“The activities or desires that relatively help a soul attain his constitutional position are called piety. The opposite are called sin. Since devotional service to Krishna is one’s constitutional position, when one cultivates this service, then nescience, which is the… Read More ›
“O best among men, after fixing your intelligence in transcendental knowledge, do you follow completely the course of action decided by your mind. Being engaged in activities guided by intelligence [buddhya-yukta], those possessing great wisdom can decipher between auspicious and… Read More ›
“…Lord Rama was so saintly that people were anxious to live in His kingdom, (Rama-rajya), but Lord Rama never showed any cowardice. Ravana was an aggressor against Rama because he kidnapped Rama’s wife, Sita, but Lord Rama gave him sufficient… Read More ›
“We have heard that even the demigods, who are headed by Shakra [Indra], are subject to auspiciousness and inauspiciousness. Therefore, O tiger among men, You should not be perturbed.” (Lakshmana speaking to Lord Rama, Valmiki Ramayana, Aranya Kand, 66.13) This… Read More ›
“What to speak of demigods, Purushas, Rishabhas, and even great beings [planets] – every living entity who accepts a material body becomes subject to the influence of destiny.” (Lakshmana speaking to Lord Rama, Valmiki Ramayana, Aranya Kand, 66.12) The forces… Read More ›
“O Lord of Koshala, even the Earth, who is the mother of the world and respected by everyone, suffers distress in the form of earthquakes.” (Lakshmana speaking to Lord Rama, Valmiki Ramayana, Aranya Kand, 66.10) The earth is so kind… Read More ›
“My Lord, if, through Your effulgence, You set the entire planet ablaze and put it into a distressful situation, where will the distressed citizens go, O tiger among men, for solace? This [having to deal with temporary setbacks] is certainly… Read More ›
“Being attached to Your qualities, the king, as we have heard from Bharata, attained the divine nature due to separation from You.” (Lakshmana speaking to Lord Rama, Valmiki Ramayana, Aranya Kand, 66.4) In the course of our lifetime, we are… Read More ›
“…the word pavarga signifies our struggle for existence and our meeting with defeat, exhaustion, bondage, fearfulness and, at last, death. Apavarga means that which can nullify all of these material conditions. Krishna is said to be the giver of apavarga,… Read More ›
“How can that female swan who is accustomed to sporting with the king of swans amidst lotus flowers ever cast her eyes on a water-crow that stays amidst bunches of grass?” (Sita Devi speaking to Ravana, Valmiki Ramayana, Aranya Kand,… Read More ›