(12/13) Sadhu's Duty

His Divine Grace Om Vishnupad
Srila Bhakti Nirmal Acharya Maharaj
Sri Ganga Sagar, evening class,
Deity Manifestation Anniversary day
12 January 2019, part 12
Translated from Bengali

We must always only think about the Lord, about practising Krishna consciousness. We are always busy worrying about money, food and other material things, but we must practise spiritual life. Where there is a will, there is a way. If you are determined, 'I will do service!' then you will feel, 'I will listen to what gurudev says when he comes – if I listen to him, I will attain everything.' When Sachi Mata cooked, she would always think, 'What is Nimai doing? What is He eating?' This is how you can always think about the Lord. Even if you are cooking, you can listen to Hari-katha and carry on doing your service, then it will be good. You can do service not only with your hands but also with your ears, mouth, everything else. 'Sevon mukhe kaha Krsna Nam (সেবোন্মুখে কহে কৃষ্ণনাম). Chant the Holy Name with your mouth when you are doing service.' You are making rotis, fry spices, cook, etc. but your ears should be directed at what gurudev is saying, 'I want to hear what gurudev says.' Always remember this. If you do not remember this, you will not get any good result in your life.

There is one more thing I want to tell you all. Some of you have taken initiation today. You must chant the Holy Name and practise Krishna consciousness genuinely. Do service. Chant on your beads. When I fist came to the temple, many said, 'He has gone mad. He has left job, he has left everything and went to live in a temple!' Now they are building a temple, a hospital and a college for girls... I did not do anything there; they are doing it. All the aunts that accused me of not taking care of my parents suffered so much at the end of their lives. One of them ended up on the street – her son beat her, she went to stay with another son, but then she became blind, and he threw her on the street... They are educated men – somebody has an MA degree, somebody is studying for MA – but they behave like that... I did not serve my mother, but she did not suffer like that – the Lord took care of her. Now they understand that they were wrong, so they want to make a hospital and a college in my mother's name. They are using my share of land for that. When I left everything and went to the temple, they did not know where I was. They got the news that I was at a temple only fourteen–fifteen years later, after I had taken sannyas. They contacted me and told me that I had a share of family property, so they asked me to come, 'You can sell the land and take the money.' I asked Guru Maharaj for permission, but Guru Maharaj said, 'How many days will it take you to go there and get the money?'

'It can take seven days to sell the land.'

'How much money will you get?'

'Two million rupees.'

'If I give this money to you today, do you still have to go there?'

Can you see how Guru Maharaj stopped me from going there? After what he said, I could not say anything about it, so I never went there. Now they are making a college, hospital and temple on that land. I told them, 'OK, make a hospital, give it to the government.' The government was happy – they made a good road, brought electricity to the area. When I was there, there was no proper road...

Devotee: Where is that place, Maharaj?

In Bangladesh. It is part of Bengal actually, but that is the main court case I have been fighting – that I am Bangladeshi... Mahaprabhu never said that a Bangladeshi cannot become a guru or an acharya. But they filed a case against me because I am Bangladeshi. There are millions of Bangladeshi people in India. Mahaprabhu's father was born in Sylhet, Bangladesh. Pranab Mukherjee (the former president of India) is also from Bangladesh! His in-laws are still there, and he goes there sometimes. Anyway, they filed those case, so be it. If I am destined to get some suffering, then I have to suffer, but I do not take it as suffering actually. 'Tomara sevaya yata haya duhkha, seo ta' parama sukha (তোমার সেবায় যত হয় দুঃখ, সেও ত' পরম সুখ). Whatever unhappiness comes through Your service is also a source of great happiness for me' (Saranagati). I left everything and came to the Lord, and whatever struggles I have to face, I do not mind it. If they are happy to make me suffer, let them be happy then.

There is one thing that I always tell everyone. A sadhu's duty is 'pratihimsa tyaji anye karaha palana (প্রতিহিংসা ত্যজি অন্যে করহ পালন) – not to be vindictive but to nurture others.' Somebody can be jealous of inimical towards you, but you must not be vindictive or hold grudges. Mahaprabhu teaches us that if somebody behaves bad towards us, we will still treat the person well.

I have told you this story before. There was a sadhu who was chanting the Holy Name on his beads. Suddenly, he saw a scorpion going to the Ganges. If it fell into the water, it would die, so the sadhu put his beads aside and went to save it – he picked it up and kept it in a safe place, and as he was doing that, the scorpion stung the sadhu. It repeated a few more times – every time the sadhu kept the scorpion away, it kept going back to the water. Some cowherd boy was passing by and saw what the sadhu was doing.

'O sadhu, what is it to you if this scorpion lives or dies?' the boy asked.

'Dear boy, if even this scorpion cannot change its character, how can I change my nature? Why must I change my nature? The scorpion's nature is to go towards death, but my nature is to save it.'

What is the duty of a sadhu? When a sadhu sees that somebody is going to do something bad, he must explain to them that this is wrong and bring them to the right path. This is a sadhu's duty. It is necessary to understand this. 'O Nirmal, it is necessary to understand this!' Do you know the meaning of the word 'Nirmal'? 'Nirmal' means no (nir) dirt (mal). One does not become nirmal just by getting this name, though. Nirmal is one who has no dirt in their heart. Gurudev gave me this name. He gave me the name 'Acharya' and kept this prefix 'Nirmal' inside...

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Length: 89 min
Language: Bengali

READ OTHER PARTS:

1) Clean Your Heart and Cultivate Devotion
2) Seva-Dharma and Mano-Dharma
3) Strive for Spiritual Subsistence
4) Where There Is a Will There Is a Way
5) Excreting Visaya
6) Live in Domain of Mercy
7) The Side-Tracked and the Drowning
8) Servants' Wealth
9) Live Thinking about Lord
10) Turtle Consciousness
11) Learn and Practise
12) Sadhu's Duty
13) Internal Asuddha