Initially I thought that by joining a Vaisnava ashram
all my problems would be finished. Well, I was wrong.
We have to be alert at every moment so as to not fall
in Maya. Kanaka (desire for wealth), kamini (desire
to satisfy our lust), and pratistha (desire for fame)
always linger within us waiting to catch us in an inattentive
moment. Spiritual advancement is not acquired by simply
staying in the mission for many years. Even elder members
of missions have to be careful. In truth, we are only
safe in the pure praying mood of a helpless soul aspiring
for true devotion.
There is a saying in South America: Nothing bad happens
without good reason." We have experienced many
difficult moments in our ashram life as well as in
the history of Vaisnava missions. Why do such difficulties
accrue? Krishna is the supreme controller: When He
sees His devotees entangled, or with offensive mentalities,
He makes drastic arrangements to protect the path of
purity.
Even in my most difficult moments and after apparently
insolvable situations, I soon discovered the blessing
in disguise. For example, I was told not to associate
with advanced devotees for the sake of institutional
concerns. Nevertheless, I disregarded these formal
objections and thus I obtained the merciful association
of pure devotees of Krishna; whom are very rarely found.
Impartially said, I have to thank all those who have,
even unwillingly, made my life so complicated that
it forced me to move onward on this path of the search
for Sri Krishna.
The ups and downs within our sampradaya can also be
seen as ways of preserving the sampradaya's purity.
They help spread the essence of its teachings free
from any institutionalized control. Srila Bhaktivinode's
writings confirm this in many of his historic statements
such as:
Srila Raghunath Das Goswami describes: In the absence
of my beloved Gurudev even Govardhan looks to me like
a great python and Sri Radha Kunda, the holiest of
all places, looks like a tiger mouth ready to devour
me. In truth, the disappearance of one's guru is one
of the most difficult moments in a disciples life.
In separation of Sri Guru, life seems to be unbearable.
In addition, many difficulties concerning how to continue
the acharyas mission naturally arise.
To continue the guru's mission after his departure it
is necessary for some Vaisnavas to give shelter to
newcomers just as the acharya gave to all of his personal
disciples. But who is qualified to continue his mission?
This question gives rise to so many opinions. Some
may be perfect, some may be wrong. How the spiritual
lineage continues after an acharya leaves sometimes
takes awhile to manifest. We may wish for a formal
or institutionalized solution during this time, but
this transitional period is necessary to awaken all
the disciples of the spiritual masters to the need
of their own complete surrender.
Our guru has taught us how to recognize a real Vaisnava
and the true philosophy. He has taught us to preach
the Vaisnava siddhanta to impersonalists and to atheists.
He has warned us about so many gross and subtle deviations.
Now, in his absence, we are hopefully mature enough
to remain faithful to his teachings. We must learn
to act correctly. If we have not yet done so, it is
the time to fully surrender. Otherwise, confusion
will be unavoidable.
How shall we continue to preach with enthusiasm without
the presence of our Gurudev? To whom shall we send
the new devotees to take shelter of as we did when
we met Sri Gurudev? So many tests are coming now,
all of a sudden. Are my godbrothers really qualified
to continue the disciplic succession as gurus? Or,
is it because of my envy that I am seeing so many faults
in them? In this way, our mind will search for a clear
understanding of how to continue, or better yet, how
to surrender more in our life. The process of Krishna
Consciousness is voluntary, and in the end we all have
to decide with our own hearts how we want to continue
the order of our guru. Our own understanding of our
guru's order will be our only guiding star.
After the disappearance of my diksa guru Srila A. C.
Bhaktivedanta Swami Maharaj, and after the disappearance
of my sannyas guru Srila B. R. Sridhar Maharaj, I experienced
many unexpected difficulties. During that time, I
also studied the history of the Gaudiya Math. What
appeared at first to be very chaotic and extreme, later
revealed itself to be an urgent intervention by Krishna
to teach us the basic principles of a pure disciplic
succession. Whatever painful development had to be
witnessed was a lesson to be learned for the many who
only very recently had come in contact with the disciplic
succession.
In the long run, these lessons, which we have had to
learn very quickly, will prove to be the struggle of
the disciplic succession against contamination and
misuse. It will also be understood that any time a
personally motivated individual takes a position in
a spiritual organization, it is doomed to failure.
