29 Mar 2025
by The Hare Krishna Movement
in A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, Krishna, Krishna Consciousness, Krsna Consciousness, Nectar of Devotion, Radha Krishna, Uncategorized
Tags: Gaur Nitai, God, India, Krishna, Krishna Balarama, Krsna, krsna-balaram, radha-shyamsundra, spirituality, Srila Prabhupada, Vrindavan
We are currently in Vrindavan, India, at the Krsna Balaram Mandir, with the most beautiful Radha Shyam. All the deities looked so gorgeous this morning, in their black outfits.
Have been doing the parikaram of the twelve forests of Vrindavan, and it has been amazing, and feel exceptional fortune, at being here, and experiencing so much devotional nectar.
I wish to share some from the Preface to the”Nectar of Devotion” By A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami:
The basic principle of the living condition is that we have a general propensity to love someone. No one can live without loving someone else. This propensity is present in every living being. Even an animal like a tiger has this loving propensity at least in a dormant stage, and it is certainly present in the human beings. The missing point, however, is where to repose our love so that everyone can become happy. At the present moment the human society teaches one to love his country or family or his personal self, but there is no information where to repose the loving propensity so that everyone can become happy. That missing point is Krsna, and The Nectar of Devotion teaches us how to stimulate our original love for Krsna and how to be situated in that position where we can enjoy our blissful life.
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12 Dec 2014
by The Hare Krishna Movement
in A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, Nectar of Devotion, Photos by Gurudas
Tags: Bhakti-rasamrta-sindhu, bona fide spiritual master, designations, Gosvami, Gurudas, how to see god, Krishna, Nectar of Devotion Lecture, personal sense gratification, photo by Gurudas, prabhupada, the maintainer of the gopīs, the servant of the servant of the servant of the servant of Kṛṣṇa
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…Now our point was that how to see Kṛṣṇa in everything?… By these blunt, material senses, we cannot appreciate, or we can see, the Supreme Personality of Godhead. It has to be purified… One must be relieved from all designations. So long one thinks that “I am Hindu. I am Christian. I am Muhammadan. I am this. I am brāhmaṇa. I am śūdra. I am kṣatriya. I am man. I am woman. I am black. I am white.” These are all designations. One has to become free from all these designations. That is called sarvopādhi-vinirmuktam. If you see God, Kṛṣṇa, from the Hindu angle of vision, if you see God from Christian angle of vision, then you cannot see God. That is not seeing God. You have to become freed from all these designations. Just like Caitanya Mahāprabhu taught us, nāhaṁ vipra na ca nara-patir na yatir vā. Caitanya Mahāprabhu says, “I am not a brāhmaṇa. I am not a kṣatriya. I am not a vaiśya. I am not a śūdra. I am not a sannyāsī. I am not a gṛhastha. I am not a brahmacārī.” Then “What You are?” Because within these eight categories, we are living. But Caitanya Mahāprabhu says, “I don’t belong to all these categories.” Then “What You are, Sir?”… “I am the servant of the servant of the servant of the servant of Kṛṣṇa, the maintainer of the gopīs.” (The Nectar of Devotion Lecture Vṛndāvana, October 18, 1972)
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03 Aug 2014
by The Hare Krishna Movement
in A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, Krishna Consciousness Movement, Lectures, Nectar of Devotion, Nectar of Devotion, Photos by Gurudas
Tags: A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Pabhupada, active service, bhakti is explained, bhakti means service, Bhakti-rasamrta-sindhu, devotional service, Gurudas, Krsna consciousness movement, Nectar of Devotion, photos by Gurudas, Pradyumana das, scientific and authorized movement, Srila Prabhupada
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..utilize everything for the purpose of Kṛṣṇa. That is Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement. Most scientific and authorized movement. Trying to place people in his original, constitutional position and cooperate for the service of Kṛṣṇa. That is Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement.
…So bhakti-rasāmṛta-sindhu is to taste the mellow of serving Kṛṣṇa. That is the science of serving Kṛṣṇa. Therefore we have named this book, “Nectar of Devotion.” It is summary study of bhakti-rasa, the mellow, the transcendental mellow which one can taste. Everyone is tasting. Otherwise he cannot work. So yat karoṣi yaj juhoṣi. Kṛṣṇa says, “Whatever engagement you may have, kuruṣva tad mad-arpaṇam, do it for Kṛṣṇa.” Don’t take the result yourself. Give it to Kṛṣṇa. Then you’ll taste the rel…, relish the mellow, transcendental mellow, bhakti-rasa. And then you’ll be happy. (The Nectar of Devotion Lectures Vṛndāvana, October 17, 1972)
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12 Jul 2014
by The Hare Krishna Movement
in A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, Nectar of Devotion, Nectar of Devotion
Tags: A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, Acyutananda, bhakti, bhakti means devotional service, Gurudas, Janaki, lecture on Nectar of Devotion, Malati, Mukunda, Nectar of Devotion, prabhupada, Srila Prabhupada, Syamasundara, Yamuna
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The Nectar of Devotion
given by His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada
Vṛndāvana, October 16, 1972
Pradyumna (reading): “The Nectar of Devotion is a summary study of Bhakti-rasāmṛta-sindhu, which was written in Sanskrit by Śrīla Rūpa Gosvāmī Prabhupāda. He was the chief of the six Gosvāmīs who were the direct disciples of Lord Caitanya Mahāprabhu. When he first met Lord Caitanya, Śrīla Rūpa Gosvāmī Prabhupāda was engaged as a minister in the Muhammadan government of Bengal. He and his brother Sanātana were then named Sākara Mallika and Dabira Khāsa respectively, and they held responsible posts as ministers of Nawab Hussain Shah. At that time, five hundred years ago, the Hindu society was very rigid and if a member of the brāhmaṇa caste accepted the service of a Muhammadan ruler he was at once rejected from brāhmaṇa society. That was the position of the two brothers, Dabira Khāsa and Sākara Mallika. They belonged to the highly situated sārasvata-brāhmaṇa…”
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07 Dec 2013
by The Hare Krishna Movement
in A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, Lectures, Nectar of Devotion
Tags: A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, bhajana-kriya, Caitanya Mahaprabhu, Dasasvamedha-ghara, devotional service, four principles, Initiation, lecture on Nectar of Devotion, Nectar of Devotion, prabhupada, ruci, Rupa Gosvami, sadhu-sanga, sraddha, TLC
The Nectar of Devotion Lecture
Los Angeles, June 23, 1970
Prabhupāda: Hare Kṛṣṇa.
So we have published our Nectar of Devotion.
So every one of you should read this Nectar of Devotion repeatedly.
The whole substance of Vaiṣṇava philosophy and activities, everything is there.
So every one of you read this Nectar of Devotion once, twice, thrice.
Unless you have got full-fledged ideas what is this devotional service… That was written by… Actually, it was spoken by Lord Caitanya to Rūpa Gosvāmī. For ten days continually He instructed Rūpa Gosvāmī at Prayāga, Daśāśvamedha-ghāṭa. You have seen the picture in TLC. Caitanya Mahāprabhu was at Allahabad, Prayāga, and Rūpa Gosvāmī met Him there. He was offering obeisances flat. You have seen that picture. So at that time Caitanya Mahāprabhu personally gave him instruction what is this cult of bhakti. So for ten days. And he took note of it and later on he placed this book in the form of Bhakti-rasāmṛta-sindhu. That is in Sanskrit. It will be difficult for you. Therefore I have presented a summary study, and the summary study has come to 407 pages. If we would have elaborately described each and every verse, then it would have come to at least thousand pages.
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The Hare Krishna Movement 