Author Archives: Ananda Subramanian, Iowa, USA

Pure devotion
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In ISKCON, we have many varieties of devotees from entry level to advanced. While all of them look similar externally, they are not internally. The mood and prayer of a devotee is very difficult to judge by one’s external outfit or behavior. To a certain extent, one can judge based on one’s words and actions, however, even that can be deceptive. Therefore, we have to be careful as to who is elevated and who is not. To really understand who is elevated requires understanding of lives of great vaishnava devotees, understanding of scriptures and also one should try to aspire for one’s self. When we do all of the above, the Lord who is within our heart will help us identify who is pure and not pure. Till then, it is best we engage ourselves as best as we can in a mood humble prayer and service.

There are many great devotees who have shared their inner thoughts through poems and prayers. Below is one such prayer I found by King Kulaśekhara in his Mukunda Mala stotra (5) to be very inspiring. When we constantly meditate on such prayers, our consciousness will distill the dirt in our heart and we will start to see the shining light of Godhead emerge in the horizons of our consciousness.

nāsthā dharme na vasu-nicaye naiva kāmopabhoge
 yad bhāvyaṁ tad bhavatu bhagavan pūrva-karmānurūpam
etat prārthyaṁ mama bahu-mataṁ janma-janmāntare ’pi
 tvat-pādāmbho-ruha-yuga-gatā niścalā bhaktir astu

I have no attraction for performing religious rituals or holding any earthly kingdom. I do not care for sense enjoyments; let them appear and disappear in accordance with my previous deeds. My only desire is to be fixed in devotional service to the lotus feet of the Lord, even though I may continue to take birth here life after life.

Hare Krishna

How Srila Prabhupada Preached – A Case Study
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Srila Prabhupada went to the US – first to Boston and then to New York. From New York harbor, he went to Butler, Pennsylvania. From Butler, he went to Ananda ashram and stayed with a Dr. Mishra (a mayavadi guru). Ananda ashram is near New York. Then from there, with the help of Dr. Mishra, he moved to a small box room in uptown Manhattan and from there Prabhupada gradually manifested his magic.

I want to present a case study of sorts from which we can learn how Prabhupada first spoke about Krishna consciousness to a visitor to the Ananda ashram. Dr. Mishra was teaching Raja yoga and impersonal philosophy in the ashram. A visitor by name Harvey Cohen was present there. To my knowledge, I think this was the first preaching of any kind done by Prabhupada. By studying this first conversation, I thought we can learn how Prabhupada preached.

The setting
Prabhupada, at this time, around 1965 is perhaps just one month or thereabouts in the USA. He barely knew the culture, and the people. He is in an ashram where he is not allowed to speak about Bhaki Yoga to Krishna. Then, by the arrangement of Krishna, Prabhupada is with Harvey Cohen in a room, just the two of them. When Prabhupada asked Harvey about the reason for the visit to the ashram, Harvey responded nonchalantly displaying his lack of interest in Raja yoga. Prabhupada saw an opportunity to preach and he directly went to the point.

Points to consider while this conversation is taking place

  • Prabhupada and Harvey are total strangers.
  • Prabhupada is new to the US and does not fully understand US customs.
  • Prabhupada was not allowed to speak about Krishna at the ashram as an official policy laid down by Dr. Mishra.
  • Prabhupada sensed Harvey’s lack of interest in Raja yoga.
  • Harvey was favorable towards some form of yoga system thus prompting Prabhupada to speak more on the subject.

    • The message delivered

    In this seemingly unfavorable setting, Prabhupada spoke the following about yoga.
    • There are better things than this. There are higher, more direct forms of yoga. 
    • Bhakti yoga is the highest it is the science of God devotion. 
    • We are all dependent. No one is independent. 
    • Everyone here is thinking “Who am I?” I can answer that in one second, I am a servant. We are all servants. Servants of what? Of whom? Servants of God. All of us are serving someone or something, a boss a cat or dog, our family, our country. Why don’t we admit this? We should serve the highest master. We should serve the Supreme Lord. 
    • This is our constitutional position and the only way to be happy and become liberated from material bondage.

