List the eight stages of spiritual falldown in English and Sanskrit. (2.62-63)

1.contemplating the objects of the senses (dhyayataḥ viṣayān)

2.developing attachment for senses (saṅgaḥ teṣu)

3.developing lust from these attachments for senses (sañjāyate kāmaḥ)

4.manifesting anger from lust for these attachments for senses (krodhaḥ abhijāyate)

5.developing delusion from anger (bhavati saṁmohaḥ)

6.developing bewilderment of memory from delusion (smṛti vibhramaḥ)

7.losing intelligence from bewilderment of memory (buddhi-nāśaḥ)

8.falling down into the material pool after losing intelligence (praṇaśyati)

Taken from: Srimad Bhagavad Gita As It Is, Chapter 2, Verses 62 and 63:

TEXT 62

dhyāyato viṣayān puṁsaḥ

saṅgas teṣūpajāyate

saṅgāt sañjāyate kāmaḥ

kāmāt krodho 'bhijāyate

SYNONYMS

dhyayataḥ—while contemplating; viṣayān—sense objects; puṁsaḥ—of the person; saṅgaḥ—attachment; teṣu—in the sense objects; upajāyate—develops; saṅgāt—attachment; sañjāyate—develops; kāmaḥ—desire; kāmāt—from desire; krodhaḥ—anger; abhijāyate—becomes manifest.

TRANSLATION

While contemplating the objects of the senses, a person develops attachment for them, and from such attachment lust develops, and from lust anger arises.

PURPORT

One who is not Kṛṣṇa conscious is subjected to material desires while contemplating the objects of senses. The senses require real engagements, and if they are not engaged in the transcendental loving service of the Lord, they will certainly seek engagement in the service of materialism. In the material world everyone, including Lord Śiva and Lord Brahmā—to say nothing of other demigods in the heavenly planets—is subjected to the influence of sense objects, and the only method to get out of this puzzle of material existence is to become Kṛṣṇa conscious. Lord Śiva was deep in meditation, but when Pārvatī agitated him for sense pleasure, he agreed to the proposal, and as a result Kārtikeya was born. When Haridāsa Ṭhākur was a young devotee of the Lord, he was similarly allured by the incarnation of Māyā Devī, but Haridāsa easily passed the test because of his unalloyed devotion to Lord Kṛṣṇa. As illustrated in the above-mentioned verse of Śrī Yāmunācārya, a sincere devotee of the Lord shuns all material sense enjoyment due to his higher taste for spiritual enjoyment in the association of the Lord. That is the secret of success. One who is not, therefore, in Kṛṣṇa consciousness, however powerful he may be in controlling the senses by artificial repression, is sure ultimately to fail, for the slightest thought of sense pleasure will agitate him to gratify his desires.

TEXT 63

krodhād bhavati sammohaḥ

sammohāt smṛti-vibhramaḥ

smṛti-bhraṁśād buddhi-nāśo

buddhi-nāśāt praṇaśyati

SYNONYMS

krodhāt—from anger; bhavati—takes place; saṁmohaḥ—perfect illusion; saṁmohāt—from illusion; smṛti—of memory; vibhramaḥ—bewilderment; smṛti-bhraṁśāt—after bewilderment of memory; buddhi-nāśaḥ—loss of intelligence; buddhi-nāśāt—and from loss of intelligence; praṇaśyati—falls down.

TRANSLATION

From anger, delusion arises, and from delusion bewilderment of memory. When memory is bewildered, intelligence is lost, and when intelligence is lost, one falls down again into the material pool.

