Bold and Beautiful, TOVP

Bold and Beautiful, TOVP
An emblem of Srila Prabhupada’s boldness.

Srila Prabhupada founded the International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON) when he was 70 years old and spread it throughout the world in the next 12 years. He obviously had numerous attractive qualities, both as a person and as a leader. One that continues to amaze, inspire, and guide his followers was his sensational boldness. Srila Prabhupada's boldness changed the course of world history.

When Prabhupada started his work in the USA in the 1960s, traditional religious institutions no longer held firm sway on the newer generations of the western world. Materialism and even outright hedonism was beginning to capture the hearts of the masses there.  The western world was fast moving towards a completely godless state of existence; the rest of the world would have followed suit shortly. Prabhupada reintroduced the western world to God - a stunningly beautiful blue teenage jolly cowherd boy who plays a flute and constantly engages in delightful pastimes of selfless love and affection with all the inhabitants, including birds and animals, of His simple rural village named Vrindavan. In an increasingly materialistic, self-centered, urbanized, and anti-god western society, this picture of God was a shocking revelation. But Prabhupada's bold conviction in his message made people start believing in it - to engage in pure devotional service to God, Krishna. 

The TOVP is an emblem of Srila Prahbupada’s boldness.

The Bold Lonely Struggle

One can trace back Prabhupada's boldness to his first meeting in 1922 with His Divine Grace Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakur. Srila Bhaktisiddhanta startled the then 26 year old Gandhian Indian nationalist Abhay Charan De by his bold proclamation: temporary material situations like the British rule over India should not impede the preaching of Lord Chaitanya’s spiritual message; only this message can benefit the world and not any political situation. In an India engulfed by arousing nationalistic fervor, this was a stunning proposition; but Prabhupada was convinced.

Prabhupada later became an initiated disciple of Srila Bhaktisiddhanta and imbibed from him this trait of boldness. Prabhupada was bold in multiple ways - personally, as a visionary, and as a strategist. In the 1950s, he made the bold decision of leaving his family to dedicate himself fully to the order of his spiritual master – to preach Lord Chaitanya’s message in English all over the world. This period, the 1950s, was Prabhupada’s toughest in terms of food, clothing, and shelter. Brought up with utmost love and care by his parents and always treated affectionately by his spiritual master, now Prabhupada found that he was all alone. Yet he struggled on, shuttling between Vrindavan and Delhi, to raise funds for, write, and print his “Back To Godhead” fortnightly journal and his commentary on the first canto of the Srimad Bhagavatam. It is impossible to fathom how this unknown aged man continued on without any fixed source of money, contacts, institutional backing, or certainty about the future. We can but bow our heads in the dust of his lotus feet and profusely thank him for his struggles for bringing us to the path of Krishna Consciousness.

This period of struggle ended in an unprecedented event in world history – a voyage that could eventually become as famous as Columbus’s voyage that led to the discovery of the New World. Columbus brought the western world into light; Prabhupada’s voyage brought spiritual light to the western world. Prabhupada’s voyage to USA on the cargo ship Jaladuta and his subsequent success are unparalleled in the history of Vaishnavism. The voyage was a bold move on multiple counts. One, traditional Vedic wisdom prohibits one to leave the shores of the holy land of India. And two, Prabhupada was 69 years old then, with no financial or social support whatsoever.

Taking on the World

Prabhupada’s conviction in his mission gradually earned him his first few followers in the USA. He finally had hands to execute his mission. When all he had was a single storefront, he painted the vision of an international society. He called it a society for Krishna Consciousness when no one in the west knew that Krishna is God. He startled the western world by Hari Nama Sankirtans - street processions having devotees chanting and dancing to the beats of hand cymbals and drums with banners of the Holy Name in hand. The biggest and most eye catching street processions were of course the Lord Jagannath Ratha Yatras which he conducted in major cities of the world. Perhaps his boldest and most socially noticeable move was to have devotees publicly and visibly distribute his books in major public places like airports. His vision was clear – to wake up the people of the world to Krishna by aggressive propaganda via books and sankirtan.

In his books he presented Krishna as the Supreme Personality of Godhead along with his Holy Name, form, qualities, and pastimes. But in many of his conversations with eminent philosophers and scientists he used a distinct strategy - he challenged them. Quoting from authoritative Vedic scriptures and applying simple logic, he questioned and reprimanded those who proclaimed God to be impersonal and denied His eternal form and abode. He gave the Vedic perspective on the various western philosophies he came across. And most notably, he exposed the illogicality and futility of the mechanistic explanation of the cosmos and all that’s in it. This was a direct challenge to the growing atheistic scientific worldview. Despite not having a scientific academic background, he boldly ridiculed atheistic reductionist science based on his simple and firm faith in the word of scripture. To ensure that this challenge didn’t fizzle away, he started the Bhaktivedanta Institute as the scientific wing of ISKCON. While the whole world was glorifying the dazzling advancements in the scientific world, Prabhupada belittled them as being incapable of solving the real problems of life – birth, old age, disease, and death.

