Chaitanya's Teachings Revisited


A comentary on passages from Bhaktivinode Thakur's Sri Chaitanya Shikshamrita geared toward an indiginous Western approach to Radha Krishna devotion. Click to email me.	Chaitanya’s Teachings Revisited Let me begin by offering my obeisances to my guru, Lalita Prasad Thakur (Babaji), his father and guru, Bhaktivinode Thakur and all those who led me on my spiritual path. My thanks also go to Bhanu Swami for his translation work and Kesidaman Das for his editorial and publishing work in putting out such a fine edition of Sri Chaitanya-Shikshamrita by Srila Bhaktivinode Thakur which I quote and comment upon here. My initiator guru, who I followed for eight years, is A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami (Swamiji). He took me down the path as far as he could, but even in those days, 1967-74, I looked to the writings of Bhaktivinode as the well-spring or touchstone from whence it all comes to those of us in the West. I viewed him as a grand-father type figure. Your grand-father may tell you things your father doesn’t want you to know. Lalita Prasad Thakur also was a grandfather figure to me. He told me many things Swamiji did not want me to know when he initiated me into the real disciplic succession of Bhaktivinode and the practice of developing the eleven moods of a maidservant of Sri Radha in 1974. In those days, there were very few of Bhaktivinode’s books available in English. I am very grateful that they are available now. Lalita Prasad told me to preach in the West, and I follow his order to this day. I present the post-modern, thinking person’s version of Bhaktivinode’s teachings as he appealed to thinkers of his day. “Those people who gain natural satisfaction by worshipping the Lord without the motives of fear, desire, or duty are engaging in worship with raga, natural attraction. Raga is defined as the tendency of the mind to become spontaneously attracted to an object immediately upon seeing it, without intellectual processing. Those who become attracted in their hearts as soon as they think of the Lord are worshipping the Lord according to raga. Those who take to worship of the Lord from fear, desire, or duty are not on such a pure level. Those who worship the Lord according to raga are the real worshippers.” (p 5) Before I met Swamiji, I was spontaneously attracted to Radha Krishna through reading a book of Krishna love poetry, the Bhagavad Gita and hearing Allen Ginsburg chant. I suspect many other disciples were spontaneously attracted also. Yet Swamiji taught us to follow the rules and regulations of vaidhi bhakti and to be motivated by fear, desire or duty to do things we were not spontaneously attracted to doing. When I lived in Vrindaban and studied with Dr. Kapoor, Gaudiya Math devotees and others, I learned more and more of the spontaneous path of devotion that most Gaudiya Vaishnavas follow. Swamiji did everything he could to dissuade me and others from following the spontaneous path. He was more concerned that we spend our time and energy developing his organization, ISKCON. As ISKCON became more successful and more corrupt, I left in December, 1974. Since then, I relied on my spontaneous attraction to Radha Krishna to guide me. I stripped away rules, regulations and Indian cultural externals in an attempt to preserve the core spiritual truths of devotion. Today, my devotion remains strong and I endeavor to adapt these sublime teachings to my present circumstances. I invite you to dialogue with me in this process. “Although people in various countries on various continents have a wide variety of natures, the underlying principal nature is one—only the secondary characteristics are of great variety…Therefore, the idea of God of various people, although basically similar, will differ in the details…This gives rise to variety in the mode of worship of God. Considering the matter objectively, there is no harm in secondary differences. If there is agreement concerning the essential nature of God and His worship, there should be no obstacle in attaining the same result.” (p 8) It is this kind of broadness of spirit that allowed me to function in New Age, Sufi, Christian, and other faith traditions without having to change my basic beliefs. When I was still a relatively new member of the United Church of Christ (UCC), I asked our interim pastor Ross Knotts, who was an old United Methodist minister, how I could be a Christian when John 14:6 says, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” I told him I was a devotee of Krishna and that Swamiji used to say, “Christ, Christos, Krishna, what’s the difference?” Ross replied, “If Christ equals love and Krishna equals love, then Christ equals Krishna.” And so, love is the way by any name you call it. Krishna, Jesus, Chaitanya, all taught love of God according to time and circumstance and the ability of the people to understand and accept. When I joined the church, my pastor said I just needed to agree with the spirit of the Statement of Faith. I didn’t need to agree with each and every specific detail. There was no dogma or creed. We were all free to believe as the spirit lead us. “The UCC therefore receives the historic creeds and confessions of our ancestors as testimonies, but not tests of the faith…It affirms the responsibility of the Church in each generation to make this faith its own in reality of worship, in honesty of thought and expression, and in purity of heart before God…In essentials unity, in non-essentials diversity, in all things charity. The unity that we seek requires neither an uncritical acceptance of any point of view, nor rigid formulation of doctrine. It does require mutual understanding and agreement as to which aspects of the Christian faith and life are essential.” These kind of beliefs allowed four denominations to come together as one. These kind of beliefs allowed me to function within the church as ordained clergy and still be devoted to Radha Krishna within my heart. I think Bhaktivinode would agree with these principles and his followers would benefit by following an adapted version of them also. The number of splinter groups among his followers, even on this island, are many. I feel alienated from them all by differences over disciplic succession and style of devotion. It would be nice if we could be more unified in an independent, decentralized, non-hierarchical way that respects the beliefs of all. “It is imperative that the people of a specific country give proper respect to their native saints, but no one, although they may hold a particular belief for their spiritual progress should go to other places and preach that what their teachers have taught is superior to all other teachings. This gives no benefit at all to the world…Each country has its particular religious rules concerning proper dress, food, purity and impurity…it is only natural that the various religions will appear quite different. However, it is improper and detrimental to argue over these differences…Pure love is the eternal function of the soul. Although the above mentioned five differences may exist amongst the many religions, the only real religion is pure love.” (pp 8-10) It appears that Bhaktivinode was a universalist in his views. He says as much in The Bhagavat. I am an eclectic universalist as well. I got to experience Gaudiya Vaishnavism in its homeland of India for three years. I very much imbibed it and lived as much like an Indian sadhu as an American could. Upon returning to the West, I sought to present the teachings in a way that would appeal to Westerners. This was especially true after leaving ISKCON. I thought about how successful we were in India appealing to Vaishnavas to support their native religion. Back in the U.S., I thought I would try to teach love of God in an American format, Christianity, the dominant religion. Being in a progressive denomination like the United Church of Christ (UCC), I was able to do that to a degree. Unfortunately, most of the local churches are not as progressive as the national church or many of the professional leaders. The UCC is good about not trying to convert people. It is very ecumenical and interfaith. They send missionaries to other countries, but mainly to do good works and live in solidarity with the people and local religious leaders regardless of their religion. Of course, those without a religious faith or those who want to change faiths are welcome. I found that the lay Christians I worked with in general did not have as deep a commitment as their Hindu counterparts in India. Also, the non-dogmatic, non-hierarchical, decentralized structure of the UCC gives the clergy little power and leaves them at the mercy of the local congregation. After being run out of three congregations in eleven years, I said, “Enough.” However, I did reintegrate myself in Western culture and learned how religion is practiced and understood by educated, progressive mainline clergy. I integrate some of these principles with Sri Chaitanya’s teachings so that we can learn to develop our love without having to completely change the way we eat, dress, wear our hair, etc. The zealous, evangelical fundamentalism that ISKCON has been guilty of is not the only way to organize a religion. There are much better models out there. I have attained a balance in my life. Since leaving the church, I deepened my Radha Krishna devotional practices, but I definitely live a Hawaiian lifestyle. My mission and hope is to develop an indigenous Radha Krishna devotional practice that may thrive. “However, consider the following point. Although to criticize mere external variations amongst the religious systems is worthless, if people do see a real fault, they should not blindly accept that fault. If they attempt to correct the fault in the proper way, this is beneficial.” (p 10) All the years I was in ISKCON, 1967-74 & 1980-81, I tried to keep the movement on a spiritual path rather than a more business oriented organizational path. This division was there from day one. The business, organizational types won with the support of Swamiji who came from that same background and had Gaudiya Math as his model. When Swamiji emphasized tangible results as what he wanted from me rather than spiritual practices which included chanting sixty-four rounds, writing and preaching, I decided it was time to go. More temples, more devotees, more books distributed, not how are you progressing on the path to pure love of God-dess, was the standard. “Work now, samadhi later.” was his slogan. I was also critical of the church when I was in it. The challenge there was to get the members to take the teachings of Jesus seriously and apply them in their daily lives. It is the duty of the members, and especially the leaders, of a faith tradition to try to reform that tradition when it goes off the path. I worked within ISKCON as long as I could until I left in 1981 with goons coming to get me. I worked with the church until 2002 when I realized these people don’t want what I have to offer; I’m going elsewhere. Now, I am outside all organized religion. Yet, I am still a spiritual leader with a responsibility to point out the pitfalls of organized religion to seekers so they are not chewed up and spit out by the machine. I gave up trying to reform organizations, just as I gave up on the government of the U.S. I dropped out again and do my own thing. I invite others to join me. “Of all the conceptions of God existing in the world, the form of Krishna is the most suitable for developing pure love…Krishna alone, Who resides in the spiritual abode of Vraja, is the object of pure love…Elsewhere in the creation, He is worshipped and revered by all as the Supreme Lord, but here He is the very life of all the inhabitants. He