Don't worry, be happy!

I already spoke about Adishekar in my article untitled Meditation on a cherry tree. He was the leader of the women's party in France during Bhagavan’s glorious time, when living like a king in his castles. 

I remember a conversation I had with him a few years ago. He asked me why I was so worried about the state of the world. In fact, he was tacitly reproaching me my moral involvement in the suffering of humanity. It appeared that in the community he was in, South France, only bhajan and discussion on the prayers composed by the Goswamis were of importance. It is not the way I was educated during my years in Krishna consciousness as a brahmacari, like a preacher. Therefore, I was a little bit distant regarding their virtual relation with Srila Prabhupada’s will. Just a little bit... (More details about the community at the end of this article.)

The conversation took place while the Covid was wreaking havoc in the population, and confusion could be cut with a knife. I was not vaccinated and I was experiencing difficulties finding a place in France where to put down my luggage. To tell you the truth, I don't know what Adishekar was alluding to. In those days, I was writing in French and only concerned with philosophical literature, but mainly the Mahabharata, as it appears on my blog. In my interactions with the devotees, I was stressing the importance of varnasrama-dharma and of educating ourselves on matters like social sciences and political philosophy. Many did not like that. They made it clear to me. Apart from one or two times during my stay there, I never was invited to give a class. Neither I was invited for prasadam by the grihastas (except once, by Padasevana and his wife. The latter recalled to my attention that I was the one who made her a devotee.)

Should I point out that I was the only one going to mangol aratik and following the morning program? We were three devotees altogether, me, Prasanatma* and a swami. They were sleeping in the apartment which served as a temple; I will ride a bike in the winter to join them. Even during the months of the curfew, which by law prohibited me from leaving my home before six o'clock -regulated by a heavy fine if I was caught- I went there at four in the morning, rain or wind. See the picture below.

Anyway, I vigorously defended my position, and Adhishekar did not protest against it. I guess he appreciated my reasoning; I was referring to what Prabhupada said about vaishnavas like Vasudeva Datta. Instead of paraphrasing my answer, which will be difficult for me to reproduce now, my memory being weak, I will publish Prabhupada's teachings on this subject. It is better. It comes from the Caitanya Charitamrita, with a rather long purport. I will edit to make it shorter. 

--Vāsudeva Datta was the most exalted personality to ever show mercy to the conditioned souls. This is not an exaggeration of his transcendental qualities. It is perfectly true. Actually, there cannot be any comparison to Vāsudeva Datta. As the perfect Vaiṣṇava, he was para-duḥkha-duḥkhī, very much aggrieved to see others suffer. [---] Madhya 15.163 

Translation and Purport: "My dear Lord, let me suffer perpetually in a hellish condition, accepting all the sinful reactions of all living entities. Please finish their diseased material life."

Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura gives the following commentary on this verse. In the Western countries, Christians believe that Lord Jesus Christ, their spiritual master, appeared in order to eradicate all the sins of his disciples. To this end, Lord Jesus Christ appeared and disappeared. Here, however, we find Śrī Vāsudeva Datta Ṭhākura and Śrīla Haridāsa Ṭhākura to be many millions of times more advanced even when compared with Lord Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ relieved only his followers from all sinful reactions, but Vāsudeva Datta is here prepared to accept the sins of everyone in the universe. So the comparative position of Vāsudeva Datta is millions of times better than that of Lord Jesus Christ. A Vaiṣṇava is so liberal that he is prepared to risk everything to rescue the conditioned souls from material existence. Śrīla Vāsudeva Datta Ṭhākura is universal love itself, for he was willing to sacrifice everything and fully engage in the service of the Supreme Lord.

Śrīla Vāsudeva Datta knew very well that Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu was the original Personality of Godhead, Transcendence itself, above the material conception of illusion and māyā. Lord Jesus Christ certainly finished the sinful reactions of his followers by his mercy, but that does not mean he completely delivered them from the pangs of material existence. A person may be relieved from sins once, but it is a practice among Christians to confess sins and yet commit them again. By getting freed from sins and again engaging in them, one cannot attain freedom from the pangs of material existence. A diseased person may go to a physician for relief, but after he leaves the hospital he may again be infected due to his unclean habits. Thus material existence continues. Śrīla Vāsudeva Datta wanted to completely relieve the conditioned souls from material existence so that they would no longer have an opportunity to commit sinful acts. [---]▪︎

I just had published an article on this blog untitled “Preaching is the essence, not mysticism”, in which I was commenting on some of Bhagavan’s articles.* Adhishekar was close to him, due to being in charge of books distribution. The link came to my memory because I was trained by both of them to preach to karmis. I find it strange that they have switched their mind to a point that they are no more concerned by what preaching involves, that is being knowledgeable about the philosophies of sciences and politics (which is not the same as being a politician or a scientist).

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Mirepoix, a community of Vaisnavas

In South France, where I arrived from Canada, there is a nice little community of devotees. Many amongst them joined the Gaudiya math after the fall of their guru in the late 80s. They impregnated their minds with Narayana Maharaj’ teachings, for example, on raganuga bhakti: always hankering to be in Vrindavan, chanting the maha mantra and focusing on the pastimes of Radha and Krishna. With faith and sincerity, I see it. They are fond of doing bhajans and kirtanas in the mood of the six goswamis and Narottam Das Thakur. As soon as the winter comes, they go to spend a few months in the holy dhamas: Vrindavan, Mayapur or Jagannath Puri. Don’t talk to them about varnashrama-dharma and virat-rupa. Neither about the stage of goodness by which devotional service starts. They don’t care being on the platform of Brahman, where joyfulness, freedom from dualities of good and bad, and devotional service are attained. The mode of goodness is not attractive enough. Jnana, sankhya, science, politic, sociology are tinged with material qualities. The gopis were not interested by these categories of knowledge. anyābhilāṣitā-śūnyaṁjñāna-karmādy-anāvṛtam. So, devotees go for the rhinoceros: ānukūlyena kṛṣṇānu-śīlanaṁ bhaktir uttamā.

* I was very happy to meet Prasanatma after such a long time, 40 years. When I joined in the middle of the 70s, he had already received the Brahmin initiation, and taught me cooking. For years, I was the cook in traveling sankirtana. (I will put half a pound or more of butter into the subji. The best books distributor, Jagatvasi, who won on many occasions first place worldwide, ate before my eyes, during our lunch in the middle of the fields or on parking lots, a whole wafer of butter of 250 gr.! To justify himself, he was telling us that Krishna also loved to eat butter.)

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