How to Find a Sadhu? Q&A with Sri Srimad Gour Govinda Swami Maharaja

Questions and Answers with
Sri Srimad Gour Govinda Swami Maharaja

Devotee: How does one recognize a sadhu?

Gour Govinda Swami: Cry before Krishna. Only He can help you to find a sadhu. You can’t recognize a sadhu. You have no vision to see the sadhu. If you try by yourself to recognize sadhu, then you will be cheated. If you are serious, then cry before Him. “O Krishna! I am your servant!”

ay nanda-tanuja kinkaram
patitam mam visame bhavambudhau
krpaya tava pada-pankaja-
stita-dhuli-sadrsam vicintaya

Mahaprabhu has taught us this. This is crying before Krishna. “O nanda-tanuja, son of Nanda Maharaja, I am your kinkara, your sevant. Somehow or other I am fallen here in this dreadful ocen of material existence and I have been drowning from time immemorial. But I want to serve you. How can I serve you? How can I become a speck of dust at Your lotus feet? Please help me.” Just cry. Without the help of sadhu you cannot approach Krishna. You can’t utter Krishna’s name. When you cry like that, Krishna is there in your heart as paramatma. He will say, “Oh now he is crying for Me.” Then he makes an arrangement.

This is the proper way. If by your own effort you try to recognize a sadhu, you will be cheated. You can’t see a sadhu. You have no vision at all. You see only all outward, external things. You can’t see the real thing. There are many persons who are only outwardly sadhus. You will be enchanted by their external activities: “Oh, he is a great sadhu! Yes, he is producing gold!” You will be cheated.

You can’t get a real sadhu [in this way]. A real sadhu is one who is competely absorbed in Krishna, day and night, twenty-four hours. He has gotten Krishna. He is with Krishna. He can give you Krishna. You can’t see him. You have no vision. Only you can cry for Krishna from the core of your heart. This is not an external cry. It is internal. Then Krishna, who is in your heart, will see that you are crying and he will help you. He will make arrangement for you to meet such a sadhu. That is the arrangement of Krishna. When you meet such a person you will feel some spontaneous attraction from the core of your heart. That attraction is the proof.

Devotee: To meet a sadhu is so rare. How can one get the opportunity?

Gour Govinda Swami: It’s a fact that it is rare, but if you are really crying for it then Krishna can make an arrangement. It is impossible for you, but nothing is impossible for Krishna.

Home program in Vancouver, Canada: May 1993

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Regarding Srila Gour Govinda Maharaj: I'm sure devotees on this thread who know me, know that I have NO approval of what the GBC is doing; that I have spoken out and written things regarding such. (Some devotees know that I've gotten verbally attacked many times, and even physically beaten by ISKCON people for my having spoken/written out.) I have (regretfully) never personally met Srila Gour Govinda Maharaj, but on hearing one devotees tape player going, with the person who was speaking on tape (chastising a person named Ananta; "ANAAAAAAANNNTAAAAAA, WHY ARE YOU IN MAAAAAAYAAAAAAAA?") I KNEW, RIGHT THEN AND THERE, that the person speaking on that tape was a PURE!!! devotee, and I wanted to find him.

How did I know? The same way I knew about Srila Prabhupada (without having met Srila Prabhupada). I wrote a letter to Srila Gour Govinda Maharaj, and received his reply letter three weeks after he had left the planet, (the letter dated three days before his departure). So yes, I do believe that Srila Gour Govinda Maharaj was a PURE devotee. I do NOT believe that SGGM approved of what the GBC was doing, and KNEW they were SO OFF (and DEMONIC), but in his desire to serve Srila Prabhupada's desires and instructions, stayed on with ISKCON, trying to render His service to Srila Prabhupada. Because he was so distraught and down and out DISGUSTED by what these GBCasuras were doing, SGGM finally went to Gopal Jiu - the Deity He worshipped all his lifetime, right from childhood - and asked Gopal Jiu's permission if he could leave the planet, leave his body. Granted such permission, SGGM indicated to some disciples, that he would no longer be present, though they didn't understand what he meant until after his departure, so SGGM having gotten permission, departed the planet, while speaking a specific pastime regarding Jagannath.