Prabhupada's expert application of the principle of yukta vairagya was instrumental in his spectacular success.  Because Srila Prabhupada was a pure devotee, Krishna was the most tangible reality for him; in fact he was in full realization of the fact that Krishna is the only independent reality and that all else depends on Him. Consequently he had the flair of engaging everything in Krishna’s service. He was the quintessential yukta vairagi. Çréla Rüpa Gosvämé characterizes Kåñëa consciousness in this way:

anäsaktasya viñayän
yathärham upayuïjataù
nirbandhaù kåñëa-sambandhe
yuktaà vairägyam ucyate

"When one is not attached to anything, but at the same time accepts everything in relation to Kåñëa, one is rightly situated above possessiveness. [This is the principle of yukta vairagya]" (Bhakti-rasämåta-sindhu 1.2.255)

Money, technology, world travel, mass media, public programs - he used them all with assured confidence. What’s more, he engaged the most unkempt drug addicts on one hand and attracted sophisticated scientists and professors on the other. It takes extraordinary ability to engage the most spiritually unqualified and ignorant in the Lord’s service. And it takes courage. The result was a Hare Krishna explosion. Hare Krishna became household names, hundreds of youth became his followers, millions of spiritual books were sold, and a hundred temples were built.  Lord Chaitanya’s movement left the shores of India; Prabhupada fulfilled the order of his spiritual master.

Succession of Boldness

Srila Prabhupada expected his followers to have faith in the Holy Name and continue preaching the message of Lord Chaitanya boldly. Being bold is hard; it takes courage to take significant and potentially life threatening risks. However, the tales of Srila Prabhupada’s personal struggles, his life threatening voyage to the west, and untiring hard work despite advanced old age serve as continuous inspiration for his sincere followers. Riding on this inspiration, his followers continue to operate even in remote corners of the globe, in hostile countries like the Islamic and communist nations, in the hearts of modern cities, and in many other parts of the world. Many of his disciples and grand-disciples lead a hectic life full of inconveniences to carry forward his legacy. This succession of boldness and dedication is one of Srila Prabhupada’s hallmarks of success; a true leader is one who creates more leaders.

Prabhupada has also given a life of dignity and confidence to all his followers. Without a thriving and united community of devotees, it would have been difficult for devotees to practice devotional life in today’s increasingly godless modern world. But thanks to ISKCON, devotees in devotional attire are now an increasingly common site in various parts of the world. This is also due to the strong scriptural and logical foundation that Prabhupada has provided for all aspects of a devotee’s life. Now a devotee does not need to be apologetic about his devotional practices. In fact many times a devotee’s acquaintances look up to him or her for guidance regarding various aspects of their life.

As a token of gratitude, to fulfil one of his ardent desires, and as a stunningly courageous undertaking, Srila Prabhupada’s followers are constructing the magnificent TOVP.

Bold and Beautiful

The three giant domes of the TOVP will be structurally complete by the end of 2015. This will include the concreting layer on top of the steel superstructure of the domes. By then, the entire superstructure of the temple building including the external brickwork will also be done. The domes will be layered with vitrified tiles of a unique shade of blue. Tiles of this color are available nowhere in the world. The NITCO company will specially manufacture these tiles for the TOVP. These tiles will start arriving at the site shortly. The MEP (Mechanical, Electrical, Plumbing) work for both infrastructure and interior needs will start in 2015. For example, lightening arresters (devices used to protect against the damage caused by lightening) have arrived on the site. There will be one special lightening arrester on each of the three domes and 40 others at various places on the site. The waterproofing is complete. Work on other services like fire-fighting, heating, ventilation, and air conditioning will also start now. The ground floor of the building is now leveled; in one way this milestone signifies that the super structure is now more or less done. On the aesthetic side, the sandstone carving work will now start.

While Prabhupada’s personal boldness is seen in his followers, his visionary and strategic boldness is evident in the TOVP. One of Prabhupada’s preaching strategies was to just encourage people to come to Mayapur so that their spiritual life will start. Additionally, one of Srila Bhaktivinod Thakur’s prominent visions was to see people from different parts of the world throng to Mayapur and participate in the congregational chanting of the Holy Name. There are multiple bold elements in the construction of the TOVP which are meant to attract the people of the world to Mayapur.

The most obvious is its scale. The huge central dome will be the biggest dome in the world in terms of diameter and only second in terms of height after the Saint Peter’s Basilica in Vatican City. Building it was an architectural challenge which the team of architects has now addressed satisfactorily.  While there are other huge temple complexes in the world like the Meenakshi Temple in Madurai, India (180,000 sq. mt.) and the Angkor Wat in Cambodia, no other temple boasts as large a temple hall as the TOVP. Under the shelter of the structurally sound central dome, the TOVP temple hall will be 45000 sq. ft. in area and will hold 10000 pilgrims. Extending Srila Prabhupada’s application of the yukta viaragya principle, a lot of modern technology will be employed in this project. For example, the central dome will be acoustically designed for facilitating discourses within it for the 10000 pilgrims inside it. The decorative coffered ceiling of the central dome is also another major execution challenge that the team is currently working on. On top of the central dome, even above the kalash, will be housed a beautiful Sudarshan Chakra whose diameter will be 4m. A gong will be installed inside the temple that will be heard as far as the town of Krishnanagar, a straight line distance of 12km from Mayapur.

