SAI BABA OF SHIRDI - OM NAMAH SHIVAYA!!!!

 

SAI BABA OF SHIRDI - OM NAMAH SHIVAYA!!!!

LORD SHRI HANUMAN

 

Benefits Of Praying To Lord Narasimha

 

Lord Narasimha

Lord Vishnu is the universe's defender, and he takes on the task of protecting people's lives and maintaining their peaceful existence. The Lord himself incarnates on earth from time to time to eliminate evil, defend mankind from cruelties, and build dharma, the ultimate righteousness, in order to achieve this goal. Narasimha, the Lord's fourth incarnation on Earth, is one of these hallowed incarnations or Avatars. Narasimha is a one-of-a-kind form with a human body and a lion's head. The Golden Age, also known as the Krita (Satya) Yuga, is thought to have produced this Avatar. Lord Narasimha (Narsingh, Narasingh and Narasingha) is Lord Vishnu's furthermost intense incarnation. The fourth incarnation is recognised for being fierce in combating and removing all ills that are directed against His worshippers, as well as protecting them from danger. People who embrace the Vaishnava faith revere him in large numbers.

Lord Vishnu's multiple incarnations have occurred at various eras in order to save His worshippers from evil's dominion and to benefit the world. According to the Puranas, Lord Vishnu had taken a Varaha (Boar) Avatar to retake the globe from Patala and kill the tyrant Rakshasha Hiranyaksha. The following incarnation, Lord Narasimha, was the one who defeated Hiranyakashipu, Hiranyaksha's evil brother.

 

Portrayal Of Lord Narasimha

Lord Narasimha is Lord Vishnu's lion-man avatar, with a lion's head and human torso and lower body. He is frequently represented with a ferocious expression on his face, bulging eyes, and four to sixteen hands holding various weapons such as a mace, discus, conch, axe, and so on. One of his hands will be in Abhaya mudra, or blessing stance, at all times. As Lakshmi Narasimha, he is sometimes represented seated calmly with his consort Goddess Lakshmi.

Lord Narasimha is characterised in several forms in addition to his bodily appearances, and is reported to have over 74 forms in terms of varied postures and weapons that he holds in his hands. It is believed that each form should be worshipped with severe discipline, depending on the Lord's stance. Krodha Narasimha, Ugra Narasimha, Jwala Narasimha, Malola Narasimha, Bhargava Narasimha, Varaha Narasimha, Yoga Narasimha, Karanja Narasimha and Lakshmi Narasimha are the most common forms.

 

Importance Of Lord Narasimha

Because ‘Nara' is a human and ‘Simha' is a lion, ‘Nara-Simha' together means ‘Man-Lion.' Lord Vishnu was forced to take this strange form in order to defeat and destroy Hiranyakashipu, who was a powerful demon who was well protected by a series of boons, in order to free the earth and its inhabitants from his tyranny.

 

Legends Behind Lord Narasimha 

The legend of Narasimha is depicted graphically in the Bhagavata Purana. Demon Hiranyakashipu was an Asura of great power (demon). Lord Vishnu, who had murdered his brother previously and put an end to his cruelties, became a target of his rage. Hiranyakashipu performed intense penance before Lord Brahma and received numerous extraordinary boons from him, including the ability to not be killed by the Devas (celestial beings), Asuras, humans, or animals; by any weapon; at any time of day or night; on the ground or in space; and inside or outside any structure. Hiranyakashipu unleashed a reign of terror across all worlds, dethroning the Devas, executing untold crimes on sages, saints, and people, and cruelly punishing anybody who claimed the name of Vishnu or Narayana. As a result, the chanting "Om Hiranyaya Namaha" began to reverberate over the globe. People bowed to the Lord, requesting mercy and assistance, because they were unable to withstand the demon's attacks. Vishnu, the omniscient, set out on a huge quest to vanquish the devil and save the righteous.

