Category:Performance of a Devotee of God
Theme Analysis
Śrīla Prabhupāda explains that the performance of a devotee of God is fundamentally different from the actions of ordinary fruitive workers. A pure devotee never performs activities for personal sense gratification or material enjoyment (karma-kanda); rather, every action is executed solely for the satisfaction of the Supreme Lord (karma-yoga). Whether acting as a householder, a king, a preacher, or a sannyasi, the devotee dovetails their desires perfectly with Kṛṣṇa's. Because their actions are transcendental, devotees can perform extraordinary and wonderful tasks by the grace of the Lord. Ultimately, engaging in the nine processes of devotional service—especially hearing and chanting—elevates the performer to the highest stage of ecstatic love of Godhead.
- Transcending Fruitive Activities: An ordinary person acts to enjoy the fruits of their labor, but a devotee performs karma-yoga, where every action is a sacrifice for the satisfaction of the Supreme Lord.
- Action on the Transcendental Platform: By following in the footsteps of the great acaryas, a devotee’s daily performances—even basic social or political duties—become completely transcendental and free from material taint.
- Extraordinary Achievements by Grace: When a living entity desires to serve the Lord, Kṛṣṇa empowers them from within. Thus, pure devotees can perform heavy tasks and wonderful activities that seem impossible to common men.
- Attaining the Stage of Pure Love: The performance of pure devotional service, even in its preliminary stages, is spiritually potent enough to rapidly promote the sincere executor to the highest platform of pure love of Godhead.
- Explore the synthesized essence of this category in this Vanipedia article: The Transcendental Performance of a Devotee of God.
Subcategories
This category has the following 13 subcategories, out of 13 total.
A
D
P
Pages in category "Performance of a Devotee of God"
The following 64 pages are in this category, out of 64 total.
A
- A devotee never performs any fruitive or ritualistic ceremony to enjoy the results of such karma. Rather, a devotee knows that karma-kanda is meant for the less intelligent man
- Although a pure devotee is by nature inclined to perform pious activities, no one can attain the favor of the Supreme Personality of Godhead by pious activities alone
- Arjuna was a householder and a military general, and therefore it was better for him to remain as such and perform his religious duties as prescribed for the householder ksatriya. BG 1972 purports
B
- Because a pure devotee follows in the footsteps of the acaryas, any action he performs to discharge devotional service should be understood to be on the transcendental platform
- Because his attraction for the deer was so intense, Bharata Maharaja could not concentrate upon worshiping the Lord or performing his ritualistic ceremonies
- Because the government in Kali-yuga is full of demons, the living conditions of devotees are always disturbed. Devotees cannot perform yajna, and thus they cannot partake of the remnants of food offered in yajna for the worship of Lord Visnu
D
- Devotional activities are so spiritually powerful that their performance by a devotee, even in the preliminary stage, can very quickly promote the sincere executor to the emotion on the spiritual plane, which is transcendental to mental functions
- Devotional service of God involves 9 transcendental processes, such as hearing and chanting, by performing such easy and natural devotional services the devotees achieve the highest perfectional results, superior to merging into the existence of Brahman
H
- Having heard of the great fortune of mother Yasoda, Pariksit Maharaja inquired from Sukadeva Gosvami What past auspicious activities did she and Nanda Maharaja perform to achieve such perfection in ecstatic love? - SB 10.8.46
- He (the self-realized devotee) performs his devotional activities steadily, without doubting, and after quitting his material body he at once reaches the destination for which he has prepared himself
- His (Dhruva Maharaja's) acts were all wonderful, and when he came back home, naturally, because of his spiritual qualifications, he became very popular amongst the citizens. He must have performed many wonderful activities by the grace of the Lord
- How much a devotee has been favored by the Supreme Personality of Godhead can be tested by the activities the devotee has performed
I
- If by chance a devotee accidentally performs some sinful activity, the Lord will excuse him, but one should not intentionally perform sinful acts