PURPORT

By development of Kṛṣṇa consciousness one can know that everything has its use in the service of the Lord. Those who are without knowledge of Kṛṣṇa consciousness artificially try to avoid material objects, and as a result, although they desire liberation from material bondage, they do not attain to the perfect stage of renunciation. On the other hand, a person in Kṛṣṇa consciousness knows how to use everything in the service of the Lord; therefore he does not become a victim of material consciousness. For example, for an impersonalist, the Lord, or the Absolute, being impersonal, cannot eat. Whereas an impersonalist tries to avoid good eatables, a devotee knows that Kṛṣṇa is the supreme enjoyer and that He eats all that is offered to Him in devotion. So, after offering good eatables to the Lord, the devotee takes the remnants, called prasādam. Thus everything becomes spiritualized and there is no danger of a downfall. The devotee takes prasādam in Kṛṣṇa consciousness, whereas the nondevotee rejects it as material. The impersonalist, therefore, cannot enjoy life due to his artificial renunciation; and for this reason, a slight agitation of the mind pulls him down again into the pool of material existence. It is said that such a soul, even though rising up to the point of liberation, falls down again due to his not having support in devotional service.

Who is the example of a mat-parah given in 2.61?

mat-paraḥ—in relationship with Me;

Srimad Bhagavad Gita As It Is, Chapter 2, Vers 61:

tāni sarvāṇi saṁyamya

yukta āsīta mat-paraḥ

vaśe hi yasyendriyāṇi

tasya prajñā pratiṣṭhitā

SYNONYMS

tāni—those senses; sarvāṇi—all; saṁyamya—keeping under control; yuktaḥ—being engaged; āsīta—being so situated; mat-paraḥ—in relationship with Me; vaśe—in full subjugation; hi—certainly; yasya—one whose; indriyāṇi—senses; tasya—his; prajñā—consciousness; pratiṣṭhitā—fixed.

TRANSLATION

One who restrains his senses and fixes his consciousness upon Me is known as a man of steady intelligence.

PURPORT

That the highest conception of yoga perfection is Kṛṣṇa consciousness is clearly explained in this verse. And, unless one is Kṛṣṇa conscious, it is not at all possible to control the senses. As cited above, the great sage Durvāsā Muni picked a quarrel with Mahārāja Ambarīṣa, and Durvāsā Muni unnecessarily became angry out of pride and therefore could not check his senses. On the other hand, the King, although not as powerful a yogī as the sage, but a devotee of the Lord, silently tolerated all the sage's injustices and thereby emerged victorious. The King was able to control his senses because of the following qualifications, as mentioned in the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam:

sa vai manaḥ kṛṣṇa-padāravindayor
vacāṁsi vaikuṇṭha-guṇānavarṇane
karau harer mandira-mārjanādiṣu
śrutiṁ cakārācyuta-sat-kathodaye

mukunda-liṅgālaya-darśane dṛśau
tad-bhṛtya-gātra-sparśe'ṅga-saṅgamam
ghrāṇaṁ ca tat-pāda-saroja-saurabhe
śrīmat-tulasyā rasanāṁ tad-arpite

pādau hareḥ kṣetra-padānusarpaṇe
śiro hṛṣīkeśa-padābhivandane
kāmaṁ ca dāsye na tu kāma-kāmyayā
yathottamaśloka-janāśrayā ratiḥ

"King Ambarīṣa fixed his mind on the lotus feet of Lord Kṛṣṇa, engaged his words in describing the abode of the Lord, his hands in cleansing the temple of the Lord, his ears in hearing the pastimes of the Lord, his eyes in seeing the form of the Lord, his body in touching the body of the devotee, his nostrils in smelling the flavor of the flowers offered to the lotus feet of the Lord, his tongue in tasting the tulasī leaves offered to Him, his legs in traveling to the holy place where His temple is situated, his head in offering obeisances unto the Lord, and his desires in fulfilling the desires of the Lord...and all these qualifications made him fit to become a mat-paraḥ devotee of the Lord." (Bhāg. 9.4.18-20)