Hinranyakashipu had a son named Prahlada, who turned out to be Lord Vishnu's most fervent follower. While the world outside bowed to the Asura's diktats, this pious young prince practically lived and flourished on taking Lord Vishnu's hallowed name and chanting his honour right in Hiranya's palace. Hiranya couldn't stand it when his own kid openly defied him and revered his sworn enemy's name, so he tried everything he could to get the youngster to change his mind and fall in line. His endeavours, however, was unsuccessful. Exasperated, he attempted everything he could to kill him, but nothing could stop that miraculously blessed boy. Hiranya, sure that his great foe Vishnu is instigating and supporting the small kid, asked his devotee son where the Lord is and, after being told that he is anywhere and everywhere by his devotee son, smashed his mace against a pillar in the palace in wrath.

What a surprise! The pillar cracked open, revealing the extraordinary figure of a man-lion with fire-emitting eyes. This incarnation snatched the befuddled Hiranyakashipu with his hands, took him to the palace door, sat him on his lap, tore his body apart with his sharp claws, and murdered the vicious demon at precisely 6:00 p.m. Thus, without breaching any of the magnificent boons that he had gained, this remarkable Narasimha Avatar of Lord Vishnu put a stop to a terrible demon who appeared impregnable, and saved all of his devotee, as well as the universe, from unbearable horrors of the demon Hiranyakashipu.

 

Benefits Of Worshipping Lord Narasimha

On the day of his arrival, some people practise a fast until the nightfall in their homes and temples, while others observe a fast until dusk in their temples. It is widely believed that praying to this Lord can provide a variety of benefits, including the forgiveness of sins, the cure of diseases, the protection from the negative influences of planets and evil forces, the fulfilment of honest desires for longevity, wealth, success, and so on, and the path to liberation.

 

Events Linked To Lord Narasimha

In the month of Vaishaka (April-May), while Swati Nakshatra was governing, Narasimha is claimed to have emerged at dusk on the Shukla Chaturdashi, the fourteenth lunar day of the bright fortnight of the Moon. Narasimha Jayanthi is a day when devotees worship the mighty and compassionate Lord with zeal and devotion.

 - https://www.talktoastro.com

GODDESS KALI AMMA

 

GODDESS KALI AMMA

Does one have to pray to Ganesha before Shiva?

"Does one have to pray to Ganesha before Shiva? Can’t I pray to Shiva directly or will it not have any effect?"

Of course you can address Shiva Mahadeva directly.
In Hinduism however we prefer to “meditate” (dhyana, stuti, etc) rather than “pray” (prarthana). Praying means addressing someone to ASK for something, while the Hindu-Vedic tradition prefers to SERVE through the bhakti process of sravanam, kirtanam, smaranam, pada sevanam, archanam, vandanam, dasyam, sakhyam, atma nivedanam. In this way we establish a closer and more uplifting relationship with the Divine, instead of abasing ourselves as miserable beggars and flatterers. This is the actual EFFECT we are seeking when approaching the Divine.
Meditating on, or addressing Ganesha before addressing Shiva Mahadeva has the purpose of obtaining more inspiration and the proper attitude in approaching God. Ganesha is the personification of progress and development, who destroys obstacles and helps success. And if you have some solid knowledge about the lila of the Personalities of God, it will help you remember how Ganesha was recognized as the perfect worshiper, to be offered respect before starting any activity - how he showed his deep realization of the true tattva of his parents Shiva and Parvati. - Parama Devi

Why did Lord Shiva get married to Goddess Parvati?

 

Why did Shiva marry Parvati? Why does Shiva who spends time meditating in a graveyard married Parvati?

Why should gods marry like human beings?

What do Shiva and Parvati symbolize?

The Hindu gods symbolize the seven stages in which an idea is converted into an action.

Of these the central three gods do the actual thinking and the remaining four fecilitate or retard the thought.

Of the three central gods Shiva is the most practical god.

Shiva gives four options.

1. The idea gets converted into an action
2. It remains in a state of suspended animation (Mrithyunjaya)
3. It gets abolished
4. It returns t the starting point and is processed once again.

Parvati acts as the copy of the idea that is being processed into an action. This enables comparing the idea that is to be recycled with the original copy of the idea.

Thus, Parvati makes it possible to make repeated attempts when there is failure.

Parvati can form half of Shiva as Ardhanarishavara.

This means that the starting point can keep moving up with the idea so that there is no need to return to the original starting point.

