association

Imported quote 14066

My dear Lord, Your lotus feet are the cause of all auspicious things and the destroyer of all the contamination of sin. I therefore beg Your Lordship to bless me by the association of Your devotees, who are completely purified by worshiping Your lotus feet and who are so merciful upon the conditioned souls. I think that Your real benediction will be to allow me to associate with such devotees. (More...)

Imported quote 14068

Simply by the association of pure devotees one can understand the transcendental name, fame, quality and activities of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu has repeatedly said: (More...)

Simply by associating with a pure devotee, one becomes wonderfully advanced in Krsna consciousness. Sadhu-sahga, or association with a devotee, means always engaging in Krsna consciousness by chanting the Hare Krsna mantra and by acting for Krsna. Specifically, chanting the Hare Krsna mantra purifies one, and this chanting is therefore recommended by Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu. Ceto-darpana-marjanam: by chanting the names of Krsna, the mirror of the heart is cleansed, and the devotee loses interest in everything external. When one is influenced by the external energy of the Lord, his heart is impure. When one's heart is not pure, he cannot see how things are related to the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Idam hi visvam bhagavan ivetaraḥ (Bhag. 1.5.20). He whose heart is purified can see that the whole cosmic manifestation is but the Supreme Personality of Godhead, but he whose heart is contaminated sees things differently. Therefore by sat-sahga, or association with devotees, one becomes perfectly pure in heart. (More...)

Imported quote 14720

Even a moment's association with a pure devotee cannot be compared to being transferred to heavenly planets or even merging into the Brahman effulgence in complete liberation. For living entities who are destined to give up the body and die, association with pure devotees is the highest benediction. (More...)

Imported quote 14723

The great saint Prabodhananda Sarasvati, a devotee of Lord Caitanya, has stated: kaivalyam narakayate tridasa-pūr akasa-puspayate. For a pure devotee, kaivalya, merging into the existence of Brahman, the Brahman effulgence, is no better than living in hell. Similarly, he considers promotion to heavenly planets (tridasa-pūr) just another kind of phantasmagoria. In other words, a pure devotee does not place much value in the destination of the karmis (the heavenly planets) nor in the destination of the jnanis (merging into the Brahman effulgence). A pure devotee considers a moment's association with another pure devotee to be far superior to residing in a heavenly planet or merging in the Brahman effulgence. The topmost benediction for those who are living in this material world and are subjected to the repetition of birth and death (transmigration) is association with pure devotees. One should search out such pure devotees and remain with them. That will make one completely happy, even though living within the material world. This Krsna consciousness movement is started for that purpose. A person who is overly affected materially may take advantage of this movement and become intimately associated with it. In this way the confused and frustrated inhabitants of this material world may find the highest happiness in association with devotees. (More...)

Imported quote 15810

Prabhupada & Ananda Prabhu: gauḍa-manḍala-bhūmi yeva jane cintamani, tara haya braja-bhūme vasa [

Song 38-

Savarana-Gaura-mahima
(The Glories of Lord Gaurahga )

gaurahgera duti pada ja'ra dhana sampada
se jane bhakati-rasa-sara
gaurahgera madhura-lila jara karne pravesila
hrdaya nirmala bhela ta'ra

je gaurahgera nama laya ta'ra haya premodaya
tare muni jai balihari
gaurahga-gunete jhure nitya-lila tare sphure
se jana bhakati-adhikari

gaurahgera sahgi-gane nitya-siddha kari mane
se jaya brajendra-suta-pasa
sri-gauḍa-manḍala-bhūmi jeba jane cintamani
tara haya braja-bhūme vasa

gaura-prema-rasarnave se tarahge jeba ḍube
se radha-madhava-antarahga
grhe va vanete thake ha gaurahga bale ḍake
narottama mage ta'ra sahga

PURPORT by
His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada

This is a song by Narottama dasa Thakura in praise of the glories of Lord Caitanya. Gaurahga refers to Lord Caitanya, who has a fair complexion. One who has a fair complexion is called gaura, and since Lord Caitanya was very fair, just like molten gold, He was also named Gaurasundara. Narottama dasa Thakura says, gaurahgera duti pada, jara dhana-sampada, se jane bhakati-rasa-sara. Anyone who has accepted the two lotus feet of Lord Caitanya can understand the true essence of devotional service. Devotional service is very difficult. It cannot be understood by any ordinary man. As it is stated in the Bhagavad-gita, out of many thousands of persons who are trying to achieve the perfection of human life, only some actually become perfect and realise the self. And out of many thousands of such self-realised persons, only one can understand Krsna. Without understanding Krsna, how can one engage himself in the service of Krsna? Therefore, the devotional service of Krsna is not an ordinary thing. But fortunately, if one follows in the footsteps of Lord Caitanya (gaurahgera duti pada) by following the path shown by Lord Caitanya-the process of simply chanting Hare Krsna-he can very easily understand what devotional service is. Therefore, Narottama dasa Thakura prays that one take shelter of Lord Caitanya and follow in His footsteps, for then one can understand the essence of devotional service.

