Fanaticism vs. Faith



„Philosopher George Santayana defines fanaticism as "redoubling your effort when you have forgotten your aim" The fanatic displays very strict standards and little tolerance for contrary ideas or opinions. Tõnu Lehtsaar has defined the term fanaticism as the pursuit or defence of something in an extreme and passionate way that goes beyond normality. Religious fanaticism is defined by blind faith, the persecution of dissidents and the absence of reality.”  (Wikipedia)


„So although we cannot see the subtle body, it is there. So death means this gross body, this overcoat, is left, and I am carried away by the subtle body, and I enter into another overcoat, or gross body. So practically this is called death. Because we have no vision of the subtle body, how the soul is being transferred or transmigrating from one gross body to another gross body, keeping the subtle body intact...

And the subtle body is given up when one is liberated. And at that time he goes, when he is liberated, freed from this subtle body also, at that time he is promoted to the spiritual kingdom in spiritual body. Therefore while living in this gross body, we have to educate our subtle body in such a way that it becomes spiritualized completely.

The subtle body is mind, intelligence and ego. So if we think of Kṛṣṇa in the mind always, and if we work intelligently for Kṛṣṇa, that is mind and intelligence. And if we change our false ego . . . ego means "I am." So I am at the present moment thinking, "I am American," "I am Indian," "I am white," "I am black," like that. "I am human being," "I am animal," "I am cat" or "dog," so many things, "I am." This "I am" has to be changed. I am eternal servant of Kṛṣṇa.

In this way, if you educate or transfer the activities of the subtle body, mind, intelligence and ego, then, at the time of death, you give up this subtle body, material subtle body, mind, intelligence and ego, and by your spiritual body you go back to home, back to Godhead. This is called Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement. Gross body, automatically we give up.

Now, we should practice to give up the subtle body. To give up this subtle body, one has to develop love for God, prema. And the process is, how to give up the subtle body, ādau śraddhā. First of all śraddhā. Śraddhā means a faith or some respect. Actually it means respect. Just like you have come here out of faith and respect. So "Here they're talking about God. There is temple of God. Let us go there," this is faith and respect. Ādau śraddhā. This is the beginning.

Now, after coming here, when you hear about God . . . because we, our only business is, we don't talk here politics or sociology or anything. That comes automatically as subordinate things, but our business is to talk about God. So those who talks about God, they are called saintly person. There are two kinds of men within this world: materialistic person and transcendentalist, or man interested in spiritualism.”

(Srila Prabhupada: Lecture on SB 1.2.8 -- New Vrindaban, September 6, 1972)


 


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