How to make spiritual advancement

November 7, 2003

Srila Bhaktivinode Thakura writes:

"Forget the past, it sleeps,

nor for the future dream at all.

But act in times that are with thee,

and progress ye shall call!"

November 27, 2003

THERE IS NO THANKSGIVING

Caitanya Mahaprabhu prays, “My dear Lord, I pray that birth after birth I may have unconditional, causeless devotion unto You.” Not devotion for some purpose. That is not a pure devotee. If anyone goes to the Lord to pray for something with a purpose, that is also good, but that is not pure.

You can pray. Anyone can pray. It does not require any education. If you simply feel, “Oh, God is so great. Oh, He has created the sun. He has created this moon. Oh, He has created the ocean. He has created this air. He has created so many fruits, so many flowers.” You don’t require any education. Simply try to understand how great God is. There is no other education required. In the Bhagavad-gita the Lord says, “I am the taste in the water.” Who does not take water? Water is our life. So when you take water, quench your thirst, you can immediately thank God because that taste is God. So immediately you can remember, “O my dear Lord, You have created so nice thing, water. Oh, I am so thirsty. It is quenching my thirst. Thank You.” Is it very difficult? But the nonsense, they will not do even this. They’ll say, “Oh, God is dead.” Therefore we are suffering. We are so ungrateful that we even do not give thanks. In the ordinary way, if somebody gives me a glass of water when I am thirsty—it is etiquette—I say, “Thank you.” And God has given us so vast mass of water in the ocean, in the sea, in the sky. Without water we cannot live. There is no thanksgiving. There is no thanksgiving. Rather, we say, “God is dead.” There are so much profuse light. For this electric light you are paying bill to the electric company, and God is supplying so much light, in the night there as moon, in the daytime as sun. So He is supplying so much light, everything, whatever we require, and there is no thanksgiving. So only one has to become grateful. Prahlada Maharaja says that “I don’t require to be very educated or very poetic so that I have to offer my prayers in a beautiful language and God may be pleased. God can be pleased only by the feelings of your love." That is required. And anyone can do that, provided he feels the gratitude that “God is so kind.”

Now, God is so kind that He is giving you light, air, everything that you require for your existence. Either you give Him thanks or you do not give Him thanks, the supply will be there. So somebody says, “Then what is the use of giving Him thanks?” The use is for yourself. What is that? Prahlada Maharaja said, “If I give thanks to Lord, then I become purified.” What is that purification? The purification is that gradually you become liberated from the influence of the materialistic modes. Anyone who transcends the influence of these modes of material nature, immediately becomes anxiety-less. We are always suffering with anxiety. Beginning from President Johnson down to the small ant, everyone is anxious. That is material consciousness. And to become free from anxiety is to become Krsna conscious. Just like this little child, he is anxiety-less because he is confident that his father and mother will protect him. He is free. So that is the stage of Krsna consciousness. You will be happy. (Class by Srila Prabhupada Aug. 1968)

Let me offer my respectful obeisances unto the all-auspicious Lord Sri Krsna, about whom glorification, remembrances, audience, prayers, hearing and worship can at once cleanse the effects of all sins of the performer. (Sri Sukadeva Goswami SB 2.4.15)

Hare Krsna Hare Krsna Krsna Krsna Hare Hare, Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare