Q: Somehow when it comes to miracles, I just tend to believe them unless they are completely contrary to shastra. If possible, I would like to ask, how you think about miracles, so that I can maybe learn some critical thinking.

A: You must be aware of the statement of Carl Sagan: extraordinary claims require extraordinary evidence. Or Hitchens razor – what can be asserted without evidence can also be dismissed without evidence. I generally follow these maxims when it comes to miracles. The issue is not whether Bhagavān can act in extraordinary ways, but whether human accounts of such events are reliable and whether they have any role in sādhana.

Q: Consider the miracles that have been documented in the book *name redacted* for Lord Nrsimha deva. Wouldn’t it be logical to believe (as a sādhaka) that it is actually Lord Narasimhadeva who directly fulfilled the wishes of the devotees? Would you accept healing miracles narrated by devotees as a manifestation of the power of bhakti? 

A: Bhagavān can take away one’s disease if He wants. But I don’t accept what is written in this particular book as conclusive evidence. People are highly suggestible, and are looking to feel special. So they can convince themselves, or others can convince them, that they witnessed something great or experienced something supernatural. If a devotee actually saw a miracle, he or she would not and should not publicize it to the world. Did Śrī Jiva Goswami write about any miraculous experiences he had? He has written numerous books but he does not make any personal miracle claims anywhere. Nor did any of the other Goswamis, and nor did Śrī Viśvanātha Cakravartī. Neither Babaji nor Maharajji ever made any claims of personal miracles. Even if they experienced them, why would they? That is private between Bhagavān and them.

So one has to ask why such books are written. Today, personal miracles are occurring all the time and copiously written about. Some claim that deities weep because of their guru’s kīrtana. Others claim that Nrsimhadeva cured their pain in joints or got rid of financial problems. But are miracles the fruit of sādhana-bhakti? As I have explained in a previous post, not at all. Influencing others, as this book and other books seek to do, raises questions in my mind about whether these miracles are authentic.

Q: The purpose of the book was to show that Nrsimha-deva can quickly help remove obstacles by His grace.

A: I have no doubt about that. But Bhagavān does not need testimonials to validate His power. A book documenting miracles is not needed for believing that- śāstra already teaches this point.

But can Śrī Kṛṣṇa not do the same? Such books go against key Gauḍīya principles of śaraṇāgati – rakṣiṣyati iti viśvāsaḥ – Śrī Kṛṣṇa is the exclusive shelter of Gauḍīya devotees. Is He not capable of protecting or taking away disease? And what about Śrī Jīva Goswami’s instruction that one should exclusively pray for prīti, and nothing else? Teaching people that a particular deity should be installed and should be worshipped because He cures disease or removes problems, goes against Śrī Jīva Goswami’s instructions. It is teaching people to use Bhagavān Nrsimha-deva for curing diseases, and to use Him to impress and convert others to one’s own path. It is naive at best and reprehensible at worst.

Overall, in my experience, the net sum of miracle claims is this – they are power plays , designed to influence others, and to proclaim the greatness and validity of one’s own path or sect to everyone. Far from being impressed, I find such behaviors disappointing and invalidating. In my view, a sādhaka should evaluate miracle claims with caution, have faith in śāstra alone, and pray for bhakti exclusively and not some miraculous cure for problems.