Independant Brahmins - The root of varnasrama community

[Guest guest]

Gopinath Acarya prabhus text got me thinking.

 

Of course he is dead right about having the base of learned brahmins to

advise us before we implicate ourselves by wrong action. he asks us 'where

are those brahmins'?

 

Well I was thinking about that. In our ISKCON today, practicaly all of our

brahmins are dependant on the Temple authorities. We probabaly dont have

that many of them, I mean real brahmins.

 

Sometimes it seems like our society is becoming sort of christianised. I

often hear it said that we simply have to distribute as many books as we

physicaly can, chant our rounds nicely, be subservient to our authorities,

and that's all we need to go back home.

 

This creates an atmosphere which really does not encourage brahmins to

research into the intricacies of Varnasrama development. Of course there may

be some brahmins who wont be fobbed off with this kind of simplicity, and

may be encouraged to go deeper into the philosophy of transcendance.

Personaly I feel that, although this is welcome, Srila Prabhupada did

realise that the majority of our devotees need to actualy surender to a

varnasrama system in order to come to the mode of goodness, where they can

start to enter into real spiritual life, which is freed from mixed

motivations.

 

What we need is a few places where some grhastas have secured some land, and

then give a portion of it to some brahmins, so that they can support

themselves, and also offer them any support they need if there is a

shortfall, so that they can be peaceful, and research deeply Srila

Prabhupadas works, in order to start a varnasrama community. It would be

best if our ISKCON centers could actualy provide this, but from what I can

tell most centers aren't even thinking along these lines.

 

Such brahmins should be then be ready to actually teach the other classes.

This is after all, the role of the brahmin in society. We already have a lot

of emphasis on going deeper into the philosophy, but practicaly no emphasis

on researching the philosophy of varnasrama systems.

 

Hari-sauri: But in Caitanya Mahaprabhu's practical preaching He only induced

them to chant.

Prabhupada: That is not possible for ordinary man.

Hari-sauri: What, to simply induce people to chant?

Prabhupada: Hm?

Hari-sauri: He only introduced just the chanting.

Prabhupada: But who will chant? Who'll chant?

Satsvarupa: But if they won't chant, then neither will they train up in the

varnasrama. That's the easiest.

Prabhupada: The chanting will be there, but you cannot expect that people

will chant like Caitanya Mahaprabhu. They cannot even chant sixteen rounds.

(And) these rascals are going to be Caitanya Mahaprabhu.

Satsvarupa: No. But if they at least will chant and take some prasada...

Prabhupada: Chanting will go on. That is not stopped. But at the same time

the varnasrama-dharma must be established to make the way easy."

 

We need to push this. Srila Prabhupada makes it clear, that the majority of

people are not ready for advanced Krsna Consciousness. We have so many

misconceptions regarding Varnasrama, due to the fact that it is an aspect of

the philosophy that has been ignored. We have to now bring it to the

forefront of our movement, so our people can progress very nicely.

 

Your Servant

Samba das