Surrender Means...

Today we are flying from Copenhagen to Helsinki. I never dreamed when we flew into Copenhagen on 1 October what would unfold here. What was supposed to be a three day stay turned into almost three weeks. I remember as we left the airport I was thinking that soon we would be back again at the airport to fly on to our next destination. I never envisioned that I would be forced to cancel so many lectures and completely re-arrange my preaching schedule. I could not foresee that I was going to spend the better part of my waking hours in hospitals. It was a graphic lesson for me that we are not the controllers. We are instead tiny servants in the hands of Krishna. He can do anything and everything that He wants to do with us according to His purposes to bring us back to His kingdom as soon as possible and also to engage us in bringing back as many as possible of the fallen, conditioned souls of this world back to His kingdom as well. We have to always be ready to engage in any way that Krishna wants to engage us. This is the real meaning of surrender. Surrender does not mean doing what we want to do for Krishna. Surrender means always doing what Krishna wants, even if we do not want to do it.

Sankarshan Das Adhikari

ISKCON Temple--Copenhagen, Demark

Answers According to the Vedic Version:

Question: Male or Female Birth?

It is stated in 18 October 2008's "Questions and Answers":

"But when the soul desires to taste material enjoyment he takes birth in a temporary material body to try to become happy by fulfilling his material desires."

My questions are:

What decides whether the body is of male or female, human or animal?

Each birth is a fallen soul? or from a single fallen soul we are taking birth?

Renumol,

Madras

Answer: According to Your Mentality

The soul takes a male or female body according to his or her thoughts at the time of leaving the previous body. If someone dies thinking of a woman, they become a woman. And if someone dies thinking of a man, they take birth as a man.

If someone is sincerely endeavoring to give up material sense gratification and become liberated from the cycle of birth and death, they will take birth as a human being. And if someone is absorbed in thoughts of material sense gratification, they will take birth as an animal.

As long as we remain in the fallen state of material consciousness we will take birth after birth after birth in this material world. Your identity is that you are one soul. You have been transmigrating for millions and millions of lifetimes trying to enjoying material sense gratification in this way and that way, sometimes as a male, sometimes as a female, sometimes as a human being, and sometimes as an animal. Since time immemorial you have been caught up an endless cycle of birth and death. But if you will now take your human birth very seriously and utilize it to become fully Krishna conscious, you will not take birth again in this material world. Upon leaving your present body, you will immediately go back to home, back to Godhead.

Sankarshan Das Adhikari