Unity in Diversity |
The purpose of writing these lines is my desire to contribute
some thought provoking ideas to the search for unity
in the Vaisnava Sampradaya. Rather than presenting
a collection of quotes from the sastras I approach
the issue with what we call common sense.
1. The validity and the uselessness of the philosophical
debate in Krishna Consciousness.
My spiritual master Srila Prabhupada did not use any
"you must do". He convinced either by proper
explanation or by his loving dealings. No guru can
force somebody to be and live as a disciple, much less
a godbrother should dare to impose 'You must' on his
godbrothers. That leaves only space for the convincing
which captures the heart of others after their minds
are satisfied.
2. Analyze to surrender versus surrender to be able
to analyze.
Only sadhu-sanga or enlightening one another could
be called a genuine function for a centralized governing
body. This body can convince the local preachers of
their realizations. We need individual wisdom, wisdom
as we learn to expose our own reflections to convince
others. If a governing body wants to recover its reputation
at all, it must reach the heart of the preachers.
Krishna Consciousness means to create God-centered
thinking, feeling and willing. Just as Srila Prabhupada
demonstrated by trusting newcomers almost at once to
establish temples, zones, restaurants, publishing
divisions on their own, protected by their sincerity
to follow a pure devotee. If a man can receive local
support due to his preaching then his opinion has the
highest value, unless he feels inspired to surrender
to some higher vaisnava.
We cannot force anyone to accept our service, nor is
there any need to do so.
After the founder acharya leaves, his books are sastras.
They are passive, and any interpretation is only as
true as the interpreter is pure and inspired. Also
it is a fact, that all is written in the vaishnava
books, we cannot follow bookshelves, we have to follow
our own inner guide (cittete koriya aikya). That means
to search for a valid sadhu and guru and to consult
the sastra on all issues with their help. And at least
you need the peace of your conscience.
3. Centralization kills internal capacity and happy
exchanges.
Every spiritual master may want to set it up differently
but this is the way Srila Prabhupada did it. If someone
wants it differently he should first make sure that
he actually not violate the feelings of preaching godbrothers,
or try to geographically or institutional monopolize
the mercy distribution. Institutional centralization
is totally unrelatable to the before mentioned, characteristic
only to mundane organizations which are owned by someone.
But a vaishnava-movement only belongs to Krishna, and
He gave us all common sense to look for its welfare
and to fight any abuse.
4. Love and trust is the Divine Law No.1.
An acharya may started so many valuable projects and
envisioned many more. They should never remain to be
places of envious fights over the control of the money,
otherwise their purpose will be destroyed. Therefore
those projects need solid local, hopefully lifelong
administrations, which protect those projects and their
incomes or future donations from even small embezzlements.
In this regard there is a difference we should make: spiritual authority and material authority
The disciple sees in his guru spiritual authority and
material authority. But for managing for example the
book fund or main temples such a relationship is detrimental.
Spiritual, public accounts can only be controlled by
functioning trusts. Otherwise the danger arises, that
centralized governing bodies or international construction
will be misused, mixing the accounts with the "faith
in guru or centralized governing bodies" understanding.
There are also considerations of emotional motivations.
You will find this exclusive holiness atmosphere in
every ashram, whether it is Srila Prabhupada's, Srila
Sridhar Maharaja's, or any other Acharya's establishment.
And since holy things should never be imposed, certain
principle temples of a gurudeva must always focus
on him as the exclusive Founder Acharya and the guru-tattva
principle as progressive protection for the newcomers,
who eventually will find their guru, by Krishna's
grace. Otherwise some disciples of Founder Acharya,
who are not sure what to do after the passing of their
gurudeva, have no ashram where they can live peacefully
and preach. Nobody should ever, harboring ill-feelings
towards a certain preacher, visit his ashram or transmit
such feelings to disciples of that preacher. Live and
let live. Surrender and let others surrender. Nobody
can complain if the faith in some preacher naturally
grows in somebody's heart, due to his missionary activities.
Even if he fails later, nevertheless he did help that
person a lot, and instead of feeling cheated, that
disciple who lost his guru should feel: "Due to
me not being serious enough Krishna has sent my bad
karma to give me a strong lesson. Now let me pray and
if the guru does not recover let me find a new protector
having learned by Krishna's grace that he must be
a true devotee of Krishna free of the cheating tendency."
There are no incidents in the history of the Gaudiya
Sampradaya of ritvik initiations on behalf of a disappeared
spiritual master. New gurus will organize their projects
as they see fit since they have spiritual authority
and material authority before their disciples, but
if they wish to see progress in the long run, they
will have to apply the same procedures in order to
prevent exploitations of the holy mission, as soon
as things become too big to be controlled single handedly.
The real governing body simply has to teach the attitude
and the vaisnava etiquettes. They cannot enforce their
rules anyway, since in Vaishnavism is never be created
a government like enforcing instrument, but rather
resolved even great difficulties with love and trust.
