Why ISKCON Gurus Fall

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From VNN archives:

 

Why Do ISKCON Gurus Fall Down?

Editorial (VNN) - by Madhudvisa dasa

 

Vipramukya Swami has published an article on Chakra explaining that ISKCON gurus fall down because demons pose as their disciples and trick them into maya. He justifies this by quoting one of Hridyananda Maharaja's purports from his translation of Srimad Bhagavatam.

 

However, although it may be true that neophyte devotees can be tricked by demons posing as their disciples, the hard fact is in the material world almost all of us are demons!! After all this is the prison-house and we come here to exercise our natural tendency to become the enjoyer, to lord it over the material energy. That is the demoniac mentality, and we have all been trained up expertly in this mentality, particularly in the West, but also in India these days.

 

So, being a real "guru" is not as simple as ISKCON would have us believe. If one is tricked into maya by his demoniac disciples he was never a bona-fide guru in the first place. Of course some of the disciples may be demons, but a real guru knows this and engages them in Krishna's service in such a way that their demoniac mentality is killed and their original Krishna consciousness is reawakened. It's not that one becomes a "real guru" simply by being authorized to take disciples and receiving an "official ISKCON guru badge" from the GBC... A "real guru" is self-effulgant. He does not need any authorization. He is authorized by Krishna. It is not a cheep thing.

 

A real guru has to be able to preach the philosophy of Krishna consciousness very expertly and authoritatively and live his life perfectly according to that. He has to have the ability to awaken the dormant spark of Krishna consciousness within the hearts of his disciples and the general public and he has to also fan that spark so it will become a blazing fire that will consume all the material, demoniac desires in the hearts of his disciples.

 

Of course to do this his own heart has to be perfectly clean and free from material desires.

 

Those of us who joined ISKCON before 1987 or who have read Srila Prabhupada's ORIGINAL books will remember the philosophy used to be that one approach a pure devotee spiritual master, render service to him and inquire submissively from him as such a great soul can give real knowledge as he has seen the truth... We can also remember the philosophy was "a bound man cannot free another bound man, first the rescuer has to be liberated."

 

A drowning man cannot be saved by one who cannot swim. It is an act of insanity for a person who cannot swim to jump into the water to "save" a drowning man. He will simply drown and he will pull the other drowning man down with him in his effort to "save" the lost soul...

 

Even if you joined ISKCON after 1987 if you care to take a quick look at Srila Prabhupada's [ORIGINAL] books you will find he very clearly describes the Spiritual Master as a pure devotee in hundreds of places.

 

So the REAL REASON ISKCON gurus fall down is because they are part of a system that elevates ordinary devotees to the position of "guru" and then forces all the new devotees to give up their connection with Srila Prabhupada, to stop chanting Srila Prabhupada's pranams, to stop offering bhoga to Srila Prabhupada and INSTEAD offer it to one of the "Bonafide Authorized ISKCON Gurus" who ISKCON cannot even guarantee are following the four regulative principles! Worse still, in many cases the GBC even knows that their "gurus" are not chanting their rounds, attending Mangal-Aroti and following the regulative principles, but still they allow them to go on with their "guru business."

 

For most accepting a bogus ISKCON guru is the end of their spiritual life...

 

Most of us are demons... Mostly we have rejected Krishna and, even though we call ourselves devotees, we are still very much attracted by Maya's allurements. Most of us need the mercy of a pure devotee to awaken the dormant spark of Krishna consciousness within our hearts and then to fan that spark and make it into a blazing fire to destroy all the material desires in our hearts. It requires a pure devotees guidance.

 

If, at that crucial moment of our spiritual development, instead of getting shelter at the lotus feet of a pure devotee spiritual master who can deliver us Krishna, we get a bogus ISKCON guru interested in fame, followers, guru daksina and ISKCON politics, then instead of fanning the little spark of Krishna consciousness in our hearts he will practically extinguish it.

 

Of course the material world is still attractive to many of us and it is an alluring proposition for many to be able to continue satisfying our material sense desires and at the same time be "devotees." So the ISKCON gurus have catered to this "market" and now we have an assortment of "Vegan Krishnas,Hard-Core Krishnas,Gay Krishnas,Feminist Krishnas,Hindu Krishnas," etc. But pure devotional service has been somehow lost...

 

Where are the devotees who live to chant Hare Krishna, Hare Krishna, Krishna Krishna, Hare Hare, Hare Rama, Hare Rama, Rama Rama, Hare Hare, dancing daily in ecstasy on the streets of the world's major cities and distributing Srila Prabhupada's ORIGINAL books to the fallen conditioned souls? Where are the devotees who are always immersed in the ever-expanding ocean of transcendental bliss that is the REAL Krishna consciousness movement?

 

The man who cannot swim may feel some compassion for the drowning man, but without being an expert swimmer himself he cannot save the man, and if he tries they will BOTH end up at the bottom of the ocean.

 

So ISKCON gurus fall down because, in most cases, they are not qualified to be gurus and even if they were the ISKCON system is structured in such a way that in any case they could do little to help their disciples as, in ISKCON, the "guru" has no authority over his disciples... The disciples are meant to be "disciplined" [and guided] by the guru, but in ISKCON that is not permitted by the GBC and temple presidents! [iSKCON gurus cannot change the service of their disciples, they cannot give any instruction to their disciples which is not approved of by the Temple President and GBC, etc.]

 

So the ISKCON gurus are mostly not qualified as pure devotees at all and ISKCON now openly admits this and says their gurus don't have to be qualified anyhow... As long as the GBC approves it... Of course they can't justify this idea at all from Srila Prabhupada's teachings... Srila Prabhupada never talks about "unqualified gurus," if the "guru" is unqualified, he is not a guru!! The whole ISKCON guru system is therefore completely bogus.

 

Of course, to support this bogus system all thoughtful devotees who question it have to be destroyed. They have to be bashed, banned from the temples, beaten and blasphemed.

 

Personally, in my whole life no "karmi" has ever attacked me physically, however I have been bashed so many times by ISKCON "devotees" and banned from every ISKCON temple in the world just for repeating the words of Srila Prabhupada, my spiritual master...

