>Hare Krsna Prabhu, > >Please accept my humble obeisances. >All glories to Srila Prabhupada. >All glories to Sri Sri Radha Krishna. > >Thanks a lot for this e-mail. I was looking forward to receive this e-mail. I >am very inrested in Krsna conciousness. My parents made me a devotee. I'm in >the movement fo 7 years now. I'm a student from the university. Infact, I >am from ........ but I am studying here. > >I like to know how I can improve my chanting. I chant my rounds in the morning >and during the day. I want to wake up early at 4.00 a.m but I always find it >hard. I always feel sleepy as I study late at night and can't wake up in the >morning. Ca you please give me some advice on how I can improve? On this I >noticed since I chanting my sixteen rounds is that i feel happy while chanting >and i don't get angry like i was before. I feel that my life has improved. > >I would also know how to serve a Guru Maharaj. Today ...... Maharaj is coming >to ........ I like him a lot and has accepted him as my Guru. My parents are >telling me to take all my time to think about which Guru to choose. I am >hesitating and don't know if I have to tell Maharaj that i want to aspire from >him. May be I have to wait and know more about ....... Maharaj. Can you please >help me and tell me what I must do? > >Please forgive me if I have comitted any offenses in this letter. > >Hari Bol Dear Mataji Hare Krishna. Please accept my humble obeisances, all glories to Srila Prabhupada! Thanks for the letter and your questions. It's fantastic your parents trained you in Krishna consciousness. That's the real business of parents, to bring nice Krishna conscious children into the world and train them as devotees. "I have been informed by Devananda that your wife has borne you one nice son. So this is very good news. You may give him the name Nirmala Candra. Nirmala means without any flaws or without contamination and Candra means moon. So the name Nirmala Candra refers specifically to Lord Caitanya who is known as the Spotless Moon of Gauda. Now you husband and wife must work together combinedly with great responsibility for raising your new child in ideal Krsna consciousness. Children learn by imitation of their parents, so if you both set Krsna conscious example the child will very naturally and easily become advanced in Krsna consciousness by following. Please offer my blessings to your good wife, Laksmimoni, and your son." (From Srila Prabhupada's letter to Jagadisa 9 July 1970) As for getting up early in the morning it's difficult if we go to bed late at night. We have to arrange our life so we can get up early in the morning, before 4:00am, as Srila Prabhupada has instructed us to. Of course it's sometimes difficult and sometimes we may feel tired but it is one of the important aspects of Krishna consciousness. As soon as you start chanting Hare Krishna you won't feel tired anymore. You say already you feel happy when you chant and don't get angry like before, so it is already working, the happiness will increase and you will become more advanced in Krishna consciousness as you chant more. That is the sign of a devotee -- someone who is happy while chanting Hare Krishna, someone who wants to chant Hare Krishna always. Your studies will be easier and take less time when you're getting up early in the morning, you will also be able to chant most of your 16 rounds in the morning and that will mean you have more time during the day and so you will be able to take rest at a reasonable time. The early morning time, 1.5 hours before the sun rises is called the "brahma muhurta" and it's a very auspicious time. Spiritual activities performed during this time have more effect that at any other time, so if we want to advance in Krishna consciousness we have to do whatever is necessary to rise early in the morning. "The great souls are always chanting about Krsna. Hare Krsna, Hare Krsna, Krsna Krsna, Hare Hare. Hare Rama, Hare Rama, Rama Rama, Hare Hare. They are also endeavoring with great determination in their devotional service. For instance, in the Krsna consciousness temples the devotees rise early in the morning, at 4:00 A.M., and they immediately bathe. Then they go to mangala-arati at 4:30, and after mangala-arati they study the Vedic literatures. These are the processes by which we can awaken our dormant love for Krsna. Because we are part and parcel of Krsna--just as a son is part and parcel of his father--there is a natural love between us. However, somehow or other the son leaves home and forgets his father. The father, of course, never forgets his son. He thinks, "Oh, my son has left. If he would only come back!" Krsna thinks in this way. We are all sons of