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Krishna Consciousness at Home

Hare Krsna

Please accept my humble obeisance. All glories to Srila Prabhupada

 

His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada
 
It is not very difficult to open a center for our activities. You can remain in any apartment as husband and wife and invite persons there to hear your chanting and topics; that is our centre, and let it be gradually improved. I think this program will be very much suitable for you at the present moment. (Letter to Annapurna and Ananda, 4 September 1968)
That boys and girls from the neighbourhood are coming to help the temple activities is the good result of our attempts. The temple centre is started just to present an example to the neighbouring residents how they can make a small temple in each and every home. It is not necessary that hundreds and thousands of people will live in our temple, but if we can make an effective propaganda then the neighbouring residents, householders, will be inclined to be initiated and follow the modes of temple life. So you encourage the visitors, boys and girls as well as married couples, to understand the value of life and how they can peacefully and happily live if they follow the routine worship method in the temple and establish this in their home to be happy in all respects. The Krishna consciousness movement is actually an attempt to make all people happy generally, and becoming liberated in this life from material contamination, they'll thus be eligible to enter into the kingdom of God after quitting this body. (Letter to Tamal Krishna, 1 June 1969)
With reference to the boys holding kirtanas independently, our propaganda should be like that. That people may open different centres of their own, or each and every householder may have his own class at home. It is not that everyone is required to join the Society; they may take the idea from the Society and introduce in their private life. And if possible, let us sell to them the paraphernalia of kirtana, karatalas, mrdanga, deities, etc. (Letter to Mandali Bhadra, 2 April 1972)
We want every house to be a temple, not that our place should be the only place for the people to come. No, this should be the process: that they learn at our place, and then establish the same thing at home. (Letter to Bhavananda, 14 April 1972)
Householder life is also a perfect platform for rendering devotional service to Krishna. Any station of life — whether you are unmarried, married, or in any occupation of life — you can achieve the highest goal by adopting and practising the principles of devotional service. You are married and your husband is striving to become a devotee of Krishna, so you become his devotee, that is the position of husband and wife, that the husband will become a great devotee of Krishna by his wife's assistance, and the wife will take benefit and advance in spiritual life by serving her husband. You are anxious about the rules and regulations, but without rules and regulations there is more frustration. So it may be a little difficult at first, but if you are sincere to achieve the highest result of your lifetime, then you can be assured that by your efforts in Krishna consciousness that you will very quickly become happy more and more. The difficulties of this material world will shrink to no more than the size of a hoof-print left by a calf. Actually there is no difference between devotees living inside the temple and devotees living outside the temple. You are right that the important thing is to remember Krishna, whatever is your activity. So try to remember Krishna always by following the principles as you know them, namely, rising early, taking bath, cleansing, attending arati, reading scriptures at least one hour or two hours daily, chanting sixteen rounds on beads of Hare Krishna mantra, going for street sankirtana, offering all your foodstuffs to Krishna, like that. In this way very quickly you will make progress in Krishna consciousness and become very, very happy in your life. (Letter to Susan Beckham, 20 September 1972)

 

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