Hare Krishna,
Pamho
AgtSP!
Are these the only ways to attain Krishna?
1. Chant all the time his name
2. Deprive yourself from all the material attachments.
3. Serve Krishna in deity form than as paramatma
4. wait for his reciprocation
5. Follow all rules given Acharyas
6.Associate with devotees.
7. Control desires
By doing above things will we be able to Krishna when we leave body or we regret later that we missed out all fun in life. Thank you
YS
Akash
Replies
Hare Krsna Prabhuji,
PAMHO.
You have made a laundry list of to dos and donts, making it sound like capital punishment to practise devotion, and at the end of life, to realise that we lost out on life all the while. That is because you have not practised. If you did, you would realise that it is not dull at all. It is very dynamic and full of different rasas. There is never a dull moment in devotion.
I agree with Krsna Dasa prabhuji's post. Still I am giving my comments to each of your points -
1. Chant all the time his name - yes that is ideal.
2. Deprive yourself from all the material attachments - there is no deprivation. One doesnt need to force oneself. One simply needs to chant properly. Automatically things like movies, eating out, freaking out will appear meaningless. Until that time, pls go and do all of these.
3. Serve Krishna in deity form than as paramatma - isnt that better. Would you be able to relate to paramatma form or deity form better? You can see, touch, serve deity. You can get reciprocation from deity.
4. wait for his reciprocation - why wait? reciprocation happens at all levels. Otherwise, we humans are so fallen, we cannot continue without any reciprocation. Its not a wall or a black home, you are putting in, without knowing what is the response from teh other side. How do we know about reciprocation - by the ananda / ecstacy in our hearts. By the staisfaction, peace in our hearts. Isnt that reciprocation? Krsna is so merciful that He reciprocates even when we are angry with Him. Have you never experienced?
5. Follow all rules given Acharyas - try to follow as much as you can. What acharyas have said is the ideal. One doesnt reach the ideal overnight. We strive to follow the acharyas, at the same time we are honest to our limitations. Thats why we pray to the acharyas and guru parampara for mercy, so that we may be able to follow the instructions.
6.Associate with devotees. - this is the best part. There are all kinds of devotees, serious or not so serious, different levels, different natures. One can associate with one's kind and really enjoy this path back home, back to Godhead.
7. Control desires - there is no need to control. One has to simply learn to dovetail the desires towards Krsna. Suppose you like to sing - then you can sing vaishnava songs, suppose you like to act, then you can do vaishnava dramas, make your own dramas, paint, draw, even talk - everything can be used in the service of the lord. Once you start doing this and realise it is much more fun to put our senses in the service of the lord, all the while doing what one has a talent to do, then you dont want to do anything else.
Nothing is forced prabhu. One never loses in devotion. It is difficult to accept in theory, I agree. Start practising, taking one baby step at a time. All the while be in association of devotees. You will be able to get into devotion with ease and enjoy the journey. Devotion should not be forced, then one cannot sustain. The journey back to our beloved Krsna has to be filled with bliss, not forced. Then one can make sustained progress.
Haribol,
Your servant,
Radha Rasamayi DD
why are you so confused ??
check to some doctor i.e. Some Spiritual Guru who can guide you...or
Read some spiritual books or listen katha...as much as you can either from television or live at your hometown or in vrindavan...
because you are asking the same question ghuma firake.....yes in your 2011 question, you ask
http://www.iskcondesiretree.com/forum/topics/how-to-understand-that...
now devotees already resonsed you and guided you about how to attain Krishna......but even after you are still confused....and asking again the same question but this time just changing the words...
my dear, it has been 7 years since 2011 and you are still confused.....
it shows that you are not serious on the path of spirituality..
that's why i m saying check to some doctor i.e. some spiritual guru who can guide you really well otherwise you'll always be confused about how to attain Krishna...
Hare krsna
All glories to Srila Prabhupada!!!!
mad-yaji mam namaskuru
mam evaisyasi satyam te
pratijane priyo 'si me
2. Deprive yourself from all the material attachments. - use the material attachment towards krsna like using this smart phone towards spreading his knowledge. The same attachment to the phone is being used towards a higher purpose.
