Some qualifications of a bona fide spiritual master
December 19, 2012 in Articles, Damaghosa Dasa by Damaghosa dasa
Hare Krsna to all
Pranams
All glories to Srila Prabhupada
Because it is Kali yuga, the age of quarrel and hypocrisy, it is very very easy for one
who desires spiritual life to become cheated. He or she will be cheated by practically
everyone who poses as a spiritualist. This is not my opinion, but the words of
Srila Prabhupada, the Acarya or Guru for the worldwide Hare Krsna Movement.
He often would tell us that if you don’t know what gold looks like and someone offers you
pyrite (imitation gold) and wants to sell it to you, then because you don’t actually know what
real gold is, you will be cheated. Therefore it is incumbent upon every aspiring spiritualist, to
make him or herself familiar with the terms of “real gold”. That very valuable information is to follow.
This article is a follow up to the previous one I just sent out yesterday, entitled “The process of accepting a bona fide guru”.
Hare Krsna
Damaghosa das
——————–
A First class person wants to make his life spiritually perfect.
A Second class person wants great riches by political or business means
A Third class person wants riches by industry or mercantile work
A Fourth class person wants only to fill the belly.
Some Qualifications of bona fide guru
“UNLESS ONE IS UNDER THE SHELTER OF A REALIZED SPIRITUAL MASTER, HIS UNDERSTANDING OF THE SUPREME IS SIMPLY FOOLISHNESS.” TLC.
SOME OF THE QUALIFICATIONS OF A BONA FIDE SPIRITUAL MASTER.
1) Above the 4 defects-mistakes, illusion, imperfect senses, cheating.
2) When a devotee is perfectly qualified in chanting the Transcendental vibration of the Holy Names, he is quite fit to become SM and deliver all the people of the world. (TLC)
3) The guru must be situated on the top most platform of devotional service. There are 3 classes of devotees and the guru must be accepted from the top most class. When one has attained the top most position of maha bhagavata, he is to be accepted as a guru and worshipped exactly like Hari, the Personality of Godhead. ONLY such a person is eligible to occupy the post of guru. CC Mad24.330
4) Since one cannot visually experience the presence of the supersoul, He appears before us as a liberated devotee. Such a SM is none other that Krsna Himself. CC Ant 5.171
5) When a pure devotee speaks, he speaks perfectly. How is this? His speech is managed by Krsna Himself within the heart.”
6) Help can only be given by a SM like Krsna. Therefore the conclusion is that a SM who is 100% Krsna Conscious is the bona fide SM for he can solve the problems of life. (BG purport).
7) The guru is the most confidential servitor of Radha Krsna., The sum total of all the demigods, and the object of worship for Lord Brahma and Lord Siva.
8) Astottara sata (108 gopis) is added to the name of the SM to indicate one situated in the suddha sattva or the transcendental state of Vasudeva. Only in the suddha sattva state can one always see Krsna eye to eye by dint of pure affection for the Lord. (SB 4.3.23)
“UNLESS ONE IS UNDER THE SHELTER OF A REALIZED SPIRITUAL MASTER, HIS UNDERSTANDING OF THE SUPREME IS SIMPLY FOOLISHNESS” (TLC)
►69-06-10.Muk Letter: Mukunda
Unless one is a resident of Krishna Loka, one cannot be a Spiritual Master. That
is the first proposition. A layman cannot be … then he will simply
create disturbance. And who is a liberated person? One who knows
Krishna. It is stated in BG, fourth chapter, anyone who knows Krishna
in truth is immediately liberated, and after quitting the present
body, he immediately goes to Krishna. That means he becomes a resident
of Krishna Loka. As soon as one is liberated he is immediately a
resident of Krishna Loka, and anyone who knows the truth of Krishna
can become Spiritual Master. That is the version of Lord Caitanya. So
to summarize the whole thing, it is to be understood that a bonafide
Spiritual Master is a resident of Krishna Loka.
