20241017 Śrī Caitanya Śikṣāmṛta 2.4. Āśrama consideration

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

Fourth Stream — Āśrama consideration

Jayapatākā Swami: Śrīla Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura is presenting different rules but eventually he is coming to the point and presenting Vaiṣṇava dharma as transcendental.

Varṇa and āśrama

Karma is born from human nature. Karma is situated in human’s āśrama. The āśrama in which the human being stays, taking shelter of that āśrama karma is situated. Therefore, caste and āśrama are mutually dependent. Therefore, karma is called varṇāśrama-dharma. There are four types of āśrama.

1. Brahmacārya

2. Gṛhastha

3. Vānaprastha

4. Sannyāsa*

Jayapatākā Swami: Śrīla Prabhupāda established these asramas in ISKCON. It is still debatable how the varṇas fit in. So, ISKCON follows this āśrama system. And the varṇa system is partially followed.

Note:

Śrīmad-Bhagavatam 7.11.14–15

viprasyādhyayanādīni
ṣaḍ-anyasyāpratigrahaḥ
rājño vṛttiḥ prajā-goptur
aviprād vā karādibhiḥ

vaiśyas tu vārtā-vṛttiḥ syān
nityaṁ brahma-kulānugaḥ
śūdrasya dvija-śuśrūṣā
vṛttiś ca svāmino bhavet

For a brāhmaṇa there are six occupational duties. A kṣatriya should not accept charity, but he may perform the other five of these duties. A king or kṣatriya is not allowed to levy taxes on brāhmaṇas, but he may make his livelihood by levying minimal taxes, customs duties, and penalty fines upon his other subjects. The mercantile community should always follow the directions of the brāhmaṇas and engage in such occupational duties as agriculture, trade, and protection of cows. For the śūdras the only duty is to accept a master from a higher social order and engage in his service.

Śrīmad-Bhagavatam 7.11.30

vṛttiḥ saṅkara-jātīnāṁ
tat-tat-kula-kṛtā bhavet
acaurāṇām apāpānām
antyajāntevasāyinām

Among the mixed classes known as saṅkara, those who are not thieves are known as antevasāyī or caṇḍālas [dog-eaters], and they also have their hereditary customs.

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 7.11.32

vṛttyā sva-bhāva-kṛtayā
vartamānaḥ sva-karma-kṛt
hitvā sva-bhāva-jaṁ karma
śanair nirguṇatām iyāt

If one acts in his profession according to his position in the modes of nature and gradually gives up these activities, he attains the niṣkāma stage.

Jayapatākā Swami: So, people who are identifying themselves as managers or army, they are in the kṣatriya order. So they can levy income tax 25%. In most countries there are much higher rates. But in the Vedas it says 25%. So because in the Vedic time the kṣatriyas did not levy tax on the brāhmaṇas. And then only the brahmanas can actually beg. Because they are giving benefit to all the people.

Duty of a brahmacārī with brāhmaṇa nature

A person with brāhmaṇa nature has the right to brahmacarya. With a restrained mind, with purity of conduct, in a very humble manner, while accepting various austerities of physical afflictions, residing in the gurukula, will resort to brahmacarya until the end of studies. After completing the studies, while giving dakṣiṇā to the guru and with his permission would enter the gṛhastha-āśrama.

In praise of Murāri Gupta it is said in Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Ādi-līlā 10.50:―

pratigraha nāhi kare, nā laya kāra dhana
ātma-vṛtti kari’ kare kuṭumba bharaṇa

Śrīla Murāri Gupta never accepted charity from friends, nor did he accept money from anyone. He practiced as a physician and maintained his family with his earnings.

Jayapatākā Swami: A physician is considered like a kind of brāhmaṇa. So he wouldn’t beg. He wouldn’t take money from anyone as a donation. But he would charge a reasonable charge according to the work to maintain his family. So he as a physician, he was quite expert, and he cured his patients. One time Lord Caitanya went to him and said He had a bad stomach. So Murāri Gupta gave Him some water. Just the water from his pot was able to cure Lord Caitanya. We wish we had doctors like that, that they would just give a glass of water and cure our suffering. What do you think? So, depending on the brahmacarya studies, he is allowed to follow certain rules. So if someone is a student they would follow the brahmacārī rules, when he completes his studies, he gives dakṣiṇā to guru and then he takes the guru’s blessings and enters gṛhastha-āśrama.

