The following is a transcription of a discourse delivered by Śrīla Bhaktivedānta Nārāyaṇa Mahārāja in Hilo, Hawaii, on January 13, 2003 (Bhakta Bandhav Anthology Volume 91)

 

Śrīla Bhaktivedānta Nārāyaṇa Mahārāja: My millions of humble obeisances unto the lotus feet of my spiritual master, nitya-līlā praviṣṭa oṁ viṣṇupāda Śrī Śrīmad Bhakti Prajñāna Keśava Gosvāmī Mahārāja. And also, unto the lotus feet of my śikṣā-guru, nitya-līlā praviṣṭa oṁ viṣṇupāda Śrī Śrīmad Bhaktivedānta Svāmī Mahārāja.

In my classes, I have explained the meaning of bhakti and how we can gradually achieve it, beginning with the smallest fraction of bhakti, called śraddhā. We discussed many points, among them the necessity of guru-pādāśraya and dīkṣā (taking shelter of a bona fide guru and taking initiation). In the meantime, I want to address some questions that have been raised. You should very carefully and seriously hear these very important topics. First, he will present the question, and then I will respond.

Devotee: There is a question concerning the relationship between gāyatrī-mantra (dīkṣā) and harināma initiation. Some persons have presented quotes from various sources in order to present the idea, based upon their own understanding, that harināma is complete and sufficient in itself for the conditioned soul, and that initiation into the gāyatrī-mantra is not actually required for him. I will read their quotations, and then Śrīla Gurudeva (Śrīla Bhaktivedānta Nārāyaṇa Mahārāja) will explain the conclusive philosophical understandings. First of all, they quote Śrīla Prabhupāda (Śrīla Bhaktivedānta Svāmī Mahārāja) in a room conversation in 1973 in Paris, where he says, “Chanting Hare Kṛṣṇa mahā-mantra. And then, as he practices, becomes more purified, then second initiation, gāyatrī. Gāyatrī-mantra. But the first initiation, according to Jīva Gosvāmī, that is sufficient. Chanting Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra, that is sufficient. But still, to purify them more, the second initiation, gāyatrī, is given.” That is one quote.

Then they quote Śrīla Bhakti Rakṣaka Śrīdhara Mahārāja in his book Śrī Guru and His Grace. There, he says, “We accept the mantra only to help the nāma-bhajana, the worship of the holy name. Otherwise, it may not be necessary at all. It has been judged in such a way. The name alone can do everything for a person. It is full and complete. The mantra helps us to do away with the aparādhas, offences, and the ābhāsa, or hazy conceptions in our bhajana. The mantra comes to help us only so far.”

With these two quotations, these persons have attempted to support their statement that it is not actually completely essential or necessary for us conditioned souls to accept gāyatrī-mantra dīkṣā, because harināma is sufficient. They have also suggested that Śrīla Gurudeva is saying something contrary to this understanding. I am also reading the two statements they have quoted from Śrīla Gurudeva.

The first is from his book, Going Beyond Vaikuṇṭha: “Without the gopāla-mantra and the kāma-gāyatrī, will our sādhana be complete with only nāma-saṅkīrtana? No, because by nāma-saṅkīrtana alone we will not be able to chant śuddha-nāma (the pure name of Kṛṣṇa).” The second quotation they cited is from a lecture given by Śrīla Gurudeva on the topic of Śrī Bhajana-rahasya: “Everything is there, but don’t think that we can realise all this by chanting kṛṣṇa-nāma alone. We must chant harināma and gāyatrī-mantra as well. If we want a full understanding and realisation of what is in the Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra, we must also chant the gāyatrī-mantras.

I request Śrīla Gurudeva to kindly provide the proper philosophical conclusions so that everyone can clearly understand the positions of gāyatrī-mantra initiation and harināma initiation, and their relationship.

Śrīla Bhaktivedānta Nārāyaṇa Mahārāja: I think that you have all understood this question. Very carefully, you should try to understand and reconcile all the statements. Someone has presented the idea that the acceptance of dīkṣā is not essential, and he has indirectly indicated the verse:

dīkṣā-puraścaryā-vidhi apekṣā nā kare
jihvā-sparśe ā-caṇḍāla sabāre uddhāre

Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta (Madhya-līlā 15.108)

[“One does not have to undergo initiation or execute the activities required before initiation. One simply has to vibrate the holy name with his lips. Thus, even a man in the lowest class (cāṇḍāla) can be delivered.”]

The holy name is sufficient. The holy name is very powerful and can fulfil all desires. The name will even give vraja-prema, so what is the need of taking initiation?

They have quoted my statement, along with the statements of prapūjyacaraṇa Śrī Śrīmad Bhakti Rakṣaka Śrīdhara Mahārāja and Śrīla Bhaktivedānta Svāmī Mahārāja. I want to reconcile all statements.

It is true that dīkṣā preparatory rites are not needed. But we should know something. Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura Prabhupāda wrote in Arcana-dīpikā that harināma is bhāgavata-svarūpa (the real forms of Kṛṣṇa and Rādhā). It is true, and that is why it has been told, “paraṁ vijayate śrī-kṛṣṇa-saṅkīrtanam — supreme victory to the congregational chanting of Kṛṣṇa’s names (Śikṣāṣṭakam 1).”

