So every Vaiṣṇava, every devotee of Kṛṣṇa, pure devotee of Kṛṣṇa, is a paramahaṁsa. So you, we are teaching people to become immediately paramahaṁsa, highest stage of sannyāsa. And the method is simply chanting Hare Kṛṣṇa. You see? The post is paramahaṁsa. Vaiṣṇava. Vaiṣṇava means paramahaṁsa. He's above brāhmaṇa, above sannyāsa. But we must be real Vaiṣṇava. Vaiṣṇava means ānukūlyena kṛṣṇānuśīlanam (CC Madhya 19.167). Anyābhilāṣitā-śūnyam (Brs. 1.1.11). There is no other desire, material desire. Desire means material desire, this contaminated desire. It does not mean that we shall not desire to become Kṛṣṇa conscious. That desire is real desire. And any other desire, anyābhilāṣitā, for some material benefit, that is not required. But if we can keep ourself without any material desire, without any propensity for enjoying fruitive result... "I am doing something, I must enjoy this result. I must be enjoyer." This is called jñāna-karma. "Oh, I must try to understand Kṛṣṇa by my speculative method." Why? Kṛṣṇa is explaining Himself. Why don't you try to understand Him in that way? Nonsense. (chuckling) What speculative power you have got? Simply you'll commit blunder.
Real Vaisnava
Sri Caitanya-caritamrta
CC Adi-lila
Taking advantage of these verses, there are some sahajiyās who, taking everything very cheaply, consider themselves elevated Vaiṣṇavas but do not care even to touch the Vedānta-sūtra or Vedānta philosophy. A real Vaiṣṇava should, however, study Vedānta philosophy, but if after studying Vedānta one does not adopt the chanting of the holy name of the Lord, he is no better than a Māyāvādī. Therefore, one should not be a Māyāvādī, yet one should not be unaware of the subject matter of Vedānta philosophy. Indeed, Caitanya Mahāprabhu exhibited His knowledge of Vedānta in His discourses with Prakāśānanda Sarasvatī. Thus it is to be understood that a Vaiṣṇava should be completely conversant with Vedānta philosophy, yet he should not think that studying Vedānta is all in all and therefore be unattached to the chanting of the holy name. A devotee must know the importance of simultaneously understanding Vedānta philosophy and chanting the holy names. If by studying Vedānta one becomes an impersonalist, he has not been able to understand Vedānta. This is confirmed in the Bhagavad-gītā (15.15). Vedānta means "the end of knowledge." The ultimate end of knowledge is knowledge of Kṛṣṇa, who is identical with His holy name. Cheap Vaiṣṇavas (sahajiyās) do not care to study the Vedānta philosophy as commented upon by the four ācāryas. In the Gauḍīya-sampradāya there is a Vedānta commentary called the Govinda-bhāṣya, but the sahajiyās consider such commentaries to be untouchable philosophical speculation, and they consider the ācāryas to be mixed devotees. Thus they clear their way to hell.
CC Madhya-lila
This behavior is indicative of real Vaiṣṇavas. When they saw that Rūpa and Sanātana were fortunate enough to receive the mercy of the Lord, they were so pleased that they all congratulated the two brothers. A jealous person in the dress of a Vaiṣṇava is not at all happy to see the success of another Vaiṣṇava in receiving the Lord's mercy. Unfortunately, in this Age of Kali there are many mundane persons in the dress of Vaiṣṇavas, and Śrīla Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura has described them as disciples of Kali. He says, kali-celā. He indicates that there is another Vaiṣṇava, a pseudo Vaiṣṇava with tilaka on his nose and kaṇṭhī beads around his neck. Such a pseudo Vaiṣṇava associates with money and women and is jealous of successful Vaiṣṇavas. Although passing for a Vaiṣṇava, his only business is earning money in the dress of a Vaiṣṇava. Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura therefore says that such a pseudo Vaiṣṇava is not a Vaiṣṇava at all but a disciple of Kali-yuga. A disciple of Kali cannot become an ācārya by the decision of some high-court. Mundane votes have no jurisdiction to elect a Vaiṣṇava ācārya. A Vaiṣṇava ācārya is self-effulgent, and there is no need for any court judgment. A false ācārya may try to override a Vaiṣṇava by a high-court decision, but Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura says that he is nothing but a disciple of Kali-yuga.
Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu would certainly not have liked to hear about marital dealings unless such dealings were exchanged between two Vaiṣṇavas. Marriage arrangements and ceremonies belong to ordinary material karma-kāṇḍa sections of the scriptures. The Vaiṣṇavas, however, are not interested in any kind of karma-kāṇḍa dealings. Śrīla Narottama dāsa Ṭhākura says: karma-kāṇḍa jñāna-kāṇḍa kevala viṣera bhāṇḍa. For a Vaiṣṇava, the karma-kāṇḍa and jñāna-kāṇḍa sections of the Vedas are unnecessary. Indeed, a real Vaiṣṇava takes these sections as a poison pot (viṣera bhāṇḍa). Sometimes we take part in a marriage ceremony for our disciples, but this does not mean that we are interested in karma-kāṇḍa activities. Sometimes, not knowing the Vaiṣṇava philosophy, an outsider criticizes such activity, maintaining that a sannyāsī should not take part in a marriage ceremony between a young boy and a young girl. However, this is not a karma-kāṇḍa activity, because our purpose is to spread the Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement. We are giving all facility to the general populace to take to Kṛṣṇa consciousness, and in order to fix the devotees in concentration on the service of the Lord, marriage is sometimes allowed. We have experienced that such married couples actually render very important service to the mission. Therefore, one should not misunderstand when a sannyāsī takes part in a marriage ceremony. Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu and Nityānanda Prabhu took great pleasure in hearing about the marriage ceremony between the young brāhmaṇa and the daughter of the elderly brāhmaṇa.
CC Antya-lila
In his statement, Jhaḍu Ṭhākura presents himself as being born in a low-caste family and not having the qualifications of a bona fide devotee of Lord Kṛṣṇa. He accepts the statements declaring a lowborn person highly exalted if he is a Vaiṣṇava. However, he feels that these descriptions from Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam appropriately describe others, but not himself. Jhaḍu Ṭhākura's attitude is quite befitting a real Vaiṣṇava, for a Vaiṣṇava never considers himself exalted, even if he factually is. He is always meek and humble and never thinks that he is an advanced devotee. He assigns himself to a lower position, but that does not mean he is indeed low. Sanātana Gosvāmī once said that he belonged to a low-caste family, for although he was born in a brāhmaṇa family, he had associated with mlecchas and yavanas in his service as a government minister. Similarly, Jhaḍu Ṭhākura presented himself as someone who belonged to a low caste, but he was actually elevated above many persons born in brāhmaṇa families. Not only is there evidence for this in Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, as quoted by Kālidāsa in verses 26 and 27, but there is also considerable evidence for this conclusion in other śāstras.
Lectures
Srimad-Bhagavatam Lectures
Prahlāda Mahārāja, he said to Nṛsiṁhadeva, "My Lord," na udvije, "I am not at all in anxiety." Na udvije. Para: "You are transcendental." Naivodvije para duratyaya-vaitaraṇyās. Duratyaya means very difficult to cross over. Vaitaraṇyā, vaitaraṇi, the nescience, ocean of nescience. "Why you are not afraid of?" Tvad-vīrya-gāyana-mahāmṛta-magna cittaḥ: "Because I am now Kṛṣṇa conscious, and as soon as I hear the glories of Your wonderful activities, I become merged in it. So I have no problem." "Then you appear to be little unhappy. Why?" "No," śoce, "I am very much aggrieved." "Why?" Tato vimukha-cetasa: "For these rascals who do not take to Kṛṣṇa consciousness. I am thinking of them. Instead of taking to Kṛṣṇa consciousness, they are busy in māyā-sukhāya, māyā, this temporary, little temporary happiness. They are making big, big program. He will live for fifty years, but he is making program for five millions of years. So I am...," śoce, "I am actually lamenting for them." This is Vaiṣṇava. Vaiṣṇava is not very anxious or unhappy for his personal affair. He knows that "Everywhere I will be protected by Kṛṣṇa," so he has no problem. Therefore real Vaiṣṇava, he wants to deliver all these fallen souls from this miserable condition of life. So Parīkṣit Mahārāja is Vaiṣṇava. His first attention was drawn to the persons in the hellish planet. They are suffering. He questioned, "How they can be saved?" That is his concern. This is Vaiṣṇava.
