Please Accept My Humble ObeisancesAll Glories to Srila Prabhupada & Gaudiya VaisnavismAll Glories to Vrindaban where the beloved of Radharani lives.Hare KrishnaI have very strong feelings of love toward my Spiritual Master. He has been so merciful to me. I fear that even to touch his lotus feet is offensive because of how low I am compared to this great Vaisnava personality.My question is simply, is it offensive to embrace the Spiritual Master?Hari bol!Your servant,David
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What H.G. Jagadatma prabhu has said is abslty right, but when i had asked the same question to one senior devotee his answer was " do such a seva that Guru maharaj should want to hug u". Like somewere i read " Dont try to see krsna, but do something by which krsna likes to see u"
Dear David prabhu Hare Krsna, I have given a quote from a lecture by Srila Prabhupada.
Please be careful to not be too familiar with guru. He is never to be considered an ordinary man.
'spiritual master has the right to chastise. Father, spiritual master, they are advised to chastise. Putraà ca çiñyaà ca täòayen na tu lälayet. So father and teacher is advised by Chanakya Pandita that "You should always chastise your son and disciple. Chastise." Täòayet. Täòayet means "Simply chastise. Always find out mistake." Don't be angry, but it is the business of the teacher and the father simply to find out your mistakes, not to find out your good things. Täòayen na tu lälayet. Lälayet means patting: "Oh, my dear son, my dear boy, you are so nice. You have done..." Sometimes it is done, but it is the business of the teacher and the father to chastise. Never recognize the disciple's business or son's business as very good. Then they will spoil. That is the injunction of Chanakya Muni. Lälane bahavo doñäù: "If you simply pat, then there will be so many faults." Lälane bahavo doñäù. Doñäù means faults. Täòane bahavo guëäù: "And if you chastise, oh, they will be very much qualified.
" Täòane bahavo guëäù, tasmät: therefore, putraà ca çiñyaà ca täòayen na tu lälayet, "simply chastise. Don't pat." This is the injunction, moral injunction. So, so far we are concerned, when our spiritual master used to chastise, we took it as blessing.
That was very nice. And he would chastise like anything. "Damn rascal, foolish, stupid," anything, all good words.
(laughter)One day it so happened... That was not my fault. My, another old godbrother, was... Prabhupäda was speaking. So I was very much fond of hearing. That gentleman, he was a retired doctor. So he wanted to speak something. He should not have done so, but... Just like... So naturally I also... And Prabhupäda saw it, and he became so angry.
So he knew that my attention was drawn by him. He chastised him like anything. He was old man. Actually almost like his age.
So he was paying sixty rupees in those days per month. So he became so angry, that "Do you think that because you pay sixty rupees, you have purchased us? You can do anything and anything?" He said like that.
Very strong word he used. "Do you think that I am speaking for others? You have learned everything? You are diverting your attention." So many ways, he was very, very angry. You see? So this is nice, to chastise. Therefore, as soon as Krsna was accepted as guru... Çiñyas te 'haà çädhi mäà prapannam: [Bg. 2.7] "I become Your disciple." Because in the beginning there was friendly talks... So friendly talks cannot make any good advance. Talks must be between the spiritual master or teacher and the disciple.'
So disciple is more happy to be disciplined by gurudev not patted and hugged.
But if Gurudev hugs me I may become very puffed up also thinking I am a great devotee.
Replies
Hare krishna,
What H.G. Jagadatma prabhu has said is abslty right, but when i had asked the same question to one senior devotee his answer was " do such a seva that Guru maharaj should want to hug u". Like somewere i read " Dont try to see krsna, but do something by which krsna likes to see u"
Dear David prabhu Hare Krsna, I have given a quote from a lecture by Srila Prabhupada.
Please be careful to not be too familiar with guru. He is never to be considered an ordinary man.
'spiritual master has the right to chastise.
Father, spiritual master, they are advised to chastise.
Putraà ca çiñyaà ca täòayen na tu lälayet. So father and teacher is advised by Chanakya Pandita that
"You should always chastise your son and disciple. Chastise."
Täòayet. Täòayet means
"Simply chastise. Always find out mistake."
Don't be angry, but it is the business of the teacher and the father simply to find out your mistakes, not to find out your good things.
Täòayen na tu lälayet. Lälayet means patting:
"Oh, my dear son, my dear boy, you are so nice. You have done..." Sometimes it is done, but it is the business of the teacher and the father to chastise. Never recognize the disciple's business or son's business as very good. Then they will spoil.
That is the injunction of Chanakya Muni. Lälane bahavo doñäù: "If you simply pat, then there will be so many faults." Lälane bahavo doñäù. Doñäù means faults. Täòane bahavo guëäù: "And if you chastise, oh, they will be very much qualified.
" Täòane bahavo guëäù, tasmät: therefore, putraà ca çiñyaà ca täòayen na tu lälayet, "simply chastise. Don't pat." This is the injunction, moral injunction. So, so far we are concerned, when our spiritual master used to chastise, we took it as blessing.
That was very nice. And he would chastise like anything. "Damn rascal, foolish, stupid," anything, all good words.
(laughter)One day it so happened... That was not my fault. My, another old godbrother, was... Prabhupäda was speaking. So I was very much fond of hearing. That gentleman, he was a retired doctor. So he wanted to speak something. He should not have done so, but... Just like... So naturally I also... And Prabhupäda saw it, and he became so angry.
So he knew that my attention was drawn by him. He chastised him like anything. He was old man. Actually almost like his age.
So he was paying sixty rupees in those days per month. So he became so angry, that "Do you think that because you pay sixty rupees, you have purchased us? You can do anything and anything?" He said like that.
Very strong word he used. "Do you think that I am speaking for others? You have learned everything? You are diverting your attention." So many ways, he was very, very angry. You see? So this is nice, to chastise. Therefore, as soon as Krsna was accepted as guru... Çiñyas te 'haà çädhi mäà prapannam: [Bg. 2.7] "I become Your disciple." Because in the beginning there was friendly talks... So friendly talks cannot make any good advance. Talks must be between the spiritual master or teacher and the disciple.'
So disciple is more happy to be disciplined by gurudev not patted and hugged.
But if Gurudev hugs me I may become very puffed up also thinking I am a great devotee.
I am a humble servant only. Hare Krsna