QUALITIES-QUALIFICATION-QUALIFIED- A GENUINELY QUALIFIED SPIRITUAL MASTER: 1.QUALITIES: Qualities mean characteristics. These can be good qualities and bad qualities. Among the many characteristics or qualities that a person can have, some can be considered good others can be considered bad, in accordance with certain parameters, patterns or standard, which are the guide to make such a judgment for the valuation of good or bad. For example according to the standard of transcendental realization,SB 3.25.21, the spiritual considerations to take into account to evaluate whether something is good or bad, a nondevotee have no actual good qualities, good characteristics,even though having many academically,materially, good qualities. -------------------------------------------- 2.QUALIFICATION: The qualities or characteristics inherent to a specific position,necessary and indispensable, required for the proper and successful performance of any function or job are called qualifications. Qualifications are the qualities inherent by nature to a specific position. Therefore since such qualities or characteristics allow us to successfully perform such work these are good qualities, good characteristics,because enable us the proper execution of a work. They are called qualifications therefore to the presence on a person of such good qualities, good characteristics, inherent in a specific position, necessary for the correct execution of a specific job. Qualifications are good qualities, necessary qualities for the proper execution of any work. Any work requires the corresponding quality,qualification, in order to be done properly. Whether to perform the function of doctor, engineer, architect,bricklayer, school teacher, electrician, plumber, master of spiritual science, brahmana, ksatriya, vaisya, sudra, english teacher, cook, ... etc. A person can have many different qualifications for the execution of different tasks, jobs, responsibilities, .. etc. Amongst these many possible qualifications, the presence of the specific qualifications required for a particular position,job,function…etc are called good qualifications because are necessary to perform this specific work. -------------------------------------------- 3.QUALIFIED: Qualified means having desirable qualifications inherent to a specific position, required and necessary to be considered doctor, engineer, architect,bricklayer, school teacher, electrician, plumber, master of spiritual science, brahmana, english teacher, cook, ... etc, for the proper and successful execution of any job. In any position,function,job,…etc there is a LIST OF THE DESIRABLES QUALITIES INHERENT TO THAT SPECIFIC POSITION. QUALIFIED MEANS TO HAVE ALL THE DESIRABLE QUALITIES,GOOD QUALITIES,THE REQUIRED GOOD QUALIFICATIONS. Then we speak about: -A GENUINELY QUALIFIED doctor, -A GENUINELY QUALIFIED engineer, -A GENUINELY QUALIFIED architect, -A GENUINELY QUALIFIED bricklayer, -A GENUINELY QUALIFIED school teacher -A GENUINELY QUALIFIED electrician, -A GENUINELY QUALIFIED plumber, -A GENUINELY QUALIFIED brahmana, -A GENUINELY QUALIFIED ksatriya, -A GENUINELY QUALIFIED vaisya, -A GENUINELY QUALIFIED english teacher, -A GENUINELY QUALIFIED cook, -A GENUINELY QUALIFIED master of spiritual science, spiritual master . “One should simply try to find A GENUINELY QUALIFIED SPIRITUAL MASTER for actual advancement in spiritual understanding.” (CC Adi-lila 1,35) ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- CC Adi-lila 1,35 It is imperative that a serious person accept a BONAFIDE spiritual master IN TERMS OF THE SASTRIC INJUNCTIONS. Śrī Jīva Gosvāmī advises that one not accept a spiritual master IN TERMS OF HEREDITARY OR CUSTOMARY SOCIAL AND ECCLESIASTICAL CONVENTIONS. One should simply try to find A GENUINELY QUALIFIED spiritual master for actual advancement in spiritual understanding. