ISKCON Social Model

[Guest guest]

Dear Shyamasundara prabhu,

 

Please accept my humble obeisances. All glories to Srila Prabhupada.

 

Thanks again for taking the time and trouble to respond to me. Yes, let's

try to get to the truth on this one, as without doubt VAD is a subject of

considerable importance to our future, as I think SP made clear. I find

that discussion with other devotees (satam prasangam…), especially learned

souls such as yourself, is the best way to penetrate the deep meanings of

sastra, which I alone have no power to do.

 

What I basically understand you to be saying is that the edicts of Manu are

eternal law, applicable in all times and circumstances. One will accrue

karmic reactions for not following these laws, whether or not he knows them.

You accept that the purifying process of Krishna kirtan will purify people

and enable the implementation of VAD, which will be difficult in this age.

And you also accept that a person practising spiritual life, such as a

brahmana, may receive less severe reactions for sins, as he is already

undergoing purification. This is indicated by Manu. Further to this, you

are horrified that one could accept diksha without vowing to abstain from

garlic and onions, which is an important edict prescribed by Manu and

mentioned often by SP.

 

Please correct me if I have misunderstood you in any way. I do have some

responses that I would like to present here, which again I hope are not too

misguided.

 

Firstly, regarding the version of Manu I mentioned - you are right, it was

translated and annotated by Buhler, and then Max Muller edited the text.

 

I apologise if I misunderstood you regarding "straightforward". I do agree

that the Sanskrit may be clear, but my point was that we lack an authorised

Vaishnava commentary, and this is something I think we need if we are to

apply Manu in this day and age.

 

I also agree that simple does not mean easy, and applying the moral codes of

VAD does not appear to be an easy task, by any means. In some places Srila

Prabhupada declares it to be impossible, as with the following.

 

"The varna and asrama society was considered to be the best institution for

lifting the human being to the spiritual platform, but due to Kali-yuga it

is not possible to execute the rules and regulations of these institutions."

SB 1.1.11

 

"There is a need for a good and intelligent class of brahmanas who are

expert in performing the purificatory processes prescribed in the system of

varnasrama-dharma. Unless such purificatory processes are performed, there

is no possibility of good population, and in the age of Kali the population

all over the world is of sudra quality or lower for want of this

purificatory process. It is not possible, however, to revive the Vedic

process of purification in this age, for want of proper facilities and good

brahmanas, but there is the Pancaratrika system also recommended for this

age. The Pancaratrika system acts on the sudra class of men, supposedly the

population of the Kali-yuga, and it is the prescribed purificatory process

suitable to the age and time." SB 1.12.13

 

"The system of caste, or varnasrama-dharma, is no longer regular even

amongst the so-called followers of the system. Nor is it now possible to

reestablish the institutional function in the present context of social,

political and economic revolution. Without any reference to the particular

custom of a country, one can be accepted to the Vaisnava cult spiritually,

and there is no hindrance in the transcendental process." SB 2.4.18

 

"Although we may try to revive the perfect varnasrama system, it is not

possible in this age. People are fallen, disturbed and unfortunate:

prayenalpayusah sabhya kalav asmin yuge janah mandah sumanda-matayo

manda-bhagya hy upadrutah "O learned one, in this iron age of Kali men have

but short lives. They are quarrelsome, lazy, misguided, unlucky and, above

all, always disturbed." (SB 1.1.10) In this age, there will be insufficient

rainfall and food, and the government will plunder one's income by heavy

taxation. All of these characteristics of Kali-yuga are described in

Srimad-Bhagavatam. People will become so disgusted that they will suddenly

leave their wife and children and go to the forest. How can the peaceful

varnasrama-dharma be revived when people are so harassed in this age? It is

virtually impossible." TLK Vs 14

 

Statements such as these have influenced my thinking. What I understand

from them is that VAD just cannot be applied in the same way as in former

ages, i.e. as detailed in sastras such as Manu Smriti. Interestingly, in the

above quote from SB 1.12.13, SP juxtaposes VAD with the Pancaratrika system

of purification, declaring the latter to be more appropriate to this age.

>From this I understand that the practises of KC, as given by SP, can to some

degree at least replace the process of VAD.

 

I do accept that the principles enshrined in the Manu Smriti are eternal,

and that VAD is an eternal system (SP sometimes refers to it as 'sanatana

dharma'). I know that SP many times told us to implement VAD and that

without it there cannot be any sanity in human society. However, I still

wonder how many of the detailed instructions of Manu are applicable or even

necessary now. You pointed to the difficulty of enforcing the codes, and

that of course is one thing, but what I understand from SP is that if we can

understand their essence, (i.e. what they are trying to achieve), then we

can apply them in another way, preserving the principles but changing the

details.

