Суд над Бхагавад-гитой / Attempt to ban Bhagavad-gita

36. THE REWARD FOR CHASTITY

Then how does he repay her for her faithful service? By "capturing Krsna" and giving Him to her. Krsna is not so cheap that simply by baby-sitting, cooking, and cleaning the house for 30-40 years she can win Krsna. Every woman is doing that whether they are devotees or not. But a devotee woman literally buys Krsna by her chastity and "always pleasing" attitude toward her husband, even if he doesn't deserve it at tunes. Prabhupada says, "Chastity is the first religious principle for a woman." And Chanakya Pandit says, "A woman makes more spiritual advancement by washing the feet of her husband with water, than by performing sacrifices, going to holy places, observing fasts, etc."

It is very difficult to be chaste, humble, and always pleasing when the husband is not yet perfect, but that is the price she must pay for Krsna.

37. HUSBAND'S ROLE ISN'T EASY EITHER

The women shouldn't feel envious that they have to carry the burden initially, for his job certainly is not easy either. When he takes sannyasa, he has to forcibly give up attachment to his good wife, his loving children, delicious meals, the comforts of home, and strictly control all his senses, absorbing his mind day and night in g and preaching about Krsna. That's not easy. The materially covered senses strongly react against that life-style. And there is no possibility of cheating oneself either. Controlling the mind is the most difficult part. During this time the wife is more or less relaxing and being served by her children and grandchildren. She has done her share of the work and now can simply pray that her husband remains sincere. Of course, she must remain pure and simple herself, but compared to her husband's austerities, she is taking a vacation. So granted, it's a tremendous surrender to be a chaste wife. Her job is very difficult during the time of cooperation together, but the husband has the hard job at the end. If he is fully satisfied with his good wife's faithful service, then his gratitude to her becomes a tremendous impetus to repay her by becoming fully Krsna conscious. If the wife is not devoted exclusively to him however, then he may well be attracted to another woman and thus his life is also ruined. So chastity for a woman is the first religious principle.

38. ROMANCE IN THE MARRIAGE

As long as they both agree on this formula and work toward that goal, keeping themselves always sincere and avoiding offenses, then it is not at all difficult to go back to Godhead together. This relationship is very intimate and has nothing whatsoever to do with external so-called romantic/sexual love. Such love may or may not be there, just as over-eating or over-sleeping may or may not be there. If it is there, it must eventually be given up. Therefore Prabhupada warns for devotees not to be overly attracted to one's wife or romantically involved. Chanakya Pandit also warns, "A beautiful wife is an enemy." Romance is not necessary for a spiritual relationship, but it can prevent the husband from ultimately being able to devote himself fully to Krsna. A very deep, spiritual relationship between husband and wife is only possible if sexual love is absent. A book called The New Celibacy goes into this in great detail and is recommended reading for devotees. What to speak of romance, Prabhupada says she must "faithfully serve her husband even if she doesn't like him." Westerners have this perverted idea that marriage is meant for romance, and so, if there is any break in the excitement, inevitable divorce follows. Prabhupada says however, "In the material world, there is no question of love-that marriage is actually a practical necessity, a duty." The wife may be attached to her husband if he is a devotee, but the husband has to be very careful not to be overly attached to his wife, since ultimately, he must become 100% attached to Krsna. That is the formula. Of course this formula varies somewhat according to ones status in life. The same strict rules that apply to the brahmins do not apply to the sudras, but anyone can go back to Godhead eventually, if he is sincere. It may not be in one lifetime, but as long as a couple are sincere, they will advance toward that goal.

39. BE ABSOLUTELY CERTAIN

If you are serious about Krsna consciousness, but need a wife to help get you over the "waves of youth," then you must choose her very carefully. If you select an insincere or incompatible mate, she may disturb you. Or, if you are a sincere woman and need a husband to protect you, give you children, and ultimately take you back to Godhead, then choose him carefully. If he is not sincere, he will simply produce a bunch of kids in you and then leave, but not for sannyasa, for sexyasa. So best to make absolutely sure of your prospective mate's sincerity and compatibility before deciding to marry him/her. There are many ways of doing this, some of which are explained later. Of course, if one is not so serious about going back to Godhead in this very lifetime, that does not mean he/she cannot get married and make some advancement. He/she has to find a mate of the same nature so they can advance together from whatever level they are on.

