Prakrta-rasa Aranya Chedini - Cutting the Jungle of Misconception - Swami B.G. Narasingha MaharajaChapter 10 - The Golden Age
Prakrta-rasa Aranya Chedini - Cutting the Jungle of Misconception - Swami B.G. Narasingha MaharajaChapter 12 - Disappearance of the Guru

Prākṛta-rasa Āraṇya Chedinī – Cutting the Jungle of Misconception

Chapter 11 – Deliverer or Instrumental Guru?

“Deliverer or Instrumental Guru’ written by Śrīla Narasiṅgha Mahārāja deals with an idea that was being peddled that Śrīla Prabhupāda is the guru that will actually deliver all his followers for the next 10,000 years, and all gurus after him are simply ‘instrumental’.

Devotee: We read an article where the author begins by establishing certain well-known scholars from the Rāmānuja and Madhva sampradāyas (most notably Śrī Raṅgapriya Svāmī Deśikācārya and Vidyāvācaspati Bannanje Govindācārya) as authoritative sources of transcendental knowledge regarding guru-tattva. In that article the author tries to establish that Śrīla Prabhupāda (A. C. Bhaktivedānta Svāmī Prabhupāda) is the deliverer guru for the duration of 10,000 years whereas the present day gurus and all gurus in the future are only instrumental gurus who assist the deliverer guru. Is this in any way correct?

Narasiṅgha Mahārāja: We have personally had the pleasure to meet Śrī Raṅgapriya Svāmī Deśikācārya and Bannanje Govindācārya on several occasions, and we are happy to say that they are indeed scholars and sincere devotees of Śrī Rāmānujācārya and Śrī Madhvācārya, respectively.

We also agree that what the Madhva and Rāmānuja scholars have stated with regard to guru-tattva is indeed true to their creed and applicable to their sampradāya.

However, the conception of guru-tattva in the Madhva tradition is quite different from the concept of guru-tattva accepted in the Gauḍīya sampradāya. The fact that Madhva himself could not accept the pastime wherein Brahmā (the original guru of both his and our sampradāya) became illusioned, is itself conclusive evidence for this statement. While Madhva omitted the section of Bhāgavatam known as Brahmā-vimohana-līlā from his version, the illusion of Brahmā was accepted by Śrīdhara Svāmī, the original commentator on the Bhāgavatam, and Śrīdhara Svāmī’s commentary was accepted by Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu.

That which is useful to Gauḍīyas in Madhva’s commentary is certainly negligible compared to that of Śrīdhara Svāmī. Most notably, Madhva accepted Viṣṇu as the āśraya-tattva (ultimate shelter), whereas Śrīdhara Svāmī accepted Śrī Vṛndāvana-candra (Kṛṣṇa) as the āśraya-tattva, and śaraṅāgati (surrender) as the ultimate sādhana or means to the end.

Bearing this in mind, it would be safe to say that guidance from the Madhva tradition in the matter of understanding guru-tattva among the Gauḍīyas is indeed of limited value in the ultimate issue. Although it may appear to be helpful to some devotees at this present time, as there seems to be a glaring inability for many to understand our own tradition from within, it will nonetheless lead to difficulty in the future.

The teachings of Rāmānuja are much closer to Gauḍīya siddhānta than those of Madhva. In the conception of Rāmānuja, śaraṇāgati plays the essential role, as it does in the teachings of Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu. Regarding topics like dīkṣā, arcana, and sannyāsa, there are also more similarities between the Rāmānujas and the Gauḍīyas than there are between the Madhvas and the Gauḍīyas. Our connection with the Madhvas is actually one of form, whereas our connection with the Rāmānujas is based more on substance. The similarity between the Rāmānujas and Gauḍīyas is certainly an interesting topic, but it is not the topic of this essay and can therefore be dealt with separately at another time.

Overall, the numerous rudimentary points regarding the Founder- ācārya and the gurus that succeed him were well addressed in the article under discussion. There is a need, however, for some clarification.

It is true that Madhvācārya and Rāmānujācārya each hold unique positions in their respective sampradāyas as uddhāraka-guru (deliverer-guru). Correctly speaking, however, the deliverer-guru of the Rāmānuja sect is Nammālvār, one of the twelve Ālvars from whose writings Rāmānuja drew his doctrine of śaraṇāgati (surrender).

Although Rāmānuja regarded himself to be an upakāraka-guru (instrumental-guru), he is nonetheless regarded as the head of the Śrī sampradāya in modern times, the uddhāraka-guru.

