Varnasrama Education 2

[Guest guest]

On 15 Aug 1999, Phalguna das wrote:

I think it's very true for devotees, that they have

> brahminical tendencies, and yet might be happy earning their livelihood in

> other areas; artisans or crafters say, which is technically sudra, or doing

> some business. And yet their brahminical qualities will be very valuable and

> much needed in society; the ability to speak the truth for the benefit of

> those around them. But maybe this is one of those things that all the varnas

> do, like

>

> Comment:

> When we talk about devotees, that meams that they are working on brahminic

> principles...meaning regulation, cleanliness, deity worship, 4 regs,

> shastra... from that they may have particular tendencies of work, but

> because they are Vaisnavas (or at least practicing sadhana bhakti) that

> automatically brings them to a brahminical level.

 

I guess when I talk about devotees, I mean a state of the heart, or a

certain favorable sentiment toward the Lord. This is my own experience, of

having come through the movement, and the particular type of work one is doing

on oneself at the time can range a bit. Those particular practices of vaidi

bhakti are so important, but as we can tend to be disfunctional in other ways,

particularly emotionally, there are other ways to grow. Just being in a

committed relationship, and getting that kind of support and validation, can

be incredibly healing. And healing is so important, lest we, as a society, be

disfuntional.

My experience is that you don't lose your bhakti, and at the right moments,

you can share something of it with others. Or they can share with you if

you're ready.

Lets not confuse the state of devotion with strict rules or judge someones

devotion on the basis of their following a strict regimen. This is a classic

mistake, and the scriptures do contain examples of people making it, though

none come to mind at the moment. Except maybe when Sri Gadadhara Pandita first

met Pundarick Vidyanidhi, his guru. At the behest of Lord Caitanya, he went to

see him, and when he entered the room, he beheld a rich person, sitting on

pillows, with oiled hair, and a hookah pipe. He was bewildered for the moment,

and thought he must be seeing a materialist, but then Gopinatha Acarya quoted

a verse from the Bhagavatam, about how merciful is Krsna, that Putana came to

kill Him by smearing her breast with poison, and yet He awarded Her the

position of a Mother in His etenal lila. When Pundarika heard the verse he

went into a turbulent state of exstasy, fell off his pillows onto the floor,

and pulled at his hair, saying "who other than Krishna is so merciful" over

and over again. When Sri Gadahara Pandita saw the state that Pundarika had

entered, He realized He had made a grave mistake, judging this devotee so

ungenerously, and He asked permission of Lord Caitanya to take Diksa from

Pundarika, as a way of atonement. Actually it was rumoured that Pundarika was

none other than Vrishabanu Maharaja and Gadadhara Pandita, his daughter. But

when someone on the level of Sri Gadadhara Pandita makes such a mistake, one

can only think it a lesson for our edification.

> But maybe this is one of those things that all the varnas

> do,

So devotees are not brahmins (na ham vipro) or anything else, but can be in

any varna, yet transcendental, and they can share their devotion with those

who care to hear. Haribol!