Beyond Sex Pleasure
In this material world sex is undoubtedly the number one rated pleasure. People go mad over satisfying their sexual desires. But for a realized transcendentalist, sex pleasure is not of much interest. It is not very important because he is enjoying pleasure on a much higher level. He has fully realized that he is not his body and is relishing the sweetest nectar of a loving relationship with the supreme person, the source of all existence, at every minute.
Because his pleasure is completely transcendental to his material body and because sex is a pleasurable sensation which is experienced in the body, the transcendentalist prefers not to be brought back down to the lower level of bodily sense pleasure by sex indulgence. In other words, because sex brings him down to a lower level where the pleasure is of an inferior quality, he naturally avoids it. It is not that he is feeling frustrated from abstinence. He enjoys abstinence because it frees up his consciousness to absorb himself more deeply in Krishna consciousness, the reservoir of all pleasure. Of course, when such a transcendentalist wants to produce offspring he joyfully utilizes sex for its original natural purpose, procreation. Such procreational sex is a holy sacrament as confirmed by Lord Sri Krishna in the Bhagavad-gita.
Sankarshan Das Adhikari
Footnote: You can hear and read the Gurvastakam at:
http://backtohome.com/Gurvastakam
I have met you in Sofia, Bulgaria and have registered for self realization course after the meeting.
I am reading emails received everyday on Self Realization and Krishna Consciousness which are very helpful in clearing the ignorance of my mind. Now I eagerly wait everyday for new email which makes me more conscious towards Krishna.
I have one humble query :
I am a firm believer in God and God is helping me whenever I require help. Before meeting you I was worshipping Lord Shiva as the supreme God and Ma Durga. I was having respect for Krishna also and Ram Avatar also. It is also emphasized that God is one and names are different. But for worshipping and concentrating on becoming conscious I was adopting Shiva as supreme God and worshipping Shiva. Now also I worship Shiva.
After reading your emails regularly, I am finding that Krishna is Supreme God , may be Shiva is also one form of Krishna. In Hindu mythology, there is concept of Brahma, Vishnu , Mahesh where Vishnu has taken avatar as Krishna. In Ramayana when Lord Rama (Avatar of Vishnu) was starting to conquer Ravana, He worshipped Lord Shiva at seashore.
Because my knowledge is not complete , I am getting confused and would request you to clear my ignorance and so that I can concentrate on God for Self Realization and can make progress on this way.
Best Regards,
Sanjiv
I appreciate very much the sincerity and genuineness of your inquiry. According to the Vedic wisdom whenever we are confused about matters of spiritual truth and our ultimate duty, we must approach the spiritual master. This point is substantiated by the statement and example of Sri Arjuna in the Bhagavad-gita:
karpanya-dosopahata-svabhavah
prcchami tvam dharma-sammudha-cetah
yac chreyah syan niscitam bruhi tan me
sisyas te 'ham sadhi mam tvam prapannam
"Now I am confused about my duty and have lost all composure because of miserly weakness. In this condition I am asking You to tell me for certain what is best for me. Now I am Your disciple, and a soul surrendered unto You. Please instruct me."
--Bhagavad-gita 2.7
Kindly note that we are not concerned with Hindu mythology. We are concerned with the authoritative knowledge given in the Vedic scriptures. In those literatures we learn the following:
Lord Shiva is one of the great Vedic authorities and is no doubt therefore worshipable. We are not only meant to worship such great personalities. We are also meant to learn from and follow their instructions. This is the highest form of honoring and worshipping them.
When Lord Shiva was asked by his wife what is the highest form of worship, he replied that the worship of Lord Vishnu is the highest. (Lord Vishnu is Krishna's expanded form Who engages in affairs of the universal management.) So according to Lord Shiva, Lord Vishnu or Lord Krishna is the Supreme. This was also confirmed by Lord Shiva when he appeared as Shankaracharya. At that time he taught the people to worship Krishna.
That Krishna or Vishnu is the Supreme is confirmed throughout the Vedic literatures. Therefore although we should certainly worship and adore Lord Shiva, we should do so in the mood of worshipping him as the greatest devotee of Lord Krishna, not considering that Shiva is the Supreme Personality of Godhead. This proper worship of Lord Shiva as the greatest of all of Krishna's devotees is more pleasing to Lord Shiva than mistakenly worshipping Him as the Supreme Personality of Godhead.
I hope that this cleared this confusion up for you. If things are still unclear to you, kindly let me know.
