Question: I have come to understand that in engaging oneself in spiritual life, one has to undergo a whole process of testing. This happens because Krishna is testing the devotee if he is ready for the spiritual world or not. What if one is scared of engaging oneself in spiritual life because of the fear that one will undergo an extreme testing phase? How would you encourage such a person to not lose hope and continue engaging oneself in spiritual life?
Answer by Romapada Swami:
Krishna is the most expert teacher and would never give His devotee a test that he/she cannot pass! In other words, He knows our strengths and weaknesses, what exactly we need in order to take the next step in our journey towards Him and when we are ready to be tested and purified. Accordingly, when He sees that a sincere devotee is really eager to come to Him, yet at the same time is distracted by or struggling to give up some material attachment, He arranges for their purification in a variety of ways, sometimes through some ordeal.
We should not imagine the Lord to be a hard taskmaster who ensures that only those strong enough to withstand the most excruciating ordeals are allowed entry to the spiritual world. Rather the seeming ‘tests and ordeals’ are actually an exhibition of His great love for His devotees, meant to make them exclusively attached to Him, by way of their letting go of other, false shelters. All that the devotee has to do, when such circumstances arise, is to make a simple but bold and firm choice, “I want only Krishna as my shelter, in all circumstances”; then Krishna Himself will give all the requisite strength and knowledge required, by which we can overcome the circumstantial tests and quickly come to His lotus feet. Krishna simply wants our love. When He sees an unflinching mood of loving service and willingness to surrender even in the face of adversities, then just as He promises in Bhagavad-Gita, He preserves what we have and carries what we lack. (See Bg 9.22)
When a devotee understands this aspect of Krishna’s `tests’, the prospect of being subject to purification and tests is no longer intimidating, not in the least! Rather, such circumstances are perceived and an act of special kindness coming from Krishna, a welcoming invitation or an graciously-offered opportunity to come closer to Him. The devotee comes to appreciate that the so-called difficulty is actually a blessing extended by Krishna, to bring His devotee closer to the very goal they actually desire, i.e. attachment to Krishna. Immediate circumstances may seem to be painful; but the devotee experiences great happiness in recognizing that the Lord has been so kind as to not disqualify them from receiving His mercy, and instead is actively removing particular anarthas or obstacles from their path.
Please consider: does material life, a denial of God’s existence and His merciful nature, in any way offer us a promising alternative? Fear of the tests of spiritual life may encourage us to shy away from it, but one needs only closely examine the alternative to be convinced which path of action is superior. For example, is there any guarantee that there would be no reverses or extreme hardships in this world, sans spiritual shelter? Very much to the contrary, this material world is declared as a place of misery – where there is danger at every step. Everyone in this material world is always in anxiety, always at risk of so many calamities, culminating in the sufferings of birth and death, repeatedly. What shelter do we have in the face of these calamities? On the other hand, Krishna promises that those who surrender to Him are NEVER vanquished, that all their sins are destroyed, that even a little endeavor in this path saves one from greatest danger of gliding down to lower life and so many comforting reassurances. (Cf. Bg 9.31, 18.66, 2.40, 6.40–41) So there is every reason to take to the process of devotional service in all enthusiasm and earnestness. An easygoing life is not expected for one trying to attain spiritual perfection. Yet, while material nature inevitably afflicts everyone with hardships that simply entangle us in further misery, austerities faced in Krishna’s service, while filling us with a sense of the Lord’s infallible protection even now, ultimately open the doors to Vaikuntha.
