Monday Morning Greetings 2025 #39 – Guruship and the Death of Bhakti

Maybe the title is too heavy, but there is a point there.

Material consciousness means to think of oneself as the center of the world and thus as the controller and enjoyer. Devotion means the opposite, to move away from that imagined center to instead become the humble servant of God. In this regard, here’s how Śrī Jīva Gosvāmī describes the essence of bhakti in his treatise titled Bhakti-sandarbha.

“…Therefore, an intelligent person should engage unflinchingly in the unalloyed devotional service of the Lord, under the guidance of a bona fide spiritual master, whom he should accept as his worshipable deity and as his very life and soul.” Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 11.2.37

What can be more challenging in cultivating bhakti than to accept such a position where one is highly worshiped by many and sometimes thousands?

I remember the end of 1977, just after Śrīla Prabhupāda had passed away. Eleven sincere godbrothers, practically not one over thirty, most not even with eight years as a devotee, took up the mantle of guru. They all received the lavish worship worthy of an ācārya.

How do you think that worked out?

You guessed it. Most didn’t survive. How could they? Unless one is very spiritually advanced, the worship (pūjā) that is being offered to one as a guru and the distinction (pratiṣṭhā) that naturally follows are the very things one must shun if there is any hope of gaining a taste for bhakti.

At the time when my godbrothers took up that service, I thought they had the world. I certainly don’t envy them now. They were put, in many ways, in the most unfortunate position — attempting to follow the path of utter humility and being put on a pedestal at the same time.

But what to do? Although one of the principles of devotional service outlined in Bhakti-rasāmṛta-sindhu is not to take many followers, the commentary on the above verse also says that a sannyāsī must accept disciples to increase his lineage.[1] I was confused. Which is it? When I was asked to accept disciples, I therefore went to a senior Vaiṣṇava for advice. I placed this seeming contradiction to him for clarity. I took his advice to heart.

“Don’t think you are guru. Do it as a service to your guru. And be careful not to take many disciples.”

So that’s the key. Many must nobly take up the mantle of leadership to push on Śrī Caitanya’s mission, but one must never embrace any designation other than “I am the humble servant of Guru and Krishna.”

Why am I writing this? Shortly, I will be 75. Soon my disciples will celebrate Vyāsa-pūjā on my birthday. The worship will be lavish. In the midst of such pomp, it is important to remind myself, and thus others, that Vyāsa-pūjā is meant for worship of the paramparā (disciplic succession). The guru is simply representing the previous masters and redirecting that honor to them.

A great example of that mood:

“We are just sitting on the throne of our Guru Mahārāja, Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Gosvāmī Prabhupāda. So this pūjā, this offering, must go to him. Not to us. Our business is only to deliver it to him. So the students, who have to go through us, should give all honor and respect to our Guru Mahārāja.” (Vyāsa-pūjā address from 1982, Śrīla Bhakti-rakṣaka Śrīdhara Dev-Goswami Mahārāja)

The lesson is clear: if we remain simply the servant of the servant of Śrīla Prabhupāda, our service will be the life, not the death, of bhakti, whether we are doing service behind the scenes, or whether we take the center stage.

[1] The thirteenth item of devotional service as mentioned in the Bhakti-rasāmṛta-sindhu does mention not to take too many followers in devotional service. It serves as a caution. Too many followers and management responsibilities can distract one from one’s devotional practices. The commentary does acknowledge, however, the sincere and necessary act of expanding the devotional lineage.