How can we increase our commitment to Krishna?

Answer Podcast

Transcript

This is an AI-generated transcript and may contain some errors.
So, how can we increase our commitment to Krishna? Actually, there are two broad aspects, one is the quantity and the other is the quality. Often when we think of commitment, we only think of the quantity. Maybe if I am chanting this many rounds, I will chant more rounds.
I am going to, I am reading this many, this much Shastra, I will read this much more Shastra. That is good to some extent to have some quantity, so that there is some steadiness in the connection. But ultimately, we have only 24 hours in a day and we have many things to do.
So, in terms of quantity, we cannot always increase the quantity too much. So, it’s important to also look at quality. That means, if there is some aspect of bhakti which enables us to strongly connect with Krishna.
So, for example, some devotees may feel very strongly connected with Krishna through bhajans, singing bhajans, reciting bhajans. Some others may come, feel very strongly connected by reading a particular book, may be Chetan Charita, Amrit, Bhagavatam or whatever. Other devotees may feel very connected with Krishna by hearing classes.
So, whatever it is that enables us to strongly connect with Krishna, to become deeply infused with Krishna consciousness, we can commit to doing that regularly. Actually, that commitment is relatively easier because we like doing it and we feel strengthened by doing it. But by doing it regularly, we will get more spiritualized in our consciousness.
And the more spiritualized we become in our consciousness, then we will be able to carry that spiritual consciousness to other things also. So, certainly, we would like to increase our commitment as much as possible. But our human limitations make it impossible to increase the quantity.
So, if we can have something where the quality of our connectedness with Krishna increases and then we make a commitment to quantity within that, then that helps us to spiritualize our consciousness in a powerful way. Another thing is that when we talk about the quality of our commitment, it also means that we learn to see not just externally spiritual activities as spiritual, but we learn to see every situation as an opportunity to serve Krishna. So, even our profession, even our family, we do need this differentiation between material and spiritual so that we give some due time for directly spiritual activities.
But even what we call as material, that can also be spiritualized if you are doing with a spiritual intention. So, Harish Yori Prabhu gives the example in his Transcendental Diary that actually, whether Prabhupada was speaking to a thousand people or just speaking to one or two people during a darshan in his room, Prabhupada would be equally enthusiastic. So, because for him, he was speaking Krishna’s message.
Now, how many people were there to receive Krishna’s message? That did not make so much difference. Of course, naturally, if a large number of people would receive, Prabhupada would be happy because more people are hearing Krishna’s message. But he would be enthusiastic.
So, like that, now, if we see our life as an opportunity to serve, then we can, we preach through our, if we are directly doing some preaching, we are giving some classes or telling people about Krishna, that is very good and we will attract people to Krishna through our preaching. But then through our actions also we attract people. So, if we learn to see our family life, our professional life, they also have the opportunity to serve Krishna.
Because Krishna is present everywhere. In the 7th chapter, Bhagavad Gita, Prabhupada writes that the jurisdiction of Krishna consciousness extends everywhere. So, if we see that also as an opportunity to serve, and then we are, in one sense, because it’s a professional obligation or it’s a family obligation, we are naturally committed to it.
But we may not have spiritual consciousness in it. So, if we can infuse spiritual consciousness in it, then that can also give us more realizations and increase our connection with Krishna. Broadly speaking, for commitment, no, for long-term sustainability in commitment, we have to find out something which we feel inspired to do.
Like, see, there is a circle of bhakti. And there is a circle of our interests, our inspirations. So, we have to find out some intersection point between the two.
And if we situate ourselves in that intersection point, then we can go on steadily. We can go on in a self-motivated way. Because otherwise, we always have some, will you do this, do this, do this.
And then that becomes difficult for other people also to keep doing that. And we also don’t feel good when others are prodding us all the time. So, yes, if the community requires some service, we can do that.
But for long-term sustainability, we have to find out something which inspires us and something which is also within the circle of bhakti. And we situate ourselves in that. Occasionally, we may be required to do things which are not so much, which we don’t feel inspired to do.
And that is a part of our duty, part of our surrender. But that is not what we should be doing all the time. Varanashram essentially helps people get situated in that circle.
Now, what a brahmana likes to do, brahminical activities. And Varanashram gives a facility by which they can do brahminical activities, Daivi Varanashram basically, do brahminical activities in devotional service. So, if we find this circle, then we can, this intersection between the two circles, then we can become situated in a very committed way.
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