Following Srila Prabhupada

Giriraj Swami: Hare Krishna.

It is a great wonder that I am here and it is certainly a great fortune for me to be with you in such an auspicious occasion in such an august assembly. The different occasions that have come together—Sri Sri Nitai-Gaurahari’s installation, Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura’s disappearance day, and then tomorrow’s Ratha-yatra, and the general topic of Srila Prabhupada—could keep us here eternally [laughter]. There would be no place to go and nothing else to do.

Taking up a little from each talk, I’ll share some thoughts. His Grace Nanda-kumara Prabhu told the wonderful story about Srila Prabhupada’s position and in the course of it, he described the clouds of Vrindavan, and he related the clouds to the clouds we see on our walks. This afternoon also there was a lot of rumbling in the clouds and drizzling. Somehow I thought of another pastime of Krishna’s when He and Sudama were sent into the forest to get firewood, and while they were in the forest, there was a great storm. And in the storm they couldn’t see which way to go so they just spent the whole night huddled together in the forest.

The next day their guru maharaja, noting that they had not returned, he and some disciples personally went into the forest to look for the two boys, and when he found them, he was very pleased. He said that, “Generally everyone is very attached to his body and is always thinking of the comforts of his body, but you are so faithful to your spiritual master that without any consideration of bodily comforts, you have gone to serve me.” He blessed them that whatever knowledge they had received from him would be fresh and so on.

Now hearing the extraordinary glorification of Srila Prabhupada from Nanda-kumara Prabhu, it is essential to recognize Srila Prabhupada’s position as the founder-acharya of ISKCON. There is also another side to Srila Prabhupada as one’s personal spiritual master. Along with him being the one who was instrumental in spreading the holy name to every town and village of the world and travelling around the world in that metal airplane and translating the books and inspiring the translation of his translations and the distribution of his books, there was also the aspect of his personal interaction with his disciples, with new people who came to him, with people who were inimical. There are so many examples of the way he dealt with people and situations and it is important for us to know both the general philosophy that Srila Prabhupada presented coming down through paramparā—sādhu śāstra guru vākya—-and how he practically applied the principles in his behavior because sometimes the statements in the scriptures, even Srila Prabhupada’s books, appear to be contradictory, and sometimes the ideas of munis or thinkers, philosophers, they also differ from each other. So how do we know what is the true path of religion? Mahābhārata says that guhyam, the confidential mysteries and truths of devotional service are enshrined within the heart of mahājanas, great souls, pure devotees. And mahājana yena gataḥ sa panthāḥ, we should follow the path that they have shown us.

It is very important to know how Srila Prabhupada dealt in different situations so we can learn how to apply the principles in practical life in executing the mission of Srila Prabhupada.

Once I was with Srila Prabhupada in Bombay and there was a conference at Bharati Vidya Bhavan. The theme of the conference was how the Bhagavad-gītā can solve all the problems of the world. Before the conference Srimati Lilavati Munshi who was the head of Bharati Vidya Bhavan then, after the demise of her husband, arranged for a tea in her private quarters before the conference. Different sadhus or swamis who were scheduled to speak were also present. One of them—I think that was the mood of all of them—they wanted Srila Prabhupada to be the chairman of the conference because his age, his wisdom, his stature, his accomplishments put him way beyond anyone else. But it was a three-day conference and Srila Prabhupada really only wanted to spare one evening because he was very preoccupied with the Juhu project. But still they were insisting and one of them was saying, “Swamiji, Swamiji, only you can lead us.” And Srila Prabhupada replied, “That is a fact [laughter] but are you prepared to follow?” And that was really the issue. 

Then there was more discussion. Mrs. Munshi herself was praising Srila Prabhupada. She was just so impressed with the disciples. She kept saying, “How did you get them to do it, wear dhotis and kurtas and tilaka? And the ladies, how did you get them to do it, wear saris?” Then she brought up a point that was on many people’s minds and it still may be on people’s minds. She said that, “Quite often when the founder of a mission is present, the mission is very successful, it is flourishing, it is prospering, but after the founder leaves, things deteriorate. So what will be the future of your movement after you go?” And Srila Prabhupada replied, “The future of my mission is very bright as long as my disciples follow my instructions.” 

And then he gave the example of Mahatma Gandhi and of course Lilavati Munshi and her husband, Kanayalal Munshi, they were very much part of the freedom movement. Just like Gandhi, he had so many programs but after he left his followers changed everything. He wanted village organization, he wanted the economy to be based on agriculture, and after he left, Nehru and others, they changed the whole program. They wanted to industrialize and imitate the West. So Prabhupada said, “He had his program but after he left his followers changed everything and everything became spoiled. So in the same way if I leave and my followers change what I’ve given, then what can I do?” He put it on us, his followers, and that is our responsibility today, at every moment. It is our responsibility and our challenge.

Of course that is also a difficult question because in Prabhupada’s absence there may be different ideas of how to apply Prabhupada’s teachings. Srutakirti Prabhu told a story that some of Prabhupada’s godbrothers had come to see him and they were critical of some of the adjustments that Srila Prabhupada had made especially have men and women preach together—some things that had never been done before. After they left Srila Prabhupada didn’t take it too seriously what they said. Srutakirti Prabhu just began to glorify Srila Prabhupada that, “You had preserved the basic principles that you received through your guru maharaja, but you adjusted some of the details so that people would adopt the principles.” Prabhupada agreed and then Srutakirti Prabhu said, “But sometimes Srila Prabhupada it is confusing, how do we know what is a principle that cannot be changed and what is a detail that we can adjust?” Srila Prabhupada paused and closed his eyes and replied, “That requires a little intelligence and that is a problem.” Not that we don’t have intelligence but people have different intelligence. 

