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The Process of Inquiry

brahmana codito brahman
gunakhyane 'gunasya ca
yasmai yasmai yatha praha
narado deva-darsanah
Translation: King Pariksit inquired from sukadeva Gosvami:How did Narada Muni, whose
hearers are as fortunate as those instructed by Lord Brahma, explain the transcendental
qualities of the Lord, who is without material qualities, and before whom did he speak?
Purport: Devarsi Narada was directly instructed by Brahmaji, who was also directly instructed by
the Supreme Lord; therefore the instructions imparted by Narada to his various disciples are as good
as those of the Supreme Lord. That is the way of understanding Vedic knowledge. It comes down
from the Lord by disciplic succession, and this transcendental knowledge is distributed to the world
by this descending process. There is no chance, however, to receive the Vedic knowledge from
mental speculators. Therefore, wherever Narada Muni goes, he represents himself as authorized by
the Lord, and his appearance is as good as that of the Supreme Lord. Similarly, the disciplic
succession which strictly follows the transcendental instruction is the bona fide chain of disciplic
succession, and the test for such bona fide spiritual masters is that there should be no difference
between the instruction of the Lord originally imparted to His devotee and that which is imparted by
the authority in the line of disciplic succession. How Narada Muni distributed the transcendental
knowledge of the Lord will be explained in later cantos.

There are many things in this verse and purport. Prabhupada has just given a hint. To understand
it completely requires further explanation.
Here, Pariksit Maharaja is inquiring from sukadeva Gosvami. Inquiry is the beginning. Why
should there be inquiry? What should one inquire about and from whom? This requires explanation.
A conditioned soul has many doubts. Unless one inquires, how will those doubts be dispelled?
Who is the bona fide person who will give the proper answers, without any mistakes?
Good Fortune
sukadeva is a bona fide authority, a sadhu. A real sadhu is one who comes in a bona fide disciplic
succession. When you find a bona fide Vaisnava, your duty is to inquire from him. Meeting a sadhu-
Vaisnava is genuine good fortune, subhagya. Therefore Srila Prabhupada says that wherever Narada
Muni goes he represents the Lord. His appearance is as good as that of the Supreme Lord. If one
sees the Supreme Lord and His representative—His dear devotee, premi-bhakta, who carries the
Lord in his heart—it is to be understood that good fortune has arisen.
This human form of life is durlabha, rarely achieved:
durlabho manuso deho
dehinam ksana-bhangurah
tatrapi durlabham manye
Vaikuntha-priya-darsanam
For the conditioned souls, the human body is most difficult to achieve, and it can be lost
at any moment. But I think that even those who have achieved human life rarely gain the
association of pure devotees, who are dear to the Lord of Vaikuntha.1
Manuso dehah, the human body, is rarely achieved. It is also ksaNa-bhangurah, very short-lived.
Death may come at any moment. The conditioned soul thinks, “I'll never die.” But you don't know,
death may come today. Much more rare than even human birth is to get darsana of a Vaikuntha-
priya, a dear devotee of the Supreme Lord. When good fortune arises one gets the opportunity to
see such a sadhu.
It is stated in Caitanya-bhagavata that when Mahaprabhu came to the house of Srivasa PaNdita,
Srivasa said:
aji mora sakala-duhkhera haila nasa

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aji mora divasa haila parakasa
aji mora janma karma—sakala saphala
aji mora udaya—sakala sumangala
aji mora pitrkula haila uddhara
aji se vasati dhanya haila amara
aji mora nayana-bhagyera nahi sima
tanre dekhi—yanra Sri-carana seva rama
Today all my sufferings are destroyed. On this day, You have appeared before me. Today
my birth and all my deeds have borne fruit. Today all auspiciousness has come before me.
