Question: If we have a spiritual master, is it wrong to pray to the Lord directly?
Answer by Romapada Swami: Once Srila Prabhupada was asked a similar question and his response was “How can you think of Krishna without thinking of the spiritual master? And how can you conceive of the spiritual master without Krishna? They are inseparable!” In other words it is not wrong at all to pray to one’s spiritual master, however it is not quite possible to actually think of Krishna without simultaneously remembering the spiritual master who is always situated at Krishna’s lotus feet. Conversely, it is by the spiritual master’s mercy alone that we know anything about Krishna in a proper fashion, or have access to Him!
The spiritual master, of course, is simply training the disciple to take shelter of Krishna, training us how to pray and how to serve the Lord, and he himself functions simply as a transparent via medium. Just as in Deity worship or in chanting the Holy Names, we have the opportunity to serve Krishna and directly access His presence but we do so with the understanding that our service / prayer is in fact accepted and offered to the Lord through the spiritual master.
It is actually more powerful and effective to approach the Lord through His recognized devotee than approaching Him directly, and Krishna Himself recommends this. The devotees of the Lord are more merciful than the Lord Himself and specifically the spiritual master is the mercy representation of Krishna in our lives. Prayers offered through the spiritual master, who is so dear to Krishna, immediately attracts the Lord’s attention and makes Him favorably disposed towards our pleas.