Since Shiva is the god of Logic and discipline and Parvati plays a passive role, they can have children. Shiva acts as filter from ideas processed by Ganesha and Subramanya.

This is in marked contrast to Vishnu and Lakshmi, who are very versatile and can’t have children. The idea from Ganesha and Laksmi would change dramatically when they reach Vishnu stage.

Thus, Parvati plays a vital role in the life of Shiva. - Rangaswamy Sundar Raj

,

How is Lord Ayyappa related to Lord Rama?

 

Ayyappa is the Manasa Putra of Shiva and Mohini (Avtara of Maha Vishnu)

Lord Rama had come to meet Shabari as her Guru Rishi Matanga had predicted. Lord Rama noticed a divine person doing penance and asked Shabari who it was. Shabari said it was Sastha (Lord Ayyappa). Sastha too stood up and welcomed Lord Rama. Makaravilakku, an annual festival, is held on Makar Sankranti to commemorate this incident. The Sabarimala temple complex has a temple of Lord Rama and Hanuman too

Sri Ram and Hanuman meet each other for first time is in Pampa.

During the Ramayan period the Ram, laxman where moving from one forest to another in search of Sita. They found a girl name called Neli. Neli invited both Ram and laxman and treated with atmost devot. By this lord impressed and Blessed with moksha and Neli became pampa river.

kalari, kakattaru and pampa triveni means three river reaches at one point where you can find Sri Rama padham(lords feet).

The village of Sabarimala got its name from 'Shabari'. - 

Pruthwi

FRIDAY MORNING ALANGARAM AT THE SRI RAJA RAJESWARY TEMPLE, AMPANG, KUALA LUMPUR, MALAYSIA ON 25TH MARCH, 2022.

 The photos from this morning's prayers:-

-photos courtesy of Mr. Subhas Kannan

Miracle happen on Lord Shivan statue in Karnataka State, India where Water pouring from the sky onto Lord Shivan's head and body (VIDEO)

 

Miracle happen on Lord Shivan statue in Karnataka State, India where Water pouring from the sky onto Lord Shivan's head and body.

Video above taken yesterday.

-video courtesy of youtube Srisai

SREE SHIRDI SAI BABA

 

SREE SHIRDI SAI BABA

What are the benefits of worshipping Lord Krishna?

 

Actually worshiping Lord Krishna is most beneficial. The simple reason for worshiping him is that gets unflinching happiness and pleasure by serving him. But this statement is not self explanatory, so I will try to explain it.

The answer which I am providing is directly from the great devotees of Lord Krishna. These Mahabhagavat Vaishnavas are very dear to Lord Krishna and because their whole life was dedicated to Krishna, they know Lord Krishna very much better than us.

dehendriya-prāṇa-mano-dhiyāḿ yo
janmāpyaya-kṣud-bhaya-tarṣa-kṛcchraiḥ
saḿsāra-dharmair avimuhyamānaḥ
smṛtyā harer bhāgavata-pradhānaḥ

“Within the material world, one's material body is always subject to birth and decay. Similarly, the life air [prāṇa] is harassed by hunger and thirst, the mind is always anxious, the intelligence hankers for that which cannot be obtained, and all of the senses are ultimately exhausted by constant struggle in the material nature. A person who is not bewildered by the inevitable miseries of material existence, and who remains aloof from them simply by remembering the lotus feet of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, is to be considered bhāgavata-pradhāna, the foremost devotee of the Lord. (Srimad Bhagavatam).”

According to Śrīla Madhvācārya there are three classes of intelligent living beings within this world, namely the demigods, ordinary human beings, and demons.

A living being endowed with all auspicious qualities — in other words, a highly advanced devotee of the Lord — either on the earth or in the higher planetary systems is called a deva, or demigod.

Ordinary human beings generally have good and bad qualities, and according to this mixture they enjoy and suffer on the earth. But those who are distinguished by their absence of good qualities and who are always inimical to pious life and the devotional service of the Lord are called asuras, or demons.

Of these three classes, the ordinary human beings and demons are terribly afflicted by birth, death and hunger, whereas the godly persons, the demigods, are aloof from such bodily distress. The demigods remain aloof from such distress because they are enjoying the results of their pious activities; by the laws of karma, they are unaware of the gross suffering of the material world.

