I wasn't sure where to ask and I stumbled across this website.
I don't personally believe any of it, but the topics around what Hare Krishna believe still does interest me greatly since it's very different to what I believe and makes for interesting listening when I listen to the stories around Krishna and his pastimes.
But I haven't gotten very far with the audiobooks.
So one of my first questions, what's the way Hare Krishna view and tackle sin, repentance and salvation?
More specifically is there a calling in a Hare Krishna life for urgency to overcome and be finished with sin in one's life or is it seen as something not to serious and how would one following Prabhupada teachings go about achieving total victory over sin outwardly and in one's thought life?
When it comes to the concept of human nature, is it seen as something negative and to be changed through divine help or something else? Are Humans in the Hare Krishna view born sinful by nature?
Other thing I wanted to ask, when it comes to Guru's and things like that, are they really required if someone can just ask Krishna for help in one's struggles or advice on what his will would be for them?
As in, as far as I understand couldn't someone simply watch Prabhupada's videos and read his books without needing another Guru at all?
And last thing that might be a bit odd to ask but I've read somewhere that the deities are meant to be dressed up in clothes, but say if you can't dress them at all, would be using a statue with them wearing painted clothes be seen as a problem? Like is it required to have to dress them up? I'll add pictures as examples to what I mean.
Replies
Hare Krishna! Thank you for your questions and your interest in the teachings of Srila Prabhupada.
View on Sin, Repentance and Salvation: In the Hare Krishna tradition, sin is understood as any action that goes against the principles of devotional service to Lord Krishna. It is seen as a hindrance to our spiritual progress and our ultimate goal of attaining love for God. Repentance is encouraged, and one can seek forgiveness from Krishna by sincerely regretting one's mistakes and resolving not to repeat them. However, it is important to note that sin is not taken lightly, as it hampers our spiritual advancement. The process of overcoming sin is seen as a gradual purification of the heart through the practice of devotional service, including chanting the Hare Krishna mantra, reading scriptures, associating with devotees, and offering service to Krishna.
Concept of Human Nature: In the Hare Krishna view, human nature is not inherently negative or sinful. Rather, it is seen as a reflection of our spiritual nature, which is pure and full of love for God. However, due to our association with the material world, we have become conditioned and prone to engage in selfish and sinful activities. The goal of spiritual life is to awaken our dormant love for God and revive our original spiritual nature. Through the process of devotional service, guided by the teachings of Srila Prabhupada, we can gradually transform our consciousness and overcome the influence of material nature.
Role of Guru: In the Hare Krishna tradition, the guidance of a spiritual master or guru is considered essential for one's spiritual progress. The guru acts as a transparent medium through which the teachings and mercy of Krishna flow. While it is beneficial to study the teachings of Srila Prabhupada through his books and videos, having a living guru allows for personal guidance, clarification of doubts, and a deeper understanding of the scriptures. The guru helps to guide and inspire the disciple on the path of devotional service and helps to strengthen their relationship with Krishna.
Just as a mirror reflects our true appearance, a guru reflects the teachings of Krishna without any personal agenda. The guru helps us see ourselves as we truly are and guides us towards spiritual progress.
Just as a gardener tends to the plants, removing weeds and nurturing their growth, a guru helps remove the weeds of material desires from our hearts and nurtures our spiritual growth through guidance and instructions.
In the ancient Vedic texts, there is a story of Narada Muni, a great sage who became a pure devotee of Krishna by the guidance of his spiritual master. This story illustrates the importance of a guru in one's spiritual journey and the transformative power of their guidance.
Regarding the dressing of deities, it is considered a devotional service to dress the deities in beautiful clothes as an expression of love and devotion. While using a statue with painted clothes may not be the traditional practice, the intention and sincerity behind the offering are more important. However, it is recommended to consult with experienced devotees or temple authorities for specific guidance in such matters.
I hope these answers provide clarity and insight into the Hare Krishna perspective. If you have any further questions, feel free to ask.
Hare Krsna
what's the way Hare Krishna view and tackle sin, repentance and salvation?
The act/ inclination/ desire to commit sin is an obstacle to achieve the goal of self realization. Being completely freed from tendency to commit sin is a necessary but not sufficient condition for self-realization.
yeṣāṁ tv anta-gataṁ pāpaṁ
janānāṁ puṇya-karmaṇām
te dvandva-moha-nirmuktā
bhajante māṁ dṛḍha-vratāḥ
Persons who have acted piously in previous lives and in this life and whose sinful actions are completely eradicated are freed from the dualities of delusion, and they engage themselves in My service with determination. ( BG 7.28)
Repentance is one of the ways to perform atonement to counter the reactions of the sins committed by a person. By following atonement one can be freed from the reactions of the sinful acts performed in the past.
