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Influenced by our past lives

(H H Kadamba Kanana Swami, 9th February, 2012, Leicester, England) Lecture: SB 1.2.19

We cannot trace out how long we have been in the material world. Life after life, we are changing bodies – that is to say we are changing the gross bodies but the mind (or the subtle body which is made up of mind, intelligence and false ego) is travelling with us life after life as long as we are taking bodies into the material world. Therefore, the impressions of so many lifetimes are stored in our consciousness, but by the arrangement of the Supreme Lord we have forgotten these previous lives. But all the memories of the previous lives are stored within the sub-consciousness, and subconsciously they are influencing us….. so many lives. Therefore a cute little child is not just totally innocent, because there is a whole history there that my not just be manifested yet, but it will come out after a little while. And then you think:

'Well how is it possible that my little darling is doing such a thing?'

But your little darling has already done these things in unlimited previous lives. So in this way we are very much influenced by the three modes of material nature, which spread out over many, many lifetimes.

Srila Prabhupada is mentioning that we should associate with the mode of goodness. He doesn't say that we should be in the mode of goodness, since he says that we should associate in the mode of goodness, which I think is an interesting point. I guess if someone says:

'You must be in the mode of goodness.'

Then we are all trying:

'Goodness….goodness. How am I ever going to be in the mode of goodness? It's so not easy!'

Just by determination and endeavour we cannot really change our heart. But by associating with the mode of goodness, then one gradually develops the qualities of goodness. However, here in the Srimad Bhagavatam, the transcendental process of devotional service is described. It is said that:

'By devotional service, automatically the influence of ignorance and passion disappears. Then eventually one becomes fixed in goodness and even in pure goodness!'

Unalloyed goodness – known as 'viśuddha-sattva' – transcendental goodness. Meanwhile we are in the process of purification and the influences of the lower nature are still there. And due to the influence of the modes of lower nature, some bad habits may still be there……………………..Because we were already afflicted with sinful behaviour from previous lives the tendency is there once again. And then when we are in an environment where such association is there then the inclination to act in a sinful way is very strong!

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Our true eternal identity

(H H Kadamba Kanana Swami, 9th February, 2012, Leicester, England) Lecture: SB 1.2.19

Our true identity remains hidden underneath all these layers of material conditioning. That true identity is not something we cannot access at the present. We have no idea who we really are in the spiritual world. What our eternal identity truly is, since it is hard to say. For that matter a truck driver who is covered with tattoos might be a gopi in the spiritual world! It's possible, and the ballerina could be a cowherd boy in the spiritual world. Our current situation is not necessarily the same! It's hard to say….a gorilla may not be a gorilla in the spiritual world.

So therefore in our current condition in devotional service, we are not taking our material desires so seriously. We are observing them and judging them:

'Are these going to get me into trouble ? Or not? If they are not going to get me into too much trouble, then alright maybe, I'll pursue them. But if they'll get me into trouble, no then I will definitely have to give them up.'

That is the practice of devotional service, one has to have that willingness to say:

'Some of my desires I will forego.'

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Influenced by our environment

(H H Kadamba Kanana Swami, 9th February, 2012, Leicester, England) Lecture: SB 1.2.19

I grew up in the Netherlands where it is sort of a place where a few activities are going on, which are not really found in all the scriptures….or not recommended at least! Sometimes they are mentioned as a path to the gateway to hell, but they are not really the recommended activities.

Then again, you get kids in your school who say:

'Come on…….come on, don't be a square! You try this?'

And they try to convince you to take drugs! At that point someone might think:

'Yeah well…..I guess….yes!'

Whereas anybody with a little bit of intelligence can appreciate that these things are bringing only misery! So the modes of ignorance surround us. There are traces of the modes of ignorance within us. At an early age we are being influenced before we can even fully make informed decisions….mature decisions. We are already influenced by our environment!

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One must always be on guard

(H H Kadamba Kanana Swami, 9th February 2012, Leicester, England) Lecture: SB 1.2.19
There are stories that people in New York keep crocodiles as a pet, and when they grow up, then they put them in the New York sewers! And there are crocodiles living there underground in the New York city – there are stories like that, because it might be true, since when you keep a crocodile as a pet…………it's one thing when it is a little crocodile………….but as the crocodile grows up and the teeth are growing, then there is a problem, because there is no such thing as taming a croc! Never ever can you trust a croc…a croc is always a croc and can bite at any moment and there goes a leg, a hand or other more important parts.

So crocodiles are treacherous…. they stand for being treacherous and being totally untrustworthy. So it is very interesting that the material energy is depicted like a crocodile, I find, since that is basically what we are dealing with. The material energy cannot be trusted. One cannot think:

'I have it under control, no problem. I have now arranged material circumstances in such a way that you know I do not have to worry about it.. no problem at all….. I'm safe.'

No, one must always be on guard in the material world. That is basically the injunction of the scriptures:

'padaṁ padaṁ yad vipadāṁ na teṣām,' (SB 10.14.58)

Danger at every step:

'sv-alpam apy asya dharmasya
trāyate mahato bhayāt,' (BG 2.40)

The greatest danger is that we may then fall down in the material world. Srila Prabhupada made that point. He said that:

'The biggest problem is that you are not sufficiently afraid of maya!'

So that is why I'm emphasising the point. So a devotee must be careful!

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What is Krishna trying to teach me? part 1

(H H Kadamba Kanana Swami, 9th February 2012, Leicester, England) Lecture: SB 1.2.19


The material world is sometimes presented as an educational model – a place where we have to learn a lesson. This life is meant for that purpose. Krishna is trying to teach us in this life. So it's in that mode that we now are kind of thinking. When one thinks like that, then one can see in the events that are taking place that Krishna is trying to teach us through these events, and one may wonder:

'What's He trying to teach me?'

All right and things happen. Sometimes things go wrong, and especially when this happens, we tend to be reflective:

'Why is thing happening to me? And what am I to learn from this?'

There is no point in going back to previous lives, and trying to find out:

'What was I? What did I do in my previous life? And maybe I should go under hypnosis.'

Bir Krishna Maharaja did this with a group of devotees in Germany. There were some brahmacaris there, and he told them:

'You might be surprised that in your last life you were a female!'

And then he said:

'Look at your feet!'

And this one brahmacari looks at his feet and he had red shoes on and said:

'Oh my God!'

And then he remembered the whole life, in a female body with the children and the entire family……the whole story came back and all the frustration and hope…..and why it didn't work out…..the kids didn't become what they wanted them to become and so on. So what's behind that life, and behind that life…….and behind that life….and behind all the other lives – there is not end to it. So digging in previous lives is not what is required. It's just that all these lives have culminated in a quality….we have developed a quality, because of certain behaviour from a previous life, we may for an example developed a quality of pride, and then Krishna (to teach us) may create circumstance to cut down that pride! First you rise to glory and then suddenly 'bang!' it's all gone!

So in this way one has to simply look at the quality:

'What is Krishna trying to teach me here?'

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