sometimes descends to the level of worshipper, and sometimes even becomes subordinate to His devotee. If this were not so, how could the lowly living entity have a relationship of love with the Lord? The Supreme Lord is filled with the highest sport, endowed with free will and eager for the love of the soul. “Different languages may not use the same words to describe Krishna, Vrindavana, the gopas and gopis, the cows, the Yamuna and the kadamba trees, but persons interested in pure love of the Lord must accept some name, place, form and pastimes that denote the Lord and His world and, in one way or another, use the words of their particular languages. Therefore, though described differently according to the various languages, Krishna alone is the object of pure love.” (pp 13-14) This is true. I studied the various major spiritual traditions, and none come up to the level of the nectarean teachings of Sri Chaitanya and his followers. I don’t think there is another more coherent, comprehensive and detailed theology along with a detailed, blissful, romantic, loving description of God. In the church, some of the clergy would speak of “Jesusolatry,” the idolatry of Jesus as God. Jesus was God and man, a spirit filled man, a God possessed man, but he was not God per se. He was called the Son of God, but more aptly, the Son of Man. Why are persons so attracted to Jesus? Because he’s a loving person. He’s the embodiment of God’s love personified for that particular time and place. The Hebrew scriptures portray a very angry, jealous, vengeful, yet also loving and caring shepherd for his people, a provider, a ruler, a lawgiver, a meter out of justice, etc. Yet this is the great sky God who is very unapproachable. One cannot even see his face or utter his name. No wonder Christians are so attracted to Jesus. Some even imagine themselves to be brides of Christ. Others seek to become like Christ. Yet others meditate on Jesus’ pastimes and visualize themselves taking part in them. He took the best of the Hebrew tradition to a new universal level of love of God, neighbor and self. I love, respect and honor Jesus. He is an incarnation of the universal guru, the Cosmic Christ. He shows me how to live and love in this world with passion and integrity. Yet I do not want to go to a Christian heaven. Persons are attracted to other attractive persons, and Krishna is the most attractive person. However, I personally think Radha is even more attractive than Krishna. I love them both and want to spend eternity with them in Braja. This has been my desire since I first heard about them. I am so grateful that there are so many books available now that were not available in English thirty years ago so that we can better meditate on the vision of this supreme abode. We need to work on developing the narration of Radha Krishna’s pastimes in a manner suitable to attract Western devotees, who I believe are hankering for the nectar Bhaktivinode dispenses. May his words find new life in us today as his spiritual descendents carry on his teachings for this new day. “All of Me, namely my actual eternal form and My transcendental existence, color, qualities and activities—let all be awakened within you by factual realization, out of My causeless mercy.” Sb. 2.9.31 (p 44) This is really the only way to attain God realization—through God-dess’ causeless mercy. God-dess’ mercy is given through the guru, through the scriptures, through holy persons and directly within our heart. All of our strivings, all of our practices lead to nothing without the mercy of God-dess. Of course, there is also the means of grace. They open us up to God-dess’ mercy. God-dess’ mercy is there equally for all. It is causeless. However, some persons are more anxious to receive God-dess’ mercy than others. They actively seek it out. Thus, they receive a larger share. It is our yearning, our longing, our strongest innermost desire that brings God-dess’ mercy upon us. When we become surrendered souls and desire nothing more than the loving service of Radha Krishna, how can they not respond when we are completely dependent upon them? God-dess is unknowable in this conditioned state of material existence unless God-dess reveals her/his divine self to us within the heart. Our cries and calls of love will not go unanswered. “The main characteristics of sadhana-bhakti are chanting, hearing and remembering Krishna’s name, forms, qualities and pastimes. By performing this sadhana, gradually prema (pure love) appears in a marginal form, like a hidden fire. When the jivas (living entities) finally cast off their subtle body and attain spiritual bodies, prema appears in its pure swarupa (form). This, Krishna prema is a perfect object, which is not born from practice, but rather it appears in the pure heart by hearing and other devotional activities. Please note that sadhana (practice) is very necessary for this prema to manifest.” (p48) These are the means of grace. By chanting, hearing and remembering, we are able to open our heart to love Radha Krishna and receive their love in return. Love is the answer. The more we love, the more we are open to love. If love does not flow from our heart spontaneously, we need to practice loving Radha Krishna. The more we practice, the more we become love, the more Radha Krishna are able to reveal themselves to us. Unless we are extremely blessed, it is very difficult to fully experience prema in this conditioned state. We may manifest it to a degree, but its full realization will occur when we give up this material body and enter the spiritual realm in our perfect spiritual body. It may take many lifetimes to attain, but once we begin the process seriously, it is possible to attain at the end of this life by the causeless mercy of Radha Krishna. “The practitioners realize that Krishna alone is the object of remembrance, and that He should never be forgotten. They understand that all rules—positive or negative—follow this principle of always remembering and never forgetting the Lord. Thus, at this stage, the devotees reject a rigid, fanatical adherence to the injunctions and prohibitions and according to their individual qualification give up some of the injunctions and begin to practice some items of devotional activity that were prohibitions previously.” (p 49) My initiator guru, A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami, was a very strong advocate of following regulative principles, rules and regulations. I led a very strict, austere life under his guidance for eight years. This regulative devotional service gradually opened my heart and developed my love of Radha Krishna. Living in Vrindaban, associating with advanced devotees, I realized there was a lot more, a whole other level of devotional service that Swamiji was not teaching. Through the grace of devotees, I was able to find my siddha pranali guru, Lalita Prasad Thakur, who initiated me into the path of spontaneous love. This was a big infusion of grace. Within the year (1974), I stopped following Swamiji, his rules and regulations. I am free. I live freely. I follow my heart which has led me down a wonderful path, ever closer to Radha Krishna. I don’t do all the spiritual practices I used to do. I follow the ones that work best for me—hearing, chanting, remembering. I do things that were previously prohibited. I see them as gifts of God and am able to live more fully on both the material and spiritual planes without impediments to the development of pure love. I help persons discover what works for them. I help them become free of guilt, shame, driven-ness, never feeling good enough, etc., because they are not able to follow all the rules and regulations some think it is necessary to follow. If this path of love is to become indigenous to the West, its followers must be able to lead a more normal Western lifestyle. I am paving the way for that to happen. God’s grace can even flow through a person such as me. “The Lord has said, ‘When one is firmly fixed in devotional service, whether one executes just one or many of the processes of devotional service, the waves of love of Godhead will awaken.’ Chaitanya-charitamrita, Madhya 22.134” (p 52) It is not necessary to do everything. It is necessary to do something. Find a way to remember Radha Krishna and remember them constantly. Chant, read, write, preach, paint, do whatever you have a passion for. It is our passionate desire that opens us to grace and helps us progress. Paths without heart lead us nowhere. “’Therefore, for a devotee engaged in my loving service, with mind fixed on Me, the cultivation of knowledge and renunciation is generally not the means of achieving the highest perfection within this world.’ Sb. 11.20.31” (p 53) Swamiji placed a high premium on knowledge and renunciation. He wrote many books and strongly encouraged his disciples to publish and distribute them as widely as possible. He also encouraged his disciples to practice renunciation so that they could fully devote themselves to spreading his mission. Many of his disciples became very austere only to find out that such a lifestyle was not sustainable. Some openly adopted healthier, holistic, sustainable lifestyles of moderation. This is not an obstacle to devotion. Others expressed themselves in unhealthy ways which destroyed their devotion and hurt others. If we do not make friends with our shadow, the body, the senses, and see them as God-dess given gifts for our enjoyment and God-dess’, they become our enemy and seek to undermine our true self good. False renunciation is never desirable. “The original inhabitants of Vrindaban are attached to Krishna spontaneously in devotional service. Nothing can compare to such spontaneous devotional service, which is called ragatmika-bhakti. When a devotee follows in the footsteps of the devotees of Vrindaban, his devotional service is called raganuga-bhakti.” (p 53) Following in the footsteps of the devotees of Vrindaban by conceiving oneself to be one of them engaged in the pastimes of Radha Krishna is the essence of raganuga-bhakti. This is what Babaji taught me when he gave me siddha pranali and ekadas bhav (eleven moods of a cowherd girl in Vrindaban). These eleven moods or aspects of me in my perfect spiritual body are my eternal identity in relation to Radha Krishna. This style of meditation is widely practiced by followers of Chaitanya. It came down to me through the siddha pranali or perfect line of gurus coming from Jahnava Thakurani. In this way, there is a connection with those who have gone before me to the eternal Goloka Vrindaban and will be there waiting to welcome me when I arrive. This is all relational. The disciple is related through the guru to the whole line who are all cowherd girls in Vrindaban engaged in the service of Sri Radha. Again, this is pure grace which is passed on from guru to disciple. By studying the writings of those who came before me in this line and related lines, I learn the different ways they interact with the Divine Couple and adapt their moods as my own. In this way, the spiritual identity of the practitioner is developed gradually until we identify more with our spiritual self than our outward self. “The primary characteristic of spontaneous love is deep attachment for the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Absorption in thought of Him is a marginal characteristic.” (p 54) Deep attachment to Radha Krishna has kept me going all these years since I first fell in love with them. After leaving Swamiji, I gave up most formal devotional practices. I wanted to see what is real and would stick no matter what. I abandoned the external, devotional practices that no longer seemed to fit. I adapted those that were still beneficial and continue those practices. All along, that deep