Spiritual Quotes by Swami Gaurangapada: 71-90

 

71."The value of a diamond is understood by different people as per their qualification. The child thinks it is a toy to play with, the young woman wants it for her necklace, and the businessman sees it as a means to make lots of money. But it is only the expert jeweler who can come anywhere near to understanding the actual value of the diamond. Similarly, even though the Holy Names of Nityananda, Gauranga and Hare Krishna are available to one and all, very rare souls can actually dive deep in the nectar of the Holy Names. The materialist imagines the Holy Names to be some mundane words, the so-called gyani who thinks he is in knowledge thinks that the Holy Names are meant for the sentimentalists or to become one with God, and the practicing devotee chants the Holy Names because chanting is the injunction of the scriptures for worshiping the Lord in Kali Yuga. But it is only the advanced devotee who realizes that the Holy Names are factually non-different from the Lord Himself and penetrates into the deep mysteries of the Holy Names in pure devotional service. Entering the deep mysteries of the Holy Names means to factually realize not just to theoretically understand that the Holy Names are non-different from Lord Gauranga-Krishna's Form, Qualities, Pastimes, Associates and Abodes and to realize and experience these spiritual characteristics of the Lord while chanting."

 

- Swami Gaurangapada

 

72."Just like a calf is spontaneously attracted to the mother cow even in a big herd of cows, similarly in the liberated stage the consciousness of the soul is spontaneously and effortlessly attracted to the Holy Names and all other Divine Characteristics of Lord Gauranga-Krishna even amidst the turbulent disturbances of this material world."

 

- Swami Gaurangapada

 

73."It is only by pleasing the close people around him can one receive the direct audience of a rich man and one's problems will be solved. Similarly, it is only by pleasing the devotee who is intimate to Lord Gauranga-Krishna by following his instructions to chant the Holy Names can one become recognized by the Lord directly."

 

- Swami Gaurangapada

 

(74) "Those who are truly asleep can be awakened but those who pretend to sleep cannot. In the same way, those who imagine to profess so-called knowledge can never submissively hear or grasp the divine words of a devotee which are like swords cutting the soul's bondage with matter. On the other hand, those who honestly accept that they don't know can supremely benefit by such instructions."

 

- Swami Gaurangapada.

 

(75) "Opening the petals of a closed lotus bud reveals the gorgeous innermost whorl of the lotus flower. In the same way, the chanting the Holy Names leads to the blossoming of the divine lotus of Lord's transcendental characterisitics like Form, Qualities, Pastimes, Abodes and Associates."

 

- Swami Gaurangapada

 

(76) "Just as the innumerable rivers on this planet ultimately join and merge into one salt ocean similarly all souls in creation are actually serving God in one way or the other. The materialists serve Lord Gauranga-Krishna indirectly by fruitlessly serving His material energy whereas the more advanced devotees serve the Lord directly by constantly chanting His divine Holy Names."

 

- Swami Gaurangapada

 

(77) "We have fallen into this material world due to our gigantic egotistic ambition to become God and enjoy like Him. That is why you will find that millions of people in this world want to become God through meditation or yoga or via some other means. But hardly anyone wants to surrender to God and lovingly serve Him by chanting His Holy Names."

 

- Swami Gaurangapada

 

(78) "Some say, 'Why bother with chanting the Holy Names daily? Everyone is liberated at the time of death anyway." The answer is, 'Yes, you are liberated at death, but liberated from the rarely achieved human body and thrown into the bondage of an animal body. Real liberation is attained only when the soul gets a spiritual body free from birth, old age, disease and death.'"

 

- Swami Gaurangapada

 

(79) "Gaze towards the sun and you will see no darkness but turn your head away from the sun and you will see your own shadow. Thus the dark shadow is also due to the sun. In the same way, as long as you remain conscious of Lord Gauranga-Krishna by chanting His Holy Names, there is no question of falling a victim to illusion, but as soon as you neglect the Holy Names, you will find yourself face to face with the stark and dark material energy of the Lord."

 

- Swami Gaurangapada

 

(80) "Simply sentimental and mental attachment to God will not do if it is not accompanied by practical devotional service to the spiritual master and the Lord which begins by the daily chanting of the Holy Names of Nityananda, Gauranga and Hare Krishna."

 

- Swami Gaurangapada.

 

(81) "The light of one candle cannot be covered by all the darkness in the universe. In fact it removes the darkness of those who come near it. Similarly, a pure devotee's brilliant attachment to the Holy Names can save the whole universe from doom and purify the hearts of the wicked who come near to him or her."

 

- Swami Gaurangapada

 

(82) "As per Shrimad Bhagavatam, cooked food looses it's taste after three hours if it is not the holy remnants of the Lord. Similarly, due to the ever-degrading force of the illusory energy, a devotee may stand to loose taste in the chanting and glorification of the Holy Names of the Lord if the devotee is not fixed and determined to remain in the fire of devotional service by the daily chanting and glorification of the Holy Names."

 

- Swami Gaurangapada

 

(83) "Surely, there is some mundane sweetness in material sense pleasure, but it is like the sweetness of the ice-cream mixed with particles of sand. Since mundane happiness is dependant on the well-being of our body, the soul is thrown into suffering as soon as the perishable body is finished."

 

- Swami Gaurangapada

 

(84) "How long can we go on enjoying this material body? This body is as temporary as a momentary flash of lightning in the sky or as flickering and unsteady as a tiny drop of water on a slippery lotus leaf."

 

- Swami Gaurangapada

 

(85) The sun is so powerfully effulgent and radiant that even if we look away from it's glaring light, we can still see it. Similarly, it is difficult to forget or avoid the Supreme Lord Gauranga-Krishna, once having heard about Him from His realized devotees."

 

- Swami Gaurangapada

 

(86) "Just like a magician engages in hand jugglery to fool the people and a flatterer in word jugglery for one's selfish ends, speculators indulge in mental jugglery to show others that they know a lot about God and the soul. But in reality, it is their gross ignorance about God that they think they can understand Him by the dint of their puny and imperfect mind."

 

- Swami Gaurangapada

 

(87) "Mental speculators talk about God and science by using the words 'it might be,' 'I think', etc. But in the Vedic scriptures, there is no need of speculation nor any research. The faultless knowledge about God and the soul has already been revealed by the pure devotees who are above the four defects of an ordinary human being."

 

- Swami Gaurangapada

 

(88) "When a child is born from the womb of the mother, the child accepts the father on the basis of the mother's direction without the need of any argument or speculation. Similarly, the Vedic scripture is our eternal and indisputable mother who clearly points us directly to our eternal father Lord Gauranga-Krishna. Those who faithfully accept are saved from fruitless speculation and research for millions of lives."

 

- Swami Gaurangapada

 

(89) "A bankrupt and rebellious son again becomes rich when he returns to his wealthy father as he inherits the opulences of his father. Similarly, we have all come to this painful material world due to our revolt against serving the Lord and wanting to enjoy ourselves. But we can regain the opulence of our soul by becoming reconnected to our eternal and supreme father Lord Gauranga-Krishna by chanting His Holy Names."

 

- Swami Gaurangapada

 

(90) "A good and obedient son is one who tries to serve his father with love and devotion not the one who tries to usurp the position of his father by trying to become him. In the same way, a soul is delivered from bondage when the soul tries to engage in devotional service to the Lord by chanting His Holy Names, not when the soul endeavors to become God by mental speculation."

 

- Swami Gaurangapada