
Chapter Three

PRAKRTA-SAHAJIYA (Cheap pseudo-devotees)

"Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura suggests that people who are
materialistically inclined and sahajiyas, or so-called Vaisnavas who take
everything very cheaply, are both visayi, materialists. Eating food offered by
them causes contamination, and as a result of such contamination, even a
serious devotee becomes like a materialistic man. There are six kinds of
association - giving charity, accepting charity, accepting food, offering
food, talking confidentially and inquiring confidentially. One should very
carefully avoid associating with both the sahajiyas, who are sometimes known
as Vaisnavas, and the non-Vaisnavas, or avaisnavas. Their association changes
the transcendental devotional service of Lord Krsna into sense gratification,
and when sense gratification enters the mind of a devotee, he is contaminated.
The materialistic person who aspires after sense gratification cannot properly
think of Krsna." (C.C. Antya 6.278, purport)

The word sahaja ("natural", "simple", "normal") has two connotations in
Vaisnava literatures. Tracing these can help us see more clearly the crux of
the sahajiya deviation. In the Bhagavad-gita, Lord Krsna uses the word sahaja
in reference to material nature:

saha-jam karma kaunteya sa-dosam api na tyajet
sarvarambha hi dosena dhumenagnir ivavrtah

"Every endeavor is covered by some fault, just as fire is covered by smoke.
Therefore one should not give up the work born of his nature, O son of Kunti,
even if such work is full of fault." (Bg. 18.48)

Here the word saha-jam means "born of material nature." This refers to human
sense activities, which are said to be sa-dosa, faulty. Despite this, Lord
Krsna says we should not renounce activities.

But this does not mean that we should engage in material sense activities. Two
verses earlier, Sri Krsna declares, "By worship of the Lord, who is the source
of all beings and who is all-pervading, a man can attain perfection through
performing his own work." In the purport, Srila Prabhupada stresses the
following points: "the Supreme Lord is the beginning of all living entities";
"as part and parcel of the Supreme Lord one has his duty to render service
unto the Supreme"; and "Everyone should think that he is engaged in a
particular type of occupation by Hrsikesa, the master of the senses."

So sahaja, or "natural", used in this connection, indicates the imperfect
human nature. A man's sense activities are faulty due to his birth in matter.
But he should learn that his real origin is Krsna, and he should engage his
senses in the Lord's service. Then he can transcend the faults of his material
conditioning and attain perfection. "Liberation is never inaction, but service
without human mistakes." (Bhag. 2.2.1, purport)

The other sense of the word is found in Sri Caitanya-caritamrta, Madhya 8.215:

sahaja gopira prema - nahe prakrta
kama kama-krida-samya tara kama-nama

"It is to be noted that the natural characteristic of the gopis is to love the
Supreme Lord. Their lusty desire is not to be compared to material lust.
Nonetheless, because their desire sometimes appears to resemble material lust,
their transcendental love for Krsna is sometimes described as lust."

The context is clear: sahaja refers to the spiritual nature. Another point of
interest in this verse is the word prakrta ("material"), which is used to
distinguish kama or lust from the gopis' love for Krsna. We can conclude that
when prakrta is combined with sahaja, transcendental sensual affairs are not
indicated. We can also conclude that a person subject to material lust has no
chance to comprehend the gopis' spiritual emotions. He must first follow Lord
Krsna's prescription and rise above his imperfect condition.

This is what hits at the heart of the prakrta-sahajiya contamination: they
refuse to follow the reformatory process. Thus their perceptions of Krsna,
Krsna's devotees, Krsna's service and love of Krsna are faulty creations of
their lower nature.

"Without serving Krsna according to vidhi-marga regulative principles of the
pancaratrika-vidhi, unscrupulous persons want to jump immediately to the
raga-marga principles. Such persons are called sahajiyas." (Bhag. 4.24.45-46,
purport) They sometimes say that one enters raga-marga only by the causeless
grace of Bhaktidevi and not by a vain attempt to conquer sensual disturbances,
but Srila Prabhupada says, "When a devotee strictly follows the rules and
regulations, Bhaktidevi becomes very much satisfied with him, and at that time
he is never disturbed by anything external." (Bhag. 4.24.59, purport) "Such an
advanced devotee has nothing to do with the sahajiyas, who manufacture their
own whimsical way and commit sins by indulging in illicit sex, intoxication
and gambling if not meat-eating." (C.C. Madhya 22.153, purport)

