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Finding the right Spiritual Master (Srila Prabhupada)

• Subject: Finding the right Spiritual Master (Srila Prabhupada)
• From: Rob <krishna@krishna.org>
• Date: Tue Oct 29 17:31:38 1996
• Message-Id: id7008

>From: Jitendriya das

>Subject: Finding the right spiritual master

>

>

>Please accept my humble obeisances. All glories to Srila Prabhupada.

>

>You may have already covered this subject in your newsletter, but I've ran

>across more info on some of Srila Prabhupada's early tapes about choosing a

>spiritual master. 

>

>*********************

>Tape 66-004 New York - About 3/4 into Side A

>Bg. 2.7

>

>[My heading]:

>"If you chose the wrong spiritual master, your whole life is spoiled."

>

>*********************

>Srila Prabhupada: 

>

>"In every stage of his life the spiritual master guides"...

>

>"To take such guidance means, the spiritual master should also be a very

>perfect man, otherwise how can he guide.

>

>Now here Arjuna knows that Sri Krsna is the perfect person, so therefore he

>has accepted him as: Sisyas te'ham sadhi mam tvam prapannam. I am just

>surrendering unto you, he said, yourself, and you accept me as your disciple

>because friendly talks cannot make a solution of the perplexity. When the

>talks may be going on for years together, and there is no solution. 

>

>Here, accepting Krsna as the spiritual master means, whatever Krsna has

>decided, he has to accept. One cannot deny the order of the spiritual master.

>

>So, one has to select a spiritual master whose order carrying, he will not

>commit any mistake. 

>

>Suppose if you accept the wrong person as spiritual master, and he guides

>you wrongly, then your whole life is spoiled. 

>

>So one has to accept a spiritual master who guidance will make his life

>perfect. That is the relation between the spiritual master and disciple. It

>is not a formality. It is a great responsibility — both for the disciple and

>for the spiritual master."

>

>[A guest asks how to find a spiritual master if you've never looked for one

>before. Srila Prabhupada explains how to search and qualify a spiritual

>master by using the example of a student searching for the right college to

>attend.]

>

>{SP continues (paraphrased)]:

>

>First, you have to know what a school is. You cannot go to a club and accept

>this as a school.

>

>The spiritual master is required for a person who is inquisitive of

>transcendental knowledge. Therefore, one must be conversant with the

>preliminary knowledge about transcendental matters.

>

>your servant,

>

>Jitendriya das

>

>

>

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