How Great is Srila Prabhupada? (by Swami B.G. Narasingha)

[Jahnava Nitai Das]

How Great is Srila Prabhupada?

by Swami B.G. Narasingha

 

(Adopted from a talk given at Govindaji Gardens for the Vyasa Puja

celebration of Srila Prabhupada. September 1, 2002)

 

KRSNA TALK 37

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If we enter the ocean by boat we can navigate our direction to a

destination based on the stars. The stars are compared to so much knowledge

found in the Vedas. One of those stars in the sky is called Dhruva-loka.

In modern science Dhruva-loka is called the Pole Star or North Star.

When we are in the ocean if we lose sight of that star, if we cannot see

that star then we cannot benefit from all the other stars. We will be

lost in the ocean. The Pole Star doesn't move. It is fixed in one place.

As long as we can see the Pole Star, which never moves, than we can

determine so many things by the other stars which are moving. But if we do

not have a fixed bearing with the Pole Star then we are lost.

 

Sri Guru may be compared to the Pole Star because with the help of the

guru we can derive great benefit from the Vedic knowledge. But without

the help of the guru we will be bewildered in our attempt to understand

the Vedic knowledge.

 

The Vedic knowledge is sometimes compared to a 'jungle of knowledge'.

Not just an ordinary jungle but a very dense jungle. In this material

world we are already in the jungle of material misconceptions. If we want

to search for God then we must come out of misconception. To fulfill

our search we may enter into the study of the Vedas. But if we study the

Vedas without the help of the guru we may eventually come to conclude

that there is no God. Or we may conclude that there are many Gods. Or

worst of worst we may conclude that, "I am God. We are all God". In this

way, without the help of the guru, we may become bewildered and meet

with ultimate ruin.

 

In the Vedic literature there are various opinions. In the Visnu Purana

it says that Visnu is Supreme. In the Siva Purana it says Siva is the

Supreme. In the Markandeya Purana it says that Durga is Supreme. And in

the Upanisads it is mentioned 'aham brahmasmi' - 'I am Brahman'. So

one may think that there are many Gods, or that there are so many Gods

that there is no God at all. We may think that what the Vedas say cannot

be true because there are too many apparent contradictions. Or we may

take 'aham brahmasmi' as the ultimate conclusion and then conclude that

we are all God. This is what happens to persons who study the Vedas

without the help of the bona-fide guru.

 

Srila Vyasadeva compiled the Vedas in four divisions, Atharva Veda,

Sama Veda, Rg Veda, Yajur Veda. Then he compiled the Puranas and other

literatures. Lastly he wrote Vedanta-sutra. Vedanta means the end of

knowledge. After revealing so much knowledge Vyasadeva tried to bring his

writing to an end, to the conclusion of knowledge. After he completed

Vedanta-sutra however Vyasa still did not feel satisfied. He was not

satisfied within himself. His mind was troubled. He crossed the ocean of

knowledge but still he was not satisfied.

 

Then the guru of Vyasadeva, Narada Muni, came and Vyasadeva inquired

from his guru why he did not feel satisfied. Vyasadeva asked his guru why

even after completing all the departments of knowledge he was not

satisfied? Then Narada Muni said, "Actually you are a cheater. You have

cheated the people of the world and you have done a very wrong thing. You

have only indirectly described the truth in so many divisions and so

many facets and even when bringing it to an end you are simply misleading

the people."

 

Then Narada instructed Vyasa, "Without directly coming to describe the

lila of Krsna, the Supreme Personality of Godhead you have not done

justice to truth. Now you have to give the meaning of all these things in

one book." Then Vyasadeva wrote the Bhagavata Purana, Srimad

Bhagavatam.

 

Bhagavatam is the natural commentary on Vedanta-sutra. The message of

the Bhagavatam is summarized in the beginning, krsnas tu bhagavan

svayam. So that is the meaning. Of all the Devas, of all the incarnations of

the Supreme Lord, Krsna is the Supreme and original. Vyasadeva

revealed in Bhagavatam that Krsna is the asraya-tattva. In other Vedic

literatures Vyasadeva only revealed the asraya-tattva in part, not in full. If

you are a ghost then Siva, who is known as Bhutanatha, is your asraya

(shelter). Siva stays in the cremation grounds and he gives shelter to

so many ghosts. In Kailasa also many ghosts are given shelter. If you

are a materialist then Durga is your asraya. If we are a materialist then

we get everything from this material nature by the grace of Durga. But

when we are ready for the perfection of life, Vyasadeva revealed,

"Narayana is the asraya-tattva, because Narayana resides in Vaikuntha, which

is above this material world".