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Now, what means A GENUINELY QUALIFIED SPIRITUAL MASTER? What are the appropriate and correct qualifications inherent to the position of spiritual master, genuinely qualified,according to the standard of transcendental realization? WHICH IS THE LIST OF THE INHERENT DESIRABLE QUALITIES TO THAT SPECIFIC POSITION OF SPIRITUAL MASTER,ACCORDING TO THE AUTHORITATIVE TEXT-BOOKS OF THE SPIRITUAL SCIENCE,SASTRAS.? CC Madhya-lila.330 guru-lakṣaṇa, śiṣya-lakṣaṇa, doṅhāra parīkṣaṇa sevya--bhagavān, sarva-mantra-vicāraṇa SYNONYMS guru-lakṣaṇa—the symptoms of a bona fide spiritual master; śiṣya-lakṣaṇa—the symptoms of a bona fide disciple; doṅhāra—of both; parīkṣaṇa—the testing; sevya-bhagavān—the Supreme Personality of Godhead is worshipable; sarva-mantra-vicāraṇa—consideration of the different types of mantras. TRANSLATION In your book there should be THE CHARACTERISTICS OF -THE BONA FIDE GURU AND -THE BONA FIDE DISCIPLE. THEN, BEFORE ACCEPTING A SPIRITUAL MASTER, ONE CAN BE ASSURED OF THE SPIRITUAL MASTER´S POSITION. Similarly, the spiritual master can also be assured of the disciples position. The Supreme Personality of Godhead, Kṛṣṇa, should be described as the worshipable object, and you should consider the bīja-mantra for the worship ofKṛṣṇa, Rāma or any other expansion of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. PURPORT In the Padma Purāṇa, THE CHARACTERISTICS OF THE GURU, THE BONA FIDE SPIRITUAL MASTER, HAVE BEEN DESCRIBED: mahā-bhāgavata-śreṣṭho brāhmaṇo vai gurur nṛṇām sarveṣām eva lokānām asau pūjyo yathā hariḥ mahā-kula-prasūto pi sarva-yajñeṣu dīkṣitaḥ sahasra-śākhādhyāyī ca na guruḥ syād avaiṣṇavaḥ THE GURU MUST BE SITUATED ON THE TOPMOST PLATFORM OF DEVOTIONAL SERVICE. There are three classes of devotees, and THE GURU MUST BE ACCEPTED FROM THE TOPMOST CLASS. THE FIRST-CLASS DEVOTEE IS THE SPIRITUAL MASTER FOR ALL KINDS OF PEOPLE. It is said: gurur nṛṇām. The word nṛṇām means of all human beings. The guru is not limited to a particular group. It is stated in the Upadeśāmṛta of Rūpa Gosvāmī that A GURU IS A GOSVAMI, A CONTROLLER OF THE SENSES AND THE MIND. SUCH A GURU CAN ACCEPT DISCIPLES FROM ALL OVER THE WORLD. Pṛthivīṁ sa śiṣyāt. THIS IS THE TEST OF THE GURU. In India there are many so-called gurus, and they are limited to a certain district or a province. They do not even travel about India, yet they declare themselves to be jagad-guru, gurus of the whole world. Such cheating gurus should not be accepted. Anyone can see how the bona fide spiritual master accepts disciples from all over the world. THE GURU IS A QUALIFIED BRAHMANA;therefore he knows Brahman and Parabrahman. He thus devotes his life for the service of Parabrahman. THE BONA FIDE SPIRITUAL MASTER WHO ACCEPTS DISCIPLES FROM ALL OVER THE WORLD IS ALSO WORSHIPED ALL OVER THE WORLD BECAUSE OF HIS QUALITIES. Lokānām asau pūjyo yathā hariḥ: the people of the world worship him just as they worship the Supreme Personality of Godhead. All these honors are offered to him because -he strictly follows the brahminical principles and -teaches these principles to his disciples. Such a person is called an ācārya because -he knows the principles of devotional service, -he behaves in that way himself, and -he teaches his disciples to follow in his footsteps. Thus he is an ācārya or jagad-guru. Even though a person is born in a brahminical family and is very expert in performing sacrifices, he cannot be accepted as a guru if he is not A STRICT VAISNAVA. A GURU IS A BRAHMANA BY QUALIFICATION, and he can turn others into brāhmaṇas ACCORDING TO -THE SASTRIC PRINCIPLES AND -BRAHMINICAL QUALIFICATIONS. Brahmanism is not a question of heredity. In Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam (7.32.11) Śrī Nārada Muni tellsMahārāja Yudhiṣṭhira WHAT A BRAHMANA IS. He states that if BRAHMINICAL QUALIFICATIONS are observed in kṣatriyas, vaiśyas or even śūdras, one should accept them as brāhmaṇas. In this regard, Śrīla Śrīdhara Svāmī has commented: śamādibhir eva brāhmaṇādi-vyavahāro mukhyaḥ, na jāti-mātrādīty āha-yasyeti. yad yadi anyatra varṇāntare pi dṛśyeta, tad-varṇāntaraṁ tenaivalakṣaṇa-nimittenaiva varṇena vinirdiśet, na tu jāti-nimittenety arthaḥ. There is a similar statement made by Nīlakaṇṭha, the commentator on Mahābhārata: śūdro pi śamādy-upeto brāhmaṇa eva brāhmaṇo pi kāmādy-upetaḥ śūdra eva Although one may be born in a śūdra family, if he is endowed with THE BRAHMINICAL QUALITIES beginning with śama [control of the mind], he is to be accepted as a brāhmaṇa. Although one may be born in a brāhmaṇa family, if he is endowed with THE QUALITIES beginning with kāma [lust], he is to be considered a śūdra. No one should present himself as a brāhmaṇa simply on the basis of being born in a brahminical family. ONE MUST BE QUALIFIED BY THE BRAHMINICAL QUALITIES MENTIONED IN THE SASTRAS,particularly Bhagavad-gītā: śamo damas tapaḥ śaucaṁ kṣāntir ārjavam eva ca jñānaṁ vijñānam āstikyaṁ brahma-karma svabhāva-jam -Peacefulness, -self-control, -austerity, -purity, -tolerance, -honesty, -wisdom, -knowledge and -religiousness- THESE ARE THE QUALITIES BY WHICH THE BRAHMANAS WORK.” (Bg. 18.42) UNLESS ONE IS QUALIFIED WITH ALL THESE ATTRIBUTES,HE CANNOT BE ACCEPTED AS A BRAHMANA. It is not a question of simply taking birth in a brāhmaṇa family. In this regard, Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta SarasvatīṬhākura remarks that Narottama dāsa Ṭhākura and Śyāmānanda Gosvāmī, although not born in brāhmaṇa families, ARE ACCEPTED AS BONA FIDE SPIRITUAL MASTERS BECAUSE THEY WERE BRAHMANAS BY QUALIFICATION. Personalities like Śrī Gaṅgā-nārāyaṇa, Rāmakṛṣṇa and many others, who were actually born in brāhmaṇa families, accepted Narottama dāsa Ṭhākura and Śyāmānanda Gosvāmī as their spiritual masters. THE MAHA-BHAGAVATA is one -who decorates his body with tilaka and -whose name indicates him to be a servant of Kṛṣṇa by the word dāsa. He is also initiated by a bona fide spiritual master and IS EXPERT IN : -worshiping the Deity, -chanting mantras correctly, -performing sacrifices, -offering prayers to the Lord, and -performing saṅkīrtana. He knows : -how to serve the Supreme Personality of Godhead and -how to respect a Vaiṣṇava. WHEN ONE HAS ATTAINED THE TOPMOST POSITION OF MAHA-BHAGAVATA, -HE IS TO BE ACCEPTED AS A GURU AND -WORSHIPED EXACTLY LIKE HARI, THE PERSONALITY OF GODHEAD. ONLY SUCH A PERSON IS ELIGIBLE TO OCCUPY THE POST OF A GURU. However, IF ONE IS HIGHLY QUALIFIED BUT IS NOT A VAISNAVA, HE CANNOT BE ACCEPTED AS A GURU. One cannot be a brāhmaṇa unless one is a Vaiṣṇava. If one is a Vaiṣṇava, he is already a brāhmaṇa. IF A GURU IS COMPLETELY QUALIFIED AS A VAISNAVA, HE MUST BE ACCEPTED AS A BRAHMANA EVEN IF HE IS NOT BORN IN A BRAHMANA FAMILY. The caste system method of distinguishing a brāhmaṇa by birth is not acceptable when applied to A BONA FIDE SPIRITUAL MASTER A SPIRITUAL MASTER IS A QUALIFIED BRAHMANA AND ACARYA. If one is not a qualified brāhmaṇa, he is not expert in studying Vedic literatures. Nānā-śāstra-vicāraṇaika-nipuṇau. Every Vaiṣṇava is a spiritual master, and a spiritual master is automatically expert in brahminical behavior. He also understands the Vedic śāstras. --------------------------------------------------------------------------- Note: On this verse and purport Vaisnava means pure vaisnava,pure devotee. “THE TOPMOST POSITION OF MAHA-BHAGAVATA,” “COMPLETELY QUALIFIED AS A VAISNAVA”
Posted on: Tue, 25 Nov 2014 00:33:52 +0000
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