Impersonalism and atheistic science are two streams of thought that Prabhupada repeatedly attacked in his books and conversations. The TOVP continues that trend. Building of a grand temple of Lord Krishna focused on elaborate deity worship and devotional lifestyle directly challenges the impersonal conceptions of the Absolute Truth; it establishes the Absolute Truth as Sri Krishna – the Supreme Personality of Godhead, the source of everything. Consequently, the TOVP also rejects the mechanistic atheistic explanations of the cosmos and all that’s in it. What’s more, it also presents the Vedic view of the structure of the universe, most notably in the form of the ambitious chandelier that will hang down from the central dome. This chandelier will be a moving model of the Vedic explanation of the structure of the universe. To amalgamate the function of a chandelier (a decorative device of lighting) with the function of a scientific model of the universe (to explain its different aspects) into one single electro-mechanical structure is quite a design challenge.

Being aware of the large amount of money required for building something so grand, just to attempt it is a statement of utmost faith in Srila Prabhupada’s vision. Centuries ago wealthy kings used to fund the construction of large temples, but not today. Today funds are raised by requesting for them from potential donors. It’s a joint effort by the well-wishers of the project. Even when he did not have the required funds, Prabhupada had promised Sri Sri Radha Rasabihari of the Juhu (Bombay) ISKCON Temple that he would build a palace for them; he did. Similarly, the followers of Srila Prabhupada have promised him the building of the TOVP; with the cooperation of his worldwide followers, this promise will soon become a reality.

The superstructure of the TOVP already looks beautiful from Srila Bhaktivinod Thakur’s house across the Ganga. The striking blue color of its domes is an aesthetically bold choice too. The interior and exterior beauty of the TOVP will capture the hearts of its visitors. But the real beauty of the TOVP lies in its special place in the history of Gaudiya Vaishnavism; it will make Gaudiya Vaishnavism prominent on the world’s spiritual map.

An Emblem of Boldness

Srila Prabhupada was the perfect sadhu.

titikñavaù käruëikäù
suhådaù sarva-dehinäm
ajäta-çatravaù çäntäù
sädhavaù sädhu-bhüñaëäù

The symptoms of a sädhu 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.

—Çrémad-Bhägavatam 3.25.21

All ornaments of a sadhu decorated Srila Prabhupada. He left Vrindavan to give Krishna to the world because he was not satisfied with just his own liberation – that was his compassion. He faced so many impediments and so much opposition along the way but he tolerated it all for the sake of Lord Chaitanya’s mission. This combination of intense compassion and utmost tolerance was the recipe of his stunning boldness.

The TOVP will serve as an emblem of Srila Prabhupada’s boldness for generations to come.

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The Rediscovery of True Happiness

Hare Krishna!

Since this is a long article, here is a summary. Conditioned souls are under the illusion that what they are doing will give them happiness. All material activities are different ways of enjoying independently of Krishna. But true happiness lies only in serving Krishna. Therefore the Krishna Conscious movement of Srila Prabhupada, out of immense compassion, condemns all material activities, and dispels all illusions, so that people can get a chance to be truly happy by serving Krishna.

I had been struggling with my mind for the last few days. My not so old past came haunting back at me and captured my mind in its vice-like grip. I knew all the philosophy but still I struggled. I have fortunately come out of that struggle and I am so glad that it did not take me too long. Only a couple of days. In those pre-Krishna Conscious days I used to take shelter of my mentally concocted philosophy in such situations. But since that philosophy was not founded on the principles of the Bhagavad Gita, it did not really cure the root cause of all mental maladies -- the misidentification of the self with the material body.


This time also I took shelter of philosophy, the Krishna Conscious philosophy. And not surprisingly, it got me out of my struggle and pacified my mind. So what was my problem? Well, some might find it childish, but sports lovers will be able to identify with it quite easily. I was a huge sports fan. Even today, I appreciate the qualities of a good sportman, the unflinching focus on the goal, the one-pointed determination to achieve it, the courage to face defeat, the humility while accepting the trophy, and so on. What has changed is that I can philosophically understand the insignificance of sports, despite all the hoopla that tends to shroud it.

However, what still lingers on with me is the urge to achieve something grand. I can now clearly see how watching sports was my way of fulfilling those desires of mine. That’s why such sports and heroic movies are so famous and so are the real life heroes. Because by hearing about them or watching them one vicariously enjoys their glories. But unfortunately, one also suffers their failures! And this was the exact cause of my struggle. I have a special attraction towards a sportstar from my pre-Krishna Conscious days. He always used to win, and therefore I used to love him. I had given my heart away to him. But now he has started losing, and guess what, despite all the philosophy I know, I feel the pain when he loses! Well, not much, but enough to disturb me when I realize how I still misidentify so much with the material body, and that too of someone else! I definitely have a long way to go.

As is my wont, I started thinking deeply about exactly what about the situation was disturbing me. Was it just the fact that my former hero lost a match? Or was it something deeper? As a result of some deep introspection, I could experience the various truths of the Krishna Consciousness philosophy very strongly. Here is that same introspection in words.

As I said, I feel very strongly about accomplishing grand things. Now, how is that bad? Well, it takes you away from the service to Krishna. OK, that’s the correct answer. But then, what should I do in life? If I don’t do what I really like to do, will I not be miserable? That’s the question that was really bugging me. In fact, I identified this exact cause only a couple of days ago when I was thinking deeply about my struggle with my favourite sportsman losing a match. In fact, this question is what deters so many people from Krishna Consciousness initially. I know a few examples personally. It disturbed me too initially, but somehow by the Lord’s mercy, I could overcome it enough at that time to start following Krishna Consciousness. People attached to a particular material activity find it very difficult to accept that their favourite activity is actually harmful to them, and even more difficult to accept that they better give up that activity if it cannot be dovetailed in the Lord’s service in a significant way. Watching and playing sports is definitely one such activity. There are many more such activities, but lets focus on this activity as an example.