Krsna, and Krsna is more anxious to get us back home, back to Godhead, than we are to go. Therefore Krsna comes and says, "You rascal! Give up all this nonsensical material engagement. You have manufactured so many religions and dharmas. Just give them all up and simply surrender unto Me." ("Teachings of Lord Kapila" -- Text 14) To improve our chanting of Hare Krishna we just have to keep chanting at least 16 rounds a day and following the four regulative principles (no illicit sex, no meat eating, no gambling and no intoxication) and try to chant attentively, try to pronounce and hear every word nicely. Sometimes our mind may wander but if we always bring it back to concentrating on the transcendental vibration of: Hare Krishna, Hare Krishna, Krishna Krishna, Hare Hare Hare Rama, Hare Rama, Rama Rama Hare Hare then our chanting will improve. Krishna consciousness is so nice that there is no time when it won't get better, we can improve our chanting unlimitedly and there will still be room for an unlimited amount of improvement... Krishna is unlimited and He has descended in the form of His holy name. The Hare Krishna maha-mantra is Krishna and has all the potencies of Krishna personally present. Krishna is personally present in the form of His holy name, we just have to realize it: nama cintamanih krsnas caitanya-rasa-vigrahah purnah suddho nitya-mukto 'bhinnatvan nama-naminoh " 'The holy name of Krsna is transcendentally blissful. It bestows all spiritual benedictions, for it is Krsna Himself, the reservoir of all pleasure. Krsna's name is complete, and it is the form of all transcendental mellows. It is not a material name under any condition, and it is no less powerful than Krsna Himself. Since Krsna's name is not contaminated by the material qualities, there is no question of its being involved with maya. Krsna's name is always liberated and spiritual; it is never conditioned by the laws of material nature. This is because the name of Krsna and Krsna Himself are identical.'" (Padma Purana) You have been very fortunate to have such nice Krishna conscious parents. You should listen to them now also when they are advising you to wait before taking initiation from a spiritual master, it's not a cheep thing, it means surrendering to someone and worshipping him on the same level as Krishna. So it is a very serious thing. Taking initiation from an unqualified "spiritual master" can destroy your spiritual life. It has done that for many thousands of ISKCON devotees already. So many bogus gurus have cheated so many ISKCON devotees and the cheating is still going on now. They have a regular program of advertising ordinary men as "gurus". But the guru is not an ordinary man, he is "saksad hari", directly Krishna. Not that he is actually Krishna, but he is to be worshipped on the same level as Krishna as he is Krishna's representative. A real spiritual master will never say anything that Krishna does not say as it has come to him through the bona-fide disciplic succession. A real guru doesn't have his own ideas, he presents Krishna's ideas... "To understand these subjects, we should be careful to approach Krsna's representative. We should not approach a bogus guru, who is like a blind man trying to lead other blind men. We must go to one who has open eyes, to one who has seen the Absolute Truth. The Absolute Truth is there, just as the sun is there for everyone to see. The sun does not hide, but a person can try to hide from the sun by closing his door. One must open the door in order to see the sun. Similarly, Krsna is there, God is there, and we have to come to Krsna and take the lessons of Bhagavad-gita to learn who and what God is. Rascals will not do this, but will simply manufacture some philosophy or other. "There is actually no difficulty because Krsna's instructions are there, and Krsna Himself is there. Krsna is so kind that He says, "All right, if you cannot understand Me in this way, just see Me in water. Come on, if you do not understand Me in that way, just see Me in the sunshine." Is this very difficult? There is nothing difficult about it, but we are very obstinate. Maya is also very strong, and as soon as we try to accept Krsna as the Supreme Lord, maya will whisper in our ear, "No, no. There are many gods. Why are you accepting Krsna?" However, the sastras say, krsnas tu bhagavan svayam... isvarah paramah krsnah. "Krsna is the Supreme Personality of Godhead." We should take our lessons from the acaryas and the sastras. At least in India there are many great acaryas--Ramanujacarya, Madhvacarya, Visnusvami, and even Sankaracarya and Guru Nanak. All of these have accepted Krsna as the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Why, then, should