Srila Paramgurudeva’s last instructions

 

08 March: The following lecture was delivered at the Calcutta Sri Chaitanya Gaudiya Math on the morning of Saturday, Dec. 30, 1978. Srila Gurudeva His Divine Grace Srila Bhakti Ballabh Tirtha Goswami Maharaj told Srila Paramgurudeva His Divine Grace Srila Bhakti Dayita Madhav Goswami Maharaj that a North-Indian, inexperienced devotee had come to Calcutta from Chandigarh in order to receive personal instructions from Srila Paramgurudeva Himself. The devotee had been there for several days, but since the doctor had forbidden Paramgurudeva to talk excessively, he had no opportunity to hear him speak. It would be nice if Paramgurudeva could say something to him. Our most worshipable Srila Paramguru Maharaj then started to speak, directing his words to the North-Indian devotee who had taken shelter of Him.

 

Exclusive devotion to Krishna

 

“I am not well and the doctor has warned me not to speak too much. It is quite possible that I do not stay much longer in this world. I am telling you that to engage in a proper practice of devotional service, you must be fixed in the worship of your desired form of the Lord. When a woman is not faithful to her husband, when she loves someone else, she cannot give herself to his service. Infidelity and exclusive devotion cannot go together. For this reason, a faithful and devoted wife will never allow anyone to take the place of her husband, nor will she criticize anyone else. She will not condemn her brother-in-law, her mother-in-law or her father-in-law, nor anyone else who is related to her husband, but will rather give each of them his or her due respect. In the same way, if you wish to advance in devotional service, worship Krishna alone. Do not criticize the other gods and goddesses, but think of them as servants of Krishna and give them their due respect in that consciousness. But be careful to never give them the place, which is due to the ultimate object of your devotion. I am giving you this instruction. Take responsibility for it. Give this matter a little thought. You are a competent person, you are highly qualified, but you don’t understand this tradition yet.

     

In the Gaudiya sampradaya, in the line from Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, in the religious tradition of devotion to Krishna, dedicated devotees worship Krishna exclusively. If you put other gods and goddesses on the same level as Krishna, you are making a mistake. Not all gods and goddesses are equal, nor all incarnations of Vishnu. Ete camsa-kalah pumsal krisnas tu bhagavan svayam. After discussing all the different incarnations, Matsya, Kurma, Rama, Nrisingha, etc., Vedavyasa says that none of these incarnations is Krishna himself. Some of them are expansions, some are partial manifestations, but Krishna is the Supreme Personality of Godhead.

 

janr bhagavatta haite anyer abhagavatta

svayam bhagavan sabder tahatei satta

 

The epithet svayam bhagavan can only be used for him from whom the characteristics of Godhead are derived. (Chaitanya Charitamrita 1.2.88)

 

No one is equal to Krishna. Everyone should keep this in mind and worship Krishna exclusively and with dedication. Devotion will not increase by making a great sound and fury. Everyone should remember this. We will not condemn any other gods or goddesses, but will pray them to give us the blessing that we remain fixed on our supreme object of worship, Krishna.”

 

Instructions for the Math after His departure

 

“I have registered the Math. The Math is no one’s personal property.  But that doesn’t mean that I am going to leave this place a mess, with everyone in charge. I have therefore devised a management scheme, which is necessary for the proper running of the Math after I am gone. One person will be named Acharya; he will be the headman or president.

 

      When I am gone, one person will take my place. Who will that be? My spiritual master did not like the idea that there should be a vote to decide the matter. To elect an acharya is not in accordance with the principles of Hari bhakti. God himself will decide who is the acharya. The acharya is the person who is most dear to the Lord. Who will make that decision? The proper arrangement is when the Lord himself says, ‘This person is the one who is most dear to me.’ Therefore the rule of the disciplic succession is that the choice should come from above. The correct process is that the order should be given from higher up. From the worldly point of view, everyone can get together to elect a leader, but the correct process is that the Lord himself indicates which devotee is filled with love for him, and he makes him the acharya. This is the process approved by scripture.

 

      When Srila Prabhupada was ill, he asked the solicitor, Mr. J. N. Basu, to write up a constitution. We heard that the constitution could be made according to one of two methods, by nomination or by election. Finally, the constitution was written according to the latter method. But Srila Prabhupada did not like it and he rejected it. I and two or three others were personally present when it happened. You cannot decide who is a sadhu, an acharya or realized soul by taking a vote on the matter. Someone will say one thing, another something else and the debate will simply go on. Therefore the proper method is that the Lord himself will choose which person should be honored with the position of acharya. The scripture enjoins us to respect this process.

 

This process is not followed only in the Gaudiya sampradaya; it can be seen in every Vaishnava sampradaya, the Ramanuja, Madhva, Nimbarka and Vishnusvami lines. This is the way that the disciplic succession is maintained. Therefore, the process ordained in the disciplic succession must be followed. I have therefore discussed with my senior godbrothers who are a part of the Gaudiya Math brotherhood, and I have decided to make Sriman Bhakti Ballabh Tirtha my successor and president in my absence....

