Kena Upaniṣad - Chapter One, Text 3-5

A Song of Vraja (Vrajera Gīti)

By Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī ṬhākuraPublished On: June 12, 2026Tags: Vaiṣṇava History25 min read

Overview

This article is a discussion between Prabhupāda Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura and Professor Phaṇibhūṣaṇa Adhikārī on the limits of logic and the role of revelation in spiritual knowledge. Sarasvatī Ṭhākura argues that the Absolute Truth is realised through guru, śruti, and divine grace rather than independent speculation. The conversation concludes by affirming bhakti, hari-kathā, and śaraṇāgati (surrender) as the highest goal of life. This conversation was first published in The Gauḍīya (Vol. 12, Issue 35) in 4th April, 1934. Translated into English by Śrī Sanātana Dāsa Adhikārī and Parameśvarī Devī Dāsī.

18th Jyaiṣṭha, 1336, (1st June, 1929). At that time, on the seashore at Purī, in the grand building known as ‘Poḍakutī,’ the Śrī Puruṣottama Maṭha was established. Śrīla Prabhupāda was staying there. At five o’clock in the afternoon, the philosophy professor of Kāśī Hindu University, Śrīyuktā Phaṇibhūṣaṇa Adhikārī M.A. Mahāśaya arrived to meet Śrīla Prabhupāda and, after offering his respects, introduced himself. Śrīla Prabhupāda respectfully welcomed Professor Adhikārī Mahāśaya. Below is presented, in proper order, the conversation that took place between Śrīla Prabhupāda and Professor Adhikārī.

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Prof. Adhikārī: The first time I met you was when you delivered a lecture at Kāśī Hindu University under the auspices of Mahā-mahopādhyāya Pramathanātha Tarka-bhūṣaṇa Mahāśaya. The second time was on the train, when Amulya Bābu was with you. I have also seen that you have opened a branch maṭha in Kāśī.

Śrīla Prabhupāda: But we have not yet specifically begun preaching there.

Prof. Adhikārī: In this age of suspicion where people love to argue, nobody wants to hear the truth if we do not speak based on what is suitable for the present educated section. Although it is said nāyamātmā pravacanena labhyaḥ (‘the ātmā cannot be attained through eloquent lectures’), nevertheless, in order to make the modern educated and logically-minded section understand those śāstrika statements, education is necessary. After attaining expertise in all śāstras – vyākaraṇa (grammar), nyāya (logic), and darśana (philosophy) – Mahāprabhu left all of these and only propagated the glories of hari-nāma. But had He not been a logician and philosopher, then it is doubtful whether challengers such as Sārvabhauma Bhaṭṭācārya or many logicians in Navadvīpa, who were fond of debate, would have listened to what He had to say.

When I was principal of Delhi College, then the Sanskrit Paṇḍita Mahāśaya there used to teach the boys in the old-school way, similar to the old-fashioned way of tutoring, and would instruct the boys to rely on faith rather than the process of argument and reasoning. I used to tell Paṇḍita Mahāśaya, “You spend one period lecturing on faith and devotion, then we destroy all of that in the remaining six periods by teaching the students to become logical rationalists. What you say doesn’t seem to carry conviction even within yourself – how will you make others believe it?”

Please come to Kāśī, and preach there about Śrī Caitanyadeva – then perhaps the eyes of the educated people will be opened.

Śrīla Prabhupāda: I am incapable of any exertion now. I have become old, and I no longer have the strength to undertake any work.

Prof. Adhikārī: Why don’t you become the sāṅkhya-puruṣa?* Your presence itself is enough. By your mere presence everything will happen. If you simply sit there, all the educated disciples that you already have will be able to do everything.

*Editor’s Note: In Sāṅkhya philosophy, the Puruṣa is the conscious principle who does not act, but whose mere presence enables Prakṛti (material nature) to function. By this comparison, Professor Adhikārī is suggesting that even if Sarasvatī Ṭhākura does not actively engage in preaching work himself, simply by his presence and influence, others can be inspired and the work will naturally go on.

We also belong to a Vaiṣṇava guru-lineage. Many people often come to me, wishing to become disciples. I say, “People make disciples for two reasons – one, for business or money, and the other, to bestow the highest spiritual good. I earn money by other means, hence I have no necessity of making a business out of guruship for the sake of wealth. And as for the highest spiritual good, I have not accumulated any capital that I can give to you. In this regard, I myself am blind.”

