Prabhupada is not selective in the dispensation of mercy"Christian Hindu or Muslim"

[krsna]

 

 

 

 

Try to understand our mission of Krsna consciousness. The world is all going to hell. They do not know what is the value of life. Like blind sheep following a blind leader, they are all going to the slaughterhouse. Human life is meant for saving, but instead the leaders are keeping the people in darkness. This is suicidal. Let us try to save them. Christian, Hindu, or Muslim, it doesn't matter.

 

 

 

Room Conversation

 

Bombay, April 5, 1977

 

 

 

Guest: I would like to ask, Swami, would you pray for me?

 

Devotee: He wants you to pray for him.

 

Prabhupada: I am praying for everyone. That is my business. Otherwise why I have come here?

 

 

 

Room Conversation with writer, Sandy Nixon

 

Philadelphia, July 13, 1975

[stonehearted]

This is certainly Nityananda Prabhu's mood. Srila Sridhar Maharaja opined that Srila Prabhupada was a shaktyavesha avatar. (Yes, boys and girls--that is the origin of this idea.) When he was asked what sort of avesha, he replied, "Nityananda-avesha." He based this on Srila Prabhupada's apparently having emptied himself of any desire other than satisfying the desire of his spiritual master, and the degree of his magnanimity, and the mood Sridhar Maharaja inferred from Prabhupada's "Prayer to Lord Krishna" written on the Jaladuta.

[krsna]

 

Markine Bhagavata-dharma

 

(Teaching Krishna Consciousness in America)

 

Composed by His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada

at Boston Harbor, September 18, 1965

 

Translated from Bengali to English

 

My dear Lord Krsna, You are so kind upon this useless soul, but I do not know why You have brought me here. Now You can do whatever You like with me.

 

 

But I guess You have some business here, otherwise why would You bring me to this terrible place?

 

 

Most of the population here is covered by the material modes of ignorance and passion. Absorbed in material life, they think themselves very happy and satisfied, and therefore they have no taste for the transcendental message of Vasudeva. I do not know how they will be able to understand it.

 

 

But I know Your causeless mercy can make everything possible because You are the most expert mystic.

 

 

"Sri Krsna, the Personality of Godhead, who is the Paramatma [supersoul] in everyone's heart and the benefactor of the truthful devotee, cleanses desire for material enjoyment from the heart of the devotee who has developed the urge to hear His messages, which are in themselves virtuous when properly heard and chanted. By regular attendance in classes on the Bhägavatam and by rendering of service to the pure devotee, all that is troublesome to the heart is almost completely destroyed, and loving service unto the Personality of Godhead, who is praised with transcendental songs, is established as an irrevocable fact. As soon as irrevocable loving service is established in the heart, the effects of nature's modes of passion and ignorance, such as lust, desire and hankering, disappear from the heart. Then the devotee is established in goodness, and he becomes completely happy. Thus established in the mode of unalloyed goodness, the man whose mind has been enlivened by contact with devotional service to the Lord gains positive scientific knowledge of the Personality of Godhead in the stage of liberation from all material association. Thus the knot in the heart is pierced, and all misgivings are cut to pieces. The chain of fruitive actions is terminated when one sees the self as master."

 

 

He will become liberated from the influence of the modes of ignorance and passion and thus all inauspicious things accumulated in the core of the heart will disappear.

 

 

How will I make them understand this message of Krsna consciousness? I am very unfortunate, unqualified and the most fallen. Therefore I am seeking Your benediction so that I can convince them, for I am powerless to do so on my own.

 

 

Somehow or other, O Lord, You have brought me here to speak about You. Now, my Lord, it is up to You to make me a success or failure as You like.

 

 

O spiritual master of all the worlds! I can simply repeat Your message, so if You like You can make my power of speaking suitable for their understanding.

 

 

Only by Your causeless mercy will my words become pure. I am sure that when this transcendental message penetrates their hearts they will certainly feel engladdened and thus become liberated from all unhappy conditions of life.