Here are some examples of the lessons we have received.
Acharya Transition - Theory and Practice
In the past, acharyas have prepared their disciples
for the moment of physical separation in different
ways, but, to my understanding, none of them changed
the dynamism of the guru parampara. Some acharyas appointed
some rittvik acharyas to initiate on their behalf;
indicating that such rittvik acharyas could become
real acharyas after their departure. Others appointed
a secretary for the mission after their departure.
Some acharyas left a paper declaring a particular dear
and trusted disciple to be the next acharya in charge
of the temples and Deity worship which were established
by him. There are really no hard and fast rules concerning
what an acharya must do in such cases. But, one thing
remains without a doubt: No acharya has neglected the
need of the plurality and dynamics of spiritual revelation
which permeates the scriptures and the living tradition
again and again.
For technical reasons, or to avoid devotees fighting
over the use of assets, the guru may easily put his
assets and trust upon one particular disciple. Yet,
his and Mahaprabhu's order to all his disciples is
clear: All of you should try to save others by becoming
gurus yourselves and teaching the conclusions of the
Srimad Bhagavad Gita and Srimad Bhagavatam. Interpretations
which tried, in the past, to limit the spiritual revelation
of an acharya to one institutionalized outlet all proved
to be wrong; bringing about embarrassment for that
mission. In other words, every disciple shall, according
to his fullest hearts content, be able to give to others
what he has received from his Gurudev. This may very
easily mean that he has to start a new branch mission
of the Vaisnava tree.
Our spiritual master sent us out so many times. Go
and open new centers for the mission," he would
say. Do not be attached to anything except Krishna
and Sri Guru's grace. After all, if Krishna wishes
to utilize you in some special service, he can reveal
that very easily." For this reason we can tell
when an acharya is self-effulgent. As our disciplic
succession confirms; acharyas manifest as lighthouses
to show the path in this dark age of Kali. Krishna
will show the acharyas to this world, and we shall
help them as much as we feel inspired to do so.
The past has shown that some acharyas may be the gurus
of many other gurus, while others may just carry on
their service almost unnoticed. Sri Krishna Himself
reserves all the rights. Only by His function as caitya
guru, does the relationship guru-disciple come to have
validity. Voting, public opinions, political considerations,
or false claims of exclusivity are bound to fail in
this process. They have nothing to do with the guru
parampara. Maybe a guru writes many books, maybe he
does not; maybe he initiates many disciples, maybe
he has only one; maybe he is a learned Sanskrit scholar,
maybe he is not; maybe he is born in an Indian brahmin
family, or maybe he comes from a Western mleccha family.
All these differences should not bring us to go against
divine principles by discriminating between one acharya
or another.
Srila A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Maharaj wrote in The
Search for the Ultimate Goal of life: To think of
one guru as more pure than another is an offense."
Only Krishna knows everything. On our part, we do well
by simply respecting anyone who actively preaches the
true glory of our beloved guru and Krishna.
Rittvik acharya is a term which is strictly used in
our sampradaya to represent a living acharya under
his order. There is no other reference in our long
lineage of another kind of rittvik acharya being implemented.
If there were, everyone would like to be initiated
by Srila Rupa Goswami or Narada Muni through rittvik.
Still, due to bad experiences in our sampradaya and
the mental speculation of some devotees, it was proposed
that a new procedure be introduced into the disciplic
succession whereby new devotees could be initiated
as disciples of the already departed acharya. This
system, known as the posthumous rittvik acharya system'
created a good amount of arguments but no viable spiritual
solutions for anybody.
Srila A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Maharaj warned us of
the dangers of deviation by giving the Christian example
and demonstrating how they lost their guru-disciple
connection over the years. The Sikhs also abolished
the guru system after Guru Govinda Singh. Both systems
are rejected by our sampradaya. In fact, the only case
where we have heard of this kind of posthumous rittvik
acharya is in some sahajiya tradition in Bangladesh.
The other inherent danger in the posthumous rittvik
acharya proposal is that the person who is offering
rittvik connection to a disappeared acharya is acting
on his own whim; and when he does not live up to the
standard of devotion himself, he will abandon the newcomer
to an unprotected life.
