Quotes of All Topics . Occasions . Authors
When you have an ego, you are limited to your own strengths and weaknesses. But if you are totally surrendered to God, nothing is impossible for you.
The challenge of co-operation in today's age of quarrel can be achieved by adjusting every situation according to the higher principle of loving God.
What appears to be a curse can be a blessing if we simply appreciate the inner essence of the possibility of how to connect to God in that situation.
Do not think that if you surrender to God you will be loser. You will not lose anything except bondage, frustration and suffering. That is all you will lose.
Real religion is about, developing real character; character of compassion, character of humility, the character of determination to grow in all circumstances.
Opportunities are always there for us to grow, opportunities are always there for us to come closer to each other & come closer to God; if we just look for them.
Whoever we are, wherever we are, however we are, whatever our condition is, there is no impediment to attaining the perfection of life-if we are humble & sincere.
Unless we hear very strictly with great faith to the order of our Spiritual Master, we will not understand what is the mercy of Krishna and how it is coming upon us.
Sometimes the Lord gives us a free sample of religious experience, but for more, we must pay a price with the currency of sincere dedication to the process of cleansing.
Any propensity other than love cannot exist in the spiritual world. There is unlimited variegatedness, but they are all extraordinarily wonderful ways of expressing love.
Whatever our destiny is, whatever our Karma is, if we simply accept the mercy of Guru, "Guru Kripa", it can completely liberate us from all of our previous Karmic bondage.
The cause of so much suffering and pain and one of the impediments to our spiritual progress, is the conditioning of expecting things to go our way, even in our spiritual life.
What touches our hearts and impresses us deeper is sacrifice and humility, when we see someone accept the higher principle of cooperation, putting aside his/her own achievements.
When we recognize how precious and truly glorious we are, then we become humbled by that and recognize everyone's true spiritual identity. And then our greatest joy is in sharing.
If we seek the essence of every situation, if we seek to connect to God within our hearts, then we will find an opportunity there, to grow internally in wisdom in every trial we face.
In giving respect we can be very happy, because we can do it in all situations. When we expect respect we are miserable, because it is not that everyone in every situation will respect us.
The diverse religions and races bring beauty to the world if we truly understand in our hearts the essence of who we are and what we stand for. And that really is the essence of spirituality.
To the degree we try to create peace around us, we will find peace within ourselves. And to the degree we find peace within ourselves, we will actually have the power to create peace around us.
You can think your self to be great, you can go on thinking your self to be great, till you see all fellow devotees going Back Home Back to Godhead, while you remain in this material world only.
When spirituality is the basis of your life, it gives you the strength, wisdom and courage to surmount the many storms of life that could destroy a weaker person who doesn't have this foundation.
Taking responsibility of others means to be selfless. We have to put aside our own well being and desires as secondary and to think primarily of what is best for the persons who are looking up to us.
Real religion is not about being a Christian or a Jew or a Muslim. Real religion is about loving God, & dedicating ones life to be an instrument of Gods compassion, kindness towards other living beings.
I took an interest in the Civil Rights Movement. I listened to Martin Luther King. The Vietnam War was raging. When I was 18, I was eligible for the draft, but when I went to be tested, I didn't qualify.
I we are looking for God or an opportunity to learn and enrich our lives in every situation, we will find that, but if we are looking for how am I enjoying or suffering, we are subject to endless frustration
The tension between the essence of spiritual teachings and the harmful fundamentalism that often arises in the name of religion is an issue that has engaged my mind practically as far back as I can remember.
Our humble service attitude in our life is what determines what effect chanting will have on our consciousness. Otherwise we can be chanting for millions and millions of births before we actually achieve the goal.
Why are we not tasting the bliss of Bhakti? Because we are taking shelter of stone boats. We are sinking and drowning in Maya & still we are further taking shelter of stone boats and this can go on life after life.
My parents' selfless affection and dedication nourished and prepared me to receive the love of my guru or spiritual father, Swami Prabhupada. My parents prepared the soil in which my guru sowed the seeds of his compassion.
Religious and spiritual leaders should be held accountable for environmental activism, not only because they have access to large communities and can influence votes but because service is integral to religious and spiritual life.