    Analysis 

    • First Prabhupada downplays Hatha yoga. 
    • Then he gives hope by saying there are higher forms of yoga inspiring the listener to seek for more and not settle for less (Prabhupada, I want to remind, is precise and not wasting words. He gets to the point without repeating himself or overdoing the points – sensitive to time, place and circumstance). 
    • After piquing the interest of the listener, Prabhupada delivers his punchline – Bhakti to God is the highest form of yoga. 
    • Then he scientifically (using logic and rationale) justifies that point by comparing his punch line with the experiences of this relative world thus providing fodder for thought for the listener. 
    • Finally, he ends by stating the goal of yoga for which the listener was in the ashram in the first place – bhakti yoga to God is (1) our constitutional position – i.e we are servants no matter where we are material or spiritual (2) only way to be happy (3) liberation from all suffering. 
    Three point strategy employed by Prabhupada;
    1. De-emphasize the current system quickly followed by stating the highest and best system.
    2. Provide relative logic and rationale driving home the value of the highest system (the listener will relate to the logic of this world reducing the gap between speaker and listener)
    3. Once the listener is close, he empathizes with the speaker. Not wasting time, end by providing a positive picture to our current and future states of existence using the highest system as the solution (provoking the listener for more).
    Case closed
    • Harvey Cohen later became Haridas das brahmachari and devoted his life to Krishna
    Bigger picture
    Harvey prabhu was interested in yoga so Prabhupada presented a higher yoga system. To Prof. Kotovsky in Russia, Prabhupada just talked about body-soul dual paradigm, to Jean Daniélou – the French cardinal, he just spoke about cow slaughter and in temple audiences (varied), Prabhupada spoke in general terms touching mainly on the basics such as body-soul, miseries of this world, and how Krishna consciousness is the panacea for all of our troubles. Prabhupada clearly was in-tune with his listeners and accordingly delivered his message in a short and precise manner. An important point to note is that not everyone took up the message as Harvey did so we have to give credit to the listener as well. If the listener is too materialistic, these strategies will not work. At that point, we simply serve Prasadam and perhaps give a book. 
    Final thoughts
    Srila Prabhupada walked the walk and talked the talk. In this example, Harvey prabhu noticed Prabhupada even before the said conversation took place and he saw how Prabhupada was serene and content. This was also crucial for Harvey to accept Prabhupada’s instructions. Therefore preaching is simply not speaking intelligently and strategically but actual preaching is to practice what we preach – Example is better than precept. This is the most powerful and this movement began and thrived in the 60s and 70s simply by the purity and love of Srila Prabhupada. We have to strive for purity and love in our own lives.
    Hare Krishna

    Q&A by Mahaprabhu Chaitanya
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    Krishna spoke the Bhagavad Gita – no argument there. Some 4500 years later, Krishna appeared as Lord Chaitanya to demonstrate how one should practice devotional service to Krishna. Once, in a conversation with His close associate Ramananda Raya, Lord Chaitanya reveals the ultimate purpose of human life.

    Below is the Q&A between Chaitanya Mahaprabhu and Ramananda Raya.

    Question by Lord Chaitanya: Please quote some verses from scripture about the ultimate goal of human life

    Answer1 by Ramananda Raya: “By following one’s qualities of work, every man can become perfect. By worship of the Lord, who is the source of all beings and who is all-pervading, a man can attain perfection through performing his own work.” – BG 45-46

    Reason for rejection by Lord Chaitanya: Lord Caitanya said that such a life is simply external, indicating that if a man has a material conception of life he cannot attain the highest perfection, even if he follows all the ritualistic regulations. Indirectly He asked Rāmānanda to describe something superior to such an external exhibition.

    Answer2 by Ramananda Raya: It is better to give Kṛṣṇa the results of one’s fruitive activities. He quoted “O son of Kuntī, whatever you do, whatever you eat, whatever you sacrifice, whatever you give away, and whatever austerity you undergo to achieve some goal, everything should be dedicated to My service.” – BG 9.27.

    Reason for rejection by Lord Chaitanya: A worker’s identification with material existence cannot be changed without proper guidance. Such fruitive activity will continue one’s material existence. A worker is simply instructed here to offer the results of his work to the Supreme Lord, but there is no information given to enable one to get out of the material entanglement.