 

Vipramukya Swami dramatically illustrates this principle on his webpage with his animated cartoon depicting ISKCON members murdering all the direct followers of Srila Prabhupada by bashing them to death with a hammer with the subtitle "Smash the Ritviks." And it is 100% approved by the GBC!!!

 

The GBC have no philosophical basis for the current ISKCON "guru system" and are therefore continually commissioning different groups of devotees to write new "guru tattva" papers in the hope that someone will come up with something logical that will enable them to paint Srila Prabhupada out of the picture as a "dead guru" and enable them to go with their "guru business."

 

Of course it is not possible to write such a paper, as Srila Prabhupada is not dead, so ISKCON resort to violence and intimidation and try to discredit the very system Srila Prabhupada personally established and directly ordered all temples and GBC members to follow in his July 9th, 1977 letter. So Vipramukya Swami is trying to smash Srila Prabhupada by smashing the devotees trying to follow Srila Prabhupada's direct order... That is why ISKCON gurus fall down...

 

Now ISKCON has the BBT spending most of it's time and Srila Prabhupada's money changing Srila Prabhupada's books and trying to prove in a court of law that Srila Prabhupada is not the author of his books, he was just a hired-hand! Jayadvaita [then dasa] and the other BBT staff imported Srila Prabhupada from India, fed him and clothed him, and enlisted him in helping them write the books! Therefore Srila Prabhupada never had the authority toestablish his BBT and the copyrighs belong to ISKCON not Prabhupada's BBT!!

 

Also, the Bhaktivedanta Archives, instead of spending their time and energy in preserving Srila Prabhupada's lectures, etc. as they were originally spoken by Srila Prabhupada, are spending their time and energy editing and changing them and preserving their changed versions NOT THE ORIGINALS!

 

So, as it is, ISKCON is an organization determined to minimizing theposition and authority of Srila Prabhupada and to changing, "correcting", and even "improving" the teachings of Srila Prabhupada in the books personally used by and approved by him.

 

They are also determined to establish their books are just as good as Srila Prabhupada's books! We have already seen the BBT publish so many books by authors other than Srila Prabhupada and present them as being "non-different" from Srila Prabhupada's books. However there is a gulf of difference between a book written by a Maha-Bhagavata pure devotee and books written by neophyte devotees! Of course a devotee may be a great scholar and philosopher from the mundane point of view, but if he is not a pure devotee then reading his books will not help us at all to reawaken the Krishna consciousness within out hearts, rather it will cover it more and more. Reading such books is a great stumbling block on the path back home, back to Godhead yet ISKCON and the BBT promote them as being "as good as Prabhupada's books."

 

If one sees a book-table at an ISKCON temple these days it is a bewildering site to be sure! Sometimes it is difficult to even find one book by Srila Prabhupada! They are selling so many books by so many "Vaisnavas" about so many subjects that they forget to sell Srila Prabhupada's books... They forget the value of associating with Srila Prabhupada personally by reading his books... They forget the value of Srila Prabhupada's personal association and imply that books written by any other devotee are just as good... As long as they are approved by the GBC of course.

 

If one talks to a new bhakta these days and asks, "Have you read any of Srila Prabhupada's books?" They often say, "O yes, I have read Ray Cappo's book, and one book by Steven Rosen, and something about space-ships and aliens by Sadaputta... "But have you read any of Srila Prabhupada's books?..."

 

If somehow a new devotee has been able to get hold of some of Srila Prabhupada's ORIGINAL books and has actually realized that, "Hey, there's really something special about this guy's books!" ISKCON are determined to get him to give up the natural relationship he has developed with Srila Prabhupada by reading his books, which is PERSONAL DIRECT association with Srila Prabhupada.

 

Srila Prabhupada is living in his books and his personal association, instruction, guidance and mercy is right there for all of us to take advantage of 24 hours a day seven days a week. There is no other guru who can be personally present in so many places with all his disciples and continually instruct and guide them all simultaneously and personally...

 

We have all Srila Prabhupada's books to read, all his classes to listen to, all his morning works to hear, all his conversations to read, all his letters to read, we have at least 52 hours of CD's of Srila Prabhupada chanting Hare Krishna, singing Bhajans and explaining them, and of course there is at least 50 hours of video tape of Srila Prabhupada giving class, chanting, dancing, preaching, and all aspects of his life. And everything is available on the "Complete Works Of Srila Prabhupada" CD ROM, [however the ISKCON version of this has been rendered almost useless by mixing in dozens of books by other authors which are all supposedly "just as good as Srila Prabhupada's books". A classic case of mixing sand with the sweet-rice. Who can eat sweet-rice mixed with sand?] That's more than enough to keep one very busy for an entire lifetime and if we use our life in that way we will be sure to go back home, back to Godhead after leaving this body.

 

Anyhow, instead of preaching the glories of Srila Prabhupada and his unique position to new devotees and allowing them to take shelter at his lotus feet the ISKCON "party line" is "Prabhupada is dead. You need a 'living guru' prabhu" and "You don't have to be a pure devotee to be a guru." THAT IS WHY ISKCON "GURUS" FALL DOWN...

 

SB 3.4.32 P Vidura Approaches Maitreya

The Lord is undoubtedly the source of all knowledge, and the messages dispatched through Uddhava to Nara-Narayana and other sages were also part of the Vedic knowledge, but they were more confidential and could be sent or understood only through such a pure devotee as Uddhava. Since such confidential knowledge was known only to the Lord and Uddhava, it is said that Uddhava was as good as the Lord Himself. Every living entity can, like Uddhava, also become a confidential messenger on the same level as the Lord, provided he becomes confidential himself by dint of loving devotional service. Such confidential knowledge is entrusted, as confirmed in Bhagavad-gita only to pure devotees like Uddhava and Arjuna, and one has to learn the mystery through them, and not otherwise. One cannot understand Bhagavad-gita or Srimad-Bhagavatam without the help of such confidential devotees of the Lord. According to Srila Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura, that confidential message must have concerned the mystery of His departure and the annihilation of His dynasty after the end of His appearance in the mundane world for one hundred years. Everyone must have been very anxious to know about the mystery of the annihilation of the Yadu dynasty, and that message must have been explained by the Lord to Uddhava and dispatched to Badarikasrama for the information of Nara-Narayana and other pure devotees of the Lord.