Today my ancestors are delivered. Today my home has become glorious. Today my eyes
have become fortunate without limit. Today I gaze on You, the Supreme Lord, whose feet
Goddess Laksmi serves.2
Mahaprabhu is the Supreme Personality of Godhead, but when He appeared He manifested His
acarya-lila.
kali-yuge sadhu paoya duskara janiya
sadhu-guru-rupe Krsna aila nadiya
In Kali-yuga it is very difficult to find a genuine sadhu. Therefore Krsna appeared as a
sadhu-guru, taking birth in Nadia.3
Paramatma Assumes a Body
Mahaprabhu performed acarya-lila, the lila of a sadhu. Krsna appears as sadhu-guru: guru-
Krsna-rupa hana sastrera pramaNe. This verse is sastra-pramaNa, sastric evidence that Krsna
appears in the form of guru. In Gurvastaka (7), it is said that sadhu-guru is saksad-dhari, as good as
Lord Hari. Samasta-sastrair uktas tatha, all the sastras, all Vedic literatures, say this. It is not a
concocted theory.
saksad-dharitvena samasta-sastair
uktas tatha bhavyata eva sadbhih
kintu prabhor yah priya eva tasya
vande guroh Sri-caraNaravindam.
This is also stated in Katha Upanisad (1.2.23):
nayam atma pravacanena labhyo
na medhaya na bahuna srutena
yam evaisa vrnute tena labhyas
tasyaisa atma vivrnute tanum svam
The Supreme Lord is not attained by expert explanations, by vast intelligence, nor even
by much hearing. He is attained only by one whom He Himself chooses. To such a person
He manifests His own form.
One cannot understand paramatma-tattva by hearing pravacanas, discourses from many different
paNditas and jnanis. Na medhaya na bahuna srutena—nor by dint of your merit, intelligence or
scholarship. This knowledge will only come to one who is very, very inquisitive, jijnasuh.
catur-vidha bhajante mam
janah sukrtino ’rjuna
arto jijnasur artharthi
jnani ca bharatarsabha
O best among the Bharatas, four kinds of pious men begin to render devotional service
unto me—the distressed, the desirer of wealth, the inquisitive, and he who is searching for
knowledge of the Absolute.4
Krsna says, “Four types of sukrtimanta-purusa do My bhajana: the arti, the artharthi, the
jijnasuh, and the jnani.” The arti, one who has been put into suffering, offers prayers to Krsna to get
out of that situation. The artharthi, the man suffering from poverty, prays to Krsna: “Please give me
some wealth.” And the jijnasuh, the inquisitive person, also offers prayers. He wants to know what is
paramatma-tattva, isa-tattva, jiva-tattva, and sakti-tattva, so he asks: “Who am I? How can I
understand the Lord? Who is the Lord? What is my relationship with Him? What is my duty? What
do I want? What is my real need?” Pariksit Maharaja wants to know all these things, therefore he is
inquiring from sukadeva Gosvami. This is the symptom of one who is a sukrtimanta-purusa.
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He prays to Krsna, “Oh Krsna, how can I know all these things? Please help me!” Krsna is in his
heart, and He understands, “He's crying in his heart and offering prayers to Me to understand all
these tattvas.” Krsna then appears as guru, yam evaisa vrNute tena labhyas tasyaisa atma vivrNute
tanum svam. Paramatma, caitya-guru, who is in the heart, assumes a body and appears before such
inquisitive persons. That is guru. It is said, guru-Krsna-rupa hana sastrera pramaNe—according to
sastra the guru is non-different from Krsna. Therefore, when you meet a pure Vaisnava sadhu, a
bona fide authority, a bona fide representative of the Lord, you must inquire.
Proper Inquiries
Mahajano yena gatah sa panthah—Sanatana Gosvami is a mahajana. He has laid the path for us
and we should follow in his footsteps. Sanatana Gosvami is not an ordinary person. He is a paNdita,
a devotee. He knows sastra. Still, when he met Mahaprabhu he inquired, ke ami—“Who am I?” kene
amaya jare tapa-traya—”Why am I suffering?” “Why have I been afflicted with these three kinds of
miseries, adhyatmika, adhibhautika and adhidaivika?” “What should I do to get auspiciousness?”
“What is the purpose of my life?” “What is my duty?” “What do I want, what is needed?” These are
all proper inquiries. This is tattva-jijnasa.
The Bhagavatam, First Canto, describes:
kamasya nendriya-pritir
labho jiveta yavata
jivasya tattva-jijnasa
nartho yas ceha karmabhih
Life’s desires should never be directed toward sense gratification. One should desire only
a healthy life, or self-preservation, since a human being is meant for inquiry about the
Absolute Truth. Nothing else should be the goal of one’s works. 5
What will you inquire? Will you inquire how to see more and more pornographic pictures? “Is
there any recent edition?” That is not inquiry. kamasya nendriya-pritir labho jiveta yavata—Don’t
inquire about indriya-priti, how to enjoy more and more. That is not the subject matter of inquiry.
