The Blue Jackel

The

Blue

Jackal

by Sri Srimad Gour Govinda Swami Maharaja

Questions and Answers with Sri Srimad Gour Govinda Swami Maharaja

The following article appeared in issue number 15 of Sri Krishna Kathamrita Bindu, the free fortnightly email magazine from ISKCON Gopal Jiu Publications.

QUESTION: How can we have unalloyed devotion to our guru and also see the godbrother of our spiritual master as our spiritual master?

GOUR GOVINDA SWAMI: We will offer the same respect to him as we pay to our spiritual master. But as Hanuman says, Rama has occupied my heart:

sri-nathe janaki-nathe cabhedah paramatmanih
tathapi mama sarvasvam ramah kamala-locanah

There is no difference between Sri-nath (Vishnu, the Lord of the goddess of fortune) and Janaki-nath (Rama, the Lord of Sita), since They are both the Supersoul. Still, lotus-eyed Rama is everything to me.
(Prema-bhakti-candrika, text 29)

We should not deviate from our guru. That is unalloyedness. Don't be affected by any differences between our guru and his godbrother. We should overlook them. Still, our attitude should be, "I am following the instruction of my guru. I am not following the instruction of the godbrother of my guru."

QUESTION: What should we do when we see that some superior vaisnava needs correction?

GOUR GOVINDA SWAMI: Keshava Bharati was the godbrother of Iswara Puri, who was the guru of Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu. Mahaprabhu corrected Keshava Bharati. But we should not imitate Chaitanya Mahaprabhu. He is the Supreme Personality of Godhead and we are not. We should not try to correct anyone who is superior to us. We must act in such a way that Chaitanya Mahaprabhu will give us the intelligence what to do:

tesam satata-yuktanam bhajatam priti-purvakam dadami buddhi-yogam tam yena mam upayanti te

To those who are constantly devoted to serving Me with love, I give the understanding by which they can come to Me. (Bg 10.10)

Krishna says, "I'll give you the intelligence." So, if you are a true follower of Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, He will give you intelligence. You will be able to act in such a way that the vaisnava becomes automatically corrected.

You won't need to correct him directly. You should not have this thought in your mind, "Let me correct him." No, no, no, no, no, no! We are not qualified to correct them. Our attitude should be, "trnad api su-nicena taror iva sahisnuna - I am the lowest of the low (Siksastaka 3).

QUESTION: How do you correct a godbrother?

GOUR GOVINDA SWAMI: With a godbrother we have a friendly relationship. So we may talk to him in a friendly way. Sometimes we may even cut jokes with him.

To correct him we may say something at some opportune moment when we know it will not hurt him. An intelligent man will do like this. You must speak in such a way that it will not hurt his feelings. Mahaprabhu said:

prani-matre mano-vakye udvega na diba

Neither by mind nor words should a devotee cause anxiety to any living entity, regardless how insignificant they may be. - CC Madhya 22.120

Don't speak or act in such a way that will hurt their feelings. Don't agitate them. This is the devotee's behavior.

yasman nodvijate loko lokan nodvijate ca yah
harsamarsa-bhayodvegair mukto yah sa ca me priyah

He for whom no one is put into difficulty and who is not disturbed by anyone, who is equipoised in happiness and distress, fear and anxiety, is very dear to Me. - BG 12.15

Krishna says, "He who is not agitated in any circumstances is very dear to Me. If someone tries to agitate him he never agitates back or disturbs anyone. He is equal in both harsa and amarsa, favorable and unfavorable conditions. In all conditions he is equal, sama. Bhayodvegair, he has no fear, no anxiety. He is very dear to Me."

As Mahaprabhu has instructed, one should speak very sweetly so the devotee may be corrected, but in such a way that they will not be disturbed. For one who is intelligent, who is a true devotee, Mahaprabhu will give them intelligence whereby you will know how to act and speak in such a way that you will not hurt the devotee and at the same time you will correct them.

And you should never have this thought in your mind that, "I'll correct him." You should think, "I am not a qualified person to correct him. I'm the lowest of the low. I am an ignorant fool, murkha. I have no qualification." You should not cherish the thought in your mind to correct them. This thought is very bad and offensive. This is a very, very subtle point. It is very difficult for ordinary people to understand. But those who are devotees, who have made some advancement in spirituality, they can understand this point.

QUESTION: We cannot approach Krishna without a spiritual master. What about approaching Chaitanya Maharabhu?

GOUR GOVINDA SWAMI: Unless you approach a spiritual master you cannot approach Mahaprabhu. Mahaprabhu is the Supreme Personality of Godhead. He is Krishna. The spiritual master is the expansion of Nityananda Prabhu. You get the mercy of Nityananda through the spiritual master, not directly. Guru is rupanuga-dhara - a follower of the Goswamis in disciplic succession.