By chanting and remembering kṛṣṇa-nāma, we can attain all kinds of siddhi (perfection), even vraja-prema and rādhā-dāsyam (service to Śrīmatī Rādhikā). But in the first stage, when a devotee is uttering the holy name, so many anarthas (unwanted things), aparādhas (offences), and so many things are there. Laya (drowsiness), apratipatti (incompetence), vikṣepa (distraction), and so on. At that time, when he utters the holy name, he cannot utter the pure name. It is guaranteed that such a person cannot utter the pure name. Rather, his chanting will be nāmāparādha (offensive chanting). Chanting the pure name is only possible after the dīkṣā-saṁskāra.

divyaṁ jñānaṁ yato dadyāt
kuryāt pāpasya saṅkṣayam
tasmād dīkṣeti sā proktā
deśikais tattva-kovidaiḥ

Bhakti-sandarbha (Anucceda 283)

[“Dīkṣā is the process by which one can awaken his transcendental knowledge and vanquish all reactions caused by sinful activity. A person expert in the study of the revealed scriptures knows this process as dīkṣā.”]

By dīkṣā, all kinds of divyā-jñāna (transcendental knowledge, including knowledge of kṛṣṇa-tattva and jīva-tattva) arise, and it also establishes a relationship with Kṛṣṇa. Nāma alone will not establish this relationship. All of our ācāryas, from top to bottom, have stated that in order to give up sinful activity and to remove impurities (anartha–nivṛtti) so that we can develop the ability to chant the pure name, we must accept dīkṣā-vidhāna (the process of initiation). Dī — kṣā (Dī means divyā-jñāna, or realised knowledge of our relationship with Kṛṣṇa). Kṣā is the washing away of all sins, aparādhas, and other impurities. For this, dīkṣā-vidhāna is essential. Without dīkṣā-saṁskāra, one’s relationship with Kṛṣṇa (sambandha-jñāna) cannot manifest, and one cannot chant śuddha-nāma (the pure name). It is essential to accept dīkṣā.

yathā kāñcanatāṁ yāti
kāsyaṁ rasa-vidhānataḥ
tathā dīkṣā-vidhānena
dvijatvaṁ jāyate nṛṇām

Hari-bhakti-vilāsa (2.12)

[“By chemical manipulation, bell metal is turned into gold when touched by mercury; similarly, when a person is properly initiated, he can acquire the qualities of a brāhmaṇa.”]

Using a chemical process, bell metal can be turned into gold. Similarly, by this process of dīkṣā, our chanting of the holy name will be pure; otherwise, not. If there was no necessity for these dīkṣā mantras, then why did Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura Prabhupāda take second initiation from Gaurakiśora dāsa Bābājī Mahārāja, and why did he give dīkṣā to all his disciples? Even parama-pujyapāda Śrīdhara Gosvāmī Mahārāja also gave dīkṣā to all his disciples, from top to bottom. Why did he do that? And why did they accept it if there was no necessity for this?

Not only that, but Brahmā received the kāma-gāyatrī and gоpāla-mantra from Kṛṣṇa Himself. He gave it to Brahmā, Brahmā gave dīkṣā to Nārada, and Nārada gave dīkṣā to so many disciples. Nārada gave dīkṣā by the mantra: oṁ namo bhagavate vāsudevāya.

I know that Caitanya Mahāprabhu took initiation from Īśvara Purīpāda. By what mantra did He take initiation? Īśvara Purīpāda first gave Him harināma, and to purify that chanting of nāma, he gave Him the gopāla-mantra. The gоpāla-mantra is transcendental and ever-existing, and it gives a relationship with Kṛṣṇa as Gopījana-vallabha. We should consider all this evidence. In our guru-paramparā, from top to bottom, all have accepted a guru.

All the ācāryas in our guru-paramparā have accepted dīkṣā from a bona fide guru. Can those who say that harināma is sufficient for conditioned souls name any ācārya in our guru-paramparā who has not taken dīkṣā initiation? Gaurakiśora dāsa Bābājī Mahārāja, Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura, Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura, the six Gosvāmīs, and Śrīla Bhaktivedānta Svāmī Mahārāja also took the second initiation. Why did they take dīkṣā if it was not essential? You should know the gravity of this truth. Caitanya Mahāprabhu, Nіtyānanda Prabhu, Advaita Ācārya, Gadādhara Paṇḍita, Īśvara Purī, and Mādhavendra Purī have all taken dīkṣā. Why should we not take dīkṣā? Why would it not be essential? Why has Sanātana Gosvāmī written about it in Harі-bhaktі-vіlāsa? Why did Śrī Gopāla Bhaṭṭa Gosvāmī also write about it? Did he say it was useless? Those who say that dīkṣā is not essential will not be able to answer these questions in hundreds of millions of years. Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu took initiation even though He is the Lord of lords — Rādhā and Kṛṣṇa combined — and yet He went to Gayā to take initiation. He vividly explained this fact in a gathering of sannyāsīs in Kāśī when those sannyāsīs asked Him, “O, You are a very young and qualified sannyāsī. Why do you not hear Vedānta? Why do you engage in singing, dancing, and rolling on the ground? A sannyāsī should not dance and do all these things.” Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu replied by telling them of the order of His guru (Śrī Īśvara Purīpāda):

prabhu kahe — śuna, śrīpāda, ihāra kāraṇa
guru more mūrkha dekhi’ karila śāsana

Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta (Ādi-līlā 7.71)

