Won’t thinking only about our relationship with Krishna make us insensitive in other relationships?

Answer Podcast

Transcript

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peaceful internally.
Does that answer your question? So I gave an example of an employee’s salary coming from the boss, not the customer. Sometimes the employee may become very irresponsible and insensitive and discourteous toward the customer, being complacent that my boss, I have a good relationship with my boss. Yes, that’s why we should, when we apply any example, when we use any example to illustrate a spiritual principle, every example is like a rubber band.
A rubber band can help us to grasp a thing, to cover a thing. But if a rubber band is stretched too much, it breaks. So analogy is, when they are stretched, they will break.
So the point of this analogy is one thing. See, Krishna is not just like the shopkeeper or shop owner. Krishna is God and in that sense, Krishna includes all living beings because all living beings are his parts.
So it is not that, so we have two kinds of relationships. We have horizontal relationship with others in this world and we have a vertical relationship with Krishna. And actually, the vertical relationship, the ideal situation is where these two relationships work symbiotically.
And our vertical relationship strengthens our horizontal relationship. When we are devoted to Krishna, by our devotion to Krishna, we become calmer, our short temper goes away, our insensitivity decreases, we become more tolerant and that way our horizontal relationship improves. And also, if our family members are also devoted, then by seeing that they are devoted, I have seen they are practicing also spiritual life, we also feel inspired.
So when sometimes we are a little down, they inspire us and they take us up. So then the horizontal relationship also strengthens our vertical relationship. So that way, both should work symbiotically.
And there is a difference between detachment and irresponsibility. Detachment means, I do activity well and after doing that activity, I don’t obsess whether I’ll get the result or not. But irresponsibility means, I don’t do the activity only.
So if somebody is irresponsible, that cannot be called as detachment. So the Bhagavad Gita doesn’t talk about, doesn’t recommend irresponsibility at all. It condemns irresponsibility.
Do not be attached to not doing one’s work, Krishna says, 2.47. So the Bhagavad Gita’s message is about detachment, not irresponsibility. Detachment means, after we have done our part, then leave the rest. Don’t get caught in what is going to happen afterwards.
So our devotee should see that actually my relationship with Krishna depends not just on how I approach Krishna when I come in the temple, how I chant his holy names. Everybody is a part of Krishna. So the way I deal with others also determines my spiritual advancement.
In fact, there are three levels of devotees. There are Kanishta Adhikari, Madhyama Adhikari and Uttama Adhikari. So the Kanishta Adhikari sees things that Krishna is only in the temple.
And how I behave in the temple determines how good a devotee I am. But Madhyama Adhikari understands that Krishna is in temple, but Krishna is also connected with everything else. And how I behave with others also determines my devotion.
That’s why I should be respectful to devotees. I should be friendly to those who are innocent. I should stay away from the envious.
So that the capacity for appropriate behavior is integral for the growth of one’s bhakti. And if one’s bhakti is making one insensitive and irresponsible in one’s relationship, then that is not bhakti actually. That is simply one’s own conditioning, putting on a mask of spirituality and pretending to be bhakti.
So, bhakti does not license complacency or irresponsibility. Bhakti actually gives us the spiritual substance by which even if there are difficulties in our relationship, still we can persevere. Does that answer the question? Yes.
Thank you. Yes, ma’am.