"Ten Offenses To be Avoided"
Feb 70 , Los Angeles the quality of the audio file is poor
The first offence is, blaspheming the Lord’s
devotee. Anyone, it does not matter that your spiritual master is devotee and nobody
is devotee, no. The devotee, the life of devotee is already explained. That
he is fixed up in God. He has no other business, than to think of God, talk of
God, preaching of God, he’s a devotee. It does not matter weather he is born
this country or that country or that province or this province or this planet
or that planet, Anyone, whose life is simply absorbed in Krsna consciousness and
thoughts of God, he’s a devotee. So, we should not blaspheme that .. our process
is better, your process is.. that is due to ignorance. And so this is offence.
Blaspheme the devotee. As in considering the Lord and the Demigods on
the same level. Or assuming that there are many Gods. God is One. It is nonsense
to think that there are many Gods. If there are many Gods then there is no
meaning of God ekam eva advitiyam. The Vedas say God is one, without any
second, without any competitor. If God has competitor then He’s not God. The
definition of God is that Supreme. If there are many, then how God can be
Supreme? God is great! God is great means nobody is greater than Him. Nobody is
equal to Him. Everybody is under Him. You may have very high qualifications but
you cannot be equal to God, God is One. Therefore the mayavadi’s philosophy that
you can accept, by imagination, any form of God and that is all right, no. You
should have the actually the form of God. Just like Krsna says, mam ekam.
Ekam means only one, unto Me. Of course there are many other forms of God, but in
order to concentrate your mind perfectly you should only think of Krsna. mam
ekam saranam vraja. So we do not accept this nonsense philosophy that, any
name you chant it becomes God, no. God’s name. Of course God’s name may be
sounding just like, you say water….I say jal. But it means, object is the same.
Similarly if you have got actually any name for God that’s all right, otherwise
take to Krsna. Krsna means all attractive and God’s name cannot be otherwise. If
God is not all attractive then He’s not God. If God is attractive for a certain
type of man or certain class of man and not attractive for others, then He's
not God. So, you see, Krsna´s activities, Krsna´s bodily features, Krsna’s
instructions, it is one, sublime. Sublime, therefore He's God. And it is not our
sentiment but it is confirmed by the Vedic literature. Bhagavata says,
Krsnas tu bhagavan svayam. Krsna is the Supreme Personality of Godhead.
Brahma samhita says, Isvara parama Krsna, there are many gods,
demigods, but God is One. Arjuna says Parah brahma, every living entity
is Brahma, but He’s Parah brahma, the Supreme Brahma. And
Krsna says in Bhagavad-gita, mattah parataram nasti kincid asti
dhananjaya. There´s nothing more superior than Me. So these are, we
have to take evidences from the sastras. Krsnas tu
Bhagavan svayam. So nobody should think that he may chant the name of this
demigod or that demigod, this is equal to chant, the name of Hari or Krsna, no
that is an offence. This is third offence. Then neglecting the orders of the spiritual
master. The beginning of initiation is to voluntarily accept the spiritual
master. To abide by his order. So, if you disobey his order, then it is offence.
This is fourth offence. Fifth offence interpreting the Holy Name of
God. Interpreting, because we have got very fertile brains we can interpret in
so many ways. Maya gives us such knowledge. This way, that way, that way.. no.
Don’t try to interpret. Therefore we are presenting Bhagavad-Gita as it
is. No interpretation, Krsna says that mam ekam saranan vraja. Krsna
says; Just surrender unto Me, and we are teaching just surrender to
Krsna. Is there any diference? No difference. Therefore in speaking we
are actually the representative of Krsna. Krsna says; surrender unto Me.
And we in the disciplic succession of this Krsna consciousness movement, we are
also speaking, just surrender to Krsna. We do not imitate, do not
interpret. That this Me means me. The mayavadi philosopher they say, every one
can say, Me means I, unto me, but is that grammatically correct?. If I say, that
please give me a glass of water. Now if everyone of you say that this Me means
me, so you take everyone a glass of water? Then this is nonsense interpretation.