[“Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu replied to Prakāśānanda Sarasvatī, ‘My dear sir, kindly hear the reason. My spiritual master considered Me a fool, and therefore he chastised Me.’ ”]

Mahāprabhu said, “My guru told Me that because I am foolish and unintelligent, I am not qualified to study Vedānta. He said that, instead, I should always chant the holy name of Kṛṣṇa. After that, he told me to remember this śloka.”

harer nāma harer nāma
harer nāmaiva kevalam
kalau nāsty eva nāsty eva
nāsty eva gatir anyathā

Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta (Ādi-līlā 7.76)

[“For spiritual progress in this Age of Kali, there is no alternative, there is no alternative, there is no alternative to the holy name, the holy name, the holy name of the Lord.”]

The next question is whether Caitanya Mahāprabhu received only harināma or also the gopāla-mantra. In our paramparā, to purify one’s chanting and to give the chanter a relationship with Kṛṣṇa, the gopāla-mantra was given along with harināma. Later, Dhyānaсandra and Gоpāla-guru came and established all the rules and regulations we now follow. Now we give the brahma-gāyatrī, the guru-mantra, the guru-gāyatrī, the gaura-mantra, the gaura-gāyatrī, the kṛṣṇa-mantra (gopāla-mantra), and the kāma-gāyatrī. This is the process followed in our sampradāya, begun by Śrīla Gopāla-guru Gosvāmī, a disciple of Vakreśvara Paṇḍita, an associate of Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu.

mūrkha tumi, tomāra nāhika vedāntādhikāra
‘kṛṣṇa-mantra’ japa sadā, — ei mantra-sāra

Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta (Ādi-līlā 7.72)

[“ ‘You are a fool,’ he said. ‘You are not qualified to study Vedānta philosophy, and therefore You must always chant the holy name of Kṛṣṇa. This is the essence of all mantras, or Vedic hymns.’ ”]

Caitanya Mahāprabhu quoted His gurudeva saying, “Kṛṣṇa-mantra japa sadā — ei mantra-sāra. You must always chant the holy name of Kṛṣṇa. This is the essence of all mantras, or Vedic hymns.”

kṛṣṇa-mantra haite habe saṁsāra-mocana
kṛṣṇa-nāma haite pābe kṛṣṇera caraṇa

Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta (Ādi-līlā 7.73)

[“Simply by chanting the holy name of Kṛṣṇa one can obtain freedom from material existence. Indeed, simply by chanting the Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra one will be able to see the lotus feet of the Lord.”]

But that kṛṣṇa-nāma should be pure. How will it be pure? Only by that dīkṣā process, otherwise not.

kibā mantra dilā, gosāñi, kibā tāra bala
japite japite mantra karila pāgala

Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta (Ādi-līlā 7.81)

[“My dear lord, what kind of mantra have you given Me? I have become mad simply by chanting this mahā-mantra!”]

Caitanya Mahāprabhu told the sannyāsīs, “You ask why I dance and sing and roll on the ground. Here is the reason: When My gurudeva initiated me, he gave me both the harināma-mantra and the gopāla-mantra.” Then He said, “Japite japite mantra.” If He had only received harināma (the mahā-mantra), then why would He have said the word ‘mantra’? Mantra here refers to the gopāla-mantra and the kāma-gāyatrī-mantra. He first received harināma, then the gopāla-mantra. “Japite japite mantra karila pāgala — and this made Me mad.” Kṛṣṇa-nāma mantra — meaning the gopāla-mantra and the mahā-mantra made Him like a madman.

kṛṣṇa-nāma-mahā-mantrera ei ta’ svabhāva
yei jape, tāra kṛṣṇe upajaye bhāva

Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta (Ādi-līlā 7.83)

[“It is the nature of the Hare Kṛṣṇa mahā-mantra that anyone who chants it immediately develops his loving ecstasy for Kṛṣṇa.”]

