Qualifications of Guru

Flow of class:Q) What is the best way of gaining knowledge of God?

Q) Is it absolutely necessary to have a Guru to practice spirituality? Q) What ill it not be much better if I were to think for myself, relying on my own power of analysis, rather than merely accept someone else’s opinions as gospel truth? Should we just give up our intelligence and follow someone blindly?

Q) Is there a foolproof way to avoid being cheated by some unqualified people who pose themselves as spiritual authorities or Gurus?

Q) How do I recognize a spiritual authority?

Q) What are the types of spiritual master?

Q) What are the qualifications of a spiritual master? What are the qualifications of a spiritual master?

Q) What should the disciple do if the Guru falls down from the ideal standard? Change the plug.

Q) What are the advantages of having a spiritual master?

Q) Qualification of disciple in another session later.

Q) What is the best way of gaining knowledge of God?

1. Pratyakasha pramana : Seeing is believing. Experimenting based on our own knowledge or a lack of it! Putting faith in our senses. But we have 4 defects. Revise from JOSD – acronym IICC.2. Anumana pramana : Making theories to understand things which are difficult to observe directly with our senses. Eg. Big bang theory, Darwins theory or evolution etc.Here we are putting our faith in our mind and intelligence to give us the correct knowledge. Eg. Six blind men and 6 blind theories. If their eyes are opened then they see the truth.3. Shabda pramana: Best way to gain knowledge is to hear from authority, practice it and observe the results in one’s life.Eg1. Ask a participant to volunteer. If all the participants know each other then the teacher can volunteer. Let others guess what is the name of the teacher or his/her birth date etc. Just by seeing or guessing, can they arrive at the right answer? That may take a lot of time and still arrive at an incorrect answer. The best way to gain knowledge is Shabda pramanna - ask the person and then verify from other reliable sources.

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Eg2. How to cook a Rasagulla? What will happen if we try to make a rasagulla based on each of the above methods? Which is the best way to gain knowledge of making rasagullas?The best way is Shabda pramana – hear from an authority (one who knows the subject) and then experiment in your own lives to see whether it is true.We accept the scriptures as an authority on the science of God? Why? Because the knowledge of the scriptures never changes. The theories of modern science and the syllabus in schools and colleges are always changing. However, Vedic knowledge is the absolute truth. Thus, it always remains constant and relevant. Vedas are like the chambers dictionary and other scriptures are like a pocket dictionary. They give the same information but details are different.The application of the knowledge may change according to the time, place and circumstances but the principles remain the same. In fact, the Vedas challenge that if anyone finds anything faulty or wrong in the Veda, then they can reject the entire body of Vedic knowledge. It is so perfect, since it originates from the perfect source, God – who is beyond the four human defects IICC.Rejecting the scriptures without studying them is like a judge who passes a judgment without hearing the case or a student who rejects the textbooks without reading or experimenting their knowledge. Everyone who has studied the bonafide scriptures under proper guidance has found them to be consistent, without any faults in them. That is the ultimate proof of the scriptures. The principles are eternal in all times, places and circumstances.Speculations in spiritual matters can only provide us with imperfect, vague ideas about God. Intelligent persons reject such vague ideas and they want to know the real facts connected to God. Intelligent people understanding the limitations of the senses and speculations reject the imperfect knowledge given by pratyaksha and anumana. They will only accept knowledge from the authority of the Vedas, since they are coming directly from God, who alone is capable of delivering perfect knowledge. (Therefore, people often ask this question, “Do you have the original Vedas?” This is like going to the college on day one and asking for the original diaries of Einsten where he wrote his theory of Relativity or Newton’s diaries where he wrote his notes on the Laws of motion or theories on calculus!). How many of us have the ability to approach God directly? Hardly anyone! Thus, we can approach someone who has surrendered to God and is repeating His message without adulteration. Such a person can be accepted as God’s representative, from whom perfect knowledge can be obtained. Such a person is called a Guru. Technically the word ‘guru’ means ‘heavy’ and the qualified guru must be heavy, or grave, with knowledge.In conclusion, the best way to gain knowledge about God is to hear from the authority of the scripture, explained by a Guru.

Q) Is it absolutely necessary to have a Guru to practice spirituality?

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Q) It seems much better if we were to think for ourselves, relying on our own power of analysis, rather than merely accept someone else’s opinions as gospel truth? Why should we just give up our intelligence and follow someone blindly?

We should use our reason and intelligence AFTER we have heard from an authority. We can use our intelligence before for testing and to choose the right authority. Once we have an authority or a teacher on a subject then we should use our intelligence to understand what they teach and apply in our lives. (again the rasagulla example from above).Sometimes people are very apprehensive about accepting a spiritual authority or a teacher. In the modern paradigm it is even glorified to have no teacher for spiritual life! Many famous sportstars or filmstars or corporate stars go on record saying, “I’m a very spiritual person but I don’t have a guru or I don’t follow any particular path or a person. I just go WITHIN and that is my spirituality.” (Is this the way someone would learn to make rasagullas? Or learn driving? If we go within to learn such things then we might end up within the jail!) Let us see a few examples from our daily experiences, where we accept authority as a natural principle: 1) DOCTOR - We consciously or unconsciously accept the authority of a doctor while seeking help from him. By accepting the advice and medicines from a qualified physician, are we not putting our faith in him as a medical authority? Once we take the medicines we can use our intelligence to decide whether his medicine prescription is working effectively for us. Thus we can come to an intelligent conclusion. We can use our intelligence before, to choose the right doctor. Once we have chosen the doctor then we should FIRST FOLLOW and then learn from our experiences.2) BUS/TRAIN DRIVER - As soon as we board a bus, we are entrusting our lives to the bus-driver. Do we check the driver’s credentials every time we board a bus? Thus are we not, almost blindly, accepting him as an authority in bus driving?3) STUDENT - An engineering student who wants to study electrical engineering accepts the authority of B L Theraja which is the standard textbook suggested for that subject. In general, every science student accepts the authority of the books published by scientists. 4) CHILD - A child accepts his mother as an authority and comes to know of everyone around him - his father, brother, sister etc. - only through her.5) MEDIA - From newspapers, radios, Internet etc, we come to know about events taking place in China, Africa and various parts of the world. Neither, are we experiencing those events directly, nor do we know whether they are actually taking place. Yet we accept them to be a reality on the authority of the media. 6) SENSES/MIND - Thus, we see that we have no choice but to believe authorities in order to get knowledge, which is beyond our immediate perception. By default, we put faith that our senses and mind are giving us the right information anyways! Thus putting faith is compulsory and necessary. The question is where we put our faith, so that we will be benefitted rather than cheated.