 

But in Srimad Bhagavatam Vyasa revealed that the highest plane is

called Goloka. Because Vaikuntha is above all the material world everything

is under the shelter of Vaikuntha. Because Narayana is the Supreme Lord

in Vaikuntha everything is under His shelter. Then Vyasa revealed, "If

we journey to the highest place in Vaikuntha and look towards the

spiritual sky, from there we will see a land known as Goloka Vrndavana."

Goloka Vrndavana is above Vaikuntha and in that place Krsna is the

Supreme, Sri Sri Radha-Krsna are Supreme (Krsna is the visaya [enjoyer] and

Radha is the asraya [shelter].

 

Above Vaikuntha is Goloka Vrndavana and Krsna resides eternally in

Goloka Vrndavana, giving shelter to all His devotees. Vyasadeva therefore

described that the lotus feet of Krsna are the Supreme shelter of all

living beings. Krsna confirmed this also - jiva bhuta sanatana. Krsna

said in Bhagavad-gita that all these jiva's have come from Him. All living

beings are His parts and parcels. He is their ultimate shelter.

 

So the dearmost representative of Krsna comes to the world to represent

this message of Vyasadeva -Krsna is the Supreme Personality of Godhead.

There have been many gurus in the world since the time of Vyasadeva,

but all of them did not represent the ultimate conclusion of Vyasadeva.

Someone may ask, "Is there any thing special about your Prabhupada, your

Guru?" Naturally we will say, "Oh of course, about my guru there are

many special things". Even if our guru never left the village in which he

was born, still we will think that our guru has many special qualities.

And if we are asked we will say, "My guru saved me from the ocean of

ignorance. That is the special quality that makes our guru different from

all others and especially dear to us."

 

om ajnana-trimirandhasya

jnananjana-salakaya

caksur unmilitam yena

tasmai sri-gurave namah

 

Without guru our eyes are sealed in darkness. We are born into

darkness, into ignorance, but our guru opens our eyes with the torch light of

knowledge. This common point we will find between all bona fide gurus

and bona fide disciples.

But about our Guru Maharaja, Srila A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada,

we must say that there is a special characteristic found in him that is

very rare and to this day we have not seen that it has been duplicated.

And what is that? It is that previously what was only known in India

and only in the most cultured spiritual sections of society -that thing

which was only known there, he took that out of India to every town and

village in the whole world.

 

prthivite ache yata nagaradi grama

sarvatra pracara haibe mora nama

 

This is the prediction of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu, that the Holy Name

of Krsna will be spread in every town and village of the world. By the

mercy and instruction of Srila Prabhupada, the Holy Name of Krsna was

spread all over the world. From far away places in the North such as

Siberia and deep into the Southern reaches of Africa and Australia, to

China in the Far East and throughout the Western world -the Holy Name of

Krsna and the worship of Sri Sri Radha-Krsna was carried everywhere under

the guidance of Srila Prabhupada.

 

A guru or a great acarya may spread Krsna Consciousness in a village or

even in a state or a country but to spread Krsna consciousness

throughout the whole world, that indeed is very rare. For example,

Ramanujacarya, a very great Vaisnava saint, spread Visnu-bhakti in Tamil Nadu,

Karnataka and Andhra. When Ramanuja went to Kerala he tried to start there

but they told him to leave. Ramanuja is considered to be the sakti of

Ananta, still when he preached in Kerala they did not accept, they told

him to go. Who can speak better than Ananta, who has a thousand mouths,

and knows all the Vedas? But still Ramanuja was not successful in

Kerala.