Those who will always remember and meditate on the gopāla-mantra and the kāma-gāyatrī will, by the power of these mantras, develop rati (bhāva-bhakti) in their hearts at once. It has been written clearly in the Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta:

prabhu kahe, — “vaiṣṇava-deha ‘prākṛta’ kabhu naya
‘aprākṛta’ deha bhaktera ‘cid-ānanda-maya’

dīkṣā-kāle bhakta kare ātma-samarpaṇa
sei-kāle kṛṣṇa tāre kare ātma-sama

sei deha kare tāra cid-ānanda-maya
aprākṛta-dehe tāṅra caraṇa bhajaya

Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta (Antya-līlā 4.191-193)

[“Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu said, ‘The body of a devotee is never material. It is considered to be transcendental, full of spiritual bliss. At the time of initiation, when a devotee fully surrenders unto the service of the Lord, Kṛṣṇa accepts him to be as good as Himself. When the devotee’s body is thus transformed into spiritual existence, the devotee, in that transcendental body, renders service to the lotus feet of the Lord.’ ”]

The first initiation is called harināma, and the second initiation is called dīkṣā. Dīkṣā-kāle bhakta kare ātma-samarpaṇa — he surrenders totally at the lotus feet of gurudeva. Sei-kāle kṛṣṇa tāre kare ātma-sama — then Kṛṣṇa gives the shelter of His lotus feet, and He makes them atma-sama, very near and dear to Him. In the Skanda Purāṇa, it is said:

adīkṣitasya vāmoru kṛtaṁ sarvaṁ nirarthakam
paśu-yonim avāpnoti dīkṣā-virahito janaḥ

Śrī Hari-bhakti-vilāsa (2.6)

[“Unless one is initiated by a bona fide spiritual master, all his devotional activities are useless. A person who is not properly initiated can descend again into the animal species.”]

Lord Śaṅkara says to his wife Pārvatī, “O Vāmoru — O beautiful Pārvatī. Regarding those who have not taken dīkṣā, all their devotional activities, such as sādhana, bhajana, and pūjā, have all gone in vain. They are all useless. Such persons who are not properly initiated must again enter the many animal species.” In addition, it has been said that nāma can give everything, including kṛṣṇa-prema, simply by touching the tongue. But can this occur if one’s chanting is not pure? This is the question. Without entering the dīkṣā process, it cannot be so. It is stated in Padyāvalī, a book compiled by Śrīla Rūpa Gosvāmī:

ākṛṣṭiḥ kṛta-cetasāṁ su-manasām uccāṭanaṁ cāṁhasām
ācaṇḍālam amūka-loka-sulabho vaśyaś ca mukti-śriyaḥ
no dīkṣāṁ na ca sat-kriyāṁ na ca puraścaryāṁ manāg īkṣate
mantro ’yaṁ rasanā-spṛg eva phalati śrī-kṛṣṇa-nāmātmakaḥ

Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta (Madhya-līlā 15.110)

[“The holy name of Lord Kṛṣṇa is an attractive feature for many saintly, liberal people. It is the annihilator of all sinful reactions and is so powerful that, save for the dumb who cannot chant it, it is readily available to everyone, including the lowest type of man, the caṇḍāla. The holy name of Kṛṣṇa is the controller of the opulence of liberation, and it is identical with Kṛṣṇa. When a person simply chants the holy name with his tongue, immediate effects are produced. Chanting the holy name does not depend on initiation, pious activities or the puraścaryā regulative principles generally observed before initiation. The holy name does not wait for any of these activities. It is self-sufficient.”]

It is true that simply by touching the tongue kṛṣṇa-nāma (the holy name) gives all kinds of perfection, including kṛṣṇa-dāsyam and rādhā-dāsyam. But Śrīla Jīva Gosvāmī has written a very clear commentary on this verse, and you should note this down in your heart for continual remembrance. In his Bhakti-sandarbha, he has written:

yadyapi śrī-bhāgavata-mate pañcarātrādi-vat arcana-mārgasya āvaśyakatvaṁ nāsti, tad vināpi śaraṇāpattyādīnām ekatareṇāpi puruṣārtha-siddher abhihitatvāt, tathāpi śrī-nāradādi-vartmānusaradbhiḥ śrī-bhagavatā saha sambandha-viśeṣaṁ dīkṣā-vidhānena śrī-guru-caraṇa-sampāditaṁ cikīrṣadbhiḥ kṛtāyāṁ dīkṣāyām arcanam avaśyaṁ kriyetaiva

yadyapi svarūpato nāsti
tathāpi prāyaḥ svabhāvato
dehādi-sambandhena kadarya-
śīlānāṁ vikṣipta-cittānāṁ janānāṁ

tat-tat-saṅkocī-karaṇāya
śrīmad-ṛṣi-prabhṛtibhir
atrārcana-mārge kvacit kvacit
kācit kācin maryādā sthāpitāsti

dvijānām anupetānāṁ svakarmādhyayanādiṣu
yathādhikāro nāstīha syāc copanayanād anu
tathātrādīkṣitānāṁ tu mantra-devārcanādiṣu
nādhikāro ’sty ataḥ kuryād ātmānaṁ śiva-saṁstutam

[“It is Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam’s opinion that the process of Deity worship is not actually necessary, just as the specific prescriptions of the Pañcarātra and other scriptures do not have to be followed. The Bhāgavatam enjoins that even without practising Deity worship one can achieve the complete success of human life by any of the other devotional processes, such as simply offering oneself at the Lord’s feet for His protection. Nonetheless, Vaiṣṇavas following the path of Śrī Nārada and his successors endeavour to establish a personal relationship with the Lord by receiving the grace of a bona fide spiritual master through initiation, and in this tradition the devotees are obliged at the time of initiation to begin engaging in Deity worship.”]