There are two things, sreyas and preyas. The path of sense gratification is preyas. Everyone in the
material world is inquiring about preyas, they are all customers of preyas. One should ask, “What is
my sreyah, the goal and purpose of my life?” Only very, very rare persons are customers of sreyas.
One should not survive simply for sense gratification, like hogs eating stool. One should understand
what is sreyas, the purpose of this rarely achieved human life. Krsna-bhakti is sreyas. One should
survive just to obtain Krsna-bhakti. Why survive simply for preya labho, the goal of sense
gratification, which is available in any birth, in any species of life? Therefore, when such a bona fide
pure sadhu comes, you should inquire.
The human birth is meant for this inquiry—tattva-jijnasa. In other bodies you cannot inquire. A
dog or a hog cannot inquire. Only a human being will inquire. His consciousness is superior, and
there must be inquiry. All of one’s activities should center around this inquiry. If a bona fide sadhu
comes to your house you should understand good fortune has arisen, and you should have his
darsana.
What is the use of these eyes, to see pornographic pictures? No! To see the beautiful form of
Krsna, syamasundara, and to see His dear devotee, sadhu, that is the success of the eyes! Therefore
Srivasa PaNdita prayed to Mahaprabhu, aji mora nayana-bhagyera nahi sima—”Now that I am
seeing You, good fortune has arisen.” Although He is the Supreme Lord, Mahaprabhu is acting the
role of sadhu-guru. Therefore Srivasa PaNdita prays, “Seeing such a sadhu-guru there is no limit to
the good fortune of my eyes.”
When such a sadhu appears we should inquire. We have so many doubts. We are completely
ignorant of tattva. We must inquire, tattva-jijnasa.
maya-mugdha jivera nahi svatah Krsna-jnana
jivere krpaya kaila Krsna veda-puraNa
The conditioned soul cannot revive his Krsna consciousness by his own effort. But out
of causeless mercy, Lord Krsna compiled the Vedic literature and its supplements, the
PuraNas.6
Seers of the Truth
Krsna speaks through the Vedas and the PuraNas. They are sabda-brahma, transcendental sound
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that imparts knowledge on paratattva.
tad viddhi pranipatena
pariprasnena sevaya,
upadeksyanti te jnanam
jnaninas tattva-darsinah
Just try to learn the truth by approaching a spiritual master. Inquire from him
submissively and render service unto him. The self-realized souls can impart knowledge
unto you because they have seen the truth. 7
Three things are mentioned here: praNipata, pariprasna, and sevaya. PraNipata, first one should
surrender to sadhu-guru. Then pariprasna and seva, serve him and satisfy him. Then humbly inquire,
tattva-jijnasa. You have so many doubts and misconceptions. He can dispel your doubts and impart
tattva-jnana because he is tattva-darsinah, a seer of the truth. What the Vedas and PuraNas say
should be understood in tattva.
janma karma ca me divyam
evam yo vetti tattvatah
tyaktva deham punar janma
naiti mam eti so'rjuna 8
Krsna says, "My birth, appearance, and activities are not material, they are transcendental. One
who knows this in tattva, in truth, after quitting this body will definitely come to Me. He will never
again take birth in this material world.” The Vedas and PuraNas should be understood in tattva. Who
can impart this tattva-jnana? A tattva-darsi-guru is required. A seer of the truth, who knows tattva-
jnana, who has heard from his guru in disciplic succession—only he can impart tattva-jnana.
The gurus in our gaudiya-guru-varga, the sad-gosvamis and more recently the seventh gosvami
Bhaktivinoda µhakura, have all given tattva-jnana. It is the duty of a bona fide guru to impart
tattva-jnana to his disciples. Thereby the disciples get God realization, bhagavata-anuvrtti.
Otherwise how will they get this realization?
When the guru does kirtana it is sabda-brahma. The sisya, the disciple, should hear it with
concentrated attention. Then by the mercy of guru he will receive tattva-jnana. The bona fide sadhu-
guru is bhagavata-krpa-murti, the embodiment of the mercy of Krsna Bhagavan arriving in the form
of sabda-brahma. The faithful and serious disciples and followers who have taken shelter of that
guru get his mercy. By the mercy of that guru the disciples receive the tattva-jnana he imparts.
