What is initiation? How this applies to the subject of female diksha gurus [FDGs]

What is initiation?   How this applies to the subject of female Diksha gurus [FDGs]

 

ISKCON Founder-Acharya Srila Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada explained it in his purport to CC Madhya 15.108: [the following is from the first part of the purport]

Purport

 

Śrīla Jīva Gosvāmī explains dīkṣā in his Bhakti-sandarbha (283):

divyaṁ jñānaṁ yato dadyāt kuryāt pāpasya saṅkṣayam

tasmāt dīkṣeti sā proktā deśikais tattva-kovidaiḥ

 

“Dīkṣā is the process by which one can awaken his transcendental knowledge and vanquish all reactions caused by sinful activity. A person expert in the study of the revealed scriptures knows this process as dīkṣā.” The regulative principles of dīkṣā are explained in the Hari-bhakti-vilāsa (2.3-4) and the Bhakti-sandarbha (283). As stated:

 

dvijānām anupetānāṁ svakarmādhyayanādiṣu

yathādhikāro nāstīha syāc copanayanād anu

tathātrādīkṣitānāṁ tu mantra-devārcanādiṣu

nādhikāro ’sty ataḥ kuryād ātmānaṁ śiva-saṁstutam

 

“Even though born in a brāhmaṇa family, one cannot engage in Vedic rituals without being initiated and having a sacred thread. Although born in a brāhmaṇa family, one becomes a brāhmaṇa only after initiation and the sacred thread ceremony. Unless one is initiated as a brāhmaṇa, one cannot worship the holy name properly.”

 

According to the Vaiṣṇava regulative principles, one must be initiated as a brāhmaṇa. The Hari-bhakti-vilāsa (2.6) quotes the following injunction from the Viṣṇu-yāmala:

 

adīkṣitasya vāmoru kṛtaṁ sarvaṁ nirarthakam

paśu-yonim avāpnoti dīkṣā-virahito janaḥ

 

“ ‘Unless one is initiated by a bona fide spiritual master, all his devotional activities are useless. A person who is not properly initiated can descend again into the animal species.’ ”

Hari-bhakti-vilāsa (2.10) further quotes:

 

ato guruṁ praṇamyaivaṁ sarva-svaṁ vinivedya ca

gṛhṇīyād vaiṣṇavaṁ mantraṁ dīkṣā-pūrvaṁ vidhānataḥ

 

“ ‘It is the duty of every human being to surrender to a bona fide spiritual master. Giving him everything — body, mind and intelligence — one must take Vaiṣṇava initiation from him.’ ”

 

The Bhakti-sandarbha (298) gives the following quotation from the Tattva-sāgara:

 

yathā kāñcanatāṁ yāti kāṁsyaṁ rasa-vidhānataḥ

tathā dīkṣā-vidhānena dvijatvaṁ jāyate nṛṇām

 

“ ‘By chemical manipulation, bell metal is turned into gold when touched by mercury; similarly, when a person is properly initiated, he can acquire the qualities of a brāhmaṇa.’ ”

 

The Hari-bhakti-vilāsa (17.11-12), in discussing the puraścaryā process, quotes the following verses from the Agastya-saṁhitā:

 

pūjā traikālikī nityaṁ japas tarpaṇam eva ca

homo brāhmaṇa-bhuktiś ca puraścaraṇam ucyate

guror labdhasya mantrasya prasādena yathā-vidhi

pañcāṅgopāsanā-siddhyai puraś caitad vidhīyate

 

“ ‘In the morning, afternoon and evening one should worship the Deity, chant the Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra, offer oblations, perform a fire sacrifice and feed the brāhmaṇas. These five activities constitute puraścaryā. To attain full success when taking initiation from the spiritual master, one should first perform these puraścaryā processes.’ ”

 

The word puraḥ means “before,” and caryā means “activities.” Due to the necessity of these activities, we do not immediately initiate disciples in the International Society for Krishna Consciousness. For six months, a candidate for initiation must first attend ārati and classes in the śāstras, practice the regulative principles and associate with other devotees. When one is actually advanced in the puraścaryā-vidhi, he is recommended by the local temple president for initiation. It is not that anyone can be suddenly initiated without meeting the requirements. When one is further advanced by chanting the Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra sixteen rounds daily, following the regulative principles and attending classes, he receives the sacred thread (brahminical recognition) after the second six months.

——————————-

 

My comments: Notice that Srila Prabhupada presents evidence from shastras by quoting them, and mentions the sacred thread as initiation.

 

Remember, the historical record is that he and his guru, Siddhanta Saraswati did not give the thread to women.