According to Dr. S.B. Das Gupta, the history of the Bengali sahajiya movement
can be traced back long before Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu's appearance, to the
reign of the Buddhist Pala royal dynasty (ca. 700-1100 A.D.), when a secret
cult of the name Sahajayana arose within the so-called Diamond Vehicle
(Vajrayana) school of Buddhism. Vajrayana, still prominent today in Nepal and
Tibet, is a blend of ritualistic tantric yoga and Sunyavada. Some scholars
think that Vajrayana was created in Bengal, a stronghold of the tantric
Kapalika religion when the first Buddhist missionaries arrived. From Bengal,
so this theory goes, Vajrayana spread to the Himalayan regions. Anyway,
wherever the birthplace of Vajrayana was, it is certain that the fermentation
of Vajrayana into Sahajayana (the Easy Vehicle) was according to an original
Bengali recipe.

Sahajayana Buddhists abandoned ritualism and study of scriptures as useless.
They practised a "yoga of sex" in which they visualized consciousness as being
composed of the unity of the male and female principles, sometimes called
upaya and prajna or karuna and sunyata. The Sahajayana Buddhists wrote many
songs known as the Caryapadas that express their philosophy in mysterious
language.

Later on, under the Sena kings, Vaisnavism became ascendent in Bengal, royal
patronage having been won for it by the great acarya Srila Jayadeva Gosvami.
Now the Buddhist sahajiyas absorbed and perverted aspects of Vaisnava
philosophy. They renamed their upaya and prajna principles "Krsna" and
"Radha", imagining Radha-Krsna to represent the highest state of bliss
attained by men and women on the sahajiya path.

After the Muslim invasion, the sahajiyas were influenced by the Sufis. The
word Sufi comes from the Arabian word saf, which means sacred. The Sufis were
a mystical Islamic order of mendicants whose goal was a state of inspiration
they called fana, or oneness in love with Allah, which they sought to attain
through song and dance. In the Arabic countries, the Sufis faced condemnation
as heretics because some preached that through fana they had become Allah. But
in India the Sufis flourished, not in the least because their ideas had much
in common with Mayavadi philosophy.

In the 16th century, the sankirtan movement of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu flooded
the world with the sublime, perfect and transcendental religion of pure love
of Godhead. The sahajiyas, who celebrated their mundane sex-mysticism with
song and dance, were nothing more than a perverted reflection of the sankirtan
movement. They were not accepted as genuine Vaisnavas by Mahaprabhu and His
followers, as is evident in Sri Caitanya-caritamrta. For instance, in C.C.
Antya 12.114, Lord Caitanya refuses a gift of scented oil, explaining that
those who might smell it on His head would think Him a dari sannyasi, a
tantric sannyasi who keeps women for sense gratification. In Antya 2.120, the
Lord calls such men markata-vairagis ("monkey sannyasis"). And as Srila
Prabhupada relates in his purport to Antya 2.143, Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu
banished Chota Haridasa for the slight mistake of begging rice from Srimati
Madhavi-devi "as an example to future sahajiyas who might adopt the dress of
the renounced order to imitate Rupa Gosvami and other bona fide sannyasis but
secretly have illicit connections with women."

In the 18th century, the great movement begun by Lord Caitanya appeared to
have become corrupted by the influence of the jata-gosani and the smartas.
This sad state of affairs presented an opportunity for the sahajiyas to expand
their influence among the common people. Deviant sects like the
gauranga-nagari and Kartabhaja are mutations of the prakrta-sahajiya movement
that became popular at this time. In the 19th century, Srila Bhaktivinoda
Thakura took great pains to distinguish the pure teachings of Lord Caitanya
from prakrta-sahajiya perversions; on this basis, Srila Bhaktisiddhanta
Sarasvati openly denounced all who deviated even an inch from the
Caitanya-sampradaya: "No compromise - Rama Krishna, avataras, yogis, everyone
was enemy to Guru Maharaja - he never compromised." (Srila Prabhupada in a
letter of 20.7.73)


The Prakrta-Sahajiya Doctrine: The Call of Maya

Srila Prabhupada said, "Sahajiya means taking things very easily." It is a
generic term that applies not so much to any specific sect or apasampradaya
but indeed to all forms of deviation. From the characteristics of the sahajiya
mentality shown below, it may be readily concluded that there is only one
apasampradaya - the prakrta-sahajiya - with twelve sub-branches going under
different names: "Such sahajiyas are called sakhi-bheki, and sometimes they
are called gaura-nagari." (C.C. Madhya 8.204-205, purport)

Sahajiyas betray their historical affinity to Buddhism by not distinguishing
matter from spirit, which is the first step in bona fide spiritual life. As
Srila Prabhupada mentioned in a letter, they take "spiritual advancement as
something materially manifest" by intensifying their mundane emotions until a
maddened state of sentimental ecstasy is reached.