Nectar of Devotion Lectures
Acyutānanda: Well, as you say, if everyone became Kṛṣṇa conscious, then how would the world go on?
Prabhupāda: Eh?
Acyutānanda: If everybody started chanting Hare Kṛṣṇa, then how, how would we eat?
Revatīnandana: Who would run the factories?
Prabhupāda: So that means the world as it is going on, it is a necessity. Do you think like that? This world, as it is going on, fighting one another, killing one another, stealing one's property and... Do you think that this order of things must go on? Just like the..., it is a proposal when everyone becomes honest, how the prison house will go on? It will be stopped. That's a great anxiety. Do you think the prison house, there is necessity that it will go on? That answer was given by Caitanya Mahāprabhu that... Vāsudeva Datta proposed, "My dear Lord, You have come. You take all the sinful persons from this world. Let them be delivered, as You have personally come. So if You think they're so sinful, they cannot be taken back to home, back to Godhead, then I take all their sins. You take them only." That was his offer. Vaiṣṇava. Vaiṣṇava thinks like that, that he may remain in the hell, but by Kṛṣṇa consciousness everyone may be delivered. That is real Vaiṣṇava. Para-duḥkha-duḥkhī. Vaiṣṇava is unhappy by seeing others unhappy. Para-duḥkha-duḥkhī. So Caitanya Mahāprabhu replied that "Suppose I take all the living entities of this universe, and still there are so many other universes. This universe is just like one mustard seed in the bag of mustard seeds." So you do not think that everyone will become Kṛṣṇa conscious. You don't be, I mean to say, agitated with this thought: "The prison house will be closed." No. It will go on. The business will go on. It is not so easy that everyone should... But if some percentage of people take to Kṛṣṇa consciousness, leading men, then it will be... You, you... They'll follow. Yad yad ācarati śreṣṭhas lokas tad anuvartate (BG 3.21). You, you do not think that the bad habits of people, non-Kṛṣṇa conscious, will stop altogether. No. That is not possible. One hasn't got to think over this. It will go on, side by side. Because this is material world. Māyā. Māyā is very strong. Daivī hi eṣā guṇamayī. But those who are taken shelter of Kṛṣṇa, for them, there is no unhappiness. Viśvaṁ pūrṇaṁ sukhāyate. For them, the whole world becomes happy. There is no question of distress.
So brahma, nirbheda brahmānusandhana. But a devotee, his happiness is different. Just like Caitanya Mahāprabhu said: na dhanaṁ na janaṁ na sundarīṁ kavitāṁ vā jagadīśa kāmaye (Cc. Antya 20.29, Śikṣāṣṭaka 4). We do not want this. Mama janmani janmanīśvare bhavatād bhaktir ahaitukī tvayi. A Vaiṣṇava does not desire even liberation, what to speak of dhanam, janam, rūpavatī bhāryā. That is real Vaiṣṇava. He wants simply Kṛṣṇa, to serve Him. That's... Anyābhilāṣitā... So that happiness is perfect happiness. That is real śānti. Real śānti. Caitanya-caritāmṛta therefore says, bhukti-mukti-siddhi-kāmī sakali aśānta. Bhukti means karmīs, simply wanting, possess. That, that possessing labor is also another aśānti, to struggle to possess. So he's aśānta. Mukti, he wants to become God, one with God. And kṛccha sādhana, austerities, penance, so many things he has to do—meditation—just to become God. So that is also troublesome. Where is śānti?
Conversations and Morning Walks
1973 Conversations and Morning Walks
Bali Mardana: You are more merciful than any of them, Prabhupāda. You have come to the western countries.