 

      When I have gone, that does not give you all an excuse to behave just as you please. The defining characteristic of a Vaishnava is following a devotee. The Lord’s blessings follow the blessings of the devotee. When a devotee is merciful to someone, the Lord’s mercy follows. This is the essence of my instruction to you, please follow it. I have written about this in more detail elsewhere.

 

      It will not be correct if you try to expel someone from the Math as soon as there is some discord. That will result in chaos. You must first try to explain and clarify the situation. If that still doesn’t work, then give the devotee some money and a letter and send him to another Math. Do not act impetuously, but try to work together by following the person who has been made leader. It is not proper to ignore his commands and to do as one pleases. One has to follow the directions of the temple commanders. All his commands are given for the service of the Lord, bear that in mind.”

 

Three impediments to devotional service

 

“I want to say one more thing. We have come here to engage in devotional service to Krishna. There are three principle impediments we have to watch out for.

 

The first is the desire for sense gratification. The first obstacle to devotional service is kanaka, gold -- the greed to accumulate lots of money. Your attention, your attachment, should be fixed on Krishna’s lotus feet. If you become attached to anything else, you will fall down. You should not think that because outsiders will not understand, you should save money for a rainy day. Mendicants will beg, that is their dharma. But they should turn whatever money they collect over to the Math on the same day.          

 

The temple managers should note that they must arrange for treatment if any temple devotee falls ill. If necessary, they should borrow money, but they must see that the devotee is taken care of. I can remember a time in the Math when we didn’t even have money for groceries. So I borrowed money from someone without telling any of the devotees and went and bought food from the market. Only Uddharan Prabhu knew about it. Uddharan Prabhu would go to a householder’s place and borrow money from him. The householder was Govinda Babu. If Govind Babu didn’t have any money, he borrowed it from his wife. Later I paid all the money back. How many people know about that?

 

      Sripad Goswami Maharaj, Sripad Nemi Maharaj, and I did all the collecting. I would put on a waistcoat and go out to collect. Then I would come back and give all the money to the temple. Srimad Bhakti Pradip Tirtha Maharaj, Jajabar Maharaj and Sridhar Maharaj would accompany me. Whenever they needed something I would buy it, but I never spent the temple collection money for myself.

 

When I was at the Calcutta Math, I would say to Kunja Da, “Is there any cloth in the Math? If there is, let me have one.” But I would never ask for anything that I did not need, just for pleasure. None of you should horde money that was collected for the temple. That will disrupt your devotional life. It doesn’t really matter to the Math if you decide to hold some of the money for yourself, because Krishna will take care of the Math and the devotees. But if you try to build up a savings account with that money, your spiritual life will go to hell and you won’t be able to last in devotional service. Don’t please don’t set money aside for your personal use; give everything to the temple manager. If there is any problem, tell the temple manager. The desire for money is an obstacle to devotional service.

 

The next obstacle is association with women. Both direct association and subtle association cause problems. It goes without saying that you don’t engage in gross sexual activity, but you shouldn’t even think about it, because we have given up everything to come here and engage in the service of the Lord.

 

The third obstacle is the desire for personal aggrandizement. Srila Prabhupada wrote:

 

kanaka kamini pratistha baghini

chaiyache jare sei to vaisnava

sei anasakta, sei suddha bhakta,

samsara tathaya pay parabhava

 

‘Someone who has given up the tigresses of gold, women, and fame, is a true Vaishnava. He is unattached and a pure devotee. He has overcome the illusory power of the material world’.

 

Prabhupada has compared the desires for wealth, women and fame with a tigress. The desire for fame and good reputation are very strong and problematic. But even someone who does not seek fame finds that it comes to him of its own accord when he engages in true service to the Lord. People naturally give him their respect. People will always give respect to a true devotee.

 

pratisthara bhaye puri gela palana

krsna-preme pratistha cale sange garana

 

‘Madhavendra Puri ran away, afraid of being distracted by fame. But when one has love for Krishna, fame flows alongside him’. (Chaitanya Charitamrita 2.4.147)

 

So, you avoid these three obstacles. It is not an easy thing to do, for they draw the mind. The conditioned soul lives for money, women and fame. They are anarthas that remain to a greater or lesser extent in the mind of the practitioner, but we should not tolerate their presence there or approve of them.

 

      Tirtha Maharaj cannot always stay here. So Jagamohana Prabhu has to run the Math. Don’t be offended if I am rough with you. Forgive me. I only wish to serve the Vaishnavas. I want to serve all of you.

     

Worship the Lord with unflinching dedication. Don’t stop worshiping Him, no matter what situation you are in. This is my prayer to you, my appeal and my instruction. Chant the Holy Name in all circumstances. Worship Krishna always. Always respect the best Vaishnava, and don’t hesitate to do so. May all auspiciousness follow you all.”

 

vancha-kalpa-tarubhyas ca kripa-sindhubhya eva ca

patitanam pavanebhyo vaisnavebhyo namo namah

 

‘I offer my respectful obeisance’s unto all the Vaishnava devotees of the Lord. They are just like desire trees which can bestow all that is wished for, they are oceans of compassion who purify the fallen souls.’