Be What You Are
SB. 8.2.30
tato gajendrasya mano-balaujasāṁ
kālena dīrgheṇa mahān abhūd vyayaḥ
vikṛṣyamāṇasya jale ’vasīdato
viparyayo ’bhūt sakalaṁ jalaukasaḥ
TRANSLATION by HDG Srila Prabhupada:
Thereafter, because of being pulled into the water and fighting for many long years, the elephant became diminished in his mental, physical and sensual strength. The crocodile, on the contrary, being an animal of the water, increased in enthusiasm, physical strength and sensual power.
PURPORT by HDG Srila Prabhupada:
In the fighting between the elephant and the crocodile, the difference was that although the elephant was extremely powerful, he was in a foreign place, in the water. During one thousand years of fighting, he could not get any food, and under the circumstances his bodily strength diminished, and because his bodily strength diminished, his mind also became weak and his senses less powerful. The crocodile, however, being an animal of the water, had no difficulties. He was getting food and was therefore getting mental strength and sensual encouragement. Thus while the elephant became reduced in strength, the crocodile became more and more powerful. Now, from this we may take the lesson that in our fight with maya we should not be in a position in which our strength, enthusiasm and senses will be unable to fight vigorously. Our Krsna consciousness movement has actually declared war against the illusory energy, in which all the living entities are rotting in a false understanding of civilization. The soldiers in this Krsna consciousness movement must always possess physical strength, enthusiasm and sensual power. To keep themselves fit, they must therefore place themselves in a normal condition of life. What constitutes a normal condition will not be the same for everyone, and therefore there are divisions of varnasrama - brahmana, ksatriya, vaisya, sudra, brahmacarya, grhastha, vānaprastha and sannyasa. Especially in this age Kali-yuga it is advised that no one take sannyasa.
asvamedham gavālambhaṁ
sannyasam pala-paitrkam
devarena sutotpattiṁ
kalau panca vivarjayet
sannyasam pala-paitrkam
devarena sutotpattiṁ
kalau panca vivarjayet
(Brahma-vaivarta Purana)
From this we can understand that in this age the sannyasa-asrama is forbidden because people are not strong. Śrī Caitanya Mahaprabhu showed us an example in taking sannyasa at the age of twenty-four years, but even Sarvabhauma Bhattacarya advised Śrī Caitanya Mahaprabhu to be extremely careful because He had taken sannyasa at an early age. For preaching we give young boys sannyasa,, but actually it is being experienced that they are not fit for sannyasa. There is no harm, however, if one thinks that he is unfit for sannyasa; if he is very much agitated sexually, he should go to the asrama where sex is allowed, namely the grhastha-asrama. That one has been found to be very weak in one place does not mean that he should stop fighting the crocodile of maya. One should take shelter of the lotus feet of Krsna, as we shall see Gajendra do, and at the same time one can be a grhastha if he is satisfied with sexual indulgence. There is no need to give up the fight. Śrī Caitanya Mahaprabhu therefore recommended, sthane sthitah sruti-gatam tanu-van-manobhih. One may stay in whichever asrama is suitable for him; it is not essential that one take sannyasa. If one is sexually agitated, he can enter the grhastha-asrama. But one must continue fighting. For one who is not in a transcendental position, to take sannyasa artificially is not a very great credit. If sannyasa is not suitable, one may enter the grhastha-asrama and fight maya with great strength. But one should not give up the fighting and go away.
End of Srila Prabhupada's purport.
Those who visit and revisit this web page may soon find out that in various forms I often return to a theme dominating my life, a theme I found absolutely essential for upkeep of one's own sanity.
All lunatics of this world have one thing in common: they believe to be somebody they are not. Strictly from spiritual point of view, from Krsna's point of view, we are all lunatics while identifying ourselves in different forms with false designations.These designations are all part of one big misunderstanding - our firm believe that we are this body.
The fact that we are not this body can be found repeatedly described in great detail in the pages of Srila Prabhupada's books, and can be heard directly from Him in so many lectures.
There are those rare souls who instinctively seek a way out of the maze of illusory designations, looking for their real identity.
Amongst thousands of those some may even come to understand that we are not this body, however they may be allured to identify themselves with something they are not again. Maya is a pure devotee of the Lord, she can join even Srila Prabhupada's movement just to test our sincerity, and take out those who want to have an „innovated“ version of what was given by the Founder Acharya. Such shadow like movements and relligions are plenty in Kali Yuga and they come and go, demolished by time.
How come that after years of spiritual practice still we see some „senior vaisnavas“ being dominated by mentality they seek to renounce?
The reason is always the same: they are not properly situated.
So many rounds of japa being chanted, so many lectures heard, Srila Prabhupada's books being read several times...and still even an old man can become a full time fool. How come?
Once again, it is easy to come to theoretical understanding, jnana, repeating like a parrot, but the ultimate test comes when temptation arrises. Then vijnana, realized knowledge will be revealed...or not revealed.
