More Than Meets the Eye

His Divine Grace Om Vishnupad
Srila Bhakti Nirmal Acharya Maharaj
Sri Nabadwip Dham, 27 February 2015

Srila Bhakti Siddhanta Saraswati Thakur told that you must use everything for the service to the Lord, and it is Gurudev's desire too.

I remember in 2005, a few days before Gurudev's Vyasa Puja, I went to Chennai for an operation, and after that some devotee offered to Gurudev, "Oh, this time Acharya Maharaj cannot go to collect rice because he is sick... I could buy the whole amount of rice that is necessary." Gurudev was shocked, "Why would you want to do that?? Do you want to destroy my temple?... Maybe he is sick, but he is going door to door, and somebody gives 500 grams, somebody gives 200 grams or 100 grams, but they give their energy for service at Gaura Purnima, for service to the Lord. You cannot take that energy away—you cannot destroy that energy!"

Later Gurudev told me, "You must remember that I will never buy rice for Gaura Purnima. I can spend so much money and make Gaura Purnima festival, but I cannot buy rice for Gaura Purnima." Then I understood what Gurudev wanted. He wants to give benefit to others, and he wants us to go for collection for that reason. You heard also how much praise he would give every year, "I cannot go for collection myself, but they are going and collecting potato and rice. They are doing so much." He said it many times in his lectures.

Gurudev is pleased through service. We may not be able to see it with our eyes, but that is because our eyes are always full of dust (ধূলিকণা, dhulikana). We cannot see every pastime of Guru Maharaj, of Gurudev, and we cannot recognise them (cannot understand who Gurudev is, or who Guru Maharaj is) because we are always playing with maya. How can we then understand their mood? You heard that even Srila Sarvabhauma Bhattacharya could not recognise Mahaprabhu because he had no mercy.

Without Gurudev's mercy, without Guru Maharaj's mercy, how can we understand them? We cannot. We may see and understand them only externally, but without their mercy it is impossible to recognise them. How can we get that mercy? Mercy means kripa, and kripa means 'kore-paba': you must do something to get something. What will you do? Service to Guru—if you serve your Guru, then you will get something from him.

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