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Even if we want to learn dance or music or athletics or karate or, for that matter, anything, we take training under a teacher or a coach. In other words, in order to gain mastery in any field, we agree to become an apprentice under an expert advanced in that field. We accept a teacher in every walk of life; then why not accept a teacher in spiritual life? In conclusion, to learn spiritual truths, we must put faith and accept a spiritual guide, just like put our faith to gain so many things in every walk of life.

Q) How do I recognize a spiritual authority?

If someone is asked, “Sir! Can you tell me something about solving a diagonal matrix in a Finite Element Analysis problem?” He may blink and say, “Sorry, that is not my subject.” If another person is asked, “Sir! Can you explain the importance of the medulla oblongata?” he will immediately admit, “Sorry, my background is not medicine”. Thus, for every branch of knowledge, some knowledge and training is required before one can speak on it with authority.However, when some people are asked, “Sir, can any of you please tell me something about God?”, every one of them will have an opinion. They may say, “God may be like this, may be like that, bla bla bla...” Also many people think, “Spirituality is a very personal thing and that everyone’s opinion about God is valid!” They claim God is like the sky and each one of us can look at Him from our perspective and make our opinions!” Now, this way of gaining knowledge can lead to real problems! Terrible misconceptions about God can enter people and society when such unscientific methods are applied to understanding God. Therefore, we find a large number of our younger generation today, directly or indirectly, is rejecting the tradition and values of their parents? Why? A possible reason is because the parents have hardly any scientific or authoritative information about God or spiritual life. Anyone’s opinion is considered the perfect opinion. That’s a recipie for disaster! An intelligent person should rather ask, “What is your authority in speaking about God?”Eg. Suppose you go to a jeweler’s shop to purchase a diamond. Would you just jump at the first piece that you see? Possibly not! You would perform detailed research before executing the final transaction. Perhaps you would consult with some friends and experts in the business. Even after such consultation, you would try to get some warranty on the product to ensure that you are not cheated. Similarly, if we wish to become an engineer or doctor, we would consider the reputation and authenticity of the institute that we plan to join.Strangely people fail to apply the same precision and research when it comes to spiritual knowledge. For many, spiritual science is just a bunch of superstitious ideas, meant to be imbibed from one’s grandfather or grandmother at home, without any formal study or research in a university. Is spiritual science just a matter of listening to your grandmother, seeing some movie on Ramayana or Mahabharata or hearing some stories? Such childish conceptions about spiritual science create at least two problems. A) It not only allow the standards of this most exact science to be drastically watered

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down, B) It also allows pretenders and unscrupulous parties (cheaters) to take advantage of credulous and naïve (innocent and simple) followers. The Vedic literatures, especially the Shrimad Bhagavatam and the Bhagavad-gita, give detailed descriptions of how to avoid such pitfalls and receive true knowledge of shabda-pramana. To summarise, to recognize a spiritual authority one must test the authority.The Guru and the Parampara

Q) What is the safe way of receiving Vedic Knowledge?

There is a recommended and safe way of receiving Vedic knowledge - the descending process of hearing from the spiritual masters. This chain of transmission is called guru parampara, the disciplic succession. In the Bhagavad-gita (4.2) Krishna tells Arjuna, evam parampara praptam: “This supreme science of bhakti-yoga was thus received through the chain of disciplic succession.” Because God, the originator of the parampara, is perfect, He can give perfect knowledge. Every guru in the parampara simply repeats the words of his predecessor guru, and ultimately God. The knowledge received through parampara is perfect, even though the gurus themselves may be imperfect. Thus, in the parampara, the student’s relationship is not just with his own spiritual master but also with the spiritual master of his spiritual master and the spiritual master of that master and so on, in an unbroken chain of masters. This chain of masters in which a particular guru hears and speaks the truth is called his sampradaya. Eg. The parampara can be compared to a chain of people on a mango tree, at different level branches. Each person in the chain is a guru. If the mango is brought from the topmost branch and carefully handed down by the people from one branch to the other, then the person at the bottom of the tree gets the same mango, safely and perfectly. Similarly, the Guru gets the knowledge from God and carefully hands it down in disciplic succession so that the people get the original knowledge “As It Is!” The proof of the pudding is in the eating. One will get the same experience as the person who first ate it. Thus, the Guru and the Parampara is the safe way of gaining Vedic knowledge.Eg. In the Brahma sampradaya (in which, ISKCON is a branch), Vedic knowledge descends from Brahma. Brahma gave this knowledge to Narada, Narada delivered it to Vyasa and so on. This disciplic succession has come down without any break and even today it is continued by the disciples of His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, the founder-acharya of ISKCON.It is mentioned in the Padma Purana:sampradaya-vihina ye mantras te nisphala matahatah kalau bhavishyanti chatvarah sampradayinahsri-brahma-rudra-sanaka vaishnava kshiti pavanachatvaras te kalau bhavya hy utkale purushottamaramanujam-shrihi-svichakre madhvacharyam-chaturmuhash

