Category:Affection for God
Theme Analysis
Affection for God is the living being's original love, now covered by material ignorance and revived through devotional service. Śrīla Prabhupāda teaches that the Lord is the real object of affection for every soul, because all beings are His parts and parcels and naturally seek loving exchange with Him. As this affection awakens, it grows through service, remembrance, association, and the Lord's mercy into deeper relationships with Kṛṣṇa.
- Dormant Love: Natural affection for God already exists within the heart, but it is covered by material desires and forgetfulness. Spiritual culture removes that covering so the soul's original attraction to Kṛṣṇa can flow again.
- Loving Service: Affection for God becomes practical when it is expressed through service, offering, hearing, chanting, and remembrance. The Lord personally guides the sincere devotee who serves Him with love and affection.
- Varieties of Relationship: Affection for the Lord develops through servitude, friendship, parental love, and conjugal love. These relationships show that spiritual life is not impersonal emptiness but full personal exchange with the Supreme Lord.
- Supreme Reciprocation: Kṛṣṇa accepts even simple offerings when they are given with love. When affection matures into pure devotion, the devotee experiences the Lord as the center of all happiness and all relationships.
- Explore the synthesized essence of this category in this Vanipedia article: Affection for God Grows Into Loving Service in Every Relationship.
Subcategories
This category has the following 7 subcategories, out of 7 total.
A
L
Pages in category "Affection for God"
The following 75 pages are in this category, out of 75 total.
A
- A pure devotee of the Lord is exactly in a family tie with the Lord, and therefore he is undeterred in discharging his duty in a full affectionate tie with the Lord
- Again when people cried that Krsna, the son of Vasudeva, had come, both King Nanda and Mother Yasoda became overwhelmed with affection and expressed their great pleasure
- All of us living beings are differentiated expansions of the Lord, but our affection for the Lord is submerged within us, artificially covered by the material quality of ignorance
- Anyone who serves the Lord sincerely with love and affection is certainly instructed by the Lord from within
- As soon as one does this (purify the heart), the flow of one's natural affection begins to glide toward the Lord, and with the progress of this flow one becomes more and more self-realized in various relations with the Lord
- Associates of the Lord are eternally liberated souls, and they cannot bear the separation of the Lord even for a moment because of intense affection for the Lord. Thus the inhabitants of the city of Dvaraka were in a mood of dejection
- At dasya-rati stage, there is an awakening of natural affection, such as is felt by a son who grows up and begins to appreciate his father's benedictions. At this stage the living entity wants to serve the Supreme Lord instead of serving maya, illusion
B
- Balabhadra Bhattacarya was so affectionate to the Lord that he was rendering service just like a menial servant. His assistant brahmana carried the waterpot and garments
- Because of affection for the transcendental child, she (Devaki) believed that Kamsa could kill Him. Instead of thinking of the unlimited power of the Lord, she thought of God with affection, & therefore she requested the transcendental child to disappear
- Because of being too attached to playing with the other boys, Krsna and Balarama did not return upon being called by Rohini. Therefore Rohini sent mother Yasoda to call Them back, because mother Yasoda was more affectionate to Them - SB 10.11.13
- Because of intense affection, Nanda Maharaja could not understand Krsna as He is. Garga Muni was able to know everything, past, present and future, by studying the Vedas, but Nanda Maharaja could not understand Krsna directly
- By the grace of God the SC of every species of life can occupy its proper place, and these species can express their spiritual affection for God in the santa-rasa, as displayed by the land, water, hills, trees, fruits, and flowers of Vrndavana
D
- Devaki was so afraid of Kamsa that she could not believe that Kamsa would be unable to kill Lord Visnu, who was personally present. Out of motherly affection, therefore, she requested the Supreme Personality of Godhead to disappear
- Due to their affection for their cats and dogs, they (who are not spiritually advanced) have to take the same bodily forms in the next life unless they clearly increase their affection and love for the Supreme Personality of Godhead
E
- Essentially there is no material difference between Goloka & Vaikuntha, but in Vaikuntha God is served in unlimited opulence, whereas in Goloka God is served in natural affection. This love of God is awakened by the association of pure devotees of God
