By Ajit Krishna Dasa
In some devotional discussions, it has become fashionable to list the “faults of women” — often using long, sensationalized narratives about female manipulation, deception, instability, or hidden agendas. These narratives present themselves as “traditional” or “strict,” but they rely on selective quotation and ignore something fundamental:
Śāstra gives at least as many — and often far harsher — warnings about the faults of men.
Before examining these qualities, one essential point must be established:
Śāstra makes it clear that conditioned souls — both men and women — can possess any number of faults. Bad qualities come from conditioning, not from gender. The purpose of this article is not to condemn men, but to correct the imbalance that arises when weaknesses are attributed almost exclusively to women while male faults are ignored or excused.
Here is the actual śāstric balance — the one that often gets suppressed in one-sided gender rhetoric.
1. Lust, Uncontrolled Senses, and Sexual Instability
Śāstra repeatedly identifies these as major male weaknesses:
• inability to control sex desire
• pretending to be renounced while secretly falling down
• using spiritual positions to appear purer than one is
• letting lust override intelligence and dharma
• using women for sense gratification
• entering ashramas without inner purification
Śrīla Prabhupāda’s view was that a man ruled by lust cannot make steady spiritual progress.
2. Ego, Pride, and False Prestige
Scripture frequently highlights male ego as a major obstacle:
• desire to dominate others
• gender-based superiority complexes
• anger when corrected
• arrogance disguised as knowledge
• demanding respect while offering little
• assuming leadership without qualification
Śrīla Prabhupāda taught that pride prevents genuine advancement.
3. Hypocrisy and Double-Life Behaviour
One of the most dangerous male defects in śāstra:
• preaching purity while acting impurely
• enforcing standards one does not follow
• hiding behind a façade of strictness
• condemning others to deflect from one’s own weakness
• performing externally while degrading internally
Śrīla Prabhupāda considered hypocrisy spiritually destructive.
4. Misuse of Authority and Control
A major problem highlighted both in śāstra and by our ācāryas:
• men misusing scriptural authority
• husbands dominating instead of protecting
• “leaders” controlling devotees rather than serving them
• manipulating others under the guise of guidance
• applying standards to others they cannot keep themselves
• interpreting scripture to validate personal insecurities
Śrīla Prabhupāda repeatedly warned that unqualified men should not lead.
5. Anger, Harshness, and Aggression
Scripture strongly condemns:
• harsh speech
• verbal intimidation
• physical aggression
• emotional volatility
• inability to control temper
• creating fear in the household or community
Śrīla Prabhupāda explained that uncontrolled anger destroys spiritual life.
6. Laziness, Irresponsibility, and Weak Work Ethic
Very common male weaknesses described in śāstra:
• unwillingness to maintain family responsibilities
• lack of daily discipline
• avoidance of duty
• excessive comfort-seeking
• negligence in sadhana
• leaving responsibilities to others
Śāstra repeatedly classifies laziness as tamoguṇa.
7. Greed, Ambition, and Material Opportunism
Male-oriented weaknesses repeatedly mentioned:
• hoarding wealth
• competing for social prestige
• using spiritual life for material gain
• never satisfied materially
• envy-driven competition with other men
• attachment to status and possessions
Śrīla Prabhupāda taught that greed suffocates devotion.
8. Dishonesty, Manipulation, and Political Behaviour
Śāstra frequently warns about these tendencies in men:
• lying
• manipulating devotees emotionally or socially
• twisting scripture for personal gain
• political maneuvering
• instigating conflict or factions
• gossip and backbiting
Śrīla Prabhupāda taught that dishonesty corrupts the heart.
9. Weakness of Heart and Mental Cowardice
A central concept in śāstra:
• fear of responsibility
• dependence on external image
• inability to face one’s own faults
• collapsing under pressure
• hiding behind slogans instead of truth
• emotional cowardice rather than integrity
Śrīla Prabhupāda’s view was that weakness of heart leads to degradation.
10. Artificial Renunciation
Śāstra and Prabhupāda warn about this constantly:
• pretending to be renounced without qualification
• entering saffron to escape responsibility
• imitating advanced renunciates
• using outward renunciation for status
• masking immaturity behind austerity
• running from household duties instead of purifying them
Śrīla Prabhupāda repeatedly emphasized that artificial renunciation is spiritually dangerous.
11. Spiritual Arrogance and Misplaced Strictness
• lecturing others while ignoring personal purification
• mistaking harshness for strictness
• acting as “moral police” toward other devotees
• judging āśrama choices out of ego
• using śāstra as a weapon instead of guidance
• seeking superiority by criticizing others
Śrīla Prabhupāda taught that real strictness manifests as humility.
12. Lack of Compassion and Empathy
• dismissing others’ struggles
• lack of emotional understanding
• minimising suffering
• treating devotees as objects to correct
• weaponizing spiritual standards
• inability to uplift or support others
Śrīla Prabhupāda emphasized compassion as the essence of genuine Vaiṣṇava behaviour.
Why This List Matters
Many of these qualities can be found in both men and women, because they arise from conditioned nature — not from gender. The point of this list is simple:
If someone insists on highlighting the faults of women, then fairness requires acknowledging that śāstra condemns a wide range of male faults — many of them deeper, more dangerous, and more destructive.
It is intellectually dishonest and spiritually unhealthy to use scripture to shame women while ignoring the extensive warnings about men. Vaiṣṇava teaching evaluates qualities, not categories. Dharma is based on personal character, not on stereotypes.
A mature spiritual community must reject the tendency to weaponize śāstra against one gender. The tradition is clear: all conditioned souls have weaknesses, and the purpose of spiritual life is to overcome them — not to use them as ammunition against each other.
Ajit Krishna Dasa 
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