The acceptance of a living spiritual master as the principle
of becoming the servant of the servant of God cannot
be voided simply because the opportunity exists for
unqualified persons to occupy such a post. Guru, shastra,
and sadhu are the guides on the spiritual path. According
to the Vedic principles, if someone who is inspired
to find God accepts another person as his spiritual
master, Krishna Himself takes the responsibility to
protect him. This personal connection with a spiritual
master is the greatest relief for the conditioned soul.
Searching for the guru and serving him in any of his
forms is an eternal, voluntary principle which gives
true life to our parampara. Srila A. C. Bhaktivedanta
Swami Maharaj highlights this point in one of his speeches.
"Gentlemen, on behalf of the members of the Bombay branch
of the Gaudiya Math, let me welcome you all because
you have so kindly joined us tonight in our congregational
offerings of homage to the lotus feet of the world
teacher, acharyadev, who is the founder of this Gaudiya
Mission and is the President-acharya of Sri Sri Visva
Vaisnava Raja Sabha -I mean my eternal divine master,
Om Vishnupad Paramahamsa Parivrajakacharya, Sri Srimad
Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Goswami Maharaj.
Sixty-two years ago, on this auspicious day, the acharyadev
made his appearance by the call of Thakur Bhaktivinode
at Sri Kshetra, Jagannath Dham at Puri.
Gentlemen, the offering of such an homage as has been
arranged this evening to the acharyadev is not a sectarian
concern, for when we speak of the fundamental principle
of Gurudev or acharyadev, we speak of something that
is of universal application. There does not arise
any question of discriminating my guru from yours or
anyone else's. There is only one guru, who appears
in an infinity of forms to teach you, me and all others."
The sincere seeker is taken to his personal spiritual
master by the help of the inner guide, the paramatma,
who is God Himself. Thus, the choice of the spiritual
master is mystical. Many people visit different branches
of the Gaudiya Math and also other movements. How
faith arises in the heart to accept someone in particular
as a guardian is beyond comprehension; what to speak
of this being controllable by others. Every soul is
responsible for his choice. This applies to the acceptance
of the diksa guru as well as the acceptance of the
siksa guru. Whenever attempts are made to geographically
or institutionally restrict the free flow of faith
towards a spiritual master, it results in some kind
of disaster.
We conclude that the posthumous rittvik acharya idea
proposed by some disciples of ISKCON's founder acharyas
is not part of our tradition. Such ideas will not be
embellished by trying to point out that one's guru
is so extraordinary that from now on the sampradaya
will change. This is really an offense against the
guru. No authority in our family has approved of such
distortions. Even if it is painful, we have to work
hard and try to continue serving our guru in separation.
It is not enough to hang up huge pictures of an acharya,
play his tapes and quote his words.
If someone is qualified and trustworthy enough to receive
the service of another person, then he would also be
a candidate for the transmission of Krishna's mercy.
If new searchers, who wish to be active in service,
are not finding such qualified Vaisnavas, they should
be encouraged to look elsewhere. There is no need
to share the sad company of someone who has no trust
nor is trustworthy. Krishna will help us to regain
our enthusiasm in the association of real sadhus and
the family will go on, as our gurus wish.
The Acharya Appointed by a Committee
Another particular lesson we learned is that acharyas
cannot be appointed or controlled by committees. In
the eyes of his disciples, the acharya is accepted
as the fully independent complete authority and representative
of the Supreme Lord. Because of this, his position
can easily clash with the relationship he has with
his godbrothers, or with other members of the mission.
Difficulties may also arise with respect to the decisions
made on the assets of the mission, especially if those
assets were accumulated with the help of the acharya's
godbrothers before he started initiating.
On the other hand, institutions need a board of directors.
In the absence of the founder acharya, the board of
directors has to protect the mission, properties, deity
worship etc. Combining the acharya tradition with the
board of directors is quite complicated, and, while
different proposals have been made and experimented
with to solve this dilemma, many have failed to create
harmony in the missions.
Even the grand temples of the great Gaudiya acharyas
such as Srila Sanatana Goswami, Srila Rupa Goswami,
and Srila Jiva Goswami were affected by this type of
confusion, giving rise to the Caste Goswami tradition.
