The End of the World as We know it Part V The Coming of the Christ

The Coming of the Christ.

The 1st Century saw a number of prophets and messiahs wander through the deserts of Galilea ranting against the Romans and calling for the end of the world. Among them was Jesus of Nazareth, a Jewish rabbi from a small town who challenged imperial authority and was tried for treason and crucified by Pontius Pilate. Rome had become accustomed to the zealots who walked the desert at the time of Jesus.

Prophets and False Prophets

The Bible records the fate that met Theudas, a false prophet with over four hundred disciples. He preached his own apocalyptic version before the Roman centurions hunted him down and beheaded him in the desert. A shepherd named Athronges crowned himself “King of the Jews” and was killed by the Roman soldiers. A prophet calling himself the “Samaritan” was crucified by Pontius Pilate in 4 BC, shortly before the birth of Jesus himself.

Jesus of Nazareth

History has forgotten the false prophets and second-rate zealots and exalted Jesus.  Shortly after his crucifixion, he was deified by his disciples, who considered him a divine being. And centuries later the Christian church that had grown up around this prophet elevated him to the level of God Himself. He was no longer merely a prophet or a wise man; much more than an angel descended from heaven. Jesus was the Christ, God Himself made flesh. What was the nature of this evolution?

The Search for the  Historical Jesus

For the purpose of this article I have consulted Zealot: the Life and Times of Jesus of Nazareth, by Reza Aslan; and How Jesus Became God: The Exaltation of a Jewish Preacher from Galilee by Bart D. Ehrman. These are two new well-documented bestselling books on the subject of the historical Jesus. I have also re-read the Gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John, and consulted the Imitation of Christ  by Tomas á Kempis.

The Compassionate Christ Jesus of the Sacred Heart

Both take up the question of how Jesus became the Lord of Heaven and Earth. How was it that an apparently common man, Jesus, Son of Mary and Joseph of Nazareth, became elevated in the imagination and faith of Christendom to the level of God Himself.

Please do not take offense with me if you are offended by considering the historical aspects of the life of Jesus. Read no further. I am making no argument as an advocate here, but am interested in the implications that this evolution in faith had for the development of culture and civilization both in Europe as well as in the Americas as for example in the Conquest of the Mayas by Catholic missionaries who carried the faith to this continent.

How did Jesus become God?

But it is a curious question. How is it that divinity becomes recognized? How did the consciousness of the West go from registering Jesus as a jewish rabble rouser guilty of sedition and punishable by execution to being a great prophet with brilliant wisdom teachings to being the Lord of Heaven and Earth?

Jesus as Lord

The idea that a man transforms into a god has fascinated mythologists for centuries.

In Greek mythology gods transform into men and men often become gods, as celebrated in the poetic tales found in the Metamorphosis of Ovid. When does a prophet become a saint? And when does a saint become a god? How does a civilization move from polytheistic with many gods to Henotheistic where a God predominates gods and angels to Monotheistic where there is no God but God? Perhaps a look into the historical Jesus and the religious faith which grew up around him will prove illustrative.

How did Jesus go from being a man to being “The Son of Man,” to the “Son of God,” the “Right Hand of God,” to “God Himself?”

Read with Caution

Again, if you are hesitant to challenge your faith, go no further.

Jesus, according to the biblical version is “Begotten not made...came down from heaven through the power of the holy spirit...was born from a virgin mother.”

So how does the Jesus story evolve? How does the man grow from preacher to legend to myth to religious doctrine? The question interests me since it throws light not only on Christianity but on the development of many religious movements, such as for example Buddhism.

Jesus with his followers and disciples

Buddha himself, remember, never promoted himself as a god, much less God Himself. Nevertheless, his image is worshipped for blessings in temples from Śrī Lanka to Thailand. How do a group of followers or religious worshippers come to embrace a man as god? Apart from the Jesus story there are many prophets whose followers later esteem them as divine. How does this process take place. Perhaps the best place to look for an understanding of this cultural phenomenon is in the story of Jesus himself.

Apotheosis: Exaltation vs. Avatar: Descent

It appears that there are two paths to divinity. One is called apotheosis. It means that someone is raised to the level of god or God. The other is called avatara. This is when God or gods descend. Up versus Down. An example of apotheosis in a strict sense would be when Jesus rose up to heaven on the third day. He literally arose into the heavens. But in a broader sense, apotheosis is deification.

The Evidence of Saints

Mother Teresa of Calcutta

Before deification is canonization and before canonization there is beatification. Mother Teresa of Calcutta was born Agnus Gonxhe in Albania. She was considered saintly during her lifetime. Since her death the church has begun the process of beatification, the third step towards possible  canonisation as a church-accepted saint.

Joan of Arc, The Maid of Orleans

If saintly life is a virtue, perhaps we might do well to study the example of the saints. Certainly beatification might be a step towards further apotheosis.

Joan, Burned at the Stake for Heresy

St. Joan of Arc of France is an interesting case of how an ordinary girl becomes a prophet, then is tried for heresy and burned at the stake as a heretic by the church in 1431, later declared a martyr, a symbol of France and finally be beatified and canonized as a saint centuries later in 1920.

Saint Joan of Arc, Patron Saint of France

St. Patrick, the patron saint of the Irish was not so lucky. The missionary,  who may have preached in Roman Britain somewhere between 496 and 508 is said to have driven all the venomous snakes and serpents from the emerald isle. He used the shamrock to teach the Holy Trinity. His walking stick famously grew into a tree. Unfortunately St. Patrick was never canonized as a saint. He has never been recognized by the Catholic Church and, sadly for the Irish, is a saint in name only.

Saint Patrick, Uncanonised.