40. THE CHOICE IS YOURS

So the husband/wife relationship can be eternal or temporary. The choice is entirely up to the individuals. It's not that it has to be one or the other as so many devotees think. If you don't want an eternal relationship, then nobody can force you. You can live together in a cooperative fashion, without making any commitment to each other spiritually. That is possible. That relationship is somewhat impersonal, but it is possible. It is not the highest kind of marriage relationship as described in sastra. One can also bump into a different soul lifetime after lifetime, just like straws touching in the ocean waves. Or a couple can share three or four lifetimes together and then part ways never to meet again. There is no impersonal formula that determines such things. Modern hypnosis regressions have completely confirmed Prabhupada's statements on such husband-wife relationships. Some couples get together lifetime after lifetime. Some only a few lifetimes. It is only logical and common sense that if a couple are very intimately connected with each other, and they become perfected together, then they will also go back to Godhead together. There are many descriptions in the Srimad Bhagavatam of couples living together in the spiritual world, but without mundane sex desire, because they are continually chanting the glories of the Lord. This concept of course gives rise to some very interesting questions regarding spiritual relationships. This section is only meant to give the general idea of the possibilities so devotees can choose, in full knowledge, what kind of marriage they want. If a couple strive together, but don't make it in this lifetime for one reason or another, if they are both sincere, then they will continue together in the next life. Chances are it will be in reversed roles. Then she can play lord and master, and he can play chaste, and surrendered wife. It doesn't matter who plays what role. Ultimately we are all female in the sense that we are all meant to be enjoyed by Krsna. And the price for Krsna is the same for both. Both must give up their puffed-up false egos. She gives it up to her husband, and he gives it up to Krsna. Thus both become perfect. The goal is to go back to Krsna, one way or another.

The question sometimes arises. Does this mean a woman cannot go back to Godhead without the help of a husband? Independent minded women, for the most part, raise this question. The answer is: possible, but not likely. Remember the example of the relay race. There is always the rare soul that can run the entire race by himself and keep up with the other runners, who are sharing the distance with partners. But such a person is rare. Similarly, most women will tend to become very degraded if they are not protected by a man. Prabhupada says that women as a class will be inclined to think about sex, subtle or gross. If a woman is very strong, and becomes a nun, strictly following the regulative principles, then of course she can directly go back to Godhead by her own strength. Most women, however, will not be able to do so, and as such Prabhupada never encouraged women to think this way. He always stressed they be chaste and faithful to their husbands.

HOW DOES A WOMAN "FLY HER OWN PLANE?

This brings us to a very important consideration that at first glance seems to contradict the above. In SB, 1.15.51, the impression is made that the husband abandons his wife when he takes sannyasa and she is then on her own. There the analogy is given that one must be able to fly his own plane without any help. Prabhupada says that help is required while on the ground, but ultimately she must be able to fly her own plane alone. This is a somewhat contradictory point since in many other places, Prabhupada says that the wife follows her husband back to Godhead. In many ways, the husband-wife, and guru-disciple relationship are the same. The guru must have complete submission and faith from the disciple. He instructs the disciple to think of Krsna at the time of death. If the disciple is chaste and obedient, he will do so. Similarly, a devotee husband trains his wife to be chaste and faithful and he also instructs her to think of Krsna at the time of death. There is no difference at all. So just as the disciple must be completely surrendered to guru to be able to follow his instructions perfectly, so also the wife must be completely surrendered to her husband. They both must try to think of Krsna at the time of death. If for some reason they cannot, then the guru or husband will have to help them again. One cannot accept service from a subordinate without becoming indebted. He remains responsible to his surrendered wife right up through her death. In one letter Prabhupada said, "Even after taking sannyasa, the husband does not leave his wife. He must be certain that she is being well protected." The question raised above then is: "At the exact moment of death, is the husband still responsible for his wife, or does his duty end at that moment? Persons who think it ends, are afflicted with impersonalism. The husband is naturally indebted to his good wife, and so he must save her. just as the guru must return again and again to save his sincere disciples, so the husband must save his sincere wife. That is the duty.

