Category:Blaspheming Devotees of God
Theme Analysis
Blaspheming a devotee of God is considered the most grievous offense in spiritual life, known as vaiṣṇava-aparādha. Śrīla Prabhupāda explains that while a devotee is expected to be humble and tolerant regarding personal insults, they must never tolerate blasphemy against the Lord or His devotees. Such tolerance is not a virtue but a sign of weakness that leads to a fall from devotional service. The scriptures prescribe severe reactions to such blasphemy, including cutting out the offender's tongue or, if one is unable to act, leaving the place or even giving up one's life. This offense is the first of the ten offenses against the holy name and is compared to a mad elephant that destroys the carefully cultivated garden of devotion. Śrīla Prabhupāda also extends this principle to include respect for all genuine preachers of God's glories, regardless of their sect, mentioning Lord Jesus Christ and Muhammad as devotees who should not be blasphemed.
- The Severity of the Offense: Blaspheming a devotee is the "mad elephant offense" that ruins all spiritual progress. Kṛṣṇa can tolerate insults to Himself but never to His devotees.
- Duty of the Listener: A devotee must not be passive. If one hears blasphemy, one should defeat the offender with arguments, cut out their tongue (in a Vedic context), or immediately leave the place. Staying silent or continuing to hear is a great fault.
- Humility vs. Anger: True humility does not mean tolerating offenses against the guru or Vaiṣṇavas. In such cases, a devotee should exhibit anger, which is the proper use of that emotion in Kṛṣṇa consciousness.
- Universal Respect: The principle applies to all genuine devotees. Śrīla Prabhupāda explicitly states that figures like Jesus Christ and Muhammad, who preached the glories of God, are devotees and should never be blasphemed.
- Explore the synthesized essence of this category in this Vanipedia article: Blaspheming Devotees of God - The Mad Elephant Offense.
Subcategories
This category has the following 3 subcategories, out of 3 total.
Pages in category "Blaspheming Devotees of God"
The following 48 pages are in this category, out of 48 total.
A
- A devotee of the Lord cannot tolerate blasphemy of the Lord or His other devotees, and the Lord also cannot tolerate blasphemy of a devotee
- A devotee should try to restrict the vilifier by cutting out his tongue, and being unable to do so, one should commit suicide rather than hear the blaspheming of the devotee of the Lord
- A kanistha-adhikari cannot tolerate such blasphemy (against another Vaisnava), he is not competent to stop it by citing sastric evidences
- Additional principles (of devotional service) are as follows: (18) One should not tolerate blasphemy of the Supreme Lord or His devotees. (19) One should not indulge in idle talks, such as those about relationships between men and women
- Any devotee of Lord should not be blasphemed. It doesn't matter in any country. Just like Lord Jesus Christ, he is a great devotee. And even Muhammad, he's also a devotee
I
- If one does not care for the verdict of the sastras and dares blaspheme a Vaisnava, he suffers life after life because of this
- If one does not immediately leave upon hearing the Lord or the Lord’s devotee blasphemed, he falls down from devotional service
- It is not that because we are devotee and they (Lord Jesus Christ and Muhammad) are not devotee. Don't think like that. Anyone who is preaching the glories of God, he is a devotee. He should not be blasphemed. You should be careful
- It should be noted herewith (in SB 4.6.47) that a Vaisnava should not tolerate the blaspheming of Visnu or Vaisnavas, although he should tolerate personal insults to himself
O
- Offending or blaspheming a Vaisnava has been described as the greatest offense, and it has been compared to a mad elephant. When a mad elephant enters a garden, it ruins all the creepers, flowers and trees
- One should also avoid association with Mayavadis, who simply blaspheme Vaisnavas
- One should not criticize or blaspheme a devotee who is thus engaged in distributing the holy name of the Lord
- One should not even see the face of a person who blasphemes Lord Visnu and His devotees. Never try to associate with such persons
- One should not tolerate blaspheming of the Lord or His devotees
