On seeing other devotees’ grow spiritually, how can we avoid feeling bad that we are spiritually stagnating?

Answer Podcast

Transcript

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Question when I see someone who was not very serious in their spiritual life and suddenly they become serious I don’t want to feel bad or about them I want to be happy about them but still I feel why am I not advancing as fast as they are why are they advancing more how can I deal with such feelings answer I would say broadly three points first is while we are trying to grow spiritually there is a human side to us and we can’t just wish away or deny our human side we need to acknowledge that each one of us just by being human beings will have certain emotions say for example if we are fasting on Ekadashi but if we see some delicious food which is not Ekadashi food our tongue might water especially if we like that food very much now we may have no intention of eating it but still there could be a biological reaction there could even be an emotional reaction in terms of the desire coming so Krishna says Nakamakami in 217 the Bhagavad Gita says Nakamakami means he is saying that the craving may arise the emotion may arise but don’t pander to it don’t be a desirer of desire Nakamakami so same way we live in a world where competition and comparison are quite acute and are sometimes even inevitable so naturally if we see someone else growing faster than us and making be more spiritually committed or making more spiritual advancement then as natural human reaction so that doesn’t mean we have to get carried away by the reaction but at the same time we can’t artificially dehumanize ourselves or expect that we become dehumanized just because we are trying to go spiritually so feeling that on seeing someone else becoming more committed and growing getting that thought what am I why am I not getting it what am I not doing right what is this person doing right because of which they are getting this result or they are able to do this service they are becoming so committed so that sort of thoughts are natural they are just human we don’t have to necessarily immediately categorize them as we don’t have to demonize ourselves or beat ourselves up just because we are having those thoughts we have to see how we what are our conscious responses to our unconscious reactions that means we have certain automatic reactions to certain stimuli but what are our conscious or conscientious once the automatic reaction comes up how do we respond to that so first be understanding with yourself second point is that we can use philosophy as a resource for strengthening our intelligence and pacifying our mind which is bringing such thoughts within us so from a philosophical perspective we understand that while in the material world there could be some comparison and competition but in the spiritual arena just because some other devotees advancing seriously doesn’t mean that we can’t advance we all have our own place and purpose in Krishna’s plan and we have our own position in the spiritual world nobody else can usurp our position so in that sense we are secure in our spirituality so just as Krishna can be with many other Gopis but each Gopi with whom Krishna is that Gopi feels completely enriched by Krishna’s presence so of course we are nowhere near the level of the Gopis but the point is that just because Krishna is because some other devotee is getting well connected with Krishna and even Krishna is reciprocating with that devotee that doesn’t mean that Krishna has become less available for us so Krishna’s availability for us doesn’t depend on it doesn’t decrease because of his availability for others that is his infinitude so like that there can be different philosophical points which we can use to pacify our minds another point which we could say is that spiritual satisfaction depends not so much on how much service somebody does or how much recognition somebody gets but it depends primarily on how much we are connected with and are absorbed in Krishna so if we we are absorbed then we can be happy even if we are not externally able to do as many services as somebody else is doing so our satisfaction depends on our absorption not on the appreciation that we get for our service and not the quantity of our service also we do bhakti not so much for productivity or popularity we do it for purity we want to become purified and purely absorbed in Krishna another point we can consider is that even when some devotee is able to do some service seriously it’s not just in terms of they get the results but even the capacity to do a service seriously that is also Krishna’s mercy when Sanatana Goswami renounces the world and faces great dangers because of renouncing the world has to risk his life to escape from Nawab Hussain Shah’s jail and subsequent dangers from dacoits and finally he reaches Chaitanya Mahaprabhu’s shelter. Chaitanya Mahaprabhu says to him that the super soul moments are inconceivable it is because of the mercy of the super soul that you have been able to renounce all the wealth of the world and surrender to Krishna so Chaitanya Mahaprabhu recognizes that even renunciation and dedication are fruits of Krishna’s mercy so Krishna can bless and empower different devotees in different ways and just because Krishna has blessed someone else doesn’t mean that he can’t or won’t bless us in fact if we see the other devotees dedication not just as their dedication but as Krishna’s benediction then that can help us avoid a competitive mentality with them. Prabhupada would say when some of his god brothers felt a little critical of his outreach Prabhupada said that that they are unable to see that it is their spiritual master and my spiritual master it is our spiritual master who is acting through me it’s not that I am doing my own mission and they are doing their mission we are all doing one shared mission so if we see that it is all our source the source for all of us for our dedication, for our contributions for our achievements, for our talents it’s all one it’s Krishna then we can avoid feeling disconnected or alienated or discouraged on seeing somebody doing more but still if we feel that why is Krishna doing more with through this devotee and not through me we need to understand that Krishna has his own plan for each one of us and let Krishna use others the way he wants and let Krishna use me the way he wants let me do my part and Krishna will take care of the rest so if we maintain this humble service attitude we will find that we will become connected with Krishna and we will become absorbed and lastly at a practical level we can also look at rather than comparing ourselves with that devotee and thinking oh that devotee has gone so far ahead and I am stuck over here we can take inspiration from others but for transformation we can compare with ourselves ok this is what I was doing at that time in that situation now in this situation, today’s situation what can I do what are the things which I can do more in my capacity just as Krishna was satisfied Lord Ram was satisfied with not just the Vanaras bringing giant stones, giant boulders to help build the bridge, he was satisfied even with a squirrel doing her small part similarly if we are doing our part we will be able to please Krishna we will get his mercy and we will get we will also get the dedication and the absorption and satisfaction thereby and if Krishna wants he can transform squirrels into giant monkeys also, he can empower us to do extraordinary things but the real blessing or the most important blessing that we should seek from Krishna is not the empowerment by which we can do visibly great services but the empowerment by which we can get absorbed in whatever we are doing so thus by focusing on the absorption we can avoid the negative feelings that may come because of the because of seeing others increase dedication.
Thank you