ISKCON’s Mission
Srila Prabhupada’s sole mission in life was, as was his spiritual master’s and his spiritual master’s before him, the mission of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu, to help the fallen conditioned souls who are rotting within this material world by teaching them the process of Krsna consciousness, devotional service to the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Lord Sri Krsna. Not only teaching, but benedicting and practically forcing them in one way or other to get some transcendental benefit. Something to change the terrible downward course of their sinful, Kali-yuga existences.
Srila Prabhupada wrote before coming to America:
The mahatmas are always ready to render such service to the Lord with great determination. In this regard His Divine Grace Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura once made this comment in a lecture:
“The neophyte Vaishnava devotees’ ringing the bell even once during worship of the Deity of the Supreme Lord is a million times more valuable, spiritually and otherwise, than the charitable fruitive workers building many hospitals, feeding thousands of the poor, or building homes, or even the empirical philosophers’ Vedic studies, meditation, austerities, and penances.” (Renunciation Through Wisdom)
And in a famous lecture in Los Angeles he spoke:
These are the Bhagavata. There is no comparison. There is no literature throughout the universe like Srimad-Bhagavatam. There is no comparison. There is no competition. Every word is for the good of the human society. Every word, each and every word. Therefore we stress so much in the book distribution. Somehow or other, if the book goes in one hand, he will be benefited. At least he will see, “Oh, they have taken so much price. Let me see what is there.” If he reads one sloka, his life will be successful. If one sloka, one word. This is such nice things. (Lecture – Los Angeles, January 1974)
So to truly appreciate Srila Prabhupada, one has to understand how there is such benefit for the fallen souls even in the slightest advancement in Krsna consciousness. Remember, never before had any Vaishnava tried to bring Krsna bhakti to so many mlecchas and yavanas. Certainly Srila Prabhupada knew that ISKCON had many faults when he was present and would have many faults in the future. But as Srila Bhaktivinode Thakur had said:
“Very soon the unparalleled path of hari-nama-sankirtana will be propagated all over the world. Already we are seeing the symptoms. Already many Christians have tasted the nectar of divine love of the holy name and are dancing with karatalas [hand cymbals] and mrdungas [drums]. By the super-excellence of Lord Krsna’s holy name and the grace of pure devotees, our consciousness gets purified. When I see these signs, my hopes of seeing Lord Caitanya’s aforesaid prophecy being fulfilled are quickened, and that time has arrived. Although there is still no pure society of Vaishnavas to be had, yet Lord Caitanya’s prophetic words will in a few days come true, I am sure. Why not? Nothing is absolutely pure in the beginning. From imperfection, purity will come about.”
Was Srila Prabhupada Superhuman?
So if we accept that Lord Caitanya’s sankirtana movement is the prime benediction for humanity at large and that Srila Prabhupada was totally dedicated to spreading Krishna consciousness for the benefit of the fallen conditioned souls that still doesn’t mean that he was infallible or superhuman. Couldn’t he still make a mistake or an error of judgment? First let us look in the dictionary:
“superhuman: 1. having a nature above that of man; divine 2. greater than that of a normal human being”
Then I looked up “superhuman” on the Bhaktivedanta Vedabase. The majority of uses of the word referred to Krishna and His divine activities as superhuman. There were also quite a few uses referring to the Vedas as superhuman because of their coming from Krishna, not from any mundane source. The demigods were also referred to as superhuman quite a few times.
In the Sixth Canto of the Srimad Bhagavatam it is said:
The omnipotent Yamaraja is as good as Lord Brahma, for while situated in his own abode or in everyone’s heart like the Paramatma, he mentally observes the past activities of a living entity and thus understands how the living entity will act in future lives.
PURPORT
One should not consider Yamaraja an ordinary living being. He is as good as Lord Brahma. He has the complete cooperation of the Supreme Lord, who is situated in everyone’s heart, and therefore, by the grace of the Supersoul, he can see the past, present and future of a living being from within. The word anumimamsate means that he can decide in consultation with the Supersoul. Anu means “following.” The actual decisions concerning the next lives of the living entities are made by the Supersoul, and they are carried out by Yamaraja. (SB 6.1.48)
And in the Third Canto of the Srimad Bhagavatam it is said:
The fortunate demigods said: O great one, just see this darkness, which you know very well and which is causing us anxieties. Because the influence of time cannot touch you, there is nothing unmanifest before you.
