If sense objects seem more attractive than Krishna, what to do?

Answer Podcast

Transcript

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If you consider that we practice Bhakti, the happiness of spiritual life seems to be a can which is tightly closed.
It takes a long time to open. We don’t get the taste and emotional connect with sense object seems to be much stronger for us. So, we get drawn towards it.
Yeah, that’s true. Both ways, it’s that whatever we have indulged in recently, that is fresh in our memory. Because we have indulged in sense objects, that is fresh in the memory and that’s what keeps coming back to us.
So, it’s not that the sense objects are more attractive than Krishna. Rather, the impressions about the sense objects are deeper within us than is the impression about Krishna. There is a difference between the two.
Krishna is far more attractive than sense objects. But how much attractive what will appear to me will depend on how much other impressions about him in my mind. So, that’s why there is a whole process of discipline.
I feel like getting attracted but I will not get attracted. Now, the discipline cannot go on for a very long time unless there is some taste. So, it’s like, say, I am starving right now.
I need food. You tell me. We are on a journey.
It’s a 48-hour journey. At the end of it, there is a 25-course feast. Give me one food item now.
48 hours is later. Whatever it is, it’s fine. I want one food item now.
Something I want right now. Sometimes it can appear like that. Oh, we will say, when you become pure devotee, there is constant ecstasy.
I want some ecstasy now. So, it can feel like that. Definitely.
So, what we need to do is that we need to, each devotee has to take individual responsibility to find out within bhakti, what gives them taste, what gives them strength and to do that. So, we could say this is the lower material taste. This is the higher spiritual taste.
In between, we could say there is a higher material taste. We normally talk about lower taste and higher taste. We talk about lower material taste and higher spiritual taste.
But there could be a higher material taste. What do I mean by higher material taste? It means that it is higher in the sense that it raises our consciousness higher. But it is not entirely material.
You could say it is a higher material spiritual taste. That means, say, I like to sing. Now, when I sing, is it that I am singing purely for Krishna’s pleasure? Right now, I am giving class.
Is it that I am giving this class purely for Krishna’s pleasure? Well, I don’t think so. I hope I can one day. But it’s not.
You know, I like to speak. I like to analyze concepts. I like to present.
I like to play with words. I like to deal with concepts. So, but, I like to play with words and concepts.
But I am not playing with words and concepts which are atheistic, which are materialistic. I am doing it in the realm of Krishna bhakti. So, now this, when, say, in the class there is a joke and we all laugh.
Now if you start asking, if somebody laughs in the class, are you laughing for Krishna’s pleasure or are you laughing for your own self-enjoyment? Well, if it is a spiritual class, the context is a philosophy, we don’t have to before laughing think, am I laughing for Krishna’s pleasure? Just laugh. So, similarly, we need to find out within the scope of Krishna bhakti, what is it that can give us taste along the way to Krishna. For example, book distribution.
How many of us do book distribution because we see all these people in this world, they are lost, they are spiritually in distress, they are miserable and this book is going to enlighten them. We may have that thought somewhere in our mind, but quite often we think, I will distribute this book and then when I come back, I distribute so many books, devotees will glorify me for that. That motive is there.
We don’t want to nourish that motive, but we can’t deny that also. It is there. So, whatever it is, we are serving Krishna.
So, we cannot become pure devotees without becoming devotees. And devotion means there is a connection with Krishna. To the extent the connection with Krishna is established, to that extent, the connection can gradually be purified.
So, basically, while we are practicing bhakti, we have to find out some service which we can do, which gives us some taste. Vishwanath Chaturthi Thakur also says that, nishtha, ruchi, asakti, bhava and prema is there. So, that the faith and bhakti are there.
After nishtha comes ruchi and then is asakti. So, ruchi is taste and asakti is attachment. There is a small difference, significant difference.
In the stage of ruchi, the taste is for the service. Whereas in the stage of asakti, the attachment is for the object of service. That means, I just like to sing.
And of course, I am singing about Krishna because this is a Krishna-centered movement. But my joy is in singing. My joy is not in Krishna.
However, if I keep singing about Krishna, gradually, my joy will shift, not just from singing, but about Krishna. This will happen only when I connect with Krishna regularly. If I say, you should sing only for, I will sing only for Krishna’s pleasure.
If I get some pleasure myself, if I am singing for my pleasure, I will not sing at all. Then I will never be able to practice bhakti. So, therefore, along the journey, we need something which will sustain us.
And that is, you could say, the higher material spiritual taste, whatever it is. So, that is the whole principle of varanashram. Varanashram means when we work according to our nature, we get some happiness.
When a brahmana does intellectual work, they get some pleasure. It may not necessarily be spiritual pleasure, but it is pleasure. And that pleasure, if it is within the purview of bhakti, then that pleasure helps us to keep moving onwards as we move towards bhakti, as we move towards the taste of devotion.
And of course, along the journey also, we will get sometimes glimpses of the joy of devotion also. Sometimes there is kirtan, darshan, recitation of verses, remembrance of prayers. You might get some really sublime taste in that.
And when we get that, we also need to cherish those memories. Treasure those memories and then, just as our mind automatically keeps replaying our sensual memories and alluring us, come on, do that, you will enjoy this. So, we need to consciously contemplate our devotional memories and use them as an impetus for moving onwards in our spiritual life.