(2/12) Spiritual Purity

His Divine Grace Om Vishnupad
Srila Bhakti Nirmal Acharya Maharaj
Bakultala, noon class, 7 April 2019, part 2
Translated from Bengali

I have told you many times that if you can arrange for a box (amplifier) for the programme, it would be very helpful. Without a box, others around the house cannot hear what we are saying unless they are listening to it carefully. Mostly people are busy with their own things. So many people are passing this place, but how many of them can hear what we are saying? They pass the temple building here on a bicycle or a bike and they do not even get off. It does not even cross their minds to do that. How many offences people are doing every day here! You have made here a room for the Lord, but do you realise how many people's offences you are creating? You think that you have opened a temple, so you have done a great job, that it will give benefit to everybody, but how many people are passing it on a bicycle or a bike – do you understand how many offences they make? Nobody understands it. I can see that. It is an offence to service. There are thirty-two offences to service. You can see also how you are sitting. [Addressing one of the devotees] Mother, please do me a favour – do not make an offence in front of me; if you do it every day, you can do what you like, but do not do it in front of me at least. You must not sit with your back to the Deities. There is a lot of place here at the front, so please come closer and sit here; do not sit with your back facing the Deities.

We have these small calendar booklets – you can see there when you should do ekadasi fast, when you should break the fast. At the end of our calendars, I have added four–five pages explaining what offences there are and many other things related to spiritual life. For example, there are thirty-two kinds of offences to service, ten kinds of offences to the Holy Name. You think that when your neighbours invite people and they play the harmonium and chant, 'Hare Krishna, Hare Krishna' and when you chant the Hare Krishna maha-mantra, it is the same thing. It is not so. One is offence, and the other is Harinam. When somebody chants kirtan for money or reads Bhagavatam for money, that is not kirtan and not Bhagavatam reading. When somebody worships a Deity for money, that is not worship of the Lord. Remember this. We must understand this.

You have been reading and learning things for a long time, and you can see that everybody is practising Krishna consciousness, that elderly devotees are doing service – you can see how much attachment they have for this line. The problem is that we turned away and forgot the Lord a very long time ago and have been averse to Him all this time. Still, we have got this very rare human birth now.

দুর্ল্লভ মানব জন্ম লভিয়া সংসারে ।
কৃষ্ণ না ভজিনু দুঃখ কহিব কাহারে ॥

durlabha manava-janma labhiya samsare
krsna na bhajinu—duhkha kahiba kahare?

'I have got a very rare human life in this world, but I have not worshipped Lord Krishna. Whom will I tell about my misery?'

(Sri Kalyan-kalpataru, Srila Bhaktivinod Thakur)

Do you know what Srila Prabhupad said? He said that instead of serving God you must not turn God into your menial servant. How is it so? Why did he say that? How do we turn God into our servant? Because when we come to worship God, we come and say, 'O Lord, please make me healthy', 'O Lord, please help my son find a good job', 'O Lord, please help my daughter get married.' Is that not so? Do people not ask God for all these things? Is this service or is this expecting God to be your servant?

Many people worship Kali or Durga at home (sometimes you can hear the sound from microphones on the street). I have heard that if you want to get a job as a primary school teacher or a high school teacher, you can give a one- or two-million bribe to a minister and you will get the job. What do you call the person who takes bribes? A bribe-taker. And when you come to Durga or Kali, you give her some money, some rice, bananas and other fruit – as you give her this bribe, you say, 'O Mother Kali, please give me health', 'O Devi, please help my son find a good job.' So, you come and bribe the Deity whom you are supposed to worship. That is our service.

I am telling you all these things, but how many of you are actually practising Krishna consciousness? Who is genuinely practising? That is why it is said that among millions of karmis (selfish workers), there is one wise person; among millions of wise people, there is one liberated soul; and among millions of such liberated souls, there is only one devotee of Krishna. The number of such liberated devotees of Lord Krishna is very small, but just one such person can rescue the entire universe! This is who we must approach. We must come to them and listen to Hari-katha from them – as we listen, listen and listen to it, all dirt will be removed from our hearts and the Lord will then take His seat in our hearts.

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Language: Bengali

READ OTHER PARTS:

1) Check Yourself
2) Spiritual Purity
3) Your Chance
4) Happy Existence
5) Look for Service, Not Excuses
6) Short Time, Short Life
7) Maya's Domain
8) Genuine Connection
9) Thoughtful Existence
10) Mature Vision
11) Places to Be Avoided
12) Do Not Be Afraid to Give