We must choose - Urmila Mataji
Paraphrased from a Shrimad-Bhagavatam class by Her Grace Urmila Mataji at Bhaktivedanta Manor on Friday 19th January 2007:
"We can choose to either jump into the sea or stay on land. We can't stay very long on the wet sand in between. Similarly, sooner or later we have to choose to jump into the ocean of spiritual bliss or strive for material happiness. We can't hang on to both forever."
"A stereotype of feminine nature is soft-heartedness. We see in the mother's affection for her child or the example of Draupadi in Mahabharata. Ashvattama killed all her sons while they were sleeping, yet when Arjuna was going to kill him, Draupadi became compassionate. Because of her soft heart, she didn't want Ashvattama's mother to suffer the same grief that she was suffering, so she pleaded Arjuna not to kill him. In the same way, Radharani is the original female and is the most soft-hearted. That is why Krishna is most merciful in His advent as Lord Chaitanya - because He takes on the soft-hearted, compassionate mood of Radharani."
"When a woman gets married, immediately she is treated as an intimate relative by the family of her husband. When one enrols at university, one gets access to library resources, lectures and expert teachers that would otherwise be inaccessible. In the same way, when an aspiring devotee gets initiated, he obtains access to the knowledge, realisations and mercy of the entire disciplic succession and is accepted as a family member of the sampradaya."
"Time in the spiritual world is inconceivable for us. For example, when a small baby sees his mum leave the room, he cries uncontrollably. Because the baby has no understanding of the concept of space, he thinks mummy has disappeared into another dimension. He cannot understand that she has simply walked into another room in the same house. Even when you show him the next room, he still doesn't understand because he has no concept of space in the way we experience it. Only when he himself can crawl to another room can he understand that mum has gone to another room. Similarly, we have to accept that we cannot know what time is like in the spiritual world until our consciousness transfers to the spiritual dimension - only then can we appreciate and experience spiritual time."
"We can choose to either jump into the sea or stay on land. We can't stay very long on the wet sand in between. Similarly, sooner or later we have to choose to jump into the ocean of spiritual bliss or strive for material happiness. We can't hang on to both forever."
"A stereotype of feminine nature is soft-heartedness. We see in the mother's affection for her child or the example of Draupadi in Mahabharata. Ashvattama killed all her sons while they were sleeping, yet when Arjuna was going to kill him, Draupadi became compassionate. Because of her soft heart, she didn't want Ashvattama's mother to suffer the same grief that she was suffering, so she pleaded Arjuna not to kill him. In the same way, Radharani is the original female and is the most soft-hearted. That is why Krishna is most merciful in His advent as Lord Chaitanya - because He takes on the soft-hearted, compassionate mood of Radharani."
"When a woman gets married, immediately she is treated as an intimate relative by the family of her husband. When one enrols at university, one gets access to library resources, lectures and expert teachers that would otherwise be inaccessible. In the same way, when an aspiring devotee gets initiated, he obtains access to the knowledge, realisations and mercy of the entire disciplic succession and is accepted as a family member of the sampradaya."
"Time in the spiritual world is inconceivable for us. For example, when a small baby sees his mum leave the room, he cries uncontrollably. Because the baby has no understanding of the concept of space, he thinks mummy has disappeared into another dimension. He cannot understand that she has simply walked into another room in the same house. Even when you show him the next room, he still doesn't understand because he has no concept of space in the way we experience it. Only when he himself can crawl to another room can he understand that mum has gone to another room. Similarly, we have to accept that we cannot know what time is like in the spiritual world until our consciousness transfers to the spiritual dimension - only then can we appreciate and experience spiritual time."
posted by Muser at 6:25 AM
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