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.
- Krsna 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.
- Krsna is personally advising: sarva-dharman parityajya mam ekam saranam 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 Krsna consciousness, Krsna does not object to that. Yathecchasi tatha kuru (BG 18.63). After advising Arjuna, He simply said - Now I have explained everything to you. Whatever you desire, you can do.
- Krsna 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.
- Brahma said to Narada, "Whatever I have spoken to you about the Bhagavatam was explained to me by the Lord and I am advising you to expand these topics nicely so that people may easily understand the mysterious bhakti-yoga by transcendental loving service."
- Narada is advising Vyasadeva; Vyasadeva is advising his disciple Madhvacarya; he is advising his disciple. This is Vaisnavism. They are not concerned for personal self.
- The sage Maitreya continued: The great personality Narada Muni, upon hearing the words of Dhruva Maharaja, became very compassionate toward him, and in order to show him his causeless mercy, he gave him the following expert advice.
- Narada Muni therefore advised Vyasadeva that one should take to Krsna consciousness, devotional service, and abandon all ordinary occupational duties. This advice was also given by Lord Krsna 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 Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu directly initiated the saintly Muslim by advising him to chant the holy name of Krsna. The Muslim's name was changed to Ramadasa. Another Pathana Muslim present there was named Vijuli Khan.
- After thus advising him how to worship, Lord Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu personally offered Raghunatha dasa the govardhana-sila with His transcendental hand. As advised by the Lord, Raghunatha dasa worshiped the sila in great transcendental jubilation.
- Krsna is personally advising us to take up the opportunities offered by the Krsna 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 Krsna to Arjuna.
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 (Krsna) 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-krsna-krpaya bhakti-lata-bija (CC Madhya 19.151). Both things are required - guru and Krsna.
- A brahmana should give good advice to all the members of society, a ksatriya should look after the administration, maintaining law and order in society.
- The sastras enjoin that even though a brahmana 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 Vaisnava.
- It is best to avoid association with them (Mayavadis 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.