Choosing to leave the spiritual world is possible for the jiva-souls because Krsna always allows a "two-sided" relationship between Himself and the jiva-souls that includes the choice to accept or reject Krsna.
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. Just like a thief, he knows that his stealing 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." (Prabhupada talk on Rene Descartes with Hayagriva dasa 1976)
Unless there is the misuse of free will, even in Vaikuntha and Goloka-Vrindavana, there is no question of free will.
For loving exchanges to truly exist between Krsna and the jiva-souls, the jiva-souls also must have the right to voluntarily express themselves in their own way.
This individual right of self "expression" (free will) includes always having the choice to remain in the Vaikuntha planets serving Visnu or being with Krsna in Goloka-Vrindavana, or leave the spiritual worlds and enter the material worlds.
The explanation by Srila Prabhupāda explaining where the jiva-souls came from to enter the material creation, is they originally came from Goloka Vrindavana (Vaikuntha) long, long, long ago.
Also it is important to understand that in Goloka-Vrindavana and Vaikuntha, the jiva-souls were NEVER created by Krsna or Visnu there because they have always existed over an infinity which means they have no beginning point and will never cease to be.
The jiva-souls also never originated from the impersonal Brahmajyoti, tatastha-sakti or the Body of Maha-Visnu
The marginal living entities (jiva-souls) have eternally existed as individual "persons" as Bhagavad Gita As It Is 1983 "correct edition" explains.
Chapter 2 text 20 clearly explains-
"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 As It Is Ch 2 text 20 "correct translation")
Srila Prabhupada – "We have also come down from Vaikuntha some millions and millions of years ago." (BG Aug 6, 1973)
Srila Prabhupada - "Your question about one's relationship with Lord Krsna on Krsnaloka, does he ever fall down? The jiva-souls are endowed with minute independence as part of their nature and this minute independence may be utilized rightly or wrongly at anytime, so there is always a chance of falling down by misuse of one’s independence." (Letter to Jagadisa dasa, 4/25/1970)
Srila Prabhupada - "In the broader sense, everyone comes from Krsnaloka (Goloka-Vrindavana). When one forgets Krsna, he is conditioned (nitya-baddha), when one remembers Krsna he is liberated (nitya-siddha)." (Letter to Mukunda, June 10, 1969)
These are clear statements by Srila Prabhupāda about where jiva-souls have come from. There is no contradiction in Srila Prabhupada's words above.
Keep in mind, less than 10% of jiva-souls choose to leave Vaikuntha or Goloka-Vrindavana and enter the material creation, then later for some, fall further to the impersonal dormant brahmajyoti, while over 90% never choose to leave the Spiritual worlds.
The fact is no other acarya has given such clear simple teachings on so many aspects of Krsna consciousness as Srila Prabhupada has.
Does the Brahmajyoti have consciousness?
The Brahmajyoti is the impersonal manifestation as the effulgence of Supreme Personality Krsna, where an unlimited number of jiva-souls are existing dormantly (inactive)
Therefore entering the impersonal brahmajyoti is an attempt by the jiva-souls to end all existence by trying to escape the horrible experiences, frustration and suffering of the material world's repeated birth and death and it's temporary nature.
To a Vaisnava, such an act of attempting to extinguish one's identity, individuality and personality and forget everything, is seen as spiritual suicide.
Therefore the impersonal brahmajyoti is the dormant (inactive) destination of so called liberated spiritual jiva-souls, like many yogis, jnanis (mental speculators) and various religionists who have not attained their real full potential of pure devotional service by returning back to their original home, the Vaikuntha planets serving Visnu, or Goloka Vrindavana as Krsna's dear friend.
The impersonal (inactive or dormant) aspect of brahmajyoti is also eternal but the jiva-souls position in it is only temporary.
Unlike Christanity, Islam and Judaism, there is no nonsense "eternal condemnation" for jiva-souls in the teachings of Krsna in Bhagavad Gita As It Is, Srimad Bhagavatam or Caitanya Caritāmṛta because "Karma" is never eternal, no punishment is eternal.
Only a cruel unloving God would keep a jiva-soul eternally (for infinity) in the eternal fires of Hell, or dormant (inactive) in the impersonal brahmajyoti Prabhupada has explained.
