G S Senan: HARE KRSNA!
\nMy dear Senthil Prabhu, Dandavats.
\nALL GLORIES TO PARAMGURU SRILA GOUR GOVINDA SWAMI MAHASAYA.<\/p>\n
On the topic of not disturbing Gauranga\u2019s Radha-bhava mood, you rightly wondered:- \u201cRegarding your message to the GBC secretariat and others (this refers to my email of 6th April 2002 to HG Adipurusa das, ISKCON Temple President of Sri Sri Gaura-Nitai Temple in Telok Intan, Malaysia, copied to all), I wonder if the \u2018advanced devotees\u2019 can understand the philosophy of Mahaprabhu\u2019s mood.\u201d<\/p>\n
Here are some distasteful FACTS that are unpalatable only to those who THINK they are \u2018devotees\u2019, or worse, \u2018advanced devotees\u2019. Most of us, especially in the more than 99.99 percent Kali-infested Hare Krsna movement, are only PRETENDING to be devotees. Quoting sastra and acaryas, Srila Gurudev warns, \u201cIf you even THINK you are a devotee, you are definitely NOT!!\u201d Very Grave are the consequences.<\/p>\n
So, is it any wonder that ALL OUR ISKCON PROBLEMS (too numerous to enumerate here) are due to this stupid belief that we are DEVOTEES, or ADVANCED DEVOTEES?<\/p>\n
Regarding Mahaprabhu\u2019s vipralambha mood being disturbed UNINTENTIONALLY by people of INNOCENT IGNORANCE AND SENTIMENTAL FEELINGS, I quoted Srila Gurudeva, Srila Prabhupada and Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura. With total FAITH in them, accepting their FULLY REALIZED words, I only have the small ability and deep faith to ACCEPT their advice as CORRECT.<\/p>\n
The problem is that most of us have so-called intelligent but actually MUDDLED ideas about the ascending terms: [1] ACCEPT, [2] KNOW, [3] UNDERSTAND, [4] EXPERIENCE, [5] REALIZE, [6] TASTE, [7]TRUTH, [8] ABSOLUTE TRUTH, and so on, to higher and higher levels. Each step leads to the next, but the gaps between the steps are EXCEPTIONALLY WIDE AND INSURMOUNTABLE for most of us.<\/p>\n
The fact is, if we are HONEST with ourselves, MOST of us are NOT ready to even ACCEPT\u2026 (the very first step!)\u2026 all that we hear from sastra and acaryas, except whatever is easy or palatable. We are guilty of \u201cpicking and choosing\u201d! This first step of ACCEPTANCE can only start with SRADDHA or FAITH, total and unquestioning.<\/p>\n
Step2, to KNOW, is even more difficult. Only TOTAL FAITH can achieve this, starting with superficial knowledge, and slowly advancing to deeper knowledge with deeper faith. With HUMILITY we\u2019ll be able to acknowledge that 1st to 2nd step is TOO BIG A LEAP FORWARD FOR MOST OF US, so what to speak of the remaining numerous steps?…<\/p>\n
Step 3, to UNDERSTAND, is not at all possible by almost anyone. (Your question touched on THIS word, right?) Srila Gurudeva often emphasizes this point more or less thus:-
\n\u201cAare baba, WHAT can you UNDERSTAND? NOTHING! You are all fallen souls, nitya baddhas, mlecchas, yavanas, mudhas. You CANNOT UNDERSTAND. First ACCEPT\u2026with total FAITH. Then, only with Guru\u2019s mercy, you can slowly begin to UNDERSTAND. NOT OTHERWISE, NO, NOT OTHERWISE!\u201d<\/p>\n
So you can see what a HUGE STEP, A QUANTUM LEAP, it is to advance from Step 2 to Step 3, ESPECIALLY when people in general within and without ISKCON are plain reluctant to take even the FIRST step of simple ACCEPTANCE!! Yet our very own life-giving, life sustaining ISKCON is, alas, full of nonsense people who only choose to \u2018ACCEPT\u2019, \u2018KNOW\u2019 and \u2018UNDERSTAND\u2019 whatever their minds dictate, without any UNIFORMITY or CONFORMITY even among themselves! They trap themselves in whatever they PREFER, according to the dictates of their own whims and fancies, trapped in mahamaya\u2019s mystical myths and meaningless mental meanderings, NOT mindful of mahajanas\u2019 messages and Mahaprabhu\u2019s moods, magnanimity, munificence and mercies\u2026mmmmmm? Think about it\u2026. <\/p>\n
We don\u2019t want to accept the first step, which is to ACCEPT the statements of FULLY REALIZED acaryas who KNOW sastra to the hilt.<\/p>\n
So naturally we cannot know Step 2 which is to KNOW what they say, as we have proudly, foolishly, put it out of our reach. <\/p>\n
Then how can anyone ever understand the 3rd Step which is to UNDERSTAND their words? Even stupid, so-called \u2018advanced devotees\u2019, \u2018senior devotees\u2019 etc, who even call themselves \u201cVAISNAVAS\u201d (!!), holding big, big posts, molly-coddled by equally dull-headed goons misguided into believing they are also great \u2018devotees\u2019, all the way up the slippery ladder to the mobsters desecrating our dearest Srila Prabhupada\u2019s otherwise pristine GBC and beyond, think they KNOW, and even UNDERSTAND anything and everything!! They DON\u2019T! Hence, all the nasty problems in ISKCON, for, un-reined thinking is the activity of the wicked mind. <\/p>\n