PURPORT
Brahma is addressed herein as Vibhu and as the Personality of Godhead. He is the Supreme Personality of Godhead’s incarnation of the mode of passion in the material world. He is nondifferent, in the representative sense, from the Supreme Personality of Godhead, and therefore the influence of time cannot affect him. The influence of time, which manifests as past, present and future, cannot touch higher personalities like Brahma and other demigods. Sometimes demigods and great sages who have attained such perfection are called tri-kala jna. (SB 3.15.3)
So the demigods are jiva souls. They are not the omniscient, infallible Supreme Personality of Godhead, but just see how powerful they are by the grace of Krishna. We cannot even imagine how their potency is working. Would we say that Yamaraja has made an error in judgment? That would be frightening if he mistakenly sent someone to hell. Or that Lord Brahma made a mistake and the planetary systems stopped working properly? So similarly, by the grace of Krishna, the spiritual master can also be so powerful. So to say that Srila Prabhupada is not the omniscient Supreme Personality of Godhead but to say that he did not make any mistakes or errors in his particular sphere of activities is not necessarily mutually exclusive. When I was in Vrindavan in 1972, I remember very clearly Srila Prabhupada saying during a lecture “just now I forget.” He was referring to a particular verse he couldn’t remember at that time. I looked on the Vedabase and Srila Prabhupada had said that five times during different lectures over the years. So does Prabhupada’s forgetting a verse automatically mean that he was imperfect and prone to make errors of judgment just like an ordinary conditioned soul? No. It means he is not the Supreme Personality of Godhead. That’s all. And if Srila Prabhupada’s perfection is only limited to his presenting the philosophy (“That freedom from error is in relation to the philosophy, as the liberated soul never changes it and thus presents it as it is – perfectly- and without error.”) then how are we to understand these philosophical statements?
In the Srimad Bhagavatam [SB 11.17.27] it is said:
“One should understand the spiritual master to be as good as I am,” said the Blessed Lord. “Nobody should be jealous of the spiritual master or think of him as an ordinary man, because the spiritual master is the sum total of all the demigods.”
“It is the injunction of the Vedas that the Spiritual Master should not be treated as ordinary man even if sometimes the Spiritual Master behaves like ordinary man. It is the duty of the disciple to accept Him as a Superhuman Man…. Kindly therefore take courage. You are capable in so many ways. Let things be rightly done so that our mission may be correctly pushed forward to come out victorious.” (Letter to Brahmananda das – July 1970)
When I first joined the movement in November of 1970 I had only been there a week or two when we received a letter from Srila Prabhupada. I didn’t know much about the philosophy at that time but something he said has always stuck in my mind. The temple president had written Srila Prabhupada and asked him some questions about Tulasi devi.
Prabhupada responded:
“I am very much happy that you have added worship of Srimati Tulasi devi to your Temple activities. That is most auspicious. However, you should not try to speculate on the “level of consciousness” of the pure devotee of the Lord. In the material condition of life the consciousness of the living entity is covered over in varying degrees by the material energy in the form of sensuous body and subtle mind. But the consciousness of the pure devotee is not limited by the influence of maya and so it is never to be speculated in that way.”
So it would seem from the above quotes that to call Srila Prabhupada superhuman would not only be appropriate but that it is our duty. The following excerpts from two different conversations confirm this point:
On a Morning walk in Los Angeles, June 1976:
Bharadvaja: I understand, Srila Prabhupada, that the pure devotee can be as pervasive as Supersoul?
Prabhupada: Hmm?
Bharadvaja: By the mercy of Supersoul, he can be present in many places at once?
Prabhupada: Yes. By the grace of Krsna, a devotee can become anything.
Duryodhana-guru: So in other words that means the pure devotees can be omniscient?
Prabhupada: Everything. God is omniscient, so a pure devotee can become omniscient by the grace of God.
And in Srila Prabhupada’s room he was being interviewed by a reporter in New York, July 1976:
Interviewer: Are you the one who chooses who runs each center, who is responsible in each temple.
Prabhupada: Yes. Our program is to open centers in every village, every town, to propagate Krsna consciousness.
Interviewer: And you choose the leaders, or Krsna does and tells you? How does that work in terms of specific, say, choosing, specific things, specific details? You chose, for example, these fellows here to run the publishing house and be responsible for the east coast.
Prabhupada: Yes, like that. He’s in charge of publication, he’s in charge something else, he’s charge, like that.
Interviewer: On what basis, though, can you tell me some of the things that…
Prabhupada: Basis, just to see whether he’s qualified, that’s all. Just like ordinarily one manager is appointed by the superior authority on the merit, on his qualification. That’s all.
Interviewer: Okay, is it a mediated choice or is it a direct communication from Krsna? That’s my question.
Ramesvara: He’s asking whether we claim that God speaks to us directly.
Prabhupada: Yes, God speaks to you when you are qualified. You cannot expect God as order supplier. When he sees that you are qualified, he will speak to you.
