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Title: The right of the Guru to
choose the appropriate Mantras for his disciples
User: Damodara Svarupa dasa Date: 2005-03-09 20:45:46
The right of the Guru to
choose the appropriate Mantras for his disciples -- By Swami Gaurangapada
“The spiritual master has
to select a mantra for his disciple according to the disciple’s ability to
chant different mantras.” (Shrila Prabhupada in Cc Madhya 24.330)
Commentary by Swami
Gaurangapada:
It is the duty of the
spiritual master to give those Mantras to the disciple which he or she is
qualified to chant so as to ensure that the disciple comes up to the level of
chanting the Hare Krishna Mahamantra without offenses. And the Nityananda and
Gauranga Mantrarajas are the specific Mantras in Kali-Yuga which do not
consider the offensive mentality of the chanter and grant the chanter with
qualification to render Krishna-bhakti and purely chant the Hare Krishna
Mahamantra. (end)
Shrila Prabhupada in SB
1.5.16 purport:
“The expert devotees also
can discover novel ways and means to convert the nondevotees in terms of
particular time and circumstance. Devotional service is dynamic activity, and
the expert devotees can find out competent means to inject it into the dull
brains of the materialistic population. Such transcendental activities of the
devotees for the service of the Lord can bring a new order of life to the
foolish society of materialistic men.”
Shrila Prabhupada in Cc
Adi 7.31-32 purport:
“Here is an important
point. Lord Chaitanya Mahaprabhu wanted to invent a way to capture the
Mayavadis and others who did not take interest in the Krishna consciousness
movement. This is the symptom of an acarya. An acarya who comes for the service
of the Lord cannot be expected to conform to a stereotype, for he must find the
ways and means by which Krishna consciousness may be spread.”
Commentary by Swami
Gaurangapada:
Shrila Bhaktisiddhanta
Prabhupada introduced the system of Gayatri-Mantra-Diksha (Brahmana Diksha) for
the first time in our sampradaya even though he had not received it from his
own guru. This was for the specific purpose of stopping the Vaishnava-aparadha
committed by the brahmanas in thinking themselves superior to the Vaishnavas.
Shrila Prabhupada also most mercifully and expertly introduced the chanting of
the Pancha Tattva Mantra even though the Mantra is not explicitly found
anywhere in the revealed writings of Shrila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura
Prabhupada, Seventh Goswami Shrila Saccidananda Bhaktivinoda Thakura or the
previous Acharyas. We have also introduced this system of
Gauranga-Mantra-Diksha (Gauranama Diksha) as the entrance to Gauranga Dharma
and Gauranga Bhakti Yoga, by the inspiration and order of all the acharyas and
Lord Nityananda in order to stop and totally destroy all the ten nama-aparadhas
(offenses) of the devotees and disciples and to make them rapidly achieve pure
love for Krishna and qualification to chant the pure Hare Krishna Mahamantra by
regular chanting of the most authorized 4-syllable Gaura Gopala Mantra and the
5-syllable Haladhara Balarama Mantra. Thus it is the right of every Guru to
choose particular authorized Mantras for the disciples’ rapid spiritual
advancement and the people who criticize this are simply engaging in
Vaishnava-ninda of the devotees who are trying to spread the most merciful
Names of the Lord: Nityananda and Gauranga. Ofcourse everyone can decide for
oneself whether to chant the Nityananda and Gauranga Mantrarajas or not and can
remain neutral if they do not want to chant personally but the act of
criticizing and minimizing those who are genuinely chanting or preaching the
glories of the Nityananda and Gauranga Mantrarajas in addition to the Hare
Krishna Mahamantra will spell spiritual doom for the unfortunate person who
engages in such a supremely inauspicious activity.
One should try to
understand Shrila Prabhupada’s above quotes where he states that an expert
devotee cannot be forced to simply stick to a stereotype but his prime duty is
to find out or invent or discover and introduce novel ways and means from the
scriptures to widely inject and spread Gauranga and Krishna consciousness into
the bloodstream of the suffering human society so that millions can take it up
and rapidly progress in spiritual life.
The Acharyas who have directly
descended from the spiritual world can directly give the Maha-mantra to the
aparadhi jivas (offensive souls) by making them directly qualified. Their
activities should not be imitated by us but their instructions in their books
are to be followed. These instructions are clear that a neophyte should not
directly indulge in chanting of the Hare Krishna Mahamantra only and if even he
or she tries to do he will never get the result due to his or her offenses.
Instead they state that he or she should begin by very regularly chanting the
names of Nityananda and Gauranga. The acharyas have repeatedly given the
instructions to chant the Nityananda and Gauranga Mantras in their vani but
they are not bound to implement their own instructions and they are free to
preach in whatever way they desire. Whereas we should try to strictly implement
their instructions rather than foolishly trying to imitate what they have done.
For us their instructions are more important than their incomprehensible and
transcendental activities which can never be imitated.
