Developing Love of God - The Universal Test of Religion
In a world fractured by sectarian disputes and religious dogmatism, Śrīla Prabhupāda offers a profoundly simple, unifying formula: the true measure of any spiritual path is not its rituals or cultural dress, but its success in helping the practitioner develop pure, unmotivated love for the Supreme Personality of Godhead.
The Non-Sectarian Test of Religion
True religion is defined by results, not by superficial labels. Śrīla Prabhupāda asserts that regardless of whether one identifies with Christianity, Hinduism, or Islam, the absolute test of a person's religious life is strictly measured by their development of dormant love of God.
- You may follow Christianism or Hinduism or Buddhism or Muhammadanism - it doesn't matter. The test is how far you have developed love of God. That is the test.
- We don't say that you follow Christianism or Muhammadanism or Jewism or Hinduism - we don't say. Whether you are developing your love of Godhead.
- Either you be a Hindu or Muslim or Mohammedan or Buddhist, whatever you like, Srimad-Bhagavata does not stop you, but it gives you hint what is the purpose of religion. The purpose of religion is to develop your love of Godhead.
- How a man can be tested that he is a man of religious principles? The test is that whether he has developed love of God. Then he is religious. Just see how nice definition. Is there any nicer definition of religion?
The Folly of Empty Rituals
Mechanical execution of religious duties without a corresponding transformation of the heart is useless. Śrīla Prabhupāda explains that if a person performs extensive rituals or achieves high material elevation but fails to develop spontaneous love for Kṛṣṇa, they are merely wasting their time.
- Bhagavatam says without developing this love of Godhead, if somebody is engaged in religious ritualistic performance, he's simply wasting his time.
- Material elevation to life as a brahmana, demigod, rsi and so on are not causes for developing love of Godhead, but if one sincerely engages in the service of the Lord, his Krsna consciousness is complete.
- By following any guru or any principle, if you actually develop your love of God, then it is nice. Otherwise it is useless waste of time. That is the test. But they, so far I know, these yogis, they are themselves God. They say that everyone is God.
- Monkey has renounced, naked, but at heart there is sense gratification. So markata-vairagya is no good. So simply to become vegetarian is no good. You must develop love of Godhead. That is real thing.
The Process of Awakening
The love we seek is already within us, lying dormant under layers of material contamination. Śrīla Prabhupāda points out that by associating with pure devotees and engaging in the simple process of hearing and chanting the holy names, this dormant awareness is systematically awakened and purified.
- According to His (Caitanya's) method, if people are simply given a chance to hear about Krsna, certainly they will gradually develop their dormant awareness, or love of Godhead. Sravanadi-suddha-citte karaye udaya.
- Hare Krishna is so nice that it clears the dirty things from the mind of the devotee and the more one is used to chant the Holy Name offenselessly, the more one develops love of God, forgetting the whole material nonsense.
- Santah, saintly persons, or mahatma, they develop by hearing about God constantly. They develop love of God. That is the aim of life. That is the real purpose of human life.
- Sraddha means faith. Faith. Adau sraddha. If one has got this faith, then he can develop that faith to the highest perfectional stage of transcendental emotion, bhava, and then love of God.
The Transformation of Vision
When love of God fully blossoms, the devotee's perception of reality changes entirely. Śrīla Prabhupāda describes how the ointment of pure devotion clears away all material blindness, allowing the saintly person to see the Supreme Lord at every single moment, within their heart and everywhere in the universe.
- Premanjana-cchurita-bhakti-vilocanena: a saintly person who has developed love of Godhead by devotional service always sees the Lord's transcendental form of Syamasundara. This Syamasundara form of the Lord within the heart of a devotee is not imaginary.
- If you love somebody - if you actually have got love for him or her, you will always see. This is a practical example. Similarly, if you develop your love of God, then you will be able to see God everywhere, at every moment. It is not very difficult.
- When you develop your love of God, Krsna, then you see God every moment, every step. Santah sadaiva (Bs. 5.38). Sadaiva means always.
- If one takes to this philosophy of Krsna consciousness and develops love of Godhead, then he can see God at every moment, in every step, in every thing. He's not, for a single moment, is out of the sight of God.
The Insignificance of Liberation
For one who has tasted the nectar of pure love, all other spiritual goals lose their appeal. Śrīla Prabhupāda emphasizes that when a devotee develops unalloyed love for the Supreme Lord, even the highly coveted prize of impersonal liberation (mukti) becomes completely unimportant and subservient to them.
- Speaking from his actual experience, Srila Bilvamangala Thakura says that if one develops love of Godhead, mukti (liberation) becomes subservient and unimportant to him. Mukti stands before the devotee and is prepared to render all kinds of services.
- Instead of striving for achievement in the 4 principles of religiosity, economic development, sense gratification and liberation, it is better if somehow or other one develops transcendental love of Godhead. That is the greatest success in life.
- By gradually developing his love of Godhead, he increases his affection, his emotion and his ecstasy. Such attachment, mahabhava, is the highest stage of devotional love. It may be likened to sugar candy, which is the most powerful form of sugar.
- If one develops his love of Godhead and becomes attached to the lotus feet of Krsna, gradually he loses his attachment to everything else.
The Ultimate Goal of Human Life
The unique facility of the human form is specifically designed to facilitate this spiritual development. Śrīla Prabhupāda concludes that animals possess love for their offspring and nests, but only a human being can consciously direct that loving propensity toward the Supreme Personality of Godhead.
- Because this human form of life is meant for developing love for God. Because in all other life we have loved our children, we have loved our wife, we have loved our nest in the bird's life, in the beast's life. There is love.
- Awakening of love cannot be possible in other living condition than the human being. The human form of life, is therefore the perfectional stage how to develop our love for God, or how we can love God.
- Sambandha-jnana refers to establishing one's relationship with the Supreme Personality of Godhead, abhidheya refers to acting according to that constitutional relationship, and prayojana is the ultimate goal of life, which is to develop love of Godhead.
- When the living entity actually develops love of Godhead, he has reached the ultimate goal, prayojana. In other words, one who becomes fully Krsna conscious has attained the perfection of life.
Conclusion
In conclusion, Śrīla Prabhupāda masterfully elevates the definition of religion far beyond the rigid borders of sectarianism, cultural rituals, and theological speculation. The Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam establishes a singular, universal standard: true religion is that which successfully awakens a person's dormant, unmotivated love for the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Whether one identifies as a Hindu, Christian, or Muslim is practically irrelevant if this divine love remains undeveloped; without it, all strict moral codes and ritualistic performances are merely a waste of time. The process of awakening this love is not an artificial imposition, but a natural cleansing of the heart through the association of pure devotees and the joyous chanting of the Lord's holy names. As this love blossoms into intense transcendental ecstasy (bhāva and prema), the devotee's entire perception of reality changes. With eyes smeared with the ointment of devotion, they see the beautiful form of Śyāmasundara twenty-four hours a day, everywhere and in everything. In this exalted state, even the highest material opulence and the ultimate goal of the empiric philosophers—liberation (mukti)—become entirely insignificant. Ultimately, developing this supreme love of God is the exclusive prerogative and the absolute perfection of the human form of life, allowing the living entity to completely transcend the material world and return to their eternal home.
Dive Deeper into Śrīla Prabhupāda's Vani
Śrīla Prabhupāda lives within his instructions. This article is a summary of the profound truths found in the Vaniquotes category Developing Love of God. We invite you to visit this link to study the complete compilation and experience Śrīla Prabhupāda's teachings in their direct, verbatim form.