If someone does not have tattva-jnana his activities will not be perfect. One who receives tattva-
jnana by the mercy of guru will understand what is brahman, paramatma, and bhagavan. Otherwise
it is not possible to understand. This knowledge is received through the hearing process, srota-
paramparya, the disciplic succession. One must hear. Therefore Pariksit Maharaja is inquiring and
sukadeva Gosvami is answering. Hearing is the beginning. “The guru parampara is based on
hearing.” One has to know the tattva-vastu: advaya-jnana-tattva, vraje vrajendra-kumara—The son
of Nanda Maharaja is the Absolute Truth. Those seers of the truth who have seen Him or who are
always seeing Him, those who are tattva-darsi, they are real gurus. They impart tattva-jnana. One
has to hear from them. All of our Gaudiya-Vaisnava-acaryas are tattva-darsi-gurus. Therefore our
gaudiya-acarya-parampara is a bona fide parampara, a bona fide disciplic succession. They have
written so many sastras imparting tattva-jnana. There is Hari-bhakti-vilasa, Laghu-Bhagavatamrta,
Brhad-Bhagavatamrta, ±at-Sandarbha, Bhakti-rasamrta-sindhu, and Ujjvala-nilamaNi. All of these
books are tattvika-granthas, books of truth.

Duty of a Disciple
The duty of the sisya is to hear. What is the topic of that hearing? The tattva of the Absolute
Truth. No other topic is there. If someone receives tattva-jnana then it becomes very easy for him to
serve Krsna. Such a person has seva-adhikara, the qualification to do service. He can discriminate
what is atma and what is anatma, spirit and matter. Without tattva-jnana he cannot discriminate.
Tattva-jnana means sambandha-jnana, knowledge of one’s relationship with the Lord. The disciple
should receive such jnana from the bona fide guru. Then he can understand, “Krsna is my eternal
master, I am His eternal servant, and my duty is to serve Him.” At that time the sisya can understand
these tattvas—isa-tattva, jiva-tattva, and sakti-tattva—tri-tattva, three categories, the Lord, the
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spirit soul, and the Lord’s energies.
He understands that the doer is Krsna. By His will everything is done. Bhaktivinoda µhakura
sings:
jiva bale, — ‘kari ami’, se ta’ satya naya
jiva ki karite pare, tumi na karile
asa-matra jiva kare, tava iccha-phale
The deluded soul of this world declares ‘I am the doer!’ but this is pure folly. What is a
tiny soul actually able to do unless You act? The jiva can only desire to act, and unless You
fulfill his desire by Your own sweet will, he cannot do anything. 9
Krsna’s concluding and most confidential instruction in Bhagavad-gita is, sarva-dharman parityajya
mam ekam saraNam vraja—”Abandoning all varieties of dharma, just surrender unto Me.” Krsna
uses one who completely surrenders as an instrument. In the 11th chapter of Bhagavad-gita Krsna
showed Arjuna His gigantic universal form. Arjuna saw curNitair uttamangaih, Krsna devouring the
heads of KarNa, DroNa, Bhisma, Krpa—all the maharathas. Krsna told Arjuna, maya hatams tvam
jahi ma vyathistha—”They are already killed by Me, so why are you in doubt and anxiety?” Nimitta-
matram bhava savya-sacin—“Just become an instrument in My hand.”
Yantra means an instrument, and the one who handles the instrument is a yantri. The yantri is
Krsna, and you should be an instrument in His hand. One who is completely surrendered to Krsna
becomes Krsna’s instrument. He has no more independence. If he retains his independence he is not
surrendered. He is a great pretender. But one who hears tattva-jnana from the guru, and who by the
guru’s mercy gets tattva-jnana, he understands, “I am not the doer, Krsna is the doer. I should
completely surrender unto Krsna, then Krsna may use me as His instrument.” Those who, by the
mercy of guru, have received tattva-jnana, they can see the tattva-vastu, the Absolute Truth
Vrajendra-kumara, along with all of His lilas—advaya-jnana-tattva, vraje vrajendra-kumara. Those
who have not received tattva-jnana, their eyes are not opened:
ajnana-timirandhasya
jnananjana-salakaya
caksur unmilitam yena
tasmai Sri-gurave namah
I offer my respectful obeisances unto my spiritual master, who has opened my eyes,
which were blinded by the darkness of ignorance, with the torchlight of knowledge. 10
He who has imparted tattva-jnana to me, who has opened my jnana-caksu, my eye of knowledge,
that tattva-acarya guru is my master—caksu-dana dila yei, janme janme guru sei. With that eye of
knowledge you can see Lord syamasundara and all His lilas. One who has not received the vision of
tattva-jnana is a blind man whose eyes have not been opened.