Similarly, the Lord says in Bhagavad-gītā-

trai-vidyā māḿ soma-pāḥ pūta-pāpā
yajñair iṣṭvā svar-gatiḿ prārthayante
te puṇyam āsādya surendra-lokam
aśnanti divyān divi deva-bhogān

“Those who study the Vedas and drink the soma juice, seeking the heavenly planets, worship Me indirectly. Purified of sinful reactions, they take birth on the pious, heavenly planet of Indra, where they enjoy godly delights.”

But the next verse of Bhagavad-gītā says that when one uses up the results of these pious activities, one has to forfeit his status as a demigod, along with the pleasure of the heavenly kingdom, and return to earth as a nara, or ordinary human being.

te taḿ bhuktvā svarga-lokaḿ viśālaḿ
kṣīṇe puṇye martya-lokaḿ viśanti
evaḿ trayī-dharmam anuprapannā
gatāgataḿ kāma-kāmā labhante

“When they have thus enjoyed vast heavenly sense pleasure and the results of their pious activities are exhausted, they return to this mortal planet again. Thus those who seek sense enjoyment by adhering to the principles of the 3 Vedas achieve only repeated birth and death.”

In fact the laws of nature are so subtle that one may not even return to earth as a human, but may take birth as an insect or tree, depending on the particular configuration of his karma.

The pure devotee of the Lord, however, does not experience material misery, because he has given up the bodily concept of life and identifies himself correctly as an eternal servitor of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Kṛṣṇa. As stated by the Lord Himself in Bhagavad-gītā

rāja-vidyā rāja-guhyaḿ
pavitram idam uttamam
pratyakṣāvagamaḿ dharmyaḿ
su-sukhaḿ kartum avyayam

“This knowledge is the king of education, the most secret of all secrets. It is the purest knowledge, and because it gives direct perception of the self by realization, it is the perfection of religion. It is everlasting, and it is joyfully performed.”

Even in the stage of regulative practice, the process of bhakti-yoga is very joyful.

Similarly, Locana dāsa Ṭhākura, a near contemporary of Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu said

saba avatāra sāra śiromaṇi kevala ānanda-kāṇḍa.

“Although there are various kāṇḍas, or divisions, of Vedic discipline, such as karma-kāṇḍa(fruitive ceremonies) and jñāna-kāṇḍa (regulated speculation), Caitanya Mahāprabhu's hari-nāma sańkīrtana movement is kevala ānanda-kāṇḍa, the pathway of pure bliss.”

Simply by chanting the holy names of Kṛṣṇa, eating the remnants of sumptuous food offered to the Supreme Lord and hearing the enchanting pastimes of the Personality of Godhead, one merges into an ocean of bliss called Kṛṣṇa consciousness.

Fortunately this blissful ocean is the eternal situation of every living entity, provided he gives up all of his bogus concepts of life. One should not identify himself as a gross material body, nor as a fickle mind, nor as speculative intelligence, nor should one foolishly identify himself with the so-called void of Buddhist imagination.

Nor should one even identify himself with the ocean of impersonal spiritual life called the brahmajyoti, which illuminates the great outdoors of the spiritual sky beyond the covered universe. One should rather identify himself correctly as an eternal individual servant of the supreme individual Personality of Godhead.

By this simple admission of one's constitutional position and by sincere engagement in the service of the lotus feet of the Lord, one is quickly promoted to direct participation in the eternal pastimes of Kṛṣṇa, just as Arjuna got the opportunity to play with Kṛṣṇa as a soldier on the Battlefield of Kurukṣetra.

Śrīla Madhvācārya has given an elaborate description of the process by which material miseries arise. When a conditioned soul of demoniac mentality identifies himself with the gross material body, he undergoes miseries of constant drowsiness and unquenchable sexual desires that burn all mental peace and serenity to ashes.

When a demoniac person identifies himself with prāṇa, the life air, he suffers from hunger, and by identifying himself with the mind he suffers panic, fear, and hankering that ends in disappointment. When he identifies himself with intelligence, he suffers profound existential bitterness and frustration deep within his heart.