My personal understanding is that the Godsiblings I know on the GBC, be they "gooroos" or not, are conditioned jivas, and many of them, at least at this point in time, are EXTREMELY DEMONIC!!! I believe that SGGM was NOT a conditioned jiva, but rather a PURE Vaisnava, WAY BEYOND the caliber of ALL of us (in terms of those who I know on this thread. I include myself in this statement, my being a jiva baddha, whose only hope is the possible compassion His Divine Grace, Srila Prabhupada, my possibly have for me).

I hope all is going well.

May we be safely situated under the shelter of Srila Prabhupada's Lotus Feet, Those of our Guru Varga, the Vaisnavas, and Sri Sri Radha and Krsna.

Your's in service,

B. Radha-Govinda
Hare Krsna

Comments

Welcome July 7, 2011 9:21

2 of 2

Regarding Srila Gour Govinda Maharaj: I'm sure devotees on this thread who know me, know that I have NO approval of what the GBC is doing; that I have spoken out and written things regarding such. (Some devotees know that I've gotten verbally attacked many times, and even physically beaten by ISKCON people for my having spoken/written out.) I have (regretfully) never personally met Srila Gour Govinda Maharaj, but on hearing one devotees tape player going, with the person who was speaking on tape (chastising a person named Ananta; "ANAAAAAAANNNTAAAAAA, WHY ARE YOU IN MAAAAAAYAAAAAAAA?") I KNEW, RIGHT THEN AND THERE, that the person speaking on that tape was a PURE!!! devotee, and I wanted to find him.

How did I know? The same way I knew about Srila Prabhupada (without having met Srila Prabhupada). I wrote a letter to Srila Gour Govinda Maharaj, and received his reply letter three weeks after he had left the planet, (the letter dated three days before his departure). So yes, I do believe that Srila Gour Govinda Maharaj was a PURE devotee. I do NOT believe that SGGM approved of what the GBC was doing, and KNEW they were SO OFF (and DEMONIC), but in his desire to serve Srila Prabhupada's desires and instructions, stayed on with ISKCON, trying to render His service to Srila Prabhupada. Because he was so distraught and down and out DISGUSTED by what these GBCasuras were doing, SGGM finally went to Gopal Jiu - the Deity He worshipped all his lifetime, right from childhood - and asked Gopal Jiu's permission if he could leave the planet, leave his body. Granted such permission, SGGM indicated to some disciples, that he would no longer be present, though they didn't understand what he meant until after his departure, so SGGM having gotten permission, departed the planet, while speaking a specific pastime regarding Jagannath.

My personal understanding is that the Godsiblings I know on the GBC, be they "gooroos" or not, are conditioned jivas, and many of them, at least at this point in time, are EXTREMELY DEMONIC!!! I believe that SGGM was NOT a conditioned jiva, but rather a PURE Vaisnava, WAY BEYOND the caliber of ALL of us (in terms of those who I know on this thread. I include myself in this statement, my being a jiva baddha, whose only hope is the possible compassion His Divine Grace, Srila Prabhupada, my possibly have for me).

I hope all is going well.

May we be safely situated under the shelter of Srila Prabhupada's Lotus Feet, Those of our Guru Varga, the Vaisnavas, and Sri Sri Radha and Krsna.

Your's in service,

B. Radha-Govinda
Hare Krsna

Welcome July 7, 2011 9:27

pt 1 of 2

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Thursday, July 7, 2011 11:35:45 AM

Message body

Dear Prabhus,

Hare Krsna. All glories to Srila Prabhupada. PAMFO I hope your sadhana and bhajan are going well.

Quoting and replying to Tamohara prabhu's specific statement regarding my understanding of Srila Gour Govinda Maharaj made in his email below, "RG Swami is on the thread and also knows GGswami is mahabhagavata, so ask her": I did not meet Srila Prabhupada personally, but knew from two sentences in Srila Prabhupada's books, that He, Srila Prabhupada, was the person who I was looking for; at that time, my looking for "Jesus Christ's PURE representative," my believing that there had to be at least one PURE representative of Jesus Christ on the Earth planet. So I found this person in Srila Prabhupada, my realizing that Srila Prabhupada was giving much more than Jesus Christ was at that time able to give.

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