Meeting with the Governor of Bihar Sri Abhay Charanarvindo Bhaktivedanta who is now at Patna on a cultural and peace mission, met His Excellency the Governor of Bihar on the 18th January and discussed with him on the prime necessity of starting a spiritualising movement without infringing the principles of a secular state. He said that the world pacifists who are now trying to bring in an eternal peace in the world by spiritualism, will do well to understand the difference between spirit and matter. We have heard so many times the pacifists speaking of spiritualism as the basis of world peace and we think it is our duty to say something of spiritualism as we find it in the Bhagwat Gita and as it is practically demonstrated by Lord Chaitanya.
Sri Krishna, the author of the great Indian Philosophy Bhagwat Geeta, has elaborately discerned materialism from spiritualism. From Him we can learn that the material nature of which we are now made of, is different from the spiritual nature of which we are(?) actually the parts and parcels. He has stressed most vehemently in the beginning of the Bhagwat Gita that the living entity is eternal and does not annihilate on the annihilation of the outward coverings of the gross body and subtle mind. To understand this we must know it well that the material nature is conducted under three modes namely material goodness, material passion and material ignorance. Matter being completely different from spirit, it will be a mistake on our part to accept material goodness as substitute for spiritualism. The three modes of nature (material) work sometimes jointly and sometimes separately. Prevalence of material goodness is congenial to temporary peaceful atmosphere but we must know it for certain that this sort of material goodness is sure to be disturbed by the other two baser modes. The example of the playing children may be given here. The children while playing together sometimes quarrel with one another and fight. But after fighting for some time when they become tired of such fighting mode, they declare some sort of peace with one another and promise emphatically that thenceforward they shall play with peace and amity and shall cease to hurt one another. We may tell the pacifists of the world that the peaceful atmosphere for which they are now so much anxious, cannot be achieved by the dual process of fighting and peace-making attempt of the children. The goodness of Mahatma Gandhi should not be misunderstood as spiritualism. Gandhi’s goodness exhibited as love for all, goodwill for all, tolerance for all and all such good and moral codes are not new to the world. There were institutions all over the world to preach all these pious qualities. Gandhi’s success was not therefore due to all these pious wishes only but behind these good qualities was his spiritual strength. If we ignore his spiritual strength exhibited by his actions, mind and intelligence and simply take up outward activities, it will not be possible for us to adopt his means. We cannot accept one half of a thing without spoiling it. Spiritualism, real and scientific can bestow on us eternal peace and happiness but that is not material goodness. The world is tired of fighting tendency as by the actual experience of the two great world wars. The people out of fear of the havocs of the war are now trying to take shelter of Gandhiji’s material goodness of nonviolence but that is just like the fighting children’s peacemaking attempt. Real spiritualism is transcendental. This transcendental process depends more on realization than on resolution. The other day Dr. P. C. Ghose in the pacifist’s meeting said that unless they changed the whole outlook transcended the geographical boundaries and considered all people of the world as one there is very little hope for mankind. This consciousness of oneness is possible by spiritual realization. In the Bhagwat Gita it is said that only the genuine learned person can see equally on a learned Brahmin, a cow, a dog or a Candala as one. We should not only change our outlook on all human being as one but we shall have to change our outlook on all living entities irrespective of the material coverings. The clear conception of changing such outlook is inculcated in the Bhagwat Gita. It is said that the Personality of Godhead Sri Krishna is the life-giving force and thus the Universal Father of all living entities and the material nature is the body and mind giving Universal Mother. If we want to change our outlook, therefore, for transcending the geographical as well as corporal boundaries then we have to do that by spiritual process and not by any amount material goodness. This spiritual process only saved India so long from the poison of provincialism and in the absence of that spiritual process India have now began to think in terms of provinces. This cannot be counteracted by any amount of goodness without spiritual activities. Nonviolence is therefore a process of material goodness against the violence. Violence is a product of the modes of passion and ignorance whereas nonviolence is a product of material goodness. Nonviolence and violence are therefore co-relative terms under the modes of the same material nature. Spiritualism is the process of invoking the lost relation with the Universal Father. If we stick to materialism and its different modes of goodness passion and ignorance, it is not possible to attain spiritualism. Lord Chaitanya practically taught all people of this process of spiritualism by His novel and yet original method of chanting the Holy Name of the Lord as is AUM in the Vedas. His philosophy is a combination of monism and dualism simultaneously i.e. He gave the finishing touch to the philosophies of all other previous Acaryas by the exposition of His philosophy of acintya bheda-bheda tattva or inconceivable one and different simultaneously. By this philosophy He actually confirmed the direct teachings of Bhagwat Gita and made it easy and practical for even by the common man without any mundane education. He represented Himself for the mass of uneducated people particularly of the present age although He was personally the most erudite scholar of His time. Spiritual realization through the studies of Vedanta and allied scriptures, is very difficult nowadays. But yet the supreme realization is possible by the transcendental chanting process in this age. That is the recommendations of Lord Chaitanya in accordance with the Vedic principles. Gandhiji in the latter part of his life began this transcendental chanting of the Name of the Lord and his famous chorus singing of RAGHUPATI RAGHAVA RAJA RAMA is quite well known to us. Lord Chaitanya did not put any barrier to any caste, creed or color for joining this transcendental chorus of chanting the Lord’s name and he blesses all men to achieve the highest spiritual realization by this simple method. By this method of chanting every one will attain to the plane of pure consciousness. They shall be relieved of the pangs of a mechanical life of repeated birth, death, old age and disease. By this method of realization the supreme life of perfection by realizing God as He is, will usher in. Mahatma Gandhi’s preliminary attempt in the following four ways namely: 1) Daily prayer and Sankirtana meetings followed by the recitation of Bhagwat Gita, 2) Reorganization fo the temple worship movements, 3) Upliftment of the falled people by the ‘Harijan’ movement. 4) Reorganization of the Caste-system movement, may be taken up immediately by the leaders of India. These movements if systematically carried on will help very much in the spiritualizing process. They can be given a real spiritual shape in accordance with the principles of Bhagwat Gita and other authentic scriptures. And by doing so India’s original culture will not only be revived and re-established but also will foster India’s indigenous culture in other parts of the world. That will be a sort of cultural conquest of all world by India. By such conquest the people of the world will get relieved of the so-called material prosperity terrorized by atomic bombs.
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