The original free spiritual current was presented by
the priests to be a confined family seminal (sukra)
disciplic succession. Worse still, many young kids
in these Caste Goswami families did not have interest
in the mission and started to take advantage of the
temples; using them as a means to make a living or
simply for their own enjoyment.
In response to this dilemma, Srila B. R. Sridhar Maharaj
suggested that the original temples started by a founding
acharya remain as tirthas for the future branches of
the family. New acharyas, he said, should start new
centers or develop small communities. The tirthas
serve to bring together all the godbrothers of a branch
to celebrate main festivals. In the tirtha no new acharya
becomes prominent.
Yet there are so many circumstances to be taken into
consideration here. For example, who will maintain
the tirthas? The tirthas will only work if there are
many new branches which are ready to give financial
support to a central tirtha and to send devotees there
to keep the worship running. The sevaites (or the board
of directors) no doubt have a great responsibility,
but they can not have jurisdiction over the feelings
and relations a devotee has with his spiritual master.
Let us never forget that every member of a Vaisnava
family is a voluntary member, and that he will remain
so as long as he feels that his heart is properly situated.
The sevaites and the respective acharyas who decide
to continue the initiation process shall lovingly try
to find a way of mutual respect and a happy preaching
spirit. This is the real test to pass in order to
create unity in diversity and thus have the Vaisnava
family grow without obstacles.
The Appointment of an Acharya as an Exclusive Successor
Not only committee appointments faced severe problems,
but another phenomena also manifested: Some devotees
interpreted the nomination of a successor acharya of
a mission to mean that he had the exclusive right to
represent his guru to the world. They believed that
anyone else who might give initiation would not be
qualified and would violate Vaisnava ethics. This concept
stifles the preaching spirit.
Srila B. R. Sridhar Dev Maharaj explained that everyone
has the right and duty to give to one's heart's content
that which he received from his spiritual master. It
is a laudable attempt if someone wants to give spiritual
shelter to others. This can not be controlled by law
or restricted in any way. Srila Sridhar Maharaj even
welcomed other acharyas in his lifetime to initiate
and be part of his mission.
The acharya can nominate one of his disciples to continue
as acharya and to manage his temples in order to avoid
fighting among the godbrothers, but the acharya does
not limit the line of spiritual masters to only one
particular person. That would contradict the whole
Srimad Bhagavatam and the Chaitanya Charitamrita.
There is a great need in this world for many spiritual
masters. The service done by anyone who is faithful
to his guru and feels the inspiration to protect others
should at the least be considered a noble act.'
All these conflicts help us to see that the real dynamic
expansion of Krishna Consciousness can only come from
persons who are happily surrendered in this process;
as our loving spiritual masters were.
Rank is but the Guinea Stamp;
Man is the Gold of It
Today, the world of Maya is so strong that even leaders
of countries are often caught as cheap little thieves
filling their pockets instead of serving their people.
In the name of religion, the most unwanted material
activities can also be found. It is no surprise that
people are doubtful about the intentions of anybody
who follows a path of submission to the spiritual master
as the representative of the truth and God's pure goodness.
It almost sounds unbelievable. Still, this is our
path, and our only hope.
The saying, Rank is but the guinea stamp; man is the
gold of it" comes from the English times when
a guinea stamp was printed on gold to testify to its
quality. Here, we use this popular saying to describe
the difference between a post, a prestigious position,
a function or a form, as compared to the holder of
the position and the essential substance which should
stand behind the formal conception. True devotees
are the only gold promised by the Vaisnava guinea stamp
of a brahmana, sannyasi, guru, or mahanta. Fortunately,
we have examples of such stalwart devotees in our Gaudiya
Math history that, upon any investigation on their
sanctity and level of extreme dedication, all doubts
regarding their purity disappear.
Unless a person is surcharged with the service life,
his acceptance of other's service or collaboration
is a hoax, and Krishna will sooner or later expose
that painful fact for the benefit of all. Often, some
unqualified people in bureaucratic Vaisnava institutions
try to use material facilities for a lowly purpose
that obliges true devotees to withdraw from such environments
to save the dignity of the gurus line. Therefore, we
should not blindly accept every person who is holding
a position among Vaisnavas, but instead should carefully
watch the surrounding sadhus to see if they are happy
with the service of their leader. If other people start
to chant Krishna's name and start becoming good devotees
by connecting with such a leader, Krishna must be using
him for His purpose and we shall show our respect.