- Even such an exalted personality as Bharata, who had attained loving affection for the Supreme Personality of Godhead, fell down from his position due to his affection for some animal. Consequently he had to accept the body of a deer in his next life
I
- I request that for the time being You (Visnu) become invisible to our material eyes - Devaki expressed her motherly affection to God while praying
- I understand that this transcendental form is generally perceived in meditation by the great sages, but I am still afraid because as soon as Kamsa understands that You (Visnu) have appeared, he might harm You - Devaki expressed her motherly affection
- I worship Govinda, the primeval Lord, the first progenitor, who is tending the cows, always served with great reverence and affection by hundreds and thousands of laksmis, or gopis - Bs. 5.29
- If any devotee offers Him even a small leaf, or a flower or water, if it is offered with love and affection, the Lord accepts it and is pleased
- If despite this opportunity (for spiritual realization) for human life we are unable to revive our natural affection for the Lord, we must know that we are wasting our life for nothing
- In conjugal love there are the qualities of neutrality, servitorship, fraternity and parental affection, as well as those of conjugal love itself. The conclusion is that through conjugal love the Lord is completely satisfied
- In the fourth stage, called vatsalya-rati, the fraternal affection evinced in the preceding stage develops into paternal affection. At this time the living entity tries to be the parent of God
- In the liberated state of affairs, the full-fledged affection for the Lord is awakened. As such, there is an unlimited flow of everlasting happiness, without the fear of its being broken as we have experienced here in the material world
- Intense affection for the Supreme Personality of Godhead, although manifested as affection for one's son, is spiritually beneficial
N
- Nanda Maharaja appreciated the words of Garga Muni, but because of his deep affection he could not understand who Krsna was, although Garga Muni had said that Krsna's qualities would be exactly like those of Narayana
- Narada says, "My dear King, there are many devotees who first become attracted to the Personality of Godhead for purposes of sense gratification, from being envious of Him, out of fear of Him, or from desiring to associate affectionately with Him"
- Narayana is so kind that although Ajamila did not mean real Narayana - he was meaning his son - but the affection was there for Narayana. So Narayana is so kind that consciously or unconsciously, if you chant the holy name of God, it goes to your credit
O
- On the platform of paternal affection (vatsalya-rasa) there are four qualities. In addition to the three qualities, there is the sense that the Supreme Lord is dependent on the mercy of the devotee
- One devotee said, "My dear Mukunda, I cannot properly express the glories of Your pastimes. Even when the nondevotees hear of Your glorious pastimes they become affected and shed tears and start to tremble"
- One should taste the meaning of Srimad-Bhagavatam in the association of pure devotees, and one should associate with the devotees who are more advanced than oneself and who are endowed with a similar type of affection for the Lord
- Out of affection for Prthu Maharaja, He touched the earth, but He rested the front of His hand on the raised shoulder of Garuda, His carrier, as if to prevent Himself from falling down, since the Lord is not accustomed to stand on earthly ground
- Out of His supreme good will, the Lord became his son & dealt with everyone as if He were an ordinary human being. Thus King Nabhi began to raise his transcendental son with great affection, & he was overwhelmed with transcendental bliss, joy & devotion
- Out of their great affection for Krsna, and being unaware of the extent of His potencies, they (the inhabitants of Vrndavana) became overwhelmed with grief and anxiety because they had nothing dearer than Krsna
P
R
- Ratih means affection, affinity, attachment for the Lord. Now we have got attachment for the matter. So as we make progress, we gradually become freed from material attachment and come to the platform, complete attachment for God
- Revival of the dormant affection or love of Godhead does not depend on the mechanical system of hearing and chanting, but it solely and wholly depends on the causeless mercy of the Lord
S
- Self-realization with a sense of servitude for the Lord is certainly transcendental, but when a sense of fraternity is added the relationship develops, and as affection increases, this relationship develops into parenthood and conjugal love
- Servitude, friendship, parental affection and conjugal love for the Supreme Personality of Godhead are the basis of the four kinds of devotional activities
- She (mother Yasoda) took Him (Krsna) on her lap and became overwhelmed with maternal affection
- Sometimes he (a great devotee brahmana) would protect the Lord with a filial affection, sometimes he would cry out to the Lord, addressing the Lord as his beloved, and sometimes he would meditate on the Lord as the Supersoul
