opulence

Dehapatya-kalatradisu. I was forgetting. Deha and apatya. Deha means this body, and apatya means children. Dehapatya-kalatra. Kalatra means wife. Dehapatya-kalatradisu atma-sainyesu Dehapatya-kalatradisv atma-sainyesv asatsv api So, so long we possess all these things... That is explained here: janma, aisvarya, sruta, sri. These are good material possessions: to born in high family, aristocratic family, or brahmana family, ksatriya family. These were considered high parentage, heritage. Nowadays, everyone is sūdra. That is another thing. Nobody can be proud of his birth. So janma and aisvarya. If we possess land, home and children, wife, bank balance, that is called aisvarya. Janmaisvarya-sruta. And education. "I am philosopher. I am scientist. I am this, poet." So education. That is called sruta. Sruta. Especially Vedic knowledge, sruti. So janmaisvarya-sruta-sribhiḥ. And sri, beauty. So unless one is very happy or born in good family; unless one..., he cannot have bodily beauty. Janmaisvarya-sruta-sribhir edhamana, edhamana-madaḥ [SB 1.8.26]. The more we possess these things, then we become intoxicated. It is already illusion. Grha-ksetra-sutapta-vittaiḥ [SB 5.5.8]. So that illusion becomes more and more stronger. And that is called madaḥ.    (More...)

So they are not interested in Krsna consciousness. That is the position at the present moment. Everyone is trying that "I must have a good position in the society." People will say, "Oh, his house is very nice." Or everyone is trying to be educated to acquire money. In the Western countries, these are very prominent, janmaisvarya-sruta. They are not very much interested about the janma, but aisvarya, sruta, they are interested, and sri. So everywhere, more or less, that is the... So these are disqualification for Krsna consciousness. In the materially, they are very good qualification, advancement of material civilization. But here Kunti says, janmaisvarya-sruta-sribhir edhamana-madaḥ puman, naivarhati [SB 1.8.26]: "He does not desire." Na eva, naiva, arhati.    (More...)

So this is Kunti's realization. Janmaisvarya-sruta-sribhir edhamana-madaḥ... [SB 1.8.26]. Therefore for spiritual advancement, if one is interested, they should not be too much attached to material things if you want to advance in spiritual life. Janmaisvarya... Because this will be entanglement. The more and more we shall think, "This is mine. This is mine." Aham mameti [SB 5.5.8]. This is illusion. Nothing belongs to him, but by illusion he will think, "This is mine. This is mine." Just like we have got this nice, grand building in this district. If we think, "This is my building" or "My building," then there will be mishap. My Guru Maharaja said, personally. He said that "When we were living in a rented house, if we could collect two hundred, three hundred rupees... We were living very nicely at Ultadanga. And since then-J. B. Datta has given us this marble palace, Gauḍiya-Matha-there is friction between our men: 'Who will occupy this room? Who will occupy that room? Who will be proprietor of room?' " Tirtha Maharaja... Kunjababa was giving one tablet, that "This is..." Everyone is planning in different way. So Guru Maharaja said... He was personally instructing me that "If I could sell this marble of this temple and secure some money, and if I could print some books, that would have been better. That would have been better."    (More...)

So he was akincana. So similarly... Just like Ramananda Raya. He was grhastha, very opulent, governor. He is also akincana because nothing was possessed by personal; everything for Jagannatha. This is the distinction. On one side, Rūpa Gosvami, and one side, Ramananda Raya. And Ramananda Raya is the most confidential devotee of Caitanya Mahaprabhu, although he's a grhastha, because he is akincana, as akincana as Rūpa Gosvami. So we have to become akincana. Akincana. Then we shall realize Krsna. Therefore it is said, akincana-gocaram: "You are understandable only by a person who does not possess so-called material opulence." So we should always remember that whatever we are trying for material..., it is all for Krsna, nothing for us, so that people may... Big, gorgeous temple means people will be attracted to come here, and we'll distribute Krsna's prasadam. The aim is some way or other to turn them, to convert them into Krsna consciousness. Then you remain akincana. And if we think that "We have got now very big house. We shall live comfortably and sleep comfortably," then na gocaram, then Krsna will not be realized. Then that comfort will be realized only, not Krsna. Akincana-gocaram. We should always remember this. This is... Kunti devi is saying, tvam akincana-gocaram [SB 1.8.26].    (More...)