A number of saints are martyrs. Saint Sebastian was tied to a tree and shot full of arrows. St. Bartholomew was skinned alive. St. Stephen was stoned to death. St. Andrew was crucified on an X shaped cross on the northern coast of Peloponnese. Simon was crucified upside down. He is said to have  refused to be executed in the same manner as Christ because he was unworthy to be executed in the same way as the Lord.  Saint Polycarp was sentenced to burn at the stake for his refusal to light incense to the Roman gods. Tradition has it that the flames did not burn him so he was stabbed to death.

Imitation of saints, evidently, is dangerous. To follow in the footsteps of the above-mentioned saints is to be branded as a heretic or traitor and executed by fire, crucifixion or worse.

Saint Sebastian

For others, however, imitation is a virtue. Thomas á Kempis, was a Dutch prelate in the 15th Century. He wrote an influential book called, “The Imitation of Christ.”

Tomas á Kempis

Over the years his book has been superceded in influence among Christian thinkers only by the Bible itself. His meditation on spiritual life has inspired readers from Sir Thomas More and St. Ignatius Loyola to Thomas Merton and Pope John Paul I. Written somewhere between 1420 and 1427, “The Imitation of Christ” contains clear instructions for renouncing worldly vanities and locating eternal truths. While Kempis himself never reached the divine heights of canonization, no book has more explicitly and movingly described the Christian ideal of self-sacrifice and surrender: “My son, to the degree that you can leave yourself behind, to that degree will you be able to enter into Me.”

According to my version which follows the 1603 English Translation, Kempis writes:

“ON THE IMITATION OF CHRIST AND CONTEMPT OF ALL THE VANITIES OF THE WORLD

‘He that followeth Me, walketh not in darknes’(JOHN 8.12) saith the Lord. These are the words of Christ, by which we are admonished how we ought to imitate His life and manners, if we will be truly enlightened, and be delivered from all blindness of heart. Let, therefore, our chiefest endeavour be, to meditate upon the life of Jesus Christ.”

My meditation here is on the question of Apotheosis vs. Avatar. If we begin our meditation by a close study and appreciation of the Gospels, we find shades of difference in the Apotheosis vs. Avatara interpretation of the divinity of Christ.

The Gospel of the Apostle Mark seems to hold the view that Jesus has become exalted during his lifetime through his example of sacrifice. His supreme sacrifice was to accept upon himself the sins of the world. And yet, even before the crucifixion he reveals himself as human. His moment of desperation in the Garden of Gethsemane defines him as human with all the foibles and doubts that humans are err to. Knowing that he faces a grave test ahead, the test or execution by cruficixion, Jesus asks the Lord, “O my Father! Why hast thou forsaken me?” This is an all-too-human moment. A divine avatar, knowing his eternal place at the right hand of God the Father, would have no such misgiving. Why does Jesus doubt, if not to give hope to all of us who lose our faith? And if the Garden of Gethsemane shows us Jesus in a human moment, the crucifixion shows a divine moment. By sacrificing himself for the sins of the world Jesus becomes exalted to the divine plane. His compassion is superhuman and godly. Christ’s mercy upon our sins is a divine act that raises him to the highest level of divinity according a critical reading of Mark’s version of the Gospel.

John seems to view Jesus through a different lens. He defines Jesus as an avatar, who was born holy, who is the earthly manifestation of the logos, the divine word. The Logos which is one with God Himself descends in a compassionate form as Jesus, Mercy Incarnate, Virgin Born.

So which is the correct version? Are saints made or born? Do men become godly or does God become Man? Apotheosis or Avatar?

The Apotheosis of Saint Benedict at the monastic church of Münsterschwarzach, by Johann Evangelist Holzer

14th Jewel Continued: Ontology of the Class system, continued...

Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Saraswati Ṭhakura

শ্রী গৌड़िয-কন্ঠহার

Gaudiya Kanṭhahāra:

The Jeweled Necklace of the Gaudiya Vaishnavas

14th Jewel

VARṆADHARMA-TATTVA

The Ontology of Social Classes

Being a compendium of quotations from revealed scriptures

concerning the truths about the cult of Chaitanya Mahāprabhu

Compiled under the authority and direction of

His Divine Grace

Bhaktisiddhānta Sāraswāti Goswāmī

Prabhupada

Translated and edited, with original Sanskrit and Bengali and Roman transliteration by

B. V. Mahāyogi, Michael Dolan

The Smṛti on the Occupational Behavior of
Brāhmaṇas

१४.४४
यत्रैतल्-लक्ष्यते सर्प वृत्तं स ब्राह्मणः स्मृतः
यत्रैतन् न भवेत् सर्प तं शूद्रमिलि निर्दिशेत्
14.44

yatraital-lakṣyate sarpa vṛttaṁ sa brāhmaṇaḥ smṛtaḥ

yatraitan na bhavet sarpa taṁ śūdramili nirdiśet 

[Yudhiṣṭhira said] "O serpent, whoever has the characteristics of a brāhmaṇa

is said to be a brāhmaṇa. One who doesn't have the characteristics of a

brāhmaṇa is a śūdra, even if he is "born" a brāhmaṇa. 