attachment, especially to Radha, remained. That can not be given up. “If one follows in the footsteps of the inhabitants of Vrindaban out of…transcendental covetousness, he does not care for the injunctions or logical reasoning of the shastra (scripture). That is the nature of raganuga.” (p 54) When one realizes the highest goal in life, everything else pales in comparison. All that has been said and heard and all the rules and regulations no longer matter much. One becomes fixed in who one is and spontaneously acts in love, both on the external and spiritual levels. Everything becomes spiritual when seen in relationship to Radha Krishna. We can live in Vrindaban wherever we are, and everything we do can be devotional service. Duality can be transcended when we realize all is Krishna and Krishna’s energies. The eternal is now. “Krishna has many types of devotees—some are servants, some are friends, some are parents and some are conjugal lovers. Devotees who are situated in one of these attitudes of spontaneous love according to their choice are considered to be on the path of raga-marga, spontaneous loving service.” (p 55) By following the path of regulative devotion, I came to realize my love for Radha Krishna in a conjugal mood like that of the cowherd girls. I longed to deepen this relationship. Swamiji wanted his disciples to stick with regulative devotional service. It is a much safer, slower path of devotion than spontaneous love (also more effective for building an organization). My heart was bursting to delve deeper into the esoteric pastimes of Radha Krishna. I went to see Babaji against the orders of Swamiji. Nothing could hold me back. He had the nectar, and I wanted nothing more than to drink it. He watered the devotional creeper that sprouted in my heart and allowed it to grow unhindered. When one longs for God-dess as the most dearly beloved, how can one be held back by injunctions which are detrimental to the growth of love? “However, it is simply a cheating notion to think that the goal of life is for clerks, farmers, business people and kshatriyas, etc., to elevate themselves gradually to higher positions in varna and ashrama and then finally to the positions of brahmana and sannyasi. Such a conception of occupational duties is in terms of material advancement alone and cannot produce any real progress for the soul.” (p 56) Unfortunately, one of Swamiji’s endeavors was to introduce varnashram dharma to the West. I quickly rose to the position of brahmin and sannyasi. I functioned quite well in those positions in Swamiji’s organization and in India. However, when I returned to the West and left Swamiji and his organization, I could not maintain such strict standards without a support system, and one did not exist for me in the West. I became a casteless devotee and married. Swamiji was very ambitious and wanted to change the world to his version of Krishna consciousness which included varnasharam dharma, the Indian system of four castes and orders of life. He believed his teachings were the best religious system in the world for everyone. However, the results were disastrous for many of his disciples. They were uprooted from their culture and thrust into an artificial “Vedic” culture. When they left that way of life, they were faced with putting their lives back together so they could function in Western society again. I did that. I feel good about where I am at now. However, I still struggle with how to present the teachings of Bhaktivinode Thakur in a way that will be widely acceptable to Westerners and not cause major disruption to their lives. This is my latest attempt. I hope you find it helpful. I have been a spiritual teacher for the past 40 years, and it is about all I have any interest in doing. I had a successful career as a Christian pastor and teacher for eleven years. However, there were too many compromises. Now, I present my own understandings of spiritual life without compromise. It is spiritually fulfilling if not financially lucrative. This is the task I feel called to. Swamiji had most of his disciples live in communal temples and developed a large world wide organization. Babaji, had thousands of disciples, but most of them lived at home with their families. He had no institutional organization. I believe a more decentralized, loosely structured association of disciples living “normal” lives is much more desirable. Organized religion is not conducive to spontaneous devotional service. Institutional preservation becomes too important. Rather than trying to gradually elevate ourselves through the varnashram system, it is better to simply take to devotional service from whatever position in life a person happens to be in. That is most beneficial spiritually. “A fully surrendered devotee always hopes that Lord Krishna will be kind to him. This hope is very firm in him. Eagerness is chiefly characterized by an ardent desire to associate with the Lord.” (p 58) This is one of the key elements of my faith—the constant hope that although I am unworthy, Radha Krishna will be merciful to me. As I said earlier, we cannot earn pure love of Radha Krishna. It is a gift that is given by them and the gurus. Causeless mercy flows down to a surrendered soul because such a person has no other refuge and Radha Krishna will not abandon their surrendered devotees. What is the kindness that we hope for? Simply that our love may increase and that we may become eternal associates of the Divine Couple so that we may serve them more fully. So many times, I prayed for them to reveal themselves to me so that I may see their true forms. So many times, I prayed, “Take me now.” Yet, I am still here, serving in separation. When, oh when will that day be mine? As for myself, I have more of an ardent desire to be with Radha than with Krishna. That is the mood of the manjaris (maidservants). They are more interested in serving and being with Radha than Krishna. They do not desire to enjoy Krishna directly, but enjoy many times more by bringing Radha and Krishna together and sharing in their love. “’A devotee absorbed in ecstatic emotion for Krishna always resides in a place where Krishna’s pastimes were performed.’ Chaitanya-charitamrita, Madhya 23.39” I lived in Vrindaban and visited the holy places of Braja such as Radha Kunda in the early 1970s before many Westerners went there. Gauranga Das, a great devotee I met there, recommended, "Never leave Vrindaban. In Vrindaban, you will gain energy for developing your Krishna consciousness. Everywhere else you will be drained. Here people are chanting Hare Krishna twenty-four hours a day. They are always remembering Krishna's pastimes." Swamiji sent me away from Vrindaban against my wishes on certain missions he wanted me to carry out. Over the years, my path took me to many places far from Vrindaban. I always have gopi chandan and clay from Radha Kunda, a leaf from the tree Krishna embraced in separation from Radha and a picture of Radha Kunda. In my heart, I am always a resident of Vrindaban/Radha Kunda. I live in the rain forest of Hawai’i. It is so easy to remember Vrindaban here because this place is so beautiful. My home in the forest is non-different from my abode in the grove of the eternal Vrindaban. Through Radha Krishna’s unlimited potencies, their pastimes are going on here also. We can turn any place into Vrindaban. Yet what a blessing it is to live in Vrindaban or Radha Kunda, India. However, that is not my fate, and even in Vrindaban, I was sometimes given the task of building a temple and raising money. This diminished my ability to experience the transcendental mood of Vrindaban I so relished. “Mahaprabhu has spoken of Radha, the topmost devotee in this way, ‘Srimati Radharani has unlimited transcendental qualities of which twenty-five qualities are principal. Sri Krishna is controlled by these transcendental qualities of Srimati Radharani.’ Chaitanya-charitamrita, Madhya 23.86” (p 59) I am more attracted to Radha than Krishna—she has Krishna under her control. Radha is Supreme. Radha rules! She is so beautiful and so loving that Krishna is wrapped around her little finger. He will do anything to please her. What to speak of a person like me, how can I resist her attraction. The supreme controller is controlled by the love of Radha. She is the supreme goal of all spiritual processes. She is the Supreme Goddess of my heart. Jai Radhe! After explaining the futility of false renunciation, Srila Bhaktivinode Thakur says, “Alternatively, if they place the Lord in the centre of their life while caring for body and house, while eating and sleeping, they then gradually increase their devotion to the Lord through their devotional practice. Finally and definitely, prema (pure love) will be achieved.” (p 60) One of my mottos is: “Realize your full potential, live life abundantly and love extravagantly.” What is our full potential? We are children of God-dess. We are loved. We are created good, in God-dess’ image. God-dess gives us all we need to live a happy, healthy and enlightened life. Most of all, we have the potential to actualize our selves spiritually—developing an eternal spiritual body through our pure love of Radha Krishna or whatever form of God-dess we may be attracted to. This is the highest goal of life. Too much emphasis is placed on renunciation by many teachers of devotional yoga and other yogas. When we place Radha Krishna at the center of our life, everything becomes spiritual when seen in light of their service. Everything can be used in their service. Everything is simply a manifestation of their energy. They created us and this world we live in with all its wonders. Why would they not want us to enjoy it in their service? Speaking as a Westerner to primarily Westerners, what do we need to care for body and house? I would say we need a basic middle class standard of living. We should have adequate food, clothing, shelter, transportation, medical care and other necessities. Then we may need a little extra for entertainment and vacation. Some money to save for emergencies and old age is also desirable. Some money to give in charity should be there too. Most of us also desire the pleasures, companionship and support of married life. This often leads to having children. Supporting a family in this manner usually requires one or two good paying jobs with benefits. All of this should not be seen as obstacles to devotional practice but rather as part of our devotional practice. Of course, we do not want to fall into the trap of materialistic consumerism, selfishness and greed. Rather, a life of voluntary simplicity and moderation is desirable. This is actually more enjoyable too. We should have the necessities, but not over endeavor for material gain. Learn to be happy with what you have, provided you have the necessities. Simply dedicate everything to Radha & Krishna. Radha & Krishna’s abode is described as being wonderfully opulent and abundant in supplying all the good things of life. Persons there live free of anxiety due to the hard struggle for existence in the material world. Yet even in this world, we can live that way if we learn to trust in the Divine Couple’s goodness and benevolence towards their devotees. Of course, we still need to work, but when we see that they have provided us with everything, we can open ourselves up to the divine energy and not have to struggle so much. We can learn to work with detachment knowing that we are only here temporarily and that we are destined for much higher things. When we come from abundance rather than scarcity we tend to attract abundance to our lives. And when we love extravagantly, we tend to attract extravagant love. Radha Krishna are the epitome of extravagant love. If we are to be their devotees, we have to become like them. We can become channels of their love and spread it to all we meet. This is what the world needs most—extravagant love. I and others have said, “Love is the answer.” When we learn to love one another, all the world’s problems will be solved. God-dess is love. Their presence is invoked whenever we love. As the love spreads, the whole world becomes spiritualized. As we focus our life on pure love of the Divine Couple, that love grows and will carry us to them. “To Raghunath Das, Chaitanya said, ‘Be patient and return home. Don’t be a crazy fellow. By and by, you will be able to cross the ocean of material existence. You should not make yourself a show-bottle devotee and become a false renunciate. For the time being, enjoy the material world in a befitting way but do not become attached to it. Within your heart, you should keep yourself very faithful, but externally you may behave like an ordinary person. Thus, Krishna will soon be very pleased and deliver you from the clutches of illusion.’ Chaitanya-caritamrita, Madhya 126.237-239” (pp 60-61) I consider this to be one of the most important scriptural passages for guiding our devotional life. Our spiritual practices are primarily an internal process we perform with our spiritual body. It is a process of adopting the mood, form, love and service of the residents of Vrindaban. This must be done in all circumstances. However, our external circumstances may vary greatly according to our nature, occupation, place of residence, social standing, etc. We can act according to the standards of society. We don’t have to be in people’s faces with our beliefs. We don’t have to be different. Others may not even know we are a devotee, but hopefully they sense that we seem to be kinder, more loving, more compassionate, more giving than others. Thus, we are able to enjoy a normal life in society and cultivate pure love at the same time. This is a healthy, holistic approach to life. “All that is necessary is the internal steadiness of the devotee in order to achieve success. A mere external show of steadiness is only a false display for others to see. However, if there is a real internal devotion and steadiness, very quickly the bondage of the material world will disappear. Pure knowledge and pure detachment will certainly increase as that genuine devotion increases.” (p 61) This is an internal process. One need not adopt all the external signs and practices of Indian devotees. The goal is not to become an Indian, but to become an associate of Radha & Krishna. Therefore, the cultural externals may be given up as long as one maintains the internal practices. Therefore, spontaneous devotional service may be practiced by anyone, anywhere. Gradually, one will see one’s life transformed into the spiritual world. “Taking shelter of Krishna-nam is the ultimate practice for the real devotee.” (p 61) There are many devotional practices one may perform. Some are more effective than others. The most important for followers of Chaitanya is the chanting of Radha Krishna’s names which are non-different from the Divine Couple themselves. One should call upon them like a child calling for its mother-father. They are our only shelter. We are completely dependent upon their grace and mercy to save us. We are unqualified, but by calling out in love, they hear us and respond due to the natural, innate love that exists between Radha Krishna and the living entities. They are present in the sound vibration of their names which are unlimited and contain their full potency. There are no hard and fast rules for chanting these holy names, but the more feeling we can put into it, the greater the response will be. Our yearning, longing, loving calls to them cannot help but attract them to us. “They will constantly chant the maha-mantra of sixteen names of Krishna while counting their chanting on beads.” (p 62) This is the traditional way of doing it. When I was a renunciate and able to remain free of administrative duties, I regularly chanted the Hare Krishna mantra 64 rounds of beads daily. This practice is very good for focusing the mind on Radha Krishna. Even when one is not chanting on beads, the mantra may still go on mentally. When I left the renounced order of life, of course, my lifestyle and devotional practices changed. “Devotees will maintain body, house and society as long as they are favorable for cultivating the name and will offer them all in the service of Krishna. They will not labor in any other direction, and even in this devotional direction, they will not over-endeavor.” (p 62) Our efforts are not as important as the grace of Radha Krishna. All our endeavors will not bring us to them without their grace. This is an easier, more natural way to practice devotion that leads to the supreme goal of pure love. The mental chanting of Om is my constant practice. Om is another name of the Divine Couple and the living entities in love. It is just sort of there as I go about the activities of the day. It is my center. From this center, I relate to others, the world about me and Radha Krishna in a natural way that is in tune with being present in the moment as well as being able to respond fluidly to the flow of life. Another way of putting it is that I am more incarnate and experience the immanence of God-dess rather than just seeking a transcendental relationship to the exclusion of this life. Christians call this “practicing the presence of God.” It is an effective spiritual practice which allows me to maintain body, house and society in a manner consistent with my life situation, which varied greatly over the years. “Not being overly ambitious in their plans, they will reside in a solitary place. Staying in association with those who can nurture devotion, they carefully progress. The purpose of all these activities is to attain fixed chanting of the name, with no anxieties.” (pp 62-63) My wife and I live in the tropical rain forest of Hawai’i. We live a pretty simple, solitary life of devotion. Our home is a temple. Our love is a reflection of the love of Radha & Krishna. Our anxieties lessen as we detach from material life and become more attached to Radha Krishna. “In Lord Chaitanya’s teachings, there are only two concepts: taste for the name and mercy to the living entities. A person is a devotee to the extent that these two qualities are present. It is not necessary to labor for any other qualities. The qualities of the devotee spontaneously appear, and the devotee naturally relishes acting for the benefit of all.” (p 64) A taste for the name has sustained me my whole adult life. It is my life-line in the ocean of material existence. I have shown mercy to others by teaching them love of God-dess. This is the greatest mercy one may show. It is what is most lacking and most needed in this world to solve all our problems. When we love God-dess, we can also love one another as well as God-dess’ creation. In this way, I have worked for peace, justice and the environment over the years. Under the current U.S. administration, I lost all hope that significant reform in those areas is possible. The administration is powerful and hell bent on its own agenda which seems to entail destroying peace, justice and the environment. They are not open to outside views or the will of the people. Therefore, my focus is on the spiritual solution—one person at a time. “’Always chant the holy name of Lord Krishna and within your mind render service to Radha and Krishna in Vrindaban...’ Chaitanya Charitamrita, Antya 6. In these instructions, the Lord also hinted in a covered way about the internal worship of Radha Krishna through the eight time-periods of the day known as astakaliya-lila-bhajan.” (p 65) Bhaktivinode introduces this important subject here and will take it up again later in the book. As one chants, one should remember the pastimes of Radha Krishna through the day and serve them in one’s spiritual body. Thus, one must know one’s relationship to the Divine Couple, their pastimes and how they like to be served following the examples of the eternal residents of Vrindaban and the disciplic succession. This is revealed by the siddha-pranali guru to the disciple. In this way, our relationship with Radha Krishna becomes very real and personal and our mutual attraction increases. “A householder should comfortably maintain his dependents, either with money that comes of its own accord or with that gathered by the honest execution of one’s duties. Sb. 11.17.51” (p 78) The question of right livelihood is important for one on the spiritual path. Most of us do not have enough “money that comes of its own accord” to support ourselves, what to speak of our dependents. Therefore, most of us must engage in “the honest execution of one’s duties” and hope to be able to make a decent living doing so. Blessed are the carpenters, doctors, lawyers, business persons, etc. who have marketable skills that earn a good income and are in high demand. Others may not be so fortunate and have to struggle to make a meager living doing things that do not suit their nature. While we do not have a rigid caste system that we like to acknowledge, we do have a caste system indeed. One’s caste is determined by one’s innate qualities, upbringing, education, social position, wealth, skills and talents. Some are laborers, others farmers and business persons, others warriors and administrators, while others are priests and teachers. All are necessary for the smooth running of society. All should be adequately compensated for their work. Therefore, I have been a strong advocate for the living wage movement and welfare rights for those unable to work. No one should be without necessities in a world as abundant as ours. As for myself, I became a spiritual teacher at age twenty under the direction of my spiritual master, A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami. I taught world-wide for eight years. When I left his organization due to its corruption, I continued to teach independently. I often had to take other jobs to support myself and my family. When I became a pastor and teacher in the United Church of Christ, after much education, testing, over-sight, time and expense, I felt I found the solution to being a spiritual teacher with integrity, stability and a good income. However, after eleven years, I decided the churches I served were too conservative for me. I resigned and began this independent ministry in 2002. Since then, I brought my Radha Krishna devotion to the forefront again. Rather than adopting the role of a traditional Indian guru, I use the model of a Catholic spiritual director, a spiritual guide or a holistic, spiritual teacher and practitioner. I am an experienced religious professional who has been trained, tested and approved for spiritual leadership in Hinduism and Christianity. I maintain high ethical standards. There must be a reciprocal give and take relationship between a teacher and disciple. Some gurus ask their disciples to give up everything else and follow them, to follow their orders strictly and do everything they say, to serve and worship them and to provide money. I paid a high price in terms of time, self-sacrifice, effort and money to get the spiritual wisdom I accumulated over a lifetime. I try to make the path as easy as possible for my followers. I provide teachings on my website, via email, telephone and in person. I do not want to exclude anyone who wishes to sincerely learn from me. I am open to barter. I put a couple of donation buttons on my website for those who wish to do so, and in this way, money can come “of its own accord.” What type of relationship is best for you? I teach freely, without charge, yet I have expenses. How can we work together?
Copyright 2003-08 Steve Bohlert