[“Although Deity worship is not essential, the material conditioning of most candidates for devotional service requires that they engage in this activity. When we consider their bodily and mental conditions, we find that the character of such candidates is impure and their minds are agitated. Therefore, to rectify this material conditioning the great sage Nārada and others have at different times recommended various kinds of regulations for Deity worship.”]

[“Even though born in a brāhmaṇa family, one cannot engage in Vedic rituals without being initiated and having a sacred thread. Although born in a brāhmaṇa family, one becomes a brāhmaṇa only after initiation and the sacred thread ceremony. Unless one is initiated as a brāhmaṇa, one cannot worship the holy name properly. (Śrī Caіtanya-caritāmṛta, Madhya-līlā 15.108, purport)”]

Śrī Nārada Muni and other previous ācāryas, such as Brahmā, Sanaka, Sananda, Sanātana, and Sanat-kumāra, have all taken dīkṣā. One receives dīkṣā, then performs his sādhana-bhajana, and worships his iṣṭa-deva (worshipful deity), Rādhā and Kṛṣṇa. Śrīla Jīva Gosvāmī has written that without dīkṣā there will be no relationship with Kṛṣṇa — neither dāsya, sakhya, vātsalya nor mādhurya. It will never be possible without dīkṣā. In our sampradāya, sambandha-jñāna comes only by uttering “gopījana-vallabhāya” (the gоpāla-mantra); otherwise, it cannot come.

Śrīla Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura has written an explanation of this same verse, and therein he vividly explains that one may have given up all kinds of sādhana and pious activities. He may be chanting and remembering the holy names of Bhagavān, and he may have determined that his iṣṭa-deva is Kṛṣṇa. Still, if he has not taken initiation from a Vaiṣṇava guru, thinking that it is not essential, he can never achieve Kṛṣṇa. The only good result he achieves is that he will not go to hell. He cannot achieve the lotus feet of Kṛṣṇa, in any life, until he is properly initiated. In a future life, by the fruit of his previous activities of bhajana, he will take birth in a very religious family, and there he will have sādhu-saṅga, guru-pādāśraya, and then dīkṣā. At that time, he will make solid advancement in bhakti.

Also, Śrīla Raghunātha dāsa Gosvāmī has written in the first verse of his Śrī Manaḥ-śikṣā:

gurau goṣṭhe goṣṭhālayiṣu sujane bhūsura-gaṇe
sva-mantre śrī-nāmni vraja-nava-yuva-dvandva-śaraṇe
sadā dambhaṁ hitvā kuru ratim apūrvam atitarām
aye svāntar bhrātaś caṭubhir abhiyāce dhṛta-padaḥ

Śrī Manaḥ-śikṣā (1)

[“O my dear brother; my foolish mind! Taking hold of your feet, I humbly pray to you with sweet words. Please give up all pride and quickly develop sublime and incessant rati for śrī gurudeva, Śrī Vraja-dhāma, the residents of Vraja, the Vaiṣṇavas, the brāhmaṇas, my dīkṣā-mantras, the holy names of the Supreme Lord, and the shelter of Śrī Śrī Rādhā-Kṛṣṇa, the eternally youthful divine couple of Vraja.”]

Why has he said “mantra” if dīkṣā initiation is not necessary? Why has he not said only “śrī nāmni”? What is sva-mantra? There is some difference between mantra and harināma, and that is why he has told his mind, “You should develop sublime and unprecedented attachment for both. Take shelter of nāma and mantra, and then your life will be successful.” So there are two things – not one.

We should now reconcile all these things. I have made so many points. You should try to publish all these things so they get a big presence on the internet. Everyone should know these things, and thus all their doubts should disappear.

Devotees: Gaura-premānande!

Śrīla Bhaktivedānta Nārāyaṇa Mahārāja: Also, Kṛṣṇa took dīkṣā from Bhāguri Ṛṣi. Why? Though He is the guru of Brahmā, yet He Himself took initiation. He told the gopīs, “Why are you saying that I am not initiated? I am initiated by Bhāguri Ṛṣi.”

(Break in audіо)

Devotee: Now we continue with Śrīla Gurudeva’s response to more questions. These questions require proper reconciliation and a correct understanding. In their suggested next topic, there seems to be a difference of opinion between Śrīla Prabhupāda and Śrīla Gurudeva on which mood in conjugal love holds greater spiritual significance: the mood of separation (vipralambha) or the mood of union (sambhoga). These persons quote from Śrīla Prabhupāda’s book, Teachings of Lord Caitanya, in the conversation between Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu and Śrī Rāmānanda Rāya. This is called Rāya Rāmānanda Saṁvāda. This quote is from later on in this chapter, later on in the conversation. At this point, the discussion between Caitanya Mahāprabhu and Rāya Rāmānanda has reached a very high pinnacle. Now Caitanya Mahāprabhu is requesting Rāya Rāmānanda to speak something further and higher. First, I am reading this quotation from Śrīla Prabhupāda: “Upon hearing of these transcendental activities, Lord Caitanya said, ‘My dear Rāmānanda, what you have explained regarding the transcendental pastimes of Śrī Rādhā and Kṛṣṇa is perfectly correct, yet there is something more I would like to hear from you.’ ” “ ‘It is very difficult for me to express anything beyond this,’ Rāmānanda Rāya replied. ‘I can only say that there is an emotional activity called prema-vilāsa-vivarta, which I may try to explain. But I do not know whether You will be happy to hear of it.’ ”

Now, Śrīla Prabhupāda gives a short comment here and says, “In prema-vilāsa there are two kinds of emotional activities – meeting and separation. This transcendental separation is so acute that it is actually more ecstatic than meeting.” With this quotation, they have attempted to assert that Śrīla Prabhupāda is saying that separation (vipralambha) is on a higher level and brings more ecstasy than the meeting (sambhoga) between Rādhā and Kṛṣṇa.

