not self made

[break] This is Vedic injunction. If you want to know perfectly, if you want to have perfect knowledge, tad-vijnanartham sa gurum eva, you must approach guru. Here is guru, Kapiladeva, or Krsna, God. God is guru, original guru. God gave lessons to Brahma. Brahma gave lessons to Narada. Narada gave lessons to Vyasadeva. Vyasadeva gave lessons to us. This is Vyasadeva's contribution. And if you follow this disciplic succession, then you get perfect knowledge. Otherwise, if you speculate, then you are in darkness, tamasi. What power you have got? All your senses are imperfect. How you can get perfect knowledge? That is not possible. Therefore the injunction is, tad-vijnanartham sa gurum evabhigacchet [Munḍaka Upanisad 1.2.12]: "You must go to guru." And who is guru? This parampara system. Evam parampara-praptam imam rajarsayo viduḥ [Bg 4.2]. So this is the process. If you want perfect knowledge, you must approach guru. And who is guru? Guru means the representative of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Acaryam mam vijaniyan navamanyeta karhicit [SB 11.17.27].    (More...)

So Sanatana Gosvami is guru. Caitanya Mahaprabhu is authorizing him to become guru. This is parampara system. Nobody can become guru all of a sudden. Self-made guru, that is not guru. Here Caitanya, er, Sanatana Gosvami is presented as the disciple, ideal disciple. He is asking, ke ami kene amaya jare tapa-traya, process how to approach guru, how to ask him question. Tad viddhi pranipatena pariprasnena [Bg 4.34].    (More...)

A guru is worshiped... Just like my disciples, they are offering respect exactly like God. That is their duty. Saksad-dharitvena samasta-sastraiḥ: "All the sastra recommends that guru should be respected as good as God." But that does not mean guru is foolishly thinking, "I am God." Saksad-dharitvena samasta-sastrair uktaḥ. Uktaḥ means "said," "it is recommended." Tatha bhavyata eva sadbhiḥ: "Those who are exalted, advanced, they accept this truth, that guru should be respected as good as God." But why he is respected as such? Because kintu prabhor yaḥ priya eva tasya: "Because he is very, very dear to God." The guru will never think that "My disciples are worshiping me exactly like God; therefore I have become God." He is not guru; he is rascal. Guru is always in the position of servant. And because he is the most confidential servant of Krsna, therefore he is to be respected as good as Krsna. Because in our present position we cannot see Krsna, but Krsna sends His representative; therefore he is respected as Krsna. Now, how one can become guru and representative of Krsna? Everyone will say, "I am a representative of Krsna. I am guru." No. That is enunciated by Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu. Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu says, amara ajnaya guru hana tara ei desa [Cc Madhya 7.128]: "You just become guru on My order." So guru means who is carrying out the order of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu, not a self-made guru. Guru means the most confidential servant of Krsna or Caitanya Mahaprabhu, the same thing. He is guru.    (More...)

Prabhupada: So become authority. That is... We said that. You become guru, authority. But you learn first of all as cela from the guru. And then you become guru. And without any learning, without any..., how become a guru? That is going on. Everyone is self-made guru. That has to be stopped.    (More...)