Chaitanya’s Teachings Revisited

Let me begin by offering my obeisances to my guru, Lalita Prasad Thakur (Babaji), his father and guru, Bhaktivinode Thakur and all those who led me on my spiritual path. My thanks also go to Bhanu Swami for his translation work and Kesidaman Das for his editorial and publishing work in putting out such a fine edition of Sri Chaitanya-Shikshamrita by Srila Bhaktivinode Thakur which I quote and comment upon here.

My initiator guru, who I followed for eight years, is A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami (Swamiji). He took me down the path as far as he could, but even in those days, 1967-74, I looked to the writings of Bhaktivinode as the well-spring or touchstone from whence it all comes to those of us in the West. I viewed him as a grand-father type figure. Your grand-father may tell you things your father doesn’t want you to know.

Lalita Prasad Thakur also was a grandfather figure to me. He told me many things Swamiji did not want me to know when he initiated me into the real disciplic succession of Bhaktivinode and the practice of developing the eleven moods of a maidservant of Sri Radha in 1974. In those days, there were very few of Bhaktivinode’s books available in English. I am very grateful that they are available now.

Lalita Prasad told me to preach in the West, and I follow his order to this day. I present the post-modern, thinking person’s version of Bhaktivinode’s teachings as he appealed to thinkers of his day.

“Those people who gain natural satisfaction by worshipping the Lord without the motives of fear, desire, or duty are engaging in worship with raga, natural attraction. Raga is defined as the tendency of the mind to Bhaktivinode become spontaneously attracted to an object immediately upon seeing it, without intellectual processing. Those who become attracted in their hearts as soon as they think of the Lord are worshipping the Lord according to raga. Those who take to worship of the Lord from fear, desire, or duty are not on such a pure level. Those who worship the Lord according to raga are the real worshippers.” (p 5)

Before I met Swamiji, I was spontaneously attracted to Radha Krishna through reading a book of Krishna love poetry, the Bhagavad Gita and hearing Allen Ginsburg chant. I suspect many other disciples were spontaneously attracted also. Yet Swamiji taught us to follow the rules and regulations of vaidhi bhakti and to be motivated by fear, desire or duty to do things we were not spontaneously attracted to doing.

When I lived in Vrindaban and studied with Dr. Kapoor, Gaudiya Math devotees and others, I learned more and more of the spontaneous path of devotion that most Gaudiya Vaishnavas follow. Swamiji did everything he could to dissuade me and others from following the spontaneous path. He was more concerned that we spend our time and energy developing his organization, ISKCON. As ISKCON became more successful and more corrupt, I left in December, 1974.

Since then, I relied on my spontaneous attraction to Radha Krishna to guide me. I stripped away rules, regulations and Indian cultural externals in an attempt to preserve the core spiritual truths of devotion. Today, my devotion remains strong and I endeavor to adapt these sublime teachings to my present circumstances. I invite you to dialogue with me in this process.

“Although people in various countries on various continents have a wide variety of natures, the underlying principal nature is one—only the secondary characteristics are of great variety…Therefore, the idea of God of various people, although basically similar, will differ in the details…This gives rise to variety in the mode of worship of God. Considering the matter objectively, there is no harm in secondary differences. If there is agreement concerning the essential nature of God and His worship, there should be no obstacle in attaining the same result.” (p 8)

It is this kind of broadness of spirit that allowed me to function in New Age, Sufi, Christian, and other faith traditions without having to change my basic beliefs.

When I was still a relatively new member of the United Church of Christ (UCC), I asked our interim pastor Ross Knotts, who was an old United Methodist minister, how I could be a Christian when John 14:6 says, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” I told him I was a devotee of Krishna and that Swamiji used to say, “Christ, Christos, Krishna, what’s the difference?” Ross replied, “If Christ equals love and Krishna equals love, then Christ equals Krishna.” And so, love is the way by any name you call it. Krishna, Jesus, Chaitanya, all taught love of God according to time and circumstance and the ability of the people to understand and accept.

When I joined the church, my pastor said I just needed to agree with the spirit of the Statement of Faith. I didn’t need to agree with each and every specific detail. There was no dogma or creed. We were all free to believe as the spirit lead us.

“The UCC therefore receives the historic creeds and confessions of our ancestors as testimonies, but not tests of the faith…It affirms the responsibility of the Church in each generation to make this faith its own in reality of worship, in honesty of thought and expression, and in purity of heart before God…In essentials unity, in non-essentials diversity, in all things charity. The unity that we seek requires neither an uncritical acceptance of any point of view, nor rigid formulation of doctrine. It does require mutual understanding and agreement as to which aspects of the Christian faith and life are essential.”

These kind of beliefs allowed four denominations to come together as one. These kind of beliefs allowed me to function within the church as ordained clergy and still be devoted to Radha Krishna within my heart. I think Bhaktivinode would agree with these principles and his followers would benefit by following an adapted version of them also. The number of splinter groups among his followers, even on this island, are many. I feel alienated from them all by differences over disciplic succession and style of devotion. It would be nice if we could be more unified in an independent, decentralized, non-hierarchical way that respects the beliefs of all.

“It is imperative that the people of a specific country give proper respect to their native saints, but no one, although they may hold a particular belief for their spiritual progress should go to other places and preach that what their teachers have taught is superior to all other teachings. This gives no benefit at all to the world…Each country has its particular religious rules concerning proper dress, food, purity and impurity…it is only natural that the various religions will appear quite different. However, it is improper and detrimental to argue over these differences…Pure love is the eternal function of the soul. Although the above mentioned five differences may exist amongst the many religions, the only real religion is pure love.” (pp 8-10)

It appears that Bhaktivinode was a universalist in his views. He says as much in The Bhagavat. I am an eclectic universalist as well. I got to experience Gaudiya Vaishnavism in its homeland of India for three years. I very much imbibed it and lived as much like an Indian sadhu as an American could. Upon returning to the West, I sought to present the teachings in a way that would appeal to Westerners. This was especially true after leaving ISKCON.

I thought about how successful we were in India appealing to Vaishnavas to support their native religion. Back in the U.S., I thought I would try to teach love of God in an American format, Christianity, the dominant religion. Being in a progressive denomination like the United Church of Christ (UCC), I was able to do that to a degree. Unfortunately, most of the local churches are not as progressive as the national church or many of the professional leaders.

The UCC is good about not trying to convert people. It is very ecumenical and interfaith. They send missionaries to other countries, but mainly to do good works and live in solidarity with the people and local religious leaders regardless of their religion. Of course, those without a religious faith or those who want to change faiths are welcome.

I found that the lay Christians I worked with in general did not have as deep a commitment as their Hindu counterparts in India. Also, the non-dogmatic, non-hierarchical, decentralized structure of the UCC gives the clergy little power and leaves them at the mercy of the local congregation. After being run out of three congregations in eleven years, I said, “Enough.” However, I did reintegrate myself in Western culture and learned how religion is practiced and understood by educated, progressive mainline clergy.

I integrate some of these principles with Sri Chaitanya’s teachings so that we can learn to develop our love without having to completely change the way we eat, dress, wear our hair, etc. The zealous, evangelical fundamentalism that ISKCON has been guilty of is not the only way to organize a religion. There are much better models out there.

I have attained a balance in my life. Since leaving the church, I deepened my Radha Krishna devotional practices, but I definitely live a Hawaiian lifestyle. My mission and hope is to develop an indigenous Radha Krishna devotional practice that may thrive.

“However, consider the following point. Although to criticize mere external variations amongst the religious systems is worthless, if people do see a real fault, they should not blindly accept that fault. If they attempt to correct the fault in the proper way, this is beneficial.” (p 10)

All the years I was in ISKCON, 1967-74 & 1980-81, I tried to keep the movement on a spiritual path rather than a more business oriented organizational path. This division was there from day one. The business, organizational types won with the support of Swamiji who came from that same background and had Gaudiya Math as his model.

When Swamiji emphasized tangible results as what he wanted from me rather than spiritual practices which included chanting sixty-four rounds, writing and preaching, I decided it was time to go. More temples, more devotees, more books distributed, not how are you progressing on the path to pure love of God-dess, was the standard. “Work now, samadhi later.” was his slogan.

I was also critical of the church when I was in it. The challenge there was to get the members to take the teachings of Jesus seriously and apply them in their daily lives.

It is the duty of the members, and especially the leaders, of a faith tradition to try to reform that tradition when it goes off the path. I worked within ISKCON as long as I could until I left in 1981 with goons coming to get me. I worked with the church until 2002 when I realized these people don’t want what I have to offer; I’m going elsewhere.

Now, I am outside all organized religion. Yet, I am still a spiritual leader with a responsibility to point out the pitfalls of organized religion to seekers so they are not chewed up and spit out by the machine. I gave up trying to reform organizations, just as I gave up on the government of the U.S. I dropped out again and do my own thing. I invite others to join me.

“Of all the conceptions of God existing in the world, the form of Krishna is the most suitable for developing pure love…Krishna alone, Who resides in the spiritual abode of Vraja, is the object of pure love…Elsewhere in the creation, He is worshipped and revered by all as the Supreme Lord, but here He is the very life of all the inhabitants. He sometimes descends to the level of worshipper, and sometimes even becomes subordinate to His devotee. If this were not so, how could the lowly living entity have a relationship of love with the Lord? The Supreme Lord is filled with the highest sport, endowed with free will and eager for the love of the soul.