An acharya may not
rigidly follow his own instructions give in his books. Because he is as
independent as the Lord Himself. Similarly Shrila Prabhupada said that a
neophyte student should not directly chant the Hare Krishna Mahamantra but
should take shelter of the names of Nityananda and Gauranga first. But Shrila
Prabhupada need not follow this standard given by his ownself and can directly
introduce the Mahamantra (which is what he did in most cases) because he is
independent being the direct associate of Lord Gauranga. But his followers can
and should follow his instructions in his books for their own rapid spiritual
advancement and for preaching purposes wvwn more than simply trying to imitate
what he did.
The Acharyas may have
disaproved of chanting Mantras not authorized in the scriptures containing
Nityananda and Gauranga Names like bhaja nitai-gaura radhe-shyam...but those
statements should never be applied to chanting the most bonafide Gaura Gopala
Mantra—Gauranga which has been chanted by all our acharyas and mentioned in the
authentic scriptures. Nor is there even a single evidence anywhere in the
scriptures to prove that Gauranga Mantraraja should only be chanted in kirtana
and not on beads. Infact many acharyas like Shivananda Sena and all the eternal
associates of Lord Gauranga in Goloka, Parvati, Shiva, Sapta rishis, Markendeya
Rishi etc. have chanted japa of the Gauranga Mantraraja on beads and Shrila
Prabhupada has approved of it more than once as seen in the above quotes.
As per the comprehensive
scriptural quotations the Gaura Gopala Mantraraja: “Gauranga” and the Haladhara
Balarama Mantraraja: “Nityananda” are authorized Mantras from the Vedic
scriptures and are not unauthorized Mantras like “bhaja nitai gaura radhe syama
hare krishna hare rama” or “shri-krishna-chaitanya prabhu-nitynanda hare
krishna hare rama shri-radhe govinda”.
Besides all the devotees
of Gauranga Dharma and Gauranga Yoga who are chanting the Nityananda and
Gauranga Mantrarajas are also chanting the Pancha-tattva Mantra before
beginning the chanting of the Hare Krishna Mahamantra in japa and kirtana as
recommended by Shrila Prabhupada in the above quote.
Also according to the
scriptures one can have different Diksha Gurus for different mantras. Like for
example, Parvati got Diksha in the Ramamantra from Shiva, her husband (which
she explicitly and clearly mentions in the Chaitanya-Charitamrita Cc), in the
Mahamantra from Shrila Haridasa Thakura again as described in Cc and in the
Gauranga Mantraraja from Lord Shiva (Navadvipa-dhama-mahatmya) after which she
achieved the darshan of Lord Gauranga in Navadvipa. So it is authorized by the
scriptures. There should be only one Diksha Guru for one Mantra though. That is
conclusion of the scriptures. Shrila Bhaktisiddhanta Prabhupada accepted Diksha
in the Nrisingha Mantra from his father Shrila Bhaktivinoda Thakura in
childhood and in the Hare Krishna Mahamantra from Shrila Gaura Kishore Dasa
Babaji. So devotees who have accepted Diksha in any bonafide Vaishnava Mantra
from any bonafide Vaishnava guru in any of the four sampradayas (please read
our book “Maha Mantra Yoga” for furthur details) can also accept Gauranga
Mantra or Gauranama Mahadiksha into the Nityananda and Gauranga Mantrarajas
since these two Mantrarajas destroy all the offenses and ensure our rapid
sucess in chanting of all the bonafide Vishnu Mantras in this world.
Ofcourse the Nityananda
and Gauranga Mantrarajas are so supremely powerful and independent that They do
not wait or depend on Diksha and can be chanted by anyone and everyone. Diksha
is a process which hastens up the purification of the spiritual aspirant as he
or she chants the Mantrarajas received from the lips of a Guru who is realized
in chanting of the Mantrarajas and then chants under the merciful guidance and
blessings of Shri Gurudeva.
In order not to cause any
inconvenience to any Vaishnavas and avoid controversy, it is our personal
decision that we will encourage those devotees who have accepted Diksha into
any Vishnu Mantra from another bonafide and authentic Guru in any of the four
Vaishnava sampradayas to just chant the Nityananda and Gauranga Mantarajas
without accepting Diksha in these Mantrarajas. Though it is perfectly in line
with the scriptures that they can accept Diksha into the Nityananda and
Gauranga Mantrarajas from another Guru while still worshiping their previous
Guru, we will not impart them the Gauranga Mantra Mahadiksha unless they have
explicit and clear instructions and permission from their first Diksha Guru in
this regard. If they seek our guidance, these devotees will be encouraged to
simply chant the Nityananda and Gauranga Mantrarajas. We are specifically
interested in spreading the Nityananda and Gauranga Mantrarajas among the new
and fresh spiritual candidates. If they want some instructions from us, we will
simply request the old initiated devotees of other bonafide Vaishnava Gurus to
add the chanting of the Nityananda and Gauranga Mantrarajas to their daily
chanting unless ofcourse it is the desire of their first Gurus that they accept
Gauranga Mantra Mahadiksha from us. So no one has to fear about any
inconvenience caused by the preaching of the Nitaynanda and Gauranga
Mantrarajas. If there are any specific issues we would request the concerned
devotees or Gurus of other institutions to directly let us know by contacting
us in a Vaishnava way so that we can sort out the matter directly. (Commentary
ends)
Yours in the service of
Gauranga Dharma,
Swami Gaurangapada.