Why and How did we fall down from Goloka? How to avoid it?
ACTUAL QUESTIONS:
(1) Hare Krishna. Is soul neutral by nature? Or does it have any positive or negative qualities? When soul takes birth for the first time on earth how its nature is decided that will it have 100% positive traits or 60-40 ratio or 50-50 etc. Everything has a start so if karma works on action-reaction philosophy then for the first time how it worked on a soul which took birth for the first time as human being. Someone must have done bad karma for the first time to the person who has never did anything wrong. If soul is ‘nirguna (No Guna)’ means it doesn’t have any quality neither bad nor good then how can it force Krishna to create separate world to live independently? Why Krishna didn’t stop us? Prabhupada said 90% souls reside with Krishna, only 10% are here so earth is like a jail where we come for rehabilitation. But I have also read that good or bad qualities are come into force only when the soul enters into body. Prabhupada said that soul’s nature is to love Krishna. If soul’s nature is to love Krishna then how it deviated itself from loving Krishna. Prabhupada also said that if someone sees Krishna then that person will never want to see anything else. Krishna is so mesmerising. Then how can a soul lose interest in Krishna? Everything is pure when Krishna is around then how we got so impure? Please clear this confusion. hide my name.
(2) Hare Krishna Prabu. Pls do reply me. Prabupada says there is no envy in spiritual world. But he also says v are fallen in this material world because we were jealous of Krishna . How do we understand this contradiction? I am losing faith in Kishna Consciousness .Pls guide me.
REPLY:
Actually, there is no contradictions in these matters. Let me clarify all the aspects involved in this process.
PURE SOUL IS NEUTRAL ONLY AND HAS NO QUALITIES AND IT ALWAYS REMAINS IN A BLISSFUL FREE STATE.
Initially, all of us were living with Krishna only, in Goloka. Until we remain as a servant of Lord there, we remain there.
ENVY CAN COME IN GOLOKA TOO SINCE WE ARE NOT DENIED OUR FREEWILL, ie, FREEDOM TO CHOOSE AND ACT, BUT, SUCH PERSONS CAN NOT REMAIN THERE. THEY ARE IMMEDIATELY SENT OUT.
Since Krishna is so merciful, He immediately fulfils our wishes. Wherever we are, He never denies our choice. Though the pure soul may be nirguna, the freedom of choice is always existing with every soul. Some souls, say, as mentioned in your question, 10% of the souls wished to lead and enjoy. Therefore, they were sent to these material planets. Still, the majority of 90% are blissfully serving the Lord in Goloka and other Vaikunta planets.
How? Read here:
For example, let us take an IRON BOX that has buttons for different types of clothes like Cotton, wool, silk, nylon, etc. For every type of cloth, the heating level will be different. Let us consider that cotton has been set as 120 degrees as the maximum heating level. If we set it for COTTON and switch on the Iron, once the temperature reaches exactly 120 degrees, the iron will automatically switch off. If it goes below a certain level, say, 110 degrees, it will again switch on automatically.
Therefore, the temperature can’t exceed 120 degrees for that setting. If it goes up, it is switched off. Similarly, you can enjoy the association of Lord in Goloka directly, only until you are maintaining your purity. In other words, Lord mercifully takes you back from this material world in a hope that you will always remain pure as you were at the time of death. Therefore, He gives you a chance to be pure and serve Him in Goloka.
Therefore, Only until you maintain that purity, He allows you there. Even the atmosphere in Spiritual planets are such that everyone will always be serving the Lord and it is always an encouraging and pure environment. Everybody will have everything even when they think of it. All are instant. So, deficiencies or discomforts are not there.
However, there is a chance for only one contamination in very few cases. What is that? It is the jealousy on Krishna. If you just think atleast once that Krishna is enjoying the services of so many souls and you too should be served by others like they serve Krishna, that’s all. You are sent back to any of the material planet immediately. Why?
Because, you too wanted to enjoy like Krishna. Therefore, hereafter, you can’t serve Him with a pure consciousness. So, you are relieved from the spiritual planets and are immediately sent to material planets.
Here, in the material planets, you can become a leader and have many girls and boys to serve you for a certain years and one day leave this world. Therefore, you are given opportunity to TEMPORARILY enjoy being praised by others and also face the pains of material world.
