How to Avoid Committing Offenses on the Internet

[atbas]

How to Avoid Committing Offenses on the Internet

 

 

 

 

In the modern world of Internet communication, misunderstanding, exaggeration and faulty presentations are frequently encountered and easily perpetuated. The following precautions are offered as a humble attempt to protect the innocent Vaishnavas and their friends who read Internet articles, pages and forums. These points may also be useful for those who are writing on the internet. What they write may either encourage or discourage their readership By becoming aware of these points, they will naturally desire to be a source of inspiration rather thanto cause any disturbance to the faith of others.

 

 

1.)The Internet should never be used to condemn others without them giving themthe opportunity to clarify their position.

 

2.)Nobody should be accused of any wrongdoing or spoken ill about, until their guilt is proven through very thorough investigation. And in the case that someone is proven to be deviant, the topic should be handled with utmost care. Actually to speak or write about someone’s shortcomings should only serve the purpose of helping the deviant person recognize his faults while helping othersavoid making the same mistakes

 

3.)Writing about other people’s defects in a public forum is very dangerous. Any offense expressed on the Internet is multiplied by the number of people who read it. A glaring example involves My own spiritual master. Srila Prabhupada has sometimes been accused of offenses that others in his mission committed, and he is often quoted out of context in order to portray him as someone who is against women, or a racist or whatever they may regard him to be. Such comments are extremely detrimental to those who write or read them, since Prabhupada is really an excellent provider of devotional inspiration, uniting male and female and all races in the joint effort of spreading the message of love around the world.

 

4.)It is easy for people sitting and writing in front of a computer screen to lose sensitivity towards others. They use uncultured words, are full of prejudicesand frequently create or promote lies. Then there are others, who in order to serve their sectarian ends, decry the sincere efforts other Vaishnavas or express such a fanatic presentation of their own endeavors that it is offensive to others without even mentioning them by name And then there are the readers, who are looking for faults and scandals, and who are not so interested in the cultured philosophical debates, which definitely have a place amongst Vaishnavas.

 

5.)Before you start reading a page or a forum, check to see if the creators observe such precautions. Otherwise your devotional creeper may be severely curtailed in its growth.

 

6.)Individuals and missions who propagate false information about others, publicly dwellon other people’s faults, minimize or offend other Vaishnavas, usually disappear after some time or become blatantly deviant

 

7.)The Internet is full of inherent dangers. It can be used to promote various sinful activities and even worse, to create negative feelings and politics against Vaishnavas. At the same time, it is an indispensible tool for sharing nectar and communicating with Vaishnavas. All Vaishnavas, or those who aspire to become Vaishnavas, have received so much causeless grace. We should try to do all we can so that others may receive this same grace. Using the Internet is a very effective way to do this. At the same time we should also try to protect others from unnecessary disturbances. All the gossip, politics and negative comments, even if they seem to be pleasing to the intellect of some, have no effect other than disturbing one’s faith.

 

There are definitely many wonderful services provided by the Vaishnavas for the general public and for the Vaishnava community. On the Harekrishnaworldnews Blog you can find a list of services offered by all the different Vaishnava missions. And if you feel that an important mission or project is missing there or that there is some important news to share, please write to the webmaster to include it.

 

We have to keep in mind that a great amount of generosity is required to spread the message of love of Lord Chaitanya in this present age of Kali-yuga. Undoubtedly there will be different approaches, levels of realizations and diverse opinions, but as we observe the various activities expanding on the Internet and elsewhere, we should remember that Mahaprabhu predicted that every town and village in the world would be touched. According to my humble opinion, this requires many thousands of spiritual masters and countless Vaishnava temples and missions. If we can support each other in this purpose on the Internet, that will very beneficial. But if anyone thinks he owns the copyright for the maha-mantra, or any other Holy Name, process or book, he is simply wrong. We all depend on grace, and that grace is dispatched and controlled directly through the heart, where the caitya guru, the spiritual master within ourselves, who is Lord Vishnu himself, is situated.

 

My dandavats, and I hope I am able to do a little service by providing you with these observations and recommendations for your Internet use.

 

Swami BA Paramadvaiti

[theist]

Truly sage advice.

 

[cbrahma]

You mean that a Vaisnava must be tolerant as a tree and more humble than a blade of grass?

Is this one of those qualities by which one can discern a true Vaisnava from a pretender?

I agree with all that has been said by the poster, with the proviso, that to tolerate offenses against an exalted personality like Srila Prabhupada, (and this forum has many disturbing examples of such offenses) is the most dangerous.

[theist]

Ditto on the proviso.

[Ganeshprasad]

Pranam

And never mind the other exalted personalities of hindu past, yes.

See, the virtue of tolerance has no proviso, I know it is easy said then done because I would be the first one to say to tolerate injustice would be a crime.

But I am also guided by the example of great virtue of following the truth, by Raja Harishchandra, he never wavered from his vow to the bitter end .

Jai Shree Krishna

[mahak]

Truely wonderful advice from Srila BA Paramadwaiti Swami. I always had this system when I used to be a regular. Offer obiesancies to all who may read your writings. Obiesancies are not given to mere folks, but rather are a recognition of the spiritual essence of each individual. In other words, when we offer obiesancies to the assembled devotees, we actually are bowing before Sri Paramatma, the OTHER individual we deal with while we think of the so-called ordinary readers and writers.

 

Thus, our words are witnessed by the main PERSON. If one has committed to guru via initiation, we must speak as if he were present, which he is whether in appearance or disappearance in this realm. Thus, our lies will be easily recognized and corrected, and we gradually quit telling them altogether.

 

Hare Krsna, ys, mahaksadasa

[indulekhadasi]

Great words! I have seen to much aparadh on the internet. Oh, and if anyone anywhere here on Audarya has felt hurt by my words, please forgive me. I never meant to do that.