sacrifices and bhakti-yoga

[Guest guest]

Dear fellow vaishnavas

 

Please accept my humble obeisences.

 

I am new to the path of Bhakti-yoga. I have been practicing bhakti-yoga for the past 18 months or so.

 

I have a sincere desire to make spiritual advancement. I realize that Bhakti-yoga often needs the saadhaka to make sacrifices. For the past one year or so, in order that i make spiritual advancement in the true sense, i have made a decision to put all that i earn (that remains from my income after paying bills of my basic necessities) in the direct service of Krishna.

 

Recently, i have been put by the Lord in a situation where i had to choose between my long time partner whom i love very much and bhakti-yoga. And i have chosen bhakti-yoga - the path of Krishna because i know that is the right thing to do. Although i have done this, my heart is in deep pain over this. This is the biggest sacrifice i have ever done - leave the person whom i loved very deeply.

 

It has been very difficult to cope. However, i do try to read, chant as normal which helps me cope. But then i go through depressed moments too.

 

My depression comes from the question that arises in my mind "what if i do not well enough on the path of bhakti and get nowhere? if that happens, then that would mean i neither lived the material existence properly nor the spiritual."

 

My dear vaishnava brothers and sisters, could you please share with me your own experiences about how you dealt with testing and trying times and how you manage to stay steadfast on this spiritual path? What motivates and inspires you to be steadfast on the path?

 

Please share with me something that will put me out of my misery that i feel for having to make the biggest sacrifice.

 

Please pardon me if you find my sob story of no spiritual value.

 

I will appreciate any thing that could inspire me to remain steadfast and determined and helps me feel worthy

 

Yours in the service of Krishna

 

krishna-lila

 

 

 

[Kulapavana]

that was a very moving post prabhu Krishna-lila. thank you for sharing it with us.

 

we never lose by taking up bhakti. NEVER! even when it may seem to us we have failed to achieve desired purification. the feeling of loss you have now over your companion will soon pass. Krishna knows exactly what you need both materially and spiritually and will send it to you in due time. have faith and be patient.

 

do not see any situation as permanent - things always change, and for a sincere person like yourself they are simply a series of events meant to take you closer to Krishna. Haribol!

[Govindaram]

 

 

oh man i tried to delete the post and it won't.

 

LOL

 

[Guest guest]

"Recently, i have been put by the Lord in a situation where i had to choose between my long time partner whom i love very much and bhakti-yoga."

 

But don't feel pain, Krishna is with you . He will always be with you. Please chant even more alot harder.

 

[Guest guest]

First please accept my humble obeisences!

 

Thank you for your comforting reminder that we NEVER lose in bhakti! For advanced souls, such things may be easy to remember but it is easy to forget when you are new on this path and you are going through testing times. That is why i posted this here as I need to be reminded about such things from Vaishnavas who are already well advanced on the path. Where i live i have no association of any devotee. That makes it even more tough. However, His Divine Grace Srila Prabhupad's books are what i associate with.

 

And thank you also for reminding that Krishna takes care of His devotees materially and spiritually. How could i forget that? You see, remembering such things in the most difficult times, that's what i would like to learn and perfect.

 

Thank you very much.

 

Hari bol!

 

Yours in the service of Krishna

Krihna Lila Devi Dasi

[Guest guest]

Govindaram Prabhu

 

Please accept my humble obeisences. All Glories to His Divine Grace Srila Prabhupad!

 

Thank you for reminding me that "depression" puts us in the mode of ignorance and therefore any thought that arises in that mode is not worth my wasting energy on. I will try and remind myself of this next time demons of doubts arise in my mind when i am depressed...i am in the mode of ignorance.

 

And ultimately, by grace of Krishna i will learn to take care of myself. Until that happens, it is nice to know that here is a place where vaishnavas come and chat and therefore one can share any doubts.

 

You said i almost quoted a verse from Geeta in my post....i went back and read my post to find out what part of my post you may be referring to? Were you referring to the part where i said about putting all that i earn in the direct service of Krishna? if not, please do tell me which part?

