Krishna's Mercy

Driven to Impersonalism

“For those whose minds are attached to the unmanifested, impersonal feature of the Supreme, advancement is very troublesome. To make progress in that discipline is always difficult for those who are embodied.” (Lord Krishna, Bhagavad-gita, 12.5)

The Will of the Majority

“Ahaituky apratihata: unconditional devotional service cannot be checked by any material condition. This means that one does not have to be very rich to serve the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Even the poorest man can equally serve the Supreme Personality of Godhead if he has pure devotion. If there is no ulterior motive, devotional service cannot be checked by any material condition.” (Shrila Prabhupada, Chaitanya Charitamrita, Madhya 1.161 Purport)

The Two Mayas

“Because nothing can exist without the Lord, it should be known that the illusory energy is also an energy of the Lord. The right conclusion of dovetailing everything in relationship with the Lord is called yoga-maya, or the energy of union, and the wrong conception of detaching a thing from its relationship with the Lord is called the Lord's daivi maya, or maha-maya. Both the mayas also have connections with the Lord because nothing can exist without being related to Him.” (Shrila Prabhupada, Shrimad Bhagavatam, 2.9.34 Purport)

Don’t You Forget About Me

“Maya means forgetfulness of Krishna, and forgetfulness of Krishna and Krishna consciousness stand side by side like light and shadow. If one remains in shadow, he cannot enjoy the facilities offered by light, and if one remains in light, he cannot be disturbed by the darkness of shadow. “ (Shrila Prabhupada, Nectar of Instruction, 7 Purport)

Beyond Faith

“The devotee believes in the almighty potency of the Lord, while the faithless say that the Lord is almighty but do not believe it. Such men with a poor fund of knowledge do not know that the Lord is the Lord eternally and that one cannot become the Lord by meditation for millions of years or by mental speculation for billions of years.” (Shrila Prabhupada, Shrimad Bhagavatam, 2.9.32 Purport)

The Missing Part

“The psychologist makes a serious study of the physiological conditions of the brain, as if the construction of the cerebral lump were the machine of the functioning mind, but in the dead body the psychologist cannot bring back the function of the mind. These scientific studies of the cosmic manifestation or the bodily construction independent of the Supreme Lord are different reflective intellectual gymnastics only, but at the end they are all illusion and nothing more.” (Shrila Prabhupada, Shrimad Bhagavatam, 2.9.34 Purport)

Giving Himself

“Out of His immensely charitable disposition He can award some temporary powers to the yogis because of the yogis hankering after them, but to His unalloyed devotees, who do not want anything from the Lord save and except His transcendental service, the Lord is so pleased that He gives Himself in exchange for unalloyed service.” (Shrila Prabhupada, Shrimad Bhagavatam, 2.9.17 Purport)

Trouble in Penance

“There is undoubtedly trouble in executing penance. But the trouble accepted in executing bhakti-yoga is transcendental happiness from the very beginning, whereas the trouble of penance in other processes of self-realization (jnana-yoga, dhyana-yoga, etc.), without any Vaikuntha realization, ends in trouble only and nothing more. There is no profit in beating husks without grains. Similarly, there is no profit in executing troublesome penances other than bhakti-yoga for self-realization.” (Shrila Prabhupada, Shrimad Bhagavatam, 2.9.9 Purport)