Each individual jiva-soul within brahmajyoti is an eternal conscious living person, who ARE a spiritual bodily form (vigraha) in their full potential, but while in the impersonal brahman, or brahmajyoti, appear as an insignificant dormant inactive spark of life.
This "inactive" (almost dead to a Vaisnava) condition in the impersonal brahmajyoti, can last for a very, very, very, very long time, equivalent to billions of life times of Lord Brahma who lives for 311 trillion and 40 billion human years.
But eventually the jiva-souls in their fallen condition in the impersonal brahmajyoti, fall from there too and again take birth in the material creation because the nature of the jiva-soul is to be active, not inactive Prabhupada has explained to us.
It is also very important to understand the jiva-souls have existed for infinity which means there is no birth or death for the jiva-souls as Bhagavad Gita As It Is 1983 (corrected edition)
Chapter 2 text 20 "correct translation" clearly says-
"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 As It Is Ch 2 text 20, 1983 edition)
Some wrongly teach there are two classes of jiva-souls existing, those in the spiritual world, and those who enter the material creation from the impersonal Brahmajyoti.
They claim one class comes from the spiritual Vaikuntha planets and Goloka-Vrindavana, known as nitya-siddhas which means eternally situated in the eternal pastimes of Krsna.
And the other is known as nitya-baddhas (eternally conditioned) who come from the impersonal Brahmajyoti.
They call this brahmajyoti, the nondifferentiated marginal plane, claiming it is the source of infinite jiva-souls, atomic spiritual particles of nondifferentiated character.
The rays of the Lord's transcendental body are known as the brahmajyoti, and a pencil of a ray of the brahmajyoti is the jiva. The jiva-soul is an atom in that effulgence, and the brahmajyoti is a product of an infinite number of jiva-soul atoms.
The jiva-souls emanate from the brahmajyoti which is living and growing, within the brahmajyoti, their equilibrium is somehow disturbed and movement begins. From nondifferentiation, differentiation begins.
From a plain sheet of uniform consciousness, individual conscious units grow. And because the jiva-soul is conscious, it is endowed with free will.
So, from the marginal position they choose either the side of exploitation or the side of dedication (Vaikuntha planets or Goloka Vrindavana)
Anadi means that which has no beginning. When the jiva-souls enter the land of exploitation, they come within the factor of time, space, and thought. And when they come to exploit, action and reaction (karma) begins in the negative land of loan. Although the jiva-souls strive to become masters, they really become losers.
Goloka and Vaikuntha servitors are also seen to be within the jurisdiction of the brahmanda, the material universe, but that is only a play, lila (pastimes) These jiva-souls come from that higher plane only to take part in the Lord's pastimes and then return to Vaikuntha or Goloka-Vrindavana.
These sangas then claim the fallen jiva-souls come from the marginal position within the brahmajyoti and not from Vaikuntha, which is wrong because all jiva-souls come from the spiritual worlds where they have existed without beginning or end.
Srila Prabhupada - "There is no new soul, new and old are due to this material body, but the soul is NEVER born and NEVER dies, so if there is no birth, so how there can be new soul?'' (Letter to Jagadisa dasa 7/9/1970)
As already explained, all jiva-souls originally came from Goloka Vrindavana (also known as Vaikuntha) where they have existed eternally without beginning or end, and NEVER originated from the impersonal Brahmajyoti.
Srila Prabhupada - "We have also come down from Vaikuntha some millions and millions of years ago. Anadi karama-phale. Anadi means before the creation. The real desire is how to go to home, back to Godhead."(Lecture on BG, London, Aug 6, 1973)
Srila Prabhupada – "We have also come down from Vaikuntha some millions and millions of years ago." (BG Aug 6, 1973)
Srila Prabhupada - "In the broader sense, everyone comes from Krsnaloka (Goloka-Vrindavana). 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 – "Regarding your questions where are the spirit souls coming from? These spirit souls and all spirit souls are coming from Vaikuntha, but in these material worlds they are taking various grades of bodies according to their material activities. There is no new soul. New and old are due to this material body, but the soul is NEVER born and NEVER dies, so if there is no birth, so how there can be new soul?" (Letter to Jagadisa dasa 7/9/1970)
The jiva-souls were NEVER created not even by Krsna, they have existed always together like the Sun-disc and the sun-rays.
