THE METHOD OF SECOND INTIATION OR DIKSHA

All Glories to HDG Srila Bhakti Promode Puri Goswami 

All Glories to HDG Srila Bhakti Siddhanta Saraswati Goswami Prabhupada

Usually human beings to free themselves from their previous sinful activities perform the ten type of purificatory rituals as ordained in the scriptures. One of them is the awarding of the gayatri thread .On partaking of such a ritual ,one is said to have  received a purified second birth. Those who do not undertake this form of purification will mean their latent sins remain in them. The scholars praise those who follow these Vedic  tenets as being of very pious descent. Those who have  large stock of resultant sinful activities at birth are  born Sudras and those who have pious activities to their credit are promoted to be brahmins. Still, it is not that after being born as a brahmin there will be no reaction from previous sinful reactions so that is the importance of receiving the brahmin thread in that it helps to nullify one's previous sinful activities. Yajnavalkya states that evam enam samam yati bijagarbaham samadubhavam

The gayatri ritual conducted by the Acarya brings the ordinary person to come to the stature of being able to  read the Vedas. Those who have the gayatri thread but uninterested to studying the Vedas instantly reverts back into being a Sudra and is then termed a Sudra in their family hierarchy. Also ,one though born in a brahmin family but exhibits Sudra qualities is not qualified for this acceptance of the gayatri thread. One born as a brahmin does not automatically become a brahmin for unless he undergoes purification by the acceptance of the gayatri thread till then he is still considered a Sudra. A twice born always  undergoes this purificatory ritual. Strota Janma refers to people being born in high class families and  automatically in time usually they all accept the thread ceremony. However ,if one's birth is not as pious then comes the question of   qualification of such a person for that ceremony. This is not decided by any mere priest .Factually it does not follow that if one is of pious birth ,he automatically becomes a brahmin for there is the clause of acceptance of the brahmin thread prior to this due to one's latent sinful activities. Still by not engaging in the study of the Vedas after obtaining the stature of Dvija one falls again to the position of Sudra. The acceptance of the  gayatri thread  to attain the position of Dvija is possible by the rigid injunctions of the revealed scriptures. Nevertheless, those simply following society norms face many obstacles and  have to undergo the test of their capability to be able to accept this gayatri thread ceremony  by their guru. The actual qualification of a sincere disciple is simply to take shelter. This means nothing else but to be surrendered and to engage in service to the Lord. For people who have a non devotional mentality ,it is difficult to take such shelter. The word, gurupada asraya means to visualize the guru in the form of the Supreme Lord and to see oneself as his servant. The Vedas has declared the genuine guru as one who knows the purport of the Vedas and who is fixed in the realization of the Supreme while the disciple approaches in humble enquiry with the proper ingredients in his hand. One who is determined to give up the material variety consisting of the three modes of material nature and be fixed in service to the absolute Truth will achieve success by the process of this diksha initiation. Divyam jnanam yato dadyat kuryat papasya samaksayam

We understand initiation as the process by which the past sinful activities are nullified and one attains to spiritual knowledge. There are two types mentioned one by Vedic rites and the other following the Vedic system (Vedanuga).The latter is again broken up into Pauranic and by following Pancharatrika rites. The high born ordained brahmin qualifies for the Vedic rites. Those of them not so capable will have to opt for the Pauranic rites while those not being of brahmin birth the only other option for them is the Panacharatrika rites. The Vishnu Yamala states that in the age of  Kali there is no question of Vedic initiation.

asuddham sudram kalpamiha  brahmanah kali sambhavah

teasm  agamamargena suddhir na  srotavartmanah

In the Haribhakti villas, in regard to the ten purificatory rituals  only the Agama rules  in Kali yuga  are advocated for all castes while the Pauranika method is not discussed at length.

yatha kanchanatam yati kasyam  rasa vidhanatah

tasya diksha vidhanatam  dvijatvam jayate nrnam

meaning: As  bell metal is purified by application of certain chemicals so by the process of diksha  one comes to the stature of a twice born.

