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His Divine Grace AC Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada

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His Divine Grace AC Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada ISKCON Founder and Acharya - His Divine Grace AC Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada BY: MAHESH RAJA There are some who say that one can be Diksa guru (Acharya) in future in Iskcon because Srila Prabhupada has stated that one can be guru in many places. But is that siksa guru or Diksa guru? And - does Srila Prabhupada actually say that one can be Diksa guru in his ISKCON branch? OR - even will there be another self-effulgent acharya at all in this Kali- yuga? And - what will happen in ten thousand years? The Spiritual Master is also called Acharya. Srimad-Bhagavatam 6.7.15 - Indra Offends His Spiritual Master, Brihaspati. "By the mercy of the spiritual master one is benedicted by the mercy of Krishna. Without the grace of the spiritual master, one cannot make any advancement." A disciple should never be a hypocrite or be unfaithful to his spiritual master. In Srimad-Bhagavatam (11.17.27), the spiritual master is also called acharya. Acharyam mam vijaniyan: the Supreme Personality of Godhead says that one should respect the spiritual master, accepting him as the Lord Himself. Navamanyeta karhicit: one should not disrespect the acharya at any time. Na martya-buddhyasuyeta: one should never think the acharya an ordinary person. Familiarity sometimes breeds contempt, but one should be very careful in one's dealings with the acharya. Agadha-dhisanam dvijam: the acharya is a perfect brahmana and has unlimited intelligence in guiding the activities of his disciple. Therefore Krishna advises in Bhagavad-gita (4.34): tad viddhi praṇipātena paripraśnena sevayā upadekṣyanti te jñānaṁ jñāninas tattva-darśinaḥ "Just try to learn the truth by approaching a spiritual master. Inquire from him submissively and render service unto him. The self-realized soul can impart knowledge unto you because he has seen the truth." One should fully surrender unto the spiritual master and with service (sevaya) one should approach him for further spiritual enlightenment.” So let us examine this in detail: Perhaps the strongest evidence is that one can become a guru if he becomes Mahabhagavata as below. But even then he has to be a prominent acharya to be accepted. And he has to have received the order/authorization from Guru Srila Prabhupada. Madhya 24.330 - The Sixty-One Explanations of the Atmarama Verse In the Padma Purana, the characteristics of the guru, the bona fide spiritual master, has been described: mahā-bhāgavata-śreṣṭho brāhmaṇo vai gurur nṛṇām sarveṣām eva lokānām asau pūjyo yathā hariḥ The guru must be situated on the topmost platform of devotional service. There are three classes of devotees, and the guru must be accepted from the topmost class. Madhya 24.330 - The Sixty-One Explanations of the Atmarama Verse Purport When one has attained the topmost position of maha-bhagavata, he is to be accepted as a guru and worshiped exactly like Hari, the Personality of Godhead. Only such a person is eligible to occupy the post of a guru. Srila Prabhupada - Lecture on Nectar of Devotion, October 31, 1972 "Self-made guru cannot be guru. He must be authorized by the bona fide guru. Then he's guru. This is the fact...Similarly; bona fide guru means he must be authorized by the superior guru." Srimad Bhagavatam 4.8.54, Purport "One should take initiation from a bona fide spiritual master coming in the disciplic succession, who is authorized by his predecessor spiritual master. This is called diksa- vidhana." Srila Prabhupada Lecture on Bhagavad-gita 7.2, Nairobi, October 28, 1975 Prabhupada: "Try to understand. Don't go very speedily. A guru can become guru when he is authorized by his guru. That's all. Otherwise nobody can become guru. If Srila Prabhupada would have ordered before 1977, then there would be no point in him stating in 1977 ‘when I order’. It was specifically in the year 1977 that Srila Prabhupada said "When I order" not before, so after the year 1977, where is the evidence of that order? Srila Prabhupada Conversation, May 28, 1977, Vrindavan Prabhupada: "When I order, you become guru, he becomes regular guru. That's all. He becomes disciple of my disciple. That's it." Questions: 1. Commonsense reasoning: Why would Krishna give another Diksa guru whereas everything is already given by Srila Prabhupada? All Srila Prabhupada’s discipline is there so where is that extra need for that someone else to fill the vacancy? All one has to do is chant Hare Krishna mantra offenselessly and follow Srila Prabhupada’s discipline in his books –bas! Where is the extra need? What extra can he give that Srila Prabhupada has not already given us? If a Mahabhagavata was not rare why the gaps in parampara? 