we reject Him? Why should we accept a competitor? We should not simply engage in mental speculation but should accept Krsna in full consciousness and be happy. This is made possible by the help of the guru." (From the "Teachings of Lord Kapila" Verse 20) I would very strongly advise you to wait and in the meantime become very fixed-up in Krishna consciousness by rising early, continuing to chant at least 16 rounds of the Hare Krishna mantra daily and following the four regulative principles. You should take advantage of Srila Prabhupada's association, he is living in sound and you can take advantage of that. You can read Srila Prabhupada's books; you can go with him on his morning walks; listen in on his conversations with scientists, business-men, devotees, priests, and so many others; you can sit down in his Bhagavad-gita classes and Srimad-Bhagavatam classes and you can read his letters. So why not take full advantage of Srila Prabhupada's association? PERHAPS IN YOUR HOUSE YOUR PARENTS MIGHT LIKE TO ARRANGE A REGULAR PROGRAM FOR HEARING FROM SRILA PRABHUPADA. You can have a program every morning and evening, chant Hare Krishna, offer Aroti and hear something from Srila Prabhupada and read something from his books. Then you can talk about what Srila Prabhupada said. It is such a nice program and will enliven all the members of the family. ISKCON is in a difficult position at the moment, they have so many "gurus" now (100+) but they are not like Srila Prabhupada. But guru is one, real gurus are like Srila Prabhupada, there are not two types of guru. "In this verse Srila Rupa Gosvami advises the devotee to be intelligent enough to distinguish between the kanistha-adhikari, madhyama-adhikari and uttama-adhikari. The devotee should also know his own position and should not try to imitate a devotee situated on a higher platform. Srila Bhaktivinoda Thakura has given some practical hints to the effect that an uttama-adhikari Vaisnava can be recognized by his ability to convert many fallen souls to Vaisnavism. One should not become a spiritual master unless he has attained the platform of uttama-adhikari. A neophyte Vaisnava or a Vaisnava situated on the intermediate platform can also accept disciples, but such disciples must be on the same platform, and it should be understood that they cannot advance very well toward the ultimate goal of life under his insufficient guidance. Therefore a disciple should be careful to accept an uttama-adhikari as a spiritual master." (From Srila Prabhupada's purport to Text 5 of "Nectar of Instruction") So you have to take an uttama-adhikari (devotee on the topmost platform) as your spiritual master, otherwise you cannot advance very well toward the ultimate goal of life under a lesser-qualified spiritual masters insufficient guidance. "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 nrnam. The word nrnam means "of all human beings." The guru is not limited to a particular group. It is stated in the Upadesamrta of Rupa Gosvami 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. Prthivim sa sisyat. This is the test of the guru." (From Caitanya-caritamrta Madhya-Lila 24.328) "Srila Prabhupada: Yes, the spiritual master is one who solves all confusion. If the spiritual master cannot save his disciple from confusion, he is not a spiritual master. That is the test. samsara-davanala-lidha-loka- tranaya karunya-ghanaghanatvam praptasya kalyana-gunarnavasya vande guroh sri-caranaravindam "This whole confused world is just like a blazing forest fire. In a forest fire all the animals are confused. They do not know where to go to save their lives. In the blazing fire of the material world, everyone is confused. How can that blazing forest fire be extinguished? It is not possible to utilize your man-made fire brigade, nor is it possible to simply pour buckets of water. The solution comes when rain from the clouds falls on the forest fire. Only then can the fire be extinguished. That ability is not in your hands, but is in the mercy of God. So, human society is in a confused state, and it cannot find a solution. The spiritual master is one who has received the mercy of God, and he can deliver the solution to the confused man. One who has received the mercy of God can become a spiritual master and deliver that mercy to others. Mr. O'Grady: The problem is to find this spiritual master. "Srila Prabhupada: That is not the problem. The problem is whether you are sincere. You have problems, but God is within your heart. Isvarah sarva-bhutanam. God is not far away. If you are sincere, God sends you a spiritual master. Therefore God is also called caitya-guru, the spiritual master within the heart. God