D Day

Today we depart on our next around-the-world lecture tour. It was a very nice break of almost two months here at our base camp, Bhaktivedanta Ashram in Austin, Texas. I was a wonderful opportunity to recharge our spiritual batteries. Today is most momentous as we embark on another transcendental expedition. It's always an exciting feeling to head out again on the road in the service of my beloved spiritual master, His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, who wonderfully gives the following instruction in his Srimad Bhagavatam purports:

The life of a sincere devotee of the Lord is thus explained in a nutshell by Narada Muni by his personal example. Such a devotee, after his initiation by the Lord or His bona fide representative, takes very seriously chanting of the glories of the Lord and traveling all over the world so that others may also hear the glories of the Lord. Such devotees have no desire for material gain. They are conducted by one single desire: to go back to Godhead. This awaits them in due course on quitting the material body. Because they have the highest aim of life, going back to Godhead, they are never envious of anyone, nor are they proud of being eligible to go back to Godhead. Their only business is to chant and remember the holy name, fame and pastimes of the Lord and, according to personal capacity, to distribute the message for others' welfare without motive of material gain.
---from purport to Srimad Bhagavatam 1.6.26

So now I am praying for the all-auspicious blessings of Srila Prabhupada that I can purely present the sublime teachings of Lord Sri Krishna to whomever I meet in all times, places, and circumstances.

Sankarshan Das Adhikari

Answers According to the Vedic Version:

Question: Who is Living Guru After Prabhupada?

Who is living GURU now after Prabhupada? is there any documentary proof?
atul sinha

Answer: Those Disciples Who Strictly Follow Him

Whichever of Srila Prabhupada's disciples are strictly following his orders are living gurus because this is the instruction given by Srila Prabhupada.

There are so many proofs that Srila Prabhupada instructed his disciples to become spiritual masters. For example, Srila Prabhupada states in his Srimad Bhagavatam (SB 2.9.43) purport:

"One who is now the disciple is the next spiritual master. "

And also in an arrival lecture in Los Angeles on 18 May 1972 Srila Prabhupada directly told his disciples that they would the next in the succession of gurus after him:

"So we have got this message from Krishna, from Caitanya Mahaprabhu, from the six Goswamis, later on, Bhaktivinode Thakur, Bhaktisiddhanta Thakur. And we are trying our bit also to distribute this knowledge. Now, tenth, eleventh, twelfth... My Guru Maharaja is tenth from Caitanya Mahaprabhu, I am eleventh, you are the twelfth. So distribute this knowledge."

The disciple's obligation is to carry out the order he received from his spiritual master. He understands that he has no qualifications to take the exalted role of being a spiritual master. But he does so because his spiritual master has ordered him and because the perfection of the disciple's life is to faithfully follow the instructions that he has received from his spiritual master.

We could write an entire book to prove that Srila Prabhupada gave this order to his disciples. But the disciple is not obliged to prove to others that he was so ordered by his spiritual master. His only obligation is to carry out the instructions he received from his spiritual master:

"...just become perfect in the understanding of this science and become guru and deliver the whole world."

(from a lecture on the Srimad-Bhagavatam 1.15.39 -- Los Angeles, December 17, 1973

I hope this helps to make this matter crystal clear for you.

Sankarshan Das Adhikari

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