Following the Saint

Reading a biography of Saint Francis of Assisi by Johannes Jorgensen, I was reminded of Srila Prabhupada and his relationship with his disciples.  The biographer tells us of the days when Francis was a teacher “not only in word but also in action.”  His first disciples were also very eager to follow him and please their spiritual master.

The biographer writes, “Everyone who has had the happiness in his youth to have lived near a highly exalted personality will therefore understand that a young Brother named Ricerius had acquired the conviction that the good will of Francis was the infallible sign of the satisfaction of God.”

I am struck by the phrase, “Everyone who has had the happiness in his youth to have lived near a highly exalted personality …”  What are the odds that one will be born in the human species in Kali-yuga and get the opportunity to meet the pure devotee of Lord Krishna?  It is very rare.  To meet him when one is young adds to the possibility of taking to Krishna consciousness as soon as possible, and of doing it with the ardor of a young man or woman.

I am reminded of another phrase by the 19^th century Romantic poet, William Wordsworth, about the French Revolution.  To the Romantic poets, the French revolution was an emblem of freedom for humanity.  And so the poet wrote, “Bliss it was to have lived at that time, and to have been young was heaven!”

We may curse our fate for being born in Kali-yuga when we hear of the piety of previous ages.  But as the Бхагаватам states, there is one great quality in Kali-yuga which redeems the ocean of voices – the chanting of Hare Krishna.  But the holy name cannot manifest itself unless it is carried by the pure chanter.

Although we Lower East Side boys were cynical toward middle-class American values, yet in our own way we were innocent and idealistic.  When you meet a person like Srila Prabhupada, then youth and idealism are wed to a tangible goal.  So it was bliss and heaven that Prabhupada came to us while we were young, and that he took us with him to chant in the park.

Francis’s biography gives us a sketch of Brother John the Simple, who had a tendency to do whatever he saw Saint Francis do.

When therefore Saint Francis was in the church or other place to pray, he watched him closely so as to follow all his ways and movements.  And when Saint Francis bent his knee or lifted his hands to heaven, or spit, or signed, then he did exactly the same.

Some of our behavior was in the copying mood, such as imitating Prabhupada’s Indian accent and uttering his ecstatic sound “Mmmmmm.”  To outsiders, we may have seemed like copycats wearing tilaka, dressing like Prabhupada and shaving our heads.  But we were actually following the standard Vaisnava methods.  And Prabhupada did not force us to do so.

When we read of John the Simple, we think that there is something favorable to be said for the affectionate desire to follow the saint in everything he does.  It is certainly more attractive than limiting the saint’s influence in your life so that you follow only a few general principles.  Nowadays we even hear some initiated disciples say, “Prabhupada was a great saint, but I no longer follow his instructions.”  Instead of that, give us the devotion of Brother John the Simple!

By Srila Prabhupada’s natural humility and strict парампары teaching, we can now combine our worship for him with the right understanding of the Supreme Personality of Godhead who receives all our service.