(9) Read and Thrive

His Divine Grace Om Vishnupad
Srila Bhakti Nirmal Acharya Maharaj
Uluberia, 1 April 2019, part 9
Translated from Bengali

We must always read books. They never print books. Do you know what they did? We have printed many books in Gurudev's time, and after Gurudev left, many of the books contain my photograph. They tore my photographs out and sell the books without it. They cannot print books themselves, so they do like that. It costs 80–90,000 rupees to print one book (one thousand copies). We have printed four books recently – it costs us 300,000 rupees. This is what it takes in terms of money, but how much brain work does it take? When I came here last time, I was writing Guidance 3. I had finished it by Nityananda Trayodasi, and then one foreign girl translated it into English within only seven days. She translated day and night, not sleeping some nights. I told her that we had to print it by Gaura Purnima, and we managed to print three hundred copies. Many of them got sold at Gaura Purnima – foreign devotees bought copies. Everybody feels happy when they read these books.

Remember one thing – one does not become a Vaishnav just by wearing tilaks and neckbeads. Do you know what happens when one listens to non-devotees' talks?

(10) Question: What happens if I listen to non-devotional talks?

Answer: If we listen to non-devotional talks or take advice from non-devotees, then we will spend millions of lifetimes in illusory bondage serving every single atom of this material world.

We will never be able to serve the Lord like this.

[Somebody's phone rings.] O Mantri Masai (Mr. Minister)! What is calling you? Ministers, SPs (Superintendents of Police), DMs (District Magisrates) are all very busy people and always have to take phone calls, but we are not like them.

So, have you heard what happens when you listen to non-devotees? People say all kinds of things, but dear Sir, if you want to become a devotee, you do not become one by wearing tilaks and neckbeads.

কনক-কামিনী, প্রতিষ্ঠা-বাঘিনী,
ছাড়িয়াছে যারে, সেই ত বৈষ্ণব ।

kanaka-kamini, pratistha-baghini,
chhadiyachhe yare, sei ta vaisnava

‘Those who give up money, women and fame the tigress are true Vaishnavs.’

(‘Vaishnav Ke?’, Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Saraswati Thakur)

Mahaprabhu prohibited everybody to touch His feet, but Kalidas became an exception. Kalidas wore torn clothes and looked very neglected. What did he eat? He never sat together with all the Vaishnavs to take prasad. Considering himself unfit to eat together with them, he would later pick up their discarded plates and lick them clean. He would hide and observe where Vaishnavs were throwing their plates away, and later he would come here and take the remnants from those plates. One day, when Mahaprabhu was washing His feet, Kalidas came and touched Mahaprabhu's feet. Everybody pounced at him, 'Hey, stop it! Do not touch Prabhu's feet!' but Mahaprabhu stopped them, 'Do not prohibit him.' I wrote about this here, in Sri Jagannath Puri Mahatmya-mukta-mala. It came out this Gaura Purnima. If you read it, you can find all the Hari-katha we speak at all the places when we go for Sri Jagannath Puri parikrama. When I went for nine-day preaching, I spend all my free time proofreading it. Devotees recorded what I spoke during the parikrama, transcribed it and then printed, and I proofread it. Still, there may be some few mistakes in it – is it possible to correct all mistakes? We are all human, and humans make mistakes.

So, Kalidas got the right to touch Mahaprabhu's feet. Why? Mahaprabhu said, 'He has become a seasoned Vaishnav! He took all the Vaishnavs' remnants, so he is a very high Vaishnav.' But externally, he looked like a beggar. You think that if you wear a nice dhoti and shirt, wear big tilaks and come all poshed up on a motorcycle, then everybody will think that you are a great sadhu.

লোক দেখান গোরা ভজা তিলক মাত্র ধরি ।
গোপনেতে অত্যাচার গোরা ধরে চুরি ॥

loka dekhana gora bhaja tilaka matra dhari’
gopanete atyachara gora dhare churi

‘You put on tilaks and show the whole world that you serve Gora, but secretly you do outrageous things. Gora will catch you out, thief (hypocrite)!’

(Sri Sri Prema-vivarta, 8.7, Sri Jagadananda Pandit)

Vaishnavs must always be humble.

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