Dear devotees, accept all my affection from Ecuador,
These have been days of much nectar, visiting two or more programs in the day. The devotees of Ecuador, certainly, are working hard to preach. In Vilcabamba I was impressed, there were more than 50 people in the program, and that is a relatively new program. In the morning we start to drive again, happy to have been in Ecuadorian lands. Today I share a few words about the surrender;
Surrender is the absolute acceptance, in words and commitments, preferably in thoughts too. Distinguishing and accepting the favorable progress on the path back to God. Reaching the abode of God is the goal of life, there is nothing more important than that. There is nothing better than that, but on the way impediments will arise. Therefore, accepting conditions which are favorable in advancing in that direction is one of the symptoms of surrender. The second symptom of surrender is deciding and remaining determined to reject all that which is unfavorable for attaining the Lotus Feet of Sri Krishna. Initially you may not be sure what is the goal we want to achieve, perhaps you only perceive some things, such as our goal is something positive, which is beyond duality and therefore we deliver true peace, which is beyond miseries and lies of this material world. However, the essence of surrender is connected with the frequency of having no separate interest from Sri Krishna's interest. And for that, one must ask oneself and pray asking what is the sweet will of the Lord, for me.
Surrender brings great changes in the life of a person, it is a transition, a major step, a change from guided selfishness towards complete spiritual dedication without the desire for personal gain. It takes practice to the extent that you use everything you have received in the loving service of the Lord. In South America we say: Make good use of a bad bargain. That is the philosophy of "yukta vairagya" use all we have to serve the Lord. For He is the source and origin of all. In frequency of surrender everything becomes positive and progressive, one must make the conscious effort to become aware of everything you have received as well as having proper discrimination, distinguishing things properly.
One must appreciate all that comes to him. Valuing life itself as a gift from God.
How important are we? That question can only be answered in relation to the cause of our existence. The cause of our existence is the purpose of it, and the purpose of human life is to be a servant of Krishna:
kṛṣṇera 'taṭasthā-śakti' 'bhedābheda-prakāśa'
(CC Madhya 20.108-109)
The purpose of human life is to be a servant of God, then the importance of one's life is measured in relation to the degree in which one is connected with God's service. And service to God is service to all souls, service so that other souls become conscious of God as well. That is the essence of our life, our lives therefore become very important. The value of our actions depends on where they are directed towards. If we act to serve, then our actions and our lives become very valuable. To the proportion that we have developed a service attitude towards other souls and the Lord, to that degree our life become more valuable. If we do not use our lives properly, then we are wasting time on things of the material world like a fashionable dress, having the best jewels, having fun in the most extravagant ways, etc, etc, etc. Life gets out of hand so fast that once we realize that we're already completely consumed by the jaws of the material world. Therefore, my dear, this is the right time to make a deep self-analysis and ask: Who am I? What makes my existence valuable?
And I have given you the process so you can answer these questions. There is nothing more beautiful and more auspicious than Truth. It is through conscious awareness that each soul has the capacity to realize how we are a part of that Truth. We need preparation to come to the realization of our essence as eternal servants. It is not artificial state, it is a realization that descends from the highest realm through causeless mercy. And most importantly, we must train ourselves to become good servants. Daily practice is the daily effort to prepare us for this. One advances to the extent that one longs to serve. It is proportional, more service, more progress. Devotional service is the real root of the whole matter.
How does one practically experience this devotional service in practice? By remembering God, to make plans for God's pleasure or connecting others with God. When you cultivate inspiration to be with God, when you work and make the effort to improve, eventually you become eligible to serve God. All of this. which we aspire for in the process of spiritual life, it is not something ordinary, quite the contrary. Rather, we are talking about the ultimate goal of life. Nothing less than that.
We can only connect with that goal as long as we remain linked with a reliable source of spiritual energy, and reciprocate this connection with the right attitude, that attitude is the surrender of which we spoke of at first. The attitude of rejecting all selfish interests separate from Sri Krishna. This is our opportunity to decide whether we surrender to the Supreme Source or continue being surrendered to materialism which we have served life after life. With these words I say goodbye today.
I hope you can reflect on this during the week.
Jay Srila Prabhupada!
Your always well-wisher,
B.A. Paramadvaiti Swami