Laguna Beach

Unless one is recognized by the Supreme Personality of Godhead by one's devotional service, the human form of life is wasted. A devotee must therefore know how to render service unto Krsna and thus be recognized by Him. It is explained in the Caitanya-caritamrta that one should serve both the spiritual master and Krsna simultaneously to progress in Krsna consciousness. Service rendered to Krsna under the direction of the spiritual master is bona fide service because the spiritual master is the manifested representative of Krsna.

saksad-dharitvena samasta-sastrair
uktas tatha bhavyata eva sadbhiḥ
kintu prabhor yaḥ priya eva tasya
vande guroḥ sri-caranaravindam

"The spiritual master is to be honored as much as the Supreme Lord because he is the most confidential servitor of the Lord. This is acknowledged in all revealed scriptures and followed by all authorities. Therefore I offer my respectful obeisances unto the lotus feet of such a spiritual master, who is a bona fide representative of Sri Hari [Krsna]." Therefore, when one satisfies the spiritual master he satisfies Krsna.

O beloved Gurudeva, by your mercy we can now understand that everyone on this planet is enamored by the illusory satisfaction of sense gratification. Being fully engaged in illusory activities they are reluctant to take to the Krsna consciousness movement because they are unaware of the benefits of surrendering to Krsna and so they are subjected to various miserable conditions of material existence. They are foolishly attached to so-called society, friendship and love, which simply produce different kinds of miserable conditions. Everyone, both man and woman, is attached to this material existence and is engaged in cheating one another in a great society of the cheaters and the cheated.

Modern society encourages people to become careless about spiritual realization, so everyone is full of anxieties thinking, "What is to be done? What is next?" And because they are strongly bound by material desires they continue to remain in craziness.

It is indeed very difficult to get out of the material entanglement but somehow or other we were favored by Krsna. By His mercy only we were given the opportunity to associate with a pure devotee like Your Divine Grace.

We can therefore conclude that we must be specifically favored by Krsna, otherwise how is it we are becoming Krsna conscious and are engaging in the preaching work of this sublime Vaisnava philosophy?

Your unworthy servants, the community of New Jharikhanḍa

Link to this page: https://prabhupadabooks.com/svp/vyasa-puja-homages/laguna-beach/laguna-beach-2