(Mahābharata, Vana Parva 180.26)

An Example of the Conduct of a Brāhmaṇa

१४.४५
तं होवाच किं गोत्रो नु सौम्यसीति.
स होवाच नाहमेतद्वेद भो यद्-गोत्रो ऽहम् अस्मि.
अपृच्छं मातरम् सा मा प्रत्यब्रवीद् भह्वहं चरन्ती परिचारिणी यौवने त्वामलभे.
साहं एतत् न वेद यद्-गोत्रस्-त्वमसि. जबाला तु नामा अहमस्मि, सत्यकामो नाम त्वमसीति.
सोऽहं सत्यकामो जाबालो ऽस्मि भो इति.
तं होवाच नैतदब्राह्मणो विवक्तुम्-अर्हति समिधं
सौम्या आहर. उप त्वा नेस्ये. न सत्यादगा इति.
14.45

taṁ hovāca kiṁ gotro nu saumyasīti.

sa hovāca nāhametadveda bho yad-gotro 'ham asmi.

apṛcchaṁ mātaram sā mā pratyabravīd bhahvahaṁ carantī paricāriṇī yauvane tvāmalabhe.

sāhaṁ etat na veda yad-gotras-tvamasi. jabālā tu nāmā ahamasmi, satyakāmo nāma tvamasīti.

so'haṁ satyakāmo jābālo 'smi bho iti.

taṁ hovāca naitadabrāhmaṇo vivaktum-arhati samidhaṁ

saumyā āhara. upa tvā nesye. na satyādagā iti. 

The wise Gautama asked Satyakāma, "My dear boy, what is your gotra?" The boy said,

"I do not know what my caste or family background is. I asked my mother, and

she said, 'When I was young, I wandered here and there and knew many men.

Then you were born. I knew so many men that I don't know who your father is, or what your caste is. 

All I know is that my name is Jabala and your name is Satyakāma (One who wants truth).' Therefore I am known as the Satyakāma of Jabala, and do not know my caste". 

Gautama said, "My dear boy, you speak truthfully, and therefore you must be a

brāhmaṇa. No one but a brāhmaṇa could speak such an unpalatable truth. O

beautiful young boy, go and bring me wood for the sacrificial fire. I shall

initiate you as my disciple, for you never depart from the truth. 

(Chāndogya Upaniṣad 4.4.4, Gautama)

१४.४६
आर्ज्ववं ब्राह्मणे साक्षात् शूद्रोऽनार्जव- लक्षणाः
गौतमस्त्व् इति विज्ञाय सत्य-काममुपानयत्
14.46

ārjvavaṁ brāhmaṇe sākṣāt śūdro'nārjava- lakṣaṇāḥ

gautamastv iti vijñāya satya-kāmamupānayat 

Truthfulness is the symptom of a brāhmaṇa, whereas dishonesty is the symptom

of a śūdra. Knowing this, Gautama Ṛṣī initiated

Satyakāma as a brāhmaṇa.

(Chāndogya Upaniṣad, Mādhva-bhāṣya, Sāma- saṁhitā)

The Evidence of Vedānta-sūtra and the Example of Citraratha-

१४.४७
शुगस्य तदनादर-श्रवणात् सूच्यते हि" नासौ पौत्रायणः
शूद्रः शुचाद्-ब्रवणम् एव हि शुदत्वम्
राजा पौत्रायणः शोकाच्-छुद्रोति मुनिनोदितः
प्राण-विद्याम्-अवाप्यास्मात् परं
धर्म-वाप्तवान्
14.47

śugasya tadanādara-śravaṇāt sūcyate hi" nāsau pautrāyaṇaḥ 
śūdraḥ śucād-bravaṇam eva hi śudatvam

rājā pautrāyaṇaḥ śokāc-chudroti muninoditaḥ 
prāṇa-vidyām-avāpyāsmāt paraṁ

dharma-vāptavān

The following story is from the Chandogya Upaniṣad (Saṁvarga-vidya 4): 

There once was a great king named Jānaśruti Pautrāyaṇa, who was famous for his good

works. Two ṛṣis wanted to create a desire for spiritual knowledge in his heart

and they took the form of swans to accomplish this. 

One of them praised the king while the other contemptously accused him of lacking spiritual knowledge.

The swan then praised the sage Raikva for being very learned. Upon hearing

this the king was smitten with grief and approached the sage Raikva with

presents seeking spiritual knowledge from him. Raikva twice addressed the king, calling him a  śūdra. 

"O Śūdra, you have brought all these presents, and now you want me to

instruct you?" Thereafter, Raikva taught him the spiritual science.

The Brahma-sūtra says: "Raikva addressed Jānaśruti Pautrāyaṇa as śūdra

because Pautrāyaṇa was overwhelmed with sorrow." 

The use of the word śūdra in this verse does not mean that Jānaśruti was a śūdra at birth, but that he was lamenting. The purport is that those who are overwhelmed by lamentation are known as śūdras. 

It is written in the Padma- Purāṇa that King Pautrāyaṇa was a

kṣatriya and that because of his lamentation, Raikva Muni called him a śūdra.

[The word śūdra, therefore, means "one who laments."] Later, Pautrāyaṇa

gained knowledge of the ultimate goal of life and the supreme religion from

Raikva. 

(Brahma-sūtra 1.3.34) Madhvācārya's Commentary, 

Quoting from Padma-Purāṇa-

१४.४८
"क्षत्रियत्वावगतेश् च उत्तरत्र चैत्र-रथेन लिङ्गात्" भाष्ये॒
"अयं अश्वतरीरथ इति चित्ररथ सम्वन्धिनित्वेन लिङ्गेन पौत्रायणस्य क्षत्रियत्वावगतेश् च रथस्त्वश्वतरीयुक्तश्चित्र
इत्यभिधीयते इति ब्राह्मे यत्र वेदो रथस् तत्र न वेदो यत्र नो रथ इति च
ब्रह्म-वैवर्ते"
14.48

"kṣatriyatvāvagateś ca uttaratra caitra-rathena liṅgāt" bhāṣye:

"ayaṁ aśvatarīratha iti citraratha samvandhinitvena liṅgena pautrāyaṇasya kṣatriyatvāvagateś ca rathastvaśvatarīyuktaścitra

ityabhidhīyate iti brāhme yatra vedo rathas tatra na vedo yatra no ratha iti ca

brahma-vaivarte"