 

 

 

O Lord, I am just like a puppet in Your hands. So if You have brought me here to dance, then make me dance, make me dance, O Lord, make me dance as You like.

 

 

I have no devotion, nor do I have any knowledge, but I have strong faith in the holy name of Krsna. I have been designated as Bhaktivedanta, and now, if You like, You can fulfill the real purport of Bhaktivedanta.

 

 

Signed-the most unfortunate, insignificant beggar

A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami,

on board the ship Jaladuta, Commonwealth Pier,

Boston, Massachusetts, U.S.A.

dated 18th of September, 1965

 

 

[Guest guest]

by His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada

on board the ship Jaladuta, September 13, 1965

 

I emphatically say to you, O brothers, you will obtain your good fortune from the Supreme Lord Krsna only when Srimati Radharani becomes pleased with you.

 

Sri Srimad Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura, who is very dear to Lord Gauranga, the son of mother Saci, is unparalleled in his service to the Supreme Lord Sri Krsna. He is that great saintly spiritual master who bestows intense devotion to Krsna at different places throughout the world.

 

By his strong desire, the holy name of Lord Gauranga will spread throughout all the countries of the Western world. In all the cities, towns, and villages on the earth, from all the oceans, seas, rivers, and streams, everyone will chant the holy name of Krsna.

 

As the vast mercy of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu conquers all directions, a flood of transcendental ecstasy will certainly cover the land. When all the sinful, miserable living entities become happy, the Vaisnavas' desire is then fulfilled.

 

Although my Guru Maharaja ordered me to accomplish this mission, I am not worthy or fit to do it. I am very fallen and insignificant. Therefore, O Lord, now I am begging for Your mercy so that I may become worthy, for You are the wisest and most experienced of all.

 

If You bestow Your power, by serving the spiritual master one attains the Absolute Truth-one's life becomes successful. If that service is obtained, then one becomes happy and gets Your association due to good fortune.

 

My dear Lord, O Supreme Personality of Godhead, because of my association with material desires, one after another, I was gradually falling into a blind well full of snakes, following the general populace. But Your servant Narada Muni kindly accepted me as his disciple and instructed me how to achieve this transcendental position. Therefore, my first duty is to serve him. How could I leave his service? (Prahlada Maharaja to Lord Nrsimhadeva, Bhag. 7.9.28)

 

O Lord Krsna, You are my eternal companion. Forgetting You, I have suffered the kicks of maya birth after birth. If today the chance to meet You occurs again, then I will surely be able to rejoin You.

 

O dear friend, in Your company I will experience great joy once again. In the early morning I will wander about the cowherd pastures and fields. Running and frolicking in the many forests of Vraja, I will roll on the ground in spiritual ecstasy. Oh when will that day be mine?

 

Today that remembrance of You came to me in a very nice way. Because I have a great longing I called to You. I am Your eternal servant and therefore I desire Your association so much. O Lord Krsna, except for You there is no other means of success.

 

Note from Babhru: I don't know enough about Bengali grammmar to know for sure, but I see no indication whether the "bhai" is plural or singular. At the beginning it's given as plural, as if addressing an unknown audience, but later it's given as singular, addressing Krishna as "dear Friend." The two words have the same form. Given the title and tone of the poem, I think it may be safe to say that the first lines address Krishna as well. I believe Srila B.R. Sridhar Maharaja read it the same way, from what I have heard from those who had the good fortune to spend time with him and hear from him.

[krsna]

 

-----

Srila Prabhupada's apparently having emptied himself of any desire other than satisfying the desire of his spiritual master, and the degree of his magnanimity.

 

-------

 

Gaura Nitai's mercy is everything in Kali=yuga

 

Prabhupada came as Nitai's very own.

 

We shall receive him as Mercy Incarnate,

 

"I accept even before I could fully surrender,

as surrender is not even under my contol or volition.