Prabhupāda: Hare Kṛṣṇa. Yes, Vaiṣṇava is, if one man is real Vaiṣṇava. Just like see Jesus Christ. It is said that he took everyone's sins and he was crucified. So how much merciful he is, just see. But these rascals have taken, that "Let us go on committing sinful activities, and Christ has taken contract. He will suffer. And we shall do this." Such rascals. You see. They say that "Our Christian religion is so good that even we commit sinful acts, Christ will suffer, we shall not suffer." Just see.
1976 Conversations and Morning Walks
Prabhupāda: Yes. He was inviting so many saintly persons. That is the old system, to receive saintly person.
Hṛdayānanda: Śrīla Prabhupāda, you said that you were not so much impressed by the saintly persons that were coming.
Prabhupāda: Yes.
Hṛdayānanda: Why was that?
Prabhupāda: Not all of them were real Vaiṣṇava. That was my discrimination from the beginning of my life. I never liked these bogus swamis and yogis. I never liked. But my father had no discrimination. "Never mind whatever he is. He is a saintly person. Receive him." He was giving fortnightly... There was one Māyāvādī sannyāsī in Kālīghāṭa. So first of all the father was sannyāsī. Then his son was sannyāsī. So we had very good relationship with him. I also used to... Because father was going... So he would carry gāñjā for him—in those days gāñjā was very cheap—so much gāñjā and so much butter. Whenever he would visit, he'd give some red cloth, gāñjā, and butter.
Hari-śauri: Śrīla Prabhupāda, if one serves the higher devotees and shows compassion to less advanced devotees, then where is the question, say, for a position of an advanced devotee who is feeling himself to be the lowest? So is that distinction still there of higher and lower? If he is feeling himself to be the lowest?
Prabhupāda: He does not feel lowest. He takes sympathy that "Here is a person. He can be a devotee. So let me raise him to the standard." He does not think that he is lowest. Devotee always thinks that he is lower than the worm. But it is the duty. It is the duty. It does not mean that he is thinking, "I am higher." No.
Guru dāsa: That's again mercy.
Prabhupāda: Mercy.
Puṣṭa Kṛṣṇa: In other words, he doesn't consider that he's advanced and that therefore he is showing mercy to lower.
Prabhupāda: Yes. Yes. He is always thinking, "I am lower than the worm, but Lord Kṛṣṇa wants, so let me do some service. That's all."
Guru dāsa: That is our occupation, to show mercy to others.
Prabhupāda: Yes.
Ātreya Ṛṣi: And amongst devotees, Godbrothers, an advanced devotee is one who sees that "Everybody is serving Kṛṣṇa so nicely..."
Prabhupāda: Yes.
Ātreya Ṛṣi: "...so let me assist them."
Prabhupāda: Yes.
Ātreya Ṛṣi: "Let me facilitate their service."
Prabhupāda: Yes. Therefore we say prabhu. Prabhu means "You are my master. Please order me. What can I do for you?" That should be the attitude. (break) ..."Guru dāsa Prabhu, please come here and brush my shoes." (laughter) What kind of prabhu? He should say, "Guru dāsa Prabhu, can I brush your shoes?" That is real Vaiṣṇava, not that "Guru dāsa Prabhu, come here and brush my shoes." Other devotees, they do not come for morning class?
Prabhupāda: Yes, yes. So everything should be for Vāsudeva. And he is first-class wise man who knows vāsudevaḥ sarvam iti sa mahātmā... (BG 7.19).
Dr. Patel: Sudurlabhaḥ.
Prabhupāda: Yes. But such kind of intelligent person is very rare.
Dr. Patel: Vāsudevaḥ sarvam iti (BG 7.19), sir, you get actually when you become the real Vaiṣṇava, because then you see the presence of God in every inanimate and animate object.
Prabhupāda: Yes, that is...
Dr. Patel: That is real Vaiṣṇava. Otherwise you are not.
Prabhupāda: That is a fact. Without Vāsudeva, without Kṛṣṇa's order.... Mayādhyakṣeṇa (BG 9.10). Everything is being done under His superintendence. Mayādhyakṣeṇa. Even in the prakṛti, aparā and parā... There are two prakṛtis. So even in aparā-prakṛti there is superintendence of Kṛṣṇa.
