Practise and Succeed

His Divine Grace Om Vishnupad
Srila Bhakti Nirmal Acharya Maharaj
Speaking online to the devotees in Ukraine
20 September 2015

I am very happy to see you all, to see your smiling faces—Krishna always gives you energy to serve the Guru, Vaishnavs...

Actually, the householder devotees' duty is Nama sankirtan and Vaishnav seva—Nam sankirtan and Vaishnav seva are the main duties of the householder devotees. You have already become a member of Krishna's family when you took initiation, and through practising you are now renewing and keeping this membership of your family of Krishna. (You have left your mundane family and joined the Krishna's family when you took initiation.)

For example, suppose you open a bank account. If you do not deposit and withdraw money from it properly, if you do not operate it properly, then your bank account will be closed. The same is true about your membership in Krishna's family—if you do not practise properly, your membership will be ruined, it will be gone, and you will lose it.

Practise. This is how you can keep connection with your Guru, with the Lord, with Bhagavan Krishna.

Question: Could you please give your blessings for my nephew and sister so that they too come to Krishna consciousness in this life?...

OK. May Krishna always bless them, may Krishna always be with them...

Those who have desire to come in connection with the Lord, will get it. Mainly, the strongest desire is necessary. Those who have this strongest desire to get mercy from Krishna, will get mercy from Krishna, there is no doubt—Krishna has sent His associate as a Guru in this mundane world to bestow His mercy on the conditioned souls.

Any other questions?

Question: Could you please give us some direction about our spiritual life, maybe some general guidance? We are all trying to help in the service to Guru and Vaishnavs...

Yes, that is the main thing.

তৃণাধিক হীন দীন অকিঞ্চন ছার ।
আপনে মানবি সদা ছাড়ি অহঙ্কার ॥
বৃক্ষসম ক্ষমাগুণ করবি সাধন ।
প্রতিহিংসা ত্যজি অন্যে করবি পালন ॥

trnadhika hina, dina, akinchana chhara
apane manabi sada chhadi' ahankara
vrksa-sama ksama-guna karabi sadhana
pratihimsa tyaji' anye karabi palana

Give up your false ego, and always consider yourself lower than grass, poor, needy, and mean. Be tolerant like a tree. Do not ill-treat others, nurture them.

If somebody criticises you, you must tolerate, you must not criticise them. These are the main things: you should be humble, tolerant, patient, and give honour to others. Trnadhika hina, dina, apane manabi sada chhadi' ahankar: you should give honour to others, and you must give up your ego, give up your deceitful devotion. Maintain your life in this way. Also, you must accept what is favourable to devotion, always and regularly, and you must avoid and reject what is unfavourable to devotion. It is necessary to keep good association. Always try to harmonise with everything—you can look at me how much I am tolerating everything, and you can easily understand it.

Adau sraddha tatah sadhu-sango tato bhajana-kriya tato 'nartha-nivrttih (আদৌশ্রদ্ধা ততঃ সাধুসঙ্গোঽথ ভজনক্রিয়া ততোঽনর্থনিবৃত্তিঃ): "In the beginning there must be faith. Then one becomes interested in associating with pure devotees. Thereafter one is initiated by the spiritual master and executes the regulative principles under his orders. Thus one is freed from all unwanted habits...." (Brs, 1.4.15)

Sometimes some material desire can come to you, but you should try to avoid it and try to remove it from your heart.

You can continue in this way, and you will have success in your spiritual life quickly.

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