When he identifies himself with the false ego, he feels inferiority, thinking, "I am so low." And when he identifies himself with the process of consciousness, he is haunted by memories of the past. When a demon tries to impose himself as the ruler of all living beings, all of these miseries expand simultaneously.

According to Śrīpāda Madhvācārya, sinful life is the demoniac standard for happiness. We can observe that in demoniac societies the dark, late hours of night are considered most appropriate for recreational activity. When a demon hears that someone is rising at four o'clock in the morning to take advantage of the godly early-morning hours, he is astonished and bewildered.

Therefore it is said in Bhagavad-gītā:-

yā niśā sarva-bhūtānāḿ
tasyāḿ jāgarti saḿyamī
yasyāḿ jāgrati bhūtāni
sā niśā paśyato muneḥ

“What is night for all beings is the time of awakening for the self-controlled; and the time of awakening for all beings is night for the introspective sage.”

Śrīla Prabhupāda has commented, "There are two classes of intelligent men. The one is intelligent in material activities for sense gratification, and the other is introspective and awake to the cultivation of self-realization."

Thus the more one can increase illicit sex, intoxication, meat-eating and gambling, the more one advances his prestige in a demoniac society, whereas in a godly society based on Kṛṣṇa consciousness these things are abolished completely. Similarly, as one becomes blissfully attached to the holy name and pastimes of Kṛṣṇa, one becomes more and more alienated from the demoniac society.

The demons are self-proclaimed enemies of the Supreme Lord, and they mock His kingdom. Thus they are described by Śrīla Madhvācārya as adho-gateḥ, or those who have purchased their tickets to the darkest regions of hell. On the other hand, if one is undisturbed by the miseries of material life, he is on the same spiritual level as the Supreme Personality of Godhead.

As stated in Bhagavad-gītā:-

yaḿ hi na vyathayanty ete
puruṣaḿ puruṣarṣabha
sama-duḥkha-sukhaḿ dhīraḿ
so 'mṛtatvāya kalpate

“O best among men [Arjuna], the person who is not disturbed by happiness and distress and is steady in both is certainly eligible for liberation.”

One can come to this transcendental stage only by the mercy of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. In the words of Śrī Madhvācārya,

sampūrṇānugrahād viṣṇoḥ.

Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura has described the process by which one becomes an uttama-adhikārī. If one is fortunate, he gradually becomes disgusted with the limited vision and activities of the kaniṣṭha-adhikārī and learns to appreciate the expanded vision of the madhyama-adhikārī, who is able to recognize that every living entity should become a devotee of Kṛṣṇa and that one achieves the perfection of life by following in the footsteps of anuttama-adhikārī devotee of the Lord.

As one's devotional service gradually intensifies and one repeatedly bathes in dust from the lotus feet of a pure devotee, the harassment of birth, death, hunger, thirst, fear and so on gradually cease disturbing the mind.

As stated in Bhakti-rasāmṛta-sindhu:-

alabdhe vā vinaṣṭe vā
bhakṣyācchādana-sādhane
aviklava-matir bhūtvā
harim eva dhiyā smaret

“Even if a devotee is frustrated in his attempt to eat properly or clothe himself properly, he should not allow this material failure to disturb his mind; rather, he should use his intelligence to remember his master, Lord Kṛṣṇa, and thus remain undisturbed.”

As one becomes mature in this process of remembering Kṛṣṇa in all circumstances, he is awarded the title mahā-bhāgavata.

Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta gives the example that just as a child's ball may be fastened to the end of a rope so that it cannot bounce away, a devotee who surrenders to Kṛṣṇa becomes tied to the rope of Vedic injunctions and is never lost in worldly affairs.

In this connection Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura has quoted from the Ṛg Veda as follows:

oḿ āsya jānanto nāma cid vivaktan mahas te viṣṇo su-matiḿ bhajāmahe oḿ tat sat.

“O Viṣṇu, Your name is completely transcendental. Thus it is self-manifest. Indeed, even without properly understanding the glories of chanting Your holy name, if we vibrate Your name with at least a small understanding of its glories — that is, if we simply repeat the syllables of Your holy name — gradually we shall understand it.”