    Answer3 by Ramananda Raya: “Give up all kinds of religiousness and just surrender unto Me, the Supreme Personality of Godhead. I shall protect you from all sinful reactions, and you will have nothing to be aggrieved over.” – BG 18.66

    Reason for rejection by Lord Chaitanya: Renunciation in itself is not sufficient. There must be positive engagement. Without positive engagement, the highest perfectional stage cannot be attained.

    Answer4 by Ramananda Raya: “When by cultivation of knowledge a person realizes himself to be nondifferent from the Supreme Absolute Truth, he becomes joyful and is freed from all kinds of lamentation and material desires. At that time he perfects his Brahman realization by seeing everyone on the same spiritual level. Such Brahman realization can elevate one to the transcendental stage of devotional service.” – BG 18.54

    Reason for rejection by Lord Chaitanya: Simply by renouncing material results in Brahman realization one does not realize the spiritual world and spiritual activities. Although there is no material contamination when one attains the stage of Brahman realization, in that stage one is still not perfectly pure because there is no positive engagement in spiritual activity. Because it is still on the mental plane, it is external.

    Final answer by Ramananda Raya:“My dear Lord, one should give up monistic speculation and the cultivation of knowledge altogether. He should begin his spiritual life in devotional service by receiving information of Your activities from a realized devotee of the Lord. If one cultivates his spiritual life by adhering to these principles and keeping himself on the honest path in life, then although Your Lordship is never conquered, You become conquered by the devotee following such a process.” – SB 10.14.3

    Reason for acceptance by Lord Chaitanya: In this age, because most people are fallen and because there is no time to elevate them by a gradual process, the best course, according to Lord Caitanya, is to let them remain in whatever condition they are in but to engage them in hearing of the activities of the Supreme Lord as those activities are explained in the Bhagavad-gītā and Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam. The transcendental messages of the scriptures should be heard from the lips of realized souls. In this way a person may continue to live in whatever condition he is in and still make spiritual progress. Thus one can surely advance and fully realize the Supreme Personality of Godhead (goal of human life).

    Conclusion: There is a clear hierarchy from low to high – (1) discharging one’s duties in the varṇāśrama-dharma system (2) devotional service mixed with fruitive activity (3) renunciation (4) devotional service mixed with the culture of knowledge. All of the above has mixture on the material plane.

    The final destiny for the soul, therefore according to Mahaprabhu Chaitanya, is to listen submissively from a pure devotee about Krishna and accordingly engage in favorable discharge of devotional service free from selfish motives.

    Hare Krishna

    Who is qualified to translate and speak the Bhagavad Gita?
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    It is no secret that Bhagavad Gita is spoken by numerous speakers in various settings all over the world. Today, anyone who is little qualified in Sanskrit and English language thinks himself qualified to speak or translate the Gita. However,this is not how it is supposed to be as per the norms set by Krishna in the Gita. Just as it is appropriate for a doctor who practices medicine to speak about medical science, or a physicist who is active in his field to speak about the universal laws, similarly it is only appropriate for a follower of Krishna who practices Bhagavad Gita everyday to speak about Krishna.

    Within Bhagavad Gita, Krishna clearly delineates repeatedly in different chapters the core characteristics (qualities) one has to have to live his or her daily life, based upon which one is qualified intuitively to speak, interpret and translate the Bhagavad Gita. Otherwise the Bhagavad Gita remains a mystery. In chapter four, text 3, Krishna clearly mentions this very point. If the speaker himself is not fitting Krishna’s standard of living and hence not privy to the meaning of the Gita, then how can he enlighten the audience?

