(1/4) My Expectation

His Divine Grace Om Vishnupad
Srila Bhakti Nirmal Acharya Maharaj
Speaking online to devotees in Colombia
27 April 2019, part 1

Hari bol! How are you? Dandavat. I am very happy to see you all.

[His Divine Grace spontaneously chants 'Emona durmati'.]

Jay Om Vishnupad Jagad-Guru Srila Bhakti Sundar Govinda Dev-Goswami Maharaj ki jay.
Visva-varenya Srila Guru Maharaj ki jay.
Jay Om Vishnupad Paramahamsa-kula-churamani Jagad-Guru Srila Bhakti Raksak Sridhar Dev-Goswami Maharaj ki jay.
Jay saparikara Sri Sri Guru Gauranga Gandharva Govinda-sundarjiu ki jay.
Om Vishnupad Bhagavan Sri Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Saraswati Goswami Thakur Prabhupad ki jay.
Rupanuga-guru-varga ki jay.
Namacharya Haridas Thakur ki jay.
Bhakta-prabara Prahlad Maharaj ki jay.
Suddha-bhaktir-vighna-vinasa-kari Bhagavan Nrisinghadev ki jay.
Saparsada Sriman Mahaprabhu ki jay.
Saparsada Sriman Nityananda Prabhu ki jay.
Sri Chaitanya Saraswat Math ki jay.
All the worldwide Sri Chaitanya Saraswat Math ki jay.
Harinam sankirtan ki jay.
Nitai Gaura premanande Hari bol

I am very happy to see you all, to see all your very nice faces; and I am very happy that you are practising properly, making festivals and bringing so many sannyasis for preaching. You are continuing all the programmes. This is our life.

Actually, our main priority is to practise under the guidance of our guru, and you are doing that, that is why I am very happy with you all. If somebody visits all holy places, practises all sixty-four bhatyanga (limbs of devotion), practises austerities (tapasya) and meditation (dhyana), chants on the beads (japa), and does everything else, if they do not do it under the guidance of a guru, then everything they do is nothing – it is not service to the Lord (Krishna-bhajan), it is service to Maya (Maya-bhajan). Therefore, the main thing is that we must practise under the guidance of a guru, under the guidance of great Vaishnavs – we must not follow our minds. This is the proper way to practise Krishna consciousness.

I can have some expectation from the disciples. What do I expect? I expect they will serve properly, chant properly and serve Vaishnavs. The problem is that everybody in this world wants to be a Vaishnav, but you cannot be a Vaishnav without service to a Vaishnav. So, I expect disciples to serve Vaishnavs, serve devotees, to listen properly to the class, kirtan, to practise properly, and I expect that they will not live their lives in their own way – they must continue their lives under the proper guidance of their guru (they must mould their lifestyle according to the guidance of their guru). It applies to everybody, regardless of whether they are householders, brahmacharis or even sannyasis. Those who follow their own minds cannot proceed in their spiritual life; only those who follow their guru's instruction can proceed in their spiritual life properly.

This is so because Maya Devi is very powerful. Getting her power from the Lord, Maya Devi always uses us for her service, and we always follow her naughty instruction. That is why we are suffering so much. Maya Devi takes us away from the Lord's service and uses for herself – she uses us in own service. That is why we always, twenty-four hours a day, think about our bodies, about our minds, about our elements, and so on. We waste our time. How many days are you going to live in this world? It is only one hundred years – it is very little time! There is no time to waste on nonsense.

We must understand properly how we must maintain our spiritual life. Among outsiders, 100% people do not understand these things, but we must approach them, distribute a book to them and speak to them. We must tell them again and again, many times. This is how you must live – practise and engage others in practising.

সাধুসঙ্গ, নামকীর্ত্তন, ভাগবতশ্রবণ ।
মথুরাবাস, শ্রীমূর্ত্তির শ্রদ্ধায় সেবন ॥

sadhu-sanga, nama-kirtana, bhagavata-sravana
mathura-vasa, sri-murtira sraddhaya sevana

'Associate with sadhus, chant the Holy Name of the Lord, listen to Srimad Bhagavatam, reside in Mathura and worship Deities with faith.'

(Sri Chaitanya-charitamrita, 2.22.124)

It is necessary to keep good association and practise sravan (listening about the Lord) and kirtan (chanting the Holy Name and glories of the Lord). 'Kirtana prabhave smarana haibe (কীর্ত্তন-প্রভাবে স্মরণ হইবে). Chanting (kirtan) arouses remembrance (smaran).' Through sravan and kirtan – through service to Vaishnavs, service to devotees, service to your guru – you can remember and keep Krishna in your heart; otherwise, it is impossible to do it.

— : • : —

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READ OTHER PARTS:

1) My Expectation
2) Empty Temple, Empty Heart
3) Fill Your Life and Others'
4) Meaning of Mercy