Visnu or Krsna bhakti

[Guest guest]

On 9 Jan 2002, Braja wrote:

 

> >

> i'm quite surprised that there continues to be criticism of one line of

> someone's text (i can't even remember who initially started the thread) but

> there has been no comment on this text above. it seems quite clear to me.

> isn't vaikuntha aisvarya-rasa? and are we not striving for bhakti? the two

> are completely different. in light of Bhaktivinode Thakura's quote from

> Bhakti-rasamrta-sindhu (1.2.55-57) above, what need is there of this 'you're

> wrong and i'm right' dialog?

 

Bhakti can be in the mood of aisvarya or madhurya. It is still bhakti, and in

aisvarya one can go to the platform of prema. Please read NOD. What one

doesn't attain in the mood of aisvarya are the three higher rasas, though

there may be some reverential friendship with the serving attitude, in some

cases.

 

Do you think the residents of Vaikuntha are not bhaktas? Do you think they

have no prema? Are they then having some contamination, however slight, of the

modes of nature? (which is the situation before prema) Is Prahlad Maharaja, or

Hanuman, not experiencing prema bhakti? It is not Vraja prema, but it is

prema. Even the residents of Vaikuntha, who have these opulences/liberations,

do not aspire for them (see Lord Kapila) but accept them for service. And do

you not think that the residents of Vrindavana have these four kinds (one,

two, three or four of them) of liberation, too?

 

Personally, I'll be most fortunate to develop any kind of prema in the next

thousand births....

 

Anyway, Prabhupada wrote visnu bhakti for Tulasi and she is put on the lotus

feet of al Vishnu Deities. The use of her in worship is not limited to Deities

of Krsna. If someone wants to say, "krsna bhakti" because its in a Bengali

songbook like that, are we going to have a sectarian war and create another

branch of ISKCON? My personal feeling is to go with what Prabhupada taught,

unless he personally changed it. However, fighting over this is ridiculous,

though each TP may want to--and reasonably so--decide how the mantra should be

sung in his/her temple room.

 

Your servant, Urmila devi dasi