(10/16) Sadhya-Sadhan-Tattva

His Divine Grace Om Vishnupad
Srila Bhakti Nirmal Acharya Maharaj
Sri Ganga Sagar, evening class,
11 January 2019, part 10
Translated from Bengali

We forget that we are eternal servants of the Lord. Sadhus, guru and Vaishnavs travel place to place and speak Hari-katha to remind us about that. We must come to them and listen to what they say. We do not come to hear or speak gramya-katha:

তদ্­বিদ্ধি প্রণিপাতেন পরিপ্রশ্নেন সেবয়া ।
উপদেক্ষ্যন্তি তে জ্ঞানং জ্ঞানিনস্তত্ত্বদর্শিনঃ ॥

tad viddhi pranipatena, pariprasnena sevaya
upadeksyanti te jnanam, jnaninas tattva-darsinah

'You will be able to attain knowledge by satisfying the divine master with submission, relevant inquiry, and sincere service. The enlightened souls who are learned in scriptural knowledge and endowed with direct realisation of the Supreme Absolute Truth will impart divine knowledge to you.'

(Srimad Bhagavad-gita, 4.34)

Many people think that they have understood everything, but what did Lord Brahma say? He said, 'If somebody says that they know the Lord, they may not know Him, but I do not know Him.' Lord Brahma said:

ঈশ্বরঃ পরমঃ কৃষ্ণঃ সচ্চিদানন্দবিগ্রহঃ ।
অনাদিরাদির্গোবিন্দঃ সর্ব্বকারণকারণম্ ॥

isvarah paramah krsnah sach-chid-ananda-vigrahah
anadir adir govindah sarva-karana-karanam

'Krishna, who is known as Govinda, is the supreme controller. He has an eternal, blissful, spiritual body. He is the origin of all. He has no other origin, for He is the prime cause of all causes.'

(Sri Brahma-samhita, 5.1)

He can be called Govinda, Madhava, Gopal or any other name. Our line is devotion to the Lord, following Mahaprabhu's conception. What was Mahaprabhu's spiritual conclusion? We must learn and follow the teachings that He has given to us. We must not only talk about Mahaprabhu's teachings lip-deep – one does not become a sadhu just by putting tilaks on your forehead and wearing beads on your neck.

মর্কট-বৈরাগ্য না কর লোক দেখাঞা ।
যথাযোগ্য বিষয় ভুঞ্জ' অনাসক্ত হঞা ॥

markata-vairagya na kara loka dekhana
yatha-yogya visaya bhunja' anasakta hana

'Do not show your false renunciation to impress people. Use whatever material things you require, but without attachment.'

(Sri Chaitanya-charitamrita, 2.16.238)

You can go back to your home and continue doing farming, but do it without attachment – serve to the material world around you but without attachment. If you think, 'I am doing it,' this is also an offence. 'Whatever I do, I do it for the Lord, so I am not concerned if I benefit from it or not.' Sadhus always steer clear of any pratistha. 'Vaisnavi pratistha tate kara nistha (বৈষ্ণবী প্রতিষ্ঠা তাতে কর নিষ্ঠা): firmly establish yourself as a servant of the Lord' (Vaishnav Ke?). We should always treat others with respect and affection, but we will never think that we have become Vaishnavs ourselves.

There is a gradation devotion: lower level (kanistha-adhikari), middle level (madhyam-adhikari) and the highest level (uttam-adhikari). The highest-level devotees feel Krishna's presence everywhere – wherever they cast their glance, they see Krishna. When Mahaprabhu was talking to Ramananda Ray, Ramananda Ray said:

পহিলে দেখিলুঁ তোমার সন্ন্যাসি-স্বরূপ ।
এবে তোমা দেখি মুঞি শ্যাম-গোপরূপ ॥

pahile dekhilun tomara sannyasi-svarupa
ebe toma dekhi muni syama-gopa-rupa

'At first I saw You appear like a sannyasi, but now I am seeing You as Shyamasundar, the cowherd boy.'