Sankarshan Das Adhikari
Because his pleasure is completely transcendental to his material body and because sex is a pleasurable sensation which is experienced in the body, the transcendentalist prefers not to be brought back down to the lower level of bodily sense pleasure by sex indulgence. In other words, because sex brings him down to a lower level where the pleasure is of an inferior quality, he naturally avoids it. It is not that he is feeling frustrated from abstinence. He enjoys abstinence because it frees up his consciousness to absorb himself more deeply in Krishna consciousness, the reservoir of all pleasure. Of course, when such a transcendentalist wants to produce offspring he joyfully utilizes sex for its original natural purpose, procreation. Such procreational sex is a holy sacrament as confirmed by Lord Sri Krishna in the Bhagavad-gita.
Sankarshan Das Adhikari
Footnote: You can hear and read the Gurvastakam at:
http://backtohome.com/Gurvastakam
Answers According to the Vedic Version:
Question: Worshipping Lord Shiva...
Respected Sir,I have met you in Sofia, Bulgaria and have registered for self realization course after the meeting.
I am reading emails received everyday on Self Realization and Krishna Consciousness which are very helpful in clearing the ignorance of my mind. Now I eagerly wait everyday for new email which makes me more conscious towards Krishna.
I have one humble query :
I am a firm believer in God and God is helping me whenever I require help. Before meeting you I was worshipping Lord Shiva as the supreme God and Ma Durga. I was having respect for Krishna also and Ram Avatar also. It is also emphasized that God is one and names are different. But for worshipping and concentrating on becoming conscious I was adopting Shiva as supreme God and worshipping Shiva. Now also I worship Shiva.
After reading your emails regularly, I am finding that Krishna is Supreme God , may be Shiva is also one form of Krishna. In Hindu mythology, there is concept of Brahma, Vishnu , Mahesh where Vishnu has taken avatar as Krishna. In Ramayana when Lord Rama (Avatar of Vishnu) was starting to conquer Ravana, He worshipped Lord Shiva at seashore.
Because my knowledge is not complete , I am getting confused and would request you to clear my ignorance and so that I can concentrate on God for Self Realization and can make progress on this way.
Best Regards,
Sanjiv
Answer: As the Greatest Devotee...
I am very happy to hear from you after having had the pleasure of meeting you at our ISKCON center in Sofia, Bulgaria. I look forward to seeing you again on my next visit there at the end of October.I appreciate very much the sincerity and genuineness of your inquiry. According to the Vedic wisdom whenever we are confused about matters of spiritual truth and our ultimate duty, we must approach the spiritual master. This point is substantiated by the statement and example of Sri Arjuna in the Bhagavad-gita:
karpanya-dosopahata-svabhavah
prcchami tvam dharma-sammudha-cetah
yac chreyah syan niscitam bruhi tan me
sisyas te 'ham sadhi mam tvam prapannam
"Now I am confused about my duty and have lost all composure because of miserly weakness. In this condition I am asking You to tell me for certain what is best for me. Now I am Your disciple, and a soul surrendered unto You. Please instruct me."
--Bhagavad-gita 2.7
Kindly note that we are not concerned with Hindu mythology. We are concerned with the authoritative knowledge given in the Vedic scriptures. In those literatures we learn the following:
Lord Shiva is one of the great Vedic authorities and is no doubt therefore worshipable. We are not only meant to worship such great personalities. We are also meant to learn from and follow their instructions. This is the highest form of honoring and worshipping them.
When Lord Shiva was asked by his wife what is the highest form of worship, he replied that the worship of Lord Vishnu is the highest. (Lord Vishnu is Krishna's expanded form Who engages in affairs of the universal management.) So according to Lord Shiva, Lord Vishnu or Lord Krishna is the Supreme. This was also confirmed by Lord Shiva when he appeared as Shankaracharya. At that time he taught the people to worship Krishna.
That Krishna or Vishnu is the Supreme is confirmed throughout the Vedic literatures. Therefore although we should certainly worship and adore Lord Shiva, we should do so in the mood of worshipping him as the greatest devotee of Lord Krishna, not considering that Shiva is the Supreme Personality of Godhead. This proper worship of Lord Shiva as the greatest of all of Krishna's devotees is more pleasing to Lord Shiva than mistakenly worshipping Him as the Supreme Personality of Godhead.
I hope that this cleared this confusion up for you. If things are still unclear to you, kindly let me know.
Sankarshan Das Adhikari
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