The sadhaka should first hear, tattva-sravaNam. As long as he is not situated on the platform of
tattva, he has no adhikara for suddha-bhakti, no qualification for pure devotion. Srila Jiva Gosvami
has stressed this point. First the sadhaka earns sastriya-sraddha, faith in sadhu-sastra-guru. If one is
not initiated in sabda-brahma it is to be understood that he has not developed sastriya-sraddha. One
who is initiated in sabda-brahma can see everything through the eye of knowledge, sastra-caksu, the
eye of scripture. The bona fide guru opens that eye, he gives that enlightenment. When a sisya
receives such enlightenment, such tattva-jnana, he can stay anywhere. He can stay in a palatial
building or he can stay under a tree because wherever he is he will always be engaged in sravaNam-
kirtanam. He has no other activity. This is the result of obtaining this knowledge—tattva-jnana-
labha. Therefore tattva-jijnasa, inquisitiveness, must be there. One should inquire, tad viddhi
praNipatena, pariprasnena sevaya.
Pariprasna means there should be humble inquiry.
The tattva-darsi-guru will impart tattva-jnana to the inquisitive disciple who is very eager to
know. Such a disciple humbly serves his guru, pleases him, and then humbly inquires. His inquiries
are not about the body and mind. He inquires about atma, the soul; paramatma, the Supersoul; and
Krsna. This is inquiry. This is the first thing needed.

Sat-Sampradaya
The next point concerns sampradaya. A sat-sampradaya is transcendental knowledge which
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comes through a bona fide succession of sadhus, mahapurusa-gurus. This is the process of hearing,
srota-paramparya. It comes through them. The speculators and impersonalists will never hear, they
only speculate. A speculator cannot understand this tattva. Therefore the mahajanas and Krsna have
set up this sampradaya, evam parampara-praptam. A bona fide sampradaya begins from Krsna.
Otherwise this transcendental knowledge is not available.
sabda-brahma is Eternal Absolute Truth that cannot be destroyed in the past, present or future.
All maha-purusas, all sadhus, meditate on it—satyam param dhimahi. This is the svarupa-laksaNa,
the primary symptom, of paramesvara: It is not destroyed at any time in the past, present or future.
Satye pratisthito Krsnah, satyam asmin pratisthitah—Krsna is the Supreme Absolute Truth, that
truth is in Krsna, and He is the founder of that truth. This is satya-dharma. It is not concocted. It
comes from Krsna and is not created by anyone.
dharmam tu saksad bhagavat-praNitam
na vai vidur rsayo napi devah
na siddha-mukhya asura manusyah
kuto nu vidyadhara-caraNadayah
Real religious principles are enacted by the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Although
fully situated in the mode of goodness, even the great rsis who occupy the topmost planets
cannot ascertain the real religious principles, nor can the demigods or the leaders of
Siddhaloka, to say nothing of the asuras, ordinary human beings, Vidyadharas and
CaraNas. 11
This is bhagavata-dharma, vastava-dharma, the real dharma of the Supreme Reality. Bhagavat-
praNitam, it is given by Bhagavan. This dharma-tattva is very clear, but very confidential. An
ordinary person cannot understand it. For the benefit of the jivas, this dharma-tattva descends
through the bona fide parampara, the bona fide disciplic succession in this material world. That
disciplic succession is srota-pantha, the hearing process known as sampradaya.
guru-parampara tatra sadhopadesa
sista-parampara avatirNa upadesa sampradaya 12
This is the definition of sampradaya. You should quote authority, otherwise how will you become
a Vaisnava? You will only be a pseudo-Vaisnava, not a real Vaisnava. A Vaisnava quotes authority,
srota-bhakta. That is one of the definitions of a Vaisnava.
Sampradaya is defined as the jnana, the transcendental knowledge, that comes through the bona
fide guru-parampara. It comes from them to a very sincere, surrendered, faithful sisya, who is sista,
who accepts discipline. That is sampradaya. This sampradaya protects bhagavata-dharma. It is
known as amnayah.
