In the earlier two parts of this series of articles, we examined
In this part, we will look at 4 examples of Vaishnava Compassion.
1. Jesus Christ – a topmost Vaishnava
This, some readers find surprising. Indeed, when I spoke on this topic, many in the audience came to chat with me about this.
Some people argue, and entire churches have been created on the premise that Jesus Christ is God Himself. But Jesus himself claimed that he was son of God. And of course, we know that God, being unlimited, has no shortage of sons or daughters or prophets.
“And Jesus answered and said unto him, Blessed art thou, Simon: for flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto thee, but my Father who is in heaven.” Mathew 16.17
God is perfect in every respect. God is full of all opulence. The compassion of Jesus is even more adorable because he is a son of God and not God Himself.
Jesus Christ appeared in a most desolate place, the dry and foreboding desert, at a time of great turmoil, the decay of the Roman empire, amidst the most wretched of all people, and tried to help them understand God consciousness. But the people of that day and age were so fallen that they tried to crucify their savior. Still, what Jesus has taught continues to resonate with so many souls, even though most misunderstand his teachings.
We adore Lord Jesus Christ is a Vaishnava Acharya. Why do I say that?
I will leave you with some quotes of Srila A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada…
The Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam states that any bona fide preacher of God consciousness must have the qualities of titikṣā (tolerance) and karuṇā (compassion). In the character of Lord Jesus Christ we find both these qualities. He was so tolerant that even while he was being crucified, he didn’t condemn anyone. And he was so compassionate that he prayed to God to forgive the very persons who were trying to kill him. (Of course, they could not actually kill him. But they were thinking that he could be killed, so they were committing a great offense.) As Christ was being crucified he prayed, “Father, forgive them. They know not what they are doing.”
…Of course, the message that Christ preached was just according to his particular time, place, and country, and just suited for a particular group of people. But certainly he is the representative of God. Therefore we adore Lord Jesus Christ and offer our obeisances to him.
Once, in Melbourne, a group of Christian ministers came to visit me. They asked, “What is your idea of Jesus Christ?” I told them, “He is our guru. He is preaching God consciousness, so he is our spiritual master.” The ministers very much appreciated that.
Actually, anyone who is preaching God’s glories must be accepted as a guru. Jesus Christ is one such great personality. We should not think of him as an ordinary human being. The scriptures say that anyone who considers the spiritual master to be an ordinary man has a hellish mentality. If Jesus Christ were an ordinary man, then he could not have delivered God consciousness. (Science of Self Realization, Chapter 4, “Understanding Krsna and Christ)
A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada
2. Vasudeva Datta – relatively unknown, but even greater compassion
It is tempting to think that Lord Jesus Christ is one of a kind. Such mercy as shown by Jesus Christ is practically unparalleled. But such personalities have been repeatedly sent by God all over the world. Before Jesus, after Jesus, and such personalities continue to walk the earth with us even today. Most of us do not have the eyes to see such great personalities for who they are. But thanks to revealed scripture, we know of many such personalities.
One great example is Vasudeva Datta, an eternal associate of Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu. Lord Chaitanya is Krishna Himself, God in the form of His own pure devotee.
Jesus Christ takes the sins of anyone who believes in Him or surrenders to him. But Vasudeva Datta wanted to indiscriminately take on the sinful reactions of all the living entities in this Universe!
I will quote an interaction from the Chaitanya Charitamrita…
Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu then embraced Vāsudeva Datta and began to speak of his glories as if He had a thousand mouths.
When Caitanya Mahāprabhu glorified him, Vāsudeva Datta immediately became very much embarrassed and shy. He then submitted himself, touching the Lord’s lotus feet.
Vāsudeva Datta told Caitanya Mahāprabhu, “My dear Lord, You incarnate just to deliver all conditioned souls. I now have one petition, which I wish You would accept.
“My Lord, You are certainly able to do whatever You like, and You are indeed merciful. If You so desire, You can very easily do whatever You want.