Prabhupāda: Kṛṣṇa consciousness is not a lazy life. It is not lazy life. All Kṛṣṇa conscious, Rāma conscious, they are very busy. To speak, even the Hanumān, Jambavān, Aṅgada, they are monkeys, still how they were busy, from the history we find, to serve Kṛṣṇa, Rāmacandra. Hare Kṛṣṇa. I was questioned by some gentleman sometimes in 1940. He charged that the Vaiṣṇava, "This Vaiṣṇava means a lazy fellow." He said like that. (laughs) So I said, "You have never seen a Vaiṣṇava." I told him, "You have never seen a Vaiṣṇava." "No, I have seen these Vaiṣṇavas. They do not do anything and taking mālā and pretending to be very highly elevated and sleep and snore." That's... You have seen... "But you have not seen. You might have seen these pseudo-Vaiṣṇavas, but real Vaiṣṇava you have not seen." "What is that real Vaiṣṇava?" And I said that in India there were two big wars. One war was the Rāma-Rāvaṇa, and another war Kurukṣetra. So in these two wars, the hero is Vaiṣṇava. One is Hanumān and another is Arjuna. Have you seen them? Have you heard about them? Are they lazy fellows? Hanumān is Vaiṣṇava. He could raise one mountain and jump over the sea and set fire in the very beautiful state of Rāvaṇa. This is Vaiṣṇava. This is Vaiṣṇava. And Arjuna, he was in the beginning hesitating that "My cousin-brothers, the other side..." (end)
1977 Conversations and Morning Walks
Rāmeśvara: But it helps all the citizens if the devotees are ruling the kingdom.
Prabhupāda: Yes. Yes. That is wanted. Therefore, if we become strong, we shall take over charge of government. It is not that we are entering into politics. We must! That is also one of the items of Kṛṣṇa consciousness. People are misguided. Śoce tato vimukha-cetasaḥ. They are being induced to remain in ignorance. Therefore we want, make our plan. Śoce: "I am thinking very seriously how to save them." Prahlāda Mahārāja says. That is Vaiṣṇava's business. Para-duḥkha-duḥkhi. "They are suffering." That is Vaiṣṇava, real Vaiṣṇava, not that "Now I am realized soul, sit down and..." That is also good, but better business is to think for others. That is stated in the Bhāgavatam. Ya idaṁ paramaṁ guhyaṁ mad-bhakteṣu... (Bg 18.68), na ca tasmād. If you want to be really very dear to Kṛṣṇa, you must preach this philosophy vigorously, not that "I have got it. Who is going to take so much botheration? Let me sit down." Kṛṣṇa... Who can be better devotee than Arjuna? And why did he... He was, rather, avoiding the botheration. Kṛṣṇa said, "No. You must take the botheration." He chastised him, kutas tva kaśmalam idaṁ viṣame. "Rascal, what is this? You must take. You have to take this botheration." On this principle, at the age of seventy years, I took all the botheration—"All right." The other friends were thinking that "This man is going to die, and he is going to preach." (laughing) They said like that. And "All right. I shall die, I shall die for Kṛṣṇa's cause." So we have to face so many problems, botherations. That is natural. We should not be afraid of this.
Correspondence
1974 Correspondence
A real Vaisnava, of course, will never say that he is superior to anyone. He will say that he is the lowest of the living entities. If he says that he is superior then actually he is not superior. You mentioned in your previous letter about this person being sexually agitated. If there is agitation in the mind then there is no fault. Actually this is only natural in this material world, unless the mind is fully purified in Krsna Consciousness. But by engaging in devotional service gradually the mind will become purified and the agitation will vanish. So if there is simply agitation in the mind there is no fault. But if there is indulgence in sex fault, then there is big fault. If one engages in illicit sex life he has broken the promise to the spiritual master and that is a great offense.
| Page Title: | Real Vaisnava |
| Compiler: | Visnu Murti |
| Created: | 28 of Aug, 2008 |
| Totals by Section: | BG=0, SB=0, CC=4, OB=0, Lec=4, Con=6, Let=1 |
| No. of Quotes: | 15 |