- If we simply follow Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu’s instructions and follow in the footsteps of Sri Nityananda Prabhu, even more difficult tasks can be performed by the preachers remaining faithful to the service of the Lord
- In the open assembly of the rajasuya sacrifice performed by Maharaja Yudhisthira, Sisupala insulted Lord Krsna, and he was finally killed by the Lord
- In this way all the devotees, wherever they were situated, in every city and every country, danced, performed sankirtana and gave charity by mental strength on the plea of the lunar eclipse, their minds overwhelmed with joy
K
- Kamsa, upon hearing that the purificatory process has been performed by me (Garga Muni), the priest of the Yadu dynasty, may certainly consider this point and suspect that Krsna is the son of Devaki and Vasudeva - SB 10.8.8-9
- Krsna showed His universal form to Arjuna just to show him that these people were already killed for their unlawful action. That scene was shown to Arjuna because devotees are always peaceful, & they cannot perform such horrible actions. BG 1972 purports
N
- Nanda Maharaja and the others said: We must previously have performed pious activities for public life as a result of which this boy (Krsna), although faced with death, has returned to give happiness to His relatives - SB 10.7.32
- Nanda Maharaja said: My dear great sage (Garga Muni), if you think that your performing this process of purification will make Kamsa suspicious, then secretly chant the Vedic hymns and perform the purifying process of second birth here - SB 10.8.10
O
- O learned brahmana (Sukadeva Gosvami), mother Yasoda's breast milk was sucked by the Supreme Personality of Godhead. What past auspicious activities did she and Nanda Maharaja perform to achieve such perfection in ecstatic love - SB 10.8.46
- One should not be attached to any materialistic activities, but a devotee may perform such activities as an example to show the common man that one should not deviate from the Vedic injunctions
- One who performs severe austerities for sense gratification is fearful to the entire world, whereas a devotee who performs even a slight amount of devotional service is a friend to everyone
P
- People generally perform ritualistic ceremonies for the birth of a child. Why then should Vasudeva not have performed such a ceremony when the Supreme Lord (Krsna) appeared as his son
- Prince Dhruva performed a stringent type of penance under the instruction of his spiritual master, Sri Narada Muni, who was specifically deputed for this purpose by the Personality of Godhead
- Pure devotees are not desirous of any material enjoyment, nor are they averse to it. They completely dovetail their desires with the desires of the Lord and perform nothing on their personal account. Arjuna is a good example
S
- She (mother Yasoda) took Krsna by the hand, along with Balarama, and brought Them home, where she performed her duties by fully bathing Them, dressing Them and feeding Them - SB 10.11.20
- Significant (in SB 10.5.1-2) are the words karayam asa vidhivat. Being overwhelmed with jubilation over the birth of his son, Nanda Maharaja did not see whether the cord was cut or not. Thus he performed the ceremony very gorgeously
- Since Bharata Maharaja was a great devotee, one may ask why he performed so many sacrifices that are actually meant for karmis. The fact is that he was simply following the orders of Vasudeva
- Since she (the stepmother of Dhruva Maharaja) had refused to allow him to get up on the lap of his father, how could Dhruva perform such wonderful activities as pressing down the whole earth
- So, whether in social life or political life, or in the matter of eating, sleeping, mating, and defending, a devotee should avoid performing any action tainted by material attachment
- Such persons (devotees of God) appear to be acting on the platform of their respective duties, but such activities are not performed for personal sense gratification; rather, they are performed for the Supreme Person
- Sukadeva Gosvami continued: Having been especially requested by Nanda Maharaja to do that which he already desired to do, Garga Muni performed the name-giving ceremony for Krsna and Balarama in a solitary place - SB 10.8.11
T
- That Brahma engaged himself for the Personality of Godhead, Narayana, means that he engaged himself in the service of the Lord; that is the highest penance one can perform for any number of years
- The Caitanya-mangala, Madhya-khanda, describes this incident (CC Adi 17.91) as follows: Srivasa Pandita was performing the sraddha ceremony for his father, and as is customary, he was hearing the thousand names of Lord Visnu
