Hare Krishna, all Prabhujis and Matajis!
Please accept my humble obeisances!
All glories to Srila Prabhupada.
Srila Prabhupada describes about the root cause of India being devided into two in one of his lectures and also mention the duties of the devotees.
Below is an excerpt from a lecture of Srila Prabhupada given on June 26, 1974 in Rome, Italy, which takes us to the root cause of India being divided into two.
“Generally, a man is born as an ordinary being, and by the purificatory processes he is born for the second time. This is called dvija, second birth given by the spiritual master. “When one sees a new light and seeks direction for spiritual progress, he approaches spiritual master to instruct him in the Vedas.” This is our process. In the beginning we do not ask anybody to become initiated or become a brahmana. No. We simply invite a person to join the chanting of Hare Krishna. This is our process. We should strictly follow this. In the beginning, we should not ask that “You have to do this, you have to do that.” He cannot do that. That is not possible. But everyone should be given chance because in the Kali-yuga there is no reformatory system. Everyone is born sudra and less than that, candala (dog-eater). So they should not be neglected also. We should not think, “Since all people are fallen—they are less than sudras and candalas—let me neglect them. Let me chant Hare Krishna.” No. This is not the duty of the Vaishnava (devotee). His duty is to reclaim these fallen souls. Just like Krishna says in the Bhagavad-gita,mäm hi pärtha vyapäsritya ye ‘pi syuh päpa-yonayah [Bg. 9.32]: “Anyone who comes under My shelter, never mind whether he is the lowest of the lowborn – the striyah (women) or the vaishya (businessmen) or the sudras(labourers) – can approach the supreme destination.” Formerly, even the woman and the mercantile community and the sudras (labourer class), were all considered as päpa-yoni. Päpa-yoni means whose brain is not very developed (blunt-headed).
So the supreme destination, back to Godhead, back to home, is for everyone. God is for everyone. God does not say, “Only the brahmana class of men, please come here. Others are all rejected.” No. He is inviting everyone. Even the lowest of the low-born (päpa-yonayah) – women,sudra, or vaishyas – everyone.
Krishna admits that “Everyone has got the potency of coming to Me.” But, who will make them qualified to go back to home, back to Godhead? The Vaishnava, who is actually a very sincere servant of Krishna, will train them. It is his duty. Krishna says that “Everyone is competent to come to Me if he is following the rules and regulations.”Vyapashritya. What is the meaning of vyapashritya? It means, “Particularly taking shelter.” One should be willing to go back to home, back to Godhead and take shelter particularly of His representative. Such a person can be elevated.
But unfortunately, in India, although Bhagavad-gita is there, they neglect it. The so-called brahmanas and the so-called gosvamis neglected this process. Just like in India, the Muhammadans, who claim to have partitioned Pakistan and Hindustan. There were a number of Muhammadans, who protested that “India is going to be independent, but we do not wish to participate with the Hindus. We must be separate.” Why? Because they have got a bad experience that the Hindus did not treat them very well. In South India, it was such a bad process. If a sudra was passing on the street, he had to cry, “I am asudra passing on the street. Please close your door.” The brahmanas would close the door so that they may not even see a sudra (the labourer class). They thought that if they saw him, everything will be spoiled – their food grains and everything. So they would close the door. The result is that in South India, the Communists are now in majority. Communist means the so-called low-class people, sudrasand candalas. They have formed a government on the principle that as soon as some brahmana comes for government service, he will be rejected.
So this negligence is not Vedic culture. These Muhammadans were born and brought up in India, they were not imported from Afghanistan or Turkey or any Muhammadan country. They were Indians. But they were not given any facility for spiritual culture. The brahmanas monopolized it, although they themselves would not follow anything. They were all degraded. But still, they would keep these sudras and the candalas downtrodden and ill-treated. So therefore, when Aurangzeb passed a law, the Jezia tax, these sudras converted into Muhammadans. Jezia tax means that all the non-Muhammadans would pay a tax. So these low-class people, who were so neglected, naturally thought that “Why should we pay this tax? We are not very much well-treated by the Hindus. So what is the use of remaining Hindu and pay the tax?” So in wholesale, this neglected class of men became Muhammadans. This is the history. Otherwise, these Muhammadans did not come from the Muhammadan countries.
So in this way a community was gradually formed – the Muhammadan community. And the British government took advantage of this ill-feeling between Hindus and Muhammadans. So in this way, later on the Britishers thought that, “India is going to be independent, that cannot be checked, so make them smaller, smaller, smaller.” That is the European history also. Formerly, under Roman Empire, all the Europeans were one nation. Is it not? I think it was. But when the empire dismantled, they became different nations – Germany, England, and France. I see the same culture, the same civilization all over Europe. I do not know how they became Germans and Englishmen and this and that. Anyway, this is the policy of the politicians.
So, because they were not given a chance… Our point is that Krishna says everyone should be given a chance to come back to home and to approach Krishna. So whose duty it is? It is the duty of Krishna’s servant. Just like Prahläda Mahäräja. Prahläda Mahäräja said, “My Lord, I do not wish to go back to home, back to Godhead alone. I want to take all of them who are godless or not devotees. Unless I educate them how to go back to home, back to Godhead, I alone am not prepared to…” This is Prahläda. This is Vaishnava. Para-duhkha-duhkhi krpambudhir yah. A Vaishnava has no problems for himself, but he is very, very morose when he sees others in distressed condition without Krishna consciousness. This is Vaishnava. A Vaishnava has no problem. He can sit down anywhere and chant Hare Krishna. Everything will be supplied to him. Krishna said, yoga-ksemam vahamy aham [Bg. 9.22]. There is no problem. But it is a Vaishnava’s business to execute the will of Krishna. If everyone has got the potency to go back to home, back to Godhead, it is the duty of the Vaishnava to educate the whole world how to go back to home, back to Godhead. This is the Krishna consciousness movement.”
Hope, this helps us a lot.
Dandavat Pranam,
Your aspiring servant,
Dwaipayan.
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