“My Lord, my heart breaks to see the sufferings of all the conditioned souls; therefore I request You to transfer the karma of their sinful lives upon my head.
“My dear Lord, let me suffer perpetually in a hellish condition, accepting all the sinful reactions of all living entities. Please finish their diseased material life.”
When Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu heard Vāsudeva Datta’s statement, His heart became very soft. Tears flowed from His eyes, and He began to tremble. In a faltering voice He spoke as follows.
Accepting Vāsudeva Datta as a great devotee, the Lord said, “Such a statement is not at all astonishing because you are the incarnation of Prahlāda Mahārāja. It appears that Lord Kṛṣṇa has bestowed complete mercy upon you. There is no doubt about it.
“Whatever a pure devotee wants from his master, Lord Kṛṣṇa doubtlessly grants because He has no duty other than to fulfill the desire of His devotee.
“If you desire the deliverance of all living entities within the universe, then all of them can be delivered even without your undergoing the tribulations of sinful activity.
Text 168: “Kṛṣṇa is not incapable, for He has all potencies. Why would He induce you to suffer the sinful reactions of other living entities?“Whosever welfare you desire immediately becomes a Vaiṣṇava, and Kṛṣṇa delivers all Vaiṣṇavas from the reactions of their past sinful activities.
“ ‘Let me offer my respectful obeisances unto the original Personality of Godhead, Govinda, who regulates the sufferings and enjoyments due to fruitive activity. He does this for everyone — from the heavenly King Indra down to the smallest insect [indra-gopa]. That very Personality of Godhead destroys the karmic reactions of one engaged in devotional service.’
“Because of your honest desire, all living entities within the universe will be delivered, for Kṛṣṇa does not have to do anything to deliver all the living entities of the universe.
“Just as there are millions of fruits on the uḍumbara tree, millions of universes float on the waters of the river Virajā.
“The uḍumbara tree is filled with millions of fruits, and if one falls down and is destroyed, the tree does not even consider the loss.
“In the same way, if one universe is vacated due to the living entities’ having been liberated, that is a very little thing for Kṛṣṇa. He does not take it very seriously.
“The entire spiritual world constitutes the unlimited opulence of Kṛṣṇa, and there are innumerable Vaikuṇṭha planets there. The Causal Ocean is considered the surrounding waters of Vaikuṇṭhaloka.
Text 176: “Māyā and her unlimited material universes are situated in that Causal Ocean. Indeed, māyā appears to be floating like a pot filled with mustard seeds.“Of the millions of mustard seeds floating in that pot, if one seed is lost, the loss is not at all significant. Similarly, if one universe is lost, it is not significant to Lord Kṛṣṇa.
“To say nothing of one universal mustard seed, even if all the universes and the material energy [māyā] are destroyed, Kṛṣṇa does not even consider the loss.
“If a person possessing millions of wish-fulfilling cows loses one she-goat, he does not consider the loss. Kṛṣṇa owns all six opulences in full. If the entire material energy is destroyed, what does He lose?”Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu continued, “ ‘O my Lord, O unconquerable one, O master of all potencies, please exhibit Your internal potency to conquer the nescience of all moving and inert living entities. Due to nescience, they accept all kinds of faulty things, thus provoking a fearful situation. O Lord, please show Your glories! You can do this very easily, for Your internal potency is beyond the external potency, and You are the reservoir of all opulence. You are also the demonstrator of the material potency. You are also always engaged in Your pastimes in the spiritual world, where You exhibit Your reserved, internal potency, and sometimes You exhibit the external potency by glancing over it. Thus You manifest Your pastimes. The Vedas confirm Your two potencies and accept both types of pastimes due to them.’ ”
CC Madhya 158-180 https://vedabase.io/en/library/cc/madhya/15/
3. Ramanuja Acharya – compassion greater than all
In both of the above cases, the compassion of Jesus and Vasudeva Datta was certainly great.
