View source for The Lord states that as soon as one reaches Him by devotional service-which is the one and only way to approach the Personality of Godhead-one attains complete freedom from the bondage of birth and death

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{{terms|"The Lord states that as soon as one reaches Him by devotional service-which is the one and only way to approach the Personality of Godhead-one attains complete freedom from the bondage of birth and death"}}
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{{compiler|Iswaraj}}
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[[Category:God's Statements]]
[[Category:That]]
[[Category:As Soon As]]
[[Category:Reaching God]]
[[Category:Devotional Service to God]]
[[Category:Which Is]]
[[Category:One]]
[[Category:Devotional Service to God is the Only Way]]
[[Category:Approaching God]]
[[Category:Personality of Godhead]]
[[Category:Attain]]
[[Category:Freedom From Material Bondage]]
[[Category:Birth and Death]]
[[Category:Sri Isopanisad, Mantra 12]]
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<h2>Other Books by Srila Prabhupada</h2>
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<h3>Sri Isopanisad</h3>
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The Lord states that as soon as one reaches Him by devotional service-which is the one and only way to approach the Personality of Godhead-one attains complete freedom from the bondage of birth and death.
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[[Vanisource:ISO 12 (1974)|Sri Isopanisad 12, Translation and Purport]]
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Those who are engaged in the worship of demigods enter into the darkest region of ignorance, and still more so do the worshipers of the impersonal Absolute
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The problems of life cannot be solved simply by going to the moon planet or to some other planet above or below it. Therefore Śrī Īśopaniṣad advises us not to bother with any destination within this dark material universe, but to try to get out of it and reach the effulgent kingdom of God. There are many pseudo worshipers who become religionists only for the sake of name and fame. Such pseudo religionists do not wish to get out of this universe and reach the spiritual sky. They only want to maintain the status quo in the material world under the garb of worshiping the Lord. The atheists and impersonalists lead such foolish pseudo religionists into the darkest regions by preaching the cult of atheism. The atheist directly denies the existence of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, and the impersonalists support the atheists by stressing the impersonal aspect of the Supreme Lord. Thus far we have not come across any mantra in Śrī Īśopaniṣad in which the Supreme Personality of Godhead is denied. It is said that He can run faster than anyone. Those who are running after other planets are certainly persons, and if the Lord can run faster than all of them, how can He be impersonal? The impersonal conception of the Supreme Lord is another form of ignorance, arising from an imperfect conception of the Absolute Truth.

The ignorant pseudo religionists and the manufacturers of so-called incarnations who directly violate the Vedic injunctions are liable to enter into the darkest region of the universe because they mislead those who follow them. These impersonalists generally pose themselves as incarnations of God to foolish persons who have no knowledge of Vedic wisdom. If such foolish men have any knowledge at all, it is more dangerous in their hands than ignorance itself. Such impersonalists do not even worship the demigods according to the scriptural recommendations. In the scriptures there are recommendations for worshiping demigods under certain circumstances, but at the same time these scriptures state that there is normally no need for this. In the Bhagavad-gītā ([[Vanisource:BG 7.23 (1972)|7.23]]) it is clearly stated that the results derived from worshiping the demigods are not permanent. Since the entire material universe is impermanent, whatever is achieved within the darkness of material existence is also impermanent. The question is how to obtain real and permanent life.

The Lord states that as soon as one reaches Him by devotional service-which is the one and only way to approach the Personality of Godhead-one attains complete freedom from the bondage of birth and death. In other words, the path of salvation from the material clutches fully depends on the principles of knowledge and detachment gained from serving the Lord. The pseudo religionists have neither knowledge nor detachment from material affairs, for most of them want to live in the golden shackles of material bondage under the shadow of philanthropic activities disguised as religious principles. By a false display of religious sentiments, they present a show of devotional service while indulging in all sorts of immoral activities. In this way they pass as spiritual masters and devotees of God. Such violators of religious principles have no respect for the authoritative ācāryas, the holy teachers in the strict disciplic succession. They ignore the Vedic injunction ācāryopāsana—"One must worship the ācārya"—and Kṛṣṇa's statement in the Bhagavad-gītā ([[Vanisource:BG 4.2 (1972)|4.2]]) evaṁ paramparā-prāptam, "This supreme science of God is received through the disciplic succession." Instead, to mislead the people in general they themselves become so-called ācāryas, but they do not even follow the principles of the ācāryas.

These rogues are the most dangerous elements in human society. Because there is no religious government, they escape punishment by the law of the state. They cannot, however, escape the law of the Supreme, who has clearly declared in the Bhagavad-gītā that envious demons in the garb of religious propagandists shall be thrown into the darkest regions of hell ([[Vanisource:BG 16.19 (1972)|16.19-20]]). Śrī Īśopaniṣad confirms that these pseudo religionists are heading toward the most obnoxious place in the universe after the completion of their spiritual master business, which they conduct simply for sense gratification.
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