Category:Blind Following
Theme Analysis
Śrīla Prabhupāda strictly warns against "blind following" in spiritual life, defining it as the sentimental acceptance of a leader or philosophy without proper scrutiny, reason, or scriptural authority. He contrasts this with Kṛṣṇa consciousness, which he describes as a science based on logic (vicāra) and practical knowledge (vijñānam). True devotees do not follow blindly; they are convinced by the philosophy of the Bhagavad-gītā and the logic of the ācāryas. However, Śrīla Prabhupāda also clarifies that once a spiritual master has been tested and confirmed to be bona fide, the disciple should follow his instructions implicitly. This is not blind following but "authorized following," comparable to a blind man safely crossing a street by holding the hand of a man with eyes. Blind following of the senses or unauthorized leaders leads to ruin, whereas following the authorized path leads to perfection.
- Blindness vs. Scrutiny: Blind following means accepting a guru simply because he is popular or charismatic. One must instead test the guru and the philosophy for at least a year before surrendering.
- Faith and Reason: Religion without philosophy is sentiment, which can lead to fanaticism. Kṛṣṇa consciousness encourages questions and logical understanding (vicāra) to establish firm faith.
- The Veda-vādī: Even those who follow the Vedic rituals can be blind followers if they do not know the ultimate goal is Kṛṣṇa. They are entangled in the rituals without reaching the essence.
- The Safe Path: Following a bona fide authority is like following a mother to know one's father. It is the only practical way to know the truth that is beyond our sensory perception.
- Explore the synthesized essence of this category in this Vanipedia article: Blind Following vs. Authorized Following.
Pages in category "Blind Following"
The following 55 pages are in this category, out of 55 total.
B
- Because he (such and such scientist) has posed himself as a very big man, people follow him blindly and they're misled
- Bhagavad-gita gives you full information so that you can accept God with your reason, with your argument, with your knowledge. It is not blind following
- Blind following and absurd inquiries. These things are condemned in this verse. Blind following means, "Oh, there is a svami. So many thousands of people are following. Let me become his disciple." This is called blind following
- Blind men may lead many other blind followers without true knowledge of material conditions, but they are not accepted by devotees like Prahlada Maharaja
C
- Caitanya means living force. He says vicara. "Just try to understand by logic, by philosophy, by argument." That is vicara. We are not following Caitanya Mahaprabhu blindly. That is not our position
- Caksusmatandha iva niyamanah: one should follow the Lord the way a blind man follows a person who has eyes. If we follow the Supreme Personality of Godhead by following the directions He gives in the Vedas and Bhagavad-gita, our lives will be successful
D
- Dharma does not mean a particular type of faith. Faith is different thing. Faith is followed blindly or by social custom or something else. Faith is different. But dharma, either you change social custom, country, time, space, it cannot be changed
- Doctor is also as good a scientist as you are. If you do not have faith in the doctor, why do you claim people to have faith on you? Where is the proof that you'll be able? Why you are asking us blindly to follow you
- Does he (a mahatma) follow this devotional service blindly? No. Jnatva. Jnatva means - knowing perfectly that I (Krsna) am the source of everything
I
- I blindly follow my guru maharaj. I do not know what is the result. So I am stressing on this point of book distribution. He told me this personally
- If a blind man pretends to help another blind man cross a road, then both the blind leader and the blind follower shall fall into the further darkness of some unseen ditch. Everyone who is devoid of transcendental knowledge is just like a blind man
- If you at all accept somebody as spiritual master, you must test him. You must test him for at least one year if you have got doubts. And when you are convinced that, "Here is a person whom I can follow blindly," then you accept
- If you follow, you'll understand, yourself, "Yes. I am getting something." It is not that you are in blindness, you are blindly following. As you follow the principles, you'll understand
- In this verse (BG 4.34), both blind following and absurd inquiries are condemned. One should not only hear submissively from the spiritual master; but one must also get a clear understanding from him, in submission and service and inquiries. BG 1972 pur
- It (Bhagavad-gita) is not that it is a blind following. It is based on philosophy and science, this Krsna consciousness
- It is not blind following. Krsna consciousness is not a sentiment. It is backed by knowledge and practical knowledge. Vijnanam
