We Should not Expect Everyone to be Like Me

January 13, 2003

(His Holiness Radhanatha Swami, Mumbai, December 2000)

Within Srila Prabhupada's society everyone is meant to share

Prabhupada's message. Therefore, however many initiating or

instructing spiritual masters there may be, and however many

disciples may be following them, the aim is very much one. And

maturity is to see that. That we are all brothers and sisters. And we

should not be sectarian. Because we may see that somebody else's

faith is more in someone else, you may have more faith in someone.

They may have more faith in someone. Your faith should not disturb

them and their faith should not disturb you. We should understand

that Krsna is attracting different people's hearts in different ways.

We should not expect everyone to be like me. And when we are dealing

with other gaudiya vaisnavas also, even outside of ISKCON. We should

understand if somebody has faith in their guru, we should respect and

honor and encourage that. We shouldn't think it as a challenge,

because they have a different faith than me. If they are challenging

your faith, if they are attacking your faith, then you have to keep a

distance.

But if we are understanding etiquette properly, we should not be

confused by other people having a different type of faith than

ourselves. They are brothers, they are sisters. That's very, very

important. We should not be so egoistic and self-centred to think

that everyone has to have my faith and if somebody doesn't have my

faith that means they are a dangerous enemy to me.

The tendency of neophyte devotees is because we want to be God, we

want to be great. Therefore, whatever we are connected to we want to

feel that we are the greatest. My guru is the greatest. My line is

the greatest. There is always competition. This is a material

conception.

To you, he might be the greatest, but to someone else, someone else

might be the greatest. Krsna is the greatest. But He may be revealing

Himself to different people in different ways and different times. So

we should honour and respect Krsna how He is manifesting Himself to

different people in different ways.

You see, when we are thinking about Srila Prabhupada, it is not that

we have to be convinced that he is the ultimate, greatest and no one

is equal to or better than him, otherwise how would we have faith and

follow him. What we do know is, he saved us and therefore our

loyalty, our faith and our devotion to him is for eternity - without

second thought.

If someone is as spiritually advanced as him or if someone else is

more philosophical than him, that doesn't make any difference,

whether they are or not. It makes no difference. He is bringing me

back to Godhead and I will remain faithful to him. Some people

think that they have to prove it, he is the greatest, he is superior

and push down everybody else, but somebody from another math is going

to think that their guru is the greatest. Then we will say, well he

did not spread Krsna consciousness all over the world!

It is not our right to start talking to them like that. They may have

the reasons that they have for having faith. Ultimately, they have

faith because that person saved them! And we have faith because

Prabhupad saved us! Either directly or through his personal energies.

Therefore, there is no competition. There is no conception of this.

If somebody else is praising their guru, very, very nice. Wonderful!

If somebody is saying how their guru has done this for Bhaktisidhanta

Sarasvati and that, that is very wonderful! It is not a challenge to

our faith in Prabhupada. It is not a competition. We don't have to be

little and prove that we are better. In our heart Prabhupada is best

and he will always be best. In their heart something else. I offer

respect to the faith that Prabhupada has given me and I offer all

respect to the faith that their gurus had given them. Then there can

be unity.

For as long as there is this canvassing mentality: My guru is better

than yours. My guru is a mahabhagavat, your guru is not mahabhagavat.

As long as that mentality is there, it is just a lack of etiquette

and immaturity. We should respect the faith of other Vaishnavas. And

they should respect our faith as well. If we don't have to prove

anything to anyone.

If our faith is so weak that we have to prove that my guru is better

than all other gurus, then we don't understand guru tattva at all.

Guru is Krsna. He is manifesting Himself in many ways, through many

people. And our faith is in that principle. Through guru Krsna comes

down to this material world to embrace the conditioned souls and

bring them back to Godhead. So we should respect and honor that

principle. Srimad Bhagavatam ki! Jaya! Thank you very much.

madhav · January 13, 2003

Dear Guest,

Thank for putting this nice article here.

Just like radhanath swami said,

most hindus respect and follow thie gurus(if they hae chosen one), but respect all other gurus/swamis.

india is such a counry that it has produced may spiritual giants. sri ptabhupda is one, but on the only one.

so, the message in the article is very good.

besides, every one does not need a "great" guru

just like every one does not need a math professor to learn math because some are in grade I and some are in grade II, III, etc. only those who are at MS level need a professor of math. same for spiritual gurus.

paul108 · January 13, 2003

Regarding the comparison of the guru to a math teacher, it's worthwhile to note that the basic principles must be consistent no matter what the level of teaching. Just as a person who teaches 2+2=5 is a fraud, the same goes for a guru who teaches that one can pursue sense gratification and spiritual life at the same time. The "great" guru may not teach his disciples to avoid sense gratification, but that is only because that has already been learned by them. Moreover, in spiritual life, the chanting of Hare Krishna Hare Krishna Krishna Hare Hare/ Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare, being both the easiest method of self-realization and the most sublime, should be taught by all teachers regardless of the grade of their students. Why waste time?