Join us today for a critical examination in light of shastra and previous acharyas the recommended atonement of Trivikrama Swami. It also critically examines related speculative theories against atonement (Ritvikism) and speculative theories in favor of non-liberated Female Diksha Gurus (FDG). ISKCON India Scholars Board members Sridhar Srinivas Das and Krishna Kirti Das explain why according to shastra atonement requires resuming one’s former position in the varnashram institution, how the process of bhakti through the Pancharatrika Vidhi supersedes atonement recommended in smarta procedures for prayascitta (atonement). And why knowledge of shastra and teachings of previous acharyas is necessary in being able to distinguish between Prabhupada’s actions that are meant to be followed and actions that are not to be imitated.
- Video URL: Trikrama Prabhu, or Maharaja?
- Resource URL: Vedic Jurisprudence and Atonement
Śāstra Pramāṇa
Śrīmad Bhāgavatam
SB 11.20.9
देवनागरी:
तावत् कर्माणि कुर्वीत न निर्विद्येत यावता ।
मत्कथाश्रवणादौ वा श्रद्धा यावन्न जायते ॥
Translation:
As long as one is not satiated by fruitive activity and has not awakened his taste for devotional service by śravaṇaṁ kīrtanaṁ viṣṇoḥ, one has to act according to the regulative principles of the Vedic injunctions.
SB 7.15.36–40
Verse 36
yaḥ pravrajya gṛhāt pūrvaṁ
tri-vargāvapanāt punaḥ
yadi seveta tān bhikṣuḥ
sa vai vāntāśy apatrapaḥ
“One who first accepts sannyāsa but then returns to materialistic activities is to be called a vāntāśī, or one who eats his own vomit. He is indeed a shameless person.”
Verse 37
yaiḥ sva-dehaḥ smṛto ’nātmā
martyo viṭ-kṛmi-bhasmavat
ta enam ātmasāt kṛtvā
ślāghayanti hy asattamāḥ
“Sannyāsīs who again give importance to the body and glorify it as the self are to be considered the greatest rascals.”
Verses 38–39
gṛhasthasya kriyā-tyāgo
vrata-tyāgo vaṭor api
tapasvino grāma-sevā
bhikṣor indriya-lolatā
āśramāpasadā hy ete
khalv āśrama-viḍambanāḥ
deva-māyā-vimūḍhāṁs tān
upekṣetānukampayā
“One who violates the principles of their āśrama is to be considered the lowest renegade. Such pretenders are bewildered by the Lord’s external energy.”
Verse 40
ātmānaṁ ced vijānīyāt
paraṁ jñāna-dhutāśayaḥ
kim icchan kasya vā hetor
dehaṁ puṣṇāti lampaṭaḥ
“If one truly understands the self and the Supreme Self, why would he foolishly maintain the body for sense enjoyment?”
Parama Saṁhitā (Pāñcarātrika Śāstra)
Chapter 8
vaiṣṇavairabhyanujñātaḥ kuśalairdīkṣitaiḥ purā ।
ādarśatalasaṅkāśe pītānāṁ svara bhūṣite ॥
adīkṣitajanāspṛṣṭhe sannikṛṣṭa jala na sya ca ।
ācāryaḥ kārayeddīkṣāṁ vaiṣṇavasya manasvinaḥ ॥
Translation:
The guru shall seek the permission of expert Vaiṣṇavas who were formerly initiated. In a well-cleaned, holy site untouched by the uninitiated, the ācārya shall perform the initiation of the noble-minded Vaiṣṇava.
Chapter 22, Verses 22–25
prāyaścittaṁ tu paramaṁ prapattis tasya kevalam
kuryāt karmātmakaṁ vāpi vāsudevam anusmaran ॥
viśuddhyed viṣṇu-bhaktasya dṛṣṭyā sparśena sevayā
smaraṇenānna-pānādyair girā pāda-rajo-’mbubhiḥ ॥
viṣṇor niveditānnādyais tathā tat-kīrtanādibhiḥ
abhāgavata-dṛṣtyādeḥ śuddhir eṣā viśeṣataḥ ॥
kṛtā yajñāḥ samastāś ca dānāni ca tapāṁsi ca
prāyaścittam aśeṣeṇa nityam arcayatā harim ॥
Translation:
For a Vaiṣṇava, the highest atonement is full surrender. Even if one performs rituals, they must remember Vāsudeva. One is purified by serving, touching, feeding, and honoring devotees, and by partaking mahāprasāda and chanting the Lord’s names. Constant worship of Hari is equivalent to all sacrifices, penances, and atonement.
