DEVOTION BESTOWED BY THE MERCY OF THE SPIRITUAL MASTER

Compiled by Isana dasa

But when you get chance of a bona fide spiritual master, a great soul, if you try to please him, to satisfy him, that will make you eligible to have taste for kṛṣṇa-kathā, on the topics of Kṛṣṇa

So, it is the duty of the student to offer respect to the bona fide spiritual master three times respect. So, serve, mahat-sevā, because that will, I mean to say, help me in making advance in spiritual knowledge. Syān mahat-sevayā viprāḥ puṇya-tīrtha-niṣevaṇāt. And also, by visiting sacred places. So, it is not always possible to visit sacred places. It may be very distant place. But when you get chance of a bona fide spiritual master, a great soul, if you try to please him, to satisfy him, that will make you eligible to have taste for kṛṣṇa-kathā, on the topics of Kṛṣṇa. SB 1.2.14-16 March 24, 1967 San Francisco EXCERPT: 

Lord Kṛṣṇa Himself or His representative, the unalloyed devotee, can mercifully bestow these combined potencies upon any man. Being thus endowed with such potencies, one can become an unalloyed devotee of the Lord

Flaws of Iskcon’s “law book”

Hare Krsna, all glories to Srila Prabhupada, and all Vaishnavas.

A full pdf of this can be found here: https://ia600205.us.archive.org/15/items/IskconLawBook/IskconLawBook.pdfFull text link:  https://archive.org/stream/IskconLawBook/IskconLawBook_djvu.txt
This so-called law book tends to deviate a lot from the transcendental non-adulterated teachings of Srila Prabhupada and some of their nonsense rules and regulations contrary to the teachings will be shown below.
Before that, an excellent prediction by Srila Prabhupada is presented below just a few months prior to his physical departure.

How to exponentially accelerate the distribution of Srila Prabhupada’s First Edition Original Books?

This book distribution, that was my Guru Maharaja’s purpose. He said that I have got so many temples and now in Calcutta I have got a marble temple, but I would have wished that if by selling the marbles I could publish and distribute books

[Letter to Ramesvara — Bombay 14 November, 1975]

Hare Krishna.

All glories to His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada and all Vaisnavas. 

SRILA PRABHUPADA SPEAKS OUT:WHY THE MACMILLAN EDITION
IS THE ONLY BONAFIDE AND AUTHORIZED EDITION

Hare Krsna, all glories to Srila Prabhupada, and all Vaishnavas. The quotes below prove that the only authorized edition of the “Bhagavad Gita As It Is” is the 1972 edition published by Macmillan.
Proof from Srila Prabhupada that Hayagriva Das DID NOT change the BG philosophy in any way in the Macmillan edition

 1979 Ramesvara Interview regarding book changes confirms that there was no need for any changes in future
. 
1979 Ramesvara Interview regarding book changes 
confirms that there was no need for any changes in future

Hare Krsna. Ananata Koti dandavats to His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktiivedanta Swami Prabhupada and all Vaisnavas. 
Morning Walk — March 22, 1976, Mayapura:Pañcadraviḍa: Can you repeat why you said you have been successful where others have not?

Rareness of Pure Devotional Service
Nectar of Devotion, 1970 Edition, Chapter 1
In the preliminary phase of spiritual life there are different kinds of austerities, penances and similar processes for attaining self-realization. However, even if an executor of these processes is without any material desire, he still cannot achieve devotional service. And aspiring by oneself alone to achieve devotional service is also not very hopeful because Kṛṣṇa does not agree to award devotional service to merely anyone. Kṛṣṇa can easily offer a person material happiness or even liberation, but He does not agree very easily to award a person engagement in His devotional service. Devotional service can in fact be attained only through the mercy of a pure devotee. In the Caitanya-caritāmṛta (Madhya 19.151) it is said: “By the mercy of the spiritual master who is a pure devotee and by the mercy of Kṛṣṇa one can achieve the platform of devotional service. There is no other way.”
The rarity of devotional service is also confirmed in the Tantra-śāstra where Lord Śiva says to Satī, “My dear Satī, if one is a very fine philosopher, analyzing the different processes of knowledge, he can achieve liberation from the material entanglement. By performance of the ritualistic sacrifices recommended in the Vedas one can be elevated to the platform of pious activities and thereby enjoy the material comforts of life to the fullest extent. But all such endeavors can hardly offer anyone devotional service to the Lord, not even if one tries for it by such processes for many, many thousands of births.”
In the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam it is also confirmed by Prahlāda Mahārāj that merely by personal efforts or by the instructions of higher authorities one cannot attain to the stage of devotional service. One must become blessed by the dust of the lotus feet of a pure devotee who is completely freed from the contamination of material desires.
In the Fifth Canto of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, 6th Chapter, 18th verse, Nārada also says to Yudhiṣṭhira, “My dear King, it is Lord Kṛṣṇa, known as Mukunda, who is the eternal protector of the Pāṇḍavas and the Yadus. He is also your spiritual master and instructor in every respect. He is the only worshipable God for you. He is very dear and affectionate, and He is the director of all your activities, both individual and familial. And what’s more, He sometimes carries out your orders as if He were your messenger! My dear King, how very fortunate you are, because for others all these favors given to you by the Supreme Lord would not even be dreamt of.” The purport to this verse is that the Lord easily offers liberation, but He rarely agrees to offer a soul devotional service because by devotional service the Lord Himself becomes purchased by the devotee.

July 17 1975 SF

God has nothing to do–SP

Prabhupāda: First-class men. Our definition of God is: na tasya kāryaṁ kāraṇaṁ ca vidyate. “He has nothing to do.” This is God. Na tasya karyaṁ kāraṇaṁ ca vidyate: “He has nothing to do.” He is simply enjoying, dancing with the gopīs, that’s all. Why He should go to work? Then what kind of God he is? Na tasya karyaṁ kāraṇaṁ ca vidyate.

Devotee: But He also says in Gītā that He works too.

Prabhupāda: Just to teach these rascals to work. Because here, without working, you cannot get your food. Therefore laziness condemned here in this material world. And in the spiritual world the Supreme Person is the most lazy person. (laughter)

Bahulāśva: Just like yesterday you told the reporters. When they asked why such a big cart, so you told them that God should have a big car.

Prabhupāda: And where is this car? When God assumes the universal form, where is the car? You have no such car. So this car is the smallest car of all. He has got… When He showed His Viśva-rūpa to Arjuna, so for that Viśva-rūpa where is the car? You cannot do.

Devotee: When Kṛṣṇa is demonstrating work, He demonstrates in the form of Lord Viṣṇu, not in His pastimes in Vṛndāvana but more in the form of Viṣṇu, or how does He show?

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