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shri vishnuswamino-rudro nimbadityam chatuksanahaThe above verses explains that there are millions of mantras given in the Vedas. However, these mantras will bear fruit only if one receives them from a Guru who is connected with one of the four bona fide disciplic successions, namely, Shri, Brahma, Rudra and Kumara sampradayas.In the previous session we have studied how the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Krishna, delivered the message of the Vedas to 4 people and created the 4 sampradayas. 1. Shri (Lakshmi devi), 2) Brahmaji, 3) Rudra (Lord Shiva) and 4) The 4 Kumaras (Sanaka, Sanatana, Sanat and Sananda). This message was carried on in the present age of Kali yuga by the 4 famous acaryas:1) Ramanujacharya (Shri sampradaya), 2) Madhvacharya (Brahma sampradaya), 3) Vishnuswami (Rudra sampradaya) and 4) Nimbarka swami (Kumara sampradaya). These four sampradayas are the authoritative institutions, which deliver the pure unadulterated message of the Vedas. Why? This is because the source of this knowledge is Krishna, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, who is free from all defects or imperfections. One should therefore hear Bhagavad-gita from a bona fide spiritual master only. He must be connected to ony of the 4 sampradayas. Other so-called Gurus who interpret the scripture are like quacks (bogus doctors). The government does not authorize them. Thus their knowledge and treatments are temporary and can be hazardous to one’s spiritual health.

Q) Some people may challenge, “How can I know that the present knowledge we receive is true? The ancient traditions are oral and only in recent history they were written down. And we all know that when a story is told it changes from one person to the other.

The new testament of the bible was written 70-100 years after Christ’s death. You assume the former gurus were not cheaters or they have not misinterpreted acceording to their own desires. There were thousands of so-called religious people then and now who do cheat. How can we believe them?

We can believe that we are getting the true knowledge based on the following 3 reasons:1) Living disciplic succession:The way we can ascertain that that we are getting the unadulterated message is because of the presence of an unbroken, living disciplic succession, which can be traced all the way back to Lord Krishna Himself and coming down to the present day. Yes, there is a high possibility of the pure message being eroded or misinterpreted - as in Christianity or any other tradition most of which have no claim of unbroken, unadulterated disciplic succession representing the teachings of their original preceptors.

2) Krishna’s intervention:This is not uncommon in history; even Krishna Himself speaks in Bhagavad-Gita of this

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knowledge being lost: "in course of time the succession was broken, and therefore the science as it is appears to be lost."(BG 4.2) Therefore, He comes to reestablish by speaking this science again to Arjuna, and also assures that He regularly appears in every millennium or sends His representatives, to reestablish true religious principles whenever they are in decline.

In other words, it is the Lord's will and established system that there will always be His pure representatives preserving His pure message available to humanity, to the pious and sincere seekers. If this knowledge happens to be corrupted or covered up, He personally arranges to rectify and reinstate these principles. On this basis, we can be sure.

3) Qualities of the present acaryas: More importantly, we can see that the pure disciplic succession is preserved healthy and intact through the qualities manifested by its most recent and living representatives. In the Bhagavad Gita, Krishna clearly mentions the qualities by which we can identify a truly transcendental person, one who is qualified to be His pure representative. When we come in contact with such a person, we can be sure that he is representing the original teachings of scriptures.Eg. Consider a tree which appears as if lifeless in the autumn and winter - but when spring arrives, even if several branches have indeed dried up and perished, if just one branch comes forth with new shoots and leaves, we can know that the tree is alive, and that this branch must be connected to the root.

In the same way, when we see such qualities perfectly manifested in the person of a devotee, it must be concluded that he is strongly connected to the root, i.e. transmitting the pure teachings of scripture. Without being specifically empowered by Krishna, it is not possible for a mundane person to manifest these qualities and also influence & uplift so many others to become pure vaishnavas. (krsna sakti vina nahe tara pravartana Cc 13.1 p) True, there are and have been many false religious proponents and factions, and many dried up branches, but we cannot conclude from this that all are faulty - especially when it is the Lord's desire that a pure disciplic line should be preserved.

Eg.One might have come across many counterfeit currencies, but one should not conclude that there is no authorized currency in circulation.

In summary, we can accept the knowledge to be pure: 1) If there is a chain of living disciplic succession from Krishna up to the present day. 2) If Krishna has intervened Himself or send His devotees to continue the parampara in case it is broken or corrupted. 3) The quality of the present acaryas can prove whether they are the real representative of God.

Q) Is there a foolproof way to avoid being cheated by some unqualified people who pose themselves as spiritual authorities or Gurus?