    So the key to all this is that by simply reading a book called Bhagavad Gita, one cannot learn about its mysteries. One has to accept this knowledge from a person who possess certain key qualities as mentioned in the Bhagavad Gita. They are;

    • A person interested in the Gita must learn it by approaching a spiritual teacher in parampara who is fixed upon the truth as defined in the Bhagavad Gita (4.2, 4.34)
    • He must practice control of mind towards worldly activities and duties (4.19 – 24, 18.54, 2.44)
      • No hankering and lamenting
      • No attachment to bhoga (sense-enjoyment) and aiswarya (material opulence) pertinent to worldly activities such as eating, sleeping, sex, fearing, profit, adoration, distinction etc
      • Equanimity of mind towards duties related to parenting, job, country, community etc
    • He must practice dedication of one’s work or the essence of one’s work to Krishna either as duty or in devotion (3.9, 3.30)
    • He must practice devotion and surrender to Krishna with mind attached to Him taking full shelter of Him in all circumstances (7.1, 18.55, 18.65, 18.66)
    I have only cited few references supporting the qualities above, there are many more verses spoken by Krishna referencing the points mentioned above. 
    Anyone with an open ear and heart willing to listen submissively from such a qualified speaker, no doubt, will return with mind steady, peaceful and heart transformed ready to face this world with supreme optimism (despite all obstacles) just as Arjuna did!
    Hare Krishna

    3S
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    Q: How can one be in the state of blissful spiritual consciousness in the office?

    A: If one is actually in the state of God Consciousness, one will be in that state anywhere. We need to have a good spiritual foundation for that. A good spiritual foundation consists of primarily 3 things;

    1. SATSANG – Association with a community of people, who actually inspire one another, is so very important. By associating with people who are striving for enlightenment or who are enlightened, the doors to our life of liberation and happiness open. 
    2. SADHANA – The time we devote everyday to our spiritual cultivation, our daily spiritual practice, our sadhana. If you don’t eat for many days, how will you perform in your office? If you have not slept in many days, how are you going to act in office? Your body and mind need rest and food in order to have strength to do your work. Similarly, if you want spiritual strength, our spiritual practice (chanting, hearing etc) is our food that nourishes us spiritually. 
    3. SADACHAR – We need to live with good character and values. In our office we may have to compete, we may have to challenge, but it should be with dignity, respect, integrity, and compassion. With a good spiritual foundation when we go into office, we are like Arjuna in Kurukshetra after he heard the Bhagavad Gita. Even if there are all kinds of things going on in our office – all kinds of arrows shooting in different directions – we are spiritually strong, we have integrity, we have bhakti. 

    – by HH.Radhanath Swami (disciple of AC Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada)

    How to realize the true nature of religion?
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    Dharma or religion is of two types (1) material and (2) spiritual . Normally, when people talk about religion or god, it is the material version. That sort of religion is primarily practiced for selfish reasons. Men have unlimited desires so the reasons to practice religion selfishly is also unlimited. By and large these desires are to promote one’s own family, social, economic and political status. In short, material opulence and selfish desires impel one to practice some sort of religion. However, we see in today’s day and age, even that sort of religious adherence is declining because people find alternate avenues to satisfy their passions. As a result, all places of worship today is either closed or functioning as a cultural relic.

    Srila Prabhupada very astutely captures this idea in his book Teachings of Lord Chaitanya.

    Thus driven by sense gratificatory consciousness, men perform religious rituals and pious activities with the aim of acquiring some material gain. But if such material gain is obtainable in another way, this so-called religion is neglected. This can be seen in modern human civilization. Since the economic desires of the people appear to be fulfilled in another way, no one is interested in religion now. The churches, mosques and temples are practically vacant, for people are more interested in factories, shops and cinemas than in the religious places erected by their forefathers. This definitely proves that religious rituals are generally performed for the sake of economic development, which is needed for sense gratification. And when one is baffled in his attempt to attain sense gratification, he takes to the cause of salvation in order to become one with the supreme whole. All these activities arise with the same aim in view – sense gratification. – Ch 23 Teachings of Lord Chaitanya

    Unless we address our material desires for this world in a sober and balanced manner, it would be very difficult to have any meaningful realization of the true nature of religion or dharma.

    Hare Krishna

    Presuppositions
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    The “four pillars” of evidence supporting the Big Bang theory are:

    1. The observable expansion of the Universe.
    2. Origin of the cosmic background radiation.
    3. The abundance of light elements.
    4. Formation of galaxies and large-scale structure.
    The above evidences are valid only if we assume (presuppose) that the universe and its laws are uniform at all times and in all places (the universe by the way is so big even scientists do not have a complete idea). Because modern scientific methods can never test the presuppositions of science, in my opinion, science is founded on principles of faith.