 

There is a place called Tananur in Karnataka where Ramanuja debated

with sixty thousand Jain philosophers and defeated them. At that time

Ananta personally manifested through Ramanuja and defeated and converted

the Jains. If we visit the Yoga Nrsimha temple in Tananur we will see one

Deity of Ramanuja and behind him is Ananta. The Sthala-purana there

says that on that day Lord Ananta Himself came there and with many mouths

he was arguing many points with the Jain scholars and He defeated them

all. So Ramanuja was indeed a very great personality, yet he could only

spread his mission successfully in three states, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka

and Andhra.

 

Another very great saint in India was Madhvacarya. He is considered to

have been an incarnation of Bhima and Vayu. He was a very great

philosopher, very learned and highly elevated spiritually. But Madhvacarya was

only able to spread his mission successfully in Karnataka. Practically

speaking, outside of Karnataka nobody has heard of Madhvacarya. Of

course, on occasion he preached in Varanasi, but the people of Varanasi

never became the followers of Madhvacarya. Varanasi remained what it had

always been, a place of Mayavadi philosophers.

 

Both Ramanuja and Madhvacarya were indeed very great personalities, but

their spiritual influence was more or less regional. However, in the

time of Srila Prabhupada he not only had an influence in a few states in

India but he traveled around the world twelve times and successfully

spread his mission very widely. Because of his preaching work the name of

Krsna and Vaisnavism is known in almost every country in the world.

With this consideration we may ask, "How great is Srila Prabhupada?"

 

When the mission of Ramanuja, who held the sakti of Ananta, was

successful in only three states and the mission of Madhvacarya, who is Bhima

and Vayu combined, was successful in only one state then what is the

power and greatness of that person who spread Krsna Consciousness

throughout the whole world? How great is Srila Prabhupada?

 

When Ramanuja and Madhvacarya toured India for spreading their missions

they had to contend with the opposing elements of Hinduism, Buddhism,

Islam, the materialists, and the Mayavadi's. But when Srila Prabhupada

went out into the world to spread Krsna consciousness he had to contend

with all of the above and more. Especially the scientists, who hold a

grip on the whole world, were a formidable opposition to Krsna

consciousness, but Srila Prabhupada defeated them and many of them surrendered

and became his disciples.

 

Srila Prabhupada had to fight with many opposing elements and in

countries where the culture was not at all favorable for spiritual

advancement in Krsna consciousness. Yet he established over one hundred temples,

asramas, and Krsna conscious communities throughout the world.

 

With our mind we might try to imagine who he was, what power stood

behind him, what is his eternal spiritual identity. Some of the greatest

thinking Vaisnavas I have ever had the good fortune to meet considered

that Srila Prabhupada was the sakti of Nityananda, of Baladeva.

 

Ramanuja held the shakti of Ananta, but Ananta is an amsa of Baladeva.

Amsa means a part - Baladeva is the source of Ananta. Baladeva means

the spiritual potency of Godhead, the full spiritual potency and energy

of Godhead. In Gaura-lila, Nityananda Prabhu and Baladeva are considered

non-different. Many great transcendentalists in our times, who

witnessed what our Guru Maharaja achieved, have concluded that he was the sakti

of Nityananda Prabhu, a saktyavesa-avatara. That means that he was

empowered with the sakti of Sri Nityananda Prabhu to spread Krsna

consciousness throughout the world.

 

Nowadays we may meet a big svami or a guru (especially in India) who

has many disciples and when asked, "Who are you?" he will say, "I am

Bhagavan, I am God!" or he may say "I am the Jagat-guru (the spiritual

master of the universe)." But when our Guru Maharaja, Srila Prabhupada was

asked "Who are you?" he would say, "I am the humble servant of my

gurudeva. My only credit is that I am the obedient servant to the order of

my guru. All the success that I have is due to the grace of my guru."

 

Although it is the opinion of many great devotees that our Guru

Maharaja was a saktyavesa-avatara of Nityananda Prabhu, still by his own words

he considered himself to be the humble servant of his guru. Our Guru

Maharaja had such a vision that he could see that the whole world could

become God conscious, Krsna conscious, but still he considered himself

the humble servant of his guru.

 

If we have love for someone then we may naturally exaggerate their

qualities, because that is the natural way of love. But even without any

exaggeration due to our love for our Guru Maharaja if we say that Srila

Prabhupada was one of the greatest saints to have ever come to this

Earth, it cannot be taken as an exaggeration - his life and achievements

stand as evidence for his greatness.