All glories to Srila Prabhupada please accept my humble obeisances.
All glories to Lord Narasimha.
In my search I found an old page from Krishna.org titled: Who’s Representing Srila Prabhupada?
Who’s Representing Srila Prabhupada?
When our accepted leader Srila Prabhupada gives a command we continue to follow that command until otherwise instructed whether he is physically present in the field or whether he is not. Srila Prabhupada is his own authority in the same way that Krsna is His own authority. The authority of Srila Prabhupada cannot be removed by anyone regardless of whether Srila Prabhupada appointed anyone to any position or not. His instructions and commands must match his original dispatches otherwise confusion and stalemate will result. Anyone can study his original works to decide if his instructions and commands are being followed, anyone. If it is found by those searching that changes have been made to any original instructions by anyone other than Srila Prabhupada then one is not bound to follow the instructing authorities who approve of those changes regardless of their approved or illegitimate position. Necessary changes to one’s life and position within society will come about by reading Srila Prabhupada’s original books and instructions not by adhering to those who’s lives are constantly changing via mental speculation. By reading and re reading again and again the original transcendental literature by Srila Prabhupada one will find new incites and realizations and make spiritual progress that only Srila Prabhupada can convey to the student. Below are two verses from the original 1972 Bhagavad Gita As It Is that I think address this present topic in general. Some parts are underlined by me that I find significant. One has to decide for themselves if they do or not. Going through these verses completely will mean that one is still searching sincerely and that is all that anyone can ask.
Ys Hasti Gopala dasa
Chapter 4: Transcendental Knowledge
TEXT 7
yada yada hi dharmasya
glanir bhavati bharata
abhyutthanam adharmasya
tadatmanam srjamy aham
SYNONYMS
yada—whenever; yada—wherever; hi—certainly; dharmasya—of religion; glanih—discrepancies; bhavati—manifested, becomes; bharata—O descendant of Bharata; abhyutthanam—predominance; adharmasya—of irreligion; tada—at that time; atmanam—self; srjami—manifest; aham—I.
TRANSLATION
Whenever and wherever there is a decline in religious practice, O descendant of Bharata, and a predominant rise of irreligion—at that time I descend Myself.
PURPORT
The word srjami is significant herein. Srjami cannot be used in the sense of creation, because, according to the previous verse, there is no creation of the Lord’s form or body, since all of the forms are eternally existent. Therefore srjami means that the Lord manifests Himself as He is. Although the Lord appears on schedule, namely at the end of Dvapara-yuga of the twenty-eighth millennium of the eighth Manu, in one day of Brahma, still He has no obligation to adhere to such rules and regulations because He is completely free to act in many ways at His will. He therefore appears by His own will whenever there is a predominance of irreligiosity and a disappearance of true religion. Principles of religion are laid down in the Vedas, and any discrepancy in the matter of properly executing the rules of the Vedas makes one irreligious. In the Bhagavatam it is stated that such principles are the laws of the Lord. Only the Lord can manufacture a system of religion. The Vedas are also accepted as originally spoken by the Lord Himself to Brahma, from within his heart. Therefore, the principles of dharma, or religion, are the direct orders of the Supreme Personality of Godhead (dharmam tu saksat-bhagavat-pranitam). These principles are clearly indicated throughout the Bhagavad-gita. The purpose of the Vedas is to establish such principles under the order of the Supreme Lord, and the Lord directly orders, at the end of the Gita, that the highest principle of religion is to surrender unto Him only, and nothing more. The Vedic principles push one towards complete surrender unto Him; and, whenever such principles are disturbed by the demonic, the Lord appears. From the Bhagavatam we understand that Lord Buddha is the incarnation of Krsna who appeared when materialism was rampant and materialists were using the pretext of the authority of the Vedas. Although there are certain restrictive rules and regulations regarding animal sacrifice for particular purposes in the Vedas, people of demonic tendency still took to animal sacrifice without reference to the Vedic principles. Lord Buddha appeared to stop this nonsense and to establish the Vedic principles of nonviolence. Therefore each and every avatara, or incarnation of the Lord, has a particular mission, and they are all described in the revealed scriptures. No one should be accepted as an avatara unless he is referred to by scriptures. It is not a fact that the Lord appears only on Indian soil. He can advent Himself anywhere and everywhere, and whenever He desires to appear. In each and every incarnation, He speaks as much about religion as can be understood by the particular people under their particular circumstances. But the mission is the same—to lead people to God consciousness and obedience to the principles of religion. Sometimes He descends personally, and sometimes He sends His bona fide representative in the form of His son, or servant, or Himself in some disguised form.
