“The brahmana thought that there was no need to ask any material benefit from Lord Shri Krishna, but he was induced by the repeated requests of his wife. Moreover, he thought, ‘If I go there I shall be able to see the Lord personally. That will be a great opportunity, even if I don’t ask any material benefit from Him.’” (Krishna, The Supreme Personality of Godhead, Vol 2, Ch 25)

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Friend1: One of the more endearing stories from Krishna’s time in Dvaraka is the meeting with Sudama Vipra.

Friend2: The brahmana who was Krishna’s friend since childhood. Goes to show you that there are no status distinctions with the Supreme Lord. He remembers every person and their time with Him. Anything favorable gets highlighted. The bad gets forgotten.

Friend1: Really? If I have previously professed my hatred for God, He will not mind?…

“The son of Shukracharya, Hiranyakashipu’s spiritual master, said: O enemy of King Indra, O King! Whatever your son Prahlada has said was not taught to him by me or anyone else. His spontaneous devotional service has naturally developed in him. Therefore, please give up your anger and do not unnecessarily accuse us. It is not good to insult a brahmana in this way.” (Shrimad Bhagavatam, 7.5.28)

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श्री-गुरु-पुत्र उवाच
न मत्-प्रणीतं न पर-प्रणीतं
सुतो वदत्य् एष तवेन्द्र-शत्रो
नैसर्गिकीयं मतिर् अस्य राजन्
नियच्छ मन्युं कद् अदाः स्म मा नः

śrī-guru-putra uvāca
na mat-praṇītaṁ na para-praṇītaṁ
suto vadaty eṣa tavendra-śatro
naisargikīyaṁ matir asya rājan
niyaccha manyuṁ kad adāḥ sma mā naḥ

The father was livid. He couldn’t tolerate it. There was an enemy among them. He had carefully protected himself from foreign attack. There were safeguards in place. Like with an important computer server running in…

“The many past births you spoiled can be rectified right now, today, if you start chanting Shri Rama’s holy name and renounce bad association, says Tulsi.” (Dohavali, 22)

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बिगरी जनम अनेक की सुधरै अबहीं आजु |
होहि राम को नाम जपु तुलसी तजि कुसमाजु ||

bigarī janama aneka kī sudharai abahīṃ āju |
hohi rāma ko nāma japu tulasī taji kusamāju ||

Friend1: Alright, I have some contradictory teachings for you.

Friend2: They contradict who, me?

Friend1: Two different teachings and it looks like they go against one another.

Friend2: Oh, okay.

Friend1: One says that you can’t get back time, no matter how much money you have. I think it’s from Chanakya Pandit, but something similar has been said by countless people.

“You only get one life. Don’t spoil your days, since you will never be able to relive them. It is…

“O Rama, You should know that just as fish cannot survive when taken out of water, neither Sita nor I can live without You for even a moment.” (Lakshmana, Valmiki Ramayana, Ayodhya Kand, 53.31)

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न च सीता त्वया हीना न चाहमपि राघव।
मुहूर्तमपि जीवावो जलान्मत्स्याविनोद्धृतौ।।

na ca sītā tvayā hīnā na cāhamapi rāghava।
muhūrtamapi jīvāvo jalānmatsyāvinoddhṛtau।।

There is the saying that everyone has their price. No matter how much they profess allegiance or affection to something, with the amazing offer they would be forced to think twice. What was previously off the table suddenly becomes eligible for negotiation.

1. Home

It is the place of your dreams. Raised several children in that home. Different corners remind you of amazing memories. The time your daughter took her first steps. Your son spilled a drink in that corner. You held this spiritual gathering that one…

“The many past births you spoiled can be rectified right now, today, if you start chanting Shri Rama’s holy name and renounce bad association, says Tulsi.” (Dohavali, 22)

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बिगरी जनम अनेक की सुधरै अबहीं आजु |
होहि राम को नाम जपु तुलसी तजि कुसमाजु ||

bigarī janama aneka kī sudharai abahīṃ āju |
hohi rāma ko nāma japu tulasī taji kusamāju ||

Friend1: Let me take you through a scenario here. Say that I have just completed college.

Friend2: Four years?

Friend1: Sure. I earned my degree. Everything went well.

Friend2: You have a job lined up?

Friend1: I’m getting to that. Someone I know arranged for me to start at this position which is basically perfect.