 

The chapter 12 (Bhakti Yoga) is what led to a realization in me that parting with my earnings and putting it in the direct service of The Lord would be a good way to test whether or not i have learnt to detach myself from the fruits of my karma. As Prabhupad once said somewhere that it is not how much we give away that Krihna sees but how much we hold on to! So, it was very difficult for me to part with everything that i earned (after paying my bills for basic necessities), so i began with a small share of the earnings...then slowly i increased the share that went to Krishna's service. Now, i have reached a stage where all of what remains after paying my bills goes to Krishna.

 

Also, i experienced that as soon as i began to serve Krishna with the frutis of my karma, i began to chant better and understand the purport better...which then led me to give more away and hold less...and so on and so forth...a virtuous cycle was set in motion....

 

Sorry for a long reply

 

Thank you once again!

 

Hare Krishna!

Krishna Lila Devi Dasi

[Guest guest]

Thank you for the reminder that Krishna is with me and will always be with me. And yes, i am chanting harder. If it were not for chanting i dont know what would have happened?

 

Sri Krishna Chaitanya Prabho Nityananda Shri Advaita Gadadhar Shri Vasadi Gaura Bhakta Vrinda

Hare Krishna Hare Krishna Hare Krishna Hare Hare Hare Ram Hare Ram Ram Ram Hare

 

 

Hare Krishna!

 

Krishna Lila Devi Dasi

[Priitaa]

Haribol prabhu. I am sorry to hear of your pain and saddness. I realize its not easy, and that what is said may be harder to accept then it is for me or others to type them. But in time that will all balance out, and hopefully our words will be found helpful.

 

Krishna only takes away what is negative, not the positive. At the time of death when everything shuts down and we tend to go inward, especially bodily, even those who we currently love are hard to think of, what to speak of old flames, and what to speak of remembrance of Krishna! We will ultimately forget everyone anyway, but we don't want to risk anything that would increase a risk of forgetting Krishna.

 

Getting out of the material world 'can' be hard, but doesn't have to be. Krishna tries to make this "final exam" easier by removing all impediments we somehow or other accumulated during life. So it may feel painful now, but 20 years down the road or more, it will be no big deal. If anything, we will be so thankful it happened because we only want devotees in our lives anyway, to help us remember Krishna. That is real love. Besides, only those who are truly our friends (or more) stick with us and not put us in a posiiton to make such a choice. They will love us regardless. I don't like saying this, and I could be mistaken, but possibly this person was not truly your friend, or else was looking for an excuse to get out of the relationship anyway. If thats the case, or just for healng, maybe take on a little heathy attitude of "Who needs him anyway?!!" :-)

 

We have been taught to take this human form of life lightly, and while we certainly do not want to get depressed, we need to remember that the goal of this human form is its rare blessing that it can get us out of this repeated cycle of birth and death, and return us back to Home, back to Godhead, the only place of real joy and happiness. And we can experience that now too, as we chant, read, listen to Prabhupada lectures, etc.

 

So, we may have to undrego such asuterities as you have. I have had my share, believe me! /images/graemlins/smile.gif But what I tell myself is, "Do I REALLY want to go thru this type of suffering again?" And the answer is always no! ha (Do I want to be a teenager again? Yuck. Do I want to RAISE a teenager again. Heavens no! lol Etc., etc. And this line of questioning works for all life situations.) Of course, the way out of it is to stay on the path & chant Hare Krishna.

 

Don't know if I helped or hurt, but you may know the saying, 'the way out, is through.' You're on your way. Allow yourself to smile once in a while, eventually you'll feel it. And stay in the association of (nice) devotees.

[Haridham]

hare Krsna Krsna lila devi dasi ji.

 

 

Continue your bhakti as at the end thats what ultimetly is going to matter.

 

You never loose in your spiritual endevour.

 

Your material desires are endless, when you add krsna however you can dovetail everything.

 

Hare Krsna