How can we use in bhakti the qualities we don’t know we have?
Answer Podcast
Transcript
Disclaimer: This transcript was generated using AI and may contain occasional errors or inaccuracies.
So, if we are not intelligent enough to understand which qualities we have and so we are not able to use those qualities in Krishna's service, then what can we do? Is that the question? Yeah, okay. Yeah, actually that is not necessarily a matter of intelligence, you know, it's something which even if we have intelligence, that doesn't necessarily mean that we will be able to recognize which qualities we have. That's a problem which everyone has.
Most of you probably have seen this, these four windows. If you have a square, it's like, you know, you've seen this, known to us, known to others. There are some qualities which are known to us and known to others both.
Or rather, you know, how do you put it? OK, I'll put it like yes and yes. It's known to us and known to others also. Or rather, this is yes, this is no.
And this is yes, this is no. So, there are some qualities which are known to us and known to others. There are some qualities which are known to others, but are not known to us.
There are some qualities which are known to us, but are not known to others. And there are some qualities which are known neither to us nor to others. So, for us, you know, just by just living in the world, we can see this is something which I can do well.
There are some qualities which are obvious to both. So, we start with this. We start with this and use what is known to us and known to others in Krishna's service.
Now, this category, this is not known to us, known to others. If we have friends, the friends will tell us. You are close with them, you are good at this also, part of this.
Yeah, I can do this also. So, we need friends to be able to tell us this quality. And this is something which is often the area where the ego acts a lot.
And I think I have many more qualities than what I have been able to show till now. But we may have certain qualities which we have not expressed or which we have not yet manifested. Or we have not got the opportunity to do some things.
Sometimes some person may be a very good manager, but they never, because they are young, they don't get a managing service. But when somebody gives them a managing service, then they are able to delegate. They can organize nicely, you know, you do this, you do this, or you can do this at this time, this time, then others realize.
It's very good, they can do it very well. So, sometimes if we, so if there is something in this area, then we need others who will tell us this. So, others help us to discover our qualities here.
If something is there in this area, then we can in a humble way tell that I would like to do this. Or sometimes when an opportunity comes up, we can do this and when we do it well, others will notice it. And then they may engage us more in that direction.
And this category actually often takes, we have to go through some life experiences. Sometimes some demanding life experiences, where we go to layers of ourselves, which are deeper than the normal levels of functioning. So, it is said that adversities introduce us to ourselves.
That is, you know, I may think I am a very nice person, but when trouble comes, I start yelling and shouting and screaming at others. Then I never knew that there was a side view also, which could speak so nastily. But then I understand, Anartha is there within me.
Or sometimes some person may seem to be a very nice person, gentle, simple person, but some big crisis comes and still they stay so composed, stay focused. Then we understand, you know, despite that gentleness, you know, there is a frame of spine of steel inside this person. So, we all discover ourselves often when we go through, we all discover things about ourselves when we go through difficult situations.
So, this is something which is difficult to learn. And often some difficult life experiences are what is required to learn this. But basically, we start with what we have.
We start with what we have and use what we have in Krishna's service. And of course, more important, at least in the initial stages of our life is we just simply do what we are told to do. If we learn the principle of discipline and obedience, but while being obedient, we also observe ourselves, you know, and this is a service which I can do quite well.
This service I find it difficult to do. So, see what happens? Initially, we learn the principle of obedience. We have senior devotees who will be guiding us, telling us, do this, don't do this.
But our long term goal should be that I should be able to find a service that I will feel inspired to do lifelong, even if there's nobody to push me. If a devotee can find a service that they can do lifelong, then they can go on lifelong practicing. So, for finding a service which you can do lifelong, of course, preaching is one service like that.
Wherever we go in this world, there are so many people who don't have Krishna. We can give Krishna to them. But we also should feel inspired.
So, while doing whatever services we are told to do, we keep observing ourselves. This service I can do well and this is a service I like to do also. And then we don't have to say, we don't say that, you know, I won't do any other service, I don't do this service, not like that.
But we can try to train ourselves better in that service. Now, our mood should be that, let me try to become a more and more useful instrument for my spiritual master, for the Vaishnavas. So, becoming a more and more useful instrument means that if I have certain skills developed, I can serve better.
So, when we talk about… I think this question will come up later, so I'll address it now only. We all may ask about how do we discover our nature? I am a Brahmin, what is my nature actually? So, that's a very… it is, you know, trying to categorize into Brahmin, Kshetriya, Vaishnava is quite difficult in this age. What we could focus on is that when we talk about guna, guna refers to we feel internally comfortable while doing it.
And inner comfort and karma refers to outer competence. So, a Brahmana, when they are doing intellectual work, then they feel comfortable, you know, I am home, this is what I like to do. And then you can see, there are some people, they memorize verses, others take, you know, 3-4 days to memorize one verse.
There are some people who memorize 3-4 verses in one day. So, they are competent doing it, they are happy doing it, they are comfortable doing it, they are competent doing it. So, if we can find out what we are comfortable internally and what we are competent externally, we can understand that is what is a part of my subhava.
And we can try to do that service more. Not rejecting the instructions of our spiritual authorities, but rather within the perimeter that they are given, we can try to do that service. And over a period of time, we will gravitate towards that service more and more.
So, basically, start with what we know of ourselves. And one aspect about knowing this or this, or even getting to… revealing about, informing others about this, all this how to do, that will be a part of the dāmi buddhi-yogam tam yena mām upayānti te. Krishna will give us the intelligence about how to come to Him.
How to come to Him also means, you know, how to use more of the resources that we have, which He has given us, in His service. Does this answer your question? So, any other questions or comments?