TEXT 265
ataeva avasya ami sannyasa kariba
sannyasi-buddhye more pranata ha-iba
SYNONYMS
ataevatherefore; avasyacertainly; amiI; sannyasathe renounced order of life; karibashall accept; sannyasi-buddhyeby thinking of Me as a sannyasi; moreunto Me; pranatabow down; ha-ibathey shall do.
TRANSLATION
"I shall accept the sannyasa order of life, for thus people will offer Me their obeisances, thinking of Me as a member of the renounced order.
PURPORT
Among the members of the varnasrama institution's social orders (brahmana, ksatriya, vaisya and sudra), the brahmana is considered the foremost, for he is the teacher and spiritual master of all the other varnas. Similarly, among the spiritual orders (brahmacarya, grhastha, vanaprastha and sannyasa), the sannyasa order is the most elevated. Therefore a sannyasi is the spiritual master of all the varnas and asramas, and a brahmana is also expected to offer obeisances to a sannyasi. Unfortunately, however, caste brahmanas do not offer obeisances to a Vaisnava sannyasi. They are so proud that they do not offer obeisances even to Indian sannyasis, what to speak of European and American sannyasis. Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu, however, expected that even the caste brahmanas would offer respectful obeisances to a sannyasi because five hundred years ago the social custom was to offer obeisances immediately to any sannyasi, known or unknown.
The sannyasis of the Krsna consciousness movement are bona fide. All the students of the Krsna consciousness movement have undergone the regular process of initiation. As enjoined in the Hari-bhakti-vilasa by Sanatana Gosvami, tatha diksa-vidhanena dvijatvam jayate nrnam: by the regular process of initiation, any man can become a brahmana. Thus in the beginning the students of our Krsna consciousness movement agree to live with devotees, and gradually, having given up four prohibited activities-illicit sex, gambling, meat-eating and intoxication-they become advanced in the activities of spiritual life. When one is found to be regularly following these principles, he is given the first initiation (hari-nama), and he regularly chants at least sixteen rounds a day. Then, after six months or a year, he is initiated for the second time and given the sacred thread with the regular sacrifice and rituals. After some time, when he advances still further and is willing to give up this material world, he is given the sannyasa order. At that time he receives the title svami or gosvami, both of which mean "master of the senses." Unfortunately, debauched so-called brahmanas in India neither offer them respect nor accept them as bona fide sannyasis. Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu expected the so-called brahmanas to offer respect to such Vaisnava sannyasis. Nevertheless, it does not matter whether they offer respect or whether they accept these sannyasis as bona fide, for the sastra describes punishment for such disobedient so-called brahmanas. The sastric injuction declares:
devata-pratimam drstva
yatim caiva tridandinam
namaskaram na kuryad yah
prayascittiyate narah
"One who does not offer respect to the Supreme Personality of Godhead, to His Deity in the temple or to a tridandi sannyasi must undergo prayascitta [atonement]." If one does not offer obeisances to such a sannyasi, the prescribed prayascitta is to fast for one day.

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