Siritual Master

[Guest guest]

Please advise how one should request/approch a spirtual master for intiation?

 

Thanks

[Guest guest]

pray intensely krsna to send you a pure devotee and not a cheater, then knowing well the features of a devotee written in all vaishnava literature, approach devotees and gurus to make questions, receive answers and serve

 

do not make a question of religious organization, pretend to have a personal relationship, even if it is extremely difficult (and with some higly exalted vaishnava masters it can be difficult, due to their manifested old bodily age and number of disciples... ), before taking decision

 

do not be too fast

do not be too slow... life is short..

[theist]

very good advice.

[krsna]

From Sri Caitanya Caritamrata Adi.1.46

 

By Srila A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada

 

 

 

acaryam mam vijaniyan

navamanyeta karhicit

na martya-buddhyasuyeta

sarva-deva-mayo guruh

 

One should know the acarya as Myself and never disrespect him in any way. One should not envy him, thinking him an ordinary man, for he is the representative of all the demigods.

 

PURPORT

 

This is a verse from Srimad-Bhagavatam (11.17.27) spoken by Lord Krsna when He was questioned by Uddhava regarding the four social and spiritual orders of society. The Lord was specifically instructing how a brahmacari should behave under the care of a spiritual master. A spiritual master is not an enjoyer of facilities offered by his disciples. He is like a parent. Without the attentive service of his parents, a child cannot grow to manhood; similarly, without the care of the spiritual master one cannot rise to the plane of transcendental service.

 

The spiritual master is also called acarya, or a transcendental professor of spiritual science. The Manu-samhita (2.140) explains the duties of an acarya, describing that a bona fide spiritual master accepts charge of disciples, teaches them the Vedic knowledge with all its intricacies, and gives them their second birth.

 

The ceremony performed to initiate a disciple into the study of spiritual science is called upaniti, or the function that brings one nearer to the spiritual master.

 

One who cannot be brought nearer to a spiritual master cannot have a sacred thread, and thus he is indicated to be a sudra. The sacred thread on the body of a brahmana, ksatriya or vaisya is a symbol of initiation by the spiritual master; it is worth nothing if worn merely to boast of high parentage.

 

The duty of the spiritual master is to initiate a disciple with the sacred thread ceremony, and after this samskara, or purificatory process, the spiritual master actually begins to teach the disciple about the Vedas.

 

A person born a sudra is not barred from such spiritual initiation, provided he is approved by the spiritual master, who is duly authorized to award a disciple the right to be a brahmana if he finds him perfectly qualified. In the Vayu Purana an acarya is defined as one who knows the import of all Vedic literature, explains the purpose of the Vedas, abides by their rules and regulations, and teaches his disciples to act in the same way.

 

Only out of His immense compassion does the Personality of Godhead reveal Himself as the spiritual master. Therefore in the dealings of an acarya there are no activities but those of transcendental loving service to the Lord. He is the Supreme Personality of Servitor Godhead. It is worthwhile to take shelter of such a steady devotee, who is called asraya-vigraha, or the manifestation or form of the Lord of whom one must take shelter.

 

If one poses himself as an acarya but does not have an attitude of servitorship to the Lord, he must be considered an offender, and this offensive attitude disqualifies him from being an acarya. The bona fide spiritual master always engages in unalloyed devotional service to the Supreme Personality of Godhead. By this test he is known to be a direct manifestation of the Lord and a genuine representative of Sri Nityananda Prabhu.

 

Such a spiritual master is known as acaryadeva. Influenced by an envious temperament and dissatisfied because of an attitude of sense gratification, mundaners criticize a real acarya. In fact, however, a bona fide acarya is nondifferent from the Personality of Godhead, and therefore to envy such an acarya is to envy the Personality of Godhead Himself. This will produce an effect subversive of transcendental realization.

 

As mentioned previously, a disciple should always respect the spiritual master as a manifestation of Sri Krsna, but at the same time one should always remember that a spiritual master is never authorized to imitate the transcendental pastimes of the Lord. False spiritual masters pose themselves as identical with Sri Krsna in every respect to exploit the sentiments of their disciples, but such impersonalists can only mislead their disciples, for their ultimate aim is to become one with the Lord. This is against the principles of the devotional cult.

 

The real Vedic philosophy is acintya-bhedabheda-tattva, which establishes everything to be simultaneously one with and different from the Personality of Godhead. Srila Raghunatha dasa Gosvami confirms that this is the real position of a bona fide spiritual master and says that one should always think of the spiritual master in terms of his intimate relationship with Mukunda (Sri Krsna).

 

Srila Jiva Gosvami, in his Bhakti-sandarbha (213), has clearly explained that a pure devotee's observation of the spiritual master and Lord Siva as being one with the Personality of Godhead exists in terms of their being very dear to the Lord, not identical with Him in all respects.