So, back to the question. If life is not lived in the pursuit of something grand, then what kind of a life is that? Or at least cant I just appreciate the grand things in this world? Why deny myself even that? Surely, appreciating the good in others is not bad. And so on…

One vicariously enjoys the grand accomplishments of others. If my favourite sportsman wins, I am on top of the world. But unfortunately, I feel depressed if that sportman loses. Why? Because I identify with him! Its one illusion to identify with one’s own material body, but an even greater one to identify with someone else’s material body!

In the midst of all these thoughts came another thought, why do I at all want to accomplish great things? Hmmm… sounds quite a stupid question at the first glance. Why not? But then I started thinking deeper. Why do I want to accomplish great things? Just like that. But that’s not a sound philosophical answer. Why do I want to accomplish great things? Why don’t all have similar aspirations? Why does someone else want some thing else? Why the difference? And why does someone else want what he does? Why? Then it struck me! Because by accomplishing what one wants, one will become happy! Yes, that’s the commonality between all kinds of desires. To be happy. Yes, anandamayo abhyasat. The spirit soul is full of bliss and is always looking for it. Nothing wrong in that! Things started falling into place.

All activities done by a living entity are with the sole purpose of getting happiness out of the activity. Now, selfless (considering the colloquial definition) people of this world might say that they are working for the happiness of others, but still, they are acting for someone’s happiness. They also accept that everyone should be happy and in that way they get their satisfaction or happiness. Since they are acting for others’ happiness, they acknowledge that happiness is ultimately what everyone is seeking. They can’t deny this.

So, does one want to be happy or does one want to be great? Obviously, ultimately one wants to be happy. No sane man will say that I want to be great but not happy. How to get that happiness? Different people try using different means. But the purpose is to get happiness. But over a period of time they get so much engrossed in the process that they forget to analyze whether their activities are actually giving them happiness or not. They get so much attached to the means that they forget the goal. For example, in the beginning I might think that to be happy I need to become a great sportsperson. But in trying to become a great sportsperson, I lose my happiness. I am shrouded by anxieties, envy, restlessness, mental strain, and so many other things. Till I become the world’s number 1, I work hard for it, and after I reach there, I work hard to remain number 1. But surely one day I will have to face the truth, as my body will gradually decline and I will no longer be able to remain number 1. It will hurt like anything. And this is the story even for the world number one, what to speak of others. Of course, the others will say that the journey itself is the reward, but still that does not reduce the miseries too much. But I will undergo all this suffering for what? Well, to try hard to be world number 1. Isnt that a nice thing? But did you start out with that aim? No. Your aim was to be happy. But instead of that you were always anxious to become or remain world number 1. This logic cannot be understood by one who has become too much attached to the world number one spot. For him, that becomes his only goal even though at a certain point it becomes very painful. But still he is so attached to the world number one spot now, that anyone who will suggest anything else will be considered a fool by him. Even if it hurts, he will not give up his quest for the world number 1 spot.

How long can one enjoy in this world? And for those brief moments of joy, how much miseries one needs to undergo? Is it worth all the trouble? One attached to those brief moments will say “Yes!”. But the question is, do you want to be happy or do you want to be world number one? What is more important to you? In fact you earlier wanted to be happy, not world number one. But over a period of time your goals changed and you did not even know. You got caught up in the illusion that world number one is the only way to be happy and never thought twice about it. But actually, you don’t want to be world number one. You just want to be happy.

Therefore, when we see that someone is attached to something, we can understand that its only because that person thinks that that something will make him/her happy. But Krishna Conscious philosophy states that the only way you can be happy in the true sense (eternally) is by serving and loving Krishna (God). The materially attached person cannot accept this because he does not want to leave his own personal material attachments. He thinks that he will become unhappy if he does that. He cannot understand, because of the material attachment, that what he really wants is to be happy, and that his material attachments are not really giving him happiness.

The strongest material attachment is in the form of the false ego. Stronger than the mental and the intellectual attachments. When the material attachment becomes egoistic, enjoyment is derived from the satisfaction of the false ego. That I am great, I am powerful, I am the master, I am the best, I am the world number 1, and so on. The living entity rejoices so much in these illusory thoughts that its almost impossible to take him out of that illusion. He becomes completely attached to his egoistic thoughts. His happiness is derived from these thoughts. At that stage, any suggestions of surrendering to God sound ridiculous to him. And such men can develop atheistic tendencies and sometimes even can start thinking that they are God. This is the Mayavada philosophy, that I am God.

But soon enough their grand illusions are dispelled when they face various kinds of distresses in their life. But the attachment to the enjoyment of the false ego is so strong that even then such a conditioned soul does not accept that he is not happy in what he is doing. Even though he is looking for happiness, he will still be so attached to his egoistic ways, that he will continue carrying on those ways thinking that that is real happiness, even if it is hurting him. Just like (I read this in one of the lectures by HH Radhanath Swami Maharaj) in a mental asylum, a mad man bangs his head against a wall until blood starts pouring out and he still keeps banging. He actually thinks its very pleasurable. That’s why he is in the asylum. He is crazy and does not understand that this so-called pleasure is actually very harmful to him.

