View source for He may be a king's son or a very great brahmana's son, but as soon as he agrees to live with the spiritual master, he has to live just like a menial servant

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{{terms|"He may be a king's son or a very great brāhmaṇa's son, but as soon as he agrees to live with the spiritual master, he has to live just like a menial servant"}}
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{{compiler|Anurag}}
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[[Category:May (Might)]]
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[[Category:Son]]
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[[Category:Brahman]]
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[[Category:Living with a Spiritual Master]]
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[[Category:Menial Servant of a Spiritual Master]]
[[Category:Pages Needing Audio - ANURAG]]
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<h2>Lectures</h2>
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<h3>Bhagavad-gita As It Is Lectures</h3>
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A brahmacārī is supposed to live to serve the spiritual master at his home, and he has to work just like a menial. He may be a king's son or a very great brāhmaṇa's son, but as soon as he agrees to live with the spiritual master, he has to live just like a menial servant. Whatever the spiritual master will order, he has to do it.
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[[Vanisource:730721 - Lecture BG 01.26-27 - London|730721 - Lecture BG 01.26-27 - London]]
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A devotee thinks like that. A devotee does not like to kill anyone, even an ant. Why he should be encouraged to kill his friends? A devotee is like that. Yasyāsti bhaktir bhagavaty akiñcanā sarvair guṇais tatra samāsate surāḥ ([[Vanisource:SB 5.18.12|SB 5.18.12]]). This is the result of devotional life. Arjuna was insulted. Arjuna was taken away all his belongings. Arjuna was banished for thirteen years. His wife was insulted. So many atrocities was done to him. Still, when the question of killing came, he was not very happy: "No." This is Vaiṣṇava. This is Vaiṣṇava. He is ready to excuse even the greatest enemy. But Kṛṣṇa does not want. If you insult His devotee, the devotee may excuse, but Kṛṣṇa will not excuse. This is Kṛṣṇa's position.

Therefore, be careful to insult a devotee. A devotee may excuse you, but Kṛṣṇa will not excuse you. Kṛṣṇa is so strict. He cannot tolerate any insult to His devotee. Therefore this arrangement of fighting. Arjuna wanted, "No, let them be excused." Kṛṣṇa wanted, "No, you must fight. You must kill them." This is the position. So he is within the dilemma. Kṛṣṇa is insisting that, "You must fight and kill them," but he is thinking, "How shall I kill my kinsmen?" This is the problem. Therefore, tān samīkṣya sa kaunteyaḥ sarvān bandhūn avasthitān ([[Vanisource:BG 1.27 (1972)|BG 1.27]]). All friends are there. Kṛpayā parayāviṣṭo viṣīdann idam abravīt. So this is one side, that if you want to please Kṛṣṇa, then you have to be prepared for killing your so-called relatives. If you want Kṛṣṇa. If you want to please Kṛṣṇa.

So this whole Vedic civilization is made just to train how you can be detached from this so-called family affection. This is Vedic training. First of all brahmacārī. Brahmacārī means to lead the life of austerity. A brahmacārī is supposed to live to serve the spiritual master at his home, and he has to work just like a menial. He may be a king's son or a very great brāhmaṇa's son, but as soon as he agrees to live with the spiritual master, he has to live just like a menial servant. Whatever the spiritual master will order, he has to do it. This is brahmacārī. And they will gladly do, because they are children.

Brahmacārī life begins from five years. So you ask any child do anything, he will do. They are learned. They are given education, "Go from door to door, house to house, and bring some alms." So brahmacārī means the neighborhood, their sons. So when the brahmacārī goes for begging, "Mother, give me something, alms," so immediately, some rice, some ḍāl, some āṭṭā is given, or some vegetables, sometimes some money. So they bring everything to the spiritual master, and it becomes the property of the spiritual master. Because he has begged, it is not his property. Sarvasvaṁ guru-veditam.

Everything is guru's property. So much so that after cooking everything, the spiritual master will call, "My dear boys, come on. Take prasādam." But if he forgets to call somebody, he will not touch. He will not touch. This is brahmacārī. "Oh, spiritual master has not called me, so I will fast." (laughter) He begged the rice and vegetables and āṭṭā and ḍāl. It is cooked. But when it is cooked, that is also spiritual master's property. If the spiritual master does not ask him to take, he cannot take. He cannot touch. This is brahmacārī life.
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