Religious and spiritual leaders should be held accountable for environmental activism, not only because they have access to large communities and can influence votes, but because service is integral to religious and spiritual life.
To be meek and humble means to have a service attitude towards God, the Vaisnavas, and all living beings. Unless we have that, our chanting will have minimal effect and many births may pass before we finally come to the conclusion.
When love is pure, it has the power to conquer. Lover and beloved conquer each other by their affection. The source, the essence, the fullest manifestation of love's conquering power is the love of the soul for the supreme soul, or God.
I just didn't know where I fit in - I didn't seem to fit in my parent's generation. I didn't seem to fit in my own generation. Little by little, this took me into a spiritual search for understanding; a search for meaning and fulfillment.
I came to the conclusion that unless I found myself and became the change I wanted to see in the world - as Gandhi said - I couldn't contribute much, nor would there be anything fulfilling or meaningful in my life. So I went on a spiritual search.
When we speak of the dust of the lotus feet of the Spiritual Master, we are speaking of humble approach to serve his instructions. Unless we humbly serve the instructions of the great soul, it is Krishna's arrangement the He never reveals Himself.
A virtue which is divine is humility. A person who could do great things and still maintain humility of the heart, charity of the heart, goodness of the heart is a person who could actually make a difference in peoples lives in a very positive way.
Mother Nature is always speaking. She speaks in a language understood within the peaceful mind of the sincere observer. Leopards, cobras, monkeys, rivers and trees; they all served as my teachers when I lived as a wanderer in the Himalayan foothills.
The dirty wax of egotism accumulated in the heart prevents us from clearly hearing the Lord's voice within. A guru, with the stick of knowledge, cleans our hearts. It's really ugly to see what may come out, but by following patiently, we keep cleaning.
If we see the body we live in as a temple used to engage in beautiful activities in the service of God's children, then we recognize it as spiritual. But if we use our body for more selfish purposes, then we're only experiencing its material conception.
If you do some wonderful service and if you tell people what you did in a boastful way, it nullifies the credit of your service, may not be in the eternal platform, but in your conscious condition you will not be able to reap the benefits of that service.
Religion is meant to teach us true spiritual human character. It is meant for self-transformation. It is meant to transform anxiety into peace, arrogance into humility, envy into compassion, to awaken the pure soul in man and his love for the Source, which is God.
We should be in harmony with our own consciousness; our mind, body, and soul should be one in interest and in purpose. And in that unified condition, we can actually express that natural innate love that we have found in our own life in everything we do in the world.
Reducing carbon emissions is important, but it is shortsighted if not coupled with reducing the toxic emissions from our heart; and that is something spiritual leaders are supposed to teach and something all thinking people, regardless of their beliefs, should practice.
A person influenced by circumstances can become viciously envious or affectionately kind. Our company and our surroundings have a crucial effect on our consciousness. How important it is to be an instrument to bring out the inherent good of each other rather than the worst.
Parallel to our vast strides in technology, there is a dangerous rise in unemployment, foreclosures, and degrading education. Millions of people are stricken with hopelessness and strife. Sadly, in the name of progress we have polluted the air, water, soil and the food we eat.
How can our hearts not break? How can we hold our tears? How can we bear the pain of losing those loving children and their guardians, who were slain in Newtown, Conn.? Why can't we face the reality of our times and restrict deranged people from having these destructive powers?
In 1958, my father invested everything he had in a business venture and became the largest automobile dealership in Chicago for Ford's new Edsel line. But Edsel sales plummeted and my father fell into bankruptcy. I watched him struggle; working long hours to protect us from poverty.
I am for God, I am the lover of God, I am loved by God, I am the servant of God, I am the servant of the servant of God, and I am the well-wishing instrument of God's love towards every living being, with all humility. The emergence of that realization is the greatest attainment in life.
What I found particularly fascinating and satisfying about the Hindu tradition was its spirit of inclusiveness. In Sanatan Dharma, or what is commonly called Hinduism, I discovered the basic truths of all religions in a way that the oneness of God and religion is comprehensively understood.
In my own spiritual journey, I became a swami on the Hindu path of Bhakti. In the Hindu tradition, a swami is a monk who forgoes regular family life for the purpose of making the whole world his family and channels his full energy into spiritual practice, devotion to God and service to humanity.