 

SB 3.7.38 P Further Inquires by Vidura

The living entities are constitutionally servitors of the Lord, who can accept all kinds of service from everyone. It is clearly declared (Bg.5.29) that the Lord is the supreme enjoyer of the benefits of all sacrifices and penances, the proprietor of all that is manifested and the friend of all living entities. That is His real identity. Therefore, whenthe living entity accepts this supreme proprietorship of the Lord and acts in that attitude, he resumes his real identity. In order to elevate the living entity to this standard of knowledge, there is the necessity of spiritual association. The bona fide spiritual master desires that his disciples know the process of rendering transcendental service to the Lord, and the disciples also know that they have to learn about the eternal relationship between God and the living entity from a self-realized soul. To disseminate transcendental knowledge one must retire from mundane activities on the strength of enlightenment in knowledge in terms of Vedic wisdom. That is the sum and substance of all the questions in this verse.

 

SB 4.26.20 P King Puranjana Goes to the Forest to Hunt, and His Queen Becomes Angry

One cannot come to the precincts of Krsna consciousness unless he touches the dust of the lotus feet of a person who has become a mahatma, a great devotee. This is the beginning of the surrendering process. Lord Krsna wants everyone to surrender unto Him, and this surrendering process begins when one touches the lotus feet of a bona fide spiritual master. By sincerely rendering service to a bona fide spiritual master, one begins his spiritual life in Krsna consciousness. Touching the lotus feet of a spiritual master means giving up one's false prestige and unnecessarily puffed-up position in the material world. Those who remain in the darkness of material existence due to their falsely prestigious positions--so-called scientists and philosophers--are actually atheists. They do not know the ultimate cause of everything. Although bewildered, they are not ready to surrender themselves to the lotus feet of a person who knows things in their proper perspective. In other words, one cannot arouse Krsna consciousness simply by his own mental speculation. One must surrender to a bona fide spiritual master. Only this process will help one.

 

SB 4.29.51 P Talks Between Narada and King Pracinabarhi

"Even if a brahmana is very learned in Vedic scriptures and knows the six occupational duties of a brahmana, he cannot become a guru, or spiritual master, unless he is a devotee of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. However, if one is born in a family of dog-eaters but is a pure devotee of the Lord, he can become a spiritual master." The conclusion is that one cannot become a spiritual master unless he is a pure devotee ofthe Lord. One who is a spiritual master in accordance with the above descriptions of devotional service is to be understood as the Supreme Personality of Godhead personally present. According to the words mentioned here (gurur harih), consulting a bona fide spiritual master means consulting the Supreme Personality of Godhead personally. One should therefore take shelter of such a bona fide spiritual master. Success in life means accepting a spiritual master who knows Krsna as the only supreme beloved personality. One should worship such a confidential devotee of the Lord.

 

SB 5.14.41 P The Material World as the Great Forest of Enjoyment

Even if one wanders for many millions of years, from the time of creation until the time of annihilation, one cannot get free from the path of material existence unless one receives shelter at the lotus feet of a pure devotee. As a monkey takes shelter of the branch of a banyan tree and thinks he is enjoying, the conditioned soul, not knowing the real interest of his life, takes shelter of the path of karma-kanda, fruitive activities. Sometimes he is elevated to the heavenly planets by such activities, and sometimes he again descends to earth. This is described by Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu as brahmanda bhramite. However, if by Krsna's grace one is fortunate enough to come under the shelter of the guru, by the mercy of Krsna he receives lessons on how to execute devotional service to the Supreme Lord. In this way he receives a clue of how to get out of his continuous struggle up and down within the material world. Therefore the Vedic injunction is that one should approach a spiritual master. The Vedas declare: tad-vijnanartham sa gurum evabhigacchet (Mundaka Upanisad 1.2.12). Similarly in Bhagavad-gita (4.34) the Supreme Personality of Godhead advises:

 

SB 5.14.41 P The Material World as the Great Forest of Enjoyment

"Any person who seriously desires to achieve real happiness must seek out a bona fide spiritual master and take shelter of him by initiation. The qualification of his spiritual master is that he must have realized the conclusion of the scriptures by deliberation and be able to convince others of these conclusions. Such great personalities, who have taken shelter of the Supreme Godhead, leaving aside all material considerations, are to be understood as bona fide spiritual masters." Similarly, Visvanatha Cakravarti, a great Vaisnava, also advises, yasya prasadad bhagavat-prasadah:"By the mercy of the spiritual master one receives the mercy of Krsna." This is the same advice given by Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu (guru-krsna-prasade paya bhakti-lata-bija). This is essential. One must come to Krsna consciousness, and therefore one must take shelter of a pure devotee. Thus one can become free from the clutches of matter.

 

SB 5.15.4 P The Glories of the Descendants of King Priyavrata

The word anusasmara is very significant. God consciousness is not imaginary or concocted. The devotee who is pure and advanced realizes God as He is. Maharaja Pratiha did so, and due to his direct realization of Lord Visnu, he propagated self-realization and became a preacher. A real preacher cannot be bogus; he must first of all realize Lord Visnu as He is. As confirmed in Bhagavad-gita (4.34), upadeksyanti te jnanam jnaninas the Supreme personality of Godhead. Such a person can become a guru and propound Vaisnava philosophy all over the world. The paragon of bona fide preachers and guru is King Pratiha.

 

SB 7.7.29 P What Prahlada Learned in the Womb

"Unto those great souls who have implicit faith in both the Lord and the spiritual master, all the imports of Vedic knowledge are automatically revealed." (Svetasvatara Upanisad 6.23) One must accept the pure devotee, the representative of God, as one's guru and then offer him all the respects one would offer the Supreme Personality of Godhead. This is the secret of success. For one who adopts this method, the perfect process is revealed. In this verse, the words yair anjasa ratih indicate that by offering service and surrendering to the spiritual master, one is elevated to devotional service, and by performing devotional service one gradually becomes attached to the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Because of this attachment to the Lord, one can understand the Lord. In other words, one can understand what the Lord's position is, what our position is and what our relationship is. All this can be understood very easily by the simple method of bhakti-yoga. As soon as one is situated on the platform of bhakti-yoga, the root cause of one's suffering and material bondage is destroyed. This is clearly explained in the next verse, which gives the secret of success.

