20240928 Śrī Caitanya Śikṣāmṛta 2.1. Division of Secondary Rules

mūkaṁ karoti vācālaṁ paṅguṁ laṅghayate girim
yat-kṛpā tam ahaṁ vande śrī-guruṁ dīna-tāraṇam
paramānanda-mādhavam śrī caitanya īśvaram
Harihi oṁ tat sat

Second Shower — Consideration of secondary rules

First Stream — Division of Secondary Rules

Jayapatākā Swami: I will give a class tomorrow morning.

TEXT: It is natural that a human with a śūdra nature will produce children of śūdra nature, a person of brāhmaṇa nature will produce children of brāhmaṇa nature. But this is not the rule everywhere. Therefore, the writers of scriptures had arranged the saṁskāra-vidhi with the intention of determining caste while determining the nature. Saṁskāra-vidhi rules have changed over time. The country has deteriorated due to the disappearance of that caste-determining saṁskāra-vidhi.

Jayapatākā Swami: I was thinking yesterday how, Śrīla Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura has stated that saṁskāras in the Āryan country of India is greater. I was thinking in the Sat-kriyā-saṁskāra-dīpikā of Śrīla Gopāla Bhaṭṭa Gosvāmī, we have the marriage saṁskāra, we have the garbhādhāna-saṁskāra, then there is the puṁsavana-saṁskāra, then there is the sīmantanayana-saṁskāra, then the birth saṁskāra, after that we have the annapraśana-saṁskāra, then the first writing saṁskāra, vidyārambha, then the special cūḍākaraṇa-saṁskāra of the cutting of the hair. Is there any other country which has so many saṁskāras? In India they have this rakṣā-bhandana, bhāi-phoṭa where girls put phoṭa (mixture of sandalwood paste, curd and honey) on the forehead of the brothers, we have many saṁskāras. So I was just thinking in the other countries, what is after the marriage saṁskāra? In Japan what do they have? In Russia? They have bhaki-phuṭa? So anyway, I was thinking we have many social rules in India.

Note:

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 7.11.35

yasya yal lakṣaṇaṁ proktaṁ
puṁso varṇābhivyañjakam
yad anyatrāpi dṛśyeta
tat tenaiva vinirdiśet

If one shows the symptoms of being a brāhmaṇa, kṣatriya, vaiśya or śūdra, as described above, even if he has appeared in a different class, he should be accepted according to those symptoms of classification.

Jayapatākā Swami: People will not be judged, it doesn’t say in the Bhagavad-gītā [4.9] janma karma, it says guṇa-karma. Although traditionally it may be that someone who is produced by śūdra parents may have śūdra qualities – why not? But this varṇāśrama system is the social order. But what varṇa, what āśrama he is should be judged by different activities. So there is one Vedic, there was a boy who was asked by the guru who is your father? He said I don’t know. So they thought that he is actually a brāhmaṇa because he spoke the truth. So, he was accepted as a brāhmaṇa because he told the truth. Not knowing who your father means your mother has a dubious profession.

TEXT: There is no doubt that varṇa-vidhi (caste system) is the actual social dharma.

Four Status of Life

According to science there are four types of status of life. Brahmācarya, gārhasthya, vānaprastha and sannyāsa. Those who earn money and travel before marriage are brahmacārī. Those who are married and settled in the world are gṛhastha (householders). Those who stop working and live in seclusion when they get older are vānaprastha. Those who renouncing all worldly bonds, wander are sannyāsī. The dharma established by judging the relationship of all castes and āśramas is called varṇāśrama-dharma. This dharma is the Indian branch of Āryan social rule. A country that lacks these rules cannot be called a developed country. Briefly this topic was mentioned here, which will be specifically discussed in the third shower.

Jayapatākā Swami: The quality of development of a country is defined based on these kinds of rules. So for that reason, the Indian people who follow the Āryan rule, they consider themselves very advanced. Previously they were rich but recently they are not so rich. So that is why people think that they are not developed. But actually, according to the Bhāgavata Purāṇa and other śāstras, they are very advanced. In the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, it is said that in Kali-yuga anyone can practice Kṛṣṇa consciousness. In the 9^th canto purport, Śrīla Prabhupāda said, when it comes to Kṛṣṇa consciousness be it man, woman, śūdra, they are all equal.

So in the third shower we read about the undeveloped countries.

Kṛṣṇe matir astu!

Kṛṣṇe matir ruhu!