In fact, many people come to become disciples due to worldly reasons. Guruship is indeed a very different task. When my father went to Kāśī as a sannyāsī, then many people used to come to him to become his disciples to fulfil various worldly necessities.

Śrīla Prabhupāda: Yes, Vidyāsāgara Mahāśaya also used to speak like this to a certain extent, but the highest spiritual good must certainly be attained. One must take shelter of the lotus feet of a genuine guru, and by continually glorifying this particular point, one must himself also become a guru. To deliberately remain laghu is a kind of self-deception.* Kavirāja Gosvāmī has most methodically discussed all these topics in Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta.

*Editor’s Note: In Sanskrit, laghu means light, small, insubstantial. Guru means heavy, large and substantial.

Prof. Adhikārī: Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta is the līlā-grantha of Śrī Caitanyadeva.*

*Editor’s Note: Līlā-grantha – a book dealing with the Lord’s pastimes.

Śrīla Prabhupāda: It is not just a mere līlā-grantha – it is an extraordinarily profound philosophical treatise. There is an explanation of philosophy along with the līlā of Mahāprabhu. The second līlā of Kṛṣṇa is śrī-caitanya-līlā, or Śrī Caitanya’s second līlā is kṛṣṇa-līlā. Following the path of Śrīmad Bhāgavata, Kavirāja Gosvāmī has written this book. In his introduction to Sarva-darśana, the professor of Deccan College, Mahā-mahopādhyāya Abhyankar has said that Rāmānuja and Madhva are covered logicians – in other words, they are not śrauta-panthi (followers of the path of Vedic revelation) – they are tarka-panthī.

Prof. Adhikārī: What is tarka-panthī?

Śrīla Prabhupāda: Those who approach the Absolute Truth in a challenging mood and go to attack It. The path of tarka (logic and argumentation) is contrary to the principle of tad viddhi praṇipātena paripraśnena sevayā. One consideration is, “I shall hear from the lotus feet of the guru who proclaims the Supreme Truth, and I shall try to come before him.” This is one kind of reasoning. Another consideration is, “By the power of my sensory knowledge, I shall sound out, test, and measure the transcendental Supreme Truth.” This is another kind of reasoning.

At the beginning of his commentary on the Bhāgavata, Śrī Madhva has spoken about this śrauta-patha and tarka-patha. That which is accepted by way of anvaya (direct affirmation) is the śrauta path, whereas that which is accepted by way of vyatireka (negation or exclusion) is the path of tarka. All five systems of philosophy are established upon the path of tarka; only Vedānta has accepted the śrauta path.

Ācārya Śaṅkara, for the purpose of deluding people, adopted the name of the śrauta path while actually conducting the method of tarka within Vedānta philosophy. Now, so-called educated people also consider ‘Vedānta’ to be the same as Śrī Śaṅkarācārya’s conception of tarka-patha.

The path of tarka is attained through an increase of ādhyakṣika-jñāna (empirical knowledge). Where perception (pratyakṣa) and inference (anumāna) serve as vehicles for śruti – meaning, where perception and inference are employed for the purpose of approaching and understanding śruti – that is one thing. But the misuse of perception and inference for the purpose of overturning śruti is another thing altogether. That alone is the army of the tarka school.

Śrī Madhvācārya described Śrī Śaṅkarācārya as a follower of the path of tarka. Śrīman Mahāprabhu also pointed out, “What right do I have to designate a few śruti-mantras as mahā-vākyas and the rest as secondary statements simply in order to establish my own opinion?”

“I shall accept those mantras of the śruti that are apparently directed toward Advaita, and I shall reject the mantras that are directed toward Dvaita, or else explain them according to my own self-concocted ideas” – such narrow-mindedness has been called śruti-virodha (in opposition to śruti). Just as, by protecting one part of a cow and cutting off another part, one only shows disrespect toward Mother Cow, similarly, of the cow, that is, of the śruti, to preserve those mantras which apparently milk out my desired purpose, while cutting away the other portions, is nothing but an attempt to destroy śruti. For this reason, Śrīman Mahāprabhu declared praṇava (oṁ) to be the mahā-vākya; from praṇava comes Gāyatrī, and from Gāyatrī comes the expansion of the Vedas. Praṇava pervades the beginning, the middle, and the end of all the Vedas. The Veda is divine (bhagavat); every limb of it is beautiful – it is not that some portion of it is inferior.