Hence this process of initiation abides by the   Vedas, even a supposedly non qualified person by this initiation can attain the status of a brahmin irrespective of his previously having being born in a shoe makers family. In contrast, those who primarily advocate the basis of dvija as by birth,  their method of initiation cannot be regarded as further they are mostly of the class of panachopasana worshippers(impersonalist).They all come under the category of offenders to the holy name. The amount of hypocrisy involved in their method of giving initiation has been deemed as completely mental speculation by the scholars .In fact this perfected mantras which have been awarded by their gurus are supposedly never to be given away at all. But these Smartas overwhelmed by greed take on Sudra disciples robbing them of their wealth and ruining their chances of embracing pure religion by their false instructions. In the time of Mahaprabhu ,the pancharatrika method was in full swing and all of those initiated were twice born. At that time ,the Smartas practicing the panchapasana  worship or impersonalists did not have such a hold. It is only after  this that when the Impersonalist Acaryas were bent to illegally seize the position of Vaishnava Acarya to  and at that time too the initiated and  non -initiated lost their imparity between them. Therefore even without undergoing initiation , these Smartas adverse to the Vaishnava religion were conducting their own despicable practices. One time ,Lord Gaurahari and his confidential associates did strive profusely to preach the ancient method of awarding initiation .These Smarta brahmins by their method of panchaposana worship had completely covered the process of attaining the twice born position. Whatever their claims, they were actually acting in opposition to the true Vaishnava religion. That is explained in the Bhagavatam, that in this age of Kali genuine Brahmins will be a rarity. Sudras accepting and assuming the role of being of the higher caste and as renunciates will be busy collecting money from the ignorant people to simply fill their bellies and maintain their wife and children. Their institution becomes astray because of their severe offences to the genuine brahmin class. These charlatans  pretending to Goswamis or of the higher dynasty by seizing  the highest seat of honor, illegally fleece their disciples from their wealth  in their assumed role as  spiritual preceptor. They will take up the white robes as a paramhamsa giving up their brahmin thread and staff  in the false mood of humility but completely under the control of their tongue and genitals and will engage in hearing and reading of the  highest love pastimes of the Supreme Lord. This  goes in Kali Yuga. As the verse ; sruti smrti puranadi pancharatrika viddim bina; ekantika haribahaktir utpatyatte  kevalam

Narada Pancharatra verse : svayam brahmani nikshptam jataneva eva mantratah vinitan atha putradin samskrtya prati bodhayet.

The disciple is able to attain the position of  twice born by the power of the mantra of the Acarya. The Acarya teaches his humble, celibate disciple after awarding the gayatri manta to him about that meaning of the mantra. Sometimes many question as what is the problem in equating Brahmin hood for  one who has received the mantra duly without the rituals. To clarify this question the Hari bhakti Villas has this verse: vaidiki ,lokaki ,bapi ya kriya kriyate mune,Hari sevanukulyena  sa karyam bhaktim ichata

In short ,the ten purificatory rituals are accepted only if they are favorable to devotional service. Srila Gopal Bhatta Goswami in his compilation of the  book ,Sat kriya Dipika samskara regarding all these ten rituals have protected our Gaudiva Vaishnavas from fierce bigotry  of the Smarta Brahmanas. In Mahabharatha  it is quoted : sudro apy agama sampanno dvija bhavati samskrtah

That the Sudra undergoing pancharatrika initiation is in line with the Vedic injunctions and there is no question of his not attaining the position of twice born after birth.

One person hearing his enemy had become a judge, countered by arguing he is not definitely earning his salary. Later after hearing of his promotion to higher judicial circles, retorted by saying, I am sure he is not getting his monthly salary. This is similar to the remarks of the opposing Smarta groups arguing that these people are never brahmins and can never attain the quality of brahmins. These same people cry out that for them to accept the elevated position is against their principle of trnad api sunicena to be humbler then the straw in the street. In short ,if they had not been given the thread ,this my chance to keep calling them as sinful Sudras. Also by being born brahmins, our gurus the six Goswamis  the universal gurus,may also come under this class. The Paramahamsa stage is beyond any designation of class and stage of life. In this way these demoniac Smarta class have the audacity to remark that  some of the six Goswamis did not have the qualification to worship the  Salagrama Shila or deity.