Blog

To understand the meaning of quality, you first of all have to come to the stage of quality yourself. How can you understand the meaning of quality without experiencing it yourself? Your duty is to follow the instructions of your spiritual master and sastra. Quality or no quality—it is not your position to understand this. When the quality comes there is no force. You will have a taste for chanting. You will desire at that time, "Why sixteen rounds? Why not sixteen thousand rounds?" That is the meaning of quality. Therefore chant at least sixteen rounds. When you come to chanting with quality, you will feel "Why sixteen rounds? Why not sixteen thousand?" That means quality, it comes automatically. Just like Haridasa Thakura was doing. He was not forced to chant. Even Caitanya Mahaprabhu requested him, "Now you are old enough. You can reduce your rounds." But Haridasa Thakura refused "No. Up to the end of my life I shall go on." That is quality. Do you have such a tendency that you will go on chanting and do nothing else? Now you are forced to chant. Where is the question of quality? There is a chance that one day you may experience quality. You haven’t come there yet. Quality is different. Athasaktih. Asakti, attachment. Just like Rupa Gosvami says that "How shall I chant with one tongue, and how shall I hear with two ears? If I had millions of tongues and trillions of ears, then I could enjoy it." Quality is not cheap. Maybe after many births you will achieve it. For now you go on with following the rules and regulations by force. Where is the quality? You wanted to understand quality. It means you’ll not be forced, but automatically you’ll desire. I am writing books. I am not being forced by anyone. Everyone can do that. Why one does not do it? Why I get up at night, one o’clock, and do this job? Because I cannot do otherwise. How can one do it artificially? This means quality. Therefore, people like my purports. That quality is shown by Caitanya Mahaprabhu.Sunyayitam jagat sarvam govinda virahena me . "Oh, I do not see Govinda. The whole world is vacant." Sunyayitam jagat sarvam govinda virahena me . 

We have got a practical example. One man’s beloved has died, and he sees the whole universe as vacant. Is it vacant? That is the quality of love. There is no formula of quality. It is to be understood by oneself. Just like feeling refreshed and getting strength after eating. You don’t need a certificate: "Will you give me a certificate that I have eaten?" You’ll understand whether you have eaten or not. That means quality. When you will feel so much ecstasy in chanting Hare Krishna, then you have achieved quality. It does not mean chanting artificially—"Chant. Chant. Otherwise get out." This is not quality. This is expecting that someday you may come to quality. That requires time. That requires sincerity. But quality is there. Sravanadi suddha citte karaye...  It will be awakened. Not by force. Just like love between two persons, it cannot be forced. "You must love him. You must love her....

(Morning walk, Nairobi, November 2, 1975, MW.NAI; edited)