All conditioned souls are under the illusion that whatever they are doing will give them happiness. That’s why they are doing those activities. Who will work for unhappiness? Everyone works for happiness. The conditioned life started when the living entity residing in the spiritual world started thinking that there are ways of getting happiness other than serving Krishna. Even though they were still looking for happiness, they wanted it independent of the Lord. Thus using their minute independence, they chose to look for happiness somewhere else. And they are still trying to find it. Each and every material activity is just another way of finding happiness independent of Krishna. Some activities are obviously like that and some are more difficult to discern. But one way or other, all material activities, each and every one of them, is just another attempt at trying to enjoy separately from Krishna. But, the truth is that there is no true happiness independent of Krishna.

And thus, out of immense compassion, the Krishna Conscious movement of Srila Prabhupada condemns all material activities as useless and dangerous. It urges all who care to hear to gradually spiritualize their lives so that ultimately all of them can experience true happiness. Yes, it is difficult to let go of material attachments which are seemingly harmless, but then that’s the price to pay for eternal happiness. Surely, its not too much if you understand this.

People ask, why do you condemn the materialists when then don’t condemn you? The answer is that we are not coming down to the level of materialists and fighting against them. We are actually representing the all-merciful Krishna and trying to make as many people as possible truly happy. If we don’t condemn the materialistic activities, how will the materialists come out of the illusion that their activities will give them true happiness? If no one speaks the truth, how will anyone know about it? Therefore, out of their causeless mercy, the Lord’s pure representatives forcefully present the truth to all and urge all to come and experience true happiness.


Only a misinformed person can find fault in the activities of pure devotees of the Lord. Let us not be one of them, and let us continue steadily on the path chalked out for us by the great devotees of the Lord. Really grand things can only be spiritual in nature. Of the material, there is no longevity, and of the spiritual, there is no limit. Let me pray to Srila Prabhupada that my urge for the grand be effectively doevetailed into the service of the Supreme Personality of Godhead – Lord Gauranga.

Yours in the service of Krishna,
Abhijit.

Eternal Form of the Supreme

Hare Krishna!

The Srimad Bhagavatam explains that the Supreme has three aspects – the impersonal Brahman, the all pervasive localized Paramatma, and the Supreme Personality of Godhead Bhagavan, Krishna. The Bhagavan aspect is the most superior of the three because it’s the source of the other two.

Thus, impersonalism is not totally bogus. Just that its incomplete. Similarly, the realization of the Paramatma located within the heart of every living entity is also partial. But the realization of Krishna is the complete realization of God since by realizing Krishna the other two aspects are also realized. But by understanding the other two factors, Krishna is still not realized.

Now, coming to Mayavada. The problem with Mayavada is that it denies the Bhagavan aspect! It claims that the impersonal Brahman is the Supreme realization of the Absolute Truth. That sometimes the Supreme Brahman gets covered by ignorance and is then called as the Lord! And when the Brahman is covered by ignorance to a large degree, its called the jiva. I am not going into the exact specifics here, but the point I am making is that the Mayavadis say that there is no such thing as an eternal sat-chit-ananda form of the Supreme. Instead, they say, that “Lord” is the term that refers to the Supreme Brahman covered by ignorance. This “Lord”, they say, has a material body.

Vaishnavas do not deny the impersonal aspect of Krishna (Brahman is the bodily effulgence of Krishna) nor do they deny that there are similarities between the Lord and the jiva. They understand that there are a lot similarities but at the same time a lot of differences too. But the Mayavadis deny the sat-chit-ananda form of Krishna! This is the main flaw of the Mayavada philosophy. They are thus the greatest offenders unto the lotus feet of Krishna.

I want to emphasize that the main problem with Mayavada is the concept that the Supreme does not have a sat-chit-ananda form. The contention is not about what is the nature of the various forms of the Supreme. The contention is that the Supreme has an eternal sat-chit-ananda form. The Mayavadis deny it, but the Vaishnavas assert it. Vaishnavas understand that Krishna can take any form as he likes since He is the Supreme controller and all energies are His servants. Therefore, He might take on any form whether so-called material or spiritual, but in all circumstances He is the Supreme controller. He is not controlled. But the point is that the Supreme has an original sat-chit-ananda form (Mayavadis deny this). And Krishna is that Supreme. He may take any form He wishes, but His original form is the form of Krishna. And the form of Krishna is eternal.

Yours in the service of Krishna,
Abhijit.

Defending Deity Worship against Word-Jugglery

Understanding the greatness of God as a step towards understanding His personal form

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Resolving apparent contradictions and exposing the futility of word-jugglery

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Hare Krishna!

Last Saturday, on the Walking Plaza book stall, two young, nice, and learned Islamic gentlemen came and were curious about the Krishna Conscious philosophy. They were well-armed with their logic and arguments against the form of the Lord. They were trying to defend the Islamic position of “no idol worship”. They were very polite and it was a very gentlemanly discussion.

As is often the case, less informed people call us “Hindus”. On top of that, since the Vedic knowledge is so vast, there are innumerable different categories of Vedic followers. Therefore, no one really understands what they refer to as “Hindu”ism. However, one unfortunate by-product of the so-called “Hindu”ism is the atheistic philosophy of Mayavada, which says that the Supreme has no form and further that every living being is the same Supreme, without any difference at all. And this unfortunate by-product of so-called “Hindu”ism is quite popular amongst the unfortunate people of the Kali Yuga.

The Islam asserts that there is God and that not everyone is God. But they have difficulty in understanding the form of God. The Quran makes fleeting references to the form of God, but does not describe His form in any detail at all. On the contrary, the Quran says that the form of the Lord is not like this, not like that, not like this, not like that, and so on. This is not really any positive information about the form of the Lord. As a corollary, the Quran also strongly condemns worshipping material forms as God. And thus, the Islamic followers find it extremely difficult to accept deity worship, which is one of the most prominent features of the Vedic way of life. They cannot understand the difference between a deity and an idol. A deity is not a whimsical form of the Lord, but an authorized one. An idol, on the other hand, is a whimsical creation of sentimentalists, which is condemned even by knowledgeable deity worshippers.

Now, to defend their principle of “no idol worship” (which they equate with “no deity worship” for lack of understanding about the difference between the two), the two gentlemen I met that day used the following arguments. Let us analyze them closely.

(1)

They quoted a verse from some Vedic literature that emphasizes the impersonal aspect of the Supreme. As is generally the case, they, or their guides, have resorted to taking only that part of the Vedic knowledge that matches their preset conclusion of “no idol worship”. But the Upanishads (very much part of the Vedas) point to the Puranas and the Itihasas (histories like the Mahabharata and Ramayana) as the fifth Veda and therefore assert their authority. And the Puranas and Itihasas are full of detailed descriptions of the form and pastimes of the Lord.

In short, taking shelter of the Vedas cannot prove that the Lord’s form is un-knowable. It is not revealed in the Quran, but it is very much revealed in the Vedic literature.

(2)

They also told me that they know some “Arya Samaj” followers who claim that the Lord does not have a form, and that the Arya Samaj followers are the only true followers of the Vedic path! Quite an audacious statement. Anyways, as we have already noted, there are a lot of groups who come under the Vedic umbrella and who follow the Vedas to different extents. No one can deny that there are strong Vedic followers who accept the personal aspect of the Lord as the Supreme realization. Then, who is right? The Vedic literature talks about both the impersonal as well as the personal aspects of the Supreme and also states that the personal aspect is the highest realization of the Supreme. We will not go into that discussion in this article. For details, one can refer Srila Prabhupada’s books.

(3)

When I had responses for first two arguments, they now started using logic. “If the Lord is supremely powerful, why does He have to descend to this world? Cant He delegate someone else to execute His will?” The undertone of the question was, I thought, that the Lord cannot descend in this world in a human-like form. By saying that He comes in a human-like form, are we not limiting Him? How can the unlimited have a limited form? Well, this is the classic question by those who do not understand the inconceivable potencies of the Lord.

The Lord descends to this world, not as if forced, but of His own sweet will. He comes for the pleasure of His devotees and also to annihilate the miscreants. Sometimes He sends His representatives, and some times He Himself comes.

How the unlimited Lord can have a “seemingly” limited form can be understood when we understand how the Lord is unlimited in the first place. Why not try to understand this first and then argue that He can not have a form, or that even if He has, He cannot come down in a human-like form? Srila Prabhupada emphasizes in a lot of places that most people know that “God is Great” but very few know “how great?”. In other places Srila Prabhupada says that it is important to have a very solid conception of God to be able to love Him and serve Him. For example, the conception of God as great, not like this, not like that, unlimited, all-merciful, etc. is not as solid as the conception of God having a beautiful all-spiritual form holding a flute, crowned by a peacock feather, amidst His devotees on the banks of the Yamuna. But even the conception of the unlimited-ness and all-pervasive-ness of the Lord needs to be more refined to really understand the personal form of the Lord.

(Krishna expanded Himself into hundreds of Vishnu Forms when Lord Brahma stole His cowherd friends)

Srila Prabhupada explains in so many places with the analogy of the Sun and the sunlight how the Lord can be in one place and can still have His influence all over. In “Teachings of Pralhad Maharaja”, Srila Prabhupada explains that the Lord is all-pervasive and all-knowing due to His expansions and consciousness. A plenary (full in all respects) expansion of the Lord is residing inside each and every atom of the material creation. If this is so, is it any surprise at all that the Lord is all-pervasive and all-knowing? And clearly, taking a form smaller than an atom is not impossible for the Lord. In fact, that is one of inconceivable potencies. Thus, the Lord can be simultaneously present everywhere. So, what’s the big deal if He comes to the earth for enjoying pastimes with His devotees? In the same book, Srila Prabhupada also explains that just like the consciousness of the soul is pervading the whole body, similarly the consciousness of God is pervading all that exists. So, we have the example of our own body to understand how a localized soul can be conscious of a wider field of activities. If it is possible for the minute soul, then why not for the Supersoul – God?

Thus, the Lord can have a form and at the same time be unlimited by His expansions and consciousness. His coming to His material creation in a human-like form (or in any other form) is not really so difficult to understand.