 

I'll give you some examples of what I mean. The Garbhadana Samskara is an

elaborate ritual prescribed by Manu and other Vedic texts, but SP told us to

simply chant 50 rounds. Here is a reference:

 

"I discussed the contents of your letter with His Divine Grace Srila

Prabhupada. Srila Prabhupada stated that our grhasthas should simply chant

fifty rounds before conceiving a child. Prabhupada said, 'We do not want all

these rituals. Chanting Hare Krsna is our only business. According to the

Manu-samhita you are all mlecchas and yavanas. You cannot touch the

Manu-samhita, what to speak of translating it. So if you try to follow the

Manu-samhita then you will become a mleccha and yavana and your career is

finished." (Letter of May 19, 1977 to Madhusudana das, quoted in Satsvarupa

Goswami's 'Prabhupada Nectar')

 

Again, the Pancha Maha Yajna, prescribed by Manu and integral to grhastha

ashrama. As you know, this traditionally involved the five sacrifices,

Ahuta, Huta, Prahuta, etc, but in SB 7.11.14 summary, SP writes,

 

"Whatever money a grhastha accumulates by the grace of God he should spend

in five activities, namely worshiping the Supreme Personality of Godhead,

receiving Vaisnavas and saintly persons, distributing prasada to the general

public and to all living entities, offering prasada to his forefathers, and

also offering prasada to his own self."

 

This is in the section of the SB that discusses the pancha-suna, and,

although SP does not explicitly state as much, it does appear that here he

is giving us a Krishna conscious version of the rituals. He makes no

further comment in the purport of 7.14.14, which mentions pancha suna, so

this does seem to be his instructions on the matter.

 

Perhaps then there are other edicts of Manu that could be similarly treated,

but as I said earlier I feel that this would require the directions of an

empowered soul. After all, SP reportedly said that VAD was the 50% of his

mission that remained undone.

 

The purpose of divine law, and indeed VAD, is to keep us on the right path

toward God. KC is of course that path, and thus sastra tells us that for a

devotee karmic reactions are reduced ("karmani nirdahati kintu ca

bhakti-bhajam: the Lord minimizes or nullifies the reactionary influence of

the devotee's past deeds." SB 3.1.44). As you point out, Manu himself

effectively accepts this by presenting a hierarchy of atonements depending

upon a person's spiritual status. I therefore feel that KC practises,

properly applied, can replace many of the traditional duties of VAD and

remove the need for at least some of the formal atonements prescribed by

Manu.

 

I do recognise that we may get sinful reactions for neglecting dharma, but

if we keep ourselves on the right path of KC, even we may make mistakes,

then we will surely come out successful in the end. In this regard Sri

Narada states "tyaktva svadharma..." SB 1.5.17, and SP comments as follows

in the Gita:

 

"It is enjoined in the scriptures that one has to suffer the reaction for

not executing prescribed duties; therefore one who fails to discharge

transcendental activities properly becomes subjected to these reactions. The

Bhagavatam assures the unsuccessful transcendentalist that there need be no

worries. Even though he may be subjected to the reaction for not perfectly

executing prescribed duties, he is still not a loser, because auspicious

Krsna consciousness is never forgotten, and one so engaged will continue to

be so even if he is lowborn in the next life. On the other hand, one who

simply follows strictly the prescribed duties need not necessarily attain

auspicious results if he is lacking in Krsna consciousness." Bg 6.40

 

Regarding forbidden foods: At the risk of giving you a heart attack :-),

here are a few more thoughts. I accept that it is important to abstain from

them. After all, Krishna himself declares the eating of unoffered (and

unofferable) food to be "agha papa" - big sin. But I think we first need to

get people chanting before they will care a fig about that. Even lapsed

devotees, who I see eating foods containing these substances, should in my

view be first encouraged to resume their devotional practises, and then

hopefully they will naturally give up such impure habits. That's what I

meant by bigger problems. (Interestingly, SP on one occasion said the

following, "Mushrooms are generally not offered, but there is no

prohibition, there is no harm in them." Letter to: Harer Nama -- Los

Angeles 1 December, 1968. Admittedly he never said this about garlic and

onions (as far as I know), but mushrooms are placed in the same category as

these by Manu. It seems that SP was not overly bothered about it.) BTW, I

still haven't found anyone who mentioned garlic and onions at initiation.

Are there specific instructions from SP about this?

 

With obeisances to the Vaishnavas

 

Yhs

KDd

 

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