Krsna is like the Sun-disc that maintains the sun-rays (jiva-souls)
Spiritual existence means no beginning and no end (infinity)
Also Bhagavad Gita As It Is 1983 correct edition, Chapter 2 text 12 further explains-
"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)
Srila Prabhupada - "Because he stays dormantly merged into the Body of Maha-Visnu after the dissolution of the material universes (Brahmandas), he thinks Maha-Visnu is his origin, or when one falls down from Brahma-sayujya (impersonal Brahmajyoti), he also thinks that this impersonal Brahmajyoti may be his origin, but he does not remember that long, long, long before that, he was with Krsna." (letter to Madhudvisa Swami, July 1972 Melb, Australia)
No jiva-souls originate from the impersonal Brahmajyoti.
Srila Prabhupada - "Existence in the impersonal brahman is also within the category of non-Krsna consciousness. Those who are in the brahman effulgence are also in the fallen condition, so there is no question of falling down from a fallen condition. When fall takes place, it means falling down from the non-fallen condition. The non-fallen condition is Krsna consciousness." (Letter to Revatinandana, Los Angeles 13 June, 1970)
Material existence means repeated birth and death because every material bodily vessel is temporary and the eternal jiva-soul cannot occupy it forever, the jiva-soul is forced to get a new body due to decomposition.
In other words, the jiva-soul (the passenger in the material bodily vessel) is eternal and is only forced to change bodies because such material vessels are temporary and eventually decay and wear out, hence the cycle of repeated birth and death.
The individual jiva-souls (marginal living entities) are separate "persons" in the Spiritual worlds who "choose" to "voluntarily" serve Krsna in an unlimited variety of ways.
The constitutional position of the marginal living entities (jiva-souls) are they are part and parcels of Krsna, being His eternal loving servants in their original position.
Srila Prabhupada - "The "immediate" expansions of the Lord are called svāṁśa or personal direct expansions (Known as Visnu-tattva, or the Lord playing a different role in His own pastimes). The "separated" expansions of the Krsna are called vibhinnāṁśa - (jiva-souls endowed with independence and free will) like us." (From BG 10.37, Purport)
The jiva-souls are a spiritual bodily form that "originally" look like Krsna's two-armed bodily form in the spiritual world, and have their own unique personality separate from the Krsna's Personality.
Srila Prabhupada - "The human form is the full manifestation of the jiva-soul." (Melb, May 20, 1975)
Devotee – "Is the original body of the jiva-soul a human form?"
Srila Prabhupada – "Yes, human form. God is also human form. "Man is made after the shape of God." I think there is in the Bible. Is it not? So God is also like human form. Here you see Krsna, two hands, two legs."
Hari-sauri – "How do we understand, then, that there are peacocks and flowers and trees in the spiritual world? Are these not eternal forms?"
Srila Prabhupada – "[describing material form first]: Yes, they are more covered, just like if you cover your body with blanket, the hands and legs are invisible. But you are not the blanket. So the trees and plants, they are more covered. They are not in full manifestation. The human form is the full manifestation of the jiva-soul."
Hari-sauri - "They are covered in the spiritual world?"
Srila Prabhupada - "Not in the spiritual world. There that is voluntary. Some devotees want to serve Krsna as flower; then they become flower there, they lie down at the lotus feet of Krsna as a flower voluntarily, but he can change his form from flower to human body if one wants. 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 - Melb, May 20, 1975)
As said above, the original eternal form of the marginal living entity (jiva-soul) is a "two-arm form" like Krsnas (that the human species also have).
Further more, the jiva-souls in Goloka-Vrindavana can choose to enter the Vaikuntha planets where they manifest from their "two-armed form" to a "four armed form" similar to Visnu's bodily form.
The marginal living entities or jiva-soul's original bodily form are made up of-
Sat - eternity.
Cit - knowledge.
Ananda - bliss.
Vigraha - perpetual bodily spiritual form.
Therefore the original eternal bodily feature of the jiva-soul is not some impersonal formless spark in the inactive Brahmajyoti, or Brahman as the impersonalists and mayavadis believe, nor does the jiva-souls originate from the dreams of Maha-Visnu, whom they go to AFTER entering the material creation from Vaikuntha, and then provided with a variety of material bodily vessels.
