Perfect Guru By H. H. Krishna Chaitanya Swami 1 Table of contents Introduction Chapter 1 Who can be called a guru? Chapter 2 Qualities and activities of guru. Chapter 3 Indra lost heaven by offending his spiritual master. Dedicated to His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada and Bhakti Svarupa Damodara Swami Srila Sripada Introducion Introduction A guru is one who disseminates transcendental knowledge among his disciples with reference to distinction of matter, spirit and Supreme Spirit, Godhead. Many teachers have tried to be gurus, but not all of them could become a guru for want of necessary qualification. To be a guru, one must be able to protect his disciples from falling down into the repeated cycle of birth, death, old age, and disease by associating the disciple with God in yoga. Guru teaches mainstream yoga practices, given in the scriptures, which unites the disciple with the Supreme Lord. A Guru does not manifest magic, gold, siddhis. He neither watch TV serials nor digital movies, and certainly does none of the prohibited acts viz. eat betel nuts, smoke ganja, and travel for amusement, eat meat, drink alcohol, has close association with females, nor gamble. He cannot be identified from a long beard and curly long hair with golden turban, a clever disguise to attract the followers. The goal of a guru is not to render dry social services in the form of hospitals and schools unless it is strongly connected to the Supreme Lord Krishna. He does not wear gold and diamond ornaments on his body, does not dance with his female disciples. He must know perfectly about the science of the Absolute Truth, Brahman, Paramatma and Bhagavan. Bhagavan is the final aspect of the Absolute Truth, the Personality of Godhead. Consequently, he must know how to link his disciple with Bhagavan. The Guru must know who that Bhagavan is by following the statement of scriptures. Those who have an impeccable chastity and spiritual character, who will not fall into vice, and know the scientific truth of Krishna, can be recognized and respected as Gurus, a true servant of Krishna. The Guru does not teach yoga with the objective to transform people into God, nor does yoga necessarily mean that a person can become “one with God”. A Perfect guru broadcasts the Introducion message of Godhead in every town and village as Lord Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu says in CC Madhya 7-128 yāre dekha, tāre kaha ‘krishna’-upadeśa āmāra ājñāya guru hañā tāra’ ei deśa “Instruct everyone to follow the orders of Lord Śrī Krishna as they are given in the Bhagavad-Gītā and Śrīmad- Bhāgavatam. In this way, become a spiritual master (guru) by My order and try to liberate everyone in this land.” Guru is a pure devotee of Krishna. A guru would use Vedic literature for establishing confidence in his teachings and authorize his doctrine. He is immersed in previously mentioned devotional services of Lord Krishna. By performing this great devotional service, a guru completely liberated from the clutches of material energy (maya). Such spiritual masters, who are not under the influence of illusion, lust, infatuation, competition, anger, or greed, can deliver the disciple from the material bondage. If he cannot deliver his dependent disciple, he should not be a guru. It has mentioned in the Srimad-Bhāgavatam. gurur na sa syāt sva-jano na sa syāt pitā na sa syāj jananī na sā syāt daivaṁ na tat syān na patiś ca sa syān na mocayed yahḥ samupeta-mr ḥtyum “One who cannot deliver his dependents from the path of repeated birth and death should never become a spiritual master (guru), a father, a husband, a mother, or a worshipable demigod.” The Srimad-Bhāgavatam 5-5-18. B.P. Krishna Chaitanya Swami For Krishna World International Chapter 1 Who can be a Guru? Chapter 1 WHO CAN BE A GURU? 1.1 Guest: Who can be a Bonafide Guru? Swami: He has to receive knowledge from the proper source in disciplic succession beginning with the supreme spiritual master, the Lord Krishna Himself, and handed down to a succession of spiritual masters. He who is a pure devotee of the Supreme Majestic Personality of Godhead, one who is sober, whose private life and public life are not distinct. One who corrects his disciples, and one who chastises his disciple’s material activities for the sake of their spiritual development. A guru is a spiritual father, who focuses on teaching his disciples the truth of life, which is pious, sinful and transcendental activities and how to avoid sinful activities; one who saves them from falling down repeatedly into the path of birth and death; and one who has control over his mind, anger, tongue, stomach, and sexual urges. Perfect guru is also a spiritual lawyer, who works for the supreme