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It is common sense, to accept training from a teacher, who is an expert in their field. Still people have doubts like, “Why should we accept “everything” that a particular authority says? We should just accept what we think is right or good and reject the rest.” In this way they want to get the knowledge but without surrender to the authority.This kind of doubt or fear is natural, as there is always a chance that one can get cheated. Since the demand is for absolute surrender to Guru, one has to be careful before surrendering. As the proverb goes, “Power corrupts, and Absolute power corrupts absolutely!” Since the Guru has such absolute powers over the disciple, is there any foolproof way to avoid being cheated? Yes, the scriptures do not demand blind surrender to any Guru. In fact, blind following is condemned. Therefore the scriptures recommend a check and balance system of Guru-Sadhu-Sastra to check the qualification of the right authority.Eg. To get the right knowledge in any field, 3 things are required. 1) Standard Textbooks on the subject. 2) A college authorized by the University or the Government. 3) Qualified professors to teach the subjects. Similarly, to learn spiritual science all these three criteria must be correctly met. 1) Standard Textbooks - Vedic scriptures. (Specifically Bhagavad Gita and Bhagavatam for Kaliyuga) 2) A College, authorized by the University or Government – A Sampradaya or Parampara directly authorized by the Lord. 3) Qualified professors – Guru. This check-and-balance system called guru-sadhu-shastra makes sure that the teachings remain pure and perfect. The teachings of all 3 must correspond with each other. If they are found to contradict then one should reject the, a) so-called guru, or b) falsely interpreted scripture or c) the cheating sadhus. The teachings of the guru must correspond with the teachings of the sadhus (the past and present spiritual masters and saints in the disciplic succession). Both of these must correspond with the direct meanings of shastra (the scripture). This is the proof of perfect spiritual knowledge.OPTIONAL Eg. Judiciary – Parliament – Army, Police, creates a check and balance system for the functioning of a country. All 3 of them balance each other. Both the Army, Parliament are under the Judiciary. The Parliament makes the laws which are followed by the Judiciary and implemented by the army. The Army can overthrow the government and take over the Judiciary if they become corrupt or ineffective. In this way, they are all interdependent on each other. They have to work with each other for the smooth functioning of the state. If any one of them is corrupt then the other two can put a check and balance on them and correct the problem. OPTIONAL Eg. The Srimad Bhagvatam, 8th canto, presents the case of Bali Maharaj who rejected his guru in special circumstances. The common goal of Guru, Sadhu and Sastra is to help the conditioned soul to come closer to God. However, if any of them deviate from this goal then they must be rejected.In this pastime, the Supreme Lord in the form of Vamandev, came to sacrifice of Bali Maharaj and begged for some charity. Bali Maharaj’s guru, Sukracarya forbade him

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from giving any charity to the Supreme Lord in the form of Vamandev. Why did Sukracarya stop his disciple from giving charity? This is because, Sukracarya knew that Vamandev woud take everything away from Bali Maharaj in charity. If Bali Maharaj would become penniless then how would Sukracarya get his share of riches? Being greedy Sukracarya forbade his disciple from surrendering to Vamandev. However, Prahlad Maharaj, who was a the grand father of Vamandev and a great devotee of the Lord, encouraged Bali Maharaj to offer himself to the Supreme Lord. Why? This is because, Prahlad knew that if we offer anything to the Lord then, the Lord offers millions of times more in return, to the devotee. In this example, Bali Maharaj is the disciple, Sukracarya is the Guru, Vamandev is the Supreme Lord and Prahlad Maharaj is the Sadhu (saints in the disciplic succession). Here, Bali Maharaj rejected his guru, since Sukracarya had deviated from the goal of the scriptures – which is to come closer to God. This is a very special case. Generally, one should follow all the instructions of the Guru. If one finds that the Guru is contradicting the scripture or sadhus then he must be rejected. However, one should not whimsically reject the Guru. One must take guidance from the scriptures and the sadhus and then come to a conclusion! Thus this check and balance system helps to keep the spiritual knowledge pure and safe.In modern times, it is fashionable to break this check and balance system. Therefore we find many people are skeptical in accepting a spiritual authority.Eg. SO-CALLED GURUS : Today there are self-styled gurus who hardly refer to the scriptures. They write their own books and preach based on their own interpretations. They can hardly show the authority of their own guru or the disciplic succession originating from God. They attract people by their personal charisma or power or speech. Once the Guru becomes old or dies, then the mission is finished and his followers disappear.Eg. SO-CALLED SCRIPTURES:In modern times the bookstores and markets are filled with spiritual and self-help books which promise a magic cure for all stresses and problems that people face. For a short time they attract the minds of the readers with tricks and techniques of success. Very soon we find another self-help book that hits the market with newer tricks and promises to be provide success to its readers! In this way everyday newer and newer books are coming but people are still clueless since these books fail to follow the perfect prescriptions given by the scriptures.Eg. A person wrote a book “How to become a millionaire”. When someone asked him, “Sir, have you made a million dollars yourself?” The person replied, “Yes, of course”. Again he was asked, “How did you do it?” He replied, “By writing this book!” That means there sere enough people he could fool to buy his book that he himself became a millionaire. What happened to the readers? Who cares? They would go to the next self-help success promising book in the market!Then there are spiritual societies that misinterpret spiritual literature to suit their own ideas. Eg. People explain how Bhagavad Gita teaches Karma yoga, Jnana,

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Management lessons, ahimsa and so many ideas. They may explain every other idea from the Gita except what the Gita is repeatedly telling them to do: Cultivate devotional service to Krishna. They may write a Gita saar, however it hardly inspires anyone’s life. When Srila Prabhupada wrote the Bhagavad Gita As It Is, hundereds, thousands and lakhs of people became devotees. How? Because it is the same, perfect knowledge coming from God, Krishna, presented according to Guru, Sadhu and Sastra.It is a great fortune and opportunity for every intelligent and civilized human being to accept such a bona fide authority, gain spiritual knowledge, and thereby make his life perfect. Just like switching on the light illumines a dark room, the light of transcendental knowledge can remove our ignorance. Having obtained such knowledge, we attain eternal happiness.To summarize, the foolproof way to avoid being cheated, is to follow the check and balance system of Guru-Sadhu-Sastra. If any Guru, book, or spiritual person breaks this principle then it should be rejected as unauthorized.

