Source of Our Sustenance

His Divine Grace Om Vishnupad
Srila Bhakti Nirmal Acharya Maharaj
6 December 2014, Bengali class, part 5

If you fall into a great ocean, how will you get out of it? What is the way out for us? To rescue us, the Lord gives us some engagement, but we live just to have some money, to have some food and clothes... Srila Sridhar Dev-Goswami Maharaj said: if you give some nice dal and vegetables to a pig, the pig will not eat it, but if you give it some stool, it will be very happy. How long have we been living for money, food, clothes? We have got this human birth but only worry about these things! How will we be rescued from this situation?

তব নিজ-জন কোন মহাজনে
পাঠাইয়া দিলে তুমি
দয়া করি' মোরে পতিত দেখিয়া
কহিল আমারে গিয়া ।

tava nija-jana kona mahajane
pathaiya dile tumi
daya kari more patita dekhiya
kahila amare giya

"You have sent a great soul, Your associate (to rescue me)! Seeing me so fallen and being merciful, he came to me and said...."

The Lord has sent His very own man, who came to me and said, "Come! I have come for you!"

তোমারে তারিতে শ্রীকৃষ্ণচৈতন্য
নবদ্বীপে অবতার ।

tomare tarite sri-krsna-chaitanya
navadvipe avatara

"Sri Krishna Chaitanya has appeared in Nabadwip to deliver you."

What did Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu give us?

শ্রীকৃষ্ণচৈতন্য-দয়া করহ বিচার ।
বিচার করিলে চিত্তে পাবে চমৎকার ॥

sri-krsna-chaitanya-daya karaha vichara
vichara karile chitte pabe chamatkara

"If you consider the mercy of Sri Krishna Chaitanya, you will be wonder-struck to realise it."

(Sri Chaitanya-charitamrita, Adi-lila, 8.15)

Such is the mercy of Chaitanya-chandra. Some can accept this mercy and some cannot... Still, Mahaprabhu said to Sanatan Goswami,

জীবে দয়া, নামে রুচি, বৈষ্ণব সেবা ।
ইহা বহি সনাতন নাহি আর ধর্ম্ম ॥

jive daya name ruchi vaisnava seva
iha bahi sanatana nahi ara dharma

"Be merciful to the souls, chant the Holy Name, and serve the Vaishnavs. Sanatan, besides this, there is no other religion."

"There is no other religion—you must be merciful to the jiva souls." How many people we have brought to the lotus feet of Gurudev, and how many people actually get the taste for the Holy Name (Name ruchi)? You can chant always, all the time, but the result will come only if it is the real Holy Name.

Even though Krishna Das Babaji Maharaj chanted three lakhs of Holy Names, he still went to hear to lila-kirtans. Guru Maharaj (Srila Sridhar Maharaj) kicked him out of the temple for this. Somebody met Babaji Maharaj on the way to Mayapur and asked him,

"What has happened?"

"Sridhar Maharaj has kicked me out," Babaji Maharaj replied.

"Why?"

"Because I went to hear lila-kirtan."

Think about it. A three-lakh babaji does not get taste from chanting the Holy Name and goes to hear some kirtans about boys and girls—even though he chanted three lakhs of Holy Names, he did not get the taste! So, will you get taste for chanting just by keeping the beads in your hand the whole day? You hold the chanting beads in your hand all the time, but in the meantime you talk so much nonsense, how will you get taste in this way? It is not so easy....

Srila Sridhar Maharaj had one servitor—one day he was going to give Srila Sridhar Maharaj his chanting beads, and he asked, "Would you like to chant on your beads?" Guru Maharaj replied, "No, give the beads to him," and he said our Gurudev's name. He said, "Give the beads to him, let him chant," and he only chanted, "Nitai Gaura Haribol, Nitai Gaura Haribol"... This happened in his last days, in 1986-1987... He was only praying for Nityananda Prabhu's mercy.

We too must seek the mercy of Nityananda Prabhu till our last moment—He is the source of our sustenance.

আর কবে নিতাইচাঁদ করুণা করিবে ।
সংসার-বাসনা মোর কবে তুচ্ছ হ'বে ॥

ara kabe nitaichand karuna karibe
samsara-vasana mora kabe tuchha ha'be

"When will Nitaichand give mercy to me? When will all my material desires become insignificant?"

('Prarthana' by Srila Narottam Das Thakur)

কবে নিত্যানন্দ মোরে করি' দয়া ।
ছাড়াইবে মোর বিষয়ের মায়া ॥

kabe nityananda more kari' daya
chhadaibe mora visayera maya

When will Nityananda be compassionate to me and relieve me from the mundane illusion?

("Kabe habe bolo se dina amar" by Srila Bhakti Vinod Thakur)

"When will Nityananda Prabhu let me give up this material world?"...

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