Only the material bodily vessels or costumes the visiting jiva-souls have, come from Maha-Visnu and NOT the jiva-souls.
The material bodies are "hired" from the dreams of Maha-Visnu so they can enter His material creation in a suitable bodily container that matches their desires that are separate from Krsna.
Srila Prabhupada - "We are not the owner of this body, not the owner of the material senses. The senses are "hired" from the Supreme Lord. This is very subtle understanding; one should know the proprietor of the senses is God." (March 1966, NY, City)
All the material bodily vessels in the material creation belong to Maha-Visnu and must be aquired from Him in order to enter the material worlds.
However, all such bodily vessels in the material world are temporary and are subject decay, nothing made of matter lasts forever.
This causes the eternal jiva-souls within those material bodies, who are visiting from the spiritual worlds as passengers, to continue taking birth and continue trying to satisfy their desires.
Srila Prabhupada – "This material creation is the spirit soul’s dream." (SB Canto 4 Ch 29 Text 83)
To enter the material creation, the visiting jiva-souls have to approach Maha-Visnu to "hire" a material bodily vessel from Him, in order to experience their own desires separate from Krsna and His spiritual abode.
The visiting jiva-souls enter the material creation by first "hiring" a material bodily vessel from the dreams of Maha-Visnu.
Srila Prabhupada – "Actually all existence in the material world is a dream of Maha-Visnu, as the Brahma-Samhita describes-
This material world is created by the dreaming of Maha-Visnu. The real, factual platform is the spiritual world, but when the spirit soul wants to imitate the Supreme Personality of Godhead, he is put into this dreamland of material creation." (SB, Canto 4 Ch 29.83)
Srila Prabhupada - "Everything happening within time, which consists of past, present, and future, is merely a dream. This is the secret in understanding in all the Vedic literature." (SB, Canto 4 Ch 29.2b)
Srila Prabhupada - "Factually all of material existence is only a dream. Thus, there is no question of past, present, or future. Persons who are addicted to karma-kanda-vicara, which means ‘working for future happiness through fruitive activities’, are also dreaming. Similarly, past happiness and present happiness are merely dreams." (SB, Canto 4 Ch 29.2b)
All material bodies in the material creation are provided to the jiva-souls, who reject Krsna and Visnu, by Maha-Visnu.
Srila Prabhupada - ''As soon as we try, Oh, this material world is very nice, Yes, Kṛṣṇa says, yes, you can go, otherwise what is the meaning of free will? Every living entity has got a little free will. And Kṛṣṇa is so kind, He gives him opportunity, "All right, you enjoy like this." It is free will." (Morning Walk Cheviot Hills May 13, 1973, Los Angeles)
Srila Prabhupada - "We cannot say therefore that we are not with Krsna. As soon as we try to become Lord, immediately Maya covers us. Formerly we were with Krsna in His lila or sport. But this covering of Maya may be of very, very, very, very long duration; therefore many creations are coming and going." (Letter to Madhudvisa Swami June 1972 Melb, Australia)
Srila Prabhupada - "So to go to Krsna means you will have to acquire your original, spiritual body. The spiritual body is already there, but we are now covered by this material body." (Germany, June 22, 1974)
Srila Prabhupada - "We have also come down from Vaikuntha some millions and millions of years ago. Anadi karama-phale. Anadi means before the creation. The real desire is how to go to home, back to Godhead." (Lecture on BG, London, Aug 6, 1973)
Srila Prabhupada - "We may fall down from Vaikuntha at any moment, so even in the Vaikuntha, if I desire that, "Why shall I serve Krsna? Why not become Krsna?" I immediately fall down." (Lecture in Honolulu, July 4, 1974)
Srila Prabhupada - ''When fall down takes place it means falling down from the non-fallen condition. That non-fallen condition is Krsna consciousness, existence in the impersonal brahman is also within the category of non-Krsna consciousness. Those who are in the brahman effulgence are also in the fallen condition, so there is no question of falling down from a fallen condition." (Letter to, Revatinandana, LA, California 13th June, 1970)
Srila Prabhupāda - "We are only a (dormant) spark (while fallen in the impersonal Brahmajyoti). But because we are spirit, we cannot remain in that fallen impersonal stage. He wants to enjoy, so for as long as one has forgotten (their spiritual bodily origin while outside of the spiritual atmosphere), one develops a body which is called matter."