QUESTION: Who will decide who is a spiritual master?

GOUR GOVINDA SWAMI: Are baba! The decision comes from Krishna. Chaitanya Mahaprabhu has ordered:

yare dekha, tare kaha 'krsna'-upadesa
amara ajnaya guru hana tara' ei desa

"Whomever you meet, tell them about Krishna: 'O brother, Krishna has said this thing.' Don't concoct. Just present it as it is. I order you to become a spiritual master and deliver the world." If you just do this, if you just present things as they are, following the disciplic succession, you will become guru. Krishna will give you that position. Don't hanker after it.

Just do it. The decision comes from Krishna, from Chaitanya Mahaprabhu.

There is no question that someone will decide (laughs). Apratihata - it will automatically come. If Chaitanya Mahaprabhu wants, if Krishna wants, no one can check it. You should have full faith and patience. Don't be pessimistic.

There is no question of pessimism. We should be full of optimism. We don't need to bother about these things. Those persons who are now blowing their own trumpet, beating their own drums, Krishna will finish them at any time.

Don't be disturbed. You should have patience and full faith in guru-sadhu-sastra. Because it is the material world some disturbances will come up. pade pade vipada - "At every step there is danger." And at the same time it is Kali-yuga, the age of quarrel and hypocrisy. This world is filled with hypocrites. So some hypocrites will come and say, "Oh, I am guru. I am sadhu. I am such a great man." He may come and beat his own drum, blow his own trumpet, and make some politics. It is quite natural. These things should not disturb you. Be dhira, don't be disturbed. Have full faith in guru-sadhu-sastra. Just do your duty as guru has instructed, as it is.

Present Krishna consciousness as it is. Time will change things in the long run. You need not be worried. Have patience. Quote sastra and the acaryas.

Our basis is guru-sadhu-sastra. I never say anything different. I always quote authority.

Although he was a householder, Srila Prabhupada got the full mercy of Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Saraswati and Chaitanya Mahaprabhu. He never spent any time in the matha, but he became acarya because he was very, very simple, not envious. You cannot put a stamp on someone, "You are acarya." Or else the day may come to prove that he's not an acarya.

I will tell you a nice story. Once a jackal fell into the blue dye-water of a washerman. The jackal became blue. Then he went to the forest and declared to everyone, "I am the king of the animals." All of the animals said, "Oh yes! He is strange looking. He might be king." Thus they made the jackal king and he sat on the throne. Then when evening came, all of the jackals began howling, "Youka hou! Youka hou!" So the jackal king also started howling, and then everyone saw, "Oh! He's a jackal! Beat him! He's not king!" In this way, he was revealed. We know these things, so why we should be disturbed? Don't be disturbed. The time will come. Krishna and Chaitanya Mahaprabhu will reveal everything. Have patience.

QUESTION: We can see that envy may be very subtle. What is our hope?

GOUR GOVINDA SWAMI: We should have full faith in guru-sadhu-sastra and we must do our service. Some disturbance may come - and it will come. It is the nature of this material plane, and at the same time Kali-yuga is here. It is very, very horrible. But one should have firm determination and patience.

You should not deviate in any circumstance. Always pray to guru and Lord Chaitanya. They will help you. We are very weak, but caitya-guru is in our heart. He will give inspiration. For a sincere soul who is very eager to have this, Krishna makes arrangements. He knows, "This soul wants this thing." So He makes arrangements for it to happen. Is there anything impossible for Krishna? It is impossible for us, but nothing is impossible for Krishna. Our business is to always pray to Krishna, Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, and Guru Maharaja, "Just help me!" You'll get help. Have full faith in this. Don't be desperate. We should be very eager to get this mercy and to have association of pure devotees who are more advanced than ourselves. Then you'll benefit. Sadhu-sanga means you will associate with a person who is more advanced than yourself. Then you will benefit. Otherwise, no benefit will come. It may seem impossible to get such association. Still, nothing is impossible for Krishna. Krishna will make arrangement. Vani, instructions, are there. When nothing is available we should associate with instructions and books, and with our sincere prayers we will reach Krishna.