In this world, a sound heard by the ear is examined and verified by the other four senses besides the ear; this will hold good in reference to the phenomenal world. It is not so, however, in the case of transcendental phenomena.

Prof. Adhikārī: Even śruti needs to be verified with the help of tarka.

Śrīla Prabhupāda: Only those that think that bhakti can be obtained by karma and jñāna have such a conception.

Prof. Adhikārī: Śaṅkara has said that those smṛtis and purāṇas that are in conformity with śruti are to be accepted.

Śrīla Prabhupāda: Ācārya Śaṅkara has said this, but by activity, he has not acted accordingly – indeed, he was not sent into this world for the purpose of acting accordingly.

Prof. Adhikārī: Whether it be Śaṅkara, Madhva, or Rāmānuja – whoever may say whatever they say, all of them are one-sided; they have spoken in a manner favourable to their own positions. For the most part, they have relied upon the statements of the Purāṇas. Only one person accepted śruti alone, and he is not known by many people – Bhāskarācārya.

Śrīla Prabhupāda: Do you know from which era Bhāskarācārya’s text dates?

Prof. Adhikārī: After Śaṅkara, before Rāmānuja.

Śrīla Prabhupāda: No, that is not so. The Bhāskara whose doctrine is presented in the Vedānta-saṅgraha is not this Bhāskara; this is a modern, superimposed manuscript. I have this manuscript in my possession.

*Editor’s Note: Bhāskara is said to be a philosopher from the 8th or 9th century CE, who founded the Bhedābheda school of Vedānta. He was a strong opponent of Śaṅkara’s Advaita philosophy.

Prof. Adhikārī: It may be a forgery or genuine – it is nevertheless the true interpretation of Vedānta.

Śrīla Prabhupāda: You have accepted it since it matches with your own taste. This is merely the opinion of Dr. Sylvain Lévi and Gait.*

*Editor’s Note: Dr. Sylvain Lévi (1863-1935) was an influential French Indologist. Sir Edward Gait (1863–1950) was a prominent British civil servant, administrator, and historian in colonial India.

Prof. Adhikārī: I do not know the opinion of Dr. Sylvain Lévi.

Śrīla Prabhupāda: Surely you have seen Gait’s book.

Prof. Adhikārī: No, I have also not seen that in its entirety.

Śrīla Prabhupāda: They have stated that Śaṅkara’s doctrine is the interpretation of Vedānta that ought to be followed. In the commentary of Bhāskara, Mahāprabhu’s doctrine of Acintya-bhedābheda has been accepted.

Prof. Adhikārī: Only Vijñānabhikṣu has adopted the view of the commentary of Bhāskara. He was also a devotee.*

*Editor’s Note: Vijñānabhikṣu was a 15th century philosopher from Bihar who attempted to unify various schools of thought such as Vedānta, Yoga and Sāṅkhya.

Śrīla Prabhupāda: He is not a devotee at all.

Prof. Adhikārī: Can there be bhakti without intelligence, without deliberation, without knowledge?

Śrīla Prabhupāda: But the knowledge should be Absolute. Each person has regulated his interpretation of śruti from a particular standpoint and angle. If someone has no standpoint at all, would he not be called a lunatic?

Prof. Adhikārī: Where does a standpoint come from?

Śrīla Prabhupāda: One kind of standpoint comes through the āmnāya-paramparā (disciplic succession), and another kind comes through the path of tarka.

Professor: That is also śruti.

Śrīla Prabhupāda: They have also called the path of tarka ‘śruti,’ but we shall describe it only as pracchanna-śrauta (‘pseudo-śrauta’) or merely śrauta-bruva (‘that which claims to be śrauta’). Where lies the contention between Śaṅkarācārya and Rāmānujācārya and Madhvācārya? They say that the followers of Śaṅkara’s doctrine are ārohavādīs (followers of the ascending method). They do not accept avatāra-vāda (the doctrine of descending knowledge). When a sādhu is pointing out a thief, crying, “There is the thief! There is the thief!,” the thief, seeking a means of escape, also points toward the sādhu and cries, “There is the thief!”

