Page 46 - Powerful Feminine Qualities

The object of lust is the material body, and object of love is Krishna’s body. That is the difference between lust and
love. The same feeling directed toward Krishna is love. In addition, the same feeling directed toward a material body
or object is lust.
Krishna consciousness is progressive. As we surrender gradually, Krishna reveals Himself to His devotee
proportionately.
ye yatha mam prapadyante tams tathaiva bhajamy aham|
mama vartmanuvartante manusyah partha sarvashah ||
“As all surrender unto Me, I reward them accordingly. Everyone follows My path in all respects, O Son of Pritha.” (Bg.
4.11)
If you surrender 1%, Krishna reveals 1% of Himself to you. If you surrender 10%, Krishna shows you 10%. Revelation of
Krishna depends on our desire to serve Him with love and devotion. As we surrender more and more through service,
Krishna reveals Himself to us proportionately.
However, if we desire to continue in the material world life after life, then Krishna through His material energy keeps
us in the material world birth after birth until we come to our senses and begin the process of Bhakti, devotion and
love for the Lord. I had a friend of mine who was wealthy. He told me one day, “My desire is to always take birth in
Medina and live like I am now.” Medina is a neighborhood near Bellevue that is populated with very wealthy
homeowners.
I said, “Prabhu, that is not so good.”
“Why, what do you mean ‘not so good’?”
“You do not want to take birth again. You should go to Vaikuntha which is the transcendental Medina where there is
no anxiety, no birth, death, old age and disease, only eternal, blissful life.”
“This is the lower Medina where there is birth, death, old age, and disease.” He said he could not understand
something that is not material. How could he be a person in a non-material world? This is a normal opinion because
materialistic persons have no knowledge of spiritual existence due to ignorance. Lacking knowledge of spiritual
existence, such persons aspire to remain in the material world eternally by perpetuating the deteriorating body by
some material means similar to repairing an old car by replacing the used parts with new parts. However, there is a
limit to how much one can repair the perishable body.
Devotee 4: Prabhu, you said that the protection for women is provided by the father, the husband and the elder son.
How can a woman be protected if her father is dead, the husband and wife are separated, and there is no son?
HG Harivilas Prabhu: You get protection from the temple, and following the principles of dharma (the rules and
regulations of Krishna consciousness). How was Sita protected? She did not have her husband, father, or son during
her captivity by Ravana. She was protected by following the principles of dharma, and being chaste. Ravana promised
her, “You become my wife. I’ll surrender to you. In addition, all my wives (he had thousands of them) will be your
servants. You and I will go all over the universe in Puspaka (his super airplane), and I will show you the wonders of the
universe.” He promised her everything. Sita said, “Anybody who knows a swan is not interested in a crow.” She
remained completely chaste to Rama.
Later when Sita was pregnant, Rama asked Her to leave Ayodhya and live exiled in the forest. She did not protest. She
did not like it, but She did not protest. She said to Laksmana, “I understand why He is doing this. You tell Him that I will
always be faithful to Him.” She left. Sita remained faithful to Rama. She did not turn her two sons against Him. When
Lava and Kusa went to Ayodhya and recited the Ramayana in the presence of Rama, they did not know He was their
father. In addition, they did not have any negative opinion of Him. However, they had a doubt in their minds.
Therefore, when they went back to Valmiki’s ashram, they questioned Sita, “There is a doubt in our minds. We went to
see the king of Ayodhya, and right next to Him was a big golden statue of You. Why was Your statue there?” Sita
revealed that She was the wife of Rama, and Rama was their father. She always remained faithful to Rama, even
though She lived apart from Him under the shelter of Sage Valmiki.

46