Prahlada Maharaja is a most glorious devotee I
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Prahlada Maharaja is a Most Glorious Devotee
26 April 2025
Prahlada Maharaja is a most glorious devotee. He is indeed an ocean of mercy. In Srimad Bhagavatam, 7th Canto, Chapter 9, Text 44 he states:prāyeṇa deva munayaḥ sva-vimukti-kāmā
maunaṁ caranti vijane na parārtha-niṣṭhāḥ
naitān vihāya kṛpaṇān vimumukṣa eko
nānyaṁ tvad asya śaraṇaṁ bhramato 'nupaśye
"My dear Lord Nṛsiṁhadeva, I see that there are many saintly persons indeed, but they are interested only in their own deliverance. Not caring for the big cities and towns, they go to the Himalayas or the forest to meditate with vows of silence [mauna-vrata]. They are not interested in delivering others. As for me, however, I do not wish to be liberated alone, leaving aside all these poor fools and rascals. I know that without Kṛṣṇa consciousness, without taking shelter of Your lotus feet, one cannot be happy. Therefore I wish to bring them back to shelter at Your lotus feet."
One of the most amazing things about Prahlada Maharja and of the great Vaisnava acharyas is that they are happy and unhappy at the same time. This is explained as follows by Srila Prabhupada in his purport to Srimad Bhagavatam Seventh Canto, Chapter 9, Text 43:
"As for Prahlāda Mahārāja, he was not at all unhappy, for although he was in the material world, he was full of Kṛṣṇa consciousness. Those who are Kṛṣṇa conscious, trying to serve the Lord, are not unhappy, whereas one who has no assets in Kṛṣṇa consciousness and is struggling for existence is not only foolish but extremely unhappy also. Prahlāda Mahārāja was happy and unhappy simultaneously. He felt happiness and transcendental bliss because of his being Kṛṣṇa conscious, yet he felt great unhappiness for the fools and rascals who make elaborate plans to be happy in this material world."
Prahlada Maharaja is so kind that he wants to remain in this material world until he can bring all of the conditioned souls with him to their original home in the spiritual world. Therefore we bow down at his lotus feet always begging for his mercy.
The Most Glorious Prahlada Maharaja
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Hare Krishna,There are four regulative principles, and I follow all of them. However, I have a doubt. Even before coming to bhakti, I understood that illicit sex is sinful. But I didn’t know that even sex with one’s wife could be considered sinful if done for recreational purposes.
Giving up non-vegetarian food for life is manageable — there’s no problem. Smoking, drinking, and gambling are also relatively minor and can be avoided with determination. But physical relations, especially with one’s wife, are very desirable.
Some couples even avoid hugging each other out of fear that physical intimacy may lead to sinful activity.
Let’s suppose a couple already has two children and doesn’t want more. Does that mean they must completely give up sex for the rest of their lives? Is such a standard really possible? How can they share the same bed and still completely avoid intimacy?
If using contraceptives is sinful, then what is the solution? In today’s age, it doesn’t seem practical to keep having child after child. So, what does one do?
S.
Answer
From: Austin, Texas USAMy Dear S.
Please accept my blessings.
All glories to Śrīla Prabhupāda.
Ideally human life means to completely give up all forms of material enjoyment including sex and to go back to home, back to Godhead. But there is no doubt that completely avoiding sex is very difficult. This is why a concession is given that one can marry and use the sex urge for having Krishna conscious children. As long as we have material bodies the tendency for having sex will be there. The tendency can be used for Krishna’s service. But if we use sex for recreation this will keep us entangled in the cycle of birth and death.
It is natural to hug one’s wife out of loving affection, just like
many times I hug my Godbrothers and sometimes my disciples out of loving affection. In this connection Srila Prabhupada writes in Bhagavatam purport: "For Pārvatī to be embraced by Lord Śiva was natural in a relationship between husband and wife.” But if a husband and wife hug each other in bed and they are not highly advanced in Krishna consciousness this can awaken sex desire and lead to sexual intercourse. The easy way to avoid this is for the husband and wife to sleep in different beds. In this way they are protected from fall down.
The ultimate solution is to increase one’s Krishna consciousness by becoming more deeply involved in hearing and chanting the glories of the Lord. By doing this one will taste a pleasure much greater the sex. Sex pleasure lasts for a few moments only. But the pleasure of Krishna consciousness goes on 24 hours a day.
There is an example in this connection:
If I gave you $100,000 you would be happy. And if I asked you to give it back you would be sad. But if I asked you to give back the $100,000 in exchange for one million dollars you would be very happy. Sex is like $100,000 and Krishna consciousness is like one million dollars or even more than that.
This is why Krishna says in Bhagavad-gita 2.59:
viṣayā vinivartante
nirāhārasya dehinaḥ
rasa-varjaṁ raso 'py asya
paraṁ dṛṣṭvā nivartate
"Though the embodied soul may be restricted from sense enjoyment, the taste for sense objects remains. But ceasing such engagements by experiencing a higher taste, he is fixed in consciousness.”
So, the real solution is for you and your spouse to take complete shelter of the bona fide master who will engage you 24 hours a day and take you beyond the dangerous ocean of birth and death back to your original home in the spiritual world.
I hope this meets you in the best of health
and in a cheerful mood.
Your ever well-wisher,
Sankarshan Das Adhikari
My Spiritual Journey in a Nutshell
As an American youth I was taught to believe in the. "American dream": Study hard, get a good education and a good job to get a good wife some good kids in a good house to enjoy a good life. But when I got to college I realized that this was not enough. I wanted to know what is the meaning of life, but no one could tell me. So I took to the path of self-realization and was blessed in 1968 with the Hare Krishna mantra and the worship of Radha and Krishna. (I did not know about ISKCON.) This inspired me to drop out of college and renounce the world to become a holy beggar in India. But on the way to India I realized that to renounce everything I had to ultimately renounce renunciation itself and accept something transcendental Thus I embraced the mission of delivering the world from chaos. For this purpose I adopted the life a singer/songwriter who in 1969 became recognized and very much appreciated. In 1971, seeking spiritual perfection, I followed the example of Lord Jesus Christ and prayed to God how I could become His perfect servant. Then God revealed to me path of pure Krishna bhakti as taught by His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami. On the most auspicious day of 12 August 1971 he accepted me as his disciple. Now on his order and under his most expert guidance I have fully devoted my life for awakening pure love of God within my heart and for making the entire world Krishna conscious.To read about my journey in detail get my memoir:
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