What is prem?<\/p>\n
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\u2018Prem’ ordinarily means \u2018love’. We find this word overused in the material world. But what is really meant by prem or love?<\/p>\n
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“hl\u00e2dinir s\u00e2r prem”<\/p>\n
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Meaning – “Love is the essence of Hl\u00e2dini shakti.” – (C.C.)<\/p>\n
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Love is the topmost manifestation of Hl\u00e2dini Shakti. Hl\u00e2dini is pure goodness and love is its characteristic. When we perform bhajan and we get Sri Bhagav\u00e2n’s blessing then our heart becomes clean. It is now ready to receive pure goodness. Then Sri Krishna flings Hl\u00e2dini Shakti into our heart. When we put an iron rod in fire, it gains the property of the fire – that is – it becomes red in color and hot to touch. Similarly our heart becomes one with pure goodness and gets its characteristics. Now pure goodness starts expressing its qualities through our mind. Its main quality is \u2018a desire to please Sri Krishna’s senses’. This is love.<\/p>\n
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“krishnendriya-priti-ichchhaa dhore prem n\u00e2m.”<\/p>\n
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Meaning – “Love is the desire to please Sri Krishna’s senses.” – (C.C.)<\/p>\n
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Sri Krishna’s eternal associates always express the desire to please His senses. This means love is eternally present in them. When the s\u00e2dhak’s heart is cleansed by hearing, chanting etc. then the same love flows into this material world like the river Mand\u00e2kini. It rushes down through the channel of devotees and manifests in our hearts.<\/p>\n
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“We can never get the everlasting love for Sri Krishna that His eternal associates possess by means of any spiritual practice. When our heart becomes clean due to hearing etc. it manifests itself.” – (C.C.)<\/p>\n
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Now we can understand that although love does express itself in this world it is never worldly. Love is the characteristic of the transcendental inherent potency of Sri Bhagav\u00e2n – Hl\u00e2dini Shakti. Therefore when we call worldly affection as \u2018love’ – such as \u2018brotherly love’, \u2018love for the society’, \u2018love for the nation’, \u2018love between men and women’ – we are inflicting a grievous insult on the word \u2018love’ – we can easily understand this.<\/p>\n
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In fact –<\/p>\n
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“Lust and love are distinct from each other just as iron and gold. Lust indicates a desire to satisfy one’s own senses, while love wants to please Sri Krishna’s senses only. Lust wants only sexual satisfaction for own self, while love’s strongest desire is to delight Sri Krishna.”- (C.C.)<\/p>\n
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We can define \u2018lust’ as the living being’s material affection for each other. It is as cheap as a piece of iron for it is self-centered. On the other hand love is brilliant like gold because it wants to satisfy Sri Krishna. Lust stinks like hell for it smacks of sense-gratification, while love is fragrant like the celestial garden Nandan-k\u00e2nan because it is aromatic with the wish to please Sri Krishna. Lust is as dark as the New Moon night for it is so selfish, whereas love is self-luminous and as bright as daylight because it seeks to make Sri Krishna happy.<\/p>\n
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“Hence we see that lust is very much different from love – lust is pitch dark, while love shines like the brilliant sun.” – (C.C.)<\/p>\n
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Srila Rupa Gosw\u00e2mip\u00e2d has written –<\/p>\n
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“When a s\u00e2dhak who is in the advanced stage of bh\u00e2v-bhakti – his heart is much more melted or serene as compared to when he was in the primary stage of bh\u00e2v-bhakti – and now he feels the topmost supreme bliss – and he also feels strongly that Sri Krishna belongs to him – the wise call such a bh\u00e2v as prem.”<\/p>\n
– (B.R.S.)<\/p>\n
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