 

Only by His mercy can i surrender unconditionally.

O Gaura Nitai,Srila Prabhupada please save me!"

[Guest guest]

 

 

 

I've an Indian friend who when he was seven moved with his family from India to England. Where he was enrolled at a new school. On his first day he was asked to speak to the class about a saint from his Hindu tradition. Enthusiastically he began to tell the story of the saint called Ishu, who was born in a cowshed, was visited by three holy men, performed many amazing miracles, walked on water and spoke a wonderful sermon on a mountain. Of course, he was telling the story of Christ. But he was bewildered to hear that the teacher laid claim to Ishu for herself and her friends and she let him know that this was her Lord and her story, not his. He was very upset about this, because Ishu's tale was his favourite story.

You see, in a sense, Hindus don't really see Jesus as a Christian at all. (Of course Jesus didn't either because the term had not been used during His lifetime). In Hindu thought church or temple membership, or belief is not as significant as spiritual practice (which is called sadhana in sanskrit). As there is no Church of Hinduism everyone holds their own spiritual and philosophical opinions. It is difficult then to understand someone's spirituality simply by looking at their religious trappings. So, in India it is more common to hear someone ask, “What is your practice (or sadhana)?” than, “What do you believe?”

 

Then when we ask how we can see spirituality in Hindus, the answer comes, by behaviour and practice. We can ask are we humble, are we tolerant and are we non-violent, and can we control our senses and our mind? Are we aware of others suffering and are we willing to give up our comfort to help them? Looking at these criteria Jesus measures up as a Sadhu, a holy man. He preached a universal message, love of God and love of brother, which was beyond any sectarianism or selfishness. Jesus was one of those people who appealed from heart to heart, and that's what makes him such a good Hindu Saint. In my particular tradition, and among other Hindus, He is seen as much more, as an Avatar, specifically a Shaktavesha Avatar or an empowered incarnation. This means that God has sent Him to us for a specific mission to fulfil God's will on earth.

 

When I was 14 I began a personal and serious study of the New Testament. I wanted to understand what Christ had to say about things so I paid particular attention to the words of Jesus Himself. I can see now that the whole direction of my life was determined by this formative study and by the thoughtfulness invoked by it.

 

I read such passages as Luke 5: "forsake all and follow me". I remember distinctly, as a 14 year old developing my own understanding of what that meant. I had formed a sense of mission and vocation by reading the Bible, seeing that the love of God should be shared with others. The greatest commandment, to love the Lord our God with all our heart, all our words and all our deeds, and love our neighbour as ourselves struck me as an instruction, as a plea and actually, as a necessity. Considering how to do to that, how to forsake all and follow God out of love, has provided me my greatest challenge in life.

 

As a young boy, that meant giving up sitting in front of the TV with my cup of coffee, two sugars and a biscuit (these were the comforts of my life at that time). It meant to go down to the town centre of Wexford, my hometown, stand in the Bullring, and preach the glory of love of God to all who wanted to hear it. From my reading of Christ's words and the example of his life, I knew that is what I was called to do, but did I do it? No, I couldn't. That surrender to God I had to postpone. The instructions and teachings of Christ were crystal clear to me but I wasn't having an easy time trying to follow them. (Isn't it funny how it sometimes seems easier to fight for our principles than to actually follow them). Thus my script was written, the challenge laid down, a challenge that Christ had posed to the whole world. “He who has ears let him hear”, he would say. I seemed to have those unfortunate ears.

 

Christ was different. He was radically different. He preached for three years and got killed for it. He gave everything. A friend betrayed him. We have all had some experience where someone we trust turns on us but imagine how we would feel if a friend betrayed us to death? Does the word forgiveness spring to mind? Not in my case, but it comes a close second. In Hindu scripture it says that forgiveness is the principal quality of a civilised man, and civilisation is measured in terms of spiritual qualities rather than economic or scientific advancement. Its quite clear to me where Jesus hung his hat on that issue.