Q) What are the types of spiritual master?

We have discussed the need for an authority and foolproof ways to recognize a spiritual authority. Now we shall discuss the types of spiritual authorities or spiritual masters. There are 4 different types of Gurus:1) Chaitya Guru:

“Chaitya” comes from the word “chit”, and “chit” means heart. In the heart region of every living entity is the Supersoul or the “Paramatma” who is the Chaitya Guru. The Lord as the Paramatma reciprocates with the desires of the living entities. As soon as the conditioned living entity becomes inquisitive or has a desire to know about Him, God will personally direct him from within how to approach the devotees. The Lord may guide another devotee to come into the life of this conditioned soul and give him association. This person whom the Lord directs to guide the conditioned soul is the second type of guru called “Patha-pradarsaka-Guru”.Eg. In Srimad Bhagavatam 4th canto, it is described that Dhruva Maharaj went to the forest to meditate and search for Krishna within his heart. At that time, the Paramatma inspired Narada Muni to go to that place in the forest and guide little Dhruva on the path of devotional service to Krishna.

2) Patha-Pradarsaka-Guru:

He is the person who directs the conditioned soul towards the path of Bhakti for the first time. Therefore he is also called as Vartama-Pradarshaka Guru. As soon the Supersoul sees a little desire from the conditioned soul, to know Him, the Lord sends someone (a devotee, a non devotee or anyone), to cross the path of such eager souls and direct them to the path of Krsna Consciousness. This person who brings one to bhakti becomes their Patha-Pradashaka-Guru. Sometimes the Lord directly inspires the soul to come to His temple and start associating with the devotees. In this case the Chaitya Guru himself acts as the Patha-Pradashaka-Guru. It is not necessary that

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Patha-Pradashaka-Guru should be a great devotee, or will even remain as a devotee. He is called a Guru because he is someone who guides the conditioned soul to Krsna.Eg: Narendranath Dutta inspired his friend Abhay Charan to meet a great saint Srila Bhakti Siddhanta Sarasvati Thakur. This meeting was the turning point in Abhay’s life and he accepted Srila Bhakti Siddhanta Sarasvati as his initiating Guru. Thus he later became AC BhaktiVedanta Swami Prabhupada and preached all over the world on the instructions of his Guru. In this case Narendranath Dutta was Srila Prabhupada’s Patha-Pradashaka-Guru. He himself did not survive as a practicing devotee but he stil would get great spiritual credits by introducing such a great soul like Srila Prabhupada to Krsna Consciousness. Therefore we should all try to preach and sow the seeds of Bhakti in as many people’s hearts as possible. Who knows in which heart, the seed will germinate and develop and we shall get the credit for their devotional service.

3) Siksha Guru(Instructing Spiritual Master):

This is the third type of Guru, who preaches, helps and instructs the sincere soul on the path back to Godhead. He acts a philosopher, friend and guide. One can have one or more Siksha Gurus, from whom they can hear and learn how to practice the process of Krsna Consciousness. It is recommended to have atleast one confidential devotee in whom we can trust and reveal our minds to; so that he can guide us in our personal practice of devotional service.

4) Diksha Guru(Initiating Spiritual Master):There can me many Siksha Gurus but there is only one Diksha Guru in ones life. Diksha Guru is the one who offers formal initiation to the disciple and connects him to the parampara. In the initiation ceremony the disciple takes a formal vow of chanting a minimum of 16 rounds everyday and following the four regulative principles(namely no gambling, no intoxication, no illicit sex, no meat eating). And the Guru accepts all the past Karma of the disciple on behalf of Krsna. Thus the disciple is eternally indebted to the Guru for delivering him from the cycle of birth and death. This eternal connection between Guru and disciple is formalized by this initiation or Diksha ceremony. After this ceremony receiving Krsna’s mercy becomes very easily accessible for the disciple. Eg: Spiritual mercy can be compared to electric current. Krsna is compared to the original power house, which manufactures unlimited spiritual energy. This spiritual mercy is distributed by four different power stations called as sampradayas or the Parampara. The various acharyas are the power cables, which carry the current of spiritual mercy to our houses. Our own Guru is compared to the plug point from where we can access this mercy. Diksha is the process of connecting our plugs to the socket of Guru’s mercy.All the devotional service that we do before accepting a spiritual master helps us to become qualified to eventually get a formal connection to the parampara. Just like students right from their 8th, 9th standard start preparing for IIT-JEE exams all the effort is to finally get connected to some IIT. Then their formal education begins in that prestigious institution. If they hstudy sincerely then succees is guranteed. Similarly

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the sincere disciple is guranteed to achieve Guru’s mercy and go back home back to Godhead. In summary there are four types of Gurus: Chaitya Guru, Patha-Pradashaka-Guru, Siksha Guru and Diksha Guru.

Q) What are the qualifications of a spiritual master?

