The temporary harm and the eternal good

The point a spiritual and a material identity existing simultaneously can be relevant when we speak about relationships with other devotees, frequently stranded by human imperfections such as anger.

It's said that devotees on the highest platform see everyone as a servant of Krsna, and thus they consider everyone as superior to themselves. This may sound difficult to understand since most people are not really serving Krsna at the present moment, but this is due to the material covering of the pure soul. In our current state, when we look at a person we don't see the soul at all, but the material covering, but for a devotee in the uttama platform it's the opposite: he sees the soul instead of the temporary nature covering it.

For us, it may be very difficult to understand how this works, but the nature of the soul transcends space and time. Although now conditioned, the soul is in truth an eternal servant of Krsna, and it is this eternal nature that a perfect devotee can see. Currently, this eternal nature exists simultaneously with a temporary, material nature, but a devotee who is exclusively concentrated on the transcendental platform doesn't consider it. Instead, he focuses on the transcendental reality beyond space and time.

This point of a spiritual and a material identity existing simultaneously is something that can be very relevant when we speak about relationships with other devotees, which are frequently stranded by human imperfections such as anger, envy, negligence, or even dishonesty.

Srila Prabhupada makes the point that everything we do in terms of service to Krsna is eternal because it's connected with the eternal spiritual platform. On the other hand, the material activities we do, be it good or bad are connected with the temporary material identity and are thus, temporary.

This means that whatever service we do, especially in terms of helping people become Krsna conscious is eternal, while the sinful activities we perform, together with whatever imperfections we may show are temporary, being connected with the material world. This doesn't mean we will not have to pay for the harm we do, but the negative effects will be always temporary, and thus comparatively less important than the eternal effects of devotional service.

This is something to take into consideration when we a dealing with the imperfections of other devotees (and ultimately of people in general). There is an eternal nature, on which they serve Krsna, and there is a separate temporary nature where they act materially under the three modes and commit different sins. Just like two separate persons, we may sometimes deal with one and sometimes with the other, or even with a mixture of both, just like dealing with a person coming out of bed, who is not fully awakened yet.

While this demands us to be often careful, it can allow us to appreciate whatever good they do, despite the imperfections they may show, and thus "hate the sin, but not the sinner", understanding that the contaminations will be eventually washed away, be later in this life or the next, but the devotional service they perform is eternal.

This understanding is also instrumental to understanding different historical personalities, who at the same time did great service but committed great harm. When we can understand this dual nature, we can see how both things can come together, without necessarily contradicting each other. A perfect devotee will never commit sinful activities or do harm to others, but a less advanced devotee may show a combination of some grade of devotional service and questionable actions, and thus do good and harm simultaneously. Anyone who performs some important service should be respected, since this service exists in the eternal platform, but if he doesn’t show proper behaviour, we should not associate with him.

On the one hand, there is hope: because one is serving, the tendency is that over time the devotional service will prevail and the contamination will be cleansed. On the other hand, such individuals may often cause harm to others until this cleansing happens, so it is important to exert caution. Both sides are simultaneously present.

Unfortunately, many leaders in spiritual institutions fit into this description, therefore one needs to be always mindful to not get into harm's way.

As Srila Prabhupada once said, we should surrender to Krsna using our intelligence and not surrender our intelligence. In other words, we should use our discernment to find ways to surrender to Krsna, while avoiding dangers and obstacles on the path, and not just blindly surrender to persons who may not be completely free from personal interest, even though we may still appreciate whatever service they are doing at a distance.