Nothing More Valuable then Devotee Association

There is nothing more valuable than the association of Krishna's devotee. Krishna's devotee possesses Krishna and he can give Krishna to us. The unlimited kindness of Krishna is manifested in the form of His devotee. If we take full advantage of the association of Krishna's devotee, our lives will be successful. We will be fully happy in this life and forever more in the hereafter.

Srila Prabhupada's Association: the Perfect Blessing

Srila Prabhupada's Association: the Perfect Blessing

Answers by Citing the Vedic Version

Question: Is Too Much Devotion Not Good?

Dearest Srila Gurudeva, an advanced devotee once told us an quote from India,"Too much devotion is a symptom of a thief." She said for the beginners, we should make a balance between spiritual and material life, not too much, not too little. Is it right? Is too much devotional service really a thief on our spiritual road? For a long time, I didn't strive hard to make progress fearing others may talk about me as just showing off. I always worry that other devotees may not like to see this if I stand out to express too much enthusiasm in devotional service or being a good example to help others. Is this anxiety unnecessary? How to get rid of such negative thoughts? And what's the real meaning of making a good balance between my spiritual and material life? In what degree should I expect of the speed of my progress in Krishna Consciousness?

J.D.

Answer: No Such Thing as Too Much Devotion

There is no such thing are being too devoted to Krishna. Our problem is that we are never devoted enough.

When it is said that too much devotion is the symptom of a thief, this refers to someone who is not a devotee but pretends to be a devotee in order to steal something from the devotees. Such a person will make an exaggerated outward show of being a devotee to convince the devotees that he is one of them, while within his heart he is simply a thief looking for the chance to steal something.

Balance between life and spiritual life means that you should be healthy, materially and spiritually. In other words keep your body fit with proper diet and rest and simultaneously fully absorb yourself in Krishna consciousness 24 hours day. Balance does not means 12 hours for Maya and 12 hours for Krishna. Balance means to always be fully absorbed in Krishna consciousness while simultaneously keeping your body fit. You will advance in Krishna consciousness to whatever extent you absorb yourself 24 hours daily in Krishna's service.

You should not be in anxiety about becoming too Krishna conscious. The more that you awaken your dormant Krishna consciousness, the more you will feel yourself to be very meek and lowly. An advanced devotee never advertises his Krishna consciousness. Rather he humbly presents himself as someone who is trying to become Krishna conscious.

Sankarshan Das Adhikari

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