Bhaktivinoda Thakura on Conduct

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from Chaitanya Shikshamrita 2.2

 

The following are parts of righteous conduct: forgiveness, gratitude,

truthfulness, honesty, not stealing, not accepting from others, mercy,

detachment, respect for scriptures, travel to holy places, proper judgment,

courtesy, worship of the Lord and being steadily situated in work according

to ability. Giving up the desire to punish a person for committing an

offense is called forgiveness or tolerance. It is not wrong to punish the

offenders, but forgiveness is an even higher principle. Prahlada and

Haridasa Thakura forgave their enemies and are worshipped as great examples

by all.

 

To recognize the help that another person has given is called gratitude. The

Aryan civilization has such gratitude that the children would serve the

parents as long as they lived, and when the parents died, they would undergo

periods of austere restriction (asauca), giving up sleeping and eating, and

would observe the sraddha ceremonies by giving food to others. To express

their gratitude to their parents they would yearly offer sraddha and

tarpana. To show gratitude to all people is also a punya karma.

 

Speaking what you believe to be true is called truthfulness. Truthful people

are respected by the whole world. Having a direct, sincere nature is called

honesty. The more honestly people live their life, the more virtuous they

are. Illegally taking others' belongings is called theft. A person has no

right to objects not earned through labor or not given as gifts. Those who

are lame or blind have a right to beg, but others should receive goods only

through honest work.

 

Begging without right to do so is called parigraha. It should be avoided.

One should show mercy to all living beings. Mercy shown as a matter of duty

is vaidha daya. Mercy, which is displayed spontaneously (from raga), will be

dealt with elsewhere. The idea that compassion should be shown to humans but

not to animals is wrong. One should try to relieve the suffering of any

living being.

 

Attachment to material objects is reduced by control of the mind (sama),

control of the senses (dama), tolerance and abstinence. The practice of

resisting the temptation of evil desires is called tolerance. Giving up the

thirst for material objects in general is called abstinence. Detachment is a

punya, for with detachment one is free from sin. Detachment must be

cultivated gradually in the beginning stages, but on the path of raga,

detachment is attained very easily. This will be discussed elsewhere.

Practicing detachment is an act of punya. By repeatedly enduring the

hardships of caturmasya, fasting and staying awake on the new and full

moons, one becomes accustomed to renunciation. By first gradually giving up

the desire for enjoyment of sleeping and eating, one can eventually give up

desire for all material enjoyments. When one becomes perfect at accepting

only what is necessary for maintaining life, one has attained detachment.

Attaining detachment, a person is qualified for sannyasa.

 

All people should respect the scriptures. Scripture refers to those works

that distinguish right from wrong, spirit from matter, truth from illusion.

Those who were properly qualified revealed genuine scriptures. Unqualified

persons who have compiled works attempting to delineate the goal of life and

rules to follow have given the world false scriptures which misguide the

world. Such atheistic works, which have arisen from use of faulty logic,

should not be respected. As the blind leads the blind into the ditch, so

such authors of faulty works lead themselves and their followers on the

wrong path. Genuine scripture means the Vedas and those works that agree

with the Vedic conclusions. To study those works and teach those works is a

punya. By traveling to places of pilgrimage a person gains knowledge and

purifies himself of sin.

 

A person should show their power of discrimination properly. The person who

does not consider questions such as: "What is the world, who am I, who

created the world, what is my duty in life, and what do I achieve?" is not

to be considered a human being. The difference between man and animal is

that a person can consider these questions whereas the animal cannot. The

result of this inquiry is self-realization.

 

Courtesy is another punya. One should follow the conduct of the ancient

sages and follow their instructions on the matter. In different ages

sometimes the conduct changes. For instance, the animal sacrifices performed

in Satya-, Treta- and Dvapara-yugas are forbidden in Kali-yuga. After

intelligently examining all the previous rules of conduct, the proper mode

of conduct should be framed. Proper respect should be given, considering the

person's status. This is called maryada. Not giving proper respect is

considered a great fault. A person should give respect to all human beings,

but should give more respect to a person with position. Most respect should

be given to the brahmana and vaisnava. The following is the order: respect

to humans, respect to those who are civilized, respect to a person in high

position (such as the king), respect to the educated (pandita), respect to a

person with good qualities, respect according to varna (especially the

brahmana), respect according to asrama (especially the sannyasi), and

respect according to devotion (bhakti).

 

Worship of the Lord is considered a pious activity. Among all rules, worship

of the Lord is the most important. However, the form of worship will differ

according to the level of an individual's consciousness.

 

Performing good acts is punya, and performance of unauthorized acts is sin.

There are three types of actions: karma, akarma and vikarma. Those acts that

are beneficial are called karma; failure to do those acts that should be

done is called akarma. Forbidden action is called vikarma. Punya karmas are

of three types: nitya or daily (such as worship of the Lord), naimittika or

periodic (such as tarpanas to pitrs), and kamya or impelled by personal

desire. Those impelled by personal desire should be avoided, but the other

two, nitya karma and naimittika karma, should be performed.