The sahajiya misconception of spirit is nourished by doubts about the
transcendental nature of God's personal form. That Lord Krsna's foot was
pierced by an arrow, and that Lord Nityananda bled when struck on the head by
Madhai, is evidence enough for the sahajiya that his own physical body has
exactly the same quality as the forms of the Supreme that appear in the
material world. If the bodies of avataras are material, their divine essence
flows in the blood of their descendents. It follows, therefore, that anyone
connected to the families of Nityananda Prabhu or Advaita Acarya are as godly
as their great forefathers.

'When the Lord descends, he displays affection for his family members (Nanda,
Yasoda, Jagannatha Misra, Sacidevi). Moreover, Lord Krsna showed great
fondness for young girls. This is all divine behaviour, worthy of being
emulated. It is maya for someone claiming to be a Vaisnava to renounce family
life and lusty affairs, because that goes against the Lord's own way of life.'

Preaching is not very important to the prakrta-sahajiya. One can best make new
devotees by impregnating a female "Vaisnava." In this way that woman is also
blessed by the good association of an advanced soul. This was the real mission
of Lord Caitanya, as carried out in Bengal by Nityananda Prabhu.

As an answer to all the above notions, Srila Prabhupada writes: "Whoever
thinks in this way is a candidate for the darkest regions of hell. Those who
hanker after women and money, who are self-interested and have the mentality
of merchants, can certainly discover many things with their fertile brains and
speak against the authorized revealed scriptures. They also engage in some
moneymaking businesses to cheat innocent people, and they try to support their
business programs by making such offensive statements. Actually Nityananda
Prabhu, being the expansion of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu, is the most munificent
incarnation. No one should consider Him an ordinary human being or an entity
like the prajapatis, who were ordered by Brahma to increase generation.
Nityananda Prabhu should not be considered instrumental for sense
gratification. Although professional so-called preachers support this, such
statements are not found in any authorized revealed scriptures. Actually there
is no support for these statements made by sahajiyas or other professional
distributors of krsna-bhakti." (C.C. Madhya 15.143)

Sahajiyas say that it is great offense to find fault with one's guru and
abandon him, even if he drinks liquor and consorts with prostitutes. Garuda,
Lord Visnu's carrier and eternal associate, eats fish and meat, so this may be
done by anyone in the mood of service to the Lord. No matter what nonsense a
person wearing neck beads and tilaka may have done, if he shows symptoms of
ecstasy in kirtana (trembling, crying and falling on the ground) he is a
faultless and pure devotee. Srila Prabhupada replies: "Sometimes [the] eight
symptoms of ecstasy [the asta-sattvika-vikara: inertness, perspiration,
standing of hairs on end, failing in the voice, trembling, paleness of the
body, tears in the eyes, and trance] are imitated by the mundane devotees
(prakrta-sahajiyas), but the pseudo symptoms are at once detected when one
sees the pseudodevotee addicted to so many forbidden things. Even though
decorated with the signs of a devotee, a person addicted to smoking, drinking
or illegitimate sex with women cannot have all the above-mentioned ecstatic
symptoms. But it is seen that sometimes these symptoms are willfully imitated,
and for this reason Srila Visvanatha Cakravarti accuses the imitators of being
stone-hearted men. They are sometimes even affected by the reflection of such
transcendental symptoms, yet if they still do not give up the forbidden
habits, then they are hopeless cases for transcendental realization." [Note: A
fuller understanding of what Srila Prabhupada means by "they are sometimes
even affected by the reflection of such transcendental symptoms" can be had by
reading Nectar of Devotion, Chapter 18, pages 139-141.]

A very significant feature of the sahajiya attitude is its perverse
"humility", which is really just enviousness: "Sometimes a sahajiya presents
himself as being void of desires for reputation (pratistha) in order to become
famous as a humble man. Such people cannot attain the platform of a celebrated
Vaisnava." (C.C. Madhya 4.147) For example, sahajiyas think that a devotee who
becomes recognized for his preaching accomplishments is fallen into the grip
of name and fame. If a preacher refutes atheists and materialists, he is
simply too proud. Harer-nama-sankirtana is too showy: it's best to remember
the Lord in the core of one's heart. Only caste brahmanas should worship
saligram-sila: if others do it, they'll fall down by becoming too puffed up.
Vaisnavas who are fussy about sadhana, insisting that illicit sex, smoking and
other harmless enjoyments be given up, are actually attached to these
pleasures themselves.