- One should tolerate insults against oneself, but when there is blasphemy committed against superiors such as other Vaisnavas, one should be neither humble nor meek: one must take proper steps to counteract such blasphemy
S
- Similarly, anger can be controlled. We cannot stop anger altogether, but if we simply become angry with those who blaspheme the Lord or the devotees of the Lord, we control our anger in Krsna consciousness
- Srila Vrndavana dasa Thakura (CB Madhya-khanda 22.128, 22.055-056) says: "One who blasphemes a Vaisnava cannot be protected by anyone. Even if a person is as strong as Lord Siva, if he blasphemes a Vaisnava, he is sure to be destroyed"
- Srila Vrndavana dasa Thakura (CB Madhya-khanda 22.128, 22.055-056): This is the verdict of all sastras. If one does not care for the verdict of the sastras and dares blaspheme a Vaisnava, he suffers life after life because of this
- Sukadeva Gosvami tells Pariksit Maharaj, "My dear King, if a person, after hearing blasphemous propaganda against the Lord and His devotees, does not go away from that place, he becomes bereft of the effect of all pious activities"
T
- Ten additional regulations are: (8) one should not tolerate blasphemy against the Supreme Lord and His devotees; (9) one should avoid ordinary topics of novels & fiction; (10) one should not give any trouble to any living creature, including a small bug
- The devotee should not hear Lord Visnu or His devotees blasphemed. (19) The devotee should avoid reading or hearing newspapers or mundane books that contain stories of love affairs between men and women or subjects palatable to the senses
- The offenses (to the holy names) are described as follows: (a) to blaspheme a devotee, especially a devotee engaged in broadcasting the glories of the holy name
- The offenses against the chanting of the holy name are as follows: 1) To blaspheme the devotees who have dedicated their lives for propagating the holy name of the Lord
- The offenses against the holy name are as follows: (1) to blaspheme a devotee of the Lord, (2) to consider the Lord and the demigods to be on the same level or to think that there are many gods, (3) to neglect the orders of the spiritual master
- The only offense of persons adhering to principles is that they are not devotees; they are always blasphemous toward the Supreme Personality of Godhead and His devotees
- There are ten principal offenses which can be committed against the holy name. The first is to blaspheme the great devotees who have tried to spread the glories of the holy name throughout the world
- These offenses (while chanting the holy name) are: (1) blaspheming a devotee of the Lord, (2) considering the Lord and the demigods on the same level or thinking that there are many gods, (3) neglecting the orders of the spiritual master
- They (the sahajiya class) do not know that humility and meekness are appropriate when one's own honor is insulted but not when Lord Visnu or the acaryas are blasphemed. In such cases one should not be humble and meek but must act
- This is the duty of a devotee. Although a devotee maintains an attitude of meekness and gentleness, it is a great fault on his part if he remains silent when the Lord or His devotee is blasphemed
- This is the duty of a servant of a guru and Vaisnavas - to counteract blasphemy committed against superiors such as other Vaisnavas
- This story (that Jiva Gosvami thought manuscript of CC of Krsnadasa Kaviraja would hamper his reputation as a big scholar and therefore threw it into a well) is another ignominious example of blasphemy against a guru and Vaisnava
- Those sinful people who blaspheme Vaisnavas, who are all great souls, are subjected very severely to the punishment offered by Yamaraja
- To blaspheme a Vaisnava, a preacher of God's glory, is great offense. Krsna, or God, will never tolerate offense on the lotus feet of a Vaisnava
- To blaspheme such a devotee who is trying his best to spread the cult of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu is the greatest offense. One who does so is simply awaiting punishment for his envy
V
- Vaisnavas are all great souls. Whoever blasphemes them falls down to the hell known as Maharaurava, accompanied by his forefathers
- Vasudeva is that state from which Krsna, Vasudeva, is born, so Lord Siva is the greatest devotee of Lord Krsna, and Sati's behavior is exemplary because no one should tolerate blasphemy against Lord Visnu or His devotee