 

SB 10.2.37 P Prayers by the Demigods for Lord Krsna in the Womb

We should strictly follow this injunction and never try to hear from Mayavadis, impersonalists, voidists, politicians or so-called scholars. Strictly avoiding such inauspicious association, we should simply hear from pure devotees. Srila Rupa Gosvami therefore recommends, sri-guru-padasrayah: one must seek shelter at the lotus feet of a pure devotee who can be one's guru. Caitanya Mahaprabhu advises that a guru is one who strictly follows the instructions of Bhagavad-gita: yare dekha,tare kaha, 'krsna'--upadesa (Cc. Madhya 7.128). A juggler, a magician or one who speaks nonsense as an academic career is not a guru. Rather, a guru is one who presents Bhagavad-gita, Krsna's instructions, as it is. Sravana is very important; one must hear from the Vaisnava sadhu, guru and sastra.

 

Adi 8.17 The Author Receives the Orders of Krsna and Guru

These slokas are to be discussed. Their purport is that one cannot obtain krsna-bhakti, or the devotional service of the Lord, by official execution of the Vedic rituals. One has to approach a pure devotee. Narottama dasa Thakura sings, chadiya vaisnava-seva nistara payeche keba: "Who has been elevated without rendering service to a pure Vaisnava?" It is the statement of Prahlada Maharaja that unless one is able to accept the dust from the lotus feet of a pure Vaisnava there is no possibility of achieving the platform of devotional service. That is the secret. The above-mentioned tantra-vacana, quoted from the Bhakti-rasamrta-sindhu (1.1.36), is our perfect guidance in this connection.

 

NoI 5

In this verse Srila Rupa Gosvami advises the devotee to be intelligent enough to distinguish between the kanistha-adhikari, madhyama-adhikari and uttama-adhikari. The devotee should also know his own position and shouldnot try to imitate a devotee situated on a higher platform. Srila Bhaktivinoda Thakura has given some practical hints to the effect that an uttama-adhikari Vaisnava can be recognized by his ability to convert many fallen souls to Vaisnavism. One should not become a spiritual master unless he has attained the platform of uttama-adhikari. A neophyte Vaisnava or a Vaisnava situated on the intermediate platform can also accept disciples, but such disciples must be on the same platform, and it should be understood that they cannot advance very well toward the ultimate goal of life under his insufficient guidance. Therefore a disciple should be careful to accept an uttama-adhikari as a spiritual master.

 

TYS 7 How Bhakti-yoga Works

The teacher must be a representative of Krsna, a devotee, and the student must be like Arjuna. Then this Krsna consciousness study is perfect. Otherwise it is a waste of time. In the Srimad-Bhagavatam it is stated: "If anyone wants to understand the science of Krsna, he should associate with pure devotees. When discussions take place among pure devotees, the potency of spiritual language is revealed." Scholarly discussion of the Gita is futile. In the Upanisads it is stated: "To one who has firm faith in God, and similar faith in God's representative, all the import of Vedic language will be revealed." We must have the qualification of being a devotee. Become dear to God. My spiritual master used to say, "Don't try to see God. Act in such a way that God will see you." We have to qualify ourselves. By your qualification God Himself will come and see you.

 

TYS 9 The Real Peace Formula

If by chance during this training he meets a teacher who is a saintly person and a pure devotee of the Lord, then by such a contact he becomes pure. Therefore, Lord Caitanya said that the fortunate person who has had some spiritual asset in his past dealings will seek the association of a pure devotee. The seed of Krsna consciousness is received by the mercy of guru, the spiritual master, and by the mercy of Krsna. When the spiritual master and Lord Krsna will that a person must have Krsna consciousness, then the seed very nicely fructifies. That spiritual asset makes one fortunate, and thus he becomes spiritually enlivened, and then he meets a bona fide spiritual master, and, by the grace of the spiritual master, he can receive the seed of Krsna consciousness. That is his inner urge: "Where can I get this association? Where can I get this awareness?"

 

SSR 8 Attaining Perfection

The spark of love for Krsna is struck by the spiritual master, the pure devotee. As for myself, my spiritual master, His Divine Grace Om Visnupada Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Gosvami Prabhupada, ordered me to take up the responsibility of spreading Krsna consciousness in the Western world. His Divine Grace had a great desire to preach Lord Caitanya's message in the West, and my success is both his grace and pleasure. When I first met my spiritual master, I was a very young man in India, a nationalist, engaged in a very responsible office. But although I did not want to go, one of my friends, who is still living in Calcutta, forcibly took me to His Divine Grace. I was reluctant to see him because in our home our father used to receive many sannyasis and I was not very satisfied with their dealings. I thought that Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Gosvami Maharaja might be a similar man, and if he were, what business would I have in seeing him? But my friend took me forcibly. "Why not see him?" he asked. I finally relented and went with him, and I profited.

 

NBS 2 P Narada-bhakti-sutra

The next stage in the process of elevation to love of God is sadhu-sanga, association with persons already in the highest stage of love of God. One who avoids such association and simply engages in mental speculation or so-called meditation cannot be raised to the perfectional platform. But one who associates with pure devotees or an elevated devotional society goes to the next stage--bhajana-kriya, or acceptance of the regulative principles of worshiping the Supreme Lord. One who associates with a pure devotee of the Lord naturally accepts that person as his spiritual master, and when the neophyte devotee accepts a pure devotee as his spiritual master, the duty of the spiritual master is to train the neophyte in the principles of regulated devotional service, or vaidhi-bhakti. At this stage the devotee's service is based on his capacity to serve the Lord. The expert spiritual master engages his followers in work that will gradually develop their consciousness of service to the Lord. Therefore the preliminary stage of understanding prema, love of God, is to approach a proper pure devotee, accept him as one's spiritual master, and execute regulated devotional service under his guidance.