The day will come when you will meet such a person. It's impossible for us, but it's not impossible for Krishna. But we should always be praying, "Krishna, please help me!" Chanting hare krsna means the soul is crying, hare krsna hare krsna krsna krsna hare hare - "O Krishna's sakti Radharani! O Krishna! Please engage me in Your service. I am fallen."

ayi nanda-tanuja kinkaram patitam mam visame bhavambudhau krpaya tava pada-pankaja- sthita-dhuli-sadrsam vicintaya

"O Krishna! I am Your kinkara, Your servant! But somehow I've fallen into the depths of this ocean of nescience. Please shower Your mercy on me and accept me as a particle of dust at Your lotus feet."(Siksastaka 5) If the soul is crying and crying by uttering this hari-nama, "hare krsna hare krsna", if you chant in this way, then you'll get the necessary association miraculously and unexpectedly. It is impossible for us, but nothing is impossible for Krishna. Krishna wants that thing. The only lacking is with us. Thank you very much.

- Paris 1987, at the home of Sripad Harivilas Prabhu

Letter to Bhaktisiddhanta Saraswati

Letter to

Bhaktisiddhanta Saraswati Thakura

(1910)

Saraswati!

"People of this world who are proud of their own aristocratic birth cannot attain real aristocracy. Therefore they attack the pure Vaishnavas, saying, 'They have taken birth in low-class families because of their sins.' Thus they commit offenses. The solution to the problem is to establish the order of daiva-varnasrama-dharma -something you have started doing; you should know that to be the real service to the Vaishnavas. Because pure devotional conclusions are not being preached, all kinds of superstitions and bad concepts are being called devotion by such pseudo-sampradayas as sahajiya and atibari. Please always crush these anti-devotional concepts by preaching pure devotional conclusions and by setting an example through your personal conduct.

"Please make great effort so you can start parikram of Sridham Navadwip as soon as possible. It is by those actions that everyone in this world will receive Krishna-bhakti. Please try very hard to make sure that the service to Sri Mayapur will become a permanent thing and will become brighter and brighter every day. The real service to Sri Mayapur can be done by acquiring printing presses, distributing devotional books, and sankirtan - preaching. Please do not neglect to serve Sri Mayapur or to preach for the sake of your own reclusive bhajan.

"When I am not present any more, please take care to serve Sri Mayapur Dham which is so dear to you. This is my special instruction to you. People who are like animals can never attain devotion; therefore never take their suggestions. But do not let them know this directly or indirectly.

"I had a special desire to preach the significance of such books as Srimad Bhagavatam, Sat Sandarbha, and Vedanta Darshan. You have to accept that responsibility. Sri Mayapur will prosper if you establish an educational institution there. Never make any effort to collect knowledge or money for your own enjoyment. Only to serve the Lord will you collect these things. Never engage in bad association, either for money or for some self-interest."

signed Kedarnatha Datta Bhaktivinode

Dissolution of False Ego

Dissolution of False Ego

by Srila Bhakti Raksaka Sridhara Maharaja

Devotee: I talk to people about Krsna, many of the Christians can appreciate. I speak to many of my countrymen. They are mostly Christians.

Srila Sridhar Maharaj: You will talk about the ideal, you will discuss the ideal. Your conception is this, our conception is that, and what is the difference between the conception. In this way you can talk.

Devotee: When I explain bhakti they can appreciate it.

Srila Sridhar Maharaj: Yes, bhakti is a general thing but there is also the type of bhakti and the bhakti which is the model for all other forms.

Devotee: They can understand the focus of bhakti. When I talk to them they can appreciate bhakti, when I explain it.

Srila Sridhar Maharaj: Bhakti, you also know bhakti, you are talking about bhakti. I am also talking about bhakti. Do you find any difference there? So bhakti is the ideal and they have got also an ideal. Devotee: But it is the focus of the bhakti. I explain Mahaprabhu’s philosophy, bhakti even above mukti.

Srila Sridhar Maharaj: We are captivated by the ideal, the fine touch, appreciation for the ideal. Mahaprabhu has given an ideal, Christ has given another ideal. Our inner inspiration, which we cannot trace, the attraction for the ideal we are to analyze these fine things, our appreciation. Why do we appreciate Krsna and not God given by Jesus? That is a vague thing. This is some clear conception, sweet conception of the thing. Why am I attracted to this side? I am to analyze that. What is there that will be found on this side and not that side? I am to look into my inner heart and try to express that, the difference is there.

In my previous days, generally I used to collect money for the Mission and I met many gentleman many sympathetic, many apathetic. A sympathetic man asked me, “O, why you are running from door to door for collection when we see that you come from a very high family. You are educated and you are fit. Why do you waste your time by collection from door to door?” I replied, “What do you want me to do for God?” He said, “Go to the mountain caves. There is an arrangement by the religious householders. They will give food to you regularly. Then go on meditating.” On account of that request, I tried to look into my own heart. Why I am doing this service? They are saying sympathetically, “Begging from door to door what good can you derive? Go straight to the hill and sit in meditation for Him and try to connect yourself in a direct way.” Many times I looked to my heart for the answer and I found it.

