Tuesday, July 20, 2021

The jiva-soul's relationship with Krsna (God) in His Kingdom's of the Vaikuṇṭha planets and Goloka Vrindavana is NEVER a "one-sided" non-voluntary contributing forceful impersonal affair Prabhupada explains here.

The jiva-souls in Vaikuntha and Goloka-Vrindavana are forever voluntarily expanding their variety of personal expressions that come from their own individuality, personality and free will.

This is constantly achieved with increasing offerings to Krsna based on loving exchanges and reciprocation.

Srila Prabhupada – "Love is reciprocal, voluntary, good exchange of feeling. Then there is love. Not by force, no, Krsna does not want to become a lover like that, ‘You love me, otherwise I shall kill you!" (Washington DC July 8, 1976)

Real love or Bhakti is both reciprocal and voluntary, it is NEVER a "one-sided" dictatorial affair where surrender to Krsna takes away the individual jiva-soul's independent sense of self, free will and their personal unique contributions of voluntary offerings to Krsna.

Each individual jiva-soul has their own independent personality (yet dependent on Krsna) but separate from Krsna's Personality as well.

This means each individual jiva-soul has their own sense of self, personality and unique identity that THEY only uniquely have.  

These attributes are part and parcel of each individual marginal living entity (jiva-soul) making each jiva-soul the unique "PERSON" they are eternally.

The jiva-souls (marginal living entities) have existed for "infinity" which means they are beginningless and endless and were NEVER created like Krsna was never created.

Bhagavad Gita As It Is, Chapter 2 text 12-

"Never was there a time when I did not exist, nor you, nor all these kings; nor in the future shall any of us cease to be." (BG Ch 2 text 12)

Bhagavad Gita As It Is (1983 corrected edition), Chapter 2 text 20-

"For the soul there is neither birth nor death at any time. He has not come into being, does not come into being, and will not come into being. He is unborn, eternal, ever-existing and primeval. He is not slain when the body is slain." (BG Ch 2 text 20)

Srila Prabhupada – "There are no new souls, new and old are due to this material body, but the jiva-soul is never born and never dies, so if there is no birth, how can there be new souls?" (Letter to Jagadisa dasa, 7/9/1970)

Only matter is temporary (like the decomposing material bodily vessel the jiva-soul is presently within), while the jiva-souls as a spiritual bodyswithin the material body, are eternal and can NEVER cease to exist or be destroyed.

This means when the material vessels the jiva-souls are in, breaks down due to disease, decay or accidents, and ceases to function.

The jiva-soul within the material body is then forced to vacate that decomposing material body and take another one in the cycle of birth and death, Liberated or conditioned.

There are two realities the jiva-souls can be in-

1 -Nitya-siddha means the eternally liberated jiva-souls but only "while" remaining on th Vaikuntha planets and Goloka-Vrindavana.

2 -Nitya-baddha means the eternally material conditioned jiva-souls but only while in the material creation or conditioned in the dormant or inactive in the impersonal Brahmajyoti or Brahman.  

Srila Prabhupada - "In the broader sense everyone comes from Krsnaloka. When one forgets Krsna he is conditioned (nitya-baddha), when one remembers Krsna he is liberated (nitya-siddha)." (Letter to Mukunda, June 10, 1969)

Srila Prabhupada - "There are two kinds of marginal living entities: nitya-siddha and nitya-baddha. The actual constitutional position of every marginal living entity is nitya-siddha." (CC lecture, July 13, 1976) 

Srila Prabhupada - "The Krsna consciousness movement is to make the nitya-baddhas AGAIN nitya-siddha." (New York Lecture on CC, July 13, 1976)

Srila Prabhupada - "By following the rules and regulations and instructions of the spiritual master, he can also become siddha. He can become again nitya-siddha. So the Krsna consciousness movement is to make the nitya-baddhas AGAIN nitya-siddha, to bring them to their original position. It is a difficult task." (London lecture on BG, July 14, 1973)

Srila Prabhupada - "Nitya-baddhas are within this material world. Beginning from Brahma down to a small ant, insignificant ant, they are all nitya-baddha. Anyone who is in this material world they are nitya-baddha." (Lecture on BG, July 14, 1973)

In the spiritual world's of Goloka-Vrindavana and the Vaikuntha planets, loving devotional service is never a "one-way or one-sided" affair, no, real love or service is always voluntary service expressed in a reciprocal "two-way" exchange with Krsna in God's (Krsna) Kingdom.

