Bhajananandis and gostyanandis

Questions:
Different kinds of devotees
aug 2000 - HKF 164

Dear xxxxx,
Please accept my humble obeisances. All glories to Srila Prabhupada and to Sri Sri Nitai Gauranga

I will answer to the last two emails, trying to give decent answers to your intelligent questions.

We know that there is two kinds of devotees. Preachers
and those who make bhajan. There is no difference
between them.

In his ecstasy of preaching, Srila Prabhupada would often mention bhajananandis and gostyanandis, remarking that the seconds were more important than the firsts. In 76 he said “between those who prepare rasagullas for themselves and those who do it for everyone, who is the most important?” He would remark that Krishna is more satisfied with preachers, more then with those who search their own benefit. Preaching work is such a benediciton for everyone concerned, preachers included.
If someone holds “but Haridasa Thakura would not preach, he just chanted day and night”, we answer: "that was his preaching. He was not out to look for his own benefit but he wanted to show the perfect example for harinama. That was preaching. Also previously his residing in Puri, he was a great preachers amongst Gaudiya Vaishnavas in Bengal.” So there is not difference between them if they are Vaishnavas Bhajananandis. You practice of Krishna Consciousness is also preaching. Otherwise difference is there. Srila Prabhupada always pushed his devotees to preach.

But my is question, can neophyte devotee
do only bhajan but not some service?

Generally neophite devotees should not go out. The risk is that karmis would “preach” to them to go back to sinful life and risk to fall down is great. As a general principle (of course, exceptions are always there) they should stay in the asrama to chant, study and preparing themselves.

And, can kanistha do preaching?
I am confused because some said to me that we have not
qualification for preaching.

Everyone has the duty to preach. It doesn’t matter the qualifications. Mahaprabhu said: “By my order, be a preacher”. By my order... Qualifications come from his order, not from our capacities.
If we loyally repeat Krishna, guru and sadhu words, we can preach, although we may be disqualified under many aspects. Of course we should not think “how nice I speak, how intelligent I am to be able to articulate such nice concepts…” In that case all our disqualifications will fall again on our heads and make our preaching nearly useless.
So, we should always humbly repeat what we have heard or understood from our spiritual masters.

I have heard today that if desciple leave proces of
bhakti for long time and then again come back, his
link with his gurudeva is broken and then he must
again take initiation from him or if he is not on this
planet, he must take initiation from bona fide guru.
Is it true?

I heard of it several times. This idea very much remind me the stiff and rigid caste brahmanas rules and regulations. The world of bhakti is not this way.
As our father and mother are always loving parents even if we became the worst of rascals and our parental link with them is never severed, so the connection with our gurus is never lost. Gaudiya Vaisnavas spiritual masters are discendants of Nityananda Prabhu, the saviour of Jagai and Madhai, and like Him they are all-merciful. They never consider anyone lost. Srila Prabhupada never reinitiated his disceples even if they went away for many many years doing the worst of actions possible. I know someone thinks differently, but I disagree. Connection with guru is not a cerimony, but an act of transcendental love between guru and disceple. Diksha has to be there, of course, but its importance is secondary. In the Sastras no such reinitiations in Gaudiya societies are mentioned.

Happy if I am of any use

Your servant
Manonath Dasa