Since the guru must transmit the truths of Vedic knowledge perfectly, he plays a crucial role. It is therefore necessary to first understand the symptoms of a bona fide guru, that is, a spiritual master who has received and can impart pure knowledge. We should know what are the qualifications and disqualifications of a Guru.Although we have to accept spiritual authority, we should do so only after due testing; otherwise we may be cheated. For example, a person who accepts medicine from a quack is unintelligent and is inviting trouble and suffering. One should consult only a qualified doctor, who has graduated from a recognized medical college, has good clinical experience, and can help in curing the ailment.Do we test the genuineness of a college professor by the language he speaks, by his physical appearance, by his nationality or his religion? No! There are other criteria on which a teacher or a Guru is chosen. Just like the genuineness of gold can be determined by certain specific tests, there are also tests to determine the genuineness of spiritual authority as stated below:The Shrimad Bhagavatam (11.3.21) explains the basic qualifications of a guru:tasmad gurum prapadyeta jijnasuh shreya uttamamshabde pare ca nishnatam brahmany upasamashrayam“Therefore any person who seriously desires real happiness must seek a bona fide spiritual master and take shelter of him by initiation. The qualification of the bona fide guru is that a) He has realized the conclusions of the scriptures by deliberation and b) is able to convince others of these conclusions. C) Such great personalities, who have taken shelter of the Supreme Godhead, d) leaving aside all material considerations, should be understood to be bona fide spiritual masters.”The important qualifications of the guru are as follows:

1) He must be connected to and repeat the message of the parampara:The bona fide guru should have heard the Absolute Truth in a disciplic succession. The disciplic succession comprises of spiritual masters and disciples, coming from God Himself. That is why the words of the guru are perfect, being free from the defects of a common man (imperfect senses, tendency to be illusioned, tendency to commit mistakes and propensity to cheat) This is the first and the foundational principle in accepting a spiritual master. All other qualifications like oratory skills, personal charisma, great managers or sweet singers are like big zeroes. When the one of the power of the parampara is added then they all become valuable assets. Without the parampara they are useless in themselves.

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The guru should be fully engaged, 24 hours, in the service of Krishna. The Nectar of Devotion explains this quality - avyartha kalatvam, a great devotee does not like to waste even a single moment doing anything, which is not connected with Krishna and His service. The Bhagavad-gita (9.14) confirms this satatam kirtayanto mam “The pure devotee is constantly engaged in glorifying the Supreme Lord.” Eg. When Srila Prabhupada met the Beatles in London, George Harrison asked him, “Among the many preachers of the Bhagavad-gita who is bona fide and the best?” Srila Prabhupada replied, “The Bhagavad-gita is the word of Krishna. So to recognize who is the bona fide preacher of Bhagavad-gita, you should check who is most addicted to Krishna!”

2) He must be a fixed up devotee of the Lord:The guru must be a devotee of the Lord. He must have realized the conclusions of the scriptures and must be fixed in devotional service to the Supreme. Because he has heard, understood, practiced, and realized the Absolute Truth, he should be fixed in devotional service to the Supreme. He should be able to confirm the authenticity of the message he is presenting by the support of the scriptures and the teachings of the great acaryas of the present and the past.In this connection, the Padma Purana states: shat karma nipuno vipro mantra-tantra visharadah avaishnavo gurur na syad vaishnavah sva-paco guruh“A scholarly brahmana expert in all subjects of Vedic knowledge is unfit to become a spiritual master without being a Vaishanva, or expert in the science of Krishna consciousness. But a person born in a lower caste can become a spiritual master if he is a Vaishnava, or Krishna conscious.”A guru should be known by his understanding of the science of God. We should not judge a guru based on his caste, creed, color, nationality etc. We should never think, “He is after all an African guru or an American guru—not Indian.” or “He was after all born in a shudra family.” This is offensive. When you employ a civil engineer to construct a house, do you ask him, “Are you a brahmana engineer or a shudra engineer?” Or when you go to a doctor, do you ask him, “Are you a brahmana doctor?” You only see whether he is a qualified B.E. or M.B.B.S. Similarly, yei krishna-tattva-vetta sei ‘guru’ haya “One who knows the science of Krishna should be accepted as a guru” (Chaitanya Charitamrita Madhya 8.128). Instruction has to be taken from one who is in knowledge. It does not matter what his position is, whether he is a son, a boy, a shudra, a brahmana, a sannyasi, or a grihastha. Eg. Chaitanya Mahaprabhu took incarnation in the form of a brahmana (the highest social order - varna) and a sannyasi (the highest spiritual order - ashrama). Still, He took instructions from Ramananda Raya, who was a shudra and grihastha which is socially a lower category. Why? This is because Ramanand Raya was spiritually very exalted. Whoever is qualified in Krishna consciousness can become a guru; his family or material identity does not matter. His only qualification is that he must know the science of Krishna. Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, the yuga-avatara for Kali-yuga, wanted

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everyone in India to know the science of Krishna, become a guru, and preach Krishna consciousness.Eg. Vasishtha Muni was the Guru of King Dasharatha. He was a grhastha.Eg. Dronacarya was the guru of the Pandavas and the Kauravas. He was a grhastha too.It is wrong to think that the Guru must be an old man, with a long beard etc. Anyone – man, woman, child, householder or sannyasi can be a guru – provided they know the science of Krishna. If someone is yet to become a devotee of Krishna, how can such people connect thier disciples to Krishna? They may great control over yoga asanas, fasting or speaking kathas etc. but those things will remain here after death. The only thing that can carry the soul back to the spiritual world is devotional service to Krishna.

