(10/10) Keep Well

His Divine Grace Om Vishnupad
Srila Bhakti Nirmal Acharya Maharaj
Midnapore, 24 April 2019, evening, part 10
Translated from Bengali

When we come to this line, we skip karma-yoga, jnana-yoga and go straight to devotion (bhakti), the last and highest path. Srimad Bhagavad-gita presents all these different paths and finishes at devotion, but we start spiritual life from devotion.

What does it mean to live in a holy abode (dham)? Where is a holy abode (dham)? A holy place of pilgrimage (tirtha) is any place where there is Hari-katha being spoken. 'Yatha vaisnav, tatha tirtha – a holy place is wherever there is a Vaishnav present' (Kalyan-kalpataru). A holy place of pilgrimage is where there are Vaishnavs speaking Hari-katha.

When you come to a holy place or a place of pilgrimage, it is necessary to always speak Hari-katha. We must engage ourselves in the duties related to the Lord and we must think always in relation to the Lord. We must not come here to think about our material lives. If you come to Nabadwip with the mood of enjoyment, this is not living in a holy place – this is the same as living in a commode. If you want to enjoy and imitate living in Mathura, this this is not living in Mathura.

Some make a show of taking initiation instead of actually receiving initiation – they do not follow what their guru says, they do not follow the rules and regulations. This is the reason why many cannot become servants of our guru – instead, they become guru-bhogi (they use their guru) or guru-tyagi (they reject their guru). Almost everybody in this world covet money, women and fame, so they consider Srila Gurudev's temple a place for enjoyment. Some think, 'Oh, I have been given this duty, but I need to procure money for myself.' This is not a genuine servitor. Because people see temples established by Srila Gurudev as places for their own enjoyment, they are not afraid to even resort to bloodshed and fighting. I have written this here, in Guidance 3.

Instead of serving the Lord, we turn the Lord into our servant expecting Him to take care of us and do everything for us. If you read this book (Guidance 3), you can learn many things. It is written in a little difficult language, but you should try to read it.

Whenever you get free time, read books, this is how you can get sadhu-sanga (association of saints).

I wish you all well. I have to leave soon – I do not get time to stay here longer. There are construction works going on in eight places in our Mission. So, take care of yourselves and practise Krishna consciousness. I am leaving for Uluberia tomorrow in the morning. After that, I am going to Kolkata, I have job at Park Street there. There is also a new temple being built in Bangladesh. I have sent somebody to check what works are being done there now and what is going on there; he is returning soon, so I need to talk to him. Let us chant kirtan now.

Always chant kirtan. I see that you cannot chant together with me – it means that you are not practising. If you buy a mobile phone and only use it without charging, it will not work – it is necessary to charge it. So, if you only take initiation, hear the mantra from your guru one time and after that do not keep in touch with your guru, never come to the temple, it does not work like that. You think, 'Oh, I have taken initiation, so my job is complete.' No. You must come to the temple, you must keep connection, you must call, find out the news. I do not know the phone numbers of all of you, but you all can take my phone number and keep in touch. If you want to call me, you should call after ten o'clock in the evening (I am always busy the whole day, and this is the time when I get free).

So, practise Krishna consciousness. Stay all together, come to the temple. Do not be jealous, do not keep any grudges – only always think about the Lord. Always think about the interest of the temple (the interest of Vaishnavs and the Lord), not your own interest. If you can live always thinking about Sri Sri Radha-Vallabha, you will see that your lives will be auspicious. Why must I always think about what is necessary everywhere? I recently brought some bhoga here, and I must remember that there was some lack, but you forgot about it. You spend much money on purchasing disposable plates, but I collect thousands of plates and distribute them to every temple. I saw that the chamar had gone bad here, it is all black. And I have just brought some chamars from Nepal. Here in many places they sell fake chamars made from nylon. I will send you the chamars later. We have also collected so much rice and potato that we could not finish it during the Gaura Purnima, so there is a huge remainder in the storehouse. Insects get into it, so we end up having to feed it to cows. We have cows in various temples – in Kalna, Tarakeshwar, Ekachakra, Bankura, etc.

Jay Srila Guru Maharaj ki jay.
Harinam-sankirtan ki jay.
Nitai-Gaura premanande Hari bol.

[His Divine Grace chants kirtan and concludes the evening class.]

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Length: 77 min
Language: Bengali

READ OTHER PARTS:

1) Prodigal's Favourite, Miser's Pensioner
2) Material Diseases
3) Master's Property
4) 'I Am My Gurudev's'
5) Disciple Lives in Guru's Shelter
6) Day for Service, Life for Service
7) Foundation of Knowledge
8) Pitfalls and Benefits
9) Temple Life
10) Keep Well