Opportunities are always there for us to grow, opportunities are always there for us to come closer to each other & come closer to God; if we just look for them.
In our conditioned nature we do not understand value of something until we lose it.
Moon is like Soul. Clouds are like all the situations in our life, relationships, youth, etc. Wind is like the Time. Just like the wind moves the clouds, Time moves all the situations in our life. But the soul is always the same and not on the temporary situations. One who focuses on soul is a moon-like person.
The greater is our sphere of influence, the greater the responsibility.
Even if you want one drop of respect you have to take birth in this material world again.
In this world, all pleasures are sources of pain.
Essence of humility is unity.
When you take a position, you have to accept responsibilities.
Arrogance repels the Lord; humility attracts the Lord.
Compassion brings fulfillment to the heart. Selfish desires simply agitate the heart.
For a devotee death opens door for liberation but for a non-devotee death is end of everything.
Through the practice of devotion to God, I was coming to learn that preserving loving relations in this world required much forgiveness, tolerance, patience, gratitude, and humility. An essential virtue of humility is to accept others for what they are, despite differences. I contemplated again how the tendency to judge others is often a symptom of insecurity, immaturity, or selfishness, and I yearned to rise above it. Everyone is a child of God. God loves all of His children. If I wish to love God, I must learn to love those whom He loves.
The Absolute Truth can be perceived by a repentant heart.
Death is not big thing, what is important is God's service.
When love is pure, it has the power to conquer. Lover and beloved conquer each other by their affection. The source, the essence, the fullest manifestation of love's conquering power is the love of the soul for the supreme soul, or God.
The flip side of happiness is suffering.
Humility is the foundation by which love manifests.
A grateful heart is not one that is very selective and choosy about what to be grateful for.
I traveled around America and then at nineteen, went to Europe and hitchhiked from London to the Himalayas in India. I studied various forms of Christianity, Judaism, Islam, and in India, various forms of Buddhism and Hinduism. Eventually, I came to the path of unconditional love and devotion to the one God, who in our tradition we call Krishna. I met my guru and became a swami. This allowed me to share that gift, which I consider to be a very deep universal expression of compassion.
Pridelessness is negative good; humility is positive good.
Understand suffering is a part of my karma, otherwise you will spoil your future karma also.
To the degree we try to create peace around us, we will find peace within ourselves. And to the degree we find peace within ourselves, we will actually have the power to create peace around us.
Tolerance means to fix our mind, to fix our words, & our actions on a higher principle.
Compassion without detachment is attachment to the bodily platform.
If there is no enjoyment in this world, there would not be so much suffering. As suffering really is the frustration of our attempts to enjoy.
When there is love in our heart, only love will come out.
The essence of Bhagavad Gita is that we should always think of Krsna, become His devotee, worship him and offer homage unto him.
Kali yuga is so much saturated with vicious habits that there is a great fight at the slightest of misunderstanding.
In a relationship the way to overcome problems, is to focus our attention on higher principles that can help us transcend them.
Application of humility is service.
Humble people dont get Offended easily.
We can not imitate great souls. However to study, analyse and imbibe the principles they teach and embody, is the path of progress.
The more serious you are about spiritual life, the more you keep your mind in captivity.
A sincere soul is not trying to make a show. His enthusiasm is an act of service.
The only way we can make this world a better place is to transcend it.
Faith in God goes beyond intellectual presentation and logic.
Spirituality is revival of our God consciousness, not creating something new.
Actual Gratitude is the Symptom of Humility.
An athlete gains more & more strength by facing resistance. Similarly in life, we only become stronger when we face the resistance of our struggles.
A devotee's life should be so exemplary that it increases the faith upon other devotees.
When one's eyes are anointed with the salve of prema, spiritual love then we could see Vrindavan.
In my path, three things are really important. One is associating with people who inspire us with their positive influence. The company we keep is very important. Number two is our spiritual practice. Putting aside sacred time every day to make that journey within, to tune into the frequency of our true nature and the love and the grace that is within us. Number three is to try living with ethical, moral and spiritual values, which culminates in unselfish service.
Compassion is a quality which impels one to perform sacrifices.
What appears to be a curse can be a blessing if we simply appreciate the inner essence of the possibility of how to connect to God in that situation.
If someone takes responsibility without force, that is love.
Humility is a natural symptom of those who love God.
Every time you are passing the test, you are coming closer to Krishna.
We have to seek the essence of all religions; then we can see how spirituality actually unites us and empowers us instead of breaking us down.
When you have an ego, you are limited to your own strengths and weaknesses. But if you are totally surrendered to God, nothing is impossible for you.
Any propensity other than love cannot exist in the spiritual world. There is unlimited variegatedness, but they are all extraordinarily wonderful ways of expressing love.
The word surrender sounds horrible to one who wants to enjoy his senses but very sweet to one who has a humble heart.
The essence of spiritual life is simply to use our free will properly.
There cannot be love without trust and there cannot be trust unless we take the responsibility to act in a way that people can trust us.