 

For instance in our civilised world who would get away with going to a funeral, approaching the chief mourner and asking him to surrender everything to God NOW, as Jesus did. When the chief mourner replied, “But I've got to bury my father”, Christ said, “let the dead bury the dead”. (I wonder what the tabloids in those days had to say about that?). Of course, Jesus didn't get away with this either but he had the courage of His convictions, He spoke the truth, the absolute truth to a materialistic society and risked life and limb for His mission. I wonder how He might fare today with His uncompromising stand on Hypocrites and whited sepulchres? For instance if he was to visit Belfast he might have problems being heard unless He declared first if he were a Catholic or a Protestant Christian.

 

And how did an Irish chap like me become a Hindu priest? Why not a Catholic priest or at least a Christian of some sort. There is certainly a great range of Christian sects to choose from these days. Maybe they are becoming as diverse as the Hindus? Anyway, I first encountered Hindu spirituality through the Vaishnava tradition of the great medieval saint Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu, that's a lot of words that boil down to mean I met the Hare Krishnas. At the age of 18, in Dublin I bumped into a shaven headed, saffron robed fellow and visited his temple ashram, his monastery, so to speak. I had been visiting all kinds of religious groups—Christian and otherwise but these were surprisingly serious chaps.

 

They rose at four in the morning for prayer, study and chanting. By the time breakfast came at 8.30am I felt like I had done a full days work only to find that the full days work was just about to begin! The captivating thing for me though was the fact that every act was to be offered to God with love, every word spoken in His favour, every song sung for His pleasure, every dance for His eyes and all food prepared and offered first for His taste. Along with this went an ancient philosophy that answered more questions than I had ever asked. But what got me about these devotees of Krishna was what I saw as their practice of Christianity, even though they didn't actually call themselves Christians.

 

They banded together in small groups, sung the praise of God with drums and loud clashing cymbals, wore flowing robes, abandoned the material world and preached in the public market places. That's actually a description of the early Christians but the Krishna 's did this as well. I loved the chanting of Hare Krishna. I'm sure you have seen the devotees chanting in public somewhere. They chant Sanskrit names of God Hare, Krishna and Rama, meaning 'spirititual happiness', 'all attractive person' and 'reservoir of pleasure'. Lovely names and they form a prayer to be engaged in the service of God.

 

The idea of chanting Gods name, any name we choose to chant, is that we come into direct contact with God Himself, as his name and His Person are not different, the Hindu story goes. (But don't take my word for it. The proof of the pudding is in the eating). I think it was the spontaneous happiness produced by the music, the chant and the dancing that touched my heart so much and it continues to do so to this day. For me it was “Hallowed by thy name” in practice. The practice may look strange to some but that is not the point. I suppose it depends on our cultural view but nuns may look just as strange as naked Sadhus. Is that a reflection of their spiritual qualities or just their dress sense? To me this spiritual practice was being performed in the essential spirit of Christianity.

 

If we look in the Hindu scripture, Bhagavad-gita, we hear Lord Krishna asking us to abandon all our sectarianism and just surrender to Him, in love. He vows to protect us from evil and from fear. I hear the same “forsake all and follow me” message, the same call to surrender and the same reassurance.

 

Jesus shows this struggle of surrender during his evening in the garden of Gethsemane . His sincere appeal to the Lord to let the cup pass from him, although He was willing to go through with His Father's command. I have always found myself in this kind of dilemma, although without the same willingness to do the needful that Christ had. All of us who struggle with spirituality wonder if we are capable of making the effort, or if we are doomed to failure and hypocrisy? Can we meet the challenge? Christ's example is so relevant for all of us who want to practise a spiritual life, and even for those who just want to be good. But how many of us are willing to sacrifice our desires in favour of the will of God, even in small ways .