তোমার সম্মুখে দেখি কাঞ্চন-পঞ্চালিকা ।
তাঁর গৌরকান্ত্যে তোমার সর্ব্ব অঙ্গ ঢাকা ॥

tomara sammukhe dekhi kanchana-panchalika
tanra gaura-kantye tomara sarva anga dhaka

'I now see You appearing like a golden doll, and Your entire body appears covered by a golden luster.'

তাহাতে প্রকট দেখি স-বংশী বদন ।
নানা-ভাবে চঞ্চল তাহে কমল-নয়ন ॥

tahate prakata dekhi sa-vamsi vadana
nana-bhave chanchala tahe kamala-nayana

'I see that You are holding a flute to Your mouth, and Your lotus eyes are moving very restlessly due to various ecstasies.'

(Sri Chaitanya-charitamrita, 2.8.267-269)

'What is this? First I saw You looking like a golden doll, then suddenly You appear holding a flute, and then You suddenly appear as a sannyasi, holding a mendicant's pot. What is all this?!' Mahaprabhu simply replied, 'You must have got devotion to Krishna, that is why you see Krishna everywhere.' He tricked Ramananda Ray in this way. He never said Himself, 'I am the Lord!' You can see Mahaprabhu's teachings to Ramananda Ray in Sri Chaitanya-charitamrita, where they discussed pure devotion. They spoke on the bank of the Godavari in Kovvur, South India, about how one should practise to attain the highest end (sadhya-sadhan-tattva). What is the highest end? How can it be attained? They discussed all these questions there...

Anyhow, much has been said today... We are present today in front of Sri Sri Guru Gandharva Govindasundar Jiu and Sri Sri Guru Gaura Nityananda Prabhu. Gandharva means Srimati Radharani.

রাধা-ভজনে যদি মতি নাহি ভেলা ।
কৃষ্ণ-ভজন তব অকারণ গেলা ॥

radha-bhajane yadi mati nahi bhela
krsna-bhajana tava akarana gela

'If you did not become devoted to the worship of Srimati Radharani, your worship of Krishna was in vain.'

রাধিকা দাসী যদি হোয় অভিমান ।
শীঘ্রই মিলই তব গোকুল কান ॥

radhika-dasi yadi haya abhimana
sighrai milai taba gokula kana

'Those who pride themselves on being maidservants of Radhika will quickly come to meet Gokula Kan (Krishna).'

(Sri Gitavali, Srila Bhaktivinod Thakur)

You have heard these words of Srila Bhaktivinod Thakur. What should be our pride? Our ego should be, 'I can be counted among servants of Radharani!' Krishna Himself also says, 'Those who say they are My devotees are not My devotees.' Then how can you say, 'You must become a devotee of Krishna!'? Those who think they are devotees of Krishna are not devotees of Krishna! Supreme Lord Sri Krishna says, 'Those who say that they are devotees of My devotees are My devotees. Who is My devotee? Srimati Radharani.' So, if we can become Her devotees, we can get some result. The Lord says, 'I count only those who are devotees of My devotee.' Always remember this.

রাধিকা দাসী যদি হোয় অভিমান ।
শীঘ্রই মিলই তব গোকুল কান ॥

radhika-dasi yadi haya abhimana
sighrai milai taba gokula kana

'Those who pride themselves on being maidservants of Radhika will quickly come to meet Gokula Kan (Krishna).'

(Sri Gitavali, Srila Bhaktivinod Thakur)

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Length: 86 min
Language: Bengali

READ OTHER PARTS:

1) Keep Trying
2) Highest Realm of Devotion
3) Bribing and Increasing Stool
4) What Is a Soul?
5) Service with Faith and Love
6) Core of Devotion
7) Set Your Heart for Govinda
8) Think and Learn
9) Think about Your Soul
10) Sadhya-Sadhan-Tattva
11) With Faith and Surrender
12) Surrender and Learn
13) Bhakta-Seva Pravritti
14) See Good and Do Good
15) See Through It
16) 'Lord Exists for Those Who Have Devotion'