Then, you will be allowed again in Goloka only if you realize that the enjoyments are just temporary and serving the Lord is the only eternal thing for you. Till that, you have to take births and die again and again.
In this process, we can understand that we can’t remain in spiritual world without purity. The spiritual planets are always maintained with the population of pure souls. In case of any violations, no bribing, no questions, but, you are sent out for becoming more pure by feeling the heat of material life.
So, impurity comes even in spiritual planets, as Krishna believed us that we will remain with the same pure consciousness and took us there. If we violate His trust, we have no place there.
Because of this elimination process, the spiritual planets are always maintained with pure population.
What contradiction is there in this matter?
Nothing. Everything is perfect.
Also read: THREE CLASSES OF DEVOTEES
Then, Another Question may arise:
How can there be envy in Goloka as and how we fall from Goloka as Krishna says that we never come back?
My above explanation may seem to contradict the words of Krishna in Bhagavad Gita “Yad Gatva na nivarthanthe, tad dhama paramam ma”, that means “One has to never come back, once he reaches my Dhama”.
Actually, Krishna Himself will not send us back. But, we will be sent back only if we ourselves like to come. When we like to be a leader, there is no chance in Goloka and hence we are sent here. We can again go back there if we realize that the material world is painful and hence we detach ourselves from material world.
There are examples. Krishna likes to retain us but we wanted to come here to rule others. We ourselves voluntarily wished to come from Krishna’s world since we wanted to lead and to be praised. So, these sufferings. Our original place was once Goloka. But, We came down.
We ourselves are not material, but, spiritual. But, Krishna is very merciful. He retains us with Him till we consider ourselves as servants of Lord. But, on seeing the lilas of Krishna, we too wanted to enjoy and this desire unfortunately caught us. Therefore, all these people on material planets had been sent as an opportunity to live as we wish in this world. That’s all.
We were once living with Krishna. Now? We are here. We can go back there if we categorically realise that material life is full of miseries and also mortal. So, we will be given another chance to go to Goloka. So, the point is… Krishna never sends us willingly, but, he sent us here just to experience this material world and then come back to Him again. That is it.
Therefore, we have to understand the words of Lord like this “One has to never come back, once he reaches my Dhama (unless you yourself like to go).”
WHY WE DEVELOPED ENVY?
This is also the mercy of Krishna. HE NEVER TAKES BACK OUR FREEDOM TO ACT AS WE WISH EITHER IN THE MATERIAL PLANETS OR IN GOLOKA. He allows us to apply our freedom to live as we wish. All He is doing is that He gives the reactions to all our actions that we do out of that freedom. If we desire to go back to Him, He takes us. If we like to come back here applying our freedom, He sends us back giving us another chance to realize the pains of material worlds.
Now, let us see what Srila Prabhupada, the founder Acharya of ISKCON says about these fall downs from Goloka:
(The writings of Srila Prabhupada are the Copy Right Properties of Bhakti Vedanta Book Trust. Always pay and buy his books. Some quotes are given to encourage you to buy those books and read!)
Also read: PURITTY or LOVE – WHICH IS MORE IMPORTANT FOR DEVOTIONAL GROWTH?
(1) Srila Prabhupada’s Conversation, Mayapur, February 19, 1976:
Guru-krpa: . . . They say that in the spiritual everything is peaceful, there is no birth and death, there is no material conditions, so why if the conditions in the spiritual world are so nice and everything spiritual, how is it that one can become envious of Krsna in such conditions?
Acyutananda: The original sin.
Guru-krpa: How is it that, if everything is free from envy, free from bad material elements . . .
Prabhupada: That is independence. In spite of all these things, because you have got little independence, you can violate.
Sudama: It is very hard to understand.
Prabhupada: No, it is not difficult. It is not difficult. Because you are part and parcel of God, God has got full independence, but you have got little independence, proportionately, because you are part and parcel.
Acyutananda: But in the Gita, it says, “Once coming there, he never returns.”
Prabhupada: But if he likes, he can return. That independence has to be accepted, little independence. We can misuse that. Krsna-bahirmukha hana bhoga vancha kare. That misuse is the cause of our falldown.
