Beyond Sexism

The term sexism usually refers to prejudice or discrimination against women. But it can also refer to discrimination or prejudice against men. Sexism is based on the false conception that the self is the body. Some of the opponents of sexism want to establish equality between the sexes on the material platform. But this is not possible. If it were, a wife could make her husband pregnant, and he would have to bear the child in his womb.

Physically men are stronger than women and are therefore meant by nature's way to protect them from exploitation. Psychologically there are also distinct differences between men and women. Women generally have a more softhearted nature than men. This gives women an advantage on the bhakti yoga path. So it is artificial to say that men and women are physically and psychologically the same.

Each gender has certain advantages over the other. One gender is strong and weak in certain ways and the other gender is strong and weak in different ways. So if instead of clashing with each other they will learn how to harmonize with each, there will be mutual benefit for both genders. Each can utilize the strengths of the other gender to help overcome his or her gender weakness.

The harmonizing principle is known as Krishna consciousness. This enlightened state of consciousness begins from the platform of understanding that the self is not the body, that the body is a mere covering of the actual spiritual self within. Through the process of transmigration in one lifetime the living being will be a male and in a subsequent lifetime will be a female. Since we have been caught up in the cycle of birth and death from time immemorial we have all been males and females literally thousands and millions of times.

True harmony begins when the living being realizes that the body and the self are not the same, that the actual self is an eternal spiritual being in quality one with the Supreme Person, who is the source of all existence. True sameness exists on the spiritual platform, not on the material platform on which men and women will always be different. This Krishna conscious understanding is the enlightened way to defeat sexism, not the foolish idea that materially men and women are the same.

Sankarshan Das Adhikari

Spiritually Enlightened Woman Presents the Science of Krishna: Vishnupriya Devi dasi in Kaunas, Lithuania--April 2009

Answers According to the Vedic Version:

Question: Are There Gurus Outside of ISKCON?

There is a young swami who gives discourses from the Bhagavad-gita etc. He is an enlightened spiritual master with many followers, even though he is young. And his bliss is notable!

Are there not swamis outside ISKCON that are spiritual masters who can lead to bliss just as well as you? He has awakened my spiritual world, even though I read your "Thought for the Day". And it seems that you both preaching similar truth. Please answer this question.

Yvonne

Answer: Use this Test to Find Out:

Since I am not familiar with the teachings of the swami, I cannot comment on whether or not he is bona fide. But I can teach you the principle by which you can test whether or not he or anybody else is bona fide.

The Vedic wisdom does not state that a guru has to be a member of ISKCON be bona fide. It simply states that the person must present the teachings of Krishna as stated in Bhagavad-gita without any interpretation, addition, or subtraction. This is the only requirement for being a bona fide spiritual master.

While on the surface it seems that all gurus who teach the Bhagavad-gita are bona fide, upon carefully comparing their Bhagavad-gita presentation with Lord Krishna's actual Bhagavad-gita teachings, it becomes clear that some gurus are presenting the Bhagavad-gita as it is and that some are in the name of the Bhagavad-gita giving their own philosophy.

Of course for the neophyte it is sometimes hard to make the distinction. Just like one time when a man was leaving India he wanted to turn his Indian rupees into US Dollars. He went to the money changer at the airport and gave him his rupees. When he got his dollars he was also handed back one of his rupee notes because it was counterfeit. He did not have the trained eyes to discern that it was counterfeit, but the money changer did.

In the same way a neophyte on the self realization path requires training in order to distinguish between someone who is accurately presenting the Bhagavad-gita and someone who is distorting it. It is unfortunate that most of the current Bhagavad-gita commentators twist the words of Krishna is such a way as to deny the personal existence of Krishna. They will say that it is not to the person Krishna that we must surrender. They teach us that instead we should merge into the impersonal oneness and become God. Such a philosophy is most destructive and dangerous because it blocks the ability of the aspiring transcendentalist to ever develop a loving relationship with the Supreme Person.

Sometimes such impersonalists will also promote bhakti or devotion to Lord Krishna and will even quote from the Bhagavad-gita. But they present devotion to Krishna as the beginning stage of self-realization, as a stepping stone to merging and becoming God. So we must carefully avoid such impersonalists who grossly twist the Krishna's words in such a misleading way. Unfortunately in the Kali yuga people are generally more attracted by the cheaters who distort Krishna's teachings than they are by those who present Krishna's teachings as they are. We cannot judge who is properly presenting the Bhagavad-gita by popular votes when the mass of people are not educated to properly understand the Vedic conclusion. In this connection it should be noted that Adolf Hitler was made the leader of Germany by popular vote.

So instead of popularity we should based our understanding a of guru's authenticity on whether or not he is faithfully presenting the teachings of Krishna without any addition or subtraction. Otherwise we may think we are being enlightened when in fact we are being misled. Anyone can make a show of bliss. But only a genuine spiritual master gives us the Absolute Truth.

So now that I've taught you the guru test, if you will carefully apply it, you will be able to know whether someone is a bona fide guru or not.

Sankarshan Das Adhikari