Reinitiation - Demoniac and Divine
Our siddhanta points out that in the long run our sampradaya
is really a siksa-guru sampradaya. Nevertheless, the
sambandha jñana (the knowledge of our eternal
relationship with the Supreme Lord) is generally given
along with the diksa connection. Received through the
initiation process, this connection is, in many ways,
the life line of a disciple in spiritual life, as well
as the source of his conviction and service. Therefore,
to loose one's diksa guru is a great calamity in a
person's spiritual life.
Generally speaking, if a Vaisnava has left the service
of his guru he should be saved; whatever it may take.
Yet, Vaisnava etiquette must also be considered. If
two spiritual masters have a relationship, they can
easily cooperate with each other to take care of a
disciple. This is common in instances when devotees,
especially brahmacaris, need to change their location.
If a Vaisnava requests another Vaisnava to look after
his disciples, there is obviously no need for re-initiation.
In several instances, however, many devotees have lost
their faith in their diksa gurus due to the wrong behavior
and insensitivity of those gurus. These devotees became
very helpless and went searching for shelter at the
feet of other Vaisnavas. Under the circumstances, some
received a connection through initiation from another
guru who was in the mood of offering relief to the
suffering devotees. The sentiment was that the previous
initiation was really not valid, since the promised
protection was not given. In such cases, Vaisnavas
should be content if his friends and brothers find
a place where they are happy to continue their devotional
service.
Overall, it is up to the criteria of the spiritual master
to see how he wants to deal with disgruntled followers
of another guru. It is his responsibility, and he will
receive the reaction if he does not consider the other
Vaisnava's situation with sensitivity. If, however,
re-initiation takes place between two acharyas or Vaisnava
missions without communication or due cause, it only
demonstrates the lack of recognition towards the genuineness
of the other. Any case of motivated preaching against
another guru in order to steal his disciple is clearly
offensive and will have disastrous results. It is desirable
if such differences could be eliminated, and the common
cause could be discovered. Guidance with respect to
such situations can be found in the actions of great
devotees such as Srila A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Maharaj,
Srila B. R. Sridhar Maharaj, Srila B. P. Puri Maharaj,
and many others. Of course, above all, Krishna is the
true enjoyer of all of His devotees.
In truth, it is quite natural that close contact between
conditioned souls will be full of difficulties. Even
those who have chosen the path of bhakti and enlightenment
sometimes enter the field of misunderstandings and
misinterpretations. In this way our human frailties
are exhibited. Devotees from different missions who
meet in Vaisnava functions may not necessarily agree
on every point within their practices and siddhanta.
Tension may also exist between members of the same
mission. Still, we should follow the famous advice:
Hate the sin, not the sinner. Differences such as
styles of preaching, over-zealousness of neophyte devotees
for their guru or simple ego clashes should not disturb
our overall appreciation for each other.
Westerns, particularly, often have the tendency to be
harsh with each other. Such treatment is altogether
undesirable. Pride, arrogance, conceit, anger and harshness
are clearly described as demoniac qualities in the
Bhagavad Gita and one should not feel justified in
this sort of behavior. A forum should exist for discussing
philosophical points without becoming blasphemous towards
others.
Personal attacks should be avoided and the truth should
be spoken in a pleasing way whenever possible. When
a sannyasi once asked Srila B. R. Sridhar Maharaj if
there were any special instructions for him before
he left to preach in the West, he replied: Yes, there
is one thing. You must not have these harsh dealings
with each other."
In addition, assuming the mistakes of individual Vaisnavas
to be a general trend of an entire group is only a
shameful residue of the influence of the age of Kali.
We should all try not to give any space to Kali in
our preaching life and our Vaisnava relations. Meetings
among Vaisnavas in a courteous spirit will always help
in resolving misunderstandings.
Devotees are also of different natures. In The Teachings
of Lord Chaitanya, Srila A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami
Maharaj relates that Srila Rupa Goswami encourages
devotees of similar natures to join together and discuss
the philosophy of Krishna Consciousness. In this way
their faith will become strong. On the other hand,
if devotees of different natures clash over the philosophy,
they may disturb their faith as well as the faith of
others.