śrī-śuka uvāca
na ced ihaivāpacitiṁ yathāṁhasaḥ
kṛtasya kuryān mana-ukta-pāṇibhiḥ
dhruvaṁ sa vai pretya narakān upaiti
ye kīrtitā me bhavatas tigma-yātanāḥ
Śukadeva Gosvāmī replied: My dear King, if before one’s next death whatever impious acts one has performed in this life with his mind, words and body are not counteracted through proper atonement according to the description of the Manu-saṁhitā and other dharma-śāstras, one will certainly enter the hellish planets after death and undergo terrible suffering, as I have previously described to you. ( SB 6.1.7)
But as mentioned by HG Radha Rasamayi Mataji, atonement at best can only counter the reactions of the sin. So King Parikshit expresses discontent about the process of atonement as below and then Sukadeva Goswami gives a better practice to manage and eradicate sins.
kvacin nivartate ’bhadrāt
kvacic carati tat punaḥ
prāyaścittam atho ’pārthaṁ
manye kuñjara-śaucavat
Sometimes one who is very alert so as not to commit sinful acts is victimized by sinful life again. I therefore consider this process of repeated sinning and atoning to be useless. It is like the bathing of an elephant, for an elephant cleanses itself by taking a full bath, but then throws dust over its head and body as soon as it returns to the land. ( SB 6.1.10)
śrī-bādarāyaṇir uvāca
karmaṇā karma-nirhāro
na hy ātyantika iṣyate
avidvad-adhikāritvāt
prāyaścittaṁ vimarśanam
Śukadeva Gosvāmī, the son of Vedavyāsa, answered: My dear King, since acts meant to neutralize impious actions are also fruitive, they will not release one from the tendency to act fruitively. Persons who subject themselves to the rules and regulations of atonement are not at all intelligent. Indeed, they are in the mode of darkness. Unless one is freed from the mode of ignorance, trying to counteract one action through another is useless because this will not uproot one’s desires. Thus even though one may superficially seem pious, he will undoubtedly be prone to act impiously. Therefore real atonement is enlightenment in perfect knowledge, Vedānta, by which one understands the Supreme Absolute Truth. ( SB 6.1.11)
Lord Sri Krsna also confirms in Bhagavad Gita that only a person who knows Krsna is completely freed from sins
yo mām ajam anādiṁ ca
vetti loka-maheśvaram
asammūḍhaḥ sa martyeṣu
sarva-pāpaiḥ pramucyate
He who knows Me as the unborn, as the beginningless, as the Supreme Lord of all the worlds – he only, undeluded among men, is freed from all sins. ( BG 10.3)
And how to know Sri Krsna is also answered by Sri Krsna
bhaktyā mām abhijānāti
yāvān yaś cāsmi tattvataḥ
tato māṁ tattvato jñātvā
viśate tad-anantaram
One can understand Me as I am, as the Supreme Personality of Godhead, only by devotional service. And when one is in full consciousness of Me by such devotion, he can enter into the kingdom of God. ( BG 18.55 )
Human nature, is it seen as something negative and to be changed through divine help or something else? Are Humans in the Hare Krishna view born sinful by nature?
There is nothing specific about human nature. Broadly speaking there are 2 different natures/energies - Spiritual & material
Spiritual nature is sat-cit-ananda - Eternal , Full of knowledge(free from ignorance) & full of blissful.
Material Nature is temporary, under ignorance and miserable.
The living entities are originally spiritual but can be subjected to material nature in this material world. Majority of the living entities(of all species) in this material world (the one in which we live) are under the control of material nature. The embodied living entity consists of spirit soul covered by a material body. So the embodied living entities have dual nature - spiritual (original) & material (temporary).
The goal of Krsna consciousness is to attain the pure spiritual nature of the free spirit soul which has a definite relationship with the Supreme Spiritual Person Sri Krsna (God).
To answer your question almost all living beings in this world are under the material nature due to their material desire to enjoy separately from Krsna. But by practice of devotion to Sri Krsna one can purify their desires and be freed from material nature. Please listen to this audio clip of 5-mintures by Srila Prabhupad. It gives a summary of what our situation is and how to become completely liberated.
when it comes to Guru's and things like that, are they really required if someone can just ask Krishna for help in one's struggles or advice on what his will would be for them?
As mentioned earlier almost all living entities in material world are completely under the clutches of material nature. Think of it like a person who is heavily bound by ropes to a tree or pole. Such a person cannot free themselves on their own effort
Sri Krsna is the master of material and spiritual natures. Krsna is never under control of material nature. So Sri Krsna can certainly free anyone from material nature.
But other than Sri Krsna, there are also very few living entities who are completely freed from the clutches of material nature because they do not have any material desires. These servants of Sri Krsna are capable of freeing other living entities who are caught in material nature. These servants of Sri Krsna act as Guru who are fully spiritually self realized and can guide others to become spiritually realized.
I would not think of it as required or not required. I would see it as helpful or not. It maybe theoretically possible for a person to become fully self realized without any help from guru, but I have not come across any example of it.
But the point is Sri Krsna personally sends His personal servants from spiritual world to this material world. He sends His servants with the sole purpose of reclaiming us back to His spiritual kingdom. Srila Prabhupada, Jesus Christ, Prophet Mohammad, Adi Guru Shankaracarya etc were such rare pure souls who were sent by Sri Krsna.