The next progressive Steps 4, 5, 6, etc, are not within our scope of contemplation even. Without Sad-Guru\u2019s and Gauranga\u2019s merciful intervention, NONE of these SUPER-TRANSCENDENTAL STEPS is within our grasp for aeons of light-years to come!<\/p>\n
One other response I received orally says that the problem raised by me will sound VERY PETTY to most people. Yes, we cannot dispute it. It sounds like a small matter to most of us. But mahajanas are telling us it IS a GRAVE matter. Our dearest Gurudeva is telling us the same thing with all seriousness. So is it a small matter to be ignored? Certainly not! Will our silence be of benefit to ourselves and to others? Should we be afraid to speak about such eye-openers though they may seem petty to most of us, if it can benefit all?…or some?…or even ONE? Should we side-line Srila Prabhupada\u2019s definition of TRUTH, SATYAM, which he says must be spoken, even if unpalatable, \u201cfor the benefit of others\u201d as emphasized by him thrice in BG 10.4-5?
\nNo. no. no. Silence means complicity. It also means cowardice.<\/p>\n
Granted, I\u2019m petty and I KNOW nothing. That does not mean I cannot ACCEPT Srila Gurudeva\u2019s profound words and repeat them. Then, even if no one cares, I can only blame myself because I don\u2019t have the potency to have even my parrot-fashion repetitions of great acaryas\u2019 words heard, accepted, etc, by my listeners or readers, especially when they think they already know better.
\nBut\u2026this is a BIG BUT\u2026, and an even bigger IF\u2026.yes, IF, miraculously, even a SINGLE person\u2026it may even be an incorrigible sudra like me myself\u2026benefits, it\u2019s OK, don\u2019t you agree?<\/p>\n
The only danger to our own selves is to think that, in spite of the gravity of our Pranadhana Gurudeva\u2019s words, the topic is too petty for us to concern ourselves with, or to repeat to others. Both minimize him. That\u2019s FATAL. It is GURU-NINDA, VAISNAVA-APARADHA.. Knowing this, it is not my business to even think of success or failure before I do what is needful. The result is entirely upto Guru and Gauranga, and belongs only to Them.<\/p>\n
So Senthil Prabhu, it is futile to wonder if \u201cadvanced devotees\u201d can UNDERSTAND the philosophy of Mahaprabhu\u2019s mood. It\u2019s just a matter of different lengths of time. All WILL UNDERSTAND in the end\u2026even if it takes countless lifetimes. After all, 100,000 years of our earthly time is only ONE SECOND of Lord Brahma\u2019s time! Have we no patience to pass many tens or hundreds of Brahma\u2019s mere seconds before we can UNDERSTAND TATTVA VICAR and then qualify to start real devotional service?<\/p>\n
Begging forgiveness for any offences committed in this topic that I\u2019m neither qualified nor authorized to delve into,<\/p>\n
Ami-ati-dina-hina-jana
\nGour-govinda-sevak
\nG S Senan
\nSingapore<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
G S Senan: It is futile to wonder if \u201cadvanced devotees\u201d can UNDERSTAND the philosophy of Mahaprabhu\u2019s mood. It\u2019s just a matter of different lengths of time. All WILL UNDERSTAND in the end\u2026even if it takes countless lifetimes.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[93],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-7580","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-blog-thoughts"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.dandavats.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7580","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.dandavats.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.dandavats.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.dandavats.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.dandavats.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=7580"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.dandavats.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7580\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.dandavats.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=7580"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.dandavats.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=7580"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.dandavats.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=7580"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}