Preface There is a thinking in some parts of the Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement that enthusiastic evangelism alone guarantees devotees the perfection of going back to Godhead. While most balanced proponents of this reasoning accept that devotees must follow their vows of initiation and attend the morning program, they often do not consider that any further sādhana is necessary. Such an attitude is obviously at odds with Śrīla Prabhupāda’s widely-known effort in making available for his followers scriptures like Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, which themselves emphasise attentive and regular study as essential for perfection, as expressed by the words, nityaṁ bhāgavata-sevayā.1 Saṅkalpa-kaumudī is an attempt to call to attention the demanding nature of devotional service in practice. I was inspired to write this book after studying Bṛhad-bhāgavatāmṛta and hearing of the tireless effort of its central character, Gopa-kumāra, to perfect his devotional service. Indeed, in my repeated reading of Sanātana Gosvāmī’s great work, four aspects of sādhana-bhakti stood out as being of especial import: saṅkalpa, the determination that enables progress through the stages of devotional service; ekāgratā, the careful attention needed for each successful saṅkalpa; bhāva-sevā, the underlying mood of a saṅkalpa corresponding to the mood of vraja-bhakti; and kṛpā, the divine grace by which practice finally transforms to ecstasy. Saṅkalpa-kaumudī is an attempt to elaborate on these four themes. By no means is this book meant to be a dissertation on all the intricacies of sādhana-bhakti. Devotees looking for a step-by-step guide on how to progress to perfection in Kṛṣṇa consciousness will 1. This phrase is part of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 1.2.18: “By regular attendance in classes on the Bhāgavatam and by rendering of service to the pure devotee, all that is troublesome to the heart is almost completely destroyed, and loving service unto the Personality of Godhead, who is praised with transcendental songs, is established as an irrevocable fact.”
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