- Spiritual culture is meant to revive natural affection of the living being for the Lord. The ingredients of fire are already present in safety matches, and only mild friction is needed to ignite a fire
T
- The affection between the Lord and the living entities is something like that between the male and the female; therefore the term love of Godhead is quite appropriate
- The devotees are engaged in devotional service with love and affection from the very beginning, and therefore the Lord personally directs them so that they can approach Him without difficulty or deviation
- The devotees who want some benefit out of devotional service are accepted by the Lord because there is an exchange of affection. BG 1972 purports
- The elder gopis of Vrndavana were so absorbed in affection for Krsna that they wanted to save Him, although there was no need to, for He had already protected Himself. They could not understand Krsna was the Supreme Personality of God playing as a child
- The human form of life represents the complete development of the senses for spiritual realization of one's original affection for the Lord
- The ingredients of fire are already present in safety matches, and only mild friction is needed to ignite a fire. Similarly, our natural affection for the Lord has to be revived by a little culture
- The Lord is always described as the parama-purusa, or the supreme male personality. Thus the affection between the Lord and the living entities is something like that between the male and the female. Therefore the term love of Godhead is quite appropriate
- The Lord is the center of all the affection of all living beings, who are all His parts and parcels. When the flow of natural affection for the Lord is clogged by desires to imitate His Lordship, one is said to be in maya, or illusion
- The love and affection which bind the Lord and devotee are exhibited in the case of Bhismadeva
- The parents of the Lord, due to parental affection, felt extreme danger, and they almost fainted. Just to convince them that They had actually killed Kamsa, Krsna and Baladeva pulled Kamsa's dead body along the ground to encourage them
- The stage of loving service to the Lord in parental affection is an advanced stage of love in fraternity
- The supreme atma, or soul, is the Lord Himself, and the minute atma is the living entity. The supreme atma, or Paramatma, alone maintains all the individual minute beings, for the Supreme Lord wants to derive pleasure out of their affection
- The Supreme Lord is the Supreme Soul of everything, and therefore in the supreme conception affection is realized
- The transcendental service of the Lord begins gradually developing into nine progressive stages of loving service under the headings of attachment, love, affection, feelings, affinity, adherence, following, ecstasy, and intense feelings of separation
- The word bhava is significant here. This bhava stage is attained after one has transcendental affection for the Lord
- They (the pure devotees who inhabit Vrndavana) are fully dedicated to the service of the Lord in sublime affection, prema
- They enjoyed celestial happiness, with open hearts full of love and affection for the Lord, and when they saw the face of the Lord, it seemed to them that they were drinking nectar through their eyes
W
- We can judge that love of Godhead in fraternity is better than love of Godhead in neutrality and servitorship. Similarly, love of Godhead in parental affection is better than love in fraternity
- When affection (for God) increases in the parental relationship, there is nonetheless a want of complete freedom
- When Putana was taking Krsna on her lap, both Yasoda & Rohini were present, but because she was beautifully dressed & showed motherly affection toward Krsna, they did not forbid her. They could not understand that she was a sword within a decorated case
- When the Personality of Godhead appeared before them (flowers, waterfalls, trees, fruits, hills, caves, birds, beasts, & human beings) they all became spiritually inclined, and by natural affection they wanted to serve the Almighty in various capacities
- When the Personality of Godhead is met, the fullness of affection becomes manifested because of the reality of the affectionate relationship
- When Uddhava saw Maharaja Nanda and Yasoda so extraordinarily overwhelmed with thoughts of Krsna, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, and when he experienced their extraordinary affection for Him, he also became overwhelmed
- When we give service to the Lord in affection, in love, then God reveals
- While praying to the Lord for rescue, mother Devaki expressed her motherly affection
- Within Vasudeva's heart, affection for his son and knowledge of the Supreme Lord's transcendental nature both awakened In the beginning Vasudeva thought - Such a beautiful child has been born, but now Kamsa will come and kill Him
- Without the development of fine affection and love, one cannot offer prayers to the Lord very suitably