    “Nowhere in science do we start from scratch. There is only one place where we can start, that is from where we are…Science is no miraculous creation out of nothing, no spontaneous generation of knowledge from ignorance. When presuppositions are denied a logical status, we remain mired in skepticism” – Abraham Kaplan (philosopher).

    “For science does not have any choice about whether or not to accept presupposition of the species-individual structure. It must accept it because, any classification, induction, and gathering of experience in certain laws would be entirely impossible. For there would be an infinite series of experiences without any possibility of connecting one experience with another” – Andrew van Melsen (philosopher)

    The quotes from modern philosophers question the objectivity of science as science cannot be purely objective. The bottom line is we are limited beings with limited access to the natural world. If we can recognize this limitation within our knowledge system, we can be more open to other avenues of knowledge gathering.

    Hare Krishna

    The essence
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    The Vedic scriptures are indeed vast so vast we cannot estimate the beginning and end of it. One reason for its vastness is to do with the myriad nature of this world, in other words, there are so many varieties of people in the combination of three modes that one size does not fit all. Therefore the Vedas is but a reflection of this diversity and variety of this world and its people.

    A self-realized soul or atmatattva darshis may not know all intricacies of Vedas, in fact is not needed to know. They only know the essence or saransham of the Vedas. If we want to understand the inner meaning of the vast body of knowledge, (a) we should have pure motivation (b) we should seek the appropriate spiritual master (c) we should in all humility surrender to that spiritual master. Once we do these three steps, the inner import, and essence of the Vedas will be revealed from within our own heart.

    Yet, Srila Prabhupada very much wanted for his books to be distributed far and wide. The purpose for this is to make available to people genuine spiritual knowledge (gnana) and with that knowledge people are inspired to come to the stage of practice (vignana) which entails the three steps I mentioned above.

    Unless we practice what we read (both external practice and internal introspection); we cannot ‘realize’ ourselves atmatattva, it simply will be like licking the outside of a honey bottle. Therefore gnana+vignana will reveal within us the essence or inner import of the Vedas.

    yasya deve parā bhaktir
    yathā deve tathā gurau
    tasyaite kathitā hy arthāḥ
    prakāśante mahātmanaḥ

    Only unto those great souls who have implicit faith in both the Lord and the spiritual master are all the imports of Vedic knowledge automatically revealed – Yajur Veda – Śvetāśvatara Upaniṣad 6.23

    Hare Krishna

    boundaries of observed science
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    “It is possible to ask whether there is still concealed behind the statistical universe of perception a ‘true’ universe in which the law of causality would be valid. But such speculation seems to us to be without value and meaningless, for physics must confine itself to the description of the relationship between perceptions” -About the intuitive content of quantum mechanics and kinematics, Journal of Physics, Heisenberg 1927, pg 197

    The above quote in my opinion is the bedrock of modern science. Einstein, however, disagreed with this. Einstein believed that science describes the objective universe independent of our observation. But Neils Bohr and Heisenberg were of the opinion that the universe exists as we ‘observe’ it and not in its ‘true’ sense. In other words, Bohr opined that science simply describes how matter is observed to behave and not the constitutional nature of matter itself implying that science is limited to our perception of the universe and does not describe the ‘true’ universe. The quote above captures this idea.

    When scientists, therefore, pose questions and quantify evidence within the confines of observed behavior of the universe, then the laws of nature as defined by science is merely in fact laws of ‘observed’ nature and not ‘true’ nature. Quite often the boundaries between these two exclusive ideas have been purposefully amalgamated.

    What is the nature of the universe in its existential true objective state is not explicable within the boundaries of observed science. We have to look for answers elsewhere!

     Hare Krishna

    He is no more…
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    When someone dies, for example I was reading APJ Abdul Kalam’s recent death, the author of the article writes “he is no more”. Well…actually he is very much more. He is just no more in the form he took as brown skinned Indian looking male form etc. No more he will continue in that form. Based on his past karma, he will be given another form to continue his life journey. So when someone dies, we should not think he is no more rather think he does not exist in the same form but has taken a new form.