The Brahma-sūtra says: "That Jānaśrūti was kṣatriya and not a śūdra is

understood from the rest of the story, where he is described along with a

kṣatriya, Abhipratṁrin, who was a Caitra- ratha." [Because Jānaśrūti was a

kṣatriya and not a śūdra by quality, he was fit for hearing spiritual knowledge

from Raikva Muni, who would not have instructed him if he actuallly was a

śūdra. The purpose of Raikva Muni's calling him a śūdra was simply to

illustrate that constant lamentation is the quality of a śūdra, and that if he were

to instruct Jānaśrūti, the king would have to rid himself of the tendency toward

lamentation. That Raikva did instruct Jānaśrūti is proof that the king freed

himself from the tendency, and was not a śūdra, but was qualified to study the

Vedas. Those who have the qualities of śūdras are forbidden to study the Vedas

because they will pervert the meaning of the

Vedas.] 

The whole point is that one may know a person's varṇa or social position from his qualities. 

(Brahma-sūtra 1.3.35 and commentary)

Members of Other Castes who Became Brāhmaṇas

१४.४९
नाभागा-दिष्टपुत्रो द्वौ वैश्यौ ब्राह्मणतां गतौ
14.49

nābhāgā-diṣṭaputro dvau vaiśyau brāhmaṇatāṁ gatau

Nābhāga and Diṣṭhaputra were two vaiśyas who attained the status of brāhmaṇas. 

(Hari-vaṁśa 11)

१४.५०-५६
एवं विप्रत्वमगमद्वीतहव्यो नराधिपः भृगोः प्रसादाद् राजेन्द्र क्षत्रियः क्षत्रियर्षभ तस्य गृत्समदः पुत्रो रूपेणेन्द्र इवापरः स ब्रह्मचारी विर्प्रर्शिः श्रीमान् गृत्समदो ऽभवं पुत्रो गृत्समदस्यापि सुचेताभवत्-द्विजः वर्चाः सुतेजसः पुत्रो विहव्यस्तस्य चात्मजः विहवस्य तु पुत्रस्तु वित-तस्य चात्मजः विततस्य सुतः सत्यः सन्तः सत्यस् स्य चात्मजःश्रवास्तस्य सुतश्चर्षिः श्रवसश्चाभवत्तमः तमसश् च प्रकाशो ऽभुत्तनयो द्विजसत्तमः प्रकाशस्य च वागिन्द्रो बभुव जयतां बरः तस्यात्मजश् च प्रमितिर्वेद-वेदाङ्गपारन्ग घृताच्यां तस्य पुत्रस्तु रुरुर्नामोदपद्यत प्रमद्वरायस्त रुरोः पुत्रः समुपद्यत शुनको नाम विप्रर्षिर्यस्य पुत्रोऽथ शौनकः
14.50-56

evaṁ vipratvamagamadvītahavyo narādhipaḥ bhṛgoḥ prasādād rājendra kṣatriyaḥ kṣatriyarṣabha tasya gṛtsamadaḥ putro rūpeṇendra ivāparaḥ sa brahmacārī virprarśiḥ śrīmān gṛtsamado 'bhavaṁ putro gṛtsamadasyāpi sucetābhavat-dvijaḥ varcāḥ sutejasaḥ putro vihavyastasya cātmajaḥ vihavasya tu putrastu vita-tasya cātmajaḥ vitatasya sutaḥ satyaḥ santaḥ satyas sya cātmajaḥśravāstasya sutaścarṣiḥ śravasaścābhavattamaḥ tamasaś ca prakāśo 'bhuttanayo dvijasattamaḥ prakāśasya ca vāgindro babhuva jayatāṁ baraḥ tasyātmajaś ca pramitirveda-vedāṅgapāranga ghṛtācyāṁ tasya putrastu rururnāmodapadyata pramadvarāyasta ruroḥ putraḥ samupadyata śunako nāma viprarṣiryasya putro'tha śaunakaḥ 

Bhima explained how King Vītahavya became a brāhmaṇa: "O King

Rajendra, best of the kṣatriyas, Vītahavya was a kṣatriya, but by the grace of

Bhṛgu Muni, he became a brāhmaṇa. His son, Gṇtsamada, who was inferior to

none save Indra, was a brahmacārī and a learned Ṛṣī. Gṇtsamada's son, Suceta, was a learned brāhmaṇa. 

Suceta's son was Varcāh, and his son was Vitatya, whose son was Vāgindra. His son was Santa, his son was ṇñiśravā, his son was Tama. Tama's son, was the best of brāhmaṇas, Prakāśa, whose son was Vāgindra, the foremost of all reciters of the Vedic mantras. Vāgindra had a son whose name was Pramati. Pramati was a master of all the Vedas and their branches. Pramati begot in the womb of the apsarā, Ghṇtṁcī, a son named

Ruru, who had a son by his wife, Pramadvara. 

Ruru's son was the venerable ṛṣī, Śunaka. The son of Śunaka was the great sage

Śaunaka (who heard Bhāgavatam from Suta Gosvāmī at

Naimiśaraṛya). In this way, O best of kings, the great king Vītahavya, a kṣatriya, attained the

status of a brāhmaṇa by the mercy of Bhrgu, and by dint of his sons and

decendants becoming great brāhmaṇas. 

