. We then have
to shed it by strong chanting, hearing of classes and engaging in
kirtan. All of these activities are part of the cleansing process.
Without these spiritual activities, we will get more absorbed in
material culture. We will start losing our desire to engage in the
devotional process, and start becoming more interested in temporary
pleasures. Srila Bhaktisiddhanta tells us to never become averse to
good association, but we also have to be able to recognize good
association. We cannot buy a good quality diamond if we do not know
what a diamond is. In the process of shopping arond, we will
definitely get cheated. But if we know what we want, we will find a
diamond of the highest quality, and after making the purchase, we will
keep it in very secure place. Similarly, we must know what is good
association. It is association that reminds us of our eternal position
as servitors, increases our appreciation of Vaisnavas, enhances our
love and increases our wonderful appreciaton of Krishna's magnanimity.
It will increase our understanding of our own insignificance as we
attach ourselves to the most significant." Bhakti Tirtha Swami,
Reflections on Sacred Teachings, Vol 5, Srila Bhaktisidddhanta's 64
Principles for Community, Principle 44, page 149-150

--
Yours
Dinesh
Blog:http://dinesh-krsna.blogspot.com

BTS: Examining the quality of our Association By Gopisvari Devi Dasi

"Question: What should one do in a case where the husband has no
desire to take care of his children or his wife, but feels he wants
freedom to pursue sannyasa. He feels family life is attachment and
interferring with his advancement? Answer: Why dont you get a broom
and beat him over the head! He is not an example of detachment;
rather, he is running away from responsibility. In some cases, a
person is detached because they are bored with their old wife and with
their tedious responsibilities. There were cases in which a grhastha
would ask Srila Prabhupada for sannyasa, but he refused them because
he understood the underlying reasons. They used sannyasa as an excuse
to run away from responsibility. In some cases, a husband might act
detached from his wife, but if we look closer, we willl see that he
has strong attachment to other women and other forms of sense
gratification. Obviosly he is not really detached. Detachment does not
just mean detachment from the externals of sense gratification; it
means attachment to the service and worship of Krishna. When that type
of detachment occurs, then the person can offer more to any
relationship. It should not be that a person marries. has two or three
children, and then decides that it is too much responsibility. Our
institution has currently made it more difficult for a person to just
decide that they want to walk out of a relationship to take sannyasa.
If someone wants to take sannyasa but they have children, they have to
make clear and healthy arrangements for the wiffe and children. In the
past some men would pursue the idea of sannyasa without giving any
consideraton to their wife and children. Then the husband would leave,
take sannyasa, and travell all over the world while the family is left
struggling. Then the wife gets angry at the husband and the movement,
and in some cases, even leaves the movement. Renunciation should not
be avoidance of responsibilty. Of course, in some cases a person has a
romantic idea of householder life, and after they enter the asrama,
they find out that it is not quite what they imagined. However they
made a commitment and they should follow through. Some of the best
householders in the movement are those who have learned how to deal
with conflicts and who are completely aware of the illusory aspects of
householder life. The husband and wife have grown to understand each
other, and they understand the need to protect each other and work
together in preaching and service. They are completely devoid of this
idealism that causes the person to go to the other extreme. People who
have a romantic conception of marriage will want a divorce when it
does not unfold according to their own desires." Bhakti Tirtha Swami,
Reflections on Sacred Teachings, Vol 5, Principle 30, Srila
Bhaktisiddhanta's 64 pronciples of Community, page 104

--
Yours
Dinesh
Blog:http://dinesh-krsna.blogspot.com

Marriage & Sannyasa By Gopisvari Devi Dasi