SB 4.22.26. Unless one takes shelter of a bona
fide spiritual master and advances one’s attraction for Krsna by the
spiritual master’s instructions, the five coverings of the living
entity cannot be uncovered from the material heart. The living entity
is centered within the heart, and to take him away from the heart is
to liberate him. This is the process. One must take shelter of a bona
fide spiritual master and by his instruction increase one’s knowledge
in devotional service, become detached from the material world and
thus become liberated. An advanced devotee, therefore, does not live
within the material body but within his spiritual body, just as a dry
coconut lives detached from the coconut husk, even though within the
husk. The pure devotee’s body is therefore called cin-maya-sarira
(“spiritualized body”). In other words, a devotee’s body is not
connected with material activities…
751009BG.DUR Lectures
uvaca: “The Supreme Personality…” Bhagavan means He does not cheat
you. Others, they will give you instruction and cheat you, because
anyone who is not liberated, he has got four defects of his life: he
commits mistake, he is illusioned, he cheats and his senses are
imperfect. This is called conditioned soul, everyone. Even big, big
men, big, big leaders, they commit so many mistakes. And so far) Madhya 24.330
…. When one has attained the topmost position ofmaha-bhagavata, he is to be accepted as a guru and worshiped exactlylike Hari, the Personality of Godhead. Only such a person is eligibleto occupy the post of a guru.
Caitanya-caritamrta (Madhya-lila, Chapter Six, verse 279): lohake yavat sparsi’ hema nahi kare/ tavat sparsa-mani keha cinite na pare
“One cannot understand the value of touchstone until it turns iron into gold.” One should judge by action, not by promises. A MAHA-BHAGAVATA CAN TURN A LIVING ENTITY FROM ABOMINABLE MATERIAL LIFE TO THE LORD’S SERVICE. THIS IS THE TEST OF A MAHA-BHAGAVATA
“If one is expert in Vedic literature and has full faith in the Supreme Lord, then he is AN UTTAMA-ADHIKARI, A FIRST-CLASS VAISNAVA, A TOPMOST VAISNAVA WHO CAN DELIVER THE WHOLE WORLD AND TURN EVERYONE TO KRSNA CONSCIOUSNESS.” (Cc. Madhya 22.65)
Devotee on the Bhava stage is not disturbed by Maya. “…ALTHOUGH MAYA MAY BE PRESENT, IT CANNOT DISTURB A DEVOTEE ONCE HE ATTAINS THE BHAVA STAGE. This is because the devotee can see the real position of maya. Maya means forgetfulness of Krsna, and forgetfulness of Krsna and Krsna consciousness stand side by side like light and shadow. If one remains in shadow, he cannot enjoy the facilities offered by light, and if one remains in light, he cannot be disturbed by the darkness of shadow…” Nectar of Instruction 7.
