NOTE TO READERS;  THE FOLLOWING 'FAITH' ARTICLE MAY BE FOUND ON A NEW WEBSITE WITH WRITINGS FROM SEVERAL DIFFERENT PEOPLE;  www.standing108.wordpress.com

COME ALL YE FAITHFUL     by Nalini

First let me offer my respects to my Guru, Srila Prabhupada, and to the readers.

Faith is a phenomenon transcendental to material influences. It is a condition of the heart, inspired by Lord Vishnu, Who resides within.  Though just as apparently intangible as love and devotion, it is directly felt by us, and is reciprocated with by the Lord and by those in His direct service.

In this regard, there are two quotes from Srila Prabhupada I would like to mention; “It is only by faith that one can advance in Krishna Consciousness,” (Bg. 9.3 purport) and “Faith means unflinching trust in something sublime.” (Bg. 2.41 purport)

Simple thoughts on the first quote are that true belief is in the heart, and results from past lifetimes of devotional practice; and that pleasing God is not as much a matter of function (although that counts) as of attitude. Krishna is called Bhava-grahi, He who accepts the attitude of the devotee, or the love and devotion with which anything is offered.  He is not in need of the offering itself.  Sometimes He tests His devotees through difficult circumstances, as He enjoys seeing and glorifying their faith and perseverance on the spiritual path.

In the past, it has bothered me when we publicize how many books we have sold, or temples we have built, or money we’ve collected, or rounds we have chanted. It would be better if we didn’t publicize such accomplishments, but rather felt our inadequacy and lack of devotion, as we try to remain sheltered at the feet of our divine Guru.  We are little if anything.  We can be proud only if we have faith in His Divine Grace, and even that piety comes by his mercy.

Thoughts on the second quote are that “faith in something sublime” cannot refer to anything material, as the first instruction of Bhagavad-gita is that we have nothing to do with the body or its byproducts.  It is clearly stated therein that it is not possible for Lord Krishna to have placed any real truth on the bodily platform, after His condemning the bodily concept of life (Bg. 2.12 purport).

What, then, to speak of the guru in material terms, as in a “bodily present guru,” or other such concoctions?  The demand that the Lord appear before one, or prove Himself to humanity, or that the guru as God’s representative be physically in contact with us, is nowhere to be found in Srila Prabhupada’s speeches or writings, because the principle itself is faithless and atheistic.

Self-realization and God-realization are enacted on the transcendental platform.  They begin with the hearing process, with hearing the divine sound. The FIRST GURU in our parampara, Lord Brahma, heard the divine sound of Lord Krishna’s flute, as was thus initiated into transcendental knowledge (Brahma-samhita, 5.27).

Fortunate we are that we did get physical association with His Divine Grace, but the faith he blesses us with requires no physical connection.  The thoughts, words and sounds of His Divine Grace are absolute, as are our meditations on the Supreme Lord. The Lord and His devotees bless the individual soul when they are pleased with the inner heart’s attitude of service in bhakti-yoga.  Devotion begins with the transcendental quality of faith, and from that beginning to the advanced stages, such as revelations and realizations of self and Krishna’s Forms, the whole yoga is completely transcendental to material experience.

These are some simple statements meant only to emphasize the point:  we should believe in God and in His true devotees, and practice our relationship with them, as they are fully capable of understanding and reciprocating with our devotion, without consideration of one’s material circumstances.

NEXT ARTICLE;

The following is from the Srimad-Bhagavatam (Bhagavata Purana), Canto Five, Chapter 12, Text 14:

"In a previous birth I was known as Maharaja Bharata.  I attained perfection by becoming completely detached from material activities through direct experience, and through indirect experience I received understanding from the Vedas.  I was fully engaged in the service of the Lord, but due to my misfortune, I became very affectionate to a small deer, SO MUCH SO that I neglected my spiritual duties.  Due to my deep affection for the deer, in my next life I had to accept the body of a deer."

Purport by His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada:

"The incident herein described is very significant.  In a previous verse it is stated, "vina mahat-pada-rajo-'bhisekam: one cannot attain perfection without smearing the dust of the lotus feet of an exalted devotee on one's head. If one always follows the orders of the spiritual master, there is no question of falling down. AS SOON AS a foolish disciple tries to overtake his spiritual master and becomes ambitious to occupy his post, he immediately falls down.  Yasya prasadad bhagavat-prasado yasyaprasadan na gatih kuto'pi.  If the spiritual master is considered an ordinary man, the disciple surely loses his chance to advance further."

COMMENTS FROM NALINI;

Over the past years, people have became very eager to appoint themselves to the post of guru, ambassadors of God.

Material desire manifests in subtle ways as well---desire for profit, adoration and distinction, for example---and we should be very careful about replacing the real guru by our unqualified selves.  In our Krishna society in particular, when the guru, Srila Prabhupada orders, then you can take his post.  And if you are qualified through self-realized pure bhakti, Srila Prabhupada can personally instruct you in this way.  Otherwise, why make the guru an ordinary man like ourselves, that anyone can and should do it?  It is extremely rare, and our parampara does not accept cheating processes of religion.

It is not necessary for anyone to appoint themselves as guru, as God Himself has appeared here as Lord Rama, Lord Krishna, Lord Caitanya, Lord Buddha, etc.; He has sent many true saints and their instructions and examples are current; and He has left all examples and instructions for us to follow true spirituality.

Better to be a humble, surrendered soul with faith in God's presence at all times, and with faith in the ability of saints to deliver us from evil. Even great exalted souls like Maharaja Bharata have to be careful of the slightest deviation from real divine consciousness.