But the great Vaishnava Acharya Sri Ramanuja exhibited even greater compassion. He showed the way by which anyone can be freed from the effects of bondage due to sinful reactions.
Among many instances of Ramanuja’s vast compassion, here is just one.
Ramanuja was advised to get education from a highly respected teacher of the times, Goshtipurna, based in Tirukostiyur. Ramanuja was then based in Srirangam. Over 100 kms away. When Ramanuja approached him after his 100+km walk, Goshtipurna asked Ramanuja to come back another day. Ramanuja was disappointed but went back and came another day, walking all the way. This happened once, twice, a total of 18 times! This was just to test the earnestness of the aspiring disciple, Ramanuja. However, Ramanuja rose to the expectations and Goshtipurna gave him the mantra at last.
Just imagine, Ramanuja walked well over 3600 kms to get the mantra!
When the great teacher imparted the well-known mantra, he commanded Ramanuja to keep it an absolute secret. The reason was that those who heard it would be liberated. But if imparted to unworthy persons, Ramanuja would go to hell. Ramanuja considered this for some time. He then hastened to a nearby temple, quickly climbed to the top of its tower. Ramanuja then called out to the people to assemble there and loudly imparted the mantra to everyone.
When Goshtipurna got the news, he was furious. He called for his errant disciple right away. Ramanuja humbly expressed his willingness to go to eternal hell. He said he would reside in hell with great joy. Since so many others people who, otherwise might not progress to liberation would now surely get it, he was happy. Goshtipurna realized the magnanimity of Ramanuja and fell at his feet, giving him the title “Emperumanar” – He who is the most compassionate.
And what was the mantra?
“Om Namo Narayanaya” / ॐ नमो नारायणाय / ஓம் நமோ நாராயணாய
Ramanuja Acharya and his followers have popularized the mantra all over!
4. Srila Prabhupada – a modern example of Vaishnava Compassion
The glories of Srila Prabhupada are limitless! He appeared in this world 1896, and re-entered the spiritual realm in 1977.
Hundreds and Thousands of souls have written about this great modern-day saint. Writings about Srila Prabhupada will continue at least for the next 10,000 years.
Here is one little pastime that illustrates Srila Prabhupada’s most perfect example of Vaishnava Compassion.
When Srila Prabhupada was winding up his pastimes on our planet, he was apparently very ill.
One doctor, a very learned traditional healer, came to see Srila Prabhupada. He had an urgent, important piece of information that could prolong Srila Prabhupada’s life!
He said that when an Acharya allows a deity of himself to be worshipped while he is still in a living body, when people offer obeisances to that deity and touch the feet of the deity, the karmic reactions of the worshiper enter the living body of the Acharya.
In other words, Srila Prabhupada was accepting the sinful reactions of thousands upon thousands of people every day.
The doctor made an urgent request – he said, remove that deity, let people not worship you in deity form, and you will be immediately healed, cured from your ailment.
Srila Prabhupada refused. He softly muttered “do you not know why I have come?”
Srila Prabhupada came to take away our sufferings, and was willing to suffer, exactly in the mood of Jesus Christ, of Vasudeva Datta, of Ramanuja Acharya.
Such compassion is rare indeed, in our world.
We cannot imitate it, but we can certainly try to follow in their footsteps.
तप्यन्ते लोकतापेन साधव: प्रायशो जना: ।
परमाराधनं तद्धि पुरुषस्याखिलात्मन: ॥ ४४ ॥
tapyante loka-tāpena
sādhavaḥ prāyaśo janāḥ
paramārādhanaṁ tad dhi
puruṣasyākhilātmanaḥIt is said that great personalities almost always accept voluntary suffering because of the suffering of people in general. This is considered the highest method of worshiping the Supreme Personality of Godhead, who is present in everyone’s heart.
Freedom through Genuine Spiritual Progress 