The supreme entity indicated by the praṇava oḿ is sat, or self-revealing. Therefore, even if one is disturbed by fear or envy, the transcendental form of the Supreme Personality of Godhead will become manifest to one who continues to chant the Lord's holy name.

Further evidence is given in Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam:-

sāńketyaḿ pārihāsyaḿ vā
stobhaḿ helanam eva vā
vaikuṇṭha-nāma-grahaṇam
aśeṣāgha-haraḿ viduḥ

“One who chants the holy name of the Lord is immediately freed from the reactions of unlimited sins, even if he chants indirectly [to indicate something else], jokingly, for musical entertainment, or even neglectfully. This is accepted by all the learned scholars of the scriptures.”

na kāma-karma-bījānāḿ
yasya cetasi sambhavaḥ
vāsudevaika-nilayaḥ
sa vai bhāgavatottamaḥ

“One who has taken exclusive shelter of the Supreme Lord, Vāsudeva, becomes free from fruitive activities, which are based on material lust. In fact, one who has taken shelter of the lotus feet of the Lord is freed from even the desire to enjoy material sense gratification. Plans for enjoying sex life, social prestige and money cannot develop within his mind. Thus he is considered bhāgavatottama, a pure devotee of the Lord on the highest platform. (Srimad bhagavatam).”

According to Śrīla Śrīdhara Svāmī, this verse describes the behaviour of a devotee of the Lord. The activities of a pure devotee are devoid of material envy, false elation, delusion and lust.

According to the Vaiṣṇava commentators, the word bījānām in this verse refers to vāsanāḥ, or deeply rooted desires, which gradually fructify in the form of activities, for which the living entity becomes subject to reactions. Thus the compound word kāma-karma-bījānām indicates the deep-rooted desire to lord it over the material world through the enjoyment of sexual pleasure and the expansions of sexual pleasure mentioned in the Srimad Bhāgavatam:

puḿsaḥ striyā mithunī-bhāvam etaḿ
tayor mitho hṛdaya-granthim āhuḥ
ato gṛha-kṣetra-sutāpta-vittair
janasya moho 'yam ahaḿ mameti

“The attraction between male and female is the basic principle of material existence. On the basis of this misconception, which ties together the hearts of the male and female, one becomes attracted to his body, home, property, children, relatives and wealth. In this way one increases life's illusions and thinks in terms of ‘I and mine'."

Sex serves as the natural attraction between man and woman, and when they are married, their relationship becomes more involved. Due to the entangling relationship between man and woman, there is a sense of illusion whereby one thinks, "This man is my husband," or "This woman is my wife."

This is called hṛdaya-granthi, "the hard knot in the heart." This knot is very difficult to undo, even though a man and woman separate either for the principles of varṇāśrama or simply to get a divorce.

In any case, the man always thinks of the woman, and the woman always thinks of the man. Thus a person becomes materially attached to family, property and children, although all of these are temporary. The possessor unfortunately identifies with his property and wealth.

Sometimes, even after renunciation, one becomes attached to a temple or to the few things that constitute the property of a sannyāsī, but such attachment is not as strong as family attachment. The attachment to the family is the strongest illusion.

In the Satya-samhitā, it is stated:

brahmādyā yājñavalkādyā
mucyante strī-sahāyinaḥ
bodhyante kecanaiteṣāḿ
viśeṣam ca vido viduḥ

“Sometimes it is found among exalted personalities like Lord Brahmā that the wife and children are not a cause of bondage. On the contrary, the wife actually helps further spiritual life and liberation. Nonetheless, most people are bound by the knots of the marital relationship, and consequently they forget their relationship with Kṛṣṇa.”

Because of this bodily concept of life and the shackles of illusion, the whole world is being violently shaken by conflict arising from envy and lust. The only possible solution is to accept the leadership of the Lord's pure devotees, who are described here.

A pure devotee of the Lord who has completely taken shelter of the Lord's lotus feet cannot even consider taking part in material envy and sense gratification. His mind remains perpetually clear and sober, and he is always aware of the ultimate good of every living entity.

The Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement is strenuously endeavoring to inform the earth's suffering living entities of the serious need for a brain in human society. A brain racked by fever cannot give proper direction, and if the so-called thinkers of society are burning with selfish desires, they are no better than feverish, delirious brains.

