suddhabhakti

  In the beginning, from clear  consciousness , or the pure state of Krishna consciousness, the first contamination sprang up. This is called a false ego, or identification of the body as self. The living entity exists in the natural state of Krishna consciousness, but he has marginal independence, and this allows him to forget Krishna. Originally, pure Krishna consciousness exists, but because of the misuse of marginal independence, there is a chance of forgetting Krishna. This is exhibited in actual life; there are many instances in which someone acting in Krishna consciousness suddenly changes. In the Upanishads, it is stated, therefore, that the path of spiritual realization is just like the sharp edge of a razor. The example is very appropriate. One shaves his cheeks with a sharp razor very nicely, but as soon as his attention is diverted from the activity, he immediately cuts his cheek because he mishandles the razor. Not only must one come to the stage of pure Krishna c...

  In  Kṛṣṇa,  Śrīla Prabhupāda explains the five levels of ego covering the self: “Within the body there are five different departments of existence, known as  anna-maya, prāṇa-maya,   mano-maya,   vijñāna-maya,  and at last  ānanda-maya.  [These are enumerated in the  Brahmānanda-vallī  of the  Taittirīya Upaniṣad. ] In the beginning of life, every living entity is food conscious. A child or an animal is satisfied only by getting nice food. This stage of consciousness, in which the goal is to eat sumptuously, is called  anna-maya.   Anna  means ‘food.’ After this one lives in the consciousness of being alive. If one can continue his life without being attacked or destroyed, one thinks himself happy. This stage is called  prāṇa-maya,  or consciousness of one’s existence. After this stage, when one is situated on the mental platform, that consciousness is called  mano-maya.  The material civili...

  na jāyate mriyate vā kadācin nāyaṁ bhūtvā bhavitā vā na bhūyaḥ ajo nityaḥ śāśvato ’yaṁ purāṇo na hanyate hanyamāne śarīre “For the soul there is never birth nor death. Nor, having once been, does he ever cease to be. He is unborn, eternal, ever-existing, undying and primeval. He is not slain when the body is slain.” The spirit soul is eternal, being freed from waste and change, which take place because of the material body. The example of a tree and its fruits and flowers is very simple and clear. A tree stands for many, many years, but with the seasonal changes its fruits and flowers undergo six transformations. The foolish theory of modern chemists that life can be produced by chemical interactions cannot be accepted as truth. The birth of a human being’s material body takes place due to a mixture of the ovum and semen, but the history of birth is that although the ovum and semen mix together after sex, there is not always pregnancy. Unless the soul enters the mixture, the...

  Niḥśreyasa  means “the ultimate destination.”  Sva-saṁsthāna  indicates that the impersonalists have no particular place to stay. The impersonalists sacrifice their individuality so that the living spark can merge into the impersonal effulgence emanating from the transcendental body of the Lord, but the devotee has a specific abode. The planets rest in the sunshine, but the sunshine itself has no particular resting place. When one reaches a particular planet, then he has a resting place. The spiritual sky, which is known as  kaivalya,  is simply blissful light on all sides, and it is under the protection of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. As stated in  Bhagavad-gītā  (14.27) ,  brahmaṇo hi pratiṣṭhāham:  the impersonal Brahman effulgence rests on the body of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. In other words, the bodily effulgence of the Supreme Personality of Godhead is  kaivalya,  or impersonal Brahman. In that imperson...