I told him do you know the character of the Vedic disciples? They are sent by the Guru to the pasture ground to reap the cultivated land. What for? Krsna went to gurukula and went with four god-brothers to bring fuel wood from the forest. What is the necessity? So it is necessary to understand that whatever action I shall begin taking in response of my own ego will create a material atmosphere, spread my subjective atmosphere. But I have ceased to act according to my own inner thought. I have placed myself at the disposal of a higher devotee. The subtle system of my inner body I want to kill, finish, and I have stopped it’s food. If I obey it’s order it will thrive. I have stopped the ration. I have totally disconnected the food supply to the army. Let them die fasting and if they die, if that ego will die then another body, which works only in obedience to the higher agents will come out. This subtle body which gets its food from the ego will be finished. I want to do that.

The whole mental system may die without food. No insinuation from my ego within. I am doing what our Guru asked me to do, some service, and I am doing that. I am engaged with Vaikuntha, the transcendental world. I want to dissolve my ego, and the world produced where I am living by my ego. I want to get out of that. I am living in my own imaginary world. That world must go away. Then, another world will come to me. I am connecting with these material things, this person, this matter, this gross, conscious body and the world created by it, but another world I want to live in. I want the world of my Guru. I want to live in that way.

Once one sannyasi, leaving the engagement given by our Guru Maharaj went to visit Badarikashram and the holy places. Then he was punished, “Why have you left the responsibility of service given to you and you are going for pilgrimage.” I was a beginner at that time and it gave a heavy pressure in me, what is this, a sannyasi has gone to visit Badarikashram, the place of Vyasadev, Sukadev, what is the fault there? So great a fault that he would forbidden entrance? I was a new man, I was in charge of the Kuruksetra Math and I was sent a letter, “If that Sannyasi comes to the Math don’t allow him to enter.” He was a senior Sannyasi and I was a newcomer.

It was a great shock to me. That Sannyasi came in a day or two. Just previously, I showed so much respect to him and that day how can I say that, “You won’t enter this Math.” This was very difficult. When he came; I read the letter to him. This is the order of the central Math. First he was excited and began to abuse the higher authorities. Finally I said to him, “Maharaj I feel much apprehension in my mind and I am very much afraid.” He inquired, “Why you are afraid?” I replied, “After fifteen years of service, if you have come to such level that you are to be ousted from the Mission, then what hope I have got? I am a beginner. Your fifteen years service has earned such punishment to be ousted, then what hope I have got here?

It is not possible for me to waste my time here.” Then he came out in another color, “No, no, no you need not to be afraid. I may do wrong. A boy may not pass a B.A. degree or M.A. degree but it does not mean a primary student like you will also fail that.” Then he accepted that, “It is not injustice but it is justice and I have committed something wrong.” He came to that conclusion. This incident had a great impression in my mind. What is there in this service? Disengagement, leaving the desired service of Guru if you want to go to a holy place, that is a punishable offence? What is this? This service is the connection above.

God’s will through His agent to be engaged in His service is very, very valuable. Conversely, to select in my level what is good and bad and to go to a holy place is some sort of religious luxury, freedom. Divine service is above freedom of an ordinary soul. “It is a holy place and I am doing right visiting holy places.” The origin of this is from my ego and a far higher ego is giving instruction, “Do this! God wants this from you!” This is another world. It came to me gradually. To obey the orders of a Vaisnava that means to serve Divinity, the higher Divinity and this will give us the supreme destination. This is the order from the higher plane. We have to follow it.

I am in search after the infinite! Until the infinite comes to me graciously to reveal Himself I must go on searching. It is His pleasure not my pleasure and I do not have anything to force Him. It is absolute and I have come to get a drop of grace from the absolute, not any limited thing. Krsna says, “I am everywhere everything is in Me. Try to understand this peculiar, mystic position of Mine.”

Gaura Hari Bol!