In Dasa-mula-siksa Bhaktivinoda µhakura says: amnayah praha tattvam harim iha paramam
sarva-saktim rasabdhim. The term amnaya refers to transcendental Vedic knowledge that comes
through parampara, that speaks of how Lord Hari is sarva-sakti and rasabdhim, how He is almighty
and is the ocean of mellow. He is mellow Himself, raso vai sah, and He is rasa-pradata, the giver of
mellow. This knowledge originated from Lord Krsna and first came to Brahma, the first created
being.
kalena nasta pralaye
vaNiyam veda-samjnita
mayadau brahmane prokta
dharmo yasyam mad-atmakah
By the influence of time, the transcendental sound of the Vedic knowledge was lost at
the time of annihilation. Therefore, when the subsequent creation took place, I spoke the
Vedic knowledge to Brahma because I Myself am the religious principles enunciated in the
Vedas. 13
This is the beginning of guru-parampara. Brahma took birth on a lotus stem that came from the
navel of Garbhodakasayi Visnu. Brahma couldn't understand what was his source. Then he heard one
word, “tapa”, meaning, “Undergo tapasya, austerity.” Brahma understood that someone was
instructing him, therefore he underwent very severe austerity. Being pleased with that tapasya, the
Supreme Lord appeared before him and showed Brahma His sac-cid-ananda-vigraha, His
transcendental form. He also showed Brahma His abode of Vaikuntha and taught him about bhajana.
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This is the beginning of parampara.
jnanam parama-guhyam me
yad vijnana-samanvitam
sarahasyam tad-angam ca
grhaNa gaditam maya
The Personality of Godhead said: 'Knowledge about Me as described in the scriptures is
very confidential and it has to be realized in conjunction with devotional service. The
necessary paraphernalia for that process is being explained by Me. You may take it up
carefully. 14
yavan aham yatha-bhavo
yad-rupa-guna-karmakah
tathaiva tattva-vijnanam
astu te mad-anugrahat
O Brahma, all of Me, namely my actual eternal form and My transcendental existence,
color, qualities and activities, let all be awakened within you by factual realization out of
My causeless mercy. 15
aham evasam evagre
nanyad yat sad-asat param
pascad aham yad etac ca
yo’vasisyeta so ‘smy aham
Brahma, it is I, the Personality of Godhead, who was existing before the creation when
there was nothing but Myself. Nor was there the material nature, the cause of this creation.
That which you see now is also I, the Personality of Godhead, and after annihilation what
remains will also be I, the Personality of Godhead. 16

Best Line
These are the instructions which came from the Personality of Godhead to Brahma to begin this
sampradaya. Then Brahma instructed Narada, Narada instructed Vyasa, and Vyasa instructed
Madhva. This is the disciplic succession of our brahma-madhva-sampradaya. Mahaprabhu accepted
a guru from this sampradaya, therefore the phrase brahma-madhva-gaudiya-sampradaya comes.
sampradaya vihina ye
mantras te nisiphala matah
atah kalau bhavisyanti
catvarah sampradayinah
Sri-brahma-rudra-sanaka
Vaisnavah ksiti-pavanah
catvaras te kalau bhavya
hy utkale purusottamat
If someone receives a mantra from a guru who doesn't come in a bona fide sampradaya
that mantra will have no potency. In the age of Kali four bona fide Vaisnava-sampradayas,
namely Sri, Brahma, Rudra and Sanaka, will arise from the Supreme Personality of
Godhead in Utkal [Orissa]. 17
The Sri-sampradaya begins from Laksmi. The acarya of that sampradaya is Ramanujacarya,
therefore it is also known as the ramanuja-sampradaya. The brahma-sampradaya begins with
Brahma. We come in that sampradaya, the brahma-madhva-gaudiya-sampradaya. Our
sampradaya-acarya is Madhvacarya. The rudra-sampradaya begins from Rudra, sivaji. That is also
a Vaisnava-sampradaya. The acarya is Visnusvami. The sanaka- or kumara-sampradaya begins
from the four Kumaras. The acarya is Nimbarkacarya. These are the four bona fide Vaisnava-
sampradayas in Kali-yuga. Others are not bona fide, they are apa-sampradaya. Ramanujacarya
appeared in the 12th century and Madhvacarya in the 13th century. The dates of the appearances of
Visnusvami and Nimbarka are not definitely ascertained. These four acaryas each have their own
philosophy. Visnusvami's philosophy is known as suddhadvaita-vada. Ramanujacarya's philosophy is
known as visistadvaita-vada. Nimbarkacarya's philosophy is known as dvaitadvaita-vada and
Madhvacarya's philosophy is known as suddha-dvaita-vada. In Ramanujacarya's, Visnusvami's, and
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Nimbarkacarya's philosophy there is a touch of advaita-vada, monistic philosophy. But
Madhvacarya's philosophy is suddha-dvaita-vada, with no touch of advaita. He completely
destroyed advaita-vada. He was very powerful, an avatara, incarnation, of the wind god Vayu. He
preached very strongly and completely devastated advaita-vada.