Gṛhastha-dharma of the four castes

All castes are qualified for gṛhastha-āśrama. Brāhmaṇas take gṛhastha-āśrama after brahmacarya, kṣatriyas study all appropriate scriptures and adopt gṛhastha-āśrama after returning from the gurukula. The vaiśyas become gṛhastha while studying the Vedas related to animal protection and maintenance, trade and agriculture. Śūdras can become gṛhasthas simply by attaining proper age. When the time for studies begins, the qualification of a person’s nature of caste is to be decided at first by father, family priest, society of Āryans, landlord or zamindar (Bhūsvāmī). According to the nature of the boy that will be noticed, he should be engaged in those kind of education. Those who are not at all interested in the studies but show interest and skill in their service work, considering that it is ineffective to engage them in studies, they should be allowed to gain skill in their service work of śūdra nature.

If one become gṛhastha, they need to earn money first. Different varṇas are instructed in different ways to earn money. Yājana (worshiping the Lord or the demigods), yājana (teach others how to execute this worship), adhyāyana (become very learned scholars), adhyāpana (become qualified teachers), dāna (distribute the wealth in charity), pratigraha (qualify themselves as bona fide persons to receive alms from others) – these six are the karmas of brāhmaṇas; among these six, earn money through yājana, adhyāpana and pratigraha, and spend money in family situation by yājana, adhyāyana and dāna.

Jayapatākā Swami: So this is the traditional way in which the Āryans would divide the society. In the modern world the education is more general. I mean, they have these things in the school, I could elect for woodwork, typing, kind of śūdra activities. Also, there was science, arts, all these different studies. But here we see that the education was based on the varṇa of the person.

The kṣatriya caste would maintain family by earning through collecting taxes and weapon business. The vaiśyas would earn their living by animal protection, trade and agriculture. The śūdras earn their living through the service of the three castes.

Jayapatākā Swami: Animal protection, that is not practiced so much in the West. They get milk from the cows, otherwise they send them to the slaughterhouse. So animal practically unheard of. Actually, in the recent times protection of cows, that is the standard, just like organic food, they have the protected animals’ ahiṁsa milk. Some people don’t slaughter the cows, and their milk is considered ahiṁsa.

Brāhmaṇas, kṣatriyas and vaiśyas can resort to trade during times of calamity, but the three castes should not do the occupation of śūdras unless there is an emergency. The gṛhastha should produce children by accepting a wife and following the rules. They should express gratitude to the forefathers by offering oblations (piṇḍadāna), worship the gods by sacrifices, receive guests (atithi-sevā) by food, and worship all living entities (arcanā) by true behavior. Parivrājakas and brahmacārīs are nurtured and maintained only with the help of the gṛhastha, therefore the gṛhastha-āśrama is superior to all āśramas.

Jayapatākā Swami: We are all dependent on the gṛhastha-āśrama. We may get a 10-rupee donation from a brahmacārī, gṛhasthas give 500 or more! So we are all dependent on the gṛhasthas!

Vānaprastha activities

Vānaprastha is the third āśrama. If he reaches old age, he should give his wife to his son’s care, or if there is no possibility of having children, take her with him while leaving the home to the forest and thus perform the vānaprastha activity. Therein, should minimize the needs in all respects. Lying on the ground, wearing clothes made of tree branches, giving up shaving, adopting the activity of muni (muni-vṛtti), bathing three times during sandhyā, serving the guests as much as one can, eating fruits and roots, worshiping the Supreme Personality of Godhead in secluded forest are all the vānaprastha activities. All the castes are qualified for vānaprastha.

Jayapatākā Swami: Eating fruits and roots is like our Bhīṣma-Pañcaka. We practice just for five days. I eat fruits, roots and haviṣyanna because of my kidney problem and my diabetes.