They present the idea that Śrīla Gurudeva has said the opposite and that he is incorrect. I am now reading their quotations from Śrīla Gurudeva’s Vraja-maṇḍala Parikramā book: “Those who have not scrutinizingly studied the scripture Śrīmad–Bhāgavatam, and who have not conscientiously comprehended Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta, and who have also not properly understood books like Bhakti-rasāmṛta-sindhu, Bṛhad-bhāgavatāmṛta, Ujjvala-nīlamaṇi, Kṛṣṇa-karṇāmṛta and other literatures of this nature, these people consider vipralambha, the mood of separation, to be the highest level of ecstasy. Our previous ācāryas also considered vipralambha to be an exalted state, but after much reflection, they perceived vipralambha as a prerequisite to highlight and more fully embellish and amplify the ecstasy of reunion. If there were only vipralambha for all of eternity, what would be the use? What would be its service? Vipralambha is necessary only because it intensifies the ecstatic feelings of reunion again.”

That is one quotation. Then there is one more short quotation from Śrīla Gurudeva’s Vraja-maṇḍala Parikramā book: “So you can see that the mood of vipralambha is much more complex than possibly the way you envisioned it to be before. And those who still persist in advocating that vipralambha is the highest, they do not yet have the spiritual maturity and understanding to realise that it is not possible for anything to be more elevated than Śrīmatī Rādhārāṇī and Kṛṣṇa’s ecstatic loving exchanges in reuniting again.”

Does everyone understand clearly?

Śrīla Bhaktivedānta Nārāyaṇa Mahārāja: Do you understand? You can express what you understood in your own words. What is his question?

Devotee: The question is: which is higher, separation or union? Śrīla Gurudeva explained in his books that separation is only good for nourishing reunion. If separation lasted forever, there would be no point. This separation continues and intensifies to the point where union takes place, and that separation has embellished that reunion, that meeting.

Śrīla Bhaktivedānta Nārāyaṇa Mahārāja: I have clarified this topic in the above-mentioned quotes. Separation is only needed because it increases the enjoyment of meeting; it helps with that. Still, I want to explain this further. Śrīla Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura has written that vipralambha (separation) dances on the head of sambhoga (meeting). This mood of separation is so exalted that it can dance on the head of meeting.*

Kṛṣṇa also reveals Himself in intense separation (divyā-viraha). In that mood of separation, the gopīs are fully absorbed in Kṛṣṇa, in all His qualities and in all His pastimes. Yet, at the same time, they want to embrace Kṛṣṇa right then and there. They do not want to burn in the fire of separation.

The gopīs are not satisfied with their mood of separation; they cannot be satisfied. Their desire is this: ‘Kṛṣṇa should come directly in front of us, face to face, so that He can put His very soft and gentle lotus feet on our breasts.’ They lament that because their breasts are very hard, they must place His lotus feet there with the utmost gentle care. To whose lotus feet are they referring? The lotus feet of that Kṛṣṇa, which even Brahmā, Śrī Nārada Ṛṣi or others cannot bring in their trance of meditation. It is those feet that the gopīs want to place on their breasts.

yat te sujāta-caraṇāmburuhaṁ staneṣu
bhītāḥ śanaiḥ priya dadhīmahi karkaśeṣu
tenāṭavīm aṭasi tad vyathate na kiṁ svit
kūrpādibhir bhramati dhīr bhavad-āyuṣāṁ naḥ

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam (10.31.19)

[“O dearly beloved! Your lotus feet are so soft that we place them gently on our breasts, fearing that Your feet will be hurt. Our life rests only in You. Our minds, therefore, are filled with anxiety that Your tender feet might be wounded by pebbles as You roam about on the forest path.”]

The gopīs lament in this connection, ‘Oh, what shall we do? Kṛṣṇa likes that His feet are placed on our breasts, but we are afraid we are hurting Him.’ The gopīs don’t want to meditate on Kṛṣṇa. They desire this: ‘Kṛṣṇa should come out from within our hearts so that we can embrace Him. Only in this way will our fire of separation be extinguished.’

