Is passion needed while functioning in this world?
Answer Podcast
Transcript
This is an AI-generated transcript and may contain some errors.
Is passion needed in activities? Yes, of course. See, the three modes of material nature they all comprise material existence.
So, for example, when we sleep what are we doing? No, we have to we are in the mode of ignorance. But that’s essential. So when we say we should live in the mode of goodness that does not mean that we reject passion or ignorance.
Rather, we let goodness be the dominating mode that defines our activity. So, everybody has to sleep. Even a pure devotee who is transcendental has to sleep.
So when we have to work in this world, there is passion. So, if we have to go from one program to another program, from one city to another city we have to rush to catch a flight or rush to go from… There is some sort of passion involved. So, there is we using passion and there is passion using us.
So, when passion controls us then it becomes a problem. But when we can use passion in Krishna’s service, that is perfectly fine. Any form of… Srila Prabhupada was in Mayapur and there he asked the devotees to get funds for building the dham for erecting various buildings and various places.
Prabhupada said, for ourselves, you can just chant Hare Krishna under the tree and be happy. But we want people to come here. People to benefit from Mayapur dham.
So for that, we want them to… we need to provide them comfortable facilities. For that we are creating all this. And that involves passion.
So, the devotee may use passion out of compassion. A devotee may do a lot of things which seem like mundane but the intention is compassion. So, what changes as you become purified is the intent.
It is not necessarily the action. You may still have to have jobs in a passionate environment. Why jobs? Because somebody is a full-time devotee.
They may still have to live in cities and preach. It’s a passionate environment. So, similarly, as I said, everybody has to sleep.
So, we… our intent remains to serve Krishna. But for that, in executing that intent, we have to interact with material nature. And there may be different modes with which we interact.
But we don’t let them control us. Can you answer the question?