Acyutananda: In Krsna book it says that there were some color fighting in Dvaraka. They were throwing color. And some men became lusty seeing the women. Will that be the first part of their falldown, to be in Vaikuntha and think of personal lust with Krsna’s associates?
Prabhupada: Yes.
(2) “…intelligent man, should consider that “If I have to prepare myself for going, for being elevated to the higher planetary system, but we have to come back again, ksine punye martya-loka, why not endeavor for going back to Krsnaloka?” That is intelligence.” (Lecture, Bg 2.23-24, London)
(3) “A few more as extra nails on the coffin to bury or burn the “only bhauma-vraja-patanavada” theories. Since Srila Prabhupada says one can fall from any rasa.” (Letter, 27-2-1970)
(4) “The real mission of life [is] how to go back to Krsna, how to go back to Vaikuntha-loka… (Lecture, Bg 9.2, Calcutta)
(5) “Prabhupada: Just see this girl, little girl, is aiming for going back to Krsnaloka. Just see. (laughter) I am giving an example. They don’t care for this material senses. They are always thinking “When I shall go there, home, back to home, back to Godhead?” (Lecture, SB 7.6.3, June 16, 1968)
(6) “yad gatva na nivartante tad dhama paramam mama [Bg. 15.6]. “You have to go back to My planet, My kingdom. That will make you perfect.” (Lecture on Bg 4.14-19, New York, 1966)
(7) In a letter (27.10.1969) Srila Prabhupada writes:
“Constitutionally every living entity, even if he is in the Vaikuntha-loka (=planets), has chance of falling down”.
(8) “We were are all in a Vaikuntha planet. Now, we wanted to enjoy this material world. We have fallen down. Now we are trying to go back again. Therefore we say,”Go back to home, back to Godhead.” (Bhagavatam. lecture, Melbourne, May 22, 1975)
(9) “Here is clear proof of how a living entity coming originally from Vaikunthaloka (=planets) is encaged in material elements.” (SB. 3.16.35) “One who continues to serve the Lord even in reverse conditions is assured that he will go back to Godhead, back to the Vaikuntha planets.” (SB 3.16.37 purport)
(10) “He is fallen already from a Vaikuntha planet. He is fallen in this material world, and he is again trying to make progress”. (Lecture, SB 2.3.19, Los Angeles, June 15, 1972)
(11) “Somehow or other the son leaves home and forgets his father. The father, of course, never forgets his son. He thinks, “Oh, my son has left. If he would only come back!” Krishna thinks in this way. We are all sons of Krishna, and Krishna is more anxious to get us back home, back to Godhead, than we are to go.” (TLK 8, Bhakti yoga)
Learn this: How to love Krishna?
(12) “If a rich man’s son forgets his father, leaves home and becomes mad, he may lie on the street to go to sleep, or he may beg money for food, but all of this is due to his forgetfulness. If someone, however, gives him information that he is simply suffering because he has left his father’s home and that his father, a very wealthy man and owner of vast property, is anxious to have him return—the person is a great benefactor.” (OWK 4, The roads of the foolish and the wise)
(13) Can we need more explanation than this one? Read this example of Srila prabhupada: “So everyone is related with the Supreme Personality of Godhead, just like father and son is always related. That relation cannot be broken (child crying, taken out) at any stage, but sometimes it happens that the son, out of his own independence, he goes out of his home and forgets the affectionate relationship with father. In your country, it is not very extraordinary thing. So many sons go out of father’s affectionate home. That is very ordinary experience. So everyone has got independence. Similarly, we are all sons of God, but we are, at the same time, independent… So, in order to get out of these conditions of life, if we revive our bhagavata consciousness, or Krishna consciousness… or our original consciousness…originally, because you are spirit soul, originally you were free to move any way… So we have got immense independence, but we are now conditioned by this body. Therefore in the human form of life it is an opportunity to get back our original independence… Krishna is Bhagavan, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Bhagavan, and we are part and parcel of Krishna. Just like suppose we have forgotten our home. I left my home since a long time, I’ve forgotten my father. So if somebody reminds me, “Do you know such gentleman? He is your father. You were playing in such a way, his father was helping you,” in this way, if you simply talk of his father, he remembers his home: “Oh, yes.” Similarly, we have forgotten our father, our relationship with father. If we simply hear about Him, then we remember. A simple process.” (General lecture, August 31, 1972, New Vrindaban)
(14) “The instruction of Bhagavata is, “Just try to revive your lost relationship with God, or Krishna.” That relationship is never extinguished, but sometimes it is covered. Just like a crazy boy forgets his father and mother and home, goes away. But the relationship between the son and the parents cannot be lost. As soon as the son comes back, the parents receives him very nicely. Similarly, we are all sons of the Supreme Lord. We have forgotten our father, we have forgotten our relationship, and we are loitering in this material world helplessly…
(15) A Q/A session in the Srila Prabhupada lecture on S.B 7.9.11, Montreal:
Malati: When they go back to Godhead, some people can remember their past lives.