The word mat-paraḥ is most significant in this connection. How one can become a mat-paraḥ is described in the life of Mahārāja Ambarīṣa. Śrīla Baladeva Vidyābhūṣaṇa, a great scholar and ācārya in the line of the mat-paraḥ, remarks: "mad-bhakti-prabhāvena sarvendriya-vijaya-pūrvikā svātma dṛṣṭiḥ sulabheti bhāvaḥ." "The senses can be completely controlled only by the strength of devotional service to Kṛṣṇa." Also the example of fire is sometimes given: "As the small flames within burn everything within the room, similarly Lord Viṣṇu, situated in the heart of the yogī, burns up all kinds of impurities." The Yoga-sūtra also prescribes meditation on Viṣṇu, and not meditation on the void. The so-called yogīs who meditate on something which is not the Viṣṇu form simply waste their time in a vain search after some phantasmagoria. We have to be Kṛṣṇa conscious—devoted to the Personality of Godhead. This is the aim of the real yoga.

What is the meaning of the phrase param drstva nivartate? (2.59)

param—far superior things; dṛṣṭvā—by experiencing; nivartate—ceases from

Srimad Bhagavad Gita As It Is, Chapter 2, Vers 59:

viṣayā vinivartante

nirāhārasya dehinaḥ

rasa-varjaṁ raso 'py asya

paraṁ dṛṣṭvā nivartate

SYNONYMS
viṣayāḥ—objects for sense enjoyment; vinivartante—are practiced to be refrained from; nirāhārasya—by negative restrictions; dehinaḥ—for the embodied; rasa-varjam—giving up the taste; rasaḥ—sense of enjoyment; api—although there is; asya—his; param—far superior things; dṛṣṭvā—by experiencing; nivartate—ceases from.

TRANSLATION
The embodied soul may be restricted from sense enjoyment, though the taste for sense objects remains. But, ceasing such engagements by experiencing a higher taste, he is fixed in consciousness.

PURPORT
Unless one is transcendentally situated, it is not possible to cease from sense enjoyment. The process of restriction from sense enjoyment by rules and regulations is something like restricting a diseased person from certain types of eatables. The patient, however, neither likes such restrictions, nor loses his taste for eatables. Similarly, sense restriction by some spiritual process like aṣṭāṅga-yoga, in the matter of yama, niyama, āsana, prāṇāyāma, pratyāhāra, dharaṇā, dhyāna, etc., is recommended for less intelligent persons who have no better knowledge. But one who has tasted the beauty of the Supreme Lord Kṛṣṇa, in the course of his advancement in Kṛṣṇa consciousness, no longer has a taste for dead material things. Therefore, restrictions are there for the less intelligent neophytes in the spiritual advancement of life, but such restrictions are only good if one actually has a taste for Kṛṣṇa consciousness. When one is actually Kṛṣṇa conscious, he automatically loses his taste for pale things.

A well-dressed fool cannot be identified unless what? (2.54)

Srimad Bhagavad Gita As It Is, Chapter 2, Vers 54:

arjuna uvāca

sthita-prajñasya kā bhāṣā

samādhi-sthasya keśava

sthita-dhīḥ kiṁ prabhāṣeta

kim āsīta vrajeta kim

SYNONYMS

arjuna uvāca—Arjuna said; sthita-prajñasya—of one who is situated in fixed Kṛṣṇa consciousness; kā—what; bhāṣā—language; samādhi-sthasya—of one situated in trance; keśava—O Kṛṣṇa; sthita-dhīḥ—one fixed in Kṛṣṇa consciousness; kim—what; prabhāṣeta—speak; kim—how; āsīta—does remain; vrajeta—walk; kim—how.

TRANSLATION

Arjuna said: What are the symptoms of one whose consciousness is thus merged in Transcendence? How does he speak, and what is his language? How does he sit, and how does he walk?

PURPORT

As there are symptoms for each and every man, in terms of his particular situation, similarly one who is Kṛṣṇa conscious has his particular nature—talking, walking, thinking, feeling, etc. As a rich man has his symptoms by which he is known as a rich man, as a diseased man has his symptoms, by which he is known as diseased, or as a learned man has his symptoms, so a man in transcendental consciousness of Kṛṣṇa has specific symptoms in various dealings. One can know his specific symptoms from the Bhagavad-gītā. Most important is how the man in Kṛṣṇa consciousness speaks, for speech is the most important quality of any man. It is said that a fool is undiscovered as long as he does not speak, and certainly a well-dressed fool cannot be identified unless he speaks, but as soon as he speaks, he reveals himself at once. The immediate symptom of a Kṛṣṇa conscious man is that he speaks only of Kṛṣṇa and of matters relating to Him. Other symptoms then automatically follow, as stated below.