The path of devotional service is full of tastes, as
well as degrees of surrender and conditioning. Not
every person can understand every instruction in the
same way. Some instructions of the Vaisnava literature
can only be really understood by very advanced Vaisnavas.
Therefore some literature is practically prohibited
for the general sannyasis, let alone the beginners.
Yet this should not become a reason to disrespect each
other or avoid creating a welcoming atmosphere in our
temples for all other members of the World Vaisnava
Family.
Each devotee is at a different stage of development.
Thus, tolerance needs to be present in order to allow
and encourage everyone to grow in their Krishna Consciousness.
This does not mean that there cannot be philosophical
discussions and dialogue. Rather, such discussions
should be done in a spirit of helping individuals and
groups advance in their Krishna Consciousness.
This attitude could be called transcendental courtesy.
Meetings such as the VVRS-WVA meetings, or the celebrations
of a Vaisnava acharya's Vyasa Puja or Tirobhava, are
attended by many members from various missions. During
these types of meetings transcendental courtesy is
quite normal. After all, we all have so much in common
and so little to disagree upon, once we start appreciating
each other.
Customs Within the Gaudiya Math
Sistachara means the rules of conduct and worship, as
passed down from the verbal instructions of the spiritual
masters to their disciples. These unwritten rules of
relationship between different Gaudiya Maths find their
roots in the Vaisnava tradition. While missions may
differ on certain subjects, a general pattern can be
observed almost everywhere. It is compulsory, by the
nature of the non-sectarian Vaisnavas, for instance,
to be very friendly and appreciative of the devotees
and the services done by members of other branches.
Nevertheless, disputes or misconceptions have entered
into various branches, or between missions, resulting
in many unfriendly relationships in the Gaudiya Math
family. Thus, for the purpose of guiding us, I will
record a few of the characteristics of proper Vaisnava
conduct that I have observed in the Gaudiya Math.
1. Whenever any Math celebrates a special festival in
honor of their founder etc., they invite the other
different branches in their vicinity to attend the
function. To show respect, the other missions send
a few members to honor the invitation.
2. Respect is shown among the Gaudiya Math members in
accordance with seniority. Often, however, senior
members will reject such respect, choosing to honor
a younger Vaisnava who has done outstanding service.
They, in return, will reject that motion and insist
to honor the senior members first. This is a kind of
a loving struggle often observed among real Vaisnavas.
In this way, the speakers are chosen within the meetings,
and other personal care is scheduled.
3. If a Vaisnava comes to bless a meeting or festival
he will generally receive, in accordance with the ability
of the host, the following items:
These are the basic customs observed among Vaisnavas
which make their association very sweet. In fact, these
elements of fraternity and friendly welcome to guests
is compulsory for any well educated person. Even an
enemy should not feel ill treated when he comes to
your home, what to speak of other Vaisnavas. To serve
them properly only brings about blessings and happiness.
In addition, a few more points may be mentioned herein:
1. One inquires from an arriving Vaisnava about his initiation
and service connection in order to find out how to
properly honor and encourage this Vaisnava on his path.
2. One should not glorify his guru extensively in front
of his guru's seniors or his godbrothers. To refer
to your spiritual master in front of his godbrothers
with the same name his godbrothers use for their guru
is also not correct.
3. In the Gaudiya Math, in general, we are always in
the spirit of offering respect to others without expecting
anything first.
4. If any type of pride comes to contaminate the Vaisnava
relationships, it is just a question of time before
Krishna sends a lesson. We are happy about this. The
environment is friendly to all of us, all of the time.
5. Never despair in difficult moments. Learn your lesson
well, and continue your path of surrender.
Most importantly, we should never forget the sloka by
Srila Rupa Goswami Prabhupad: yena tena prakarena,
manah Krishna nivesayet. . . Above all else people
should think about Krishna. Later, the rules and regulations
can gradually be introduced."
Everybody has to be happily accommodated in this family
of Krishna Consciousness. This is the golden rule,
and our attitudes should not interfere with this ideal.