The form of Krsna is visible to that eye in proportion to its purification by the practice of devotion. WHEN THE DEVOTION OF THE NEOPHYTE REACHES THE STAGE OF BHAVA-BHAKTI THE PURE EYE OF THAT DEVOTEE IS TINGED WITH THE SALVE OF LOVE BY THE GRACE OF KRSNA, WHICH ENABLES HIM TO SEE KRSNA FACE TO FACE. The phrase “in their hearts” means Krsna is visible in proportion as their hearts are purified by the practice of devotion. The sum and substance of this sloka is that the form of Krsna, who is Syamasundara, Natavara (Best Dancer), Muralidhara (Holder of the Flute) and Tribhanga (Triple-bending), is not a mental concoction but is transcendental, and is visible with the eye of the soul of the devotee under trance…” Brahma-Samhita 5.38
“You are correct when you say that when the Spiritual Master speaks it should be taken that Krishna is speaking.. That is a fact. A Spiritual Master must be liberated.” Srila Prabhupada
“… There are three classes of devotees according to the degree of conviction. The first-class devotee is conversant with all kinds of Vedic literature and at the same time has the firm conviction mentioned above. He can deliver all others from the pangs of material miseries. The second-class devotee is firmly convinced and has strong faith, but he has no power to cite evidence from revealed scriptures. The third-class devotee is one whose faith is not very strong, but, by the gradual cultivation of devotional service, he will eventually be eligible for promotion to the second or first-class position. It is said in Srimad-Bhagavatam (11.2.45-47) that the first class devotee always sees the Supreme Lord as the soul of all living entities. Thus in seeing all living entities, he sees Krsna and nothing but Krsna. The second-class devotee places his full faith in the Supreme Personality of Godhead, makes friends with the pure devotees, favors innocent persons and avoids those who are atheistic or opposed to devotional service. The third-class devotee engages in devotional service according to the directions of the spiritual master, or engages out of family tradition, and worships the Deity of the Lord, but he is not cultivated in knowledge of devotional service, and he does not know a devotee from a nondevotee. SUCH A THIRD-CLASS DEVOTEE CANNOT ACTUALLY BE CONSIDERED A PURE DEVOTEE; HE IS ALMOST IN THE DEVOTIONAL LINE, BUT HIS POSITION IS NOT VERY SECURE…” Teachings of Lord Caitanya
“…So in order to know that science, one has to APPROACH A PERFECT TEACHER. Tad-vijnanartham sa gurum evabhigacchet. Here also it is said, gurau hamsa. Hamse gurau mayi. The mayi is also significant. That means, PARAMAHAMSA GURU MEANS, HE’S AS GOOD AS THE SUPREME PERSONALITY OF GODHEAD. BECAUSE HE DOES NOT DEVIATE from the instructions of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. That is the symptom of guru.GURU DOES NOT DEVIATE FROM THE INSTRUCTION OF THE SUPREME PERSONALITY OF GODHEAD…” Srimad Bhagavatam 761102 SB.VRN Lectures
Bona fide spiritual master does not deviate “…A BONA FIDE SPIRITUAL MASTER IS IN THE DISCIPLIC SUCCESSION FROM TIME ETERNAL, AND HE DOES NOT DEVIATE AT ALL from the instructions of the Supreme Lord as they were imparted millions of years ago to the sun-god, from whom the instructions of Bhagavad-gita have come down to the earthly kingdom. One should, therefore, follow the path of Bhagavad-gita as it is expressed in the Gita itself and BEWARE OF SELF-INTERESTED PEOPLE AFTER PERSONAL AGGRANDIZEMENT WHO DEVIATE OTHERS FROM THE ACTUAL PATH…”Bhagavad- Gita 4.42 purport
Spiritual master is always situated in spiritual status. “….A person acting in the service of Krsna with his body, mind and words IS A LIBERATED PERSON, EVEN WITHIN THE MATERIAL WORLD.” (Bhakti-rasamrta-sindhu 1.2.187) Therefore, one is forbidden to regard the guru as an ordinary human being (gurusu nara-matir. .. naraki sah). THE SPIRITUAL MASTER, OR ACARYA, IS ALWAYS SITUATED IN THE SPIRITUAL STATUS OF LIFE…” Srimad-Bhagavatam 10.4.20
Spiritual master is never a conditioned soul. “… Your next question, whether the Spiritual Master was formerly a conditioned soul, ACTUALLY A BONAFIDE SPIRITUAL MASTER IS NEVER A CONDITIONED SOUL. 69-06-10. Srila Prabhupada letter to Mukunda
Spiritual master must be liberated. “… You are correct when you say that when the Spiritual Master speaks it should be taken that Krishna is speaking. That is a fact. A SPIRITUAL MASTER MUST BE LIBERATED…” 69-06-10. Srila Prabhupada letter to Mukunda
“UNLESS ONE IS UNDER THE SHELTER OF A REALIZED SPIRITUAL MASTER, HIS UNDERSTANDING OF THE SUPREME IS SIMPLY FOOLISHNESS” (TLC)