- The devotee simply performs activities that satisfy the Supreme Personality of Godhead and thus attains pure love for the Lord
- The devotees of the Lord may not perform any sacrifice or may not please the demigods as per Vedic injunctions, and still the devotees are on a higher level than the fruitive workers or the worshipers of different demigods
- The nine different processes enunciated by Prahlada, who learned them from Narada Muni, may not all be required for the execution of devotional service; if a devotee performs only one of these nine without deviation, he can attain the mercy of God
- The place where Raghunatha dasa Gosvami performed his devotional service still exists by Radha-kunda. He almost completely gave up eating, and therefore he was very skinny and of weak health. His only concern was to chant the holy name of the Lord
- The Supreme Personality of Godhead gives credit to a devotee who performs any heavy task perfectly. Hanumanji, or Vajrangaji, the servant of Lord Ramacandra, serves as an example
- The transcendental attitude of the devotee in the performance of activities is actually that of renunciation, and this is called sannyasa. BG 1972 purports
- The vivid example is Maharaja Ambarisa. He was the emperor of the entire world and had many duties to perform, and in the course of these duties there were many disturbances created by persons like Durvasa Muni, but the King tolerated everything
- There is a difference between karma and karma-yoga. Karma is regulated action for the enjoyment of the fruit by the performer, but karma-yoga is action performed by the devotee for the satisfaction of the Lord
- There were many extraordinary activities performed by Murari, a great devotee of Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu. Sometimes in his ecstasy he would slap the cheek of a tiger, and sometimes he would play with a venomous snake
- This (SB 7.14.35) is a reference to the Rajasuya sacrifice performed by Maharaja Yudhisthira
- This is the difference between DS and all other methods of perfection. One who performs severe austerities for sense gratification is fearful to the entire world, whereas a devotee who performs even a slight amount of DS is a friend to everyone
- Those devotees who are householders accept Vedic ritualistic performances as well as the prescribed duties of devotional service, because both are meant for satisfying Krsna
- Through His inconceivable energy, a pure devotee can perform tasks that are supposed to be very, very difficult. He can perform tasks not even previously performed by the Lord Himself
W
- We do not indulge in Krsna's lila unless it is performed or it is executed by the devotees. Not professional men. That is forbidden. Caitanya Mahaprabhu never indulged in
- Whatever action he (a sannyasi) performs, he performs it as service to the Lord. He does not give serious attention to the fruitive activities or prescribed duties mentioned in the Vedas. BG 1972 purports
- When a living entity desires to serve the Lord in transcendental loving service, the Lord helps the devotee in so many ways as the caitya-guru, or the spiritual master within, & thus the devotee can perform many wonderful activities
- When a person is fully engaged in devotional service, he is favored by the Lord, who bestows His causeless mercy. At such a time, the awakened devotee gives up all material activities and ritualistic performances mentioned in the Vedas
- When one performs great sacrifices he must give charity, not only to the brahmanas, but also to the ksatriyas, vaisyas and sudras. It is assured here (in SB 4.9.24) that Dhruva Maharaja would be able to perform such activities
- When Srivasa Thakura performed sankirtana, everyone felt the presence of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu, even in His absence. This is another example of avirbhava
- When the Lord is worshiped with pure love, the various activities performed in the course of that worship awaken transcendental bliss in the heart of the devotee
- Work done as a sacrifice for Visnu has to be performed, otherwise work binds one to this material world. Therefore, O son of Kunti, perform your prescribed duties for His satisfaction, & in that way you will always remain unattached & free from bondage
Y
- You (Devaki and Vasudeva) spent twelve thousand celestial years performing difficult activities of tapasya in consciousness of Me (Krsna consciousness) - SB 10.3.36
- You (Haridasa Thakura) simultaneously perform both duties in relation to the holy name by your personal behavior and by your preaching. Therefore you are the spiritual master of the entire world, for you are the most advanced devotee in the world