Jayapatākā Swami: So there are not much forests left. Vānaprastha, it is visiting holy places as husband and wife and do devotional service. They give out the occupation to their sons.

Sannyāsa activities

Sannyāsa āśrama is the fourth āśrama.*

Note:

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 7.15.30

yaś citta-vijaye yattaḥ
syān niḥsaṅgo ‘parigrahaḥ
eko vivikta-śaraṇo
bhikṣur bhaikṣya-mitāśanaḥ

One who desires to conquer the mind must leave the company of his family and live in a solitary place, free from contaminated association. To maintain the body and soul together, he should beg as much as he needs for the bare necessities of life.

A sannyāsī is called a bhikṣuka (beggar) or parivrājaka (wanderer). When the people of the first three āśrama are completely detached, without possessiveness in the world, tolerant of all hardships, knowledgeable, devoid of desire for associating with worldly-minded persons, absorbed in Brahman, free from dualities, equanimous towards all living, kind, non-envious and is dovetailed in yoga, then he becomes qualified to take sannyāsa-āśrama. Sannyāsīs always think of God. They do not stay more than one night in any village. They do not stay more than five nights in any city. They spend four months according to the prescribed rules of cāturmāsya only in appropriate places. In the initial stages, they take meals in the brāhmaṇa’s house. None other than brāhmaṇas can accept this āśrama.

Jayapatākā Swami: In the Vedas it states the five things which are prohibited. One of those things is sannyāsa-āśrama. We see that this sannyāsī, he is living by begging, he can stay in a village one day, he can stay in a city for five nights. Then the four months of the rainy season, he spends in some holy place. So are these things are difficult to follow. So the sannyāsīs in Kali-yuga in Gaurāṅga’s succession, they stay in some holy place, some āśrama. When Lord Caitanya was travelling He kept moving from place to place. He stopped for the four months when He was in Śrīraṅgam. So, actually the sannyāsa of the previous ages is not followed.

There is no āśrama for the weak

Individuals devoid of physical and mental capacity are not eligible for any āśrama. They will spend their days by the mercy of the residents of the āśrama. It is the responsibility of the residents of the āśrama to help them as much as possible.

Jayapatākā Swami: Physical capacity is considered as – some places they say (not clear) otherwise skilled or handicapped. So the other residents in the gṛhastha-āśrama help them as much as possible.

A woman suitable only for gṛhastha-āśrama

Other than gṛhastha-āśrama and in specific places the vānaprastha, no other āśrama is acceptable for women. If a certain woman of extraordinary strength gaining knowledge, dharma, and ability had attained success or would attain success by taking brahmacarya or sannyāsa-āśrama, it is not a rule for women generally with soft faith, soft body and soft intelligence.

Jayapatākā Swami: Here Śrīla Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura says that there can be brahmacarya or sannyāsa-āśrama for women. We know that Śrīla Prabhupāda said that in the West when they were 18 then the parents would tell them go out and find your husband. So Śrīla Prabhupāda had this brahmacārīnī-āśrama. But he did not allow girls to take sannyāsa. Soft face, soft body and soft intelligence – actually now they have pictures of ladies in the Marines, various occupations which were usually done by men. Prime Minister of India, Narendra Modi said, we have women in the Army. So, this was written might be in the 1800s. Now it is topsy turvy.

Gṛhastha-āśrama is suitable in general

By discussion it is seen that gṛhastha-āśrama is the only āśrama. Three more āśramas are situated taking shelter of gṛhastha-āśrama. Humankind is generally gṛhastha. By gaining special qualification, some have obtained brahmacarya, vānaprastha and sannyāsa āśrama. Their number is very few. However, due to the special qualification for activities of some of those āśramas, if the differences between all the āśramas are not seen, then the true status of social knowledge is not fulfilled.

Jayapatākā Swami: In human society most people are gṛhasthas. Some are observing brahmacarya, vānaprastha or sannyāsa. But Śrīla Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura says their number is very few. In the West they start off with brahmacārīnī-āśrama. But actually, after some time very few brahmacārīs or brahmacārīnīs are left and most of them get married. So, like this gṛhasthas could easily maintain the few brahmacārīs, vānaprasthas or sannyāsīs.