Voluntary reciprocal association in the Kingdom of God with Krsna can only be expressed in a genuine loving way when "two"are involved in a loving exchange nurtured and encouraged by Krsna.

In Vaikuntha and Goloka Vrindavana, personal voluntary expressions (service) involving loving exchanges, can only be expressed because the jiva-souls have free will.

Such free will is always encouraged by Krsna in His relationship with the jiva-souls, which adds flavour, variety and expanding mystery in the relationship between the individual jiva-souls and Kṛṣṇa.

This means the Kingdom of God is NOT a "one-sided," one-eyed viewed "impersonal" abode that is devoid of voluntary self expression personal contributions.

Without free will, the jiva-soul is denied the ability to provide those personal contributions that inspire and build integrity and individual character.  

All unique offerings to Krsna that He always allows, are meant to expand, enrich and flavour the relationship.

As said above, love or service to Krsna is not a "one-sided" affiliate of total supremacy or pre-eminence.

The fact is genuine loving relations and service are based on voluntary reciprocal exchanges and contributions between two, not just one!!

The individual jiva-souĺs have their unique choices too, even if that choice means rejecting Krsna!

Free will only has meaning when the jiva-souls can ALWAYS express themselves in a "two-sided" affair.

In other words, loving reciprocation is only possible on a "two-way" street between two, with each contributing to the relationship's expansion of nectarine mellows.

The word "reciprocation" only has meaning when there are two involved, not one!

"Free will" in its full potential, is ONLY fully experienced in Vaikuntha and Goloka-Vrindavan, which is the jiva-souls original perpetual home.

The mundane dead material creation is where repeated birth and death take place and is continually experienced by the trapped jiva-soul, 

The material creation is NOT the jiva-soul's real home.

This is because the jiva-souls, who have chosen to enter the material creation, are then forced to possess temporary material bodily vessels that are always in a constant state of maintenance, decomposition and death, but the jiva-soul "within the material body." NEVER dies.

Therefore, such troublesome material bodily vessels are NOT who the jiva-souls are.

Even to enter many heavenly and hellish material planets, the jiva-souls must have the right type of material body (subtle or gross material body) and the accumulation of pious or impious activities in order to enter  heavenly or hellish material planets.

Such heavenly and hellish realms are NOT visible or possible to visit for those in a "gross" material body, only being in a proper "subtle material body" can one enter both heaven and hell in the material creation.

Therefore, even going to those material planets in their gross material space crafts as Astronauts have achieved while confined in their gross material body, will not reveal to them the opulent heavenly or hellish atmosphere on the planet they visit.

Just like the heavenly realm on the Moon called Chandraloka that the American Astronauts visited, but could not see or detect the heavenly atmosphere there.

Srila Prabhupada - The material body is just a covering of the spiritual soul. Mind and intelligence are the undercoverings (subtle body) and the "gross body of earth, water, air, etc., is the overcoating of the soul. As such, any advanced soul who has realized himself by the yogic process, who knows the relationship between matter and spirit, can leave the gross dress of the jiva-soul in perfect order and as he desires. 

By the grace of God, we have complete freedom. Because the Lord is kind to us, we can live anywhere—either in the spiritual sky or in the material sky, upon whichever planet we desire. However, misuse of this freedom causes one to fall down into the material world and suffer the threefold miseries of conditioned life. 

The living of a miserable life in the material world by dint of the soul's choice is nicely illustrated by Milton in Paradise Lost. Similarly, by choice the soul can regain paradise and return home, back to Godhead. At the critical time of death, one can place the vital force between the two eyebrows and decide where he wants to go. 

If he is reluctant to maintain any connection with the material world, he can, in less than a second, reach the transcendental Vaikuṇṭha and appear there completely in his spiritual body which will be suitable for him in the spiritual atmosphere. He has simply to desire to leave the material world in both finer and grosser forms and then move the vital force to the topmost part of the skull and leave the body from the hole in the skull called the brahma-randhra. 

