54 Sri Caitanya-caritamrta [Madhya-lila, Ch. 15
sparse—by touching; 4-candala—even to the lowest of men, the candala;
sabare —everyone; uddhare —delivers.
TRANSLATION
“One does not have to undergo initiation or execute the activities required
before initiation. One simply has to vibrate the holy name with his lips. Thus
even a man in the lowest class [candala] can be delivered.
PURPORT
Srila Jiva Gosvami explains diksa in his Bhakti-sandarbha (283):
divyam jfhdnam yato dadyat
kuryat papasya sanksayam
tasmat dikseti sa prokta
desikais tattva-kovidaih
“Diksa is the process by which one can awaken his transcendental knowledge
and vanquish all reactions caused by sinful activity. A person expert in the study
of the revealed scriptures knows this process as diksa.” The regulative principles
of diksé are explained in the Hari-bhakti-vilasa (Vilasa 2.3,4) and in Bhakti-san-
darbha (283). As stated:
dvijandm anupetanam svakarmadhyayanddisu
yathadhikdro ndastiha syac copanayandd anu
tathatradiksitanam tu mantra-devarcanadisu
nadhikaro ‘sty atah kuryad atmanam Siva-sarhstutam
“Even though born in a brahmana family, one cannot engage in Vedic rituals with-
out being initiated and having a sacred thread. Although born in a brahmana
family, one becomes a brahmana after initiation and the sacred thread ceremony.
Unless one is initiated as a brahmana, he cannot worship the holy name properly.”
According to the Vaisnava regulative principles, one must be initiated as a
brahmana. The Hari-bhakti-vilasa (2.6) quotes the following injunction from the
Visnu-yamala:
adiksitasya vamoru
krtam sarvam nirarthakam
pasu-yonim avapnoti
diksa-virahito janah
“Unless one is initiated by a bona fide spiritual master, all his devotional activities
are useless. A person who is not properly initiated can descend again into the
animal species.”
