How is Chaitanya Mahaprabhu’s example of practicing bhakti applicable today?

Answer Podcast

Transcript

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Mahaprabhu came to teach us Bhakti and he taught sadhana.
He showed how to do sadhana. Associates showed us how to do sadhana. So then how do we apply their example in today’s life? And how do we relate that to the class that I gave today? See there is Sambandha, Abhidheya and Prayojana.
Sambandha is the philosophical knowledge of who is our ultimate relative. With whom are we ultimately related? That is Krishna. Abhidheya is the way we practice Bhakti.
It’s the way we connect with Krishna. That is practice. And Prayojana is the fruit that comes from connection.
That is Prema. Now Sambandha and Prayojana they never change. The philosophical knowledge that we are parts of Krishna always remains the same.
And Prayojana we want to love our Krishna that also remains the same. But Abhidheya the way in which we connect with Krishna that varies according to time and place circumstance. Because say the way the society was 500 years ago that is very different from the way the society is now.
In fact why look at that? The way if we look at Chaitanya Janata Amrit and we look at say Bhagavatam or we look at Mahabharata or Ramayana. It’s very different. So in the Mahabharata Ramayana there is not just the practice of Bhakti there is also active social concern for establishing the rule of Dharma.
Now there are wars fought and the impious forces, the demons are overthrown. So that was the way Bhakti is practiced over there. But 500 years ago the social situation was very different.
India was under Islamic rule and that’s why most of the Bhakti saints they didn’t focus so much on social transformation. They focused more on personal elevation. You just practice your Bhakti and elevate yourself.
They of course preached but they did not get themselves involved in socio-political change. The resources were not there at that time and that was not their focus. So now if it’s like that the way practically Bhakti is practiced that will vary from time to place circumstance.
Of course we could say ultimately Krishna came as a Kshatriya, Chaitanya Mahaprabhu came as a Brahmin and they are playing different roles. But I am saying that the roles that they played are different. So now as compared to 500 years ago and now or even 50 years ago when Prabhupada came by that time also things have changed.
That’s why when Prabhupada went abroad. Now in India traditionally those who are in the renounced order they go as mendicants, they go and seek alms. And that’s how the seeking alms becomes actually a pretext for them to connect with people and give spiritual knowledge to people.
But Prabhupada said in today’s culture in the west and increasingly in India if we go and seek alms we will be derided, we will be mocked. That culture is not there. So Prabhupada said go and distribute books.
So we don’t see in the 5000 years ago, 500 years ago sages going to people’s houses and selling books and getting money for that. Now that was not the way that was required. So according to time, place, circumstance how we practice Bhakti that will vary.
So now for today for example we have a digital age where we can hear classes online, we can hear classes recordings and our life is so fast paced and also the distances are so far quite often that physically coming all the time is not possible. So we may hear in different means. And still the principle is we are trying to serve Krishna, we are trying to remember Krishna.
So Prabhupada himself said that actually I practically invented the Krishna consciousness movement. So what do you mean invented? Prabhupada said I just gave what my spiritual master gave. So what do you mean invented? He said that actually how to implement it? Now what to do in a practical way? How to? Prabhupada writes in one of his lectures, he says in one of his lecture or devotional lectures that Rupa Goswami says that you should always think of Krishna, somehow or other think of Krishna.
So he says that it is the spiritual master’s responsibility to create ways and means to help the disciple to think of Krishna always. And that is actually the way the spiritual leaders are meant to engage people. So what are the practical ways in which people can serve Krishna? So from the example of Chaitanya Mahaprabhu we learn the principle that we are meant to absorb ourselves in service of Krishna.
But the practicality how we do it that we will have to learn from the contemporary devotee association. How are we practicing bhakti in this situation? And that way we move forward. Does this address the question? Who asked this question? The question I was not sure whether I understood clearly.