We have nothing to be proud of. Anyone who takes birth within this material world has nothing to be proud of. and unless we actually destroy this false pride, we will never get Krishna. We have to destroy this pride, and the way to destroy it is simply to become a menial servant.
Many people can get followers, wealth and respect, but this is not the criterion of being successful in preaching Krishna consciousness. If we foolishly claim this to be a criterion for successful preaching of Krishna consciousness then we'll miss the point.
One must have the authority of the Lord to be successful in spreading Krishna consciousness, and this authority is only invested in one who is the servant of a Vaishnava. Being the servant of a Vaishnava, the authority comes down from Krishna, and Krishna empowers him to spread the holy name.
March 10, 1991, Kiev
Yesterday we talked about how the pure unalloyed devotees of the Lord are also sometimes bewildered about the behavior of the Lord. But although they are bewildered about the Lord's behavior, it does not in any way affect their love for Him. In fact such an attitude of bewilderment only increases the love that devotee feels towards the Lord. March 9, 1991, Kiev
The more we know about Krishna, the more we want to serve Him and therefore we can simply expect that by continuously serving the Lord that we may be able to obtain a drop of mercy from His lotus feet. A devotee prays simply for that drop so that he can understand Krishna and increase his love and affection for the Lord. March 8, 1991, Izori
According to Vaishnava etiquette, a Vaishnava is one who always wants to please the Supreme Lord and who never wants to obstruct anybody else's efforts to please the Supreme Lord.
March 7, 2007, Hartford
But Krishna says: "Actually You dont have to suffer, ever." And therefore He comes to this world specifically to emphasize the point that actually your nature is to experience enjoyment, but not this temporary flickering enjoyment. He says: "There is a permanent enjoyment in rendering devotional service to Me. Just accept Me as I am. That's all. Just accept that I am God and you are not God. Why you are always trying to compete with Me? It's a competition you will never win. Just accept that there is a difference between you and Me. But there is also oneness. You can experience the same pleasure as I do. You don't have to suffer."
March 6, 2009, Taipei, Taiwan
The only problem is that we have forgotten Krishna. That is the problem. And as long as we continue to forget Krishna in all our endeavors, there will always be problems. March 5, 1991, Moscow
What could possibly be a more important engagement in Sri Dhama Mayapura than to immerse ourselves in nama sankirtan, the means by which we increase our hankering for tasting the unlimited nectar of the pure holy name? I therefore pray that all of you will taste this nectar during this year's festival in Mayapura and that you will carry this nectar back to your respective preaching fields to share it with others. That is what our Krishna consciousness movement is all about.
March 4, 2003 Letter to disciples.
If we want to obtain empowerment, we have to feel ourselves unqualified and dependent upon those who are qualified. Part of our daily sadhana is to pray to them, "Please reveal Your desires to me, please reveal my service, please give me purity in purpose." That's our qualification, realizing our lack of qualification.
March 3, 2008, Govardhana
To the degree that we actually have realization, then we can give up sense gratification. One will have to begin to experience a high satisfaction in devotional service if he truly wants to achieve a state of renunciation.
March 2, 1991, Mayapur