In this connection, sahajiyas abhor preachers who accept disciples:
"...Narottama dasa Thakura and other great acaryas like Madhvacarya,
Ramanujacarya and others accepted many thousands of disciples to induce them
to render devotional service. However, there is a class of sahajiyas who think
that these activities are opposed to the principles of devotional service.
Indeed, the consider such activities simply another phase of materialism."
(C.C. Madhya 7.130)

The holy name is all-powerful, so the sahajiyas say; therefore there is no
difference between namaparadha, nama-abhasa, and suddha-nama. The spiritual
state of a guru and disciple at the time of initiation doesn't matter, because
the holy name works by its own power. If Bilvamangala Thakura became Krsna
conscious by hearing a prostitute, then what can be wrong in receiving the
holy name from a prostitute or immoral man? There is no need to instruct
anyone to follow rules and regulations - let them chant Hare Krsna while
smoking, drinking, gambling and having sex. The holy name will cleanse them of
sinful reaction.

Though it is too lengthy to reproduce here, the purport to Srimad-Bhagavatam
2.2.30 very exactingly explains why it is that one can realize the full
glories of the holy name only by offenseless chanting. One may refer to the
purport to C.C. Madhya 4.113 for the warning from Padma Purana that hearing
from avaisnavas is like drinking milk touched by the lips of a serpent. As for
those who would argue otherwise, the following quote exposes their real
motivation:

"Srila Bhaktisiddhanta comments that saralata, or simplicity, is the first
qualification of a Vaisnava, whereas duplicity or cunning behavior is a great
offense against the principles of devotional service. As once advances in
Krsna consciousness, one must gradually become disgusted with material
attachment and thus become more and more attached to the service of the Lord.
If one is not factually detached from material activities but still proclaims
himself advanced in devotional service, he is cheating. No one will be happy
to see such behavior." (C.C. Antya 2.117, purport)

The sahajiyas believe there is no harm at all in hearing devotional songs sung
by professional singers and musicians, and there is no harm in propagating
these songs through modern media like records, tapes and radio. The
consciousness of the singer and hearer plays no part in the transmission of
devotion. In the same way, there is no harm in employing professional actors
and prostitutes to enact Krsna's pastimes in dramas. If these actors can bring
tears to our eyes by their performance, that proves they are spiritually
empowered.

But Srila Prabhupada writes: "Professional players and dramatic actors have no
sense of devotional service, and therefore although they can perform very
artistically, there is no life in such performances. Srila Bhaktisiddhanta
Sarasvati Thakura used to refer to such an actor as yatra-dale narada, which
means 'farcial Narada.' Sometimes an actor in a drama plays the part of
Narada, although in his private life he is not at all like Narada because he
is not a devotee. Such actors are not needed in dramatic performances about
the lives of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu and Lord Krsna." (C.C. Adi 10.13,
purport)

Sahajiyas argue that although someone is degraded in his personal life, if he
has material writing power, he may freely compose books on Caitanya
Mahaprabhu, Krsna, the lives of great devotees, and devotional service.
Similarly, the most confidential pastimes of Krsna (for instance, his stealing
of the clothes of the gopis) may be recited to the general public on the
condition that the speaker is sufficiently paid. Furthermore, a disciple can
be instructed on the confidential mellows of madhurya rasa even though he is
not free of material lust, because this will help him engage his lust in Krsna
consciousness. The main point is to engage the emotion somehow or other in
Krsna. Even demons like Kamsa and Sisupala were liberated by hating Krsna, so
what is the harm of becoming lusty while hearing about the Lord's pastimes of
love with the gopis?

In his purport to C.C. Madhya 8.193, Srila Prabhupada compares the attempt of
mundane persons to understand the confidential affairs of Sri Sri Radha and
Krsna to the attempt of keeping an elephant in a dish. And: "Material lust
cannot be engaged in the service of the Lord, for it is applicable to
materialists, not to Krsna. Only prema, or love of Godhead, is applicable for
the satisfaction of Krsna. Prema is full service rendered unto the Lord."
(C.C. Madhya 8.215, purport)

"But the main thing is to be natural," the stubborn sahajiya retorts. "Lord
Caitanya and His associates used to overeat, so we need not endeavour to
control our tongues. Some of the Lord's greatest associates had more than one
wife, so we can enjoy in this way too. Even when a so-called advanced Vaisnava
chastises a sahajiya, calling him a dog, fool, demon, sinner and saying, 'I
kick on your face', this shows he is no different from the rest of humanity,
for he gives free vent to feelings of pride, anger and enviousness. Why does
he then pretend to be free of lust? He should just relax and be natural."

