[world-vedic] Vedic Culture

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Anthanarik wrote:

Greetings Hare Krsna devotee,

>You do have a sense of humor. Thats good. I am actually interested in

>your sect of Santana Dharma.

 

Oh --very good---so ---that means we could see soon--- shaven head dancing

and chanting

HARE KRISHNA HARE KRISHNA KRISHNA KRISHNA HARE HARE

HARE RAMA HARE RAMA RAMA RAMA HARE HARE--on the streets.

 

......and when Lord Krishna is pleased upon you ---He will make you forget

this historians --and accept the

the genuine ACARYA Guru Srila Prabhupada--who bestows perfect knowledge.

 

Prabhupada: We want to see the quality, not the quantity. So our process is

parampara. Just like in India--you have been in India--there are acaryas:

Ramanujacarya, Madhvacarya, Nimbarka, Visnusvami, Caitanya. If the acarya

accept, then we accept. This is our process. We don't go the millions; we

see the quality. Ramanujacarya, high quality devotee; Madhvacarya, high

quality devotee; Caitanya, high quality devotee. If they say he is God, then

we accept. This is our process. We don't see how many millions of followers.

No. We want to see the quality man. He says yes. So Sankaracarya says "Krsna

the Supreme Personality of Godhead," Ramanujacarya says "the Supreme

Personality of Godhead," Madhvacarya says "Supreme," Caitanya says

"Supreme," then we accept. That's all. Mahajano yena gatah sa panthah. Tarko

apratisthah. Simply by argument we cannot understand the truth. Tarko

apratisthah srutayo vibhinna. And if you simply consult Vedic literature,

that is also not possible. There are different statements. Tarko apratisthah

srutayo vibhinna, nasav munir yasya matam na bhinnam. A muni, a saintly

person, a philosopher is not a philosopher or muni if he does not agree with

others. He must disagree, then he becomes. So that is also not the way.

Dharmasya tattvam nihitam guhayam: it is very confidential. Then how to

know? Mahajano yena gatah sa panthah. Big personalities, acaryas--that is

the process. Acaryopasanam. What is that, in the Thirteenth Chapter?

Acaryopasanam, we have to understand through the acaryas. That is our

process. That is recommended in the Bhagavad-gita, evam parampara-praptam

imam rajarsayo viduh [bg. 4.2]. We accept Krsna as the Supreme Personality

of Godhead not by our experience but by the experience of the acaryas who

are recognized, and then we follow.

 

720908BG.PIT Lectures

So the process of hearing is very important. So our this Krsna

consciousness movement is to propagate that "You hear from the authority,

Krsna." Krsna is the Supreme Personality of Godhead. It is accepted in the

present age and in the past age. In the past age, great sages like Narada,

Vyasa, Asita, Devala, very, very great stalwart scholars and sages, they

accepted. In the Middle Age, say 1,500 years ago, all the acaryas like

Sankaracarya, Ramanujacarya, Madhvacarya, Nimbarka... Practically, Indian

Vedic civilization, it is still existing on the authority of these acaryas.

And it is recommended in the Bhagavad-gita: acaryopasanam. If you want to

learn factually things, then you should approach acarya. Acaryavan puruso

veda, "One who has accepted acarya, he knows things as they are." Acaryavan

puruso veda. So we are receiving knowledge through the acaryas. Krsna spoke

to Arjuna, Arjuna spoke to Vyasadeva. Arjuna actually did not speak to

Vyasadeva, but Vyasadeva heard it, Krsna speaking, and he noted down in his

book Mahabharata. This Bhagavad-gita is found in Mahabharata. So we accept

the authorities of Vyasa. And from Vyasa, Madhvacarya; from Madhvacarya, so

many disciplic succession, up to Madhavendra Puri. Then Madhavendra Puri to

Isvara Puri; from Isvara Puri to Lord Caitanyadeva; from Lord Caitanyadeva

to six Gosvamis; from six Gosvamis to Krsnadasa Kaviraja; from him,

Srinivasa Acarya; from him, Visvanatha Cakravarti; from him, Jagannatha dasa

Babaji; then Gaura Kisora dasa Babaji; Bhaktivinoda Thakura; my spiritual

master. The same thing, we are preaching. That is Krsna consciousness

movement. It is nothing new. It is coming down from the original speaker,

Krsna, by disciplic succession. So we are reading this Bhagavad-gita. Not

that I have manufactured some book and I am preaching. No. I am preaching

Bhagavad-gita. The same Bhagavad-gita as it was first spoken forty millions

of years ago to the sun-god and again it was repeated five thousand years

ago to Arjuna. The same thing is coming down by disciplic succession, and

the same thing is presented before you. There is no change.

 

 

As regarding Sanatan Dharma the following should interest you:

Bhagavad-Gita AS IT IS Introduction

Thranslation His Divine Grace AC Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada

 

The Supreme Lord and His transcendental abode are both sanatana, as are

the living entities, and the combined association of the Supreme Lord and

the living entities in the sanatana abode is the perfection of human life.