Give love, if you want bhakti. If you don't agree you
joined the wrong movement.
5. Sweetness, beauty and love: The base of Krishna Consciousness.
Money is to be organized locally, that not a penny can
be misspent.
And above all, this is the most practical. Vaisnavas
should embrace each other and feel relief in the pangs
of separation from their guru by meeting each other.
We should only visit a temple where we love the leader
and believe in his purity of purpose. We should only
help a guru in his mission if we feel he teaches his
disciples properly. Let's not cheat ourselves and
the newcomers. There is no space in Krishna Consciousness
for duplicity.
If you feel there is nobody close by to do the needful
or trustworthy, then what about you? Are you a disciple
or not? Do you live your guru's orders or not? A disciple
should try to please his guru by trying to do for others
what his guru did for him.
6. Krishna Consciousness; the need of the brain in Krishna
Consciousness.
A spiritual master who really serves his guru will organize
the group of his disciples in such a way that in full
harmony they can associate with the other vaisnavas
and benefit the international projects of the guru-parampara.
He cannot be under any other control than his sincerity,
but he would have gained his service by his preaching,
not the preaching of others, who he coerced into submission
through ecclesiastical pressure.
7. There is no need to be bitter.
Let's not try to look on others and judge the world.
Now we have to understand the meaning of the holy instruction,
not just quote fractions to defeat the whole purpose.
Let's not become smartas who follow without understanding.
Let's not become caste Goswamis who claim that they
inherited the truth.
Let's compete for love and purity. That is a dynamic
way to eliminate or overcome the negative attitude.
Let us create such an atmosphere, something according
to our Acharyas original plans and acceptable to common
sense.
8. Sympathies, antipathies and personal feelings impede
a clear view.
When we act motivated by our sympathies or antipathies
we are not broadminded. Whether American, Australian,
Ex-Jew or Ex-Christian, white or black, man or woman,
give space to all. Let us not force anybody under the
rule of others. Let the truly qualified manifest their
qualities. And let the others learn of their limitations.
Only through that challenge local men will emerge self-confident
and happy to conquer their town, country or race for
Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu.
By the examples of
Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu's discussions with Digvijay,
Sarvabhauma and Prakasananda, we see that philosophical
debate is necessary whenever a doubt arises or pure
devotional service is being put down by any party.
Still we see that the grace of Krishna cannot be forced
by such discussions. Only when the Lord decides to
give His mercy can He be understood.
Regarding a particular Vaishnava Family all devotees
belong to have a right and a need to be informed about
all details of policy-making, philosophical outlook
and problem resolving to eliminate their doubts and
get a clear picture of what is expected from them
in their search for the Absolute Truth. Unless they
can have such information and possible debate, their
surrender will become rather blind, fanatical, false
or motivated.
Krishna clearly approaches Arjuna with
all the material to analyze his position carefully
and to surrender was Arjuna's conclusion.
Everybody must be convinced of what he is doing and
consider it the most happy discovery of his life. Everybody
must think for himself and not be told that a faithful
follower of the guru does not need a criteria of his
own and that a centralized governing body will come
up with all conclusions for his inner development and
eternal life.
Any governing body as a body is incapable of studying
time, place and circumstance of any local problem.
The demand to surrender to a decision without understanding
the situation will destroy the devotees faith. Errors
may be avoided by extending the authority to the local
leaders to decide their own futures. We can see: what
devotees do they do anyway - sometimes by leaving the
family when their heart is dissatisfied!
In other words his project will be practically self-sufficient
and independent as long as he is not a cheater. But
who can stop the cheaters anyway? If we try to centralize
the decisions of local projects to protect the mission,
all we can attain is to stop the sincere efforts of
the particular devotees and their projects. Srila Prabhupada
condemned centralization as a killer of the individual
challenge and responsibility. The guru inspires someone
to take up spiritual life. Never monopolize the right
to represent your guru. Vaisnavas want to serve their
guru and the world.
An institution may fear such freedom, since it cannot
predict or plan the outcome. Being a spiritual institution
it must make space for individual freedom and creativity.
Whoever opens a temple or a preaching center
is solely responsible for that project. That is what
I learned from Srila Prabhupada.
Authorities in a mood of exploitation would surely love
to get a colonial share of at least the preaching prathista
or the money collected by their godbrothers. But here
we miss a point. If someone wants to open a spiritual
center he feels he has a mission. I am sure he loves
to be visited by a loving brother to get help, but
not by puffed up interferences justified by official
status. We all need help, but that only through love
and trust. Even sometimes a mistake is good to develop
strength and vision. We have nothing to loose, but
all to gain. If a new temple is founded in sincerity
it will be a success, if not time will tell. The function
of a centralized governing body is only to inspire
more and more individual preaching efforts and a loving
exchange. In an emergency they might be advisers for
troubled vaisnavas and projects. Besides that, a temple
president has to have the support of the devotees in
his temple. If for some secondary reason some devotees
don't like him, let them go out and do better. And
let the president choose who inspires him and who he
wants to work with cooperatively.
