Staunch and liberal at the same time

Hiraëyakaçipu had four wonderful, well-qualified sons, of whom the one named Prahläda was the best. Indeed, Prahläda was a reservoir of all transcendental qualities because he was an unalloyed devotee of the Personality of Godhead.

Purport by Srila Prabhupada:

yasyästi bhaktir bhagavaty akiïcanä

sarvair guëais tatra samäsate suräù

"In one who has unflinching devotional faith in Kåñëa, all the good qualities of Kåñëa and the demigods are consistently manifest." (SB 5.18.12)

Prahläda Mahäräja is praised herein for having all good qualities because of worshiping the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Therefore, a pure devotee, who has no motives, has all good qualities, material and spiritual. If one is spiritually advanced, being a staunch, liberal devotee of the Lord, all good qualities are manifest in his body. On the other hand, haräv abhaktasya kuto mahad-guëäù: if one is not a devotee, even if he has some materially good qualities, they have no value. That is the verdict of the Vedas.

It is interesting that here Srila Prabhupada uses the adjectives staunch and liberal in the same line. Sometimes in the material dealings staunch and liberal are opposite; for example, being staunch follower of an idea often narrows down one’s perspective and as a result he becomes unable to appreciate others’ views. One of the reasons might be that the so-called staunch follower is not so convinced about his allegiance after all. Deep conviction, or realisation, comes from proper application of knowledge in day to day live. If one does not apply his professed philosophy in all aspects of his life as a result it will remain on the surface as a theoretical understanding.

Karl Jung uses the term “persona” to signify a similar phenomena when an idea possesses a man, instead of a man possessing an idea. When this is the case it is hard to be liberal and appreciative of others’ ideas because the very existence of the “otherness” threatens your identity or even your existence. For example you and your friend honor prasadam at Govinda’s restaurant. If you have asked for rise, dahl and subji, and your friend has ordered pizza and French fries, this might result in an enjoyable dinner with lively Krishna conscious discussion. However, it might also trigger a reaction based on insecurity. Confronted with a choice different from your own, you might become doubtful about your won choice of pizza and fries. Such insecurity can also manifest as an assault against the choice of your friend.

Being a stanch follower of something usually implies that you staunchly reject everything else. But an advanced devotee is staunch in his commitment to Krishna and in his presentation of the Bhakti - Vedanta philosophy, and at the same time he is liberal with all other opinions because he sees them in their natural positions as stages that are meant to lead one to Krishna. A devotee should not just reject the materialistic ideas, ideally he should be able to point out how they are actually connected to Krishna. In logic this is called upanaya, you demonstrate how the Vaisnava siddhanta is superior to all other philosophies by including them and resolving perfectly their inherent contradictions. Thus the devotee is able to be staunch and liberal, firm and soft, resolute and compassionate at the same time. Just like Stila Prabhupada, who himself gave the example of the Guru being soft as a rose and hard as a thunderbolt.

The advanced devotee has heard, understood and applied the knowledge in his life and as a result he has realised it fully. Therefore he is never insecure or doubtful about his position or the position of devotional service. Therefore he can face the “otherness” with understanding and compassion. Being a staunch devotee actually means being liberal.

In the verse it is stated that Prahläda Maharaja was a reservoir of all transcendental qualities because he was an unalloyed devotee of the Personality of Godhead. Srila Prabhupada writes in his purport that a pure devotee, who has no motives, has all good qualities, material and spiritual. This is also an interesting concept. One has all the good qualities because he is a pure devotee of the Lord, not vise versa, because this person seemingly has all the good qualities, he must be a great devotee of the Lord. The good qualities, as everything else, are a property of the Lord. The Lord, by His sweet will, decides to bestow good qualities to His devotees. If somebody is not a devotee and appears to have many good qualities we should know that, yes, it is just an appearance. One experiences the results of his activities by being situated in the different modes of nature, which are constantly changing and fighting for supremacy. When one experiences the results of pious acts he might temporarily manifest the rare qualities in the mode of goodness. But this will soon be replaced by display of qualities in the modes of passion and ignorance. Therefore the nondevotees do not actually “own” their so-called good qualities. It is just a manifestation of their karma which they can’t keep from changing.

