develop qualities of demigods

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"One who has unflinching devotional faith in Krsna consistently manifests all the good qualities of Krsna and the demigods. However, he who has no devotion to the Supreme Personality of Godhead has no good qualifications because he is engaged by mental concoction in material existence, which is the external feature of the Lord." (Bhag. 5.18.12) So-called educated philosophers and scientists who are simply on the mental platform cannot distinguish between what is actually sat, eternal, and what is asat, temporary. The Vedic injunction is asato ma jyotir gama: everyone should give up the platform of temporary existence and approach the eternal platform. The soul is eternal, and topics concerning the eternal soul are actually knowledge. Elsewhere it is said, apasyatam atma-tattvam grhesu grha-medhinam: those who are attached to the bodily conception of life and who thus stick to life as a grhastha, or householder, on the platform of material sense enjoyment, cannot see the welfare of the eternal soul. Prahlada Maharaja confirmed this by saying that if one wants success in life, he should immediately understand from the right sources what his self-interest is and how he should mold his life in spiritual consciousness. One should understand himself to be part and parcel of Krsna and thus completely take shelter of His lotus feet for guaranteed spiritual success. Everyone in the material world is in the bodily conception, struggling hard for existence, life after life. Prahlada Maharaja therefore recommended that to stop this material condition of repeated birth and death, one should go to the forest (vana). (More...)

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A devotee acquires all the good qualities of the demigods; he is gunayanam, the reservoir of all good qualities. His only asset is good behavior, and he is grateful. Gratitude for the mercy of the Supreme Personality of Godhead is one of the qualities of brahmanas and Vaisnavas. Everyone should feel grateful to the Supreme Personality of Godhead because He is maintaining all living entities and supplying all their necessities. As stated in the Vedas, eko bahūnam yo vidadhati kaman: the Supreme One is supplying all necessities to the living entities (Katha Up. 2.2.13). The living entity who is therefore grateful to the Supreme Personality of Godhead is certainly qualified with good characteristics. (More...)

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Prthu Maharaja's talks before the Kumaras were very laudable because of so many qualifications. A speech should be composed of selected words, very sweet to hear and appropriate to the situation. Such speech is called meaningful. All these good qualifications are present in Prthu Maharaja's speech because he is a perfect devotee. It is said, yasyasti bhaktir bhagavaty akincana sarvair gunais tatra samasate suraḥ: "For one who has unflinching devotional faith and is engaged in His service, all good qualities become manifest in his person." (Bhag. 5.18.12) Thus the Kumaras were very much pleased, and Sanat-kumara began to speak as follows. (More...)

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The term sahga-varjitaḥ is very significant. One should disassociate himself from persons who are against Krsna. Not only are the atheistic persons against Krsna, but also those who are attracted to fruitive activities and mental speculation. Therefore the pure form of devotional service is described in Bhakti-rasamrta-sindhu as follows: anyabhilasita-sūnyam jnana-karmady-anavrtam anukūlyena krsnanusilanam bhaktir uttama. In this verse Srila Rūpa Gosvami clearly states that if anyone wants to execute unalloyed devotional service, he must be freed from all kinds of material contamination. He must be freed from the association of persons who are addicted to fruitive activities and mental speculation. When, freed from such unwanted association and from the contamination of material desires, one favorably cultivates knowledge of Krsna, that is called pure devotional service. Anukūlyasya sahkaplaḥ pratikūlyasya varjanam. One should think of Krsna and act for Krsna favorably, not unfavorably. Kamsa was an enemy of Krsna's. From the very beginning of Krsna's birth, he planned in so many ways to kill Him, and because he was always unsuccessful, he was always thinking of Krsna. Thus while working, while eating and while sleeping, he was always Krsna conscious in every respect, but that Krsna consciousness was not favorable, and therefore in spite of his always thinking of Krsna twenty-four hours a day, he was considered a demon, and Krsna at last killed him. Of course anyone who is killed by Krsna attains salvation immediately, but that is not the aim of the pure devotee. The pure devotee does not even want salvation. He does not want to be transferred even to the highest planet, Goloka Vrndavana. His only objective is to serve Krsna wherever he may be. (More...)

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One must be prepared to offer the necessary respect and honor to the spiritual master. He should not be unnecessarily envious of his Godbrothers. Rather, if a Godbrother is more enlightened and advanced in Krsna consciousness, one should accept him as almost equal to the spiritual master, and one should be happy to see such Godbrothers advance in Krsna consciousness. A devotee should always be very kind to the general public in instructing Krsna consciousness because that is the only solution for getting out of the clutches of maya. That is really humanitarian work, for it is the way to show mercy to other people who need it very badly. The word susrūsabhirataya indicates a person who faithfully engages in serving the spiritual master. One should give personal service and all kinds of comforts to the spiritual master. A devotee who does so is also a bona fide candidate for taking this instruction. The word bahir jata-viragaya means a person who has developed detachment from external and internal material propensities. Not only is he detached from activities which are not connected to Krsna consciousness, but he should be internally averse to the material way of life. Such a person must be nonenvious and should think of the welfare of all living entities, not only of the human beings, but living entities other than human beings. The word sucaye means one who is cleansed both externally and internally. To become actually cleansed externally and internally, one should chant the holy name of the Lord, Hare Krsna, or Visnu, constantly. (More...)

The processes of speculative knowledge and renunciation are not practically the chief items for acquiring a higher standard of devotional service. One doesnot have to take to the principles of nonviolence and sense control, although there are rules and regulations for acquiring these qualities in other processes. Without being engaged in the practice of such processes, a devotee develops such high qualities simply by discharging devotional service to the Lord. In Srimad Bhagwatam [11.20.31], Eleventh Canto, the Lord says that for those who are actually engaged in the devotional service of the Lord there is no necessity for cultivating speculative knowledge or renunciation. (More...)

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