Śyāmasundara - "Does the jiva-soul develop a spiritual body?"
Srila Prabhupāda - "No, he IS spiritual body, he has a spiritual identity already."
Revatīnandana - "You very clearly explained to me once in a letter that if the jiva-soul then goes into the brahmajyoti, he is considered still fallen, still fallen. Does that means the whole brahmajyoti is composed of fallen jiva-souls? You see my question? If I go there, I'm a jīva-soul, and I go to the brahmajyoti I'm still fallen."
Srila Prabhupāda - "Yes."
Revatīnandana - "That means all jīva-souls there are also fallen souls."
Srila Prabhupāda - "Yes." (Aug. 17, 1971, London)
As said above, the original spiritual form of the jiva-soul has "two-arms" like Krsna, however their original home is a choice between the Vaikuntha planets serving the four-armed Visnu, or being Krsna's friend, the two-armed Kṛṣṇa in Goloka Vrindavana.
Also, only when the jiva-souls voluntarily choose to leave Goloka-Vrindavana and enter the Vaikuntha planets, do they manifest a four-armed form like Lord Visnu/Narayana.
There are billions of different perpetual Vaikuntha planets that take up 3/4 of the spiritual sky, each having their own Visnu form who has their own unique name that describes the pastimes on their particular Vaikuntha planet.
Srila Prabhupada - "Surrender BY your intelligence but don't surrender your intelligence."(Letter to Bali Mardan 1974)
Many in this world cannot understand that the nature of the jiva-soul in Kṛṣṇa Consciousness, is being an independent contributing person who chooses to voluntarily serve Krsna, or, if they like, can even reject Krsna.
Each individual jiva-soul eternally has within their constitution the God given right of self expression, and should be encouraged to voluntarily express themselves in their own unique way to find ways to please Krsna.
Such self articulation allows the jiva-souls in the piritual world, to voluntarily contribute their own unique offerings instead of always being mindlessly told what they must offer, think and do.
Self determination is based on free will, but some authorities who want self expression restricted, call it radical personalism.
These so called authorities fear their position of control and power is threatened if they allow others to express themselves and voice their own realizations and opinions.
Many question if there really is free will, or joke about free will by wrongly claiming some jiva-souls are never granted free will because Krsna does not always allow it in the spiritual worlds.
Such comments are nonsense, free will and a two-way dialogue between the jiva-souls and Kṛṣṇa is always there.
Without free will there can never be any loving exchanges with Krsna.
Many who are overly attached to their position of power over others, do not understand what it really means to have free will.
Only in the material creation and lower species of life is free will restricted and almost none existant.
Such restrictions only refers to those jiva-souls in the lower species of life forced to fully act by instinct, eating, sleeping, mating and defending, and not karma or free will.
Obviously, under those conditions, there is no free will, therefore no choices only responding to instincts.
Only in the human form of life are the jiva-souls forced to act by the modes of material nature and the reactions from past karma.
However, free will in its full potential is always experienced in the Vaikuntha and Goloka-Vrindavana (The Kingdom of God) where free will always exists.
If the jiva-souls have no free will in the spiritual world, then they are no better than dead stone Prabhupada tells us.
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 – "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 - "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 with Srila Prabhupada – Rene Descartes 1976)
Loving relationships are always a two-way street, love can never be experienced by just one, there must be two.
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." (July 8, 1976)
Srila Prabhupada - "Their (impersonalist) philosophy is oneness. So how there be love with just one? Is it possible? Have you got any such experience that love means one? No. Love means two. There must be two, the lover and the beloved. Kṛṣṇa is already lover. He loves you so much that He's trying to get you back. That is Kṛṣṇa's attempt. "Please, My dear boy, or My dear friend, My dear servant." (Lecture on SB Canto 2 Ch 1 text 3, Paris, June 12, 1974)
As Prabhupada also explains, Krsna never forces you to surrender to Him, never forces you to love Him, that must be voluntary otherwise love can never exist.
Srila Prabhupada – "Krsna never forces you to love Him, that must be voluntary." (Melb Australia June 25, 1974)
Krsna will never interfere with the free will of the jiva-souls.
