Bhagvatam: LORD BRAHMÄ POINTED OUT TO THE DEMIGODS THAT BY THE STRENGTH OF THE GURU ONE CAN BECOME MOST POWERFUL WITHIN THIS WORLD, AND BY THE DISPLEASURE OF THE GURU ONE CAN LOSE EVERYTHING ,8th Aug

Bhagvatam: LORD BRAHMÄ POINTED OUT TO THE DEMIGODS THAT BY THE STRENGTH OF THE GURU ONE CAN BECOME MOST POWERFUL WITHIN THIS WORLD, AND BY THE DISPLEASURE OF THE GURU ONE CAN LOSE EVERYTHING.

TRANSLATION

Because of your misbehavior toward Brhaspati, you have been defeated by the demons. My dear demigods, since the demons were weak, having been defeated by you several times, how else could you, who were so advanced in opulence, be defeated by them?

PURPORT

The devas are celebrated for fighting with the asuras perpetually. In such fights the asuras were always defeated, but this time the demigods were defeated. Why? The reason, as stated here, was that they had offended their spiritual master. Their impudent disrespect of their spiritual master was the cause of their defeat by the demons. As stated in the shästras, when one disrespects a respectable superior, one loses his longevity and the results of his pious activities, and in this way one is degraded.

TRANSLATION

O Indra, your enemies, the demons, were extremely weak because of their disrespect toward Sukrächärya, but since they have now worshiped Sukrächärya with great devotion, they have again become powerful. By their devotion to Sukrächärya, they have increased their strength so much that now they are even able to easily seize my abode from me.

PURPORT

Lord Brahmä wanted to point out to the demigods that by the strength of the guru one can become most powerful within this world, and by the displeasure of the guru one can lose everything. This is confirmed by the song of Vishvanätha Chakravarti Thäkura:

"By the mercy of the spiritual master one is benedicted by the mercy of Krshna. Without the grace of the spiritual master, one cannot make any advancement." Although the demons are insignificant in comparison to Lord Brahmä, because of the strength of their guru they were so powerful that they could even seize Brahmaloka from Lord Brahmä. We therefore pray to the spiritual master:

By the mercy of the guru, even a dumb man can become the greatest orator, and even a lame man can cross mountains. As advised by Lord Brahmä, one should remember this shästric injunction if one desires success in his life.

GITA-SHLOKA-4.26 The four divisions of human life, namely the brahmachari, the grhastha, the vanaprastha, and the sannyasi, are all meant to help men become perfect yogis or transcendentalists,8th Aug

GITA-SHLOKA-4.26 The four divisions of human life, namely the brahmachari,  the grhastha, the vanaprastha, and the sannyasi, are all meant to help men become perfect yogis or transcendentalists.

TRANSLATION

Some of them sacrifice the hearing process and the senses in the fire of the controlled mind, and others sacrifice the objects of the senses, such as sound, in the fire of sacrifice.

PURPORT

The four divisions of human life, namely the brahmachari,  the grhastha, the vanaprastha, and the sannyasi, are all meant to help men become perfect yogis or transcendentalists.

Since human life is not meant for our enjoying sense gratification like the animals, the four orders of human life are so arranged that one may become perfect in spiritual life.

The brahmacharis, or students under the care of a bona fide spiritual master, control the mind by abstaining from sense gratification.

They are referred to in this verse as sacrificing the hearing process and the senses in the fire of the controlled mind.

A brahmachari hears only words concerning Krsna consciousness; hearing is the basic principle for understanding, and therefore the pure brahmacari engages fully in harer namanukirtanam—chanting and hearing the glories of the Lord.

He restrains himself from the vibrations of material sounds, and his hearing is engaged in the transcendental sound vibration of Hare Krsna, Hare Krsna.

Similarly, the householders, who have some license for sense gratification, perform such acts with great restraint.

Sex life, intoxication and meat eating are general tendencies of human society, but a regulated householder does not indulge in unrestricted sex life and other sense gratifications.

