Contentment personified, Ishmael stood before me like a warm fire. The rain sodden door step on which he stood began to dry out, so intense was this man’s satisfaction. Alternately I experienced all the warmth of a penguin’s bottom before the onset of global warming. “God cannot have a form” he said “If God had … Read more
Sampradaya Acarya Transcends Siksa and Diksa
This is in response to the recent article, “Absentia Diksa Guru Initiation” by Dusyanta dasa. First, we would like to compliment the author for his presentation of this interesting dilemma. We understand that he’s not a committed Rtvik, but is making this presentation to encourage dialogue and understanding on guru-tattva, which we appreciate.
As most Sun readers know, I’ve written quite extensively on this subject, and have published a paper that serves as a basic introduction to my treatise on Srila Prabhupada as the Sampradaya Acarya. There are two important questions confronting the devotees, namely, who is Srila Prabhupada and what does it mean to be initiated? In my Sampradaya Acarya writings I’ve addressed these questions. In fact, this whole website is ultimately dedicated to the concept of recognizing Srila Prabhupada’s exalted status. I look forward to one day being able to expand upon the ideas presented in the Sampradaya Acarya paper, making the arguments more complete, adding citations, etc., but for now, I’ve simply extracted a few statements from that paper and from a Q&A document that followed it, which I think are relevant to the issues raised by Dusyanta dasa.
My Dear Tamala Krishna. Please accept my blessings. I beg to acknowledge receipt of your letter dated October 12, 1969 along with the copy of the West Coast president’s report of the meeting held at Berkeley. Gradually this meeting should develop into a committee of the West Coast presidents, and similarly there should be one for the East Coast, so in the future we can form a central governing body for the whole institution. Therefore the management should be done very cautiously so that everyone is satisfied in their autonomous managing capacity. Of course, the central point is the order of the Spiritual Master, and I am very glad that you are trying to give importance to this aspect of management.
An interview with Srila Prabhupada in which he points out that without Krishna consciousness or God consciousness the whole so-called human society is a combination of “cheaters” and “cheated”.
Thakura Bhaktivinoda was not official Spiritual Master of Gaura Kisora dasa Babaji Maharaja. Gaura Kisora dasa Babaji Maharaja was already renounced order, Paramahamsa, but Thakura Bhaktivinoda, while He was even playing the part of a householder, was treated by Gaura Kisora dasa Babaji Maharaja as Preceptor, on account of His highly elevated spiritual understanding, … Read more
From now on, the temples will operate independently and try to improve their spiritual life more carefully, so there is no more need for such financial arrangement of centralization, as you have proposed. Better you concentrate your time on improving Gurukula school, that is a huge task. You are responsible to train so many … Read more
Krishna consciousness means we should always be satisfied and happy, not that we must work something impossible, become overburdened and then, because we are unhappy by so much trouble, we lose enthusiasm and give up all hope. By all means we must preserve our spiritual status. That is the point.
Not that we are mad after big buildings, many devotees, life members, this, that. No. These are only the ways to engage the devotees, so that they may apply the principles of devotional service to some kind of work. It is not the result of the work that we want. If we sincerely preach to only one person a day, that is sufficient, never mind big, big programs.
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The meat industry is one of the most destructive ecological industries on the planet. The raising and slaughtering of pigs, cows, sheep, turkeys and chickens not only utilizes vast areas of land and vast quantities of water, but it is a greater contributor to greenhouse gas emissions than the automobile industry. The seafood industry … Read more