(Mahābhārata, Anuśāsana Parva, 30.66, 58, 60-65)

Examples from Bhāgavatam on BrahminicalConduct

१४.५७
यवीयांस एकाशीतिर् जायन्तेयाः पितुर् आदेशकरा महा-शालीना महा-श्रोत्रिया
यज्ञ-शीलाः कर्म-विशुद्धा ब्राह्मणा बभूवुः
14.57

yavīyāṁsa ekāśītir jāyanteyāḥ pitur ādeśakarā mahā-śālīnā mahā-śrotriyā

yajña-śīlāḥ karma-viśuddhā brāhmaṇā babhūvuḥ 

In addition to these nineteen sons mentioned above, there were eighty-one

younger ones, all born of Rṣabhadeva and Jayantī. According to the order of

their father, they became cultured, well-behaved, pure in their activities, expert

in Vedic knowledge and the performance of Vedic rituals. 

(Bhāg. 5.4.13)

१४.५८
पूरोर् वंशं प्रवक्ष्यामि यत्र जातो ऽसि भारत
यत्र राजर्षयो वंश्या ब्रह्म-वंश्याश् च जज्ञिरे
14.58

pūror vaṁśaṁ pravakṣyāmi yatra jāto 'si bhārata 
yatra rājarṣayo vaṁśyā brahma-vaṁśyāś ca jajñire

[Śukadeva Gosvāmī said] O Mahārāja Parikṣit, descendent of Mahārāja Bhārata, I shall now describe the dynasty of Pūru, in which you were born, in which many saintly kings appeared, and from which many dynasties of brāhmaṇas began. 

(Bhāg. 9.20.1)

१४.५९
काश्यः कुशो गृत्समद इति गृत्समदाद् अभूत् शुनकः शौनको यस्य बह्वृच-प्रवरो मुनिः
14.59

kāśyaḥ kuśo gṛtsamada iti gṛtsamadād abhūt śunakaḥ śaunako yasya bahvṛca-pravaro muniḥ 

Kṣatraviddha's son was Suhotra, who had three sons, named Kāśya, Kuśa, and Gṛtsamada. From Gṛtsamada came Śunaka, and from him came Śaunaka, the great saint, the best of those conversant with the Ṛg Veda. 

(Bhāg. 9.17.3)

The Words of Brahmā From the Padma-Purāṇa

१४.६०-६२

सच्-छ्रोत्रिय-कुले जातो अक्रियो नैव पूजितः

असत्-क्ष्त्रकुले पूज्यो व्यास-वैभाण्डुकय् यथा

क्षत्रियाणां कुले जातो विश्वामित्रोऽस्ति मत्समः 

वेश्यापुत्रो Vअसिष्ठश् च अन्ये सिद्धा द्विजातयः

यस्य तस्य कुले जातो गुणवानेव तैर्गुनैः

साक्षाद् ब्रह्मनयो विप्रः पूजीयह् प्रयत्नतः

14.60-62

sac-chrotriya-kule jāto akriyo naiva pūjitaḥ

asat-kṣtrakule pūjyo vyāsa-vaibhāṇḍukay yathā

kṣatriyāṇāṃ kule jāto viśvāmitro'sti matsamaḥ 

veśyāputro Vasiṣṭhaś ca anye siddhā dvijātayaḥ

yasya tasya kule jāto guṇavāneva tairgunaiḥ

sākṣād brahmanayo vipraḥ pūjīyah prayatnataḥ

[Lord Brahmā said] If one is born in a family of brāhmaṇas who are absorbed in hearing divine sound, but has bad character and behaviour, he is not worshipable as a brāhmaṇa. On the other hand, Vyāsa and Vaibhāṇḍaka Muni were born in unclean circumstances, but they are worshipable. In the same way, Viśvamitra Muni was born a kṣatriya, but he became equal to me by his qualities and activities. Vasiṣṭha was born as a son of a prostitute. Many other great souls who manifested the qualities of first-class brāhmaṇas also took birth in similar humble circumstances, but they are also called perfect. The place where one takes birth is of no importance in determining whether one is a brāhmaṇa. Those who have the qualities of brāhmaṇas are recognized everywhere as brāhmaṇas, and those who have such qualities are worshipable by everyone. (Padma Purāṇa, Sṇñṭhi-Khaṇḍa 43.321,322 Gautamīya-saṃskaraṇa)

Those Born Brāhmaṇas in Kali-yuga are not Brahmaṇas by birth

१४.६३

अशुद्धाः शूद्र-कल्पा हि ब्राह्मणः कलि-सम्भवाः

तेषाम् आगम-मार्गेण शुद्धिर् न श्रोत-वर्त्मना

14.63

aśuddhāḥ śūdra-kalpā hi brāhmaṇaḥ kali-sambhavāḥ

teṣām āgama-mārgeṇa śuddhir na śrota-vartmanā

The brāhmaṇas born in the age of Kali are merely śūdras. Their so-called Vedic path of karma is polluted and cannot purify them. They can only be purified by following the path of the āganas orpañcaratrika-viddhi. (Hari-bhakti-vilāsa 5.5, from Viṣṇu Yāmala)

What is Dīkṣā?

१४.६४

दिव्यम् ज्ञानं यतो दद्यात् कुर्यात् पापस्य संक्षयम्

तस्माद्-दीक्षेति सा प्रोक्ता देशिकैस् तत्त्व-कोविदैः

14.64

divyam jñānaṃ yato dadyāt kuryāt pāpasya saṃkṣayam

tasmād-dīkṣeti sā proktā deśikais tattva-kovidaiḥ

The process by which divine knowledge (divya jñāna) is given and sins are destroyed is called dikṣa by the highly learned scholars who are expert in spiritual affairs. (Hari-bhakti-vilāsa 2.9, from Viṣṇu Yāmala)

Dīkṣā can Make a Common man a Brāhmaṇa

१४.६५

यथा कञ्चनतां याति कांस्यं रस-विधानतः

तथा-दीक्षा-विधानेन द्विजत्वं जायते नृणाम्

14.65

yathā kañcanatāṃ yāti kāṃsyaṃ rasa-vidhānataḥ

tathā-dīkṣā-vidhānena dvijatvaṃ jāyate nṛṇām

Just as bell metal is transformed into gold by alchemy, a common man is transformed into a twice-born brāhmaṇa by dīkṣā from a bona find spiritual master. 

