Do householder devotees need to attend the temple morning program daily to be surrendered?
Disclaimer: This transcript was generated using AI and may contain occasional errors or inaccuracies.
Question from Avatari Chaitanya Prabhu. This is based on a Gita Daily article of how Krishna doesn't see where we have been but where we want to go. The question is about surrender.
Do householder devotees have to attend the Mangal Aarti and the Bhagavatam class in order to be surrendered? Devotional service is a vast unlimited ocean and because of so many limitations and conditions, I am only able to go so far. Whenever I think of 18.66 Sarvdharman Prithvijya, the only worry I have is whether Krishna actually considers me surrendered. I have to draw the line somewhere regarding how much I can do.
In addition, I am visibly short on several counts expected of me. Srila Prabhupada expected his followers to attend Mangal Aarti at Brahma Murtha every day. That is far from feasible for me.
Srila Prabhupada expected us to attend Bhagavatam classes every day. Again, a far cry for me. At the time of Srila Prabhupada, most of ISKCON was a fully engaged community family.
As a person who has a full-time job, I often get the question of how Krishna and Srila Prabhupada, who is non-different from him in intentions, must be thinking of me. So, answer. First and foremost, we have to know that there is no one definition of surrender.
Srila Prabhupada himself talked about surrender in principle and then he gave some practices through which we can surrender. So, it's not that just because somebody is attending the Bhagavatam class and is attending the morning program and the Mangal Aarti, that this automatically means that a person is surrendered. Surrender is a matter of the heart.
It's a matter of inner disposition and that disposition, certainly certain activities help to cultivate that disposition. But the important point is, if we just have a unidimensional notion of surrender, that okay, those who do these activities are surrendered, then we may miss out on two important points. One is that there may be other devotees who are very dedicated to other services and they are very surrendered, but we may mistake them to be unsurrendered.
On the other hand, there are others who may just be doing this in form, just attending it physically, but their heart is not really going closer to Krishna. They're doing it because of some obligation or something like that. So, we can't just simplistically tie surrender with certain specific forms.
We take initiation vows, that is, four hundred and sixteen rounds. They are vital for us to do and beyond that, how we grow forward in our spiritual life will be based on Anukulyasya Sankalpa Pratikulyasya Varjanam. So, when devotees were living within the temple as it happened in Srila Prabhupada's time, even grahasthas were living in the temple and they were doing temple services.
At that time, attending temple morning program is important. As a scone evolves and takes on different shifts, now it is a congregation-based movement. So for grahasthas, with their demanding professional commitments and family requirements, this may not always be practical.
So, we have to choose which aspects of bhakti are practical. So, in principle, we should try to do as much service as we can. Now, how we will do more service, that will depend on how we feel inspired.
There is a basic level of devotional commitment which all of us are expected to do. But beyond that, when we want to expand our devotional service, we have to see what inspires us the most. So, for some devotees, with the limited time that they have, if they want to choose between, say, doing some outreach programs or assisting in some outreach programs or attending the morning program, we have so much time.
Only limited time we have. So, either we can do this or we can do that. So, there may be devotees who may be very committed to preaching, very vigorously, and they may in their own way be surrendered.
But because of the limitation of time, they will not be able to attend their morning program. So, that doesn't mean that they are not surrendered. Surrender is expressed through our commitment to devotional service.
So, there are different limbs of devotional service, and Sri Aurobindo wanted outreach also. He wanted devotees, all devotees to become teachers and preachers and share Krishna consciousness vigorously. So, with respect to householder devotees, every devotee will have to decide according to time, place, circumstance, how one can best serve Krishna.
And we have to know that Krishna doesn't demand anything from us which is impossible, which is impossible or which is impractical. So, we shouldn't use the word practical as an argument for not surrendering, nor should we think that when I have to surrender, surrender means I have to do something impractical. We have to find a realistic balance where what we consider practical today, you know, if we show Krishna our sincerity, our determination, Krishna may arrange situations in such a way that we may have a less demanding job or circumstances can be changed where we can do more service for Krishna.
So, as devotees, we would like to do more and more service for Krishna and if we can take up jobs which allow us more time for Krishna, that is great. Many devotees plan that once they earn sufficiently, then they can take less demanding jobs and then they will have more time for Krishna. Even when we have more time for Krishna, it's important that we don't stereotype surrender into specific terms because we'll have to see what devotional service is voluntary and what inspires us.
