Be a Liberated Person from the Very Beginning

It is not difficult to become a liberated person. When we say, "liberated" we mean liberated from the clutches of the material nature. We are not speaking of the so called liberation of the sense gratifiers, which is nothing but bondage in disguise. Becoming such a genuinely liberated person is not at all difficult. Srila Prabhupada very nicely describes this in his purport to Bhagavad-gita 4.42:

"The Lord is definitely the supreme person, and His activities are transcendental. One who understands this is a liberated person from the very beginning of his study of Bhagavad-gita."

So all that is required to be a liberated person, even as one begins this path of Krishna bhakti, is to understand that Krishna is definitely the supreme person and that all His activities are transcendental. If one hears submissively from a bona fide spiritual master and serves him with love, it is not at all difficult to understand these points and become a liberated person.

Answers by Citing the Vedic Version

Question: How to Overcome Negativity?

I'm Lord Kishna's devotee, and I have a problem of negative thinking. My point of view is negative. No matter how many times I try to think Krishna consciously, bad thoughts ultimately come to my mind. Due to all this negativity, bad things keep coming true in my practical daily life. My chanting is also declining. Why Krishna is not helping me? Please guide me.

Manisha S.

Answer: Take Advantage of Key to Spiritual Success

There is nothing wrong with negativity if you utilize it properly in Krishna's service. To become liberated from material bondage, requires both negativity and positivity. Negativity means to give up the association of worldly people because it is the pathway to hell. And positivity means to accept the association of devotees because it is the pathway to the spiritual world.

To get rid of bad thoughts--which come in in the categories of lust, greed, anger, madness, illusion, and envy--you should constantly chant Hare Krishna and read Vedic literature as much possible. Your mind has been contaminated for thousands and millions of lifetimes. So you must now be very determined and patient as the process of Krishna consciousness gradually clears the contamination out of your mind.

Whatever bad things happen to you are actually good things in disguise because through the so-called bad experiences you are burning off the reactions from your past sinful activities. So don't be disturbed by the so-called bad things. They are part of Krishna's plan to make you qualified for returning to His spiritual kingdom as soon as possible. The key to spiritual success is to remain completely sinless by strictly avoiding illicit sex, meat eating, intoxicating, and gambling as well as chanting at least 16 rounds daily of the Hare Krishna mahamantra. This will qualify you for spiritual perfection as soon as possible.

Sankarshan Das Adhikari