(9/11) We Are Servants, Not Devotees

His Divine Grace Om Vishnupad
Srila Bhakti Nirmal Acharya Maharaj
Sundarpur, 18 January 2019, noon, part 9
Translated from Bengali

Question: Some people say, 'Jay Radhe' and some people say, 'Hare Krishna!' Is there any difference?

Saying, 'Jaya Radhe' (taking only Radharani's Name) is sahajiya line. They worship only Radharani. Our line is that we worship Radha and Krishna. The combined form of Radha and Krishna is Gauranga, so we we worship Gauranga. Otherwise, if we only worship Radharani, if we only worship Krishna, it will be transgression of our rights or pouring too much water. We must water the creeper of our devotion with the water of sravan (listening) and kirtan (chanting, practising). If you think about these things too much, your mind will go to vile thoughts. Although Krishna had so many gopis and queens, He was a brahmachari. This is a very high matter. But in our lives, you can see what happens. The scriptures say that if you are married, you can mix with your wife only to beget a child, not more than that. How many people can do that? We cannot follow even this. What did Srila Gaura Kishor Das Babaji Maharaj say? One brahmachari got married, and Srila Babaji Maharaj said, 'You have got married, well and good. There is nothing for you to worry about, but you must remember one thing. You will go shopping, she will cook and offer bhoga to the Lord (she can take initiation). After that, she will first take prasad, and you will take your wife's prasad, after she has taken it.' Do you know why he said that? So that you do not think that your wife belongs to you and that she is an object of your enjoyment. You must remember that your wife is a maidservant of Krishna. Never think that she is an object to be enjoyed by you. That is why Srila Gaura Kishor Das Babaji Maharaj said that the husband must take his wife's food remnants. Nobody is your servant or maidservant. She is a maidservant of Krishna – this mood must come to you.

So, those who say, 'Jay Radhe, Jay Radhe' are not genuine. I remember when I was going to Birbhum by train, somebody was begging and chanting kirtan there, 'O my Golden Gaura, I will keep You in my heart and never leave You (sonara Gaura chhede deba na, hrta-majhare rakhiba ara chhede deba na).' Do these people really worship and serve Gora? They say they have become devotees... You know, there is one devotee is Mursidabad – I gave him the name Prahlad Das. So, when he calls me now, he says, 'Maharaj, this is Bhakta Prahlad speaking.' He thinks he has become a devotee (bhakta), but he has forgotten that he is first of all a servant (das). When he told me, 'Maharaj, this is Bhakta Prahlad speaking.' I told him, 'My, my! When did you become the devotee Prahlad?' I gave him the name Prahlad Das (servant of Prahlad), but he says, 'I am Bhakta Prahlad (the devotee Prahlad)'! He think he has already become a devotee of Krishna. '"Ami ta vaisnava" e buddhi haile amani na ha'ba ami ('আমি ত বৈষ্ণব' এ বুদ্ধি হইলে অমানী না হ'ব আমি). If I think, "I am a Vaishnav," then I will never stop expecting honour from others.' If you start thinking, 'I am a Vaishnav,' then you are not a Vaishnav! If you think you are a Vaishnav, you will not be able to give honour to others. You have not been able to become a maidservant of Krishna yet, but you have already become a Vaishnav! 'Kanak, kamini, pratistha-baghini chhadiyachhe yare sei ta vaisnava (কনক-কামিনী প্রতিষ্ঠা-বাঘিনী ছাড়িয়াছে যারে সেই ত বৈষ্ণব). Vaishnavs are those who give up money, women and fame the tigress' (Vaisnav Ke?). These are Srila Prabhupad's words. When you give up money, women and fame, then you can become a Vaishnav, and remember that a Vaishnav will never say, 'I am a Vaishnav.'

Have you ever heard us say, 'Touch my feet when you pay obeisance to me! Bring water and wash my feet!' We never say this. On the contrary, we always forbid it, 'Do not touch my feet.' You are serving Lord Govinda with this hand, why will you touch with that hand the feet of such a lowly soul as myself? I consider myself very lowly and bereft. I am sitting on a chair here when I should actually be sitting down on the ground, but because I cannot sit on the ground for a long time (my back and legs begin to pain and I can get sick), I have to sit on a chair. But my duty is to sit on the ground. There must be no ego. The only ego we can have is that we are maidservants of Radharani.

People say they are devotees of Krishna, they are Bhakta Prahlad, but what do Vraja gopis say? Everybody knows that gopis have the highest devotion, but those gopis who have the highest devotion say, 'We do not have such great devotion that Prahlad Maharaj has!' If you remember Prahlad Maharaj himself, what boon did he ask Lord Nrisinghadev for? He could have asked for Vaikuntha, but he asked, 'Please give me such a boon by which all my desires and asking mood go away.' He prayed for all desires to go away, so that he may never ask the Lord for anything, but we say, 'I am Bhakta Prahlad!' You can only say, 'Prahlad Das.' You are his servant, you are not Prahlad. If you always pay obeisance to Vaishanvs and serve Vaishnavs, then you can become a Vaishnav one day; otherwise, you can never be a Vaishnav.

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READ OTHER PARTS:

1) Basis of Mahaprabhu's Conception
2) Learn the Ropes
3) Watered Down Conception
4) Become a Good Practitioner
5) Spiritual Selfishness
6) Do Not Overstep
7) Internal and External Devotion
8) Step Forward
9) We Are Servants, Not Devotees
10) Learn Proper Meaning
11) Come to Nirguna Plane