2. Srila Prabhupada wrote the same in his purport to CC Adi 8.128 (kiba vipra kiba nyasi), about the sacred thread:

 

yasya yal-lakṣaṇaṁ proktaṁ puṁso varṇābhivyañjakam

yad anyatrāpi dṛśyeta tat tenaiva vinirdiśet

 

If a person is born in a śūdra family but has all the qualities of a spiritual master, he should be accepted not only as a brāhmaṇa but as a qualified spiritual master also. This is also the instruction of Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu. Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura, therefore, introduced the sacred thread ceremony for all Vaiṣṇavas according to the rules and regulations.

—————

 

My comments:

 

Here, Srila Prabhupada wrote that Saraswati Thakur introduced the sacred thread for “all”: but did not give it to women.   Why? Aren’t they part of “all”?   Is there a pattern here?

 

3. Prabhupada told the assembled devotees at Los Angeles that women cannot get initiation, the “brahminical symbolic representation” (the sacred thread) in a lecture on Sept 22, 1972:

 

Woman, they are generally equipped with the qualities of passion and ignorance. And man also maybe, but man can be elevated to the platform of goodness. Woman cannot be. Woman cannot be. Therefore if the husband is nice and the woman follows—woman becomes faithful and chaste to the husband—then their both life becomes successful. There are three qualities of nature = sattva, raja, tama. So rajas-tama, generally, that is the quality of woman. And man can become to the platform of goodness. Therefore initiation, brahminical symbolic representation, is given to the man, not to the woman. This is the theory.

———

 

My comment:

 

This is a clear prohibition – a directive – a

prescription, not a description – that Srila Prabhupada instructed (prescribed) his disciples.

 

Further comment:

 

4. Now, maybe the words he wrote in the purport to SB 4.12.32 [that the advocates of female diksha gurus have charged: “that’s the only thing you have” – and thus wishing away all of the above quotes) – is easily understandable (to those seeking the actual truth):

 

According to śāstric injunctions, there is no difference between śikṣā-guru and dīkṣā-guru, and generally the śikṣā-guru later on becomes the dīkṣā-guru. Sunīti, however, being a woman, and specifically his mother, could not become Dhruva Mahārāja’s dīkṣā-guru.

 

From Srila Prabhupada’s   purport to SB 4.12.32

 

Further comment:

 

5. “According to shastric injunctions” is an instruction, not a description, in this purport.   The following purport supports the clear idea that all vedic concepts – obviously including diksha – initiation – must be according to shastric injunctions and have “sanction in vedic literature”.

 

A woman is not supposed to take sannyāsa. So-called spiritual societies concocted in modern times give sannyāsa even to women, although there is no sanction in the Vedic literature for a woman’s accepting sannyāsa. Otherwise, if it were sanctioned, Kardama Muni could have taken his wife and given her sannyāsa. The woman must remain at home.

 

From Prabhupada’s purport to SB 3.24.40

 

6. Bhagavd-gita says the same: Bhagavad-gita. 16.23

 

य: शास्त्रविधिमुत्सृज्य वर्तते कामकारत: ।

न स सिद्धिमवाप्‍नोति न सुखं न परां गतिम् ॥ २३ ॥

 

yaḥ śāstra-vidhim utsṛjya vartate kāma-kārataḥ

na sa siddhim avāpnoti na sukhaṁ na parāṁ gatim

 

Translation

He who discards scriptural injunctions and acts according to his own whims attains neither perfection, nor happiness, nor the supreme destination.

 

तस्माच्छास्त्रं प्रमाणं ते कार्याकार्यव्यवस्थितौ ।

ज्ञात्वा शास्त्रविधानोक्तं कर्म कर्तुमिहार्हसि ॥ २४ ॥

 

tasmāc chāstraṁ pramāṇaṁ te kāryākārya-vyavasthitau

jñātvā śāstra-vidhānoktaṁ karma kartum ihārhasi

 

One should therefore understand what is duty and what is not duty by the regulations of the scriptures. Knowing such rules and regulations, one should act so that he may gradually be elevated.

 

Concluding comments: The word “diksha” as used by Srila Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada in all of the above-quoted passages from his purports is directly referring to conferring the sacred thread – the upanayanam/yajnopavit samskara.

 

Women cannot receive that samskara – according to what Srila Prabhupada clearly wrote and spoke, and thus cannot give it, i.e. be/act as a Diksha guru. This is an ancient tradition.   We also have no evidence – pramanas – from Vedic, or supplementary literature that women can receive and thus give the thread.

 

Manu Smriti states:

 

वैवाहिको विधिः स्त्रीणां संस्कारो वैदिकः स्मृतः

पतिसेवा गुरौ वासो गृहार्थोऽग्निपरिक्रिया

vaivāhiko vidhiḥ strīṇāṃ saṃskāro vaidikaḥ smṛtaḥ

patisevā gurau vāso gṛhārtho’gniparikriyā

 

”For females, the rites of marriage have been ordained to be their ‘Vedic Sacrament’ (initiation), the serving of the husbands their ‘residence with the Teacher’ (Guru), and the household-duties their ‘tending of fire.’ (Spiritual activities)” [Maanu-saṁhitā 2.67]