Some persons say that vipralambha is higher than sambhoga. Only a neutral person can say this. Neutral persons alone can say that it is good if the gopīs only see Kṛṣṇa in their trance. Such persons can say that although the gopīs want to embrace Kṛṣṇa, it is better if Kṛṣṇa’s association comes to them by their mood of separation. It is better that they always meet Him in their mood of separation, as they close their eyes and remember Him in their hearts. Such neutral persons think that the gopīs’ separation is very good, and such persons are like Akrūra and Kaṁsa, who have no desire for the meeting of Rādhā and Kṛṣṇa. Akrūra can say, ‘Take Kṛṣṇa from Vraja. Let the Vrajavāsīs feel separation; they should always feel separation.’ And Kaṁsa will be very happy to say, ‘Bring Kṛṣṇa here to Mathurā, and I will kill Him there.’

These two persons can speak in this way, but no Vrajavāsī wants Kṛṣṇa to be separated from Vraja. Not even a plant, creeper, or bird of Vṛndāvana wants Kṛṣṇa to leave Vraja. No one there wants the Vrajavāsīs to feel separation. None of them thinks, ‘Separation is so high.’ And what to speak of the gopīs? What to speak of Lalitā and Viśākhā, and Rūpa Mañjarī and Rati Mañjarī?

Those who are confidential servants of Śrīmatī Rādhika, and who have more affection for Her than for Kṛṣṇa, never desire Her separation from Kṛṣṇa. In fact, Vrajavāsīs like Lalitā and Viśākhā, and pālya-dāsīs like Rūpa Mañjarī, Rati Mañjarī and Kamala Mañjarī, cannot tolerate the separation of Rādhikā from Kṛṣṇa at all. Do you know who Kamala Mañjarī is? In her sādhaka form, she (he) is Śrīla Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura.

In his song, Śrī Kṛṣṇa Virahe, Śrīla Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura writes: ‘I cannot bear to see the feelings of separation of Rādhikā’. He is weeping as he writes, ‘When Rādhika laments in divyonmāda, in the transcendental madness of separation from Kṛṣṇa, she displayed in Brahmara-gīta (Rādhikā speaking with a bumblebee) and at other times, I cannot bear it. I don’t want Kṛṣṇa to leave Rādhika. He should always remain with Her in Vraja.’

śrī kṛṣṇa-virahe, rādhikāra daśā,
āmi tô’ sahite nāri
ĵugala-milana, sukhera kāraṇa,
jīvana chāḓite pāri

Sri Kṛṣṇa-Virahe (1)

[“I cannot tolerate Rādhikā’s condition in separation from Śrī Kṛṣṇa. Thus I am fully prepared to give up my life for the sake of Their happy reunion.”]

What is the meaning? ‘I cannot tolerate the separation of Rādhikā from Kṛṣṇa, but I can easily and happily give up my life if that will help to bring Kṛṣṇa to Her.’ This is the mood of the pālya-dāsī of Rādhikā. Then, in another song, called Vṛṣabhānu-sutā, Śrīla Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura writes:

rādhā-pakṣa chāḍi, je jana se jana,
je bhāve se bhāve thāke
āmi ta rādhikā, pakṣa-pātī sadā,
kabhu nāhi heri tāke

Vṛṣabhānu-sutā (4)

[“I am always in Rādhikā’s entourage and I never even glance upon the faces of those who leave Her, no matter who they are or what their mood is.”]

Only Mathurāvāsīs, only those who are not able to appreciate vraja-līlā, like Akrūra and Kaṁsa, will want Rādhikā and Kṛṣṇa to be separated.** Uddhava went to Vraja, realised the separation of the gopīs to a certain extent, and then returned to Kṛṣṇa and said, ‘You must go at once; otherwise, if You do not go, Nanda and Yaśodā, all the gopīs, and all the cows and calves will soon be dead. You must go there.’ Even Baladeva and Rohiṇī Maiyā told Kṛṣṇa, ‘Why don’t you go to Vraja? All will die if You do not go.’ Baladeva told Him, ‘If You do not go there, then I must go; and I will tell them that You are coming very soon.’ Thus, all the Vrajavāsīs want Kṛṣṇa to be with the gopīs and with His father and mother in Vraja.

If vipralambha is higher than meeting, then Lalitā and the other sakhīs and mañjarīs would have been trying to keep Kṛṣṇa out of Vraja. They would have tried to be very far away from Him. But have they done this? They can never do so. Do you want this? Do any of you want Kṛṣṇa to be separated from Rādhikā? Do you want Rādhikā to weep and roll on the ground?

Devotees: No! No! Never! Never!

Śrīla Bhaktivedānta Nārāyaṇa Mahārāja: If you want, I will pray to…

Devotees: No!!! Never!!!

Śrīla Bhaktivedānta Nārāyaṇa Mahārāja: Lalitā once sent a swan to Mathurā. When she sent him off, she told him, ‘Go and tell Kṛṣṇa about the daśamī-daśa, the tenth stage, of Rādhikā’s condition. She is about to die. Nowadays, she is often unconscious, and she engages like a mad person in a variety of crazy talks (divyonmāda). Go and tell Kṛṣṇa, ‘You must come in a day, or just now. Otherwise, if you go to Vraja later, You will not be able to meet with Rādhikā at all. You should always keep this in mind. If You want to be happy, and if You want to make all others happy, then come here at once.’