(4)

Now coming to the word-jugglery. This is a trick that Mayavadis use a lot. But word jugglery does not alter the truth. Those two gentlemen showed me a couple of their tricks last Saturday. I told them in the answer to how God can come in a human like form that God can do anything He likes. By saying that He cannot do something means we are limiting Him. In response, they asked, “Can God lie? Can God do injustice?”. And they were taken aback when I said “Yes, He can lie!” They were shocked. They have no such information! H. G. Jai Narsimha Prabhu jumped in the conversation and said “Yes, God can lie and still do justice!” All this was quite visibly beyond their realms of understanding. They would have never dreamt that someone may say that the Lord can lie. Well, we know that the Lord can not only lie, but He can steal, He can run away from a battlefield, and He can perform so many other transcendental activities. And yet, His activities are always perfect, though sometimes quite inconceivable.

When this piece of word-jugglery backfired on them, they went on to another one. What I gleaned out of these attempts was that they first wanted to establish that though the Lord can do anything, there are still some activities that He cannot. And once that is established, they would have come to the point that coming to the earth in a human-like form was also one such activity. For them, God lying is a contradiction, and similarly the unlimited Lord coming in a human-like form is also a contradiction. And contradictions don’t exist. In this way, I thought, they wanted to lead me to the conclusion of “no idol worship”, or that we cannot know the form of the Lord and therefore we must not worship a form as God. Anyway, that God can lie was certainly a big blow to their logic sequence. Agreed that contradictions don’t exist, but just because someone thinks something is a contradiction doesn’t necessarily mean that it is indeed a contradiction. It can also mean the lack of correct understanding. We have already described how the unlimited Lord coming in a human like form is not a contradiction.

Their next trick question was “Can God die?” And pat came the reply from me “Yes!” And then they were even more shocked. Ofcourse, I added “His birth and activities are all transcendental”. But they were still a bit bewildered. Actually there is no meaning to the question “Can God die?” One can’t really expect a simple answer to such a question. But Krishna inspired me from within to say “Even we cannot die, then where is the question of God dying!”.

On this answer, they were still a bit flummoxed. They then went on to the question “Do you believe in heaven and hell?” I said “Yes”. The discussion went on for some time and then they left. But I was left with a deep stream of thoughts after this discussion. So far I had had to contend with Mayavadis, but this time I was contending with the Islamic conception of God, which according to the Vedic wisdom is not quite complete.

A little bit more about trick questions. “Can God die?” Ofcourse He can’t. But is that a limitation of God? Ofcourse not! That is part of the definition of God. But since God cannot die, does it mean that He cannot descend into His creation? If yes, then that is surely a limitation of God. But the Lord does not have any limitations. Thus, the word jugglery might sometimes be very catchy, but its nothing more than what it is – word jugglery. Another trick question is “Can God create something that He cannot lift?” Well, again, since the Lord has created something, He is in total control of His creation in all respects at all times. How does His not being not-in-control of His creation be a sign of His limitation? That is, how is His Supreme control over His creation a sign of limitation? No person with a little common-sense will fall for these childish tricks.

Ofcourse, Prabhupada, the genius that he is, replies even to trick questions like “Can God create something that He cannot lift?” affirmatively. And then he explains how the Lord in His childhood pastimes struggles to life the footware of His father Nanda, but then effortlessly lifts the Govardhan! I guess that’s why I replied to both questions “Can God lie?” and “Can God die?” affirmatively, just like Srila Prabhupada. Because our understanding is that God can do anything. Period. Word jugglery does not take away anything from the unlimited and inconceivable potency of the Supreme Personality of Godhead – Krishna.

Yours in the service of Krishna,
Abhijit.

Inconceivable, but not Incoherent

The inadequacy of Mayavada
The completeness of Achintya-Bhed-Abheda

(Srila Prabhupada makes a point!)

Hare Krishna!

My analytical mind engages me in philosophical wrangling time and again. Unanswered, or unsatisfactorily answered, philosophical questions constantly nag me, and my mind becomes hyperactive in search of answers. As is quite unsurprising, I had the most difficult time with the questions regarding Mayavada – the last snare of Maya. Lord Chaitanya has warned us against listening to Mayavada philosophy. It is poison. It is spiritual suicide.

My difficulties were not that the Mayavada philosophy might be true, because it seems quite obvious to me that it is false. Saying that everyone or everything is God is another way of saying that there is no God. Further, clearly everything is not “One” since my thoughts and my neighbour’s thoughts are different. If both us were same, then everything about us would be the same, including thoughts, actions, likes, dislikes, and so on… Therefore, it was quite clear to me that a philosophy suggesting such a “One”ness is quite inadequate to explain things that happen all around me and no sane man will think twice about it.

But my difficulties arose when I found that somehow this seemingly inadequate philosophy is all over the place! It is almost ingrained in the society and in the scholarly and so-called spiritual literature. I was quite disturbed. How can such a philosophy gain acceptance? And if it has, what is the underlying philosophy? Is it a coherent philosophy? How does it explain everything using the clearly inadequate concept of the absolute undifferentiated un-variegated “One”ness?

Though the philosophical wrangling still goes on in my mind about Mayavada, the mental agitation has more or less vanished. That was because of the mercy of H. G. RadheShyam Prabhu (Temple President, ISKCON Pune). In a brief standing meeting he told me the reason for the mental agitation. “Because we are not immersed in Shaastra”, he told me. “Have you read all Srila Prabhupada Books with purports? Once you do that, all your questions will be answered.” From that day, I have never felt agitated because of philosophical doubts. H. G. RadheShyam Prabhu has filled me with the confidence that Srila Prabhupada’s books have the answers to all questions.