In one letter Prabhupada says: "The wife becomes the devotee of her husband, and the husband becomes a devotee of Krsna." If the wife is a devotee of her husband her whole life, then naturally she will think of him at the time of death. That is logic. She may think of him, and then his instructions may remind her of Krsna. Or she may think of him, and go to him wherever he is. If he's with Krsna, then that's where she'll go. If he is liberated, then she is also liberated provided she is fully devoted to him. Chaste women understand these points very easily. The overwhelming majority of instructions from the books and letters indicate that the wife should be cent percent devoted to, and dependent on her husband, and not think she can be independent from him to learn to "fly on her own." This is in fact the only purport where such a concept is mentioned in relation to women. It is illogical to accept a meaning of this purport which contradicts everything else Srila Prabhupada had to say on the husband-wife relationship. Some careful thought must be there on how to interpret this purport. It should not be used as an excuse by women to think they don't need to be faithful to their husbands because they ultimately are on their own. That mentality will breed the kind of prostitution we see in ISKCON today. To illustrate this point, on the first page of Chapter Fourteen in The Nectar of Devotion, Prabhupada says that "performing artificial austerities will make the heart harder and harder." So does that mean we should forget the thousands of other places where Prabhupada says we must follow regulative principles? Hardly. There is a rational way to approach all such seeming contradictions as this. The tendency of most conditioned souls is to make an interpretation that allows the most sense gratification. And that is why Prabhupada very seldom gave such instructions as SB 1. 15.51 which can be misinterpreted by women to reject their husbands. Prabhupada always stressed the spiritual relationship elaborately described above.

So with this spiritual relationship in mind, what is the position of these ISKCON "sexyasis" who are claiming to be the guru of single women as well as other men's wives?

41. SEXYASI INTERFERENCE IN MARRIAGES

The most significant pitfall amongst devotee marriages today is that women are being misled into thinking they need to devote themselves to an ISKCON sexyasi, and not their husband, to go back to Godhead. This is an incredible hoax. Anyone knows that for two people to stay together, even in the mundane sense, they must be devoted to each other. Her husband's guru is automatically her guru, since a proper husband and wife are "two halves of the same body." There isn't the slightest possibility of this kind of intimacy if the were is having an illicit affair going on in her mind with another man. What to speak of intimacy, such a sexyasini wife will drain her husband's energy and give nothing in return. Instead she will give that energy, through her meditation, service, and worship, to her sexyasi "guru," who then thrives and increases his energy. She may even feel some ecstasy while chanting Hare Krsna and meditating on a sexyasi guru, but that is only illicit sex and will destroy her ability to chant purely in the future. Many men are weakened in their marriage relationship due to living with such sexyasinis. This is one of-and possibly the primary reason for-a man's feeling no inspiration from his wife. His enthusiasm is drained. Prabhupada often talks of men increasing their energy by dint of a good wife. Chanakya Pandit says a good wife is the same as the Goddess of Fortune. And conversely, Prabhupada goes so far as to say a man is only "ham a man" if he does not have a good wife."A person who does not have a chaste wife accepted by religious principles always has a bewildered intelligence." (SB, 4.26.17) This is a very important purport in this connection. It makes very clear how the husband is meant to be the only man in Ms wife's life. He may not be a pure devotee, but as long as he is sincere, and devoted to his own guru, he should have his wife's full devotion. If a sexyasi, who doesn't realize any of these truths-or doesn't care about them-tells a woman to leave her husband to devote herself to hilm, then he is automatically guilty of wife stealing and should be severely punished and even executed as explained below.