“Different languages may not use the same words to describe Krishna, Vrindavana, the gopas and gopis, the cows, the Yamuna and the kadamba trees, but persons interested in pure love of the Lord must accept some name, place, form and pastimes that denote the Lord and His world and, in one way or another, use the words of their particular languages. Therefore, though described differently according to the various languages, Krishna alone is the object of pure love.” (pp 13-14)

This is true. I studied the various major spiritual traditions, and none come up to the level of the nectarean teachings of Sri Chaitanya and his followers. I don’t think there is another more coherent, comprehensive and detailed theology along with a detailed, blissful, romantic, loving description of God.

In the church, some of the clergy would speak of “Jesusolatry,” the idolatry of Jesus as God. Jesus was God and man, a spirit filled man, a God possessed man, but he was not God per se. He was called the Son of God, but more aptly, the Son of Man. Why are persons so attracted to Jesus? Because he’s a loving person. He’s the embodiment of God’s love personified for that particular time and place.

The Hebrew scriptures portray a very angry, jealous, vengeful, yet also loving and caring shepherd for his people, a provider, a ruler, a lawgiver, a meter out of justice, etc. Yet this is the great sky God who is very unapproachable. One cannot even see his face or utter his name.

No wonder Christians are so attracted to Jesus. Some even imagine themselves to be brides of Christ. Others seek to become like Christ. Yet others meditate on Jesus’ pastimes and visualize themselves taking part in them. He took the best of the Hebrew tradition to a new universal level of love of God, neighbor and self.

I love, respect and honor Jesus. He is an incarnation of the universal guru, the Cosmic Christ. He shows me how to live and love in this world with passion and integrity. Yet I do not want to go to a Christian heaven.

Persons are attracted to other attractive persons, and Krishna is the most attractive person. However, I personally think Radha is even more attractive than Krishna. I love them both and want to spend eternity with them in Braja. This has been my desire since I first heard about them.

I am so grateful that there are so many books available now that were not available in English thirty years ago so that we can better meditate on the vision of this supreme abode. We need to work on developing the narration of Radha Krishna’s pastimes in a manner suitable to attract Western devotees, who I believe are hankering for the nectar Bhaktivinode dispenses. May his words find new life in us today as his spiritual descendents carry on his teachings for this new day.

“All of Me, namely my actual eternal form and My transcendental existence, color, qualities and activities—let all be awakened within you by factual realization, out of My causeless mercy.” Sb. 2.9.31 (p 44)

This is really the only way to attain God realization—through God-dess’ causeless mercy. God-dess’ mercy is given through the guru, through the scriptures, through holy persons and directly within our heart. All of our strivings, all of our practices lead to nothing without the mercy of God-dess.

Of course, there is also the means of grace. They open us up to God-dess’ mercy. God-dess’ mercy is there equally for all. It is causeless. However, some persons are more anxious to receive God-dess’ mercy than others. They actively seek it out. Thus, they receive a larger share. It is our yearning, our longing, our strongest innermost desire that brings God-dess’ mercy upon us. When we become surrendered souls and desire nothing more than the loving service of Radha Krishna, how can they not respond when we are completely dependent upon them?

God-dess is unknowable in this conditioned state of material existence unless God-dess reveals her/his divine self to us within the heart. Our cries and calls of love will not go unanswered.

“The main characteristics of sadhana-bhakti are chanting, hearing and remembering Krishna’s name, forms, qualities and pastimes. By performing this sadhana, gradually prema (pure love) appears in a marginal form, like a hidden fire. When the jivas (living entities) finally cast off their subtle body and attain spiritual bodies, prema appears in its pure swarupa (form). This, Krishna prema is a perfect object, which is not born from practice, but rather it appears in the pure heart by hearing and other devotional activities. Please note that sadhana (practice) is very necessary for this prema to manifest.” (p48)

These are the means of grace. By chanting, hearing and remembering, we are able to open our heart to love Radha Krishna and receive their love in return. Love is the answer. The more we love, the more we are open to love. If love does not flow from our heart spontaneously, we need to practice loving Radha Krishna. The more we practice, the more we become love, the more Radha Krishna are able to reveal themselves to us.

Unless we are extremely blessed, it is very difficult to fully experience prema in this conditioned state. We may manifest it to a degree, but its full realization will occur when we give up this material body and enter the spiritual realm in our perfect spiritual body. It may take many lifetimes to attain, but once we begin the process seriously, it is possible to attain at the end of this life by the causeless mercy of Radha Krishna.

“The practitioners realize that Krishna alone is the object of remembrance, and that He should never be forgotten. They understand that all rules—positive or negative—follow this principle of always remembering and never forgetting the Lord. Thus, at this stage, the devotees reject a rigid, fanatical adherence to the injunctions and prohibitions and according to their individual qualification give up some of the injunctions and begin to practice some items of devotional activity that were prohibitions previously.” (p 49)

My initiator guru, A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami, was a very strong advocate of following regulative principles, rules and regulations. I led a very strict, austere life under his guidance for eight years. This regulative devotional service gradually opened my heart and developed my love of Radha Krishna. Living in Vrindaban, associating with advanced devotees, I realized there was a lot more, a whole other level of devotional service that Swamiji was not teaching.

Through the grace of devotees, I was able to find my siddha pranali guru, Lalita Prasad Thakur, who initiated me into the path of spontaneous love. This was a big infusion of grace. Within the year (1974), I stopped following Swamiji, his rules and regulations. I am free. I live freely. I follow my heart which has led me down a wonderful path, ever closer to Radha Krishna.

I don’t do all the spiritual practices I used to do. I follow the ones that work best for me—hearing, chanting, remembering. I do things that were previously prohibited. I see them as gifts of God and am able to live more fully on both the material and spiritual planes without impediments to the development of pure love.

I help persons discover what works for them. I help them become free of guilt, shame, driven-ness, never feeling good enough, etc., because they are not able to follow all the rules and regulations some think it is necessary to follow. If this path of love is to become indigenous to the West, its followers must be able to lead a more normal Western lifestyle. I am paving the way for that to happen. God’s grace can even flow through a person such as me.

“The Lord has said, ‘When one is firmly fixed in devotional service, whether one executes just one or many of the processes of devotional service, the waves of love of Godhead will awaken.’ Chaitanya-charitamrita, Madhya 22.134” (p 52)

It is not necessary to do everything. It is necessary to do something. Find a way to remember Radha Krishna and remember them constantly. Chant, read, write, preach, paint, do whatever you have a passion for. It is our passionate desire that opens us to grace and helps us progress. Paths without heart lead us nowhere.

“’Therefore, for a devotee engaged in my loving service, with mind fixed on Me, the cultivation of knowledge and renunciation is generally not the means of achieving the highest perfection within this world.’ Sb. 11.20.31” (p 53)

Swamiji placed a high premium on knowledge and renunciation. He wrote many books and strongly encouraged his disciples to publish and distribute them as widely as possible. He also encouraged his disciples to practice renunciation so that they could fully devote themselves to spreading his mission.

Many of his disciples became very austere only to find out that such a lifestyle was not sustainable. Some openly adopted healthier, holistic, sustainable lifestyles of moderation. This is not an obstacle to devotion. Others expressed themselves in unhealthy ways which destroyed their devotion and hurt others. If we do not make friends with our shadow, the body, the senses, and see them as God-dess given gifts for our enjoyment and God-dess’, they become our enemy and seek to undermine our true self good. False renunciation is never desirable.

“The original inhabitants of Vrindaban are attached to Krishna spontaneously in devotional service. Nothing can compare to such spontaneous devotional service, which is called ragatmika-bhakti. When a devotee follows in the footsteps of the devotees of Vrindaban, his devotional service is called raganuga-bhakti.” (p 53)

Following in the footsteps of the devotees of Vrindaban by conceiving oneself to be one of them engaged in the pastimes of Radha Krishna is the essence of raganuga-bhakti. This is what Babaji taught me when he gave me siddha pranali and ekadas bhav (eleven moods of a cowherd girl in Vrindaban). These eleven moods or aspects of me in my perfect spiritual body are my eternal identity in relation to Radha Krishna.

This style of meditation is widely practiced by followers of Chaitanya. It came down to me through the siddha pranali or perfect line of gurus coming from Jahnava Thakurani. In this way, there is a connection with those who have gone before me to the eternal Goloka Vrindaban and will be there waiting to welcome me when I arrive. This is all relational. The disciple is related through the guru to the whole line who are all cowherd girls in Vrindaban engaged in the service of Sri Radha. Again, this is pure grace which is passed on from guru to disciple.

By studying the writings of those who came before me in this line and related lines, I learn the different ways they interact with the Divine Couple and adapt their moods as my own. In this way, the spiritual identity of the practitioner is developed gradually until we identify more with our spiritual self than our outward self.

“The primary characteristic of spontaneous love is deep attachment for the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Absorption in thought of Him is a marginal characteristic.” (p 54)

Deep attachment to Radha Krishna has kept me going all these years since I first fell in love with them. After leaving Swamiji, I gave up most formal devotional practices. I wanted to see what is real and would stick no matter what. I abandoned the external, devotional practices that no longer seemed to fit. I adapted those that were still beneficial and continue those practices. All along, that deep attachment, especially to Radha, remained. That can not be given up.