government and soul doctors. Guru must come in the disciplic succession. A real guru shall never change or modify the philosophy taught by the Supreme Truth Krishna or His representatives. Krishna addresses Arjuna in the Bhagavad-Gita 4-34: tad viddhi praṇipāteṇaṇ paripraśṇeṇa sevayā upadeksyaṇtiṇ te jñāṇaṁ jñāṇiṇas tattva-darśiṇah ṇ “Do learn the truth from a true spiritual master, submissively inquire and offer your services unto him. Being self-realized, the knowledgeable can impart you wisdom because 1 Chapter 1 Who can be a Guru? he has seen the truth and is endowed with transcendental knowledge”. Therefore, to learn the truths of life, one requires a spiritual master - just as a science student needs a professor to learn Physics, Chemistry, and Mathematics, etc. If someone thinks ‘I am intelligent, I can learn these subjects on my own, it may be possible, however, the authorities will not recognize that knowledge, then, his personal endeavours to study would be wasted’. Sometimes, parents are the teachers for their children and they raise them with the knowledge they learnt from their parents and grand-parents. However, to learn the spiritual subject matter methodically, one requires an authorized spiritual master who comes from the disciplic succession from Lord Krishna. Lord Krishna instructed Lord Brahma, Lord Brahma instructed Narada Muni, who again taught Srila Veda vyas and so on. A disciple must always be willing to learn from a guru in respect to all the departments of knowledge. Material goods and wealth shall not attract the guru; therefore, a disciple should not try to influence his spiritual master with such temporary opulences. Praṇipateṇa means that there is full surrender to the spiritual master. Without praṇipateṇa aṇd pariprasṇeṇa, surrender, and questions, the spiritual master will not reveal the conclusive truth to their disciple. 1.2 Guest: Why can’t jṇaṇi and social worker be a guru? Swami: Not only jṇaṇi and followers of karma path, but also yogi, social reformers who build social institutions like school, hospital, orphanage, old age home, etc. none of these can be guru without being solely devoted in their mind, and through their words and actions to Lord Krishna’s services, who is the Supreme Majestic Personality of Godhead. Take for example: 2 Chapter 1 Who can be a Guru? Madhava acharya, Ramanuja acharya, Sridhar swami, Nibharka swami, recently Bhaktisiddhanta and Bhaktivedanta swami Prabhupadas, all of them are pure devotees of Krishna. These Gurus have preached on subject matter of devotional service to the Supreme Person and on other sciences of body, mind, and soul, this is in fact the real knowledge. Even Shankara preached about God, although he always communicated that God has no form, yet God does exist. It is said in Chaitanya Charitamrta krishṇa bhakta ṇishkama ateva saṇtha bhukti mukti siddhi kami sakali asaṇtha Only devotees of Krishna are desire less, all others such as followers of karma path, seekers of liberation, yogis who desire ashta siddhis, eight mystic opulences, materialist who are lusty for material acquirement are all asaṇtha, unhappy. All these members have desires and hence they cannot become a guru. Guru desires only Krishna’s services and activities leading to promoting Krishna’s glory. He is the only real guru. 1.3 Guest: Who is brahmaṇa? Does guru has to be a brahmaṇa by birth? Swami: Brahmaṇa is he, who does not eat meat, fish, eggs, drink alcohol, has illicit relationship with opposite sex and gamble. Whoever observes these in a person he is a brahmaṇa. To be a guru one must be a brahmaṇa, but to be born in a brahmaṇa family is not necessary. By qualification earned through disciplic practices and by associating with Krishna and His devotees, he must be a vaishṇava. On other hand, if a brahmaṇa by birth becomes an expert in maṇtra and taṇtra but he is not a devotee of Krishna, he cannot be a guru. Such a brahmaṇa can be a teacher but not a spiritual Guru. Contrarily, a ṇoṇ-brahmaṇa can become a guru if he is a devotee of Krishna and if he is an expert 3 Chapter 1 Who can be a Guru? in knowledge of Krishna and devotional services. It is said in sastra, sat karma ṇipuṇo vipra maṇtra taṇtra visaradah avaisṇavo gurur ṇa syad vaishṇavah sva-paco guruh A scholarly brahmaṇa who is expert in all subjects of Vedic knowledge is unfit to become a guru without being a vaishṇava, whereas a person born in a family of a lower caste can become a spiritual master if he is a vaishṇava. kiba vipra, kiba ṇyasi, sudra keṇe ṇaya yai krishṇa tattva vetta, sei guru haya A person may be a brahmaṇa, a sudra, or a saṇṇyasi, whatever...but if his knowledge is well comprehensive on the science of Krishna, then he is certainly fit to become a guru.