The First Angas of Bhakti - Guru-Tattva

By Bhaktivinoda Thakura

(from Jaiva-Dharma - Chapter 20
Prameya: Abhidheya – Vaidhi-Sadhana-Bhakti)

Vijaya: Prabhu, please give us some detailed instructions regarding sri-guru-padasraya. (#1)

Babaji: When the disciple has become qualified for undivided krsna-bhakti, he should take shelter at the feet of Sri Guru, and by coming close to the qualified guru, he will learn krsna-tattva. The jiva becomes qualified for krsna-bhakti only when he is faithful. By the influence of pious activities (sukriti) performed in previous births, he hears hari-kathä from the mouths of sädhus, and a strong faith in Krsna arises in him. This is called sraddhä. Together with sraddhä, the mood of taking shelter (saranagati) also appears to some extent. sraddhä and saranagati are almost the same tattva. The disciple is qualified for undivided (ananya) bhakti if he has developed the strong faith: “Krsna-bhakti is certainly the best and highest attainment in this world. Thus I will accept krsna-bhakti as my duty and to that end I will do whatever is favorable for it, and reject all activities that are unfavorable. Krsna is my sole protector, and I accept Him as my exclusive guardian. I am very poor, wretched and destitute, and my independent desire is not beneficial for me. Thus following Krsna’s desire exclusively is beneficial for me in all ways.” When the jiva attains that qualification, he becomes anxious to hear instructions on bhakti, and accepts shelter at the lotus feet of the sad-guru. That is to say, he becomes his disciple, and accepts instructions (siksä) on bhakti.

tad-vijïänärthaà sa gurum eväbhigacchet

samit-päniù çrotriyaà brahma-niñöham

Mundaka Upanisad (1.2.12)

In order to obtain knowledge of that bhagavad-vastu (the absolute truth concerning Sri Bhagavän), one should approach sad-guru, carrying fire wood for sacrifice. The qualification of sad-guru is that he is well versed in the Vedas, absorbed in the Absolute Truth (brahma-jnana) and devoted to the service of Bhagavän.

äcäryavän puruño veda

Chändogya Upaniñad (6.14.2)

He who takes shelter of sad-guru comes to know that parabrahma.

The qualities of a sad-guru (bona fide guru) and the sat-sisya (bona fide disciple) are given in detail in the Sri Hari-bhakti-viläsa (1.23.64). The essence is that only a person with pure character and sraddhä is qualified to become a sisya and only that person who is endowed with suddha-bhakti, who knows bhakti-tattva, and is of spotless character, simple, without greed, free from Mäyäväda philosophy, and expert in all devotional activities is qualified as sad-guru. A brähmana adorned with these qualities, and who is honored by the whole society, can be guru of all the other varnas. If there is no brähmana, the disciple can accept a guru who is situated in a higher varna than himself. Apart from these considerations of varnäsrama, the principal consideration is that whoever knows krsna-tattva can be accepted as guru. If a person born in one of the higher varnas – brähmana, ksatriya and vaisya – finds the above mentioned qualities present in a person born of a brahmana family and accepts him as guru, then he can get some facilities and favors in a society that respects the higher varna. Factually, though, only a worthy bhakta can be guru. The rules for testing the guru and disciple, as well as the determination of time, are given in the sästras. The purport is that the guru will bestow his mercy upon the disciple when the guru perceives the disciple to be qualified, and when the disciple has faith in the guru, understanding him to be a suddha-bhakta. There are two kinds of guru: diksä-guru and siksä-guru. One has to accept diksä from the diksä-guru; at the same time, one also has to take siksä concerning arcana (Deity worship). There is one diksä-guru, but there can be several siksä-gurus. The diksä-guru is also competent to act as siksä-guru.

Vijaya: Since the diksä-guru is not to be given up, how will Gurudeva give siksä if he is not competent of giving sat-siksä?

Babaji: Before accepting a guru, one should examine him to see that he is expert in the tattva spoken in the Vedas and has realized para-tattva. If he is, then he will certainly be capable of giving all kinds of instructions about the Absolute Truth. Normally, there is no question of giving up the diksä-guru. There are two circumstances, however, in which he should be abandoned. First, if the disciple accepted the guru without examining the guru’s knowledge of the Absolute Truth, his Vaisnava qualities, and his other qualifications, and second, if after initiation, the guru does not perform any function, he should be given up. Many passages in sastras give evidence for this:

yo vyaktir nyäya-rahitam anyäyena çåëoti yaù

täv ubhau narakaà ghoraà vrajataù kälam akñayam

Hari-bhakti-viläsa (1.62)

He who poses as an äcärya, but gives false instructions that are opposed to the sattvata-sästras, will reside in a terrible hell for an unlimited period of time, and so will the misguided disciple who mistakenly listens to such a false guru.

guror apy avaliptasya käryäkäryam ajänataù

utpatha-pratipannasya parityägo vidhéyate

Mahäbhärata Udyoga-parva (179.25) and Närada-païcarätra (1.10.20)

It is one’s duty to give up a guru who cannot teach the disciple what he should do and what he should not do, and who takes the wrong path, either because of bad association or because he is opposed to Vaisnavas.

avaiñëavopadiñöena mantreëa nirayaà vrajet

punaç ca vidhinä samyag grähayed vaiñëaväd guroù

Hari-bhakti-viläsa (4.144)

One goes to hell if he accepts mantras from an avaisnava-guru, that is, one who is associating with women, and who is devoid of krsna-bhakti. Therefore, according to the rules of sästra, one should take mantras again from a Vaisnava guru.

