Re: ...are spirituality and science oppossed...

Nityaananda!! Gauraanga!! Hare Krishna!! Dear Nava, I can understand what you are saying. But as a Guru, it is my duty to explain you the truth even though it may be impalatable or may not sound harmonius with the widely popular mundane theory of taking good from everywhere. It is only for the sake of caring for your spiritual life that I am speaking these words, not with a feeling of disdain or superiority over any one. A devotee's determination to fully avoid and stay far away from the speculations of the scientists, impersonalists and materialists is not based on false ego or puffed-up immaturity or disharmony. It is actually to avoid disharmony with God Himself. In fact, proper discrimination and avoidance is a sign of true humility and sincerity to protect one's owns soul first. The highest humility is to save oneself first and one of the most important restrictions given by Shrila Rupa Goswami is Shri Upadeshamrita in this regard is to totally avoid speculative and so-called rational philosophies which very subtly lead us away from the Lord.

The Supreme Lord Gauranga did not endorse His most advanced and intimate devotee Shrila Mukunda's going and hearing the impersonalist or atheistic philosophies. So much so that He refused to see Him again for 10 million lives. So actually our beloved Lord Gauranga Mahaprabhu does not want us to try to become a "swam" by trying to understand so many speculative philosophies or to "take gold from filth" as some say. He just wants to remain chaste to Him by staying away from them if we actually want to please Him and enter the spiritual world. Why can't we just try to fully follow one pure path for one life and see the results? We have tried unsuccessfully and miserably failed in many lives by trying to follow these speculative philosophies by non-devotees and imperfect atheists.

Dear Nava, I know you are a nice and simple devotee and this path is also a simple and straight path. Actually it is this attempt to find a so-called harmony between truth and untruth makes our path complicated and not vice versa. I have personally seen that people and sometimes even devotees who are interested in these speculative philosophies, do not make any tangible spiritual progress for years and years. Even after decades, they remain spiritually stagnant as they were previously, because they are displeasing Lord Gaura Krishna by not remaining chaste to His instructions.

I know that this trend of being open-minded to everything under the sun is most popular nowadays in Kali Yuga but it is actually a symptom of Kali. People even respect and accept those "Gurus" more who have diluted and mixed up philosophy, quote speculators and speak ambiguous words of so-called harmony and balance in the world. And those Gurus who strictly remain faithful to the teachings of our liberated Acharyas are considered as fanatics. This is not fanaticism, this is chastity and faith in the words of our Acharyas and the Lord Himself. No one cares about the actual instructions of Lord Gaura Krishna Himself. If we are not fanatic to follow the instructions of the Lord, then there is no hope for us. The whole purpose of pleasing the Lord is defeated in such a case and then all is lost.

The Lord tells us that there is nothing worth knowing in these speculative philosophies which is not there in our pristinely pure Gaudiya philosophy. There is no need whatsoever to know the untruth to understand what is the real truth if we have faith that our perfectly liberated Acharyas have spoken the ultmate truth. As seen in the case of Shrila Bhagavan Acharya, however advanced one may be, this attempt for trying to find a so-called harmony between the pure truth and speculative untruth, will adversely affect our pure spiritual quest and we will cause the Supreme Lord pain by these actions which in turn will take us deeper and further away from the Lord. Thus, real humility would be to just accept this advice of the Supreme Lord Himself and only read the books of our Acharyas who are free from the four material imperfections and defects, for the sake of our own spiritual life. Lord Gaura Krishna is powerful enough to cure us in any situation (even psychic) we are in if we are determined to please Him by strictly following His instructions. We do not need to approach the speculative theories of imperfect people and create inauspicious in our present lives and next in the name of so-called balance, harmony or open-mindedness. Proper discrimination and avoidance or viveka is repeatedly described in all the Vedas as a very important limb of spiritual progress. Thus, let us fully stick to one pure path in this life by not displeasing the Lord in any way and we will be amazed at the results. Thank you.

Daaso'smi, BR Sadhu Swami Gaurangapada.

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