    Hare Krishna

    Care for Kruma Rupa Prabhu
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    Care for Cows is an organization started by HG Kurma Rupa das prabhu in Vrindavan. The organization protects abandoned cows. Today I heard that HG Kurma Rupa prabhu is in an advanced stage of cancer. He may leave his body at any moment. Please pray for prabhuji so he can go back to loving embracing arms of Sri Gopal and their transcendental cows.

    Below is an email from H.H BB Govinda Swami maharaja who met HG Kurma Rupa prabhu yesterday in Vrindavan.

    Hare Krishna

    From BB Govinda Maharaj:

    June 25th, 2015

    Dear All,

    Obeisances. All glories to Srila Prabhupada.

    Our wonderful god-brother Kurma Rupa Prabhu is dying of cancer in Vraja. Today may be his last day. He was diagnosed a few weeks ago with stage four cancer .. a big tumour at the base of his stomach. He has lived in Vraja approximately 31 years. 

    He served with the Gurukula and later started the “Care For Cows” program. I went to see him the other evening. He was very weak but we spoke for about an hour. I asked him about his japa and he said he was too weak to chant. But then he shared that for many years he had chanted 64 rounds a day. And he said that during those rare, special moments of his life when Krishna would bless with a drop of mercy .. he could see that his only desire and aspiration was to serve Sri Gopal and His cows. He said that many great souls speak of service to the servants of Sri Radha, and, that he offers his obeisances to them millions of times. But all he prays for is the service of Sri Gopal and His cows. The next day he was planning to leave the room he was staying in return to “Care For Cows.” 

    He said he wanted to be there to “hear the cows, smell the cows, have the dust of the cows walking cover his body.” Take a moment and offer a prayer to Sri Gopal that He quickly embrace Kurma Rupa Prabhu . and that arm and arm they walk together amidst 900,000 cows.

    Hare Krishna. 

    Affectionate regards.
    Your servant,
    BB Govinda Swami 

    True quality of a vaishnava
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    Lord Chaitanya famously said that by speaking about Krishna to whomever you meet, you become guru. There is no need to move one’s physical location. This is one qualification of guru- constant speaking about Krishna. To constantly speak about Krishna requires a significant quality – one of humility. The quality of humility cannot be over stressed, it is so important that it can tell the difference between a neophyte vaishnava and advanced. In Chaitanya Charitamrta Madhya Lila Ch 22 Text 131, Lord Chaitanya Mahaprabhu says one should associate with a devotee more advanced than oneself and who are endowed with a similar type of affection for the Lord. So we should seek the association of a vaishnava who is humble by nature and associate with him or her.

    Below are the words of a pure saintly person stressing on the value of humility.

    “One who is real guru never says, “I am guru.” He sees everyone according to jīvera ‘svarūpa’ haya kṛṣṇera ‘nityadāsa’— he sees their svarūpa, he sees that all are servants of Krishna. The guru has such a vision. His vision is not material vision, therefore he is guru. Through him we get bhagavān, Krishna. Guru says, tṛṇād api sunīcena — “I am lower than the straw in the street.” He is so humble. He has no pride in being a guru. But if someone says, “Don’t you know who I am? I am a great guru! Great ācārya!” This is dambha, pride. It is a demoniac characteristic, not a divine characteristic. It is not a characteristic of a vaiṣṇava-sādhu-guru. A real guru has humility. If one thinks, “I am guru.” Then he is not guru. He is goru, a quadruped, a cow or a bull.“

    – HH Gour Govinda Swami Maharaj

    Hare Krishna

    Instrument of previous acharyas
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    The author of Bhakti-rasāmṛta-sindhu, Śrīla Rūpa Gosvāmī, very humbly submits that he is just trying to spread Kṛṣṇa consciousness all over the world, although he humbly thinks himself unfit for this work. That should be the attitude of all preachers of the Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement, following in the footsteps of Śrīla Rūpa Gosvāmī. We should never think of ourselves as great preachers, but should always consider that we are simply instrumental to the previous ācāryas, and simply by following in their footsteps we may be able to do something for the benefit of suffering humanity.

    – Introduction Nectar of Devotion by Srila Prabhupada

    Hare Krishna