Free will allows genuine loving exchanges and reciprocation to take place, and as said above, without free will the jiva-souls are like dead stone!
Voluntary service is the bases of real surrender to Krsna in Goloka Vrindavana and the Vaikuntha Planets, which are the permanent eternal homes of the marginal living entities (jiva-souls).
The jiva-souls in Vaikuntha and Goloka-Vrindavana are forever voluntarily expanding their independent expressions with their unique individuality with an increasing variety of personal devotional offerings based on free will.
Devotee – "In Srimad Bhagavatam, it says that Krsna did not want us to come to this material world. If Krsna did not want us to come, why are we here? Why doesn’t He save me from thinking like that?"
Srila Prabhupada - "That means you lose your independence, your free will. 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 that love? You love me, otherwise I will kill you! Is that love? So Krsna does not want to become a lover like that, on the point of revolver. You love me, otherwise I shall kill you! That is not love; that is threatening. Love is reciprocal, voluntary, good exchange of feeling. Then there is love. Not by force; that is rape. Why one is called lover, another is called rape?" (July 8, 1976 in Washington, D.C)
Srila Prabhupada - "Unless there is a possibility of misusing our free will, there is no question of freedom." (Dialectical Spiritualism, Critique of Descartes)
Ultimately each individual soul is a unique person with their own sense of independent self who are able to choose for themselves how to voluntarily serve Krsna the Supreme Personality of Godhead and cause of all causes, or even ignore Him if they choose to do so.
Free will in its full potential only fully exists in Vaikuntha and Goloka Vrindavan, the spiritual worlds, which are the jiva-souls original perpetual home.
Devotee - "Srila Prabhupada why did Krsna give us free will if He knew we may miss use it?"
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)
Devotee – "In Srimad Bhagavatam it says that Krsna did not want us to come to this material world. If Krsna did not want us to come, why are we here?” Why doesn’t He save me from thinking like that?"
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? So Krsna does not want to become a lover like that, on the point of revolver. "You love me, otherwise I shall kill you!" That is not love; that is threatening. Love is reciprocal, voluntary, good exchange of feeling. Then there is love. Not by force; that is rape. Why one is called lover, another is called rape?" (July 8, 1976 in Washington, D.C).
As Srila Prabhupada explains below, the relationship between Krsna and the individual soul is never a "one way" relationship that denies personal contributions and choices.
No, love is ALWAYS based on the reciprocation between two because love can only exist when there is two as Prabhupada explains-
Srila Prabhupāda – "Unless there are two persons, where is the question of love? 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)
As Prabhupada has warned us, if you have no free will then you are no better than dead stone, the stone has no free will, no one wants to be dead and mindless like cold stone.
Becoming a disciple happens by first surrendering to Krsna's pure devotee however, that does not mean one extinguishes their individuality, unique personality and free will, and then become Krsna's mindless drone and controlled puppet!
No, that is not surrendering to Krsna's pure devotee, it is actually surrendering to impersonalism and committing spiritual suicide!
Srila Prabhupada - "Parīkṣit Mahārāja was an ideal king and householder because he was a devotee of the Personality of Godhead. A devotee of the Lord automatically has all good qualifications. And the Emperor was a typical example of this.
Personally he had no attachment for all the worldly opulences in his possession.
But since he was king for the all-around welfare of his citizens, he was always busy in the welfare work of the public, not only for this life, but also for the next. He would not allow slaughterhouses or killing of cows.
He was not a foolish and partial administrator who would arrange for the protection of one living being and allow another to be killed. Because he was a devotee of the Lord, he knew perfectly well how to conduct his administration for everyone's happiness—men, animals, plants and all living creatures.
He was not selfishly interested.
Selfishness is either self-centered or self-extended. He was neither. His interest was to please the Supreme Truth, Personality of Godhead. The king is the representative of the Supreme Lord, and therefore the king's interest must be identical with that of the Supreme Lord.
The Supreme Lord wants all living beings to be obedient to Him and thereby become happy. Therefore the king's interest is to guide all subjects back to the kingdom of God.
Hence the activities of the citizens should be so coordinated that they can at the end go back home, back to Godhead. Under the administration of a representative king, the kingdom is full of opulence.