Ramesvara: It’s difficult for people to understand that God can speak to a man. They question, “How can God speak to some man?”
Prabhupada: God is situated in everyone’s heart. As soon as He sees that “Here is a qualified person,” then He gives him instruction.
Interviewer: But in the same way that Krsna says He’ll provide for your needs you still must work to achieve whatever Krsna is giving you.
Prabhupada: Yes. You work for Krsna. You have to work to get your necessities.
Interviewer: In the same way I’m curious with respect to the way Krsna communicates with you, whether it’s in a similar kind of way that He gives you your necessities.
Bali-mardana: In other words, when you decide that someone is to be in charge of a particular temple does Krsna tell you that this person should be in charge.
Interviewer: Or do you, by judging him, say this person is qualified.
Prabhupada: Yes, because a devotee always consults Krsna and He gives order.
Interviewer: It’s a more direct communication.
Prabhupada: Yes. And He gives order.
Ramesvara: Because intelligence, our philosophy is that intelligence comes from Krsna. So if I have some…
Interviewer: And your philosophy is that your daily necessities come from Krsna as well.
Ramesvara: Yes, try to understand. Suppose my intelligence sees that this person is qualified, that means Krsna has told me.
Prabhupada: No, not necessarily, Krsna will tell directly. A devotee always consults Krsna and Krsna tells him, “Do like this.” Not figuratively.
Interviewer: Does that apply then to other kinds of decisions and other kinds of activities as well?
Prabhupada: Everything. Because a devotee does not do anything without consulting Krsna.
If One Considers the Spiritual Master An Ordinary Human Being, One Is Doomed
In the Srimad Bhagavatam, Ninth Canto it is said:
The pure devotee is always within the core of My heart, and I am always in the heart of the pure devotee. My devotees do not know anything else but Me, and I do not know anyone else but them.
PURPORT
Since Durvsa Muni wanted to chastise Maharaja Ambarisa, it is to be understood that he wanted to give pain to the heart of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, for the Lord says, sadhavo hrdayam mahyam: “The pure devotee is always within the core of My heart.” The Lord’s feelings are like those of a father, who feels pain when his child is in pain. Therefore, offenses at the lotus feet of a devotee are serious. Caitanya Mahaprabhu has very strongly recommended that one not commit any offense at the lotus feet of a devotee. Such offenses are compared to a mad elephant because when a mad elephant enters a garden it causes devastation. Therefore one should be extremely careful not to commit offenses at the lotus feet of a pure devotee. Actually Maharaja Ambarisa was not at all at fault; Durvasa Muni unnecessarily wanted to chastise him on flimsy grounds. Maharaja Ambarisa wanted to complete the Ekadasi-parana as part of devotional service to please the Supreme Personality of Godhead, and therefore he drank a little water. But although Durvasa Muni was a great mystic brahmana, he did not know what is what. That is the difference between a pure devotee and a so-called learned scholar of Vedic knowledge. The devotees, being always situated in the core of the Lord’s heart, surely get all instructions directly from the Lord, as confirmed by the Lord Himself in Bhagavad-gita (10.11):
“Out of compassion for them, I, dwelling in their hearts, destroy with the shining lamp of knowledge the darkness born of ignorance.” The devotee does not do anything not sanctioned by the Supreme Personality of Godhead. As it is said, vaisnavera kriya mudra vijneha na bujhaya [Cc. Madhya 23.39]. Even the most learned or experienced person cannot understand the movements of a Vaisnava, a pure devotee. No one, therefore, should criticize a pure Vaisnava. A Vaisnava knows his own business; whatever he does is precisely right because he is always guided by the Supreme Personality of Godhead.
(SB 9.4.68)
And finally, in the Seventh Canto it is stated:
It is recommended that one honor the spiritual master as being on an equal status with the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Saksad dharitvena samasta-sastrair. This is enjoined in every scripture. Acaryah mam vijaniyat [SB 11.17.27]. One should consider the acarya to be as good as the Supreme Personality of Godhead. In spite of all these instructions, if one considers the spiritual master an ordinary human being, one is doomed. (SB 7.15.26)
All Glories to Srila Prabhupada
For one who explains this supreme secret to the devotees, pure devotional service is guaranteed, and at the end he will come back to Me. There is no servant in this world more dear to Me than he, nor will there ever be one more dear.
(Bg. 18.68,69)
THERE IS NO SERVANT IN THIS WORLD MORE TO ME THAN HE,
NOR WILL THERE EVER BE ONE MORE DEAR.
SRILA PRABHUPADA KI JAYA! SRILA PRABHUPADA KI JAYA! SRILA PRABHUPADA KI JAYA!
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