Sharanagati

Guidance in the spiritual life is essential. Especially in the beginning. Because if we are not under proper guidance, we can start some kind of practices and no result will come. Or even worse – bad results will come. Because it is said: Krishna Consciousness is just like a razor. You can purify the face or you can cut yourself.

So proper guidance means that somebody takes care of you. Gives specific instruction for you from the general instructions. What is the general instruction? Become Krishna conscious. But HOW, my dear master!? How am I to do this? So we need specific instructions also.

It is said if you start a war against another country, then the general will say: “Forward! We should capture the other country!” This is the general instruction. But the specific instructions: how to do this, how to fight, how to overcome the next bridge – we all need that in order to be victorious.

In the same way: the general instruction is: let’s go home, back to Godhead. Yes, and how? Therefore proper instruction, proper guidance is very useful. And this is the guru, the spiritual master, who can translate the general instruction into our specific case. If somebody is under proper guidance he can understand.