Topics such as the different songs sung in different
functions, their rituals, and initiation procedures,
etc., are quite secondary. Even though the book Sat
Kriya Sar Dipika, by Srila Gopal Bhatta Goswami, gives
guidance on many samskaras (purification rituals),
we have seen that different acharyas have adopted different
simplified variations of rituals in their preaching
practices. This is not a reason for dispute.
If someone is too much of a neophyte to understand this,
he will have a hard time associating with other Gaudiya
Math branches. It is not possible to apply the same
strictness at all times, places, and circumstances.
Let us be flexible, harmonize, and again, always think
of Krishna.
From 1981 to 1996 a controversy arose within the ISKCON limb of the Gaudiya Math branch of the Chaitanya tree concerning the origin of the soul. Thus, it will be briefly mentioned here that the Gaudiya Vaisnava siddhanta, as taught by our acharyas, perfectly clarifies the fact that the jivas come from Sri Krishna's tatastha sakti (marginal potency) and have not fallen down from the personal association with Lord Krishna in Goloka, or from the association of Lord Narayan in Vaikuntha. In fact, all four Vaisnava sampradayas are in agreement with respect to this topic. Statements to the contrary (such as those found in Back to Godhead etc.) or those which lend themselves to interpretation, can be understood as simplifications within a framework which does not require siddhantic clarification. At any rate, the secrets of the origin of the soul are well kept by our Supreme Lord who reserves all rights to fully facilitate His loving lila, and who does not oblige anyone to have a relationship with Him.
How Vaisnava Siddhanta Views Copyrights of Transcendental Literature
By using copyrights someone claims to own the rights
of a creative contribution. Yet this is incompatible
with the nature of the divine decent of knowledge into
this world. Limiting the publication of holy scriptures
and their distribution to any one person or institution
contradicts the nature of our siksa guru parampara
and the Vaisnava acharyas. Any copyright claim decision
which causes the number of transcendental books distributed
and published to decrease is also certainly not in
the interest of any Vaisnava acharya.
The only real proprietor of the rights is the Supreme
Lord Sri Krishna Himself, and it is He alone who decides
which disciple is qualified to deliver the pure message
of his guru. Once, when Srila A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami
Maharaj was reading the Krishna Book, his secretary
asked him why he was reading his own books. Srila
A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Maharaj replied: These are
not my books, they have been dictated to me."
While Krishna allows His Bhagavat-Gita to be printed
by many different people, only the real devotees get
the blessings of bhakti by printing this sacred text.
Therefore, all other attempts by any Vaisnava institution
to claim the exclusive rights to their acharya's contributions
is not in accordance with the transcendental law.
The spiritual master is a transparent medium of God
who delivers His teachings to the world. Srila A.
C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Maharaj wanted his books to
be distributed by anyone to everyone. When he was
present, even those who kept a distance from the administration
of his mission were allowed to distribute his books.
Acharyas desire their teachings to be handed down
through their disciples and other sincere Vaisnavas.
A disciple receives the mantra and teachings from his
guru; and he promises to remain faithful to his guru's
teachings. This is the only formal condition required
for a disciple to be accepted. Thus, each disciple
has the right and duty to distribute the teachings
of his guru in the way he considers the most appropriate.
It is also true that every Vaisnava mission naturally
wants to use the literature they print and distribute
to further their cause through the invitations printed
in the books.
History has shown that the properties of the missions
of great acharyas sometimes end up in the hands of
mundane persons unaware of the sacred meaning of such
places. Nevertheless, such people have not had the
opportunity to claim monopoly on the teachings and
writings of their guru and founder acharyas. This is
a very important observation. It is a well known fact
that successors sometimes fail to continue the acharya's
line of pure devotion, while other disciples succeed
in carrying on the essence of the sampradaya.
Due to the misdirection of some leading members of Vaisnava
missions, the properties which their guru established
have become objects of dispute or misuse. Nevertheless,
the teachings of any true guru are the property of
all those who carry on the true spirit of his message.
Since it can not be pre-determined who is really a
qualified disciple, all have the right to preach the
message of their guru as well as to publish and distribute
his teachings. Only by his own qualification, and not
by any type of nomination, can someone be accepted
to represent his spiritual master properly. We find
that this conclusion is supported by the living Vaisnava
tradition. Examples of this include the following: