Very nice question you have asked yet again AAkash pr. I was hearing this story in one of the lectures. Once a great saadhu visits the palace of the King. And the King welcomes the saadhu and offers him nice place to sit and then washes his feet. He then offers the saadhu nice food stuffs to eat. After all this, the king puts a question to the saadhu. He says, Maharaj these material objects are bounding me and im getting entangled with it. How can I get rid of this attachment? Upon hearing this question, the saadhu looks at the king and then he gets up from his seat and starts running outside. King and all the other people around start to follow the saadhu. The saadhu runs out side to the park and embraces a hugh tree tightly and starts shouting "Leave me please leave me". The king and other people gets surprised by the behavior of the king. The king tells the saashu that he is the one holding the tree and not the tree holding him and if he let his hands, he will be free. Then the saadhu turns to king and says this is the answer to your question!!! Its not the material objects that are holding u but u who is holding the material objects and developing attachment. If u let go, u will loose ur attachment.

Similarly, we are trying to enjoy our senses for millions of life times before and now by the causeless mercy of Guru and Gauranga, we have come to the path of bhakthi by which we can easily go surpass this ocean of birth and death. Yes I agree there is a lot of distress in the path of bhakthi because Krishna puts us into many tests to see if we are qualified to go back to his abode or not.

Now this is very interesting. Krishna says in BG that once we go back to his abode we never have to come back to this material world again. Now, at our present situation, if we are to be sent to spiritual world to goloka vrindavan where Krishna is the king and radha rani is the queen and every jeeva in there are serving them in their own capacity, we will start looking at every thing in our own perspective. Scriptures says that the women and men in heavenly planets are 1000 times more beautiful than the most beautiful people here on earth. The people of vikunta are hundreds and thousnads of times more beautiful than the one u find in heavenly planets. If we are to be sent there, we will start looking at other women/men in a lusty way and start thinking why Krishna has to enjoy here and not me?? We also know that we can not stay in vikunta with lust/envy/greed/anger etc and will have to be sent back. If we are to be sent back again, then Krishnas words will be proved to be wrong!!! Hence, for our own benifit, we are put to tests in such a way that we get purified in stages and reach to the level of vikunta consciousness and then sent back to spiritual world.

You mentioned merging to brahaman is loosing identity. This is a wrong understanding about the brahamajothi. Even when one merges with the brahama jothi, the soul still has its original identity as a individual. the individuality is never lost. And for your information, even if one want to merge into impersonal brahama jothi, one has to under go sever austerity. By enjoying the senses to its fullest extent one can not even think of merging into brahaman.

Srciptures teach us that human life is met for austerity. There is no rules and regulations meant for any other species other than human being. In Mahabrahata it says the eating, sleeping, defending and reproducing is common activities for human beings and animals. The only difference a human being can do is to practice dharma - religion. If a human being is also doing these activities only then there is no difference between him and an animal.

Just tolerate the pain of ur mind and senses for some time and over a period of time you will realize the bliss in giving up sense enjoyment.

manmath kumar nayak April 17, 2012 at 3:09am

What austerities and practices of spiritual life? If we ask some one in love to throw away the love,some one very rich to throw away riches or some one young or beautiful to throw away the beauty or youth, some one strong to throw away the strength, some one famous to throw away fame or some one healthy to throw away good health, some one talented to throw away talent or some one knowledgeable to throw away knowledge that is called austerity. None of this is a prerequsite to start one's journey in the path.Spiritual life begins with taking out the artificiality and knowing the self which comes through the mercy of Sri Krishna from whose spiritual form spiritual as well as material attributes emanate. When we think of Krishna we get the true spiritual taste. Then other things are no more that tasteful and lose the grip. We do not artficially control our mind.Now as far as the austerities are concerned they appear like that to others having no higher taste.It is like one is spontaneously giving up the less for more enjoyment. As far as practices are concerned Nama japa is the focal one even though many peripheral practices and regulative principles are there.Nama Japa can be done in any situation by any one. This needs only sincerity and understanding how helpless we are because our free will even though has been given is not enough to pull us through.

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anand patel April 16, 2012 at 4:34pm

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Darian Blues April 4, 2012 at 11:38pm

I think the people here are not too educated concerning what Brahman is or what merging in Brahman implies. Merging In Brahman is not a void, void is a condition similar to lack of awareness or deepsleep where there is deep experience of unawareness. The state of Brahman is a condition of All Consciousness and Bliss. It is not a void. It is a state free from space, time, duality, and is eternal. Some desire personal association with the Lord, and some desire the Brahman, it really depends upon what a person seeks. But in all in all devotion is a much easier path than other yogas because it is simple and not too complicated and one not need be a skilled adept of Yogic techniques. As you progress in devotion you might come to realize the beauty of rendering service to God as equally beautiful.

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Mohini Madhavi April 4, 2012 at 1:54pm

Hare Krishna Aakash Menon Prabhu, please accept my humble obeisances! All glories to Srila Prabhupada!

Such like feelings were there in my childhood. I did not wanted to be in this world. Just close my eyes and never wake up. It is maybe because of ignorance. I used to think that if i loose my parents life will be finished, if someone else dies then again no meaning will be in my life. I did not like to go to kinder garden but used to listen to my mom. Whatever i did was just austerity. ...

Then years past, i started to chant and read Srila Prabhupada's books. Reading was very interesting but chanting still was too much austerity. But i used to force myself. One year forced.

But after one year Krishna gave me chance to meet Devotees. Then i joined ashram and only associating with Devotees i started even though little but taste to chant the Holy Names again and again.

Krishna in the Form of Holy Name travels from heart to heart. Only healthy association with Devotees will give to us taste. For example, when we chant with great Saint like one of our Gurus, while chanting they feel Krishna's sweetness and when we are close to them that taste also we can feel. If the bridge of humility and respect is connected between us and that great soul.

Only that can give us taste.

-------------------------------------

Maybe You will try to stay on weekends at the Temple ashram with Temple Devotees?! And at least on Sunday attend all full day program. You just try it for some weeks and if You are attentive and respectful to Devotees then automatically they will pray to You and You will feel taste to the Holy Names and be happy.

Your servant,

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Sudipta Roy April 4, 2012 at 1:32pm

Hare Krishna Prabhuji. Dandavat Pranam. All glories to Srila Prabhupada

I would like to share some of the extract whatever I can recollect from His Grace Mahatma prabhu in Japa workshop which I had recently atteended, where he gave answers of this kind of questions related to chanting.

Yes sometimes it happens that we don't get any taste in the holy name even after trying hard to achieve the taste. It is so because most of the time in KC we wnat to be the achiever rather than a receiver. It means that during chanting we monitor our chanting through our mind and we think that am I getting the taste? how the taste is like ? why I am not getting the same taste I got previously ? so these kind of many questions we contemplate at the time of chanting. But the fact is when the mind is working Its an offensive chanting because MIND WORKS WHEN HEART STOPS AND HEART WORKS WHEN MIND STOPS, So we have to chant from the core of our Heart to get the taste Because as Krishna resides in our heart , when we chant from our heart Krishna reciprocates according through his Holy name.

So while chanting we have to try to be a receiver of the holy name not the achiever. Because when we chant with the humble mood just like crying like a baby to Krishna and ask Krishna to engage us in his service then Krishna get so much pleased that he reciprocates immedietly.

Holy name is naam prabhu. we can't order the holy name to give us taste, rather we have to be patient that holy name will reciprocate with us once get pleased. with this mood we have to chant to get the taste.

So the funda is "CHANT ONLY WHILE CHANTING DO NOT MONITOR YOUR CHANTING WITH MIND"...chanting should be from the core of the heart when mind cease to exists,then only naamprabhu get please and bestow nectarian taste.

And below are few thinks that helps us to chant better

1. Avoid ten offences to the holy name

2. Go to temple, associate with devotees

3. take some service from devotees and execute them with devotion.

4. And other regulative principles and follow instructions strictly.

And regarding merging into brahman effulgence , it is true that living entity became rebellion due to is timeless contact with three (passion,goodness,ignorance) modes of material nature. So we forgot the spiritual environment totally, thats why we think that to negate our material existence is spirituality and there is nothing beyond it. Merging into Brahman effulgence means there is no spiritual body , no interaction only existence of soul. But the desire exists there because by nature we are pleasure seeking so fall down happens from there beacuse we don't get pleasure there. In Vaikuntha we personally associate with Krishna and devotees , so life become peaceful and blissful there.

And if freewill would not be there then we would be no better than slave, and God would not be designated as merciful, all loving rather a person Like HITLER.

So we have to try our best to go there. and for that we have to practise "GETTING PLEASURE FROM DOING SERVICE TO LORD AND DEVOTEES".. Now the condition is opposite, we seek pleasure from others service to us , but to reach ultimate pleasure we have to serve God and others.

Hope this will help

Your aspiring Servant

Hari Bol

krishnaveni paidi > Sudipta Roy April 7, 2012 at 1:07pm

HAREKRSNA PRABUJI.DANDAVATH PRANAM.ALL GLORIES TO SRILA PRABHUPADA.

ONE DOUBT.HOW WE CAN DIFFERENTIATE HEART AND MIND?.SOMETIMES I WILL GET CONFUSION WETHER HEART OR MIND IS WORKING.

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