Material life is not so desirable a thing

“Life is not so desirable a thing as to be protracted at any cost. Whoever you are, you are sure to die, even though your life has been full of abomination and crime. The chief of all remedies for a troubled mind is the feeling that among the blessings which Nature gives to man, there is none greater than an opportune death; and the best of it is that every one can avail himself of it.”

This passage from Pliny the Elder (quoted by Sri Arthur Schopenhauer Ji) reminds me about the analogy of the ancient stoics – if there is a little smoke in the room and you can tolerate it without much trouble, you tolerate it. But if the smoke becomes too much, then it is your right to leave the room.[1]

The Vedas say something similar, tamasi ma, jyotir gama – leave the darkness and come to the light. However, this does not refer to committing suicide. It refers to leaving the darkness of ignorance and coming to the light of devotion to God. Thus leaving the darkness and coming to the light is not the end of the story; it is only the beginning of the real life. As Krishna says in Bhagavad-gita 18.54:

One who is transcendentally situated at once realizes the Supreme Brahman and becomes fully joyful. He never laments or desires to have anything. He is equally disposed toward every living entity. In that state he attains pure devotional service unto Me.

Admirable as it is, the pessimism of the Pliny and the stoics is not the healthy pessimism of a devotee. Pliny condemns life itself; the devotee rejects only the perverted reflection of the real life – the wretched material existence – and welcomes the real life – devotional service in love of God.

The bhakti tradition entails complete acceptance of devotional service, and consequent complete rejection of material sense enjoyment. In other words, it teaches that one should always remember Krishna and never forget Him. To never forget Krishna means to realize that there is nothing really enjoyable in the material world and therefore there is no worthy object of remembrance besides the Lord. That is the positive pessimism required for advancement in Krishna consciousness. Bhakti-yoga offers ample opportunities for such healthy pessimism - in the bhakti language they are called jnana and vairagya. The devotee just knows too much to continue the unrewarding attempt to enjoy matter.

Thus the pessimism about material life is very much welcomed in the bhakti school. Srila Prabhupada often said that one cannot advance in the spiritual life unless he is completely pessimistic about the material life. Or as it is stated in the Bhagavatam by Queen Kunti, tvam akincana gocaram, only the materially exhausted can utter the name of the Lord with sincere feeling of surrender.

Thus leaving the smoky room, or the blessed opportunity for “opportune death” is not supposed mean to commit suicide. Schopenhauer himself did not choose this option. Killing the body does not save one from suffering because leaving the smoky room in such an abrupt manner usually leads to even more troubled situation. This is because our future position depends on our desires. Until there are desires to be fulfilled, one has to take birth again and again in order to fulfill them. One cannot stop the painful repetition of birth and death simply by killing the gross body; the subtle body, where all unfulfilled desires are stored, will carry one to his next gross body. Suicide adds additional difficulties because the person who committed it has decided to interfere unlawfully with another’s property and another’s plan.

Life itself is not to be rejected or given up because it is our chance to develop our dormant relationships with Krishna. What is to be given up is the false material existence. Therefore pessimism is an honorable beginning, but it is not complete.

Still, for neophyte devotees like us, who are struggling with our petty material attachments, it is refreshing to see the example of persons who so thoroughly and bitterly abolishes materialistic ways. If they made it without any idea and experience of a higher taste of the nectar of Krishna’s lotus feet, why would not we? After all we have the mercy of Mahaprabhu in the form of the opportunity to develop our taste for the holy name. This is our entrance in reality.

“Life is not so desirable a thing as to be protracted at any cost…The chief of all remedies for a troubled mind is the feeling that among the blessings which Nature gives to man, there is none greater than an opportune death; and the best of it is that every one can avail himself of it.”

I feel like taking the liberty to correct the great sage in the following manner:

Material life is not desirable a thing and must be stopped at any cost… The chief of all remedies for a troubled mind is the conviction that among the blessings which God gives to man, there is none greater than the opportunity to develop pure and intimate love for the most attractive form of God, Krishna; and the best of it is that by the mercy of Mahaprabhu every one can avail himself of it.

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[1] “Has someone made smoke in the house? If it is moderate, I’ll stay. If too much, I exit. For you must always remember and hold fast to this, that the door is open.” Epictetus (Discourses I.25.18)