Can a disciple disagree with his or her spiritual master? This is a much more complex point than it may seem at first.

First of all, there is the question of preferences and personal habits. We are all individuals and we have different personal tastes and preferences. This exists not only here but also in the spiritual world. The spiritual master may like rice and sabji, while the disciple may like pasta, and that’s perfectly fine.

Then there is the question of philosophical interpretations. Here the disciple must be in line with the spiritual master. If the spiritual master teaches that God is a person, but the disciple is convinced that he is an impersonal light, then there is no point in the relationship. The whole idea of a guru-disciple relationship is to learn the scriptures and their practical application from the spirtual master. If the disciple thinks he or she knows better, then there is no point in the relationship with the guru.

A third sphere is opinions around mundane topics. Here we have a giant gray area.

One of the most controversial philosophical questions one can ask is how the jiva falls into the material world. At first, it may sound like a perfectly fine question, that a visitor could ask on a Sunday program, but it is actually extremely difficult to answer. There are many simple explanations, of course, but they are all flawed. It’s very difficult to understand this question while we are still in this material world.

Do the jivas fall from the spiritual world? Were we in Krsna Lila before falling into this material world, or have we just fallen here from the Viraja river, and that’s our first taste of Krsna Consciousness? Have we ever met Krsna before?

In several past articles, I mentioned the predicted golden age of Lord Caitanya. Srila Prabhupada comments about that in several passages, but there is a general misunderstanding that this is not based on the sastras, or that is just his personal opinion. That’s not true.

Some expect to find some special book, or at least a few complete chapters describing all details of the expected golden age, but that’s not how the sastras work. Most topics in the sastras are presented indirectly or merged into other information on the same verses. That’s why the only reliable way to understand the scriptures is through the explanations of self-realized souls. Without such guidance, one will miss even the most basic points, such as the fact that God is not impersonal, or that Bhakti is the highest path.

The process is that we get the conclusions from a pure devotee, and armed with such conclusions we study the sastras and try to understand the verses under this logic. One who studies the scriptures under the assumption that God does not have a form, for example, will interpret the verses under this optic, and thus conclude that it is indeed true, while another who starts his studies under the assumption that God has a form and executes pastimes, will find many passages that reinforce this conception.

Srila Prabhupada mentioned a Golden Age of 10,000 years in a number of conversations. When directly asked by Allen Ginsberg where such golden age is mentioned in the Vedas, Srila Prabhupada answered that it is mentioned in the Puranas.

When Srila Prabhupada was present on the planet, he initiated about 5,000 disciples. At the time it was something unprecedented, not only because he accepted so many disciples (something that is discouraged by Caitanya Mahaprabhu himself, being very risky), but especially because he accepted disciples from amongst the sinful mlecchas and yavanas of the west. Considering that the guru has to assume the sinful reactions of his disciples, we can only imagine how dangerous it was.

Another problem Srila Prabhupada had to face was how to train his disciples. Traditionally, gurus would have personal contact with their disciples and train them day-to-day. The disciple would live with the spiritual master for at least one year before accepting initiation and would continue personally associating with him for a long time afterward. By this continuous contact, the guru could not only teach the disciple but correct any shortcomings he could display.

Bipin Bihari Goswami, the initiating spiritual master of Srila Bhaktivinoda Thakura is a personality very difficult to understand based on historical facts alone. The ones who are self-realized souls and can see in the spiritual platform can probably understand him, but one who tries to understand based solely on historical facts will certainly become bewildered. Some sources connected with the Gaudiya Matha depict Bipin Bihari Goswami in a very negative light, while others do the precise opposite. Like in other cases, the truth is probably somewhere in the middle.

Many prophets make predictions about the future. Sometimes such predictions are remarkably accurate, sometimes not so much. From the Vedas, we can understand that spiritually advanced persons are capable of connecting with the eternal time and thus they gain an understanding of the past and future. For such a person, time is just like a movie they already know the end. Unfortunately, I’m not one of them, but still, I can make some predictions based on common sense. If you are interested in the way I see how the future will unfold, you can continue reading.

Today is Gaura Purnima. On this same day, 535 years ago, Lord Caitanya appeared on this planet, during a lunar eclipse. In Vedic culture, eclipses are generally considered very inauspicious periods, where accidents and all types of misfortunes can appear. To protect themselves against this influence, pious persons go to the Ganges and recite the maha-mantra or other prayers. It’s mentioned that: “Om apavitrah pavitro va sarva-avasthaam gato-pi va yah smaret-pundarikaksam sa baahya-abhyantarah shucih”, something may be pure or impure, auspicious or inauspicious, but when Lord Vishnu is remembered, everything becomes pure and auspicious. In this way, due to the chanting, the inauspicious situation became actually the most auspicious and the Lord took the opportunity to appear in this world.

Similarly, we live now in a dangerous period, with rampant disease, international tensions, wars, famines, and anxiety, but if we chant the holy names with faith, this inauspicious time can actually become the most auspicious and lead to a new era of world-wide spiritual awakening.

Veganism is becoming a popular idea. To use or not milk is a complicated question that involves health, moral and philosophical aspects. When we get information about how cows are treated in the modern dairy industry, our first reaction may be to decide to become Vegan. However, there are a few points that one may want to consider before taking the plunge.

Today is the auspicious appearance day of Sri Advaita Acarya, a great day for all Gaudiya Vaishnavas. He is not less than the one responsible for the appearance of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu, therefore we have a great debt upon him. If there was no Advaita Acarya, there would be no ISKCON, no Gaudiya Math, no sankirtan movement. Indeed, without him would be no material world at all and we would not have our opportunity of going back to Godhead.

To understand Advaita Acarya we need to go back in time, more specifically back to before the beginning of time. A “time” before either time or the material world itself existed. At them, there was only Lord Maha Visnu laying down in the causal ocean. Understanding the desire of the souls living there to execute activities, He glances unto the material energy. This glance of Maha Visnu becomes Lord Sadha Shiva, who carries all the souls in direction to the material nature and impregnates her, creating the conditions for the creation of all the material universes.