Among the Gentle and the Ruffians—Distributing the Knowledge of Parampara

Giriraj Swami: As we enter the December marathon, we consider how we may best serve the mission of Lord Chaitanya Mahaprabhu and Srila Prabhupada to distribute the knowledge of Krishna consciousness and reclaim the fallen souls.

Srila Srinivasa Acharya has glorified the six Gosvamis, dhīrādhīra-jana-priyau priya-karau: they were dear to the gentle and to the ruffians. Dhīra means “sober.” We find the same word in the Bhagavad-gītā: tathā dehāntara-prāptir dhīras tatra na muhyati. Those who do not identify with the body and are not bewildered by the change of body called death are dhīra. Pretty much everyone—ordinary people who do identify with the body—thinks, “I am American” or “I am Russian” or “I am Chinese” or “I am Indian.” And they are prone to fight over their bodily identifications—Hindus and Muslims or whomever. They tend to fight because they identify with the body. So they are considered ruffians (adhīra). And those who know that they are not the body, that they are the soul within the body and that the body is just dress, are dhīra, and they are gentle.

We are all spirit souls, so there is no reason to fight. As spiritual souls we are all one—parts and parcels of the Supreme Soul, Krishna. And because Krishna is the Supreme father, we are all brothers and sisters. People need a common cause that will unite them, and the common cause is Krishna. Janmādy asya yataḥ: He is the origin of everything, and He is the common cause of all of us. He caused all of us, and to serve Him is the cause that can unite us all. Other causes—nation interests, party interests—cannot unite everyone. They create divisions where we divide along those different types of designations and quarrel.

This is the missing point in the modern society—the common cause, Krishna. People are missing the point, and they are fighting. There is so much distress and disturbance and disputation everywhere, from the national level down to the family level. But if people awaken to the cause of Krishna consciousness—not as a sectarian faith or belief, but as a way of approaching the Absolute Truth, the origin of all that be—then we can be united.

That sense is given in the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam. The Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam is not a sectarian religious scripture belonging to a particular group; it is a scientific presentation of the knowledge of the origin of all.

The world can actually change. People want change. Nobody is really happy, and therefore there is so much politics. “This party will make things better.” “That party will make things better.” But actually, neither the people nor the leaders know how to make the real change that will make things better. And that is to unite people in the service of God, with the knowledge that we are all spirit soul: We are not Christian or Muslim or American or Mexican or Iraqi. We are all spirit souls, we are all parts and parcels of the Supreme Soul, and we are meant to serve Him. This knowledge will unite us all in service to Him.

Now, how will the people receive this knowledge? Srila Prabhupada’s spiritual master, Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura, instructed Srila Prabhupada to preach this knowledge in the English language to the Western world. And Srila Prabhupada understood that the way to preach was through writing and disseminating this knowledge. Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura emphasized the publication and distribution of books and magazines, and he called the printing press the bṛhat-mṛdaṅga, saying that the ordinary mridanga that one plays in kirtan can be heard for a block or two but that the sound of the kirtan of the press can be heard all over the world.

Srila Prabhupada was charged with the mission to preach in English, and he knew that Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura considered the publication and distribution of books to be the best way to preach. Therefore Srila Prabhupada began his efforts to preach in English by starting the magazine Back to Godhead. But then the idea came that people might throw away the magazines but not the books. And so Srila Prabhupada published the First Canto Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam in English translation in three volumes. And then he thought to take the next step. From the magazine he went to the books, and then from the books he took the next step—to physically travel with the books to the USA and begin to preach there.

Now, it may be hard to spread this knowledge, because most people are adhīra. At least right now they are adhīra. It is very hard to get the message through to them. But still we have to try. Srila Prabhupada gave the example that getting someone to take to Krishna consciousness in Kali-yuga is like giving medicine to a horse. To give medicine to a horse you need six people—one to hold each of the four legs, one to hold the mouth open, and one to put the medicine in. So it is very difficult to get people to accept Krishna consciousness, but still we have to try. Srila Prabhupada tried, and he succeeded. That is our duty, and even if we are not so successful, Krishna will be pleased by our effort, and that is our success.

Srila Prabhupada gave the example of Jatayu, the bird who saw Rāvaṇa kidnapping Sita. He went to fight with Rāvaṇa and rescue Sita. In the course of the fighting he was mortally injured, because Rāvaṇa was such a powerful demon. But still, in the end, when Lord Ramachandra found him, He was pleased. Jatayu had given his whole life’s energy—his very life—for the cause of the Lord, for the sake of the Lord, to save Mother Sita. And Lord Ramachandra performed Jatayu’s last rites, just as a son does for the father. So, Srila Prabhupada made the point that the materialists are very powerful now and that even if in an external sense we are defeated in our efforts—if we are not be successful in convincing someone to take to Krishna consciousness or to preach in a certain situation—still the Lord will be pleased, just as Rama was pleased with Jatayu.

It did not matter that in the battle Jatayu succumbed to Rāvaṇa, because Rāvaṇa was so powerful. What mattered was that Jatayu gave his full energy—he gave his life—for the cause of the Lord. And so the Lord was pleased with him. Even if it is difficult to preach in Kali-yuga, even if it is difficult to get people to accept Krishna consciousness, still we give our life to it. In fact, that is our life. And we have faith that people will accept. To some extent we have already been successful. Just giving our full energy—our life, our wealth, our intelligence, our time—just giving whatever we have in the service of the Lord to preach His message will make us successful. And that will cause the Lord to recognize our service and bless us with more service.

So especially during this period (and at other times) we can serve by distributing Srila Prabhupada’s books, to get his mercy and to get the Lord’s mercy, to win the Lord’s favor. And what is our goal? Our goal is only more service. As one becomes purified, the service becomes more pleasurable, because the relationship with the Lord becomes more intimate. Then, however difficult the service is externally, internally the devotee relishes an intimate reciprocation with the Lord, and knowing that the Lord is pleased, he does not mind all the external trials and tribulations.

That is the knowledge that we get from Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam. That is the knowledge that Srila Prabhupada has given us, and that is what impels us to continue our service no matter what the external conditions or results may be. And we can see: people are accepting the knowledge and becoming Krishna conscious.

So we encourage you on this 108th anniversary of Srila Prabhupada’s appearance to distribute his books as much as possible and thereby assist him in his service to his spiritual master. In his Concluding Words to the Caitanya-caritāmṛta Srila Prabhupada says of his spiritual master, “He was very fond of seeing many books published to spread the Krishna consciousness movement. Therefore our society, the International Society for Krishna Consciousness, has been formed to execute the order of Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu and His Divine Grace Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura.”

Now the same order is continuing through paramparā, from Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura to Srila Prabhupada, and from Srila Prabhupada to us, his followers. And Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura, and Srila Prabhupada—and those from whom we have received Srila Prabhupada’s order—are present with us when we endeavor to execute their instructions. And in this way, by serving and pleasing the paramparā, we can realize their presence more and more.

So during the December book marathon we should endeavor with heart and soul to please Srila Prabhupada and the paramparā by distributing these literatures, thus affording everyone the opportunity to revive their lost relationship with the Lord and His devotees.

—Giriraj Swami