700222 - Ten Offenses Lecture - Los Angeles
A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada
Prabhupāda: 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 these principles of offenses ... (break) (end)