2. To be acharya is not so easy. The practical situation is even to be a kanistha adhikari means one has to be qualified brahmana. Brahma bhuta is realized stage of qualified brahmana. Where is qualified brahmana? Conversations – February 14, 1977, Mayapur Prabhupada: Kanistha-adhikari means he must be a brahmana. That is kanistha- adhikari. The spiritual life, kanistha-adhikari, means he must be a qualified brahmana. That is kanistha. What is esteemed as very high position in the material world, brahmana that is kanistha-adhikari. arcāyām eva haraye pūjāṁ yaḥ śraddhayehate na tad-bhakteṣu cānyeṣu sa bhaktaḥ prākṛtaḥ smṛtaḥ The brahmana means from the material stage gradually he is elevated to the spiritual stage. And below the Brahmana there is no question of Vaishnava. Conversations - February 6, 1976, Mayapur Even the jnanis and yogis become... Prabhupada: What is these jnanis? They are also another rascal, another edition of rascals. Bahunam janmanam ante jnanavan mam prapadyate. Therefore so-called jnanis, after many, many births' practical realization, they surrender to Krishna. Vasudevah sarvam iti sa mahatma. Then he understands that Krishna is everything. But such great person is very, very rare. Sa mahatma sudurlabhah, very, very rare. Dayananda: But what about the persons who may be a little bit devoted but who have not achieved that unalloyed devotion? Prabhupada: Kanistha-adhikari. They are not devotees, but they are called bhaktabhasa. There are some signs of bhakti. Actually they are not bhakta. Bhaktabhasa. Abhasa. Abhasa means a simple, a little light. Hridayananda: So devotee really means one who has love for Krishna. Prabhupada: Yes, unalloyed, without any condition. Anyabhilasita-sunyam, zero, all other, that "I am this, I am that, I am jnani, I am yogi, I am karmi, I am minister, I am king"--all these are thinking like that, they're all nonsense. "I am servant of Krishna"-- that is greatness. Jivera svarupa haya nitya-Krishna-dasa. That is self-realization, atma- tattvam. Madhya 20.59 - Lord Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu Instructs Sanatana Gosvami in the Science PURPORT This verse is spoken by Prahlada Maharaja in Srimad-Bhagavatam (7.9.10). A brahmana is supposed to be qualified with twelve qualities. As stated in the Mahabharata: dharmaś ca satyaṁ ca damas tapaś ca amātsaryaṁ hrīs titikṣānasūyā yajñaś ca dānaṁ ca dhṛtiḥ śrutaṁ ca vratāni vai dvādaśa brāhmaṇasya "A brahmana must be perfectly religious. He must be truthful, and he must be able to control his senses. He must execute severe austerities, and he must be detached, humble and tolerant. He must not envy anyone, and he must be expert in performing sacrifices and giving whatever he has in charity. He must be fixed in devotional service and expert in the knowledge of the Vedas. These are the twelve qualifications for a brahmana." Bhagavad-gita describes the brahminical qualities in this way: śamo damas tapaḥ śaucaṁ kṣāntir ārjavam eva ca jñānaṁ vijñānam āstikyaṁ brahma-karma svabhāva-jam "Peacefulness, self-control, austerity, purity, tolerance, honesty, wisdom, knowledge, and religiousness - these are the qualities by which the brahmanas work." (Bg. 18.42) In the Muktaphala-tika, it is said: śamo damas tapaḥ śaucaṁ kṣānty-ārjava-virakta yaḥ jñāna-vijñāna-santoṣāḥ satyāstikye dviṣaḍ guṇāḥ "Mental equilibrium, sense control, austerity, cleanliness, tolerance, simplicity, detachment, theoretical and practical knowledge, satisfaction, truthfulness and firm faith in the Vedas are the twelve qualities of a brahmana." Lecture – August 28, 1973, London So first of all, we have to become brahmana. Then Vaishnava. Brahmana simply knows that "I am spirit soul," aham brahmasmi. Brahma janati iti brahmana. Brahma-bhutah prasannatma. By such knowledge one becomes prasannatma. Means relieved. As you feel relief... When there is burden on your head, and the burden is taken away you feel relieved, similarly, this ignorance that "I am this body" is a great burden, a burden upon us. So when you get out of this burden, then you feel relieved. Brahma-bhutah prasannatma. Means when actually one understands that "I am not this body; I am soul," then he has to work so hard for maintaining this body, so he gets relief that "Why I am working so hard for this lump of material things? Let me execute my real necessity of life, spiritual life." That is great relief. That is great relief. Brahma-bhutah prasannatma na socati na kanksati. The relief means there is hankering, no more lamentation. These are the brahma-bhutah. Now we will study what Diksa is because we want to determine if Kanistha or Madhyama can give Diksa. Madhya 15.108 - The Lord Accepts Prasada at the House of Sarvabhauma Bhattacharya Srila Jiva Gosvami explains Diksa in his Bhakti-sandarbha (283): divyaṁ jñānaṁ yato dadyāt kuryāt pāpasya saṅkṣayam tasmād dīkṣeti sā proktā deśikais tattva-kovidaiḥ "Diksa is the process by which one can awaken his transcendental knowledge and vanquish all reactions caused by sinful activity. A person expert in the study of the revealed scriptures knows this process as Diksa." Madhya 4.111 - Sri Madhavendra Puri’s Devotional Service "Diksa actually means initiating a disciple with transcendental knowledge by which he becomes freed from all material contamination." But since kanistha adhikari (qualified brahmana) is himself contaminated - how can he give Diksa to another who becomes freed from all material contamination.
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