Couldn't someone simply watch Prabhupada's videos and read his books without needing another Guru at all?
Theoretically it is possible by the mercy of Lord Sri Chaitanya & Lord Sri Nityananda. But it would require a lot of sincerity to say the least.
Is it required to have to dress them up?
Yes, deities need to be dressed, fed etc. If someone is not able to render this type of service, they could get pictures of deities like the one you have shown.
Hare Krsna
Hare Krsna Greblin Prabhu,
Please Accept My Humble Obeisances.
Thank you for your interest in Krsna and our philosophy. I will attempt to answer one by one:
what's the way Hare Krishna view and tackle sin and repentance? - Sin is viewed as undesirable and avoidable to the extent possible. Repentance is necessary to overcome sin. However, tendency to repeat sin remains. Therefore, true repentance is when one purifies oneself and getting rid of the desire to commit sin. This is cleansing at the root.
When we repent for our sins, we are doing the right thing. However, repentance alone does not take away the results of sin - we may still have to suffer for the sins committed.
Iis there a calling in a Hare Krishna life for urgency to overcome and be finished with sin in one's life or is it seen as something not to serious and how would one following Prabhupada teachings go about achieving victory over sin and one's thought life? THe urgency is to purify our existence, thoughts, words and actions. The urgency is to understand the purpose of life and perfect life in this lifetime itself, so that there are no more births. Overcoming sin is a natural by product of this.
To follow Srila Prabhupada's teachings, one starts chanting the name of the lord which leads to purification of self. When one leads a pious life centred around God, then the chances of committing sin are minimal, esp when the desire to commit sin itself is eradicated. Prabhupada stressed on leading a life centred around God and taught how to practically do so. By following his teachings, we are trying.
When it comes to the concept of human nature, is it seen as something negative and to be changed through divine help or something else? Didnt understand this part
when it comes to Guru's and things like that, are they really required if someone can just ask Krishna for help in one's struggles or advice on what his will would be for them? As in, as far as I understand couldn't someone simply watch Prabhupada's videos and read his books without needing another Guru at all? Reading Srila Prabhupada books is very good habit. The consequence of reading Srila Prabhupada books is - one wakes up early in the morning, tries to find and stay in company of like minded people who also follow Srila PRabhupada, follow the instructions of eating only vegetarian food without onion garlic that has been offered to the lord before consuming. Guru is the representative of Srila Prabupada, in most cases his direct disciple. Guru is the connecting link between divinity and us. We need help to even understand the philosophy - that is where guru comes in. How to practically apply the teachings are taught by sadhu and what to follow is mentioned in scriptures.
deities are meant to be dressed up in clothes, but say if you can't dress them at all, would be using a statue with them wearing painted clothes be seen as a problem? Like is it required to have to dress them up? - Yes of course, deities need to be dressed in clothes.
I hope I have been able to answer some of your queries.
Haribol,
Your servant,
Radha Rasamayi DD
I'll clear up what I meant on human nature, so as an example, in Christianity human nature is view as something that should be gotten rid or overcome of, to gain the divine nature of god through the holy spirit and Christ, since in the Christian way of understanding we are born sinful by nature inherently and nothing good dwells within us and our human nature and way of thinking.
I was simply wondering if Hare Krishna have anything like that belief.
And also to clear up about dressing deities is that if you are physically unable, as in disabled and unable to dress them due to those limitations and hands not working, is it considered wrong in the Hare Krishna tradition to have a statue with painted clothes instead?
Hare Krishna,
Please except I respectful obscene forgive me if I write something wrong.
In Hare Krishna, we learn that eternally we all are servants of Krishna and served him, but once a polluting thought of enjoying ourselves covered and for that we have to take birth in thins material world. Yes we learn somthing called Spritual world, the divine nature or Kingdom of God, we know that there are many spritual planets beyond this material world in the spritual sky, and the topmost planet is Goloka Vrindavana where Krishna resides with all those pure souls who don't desire to enjoy without him. You can visit the nearest Iskcon temple and talk with a senior devotee more about this, they can tell you more wonderfull things. Above that we don't consider the human born to be negative or demoniac, but due to long being in contect in material nature he has forgotten his real identity and thus enggaged in nonsense and human birth is the only chance to understand our real position as Krishna's servants and go back to home, back ti Godhead.
Regarding Deity worship it's alright, if you have some genuin problem, you can have a deity with painted dresses there is nothing wrong in it, but to handle them and keep them clean is a bit more hard, like if you don't bath them everyday with water there are chances that dust will accumulated in the fin carvings of Crown and jwellery. But Hare Krishnas keep such deties (however more care in needed in terms of bathing them I have Radha Krishna like this so I know) and even in some of our temples you would get such deties (in shop not altar). I altar also in some places such deties are kept like, London, Mumbai (India), Los Angeles, etc but still they are dressed. I you have much problems I would suggest you to Keep pictures, of Radha Krishna insted.
Please forgive me if you may have felt bad about any of my words.
Your Servant
Radhe