Delirious governments are gradually destroying all traces of happiness in human society. Therefore it is the duty of Vaiṣṇava preachers to act on the platform of bhāgavatottama so that they can give clear guidance to humanity, without being corrupted or even slightly attracted by the material opulence that may be offered to a saintly person.

All intelligent human beings who are unable to take directly to the process of bhakti-yoga should at least be sufficiently educated to recognize the first-class devotee of the Lord and accept his guidance. In this way human society can be very nicely organized so that not only all human beings but even the animals, birds and trees can make advancement in life and gradually go back home, back to Godhead, for an eternal life of bliss and knowledge.

Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura has emphasized that those seriously interested in achieving the perfection of Kṛṣṇa consciousness must live in a community of Vaiṣṇavas.

Śrīla Prabhupāda has also mentioned several times in his literature that it is not possible to achieve the stage of perfect Kṛṣṇa consciousness unless one accepts the shelter of the pure devotees by living in the Kṛṣṇa conscious communities being established all over the world by the International Society for Krishna Consciousness.

Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura has emphasized that this does not mean that spiritual life is restricted only to those celibate students who can live within a temple compound. Devotees in the gṛhastha order, that of spiritual family life, can also take shelter of the Vaiṣṇava community by regularly attending temple functions.

Those who are living in family life should daily see the Deity of the Supreme Lord, chant His holy names in His personal presence, accept the remnants of food offered to the Deity and hear learned discourses on Bhagavad-gītā and Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam.

Any householder who regularly takes advantage of these spiritual facilities and follows the regulative principles of spiritual life, namely no meat-eating, no illicit sex, no gambling and no intoxication, is to be considered a bona fide member of the Vaiṣṇava community.

According to Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura, those who remain inimical to the devotional service of the Lord are to be considered lifeless puppets in the hands of the illusory energy of the Lord.

tri-bhuvana-vibhava-hetave 'py akuṇṭha-
smṛtir ajitātma-surādibhir vimṛgyāt
na calati bhagavat-padāravindāl
lava-nimiṣārdham api yaḥ sa vaiṣṇavāgryaḥ

“The lotus feet of the Supreme Personality of Godhead are sought even by the greatest of demigods, such as Brahmā and Śiva, who have all accepted the Supreme Personality of Godhead as their life and soul. A pure devotee of the Lord can never forget those lotus feet in any circumstance. He will not give up his shelter at the lotus feet of the Lord for a single moment — indeed, not for half a moment — even in exchange for the benediction of ruling and enjoying the opulence of the entire universe. Such a devotee of the Lord is to be considered the best of the Vaiṣṇavas. (Srimad Bhagavatam).”

According to Śrīla Śrīdhara Svāmī one may ask, "If one were able to gain the opulence of the entire universe in exchange for leaving the Lord's lotus feet for just half a moment, what would be the harm in leaving the Lord's lotus feet for such an insignificant amount of time?" The answer is given by the word akuṇṭha-smṛti.

It is simply impossible for a pure devotee to forget the lotus feet of the Personality of Godhead, since everything that exists is in fact an expansion of the Supreme Lord. Since nothing is separate from the Supreme Lord, a pure devotee of the Lord cannot think of anything but the Lord. Nor can a pure devotee contemplate ruling or enjoying universal opulence; even if given all the opulence of the universe, he would immediately offer it at the lotus feet of the Lord and return to his position of a humble servant of the Lord.

The words ajitātma-surādibhir vimṛgyāt are very significant in this verse. The lotus feet of Lord Kṛṣṇa are so opulent that even the lords of all material opulence, namely Brahmā and Śiva, as well as the other demigods, are always searching for a glimpse of the Lord's lotus feet.

The word vimṛgyāt indicates that the demigods are not actually able to see the lotus feet of the Lord, but are endeavouring to see them. An example of this is given in the Tenth Canto when Lord Brahmā offers prayers to Viṣṇu, begging the Lord to rectify the disturbances on the earth.