helps from within and from without. Everything is thus described in the Bhagavad-gita. This material body is like a machine, but within the heart is the soul, and with the soul is the Supersoul, Krsna, who gives directions. The Lord says, "You wanted to do this; now here is the chance. Go and do it." If you are sincere, you say, "Now, God, I want You." Then He will give you directions. "Yes, now you come and get Me like this." This is His kindness. However, if we want something else, that is all right. We can have it. God is very kind. When I want something, He is in my heart directing me and telling me how to have it. So why should He not give directions on how to have a spiritual master? First of all we must again be eager to revive our God consciousness. Then God will give us a spiritual master." And you have to test your intending spiritual master. It is no good taking initiation from someone because "you like him", "he seems nice"... or "all the devotees say he's a pure devotee..." You have to test for yourself. "Once Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu said, "You must at least have enough sense to test to find out who is a spiritual master and who is not." For instance, if we want to purchase something, we must at least have some idea of what that thing is, otherwise we will be cheated. If we want to purchase a mango from the market, we must at least know what type of food a mango is and what it looks like. Similarly, we must have some preliminary knowledge of the qualifications for a bona fide spiritual master. Bhagavad-gita itself gives some information about the succession of spiritual masters. Lord Sri Krsna says: imam vivasvate yogam proktavan aham avyayam vivasvan manave praha manur iksvakave 'bravit evam parampara-praptam imam rajarsayo viduh sa kaleneha mahata yogo nastah parantapa sa evayam maya te 'dya yogah proktah puratanah bhakto 'si me sakha ceti rahasyam hy etad uttamam "I instructed this imperishable science of yoga to the sun-god Vivasvan, and Vivasvan instructed it to Manu, the father of mankind, and Manu in turn instructed it to Iksvaku. This supreme science was thus received through the chain of disciplic succession, and the saintly kings understood it in that way. But in course of time the succession was broken, and therefore the science as it is appears to be lost. That very ancient science of the relationship with the Supreme is today told by Me to you because you are My devotee as well as My friend; therefore, you can understand the transcendental mystery of this science." (Bg. 4.1-3) "That original spiritual disciplic succession was broken, but now we can receive the same message by studying Bhagavad-gita. In Bhagavad-gita Krsna speaks to Arjuna just as in a far distant time He spoke to the sun-god. If we accept the words of Arjuna and Krsna, it may be possible for us to understand Bhagavad-gita, but if we want to interpret it in our own way, the results will be nonsensical. The best way to understand Bhagavad-gita is to accept a bona fide spiritual master. This is not very difficult. "Arjuna says that he accepts all that Krsna has said to him because Krsna is the Supreme personality of Godhead: nasto mohah smrtir labdha tvat prasadan mayacyuta sthito 'smi gata-sandehah karisye vacanam tava "Arjuna said, My dear Krsna, O infallible one, my illusion is now gone. I have regained my memory by Your mercy, and now I am fixed without any doubt, prepared to act according to Your instructions." (Bg. 18.73) "As Arjuna, we should accept Krsna as the Supreme personality of Godhead and do as He says: yat karosi yad asnasi yaj juhosi dadasi yat yat tapasyasi kaunteya tat kurusva mad-arpanam "O son of Kunti, all that you do, all that you eat, all that you offer and give away, as well as all austerities that you may perform, should be done as an offering unto Me." (Bg. 9.27) "By accepting Krsna in this spirit, we can attain complete knowledge. If, however, we do not accept Krsna and interpret Bhagavad-gita in our own way, then everything will be spoiled. "If we are sincere, we will get a sincere spiritual master by the grace of Krsna. If, however, we want to be cheated, Krsna will send us a cheater, and we will be cheated throughout our lives. That is actually going on. For those who do not want to understand Krsna as He is but want to understand by dint of their own imperfect vision, Krsna, God, remains unknown." (Form "Elevation to Krishna Consciousness" Chapter 5) So I would strongly suggest you take shelter of Srila Prabhupada and READ HIS BOOKS. Most "devotees" are not reading his books... That is the problem... Thanks for the letter. Keep chanting Hare Krishna and be happy! Your servant Madhudvisa dasa