Prabhupada: Yes.
Malati: In the mind.
Prabhupada: Yes.
Malati: I thought the mind was left behind.
Prabhupada: No. Actually mind carries you to the next body. So mind goes with you. The material mind, material ego, material intelligence become nil when you are completely liberated. But at that time your spiritual mind acts. It is not very difficult to understand. Somebody is acting under the impression… Just like one of our students, he was acting under the impression that he is Frenchman and doing something subversive, and now he is thinking that “I am Krishna’s.” (chuckles) He has stopped all those nonsense. [break] When he was thinking that he’s a Frenchman, that mind was there. And now he’s thinking that “I am Krishna’s,” the mind is there. So where is the chance of losing the mind?”
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(16) “If you want to awaken your dormant love for Krishna… There is, because we are part and parcel. Just like father and son. There is natural love. But somehow or other, son is out of home and forgotten. Father, of course, thinks, “My such-and-such son has gone out. If he comes back…” So Krishna thinks like that. Because we are sons of Krishna, Krishna is more anxious to get us back to home, back to Godhead.” (Lecture, SB 3.25.15, Bombay)
(17) “Just as in the same family some of the sons have forgotten father and some of them remember, but both of them member of the same family. Because he has forgotten his father does not mean that he is not son. He still remains. So actually, everyone is a member of God’s family. That is our vision. Not only human being, but animals also. We therefore consider animals also brothers. We don’t support animal killing.” (Room conversation, August 14, 1971, London)
(18) “Krishna is always finding out the opportunity how you can be taken back home, back to Godhead. Just like affectionate father. Rascal son left his father, loitering in the street and have no shelter, no food, suffering so much. The father is more anxious to take the boy home. Similarly, Krishna is the supreme father.” (Lecture, SB 1.8.21, New York)
(19) A devotee had commented that we fell down from Brahmma jothi. Prabhupada refutes this beautifully:
“The next question, about the living entities falling down in this material world are not from the impersonal Brahman. Existence in the impersonal Brahman is also within the category of non-Krsna consciousness. Those who are in the Brahman effulgence they 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.” – (Srila Prabhupada, Letter to Revatinandana, June 13th, 1970).
Also read: 12 THINGS TO FOLLOW TO GO BACK TO KRISHNA’s GOLOKA AT THE END OF THIS BIRTH ITSELF!
AN EXAMPLE FOR FALL DOWN FROM VAIKUNTA:
Who said that fall down from Vaikunta planets is not possible? We have an incident in Bhagavatham about the fall down from vaikunta to earth.
Srimad Bhagavatham (3.15.12) mentions the story of the Four Sanat Kumaras. Sage Sanatkumara was one of the Four Kumaras, the four Manasputras (mind-born-sons) or spiritual sons of Brahma whose other sons were Sanaka, Sanatana, and Sanandana.
When they visited Vaikuntha, the abode of Vishnu, where his gate keepers, Jaya and Vijaya, stop them, taking them to be children, as due to their ‘tapas’, the Four Kumaras, looked like children or eternally young; upon which the four Kumaras cursed them to take birth on earth, as human beings.
Lord Vishnu intervened and offered them the option of taking three births as his enemy, whereupon they would be restored to their former position.