So, if we find that attending the Mani program, Mangal Aarti or Bhagavatam class that inspires us very much, then we can definitely do that because that's how we are increasing our attraction towards Krishna. But in other cases, some other devotees may like to do other services and there is a whole variety, a world of services that are there which we can do. So, certainly, one measure of surrender is the amount of time and the amount of commitment to practical service for Krishna that we are doing.
But along with that, it's a matter of inner disposition. So, the inner disposition of attraction towards Krishna will be developed when we do activities which we feel inspired to do. Certainly, the basic principles of devotional service we have to do because that's Vaide Bhakti.
But beyond that, whatever we are going to increase, that will be based on what we feel inspired to do. There may be grahasthas who may be very dedicated and they are interested very much in serving and preaching. But Mani program may not be practical for them.
So, we see Shila Prabhupada himself, when he was a grahastha, he was not going to Gaudiya Math to attend Bhagavatam class every day. Shila Prabhupada himself, he would do his japa. He would wake up early in the morning and even his family was not very conducive.
So, Shila Prabhupada did what was appropriate. He was traveling vigorously. So, whenever he would be in a place where there was a Gaudiya Math, he would stay in the temple and he would attend the Mani program.
But then, he felt at that time, his service to his spiritual master was, the spiritual master had asked him to preach and Prabhupada felt at that time that the best way I can preach is by assisting my spiritual master's mission by providing financial contributions. So, he tried to expand his business vigorously and Prabhupada was not lethargic. He was vigorous in trying to expand his business, was traveling widely and then Prabhupada used the time when he was traveling widely, he used that time to study scripture.
He studied Bhaktsanshu Thakur's books. He studied the previous Acharya's books and in that way, he prepares. That's why the first volume of Shila Amrit is appropriately called as Lifetime in Preparation.
So, that preparation was not necessarily in terms of specific forms of devotional service, but it was within the circumstances that are limit as to he was able to, he was determinately practicing devotional service within those circumstances and he was surrender at all times. So, this is in no way means to minimize the importance of the Mani program, but the important point is as devotees, we should not judge others about their surrender based on certain externals, nor should we let ourselves feel guilty or discouraged because of not being able to do specific devotional activities. Now, we should always be enthused.
Guilt also should enthuse us. If at all there is any feeling of guilt, that should enthuse us, that should not discourage us. Now, Krishna is Bhavagrahi.
He sees the attitude and if we have a sincere intention to serve him, then we will be, Krishna will accept that intention and he will help us to move forward and that intention will be nourished when we are doing devotional activities that inspire us and that surcharge us. So, we will have to see which kind of devotional activities inspire us and we do those and thereby we move forward in Krishna consciousness. And we also have to recognize one point that Srila Prabhupada did not give one definition of success.
Whereas, in the early days of a movement, the idea was that what is the success of the movement? That if people withdraw from the world and join the community of devotees, that itself is success. So, that is true. We want people to become very serious devotees and today's culture, external culture is very materialistic and people who are devotees withdraw from that culture so that they can seriously practice devotional service.
But that is not the only definition of success. An institution, the Krishna conscious movement, if it is to spread, Krishna consciousness itself is to spread, then that will be in terms of concentric circles. So, we will have devotees with varying levels of, we will have many devotees with varying levels of connection with ISKCON in an external form.
So, Srila Prabhupada told Bitar Barwash and George Harrison to be plainclothes devotees. So, they practically did not reveal their devotion publicly very often. But then they did a valuable service to fulfill Prabhupada's instructions.
So, that means some people may be very visibly and externally connected to Krishna consciousness movement and they can be surrendered. And there may others who are not so visibly connected to Krishna consciousness movement in terms of say coming for morning program, but they may themselves in their own way be spreading the Krishna consciousness movement. So, if devotees are exemplary in their professions, then that is also creating a positive influence in terms of gaining people to appreciate Krishna consciousness.
So, we cannot expect the whole world to withdraw from its materialistic culture and become devotees. This is Kali Yuga. So, if we want Krishna consciousness society's influence to spread, then it has to spread in multiple ways.
So, Svakarmanatam Abhyarja Krishna says, by your work worshipping. So, we shouldn't think that the work that we are doing, that is not devotional service. No, that can also remain devotional service if we do it well, competently.
Through that work, we can attract many people to Krishna. So, we will attract people of the kind who would not directly come to a temple. So, devotees who are committed to that kind of outreach are also important.
And if they are committed to that, they may also be very surrendered. So, we should just focus on trying to increase our devotional disposition and trying to express that in the best possible way that is our circumstances allow. And if we are doing that, Krishna sees us surrendered and he will guide us to surrender more and more in a way that is the best for our individual advancement and for our contribution to Krishna's mission.
Thank you.