(6/8) Obstacles to Spiritual Life

His Divine Grace Om Vishnupad
Srila Bhakti Nirmal Acharya Maharaj
Sri Ekachakra Dham, last evening class
18 February 2019, part 6
Translated from Bengali

Our calendars give ekadasi times and also contain many nice things at the end. You can see there what can be taken on ekadasi, what should be done on ekadasi, and so on. There are also obstacles to devotion listed. For example, atyahara means eating too much. Prayascha means hoarding too many things – you must accept only as much is required. Prajalpa means wasting time on talking about anything else except Lord Krishna. Niyamagraha means being attached to the rules and regulations that are not favourable to devotion. Jana-sanga means associating with people who are not Krishna conscious (who are averse to Lord Krishna). And laulya means being fickle-minded, when your mind wants to go in different directions.

I have told you before that what Jayadev composed contains the highest conception. We have not been able to reach even karma-misra bhakti (devotion free from any material desires or pursuits), then how can we even think about those high things that Jayadev wrote about? Srila Prabhupad said:

মাতল হরিজন কীর্ত্তন-রঙ্গে ।
পূজল রাগপথ গৌরব-ভঙ্গে ॥

matala hari-jana kirtana-range
pujala raga-patha gaurava-bhange

'From afar we shall worship the raga-patha, the path of spontaneous affectionate service, while we ourselves shall live within the Vedic guideline.'

(Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Saraswati Thakur Prabhupad)

We will chant kirtan together with devotees (Hari-jana) and keep the service to the Divine Couple, Radha-Krishna, inside. We will not tell others about it. Srila Bhaktivinod Thakur said, 'Apana bhajana-katha na kahibe yatha tatha (আপন ভজন-কথা, না কহিবে যথা তথা). Do not tell anyone and everyone about your own bhajan, service and practice. Keep it private.' It is not necessary to spread everywhere and tell everybody about the highest matters that are worshippable to you, that are sacred to your heart (i.e. the holy feet of Sri Sri Radha-Krishna). If somebody asks you, 'Have you seen God?' What will you answer? Will you say, 'Yes, I have!'? No, you will say, 'Well, I do not know, but I can show you the way how you can come to Krishna's place. When you start walking down this path – when you start your bhajan life and enter devotional life – then you can understand where Krishna is and how far you still have to walk.' When you want to reach from one place to another and you drive down the road to the place, there are milestones on the way that show you how many miles it is to the place. That is why Srila Bhaktivinod Thakur said, 'I will not tell others about my private practice.'

So, do you remember what the obstacles in devotional life are? Atyahara, prayascha, prajalpa, niyamagraha, jana-sanghancha, laulancha. [His Divine Grace explains in English.] Atyahara is overeating; it is a very big problem for devotional life. Prayascha means always thinking about money, 'I need money', 'Money', 'Money,' 'Money!' What do I need? If I get just two chapatis, that is sufficient for me. Prajalpa means talking about anything else besides Krishna. Why is it necessary to always talk? All talks except talks about Krishna are useless. It is gramya-katha: talking about your family, tell each other stories, and so on. Niyamagraha means attachment to what is unfavourable to devotion. You must always avoid and keep distance from such things. Jana-sangancha means associating with those who are not devotees of Krishna or who do not follow the proper line. We must always avoid their association. You may ask, 'How can I make another person a devotee if I do not associate with them?' That is not association. If you tell somebody about Krishna consciousness or if you stay together with somebody, that is also not associating with the person. But if somebody tells you to follow their conception, then you must avoid such association. There are many people in the world, and here in India also, who preach wrong conceptions. In short, jana-sangancha means that we will always avoid and keep distance from those who are not devoted to Lord Krishna. And laulancha means our minds are always fickle and restless, going to this place, that place. Sometimes you think, 'Oh, this mission is very good', 'Oh, Gaudiya Math is very good', 'Oh, that other mission is very good.' It means no chastity. These six are the obstacles in our spiritual lives. Atyahara, prayascha, prajalpa, niyamagraha, jana-sanghancha, laulancha.

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READ OTHER PARTS:

1) Capture Nityananda Prabhu's Heart
2) Hope of the Hopeless
3) Purifying Shelter
4) Do Not Imitate
5) Live as a Devotee
6) Obstacles to Spiritual Life
7) Pillars of Spiritual Life
8) Dedication without Offences