Is Lord Chaitanya’s lila too elevated for general people?

Answer Podcast

Transcript

This is an AI-generated transcript and may contain some errors.
Thank you. Is it possible that Lord Chaitanya Mahaprabhu’s Leela is too elevated for general people? Yes, definitely. It is elevated.
At the same time, there is the intellectual aspect, there is the aesthetic aspect and there is ultimately the spiritual aspect. The spiritual aspect of the Leela means what is it that Krishna and Radharani are experiencing, that Chaitanya Mahaprabhu wants to experience. It’s a very esoteric emotion which we can’t experience.
But at the level of conceptualization, at the intellectual level at least, the conception of what the spiritual world is, if that itself is understood to some extent, that can enhance people’s attraction to spirituality and attraction to God. In the Sistine Chapel in Europe, there is that famous picture of God extending his grace to Adam. And in that picture, God is depicted as an old man.
And Adam is young and handsome and he is raising his hand. So God is extending his grace and Adam is getting the grace. But if you look at the picture, actually speaking, Adam looks healthier and stronger than God.
No offense to God, no offense to anyone there. But the fact is, that is not a particularly attractive conception of God. And if people have that conception of God as a grand old man or something like that, then it’s not a very attractive conception.
In the Christian tradition, broadly the conception of heaven is that of a perpetual family reunion. It is not exactly a celebration of God. Whether it is your grandfather, grandmother, your lost sister, your lost cousin, all of you will be eternally united together.
Well, it’s fine, but it’s not an irresistibly captivating conception of God. So if you at least intellectually understand how much subtle, how refined, how variegated the spiritual world is, that is demonstrated through Lord Chaitanya’s pastimes, then that itself creates some intellectual appreciation and attraction to Lord Chaitanya. And to the spiritual world ultimately.
That is important. And that’s why, according to people’s level, we can explain whatever is practical. Now, Prabhupada did not talk about the Rasa Leela too much.
But still he talked about Krishna as the butter thief. He still talked about Krishna as, he gave Krishna book for everyone, for mass distribution actually. He gave it.
So, while it is difficult for people to understand the esoteric aspects of Lord Chaitanya’s pastimes, still the basic pastimes and the basic conception that is there, if you can explain that, then it can be a whole new universe opening for many people in what spirituality is, what love for God is and what life’s ultimate perfection is. So according to time, place and circumstance, we can explain to people. But yes, the elevated pastimes of Lord Chaitanya, especially the internal moods, they are so elevated that most people can’t understand it.
At the same time, we as devotees, we do need to gradually appreciate these pastimes. Because it is our legacy, the Gaudiya Vaishnava Acharya, the Gaudiya Vaishnava tradition in which this has been revealed, that our Acharyas have preserved it, have elaborated it and they have given it to us. And the unfortunately elevated emotions have been prematurely imitated and that has led to the Sahajiya tradition.
So now, actually these elevated emotions, this elevated love of God, that is our tradition’s legacy to us and through us to the world. Now if we also start saying this is too elevated, then the only people who will be talking about it will be the Sahajiyas and they will misrepresent it. But because we are not talking about it, their misrepresentation will become the only representation of the Gaudiya Vaishnava tradition available to people.
And that has unfortunately happened. You know, in much of the world, in the academic world, the Gaudiya Vaishnava tradition is primarily thought of as a Sahajiya tradition. And it’s gone, it’s thought of by some people as a new Gaudiya Vaishnava movement, which is really not Gaudiya Vaishnava.
Because it has too many other things which don’t focus on the essence of Gaudiya Vaishnavism, which is not true. Chaitanya Krishna Prabhupada did give us the essence. But we as devotees who have been practicing for many years, we do need to understand, at least to some level, appreciate it ourselves and share it with others, so that that which is our legacy, that is our tradition’s legacy to us, that is not taken away and misrepresented by others.
Our Acharya has protected the legacy, certainly, so that Chaitanya Krishna Prabhupada was also very cautious, that is very elevated. Don’t trespass into it in advance. Don’t trespass into it prematurely.
At the same time, if we don’t, Sri Prabhupada wanted us to come to this level. Right in the first chapter of the first canto of Srimad Bhagavatam, Prabhupada gives a list of the various commentaries in the Bhagavatam. And he says the serious students of the Bhagavatam should study these commentaries.
So Prabhupada has given us access to all this. So with his blessings and following in his footsteps, if we gradually gain appreciation for this, then that which is elevated, that will elevate us, and that which is elevated, we’ll also be able to present to people in a way which they can appreciate. Does this answer the question?