1. Preface

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.

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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 e ort 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.”

not find it here. Of the four themes mentioned, the lion’s share of the book is dedicated to the process of saṅkalpa, while attentiveness, service mood, and divine grace are described to a lesser degree and in relationship to saṅkalpa. What devotees will find here is a study of certain essential features of bhakti that help bring the many other aspects of sādhana to fruition.

I must confess that penning this book was a digression from another work, the second volume of the Varṇāśrama Compendium, and thus its genesis is similar to the way in which The Awakening of Spontaneous Devotional Service came to be during the composition of Śrī Dāmodara-jananī. Sometimes an urgent realisation is too big for an endnote or appendix, and requires a book of its own. Such is the case with Saṅkalpa-kaumudī. I attribute this digression to the urgent message that I heard while reading Bṛhad-bhāgavatāmṛta. Since that divine work remains so much in the forefront of my consciousness, readers will find that I have repeatedly referred to its teachings and to its hero, Gopa-kumāra.

This is the sixth book in the “Kṛṣṇa in Vṛndāvana” series, for which Śuddha-bhakti-cintāmaṇi serves as the Introduction; thus Saṅkalpa-kaumudī is Volume Five. Both the Introduction and this book serve as philosophical foundations for the entire series to date, as well as for the books succeeding them. Śuddha-bhakti-cintāmaṇi describes the qualifications required to properly appreciate Kṛṣṇa’s pastimes, while Saṅkalpa-kaumudī explains how a sādhaka may acquire those qualifications. This book is followed by Vilāpa-kusumāñjali, which is neither for beginners nor for the unqualified. I therefore humbly request those devotees who faithfully read the books of this series to give careful attention to the contents of Saṅkalpa-kaumudī. By so doing, within the mud of my words they may find growing some lotuses of wisdom with which they can worship the deity of ecstatic devotion, and so gain entrance to Her service.

Let me add a few practical points relevant to this composition.

The book is divided into eight parts. The first two present the foundations of sādhana and its goal; the following three describe saṅkalpa and the dynamics of its realisation; the next two speak of attentiveness and the mood of devotion as they relate to saṅkalpas; and the last part describes how the blessings of Kṛṣṇa descend

upon the determined sādhaka. Each part is divided into chapters and each chapter into sections, which are separated by four stars. I often refer to the contents of a section, or sections. For the sake of consistency, throughout the book I have addressed the sādhaka or practising devotee in the singular tense and masculine gender. And finally, the system of questions and answers has been employed to highlight important points in a train of thought or philosophical conclusion. I hope that this form of presentation facilitates the reader’s study of this book.

In conclusion, let me thank the devotees of our Lāl Publishing team who assisted in bringing this work into being—Manorāma Dāsa, project supervision; Braja Sevakī Devī Dāsī, editing; Ānanda Caitanya Dāsa, asstistant editing and proofreading; Mañjarī Devī Dāsī, referencing and Sanskrit editing; Revatī Devī Dāsī, indexing; Jayantī Devī Dāsī, referencing and bibliography; Akṛṣṇa Dāsa, art director; Taralākṣī Devī Dāsī, artwork; Sundara-rūpa Dāsa, layout and printing; Bhakti-Devī Dāsī, sales and distribution—and a heartfelt thanks to those whose kind donations made the printing possible: Sat Nāma Dāsa, Devaprastha Dāsa, and Ādi-guru Dāsa.

Jaya Rādhā Śyāma!

Śivarāma Swami New Vraja-dhāma Rādhāṣṭamī, 26 August 2020