Īśvara Saṁhitā
Chapter 21, Verses 283–285
ataḥ śiṣyasya vai kuryātsaṁskārān pañca ca kramāt ॥
tāpaḥ puṇḍrastathā nāma mantro yāgaśca pañcamaḥ ।
tatra tāpavidhānaṁ tu śṛṇudhvaṁ munipuṅgavāḥ ॥
ācāryo vaiṣṇavān sabhyān pūjya teṣāmanujñayā ।
gatvā kuṇḍasamīpaṁ tu śiṣyeṇa sahito guruḥ ॥
Translation:
The ācārya shall perform for the pupil the five *saṁskāras* in order: tāpa (branding), puṇḍra (marking), nāma (naming), mantra (initiation), and yāga (worship). With the permission of assembled Vaiṣṇavas, he shall proceed to the fire altar accompanied by the disciple.
Previous Ācāryas
Śrīdhara Svāmī
यतिमुपसक्षणीकृत्यान्यानपि स्वधर्मत्यागिनो निंदति। गृहस्थस्येति द्वाभ्याम् ॥ 38 – 39 ॥
yatim upasakṣaṇīkṛtyānyān api svadharmatyājino nindati. gṛhasthasyeti dvābhyām. (38–39)
“He (Nārada) criticizes even those who, like pseudo-renunciates, abandon their prescribed duties. This is clarified in the next two verses, which refer to the householder.”
Vāmśīdhara’s Bhāvārthadīpikā Prakāśa
आश्रमान्विडंभयंत्यनुकुर्वंतीति दधा… ॥ 39 ॥
āśramān viḍambhayanty anukurvantīti dadhā… (39)
“They imitate the āśramas without understanding them… Out of compassion, one should not reject them but offer instruction in truth. Alternatively, one may avoid them to prevent misfortune.”
Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura
तेष्वपि मध्ये भिक्षुं विशेषतो निन्दति… ॥ ३९ – ४० ॥
teṣv api madhye bhikṣuṃ viśeṣato nindati… (39–40)
“Among them, the bhikṣu is especially criticized… This reveals indulgence in the tongue and genitals—he is a glutton and sensualist. The body is shown to be separate from the self.”
Gopāla-Bhaṭṭa Gosvāmī – Sat-kriyā-sāra-dīpikā
sātvata-prāyaṣcita-vidhānam… mahotsavādikaṁ karanīyam
“The Vaiṣṇava atonement is to again accept name and mantra through pañca-saṁskāra. If the guru is unavailable, one may approach his wife, son, godbrother, or a qualified devotee. After purification, one should resume Viṣṇu worship with full engagement.”
Śrīla Prabhupāda
“Human culture begins with varṇāśrama-dharma… If a sannyāsī is greedy and indulges in sense gratification, he is a cheater and should be rejected. Such persons should be shown compassion, or if possible, corrected.” (SB 7.15.38–39 purport)
Shastric Advisory Council (SAC) 2005 Paper on Female Dīkṣā Gurus
1. Prabhupāda’s Quotation
“8) [Prabhupada] A woman’s nature has been particularly well studied by Kasyapa Muni. Women are self-interested by nature, and therefore they should be protected by all means so that their natural inclination to be too self-interested will not be manifested. Women need to be protected by men. A woman should be cared for by her father in her childhood, by her husband in her youth and by her grown sons in her old age. This is the injunction of Manu, who says that a woman should not be given independence at any stage. Women must be cared for so that they will not be free to manifest their natural tendency for gross selfishness. There have been many cases, even in the present day, in which women have killed their husbands to take advantage of their insurance policies. This is not a criticism of women but a practical study of their nature.”
(Bhag. 6.18.42 purport)
2. SAC Commentary
[SAC] Women on the bodily platform are selfish and should therefore be protected not only from lusty male predators but from their own lower natures as well. This is clear. The rest of the purport below, however, makes an important distinction.
3. Prabhupāda’s Quotation
“Such natural instincts of a woman or a man are manifested only in the bodily conception of life. When either a man or a woman is advanced in spiritual consciousness, the bodily conception of life practically vanishes.”
(Bhag. 6.18.42 purport)
1. SAC Commentary
When the bodily concept of life vanishes, the material qualities of one’s lower nature are transcended. The conclusion must be, therefore, that if a female devotee is actually advanced, above the bodily platform, she may assume the post of a spiritual master.
Here is a suggestion in relation to the above point: The bodily concept of life is transcended, along with the modes of nature, at the stage of bhāva-bhakti. But at the level of niṣṭhā, the residual anarthas are only remnants that no longer obstruct one’s progress (see Madhurya-kadambini, Chapter 4). Therefore, we recommend that at least the symptoms of niṣṭhā should be seen in dīkṣā-guru candidates, whether male or female.