Preacher varna?

[Guest guest]

On 13 Jun 1999, Trayimaya das wrote:

 

> My former guru once said that I was a preacher, when asked what varna I was.

>

> But preachers we find in all ashrams and varnas, don´t we?

>

> Maybe the question should have been, "What varna is he a preacher in" ?

>

> Just a comment.

 

 

"So in our society these divisions should be there. The most intelligent

class of men, they should be engaged in preaching, reading books, instruction,

and taking care of Deity worship in the temple. Another class will be strong

managers to see that everything is going nicely and everyone is engaged. Not

that only eating and sleeping. Everyone must be engaged, employed. So if one

is very much adopted for eating and sleeping, he should be engaged with plows.

You see there must be activity. Otherwise, there must be dysentery. Eating

and sleeping, you cannot digest. So in this way our society should manage.

Not that, "Give me second initiation, sacred thread, and after taking,

business finished, now I am liberated, let me eat and sleep." This should be

stopped. Therefore, we have 50 (units) of land and I have calculated in

Mayapur, setting aside 20 (units) for the temple and grazing ground for the

cows, 30 (units) of land. The production should be 300 mounds of grain but we

have produced only 180. So there should be 120 excess in grain. Instead of

this excess they want 10,000 rupees a month for maintenance. This management

is going on! These things are not discussed in GBC? So what kind of

discussing was there? Simply talking? No practical?"

 

 

"Some of you are preaching and some of you are cleansing the temple. That

does not mean that a sannyasi who is preaching, he is better than that man who

is cleansing. The position of Vaisnava is the same. But for management one

is cleansing, one is seeing to the construction, one is going to preach, like

that. That should be there. It is not that because I have taken sannyasa

therefore I cannot any longer do anything. If need be, he has to act as

ksatriya or sudra. It doesn't matter. But for management, this division must

be there, otherwise it will be mismanagement."

 

 

"Madhuvisa Swami: Srila Prabhupada, Krsna says in the Bhagavad Gita, "Those

who repeat this message of Bhagavad Gita, those persons are most dear to Me.

There is no one more dear to Me than he." Now wouldn't that indicate that a

preacher is higher than a worker?

 

Srila Prabhupada: No! This is preaching — to help. Suppose you are preaching

and I am helping you. This is also preaching.

 

Atreya Rsi: This building is also preaching.

 

Srila Prabhupada: Yes, this is also preaching. So it is not that preaching

simply means talking. Preaching means everything. Construction is also

preaching, designing is also preaching. Everything is preaching. Otherwise,

what is the use of spending so much money if it is not preaching?"

 

 

"Srila Prabhupada: Yes, it is also preaching. There are nine examples of

devotional service, but it appears that sravanam, hearing, is different from

kirtanam, speaking or chanting. Or kirtanam is different from sravanam, or

pada sevanam, or arcanam. But they are all perfect. So one should be engaged

either in sravanam, kirtanam, smaranam, as he is fit. This is the way. So if

I cannot speak, kirtanam, then I can hear. This is also perfect. So one may

argue that speaking is better than hearing. No. Both ways, either hearing or

speaking, they are the same thing because it is for Krsna. "Sravanam kirtanam

Visnu." In our society, every work is transcendental, for preaching . . .

every work. But one must be engaged in some work. That is important.

Otherwise every work is preaching. See that everyone is engaged."

 

 

 

"Hrdayananda Goswami: So, Srila Prabhupada, in our temples we have so many

devotees . . .

 

Srila Prabhupada: They should be engaged.

 

Hrdayananda Swami: Should they be trained in a particular . . .

 

Srila Prabhupada: Yes, those who are not able to preach or to do other things,

they must go to the plow department, agriculture. Those who are less

educated, not very much expert in preaching, they must be acting as ksatriya

or vaisya or as sudra. Always remember like that, but he has to act to fill

up the gap. Proxy."