Marriage on principles of religious life is therefore current in all civilized human society because that is the way for restricted sex life.

This restricted, unattached sex life is also a kind of yajna because the restricted householder sacrifices his general tendency toward sense gratification for higher transcendental life.

Bhagvatam: PEOPLE MUST TAKE TO KRISHNA CONSCIOUSNESS TO UNDERSTAND THE AIM OF LIFE, TO UNDERSTAND GOD, AND TO FULFILL THE HUMAN MISSION, 5th Aug

Bhagvatam: PEOPLE MUST TAKE TO KRISHNA CONSCIOUSNESS TO UNDERSTAND THE AIM OF LIFE, TO UNDERSTAND GOD, AND TO FULFILL THE HUMAN MISSION

TRANSLATION

Leaders who have fallen into ignorance and who mislead people by directing them to the path of destruction [as described in the previous verse] are, in effect, boarding a stone boat, and so too are those who blindly follow them. A stone boat would be unable to float and would sink in the water with its passengers. Similarly, those who mislead people go to hell, and their followers go with them.

PURPORT

As stated in the Vedic literature (Bhäg. 11.20.17):

We, the conditioned souls, have fallen in the ocean of nescience, but the human body fortunately provides us a good opportunity to cross the ocean because the human body is like a very good boat.

When directed by a spiritual master acting as the captain, the boat can very easily cross the ocean.

Furthermore, the boat is helped across by favorable winds, which are the instructions of Vedic knowledge.

If one does not take advantage of all these facilities to cross the ocean of nescience, he is certainly committing suicide.

One who boards a boat made of stone is doomed.

To be elevated to the stage of perfection, humanity must first give up false leaders who present boats of stone.

All of human society is in such a dangerous position that to be rescued it must abide by the standard instructions of the Vedas.

The cream of these instructions appears in the form of Bhagavad-gitä.

One should not take shelter of any other instructions, for Bhagavad-gitä gives direct instructions on how to fulfill the aim of human life.

Lord Sri Krshna therefore says, sarva-dharmän parityajya mäm ekam sharanam vraja: "Give up all other processes of religion and simply surrender to Me.”

Even if one does not accept Lord Krshna as the Supreme Personality of Godhead, His instructions are so exalted and beneficial for humanity that if one follows His instructions one will be saved.

Otherwise one will be cheated by unauthorized meditation and gymnastic methods of yoga.

Thus one will board a boat of stone, which will sink and drown all its passengers.

Unfortunately, although the American people are extremely eager to get out of materialistic chaos, they are sometimes found to patronize the makers of stone boats.

That will not help them.

They must take the proper boat offered by Krshna in the form of the Krshna consciousness movement.

Then they will be easily saved.

In this regard Srila Vishvanätha Chakravarti Thäkura comments: 

If society is guided by political diplomacy, with one nation maneuvering against another, it will certainly sink like a stone boat.

Political maneuvering and diplomacy will not save human society.

People must take to Krshna consciousness to understand the aim of life, to understand God, and to fulfill the human mission.

Bhagvatam: ONE SHOULD FULLY SURRENDER UNTO THE SPIRITUAL MASTER, AND WITH SERVICE (SEVAYÄ) ONE SHOULD APPROACH HIM FOR FURTHER SPIRITUAL ENLIGHTENMENT,6th Aug

Bhagvatam: ONE SHOULD FULLY SURRENDER UNTO THE SPIRITUAL MASTER, AND WITH SERVICE (SEVAYÄ) ONE SHOULD APPROACH HIM FOR FURTHER SPIRITUAL ENLIGHTENMENT.

TRANSLATION

King Indra said: Therefore with great frankness and without duplicity I shall now bow my head at the lotus feet of Brhaspati, the spiritual master of the demigods. Because he is in the mode of goodness, he is fully aware of all knowledge and is the best of the brähmanas. Now I shall touch his lotus feet and offer my obeisances unto him to try to satisfy him.