But the mayavadi philosopher because they are atheists, because they do not
accept the existence of God, they interpret the sastras in different way
so that, but that cannot stand. That may be a very nice to some foolish men, but
actually, they mix some intelligent ..(inaudible), this sort of
interpretation is useless. Committing sin on the strength of chanting,
now this is your beginning of life. This chanting means whatever you have done
in your past life, sinful, that is now, squared up. But you should not any more,
commit sin. The four pillars of sinful life is this, or this. What is that?
that Illicit sex, that intoxication, meat eating, and what is that? Gambling. These
are the four pillars, just as your table stands on the four legs, or this house
stands on four legs. Four wheels, this car stands … simply the sinful life
personifies, stands, on these four pillars. If you break these four pillars then
it has no standing. Now, whatever has been done, is done, that is not a
disqualification. This Krsna consciousness movement does not say that
first of all, you, just like other sastra say, atonement, or you pay some fine for
your sinful life or.., no. Every conditioned soul is apt to commit some so many
sins knowingly or not, so whatever is done is done. Now from this day, no more
sinful life. Don’t think; Oh, I am chanting hare Krsna so this is a
counteracting mehod, so let me commit this sinful and it will become corrected
because I’m chanting. Don’t do that. We do not believe in that way. Not that
is... Just like, somebody says that you commit sin, but you confess and you're,
that’s all right. By confessing your sinful reaction is, eradicated. But
if you commit again oh, that is foolishness, so this example I have given you,
several times, just like if you committed something wrong, you go to the
court, give me that, if you say; My Lord I did not know, this I mean to say..
unlawful so next time I shall be careful, I shall
not do it. Then it is excused but if next time you go to the court and you´ll
say, please excuse, oh that is, that is no excuse, So this confession once is
right, twice is right, thrice is right. Fourth time, oh you are severely
punished. That is common sense, so you do not commit sin, because by mistake ,
you might commit some sin, that maybe excused but if you take it a business,
that because I’m chanting Hare Krsna Mantra therefore I can commit this
sin, there is no reaction, no. that is offence. It is great offence.
Then, seventh offence is instructing the
glories of the Lords Name to the unfaithful. This chanting of the Hare Krsna
mantra, we offer when one has become faithful, so many students come to
us but we see first of all that he is now faithful, in his study. Generally we
allow six months time to see how is faithfully executing. Then we offer these,
beads. Other wise if he’s faithless then after some time he’ll give it up. So,
for the spiritual master it is also offence if one is faithless, this
chanting on beads should not be given to him. This is offence. And then comparing the Holy Name with material
piety. Just like this function we are holding today it is not to be considered
as some pious activity, it is transcendental. Pious activity can give you some
reward in this material world. But this activity is beyond this material, it
give you place back to Home, back to Godhead. So don’t compare it with
ordinary pious activity. Just like somebody gives in charity, somebody makes
something, religious activities. It is beyond religion, beyond religion. This
Krsna consciousness movement is beyond all religion. It is the post graduate
study of all religions. So don’t compare with any pious activity. Then, inattention while chanting the Holy
Name. You should chant this Hare Krsna and you should hear also. If your
mind is acting, the mind is somewhere else, and you are chanting, that is
an offence. You should hear, this is called, Samadhi. If you chant and
hear then your mind is interlocked by hearing and chanting, this is
samadhi. Samadhi means trance, trance means completely absorbed.
So by hearing and chanting act in both ways you’ll be in trance, and that trance
will keep you in that transcendental stage, that is called samadhi. So if
we become inattentive, that is offence. And attachment to material things while
engaged in the practice of chanting. We should always remember that we are
trying to be elevated to the spiritual platform, so spiritual platform means no
more anxiety for sense gratification. That is spiritual platform. Material
platform means everyone is hankering after sense gratification, all the people
they’re working day hard, day and night very hard, the aim is sex, at night.
That’s all. Sense gratification. Karmis, they cannot work if they have no
facility for sex. So, but these devotees of Krsna, they’re aim is how
to satisfy Krsna. That is the difference. This is the difference between
spiritual life and material life. Material life means, everyone is trying to,
how to satisfy his sex. And spiritual life means he is also trying the same way
but his aim is how to satisfy Krsna. So, my occupation to satisfy
something, that will continue, you cannot stop it. But spiritual life means to
satisfy Krsna. And material life means satisfy my senses. That is the
difference. So in every action if you put this test, whether you are satisfying
your senses or you’re satisfying Krsna. You can test it, and as soon as
you see that, you are satisfying my whims and senses, then it is not
Krsna. So, in this way, put, make progress and if you fail sometimes
Krsna will excuse you but you must be very much strict regarding against
this fall down, then your elevation will be very quick and it will be very
sound, so follow this…..
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