 

NBS 8 P Narada-bhakti-sutra

Only by the combined mercy of the pure devotee--the bona fide spiritual master--and the Supreme Lord Himself can one attain pure devotional service to the Lord. If someone is fortunate enough to find a pure devotee and accept him as his spiritual master, then this spiritual master, out of his causeless mercy, will impart the knowledge of pure devotional service. And it is the Lord, out of His causeless mercy, who sends His most confidential servitor to this world to instruct pure devotional service.

 

740815BG.VRN Lectures

So guru is helping from inside and from outside. Antar-bahih. So Krsna is so kind. Therefore Krsna manifests Himself as spiritual master. Therefore Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura says, saksad-dhari, saksad-dharitvena samasta-sastraih. Manifestation of empowered. One who is pure devotee, he's empowered by Krsna to act as spiritual master. Therefore spiritual master should be accepted: saksad-dharitvena samasta-sastrair uktah. It is described there. Tatha bhavyata eva sadbhih. Those who are learned scholars, actual devotees, they accept. But that does not mean guru is Krsna. Kintu prabhor yah priya eva tasya. Now, that, if you accept, you... Accept means you honor spiritual master as good as Krsna, because he's representative. But not that Mayavada philosophy that guru and Krsnais the same. This is simultaneously one and different. Kintu prabhor yah priya eva tasya. He is as good as Krsna because he is very, very dear to Krsna. Why dear? Because he's preaching on behalf of Krsna. What Krsna wants, he's doing that. Therefore he's very dear.

 

721018SB.VRN Lectures

So Krsna says, "To My devotees," tesam satata-yuktanam bhajatam priti-purvakam, "those who are engaged twenty-four hours in unadulterated devotional service to the Lord," buddhi-yogam dadami tam, "I give them intelligence how he can go back to home, back to Godhead." Why this is? Now tesam evanukampartham. Special favor for these persons who are twenty-four hours engaged in devotional service under the direction of bona fide spiritual master. You cannot become a pure, perfect devotee unless you are directed by another pure, unadulterated devotee. Evam parampara-praptam. So therefore Rupa Gosvami has mentioned in his Bhakti-rasamrta-sindhu, adau gurvasrayam. You have to find out, you have to take shelter, not find out. You have to take shelter of a bona fide spiritual master. That is the beginning, adau gurvasrayam sad-dharma-prccha. Then you'll have to inquire, inquiry, sad-dharma, about pure devotional service. That is sad-dharma. Sad-dharma-prccha. Sadhu-vartmanuvartanam. Sad-dharma-prccha. You learn something about devotional service, but the devotional service should be executed by following mahajana. Mahajano yena gatah sa panthah. Therefore we are Rupanugas. We follow the footsteps of Sri Rupa Gosvami, Sanatana Gosvami.

 

750629SB.DEN Lectures

So how it is possible? Yatha krsnarpita-pranah. Pranah, pranair arthair dhiya vaca. Prana, prana means life. One who has dedicated his life to the service of Krsna, such person. How this dedication of life to Krsna'sservice can be made possible? That is also stated here: tat-purusa-nisevaya. You have to take shelter of a person who is a devotee of Krsna, and you have to serve. That means you have to accept a devotee, a true devotee, a pure devotee, as your guide. That is our process. The Rupa Gosvami says in the Bhakti-rasamrta-sindhu, "The first process is, first step is adau gurvasrayam to accept guru." Accept guru Guru means Krsna's representative. One who is not Krsna's representative, he cannot become guru. Guru does not mean any nonsense can become guru. No. Only tat-purusa. Tat-purusa means a person who has accepted the Supreme Personality of Godhead as everything. Tat-purusa-nisevaya. That means Vaisnava, pure devotee. So it is not very difficult. By the grace of Krsna there are pure devotees, so one has to take shelter of him. Adau gurvasrayam. Then sad-dharma-prcchat: after accepting a bona fide spiritual master, one should be inquisitive to learn what is the science of Krsna. Sad-dharma-prcchat sadhu-marga-anugamanam. And this Krsna consciousness means one has to follow the footsteps of the devotees, sadhu-marga-anugamanam.

 

721110ND.VRN Lectures

Devotional service is not dependent on subhasubha-karma. It is simply dependent on the mercy of Krsna and His devotees. Krsna de... Sadhu. Guru-krsna-krpaya paya bhakti-lata-bija. Guru-krsna-krpaya. Naisam matis tavad urukramanghrim, mahiyasam pada-rajo-'bhisekam niskincananam na vrnita ya... Unless we surrender to the lotus feet of a pure devotee, it is not possible to come to the platform of devotional service. That is the way. We cannot taste the honey within the bottle. The bottle must be opened by the expert. If you simply lick up the bottle, if we think, "Now we are tasting honey," that is not the proper way. We should get the bottle opened by the expert, and when we taste within the bottle, then actually... Similarly, devotional service, without being opened by the..., open, without the doorbeing opened by the devotee, we cannot enter into the region. Guru-krsna-krpaya paya bhakti-lata-bija. Therefore the process is, as recommended by Srila Rupa Gosvami, adau gurvasrayam. You must select, you must accept the guru who's coming in parampara system. Evam parampara-praptam imam rajarsayo viduh. Sampradaya. That is recommended. We have got Vaisnava-sampradaya, four sampradaya: Ramanuja-sampradaya, Madhva-sampradaya, Nimbarka-sampradaya. So intelligent persons should select guru from these sampradayas and follow his instruction. Then the path of devotional service will be very easily opened. This is the way. Yes? Go on.

 

69-06-10.Muk Letter: Mukunda

The answer to your Istagosthi questions are as follows: Unless one is a resident of Krishna Loka, one cannot be a Spiritual Master. That is the first proposition. A layman cannot be a Spiritual Master, and if he becomes so then he will simply create disturbance. And who is a liberated person? One who knows Krishna. It is stated in BG, fourth chapter, anyone who knows Krishna in truth is immediately liberated, and after quitting the present body, he immediately goes to Krishna. That means he becomes a resident of Krishna Loka. As soon as one is liberated he is immediately a resident of Krishna Loka, and anyone who knows the truth of Krishna can become Spiritual Master. That is the version of Lord Caitanya. So to summarize the whole thing, it is to be understood that a bonafide Spiritual Master is a resident of Krishna Loka.