One might ask that since Rāmānuja considered himself an instrumental-guru, how is it that his followers consider him the deliverer-guru? The answer can be traced to the fact that it was Śrī Rāmānuja who gave shape to the Visiṣṭhādvaita philosophy (not accomplished previously by Nammālvār) by writing a commentary on Vedānta-sūtra. However, it can also be said that one who knows the answer to this question knows the secret of the guru-paramparā.

The uddhāraka-guru position held by Rāmānuja and Madhva in their respective successions, has already been given to Śrīla Rūpa Gosvāmī Prabhupāda in our Gauḍīya sampradāya by none other than Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu, 500 years ago.

Our Śrīla Prabhupāda (A. C. Bhaktivedānta Svāmī Mahārāja) does not hold the same position as Madhva or Rāmānuja, since he did not introduce a new philosophical system or establish a sampradāya based on such. That was accomplished by Śrīla Rūpa Gosvāmī, and hence we (even Śrīla Prabhupāda, Sarasvatī Ṭhākura and Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura) are all known as rūpānugās, followers of Śrīla Rūpa Gosvāmī.

Without being a rūpānugā, one cannot be a prabhupādānugā (as followers of Śrīla Prabhupāda are sometimes called), and vice-versa. Śrīla Prabhupāda established his mission within an existing sampradāya, for preaching purposes only. His mission was not intended to be a separate sampradāya from that which was already established in the 20th century by Sarasvatī Ṭhākura and Śrīla Bhaktivinoda. If it were a separate sampradāya, then a new tilaka would also be necessary for the mission, along with substantially more commentary — including a new commentary on the Vedānta-sūtra in Sanskrit, showing how Śrīla Prabhupāda’s conception differed from that of his predecessor ācāryas. Indeed no intelligent disciple would entertain such a thought for even a moment.

śrī-caitanya-mano-bhiṣṭaṁ sthāpitaṁ yena bhū-tale
svayaṁ rūpaḥ kadā māhyaṁ dadāti sva-padāntikam

“When will Śrīla Rūpa Gosvāmī Prabhupāda, who has established within this material world the mission to fulfill the desire of Śrī Caitanyadeva, give me shelter under his lotus feet.”

I do not think that either the institutionalized devotees or the ṛtvik proponents have understood this basic point. Śrīla Rūpa Gosvāmī is the head (uddhāraka-guru) of our sampradāya in this world, and in the spiritual world also he is our supreme leader in the form of Śrī Rūpa Mañjarī. (The sampradāya of the Gauḍīyas has descended from Goloka Vṛndāvana and its ontology is complete therein.)

It seems that both institutionalized devotees and the ṛtvik proponents, each in their own way, want to put Śrīla Prabhupāda in the place of Rūpa Gosvāmī. This appears to be the case largely because a vast majority of devotees have no proper ontological understanding of siddhānta. The idea that Śrīla Prabhupāda is the head of the sampradāya for the next 10,000 years has no basis in spiritual reality. It appears that many devotees are simply driven by mundane sentimentality, compounded with vaiṣṇava-aparādha. The result of this is complete bewilderment!

The position of Śrīla Rūpa Gosvāmī has been conclusively established by Sarasvatī Ṭhākura in his last instructions before leaving the mortal world: “All of you please preach about Śrī Rūpa and Śrī Raghunātha with great enthusiasm. The supreme goal of all our desires is to become specks of dust at the lotus feet of the followers of Śrī Rūpa Gosvāmī.”

Again, the supreme position of Śrīla Rūpa Gosvāmī in the Gauḍīya sampradāya is made clear by Narottama Dāsa Ṭhākura in his song, Śrī Rūpa Mañjarī Pada: 

śrī-rūpa-mañjarī-pada,   sei mora sampada
sei mor bhajana-pūjana

sei mora prāṇa-dhana,   sei mora ābharaṇa,
sei mor jīvanera jīvana

“The feet of Śrī Rūpa Mañjarī (Rūpa Gosvāmī’s eternal form as a gopī of Vraja) are my real wealth. They are the object of my bhajana and pūjā. They are the treasure of my heart, and they are my ornaments and the life of my life.

Actually, Śrīla Prabhupāda (A. C. Bhaktivedānta Svāmī Mahārāja) was an upakāraka-guru (instrumental-guru), in that he delivered his disciples to the lotus feet of Śrīla Rūpa Gosvāmī (the uddhāraka-guru, the deliverer-guru).

As for Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu, He is our iṣṭa-deva or the most worshipable Deity of our sampradāya. But this too, many devotees do not understand. Actually anyone who does not accept these basic conclusions regarding the position of Śrīla Rūpa Gosvāmī and that of Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu is a kaniṣṭha disciple, at best.

