Srila Prabhupada, April 1976, Bombay

[Guest guest]

Heard this tape with Srila Prabhupada yesterday, thought it was relevant to

the subject of what a perfect guru is. Sorry for the bad quality

transferring it to written text, the pointed lines are sanskritquotes.

 

" Therefor you see in our deity-room there is picture of guru first of all.

First of all your guru, then his guru then his guru and this four five

generations because the spiritual knowledge is recieved through the

parampara. I have recieved from my guru, you are recieving from your guru,

my guru recieved from his guru, he has recieved from his guru, evam

parampara praptam...... we cannot learn to become a perfect human being

without accepting guru, then you remain a rascal.... If you want to learn

the transcendental science you must approach a guru, guru principally the

same, not that my guru and your guru will be different, if he is actually

guru, then there is no difference between my guru and your guru. Just like a

medical man, you consult one medical man I consult another that does not

mean the medical man is different. They are depending on the same medical

science. The guru means they follow the same principle, evam parampara

praptam. The first guru is Krishna the Supreme Guru, He is the guru of

Brahma even. Brahma is the first creature of this universe... So Krishna is

the original Guru. Then Krishna spoke to the sungod......anyone if we follow

Krishna then we are actually guru and if we do not follow Krishna but want

to become Krishna, then you are a rascal. This is the test if you want to

have a perfect guru, then you have to see whether he is speaking on behalf

of Krishna or on his own behalf. If one speaks on his own, manifactures, he

is not guru, he is a rascal, one who speaks on behalf of Krishna he is guru.

Therefor guru is so worshipped.Krishna says in the Bhagavad Gita: Tad vidhi

pranipatena.......jnani means tattva darsi, tattva means Krishna the

absolute truth.... Tattva what is that tatva? The tattva is described in

three fases....Tattva jnana is one. Brahmeti, Paramatmeti, Bhagavan iti

sabdyati. Bhagavan is Krishna....So guru according to the capacity of the

student the teachers talk about brahma then Paramatma then Bhagavan Krishna.

Krishna is the ultimate knowledge of tattva jnana and one who teaches this

tattva jnana he is Guru. Otherwise he is a rascal. Therefore the first

indication is that if you want to become a real human being then you must

aproach a real guru and learn from him, mold your life in that way, this is

human civilisation.

...what is the duty of the guru? Samsara dava...... If you have got real guru

and if you follow him then your life is successful, but if you have a

socalled bogus guru without any knowledge of the sastra, then your life will

be spoiled.