The second circumstance in which one may reject the guru is if he was a Vaisnava who knew the spiritual truth and principles when the disciple accepted him, but who later became a Mäyävädi or an enemy of the Vaisnavas by the influence of asat-sanga. It is one’s duty to give up such a guru. However, it is not proper to give up a guru whose knowledge is meager, if he is not a Mäyävädi or an enemy of the Vaisnavas, and is not attached to sinful activity. In that case, one should still respect him as guru, and with his permission, one should go to another Vaisnava who is more knowledgeable, and serve that Vaisnava and take instructions from him.

Vijaya: Please tell us about krsna-diksä and siksä. (#2)

Babaji: One should accept siksä about the process of arcana (Deity worship) and pure devotional service from Sri Gurudeva, and one should then perform krsna-sevä and krsnaa-anusilanam with a simple mood. We will consider the angas of arcana in more detail later. It is essential to take siksa from Sri Gurudeva regarding sambandha-jnäna (one’s relationship with Krsna), abhidheya-jnäna (the process of devotional service), and prayojana-jnäna (the ultimate goal).

Vijaya: What does it mean to perform guru-sevä with faith? (#3)

Babaji: One should not consider Sri Gurudeva to be a mortal or an ordinary jiva. Rather, one should understand him to be the representative of all the devatäs (sarva-devamaya). One should never disobey him, and one should always know him to be vaikuntha-tattva.

Pure Devotion And The Competitive Spirit

Pure Devotion and the Competitive Spirit

Part Two

by Srila Bhakti Bibudha Bodhayan Maharaja

All glories to Sri Guru, Sri Gauranga and the Brahma Madhva Gaudiya Saraswata Sampradaya!

It is sad to say that in our contemporary Gaudiya Vaishnava community, many of us are Vaishnavas in name only. We make a show of devotion, but what we are calling devotion is in fact the observance of few rules of moral behavior at best. In essence, it is thus not devotion at all. Moreover, in the name of pure devotion, we are also abusing the ideal of yukta vairagya, renunciation with proper adjustment to time, place and circumstances. We are not supposed to be followers of Ekalavya, who was rejected by even his own guru Dronacharya. We must take stock of our true standing on the bhakti marga? Service to the spiritual master is based on surrender, and not on just following a few moral codes. Service to the guru means following the pure devotional path according to his instructions. It goes beyond morality. Krishna proved this when He instructed Arjuna to kill his own kinsmen.

Krishna told Arjuna: "Do it! You will not incur any sin. I shall protect you." It was not "moral" to kill Dronacharya, Bhishma and all the other great and pious heroes fighting for the Kauravas, but Arjuna surrendered to Krishna, his guru. He thus surpassed the mundane principles of morality, which involve following rules and regulations to keep peace and order in human society. We must not neglect the instructions of our diksha guru. For, if we are not surrendered, we cannot actually render any true service to Krishna. Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Saraswati Thakur Prabhupada gave us the proper conception of yukta vairagya for our present times. We should try to understand it properly if we are to serve the cause of Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu.

Surrender to Krishna gives life in the Bhagavad-Gita (18.66), Sri Krishna told Arjuna, "Abandon all varieties of religion (sarva-dharmAn) and take exclusive shelter of Me. I shall deliver you from the reactions of your sinful activities. Do not fear." Sarva-dharmAn indicates "all kinds of religious attitudes." This means that we must without hesitation reject all other methods of spiritual advancement other than surrender. Srila Rupa Goswami also recommends that we cultivate devotion free from personal interests (anyabhilanita-cunyam) and the tendencies toward karma and jnana (jnAna-karmAdy-anAvRtam). Surrender is the primary characteristic of bhakti. It cannot be found anywhere else. Other attempts to reach the Absolute by adopting the path of karma yoga or jnana yoga, for example, are destined to disappoint us. Sharanagati, or surrender to Krishna, is the name Srila Bhaktivinoda Thakur gave to a collection of wonderful songs of his own composition. In the introductory song of that book, Bhaktivinoda writes,

zrI kRSNa caitanya prabhu jIve dayA kari
sva-parSada svIya dhAma saha avatari
atyanta durlabha prema karibAre dAna
zikhAya zaraNAgati bhakatera prANa

Out of compassion for the fallen souls, Sri Krishna Chaitanya came to this world with His personal associates and divine abode to teach sharanagati, surrender to Krishna, and to freely distribute ecstatic love (prema) for God, which is ordinarily very difficult to obtain. This sharanagati is the very life (prana) of the true devotee."