“If one follows in the footsteps of the inhabitants of Vrindaban out of…transcendental covetousness, he does not care for the injunctions or logical reasoning of the shastra (scripture). That is the nature of raganuga.” (p 54)

When one realizes the highest goal in life, everything else pales in comparison. All that has been said and heard and all the rules and regulations no longer matter much. One becomes fixed in who one is and spontaneously acts in love, both on the external and spiritual levels. Everything becomes spiritual when seen in relationship to Radha Krishna. We can live in Vrindaban wherever we are, and everything we do can be devotional service. Duality can be transcended when we realize all is Krishna and Krishna’s energies. The eternal is now.

“Krishna has many types of devotees—some are servants, some are friends, some are parents and some are conjugal lovers. Devotees who are situated in one of these attitudes of spontaneous love according to their choice are considered to be on the path of raga-marga, spontaneous loving service.” (p 55)

By following the path of regulative devotion, I came to realize my love for Radha Krishna in a conjugal mood like that of the cowherd girls. I longed to deepen this relationship. Swamiji wanted his disciples to stick with regulative devotional service. It is a much safer, slower path of devotion than spontaneous love (also more effective for building an organization).

My heart was bursting to delve deeper into the esoteric pastimes of Radha Krishna. I went to see Babaji against the orders of Swamiji. Nothing could hold me back. He had the nectar, and I wanted nothing more than to drink it. He watered the devotional creeper that sprouted in my heart and allowed it to grow unhindered. When one longs for God-dess as the most dearly beloved, how can one be held back by injunctions which are detrimental to the growth of love?

“However, it is simply a cheating notion to think that the goal of life is for clerks, farmers, business people and kshatriyas, etc., to elevate themselves gradually to higher positions in varna and ashrama and then finally to the positions of brahmana and sannyasi. Such a conception of occupational duties is in terms of material advancement alone and cannot produce any real progress for the soul.” (p 56)

Unfortunately, one of Swamiji’s endeavors was to introduce varnashram dharma to the West. I quickly rose to the position of brahmin and sannyasi. I functioned quite well in those positions in Swamiji’s organization and in India. However, when I returned to the West and left Swamiji and his organization, I could not maintain such strict standards without a support system, and one did not exist for me in the West. I became a casteless devotee and married.

Swamiji was very ambitious and wanted to change the world to his version of Krishna consciousness which included varnasharam dharma, the Indian system of four castes and orders of life. He believed his teachings were the best religious system in the world for everyone. However, the results were disastrous for many of his disciples. They were uprooted from their culture and thrust into an artificial “Vedic” culture. When they left that way of life, they were faced with putting their lives back together so they could function in Western society again.

I did that. I feel good about where I am at now. However, I still struggle with how to present the teachings of Bhaktivinode Thakur in a way that will be widely acceptable to Westerners and not cause major disruption to their lives. This is my latest attempt. I hope you find it helpful.

I have been a spiritual teacher for the past 40 years, and it is about all I have any interest in doing. I had a successful career as a Christian pastor and teacher for eleven years. However, there were too many compromises. Now, I present my own understandings of spiritual life without compromise. It is spiritually fulfilling if not financially lucrative. This is the task I feel called to.

Swamiji had most of his disciples live in communal temples and developed a large world wide organization. Babaji, had thousands of disciples, but most of them lived at home with their families. He had no institutional organization. I believe a more decentralized, loosely structured association of disciples living “normal” lives is much more desirable. Organized religion is not conducive to spontaneous devotional service. Institutional preservation becomes too important.

Rather than trying to gradually elevate ourselves through the varnashram system, it is better to simply take to devotional service from whatever position in life a person happens to be in. That is most beneficial spiritually.

“A fully surrendered devotee always hopes that Lord Krishna will be kind to him. This hope is very firm in him. Eagerness is chiefly characterized by an ardent desire to associate with the Lord.” (p 58)

This is one of the key elements of my faith—the constant hope that although I am unworthy, Radha Krishna will be merciful to me. As I said earlier, we cannot earn pure love of Radha Krishna. It is a gift that is given by them and the gurus. Causeless mercy flows down to a surrendered soul because such a person has no other refuge and Radha Krishna will not abandon their surrendered devotees.

What is the kindness that we hope for? Simply that our love may increase and that we may become eternal associates of the Divine Couple so that we may serve them more fully. So many times, I prayed for them to reveal themselves to me so that I may see their true forms. So many times, I prayed, “Take me now.” Yet, I am still here, serving in separation. When, oh when will that day be mine?

As for myself, I have more of an ardent desire to be with Radha than with Krishna. That is the mood of the manjaris (maidservants). They are more interested in serving and being with Radha than Krishna. They do not desire to enjoy Krishna directly, but enjoy many times more by bringing Radha and Krishna together and sharing in their love.

“’A devotee absorbed in ecstatic emotion for Krishna always resides in a place where Krishna’s pastimes were performed.’ Chaitanya-charitamrita, Madhya 23.39”

I lived in Vrindaban and visited the holy places of Braja such as Radha Kunda in the early 1970s before many Westerners went there. Gauranga Das, a great devotee I met there, recommended, "Never leave Vrindaban. In Vrindaban, you will gain energy for developing your Krishna consciousness. Everywhere else you will be drained. Here people are chanting Hare Krishna twenty-four hours a day. They are always remembering Krishna's pastimes."

Swamiji sent me away from Vrindaban against my wishes on certain missions he wanted me to carry out. Over the years, my path took me to many places far from Vrindaban. I always have gopi chandan and clay from Radha Kunda, a leaf from the tree Krishna embraced in separation from Radha and a picture of Radha Kunda. In my heart, I am always a resident of Vrindaban/Radha Kunda.

I live in the rain forest of Hawai’i. It is so easy to remember Vrindaban here because this place is so beautiful. My home in the forest is non-different from my abode in the grove of the eternal Vrindaban. Through Radha Krishna’s unlimited potencies, their pastimes are going on here also. We can turn any place into Vrindaban.

Yet what a blessing it is to live in Vrindaban or Radha Kunda, India. However, that is not my fate, and even in Vrindaban, I was sometimes given the task of building a temple and raising money. This diminished my ability to experience the transcendental mood of Vrindaban I so relished.

“Mahaprabhu has spoken of Radha, the topmost devotee in this way, ‘Srimati Radharani has unlimited transcendental qualities of which twenty-five qualities are principal. Sri Krishna is controlled by these transcendental qualities of Srimati Radharani.’ Chaitanya-charitamrita, Madhya 23.86” (p 59)

I am more attracted to Radha than Krishna—she has Krishna under her control. Radha is Supreme. Radha rules! She is so beautiful and so loving that Krishna is wrapped around her little finger. He will do anything to please her. What to speak of a person like me, how can I resist her attraction.

The supreme controller is controlled by the love of Radha. She is the supreme goal of all spiritual processes. She is the Supreme Goddess of my heart. Jai Radhe!

After explaining the futility of false renunciation, Srila Bhaktivinode Thakur says, “Alternatively, if they place the Lord in the centre of their life while caring for body and house, while eating and sleeping, they then gradually increase their devotion to the Lord through their devotional practice. Finally and definitely, prema (pure love) will be achieved.” (p 60)

One of my mottos is: “Realize your full potential, live life abundantly and love extravagantly.” What is our full potential? We are children of God-dess. We are loved. We are created good, in God-dess’ image. God-dess gives us all we need to live a happy, healthy and enlightened life. Most of all, we have the potential to actualize our selves spiritually—developing an eternal spiritual body through our pure love of Radha Krishna or whatever form of God-dess we may be attracted to. This is the highest goal of life.

Too much emphasis is placed on renunciation by many teachers of devotional yoga and other yogas. When we place Radha Krishna at the center of our life, everything becomes spiritual when seen in light of their service. Everything can be used in their service. Everything is simply a manifestation of their energy. They created us and this world we live in with all its wonders. Why would they not want us to enjoy it in their service?

Speaking as a Westerner to primarily Westerners, what do we need to care for body and house? I would say we need a basic middle class standard of living. We should have adequate food, clothing, shelter, transportation, medical care and other necessities. Then we may need a little extra for entertainment and vacation. Some money to save for emergencies and old age is also desirable. Some money to give in charity should be there too.

Most of us also desire the pleasures, companionship and support of married life. This often leads to having children. Supporting a family in this manner usually requires one or two good paying jobs with benefits. All of this should not be seen as obstacles to devotional practice but rather as part of our devotional practice.

Of course, we do not want to fall into the trap of materialistic consumerism, selfishness and greed. Rather, a life of voluntary simplicity and moderation is desirable. This is actually more enjoyable too. We should have the necessities, but not over endeavor for material gain. Learn to be happy with what you have, provided you have the necessities. Simply dedicate everything to Radha & Krishna.

Radha & Krishna’s abode is described as being wonderfully opulent and abundant in supplying all the good things of life. Persons there live free of anxiety due to the hard struggle for existence in the material world. Yet even in this world, we can live that way if we learn to trust in the Divine Couple’s goodness and benevolence towards their devotees.

Of course, we still need to work, but when we see that they have provided us with everything, we can open ourselves up to the divine energy and not have to struggle so much. We can learn to work with detachment knowing that we are only here temporarily and that we are destined for much higher things. When we come from abundance rather than scarcity we tend to attract abundance to our lives.