So sometimes there is question but still we do have the system that Srila Prabhupada gave us, the system of collegial management. I remember once in Hyderabad on the farm there were three leaders. Prabhupada put three leaders in charge, all of them equal. Each one was really a very strong-willed and strong-minded and strong-headed. Quite often they would butt heads and it was just so hard for them to work with the others. I think there was a sentiment, “Let Prabhupada chose one and let him decide. This is just too problematic.” And Prabhupada instructed them, “You sit together, you fight like cats and dogs, and then when you all agree, you go ahead.” [laughter] I think the sitting together we have done. The next thing we have done. [laughter] We all agree or we are waiting for that, but we are getting closer. I’m joking of course.

In Prabhupada’s last days, literally his last days, one of the Vaishnavas from Vrindavan came and told Srila Prabhupada to instruct his disciples not to fight in effect. That was that time when Prabhupada was just lying on his bed flat, he had very little energy and strength, and he just waved his arm to his disciples and said, “I have given directions in my books.” In other words if we keep the books, not just keep them in the forefront, because they say that the devil can also cite scripture for his own purposes, but keep his books in the forefront and really try to understand them in a humble mood of submission and surrender. Just like we always hear, tad vidhi praṇipātena paripraśnena sevayā, in that mood, to understand Srila Prabhupada’s books, understand his mission, and follow his instructions.

When Cakri Prabhu was talking about the Kṛṣṇa book I thought of another nice little story that Srutakirti Prabhu told. He was making the point that one thing he loved about being Srila Prabhupada’s personal servant was that he could be with Srila Prabhupada when Srila Prabhupada was not sitting on the vyāsāsana giving class or not on a morning walk discussing philosophy, not in a meeting with the managers discussing the movement, but he got to see Srila Prabhupada when he was alone, when he had nothing to do so to speak—no specific appointments or obligations. Srila Prabhupada would just like to chant and hear about Krishna. He took pleasure in associating with Krishna through the process of chanting and hearing. Sometimes no one was there, no one was looking, no one was hearing, no one was recording, he would just take out his harmonium and sing. Sometimes he would take out one of his books and read. 

So one time Srutakirti Prabhu went in the room and Srila Prabhupada was reading the Kṛṣṇa book. Srila Prabhupada looked up and he said, “This Kṛṣṇa book is so nice that if you just read this one book you can become fully Krishna conscious,” just like Cakri Prabhu said. He said, “Not even the whole book, if you just read one chapter, you can become fully Krishna conscious.” Then he said, “Not even a whole chapter, if you just read one page, you can become fully Krishna conscious.” “Not even one page. If you just read one line, you can become fully Krishna conscious.” “Not even one line. If you read just one word you can become fully Krishna conscious.” So there is so much potency in Srila Prabhupada’s books, in Krishna. It is Krishna coming to us through disciplic succession. It is Krishna. Every word of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam is Krishna. Every syllable is Krishna. It is all Krishna and the holy name of Krishna is Krishna. Everything that Prabhupada gave us really is Krishna, even devotional service, pure devotional service is also Krishna, Krishna’s energy.

So as we have often heard and even repeated, Srila Prabhupada has given us everything. He certainly has. But that everything, like Vedānta-sūtra says that brahman is unlimited but always expanding, so he has given us everything, but that everything is meant to expand. By nature it will expand. We just have to be pure, selfless servants of Srila Prabhupada and his predecessors, his followers, his instructions, and our own creepers will expand—vidyā-vadhū-jīvanam. It is a very interesting phrase in Śikṣāṣṭakam—-vidyā-vadhū-jīvanam—-the lotus of our good fortune will expand. The lotus of our relationship with Krishna will expand and the Krishna consciousness movement will expand and Srila Prabhupada’s pleasure and the pleasure of his spiritual master, Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura, and all the way back to Sri Sri Nitai-Gaurahari and Lord Jagannatha and Sri Sri Radha-Radhanath, Their pleasure will expand, and our pleasure will also expand even more.

I will just conclude with one little story about Prabhupada’s disciple, Bhavananda. When Srila Prabhupada initiated him he gave him the name Bhavananda. Bhava means “the material world,” “material existence,” which comes into being and exists for some time, and then ceases to exist. So he gave him the name Bhavananda dasa, “bliss of the material world.” Bhavananda was a little concerned what Srila Prabhupada had in mind by giving him that name. After the ceremony, he approached Srila Prabhupada and asked him and Prabhupada replied that the devotee’s bliss (ānanda), the devotee’s pleasure comes from Krishna’s pleasure. Krishna gets the greatest pleasure when we bring new souls to Him. New souls mean new people to Him. We can do that only in the material world. In the spiritual world everyone is already there with Krishna. It is only in the material world that people have turned away from Him and gone away from Him. When we bring them back to Krishna, encourage them to turn their face towards Krishna again and approach Him, that gives Krishna the greatest pleasure and that is possible only in the material world. And that is the meaning of “the bliss of the material world,” giving Krishna the greatest pleasure by bringing others to Him. Hare Krishna. [applause]

Srila Prabhupada ki jaya!
Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura ki jaya!
Sri Sri Nitai-Gaurahari ki jaya!
Gaura-bhakta-vrnda ki jaya!
Hare Krishna.