We are to take shelter of sādhu. Sādhu-guru. The same thing. Guru means sādhu. A sādhu... One... Sādhu means the devotee of the Lord. If one is not sādhu, then he cannot become guru. And sādhu means... This is the description given. What is that? Mayy ananyena bhāvena bhaktiṁ kurvanti ye dṛḍhām. He's sādhu. Not that anyone with a saffron cloth and having a long beard. That is not sādhu. Sādhu means the devotee of the Lord. That is his first qualification. Kṛṣṇa says, api cet su-durācāro bhajate mām ananya-bhāk. The same thing. As it is, Kapiladeva says, mayy ananyena bhāvena. Kapiladeva is also Kṛṣṇa, incarnation of Kṛṣṇa. The same thing. The Bhagavad-gītā, Kṛṣṇa svayam says, bhajate mām ananya-bhāk. Ananya, "not being deviated." Mām ekam, "only unto Me." This is ananya-bhāva. Not that sometimes take from here something, take from here something, whatever is available. Those who are after material concessions, they go different demigods: take something from Śiva, take something from Durgā, take something from Kālī, take this, that, that. So many, there are different demigods. Especially Goddess Durgā, Lord Śiva and Gaṇeśa and Sūrya, they are... And Viṣṇu. The Viṣṇu worship is the best. Ārādhanānāṁ sarveṣāṁ viṣṇor ārādhanaṁ param. That is said by Lord Śiva to Goddess Pārvatī. Pārvatī asked Lord Śiva, "What is the best type of worship?" There are so many. It is amongst the demigods. So Lord Śiva advised, ārādhanānāṁ sarveṣāṁ viṣṇor ārādhanaṁ param. "My dear Pārvatī, amongst all kinds of different types of worship, Viṣṇu worship is the best." And then again he said, tasmāt parataraṁ devi: "And there is still better worship." What is that? Tasmāt parataraṁ devi tadīyānāṁ samarcanam. Then... "Viṣṇu worship is the best. And more than that: to worship Vaiṣṇava." Tadīyānāṁ samarcanam. So therefore... Here also the same thing: sa eva sādhuṣu kṛtaḥ. Begin. The spiritual life begins from the association of sādhu, or devotee. You cannot progress a pinch only without the mercy of sādhu.
Shelter of sadhu
Lectures
Srimad-Bhagavatam Lectures
Sri Caitanya-caritamrta Lectures
Now how to become Kṛṣṇa conscious? A person who is fully Kṛṣṇa conscious, he has no problem. Now how to become Kṛṣṇa conscious? Lord Caitanya says, sādhu-śāstra-kṛpā: "One can become Kṛṣṇa conscious by the mercy of saintly devotees and by the mercy of the scriptures." These two things are recommended. Not that fools, as they are thinking, "I can..., I can think myself. I don't agree with the śāstra. I don't agree with the spiritual master. I don't agree with scriptures. I have got my independent opinion." He is fool number one, rascal number one. One who says like that, you'll at once take him that he's fool, rascal, anything. You have to take shelter of sādhu, guru and śāstra. Sādhu means saintly persons, those who have got all those qualities.
General Lectures
Fire is considered to be pure. Therefore any ceremony is done before fire-god. So, Kṛṣṇa says that even fire is so pure, still there are some defect, there is smoke. So, if you want to find out defect, you'll find out in fire also. But that doesn't matter, fire is fire. Similarly, a devotee, an unflinching devotee, without any other desires, who is dedicated to the service of the Lord, he is sādhu. So we have to take shelter of such sādhu. Ādau gurv-āśrayam. And sādhu will instruct you. Not by whims, but through śāstra. He is sādhu. Sādhu will never speak to you anything which is not in the śāstra. Sādhu, śāstra, and guru. And guru is bona fide spiritual master who follows sādhu and śāstra. Who follows his bona fide spiritual master and who follows the instructions of śāstra, he is guru.
| Page Title: | Shelter of sadhu |
| Compiler: | Tugomera |
| Created: | 08 of Mar, 2010 |
| Totals by Section: | BG=0, SB=0, CC=0, OB=0, Lec=3, Con=0, Let=0 |
| No. of Quotes: | 3 |