Friend2: Because of the money?

Friend1: Yes, but as a young professional just starting out money is not so important to me. It’s at a good…

“In any assembly where there are discourses about saints and devotees, O King Yudhishthira, even the enemies of the demons, namely the demigods, what to speak of you, would cite Prahlada Maharaja as an example of a great devotee.” (Shrimad Bhagavatam, 7.4.35)

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यं साधु-गाथा-सदसि
रिपवो ’पि सुरा नृप
प्रतिमानं प्रकुर्वन्ति
किम् उतान्ये भवादृशाः

yaṁ sādhu-gāthā-sadasi
ripavo ’pi surā nṛpa
pratimānaṁ prakurvanti
kim utānye bhavādṛśāḥ

Narada Muni gives the seal of approval. He is the authority on devotional service, acting exclusively for the interests of the Supreme Lord, who is known by the name Narayana, among many others. The confirmation goes to Yudhishthira Maharaja, who is himself a saintly character.

Narada says that whenever there are discourses about saintly people, Prahlada Maharaja is cited as an ideal example. That amazing son exhibited great courage, strength, perseverance, and even forbearance at such a young…

“When the Supreme Personality of Godhead Krishna was so ordered by His mother, He immediately opened His mouth just like an ordinary boy. Then mother Yashoda saw within that mouth the complete opulence of creation. She saw the entire outer space in all directions, mountains, islands, oceans, seas, planets, air, fire, moon and stars. Along with the moon and the stars she also saw the entire elements, water, sky, the extensive ethereal existence along with the total ego and the products of the senses and the controller of the senses, all the demigods, the objects of the senses like sound, smell, etc., and the three qualities of material nature.” (Krishna, The Supreme Personality of Godhead, Vol 1, Ch 8)

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The friends levied the accusation. The word of Balarama carried some weight. He was the elder brother, so there was not a conflicting interest…

“For a demon there is no substance in the process of devotional service, but to a devotee devotional service is the only essential factor in life. Since Hiranyakashipu did not like devotional service, the essence of life, he chastised Prahlada Maharaja’s teachers with harsh words.” (Shrila Prabhupada, Shrimad Bhagavatam, 7.5.26 Purport)

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You and your sister are watching television at home in the living room. Though sometimes a struggle to reach agreement on a channel and program, today you are both pleased by staying on music videos. One song that you particularly like is up next on the rotation.

Synchronized to the music, you clap your hands. Everything is going well until suddenly the television turns off. Neither of you can seem to find the remote control. No issue, as you simply walk up to the device and turn it back on.

The music…

“After hearing these words of devotional service from the mouth of his son Prahlada, Hiranyakashipu was extremely angry. His lips trembling, he spoke as follows to Shanda the son of his guru, Shukracharya.” (Shrimad Bhagavatam, 7.5.25)

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निशम्यैतत् सुत-वचो
हिरण्यकशिपुस् तदा
गुरु-पुत्रम् उवाचेदं
रुषा प्रस्फुरिताधरः

niśamyaitat suta-vaco
hiraṇyakaśipus tadā
guru-putram uvācedaṁ
ruṣā prasphuritādharaḥ

Intense anger. Uncontrollable rage, bubbling over to the point that you cannot speak. No words emerging from the mouth because there are too many from which to choose. Just one won’t suffice, since you need to properly express the intense emotion.

Hiranyakashipu felt this way one time. There were several people with whom to be upset. Though typically viewed as the worst father in history, and deservedly so, in this world different viewpoints lead to variety in judgments. Just as beauty is in the eye of the beholder, to the demoniac…

“The best examples of atma-nivedanam are found in Bali Maharaja and Ambarisha Maharaja. Atma-nivedanam is also sometimes found in the behavior of Rukminidevi at Dvaraka.” (Shrila Prabhupada, Shrimad Bhagavatam, 7.5.23-24 Purport)

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Prahlada Maharaja gave a response to the father that can simultaneously serve as a guide for devotional activities leading to the ultimate perfection of liberation from the body. The achievement is not exclusively reserved for the afterlife, i.e. after death. The soul liberated while still living is known as jivan-mukta.

The father was something like jivan-baddha; bound to material life while living in the material world. He did not follow any of the nine principal outlets of devotion to God explained by the son. Any one of the activities qualifies as devotion, but some authorities have applied a sort of ranking system, considering a particular activity to be superior to…