USA
March 1, 2002 VNN7187
Hawaii Preaching Center Q & A
BY YADUNANDANA PADA DASA
HILO, HAWAII, Mar 1 (VNN) — (see also VNN story #7169)
Q. But how can you develop a community in this troubled time where political feelings are strong and devotees of all levels and fighting and offending each other?
A. Your concerns are shared by many devotees, including myself and my family, but interestingly enough they are felt PAINFULLY so by those who strive trying to find answers, make corrections, and crusade for what they percieve to be the Absolute Truth. When I see this pattern I cannot help but think of the verse, (dhyayato visayan pumsah sangas tesupajayate sangat sanjayate kamah kamat krodho 'bhijayate) "While contemplating the objects of the senses, a person develops attachment for them, and from such attachment lust develops, and from lust anger arises." It is anger that we are seeing dividing our flanks. If there was anything divine about these differences and divisions, anger would not be the symptom.
Clearly this too is contemplation on sense objects, mainly pride ("my opinion is better than yours, my perception is clearer than yours, my realization is higher than yours, my Guru is purer than yours", etc.), This is just Maya, and nothing else, the same Maya that we are told in scripture to avoid by replacing such contemplation with meditation on Vishnu. We certainly cannot interfere with the very existence of Maya, or the devils that She brings to the world. But like in an urban environment, one avoids the dangerous areas where danger lurks, in the same way we avoid those places where our demons lurk.
These flare ups are temporary and are always coming and going. It is up to each one of us to either ignore them or feed them. Each of these episodes that have happened to our movement have been temporary and usually died off when the instigators either left or passed on. Our very philosophy teaches that (nasato vidyate bhavo nabhavo vidyate satah ubhayor api drsto 'ntas tv anayos tattva-darsibhih), "Those who are seers of the truth have concluded that of the nonexistent there is no endurance, and of the existent there is no cessation. This seers have concluded by studying the nature of both." If it is not permanent it doesn't exist. Entertaining the mischief is no better than entertaining any other sense object. It is as difficult to abstain from the mischief as it is from the sense objects because the mischief stimulates the senses like a drug.
There are many, many devotees around the world that are abstaining from this drug and they are living better for it. It is our philosophy that when an unwanted guest comes to our house, we don't feed him and we ignore him. He will very soon go away on his own accord. If we preach and uphold the values of basic Bhagavad Gita as the essentials to Krsna Consciousness, we will be able to maintain abstinence from this mischievous sense enjoyment. Just don't feed it, don't even acknowledge its existence. It is not even a fly on the wall.
When we preach by this example those who are sincere follow, others dive deep into the material pool.
We plan to build our small preaching center on the premise that there is no political struggle, only some differences that make us unique, and a whole lot of similarity that makes us brothers and sisters. It takes many different kinds of people to make a world, and it takes many different points of view to make a great philosophy. But if we get disturbed by the stimulating words of the various contributors and scriptures we fail to transcend. (sruti-vipratipanna te yada sthasyati niscala samadhav acala buddhis tada yogam avapsyasi) "When your mind is no longer disturbed by the flowery language of the Vedas, and when it remains fixed in the trance of self-realization, then you will have attained the divine consciousness."
In the Old Testament of the Bible there is the allegorical story of the tower of Babel, that when man got too close to the heavens God confused their speech in order to form chaos. It is entirely possible that the same thing happened to them, back when, as is happening to us.
Besides, it's all just hearsay. (yada te moha-kalilam buddhir vyatitarisyati tada gantasi nirvedam srotavyasya srutasya ca) "When your intelligence has passed out of the dense forest of delusion, you shall become indifferent to all that has been heard and all that is to be heard." There is nothing but Krsna. So that, (sarva-dharman parityajya mam ekam saranam vraja aham tvam sarva-papebhyo moksayisyami ma sucah) "Abandon ALL varieties of religion and just surrender unto Me. I shall deliver you from all sinful reaction. Do not fear." This verse really also includes Vaishnavism, and especially Vaishnavism as a religiosity that has to be given up in order to attain pure, internal Vaishnava qualities. We cannot be attached to being right.
We can guarantee non-partisan relationships and communities by ignoring the unwanted guest. If you are sincere about ignoring this Maya, then we want you near us. We are looking for like minded devotees to come and be part of our Hilo Community. Together and in numbers we can do some great work, but especially if we are close and undivided.
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