When the mind is turbulent, uncontrolled and restless, it is like a pond of water that is filled with mud. Therefore when we look within ourselves, all we perceive is the mud of our material conceptions of life. But when the mind is still through discipline, and through yoga, it is like a pond that has no waves and no turbulence. Then we can perceive through that crystal clear water the eternal nature of our soul.
Substance of Bhakti is Surrender and Humility.
True renunciation can be attained by anyone - whether a millionaire, parent, student, politician, farmer or engineer. It's not what you have or don't have; it's your state of consciousness. In essence, it means that true peace that comes from true renunciation arrives when we understand that nothing is mine. Whatever intelligence I have, whatever abilities I have, whatever family members I have, whatever wealth or property I have, is the sacred property of God or the Divine.
Faith is the act of seeing beyond the religion of possibility of the senses, the mind and the intelligence.
Whoever we are, wherever we are, however we are, whatever our condition is, there is no impediment to attaining the perfection of life-if we are humble & sincere.
Things can give pleasure to the mind and senses, but only love can give pleasure to the heart. And ultimately, that is what we are looking for.
If we have strong desire then God miraculously removes obstacles and gives us the power to overcome them.
If we see the body we live in as a temple used to engage in beautiful activities in the service of God's children, then we recognize it as spiritual. But if we use our body for more selfish purposes, then we're only experiencing its material conception.
If we do the right thing with right intent that is actually our success.
Krishna exalts those who are humble and humbles those who exalt themselves.
Renunciation means death of false ego.
Crying out to the lord is the only eternal reality within this temporary world.
Real religion is about, developing real character; character of compassion, character of humility, the character of determination to grow in all circumstances.
If our mind is in conflict, not balanced with our body and with the needs of the soul, then there is a fundamental disunity in our life. Only if we have unity within ourselves, we can create unity in the world around us. You can't give something you don't have, even if you have all good intentions
If we feel unqualified and feel grateful for an opportunity to serve, then Krishna will bestow in our hearts.
Man cannot be enlightened through any organization, creed, dogma, priest or ritual, nor through any philosophical knowledge or psychological technique. He has to find it through understanding the contents of his own mind, through observation, not through intellectual analysis or introspective dissection.
I we are looking for God or an opportunity to learn and enrich our lives in every situation, we will find that, but if we are looking for how am I enjoying or suffering, we are subject to endless frustration
A person influenced by circumstances can become viciously envious or affectionately kind. Our company and our surroundings have a crucial effect on our consciousness. How important it is to be an instrument to bring out the inherent good of each other rather than the worst.
Whatever our destiny is, whatever our Karma is, if we simply accept the mercy of Guru, "Guru Kripa", it can completely liberate us from all of our previous Karmic bondage.
What really pleases the Spiritual Master is our intent and the quality of our character.
Real religion is not about being a Christian or a Jew or a Muslim. Real religion is about loving God, & dedicating ones life to be an instrument of Gods compassion, kindness towards other living beings.
I am for God, I am the lover of God, I am loved by God, I am the servant of God, I am the servant of the servant of God, and I am the well-wishing instrument of God's love towards every living being, with all humility. The emergence of that realization is the greatest attainment in life.
Bhakti and Humility cannot be separated like sweetness cannot be separated from sweet.
Reducing carbon emissions is important, but it is shortsighted if not coupled with reducing the toxic emissions from our heart; and that is something spiritual leaders are supposed to teach and something all thinking people, regardless of their beliefs, should practice.
If you are not being attacked by materialist, you must be doing something wrong
Mother Nature is always speaking. She speaks in a language understood within the peaceful mind of the sincere observer. Leopards, cobras, monkeys, rivers and trees; they all served as my teachers when I lived as a wanderer in the Himalayan foothills.
Where there is no inner freedom, there is no life.
If we seek the essence of every situation, if we seek to connect to God within our hearts, then we will find an opportunity there, to grow internally in wisdom in every trial we face.
Real problem is not population explosion, but what the population is doing.
Pure love of God is our nature, but we are so much diverted, so much distracted by the externals that we've forgotten that it's our essence.
COOPERATION means to be willing to sacrifice for the sake of others
The Ultimate expression of Humility comes when we control our senses.
The joy of the soul is in glorification of the beloved Lord of all creation.
We should be in harmony with our own consciousness; our mind, body, and soul should be one in interest and in purpose. And in that unified condition, we can actually express that natural innate love that we have found in our own life in everything we do in the world.
The auspiciousness of any situation is how it brings us closer to Krishna
Some husbands think, "This is my wife," or a parent thinks "This is my child." From a spiritual perspective, this is a misconception. The higher truth is: "This wife is God's beloved daughter, entrusted in my care. And the way I serve God is by giving her respect, protection, appreciation and empowerment. This is what God wants me to give his child."
The dirty wax of egotism accumulated in the heart prevents us from clearly hearing the Lord's voice within. A guru, with the stick of knowledge, cleans our hearts. It's really ugly to see what may come out, but by following patiently, we keep cleaning.