 

Following in the footsteps of Srila Raghunatha dasa Gosvami and Srila Jiva Gosvami, later acaryas like Srila Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura have confirmed the same truths. In his prayers to the spiritual master, Srila Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura confirms that all the revealed scriptures accept the spiritual master to be identical with the Personality of Godhead because he is a very dear and confidential servant of the Lord.

 

Gaudiya Vaisnavas therefore worship Srila Gurudeva (the spiritual master) in the light of his being the servitor of the Personality of Godhead. In all the ancient literatures of devotional service and in the more recent songs of Srila Narottama dasa Thakura, Srila Bhaktivinoda Thakura and other unalloyed Vaisnavas, the spiritual master is always considered either one of the confidential associates of Srimati Radharani or a manifested representation of Srila Nityananda Prabhu.

[Guest guest]

Once you are comfortable with the Guru you wish to approach, you should befriend someone who is close to that Guru so that he can introduce you to said Guru and recommend you for the initiation. This is important, it shows you've had Sri Vaisnava Sanga.

 

Hope that helps.

Om Tat Sat

[krsna]

(Arrival Address,Los Angeles)

 

 

Prabhupada: So I thank you very much for your kind reception. It is necessary.

 

saksad-dharitvena samasta-sastrair

uktas tatha bhavyata eva sadbhih

kintu prabhor yah priya eva tasya

vande guroh sri-caranaravindam

 

 

This is the process, Vedic process, to receive the transcendental knowledge through the parampara system, and the reception or honor given to the spiritual master, it goes to Krishna. Spiritual master is the official collector.

 

Just like in government there is collector. He receives the money, taxes, from the citizens, not for his personal use but for the government. Similarly, this is the Vedic system, to receive knowledge through the transparent medium, guru, and to receive... Guru means the honor goes to Krsna. So this is necessary. This is not an artificial thing, but spiritually it is necessary. Therefore we hold Vyasa-puja day.

 

So I am very glad to see that you are maintaining the temple standard as good as I saw when I left. That is my satisfaction. And keep this, I mean to say, situation, atmosphere, always, and follow the regulative principles, chant sixteen rounds. You'll remain always happy, because although we are in Los Angeles, we have nothing to do with the material atmosphere of Los Angeles. Therefore a devotee who lives with Krsna or in Krsna consciousness, he does not live in the material world. He always live in the spiritual world. That is confirmed in the Bhagavad-gita. Mam cavyabhicarini-bhakti-yogena yah sevate: "Anyone who is engaged in bhakti-yoga with Krsna," sa gunan samatityaitan brahma-bhuyaya kalpate, "such person is always above these material modes of nature."

 

Our difficulty or miserable condition of life is due to being under the material laws of nature. So it is very simple method, and you are all intelligent boys and girls in the Western country, and I am very, happy that you have taken it seriously. And continue this. You'll never be unhappy. And not only here but also, as Krsna said, man-mana bhava mad-bhakto mad-yaji mam namaskuru, if you simply practice these four principle--always think of Krsna, man-mana, or become Krsna's devotees and offer Krsna obeisances and worship Krsna--these four... We are teaching these four principle in the temple, how to worship Krsna how to serve Krsna, how to become Krsna's devotee, and how to think of Krsna twenty-four hours. And if we do this, there is guarantee. Krsna says, mam eva esyasi asamsaya: "Without any doubt, you will come to Me. You will go back to home, back to Godhead."

 

So do not be slackened. And it is not difficult. Su-sukham kartum avyayam. This devotional service is so nice. It is... To execute the devotional is also very pleasing. Su-sukham kartum avyayam. And whatever you do, that is your permanent asset. It will never be lost. In the material world, suppose you have got some money. So that is not permanent. But anything, material possession, that is not permanent. Especially after death, everything is finished--another new chapter. That we do not know. But devotional service, it is guaranteed. It is permanent asset, even you cannot finish in this life. But that does not mean you should be neglectful. Try to finish the completely to become Krsna conscious in this life. Do not keep in abeyance. That is not intelligence. But even if it is not finished, then the next life a human life is guaranteed, and you begin where you ended. These are the sastric... So execute this devotional service very sincerely, seriously. Even there is little inconvenience, tolerate it. There is no inconvenience. But if you think it is inconvenience--that is our mental concoction--still, you should not be neglectful in the discharging your duties in devotional service.

 

So those who are engaged in Deity worship, those who are engaged in sankirtana party, those who are engaged in distributing books, those who are engaged in the office for keeping accounts--and all of them in devotional service--not a single moment waste. Kirtaniyah sada harih.

 

And whenever you have got time, read books. Now we have got volumes of books. Again we have got another five volumes of books. All are now immediately published. So you have got enough to study. And those who are grhasthas, children, we have got our Dallas. As soon as the children is fit, three to four years, you can send to Dallas. They are taking very much care. And if your children are educated Sanskrit and English, and reads all our books, he is more than any university M.A., Ph.D., more than. The M.A., Ph.D. of the ordinary university will not be able to be compared with that. So rest assured that education, culture, happiness, satisfaction, and next, go to home, back to home, back to Godhead.

 

Thank you very much. (end)