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EDITORIAL October 6, 1999 VNN4877 Comment on this story Guru Kripa BY ASAUMAUDHRA DASA EDITORIAL, Oct 6 (VNN) — Dearly Beloved Sons and Daughters of the Gaudiy Family; Please accept my humble obeisances. Dandavat pranam. All glories to Srila Prabhupada. All glories to the divine chain of command, that guru-varga, which channels the unadulterated power(shakti) of the Lord and which is not different than the Supreme Lord in its manifested potency . We have taken initiation perhaps from a Ôguru' in the line of succession from Srila Prabhupada and although there is a link by the channel of Ôdiksha', we at times wonder why the Ôshakti' of Srila Prabhupada does not shine like the blazing sun in the heart of our Ôguru' and other Ôdisciplic gurus' who had taken Ôdiksha mantras' directly from His Divine Grace. Sonetimes he may speak wonderfully, and other times he may remind us so much of our parama-guru Maharaja, but in our heart-of-hearts we see someone who has yet to experience the wonders of devotional ecstacy and intimacy. Something is missing, no doubt. But, what should one do? Should we continue to worship and honor such a devotee as our guru and take the dust from his feet upon our head? Our King of Bhakti, Chancellor of Krishna-consciousness, Rupa goswami says in verse five of the Shikshamrita, Ôkrishneti yasya giri tam manasaadriyeta deekshaasti cet pranatibhish cha bhajantam eesham'. We should give honour to the level of advancement of the devotee. If we honour the Ôkanishta Ôas if he were on the level of an Ôuttama' Vaishnava, then we are in error. If we consider an Ôuttama-Vaishnava' to be on the level of a Ôkanishta' or even Ômadhyama' and treat him accordingly, then we are also in error. We have to really know who it is we are serving and act accordingly. In this categorization of Vaishnavas, we see that there is obviously no institutional division. A Ôkanishta' is a Ôkanishta' whether he comes from India or America, whether he belongs to The United Krishna Foundation or the Southern Bhakti Association. Bhakti is a science of the soul and does not consider the material associations particularly, although those considerations may arise in the minds of certain devotees. But getting back to the chain of command, what is it that is missing in the Ôdiksha' line of gurus descending from our A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami that leaves us at times in doldrums over the lack of potency and kreepa, or mercy. If we see the process of Ôdiksha' as a formality or a mechanical process or even something outward or external we would be perhaps offensive in deriding the whole process of Krishna consciousness, unless we understood the value of Ôshiksha' or hearing from the Ôrealized soul' properly. That our disciplic line of acharyas is a Ôshiksha line' constituting what is known as Bhagavat-marga is known by most devotees. But will every devotee also see that line of Ôshiksha' irrespective of national and institutional demarcation? Can you cross the ÔABC Wall' if someone is giving instuction on Krishna-consciousness, outside of the confinement of the institution ? Are you restricted by formal duties or is there a fear from the established authorities that may disrupt your position and relationships? We all should abide by the dictates of higher command, but at what point can we go against that higher command if our hearts are still hankering for the taste of real ÔKrishna bhakti'? What risks are we willing to take and how much does Krishna consciousness really mean to us? The gopees were labeled Ômad', because they risked everything . We are also at risk if we make the wrong choice in our spiritual life. How can we be certain that what we are choosing is the right choice? There must be some Ôkreepa', some mercy,to help us out of our predicament. Gopinatha Aacharya said to Sarvabhouma Bhattacharya,'ishvarena kreepaa-lesha haya t' yaahaare, sei ta' eesvara-tattva jaanibaare paare'. If you can just get a little mercy, then you can understand everything. Mercy was available but due to fame, scholarship, position, prestige, and a barren heart the Bhattacharya was denied access. Eventually,however, he did get the mercy and,of course, Ôall's well that ends well'. When the acharya leaves chaos may come from managerial disruptions but if the mercy is there,is there really any problem with continuing Krishna consciousness? No way,Jose! It is known amongst the few that that sacred earth of Bhuvanesvar received the mercy of Srila Prabhupada with the striking of his cane in the earth and the shouts of Iskcon's founder-acharya,"I leave my mercy here!" thrice. When the dust settled after the departure of Srila Prabhupada then the Ôreincarnation' of Srila