(3) Uncertainty Is Not the End

His Divine Grace Om Vishnupad
Srila Bhakti Nirmal Acharya Maharaj
Kadigachha, Lord Siva's Temple inauguration,
5 March 2019, evening, part 3
Translated from Bengali

You have read Srimad Bhagavad-gita, so you know that at first Arjuna refused to fight, but Krishna forced him to. Arjuna said, 'I do not want to enjoy this kingdom at the expense of killing my kinsmen.' To that Krishna replied, 'You are being influenced by Maya.' After Krishna spoke to him, Arjuna said, 'Prabhu, I surrender to You – I am Your disciple, so please instruct me.' At the end of all His instructions, Krishna told him,

সর্ব্বধর্ম্মান্ পরিত্যজ্য মামেকং শরণং ব্রজ ।
অহং ত্বাং সর্ব্বপাপেভ্যো মোক্ষয়িষ্যামি মা শুচঃ ॥

sarva-dharman parityajya, mam ekam saranam vraja
aham tvam sarva-papebhyo, moksayisyami ma suchah

‘Give up all kinds of religion and surrender to Me alone. I will liberate you from all sins, do not despair.’

(Srimad Bhagavad-gita, 18.66)

'Leave all religions and surrender to Me alone. You do not need to follow any religion. I have told you about many kinds of religions that are described in the Vedas (karma-yoga, jnana-yoga, and so on), but My last word is that you should leave everything and just surrender to Me. Whatever sin you may incur, I will liberate you from that – you must not be afraid of any sins.' This is what is called karma-misra bhakti.

Mahaprabhu explained the difference between various kinds of devotion many times. There is karma-misra bhakti (devotion mixed with material desires), jnana-misra bhakti (devotion mixed with a pursuit of knowledge), jnana-sunya bhakti (devotion without any pursuit of knowledge). Mahaprabhu rejected karma-misra bhakti, and even when He was suggested jnana-misra bhakti, He also rejected it saying, 'This is external, go deeper.' Mahaprabhu took devotion to its highest level – the level of jnana-sunya bhakti. At this point, He said, 'This will do.' Such was the conversation between Mahaprabhu and Ramananda Ray. It is a very high matter, you will not be able to understand it so easily, and I am not going to discuss all that here. What you must understand is what your position in this material world is.

'Kothaya chhilama, hetaya elama, kothaya yaba bhavi nai (কোথায় ছিলাম, হেথায় এলাম, কোথায় যাব ভাবি নাই). Where was I? Where did I come? Where will I go after that? I do not understand anything.'

দিন যায় মিছা কাজে নিশা নিদ্রাবশে ।
নাহি ভাবি মরণ নিকটে আছে বসে ॥

dina yaya michha kaje nisa nidra-base
nahi bhavi marana nikate achhe base

‘My days pass in useless work and nights are wasted on sleep. It never occurs to me that death is there, waiting right next to me.’

(Sri Kalyan-Kalpataru, Srila Bhaktivinod Thakur)

Our days are passing! We are busy sleeping or doing some useless work the whole day, but our time is passing. Suppose somebody is meant to live for forty years. You can think that it is only twenty years because half of our lives we spend on sleeping. Even during those twenty years, we spend so much time on cooking, eating, passing stool, taking a bath and other things. How much time do we have left for the Lord? So, you think, 'Oh, I will think about it when I get old.' But is there any guarantee that you will even live to old age? Is there any guarantee that you will not have to leave right now? Nothing about this body is certain. Life can leave your body at any moment. So, do not waste any more of your time. Take shelter in the Lord; surrender to Him.

You must have heard us chant in the morning:

দৈন্য, আত্মনিবেদন, গোপ্তৃত্বে বরণ ।
‘অবশ্য রক্ষিবে কৃষ্ণ’—বিশ্বাস পালন ॥

dainya, atma-nivedana, goptrtve varana
‘avasya raksibe krsna’—visvasa palana

‘(1) Humility, (2) self-submission, (3) accepting that the Lord is your maintainer, (4) keeping faith that “Krishna will certainly protect”.’

(Saranagati, Srila Bhaktivinod Thakur)

It is necessary to be humble. It is necessary to be kind to others.

দৈন্য, দয়া, অন্যে মান, প্রতিষ্ঠা বর্জ্জন ।
চারিগুণে গুণী হই’ করহ কীর্ত্তন ॥

dainya, daya, anye mana, pratistha varjana
chari-gune guni hai’ karaha kirtana

‘Humility, compassion, honouring others and giving up your own prestige – become enriched with these four qualities and chant the Lord’s Holy Name and glories.’

(Sri Gitavali, Sri Siksastaka Giti, Srila Bhaktivinod Thakur)

We must be humble, we must give honour to others and we must give up all desire for name and fame – we must chant the Holy Name and glories of the Lord becoming enriched with these qualities. We must practise Krishna consciousness. You must know the Lord, you must serve the Lord, you must have devotion for the Lord.

You must understand who God is. It is owing to Him that we have come to this world; it is He who is managing us; it is He who feeds us, clothes us, nurtures and takes care of us. He is the one who keeps us alive, but we forget Him and live always busy with all kinds of work for this external world.

We do not understand these things... So, we pray to you all: please practise Krishna consciousness, please worship the Lord. You must never forget the Lord.

— : • : —

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