Kṛṣṇa Gives Advice To His Confidential Devotees
In the material world, every living entity is confused about their duty and the ultimate goal of life. To dissipate this ignorance, Lord Kṛṣṇa, the original spiritual master, appears to offer perfect guidance to His confidential devotees. By accepting the advice of the Supreme Personality of Godhead—either directly, as Arjuna and Uddhava did, or through His bona fide representatives—one can transcend the dualities of material existence and attain the eternal platform of devotional service.
The Supreme Advisor and His Instructions
Śrīla Prabhupāda emphasizes that Lord Kṛṣṇa is the only infallible advisor, and His instructions are meant to liberate the conditioned soul from the perplexities of material life. By surrendering to Kṛṣṇa's advice, which focuses on re-establishing one's relationship with God, a devotee avoids the pitfalls of mental concoction and achieves the highest perfection.
- Kṛṣṇa was advising His most confidential servant, Uddhava, about sambandha, abhidheya and prayojana. These concern one’s relationship with the Supreme Personality of Godhead and the activities of that relationship, as well as the perfection of life.
- Kṛṣṇa is personally advising: sarva-dharmān parityajya mām ekaṁ śaraṇaṁ vraja: (BG 18.66) "Give up all your concocted religions and surrender to Me alone." take His advice and be happy.
- If we think that we can be happy without Kṛṣṇa consciousness, Kṛṣṇa does not object to that. Yathecchasi tathā kuru (BG 18.63). After advising Arjuna, He simply said - Now I have explained everything to you. Whatever you desire, you can do.
- Kṛṣṇa is advising Arjuna to establish himself in his pure constitutional position as spirit soul, beyond the dualities of material nature.
Guidance Through the Paramparā System
The advice of the Supreme Lord is not lost in time but is carefully preserved and transmitted through the unbroken chain of disciplic succession. Śrīla Prabhupāda explains that great sages like Nārada and Vyāsadeva do not invent their own philosophy but simply repeat the confidential instructions they received from the Lord, ensuring the message remains potent and pure.
- Brahmā said to Nārada, "Whatever I have spoken to you about the Bhāgavatam was explained to me by the Lord & I am advising you to expand these topics nicely so that people may easily understand the mysterious bhakti-yoga by transcendental loving service".
- Nārada is advising Vyāsadeva; Vyāsadeva is advising his disciple Madhvācārya; he is advising his disciple. This is Vaiṣṇavism. They are not concerned for personal self.
- The sage Maitreya continued: The great personality Nārada Muni, upon hearing the words of Dhruva Mahārāja, became very compassionate toward him, and in order to show him his causeless mercy, he gave him the following expert advice.
- Nārada Muni therefore advised Vyāsadeva that one should take to Kṛṣṇa consciousness, devotional service, and abandon all ordinary occupational duties. This advice was also given by Lord Kṛṣṇa Himself.
Practical Application of Divine Advice
Receiving advice is only beneficial if one practically applies it by engaging in the service of the Lord and rejecting material attachments. Śrīla Prabhupāda illustrates through the examples of Raghunātha dāsa Gosvāmī and others that the perfection of receiving advice lies in the immediate execution of the order, such as chanting the holy names and worshipping the Deity.
- In this way Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu directly initiated the saintly Muslim by advising him to chant the holy name of Kṛṣṇa. The Muslim's name was changed to Rāmadāsa. Another Pāṭhāna Muslim present there was named Vijuli Khān.
- After thus advising him how to worship, Lord Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu personally offered Raghunātha dāsa the govardhana-śilā with His transcendental hand. As advised by the Lord, Raghunātha dāsa worshiped the śilā in great transcendental jubilation.
- Kṛṣṇa is personally advising us to take up the opportunities offered by the Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement. We should take them and not run the risk of committing spiritual suicide.
- If by dying one can be elevated to the higher planetary systems and be ever-famous after his death, who is so foolish that he will refuse such a glorious death? Similar advice was also given by Kṛṣṇa to Arjuna.
The Role of the Spiritual Master and Brāhmaṇas
The Lord empowers specific individuals to act as His representatives, primarily the spiritual master and the brāhmaṇas, who guide society with vision and wisdom. Śrīla Prabhupāda explains that just as a body needs a brain, society needs a class of men who can give expert advice based on śāstra, helping everyone navigate the complexities of life without being cheated by material nature.
- He (Kṛṣṇa) is ready to give us advice from within and from without - from within as Supersoul and from without as the spiritual master. Therefore it is said, guru-kṛṣṇa-kṛpāyā bhakti-latā-bīja (CC Madhya 19.151). Both things are required - guru and Kṛṣṇa.
- A brāhmaṇa should give good advice to all the members of society, a kṣatriya should look after the administration, maintaining law and order in society.
- The śāstras enjoin that even though a brāhmaṇa may be well versed in the occupational brahminical duties and may be very learned in Vedic knowledge, he cannot give advice as a guru until he is a Vaiṣṇava.
- It is best to avoid association with them (Māyāvādīs and atheists) completely and never ask them about anything confidential because they cannot give good advice.
Conclusion
Ultimately, the validity of any advice is tested by its alignment with the instructions of Lord Kṛṣṇa. As demonstrated in the lives of confidential devotees like Arjuna, Uddhava, and Raghunātha dāsa, accepting the Lord's counsel is the only path to resolving the dilemmas of material existence. Whether the advice comes directly from the Lord or through His empowered representatives in the paramparā, the result is the same: liberation from ignorance and re-establishment in one's eternal constitutional position as a servant of God. To reject this advice is to invite spiritual ruin, while to accept it is the perfection of human life.
Dive Deeper into Śrīla Prabhupāda's Vani
Śrīla Prabhupāda lives within his instructions. This article is a summary of the profound truths found in the Vaniquotes category Giving Advice. We invite you to visit this link to study the complete compilation and experience Śrīla Prabhupāda's teachings in their direct, verbatim form.