(5/12) Read and Absorb

His Divine Grace Om Vishnupad
Srila Bhakti Nirmal Acharya Maharaj
Vaishnav-seva programme in Begampur (Hooghly),
Early February 2019, part 5
Translated from Bengali

I was writing yesterday about astakala (asta-prahar) until one o'clock at night. I am writing every day until one or two o'clock now. I came to my room and did not even notice when prasad was brought to the room. I kept writing, and when I looked at the clock, I saw it was one o'clock already. I thought, 'Oh no! I have to go for preaching tomorrow!' I quickly ate and went to bed. I have to finish the book quickly so that we can print it by Nityananda-tryodasi. Two books are coming out.

I wrote in the new book (Guidance, Volume 3) that is coming out soon about astakala, about home-interest and temple-interest, about provincialism in service, about the argument between householders and renunciates. Somebody says, 'We are saffron-clad brahmacharis and sannyasis, and you are white-clad householders!' I wrote about this debate quoting Srila Prabhupad's words. Many householders consider themselves big, arguing, 'Oh, brahmacharis and sannyasis come to our houses, and we feed and support them. We are greater.' And there are brahmacharis who argue, 'We are big! We bring householders to this path!' I wrote and proofread about all this yesterday. It came to about fifty pages.

If you read this book, you will understand. It is written in a little difficult language, so you will have to read it carefully. Many also have questions in their minds, but they cannot ask it in front of their gurudev, so I have written a chapter about '108 Questions and Answers'. I will send the book for printing tomorrow – the printing is already paid for, only proofreading is left to finish.

I wrote there about provincialism in service. Somebody lives in Hooghly and thinks, 'We have many devotees here in Hooghly, so it would be good if we had a temple near our house.' Somebody else thinks, 'Oh, we are building a temple here in Hooghly. We know that they are building a temple in Bardhaman now also, but why must we give money for their temple? We will give money for our temple.' I wrote a lot about all these things in the book. I consulted many books and saw what Srila Prabhupad said about it and then wrote it.

One time, Pujyapad Bon Maharaj went for collection in Kolkata. Somehow, he found himself in the prostitutes' quarter. When he realised where he was, he was horrified, 'My God! Where have I come?! I have lost everything! I have been practising Krishna consciousness for so long, but I have come to this quarter...' Tears fell from his eyes, but in the meantime, some prostitutes came out of their houses one by one and gave him one–two rupees. Bon Maharaj took their donation and, disheartened, went back to Srila Prabhupad. Crying, he told Srila Prabhupad, 'Prabhupad, I have lost everything!'

Srila Prabhupad asked him, 'What has happened? Why are you saying you have lost everything?'

'I have been to such a bad place...' Bon Maharaj said and explained what had happened.

Then, Srila Prabhupad became grave and said, 'You are saying that you have done wrong, that you have lost everything, then it means that I have been doing wrong, too, all this time? Am I also doing wrong?'

Bon Maharaj was taken aback, 'What? What is Prabhupad saying?'

Srila Prabhupad continued, 'They earn that money with their bodies, and you took their money to use it in service to the Lord. I also take people from their homes, make them sannyasis or brahmacharis, and after that I again send to the houses of rotten householders who live engrossed in their houses. Are these people who fight for stool and urine any better than those women who sell their bodies? Am I also doing wrong then?'

If you take their money and use it in the service to the Lord, there is nothing bad in that – in this way, those people get sukriti, and you also get some sukriti. This is what Srila Prabhupad explained.

— : • : —

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Size: 54 Mb
Length: 109 min
Language: Bengali

READ OTHER PARTS:

1) Your Sreyo Must Become Your Preyo
2) Joy in Sadness
3) Who Will Understand?
4) Vaishnavs' Dignity
5) Read and Absorb
6) Sincere Self-Realisation
7) Mahaprabhu's Conception
8) Gist of Spiritual Life
9) Prison of Misconception
10) Learn and Live the Ideal
11) Service Alertness
12) Be Attached and Detached