Why Meditate on Prabhupada?

“Just as a person travelling on the road rests one foot on the ground and then lifts the other, whereas a worm on a vegetable transfers itself to one leaf and then gives up the previous one, a conditioned soul takes shelter of another body and then gives up the one he had before.” 

Purport:

“This is the process of the whole transmigration from one body to another.  At the time of death according to his mental condition, the living being is carried by the subtle body consisting of mind, intelligence and ego to another gross body.  When higher authorities have decided what kind of gross body the living entity will have, he is forced to enter such a body, and thus he automatically gives up his previous body.  Dull-minded persons, who do not have the intelligence to understand this process of transmigration, take for granted that when the gross body is finished, one’s life is finished forever.  Such persons have no brains with which to understand the process of transmigration.  At the present moment there is great opposition to the Hare Krishna movement, which is being called a brainwashing movement.  But actually, the so-called scientists, philosophers and other leaders in the Western countries have no brains at all.  The Hare Krishna movement is trying to elevate such foolish persons by enlightening their intelligence so that they will take advantage of the human body.  Unfortunately, because of gross ignorance they regard the Hare Krishna movement as a brainwashing movement.  They do not know that without God consciousness one is forced to continue transmigrating from one body to another.  Because of their devilish brains, they will next be forced to accept an abominable life and practically never be able to liberate themselves from the conditional life of material existence.  How this transmigration of the soul takes place is very clearly explained in this verse.”  (Bhag. 10.1.40 Purport) 

Question:  “This passage makes me think about Prabhupada meditations and doubt their importance.  I can see how earnest Prabhupada is to spread the knowledge of Krishna consciousness which starts with transmigration of the soul.  If you can’t understand that, then you cannot go further in Krishna consciousness.  And so one might argue like this:  The important thing is to learn this science, starting with transmigration of the soul, from Prabhupada’s books.  Cultivation of personal memories of what he did and said is therefore not important because it is not related to the important knowledge.  Prabhupada lived for Krishna consciousness, this is what he wrote the books for, this is what the world needs.  So by various means of propagation, Prabhupada’s followers try to convince others that this one lifetime is not all.  It was for these lessons that Prabhupada called us together and taught us and wanted us to serve and teach.”

My reply to this is that cultivation of memories of Prabhupada and continuing our attachment to him is connected to learning the knowledge and carrying out the mission.  Many of us accept this knowledge and believe in it only because he said so.  For some of us, our “bottom line” of faith and realization is “Prabhupada says.”  “Prabhupada says that Krishna is God.  Prabhupada says that Bhagavad-gita is the best scripture, so read it.”  Of course everything doesn’t just end with a dogmatic “Prabhupada says.”  Once you actually hear about Krishna from him and read Bhagavad-gita As It Is, you get realization.  But it rests on that foundation, that Prabhupada said so.  Thus the Siksastakum verse declares, “The sankirtana movement is the life of all knowledge.”  Because of him, the knowledge of Bhagavad-gita becomes alive.  It was Sanskrit, or mythology, or academic study, but now it comes alive.  So it is essential for all the devotees in the Krishna consciousness movement to receive the knowledge through Prabhupada in parampara.  Therefore, why should they not want to relish hearing about him, and become attached to him as a person, and understand better how he was a teacher? 

Stories about Prabhupada may indeed be considered a supplementary activity, a body of knowledge in our literature to help us have personal attachment to the pure devotee.  Yet, by that personal attachment, Krishna is pleased.  Yasya deve parā bhaktir yathā deve tathā gurau – Only by having faith in the guru and Krishna is knowledge revealed.  We should not think that we will pick up the science of transmigration in the higher stages of bhakti by intellectual studentship.  There has to be a personal relationship with the guru.  This will hold true also for future times.  They will have a relationship with Prabhupada.