This life is very short to cultivate Krsna consciousness properly, but it is long enough to fall in maya or illusion at any point.
And so being rightly situated is an immediate and absolute need.
How many leaders, friends and those I admired I have lost! They were all very special souls, being dedicated to Srila Prabhupada, but after His departure they came to understand they were something they were not. Sometimes in name of duty, sometimes in name of „mercy“ they learned to accept the unacceptable, and their lives became polluted by dint of cheap flattery of their followers, some fame arriving at their doors, or simply by reawakening of their dormant unpurified material desires.
I knew those who cried for help, perfectly understading that they are in a situation where in name of institution they came to doubt, had to cheat the public day by day while being somebody they were not. But under social pressure they were forced to continue to watch their lives to become a farce, a daily theatrical perfomance, playing a role they came to despise so much.
Finally Krsna Himself had to take action to remove them from this cinematic display of falsity, and the real nature of their conditioning became evident.
They were heroes loosing a battle they joined, initially opposing the enemy they finally came to embrase. How could this happen? Once again, without exception, they were wrongly situated. What is food for one may be a poison for another. And so even they headed for the skies, the higher they were placed, the harder they had to fall.
Srila Prabhupada, writing His purports to the Eight Canto of Srimad Bhagavatam with His movement flourishing already for some years, saw the troubles His disciples were facing. Naturally His commentaries reflect the situation at hand.
The readers of this text are strongly advised to read Srila Prabhupada's purport to the text 30 in Second Chapter of Eight Canto of Srimad Bhagavatam, a text which became deeply engraved in my heart .To minor degree I also faced situations where I was offered posts and designations within Srila Prabhupada's movement, which might have proven to be simply disastrous for myself. Some of my godbrothers took those offers and somehow survived (even most of them don't look truly happy :-), some in front of my eyes got destorted to such a degree that association with them became almost impossible.
And so again I tried to keep my head down and stay within varna and consequent asrama boundaries pertaining to the nature of my body. By Srila Prabhupada's inconceivable mercy I can still write this text today, and I can look back seeing the mistakes I have done, and say, „well at least I didn't made this one and didn't became somebody I am not“.
To be false consumes immense amount of energy. First one has to concoct one's identity, and then protect it from those who may possibly expose oneself as a cheater. Consequently one surrounds oneself only with those who one can dominate, meaning those who are less intelligent. But fools act foolishly, lacking any discrimination, and so one becomes attacked by the foolishness of one's own followers while fearing the constructive criticism of those of higher intelligence. And so the pain visible in faces of some celebrated chanters of the Holy Name indicates only one thing: despite all the chanting, they are still not properly situated.
Tormented by their own chanting they defy the effects of vibrating the Holy Name, which brings us to the point of heighten introspection. Such fools who try to stay dry while pouring water over them are only to be pitied.
Even worse, such tormented preachers of misery urge their followers to follow the same painful path, reconfirming their falsity by teaching others to be false as well. The result is collective misery, so obvious to the public eye. Who wants to join a movement of self tormented individuals who may speak highly but live miserably in their own world of self designated illusions?
Therefore Srila Prabhupada issues firm warning in the sloka mentioned above. By the time writing this particular purport, He already saw some of His newly initiated sannyasis falling down, confused devotees leaving, and even some of His leaders being compromised by maya.
Although desiring to display all the varnas of the Vedic society, He had to face His defeat by seeing His sannyas disciples falling down, followed occasionally by a crew of divorcing grhastas.
And so He urged us repeatedly not to aim for what we are not fit for, but work towards the goal more gradually and progressively.
In absence of true brahminical leadership only lunacy prevails, and so it is an urgent need to be solidly situated, regardless of one's economical and social situation. As we saw demonstrated many times, a simple devotee, earnestly surviving and working for his livelihood in best manner possible, has more long term chance for spiritual survival than corrupted leader consuming whatever was given to him in good faith by innocent followers.
Those who seek dignity, and freedom from hypocrisy may not be many, but they are the true recipients of Lord's mercy and the blessings of the guru parampara. Srila Prabhupada's movement may be in its essence small, but Srila Prabhupada stressed its quality, not quantity. Quality starts by being rightly situated, as much the correctness of a mathematical calculation starts by understanding that one plus one equals two. When mistakes are made in primary mathematics, whatever one may add or calculate additionally, is naturally wrong.
And so to be rightly situated, both in spiritual and material terms is the art to be equipped to oppose maya's trickery. Those who are sincere at heart will understand this type of logic. Those who incline to lie and cheat the public will become fearful and aggitated when hearing such words. But those dedicated to Truth will never be discouraged to follow the righteous path, even those in garbs of vaisnavas may threaten them by misplaced sastric quotes, calling them offenders.
Many come and many may leave, but those who are truly sincere will stay.