3. Serve Krishna in deity form than as paramatma - Krsna through his Arca Vigraha is easy to comprehend and associate with than the paramatma. it is easy to touch and feel and offer service to krsna's vigraha.
4. wait for his reciprocation - When the word Krsna comes out of pure bhav, then krsna is present the next moment, there is no wait. The only wait for us is to develop that bhav.
5. Follow all rules given Acharyas - Rules are used for purifying and by purifying we can remember krsna constantly. So yes, rules should be followed because we are conditioned and fallen souls.
6.Associate with devotees.- Who discuss krsna katha not just "devotees". Prajalpa is of no use even if you are with a devotee.
7. Control desires - redirect as a jiva also has a desire to love krsna. we can control desire completely, we can channel it towards loving krsna.
Hope that helps..
Krsna is just waiting for us to genuinely turn towards him and not make a show of devoteeship. Krsna can see our inner desire and will reciprocate accordingly. We can cheat ourselves, but we cannot cheat Krsna trying to pretend to be His devotee.
Hare krsna.
Regarding missing fun part:
First of all we must have 100% faith on the knowledge of the continuation of eternal life. Rest will fall in place by just reviewing our life so far - what we gained out of those attempts for self satisfaction ? Were we really happy ? How long that lasted ?
From SB3.20.18 purport we can see :
Andha-tāmisra involves considering death to be the ultimate end. The atheists generally think that the body is the self and that everything is therefore ended with the end of the body. Thus they want to enjoy material life as far as possible during the existence of the body. Their theory is: “As long as you live, you should live prosperously. Never mind whether you commit all kinds of so-called sins. You must eat sumptuously. Beg, borrow and steal, and if you think that by stealing and borrowing you are being entangled in sinful activities for which you will have to pay, then just forget that misconception because after death everything is finished. No one is responsible for anything he does during his life.” This atheistic conception of life is killing human civilization, for it is without knowledge of the continuation of eternal life.
Now I am also new to this platform of Krishna consciousness movement; struggling hard on a daily basis and repeatedly failing in following Prabhupada's instructions. But I feel this is the only way to lead a successful life and someday I will also be able to follow all the instructions and purify myself through some devotees mercy. Until I purify myself by following the paths shown by Senior devotees here, I donot see any chance of progress towards Krishna.
- Haribol !!
When a child is given rice it eats it. When the child is given sugar it eats it. When a child is given Sweet it eats it. Now keep all the three in front of the child. Naturally the child will pick up the sweet because the sweet is more tasty than rice and sugar.
In Gita Chapter 2 text 59 Krishna speaks as follows
The embodied soul may be restricted from sense enjoyment, though the taste for sense objects remains. But, ceasing such engagements by experiencing a higher taste, he is fixed in consciousness.
The lower taste are, like going to movies , having fun , longing for fame and money .....etc . The higher taste as mentioned above by Krishna is called as Paramanand in Hindi, Perinbam in Tamil, Suruchi in Bengali, Bliss in English and so on.
While the lower taste (like having fun) is like rice and sugar , the higher taste is like sweet. Once you experience the higher taste naturally you will forget lower taste just as the child picks sweet rather than rice and sugar. The difference between the lower taste and higher taste is that lower taste is limited while the higher taste keeps on increasing and is eternal. For example one cannot have fun for 24 hours all 365 days. It will be boring. On the other hand, higher taste is eternal.
So by following Krishna consciousness as mentioned by seven points in the question the soul experiences the higher taste. Later on the soul will never lament I have missed all fun in life because the soul is experiencing permanent higher taste (sweet ) which makes the soul million times more happy than temporary lower taste (rice and sugar) like having fun.
Haribol,
S.Balaji.
''And whoever, at the time of death, quits his body, remembering Me alone, at once attains My nature. Of this there is no doubt.'' Bg. 8.5