Prof. Adhikārī: Yes.

Śrīla Prabhupāda: Because the mantras of śruti appear to be mutually conflicting, the Bādarāyaṇa-sūtras (Vedānta) manifested in order to show their systematic harmony. We are not speaking of the kind of interpretation you mentioned in connection with the scholar of Delhi College. That is simply ‘intellectual indigestion’ – a forced attempt to display one’s own pedantic style. Such a tendency is called vipralipsā. Vipralipsā means the intention to deceive – to mislead people through words, through sentiments, through emotional temperament, and through exceedingly subtle sophistry and intellectual trickery. And this is called impartiality!

I am attempting to interpret statements concerning the turīya state within the framework of the three ordinary states of consciousness!* I have never gone to the second floor, yet my hand somehow reaches there; I have grasped something from there – or so I imagine! My present equipment is incapable of measuring the things that exist there. Yet if I take upon myself the burden of those things and then attempt to patch everything together with forced explanations, that becomes vipralipsā. If one who has not come from the realm of Vaikuṇṭha speaks about it, error will inevitably enter into his words. What we take to be ‘experience’ is simply an opinion that conforms to our own taste.

Prof. Adhikārī: For those who are proceeding along the path of knowledge, that kind of method will be natural to them. I shall say what I feel – it may be that there is some error in it.

Śrīla Prabhupāda: If you have doubts that there may be an error in it, then how can you make it the basis of the Supreme Truth? How can that which you understand through your defective organs be correct? Śaṅkarācārya’s guru was Govindapāda; his guru was Gauḍapāda, the commentator on the Sāṅkhya-kārikā…

Prof. Adhikārī: There is a great difference between Śaṅkarācārya’s views and those of his guru. He is certainly not a follower of Sāṅkhya.

Śrīla Prabhupāda: It can be clearly demonstrated from Śaṅkarācārya’s commentary that there is, in a concealed form within Śaṅkarācārya’s writings, the māyāvāda of atheistic Sāṅkhya.

Prof. Adhikārī: Then, until realisation is attained, no one will be able to speak about the truth.

Śrīla Prabhupāda: The realisation of a jīva afflicted by defects such as bhrama (illusion) and pramāda (error) will not do. Whatever the Vaiṣṇavas speak, they are not speaking words of their own manufacture or imagination; in every case they are pointing toward the lotus feet of the guru. The guru is not ten or five (i.e., there are not many independent gurus).

mannāthaḥ śrī-jagannātho mad-guruḥ śrī-jagad-guruḥ

My Lord is Śrī Jagannātha. My guru is the guru of the entire world.”

The Absolute Truth requires no challenge from anybody.

Prof. Adhikārī: Then that guru can have no limit. That guru may be found in all religions.

Śrīla Prabhupāda: Leave aside all talk of “all religions.” Just as the lotus feet of the guru are one without a second, so religion is also one. Its name is ātma-dharma (the religion of the ātmā). Whatever is not ātma-dharma is merely the religion of the body and the mind. In this world one hears of many opinions and many paths pertaining to bodily and mental religions, but such discussions do not concern ātma-dharma.

Ātma-dharma is one without a second, yet it is not devoid of variety. It is not a monotonous religion. It is the natural and spontaneous function of the pure, spotless self, free from all worldly coverings and limitations.

Those religions which serve as steps leading toward that ātma-dharma may be accepted to some extent insofar as they are favourable. But those which are distorted reflections of ātma-dharma can never be accepted in any way. They merely create thousands upon thousands of paths and present the riddle, yata mata, tata patha (‘as many opinions, so many paths’). Through a ‘conduit pipe,’ the current of Supreme Truth is flowing down to us.

Prof. Adhikārī: The Christians also say, “We have a conduit pipe.”

Śrīla Prabhupāda: Very well. If that pipe is connected with the Supreme Truth, then truth may also be present within it. But if one hundred percent of the truth does not come through that pipe – if somewhere it becomes covered or contracted – then what follows?

If thousands of shopkeepers each claim that the commodities in their own individual shops are genuine, will all of them thereby become the one and only genuine article? And in the name of harmony, must we then say that all are equal?

Or, since everyone is claiming that the goods in his own shop are the only ones that are good, must we therefore propagate the mistaken, atheistic notion that nowhere in the world is there a single perfectly good thing, or that all religions are equal? What logic is there in that?

Prof. Adhikārī: People will accept a religion according to their own faith, devotion, and taste.

Śrīla Prabhupāda: This is the talk of an atheist. The faith, devotion, and taste of one who is bahirmukha (averse to the Supreme) are all turned outward. Such statements are made by those who have already decided beforehand that the Supreme Truth is impersonal and nirviśeṣa (devoid of attributes). But those who acknowledge the absolute independence and sovereignty of the Supreme Lord know that the impersonal conception of the Supreme is an incomplete and monotonous conception.

The Supreme Lord is a relisher of divine play (līlā-vilāsī). A human being or any living creature can never accept the Truth by means of his outward-turned faith, taste, and devotion. When the Supreme Truth mercifully descends of His own accord, then He reveals Himself.

As to what is truly worthy of acceptance, caitya-guru (the indwelling guide) mercifully makes it known to one who is sevonmukhata (sincerely inclined toward service).

Prof. Adhikārī: Who is caitya-guru?

Śrīla Prabhupāda: The vyaṣṭi-parameśvara, the individual Godhead, resides within every infinitesimal conscious being. It is He who is described in the śruti-mantra beginning with dvā suparṇā.*

*Editor’s Note:
dvā suparṇā sayujā sakhāyā samānaṁ vṛkṣaṁ praiṣasvajāte
tayor anyaḥ pippalaṁ svādv atty anaśnann anyo’bhicakāśīti

Two bird-companions sit together in the same tree. One of them eats the sweet fruit of the tree, while the other looks on without eating. (Munḍaka Upaniṣad 3.1.1)

Prof. Adhikārī: Then the passage from the Kaṭha Upaniṣad that you cited amounts simply to grace.

Śrīla Prabhupāda: From this mantra I wish to establish the ‘Personality of Godhead.’ What I am saying is that He possesses the faculty of taking initiative. God has independence. He is the complete Personal Reality (pūrṇa-vigraha), the controller of the powers of knowledge (jñāna-śakti), action (kriyā-śakti), and will (icchā-śakti). Whatever knowing, feeling, and willing exist within us are present in Him in their fullest measure. The moment we forget that He is the Fountainhead, kṛṣṇa-māyā will attack us – she will cause errors in our judgment – she will make us mistake non-discrimination for discrimination.

Everything belongs to the lotus feet of Kṛṣṇa. All of Kṛṣṇa’s potencies are present there. His manifestation, appearance, or revelation takes place in viśuddha-sattva (pure goodness). He is not a particular historical individual, nor merely the referent of the word tat (‘that’). Only the person upon whom Kṛṣṇa bestows His mercy will have a heart illuminated by viśuddha–sattva. The vision that arises in a heart effulgent with viśuddha-sattva – that alone is true sudarśana (the proper vision), and that alone is genuine realisation of sat-cit-ānanda.

The experience of a heart whose sattva is mixed with rajas and tamas is merely the path of mental conceptualisation (bhāvanāra patha). Until one goes beyond this path of mental conceptualisation, one cannot obtain entrance into the search for aprākṛta-rasa (transcendental mellows).

Prof. Adhikārī: Can those who have seen Bhagavān engage in preaching?

Śrīla Prabhupāda: They indeed are the principal preachers. Countless preachers may preach by following them. After obtaining direct realisation of the Complete Person, Vyāsadeva became peaceful in mind and then preached the Bhāgavata. Śukadeva, the Nava-Yogendras and others who were ātmarāma (satisfied in the self), all travelled as wandering mendicants and preached the message of ātma-dharma. Becoming lost in trance is not the meaning of bhagavat-sākṣātkāra (direct experience of Bhagavān).

Hari-kathā and kīrtana have such qualities that they attract even the ātmārāmas. It is the supremely liberated souls who go about preaching hari-kathā. Śrīman Mahāprabhu and His associates preached hari-kathā everywhere.

Thousands upon thousands of questions will arise, but if one hears a single hari-kathā properly, the answers to all those questions will be found therein. One must not become impatient.

Prof. Adhikārī: Please continue with your previous point.