(Hari-bhakti-vilāsa 2.12, from Tattva Sṃgara)

१४.६५अ

नृणां सर्वेषाम् एव द्विजत्वं "विप्रता

14.65a

nṛṇāṃ sarveṣām eva dvijatvaṃ "vipratā"

The purport is that anyone can become twice-born if he is properly initiated. 

(Sanātana Gosvāmī's Dig Darśinī commentary on the above verse)

The Guru Initiates the Humble Disciple

१४.६६

स्वयं ब्रह्मणि निक्षप्तान् जातान् एव हि मन्त्रतः

विनीतानथ पुत्रादीन् संस्कृत्य प्रतिभोधयेत्

14.66

svayaṃ brahmaṇi nikṣaptān jātān eva hi mantrataḥ

vinītānatha putrādīn saṃskṛtya pratibhodhayet

When the guru gives the mantra to his disciple according to the rules and regulations of pāñcarātrika-viddhi, then, by the influence of that mantra, the disciple never takes birth again. A humble disciple conducts himself with great respect for his spiritual master as if he is a son of the guru. To such a humble disciple, who has been purified by the appropriate saṃskāras, the guru teaches the meaning of the mantra. This is the way that spiritual initiation is performed according to the rules and regulations of scripture. 

(Nārada Paṣcarātra, Bharadvāja-saṃhitā 2.34)

The Evidence of Mahābhārata

१४.६७

एतैः कर्म-फलैर्-देवि न्यून-जाति-कुलोद्भवः

शूद्रोऽप्य् आगम-सम्पन्नो द्विजो भवति संस्कृतः

14.67

etaiḥ karma-phalair-devi nyūna-jāti-kulodbhavaḥ

śūdro'py āgama-sampanno dvijo bhavati saṃskṛtaḥ

O goddess, even a śūdra can be purified though carefully following the proper conduct of a brāhmaṇaas prescribed in the Pañcaratra. Thus he is purfied of karmic reactions and by accepting initiation from a bona fide spiritual master he becomes a brāhmaṇa. (Mahābhārata, Anuśāsana Parva 143.46)

१४.६८

न योनिर् नापि संस्कारो न श्रुतं न च सन्ततिः

कारणानि द्विजत्वस्य वृत्तम् एव तु कारणम्

14.68

na yonir nāpi saṃskāro na śrutaṃ na ca santatiḥ

kāraṇāni dvijatvasya vṛttam eva tu kāraṇam

Neither birth, nor purificatory rites (saṃskāras), nor learning, nor offspring are qualifications for brahminical status. Only brahminical conduct is the basis for brahminical status. (Mahābhārata, Anuśāsana Parva 143.50)

१४.६९

सर्वोऽयं ब्राह्मणो लोके वृत्तेन तु विदीयते

वृत्ते स्थितस्तु शूद्रोऽपि ब्राह्मणत्वं नियच्छति

14.69

sarvo'yaṃ brāhmaṇo loke vṛttena tu vidīyate

vṛtte sthitastu śūdro'pi brāhmaṇatvaṃ niyacchati

All genuine brāhmaṇas in the world are brāhmaṇas by virtue of their conduct. A śūdra who is established in good conduct is regarded as having attained the status of a brāhmaṇa. (Mahābhārata, Anuśāsana Parva 143.51)

The Conclusion of the Gosvāmīs

१४.७०

ब्राह्मण-कुमाराणां शौक्रे जन्मनि दुर्जातित्वाभावोऽपि सवन-योग्य्-अत्वाय पुण्य-विशेसमय सावित्र-जन्म-सापेक्षत्वात्. टतश्च अदीक्षितस्य श्वादस्य. श्वादस्य सवन योग्यत्व-प्रतिकूल-दुर्जात्यारमकं प्रारब्धमपि गतम् एव, किन्तु शिष्ठाचाराभावात् अदीक्षितस्य श्वादस्य दीक्षां विना सावित्र्यं जन्म नास्तीति ब्राहमन-कुमाराणां सवन-योग्यत्वा भावावच्छेदक पुण्य विशेषमय-सवित्र जन्मापेक्षावदस्य अदीक्षितस्य श्वादस्य सावित्र्य-जन्मान्तरोपेक्सो वर्तत इति भावः

14.70

brāhmaṇa-kumārāṇāṃ śaukre janmani durjātitvābhāvo'pi savana-yogy-atvāya puṇya-viśesamaya sāvitra-janma-sāpekṣatvāt. Tataśca adīkṣitasya śvādasya. śvādasya savana yogyatva-pratikūla-durjātyāramakaṃ prārabdhamapi gatam eva, kintu śiṣṭhācārābhāvāt adīkṣitasya śvādasya dīkṣāṃ vinā sāvitryaṃ janma nāstīti brāhamana-kumārāṇāṃ savana-yogyatvā bhāvāvacchedaka puṇya viśeṣamaya-savitra janmāpekṣāvadasya adīkṣitasya śvādasya sāvitrya-janmāntaropekso vartata iti bhāvaḥ

[This is a quotation from Jīva Gosvāmī's commentary on a verse of Bhakti-rasāmṛta-sindhu, Pūrva Vibhāga 1.13, which Rūpa Gosvāmī quotes from Śrīmad Bhāgavatam (3.33.6).]