This attitude qualifies the sahajiya for receiving the kind of Vaisnava-krpa
described in the purport to Srimad-Bhagavatam 11.2.46: "Srila Bhaktisiddhanta
has stated, 'When childish people think themselves mahabhagavatas and act in
defiance of the Vaisnava spiritual master, such behavior simply holds them
back from receiving the mercy of the Vaisnava guru. Bewildered by false ego,
these self-proclaimed devotees gradually become fit to be ignored by pure
devotees on the intermediate platform and are cheated of the mercy that comes
from the devotees' satisfaction. Thus they become asadhu by constantly
committing offenses against the devotees who preach the holy name of Krsna.
Pure devotees, therefore, in all circumstances display indifference to those
who falsely imagine themselves to be visuddha-bhaktas, or pure devotees of the
Lord. This indifference is an excellent manifestation of their mercy.'"

The sahajiyas entertain all sorts of mundane ideas about Lord Caitanya and His
associates which they try to support with offensive interpretations and
outright lies about the pastimes described in Sri Caitanya-caritamrta and Sri
Caitanya-bhagavata. Sometimes they present their own bogus scriptures to prove
their false assertations. The sahajiyas want us to understand that we poor
fanatics should be realistic about the great acaryas, who, being only human,
also had their faults. We should take these faults into account before
accepting their teachings blindly or idealistically.

Srila Prabhupada deals with this feature of sahajiya rascaldom at length in
his purport to C.C. Adi 10.85, where he describes three bogus stories about
Srila Jiva Gosvami circulated by the sahajiyas. And in his purport to Madhya
1.220 he writes: "A jealous person in the dress of a Vaisnava is not at all
happy to see the success of another Vaisnava in receiving the Lord's mercy.
Unfortunately in this age of Kali there are many mundane persons in the dress
of Vaisnavas, and Srila Bhaktivinoda Thakura has described them as disciples
of Kali. He says, kali-cela. He indicates that there is another Vaisnava, a
pseudo-Vaisnava with tilaka on his nose and kanthi beads around his neck. Such
a pseudo-Vaisnava associates with money and women and is jealous of successful
Vaisnavas."

In summary, a sahajiya is a dog-stubborn sense enjoyer who may have some
talent for singing, dancing, acting, speaking, joking and seducing women. He
dresses himself as a Vaisnava but is unable to distinguish between worldly
fame and spiritual fame, incomplete renunciation and perfect renunciation,
false devotion and pure devotion, offensive chanting, unclear chanting and
pure chanting of the holy name, worldly service and devotional service, lust
and love, maha-maya and yoga-maya, jiva and Visnu, the cheater and the bona
fide spiritual master, the godasa and the gosvami, the neophyte and advanced
devotee, what is authorized and what is not authorized, the spiritual master
and the disciple, proper conclusion and wrong conclusion, rasa and rasabhasa,
idol worship and Deity worship, devotees and demons, and so on.

In their persistent materialism, the sahajiyas can only be compared to
Hiranyakasipu, who thought Prahlada, a pure devotee, was just his son; or to
Ravana, who thought Laksmi-devi was a woman he could enjoy; or Sisupala, who
thought Krsna was subject to His criticism.

How can such offensive fools be delivered? It is very, very difficult, because
they hold the bona fide conclusions of sastra in great disdain. "In Vrndavana,
there are prakrta-sahajiyas who say that writing books or even touching books
is taboo. For them, devotional service means being relieved from these
activities. Whenever they are asked to hear a recitation of Vedic literatures,
they refuse, saying, 'What business do we have reading or hearing
transcendental literatures? They are meant for neophytes.' They pose
themselves to be too elevated to exert energy for reading, writing, and
hearing." (C.C. Madhya 19.132, purport)

Therefore, in dealing with the sahajiya class, one should simply stick to the
proper behavior of a devotee (Vaisnava-acara):

asat-sanga-tyaga, - ei vaisnava acara

"The rejection of the association of nondevotees - this is the acara of the
Vaisnavas." (C.C. Madhya 22.87)