This is the highest perfection in the practice of yoga. Of course man is endowed with free will, and as such if he does not want to free himself of the material world he may enjoy the life of brahma-pāda (occupation of the post of Brahmā) and visit Siddhaloka, the planets of materially perfect beings who have full abilities to control gravity, space, time, etc. 

To visit these higher planets in the material universe, one need not give up his mind and intelligence (finer matter), but need only give up grosser matter (the gross material body). 

Man-made satellites and mechanical space vehicles (made out of gross matter) will NEVER be able to carry human beings (while in their "gross material body") to the higher dimentional planets of outer space. Men cannot even go on their much-advertised trips (to the heavenly subtle atmosphere) on moon, for, as we have already stated, the (subtle material) atmosphere on such higher planets is different from the (gross material) atmosphere here on earth. 

Each and every planet has its particular atmosphere, and if one wants to travel to any particular planet within the material universe, one has to have a material body exactly adapted to the climatic condition of that planet. For instance, if one wants to go from India to Europe, where the climatic condition is different, one has to change his dress accordingly. Similarly, a complete change of body is necessary if one wants to go to the transcendental planets of Vaikuṇṭha." (Easy Journey to Other Planets 1)

Srila Prabhupada - "Free will means that you can act wrongly. That is free will. Unless there is chance of doing wrong or right, there is no question of free will. Where is free will then? If I act only one sided, that means I have no free will. Because we act sometimes wrongly, that means free will."

Hayagriva - "A man may know better but still act wrongly."

Srila Prabhupada -"Yes, but that is free will. He misuses his. Just like a thief, he knows that his stealing, it is bad, but still he does it. That is free will. He cannot check his greediness, so in spite of his knowing that he is doing wrong thing—he will be punished, he knows; he has seen another thief, he was punished, he was put into prison— everything he knows, but still he steals. Why? Misuse of free will. Unless there is misuse of free will, there is no question of free will." (Excerpt from: Philosophy Discussions Srila Prabhupada – Rene Descartes)

Vipina Purandara - "Why doesn’t Krsna protect me from thinking independently from Him?"

Srila Prabhupada - "That means you lose your independence. That is force, in Bengali it is said, ‘If you catch one girl or boy, You love me, you love me, you love me, is it love? You love me, otherwise I will kill you! Is that love? No it is force!" (July 8, 1976 in Washington, D.C.)

There is always a choice and that is why "free will" ALWAYS exists in God's Kingdom's of Vaikuntha and Goloka-Vrindavana otherwise we are no better than dead emotionless stone.

Srila Prabhupada - "If you have no free will, then you are a stone. The stone has no free will. You want to be stone? Then you MUST have free will! But don't misuse your free will. But don't try to become stone either. That is not life." (Aug 5, 1976, New Mayapur France)

Srila Prabhupada - "The jiva-soul's position in the spiritual world is voluntary. Some devotee wants to serve Krsna as flower; they become flower there voluntarily. If I want that, to be a flower I shall lie down at the lotus feet of Krsna and become flower, voluntarily, and can change, from flower to human body if I choose. That is spiritual life. There is no restriction. If some devotee wants to serve Krsna as cow, he serves Krsna as cow, as calf, as flower, as plant, as water, as ground, field, or as father, as mother, as friend, as beloved, anything. It is inconceivable, yet a fact." (SB Canto 6 Ch 1 text 1-4  Melbourne, May 20, 1975)

Srila Prabhupada explains, the relationship between Krsna and the individual soul is never a "one-way" domineering dictatorial relationship that denies voluntary personal contributions and choices.

No, love is ALWAYS based on the reciprocation in a two-way exchange because love can only exist when there are two as Prabhupada explains-

Srila Prabhupāda – "Love means two persons, then there is exchange, then there is love. I must deal with you open-hearted, you must deal with me open-hearted, then there is love. So if you want to love Kṛṣṇa, God, then these things must be there." (Aug 9, 1976, Tehran)

Srila Prabhupada – "So everyone can know that independence means one can use it properly, or one can misuse it. That is independence. If you make it one way only, that is not independence, that is force." (Los Angeles, June 23, 1975)

Srila Prabhupada – "So, unless there is a possibility of misusing our free will, there is no question of freedom." (Dialectical Spiritualism, Critique of Descartes).***












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