The  Bhāgavatam verse and its purport by Śrīla Prabhupāda is given as follows: 

"To say nothing of the spiritual advancement of persons who see the Supreme Person face to face, even a person born in a family of dog-eaters immediately becomes eligible to perform Vedic sacrifices if he once utters the holy name of the Supreme Personality of Godhead or chants about Him, hears about His pastimes, offers Him obeisances or even remembers Him.

Purport: Herein the spritual potency of chanting, hearing or remembering the holy name of the Supreme Lord is greatly stressed. Rūpa Gosvāmī has discussed the sequence of sinful activities of the conditioned soul, and he has established, in Bhakti-rasāmṛta-sindhu, that those who engage in devotional service become freed from the reactions of all sinful activities. This is also confirmed in Bhagavad-gītā. The Lord says that He takes charge of one who surrenders to Him and makes him immune to all reactions to sinful activities. 

If by chanting the holy name of the Supreme Personality of Godhead one becomes so swiftly cleared of all reactions to sinful activities, then what is to be said of those persons who see Him face to face? Another consideration here is that persons who are purified by the process of chanting and hearing become immediately eligible to perform Vedic sacrifices. Generally, only a person who is born in a family of brāhmaṇas, who has been reformed by the ten kinds of purificatory processes and who is learned in Vedic literature is allowed to perform the Vedic sacrifices, but here the word sadyaū, "immediately," is used. 

Śrīdhara Svāmī also remarks that one can immediately be eligible to perform Vedic sacrifices. A person born in a family of the low caste which is accustomed to eating dogs is so positioned due to his past sinful activites, but by chanting or hearing once in pureness, or in a offenseless manner, he is immediately relieved of the sinful reaction. Not only is he relieved of the sinful reaction, but he immidiately achieves the result of all purificatory processes. Taking birth in the family of a brāhmaṇa is certainly due to pious activities in one's past life, but still a child who is born in a brāhmaṇa family depends on his further reformation upon initiation, acceptance of a sacred thread, and many other reformatory processes. 

But a person who chants the holy name of the Lord, even if born in family of caṇdalas, dog-eaters, does not need reformation. Simply by chanting Hare Kṛṣṇa, he immediately becomes purified and becomes as good as the most learned brāhmaṇa. Śrīdhara Svāmī especially remarks in this connection, anena pūjyatavaṃ lakṣyate. 

Some caste brāhmaṇas remark that by chanting Hare Kṛṣṇa, purification begins. Of course, that depends on the individual process of chanting, but this remark of Śrīdhara Svāmī's is completely applicable if one chants the holy name of the Lord without offense for he immediately becomes more than a brāhmaṇa. As Śrīdhara Svāmī says, pūjyatvam: he immediately becomes as respectable as a most learned brāhmaṇa and can be allowed to perform Vedic sacrifices. 

If simply by changing the holy name of the Lord one becomes sanctified instantly, then what can be said of those persons who see the Supreme Lord face to face and who can understand the descent of the Lord as Devahūti understands Kapiladeva. Usually, initiation depends on the bona fide spiritual master, who directs the disciple. If he sees that a disciple has become competent and purified by the process of chanting, he offers the sacred thread to the disciple just so that he will be recognized as one-hundred-percent equal with a brāhmaṇa. This is also confimed in the Hari-bhakti-vilāsa by Śrī Sanātana Gosvāmī: 

"As base metal can be changed into gold by a chemical process, any person can similarly be changed into a brāhmaṇa by dikṣṃ-vidhāna, the initiation process." It is sometimes remarked that by the chanting process one begins to purify himself and can take birth in his next life in a brāhmaṇa family and then be reformed. 

But at this present moment, even those who are born in the best brāhmaṇa families are not reformed, nor is there any certainty that they are actually born of brāhmaṇa fathers. Formerly the garbhādhāna reformatory system was prevalent, but at the present moment there is no such garbhadhāna, or seed-giving ceremony. Under these circumstances, no one knows if a man if factually born of a brāhmaṇa father. Whether one has acquired the qualification of a brāhmaṇa depends on the judgement of the bona fide spiritual master. He bestows upon the disciple the position of a brāhmaṇa by his own judgement. When one is accepted as a brāhmaṇa in the sacred thread ceremony, under the pāñcarātrika system, then he is dvija, twice-born. That is confimed by Sanātana Gosvāmī: dvijatvaṃ jāyate. By the process of initiation, a person is accepted as a brāhmaṇa in his purified state of chanting the holy name of the Lord. He then makes further progress to become a qualified Vaiṣṇava, which means that the brahminical qualification is already acquired.

The import of the above commentary by Jīva Gosvāmī on this verse is summarized as follows by Bhakti Hṛdaya Bana Mahārāja in his translation of Bhakti-rasāmṛta-sindhu (which Śrīla Prabhupāda at one time authorised his disciples to read in a letter to Yamunā Dāsī in 1968):

"According to Śrī Jīva Gosvāmī, though this rudimentary bhakti in a born caṇḍāla will remove the effects of his past misdeeds, yet he must wait for the next birth in a higher social status to qualify himself for the performance of the Vedic sacrifices. [Śrīla Jīva Gosvaāī says that just as one who is born a brāhmaṇa must wait to be purified though the sacred thread ceremony in order to perform sacrifice, in the same way, one who has chanted the holy name is eligible to perform Vedic sacrifice, but must wait to take birth as a brāhmaṇa in order to actually perform Vedic sacrifice.] 