There is no indication by anyone from the Madhva or Rāmānuja sampradāyas that the instrumental-guru cannot be a liberated soul or pure devotee, as is the deliverer-guru. The fact that all the ācāryas in our paramparā since the time of Mahāprabhu were pure devotees does not alter the fact that they were instrumental-gurus, and Śrīla Rūpa Gosvāmī was the deliverer-guru.

Therefore, our conclusion is that Śrīla Prabhupāda does not become the head of a new sampradāya because he was a pure devotee, the Founder-ācārya of an institution or even a śaktyāveśa-avatāra (which we believe he was). In fact, to become a pure devotee of Kṛṣṇa is the necessary qualification to become guru of any kind, either uddhāraka or upakāraka! There are no short cuts. This is also not understood by the institutionalized devotees or the ṛtviks.

If I’m not mistaken, the Madhvas and the Rāmānujas understand this point to some degree, but the fact is that they have similar problems in their own sampradāyas. For example, being a pure Vaiṣṇava is not enough to initiate in their sampradāyas; one has to be born a brāhmaṇa, and this is often a contention in the Madhva and Rāmānuja sampradāyas.

An interesting point to note here is that the proponents of Śrīla Prabhupāda as the deliverer-guru are prepared to inquire from advanced scholars outside our sampradāya, who know nothing of the teachings of Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu and the Six Gosvāmīs, for a solution to their problems. But they refuse to inquire from advanced scholars and devotees who are surrendered souls at the lotus feet of Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu. Some devotees are prepared to accept the advice of those who are in complete ignorance of the divinity of Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu, but they are averse to accept the advice of Mahāprabhu’s direct representatives. Such a mentality could easily get one classified as a fool and a rascal.

It seems that the author of the article we are discussing does indeed understand the difference between the uddhāraka-guru and the upakāraka-guru, save that he does not understand the position of Śrīla Prabhupāda. It appears that the leaders of Śrīla Prabhupāda’s mission are trying to get out of a difficult situation with the ṛtviks, but without help from advanced Vaiṣṇavas they cannot come to conclusive answers, at least answers that others will accept. Because they endure in their offenses to the senior members of our sampradāya, they have no opportunity to approach them (either personally or through books).

All these questions regarding the position of Śrīla Prabhupāda, and those gurus who would succeed him were already answered 20 years ago (1978) by Śrīla Śrīdhara Mahārāja. Unfortunately, many of the devotees in leadership positions in the western Vaiṣṇava communities have amnesia regarding this fact. But fortunately for all, the answers given by Śrīla Śrīdhara Mahārāja regarding guru-tattva were recorded and published in a book called Śrī Guru and His Grace. This book is recommended reading material for any and all devotees who would like clarification on guru-tattva.

At the conclusion of the article we are discussing, the author summarizes that Śrīla Prabhupāda is the deliverer-guru and that he takes everyone back to Godhead. Yet, such a statement is not found anywhere in the teachings of Śrīla Prabhupāda (books, letters, room conversations, or lectures, etc.). The conception that the institution established by Śrīla Prabhupāda is a sampradāya separate from the line of Śrīla Rūpa Gosvāmī is possibly the biggest deviation from the principles of pure devotional service to have occurred in our sampradāya since the reject sons of Advaita Ācārya began to preach impersonalism.

By Published On: September 16, 2022
Prakrta-rasa Aranya Chedini - Cutting the Jungle of Misconception - Swami B.G. Narasingha MaharajaChapter 10 - The Golden Age
Prakrta-rasa Aranya Chedini - Cutting the Jungle of Misconception - Swami B.G. Narasingha MaharajaChapter 12 - Disappearance of the Guru
Avatar of Śrīla Bhakti Gaurava Narasiṅgha Mahārāja
Śrīla Bhakti Gaurava Narasiṅgha Mahārāja (Jagat Guru Swami) appeared on Annadā Ekādaśī at Corpus Christi, USA in 1946. After studies in haṭha-yoga, he took initiation from his guru, Śrīla A.C. Bhaktivedānta Swami Prabhupāda in 1970 and preached in the African continent for 3 years before accepting sannyāsa in 1976. After Prabhupāda’s disappearance, Śrīla Narasiṅgha Mahārāja took śīkṣā (spiritual instruction) from Śrīla B.R. Śrīdhara Deva Gosvāmī and Śrīla B.P Purī Gosvāmī. Although he spent most of his spiritual life preaching in India, Narasiṅgha Mahārāja also travelled to Europe, Mexico and the United States to spread the message of his spiritual masters. He penned over 200 essays and 13 books delineating Gauḍīya Vaiṣṇava siddhānta. He left this world in his āśrama in South India in 2020.