After a wonderful week of sharing the nectar of Krishna consciousness here in Bulgaria, we are heading out today for Mauritius via an overnight stop in London to make our connecting flight. Considering that Krishna consciousness is best tasted in the association of Krishna's devotees, our visit here, packed up in small house full of devotees, has certainly been a sumptuous feast. The beauty of Krishna consciousness is that it connects us with our actual eternal identities, which exist forever far beyond the confines of time and space. Once one gets a taste of his real identity, he will never want to come back to his miserable false identity ever again.



Sankarshan Das

Feasting on the Holy Names at the Sofia Airport
 
http://www.backtohome.com/images/2011-Spring/Sofia_Airport.JPG
 

Question: Did Prabhupada Name Next Acharya?

Is Srila Prabhupada still the diksha (initiating) guru of ISKCON?

During his presence on this planet did Srila Prabhupada announce anyone to be the next acharya (diksha guru)?

What are the qualities a disciple should possess in order to be the sishya(follower or student) of Srila Prabhupada?

G.R.
 

Answer: All of His Disciples who Strictly Follow Him

In Vrindavan, India on 18 October 1977 shortly before his departure from this world Srila Prabhupada informed us that he would no longer give diksha (initiation). Srila Prabhupada is therefore the diksha guru or initiating spiritual master only for those devotees who took initiation before 18 October 1977.  Srila Prabhupada instructed us also in May 1977 that after his departure the new devotees who join this movement should become the disciples of his disciples.  Therefore those ISKCON devotees who have accepted initiation after 18 October 1977 are the disciples of Srila Prabhupada's disciples. They are not directly Srila Prabhupada's disciples.

Srila Prabhupada did not name any particular disciple to be the next acharya. Rather he taught us that any disciple who is strictly following him becomes the next acharya. This means that there can many branches of acharya coming in Srila Prabhupada's ISKCON tree. He taught us this principle in many times and places again and again. Here is one occasion from a lecture he gave in New York on 1 December 1966:

"So Krishna also, as spiritual master of Arjuna, He played. He is the original acharya. Then acharya's disciple becomes acharya when he assimilates the knowledge received from bona fide acharya. So he becomes bona fide to act as an acharya. Evam parampara-praptam [Bg. 4.2]. Acharya means one who has become a rigid disciple of his acharya. Just like a critical student under a professor, he becomes a first-class professor, similarly, a person who is a very rigid student of bona fide acharya, he becomes next acharya. "

Anybody who chants the Hare Krishna mahamantra at least 16 rounds daily on japa mala beads and strictly avoids illicit sex, meat eating, intoxication, and gambling, as well as regularly reading and following Srila Prabhupada's books is a first class follower of Srila Prabhupada and is fully qualified to take initiation into his sampradaya (disciplic succession) by becoming the disciple of one of his disciples.

Sankarshan Das Adhikari
 

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