 

72-12-14.Tus Letter: Tusta Krsna

As for your next question, can only a few pure devotees deliver others, anyone, if he is a pure devotee he can deliver others, he can become spiritual master. But unless he on that platform he should not attempt it. Then both of them will to go to hell, like blind men leading the blind.

 

760812ed.teh Conversations

Prabhupada: The subject matter itself is difficult. Therefore ordinary persons or a little advanced person cannot understand. And unless one is fully aware of Krsna, one cannot become spiritual master. The subject matter itself is difficult. Therefore you don't find many spiritual masters. Go on.

 

Of course as all these direct quotes from Srila Prabhupada and hundreds of others as well completely contradict the current ISKCON "guru tattva." If you mention any of them in an ISKCON temple you risk being bashed, banned and called a "dirty stinking ritvik"...

 

No doubt our friends at the BBT are working to cleverly "correct" Srila Prabhupada's "errors" in this matter... Look for some "newly-discovered" tapes carefully reconstructed by the Bhaktivedanta Archives by extracting words, sentences and paragraphs from various places in Srila Prabhupada's teachings and carefully assembled by the BBT team on the BA's state-of-the-art digital editing equipment producing classes that Srila Prabhupada didn't actually ever give supporting the current GBC's bogus guru system... They have the technology... Also look for "new improved enlarged and revised" versions of Srila Prabhupada's books from the BBT reflecting the changing face of the absolute truth... Jayadvaita Swami's vision is every reprint should be a "new version" of the book with lots of changes and "improvements." I have personally heard him describe this vision at Mayapur some years ago and now we see it is becoming a fact... Of course every time you upgrade your BBT folio program be prepared to adjustto a "new version" of the absolute truth... Everything will be "just a little different" from the previous version... Of course in a few years the original ideas presented by Srila Prabhupada will be completely lost altogether...

 

Chant Hare Krishna and be happy! Please accept my humble obeisances at your lotus feet, thank you so much for reading this and please give me your blessings so I can somehow become a serious follower of Srila Prabhupada.

 

Your servant

Madhudvisa dasa

 

–––––––––––––––

 

If anyone can tell me about the author, point me in the direction of his whereabouts or provide contact info,I'd be grateful. Thanks.

[theist 1]

Ethos,

 

A nice article.The author has a web site that is located here http://krishna.org/

 

You will find more such articles there.He posts many of Prabhupada's lectures and is doing a nice service in many ways.

[ethos 0]

Theist, thankyou. I'm on my way.

[Guest guest]

A Brief Life Sketch of

Srila Gour Govinda Swami

 

Srila Gour Govinda Swami Maharaja made his appearance as Braja Bandhu Manik in a vaisnava family on 2nd September 1929. He appeared in the village of Jagannathapur, not far from Jagannath Puri Dham, in Orissa, India, but as his mother was descended from the Giri family of the village Gadeigiri, Braja Bandhu spent his childhood there. His grandfather was a paramahamsa whose only business was to chant Hare Krishna and cry before the local Deity of Krishna known as Gopal Jiu. He taught Braja Bandhu how to chant the Hare Krishna maha-mantra by counting on his fingers. In the company of his uncles, Braja Bandhu would travel from village to village chanting Hare Krishna and singing the songs of Narottam Das Thakur.

 

From the age of six, Braja Bandhu worshiped the Deity of Gopal by making garlands, and sometimes, under the light of a candle, by singing hymns for Him from palm-leaf manuscripts. He would never take any food that was not offered to Gopal.

 

By the age of eight he had read the entire Bhagavad-gita, Srimad Bhagavatam and Sri Caitanya-caritamrta and could also explain their meanings. At night many villagers would come to hear his recitation of the Bhagavata, Ramayana and Mahabharata. Thus from the very beginning of his life he was absorbed in chanting Krishna's holy name, studying vaisnava literature, and worshipping his beloved Gopal. Friends and relatives remember him as always being very quiet and introspective. He was never interested in playing with other boys or in going to see cinema shows or theatre.

 

After the death of his father in 1955, as the eldest son he became responsible for maintaining the family, and on the request of his widowed mother he entered the grhastha-asrama. He first met his wife, Srimati Vasanti Devi, during their marriage ceremony. Because of financial constraints he could not enroll formally in University courses, but he studied privately at night to attend the examinations, obtaining a B.A. degree from Utkal University with overall second highest marks on the exam. He later also obtained a B.Ed. degree in a similar way and took up the profession of a schoolteacher. Despite many responsibilities, however, his devotion to Gopal never slackened. He would daily rise at 3.30 a.m., chant the Hare Krishna maha-mantra, worship tulasi-devi, and speak to his family from the Bhagavad-gita. In school he would take every opportunity to speak to his students about Krishna and devotional principles. Some of his students would become his disciples thirty years later.

 

During school breaks he would take his wife and travel to the Himalayan mountains, visiting different tirthas and ashrams, and he would sometimes engage in philosophical debates with the mayavadis he found there.

 

On 8 April 1974, at the age of forty-five, Braja Bandhu left his home and relatives in search of spiritual perfection. Giving himself the name "Gour-Gopalananda Das" and carrying only a Bhagavad-gita and a begging bowl, he wandered around India, visiting many sacred places along the banks of the Ganges River. He was looking for his spiritual master, that person who could help him develop an understanding of the maha-mantra. Although he had met many sadhus and gurus during his householder days, Orissa has many prominent sects of Gaudiya Vaishnavas, he had not found any whose teachings sufficiently touched his heart. Still not finding his spiritual master after wandering in this way for one year, he eventually reached Vrindavan, thinking that his desire would certainly be fulfilled in Krishna's dear abode.