Thus, according to the explanations of our previous ācāryas, what I have told is correct. Vipralambha is only needed to help nourish meeting. If this is not accomplished, there is no necessity of vipralambha. It is stated in Śrī Ujjvala-nīlamaṇi: ‘na vinā vipralambhena sambhogaḥ puṣṭim aśnute – without vipralambha, meeting will not be nourished.’

Does meeting come first, or does vipralambha come first? If the gopīs had not met with Kṛṣṇa, how would they have experienced vipralambha? First there is meeting, and then separation. Without meeting, the mood of separation cannot come, and Śrīmatī Rādhārāṇī cannot weep for Kṛṣṇa. Why are you not weeping? Can you weep for Kṛṣṇa from the core of your heart? You cannot, because you have never seen Him. If you will see His beauty, His qualities, His affection, and His love and mercy, then you can cry for Him. So first is meeting (sambhoga), then separation in the middle, and then meeting again. There are four kinds of separation, and they are pūrva-rāga, māna, pravāsa and prema-vaicittya.

‘vipralambha’ catur-vidha — pūrva-rāga, māna
pravāsākhya, āra prema-vaicittya-ākhyāna

Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta (Madhya-līlā 23.63)

[“Vipralambha has four divisions — pūrva-rāga, māna, pravāsa and prema-vaicittya.”]

When Kṛṣṇa goes to the forest, the gopīs feel separation. They weep for Kṛṣṇa and discuss among themselves His pastimes in the forest. The ultimate stage of conjugal love is mādanākhya-mahābhāva, which is present only in Rādhikā. All varieties of the moods of meeting and separation reside in mādanākhya-mahābhāva, and this is the monopoly of Śrīmatī Rādhikā. This wonderful mood of Rādhikā is such that even the highest moods of separation are enclosed in it. This mood cannot occur at the time of separation; it occurs only in meeting. It occurs, for example, when Rādhikā is sitting on the lap of Kṛṣṇa (at Prema-sarovara). Imagining that Kṛṣṇa has left and will never return, Rādhikā laments, ‘Where is Kṛṣṇa?’ This is very wonderful and tasteful.

Devotee: Just in case anybody has any doubt, the people who wrote this in the mood of Kaṁsa, their goal was to make people not want to see Śrīla Gurudeva by making it look like Śrīla Gurudeva is different from Śrīla Prabhupāda. They quoted Śrīla Prabhupāda, who says in Caitanya-caritāmṛta that separation is higher. In case anybody has any doubts and thinks that this is the mood of Śrīla Prabhupāda, if they check the Vedabase Folio, they will see that there are hundreds and hundreds of quotes from Śrīla Prabhupāda saying exactly the same thing as Śrīla Gurudeva. But anybody can extract anything out of context.

Śrīla Bhaktivedānta Nārāyaṇa Mahārāja: You should try to write an article about this. Not only this, but I challenge anyone in this world, face to face, to come and discuss all these points. I know they cannot come to me face to face; they do not dare to come. They know, “He is like a lion.” (devotees applaud)

Devotee: They want to be separated from you, Gurudeva, always feeling separation. For them, it is the highest.

Śrīla Bhaktivedānta Nārāyaṇa Mahārāja: Don’t come to me. Be very far away, feel separation, and be happy. (devotees laugh)

Devotee: I don’t know philosophy, and I’m not a scholar, but I remember that in the Kṛṣṇa book Kṛṣṇa told the gopīs, ‘I have never left you.’ So the gopīs are in the mood of separation, but actually Kṛṣṇa never left them.

Śrīla Bhaktivedānta Nārāyaṇa Mahārāja: If He never left, then why were the gopīs always lamenting and suffering due to Him? The idea that Kṛṣṇa never left, that He is everywhere, and therefore there was no need for the gopīs to lament is the version of Uddhava. This was not the version of the gopīs. Rather, the gopīs defeated all of Uddhava’s arguments.

We should try to know all these truths, and that understanding will reconcile all the statements of your Śrīla Prabhupāda. I know that he is a philosopher and a rasika-bhakta as well. He realises both vipralambha and sambhoga. Like his predecessor ācāryas, he is a servant of Śrīmatī Rādhikā. Will he say that Rādhā should always be far away from Kṛṣṇa? Never. I know him. I have been with him since 1947, and I am still serving him.

*In mādanākhya-mahābhāva (the highest limit of love for Kṛṣṇa), there is the experience of the greatest intensity of separation in meeting and meeting in separation. All moods, in their extreme exaltation, are present in Śrīmatī Rādhika in her mādanākhya-mahābhāva

**A rūpānuga Vaiṣṇava understands that everyone in Vraja is acting in such a way as to increase the happiness of Śrī Śrī Rādhā and Kṛṣṇa

Source(s): Purebhakti.com, Serve Love – Bhakta Bandhav (Bhakta Bandhav Anthology transcribed and edited by the Bhakta Bandhav Team)

Image(s) made possible by Pixabay.com, Krishnapath.org.in, Keystone Press / Alamy Stock Photo and / or Bhaktiart.net

Unless indicated otherwise, all verse translations and quotes are from the books by Śrīla Prabhupāda (Vedabase.com)