(2/7) Strive and Thrive

His Divine Grace Om Vishnupad
Srila Bhakti Nirmal Acharya Maharaj
Uluberia, 30 December 2019, noon, part 2
Translated from Bengali

We should be selfish and think about our selves (about our souls). If we want to come to the Lord – if we want to reach the domain of the Lord in Goloka Vrindavan – we must remember the service of the Lord and practise spiritual life from here.

You can think about your own families. When a girl marries and comes to live with her in-laws, she does not go straight to the kitchen and start cooking from her first day at the house. So, when you come to this line, you should learn to serve – learn to cook, worship the Deities, make garlands, learn how to please the Lord, and so on. When you come to Goloka Vrindavan, all the services are the same. Even chanting kirtan or giving a lecture is also service. Speaking Hari-katha is also service. When you go to Goloka Vrindavan, you should be prepared to do any service required of you. If you do not practise serving from here (if you do not learn to serve from here), then what will you do when you get there? Therefore, always think, 'How can I serve the Lord?' We must come to a bona fide guru, surrender to him and practise Krishna consciousness under his guidance.

You can find many kinds of guru in this world: kaulik gurus (ancestral teachers), laukik gurus (family teachers), karmi gurus (teachers of material gain), jnani gurus (teachers of knowledge), yogi gurus (teachers of mystic powers), and so on. But the number of genuine spiritual gurus is very small – such gurus come to this world through an established guru parampara within Sri Rupanuga current. This is the guru we should surrender to.

ষড়ঙ্গ শরণাগতি হইবে যাঁহার ।
তাঁহার প্রার্থনা শুনে শ্রীনন্দকুমার ॥

sad-anga saranagati haibe yanhara
tanhara prarthana sune sri-nanda-kumara

‘Lord Krishna hears the prayers of those who surrender in six ways.’

(Saranagati, Srila Bhaktivinod Thakur)

'Lord Krishna hears the prayers of those who surrender in six ways.' We should not live in a desultory way – we should follow the rules and regulations. 'Chhaya vega dami' chhaya dosa sodhi' (ছয় বেগ দমি' ছয় দোষ শোধি'). Please subjugate my six urges and rectify my six defects.' The six urges are the urge of anger, the urge of the tongue (cravings for food), the urge of the mind (the mind always goes here and there, it never sits still, and as the result we always get into all kinds of trouble), the urge of the stomach, the urge of the genitals and the urge of the speech. We must always keep ourselves away from all these urges. Always think, 'How can I practise Krishna consciousness? How can I get relief from all these urges that attack me?' I pray to you all that you may never leave Krishna consciousness and your spiritual practice. Instead, always think how you can practise Krishna consciousness. This is what we have come to advise you about, and this is what you all should know.

Take shelter at the holy lotus feet of a bona fide guru and chant the Holy Name of the Lord. In this Age of Kali, this is the only religion:

হরের্নাম হরের্নাম হরের্নামৈব কেবলম্ ।
কলৌ নাস্ত্যেব নাস্ত্যেব নাস্ত্যেব গতিরন্যথা ॥

harer nama harer nama harer namaiva kevalam
kalau nasty eva nasty eva nasty eva gatir anyatha

‘Chanting the Holy Name, chanting the Holy Name, chanting the Holy Name – there is no other way, no other way, no other way.’

(Sri Chaitanya-charitamrita, 1.7.76)

প্রভু কহে,—"কহিলাঙ এই মহামন্ত্র ।
ইহা জপ' গিয়া সবে করিয়া নির্ব্বন্ধ" ॥

prabhu kahe—kahilan ei maha-mantra
iha japa' giya sabe kariya nirbandha

'Always chant the Holy Name – there is no obstruction, no binding, you can chant this Holy Name at any time.'

ইহা হৈতে সর্ব্ব-সিদ্ধি হইবে সবার
সর্ব্বক্ষণ বল' ইথে বিধি নাহি আর

iha haite sarva-siddhi haibe sabara
sarva-ksana bala ithe vidhi nahi ara

'By doing this, you will attain success in all respects. There is no other rule but to chant it at every moment.'

(Sri Chaitanya-bhagavata, 2.23.77–78)

কি শয়নে, কি ভোজনে, কিবা জাগরণে ।
অহর্নিশ চিন্ত কৃষ্ণ, বলহ বদনে ॥

ki sayane, ki bhojane, kiba jagarane
aharnisa chinta krsna, balaha vadane

‘Whether you are sleeping, eating or waking up, incessantly think about Krishna and chant the Name of Krishna with your mouth.’

(Sri Chaitanya-bhagavata, 2.28.28)

What are the qualities of a Vaishnav? A Vaishnav is always humble, tolerant and always gives honour to others.

তৃণাদপি সুনীচেন তরোরিব সহিষ্ণুনা ।
অমানিনা মানদেন কীর্ত্তনীয়ঃ সদা হরিঃ ॥

trnad api sunichena taror iva sahisnuna
amanina manadena kirtaniyah sada harih

‘One who is humbler than a blade of grass, more tolerant than a tree and who gives honour to others without desiring it for themselves is qualified to always chant the Holy Name of Krishna.’

(Sri Chaitanya-charitamrita, 3.6.239)

We must become humbler than a blade of grass, more tolerant than a tree, and we must give honour to others. We must always remember this. Always have patience, always tolerate. Patience gives much result. Whatever you do, it is always necessary to have patience. Gurudev always said, 'Sahasa vidadhita na kriyam (সহসা বিদধীত ন ক্রিয়াম্). Do not do anything on the spur of the moment. Always wait and see.' Be patient and you will see that everything will come right. If you lose patience, you will not be able to attain anything. It is said about Srila Prabhupad also:

কুলিয়াতে পাষণ্ডীরা, অত্যাচার কৈল যা’রা,
তা সবার দোষ ক্ষমা করি’ ।
জগতে কৈলে ঘোষণা, ‘তরোরিব সহিষ্ণুনা’,
হন ‘কীর্ত্তনীয়ঃ সদা হরিঃ’ ॥

kuliyate pasandira, atyachara kaila ya’ra,
ta sabara dosa ksama kari’
jagate kaile ghosana, ‘taroriva sahisnuna’,
hana ‘kirtaniyah sada harih’

‘You [Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Saraswati Thakur Prabhupad] have forgiven the atheists from the Kulia village despite their atrocities and proclaimed to the whole world: one who is as tolerant as a tree can always chant the glories of the Lord.’

(Acharya Vandana)

We must be more tolerant than trees. You can see how much Prahlad Maharaj was harassed, but he tolerated everything. Learn from his example.

We do not have time. We are not as fortunate as Pariksit Maharaj who got a seven days' notice that he had to leave this world, or as Khatvanga Maharaj who got forty-eight minutes. When they heard that they had to die at a certain time in the nearest future, they did not waste time on other things – they focused their minds on the Lord. We must always remember their examples, we must never forget this. I pray to you all that you may forget all the external things and always try to practise Krishna consciousness, then you will get supreme benefit.

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Length: 36 min
Language: Bengali

READ OTHER PARTS:

1) Listen to Great Souls
2) Strive and Thrive
3) Immerse Yourself in Kirtan
4) Power of Pure Name
5) Control Your Heart
6) Primary Stumbling Block
7) Apply and Comply