I Am the Great Offender Once Again (07/17/10)
Dear S___ Devī Dāsī,
B___ forwarded me some correspondence, including your emails regarding a recent article on Kṛṣṇa Talk entitled “Śriya Śuka”. I read all the emails below with note, but fail to see how the question at hand is answered. Oh granted, evil I am, but nonetheless we have not found any reference to Śukadeva Gosvāmī being the pet parrot of Rādhārāṇī.
Some people say that ____ Mahārāja is the source of the story, but I do not know that as a fact. But maybe he is. As far as we have been able to determine, there is no source from antiquity, previous ācārya, or śāstra for Śukadeva being the pet parrot of Rādhā. It seems to be a contemporary conjecture. But yes, Rādhā does have a pet parrot. And yes, a parrot flew into the mouth of Vatikā, but these are two different stories and there is no commentary to support the connection between the two. Possibly the connection is made by ____ Mahārāja. You could ask him.
S____ and I discussed this issue a few months ago. He wanted to write an article on Śriya Śuka, but related to me that he could not find any bona-fide source for Śukadeva being the pet parrot of Rādhārāṇī. S____ decided not to write the article because he did not want to be seen as opposing the view of _____ Mahārāja. I told S____ that that would not be a problem for me since I was already seen as the eternal offender to _____ Mahārāja. I had also been researching this topic for two years trying to get to the source. So in the end, I felt that what was real and what was conjecture was clear and so I wrote the article purely from the point of śāstra and previous ācāryas and I did not incriminate anyone by name. Unfortunately, some persons in your community felt differently and I am the great offender once again. So sad…I guess I dare not think or follow my gurus if my opinion may be different from that of _____Mahārāja, least I become a demon with horns.
It is easy to dismiss me as an offender, a misguided, miserable soul, but really it is disappointing to see that your saṅga, which once held some high ideals and put great value in śāstra and great ācāryas, is so quick to dismiss me and the references which I gave as simply my enviousness and my attempt to attack your guru. Personally I see this as a sign of your weakness, much like that of iskcon or such persons like that who have very little, if any, spiritual standing. But so be it…all for the good!
When you have finished your research and consulted your guru, please forward me your findings. We would all like to know the source of this story of Śukadeva Gosvāmī being the pet parrot of Rādhārāṇī, or if it is true or not. If you feel that it is the ‘realization’ of _____ Mahārāja and it is exclusive to him alone, then don’t be afraid to say so. Fear has no place in the heart of a Vaiṣṇava.
Swami Narasingha