There are only some small differences between the philosophies of these four acaryas. They differ
slightly in their teachings concerning dvaita and advaita. Complete advaita-vada is not correct.
Complete dvaita-vada is also not correct. Therefore, catvaras te kalau bhavya hy utkale
purusottamat—In purusottama-ksetra, Jagannatha Puri, the combination of these four philosophies
will come out and that will be the best philosophy. That is acintya-bhedabheda-tattva, Mahaprabhu’s
philosophy of inconceivable oneness and difference. In each of the philosophies of the other Vaisnava
sampradayas there is some defect. Therefore Mahaprabhu, as Bhagavan, the Supreme Personality of
Godhead, performed acarya-lila. He took the essence from the philosophies of each of these four
acaryas and gave this most sublime philosophy of acintya-bhedabheda-tattva. Catvaras te kalau
bhavya hy utkale purusottamat—The Padma PuraNa has predicted that this philosophy will arise in
Utkal, Orissa, Jagannatha Puri-dhama, and spread throughout the world, and that prediction is now
being fulfilled.
This Gaudiya-parampara coming from Mahaprabhu is the most bona fide line of disciplic
succession. One must accept a guru from this gaudiya-Vaisnava-parampara. Mahaprabhu freely
gives Krsna-prema, so unless you accept a guru from this gaudiya-Vaisnava-parampara you cannot
get Krsna-prema. And without prema, Krsna is not available. Preme Krsna vasa haya, preme tanre
bhaji—Krsna is the object of love. He becomes submissive to a devotee who has developed love for
Him. Therefore, you should do bhajana and serve Krsna with love and affection. Otherwise Krsna
will never accept your service.
Mahaprabhu’s teaching is kirtaniyah sada harih.
trnad api sunicena
taror iva sahisnuna
amanina manadena
kirtaniyah sada harih 18
One should think oneself more insignificant and much humbler than a blade of grass lying on the
street. There should be no pride at all. “I am the lowest of the low.” Taror iva sahisNuna—Be as
tolerant as a tree. You may cut a tree to pieces and burn it to ashes, it never objects. It tolerates.
Amanina manadena—don’t demand respect. Rather, pay respect to one and all, because Krsna is
there. Respect is paid to Krsna, not to the body. Krsna is in every heart as Paramatma. Therefore a
real sadhu, Vaisnava, pays respect to one and all. He doesn’t even disrespect a tiny ant, “Krsna is
there.” It is said:
ei mata hana Krsna-nama laya
Sri-Krsna-carane tanra prema upajaya
If one chants the holy name of Lord Krsna in this manner, he will certainly awaken his
dormant love for Krsna’s lotus feet.
Mahaprabhu is the giver of prema—prema-pradata. Maha-vadanyaya-avatara—He is the most
munificent incarnation because He gives Krsna-prema. How can we get that prema? Develop this
mentality: Think yourself much humbler than a blade of grass lying on the street. “I am lowest of the
low.” Be as tolerant as a tree. Don’t demand respect, rather, pay respect to one and all. With this
mentality you should chant:
hare Krsna hare Krsna Krsna Krsna hare hare
hare rama hare rama rama rama hare hare.
Ei mata hana Krsna-nama laya—With this mentality chant Krsna-nama. Then definitely you’ll
get Krsna-prema.