Subsequently, in Satya Yuga, they were born as Hiranyakashipu and Hiranyaksha, to Diti (daughter of Daksha) and Kasyapa. Lord Vishnu undertook the Varaha Avatar to kill Hiranyaksha, and the Narasimha avatar to kill Hiranyakasipu.
In the second life, during the Treta Yuga, they were born as Ravana and Kumbhakarna and defeated by Rama avatar as mentioned in the epic Ramayana. Finally, in their third and final life in Dwapara Yuga, they were born as Sishupala and Dantavakra during the time of Krishna avatar, also mentioned in epic Mahabharatha.
If these sons of brahma themselves fell, what about us!
WHY DO WE GET ENVY IN GOLOKA THAT LEADS TO FALL DOWN?
When we go to Goloka, or any spiritual planets, we will not USUALLY remember the memories of our past births on earth.
Therefore, you will feel totally free as you will not have any pains or problems in Goloka. Whatever you need, it will come even when you just think of it. No deficiency. So, you need not spend your time for earning for food. That is why, the devotees of Goloka are always serving the Lord in so many ways. Girls will be creating flower garlands for Lord. People will be engaged in protecting Surabhi like cows. They will concentrate just on Krishna, nothing else. So, there is no chance for any jealousy if we involve in the service of Lord totally.
However, some times our old thoughts of material life comes up in Goloka when we use the free will given by the Lord. Usually, in the material world, every living being shows jealousy when others have more opulences than them. So, though we are fully engaged in the service of Krishna, we are still enjoying our independence of deciding our own course of action. Lord has given that independence for us. He does not compel us to be in Goloka. He does not send us back also. He wants us to be always with Him.
Also read: WHY PANDAVAS DID NOT GO TO VAIKUNTA or GOLOKA THOUGH KRISHNA WAS WITH THEM?
Then, What to do to avoid fall down?
If you like to remain in Goloka for ever, you can. Definitely can. Lord will never send us. But, only one condition. There, only Krishna will be the worshipable person. All of us have to always serve Him. Until you remain the loveful servant of Lord, you can remain in Goloka.
So, if you go to goloka with the mercy of lord, follow this single condition of remaining only the servant of Lord, and do not like to be a leader.
How to avoid jealousy out of your free will in Goloka?
In case you get the desire to enjoy and lead, you have to consider all the past events. You were struggling on earth only because you wanted to achieve something and to get praised by others. You failed in that. Or, sometimes you succeeded but that success was short lived on earth. You faced so many betrayals, cheatings, failures, pains, diseases, etc… So, you decided that this material world is ‘Dhukkalayam and asasvatham’ and hence you prayed to Krishna to take you to His kingdom.
That is why, you are now here in Goloka. You are fortunate and hence you have got the opportunity to enter into the kingdom of Lord. This is the topmost position one can have. There is no more place to travel for us. It is the topmost planet. You have got the opportunity to serve the topmost authority Krishna Himself that is a rarest opportunity. You need not take birth again. You can always remain there without the pains of birth, disease, old age and death.
You have achieved your goal of life. You have achieved Krishna Himself. Then, why do you again like to achieve other things and rule others?
You once caught into fire when you touched the fire playfully. You fortunately escaped without being killed by the fire. Then, if you like to touch the same dangerous fire again, are not you committing wrong?
Also read: How to Go Back to Godhead Krishna’s Kingdom Vaikunta / Goloka at the earliest?
Similarly, You have once experienced what this material life is. So, You decided to escape from here and go to eternal kingdom of Lord. You have already come to Goloka. Now, you are in a blissful state. Then, why do you like to go back to the same painful earth again?
If you think of these things and concentrate all the time in the service of Lord in Goloka, you can avoid fall down from Goloka.
Only those who felt the pains of material world can enter into the spiritual worlds. So, if we are very careful in not inviting the pains of material world again, let us wish only to serve Lord, not to become the leader.
We have tasted the Highest taste! What else you have on earth to taste further?
CONCLUSION:
From all these detailed considerations, we can know that the fall down is possible from Goloka. It is our independence. Krishna is nothing to do with it. He is ready to retain us all the time. But, we must maintain our consciousness pure without envy.
Krishna does not send us back. He will never like to send us back. We ourselves came out of false desire to rule others.
Hope this exhaustive article clears all your doubts.
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