Hare Krishna,
Please accept my humble obeisance,
All Glories to Srila Prabhupada
I have two questions.How does newspaper reading,watching news come in the mode of passion? If yes, how to keep oneself updated in this constant developing world by being in the mode of goodness.
What are the qualities in the mode of goodness and how to cultivate them on daily basis?
Haribol
Replies
Hare Krishna,
Reading newspaper or watching news or any such related programs on TV, are better to be avoided. They in themselves are filled up with passion & ignorance and makes it difficult for the readers & watchers to come out of the clutches of maya.
SImple check point is : anukulasya sankalpa pratikulasya varjanam...
As experienced by devotees, reading newspapers and watching TV have been big time sadhna killers. They are sheer wastage of time.
There are times when it is needed for the sadhaka to read & update himself/herself with current affairs for the sake of Jobs or interviews. It is understood that the devotee in indulging in it for higher purposes and not addicted to it. He/ She makes sure that they very carefully discriminate what to read and howmuch time to invest in it.
Devotees should be intelligent enough to keep themselves aloof from these traps of maya. Why we call it a trap because once you loosen yourself to read or watch TV then there is enough masala in the TV & Newspapers that it can hook you to itself and your mind will justify that, it's OK.
Below I present Srila Prabhupada's point of view on this matter: (His explanation in the end will clear many doubts)
Guest: Your Grace, do you keep in touch with the world through television or newspapers or the media?
Prabhupāda: Yes, many newspaper, many television men, they come. But we speak our philosophy plainly.
Guest: Do you watch TV yourself?
Prabhupāda: No, we have no business. We don't wish to waste our time.
Guest: Do you read newspapers?
Prabhupāda: No. What is newspaper? "This man is killed. This man has stolen. This politician has captured the government." So why shall I waste time?
Guest: How do you become informed as to certain events? Is that...
Prabhupāda: We have got enough books to read, these books. If you read our books, in your whole lifetime you cannot finish it. And that is required to understand Kṛṣṇa. That is success of life. So why should.... Of course, we are in touch in the newspaper, but as much as it is required. We are in touch with the material world as much as it is required. We are interested in Kṛṣṇa. To help our Kṛṣṇa consciousness we may be in touch with the material world as much as possible. Just like we are riding car also, we are also using dictaphone, everything, but it is not for any ulterior purpose. It is for Kṛṣṇa's service. Just like we are writing books. This is Kṛṣṇa's service. People may understand about Kṛṣṇa, be benefited. This is our.... And in that way we are printing books, we are selling books, we are writing books.
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Hare Krsna,
Thank you for your reply.
Hare Krsna
How does newspaper reading,watching news come in the mode of passion?
What is important is the story we read and the impact that it creates upon us. In most cases the impact of news is - desire or hankering, aggression, fear, frustration etc. These are characteristics of mode of passion and ignorance.
Krsna says in BG that
The mode of passion is born of unlimited desires and longings, O son of Kunti, and because of this the embodied living entity is bound to material fruitive actions. BG 14.7
O son of Bharata, know that the mode of darkness, born of ignorance, is the delusion of all embodied living entities. The results of this mode are madness, indolence and sleep, which bind the conditioned soul. BG 14.8
If yes, how to keep oneself updated in this constant developing world by being in the mode of goodness ?
Firstly we have to understand that the direction of development of the world is away from KC and not towards KC. So as practitioners of KC, we should be least interested in such material development and be busy in development of our KC.
Having said that, as a part of profession one may be required to develop one's skill, knowledge about the field through which one is making a living. This skill development almost never happens through news. For the purpose of skill development one can subscribe to newsletters, magazine relating to that field(say medical science or construction etc).
What are the qualities in the mode of goodness ?
Krsna has very clearly said about this in BG
O sinless one, the mode of goodness, being purer than the others, is illuminating, and it frees one from all sinful reactions. Those situated in that mode become conditioned by a sense of happiness and knowledge. BG 14.6
How to cultivate qualities of mode of goodness on daily basis?
Mode of goodness should be cultivated not with the aim of finding happiness or peace. It should be cultivated because it is purer than others and is suited for cultivation of KC. Focus should be cultivation of our loving service to Krsna, about which Srila Prabhupad writes
To practice bhakti-yoga one should follow certain principles: one should rise early in the morning, take bath, enter the temple and offer prayers and chant Hare Krsna, then collect flowers to offer to the Deity, cook foodstuffs to offer to the Deity, take prasadam, and so on. There are various rules and regulations which one should follow. And one should constantly hear Bhagavad-gita and Srimad-Bhagavatam from pure devotees.
This practice can help anyone rise to the level of love of God, and then he is sure of his progress into the spiritual kingdom of God. This practice of bhakti-yoga, under the rules and regulations, with the direction of a spiritual master, will surely bring one to the stage of love of God. (Purport BG 12.9)
By practicing these above one can be situated in mode of goodness and progressively cultivate KC
Hare Krsna
Hare Krishna,
PAMHO,
AGTSP,
Thank u Prabhujis for your answers.
@Bharat Prabhu..My further doubt is, sometimes in interview they do ask current affairs and how will one tackle it? I agree to your point that one should read news as per job requirement but sometimes the above questions are also asked to read into the person's character. What should a KC person do here?
Secondly, should we not read news then?
What about Politics?
Sorry for my ignorance
Hare Krsna
It is not bad to read/see news, but the way they are generally delivered is mixed with mode of passion i.e contains activities motivating bodily concept of life...
Bodily concept -- Me, Mine, I, Yours, looks , designation, position, power, lamentation, illusion, sense enjoyment and something extraordinary which make us excite or thrill while we are reading/seeing which we do not found in general life.
What are the qualities in the mode of goodness and how to cultivate them on daily basis ??
However, Everything is not bad about news, it also depends upon the type of news one read.
we can access them limited and as much as require to maintain oneself updated.