Prabhupada began to open up his mouth and speak tattva and katha. Whereas many tried to imitate the past acharya and provide a certified copy, many devotees could see through the illusion but were not sure of what to do next. Others took to the Ôvani' as their solace and others preaching, but without the live connection, the initial fire slowed to a kindle and then eventually went out. Still some fortunate souls heard from the Ômoon amongst the stars' and found their connection re-established. Here was someone who was a Ôdiksha' disciple and yet noticably different. What was the difference that we are talking about? Is it in the power of words- Sanskrit, English, Hindi- or was it the power of devotion, dedication and development. All three. And yet you have to Ôexperience' the deeper side to know just how different personalities can be. Their bhajan, their kirtan, all comes through to a recipient who really surrenders in love. There has got to be an opening of the heart by which those moonbeams can enter from the sadhu to you. Such persons are not limited in their perception of an individuals inclinations and desires. They are ambassadors of the Absolute and despite humble appearances have manifold operatives for enlightening the sincere. Such powerful individuals cater love from their hearts and want only love in return. The culmination of our sadhana is in this love, which I know I have to stop here describing as the real development of that love has only glimmered a small bit in my heart. Still, several instances are there in the life of our Srila Prabhupada when he stated our goal to be love for Krishna, although there are some instances when he expressed that if we loved him, he would in return love us and we know from the Gita 10.10 just how love brings on so much reciprocation from God and guru. This one case of a guru flowering from the line of A.C.Bhaktivedanta was nonetheless shortlived for reasons know to most by now. So, if one accepted this continuation of the line of diksha gurus, that is from A.C.Bhaktivedanta Swami to Gour Govinda Swami then if we are solely faithful to the line of diksha-gurus then we would expect someone to come up from amongst the disciples of Gour Govinda Swami. Although no doubt there are many good and qualified disciples, we find the same case that we found with the followers of Srila Prabhupada. The power and illumination in the original copy was not manifest in the duplicates. Something was missing. So are we to wait more or should we do as Gour Govinda Swami preached and immediately find a sadhu and hear from him. That sadhu is a dear servant of Srimate Radharani and is glowing within himself and to those who have eyes to see, outside himself as well. How to find such a sadhu? Where to go? Who to trust? Trust in God. Go to the nearest expansion of God, the paramatma and beg Him for direction. But even without begging if your heart is aching for that thing, that one thing that can disolve all the pain of existence in one fine vision, then the Lord will act on your behalf. He is friendly and kind to those who want to do the right thing. He never fails. His grace is all that is needed. Once you are in the live presence of one who showers love and mercy then bhakti rules again. Oh, devotees of the Lord, if you have come with a sincere heart, then trust it always to take you to a real sadhu, a loving master who knows your heart inside and out, who has the words and kind glances that act so powerfully. Come and do not dally any more. The walls of imprisonment are cold and hard, but melt with the slightest challenge. They are illusory walls. You are imprisoned by nostalgia, Ôspiritual conditioning' and blind obedience. Run to Him for help. That help button is always there, but why you do not push it. Are you too proud, afraid, or lost in the abandonment of your original faith. Who says there is no living saint, guru or pure devotee. Maybe in their eyes. But why should we trust them. Trust Krishna. He delivers. Trust your heart and throw yourself into the practise of surrender. It is our life. The sadhu will definitely come to you. He is the external manifestation of the Supersoul. He is our only hope for the continuation of bhakti. The little seed that was planted and begin to grow needs more water. Do you like starving yourself? Drink deep the words of a living acharya. Water your plant of loving devotion. Don't dry up anymore. Don't shower in the material pool. Urine is all you will find if you are trying to replace mercy with something material and to shower in that is hell. Shower in nectar. Don't wait a minute more. It is there. Go for it! Comment on this story  Contact VNN about this storySend this story to a friend
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