About Narayana Maharaja

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It is clear enough that Narayana Maharaja differs greatly from Srila

Prabhupada, but the deviation is explained away by claiming that Prabhupada

was, in effect, a lower-level guru (a teacher of vaidhi-bhakti only) while

Narayana Maharaja is a higher-level guru (a giver of raga-marga).

In essence, then, those who follow him may set aside significant parts of

Srila Prabhupada teachings and directions as a kind of outgrown elementary

instruction. In effect, Narayana Maharaja gives them the way to

(respectfully) disregard Srila Prabhupada's teachings without suffering the

pang of conscience.

Although Prabhupada sought to keep us from being misguided by stressing over

and over the virtue of strict fidelity to the instruction of the guru,

Narayana Maharaja has circumvented this safeguard by sabotaging the

denotation of "guru."

While all of us thought that "fidelity to the guru" meant simply "fidelity

to Prabhupada," Narayana Maharaja has enabled some to now understand it as

"fidelity to Narayana Maharaja." This is an instance of "corruption of

intelligence."

How has Narayana Maharaja been so effective in thus replacing Srila

Prabhupada with himself? A large part of it rest upon his ability to

convince some of us that he was Prabhupada's first and most intimate

disciple, that Prabhupada handed us over to him, that he knows Prabhupada

better than we do, and so on.

Yet all these claims turn out to have no evidentiary basis. They are

accepted simply on Narayana Maharaja's authority. Having been accepted, they

are then used to establish his authority.

To me, this is smacks of blind or sentimental following. I am afraid you

have been fooled.

I have given further reasons for doubting Narayana Maharaja's claims to be

Prabhupada's follower or designated successor and an advanced Vaishnava. He

acts in an envious manner to Vaishnavas and seems to be driven by a

competitive spirit of domination. He is unacquainted with Prabhupada's

teachings and he differs from them in many ways. He has gone outside the

line of Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura for instruction, and he does not

follow the directions given by Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura. He

receives teachings on his "raga-marga" from babajis, and gives evidence

having absorbed, in the process, sahajiya contamination.

All these things make me seriously doubt his claim to be an advanced rasika

Vaishnava and successor to Srila Prabhupada. Instead he seems to be some

kind of talented pretender or imposter, who has seduced, beguiled and misled

many people.

Before we accept someone as a guru, we should examine that person with

critical intelligence. I have done so, and I cannot accept Narayana

Maharaja. From what I have seen, most of my godbrothers and -sisters

choosing to follow Narayana Maharaja have not used their intelligence in

this matter. Instead, they have surrendered their intelligence and let it

become corrupted. They have accepted Narayana Maharaja improperly.

I would like you to come back to Srila Prabhupada. I beg you to follow in

Satsvarupa Maharaja's footsteps and, if only as an experiment, try to "take

your Srila Prabhupada straight."

For a start, you might read Prabhupada' s Cc. Madhya-lila 19.159 and

purport. There different kinds of unsaintly behavior (nisiddha-acara) are

described, such as kutinati-(duplicity), jiva-himsana (killing the soul),

labha (desire for profit), puja (desire for adoration) and pratistha adi

(desire for distinction). These are all weeds that kill the true creeper of

bhakti. I have claimed to find some of these weeds quite evident in the

person of Narayana Maharaja. If I am right, then you may ask, why do so many

apparently intelligent, well-intentioned, and perceptive people follow him?

There is an answer in that purport. "Sometimes these unwanted creepers look

exactly like the bhakti-lata creeper. They appear to be of the same size and

the same species when they are packed together with the bhakti-lata creeper,

but in spite of this, the creepers are called upasakha [unwanted]. A pure

devotee can distinguish between the bhakti-lata creeper and a mundane

creeper, and he is very alert to distinguish them and keep them separate."

There is a counterfeit creeper that can fool even otherwise discerning

people. I fear that just such a counterfeit is present in this case. I have

taken some pains to try to tell you why. Please consider what I have

presented. It is not too late to return to the service of Srila Prabhupada,

who saved you and who will save you still.