Two Bhagavans
There are two bhagavans. One is guru, who is asraya-vigraha-bhagavan, the Lord as the abode
of service, and the other is Krsna, who is visaya-vigraha-bhagavan, the object of service. Sevaka-
bhagavan and sevya-bhagavan—servitor bhagavan and bhagavan to be served. The chief activity of
the asraya-vigraha-acarya is to do hari-kirtana. Unless Srila gurudeva, who is the asraya-vigraha-
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bhagavan-acarya, does kirtana nobody can understand Krsna, who is isa-tattva, the visaya-
vigraha, the supreme object of service. Nobody can understand the name, form, qualities, associates,
or lila of the visaya-vigraha-bhagavan unless asraya-vigraha, guru-acarya, imparts such
knowledge. When gurudeva does kirtana, speaking about the name, form, qualities, associates, or
lila of Krsna, these things appear in the form of sound, sabda-brahma. Then one can understand the
sastra-avatara, the scriptures, specifically the bhagavata grantha-avatara, Srimad Bhagavatam, as
well as isa-avatara, the Supreme Lord, and one’s svarupa, one’s spiritual form. Sri-nama and Sri-
mantra have descended here in the form of sabda-avatara, the descent of transcendental sound. If
the acarya-avatara, the asraya-vigraha-acarya, gurudeva, doesn’t do kirtana in the ear of the sisya
then that mantra or the sisya’s recitation of the Bhagavata will never be effective. The mantra is
given in sastra, so one may say, “Mantra is there, I will take it up. Why should I accept a guru?” But
unless that mantra comes from the lips of a bona fide guru who is acarya-avatara, it will never be
effective—there will be no potency at all. Therefore one must accept a bona fide guru, receive
mantra, and hear from him. Otherwise this tattva-jnana cannot be received. Sri-nama, Sri-mantra,
and grantha-bhagavata are all visaya-vigraha. Only through the kirtana of asraya-vigraha will all
of these visaya-vigrahas appear. Otherwise they will never appear in this world. One cannot
understand Sri-nama, Sri-mantra, and grantha-bhagavata just by doing puja, worship. One must
hear from the acarya-avatara.
Therefore, Mahaprabhu says:
trnad api sunicena
taror iva sahisnuna
amanina manadena
kirtaniyah sada harih
One who thinks himself lower than the grass, who is more tolerant than a tree, and who
does not expect personal honor but is always prepared to give all respects to others, can
very easily always chant the holy name of the Lord. 19
Kirtaniyah sada harih—do hari-kirtana, accepting a bona fide guru, especially a guru coming in the
gaudiya-acarya-parampara. Under his guidance do kirtana:
hare Krsna hare Krsna Krsna Krsna hare hare
hare rama hare rama rama rama hare hare.
This is known as kirtanakhya bhakti. Srila Jiva Gosvami describes this in Bhakti-sandarbha (173):
yadyapi anya bhaktih kalau kartavya, tada kirtanakhya bhakti-samyogenaiva
Although in Kali-yuga eight other types of bhakti are there, still they must be performed along with
kirtanakhya bhakti, the process of hearing and chanting the name and glories of the Lord, otherwise
one cannot understand siddhanta.
In this world the mahat-guru’s kirtan is nitya-kirtana-dharma, a process which is eternally going
on. And the sisya’s duty is nitya-sravaNa, to go on hearing constantly, eternally, without any break.
Tattva-jnana comes to the disciple through this srota-paramparya, the hearing process. One should
understand this point otherwise this srota-jnana or tattva-jnana cannot be received.
sukadeva Gosvami is such a guru, sadhu, coming in bona fide parampara. Pariksit Maharaja
inquired from him. sukadeva Gosvami is the bona fide person who can properly answer all of his
inquiries. This is sat-sampradaya.

9
1
Bh€g. 11.2.29
2
Cb. Madhya 2.288-291
3
®r…la Jagad€nanda PaŠita’s Prema-vivarta.
4
Bg. 7.16
5
Bh€g. 1.2.10
6
Cc. Madhya 20.122
7
Bg. 4.34. See appendix tad vidhi praŠip€tena.
8
Bg. 4.9
9
®araŠ€gati, Goptrtve-varaŠa, song 2
10
Gautamiya Tantra
11
Bh€g. 6.3.19
12
Insert reference
13
Bh€g. 11.14.3
14
Bh€g. 2.9.31
15
Bh€g. 2.9.32
16
Bh€g. 2.9.33
17
Padma Pur€Ša, cited by ®r…la Baladeva Vidy€bh™aŠa in Prameya Ratn€val… 5-6.
18
®ik€taka 3
19
®ik€taka 3