Category:Attraction of a Conditioned Soul
Theme Analysis
The condition of the living entity in the material world is characterized by a deep-rooted attraction to the temporary objects of the senses. Śrīla Prabhupāda explains that because the conditioned soul falsely identifies with the physical body, their natural, dormant spiritual tendency to love the Supreme Lord is misdirected toward material glitters. Driven helplessly by the modes of material nature, the senses—such as the eyes, ears, and tongue—are constantly pulled toward beautiful sights, mundane music, and palatable food. This overwhelming attraction causes the soul to forget their real self-interest, which lies exclusively in the loving service of Lord Viṣṇu.
Instead of seeking spiritual liberation, the conditioned soul becomes heavily entangled in bodily relationships, finding false satisfaction in their wife, children, home, and wealth. Śrīla Prabhupāda points out that materialistic education and the pursuits of mundane religion, economic development, and fruitive work only serve to expand the influence of māyā, dragging the soul further into illusion. The attraction to sex life is particularly binding; however, Śrīla Prabhupāda notes that it is actually a perverted, minute reflection of the original, pure loving affairs found in the spiritual world.
To rescue the living entities from this perilous state of forgetfulness, the Supreme Personality of Godhead personally descends to the material universe. Śrīla Prabhupāda beautifully describes how Lord Kṛṣṇa manifests His original pastimes in Vṛndāvana, including the rāsa-līlā dance, specifically to captivate the conditioned souls. By exhibiting these unparalleled transcendental loving affairs, Kṛṣṇa provides a superior spiritual attraction that can effortlessly draw the conditioned soul away from degraded material sex life, ultimately guiding them back home, back to Godhead.
- The Pull of the Senses: Under the influence of the modes of material nature, the conditioned soul's senses are irresistibly drawn toward temporary objects of gratification.
- The Illusion of Belonging: The conditioned soul falsely believes they are perfect and secure due to their deep-rooted attachment to their body, home, wealth, and family members.
- The Snare of Mundane Advancement: Materialistic education and fruitive planning do not liberate the soul; they merely increase the soul's attraction to the temporary material world.
- The Divine Remedy: Lord Kṛṣṇa descends and displays His supremely attractive pastimes, such as the rāsa-līlā, specifically to redirect the conditioned soul's perverted desires back toward pure, transcendental love.
- Explore the synthesized essence of this category in this Vanipedia article: Attraction of a Conditioned Soul - The Illusion of Sense Gratification.
Pages in category "Attraction of a Conditioned Soul"
The following 23 pages are in this category, out of 23 total.
I
- In one of His forms Krsna appears on this material planet in a particular place known as Vrndavana, where He displays His original pastimes of Goloka Vrndavana in the spiritual sky in order to attract the conditioned souls back home, back to Godhead
- In order to show them special favor, Krsna exhibited this rasa-lila dance. It is to captivate the conditioned soul. Since they are very much attracted by sex, they can enjoy the same life with Krsna & thus become liberated from the material condition
- In this way the conditioned soul living within the body forgets his self-interest because he identifies himself with the body. Because the body is material, his natural tendency is to be attracted by the varieties of the material world
S
- Sometimes the conditioned soul is attracted by illusion personified (his wife or girl friend) and becomes eager to be embraced by a woman. Thus he loses his intelligence as well as knowledge of life's goal
- Such satisfaction with one's standard of living is due to deep-rooted attraction for body, wife, home, children, animals, wealth and friends. In such association, the conditioned soul thinks himself quite perfect
T
- The attraction for material things is certainly due to illusion. There is no value in attraction to material things, for the conditioned soul is diverted by them
- The attraction of loving affairs on the basis of sex feeling is the original feature of the SPG, & we, the conditioned souls, being part and parcel of the Supreme, have such feelings also, but they are experienced within a perverted, minute condition
- The conditioned soul is attracted by the objects of sense gratification
- The conditioned soul is sometimes attracted to the little happiness derived from sense gratification. Thus he has illicit sex or steals another's property. At such a time he may be arrested by the government or chastised by the woman's husband
- The conditioned souls are mostly attracted by fruitive work because they want to enjoy life by the sweat of their own brows
- The conditioned souls' greatness is like that of a young husband and wife who, though uneducated, praise one another and become attracted to their own temporary beauty. This kind of greatness is appreciated only by low-class men with no qualifications
- The mind should be trained so that it will not be attracted by the glitter of material nature, and in this way the conditioned soul may be saved. BG 1972 purports
- The three activities of religion, economic development and sense gratification are generally attractive for conditioned souls struggling for existence in the material world
- Thus the conditioned soul becomes free from material existence and loses interest in the bodily conception of life, including material opulence, material knowledge and material attraction of all variety
W
- When the Lord appears on different lokas, or planets, or on this planet of human beings, He displays His transcendental pastimes just to attract the conditioned souls to become His eternal servitors, friends, parents and lovers in the transcendental world
- Without knowing that one's self-interest is in Visnu (or Krsna), conditioned souls are attracted by bodily relationships, hoping to be happy in such situations. Under delusion, they forget that Krsna is also the cause of material happiness. BG 1972 pur