That taken care of, over a period of time I have understood that the Mayavada philosophy is indeed quite incoherent and full of internal inconsistencies. Its essential concept of the absolute, indivisible, and completely pure supreme “One”ness is violated time and again as it tries to explain the obvious variety in the creation. Either the indivisibility is violated, or the complete purity and supremacy is violated. And when the philosophy is confronted with questions whose answers violate the essential concept of the absolute, indivisible, and completely pure supreme “One”ness, it takes shelter of its classic “brahma satya, jagat mithya (only Brahman is Truth, this world is false) cover up. But how did the part of the absolute, indivisible, and completely pure supreme Brahman become covered up by ignorance? How can the indivisible be divided into parts? And how can the completely pure supreme become covered up by ignorance? The answer – “Oh.. brahma satya, jagat mithya… its false, don’t worry about it…” So, what is false? Either the concept of the absolute, indivisible, and completely pure supreme “One”ness is false, or the explanation that they give about “”part” of Brahman gets covered by “ignorance”” is false. This is a classic inconsistency in the Mayavada philosophy for which the only answer we can expect from it is “brahma satya, jagat mithya”. Sounds philosophical, but its not philosophy. Its word jugglery.

(Lord Chaitanya transforms the Mayavadis of Varanasi into Vaishnavas!)

On the other hand, Lord Chaitanya's philosophy of “achintya bhed-abheda” suffers from no inconsistencies. The philosophy is that of “simultaneous, inconceivable oneness and difference” between the Lord and His energies. The absolute, indivisible, and completely pure supreme “One” is the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Krishna. Everything animate and inanimate emanates from Him and therefore it’s His energy. In this sense, everything is God. Everything is One. But, that’s not all. The energies of the Lord are simultaneously also ‘not the Lord’. This is not a contradiction. Srila Prabhupada gives so many analogies. The classic ones are a) that the sun and the sunlight are simultaneously one and different, and b) that the cow and her milk is simultaneously one and different. The cow’s milk is a separated energy of the cow. The simultaneous oneness and difference is even more evident when we consider that the qualities of the part-and-parcel living entities are same as that of the Lord. Those qualities are the sat-chit-anand qualities. And most strikingly, the living entities have their own minute free will as well! The Lord has supremely free will, and the living entities have minute free will. So this is sameness. But each living entity can use the free will freely independent of another living entity’s free will. This is a clear example of difference. Simultaneous sameness and difference. Not very difficult to understand actually, once Srila Prabhupada explains it in an easily understandable way. So, how did the “parts” of the Supreme Lord come about if He is indivisible? Well, they didn’t come about at a particular point in time. They were always separated energies of the Lord. Only that the nature of this energy is spiritual and not material as in the example of the cow’s milk. The Lord has two kinds of separated energies, spiritual and material. The living entities are part of His spiritual energies. Therefore, just like the Lord, being spiritual living entities, they are also indivisible! But the living entities are eternally separated energies, they did not break away from the Supreme Lord at some point in time. Similarly, the material energy is also His separated energy, eternally separated from Him, though He is the source of both the spiritual and the material energies. Lord Krishna clearly mentions this in the Bhagavad Gita that though He is the source of all that be, He is still aloof. The living entity, since it has its own minute free will, can choose to enjoy independently of Krishna, and therefore can come under the influence of illusion, thinking itself to be the master. However, the Lord Himself can never come under the influence of illusion since He is source and controller of the illusory energy as well. Thus, though the Lord and the living entities are same in so many ways (free will, indivisible, etc.), there is still so much difference (energetic vs. energy, controller vs. controlled, source vs. emanations from the source). Simultaneous inconceivable sameness and difference!

Phew! These are the inconceivable potencies of the Supreme Lord Krishna. But, note that the explanation is not incoherent. Thus, any philosopher can clearly see that the Mayavada philosophy is full of internal inconsistencies while the “achintya bhed-abheda” philosophy quite easily handles all possible questions about the soul, God, and the relationship between the two. It also easily explains the variety we see all around and it also appreciates the common underlying principle of all existence, Krishna – the Supreme Personality of Godhead. The “achintya bhed-abheda” can also easily reconcile apparently contradictory scriptural statements, some of which advocate “One”ness and some of which advocate “difference”.

Though initial faith is required for following any of the paths, which intelligent person will follow a philosophy which is obviously incoherent? Then why is Mayavada so popular? Srila Prabhupada explains that the main reason is envy for the Lord. That’s the main reason the living entity was covered by the illusion of thinking itself as the master, and since it wants to hold on to that conception, after all attempts of trying to lord over material nature fail, the living entity takes to this Mayavada philosophy which Srila Prabhupada calls the last snare of Maya.

As far as intelligent people are concerned, and especially devotees, one must develop the firm conviction that Lord Chaitanya and Srila Prabhupada are the only shelter. Its only because of their mercy that we could quite easily see through the façade of the Mayavada philosophy of blatant atheism. Without their mercy, there would have been no hope for us to stand against the so-called scholars who propagate atheism in the name of philosophy. Such miscreants have played a havoc in the society and Srila Prabhupada’s movement is the only shelter for the misguided souls of this age.

Yours in the service of Krishna,
Abhijit.