3) He must be self-controlled and teach by example.The word “acarya” means “one who teaches by example”. The guru should be an acarya. Thus, he should give perfect knowledge and inspire others to follow it by his personal example and great taste in devotional services. Eg. One, who easily succumbs to smoking cigarettes, will find it difficult to convince others of the higher taste of healthy living, which is possible by avoiding cigarettes!The guru must be highly sense-controlled. This is one of the important qualifications that separate a genuine guru who is connected to the Lord and the fake counterparts. Eg. When real gold and fake gold are put into fire, they are easily distinguished. The real gold comes out brighter and shinning whereas the fake gold is burnt to ashes. Similarly, when the attracts of sense gratification come, the real guru is self controlled, whereas the fake one’s succumb to the gross and subtle to enjoy materialistic pleasures.Eg. The scriptures list six pushings that the guru must tolerate to be qualified as a spiritual master. “A sober person who can tolerate the urge to speak, the mind’s demands, the actions of anger, and the urges of the tongue, belly and genitals is qualified to make disciples all over the world.” (Upadeshamrita 1)(OPTIONAL) The guru should be decorated with all saintly qualities. The Srimad Bhagavatam (3.25.21) explains:titikshavah karunikah suhrudah sarva-dehinamajata-shatravah shantah sadhavah sadhu-bhusanah“The symptoms of a sadhu are that he is tolerant, merciful and friendly to all living entities. He has no enemies, he is peaceful, he abides by the scriptures and all his characteristics are sublime.”

4) He must be expert at guiding his disciple in spiritual advancement rather than material life.

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The guru imparts spiritual knowledge, not mundane knowledge. Spiritual Knowledge begins with the inquiry athato brahma jijnasa. “What is the Supreme? Who am I? Who is God? Why am I here in this world and What will happen to me after death etc?” Knowledge also begins by understanding the threefold miseries of the material world. It is this knowledge that the guru is meant to teach. Generally people approach Guru for some material blessings like, for their children’s exams (for that they can approach a tuition teacher), or for health (for that they can approach a doctor), for financial stability (for that approach a bank or a finance consultant), or for marital issues (for that approach a marriage bureau or a family counselor). The Guru must teach the spiritual science, the practise of which should take the disciple out of the cycle of birth and death, to the spiritual world.The guru should know the essence of the scriptures, which to know Krishna (Ref. Bg 15.15) and should be able to convince others of that truth. He need not be a Sanskrit scholar or be able to recite complicated Vedic mantras. A nice story from the life of Srila Prabhupada illustrates this principle.Eg. Once some Vedic scholars came to meet Srila Prabhupada Vrindavan. After greeting them and exchange of hospitality, Srila Prabhupada asked them, “Can you please tell me, who is God?” On hearing this, they started blinking and saying, “Oh! The Absolute Truth is very huge subject matter. It is very difficult to comprehend and it is not possible to explain it so easily….” In this way they started sharing their speculations on the subject. Srila Prabhupada then called a small boy from the ISKCON gurukula and asked him the same question, “Can you please tell me, who is God?”. The boy promptly answered, “Krishna is the Supreme Personality of Godhead!” Srila Prabhupada gifted him a gulabjamun and the boy ran away, dancing joyfully to play with the other children. Srila Prabhupada then remarked, “Just see! Even this small child knows Krishna to be God whereas Vedic scholars, after years of study, have no knowledge of the essence of all the Vedas.” Then Srila Prabhupada quoted many verses and showed to them how Krishna is the Supreme Personality of Godhead.There are many professional reciters, who recite the Srimad Bhagavatam with great dramatic pathos, intricate word jugglery and profuse Sanskrit verses. Many of them are neither aware of nor do they teach others the conclusion of the scriptures - love of God. They teach scriptures only to earn their livelihood, not to enlighten the people in the true principles of religion. Such people may be very popular, respected and learned. However they fail to pass the test of being genuine gurus. Their giving of initiations to thousands of people at a time is a bogus practice, against the Vedic principles.To summarise, the bonafide Guru must: 1) come in a disciplic succession. 2) be a fixed up devotee of Lord Krishna. 3) be self-controlled and teach by example and 4) be expert at guiding the disciple in spiritual advancement.

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Q) What are the disqualifications of a spiritual master?

Regrettably, in the modern times, we have countless professional gurus (fake holy men) who deceive their followers in one or more of the following ways:1) Charge fees for revealing secret mantras and give false promises that one can become God by chanting those mantras (If one can actually become God by chanting those mantras, then why don’t these gurus simply become Gods themselves? If they are already God, then why do they need the money of their disciples?)2) Teach so-called meditation while allowing their students to disregard all the Vedic regulative austerities (Regulative principles like avoiding gambling, meat eating, intoxication and illicit sex constitute the basic beginning of spiritual life. Meditation without practicing these austerities is simply a form of relaxation. Such relaxation techniques are very popular in the fast-paced modern times, however they fail to give a lasting relief to the people.)3) Teach only a set of gymnastic exercises in the name of yoga and maintain that yoga is meant for material well-being and enjoyment. This is very good for maintaining physical health. These are only health instructors. A real Guru teaches knowledge which is much more deep. (The word ‘yoga’ comes from the Sanskrit word ‘yuj’ which means ‘to connect with God’. Thus actual yoga is meant to re-establish one’s lost relationship with God.)4) Defy the Vedas by declaring: ‘I am God; You are God; Everyone is God’ (The Vedas very clearly declare that there is only one God and that we are all His eternal servants)5) Have their disciples worship them directly as God (The Vedas declare that only the Supreme Lord should be worshipped as God and that the guru should direct his followers to worship that Supreme Lord. The Guru and the demigods are also to be respected. However to separately worship them as good as God is an insult to both of them!)6) Teach that this material well-being is the goal of life and all material prosperity will be achieved simply by the blessings of the Guru. Such “aashirwad babas” are found by the millions in India who cheat the innocent people who put faith in them. 7) Attract the masses by speaking eloquent katha from the scriptures like Bhagavat Kathas etc. they may divert the attention of the audience from the real meaning of surrender to Krishna, to some pious entertainment or intellectual word jugglery.Although we have to accept spiritual authority, we should do so only after due testing; otherwise we may be cheated. Eg. A person who accepts medicine from a quack is unintelligent and is inviting trouble and suffering. One should consult only a qualified doctor, who has graduated from a recognized medical college, has good clinical experience, and can help in curing the ailment.One cannot test the genuineness of a spiritual authority by the language he speaks, by his physical appearance or by his nationality. Just like the genuineness of gold can be determined by certain specific tests, there are also tests to determine the genuineness of spiritual authority to avoid being cheated.