 

Two weeks after arriving in Vrindavan he saw a huge signboard which read, "International Society for Krishna Consciousness, Founder-Acharya His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada," and he met a group of Western devotees who gave him a copy of Back to Godhead magazine. When he read the contents describing the glory of divine love for Krishna, his heart became anxious to meet the founder of the movement, Srila Prabhupada. Gaining entrance to Srila Prabhupada's room, he introduced himself and the first question Srila Prabhupada asked was, "Have you taken sannyasa?" Gour-Gopalananda replied that he had not. "Then I will give you sannyasa!" exclaimed Srila Prabhupada. Understanding that Srila Prabhupada knew his heart, he surrendered himself at his lotus feet and soon became Prabhupada's initiated disciple.

 

In 1975, at the opening of ISKCON's Sri Sri Krishna-Balaram mandira in Vrindavan, Srila Prabhupada awarded him the sannyasa order, sending him to preach in Orissa and to construct a temple on the newly donated property in Bhubaneswar.

 

The donated land was a jungle full of mosquitoes, snakes and scorpions. It was so far from the city center that even during the daytime people were afraid to visit. Meditating on the desire of Srila Prabhupada, Gour Govinda Swami worked with unwavering determination. Sometimes residing in the storeroom of a tea dealer and even sometimes sharing a small hut with road construction workers, he began translating Srila Prabhupada's books into Oriya as he had been instructed. He would visit house after house, office after office, in and around Bhubaneswar to collect some small donations, and he constructed with his own hands a thatched hut on the donated property.

 

In early 1977 Srila Prabhupada came to Bhubaneswar. Although the arrangement had been made for him to stay comfortably in the State Guesthouse, Srila Prabhupada at once rejected this proposal, "I will only stay where my disciple child Gour Govinda has built a mud hut for me." Srila Prabhupada stayed in Bhubaneswar for seventeen days, during which time he started translation work on the tenth canto of Srimad Bhagavatam. On the auspicious occasion of Lord Nityananda's appearance day he laid the foundation stone of the temple-to-be, his last-founded project.

 

During a visit to Mayapur in 1979, Gour Govinda Swami was attending kirtana one day when he fell to the ground unconscious. He was carried back to his room followed by several ISKCON leaders and other concerned devotees. Doctors came to examine him but were unable to diagnose the cause of his condition. One person even suggested that he may have been possessed by a ghost. Finally, Akinchana Krishnadas Babaji Maharaja, a godbrother of Srila Prabhupada, explained that Gour Govinda Swami was manifesting the symptoms of bhava, the advanced stage of ecstatic love of God.

 

When he returned to Bhubaneswar he became even more absorbed in the mission of his spiritual master. Some western devotees had been sent there to assist him, but most of them could not tolerate the austere conditions. They were amazed to see how he was never disturbed, how he would eat only once a day, and how he would never sleep. He would simply preach, chant, and write in his notebooks both day and night.

 

Following Srila Prabhupada's order, Gour Govinda Maharaja preached vigorously all over the land of Orissa. The simple .-yatra festivals and nama-hatta programs that he started have helped hundreds and thousands of people in the ancient land of Lord Chaitanya's pastimes discover their spiritual roots and take up the chanting of the maha-mantra:

 

hare krishna hare krishna krishna krishna hare hare

hare rama hare rama rama rama hare hare

 

Srila Prabhupada gave Gour Govinda Swami three principal instructions: to translate his books from English into Oriya, to build the temple in Bhubaneswar, and to preach all over the world. Carrying out these instructions was Gour Govinda Swami's life and soul. He had a strict policy of not eating until he had completed his quota of translation for the day. Devotees would be struck to see how even after undergoing long international flights Gour Govinda Swami would always insist upon first doing the translation work given him by his spiritual master before he would eat or sleep. This was a practice he maintained up to his very last day.

 

In 1985 Srila Gour Govinda Swami first traveled overseas for preaching. He had so much enthusiasm for speaking krishna-katha that he continued this every year for the following eleven years, despite a crippling leg injury and great personal inconvenience.

 

Although he was always very meek and humble in his personal dealings, in his classes on Srimad Bhagavatam he would roar like a lion, smashing the pride and cutting the misconceptions from the hearts of his listeners. Krsna-katha was his life and soul. He would often say, "The day that goes by without krsna-katha, that is a very bad day." In the course of his lecturing he would inevitably burst into song, nourishing everyone with the devotional sentiments of joy, humility and surrender as expressed in the prayers of Srila Bhaktivinode Thakur and other acaryas.

 

Gour Govinda Swami's knowledge of scripture was formidable. He would substantiate everything he said with evidence from all over the Vedic literature. Sometimes he would question a disciple and if the disciple could not answer with reference to the scriptures he would immediately exclaim, "He is a cheater! Don&'t be a crooked person. A vaisnava quotes authority."

 

In this way Gour Govinda Swami always preached fearlessly, never compromising the conclusions of the scripture in the name of being practical. "One who cannot see Krishna," he would say, "is a blind man. He may speak about Krishna, but in his mind he is speculating. Therefore his words will never be effective. A real sadhu never speaks theoretically."

 

Gour Govinda Maharaja always kept a diary, making daily entries without fail. Each entry would conclude in the same way: "Whatever service this servant has performed today, Gopal knows." Every day he would pray to Gopal in his diary, "Please give me the association of like-minded devotees."

 

In 1991, on Rama Navami, the auspicious appearance day of Lord Ramachandra, after sixteen years of determined endeavor, Gour Govinda Maharaja fulfilled the instruction of his beloved spiritual master Srila Prabhupada by opening the magnificent Sri Sri Krishna-Balaram temple in Bhubaneswar. Since that time the Sri Sri Krishna-Balaram mandira has grown into a flourishing project that every year attracts hundreds of thousands of visitors.

 

He never gave up his simple lifestyle. Until his last days he continued to live in the small mud hut next to the one he had built for Srila Prabhupada in 1977. Several times he was requested by devotees to expand his managerial responsibilities, but he always refused, saying, "I am not a manager, I am a preacher." However, when the land in Gadeigiri, where he spent his childhood and where his beloved Gopal resided in a simple structure, was donated to ISKCON, he did take up the responsibility of one more project, that of building Gopal a magnificent temple.