In giving respect we can be very happy, because we can do it in all situations. When we expect respect we are miserable, because it is not that everyone in every situation will respect us.
Sometimes river flows very strong, sometimes it flows very small, but it makes no difference to the ocean because it is satisfied in itself with its own quantity of water. Similarly, when our heart is cleansed with spirituality, we find pleasure and ecstasy with our own selves that is so sweet, so wonderful and so satisfying, that the so-called pleasures of this world no longer have any values, no appeal at all.
We should honor Mother Earth with gratitude; otherwise our spirituality may become hypocritical.
Familiarity leads to lack of Gratitude.
Do not think that if you surrender to God you will be loser. You will not lose anything except bondage, frustration and suffering. That is all you will lose.
The more one makes spiritual advancement, one feels humble and as one's devotion is superficial that much he feels that he is a great devotee.
The challenge of co-operation in today's age of quarrel can be achieved by adjusting every situation according to the higher principle of loving God.
Greatness is in not what you do but how you are an instrument in the hands of God.
Pure devotional service fries the seeds of material inclinations in our heart.
Success in spiritual life lies not in being the Best, but doing the Best.
What I found particularly fascinating and satisfying about the Hindu tradition was its spirit of inclusiveness. In Sanatan Dharma, or what is commonly called Hinduism, I discovered the basic truths of all religions in a way that the oneness of God and religion is comprehensively understood.
A virtue which is divine is humility. A person who could do great things and still maintain humility of the heart, charity of the heart, goodness of the heart is a person who could actually make a difference in peoples lives in a very positive way.
All beautiful forms of this world are in the process of transformation. Nothing is stable. With every moment, our reality is changing. Mother Ganges, like nature, is constant, but no manifestation of hers remains. Likewise, all that we hold dear in this world is imperceptibly vanishing. We cannot cling to anything. But if we can appreciate the beauty of the underlying current of truth, we can enjoy a reality deeper than the fickle waves of joy and sorrow.
Bhakti cannot be attained, it is a gift.
If you do some wonderful service and if you tell people what you did in a boastful way, it nullifies the credit of your service, may not be in the eternal platform, but in your conscious condition you will not be able to reap the benefits of that service.
Trying to be happy in this world is greatest illusion.
The perfection of yoga is to become detached. And the perfection of detachment is to become completely attached, attached to God.
We can use wealth, intelligence, education or health in harmony with our compassionate spiritual nature, or we can use them according to the selfish concerns of our particular egos. We have choices as human beings. We can be saints or we can be terrorists. We can be peaceful or we can be miserable. When we see everything in the world as God's sacred property, then we're seeing the spiritual potential, the spiritual substance, everywhere.
I came to the conclusion that unless I found myself and became the change I wanted to see in the world - as Gandhi said - I couldn't contribute much, nor would there be anything fulfilling or meaningful in my life. So I went on a spiritual search.
In religion, there's a certain type of fear that if somebody believes differently from me, that it's a threat. Because I'm right, and there cannot be two ways that are right, so if I'm right, anything different than this must be wrong; and we attack those things and it's really due to insecurity, ego and fear.
Remembrance is a necessary expression of love, internally.
Why are we not tasting the bliss of Bhakti? Because we are taking shelter of stone boats. We are sinking and drowning in Maya & still we are further taking shelter of stone boats and this can go on life after life.
Krishna is present fully in His holy name and this is realized by the humility and sincerity in our chanting.
We can't really digest food unless there's hunger. So we can't really assimilate spiritual wisdom unless we feel the need for it.
Compassion is an essential element of love.
To love someone in the spiritual sense is not based on how I want to love you; its based on what you want.
We must be instruments of God's compassion to those who are suffering.
Sometimes the Lord gives us a free sample of religious experience, but for more, we must pay a price with the currency of sincere dedication to the process of cleansing.
The art of loving creates the unity which has unlimited spiritual strength, and that is the greatest need in the world today, and each and every one of us can make such a difference if we become humble, if we develop a service attitude rather than an exploitative attitude, if we develop the broad mind to see the oneness and to learn to love all living beings.
If you love God, you can't hate anything or anyone. If the love one offers is met with hate, it doesn't die, rather it manifests in the form of compassion. That is universal love. It is not just a sentiment. It cannot be manifested merely by a shift in mental disposition. It can only come from inner cleaning, an inner awakening.
When we face difficulties and still remain faithful to Krishna and spiritual master we access the infinite mercy of their hearts.
Definition of love: capacity to forgive endlessly.
We, as parents, must understand the serious responsibility that we have in inculcating love for God in the hearts of children. If our children do not feel love they will not understand God’s love because the love of the parent is translated to the children as the love of God. When they feel their parents' love, they can actually begin to understand God’s love.
Real compassion means to understand what the needs for body, mind and soul are.
To be in the association of those aspiring to love God is the ultimate gift of God.