42. THE PUNISHMENT FOR WIFE STEALERS

"According to Vedic injunctions there are six kinds of aggressors: (1) A poison giver; (2) One who sets fire to the house; (3) One who attacks with deadly weapons; (4) One who plunders riches; (5) One who occupies another's land; and (6) One who kidnaps a wife. Such aggressors are at once to be killed, and no sin is incurred by killing such aggressors. Such killing of aggressors is quite befitting for any ordinary man, but Arjuna was not an ordinary person. He was saintly by character, and therefore he wanted to deal with them in saintliness. This kind of saintliness, however is not for a ksatriya. Although a responsible man in the administration of a state is required to be saintly, he should not be cowardly. (BG, 1.36)

Many sincere devotees of Srila Prabhupada have been aggressed upon in one or more of the manners listed above. Some have had their life savings stolen through very shrewd manipulation or outright embezzlement by sexyasis. This merits the death sentence. Some have donated land only to later be kicked out with nothing. This also merits the death sentence. But by far the most frequent crime committed by the sexyasis is stealing others' wives. By far, all of ISKCON's "gurus" should have been executed many times over by now, and they will in the end have to pay for all the damage they've done.

43. SEXYASIS CANNOT IMITATE PRABHUPADA

There are many women and children now living abominable lives because of these "gurus" interfering in their marriages, either subtly or grossly, directly or indirectly. In some cases the husband or wife may have been at fault, but very often the marriage never had a chance to get off the ground since the wives were told it was their religious duty to devote themselves to this "guru" instead of their husband. That means they were never really wives at all. If the guru were actually a saint following the standard set by Srila Prabhupada, then this problem would not be there. Prabhupada always encouraged the women to devote themselves "cent percent" to their husbands. That is the Vedic process. Prabhupada could initiate women because he is as pure as Krsna Himself. Since Krsna is already in everyone's heart, there is no significant difference with Prabhupada being there also. They are both actually the same person, in purity. They know what is best for the wife and will instruct her as such. That instruction is almost always to "stay with your husband-there is no divorce." But these new "gurus" have displayed their impurity in this connection. There have been blatant falldowns, and there is no need to detail them all. Only foolish devotees have not seen the subtle displays of sex life on the part of ISKCON's "gurus." One example is Bhavananda. He is frequently seen going out at night when he is in New York City wearing fancy clothes and perfume. We think everyone knows by now what he is looking for. Prabhupada was not a fool. He knew perfectly well that these sexyasis were not qualified to imitate him and therefore he gave the following instruction to warn us:

"Although he was a young man (Narada Muni), he could give shelter to a young woman (Hiranyakasipu's wife) and accept her service. Haridasa Thakura also spoke with a young woman, a prostitute, in the dead of night, but the woman could not deviate his mind... Ordinary persons, however, should not imitate such highly elevated devotees. Ordinary persons must strictly observe the rules and regulations by staying aloof from the association of women. No one should imitate Narada Muni or Haridasa Thakura... Narada Muni, Haridasa Thakura and similar acaryas especially empowered to broadcast the glories of the Lord cannot be brought down to the material platform." (SB, 7.7.14)

Here is where real problem lies. These sexyasis have convinced themselves that they are on the level of Haridasa Thakura, Narada Muni and empowered acaryas like Srila Prabhupada. This is proven by the fact that they are taking so much opulent and unauthorized worship in direct imitation of the great acaryas. But when confronted with, "Prove your advancement by your behavior." That they cannot do. Therefore Prabhupada, anticipating this syndrome, warns the sincere devotees as follows:

"It is recommended that one associate with devotees, but there must be some discrimination. Actually, a sadhu, a saintly person, must be saintly in his behavior (sadhavah sad-acarah). Unless one adheres to the standard behavior, one's position as a sadhu, a saintly person, is not complete. Therefore a Vaishnava, a sadhu, must completely adhere to the standard of behavior." (SB, 7.7.31)