The Lord is very kind to the living entities because they are His sons. Lord

Krsna declares in Bhagavad-gita, "sarva-yonisu...aham bija-pradah pita.I

am the father of all." Of course there are all types of living entities

according to their various karmas, but here the Lord claims that He is the

father of all of them. Therefore the Lord descends to reclaim all of these

fallen, conditioned souls to call them back to the sanatana eternal sky so

that the sanatana living entities may regain their eternal sanatana

positions in eternal association with the Lord. The Lord comes Himself in

different incarnations, or He sends His confidential servants as sons or His

associates or acaryas to reclaim the conditioned souls.

Therefore, sanatana-dharma does not refer to any sectarian process of

religion. It is the eternal function of the eternal living entities in

relationship with the eternal Supreme Lord. Sanatana-dharma refers, as

stated previously, to the eternal occupation of the living entity.

Ramanujacarya has explained the word sanatana as "that which has neither

beginning nor end," so when we speak of sanatana-dharma, we must take it for

granted on the authority of Sri Ramanujacarya that it has neither beginning

nor end.

The English world "religion" is a little different from sanatana-dharma.

Religion conveys the idea of faith, and faith may change. One may have faith

in a particular process, and he may change this faith and adopt another, but

sanatana-dharma refers to that activity which cannot be changed. For

instance, liquidity cannot be taken from water, nor can heat be taken from

fire. Similarly, the eternal function of the eternal living entity cannot be

taken from the living entity. Sanatana-dharma is eternally integral with the

living entity. When we speak of sanatana-dharma, therefore, we must take it

for granted on the authority of Sri Ramanujacarya that it has neither

beginning nor end. That which has neither end nor beginning must not be

sectarian, for it cannot be limited by any boundaries. Yet those belonging

to some sectarian faith will wrongly consider that sanatana-dharma is also

sectarian, but if we go deeply into the matter and consider it in the light

of modern science, it is possible for us to see that sanatana-dharma is the

business of all the people of the world--nay, of all the living entities of

the universe.

Non-sanatana religious faith may have some beginning in the annals of

human history, but there is no beginning to the history of sanatana-dharma

because it remains eternally with the living entities. Insofar as the living

entities are concerned, the authoritative sastras state that the living

entity has neither birth nor death. In the Gita it is stated that the living

entity is never born, and he never dies. He is eternal and indestructible,

and he continues to live after the destruction of his temporary material

body. In reference to the concept of sanatana-dharma, we must try to

understand the concept of religion from the Sanskrit root meaning of the

word. Dharma refers to that which is constantly existing with a particular

object. We conclude that there is heat and light along with the fire;

without heat and light, there is no meaning to the word fire. Similarly, we

must discover the essential part of the living being, that part which is his

constant companion. That constant companion is his eternal quality, and that

eternal quality is his eternal religion.

When Sanatana Gosvami asked Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu about the svarupa of

every living being, the Lord replied that the svarupa or constitutional

position of the living being is the rendering of service to the Supreme

Personality of Godhead. If we analyze this statement of Lord Caitanya, we

can easily see that every living being is constantly engaged in rendering

service to another living being. A living being serves other living beings

in two capacities. By doing so, the living entity enjoys life. The lower

animals serve human beings as servants serve their master. A serves B

master, B serves C master and C serves D master and so on. Under these

circumstances, we can see that one friend serves another friend, the mother

serves the son, the wife serves the husband, the husband serves the wife and

so on. If we go on searching in this spirit, it will be seen that there is

no exception in the society of living beings to the activity of service. The

politician presents his manifesto for the public to convince them of his

capacity for service. The voters therefore give the politician their

valuable votes, thinking that he will render valuable service to society.

The shopkeeper serves the customer, and the artisan serves the capitalist.

The capitalist serves the family, and the family serves the state in the

terms of the eternal capacity of the eternal living being. In this way we

can see that no living being is exempt from rendering service to other

living beings, and therefore we can safely conclude that service is the

constant companion of the living being and that the rendering of service is

the eternal religion of the living being.

Yet man professes to belong to a particular type of faith with reference

to particular time and circumstance and thus claims to be a Hindu, Muslim,

Christian, Buddhist or any other sect. Such designations are

non-sanatana-dharma. A Hindu may change his faith to become a Muslim, or a

Muslim may change his faith to become a Hindu, or a Christian may change his

faith and so on. But in all circumstances the change of religious faith does

not affect the eternal occupation of rendering service to others. The Hindu,

Muslim or Christian in all circumstances is servant of someone. Thus, to

profess a particular type of sect is not to profess one's sanatana-dharma.

The rendering of service is sanatana-dharma.

 

Hope this meets you well

Hare Krishna!

 

ys mahesh