Prayer to the Lotus Feet of Krsna

by

His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada

Founder-Acarya of the International Society for Krsna Consciousness

___________________________________________________________

On September 13, 1965, Srila Prabhupada wrote the following prayer

on board the Jaladuta steamship bound for America.

___________________________________________________________

I emphatically say to you, O brothers, you will obtain your good fortune from the Supreme Lord Krsna only when Srimati Radharani becomes pleased with you.

Sri Srimad Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakur, who is very dear to Lord Gauranga, the son of mother Saci, is unparalleled in his service to the Supreme Lord Sri Krsna. He is that great saintly spiritual master who bestows intense devotion to Krsna at different places throughout the world.

By his strong desire, the holy name of Lord Gauranga will spread throughout all the countries of the Western world. In all the cities, towns and villages on the earth, from all the oceans, seas, rivers and streams, everyone will chant the holy name of Krsna.

As the vast mercy of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu conquers all directions, a flood of transcendental ecstacy will certainly cover the land. When all the sinful, miserable living entities become happy, the Vaisnava's desire is then fulfilled.

Although my Guru Maharaja ordered me to accomplish this mission, I am not worthy or fit to do it. I am very fallen and insignificant. Therefore, O Lord, now I am begging for Your mercy so that I may become worthy, for You are the wisest and most experienced of all.

If You bestow Your power, by serving the spiritual master one attains the Absolute Truth -- one's life becomes successful. If that service is obtained, then one becomes happy and gets Your association due to good fortune.

evam janam nipatitam prabhavahikupe

kamabhikamam anu yah prapatan prasangat

krtvatmasat surarsina bhagavan grhitah

so 'ham katham nu visrje tava bhrtya-sevam

"My dear Lord, O Supreme Personality of Godhead, because of my association with material desires, one after another, I was gradually falling into a blind well of snakes, following the general populace. But Your servant Narada Muni kindly accepted me as his disciple and instucted me how to achieve this transcendental position. Therefore, my first duty is to serve him. How could I leave his service?" (Prahlada Maharaja to Lord Nrsimhadeva, Srimad-Bhagavatam, 7.9.28)

O Lord Krsna, You are my eternal companion. Forgetting You, I have suffered the kicks of maya birth after birth. If today the chance to meet You occurs again, then I will surely be able to rejoin You.

O dear friend, in Your company I will experience great joy once again. In the early morning I will wander about the cowherd pastures and fields. Running and frolicking in the many forests of Vraja, I will roll on the ground in spiritual ecstacy. O when will that day be mine?

Today that remembrance of You came to me in a very nice way. Because I have a great longing I called to You. I am Your eternal servant and therefore I desire Your association so much. O Lord Krsna, except for You there is no other means of success.

Source

Concentrate on self-examination

“The transcendental meaning of the words cannot be conveyed to the senses of the conditioned soul so long as he does not agree to follow the method of submissive listening to the transcendental sound appearing on the lips of the pure devotee. There is a definite line of succession of the bonafide teachers of the truth. The bonafide teacher should be available sooner or later to the real seeker of the Truth. The bonafide Acarya is not recognizable by the hypocrites and atheists who do not really want to serve Godhead. So long therefore, as the bonafide teacher does not manifest his appearance to the pure cognitive essence of the seeker of the Absolute Truth it is necessary for the candidate for spiritual enlightenment to concentrate on self-examination to be able to avoid harboring any lurking traces of insincerity. The words of the sadhu are also available, by his causeless mercy, for bearing the efforts of such candidates, for finding out their own insincerity. ”

by Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Saraswati Thakura Prabhupada - Published in a May 1932 edition of The Harmonist

