If we learn to depend on mentors, but then they aren’t available when needed, what can we do?
Disclaimer: This transcript was generated using AI and may contain occasional errors or inaccuracies.
Now, when we learn to depend on mentors, but then they don't have time because they have many other things, when we need them, we feel very deserted because we also left our material connections to focus on Krishna Bhakti. Yeah, it's difficult. I'd say three different things in this.
First is that, ideally speaking… It's not like we deserted because it's like they're not able to please us. From functional point of view, we just don't have anyone at that time. So, I'd say that three things.
First thing is that, in general, the ideal counsellor is one who progressively makes oneself redundant. So, that means, if you see, the Bhagavad Gita is not just spoken by Krishna to Arjuna to tell him what to do. Because, if that was the model that Krishna wanted to follow, then just Krishna would have said, Arjuna, just forget your ideas, just follow me, fight.
But Krishna spoke the whole Bhagavad Gita to explain to Arjuna the framework by which a decision can be made. So, Krishna's purpose is not just to give a decision, but to give the framework for making decisions. And then, with that framework, Arjuna can apply it at other times when he doesn't have Krishna's guidance also.
So, that's why I feel that our mentors, our relationship with them should be such that they help us grow. That means, there are certainly certain situations we need their guidance, but the way they guide us… Well, I would say, in that case, I would not use the word redundant, but Prabhupada would say that he wanted his disciples to be independently thoughtful. So, Prabhupada did want us to carry on our practice of Krishna Bhakti even when he was not there.
So, he did say that we have to persevere in our practice. And that he's of course there in his books and in his subtle presence, we could say spiritual presence, but he's not there practically for us to ask questions and get answers. So, it's not that in the spiritual relationship, the spiritual master or the spiritual guides don't become redundant, but rather their presence and their wisdom becomes internalized.
So, rather than seeing the spiritual master as just one person, we see the spiritual master as an external representation of the Paramatma. The same Supreme Lord who is guiding us internally as the Chaitra Guru, is externally guiding us as the Diksha Guru or the Shiksha Guru. And all of them are parts or I could say all of them are different manifestations of an inner compass.
So, the inner compass tells us this is the way to go, this is not the way to go. And this inner compass is what we need to develop. So, when that inner compass is developed, then it is not that we reject the Guru, but rather what the Guru teaches, that we learn and that we internalize.
So, Prabhupada talked about there is Vaidik and there is Laukik. Vaidik means in scripture tells us do this, don't do this. But there is Laukik means there is general wisdom.
So, for a practical level, if the traffic is very heavy, then should we go left or right? That is something which scripture is not going to tell us. We have to use our common sense, experience and the learning through the experience. So, in general, with the spiritual guides, we learn from them, not just what to do.
If that is the model, we just ask them what I should do in this situation, they tell us. But if they give us guidance, then in their absence also we can work. Second is that we have to see that at different stages in our life, different people may guide us.
Again the same point that if we see that it is not just this spiritual mentor who is guiding me, it is Krishna who is guiding me through this mentor. It is Krishna who is giving me shelter through this mentor. Then, at certain times, some other people may give us that guidance.
It is that the same person, we grow, they grow, the same person may not be available for us. Now, as they were available earlier. So, then we have to see where we can get guidance now.
And sometimes it may not be just guidance, it may just be some friendship. We share our hearts and we feel unburdened by them. It might be a friend also who may help.
So, if we see the spiritual master or the spiritual guide as a representative of Krishna, then the universe in the broad sense is reciprocal. If we give affection, we get affection. But we will not always get by the same channel.
We may give a lot of time and emotion and invest in a particular relationship, but that person may not reciprocate. But then we find that somebody else, we just ask them a few things and they are so eager to reciprocate. Oh, this works like this.
So, that way we can be open for guidance. Sometimes Krishna may guide from inside, but Krishna may guide from some other sources also. And it's not a matter of ingratitude.
It's not that they don't care for us or that we are ungrateful to them. It's just that functionally we all are in different situations in our life and sometimes the same person may not be available for us. And sometimes the same person's guidance may also not make sense to us at particular times.
Because they all grow. And a third point would be that when we are… You can take a chair if you want. At such times, we don't have to necessarily think that we have to always make the right decision.
Sometimes we can make the decision right. That means we take a decision and then we do course correction as it's required. Because sometimes if we have this model of dependence on the spiritual mentor and sometimes if they give a guidance and somehow it turns out to be wrong, that advice makes things worse, then we may think, you know, I surrendered so much and I was misguided.
It's not like that. It is that life never comes with a guarantee of right decisions. No matter what we do.
Sometimes we take a particular course of action. In the Mahabharata it is said that we can understand what is the right action and what is the wrong action in three ways. By the content of what we are doing, by the intent why we are doing it and by the consequence of it.
Sometimes what we may do may be done with good intention and it may be the right thing to do also but it has terrible consequences. And then, oh, this is not what I should have done at that time. So, life doesn't in that sense come with a guarantee of right decisions.
But still what we can do is that as soon as we realize this is going wrong, we can do course correction. And beyond it all, Krishna is there and Krishna can make… Krishna can bring good even out of our mistakes. So, compare Krishna sometimes to like a Google.
Sometimes Google gives us a map. Google map tells us take a left turn. If we take a right turn, then immediately Google reroutes and gives us a direction.
So, even if we have taken some wrong decisions, say at that time we need guidance, we don't have guidance and we take some decision, and even if it turns out to be wrong, even Krishna can bring good out of our mistakes also. That's why ultimately if we see that our connection with Krishna, and Krishna is always with us through right and through wrong. Sometimes we serve with devotees and sometimes we have to serve alone.
Sometimes we may have to serve Krishna in spite of devotees also. Chidrapati had five husbands who were all virtuous and devoted. But in that assembly when she was being disrobed, none of her husbands came to help her.
So, at that time she had to take shelter of Krishna directly.