 

When we look at his experience during his traumatic arrest, trial and crucifixion we see a man at peace within Himself and with the world. He was condemned for his zeal and for his perceived threat to society, because he was misunderstood. I have experienced that to a lesser degree in my life - being condemned for being a Hare Krishna, for being different and incomprehensible. I have been spat at and derided, but not crucified. I have no idea what Jesus had to give up, in His early thirties, so that I, in my early forties, could be inspired to follow the Godly path.

 

The fact is I can see myself in Jesus. I recognise and empathise with His life, His temptations and His suffering. But I can see a lot more in Him than my faltering attempts at spirituality. I can see someone transcending the materialism of this world. Hindus as much as anyone talk much about this noble ideal but it is a true celebration when someone, anyone of any tradition begins to make sense, spiritually. And so many of us don't seem to make sense spiritually.

 

We can acquire a religious reputation, be addressed by religious titles. We can easily learn to say the right thing and wear the appropriate clothes and chant the right passwords for all religious occasions, and look passably good. But the example of Jesus and other saints challenge any insincerity in our heart, any duplicity and hypocrisy. They display another level of faith, a level called love and their love is beyond our need to be right about everything, to dominate others and to demand them to conform to our perception. They are humble.

 

Its about a deep change of heart. Its about knowing God as a friend and as a lover. Its about being happy to love God with the full trust that He will take care of us in all circumstances, just as a small child will trust their father or mother. It's about accepting absence of god in our lives as enthusiastically as His embrace.

 

Its difficult for us to neatly categorise Jesus, this lover of God, as a Christian or a Jew. He talked only of His Father and he was not enamoured of politics, religion or wealth as He experienced them. God's service was His life, His love and his religion.

 

Remember my Indian friend who loved Ishu so much? What about him? Was he a follower of Christ? Could he have a personal relationship with God? Would he have to “bath in the blood of the Lamb” first? (a terrible option for vegetarians). These are important questions though, “Can a Hindu follow Jesus?”; “Can a Hindu love god with all his heart and soul?”; “Do you have to be a Christian to follow Christ?” ; even “Who owns Christ?.”

 

The Sanskrit word acharya means ‘one who teaches by example'. For Hindus, Christ is an acharya. His example is a light to any of us in this world who want to take up the serious practise of spiritual life. His message is no different from the message preached in another time and place by Lord Krishna and Lord Chaitanya. It would be a great shame if we allowed our Hinduism, our Islam, our Judaism or indeed our Christianity to stand in the way of being able to follow the teachings and example of such a great soul as Lord Jesus Christ.

 

Shaunaka Rishi Dasa

 

 

 

[theist]

That was very very nice and so well written.

 

Thank you

[Guest guest]

wow, that is the best description of my religion ever!

[AncientMariner]

That reminds me of a guy I worked with last summer. He is a hunter for the U.S.D.A. and he goes around killing animals such as coyotes, beavers etc. for farmers and various other projects. He looks like the stereotypical redneck and even had most of his teeth fallen out from chewing tobacco. All summer long I had conversations with him about religion and he kept telling me how the Bible emphasized "calling on the name of the Lord". I found this to be amazing because that to me sounds essentially the same as chanting the name of the Lord. I don't know if this person is going to end up being incarnated as an animal because he is a hunter but it was weird to be getting such good advice "calling on the name of the Lord" from someone on the outside who appears so fallen. I mean we have big theologians (no disrespect to them) all over the place telling us this and telling us that etc. and you gotta do this and you gotta do that etc and here was this fallen person who got the whole essence of religion with the greatest simplicity "calling on the name of the Lord." He surely isn't a perfect human being but I hope the Lord will find a place for him in His Kingdom as it truely appeared to me the guy sincerely loved the name of the Lord.

[krsna]

On rocky soil only weeds grow

 

whereas in nicely tilled fields

 

hearty grains are harvested

 

by God's devotees who

 

give thanks for His mercy.

 

krsna das