If material deprivation makes us discouraged in devotion, what can we do?

Answer Podcast

Transcript

This is an AI-generated transcript and may contain some errors.
So, if material deprivation makes us discouraged in devotional service, then how can we at that time try to intensify our devotion? Yes, at a practical level, we do need material deprivation.
Material things. And you say, if we don’t have financial security, if we don’t have relational stability, if we don’t have basic health, it becomes difficult to practice bhakti. And that’s why in general, bhakti can be started from any guna, rajas, tamas, sattva.
But bhakti can be best practiced in sattva. So, we need, we need to try to create a situation of relational, financial, medical stability by which we can practice bhakti. युक्ताहार्विहारसित्चेष्टसेकर्णसु युक्तःस्वप्नावभौधस्योगोभवतिदुखा That, when we are regulated in our worldly activities, then the practice of devotion, of yoga, can lead us to freedom from distress.
So, we are not talking here about intentionally embracing distress, or thinking of distress itself as a virtue. The virtue is devotion. What we are talking about, if distress comes of its own accord, we don’t give up our devotion.
So, we work, like I said, the painkiller is also important. If I am in pain, the doctor says, I’ll just give you the curative medicine, no painkiller. The pain may be so unbearable that even if the cure is working, the cure may take a long time to work.
And the patient may be in agony during that time. The patient may become disheartened, demoralized. And the patient may even become suicidal because of the pain.
So, we, we understand that we are meant to serve Krishna. But we don’t divorce the spiritual from the mental, the physical, the relational, the social, the financial. If you have to see devotion, not as an isolated activity, but as an integrated activity.
That means, it’s not that coming to the temple and chanting Hare Krishna is Bhakti. It’s doing our family responsibilities well in a mood of service to Krishna, that is also Bhakti. Doing our job well, that is also Bhakti.
Taking care of our health, if our life is meant to serve Krishna, then what we do to take care of health is also Bhakti. So, if at a particular time in our life, a particular need has become dominant, say, if somebody’s health has collapsed, and then, at that time, these can’t come to the temple, they just have to work on taking care of their health. Now, they don’t have to say that, oh, this health, taking care of my health is interfering with my devotion.
Can say that if I’m taking care of my health in a mood of service to Krishna, mood that, okay, once my health becomes better, I can do more service to Krishna. Now, we don’t give up our service to Krishna at that time. But we may not be able to do the service to Krishna in the same form or with the same magnitude as we would when we are healthy.
So, circumstances, when they change, our purpose of serving Krishna doesn’t change. But the way in which we serve Krishna, that will change. When Prabhupada was in Allahabad, at that time, he had a pharmacy.
So, there was a doctor who would work with him. The doctor had a dispensary. The doctor would dispense the medicine, prescribe the medicine, and Prabhupada would provide the medicine.
So, Satsvarupa had interviewed that doctor, and that comes in Niravnod. And he says, it was clear that Abhay Babu, he was called Abhay at that time. Abhay Babu was a very deeply religious man.
But at that time, his main concern was, how can I afford money? That’s what was required for him at that time. So, he was, of course, whenever we got an opportunity to talk about Krishna, that time that was his focus. So, we don’t have to see our material life as divorced from our spiritual life.
Our material life is also necessary as a stable platform by which we can practice spiritual life. And sometimes, in some situations, the material life requires more attention. We give that.
And we don’t give up our devotion. But it’s natural that when a particular thing requires more attention, we give that attention. If at that time we have devotees who are understanding, devotees who have gone through similar situations in their lives, and then, they can tell us, in this situation, we can focus on this.
But even in this situation, you can do this, this, this. Even if you can’t do all this, you can do this. So, sometimes we may have a very static understanding of devotion.
Only if you are doing this, this, this, you are a devotee. Otherwise, you have fallen down. No, it’s not like that.
Sometimes, in some situations, certain activities may not be possible. So, we need some devotees who are understanding enough. But, okay, I cannot do this in this situation.
But, okay, that doesn’t mean we don’t have to see devotion as like a digital logic, one or zero. It’s more of analog. There are times in which we can do more directly devotional activities.
There are times when we cannot do those directly devotional activities. As long as we maintain the intent to serve Krishna. And we keep doing some devotional activities.
So, what we can do in our situation is for us to find by our intelligence and by wise association. The Ganga always keeps moving towards the ocean. But, the Ganga doesn’t always move by the same path towards the ocean.
Sometimes, when that path gets blocked, the Ganga has to go this way, this way, this way, this way. So, our consciousness is like the Ganga. We want it to go towards the ocean.
But, sometimes, if we are in a place where there is a temple and we can come to the temple regularly, we can take darshan, we can do kirtan. That’s how we can move towards the ocean. But, suppose our job or family situation takes us somewhere away from devotee association.
Then, we cannot do the bhakti in the same way. So, the Ganga cannot flow by the same path. But, that doesn’t mean it can’t flow.
We can find some other path. Nowadays, through online, we can get classes. We can get in touch with devotees through online connections.
We can maybe create our own association over there by sharing Krishna bhakti over there. Or, we can say that this is the time when I can study Shastra more. Whatever it is, if we have the intent to serve Krishna, Krishna will reveal to us how to serve him in that situation.
So, we don’t have to consider material deprivation as an obstacle in our devotion. It can be an obstacle in the practice of particular forms of devotion. And, we can work at a practical level to deal with the material obstacle as much as we can so that the material deprivation ends.
But, we don’t have to let that material deprivation dominate our consciousness. I’ll conclude with this point. When we are facing a problem, there are two unhealthy approaches.
One is, we think that Krishna will solve this problem. And, I’ll not do anything. Say, if we have lost a job, we just come to the temple and chant Hare Krishna.
Krishna will arrange a job for me. Well, no. You also have to work to get a job.
But, not thinking about the problem at all is also a problem. But, sometimes, thinking too much about the problem is also a problem. Oh, I don’t have a job, I don’t have a job, I don’t have a job.
That’s what is burning us 24 hours a day. That will drain us. And, even if we have to go for an interview, we’ll be so worried, we’ll not be able to perform properly.
So, you have to find the right balance where, when we are facing a problem, our energy is used to deal with the problem. And, not deny the problem or be overwhelmed by the problem. So, we deal with that material deprivation appropriately.
But, just because we are material deprived, doesn’t mean that 24 hours we can work to deal with that material deprivation. So, even amid that material deprivation, we can find time and energy to practice bhakti. And, that can rejuvenate us.
That can rejuvenate us. And, then we can work better to deal with that material deprivation also. Does that answer your question? Thank you.