Dharma-śāstras

In the twenty dharma-śāstra and the smṛti-śāstras such as Purāṇas the rules of gṛhastha-āśrama are all specifically stated. Manus, ṛṣis and prajāpatis have written down in their scriptures the daily, fortnightly, monthly, semi-annual and annual rules of what and which time a gṛhastha should do and what should be abandoned. All those rules are many and are subject to change depending on the country. That is why nothing else was written about these other than a brief true principle.

Jayapatākā Swami: Since the main āśrama is the gṛhastha-āśrama, the detailed rules are given in the different śāstras for the gṛhasthas. And for Vaiṣṇava gṛhasthas we have the Sat-kriyā-sāra-dīpikā by Śrīla Gopāla Bhaṭṭa Gosvāmī. In that book different saṁskāras are given like marriage, garbhādāna-saṁskāra. Now I don’t know if it is in any scripture, people come up to me with a birthday cake and say please cut the cake. That is the modern saṁskāra! Cut my cake, don’t eat it! I cannot eat cake! I keep the sugar under control. I think today is the birthday day for some devotees. Jayadā Harinī Devī Dāsī, wish you a happy birthday! Does she have a cake for me to cut? Only a few mātājīs make me a cake with my diet. Otherwise, they just want me to cut the cake. We have the sugar replacer with Prasanna Gaurāṅga dāsa.

(There are Russian and Uzbekistan for the first time and leaving for Jagannātha Purī tomorrow)

There are many holy places that were visited by Lord Caitanya. But the Jagannātha Purī temple of Lord Jagannātha as of yet, the Western devotees are not allowed inside. We are trying to change that. But there are others like Lord Caitanya’s residence, the Gaura Gambhīra, the different āśramas like that of Sārvabhauma Bhaṭṭācārya, Gauḍīya Mathas, ISKCON temple. You should be careful when you swim in the ocean sometimes there are undercurrents which can take you down. If you don’t know swimming you should be very careful. We also have Śrīla Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura, he had an āśrama very close to the ocean. What do you call the āśrama? Bhakti-Kuṭi. It was left under the government of West Bengal. We are renting it back from the West Bengal government and ISKCON is renting it, only for Rs. 6000 or something, it is very cheap. So we have Deities there, we have Śrīla Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura there. We have a pāṇḍa who brings us prasāda and things from Lord Jagannātha. His name is Raghunātha. So we see that everybody gets kichuḍi and things like that. But if you say you want koṭi bhoge, that means the King’s prasāda, with lots of vegetables. I go there and eat sumptuously. Some of the prasāda. So except, one or two temples, the other parts, they have public access. Like the Indradyumna pond, the Narendra Sarovara and some other ponds. So you have got a lot to see in Jagannātha Purī. Next the Guṇḍicā is also the Nṛsiṁha temple. But you cannot go into the Guṇḍicā or main temple. Śrīla Prabhupāda asked me to try to get the foreign devotees to enter the temple. So I went, they told me to speak to the Ramakrishna Mission, they said they could not do anything, see the Śaṅkarācārya of Purī. So he said, “You can go to the temple if you can drink one kilo of boiling ghee!” I said, “I will die, boiling ghee.” But he said, “Yes, but you will take birth as a Hindu!” So this is the kind of mentality. So anyway, we are trying different methods. I don’t want to give boiling ghee to anybody! We take little ghee on capātis, few drops of ghee on rice, but not drink boiling ghee! So Lord Caitanya stayed 24 years here and 18 years there and He travelled around India for six years! Gaurāṅga! Gaurāṅga! So while you are here see Lord Caitanya’s places. When you go to Jagannātha Purī you can see Lord Caitanya’s pastime places. Some devotees who are dark skinned from Africa they could enter the temple, some get caught and beaten up. So we are trying to avoid these things. But Lord Caitanya predicted that His message will be spread throughout the world. So it is but natural for devotees to come from all around the world. Śrīla Prabhupāda said it was offensive to Lord Caitanya to not let the devotees from around the world to not see Lord Jagannātha. Hare Kṛṣṇa!

Kṛṣṇe matir astu!