Category:Giving to God
Theme Analysis
The category Giving to God highlights the pure devotee's mentality, which completely reverses the material paradigm of approaching the Supreme Lord for personal benefit. Instead of going to God merely to beg for daily bread or material benedictions, the pure devotee desires only to give everything for the Lord's pleasure. Śrīla Prabhupāda explains that while the Supreme Lord is unlimited and technically needs nothing from us, He intimately accepts the loving affection behind our service. Whether it is offering the results of our occupational duties, giving our wealth in charity, or fully surrendering our lives like Bali Mahārāja—who gave the entire universe to Lord Vāmanadeva—every act must be done for Kṛṣṇa's satisfaction. True surrender means giving oneself completely to the will of the Lord without expecting any merchant-like return, as exemplified by Prahlāda Mahārāja. Ultimately, the more one gives to God in pure love and devotion, the more one is spiritually benefited, culminating in the highest revelation of the Supreme Personality of Godhead.
- The Mentality of Complete Surrender A pure devotee never attempts to take anything from the Lord; instead, their only desire is to give everything. This mentality contrasts sharply with the general populace who approach God to beg for daily necessities. True ecstatic devotion requires giving oneself completely to the will of the Lord.
- Offering the Results of Our Activities For those engaged in the material world, the perfection of life is offering the fruits of one's labor to Kṛṣṇa. The scriptures dictate that whatever we eat, sacrifice, or give in charity must be done for the satisfaction of the Lord, thereby utilizing our occupational duties for spiritual advancement.
- Exemplars of Unmotivated Giving Great personalities like Bali Mahārāja and Prahlāda Mahārāja set the standard for pure devotion. Bali Mahārāja gave all his possessions and the entire earth to Lord Vāmanadeva out of unalloyed love, while Prahlāda Mahārāja refused to act like a merchant by demanding a return for his devotional service.
- The Supreme Benefit of Giving in Love The transcendental irony of spiritual life is that by giving everything to God, the devotee becomes supremely benefited. When service is offered with pure affection and love, the Supreme Lord reveals Himself, and the devotee becomes fully eligible to return to the spiritual world.
- Explore the synthesized essence of this category in this Vanipedia article: Giving to God - The Perfection of Unmotivated Loving Service.
Subcategories
This category has the following 2 subcategories, out of 2 total.
Pages in category "Giving to God"
The following 35 pages are in this category, out of 35 total.
A
- A conditioned soul is very often apt to commit mistakes, and the only remedial measure to take against such unintentional sins is to give oneself up to the lotus feet of the Lord so that He may guide one to avoid such pitfalls
- A pure devotee will never try to take anything from Krsna. He will try to give everything to Krsna. So dui lagye hura huri. So here is a trial between the devotee and Lord Krsna, and Arjuna has passed the examination
- Actually we cannot give any service to Krsna. He is unlimited. What is the value of our service? But He takes it seriously: "Oh, he is trying to give Me some service." Otherwise what service He needs from us?
- Another gopi began to speak. "My dear friend," she said, "He (Krsna) has perfected the art of smiling very attractively, and by seeing His smile women become mad after Him and give themselves to Him without hesitation"
- At the beginning of winter, there is a ceremony known as the Odana-sasthi. This ceremony indicates that from that day forward, a winter covering should be given to Lord Jagannatha. That covering is directly purchased from a weaver
B
- Because of unalloyed love for the Lord, he (Bali) then immediately decided, "I shall give this little dwarf brahmana whatever He asks from me." This is a sign of love
- Being falsely proud of your possessions, you promised to give Me land, but you could not fulfill your promise. Therefore, because your promise was false, you must live for a few years in hellish life
- Being very pleased with Bali Maharaja for giving all his possessions, the Lord returned his kingdom and made him richer than the opulent King Indra. Even now, Bali Maharaja engages in devotional service by worshiping the SPG in the planet of Sutala
H
- He (the king of Mithila) gave many valuable presents to Balaramaji in order to seek His pleasure. At this time Sri Balarama lived in the city for several years as the honored guest of the King of Mithila, Janaka Maharaja
- Hiranyakasipu was an atheist who denied the existence of God, but God came as Lord Nrsimha-deva, a half-man, half-lion incarnation, and killed him. Therefore praise is given to the Lord as supreme controller of the universe and all living entities
I
- If he takes prasadam not as ordinary prasadam, foodstuff, he believes that "This is remnants of foodstuffs given to God," if he understands this philosophy, then guaranteed - becoming a devotee
- In the Bhagavad-gita (BG 9.27) the same principle is confirmed where it is said that whatever we may give in charity and whatever we may observe in austerity must be given over to the Lord or be done on His account only
L
O
- O King, leave here and offer your daughter to Lord Baladeva, who is still present. He is most powerful. Indeed, He is the Supreme Personality of Godhead, whose plenary portion is Lord Visnu. Your daughter is fit to be given to Him in charity
- One thorn, which causes pinpricks on the leg of the Lord, is certainly disturbing to the Lord, and the other thorn, which takes out the disturbing elements, certainly gives service to the Lord
- Only for the advanced devotees are these two processes easily executed. The purport is that it is very rare to see surrender which is mixed with sincere ecstatic devotion. One must give himself completely to the will of the Lord
S
- Sometimes a devotee in santa-rasa yawns, stretches his limbs, instructs on devotional service, offers respectful obeisances unto the form of the Lord, offers nice prayers to the Lord and has a desire to give direct service with his body
- Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu said, "I shall certainly go to Vrndavana from Jagannatha Puri. If all of you give Me permission, I shall return here again without difficulty"
- Sukracarya wanted to tell Bali Maharaja how he would be cheated by Lord Vamana. "You have promised three steps," he said. "But with only two steps, all your possessions will be finished. How then will you give Him a place for His third step"
T
- The established rule is that whatever we do, whatever we eat, whatever we sacrifice or whatever we give in charity must be done to the full satisfaction of the Lord
- The great ocean, trembling in fear, gave Him His way because its family members, the aquatics like the sharks, snakes and crocodiles, were being burnt by the heat of the angry red-hot eyes of the Lord
- The more you give to God, the more you become benefited; it is in your interest
- The pleasure one gives the Lord by addressing Him by such names (Devaki-nandana etc.) is many, many times greater than the pleasure He enjoys when He is addressed as Paramesvara, or anything of that nature, which indicate volumes of awe and veneration
- The pleasure one gives the Lord by addressing Him by such names (Devaki-nandana, Janaki-natha etc.) is many, many times greater than the pleasure He enjoys when He is addressed as the Supreme Father, the Greatest of the Great
- The power of movement and the legs should be given to Lord Visnu. Sensual pleasure, along with the genitals, should be bestowed upon Prajapati. The rectum, with the power of evacuation, should be bestowed, in its proper place, unto Mrtyu
- The tongue engagement is you chant the holy name of the Lord, and you take the prasadam, remnants of foodstuff given to the Lord. Then you become self-realized, God realized. By these two method
- There (in the Bhakti-sandarbha) are discussions of the process of karma-tyaga (the giving of the results of karma to the SP of Godhead), and the practices of mystic yoga and philosophical speculation, which are deprecated as simply hard labor
W
- We can fly one sputnik in the sky, and we will take very much credit: "Now we are advanced so much." But we do not give any credit to the Supreme Personality of Godhead who is floating millions and trillions of heavy planets like this earth
- When we give service to the Lord in affection, in love, then God reveals