If Krishna wanted to force us to serve Him, He would
not have created a material world and our free will.
So, please let us not try to outdo Krishna.
If we can love and trust Srila Prabhupada we can go
home following his footsteps.
He loved and trusted our childish efforts and that made
us feel indebted. A person may love and trust those
surrendered to her, but why should somebody love or
trust a person if she does not give him the same space
Srila Prabhupada gave to her?
Was it by popular vote that Srila Prabhupada gave sannyas,
allowed to open temples, sent out preachers? No, it
was by trust. No rules, rules and rules. No! Love and
Trust. Would we like to live in an over-governed situation,
with governing body, gurus, regional secretaries, ministers
for everything, horizontal and vertical, a mountain
who feels that you are to consult it on everything
you do? Frankly speaking, my answer is no. My feeling
is that Krishna gave us individuality to enjoy a variety
of loving services. The only binding force is: Love
and Trust.
In other words, the control functions of accounts and
material authority of the projects of a particular
vaishnava family should be delegated to groups of trustworthy
disciples who report to whomever it concerns (including
governments). Otherwise the title "obscure cult"
is rather applicable.
Everybody has to be accommodated happily in the vaisnava
community. Actually it is simple. The relationship
between the spiritual master and his disciple is surrounded
by a certain exclusive emotion of holiness, which
is necessary for the progressive surrender of the disciples,
but possibly intolerable to godbrothers accustomed
to view the relative side of the guru. This reality
requires separate temples for every spiritual master
in most cases.
Thus a disciple can preach in the main temples of his
gurudeva or help a godbrother of his sacred choice
in his preaching or if he feels that serving this guru
means that he should start accepting disciples, it
will be at his own risk. Nobody else could really interfere
in such a decision. Only if he is a known cheater,
surrounding godbrothers may object. But since he would
have to start on his own strength, Krishna, as always
will have the last word.
We came to get something real, something different.
Power, knowledge and money are not the credentials
for vaisnava sadhus. Krishna is the owner of all worlds,
but He likes to play flute for His loving friends and
to keep cows. The Vaishnava community must promote
true values.
A zone or Prabhu Datta Desh is where someone loves you
and wants you to preach under your guru's order. Srila
Prabhupada ordered us to preach everywhere, not to
fight, and to lovingly cooperate amongst brothers.
The very word cooperation means a mutual respect and
comprehension amongst equal parties, not the simple
artificial submission to a non-sastric, non rational
situation to avoid being ousted or called heretic.
The six goswamis didn't seem to have zonal problems
as they preached all in the same village.
That sounds challenging. But we should realize that
the natural defense for purity comes from the constructive
critic. This means those persons who don't only talk,
but are willing to preach, if you let them.
Reject the superficiality and duplicity in vaisnava
dealings. The tie is through love not through laws.
Accept the loving vaisnavas and worship them to your
heart's content. If they criticize you, they may be
your best friends. Make friendship with them and sing
and dance. Instead of trying to control everything
through impersonal bureaucracy let us establish uncountable
small, sweet preaching centers. If we want to control
- why not start with our senses? Let us stop allowing
that vaisnavas are kicked around to disgrace our life
and our gurudevas missions.
To say we don't need anybody else is synonymous to saying
we don't need sadhu-sanga, sravanan nor the Absolute
Truth. I doubt anybody would say that.
There is always a positive solution. Krishna Consciousness
is blissful and sweet. Let us try to find how, by fixing
ourselves to the highest goal of Prema, never to drop
it.
First there is no need to discuss the mistakes of others,
unless they beg you for enlightenment. Feel free to
preach to your heart's content.
If you don't know what to say or what to do, then read
the books of Srila Prabhupada and do what they say.
They say to find a holy vaisnava, who is pure and enlightened.
If you don't find one, pray that Krishna sends you
one or enlightens you from within. It is still the
same process in the search of Krishna. Until you reach
Krishna's lotus feet, you don't know yet who are all
those who helped you to get there. Don't say, "I've
got a guru, I don't need anybody else's help".
Such a statement is very contradict to what my spiritual
master Srila Prabhupada told me and wrote in his books.
So let us be ready to be disciples again and again.
Let's not be satisfied with our achievements. And when
the time comes, let's not self-proclaim ourselves auto-sufficient
because our guru has left this world.
Let's not become popes, infallible due to some votes.
Better, let us become servants of the servants of the
vaisnavas.
Let the local responsible vaishnavas to realize the
weight of their duty. Be open to accept representatives
from other vaishnava families as long as they have
a desire to serve Sri Sri Guru and Gauranga.
"Let local people manage" was
a famous statement by Srila Prabhupada. It means as
far as possible.
Let Brazilians manage Brazil, let Londoners manage London,
let devotees manage the projects they open, let the
unsatisfied open more projects instead of destroying
the existing ones.