Lord Caitanya's pastimes are very pleasing, because the basic principles of Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu's movement are chanting, dancing, and eating krsna-prasada. He made His headquarters in Jagannatha Puri and would dance, chant, and then immediately call for prasada to be distributed to the devotees. They were so pleased that every day hundreds of men would come to chant and dance with Lord Caitanya. The temple proprietor, the King of Orissa, Maharaja Prataparudra, had an open order to the workers in the temple to supply as much prasada to Lord Caitanya's devotees as they wanted. Therefore, His pastimes are very pleasing-chant, dance, and take prasada. If one is captivated by the pastimes of Lord Caitanya, simply by chanting and dancing and eating prasada, the dirty things in his heart will all become cleansed. The heart of anyone who takes to this movement of chanting, dancing, and eating krsna-prasada will surely be cleansed of all dirty material contamination. Narottama dasa Thakura says, very rightly, gaurahgera madhura-lila, ja'ra karne pravesila, hrdaya nirmala bhela ta'ra: if one wants to cleanse his heart, he must take to the movement of Lord Caitanya-Krsna consciousness.

Lord Caitanya is so nice that one who simply takes the holy name of Gaurasundara, Sri Krsna Caitanya, will immediately develop love of God. Generally, devotees first chant sri-krsna-caitanya prabhu nityananda, for the preliminary process of cleansing the heart is to invoke the mercy of Lord Caitanya, Lord Nityananda and Their associates. Lila means "pastimes." Without associates there cannot be pastimes, so Caitanya Mahaparabhu is always accompanied by associates-Nityananda, Advaita, Gadadhara, Srivasa, and many other devotees. Tara means "his," haya means "it is effected," and premadaya refers to development of love of God. Simply by chanting sri-krsna-caitanya prabhu nityananda one immediately develops love of God. To such a person Narottama dasa Thakura says, "Bravo!" to encourage him in chanting Lord Caitanya's name and dancing. Just as we clap and say, "Bravo!" similarly he says, jai balihari "Very nice, Excellent!"

Then he says, gaurahga-gunete jhure, nitya-lila ta're sphure: if one appreciates the merciful pastimes of Lord Caitanya and feels ecstasy and sometimes cries, this process will immediately help him to understand the pastimes of Radha-Krsna, which are called nitya-lila. The loving affairs between Radha-Krsna are not a temporary things. Here in this material world we can see loving affairs between boys and girls, but that is temporary. That is simply for a few months, a few years, or maybe a little more. But then all that so-called love will go to hell. They are not permanent affairs. But if one really wants permanent love affairs, he must enter into the pastimes of Radha-Krsna. Simply by appreciating Lord Caitanya's movement one can immediately enter into or understand Radha-Krsna's eternal pastimes. One who can understand the transcendental, eternal pastimes of Radha-Krsna reaches the highest perfectional stage of devotional service.

The next line is, gaurahgera sahgi-gane. Sahgi-gane means "associates." Lord Caitanya is always associated: He is not alone. We never see a picture of Lord Caitanya alone. At least there must be Lord Nityananda or Gadadhara Panḍita. Actually, wherever Lord Caitanya was present, many thousands of devotees would assemble. Such devotees, especially those who were His nearest intimate associates, were nitya-siddha. In the devotional line there are three kinds of perfect devotees. One is called sadhana-siddha. This refers to a person who has very rigidly performed the regulative prescriptions and thereby reached the perfectional stage. Reaching the perfectional stage by executing the regulative principles is called sadhana-siddha. There is another kind of devotee who is called krpa-siddha. He may not have executed the regulative principles very rigidly, but by his service mood he is specifically blessed by the spiritual master or Krsna. He is immediately promoted to the perfectional stage. This is called krpa-siddha. Nitya-siddha is one who was never contaminated by the material nature. The sadhana-siddhas and the krpa-siddhas were supposed to have once been in the contamination of material nature, but nitya-siddhas never came into contact with the material nature. All the associates of Caitanya Mahaprabhu are nitya-siddhas, or eternally perfect. Nityananda Prabhu is Balarama, the immediate expansion of Krsna; Advaita Prabhu is Maha-Visnu (He is also visnu-tattva); Gadadhara Prabhu is an expansion of Radharani; and Srivasa is an incarnation of Narada. They are nitya-siddha, or eternally perfect. They were never imperfect. They were never in contact with material contaminati

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