At that time, human beings need not eat animals. There are ample food grains, milk, fruit and vegetables so that the human beings as well as the animals can eat sumptuously and to their heart's content.
If all living beings are satisfied with food and shelter and obey the prescribed rules, there cannot be any disturbance between one living being and another. Emperor Parīkṣit was a worthy king, and therefore all were happy during his reign." (SB Canto 1 Ch 4 text 12, Purport)
Srila Prabhupada explains that a proper loving relationships is always a "two-way" reciprocal exchange of loving expressions.
Srila Prabhupada - "Love means two. There must be two, the lover and the beloved. Kṛṣṇa is already lover. He loves you so much that He's trying to get you back. Therefore love cannot be one or love cannot be executed only one, there MUST be another one. I love somebody; somebody loves me, so there must be lover, there must be beloved." (quote 1966 - 1974, Vaniquotes)
Srila Prabhupada - "We must understand that love means you take and you give also. Suppose if you love somebody and you simply take from him, but you don't give. Oh, do you think it is very good? No, it is not good, that is not love, that is exploitation and forced obedience. If I go on simply taking from you, and if I don't offer you anything, that is simply exploitation." (quote 1966 - 1974, Vaniquotes)
The word surrender should be properly understood so that one's so called surrender and voluntary service is appreciated, reciprocated with, and not forcefully demanded in an impersonal way.
Impersonalism means-
1 - Attempting to extinguish your individuality, unique spiritual identity, personality and free will and become God's mindless drones and controlled pawn.
2 - Being bullied, patronized, talked down too and treated and used like a slave who is never allowed to think for themselves, but rather instead should be nurtured, appreciated and encouraged to be a contributing independent living entity with the freedom of individual self expression when serving God as a person.
3 - lnactively merge dormantly into His Brahman effulgence. Impersonalism means one all-pervasive consciousness that denies the individual jiva-souls. Therefore attempting to extinguish one's individuality and unique personality like impersonalist are doing, is spiritual suicide.
In the spiritual world with Krsna, surrender does not mean you give up you individuality, free will, sense of self or the independence that allows you to make your own personal contributions and offerings to Krsna unique to just you.
Goloka-Vrindavana and Vaikuntha are very personal places based on loving voluntary exchanges eternally going on with Krsna and His servants and friends.
Therefore the jiva-soul's relationship with Krsna is unique and very personal, each jiva-soul has their own different personal exchanges with Krsna that no other jiva-soul duplicates.
No two jiva-souls are the same in Vaikuntha (in personality and character) or Goloka-Vrindavana.
Therefore genuine love, service and surrender can only exist in a "two-way" voluntary exchange of feelings, based on reciprocation and mutual respect, Krsna never forces His will on anyone in the spiritual world.
Facing the non-sentimental facts that some ignorant gurus, sannyasis and their followers refuse to understand.
Having free will is the constitutional make up of all marginal living entities (jiva-souls) that is eternally part and parcel of their individual character and personality in the spiritual worlds.
This means the jiva-souls can even choose to leave the Vaikuntha planets or Goloka-Vrindavana if they choose, at anytime.
It is nonsense sentimentality to claim the jiva-souls can never again fall down to the material worlds once they are in Vaikuntha or Goloka-Vrindavana.
This is because free will always allows the jiva-souls to make their own choices in the Spiritual worlds.
Therefore without that ability of being able to voluntarily choose, there is no question of loving exchanges or expressing genuine free will.
So the choice to leave Vaikuntha or Goloka Vrindavana is possible because Krsna allows a "two-way" relationship of exchanges that includes accepting or rejecting Krsna.
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. Just like a thief, he knows that his stealing 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." (Prabhupada talk on Rene Descartes with Hayagriva dasa 1976)
Unless there is the misuse of free will, even when in Vaikuntha and Goloka-Vrindavana, there is no question of free will.
For loving exchanges to truly exist between Krsna and the jiva-souls, the jiva-souls also must have the right to voluntarily express themselves, which includes being able to choose to leave the Vaikuntha planets and Goloka Vrindavana at anytime, and return to the material worlds. This is what having free will really means.
Therefore, returning back home, back to Godhead is NOT necessarily permanent because the jiva-souls ALWAYS a choice because of free will.**.
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