Narada Bhakti Sutra - Krishna Path

1 Narada Bhakti SutraBy His Divine Grace Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada and DisciplesTable of contents:N rada- Bhakti -s tra!6 Introduction!6 Chapter 1 - The Value of Devotion!10S TRA 1!10S TRA 2!12S TRA 3!16S TRA 4!18S TRA 5!20S TRA 6!23S TRA 7!25S TRA 8!27S TRA 9!30S TRA 10!33S TRA 11!34S TRA 12!36S TRA 13!40S TRA 14!42 Chapter 2 - Defining Bhakti !45S TRA 15!45S TRA 16!46S TRA 17!48S TRA 18!50S TRA 19!53S TRA 20!56S TRA 21!58S TRA 22!59S TRA 23!62S TRA 24!66S TRA 25!68S TRA 26!71S TRA 27!72S TRA 28!75S TRA 29!77S TRA 30!78S TRAS 31-32!

2 81S TRA 33!84 Chapter 3 - The Means of Achievement!86S TRA 34!86S TRA 35!87S TRA 36!90S TRA 37!92S TRA 38!95S TRA 39!97S TRA 40!99S TRA 41!101S TRA 42!102S TRA 43!103S TRA 44!106S TRA 45!108S TRA 46!110S TRA 47!112S TRA 48!115S TRA 49!117S TRA 50!119 Chapter 4 - Pure and Mixed Devotion!122S TRA 51!122S TRA 52!124S TRA 53!125S TRA 54!128S TRA 55!130S TRA 56!132S TRA 57!134S TRA 58!135S TRA 59!138S TRA 60!139S TRA 61!141S TRA 62!143S TRA 63!145S TRA 64!147S TRA 65!149S TRA 66!150S TRA 67!152S TRA 68!154S TRA 69!157S TRA 70!159S TRA 71!

3 160S TRA 72!162S TRA 73!164 Chapter 5 - Attaining Perfection!167S TRA 74!167S TRA 75!168S TRA 76!170S TRA 77!172S TRA 78!174S TRA 79!176S TRA 80!179S TRA 81!180S TRA 82!183S TRA 83!185S TRA 84!189 More Free Downloads rada- Bhakti -s traIntroductionIn 1967, His Divine Grace Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhup da translated and wrote purports for thirteen of the eighty-four aphorisms ( r la Prabhup da called them "codes") of the N rada- Bhakti -s tra. In 1989, at their annual meeting, the Governing Body Commission of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON) suggested that I complete the book.

4 I was pleased to accept the assignment, especially because of my involvement with r la Prabhup da's initial writing of the N rada- Bhakti -s was part of the small group of seekers who joined r la Prabhup da in the latter part of 1966 at his storefront temple at 26 Second Avenue, in New York City. At one point we began passing around a Gita Press edition of N rada's Philosophy of Love N rada- Bhakti -s tra. Some of us were attracted to the nectar and simplicity of the aphorisms. In those days it wasn't unusual for us naive followers to pick up all sorts of translations of Sanskrit Indian books.

5 We tended to think that anything Hindu was salutary and within K a consciousness. It wasn't long before r la Prabhup da made it clear to us that we had to discriminate. Many books, we learned, were the works of M y v d s, a brand of atheists in the guise of sv m s, gurus, and scholars. It was hard to break our attachments to some of these books, but we always did so once r la Prabhup da explained that a particular book or guru was not bona when I showed r la Prabhup da the N rada- Bhakti -s tra and told him I liked it, he encouraged me and said he might translate our edition of the N rada- Bhakti -s tra was a beautiful color illustration of r r R dh and K a.

6 They looked young, about eight years old, and stood gracefully by the edge of the Yamun River with a cow behind Them. I took the illustration to a photography shop and had a dozen color copies made. With r la Prabhup da's approval, I gave a photo to each of his initiated disciples. It became like an ISKCON membership photo and was used by devotees on their personal r la Prabhup da left our New York home early in 1967 and went to San Francisco, I wrote him to ask if he would translate the N rada- Bhakti -s tra. Here is r la Prabhup da's reply, dated February 10, 1967:Yes, please send me immediately one copy of Bhakti Sutra (with original Sanskrit text).

7 I shall immediately begin the first r la Prabhup da's translation of the N rada- Bhakti -s tra went quickly. He sent tapes of his dictation in the mail, and I transcribed them along with the tapes he sent for his major work, Teachings of Lord Caitanya. From the beginning it was understood that N rada- Bhakti -s tra was a kind of "extra" for r la Prabhup da. But it had its own charm, and Prabhup da approached it in his own inimitable way. I was surprised, on receiving the translation for the first aphorism, to see how r la Prabhup da translated the word Bhakti .

8 The edition he was using translated Bhakti as "devotion" or "Divine Love." But r la Prabhup da translated Bhakti as "devotional service." Even by this one phrase he indicated that Bhakti was active and personal. He would not tolerate any hint that Bhakti was a state of impersonal "Love."It was significant that r la Prabhup da began his first purport with a reference to Bhagavad-g t , the foremost scripture for teaching Bhakti -yoga. The N rada- Bhakti -s tra, or any other treatise on devotion to God, should be supported by Lord K a's direct teachings in Bhagavad-g t.

9 By their nature, s tras require explanation. As Lord Caitanya explained while discussing the Ved nta-s tra, the aphorisms have a direct meaning, but their brevity allows devious commentators to distort the meaning through misinterpretation. How safe we were when reading the Bhaktivedanta purports to the N rada- Bhakti -s tra, and how dangerous it is to read these aphorisms when interpreted by those who lack pure devotion to the Supreme Person!As with his other works, r la Prabhup da's purports to the N rada- Bhakti -s tra were completely in line with the teachings of the param-par , or disciplic succession, and at the same time full of his own particular statement that attracted me was his reference to enthusiasm in Bhakti .

10 Commenting on S tra 5, r la Prabhup da compared enthusiasm to a powerful engine that has to be used properly. He wrote, "If one, however, becomes disappointed in his enthusiasm for serving the Supreme Lord, that disappointment must also be rejected." As a neophyte devotee, I was well aware of the danger of depression, which we sometimes refer to in ISKCON as being "fried." But just as a serious practitioner restrains his tongue and other senses, so one should not indulge in too much depression or disappointment. It was comforting to hear this from r la Prabhup da and to gain conviction that it is within our control we are not helpless before unlimited waves of simply has to follow the rules and regulations patiently "so that the day will come when he will achieve, all of a sudden, all the perfection of devotional service.