T
- The authority means you have to follow blindly. That is authority. That is my point
- The followers of Lord Caitanya cannot blindly accept that everyone born in a brahmana family is a brahmana. Therefore one should not indiscriminately follow the Lord's example of showing respect to brahmanas by drinking water that has washed their feet
- The Godless leaders of the society are blind themselves and their followers are also blind. So blind men leading blind men has no meaning
- The svami says that "You give me money. I make you immediately God." So this is blind following
- There is no harm even if you accept His (Krsna's) word blindly. There is no harm. Otherwise, if you don't like to follow blindly, then consider what is instructed
- They are becoming big lecturer on Bhagavad-gita, he has understood Krsna means "black," that's all. And people are following blindly. Big svamiji is speaking
- They are following blindly, nonsense, the Radhakrishnan and company. Therefore our Dr. Svarupa Damodara has said: "Krsna, the greatest scientist." We are following the greatest scientist. They are rascals
- They do not know that their real problem is how to approach the Supreme Lord, Visnu. And the leaders, so-called leaders, who have created so many problems, they also do not know; therefore the leaders are blind and the followers are blind
- They were blindly following sense gratification. Now it has come to the stage, "What to do?" "What to do?" This is athato brahma jijnasa: "Now enquire about Brahman." This is the statement
- This tree is dead. - Dead means it has life. So wherefrom the life came? Who made him a tree and made him a prime minister? Who made him? They cannot answer all these questions. Simply blindly following their own mental concoction
- Those who are engaged in fruitive activities are described by the Vedas personified as andha-parampara, or blind followers of the Vedic ritualistic ceremonies
- To know your father, the authority is your mother. The mother says: "Here is your father." You follow blindly
W
- We are all rascals, blindly following? Do you think like that? Then why I have not seen? Why do you ask this? If we are acting for Krsna, do you mean to say that we are following blindly? Do you think like that
- We are claiming college students, university students, because we are presenting religion on the basis of philosophy and logic. We are not blindly following. We have not dogmatism. We have got reason, philosophy, and everything, science
- We are daily, every moment, seeing (Krsna). Every moment. Otherwise, do you mean to say we are blindly following something
- We are giving the right path: "Be happy in this life and next life also." This is our mission. Para upakara: they are blindly following some ways of life
- We discuss this Bhagavad-gita only for understanding that we are not blindly following a principle. It is a science. It is based on philosophy and science. But we have made the process easy, that's all, by following great stalwart personalities
- We don't ask blindly, just like one follows some faith or type of religion blindly, and after some times they give it up. No
- We have got authoritative scripture, description, answers. Everything is there. It is not blind following. It is not religious fanaticism. It is actually solid ground. Simply one has to understand nicely. That's all
- We have got our argument and logic, everything. Why should we blindly follow
- We have made the process easy, that's all, by following great, stalwart personalities. But it is not that it is a blind following. It is based on philosophy and science, this Krsna consciousness
- What can be more pathetic than a man who claims to answer to no authority but who follows his senses blindly wherever they lead him? Our false claim to independence is simply foolishness
- When one comes to the platform of visnor aradhanam, or bhakti-yoga, one has attained the perfection of life. Otherwise, as indicated in Bhagavad-gita, one is not a tattva-vadi but a veda-vadi, a blind follower of the Vedic injunctions
- Why India's name should be defamed, that they are following in the same blind man's way? Therefore I repeatedly said that, - I invite you all. Come. Join. Understand
Y
- You are following blindly your spiritual master. What is your experience
- You cannot create morality. You are imperfect. Your senses are imperfect. You do not know what is actually moral. Therefore we should implicitly, blindly follow the orders of Krsna or His representative. That is moral
- You do not know what is that svami, whether he is a svami or he is rascal. You do not know. But because everyone is going, "Oh, let me become his disciple." This is blind following. Without any knowledge, blind following
- You haven't got to follow blindly. Spiritual master will not place before you anything unreasonable. But the process is that you cannot change the order of spiritual master. You cannot argue