 

Gour Govinda Swami said, "I have opened a crying school here in Bhubaneswar. Unless we cry for Krishna, we cannot get His mercy." This was the message he preached so vigorously all over the world during the last ten years of his manifest pastimes.

 

In late January, 1996, he mentioned, "Srila Bhaktisiddhanta said that this material world is not a fit place for any gentleman. Therefore, because he was disgusted, he left this world prematurely. I may also leave. I don't know. Let me ask Gopal. I will do whatever He wants." The next day Gour Govinda Swami went to Gadeigiri to see his Gopal. After returning, for the next four days he preached more powerfully than ever to thousands of people who flocked to the Prabhupada Centennial festival in Bhubaneswar. Then he left for the annual ISKCON management meetings in Sridham Mayapur.

 

On 9 February 1996, the holy appearance day of Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Saraswati Thakur, two senior ISKCON devotees requested an appointment in the early evening to see Gour Govinda Maharaja. They had never spoken personally with him before but had become very eager to hear from him after reading some of his books. They inquired, "Why did Chaitanya Mahaprabhu stay in Jagannath Puri?" Delighted by their question, he began to explain the confidential significance of Mahaprabhu's pastimes in Puri. He lovingly described the pain of separation felt by Radha and Krishna when Krishna was away from Vrindavan. This moving pastime appears in chapter eight of The Embankment of Separation. Enchanting all the devotees in his room with the nectarean topics of Krishna, he gradually unfolded the pastime to the point where Radha and Krishna were finally united after Their long separation. He described how Krishna became so ecstatic upon seeing Radharani that He manifested a form with big round eyes and shrunken limbs, Lord Jagannath. At that time the devotees noticed that tears had come to his eyes and his voice had become choked up. Barely audibly, he said, "Then the eyes of Krishna fell upon the eyes of Radharani. Eye-to-eye union." Unable to continue, he apologized with folded hands, "Please excuse me. I cannot speak." He then gave his final instruction: "Kirtana! Kirtana!" The devotees present began to chant as their spiritual master calmly lay back on his bed, breathing slowly and deeply. A servant placed a picture of Gopal Jiu in his hand. Then, gazing lovingly at that picture of his worshipable Deity, Gour Govinda Swami called out, "Gopal!" and departed for the spiritual sky to be united with his beloved Lord.

 

Every day before Srimad Bhagavatam class, Gour Govinda Swami would sing an Orissan song he had learned as a boy. Now his prayer was fulfilled:

 

paramananda he madhava

padungaluci makaranda

 

se-makaranda pana-kari

anande bolo "hari hari"

 

harinka name vanda vela

pari karibe caka-dola

 

se-caka-dolanka-payare

mana-mo rahu nirantare

 

mana mo nirantare rahu

"ha-krsna" boli jiva jau

 

ha-krsna boli jau jiva

mote udhara radha-dhava

 

mote udhara radha-dhava

mote udhara radha-dhava

 

"O supremely blissful Madhava! The nectar is coming from Your lotus feet. Drinking that nectar, I blissfully sing "Hari! Hari!" Taking the name of Hari, I am binding a raft on which Lord Jagannath will ferry me across this ocean of material existence. May my mind always remain at the lotus feet of that Lord Jagannath who has very large round eyes. In this way, I call out, "Alas! Krishna" and give up my life. O husband of Radharani, please deliver me."

 

[theist 1]

This is a very nice contribution. I had the good fortune to receive his darshan some years ago when he came to my area for a couple of weeks.

 

He struck me as a very gentle and unpretentious Vaisnava.

 

ps this is the third place I have seen this article on this site. No need for such repetitive posting. Put it up once and everyone will read it.

 

Hare Krsna

[livingentity 0]

You are so fortunate Theist!!

 

Have you read any of His books? They are wonderful!!

[theist 1]

it was good fortune. I remember how I felt like an inexperienced child during his lectures. He was encouraging without being in the least condenscending. One thing that really stuck in mind was him softly imploring the audience to not hate their parents or turn against them just because they ate meat.

 

Again the thing that really stood out to me is how he never solicted or subtly demanded honor from anyone.

 

No I haven't read any of his books.

 

I will though. Where should I start?

[livingentity 0]

that I have read by Him are:

 

Sri Guru-vandana..the worship of Sri Guru.

and

Guru Makes Krsna Appear in Your Heart.

 

HDG Gour Govinda Swami Maharajas books have the same mood that you have described of feeling around Him. There is a softness - a comforting and loving feeling in His writing.

 

However, please do not misinterpret my definition of the feeling of softness (I do not know how else to describe). His preaching is strong and pure.

 

Now I am going to re-read these books! Hare Krsna!!

[stonehearted 0]

I met GGS on several occasions; my older daughter was attracted to the idea of accepting initiation fromhim for a while. After watching for a bit, she saw how he was often surrounded by a knot of adoring disciples, and that kind of scene discouraged her. She has actually been looking for someone who can give her the personal guidance she needs to advance and eventually realize her potential as a servant of Mahaprabhu.

 

This post is nice, but it's posted in seven threads. That kind of aggressiveness can be offputting.

[Kulapavana 0]

I just run across this article and find it somewhat disturbing and biased at best. While ISKCON guru system (especially it's past form) leaves a lot to be desired, one should avoid demonizing the issue and concocting bogus arguments. Just for starters:

 

"For most accepting a bogus ISKCON guru is the end of their spiritual life"

 

What kind of foolishness is that? Why would Krishna allow a sincere seeker "end their spiritual life" through running into a bogus guru? That runs both contrary to philosophy and common experience. People run into bogus teachers all the time. If they are sincere, they will learn from it and keep on making progress. If they are not sincere, there is little loss.

 

"Most of us are demons"

 

Not true at all, and very offensive as well. If the author considers himself a demon, he should shut up and stop trying to instruct others. That would be REAL humility.

 

 

How can you have any confidence in the rest of that article? Like I usually say in these debates: unless you are a real expert in these matters - mind you own matha's business!