24th June 2025

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25th june 2025

We should always take shelter of sr. vaishnavas.
It is important to follow the instructions of our spiritual master (Guru) and the teachings of the scriptures.
We may speak good in front of a person but may speak ill behind their back. That is duplicity. Krishna is always watching us as the Supersoul, so we should not be duplicitous. Krishna does not like us being duplicitous. We should be straightforward and honest in our dealings with others. Simplicity is the mother of beauty.
Hope and pray to serve devotees and Krishna with a pure heart.
Do not waste time of sadhus. Prepare questions in advance and ask them when you get the chance to meet them. Do not waste their time with unnecessary questions or topics that are mundane or irrelevant to spiritual life.
Follow the regulative principles of devotional service as prescribed in the scriptures. These principles help us to purify our consciousness and advance in spiritual life.
Following Guru, sadhu, and śāstra is essential for spiritual progress.
Refrain from activities that are not conducive to spiritual advancement.
Anukulasya sankalpa, pratikulasya varjanam – accept what is favorable for devotional service and reject what is unfavorable.
My country, my family, my friends, my possessions, my body, my mind, my intelligence – everything belongs to Krishna.
I am simply a servant of Krishna. I should use everything in the service of Krishna and not for my own sense gratification.
Take shelter of BG, SB, CC, Nectar of Devotion, Isopanishad.
Remember what prabhupada said: "read my books scrutinizingly, and you will understand everything."
BODY: Body, Old age , Disease, Yamraj (Death).
Bag of rice on the road - A crow will take what is needed. A human will take the whole bag. This is the difference between animals and humans. Humans should be satisfied with what is necessary for their maintenance and not be greedy or attached to material possessions.
Pratyahara – detachment from material sense objects is essential for spiritual progress. We should not be attached to the body or material possessions, as they are temporary and will eventually perish.
What is our want vs. What is the need of the hour.
Regulating attachment to wife and children at home.
Becomee unalloyed devotees of Krishna. This means serving Krishna with a pure heart, free from material desires and attachments.
Prefer solitude or environment conducive to spiritual practice. Avoid non-devotional crowds and distractions that hinder our spiritual.
Prabhupada: These 18 items are part of vidya. If one does not embrace these principles, they are in avidya (nescience). Real knowledge can be developed by following these principles, which lead to spiritual realization and liberation from material bondage.
The only way to make life beautiful is by embracing these principles of vidya and avoiding avidya. This leads to a life of purpose, fulfillment, and spiritual advancement.
BG 13 chapter 8-12 - References to the principles of vidya.

Thu 26 June 2025

Modern education makes one feel that one is advancing. However, it leads to more illusion and ignorance.
No moral training in modern education.
Students disrespect elders due to lack training in celibacy (brahmacarya) and scriptural understanding.
There are people for whom religion is practiced for show rather than transformation.
Scientists are busy discovering tools of destruction rather than tools of liberation.
Universities produce materially intelligent but spiritually ignorant individuals.
Scientific progress often results in destructive technologies (e.g., weapons).
Nationalism, born of nescience, breeds division and conflict.
Earth's material resources are misused, ignoring the Lord’s providence in planetary design.
Despite short lifespans, people waste energy on defense, not spiritual cultivation.
People are not trained to understand the purpose of life, which is to return to the spiritual world.
The need for a dhīra (sober, spiritually realized person):
- A dhīra is a sober, spiritually realized person unaffected by illusion.
- Real knowledge (vidyā) comes from submissive hearing from such a soul.
- The dhīra knows the body and mind are foreign to the eternal self and seeks to return to the spiritual realm.
- Example: Arjuna became a dhīra by hearing from Lord Kṛṣṇa.
We are the soul not the body. Krishna is present along with this soul as supersoul (Paramatma).
The body and mind are temporary and will perish, but the soul is eternal.
The only way to make life beautiful is by embracing the principles of vidyā and avoiding avidyā (nescience).
This leads to a life of purpose, fulfillment, and spiritual advancement
Atop this people divide themselves based on 4Cs - caste, creed, color, country.
A dhira is a sober person who is not affected by the dualities of material existence.
- They are not swayed by the temporary nature of the body and mind and focus on the eternal soul.
- A dhira is a person who has realized their true identity as the soul and is not attached to the temporary material body.
- To become educated in truth, one must hear submissively from a dhīra,
- Dhira makes best use of a bad bargain.
Material education is leading to nescience, as it focuses on temporary material knowledge rather than eternal spiritual wisdom.
We have to invest our time in spiritual education and practices that lead to liberation from material bondage. Everything is temporary except the soul.
Real education comes from a genuine spiritual master in disciplic succession.
Adhīras (materialistic, untrained persons) cannot be true leaders.
To become educated in truth, one must hear submissively from a dhīra,
The whole purpose of life is to return to the spiritual world, and this can only be achieved through the cultivation of vidyā (knowledge) and the guidance of a dhīra. This is possible by understanding our position as the soul and our relationship with Krishna, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, who is all pervading and the source of all knowledge.

Śrī Īśopaniṣad – Mantra 10 Summary

Translation:
The wise have explained that one result is derived from the culture of knowledge and that a different result is obtained from the culture of nescience.

Summary of the Purport:

This mantra presents a contrast between vidyā (knowledge) and avidyā (nescience), emphasizing their distinct results. Śrīla Prabhupāda outlines the cultivation of true knowledge based on Bhagavad-gītā (13.8–12), listing 18 principles:

Cultivate humility and give due respect to others.
Avoid religious pretense for name and fame.
Do not cause anxiety to others by thought, word, or deed.
Practice tolerance, even amid provocation.
Be straightforward and avoid duplicity.
Approach a bona fide spiritual master with service and questions.
Follow scriptural regulative principles.
Remain steadfast in scriptural conclusions.
Reject behaviors that hinder spiritual progress.
Accept only what is necessary for bodily maintenance.
Avoid bodily identification and attachment to bodily relations.
Understand the inevitability of birth, death, old age, and disease; seek spiritual liberation instead.
Be detached from material excesses, even if allowed.
Restrict attachment to family as prescribed by scriptures.
Stay unaffected by material pleasure and pain.
Become a pure devotee of Lord Kṛṣṇa and serve Him attentively.
Prefer solitude conducive to spiritual practice; avoid non-devotional crowds.
Pursue spiritual knowledge as lasting truth; material learning ends with death.

These steps form a gradual path to genuine spiritual realization. Anything outside of this is categorized as nescience.

Critique of Modern Education and Society:

Modern education promotes material knowledge, leading people toward illusion and ignorance.
Students disrespect elders and lack training in celibacy (brahmacarya) and scriptural understanding.
Religion is practiced for show rather than transformation.
Universities produce materially intelligent but spiritually ignorant individuals.
Scientific progress often results in destructive technologies (e.g., weapons).
Nationalism, born of nescience, breeds division and conflict.
Earth's material resources are misused, ignoring the Lord’s providence in planetary design.
Despite short lifespans, people waste energy on defense, not spiritual cultivation.

The Need for a Dhīra:

A dhīra is a sober, spiritually realized person unaffected by illusion.
Real knowledge (vidyā) comes from submissive hearing from such a soul.
The dhīra knows the body and mind are foreign to the eternal self and seeks to return to the spiritual realm.
Example: Arjuna became a dhīra by hearing from Lord Kṛṣṇa.

Conclusion:

Real education comes from a genuine spiritual master in disciplic succession.
Adhīras (materialistic, untrained persons) cannot be true leaders.
To become educated in truth, one must hear submissively from a dhīra, not from materially motivated authorities.