The Pure Process
His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada
A pure devotee is he who loves Krishna, without any material desire. Such pure devotees are very rare. But by the grace of Krishna, practically all the devotees and disciples who have kindly joined me, their symptoms are like pure devotees. Even if they have got some ulterior desire, that will be removed very soon, because they have taken to the pure process of Krishna Consciousness.
· — Letter to Janaki, 13 October 1968
Five Habits for a Brahmachari
Sri Srimad Gour Govinda Swami Maharaja
First one should be a brahmacäré — accept a guru, stay in the guru’s ashram, and strictly follow the principles of brahmacarya. He should be trained how to control the mind and senses. All the senses and mind should be fixed at the lotus feet of Krishna. A guru gives that training during brahmacäré period, student life.
There is a saying,
vidyärthi païca-lakñaëa — a student, brahmacäré, has five symptoms: käka-snäna, baka-dhyäna, alpa-bhojana, çväna-nidrä, videça-gamana — bathe like a crow, meditate like a crane, eat little, sleep like a dog, and stay in a foreign place.
Käka snäna:
A brahmacäré should not spend much time bathing. Have you seen how much time it takes for a crow to take bath? One minute. It takes some water in its beak and splash, finished. One should think, "I have very little time. I have to do bhajana. I have to serve. Miche nida-baçe gelo re räti, divasa çaréra-säje [Bhaktivinode’s Gétävalé 1.1.3] — [Mahaprabhu said:] "You spend your nighttime sleeping and snoring and your daytime in taking care of this body." No. Käka-snäna — you should spend very little time in bathing.
Baka-dhyäna: "Baka"
means "stork." The stork is a white bird with a long beak and long legs. It stands still with concentrated attention on the riverside or lakeside. If a fish comes, then the stork dives and catches it. This is baka-dhyäna. "Dhyäna" means attention, meditation. Käka-snäna, baka-dhyäna — finish your bath in a short time like a crow, and always concentrate your mind like a stork on the lotus feet of Krishna.
Çväna-nidrä:
Sleep like a dog. When a dog sleeps, if the slightest sound is there, then he wakes. He is sleeping, but his sleep is not deep.
Don’t sleep so much. Be like a dog that the slightest sound wakes you up. Not sleeping and snoring, "
means "stork." The stork is a white bird with a long beak and long legs. It stands still with concentrated attention on the riverside or lakeside. If a fish comes, then the stork dives and catches it. This is baka-dhyäna. "Dhyäna" means attention, meditation. Käka-snäna, baka-dhyäna — finish your bath in a short time like a crow, and always concentrate your mind like a stork on the lotus feet of Krishna.
In the eleventh canto ofSrimad B\hagavatam;
säyaà prätar upänéya bhaikñyaà tasmai nivedayetyac cänyad apy anujïätam upayuïjéta saàyataù
In the morning and evening, one should collect foodstuffs and other articles and deliver them to the spiritual master. Then, being self-controlled, one should accept for oneself that which is allotted by the guru.
We have this system every day. Early in the morning, get up, take bath, come to
maìgala-ärati, kértana, japa, and Bhägavatam class. Then take a little food and go out, calo. No one should lay around eating, sleeping, and doing nothing. Go out, collect alms for the guru. That is a brahmacäré’s duty. Then whatever you receive, give everything to the guru, because it is his property. You should think, "Nothing is mine. I am a guru-däsa. I am serving guru. I belong to guru." Then the guru will give you something. "All right. I give this thing for your food." Only then do you eat. If the guru doesn’t give anything, then no eating — fasting. The çästra says this. Because it doesn’t belong to me, I have no right. Everything belongs to guru. So whatever you have collected, cash and kind, daily give everything to your guru.
Lecture, Bhubaneswar, 6 May 1992.
Eat only a little food. Don’t eat to the brim, up to the nose. Don’t eat so much. Then the body will be light and you can get up, chant, dance, go, and run. videça-gamana: Stay in a boarding house. That means the guru’s ashram. Don’t stay in your father’s residence. vidyärthi païca-lakñaëa, five considerations for a student. It is a common saying that people in materialistic education advise to a student when they go to school. brahmacäré comes to stay in the guru’s ashram. The guru gives training how to concentrate the mind at the lotus feet of Krishna — man-manä bhava — how to always think of Krishna. [Bg. 18.65] That is brahmacäré training. Then the guru imparts Vedic knowledge. While knowledge is being imparted, you should hear with concentrated attention. The mind should not go here and there. That is baka-dhyäna. brahmacärés in ashram life. Out of 24 hours, only six hours of rest. Not more than that. Rise up at 3 or 4 AM and immediately take bath. Don’t spend much time in bathing. It is käka-snäna. Finish everything in five minutes. Then come to maìgala-ärati at 4.30. Haaaarrr, haaaarrr." An elephant may come and step on you, still, like Kumbakarna, you won’t wake up! Eat very little food, alpa-bhojana, because if the belly is heavy then you will sleep deeply. Eat two times, one main meal of rice, däl, and subji. If you think, "I am very hungry; I can eat this whole plate." Then take only half. Before eating, drink a glass of cold water. Fill a portion of your belly with water, and then you will not be able to eat so much. After the meal, drink another glass of water. Three-fourths of the belly should be filled with food and water. Then one-fourth remains vacant. Don’t eat a heavy meal; you will develop laziness, älasya-mati, which is a great hindrance in bhajana. bhajana. Such restrictions we have for eating. This is brahmacäré life. This is a training period, to learn how to control the mind and senses. Bhägavatam, 11.17.28, Krishna replies to Uddhava’s inquiry about brahmacäré life:
Baka-dhyäna: "Baka"
Alpa-bhojana:
videça-gamana:
Then,
Stay in a boarding house. That means the guru’s ashram.
Eat only a little food. Don’t eat to the brim, up to the nose. Don’t eat so much. Then the body will be light and you can get up, chant, dance, go, and run.
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