Jīva Gosvāmī, it is obvious, is reluctant to disturb the social order and tries to conform, as far as possible to the extant practices and ideas of the Hindu society of his time. Viśvanatha Cakravartī, however, considers Jīva Gosvāmī's view to give away the whole case for the quality of prārabdha-pṃpaharatva [power of deliverance from sin] that is claimed for bhakti. Viśvanātha's view is that bhakti, however slight, will at once remove all taints from the fallen human being and qualify him for the highest social duties of the Hindus. This is rather a controversial problem. The question is between 'eligibility' and ' capability'. Jīva Gosvāmī here argues that a brāhmaṇa born in a higher social order because of good deeds in previous births is eligible to perform Vedic rituals; while even a caṇḍāla born in the lowest social order owing to his misdeeds in previous births, becomes fully capable of performing such Vedic rituals when his prārabdha is wiped out by singing and listening to the name of the Lord in the stage of practice of bhakti."

But, as even a person born in a brāhmaṇa family has to wait till his sacred thread ceremony before he can actuallly perform such Vedic rituals in spite of his eligibility, so a devotee born in a caṇḍāla family, is cleansed of his sins committed in previous births by practising the rudiments of bhakti and becomes eligble to perform Vedic rites, but he does not do this as he is not interested in the fruits of Vedic karma."

१४.७१

तद् एवं दीक्षातः परस्ताद् एव तस्य ध्रुवस्येव

द्विजित्व-संस्कारस्त-दावाधि-तत्वात्तत्तन्-मन्त्राधि देवाज्-जातः

14.71

tad evaṃ dīkṣātaḥ parastād eva tasya dhruvasyeva

dvijitva-saṃskārasta-dāvādhi-tatvāttattan-mantrādhi devāj-jātaḥ

As soon a Lord Brahmā was initiated by the gāyatrī mantra he was twice born. After this, the mantra sprang forth from the lotus mouth of that foremost of the demigods and he began to chant the gāyatrī[by which all subsequent brāhmaṇas are initiated.](Brahma-saṃhitā 5.27, Jīva Gosvāmī's commentary)

Three kinds of Birth Seminal, Brahminical, and Mantra-dīkṣā

१४.७२

मातुरग्रेऽधि-जननं द्वितीयं मौञ्जिबन्धने

तृतीयं यज्ञ-दीक्षायां द्विजस्य श्रुति-चोदनात्

14.72

māturagre'dhi-jananaṃ dvitīyaṃ mauñjibandhane

tṛtīyaṃ yajña-dīkṣāyāṃ dvijasya śruti-codanāt

The śruti states that a brāhmaṇa gets his first birth from his mother (śaukra-janma, seminal birth). He gets his second birth by receiving the sacred thread (sṃvitra-janma), and finally he gets his third birth by yajña-dīkṣā (ceremonial initiation at a fire sacrifice). (Manu-saṃhitā 2.169)

Śrīdhara Svāmī's Remarks on the Three Kinds of Birth

१४.७२

मातुरग्रेऽधि-जननं द्वितीयं मौञ्जिबन्धने

तृतीयं यज्ञ-दीक्षायां द्विजस्य श्रुति-चोदनात्

14.73

trivṛt śotraṃ sāvitraṃ daikṣamiti triguṇitaṃ janma

[In this verse from Śrīmad Bhāgavatam (10.23.39), dhig janma nastrivṇd..."To hell with our threefold birth as brāhmaṇas!] The word tṇivṛt means the threefold births śaukra-janma, purity of heredity and family, sṃvitra-janma, investiture with the sacred thread and initiation into the gāyatrī-mantra, and daikṣa-janma (consecration for Vedic sacrifices). 

(Śrīdhara Svāmī, Bhāvārtha-dīpikā 10.23.39)

Who has Done the Forty-eight Kinds of Saṃskāras is a Proper Brāhmaṇa 

१४.७४

यस्यैतेऽष्ठ चत्वारिंशत् संस्काराः स ब्राह्मणः

14.74

"yasyaite'ṣṭha catvāriṃśat saṃskārāḥ sa brāhmaṇaḥ"

One who has performed the forty-eight kinds of saṃskāras is a brāhmaṇa.

1. garbhādhāna impregnation

2. puṃsavana causing the birth of a male child

3. sīmantonnayana parting of the hair

4. jāta-karma the duties after the birth of a child

5. nāma-karaṛa naming ceremony

6. niṣkramaṇa taking the child out of the room for the first time

7. anna-prāśāna eating grains

8. karaṛavedha piercing ears

9. caudakarma shaving the head

10. upanayana sacred thread

11. samāvartane completing education

12. vivāha marriage

13. antyeṣṭi funeral

14. deva yajña sacrifice to the gods

15. pitṛ yajña sacrifice to manes

16. bhuta yajña sacrifice to living beings.

17. nara yajña sacrifice to human beings

18. atithi yajña treating the guests

19-41. One may also perform the following sacrifices or yajña:

 deva-vrata catuñṭhaya, añṭhakā-śrāddha, pṃrvaṛa-śrāddha, śrāvanī, āgrāyaṛī, prauñṭhapadī, caitra, cṃturmāsya, niruḍa paśubandha, sautrāmaṛi, agniñṭhoma, atyagniñṭhoma, uktha, ñoḍañī, vājpeya, atirātra, āptoryāma, rājasūyā. These are the  names of various sacrifices performed by brahmaṇas.

42-45. agnyādheyam, agnihotram, darśa-paurṇamasya, agrayāṛeñṭi.

46. śauca cleanliness

47. anāyasa-maṅgalācāra The auspicious acts done without endeavor.

48. akārpaṛya aspṛhā freedom from miserliness and desire. 

(Mahābhārata, Śānti Parva 189.2)

[The point here is that simply by practicing bhakti and chanting the holy name one becomes qualified as a member of the highest social order by dint of devotion to God; whereas the path of becoming a proper brahamaṇa through ritual and ceremony is fraught with difficulties and extremely complicated.  The goal of life is not brahmanism, but divine love. Where the path to brahmanism is complicated by ritual sacrifice, the path to devotion through surrender and faith is clear and simple. BVM]