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Thus, in summary, those so-called Gurus who cheat their disciples by giving them only things other than Krishna – like yoga-pranayama, relaxation-meditations, pious entertaining kathas, or bogus secret mantras not given in the Vedas should be rejected. Also so-called Gurus who give self-created knowledge, without the scriptures or a parampara coming from Krishna should also be avoided.

Q) What should the disciple do if he realizes that he has a false Guru or if the Guru deviates from the ideal standard?

That may be a possibility. There are certain instances when one does accept a bonafide spiritual master but later on that spiritual master may fall away from the strict standards. Also one may have been initiated by a so-called guru or by a traditional guru (also called kula guru) as a child. In such a situation one should take guidance from the scriptures and the sadhus, saints. In any case, the aspiring devotee should just go forward on his spiritual journey, with greater wisdom, and accept the shelter of one who is a bonafide spiritual master. When one is fully sincere to attain spiritual perfection, then Krishna will bring the devotee to His bonafide representative.Eg. If a particular plug point has stopped giving current for some reason, then one should plug into another plug point to be in touch with the electric current. Similarly, for some reason if one has a Guru who fails to perform the function of Guru, then one should take shelter of a Guru who can give perfect spiritual guidance. However, this must be done with extreme caution and with due consultation from the other sadhus in the parampara and scripture. This is because the relation of the disciple with the Guru is very special and of the eternal quality. Thus one should be careful before making some material judgements on the Guru.The case of Bali Maharaj mentioned above is an appropriate example to illustrate this issue.

Q) What are the advantages of having a spiritual master? (In progress….)

Q) Qualification of disciple in another session later. Even I we have the best spiritual master, we can still fail to get perfection if we fail to develop the qualities of a disciple. Therefore in the next session we shall discuss the qualities required of a sincere disciple.

I HAVE YET TO DECIDE WHERE DO THE FOLLWING TWO QUESTIONS EXACTLY FIT IN THE FLOW OF THE CLASS. IN CASE THEY FAIL TO FIT THE FLOW PROPERLY, WE WILL JUST KEEP THEM AS TWO EXTRA QUESTIONS!

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Q) Since I have a material body, I have all the 4 defects. Thus, all my senses are imperfect. Then how can I get perfect knowledge with my imperfect senses?

Spiritual knowledge is received more deeply than material knowledge. Material knowledge is simply cramming of some figures and data. Even if one’s consciousness is dull and one’s habits are sinful, still if one can cram a lot of data and process it, one is considered brilliant from material standards. So, with all the defects one can still cram information, get good marks and have material knowledge.Spiritual knowledge on the other hand, goes into the heart and the mind of the student. It creates a transformation in the student’s character. Ultimately, spiritual knowledge awakens the identity of the student as a loving servitor of Godhead.Eg. When a person is sleeping, all his senses except the ears go to sleep. In the morning the eyes, nose, mouth and skin have some contaminations on them. We do not realize this throughout the night since these senses are more or less asleep. However, if there is the slightest sound or if someone shouts, “Mr. John, Mr. John, please wake up! Someone is coming to kill you.” Then, immediately the person wakes up, when the sound vibration enters the ears.Similarly, when the spiritual sound vibration enters the ears, it goes into the heart. Thus one gets the spiritual information and one also gets the spiritual transformation, when the soul is awakened. So, although we have the 4 defects and our ears are defective, still because spiritual vibration is transcendental, it has the power to act directly on the spiritual platform and awaken the soul to its original reality.

Q) The guru’s body also appears to grow old; he needs spectacles for his eyes etc. Then, how can he speak perfect knowledge with his imperfect senses?

Ans – The body of the guru appears to be affected by material limitation just like everyone else. However, the spiritual knowledge given by the guru is perfect and beyond the 4 defects. How? Eg. Srila Prabhupada explained, how one obtained expertise in Krishna consciousness by submissively following the spiritual master. He gave the example that although an engineer's apprentice may not be expert, if he turns a screw under the direct supervision of the expert engineer he is acting as an expert. Thus, Srila Prabhupada explained that even if disciples weren't expert in love of Krishna, if they worked under an expert they were also acting as experts. This expertise is not just a parrot-like repetition of the words of the Guru, but to carry the realization of the meaning and direction of their message. As one becomes more and more expert he becomes further empowered by Krishna. Thus, when he speaks, although his senses may have material defects, spiritually they are perfect since the Lord has empowered them to carry His message. The proof is that, he can perfectly guide his disciples with Bhakti towards Krishna.Eg. Iron rod in fire acts like fire. Similarly, even if the body of the Guru is material, it can transmit spiritual knowledge perfectly since it is totally being used for the Lord’s pleasure.

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Eg. When the wire has zero resistance then it can transmit the electric current perfectly, from one place to another. Similarly, since the Guru is a totally surrendered soul and has zero resistance towards Krishna, he is fully empowered to carry the current of the Lord’s mercy to reach out to the conditioned souls.

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