Śrīla Prabhupāda: The Supreme Lord is not something covered by māyā. As Sadānanda Yogīndra has said:

etad-upahitaṁ caitanyaṁ … īśvara iti ca vyapadiśyate

This means – “Consciousness conditioned by collective ignorance (samaṣṭi-ajñāna) is designated by such names as sarvajñā (omniscient), sarveśvara (the Lord of all), sarva–niyanta (the Regulator of all), sat (spirit) asat (matter), avyakta (the unmanifest), Antaryāmin (the Indwelling Monitor), jagat-kāraṇa (the Cause of the universe), and īśvara (the Controller).” This is from the Vedānta-sāra.

Prof. Adhikārī: What is the means of attaining freedom from knowledge associated with māyā?

Śrīla Prabhupāda: It is only through the pure āmnāya (revelation through the disciplic succession) that the stream of the Supreme Truth flows. As the śruti says:

brahmā devānāṁ prathamaḥ sambabhūva
viśvasya kartā bhuvanasya goptā
brahma-vidyāṁ sarva-vidyā-pratiṣṭhām
atharvāya jyeṣṭha-putrāya prāha

Brahmā, the first among the gods, the creator of the universe and protector of the worlds, imparted brahma-vidyā, the foundation of all knowledge, to Atharvā, his eldest son. (Muṇḍaka Upaniṣad 1.1.1)

Therefore, that pure path of āmnāya must be followed.

Prof. Adhikārī: In the Old Testament also, in the account of Jacob, there is mention of receiving the grace of God through such an āmnāya-paramparā.

Śrīla Prabhupāda: If we truly seek the Supreme Truth, we shall find the genuine śrauta path – we shall receive the disciplic succession of a complete follower of the śrauta path. And to the extent that we possess other desires (anyābhilāṣa), to that extent we shall receive a disciplic succession coloured by those desires.

The śaukra path (the seminal line) and the śrauta path, the fallen lineage (cyuta-gotra) and the infallible lineage (acyuta-gotra), the worldly āmnāya and the transcendental āmnāya – these are distinct from one another.

We are not prepared to accept anything spoken by mental speculationists. We do not wish to hear anything of the ascending method (adhiroha-vāda); we wish to hear of the descending conclusion (avaroha-siddhānta).

The rays of the sun fall upon our eyes directly and unobstructed from the sun itself. By the aid of those rays we see the sun and all the varieties of creation. When the sun’s rays pass through a moist atmosphere, they undergo refraction – they become distorted in transmission.

If there is no interference from the path of tarka, then śabda-brahman (divine sound) comes directly and presents itself upon the eardrum. But if one then demands further corroboration, one is obliged to locate that sound within the mundane horizon.

Prof. Adhikārī: I have heard śabda. In what way is the meaning to be realised?

Śrīla Prabhupāda: The sound itself will reveal the meaning. Sound has two kinds of functions – ajña-rūḍhi-vṛtti (the conventional meaning) and vidvad-rūḍhi-vṛtti (the esoteric meaning). When Mahāprabhu was enacting the manifestation of vidvad-rūḍhi-vṛtti, then, while teaching grammar to His students, He explained everything as referring to Kṛṣṇa – nominal bases (prātipadika), verbal roots (dhātu), grammatical aphorisms (sūtra) – everything was Kṛṣṇa.
Again, when He was running toward Nīlācala, where ordinary people saw forests, jungles, mountains, cows, etc. But for Mahāprabhu –

vana dekhi bhrama haya ei vṛndāvana
śaila dekhi mana haya ei govardhana
yāhā nadī dekhe tāhā mānaye kālindī
dekhi harṣe mahāprabhu rahe niravadhi

Seeing a forest, He became bewildered, thinking, “This is Vṛndāvana.” Seeing a hill, His mind thought, “This is Govardhana.” Whatever river He saw, He accepted it to be the Yamunā. Seeing these things, Mahāprabhu remained continuously in joy. (Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Madhya-līlā 17.55-56)

Here, the term bhrama does not mean that Mahāprabhu was under any misconception. In reality, it appears as a misconception only to those whose vision is governed by ordinary, bahirmukha worldly reasoning. That is the point Kavirāja Gosvāmī is making.

Prof. Adhikārī: Then the vidvad-rūḍhi-vṛtti must come from Him.

Śrīla Prabhupāda: It is already present in the sound itself.

Prof. Adhikārī: From where must my capacity come?

Śrīla Prabhupāda: It must come from śabda-brahman.

Prof. Adhikārī: Then I also must become prepared.

