Entering the Eternal Kingdom of God

The material world is characterized by duality and impermanence. Whatever is created here must eventually be destroyed. However, beyond this temporary manifestation lies another nature, described in the scriptures as the eternal kingdom of God. Śrīla Prabhupāda emphasizes that this kingdom is the ultimate destination for humanity, offering a life of endless bliss and knowledge that the eternal soul naturally craves.

Nature of Spiritual World

The kingdom of God is not subject to the chaotic laws of material nature. In the material world, everything is acted upon by the three modes—goodness, passion, and ignorance—resulting in a cycle of creation, maintenance, and inevitable destruction. In contrast, Śrīla Prabhupāda explains that the spiritual world is sanātana, or eternal. It is a realm of pure consciousness where the illusion of time, decay, and death does not exist. Only those who are amūḍhaḥ, or unbewildered by the false allure of material enjoyment, can approach this transcendental sphere.

• The interaction of the three qualities makes it possible for things to be created, maintained and annihilated. But in the spiritual world, or the kingdom of God, there is no such exhibition, since everything is eternal, sentient and blissful.
• Eternal kingdom, which is never destructible like this material world, can be approached by amudhah. Amudhah means nonbewildered, one who is not bewildered by the attraction of this false enjoyment.
• More intelligent men guided by sages like Vyasa and Narada know that the eternal kingdom of God is more delightful, larger, and eternally full of bliss and knowledge.

True Home of Soul

Why is the living entity chronically unhappy in the material world? Śrīla Prabhupāda explains that it is a fundamental mismatch of nature. The soul is eternal, whereas the body and the material environment are temporary. Real happiness can only be found when the eternal soul resides in its natural habitat, the eternal abode known as paravyoma. Once one reaches this destination, there is no return to the miserable cycle of birth, death, disease, and old age.

• Because the living being is eternal, he can be happy only in the eternal abode of the kingdom of God (paravyoma), from which no one returns to this region of repeated birth and death, disease and old age.
• One can get complete liberation from all the above-mentioned material pangs when one enters into the eternal Brahmaloka sanatana atmosphere, the kingdom of God.
• Spiritual happiness in the eternal kingdom of God cannot be imagined even by the great brahmacaris or sannyasis who are eligible to be promoted to the planets beyond the region of heaven.

Path of Entry

Entering this kingdom is not a matter of mental speculation, gymnastic yoga, or material adjustment. It requires the revival of one's original consciousness through the sincere practice of devotional service. Śrīla Prabhupāda asserts that under the guidance of a bona fide spiritual master, one cleanses the heart of sinful reactions and material desires. Only then does one become qualified to enter the nitya-līlā, the eternal pastimes of the Lord, as described in the Bhagavad-gītā.

• In the Eighth Chapter of the Bhagavad-gita it is clearly said that the Supreme Person, who lives eternally in the spiritual kingdom of God (sanatana-dhama), can be approached only by devotional service.
• If he makes progress under the direction of the Spiritual Master, then he revives his original Krsna Consciousness in full and thus he regains his position in the eternal Kingdom of God.
• By engaging oneself in devotional service, one can gradually enter into the eternal kingdom of God.

Specific Abodes

The kingdom of God is not an impersonal void; it is filled with specific planets, locations, and varieties of enjoyment. Śrīla Prabhupāda clarifies that places like Dhruvaloka, Mathurā, and Dvārakā are eternal realms within the spiritual sky. Even the term "Brahmaloka," when used in a specific context by commentators like Śrīdhara Svāmī, refers to Vaikuṇṭha—the place where there is no anxiety—rather than the material planet of Lord Brahmā.

• Dhruvaloka is one of the lokas like Svetadvipa, Mathura and Dvaraka. They are all eternal places in the kingdom of Godhead, which is described in the Bhagavad-gita (tad dhama paramam) and in the Vedas.
• Srila Sridhara Svami rightly commenting on this verse (SB 2.5.39), says that the Brahmaloka mentioned here is Vaikuntha, the kingdom of God, which is sanatana, or eternal, and is not exactly like the material creations described above.

Conclusion

Human life is a rare opportunity to break the cycle of birth and death. Śrīla Prabhupāda urges us to take every risk to attain this eternal kingdom. If there is a chance to enter the nitya-līlā of the Lord, one must seize it. However, one who insists on maintaining material attachments and enjoying the temporary world has no business in the eternal kingdom. To favor such a soul, the Lord may sometimes mercifully snatch away their material possessions to facilitate their return to their true home.

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Śrīla Prabhupāda lives within his instructions. This article is a summary of the profound truths found in the Vaniquotes category Eternal Kingdom of God. We invite you to visit this link to study the complete compilation and experience Śrīla Prabhupāda's teachings in their direct, verbatim form.

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