Devotional Service: Glories of Devotional Service

Impersonal Brahman as Constitutional Position of Ultimate Happiness?

Q. I recently heard the story of Lord Yamaraj cursed by a Sage to be born as Sri Vidura. When the Sage heard from Yama-dharmaraj that his child-hood mistakes caused the Sage to undergo much suffering, the sage got angry and cursed. {Editor's note: The reference is to the history of Manduka Muni, see SB 1.13.1 purport}

Q. Although I have been trying to practice Krishna Consciousness for about three years, I still find it difficult to control my senses. It is often really very frustrating. Shall I tell myself that there is so much dirt accumulated in my mind and therefore I have to be patient, or what else do I need to do?

Q. I have been a devotee, but my brother convinced me that Krishna consciousness was for very advanced people and that ordinary persons like me would take a very long time and will need to sacrifice a lot before becoming Krishna conscious. Also I have very little taste for chanting, find it very difficult to get up early in the mornings and am more of a late night person and rarely get to associate with devotees. Yet there is a deep yearning in me to decorate the temple, eat prasadam and do things that are colorful.

Q. I have a "natural" tendancy to be very critical and hence find mistakes/faults in people. Most of the time, I find fault with people at the mental level and not necessarily express it. This habit also extends to devotees. I feel and know I am not supposed to do this. But, like I said, this has become a habit and I am finding it hard to relinquish it.

Q. 1. There are still people (at least in India) who believe God is impersonal and say that devotion is just a stepping stone for realizing the Supreme Truth which they say is actually impersonal.

Q. 1. Does a child who is forced to eat meat by his parents incur negative karma? Does the logic change for a mentally unstable adult?

The laws of karma are very intricate, subtle and stringent. It is not easy to always determine a one-to-one correspondence between a particular action and what exact reactions are incurred as a result, and what proportion is assigned to whom.

Q. When do we know we have undergone a transformation in the path of Krishna Consciousness?

Srila Prabhupada writes in his purport to BG 9.2:

Q. This question was asked to Srila Prabhupada, but I did not understand his answer. Does one function better in a society as a result of Krishna consciousness or does it have to do with the individual's desires or perception about life as a whole?

Q. 1. I was just reading BG 2.40 and had a question in relation to what Krishna says there:

Is it the case that anyone performing any small amount of devotional service for the explicit purpose of pleasing God, with or without the knowledge of what is actually pleasing to God, will have the chance to be born again in a body suitable for taking up devotional service (meaning, at least a human body)?