Śrīla Prabhupāda: By service to the lotus feet of the Śrī Guru, mercy is obtained and one becomes properly prepared.

(In this connection, Śrīla Prabhupāda also spoke about the Vaḍagalai and Tenkalai branches of the Śrī sampradāya, and the episode of how Varavaramuni resolved the dispute between the two through logical reasoning.)*

*Editor’s Note: Varavaramuni, or Manavala Mamunigal (1370–1443 CE), was a 14th-century Śrī Vaiṣṇava ācārya in the Tenkalai paramparā.

Prof. Adhikārī: Śrī Caitanyadeva has said “just chant the Name.”

Śrīla Prabhupāda: To ‘chant the Name’ means to stretch the hand and approach Him.

Prof. Adhikārī: Then this means that one must call upon Him with bhakti and śraddhā; and by repeatedly calling, He will reveal the esoteric meaning, the vidvad-rūḍhi.

Śrīla Prabhupāda: He exists within as caitya-guru and externally as the mahānta-guru (the guru who is externally manifest). Yādṛśī bhāvanā yasya siddhir bhavati tādṛśī – as is one’s contemplation, so becomes one’s attainment. If I am sincere, He will also show me the sincere mahānta-guru.

Thousands upon thousands of people may come with petitions, but the authority to grant approval belongs to Him. Why He will or will not grant it, we cannot say. He is not the gardener of our garden. We should remain patient, free from ulterior desires, and become inclined toward His service.

Prof. Adhikārī: Very beautiful words indeed.

Śrīla Prabhupāda: (To Rai Saheb Prāṇakṛṣṇa Sen, pointing toward Professor Adhikārī) He is a great thinker, an outstanding professor of philosophy, a D.Litt. (Doctor of Letters) in Sanskrit – and I am a great fool.

Prof. Adhikārī: Please do not embarrass us further! We cannot stand before you. You are the greatest philosophical scholar, yet you are tṛṇād api sunīca (lower than a blade of grass), a great Vaiṣṇava. I am stunned and amazed by your incomparable scholarship. I have never seen elsewhere such a combination of erudition and bhakti – like a union of gold and gems. Now please call out to the Lord – give us some rasa. There is no further need of argumentation.

Śrīla Prabhupāda:

śravaṇaṁ kīrtanaṁ viṣṇoḥ smaraṇaṁ pāda-sevanam
arcanaṁ vandanaṁ dāsyaṁ sakhyam ātma-nivedanam
iti puṁsārpitā viṣṇau bhaktir cen nava-lakṣaṇā
kriyeta bhagavaty addhā tan manye ’dhītam uttamam

Hearing and chanting about Viṣṇu, remembering Him, serving His lotus feet, worshipping Him, offering prayers, serving as a servant, friendship, and complete self-surrender. If devotion to Viṣṇu, endowed with the nine characteristics, is offered by a person to Bhagavān, then I consider that indeed to be the best learning (Śrīmad Bhāgavatam 7.5.23-24)

“Śaraṇāgati is our goal.” – saying this, Śrīla Prabhupāda asked Śrīyukta Īśāna Dāsa Bhakti-vigraha Prabhu to perform a kīrtana. He then sang a song from the book Śaraṇāgati of Śrīla Ṭhākura Bhaktivinoda:

mānasa deha geha yo kichu mora
arpilaṅ tuyā pade nanda-kiśora

My mind, body, home—whatever is mine, I have offered at Your feet, O Nanda-kiśora.

About the Author: Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura

Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura Prabhupāda appeared in this world in Jagannātha Purī in 1874. He was the son of Śrīla Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura. Learning Gauḍīya Vaiṣṇava philosophy from his esteemed father, he took initiation from the renowned ascetic, Śrī Gaura Kiśora Dāsa Bābāji in 1900. After accepting the sannyāsa order in 1918, he founded the Gauḍīya Maṭha with 64 centres in India and 3 abroad. Travelling the length and breadth of the subcontinent propagating the teachings of Śrī Caitanya, he departed from this world in 1937. He was the guru of many stalwart Vaiṣṇava ācāryas such as Śrīla A.C. Bhaktivedānta Swami Prabhupāda, Śrīla B.R. Śrīdhara Deva Gosvāmī and Śrīla B.P. Purī Gosvāmī.