From Dog to Gopi?

I read a purport from Srimad Bhagawatam, and got a certain idea about what was mentioned there. My idea was flawed, and by the association of a devotee, I got the correct understanding of the purport.

The purport I read is from Canto Four, chapter 25, text 14, with translation and purport by His Divine Grace A. C Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada. Srila Prabhupada explains why he established a temple in Vrindaban. In Vrindaban the sahajiyas pass off sexual indulgence as spiritual life and for that reason intelligent men no longer visit there. It is difficult to rectify the sahajiyas. They can be rectified by taking birth in Vrindaban as animals such as hogs, dogs, and monkeys. Then in the life after that, they can be elevated to the spiritual platform.

When I read this purport by myself, I made two mistakes in understanding it:

  1. I thought "spiritual platform" indicated that after the dog birth the sahajiya could take his next birth as a gopi in Gokula to associate with Krishna and after that go back to Godhead in Goloka Vrindaban.
  2. I thought Srila Prabhupada established a temple in Vrindaban to attract the sahajiyas to go and live at the temples so that they could take their next birth as animals and then go back to Godhead. From a dog to a gopi!
However my foolishness was corrected. I was fortunate to get the association of a devotee who could properly understand and explain this purport. The devotee made the following points:
      1. You can’t go from a dog to a gopi. If that was possible, then why do sadhakas ( devotional practitioners ) take the more difficult process of sadhana bhakti? Why not make it easy by acting like a sahajiya, get a dog body, and then go back to Godhead?
      2. If you could go from dog to gopi, it would mean that a sahajiya turned dog turned gopi would be on the same level of consciousness as that of a perfected sadhaka. The sadhaka leads his life strictly. It involves devotion and as it's by product; renunciation, austerity, and practice ( vaidhi bhakti ) where under the direction of his self realized guru can gradually bring his consciousness to raganuga bhakti, spontaneous love of Krishna. The sahajiya does none of this and cannot achieve the mentality of a gopi.
      3. Srila Prabhupada has established a temple in Vrindaban for the benefit of such sahajiyas. Not that the sahajiyas should go to the temple and promote their sahajiya ideas. But that the sahajiyas after their animal birth can get a chance for the spiritual platform at the temple, where they can hear from a sadhu, engage in deity worship and participate in Sriman Mahaprabhu's Sankirtan party.
      4. Occasionally a jiva can be elevated back to Godhead simply by Krishna’s mercy without sadhana bhakti, but this is an exceptional situation. An example of this is Putana. She was a witch who tried to kill Krishna. She smeared poison on her breast and offered her breast milk to baby Krishna. Krishna sucked her breast milk and thought that she is approaching Me as a mother. I will take the spiritual part of her activity. Putana was transferred to the Vaikuntha planets where she achieved the position of maternal relative.
      5. Other demons killed by Krishna got a different result. Kamsa thought of Krishna in a mood of fear. He got impersonal salvation. Kamsa later took his birth in Caitanya lila as the Kazi who resisted but later on permitted Lord Chaitanaya and his followers to perform sankirtan in the streets of Nabadwip.
In conclusion, I can appreciate that although Srila Prabhupada told me personally "When I am gone, you will have my books," these books are best read in the association of a devotee.

Harer Nama Das