“At the dawn of our spiritual life we sincerely and with complete submission and self-surrender pray to God for receiving the protection of Sri Guru. The Supreme Lord, perceiving our earnestness and devotion with a view to guide us on the true path, will send a real guru to us. Otherwise it is impossible for us to find Sri Guru by our own fallible energy. If we guide ourselves by our own energy we shall come across the pseudo-gurus and being caught hold of by them by their temporary pleasing manners, run to hell.”

by Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarawati Thakura Prabhupada - Published in The Harmonist,Vol XXVII,No.5, Oct 1929,p.139

Source

Devotional Service

The Four Regulative Principles

There are four pillars upon which human society rests. These pillars are: mercy, truthfulness, austerity (what is austerity: the condition of living without unnecessary things and without comfort) and cleanliness. Everyone appreciates these qualities. By following the four regulative principles, we support these pillars and free ourselves from miseries and from causing pain to others. Along with chanting Hare Krishna, following these principles form the basis of Krishna conscious practice.

1. No eating meat, fish, or eggs. Killing animals destroys the quality of mercy. One turns one's body into a graveyard by consuming dead animals. These foods are saturated with the modes of passion and ignorance and therefore cannot be offered to the Lord. A person who eats these foods participates in a conspiracy of violence against helpless animals and thus curtails his spiritual progress.

2. No gambling. Truthfulness is destroyed by gambling. This is quite obvious. Gambling turns a person into a liar, a cheat. Gambling invariably puts one into anxiety and fuels greed, envy, and anger.

3. No use of intoxicants. We know many arguments against the use of intoxicants. It is not a very difficult thing to understand because anyone with a sane mind will accept that taking intoxicants is physically, mentally and spiritually detrimental. It destroys the principle of austerity because the reason people take to drugs is that they want to avoid their suffering in the material world- they do not want to face that austerity. Drugs, alcohol, and tobacco, as well as any drink or food containing caffeine, cloud the mind, over-stimulate the senses, and make it impossible to follow the principles of bhakti-yoga.

4. No illicit sex. Cleanliness is destroyed by illicit sex. This is sex outside of marriage or any sex for any purpose other than procreation. Sex for pleasure compels one to identify with the body and prevents one from understanding Krsna consciousness. The scriptures teach that sex is the most powerful force binding us to the material world. Anyone serious about advancing in Krsna consciousness should therefore abstain from or regulate sexual activity according to the scriptures. In the Bhagavad Gita, Krsna says that sexual union for conceiving a child to be raised in God consciousness is an act of devotion to Him.

By following these principles, you are not repressing yourself, but are elevating yourself to a superior platform. By chanting Hare Krishna, one gets a higher taste and you leave material desires behind according to the level of your realization.

CHANTING THE HOLY NAMES OF THE LORD:

First (one time on Main bead): Panca Tattva Maha-Mantra:

Sri Krishna Caitanya, Prabhu Nityananda, Sri Advaita, Gadadhara, Srivasa adi Gaura Bhakta Vrinda

Meaning: I offer my obeisances to Śrī Kṛṣṇa Caitanya, Prabhu Nityānanda, Śrī Advaita, Gadādhara, Śrīvāsa and all others in the line of devotion.

Then (Chant 108 times the Hare Krishna Maha-Mantra on small beads untill you return to the mainbead):

Hare Krishna Hare Krishna Krishna Krishna Hare Hare Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare

Meaning: My dear Lord, and the spiritual energy of the Lord, kindly engage me in Your service. I am now embarrassed with this material service. Please engage me in Your service.

This is one round

Atlast (again on the mainbead, chant the Panca Tattva Maha-Mantra), then again 108 times to complete one round. So chant per bead 1 time the Hare Krishna Maha-Mantra, this 108 times is 1 round.

Besides following the 4 regulative principles, chant the Holy Names atleast 16 rounds (108 times is one round) each day and be happy!

Source