And when we love extravagantly, we tend to attract extravagant love. Radha Krishna are the epitome of extravagant love. If we are to be their devotees, we have to become like them. We can become channels of their love and spread it to all we meet. This is what the world needs most—extravagant love. I and others have said, “Love is the answer.” When we learn to love one another, all the world’s problems will be solved. God-dess is love. Their presence is invoked whenever we love. As the love spreads, the whole world becomes spiritualized. As we focus our life on pure love of the Divine Couple, that love grows and will carry us to them.

“To Raghunath Das, Chaitanya said, ‘Be patient and return home. Don’t be a crazy fellow. By and by, you will be able to cross the ocean of material existence. You should not make yourself a show-bottle devotee and become a false renunciate. For the time being, enjoy the material world in a befitting way but do not become attached to it. Within your heart, you should keep yourself very faithful, but externally you may behave like an ordinary person. Thus, Krishna will soon be very pleased and deliver you from the clutches of illusion.’ Chaitanya-caritamrita, Madhya 126.237-239” (pp 60-61)

I consider this to be one of the most important scriptural passages for guiding our devotional life. Our spiritual practices are primarily an internal process we perform with our spiritual body. It is a process of adopting the mood, form, love and service of the residents of Vrindaban. This must be done in all circumstances.

However, our external circumstances may vary greatly according to our nature, occupation, place of residence, social standing, etc. We can act according to the standards of society. We don’t have to be in people’s faces with our beliefs. We don’t have to be different. Others may not even know we are a devotee, but hopefully they sense that we seem to be kinder, more loving, more compassionate, more giving than others. Thus, we are able to enjoy a normal life in society and cultivate pure love at the same time. This is a healthy, holistic approach to life.

“All that is necessary is the internal steadiness of the devotee in order to achieve success. A mere external show of steadiness is only a false display for others to see. However, if there is a real internal devotion and steadiness, very quickly the bondage of the material world will disappear. Pure knowledge and pure detachment will certainly increase as that genuine devotion increases.” (p 61)

This is an internal process. One need not adopt all the external signs and practices of Indian devotees. The goal is not to become an Indian, but to become an associate of Radha & Krishna. Therefore, the cultural externals may be given up as long as one maintains the internal practices. Therefore, spontaneous devotional service may be practiced by anyone, anywhere. Gradually, one will see one’s life transformed into the spiritual world.

“Taking shelter of Krishna-nam is the ultimate practice for the real devotee.” (p 61)

There are many devotional practices one may perform. Some are more effective than others. The most important for followers of Chaitanya is the chanting of Radha Krishna’s names which are non-different from the Divine Couple themselves. One should call upon them like a child calling for its mother-father. They are our only shelter. We are completely dependent upon their grace and mercy to save us.

We are unqualified, but by calling out in love, they hear us and respond due to the natural, innate love that exists between Radha Krishna and the living entities. They are present in the sound vibration of their names which are unlimited and contain their full potency. There are no hard and fast rules for chanting these holy names, but the more feeling we can put into it, the greater the response will be. Our yearning, longing, loving calls to them cannot help but attract them to us.

“They will constantly chant the maha-mantra of sixteen names of Krishna while counting their chanting on beads.” (p 62)

This is the traditional way of doing it. When I was a renunciate and able to remain free of administrative duties, I regularly chanted the Hare Krishna mantra 64 rounds of beads daily. This practice is very good for focusing the mind on Radha Krishna. Even when one is not chanting on beads, the mantra may still go on mentally.

When I left the renounced order of life, of course, my lifestyle and devotional practices changed. “Devotees will maintain body, house and society as long as they are favorable for cultivating the name and will offer them all in the service of Krishna. They will not labor in any other direction, and even in this devotional direction, they will not over-endeavor.” (p 62)

Our efforts are not as important as the grace of Radha Krishna. All our endeavors will not bring us to them without their grace. This is an easier, more natural way to practice devotion that leads to the supreme goal of pure love.

The mental chanting of Om is my constant practice. Om is another name of the Divine Couple and the living entities in love. It is just sort of there as I go about the activities of the day. It is my center. From this center, I relate to others, the world about me and Radha Krishna in a natural way that is in tune with being present in the moment as well as being able to respond fluidly to the flow of life.

Another way of putting it is that I am more incarnate and experience the immanence of God-dess rather than just seeking a transcendental relationship to the exclusion of this life. Christians call this “practicing the presence of God.” It is an effective spiritual practice which allows me to maintain body, house and society in a manner consistent with my life situation, which varied greatly over the years.

“Not being overly ambitious in their plans, they will reside in a solitary place. Staying in association with those who can nurture devotion, they carefully progress. The purpose of all these activities is to attain fixed chanting of the name, with no anxieties.” (pp 62-63)

My wife and I live in the tropical rain forest of Hawai’i. We live a pretty simple, solitary life of devotion. Our home is a temple. Our love is a reflection of the love of Radha & Krishna. Our anxieties lessen as we detach from material life and become more attached to Radha Krishna.

“In Lord Chaitanya’s teachings, there are only two concepts: taste for the name and mercy to the living entities. A person is a devotee to the extent that these two qualities are present. It is not necessary to labor for any other qualities. The qualities of the devotee spontaneously appear, and the devotee naturally relishes acting for the benefit of all.” (p 64)

A taste for the name has sustained me my whole adult life. It is my life-line in the ocean of material existence. I have shown mercy to others by teaching them love of God-dess. This is the greatest mercy one may show. It is what is most lacking and most needed in this world to solve all our problems. When we love God-dess, we can also love one another as well as God-dess’ creation.

In this way, I have worked for peace, justice and the environment over the years. Under the current U.S. administration, I lost all hope that significant reform in those areas is possible. The administration is powerful and hell bent on its own agenda which seems to entail destroying peace, justice and the environment. They are not open to outside views or the will of the people. Therefore, my focus is on the spiritual solution—one person at a time.

“’Always chant the holy name of Lord Krishna and within your mind render service to Radha and Krishna in Vrindaban...’ Chaitanya Charitamrita, Antya 6. In these instructions, the Lord also hinted in a covered way about the internal worship of Radha Krishna through the eight time-periods of the day known as astakaliya-lila-bhajan.” (p 65)

Bhaktivinode introduces this important subject here and will take it up again later in the book. As one chants, one should remember the pastimes of Radha Krishna through the day and serve them in one’s spiritual body. Thus, one must know one’s relationship to the Divine Couple, their pastimes and how they like to be served following the examples of the eternal residents of Vrindaban and the disciplic succession. This is revealed by the siddha-pranali guru to the disciple. In this way, our relationship with Radha Krishna becomes very real and personal and our mutual attraction increases.

“A householder should comfortably maintain his dependents, either with money that comes of its own accord or with that gathered by the honest execution of one’s duties. Sb. 11.17.51” (p 78)

The question of right livelihood is important for one on the spiritual path. Most of us do not have enough “money that comes of its own accord” to support ourselves, what to speak of our dependents. Therefore, most of us must engage in “the honest execution of one’s duties” and hope to be able to make a decent living doing so. Blessed are the carpenters, doctors, lawyers, business persons, etc. who have marketable skills that earn a good income and are in high demand. Others may not be so fortunate and have to struggle to make a meager living doing things that do not suit their nature.

While we do not have a rigid caste system that we like to acknowledge, we do have a caste system indeed. One’s caste is determined by one’s innate qualities, upbringing, education, social position, wealth, skills and talents. Some are laborers, others farmers and business persons, others warriors and administrators, while others are priests and teachers. All are necessary for the smooth running of society. All should be adequately compensated for their work. Therefore, I have been a strong advocate for the living wage movement and welfare rights for those unable to work. No one should be without necessities in a world as abundant as ours.

As for myself, I became a spiritual teacher at age twenty under the direction of my spiritual master, A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami. I taught world-wide for eight years. When I left his organization due to its corruption, I continued to teach independently. I often had to take other jobs to support myself and my family.

When I became a pastor and teacher in the United Church of Christ, after much education, testing, over-sight, time and expense, I felt I found the solution to being a spiritual teacher with integrity, stability and a good income. However, after eleven years, I decided the churches I served were too conservative for me. I resigned and began this independent ministry in 2002.

Since then, I brought my Radha Krishna devotion to the forefront again. Rather than adopting the role of a traditional Indian guru, I use the model of a Catholic spiritual director, a spiritual guide or a holistic, spiritual teacher and practitioner. I am an experienced religious professional who has been trained, tested and approved for spiritual leadership in Hinduism and Christianity. I maintain high ethical standards.

There must be a reciprocal give and take relationship between a teacher and disciple. Some gurus ask their disciples to give up everything else and follow them, to follow their orders strictly and do everything they say, to serve and worship them and to provide money. I paid a high price in terms of time, self-sacrifice, effort and money to get the spiritual wisdom I accumulated over a lifetime.

I try to make the path as easy as possible for my followers. I provide teachings on my website, via email, telephone and in person. I do not want to exclude anyone who wishes to sincerely learn from me. I am open to barter. I put a couple of donation buttons on my website for those who wish to do so, and in this way, money can come “of its own accord.” What type of relationship is best for you? I teach freely, without charge, yet I have expenses. How can we work together?