A similar verse is found elsewhere in Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam:-

na pārameṣṭhyaḿ na mahendra-dhiṣṇyaḿ
na sārvabhaumaḿ na rasādhipatyam
na yoga-siddhīr apunar-bhavaḿ vā
mayy arpitātmecchati mad vinānyat

“One who has fixed his consciousness on Me desires neither the position or abode of Lord Brahmā or Lord Indra, nor an empire on the earth, nor sovereignty in the lower planetary systems, nor the eightfold perfection of yoga, nor liberation from birth and death. Such a person desires Me alone.”

The position of the akiñcana pure devotee is described in this verse. Śrī Priyavrata Mahārāja is an example of a great devotee who was not interested in universal sovereignty because his love was completely absorbed in the lotus feet of the Lord. Even the greatest material enjoyment appears most insignificant and useless to a pure devotee of the Lord.

According to Śrīla Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura, the word ajitātmā can also be taken to mean ajitendriyāḥ, or "those whose senses are uncontrolled."

Although the demigods are all to be respected as devotees of Lord Viṣṇu, the absence of gross material discomfort in the higher planetary systems makes them tend to become affected by the bodily concept of life, and sometimes they experience some spiritual difficulty due to the gorgeous material facilities available to them. Such disturbances, however, cannot exist within the mind of a pure devotee of the Lord, as indicated in this verse by the word akuṇṭha-smṛti.

According to Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura, we can understand from this verse that since none of the material facilities available in any of the universal planetary systems can distract a pure devotee of the Lord, such a devotee can never possibly fall or become inimical to the Lord's service.

bhagavata uru-vikramāńghri-śākhā-
nakha-maṇi-candrikayā nirasta-tāpe
hṛdi katham upasīdatāḿ punaḥ sa
prabhavati candra ivodite 'rka-tāpaḥ

“How can the fire of material suffering continue to burn the hearts of those who worship the Supreme Lord? The Lord's lotus feet have performed innumerable heroic deeds, and the beautiful nails on His toes resemble valuable jewels. The effulgence emanating from those nails resembles cooling moonshine, for it instantly relieves the suffering within the heart of the pure devotee, just as the appearance of the moon's cooling light relieves the burning heat of the sun. (Srimad Bhagavatam).”

When the moon rises, the expansion of its rays drives away the distress of the sun's fierce heat. Similarly, the cooling rays emanating from the lotus nails of the Personality of Godhead's lotus feet vanquish all distress for the Lord's pure devotee.
According to the Vaiṣṇava commentators it is to be understood from this verse that material lust, exemplified by uncontrolled sexual desire, is exactly like a blazing fire. The flames of this fire burn to ashes the peace and happiness of the conditioned soul, who perpetually wanders in 8,400,000 species of life, vainly struggling to extinguish this intolerable fire.
The pure devotees of the Lord place the Lord's cooling, jewel-like lotus feet within their hearts, and thus all of the pain and suffering of material existence are extinguished.
The word uru-vikramāńghri indicates that the Lord's lotus feet are quite heroic. Śrī Kṛṣṇa is famous for His incarnation as Vāmana, the dwarf brāhmaṇa, who extended His beautiful toes up to the outer limits of the universe and perforated the universal shell, thus bringing the waters of the holy Ganges into the universe.
Similarly, when Kṛṣṇa was entering the city of Mathurā to challenge the demoniac King Kaḿsa and His entrance was impeded by a ferocious elephant named Kuvalayāpīḍa, Lord Kṛṣṇa kicked the elephant to death and peacefully entered the city gates.

Lord Kṛṣṇa's lotus feet are so exalted that the Vedic literatures state that the
entire material manifestation rests beneath His lotus feet:-

samāśritā ye pada-pallava-plavaḿ
mahat-padaḿ puṇya-yaśo murāreḥ
bhavāmbudhir vatsa-padaḿ paraḿ padaḿ
padaḿ padaḿ yad vipadāḿ na teṣām

“For those who have accepted the boat of the lotus feet of the Lord, who is the shelter of the cosmic manifestation and is famous as Murāri, the enemy of the Mura demon, the ocean of the material world is like the water contained in a calf's hoof-print. Their goal is paraḿ padam, Vaikuṇṭha, the place where there are no material miseries, not the place where there is danger at every step. (Srimad Bhagavatam).” - Pranjul