Surrender- The Key to Eternal Life

“I ask you to dedicate this one life to the Lord. I do not want you to undergo the process of samsara, of repeated birth and death, any longer. Engaging wholeheartedly in the process of bhakti is not too difficult a sacrifice for attaining eternal existence. To be free of enemies, once and for all, to be permanently liberated from ongoing negative bombardments that we are forced to face every single day-whatever price we have to pay for that, it is worth it."

"Even if we have to live every single day in anxiety and frustration, being misunderstood, it is worthwhile because of what is ultimately attainable. If the goal is not wonderful, then of course, if is not desirable to pay a heavy price. If the goal is not permanent and we have to ultimately give it up only to enter again into the many complications from which we ran, then it is not a very captivating aspiration. But, if the end result is that all suffering is destroyed-death, disease, old age, and constantly living in an environment in which we have to struggle to survive then it is worth it. Let's put all of these unpleasant experiences behind us by dedicating this one lifetime to God with no strings attached.”

Many readers familiar with the life of Bhakti Tirtha Swami may wonder how Hari-Nama Press has published a new book, considering that he left this world on June 27, 2005. Printing an author's book posthumously warrants an explanation.

In 2004, after Maharaja had received his diagnosis of cancer, he continued working on his books with the same intensity as always. In a letter to the editors dated January 5, 2005, he wrote, “Now that my time in this body seems to be rather limited, let's see how many books we can get out before my departure.” Between 2004 and 2005, he wrote another book in the Beggar series, The Beggar IV: Die Before Dying, which we were able to print before he left this world. Not only was he focused on writing his Beggar prayers, which he completed during his rigorous cancer treatments, but his gaze was fixed on the future of his books as well as on the future of Hari-Nama Press. He held many meetings that year with the team during which he shared his desires for the continuation of the Press in his absence. More specifically, he worked with the editors to organize several books for future publication, ensuring that the Hari-Nama Press team would be engaged in service well after his departure.

At the beginning of 2005, Bhakti Tirtha Swami requested his book team to begin work on this current volume, which he entitled Surrender: The Key to Eternal Life. Deborah Klein completed the initial editing of the book and then sent the manuscript to Lila Katha dasi to prepare the final draft. After Maharaja left this world, however, we were engaged in publishing several reprints of his other works, which were rapidly selling out. Due to the great demand for his writings, the editing of Surrender had to be delayed. Fortunately, we are now able to offer this new volume of transcendental wisdom. Since Maharaja authorized us to print several books after his departure, we expect that this will not be his final publication—no doubt to the relief and pleasure of his many readers and well-wishers!

Surrender: The Key to Eternal Life is a deep meditation on topics such as the cultivation of humility and selflessness, as well as on the detrimental effects of envy, anxiety, and boredom. As usual, Bhakti Tirtha Swami's work contains specific and practical ways to engage in spiritual life. Maharaja wants us to look at our weaknesses. Instead of leaving us to wallow in the muck of our anarthas, he encourages us to take inventory of them so that we can make genuine changes and advancement. He was especially compassionate in his approach to anartha-nivrtti, understanding that many of us have a hard time relinquishing bad habits that we have carried with us lifetime after lifetime, even while trying sincerely to chant and hear the Lord's holy name. Through his compassion, he listened to devotees, asked questions, and took care to pinpoint the exact nature of the problems that often trouble the individual and the community of devotees. He would address such concerns in person, in his lectures, and in his books.

Srimad-Bhagavatam, a sacred text compiled five thousand years ago, makes a bold prediction:

tad-vag-visargo janatagha-viplavo yasmin prati-slokam abaddhavaty api namany anantasya yaso ‘kitani yac chvanti gayanti ganti sadhava

[T]hat literature which is full of descriptions of the transcendental glories of the name, fame, forms, pastimes, etc., of the unlimited Supreme Lord is a different creation, full of transcendental words directed toward bringing about a revolution in the impious lives of this world's misdirected civilization. Such transcendental literatures, even though imperfectly composed, are heard, sung, and accepted by purified men who are thoroughly honest

. At the time that the Bhagavatam was recorded, the entire world was ruled by Vedic kings who supported the divine culture; the civilization was not “misdirected.” Only later, with the gradual vitiation of Vedic culture, did the world's civilization become misguided, and so the above verse anticipates a revolution to be effected by the presentation and distribution of Srimad-Bhagavatam, which of all Vedic texts most fully describes the transcendental names, forms, qualities, pastimes, and associates of the Supreme Personality of Godhead.

The person who fulfilled the prediction is Sri Srimad A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada—he translated Srimad-Bhagavatam from Sanskrit into English, with comprehensive purports, and inspired its translation into fifty languages and its profuse distribution in countries throughout the world.

In the course of his efforts, Srila Prabhupada attracted many young men and women who embraced the principles of SrimadBhagavatam and the Bhagavad-gita, adopted the practices of Krsna (God) consciousness, bhakti-yoga, and endeavored to distribute the divine message for the benefit of all living beings.

**Contents and Sample Pages**