This song clearly says that without surrender, a devotee is without life (prana). Surrender to guru, Vaishnavas and Krishna will give us back our life. We have nothing to lose. This is the benefit of the bhakti process. On the other hand, if a person has a good character, but no devotion, he can be considered a moralist at best. The soul gives life to the body, which is otherwise dead. Similarly, a life of so-called devotion without surrender is like a useless corpse. It is impossible to achieve divine love (prema) without surrender. In this regard, we can learn a good lesson from the famous story of Ekalavya.

The story of Ekalavya

Once, when Arjuna, the celebrated Pandava, was still a boy, he, his brothers and his cousins studied the military sciences from the great master Dronacharya. At that time, Ekalavya, the son of Hiranyadhanu, the king of an aboriginal tribe, was moved by his faith to approach Dronacharya and request him for instruction in archery. Dronacharya refused to teach his prospective disciple because he wanted to test his faith, but Ekalavya was stubbornly determined to learn archery from the master. So unbeknownst to Drona, Ekalavya went to the forest and fashioned an image of him out of clay. He then began to practice archery in front of this image all day long. Concentrating his mind on Dronacharya in this way, Ekalavya gradually became the most expert archer in the world, more skilful than even Arjuna. Arjuna was not only Krishna's intimate friend, but also Dronacharya's dearest disciple. The master had once promised him, "No one will ever excel you in this art. You will become the best archer on this earth and so will you remain, I promise you!" One day, the Kauravas and the Pandavas went together for a walk in the forest when they suddenly saw something quite astonishing. Lying peacefully on the ground was a dog whose mouth had been sewn closed by seven arrows. The boys thought that one who could perform such extraordinary feat was undoubtedly the best archer in the world. They also thought that perhaps he was even better than Arjuna. As they continued to penetrate deeper into the dense forest, they came across an unknown archer tirelessly practicing his marksmanship. It was he who had shot the arrows at the dog because the animal had been barking and disturbing his concentration. When the boys returned to the palace, they related the incident to Dronacharya in detail. Arjuna humbly reminded Dronacharya of his promise that no one would ever excel him in archery. Dronacharya, who was very surprised to hear of the existence of such an expert bowman, went to the forest with Arjuna to meet him. When they reached Ekalavya's cottage, they saw him sitting down before the clay image of Dronacharya and shooting arrows with great expertise. As soon as Ekalavya saw them, he paid them their due respects, honoring Dronacharya as his master. When Dronacharya heard that Ekalavya considered him to be his guru, he requested dakshina from him. Dakshina is the donation or gift given to a priest or one's own guru. In ancient times, masters used to demand their due dakshina from their disciples at the time of initiation. Ekalavya stood with folded palms in front of Dronacharya, and told his master that he was ready to do whatever he ordered. Dronacharya then demanded that Ekalavya give him the thumb of his right hand. Though the loss of the thumb meant that he would no longer be able to shoot, Ekalavya cut it off without hesitation.

A dangerous example

Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Saraswati Thakur explains that Krishna, bhakti and the bhakta partake of the same absolute nature. A devotee enjoys a special position because the Lord is favorably inclined to him. On the other hand, a non-devotee may have many good qualities and moral virtues according to the standards of worldly life, but all these assets have no value in the eyes of the Lord. Any one who thinks that morality surpasses bhakti will fail to catch this subtle point. Though Ekalavya had initially been rejected by Dronacharya, he was moved by his own faith to make an image of clay of his master. He had then achieved perfection in archery by practising in front of that image. This seems to be an example of devotion to the master. Indeed, it seems that Ekalavya was completely surrendered to his guru. Otherwise, how could he cut away his thumb without thinking twice? However, it is my humble opinion that a devotee on the path of surrender must dismiss the example of Ekalavya. When Dronacharya refused to instruct Ekalavya in archery, he had good reasons for not doing so. Ekalavya should have waited for his guru's mercy, but he did not. Instead he concocted his own way of achieving his mercy by moulding the image of clay and training in front of it. In fact, the mind of Ekalavya was tainted by the desire to become a famous, skilful archer. He wanted to surpass Arjuna's dexterity in bowmanship. This was not at all a good attitude, especially if we consider Arjuna's status as a pure devotee of the Lord. The desire to be "bigger" or more famous than another Vaishnava is not devotion at all. This was also against the desire of Dronacharya. Therefore, Ekalavya committed guru aparadh by neglecting Dronacharya and Vaishnava aparadh by being envious of Arjuna. This is perhaps the reason why later on Ekalavya was killed by Krishna and merged into His brahmajyoti effulgence. This is the way Krishna deals with the demons. They achieve sayujya mukti, the liberation that is always despised by devotees. Ekalavya's dealings with Dronacharya were also tainted with impersonalism. He really did not take the instructions of his guru to heart. Instead of following the directions of the living guru, he used his guru's clay image as a means to achieving his own cherished ambition. Ekalavya tried to draw his guru's attention to himself instead of surrendering to his guru. This shows that his devotion was artificial. In other words, he outwardly showed the behavior of a disciple, but his heart was consumed by egotism. Similarly, one should not have the outward dress of a Vaishnava while harboring the attitude of a mundaner. Penances without the sanction of the guru and the Vaishnavas do not fall in the category of bhakti. Materialistic people with a demoniac mentality also perform many austerities, but their aim is to get material benefit and enjoy sense gratification. Although Ekalavya was not interested in gross sensual pleasure, his austerities had not been sanctioned by any senior authority. Thus the expert Dronacharya was able to detect that his devotion was mere pretense. For these reasons, therefore, Ekalavya's example is a dangerous one, particularly for beginners on the path of bhakti.

