Niranjana Swami's Quote Of The Day

Topic

October 4

Success may be perceived differently according to one’s mentality. One person may consider success the achievement of great wealth. Another may consider success the achievement of influence and position. Someone may consider success the achievement of liberation, and another may consider success as becoming free from sinful reaction. But real success means to achieve the topmost goal of human life, ecstatic love for the Supreme Personality of Godhead— something that is achieved by chanting the Lord’s holy name.
(LFD, Vol2, Glories of the Holy Name, Pg 75, 3rd paragraph)"

October 3

When a devotee on whose lips the holy name is vibrated appears in this world—a devotee who has a taste for the holy name, who sees Krishna present in His holy name, and who loves Krishna—imports the holy name for the benefit of others. When such a devotee chants, he gives everyone an opportunity to come in contact with Krishna.
(LFD, Vol2, Glories of the Holy Name, Pg 72, 3rd paragraph)

October 2

Srila Prabhupada had to plant as many Krishna conscious seeds—seeds of love of Godhead—as possible. Those seeds were complete in themselves, and as long as they fell in fertile soil and were nourished, they would grow nicely. Srila Prabhupada took care of the seeds he planted: he sowed the seeds, watered the garden, helped to remove some of the weeds, and harvested the fruits. Srila Prabhupada is a sat-guru; he is fully on the liberated platform. And he is conscious of all of his disciples and followers. It is the disciple’s duty to also be fully conscious of his or her spiritual master. Those disciples who meditate on Srila Prabhupada’s desires and follow his instructions, as he gave them when he was present, can be empowered to continue planting, watering, weeding, and harvesting the seeds of bhakti that he planted.
(LFD, Vol2, Glories of the Holy Name, Pg 71, 3rd and 4th paragraph)

October 1

Chant the holy name understanding its value. Make a firm vow to always chant at least sixteen attentive rounds every day. And if you cannot be attentive, at least make the effort to be attentive.
(LFD, Vol2, Glories of the Holy Name, Pg 70, last paragraph)

September 30

When a soldier is away at war, he becomes eager to receive letters from his family members from whom he has been separated for a long time. When a letter finally arrives, a soldier reads and rereads every word with great relish. Srila Rupa Gosvami prays that he can chant the Lord’s name with the same attention and eagerness. He adds, “I pray that the sight of Your transcendental form will be as pleasing as the beauty of a young bride is to her husband. I pray that the narrations of Your sweet pastimes will become as sweet to my ears as the sound of a young girl’s voice is to a materialist. I pray that the remnants of your foodstuffs will become as palatable to me as is the taste of a young woman’s lips to a materialist.” We should pray to have such feelings when we chant.
(LFD, Vol2, Glories of the Holy Name, Pg 68 and Pg 69)

September 29

The most important vow we take is to chant Hare Krishna a fixed number of times a day, because even if we fall while chanting the Lord’s holy names, if we continue to chant sincerely, the holy name will forgive us. Knowing this, of course, should not give us an excuse to fall, because such a mentality constitutes the seventh offense in chanting. This is the most serious offense, and is difficult to rectify. Still, sincere chanting even from a fallen condition can reinstate us in devotional service. Therefore, to chant the holy name is the most important vow we make. The other vows we take at initiation deal with the four regulative principles. These principles are important, but they really only bring us to the platform of human life. That alone will not elevate us to the transcendental platform. It is only the Lord’s holy name that can bring us to Krishna’s lotus feet.
(LFD, Vol2, Glories of the Holy Name, Pg 67, 3rd paragraph)

September 28

The holy name is the source of all devotional relationship in this age, and it is the cornerstone practice in sadhana-bhakti. Those who wish to serve Krishna’s holy name purely should receive it from a pure devotee at the time of initiation, and make a serious commitment to chanting it. It is therefore an important point in a person’s life to come to the platform of accepting Vaisnava initiation. But initiation is not the end of one’s practice; it is the beginning. Devotees sometimes misunderstand this point; they think that initiation is the main achievement. They see initiation as the goal, and when they receive it, imagine that they will be carried back to Godhead without any endeavor on their part. Those who have received initiation soon realize that they have only just begun their spiritual life.
(LFD, Vol2, Glories of the Holy Name, Pg 66, 4th paragraph)

September 27

The Lord and His holy name are non-different. As the Lord has eternal pastimes in the spiritual world, therefore, His holy name also has eternal pastimes in the spiritual world. We will begin to understand this as we learn to see the Lord in His name. When we have pure love for the Lord and that love enters our chanting, we will experience the Lord’s presence. The Hare Krishna mantra is not simply a sound vibration. The Lord has willingly agreed to invest His holy name with all His potencies. To the degree that we have faith in this, we will gain experience of it.
(LFD, Vol2, Glories of the Holy Name, Pg 66, 3rd paragraph)"

September 26

The living entity simply wanders throughout the planets looking for permanence. It is our nature to be sheltered by something permanent. But the material world is temporary and filled with suffering; by its nature it does not allow for permanence. Therefore, whatever relationship we establish with this world will not fully satisfy the self, because the self is satisfied only by permanence. Thus Srila Prabhupada encouraged us to go back home, back to Godhead.
(LFD, Vol2, Glories of the Holy Name, Pg 63, 2nd paragraph)

September 25

It is described that Krishna’s pastimes in Dvaraka are perfect, in Mathura more perfect, and in Vrindavana most perfect. They are most perfect because in Vrindavana the residents engage in spontaneous devotional service. The mood of sweetness, madhurya, predominates and permeates all the relationships in Vrindavana, whereas in Dvaraka and Mathura the devotees serve with an awareness of Krishna’s aishwarya (divine position). Srila Vishwanath Chakravarty Thakura describes that the sweet nature of Krishna’s Vrindavana pastimes is due to the fact that His humanlike activities are never destroyed by the majestic understanding of His opulence. The residents of Vrindavana have no such consciousness. Their level of understanding of Krishna is based on their particular relationship with Him. Their highest realization is that “Krishna is my friend,” “Krishna is my son,” or “Krishna is my lover,” and by these feelings they possess the Lord. Their pure bhakti cannot be disturbed under any circumstances.
(LFD, Vol2, Being Careful to Avoid Anisthita-bhakti, Pg 57, 3rd paragraph)

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