The principles of the Bhagavad-gita were spoken to Arjuna, and, for that matter, to other highly elevated persons, because he was highly advanced compared to ordinary persons in other parts of the world. Two plus two equals four is a mathematical principle that is true both in the beginner’s arithmetic class and in the advanced class as well. Still, there are higher and lower mathematics. In all incarnations of the Lord, therefore, the same principles are taught, but they appear to be higher and lower in varied circumstances. The higher principles of religion begin with the acceptance of the four orders and the four statuses of social life, as will be explained later. The whole purpose of the mission of incarnations is to arouse Krsna consciousness everywhere. Such consciousness is manifest and nonmanifest only under different circumstances.
Srila Prabhupada is fully represented in this next translation. To deny that he is by anyone means that they are free to follow otherwise. However to accept that Srila Prabhupada is fully represented in this verse means that one is accepting that Srila Prabhupada is infallible. Therefore one has the freedom to accept his original instructions without compromise or encroachment by any other authority and will not suffer any loss in one’s spiritual progress.
Chapter 15: The Yoga of the Supreme Person
TEXT 5
nirmana-moha jita-sanga-dosa
adhyatma-nitya vinivrtta-kamah
dvandvair vimuktah sukha-duhkha-samjnair
gacchanty amudhah padam avyayam tat
SYNONYMS
nir—without; mana—respect; mohah—illusion; jita—having conquered; sanga—association; dosah—faulty; adhyatma—spiritual; nityah—eternity; vinivrtta—associated; kamah—lusts; dvandvaih—with duality; vimuktah—liberated; sukha-duhkha—happiness and distress; samjnaih—named; gacchanti—attains; amudhah—unbewildered; padam—situation; avyayam—eternal; tat—that.
TRANSLATION
One who is free from illusion, false prestige, and false association, who understands the eternal, who is done with material lust and is freed from the duality of happiness and distress, and who knows how to surrender unto the Supreme Person, attains to that eternal kingdom.
PURPORT
The surrendering process is described here very nicely. The first qualification is that one should not be deluded by pride. Because the conditioned soul is puffed up, thinking himself the lord of material nature, it is very difficult for him to surrender unto the Supreme Personality of Godhead. One should know by the cultivation of real knowledge that he is not lord of material nature; the Supreme Personality of Godhead is the Lord. When one is free from delusion caused by pride, he can begin the process of surrender. For one who is always expecting some honor in this material world, it is not possible to surrender to the Supreme Person. Pride is due to illusion, for although one comes here, stays for a brief time and then goes away, he has the foolish notion that he is the lord of the world. He thus makes all things complicated, and he is always in trouble. The whole world moves under this impression. People are considering that the land, this earth, belongs to human society, and they have divided the land under the false impression that they are the proprietors. One has to get out of this false notion that human society is the proprietor of this world. When one is freed from such a false notion, he becomes free from all the false associations caused by familial, social, and national affections. These fake associations bind one to this material world. After this stage, one has to develop spiritual knowledge. One has to cultivate knowledge of what is actually his own and what is actually not his own. And, when one has an understanding of things as they are, he becomes free from all dual conceptions such as happiness and distress, pleasure and pain. He becomes full in knowledge; then it is possible for him to surrender to the Supreme Personality of Godhead.