Remove Ekalavya from our hearts

We are living in difficult times. We have to face many problems even in the association of other Vaishnavas. Senior members of our Gaudiya Vaishnava community are somewhat puzzled by the nature of these problems. They too confess that they have no idea of how to bring about positive solutions. The subject matter is very intricate and requires more analysis. What must be done? It is true that if we stick to the instructions of our guru, Krishna will remove the ghost of Ekalavya from our mind. We must surrender and if we are sincere, the Lord will accept our service. We should not be Vaishnavas in name and dress only. We should stop thinking and acting like Ekalavya. We have to become saragrahi Vaishnavas, not just worshipers of the form like Ekalavya. In the words of Srila Sridhar Maharaj we have to dive deep into reality. Lochan Das Thakur stated that we are just chewing a piece of dry wood instead of sugarcane.

ikhu daNDa bhAvi kATha cunili man kemone paibi meoha

How will we taste the sweetness of the sugarcane juice by sucking on a piece of dry wood? Sugarcane looks like dry wood but is sweet and tasty. Vaishnavas in name or dress may put on many programs, but are not able to inspire pure devotion in others. Vaishnavas who are externally oriented are always busy building more temples and expanding their religious organizations. Unfortunately, they have little or no time to cultivate devotional practices such as hearing and chanting in the association of other devotees or counselling neophytes in how to strengthen their faith. If we chew the dry wood of false surrender, how can we taste the sweetness of bhakti? Srila Bhaktivinoda Thakur explained the symptoms of surrender in Sharanagati:

dainya, Atma-nivedana, goptRtve varaNa
avazya rAkhibe kRSNa vizvAsa
pAlana bhakti-anukUla mAtra kAryera
svIkAra bhakti-pratikUla-bhAva varjanAngIkAra

"The ways of sharanagati are humility, dedication of the self, acceptance of the Lord as one's only maintainer, faith that Krishna will surely protect, execution of only those acts favorable to pure devotion and renunciation of conduct averse to pure devotion."

SaD-anga zaraNAgati haibe jAMhAra
tAMhAra prArthanA zune zrI-nanda-kumAra

"The youthful son of Nanda Maharaj, Sri Krishna, hears the prayers of anyone who takes shelter of Him by this six-fold practice."

Unless we surrender to Krishna, He will not accept any prayer from us. How then will He accept any service? This is indeed very sad. By nature, we are the eternal servants of Krishna, but as we lack surrender, sincerity, or both, we are unable to serve Him. The sign of sincerity is accepting that Krishna comes to us through our guru. All scriptures confirm this. My spiritual master, His Divine Grace Srila Bhakti Promode Puri Goswami Maharaj, told me that so-called freedom is detrimental on the spiritual path. We should not detach ourselves from the desire of guru and Vaishnavas as Ekalavya did. We should not try to establish moral codes other than surrender to the will of guru and Krishna. We should not feel envious of others' opulence as Ekalavya did with Arjuna. The example of pretentious devotion set by Ekalavya can infect the heart of any aspirant on the spiritual path. Devotion to guru and Krishna should never be performed with an aim to achieving material benefits. Therefore, we have to keep very alert and remove the weeds of unwanted desires as soon as they sprout.

In conclusion, I request the readers of this piece with folded palms to excuse all my offences and bless me so that I may become a true disciple of my Gurudeva and a true servant of all the Vaishnavas.