PURPORT

Coming to his senses, King Indra realized that he was not a very sincere disciple of his spiritual master, Brhaspati.

Therefore he decided that henceforward he would be nishatha, nonduplicitous.

Nishatham shirshna-tac-caranam sprshan: he decided to touch his head to the feet of his spiritual master.

From this example, we should learn this principle enunciated by Vishvanätha Chakravarti Thäkura:

"By the mercy of the spiritual master one is benedicted by the mercy of Krshna.

Without the grace of the spiritual master, one cannot make any advancement.”

A disciple should never be a hypocrite or be unfaithful to his spiritual master.

In Srimad-Bhägavatam (11.17.27), the spiritual master is also called ächärya.

Ächäryam mäm vijäniyän: the Supreme Personality of Godhead says that one should respect the spiritual master, accepting him as the Lord Himself.

Nävamanyeta karhicit: one should not disrespect the ächärya at any time.

Na martya-buddhyäsüyeta: one should never think the ächärya an ordinary person.

Familiarity sometimes breeds contempt, but one should be very careful in one's dealings with the ächärya.

Agädha-dhishanam dvijam: the ächärya is a perfect brähmana and has unlimited intelligence in guiding the activities of his disciple.

Therefore Krshna advises in Bhagavad-gitä (4.34):

"Just try to learn the truth by approaching a spiritual master. Inquire from him submissively and render service unto him. The self-realized soul can impart knowledge unto you because he has seen the truth.”

One should fully surrender unto the spiritual master, and with service (sevayä) one should approach him for further spiritual enlightenment.

UNLESS MIND IS MADE TO ANCHOR ITSELF AT LORD’S FEET, IT WILL ALWAYS BE RESTLESS #Blog0073

UNLESS MIND IS MADE TO ANCHOR ITSELF AT LORD’S FEET, IT WILL ALWAYS BE RESTLESS

Excellent Introspection article & Very True: 

Unless mind is made to anchor itself at Lord’s feet, it will always be restless & looking for “next moment”/ “next destination”/  “on hunt for a different सुख” as we (basically our “mind” as our subtle body (,i.e., mind always exists even after death & accompanies us to next birth & always remains -basically we are nothing but our mind (मन) constitutionally parts & parcel of Lord but separated for ages from Him – so our mind is always on the lookout for eternal bliss available only in Lord but mind does not know where to find exactly that same bliss – our “good sense” (inner conscience) has to act wisely & remind the foolish mind to find love only in Lord & nowhere else – only then it can find peace & rest – otherwise it’ll always be full of anxieties

Mind is dumb - मन ना अच्छा है ना बुरा है मन ना आपका मीत है ना आपका शत्रु है 

कबीर तो कहते हैं "मन के हारे हार है, मन के जीते जीत, मन ही मिलावे राम से, मन ही करे फजीत" (फजीत confound, confuse)

मन केवल पकड़ना, ग्रहण करना जानता है, विचार करना नहीं जानता

मन ना बुरा है ना भला है, बस संसार को पकड़ के बैठ गया है 

भूलकर बैठा है

मन तुच्छ वस्तु छोड़ कर उच्च वस्तु को पकड़ना जानता है 

mind is always eager & looking for to grab a “more” pleasurable thing – on getting something better, it would drop “lesser” item

इसे प्रभु का नाम बताइए, प्रभु का रूप पकड़वाइए – केवल तभी it can find peace (शांति) -never otherwise as otherwise mind would keep holding to petty worldly pleasures – mind needs  to be controlled by wisdom/conscience of soul – otherwise mind controls us & we do as our mind dictates 

हम वही करते हैं जो हमारा मन कहता है इसीलिए मन को एक श्रेष्ठतम भाव का सेवन करवाना चाहिए

और वो श्रेष्ठतम भाव है प्रभु की प्रीती 

एक बार मन को प्रभु की प्रीति का “चस्का” लग गया तो बाकी सब तुच्छ मन अपने-आप छोड़ देगा 

और यह चस्का केवल सत्संग  में ही लग सकता है